“Cen Miao!” Qin Zelin called out to him.
“Hm? Husband~”
The man in the car had a cold expression, his tone serious. “What happened to your face? Did someone at school bully you?”
“Because… I ate this!” Cen Miao pulled out a large roasted sweet potato from the bag hanging on the handlebar of his scooter. “I even bought one for you too!”
His little face was dirty, with only his eyes shining brightly.
Qin Zelin: “……..”
He looked at the roasted sweet potato, glistening with caramelized sugar and sure to leave sticky residue all over his hands. He hadn’t wanted to take it at first, but he was worried that if he didn’t, the little monster would feel upset.
“…Thank you.”
The bodyguard in the passenger seat tactfully got out of the car. “It’s cold outside, Madam. Please get in the car to warm up. I’ll ride your scooter back for you.”
“I’m not cold,” Cen Miao said, pulling out another roasted sweet potato. “Big brother, this one is for you. It’s really delicious.”
Qin Zelin: “…….”
“I… I get one too?” The bodyguard’s heart practically melted. He held the sweet potato with a silly grin, not minding at all that it might dirty his clothes, and carefully tucked it into the large pocket of his down jacket.
“There’s also one for Brother Xiao Liu.”
“Ah, thank you, Madam!”
Watching as he took out one sweet potato after another, Qin Zelin: “…….”
A wandering distributor of sweet potatoes?
Qin Zelin lowered his gaze to the one in his hand. Comparing them, the corner of his lips curved ever so slightly.
The little monster was quite perceptive—he knew to pick the biggest one for him.
It was just… something this big and sugary—probably an hour of cardio wouldn’t be enough to burn it off.
Under the bodyguard’s persistent urging, Cen Miao finally got into the car.
Meanwhile, his small electric scooter looked noticeably lower under the bodyguard, who was also around 190 cm tall and weighed about the same.
Cen Miao glanced through the car window and felt like the scooter had shrunk, as if it were about to be crushed.
“…….” It might break.
After returning home, Cen Miao began distributing sweet potatoes again. Except for Auntie Wang, who was busy preparing dinner in the kitchen, everyone—from the maids to the gardeners and bodyguards—received one. Everyone was cheerful, and the whole villa became lively.
After changing into his home clothes, Qin Zelin came downstairs and was about to head to the dining room when he saw Cen Miao sneakily carrying an especially large sweet potato into the kitchen.
“……..” It was much bigger than the one he had been given.
In the kitchen—
Cen Miao held up the sweet potato like a treasure offering. “Auntie Wang, this biggest one—I saved it especially for you!!!”
“Oh my, look at you, your little face is all dirty. Why did you leave the biggest one for me?” Auntie Wang smiled as she reached out to wipe his face.
“Because Auntie Wang is the best. You make delicious food for me,” Cen Miao said with a sweet smile.
“Oh my, then once the braised ribs are ready, you must eat more, alright?”
At the mention of meat, Cen Miao nodded vigorously. “Mm, I’ll eat lots!”
Qin Zelin paused in his steps: ………..?
Heh. He was the one who paid for the ingredients, hired Auntie Wang, and even gave him the allowance card—so why had the little monster never said that he was the best?
After dinner, Cen Miao sat on the sofa eating fruit and watching TV. Qin Zelin went to the study to handle some work, then changed into workout clothes and went to “repay his debt.”
After running for only half an hour, his private phone screen lit up a few times. He slowed the treadmill and picked it up to check. It was Meng Yu, who had sent the location of a gathering in their group chat, followed by a message: “Anyone who doesn’t come is a dog.”
Only then did he remember that a few days ago, Meng Yu had said he had returned to the country and had already set a date to meet.
But with his grandfather’s illness and the wedding, there had been too many things going on, and he had completely forgotten.
After all, they had grown up together. Since Meng Yu had only just returned after so long, he should go no matter what.
Not that he cared about the “dog” comment.
Qin Zelin clicked his tongue and turned off the treadmill.
He would just add another half hour of cardio tomorrow morning…
When Qin Zelin entered the private room at the club, the others had already been there for quite a while.
“Zelin gege~~ why are you so late? Did you miss me?” Meng Yu sat on the sofa, speaking in a deliberately coquettish voice while throwing him a flirtatious glance.
Qin Zelin felt disgusted and frowned as he sat down.
“Why are you being so cold, gege? You’re ignoring me~”
“Meng Third, did you get a gender reassignment surgery while you were abroad?”
“And you figured it out! It’s because I love you so much I can’t help myself~” Meng Yu grinned at Qin Zelin’s disgusted expression.
“You’re too late! Your Zelin gege is already married,” Shao Siheng said, taking a sip of his drink, clearly ready to watch the drama unfold.
“What?” Qin Zexi put down his glass, his face full of disbelief.
Xu Xiao and Lin Jingcheng also looked over at the same time, wearing identical expressions.
After all, based on everything they had known about him growing up, he had lived like a monk who had severed all emotional ties. His eyes had only ever been on work.
They had never seen someone so obsessed with work.
“Married???” Meng Yu suddenly sat upright, his flirtatious expression disappearing as he forgot to affect his voice. “Even a machine-like humanoid like you has someone who likes you?”
Qin Zelin: “…….”
“Get lost. That’s called self-discipline.”
“Oh right, what about that person who chased you for years but failed and went abroad heartbroken? Won’t they be furious if they find out?” Xu Xiao raised a brow, his tone teasing.
Qin Zelin frowned, as if recalling something unpleasant. “I’m not planning to make the marriage public. It’s enough that you all know.”
All night, they probed both directly and indirectly, trying to dig out some gossip, but they still couldn’t get anything from Qin Zelin.
Near the end, just as Qin Zelin stood up to go to the restroom, Lin Jingcheng beat him to it.
“Let’s use the restroom outside together,” Shao Siheng said, also standing up.
In the restroom, Shao Siheng leaned against the sink with his arms crossed, a playful expression on his face. “I didn’t get the chance to ask last time—how’s married life? Happy?”
After washing his hands, Qin Zelin slowly took out a handkerchief and dried them.
After a moment, he sighed, a hint of helplessness in his tone. “It’s a contract marriage. You know my grandfather’s condition. He said if I didn’t get married, he wouldn’t be able to rest in peace even after death. What else could I do?”
“Don’t tell the others. Qin Zexi and Meng Third have mouths like loudspeakers.”
“Wait, didn’t you two already… you know?” Shao Siheng lowered his voice.
Qin Zelin fell silent for two seconds. “…He watched some random nonsense and learned it blindly.”
Upon hearing that, Shao Siheng dropped his arms, instantly losing all interest in watching the drama. Instead, he felt like something was stuck in his throat, like he was sitting on pins and needles…
What was this supposed to be? Somehow, he had inexplicably become a double agent?
As expected of grandfather and grandson.
One deceived the other, and vice versa.
Honey—…
Pfft.
In the end, he was the one suffering.
If the old man in the hospital, who was pretending to be ill, found out, he might actually get so angry that he would become truly sick.
“Aren’t… aren’t you afraid your grandfather will find out?” Shao Siheng asked, speechless.
“If you don’t say anything, he won’t find out.”
Shao Siheng: “…….”
“Do I owe your Qin family something?”
Qin Zelin sneered. “Aren’t you basically our family’s long-term worker?”
Shao Siheng: “……..”
Only after their footsteps faded away did the door of one of the restroom stalls slowly open.
On the third floor of the villa, Cen Miao was completely immersed in the world of short videos.
His search: How a little zombie can disguise itself as a human wife without being discovered.
What the algorithm delivered: How to make a man unable to resist you.