“Yeah, a wealthy young master so poor he needs to sell photos to make money.”
Xiao Changyan tugged at the corner of his mouth, feeling like he never wanted to hear the words “wealthy family” again lately—he was already traumatized.
“…” Cao Ziming finally turned his head awkwardly, blinking his eyes as he silently questioned Shen Jiaren.
Shen Jiaren held her milk tea and laughed, shaking her head in a way that made her look even more charming and adorable.
“Ziming-ge, although I’d love to be a wealthy heiress, I’m not~! We’re just ordinary people~!”
She only acted this spoiled and unrestrained when she was with her brother and Cao Ziming. Cao Ziming treated her like his own younger sister, so when Shen Jiaren said they weren’t wealthy, he had no choice but to believe her, looking genuinely disappointed.
“Ah! If only it were true. If Changyan really were a wealthy young master, the price of his photos could go up even more. Last night, someone posted a video of your brother getting into a Maserati in the group chat, along with high-definition photos of him walking the red carpet. The school group exploded, and the teachers couldn’t even ban accounts fast enough.”
Cao Ziming was referring to the large group chat for their high school grade. Usually, all the students lurked there, and although the administrators were school teachers, they weren’t often active.
“Last night, so many people added my alt account to buy your brother’s photos—I made this much!”
Holding up a finger, Cao Ziming looked smug.
“A thousand?”
Shen Jiaren also sold photos of her brother. Coincidentally, all the high schools in Jinghai City had jointly created an online student forum called the [Jinghai High School Student Forum]. In Xiao Changyan’s first year, he gave a speech as a representative of the new students, and as soon as it was posted on the forum, it went viral.
At the time, he was hailed as the top “unattainable flower” among all high schools in Jinghai City. A single photo of him in his school uniform giving the speech racked up over a million views, setting the forum on fire. Talent scouts even came to the school to recruit him, but he turned them down.
Thousands of comments flooded in, asking for Xiao Changyan’s personal information—it was that intense.
Many people posted saying they were willing to pay for daily photos of Xiao Changyan. Although it sounded a bit like stalking, it was enough to show that his looks were worth spending money to treasure.
Originally, Xiao Changyan hadn’t planned to make money this way. Several talent scouts had come multiple times, but his parents forbade him from entering the entertainment industry, let alone engaging in such “selling of male charm.”
But Cao Ziming’s father was suddenly diagnosed with mid-stage stomach cancer. Cao’s father was the family’s pillar, and Cao’s mother only earned four thousand yuan a month. Supporting their son while paying for her husband’s treatment was truly difficult. Xiao Guanyun and Shen Zhaoyue even lent the Cao family one hundred thousand yuan.
Unfortunately, for stomach cancer, that amount was a drop in the bucket. Stable long-term treatment was still needed. After discussing it with Shen Jiaren, Xiao Changyan suggested Cao Ziming try selling his photos for money.
At least Cao Ziming’s monthly living expenses wouldn’t be a burden on his mother anymore.
In reality, the two of them had secretly agreed to buy the photos back later.
At the time, Cao Ziming was so depressed about his father’s illness that he wanted to drop out and work. After being persuaded by Xiao Changyan and Shen Jiaren, he seriously took out his phone and started taking daily photos of Xiao Changyan. Unexpectedly, when he posted them on the forum, they really took off!
Over the past year or so, Cao Ziming had been taking candid photos of Xiao Changyan to sell to classmates on the forum, earning a few thousand yuan each month to help ease the financial burden at home.
His photography skills improved day by day, and he even learned photo editing and how to make small cards. Moreover, his public identity was that of Xiao Changyan's good friend, and he claimed that selling Xiao Changyan's photos was authorized to raise money for his father's medical treatment. This made many girls and boys willing to support him.
Helping a classmate's father with medical expenses while getting handsome photos of the school heartthrob—what was there not to like?
Cao Ziming even expanded into photography work. Sometimes, when male or female classmates or the school itself organized events, they would invite Cao Ziming to shoot videos, which was another way he contributed.
Nowadays, he earned over ten thousand yuan each month. He gave Changyan twenty percent of the earnings, but Changyan refused to take more. Cao Ziming knew his friend was looking out for him and didn’t stand on ceremony.
"Ten thousand yuan!!! Just from last night alone, we made ten thousand yuan!"
Cao Ziming grinned, his fair, chubby face beaming, his eyes narrowing into slits—the very picture of a money lover.
This left Shen Jiaren stunned.
"That much? My brother's photos are only ten yuan each!"
It wasn't like he was some big celebrity, and since Cao Ziming's photo-selling was to help with his father's illness, the school turned a blind eye. But selling over ten thousand yuan worth of photos in one go—what was that about?
"Exactly. Even though your brother's photos are cheap at ten yuan each, there are so many buyers! Last night, so many people added me as a friend, and over three hundred orders were placed directly on my Weidian store. Many of them bought all your brother's photos in bulk, dozens at a time. My mom didn't even cook this morning—she's been busy packing orders."
Cao Ziming had opened a Weidian store, mainly selling small cards. Each order included not only digital photos of Xiao Changyan but also a small card. Ten yuan was a small price to pay—no loss, no scam—and it felt like donating to a classmate in need.
"Then why aren't you back helping?" Xiao Changyan asked with a frown, thinking of how Cao's mother was shouldering everything at home and feeling a bit concerned.
Cao Ziming chuckled.
"I just wanted to catch up on the gossip! I've never seen anything like last night in my life—a Maserati! Classmates in the group said it cost over ten million! I can't even imagine what ten million yuan looks like~"
He felt grateful to the Xiao siblings. He knew Changyan truly saw him as a brother. Back when he was struggling with his father's illness and saw his mother exhausted to the point of falling sick, he had seriously considered dropping out to work. Overhearing his parents talk about selling the house, he felt heartbroken at the thought of never seeing Changyan and Jiaren again.
Later, somehow, the siblings had guided him into photography. Now, he could bring home over ten thousand yuan each month, his father's illness was no longer a worry, and his mother could switch to a less demanding job. Cao Ziming regarded the Xiao siblings as family.
"Honestly, a lot of classmates say you're definitely going to transfer schools. If I hadn't grown up with you, I'd probably believe it too."
His fair, chubby face broke into a cheerful smile, though in truth, he had come early to have breakfast with the siblings because he was worried—afraid that Xiao Changyan might actually transfer and leave.
"…" Xiao Changyan glanced at him, seeing the concern hidden behind Cao Ziming's smiling face, and finally said.
"I won't transfer."
After making his promise, he finally looked seriously at his only good friend, not hiding the family matters.
"The car that picked me up yesterday wasn't from my family—it belonged to my dad's girlfriend. My dad and mom are already divorced, and my dad is going to marry Aunt Zhuge."
…
Cao Ziming listened dumbfounded to this shocking news, taking a while to react, even stammering.
"Y-your dad's girlfriend?"
His slightly chubby face wore a somewhat comical expression.
"…Wait, no! When did Uncle and Auntie get divorced? Weren't they always very loving?"
In the eyes of the Cao family, Xiao Guanyun and Shen Zhaoyue were like a perfect match—a golden couple, naturally suited for each other. Their two children were also beautiful and well-liked. When Xiao Guanyun and Shen Zhaoyue weren't home during their childhood, Cao's mother would take Xiao Changyan and Shen Jiaren home to look after them.
They were neighbors, but after Cao's father's illness appeared, Cao's mother stopped letting the Xiao family visit, afraid they might catch the sickness.
"They were very loving, which is why they wanted to support each other's dreams."
Seeing how shocked Cao Ziming was, Xiao Changyan actually felt less upset himself. He took a sip of his milk tea, then finished the cup.
Cao Ziming was truly stunned. Although he didn't quite understand what Xiao Changyan meant, having uncovered such a big piece of gossip, he finally managed to compose his expression. Only then did he notice that the siblings in front of him didn't seem sad, so he cautiously asked.
"Um… did you two know about Uncle and Auntie's divorce? Do you accept them remarrying?"
Cao's father and mother had an extremely good relationship, with Cao Ziming as their only child. He had never imagined his parents divorcing and starting new families—just thinking about it made him uncomfortable and hard to accept.
"Yeah, we know. As long as he's happy."
Xiao Changyan had already decided to support his father's dream, and Shen Jiaren nodded as well.
"My mom knows about this too, and she fully supports Dad."
"…"
Now Cao Ziming didn't know what to say. All the comforting words he had prepared earlier seemed hard to voice, so he finally blurted out:
"Then why would Auntie agree?"
Shen Jiaren tilted her head, resting her chin on her hand casually.
"Probably because Aunt Zhuge is giving my mom a villa in Jinghai City? And twenty million in cash?"
???
"There's such a good deal?"
Cao Ziming blurted out these words, then, feeling his good friend's mocking gaze, quickly covered his mouth and shook his head, muttering:
"I-I was just joking, just joking."
"But Uncle is so handsome, with such a great figure—it's normal for a rich woman to take a liking to him. Ordinary people would envy that kind of luck…"
His voice trailed off. Xiao Changyan suddenly stood up, coldly saying:
"I'm going to buy some test papers."
He seemed genuinely angry, heading toward the door. His retreating figure startled Cao Ziming, who quickly stood up to chase after him. Shen Jiaren, holding her milk tea, followed along and whispered to Cao Ziming:
"Ziming, don't talk about this anymore. My brother still can't accept the fact that our dad is marrying into a wealthy family. If you mention it, he'll get even angrier."
…Was it me who brought it up?
I'm wronged! It was Changyan who first mentioned Uncle marrying a rich woman!
Cao Ziming felt terribly wronged, not daring to say anything more, and pulled Shen Jiaren along to chase after Xiao Changyan.
Xiao Changyan, now fifteen years old, was already 180 cm tall. With his long legs striding ahead at a furious pace, the chubby Cao Ziming had to jog behind, pulling Shen Jiaren along, afraid of falling behind.
They were heading to the bookstore near the school to buy test papers. Xiao Changyan had gone through quite a few papers last night, and the ones at home were running low, so they needed to restock.
One of the three walked ahead with his head down, while the other two jogged to keep up. Eventually, Cao Ziming was panting heavily, and from initially pulling Shen Jiaren, he ended up being pulled by her instead. Neither of them paid attention as they hurried forward, only to crash right into Xiao Changyan’s back.
Xiao Changyan, who was walking ahead, suddenly stopped. Cao Ziming bumped his forehead painfully and couldn’t help but complain while rubbing it.
"Changyan, why did you stop? Are we at the bookstore?"
He remembered they had to cross this street. Shen Jiaren also bumped into her brother and, after stopping, tilted her head to look at him.
"Brother?"
She called out softly, but as her head tilted, she caught sight of a familiar luxury car—a red Maserati.
Xiao Changyan had memorized the license plate of this Maserati at a glance yesterday. This Maserati parked by the roadside was unmistakably Aunt Zhuge’s car. At the moment, he couldn’t make out who was inside, wondering whether he should take the initiative to greet them, feeling somewhat conflicted.
But the next second, a long-haired boy wearing a V-neck black sweater stepped out of the red Maserati. His long hair was tied into a small bun at the back, revealing a youthful and fair face, with a black diamond earring sparkling in the sunlight.
At this moment, the boy walked toward Xiao Changyan with an angry expression. He had sneaked out without telling his sister, let alone his mother. Last night, he had been so furious with his mother that he couldn’t sleep, and then a friend suddenly sent him a video asking if the Maserati in it belonged to the Zhuge family.
Zhuge Ming immediately recognized it as his mother’s car! Instantly, he thought of that scoundrel who had seduced his mother! And now he wanted to marry her!
As soon as he saw Xiao Changyan’s face—which indeed had the looks to seduce women—he was already so enraged that he lost all reason. Early in the morning, he had his driver take him to Diyi Shiyan Gaozhong to wander around, never expecting to actually stumble upon the scoundrel who had seduced his mother!
The other party was actually a high school student! Around the same age as him—how could he be so shameless!!
Zhuge Ming was completely overwhelmed by anger, not even considering how a fifteen-year-old boy could possibly get married.
So he stormed over and, before Xiao Changyan could even figure out who he was, angrily shouted:
"So you’re the pretty boy who seduced my mom? And made her agree to marry you? Let me tell you! I’ll never call you stepdad! Just give up!!"
Xiao Changyan was stunned by the outburst, staring blankly at the boy in front of him, uncertainly pointing at himself.
"Huh? Me?"
Author’s Note:
See you tomorrow! I had something to do today, so the update was late! I’ll update tomorrow afternoon! There are red envelopes for comments on the new story!!