Cheng Yu had arrived.
Yun Fan quickly recalled that this young master, whose clothes were disheveled and who was now staring at the cup in his hand like a husky, was Wen Zhaofu’s half-brother on his father’s side.
Wen Zhaofu’s father, Wen Qichang, was currently the chairman of the Wen Group’s board of directors. He held the position but essentially did nothing. Just as he bore the title of Wen Zhaofu’s father in name only, he had never once been a good father to Wen Zhaofu.
“Big brother, I’m so mad!” Wen Haochen slumped dejectedly over the table. “They swindled my money and even hit me.”
Wen Zhaofu glanced at him, looking rather helpless. Zu Zu simply sipped her own tea, not getting involved in the brothers’ affairs in the slightest.
This was even less Yun Fan’s concern. He stirred his cup with the small spoon, then gently lifted the little cup adorned with auspicious cloud patterns and took a delicate sip.
Instantly, the fragrance of tea, the creaminess of milk, and the flavor of coffee merged together, sliding from the tip of his tongue deep into his throat.
“Chairman Chen already told me about it.” Wen Zhaofu glanced distractedly at Yun Fan, and seeing him take several consecutive sips of the milk tea, withdrew his gaze. “If Father won’t deal with it, you can come to me. Why would you go brawling with classmates? Luckily it was just a fight with schoolmates if it had been outsiders.”
“Father is always like this!” Wen Haochen said angrily. “So I just went and handled it myself.”
Wen Zhaofu called Shi Ning, and before long, Yun Fan saw the small-eyed doctor again. Doctor Shi deftly treated Wen Haochen’s wounds, applying pressure with considerable force. Listening to Wen Haochen’s hissing and whimpering, Zu Zu laughed, and Wen Zhaofu’s expression softened slightly.
It turned out Wen Haochen had been scammed while buying caviar he’d been told it came from twelve-year-old carp, but when it arrived, it turned out to be synthetic.
Wen Zhaofu leaned back slightly, clasping his hands in front of his abdomen. “How much?”
“Three thousand six hundred per gram.” Wen Haochen answered quietly from where he sat on the sofa.
Yun Fan, hearing this, thought that a wealthy family like this should be able to absorb such a loss.
“What currency?” Wen Zhaofu sat up straight, fixing his gaze on Wen Haochen.
The moment he was seen through, Wen Haochen shrank back, his voice trembling. “P-Pounds sterling. I didn’t think it tasted that great, so I only bought ten grams.”
The air froze. Even Zu Zu, who had been sipping her milk tea, looked up and stared at Wen Haochen with a serious expression.
Good grief just because you have money doesn’t mean you throw it around! The small spoon in Yun Fan’s hand clattered against the bottom of the cup.
At the height of the tension, a heavy iron box suddenly appeared at Yun Fan’s left. He looked closely, it was Doctor Shi who had handed it over.
Doctor Shi gave a slight tilt of his chin, and Yun Fan understood. He passed it to Wen Zhaofu on his right.
Wen Zhaofu, who had been rapidly organizing his words to deliver a stern lecture to Wen Haochen, froze at the sight of the iron box. He looked at the fair-skinned hand, then instinctively took it.
When Wen Haochen’s eyes went wide, watching his own brother personally hurl the iron box at him, he was too shocked to speak.
He caught the box solidly with his shoulder, and with a sharp clatter, it fell to the floor yet it didn’t burst open.
Yun Fan was intensely curious. Doctor Shi spoke up on his own: “There are small stones inside. The box is glued shut. I keep it for self-defense.”
“Waaah ” Wen Haochen, a grown man of twenty-two, burst into tears and buried his head in Zu Zu’s arms.
In the past, Wen Zhaofu had always been one to use words, not force holding to that gentlemanly code, persuading with reason. How had he turned into a man of violence today?
The physical pain was secondary; it was the psychological gap that the young master couldn’t accept.
Wen Zhaofu couldn’t explain his own actions either. Under Grandmother’s gaze, he rubbed his hands together and said lightly, “He deserved it long ago.”
“I think so too,” Dr. Shi added.
“Waah you’re all bullying me!” Wen Haochen scrambled to his feet, wiped his tears in frustration, and stormed out.
Yun Fan stared blankly at Wen Haochen’s retreating figure, momentarily unable to snap out of it. Grandmother looked at him with some apology: “Little Yun, don’t laugh at us.”
“Not at all, not at all,” Yun Fan quickly responded.
He wouldn’t dare casually comment on the affairs of a wealthy household. He’d had that professional integrity since the very start of his career.
A brief silence served as halftime. Grandmother looked at Yun Fan and slowly spoke: “I’ll give you a piece of land, and you can choose the location.”
Yun Fan’s eyes lit up, and his body unconsciously straightened a flicker of excitement that Wen Zhaofu didn’t miss.
“But,” Grandmother shifted her tone, continuing, “you need to work here for a year.”
“That’s fine!” Yun Fan agreed readily.
Wen Zhaofu continued to observe Yun Fan without changing his expression, his thumb stroking the armrest of his wheelchair. If Grandmother said a year, he couldn’t raise any objections.
But a year… wasn’t that a bit short?
Yun Fan was calculating in his mind land falling from the sky! He could really go home and farm! It was only a year, right? When it was over, he’d take his severance pay and happily run off.
Grandmother wanted him and the old steward to keep each other in check he understood that logic well enough. But he’d just coast through.
Coast, coast, and the year would pass.
Grandmother smiled and said she was going to sleep. Yun Fan followed Wen Zhaofu to see Dr. Shi off, then they returned together to Langyun Terrace.
The next morning, when the old steward saw Yun Fan, he pulled him into a corner and whispered, “Last night, when you saw the Madam, what did you do?”
Yun Fan thought for a moment and decided to save Wen Haochen some face, omitting the part about him getting hit: “I tasted the yuanyang milk tea that Mr. Zhaofu made together with Grandmother.”
Hearing this answer, the old steward immediately bristled: “What are you saying! Not a shred of respect! How could you address the Madam that way, and how could you ”
The exclamation was so shrill that Yun Fan frowned: “Steward Cheng, if you raise your voice any louder, Mr. Zhaofu will be summoned right out here.”
The old steward quickly covered his mouth, shot Yun Fan a glare, and hurried away.
Per the old steward’s instructions, Yun Fan was supposed to go wake Wen Zhaofu. How exactly to do it, he hadn’t specified. So Yun Fan knocked on the door of Wen Zhaofu’s bedroom and pressed his ear against the door, listening carefully.
Before long, Yun Fan heard a “click” sound, and Wen Zhaofu’s voice came from inside: “Little Yun, come in.”
Yun Fan was still pleased with himself for successfully waking Wen Zhaofu, unaware that this was the first time Wen Zhaofu had ever let anyone enter his bedroom in the morning.
In the past, the old steward would just knock on the door from the hallway, and he’d wheel himself downstairs for breakfast.
Wen Zhaofu was truly busy. When Yun Fan entered, he saw him sitting at the desk reading documents.
“Good morning, sir,” Yun Fan put on a smile.
Wen Zhaofu glanced out the window the sun wasn’t out, but Yun Fan’s voice and demeanor made him feel as though a beam of light had pierced through the morning birdsong, rousing his senses.
“Did you sleep well last night?” Wen Zhaofu snapped back to attention, his gaze shifting to the tablet.
Yun Fan nodded. “Very good. The mattress is neither too soft nor too hard.”
“That’s good.” Wen Zhaofu cleared his throat, paused for a moment, then said, “Cheng Yu is coming over tonight. His meal, ”
At this point, Wen Zhaofu leaned back slightly and pinched the bridge of his nose. “Go to the kitchen and discuss it with Uncle Man. I’ll be hosting him for dinner tonight.”
“Okay!” Yun Fan replied cheerfully.
He loved going to the kitchen. So far, the workload at this wealthy household was barely a fraction of what he’d had before, and he was adjusting well.
Wen Zhaofu didn’t know what he was so happy about, but just hearing his voice made the corners of his mouth curl upward.
Yun Fan was about to leave when he turned back at the door and asked, “Um, sir, would you like me to help you change?”
At the moment, Wen Zhaofu was still in his loungewear. His hair wasn’t messy, but it lacked the sharpness it had during the day.
“No need.” Wen Zhaofu said softly.
Yun Fan thought it was because they weren’t familiar enough yet and he felt embarrassed, so he insisted, “It’s fine. We’re both men.”
Wen Zhaofu’s smile deepened. “Go on, get to work.”
“Alright.” Yun Fan tilted his head and waved at Wen Zhaofu.
Wen Zhaofu thought to himself, Not yet. I’m afraid I might scare you.
Yun Fan found the chef, Uncle Man, in the kitchen.
The kitchen in this wealthy household was truly something else, it was as big as the apartment he used to share with roommates.
Everything was spotless and gleaming. Cookware he’d only ever seen on food blogger channels was all here.
Uncle Man was scratching his head when he saw Yun Fan walk in, and he forced a strained smile.
Yun Fan thought to himself that this young master arriving from Shanghai must be quite particular, for there to be more to the story.
“Every time Young Master Cheng comes, I lose a handful of hair,” Uncle Man lamented. “But this time he didn’t have any special requests just said he wanted to eat crab.”
“I’m planning to make crispy fried crab claws crispy on the outside, tender crab meat on the inside. It’s labor-intensive, but it suits Young Master Cheng perfectly.”
Uncle Man rubbed his hands together with confidence, and Yun Fan quickly sucked in a breath. “Sounds delicious just hearing about it!”
This new young butler was not only good-looking but also seemed sharp and clever he immediately won Uncle Man’s favor.
“Then come by at three in the afternoon to taste-test!”
Yun Fan’s eyes lit up instantly, and he clasped his hands in a salute. “Thank you, Uncle Man!”
Encouraged by Yun Fan’s enthusiasm, Uncle Man threw himself into cooking a full table of dishes.
By evening, Cheng Yu arrived in Wen Zhaofu’s car.
Yun Fan and the old butler waited at the door and watched as a handsome young man stepped out of the car with long, confident strides.
Cheng Yu wore a well-tailored suit and a pair of gold-rimmed glasses. The sharp lines of his profile matched his overall demeanor.
Yun Fan marveled inwardly truly an elite, indeed.
Just as Yun Fan was about to deliver his welcome speech, a loud “meow” came from the blue bag Cheng Yu was carrying.