Chapter 7: Wealthy Revelations and Playful Teasing

“I’m completely rethinking my understanding of your family’s wealth now, you dog.”

Zhong Tian slipped on his slippers and settled onto the sofa, his legs swinging idly.

Behind him stretched the boundless ocean, visible, of course, through a massive glass panel.

Glancing around, Zhong Tian noticed numerous high-tech gadgets he couldn’t even name.

That enormous, ultra-thin television, for instance, was a world apart from the dilapidated box he had at home.

“It’s alright, I suppose…” Li Jianren mumbled, tossing a can of cola to Zhong Tian.

“Ha… ‘alright’?” Zhong Tian caught it, swiftly opened it, and took a long swig.

“You call this ‘alright’? By comparison, my place must be refugee-level!”

“Emm… I can’t quite think of the right words at the moment…” Li Jianren shrugged.

“Keep being so modest, and I might just have to hit you.”

“Then I have nothing more to say; it’s my dad who’s rich, anyway… not me.”

“Wow… your dad’s isn’t yours?”

“It’s different… Using my dad’s money isn’t as satisfying as using what I’ve earned myself.”

“Brother, to think you possess such enlightenment! I truly apologize for never treating you as human before.” Zhong Tian clapped Li Jianren on the shoulder.

“Wow, I’ve raised you for nothing, you dog-son! So you always thought your dad was such a slacker?” Li Jianren exclaimed, looking utterly indignant, as if he were about to beat his chest.

“What else was I supposed to think…? You’re always so lackadaisical.”

“Well, at least I’m discreet, aren’t I? You’re only just finding out about my family background now.”

“That’s true enough…” Zhong Tian set his cola down on the glass tabletop.

“Enough chatter, take me to your room quickly; I need to change.”

“Oh, right.”

****

“Potatoes… cabbage… wait, did I forget to buy meat? Hmm… I should have some at home.” The Woman set two bags of vegetables aside, took out her keys, and unlocked the front door.

“It’s rare for me to cook, so I’ll call him later and tell him to come home for dinner.”

As the Woman picked up the plastic bags, her peripheral vision caught sight of two pairs of shoes.

“Hmm? Are they already back…? Wait a minute…?”

She lifted her hair in slight confusion, then bent down to examine the pair of round-toed shoes.

“Only size 37… Ah~”

A faint smile curved her lips, and her beautiful eyes instantly sparkled with amusement.

****

“You foolish dog… your computer… isn’t it a bit over the top?”

“I don’t think so…”

Li Jianren’s computer host, setting aside its top-tier specifications, was already outrageously designed in appearance alone.

It was further adorned with a lethal amount of LED lights, so much so that one could imagine the room transforming into a dazzling nightclub the moment the main unit was powered on after the lights were off.

All of this… was money, pure and simple.

The saying, ‘a hundred-thousand budget: forty thousand for the host, sixty thousand for electricity bills,’ truly referred to this kind of monstrosity.

“Your conservative estimate… must be around forty thousand, right?” Zhong Tian asked, sporting a bewildered expression (TL Note: A Chinese slang term, ‘dìtiě lǎorén shǒujī liǎn,’ referring to the expression of an old person looking at their phone on the subway, conveying shock, exasperation, or confusion.)

“…Roughly,” Li Jianren admitted.

“…Didn’t you just say it felt more satisfying to use money you earned yourself? So what is this, a nationally renowned display of hypocrisy?”

“I’m just using my dad’s for now,” Li Jianren chuckled.

“I’ll pay him back later.”

“Alright, alright, enough talk. Clothes.”

“Oh, wait a sec.” Li Jianren opened his wardrobe and rummaged through it.

“…Seriously, your wardrobe is an eyesore…” Zhong Tian muttered, looking at the chaotic mess within.

“It’s so bad, I almost want to tidy it up for you myself…”

“Thanks for the thought,” Li Jianren said, pulling out a set of shorts and a t-shirt and tossing them onto the bed.

“These are two-year-old clothes; try them on.”

“Alright.” Zhong Tian picked up the clothes and glanced at Li Jianren.

“You go out first.”

“Wow, so you’re going to be all secretive just to change clothes?” Li Jianren shrugged.

“It’s not like I haven’t seen you before.”

“It’s for the sake of your mental and physical well-being, and my own personal safety!” Zhong Tian sat on the edge of the bed, clutching the clothes and waving his hand.

“Out, out!”

“Brother,” Li Jianren placed a hand on Zhong Tian’s shoulder.

“That’s not right, you know. You’re actually questioning your brother’s sexual orientation and character! Just change here!”

“No way! You’re practically drooling!” Zhong Tian exclaimed, recoiling onto the bed with the clothes, his face a picture of disgust.

“Damn it, why are there homos everywhere?”

He knew his brother well; Li Jianren’s sexual orientation was distinctly female, but he purposefully engaged in this ‘faking-gay’ act purely to gross him out.

Still, even knowing it was just Li Jianren being playful, his actions and expressions were genuinely off-putting.

“What drool? Don’t you go slandering my good name out of thin air!” Li Jianren wagged his index finger.

“You are a-a-a…”

“What exactly am I a-a-a-what, you infuriating person?!”

“Enough nonsense, let me see!”

“Damn, you meme-obsessed brat!”

“Who’s a meme-obsessed brat? Who are you calling a meme-obsessed brat? (He inhaled sharply) Who are you calling a meme-obsessed brat?!”

Li Jianren, looking like a fiend, reached out and started vigorously tickling Zhong Tian under the armpit.

“Hahahaha, okay, okay, okay, haha… Are you a child or something, huh, hahaha, stop, stop, stop, stop, hahaha, I give up, I give up, I give up, alright!”

“Call me ‘Dad’ and I’ll stop.”

“Haaah…” Zhong Tian’s handsome face flushed slightly as he collapsed onto the bed, breathing faintly.

He chuckled, cursing, “Call your sister ‘Dad’! Get lost, get lost, get lost!”

“Huh? Unconvinced? Fine, I, Li Jianren, specialize in curing all forms of insubordination.”

With that, Li Jianren’s hand once again moved towards Zhong Tian’s armpit.

*Click.*

The bedroom door opened.