Chapter 40
Since they were in a rural town, the news that Zhan Mu had opened a shop and was doing business spread to all his relatives in just half a day.
Then, Lu Chao saw something that made him laugh and cry.
In front of Zhan Mu's uncle's barber shop, under a huge parasol, his relatives and friends were sitting and launching a fierce condemnation against Zhan Mu's decision to open a shop.
Zhan Mu sat there woodenly, staring at them scrutinizingly.
His third father even took out his cell phone and called Zhan's mother. He put on an adult air and lectured Zhan Mu, saying, "I thought you were back, but you're still okay. You opened a shop. Where did you get the money? Did you steal it from your parents?"
As soon as these words came out, Zhan Mu wanted to curse, but since he was a relative, he had to shut up and said impatiently that it was not true, and he earned it by live streaming on the Internet.
Lu Chao, who had turned into a small fluid cube, listened silently.
Zhan Changjian drank his iced drink and kept his mouth shut. However, Zhan Changmei stared at him and added, "Our brother Zhan is rich and even bought an electronic doll, hahaha..."
Zhan Mu rolled his eyes at her and whispered, "None of your business."
The call went through, and Zhan Sanba said with a serious face, "Yes, hey, he didn't leave. He's still in town. Do you want me to take him back to Wanzhou? I have time."
"I'm not going back." Zhan Muteng stood up, suppressing his anger. He deliberately raised his voice and told his mother, "I can manage my own life. Besides, the money I used to open this store was earned by myself. You have no right to interfere with me."
"On your own? You're incredible, Zhan Mu." Zhan's mother immediately spoke in a harsh tone, saying, "Then how have you grown up over the years? Have we, as a family, treated you unfairly?"
Zhan San's father: "Listen to your mother and go back. Do you hear me?"
Zhan Mu immediately turned around and tried to leave, but he had taken just one step when his grandmother called him back. She was also full of anger and resentment, "Stop! I've noticed you're a recalcitrant kid. That's your mother's fault! Did she send you back to harm you? Can't you just keep those thousands of dollars to yourself? I'm telling you, doing business isn't that easy."
Zhan Mu was violently pulled by his breast. He looked at him with full of momentum and ferocity, full of accusations, and even his wrinkles showed the fierceness of wanting to suppress him.
"I'm not going to open a shop, and you're going to find me a job?" Zhan Mu raised his eyebrows, his face mocking, and looked at them with extremely cold eyes.
Grandma: "I'm asking you to help your mother open a braised food store."
Zhan Mu was about to speak when his mother's impatient voice came over the other end of the line, "Will he do it or not? I'm so rich I can open it whenever I say so? And as soon as he comes home he just lies around the house, looking at his phone and computer every day."
"I've already told you that I'm running my own media!" Zhan Mu was annoyed.
"You've made a lot of money, haven't you? Show it to me!" Zhan's mother yelled, "I don't want yours! Can you support yourself? Can you afford an RV? Don't you need any help from us for your wedding gifts or anything like that?"
"Have I asked you for money these past few days?" Zhan Mu almost scoffed, then twisted his lips and said, "Oh, it's all about money. Money, money, money, money, money. It's just that I'm not as rich as you guys."
"Do you have any?" Zhan's mother said: "No matter how rich you are, no matter how rich you are in the next day, it's none of my business! I won't take a penny from you!"
Zhan Mu uttered a curse word without making any sound.
Zhan Changmei and Zhan Changjian, brother and sister, saw this. The sister pouted and wiped the sweat off her face, while the brother lowered his head and continued to drink his drink.
"What's going on with that shop of yours?" his third father said earnestly, very kindly, "I'm telling you, business is really tough these days. Your third mother has gone out to work. I'm telling you straight, your shop will definitely fail within two weeks!"
Zhan Mu hummed, shook his head, waved to his third father, and smiled: "Yes, you are all right, then I will go back to guard my dead shop, bye~"
Perhaps his expression was too unruly, and his grandmother was displeased. She also shouted, "You are truly unteachable! I raised you to be your paw? Let's see how long you can last! You don't even listen to your mother. What kind of future do you have?!"
Zhan Mu put his hands in his pockets, looking nonchalant, but he still kicked a pebble on the roadside with resentment. His casual voice drifted over and said, "It is precisely because the younger generation doesn't listen to the older generation that society innovates and the times progress."
-
When he returned to his shop, it had been cleaned up and Lu Chao had also turned into a human. He looked at Zhan Mu with a look of pity and said softly, "I didn't expect that your living environment is so bad. How could you be like this..."
"It's perfectly normal. I'm not my third father's son." Zhan Mu frowned, his eyes dark and harsh, "Why would he want me to live a good life?"
"No, I mean your mom. She... she really doesn't support any of your life choices at all," Lu Chao said dryly. "My mom originally wanted me to be a doctor, but I said I didn't like it and wanted to be a diplomat. She explained the pros and cons to me, and seeing that I wasn't swayed, she chose to support me. After I graduated from high school, she even supported me in choosing a country I liked to travel to."
"If I tell my mother about your example." Zhan Mu smiled, then stood up and said, "I will imitate my mother with you and play her role."
Zhan Mu crossed his legs, his eyes provocative, with three parts of coldness and seven parts of sneer, and said: "Since you think other people's parents are so good, then go away! Go out, find your mother on the street, and ask her to raise you and provide for you!"
Lu Chao seemed speechless.
"No, no." Zhan Mu explained again, "I've repeatedly emphasized that our family is not poor, it's just that we feel poor in our hearts. My parents treat me very well in their own way, and they're not stingy with living expenses, but I just don't have a good relationship with them. It's very torturous and annoying. Whenever I'm with them, I become neurotic and irritable, like a psychopath."
"I didn't study hard in college. I just tried every way I could to make money. I did PPTs, school takeout, and even made funny videos..." Zhan Mu sighed and said, "I did make some money. The gaming equipment, cell phones, and computers you see here were all bought with my own hard work. I really think I've worked very hard."
"These past two years have been so difficult." Zhan Mu said tiredly, "I've become more and more convinced of fate, and I really don't have the energy to be sincere to anyone. I feel like there's no one in this world I can count on, including my parents. They probably don't want me to be out of their control either."
In fact, Zhan Mu likes to smoke, drink, sing karaoke and go to bars, but he does not indulge in this kind of happiness. Firstly, he spends money frugally after entering society, and secondly, he spends money wisely.
"Everyone has their own destiny. Don't disbelieve it." Zhan Mu covered his face and took a deep breath. Raising his eyes again, he became calm and resolute. He told Lu Chao, "But I always believe that as Heaven moves forward, a gentleman should constantly strive for self-improvement. From the bottom of my heart, I don't envy anyone. I just firmly do my own thing and I am only proud of my own achievements."
Lu Chao met his frivolous yet confident expression, looked away, coughed lightly, and replied, "Actually, the reason I sought you out in the first place was because... when you were a game leveling agent, you were very goal-oriented and efficient. You worked without dragging your feet, and your communication with people was efficient and simple, never wasting time. Most importantly—"
"What is it?" Zhan Mu looked at him with a hint of amusement.
"You're dismissive of me."
Lu Chao also smiled and replied, "I have a good way of judging people. I believe that people like you will keep their promises and will definitely live the life you have always dreamed of."
Zhan Mu rarely received flattery, so he smiled immediately. Everyone loves to hear nice words. He was in a good mood. He folded his hands behind his forehead and said, "The life before 30 is given by your parents, and the life after 30 is given by yourself. Yes, life is long."
In the second half of this sentence, Zhan Mu's eyes became ethereal. He looked at the small shop, as if he saw his vision of the future through it, and revealed a stubborn, dark and complex smile.
In the afternoon, after a simple meal, Zhan Mu looked up several brands and prices of printers on the Internet. The low-end was 10,000 yuan, and the high-end ranged from 20,000 to 30,000 yuan, which was actually more expensive than his rent.
"The broadband technician we contacted will be here soon," Lu Chao reminded him, "This wallpaper is filthy. Why don't we buy new ones?"
Zhan Mu closed his eyes in pain and murmured, "Why do they always talk about money... Is this really okay?"
Just as he finished saying this, someone came to the door. He looked familiar. It was his third uncle's youngest son, Zhan Changjian. He was holding an iced cola and half a watermelon, and called out "Brother Mu".
"Hey, why are you here?" Zhan Mu was now nervous when he saw acquaintances, fearing that they would say something negative that would affect his spiritual heart.
"Well, my dad's words were a bit harsh." Zhan Changjian came in, opened the plastic bag and handed over the frozen watermelon, inserting a spoon and saying, "I'm apologizing on their behalf, don't be disgusted."
Just one spoon, okay, Lu Chao can't eat it.
"Thanks, Chang Jian." Zhan Mu took it. Before he could greet him, Lu Chao had already handed him a small plastic stool. It was very thoughtful.
"Wow, brother, your cyber data man is so smart." Zhan Changjian was obviously very interested in his electronic doll.
"Can I touch it, brother?" The young man blinked, rubbed his hands, and gave Lu Chao a friendly smile.
"No." Zhan Mu protected Lu Chao behind him. The feeling of being under his husband's strict control made Lu Chao speechless.
So he opened the door, stood next to Zhan Changjian, held out his hand and handed it to him, saying, "Dangdangdangdang, it's very real, right?"
"Still talking nonsense. He's already in high school and you think he's still in primary school!" Zhan Mu was really impressed and walked aside in annoyance. In fact, he was communicating with the online store about buying equipment.
So that's how it is. This young man looks young, and Lu Chao thought he was young. After several communications, he found out that his name is Zhan Changjian, and he is in a vocational high school, studying auto repair.
Zhan Mu stopped where he was, tapping on his phone, eavesdropping on their conversation.
Zhan Changjian carefully observed Lu Chao's hands, nails, skin, lines, and feel with an expression of surprise and eyes full of envy.
Finally, he couldn't stand it anymore and revealed his true nature and asked, "So there are no women's models?"
I knew that this guy had bad intentions! There's a commotion, right?
"..." Zhan Mu couldn't hold it in any longer, and he angrily stood there and said in a sarcastic tone, "Yes, brother, yes. You know what an inflatable doll is? It has all the functions you want. The one I bought is not good enough. It's like working like an ox or a horse."
Lu Chao smiled and pretended not to understand, looking very polite.
He replied: "Boss Zhan is right, I am his employee."
Zhan Changjian noticed the subtle atmosphere between them, trying to hold back his laughter with great difficulty, his features contorted as he said, "Excuse me, I just came to chat for a while, well, I'll be back first, brother, come and play with me when you have time."
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