Chapter 4
The next morning, when Shenmian woke up, Shenci was nowhere to be found.
He felt dizzy and his body ached a bit, but he wasn't sick yet. He didn't want to take medicine, so he forced himself to get up and leaned on the table to pour himself some water.
The warm water soothed my soul, and I became more awake from my deep sleep, reflecting on everything that had happened since yesterday afternoon.
First, he blamed Lin Langli, that bastard, for coming back to steal his things and for interrogating him aggressively. Then, in the middle of the night, he was dragged into the room by Lin Langli and forced to apologize. He gritted his teeth in anger.
Secondly, it's the eldest brother's fault for stirring things up and keeping Lin Langli around;
In the end, Shen Ci could not escape blame either, blaming him for kicking him out of the room in the middle of the night, which led to Lin Langli catching him.
Thinking about it this way, Chenmian felt very pitiful. He had no one behind him, so could this family still accept him?
When Shen Ci returned from exercising, Shen Mian had just washed her face. He reached out and brushed aside the wet hair that was sticking to Shen Mian's skin, saying, "You got up so early today? Come downstairs for breakfast, we're just waiting for you."
Disturbed and annoyed, Chenmian asked, "He's here too? He really treats this place like home."
He remained silent and did not respond.
Chenmian said defiantly, "I'm not going down there. I'm going to starve to death!"
"I won't give you any more food. If you don't want to eat, then don't." Shen Ci remained unmoved and turned to leave.
"Wait for me," Chenmian quickly changed her mind, "I'm going to change my clothes."
Shen Ci thought Shen Mian would just change into some loungewear, but she didn't expect that Shen Mian was determined to outshine Lin Langli. Not only did she change into a beautiful new outfit, but she also specially accessorized with jewelry, including earrings that looked dazzling and jingled like little butterflies.
But when she went downstairs to the hall, she found that her seat at the dining table had been taken by Lin Langli. Chenmian slowed down, not knowing what to do.
Father Shen coughed and said, "We've been waiting for you. Please sit down and eat."
After being given a warning squeeze by Shen Ci, Shen Mian could only sit down angrily, pick up the spoon and shove the porridge in the bowl hard, but didn't eat a single bite.
He secretly sized up Lin Langli, and saw the other man slowly and calmly drinking his porridge, a stark contrast to his own disheveled appearance that had been aggrieved since morning, which made him even more annoyed.
Breakfast ended in this oppressive atmosphere. Chenmian put down her spoon and was about to go upstairs when her mother called out, "Mianmian, wait a moment."
He paused, a hint of expectation in his heart, thinking his mother was going to comfort him. But instead, his mother walked over to Lin Langli, smiling as she straightened his collar: "Lin Langli, are you still wearing your old clothes? Let me take you to buy some new ones, and maybe get you something nice too, okay?"
Chenmian stomped his feet to the side, while his mother looked at him with a smile and said, "Mianmian, you and Shen Ci will go shopping together today."
Shenmian didn't want to go, but then she thought, if she let her mother and Lin Langli be alone, her mother would probably feel sorry for Lin Langli even more, and what if their mother-son relationship was developed like that? Then there would be no place for her.
“Mom,” Shenmian walked to her mother’s side, took her arm, and said coquettishly, “I’m showing Lin Langli some clothes. We’re the same age, so I’m sure the ones I pick will fit.”
Shen's mother was somewhat surprised. She thought Shen Mian would definitely be unwilling, but she didn't expect her to agree so readily. She subconsciously glanced at Lin Langli and saw that there was no strange expression on his face, so she was relieved.
The store had been cleared out in advance, leaving only the staff and the mannequins for fitting.
He was planning to pick out expensive but unsuitable clothes for Lin Langli, preferably with big logos, sparkling sequins, and fluorescent colors, so that Lin Langli would look as rustic as possible against his own backdrop.
Shen Mian felt happy again. He squeezed between his mother and Lin Langli, and even hugged his mother's arm to make it look like they had a deep mother-son bond.
But Lin Langli didn't even glance at him. He just sat to the side with Shen Ci, quietly watching the models walk out.
The first item was an early autumn trench coat, with a clean cut and classic color that accentuated the model's tall and straight figure. Mother Shen nodded secretly and asked Lin Langli, "Xiao Li, what do you think of this one?"
Chenmian thought the clothes were nice and that Lin Langli was not worthy of them, so she quickly said, "These clothes are too mature. They're more suitable for my older brother."
Lin Langli glanced at him and surprisingly nodded: "I think it's pretty good."
Chenmian scoffed inwardly, "How petty! There are so many more good things to come. You took a liking to the very first one, and you don't even know how to be polite."
For the next few outfits, Chen Mian was even more critical, finding fault with everything. In short, anything that looked good suited him, while anything that didn't look good belonged to Lin Langli.
This color is too bright for Lin Langli, who is already quite old. But he has fair skin and good looks, so this pinkish color suits him. I'll keep it for myself.
This studded outfit suits Lin Langli perfectly. If Lin Langli wore this, he could change his online name to "/mixed in," how domineering!
This suits Lin Langli well too. The material is a bit rough, and his delicate skin can't withstand the roughness. Lin Langli must have thick skin, hehe.
As she picked and chose, she forgot that she was supposed to be picking out ugly clothes for Lin Langli. Instead, she was having a great time picking them out herself, feeling that many of the clothes had his name on them. She thought that if he could wear these clothes in his lifetime, it would be a great achievement in her life.
When it came time to pay the bill, Chenmian's clothes filled several bags, while Lin Langli's only filled two. Chenmian's mother smiled helplessly and said, "Mianmian, you still have a lot of new clothes in your wardrobe that you haven't worn yet."
Chen Mian said nonchalantly, "He can wear mine, or he can wear Chen Ci's. We're about the same height anyway."
Shen Ci, who was behind them, couldn't help but chuckle when he heard this. Shen Mian turned around and glared at him, then looked up at the top of Lin Langli's head.
Lin Langli, who had been living away from home, was almost as tall as Shen Ci, even a head taller. Shen Mian secretly compared them and comforted herself that Lin Langli's proportions were definitely not as good as his.
After buying the finished clothes, Chen's mother thought about having some clothes custom-made.
When the designer was taking Lin Langli's measurements, Chenmian stopped causing trouble. He kept pestering his mother to buy him new jewelry. This store had just released a new necklace that could be twisted into a bracelet. There were two necklaces, and Chenmian didn't want them to be separated, so she bought them together so they could wear them together.
Shen's mother glanced at the chain, then her gaze swept over Shen Mian's earlobes, neck, wrists, and waist, and refused to buy it for him: "Mianmian, you've definitely exceeded your monthly limit, you're not allowed to buy it."
"Mommy, Mommy, Mommy..." Chenmian circled around her mother, surrounding her in three dimensions, pleading desperately.
The mother's heart was as hard as iron.
Finally, Shen Ci couldn't take it anymore. He put down the game, walked over, raised his hand to cover Shen Mian's incessantly chattering mouth, and said impatiently, "What are you yelling about? I'll buy you some."
Chenmian immediately seized the opportunity: "Then I want the same ring."
Shen Ci snorted coldly and handed the card to the shop assistant.
Lin Langli had already taken her measurements, and Shen's mother went over to discuss it with the designer. Meanwhile, Shen Mian had received the necklace and was happily trying it on, changing out of the one she had worn before leaving the house, and asking Shen Ci if she looked good.
Shen Ci didn't even look at him: "Ugly."
Chenmian pursed her lips and generously shared another necklace in an attempt to reciprocate: "This one is for you, we'll wear the brothers' version."
Shen Ci didn't take it, and subconsciously looked at Lin Langli to the side, touching his nose: "I don't want it."
After they had finished shopping, Shen's mother received a phone call, told Shen Ci to keep an eye on the two of them, and then hurriedly left.
Feeling a little embarrassed, Shen Ci also wanted to run away, but Shen Mian, relying on his presence, said he was going to open blind boxes and see how lucky he was.
Chenmian was unlucky. As soon as she arrived at the blind box store, Shen Ci was pulled away by her friends to chat, leaving Chenmian and Lin Langli staring at each other.
While glancing at Lin Langli's expression, Chenmian carefully shook the box.
The set contains eight designs, including two hidden designs. Before becoming asleep, he had already bought several of these individual sets, but there was still one hidden design he hadn't gotten. He didn't want to buy the entire set, so he started looking through guides, trying to find the set he wanted based on its weight.
Lin Langli surprisingly didn't call him childish, even though Shen Ci always liked to use these things to say he was like a child.
"You want this?" Lin Langli asked after seeing him wave it around for a while.
Chenmian hummed in agreement, not daring to utter a word of protest.
Lin Langli pointed to another box next to Chenmian: "It's this one."
"How do you know?" Chenmian asked incredulously.
Lin Langli: "Didn't you say the weight would be different?"
Ignoring Lin Langli's advice, Chenmian picked out the box he wanted and went to pay. Lin Langli leaned over to look, and Chenmian tore open the box, immediately recognizing the color as a mistake.
"Heh." Lin Langli chuckled lightly, showing no emotion, but Shen Mian felt that she could detect a sarcastic tone in his voice.
He ran back to the display case, picked up the box that Lin Langli had just selected, and paid for it.
He definitely didn't guess it either... He guessed it right?!
With her eyes wide open, Chenmian looked incredulously at the composed person beside her and bit her lip.
Lin Langli's luck is incredible! He's not convinced!
He found a few more styles and asked Lin Langli to help him choose, and that was the sleeping suit.
After opening the blind boxes, Shen Ci still hadn't returned. Shen Mian cursed him inwardly for being unreliable. Although they were in a shopping mall with many people, he figured Lin Langli wouldn't dare to do anything to him.
But what if?
Being in a deep sleep is a bit unlucky.
She was about to go back with Lin Langli when she saw a group of boys walking towards her at the mall entrance. The boy in the lead saw her and his eyes lit up: "Mianmian! What are you doing here?"
Chenmian was stunned for a moment. He recognized this person as someone who had confessed to him before. This person could be considered his simp. He had even instructed this person to bully Lin Langli before. He never expected to run into him here.
The man walked up to Chenmian, looked him up and down, and said with a smile, "Mianmian, you look really good today. I noticed you from afar."
After he finished speaking, his gaze fell on Lin Langli. Seeing that Lin Langli was still wearing the same old clothes, his tone became sarcastic: "Isn't this Lin Langli? Why are you still so shabby? Last time Mianmian said she would buy you shoes, but you were so proud of yourself."
Chenmian blinked, just as she was about to get a mischievous smirk from the praise, when she heard the person in front of her say the second half of what she had said.
His vision went black. Don't say that in front of him!
Lin Langli's face darkened, and he remained silent. Chen Mian's heart tightened, and she quickly pulled Lin Langli back, speaking softly to the person in front of her, "Don't say that. We have a very good relationship. Don't try to sow discord."
After saying that, she leaned against Lin Langli's arm, pretending to be intimate.
"Mianmian, what's wrong? Did he threaten you? Didn't you look down on him?"
Chenmian's scalp twitched, and she dryly denied, "Haha, no way..."
Seeing that the man wanted to continue speaking, and Lin Langli's expression growing increasingly grim, Chen Mian quickly interrupted, "Shut up! It was all a misunderstanding before! Don't mention these things again!"
After chasing away the sycophant, Chenmian was left behind by Lin Langli and fell behind. Chenmian chased after him and said, "Lin Langli, don't be so petty. I didn't instigate this time."
The person in front suddenly stopped, and before Chenmian could react, her face collided with the other person's back.
Lin Langli turned around and looked at him against the light. He was much taller than Chen Mian and had inherited the deep bone structure of the Shen family. He didn't like to smile. Chen Mian had long felt that he was fierce and cold, and this was even more obvious now, to the point of being frightening.
Chenmian suddenly realized that he was too easily carried away. Just now, Lin Langli had unexpectedly treated him a little better at the blind box store, so he wanted to pretend that nothing had happened.
But since Lin Langli seemed to be in such a bad mood, Chen Mian had no choice but to continue pretending to be stupid: "Wait for me, let's go home together."
Lin Langli: "Didn't you want to get rid of me yesterday? Now you're pretending?"
He remained silent, refusing to acknowledge it, and shook his head.
He thought for a moment, then took out the necklace he had just given to Shen Ci but had been rejected, and pleaded softly, "I didn't think things through back then, but I regretted it last night. I apologize to you, okay? Do you like this necklace? I noticed you don't have any jewelry. It'll be perfect for matching with my brother's!"
"Brother?" Lin Langli repeated, a cold smile playing on his lips. "What kind of brother are you? Are you even a member of the Shen family?"
He couldn't keep up the pretense any longer. School bullying wasn't important to him; it was just a matter of saving face. From beginning to end, what bothered him was the issue of whether he was the real or fake young master with Lin Langli.
Now that Lin Langli had ruthlessly exposed her, Chen Mian dropped her innocent expression, her eyes filled with venom, and she was extremely angry and ashamed: "Lin Langli! You don't know what's good for you! If it weren't for not wanting to make things difficult for Mom and Dad, what do you think you are in my eyes? I should have taught you a lesson back then, you worthless thing!"
A note from the author:
This naughty little baby's early actions are often wrong!! Later, the baby will realize his mistakes, and it's also a story of the protagonist's self-growth o3o
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