Chapter 140 My brother caught me doing part-time work.
"Here is your invoice. Welcome to visit us again." Mu Yan smiled politely at the customer and handed over the invoice.
The guest opened the door and left, and the wind chimes hanging on the door rang crisply.
The billiard hall was a bit noisy, with guests occasionally letting out exclamations of regret or excitement. Mu Yan seemed not to hear them, simply lowering his head and continuing to work on his physics problems.
This is the summer vacation between the second and third years of high school.
After her mother fell ill, the family's financial burden became quite heavy. Mu Yan told Mu Juanhua and Lin Yi that it was too hot at home and he went to the library to study in the air-conditioned comfort, but in reality, he was working part-time as a receptionist at the billiards hall.
This is the best job Mu Yan can find right now. Although the salary isn't high, he can practice his math problems by himself when there are no customers to pay. The boss doesn't mind that he's a summer worker.
"Little Mu Yan, do you want some ice cream?" A security guard who worked with me handed me an ice cream. "Here, a three-color cup. I remember you like this."
Mu Yan took it, smiled and said thank you, then took out his phone to transfer money to the security guard. The security guard, while eating his cantaloupe ice cream, laughed and scolded him, "Why are you being so polite with me for something that only costs three yuan? Do you think I can't afford it?"
Mu Yan smiled, and to avoid getting the exercise book dirty, he put it away and set it aside before opening the ice cream.
The wind chimes rang crisply again, and Mu Yan subconsciously looked up: "Welcome..."
The moment Mu Yan saw the man, her voice stopped abruptly.
Alpha, dressed in the uniform of the First Military Academy of the Capital, pushed open the door and entered. He was tall and slender with handsome and sharp features, and many people in the billiard hall turned to look at him.
"Welcome," the young Omega waiter greeted him with a smile, oblivious to anything amiss. "Sir, are you here alone or with friends? Do you have a table reserved?"
Xie Chen glanced indifferently at the bustling pool tables, then quickly fixed his gaze on Mu Yan at the cashier in the corner.
"Could you please call your boss or store manager out?"
Mu Yan was stunned for a moment, his fingers holding the ice cream remained motionless. It wasn't until much later that he realized the ice cream was very cold and had made his fingers feel a little chilly.
Xie Chen... Why is Xie Chen here?
Xie Chen was the older brother of his neighbor when he was a child. A few years ago, he differentiated into an S-class alpha and went to military school.
The S-rank alphas in the military academy are all reserve soldiers. The school has very strict requirements for them, and they hardly have any opportunities to contact the outside world. Mu Yan and him... haven't been in contact for a while.
Mu Yan stood up, wanting to greet his long-lost neighbor, but Xie Chen had already walked over, grabbed the exercise books and pens from his desk, and stuffed them into the slightly faded light blue backpack next to him.
His expression was a bit fierce, and Mu Yan looked up at him with a little fear.
Mu Yan had been hoping that he was just passing by and came in to play pool, but now... that hope seemed to have been shattered.
Did he discover it himself, or did someone else tell him...? If Xie Chen knows, do his mother and Aunt Qingyun know too?
Mom will definitely blame herself again. Originally, Mu Yan planned to give the money to his mother after school started, and lie to her that it was a scholarship awarded by the school for doing well in the final exams last semester.
The ice cream had melted a bit, and Mu Yan didn't dare to lower his head to eat it now.
Xie Chen picked up Mu Yan's old, faded, and slightly wrinkled backpack, gave him a look, and sternly gestured for him to stand up.
"Sir, is there a problem?" The store manager rushed over and asked politely with a smile.
“This is my younger brother,” Xie Chen turned around and pointed to Mu Yan, “He’s still in school. He ran away from us to work. Could you please pay him his wages?”
“It’s like this, sir,” the shop manager frowned slightly as he looked at the alpha’s uniform. Alphas from this academy usually went on to join the military after graduation, and he didn’t want to mess with this kind of person. “He hasn’t worked a full month yet. According to the contract, he has to work a full month before he gets paid; otherwise, he’s considered on probation…”
The alpha released an extremely oppressive pheromone and stared at him expressionlessly. The shop manager, who was also an alpha, turned pale instantly upon being stimulated by such a high level of pheromones.
Mu Yan stood helplessly to the side, the ice cream in her hand melting even more.
“Sir, we’ve already told you that’s how the agreement is. We’re acting in accordance with the contract,” the store manager said, taking a step back and finally sounding somewhat displeased. “Please control your pheromones. If you continue like this, I’ll have to call security!”
“He’s only fifteen,” Xie Chen said coldly, looking at him. “Even if you’re employing child labor, you want to call security, but I’m thinking of calling the police. If this gets out of hand, it won’t look good for anyone.”
The store manager choked, staring wide-eyed at Mu Yan: "Didn't you say you were seventeen?"
The boy had a somewhat youthful face, but he was tall and slender, and it would be normal for him to look either fifteen or seventeen.
"I......."
"Never mind," the shop manager said, seeing Mu Yan's evasive gaze and glancing at Xie Chen's school uniform. He went to the cashier and counted out a few bills. "You've worked for half a month, five hundred yuan, how about four hundred?"
Xie Chen stopped talking nonsense, picked up Mu Yan's schoolbag, grabbed his wrist with his other hand, and pulled him out of the store without looking back.
He pulled the cut ice cream away, almost spilling some of it. The sun was shining brightly outside, and Xie Chen told Mu Yan to throw it away. Mu Yan didn't dare to disobey him, but he was also a little reluctant to part with the ice cream he had finally managed to eat. While Xie Chen was leading him to find a trash can, he secretly ate a few more bites.
By the time Xie Chen finally found the trash can, Mu Yan had already eaten half of her ice cream. Xie Chen glanced at the three-colored cup in Mu Yan's hand, said nothing, and simply picked up a tissue to wipe Mu Yan's hands.
Mu Yan ate very carefully, and there was only some condensation on the outside of the ice cream on her hands. However, because she had been holding the ice cream for a while, her fingers felt particularly cold.
Xie Chen handed Mu Yan a file bag and asked her to open it. Mu Yan was taken aback, took the file bag, and opened it. She found several insurance claim forms with the reimbursement amounts for medical expenses clearly stated on them, which were enough to cover her recent treatment costs.
Mu Yan stared at the numbers, his eyes suddenly reddened, and tears involuntarily fell. He quickly wiped them away with the back of his hand.
"You've grown quite the expert, Mu Yan," Xie Chen said, unusually not comforting him when he saw him cry. Instead, he spoke in a somewhat cold tone, "You think you can make money now, huh? And you've even learned to lie?"
Mu Yan sniffed, not daring to look up.
From childhood to adulthood, Xie Chen was cold to outsiders, but he rarely spoke harshly to Mu Yan.
When he got fierce, Mu Yan was especially afraid.
People came and went on the roadside. Xie Chen was tall and had an outstanding temperament. He was wearing a military academy uniform, but a small sky-blue backpack was incongruously slung over his shoulder.
Passersby frequently turned their heads to look at him, their gazes making Mu Yan's ears burn. He cast a pitiful look at Xie Chen and pleaded softly, "...Could you please not insult me here?"
Xie Chen raised an eyebrow: "Okay, I won't scold you."
He paused, then said calmly, "When we get home, I'll talk to Aunt Mu and let her discipline you herself."
Doesn't Mom know?
Mu Yan froze for a moment, then suddenly looked up, her eyes still red, and grabbed Xie Chen's sleeve as if it were a lifeline: "Don't... don't tell Mom."
Mu Juanhua was still sick, and Mu Yan didn't want her to worry.
"So you know that what you're doing is wrong."
Xie Chen looked down at him; the boy's eyelashes were wet, and the tip of his nose was red, making him look pitiful.
He closed his eyes, sighed, and raised his hand to wipe away the tears on his face with his thumb.
“Hold out your hand,” Xie Chen said.
Mu Yan hesitated for a moment, then extended his right hand, which he usually used.
Xie Chen frowned: "You still need to learn how to use this one, let's get another one."
Mu Yan obediently switched to his left hand. The next second, Xie Chen slammed the side of the file bag into his palm. With a sharp "smack," Mu Yan hissed in pain, and tears welled up in his eyes again.
It wasn't particularly painful, but as if she had a reason to cry and feel wronged, Mu Yan's tears kept falling.
"Do you dare to do it again?" Xie Chen asked.
Mu Yan shook his head vigorously, his voice trembling: "...I wouldn't dare again."
What should I do if something like this happens again?
Mu Yan froze, unsure how to respond. Xie Chen didn't give him time to think, and tapped him again.
"Ah!" Mu Yan gasped softly, tears streaming down her face, sobbing as she replied, "No, I won't work anymore... and I won't lie anymore..."
Actually, this blow wasn't nearly as heavy as the lower one, but Mu Yan seemed to know he would soften, and as if she had suffered a great injustice, she cried even harder than before.
Xie Chen stared at him: "You're supposed to come find your brother, understand?"
Xie Chen's hits really hurt. Mu Yan pulled her hand back and put it behind her back, clenching her fist tightly, afraid that he would hit her again. She nodded vigorously, her voice trembling with tears: "...It hurts so much, please don't hit me anymore."
"...I will come to find my brother."
Xie Chen didn't say anything, but reached out and grabbed his wrist.
"I won't lie anymore, I'll be good, I'll come to my brother no matter what happens..." Mu Yan thought he was going to hit her a third time, so she begged for mercy while subconsciously shrinking back, trying to break free from Xie Chen.
But Xie Chen still managed to grab his wrist firmly and pry his fingers apart one by one with his other hand.
"I really know I was wrong, brother..."
Then, Xie Chen lowered his head and gently blew a few breaths onto his reddened palm.
A cool breeze brushed against his burning skin, and Mu Yan froze, tears still clinging to his eyelashes.
[Author's Note]
Weibo definitely has a lot of pirated content already, but I found my story and my idol's story bundled together. What a tasteful pirate account! I still reported it.
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