Chapter 22: Interjecting

he proceeded cautiously, when it came to actions, he would no longer hesitate like before.Without allies, he would use the bricks in his hand to make a true conclusion for his weak, timid, and lowly s...Chapter 22: Meddling Uninvited

"You're borrowing 50,000. We are also a bit tight ourselves; Zeng Na will be attending university next year and needs money too. You have a good job, why would you just suddenly say you’re quitting" The aunt frowned during the family meeting held around the round dining table laden with various cups, plates, bowls, and dishes filled with delicious food.

The chubby little brother Zeng Yuan on one side was eating heartily. In the past, Su Chen would definitely be no different from him; nothing could scare him except for the food in front of him. However, now, Su Chen focused more on their conversation.

Zeng Na found it unusual that Su Chen didn't display his usual gluttonous eating habits. Sometimes she disliked her brother because of this behavior. He wasn't as cute as his little brother Zeng Yuan but had many bad habits. For example, Zeng Yuan's current eating manner was quite adorable, but if Su Chen did the same, it would make her sick. Her likes and dislikes were often defined like that.

Su Chen noticed Zeng Na's gaze and smiled at her when he looked up. His eyes sparkled brightly.

Zeng Na was slightly taken aback; she had never seen such a sunny side of her brother before, making it hard for her to feel dislike towards him. Perhaps the soup she drank caused her face to turn red, as she turned away and maintained an indifferent expression while continuing her mother's argument. "Moreover, if you buy out your service years and invest the borrowed money into business, where will the large sum of money come from if Su Chen doesn't get admitted to high school"

Everyone stopped eating and looked towards Su Chen.

The little brother Zeng Yuan chimed in at this moment: "Yeah, big brother, I think you're doomed to fail! Anyway, we aren’t expecting much from you!"

In an attempt to mimic the adults' speech, he spoke in a manner that was comical yet somewhat annoying.

Thwack! His father Zeng Dajun gave him a heavy slap on the back of his head. The younger uncle Zeng Dajun had once been involved with the underworld and still exuded an aura of menace over charm, his face darkening as he spoke urgently, "You brat, pretending to be sophisticated! Do you know what your brother is capable of Why are you saying such things"

Zeng Zhaod-ing turned his head, glanced at Su Can, and then looked at Zeng Ke, "Yes, what Zeng Na said is also correct. You’re not like us with income and expenses amounting to tens of thousands! You say you invest money in your business, but we all know the level of Su Can! He has to ask for money when he can’t get into college; where does this money come from"

Uncle Zeng Zhaod-ing had always harbored prejudice against Su Can and extremely disliked him. The reason was not others, but because whenever Zeng Yuan did something wrong like stealing chickens or sneaking around, he would frame it on Su Can’s head, saying that Su Can taught him to do so. Many times, Su Can could not explain himself at all, leading Uncle to develop a deeper prejudice against him over time, even going as far as hating the sight of him. Now that there was an opportunity to strike back at him, naturally he wouldn't let it slip.

After all, everyone was talking about their own sons. Zeng Ke’s face turned slightly red, "They know how to work hard too, you say your income and expenses amounting to tens of thousands... How is that possible Ask them if they can lend me money, and repay them when I earn it!"

Uncle Zeng Zhaod-ing was momentarily at a loss for words, "…These are all operational funds... They can’t be touched in the short term..."

Mother hesitated for a moment, “Or I’ll borrow two ten-thousand. I’ve calculated it; after buying out, I can get thirty-four thousand. At home, apart from this set of housing built through collective investment, there are six thousand on the savings passbook in these two years. Together, that’s forty thousand. Borrowing two ten-thousand and six ten-thousand, with shop rent, expenses, plus the cost of purchasing goods, it should be enough.”

Seeing Mother speak so confidently, not like a sudden burst of enthusiasm, Aunt seemed somewhat shaken.

"Then what will you do when Su Can needs money in the future" The eldest uncle suddenly spoke up and said.

Mother hesitated for a moment; this was indeed an issue.

Su Can opened his mouth and said, "I believe I can get into high school without spending another penny of my parents’ money."

"Pfft!" It was actually Little Brother Zeng Yuan who couldn’t bear Su Can’s righteous declaration and laughed out loud. He was glared at fiercely by Su Can, who quickly silenced him.

"Oh well, forget it!" Zeng Zaodng chuckled, "Zeng Yuan always says the same thing too, but in the end... You said the same when you were in elementary school, and what happened then I'm not saying you can't do it. Everyone has their limits; you should know your capabilities and refrain from overstepping them by talking about things that are impossible to achieve. What's the point of that, don't you think"

Zeng Zaodng was quick to read the situation. Upon noticing the less-than-pleased expressions on Su Cun and his father’s faces, he softened his tone to prevent an argument.

"I believe in him."

The crowd was taken aback and looked towards Su Cun's mother, Zeng Ke.

Zeng Ke turned her gaze to Su Cun and smiled with a sense of reassurance. "I have faith in our Su Cun; he'll definitely get into the third high school this time!"

Looking at his mother before him, an indescribable emotion welled up inside Su Cun. After the junior high entrance exam last year, his mother had also expressed similar confidence, but the outcome disappointed everyone including himself. This time around though, he knew he couldn't let her down again; it would be a betrayal of her trust.

Seeing his mother's determination, his aunt eventually agreed to lend their family two thousand yuan, thus reaching the total sum of six thousand for initial expenses. The next challenge was finding a location, which according to Su Cun's experience, there were storefronts on the ground floor adjacent to the Xia Hai municipal government buildings that could be rented out. His cousin-in-law had leased one there back then and his business unexpectedly boomed; this street was right behind two schools and near governmental offices, making stationery stores a rare and valuable location.

When Zeng Ke proposed this spot, her sister-in-law exclaimed in surprise, "Not long ago, Mei Lan and her husband Jia Zheng came to me looking to rent one of those storefronts. They’re not quite sure what kind of business they want to start yet; Mei Lan just thinks her current job pays too little, so she wants to go into business for herself. Are you two planning to partner up"

Su Cun was taken aback by this news. According to his memories, it would be another year or longer before his cousin and her husband decided to open a shop there; why the sudden urgency How could they have found his aunt days ago when he only just proposed it himself

It’s important to note that storefronts in front of municipal government buildings are typically not easily accessible without proper connections. If Mei Lan and Jia Zheng were to get their hands on one before him, wouldn’t history repeat itself

Su Can knew that his rebirth would come with a series of side effects, but he never expected these to be so troublesome.

Their aunt and uncle were also clearly taken by surprise. They hadn't anticipated Mei Lan and her husband setting their sights on the same place. This was quite coincidental; however, she didn’t think too much about Su Can’s recommendation matching up with two adults’ thoughts, merely feeling that her son must be somewhat capable.

"Well..." The aunt appeared hesitant, "After all, I need to give Mei Lan an explanation since it was her who came looking first. In a few days, I will confirm again if they have made their decision. If they do want the storefront, you’ll only have the option of that smaller one beside it. They seem rather unsure... Mei Lan is still at home playing around; she hasn't decided what to do with the place...

Sweat broke out on Su Can’s forehead. At this stage, his aunt was completely unaware of Mei Lan and Jia Zheng's true natures, merely misled by their seemingly respectable demeanor and gifts. If he inadvertently mentioned that his mother wanted to enter the stationery business to them, they would naturally act swiftly without regard for seniority, starting the stationery business immediately, leaving his mother with only a small storefront and insufficient funds to compete against them!

Su Can was anxious but couldn’t reveal Mei Lan and Jia Zheng’s true characters at this point. This put him in a difficult situation, especially given that his aunt tended to talk too much, risking inadvertently revealing something...

Subconsciously pulling on his mother's sleeve, Zeng Ke glanced at Su Can without responding, instead turning towards the aunt and saying, "That works then, but Aunt Yin, I need to get started with this business..."

The aunt pondered for a moment before nodding slightly with her eyes half-closed. "Of course, I know that; I certainly wouldn't blab outside about it. After all, this is still uncertain and needs more time to confirm..." In fact, she did have some vague suspicions about Mei Lan and Jia Zheng sometimes being cunning, but lacked concrete evidence, only guessing based on her years of experience observing people. Thus, regarding these two, she was naturally cautious.

Su Can breathed a sigh of relief. Seeing his aunt's current attitude suggested that perhaps she had already caught some hints about Mei Lan and Jia Zheng's characters, which was somewhat reassuring. However, if they truly decided on the stationery business and claimed that large storefront, history might repeat itself.

Su Can knew he couldn't do anything more at this point; moreover, Zeng Yuan had dragged him to his eldest uncle’s study where he installed "Sword and Fairy", hoping to play it together. Following aimlessly, Su Can accompanied Zeng Yuan into the study.

The eldest uncle's home already had a computer back then, though at this point in time, it appeared rather primitive with its 15-inch spherical screen looking somewhat comical; however, for that era, it was quite an advanced machine.Grow tall enough for me to look up at you" After saying this sentence, Su Can felt somewhat regretful. When did he start liking to tease Tang Wu in a subtle way Would this little girl sense something...