Chapter 54: Just Hear Me Out

“Hey, Brother Shen, what’s up?”

The phone had been ringing for quite a while before Huang He finally answered.

“Fatty Huang, what are you doing?”

“Hehe, Brother Shen, you know, my hand… it’s injured, remember?”

“So I’ve been lying here recovering. Didn’t see my phone,” Fatty Huang said with a sheepish laugh.

“Your hand’s injured, huh? Then forget it.”

“I was thinking about letting you drive my Lord of Snowhawk for a couple of days, but since your hand’s out of commission, never mind. I’ll hang up.”

“Hey hey, wait, Brother Shen, what did you just say? You were gonna let me drive the Lord of Snowhawk?” Fatty Huang’s voice suddenly shot up in pitch.

The Lord of Snowhawk was one of the crown jewels of Lu Jianshen’s garage—a top-tier custom-modified car.

Not just rare in Jiang City, but even across the entire country, there were only a handful.

It was a true limited edition.

He’d been eyeing it for ages, drooling over it.

But Brother Shen had never even let him touch it.

And now he was saying he’d let him drive it for two whole days?

“That was the plan, but… sigh, forget it.”

“My dear brother’s injured. How could I bear to make things harder for him?” Lu Jianshen sighed.

“Brother Shen, I can do it, really! My hand’s injured, sure, but it’s not a big deal.”

“Driving a car? Piece of cake! Seriously, trust me!”

“Oh, really?”

“Of course, Brother Shen, I swear!”

“Oh, so your hand’s fine for driving, but when it comes to replying to my WeChat, suddenly it needs rest and can’t be used, huh?”

“…” Fatty Huang.

Crap! He let his guard down again!

Got played by Brother Shen once more!

“Look, Brother Shen, just let me explain… I mean, justify myself… no, explain!”

“Here’s what happened.”

“I really didn’t see my phone earlier, so I didn’t know you messaged me.”

“Just wait, I’ll pin your chat right now and turn on message alerts. From now on, I’ll reply the moment I see it.”

“Mm-hmm. Alright, hanging up.” Lu Jianshen didn’t give him a chance to say more and ended the call.

“!!!” Fatty Huang.

Arghhh, so frustrating! (｀皿′)=3

Even though he was fuming, Fatty Huang still opened the group chat right away and dropped a message.

Fatty Huang: Brother Shen, I’m seriously jealous of you. Your sister is amazing!

As soon as Fatty Huang’s message hit the group chat, the other four chimed in.

Da Cong: Brother Shen’s sister is our sister. Our sis has great taste—solid gift choice!

Da Cong: 【Transfer】

Da Cong: Brother Shen, I don’t have our sis’s WeChat. Help me forward this to her. Just say it’s a welcome gift from her smart big bro Cong.

Seeing Da Cong’s message, Fatty Huang cursed him out in frustration, calling him a sneaky backstabber, a scheming opportunist, always knowing how to play the game.

Pfft!

After venting, he quickly sent a red envelope in the group chat too.

Fatty Huang: Brother Shen, this is my share for our sis (grinning emoji).

I’m Feng Xiao: Looks great. Share the link, I want to buy one.

I’m Feng Xiao: 【Transfer】 (Note: From Feng Xiao)

Xu Ming: Looks decent. Worth a hundred grand or so.

Xu Ming: 【Transfer】 (Note: For Lu Qingqiang)

Mo Chenjing: Ugh, why don’t I have a good little sister? Jealous, envious, losing it, spiraling into darkness!!!

Mo Chenjing: 【Transfer】 (Note: The water of West Lake, my tears~)

After seeing the group messages, Lu Jianshen: “＜(￣︶￣)＞!”

Ah, the satisfaction of being envied by your bros.

But wait a second… that bracelet… is it really worth over a hundred grand?

Lu Qingqiang was just a poor girl they’d recently brought back from the countryside. Where would she get that kind of money?

Could it be that she used all the private money Mom and Dad gave her to buy gifts for the family?

And she even gave him, her second brother, the most expensive one?

This little sister… really is a dummy!

She was just telling him the other day how money is worthless and without it everything falls apart.

Then she turns around and gives him such an expensive gift?

She really sees him as family, huh?

So touched right now!

In the next moment, Lu Jianshen opened Alipay and transferred 5 million to Lu Qingqiang.

Note: Pocket money. Go spend it. Once your second brother makes more, I’ll send you more!

******

At the orphanage.

Lu Qingqiang was napping.

Suddenly, the Alipay notification startled her awake.

“Hello, you’ve received a payment from Alipay.”

“???” Lu Qingqiang shot up like a spring-loaded fish.

What the heck? Was her Alipay hacked?

Otherwise, who in their right mind would randomly send her that much money?

She opened the app and took a look. Instantly, she was wide awake.

The money was from her second brother.

Not a scam.

Not a dream.

It was real. A surprise windfall.

A full five million!

Sure, Lu Qingqiang was already doing pretty well financially.

Her system had been managing her investments, with high returns and guaranteed profits.

But who would ever complain about having too much money?

Still, why would her second brother suddenly send her money out of the blue?

Puzzled, Lu Qingqiang opened WeChat and messaged Lu Jianshen.

“A Deer’s Safe Journey”: Second Brother, why did you suddenly send me money? Did you send it to the wrong person?

Lu Jianshen: What, I’m your second brother and I can’t give you some pocket money?

“A Deer’s Safe Journey”: (☆▽☆) Second Brother, you’re the best! So generous!

On the other end, Lu Jianshen couldn’t help but grin when he saw the message.

He quickly reined in his smile and kept typing.

Lu Jianshen: That bracelet you gave me must’ve cost a lot, right?

“A Deer’s Safe Journey”: Not really, just a couple hundred. Don’t worry about it, Second Brother. I’ll get you an even better one next time!

Lu Jianshen: I don’t mind. I really like it!

This sister… clearly gave him a bracelet worth hundreds of thousands, yet insists it only cost a few hundred.

With that kind of personality, she’s bound to get taken advantage of someday.

But it’s fine. From now on, she’s got Lu Jianshen as her second brother watching her back.

No one’s gonna mess with her.

“A Deer’s Safe Journey”: As long as you like it, Second Brother. I’ve got something to do, gonna get back to it now!

With that, Lu Qingqiang tossed her phone aside, feeling a little guilty.

Ahem, that bracelet really did only cost her a couple hundred.

And it was a freebie, thrown in with something else she bought.

But she couldn’t say that out loud!

Still, it was something she got using her good luck buff.

So the quality should be top-notch.

Thinking that, Lu Qingqiang’s confidence returned.

She even started looking forward to the lottery draw.

With more money, she could go on another shopping spree for the orphanage, hehehe!

Wait, another WeChat message just came in.

Might as well take a look.

Lu Jianshen: Even if you’re busy, take care of yourself! Work will always be there.

Lu Jianshen: When I get a chance, I’ll bring my brothers over to help you again!

Lu Jianshen: {Screenshot} These are the red envelopes they asked me to forward to you.

Lu Jianshen: {Transfer}{Transfer}{Transfer}{Transfer}{Transfer}

Lu Qingqiang: “!!!”

So this is what it means to be showered with money!

Hehehe!

Today was another wonderful day!

So much so that later in the afternoon, while she was drilling holes into wood in the yard…

She got so excited that she lost control of her strength.

She ended up ruining several pieces of wood.

Su Chao happened to walk by and saw what she was doing. His eyes sparkled.

“Wow, Mama Lu, you’re using a power drill to split wood? You’re amazing!”

“…” Lu Qingqiang.

— Translator’s Notes —

– The water of West Lake, my tears~: A playful internet slang expression derived from Song Dynasty poet Su Shi’s writings about West Lake, used to humorously convey intense jealousy or envy, as if one’s tears are as abundant as the lake’s waters.