Fifteen thousand, it took Chen Ju over three years to save up that amount. Now it was impossible for him to earn so much money in just six months.
Standing at the bus stop, a gust of cold wind blew by. Chen Ju shivered, burying his face in his collar and stuffing his hands into his pockets. His hands were already numb from the cold, and it took him a while to recover.
As his senses started to return, his fingertips felt an object. Chen Ju froze for a moment and took out the thing from his pocket. It was a business card, with Jiang Zhou’s name prominently printed in the center.
This was Jiang Zhou’s business card he had snatched from Chen Yi’s hand with all his strength yesterday morning.
You can mention any conditions you like. Think about it. I will wait for your reply.” Jiang Zhou’s cold voice echoed in his ears. Chen Ju clenched the business card in his hand, and his fingertips became more red against the black business card, as if dripping blood.
The cold winter wind blew like a knife, and the moon hanging in the middle of the sky also hid behind the dark clouds, exuding faint blue light.
With a click, the open glass window was closed, and the transparent glass was immediately covered with a layer of mist. It was like a sudden thick fog that appeared in the mountains, blocking Jiang Zhou’s sight outside. He lowered his gaze and turned a page of the book resting on his lap.
Under his feet was a silver-gray plush blanket, contrasting with Jiang Zhou’s gray silk pajamas. The room was air-conditioned, maintaining a comfortable temperature without any chill. But Jiang Zhou didn’t quite like the overly warm feeling, so he opened a window.
“Young Master, it’s snowing tonight. It’s better to keep the windows closed, otherwise you will catch a cold.” The butler said.
“Hmm.” Jiang Zhou muttered softly, his gaze lingering on the book pages.
The butler stood aside, showing no intention of leaving, and Jiang Zhou didn’t intend to ask questions. He continued reading, and after about half an hour, Jiang Zhou finally lifted his gaze from the pages, and asked, “Is there anything else?”
“The master made a phone call during the day and asked the young master to return it when he has time in the evening.” The butler kept paying attention to Jiang Zhou’s expression while speaking, for fear of displeasing him.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
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The butler didn’t expect Jiang Zhou to answer, considering it merely to fulfill for the sake of replying to the master. But to his surprise, Jiang Zhou stopped.
“I’ve found him,” Jiang Zhou’s eyes narrowed, exuding a cold light. “You can let the old man rest assured.”
After having said that, Jiang Zhou went upstairs and disappeared around the corner of the corridor.
At the bustling entrance of a shopping mall, Chen Ju couldn’t hold back and yawned again, rubbing his wet eyes. He didn’t get off work until six o’clock this morning, and it was past seven o’clock after cleaning up.
After struggling all night, he asked a colleague to borrow his mobile phone and dialed the number on the business card.
On the phone, Jiang Zhou’s voice remained cold and distant. They agreed to meet at a coffee shop in a nearby shopping mall at 9:30 a.m.
Afraid of being late, Chen Ju waited at the mall entrance early. Although there weren’t many people in the mall in the morning, Chen Ju felt fearful in the unfamiliar environment and didn’t dare enter alone. So, he waited alone at the mall entrance.
After waiting for a long time without seeing Jiang Zhou, Chen Ju was really sleepy and went to sit on the nearby flower bed. This direction faced the shopping mall entrance. So, he could see Jiang Zhou at a glance once he appeared.
Just as he dozed off, suddenly a voice sounded from above his head. Chen Ju was so frightened that he almost slipped down from the flower bed.
“Excuse me, are you Mr. Chen Ju?” A man in a suit and leather shoes smiled at Chen Ju.
Chen Ju looked at the strange man in front of him and searched his mind. After confirming that he didn’t know him, he said cautiously, “Hello, may I ask who you are?”
“Hello, Mr. Chen, I am Young Master Jiang’s secretary. Young Master Jiang sent me to handle the contract signing with Mr. Chen.” The man stretched out his right hand with a smile.
Chen Ju was stunned for a moment. The redness on his frozen face faded, and his lips turned pale.
Jiang Zhou didn’t come over in person. Instead, he sent a secretary to handle the matter. What meant a great deal to him was just one of many transactions in Jiang Zhou’s mind.
“Mr. Chen, it’s cold outside. Let’s go inside and talk.” Secretary Liu said with a smile.
Curling up his freezing hands, Chen Ju buried his face in his collar and softly murmured, “Okay.”
Inside the cafe, the air conditioner was turned on, and the warm air hit Chen Ju, partially thawing his frozen body. The lenses of his black-rimmed glasses were covered with a layer of white mist. He had to take them off, wipe them in his sleeves, and put them back on.
With his sight restored and meeting Secretary Liu’s gentle gaze again, Chen Ju lowered his head subconsciously, staring at his flushed fingertips.
“What would Mr. Chen want to drink?” Secretary Liu asked, handing the menu to Chen Ju.
Chen Ju quickly glanced at the menu. They were all expensive coffees. The cheapest one cost more than 50, equivalent to two days’ worth of his food expenses.
“I don’t… like coffee, you, you order.” Chen Ju pushed the menu forward.
Secretary Liu didn’t say anything, took back the menu, called the waiter, and ordered a cup of coffee, a cup of hot milk and a sandwich.
Sensing Chen Ju’s puzzled gaze, Secretary Liu smiled and said, “Mr. Chen probably hasn’t had breakfast yet, right? It’s okay. Let’s chat while eating.”
After the food was served, Secretary Liu didn’t talk about the contract either, but waited until Chen Ju was almost done eating before speaking.
” The eldest young master mentioned that Mr. Chen has other requirements,” Secretary Liu took out the tablet from his briefcase, opened it, and tapped on the keyboard. “May I ask whether Mr. Chen prefers written documents or direct dictation?”
Gulp. Chen Ju swallowed the hot milk in his mouth, and his stomach became warm. He held the glass in both hands. Due to nervousness, the meridians on the back of his hand were stretched in a straight line, and the blue veins were clearly visible.
After Secretary Liu finished speaking, he looked at him quietly, as if patiently waiting for his response. But Chen Ju’s heart pounded in his chest, making a thumping sound.
He clenched the cup tightly in his hand, staring at his reflection in the glass. His Adam’s apple rolled up and down, as he uttered a difficult sentence.
“Can you pay me 10,000 yuan a month?”
Six months would be 60,000. Currently, he was working part-time and earning a little over six thousand yuan per month. These days, even if he would try to find another daytime job… Chen Ju knew it was still not enough. But asking Jiang Zhou for a monthly salary of ten thousand was already quite a lot.
He had no other choice. Even if Jiang Zhou looked down on him, it didn’t matter as long as he could save enough money for his mother’s medical expenses.
Secretary Liu frowned slightly and paused for a few seconds before saying, “Is this the only one? Nothing else?”
Chen Ju shook his head. It was already enough.
“Alright, then there is no need to make any changes to the contract. If Mr. Chen thinks finds it satisfactory after reading it, you can sign it.” Secretary Liu pulled out a piece of paper and a pen from his bag and placed them in front of Chen Ju.
Huhu baby i want to hug you and just give all your needs 😭 but im also broke 🫠
+1 Sadly I am too.. 😔
+2 we’re all broke ಥ‿ಥ
Finally we can get some fake dating 😘
Thanks for the chapter!!
i bet it’s gonna be so dog blooded
I just want to hug him so much 😭
Thank you so so much for the chapter ❣
Chen ju you’re such a good boy 😭 he didn’t ask for a full amount but rather just ask for the remaining cost he couldn’t cover 😭 Jiang zhou better pay the hospital bill in full and let chen ju take his mom home 😭😭
+1 IKR???
How many more chapters till things will go for the better? 😭
I have a bad feeling about this contract, especially when a third party is involved (the master). They better not think about doing harm to Chen Ju or else… (ノಠ益ಠ)ノ彡┻━┻
I have a bad feeling about the old man
Thank u for the chapter
what old man? is he the so-called grandpa mentioned in the summary?