85: Chapter 85 Chen Nianyao: My dad might be printing money.

On the back street of Yunzhou University, there was a bustling, trendy hot pot restaurant.

The steaming red oil broth bubbled away, but Chen Nianyao, biting her chopsticks and staring at the tripe rolling in the pot, had her mind wandering far away.

The events of the past few days were more dramatic than any soap opera.

First, her biological father found her and turned out to be the world's richest man; then her brother changed his surname and stomped that arrogant Wang Hao and his family into the dirt.

Just yesterday, she saw her brother's ice-cold face on a news app, with a terrifying headline: "Mysterious Chen Capital Swallows Tiansheng in One Fell Swoop."

"Hey, Nianyao! What are you zoning out for? The meat is overcooked!"

Her roommate, Zhou Xiaoyu, tapped the edge of Chen Nianyao's bowl with serving chopsticks, pulling her back to reality.

"Ah? Oh, right, eat, eat." Chen Nianyao quickly grabbed a piece of tripe and shoved it into her mouth, hissing as it burnt her.

"Have you guys heard?" her roommate Zhang Qian, sitting opposite, said mysteriously, lowering her voice. "That Wang Hao from our school, his family is completely finished. I heard his dad wet his pants when he was arrested."

"Serves him right!" Zhou Xiaoyu said indignantly. "That Wang Hao usually acts like his nose is pointed to the sky just because he has some money. This is what you call karma. But come to think of it, what kind of sacred entity is this 'Huihuang Group' that acquired Tiansheng Group? It's too ruthless, rooting out the Wang family in just three days."

Chen Nianyao chewed on the tripe, lowered her head guiltily, and pretended to look for the ladle.

Ruthless?

That's just because you haven't seen what my dad looks like when he's angry.

"I saw on the news that the new chairman is named Chen Muyang. He's super young and ridiculously handsome!" Zhang Qian said, cupping her face in infatuation. "That ascetic vibe—he's like a novel protagonist walking into reality! I wonder if this top-tier wealthy Young Master needs a trinket; I'd even work as a cleaner for him."

"Pfft—cough, cough, cough!"

Chen Nianyao choked on a sip of plum juice, coughing earth-shatteringly.

A cleaner?

If Zhang Qian knew that the "top-tier wealthy Young Master" was the same "poor boy" Su Muyang who had helped her save seats and brought her breakfast just a few days ago, this girl would probably faint on the spot.

"Nianyao, slow down." Zhou Xiaoyu handed her a tissue and looked at her suspiciously. "By the way, Nianyao, you also changed your surname to Chen, and that Young Master also has the surname Chen... could you two be related?"

Chen Nianyao's heart skipped a beat.

If she admitted it now, wouldn't she be gawked at like a giant panda on campus? No way. Keep a low profile. Dad said to keep a low profile.

"How is that possible!" Chen Nianyao waved her hand and spoke nonsense with a sincere face. "If I had relatives like that, would I be here fighting over tripe with you guys? I'd be off eating... eating gold-leaf wagyu beef."

"That's true." Zhou Xiaoyu nodded. "If you were a wealthy heiress, I wouldn't make you help me pick up my packages every day. Sigh, different people, different fates."

Just then, the phone Chen Nianyao had placed on the table suddenly vibrated.

A special notification sound.

It was the one she had specifically set for her dad, Chen Fan—a crisp "coin dropping" sound.

【Alipay balance: 10,000,000 Yuan.】

Although the mechanical female voice wasn't loud, in the noisy hot pot restaurant, it was like a thunderclap, striking precisely at their small table.

The air suddenly went silent for three seconds.

The stem lettuce Zhou Xiaoyu was holding dropped back into the pot, splashing a few drops of red oil.

Zhang Qian opened her mouth wide, looking at the phone and then at Chen Nianyao, her eyes vacant like a silly goose.

"H-how much?!" Zhou Xiaoyu's tongue was tied. "T-ten million? Did I hear that wrong, or is your phone broken?"

Chen Nianyao scrambled to pick up her phone, and upon seeing the screen, she also gasped.

This dad!

Can he not?

Didn't he just give her a black card two days ago? Why is he sending money again?

She quickly opened WeChat and, sure enough, saw a voice message from Chen Fan, along with a smug emoji.

Chen Nianyao tapped the voice message with a trembling hand, turned the volume down as low as possible, and held it to her ear to listen.

"Daughter, Dad saw on the news that gold prices have gone up recently, and I was worried you wouldn't have enough money to spend. I just transferred some pocket money; buy whatever you want, don't skimp. Oh, right, I saw that Hermès released a new Himalayan model, so I ordered a cabinet full for you. I'll have someone deliver them to your dorm building tomorrow."

Chen Nianyao felt her vision go dark.

A cabinet full?

And deliver them to the dorm building?

Dad, are you trying to make sure I get kidnapped?

"Nianyao..." Zhang Qian swallowed, her voice trembling. "That notification sound just now... was it real?"

Chen Nianyao stiffly raised her head, meeting the gazes of her three roommates, which seemed like they wanted to eat her alive, and her brain spun at high speed.

How to explain?

Won the lottery? No, what lottery pays directly to Alipay?

A system bug? Even more ridiculous.

"That..." Chen Nianyao let out a dry laugh and placed her phone face down on the table. "It's my dad. He... his business has been doing a little better lately, and he said he wanted to send me a red envelope to celebrate."

"A little better?" Zhou Xiaoyu pointed at the phone. "You call this a little? This is taking off, okay! What exactly does your dad do? Didn't you say he was working in another city before?"

Three heads leaned in simultaneously, their curiosity overflowing.

Chen Nianyao's forehead was covered in cold sweat.

If she told the truth, she'd probably be on the campus trending list tomorrow.

She took a deep breath, feigned calmness, picked up her chopsticks, and fished out a piece of overcooked meat from the pot, her eyes drifting. "It's nothing special. He's just... how should I put it, he's in logistics and transport."

"Logistics and transport?" Zhang Qian frowned.

"Yes." Chen Nianyao nodded solemnly. "He's mainly responsible for transporting some paper with special patterns from one place to another. It's high volume, paid by the piece."

Her roommates looked at each other.

"Paper with special patterns... isn't that money?" Zhou Xiaoyu realized, her eyes widening. "Is your dad from a mint? Or does he drive a cash-in-transit truck?"

"Something like that, something like that." Chen Nianyao quickly cut the conversation short. "Oh, let's stop talking about this, eat, eat, the meat is about to dissolve!"

Having barely managed to bluff her way through, Chen Nianyao quickly made an excuse to go to the bathroom and slipped out into the corridor.

She dialed Chen Fan's number.

"Hello? Good daughter, did you receive the money?" Chen Fan's cheerful voice came from the other end of the phone, with noisy shouting in the background.

"Dad! Can you not launch surprise attacks!" Chen Nianyao complained in a low voice. "Ten million in pocket money, are you trying to scare my roommates to death? I can barely keep making up excuses; I almost told them you were a bank robber just now!"

"Hahaha! Is ten million a lot? That was just Dad tapping the screen casually." Chen Fan said nonchalantly. "Alright, alright, Dad knows. Next time I'll transfer it in batches, five million at a time, so it won't be so conspicuous."

Chen Nianyao rolled her eyes.

Is there a difference?

"By the way, Dad, why is it so noisy over there?" Chen Nianyao listened to the sounds on the other end, something felt off. "Why is there the sound of someone selling grilled squid? Aren't you at home with Mom?"

"I am, I'm with her right now." Chen Fan's voice was full of pride. "Your mom said she wanted to eat at that 'Pang Sao BBQ' from the old night market, and she insisted on dragging me out. I'm waiting in line right now, there are still five tables ahead of us."

"The night market?" Chen Nianyao was stunned. "With your status... going to crowd the night market? You didn't bring bodyguards?"

"I did, but I told them to keep their distance so they wouldn't scare the common folk." Chen Fan chuckled. "Alright, I won't talk to you anymore, it's my turn! I want ten skewers of large kidneys! Hanging up now!"

Beep, beep, beep.

The call was disconnected.

Chen Nianyao held her phone and shook her head helplessly.

Who would have thought that the man who just casually transferred ten million and destroyed a wealthy family with a flick of his finger was now waiting in line at a smoky night market stall for a few skewers of grilled kidneys?

But that was her dad.

No matter how high he flew, his feet were always grounded in the scent of the earth, and his heart was always filled with his wife and children.

Chen Nianyao looked at the bustling night view outside the window, and the corners of her mouth curled up involuntarily.

"It's really good to have money." She muttered softly, then turned and returned to the private room. "This meal is on me tonight! Order whatever you want, I've got you covered!"

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