TuxedoTranslations

Chapter 36

Wen Chenxi’s idea was simple.

He didn’t want to be Zhuang Yanyu’s biological brother, but this group was impossible to leave.

Since that’s the case, he would just add his own family to the group.

After all, on the Wen side, him being in this group meant they were family, right?

In this group, it would be perfectly logical.

And it would also let Zhuang Yanyu be included as part of their family.

Because there were so many people in the group.

The group didn’t have a verification system, and since it was dinner time, Zhuang Yanyu watched as more and more people appeared in the member list. He was a little confused.

“Who are these people?”

Wen Chenxi replied, “Because you said we’re a family, I want to consider you my family too. So, I added my parents, my brother, and Uncle Zhou. This is the whole Wen family, now we’re all in here. From now on, we’re all a family. Is that okay? Would you mind?”

Zhuang Yanyu felt that something was a little off, but what A’Xi said made sense.

He treated A’Xi like his real brother, so he added A’Xi to his family group.

A’Xi also considered him his real brother, treated him like family, and added his family to the group to introduce them. Was that strange?

It didn’t seem strange at all.

Zhuang Yanyu: “Oh.”

Wen Chenxi asked, “Do you mind?”

Zhuang Yanyu: “Mind what?”

Wen Chenxi remained calm. “Do you mind that I added my family to the group?”

Zhuang Yanyu certainly didn’t mind.

After all, these were his best friend’s real family!

His real dad, mom, and younger brother!

And there was also Uncle Zhou, a good friend of his father.

At that moment, someone spoke up in the group. A person with the name ‘Wen Jingzhong’ asked: 【Did we switch groups?】

Since the Wen family already had a family group, if it weren’t for Wen Chenxi being the one to add people, everyone would have ignored it.

But because it was Wen Chenxi, Wen Dad’s first reaction wasn’t about switching family groups.

However, Wen Mom quickly realized. She saw two unfamiliar WeChat profile pictures and asked everyone to change their names to see if anyone recognized them.

But Zhuang Yanyu and Old Zhuang’s WeChat names were simple—one used his real name, and the other was just ‘Old Zhuang.’

Wen Mom clicked on them. The name ‘Old Zhuang’ sounded familiar, but when she saw ‘Zhuang Yanyu,’ she was moved.

Wen Mom had always been concerned about her son’s future.

Now, seeing the group name and the members being her own family, she couldn’t help but suspect something.

Wen Mom immediately became alert and began asking questions in the group.

Song Yun Yue: Lao Zhou, is this Old Zhuang the friend you mentioned?

Zhou Baishu: Yes, this Zhuang Yanyu is his child.

Zhou Baishu: Why did Chenxi add this kind of group?

Zhou Baishu asked while sending a private message to Wen Chenxi.

Uncle Zhou: Did you win him over? Pulling him into a group so openly?

Wen Chenxi: No.

Uncle Zhou: Then what’s with this group?

Wen Chenxi: You might want to check who the group leader is.

Wen Chenxi: Xiaoyu said he’ll treat me like a real brother from now on, so we’re family now.

Uncle Zhou: …

Uncle Zhou: Candle.Jpeg

Zhou Baishu found it amusing. He thought this was definitely something the Zhuang family father and son might do.

After privately messaging Wen Chenxi, Song Yunyu, who had received his confirmation, had already sent multiple messages in the group chat.

Song Yunyu: Yanyu, huh? That’s a nice name.

Song Yunyu: How old are you? Are you a girl?

Song Yunyu: Do you have a boyfriend?

Song Yunyu: How long have you known A’Xi? He’s never mentioned you before.

Song Yunyu: Hahaha, I’m Chenxi’s mom, just asking casually, no other meaning.

Zhou Baishu: …

He knew she was eager for her son to get married, but did she really have to ask so bluntly?

Zhou Baishu was a little worried that this might scare Xiao Yu off. Just as he was about to ask Wen Chenxi to explain, Zhuang Yanyu’s reply popped up in the chat.

Zhuang Yanyu: Thank you, Auntie, your name is lovely too. I’m 23 years old, not a girl, I’m a guy.

Zhuang Yanyu: I’ve known A’Xi for a little over three months, almost four now.

Wen Jingzhong: A guy? Wen Chenxi, explain this. What’s going on??

Song Yunyu: Oh, you’re a guy.

Song Yunyu: But that’s okay, too. Four months isn’t a short time.

Song Yunyu: As long as you and our Chenxi are doing well, that’s all that matters.

Zhuang Yanyu: We’re doing great! We’re best brothers!

Zhuang Yanyu: Don’t worry, I’ll treat A’Xi like my own brother and never betray him. I’ll also be filial to him.

Song Yunyu: Huh????

Wen Jingzhong: Oh, they’re just brothers. That’s fine then.

Zhou Baishu: …

Zhou Baishu was speechless.

Alright, he was overthinking it. Clearly, Zhuang Yanyu hadn’t even considered that possibility.

Wen Chenxi didn’t seem surprised at all, as if he had expected this outcome.

Zhuang Yanyu, on the other hand, stared at the question marks from Wen’s mom, a little confused. He asked, “Did I misunderstand your parents’ meaning?”

Wen Chenxi replied calmly, “No misunderstanding. It’s exactly what you think.”

Then, he introduced the group members to Zhuang Yanyu one by one. “Wen Jingzhong is my dad, Song Yunyu is my mom, Uncle Zhou you already know, and this one, Zhou Qingcheng, is my younger brother.”

He added, “The last time I was on a business trip, the voice you heard was his. I mentioned before that I’d introduce you guys.”

Zhuang Yanyu memorized all their names and profile pictures, and his gaze finally landed on Zhou Qingcheng.

He wanted to ask why Zhou Qingcheng had a different last name than him but hesitated, wondering if it was some secret of a wealthy family.

He didn’t have much experience interacting with people, but in his past life, when he was guiding his host, he had encountered many strange family dynamics even in the cultivation world.

After all, that’s how a protagonist emerges.

Just as he was hesitating to ask, Wen Chenxi’s phone rang—it was his mother, Song Yunyu, calling.

Wen Chenxi signaled to Zhuang Yanyu before stepping aside to take the call.

Meanwhile, Zhuang Yanyu remembered he needed to inform Old Zhuang so he wouldn’t be confused by the new people in the group.

With that thought, he turned and walked into Uncle Liu’s courtyard to tell Old Zhuang about it.

Old Zhuang was quite happy—what made him happiest was that their Xiao Eleven had gained even more family.

Old Zhuang chuckled and said, “Good, good, good. I’ll go greet them too.”

Old Zhuang liked sending voice messages, so he immediately sent a 60-second recording in the group chat, expressing his gratitude for Wen Chenxi’s care, thanking Old Zhou, and appreciating their fondness for his Xiao Eleven.

Zhou Baishu responded quickly, telling Old Zhuang not to be so formal, since they were all family sooner or later.

That “sooner or later” was a clever choice of words, but Old Zhuang didn’t overthink it. Instead, he asked Zhuang Yanyu, “Xiao Wen’s family seems easy to get along with, right?”

Zhuang Yanyu nodded. “Yeah, I just chatted with A’Xi’s mom. She seems really nice.”

He was secretly overjoyed.

He also knew that when the main system filtered potential candidates, it must have taken their family members’ personalities into account.

Otherwise, they wouldn’t all be as easygoing as A’Xi.

“Oh, right.” Zhuang Yanyu suddenly remembered something and ran out of the courtyard. After a moment, he returned with a small plate in his hands.

The temperature in the southern city was high. Even at night, heat radiated from the ground in waves.

The plate had just been taken out of the fridge, and the moment it met the warm air, a thin layer of mist formed on its surface. Before long, droplets of water would merge and melt under the heat.

“Dad, look—a snowman.”

He presented the little snowman Wen Chenxi had given him like a treasure.

Old Zhuang looked delighted. “Oh, what a cute little snowman! Where did you get this?”

Uncle Liu, equally fascinated, exclaimed, “It really is a snowman! Our city A never gets snow. My mom told me that when she was little, there was some light snowfall once, but it’s been decades since then.”

Uncle Liu marveled at it, chatting with Old Zhuang about how hot it was every year in the south and how they’d probably never see snow again.

Zhuang Yanyu pressed his lips together, smiling. “A’Xi gave it to me as a gift.”

Just then, Wen Chenxi returned from his call. Old Zhuang looked up and greeted him with a smile, “Xiao Wen, you’re back from your business trip? None of the kids mentioned you were coming today. Have you eaten yet? Want to have a quick bite here?”

Wen Chenxi smiled and shook his head. “Thank you, Uncle Zhuang, Uncle Liu. I’m not hungry yet. I’ll eat some barbecue with them later.”

After showing off his gift, Zhuang Yanyu hurried to put the little snowman back in the fridge before it melted.

Seeing how much he treasured it, Wen Chenxi smirked and said, “You like it that much? Next time, let’s go up north and make a bigger one.”

Zhuang Yanyu responded without hesitation, “Sure! But we’ll have to wait until we both have time off.”

Wen Chenxi smiled and said, “No problem, I’ll arrange the time and place.”

Zhuang Yanyu: “Mm.”

After closing the fridge door, Zhuang Yanyu remembered what had just happened and asked, “Was that your mom calling just now?”

Wen Chenxi responded with a hum, “Yeah, she was asking about you.”

Zhuang Yanyu was taken aback. “Asking about me?”

Thinking about it carefully, he still couldn’t figure out why Song Yunyu would ask about him. Confused, he asked, “What did she ask?”

Wen Chenxi thought to himself—what else could she ask?

Nothing more than what was going on, why he suddenly created this group chat, making her misunderstand and embarrass herself, and she had scolded him for quite a while.

Wen Chenxi had simply told her that he was pursuing someone.

Finally hearing the answer she wanted, Song Yunyu sighed, “So you actually like boys. No wonder you’ve never gotten married.” Then she even asked, “Could it be that Xiaoyuan and Li Xi also like boys? Wait, don’t tell me they’re a couple?”

Wen Chenxi was speechless. “Mom, you’re overthinking.”

Before hanging up, Madam Song also mentioned that his father was throwing a fit at home, saying he wouldn’t allow his son to be with a man.

Wen Chenxi had calmly responded with an “Oh” before ending the call.

Everyone knew that Wen Jingzhong’s words carried no real authority in the Wen family.

Wen Chenxi ruffled Zhuang Yanyu’s hair and didn’t explain further, simply saying, “She just asked if we get along well.”

Zhuang Yanyu looked expectant. “And what did you tell her?”

Wen Chenxi smiled. “I told her the same thing I said in the group—that we’re best brothers.”

As expected, Zhuang Yanyu beamed, feeling warm inside.

By the time they returned to the barbecue, nearly half an hour had passed.

Seeing the two of them finally return, Ji Zhiyuan couldn’t help but complain, “Where did you guys go? I grilled a whole bunch, and it’s almost cold now!”

Zhuang Yanyu said, “Went to see the gift Ah Xi brought me.”

Hearing this, Ji Zhiyuan was surprised. “Lao Wen, you brought Xiao Yu a gift?”

Wen Chenxi: “Mm.”

Ji Zhiyuan looked at his empty hands, then glanced at Li Xi. “Then why didn’t Li Xi and I get one?”

Wen Chenxi calmly countered, “How old are you two? And how old is Xiao Yu? Do you really think you deserve one?”

That made sense. Ji Zhiyuan couldn’t argue and just muttered, “So biased.”

Normally, he would have fought Zhuang Yanyu for it.

But things were different now—Zhuang Yanyu had helped him a lot today, and he had already decided to treat Xiao Yu like a real younger brother. Fighting over something so trivial with his own little brother felt beneath him.

Realizing that the gift was just for him, Zhuang Yanyu discreetly shifted his position, sitting a little closer to Wen Chenxi.

Ah Xi is so good to me. He really, really likes this brother.

For the hundredth time, he silently thanked the Main Brain.

By the barbecue, the charcoal fire was still burning strongly, filling the courtyard with the delicious aroma of grilled food.

Wen Chenxi and Ji Zhiyuan each held small brushes, basting the skewers.

Ji Zhiyuan was grilling mostly for himself and Li Xi.

But all the skewers Wen Chenxi grilled were placed in front of Zhuang Yanyu first.

Even though Zhuang Yanyu had initially looked hesitant about eating barbecue, when Wen Chenxi handed him skewers, he accepted them without question.

Ji Zhiyuan was jealous. “Xiao Yu, didn’t you say you didn’t like this? When I gave you one earlier, you looked like you were in pain.”

Zhuang Yanyu felt guilty—he thought no one had noticed.

He mumbled, “I didn’t know it would taste good at first.”

Ji Zhiyuan: “So whose barbecue do you think tastes better? Mine or Lao Wen’s?”

Zhuang Yanyu answered without hesitation, “Ah Xi’s.”

Ji Zhiyuan muttered, “Why do I keep setting myself up for humiliation?”

Li Xi burst out laughing. “Alright, alright, stop talking and eat. Uncle Liu specially marinated this meat with Chinese herbs—you better not waste it.”

Zhuang Yanyu curiously asked, “What kind of herbs?”

Li Xi smiled mysteriously. “Guess.”

After the last “nourishing” experience, Li Xi had already learned to be indifferent to these things.

Just some kidney-tonifying, virility-boosting herbs—what’s the harm in eating a bit more?

Ji Zhiyuan also stopped talking, possibly thinking he could use some nourishment, and focused on grilling and eating.

Wen Chenxi turned to Zhuang Yanyu. “Ignore them. Just tell me what you want to eat. Do you want some Pacific saury?”

Zhuang Yanyu’s phone kept buzzing with WeChat notifications, so he didn’t have time to think about what Li Xi had meant.

Looking at his messages while responding absentmindedly, he said, “Sure.”

When Wen Chenxi returned with the grilled fish, he saw that Zhuang Yanyu was still glued to his phone. His expression, hidden beneath rimless glasses, darkened slightly.

He walked over, casually placing the fish in front of Zhuang Yanyu before asking in an offhand manner, “Xiao Yu, who are you chatting with? You’ve been staring at your phone for a while.”

Zhuang Yanyu didn’t hide it. “Ah Xi’s mom.”

Wen Chenxi was slightly surprised. “My mom?”

Zhuang Yanyu nodded and showed him the screen.

Wen Chenxi glanced at the messages and saw that his mother had added Zhuang Yanyu as a friend, and the two had been chatting privately.

The chat history read like an interrogation—where did he go to school, what was his major, where was he working now, and so on.

And Zhuang Yanyu had answered every question obediently.

At the end of the conversation, Song Yunyu even sent him a big red envelope, telling him to accept it.

Zhuang Yanyu had just been refusing Song Yun Yue, saying he didn’t want it.

But Song Yun Yue kept insisting he take it.

She was just short of outright shouting, “This is a red envelope for my future daughter-in-law!”

Wen Chenxi took the initiative and tapped to confirm the transfer.

Zhuang Yanyu: “?”

He got a little nervous. “Why did you accept it?”

Wen Chenxi: “Don’t make it difficult for her. This is a family custom.”

Zhuang Yanyu: “What custom?”

Wen Chenxi: “The younger generation always receives red envelopes when meeting the elders for the first time.”

Zhuang Yanyu had learned about human New Year traditions and knew that was a thing.

But no one said it applied to ordinary days too.

Then again, the country was vast, and every region had its own customs. Maybe it was real.

And since it had already been accepted, sending it back would be awkward.

He could only send Song Yun Yue a quick message: “Thank you.”

Just as he was about to put his phone away, it started pinging again.

This time, it wasn’t just Song Yun Yue’s messages—he had received three friend requests, all added directly from the group chat.

The requests came from Zhou Baishu, Wen Jingzhong, and Wen Chenxi’s younger brother, Zhou Qingcheng.

He accepted the first two immediately, but when it came to Zhou Qingcheng, Zhuang Yanyu felt he should ask first.

What if Wen Chenxi and his younger brother didn’t get along? What if there was a family inheritance dispute?

Plenty of  protagonist stories started with a family inheritance battle!

If Wen Chenxi and his brother were at odds, then without a doubt, he would stand firmly by his good brother’s side!

Zhuang Yanyu turned to Wen Chenxi. “Ah Xi, your dad and the others added me as a friend.”

Wen Chenxi hummed in acknowledgment. “Then just add them, it’s fine.”

Zhuang Yanyu carefully chose his words. “Your brother added me too. Should I accept?”

Wen Chenxi finally set down the brush in his hand and told him, “I think I mentioned before that I wanted to introduce my brother to you. Remember?”

Zhuang Yanyu said he remembered.

Wen Chenxi continued, “You and A’Cheng should have a lot in common.”

Zhuang Yanyu paused. “Me and him?”

So that meant Wen Chenxi and his brother had a good relationship?

“I heard from Chen Kang that when you were on a business trip, you repaired all the operating machines and equipment at Haigang Group. In that way, you and A’Cheng are quite alike.”

Zhuang Yanyu felt a little embarrassed. “Not all of them.”

Wen Chenxi picked up on his embarrassment and smiled. “Right, not all of them. And I know Xiaoyu was just trying to keep the project from getting delayed.”

To be honest, Wen Chenxi hadn’t realized Zhuang Yanyu knew so much and was this capable.

When Chen Kang told him, he thought it was just an exaggeration.

But then again, somehow, this kind of thing seemed perfectly natural when it came to Zhuang Yanyu.

And considering how this little Yu could slip past his company’s security firewall without anyone noticing, was there anything he couldn’t do?

Wen Chenxi asked curiously, “Xiaoyu, how do you know so much?”

“It’s all pretty simple,” Zhuang Yanyu said vaguely. “I just take a look here and there, and I pick it up.”

“Xiaoyu is really impressive.” At least Wen Chenxi didn’t think most people could just casually learn things like this.

Zhuang Yanyu didn’t bother with false modesty. “It’s alright.”

“My brother was the same way when he first joined the research institute. Whenever any equipment broke, he would always try to fix it himself first.” Wen Chenxi chuckled. “That’s why I said you two are kind of alike.”

Zhuang Yanyu was curious. “What does he research?”

“Chip technology.” Wen Chenxi then asked, “Did you add him on WeChat?”

Hearing this, Zhuang Yanyu completely froze. After a long moment, he finally spoke. “…Chip technology?”

Wen Chenxi: “Mm. What’s wrong?”

Zhuang Yanyu: “…That’s so… impressive.”

Terrifying, actually.

He’s researching chips?!

As someone who had once been a chip himself, Zhuang Yanyu involuntarily shivered.

Ah Xi’s younger brother was researching chips! That alone was scary enough.

Next step—was he going to research him and his dad?!

Images started flashing in Zhuang Yanyu’s mind: himself being dissected, studied under microscopes, analyzed from every angle… The mere thought gave him goosebumps.

Because of this, when he opened his friend requests and saw Zhou Qingcheng’s request, he instinctively hit “Decline.”

Then he quickly stashed his phone away, as if afraid of being caught.

But not long after, Wen Chenxi’s phone rang. When he saw that it was his brother calling, he shook his phone at Zhuang Yanyu and walked off to answer it.

As soon as Wen Chenxi left, Zhuang Yanyu scrambled to his feet, bolted out of the courtyard, and ran straight to Uncle Liu’s house.

Old Zhuang was still at Uncle Liu’s house, drinking tea and chatting. When he arrived, Uncle Liu happened to be in the restroom.

Seeing that no one was around, Zhuang Yanyu told his father about the terrifying discovery: “Dad, do you know? Ah Xi’s younger brother is actually researching chips.”

In the system, this was practically a topic terrifying enough to stop a child from crying at night. Even Old Zhuang was stunned and asked in shock, “He’s actually doing that…?”

Zhuang Yanyu nodded. “Yes. Haven’t you met him before?”

Old Zhuang said, “I have, but I really didn’t notice. I only knew he was doing research…”

Old Zhou had occasionally mentioned that his son’s research was highly confidential, so Old Zhuang had never asked about it.

Besides, Old Zhuang had little interest in anything outside of farming.

So back when Zhou Qingcheng accompanied Old Zhou to pick up goods, he and Zhou Qingcheng had barely exchanged a few words.

But thinking back now—this person was actually researching chips!

Old Zhuang wiped his sweat. “I really didn’t see that coming… It’s better to stay away from him from now on…”

Although they were now in human bodies, that guy specialized in this field. What if he discovered something unusual about them?

Keeping a distance was the safest choice.

Most importantly, from what they knew about humans, many humans took supernatural matters—gods, spirits, and ghosts—very seriously.

This could be seen from the thriving incense offerings at temples everywhere, where people worshipped all kinds of Buddhas.

What if one day, humans noticed something different about them and started suspecting them?

Zhuang Yanyu said seriously, “I’ll be careful. Dad, you should be too.”

Old Zhuang, still shaken, nodded. “Mm, noted.”

Then he suddenly remembered something. “But isn’t he in the group chat?”

The father and son exchanged glances before swiftly pulling out their phones. They found the “One Big Happy Family” group chat and quickly exited.

Scared to death. Better to stay far away from anyone researching chips.

–

Meanwhile, Wen Chenxi was answering a call from his younger brother.

Wen Chenxi said, “Xiaoyu might have clicked the wrong button. Try adding him again.”

Zhou Qingcheng replied, “Alright. I hope he really is the all-around genius you say he is.”

He was only interested in geniuses.

Suddenly, Zhou Qingcheng made a surprised sound. “Huh? I can’t find his account.”

Wen Chenxi: “Look again carefully. He’s the group owner, the first one on the list.”

Zhou Qingcheng: “…The group owner left the group.”

Wen Chenxi: “???”

–

Author’s Note:

PS—

Fish that left the group faster than anyone else: Scared the system half to death!

Wen, who just joined and already lost his wife: …Looks like this little brother isn’t worth keeping.

Zhou Qingcheng: ???

Wen’s Mom: Took the red envelope and left the group??

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