I was forced to start the second round because I was raised in poverty

Chapter 259 Tian Family Compound
in the afternoon.

Su Cheng was thinking about her father secretly going to wash and soak his feet.

This matter really bothered Su Cheng.

Which young girl did the old man hire to massage his feet?

She doesn't even think about her own son when such a good thing happens.

Even if it's not royal service, but purely organic, let Su Cheng enjoy it!

The old man could have easily lied and said, "Hey son, Dad's taking you for a foot bath," and then disguised his private masseur as a foot massage therapist from a club.

Isn't this a simple matter?
Oh, you're tired after a day's work, but I'm not tired after a day's work?

Do you really think I'm some kind of production team cop?
As Su Cheng pondered, she discovered a blind spot.

Where exactly did that old man massage his feet?

It's the dead of winter, and the temperature drops several degrees below zero at night.

Even with a private car to pick you up, your feet are unlikely to have that rosy color; the skin on your feet is quite saturated with water.

For so many years.

Su Cheng had never met her upstairs or downstairs neighbors, only a few strangers.

There are 22 households in the building, but it seems like only a few households live there.

Considering the foot-soaking incident from the previous two days, could it be that...

Could it be that Old Deng bought both the upstairs and downstairs apartments?
You know what, it's actually possible.

It's the kind of thing an old man would do.

It's possible that some may appear dilapidated on the outside but have extremely luxurious interiors.

When Su Cheng was with him, Lao Deng pretended to be poor and lived in this dilapidated house every day.

When Su Cheng wasn't around, Lao Deng would go to live in one of those luxuriously decorated houses upstairs or downstairs to immerse himself in art.

Su Cheng had originally considered whether to go door-to-door to deliver warmth and do some reconnaissance, but he dared not act rashly.

What if it wasn't Old Deng's gun emplacement, but rather the operational command center for the "Successor Project"?
The defenses here must be very tight. Su Cheng will most likely be wasting his time, and it might even alert Old Deng.

"Forget about that for now, we'll investigate later."

night.

The father and son finished off all the leftovers.

After washing up, Su Cheng crawled into bed.

He took out his phone, first contacted Zhang Yangwen, inquired about the situation of Young Master Zhang's family, and asked if Old Zhang's business had turned around.

Zhang Yangwen replied: [Not yet...]
Su Cheng typed: [Okay, I didn't mean anything by it, Xiao Zhang, I wasn't pressuring you to pay me back.]
Zhang Yangwen: [Yes, I know]
Zhang Yangwen: [Cheng-ge, could you send me your address? I'll send you some Shanghai specialties.]
ha?
Are there any local specialties in Shanghai?

Isn't the specialty of this place socialites?

Su Cheng thought to herself that there was no way to mail it.

Zhang Yangwen explained: "[Of course we have local specialties! We have aged baijiu here, the kind with around 10 proof, and butterfly cookies. I'll send some to Cheng-ge. Oh, and we also have peonies.]"
The peony Zhang Yangwen mentioned wasn't a peony flower, but a cigarette brand called Peony.

Su Cheng sent an emoji: [Don't bother sending peonies, we can buy them here.]
Zhang Yangwen: [Blue Peony]
Su Cheng immediately changed her approach: "[Then send two more.]"

Zhang Yangwen: [Hahaha, great!]
have to say.

Su Cheng and Zhang Yangwen's relationship has been progressing steadily, and now they've reached the point where they're exchanging New Year's gifts.

This also reminded Su Cheng that she needed to give their little group some perks.

Su Cheng opened their four-person group chat: [Send the address quickly, two Daokou roast chickens per person, and two jin of Hua Baogang]
Su Cheng: [The last person to send the address doesn't get any, haha ​​(emoji) (emoji)]
The next second, Qin Fen sent out his address.

Zhang Yangwen was the second to post it in the group.

Zhang Yangwen: [Brother Qin, you type so fast! I only typed half of it and you sent it already!]
Su Cheng cursed: [He just copied and pasted!]
After more than ten minutes, Ye Li still hadn't replied, and Su Cheng guessed that she might be busy?

He hasn't replied to the voice message he just sent to Ye Li.

After a while, Ye Li sent the address to the group.

Su Cheng teased: "[Sister Chestnut, you're done posting, the last one doesn't get any]"
Ye Li: [?]
Ye Li: [You dare not send it to me?]
Ye Li: [I don't want roast chicken, I just want beef.]
Su Cheng: [???]
Why did you pick one?!
Ye Li: [So what? You didn't say you'd bring me any local specialties when I left a couple of days ago, so this is like making up for it.]
Su Cheng: [Okay, okay, I'll make it up for you]
Su Cheng: [How about the mutated egg?]
Ye Li: [Century egg?]
Su Cheng: [Yes]
Ye Li: [What are some local specialties from your area?]
Su Cheng: [No, I meant I'd give you an extra egg.]
Ye Li: [? ?]
Ye Li: [Xing Sucheng, you just wait, don't let me see you in Jingzhou!]
Ye Li: [I'll beat you up every time I see you]
Su Cheng and Qin Fen were joking and bickering with Ye Li in the group chat.

At the same time, Su Cheng found Xiao Chen's chat window.

She should be resting by now.

Su Cheng left her a message asking for her address: "[Xiao Chen, could you send me your address tomorrow? I'll send you some local specialties from my hometown.]"
Xiao Chen is also from Yuzhou, but she has probably never eaten Daokou roast chicken, so Su Cheng plans to buy her two more.

Su Cheng wasn't exactly close to the intersection, but he bought absolutely authentic Daokou roast chicken.

After chatting in the group for a while, Su Cheng ended the group chat.

Just as Su Cheng was about to turn off her phone and go to sleep, she noticed that a friend request had suddenly appeared in her contacts.

This is a black and white cartoon portrait of the prison guard Gojo Satoru.

The verification information I filled in was: Hello cousin, I am Tian Manman.

Tian Manman?
Su Cheng found out; it must have been the WeChat account that Lao Deng pushed out?

Old Deng won't actually drag me to do the renovations at Tian Manman's house, will he?

Su Cheng didn't speak to Tian Manman at all today, nor did she observe her closely.

However, through this profile picture, Su Cheng can basically distinguish her from girls who 'don't eat cilantro'.

Su Cheng accepted Tian Manman's friend request. The information showed that Tian Manman added him around 7:00, but Su Cheng didn't notice.

Tian Manman: [Hello, brother]
Su Cheng: [Hello]
Tian Manman: [Your WeChat was sent to me by my uncle]
Su Cheng: [Oh, okay, you're still up so late.]
While exchanging polite words with Tian Manman, Su Cheng clicked into her Moments to check her background.

Saying it's about checking someone's background sounds a bit harsh; in reality, Su Cheng was using his own methods to quickly get to know Tian Manman.

However, Su Cheng didn't find any useful information from her WeChat Moments.

The background image is a sunset photo I took myself.

My personal motto is: Happiness is in the present moment.

The Moments posts are only visible for three days.

I pinned a photo of my birthday five years ago to the top of my WeChat Moments.

Whether she's shrewd or not is unknown, but she's definitely not stupid. Su Cheng temporarily categorized Tian Manman as a normal person.

For a normal person, this is already considered a relatively high compliment by Su Cheng.

They're much more normal than Tian Rui and the others.

There are so few normal people in the Tian family, it's not easy for Tian Manman to come out!
Su Cheng asked Tian Manman if there was anything else; if not, he was going to rest and sleep.

Tian Manman sent a kitten emoji, then asked Su Cheng: [It's only ten o'clock, does cousin usually go to bed this early?]
Su Cheng replied: [I'm already an old-timer in the corporate world, I can't compare to you young people.]
Tian Manman sent another cute kitten emoji; it seems like all her emojis are kittens: [Hey cousin, Mom asked me to ask you, do you know how to use that neck and shoulder massager? The cassette seems to be loose.]
what?
Su Cheng was a little confused.

Is the latch not secure?

Wait.

Su Cheng had a pretty good idea.

The gifts he and Lao Deng gave to their grandmother today were probably divided up, with each of them taking several items.

If the eldest uncle's family brought a neck and shoulder massager, then the second uncle's and aunt's families would bring foot baths or similar items.

Maybe Grandma will only leave behind a set of Tai Chi clothes and a pair of old-fashioned shoes?
Su Cheng sees through things but doesn't say anything; this kind of behavior is basically standard practice.

It doesn't matter who uses it, since Su Cheng has already given it away, and it's enough to have an explanation to Lao Deng.

Su Cheng patiently inquired about the specific problem from Tian Manman, and finally discovered that it was due to incorrect wearing posture. Changing her posture solved the issue; it wasn't a problem with the clasp. Tian Manman: [Okay, it's fixed now, thank you, brother!]
Tian Manman: [Brother, are you coming to renovate the house after the New Year?]
Su Cheng answered, "Yes."

Since Lao Deng has already discussed it with his uncle, he should be going to start the renovation, but Su Cheng doesn't want to do any more hard labor.

We'll see how things go; if things don't look good, he'll just run away.

Tian Manman: [Thank you so much, Uncle and Brother!]
Tian Manman: [By the way, bro, should I add you to the family group chat?]
Uh?
Family group?
Before Su Cheng could respond, Tian Manman sent her a WeChat group invitation.

The group name is also classic: Tian Family Courtyard.

Su Cheng didn't want to go in.

He still doesn't know the meaning of this group's existence.

The older generation shares life hacks every day, posting written rhymes, seasonal reminders, and the like.

My uncles might post some social news? Or some general policy information?

Her aunt might send her a message on her WeChat Moments to like it or vote for her son.

Sometimes you can't pretend you didn't see it.

Joining this kind of group is just asking for trouble.

Su Cheng replied tactfully: [Oh, okay, I'll add it tomorrow. I'm a little sleepy right now.]
Tian Manman: [Okay, go to sleep, brother.]
Su Cheng sent a goodnight emoji, then immediately tossed her phone aside and went to sleep.

The next day.

Su Cheng got up very early, and Lao Deng got up too.

"You don't need to go today."

"Hmm? What's wrong, Dad?"

"Today the client needs to have grout applied, so the floor needs to be secured so that no one can stand on it."

Seam grout?

Su Cheng didn't believe such a ridiculous reason.

Su Cheng took Lao Deng's words as meaning he was really too tired to continue, and then offered to take a day off today.

No... Old Deng, if you're not going, you should have told me a day in advance.

Su Cheng thought that if he didn't go, wouldn't he have gotten up early for nothing?

Old Deng replied, "I just saw the message the client sent me."

You... Su Cheng just can't find any fault with you.

"So what should I do today?"

"You've been busy since you got back, so let's rest today. We're here on holiday to rest and recharge, so don't overwork yourselves."

"You go to the store today and mind the shop. I'll go help out at another client's place. I've specially picked an easy job for you."

Su Cheng: ???
Worth.

How dare you say something like 'going home is for rest'?
Was it Old Deng who dragged him to do that kind of heavy physical work?
It's unbelievable that such words would come out now.

Old Deng isn't ignorant.

He's deliberately messing with himself!
What does it mean to assign yourself an easy job now?
Are you sure you want to go to another customer's house to do work?
"Dad, then I'll go with you."

“No need…” Su Tianyan directly refused Su Cheng.

This made Su Cheng even more convinced that Lao Deng wasn't there to work at all, but to enjoy himself.

Not allowed.

Absolutely not allowed!
Su Cheng will definitely follow Lao Deng; wherever Lao Deng goes, he will go.

He may not enjoy this blessing, but Old Deng can't be comfortable either!

“Dad, the more people there are, the more strength we have. I’m getting the hang of it now.”

Su Tianyan refused again: "No, no, no."

“The other client has workers on the job, more than a dozen people. It would be redundant for you to go, and you would have to worry about it.”

"Besides, I know your skill level. You can't even get a few words right. You'll just cause trouble for us if you go."

"Okay, sure."

If you don't want to do it, then you don't have to.

Su Cheng felt that he could take this opportunity to check the store's accounts.

Harden's team should ideally have no weaknesses whatsoever.

If Su Cheng discovers even one loophole, Lao Deng will get a good drink.

Su Cheng then asked, "What about tomorrow? Aren't we working?"

"I still have to get up early tomorrow to help with the feast at your grandma's."

"it is good."

After having a quick and simple breakfast, Su Cheng drove to the store.

As soon as she entered, Su Cheng went straight to the drawer behind the counter.

Su Cheng actually found the ledger.

"Holy crap? So many debts?"

Su Cheng glanced at them briefly; these accounts were all written with ballpoint pens and were probably more than half the thickness of a notebook.

This includes some of Lao Deng's accounts before he opened the store. Even after becoming the exclusive agent for 3D particle paint, he still had quite a few customers.

"What's wrong?"

"Is Old Deng trying to bombard me with information again?"

"Don't you know that my specialty is information gathering?"

This was no challenge for Su Cheng at all.

Su Cheng spent several hours sorting through the accounts in this large notebook.

Unfortunately, he couldn't find any weaknesses in Old Deng's defenses.

"Is this professional team really that professional?"

The date, signature, handwriting, and other details before the order was accepted are exactly the same as the ones afterward.

The only information Su Cheng could obtain was: a significant increase in operating costs, scale, and revenue.

Income has increased several times over compared to before.

The only thing that could make Su Cheng doubt was whether the information about these clients was actually true.
"Grass."

"I feel like I've been set up by Harden."

Su Cheng felt that the information he was seeing was exactly what Lao Deng had deliberately wanted him to see.

The goal was to make Su Cheng feel that Lao Deng's idea of ​​starting a business was absolutely correct and a decision that could bring higher economic income to the family.

"alright."

"Capital, you've won!"

(End of this chapter)