Middle-aged tycoon: Twins come knocking on his door when he goes home for Chinese New Year

Two people were walking down the commercial street, each carrying a paper bowl filled with stinky tofu.

The commercial street was crowded, and the shops along the roadside had their lights on.

The two of them strolled along the street, chatting idly.

Huo Qian used a bamboo skewer to pick up a piece of black stinky tofu, put it in her mouth, chewed it a few times, and swallowed it.

She turned to look at Li Menghan and asked him directly:

When did you meet your current girlfriend?

Li Menghan also ate a piece of stinky tofu.

He looked at the road ahead and answered honestly:

"We've known each other since high school. We've been dating for a year now."

Huo Qian nodded thoughtfully upon hearing this answer.

She stopped and threw the empty paper bowl she was holding into a trash can by the roadside.

Then she sighed, a hint of disappointment in her voice, and said to Li Menghan:

"I really envy your freedom to date. You can choose the person you like. I can't do that. Unlike you, I don't even have the chance to choose a boyfriend."

Li Menghan was somewhat surprised when she heard Huo Qian say that.

He stopped, looked at Huo Qian's very beautiful face, and asked, puzzled:

"Why? Your family is so rich, and you're so good-looking. If you wanted to date, there would be tons of handsome guys chasing after you, right? Look at that blond guy, Xu Shiyou, he was trying to hit on you and become your boyfriend, wasn't he?"

Upon hearing the name Xu Shiyou, Huo Qian gave a displeased snort.

Her eyes were full of disdain for Xu Shiyou.

She said directly:

"Even if his family is richer than mine, I wouldn't even look at someone like him."

Huo Qian continued walking forward, then said to Li Menghan:

"Of course, that's not the main reason I can't have a free-choice relationship. Actually, you don't know, but in wealthy families like mine, there's no such option as free-choice dating. Everything is arranged for me by my family."

Huo Qian's tone was very calm, as if she were talking about someone else's business:

"I won't need to find a boyfriend myself anymore. I just need to obediently listen to my parents and marry a man I don't even know and who I might not even like."

"Their purpose in arranging for me to marry someone else was quite simple: to forge a marriage alliance between the two families. This way, everyone's business could grow bigger and they could make more money."

Li Menghan nodded seriously after hearing Huo Qian's words.

He said:

"Yes, I've seen these kinds of things on TV before. But I always thought they were just for entertainment. I really didn't expect that they actually happen in real life."

Huo Qian was somewhat surprised to hear Li Menghan say that.

She turned to look at Li Menghan and asked:

"Don't you know these things? This is very common in wealthy circles."

Li Menghan shook her head naturally.

He said:

"I come from an ordinary family. All I think about every day is how to make money to eat. How would I know about the things in your circle of rich people?"

Huo Qian felt a little strange when she heard Li Menghan's answer.

Before she came to school, her father had told her very seriously that Li Menghan's family background was not simple.

His father is a very powerful boss.

Why wouldn't Li Menghan know about the affairs of wealthy people?

If I don't know, then so be it.

Why would Li Menghan personally say that he came from an ordinary family?

Huo Qian did the math in her head.

If Li Menghan's family can be considered an ordinary family, then Huo Qian's family can probably only be considered as being from a poor background.

Huo Qian couldn't hold back any longer, and she directly asked the question that had been bothering her:

"Shouldn't your family be very wealthy? That red Ferrari you drove to school today wasn't cheap either. How could an average family afford a million-dollar sports car?"

After listening, Li Menghan shook her head.

A wry smile appeared on his face.

He threw the bamboo skewers in his hand into the trash can, and then explained to Huo Qian:

"That Ferrari was bought with money I borrowed from my dad. I've always lived with my mom, and we're not well-off at all. My mom worked as a waitress in a restaurant and later became the manager. My living expenses were only about a thousand yuan."

Huo Qian looked at him with some confusion.

Li Menghan then went on to explain her situation.

He said to Huo Qian:

"My dad abandoned my mom and went to America eighteen years ago. He never came back and never sent us any money. My mom raised me all by herself, and we used to live in a very dilapidated tin shack."

"To earn my living expenses, I had to deliver food on my electric scooter during winter break. It wasn't until a few days ago that my dad suddenly came back from abroad. He's become very rich. That Ferrari was bought for me with money he lent me the day before yesterday."

After listening to Li Menghan's account of what happened between his parents, Huo Qian finally understood.

It turns out that Li Menghan was really poor before, and he only recently became rich.

Huo Qian nodded and looked at Li Menghan, saying:

"Oh, I see. But now that your father is back, and he's so rich and willing to give you money, isn't that a good thing?"

If it were Li Menghan from a few days ago, he would have decisively denied Huo Qian's statement.

He would say he doesn't need the man's money.

But now, Li Menghan did indeed take his father's money and buy a sports car.

So he nodded.

He admitted:

"That's right, for my sister and my mother, his return is definitely a good thing. They won't have to worry about money anymore, and they won't have to live that kind of hard life anymore."

Huo Qian was very clever; she keenly sensed the problem in Li Menghan's words.

Huo Qian asked:

"From what you're saying, it sounds like this isn't a good thing for you?"

Li Menghan stopped and looked at the streetlights by the roadside, her tone somewhat conflicted.

He said:

"This...it's hard for me to explain. He is indeed my biological father, but the harm he has caused my mother over the past eighteen years is real. My mother has suffered a lot and shed many tears. Actually...I don't really know how to face him now."

Li Menghan lowered her head and continued:

"I took his money, and I felt guilty for letting my mother down after all the suffering she'd endured. But if I hadn't taken his money and had to work as a delivery driver, I would never have been able to afford that Ferrari in my entire life."

Huo Qian stood to the side, listening to Li Menghan's words.

She quickly understood the pain and awkwardness in Li Menghan's heart.

Huo Qian thought about it for a moment using her very practical mindset as a wealthy person, and then offered Li Menghan a solution.

She looked at Li Menghan and said very directly:

"Since you feel uncomfortable acknowledging a biological father who abandoned you, why don't you just treat him as your stepfather?"

Li Menghan was stunned when she heard this.

He never imagined that it could be calculated this way.

Huo Qian continued to reason with him:

"Think about it, your very wealthy father is currently in Han City, right near your home, and he's not going to leave. He can give you money to spend, and give money to your sister and mother. He can even buy you a big house to live in. Isn't this the best outcome?"

Huo Qian's voice was very clear and crisp:

"Why do you keep dwelling on things from the past eighteen years? Just assume that the poor guy's biological father died eighteen years ago when he went to America."

"The man who's come back now is just a very wealthy boss. He's taken a liking to your mother and is pursuing her. He's willing to spend money on you both. He's just a rich stepfather. Your stepfather gives you money, and you can just take it and spend it. Doesn't that make you feel much better?"

After hearing Huo Qian's words, Li Menghan suddenly raised her head.

He looked into Huo Qian's eyes, his gaze seemingly filled with something he wanted to say.

He no longer needs to feel guilty about forgiving his biological father.

Li Menghan repeated Huo Qian's words softly to herself.

"Stepfather..."

Li Menghan carefully considered this statement in his mind. He felt that Huo Qian's words made a lot of sense.

Li Menghan looked at the street ahead, nodded, and said:

"You're right. Thinking about it that way does make me feel a little better."