From Wage Slave to Tycoon

Chapter 137: Chapter 111: What Dividing the Cake? It’s Just an Invitation to Join the Franchise

"Eight-wan!"

"Kong! Spirits of heaven, spirits of earth, please let me get a Blossom on the Kong and beat all three of them!"

"HAHAHA! A Blossom on the Kong! Triple score, I win against all three!" Su Chen triumphantly slammed the Seven-wan from his hand onto the table.

Jiang Hui, Chen Fei, and Aunt Tang all looked utterly dejected.

After breakfast, Su Chen had gotten bored just sitting around the house. It was snowing outside, so he couldn’t go out and do anything fun.

He casually remarked he was looking for something to do, and Chen Fei suggested a game of mahjong.

And just like that, the four of them sat down at the mahjong table.

Jiang Hui had been living in Xiangjiang, but the mahjong scene was just as popular there, albeit with a few differences from the mainland.

After a quick discussion, they all agreed to play Sichuan-style mahjong with the "exchange three tiles" rule, which was easy enough for everyone to learn.

As a native of Wudu, playing mahjong was practically in Su Chen’s DNA, and his competitive spirit was instantly ignited.

Whether it was Su Chen’s incredible luck or just the abysmal skill of Jiang Hui and the other two, who could say? They had started at nine in the morning, and in less than three hours, the three of them had lost a total of nearly two thousand yuan.

And they were only playing for small stakes—about five yuan a game.

Losing two thousand like that... their luck was truly one for the books!

"Mr. Su, look at the time. It’s almost noon, I should get started on lunch!" Aunt Tang’s heart ached. She hadn’t gotten any work done all morning, and several days’ worth of her wages were gone!

"That’s right, Mr. Su, the snow in the courtyard needs a light sweeping!" Jiang Hui chimed in.

Only Chen Fei was at a loss for words. He understood how Aunt Tang and Jiang Hui felt, but wouldn’t calling it quits now just spoil Mr. Su’s fun?

He wisely chose to keep his head down and pretended not to hear a thing.

Hearing this, Su Chen didn’t insist on playing any longer. After all, as the day’s biggest winner, he had to show some sportsmanship.

If the losers hadn’t spoken up, Su Chen certainly wouldn’t have been the one to end the game. But since two of them were ready to stop, he had no objection.

"Alright, let’s call it a day. Aunt Tang, take this money I won and buy some groceries. We’ll all eat something good tonight!"

Su Chen had no intention of giving the money back. There are wins and losses in mahjong, and he couldn’t go breaking the rules. Otherwise, Jiang Hui and the others might not take their future games with him seriously.

"Of course, Mr. Su!" Aunt Tang accepted the money with a smile, then pulled a small notebook from her pocket and logged the amount.

Su Chen nodded slightly at the sight, quite pleased with Aunt Tang’s professionalism.

Just as he was about to get up, the doorbell at the main gate rang.

"Chen Fei, go see who it is."

At his word, Chen Fei immediately hurried outside.

Su Chen was also curious who could be looking for him at this hour. It was almost noon. ’Are they here to mooch a free meal?’

Soon, Su Chen heard a commotion from the front yard. Recognizing the familiar voices, he pursed his lips in annoyance.

"Aunt Tang, looks like lunch is going to be a bit more work for you. Please make some extra food. A few freeloaders who’ve starved for ages just showed up!"

"Freeloaders who’ve starved for ages?" Aunt Tang didn’t quite understand what Su Chen meant, but she still headed briskly toward the kitchen in the front courtyard.

The great thing about a courtyard house is that everything is connected. As Aunt Tang left via the covered walkway, she didn’t cross paths with the incoming guests.

As for Jiang Hui, he was already boiling water to prepare tea.

"Hey, Old Su, making tea already!" A booming voice filled the room the moment the visitor stepped inside.

Su Chen watched Sicong and the others file in, a wry look on his face. "You guys have impeccable timing, showing up right when it’s time to eat. What, you think this place is your personal cafeteria?"

"Hehe, how could that be? We just got to the Imperial Capital and came straight to you!" Sicong had long since learned to be shameless around him, speaking without a hint of being an outsider.

Su Chen scanned the group following him—Qin Fen, Hou Ting, Chen He, and Deng Chao—but noticed Chen Feiyu was missing.

"Hey, where’s Feiyu? Did he go back to Xiangjiang?"

"Mm-hmm. Their family business has apparently scaled up again. They’re even expanding into South Asia..." Sicong paused, giving Su Chen a meaningful look. "He told me it was all thanks to you!"

Su Chen raised an eyebrow and shot Sicong an exaggerated eye-roll. "Listen to you. As if I haven’t given you any resources!"

He then turned to the other four, who were still standing. "What are you all standing around for? Sit down! Is this a height competition?"

Hearing this, Qin Fen and the others immediately found seats around the table.

"Sicong, give Yu Qian a call and tell him to come over."

"Hm? Yu Qian? What do you want him for? You’re not planning on including him in this, are you?" Sicong had thought that with Chen Feiyu absent, there would be a larger slice of the pie for everyone else. He never expected Su Chen to just add someone new.

’One person leaves, another joins—it’s like nothing’s changed!’

"Just do it. I have my reasons," Su Chen’s tone grew firm.

Sicong shrugged helplessly. "Alright, alright. You’re the boss, after all."

He didn’t bother being discreet, dialing the number right there in front of everyone. The call was brief: get over to Su Chen’s courtyard house, and hurry—everyone was waiting for him.

With that, he hung up, leaving Yu Qian no chance to even ask a question.

Knowing that one person had yet to arrive, the group tacitly avoided asking Su Chen why he had summoned them. Instead, they started idly chatting to pass the time.

The center of conversation naturally became none other than Eldest Young Master Qin, Qin Fen.

"What the hell? Nine hundred million? Seriously?" Su Chen, who had been lounging lazily, shot bolt upright and stared at Qin Fen, his face a mask of curiosity.

He looked exactly like a classic drama-watcher, ready for the gossip.

Qin Fen heaved a long sigh and began to recount the soapy drama he’d been embroiled in.

The story was actually quite simple, a common problem among rich heirs like them. He changed girlfriends like he changed clothes, and the women, who were only in it for the money, didn’t care about official status.

Taking precautions was a must, of course, but no amount of protection could fend off a calculating woman’s schemes.

One of Qin Fen’s ex-girlfriends had gotten pregnant and disappeared, only to show up after the child was born to demand child support!

For most people, child support would be a few million, or tens of millions at the absolute most. But this woman’s appetite was huge; she went for the jugular, demanding a whopping nine hundred million!

Su Chen was left speechless after hearing the story. ’She managed to get pregnant even when they were using protection? This woman must have stopped at nothing!’

Seeing Qin Fen’s gloomy expression, Su Chen patted his shoulder. "If you ask me, you guys should fool around less. Find a serious girlfriend. It’s time to settle down!"

Qin Fen nodded. This incident had taught him a harsh lesson; he definitely wouldn’t be playing around like that anymore.

"Old Qin, not to be harsh, but what good are you if you can’t even handle a woman!" Sicong fanned the flames from the side, afraid the drama might die down.

Su Chen shot him a dirty look. "Sicong, you’re in no position to talk about Qin Fen... it’s the pot calling the kettle black. You’re cut from the same cloth. Just look at all those online influencers you hang around with. Be careful you don’t run into a schemer yourself."

"You can take a thousand precautions, but it’s hard to guard against an inside job. Who’s to say some influencer won’t take one of your little ’umbrellas’ home with her someday?"

"Impossible! Absolutely impossible!" Sicong shook his head so fast it was like a machine, but his expression soon turned grim.

If it happened once, it could happen again. With Qin Fen’s case as a warning, who could guarantee he wouldn’t be next? ’Looks like I really need to be more careful from now on,’ he thought.

’Even if I use protection, I have to destroy it on the spot. Can’t give anyone an opening.’

He was only thinking about how to avoid the consequences, not how to stop the behavior at its root. If Su Chen knew what Sicong was thinking, he would’ve had a field day roasting him.

Qin Fen’s story was just the beginning. The conversation grew more and more explosive, with Su Chen hearing the latest entertainment industry gossip from Chen He and Deng Chao. Apparently, some actress, looking for a thrill while filming her show, was practicing "horse-riding" with so-and-so in a crew van!

Some Z-list starlet knocked on a director’s door late at night, trying to get ahead.

For resources, for a shot at fame, they were willing to sacrifice everything.

Su Chen ate up all this gossip, feeling utterly satisfied. He’d never imagined he’d get to hear such juicy stories firsthand.

Yu Qian arrived surprisingly fast, his arrival cutting Su Chen’s gossip session short.

"Mr. Su." Yu Qian greeted him as he walked in, his expression showing a hint of surprise when he saw Sicong, Chen He, and the others gathered around the table.

He had assumed it would just be the usual group of rich heirs like Sicong, so he was surprised to see Deng Chao and Chen He here as well. But considering their connections and Chen He’s friendship with Sicong, things began to make sense.

"Have a seat anywhere," Su Chen said with a wave of his hand.

Yu Qian glanced around and chose a seat next to Chen He, since their fathers had a good relationship.

Chen He nodded politely in greeting.

"Ahem." Su Chen cleared his throat, drawing everyone’s gazes.

"The reason I’ve called you all here today is simple. I was hoping you could all help me out."

"Uh..." The group looked at Su Chen, confused. They had all assumed they were here to get a slice of a new pie, but his words seemed to suggest something entirely different.

Su Chen didn’t give them a chance to respond, continuing, "As some of you know, I took a trip to Xilinguole League a few days ago. I discovered that the Wuzhumuqin sheep there are not only delicious but also cheap. So, I secured the pastoral resources of an entire banner and, while I was at it, established a restaurant company focused on prairie beef and mutton. I’m planning to let you all franchise."

Those who were in the know and those who were not were all stunned into silence, especially Sicong and Hou Ting, who stared at Su Chen with wide eyes.

The two of them knew about the trouble Su Chen had encountered earlier in Xilinhot. They knew he’d resolved it, but they had no idea how, let alone what secrets lay behind that resolution.

But now... with Su Chen’s announcement, Sicong and Hou Ting understood. Su Chen had managed to take the pastoral resources of an entire banner right from the Yun family...

That was the Yun family they were talking about.

It was tantamount to snatching food from a tiger’s jaws—and he had actually succeeded.

For a moment, neither of them could process the reality of it.

"Old Su... did you really get the pastoral resources for an entire banner from the Yun family?" Sicong’s voice trembled as he spoke.

Su Chen simply nodded, confirming it was true. He offered no further details.

Meanwhile, Qin Fen, Deng Chao, and the others looked on, completely baffled by Sicong’s reaction.

’Who is this Yun family anyway?’ they wondered. ’Is getting resources from them really that shocking?’