From Wage Slave to Tycoon

After his dad’s birthday ended, the house returned to normal. His third uncle’s family went back to Fuzhou to run their hot pot restaurant, and everyone else went back to work.

If there was one change, it was that Su Chen had taken his grandfather and grandmother around Wudu for several days. They visited just about every tourist attraction, and he even had a lot of photos taken of the two of them.

At first, his grandparents were very resistant. They said they were too old to be taking pictures and that it was a waste of money.

But after some gentle persuasion from Su Chen, the two of them reluctantly agreed.

He even hired the most professional photography company in Wudu, spending over twenty thousand to take a lot of photos. He especially had them take a few sets of wedding photos to make up for a regret from his grandparents’ youth.

When his grandparents saw the photos, all their initial resistance vanished. They were grinning from ear to ear.

Half-Mountain Coffee House!

Su Chen and Yin Zheng were sitting leisurely on an outdoor sofa, drinking coffee and admiring the Wudu skyline.

"Hey, Yin Zheng, tell me something. Why can’t my grandparents just relax and stay put? What’s so bad about living in the city? They insisted on going back to their hometown, and nothing I said could stop them," Su Chen said, then took a sip of his coffee.

’The plan was to have them stay for a while, to help them get accustomed to city life. Then, when it was time for them to move into the city, it would be easier for them to accept.’

But to his surprise, not even two days after the photoshoot, his grandfather was clamoring to go back home. He said it was springtime now, the perfect time for planting crops.

No amount of persuasion worked. Even when Su Chen showed his grandfather the ten-figure balance in his bank account on his phone, it was no use. He was dead set on going back home.

Left with no other choice, Su Chen could only arrange for Su Yan to drive his grandparents back.

Yin Zheng paused at his words, gazing at the distant skyscrapers of Wudu. "Master Su’s roots are planted deep in that soil," he said. "It’s hard to leave the land you’re from."

Yin Zheng’s words were simple, but they cut straight to the heart of the matter.

’He’s right. It’s hard to leave the land you’re from. Especially for the older generation, for a place they’ve lived in for decades... how could they just up and leave? They’d only be forced out by some kind of disaster.’

Su Chen let out a soft sigh and decided not to dwell on it anymore. After all, his repeated attempts to get his grandparents to move to the city and enjoy life had all failed. ’Looks like... I’ll just have to ask Mom, Dad, and my second uncle to visit them more often.’

"Brother Chen, what are your plans?" Yin Zheng asked, turning to look at Su Chen, who was lounging on his chair.

After the experience at Su Chen’s father’s birthday, their relationship had leveled up. Before, you could say they were only friends because of their connection through Jiangyang.

But now, Su Chen had come to genuinely respect Yin Zheng. They were more than just casual friends now; their interests were partially intertwined.

Speaking of which, Yin Shan had specifically asked Yin Zheng to pass a message to Su Chen: have his mother, Chen Shufen, consolidate all the hot pot restaurants under her name and establish a proper catering company. It would sound more impressive and could help avoid unnecessary problems.

Su Chen had mentioned this to his mother, Chen Shufen, who immediately agreed with great enthusiasm. After all, his mom now saw Master He as her role model.

She went to register the catering company that very day. The name she picked, however, left Su Chen at a loss for words: Yunshu Catering Company.

Unsurprisingly, the name was a portmanteau of their own names: "Yun" from Su Zhuyun and "Shu" from Chen Shufen. All Su Chen could think was, ’Whatever makes you happy.’

Su Chen thought for a moment before replying, "Plans... I don’t really have any at the moment. I was just thinking of taking a trip somewhere."

It was already mid-April, a time of blossoming flowers and pleasant spring warmth. The perfect time to travel—not too cold, not too hot.

’Su Chen just hadn’t decided where to go yet. If he went somewhere like the northwest or the borderlands, he definitely wouldn’t go alone. He’d have to bring a couple of people with him, if only to ensure his own safety during the journey.’

"A trip?" Yin Zheng’s eyes widened when he heard Su Chen. "Brother Chen, why don’t we just go? A spur-of-the-moment thing. The Western Sichuan Loop is supposed to be amazing. It only takes a few days, and the views are incredible."

"The Western Sichuan Loop, huh?" Su Chen thought it over and felt it was a great idea. But just as he was about to agree, his phone, which was sitting on the table, started ringing.

Su Chen glanced at the caller ID, a flicker of confusion in his eyes. ’Why is such a busy person calling me all of a sudden?’

He didn’t overthink it and answered the call.

"Yi Ming, what’s the call about?"

"Young Master Su, the company’s in trouble." Zhang Yiming’s voice came from the other end of the line, hurried and laced with a clear note of panic.

"Don’t panic. Tell me slowly," Su Chen said, his tone even.

Zhang Yiming quickly explained the whole situation. As Su Chen listened, his brow furrowed.

The story was simple. The grandson of some big shot in the Imperial Capital had opened a financial firm. He’d set his sights on the fast-growing Douyin and wanted to acquire a stake in the company at a low price.

How low, you ask? He wanted to acquire fifty percent of Byte’s shares for a mere ten million.

How could Zhang Yiming possibly agree to that? He rejected the offer outright. But what no one expected was that, soon after, the company was being audited by "relevant departments."

𝘧𝑟𝑒𝑒𝘸𝘦𝘣𝑛𝑜𝘷𝑒𝓁.𝘤𝘰𝓂

They weren’t really there to investigate anything; it was purely to harass them. After a few days of this, morale inside the company plummeted, and everyone was on edge. Zhang Yiming called in some favors, but nothing worked. Left with no other choice, he had to call Su Chen for help.