From Wage Slave to Tycoon

The next day, Su Chen rushed to the hospital bright and early. On the way, he made a special trip to buy breakfast for Su Zhuyun.

As soon as he walked into the hospital room, he saw Su Zhuyun completely engrossed in the television.

"Dad, what are you watching so intently? Here, I brought you breakfast!" he said, placing the bag he was carrying on the small table beside the hospital bed.

He thoughtfully took the soy milk and youtiao out of the bag.

Su Zhuyun didn’t have many hobbies. Aside from the occasional cigarette and a cup of tea, his one great love was youtiao soaked in soy milk. As far as Su Chen could remember, it had been his favorite for a good ten years.

You add a little sugar to the hot soy milk, cut the youtiao into pieces, and soak them. After waiting ten-odd seconds, you eat them... The taste was simply divine.

Seeing the soy milk and youtiao on the table, a flicker of joy appeared in Su Zhuyun’s eyes. "So you do have a conscience, kid. You know this is my favorite."

As he spoke, Su Zhuyun swung himself out of bed and skillfully soaked the youtiao in the bowl of soy milk, stuffing it completely full.

Seeing Su Zhuyun’s happy expression, a smile spread across Su Chen’s face. He replied smugly, "Of course!"

"Dear viewers, we are now broadcasting live from the National Museum, where we will soon witness..."

Hearing the voice from the TV, Su Chen quickly turned to look. The title on the screen was about the live donation of returned cultural relics by the Arno family. From the looks of it, the donation ceremony was being broadcast live.

’It made sense,’ he thought. ’This whole donation ceremony was for the public, after all!’

"This is so satisfying to see!"

"Those foreign devils stole who knows how many of our cultural relics. But now our country is strong again, and they’re finally learning to be afraid!" Su Zhuyun said excitedly, his eyes glued to the TV.

Watching his emotional father, Su Chen was a bit stunned. He gradually came to a realization: this donation ceremony wasn’t as simple as he had thought.

What Xiao Chen had told him before—about prominent foreign families and private collectors returning relics that had been lost overseas—that was all secondary.

It was more of a side benefit. If others followed the Arno family’s example and returned relics that had been taken abroad, that would be for the best, of course.

But if they didn’t, there wasn’t much that could be done for the time being.

The most important thing right now was... to build up the national confidence of ordinary people like Su Zhuyun, to show them that the country had grown powerful and could no longer be bullied as it had been decades ago.

’Something always felt off. No wonder Xiao Chen was so invested, running around and handling everything. Even Jiangyang was actively involved, to the point of playing mahjong with me and Shuraya at the state guesthouse for several days.’

"Xiaochen, what are you mumbling about? Hurry and sit down, the ceremony is starting!" Su Zhuyun’s voice broke Su Chen’s train of thought.

A spark of inspiration had just flashed through his mind, but it was interrupted by Su Zhuyun before he could explore it, and the fleeting thought vanished without a trace.

Su Chen felt a bit helpless, but this was his old man, after all. It wasn’t like he could defy him.

He sighed softly, pushed his thoughts to the back of his mind, and sat down next to Su Zhuyun to quietly watch the live broadcast.

The donation ceremony was very formal. A red carpet was laid out, and red flags fluttered. The backdrop of the stage bore large characters reading: "The Arno Family’s Donation of the Yuanming Garden Bronze Snake and Ram Heads." In front of the backdrop stood a large object covered by a red cloth, which Su Chen immediately recognized as a glass display case.

The ceremony itself was quite simple. After some speeches from the relevant officials, Shuraya, as the representative of the Arno family, and a leader from the cultural department would unveil the red cloth together.

As the red cloth was slowly lowered and the two bronze animal heads came into view, a thunderous applause erupted right next to Su Chen, making him jump.

"Dad, what are you getting so excited for!" Su Chen said, a hint of complaint in his voice.

In return, he received a disdainful look from Su Zhuyun. "How could you young people possibly understand such a thrilling moment? This is a display of our nation’s strength! Otherwise, why would that... that Arno family return two animal heads, two national treasures, and over a thousand other cultural relics to our country!"

"To be backward is to be beaten. We were just too poor back in those days, constrained by others in so many ways. Countless people worked hard to achieve the situation we have today. How can one not be excited!"

"It’s a shame... If only I could have been there to see this in person!" Although Su Zhuyun was a little regretful, his face was still beaming with pride.

Hearing this, Su Chen was filled with a mix of emotions. Su Zhuyun and his generation had lived through those difficult times, witnessing the country’s hardships firsthand.

Back then, just having something to eat was considered a blessing, let alone having full meals with meat every time, like now.

The good life they had today was bought with the sacrifices of countless ancestors. An idea began to take root in Su Chen’s mind.

The donation ceremony lasted for over an hour. On the television, Su Chen even spotted that guy Jiangyang.

As the person responsible for the handover of the animal heads, he had shed his usual playful demeanor, looking exceptionally solemn and dignified. Paired with his handsome face, who knew how many girls would be losing sleep over him tonight.

"Dad," Su Chen said out of the blue, "once spring comes, I’ll take you and Mom to the Imperial Capital. We can go see the flag-raising ceremony and climb the Great Wall."