Su Chen hummed a song, feeling quite pleased with himself. After all, he had just flexed a little in front of his old classmate, and that feeling, he had to admit... was damn satisfying!
He was finally starting to understand why the protagonists in novels, once they got rich, loved to go around showing off and putting people in their place.
After driving for four or five minutes, Su Chen remembered something. His parents had apparently bought an apartment in Fuzhou a couple of years ago, but he wasn't sure if they had moved in yet.
Pulling the car over to the side of the road, Su Chen took out his phone and called his mom.
"A valiant eagle flies in the deep blue sky, I watch from a high ridge..."
Hearing the ringtone coming from his phone, the corner of Su Chen's mouth twitched.
The phone rang for about seven or eight seconds before the call connected.
"Hello, son!" The voice of his mother, Chen Shufen, came from the other end, mixed with other sounds.
"Three of Characters! Pong! Five of Bamboos!"
"Five of Bamboos! I win!"
"Mom, are you playing mahjong again?!"
"Mhm, it's the holidays, isn't it? Just playing a little mahjong with a few neighbors in the complex. What's up? If it's nothing important, I'm hanging up!"
Su Chen was speechless. His mom worked as a bona fide chef in a university cafeteria. She didn't have many other hobbies—she just loved to play mahjong.
It wasn't that she was a gambler; she just purely loved the game. Perhaps it was a hobby etched into the very bones of people from the Sichuan-Chongqing region.
Su Chen didn't beat around the bush and said directly, "I'm back in Fuzhou!"
"What? Son, you're back?!" Chen Shufen's voice shot up several octaves.
"Yeah, I'm on Binjiang Road right now. I was calling to ask where the apartment you guys bought is!"
"It's right on Binjiang Road! Haiyi River View!"
"Haiyi River View?" Su Chen was stunned. 'Isn't that complex right near the Jinke Hotel?'
He'd even driven right past it just now.
'So I drove right past my own home and didn't even realize it!'
"Got it, Mom. I'll be right there!" He hung up immediately after saying that.
On the other end of the line, Chen Shufen glanced at the disconnected call, then turned excitedly to her three mahjong buddies. "Let's stop for now. My son is back!"
"Shufen, your precious son is finally willing to come home. Looks like he's made some big money, huh!"
"We're always hearing you talk about how... outstanding your son is. Why don't we all go take a look in a bit!"
"Exactly! Your son is 24 this year, right? We should all go see him. We can even help you keep an eye out for a suitable daughter-in-law!"
They say middle-aged women love a bit of drama. The three of them had been listening to Chen Shufen boast about her son for so long their ears were about to fall off.
In private, the three of them had often complained about it.
'If Su Chen were really that outstanding, how could he have failed to even get into a university?'
Now that they finally had this opportunity, how could they possibly let it pass?
Chen Shufen's expression soured. Their words might have sounded nice, but she knew they just wanted to see her make a fool of herself.
Who knew her family's situation better than she did? At that moment, Chen Shufen wanted to slap herself. 'Why do I love boasting so much?'
But you couldn't really blame Chen Shufen. After all, who wouldn't want others to have a good impression of their child?
"What's wrong, Shufen? Is it not a convenient time? If not, we can just forget it," one of them said with feigned regret.
Hearing this, Chen Shufen agreed without thinking.
"It's convenient, of course it's convenient! I'll be counting on you aunts to introduce him to some potential girlfriends later!"
Receiving Chen Shufen's confirmation, triumphant smiles appeared on the other three women's faces.
The four of them then walked out of the teahouse, each holding a parasol, and stood by the side of the road.
"Shufen, your son drove back, right?"
"I think so!" Chen Shufen said uncertainly.
It was the hottest part of the day, and there were barely any vehicles on the road.
In the opposite lane... a yellow SUV slowly approached from the distance.
"You guys think... that couldn't be Shufen's son's car, could it? The license plate is from Shanghai!"
"No way. Just look at the design of that car; you can tell it's worth a fortune. How could Shufen's son possibly afford a luxury car like that?"
Chen Shufen pretended not to hear, craning her neck to peer into the distance, trying to spot Su Chen.
"Hey, wait, why is it making a U-turn and heading toward us?!"
All of them turned their gazes to the yellow SUV. Soon, the vehicle pulled to a stop right in front of them.
The window rolled down, and a face familiar to Chen Shufen appeared in their line of sight.
"Mom, why are you just standing here? Don't you feel the heat under this blazing sun? And who are these ladies?" Su Chen asked, puzzled to see the others standing next to his mother.
"S... Son!" Chen Shufen never imagined that the driver would actually be Su Chen.
"Shufen, this... this is your son?" The three women standing beside her were gaping.
Chen Shufen gave a smug little smile. "Xiaochen, this is your Aunt Chen, Aunt Li, and Aunt Yang!"
"Aunt Chen, Aunt Li, Aunt Yang, it's nice to meet you all!"
After greeting them, Su Chen turned back to Chen Shufen. "Mom, hurry up and get in the car! It's sweltering out here!"
Hearing this, Chen Shufen immediately opened the door and got in, her eyes scanning the car's interior the moment she was seated.
"Why is this seat so comfortable? It feels just like a massage chair."
Meanwhile, the three women left standing outside were in an awkward position, not knowing whether to stay or go.
Chen Shufen noticed their predicament and said triumphantly, "You three, hurry and get in! You've never ridden in a luxury car before, have you? We'll have Xiaochen take us for a spin."
The three women's expressions changed at her words. "Never mind, we won't go. Your son just got back; we shouldn't intrude!"
"Ah, that's fine too! See you later!" With that, Chen Shufen pressed the button to roll the window up.
Watching the car drive into the complex, Aunt Chen spat in its direction. "Who knows if that car is rented or not. What's there to be so smug about?"
"Exactly! Did you see how smug Chen Shufen looked just now? Acting all high and mighty!"
"Anyone who didn't know better would think her son is some big company boss. For all we know, he's just a chauffeur for someone else!"
Though their faces were filled with jealousy, a flicker of envy flashed in each of their eyes.
Meanwhile, following Chen Shufen's directions, Su Chen drove the car into a temporary parking spot in the garage.
After the car was parked, Chen Shufen looked at Su Chen nervously. "Xiaochen, be honest with Mom. What's the deal with this car? Is it rented? A car this luxurious must have cost a lot of money!"
"Why are you so thoughtless, child? Wasting money on things like this!"
Listening to his mom's barrage of questions, Su Chen pursed his lips, took a small booklet out of the center console, and handed it to Chen Shufen.
Chen Shufen gave Su Chen a surprised look and took the booklet from his hand.
She opened it, and her jaw dropped in astonishment. With a look of utter disbelief, she said, "Xiaochen, this car... is yours?"
"Mhm, isn't that your son's name written on it?"
"Aston Martin? Is... is this car expensive?" Chen Shufen asked, her brow furrowing slightly.
"Not expensive. Paid for it in full." Su Chen didn't notice the change in his mother's expression as he strode quickly into the elevator.