I am not just a tycoon

Due to a traffic jam, Shen Yuan arrived at the agreed-upon location at 6:10.

After parking and stepping out of the driver's seat, Shen Yuan looked up and saw Su Xuewei standing prettily at the entrance.

Today, she was wearing the same white dress they had first seen each other in, revealing a section of her fair and smooth legs. The dress was somewhat loose, so when a breeze passed by, it clung to her delicate body, hinting at the impressive sights underneath.

Shen Yuan knew this first-hand; from that embrace downstairs last time, he knew this girl was well-endowed.

Shen Yuan walked up to her and said, "Why are you waiting here? Why didn't you just sit inside and wait?"

Su Xuewei flicked her hair from her forehead and said, "I was afraid you might not be able to find me when you came in."

"How could that be."

Shen Yuan chuckled, "You're so beautiful, I could spot you at first glance."

Su Xuewei's pretty face turned red, and she shyly lowered her head before following Shen Yuan into the restaurant.

After the two of them sat down, the waiter quickly brought over a menu, which Su Xuewei pushed towards Shen Yuan.

"You order."

"Is it okay to order anything?"

Shen Yuan asked jokingly.

"Mhm."

Su Xuewei nodded earnestly.

The warm yellow light of the restaurant shone on her face, highlighting her pert nose, rosy lips, and the blush on her cheeks from Shen Yuan's teasing earlier.

Shen Yuan didn't hold back and ordered three dishes, a soup, and two bowls of rice.

During the meal, Shen Yuan sought a topic and said, "You have to work and take care of your mom and your brother every day. Aren't you tired?"

Su Xuewei gently shook her head. "It's not tiring."

Knowing she had to cook when she got home, Shen Yuan then asked, "What about at noon when you're not home?"

Su Xuewei explained, "I cook in the morning and keep it in the rice cooker to stay warm, so it can be eaten when taken out."

"I see."

Shen Yuan paused and said, "I mentioned last time about helping you find an apartment, you should be able to move in by the weekend."

Su Xuewei shook her head. "Actually, there's no need, we're quite content where we are."

Knowing she would refuse, Shen Yuan said calmly, "Anyway, I've already rented the place. If you don't live there, we'll just let it sit idle, after all, the monthly rent isn't much."

Su Xuewei looked up at Shen Yuan with her beautiful eyes, she hadn't expected that he would have found an apartment so quickly. She had come this time intending to politely decline in person.

No matter how much Shen Yuan's rented place cost, it was definitely more than she could afford, even tonight's dinner prompted her to prepare for a reduced budget for the month.

She was in an internship phase, earning a little over 2000 a month.

The two of them might spend at most 300 yuan on the meal, but for her, it was a significant expense, almost equivalent to a week's living expenses for her family.

"Then... would this be okay?"

Su Xuewei came up with a middle-ground solution, "Consider the rent a loan from you. I'll pay you back when I start earning more."

"That's fine."

Shen Yuan thought, by the time you pay me back, you'll already be mine, and there's no need for accounting between family members.

"Mr. Shen, is that really you?"

A familiar yet strange voice suddenly came from behind.

Shen Yuan turned his head and saw a man in his 30s who seemed vaguely familiar.

"Mr. Shen, it's me, Dong Qitao, Dong!"

With that reminder, Shen Yuan immediately recalled who it was: Chen Na's blind date, the man he had shared a meal with at the same table before.

"Hello."

Shen Yuan reached out his hand in greeting.

He faintly remembered Dong Qitao was quite the social butterfly; knowing it wouldn't work out with Chen Na, he decided to play up to Shen Yuan instead, even taking on the role of pouring drinks during the meal.

Dong Qitao grinned and shook hands with Shen Yuan, "I'm here having dinner with a few good brothers. I didn't expect to run into you, but I see you haven't had a drink today. How about we have a couple of drinks another time?"

"No problem, we'll have the opportunity in the future."

Shen Yuan politely said, "I remember you're a sports equipment distributor, right?"

Dong Qitao nodded, "Yes, that's right."

Shen Yuan smiled, "Good, we might do business together in the future. Anyway, we've got WeChat. We'll contact each other when needed."

Dong Qitao had been waiting for just such a response. Networking is essential in business, to broaden one's scope.

When a person's wealth accumulates to a certain point, apart from the difference in wallets, there is also a difference in resources.

For instance, a deal he had been negotiating involved several rounds of drinks, a couple of trips to KTV, and even an outing to a venue called 998, yet after all his efforts, he failed to seal the deal.

But a second-generation rich kid easily snatched the order away from him, relying solely on his family connections.

Dong Qitao was lacking precisely this type of resource. To network with one more person was always a gain.

If it was an ineffective connection, a simple greeting wouldn't hurt, but if it turned out to be a valuable one, it could result in direct economic benefits later on – a massive win.

"No problem, then I won't disturb you any longer. Goodbye."

Dong Qitao smiled, bidding farewell to Shen Yuan. As he left, he discreetly took another glance at Su Xuewei, mulling over thoughts in his mind.

Shen Yuan was really playing the field; he had already visited Chen Na's home and met her parents, and now he was involved with another girl.

This girl was utterly different from Chen Na in style, one innocent and the other sophisticated, but in terms of appearance and figure, each had their own merits to compare.

After returning to his seat, a friend immediately asked Dong Qitao, "A'Tao, who was that? You actually went over to say hello?"

In his own circle, Dong Qitao was already the most successful among them, with his own business, driving a 5 Series, and his house bought on his own.

That's why Dong Qitao kissing up to others came off as rather demeaning in their eyes.

Dong Qitao laughed at himself, "As I mentioned before, she's the girlfriend of the guy I was set up with."

Talking about this incident, Dong Qitao also felt quite embarrassed. Not only had he made a blunder, but he also lost two bottles of Wuliangye and a pack of Huazi cigarettes in the process.

The man next to him glanced at that table, "They look so-so, nothing special. It's just he's a bit handsome."

Dong Qitao shook his head, "You guys didn't go over there to see. The watch on his hand could buy two of my cars."

The crowd was unanimously stunned for a moment. Dong Qitao's 5 Series cost over 400,000 on the road, so that meant the guy's watch was worth more than 800,000?

Someone came to their senses and asked, "What the hell kind of watch is that expensive?"

Dong Qitao enjoyed looking at watches in his free time, so he recognized it right away when he walked past. He explained, "It's an Audemars Piguet Royal Oak, Frosted Gold 2640, over 800,000."

"...."

The crowd looked at each other, feeling utterly outdone.

Dong Qitao was the figure they all looked up to, yet here they were, out for a meal and seeing someone miles above Dong's level.

They knew back in their hometown, a house would cost only 600,000 to 800,000, and here a person's watch could buy them a whole house.

One of the brothers had just spent a month's salary on a Longines watch and now, subconsciously, retracted his hand.

Everyone at the table felt the disparities in life and didn't want to continue the topic any longer.

But the brother next to them, not giving up, asked again, "Usually, the wealthy wouldn't eat at a place like this, right?"

In his mind, such wealthy individuals should only dine at high-end restaurants. Would they even consider coming to a family-style diner like this one?

"Well, that I don't know."

Dong Qitao could probably guess why, it was likely to accommodate the girl opposite him, but he was too lazy to explain.

"That girl is the one you were set up with? She looks quite young."

Another person asked out of curiosity.

Dong Qitao shook his head, "No."

Everyone at the table stalled for half a second but quickly caught on, unable to resist sighing, "Rich people really know how to live it up, 'a new flag at home doesn't fall while colorful flags flutter outside.'"

The person beside nodded and smacked their lips, "And they're always with beauties."

No wonder everyone wants to be wealthy.

Not only can you be satisfied materially, but you can also have your pick of beauties.

To them, such women were a rare commodity, but to those wealthy guys, they're likely just an option to sift through.

And the ones who get passed over probably wouldn't even give them a second glance.

Tell me that's not annoying?

Dong Qitao glanced in that direction, "Let's not meddle in the affairs of the rich."

.....

After the meal, Su Xuewei went to pay the bill. Shen Yuan simply let her, reasoning if he didn't, she'd probably feel troubled about it.

Shen Yuan suggested a walk, and Su Xuewei didn't object. Conveniently, there was a park directly across from them.

Shen Yuan couldn't remember how long it had been since he last visited a park. As he strolled along the shaded path with Su Xuewei, he thought hard.

Perhaps the last time was freshman year?

With his first love, Luo Bingying.

That was 6 years ago.

Shen Yuan shook his head, trying his best not to think about that person.

The park's streetlights were poorly maintained, giving off a faint light. This was probably one of the reasons the square dance grannies avoided this place. Young people didn't like to frequent parks either, which is why it was so deserted.

However, from time to time, a stray cat could be seen strolling leisurely by.

Seeing the stray cats, Su Xuewei squatted down, attempting to play with one.

But most of the stray cats here were very wary, quickly jumping away as soon as they saw a human hand extended towards them.

Shen Yuan laughed, "Next time, you should bring some cat food. Why would they bother with you if you don't have food?"
Find exclusive stories on empire

People are pragmatic, and so are cats.

Su Xuewei puffed up her cute cheeks, not contesting the point.

The cool evening breeze was refreshing, and without thinking, Shen Yuan took Su Xuewei's smooth hand in his.

Su Xuewei instinctively tried to pull away, but Shen Yuan was strong, and no matter how hard she tried, it was no use. She simply gave up.

Shen Yuan felt the softness in his grip and thought back to their romantic encounter in the rain, his heart becoming restless.

Su Xuewei could guess what Shen Yuan wanted to do and timidly said, "This... this is a park, you can't just do whatever you want."

"What are you talking about, how could I do anything rash."

Shen Yuan pretended not to understand, but his actions betrayed his true intentions.

When they reached a pavilion, he released her hand and wrapped his arm around her soft waist instead.

"Could you not do this..."

With a pleading look in her eyes, Su Xuewei's hands pushed against his chest as he drew closer.

"We've hugged before, why are you so nervous?"

Shen Yuan, the seasoned hunter, knew all about biding his time.

When Su Xuewei had no strength left to resist, Shen Yuan gently lowered her hands, then leaned in to softly kiss her rosy lips.

.....