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Wealthy Woof Chapter 78

Want to make money for you

When Lu Chenghe finished his meeting and returned, he noticed someone who wasn’t supposed to be in his office playing games with Little Pudding. Upon seeing him, Lu Chenghan put on a smile that could almost be described as ingratiating and greeted him, “Second Brother!”

Lu Chenghe glanced at him and then at the bed piled high with snacks before turning his gaze to Little Pudding.

Zuo Ning hurriedly explained, “I didn’t eat much, just opened them to try. I only drank one bottle of soda—not too much.”

Lu Chenghan sneakily observed the two of them. From his experienced perspective, there was definitely something unusual about their relationship, yet their interactions didn’t seem like typical romantic exchanges between men. Although his second brother had a strong sense of control, it wasn’t to the extent of micromanaging what his partner ate or drank—this wasn’t raising a child.

However, when he took another look at Lu Ning’s young age, Lu Chenghan suddenly understood. It was a “grooming” situation. Second Brother sure knows how to play the game!

Secretly ridiculing the situation in his mind, Lu Chenghan straightened up and quickly said, “I was just passing by and thought of asking you to have a meal, but since you have company, I won’t bother you.”

Lu Chenghe replied coldly, “If you don’t want me to bother, then why are you still here?”

Lu Chenghan: “……” Truly a blood-related second brother.

Zuo Ning was familiar with the way the brothers interacted and simply stood there with a cheerful smile without saying anything. Turning his head, Lu Chenghan noticed the boy smiling so sweetly that he couldn’t help but smile along. His aloof second brother had found someone who loves to smile. Could this be the perfect complement?

When Lu Chenghan finally decided to leave, Zuo Ning turned and quietly asked Lu Chenghe, “Are we really not having a meal together?”

Lu Chenghe replied, “No need, he can fend for himself.”

Lu Chenghan’s mouth twitched slightly. He hadn’t left yet. Couldn’t they wait for him to actually leave before whispering behind his back?

Zuo Ning watched as Lu Chenghan came and went, spending over an hour playing games with him before saying just a couple of sentences to Lu Chenghe and then leaving. So, what was the point of his visit?

In truth, even Lu Chenghan wasn’t sure why he came. He had recently returned from spending time with Shishi and found his life feeling inexplicably empty. His career no longer required him to fight or expand his domain, yet he worried that staying with Shishi for long periods might make her think he wasn’t taking his work seriously. So, he’d gotten into the habit of spending three or four days a week with her and then coming back for a few days. During those days, however, he always felt restless. Today, while wandering around, he passed by his second brother’s company and decided to drop in for lunch and reconnect.

But instead, it seemed he’d just been fed a mouthful of dog food!

Lu Chenghe, completely indifferent to his brother’s emotional life, showed no intention of inviting Lu Chenghan to stay. As soon as he left, Lu Chenghe turned to Little Pudding and instructed him to put on his jacket.

While putting it on, Zuo Ning asked, “I’ve already picked what I want to eat for lunch—where are we going?”

“We’re eating out. I’ll take you for a stroll afterward. If you start feeling like you’re going to change back, let me know immediately.”

Hearing that they were going out to play, Zuo Ning’s ears, hidden under the hat, couldn’t help but twitch. His cheerful, squinty-eyed smile betrayed his excitement. Though Lu Chenghe had taken him out several times before, this was his first time going out in human form after nearly a year as a dog, and he was overjoyed.

Even though it was the same world he had known before, everything felt fresh and fascinating to Zuo Ning now. Watching his enthusiasm, Lu Chenghe let him explore freely in front, while quietly following behind. The little guy, however, wasn’t so carried away that he forgot himself—he frequently looked back to make sure Lu Chenghe was still there, afraid of getting lost.

The sight of two strikingly handsome men with entirely different temperaments walking together caused more than double the impact on the passersby. Especially the younger one, whose radiant smile seemed to sweeten the whole world. Some people wondered if he might be an aspiring celebrity managed by an agency. After all, withholding such charm and good looks from the public would be an unforgivable waste of beauty.

Lu Chenghe had been accustomed to such looks since childhood, so he was completely unfazed. Zuo Ning, however, wasn’t used to this kind of attention. While he had always been somewhat of a delicate and handsome young man, he clearly had never been so striking that passersby would turn their heads for a second look, or nearly trip over themselves.

Faced with such attention, Zuo Ning felt a bit uneasy. He hurried back to Lu Chenghe’s side, tugging on his sleeve and saying, “Let’s go eat lunch. What are we having?”

“What do you want to eat?”

Zuo Ning thought for a moment. He wanted to have hot pot, but knew that eating too much spicy food would definitely upset his stomach. Not wanting Lu Chenghe to ban him from chili altogether, he compromised, “Let’s have barbecue instead.”

Since this outing was meant to please him, Lu Chenghe readily agreed. Seeing that Little Pudding had lost interest in mall shopping, he simply drove them to a restaurant for lunch.

For the first time in his life, Zuo Ning found himself at a Michelin-starred restaurant. He’d heard that it belonged to Lu Chenghe’s eldest brother’s business. Securing a reservation here even a month in advance was considered lucky, as every day’s ingredients were flown in based on the exact number of reservations, ensuring absolute freshness.

As they walked in, Zuo Ning’s keen nose already caught the enticing aroma of the food. If he weren’t afraid of embarrassing Lu Chenghe, he might have taken a deep, satisfying sniff right there.

What Zuo Ning really wanted, though, was the kind of Korean or Japanese barbecue place in the mall, where you could hear the satisfying sizzle of the meat on the grill. Pairing it with special sauces and chili powder, each bite was immensely satisfying. Instead of this refined setup where a private chef served them and each piece of meat cost what an average worker might make in half a month.

But this was Lu Chenghe’s lifestyle. As much as Zuo Ning felt it might be a little pretentious, he couldn’t help but feel a strange, indescribable sense of disparity as he looked at the sophisticated spread before him.

Seeing that Little Pudding, who had been happily eating, suddenly looked a bit down, Lu Chenghe handed him a freshly grilled piece of meat. “What’s wrong? Doesn’t it taste good?”

Zuo Ning glanced at the chef grilling the meat. Noticing the chef was also watching him, as if saying a nod of disapproval would be the ultimate insult to his culinary career, Zuo Ning quickly shook his head. “It’s good, it’s just… just…”

“Just what?”

Zuo Ning leaned closer to Lu Chenghe and said, “I was just thinking, when will I be able to treat you to a meal like this?”

Lu Chenghe smiled at his response. “Don’t you have that secret stash of savings? If you want to treat me, just use your little treasure chest.”

Zuo Ning let out a playful huff. “I knew you had your eyes on my treasure chest.”

Lu Chenghe picked up a piece of meat with his chopsticks and placed it on Zuo Ning’s plate. “Hurry up and eat. It won’t taste as good once it gets cold.”

Zuo Ning took a big bite of the meat, treating the high-grade wagyu—meant to be savored delicately—as if it were a roadside barbecue skewer. The chef couldn’t help but feel a pang of sorrow. While many so-called wagyu meats sold in the market were merely better-quality beef, genuine wagyu was a rarity, even for those with money. As a Michelin-starred restaurant, there was no way they’d use anything but the finest, authentic ingredients. Watching Zuo Ning eat it so casually, the chef felt deeply pained.

With his mouth glistening from the oil, Zuo Ning noticed the chef still grilling meat. While chewing on his chopsticks, he turned to Lu Chenghe and asked, “What do you think I could do in the future?”

Lu Chenghe, not particularly fond of purely meat-based dishes, only ate a bite occasionally, spending most of his time sipping tea and watching Little Pudding enjoy his meal. Hearing the question, he responded with his own, “Well, that depends on what you like.”

In his heart, Zuo Ning thought to himself, after all these years, the only thing I’ve ever truly liked is you. But that was something he dared not say. After thinking hard for a moment, he ended up simply shaking his head.

Lu Chenghe said, “It’s fine. Take your time. Experience more things in the future, and you might find something you truly like.”

Zuo Ning, however, was dissatisfied. “But I want to start making money sooner.” After all, he had already lived for twenty years and had experienced quite a bit—not on the same level as Lu Chenghe’s life, of course, but he wasn’t some spirit who had only just started experiencing the world a year ago.

Lu Chenghe looked at him and asked, “What do you need so much money for? Just having enough is fine. Have I raised a little money-grubber?”

Zuo Ning couldn’t help but glare at him, then, feeling slightly embarrassed, said, “I just want to be able to buy you whatever you want in the future. Look at all the expensive things you eat, drink, and use. Anything you like must be even pricier. That’s why I need to work hard to earn money.”

Lu Chenghe gave him a deep look, then reached out to press on the hat hiding Zuo Ning’s ears. Gently rubbing the hat, he smiled and said, “Should I say it’s been worth raising you?”

Zuo Ning proudly lifted his chin. “Of course!”

But before he could relish his triumph for more than a few seconds, Lu Chenghe added, “But before that, I think what you really need to do is go to school.”

Zuo Ning looked at him, wide-eyed, and said, “No…that’s not necessary, is it?”

As someone who had been to university but hadn’t graduated, Zuo Ning believed that unless you found something you were passionate about and pursued it with dedication, most college graduates ended up in fields unrelated to their degrees. After a few years, much of what they had learned would be forgotten. To him, college seemed like little more than a piece of paper—a diploma.

Raising an eyebrow, Lu Chenghe replied, “Not necessary? If you can’t even read properly, what do you think you’ll be able to do?”

Feeling misunderstood by Lu Chenghe, Zuo Ning felt the need to defend himself. “I can read, and I know a lot! All those TV shows and movies I’ve watched weren’t for nothing.” After all, he had gone through nine years of compulsory education. While he couldn’t explicitly tell Lu Chenghe this, he could attribute his literacy skills to his unique “spirit abilities”—learning fast!

Lu Chenghe casually picked up a napkin and a pen, scribbling a line of text, and handed it to Little Pudding. “Read this out loud, and you’ll prove you don’t need to go back to school.”

汆凥烎舙玊[mfn]scribbled intentionally to confuse Zuo Ning[/mfn]

Zuo Ning stared blankly at the characters in front of him, utterly dumbfounded, before turning to Lu Chenghe with a look of complete disbelief. “This isn’t fair!” he thought to himself.


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