Chapter 170
Chapter 170: The Goofy Beastfolk Male—Sincere in Pursuit, Gifts a Building to Ask for a Relationship
“Yes. Tea Tea, you were taken away, and Mom and Dad didn’t find you in time. You were left out there for eighteen years and suffered so much. We’ve been heartbroken.”
Lang Luo Feng hurried to back up her mate, layering on the performance. She did everything she could to play the part of loving parents—scrubbing their abandonment clean with a few convenient lies, insisting it had all been “unavoidable,” spinning every detail in a way that benefited them.
“Now that you’ve finally come back safe and healthy, spending a little money on you makes Mom and Dad happy. It’s what we should do. Don’t be polite with us.”
Polite?
Jiang Tea Tea had only been pretending to be polite so she could squeeze more money out of them.
She opened her mouth and “reluctantly” protested, carefully nudging the blade in deeper. “Big Cube’s storage button alone costs over a hundred million. Add the level 5 mecha and it’s another hundred million-plus. High-end training suits, holographic helmets, protective gear… none of it is cheap—”
“It’s fine,” Lang Yin Feng cut in at once. “Money isn’t a problem. Buy it!”
Every item she listed was another shovel of dirt dumped straight onto his chest. His heart bled, but what could he do? This was his own mouth’s fault. At a moment like this, how had he ever imagined he could fight Mo Jing Chun over who paid?
Mo Jing Chun met her mate’s eyes without a word. She was the kind of woman who protected her own—if she liked someone, she shielded them shamelessly.
And this was the little female her cub had brought home, the one he’d mentioned more than once in her ear. Of course she was going to take her side.
She joined in with a warm smile. “Exactly, Tea Tea. You haven’t lived with them, so you don’t know what sort of people they are. If you don’t want to acknowledge them, then don’t. That doesn’t stop them from spending money on you.”
“Don’t feel guilty. This is money they should spend. Who raises cubs without spending? Right, Yin Feng? Luo Feng?”
Cheng Xiao Ting almost wanted to scoop up his mom and plant a fierce kiss on her cheek. Her combat power was terrifying. That gentle tone—what a blade. One cut after another, straight into Lang Yin Feng. Delicious.
If the situation weren’t so tense, not just Jiang Tea Tea—even Sui Xuan Chu and the rest—would’ve wanted to give Mo Jing Chun a huge thumbs-up.
Between relatives and friends, people always knew exactly where you were weakest—and they stabbed right there. Make you hurt, make you bleed, and still leave you unable to complain.
Called out like that, what could Lang Yin Feng and Lang Luo Feng say? Their White Wolf Clan had never been as strong as the Black Wolf Clan, never as united, never as rich in talent.
They were the White Wolf Clan’s clan chief and madam. Cheng Mian and Mo Jing Chun were the Black Wolf Clan’s heads. They could slap his face all they wanted, and he couldn’t slap back.
Lang Yin Feng forced himself into the posture of a kind father. “Yes, Tea Tea. Aunt Jing Chun is right. Raising cubs costs money. Spend it. Don’t burden yourself.”
Jiang Tea Tea hesitated, as if it were hard to accept. “Th-then… I’ll just buy some things I’ll use often.”
“That’s more like it.” Mo Jing Chun clapped briskly and waved staff over. “Come on. Please take these child guests to the mecha section and the storage button section. Let them browse properly.”
“And tell the people in those sections that all bills for these child guests are to be sent to the top-floor dining and lounge area. White Wolf Clan Chief Lang Yin Feng will settle everything.”
“Yes, Madam Cheng,” the lead salesperson replied immediately, stepping out to greet Jiang Tea Tea and the others. “This way, please.”
Jiang Tea Tea gave Lang Yin Feng and Lang Luo Feng a shy smile, then turned and flashed Mo Jing Chun a sweet, grateful one. With Sui Xuan Chu and the others—seven of them—she followed the salesperson out.
As soon as the door to the triple VIP suite closed behind them, Mo Jing Chun addressed the sales associates holding invoices and waiting to be paid. “Everything spent in this suite today is covered by Clan Chief Lang and Madam Lang. Line up and run the payments. Don’t go chasing those child guests for money later.”
The sales associates beamed, answered in chorus, and formed a neat queue.
More than a dozen clothing brands. Several jewelry brands. And a scattering of miscellaneous purchases.
Every invoice was at least a million. Some were five million or more.
Lang Yin Feng had miscalculated badly. He’d thought Mo Jing Chun buying things for eight youths would top out at two or three million. He hadn’t expected that even ten million wouldn’t slow her down.
By the time the payments were done, his face was flushed. His heart felt like it had been hacked open. Yet he still had to keep smiling, grinding out the same chant through clenched teeth. “It’s worth it… it’s worth it…”
If Cheng Mian hadn’t been holding her hand, Mo Jing Chun would’ve laughed right in Lang Yin Feng’s face. Stingy to the bone, yet forced to pay anyway—it was almost too funny.
After the eight left the triple VIP suite, they split up with the staff and moved through different zones: the mecha section, the storage button section, the flyer display area, and more.
In under an hour, all eight finished shopping. They regrouped and followed staff to the top-floor dining and lounge area.
Mo Jing Chun and Cheng Mian were already there, having tea while they waited. Lang Yin Feng and Lang Luo Feng were there too.
As more and more invoices arrived, Lang Yin Feng’s hand shook as he tapped the payment code on his lightbrain. He paid and paid… until he couldn’t pay anymore.
Lang Luo Feng took over.
The smallest charge was a few hundred star credits. The largest ran from millions to tens of millions—some even into the hundreds of millions.
Their yearly net income ranged from eighty million to two hundred million. Jiang Tea Tea had essentially swept away an entire year’s net income in one go—and it still almost wasn’t enough.
Lang Yin Feng and Lang Luo Feng’s faces hardened. Again and again, they forced the same pep talk down their own throats: Spend a year’s net income on her now, and she’ll bring us a hundredfold, a thousandfold return later.
By the time the eight returned, they’d rebuilt their expressions into welcoming smiles instead of sour looks.
Jiang Tea Tea smiled back, shy and embarrassed, as if she hadn’t just drained two hundred million like it was pocket change.
Lang Yin Feng and Lang Luo Feng watched her timid expression, and something uneasy stirred in their guts. She felt like she shouldn’t be like this… but the files they had on her first eighteen years said she should be exactly like this.
Jiang Tea Tea didn’t sit with them. She took a seat between Sui Xuan Chu and Cheng Xiao Ting, alongside Cheng Lin Yue.
Mo Jing Chun saw how brightly her son was smiling and had staff bring eight menus. “Come on, little cubs. Order whatever you like. Mom will pay.”
Everyone except Sui Xuan Chu answered in unison, “Thank you, beautiful, gorgeous Mom!”
Mo Jing Chun laughed, delighted.
Cheng Xiao Ting didn’t hold back with his mom, and the others didn’t either. They weren’t wasteful, but they weren’t shy.
After Chong Ming’s psychic force soothing, the cubs in Jiang Tea Tea’s belly were calm, and she wasn’t ravenous the way she’d been earlier.
Still—six male and two female, all eighteen or nineteen. Their appetites weren’t small.
And in a high-end restaurant, the pastries and dishes were famous for being delicate, small in portion, and delicious. Usually, a plate arrived, went around the table once, and vanished before half the table got a bite.
So they ordered more. They ate as dishes arrived, and dishes arrived as they ate, and the meal alone took over an hour.
When it was over, Lang Yin Feng didn’t fight to pay. He waited until Mo Jing Chun paid, then finally invited them, his tone carefully warm. “Brother Cheng Mian, Sister Jing Chun—we don’t get to see each other often. Since Tea Tea is back, why don’t you come to my home for a couple of days? Let’s gather properly.”
Lang Luo Feng rushed to echo him. “Yes, yes, Sister Jing Chun. Tea Tea really likes you, and she doesn’t feel much attachment to our home yet. If you and Brother Cheng Mian come stay with us for a few days, she can build a sense of belonging. Please?”
Mo Jing Chun looked at Cheng Mian. “Husband? What do you think?”
Cheng Mian’s presence was quiet but impossible to ignore. He resembled Cheng Xiao Ting by about half. He answered simply, “Whatever you decide.”
Mo Jing Chun smiled at him, then turned back. “Yin Feng, Luo Feng—we don’t mind visiting as a family of three. But Tea Tea is the key. Whether she’s willing to go back with you and have a look—that matters most.”
Lang Yin Feng and Lang Luo Feng immediately looked at Jiang Tea Tea with hopeful eyes. Their gentleness was carefully worn. “Tea Tea, Mom and Dad are truly sorry, but we respect you.”
“If you’re willing to come home with us, we’ll take you. If you’re not, just tell us where you live.”
Jiang Tea Tea’s big, dark eyes gleamed—pure, innocent, harmless. Her voice was soft and clear. “You really respect me? You won’t force me to do anything?”
“Of course,” they promised at once. “You’re our daughter. You were taken away, and we didn’t find you in time. We already feel guilty. How could we force you again?”
“Say whatever you want. Your mom and I will respect you completely. If you want money, we’ll give money. If you want love, we’ll give love.”
As if she’d been moved, as if she’d been persuaded, Jiang Tea Tea lowered her lashes and said softly, “I… I’ll go home with you and take a look.”
Lang Yin Feng and Lang Luo Feng sprang up, delighted. “Good, good, good! Let’s go. We’ll go home right now.”
Lang Luo Feng reached for Jiang Tea Tea’s hand, but Mo Jing Chun was faster. She took Jiang Tea Tea’s left hand and pulled Cheng Lin Yue along with her right. “Let’s go together.”
Lang Luo Feng’s hand closed on air. She smoothed it over at once, smiling as if nothing happened. “Yes, yes—together. Let’s all go together.”
Mo Jing Chun led the way with Jiang Tea Tea and Cheng Lin Yue. Cheng Mian followed behind her, and behind him came Sui Xuan Chu, Cheng Xiao Ting, and the other four.
Lang Yin Feng and Lang Luo Feng trailed at the very end. They all rode the elevator together and left the mall.
They all lived on Barley Star. Their families were top-tier. Even if they weren’t close, they’d crossed paths more than once.
Cheng Mian and Mo Jing Chun nodded politely. “Hello.”
Lang Yin Feng and Lang Luo Feng nodded back. “Hello.”
Once the greetings were done, Xiong Li Xin finally stepped forward. He pulled out the mall purchase contract he’d spent two or three hours securing, walked straight up to Jiang Tea Tea, and held it out with both hands.
Then he bent at the waist in a deep bow—sincere to the point of painful honesty—and fired straight at her.
“Tea Tea, Jiang Tea Tea—I really like you. The mall you shopped in today… I bought it. I’m giving it to you. I only ask that you give me a chance to pursue you!”