Chapter Twenty: The Young Master's Shopkeeper

  The blank check issued by the lamp god seems a bit wasteful.

  Chen Si Liu's face turned iron-green as he stared at Xiao Fan, very puzzled. Why did a super-large pie fall from the sky and hit Xiao Fan on the head, but this kid treated it like a disposable rag?

  Five coins of silver, Chen Si Liu wants to cry but has no tears.

  In his eyes, wasn't his own daughter worth even five cents of silver? Wasn't the hint he gave just now obvious enough? If it were any more obvious, he would have to directly ask for her hand in marriage. As the father of the bride, could Chen Six be so cheap?

  Chen Siliu struggled to hold back his urge to punch someone, and his breathing started to become heavy.

  "Besides five qian of silver, don't you want anything else?"

  For this mentally deficient man who had a stroke of good luck and became acquainted with the county magistrate, Chen Siliu tried to give him one last chance.

  Xiao Fan's eyes lit up again, and his gaze revealed a mixture of surprise and nervousness: "Then... can I have five more silver coins?"

  Chen Si Liu covered his chest and groaned in pain: "………"

  Xiao Fan let out a disappointed sigh.

  Rich people are really stingy, but five cents of silver, look at that painful expression...

  Chen Si's face turned pale, and he weakly waved his hand with an expression of disgust, as if shooing away flies: "Leave, leave quickly! Get out, don't let me see you, it's infuriating!"

  Xiao Fan pursed his lips and turned around silently, walking outwards.

  "Come back!" Chen Si Liu shouted again, then pulled out a bunch of keys from his bosom and threw them to Xiao Fan.

  "As I am a son-in-law of the Chen family, I should naturally help out with the Chen family's business. The Southern Drunken Immortal Wine House is one of our Chen family's properties, from tomorrow onwards, you will go there to be the manager..."

  Xiao Fan's eyes widened, "Is... is this considered an upgrade?"

  Xiao Fan couldn't help but feel lucky that his decision to solve the crisis for the Chen family was correct, as the bigger the boss he beat, the higher the experience value he got.

  "Thank you, father-in-law, for your recognition. I'm so happy that I'm about to explode..." Xiao Fan began to express his gratitude in a very emotional and touching way.

  Chen Si Liu's throat and eyes made a "wu" sound, it was unclear whether he was laughing or crying: "Let's go, let's go, at the fastest speed, disappear in the front hall!"

  Xiao Fan was very obedient and indeed disappeared at the fastest speed.

  Chen Si Liu let out a long sigh, this kid, isn't he just a silly donkey? If you give him a mountain of gold, he won't even bat an eye, but if you give him a piece of flatbread, he'll be over the moon. What on earth are young people thinking these days?

  Chen Si Liu sighed, angry at his lack of contention, when a fleeting figure suddenly appeared in front of him.

  Chen Siliu raised his big and stupid-looking head, and upon seeing this person, he couldn't help but feel surprised and delighted.

  "How did you come back again? Could it be... you changed your mind and thought things through?"

  Young people always make mistakes, but once they go out and get a taste of the cold wind, they'll come to their senses. Chen 46 felt relieved and happy in his heart.

  Xiao Fan scratched his head, with a somewhat inexplicable expression: "What does it mean?"

  Chen Si's weak heart sank again: "Then why did you come back?"

  Xiao Fan smiled awkwardly, his handsome face flushing red as he said: "Father-in-law, about those five qian of silver earlier, are you going to reimburse me or not? You still haven't given me a clear answer..."

  “…………”

  A mouthful of air rushed up, the blood in his chest churned, Chen Si Liu suppressed the urge to spit out blood, gritted his teeth and forced out a few words: "Go find Li Zuan's room...".

  "Thank you, Father-in-law..." Xiao Fan's face was filled with joy, but upon seeing Chen Si Liu's dark and purplish complexion, he couldn't help but ask with concern: "Father-in-law, your complexion doesn't look right, are you uncomfortable somewhere? Do you want me to call a doctor?"

  Chen Si Liu didn't utter a word, and again tightly clutched her chest, like the plump Xishi holding her heart...

  Xiao Fan walked out of the front hall with a gradual smile on his face that gradually solidified.

  Xiao Fan is not an idiot, Chen Si Liu hinted so bluntly, how could he not understand? Not only did he understand, but he even grasped seven or eight parts of Chen Si Liu's thoughts.

  Chen Siliu wanted to marry his daughter to him, not because he was fulfilling a promise made many years ago, nor did he value Xiao Fan's talent. In the end, Chen Siliu was too afraid of Cao Xiancheng. He thought that after the Chen family crisis, some kind of friendship had developed between Xiao Fan and Cao Xiancheng. To ensure the long-term peace of the Chen family and to let Cao Xiancheng know that the Chen family did not mistreat his "new friend" Xiao Fan, Chen Siliu decided to marry his daughter to him.

  To put it simply, Chen Si Liu married off his daughter to Xiao Fan in order to impress Cao Xian Cheng.

  Things in the world can't stand speculation, and once speculated, many absurd behaviors will arise. Chen Si Liu's marriage is of this nature, with a bit of cleverness being misled by cleverness.

  A merchant is a merchant, he knows how to make the most of the resources in his hands to gain the greatest benefit for himself, and these resources also include his daughter.

  In this sense, Xiao Fan is a bit suspected of being a fake tiger, only he knows that Cao Xiancheng and himself don't have much friendship, at most they just have a deep impression on each other, whether this impression is good or bad is currently unknown. Therefore, Xiao Fan did not use the tiger skin as a big flag, also fearing that if Cao Xiancheng finds out later, the consequences will be dire.

  Chen Si Liu had his heart set on marrying off his daughter to him, and as the bride's father, he had already been very straightforward and frank. It wasn't like he could directly propose to him himself, after all. But Xiao Fan continued to pretend ignorance, for a very simple reason.

  Xiao Fan is a man, and for men to be successful, there are some things that can take shortcuts, but some things must be done solidly. Marrying the daughter of a rich family may bring temporary benefits, but if it's because of Chen Ying'er, Xiao Fan will be tied to the Chen family's ship from now on, which is not what he wants.

  The outside world is vast, and Xiao Fan feels that his achievements are not limited to being the husband of Chen Jia's aunt.

  Moreover, the son-in-law who comes to the door will have a later generation in the future. The later generation must follow the surname of the female side. Xiao Fan is a big male chauvinist at heart and cannot accept this fact.

  Besides, he and Chen Ying'er didn't have a crush on each other at first sight, it can even be said that they were not very happy, without any emotional foundation. Xiao Fan was willing to give up this marriage. Xiao Fan, who had crossed over from modern society in his previous life, also had a stubborn side when it came to emotions.

  Xiao Fan lowered his head and looked at a string of heavy copper keys in his hand, and couldn't help but smile again.

  The owner of the Nanxian Tower in the south of the city? This can be seen as Chen Si Liu's compensation to Xiao Fan for failing to marry off his daughter, thanking him for helping the Chen family resolve their crisis.

  I don't know what the boss was like in ancient times, Xiao Fan was a bit eager to try, he was already a businessman, and in his previous life, he was at least the general manager of a branch company.

  The daughter of the Chen family can choose not to marry, but Xiao Fan doesn't mind earning some small money from the Chen family and earning it with a clear conscience. After all, being the boss is also about using one's hardworking hands to reap the rewards of labor.

  It was late at night, and Xiao Fan still sat in front of the red wooden table in his bedroom, his fingers unconsciously tracing patterns on the tabletop.

  It's worth mentioning that after Xiao Fan helped the Chen family resolve their crisis, his treatment was also brought up by Chen Si Liu.

  Not only did the monthly silver increase, but also moved to a new place of residence, from that broken house with a decoration level worse than a thatched cottage, to the current wing room next to the front hall's side garden. Of course, it is still within the scope of the front yard and has not been moved into the inner courtyard. However, the house has improved significantly in terms of geographical location and furnishings compared to before.

  Xiao Fan is now sitting in his new bedroom, staring blankly.

  He was feeling emotional about the difference in treatment over the past few days.

  He is now a meritorious minister of the Chen Mansion, from being a poor and despised husband everywhere, to becoming a sought-after and popular... husband.

  Xiao Fan bitterly smiled, no matter how you put it, still calling me "Young Master Chen's husband"? Can't I just be called "Young Master Xiao" properly? This title always makes people feel like they're just an accessory to the Chen family, and without the Chen family, they're nothing.

  Xiao Fan was not very satisfied with this title.

  So, men must have their own careers, even if they work for others, at least they can find their own self-respect.

  Xiao Fan decided to go to Zui Xian Lou tomorrow for an inspection, he had been appointed as the manager, and Zui Xian Lou was also his own business now, although it was still working for the Chen family, but "Xiao Manager" sounded better than "Xiao Young Master".

  The sound of a gong came from outside the door, a dull sound that only struck once, and after a long time, it struck again.

  It was already late, Xiao Fan stood up and prepared to blow out the oil lamp and go to sleep. In the center of the room, a copper basin was burning charcoal, Jiangnan's winter wasn't very cold, a small charcoal fire made the whole room warm like spring, sleeping in such a room was truly one of life's pleasures.

  Xiao Fan's eyes narrowed slightly, and his usually gentle face suddenly flashed with a few shades of expression.

  If Chen Si Liu is willing, send me a warm bed servant girl, that would be perfect...

  A gentleman also needs female comrades to take care of his life...