Chapter 368 - 202: Children Will Have Their Own Fortunes

Chapter 368: Chapter 202: Children Will Have Their Own Fortunes

To be honest, it was a little embarrassing. This was the first time Su Chen had ever bought his dad a birthday present. They’d never really celebrated birthdays in the past, not even Su Chen’s own.

Kids from the countryside rarely had the energy or money to think about such things. At most, a family dinner was considered a full-fledged birthday celebration.

Seeing the eager look on Su Zhuyun’s face, Su Chen sighed helplessly. He had no choice but to get up and head to his room, quickly returning with an exquisite box.

"Here you go. Happy birthday." Su Chen placed the box directly on the coffee table.

Su Zhuyun immediately grabbed the box and opened it. An exquisite wristwatch appeared before his eyes.

"This is a Vacheron Constantin from the Patrimony collection, a perpetual calendar model. Even guys like Liu Jingdong wear this one."

Before Su Chen could even finish, Su Zhuyun had already fastened the watch onto his wrist. He strode excitedly toward the kitchen, yelling, "Honey, come look! Our son bought me a birthday present! What do you think? It looks great, right?"

He then proceeded to show it off right in Chen Shufen’s face, which earned him a massive eye-roll.

"Yes, yes, it’s lovely. The birthday present our son bought you is the best-looking one of all!" Chen Shufen said, though her tone was a bit dismissive.

But as she watched Su Zhuyun act like a giddy child, a flicker of tenderness warmed Chen Shufen’s eyes. The last time she’d seen him this way was when Su Chen was born.

Having received his praise, Su Zhuyun left the kitchen, satisfied.

Amusingly, Su Zhuyun made a point of keeping his left wrist, now adorned with the watch, displayed prominently in front of him, as if afraid no one would notice it.

"Xiaochen, this watch wasn’t cheap, was it?" After his little show, Su Zhuyun’s curiosity got the better of him. After all, anything his son bought was bound to be expensive.

"Not too expensive, just a few hundred thousand. I was going to get you a more expensive one, but I was afraid you’d just lock it away at home and never wear it."

If he had actually bought a watch worth millions, his dad would have undoubtedly enshrined it at home. He’d die of a broken heart if he accidentally bumped or scratched it at work.

The corner of Su Zhuyun’s mouth twitched when he heard Su Chen call several hundred thousand "not too expensive." Still, his tolerance for such figures was much higher than before. He was confident he could pull off wearing a watch worth that much.

A person’s presence is what matters most. As long as you have the right aura, people will assume whatever you’re wearing is authentic—or at worst, a quirky hobby.

But if you carry yourself like a slob, it doesn’t matter if you’re decked out in gold and silver; people will just assume it’s all fake.

After half a year of immersion in the business world, Su Zhuyun’s entire demeanor had undergone a heaven-and-earth change. He was no longer the meek, ordinary uncle who used to be someone else’s driver.

After admiring the watch for a good ten minutes, Su Zhuyun carefully placed it back in its box. The move confused Su Chen. ’Is he really going to put it away?’

Just as the question crossed his mind, he saw Su Zhuyun take off his jacket, roll up his sleeves, and head for the kitchen.

So he was just going to help out in the kitchen. Watching the two of them bustling about, Su Chen was suddenly struck by how comfortable it felt to be home.

"Dinner’s ready!" Su Zhuyun called out as he emerged with a plate of sweet and sour pork ribs. Su Chen was lying on the sofa, scrolling through Douyin.

"Hiss... ahh, finally! I’ve been smelling that for so long, I’m starving!" Su Chen leaped up from the sofa. Seeing the seven or eight dishes on the table, he could feel his mouth starting to water.

Once all the dishes were on the table and both Su Zhuyun and Chen Shufen had taken their seats, Su Chen announced, "Let’s dig in!"

With that, he dove into the sweet and sour pork ribs, devouring three pieces in a matter of seconds.

"Mom, Dad, you guys eat too. It won’t be as good if it gets cold."

The two of them, who had been watching Su Chen eat, picked up their own chopsticks and joined in.

Halfway through the meal, Su Chen remembered the phone call from that morning. As he picked up a piece of beef, he asked casually, "Mom, you called earlier and said you had something to tell me. What was it about?"

Chen Shufen’s chopsticks paused mid-air. She glanced at Su Zhuyun beside her. She hadn’t wanted to bring it up, but she knew her son’s personality; if she didn’t tell him, he would just investigate it himself.

She then briefly explained what had been happening recently. Her account was similar to what Yin Zheng had told him, except Chen Shufen only understood the surface-level issues. She just assumed some other restaurant company was targeting them.

"Yin Zheng already called me about this. It’s nothing major." Su Chen swallowed the bite of meat in his mouth, then turned his gaze to Chen Shufen. "Mom, did you recently get any invitations to join an association or a chamber of commerce?"

Chen Shufen paused at his words. Thinking back, she realized that had happened, but she had dismissed them as scammers and refused at the time.

"Son, are you saying those associations are the ones making trouble for us behind our backs?"

Su Chen nodded, then shook his head.

This left the couple completely bewildered.

"I wouldn’t exactly call it ’making trouble.’ It’s more likely they’re using these tactics to pressure you into joining their association."

If they were really trying to sabotage you, they wouldn’t just be messing with your ingredient supply. They’d probably resort to all sorts of underhanded tactics. Once the negative press got out, business would definitely take a hit.

"Xiaochen, can you explain that in more detail?" Su Zhuyun’s brow was deeply furrowed now. He couldn’t understand why anyone would want them to join an association.

Su Chen mulled it over for a moment, trying to figure out the best way to explain the situation to them.

"Shufen Hot Pot is probably the hot pot restaurant with the best reputation and sales in all of Wudu right now, isn’t it?"

Su Zhuyun and Chen Shufen both nodded in agreement. In terms of both branch count and daily revenue, they were in a league of their own in Wudu’s hot pot scene.

"You could say Shufen Hot Pot has become one of Wudu’s signature culinary attractions. It’s a must-try for tourists and locals alike. So why haven’t the city officials featured it in any of their promotional materials?"

"Dad, Mom, while we’re busy focusing on making money, we also need to look up and see where we’re going. We can’t just be concerned with profits. We need to act as role models and, within our means, help drive the development of related industries."

"We need to be able to lend a hand when our hometown needs it."

’This must be the ideological shift from being a merchant who only knows how to make money to being a true entrepreneur,’ the thought flashed through Su Chen’s mind.

After hearing Su Chen’s explanation, it was as if a light had switched on for both of them. Things that had been confusing before suddenly made perfect sense.

They weren’t just a small hot pot shop with one or two locations anymore. In Wudu alone, they had over thirty branches and more than five hundred employees. They were impacting the financial well-being of five hundred families.

They were a rising star among Wudu’s local enterprises, yet they hadn’t joined any associations or participated in any commercial events. They were just making money without giving back to the community. What kind of impression did that give to those associations or even certain government departments?

"I’ve already handled it. You’ll get a seat directly on the association’s board of directors. Yin Zheng will contact you about it, Dad. On top of that, we can start doing more charity work."

"It’s about to get hot soon, right? We can make some iced mung bean soup or plum juice and offer it to sanitation workers, drivers, food delivery guys, and so on."

"And if there’s a disaster somewhere, we can lend a hand by donating money or purchasing supplies. The main thing is to build up a good public reputation." 𝘧𝓇ℯℴ𝓂

Su Chen continued to offer more suggestions, and Chen Shufen and Su Zhuyun nodded along, so engrossed they barely touched their food.