Chapter 154 - 153: Still Calling Me Boss Chen, You’re Being Insensible

Chapter 154: Chapter 153: Still Calling Me Boss Chen, You’re Being Insensible

Chen Yuan came downstairs in his flip-flops just as his sister stepped out of her room. She’d changed into a loose top that covered her shorts, leaving her long legs on full display.

"Uncle Chen, Aunt Liu."

Chen Li walked out of the main room and called out when she spotted Chen Dequan and Liu Fang.

"Li! When did you get back?"

Chen Dequan and Liu Fang were hurrying along with packed meal boxes, but turned around with a smile when they heard her.

"Just a little while ago."

It was just a quick hello. Chen Dequan and Liu Fang were busy delivering the meals, so after a few words they hopped on the three-wheeler and headed off to the fish pond.

"Take me to see the fish pond later."

Since she’d decided to come back and help run the fishing park, she needed to get a proper feel for everything — the pond, the other operations, all of it.

"Sure, I’ll show you around the family business after we eat."

Chen Yuan chuckled, and the two siblings made their way to the kitchen.

"Auntie."

Chen Li greeted Lin Cuiju sweetly when she saw her.

Lin Cuiju had come over with Liu Fang, carrying meal boxes, and had gone straight to the kitchen to help prep food for the family — same as always.

"Oh, you’ve gotten thinner, sweetheart."

Lin Cuiju turned around with a warm smile, but her eyes held a touch of concern as she looked Chen Li over.

"She really has — out there working herself to the bone, barely eating on time. She was in much better shape back when she was still studying at home."

Tang Ying immediately chimed in.

Chen Yuan stood to the side, quietly trying not to laugh.

He’d gotten the same treatment when he came back. As far as parents and elders were concerned, if you weren’t visibly overweight, you must have lost weight while you were away.

Truth be told, his sister had a great figure — five foot five, never tipping over a hundred pounds. Plenty of girls envied her, and plenty of guys were smitten.

Unless you were back home, apparently.

"What the hell are you smirking at~"

Chen Li grabbed his arm and twisted it. She kept her voice low enough that only he could hear, and shot him a sharp glare to go with it.

Chen Yuan threw up his hands in surrender.

Good thing it was his left arm. If she’d gone for the right one, the soreness alone would’ve made him yelp.

"Girls are all about staying in shape these days — my sister’s figure is perfect as it is."

Chen Yuan stepped forward and picked up a dish to carry out.

"Staying in shape is one thing, but you still need to eat properly. Don’t sacrifice your health for your waistline."

Classic mom.

Chen Li quickly grabbed another dish and headed toward the main room.

Chen Jun stood nearby, quietly scooping rice without saying a word, but the smile on his face was impossible to hide. Having both his kids home, the whole family together — it really didn’t get much better than this.

"Stop fussing over them so much. What if they get tired of us nagging and run back to the city?"

He waited until the two siblings had headed off to the main room, laughing and joking with each other, before muttering that under his breath. Then he picked up the rice and followed them in. Behind him, Tang Ying let out a long, drawn-out "hmph."

"You heading out tomorrow?"

Chen Jun set the rice on the table and looked over at Chen Yuan.

"Nah, I’ll stay in tomorrow. We can have a drink together in the evening — you and Uncle."

They say a father knows his son, but the reverse holds true too. The moment his dad opened his mouth, Chen Yuan already knew exactly what he was getting at. His sister was back, the old man was in a good mood, and he wanted a drink to celebrate.

"Ha! Figured you wouldn’t be going out tomorrow. Let me grab the glasses~"

Chen Jun beamed.

Tomorrow was the last day of the Fishing Carnival anyway. Even if he had planned to check on the fish, today would’ve been the cutoff. And with his daughter home, that was more than enough reason to raise a glass.

"Uncle."

Chen Kingdom arrived back from the fish farm not long after, and Chen Li greeted him with a sweet smile.

"Mm."

He wasn’t much of a talker. He just nodded back with a grin and didn’t pepper her with questions.

"Come on, everyone, food’s getting cold."

Tang Ying called them all to the table.

It was a warm, lively meal. Chen Jun, caught up in the good mood, poured himself an extra half glass. Tang Ying didn’t stop him — she had a little herself. Even Lin Cuiju joined in with half a glass.

After dinner, Chen Li helped clear the table and carry the bowls to the kitchen. She’d barely set them down before Tang Ying tried to shoo her out, but Chen Li spun around, plopped herself down in front of the wood-burning stove, and refused to budge.

"I haven’t stoked a fire in ages. You don’t have anything like this in the city. I actually miss it."

Chen Li lit the kindling with a grin, helping heat up water for washing the dishes.

"You really don’t have to, you know. Your auntie and I can handle the kitchen just fine."

Since Chen Li was already seated, Tang Ying dropped any pretense of pushing her out. Her expression said one thing, her face said another — she was all smiles.

A girl with good domestic instincts would have no trouble finding a good match someday.

But she kept that to herself. The old man wasn’t wrong — you couldn’t be nagging your kids all the time.

"Li is genuinely hardworking~"

In the main room, Chen Kingdom cradled his sobering tea, listening to the sounds coming from the kitchen, and smiled.

"She always has been. Since she was little, she’d be in the kitchen with her mother. As long as she’s around, I don’t have to lift a finger in there."

Chen Jun held his teacup with a grin he couldn’t quite suppress, the curve at the corner of his mouth giving away exactly how content he was right now.

Beside them, Chen Yuan had just finished brewing the tea and hadn’t even set the kettle down yet. He let out a quiet, rueful smile.

Is that a dig at me?

When I came home, you were in the kitchen every day. Now that sis is back, suddenly you don’t need to go in anymore. That’s what you’re saying, isn’t it?

Of course, he was just joking to himself. He knew his dad didn’t mean anything by it.

He set the kettle down, pulled out his cigarettes, and passed one to each of them. Three smokestacks sat in the main room, air conditioning blowing, tea in hand, each lighting up an after-dinner smoke. Life didn’t get much more comfortable than this.

Once the kitchen was sorted, Chen Li went back to her room and came out carrying two gift boxes.

"Uncle, Auntie — these are imperial-style pastries from Wenshu Temple. Incredibly authentic. I made a point of picking some up on the way back. Please, give them a try."

She handed one box to Chen Kingdom and Lin Cuiju, then turned and held out the other to her parents. "Mum, Dad — you too. They’re genuinely delicious."

Chen Yuan sat there smoking without a word.

Yep. There it is.

Everyone’s taking shots at me.

He’d come home with a backpack and empty hands, and here his sister was walking in with gifts for everyone. Sure, they were just pastries, but the thought was absolutely there.

"Little bro, this one’s for you."

Chen Li held out a small box in front of Chen Yuan.

"Oh wow, I’m included?"

Chen Yuan’s face lit up instantly. She really had thought of everyone. Nice, very nice.

"Huh, eight wolves on the box — what brand is this, exactly?"

His sister had gotten him a belt. He could see wolves printed on the outside of the packaging. Chen Yuan counted them one by one, putting on a show of exaggerated puzzlement and surprise.

"What is wrong with your eyes~"

Chen Li shot him a sideways look.

If there’s actually something wrong with them, go get it checked. I’ll pay for it.

"Alright, take me to see the family operation."

They’d eaten, the gifts had been handed out — it was time to head to the fishing park.

"Give me one minute."

Chen Yuan jogged upstairs, tucked the gift into the back of the wardrobe, stood there grinning like an idiot for a few seconds, then ran back down. He said a quick goodbye to his parents and headed off with his sister toward the fish pond.

"Boss Chen is back on his rounds."

"Ha! Spent all day out there hustling with fish dealers, handpicking the best stock for us, works himself to the bone — then comes back just to check if we’re hauling them in."

"Boss Chen really has it tough."

"Come on, boys — tell Boss Chen how today went. Let’s hear some good news!"

They hadn’t even reached the pond yet, just turned onto the village road leading to it, when the ribbing started floating over from the anglers.

You could tell from the voices alone that the mood was good. Clearly, it had been a productive day.

"The vibe here is really something."

Chen Li stood up in the back of the three-wheeler and took a look around. The easy, cheerful energy around the pond was honestly beyond what she’d expected.

She’d never been to a fishing park before, but once she heard the family was running one, she’d done her research online. From what she’d read, it was usually each person keeping to themselves, not much socializing.

But this place felt more like a social gathering than a fishing spot.

The atmosphere here was nothing like what she’d seen online.

"Ha! These guys are my adorable little Gods of Wealth."

Chen Yuan laughed.

The energy at his fishing park really was something else — but it hadn’t come from nowhere. It was built on a reputation for service that left every competitor in the dust, and he hadn’t done things by halves.

Between the Fish King prize, the guarantee against going home empty-handed, and consistently great bites in the pond, it was no wonder the anglers kept coming back in droves.

And the Fishing Carnival especially — that was the ace up his sleeve. Every angler in the pond could land a catch, with the skilled ones pulling in several thousand in a single session and even the unlucky ones walking away with a few hundred.

How could they not be having a blast?

"Whoa, Boss Chen’s got a girl in the back!"

Chen Li, standing in the cargo bed, was spotted immediately. Backlit by the last light of the setting sun, she looked radiant and warm, with a soft, dreamy kind of beauty about her.

More than a few anglers did a double-take.

"Boss Chen, is that your girlfriend?"

"Damn, Boss Chen — didn’t know you had game like that. She’s gorgeous."

The anglers were eating it up, a few of them giving Chen Yuan enthusiastic thumbs-ups.

Chen Dequan and Liu Fang, who were doing a lap around the pond, along with Wang Heng and the others who knew the situation, all burst out laughing. These guys — the moment they saw a man and woman together, they automatically assumed it was a couple.

Could they not be siblings?

"Get out of here. That’s my sister."

Chen Yuan pulled the three-wheeler to a smooth stop, hopped off, and bellowed.

"Ah, Miss Chen herself! My deepest apologies!"

"Boss Chen, is your sister taken?"

"Hey, don’t call him Boss Chen anymore — that’s not cool, man. Little brother-in-law, what does your sister like? Let’s put our heads together and get her something nice. Don’t worry, there’s a cut in it for you."

The crowd had completely gone off the rails.

Someone in the group chat must have started the whole "brother-in-law" bit — they’d all seen this same routine play out when Ye Zhi and the others had shown up.

"Knock it off, all of you. My sister is taken, so don’t even think about it."

Chen Yuan waved them off with a cool smirk. "And don’t think I can’t see through your little scheme — figure if you marry into the family you can skip out on the fishing fees? Think again. Every last yuan gets paid. No exceptions."

"Ha! Boss Chen figured us out."

"I had such a clever plan, and Boss Chen saw right through it. Guess there’s no getting out of those fees."

The anglers threw up their hands in exaggerated defeat.

Then they turned to Chen Li and apologized.

"Miss Chen, we were just messing with Boss Chen — he’s a good sport and we’re used to giving him a hard time. If we went too far, we’re sorry. Please don’t take it the wrong way."

Joking around with Boss Chen was one thing, but with Miss Chen standing right there, it had maybe crossed a line.

"A little banter goes a long way toward keeping things lively. Fishing’s supposed to be relaxing — and when everyone’s in good spirits like this, that’s exactly what it should feel like."

Chen Li handled it with complete ease.

You could tell she’d been a store manager. She handled it without missing a beat.

She hadn’t offended anyone, left a great impression of being approachable, and still gently signaled that jokes should stay within reason.

The anglers laughed even louder. They caught her meaning, but somehow hearing it put that way just felt good.

"Brother Wang, here are your keys — returned in full, and I topped off the tank."

Chen Yuan walked over to Wang Heng and handed back the keys.

"Boss Chen, you’re something else."

Wang Heng had barely started saying it wasn’t necessary when Blond Punk, not far off, threw up an enthusiastic thumbs-up, leaving Chen Yuan genuinely puzzled. All he did was fill the tank — since when did that make him impressive?