Chapter 15: You Might as Well Marry Him
"You called me 'Sis' pretty naturally just now," Chen Hui said with a smile as she looked at Tian Siyi.
Thinking back to the way Tian Siyi had sweetly called her "Sis" earlier, Chen Hui felt incredibly happy inside.
Tian Siyi spread her hands casually.
"If I don't call you 'Sis,' should I call you 'Auntie' instead?"
"You're really practical. The moment you don't need my help anymore, your attitude changes immediately."
"You've watched me grow up. You wouldn't care about something like that."
Chen Hui shook her head helplessly and turned to Liao Wenye, who had been quietly watching the whole scene.
"Oh, right. Let me introduce you. This is Liao Wenye, the owner of this place. You can call her Sister Liao too."
"Hello, Sister Liao."
Tian Siyi was always polite to strangers who showed her no ill will.
"Hello, little sister."
Liao Wenye nodded at Tian Siyi before turning to Chen Hui.
"Is she your brother's girlfriend?"
"If my brother could really find such a beautiful and capable girlfriend, I wouldn't have to worry about him anymore."
"But they seem very close."
"They are close, but not in that way. It's a long story."
"Then you can tell me another time. I still have things to do. Enjoy yourselves. If you need anything, just let me know."
After saying goodbye to Liao Wenye, Tian Siyi looked at Chen Hui.
"We didn't cause you any trouble, did we?"
"What trouble?"
"You mean Wang Baihui? I wasn't planning to work with him anyway."
"No, I mean Liao Wenye. Wang Baihui said he was friends with the owner."
Chen Hui smiled.
"Oh, that? Well, a business owner is 'friends' with every important customer."
As soon as Chen Hui explained it that way, Tian Siyi understood.
That kind of "friend" was just business talk.
And when it came to business, Chen Hui could bring in far more business than Wang Baihui ever could, so naturally Chen Hui was much more important.
"I thought they were actually close."
"That just means you haven't seen enough of the business world yet."
"Instead of talking about that, you should talk to your brother. How did he end up falling for a girl like that? She spent his money, played with his feelings, and even insulted him afterward."
Chen Hui nodded strongly.
"Exactly! Were you blind?"
Chen Chen covered his ears.
"Alright, alright, stop already. I know I was wrong. I was a terrible judge of character, okay?"
Tian Siyi poked him in the waist with her elbow and whispered into his ear,
"Hey, if you ever want to chase a girl again, tell me first. I can help you judge whether she's worth it. I can even become friends with her first and help you win her over. What do you think?"
Chen Chen looked at her suspiciously. "You'd really be that nice?"
"What kind of question is that? We're buddies. Why are you treating me like a stranger?"
She patted him on the back, casually wrapped an arm around his shoulder, cleared her throat, and lowered her voice.
"Just... whenever you buy something for the girl, buy one for me too."
"So that's how you treat your buddy?"
"Even real brothers keep their money matters clear. Besides, we're not even real brothers."
Seeing that he was still staring at her, she quickly defended herself.
"You wouldn't even be losing out. With my help, you'll get twice the results with half the effort. That's what you call a fair exchange."
Just as they were talking, Chen Hui walked over to Tian Siyi... and gave her a light smack on the head.
"Ow! What was that for?" Tian Siyi looked at Chen Hui unhappily.
"You're refusing my financial support, but you're always thinking of taking money from my little brother?"
"I already owe too many people favors. They're hard to pay back."
"I'm not asking you to repay me. Besides, you know this is an investment."
"I know. Even so, it doesn't feel right. I've accepted the gifts you've given me, but I don't need financial support. I can earn money myself."
Chen Hui had met Tian Yi seven years ago.
At that time, she was organizing a gaming festival, and Tian Yi was there to earn money by singing.
She was impressed by his singing voice and immediately wanted to help develop his talent.
After talking with him, she learned that Tian Yi had no parents. He had run away from an orphanage when he was ten years old. Since then, he had made a living through gaming and had no permanent home.
So Chen Hui brought him home to live with Chen Chen and began paying for his education.
To Chen Hui, it was nothing special. She often did charity work anyway.
But Tian Yi cared about it very much. He always said that once he earned enough money, he would pay back everything he owed.
"If you care that much, then why not just marry into our family? Then everything I have will become yours."
"I'm a girl now. How am I supposed to marry into your family?"
"Can't you just marry my little brother?"
"Sure."
Tian Siyi answered without even thinking, then turned to look at Chen Chen.
"But I don't think someone here would agree."
"I don't agree!"
Chen Hui looked at Tian Siyi calmly.
"You only agreed because you were sure Xiao Chen would refuse, didn't you?"
Tian Siyi simply shrugged without answering. She knew Chen Chen well.
She used to be a boy herself, and the two of them had been close friends for years. She might have accepted her new identity quickly, but Chen Chen was not someone who adapted that easily.
Besides, she was now an artist, and Chen Chen would become her manager.
Someone who always followed the rules like Chen Chen would never break the unwritten rule that artists and their managers should not date.
Summer vacation quickly came to an end, and military training was just around the corner.
At Mujiang Music Academy, military training was not held on campus but at a remote training base.
They would stay there for seven days of closed training.
Tian Siyi met her new roommates. The tall and cool Jiang Luyao, the cheerful and cute Zhao Xiaoqi, and the shy and timid Gu Yunyan.
Since Tian Siyi had already gone through military training once before, she shared a lot of useful advice with everyone and quickly became friends with them.
They were assigned to the third squad. Not long after putting down their luggage, they gathered again to collect their military uniforms.
While picking up her uniform, Tian Siyi saw someone she did not expect.
"What are you doing here?"
She took her uniform and looked at Chen Chen in confusion.
"I'll explain later. There are still people waiting behind you."
Chen Chen was right.
The line for getting uniforms was long, so it was not a good time to talk.
Tian Siyi waited nearby.
Chen Chen had not come over yet, but her roommates did.
Zhao Xiaoqi looked around at the three of them in confusion.
"Everyone's here, right? What are we waiting for? Let's go eat."
The school buses had arrived that morning, and it was already noon, so it really was time for lunch.
Gu Yunyan spoke softly,
"Siyi is waiting for her friend."
She and Tian Siyi were about the same height, so they had received the same size uniform. She had been standing right behind Tian Siyi in line and had heard their conversation.
"A friend? A guy or a girl?"
Zhao Xiaoqi immediately moved closer, her face full of curiosity.
Tian Siyi felt that explaining everything would be troublesome. She glanced at the still very long line and decided not to wait anymore.
"Forget it. Let's not worry about him. Let's go eat."
"Wait, what do you mean, 'not worry about him'? Who is he? Come on, tell me..."