Chapter 2: So What If You Have Two Stinking Coins?

From a young age, Lu Mingfei had grown like wild grass—unchecked and untended. Not only was he deprived of proper nourishment and care, but the gardeners assigned to prune him were also of uneven quality.

After graduating from elementary school, his two chief designers and first gardeners—who often spouted nonsensical phrases about dreams, missions, and the next Loulan ancient city—rushed out of Asia toward the international stage, disappearing without a trace.

The second gardener to take charge of him was Lu Gucheng, his uncle, who came paired with a partner he referred to as “Auntie.”

Unlike his parents’ laissez-faire or even neglectful style of upbringing, this new gardening duo had a somewhat skewed educational philosophy centered on complementing each other’s strengths and weaknesses, with a clear bias in resource allocation:

They took from Lu Mingfei’s strengths to compensate for their own family’s shortcomings, while diverting the resources he was entitled to toward their own children.

Under Auntie’s tireless pruning, Lu Mingfei transformed from a lonely yet prosperous youth into a solitary and impoverished failure, bereft of anything to his name.

Had it not been for a falling out later on, after which he stormed away in anger and severed all ties for good, he might have been doomed to live forever under her shadow.

Of course, a soul tempered by the internet would not be easily swayed by emotion.

So, despite years of accumulated grievances, Lu Mingfei could still smile gently and wish well with a tone so mild that no hint of sarcasm was detectable.

Yet he was certain Auntie would catch his meaning and, in the next instant, erupt in fury, screaming hoarsely, “You ungrateful whelp! Curse you to die, huh?”

Unfortunately, events did not unfold as he had anticipated.

The fierce, ill-tempered woman—who hardly resembled a kind soul—only furrowed her brow upon hearing his words, her voice dropping a good dozen decibels from its usual shrill pitch:

“What do you mean? Your parents are back? Right downstairs now?!”

At these words, Lu Mingfei, who was poised to unleash a scolding worthy of Zhuge Liang berating Wang Lang, froze in place. He stared at the middle-aged woman, whose demeanor had unexpectedly softened, his eyes flickering with a mix of surprise and doubt.

Had he misheard? Or had Auntie lost her mind?

Glancing at the calendar, he confirmed that today was neither Qingming nor the anniversary of his parents’ passing. Auntie’s reaction was clearly off.

Could it be that she had a guilty conscience, fearing the arrival of his parents at their door?

Ridiculous.

As a staunch materialist, Lu Mingfei firmly believed there were no ghosts or demons in this world.

Besides, his parents had been cremated and buried years ago. Even if they wished to rise from the dead, they lacked the ability.

Upon further reflection, the unnatural expression on Auntie’s face was not one of terror at encountering a ghost but more like the anxiety of someone about to be exposed for a shameful secret.

With this in mind, Lu Mingfei entertained a somewhat unrealistic suspicion.

Could it be...

Suppressing his doubts, he maintained a composed expression and nodded slightly:

“Anyway, you can see them from the balcony below.”

Remember to face upwards, or else, it wouldn’t just be a meeting—they might all be walking together.

He added silently in his heart.

The middle-aged woman by the door, unsettled and missing the deeper implication, eagerly turned and hurried toward the balcony to assess the situation.

Halfway there, as if she had eyes at the back of her head, she caught Lu Mingfei’s meaningful gaze. She slowed her pace, feigned calm with a snort, and pulled out her phone to call her husband.

After three seconds of ringing, the call connected. Auntie immediately unleashed a torrent of reprimands, asserting her authority as head of the household:

“Lu family! What’s going on? Your eldest brother’s back in the country and you didn’t tell me?!”

“Ah?”

On the other end, Lu Gucheng, who had just picked up his son from piano class, almost pressed the accelerator instead of the brake. Fortunately, he reacted just in time to stop the car at the community gate.

“When did they get back? I don’t know!”

It had been years since he last saw his brother and sister-in-law. Of course, he missed them. But he hadn’t expected them to keep such strict secrecy. Maybe they wanted to surprise their eldest nephew?

“Your nephew says they’re right downstairs, and that I should jump from the balcony...”

His words abruptly cut off. Silence filled the speakerphone, so loud it was deafening.

Inside the air-conditioned BMW, cold sweat trickled down Lu Gucheng’s temple. Instinctively, he reached to end the hands-free call.

But it was too late. As he lifted his finger, the phone erupted with a shrill, ear-piercing roar:

“LU MINGFEI—!!!”

The tiny phone transformed into a banshee at sea, howling thunderously.

The powerful sound startled the melancholy little chubby boy slumped in the passenger seat and even made the security guard at the gate jump three feet.

Auntie’s battle cry shattered the quiet of the community. Yet Lu Mingfei, leaning casually against the doorframe with arms crossed, calmly admired the angry red face and pig-like snout of the woman before him, sincerely praising:

“That’s it, that’s the spirit—keep it up. No one will ever call you a ‘yellow-faced woman’ again.”

In gaming circles, sharp tongues were the norm. Lu Mingfei was a polite and refined person who rarely cursed, yet he always knew how to provoke others’ tempers with a few words.

His flattering remark was like pouring hot oil over Auntie’s head, instantly pushing her fury to its limit.

“Lu Mingfei, are you rebelling?!”

Pausing at the balcony door, clutching her phone, Auntie glared with bloodshot eyes, her teeth chattering with rage.

She had never expected this usually meek nephew to have the audacity to talk back to her so boldly and disrespectfully!

“That’s nonsense—the Qing dynasty fell centuries ago, and the Lu family doesn’t have a throne to inherit,” Lu Mingfei shrugged, feigning helplessness.

“Even if there were one, according to the primogeniture system, it would be me, the eldest grandson of the main branch, who should ascend the throne.”

When it came to shouting matches, Auntie might have the louder voice, but Lu Mingfei knew her greatest obsession was constantly comparing herself to his cultured, accomplished, and stunningly beautiful mother.

Appearance, family background, education, career, husband—everything was compared, and Auntie always came up short.

After losing so completely and feeling utterly shattered, she decided to fight for her children’s future.

And so, Lu Mingfei fell into her hands.

But before she could sufficiently widen the gap between her two children, her lifelong rival passed away.

Later, the nephew she thought she controlled so tightly left home in anger, reclaimed his parents’ inheritance and compensation with the help of kind strangers, and carved out a path to success that left her son far behind.

This became the unresolved sore in her life.

Although Lu Mingfei had yet to ascend to the pinnacle of greatness, the mere suggestion of a designated crown prince made Auntie’s forehead veins bulge:

“Lu Mingfei, what right do you have to look down on Lu Mingze?! You don’t have his achievements—”

“I’m more handsome,” Lu Mingfei interrupted casually, confident as he was officially certified by his wife as the most handsome man in the world.

Momentarily silenced, Auntie resumed her tirade, attempting to list ten reasons why Lu Mingfei was inferior to Lu Mingze:

“You lack ambition. You eat, sleep, and play all day—useless and hopeless!”

Lu Mingfei gestured to his lean frame: “I’m thinner than him.”

The implication: He was too light to even be supported by a wall, so Lu Mingze’s hefty weight was hopeless—both destined to sink into the mud.

“What use is sharp tongue? You can’t get into a good university, have no practical skills, and will starve when you enter society!”

Her beloved son was being unfairly targeted, and Auntie was clearly agitated, resorting to personal attacks.

Lu Mingfei deftly parried and countered: “Better than dying from obesity-related diabetes.”

“Your sharp tongue and rude words show you have no manners. People will say you’re ill-bred!”

“That’s all thanks to your example.”

“You...” Auntie was furious, stepping forward and pointing at his nose:

“If I taught you, then why does Lu Mingze have better relationships at school and more social skills than you?!”

“Because he’s pretending to be wealthy with my money,” Lu Mingfei sneered.

Though his parents earned well and were generous with his allowance, the money was deposited into his guardian’s account, and he had no idea of the exact amount.

Moreover, Auntie often claimed that his monthly allowance was nearly depleted, leading him to believe it was only a few hundred yuan, so he lived cautiously and envied his cousin’s overflowing pocket money.

The substantial inheritance and compensation were managed abroad by a trust set up by his parents’ will, disbursing a fixed monthly amount for Lu Mingfei’s living expenses.

Auntie had sworn to the trustee that she would not misuse his allowance.

At the time, he was too young and naive to understand the treachery of human nature.

“What do you mean, ‘using my money’?!”

Perhaps because of Lu Mingfei’s bluntness, Auntie completely lost control.

Her face flushed red, her voice cracked with hysteria, revealing the desperation of one whose dirty secrets were exposed:

“Lu Mingze spends the hard-earned money your uncle and I made, which has nothing to do with your allowance!”

“Your parents think having some money makes them special? They’ve been abroad for five or six years without visiting you even once, indifferent to your affairs. Without us watching over you, who knows what kind of mess you’d be in!”

She meant to change the subject by blaming Lu Mingfei’s addiction to internet cafes and games, warning he’d ruin his brain.

But to Lu Mingfei’s ears, her words only confirmed his earlier suspicions.

“What exactly is wrong with my parents?”