Jian stared at the photo, his brow furrowed in concentration. Suddenly, his arm was pinched so hard he yelped in pain. Looking up, he saw his grandma's smug expression, her eyes glinting with satisfaction.
"Mister Wen's been calling you for ages," she sneered, voice dripping with fake concern. "Excuse him, Mister Wen, he's got no manners. I really don't know what I did wrong—raised them both, but one turned out to be such a problem," she added, pretending to sound regretful.
Jian had to fight the urge to roll his eyes. He rubbed his arm where the pinch still stung, then casually reached out and pinched his grandma right back, hard enough to make her scream.
"Oh, sorry, Grandma! Thought I saw an ant on you," he said, his voice full of mock innocence. He held up his arm, showing her the red mark. "Did that hurt? 'Cause mine sure did."
"You little brat!" she spat, reaching out to hit him, but Bian grabbed her hand just in time. Her face flushed with rage as she struggled to stay calm.
Jian smirked. Heh, that felt good. Maybe I should do it more often.
"Ahem." Mister Wen cleared his throat, reminding everyone he was still there. "As I was saying, I only want to adopt one child." His cold eyes shifted between Jian and Bian. "I'll let you two decide."
Jian raised an eyebrow. Now that's interesting. Last time, this guy picked me, and when I said no, he took Bian instead. Now he's letting us choose?
He glanced at Bian, who was putting on quite the performance—his eyes full of unshed tears, looking like he was about to make the toughest decision of his life.
Ah, his acting's gotten better, Jian thought, watching with amusement.
Bian turned to Mister Wen, his voice trembling. "Fa—Mister Wen, it's not fair for you to choose just one. We're both your kids," he said, trying to sound all noble and self-sacrificing.
Jian just kept eating his fried chicken, completely unbothered by the drama unfolding in front of him.
Mister Wen's eyes narrowed as he looked at Jian. "I only need one heir," he said, his voice blunt and cutting.
Bian bit his lip, acting all conflicted. "Then... then please choose my brother. He's the one who really needs this. Right now, he's living in a construction site, sleeping on the floor. He's the one who deserves a better life."
Jian stared at him, speechless. Wow, look at him, talking me down at every chance he gets.
Mister Wen's attention turned to Jian. "Is that your choice, too?"
Now all eyes were on him. Bian was smiling at him, full of fake generosity. His grandma was glaring, while his grandpa... well, the old man wasn't even looking at him, just staring down at his hands.
Jian paused, glancing at Bian, who was starting to look impatient, biting his lip and sending subtle glares his way.
Oh, I get it now. He's trying to look like the bigger person, giving me the chance so he can come off as the 'good guy' to the Wen family. Smart move...
Jian smiled back at him, a slow, knowing smile. But he messed up.
If this had been three months ago, I probably would've backed down. But why should I now, knowing what he's plotting?
He saw Bian's eyes widen in disbelief as he stood up.
"Alright, I'll go with you," Jian said casually, wiping his mouth and hands. He walked over to Mister Wen, holding out his hand. "I'll be your son."
"What are you doing?! How dare you steal Bian's family!" his grandma screeched, her voice full of fury. Bian just stood there, completely stunned.
Jian shrugged. "Bian was right. I don't have a place to stay, so I'll go home. To my real home." He smiled at Mister Wen, confident and cool.
Mister Wen raised an eyebrow, clearly intrigued. For the first time, the man seemed genuinely interested. He stood up and shook Jian's hand. "Let's go, then."
"One thing," Jian said, glancing back at his so-called family. His grandma was seething, Bian was on edge, clearly hoping he'd still get picked.
Jian slowly pointed at each of them, dragging it out, before finally landing on his grandpa. "I want my grandpa to come with me," he said firmly. It wasn't a request.
Mister Wen looked at the old man and nodded. "Alright."
"How dare you, you filthy little worm! How dare you steal Bian's place! How dare you steal his father!" His grandma came charging at him, her chubby arms flailing.
Jian caught her arm mid-swing and twisted it behind her back. "Careful, Grandma," he whispered with a smirk. "I'm not your grandson anymore. I'm the young master of the Wen family." He shoved her back, watching her stumble, completely shocked.
Without another word, he went over to his grandpa, gently pulling him up from his chair and leading him away.
"Come on, Grandpa. Let's go to our new home."