Going home for Chinese New Year, I squeezed onto a bus with three energetic young women.

Bai Li's large black leather shoes seemed to grow larger and larger in Bai Jian's eyes as he sat on the ground.

"My God, is this the respectable job you were talking about, cousin?"

"Cousin, didn't you say you were in charge of big projects, and that all the big bosses and big leaders were calling you brother and begging you to do their jobs?"

"Could it be... you're lying to me? Your job is actually... licking the boss's shoes?"

These words, while not particularly offensive, were extremely insulting.

Bai Jian's face turned ashen, as if he had eaten shit.

In my most helpless and humble moment, I was unfortunately seen by the person I least wanted to see.

This is worse than killing him.

But no way.

Without this project payment, there would be no way we'd be giving out red envelopes during the Chinese New Year.

If those workers don't get their wages paid, then we'll really go to their house with knives and block their door.

Bai Jian got up from the ground, patting the dust off his buttocks while forcing a smile that looked more like a grimace.

He had not forgotten the humiliation he suffered at Bai Li's house last time, and he also wanted to confront Bai Li.

But at this moment, circumstances are beyond our control.

"Ahem... Xiao Li, what a coincidence?"

Bai Jian's eyes darted around: "My cousin was just... joking around with his business partner."

"This Mr. Li, being the big boss, likes to make these kinds of jokes, and he's a little... a little rude."

However, Mr. Li, who was standing to the side, was not going to tolerate him.

"Are you kidding me?"

Mr. Li was already annoyed, and hearing this made him even angrier. Regardless of whether there were outsiders present, he pointed at Bai Jian's nose and started yelling:

"Who the hell is messing around with you? Bai Jian, let me tell you, stop trying to get on my good side!"

"You can't meet my quality standards, I wouldn't even give this job to a dog! Get out of here and stop blocking my business!"

After saying that, Mr. Li disdainfully flicked his sleeves, turned around and went into the store where Bai Li was, without even glancing at Bai Jian.

The air was still for a few seconds.

Bai Jian's smile froze, and the last shred of his dignity was ruthlessly torn away.

His face twitched, as if he had been stomped on hard, turning red and white in turns.

But he held back.

Even as Mr. Li turned around, he subconsciously bent over, maintaining that humble posture.

"Huh? He's my older brother's cousin?"

Lin Xiaoshuang only realized this now. Although the scene just now was quite ugly, these were, after all, her older brother's relatives.

Out of politeness, and also to give face to her older brother, Lin Xiaoshuang subconsciously wanted to sweetly greet him with "Hello, cousin."

Although she's a bit of a shady character, she still knows the proper rules of the underworld.

Even if it's just a dog, as long as it's the eldest brother's dog, you still have to give it some face.

However, before she could even open her mouth, Bai Li reached out and stopped her.

"No need to call."

Bai Li's voice was cold, and his eyes were devoid of warmth.

"This cousin of mine used to bully others by taking advantage of his power, always picking on the weak."

"Oh..." Lin Xiaoshuang's expression changed instantly.

Since my elder brother says he's a bad guy, then he's a mortal enemy.

The thought of greeting me vanished, replaced by wariness and hostility.

Chen Tingting and Li Jiaxin also took a step forward, the three girls staring at Bai Jian with hostile eyes.

"Uh... alright." Bai Li glanced at the disheveled Bai Jian and said with a hint of mockery:

"It seems you and your boss friends have a rather unique way of getting along."

After saying that, Bai Li, too lazy to deal with this mess anymore, turned around and was about to leave.

He's here to buy things for his new home; it's a waste of breath to even say a word to someone like that.

"Hey! Xiao Li! Don't go!"

Seeing that Bai Li was about to leave, Bai Jian panicked and grabbed Bai Li's sleeve.

"what?"

Chen Tingting has the worst temper. As soon as she saw her stupid cousin dare to touch her older brother, she immediately exploded.

"Get your dirty hands off me! Don't touch my brother!"

Her shout was so loud and powerful that it startled Bai Jian, who instinctively let go of her hand.

Bai Jian glanced at the fierce-looking girls, feeling a chill in his heart, but he still forced himself to maintain his composure, pulled Bai Li aside, and lowered his voice.

At that moment, the expression on his face was incredibly interesting.

It involves both the embarrassment of being exposed and the humility of asking someone for a favor.

"Xiao Li, about what happened just now..."

As Bai Jian spoke, he glanced around nervously, his voice barely audible, like a mosquito's buzz:

"During the Lunar New Year...please don't tell your relatives, okay?"

He cultivated a successful persona in the family group chat.

If his second uncle and aunt, and all those distant relatives, knew that he was begging for a project like a dog, and even being told to get lost in the street, would he still have any face left?

How can I hold my head high when I go back to the village? How can I brag to the village elders?

"Please, cousin, I'm begging you..."

Seeing that Bai Li remained silent, Bai Jian gritted his teeth and reluctantly pulled out a pack of unopened Zhonghua cigarettes from his pocket.

He usually uses these cigarettes to save face; he wouldn't even smoke them himself.

Without saying a word, he stuffed it into Bai Li's pocket:

"Take it, take it. We're all family, we shouldn't air our dirty laundry in public, right?"

Bai Li glanced down at the pack of cigarettes that had been stuffed in, and couldn't help but sneer inwardly.

It turns out it was because they were afraid of losing face.

That's true, Bai Jian values ​​his reputation more than his life.

If you give him a ladder, he could make Musk sound like his VIP client.

"It depends on my mood."

Bai Li didn't take out a cigarette, nor did she give him a definite answer; her tone was ambiguous.

This feeling of uncertainty is the most agonizing.

Bai Jian was feeling very uneasy, but he didn't dare to say anything more and could only put on a smiling face.

"Okay, okay, Xiao Li, you're a sensible person. So... are you busy?"

Seeing Bai Li turn to leave, Bai Jian breathed a sigh of relief and subconsciously asked:

"By the way, what are you doing here?"

Bai Li paused, turned around, and looked at him as if he were a fool:

"What can you do at a building materials market? You'd obviously look at renovations and buy furniture. Do you think you can just come here to buy groceries?"

"Buy furniture?" Bai Jian paused for a moment, then frowned, a hint of suspicion in his eyes:

"I remember my second uncle just renovated the house a couple of years ago, right? All the furniture was new too, why do you need to buy more?"

His mind works incredibly fast.

In his view, Bai Li must be spending money for his family, as for having money to buy a house?

Don't make your brother Jian laugh.

The last time we met, Bai Li only had 30 in savings. How long has it been?

Can he really earn enough to buy a house?

But reality always contradicted his expectations.

"Can't I just buy this house myself?" Bai Li said casually, his hands in his pockets, as if he were just saying that the weather was nice today.

After these words were spoken, the room fell silent once again.

This time, not only Bai Jian was shocked, but the three young women behind him were also stunned.

Lin Xiaoshuang's eyes widened and her mouth slightly open.

They had always assumed that their older brother had brought them out today to buy things for their parents' home.

So... my older brother bought the house himself?!

And judging from the way my brother was picking out furniture, this house is definitely not small!

"Oh, Xiao Li, you still love to joke around."

Bai Jian was taken aback at first, then his expression relaxed as if he had heard a joke, and he even showed a sense of superiority.

"Don't you know your own background?"

Bai Jian waved his hand, giving him a look that said, "I see right through you."

"When you came back last time, you only had a little over 300,000 yuan in your pocket, right?"

"How long has it been? Less than half a month, right?"

Bai Jian held up two fingers and shook them, his tone full of confidence:

"Although Pingxian is a small county, housing prices aren't cheap. A decent house requires a down payment of at least 500,000 yuan, plus renovations, furniture..."

"How could you possibly afford a house?"

Bai Li was speechless. This cousin was too much: "Believe it or not, I don't care."

Upon hearing Bai Li's words, Bai Jian patted him on the shoulder again, feigning generosity:

"Stop joking, not having a house is nothing to be ashamed of."

"Just lie to your cousin, he'll laugh it off and it'll be over. It'll give you some peace of mind, and I won't lose anything."

"But Xiao Li, the most important thing in life is honesty. Don't deceive yourself; living in a dream world is not a good thing."

Bai Jianyue felt he made more and more sense as he spoke.

It seems that the loss of face he just made up for has been somewhat recovered by belittling Bai Li.

This is a classic example of sour grapes mentality.

As long as I can prove that you're not doing as well as me, or that you're just putting on an act, then I'll feel more at peace.

"Who else but my cousin would believe your nonsense?"

"I believe you," a clear voice suddenly rang out.

Lin Xiaoshuang took a step forward, stood beside Bai Li, and took his arm.

She tilted her head back, her eyes sparkling with undisguised admiration and trust:

"We believe it all. If our eldest brother says it, even if he says the sun is square, we'll believe it!"

"Exactly!" Chen Tingting also came up and stood on the other side: "If Big Brother said he bought it, he bought it. Why bother bragging to someone like you?"

Although Li Jiaxin didn't say anything, she stood directly behind Bai Li, a gesture that was a silent show of support.

"you……"

Bai Jian was speechless after being rebuked.

He turned his head, and his gaze finally fell properly on the three girls.

I was so busy asking for favors and arguing with Bai Li that I didn't pay attention.

Now that he's looking at him up close, Bai Jian's eyes almost popped out of their sockets.

These three girls...

How can someone be so attractive?!

Although she dressed up in a flashy way and her hair color was like a traffic light, she was actually very good-looking!

Lin Xiaoshuang's skin was so tender it looked like you could squeeze water out of it, her face full of collagen;

Li Jiaxin's long legs have such perfect lines that you can see them even when she's wearing pants;

And then there's Chen Tingting with red hair; her figure is so hot it's breathtaking.

What Bai Jian found most unacceptable was...

These three beautiful, young, and energetic girls are all so devoted to Bai Li?!

And judging from their demeanor just now, they were all incredibly protective of their own.

You should know that although Bai Jian is known as President Bai, he is a complete novice when it comes to relationships.

He went on dozens of blind dates, but either the women didn't like him or they were after his money.

I'm almost thirty now, and I haven't even gotten close to a serious boyfriend.

As it turns out, Bai Li, that good-for-nothing scumbag, actually started a harem?!

Is there any justice in this world?

Is there no law left?

A strong sour smell shot straight to the top of Bai Jian's head, making his back teeth almost grind to powder.

"You deserve to die, Xiao Li. You dared to mess with such tender grass."

Just then.

Chen Tingting, who hadn't said much until now, suddenly spoke up.

She felt a bit thirsty arguing with this kind of person and didn't want to listen to this fly buzzing anymore.

So she turned her head and reached out her hand to Bai Li:

"Brother, give me the car keys."

"Hmm?" Bai Li raised an eyebrow.

"I'm going to get a bottle of water from the car. The heating in that shop was so strong, I was dying of thirst."

Upon hearing this, Bai Jian couldn't help but curl a mocking smile into his lips.

car?

What kind of cars could there be?

I guess it's a shared bike parked on the side of the road, or one of those secondhand, worn-out loaves of bread worth a few thousand yuan?

At worst, it would be Bai Weiguo's beat-up Volkswagen, which he'd been driving for who knows how many years.

"Oh, Xiao Li bought a car?"

Bai Jian crossed his arms, ready to watch the spectacle unfold.

"What kind of car is it? Where is it parked? If it's too far, my cousin's BMW is right outside. Want to borrow it?"

Before he could finish speaking...

Bai Li casually pulled the car keys out of his trench coat pocket and tossed them to Chen Tingting.

Its design and quality are so impressive that even someone who doesn't know much about cars can tell it's extraordinary.

Especially the shield-shaped black and gold car emblem, which reflected a dazzling light under the midday sun.

That was a galloping horse.

It is also the dream of countless men.

"I caught it," Bai Li said calmly.

Chen Tingting caught it steadily, the metallic clinking of the keys producing a crisp and pleasant sound.

The mocking smile on Bai Jian's face froze instantly, and he couldn't make a sound, as if someone had grabbed his neck.

That is……

Porsche?!