Heartthrob, Your Image is Crumbling!

Chapter 555: Returning Home in Glory

Liu Shuo's sense of brotherhood and loyalty was clearly outdated, but after returning from abroad, Zhou Yuwen realized he had an obvious shortcoming right now: he lacked capable subordinates. He didn't mean people whose services could be bought with money, but rather individuals who were truly and utterly devoted to him.Zhou Yuwen figured that if he hired live-in maids and bodyguards abroad, it would cost at least millions a year. Since it was so expensive, why not cultivate his own people?

The Xuhuai Association that Liu Shuo had previously organized was mostly made up of young people who were poor at studying and idolized brotherhood. Of course, there were certainly some who were decent at studying, but relying on them to produce a truly loyal talent for him was simply too difficult.

Zhou Yuwen's idea was for Liu Shuo to establish a foundation. Using his Xuhuai Association connections, Liu Shuo could identify those who came from humble backgrounds but were grounded and willing to learn. When encountering such people, they could sponsor their education while evaluating their character and abilities. Those who were slightly less exceptional could sign contracts to join the company after graduation and be trained as management trainees. The truly outstanding ones could be taken in as trusted aides. This type of person lived at the very bottom of society and had long lost faith in life, yet they were still willing to work hard. As long as they were treated with sincerity, Zhou Yuwen believed they would be more than willing to lay down their lives for him.

In addition to this, Zhou Yuwen also asked Liu Shuo to get in touch with remote areas more often after the New Year. They would build Hope Primary Schools in various mountainous regions under Zhou Yuwen's name. Within these schools, they would look for children with tragic backgrounds, such as those who had lost their parents. Zhou Yuwen would sponsor their education, and if they demonstrated good character, they would be brought directly abroad to work in the future.

After hearing Zhou Yuwen say all this, Liu Shuo was somewhat reluctant. He felt it was a massive waste of money. Furthermore, even if they spent real silver and gold to train them, it wasn't guaranteed that these people would be utterly devoted to him.

There is a saying that loyalty is often found among butchers, while betrayal is the hallmark of scholars.

Once people saw more of the world and understood more, they would start looking out for their own interests.

Zhou Yuwen was very satisfied that Liu Shuo had this level of insight. However, he told him that while this money might seem like a lot right now, if they trained ten such people and even one turned out to be completely loyal, they would still make a profit.

Zhou Yuwen told Liu Shuo to study English properly. In the future, their stage wouldn't be limited to the domestic market; they were going global.

"Huh? Going global? Bro, spare me! I don't know the first thing about English," Liu Shuo immediately begged for mercy upon hearing this.

Zhou Yuwen replied that he had to learn it even if he didn't know how.

"Let me tell you, when I went abroad this time, I bought an estate about the size of our county town." In reality, it was only a quarter of the size of the county town, but Zhou Yuwen exaggerated a bit. He told Liu Shuo that there were mountains, rivers, forests, as well as leopards and bears. Everything there belonged to him; he was the master of that land.

Hearing that Zhou Yuwen actually had leopards and bears over there, and that they all belonged to him, Liu Shuo couldn't help but get excited. He asked, "Bro, are you saying you're raising leopards abroad?"

"Pretty much. I also plan to raise tigers and elephants. I even got a herd of horses. If you come over, we can go horseback riding together!"

Hearing this, Liu Shuo grew even more thrilled. He eagerly agreed.

"Then if I go, can I raise a tiger too?"

"Forget about raising one tiger, you can raise a whole pack of them, but the prerequisite is that you have to learn English well."

"Alright, alright, alright!"

Put that way, Liu Shuo was more than willing. As he drove, he declared that he would definitely study hard when school started so he could go abroad and enjoy life with his Brother Zhou!

Two hours passed quickly. After chatting for a bit, the car had already entered the territory of Xuhuai.

At this moment, Zhou Yuwen's phone rang. It was his mother calling.

His mother asked where he was.

Zhou Yuwen replied that he was about to get off the expressway.

"Which exit are you taking? Your dad and I are waiting for you at the West Exit!"

Hearing this, Zhou Yuwen couldn't help but frown slightly. "Didn't I say not to pick me up? What made you two decide to do this? It's so far away. Wouldn't it be more convenient if I just drove straight home?"

Zhou Yuwen's mother, Yang Lirong, gave a sigh. There was obvious dissatisfaction in her voice, but it was the truth. She told Zhou Yuwen that it wasn't just her and his father coming to pick him up this time, but also his aunts, maternal uncles, secondary maternal uncles, and third great-aunts. They had all come.

Hearing this, Zhou Yuwen grew even more dazed. 'Wait a minute, what secondary maternal uncles and third great-aunts? Do I even have these relatives? Why do I feel like I've never even met them?'

Hearing Zhou Yuwen's confusion, Yang Lirong said he had met them—they had visited once when he was born.

"Aren't you successful now? Your dad and I originally wanted to keep a low profile, but somehow they found out the news of your return. They came over and sat in our house early in the morning. Then your dad figured that our place couldn't fit so many people, so he just brought everyone over."

Zhou Yuwen found this amusing and remarked that his dad was truly a genius.

"Since we're all here anyway, when are you getting off the expressway? They've been waiting for quite a while."

Zhou Yuwen said he would be there soon.

After driving on the expressway for another twenty minutes or so, they finally exited from the West Highway Exit. Just as they turned right out of the exit, Zhou Yuwen noticed that on one side of the asphalt road, the non-motorized vehicle lane was fully parked with sedans, forming a long queue.

The relatives in Zhou Yuwen's family weren't completely destitute. It was normal for a family to own a commuter car worth around a hundred thousand yuan. They had likely all heard the news that Zhou Yuwen had made it big, so they drove from far away just to show their faces and make a good impression. And Zhou Guobin wasn't the type to chase people away either.

Thus, today's situation was created.

A crowd of people stood at the front of their cars, gazing longingly, afraid that if they didn't pay attention, Zhou Yuwen would slip right past them. This small group consisted of at least twenty to thirty people. These relatives had probably not seen each other in a long time, so upon meeting, they naturally fell into easy conversation. The topic they discussed the most was undoubtedly how successful Guobin's child had become!

"I saw it written in the newspapers, he's worth three or four billion now!"

"Three or four billion is outdated news. If you ask me, he's worth at least ten billion!"

There were simply too many relatives. Zhou Guobin had barely even met some of them, but out of politeness, he still had to entertain them courteously. Therefore, the closer relatives had to step up to help serve tea and pour water.

Take Zhou Yuwen's Eldest Aunt, for instance. She was currently with a few other aunts, contacting the hotel where they would eat later. Looking at these relatives she hadn't seen in ages, she couldn't help but mutter a few complaints. When Yuwen hadn't made it big, not a single one of them was anywhere to be seen. Now that Yuwen was successful, all sorts of ghosts and monsters had suddenly crawled out of the woodwork.

Zhou Dagu even pulled Fourth Aunt aside to chat. Pointing at two middle-aged men wearing jackets and leaning against the back of the motorcade, she asked, "Fourth Sister, do you still remember those two?"

"Aren't they Second Aunt's kids?"

"Back when our family was building our house, those two insisted no matter what that the two plots of land behind our place belonged to them. I can't believe they actually have the nerve to show up now!"

With more relatives came more trouble.

When Liu Shuo drove out of the expressway and saw this grand spectacle, he was given quite a fright. With such a long line of sedans at the expressway exit, anyone out of the loop would think some high-ranking official was coming for an inspection.

"It's almost the New Year, what kind of official would be working this hard? Hey, Bro, doesn't Uncle work at the government hall? Do you know which leader is visiting today?" Liu Shuo asked with a chuckle.

Zhou Yuwen replied that he had no idea.

"Look, isn't my dad right there in the crowd? Why don't you go over and ask him directly?" Zhou Yuwen said, pointing at his father in the throng of people.

Liu Shuo took a look. Hey, he really was in the crowd.

"Really, Bro, Auntie is here too? What kind of big shot leader is this! Even Uncle and Auntie came out to receive them!" Liu Shuo grinned widely upon seeing Zhou Yuwen's parents.

Zhou Yuwen simply muttered, "Idiot."

"They're here to pick me up."

"Huh!?" Liu Shuo froze, clearly not expecting that.

However, that was the truth. Following Zhou Yuwen's instructions, Liu Shuo pulled the car over.

Soon, two black Mercedes-Benz G-Wagons slowly pulled over to the side of the road.

Zhou Yuwen's Eldest Aunt recognized his car and immediately began to gesture wildly, "He's here! He's here! It's Yuwen's car! Yuwen is back!"

"Yuwen is back?"

Upon hearing this, everyone immediately swarmed over, all wanting to see what this young man who brought such glory to their family looked like.

Before Liu Shuo could even step out of the car, he was surrounded by the crowd.

And these relatives, who had never met him before, froze completely upon seeing Liu Shuo.

This?

What the hell?

Why did Yuwen look like this?

This wasn't how Yuwen looked on TV!

That was a beauty filter!

A beauty filter? Are beauty filters really that powerful?

Regardless of their doubts, someone took the lead and blurted out, "Ah! This must be Yuwen! You've grown so sturdy!"

"Yeah, Yuwen has grown so tall! Yuwen, do you still remember me? I'm your Second Uncle!"

"I'm your Second Aunt!"

One by one, they began announcing their identities, sighing about how time flies like an arrow and the sun and moon like a shuttle. In the blink of an eye, Yuwen had become a grown young man.

"Make way, make way, let Uncle and Auntie see Yuwen first!"

A young man addressed Zhou Yuwen's father and mother this way, pushing through the crowd to let them go in first.

Thus, everyone turned sideways to clear a path. Zhou Guobin and Yang Lirong stepped forward, eager to reunite with their son.

A group of relatives acted as the hype squad on the side, "Yuwen has been away for so long, hurry up and let their family reunite!"

As a result, Zhou Guobin and Yang Lirong stepped closer to take a look.

And completely froze.

Liu Shuo looked at his boss's parents and gave a cheeky grin.

Seeing this scene, the bustling relatives didn't understand the situation. Someone even joked, "Has it been so long that you don't even recognize your own son!?"

Hearing this, Zhou Guobin's face turned green, then white. Finally, he stiffened his neck and declared, "This... this isn't my son!"

"?"

The crowd was stunned, failing to process this.

"Dad."

Only then did Zhou Yuwen step out of the passenger seat. The crowd looked from Liu Shuo to the striking and dignified Zhou Yuwen. Wearing a base shirt paired with a black jacket, his posture was straight and tall. Even though he hadn't deliberately dressed up, just a single glance at him was enough to make everyone's eyes light up.

Now that was more like it!

"Oh my heavens, this is Yuwen! How did he grow so big in the blink of an eye!?"

"As expected of Guobin's child. Look at how handsome he is!"

One after another, they began frantically flattering Zhou Yuwen.

"Yuwen, do you still remember me? I even held you when you were little!"

"Me too, me too! Yuwen, do you remember me?"

Unfamiliar faces appeared one after another. Zhou Yuwen had some impression of them, but they were merely passing acquaintances; he wasn't very familiar with them.

At this time, Zhou Guobin acted as the mediator, slowly introducing them one by one.

Pointing out that this was his aunt, and that was his second grand-uncle!

Zhou Yuwen greeted them one by one. Every time he called out a title, they would immediately respond with sheer joy, as if being acknowledged as Zhou Yuwen's relative was something incredibly worthy of pride.

"Make way, make way, everyone step aside! Yuwen has been sitting in a car this whole time, he must be exhausted. Honestly, don't any of you know to let Wenwen take a break!"

Just as everyone was excited to introduce themselves to Zhou Yuwen one by one, Eldest Aunt Zhou pushed through the crowd and shouted. She stood aggressively in front of Zhou Yuwen, keeping a distance from those sudden relatives. Grabbing onto Zhou Yuwen, she tried to pull him away, saying, "Wenwen, let's go. Let's ignore them and go home first."

"Hey, Cousin, we haven't seen each other in so long. Let us have a proper chat with Yuwen!" someone couldn't help but complain.

However, Eldest Aunt Zhou just let out a cold harrumph. "None of you were ever this enthusiastic before. Why is it that the moment Wenwen makes some money, you all come rushing to our doorstep?"

"At the end of the day, aren't you just after our Wenwen's money?"

"Let's go, Wenwen. We'll ignore them and go home first!" With that, Eldest Aunt Zhou tugged at Zhou Yuwen, intending to leave.

The relatives who were pointed at and scolded by Eldest Aunt Zhou looked rather displeased. Someone couldn't resist firing back, "Hey, Eldest Aunt, you can't say that. How could we possibly come looking for him just because Yuwen made money? Besides, even if we are like that, aren't you exactly the same?"

"How could I possibly be the same as you lot!? I'm Wenwen's Eldest Aunt! I'm his father's biological sister!"

Hearing this, Eldest Aunt Zhou was instantly enraged. Seeing the situation growing increasingly chaotic, Zhou Guobin hurriedly stepped in to stop it. "Everyone, the wind is quite strong out here. We've successfully picked up Yuwen, and I thank you all on his behalf. How about we move somewhere else? Lirong and I have booked tables at the Moonview Pavilion. Let's head straight over there, shall we?"

With Zhou Guobin speaking up, naturally, everyone had nothing else to say. Coaxed by him, they finally dispersed one by one.

Only Eldest Aunt Zhou remained sulky. No matter how much Zhou Guobin tried to coax her, she told her younger brother furiously, "Just keep indulging them, why don't you! They see that Yuwen has made money, so they've all flocked over for a free meal! No matter how rich your family is, you can't just let them freeload like this!"

Hearing this, Zhou Guobin could only give a wry smile and nod, agreeing with everything she said.

"Big sister, the wind is strong out here. Let's go to the hotel first before talking any further!"