Chapter 265: Chapter 265: Why Do You Hold a Grudge More Than a Woman?

“I know you’re not deaf, but didn’t your eardrum get hurt? I’m just concerned about your hearing.” Shen Chen casually sat in the chair by her bed, a slight smile on his face as he deliberately teased her. “How come you’re injured every time I see you?”

Xu Su didn’t smile. She shot him a look and explained earnestly, “…My hearing is fine. The doctor said it’s a minor injury and will heal on its own.”

’As for being injured… Xu Su had also noticed that she’d been getting hurt or sick quite frequently lately.’

Shen Chen nodded and suddenly asked, “What about that watch?”

Xu Su paused. She knew he was asking about the watch Xu Hao had stolen and was a bit puzzled. “What about it?”

“That thing is bad luck. You rarely wear it, and the one time you do, it brings you disaster. It probably clashes with you. Get rid of it. I’ll pick out a better one for you.”

Shen Chen looked like a vibrant college student, yet he was spouting utter superstitions with a completely serious tone. “Don’t tell me you don’t believe it. Wasn’t yesterday’s whole incident caused by this watch?”

Xu Su: “…”

It was the first day of the Lunar New Year, and this was the first time this year she’d been rendered speechless. Looking at Shen Chen’s completely serious face, Xu Su was somehow convinced. “…It’s with Zhou Mochen. You can tell him. I don’t have a problem with it…”

’Besides, after Xu Hao wore that watch, she hadn’t planned on wanting it back anyway.’

’She hated it when other people touched her things.’

“Then it’s settled. Brother Zhou believes in this stuff the most. Even if I don’t say anything, he definitely wouldn’t give the watch back to you anyway.”

Shen Chen moved on from the topic. He pulled a small white bag from his pack and handed it to Xu Su. “Here. A New Year’s gift for you. It’s something you can use right away.”

“A phone?” Xu Su opened the bag and glanced inside. “…I can definitely use this.”

Xu Weiping had smashed her previous phone to pieces. Zhou Mochen’s men had recovered the SIM card, which was now sitting on the nightstand.

“This is a limited edition; you can’t buy it on the market. Only three were made. I thought it looked pretty good, so I saved one for you.” Seeing that Xu Su’s hands were injured, Shen Chen unwrapped the package and took the phone out for her as he spoke.

’Limited edition…’

Xu Su could see the phone had a Chinese-inspired aesthetic. The back was engraved with a woman in ancient-style clothing holding a round fan to hide her face. A circle of pink diamonds was inlaid around the design, and the phone’s body was rose gold, which complemented the gems perfectly. It looked very delicate—the kind of style any young girl would love.

But Xu Su’s expression grew complicated.

She hesitated for a moment but couldn’t stop herself from asking, “Do you have some kind of thing for the color rose gold?”

’The watch he gave me was rose gold, and now this phone is rose gold too…’

Shen Chen froze for a second, then quickly caught on and said irritably, “What kind of ’thing’ would I have for it? This is the fruit of the design department’s labor. I had nothing to do with the design.”

“…?” Looking at the brand logo on the startup screen, Xu Su raised an eyebrow in surprise. “The SY Group is your family’s?”

“Is there a need to be so surprised? It’s not one of the Shen family’s main industries, just a subsidiary that was founded not long ago.”

Shen Chen was surprised by her reaction. He hadn’t expected her to even know about such a small company. Seeing her interest, he was happy to elaborate. “But now that I’ve taken over, it’s going to be a key project. The one you’re holding is the newest model, set to launch this year. It’s the nation’s first true smartphone.”

’Xu Su’s eyes widened as it hit her. It was 2008. SY, the future giant of the domestic smartphone market, was still just a newly founded and overlooked little company!’

’This was SY! Ten years from now, you’d be hard-pressed to find a single Huaxia person who could claim they’d never used one of their phones.’

’And Shen Chen was the one in charge of it?’

’Xu Su was genuinely shocked. In her previous life, she had never paid any attention to the Zhou family’s business ventures, let alone the Shen family’s…’

At this thought, Xu Su’s interest was piqued. She looked at Shen Chen eagerly. “So tell me, what industries are you guys mainly in?”

’She knew they were a powerful and wealthy conglomerate, but she had no idea of the actual scale.’

Shen Chen shot her a look. “There are too many to list.”

As he picked up the SIM card from the nightstand to install it for her, he said with a smile, “Why don’t you ask, and I’ll answer?”

“…” ’He’s totally flexing,’ Xu Su suspected, ’but I have no proof.’ She thought for a moment, then asked, “Automobiles?”

Shen Chen looked at her and nodded. “We have our own brand.”

“…Healthcare?”

“That’s a broad field. If you mean running hospitals, then no, not at the moment.” Shen Chen answered patiently. “But we’ve always supported human medical research. We’re in biopharmaceuticals and medical equipment.”

“…” ’So this is what a damned capitalist is like! They have to get a piece of every industry,’ Xu Su thought, pursing her lips. “What about the hospitality industry?”

Shen Chen smiled. “We do pretty well in that one. Oh, right, the Junyue Hotel in your Chang City is a Shen family property. The one where we first met.”

Xu Su was about to ask about the entertainment industry, but she suddenly recalled they also owned an entertainment company and immediately clamped her mouth shut.

After thinking for a good while, she finally came up with what she thought was a niche industry. “Your family doesn’t build airplanes, right?!”

“Well…” Under Xu Su’s stare, Shen Chen nodded slowly and said humbly, “We have some research achievements in aviation equipment. You could say the Shen family has managed to gain a foothold in the industry.”

“Ha…” ’Yep, she was sure now. He was totally flexing.’ Xu Su said through gritted teeth, “That’s so impressive. So, do you manufacture munitions? You know, guns, cannons, that sort of thing.”

Shen Chen watched her without a word, then suddenly leaned in a little closer. “That’s not something I can really discuss.”

“…!” Xu Su’s head snapped up, horrified. ’Does his tone mean… they do?’

’But, in this country… Right. Why was I only thinking about domestic operations? My perspective was too narrow.’

’All Xu Su had known before was that Shen Chen was a playboy. As a direct heir of the Shen family, he was at the apex of Beijing’s social elite, someone who was adulated wherever he went. She just never imagined the Shen family was *this* powerful.’

’Then what about the Zhou family? What kind of entity were they?’

’Tsk. She was now seriously wondering how on earth she had managed to marry into a family like that in her past life. From start to finish, she’d faced no external opposition. Aside from her own reluctance, not a single person had uttered a word against Zhou Mochen marrying her…’

’So, just how powerful must Zhou Mochen have been to override all dissent and insist on making her Mrs. Zhou the moment she graduated from college?’

’That’s not right!’

’Shouldn’t the scions of these top-tier conglomerates be flanked by bodyguards whenever they go out? Shouldn’t they be mysterious and elusive? Why are they all holing up in a place like Chang City?’

“What are you thinking about?” Shen Chen picked up an apple and began to peel it. When she didn’t speak for a while, he glanced up. “Realizing how powerful my background is and starting to regret all those things you said to me?”

His reminder made Xu Su recall their first, confrontational meeting, as well as the second time when he came to her school to give her the watch. Her attitude toward him on the phone had been pretty terrible.

She shot him a disdainful look. “Why are you more grudge-holding than a woman? I cussed you out a few times and you’re still thinking about it. Can’t you be a bit more magnanimous?”

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