Chapter Twenty-Nine: The Arrangement of Plans

“What?!” Gu Mengyan was completely caught off guard that Chen Hao would actually ask for her opinion. In her mind, Chen Hao had always been someone with a very strong will, ever since they were children. She remembered back when they used to live together as kids, whenever something happened that they didn’t want to tell the adults, it was always Chen Hao who made the decisions.

For instance, whether it was deciding what to play that day or what to buy with their pocket money, Chen Hao always called the shots. And back then, he never even bothered to consult her—he simply made the decision himself.

One might say this made Chen Hao seem a bit selfish, never considering the feelings of others. But to put it in a rather cliché way, it was as if Chen Hao could read Mengyan’s mind, knowing exactly what she liked and wanted to do. In fact, every decision Chen Hao made was always precisely what Mengyan secretly wished for.

When she grew up, Mengyan once asked him how he always knew what she liked. Chen Hao shrugged, “Huh? How would I know what you like? I just pick what I like! Since you’re my little sister, of course you should listen to your big brother’s arrangements.”

Hearing that, Mengyan was naturally ticked off and gave him a good thrashing. That was how, through all their bickering and tussling, they built a deep bond that lasted to this day.

The real reason Chen Hao always chose exactly what Mengyan wanted was very simple: Mengyan kept a diary. In it, she would jot down nearly everything she saw and thought, including what she liked, disliked, wanted, and hoped to do—all detailed in her diary.

Mengyan started journaling after her parents’ accident. Before they left for Krystal, she’d never kept a diary. But after that incident, when she came to live with Chen Hao’s family, she developed the habit. She was afraid that, one day, she might disappear just like her parents, leaving nothing behind. No letters, no diary—not even many photographs.

But being a naive little girl, she wrote in those little diaries with locks, hoping to keep them private. In hindsight, it was almost laughable—those so-called locks were just toys for kids. The keys were universal, and even without a key, a needle or a stiff toothpick could open them in seconds.

Since Mengyan lived in Chen Hao’s house, her diary was always within his reach. And, as children are, the places she hid the key were so easy to guess. Chen Hao had no trouble at all opening her diary and, quite unethically, reading every word she wrote.

Inside, it was filled with the musings and stories of a young girl, which is exactly how Chen Hao came to know everything she liked and wanted. To this day, Mengyan still doesn’t know this, and Chen Hao has never told her. That’s why, in the past, Chen Hao never had to consult her about anything. But today, he actually asked for her opinion, which struck Mengyan as very odd—more surprising, even, than if he’d suddenly announced he was quitting his job.

“Why are you asking for my opinion?” Mengyan asked, puzzled. “Didn’t you always make the decisions and I just went along?”

Of course, Chen Hao wasn’t about to confess his childhood misdeeds. Instead, he made up an excuse: “Well, back then we were just kids—no real ideas or opinions of our own. As your big brother, it was my job to take the lead. But now we’re both grownups, you definitely have your own thoughts and insights.

This decision isn’t a small matter, so naturally, I need to consider my dear sister’s opinion. Besides, I’m not just thinking about quitting myself—I hope you’ll quit too, and come with me to start something of our own.

Of course, it doesn’t have to be an online game studio or a martial arts school. If you have any other better ideas or plans, bring them up and we’ll talk it over together!”

“What?!” Mengyan exclaimed in shock. “You want me to join you?”

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“What? You don’t want to?” Chen Hao asked, sounding a little disappointed. He completely misunderstood her reaction. “But I get it. Working at Illusion Corp is a respectable job, and the pay’s good too. Sure, it’s tiring at times, but the benefits and holidays are great. And when there’s no work, you have a lot of freedom.

Plus, you got into the company on your own merit, and you’ve been there for years, with so many friends—it’s normal not to want to leave.

I know that ever since you turned eighteen, you’ve wanted to be independent, not relying on our family for anything. If you quit with me and follow my lead, people might gossip, say you’re just freeloading off me. That must be something you don’t want, and honestly, it’s probably one of the reasons you left home back then.

But, really, you don’t have to be like that. Why care so much about what others say? In the eyes of me, Dad, and Mom, you’re truly part of our family. We may not be related by blood, but after all these years, you’re as much our parents’ own daughter as anyone could be, and you’re my wonderful sister. There’s no need to keep any distance. We don’t care what others think, so why should you?

People! If you spend your life worrying about what others think, you’ll only add to your burdens. As long as you’re happy and true to yourself, what does it matter what anyone else thinks? If everyone was like you, we’d all be depressed someday, and humanity would go extinct.”

Having misunderstood her silence as reluctance, Chen Hao rattled off his opinions, trying to persuade her. Little did he know, Mengyan’s reaction wasn’t for the reason he thought.

In truth, Mengyan’s surprise was more a delight than anything else. She had assumed Chen Hao planned to quit alone and hadn’t even considered inviting her. She thought they’d be going their separate ways again. In the brief time she’d had, she’d already decided she’d quit too and go with him.

She was just struggling with how to cling to him, worried he might refuse. She never expected Chen Hao to invite her outright, and it filled her with joy.

But that joy didn’t last long, because Chen Hao’s nagging soon reminded Mengyan of her adoptive mother—Chen Hao’s mother.

She remembered, back at home, how she’d endlessly nag the two kids, always with something to say. She did it for their own good, not to pick on Mengyan, but having to face a nearly middle-aged woman’s constant nagging every day was too much for Mengyan to handle. That was one of the minor reasons she left home.

Chen Hao’s mother’s nagging had no cooldown, no range limit, affected friend and foe alike, and was the kind of passive aura that never turned off.

Now, seeing Chen Hao starting to resemble her, Mengyan felt she couldn’t take it.

“That’s enough!” Mengyan clamped her hand over Chen Hao’s mouth. “I haven’t even said anything, and you’re already giving me a lecture. Are you going through menopause early or something? So naggy!”

“Uh… mmph!” Chen Hao tapped her hand, signaling her to let go. “Whew—almost suffocated. So, what do you think? Are you going to quit and join your big brother or not?”

Mengyan pretended to ponder with reserve. “Go with you? Well… it’s not out of the question. But…”

“What’s there to hesitate about? There are all kinds of perks to working with me!” Chen Hao said enthusiastically. “First, you’re my sister, so you’re basically a co-boss. I’d never treat you like a stranger and pay you a regular salary. You’d be the major shareholder besides me!”

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“Second, working with me will be way more relaxed than working for someone else! No attendance sheets, no restrictions from others—sounds great, right? How could you still hesitate?”

“Hmph! Co-boss? Who wants to be just a co-boss? I want to be the full boss,” Mengyan muttered under her breath.

“What did you say?” Chen Hao didn’t catch her mumbling.

“Nothing!” Mengyan shook her head quickly.

Then Chen Hao clapped his hands. “Ah! I got it! You’re worried about leaving familiar people and your usual environment, right? You think you might not get used to it?”

Mengyan froze. To keep Chen Hao from getting suspicious about her earlier words, she nodded along, “Yeah! I still have a lot of friends in my department.”

“Oh, come on. You’re just changing jobs, not saying goodbye forever. When everyone’s free, you can still hang out. That’s what I plan to do.

And don’t worry about not knowing anyone in the future. I’m not planning for just the two of us in this venture—whether it’s an online studio or a martial arts school, we’ll need more people to help out. So I’ve already invited an old friend of yours to join us! She’s agreed, and she’s just waiting for me to finalize things.”

“An old friend? Someone I know? Who?” Mengyan looked puzzled. “Bill Andre?”

Chen Hao shook his head. “Of course not. I haven’t even mentioned it to that guy yet. Even if I did, he probably wouldn’t come back—his wife keeps him on a short leash!”

“Then who is it?”

Chen Hao smiled mysteriously. “Heh heh… do you remember Fan Yirou?”

Mengyan practically shouted, “What?! Her?! Why her?!”