A hand gently rested on his head, fingertips stroking softly backward along the direction of his hair.

Fang Ji was stunned. He looked up and saw the young master with a calm expression, casually comforting him.

Fang Ji dazedly spaced out for a moment.

He didn’t remember when was the last time someone patted his head like this. The last person who patted his head like this, was it his brother? Besides his brother, who else had patted his head like this?

His brother would always stroke his head gently and slowly like this when he was in a bad mood.

When his brother was around, he wasn’t aware of it, thinking such head pats were ordinary. Only after his brother left did he suddenly realize that even such “ordinariness” was full of his brother’s color.

Lin Chen’s voice drifted into his ears from afar.

Fang Ji came back to his senses with difficulty, only to hear Lin Chen asking: “The deceased cannot be pursued. It’s been three years, why haven’t you moved on yet?”

Fang Ji: “…You don’t understand, Master Lin.”

Fang Ji said in a low voice: “Brother Chengyu is different. No matter how long my brother has been gone, I will always be very sad.”

“Oh?” Lin Chen responded, “That means my spirit channeling was useless then?”

The young master asked casually while lifting the hair and forehead chain that fell before his eyes with his fingertips, moving them aside to where they should be.

Fang Ji’s gaze involuntarily followed the fingertips on his forehead to the side and back to the center. The fingertips casually touched his skin, reminding him once again of the feeling when his brother personally put on the full set of necklaces for him before leaving.

…How could it be useless?

He wished he could conduct spirit channeling every day and talk to his brother every day.

It was just that, if there was a choice, compared to spirit channeling separated by life and death, he naturally hoped everything was fake, that science really existed, and outrageous hypotheses could really turn into reality…

Fang Ji: “No, it was useful, Master Lin, of course it was useful. If you are willing to help me channel my brother again, then… anything you want me to do is fine!”

Lin Chen sighed heavily in his heart.

He thought, if he hadn’t come today, those wild metaphysics practitioners would probably hook away all of Fang Ji’s family fortune with a few more years of effort.

Upholding the super high professionalism of the World’s No. 1 Professional Substitute Actor, after thinking quietly for a moment, Lin Chen finally said slowly: “How about this, if you really miss your brother that much, for the sake of you being A-Zhen’s friend, I can barely help you channel once more. Of course, friendship is friendship, but the energy loss fee required for spirit channeling, ten million per time, you still have to pay.”

…

Cheng Huanzhen thought his speed of choosing necklaces was already very fast.

But when he finished choosing, left the room, and planned to wait at the door of Little Uncle’s room, Little Uncle happened to open the door too.

Fang Ji’s mental outlook was starkly different from when he went in.

Fang Ji’s expression seemed much more relaxed than before entering, his steps seven points lighter. With every step he took, the jewelry all over his body tinkled.

But strangely, Cheng Huanzhen noticed that Fang Ji’s gaze secretly looking at Little Uncle was somehow complex and hesitant, seemingly pondering something.

Little Uncle looked no different coming out than going in, except he held a bunch of green grapes in his hand.

Little Uncle casually picked grapes to eat while saying to Fang Ji without looking back: “…It’s my first time seeing someone like you. Suspecting I scammed your family’s money, so you spent more money to find dozens of monks and Taoists to verify my statement! Hah, can’t there be a little more sincerity and trust in this world? I tell you, today for A-Zhen’s sake, I won’t hold it against you and help you one more time. But if you use those traditional masters to test me and suspect me again, I really won’t help you anymore!”

“Also, you can call me directly by my name. Anyway, you and A-Zhen know each other, just get along as friends. Don’t call me Master this and Master that; this is just a side job of mine. Besides, I can’t bear the title of Master anyway; haven’t you seen so many peers in the market slandering me…”

Cheng Huanzhen watched helplessly as Fang Ji swept away those complex expressions on his face, replaced them with a pitiful expression, and circled around Little Uncle apologizing left and coaxing right with a sweet voice:

“They slander Master Lin because they have no vision and are short-sighted! I was just confused by them back then, which led me to test you, Master. This matter was my fault. Master, just forgive me this once, okay?”

“Um, if not calling you Master, how about I call you Brother Lin? I remember Brother Lin said spirit channeling consumes a lot of your energy. How about this, our family has very good nursing centers in the Imperial Capital, Country M, Country E, and Country D. I’ll go ask my family for four annual passes tonight. Whenever Brother Lin wants to rest, you can go anytime. Consider it my apology to Brother Lin!”

“By the way, Brother Lin, do you like listening to concerts? Every performance I have many spare family and friend tickets. In the future, I’ll save the two best seats for you and Huanzhen. Whenever you want to come watch, contact me anytime~”

Hearing one “Brother Lin,” Cheng Huanzhen’s eyelid twitched.

Hearing another “Brother Lin,” a vein popped.

Hearing yet another “Brother Lin”…

Cheng Huanzhen stomped heavily on the floor expressionlessly!

Startled, Fang Ji subconsciously turned around to look, his whole body making a bewildered tinkling sound. Cheng Huanzhen strode forward, walking between the two in the blink of an eye.

In the middle.

Cheng Huanzhen squeezed expressionlessly between the two.

He picked the plumpest green grape and brought it to Little Uncle’s mouth: “You came out just in time, A-Chen. I just picked two sets of jewelry very suitable for you; you will definitely look very good wearing them.”

Turning back, he politely gestured to Fang Ji with the two heavy jewelry set boxes in his hand and said: “The jewelry you designed is very beautiful, Fang Ji. I picked two sets, which is a bit much. It’s not good to take your things for free, so calculate the market price for me, and I’ll buy them.”

Fang Ji had been very focused on work these years and didn’t react for a moment.

Fang Ji waved his hand generously: “It’s okay, Huanzhen. If you like these two sets of jewelry, just take them both. Consider them my meeting gift to Brother Lin!”

Cheng Huanzhen raised a smile that was polite enough, perfect enough, and decent enough, just like his performance when representing his family at various banquets over the past years.

Cheng Huanzhen: “Thank you, Fang Ji, but no need. I want to buy it as my gift to A-Chen.”

Cheng Huanzhen emphasized the stress.

“No need,” “I,” “A-Chen,” the words were bitten out by him with earth-shaking force, just like his heavy footstep just now.

Fang Ji blinked slowly, realizing belatedly, and his expression suddenly changed slightly!

But before he could react, Lin Chen had already pulled Cheng Huanzhen back behind him.

Lin Chen smiled at Cheng Huanzhen: “What are you doing? Look, you’re scaring him.”

Then turning back to say to Fang Ji: “I said, today’s matter doesn’t count, don’t take it to heart. It’s just the money for two sets of jewelry; let A-Zhen transfer it to you later. I can’t take your things for free. After all, look, I calculated the spirit channeling price for you based on market price too. If I took your jewelry for free, wouldn’t I look more like a scammer?”

The silent smoke of war that was about to rise was smoothed over by Lin Chen’s few words just like that.

Fang Ji lowered his eyes somewhat disappointedly.

He clearly didn’t have that many thoughts! He just, just wanted Brother Lin to enjoy the treatment that every one of his previous brothers could enjoy!

Why was this Cheng Huanzhen so petty!

Thinking so.

But Fang Ji knew clearly that he wasn’t familiar enough with Lin Chen yet. If he wanted to give some valuable gifts outside of holidays, etiquette-wise, it would be appropriate to wait at least until their second transaction was completed, spirit channeling was done.

Fang Ji adjusted quickly, following Lin Chen’s words slowly: “Oh, alright, Brother Lin. But we are friends after all. Charging you market price and earning your money would be too unbrotherly! How about this, I’ll give you a 30% discount, consider it a family and friend price. Only charging cost, not earning your money, how about it?”

“If you have any jewelry needs later, you can come find me anytime. If there’s no suitable ready-made jewelry, I’ll design a set for you on the spot, very convenient!”

Fang Ji paused, raising a smile at Lin Chen: “By the way, Brother Lin, I heard Huanzhen say before that the tenth is your birthday? When and where Brother Lin’s birthday banquet will be held, once decided, must remember to tell me in time oh!”

Before Cheng Huanzhen’s fist clenched further, Lin Chen smiled and led him away.

He led Cheng Huanzhen back to the car, kissed the corner of his lips, and asked him: “What, jealous?”

Cheng Huanzhen said stiffly: “Not jealous, Little Uncle.”

Lin Chen said without blinking: “You are lying to me. I can smell it; you reek of jealousy from head to toe.”

Cheng Huanzhen didn’t make a sound. He looked away, lowered his head trying to fish for his phone in his pocket, and said: “Little Uncle wait a moment, I’ll transfer the money to Fang Ji first.”

But Lin Chen pressed one hand on his pocket, not letting him reach for the phone.

The other hand gripped his jaw with the space between thumb and index finger, lifting his head up.

Lin Chen gazed at him smilingly and asked: “Little Ji just called me Brother, and you got jealous like this. Will you regret introducing me to them with this identity?”

Cheng Huanzhen was forced to look straight into Lin Chen’s eyes, with nowhere to escape.

He was quiet out of spite for a while, but finally lost under Lin Chen’s gaze offensive, sighing: “Little Uncle, you making friends is one thing, me being jealous is another. These are two different matters.”

Lin Chen smiled: “Oh? You admit you are jealous?”

Cheng Huanzhen: “.”

Cheng Huanzhen: “…Little Uncle!!”

Cheng Huanzhen felt Little Uncle was extremely bad.

Watching Little Uncle laugh until he collapsed on the car seat unable to get up after tricking the words out of him, he felt Little Uncle was even worse!

So Cheng Huanzhen held his breath. After driving Little Uncle home, while Little Uncle was taking a bath, he silently studied the wearing methods of the two jewelry sets theoretically until he understood them clearly.

Which part to wear how, where to wear, what to pay attention to—he combined the Big Green Book (Xiaohongshu equivalent) with the jewelry set instructions to learn quickly. Within the short bath time, he integrated them all into a document and placed it on the desktop for ready reference.

So, when Lin Chen came out after the bath, what he saw was Cheng Huanzhen holding the jewelry set box waiting seriously.

Hearing the movement, Cheng Huanzhen looked up, eyes shining brightly at him, asking expectantly: “Little Uncle, want to try?”