I Snatched the Overbearing President’s Canary [Transmigration] - Chapter 4

Chapter 4: Milk Tea

Shenyu shook his head. “It’s nothing.”

The car pulled up to the hospital entrance. Shenyu picked up a business card from the dashboard and handed it to Ning Chen along with a pre-prepared bank card. “The PIN is 983142. Use it as you need. Call me if anything happens. I won’t go up with you.”

“Alright, thank you, Boss He.” Ning Chen took the items with his left hand while his right hand tightened its grip on his phone. After a pause, he asked hesitantly, “Should I come find you tonight?”

Shenyu froze for a moment before answering, “No need. You have classes tomorrow, right? I’ll pick you up at your school gate after you finish tomorrow.”

“Okay.” Ning Chen nodded and lowered his head to unbuckle his seatbelt.

Watching his movements, He Shenyu couldn’t help but notice how slender and elegant his fingers looked against the black belt. The bone structure was so perfect it looked like it belonged in a textbook.

It wasn’t until Ning Chen opened the door and stepped out that He Shenyu snapped back to reality. As Ning Chen was about to say goodbye, He Shenyu remembered something. “By the way, my phone number is the same as my messaging ID. Add me when you’re free later and send me a copy of your class schedule.”

Asking for the schedule was practical. Shenyu had been a college student himself; if Ning Chen didn’t have afternoon classes tomorrow, he could pick him up earlier. Regardless, since they were in a sponsorship relationship, this information would be useful in the future.

“Okay. I’m leaving now, Boss He.” Ning Chen bowed his head slightly, backpack on his shoulders, to say goodbye.

Shenyu gave him a small smile. “Go on!”

He felt a strange sense of “sending a kid off to school.”

Ning Chen waved and turned to leave. He started at a normal pace, but by the time he reached the stairs, he had broken into a run. The backpack bounced on his back, and his white silk shirt fluttered in the wind—the very image of flying youth.

It was youth. Ning Chen was only a sophomore, barely nineteen years old. Unfortunately, the heavy burden of life had crushed any room for the boy to think about the trivialities of being young.

Shenyu watched him run into the building before slowly driving away.

It’s fine, he thought. I’m here to help him. At the very least, he would ensure the boy could finish his studies like a normal student.

…

Shenyu drove back to his villa. He had to admit, Doctor He knew how to enjoy life; the house was ridiculously large for one person. It took him several minutes just to walk through the whole place.

In what was clearly the master bedroom, he searched for and memorized some of Doctor He’s personal information. Then, he chose a different room to stay in. Although he was a character in a book, his doctor’s “cleanliness obsession” made it impossible for him to sleep in a stranger’s room.

Speaking of which… would he and Ning Chen have to share a room?

The sponsorship agreement hadn’t specified such details, but logically, they probably should. If he acted too unlike a benefactor, would Ning Chen find it strange? There wasn’t exactly a decent excuse he could use to explain why a “sugar daddy” wouldn’t want to sleep in the same room.

Forget it, I won’t think about it for now, he decided. He will discuss it with Ning Chen tomorrow. At the very least, he wanted to tell the boy he didn’t need to be so tense when they were together.

Shenyu took a shower and spent some time in the study looking over work documents. Fortunately, as a hospital director, he didn’t have to work a fixed shift; his main job was serving as the CEO’s private doctor. However, even though Doctor He rarely performed surgery anymore, He Shenyu planned to brush up on his medical knowledge. He had to play this role well—if for nothing else, then for the sake of the money in that bank account.

…

The next day, He Shenyu went to the hospital for a bit. It was a slow day; he just held a meeting and handled some miscellaneous tasks. He studied his phone, looking over Doctor He’s previous medical records for the CEO.

At this point, Fu Hengzhan was still a “normal” person. Their call logs weren’t frequent—mostly just weekly routine check-ups. It wasn’t like the later parts of the original book where the two leads were sustaining major injuries every three days. In the original text, Doctor He eventually couldn’t help but complain to the CEO about it, though it didn’t change anything.

Come to think of it, why hasn’t Ning Chen sent a friend request yet?

Did he forget? Or was he too busy at the hospital? If he remembered correctly, after Ning Chen got the money, he immediately arranged for his brother’s emergency heart surgery. He must have been at the hospital all night and might not even be awake yet.

Shenyu didn’t mind. He didn’t actually have “physical needs” like a real benefactor. He was only curious about the message because he wanted to know the boy’s situation.

After lunch, a new friend request finally popped up. Shenyu accepted it immediately.

Ning Chen apologized first, sounding embarrassed. He explained he had been busy with the surgery and that his brother was now out of danger. Shenyu felt relieved. He hadn’t been overly worried about the surgery because he knew from the original plot that it would be successful.

He replied: That’s good.

Ning Chen sent a string of thank-yous and said he would be back in school for afternoon classes and would message him when he finished. Shenyu replied with an Okay.

The conversation ended there. Shenyu looked at the chat log and smiled. Ning Chen seemed more talkative online than in person. When sending those thanks, he even used emojis; he finally looked like a modern college student.

Shenyu liked that. He hoped that with his intervention, Ning Chen could live more like a normal student. That would make his “battle of wits” with the plot worth it. Perhaps this was the true mission behind his transmigration?

…

In the afternoon, Ning Chen found a moment to send over his schedule. His last class ended at 5:30 PM, so He Shenyu set off at 5:00. The school was close to the hospital—only a ten-minute drive.

Shenyu drove leisurely, familiarizing himself with the local roads. The city was bustling and seemed to be the capital of this world. However, since there were no familiar landmarks, he felt a twinge of melancholy. Even though he was living the peaceful, wealthy life of Doctor He, back in reality, he had worked so hard to finish his Master’s degree…

It was truly frustrating. He had just graduated and signed a job contract, only to be yanked into this world.

The closer he got to the university district, the stronger the atmosphere of youth became. Students walked in groups of two or three, chatting and laughing. Shenyu immediately felt a sense of familiarity. He parked the car and checked his watch; there were still ten minutes until school was out.

Instead of waiting in the car, he stepped out. Although his car was a famous brand, the students didn’t flock to stare at it. Likely, expensive cars were a common sight at a prestigious capital university.

He thought about wandering into the campus but remembered he told Ning Chen he’d wait at the gate, so he stayed outside. Instead, he browsed the shops nearby.

When Ning Chen messaged him saying he was out, He Shenyu was standing in line for milk tea. He saw how crowded the shop was and figured it must taste good, so he wanted to try it. He wondered if milk tea in this world was any different.

Holding two packed cups of milk tea, he walked toward the gate and spotted Ning Chen coming out with his backpack. Even in the thick after-school crowd, Ning Chen was incredibly eye-catching, standing out like a crane among a flock of chickens.

He was wearing a black shirt and his old black backpack. Because he had just finished class, he was wearing black-rimmed glasses, which gave him a completely different vibe compared to yesterday. People around him seemed to know him; they couldn’t help but steal glances at him.

In such a spotlight, He Shenyu found him almost effortlessly. Ning Chen looked around, spotted He Shenyu, and walked over with his head down, adjusting his glasses.

Seeing his slightly uncomfortable movements, He Shenyu finally realized: right, being “sponsored” wasn’t a point of pride for a college student. Naturally, Ning Chen didn’t want people to know.

Shenyu didn’t say much. He unlocked the car and signaled for Ning Chen to get in. Once inside, Ning Chen placed his backpack on his lap, pulled out a slightly dented glasses case, and put his glasses away.

Shenyu asked curiously, “What’s your prescription?”

Ning Chen looked at him. “Around 200. I haven’t checked in a long time, so I don’t know if it’s changed. I only wear them to see the blackboard in class.”

That made sense. He didn’t remember the original book mentioning Ning Chen wearing glasses. Then again, the plot with the CEO had nothing to do with studying.

Shenyu pulled out the milk tea. “I bought some milk tea. See which flavor you want.”

Ning Chen looked at him in surprise. He took the tea and picked the one closest to him. “Thank you, Boss He.”

Shenyu felt a headache coming on. “Don’t call me Boss He. Call me by my name. I’m not used to hearing you call me that.”

Ning Chen sat there blankly holding the milk tea, blinking a few times. After a moment of thought, he spoke with some difficulty, “Okay… Shenyu.”

Shenyu didn’t mind the awkwardness. He set his own tea aside and started the car, asking casually, “How is your brother doing?”

“Thank you… Shenyu,” Ning Chen hesitated for a second. “The doctor said everything is fine. He should be waking up soon.”

“That’s good. Let me know if you need any more help.” Shenyu glanced at him. “Don’t just hold the tea, drink it. I can’t drink while driving. Do you not like that flavor?”

Ning Chen shook his head and obediently poked the straw through the seal. “It’s not that. This is actually my first time drinking it. Thank you for buying it for me.”

Shenyu was helpless. “Ning Chen, you don’t have to keep saying ‘thank you’ to me.”

“Okay.” Ning Chen looked at him, then quietly lowered his head and bit the straw.

…

They returned to He Shenyu’s house. Dinner, prepared by the part-time housekeeper, was already laid out in the dining room. Shenyu had tried her cooking yesterday; it was excellent. He hadn’t fired her because it was her livelihood, and he didn’t want to take that away just because he wasn’t used to it. Besides, she only came to cook and clean; usually, he was alone.

Well, not exactly. From now on, his free time would be shared with another person. Otherwise, the sponsorship contract would look very suspicious. Ning Chen was sharp; he would definitely notice something was off.

Shenyu didn’t want to tell him the truth yet. First, because the truth was hard to believe. Second, because someone with Ning Chen’s strong self-esteem might not be able to accept “pure charity.” It might put even more psychological pressure on him.

Shenyu just wanted Ning Chen to live a bit more easily. It was fine to let him stay in the dark for now. He was the benefactor, after all—and benefactors were expected to have “strange quirks,” right?

“Let’s eat first. After that, you can go shower.” Shenyu pulled out a chair and glanced at Ning Chen’s backpack. “Did you bring clothes?”

Ning Chen gripped his backpack tightly, looking embarrassed. “Not… not yet…”

His voice was so quiet that He Shenyu didn’t catch the nuance. He continued, “It’s fine. I bought several sets of new clothes for you yesterday. They’re in the cabinet in that room. There are pajamas, too.”

Shenyu hadn’t thought much of it; he just figured Ning Chen would be staying over, so he prepared clothes. He had no idea how much pressure that sentence put on Ning Chen.

It took a great deal of effort for Ning Chen to slowly move his pale fingers away from his backpack.

“Okay.” He finally set down the bag that he had been mangling in his hands for the past several minutes.

“Come wash your hands first,” He Shenyu said.

The two washed their hands in the kitchen in silence. Then, under He Shenyu’s gaze, Ning Chen walked to the chair He Shenyu had pulled out and slowly sat down.

Oblivious to Ning Chen’s internal turmoil, He Shenyu said, “Let’s eat!”