That Stupid, Pretentious Young Master Deserves To Be Punished - Chapter 16

Initially, the name Si Xuan was completely foreign to Jia Yu. He only started to take note of it after several contracts in his hands were snatched away one after another; his business partners mentioned the name repeatedly, making Jia Yu increasingly familiar with it. It was not until the project he was personally managing was stolen that he truly locked that name in his memory:

Si Xuan.

His first real impression of Si Xuan was during his sophomore year at University A.

Shen Jia Yu had been the campus heartthrob since childhood, boasting immense popularity wherever he went.

That day, he was playing basketball with a few buddies. Whenever he was on the court, it would be packed to the rafters, overflowing with spectators. Many adolescent boys and girls hung around the court, hoping for a chance—if they were lucky, to get a flicker of interest from the Second Young Master Shen. Most were simply there for his face, given that the campus heartthrob rarely appeared in public.

During a timeout, Jia Yu was drinking water on the sidelines when his friend Wang Yue approached, arms spread wide, and said in an exaggerated tone, “Welcome, Second Young Master, to our University A basketball court! You truly bring honor to our humble court!”

Jia Yu cast a sidelong glance at him. “Get lost.”

Wang Yue leaned in with a cheeky wink. “What is the matter, Second Young Master? Any you like in the crowd? All the beauties from our school are here today.”

“Do not start. You will just annoy me.”

“Why? Is the eldest brother still restricting your dating life? You have been an adult for ages now. We do not have to talk about marriage; just have some fun. He will manage your fun too?” Wang Yue nudged his shoulder.

Jia Yu frowned, his voice cold. “He is nothing. Do not talk about him; it is bad luck.”

“Hey! Student over there, can you help throw the ball over…”

Before the person behind Jia Yu finished speaking, a ball flew over, smashing into the water bottle he was trying to cap. The bottle tumbled to the ground, splashing water everywhere.

Jia Yu paused and turned to look at the direction the ball came from.

A moment ago, there had been a crowd, but now only one tall man remained.

Jia Yu squinted; the man’s face looked awfully familiar.

Beside him, Wang Yue said with a hint of surprise, “Isn’t that Si Xuan?”

“Si Xuan?”

“Second Young Master, that is the guy who has been stealing our contracts lately! That poor student from Qinghe!”

With that, Shen Jia Yu fully recalled who he was.

Jia Yu raised his chin slightly toward that direction, his tone cold. “Did you throw that?”

Si Xuan stood in silence, motionless. He stared at Jia Yu, his eyes flickering with complex emotions. He had only come to watch the game. As it turned out, the person who had carelessly thrown the ball and hit Jia Yu had been terrified of offending him and had already bolted. By the time Si Xuan realized what happened, the ball had already flown over, hitting him in the chest and forcing him to take two steps back.

“I am asking you, damn it, did you throw it? Do you not have a mouth?”

Clearly, the ball that had hit him was thrown by Shen Jia Yu. This was the first time the Second Young Master had spoken to Si Xuan, even though his tone was laced with anger.

Si Xuan regained his composure, his face calm. He was quite tall, around 190 cm, so he was looking down at Shen Jia Yu. This natural height advantage made him appear as if he were looking down with a heavy, fierce gaze, especially when he was silent.

Si Xuan finally spoke. “What did you say just now?”

Jia Yu felt a fire erupt in his chest. Was someone really treating him like air? Damn it, this was absurd.

Wang Yue, knowing that the Second Young Master Shen had grown up with a silver spoon in his mouth and was surrounded by sycophants his entire life, knew he had never been ignored like this. Seeing the poor kid’s attitude and the disdain in his eyes, he immediately began to pick a fight. “The Second Young Master is talking to you. Are you pretending not to hear, or are you deliberately provoking him?”

Si Xuan replied innocently, “I really did not hear you clearly.” In truth, he had been too captivated by watching Jia Yu to pay attention.

To Shen Jia Yu, this attitude was a blatant provocation.

He clenched his fists, suppressing his rage, and said word for word, “I am asking you, was it you who hit me with that ball just now?”

The poor kid went silent again, looking at him with that same dismissive gaze, as if to say, Who do you think you are? Thinking of the contracts stolen one after another, Shen Jia Yu concluded that this person was intentionally going against him. He exploded, throwing a punch straight at Si Xuan’s face.

This sudden punch shocked everyone present. Si Xuan was caught off guard, staggering back a few steps as a trickle of blood ran from the corner of his mouth.

When he was hit by Shen Jia Yu, the scent hit him before the fist did. The moment that fragrance entered his nostrils, the searing pain on his face vanished, replaced by an intoxicating rush.

Shen Jia Yu threw another punch, but Si Xuan caught his fist and, using the momentum, pulled him into his arms. Just like that, Jia Yu was firmly locked in Si Xuan’s embrace.

Shen Jia Yu froze for several seconds, as if unable to comprehend what had just happened. When he finally came to his senses, his porcelain white face flushed deep red. This was a massive humiliation! He, the Second Young Master Shen, had never suffered such a blow!

As hot breath hit his ear, a low, magnetic voice sounded: “I said, I really did not hit you.”

Shen Jia Yu shoved him away violently, his face turning so red he looked ready to bleed. Furious and embarrassed, he raised his fist, intending to land a few more blows.

Wang Yue stepped in to stop him, grabbing Jia Yu’s arm and whispering, “Second Young Master, do not be impulsive. There are too many people here.”

Jia Yu glanced around. The crowd of onlookers was vast, and quite a few people had their phones out, taking photos. He took a deep breath and withdrew his fist.

Wang Yue leaned in and whispered, “Second Young Master, if you want to fix him, there are plenty of ways. No need to rush.”

Jia Yu said nothing. He gave Si Xuan a deep, piercing glare and turned to leave.

Si Xuan remained standing there, stretching out his hand to smell the lingering fragrance on his fingertips. His heart raced. This was his first time making contact with Shen Jia Yu. So fragrant, so soft.

Once in the locker room, Jia Yu lit a cigarette, clamped it in his teeth, and sat on a table with one foot on a bench, his posture effortlessly cool. “Talk. What is the background of that wild dog?” Just thinking about being subdued in front of everyone made him gasp with rage. So embarrassing!

Who the hell was he, a pauper, to treat him like this, let alone steal his contracts? Interesting. He dropped the cigarette to the floor and crushed it with a fierce expression. “Set him up for some fun.”

Wang Yue’s brain worked frantically, recalling recent events. Setting him up at a bar or club immediately would not work; without a legitimate reason, any fool would know it was a trap. Suddenly, an idea flashed:

“In a few days, there is a Wansheng banquet. People from Qinghe will definitely attend. We will have plenty of ways to deal with him then.”

“Fine, you handle it. Send the info to my phone.” Jia Yu opened the locker, pulled out his backpack, and took out a change of clothes. Seeing Wang Yue still staring at him, he frowned in displeasure and snapped, “Turn around!”

Wang Yue finally turned his back. Sounds of rustling clothes filled the room. Thinking of the Second Young Master’s jade like face, his own face began to burn. He pinched himself hard.

Perhaps to distract himself, he brought up a random topic:

“Second Young Master, the Shen family’s house rules are way too conservative. I, Wang Yue, have never seen anything so twisted in my life. Never mind high school; you are in college and you still have a curfew? They even list the bars you can drink at. What is this, is the Eldest Young Master going to require a list of everyone you speak to and a background check? Who manages their younger brother like that? Even a mother would not be this stifling.”

Perhaps recalling something, his voice trailed off until he finally shut up.

Jia Yu finished changing, shouldered his gym bag, kicked his shoes twice, and headed out. “Speak up, why stop now?”

Wang Yue looked a bit awkward and hurriedly apologized, “Sorry, Second Young Master, I spoke out of turn.”

Jia Yu glanced at him sideways. “You were not wrong.”

It was not just Wang Yue; everyone around them thought the Shen family was twisted, including Shen Jia Yu himself. He had been bound by strict rules since childhood. Those 230 bright red house rules had been copied countless times. He could say, without exaggeration, that the first word he ever learned to write was not his own name, but the big characters for Shen Family House Rules.

As for why he made Wang Yue turn around, it was not because of the house rules, but because he had been exposed to too many deviants since childhood. In elementary school, teachers would secretly hug and molest him. As he grew older, it got even worse—stalkers with psychological issues, people stealing his things, others picking through his trash, slipping naked photos of headless bodies into his desk, climbing over his wall in the middle of the night, maids slipping into his bed naked.

The list was endless. Shen Jia Yu often wondered—it was one thing when he looked like a girl as a kid, but after high school, anyone could see he was a 1.8 meter tall man. Why were there still so many deviants?

When he got home, it was already dinner time. Unless it was for business, the Shen household required everyone to eat dinner together. Even though Jia Yu was a bit late, no one had touched a dish on the table; they were all waiting for him.

He handed his gym bag to a servant, changed his shoes, and pulled out his chair with an irritable tug, sitting down.

Shen Youlin sat at the head of the table, his parents across from him. There were four of them, and the table was laden with food.

“Late coming home?” Shen Youlin cast a cold glance at Jia Yu. He did not say a word, radiating an overwhelming sense of pressure.

Jia Yu hummed softly. Shen Youlin said nothing more and spoke faintly: “Let us eat.” What followed was a silent dinner. The Shen family believed in not speaking while eating or sleeping. This family precept had been followed since the day Shen Jia Yu was born and had never changed. Sometimes, looking at this old yet magnificent Shen mansion, Jia Yu felt as though he had traveled back in time.

Why did a family like them still exist in the 21st century?

Not only did they strictly adhere to ritual and propriety, but what Jia Yu could not accept most was the sheer volume of sacrifices and ceremonies. Most ridiculously, not only did all the servants in the house have their birth charts checked, but even his close friends, classmates, and now the employees under his own company had to have their birth charts checked.

It was simply ignorant and feudal!

After dinner, Shen Jia Yu was summoned to the study.

He pushed open the door and saw Shen Youlin, impeccably dressed, sitting before the desk. The dim, yellowish light fell upon his head. Even at home, his hairstyle was perfectly groomed, his collar buttoned to the very top. His features were cold and hard, and his whole demeanor screamed “Stay away.”

Noticing the door open, Shen Youlin did not even look up. He said coldly: “Sit.” Only after Jia Yu sat in the chair did Shen Youlin raise his head. “You got into a fight with a classmate this afternoon?”

Hearing this, Shen Jia Yu exploded. He stood up abruptly, the chair emitting a harsh screech as it scraped against the floor. “You fucking had someone follow me again!” He was furious, his voice filled with sparks.

“Sit down!” Shen Youlin’s face was stern, his chiseled features radiating an intimidating majesty.

Shen Jia Yu acted as if he had not heard him, standing there, his long, exquisite phoenix eyes fixed on Shen Youlin. “I told you, do not have people follow me! I am an adult. I can protect myself, I have my own privacy, and I do not need to report my every move to you. Withdraw your people immediately!”

“Sit down! Do not make me say it a second time!” Shen Youlin’s voice was also tinged with anger.

Jia Yu simply turned around and left, leaving only a sentence behind: “I will not say it a second time, either.” The heavy sound of the door closing followed. Closing was an understatement; it sounded more like he had smashed the door.

A moment later, the butler entered and bowed respectfully. “Master, shall I invite the young master back?”

Shen Youlin rubbed his forehead, looking exhausted. “No need. You may leave.”