He Juan pocketed his phone and walked toward Mu Yuze who looked like he wanted to climb into the cage and snuggle together with the cats to avoid the staff’s enthusiastic recommendations. "How is it going?"

As soon as Mu Yuze saw him, the depth of his dark eyes lit up subtly and he rushed forward to hide behind He Juan’s back, making him a human shield and letting him deal with the burdensome social interaction.

Seeing him hiding like an ostrich, He Juan was unable to resist a chuckle. He patted the boy’s head in passing and offered an apologetic smile to the staff. "I’m sorry, mind repeating it to me?"

"Of course not, Sir!" The staff became all the more enthusiastic, knowing that the real money tree had finally arrived. He launched into another lengthy description regarding the two different types of blankets in his hands. "As I have told the little brother here, these two are the most suitable for winter..."

.

In the end, He Juan resorted to buying one for each type and color, much to Mu Yuze’s exasperation. Why must he choose if he could buy everything, right?

Walking out of the pet store, He Juan placed the plastic bags in the backseat before he slipped into the driver’s seat. When he saw the brooding Mu Yuze beside him, he raised a brow and asked in slight amusement, "Still sulking?"

"...Am not," he murmured quietly under his breath.

’Little liar,’ he thought fondly. He Juan turned on the engine and drove out of the parking area, and it was not until the car merged into the stream of traffic did he continue to say, "Tell me. Do you think it’s such a waste? Hmm?"

"Kitty doesn’t need five blankets with different colors," he replied flatly, which was equivalent to saying yes, he indeed thought that it was a waste. He Juan did not even need to look to know that the boy was giving him a grumpy look. It was not the first time such a thing had happened; Mu Yuze always gave him the same look every time he caught He Juan spending more money than necessary.

"Hmm..." He Juan tapped his fingers on the wheels, eyes focusing on the road in front. In the end, he still could not help but chuckle. "You’re right, Kitty may not need all of them. But how do you know that her babies won’t? Haven’t you seen her belly, Xiao Ze? It’s enormous!" he clicked his tongue and shook his head helplessly. "How many kittens do you think she will give birth to? Three? Five? What if it’s more than five?"

Just in time, the car stopped behind the red traffic lights. He Juan turned to the boy with an exaggerated gasp. "If that happens, we’re going to run out of blankets soon!"

Mu Yuze leveled him with an unimpressed stare. Under the crimson glow casted by the tail lights of the car in front, his features looked all the more colder. And his sharp gaze... oh boy, they sure were deep and profound. It really felt like he was trying to penetrate deep into someone’s soul. He Juan could already envision how handsome Mu Yuze would be when he grew up. Girls would surely throw themselves under his feet.

"You’re trying to humor me again, aren’t you?" He said quietly and turned his gaze to the front, jaws clenched. "Forget it, I knew I wouldn’t be able to win in an argument against you. Either way, it’s all your money."

"Xiao Ze..." He Juan uttered his name with a tinge of helplessness. He sensibly decided not to tell Mu Yuze about the trust fund he had set up under the boy’s name – which he could access once he reached eighteen years old. If Mu Yuze was already mad with him spending a little more than five hundred RMB on Kitty’s supplies, what about the tens of millions in the trust fund? Wouldn’t he get a heart attack this way?

’Later,’ he told himself. He would tell Mu Yuze later... after he grew up a bit more.

"How can you say that Gege is trying to humor you? Such a big slander!" He put on a wounded look to emphasize his point and as expected, he received no more than a cold harrumph from the boy.

Chuckling, He Juan returned his gaze back to the road when he noticed the lights turning green. He gently stepped on the accelerator and said in a more serious tone this time. "Actually, I am trying to let you know... if it has something to do with basic essentials, then you shouldn’t hesitate to spend more for it." He smiled when he sensed Mu Yuze’s gaze falling on him. "I am not only talking about Kitty, but you too. You must know what I mean by basic essentials, right? Food, water, clothing, shelter – anything that can improve the quality of your life. It’s always better to have more of them, Xiao Ze."

Without taking his gaze off the road, He Juan freed one hand and ruffled the boy’s fluffy hair. "Won’t it make you happier to eat good food, wear warm clothes and sleep on soft beds?"

He had noticed that Mu Yuze tended to hoard things, especially the ones he liked. He Juan couldn’t count how many times he’d had his heart broken when he caught Mu Yuze secretly saving the snacks he liked for later because he couldn’t bear to eat them all.

He Juan did not want it. He wanted Mu Yuze to be able to have all the food and things he liked without having to worry that they would run out, or that he would not be able to afford them.

That’s why he wanted Mu Yuze to learn, to know that it was okay to spend more for anything that made him happy and comfortable. Either way, He Juan had a lot of money which he couldn’t spend in this lifetime.

"You..." Mu Yuze sounded utterly shocked, as if he couldn’t believe such a deep and soulful talk could come out of He Juan’s mouth. "You are not trying to talk your way out of this, are you?"

He Juan almost choked on his breath when he heard that. "Talk my way out— Mu Yuze!" He exclaimed, three parts anger and seven parts amusement. "Exactly what kind of image do I have in your eyes? Do you think I’m such a liar?!"

Mu Yuze gave no answer to that, but somehow He Juan could almost hear his unsaid words, ’But you are indeed a liar.’

How horrible! He had never lied to Mu Yuze before. He could swear that every single word he said had come from the bottom of his heart, but was it his fault if Mu Yuze was the one who did not believe them?

Helpless, He Juan could only shake his head and sigh, saying, "Okay, forget it. But Gege is really serious this time, though. So think carefully about it, okay?"

There was a few seconds of silence, and just as He Juan thought that he would not get an answer this time, he heard Mu Yuze reply softly, "...okay."

***

Arriving at the apartment, He Juan opened the door and gestured for Mu Yuze to come in. He deliberately dawdled in the hallway while asking, "Can you bring the things we have bought inside first, Xiao Ze?"

Not suspecting anything at all, Mu Yuze nodded and hoisted the plastic bags into his arms. He Juan’s eyes lingered on the boy’s back, smiling. He silently counted inside his heart. Five... four... three... two...

Thud!

The plastic bags in Mu Yuze’s hands slipped to the ground as he stood frozen in front of the living room, staring at the dozens of red and golden balloons floating on the ceiling, the suspicious ribboned boxes littered around the floor and most importantly... the huge cake on the table with fifteen candles lit up on top of it, washing the perimeter in a soft golden glow.

He Juan grinned and said excitedly, "Surprise! Happy fifteenth birthday, Xiao Ze!!"