The Slacker Stepmother and the Non-Domineering CEO

Chapter 72

Apart from the gym, the other rooms on the third floor were vacant. After Gu Junxing returned home, he asked Butler Su to temporarily house the cat there. Once it grew a bit bigger, it could be allowed to roam freely downstairs. Otherwise, being so tiny, it would be lost in no time if it went downstairs and hid.

Gu Junxing carefully opened the door, with Nian Suian following behind him. To be honest, they couldn't spot the cat at first glance.

Because the room was absolutely crammed with stuff!

Not to mention everything else, Nian Suian's quick scan revealed three litter boxes. One small one was what she had bought online earlier, while the other two must have been purchased by Gu Junxing later.

"Mr. Gu Junxing, may I interview you? What's the purpose of buying so many litter boxes? Don't tell me you're planning to train it for separate wet and dry waste disposal?!"

To her surprise, Gu Junxing nodded after hearing this. "That's not a bad idea. We could train it later. It would be more hygienic that way."

"And what about this cat tree! It can barely walk steadily now. What's the point of buying this cat tree?" Nian Suian was at a loss for words looking at the cat tree that was taller than her. Having money didn't mean spending it like this.

"The people at the pet hospital said all cat owners buy these," he had carefully selected the most expensive one and had it delivered. However, he seemed to have overlooked the size issue. No worries though, he could just buy a smaller one later, keeping the big one for future use, Gu Junxing silently added in his mind.

"They're just ripping off big fools like you." Nian Suian shook her head, looking at the five differently-styled cat beds, four bowls, and countless cat toys scattered around the room.

Finally, they found Tang Yuan sleeping soundly in a cardboard box that had contained canned cat food.

"It's grown quite a bit. So cute." Nian Suian had always wanted to keep a cat, but living in a rented apartment made her feel it would be unfair to the cat, so she never dared to get one.

"Where's my sister? Let me see." Gu Zhijing pushed open the door, having searched several rooms on the third floor before finding them.

"Shh, be quiet. It's sleeping," Nian Suian hushed Gu Zhijing.

With Tang Yuan asleep, they decided not to disturb it. After the three of them closed the door and came out, Gu Zhijing said sourly, "Dad, you bought all that stuff in there, didn't you?"

"Is there a problem?" Gu Junxing glanced at his son, unsure of what he was getting at.

"Who was it that was reluctant at first, and now treats it better than your own son?"

"Your dad's experiencing late-in-life daughter syndrome. Try to understand," Nian Suian patted Gu Zhijing's shoulder.

"It's my money. I'll buy whatever I want. Which item in your room wasn't bought with my money? Stop with your sarcastic comments."

"I wasn't!" Gu Zhijing said, feeling wronged. "Dad, can I discuss something with you?"

Seeing so many empty rooms upstairs had sparked a bold idea in his mind.

"With all these empty rooms just sitting here, could we maybe..."

"No," Gu Junxing headed downstairs, refusing outright.

"I haven't even said what for!" Gu Zhijing chased after him.

"What else could it be? You want to set up a gaming room, right? Not allowed. Isn't the computer in your room enough for you to mess around with?" Gu Zhijing had hinted at this before, but had always been refused. He already spent all day playing games; if he had a dedicated gaming room, he'd probably live in there.

Seeing no hope with his father, Gu Zhijing turned to plead with Nian Suian.

"I agree," Nian Suian, who had heard the whole conversation, knew what Gu Zhijing wanted as soon as he opened his mouth. But before Gu Zhijing could get excited, she continued, "But my agreement doesn't matter. It's not my house."

Gu Junxing had already gone downstairs, ignoring their whispered conversation on the stairs.

"You could whisper in my dad's ear when you're in bed," Gu Zhijing said, dropping a bombshell.

"Haha, you're really overestimating me, young Gu. Your dad and I don't even share a pillow. How am I supposed to whisper to him, through the air?" Their separate sleeping arrangements weren't a secret; at least the household staff and Gu Zhijing knew about it. However, everyone acted as if it was perfectly normal. Nian Suian guessed that Gu Junxing must have spoken to them about it.

"Then sacrifice yourself for me. For the sake of our relationship, make a sacrifice." Gu Zhijing had long noticed that his father now listened to Nian Suian more than to his own son. But he wasn't jealous because without Nian Suian, his dad wouldn't listen to him at all.

"Why are you so set on having a gaming room? Didn't you play fine before? Don't you have a computer in your room?"

"Qi Anlu's dad is back home, so he can't play games anymore. I thought it would be perfect for everyone to come and play at my house!"

Qi Anlu's father, Qi Wenhan, was a university professor who had been abroad for a year on an academic visit and had recently returned. Gu Zhijing thought Qi Wenhan was much scarier than his own father. In the past, his friends were all afraid to play at the Qi Family home. Whenever they went, they were required to sit together and read books, not even allowed to use their phones. Gu Zhijing went once and was terrified.

"You're quite considerate. Have you thought about why your dad won't let you set up this gaming room?"

"He's worried I'll neglect my studies, that I'll play games all the time. But I promise, I'll only play on weekends. It can be locked up the rest of the time." Gu Zhijing raised three fingers, just short of swearing to the heavens.

This kid is really stupid, Nian Suian thought to herself, reminding him, "If you know why your dad won't agree, why are you making promises to me? What use is that?"

Gu Zhijing's eyes lit up instantly, and he rushed off to find his father, taking three steps at a time.

Nian Suian followed slowly behind. When she found the father and son, Gu Zhijing was on his knees, swearing that he would only play on Saturdays and Sundays, and that his father could lock the room on weekdays.

"Hey, if you're going to agree, just agree. If not, forget it. Why make the kid kneel? Are you some feudal landlord?" Nian Suian went to pull Gu Zhijing up.

Gu Junxing felt wronged too. He hadn't done anything to become a feudal landlord. He hadn't even looked down, how was he supposed to know this brat had knelt down?

"What kind of behavior is this! Stand up!"

"No, I won't stand up until you agree!" Gu Zhijing was in full drama mode now, almost ready to start banging his head on the ground. Nian Suian saw Gu Junxing's face turn dangerously dark and nudged Gu Zhijing's backside with her toe, signaling him to stop pushing it.

"I really suspect the hospital switched babies," Gu Junxing pinched the bridge of his nose.

"Don't even dream of such good fortune, Dad. Grandma said I looked exactly like you when you were little."

Nian Suian patted Gu Junxing's shoulder, "Try to look on the bright side. Your ancestors' graves need a break too, they can't keep sending up lucky smoke every time."

Based on Nian Suian's shallow understanding of tycoons, someone like Gu Zhijing was unlikely to become one. He seemed more suited to be the male lead's foil - the idle, pleasure-seeking rich kid A.

"No playing Monday to Friday."

"You agreed!" The previously dejected young Gu immediately jumped up, even rushing forward to give Gu Junxing a bear hug. "Thanks, Dad!"

After Gu Zhijing went upstairs, Nian Suian asked, puzzled, "If you were going to agree anyway, why not do it straightaway?"