Henry Brooks walked his aunt to the door, smiling as he said, “Auntie, you were here for less than two minutes before leaving. I haven’t even brushed my teeth yet. I was so groggy I didn’t even get a good look at your beautiful face.”

“Smooth talker.” Vivian Bennett smiled and tapped Henry Brooks, then added, “If it weren’t for both families’ elders wanting to protect you, I would have dragged you into the army long ago.”

“Heh…” Henry Brooks laughed, putting his arm around Vivian Bennett’s shoulder. “Auntie, I know you’re tough on the outside but soft on the inside. Actually, you’re the one who can’t bear to let me go the most. You know my situation now—Grandpa has completely cut me off. Altogether, I only have a little over ten yuan in my pocket, and that’s borrowed from a colleague. Auntie, you can’t just watch me go hungry, can you?”

Vivian Bennett was currently in another province. If she hadn’t suddenly rushed over, Henry Brooks really wouldn’t have thought of her. After all, Vivian Bennett was from his mother’s side, so Grandpa’s blockade didn’t affect her much.

“Go hungry? You’re exaggerating.” Vivian Bennett tapped Henry Brooks’s forehead with her finger. “You, don’t think I don’t know. It’s not just your grandpa—your maternal grandpa knows too. They’re both afraid you’ll ask people on this side for help, so both sides have issued a blockade. You’d better behave yourself.”

“Grandpa on Mom’s side knows too?” Henry Brooks was quite surprised. In his memory, his maternal grandpa never meddled in his affairs.

As they spoke, the two had already walked outside. There were two military vehicles parked outside. Next to the first one stood Vivian Bennett’s female secretary, and beside the second vehicle stood four men in plain clothes. But anyone could tell at a glance that they were professional soldiers.

“What did you think? This time, they’re really determined.”

Henry Brooks had also thought his aunt just happened to be passing by, but hearing this, he realized things weren’t so simple.

Henry Brooks looked at Vivian Bennett with a smile. “Auntie, you’re not really just passing by this time, are you?”

Vivian Bennett was also surprised, not expecting Henry Brooks to react so quickly. Although she hadn’t seen much of Henry Brooks in recent years, she knew all about his situation. Everyone had been busy these years, and with Henry Brooks going abroad, he’d gone a bit astray without anyone to keep him in check. Although going astray didn’t mean he wasn’t smart, as a second-generation rich kid, there were some things he’d never think of—especially reacting this quickly.

“You’ve gotten smarter.” Vivian Bennett looked at Henry Brooks with some approval and asked, “You really have no money left?”

Henry Brooks nodded. “Really no money left. I don’t even have enough to buy some supplements.”

What Henry Brooks meant was that he wanted to buy medicinal herbs and use a secret recipe to strengthen his body, but in Vivian Bennett’s ears, it sounded different.

Vivian Bennett was both concerned and worried. “You, stop taking all those weird medicines.”

“Heh…” Henry Brooks gave a helpless, bitter smile. His past reputation was just too bad, so he didn’t bother explaining further. Judging by Vivian Bennett’s expression, more explanation would be pointless.

“Don’t expect me to give you as much as your grandpa did. Besides, I earn a salary. Even though I’m in a company now and my annual salary is several hundred thousand, it’s still nothing like your Chen family.”

Henry Brooks shook his head. “I don’t need that much. Just a little over a million should be enough.”

“A little over a million… and that’s enough…” Vivian Bennett said angrily, “If you weren’t my own nephew, I’d have beaten you up by now. A million is more than most people make in a lifetime, and you make it sound as easy as a hundred yuan.”

Another misunderstanding. Some things are fine in themselves, but people have preconceived notions. With Henry Brooks’s past reputation, some things just sound wrong to others, just like what he said earlier. A sentence or two can’t clear it up; it’ll have to change gradually over time.

Henry Brooks made a surrender gesture. “Auntie, I really won’t misuse the money. With your intelligence, I couldn’t fool you anyway. Think about it—if I really wanted to mess around, a million isn’t even enough to buy a good car, let alone keep a celebrity or something. That kind of money isn’t nearly enough. I really have a use for it.”

“I don’t have a million, but I can give you a hundred thousand. Do you want it or not?”

“I do,” Henry Brooks replied without hesitation.

Vivian Bennett reached out, and her secretary had already handed over the checkbook, holding a document bag underneath to support it. Vivian Bennett wrote out a check directly.

Holding the check, Vivian Bennett looked at Henry Brooks. “I can give you this money—just treat it as pocket money. After all, I haven’t given you any money all these years, so it’s only normal to give you some pocket money. But there’s a condition. You have to agree, or I won’t give it to you.”

Henry Brooks thought, I knew there was a catch. Here it comes.

Henry Brooks spread his hands helplessly. “Auntie, go ahead. What’s the condition?”

“I have a good friend in Changhai. His daughter is twenty-two this year, doing a combined bachelor’s and master’s program at university, and will graduate with her master’s next year. I’ve already talked to him. Tomorrow, you’re going on a blind date.”

“A blind date…” Henry Brooks was completely speechless.

Chapter 9: Extreme Training Method

Vivian Bennett looked at Henry Brooks. Right now, Henry Brooks was at his most desperate, completely cut off financially. With his habit of spending, he definitely couldn’t stand having no money.

Introducing him to a girlfriend at a time like this would make him take it more seriously. Once the two of them got together and started a family, he’d settle down. That was Vivian Bennett’s idea, and also the reason she’d come this time.