VGAB Chapter 34

On the third day after returning to the Qi mansion, it was the death anniversary of Qi Rui’s father, Qi Hong.

Qi Heng instructed the steward, Sun Yi, to handle it as they did in previous years. The original owner of the body had a strained relationship with this younger brother, so they only made superficial efforts each year.

“Family Head, what about Master over there? Are you going this year?”

Qi Hong had passed away on the same day as his father, who was the previous family head.

“Ask Qi Han if he wants to go,” Qi Heng’s voice was cold. “After all, he’s been good to Qi Han. Since he’s back, I think he’d be willing to go and offer incense.”

“Understood.”

In this generation of the Qi family, the four brothers were all half-siblings due to their different mothers, owing to their father’s relationships.

As the least favored eldest son by the late Mr. Qi, the original owner had a difficult time in the Qi family before reaching adulthood.

The original owner was born to Mr. Qi’s first wife, as Mr. Qi had married three wives during his youth.

The mother of the original owner came from a prominent family, which was considered a significant social climb considering the Qi family’s background at that time. However, she had fragile health and suffered from depression. Less than two months after giving birth to the original owner, she passed away.

Within two months of the mother’s passing, Mr. Qi married his second wife, a childhood friend of his.

A year after their marriage, this childhood friend gave birth to a son, who was Qi Rui’s father, Qi Hong.

In contrast to the first wife’s son, who adhered strictly to the rules and had a frail and uninteresting nature, Mr. Qi naturally favored the child of the gentle and accommodating second wife.

However, their happiness didn’t last long as the second wife also passed away due to illness.

Mr. Qi mourned for a year but, during a visit to her grave, he coincidentally met the woman who became his third wife, as she was also there to pay respects.

The third wife was a friend of the second wife from their school days. She came from a family with a long tradition of teaching and education.

Her scholarly and gentle demeanor quickly won over Mr. Qi. Within less than six months of their acquaintance, she became pregnant. Mr. Qi hastily brought her into his home.

Their honeymoon period was short-lived, as the third wife was already well into her pregnancy. Mr. Qi, who favored slender and tall beautiful women, had an affair with someone else.

Mr. Qi kept his lover outside, thinking of it as a casual fling, but the lover, who had originally entered the relationship seeking wealth and power within the Qi family, was not content with being just a mistress.

Coincidentally, the lover discovered she was pregnant. Taking advantage of Mr. Qi’s busy schedule at the company, she brought the medical report and confronted the third wife, who was living in the old Qi family mansion while carrying her pregnancy.

In the midst of this confrontation, the third wife suffered an accident, giving birth to Qi Han prematurely. Her own health was also severely affected.

The lover accepted money from Mr. Qi and left, but the turmoil at home had him extremely troubled. He settled down after that for over a decade.

However, no one knew that the lover who took the money had never actually terminated the pregnancy.

Later on, Mr. Qi and Qi Hong encountered a plane crash when returning from a subsidiary company.

When the lover saw the news, she felt the opportunity had come. She took her child and brought the secret paternity test they had done years ago to the Qi family, demanding a share of the inheritance.

That was when everyone learned that Mr. Qi had another child outside.

However, at that time, the original owner had been in the company for a long time, holding significant power. After Mr. Qi’s passing, he smoothly took over everything in the Qi family, becoming the new family head.

The original owner had always resented Mr. Qi’s infidelity and callousness. There was no way he would agree to acknowledge this illegitimate child as part of the Qi family. He had already shown considerable restraint by not taking more drastic actions.

…

In the afternoon, Qi Rui and Qi Han, along with offerings, took a car to the cemetery.

“Third Uncle,” Qi Rui placed the offerings in their respective positions, “why does Uncle Qi Heng never come to visit Grandfather?”

Every time it was either him and the steward or him and Third Uncle who came.

“He won’t come,” Qi Han’s voice was extremely faint. His gaze rested quietly on the photograph attached to the tombstone, showing Mr. Qi’s youthful appearance.

“Speaking of which, you and Grandfather when he was young look so similar,” Qi Rui also noticed this. “Especially the lips and the eyes, they’re almost identical.”

‘But Uncle Qi Heng didn’t resemble him.’

Qi Rui sneakily looked at the tombstone next to Mr. Qi, which was said to be the burial place of the First Lady. He had seen the picture on it, depicting a woman who remained incredibly beautiful and graceful, even when she appeared aloof.

Perhaps Uncle Qi Heng resembled his biological mother more?

Qi Rui was lost in thought. For some reason, he recalled the scene when Uncle Qi Heng had said he wasn’t at fault.

Uncle Qi Heng believed in him and even stood up for him. Perhaps he wouldn’t have to vent his frustrations about others so excessively in the future?

However, when Qi Rui returned to the old mansion and opened his computer to play games, Steward Sun Yi found him.

“Young Master, the Family Head asked me to inform you of two messages.” The butler showed a respectful attitude and smiled.

“What did Uncle say?” Qi Rui put down his mouse.

“One good, one bad.”

“Then I’ll hear the good one first,” Qi Rui raised an eyebrow. “Let me guess, is it because of that incident that I don’t have to go to school anymore?”

“Young Master is clever,” Steward Sun Yi said, beaming.

“Really?” Qi Rui was momentarily stunned, then burst out in an excited exclamation, leaping from his chair and running over to Steward Sun Yi.

“Uncle Qi Heng really won’t force me to go to school?”

“That’s right,” Steward Sun Yi’s smile remained. “Young Master heard correctly.”

“Wow!” Qi Rui was excited for a while and then leaned in closer to the butler. “What’s the bad news, though?”

“The Family Head has hired a few private tutors for you,” Steward Sun Yi said with a smiling expression. “Young Master can now enjoy one-on-one tutoring at home.”

“By the way, the Family Head has also added a basic martial arts course for Young Master because he was very displeased about the incident where you got injured.”

Qi Rui was shocked. He pointed to his own nose. “But I was the one who got hurt! I didn’t mind, so why is he so unhappy that he has to enroll me in a basic martial arts class?”

“No, it’s not enrolling in a class,” Steward Sun Yi corrected him. “The Family Head will personally teach you in his free time.”

Qi Rui stared wide-eyed and then mechanically turned his head to look out of the window. “I must be dreaming, right?”

His Uncle Qi Heng actually said he would personally teach him.

And it’s about some basic martial arts; he had never seen his uncle get into a fight.

This dream was just too absurd.

“Tomorrow, the private tutors will come,” Steward Sun Yi handed him a class schedule. “This is the curriculum the Family Head arranged for you, from Monday to Sunday. As for the textbooks and study materials, they have already been acquired.”

Qi Rui took it, looking at the densely packed schedule from Monday to Sunday. He noticed there were even two sessions of Go lessons.

Is there something wrong with this? He doesn’t even know how to play Go.

“The Family Head’s instructions have been delivered, please rest well, Young Master,” Steward Sun Yi bent slightly and then stepped out, gently closing the door behind him.

“No, I won’t accept it!” Qi Rui, clutching the class schedule, angrily ran to the study and lightly knocked on the door.

“Come in.”

The cold and stern voice felt like a bucket of cold water that instantly extinguished Qi Rui’s raging anger. He had no choice but to open the door gently.

“It’s me, Uncle.”

Qi Heng closed the “Fundamentals of Business” book in his hand, placed it on the nearby bookshelf, and looked up at the entrance. There was a hint of annoyance on his face as if he had been interrupted. “What brings you here?”

“Steward Sun said you’ve hired private tutors for me,” Qi Rui swallowed hard. He hadn’t even spoken yet, so why was Uncle getting angry again?

Did he have a face that made people angry just by looking at it?

“What’s the problem?” Qi Heng looked at him.

Qi Rui felt that this one look was filled with a veiled threat as if it dared him to resist, he would dare to suppress him.

The protest was on the tip of his tongue, but Qi Rui felt intimidated. He said in a subdued voice, “You never asked for my opinion.”

“I’m giving you a chance not to go to school,” Qi Heng’s voice carried a plain threat. “You better stay obedient at home and focus on your studies. If I find out you’ve sneaked out—”

Qi Heng’s gaze landed on Qi Rui’s legs. “Then I’ll break your legs.”

Qi Heng had previously transferred Qi Rui to Jialin High School in order to prevent an incident in the original plot because, at that previous school, Qi Rui would have knocked up a girl from the same school in her junior year.

The girl’s parents caused a commotion at the school, and later, the Qi family intervened. However, Qi Rui has taken the wrong path since then.

But he hadn’t expected such an incident to occur shortly after Qi Rui transferred to Jialin High School. Nevertheless, Qi Rui’s behavior had surprised him.

It turned out that before the dirty deeds in the original plot, Qi Rui had also been a child who genuinely helped others.

Qi Heng became increasingly convinced that there was still a chance to correct Qi Rui’s character. Just when he was considering finding a strict school for Qi Rui, under the guidance of Steward Sun Yi, Qi Heng learned about the option of private tutoring.

Qi Heng changed his mind.

He thought it was better for Qi Rui to be under his own supervision rather than someone else’s.

Qi Rui was startled, and he started regretting his decision to avoid going to school.

Qi Rui had no choice but to console himself, thinking that perhaps one-on-one tutoring might not be that tiring.

However, after a month of continuous tutoring following the curriculum, Qi Rui was filled with regret.

He wanted to go to school.

The school was like heaven.

Another failed attempt to escape and a disheartened Qi Rui was thrown to the ground by his own uncle.

“Get up.”

“I won’t, I’m in pain.” Qi Rui rolled on the ground in distress and complained, “Uncle, I’m your own nephew.”

Qi Heng frowned. He had already been lenient, but he hadn’t expected Qi Rui to be more delicate than Qi Shao, fearing fatigue, pain, heat, and sweating.

“I’ll count to three.”

“I don’t want to practice anymore.” Qi Rui gathered his courage and spoke again. “If you’re afraid I’ll get hurt, you can just send seventeen or eighteen bodyguards to protect me.”

Qi Heng estimated the situation. Qi Rui’s martial arts skills were likely sufficient to handle a few regular adults now, and this world didn’t seem as fraught with danger as the previous one.

Qi Rui was clearly unwilling to study at the moment. If they pushed too hard, it might make him develop an aversion to all the subjects. Sometimes, with stubborn children, it was necessary to give a little to get a little.

Qi Heng lowered his gaze to observe Qi Rui, who was surreptitiously examining him out of the corner of his eye.

“It’s fine.”

“What?” Qi Rui almost suspected he was hearing things.

“We can cancel the martial arts class if you want, but…”

Qi Rui quickly rolled over and got up, eagerly leaning in beside Qi Heng. “But what?”

Qi Heng reached out and patted Qi Rui’s head. In the past month, Qi Rui’s hair had grown about an inch, and the new hair was shiny and black.

It was a bit prickly.

Qi Heng withdrew his hand with a hint of distaste. The feel of Qi Rui’s hair was even worse than the wig he used to wear.

“But you must ensure you pass the rest of your subjects. When it’s time for exams, you have to achieve a passing grade.”

“Okay.” Just passing was enough for Qi Rui. He was confident in his ability to choose learning over getting punished.

He loved studying; at least, studying was just a headache. But the martial arts class was like a headache on steroids, where he was nothing more than a punching bag under his uncle’s command.

However, people are never satisfied, and Qi Rui realized that his uncle seemed surprisingly agreeable today, and his mischievous nature started to resurface.

“Uncle, when can I go back to school for my studies?”

As soon as he finished speaking, Qi Rui felt the temperature drop around him, and a sense of unease gripped his heart.

He had let his guard down.

Qi Rui didn’t dare to lift his head and look at his uncle’s angry expression. Over the past month, he had noticed that his uncle was becoming more rigid and autocratic, and his style of doing things had become even more unwavering. This time, not even his Third Uncle had managed to escape.

The most crucial point was that he and his Third Uncle couldn’t resist the eldest uncle.

What if his uncle felt that he had been too presumptuous with his previous question and changed his mind?

If he was forced to continue being a punching bag, it would be better to just let him die.

Thinking of this, Qi Rui quickly spoke, “I was just asking casually, Uncle, please don’t be angry… I’ll go back to do my homework now.”

“Elder Brother.”

A knock on the door sounded, and Qi Han’s arrival rescued Qi Rui from the freezing cold.

Qi Heng instantly toned down his aura, turning to face Qi Han directly. “What’s the matter?”

“The branch in B City has run into some issues, and I may need to go there. Meanwhile, the headquarters has a major contract that might require your attention…”

Qi Han felt a bit embarrassed. His older brother had finally recognized his capabilities and entrusted him with management, but now, the company under his control was causing problems.

“I understand. I’ll go to the company tomorrow,” Qi Heng replied calmly. “Handle the branch as you see fit.”

Qi Rui, who had not left yet, perked up at his words. His Uncle Qi Heng would be at the company tomorrow, which meant there would be no one to supervise him during the day.

With this opportunity, Qi Rui quickly returned to his room. He opened the gaming group chat, and as expected, everyone was discussing the offline meetup organized by the official game company scheduled for tomorrow at 10 AM. The event was taking place in his city.

[You’re the Dream of 30 Million Girls, Rui-ge: Where exactly is the location?]

[Egg Fried Rice: At the Starlight Hotel in S City, are you going, Mr. Moneybags?]

Ever since Qi Rui sent some big red envelopes in the group chat last time, many people jokingly started calling him Mr. Moneybags.

[Amidst the Sea of Flowers: Rui-ge, can you make it this time? Didn’t you say your Uncle had you locked up at home for studying?]

The Starlight Hotel?

Qi Rui blinked. He vaguely remembered that the Starlight Hotel was also one of his family’s properties. Could it be fate pushing him to attend this meetup?

[You’re the Dream of 30 Million Girls, Rui-ge: I can go. My Uncle won’t be home tomorrow.]

[Surplus Year After Year: If Rui-ge is going, count me in.]

[Braised Pork Rice: In that case, most of our gang is going. Tomorrow’s meetup is going to be quite massive.]

The next morning, after his usual lessons, Qi Rui sneaked into the vicinity of the study, and as expected, he didn’t see his Uncle inside.

“Young Master.”

The sudden voice startled Qi Rui.

“How come you can walk so quietly, Steward Sun?” Qi Rui asked, trying to take the initiative.

“I noticed that Young Master has been wandering around here for quite a while, so I came to inform you that the Family Head has gone to the company today,” Steward Sun Yi explained.

He continued after a moment’s thought.

“Is there something troubling Young Master?” Steward Sun Yi inquired.

“No,” Qi Rui shook his head nervously and added, “It’s just that it’s my friend’s birthday, and I want to go out and buy him a gift.”

Steward Sun Yi seemed to understand, “In that case, should I arrange it for you?”

“No way!” Qi Rui exclaimed and then realized he had reacted too strongly. He quickly explained in a more composed manner, “He’s like a brother to me, so the gift has to be something I personally choose to show my sincerity.”

“Very well, I’ll inform the Family Head,” Steward Sun Yi said.

Qi Rui’s eyes darted nervously. “I’ll just call my uncle myself. After all, I have my uncle’s bodyguards with me. You can arrange for a driver to take me there later; it’ll just be for a short while, nothing will go wrong.”

“Very well,” Steward Sun Yi replied with a perfect smile. Qi Rui thought he had convinced him and hurried back to his room to change and prepare to go out.

Qi Heng received a call from the steward.

“He wants to go out to buy a gift for his close friend?”

“Yes, should we allow Young Master to go, Patriarch?”

Qi Heng had no particular objections to this matter and said, “Let the driver take him.”

The steward, Sun Yi, quickly arranged for a driver for Qi Rui. However, as they had just left the Qi family’s old mansion, Qi Rui immediately asked the driver to turn around.

“Go to the Starlight Hotel.”

“Young Master, Mr. Sun said—”

“I told you to go.” Qi Rui glared at him with annoyance, taking out his phone to check. There were already several messages in the group asking if he had arrived.

“Hurry up, we’re going to be late.”

The driver resigned, turned the car around, and headed to the Starlight Hotel.

Qi Rui quickly typed a reply in the group chat – “I’m on my way,” and then put his phone back in his pocket.

He didn’t know why, but he had a strong feeling that his eyelids were twitching. Could it be because he had stayed up too late last night and didn’t get enough sleep?

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