Chi Han finally found the butler’s number in his cellphone. By the time he was picked up and brought home, it was already one in the morning.
From the original host’s memories, Chi Han learned that this small villa was usually occupied by only him and the butler. His parents had their own residences outside and only occasionally came back to eat. But even when they did, they remained as cold as strangers.
Although this seemed cruel to the original host, Chi Han was quite satisfied.
Because in the novel, those parents weren’t exactly upstanding individuals. It was better not to see them if possible.
After having a late-night snack, Chi Han took a bath. It had to be said that the bathtub with its built-in massage function was absolutely luxurious. Was this what it felt like to be wealthy?
He seemed to be starting to understand.
This pleasure continued until his, oh no, the original host’s phone rang.
Chi Han lay on the bed feeling a bit drowsy. He had been thinking about how to return but couldn’t find a clue, nearly putting himself to sleep.
He reluctantly raised his head and glanced at the phone; it was a video call.
The name on the note was Yaoning-ge.
Chi Han remembered that this person was the dandy who always followed Fang Jingluo.
Why was he calling himself so late at night?
And it was a video call.
Chi Han initially didn’t want to answer. But on the other side, it was as if he had cast a spell. One call after another, dispersing Chi Han’s drowsiness.
Chi Han answered the phone with a cold expression: ‘Hello?’
As soon as the call was answered, a big face appeared on the other end. Chi Han held the phone further away in disgust.
Jiang Yaoning supported Fang Jingluo with one hand and holding a phone with the other. He had also had a bit too much to drink. His hand holding the phone was unsteady.
“Is this Chi Han? You see, Jingluo had too much to drink tonight and insisted on finding Xu Ting. I’ll give him the phone in a moment. Just act as you usually do and make him go home and sleep like a good boy, okay?” Jiang Yaoning saw the person on the screen and started speaking in a continuous stream, without even asking for Chi Han’s opinion. “Are you ready? I’m giving him the phone now!”
Chi Han: “…”
It seems like people who look for friends in the trash can only find friends in the next trash can.
After a while of activity on the phone, the face on the screen changed to a blurry-eyed Fang Jingluo, clearly intoxicated.
His sharp eyes, tainted by alcohol, had a hint of red at the corners. His originally domineering gaze now had a touch of vulnerability, making him appear particularly dull and helpless.
Jiang Yaoning, with a thick tongue, said, “Jingluo, take a look at who this is. Weren’t you looking for Xu Ting all the time? I called him for you!”
Suddenly, there was a glint in Fang Jingluo’s eyes as he moved closer, trying to see the person on the screen more clearly. He reached out and, with hope in his voice, asked, “Ah Ting?”
Chi Han: “…”
Blind your dog eyes!
He was already so shocked by the antics of these two that he felt like vomiting. What kind of scumbag was this?!
Without receiving a response, Fang Jingluo focused and carefully examined the person on the screen. The other person seemed to have just taken a shower; their slightly damp hair was swept back, revealing a smooth forehead. Despite Fang Jingluo being quite intoxicated and the room spinning, he was certain that the person speaking to him right now was undoubtedly Xu Ting!
He greedily stared at that person. Yes, Xu Ting was always reserved, with a slight smile on his lips when he looked at him. That was the expression he loved the most.
Love to the extent that he would give up his life for Xu Ting.
“Fang Jingluo.”
Finally, the person on the screen spoke. The voice, distorted through electronic processing, still made Fang Jingluo’s heart tremble the moment he heard it.
He leaned in earnestly, his gaze tender and affectionate.
“…Go to hell, you scumbag!”
Chi Han ended the call in a cheerful mood, blocked and deleted Jiang Yaoning and Fang Jingluo within five seconds, even considering listening to a lucky song.
The only regret was that he didn’t capture Fang Jingluo’s expression. But he thought it was better. There was no need to leave such a thing in the phone; it was too inauspicious.
After venting his frustration, Chi Han felt refreshed and cozy in his blanket and fell asleep not long after.
Jiang Yaoning was shocked by the words “Go to hell,” and Fang Jingluo looked at the hang-up interface with disbelief. The contact list on the screen shattered his beautiful dreams, and the two words “Chi Han” felt like a massive mockery, hitting Fang Jingluo hard.
It hurt to the core.
“Chi.Han!”
Fang Jingluo pronounced those two words with such force as if he wanted to chew them up. His voice was filled with anger after being deceived. He gripped the phone tightly, his head pounding.
The looks Xu Ting and Chi Han had given him when they parted kept alternating in his mind until they merged into one.
Cold, disdainful.
Under this gaze, Fang Jingluo felt like he was being pricked with needles, shivering all over.
Chi Han…
Fang Jingluo dropped the phone, and now there were several fine cracks on the screen.
He stared at his fingers with a somewhat dim look, a cut on one of them, with small drops of blood oozing out.
Waving away the tissue that Jiang Yaoning offered, Fang Jingluo casually wiped away the blood droplets. After a while, he chuckled lightly, his eyes shrouded in mist.
“If you’re so eager to become him, then I’ll grant your wish.”
Listening to this chilling whisper, Jiang Yaoning couldn’t help but shiver.
He felt that ever since Fang Jingluo and Xu Ting broke up, Fang Jingluo’s temper had become increasingly enigmatic.
—
After a night’s rest.
Chi Han looked around the unfamiliar room, lost in thought for five minutes before remembering that he had transmigrated into a book. He rubbed his messy hair and got out of bed to freshen up.
He spat out the toothpaste foam with a look of disdain at himself in the mirror.
The original host’s body was only seventeen years old at the moment, with a rather handsome appearance, but a weak physique. He was as thin as a rail with no muscle mass, and he was shorter than his original height. He was at most 1.7 meters tall, which made him look unenergetic.
But what he found most intolerable was the half-dyed red hair. It was simply too tacky.
He couldn’t tell if the original host was going through a teenage rebellion or genuinely thought the color looked good, but Chi Han’s eyes were practically seared1burned, or scorched by just one glance.
So he decided that today he would go out, dye his hair back to black, and get it cut shorter.
After having breakfast, Chi Han took a taxi to a high-end club in the city center. After all, the original host had a membership card there, and he might as well use it.
As soon as he entered the club, someone warmly welcomed him. The person who would be dyeing Chi Han’s hair was the same stylist who had previously done the red highlights. He had dyed Chi Han’s hair various colors but never black.
So when Chi Han mentioned dyeing it black today, even the stylist was briefly taken aback.
He remembered the young master had refused to dye it back when his mother brought him here and pinned him down. So why was he requesting black now? Did the sun rise in the west today?
Chi Han lifted his chin slightly to make it easier for the stylist to secure the cape around his neck and said, “By the way, cut my hair shorter; it’s too long.”
The stylist’s expression was complex as he replied, “Alright.”
Could it be that this young master is going through a breakup?
When Chi Han stood up from the chair again, his hair had turned black, soft and framing his ears. The excess length had been trimmed away, revealing a clean and fair neck. There was a small mole near the back of his ear.
The stylist nodded with satisfaction, “Young Master Chi, black really suits you!”
Chi Han touched his neck. The person in the mirror was like a completely different person from earlier, exuding a clean and youthful aura.
He smiled, removed the cape, and prepared to find a place to eat. Dyeing hair did take quite some time, and it was already past noon. Fortunately, this club was quite spacious, with several floors, and the top floor was where you could dine.
With his VIP card in hand, Chi Han looked confident and self-assured.
Although he hadn’t yet found where the direct elevator was.
—
At the ground floor elevator area, a group of young men and women were chatting and laughing, paired up in twos and threes, except for one person who was alone.
“I had this outfit custom-made at the Blue Wind House. It just got delivered yesterday.”
“Oh, it looks fantastic! The Blue Wind House’s tailoring is top-notch. I should order a set too!”
“Oh, you’re a bit late; I got the last set. The deposit alone was 500,000. Next time, I’ll recommend some of their other outfits to you!”
“…”
“My grandfather’s 70th birthday banquet tonight has invited many prominent figures in S City. I heard that the Young Master of the Fang family, Fang Jingluo, will be there. How about we go meet him together?”
“Fang Jingluo? The one whose family sells jade?”
“What do you mean ‘sells jade’? Their family is a leading enterprise, okay?”
“Alright, but… how did Rong Xu, that cripple, end up here? Did his grandfather allow it?”
“Who knows? He must have tagged along on his own, even with his useless legs. He’s so persistent; it’s like throwing money away. Just like his dad, it’s embarrassing!”
“His dad… Hahaha. He’s just a son-in-law, and he has the nerve to call himself part of the Rong family.”
“…”
The young man sitting in the wheelchair kept his head slightly lowered as if he couldn’t feel the mocking gazes directed at him. His hands were resting on his knees. The blanket that had been draped over his legs had long fallen to the floor.
While the air conditioning in the club was a relief from the heat for others, for him, it felt like a double-edged sword.
Rong Xu reached out to grasp his left leg. His calf had already begun to spasm, and waves of sharp pain caused his lips to turn pale.
“The elevator’s here; let’s get on quickly!”
With a “ding,” the elevator doors slowly opened. People crowded in, laughing and joking. It’s unclear who pushed the wheelchair, but Rong Xu instantly slid out and collided with the wall. He tumbled to the ground, and a bloody patch appeared on the back of his hand.
Seeing Rong Xu in such a pitiful state, the people on the elevator, which had not yet closed, erupted into laughter, with a sinister undertone hidden in the laughter that sent shivers down one’s spine.
Rong Xu slightly raised his head. In the depths of his ink-black eyes, a chilling hostility surged, spreading slowly like darkness in hell.
Just as he was using his injured hand to try to push himself up, someone suddenly lifted the wheelchair beside him and extended a hand towards him.
“Let me help you up.”
Rong Xu’s eyes were filled with venomous hatred, like a poisonous snake. They landed straight on that pair of clean and warm palms.
