Chapter 44

Translator: Abo Dammen

Hearing Chen Lu’s words, Fang Qizhi found himself feeling utterly unperturbed inside. He had known all along that just one file wouldn’t be enough to convince Chen Lu. 

The investigators Fang Qizhi hired definitely couldn’t reach into the Qin residence. They had no understanding of the situation between Zhu Yi, Chen Lu, and Qin Guchuan. In Fang Qizhi’s perception, Chen Lu might not even know Zhu Yi, so naturally, he couldn’t feel sympathy for Zhu Yi’s plight.

Lovestruck fools always think they are the exception in someone else’s life.

Some people pursue the sense of achievement from making a playboy reform for them, or having a scumbag’s deep affection reserved solely for them. The more of a playboy the other person is, the more they love them; the more slag, the more fascinated they become.

Fang Qizhi had seen plenty of such people before. 

But it’s completely different when the person being hurt is someone close to you.

Fang Qizhi took out the second file and placed it in front of Chen Lu. “You think Zhu Yi-ge’s expulsion doesn’t matter? What if Qin Guchuan targets your family?

“If he truly had feelings for you, how could he bear to treat your mother like this?” Fang Qizhi’s words were sharp, not giving Chen Lu any chance to avoid the issue by beating around the bush. Being subtle or considerate is useless with lovestruck fools.

Chen Lu didn’t make a sound and silently opened the file. 

It was again a combination of photos and investigative material. The photos showed ‘Chen Lu’s’ mother barbecuing in a scenic, picturesque environment, calling other patients to eat together. There were also other scenes of playing cards, and even learning vocal music.

The information indicated that after Zhu Yi left, Qin Guchuan had transferred ‘Chen Lu’s’ mother out of the hospital and placed her in a recreational convalescent facility.

After all, the plot points related to Dr. Zhu Yi were finished. According to Qin Guchuan, there were no more plot points involving ‘Chen Lu’s’ mother in the hospital later on. And that so-called Clement and Gerald Syndrome, which caused coma whenever a doctor was present, didn’t seem good for the body. A hospital wasn’t actually suitable for ‘Chen Lu’s’ mother’s condition.

So the two had discussed it and chosen to transfer her to a convalescent home near the hospital. Recreation and entertainment were surely more comfortable than staying in a hospital room. 

As for the possibility of needing a hospital plot later, they just needed to tell ‘Chen Lu’s’ mother she had to go for a check-up, and they could be admitted and start the plot within ten minutes. It had no impact at all.

“Do you know why Zhu Yi-ge was expelled? It was because he upheld a doctor’s basic integrity, insisting on curing your mother’s illness, but Qin Guchuan wouldn’t allow it,” Fang Qizhi said gravely. “After driving Zhu Yi-ge away, he sent your mother to this convalescent home.

“This convalescent home has virtually no medical capability. It just has a high standard of care suitable for elderly recreation. The entire place only has one resident doctor; usually, any minor ailments rely on the neighboring hospital.

“Did you know! Since transferring to this convalescent home, your mother hasn’t received any treatment! 

“Qin Guchuan just wants to use your mother’s condition to control you! He has no intention of curing her illness at all!”

Chen Lu had considered that Fang Qizhi might bring up Zhu Yi, but he hadn’t expected that transferring ‘Chen Lu’s’ mother to the convalescent home could also become a point for Fang Qizhi to attack Qin Guchuan.

He hadn’t prepared a response for this specific line beforehand, but thinking from a lovestruck fool’s perspective, it wasn’t too hard to come up with one.

Chen Lu’s hand gripped the file tightly, as if his heart was moved by Fang Qizhi’s words. But after a moment, he calmed down again, lowered his head, and spoke softly, as if persuading himself, “Mr. Qin wants to control me, to stop me from leaving. This shows he has me in his heart, he cares about me. 

“I’ll talk to him about mother’s matter. I’ll talk to him properly, make him believe I won’t leave him.

“He just lacks a sense of security.” Chen Lu’s eyes showed a heartache, as if seeing ice cream dropped on the ground, and he slightly raised his head to let Fang Qizhi see this heartache clearly. “As long as he has me in his heart, these are not problems.”

The classic line of the lovestruck fool, as if mere patricide is no big deal.

Fang Qizhi felt choked by Chen Lu’s naivety. 

Is this something a normal person could say?

This response was so outrageous that Fang Qizhi’s gaze towards Chen Lu began to hold a trace of suspicion.

Now that he thought about it, when ‘Just Passing Green Tea’ acted and served ‘tea’ to people during his livestreams, he often had this kind of speech that choked people to death without compensation, poisoning them relentlessly.

It was just that Chen Lu’s acting skills in the livestream weren’t great, he often couldn’t hold it in halfway through and would be the first to burst out laughing uncontrollably. 

Fang Qizhi scrutinized Chen Lu like this for several seconds. Chen Lu held on with the acting skills of his life, even giving Fang Qizhi a puzzled look as if he didn’t understand what Fang Qizhi was looking at. Then his gaze fell on the final file folder beside Fang Qizhi.

Although he faintly felt something was amiss, Fang Qizhi, having seen no clear problem, followed Chen Lu’s gaze and handed him the final file.

“You think Qin Guchuan truly loves you? If he really liked you, why would you have to put on this kind of act in front of him?

“You’re just a temporary substitute until Weiyu-jie returns.” 

Chen Lu’s eyes flickered slightly at Fang Qizhi’s words. There seemed to be a lot of information packed in that sentence.

He actually didn’t know about any recent involvement between Qin Guchuan and Ling Weiyu.

Chen Lu opened this last file folder.

This one was different from the previous ones. There were no photos, just thick stacks of investigative material. 

Unlike the previous two matters he was already fully aware of, Chen Lu read this material carefully. Seeing Chen Lu drop the pitiful act and look at the documents with a calm, focused expression, identical to his look when seriously gaming during livestreams, Fang Qizhi immediately found Chen Lu much more pleasing to the eye.

Focusing on your career is so much better!

It’s just…

Why did Chen Lu only glance briefly at the first two files before skipping them, but the moment it’s about Qin Guchuan and Ling Weiyu, he reads with such concentration!!! 

Thinking of this, Fang Qizhi immediately felt depressed again.

Just moments ago, he had suspected Chen Lu might be acting the lovestruck fool. Now, this obvious difference in attitude instantly shattered Fang Qizhi’s delusion.

Without knowing the contents of the three files in advance, such subtle reactions from Chen Lu simply couldn’t be faked!

Why did the world have to have creatures like lovestruck fools!!! 

Chen Lu didn’t notice Fang Qizhi’s emotional changes. He read carefully for a good while before finishing the last investigative file.

Actually, Ling Weiyu’s situation was quite simple to explain.

In the plot setting, Ling Weiyu and Qin Guchuan also grew up together, but it wasn’t like Zhu Yi, who played together since childhood. It was just that their families had intentions of an arranged marriage, so the parents would occasionally bring the children to visit each other.

Ling Weiyu received private tutoring. The Ling family was single-mindedly dedicated to cultivating a true noble lady. So, in Qin Guchuan’s eyes, Ling Weiyu always had that melancholic, fragile appearance, similar to ‘Chen Lu’. 

Naturally, this kind of life wasn’t what Ling Weiyu wanted. So, after her 18th birthday coming-of-age ceremony, Ling Weiyu resolutely boarded a plane and fled abroad. Relying on the artistic training she received from her family’s cultivation of a noble lady, she used the limited assets she took from her family to gradually start her own personal art studio, eventually becoming a somewhat famous artist with her own luxury brand.

Having achieved success and fame, Ling Weiyu naturally had no plans to return to the country. Any normal person who knew about that family would spit in disgust. But Qin Guchuan needed her to have plans to return.

According to the investigation materials, for the past three months, Qin Guchuan had been using his power, on one hand using the Qin Corporation’s influence to open up the domestic market for Ling Weiyu, and on the other hand, fiercely squeezing Ling Weiyu’s foundation abroad.

Simply put, he was forcing Ling Weiyu to return to the country, to return to his side. 

Chen Lu carefully looked at the various tactics the Qin Corporation used to set traps for Ling Weiyu’s studio in the materials. How to put it… the Qin Corporation truly lived up to being a world-class international company in the book, having such significant influence even abroad.

But if he really loved her that much, and the Qin Corporation was an international-level group, why not just directly chase after her abroad? Move the Qin Corporation headquarters to Ling Weiyu’s city, and there would be no troubles at all! How could a simple matter of going abroad be made to seem like a life-and-death separation?

Chen Lu remembered that during these three months since the plot started, Qin Guchuan had often flown abroad during his free time, as casually as taking a taxi. How was it possible that they hadn’t met even once since they parted ways at eighteen?

Chen Lu once again tried hard not to delve into the rationality of this world’s plot. 

Kicking his restarting normal brain away, Chen Lu reinstalled his lovestruck fool brain.

“This doesn’t prove anything,” Chen Lu’s voice trembled slightly. He had already figured out how to guide Fang Qizhi back onto the original plot. “Unless Mr. Qin personally says that Ling Weiyu is more important than me, I won’t believe it.

“My heart tells me Mr. Qin loves me.”

Watching Chen Lu, who clearly already believed but still stubbornly refused to see reason, determined to not turn back until he hit the south wall, Fang Qizhi’s originally rather irritable villainous persona finally flared up again, “Can’t you wake up! Qin Guchuan has been playing you from the very beginning! A man who would make you a substitute, what true feelings could he possibly have for you!!! 

“Aunt Feng humiliated you with five million, and he didn’t even react. Do you think he didn’t know? Do you dare to ask him about it!”

Chen Lu pursed his lips, tears welling in his eyes. He finally seemed to have his inner facade pierced by Fang Qizhi’s words. He looked at Fang Qizhi with anger burning in his eyes. “Why are you so determined to make me leave Mr. Qin?

“Madame Feng wants her niece to become Mr. Qin’s fiancée. What about you? Mr. Fang, could it be… that you also like Mr. Qin?” Chen Lu threw an equally sharp question back at Fang Qizhi.

Faced with such a question, Fang Qizhi immediately showed an expression of being insulted and loudly said to Chen Lu, “So what if I am!!” 

Hearing this tone, Chen Lu instinctively made a regretful expression, as if that question had just been a momentary slip of the tongue. It took a few seconds for his brain to process what Fang Qizhi had actually answered.

Chen Lu: “?”

Fang Qizhi, who had also processed it: “???”

“You… like Mr. Qin?” Chen Lu asked cautiously. 

Fang Qizhi’s expression twisted as he held on for a few seconds before finally answering, “Yes.”

Accompanying this ‘yes’ was Fang Qizhi’s expression of someone questioning their entire life.

Looking at Fang Qizhi’s expression, so shocked it seemed his whole worldview was shattering, his face clearly etched with the transition from ‘Stop being such a lovestruck fool, dammit!’ to ‘So the real lovestruck fool was me all along?’, Chen Lu almost failed to hold back his laughter.

He actually had a rough idea of the reason. 

This world had probably engraved the setting ‘Fang Qizhi likes Qin Guchuan’ onto his lungs. Although this setting’s program hadn’t been running correctly, the setting itself still existed.

In short, if asked, the answer was ‘like’.

The final act of stubbornness from this world towards Fang Qizhi, its villainous male supporting character.

“You want me to leave Mr. Qin… is it because you like Mr. Qin?” Chen Lu strained to keep his expression steady as he asked Fang Qizhi with difficulty. 

“…Yes,” Fang Qizhi replied with equal difficulty.

Chen Lu stood up angrily and, before he could burst out laughing, turned and stormed off, loudly declaring, “Fang Qizhi! I won’t let you succeed!!”

He left behind a mentally collapsing Fang Qizhi, staring blankly at Chen Lu’s retreating figure with a completely stupefied expression.