Chapter 4

Translator: Abo Dammen

Staring at the closed elevator doors, Chen Lu still hadn’t fully processed what had just happened. Why did Qin Guchuan’s final words… sound like he was laughing? 

Weird…

Chen Lu was a little confused, but he didn’t dwell on it too much. After all, he was certain that Qin Guchuan wasn’t like him. There was no way that guy had transmigrated too. Qin Guchuan blended into this world far too naturally. If he really had transmigrated, there was no way he’d be able to walk so calmly through a phalanx of bodyguards like it was no big deal.

Chen Lu knew for a fact that if it were him, he’d absolutely break character on the spot. Especially since this was someone who clearly had no acting skills. He had just waved and said “goodnight,” and that alone had made Qin Guchuan laugh. So clearly, the guy wasn’t exactly an Oscar contender.

So most likely, the aloof overbearing CEO wasn’t really that cold by nature. He was just indifferent to “Chen Lu” in particular. 

Chen Lu hadn’t read many old-school romance novels, but he’d seen enough online rants to get the gist. Dog-blood drama, scumbag gongs, tragic angst, and so on.

He felt pretty confident that his guess was on the mark.

Right now, what kind of person Qin Guchuan truly was didn’t matter to Chen Lu. The important thing was that he’d survived the lost-in-the-mansion crisis and made it back to his room. Now it was time to seriously think about how to handle the next part of the plot.

He’d already completed half the storyline. The first half, the dining scene, was basically a tutorial mission. Go downstairs, eat, start a fight, and done. 

But the second half was clearly going to be more complicated.

In the plot, “Chen Lu” didn’t give up on the idea of seeing his family just because “Qin Guchuan” rejected him. Ever since he’d entered the Qin residence, he had no way to contact them, and “Chen Lu” just wanted to go out, see his family, and let them know he was safe.

To be honest, Chen Lu didn’t find this character particularly annoying. “Chen Lu” was just a little dramatic, probably due to the outdated writing style. But as a person, he wasn’t exactly terrible.

Since “Chen Lu” was set on going home despite “Qin Guchuan’s” refusal, the next chunk of the plot involved him pretending to deliver something to Qin Guchuan a few days later, using it as a cover to drive out of the mansion, only to be caught red-handed by Qin Guchuan on the spot. 

That part of the plot didn’t sound too hard either. It was still within the beginner difficulty range.

Except this so-called beginner-level challenge… did not apply to Chen Lu.

Because Chen Lu… didn’t know how to drive. At all.

Chen Lu, who’d never even taken a driving test, stared at the part of the plot where he got “caught red-handed” and fell into deep thought. 

Maybe… maybe he wouldn’t actually have to drive?

Also…

Did this CEO really not need to work?! He was even editing documents at the dining table!

According to the story, when the shou tried to drive off, it was definitely during the CEO’s working hours. Otherwise, there’d be no reason to use the whole “delivering something” excuse. 

So why, during working hours, would the overbearing CEO suddenly appear just to catch a runaway little white flower?!

Chen Lu finished internally ranting, then suddenly froze in realization.

Yeah, why would the CEO come back at that exact time? Come to think of it, the plot in his head didn’t specify when the driving escape happened. It just vaguely said “a few days later.”

…Don’t tell him he had to figure out in advance which day the CEO would randomly come home? If he really pulled off a successful escape and messed up the plot, he might be in serious trouble! 

How the hell was he supposed to find that out???

The plot couldn’t possibly be that rigged… right?

With this uneasy thought in mind, Chen Lu started prepping. He quickly memorized most of the areas in the Qin estate he could access, figured out how to reach the underground garage, and even worked out how to get the car keys.

Thanks to the brief hints in the plot, none of that was particularly difficult. In the end, the hardest part turned out to be exactly what he’d feared earlier. 

After realizing how crucial the timing of Qin Guchuan’s return was, Chen Lu instinctively began monitoring his daily movements.

It turned out to be a blessing that his window faced the main gate because he could clearly see when Qin Guchuan left or returned.

After observing for days, Chen Lu confirmed one thing: Qin Guchuan’s comings and goings were completely sporadic.

Sometimes he came home as early as ten in the morning. Other times, he’d be gone all day. When Chen Lu asked the servants, they replied cheerfully, “The eldest young master is on a business trip.” 

Chen Lu didn’t even know what kind of expression he was supposed to make when he heard that.

If that guy was out of town on a business trip, how was he supposed to show up to stop him from escaping?!!!

Those three casual words in the plot, “few days later”, had turned into “ten-odd days later.” And yet, even within that narrow time frame, their exalted CEO Qin just had to go on a business trip?

Chen Lu silently cursed him in his heart. 

But as it turned out, the thing that was bothering Chen Lu was giving Qin Guchuan a headache as well. Qin Guchuan also knew exactly what was supposed to happen next. Since he knew that “Chen Lu” was going to try to escape, every inch of the Qin estate had naturally been placed under his control.

He had to be there to catch him at just the right moment. He couldn’t actually let the guy slip away.

He was fully aware that Chen Lu had been secretly mapping out the route to the underground garage, and also knew that Chen Lu had been quietly asking the servants where the car keys were kept.

All of this had been allowed—no, enabled—by Qin Guchuan. He’d made sure Chen Lu wouldn’t hit any roadblocks. Qin Guchuan watched as Chen Lu completed every single step of the escape preparations. By all logic, the next thing should be the execution. 

But it never came.

One day, two days, three days passed, and Qin Guchuan even went so far as to deliberately lower Chen Lu’s guard by having a servant pass along the news that he was on a business trip and wouldn’t be at the Northern City for the next couple of days.

What a perfect opportunity this was.

So why, after receiving that message, did Chen Lu only let out a long sigh and look thoroughly disappointed? According to the butler’s report, his expression could even be described as ‘despair.’ He genuinely seemed to have zero intention of seizing this heaven-sent opportunity to escape. 

Where did it go wrong?

Qin Guchuan’s expression darkened as he began to seriously reanalyze this portion of the plot.

In the original storyline, “Chen Lu” had used the excuse of delivering something to him, specifically, a document. He’d told the butler it was urgent and had to be delivered to the Qin Corporation immediately. The butler, seeing the item in “Chen Lu’s” hand, had bought the lie and handed over the car keys, allowing him to leave.

This part always seemed a little fishy to Qin Guchuan. Uncle Sun was a reliable man so how could he have been so easily convinced? How did “Chen Lu” manage to slip out so smoothly? 

Unless…

The document in “Chen Lu’s” hands had looked genuinely important—so important that anyone would have believed it on sight. That would explain Uncle Sun’s complete lack of suspicion.

But was there really such a document in the company? And even if there was, why on earth would it be in his house instead of the office?

Qin Guchuan thought for a few seconds and quickly realized that none of that actually mattered. In this kind of story, asking too many questions only leads to doubting your own intelligence. His job was to meet the story’s requirements, not argue logic. And as the president of the Qin Corporation, he could decide what counted as important. The content of the document didn’t matter in the slightest. 

So he casually pulled out a file that he had already signed off on, one that had been processed and rendered void, and called in his secretary. “Zhou Ji, seal this document in an envelope. Add the company seal and the top-level confidentiality stamp. Treat it as if it’s a level-one priority.”

Zhou Ji glanced at the file. He immediately recognized it as an obsolete file. But in this line of work, the most important rule was to follow orders and not be nosy. Without so much as a pause, Zhou Ji accepted it. “Yes, President.”

As the omnipotent assistant character in an old-school novel, Zhou Ji’s efficiency was naturally top-tier. In no time at all, Qin Guchuan had in his hands a fully repackaged document.

—Sealed perfectly, all stamps in place, not a detail missing. Qin Corporation’s standard procedure, executed with almost minimalist elegance! 

Qin Guchuan inspected the document for a moment, then, after some thought, handed it back to Zhou Ji and added in a low voice, “Make it more eye-catching.”

That evening, just before dinner, a servant once again came to knock on Chen Lu’s door. They informed that CEO Qin had returned right on schedule and would be expecting him at dinner downstairs.

Chen Lu responded absentmindedly. His mind was already spinning with how to deal with the problem at hand. Tomorrow will be Day Nine. What if the story’s vague “few days later” expired?

The moment that thought took hold, a primal wave of dread surged through him. There was no question. This was not a truth he wanted to find out the hard way. 

He had to solve this. Fast.

Decision made, Chen Lu forced himself to calm down and headed downstairs. The scene was quite a familiar one. It was President Qin diligently reviewing paperwork at the dining table. Only now, that sharp-featured, handsome face had taken on a sinister edge in Chen Lu’s eyes. Because of this gong’s erratic comings and goings, he’d become downright hateful.

This was all his fault! Always making things harder!

If push came to shove… Chen Lu, having completed his silent mental rant, stared daggers at Qin Guchuan’s profile. 

Chen Lu still remembered the route from his room to Qin Guchuan’s. Maybe he should try lying in wait again tonight, corner the CEO himself and ask exactly when he’d be back tomorrow. Then he could calculate the best time to carry out his plan.

There was really no method more accurate than asking the man himself. There’s no chance of a mix-up, right?

It might be a crude idea, but hey, if it works, it works…

As Chen Lu schemed his little shortcut, he happened to glance over just in time to see Qin Guchuan, who had been diligently reviewing documents, suddenly lift his head and glance his way. 

There was something odd about that glance. Chen Lu couldn’t quite decipher it, but it almost felt like it carried a strange sort of expectation… maybe even encouragement.

Before Chen Lu could think deeper on it, Qin Guchuan quickly averted his gaze and pulled out a document from who-knew-where, sealed with a bright red tape, stamped all over with so many intricate seals it made his eyes blur. Even without looking closely, the word “Confidential” seemed to sear itself straight into Chen Lu’s brain.

Chen Lu: “……”

So in old-school webnovels, even something like a document had to be this over-the-top? What, were they scared someone wouldn’t notice how important it was? 

“Uncle Sun, please take this document to the study. It’s very important. I need it for tomorrow’s 10 AM meeting. It absolutely cannot be lost.” Qin Guchuan handed the document to the old butler, his enunciation unusually crisp, laying out the time, place, and requirements with such clarity it was like he was worried someone might miss the point.

And of course, as the key player in all this, Chen Lu didn’t let him down.

The moment he heard Qin Guchuan’s words, Chen Lu’s seasoned gamer instincts kicked in. This was key information!

He’d actually followed the plot earlier and prepared a “document” of his own. It was just some random papers stuffed into a manila envelope he’d scrounge up in another room, meant to bluff his way through. 

Well damn, so this document wasn’t even something he was supposed to prepare! Good thing he hadn’t acted on impulse.

Important document. Tomorrow at 10 AM. That meant the “few days later” in the plot clearly pointed to tomorrow.

If the meeting was at 10 AM, then the plot should go like this: Qin Guchuan arrives at the company, quickly realizes the file’s missing, and rushes back. That meant Chen Lu could begin his operation right after Qin Guchuan left the house.

Perfect! 

The murky road ahead instantly cleared. Chen Lu’s eyes sparkled as he watched the old butler take the document and head off toward the study. Suddenly, Qin Guchuan looked handsome and pleasing to the eye again.

And seeing Chen Lu’s reaction so clearly written on his face, Qin Guchuan finally let out a subtle breath of relief.

Finally, it worked.

Author’s Feed: 

Some extra, unneeded telepathy was added.