GUL Chapter 31: The Bitter Supporting Male Rewrites the Script Online

After listening to Qin Qing’s voice message many times, Cang Ming opened the chat and sent a document he had already prepared.

“This must be work.” Qin Qing muttered as he opened it.

But he was wrong again. The document was indeed a project assessment, but it had nothing to do with Lanyu’s business. Qin Qing flipped through a few pages, then laughed quietly.

“President Cang, are you Doraemon?” He recorded another message, his voice full of laughter.

His phone had barely started vibrating when Cang Ming quickly opened it. The pleasant, melodious voice, soft as blooming petals, came through with the breeze. A bodyguard approached and asked Cang Ming whether to stop the drone show. The couple had already gone to celebrate with friends. Even the grandest lights are lonely without someone to appreciate them. Cang Ming waved absently and started typing.

[What is—]

Before he could finish, another voice message arrived.

Qin Qing laughed softly, his voice both helpless and teasing: “Don’t ask me what Doraemon is.”

That was exactly what Cang Ming wanted to ask. His thoughts were read, making him pause. After a few seconds, the pause turned into a secret smile. He deleted the unfinished text. Since Qin Qing said not to ask, he wouldn’t.

As if by agreement, as soon as Cang Ming deleted the message, Qin Qing sent another: “Thank you, President Cang. I’ll forward this document to Linlin. You’re a god.”

The last three words came suddenly, leaving Cang Ming puzzled. Why would Qin Qing say that? What did he know?

But another voice message immediately followed, still laughing, still gentle, this time with both admiration and teasing: “You’re the god of business.”

Cang Ming’s dark, unreadable eyes brightened, and his frown relaxed. This kind of exaggerated praise was usually the last thing Cang Ming wanted to hear, but now he listened so intently, a faint smile in his dark eyes. No more voice messages came. Cang Ming waited a long time before putting down his phone. He looked up at the dense clusters of drones in the sky.

“Change the pattern,” he said.

“Mr. Cang, what pattern would you like?” the bodyguard asked respectfully.

Cang Ming sent a GIF to the bodyguard. The bodyguard opened it and glanced at his boss in surprise. A stern workaholic suddenly turning romantic- had he taken the wrong medicine? Helping a couple reconcile wasn’t enough; now he wanted to see roses bloom? Despite his thoughts, the bodyguard took the pattern to the drone team.

A few moments later, in the dark sky, a pinkish-white bud slowly opened its layered petals, revealing its tender yellow stamens. A gentle breeze made the flower tremble, so vivid and adorable. A rose bloomed on a night without stars or moon, under the vast universe. Cang Ming stood there, watching the rose, his dark eyes lit by the scattered lights. He raised his phone to capture the moment and share it with the one in his heart, but stopped just before sending.

A blooming flower had quietly come into this world, not wanting everyone to know. Only a very few could see it; one or two were enough. Suddenly, his phone vibrated. Cang Ming immediately looked down, but his expectation vanished.

The message was from Xu Yizhi, cryptic and abrupt: [A very special feeling.]

Cang Ming glanced at it and didn’t reply.

[Who?] Another abrupt question.

Cang Ming turned off his screen and looked up at the rose blooming in the night sky. The night grew darker and quieter. Bodyguards stood around, but none dared to hurry him.

[Is it Qin Qing?]

[It’s him.]

No one replied to Xu Yizhi’s message, but he already had his answer.

Qin Qing’s phone rang. When he answered, Zhou Linlin’s excited shriek burst through: “Qin Qing, you’re the best. Did you hire a professional to evaluate our project? Oh my god, after reading this assessment, I got goosebumps. I just sent it to another partner, and he immediately invested another ten million. He said if we can’t make money following this assessment, we’re pigs. Qin Qing, tell me who this genius is. I want him on board. I’ll give him a million a year. I’ll make him CEO.”

Qin Qing laughed softly: “You probably can’t afford him.”

“I can give him company shares.”

“He wouldn’t care about those shares.”

“Stop being mysterious. Who is this person?” Zhou Linlin was getting impatient.

“It’s President Cang. Can you afford him?” Qin Qing laughed again.

Zhou Linlin was stunned for a moment before letting out a scream that could shake the roof. If Cang Ming believed in her business, she would definitely make money. She would be a big boss, surpass her father, and control her own destiny.

“I’m going to tell my partner this great news. He’ll invest a lot. A dinner with Buffett costs tens of millions, but a dinner with Cang Ming is priceless. Qin Qing, you’re amazing. You really got the moon first. Hahaha, I can’t stop laughing. I’m going to call my business partners and share this. Bye.”

Zhou Linlin hung up hastily.

“I didn’t get the moon first-”

No one was listening to Qin Qing’s explanation. He sighed helplessly. As he put down his phone, a message popped up. He opened it: a photo from Xu Yizhi. It showed a corner of the night sky beside an ancient castle, filled with brilliant stars and a winding Milky Way. Unlike the dazzling lights of the human world, the natural starlight was cool and ethereal, without the bustle of the mortal world, only distant loneliness. But it was still beautiful.

Below the photo was a line: [Beautiful?]

Qin Qing looked at the photo for a long time, then asked: [Why are you showing me this?]

[I thought you might want to see the stars.] Xu Yizhi replied quickly.

Qin Qing shook his head, smiling: [Tonight I saw two kinds of stars.]

[Oh? Two kinds?]

[One kind is the stars of the human world. The other is the stars of the sky.]

[Which is more beautiful?] Xu Yizhi pressed.

[Both are beautiful.] After sending the message, Qin Qing reached out and caught a beam of light from the ceiling lamp. The warm yellow light illuminated his palm. The stars of the human world and the stars of the sky were both within his reach. A single touch, and he could pluck them. Qin Qing had thought Xu Yizhi would stay in Europe for another seven or eight days, but unexpectedly, he returned the next day, coming straight from the airport to the company and issuing a notice for a meeting.

“What meeting?”

“Something about the Romen Group project.”

“A big investment. President Xu went personally, so it should go smoothly.”

The attendees whispered among themselves. Qin Qing was too junior to attend, only tasked with printing and distributing the materials Xu Yizhi had given him. When he handed the materials to Qin Zishi, Qin Qing noticed the man’s fingers trembling. Today would determine whether he soared or fell. To others, it was just a meeting, but to Qin Zishi, it was a life-or-death judgment.

Qin Qing set down the documents and left, not even meeting his eyes. Qin Zishi, who had been clenching his fists waiting for a verbal confrontation, suddenly felt empty. He considered Qin Qing his greatest enemy, but Qin Qing didn’t even acknowledge him. That was the most painful part.

Wasn’t he even worth it?

Before Qin Zishi could think further, Xu Yizhi and Cang Ming entered the conference room. The whispering colleagues straightened up and fell silent. Qin Qing, leaving the conference room, brushed past Xu Yizhi. Xu Yizhi suddenly reached out and brushed nonexistent dust off Qin Qing’s shoulder, then patted his back.

“We’ve secured POC. Tell everyone in the department that we’re having dinner at Baiweizhai at seven tonight.” He put his arm around Qin Qing’s shoulder and whispered in his ear.

The warm, moist breath on his ear sent a tingling sensation. Qin Qing’s ear burned. He looked up. Xu Yizhi smiled, his amorous eyes sparkling with pleasure. His tall body pressed close, his arm half-circling Qin Qing like an embrace. The crisp scent of cedar spread aggressively.

“See you tonight.” Xu Yizhi patted Qin Qing’s back again.

Qin Qing was about to nod when Cang Ming suddenly said, “Everyone should go. Invite everyone involved in the acquisition. I’ll pay.”

Xu Yizhi’s thin lips curled as he glanced sidelong: “You won’t have time tonight. After the meeting, the board of directors will be all over you.”

“I can-”

Xu Yizhi patted Qin Qing’s shoulder and asked, “Do you think our President Cang can handle those old fogeys? Stopping such a big project without explanation won’t be easy.”

Qin Qing smiled: “Of course President Cang can handle it. It’s no big deal for him.”

Cang Ming, who had more to say, fell silent. His sharp glare at Xu Yizhi was like a knife. His speechlessness and frustration made Xu Yizhi laugh heartily.

“Let’s go to the meeting.” Cang Ming said somberly, then gave Qin Qing a deep look before entering the room.

Qin Qing turned to watch the two. Only after the door closed did he raise his hand to cover his burning ears. As he turned toward the elevator, he stopped. A dirty, scruffy little cat dashed out and brushed past him.

“Here to watch the plot unfold?” Qin Qing smiled.

“None of your business.” 996 spat without looking back, then pried open the meeting room door and slipped in.

Qin Qing wasn’t interested in Qin Zishi’s fate. He laughed lightly and entered the elevator. At 6:30 p.m., Qin Qing and his colleagues stood outside the company waiting for a ride. Qin Zishi came out of the elevator carrying a cardboard box, looking defeated, suppressing unspoken anger. Two colleagues followed, offering empty words of comfort.

“The board won’t agree with President Xu’s decision.”

“Stopping such a profitable project, what were President Xu and President Cang thinking?”

“Zishi, just wait a few days at home. There will be a turnaround.”

Qin Zishi nodded absently. Seeing Qin Qing ahead, he paused, then resumed normalcy, walking past as if nothing had happened. Even in this humiliating state, he had to maintain some dignity.

But 996, following him, had no dignity left. It dashed to Qin Qing’s feet and shouted furiously: “Qin Qing, if the plot can’t be fixed, I’ll kill you.”

Qin Qing turned to chat with a colleague, his warm smile like a spring breeze. He seemed not to hear 996’s screams. 996, furious, kicked Qin Qing and chased after Qin Zishi. Earlier, in the conference room, Xu Yizhi had detailed the risks of cooperating with the Romen Group and announced the project’s termination. He looked at Qin Zishi and asked, “Will you resign, or wait to be fired?”

For Qin Zishi, both options were dead ends. An ordinary person would choose to be fired for severance pay. But Qin Zishi chose to resign to save face. He had backed himself into a corner, and with that, the entire plot collapsed. The more 996 thought about it, the angrier it became: Damn it, that’s not how the script was written!

Enjoying the story? There’s more where this came from. Patrons get to read the next chapters early, before they go live on the site, so you never have to wait on the cliffhanger. If a subscription isn’t your thing, a one-time tip on Ko-Fi or PayPal works just as well. Either way, every bit keeps the late nights and coffee going. Thank you for reading. 💙

▶ Read ahead on Patreon