GUL Chapter 18 : The Bitter Supporting Male Rewrites the Script Online

Both Qin Huaichuan and Qin Guangyuan were decisive men. Having told Qin Zishi to move out, they had the servants pack his things that very evening.

“I heard you bought Shen Mingshu a villa and spent millions on the renovation alone. Perfect, you and your mother can be reunited.” Ji Mingtang, who had finally managed to cheer up his grandson a little, slowly descended the stairs, his tone somber.

“Grandfather.”

Qin Zishi stood alone in the living room. The crystal chandelier shone down on him from above, making his face pale as paper.

“Don’t call me Grandfather. I have nothing to do with you. When you were little, you pushed Yourou into the lake over a toy; she nearly drowned. Everyone believed it was an accident, but I knew you really wanted her dead.”

Ji Mingtang looked directly at Qin Zishi and said heavily, “I can see into your heart. It’s filled with jealousy and selfishness.”

Qin Zishi quickly lowered his head, avoiding the old man’s penetrating gaze.

Ji Lan cried out, “Dad, don’t slander Zishi. He’s been a good child since he was little. You’re biased against him. The only reason you like Qin Qing is because he looks like Mom. You’re selfish too.”

“Shut up. Can’t you tell who’s close and who’s distant? Can’t you tell who’s good and who’s bad?” Ji Mingtang roared angrily.

Such arguments didn’t ease the situation. Instead, they made Qin Huaichuan and Qin Guangyuan even more determined to have Qin Zishi move out. Leaving him in the house would only cause more trouble.

“Father-in-law, calm down. Watch your blood pressure.” Qin Guangyuan interceded.

Qin Huaichuan rubbed his temples and said, “Zishi, move out now. With you here, this house is nothing but chaos.”

“Father.”

Qin Zishi’s voice was almost choked with sobs, his eyes instantly reddening.

“Huaichuan.” Ji Lan looked at her husband in disbelief. Then, as if thinking of something, she suddenly ran upstairs.

Upstairs, Qin Qing was sitting on the balcony, enjoying the spring evening breeze. Clusters of pinkish-white roses surrounded him, releasing their rich fragrance.

996 grabbed Qin Qing’s leg with both chubby paws, pleading: “Qin Qing, my ancestor, please do me a favor and let Qin Zishi stay. If he gets kicked out of the Qin family, the rest of the plot can’t proceed.”

“What happens next in the plot?” Qin Qing propped his forehead and smiled lazily.

“Uh, that, let me see.”

996 pretended to raise its paw and look at its smart brain, but cold sweat was running down its back.

Qin Qing waited, a faint smile on his lips.

Just then, the door was forcefully pushed open, and Ji Lan rushed in like a whirlwind, speaking urgently: “Qin Qing, your father is kicking Zishi out. Quick, go downstairs and beg your father. Say some good words for Zishi.”

“Mom, I won’t help him.” Qin Qing sat still in the wicker chair. The evening breeze blew through his hair, giving his pale face a hint of loneliness.

“Why? How can you be so narrow-minded? Zishi hasn’t done anything to you.”

Qin Qing interrupted her: “Mom, I only have one question. Answer me first.”

“What question?”

“If Qin Zishi leaves, his mother will love him. If I stay, will my mother love me? Look me in the eyes and answer me honestly.” Qin Qing stood up, his dark eyes looking directly into Ji Lan’s.

Faced with such clear, transparent eyes, expecting nothing, as if all hope was lost, even if Ji Lan wanted to lie, she couldn’t open her mouth. She shook her head, unable to speak, tears already streaming down her face.

All the pleas, complaints, and even reproaches turned into a single, painful, helpless “I’m sorry.”

Twenty-five years of feelings were too deep and too heavy. She couldn’t let go.

Qin Qing sat back down in the wicker chair and sighed softly: “Twenty-five years for both of us. I got hatred, but he got so much of your love. Perhaps I shouldn’t have existed in the first place. What were you thinking when you were pregnant with me?”

What was she thinking? Of course, she was thinking of using all her love to let this soon-to-be-born child grow up happily. The beautiful feelings and intense maternal love from her pregnancy were instantly awakened.

Ji Lan knelt halfway down, tightly holding her son’s wrist, choking out, “Mom is truly sorry. Mom wants to love you too, but Mom needs time.”

Qin Qing withdrew his hand and looked toward the depths of the vines. The cool moonlight reflected on his pale face, making it seem as fragile as porcelain. Ji Lan covered her mouth and cried. She cried for a long time before stumbling back down to the first floor. 996 quickly followed. It placed all its hopes on Ji Lan. In the script, this mother was willing to give up her own biological son for Qin Zishi. When Qin Zishi got into a car accident and needed a corneal transplant, Ji Lan threatened to kill herself to force the original owner to donate one of his eyes. A mother like that would become the fiercest fighter for her beloved son.

“Go, Ms. Ji Lan. The plot depends on you.” 996 waved its thick tail and cheered.

Qin Zishi also looked at Ji Lan as she stumbled down the stairs, his eyes full of hope.

But Ji Lan covered her mouth and said in a trembling voice, “Zishi, you should move out.”

“What?” Qin Zishi’s eyes widened in disbelief.

“Meow meow meow?” 996 collapsed onto the floor.

“Move out. Qin Qing… he needs me. I want to spend some time with him during this period. I am his mother after all. You understand, don’t you?” Ji Lan cried guiltily.

What else could Qin Zishi say? That he didn’t understand? Once the mask of being a well-behaved, sensible child was worn, it couldn’t be taken off in front of others. But why could Qin Qing do it? He could be well-behaved and sensible. He could also be willful and stubborn. He could easily control other people’s emotions. Mom had only been upstairs for a few minutes, and when she came down, she was completely different. He was really amazing. He had been defeated. He had been in this house for twenty-five years, yet he had been defeated by Qin Qing, who had only been back for a short while. How was this possible?

Qin Zishi was consumed with hatred. He suppressed his anger and then choked out, “Okay, I’ll leave right away.”

996: “Where are the oxygen tanks? Give me an oxygen tank, quick.”

When 996 returned to the second floor, Qin Qing was ordering oxygen tanks through an online store.

“How many do you want?” He smiled gently.

996 glared at him viciously.

“Let’s start with two for now. How many bags of dried fish? Do you want catnip? This foie gras can seems to be pretty good.” Qin Qing scrolled through his phone, murmuring softly.

996’s fierce expression slowly turned into longing, and finally softened completely into fawning: “Meow, five bags of dried fish. A hundred bags of catnip. Twenty cases of foie gras cans.”

Qin Qing selected the items one by one with a smile, then tossed a cigarette to 996. 996 puffed its little mouth and soon lit the tip.

“If Qin Zishi stayed in this house, the next plot points I’d have to follow would be constantly being framed by him, right?” Qin Qing already had a certain understanding of a supporting character’s fate.

What else could a stepping stone be, besides being constantly trampled and oppressed, serving as a foil to the jade? 996 coughed a few times in a feeble attempt to cover up, not daring to answer. Qin Qing glanced at it and smiled knowingly.

“You could have let him stay. Aren’t you going against the plot? You need him to stay to go in the opposite direction of the plot.” 996 tried one last rescue attempt.

“Did I forget to mention? I only follow interesting plots. And interesting plots need interesting opponents.” Qin Qing mused, “Maybe every time this world loops and restarts, it’s because Cang Ming doesn’t want to act opposite a boring opponent like Qin Zishi. What do you think?”

996 was dumbfounded.

“Is, is that so? But Cang Ming shouldn’t know about the plot. He’s a character in the story, not an outsider like you. He wouldn’t have such awareness.”

“Is that so?” Qin Qing smiled and ended this thought-provoking conversation.

What did it matter to him whether Cang Ming knew about the plot or not? If the world restarted, his soul would scatter. If the world reached its end and the loop was broken, he would go somewhere else to live. In the end, nothing really mattered anymore. The next day, Qin Qing arrived at Xu Yizhi’s office at nine o’clock sharp. He wore a black suit and a plaid tie. The tailored fit outlined his lean, powerful waist and his overly long, straight legs. His smooth hair fell naturally, half-covering his gentle, amorous peach-blossom eyes. As he walked, his colleagues in the legal department watched him all the way.

No one thought he was here to work. They thought the company’s celebrity endorser had come to the wrong floor. Xu Yizhi, sitting behind the spacious desk, also wore a black suit. Unlike Qin Qing’s elegant understatement, his style leaned more toward luxurious vintage. His lips curved without smiling, putting people at ease, yet his deep eyes held a dangerous, beast-like quality.

He looked Qin Qing up and down, his voice lazy and magnetic with a hint of amusement: “Did you bring me a gift?”

Qin Qing looked down at the gift bag in his hand and shook his head honestly: “No, this is a gift for Dr. Thomson.”

“Afraid he’ll make things difficult for you?” Xu Yizhi teased.

“I’m your man. I don’t think I need to be afraid of that.” Qin Qing shook his head again.

Your man…

Xu Yizhi silently savored those two ambiguous words, his smile deepening.

“This is your ID card. Use it. Thanks to you, Thomson has been working since last night.” Xu Yizhi handed over a gold magnetic card, his tone teasing.

Qin Qing bent down to take the card, showing an appropriate hint of guilt, then went to the technical department. The technical department had high security. Without Xu Yizhi’s card, Qin Qing couldn’t even get through the first door. But when he reached the core area, Qin Zishi was already there. Dark circles under his eyes, sunken cheeks, pale lips. In just one night, Qin Zishi looked significantly haggard.

He was leaning over Thomson’s computer, saying apologetically, “Qin Qing is my brother. He said some unpleasant things yesterday. I apologize on his behalf. He made hasty judgments about you without knowing anything about you.”

This wasn’t an apology. It was instigation. Constantly bringing up Qin Qing’s insults in front of Thomson would only deepen the conflict and divide between them. And Thomson was Lanyu’s technical director. His authority was second only to Cang Ming and Xu Yizhi. If he targeted Qin Qing, no one would protect him. The weight of a genius scientist versus a junior employee was something Cang Ming and Xu Yizhi could clearly distinguish. Qin Zishi didn’t seem to be doing much harm, but every thought was filled with malice. Qin Qing smiled helplessly, then walked over and placed the gift bag next to the computer. Thomson was startled. He turned around and, seeing Qin Qing, his face immediately darkened.

“This is my apology gift. I hope you can forgive me.” Qin Qing said gently.

“Take it away. Don’t disturb my work.” Thomson said harshly.

A flicker of amusement passed quickly through Qin Zishi’s eyes. Then he nodded at Qin Qing and exchanged a few pleasantries. Qin Qing also responded with a few caring words, then opened the gift bag and took out a steaming beef burger in an insulated container.

“I saw your Weibo. You were in a hurry to go on vacation because you wanted to go back to the US for your mom’s burgers, right? The burger pictures you posted looked very tempting. This morning, I tried making one. Try it.” Qin Qing pulled over a chair and sat down.

“Go away. I’m not eating your food.” Thomson was resistant.

Qin Zishi lowered his head and smiled to himself. Qin Qing’s methods of winning people over were truly low-class. A homemade burger? What was that?

“You’re afraid to eat it? Afraid I poisoned it? Just because you had one interview with me, you’re scared of me?” Qin Qing raised an eyebrow, looking slightly surprised.

Provocation was the most effective tactic against the proud Thomson. He took several heavy breaths, as if deeply insulted, then picked up the burger and took a fierce bite.

His beautiful, deep blue eyes stared fixedly at Qin Qing, as if the burger in his mouth wasn’t food but Qin Qing’s throat. But the next second, his fierce expression froze, then turned to surprise and disbelief.

“This… this tastes like my mom’s.” He exclaimed in delight.

Qin Zishi was stunned. The mockery in his eyes froze. Qin Qing propped his forehead and tilted his head, quietly watching Thomson. When Thomson cried out happily, he also showed a satisfied smile.

“How did you do this? This burger tastes exactly like my mom’s.” Thomson grabbed Qin Qing’s slender, pale wrist.

Qin Qing let him hold it, speaking softly: “I found your mom’s account through the people you follow on Weibo. I read her posts and found the recipe for your favorite beef burger. So, has your homesickness eased a bit?”

Thomson devoured the burger, nodding vigorously. “It has. I haven’t eaten since last night. Eating this burger is such a blessing.”

When you’re extremely hungry and suddenly taste your most beloved hometown dish, who wouldn’t feel better?

“So, do you forgive me?” Qin Qing smiled.

“I forgive you.” Thomson gave him a deep look and snorted, “Actually, I knew you were doing it on purpose yesterday. You just wanted me to fix the BUG quickly.”

Qin Qing shook his head. “No, I didn’t just want you to fix the BUG. I wanted to help you establish a firm foothold. Do you know the Chinese saying, ‘A new official always lights three fires’?”

Thomson was startled, then slowly shook his head. “I don’t know, but I think I can understand.”

“A newly appointed official must first establish his authority and demonstrate his strength in order to lead and gain the respect of his subordinates. You’re demonstrating your strength right now. Look, all the technicians respect you. In just one night, you’ve fully integrated with them. You’ve proven with facts that you are the undisputed king in this field. From now on, your work will go very smoothly.”

Qin Qing stood up and whispered with a smile: “I forgot to say one thing yesterday.”

Thomson, whose head was spinning from the praise, looked up at Qin Qing. His arrogant, handsome face looked unusually obedient.

“I greatly admire you, Dr. Thomson. You’re truly amazing.” Qin Qing patted Thomson’s shoulder gently and smiled slowly and tenderly.

That smile was even more dazzling than the blinding white lights in the lab. Qin Qing had been gone for a few seconds, but Thomson was still in a daze. Two blushes crept onto his cheeks without his noticing.

“God, my heart just beat so fast. Am I sick?” Thomson muttered to himself, then looked at Qin Zishi with hopeful eyes. “You’re Qin Qing’s brother? Do you have his number? I’m new to China and don’t have any friends. I want to be friends with him. He’s like an angel.”

Qin Zishi, who had wanted to sow discord, had a green face.

996 caught up with Qin Qing and demanded loudly: “Qin Qing, be honest with me. Do you know how to cast love spells?”