After the Bigshot Turned into a Gold-Digging Scumbag Alpha - Chapter 7

After settling Yi Jinbai down to rest, Jiang Shuiyun checked through the remaining items in the house. The computer she had placed on the table was completely ruined. The wardrobe near the kitchen had also burned into a charred lump. The only thing still vaguely intact was the bed at the far end of the room—but even that was smoked pitch-black. Fortunately, Jiang Shuiyun found the original owner’s jewelry tucked safely away in the bedside drawer, completely unharmed.

She put the jewelry back and pulled out the one quilt that hadn’t been completely ruined. She draped it over Yi Jinbai first, afraid she might catch a chill again.

There wasn’t much left to do. Looking at the destroyed computer, Jiang Shuiyun couldn’t help feeling a twinge of regret. The original owner had spent over two hundred thousand yuan on that machine solely for gaming. It was thanks to this high-end setup that she had been able to climb the ranks so quickly in such a short time. What a pity—she couldn’t afford to replace it now. And if she failed the team’s recruitment test, she might have no choice but to temporarily give up gaming altogether.

But it was fine. Work could always be found. Meeting Yi Jinbai’s gaze, Jiang Shuiyun gave her a reassuring smile.

“It’s alright. It’s late—let’s rest for now. We’ll clean up once the sun’s out.”

She flipped the smoke-stained blanket over so the clean side faced up, spread it across the half-burned and still-damp sofa, and squeezed in with Yi Jinbai under the same quilt to rest for the night. They were both exhausted.

Jiang Shuiyun hadn’t expected the landlord to arrive even earlier than dawn.

Back when the Jiang family went bankrupt, Jiang Shuiyun had been left with nothing. Every property and asset under her name had been frozen. With nowhere to go, it was Yi Jinbai who spent the last of her money to rent this little unit in the village in the city. And now, before the lease even ended, they had managed to set the place on fire.

The landlord—a loud-voiced, middle-aged man—started shouting before he even reached the doorway. Jiang Shuiyun, who had barely slept, woke to the noise. The moment she stepped outside, she was met with a barrage of scolding.

Yi Jinbai woke up as well and quickly tried to support herself on the sofa to follow.

Hearing movement behind her, Jiang Shuiyun turned back to help her. The landlord, feeling ignored, blew up even further, raising his voice another octave.

Jiang Shuiyun, who had never encountered this sort of situation before, frowned slightly and supported Yi Jinbai—who had ignored her injured foot in her rush to apologize.

“I’ll handle this. Sit here and rest for a bit.”

“No.”

For the first time, Yi Jinbai refuted her so firmly. Then her tone softened immediately.

“Hitting people is against the law.”

Only then did Jiang Shuiyun understand why Yi Jinbai was so adamant. Based on her past impression of the original owner, she was probably afraid Jiang Shuiyun would get physical if the argument escalated. If anything happened to this elderly man, who knew what the consequences would be.

Settling Yi Jinbai onto the only intact chair outside the door, Jiang Shuiyun patted her shoulder.

“Don’t worry. I won’t lose my temper.”

Under Yi Jinbai’s worried gaze, Jiang Shuiyun retrieved the jewelry box from the scorched drawer. It was the original owner’s last remaining property; thankfully, it had been far from the fire and protected inside the drawer, so it was unharmed.

Outside, neighbors had already gathered. The landlord was still loudly complaining to them. Holding the jewelry box, Jiang Shuiyun walked toward him.

“The fire was indeed my oversight, and it caused damage to your property. I—”

Before she could finish, the landlord pounced on her words as if he’d found leverage, his arrogance swelling even further.

“Of course it’s your fault! My house was perfectly fine, and after renting it to you for only a few days, you’ve turned it into this! You two should take full responsibility!”

Jiang Shuiyun met his furious glare with calm, steady eyes. The longer she stared, the more his confidence faltered. Only then did she speak again.

“Are you finished? If you’re done, it’s my turn. I will take full responsibility for the damages. You may choose to have me repair everything, or I can compensate you with the equivalent cost of repairs.”

“Well, obviously you should pay!”

He tried to shout again, but the moment he met her unwavering gaze, his voice shrank.

“A-anyway, it’s best if you pay. But listen here—don’t think you can stay in this house anymore. Give me the money, I’ll fix it myself. You two should move out today.”

“Fine. You can calculate the costs now. But let me remind you: I’ve already assessed the damage. If your estimate is wildly unreasonable, I reserve the right to refuse compensation.”

Jiang Shuiyun truly didn’t know the actual rules for renting. She was bluffing, drawing an acceptable boundary in advance to prevent him from asking for an absurd amount.

The landlord’s mouth twitched. With a cold snort, he brushed past her to tally the damage.

Jiang Shuiyun walked back and waited at the doorway. Something tugged at her clothes—Yi Jinbai.

“What is it?”

“The remaining rent is about twenty-five hundred. And the deposit was five thousand. Those,”

She reminded Jiang Shuiyun not to forget that money. Unfortunately, the landlord’s ears were sharp.

He rushed out immediately.

“You burned my house down and still want your rent and deposit back? Dream on! The deposit is to make sure tenants don’t damage the property. Now that it’s ruined, you—”

Jiang Shuiyun had reached the end of her patience.

“So what you’re saying is that you don’t need compensation anymore? Keeping the deposit and the remaining rent will cover everything? Alright. Jinbai, let’s go.”

“Wait!”

The landlord hadn’t expected to trap himself with his own words. Seeing them getting ready to leave, he scrambled forward to block them.

Right then, Jiang Shuiyun’s phone rang. Seeing it was an unfamiliar number, she said only one word:

“Quiet.”

Years of issuing orders had made her tone instinctively authoritative. The landlord froze on reflex, and the crowd finally fell silent. Only then did she answer the call.

“Hello, is this Ms. Jiang Shuiyun?”

“Yes.”

“Your résumé has passed our initial screening. We’d like to arrange an in-person skills test. When would you be available?”

“Now.”

Jiang Shuiyun glanced at the time. After all the commotion, it was already eight in the morning.

“Great. I can schedule you for a 9 a.m. on-site interview today. Is that alright?”

“Yes.”

“Wonderful. We look forward to seeing you. If it’s inconvenient for you to travel, we can also arrange a pickup service. Would you like us to send someone?”

“Just one more thing,” Jiang Shuiyun added, glancing at Yi Jinbai beside her. “Can I bring a family member with me?”

“Of course. Family members may wait in the reception area. And to confirm again—your home address is the same as the one on your résumé, correct?”

“Yes, thank you.”

“Not at all. If you have any other questions, you may call this number back. Thank you for choosing our company. Goodbye.”

“Goodbye.”

Hanging up, Jiang Shuiyun finally let out a quiet breath of relief. She had been worrying that with her computer burnt out, if she failed this time, she might have to give up on pursuing gaming as a career. For now, at least, she wouldn’t have to look for another path.

“What was that about?”

Yi Jinbai asked hesitantly. Since Jiang Shuiyun had mentioned bringing a family member, she assumed that meant her.

“It’s the job I applied for. There’s progress—they want me for another round of interviews. A car will pick us up soon. You’re coming with me. If I can sign the contract, things should be pretty stable.”

Jiang Shuiyun rubbed the top of Yi Jinbai’s head. The good news arrived at just the right moment.

“If you’ve already found a job, then about my compensation,” the landlord suddenly jumped in, unwilling to let the matter drop.

“Have you finished calculating?” Jiang Shuiyun asked calmly. “The amount you come up with needs to be deducted from the remaining rent and security deposit. Only after that do we talk about compensation. And if you refuse to return the remaining rent and deposit, then there’s nothing to discuss. We’ll go through legal channels.”

Though Jiang Shuiyun had never rented before and didn’t know much about the procedures, she knew the legal route was fair and transparent. She had originally wanted to settle things quickly, but since the landlord insisted on causing trouble, she had no choice.

Yi Jinbai nodded in agreement. “Also, during the rental period, a landlord forcing a tenant to move out counts as a breach of contract. That requires you to pay a penalty. It’s written clearly in the contract.”

“You two.” The landlord hadn’t expected the situation to turn against him so quickly. He could only back down. “Fine, fine. Look, the big and small fixtures in this unit all need to be replaced. I also have to renovate and reinforce the place.

Altogether, deducting your seven thousand five hundred in rent and deposit, how about you give me another five thousand? I’m already taking a loss here!”

Jiang Shuiyun had no real sense of what all that was worth, so she looked at Yi Jinbai.

Yi Jinbai shook her head. “At most twenty-five hundred. Everything that burned was old furniture. You can’t charge us as if they were new. And based on the previous condition of your renovations, the number I’m giving is more than enough for you to fix everything inside and out.”

She glanced briefly at Jiang Shuiyun, then continued, “According to the contract, we only need to cover the actual damages. Ten thousand in total compensation is already far more than necessary.”

“My furniture is antique, you know!” the landlord protested immediately, unwilling to accept the reduced amount.

“Antique? As in twenty years old?” Jiang Shuiyun thought the landlord would say anything just to squeeze out a bit more money.

Seeing that pushing further might result in an even lower number, the landlord decided to cut his losses. “Fine, twenty-five hundred it is. Pay now, then you move out.”

With the compensation agreed upon, the only thing left was getting the money. Jiang Shuiyun checked the time. Luckily, she had kept the pawnshop owner’s contact information from last time. When she explained she had many items to sell and couldn’t conveniently go out, the owner readily agreed to come over.

The pawnshop wasn’t far. Within minutes, the owner arrived and greeted them with a friendly smile.

She handed him a jewelry box. “Please give me an estimate for everything.”

“Oh?” The pawnshop owner opened the box, his eyes lighting up. “Friend, you’re really selling all of this? If you sell now, you won’t be able to buy them back at this price.”

“Just the appraisal, please.”

Jiang Shuiyun had no plans to buy anything back anyway.

“Alright. Don’t feel faint when you hear the numbers. For this piece, I’ll give you a high estimate—ten thousand. This one, eight thousand. This, twelve thousand. And this.”

As the owner listed the prices one by one, Yi Jinbai tugged gently at Jiang Shuiyun’s sleeve. These had originally cost at least over a million. They were all popular best-selling pieces, yet now their value had shrunk to a tenth of the original price.

“Here’s the money. Count it carefully. Once it’s in your hands, the items are mine.”

The pawnshop owner had clearly come prepared. He completed the transaction on the spot. After all, high-end items at such low prices, sold directly—this was practically a miracle deal.

“Alright.”

After checking the amount, Jiang Shuiyun packed the money into the bag the owner had brought. She took out twenty-five hundred and handed it to the landlord. “We’re square now. Where’s the contract?”

Once the payment was made, the contract officially expired. The matter was finally settled.

After confirming nothing was left behind, the Shengguang Group’s car arrived at the alley entrance to pick them up.

Jiang Shuiyun held Yi Jinbai’s hand as they got into the car. She looked back one last time at the narrow alley. “Let’s go.”