After Transmigrating as the Northeast CEO's Pampered Little Husband - Chapter 23

The domestic staff, including the housekeeper and the kitchen maid, were not required to come to the Dai residence on Saturdays or Sundays. This was Mr. Dai’s private time, and he preferred not to be disturbed.

However, today was Monday. The kitchen maid arrived early to prepare breakfast, only to find two layers of steamed buns left in the steamer enough for several meals.

The kitchen maid was momentarily perplexed, but she heated the buns and prepared them for breakfast anyway. Yet, she waited and waited, and still, by eight o’clock, Mr. Dai hadn’t come down to eat.

The maid checked the kitchen monitor; there was no message from Mr. Dai saying he was out.

Could it be…? Being a woman of a certain age, the kitchen maid knew a thing or two. She slapped her forehead in sudden realization, thinking, The young couple have only just started seeing each other. They must be glued together! They probably battled it out for three hundred rounds all day Sunday. How could they possibly wake up early?

The more she thought about it, the more convinced she was. The kitchen maid guiltlessly cleaned the kitchen, put the buns in the warming drawer to see if the young couple would eventually come down, and started preparing easily digestible lunch instead.

This situation was largely due to the fact that Dai Gu-can had never once slept in since the maid began working there, meaning he had never required a wake-up call. The staff simply worked downstairs, waiting for him to come down for breakfast before heading to the office. This sudden lie-in left the maids genuinely unsure whether they should go upstairs and knock.

So, the kitchen maid’s speculation was tacitly accepted by everyone. After all, disturbing the young couple when they were “snuggling” was considered far less forgivable than letting Mr. Dai miss a late breakfast.

Upstairs, Dai Gu-can had finished washing and initially intended to go “explain” last night’s events to Gu Jiao-yang. But when he went downstairs and tapped gently on the boy’s bedroom door, there was no sound. The little one was clearly still asleep. All the carefully rehearsed explanations and the courage he had summoned instantly deflated like a punctured balloon. He retreated to his study, pretending he knew nothing.

This is so difficult…

Dai Gu-can slumped into his office chair, covering his eyes with his hands. The more he tried to repress them, the more those embarrassing memories from last night flooded his mind.

“Ding!” Just as Dai Gu-can was attempting to wipe his memory, a message notification popped up on his computer, forcing him to drop his hand and attend to work.

It wouldn’t look good to go to the office at lunchtime, so Dai Gu-can had asked his assistant to send some necessary work home. Although he had several ongoing projects, his personal workload wasn’t heavy as dedicated specialists were now managing the follow-ups.

Boss, we’ve found the information you requested, but the surveillance footage cannot be recovered. Young Master Wang’s people smashed the storage drive. The control room equipment wasn’t networked, so there are no traces to restore.

Dai Gu-can dragged the mouse to click the message open. His eyes, reflecting the screen’s light, paled, but the intensity within was unmistakable.

Wang Yong-yuan.

Dai Gu-can slowly scrolled through all the screenshots and photos sent by the private investigator. He stopped at one showing Wang Yong-yuan sitting on a sofa in the club, flanked by two women, with two huge, dark figures standing behind him. He then looked at another, a thermal surveillance video of those two large figures dragging the unconscious boy by his collar into a car. The veins on Dai Gu-can’s right hand, gripping the mouse, bulged.

“Creeak, creeak…” The plastic mouse strained under his grip. Dai Gu-can finished reviewing all the evidence of the transaction. In his fury, he sank into a silent, imposing low-pressure field that stretched for ten feet. He stood up, walked to the glass cabinet mounted on his study wall, pulled open the door, and retrieved an alloy baseball bat, gripping it tightly.

“You utter disgrace of a human being! Pah! Even calling you a disgrace is an insult to disgrace! You worthless piece of crap, coming home half the night in the pitch dark—why didn’t you crash and burn, you bastard?”

“Bloody hell, my washing machine has more conscience than you do!”

Furious, with his hair practically standing on end, Dai Gu-can actually wanted to take the baseball bat, wait for that scoundrel Wang Yong-yuan on his way home from his nightly debauchery, and bludgeon him until he got concussion.

Then, Dai Gu-can seemed to think of something else. He paced around the study a few times with the bat, before finally calming down. He rested the bat vertically on his desk, covered the end with one hand, leaned his chin on it, and rubbed his hair. He pulled out his phone, took a deep breath, and forced out his most upright and righteous tone.

Don’t get angry, don’t get angry. He is a stable, successful 30-year-old man. He can’t just go around beating up trash; it would ruin his image.

“Hello? Police? I’d like to report a case of mass public indecency and associated violence!”

“…Cough, cough, cough!” Gu Jiao-yang was choked awake by the excessive saliva his mouth was producing due to hunger. He buried his face in his pillow and blindly stretched out one hand to feel around. Finally locating his phone on the small side table, Gu Jiao-yang felt as though he had completed a major mission. He rested in that position for a moment before managing to bring the phone into view, opening one eye to check the time.

It was lunchtime. Time to eat!!!

Buns!!! Mr. Dai made so many buns!

Motivated by food, Gu Jiao-yang immediately scrambled out of bed. But just as one foot was reaching for his slippers, the long-absent voice of the Observation System suddenly sounded, reporting in. A wave of dizziness washed over his brain, causing him to fall backward onto the bed, maintaining his stretched-out leg posture.

Respected User, hello. The Observation System has now returned. Based on the latest intelligence from the Time-Space Administration, we require a detailed discussion. You have now been forcibly disconnected from reality.

“…For goodness sakes!” Gu Jiao-yang flipped off the Observation System in his mind, annoyed that he was stuck lying on the bed with one leg over the side.

Damn it! What if Mr. Dai sees me spazzing out and doing the splits first thing in the morning?! I’ve worked so hard to maintain my image as the little darling!

So, in the Consciousness Fortress, Gu Jiao-yang sat in a chair with his arms crossed, glaring at the Observation System with a foul mood.

Based on the latest intelligence from the Time-Space Administration, a new System Virus-Carrying Reborn has appeared in this world. We must revise the contract. We request the User’s full cooperation.

“What? A System Virus-Carrying Reborn? It’s just one more person like me. Why are you so nervous?” Gu Jiao-yang couldn’t understand why the Observation System needed to revise the contract just because of one person. After all, this stupid system was full of loopholes, and he had only just managed to exploit them.

We are extremely sorry for this. However, given the danger level of this situation, we must take the most appropriate measures.

“What kind of Reborn could make you this nervous? What, did you bring the Ancestor of Celestial Masters into the world?” Gu Jiao-yang stroked his chin, developing a great interest in the Observation System’s text turning red.

Pursuant to the contract, this System will re-establish its relationship with the User and share relevant data. Please cooperate.

“Fine, fine, I’ll cooperate. What else can Your Lordship do? Go on, what’s the new contract?”

Respected User, thank you for your cooperation. The Observation System, Xiao Zhi, will now share the latest data with you. Please prepare to receive it.

Data loading… Now reading aloud.

New System Virus-Carrying Reborn: Gu Mian.

“Wait! Stop reading! Who? Who is the Reborn?” Gu Jiao-yang thought he must have misheard and hastily slapped the System’s head.

Respected User, it is Gu Mian.

Gu Jiao-yang stared at the two Chinese characters displayed on the Observation System’s small screen, feeling like he was going dizzy again. Why did those two words sound exactly like the original owner’s name?

In fact, they were. As the Observation System read on, Gu Jiao-yang listened to the entire sequence of events with a dumbfounded expression.

Here’s how things stood:

The Time-Space Administration had been half-compromised by a revolt staged by its subordinate branch, the Soul Guidance Bureau. Large numbers of reborn souls, carrying a System Virus, had invaded the Administration’s minor worlds, attempting to gain control and accumulate enough energy to become a new ruling class above the Time-Space Administration.

This revolt virus had already begun spreading within the Administration when the Observation System, Xiao Zhi, was manufactured. This explained why the Observation System was so crude and had been rushed into deployment without full qualification testing.

The hastily manufactured Observation System couldn’t fully execute its contract or monitor and restrict every soul that crossed over from another world. The restricting functions had been hacked, leaving only the reporting and a few other functions useful. They could only report, but since the Time-Space Administration itself was half-compromised, their reports were often ignored.

Therefore, under the situation of upper management neglect and their own lack of function, they were forced to allow the soul-crossers to fight the Soul Guidance Bureau’s spies, who were trying to overturn the world and seize energy and control.

Gu Mian was a spy for the Soul Guidance Bureau.

The Soul Guidance Bureau exists to sort souls, record the birth of new souls, and guide the destination of old ones.

Gu Mian, in the original novel, met a tragic end for opposing the protagonist. However, due to the Soul Guidance Bureau’s manipulation, Gu Mian was made to believe that the world he lived in was a book and that the Protagonist Gong, He Sheng-yuan, was the world’s centre. He was then “reborn” into this world, bringing hatred and a virus system, with his target set directly on the Protagonist Gong.

He intended to become the Protagonist Shou, to seduce He Sheng-yuan, the cornerstone of the world, and become the man of the world’s pillar!

“So, the Soul Guidance Bureau captured Gu Mian’s soul, fabricated a dream of future events for him, and then released him, making Gu Mian believe he was the chosen one who had returned for revenge?”

“Wouldn’t a normal person just think it was a dream? And so cringe-worthy to want to be the man of the world’s centre?? Oh… I forgot you said he has a virus system to dupe him.”

Gu Jiao-yang suddenly felt that Gu Mian was foolish, yet extremely goal-oriented.

The first thing the released Gu Mian did was commit suicide.

That’s right, he killed himself before high school.

He then had the virus system maintain his body to appear in public, though only during times like commuting to and from school. To conserve energy, the virus system would withdraw the body into the system space at night when Gu Mian was supposed to be home.

This also explained why there were no signs of high school life in Gu Mian’s house.

“Eww… Committing suicide and then controlling your own body to appear normally what on earth…” Gu Jiao-yang broke out in a cold sweat. He thought Gu Mian seemed to have been brainwashed into a psycho by the Soul Guidance Bureau.

And why did Gu Mian commit suicide?

Because he went to hijack the body of the Protagonist Shou, Xi Chuan-bai!!!

According to the original plot, the Protagonist Shou, Xi Chuan-bai, was found to be the son of the car-accident victim, Mr. Xi, during a necessary blood transfusion after his own junior high car accident. This true young master, who had been replaced by his stepmother, finally returned to the Xi family.

Gu Mian committed suicide in junior high, allowing the virus system to directly squeeze his soul into the body of Xi Chuan-bai, whose soul was weak and life was hanging by a thread due to the car crash. He sent the original Xi Chuan-bai’s soul, who thought he was going to heaven, on its way, usurping the body to become the Protagonist Shou, Xi Chuan-bai.

The reason he kept his real body was simply so that the future “Gu Mian” character could serve as a villain to boost his relationship with the Protagonist Gong.

Upon hearing this, Gu Jiao-yang’s hairs truly stood on end. How old was Gu Mian when he thought of suicide and usurpation? Even with the fake memories manufactured by the Soul Guidance Bureau, he was still just a junior high student, yet he had the capacity for such suicidal and murderous means…

Well, fine. I’m also a soul that crossed over and usurped a body from another world.

Gu Jiao-yang rubbed his nose, feeling an unexpected wave of guilt.

“But, I think Gu Mian is pretty tragic. If he’s seeking revenge, we shouldn’t interfere. After all, I’m also…”

No.

“No what?”

The System cannot currently answer that. However, the reborn Gu Mian has fused with the System Virus and is no longer the original Gu Mian. All his internal hatred has been amplified. He has become a true villain. If the User does not take protective measures, Gu Mian will kill the User. Gu Mian will not tolerate anyone using his body and living a life better than his own.

Furthermore, the Virus System’s goal is the energy of the entire world. The Virus System will not tolerate a User carrying the Observation System existing in this world.

As soon as he heard his life was in danger, Gu Jiao-yang’s guilt vanished. Survival is the most important thing! He hadn’t yet properly connected with Dai Gu-can or enjoyed the benefits of not having to rush his cultivation. Gu Mian wanting to kill him? Absolutely not. If he dared to make a move, “Your Lordship” would take him out first!

User’s dangerous thoughts have been detected and logged. We will report this truthfully.

“Wait a minute, didn’t you say there was a new contract? Why are you still so controlling when the opposing party is a Reborn who wants to kill me?”

You must not use the User’s original abilities to commit overly extravagant actions.

“He wants to kill me, and I can’t kill him? Is there no justice? Isn’t this clearly setting me up to fail?” Gu Jiao-yang demanded irritably.

Not yet. Xiao Zhi will continue to report and appeal to secure the most lenient treatment.

“…Your useless system.”

Due to this world’s unique situation, the Time-Space Administration has ultimately voted to open up personal ability usage rights, but you must remain discreet and avoid causing unnecessary panic among the people of this world.

The Observation System, perhaps out of its own guilt, directly revealed the maximum concession it had managed to secure for the User.

“I can use my abilities?! Out in the open?” Gu Jiao-yang immediately stopped calling the system useless. He jumped off the chair happily and slapped the Observation System’s head.

Respected User, discreetly, we must act discreetly and avoid being discovered by the Time-Space Administration’s superiors.

“Ohhh, I get it. Can’t stand out and let the bosses notice a problem. Have to keep it hidden and solve it myself. Got it, got it.” Gu Jiao-yang patted his chest grandly, indicating he was a very sensible person.

Even if he couldn’t kill directly, Gu Jiao-yang had plenty of ways to make his opponent wish they were dead.

Given that the User has exceeded thirty minutes in the Consciousness World, the Health System will forcibly disconnect you. Please discuss remaining questions at another time. Thank you for using the service.

Just as Gu Jiao-yang was starting to feel a surge of affection for the System, the Observation System suddenly played an incredibly familiar saxophone melody, and when Gu Jiao-yang opened his eyes again, he found himself ejected from the Consciousness World.

“…Fine, I can’t even control my own Consciousness World. Still, I can use my abilities…” Gu Jiao-yang sat up from his awkward position and rubbed his legs, which weren’t numb at all. He pinched a spiritual seal with one hand, felt the freely moving spiritual energy happily circulating at his fingertips, and smiled with great satisfaction.

He could openly amass wealth!

Yes!!!

Little money!!! Good food!!!

“Your Lordship” is coming for you!!!

Although he still had many questions left unanswered, the now unbanned Gu Jiao-yang didn’t care about any of that. He could practically see his bright future beckoning to him!

“Bang, bang, bang!” A knocking sound came from outside the front door. The doorbell was broken, so the person outside resorted to knocking, which quickly escalated into impatient kicking.

“Old Li?” Zhu Zheng-wen, who had been kneeling in front of several newly bought Buddha statues and various deities in his home, hastily scrambled up and went to open the door.

“Good heavens, what a lot of smoke! What have you been doing at home? Feudal superstition? Why are you suddenly worshipping Buddha… My goodness, you even have Guan Yu! Why have you arranged all these figures here?” Old Li waved away the lingering smell of incense in front of his nose, feeling horrified as he stared at the long row of figures displayed on Zhu Zheng-wen’s living room table.

“Ah, it’s a long story. You wouldn’t believe it even if I told you. Have you found anything about the favour I asked?” Zhu Zheng-wen gripped Old Li’s hands tightly with his own plump hands, which were adorned with four or five strings of Buddhist beads, his face full of pleading urgency.

“I found him, but the issue is complicated. That little boy, he’s Mr. Dai’s man! I nearly got caught when I went to Du Jiang Villa. I didn’t dare ask anything else; all I know is that Mr. Dai always keeps him close. If I try to dig further into Mr. Dai’s affairs, I’ll be ruined!” Old Li sat down on the sofa, running a hand through his hair, his face troubled.

“Mr. Dai? Which Mr. Dai? That Mr. Dai?!” Zhu Zheng-wen pondered for a moment, then pointed a chubby finger upwards and asked.

“Don’t be an idiot. Which Mr. Dai could there be in Changjing besides that Mr. Dai!” Old Li slapped Zhu Zheng-wen’s fleshy shoulder and replied exasperatedly.

“Oh hell, so I don’t stand a chance then…” Upon receiving his friend’s definitive answer, Zhu Zheng-wen lay down on the sofa with a face ashen as death, no longer even bothering to turn the prayer beads on his wrist.

“Wait, Old Zhu? No chance? We’ve been mates for years, and I’ve never known you to be interested in little boys! Don’t scare me! Did you fall for Mr. Dai’s boy? Do you have a death wish?!” Old Li was shocked, thinking Zhu Zheng-wen had become infatuated with Mr. Dai’s boy. His jaw nearly dropped.

He wondered why Old Zhu was in such a panic; was it all over love?!

“What rubbish are you talking? I’m straight! I’m going to marry a real stunner to keep the house grounded! Ah, you wouldn’t understand. That little boy can save my life. I was hoping to find him and ask him to help, but since you say that, I guess I’ll just wait to die.”

Hearing that the matter was life-or-death, Old Li stopped joking. After all, they were good friends, and anything involving life was extremely serious.

“Tell me what’s actually going on! If you don’t tell me, how am I supposed to help you?”

Zhu Zheng-wen lay on the sofa, staring at his three-foot-thick belly, but finally told Old Li the entire story.

…

“Liu Su-ya? Bloody hell?!” Old Li, having heard Zhu Zheng-wen’s tale, suddenly felt a chill in the house, especially from the brightly coloured statues arranged on the table next to them. They looked truly terrifying at first glance.

“How about you stay at mine for the next few days? We can look out for each other. That woman… Liu Su-ya is just one ghost. Aren’t these lonely spirits afraid of men’s Yang energy? I’m full of Yang energy, so there’s nothing to fear! Maybe she’ll get the hint and run off!” Old Li wasn’t afraid of ghosts and monsters; since he hadn’t experienced what Zhu Zheng-wen had, he confidently believed his strong masculine energy would scare Liu Su-ya away.

“Wuu wuu wuu Old Li, you truly are my best mate!!! From now on, we have a life-or-death bond! As long as I, Old Zhu, have a bite to eat, you’ll have a bowl of soup!” Zhu Zheng-wen moved his bulky body and, in a manner befitting a young girl, flung himself into Old Li’s arms, nearly taking the wind out of him.

“Cough, cough, cough, get off… Get off… I can’t breathe, I can’t breathe… Did you put on weight again, you sod!”

“Hee hee, I’m still 178 jin [~110kg]. No weight gain, honestly.” With Old Li’s reassuring words, Zhu Zheng-wen’s fear subsided considerably, and his spirits lifted.

With no more discussion, the two quickly packed up their belongings and headed to Old Li’s house.

However, the truth was that when Old Li and Zhu Zheng-wen, those two smelly men, huddled together trembling in the bedroom, they discovered things weren’t as simple as they thought.

“Wuu wuu wuu Have mercy, Milady! We haven’t done anything to harm Heaven or reason! Woooah!”

Old Li and Zhu Zheng-wen were trembling on the bed, staring at a specific spot. Due to the city’s light pollution, even with the lights off, a faint glow from the streetlights across the way filtered into the bedroom. Since neither man liked to draw the curtains, they could clearly see a shadowy figure on the bedroom wall that clearly belonged to a young girl.

But there was no third person in their bedroom. The three shadows on the wall looked exactly like something from a horror movie, terrifying the two friends, who were clutching each other’s hands, eyes squeezed shut, praying to every god they could think of.

“Bang!” The two friends watched in horror as the shadowy figure on the wall twisted its arm and swiped. A vase next to them instantly fell to the floor. The shadow then took a step forward, and a wet footprint, clearly the size 38 of a woman’s shoe, appeared on the bedroom carpet.

“Help, help, help, help! Have mercy, Milady! Wuu wuu wuu If we don’t die tonight, tomorrow we’ll go beg Mr. Dai’s little friend! Wuu wuu wuu This is too terrifying!” Old Li, having witnessed this shocking horror firsthand, was even more terrified than Zhu Zheng-wen. His years of materialism were completely shattered. He didn’t care about anything now. Even if Mr. Dai beat him into a pulp, he would cling to the Dai house and refuse to leave!

“Yes, yes, yes… Find, find, find that little… little boy…” Zhu Zheng-wen hid behind Old Li, his fat trembling. The four or five strings of Buddhist beads on his hand were spinning so fast they were a blur, but they clearly had no effect on “Liu Su-ya.”

While the two smelly men were crying and praying, Young Master Wang, Wang Yong-yuan, was being hauled out of the club by the police, looking utterly bewildered.

What the hell is going on???

Wang Yong-yuan’s hands were cuffed behind his back by the officer. His trousers were hanging low on his waist, the belt and zip undone by an enthusiastic hostess and wide open. His shirt was also gaping at the chest. He clearly hadn’t been engaged in any legitimate activities.

“Do you know who I am?” Still failing to grasp the fact that he, a Young Master, was being arrested by the police, Wang Yong-yuan defiantly raised his head and questioned the officers beside him.

He is Young Master Wang! How dare the police arrest him?!

The officer he questioned was clearly unimpressed. Instead, his square, dignified face smiled as he replied, “I’m sorry, sir. We serve the people and enforce the law. We cannot be intimidated by power.”

“I curse your ‘serve the people’! Do you know who I am? I’m Young Master Wang! Wang Yong-yuan, Young Master of Changjing!!!” Wang Yong-yuan was visibly shocked by the officer’s righteous attitude. Where were all those people who used to bow and scrape to him? Were they eaten by dogs?!

The other officer assisting in restraining Wang Yong-yuan clearly had less patience. Already dark-skinned, he flashed his exceptionally white teeth in the club’s dim lighting, and with a strong squeeze of the handcuffs, successfully elicited a squeal from Wang Yong-yuan.

“My apologies, you social scum, but our Chief’s Chief is Chief Liu. Who are you to threaten us?”

“You are making false accusations! Defamation! And insulting my character! You are abusing your authority! I’ll sue you! I’ll have the best legal team from the Wang family sue you until you lose everything!” Wang Yong-yuan struggled fiercely, completely missing who Chief Liu was in the officers’ conversation.

“This man is resisting arrest! That’s an additional charge! Cuff him and take him away!”

“And you people! Police! Please come with us!”

The once lively club had descended into chaos. The moment the police burst in with guns drawn (they were fully armed), the screams quickly subsided. This was because Enthusiastic Citizen, Mr. Dai, had specifically emphasized that the club might contain suspects with violent tendencies who could resist arrest and take hostages. The police department, having received the report, had quickly deployed armed units to the scene.

And just as the Enthusiastic Citizen had reported, the suspect Wang not only resisted arrest but also ordered his suspected triad subordinates to assault the police. Fortunately, the culprits were all subdued without casualties.

By the time Wang Yong-yuan was locked in the interrogation room, facing the police across the bars, he still couldn’t believe that he, a respected Young Master in Changjing, had been thrown into a police lock-up just like that.

“Did someone frame me! Tell me! Who was it!!! Who gave you your orders!!” Wang Yong-yuan angrily pounded the table with his handcuffed hands, shouting at the person opposite him.

The police officer facing him had never encountered a suspect so arrogant in the station before. Feeling offended, his face visibly cooled. He continued to truthfully record the suspect’s words and actions.

Support