I Can’t Keep Being a Scumbag Anymore—What Should I Do? [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 8

Ran Muqiu found himself inexplicably climbing onto Feng Qin’s back, and then, just as inexplicably, being carried for a while.

Once Feng Qin took him up, the mouth that had been spitting insults finally shut, leaving an atmosphere that was quiet to the point of being eerie.

It wasn’t until they were nearly at the infirmary door that Ran Muqiu’s stunned brain finally started working again.

Wait.

This wasn’t right. He’d injured his shoulder, not broken a leg. Why was he being carried?

And he was supposed to be a Gong too! It was bad enough that the Protagonist Gong had chased him down to mock him, but now he was being forced into a piggyback ride?

They were supposed to be love rivals!

Was this some kind of specialized humiliation in Feng Qin’s eyes?

The most infuriating part was himself—because Feng Qin’s tone had been so overbearing earlier, he had actually let himself be intimidated!

Ran Muqiu quickly began squirming on the guy’s back. “Put me down! I don’t want you to carry me anymore.”

“What are you doing?”

Feng Qin’s long legs remained steady. He spared him a glance without slowing his pace. He clearly had zero intention of listening.

Ran Muqiu was fuming. He gave the flesh of Feng Qin’s shoulder and neck a sharp pinch and tried even harder to wiggle down.

No matter how slender Ran Muqiu was, he was still a boy, and when he truly struggled, his strength wasn’t negligible.

Feng Qin was afraid of hurting the arm that had just been hit by the basketball, so he didn’t dare use too much force. Sensing he was about to lose his grip, he reflexively reached back with his right hand to hook around the boy’s waist.

“Quit damn moving.”

As luck—or lack thereof—would have it, Feng Qin’s right hand caused trouble for the third time that day.

He felt his palm brush against the boy’s waist, followed immediately by something soft.

The spot was so plush and supple it didn’t feel like muscle that belonged on a boy. His mind flickered, and he couldn’t help but close his hand, giving it a light squeeze.

The texture was incredible. Feng Qin seemed to get addicted; unable to help himself, he moved his hand up slightly and gave a slow, firm grasp.

There didn’t seem to be any thick fabric in the way. The sensation was far too vivid.

And just before that, it felt as though something had slid down.

Feng Qin: “…”

Ran Muqiu: “…”

Ran Muqiu froze entirely, then began to struggle like a wild animal.

The basketball uniform he was wearing today was a size too big, and the waistband was already loose. With his frantic squirming on Feng Qin’s back, the clothes were bound to be a mess.

Feng Qin’s hand was already prone to wandering, and by sheer coincidence, he had actually yanked the waistband down quite a bit.

Yanking it was one thing, but he’d gone on to feel up his backside and pinch his waist—what kind of intentions did this guy have?

Feng Qin also snapped back to his senses. Realizing exactly what he had just touched, he was mortified. In his momentary lapse of focus, Ran Muqiu successfully scrambled down.

Ran Muqiu’s ears were burning red. He yanked his pants up, no longer caring about his persona or the “rules of heartbreak.” He turned on Feng Qin and snapped, “Are you a psycho? Why the hell did you pull my pants down?”

“I—I damn pulled your pants?” Feng Qin’s throat bobbed. His palm still tingled with the sensation of that soft flesh—it was so soft it had caused his brain to stall for a second, making him uncharacteristically stammer. “You’re the one who didn’t wear them right. Your waist is so tiny the pants can’t even stay up. They fell as soon as I touched them. You’re blaming me?”

“Who would intentionally not wear their pants right?” Ran Muqiu was so angry his face turned scarlet, yet he couldn’t think of a single effective comeback. He could only manage a weak, “What are you talking about?”

“Oh.” Seeing that Ran Muqiu was on the verge of crying, Feng Qin actually calmed down. The awkwardness vanished, replaced by a touch of malicious mischief. He looked at Ran Muqiu’s face and paused. “Well, those pants couldn’t have fallen down on their own, could they? Anyway, I didn’t use any force.”

Ran Muqiu’s eyes welled up. He wanted to scratch the guy, but knowing that would be a total loss of face for a “School Bully Gong,” he forced himself to hold back.

This was a complete miscalculation.

He hadn’t expected this small world to suddenly shift into having multiple targets, nor had he expected to encounter someone as shameless and foul-mouthed as Feng Qin. When he’d first studied the “Scum Gong Manual,” he’d focused entirely on how to bully the Protagonist Shou. Since Li Zhu was the quiet, submissive type, Ran Muqiu had never learned how to actually win an argument.

It was too late to ask 233 to download a “Debating Strategy” for him. With teary eyes, Ran Muqiu gave him a fierce glare, turned around, and bolted!

Feng Qin quickly followed.

“Why are you following me?” Ran Muqiu walked faster and faster, looking back to glare again. “Don’t you have your own things to do?”

With his height and stride, Feng Qin easily kept pace without effort. He scoffed, “These legs belong to me. I’ll go wherever I want. Since when is it your business?”

He had just enjoyed watching Ran Muqiu bristle like a startled cat, and it had put him in an excellent mood. Even those glares only gave him a strange sense of satisfaction; he almost wanted those beautiful, tear-filled eyes to look at him more.

Ran Muqiu, meanwhile, found Feng Qin incredibly troublesome and only wanted to escape.

As he walked, a wave of regret washed over him. If he’d known it would be like this, he never would have applied for a “difficulty downgrade.”

Li Zhu might have been hard to win over, but at least when he was with Li Zhu, he was the one in control!

But Feng Qin?

He’d run around like a headless fly, following the script for ages, and the guy’s “Heartbreak Value” hadn’t budged an inch. Instead, he’d been bullied for nothing.

The more he thought about it, the more aggrieved he felt. In Feng Qin’s eyes, he was probably just an easy target—a total pushover. After today’s fiasco, he’d lost every bit of dignity he had.

He sniffled and broke into a run, desperate to end the encounter.

There was a pebble on the path. Ran Muqiu didn’t see it in his haste, and his foot caught. He stumbled forward.

But the expected pain never came.

Ran Muqiu was caught steadily by a pair of arms.

His heart had nearly stopped from the fright; his breath was still ragged as he hurriedly looked up. When his gaze crashed into those familiar amber eyes, his breath nearly hitched again.

“You, why are you back?” Ran Muqiu stammered, his lips trembling. “Didn’t you take a week off?”

Standing before him was Li Zhu, whom he hadn’t seen in four days.

Li Zhu was still wearing his old school uniform. It was hard to tell if he’d grown taller or just gotten thinner, but he looked more gaunt than ever.

Li Zhu steadied him, his gaze dropping to Ran Muqiu’s reddened eyes. His eyes flickered toward the person behind them for two seconds before returning to Ran Muqiu’s face. He answered the question: “Everything finished early.”

Ran Muqiu blinked, nodding.

In the original script, the Protagonist Shou took leave for his father’s death anniversary and had to return to his hometown.

Li Zhu’s hometown was in City B, quite far from their City C. The train alone took over ten hours, followed by a four-hour bus ride to the actual village. It was an exhausting trip.

It had only been four days, and Li Zhu was back. Had he been traveling day and night?

Ran Muqiu peeked at Li Zhu and indeed saw faint red capillaries in those beautiful eyes.

For some reason, Ran Muqiu felt a sudden pang of guilt.

Because he realized this was the first meeting between the Protagonist Gong and the Protagonist Shou.

According to the original script, it was love at first sight. While it wasn’t stated explicitly, later plot points revealed that they had developed feelings for each other the moment they met.

Once the heart is stirred, one becomes sensitive—especially to the presence of a love rival. This was why the original School Bully Gong was caught out by the Protagonist Gong, even though he never admitted his feelings for the Shou publicly.

He was doomed. Li Zhu was waiting for him right here—what if Feng Qin realized there was an “inappropriate relationship” between them?

Ran Muqiu couldn’t help but glance back at Feng Qin.

But as soon as his head turned, Li Zhu’s hands were on his shoulders, turning him back.

The grip wasn’t heavy, but it was absolutely unyielding.

Ran Muqiu was stunned. Before he could react, Li Zhu took a step closer and leaned down slightly. In a low voice—as if sharing a secret, yet loud enough for all three people to hear—he said:

“I missed you a little, so I came back early.”

Ran Muqiu: “?”

Feng Qin had been about to step forward, but his footsteps halted abruptly.

He lifted his eyelids, sizing up the tall, thin boy. His gaze moved from the boy’s face down to the hand gripping Ran Muqiu’s shoulder, and the last trace of a smile finally vanished from his lips.