I Really Am a Scumbag Bottom [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 8

The next plot point was the Golden Autumn Gala. Li Yihan would be taking Qi Yuan to attend, and this would be the first time Qi Yuan encountered Li Yihan’s arch-rival—Chang Qing.

The first meeting wasn’t difficult; he just needed to exchange a few words with Chang Qing to leave him with the impression that Qi Yuan was someone who looked innocent on the surface but was actually quite wanton deep down.

Chi Zhao noted this down. The System then asked what he planned to do next. Li Yihan had taken away the bugged watch—presumably, after discovering Qi Yuan “liked” him, his last shred of suspicion had vanished, replaced by a faint sense of guilt. He likely felt too embarrassed to keep tracking Qi Yuan’s movements.

Don’t let Li Yihan’s thirty-two years and battle-hardened appearance fool you; when it came to matters of the heart, he was incredibly green.

Chi Zhao put his hands on his hips and declared that after receiving Qi Yuan’s suggestive “confession,” Li Yihan was bound to be flustered. He’d probably slip away before dawn and wait a full month for his emotions to settle before daring to show his face again.

The System was highly skeptical of this theory.

【The one who would do that in this situation is probably you, right?】

Chi Zhao: “Shut up.”

When he woke up the next day, Chi Zhao indeed didn’t see Li Yihan. Uncle Zhang mentioned that he had left for the company at the crack of dawn. Chi Zhao spent the day showing off to the System at school, and upon returning home, he hummed a tune as he went to check on his “son.”

Fatty’s scalp went numb the moment he saw him. Being petted so many times, he was practically going bald.

Before the person even arrived, his scent preceded him. Sensing Qi Yuan’s presence, Fatty bolted like a streak of lightning. Chi Zhao was quick, performing a “monkey catching the moon” maneuver to scoop the kitten into his arms.

“Running the moment you see your father? Do you not want to make it in this world? Your father is studying hard every day for your sake—why don’t you show some consideration for your hardworking old man?”

As Chi Zhao was earnestly critiquing Fatty, a voice suddenly rang out from above. “Old man? Weren’t you his big brother just two days ago?”

Chi Zhao looked up dazed. Li Yihan was walking down the stairs, looking ready to go out.

“Mr. Li, where are you going?”

Li Yihan looked into his eyes. The boy seemed perfectly calm—no shyness or embarrassment whatsoever. This was good; he didn’t want Qi Yuan to harbor any resentment because of what happened.

Li Yihan replied tonelessly, “Dinner with an old friend. There’s a gala next Saturday; you’re coming along. Be prepared.”

Chi Zhao agreed immediately. “Understood. Then, Mr. Li, please stay safe on the road.”

Li Yihan gave a slight nod. He took two steps forward, pausing for a fraction of a second when he reached Chi Zhao’s side, as if hesitating over something. But the pause vanished so quickly that no one noticed but him. Chi Zhao, still clutching Fatty, watched Li Yihan depart.

Two days later, Duan Bo returned to school. Walking down the path at noon, Chi Zhao and Duan Bo crossed paths. The look in Duan Bo’s eyes was one of both wariness and hatred. He desperately wanted to give Qi Yuan a brutal beating, but for one, he couldn’t actually win a fight against him.

And two, Qi Yuan was now Li Yihan’s heir. He couldn’t touch him. If he did, the next person to beat him to death wouldn’t be Li Yihan, but his own father.

The story of Duan Bo’s humiliation spread like wildfire through their social circles. Zhou Hetian reversed his previous attitude and began to show great concern for Chi Zhao. He was very skilled at gauging the distance—never making Chi

Zhao feel he was sucking up, yet never letting him feel neglected. Remembering the System’s words that Zhou Hetian was a future “fling,” Chi Zhao didn’t reject his advances. Over time, they created a facade of being good friends.

Although Li Yihan didn’t stay away for half a month to avoid him as Chi Zhao had predicted, the frequency of his home visits did decrease. He used to return every day; now, it was once every two or three days.

In Li Yihan’s absence, Chi Zhao didn’t have to maintain his persona of “deeply affectionate on the outside, wanton scum on the inside.” He lived a life of absolute comfort. But while he was comfortable, Li Yihan was becoming increasingly displeased.

Sitting in his office, hearing yet another report from his subordinate about Qi Yuan, Li Yihan asked with forced patience, “Just studying?”

The subordinate scratched his head. “Besides studying, the Young Master watched half an hour of TV yesterday. He watched it while holding his son.”

Li Yihan was silent for a moment. “How is his mood?”

“Quite good,” the subordinate smiled. “The Young Master is an optimistic person; he’s very positive about life. He smiles at everyone. He even greets me when he sees me.”

Li Yihan’s brow furrowed. “How does he greet you?”

The subordinate recalled, cleared his throat, and began to mimic Chi Zhao. He gave a small smile and mimed holding something. “Are you still here this late? You work so hard. Would you like this bottle of milk?”

The imitation finished, the subordinate returned to his usual poker face.

Li Yihan looked at him expressionlessly. “Did you drink it?”

The subordinate gave an embarrassed smile. “No. That’s the Young Master’s favorite; he drinks a bottle every night before bed. How could I drink it?”

“Good,” Li Yihan curled his lips slightly, then his expression instantly turned cold. “Now get out.”

Subordinate: “…”

Assistant Zhao: “…”

The boss was becoming more temperamental by the day. Assistant Zhao was baffled, but then it clicked: it seemed the boss was most volatile whenever he heard reports about Qi Yuan’s daily life. Zhao Bin asked tentatively, “Boss, did Qi Yuan do something to upset you?”

“No.”

Though he said no, Li Yihan’s expression clearly soured by another notch. Having found the crux of the problem, Zhao Bin felt he knew what to do. He suggested, “How about I go and give him a reminder? Someone Qi Yuan’s age is like a newborn calf—he doesn’t know the ways of the world and probably thinks this is still his orphanage. Once I speak to him, he won’t offend you again.”

Li Yihan lifted his gaze and looked at him blankly.

Zhao Bin: “Or, you could go back and remind him yourself.”

Li Yihan kept that same look, making Zhao Bin’s skin crawl. He felt as though he were seconds away from being fired. Suddenly, he heard Li Yihan say, “Fine. I’m going back now. Cancel my afternoon schedule.”

Li Yihan’s expression was no longer terrifying. Zhao Bin watched dazed as he stood up leisurely and left the office. It took a long while for the realization to dawn on him.

He had, probably, maybe said the right thing. But what part was right?

Zhao Bin was lost in thought.

Actually, forget Zhao Bin—even Li Yihan didn’t understand what was going on with him. Staying away was supposed to give Qi Yuan space to calm down and realize his feelings were gratitude, not love. But while he was away, he couldn’t help but wonder what Qi Yuan was doing—whether he was so heartbroken he couldn’t eat or sleep.

As it turned out, he was overthinking it. Qi Yuan wasn’t losing any sleep. On the contrary, his appetite was even better than when Li Yihan was home; he was eating half a bowl more at every meal.

The thought of it made Li Yihan deeply annoyed. Furthermore, the boy was using the milk he bought to play nice with the subordinates? Was that appropriate? Qi Yuan had never even offered him any milk!

On the drive home, he didn’t let the driver take the wheel, choosing to drive himself. The focused, quiet atmosphere was perfect for thinking things through. But the moment that thought surfaced, Li Yihan fell silent.

The man who was just shouting for milk definitely wasn’t him. Yes, definitely not.

Chi Zhao only had morning classes today, so he was home by noon. After lunch, he sat in a giant beanbag chair by the floor-to-ceiling window to read. The beanbag was so soft and fluffy that he felt as if he were being swallowed by it. Fatty was sprawled beside him, basking in the sun. Every few pages, Chi Zhao would give Fatty’s rump a little pet.

When a cat lives under someone else’s roof, it has to learn to bow its head. Besides, there was plenty of fur on his butt; if the “shoveler” wanted to pet it, let him.

In just one week, Fatty had achieved a state of Zen. His tail flicked lazily back and forth. Chi Zhao, wearing a white turtleneck sweater, stroked his fur rhythmically. Warm sunlight poured through the window, bathing the boy and the cat in a golden glow.

This was the scene Li Yihan encountered upon his return. He stood at the door, still carrying the chill of the outside air. Hearing the door open, both Qi Yuan and Fatty looked up. Seeing who it was, Qi Yuan blinked and immediately broke into a radiant smile.

“Mr. Li, you’re home so early!”