I Snatched the Overbearing President’s Canary [Transmigration] - Chapter 3

Chapter 3: Sponsorship

Seeing He Shenyu suddenly come to a halt, Ning Chen asked with some hesitation.

“It’s nothing,” He Shenyu replied. He paused, then remembered something. “By the way, my name is He Shenyu—Shen as in the deep sea, Yu as on an island. You can call me by my name.”

“Alright, Boss He,” Ning Chen nodded.

One look at his expression and He Shenyu knew he hadn’t taken the offer to heart. Forget it, he thought. Given their current relationship, trying to act like friends was inappropriate anyway; it was only natural for Ning Chen to act this way.

The two walked through the long corridor and finally reached the exit.

To be honest, He Shenyu was very nervous. He didn’t know if his actions would trigger a butterfly effect. As they passed the original KTV booth, he instinctively grabbed Ning Chen’s arm and broke into a light run.

Though Ning Chen didn’t understand why, he followed his lead obediently. It wasn’t until they were almost outside that He Shenyu finally breathed a sigh of relief.

Well, he reasoned, since I’m already here, it should be normal for me to make some changes. Whatever power sent me here must be aware of that.

Shenyu even wondered if he had been pulled into this world because he had been so angry after reading the novel. Perhaps that power wanted to change Ning Chen’s life, too?

They stopped at the entrance for a moment. A sharp-eyed valet approached them with a smile. “Boss He, are you leaving? I’ll have someone bring your car around.”

“Go ahead,” He Shenyu nodded, showing the valet the digital receipt on his phone.

Thankfully, his real-life medical supervisor was a man of the world, and He Shenyu had seen enough of the procedures for valet parking at high-end hotels to avoid looking like a clueless amateur.

Truthfully, playing a role without any memories was incredibly difficult. Furthermore, this character didn’t have much “screen time” in the novel, leaving him with no reference point.

“Understood,” the valet bowed. “Please wait on the sofa over there for a moment.”

“Okay.” Shenyu led Ning Chen to the lobby sofa. Since they were practically strangers, He Shenyu didn’t really know what to say.

This was, after all, his first time “sponsoring” someone. He hadn’t exactly studied the proper etiquette for talking to one’s sponsored plaything…

Ning Chen sat beside him, his back perfectly straight. It was clearly a habit of his; even now, with his eyes downcast and looking deeply troubled, he unconsciously maintained that posture.

The novel didn’t describe much of Ning Chen’s childhood, only mentioning that the family’s finances had spiraled downward after his younger brother was born. Before that, they seemed to have lived quite well. Ning Chen’s mother was a high school teacher who had been very strict with his upbringing, so he had been a model student with excellent grades and character since he was young.

These small habits remained with him. Even sitting in a KTV lobby filled with loud punk music and garish flickering lights, he still looked remarkably refined—and therefore, somewhat out of place.

With the outfit he had been forced to change into, he didn’t look like a “caged canary” being sponsored; he looked more like a young master from a wealthy family.

To be honest, He Shenyu still found it hard to reconcile the Ning Chen before him with the “protagonist shou” from the novel. He finally understood why some transmigration stories mention the protagonist being unable to bring themselves to kill. Forget killing—when a living, breathing person is standing right in front of you, it’s hard to say anything untoward to them.

When face-to-face, even a “paper character” idol is just a stranger.

Ning Chen finally shifted. Perhaps because He Shenyu had been staring for too long, Ning Chen’s hands unconsciously balled into fists.

Shenyu felt a bit embarrassed. The “paper protagonist” was simply too good-looking; he had been staring without realizing it. Besides, even if Ning Chen weren’t handsome, He Shenyu was naturally curious about the main character of the book. His gaze held no ill intent.

However, he knew that if he told Ning Chen “I’m a good guy” right now, Ning Chen probably wouldn’t believe him. There was no way to ease the boy’s tension. He decided to turn his head away and stop looking, hoping it would make the other more comfortable.

The lights in the corridor continued to flash. Shenyu stared blankly at a spot of light. Deep in the dark hallway, several figures emerged in the distance.

At first, He Shenyu didn’t pay them much mind. But as they drew closer, he suddenly realized—Wait! Isn’t that Fu Hengzhan and his group?!

No! I can’t let him see Ning Chen!

Was the “God of Plot” forcing its hand? There was no scene like this in the book… Did they have to be together?

Shenyu grit his teeth. He wasn’t going to give in that easily!

But taking Ning Chen out now would be even more conspicuous. Besides, the car hadn’t arrived yet. What should he do?

Panic set in as the group approached rapidly. Shenyu’s first instinct was to hide Ning Chen, so he whipped off his suit jacket and draped it over the boy.

Ning Chen looked up at him in shock. Shenyu found he didn’t have the heart to just throw the jacket over the boy’s face.

What now?!

Conversations were already audible from the corridor, and the sofa they were on was directly facing the exit. If he didn’t do something now, it would be too late!

Shenyu made a split-second decision. He pressed down on Ning Chen’s shoulders, pinning him against the back of the sofa. Amidst Ning Chen’s shocked gaze, he leaned his head in close, using his own body and head to completely shield the boy from view.

The voices of the group reached his ears. It seemed Fu Hengzhan was indeed leaving.

“Hengzhan, not staying a bit longer?” “No, the driver is here.” “Alright then, until next time.” “Eh? Doesn’t that guy over there look a bit like Doctor He?” “No way. Didn’t he leave a while ago?” “Really? It actually does look like him.”

Shenyu’s heart was hammered against his ribs. In a moment of desperate ingenuity, he hurriedly reached out to cup Ning Chen’s face and tilted his head slightly, feigning a deep kiss. This way, they surely wouldn’t come over to confirm his identity, right?

“Do you really want to go check? Don’t ruin someone else’s ‘good time’…” “Haha, true…” “President Fu, leaving already?” “Let’s catch up next time!” …

The group’s voices gradually faded away. Shenyu held the pose, not daring to move until the remaining few people headed back into the corridor. Only then did he heave a sigh of relief.

Only now did he have the mental capacity to look at Ning Chen’s expression. Ning Chen looked much the same as before, but for some reason, He Shenyu felt like the boy was breaking into a cold sweat.

Ning Chen’s dark eyes were downcast; he hadn’t dared to look at He Shenyu since the “shielding” began. Only his long black lashes were visible, which, combined with the sharp bridge of his nose, gave him a cold, desolate aura.

It was only at this distance that He Shenyu noticed a tiny mole at the very end of Ning Chen’s right eyebrow. It looked like a musical rest mark drawn toward his temple—strikingly beautiful.

Then, He Shenyu noticed that the hair at Ning Chen’s temples was damp with sweat.

He was likely feeling quite uncomfortable. From his perspective, He Shenyu must have seemed like he’d suddenly lost his mind—and given the sponsorship contract they’d just signed, it was hard not to think the worst…

Thinking of this, He Shenyu scrambled back, eventually standing up completely. He looked at Ning Chen and opened his mouth, but he had no idea how to explain himself.

It was impossible to explain. Telling the protagonist of a book that his world was a novel seemed insane; no normal person would believe it. Moreover, he didn’t know if “revealing the truth” would trigger a “plot kill” from the system or the world itself.

Forget it, I’ll take the fall, he thought. As a “benefactor,” he probably didn’t have a good reputation in Ning Chen’s eyes anyway.

“Boss He, the car is here.”

The valet’s voice saved him. He breathed a sigh of relief and looked at Ning Chen. “Let’s go.”

Ning Chen stood up. “Okay.”

His voice was still slightly hoarse, as if he hadn’t quite recovered from the tension.

Shenyu cleared his throat, unable to say more, and led the way behind the valet. Ning Chen followed silently, keeping pace.

The car was one Doctor He drove himself. It made sense—if there were a chauffeur, the valet wouldn’t have needed to fetch it.

Shenyu got into the driver’s seat. Under the valet’s guidance, Ning Chen sat in the passenger seat. The entire process was terrifyingly quiet.

“Where are we going?” He Shenyu asked, breaking the silence as he looked at the dazed Ning Chen.

Ning Chen turned his head abruptly, his eyelashes fluttering upward.

He looked surprised. Shenyu realized his question was a bit strange. After all, Ning Chen was being “sponsored” by him; logically, it was up to the benefactor to decide where to go.

However, He Shenyu was thinking of the original plot. In the book, after the sponsorship was finalized, Ning Chen had begged Fu Hengzhan to take him to the hospital because his brother was about to undergo surgery.

But that chapter was so early on that He Shenyu wasn’t sure of the exact date or how much time had passed. That’s why he had asked.

The two made eye contact, remaining speechless for a long moment.

Shenyu offered a small, proactive smile. “I mean… do you need to go to the hospital?” He paused, then explained, “It was mentioned in your file…”

He trailed off. Stating someone’s private business so bluntly felt disrespectful, but he couldn’t think of any other way to clarify.

Fortunately, Ning Chen wasn’t a fool. He understood the intent immediately. He had simply been shocked; coming back to his senses, he spoke up to give thanks: “Is that okay? Thank you, Boss He.”

Though he phrased it as a question, his tone was no longer as deathly still as before. It carried a hint of the emotion a person his age should have. It was as if a precious gem had regained its luster, making him seem even more striking.

Shenyu lowered his head, stunned for a second before turning away. “Then we’ll go to the hospital first,” he summarized.

He started the engine, though his mind was still a bit foggy.

No wonder he’s a 2D protagonist, he thought. That kind of aura and appearance didn’t even feel real. A slight smile made him look like an angel descending to earth.

As a fan of beautiful things, He Shenyu found it a bit hard to handle. Truly, you can’t stare at handsome guys for too long, or you’ll lose focus on your work…

Beep—

A car in the parking space ahead signaled a turn. Shenyu stepped on the brake, finally snapping out of it. He stopped his wandering thoughts; he needed to focus on driving.

The car moved quietly through the streets. Since neither spoke, the sound of Ning Chen’s phone vibrating in his pocket was very obvious.

After waiting for a while without hearing any movement, He Shenyu glanced over. “Aren’t you going to answer it?”

Only then did Ning Chen carefully pull a phone with a cracked screen from his pocket. He gave He Shenyu a small nod. “I’ll take it.”

He raised the phone to his ear. For a long time, he didn’t say a word, only offering a few quiet “mhm”s.

Shenyu frowned. He suddenly wondered: was Ning Chen’s current submissiveness an act?

Even having read the original work, he couldn’t give a definitive answer. The later plot was so tragic that he had no lasting impression of the “early stage” Ning Chen.

But looking at him now, with his fingers nervously pinching the hem of his shirt—if this was a performance, it was so meticulous the guy should have been an actor.

Then again, the Ning Chen of the later chapters was anything but cowardly…

From 2D to 3D, it really was a different world. At this thought, He Shenyu let out a soft sigh.

Can I ever go back to my own world?

“Boss He, what’s wrong?” Ning Chen, still holding his phone, turned his head and asked softly.