The Beautiful Cannon Fodder Becomes The Heartthrob of the Dating Show - Chapter 32

Chapter 32: Is He Going to Die Again?

Huo Yan wasn’t usually one to rush things, but when it came to proposing to Xu Jingchu, he gave Secretary Shen only a single day to prepare. This was because Xu Jingchu had said he would come to find him right after class tomorrow.

He wanted a legal identity that allowed him to embrace the boy whenever he pleased far too much.

Xu Jingchu was dazed and sleepy under his covers when he finally received the man’s text reply.

Good Friend: I have something to tell you tomorrow.

Xu Jingchu rubbed his tired eyes and glanced at the time on his phone.

— 00:03

Was it already this late? He remembered texting Huo Yan around ten o’clock.

His brain, jolted awake, wasn’t quite clear, so he typed based on instinct.

 I have something to tell you tomorrow too

He wanted to send Huo Yan that sticker of a rabit being pressed down for a kiss to tell him how much he liked being kissed by him, but they hadn’t added each other as friends on any apps yet…

In his half-conscious state, he sent the text without even remembering punctuation, then fell back asleep clutching his phone.

It wasn’t until Xu Jingchu woke up the next morning and saw Huo Yan’s reply that he remembered he had texted back in the middle of the night.

 Okay, goodnight.

Huo Yan had replied less than two minutes after his message was sent.

Xu Jingchu scrolled up and looked at the message that had woken him up.

 Good Friend: I have something to tell you tomorrow.

What did Huo Yan want to tell him?

Xu Jingchu didn’t dwell on it for long. In fact, because he was thinking about seeing Huo Yan after class, the curve of his lips didn’t vanish even as he stepped into the classroom.

Since he arrived early and there were several minutes before class, he pulled out his phone to reply to Huo Yan’s “goodnight” from the night before.

Good morning, Yan-gege.

A reply came almost instantly.

 Good Friend: Good morning, Chu Bao.

Watching the text that was as steady and expressionless as ever, Xu Jingchu blinked, his smile widening.

Chu Bao.

He liked it when Huo Yan called him that.

Xu Jingchu held his phone and chuckled to himself for a moment when his eyes suddenly lit up.

He quickly opened his notebook and used a pencil to sketch a few strokes, drawing a rabbit being pressed down for a kiss. Then, he took a photo of the drawing and sent it to Huo Yan.

Standard text messages couldn’t send stickers, but he could send a multimedia message (MMS).

Xu Jingchu felt excited by his own wit, his round eyes curving into beautiful crescents.

To the left of the aisle, Zhang Yihui was staring at him expressionlessly from two rows away, his gaze like a venomous snake eyeing its prey.

When Huo Yan received the MMS, he had just reached the company entrance. Looking at the lifelike “kiss” on the screen, a sense of tenderness and determination colored his eyes.

His decision was right. His Omega liked being clingy so much; he should give himself and the boy a more legitimate status.

Thinking of this, he sent a text to Secretary Shen.

Get everything ready by 5:00 PM.

Secretary Shen, who had slept less than four hours since last night: “…”

 Yan-gege, class is over! I’m coming to find you right now!

Time flew by. At 5:30 PM, Huo Yan received Xu Jingchu’s text. Even though they were just cold characters on a screen, Huo Yan could feel the boy’s joyful mood through them.

His fingertips moved as he replied.

Okay.

Secretary Shen knocked on the office door, his back straight. “Boss, the proposal site has been fully decorated.”

He looked quite proud of himself.

Huo Yan was a boss who balanced rewards and punishments: “Your bonus for this month is doubled.”

Secretary Shen instantly broke into a brilliant smile. “Boss is wise!”

The news that the Boss wasn’t working overtime today quickly spread through the company. Consequently, when Huo Yan and Secretary Shen stepped out of the elevator, they were met by rows of wide, curious eyes.

Huo Yan rarely made a joke: “The company isn’t going bankrupt. Go home when it’s time to get off work.”

Then, ignoring the stunned employees, he walked out of the building.

“Huo Yan—!”

Just as he stepped out, Huo’s second aunt and uncle, who had been lurking at the entrance, rushed toward him.

Huo Yan paused, tucked away his phone, and looked indifferently at these two elders he had once considered family. “Is something the matter?”

Likely provoked by his cold attitude, the second aunt’s expression twisted instantly. “Huo Yan! What exactly is the meaning of this? Do you still have any respect for me as your aunt?”

Huo Yan didn’t speak; his aloof expression said everything.

After the humiliation of being thrown out yesterday, the second uncle was also furious. However, as an Alpha, he was better at hiding his emotions than his wife. Maintaining the air of an elder, he said, “Xiao Yan, I don’t know what happened or what you’ve heard, but we are family. Is there anything we can’t sit down and talk about? When your parents had their accident, your aunt and I took you in. In these ten years, I believe I’ve never mistreated you and have always treated you as my own son. Now you move out without a word—shouldn’t you at least tell us why?”

Seeing him pull this act again, a mocking curve appeared on Huo Yan’s lips. “Treated me as your own son?”

The second uncle’s gaze flickered guiltily. “Did… did you hear something outside?”

“What does Uncle think I should have heard?” Huo Yan took a step forward. A mountain-like pressure bore down on them, and the aunt and uncle instinctively stepped back.

The mockery in Huo Yan’s eyes deepened. “Uncle, no one is a fool forever. Put away your underhanded schemes, or don’t blame me for disregarding old ties!” With that, he walked past them toward the black Maybach parked nearby.

The aunt’s face turned pale and then flushed. She suddenly shrieked, “It’s because of that little slut Xu Jingchu, isn’t it?”

The uncle’s face twitched; it was too late to stop her.

The aunt panted heavily. “He’s just a little slut you’ve known for a few days! Did he incite you to move out of the Huo house? Was he whispering nonsense in your ear to drive a wedge between us?”

Huo Yan turned around slowly. His gentle eyes were overtaken by frost at a visible speed.

The aunt’s words grew more vicious: “He’s just a broke ghost using any means to climb the social ladder! How can you believe him? We are family who lived under the same roof with you for ten years! He is just a shameless, divisive brat! How can you be so muddled?”

Her voice was exceptionally loud, as if she were intentionally trying to draw the attention of passersby. Since it was the end of the workday, a crowd of onlookers gathered in no time.

At the same time.

Xu Jingchu was waiting for a car at the school gate with his backpack.

Usually, there were plenty of taxis at the gate, but for some reason today, he hadn’t seen a single one after waiting for ten full minutes.

Xu Jingchu had been holding back all day; he desperately wanted to fly to Huo Yan’s side right this second. After waiting a while longer with still no car in sight, he checked his watch and decided to take the bus from the stop across the street.

He gripped his phone and stepped out onto the road.

There was a traffic light not far from the school gate, and since it was rush hour, there were inevitably many vehicles. Xu Jingchu cherished his life and was very careful when crossing.

But sometimes, being careful isn’t enough.

Just as he was crossing the intersection, a piercing roar suddenly filled his ears. Xu Jingchu looked over to see a white Mercedes-Benz flying toward him as if it were out of control.

In that instant, Xu Jingchu seemed to hear someone screaming for him to get out of the way, but his legs felt like they were filled with lead, unable to move an inch. His mind went blank.

The next second.

THUD— Xu Jingchu felt himself being launched into the air. The world spun before his eyes, and his phone slipped from his hand.

CRACK—

It wasn’t until he hit the ground with a heavy thud that he felt the pain.

The pain of every bone in his body being shattered.

Buzz, buzz, buzz— The phone on the ground hadn’t broken. The screen, now covered in a spiderweb of cracks, lit up. The caller ID showed three words: Yan-gege.

This was the nickname Xu Jingchu had just changed while leaving the classroom.

Buzz, buzz, buzz— The phone continued to vibrate persistently.

Xu Jingchu struggled to move his eyes. The phone was right there, not far away; he could reach it if he just stretched out his hand. But his hand simply wouldn’t lift.

He was bleeding so much. Everything hurt.

Xu Jingchu remembered the day he died in his previous life.

That day, he had also vomited so much blood, and his organs had been in agony. His mother had stood by the bed, covering her mouth and crying silently, while his father’s eyes were red.

Is… is he going to die again?

Xu Jingchu found it harder and harder to breathe. A sharp ringing pierced his ears. A single tear slid slowly from his eye, passing over the tear mole at the corner, and finally landed on the ground with a splat.

But he hadn’t added Huo Yan as a friend yet…

He hadn’t sent Huo Yan a real sticker yet…