The Cannon Fodder is Always Coveted by the Paranoid Protagonist [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 2

Gui Wen’s face flushed uncontrollably. However, Zong Xian merely delivered a light slap across his lower abdomen, leaving behind a faint red mark from the strike. “Do not play any tricks in front of me.”

Zong Xian’s slap wasn’t heavy, but Gui Wen could still feel the pain. Zong Xian casually pulled the thin quilt from the bed and draped it over Gui Wen, just covering that fair stretch of his body.

Gui Wen watched with his own eyes as Zong Xian left the room. Not long after, the family doctor arrived to check on him, gave him an injection, prescribed some Western medicine, and instructed him to rest well. He obediently took the pills, lay back down, covered himself with the quilt, and closed his eyes.

[Host, the hatred value of the target has not changed. System O0O reminds you: if the hatred value does not reach one hundred percent, the final task cannot be triggered. Please take note.]

Before Gui Wen could even fall asleep, the system proactively instilled information into his mind. Was Zong Xian’s endurance toward him simply too strong? He was almost reaching his limit with himself, yet the hatred value refused to go up. [If it cannot be triggered, does that mean I will never be able to leave this world?]

[The system’s energy is limited and cannot allow the host to stay in one world forever. If the host fails to trigger and complete the ultimate task, you will default to the lowest rating, and the host will need to spend much more time clearing the radiation from your body.]

That wasn’t too terrible, after all. Gui Wen peacefully closed his eyes once more.

Zong Xian just finished his phone call with the family doctor when Chen Sulu sent him a WeChat voice message, asking if the eldest young master, having just returned to the country, would like to come over to their usual spot for a couple of drinks tonight.

He had no particular reason to refuse, so as soon as night fell, he met up with Chen Sulu at the agreed-upon time.

Chen Sulu booked the largest private room in the bar. Zong Xian sat down in the empty seat beside him and ordered his usual cocktail.

“I heard foreigners are notoriously difficult to deal with, yet you managed to secure the deal anyway. Young Master Zong has quite the capability.” Chen Sulu handed the glass to Zong Xian, signaling a toast. “This drink counts as celebrating your smooth return to the country.”

Zong Xian clinked glasses with him symbolically. “It’s not that exaggerated.”

“Young Master Zong is far too modest,” Chen Sulu said, wrapping an arm around the waist of the girl sitting beside him while the glass in his other hand clinked against Zong Xian’s again. “Ever since I asked you to be my investment consultant a few months ago, my principal has multiplied dozens of times over. The old man has even cut back on scolding me as a wasteful parasite.”

“You should get a proper job too.” Zong Xian put down his glass and smiled.

“Can I just do whatever I want? It’s all because of my old man. Ever since I messed up, he hasn’t allowed me to set foot in the company even half a step. Am I even his biological son anymore?” Chen Sulu let out an imperceptible sigh, but quickly adjusted his mood and kissed the cheek of the girl next to him. “Alright, we’re out to have fun today. Let’s not talk about this.”

With that, he crooked his finger at the other girls sitting across from them. “All of you come over here and see who can make our Young Master Zong happy.”

Just as the girls rose from the sofa, Zong Xian waved a hand. “No need.”

“None to your liking? Do you want me to call a few more?” Chen Sulu was just about to press the bell to call for service when Zong Xian stopped him. “I’m not interested.”

Unlike Chen Sulu, who enjoyed interacting with all sorts of girls, whether they were well-bred young ladies from equal family backgrounds or women from nightlife establishments, Zong Xian was different. Whenever he mentioned not being interested in those things, Chen Sulu always assumed he simply hadn’t run across the right match, even asking if women weren’t suitable and if they should call a few boys to liven things up, offering both muscular and slender types.

Quite unsuitably, Zong Xian thought of Yan Guanbai’s watery, misty eyes, which looked as pitiful as an injured little animal, making him unable to resist reaching out to touch them.

He raised his eyes for a rare moment to sweep over the girls sitting across from him. Not a single pair of eyes possessed the power to capture his attention quite like Yan Guanbai’s.

This was highly abnormal.

“What’s wrong?” Chen Sulu noticed his anomaly and nudged his shoulder. “If you don’t like men, just say it straight. Don’t sit there looking like you’ve lost your soul.”

Zong Xian picked up the cocktail glass on the table and drained several cups in one breath as if possessed. If Chen Sulu hadn’t stopped him, he probably would have finished all the alcohol on the table.

“Hey, you…”

“Let them all leave.” Zong Xian put down the empty glass with a deliberate composure.

Chen Sulu hurriedly told the girls to leave first, even shooing away the one he was holding, while remembering to stuff a tip into each of their hands. “Who on earth pissed you off?”

Zong Xian remained silent, leaving Chen Sulu to guess on his own: “Could it be that adopted brother of yours…”

“Do not mention him.” Zong Xian put on his suit jacket, a rare crack finally appearing in his otherwise flawless composure.

“Hah,” Chen Sulu wasn’t annoyed by his attitude. He had heard plenty of deeds regarding Yan Guanbai and fully understood why Zong Xian would find him unpleasant. “Sounds like he really is disgusting.”

Gossip about Yan Guanbai was widespread within their small circle, and Chen Sulu had caught wind of it out of curiosity. When Zong Xian was talking business with a client and trying to please them by having a few people accompany them, Yan Guanbai had sneaked in and brazenly sat right on Zong Xian’s lap in public, forcing the latter to pretend everything was normal.

“Tell me, did you hit him?” Chen Sulu forced himself to hold back a laugh. “They all say the eldest brother is like a father. Why don’t you discipline him a bit?”

What crossed Zong Xian’s mind was the slap he had delivered to Yan Guanbai’s lower abdomen during the day. That waist had felt so slender it seemed as though it would snap with a single pinch, and the skin was so fair that it easily retained marks, which indeed proved to be the case. Driven by some inexplicable impulse, he hadn’t had the heart to strike with full force, but it had still left a red mark.

“Why does your face look so terrible? Looks like you didn’t hit him after all, didn’t vent your anger?” Chen Sulu leaned in to scrutinize Zong Xian’s face.

“I’m leaving.” Zong Xian stood up from the sofa without warning, making a rare early exit.

“Oh, go ahead then,” Chen Sulu couldn’t help laughing. “Go back and give him a good beating. Hit him harder.”

After waking up, Gui Wen found a thermometer in the room and took his temperature. It had dropped a little, but he hadn’t completely broken the fever yet, but at least he now had the strength to move around freely.

The system hadn’t assigned him any new tasks yet, but Gui Wen knew very well that he still needed to continue seducing Zong Xian, provoking the other’s aversion, and maxing out the hatred value.

The target of his task was absent, leaving this period entirely at Gui Wen’s disposal. He placed the thermometer back into its box. Suddenly, the white cat that usually curled up in its cat bed wandered over from goodness knows where, raised a paw, and batted the thermometer right out of his hand.

Gui Wen got out of bed to pick the item up. Fortunately, it was still inside its plastic case, otherwise it would have shattered long ago.

He carried the white cat aside, put the thermometer back into the drawer, and then gave the at-least-ten-year-old old cat a thorough, serious examination. How could it still be so mischievous at such an advanced age?

The white cat let out a meow toward Gui Wen. Gui Wen knew that Yan Guanbai didn’t like cats, usually ignoring it completely while the servants handled its care and feeding.

“What’s wrong, kitty?” Gui Wen reached out and stroked the cat’s head.

[Host, the servant who takes care of it has taken a leave of absence. No one is paying attention to it, so it’s probably hungry.]

Although he didn’t know whether the white cat could understand human speech, Gui Wen still asked, “Is kitty hungry?”

The white cat let out another meow, as if responding to Gui Wen.

Gui Wen scooped the cat into his arms and soothed it a few times before placing it back into its cat bed. “Wait for me here a moment. I’ll go find you something to eat.”

He found the square-framed glasses he usually wore on the bedside table, settled them back onto the bridge of his nose, and then pulled open the wardrobe to change into a daily short-sleeved shirt.

Considering he was still recovering from illness, Gui Wen picked out a thin jacket to wear for warmth.

Tying his hair up simply, Gui Wen followed the memories instilled by the system and checked the spot where the servants usually stored cat food, only to find an empty packaging bag left in the corner. He cleared out the trash, looked up, and noticed the sky looked overcast and gray, as if it were about to rain.

[Where can I buy cat food nearby?] Gui Wen asked the system.

[Host, you can have a servant do it for you.]

Just as Gui Wen walked downstairs, the servants he crossed along the way were all busy with their own tasks; by the time they had free time to go buy cat food, who knew how late it would be? Therefore, he rejected the system’s suggestion.

The next second, O0O initiated nearby navigation, allowing Gui Wen to clearly see the route to the nearest pet shop in his mind. [Information on suitable cat food varieties has been provided. Please refer to it, host.]

Yan Guanbai possessed a driver’s license, and Gui Wen himself knew how to drive, so he immediately decided to head to the villa’s parking lot to fetch a car. These vehicles were managed by dedicated personnel, and since the villa’s owner had never stated they couldn’t be touched, Yan Guanbai was free to drive any of them out. He checked the trunk and found a black umbrella stored horizontally inside, meaning he wouldn’t be caught in a panic if it rained.

Gui Wen input the pet shop name recommended by the system into the navigation, arrived at his destination within a dozen minutes, purchased the cat food, and began his return trip.

After parking the car, the sky indeed opened up with a torrential downpour. Gui Wen unfolded the umbrella from the trunk and walked on foot toward the villa building.

Back in his room, Gui Wen stopped by the cat bed and discovered the white cat was nowhere to be seen. Thinking the little thing might have hidden away in some corner, he first filled a bowl with food to lure the cat, making a few cat-calling noises himself: “Kitty, come eat, there’s delicious food here, meow…”

The white cat never appeared.

“Meow?” Gui Wen began searching everywhere inside the room, continuously mimicking cat meows with his mouth.

Until he heard the unfamiliar cry of a cat sounding from outside his door.

Yan Guanbai’s room had an auxiliary door leading straight out to the back courtyard. Gui Wen realized then that he hadn’t closed the door tightly when he left, and the cat might have accidentally slipped outside because of it.

Under the gray, stormy skies pouring with heavy rain, Gui Wen completely disregarded his ongoing low-grade fever and rushed straight into the back courtyard without a second thought.

“Meow?” Gui Wen’s hair clung wetly to his cheeks as he continually called out, “Meow? Where are you?”

He waded through the bushes and flowers, finally managing to find a little ball of fur huddled beneath an old tree. Its entire body was soaked through, with mud clinging to its snow-white fur, making it look thoroughly filthy.

Gui Wen hurriedly stripped off his own jacket, wrapped it around the white cat, scooped it into his arms, and ran back toward the room.

In his anxiety, he failed to watch where he was going ahead. Before running far, he collided straight into a dark, solid obstacle, causing the white cat in his arms to let out a startled mew.

The raindrops above his head suddenly vanished. Gui Wen looked up, only to discover it was Zong Xian, dressed in black casual wear, standing before him with an umbrella that happened to block out the falling rain above.

“Get up.”

Zong Xian spoke coldly.

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