The Scum Gong Refuses the Crematorium [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 21.1

“Sheng Yan!”

“Have you lost your mind?!”

“How dare you provoke him!”

As Sheng Yan regained his senses, he saw a middle-aged man in his late forties or fifties pointing at him, his face red with anger.

Information about his current body’s life automatically appeared in his mind.

Sheng Yan was the only son of the Sheng family in Jinghai City. His parents had spoiled him since he was a child, making him an arrogant and reckless young master.

He had a close childhood friend named Xie Qingyao. Xie was the son of Professor Xie, a famous calligrapher. Since childhood, Qingyao was skilled in calligraphy and oil painting.

When Sheng Yan was kidnapped as a child, it was Qingyao who quickly notified the adults, saving Sheng Yan’s life.

Because of this, the two families became even closer. As Sheng Yan and Xie Qingyao grew up and got along well, the parents secretly agreed on an arranged marriage. They were just waiting for a lucky day to hold the wedding.

Then, an accident happened.

The Sheng family’s business ran into trouble.

Their funding chain broke.

Sheng Yan’s father was so stressed that his hair turned white. Although the Xie family wanted to help, it was difficult for them to provide such a large amount of money quickly.

Fortunately, during a drum performance, Sheng Yan met a powerful figure in the financial world: Lu Mingyue.

Lu Mingyue was also very interested in drums.

The two of them got along quite well.

They kept in touch privately and often met to watch drum performances together.

The Sheng family business desperately needed a huge amount of money. After asking all their friends and relatives and finding no help, Sheng Yan suddenly thought of Lu Mingyue.

In Jinghai City, everyone knew Lu Mingyue.

He was the top financial giant. It was said that any project he invested in never lost money.

He was even nicknamed the “Stock God.”

One could only imagine how rich he was.

Although the Sheng family was wealthy, they were nothing compared to Lu Mingyue, who could spend billions of dollars easily.

By chance, Sheng Yan’s rock band had recently worked with Lu Mingyue on a small city tour, so they were on friendly terms.

Being young and overconfident, the young master Sheng Yan went directly to Lu Mingyue to ask for a loan.

In his mind, Lu Mingyue was so rich; why wouldn’t he lend a little to a friend?

It wasn’t like he wouldn’t pay it back.

Besides, they had a business partnership. If he couldn’t pay it back, the worst that could happen was that he would play the drums for Lu Mingyue for the rest of his life.

Anyway, Lu Mingyue seemed to enjoy watching him play.

Sheng Yan thought it through and believed Lu Mingyue would agree. After all, the money he needed was a small amount to someone like Lu Mingyue.

Events unfolded just as Sheng Yan expected.

When Lu Mingyue heard the amount Sheng Yan wanted to borrow, he didn’t even blink. “I can lend you the money, but what will you give me in return?”

Sheng Yan told Lu Mingyue his ideas.

Lu Mingyue laughed immediately. “Forget about how long it would take your family to pay back the principal. Even if you played the drums for a lifetime, you probably couldn’t even pay off the interest.”

Sheng Yan didn’t expect Lu Mingyue to ask for interest. His mind went blank, and he asked, “Then what do you want in exchange for the money?”

At that moment, Lu Mingyue looked at Sheng Yan with a gaze that was hard to read. It contained calmness, restraint, memory, and longing.

He was looking at Sheng Yan, but it also felt like he was looking at someone else through him.

It was so complex that it made Sheng Yan’s skin crawl.

Sure enough, a moment later, Lu Mingyue smiled sadly.

He said, “I want you.”

Sheng Yan didn’t understand at first. “Want me to do what?”

Lu Mingyue said calmly, “I want you to marry me.”

No matter how much Sheng Yan had guessed, he never expected this. He exploded instantly: “You’re a freak!”

In this world, same-sex marriage was allowed.

People accepted it well. Otherwise, the Sheng and Xie families wouldn’t have suggested a marriage just because the two boys played well together.

But how old was Lu Mingyue!

He was 37 years old!

Not 27, not 17, but 37!

He was old enough to be his father!

Even if an older man wanted a younger partner, this was too much.

Sheng Yan was only 22. Thinking about the age gap, he could not accept marrying an “old man.”

Even though Lu Mingyue looked very well-maintained, elegant, and stylish—if he didn’t tell anyone, no one would think he was nearly 40—Sheng Yan still couldn’t accept it.

It felt like selling himself, and to an old man at that.

Lu Mingyue was relaxed about it. “It’s okay if you can’t accept it now. I can wait until you do.”

Sheng Yan thought Lu Mingyue was crazy. He even started to suspect that Lu Mingyue only liked watching drums because he was targeting him.

Thinking about this made Sheng Yan feel sick.

However, his family’s business really couldn’t wait. If they didn’t get the money soon, they would have to file for bankruptcy.

Once they went bankrupt, he would have nothing.

His luxury cars, famous watches, and sneakers—all the things that were easy to get in the past would become like a dream he could never touch.

He couldn’t accept that.

What he couldn’t accept even more was Xie Qingyao’s attitude.

They grew up together. Because his family was richer than the Xie family, the Xie family always needed to use his family’s venues and connections for calligraphy or oil painting exhibitions.

He had always acted superior to Xie Qingyao.

Now, their positions were about to flip.

In the future, Xie Qingyao would look down on him.

He couldn’t accept that either.

In short, Sheng Yan did not want to live a miserable life after bankruptcy, but he also didn’t want to agree to Lu Mingyue.

So, he chose a middle ground.

He would pretend to agree to Lu Mingyue to get the money first, and then he would stall.

After all, you can’t just get married instantly.

Shouldn’t they date first and build some feelings?

And since he had his own two legs, he could go wherever he wanted. As long as he didn’t walk into the Civil Affairs Bureau, could Lu Mingyue really force him?

Regarding this request, Lu Mingyue just smiled slightly and nodded in agreement without saying much.

This made Sheng Yan feel very relieved.

He touched his own face and sighed.

Sometimes, being handsome is a burden; even someone like Lu Mingyue couldn’t escape his charm.

But he was too naive.

If Lu Mingyue were that easy to deal with, he wouldn’t be the top financial boss in Jinghai.

When the Sheng family passed the bankruptcy crisis, Sheng Yan tried to ignore Lu Mingyue, pretending the deal never happened.

Lu Mingyue took action immediately.

First, he stopped the bank loans to the Sheng family. Then, the Sheng family, which had just started to recover, faced boycotts from various industries. Even worse, their stocks kept falling.

This was more painful than bankruptcy.

Especially since they had just seen hope of growing even larger because of Lu Mingyue’s help.

The feeling of having hope and then having it crushed was a bigger blow than going bankrupt in the first place.

Sheng Yan knew he couldn’t hide it anymore. He finally told his father, Sheng Rongxing, about the deal with Lu Mingyue.

Sheng Rongxing originally thought Lu Mingyue helped because of his friendship with Sheng Yan.

He never imagined there was such a deal behind it.

And when he heard that Sheng Yan tried to trick Lu Mingyue after taking the money, he was furious and shouted at Sheng Yan.

“It’s one thing that you waste your time playing drums, but how could you be so naive to think Lu Mingyue is easy to fool?!”

Sheng Rongxing was so angry he almost had a heart attack.

If the family went bankrupt because of a business mistake, he wouldn’t blame anyone.

But Sheng Yan was arrogant and full of lies. Tricking his own family was one thing, but he dared to try to scam people outside.

To be hated by someone like Lu Mingyue meant it would be hard for their family to ever rise again!

When Sheng Yan first traveled into this body, he was still receiving the memories and didn’t know what was happening.

Listening to Sheng Rongxing’s accusations, he said nothing.

“That’s enough,” Sheng Yan’s mother, Chen Lijun, saw her son sitting silently. Her face was full of pity. She said to Sheng Rongxing, “I think Yan Yan knows he was wrong. Stop scolding him.”

“Stop scolding him! This is exactly how a ‘kind mother’ ruins a child! I clearly haven’t scolded him enough, which is why he is so bold and provokes everyone!”

“Now look! He provoked Lu Mingyue. The company is a mess, and how are we going to explain this to Qingyao?!”

“This…” Chen Lijun was also worried.

They loved Xie Qingyao, whom they had watched grow up. Now, the Xie family was also angry.

Originally, the Xie family felt guilty for not being able to help the Sheng family. Later, when Sheng Yan solved the problem through Lu Mingyue, Xie’s parents praised Sheng Yan for being capable.

They said he was young but could take responsibility for his family, and that his future was limitless.

They made it sound like they valued him very much.

This made the Sheng parents feel very proud.

But as soon as the deal between Sheng Yan and Lu Mingyue was exposed, the Xie family’s attitude changed instantly. Especially Xie Qingyao, who was happily waiting to marry Sheng Yan. Upon hearing the news, he angrily tore up the wedding clothes: “Since Brother Sheng Yan has made a marriage deal with someone else, our engagement is over.”

He looked truly angry, not like he was faking it.

It seemed he really didn’t want the marriage anymore.

Xie’s parents also said, “We liked Sheng Yan, but he shouldn’t treat his marriage like a game just to help his family, especially when he already had an engagement.”

“Mr. Sheng, look at this mess, sigh!”

Sheng Rongxing’s face was burning with shame. Although they didn’t say it directly, they were clearly implying that Sheng Yan was immature.

A father is responsible for his son’s faults.

When the Xie family criticized Sheng Yan, they were also criticizing him.

At the same time, System 1088 spoke in Sheng Yan’s mind: “Mission plot transmission complete. Please follow the system task: firmly resist Lu Mingyue, who has bad intentions, win back Xie Qingyao’s feelings, and successfully reach a Happy Ending with him!”

“Win back Xie Qingyao’s feelings?”

Sheng Yan found it funny. “Do you think with my family’s current situation, I can win him back? Even if I talk until my lips bleed, they won’t care. How can I win him back?”

Sheng Yan saw things clearly. Did the Xie parents value him?

No.

They valued the Sheng family’s wealth and Sheng Yan’s future ability to benefit them. Without those things, he was nothing to them.

Did Xie Qingyao love Sheng Yan?

Sheng Yan didn’t think so.

When the Sheng family was going bankrupt, could the Xie family really not help at all? They had less money, but they had many connections.

They held art exhibitions for years and met many people through the Sheng family. They knew just as many people as the Sheng family did.

Plus, because they were famous, many rich people came to buy their art.

If the Xie family really wanted to help, they could have helped the Sheng family get a loan from others.

But they just watched.

Even Xie Qingyao only said: “Don’t worry, Brother Sheng Yan, I will stay by your side no matter what.”

His “staying by his side” turned into this after learning about Lu Mingyue’s loan: “Brother Sheng Yan, you promised someone else right when we were about to get married. What are we to each other?”

“Brother Sheng Yan, I think we both need some space.”

One “need some space” cancelled out his promise to stay by his side forever.

Of course, that was his right.

Sheng Yan wouldn’t blame him, but if the system wanted him to win that relationship back, Sheng Yan thought it was unnecessary.

Being alone and successful was better.

System 1088: “But you and Xie Qingyao are the official couple! He even saved you when you were little.”

“So?” Sheng Yan reached out to touch his long hair, but finding it was short, he put his hand down. “Does that mean I must give him my body in return?”

He wasn’t used to life without his old assistant.

“The help the Sheng family gave his family over the years is enough to pay back that debt,” Sheng Yan said coldly. “Besides, who knows what really happened back then.”

Maybe the kidnapping was actually the childhood friend’s fault?

After all, two kids were playing together, and the Xie family was also rich. Why did the kidnappers only take Sheng Yan and not both?

With Sheng Yan’s years of experience as a villain, if he were a kidnapper, he would never let the other one go.

System 1088 couldn’t answer. “Then what do you plan to do?”

Sheng Yan didn’t answer the system. Instead, while his parents were worrying, he suddenly spoke: “I will just agree to marry Lu Mingyue.”

Since this started because of him, it should end because of him.

“You?” Sheng Rongxing didn’t expect Sheng Yan to speak up. He laughed, “How are you so sure Lu Mingyue will still want you?”

Usually, when powerful people are tricked, they get angry. Why would he take you back?

Sheng Yan said, “He left a way out.”

If the man were truly angry enough to destroy him, Sheng Rongxing wouldn’t be standing here scolding him; he would be out begging for help.

Since Sheng Rongxing was still here worrying, it meant there was still a chance to negotiate.

Sheng Rongxing must still have a small card to play.

But he didn’t know if that card could beat Lu Mingyue, and even if it could, his family might be ruined anyway.

So, he was hesitating.

And Lu Mingyue was waiting. He was waiting for Sheng Rongxing to either fight him to the death or for Sheng Yan to say yes.

Sheng Yan looked at his parents, who were stressed and had white hair. He wasn’t their real son, so he couldn’t love them perfectly.

But since there was an easy way to fix this, why choose the hard path?

Sheng Rongxing didn’t expect Sheng Yan to see that Lu Mingyue had left a way out.

He paused. “Didn’t you say he was too old?”

There was a 15-year difference between Lu Mingyue and Sheng Yan. If it were five or ten years, Sheng Rongxing would hesitate, but 15 years…

That was too much.

Sheng Yan smiled. “But he is rich enough.”

Having traveled through many worlds, Sheng Yan didn’t care about age gaps anymore.

If he really thought about it, the other guy was the one losing out, because Sheng Yan was actually an “old monster” who had lived for countless years.

Besides, Sheng Yan felt the man didn’t necessarily have romantic feelings for him.

In the original owner’s memory, he didn’t see any love in Lu Mingyue’s eyes.

A contract marriage would be even better.

A piece of paper: he gets the money, Sheng Yan does the job. Is there any easier way?

“…But, what about Qingyao?” Sheng Rongxing still cared about Sheng Yan. He wasn’t selling his son for money; he was thinking of his future happiness.

“Didn’t he already say it?” Sheng Yan was very calm. “Our marriage is cancelled.”

Chen Lijun said, “Maybe he was just angry. If you go and comfort him, he might change his mind.”

As a woman, Chen Lijun was more emotional. She felt it was natural for Xie Qingyao to be angry, and if Sheng Yan explained, he would come back.

Sheng Yan refused: “There’s no need.”

Sheng Yan never had the habit of comforting people. People he “comforted” were usually dead or ruined. Did Xie Qingyao really want his comfort?

Seeing Sheng Yan’s firm attitude, Chen Lijun couldn’t say anything more.

Sheng Rongxing looked at his unusually calm son, feeling like he didn’t recognize him. “Are you sure you won’t regret this?”

If he agreed, it would be like joining Lu Mingyue’s family. Sheng Rongxing wasn’t sure if Sheng Yan could handle that loss of pride.

Sheng Yan nodded. “I’m sure.”

Compared to the effort of fighting Lu Mingyue and trying to make money to please Xie Qingyao, marrying Lu Mingyue solved everything at once. Why would he regret it?

“…Sigh!” Seeing that Sheng Yan had suddenly grown up and become rational, Sheng Rongxing walked around the room and finally sighed. “Fine, I will contact him.”

Sheng Yan thought: Whether he still wants me is another story.

On the other side, Xie Qingyao was also nervous.

He asked his system: “System, is this really okay?”

System 766 answered: “It’s fine.”

Its mission had failed in the last world, and the “World Consciousness” had noticed it. The High God deleted its previous host and gave the system one last chance to fix its mistake. If it failed this time, it would be deleted.

To avoid the same mistake, it didn’t choose someone from outside this time; it found a local person.