The System Forces Me to Be a Scumbag Male Lead [Quick Transmigration] - Chapter 4

A dim incandescent bulb hung from the living room ceiling, swaying occasionally with the wind blowing into the house.

Beneath it stood a square table covered with a faded, floral-printed mat that was wiped reasonably clean. Three dishes sat on the table—two meat and one vegetable. The food was no longer steaming, its freshly cooked brilliance completely lost under the dim light.

A woman with a sallow complexion sat by the table.

She looked to be in her forties. Her frizzy hair was tied back casually with a black hair tie, and the collar of her brown shirt was frayed. The hands resting on the table beneath her short sleeves were calloused and rough—clearly the hands of someone accustomed to hard labor.

She looked up at the wall clock, glanced out the window at the sky, and finally turned her gaze to Sang Xiaoshi, who was writing on the living room coffee table.

“He probably won’t be back tonight. Let’s eat.”

The glass coffee table was covered in cracks, looking as though one more heavy press would shatter it completely.

Sang Xiaoshi quietly packed his books into his backpack, nodded, and stood up to head toward the kitchen.

Sang Wenxuan also got up and followed him. “You stay seated. I’ll get the rice.”

Sang Xiaoshi glanced at her without a word but entered the kitchen anyway. In the end, because he wasn’t tall enough, Sang Wenxuan served the rice for him.

Though the dishes were cold, the rice was still hot. The two sat opposite each other at the square table, eating in silence.

But just two bites in, a loud kick slammed against the front door.

Both of them stiffened.

Sang Xiaoshi reacted quickly. He shoved two mouthfuls of rice into his mouth, stuffed in a few bites of food, chewed frantically, and swallowed hard.

Just as he swallowed, a slurred, drunken voice echoed from the doorway: “Sang Wenxuan! Where the hell are you?”

Sang Wenxuan immediately set down her chopsticks, wiped her face, and ran to the door. She held up the heavily intoxicated Luo Qifeng.

Luo Qifeng grabbed her by the hair, his face flushed red with alcohol and boiling with anger. “What took you so long? What were you doing?”

Sang Wenxuan lowered her head and whispered, “I thought you weren’t coming back tonight.”

Luo Qifeng was about to snap again when he stepped inside and his attention shifted. He spotted Sang Xiaoshi sitting at the dining table, and a mocking sneer instantly spread across his face. “Why is the puppy sitting at the table to eat?”

Sang Xiaoshi kept his eyes lowered, staring at his bowl without responding.

This reaction instantly enraged Luo Qifeng. He kicked over a chair next to him. “Don’t you know the rules? How did I teach you?”

He strode forward, kicked the dog bowl by the table into the corner, and shouted toward the back: “Da Huang!”

The backyard door burst open, and a big yellow dog came running in, wagging its tail. It lay down obediently in front of its bowl.

Luo Qifeng grinned with satisfaction and threw a piece of meat into the dog bowl. The dog barked happily twice, lowered its head, and quickly devoured it.

“See that?” Luo Qifeng sneered at Sang Xiaoshi.

Sang Xiaoshi kept staring at his rice, giving no response.

Until Sang Wenxuan called his name: “Xiaoshi.”

Sang Xiaoshi slowly looked up, meeting his aunt’s pleading eyes.

Her desperation was not without reason. When Luo Qifeng was in a foul mood, he would force Sang Xiaoshi to squat next to the dog to eat. If Xiaoshi refused, he would flip the table, then curse and beat Sang Wenxuan. If Xiaoshi still resisted, he would beat him too.

But if Sang Xiaoshi just obeyed from the start, Luo Qifeng wouldn’t lose his temper; he might even speak kindly and give the boy a few bites of food.

Sang Xiaoshi slowly pulled his gaze away. Right on the edge of Luo Qifeng’s explosive temper, he picked up his bowl, walked over to the dog, and squatted down.

Luo Qifeng’s anger vanished instantly. “That’s more like it. Move faster next time.”

He walked over to the table, picked up the bowl and chopsticks Sang Wenxuan had used, grabbed a few pieces of braised pork, and strolled over to Xiaoshi. Squatting in front of the boy, Luo Qifeng grinned. As if he hadn’t just thrown a tantrum, he spoke in an incredibly gentle voice.

“Xiaoshi, your uncle has told you many times: I don’t want to treat you like this. I just want you to understand that an orphan like you would have nowhere to live and nothing to eat if your aunt and I hadn’t taken you in. You’d be fighting dogs for scraps.”

As he spoke, he threw another piece of meat into the dog bowl. The dog swallowed it instantly.

“See? The dogs outside are way meaner than Da Huang. If you went out there to compete with them for food, could you win? They might just eat you instead.”

Only then did Luo Qifeng leisurely drop the remaining pieces of meat into Xiaoshi’s bowl, looking at him with artificial affection.

“You need to remember that your aunt and uncle are the only people in this world who care about you. We give you a roof over your head and food to eat, otherwise you’d have starved on the streets long ago! A person needs to be grateful.

You know who you need to repay when you grow up, right?”

Sang Xiaoshi kept his eyes down and nodded slightly. He knew he had to nod; if he didn’t, the retaliation would only get worse.

Satisfied, Luo Qifeng clapped his hands, stood up, walked back to the table, and ordered Sang Wenxuan: “Get me a bowl of rice.”

Sang Xiaoshi squatted in the corner, remaining still for a long time. Once he saw that Luo Qifeng’s back was turned and he was eating, Xiaoshi transferred all the meat from his bowl into Da Huang’s. Watching the dog wag its tail excitedly, he reached out and gently stroked its soft fur.

After making sure even the rice soaked in meat juice was given to the dog, he picked up his plain white rice and chewed it slowly until the bowl was empty.

Shen Siyang lay back in bed, but his previous drowsiness had completely vanished. He tossed and turned, his mind completely consumed by what Ge Jiabao had said about Sang Xiaoshi. Unable to sleep, he got up, pushed open his door, and walked out.

His parents were usually still awake at this hour. Sure enough, when he entered the living room, he found the couple snuggled up on the sofa watching TV.

His father, Shen Shiwu, held a bowl of freshly washed, glistening grapes. Every time Yuan Linfei opened her mouth, Shen Shiwu would instantly pluck a grape and accurately pop it into her mouth, without even breaking his gaze from the screen.

Shen Siyang had witnessed this scene for over twenty years and had long considered himself an outsider to their romance.

He strolled over. “You two keeping the good stuff to yourselves?”

Yuan Linfei glanced at him. “You see it and still ask? Looking to humiliate yourself?”

Shen Shiwu offered a gentle laugh. “Honey, Yangyang is still young, he might not fully grasp what ‘humiliating himself’ means.”

Yuan Linfei chuckled and accommodatingly swapped the phrase. “Then, son, looking for a snub?”

Despite her words, she plucked a grape and patted the empty spot beside her, gesturing for him to sit.

Shen Siyang walked over and sat down. Yuan Linfei held the grape out to him.

As Shen Siyang opened his mouth to eat, the glossy, bright grape instantly reminded him of Sang Xiaoshi’s bright, beautiful eyes. A pang of sadness hit his chest. He ate the grape, quickly spat out the skin and seeds, and looked at his mother. “Mom, do you know anything about Sang Xiaoshi’s family?”

Yuan Linfei pulled her eyes away from the TV and looked at him, her expression turning slightly serious. “Why the sudden question?”

“I spent the afternoon with him today, and he seems like a really good kid. I don’t really get why Ge Jiabao and the others are targeting and bullying him. Does it have something to do with his family?”

Shen Siyang meant every word. The system’s tasks were merely a point of reference for him; he had never been the type to blindly follow orders. For instance, if the system had told him to help Ge Jiabao today, Ge Jiabao still wouldn’t have escaped a beating—in fact, Shen Siyang would have made sure the lesson stuck even harder.

After all, he was twenty-five years old; he could read a person’s character perfectly.

A child with a temperament like Sang Xiaoshi’s had clearly endured prolonged abuse and bullying. Yet, despite being suppressed into being timid and cautious, his eyes remained clear and bright, and he was even more polite and grateful than other kids his age.

Shen Siyang had never been able to stand seeing this kind of unfairness. If he hadn’t crossed paths with the boy, that would be one thing, but now that the situation was laid out right in front of him, he wouldn’t just stand by—even without a system mission.

In the past, Yuan Linfei often accused him of sticking his nose where it didn’t belong. But despite her words, every time he meddled in someone else’s business, she would always reward him with a great meal.

Since he had always been this way, Yuan Linfei didn’t suspect a thing after hearing his explanation. She thought it over for a long moment before answering seriously.

“I don’t know all the details, just that his parents died in a car accident a year ago. His mother had no living relatives, and his father only had one sister—Sang Wenxuan, who lives here in town. That’s why he was brought over to live with them.”

Shen Siyang tucked his legs up onto the sofa and rested his head in his hands, thinking. “Sang Wenxuan, that’s his aunt. Does she live alone?”

Yuan Linfei paused for a brief second before answering, “Sang Wenxuan has a husband.”

Having been her son for twenty-five years, Shen Siyang caught that slight hesitation instantly. “Is there something wrong with the uncle?”

Yuan Linfei sighed softly. “He drinks heavily and gambles. He’s into everything bad.”

Shen Siyang frowned immediately. “Do they abuse Sang Xiaoshi?”

“I don’t know, I haven’t heard anything,” Yuan Linfei’s expression didn’t look great either. “Sang Wenxuan probably wouldn’t abuse him. She’s an honest, gentle person and used to be well-liked around town. But later, Luo Qifeng started gambling and borrowed money from almost everyone. Gradually, people stopped associating with her.”

Though Shen Siyang was twenty-five, he had never been in a relationship or married. Hearing this, he asked in confusion, “Why does she stay with a gambling alcoholic like that? Even if she can’t see reason herself, don’t her close friends try to talk her out of it?”

Yuan Linfei gently patted her son’s head. “People like Luo Qifeng have nothing to lose. Those with a decent life don’t dare provoke desperate people. Once a guy like that sticks to you, he’s like a leech you can never scrape off. You only end up ruining your own life.”

Shen Siyang understood the logic. He held his head in his hands for a while, letting out a helpless sigh.

Seeing his expression, Yuan Linfei laughed. “Son, how come I feel like you’ve grown up a lot in just one day?”

Shen Siyang jumped off the sofa, snatched a few grapes from his dad, popped one into his mouth, and waved at his mom with a casual deflection. “Time flies, Mom. Aging catches up to us all.”

With that, he walked straight back to his room, leaving his mother laughing behind him.