Transmigrated as the Villain’s Cannon Fodder Ex-Husband - Chapter 6

This meal lasted much longer than Gu Jia had anticipated.

Boss Huang was already a heavy drinker, and halfway through the banquet, he somehow hit it off with the “thousand-glass” lightweight, Yi Sen. The two began exchanging toasts incessantly; lunch bled into dinner, and they kept drinking until well after dark.

At first, Wang Baobao tried to quietly persuade them to stop, but he couldn’t hold back his young master, who grew more enthusiastic with every glass, waving his hand and declaring he would accompany the guest to the very end.

Boss Huang was so delighted his mustache practically curled upward. He slapped Gu Jia’s shoulder with such force that Wang Baobao and Assistant Jiang, watching from the sidelines, winced in alarm.

“President Gu, this fiancé of yours is truly something! He looks delicate, but he’s got real spirit. I like him!”

Gu Jia offered a polite word of thanks, his eyes narrowing as they swept over Zhao Yisen, who was now as red as a boiled shrimp.

Zhao Yisen propped himself up with one hand on the table and rested his chin in the other. The corners of his eyes and cheeks were flushed a soft crimson, and his lips were pouted slightly. He looked utterly defenseless the kind of person who, in ancient times, would have been snatched up by passing bandits to be a “mountain fortress bride.”

Gu Jia’s gaze lingered for a moment on Zhao Yisen’s lips.

The shape of his mouth was beautiful, and the color was a more vivid red than usual. Gu Jia imagined a scene where he tied Zhao Yisen’s hands and sealed him from nose to lip with heavy tape. He then turned back to Boss Huang, his expression shifting into a calm, unreadable smile.

Coincidentally, Boss Huang announced his intention to continue collaborating with the Gu Group next year. This came as a slight surprise to Gu Jia, and the smile on his face finally carried a hint of sincerity.

The drinking session eventually came to an end. After shaking hands with Boss Huang, Gu Jia instructed his assistant to ensure the guest got home safely.

“Rest assured, President Gu,” Assistant Jiang replied, taking his leave.

As the door opened, a dark shadow blurred past Jiang Mingze at lightning speed. Wang Baobao’s feet seemed to be mounted on Wind-Fire Wheels. “President Gu, I suddenly have something to attend to back home! I’ll leave my young master in your capable hands—”

Wang Baobao’s intentions were clear to everyone.

The private room became so silent you could hear a pin drop.

With no one else around, Gu Jia took a long stride toward Zhao Yisen, who was slumped over the table. Without hesitation, he gripped his shoulder and hauled him up. Then, using his thumb and index finger, he pinched Yisen’s chin, his dark gold pupils meticulously tracing the features of his face.

Zhao Yisen’s mouth was puckered like a goldfish’s. Startled by the movement, he frowned slightly, looking somewhat frightened.

Gu Jia: “…”

Yi Sen used to loathe physical contact. Though few would believe it, in their previous life, the two had maintained a purely Platonic marriage.

It wasn’t until much later that Gu Jia realized it had all been an excuse.

Yi Sen simply didn’t love him.

Had Yi Sen ever loved Lu Ming? Had he loved anyone else? Gu Jia didn’t know. Perhaps he loved no one but himself.

Zhao Yisen’s mouth twitched, and only then did Gu Jia realize he was gripping him too hard. He relaxed his strength slightly, stared at Zhao Yisen for a moment longer, then hoisted him over his shoulder and tossed him into the passenger seat.

When Zhao Yisen groggily opened his eyes, he felt as though his body and soul were performing a scene from a Fast & Furious sequel.

Boss Huang’s tolerance for alcohol was staggering, and he was an expert at pressuring others to drink. To ease the awkwardness of sitting next to Gu Jia, Zhao Yisen had opted to get drunk, successfully knocking himself out.

Before him were the bright white beams of the headlights. The suburban highway was deserted, looking almost ghostly at first glance.

The wind whistled in his ears. Zhao Yisen peeled back his eyelids and glanced at the dashboard; the Arabic numerals seemed to be dancing. He raised a hand to rub his eyes, but his vision only grew blurrier.

Zhao Yisen turned his head toward the window, cupping his hands like binoculars until he spotted a cluster of small houses in the distance. He waved a hand toward the man beside him.

“Driver, please slow down. I’m home.”

The knuckles on Gu Jia’s hands, gripped tight around the steering wheel, turned white. “…”

Zhao Yisen continued to mutter, “I’m home… I need to get out, let me out, let me out…”

As he spoke, he began fumbling with the passenger door handle.

The doors were automatically locked, yet Zhao Yisen managed to pinpoint the unlock button with precision despite the array of controls.

The car was moving fast. If the door opened, even with a seatbelt on, he could easily be pulled out and become the next day’s headline: “Headless Male Body Found on Highway.”

Gu Jia watched Zhao Yisen through the rearview mirror, his face devoid of expression.

Did he really ruin his brain during that drowning incident? Or is he just playing the fool?

Seeing that Zhao Yisen was about to press the button, Gu Jia slammed his foot down. The black Rolls-Royce surged forward, the sudden acceleration pinning Yisen back into his seat.

Zhao Yisen: ?

He slowly raised his head. The fog in his mind finally cleared a little, and he realized the man beside him had exceptionally striking features. The night outside the window made the man’s skin look bloodlessly pale, and he carried a natural air of nobility. He looked familiar.

Zhao Yisen murmured, “President Gu, your driving is terrible.”

Ignoring Gu Jia’s darkening expression, Zhao Yisen rubbed his head, feeling a bit dazed from the impact. Seeing the darkness outside, he assumed the car had stopped and reached for the button again.

“…”

This time, after confirming there were no cars behind them, Gu Jia jerked the steering wheel. The Rolls-Royce drifted sharply and screeched to a halt at the roadside. Zhao Yisen nearly vomited a rainbow.

The interior light flickered on. Half of Gu Jia’s face was hidden in shadow, his eyelashes lowered, his voice cold.

“Are you specifically here to extort me?”

Zhao Yisen didn’t catch Gu Jia’s words. He was dazed, looking like a lost little rabbit.

After a moment, Zhao Yisen realized Gu Jia might be asking why he had come today. He raised a finger with an “Oh,” and fumbled in his pocket to pull out a small, silver-glinting object.

He pried Gu Jia’s hand off the steering wheel and carefully placed the cufflink into his palm.

“Giving it back to you.”

Then, Zhao Yisen waved his hand dismissively, acting grand. “Returning lost gold brings its own reward.”

Zhao Yisen’s fingers were white, long, and soft. They brushed against Gu Jia’s palm like a feather before he slumped back into the seat.

Gu Jia’s heart skipped a beat, an uncontrollable tremor.

“…”

After a long silence, he tossed the cufflink into the storage box, gripped the wheel with his left hand, and stepped on the gas. The black Rolls-Royce roared to life.

Perhaps because he felt the lingering heat from Zhao Yisen’s fingers, Gu Jia decided to give his “deceased” ex-husband one last chance. If Yi Sen disappointed him again…

He cast a cold glance at the sleeping Zhao Yisen.

He would lock him away in the villa’s basement forever, turning him into a canary with broken wings.

Gu Jia’s voice remained calm.

“The engagement banquet is next week. Tomorrow, the clothes will be delivered to your house.”

The next day, Zhao Yisen woke up in a soft, comfortable bed. His first thought upon opening his eyes was: 8:00 AM class! I’m going to be late!!!

He scrambled out of bed, only to see Wang Baobao staring at him with wide eyes, which brought him back to reality.

He had transmigrated into a book. What 8:00 AM class?

His head still throbbed from yesterday’s hangover. Just as he was about to collapse back into sleep, Wang Baobao stopped him.

The assistant’s expression was conflicted. “…Young Master, someone is outside looking for you.”

Zhao Yisen was exhausted. “Who is it?”

Wang Baobao looked troubled, which only confused Zhao Yisen further. He changed his clothes and went out, encountering a strange man in the living room.

If Gu Jia was a shadow in the night menacing and shrouded in a misty past then this man was his complete opposite. He wore a simple white shirt and light-colored trousers. His features were clean and handsome, and his eyes sparkled with an undeniable magnetism.

Zhao Yisen almost immediately felt a physiological throb of excitement.

But it didn’t come from him; it came from the original owner of the body.

Lu Ming. The protagonist of this melodramatic business-war novel. He was the “beautiful, strong, and miserable” White Moonlight character a genius student of both Law and Finance. A “chosen son” whose family fortune had been lost in a sudden accident.

Yet he never gave up. Using his own efforts, he established Lu Real Estate, growing it from a small company into a conglomerate that eventually took down the villain, clearing his father’s name in the process.

In the author’s world, every character around Lu Ming would lend him a hand in times of crisis. Though his backstory was tragic, he used his “protagonist halo” to stage a counterattack. In contrast, the story’s great villain, Gu Jia, was betrayed by everyone and met a miserable end.

He and Gu Jia were the light and shadow of the book black and white, moving from opposite ends toward different destinies.

Only at this moment, Zhao Yisen knew none of this.

Lu Ming’s pure black eyes showed deep concern as he stood before Zhao Yisen. His voice was clear and bright. “Is your body feeling any better?”

Zhao Yisen scratched his head. “Much better, it’s just…”

Wang Baobao hadn’t told him who this person was. Zhao Yisen thought to himself: Am I going to have to apologize to everyone I meet from now on? ‘Sorry, I ruined my brain with alcohol, what’s your name again?’

Seeing his troubled expression, Lu Ming froze for a moment and frowned slightly. “It seems Xiao Sen doesn’t remember me.”

He didn’t mention that he had waited for days at the café they usually frequented. Instead, he continued to ask about Zhao Yisen’s injuries.

The two sat on the sofa chatting.

Zhao Yisen slowly pieced together his understanding of Lu Ming: high school classmate, close to the original owner unfortunate that he wasn’t his type.

After catching up, Lu Ming let out a breath of relief and finally voiced the purpose of his visit with some hesitation. “Actually, my company is collaborating with President Gu’s on a project. However, they suddenly cut off the supply of raw materials, causing the construction to be delayed indefinitely. It’s a huge problem.”

“Xiao Sen, could you help me ask him about it?”

Hearing this request, Zhao Yisen felt a bit of surprise followed by hesitation. He didn’t feel his relationship with Gu Jia was at the level where he could ask such things.

Lu Ming detected this slight resistance almost instantly. He was surprised, as Yi Sen usually granted his every wish. Once he realized the change, he immediately added, “But if it makes things difficult for you, then forget it.”

This, instead, piqued Zhao Yisen’s strange sense of competitiveness. “It’s fine. I’ll just ask for you.”

Lu Ming’s eyes lit up.

“That’s great. Thank you, Xiao Sen.”

He flashed a sweet smile. Zhao Yisen felt a subtle sensation of being flirted with. The feeling was fleeting; he blinked, thinking to himself that since he was technically a “married” man, it must just be his imagination.

Wang Baobao stood outside the door like a deflated balloon, his heart full of mixed emotions. The Young Master was about to get married, yet Lu Ming had come knocking again… If Yi Sen was a butterfly that couldn’t be caged, Lu Ming was the flame that would turn that butterfly into a moth.

Just as he was thinking this, a pair of light brown, high-end leather shoes appeared in his field of vision. A premonition of dread rose in Wang Baobao’s heart, and he looked up instantly.

“P-President… President Gu!”

“What are you doing here?”