Chapter 4

Qiao Chen successfully drove the sports car back home. Before the bet, Mr. Qi repeatedly a.s.sured Qiao Chen that he wouldn’t get mad if he lost. But sure enough, Mr. Qi did not have a good att.i.tude towards him for winning.

After Qiao Chen returned home, he constantly retrieved information on the former Qi Beichen and Wei Zhennan. The two seemed to have no relations.h.i.+p at all. No emotional relations.h.i.+p- not even a speck of interest between the two was found. The paths of a man disgraced by Qi Yuxuan and the chairman of a large international company were like parallel lines. Their lives never once intersected.

Wei Zhennan was not married in his previous life… but what does this have to do with Qi Beichen, or even Qiao Chen himself? What relations.h.i.+p did they have with each other? How was it that simply having physical contact could have induced the system to launch the settings? It wasn’t going force him to sacrifice * to complete the task…would it? Qiao Chen hoped not…

(T/N: * was in the raws, but I would a.s.sume it meant his “purity”)

From the bedside table, the phone rang out. Qiao Chen picked up his cell phone to see the notification. His eyes slightly darkened and he immediately changed his clothes to go out.

When he arrived at a deserted coffee shop, Qiao Chen saw a single customer in the store. It was a women dressed in a dark suit and a neat bun on her head. She was sitting faced away from him. Qiao Chen walked over and sat in the seat across the woman.

“What do you want from me?”

Chu Mei hadn’t recognized Qi Beichen immediately since his look and temperament changed so much. “Beichen? It hasn’t been long, but you’ve changed so much. For a moment there, your aunt couldn’t recognize you.”

“Just say what you want from me already, alright?” Qiao Chen ordered a cup a coffee. He took a sip and waited motionless.

“Well… of course you know that your cousin is studying abroad. It’s quite expensive. You’ve gone back to the Qi family now, so you definitely shouldn’t be short on cash. Can you send some money and help out your cousin so he can buy his textbooks?” Chu Mei skipped the small talk she planned on making and just told Qiao Chen her request.

“Cousin?” Qiao Chen sarcastically made a puzzled face, “He shouldn’t be my cousin. That’s Qi Yuxuan you’re talking about. He’s the cousin your son should be looking for if he needs money.”

“I raised you, didn’t I? You can’t act so distant with me after all I’ve done for you. ”

Obviously, Chu Mei looked for Qi Yuxuan. But after his ident.i.ty was exposed, he didn’t really care to give money for her or her son. The money wasn’t flowing like it was before their ident.i.ties were exposed.

“Oh, how did you raise me again? Have you forgotten?”

This woman was just as thick skinned as she was in the previous life… to think that she actually wanted him to remember how she “nurtured” him. After Qi Yuxuan’s biological parents died, Qi Beichen was brought into Chu Mei’s home. When he was a toddler, she only remembered to give him food every now and then. She didn’t actually feed him. She just gave him enough food from time to time so he wouldn’t starve to death. Then, from a very early age, she forced him do all of the ch.o.r.es around the house by himself. For meals, giving him a single bowl of white rice was already generous enough. So of course, for her charity he had to thank her 100 times before he could even take a single bite. Whenever she was angry or just stressed out, she would just beat her anger out on him. Even w.a.n.g Mingqiang, her son, took part in it- saying he was a great punching bag. w.a.n.g Mingjiang was much younger but far stronger than Qi Beichen. He’d thrash and batter Qiao Chen, and now they had the gall to find him to support w.a.n.g Mingqian through international school?

“How can you talk to me like that?” Chu Mei slammed her hand on the table and sharply glared at him. “If it weren’t for me, you would have just starved to death in the gutters! So what if I had to knock some sense into you? If I didn’t beat it into you, then how else would you remember who fed you?”

“Then why did I have to live that life? I think you should remember the best. After all, Qi Yuxuan and I weren’t accidentally switched at birth…You wouldn’t happen to know the person who intentionally switched us, would you?” Did she think that he was like the previous Qi Beichen who cowered and trembled in the past? Did she expect a measly glare would scare him into submission. That it would scare him so badly that he wouldn’t dare go against her and just hand over money?

For Qi Beichen’s childhood to fall into such disarray, this woman was the cause of it all.  She worked as an OB GYN nurse. After she saw what the Qi family’s property encompa.s.sed, she wanted her own family member to inherit everything. To get a piece of the pie, she decided to switch the two children with each other.

When it was time, Qi Beichen’s birth mother wasn’t supposed to give birth yet. But the Chu family had long prepared for the day she’d arrive for her final checkup. They injected her with oxytocin to induce a premature labor. A few hours after Qi Beichen was born, Qi Yuxuan was also born. Chu Mei took advantage of her position as a perinatal nurse to exchange the children while she was supposed to be caring for the newborns. The plan proceeded smoothly. However, when Qi Beichen reached the age of 5 or 6, Qi Yuxuan’s biological parents died from an unexpected accident. Therefore, the only person who knew about the switch was Chu Mei. She looked for Qi Yuxuan when he was 16 and found him. She blackmailed him. He had to regularly give her large sums of money so she wouldn’t release his true ident.i.ty. If she didn’t do this, how else did she get the money for w.a.n.g Mingjiang’s tuition and fees?

“What are you even talking about? You should be the one compensating me for everything you’ve done, but here you are scrambling for reasons to slander me. You’re the one who’s ungrateful.” Chu Mei listened to Qiao Chen in shock. She had a faraway look as she thought. Currently, she felt that only Qi Yuxuan and she knew the truth. It should have been impossible for Qi Yuxuan to reveal any of this to Qi Beichen. He must be bluffing.

“You should have heard of the story of the Cuckoo Occupying the Magpie’s Nest? The Cuckoo will deliberately lay its egg in another bird’s nest- this case the Magpie’s nest. In order to ensure the magpie would raise the cuckoo egg, the mother cuckoo would sometimes push out one of the other eggs from the nest. If not, then when the young cuckoo hatched, it would do the same to the inhabitants of the nest anyways.” Qiao Chen’s eyes glittered with resentment as he stared Chu Mei down, “If you didn’t exchange me with Qi Yuxuan, then that perfect life that he experienced would have been mine. Yet, I grew up under the cruelty of your own family’s hand. So after all that, do you seriously want me to be thankful for all you’ve done for me?”

(T/N: Just a warning: this part was an extremely generous edit, but it’s still in line with what the author was conveying. I changed the bird the author put in since that bird wasn’t a parasitic brooder. Cuckoos are renowned for hijacking nests.)

Chu Mei was frightened by Qiao Chen’s eyes that burned with hatred. Trembling, she stood up and hurriedly ran out of the café. Qiao Chen used the system to invade and manipulate her mind. She should be haunted by nightmares for a while. She and Qi Yuxuan couldn’t even think of running away.

If Qi Beichen was truly switched by accident, and if Chu Mei raised him properly, then Qiao Chen wouldn’t mind giving her a sum of money to repay the sentiment. However, every single thing he experienced was done solely by Chu Mei’s own hand. On top of the fact that she wouldn’t get a single penny, Qiao Chen would guarantee that she would have nothing left.

After he met with Chu Mei, he recalled all the bitterness and pain from Qi Beichen’s life. The pain felt… as though it was him who personally experienced the abuse- just as if it were he himself who received every beating, strike by strike. Qiao Chen’s heart felt smothered, and he couldn’t dissolve the heavy feelings that stifled him. He decided to take the sports car out for a seaside ride. After returning back to his world, he’d need to talk to Officer Foley. The function that caused him to feel these heart rending emotions should be removed. If not, then each mission would be unbearable.

Qiao Chen pulled over to the side of the road. He got out and leaned against the door and watched the ocean billowing by the breeze. Just by witnessing the enormity of the sea, his heart significantly calmed down.

A white Lamborghini pulled up behind Qiao Chen’s car. Qiao Chen turned around and saw the driver step out of the car. He couldn’t help but sigh. The two met again. Did these two people really have different destinies?

“Oh what a coincidence.” Wei Zhennan took off his sungla.s.ses and asked, “What are you doing here?”

“Just watching the sea, unwinding.” Qiao Chen answered straightforwardly.

“I live around here. Do you want to come over?” Wei Zhennan invited.

“To your house? That isn’t very appropriate, is it?” Qiao Chen felt that the pair’s relations.h.i.+p wasn’t close enough for him to be able to visit his house alone.

“There’s nothing inappropriate about that, besides I live by myself. Let’s go.” Wei Zhannan was confident. After he finished speaking, he entered his car and drove in front of Qiao Chen’s car, leading the way.

Qiao Chen thought that Wei Zhennan was like a candy coated poison. You couldn’t rashly provoke him. If you weren’t careful, then you’d die without a grave to rest in. If they had met before all of this, then he would have definitely hidden far away- avoiding any encounters. However, now he had no choice. He must successfully complete his task, and said task marked that man as his objective. So not only can he not escape, but he must also actively find opportunities to approach that man.

Qiao Chen followed behind Wei Zhennan’s car. After pulling back onto the road, they entered the highway and ascended mountains. They continued up the spiraling road until they reached a large iron gate halfway up one of the mountains. Wei Zhennan pressed the remote and opened the gate. Finally, the two men drove in.

While driving, Qiao Chen quickly saw the view from the mountainside road. In front of him, he saw a vast blue ocean view. While behind him was a lush and green mountain forest. This location with an ocean front view and mountainous back drop was excellent.

Wei Zhennan’s so-called home was an ultra modern two story building. The whole house gave off a patchwork vibe, but didn’t seem abrupt and out of place. There was instead a casual modern feel. To clearly see the ocean, the outer walls of the house were even made of gla.s.s.

Wei Zhennan handed Qaio Chen a gla.s.s of water and asked, “Have you eaten yet?”

“No.” Qiao Chen looked at the house’s interior design. It really seem as though a single male lived here by himself. He actually thought that people like Wei Zhennan were the types who lived in a large villa with many servants.

“Would you like to eat?”

Surprised, Qiao Chen looked at Wei Zhennan and thought: Was he going to cook? How unexpected, the Wei conglomerate’s chairman can cook. How rare… “I’m not picky. I can eat pretty much anything.”

Wei Zhennan walked into the kitchen and opened the double door refrigerator. It was filled with all sorts of ingredients. Then he said, “The ingredients are here. You can make whatever you want to eat. By the way, you can also make another plate for me as well since you’ll be cooking.”

Qiao Chen thought: What the french toast? After all of this, you’re actually bringing back to cook for you, haven’t you?

Qiao Chen watched Wei Zhennan’s back as he headed for the second floor. With no other choice, Qiao Chen helplessly walked to the fridge to see what he could use to cook up a meal. When Qiao Chen was in the interstellar age, he used the smart kitchen equipped in most homes. He hadn’t cooked anything by hand for a long time now. Luckily, with the system activated, as long as there were ingredients, he could even cook up a Manchu Han Imperial Feast. However, he was a bit hungry and didn’t want make such complicated dishes. Qiao Chen took out two cuts of marinated beef from the fridge and the ingredients for a simple spaghetti dish. After adding the finis.h.i.+ng touches, Qiao Chen had a simple, tasty, and filling meal of steak and pasta ready.

After showering, Wei Zhennan changed into a simple attire and went down stairs with his hair still wet. Qiao Chen was nearly finished cooking. Wei Zhennan saw that Qiao Chen prepared steak and pasta, so he took out a bottle of red wine and poured a gla.s.s for each person. He picked up the fork and tried the spaghetti.

Wei Zhennan praised, “Not bad. Just like that hole in one you hit before, you haven’t disappointed me.”

Even though the steak was pre-marinated, the pasta was al dente and the sauce was very good. It was no different than a dish from a chef at a high cla.s.s restaurant.

“Can I ask you a question?” Qiao Chen asked while savoring the wine’s aroma.

“Go ahead.”

“How did you know I could cook? It’s just like before…it’s like you knew I was going beat Qi Yuxuan.” Qiao Chen was puzzled.

Wei Zhennan and father Qi’s bet was for a large amount of contracts. It should have regarded huge amounts of money, otherwise, why would dad’s face look so ugly for several days. Wei Zhennan, on the other hand, seemed as though he knew he was going to win and let him play instead.

“I didn’t know that you could cook- just like I didn’t know whether or not you could beat Qi Yuxuan. I just find you very interesting, so I am willing to take the risk. If you had lost to Qi Yuxuan, then I would have lost the best. I am willing to bear the consequences. That includes whether or not you knew how to cook. I would have eaten it regardless, but the fact of the matter is, I’m quite good a gambling.”

“I should have made some unappetizing dishes and watched you eat them.” Qiao Chen looked at Wei Zhennan’s conceited and smug look. His heart felt somewhat irregular.

“You were going to eat it too, weren’t you? So you didn’t deliberately make it taste bad- it’s just like how you didn’t want to lose to Qi Yuxuan” Wei Zhennan smiled and looked at Qiao Chen, “He took the life that was supposed to be yours. You should hate him, right? Do you want me to help you get back everything that was rightfully yours?”

Qiao Chen disliked the air that Wei Zhennan exuded. It was as if everything was within his grasp. If Wei Zhennan wasn’t his target for the mission, he would have long found an excuse to leave.

“You don’t need to do that. The Qi family’s a.s.sets all belong to Qi Jianye. Even if I am his son, they don’t belong to me. He hasn’t given me a reason to fight over it. Besides, I simply don’t want to watch over the Qi family a.s.sets anyways. I want to create my own wealth. However, I’ll never let those who still owe me go.”

“Oh?” Wei Zhennan raised his eyebrows. “Are you sure you don’t need me to help you beat Qi Yuxuan? I’d be happy to lend a hand.”

“We’ve only met twice, and of those two times we haven’t grown that close. What are you getting at? Why do you want to help me?” Qiao Chen’s eyes were filled with scrutiny as he a.s.sessed Wei Zhennan’s face for clues.

“Since I think Qi Yuxuan quite nauseating, but I am quite interested in you, I actually benefit twice from helping you deal with Qi Yuxuan.”

“Uncle Wei,” Qiao Chen narrowed his eyes, “You wouldn’t be hitting on me would you?”

Wei Zhennan’s mouth curled into a smile, but his eyes displayed his seriousness. He replied, “What would you do if I said yes?”

“I’m straight. I don’t like men.” Qiao Chen lied. Even though he hadn’t been with anyone before, he’d never been straight.

“How would you know whether you’d like it or not if you don’t try it?” Wei Zhennan bypa.s.sed the dining table and pulled him into his embrace. Then, Wei Zhennan put him down on the sofa nearby and pressed against him.

“Wait a minute.” Qiao Chen turned his head to avoid Wei Zhennan’s kiss. “Uncle Wei, aren’t you moving too fast here? If you’re going to pursue me, you still have to follow the process. You can’t just say you want me and I’ll just come running.”

“Young man, life on Earth is short. It’s only a few brief decades. Don’t you understand ‘carpe diem’? If we like being with each other, we’ll cherish the time spent together. If we don’t like it, we can breakup. We can’t waste time.” Wei Zhennan straightened Qiao Chen’s head and kissed him.

You shameless punk! Just you wait until your soul’s download is finished. I’ll stay far away from you. I absolutely will not want to waste any more time with you.

When their two tongues entangled with one another, the system in Qiao Chen’s brain began the soul downloading program.