Chapter 3

Chapter 3

Shen Gali finished recalling the original text and closed his eyes.

How boring. With this time, I could take a rag and clean the village outhouse.

He slept dreamlessly through the night.

Shen Gali was awakened by a knock on the door.

He reached for his phone and glanced at the time—only seven in the morning.

A slacker never wakes up early—that was his absolute last principle.

“Mr. Shen, it’s getting late. You haven’t forgotten today’s plan to visit your wife’s family, have you?”

Shen Gali thought: My in-laws are already buried; don’t tell ghost stories during the day.

“The eldest young master is already waiting for you in the dining room, or do you need my help with washing up and changing clothes?” Uncle Li had gone into nagging mode again outside the door.

Shen Gali felt as if a swarm of flies was buzzing around him nonstop. He didn’t get it—with modern tech, why not just video call? What was the point of going out and spending money on such a miserable errand?

The original owner’s family probably hoped they’d never see each other again—why should he go and annoy them?

Uncle Li got more worked up as he nagged, spraying spit everywhere, making tiny rainbows in the sunlight.

Shen Gali took a resigned deep breath, propped himself up against the headboard, and said, “Stop nagging. I’m up.”

He habitually reached toward the headboard, where his medicine always used to be, but after groping around for a while, he realized he had traveled to another world.

He instinctively touched his chest—surprisingly, there was no discomfort.

To prevent Uncle Li from continuing with his nagging, Shen Gali slowly sat up, casually pulled on the clothes he had worn yesterday, washed up, and went downstairs.

He looked toward the main entrance and saw a tall man in a wheelchair already dressed and ready to go. His neat and upright suit could not hide his lean, athletic build; his shirt was as white as falling snow, ironed with perfect precision.

Although the original text described the villain Nan Liujing as ugly enough to make your eyes sting, just based on his build, he beat ninety-nine percent of the men in the country.

As he approached, Shen Gali noticed Nan Liujing was wearing a mask, covering half his face.

Shen Gali rarely gave him more than a glance, but this time he took a good look—the phoenix eyes visible above the mask were narrow and deep, his sharp brows slanting into his temples, his gaze cold and carried a hint of arrogance.

No matter how you looked, it had nothing to do with the word “ugly.”

Probably a handsome guy who wouldn’t survive the light of day.

Shen Gali had no interest in continuing to imagine his true appearance under the mask; he sat down at the entrance to change shoes.

Nan Liujing’s gaze fell on him. From this angle, he could see the barely noticeable hair whorl on his dark brown hair, long lashes sticking out, thin and curled.

Nan Liujing noticed Shen Gali’s clothes.

“Why are you wearing yesterday’s clothes?” This was not a question but an accusation.

“Oh, and I’ll wear them again tomorrow.” Shen Gali thought it was absurd, stood up, tapped the toe of his shoe, and placed his hand on the door handle.

Nan Liujing understood. He deliberately wore a wrinkled shirt to go to his in-laws’ home—others would surely think Nan Liujing was mistreating him. He was an expert at playing the victim to gain public sympathy.

“Go change into something else,” Nan Liujing said coldly.

Shen Gali was speechless. How could this person be so picky?

“Either we go out now, or you help me change,” Shen Gali said with full confidence.

Don’t expect a lazy cynic to do something pointless more than once.

A cold smile curled beneath Nan Liujing’s mask.

He turned his face to Uncle Li and said, “Go get him new clothes. I’ll help him change.”

Shen Gali: ?

Uncle Li quickly went upstairs and came back with new clothes: a white long-collared shirt with a diamond collar ornament in the shape of an iron-stake orchid, dark gray high-waist straight-leg pants with light gray subtle patterns—the whole outfit was exquisite yet sharp.

Uncle Li respectfully handed the clothes to Nan Liujing, who pulled out the hanger, tossed it aside casually, then looked up arrogantly: “Take it off.”

Shen Gali didn’t want to take it off. The buttons were tight; both unbuttoning and buttoning were troublesome. With that time, he could lie down for five more minutes.

Seeing Shen Gali not moving, Nan Liujing sneered, “Do I have to help you take it off too?”

Shen Gali spread his arms and nodded.

Uncle Li was shocked! Since the young master was six, no one had dared to be so insolent. He actually dared to have the young master help him change clothes!

Nan Liujing looked up: “Come here.”

Shen Gali stepped forward, not paying attention to his feet; his shin hit the wheelchair footrest, and his body lunged forward due to inertia.

In this situation, a normal person would brace their hands on the wheelchair armrests to avoid bumping into the injured person, but Shen Gali simply fell straight into Nan Liujing’s arms, his legs reflexively curling up and clinging to Nan Liujing’s body.

From coming downstairs until now, Shen Gali had been standing for a full ten minutes, exceeding his usual limit.

He was tired. Since he couldn’t lie flat, lying face down was also acceptable.

Nan Liujing’s embrace was firm. Pressed tightly together, he could clearly feel the outline of the muscles under the thin suit. The two large mounds pressing against his chest rose and fell with the rhythm of breathing, gently rubbing.

Shen Gali was like a young koala clinging to its mother, his hands resting on Nan Liujing’s waist, closing his eyes peacefully.

His body was completely enveloped by Nan Liujing’s scent—a faint fragrance that lingered, like a cold floral note of some plant, carrying a heavy sense of oppression.

Uncle Li: The Scream.jpg

How dare you!

For a moment, Uncle Li seemed to see his young master backhanding Shen Gali flying ten meters away, and he didn’t dare even breathe.

But Nan Liujing made no move, nor did he reflexively hug the person who suddenly crashed into his arms.

He looked up at the ceiling, feeling the soft hair brushing against his neck with a ticklish sensation.

Shen Gali wasn’t short—estimated to be over 1.8 meters—but such a tall man was surprisingly as light as a feather, almost weightless in his arms.

“Go ahead and take it off me. I’ll lie here for a bit,” Shen Gali said faintly, with half-closed eyes.

Nan Liujing sneered.

If he can’t pull any tricks, is he trying to use his looks to seduce me? The Shen family’s ability to start from scratch was truly something; the children they raised were all schemers.

Nan Liujing decided to stop being polite. He reached out and grabbed the hem of his shirt, yanking it upward vigorously, pulling it over his head, and tossing the old shirt onto the floor.

Removing the clothes, the warmth of his skin merged with his own body heat through the shirt on his chest. The small mole on his chest was like a blood-red jade fallen on fresh snow, extremely red and alluring, decadent yet languid.

Nan Liujing stared at that tiny crimson mole, his gaze pausing.

Uncle Li turned around on his own, pretending to look at the scenery. Regardless of how much the young master liked this child, his status was what it was—others couldn't covet him, and even a single glance was a sin.

Shen Jiali was certainly thin, but not bony. He had a slender waist, a shapely rear, full chest, and two soft dimples on his lower back.

Nan Liujing averted his gaze and fumbled to put the shirt on him, his fingers inadvertently brushing against skin that was smooth and tender.

He buttoned it up, no longer in the mood to help him change trousers. Once done, Nan Liujing said in a low voice, "Are you sure you want to keep lying on me?"

Nan Liujing had seen this kind of trick many times. After reminding the other party, they would usually scramble up, blushing, and say, "Sorry, I was out of line," creating an atmosphere of reluctant intimacy, waiting for things to naturally progress.

But Shen Jiali said:

"Yeah, lying down. I'm tired."

His voice was lazy and frail, as if he might keel over at any moment.

Nan Liujing felt like he had punched cotton.

He grabbed Shen Jiali by the back of his collar, pulled him upright, pushed him aside, then pulled down the door handle and wheeled his wheelchair away from the scene.

*

Shen Jiali returned to his in-laws' home with Nan Liujing.

More precisely, it was the original owner's home.

A three-story villa with a garden, tasteless Roman arches, a glazed dome, and a riot of bright colors. From a distance, it looked like a kindergarten child's creative painting, truly giving off nouveau riche vibes.

Shen Jiali sat in the car and didn't want to go inside. He hated all useless social interactions and detested flattery and sycophancy. For him, even the act of moving his facial muscles to smile was exhausting.

Uncle Li trotted over to open the car door, grinning broadly, his mouth opening like he was about to start chanting with 99% accumulated energy—

Shen Jiali got out of the car, cutting him off in time.

The Shen family seemed to be a large clan; the house was full of people, a dark sea of them.

Seeing the arrivals, a man and a woman quickly came forward. Judging by their age, the couple should be the original owner's adoptive parents.

The woman was wearing a red suit, elegant as a swan, tilting her neck with a pleasant smile: "Young master has arrived. You must have had a tiring journey. Please come in and rest."

Naturally, she ignored Shen Jiali standing beside Nan Liujing.

Shen Jiali wanted to make a heart gesture at her, thanking her for proactively eliminating useless social interactions.

The adoptive father, on the other hand, was dressed in a sharp suit with an old-fashioned cadre style, his honest and simple smile clashing with it.

"Lili, you're back? It's been a while. You seem a bit thinner," the adoptive father said warmly, reaching out to take Shen Jiali's hand.

Shen Jiali was too lazy to dodge and let the adoptive father hold his hand.

Entering the main hall, he realized the liveliness wasn't limited to the outer room.

The woman sitting upright on the sofa looked somewhat familiar, like he had seen her yesterday.

Shen Jiali lazily pondered. Oh, it was Nan Liujing's stepmother.

Seeing Nan Liujing and his new wife return to her family home, Yu Huaisu was visibly startled. Her fox-like eyes narrowed slightly, a hint of scrutiny creeping in, and then she subtly glanced at Shen Jiali.

Yesterday, she had used the excuse of asking Shen Jiali to brew a tonic for Nan Liujing. Several of the herbs were high-grade supplements, but few would guess that the combination of Xi Xin and Wu Li Lu was highly toxic—and the dose she had given was enough to be fatal.

She had come to the Shen family early that morning, waiting for news of Nan Liujing's death to be announced. Yet here he was, safe and sound before her.

Yu Huaisu had married the thirty-five-year-old Nan Feng when she was twenty, risking her life to bear him a son despite a malposition. She hadn't done all this for this sinister cripple to compete with her beloved son for the family inheritance.

She had thought the matter was handled seamlessly, with Shen Jiali as the perfect scapegoat. But where had the chain broken?

Afraid of revealing her unease, Yu Huaisu squinted her fox-like eyes into a crescent smile and hurried to greet them: "Liujing, why did you come too? You didn't tell us in advance."

She approached amiably to push his wheelchair, but Nan Liujing lightly turned the auxiliary handle, keeping his distance.

Nan Liujing made her lose face in public. Though cursing sharply in her heart, Yu Huaisu's smile showed no flaws: "Just as well, your brother wanted to meet his new sister-in-law too. Xiaoqing is also home. You young people can have a good gathering today."

Shen Jiali listened quietly on the side, inwardly remarking that all the main characters from the original story had gathered.

But if there was something to say, say it; if not, just lie down.

He looked around, found a corner nobody was paying attention to, huddled in, and closed his eyes to rest.

"Brother." A soft voice sounded from above.

Shen Jiali's eyes felt dry, and he had the urge to cry.

Don't. Bother. Me.

He slowly opened his eyes. In his line of sight appeared a delicate and refined face, with big, moist eyes like lychees, a short and high bridged nose with exquisite lines, a nose tip like a pearl, dark hair, red lips, and skin as white as porcelain.

Hearing the word "brother," Shen Jiali guessed that this young beauty before him was probably the original owner's younger brother—the Shen family's true biological son, Shen Lanqing.

As his name suggested, elegant and refined.

Behind Shen Lanqing stood a tall, upright, and refined young man, like a loyal knight guarding the prince at every step.

"Brother." Shen Lanqing called again, his tone joyful, eyes sparkling.

He sat down beside Shen Jiali and asked softly, "Brother, why didn't you reply to my message? Is it because you have too many friends and too many messages that you missed mine?"

In the original story, the protagonist shou, Shen Lanqing, started with a sweet and naive script. Early on, he was repeatedly framed by the original owner, yet he firmly believed that the original owner couldn't have meant it. That was until he nearly lost his life because of the original owner's schemes. Then he grew up on the spot and underwent a dark transformation, joining forces with the protagonist gong to eliminate the cannon fodder original owner, take down the villain, and finally achieve a happy ending.

Moreover, in the original story, the villain Nan Liujing had always been interested in this young master, and he ended up in a relationship with Nan Feiyao, which became the trigger for the villain's dark turn.

At this point, Shen Lanqing was still holding the sweet and naive script, appearing not particularly bright.

Shen Jiali didn't know and didn't want to know why the original owner hadn't replied to Shen Lanqing's messages.

If it were him personally, he probably wouldn't have replied either. Typing was too tiring, and that was using a nine-key input method.

Shen Jiali answered honestly: "I didn't want to reply."

He didn't want to talk, didn't want to reply to messages. "Are you there?" "Not here."

Shen Lanqing's expression dimmed slightly. He forced a smile; it wasn't the first time he felt that his brother didn't like him.

The tall man who had been silent all along pulled Shen Lanqing's hand and dragged him up. "Ignore him. Let's go eat."

Shen Lanqing was pulled along, but he couldn't help muttering softly, "How can you talk like that? He's your sister-in-law, you know."

Shen Gali heard that.

It seemed that the young man who had been glaring at him was Nan Feiyao, the half-brother of the antagonist Nan Liujing.

In the original text, Nan Feiyao also had an extremely fiery temper, with the motto: revenge on the spot.

Shen Gali was happy to have some peace; since he knew how annoying that man was, he'd simply keep his distance.

At lunchtime, the long table in the hall was packed with people. Apart from the main characters who had already appeared, the rest were distant relatives.

With so many people, it was noisy and buzzing everywhere.

Shen Gali originally didn't want to eat, but Uncle Li kept nagging, so he had to reluctantly take a seat.

Nan Liujing was already nowhere to be seen; according to Uncle Li, he had gone back to the company to handle work after serving tea to his in-laws.

So the person sitting next to Shen Gali became Shen Lanqing, and then Nan Feiyao.

Clearly, the protagonist of the banquet was Shen Gali, who was returning to his parents' home as a new bride, but everyone knew that this Shen Gali was a fake, who had monopolized the Shen family's favor for over twenty years, and had a terrible character. On the surface, he had a glorious marriage with the Nan family, but in reality, he was married to a disabled man who would be in a wheelchair for life and was not favored.

It was better to fawn over the real young master of the Shen family, for easier interactions in the future. Moreover, the one who was so close to him was precisely Nan Feiyao, who was being groomed as the successor of the Nan family.

Those who could sit at this table today were all perceptive people.

Everyone was gathered around Shen Lanqing, chattering away, quite lively.

Shen Gali's adoptive mother also focused all her attention on Nan Feiyao and Shen Lanqing.

She really had given birth to a treasure; being able to latch onto such a high branch as Nan Feiyao meant a bright future for the Shen family.

Shen Gali silently ate the spring rolls in front of him, not sure if they were delicious or not, but because they were close by and he was too lazy to reach for other dishes.

His adoptive father carefully glanced at his wife, and seeing that her attention was elsewhere, he used the serving chopsticks to pick some fish and vegetables and put them in Shen Gali's bowl, saying softly, "Li Li, you should eat a little of everything to stay healthy."

Shen Gali's hand holding the chopsticks paused, and a strange feeling suddenly welled up in his heart.

He couldn't quite describe the emotion, just a bit of bitterness.

Normally, he wouldn't eat food that others put in his bowl, but today he inexplicably picked up the fish and put it in his mouth.

He rarely ate fish because he had to spit out the bones; it was troublesome.

Just as he swallowed the fish, he felt a small bone stuck in his throat.

Indeed, he still really hated eating fish.

He turned his head, covered his mouth with a tissue, and coughed lightly a few times, but failed to cough it out.

"Li Li, are you choked?" His adoptive father's voice carried a hint of anxiety, quickly standing up and bringing him a glass of water.

For a moment, everyone's gaze turned sharply in this direction.

His adoptive mother frowned her willow-leaf eyebrows, her eyes dark, as if blaming Shen Gali for losing face, and also blaming her husband for meddling.

Nan Feiyao curled his lips and said in a teasing tone, "Sister-in-law is quite gluttonous. Slow down, no one's fighting you for it."

Revenge on the spot, here it comes. If you dare to make Lanqing suffer, you'd better be prepared.

Shen Gali took a sip of water, finally washing down the fish bone, and said softly, "Yeah, just like you, can't control your mouth."

Everyone: ...

Shen Lanqing frowned and tugged at Nan Feiyao's sleeve, whispering, "Don't talk about my brother like that."

Nan Feiyao's gaze turned cold, and the mocking smile on his face disappeared completely.

The smile didn't disappear; it just transferred to Uncle Li's face, who was enjoying the show.

Opposite, Nan Liujing's stepmother Yu Huaisu saw her son being verbally attacked, and laughed, "The new bride and our Liujing are truly a perfect match, their skill at choking people is exactly the same. Is this what they call harmony of husband and wife?"

Although her tone was joking, everyone could hear the sarcasm.

Shen Gali's delicate brows furrowed slightly.

He didn't like being the center of attention.

Without even looking up, he asked sincerely, "Are you and your husband not of one mind?"

Everyone: ...

Yu Huaisu felt her throat tighten and her breathing became labored.

The fingers holding her knife and fork clenched secretly, her knuckles turning pale.

The adoptive father quickly smoothed things over, smiling apologetically, "Li Li has been practicing crosstalk recently, and he's here to show everyone his progress and make everyone laugh. Alright, everyone, start eating, the food is getting cold."

The meal was eaten with everyone harboring their own thoughts. Yu Huaisu felt that Shen Gali had made her lose face, so naturally she wouldn't make things easy for him.

After the meal, the servants brought fruit. Shen Gali sat on the sofa, wondering when he could go back and lie down for five minutes.

Eating was so tiring; it made him sleepy.

Yu Huaisu sat down beside him with a laptop, smiling brightly, her round pearl earrings swaying. "Jiali, can mom ask you a favor?"

Shen Gali hesitated.

Mom? Oh, mother-in-law is also called mom, but she's not his mother.

But with so many idle people present, why specifically ask me?

"I need to use the computer to send a file to a friend, but mom isn't very good with computers, so could you please add that friend of mine and send it to him?"

Shen Gali said, "I don't know how to use computers either. My phone is still a feature phone."

"Jiali, you're joking. You majored in software engineering. Just treat it as mom asking for your help, okay?"

Shen Gali sighed. What a difficult woman.

He took the laptop, logged into his WeChat, and added that friend according to Yu Huaisu's instructions.

At that moment, a relative happened to come over and chat with Yu Huaisu. Shen Gali waited on the side, habitually refreshed the desktop, and accidentally clicked on file sorting, and then accidentally clicked on sort by size.

Shen Gali: ...

How was it sorted originally?

Forgot, just leave it as is.

Yu Huaisu finally finished greeting the relatives, pointed to the first folder and said, "Can you send this to a friend for me?"

Shen Gali dragged the folder into the chat box, pressed Enter to send: "Done."

"Thanks, Jiali!" With that, Yu Huaisu snatched back the computer and forced a shutdown by pressing the power button.

Still wearing a bright smile, she then got up and went to the bathroom, took out her phone, scrolled to a contact, and quickly typed a message:

"Just do as I say, and you'll be well rewarded."

The other person replied instantly: "Got it! Thank you, Mrs. Yu."

Yu Huaisu rested her chin on the phone, pondered for a moment, and then suddenly couldn't help bursting out laughing.