Marrying the Rich Man's Ex-Brother - Chapter 5

Early the next morning.

Xu Qing went to the Heaven and Earth Building as invited to discuss the details of sponsoring the funeral with Wu Yan.

Bai Chi, on the other hand, slept comfortably until he naturally woke up, only to be disturbed by a call from the original host’s mother.

Rubbing his sleepy eyes, Bai Chi first patted the little black cub obediently lying beside the quilt, then answered the phone.

“Hello…?” Bai Chi’s voice was a bit hoarse, probably from getting caught in the rain the day before.

“What time is it already! Your lazy pig, why aren’t you up yet! Don’t you have work today?”

A sharp woman’s voice exploded from the receiver, startling Bai Chi so much he nearly rolled off the bed.

This absurdly loud voice reminded Bai Chi of the aunties who handed out boxed meals on film sets—each with a voice as booming as a bell, capable of summoning all the starving crew members to eat like calling forth mythical beasts.

Bai Chi’s little heart pounded in his throat for a moment before slowly settling back into his chest.

The original host’s constitution was rather weak and easily frightened.

Seeing that Bai Chi hadn’t responded, the woman continued shrilly, “I saw what happened online. You were hospitalized, right? Remember to tell the doctor not to use any expensive medicine—only what insurance covers. Anyway, you’re young and healthy, it doesn’t matter whether you get treated or not! And your brother is going abroad for a study tour during National Day, something about visiting the Evergreen Vegetable School. Remember to transfer the registration fee—150,000-yuan total, all-inclusive with meals and accommodation.”

Bai Chi: “…?”

Evergreen Vegetable School? What on earth is that?

Bai Chi rubbed his eyes, slowly sat up in bed, and after a dazed moment, realized the original host’s mother probably meant the Ivy League.

The original host’s brother was only in the third grade of elementary school. What could he possibly learn from a study tour at an Ivy League school? It was just an excuse to take a trip and broaden the child’s horizons.

But Bai Chi didn’t say this out loud. Instead, he turned the volume down to the lowest setting, picked up a water glass from the bedside, and took a sip to moisten his throat.

Clearly dissatisfied with Bai Chi’s dismissive attitude, the woman on the other end sharply raised her voice again—”Hey!? Are you deaf or mute!? Your mother is talking to you!”

After setting down the water glass, Bai Chi lightly nudged the little black cub’s furry paw with his bare, pale foot and spoke calmly.

“I’m out of money now. You must have seen the news—I’ve been blacklisted from the entertainment industry. Not only will I not get any more work, but I also owe 200 million in breach of contract penalties—”

The woman on the other end gasped sharply, as if she’d seen a ghost, and shrieked—”How could that be!?”

Bai Chi replied flatly, “It just is. If you don’t believe me, check the news yourself. It’s all written there very clearly.”

The woman on the phone panted heavily a few times before tremblingly saying, “But don’t you still have a boyfriend? Won’t your boyfriend help you? He’s so rich and powerful—he’ll definitely help you, right!?”

Bai Chi let out a cold laugh, shattering the woman’s fantasy. “My boyfriend? He broke up with me.”

The woman on the other end of the phone shrieked so loudly it made Bai Chi’s head ache. “Listen to me! Even if you have to beg on your knees and cry, you must make up with your boyfriend! We absolutely will not allow you to break up with the second young master of the Wu family! You have to cling to his leg tightly! Understand?! Your brother’s wealth and future all depend on you!”

Bai Chi’s temple twitched slightly: “…”

He wasn’t a gachapon machine or a vending machine that would spit out fun and delicious things with just a coin inserted.

But this family seemed determined to treat him like a perpetual motion machine like Doraemon, as if a few flippant words from them could make him endlessly fulfill all their demands and wishes.

Bai Chi stated calmly, “He doesn’t want me anymore. There’s nothing I can do.”

There was a brief silence on the other end, followed by an outburst of sharp, piercing insults.

“Ah! I get it now! It’s all because of you, you little slut! You must have really done something so shameless, climbing into someone else’s bed without any sense of shame! That’s why your boyfriend dumped you! You’re nothing but a jinx to our family! You’ve brought nothing but trouble to all of us! Why didn’t you just die in the hospital, you scourge?! You’re going to be the death of us all!”

Hearing this, Bai Chi frowned slightly, feeling deeply that the original owner of this body had been treated unjustly.

The original owner had truly given his all for his parents and brother—not only handing over his salary card to them, keeping only two thousand yuan a month for himself, but also giving them without reservation the house, car, and money that Wu Yu had provided.

Yet in the eyes of his parents, he was only a money tree when he was profitable, and now that he had fallen on hard times, he had become a despicable jinx. They had never truly treated him as their own child.

Originally, Bai Chi had intended to treat the original owner’s parents well, fulfilling his filial duties and taking good care of them.

But after being berated so harshly by the original owner’s mother, Bai Chi immediately abandoned that naive idea.

Bai Chi would fulfill the legal responsibilities and support obligations owed by a child to their parents on behalf of the original owner, but beyond that—affection, care, and companionship—these parents truly did not deserve.

The woman on the phone continued to rant, her voice so loud it made Bai Chi’s eardrums ache faintly.

“I’m telling you, you must pay for your brother’s study abroad program! Your father and I have just finished paying off our debts, and we don’t have a single cent left! If you don’t give us this money… we’ll go to your company, to your boyfriend’s company, and make a scene! And next year, we plan to transfer your brother to a private international elite school—tuition and miscellaneous fees will add up to nearly a million a year. You need to start thinking about how to come up with that money too!”

Bai Chi wasn’t angry but stated a very obvious fact with utmost calm—”You know very well how the family’s debts came to be. I worked hard to earn money outside, while you squandered it all at the casino…”

After taking a deep breath, Bai Chi said coldly, “I truly have no money left now. Even if you kill me, I can’t produce this sum. Besides, I’ve already given you so much money before—far more than just 1.5 million, easily over 15 million. I even handed over the villa and apartment in Shenzhen to you. Those two properties combined are worth at least 30 to 50 million. Can you really not afford to send him on a study abroad program and pay for his education?”

Without waiting for the woman on the other end of the line to respond, Bai Chi hung up directly. He opened his contacts, blocked his original self’s parents’ numbers, and deleted their WeChat contacts as well.

Of course, Bai Chi knew this wouldn’t completely put an end to his original self’s parents’ delusional expectations. So, he sat down at his desk and replaced the SIM card in his phone with the new one Xu Qing had left for him.

This way, his original self’s parents wouldn’t be able to harass him anymore. Instead, they would most likely go and make a scene at the Wu’s World Group.

This, in fact, worked in Bai Chi’s favor.

–

After waking up and washing up.

Bai Chi rummaged through the fridge and found some milk and bread.

He and the little black furball shared breakfast, taking turns eating, before he put on a mask, cap, and sunglasses and drove out.

“Be good at home, little black furball. Daddy is going out for a bit and should be back by the afternoon.”

After giving the little black furball a gentle rub, Bai Chi drove to his original self’s hometown, a small town adjacent to Shenzhen.

Back on the day he woke up in the hospital, Bai Chi had already asked someone to arrange a well-situated gravesite for his original self in his hometown.

Although Bai Chi wasn’t a superstitious person, he didn’t want to carelessly handle his original self’s remains. Instead, he hoped the other’s spirit could rest in peace.

During the drive, Bai Chi carefully revisited in his mind the daily interactions between his original self and his parents and younger brother. He couldn’t shake the feeling that the relationship between his original self and his parents wasn’t as simple as it seemed.

While it’s common in families with two children for parents to favor the younger one, both Bai Xi, the original self, and his brother were sons, so gender bias wasn’t a factor. How could the treatment be so drastically different—one treated like heaven, the other like dirt?

Unless the original self wasn’t their biological child, it would be very hard to explain such extreme favoritism and harsh treatment.

Now, with the younger son still in elementary school, they’ve already enrolled him in an elite private school and arranged overseas study trips, showing that Bai Xi’s parents do understand the importance of education.

Yet, when the original self was in high school, his parents cut off his living expenses because he didn’t follow their plan to work in a factory after junior high like other kids from their town, insisting instead on attending high school.

With no financial support from his parents, the original self-had to secure a student loan and work hard to support himself through part-time jobs while studying.

Poor Bai Xi had to juggle school with off-campus work. He was so frugal at school, saving every bit of his meal money to buy study materials because his good grades gave him hope of getting into a good university. He often survived on steamed buns and free clear soup or porridge in the cafeteria, which led to poor health, including stomach issues and low bl00d sugar.

The turning point came during the summer after his senior year of high school. While handing out flyers part-time at a mall, he was scouted by a talent agent. That was how he stepped into the entertainment industry, debuting in a less-known boy band thanks to his youthful and handsome looks.

The original host had intended to balance his studies with work to earn money, but his greedy parents forced him to drop out of university, insisting he make the most of his youth to earn more and support the family.

Emotionally blackmailed by his parents, the original host had no choice but to withdraw from school, cutting off his own path to a better future and leaving him completely at the mercy of his talent agency.

–

Back when he was in the boy band.

With no influential family background, the original host was often ostracized and exploited by his well-off teammates in a company filled with heirs of wealthy families, always left isolated and alone.

However, the original host avoided stirring up trouble. Whenever others picked on him, he would either endure it silently or quietly walk away, never engaging in direct confrontations.

Gradually, the other members realized there was no fun in bullying him and slowly began to ignore him, treating him like an invisible mute.

Though his presence in the group was minimal, the original host was undeniably good-looking and, compared to his pampered, wealthy teammates, far more resilient and hardworking. He never refused even the trashiest gigs that others turned down, as long as they paid.

So, the agency’s executives actually had high hopes for him. But their company had little reputation or resources in the industry, barely qualifying as a third-rate outfit. Thus, the original host’s agent thought of a shady workaround.

No resources? No problem!

If Bai Xi could just attract a powerful, influential sugar daddy, wouldn’t he skyrocket to success overnight?

Maybe even the company could benefit from the connection!

So, under the pretense of discussing collaborations, the agent began taking the original host and a few other good-looking but background-lacking members to various banquets and parties, openly and covertly pressuring the original host to trade his body for opportunities. Fortunately, he met Wu Yu and managed to break free from the unscrupulous company’s control.

No wonder the original host fell so devotedly in love with Wu Yu.

For a pitiful child who had lived his whole life in darkness, encountering even a sliver of warmth made it seem like the only bright sun and light in his world.

Bai Chi sighed, adjusted the sunglasses on the bridge of his nose, and drove the Mini into the service area to refuel.

But as soon as he opened his phone to pay for the gas, a bold headline notification automatically popped up on the screen—Shocking Turmoil at Movie Emperor Bai Chi’s Funeral! 27 Devoted Ex-Lovers Vie to Carry His Coffin!

Movie Emperor Bai Chi himself: “…?”

Is Wu Yan, that ultimate obsessive fan, fixating on my funeral not enough?

Where the hell did these 27 more lunatics come from, all fighting to carry my coffin!?

After refueling, Bai Chi parked the car in the service area, got out, and called Xu Qing.

“Qing, did you buy that coffin-carrying publicity stunt?”

Xu Qing admitted readily, “Yeah, I bought it. You saw the news?”

“Mm, I saw it, but I don’t really get why you’d do that,” Bai Chi said honestly.

Xu Qing, “Because this morning, Wu Yan and I couldn’t agree on the collaboration deal. I thought 700 million was a bit low, so I’m planning to drive the price up a little more.”

Bai Chi was baffled. “Huh…? Couldn’t agree…? And you want to raise the price?”

700 million is too little?

Originally, Bai Chi’s psychological price point was that even seventy million would have been acceptable.

On the other end of the phone, Xu Qing patiently explained, “You see, under normal circumstances, a person only gets to die once in their lifetime, right?”

“Right, generally speaking, that’s true.” Bai Chi nodded, still somewhat puzzled. “But what does that have to do with this matter?”

Xu Qing’s tone was indifferent, the epitome of a capitalist. “Because I don’t want you to die too cheaply.”

Bai Chi: “………………”