Reborn as a Substitute

Ji Sheng tilted up his head and alcohol slid from his mouth into his esophagus, burning all the way.

He frowned slightly, swallowed the liquor, raised his hand to show the empty glass and slammed the glass back on the coffee table.

Ji Sheng straightened up: “I have drunk the wine, so let them go.”

Zhao Wenhua chuckled, waved his hand, and the two men holding Huang Sizhe relaxed their grip. Huang Sizhe staggered forward, propping his hand on the floor littered with glass splinters. A few pieces of broken glass stuck into his palm, making him drip blood.

Huang Sizhe stood up abruptly as if half-conscious, rushed to Ji Sheng, pulled him behind his back and stared at Zhao Wenhua with bloodshot eyes.

Zhao Wenhua smiled, puzzled: “Why do you still treat me as an enemy? I just want to make friends.”

Huang Sizhe panted heavily and was about to say “You fart” fiercely, but Ji Sheng spoke first.

“Mr. Zhao, we accept your friendship.” Ji Sheng said calmly, “I just don’t know if Mr. Zhao will give his ‘friend’ a chance to deal with his wounds. After all, such an embarrassing acquaintance is not in line with etiquette.”

“That’s fine.” Zhao Wenhua nodded readily, his gaze licking Ji Sheng like a snake, “He can go and take care of his wounds, you, who are intact, can sit down and have a little chat with me.”

Huang Sizhe was furious when he heard this: “Don’t you fucking dare——”

Grabbing him, Ji Sheng interrupted: “Okay.” He made a step forward and was pulled back by Huang Sizhe.

“Do you remember the number?” Ji Sheng turned sideways and asked in a low voice.

Huang Sizhe’s eyes relaxed a little, but he still didn’t let go.

“Go.” Ji Sheng whispered again, “Otherwise I can’t leave.”

He nudged Huang Sizhe, giving him a meaningful glance, obediently broke free of his restraints and walked over to the sofa.

Huang Sizhe watched Ji Sheng sit down beside Zhao Wenhua, gritted his teeth, turned and walked out.

He staggered towards Lu Haoren, his footsteps unsteady.

Lu Haoren stepped forward to help him regain his balance; his eyes were anxious and full of questions. He heard Huang Sizhe’s hoarse voice:

“Do you have a phone?”

Lu Haoren was startled and then nodded.

“Okay.” Huang Sizhe said in a low voice, “Let’s go out and talk.”

The two walked out of the private room. Zhao Wenhua didn’t have any wish to keep them, so no one stopped them.

Zhao Wenhua sat on the sofa, staring at the tear mole under Ji Sheng’s eye, unable to stop his mouth from drying up.

A few years ago, when he was just a local snake, there was also such a young man with a mole at the corner of his eye. At that time, Zhao Wenhua had some nasty plans and set up a banquet to invite him over… However, he made a mistake and failed to succeed in the end.

It was a regret Zhao Wenhua had carried for years. When he saw the boy again, he was surprised to find that he appeared on TV and became a big star. Their status was very different then. Zhao Wenhua looked at the young man like a toad who wanted to eat a swan’s meat. The mole became an evil fire that burned for many years.

Therefore, when Zhao Wenhua noticed Ji Hui, that face from his dreams firmly grasped Zhao Wenhua’s attention.

The humble background, being the drummer, the tear mole at the corner of his eye that made one feel itchy.

It was simply a compensation from Heaven for him missing the beauty.

Zhao Wenhua sniffed Ji Hui’s body; the smell of alcohol was unable to cover the fruity sweetness. This feeling was familiar and seemed to cross time and space; just like a few years ago when he lowered his head and sniffed the unconscious boy’s neck…

Zhao Wenhua couldn’t stop staring. Ji Sheng wore a round neck shirt today; his collarbones and neck were exposed, his fair skin blushed from the alcohol.

Zhao Wenhua leaned towards this blush like a demon, his fat fingers trembling and reaching out.

Ji Sheng couldn’t help the disgust on his face. He wanted to hide, but the drug had already started working. His stomach was burning and his body felt weak. There was a sofa behind him, and there was nowhere to go.

Zhao Wenhua leaned forward in fascination, and just as he was about to touch the smooth skin, his mobile phone rang suddenly, interrupting his sordid thoughts.

Zhao Wenhua was taken aback, pulled away, grabbed his phone and said angrily: “Hello?”

“Zhao Wenhua.” A cold voice came from the other end of the phone, “You really haven’t learned the lesson.”

Zhao Wenhua’s left eye twitched suddenly. This voice was engraved in his bones; even if his corpse was cold, it would still tremble hearing it.

Xie Xuanming said coldly: “I warned you before, don’t do this kind of dirty thing in front of my eyes. Do you have a bad memory or are you deliberately provoking me?”

Zhao Wenhua swallowed hard.

He had heard that the little drummer had something to do with Xie Xuanming, but he didn’t expect Xie Xuanming to care so much about the kid. The threat came before he even had time to touch.

Zhao Wenhua glanced at Ji Sheng reluctantly and said: “Emperor Xie, I respect you, but you are a bit harsh. I just invited a newcomer for a drink, what’s that to you?”

“Don’t get in my way.”

There was a cold smile in Xie Xuanming’s voice.

“Mr. Zhao, you don’t remember what I warned you about before, do you?”

Zhao Wenhua shivered instinctively.

How could he not remember?

Zhao Wenhua had met Ji Sheng once at a certain reception after the young man became famous.

At that time, Ji Sheng was so popular and rich that even though Zhao Wenhua had also had a lucky break, he was still not qualified to walk up to him and talk to him.

He could only hide in the corner, leering obscenely, looking at the slim waist, the long, thin neck…

He was in the middle of his fantasies when a tall figure suddenly cut in across the room, blocking his prying eyes.

“Fuck!” Zhao Wenhua cursed, “Are you blind or what…”

He raised his eyes and couldn’t make a sound like a chicken being held by the neck.

Xie Xuanming, who had already become a movie star, was dressed in a black suit, staring down at him meaningfully.

“Xie… Xie…” Zhao Wenhua almost suffocated as if a grip on his trachea tightened.

Naturally, he remembered Ji Sheng’s band member back then, the mad dog-like teenage lead singer who became a celebrity.

Zhao Wenhua even planned to expose Xie Xuanming’s violent misdeeds in order to extort a huge amount of compensation.

At least he tried.

He contacted Xie Xuanming’s company to come to talk about compensation. Before the meeting, Zhao Wenhua was smug and full of thoughts about squeezing a bit of oil out of this famous kid.

However, after seeing Xie Xuanming, he had no thoughts at all.

The broad-shouldered man sat in a chair, his handsome face still carrying the beauty of his teenage years, but when he raised his eyes and his icy gaze locked on the visitor——

Zhao Wenhua couldn’t help taking a step back, shivering with a sudden chill.

He realised abruptly how ridiculous it was to think that Xie Xuanming would stoop to his level because of the information he had on him. The man in front of him was still a desperate mad dog at heart, no matter how much he changed on the outside. Could fame and wealth shackle a mad dog? It would still leap up with impunity any moment and tear open the throat of the offender if it wanted to.

Drenched in cold sweat, Zhao Wenhua felt his hair stand on its end. He didn’t dare to ask for anything. He got out of there with his tail between his legs. From then on, he stayed away from Xie Xuanming and didn’t dare to provoke him anymore.

He didn’t look for trouble, but he didn’t expect Xie Xuanming to take the initiative to come to his door and snap at him.

“How long are you going to watch?” Standing in front of him, Xie Xuanming asked quietly with a gloomy expression.

Zhao Wenhua was so frightened that he shrank back. The distance was too close. Although there were people everywhere, if Xie Xuanming wanted to make a move, he would not be able to avoid it.

In the end, Xie Xuanming did not do anything in public. He only put his hand on Zhao Wenhua’s shoulder, leaned down, stroked his thumb vaguely over his throat twice and nuzzled his ear to whisper clearly:

“Forget your nasty thoughts… otherwise, be careful to walk at night…” The nightmarish voice echoed in his ears, and for a moment, Zhao Wenhua felt a terrible chill in his throat and reflexively shivered.

Xie Xuanming on the other end of the phone was still talking. “I’m coming over now, do you want to meet me?”

Zhao Wenhua hung up the phone abruptly, said “I’m leaving” hurriedly and left the scene as if fleeing.

Once Zhao Wenhua slipped away, the people in the private room realized that the situation was not good, exchanged a few words and withdrew one after another.

In the chaos, Lu Haoren and Huang Sizhe rushed in and ran to Ji Sheng’s side.

Ji Sheng collapsed into the sofa, unable to sit straight as the drug took effect.

“Ji Hui!” Huang Sizhe shook him.

“Go on, find a room.” Ji Sheng steeled himself and said, “I want to take a shower.”

As soon as he entered the room, he locked in the bathroom and submerged himself in the cold water, shivering. Lu Haoren and Huang Sizhe heard the sound of water gurgling inside but could not see what was going on, so they could only stand at the door and worry.

“Are you okay?!” At first there were a few knocks on the door and then Lu Haoren’s anxious voice came.

“I’m fine.” Ji Sheng’s teeth chattered, “Take Sizhe and deal with his wounds.”

There were a few more noises at the door.

Ji Sheng didn’t have the strength to listen, weakness spreading from his stomach to his limbs, together with an unpleasant tingling sensation.

He took a deep breath and let the water pour on him.

Xie Xuanming opened the door with the swipe of the card he asked for from the front desk. As soon as he entered the room, he saw the bathroom light in the near darkness and Ji Hui’s two teammates leaning on the door and yelling.

Xie Xuanming didn’t say a word, picked them up and threw them out of the room before they had time to react, closed the door and locked it.

“What the hell are you doing! Open the door! Open the door! I’ll call the police! Fuck you, open the door!”

While the unpleasant bassist yelled at the door, Xie Xuanming didn’t bother to pay attention to him, calling the front desk to deal with him, and then walked to the bathroom.

The door was locked. Xie Xuanming knocked on it and said, “Open the door.”

What responded to him was the sound of pattering water.

Xie Xuanming frowned, took a step back, raised his foot and kicked the door lock fiercely.

Click.

The lock opened.

Xie Xuanming pushed the door in and saw a half-dead person soaking in the overflowing bathtub.

His eye twitched. He stepped into the water and pulled Ji Sheng out.

Ji Sheng was shivering.

His body was very hot, but his teeth were chattering again.

His mind was no longer clear. In a trance, he always felt that it was the water that was hot and his body that was cold.

After being dragged out of the bathtub, Ji Sheng had the illusion that he was like a fish out of water, with his gills opening infinitely but unable to catch any oxygen.

“What did you drink?” The low voice came as distant as if sounding through a wall.

Who was talking?

Ji Sheng opened his eyes wide and finally saw a figure leaning over him. 

The face of that person was as unclear as if it was covered by water mist. Ji Sheng wanted to see better, so he stared and tilted forward.

Xie Xuanming frowned.

He had dragged Ji Hui out of the bathtub and watched him shiver as if having a fit.  Then Ji Hui suddenly stood up and leaned towards him, looking disoriented.

Xie Xuanming’s hands were quick. He grasped Ji Sheng’s chin and pinched the flesh of his cheeks to prevent him from leaning forward.

Ji Sheng’s face was flushed, his eyes were blurred, his moist lips were slightly open, and he seemed to be begging for a kiss.

Xie Xuanming frowned tighter and couldn’t help but scold: “Wake up.”

Ji Sheng was unconscious; he felt cold and the man in front of him was hot.

He squinted and rubbed against the source of the heat.

Fuck.

Xie Xuanming suddenly pushed him away. Ji Sheng staggered back, clutching the bathtub to stop falling.

He struggled for a while, then slowly sat up on the edge of the bathtub. His wandering gaze focused and returned to Xie Xuanming.

Seeing that Ji Hui seemed to be about to lean forward again, Xie Xuanming cautiously withdrew and said coldly: “Don’t move! Look closely at who I am…”

Before he finished speaking, Ji Sheng suddenly rushed up and wrapped his wet arms around Xie Xuanming with some unexpected strength.

Xie Xuanming was startled. He didn’t have time to dodge as he was pounced on. When he reacted and was going to push Ji Sheng away, he was already squeezed in Ji Sheng’s arms, unable to move

Xie Xuanming was ruthlessly preparing to use brute force when he heard him speak in a low voice.

“Xie Xuanming…”

Xie Xuanming paused and listened to him.

“I’m sorry…”

In the next second, a pair of moist eyes zoomed on him, and then something cold and soft touched his lips. The tip of Ji Sheng’s tongue, warm and tasting with alcohol, pushed into his mouth.

Xie Xuanming grabbed Ji Sheng’s hair and pulled him away forcefully. He raised the other hand, ready to slap him, when he saw the tear mole very close in front of him.

Xie Xuanming frowned, and finally only patted his face impatiently twice: “Wake up.”

Ji Sheng looked at him in confusion, water drops rolling from his hair into his eyes, leaving wet traces on his jade white cheeks.

He didn’t answer, lowered his head and buried his face in Xie Xuanming’s collarbone, rubbing slowly and ambiguously.

Xie Xuanming squeezed the back of his neck and pulled his head away vigorously.

“Xiao Xie.”

Ji Sheng squinted and murmured uncomfortably, “It hurts.”

Xie Xuanming’s movements froze suddenly. His fingers felt cold.

“What did you just say?”

Ji Sheng stopped talking again, only breaking free of his restraints and lowering his head to rub against the side of his neck for a while. Then he looked up, his wet eyes meeting the stare of the petrified man.

“Xie Xuanming.” Ji Sheng’s moist lips parted and closed, “I’m so uncomfortable.”

Before Xie Xuanming could answer, Ji Sheng’s slender fingers already pulled the waist of his trousers.

Ji Sheng pulled forcefully but he couldn’t pull his pants down, just troubling Xie Xuanming.

In the next second, his thin wrist was captured, and Xie Xuanming pressed Ji Sheng back on the bathtub with one hand, cupping his cheek with the other.

“You have one last chance to repent.”

Ji Sheng licked his fingers lightly in response.

Translator’s note: The s*x scene is apparently on the author’s Weibo but I don’t know how to find it. Maybe later. It doesn’t affect the plot anyway.