In the original plot setup, Li Zhitao’s public confession at the birthday banquet caught Li Zhanbei’s attention, leading him to take Wen Tian home just as the driver was about to nearly hit him. Now that this preceding plot had changed, would the same storyline still play out?
He Xingluo stepped out of the car amid the rain, and Wen Tian was just getting up from the ground.
Wen Tian looked thoroughly wretched in the rain. His shirt was almost completely soaked, one foot stepped halfway into the mud, and rain splatters stained his trousers.
He Xingluo didn’t even have time to register that this person was the male protagonist; he instinctively handed over his umbrella.
Even in the rain, it was clear that Wen Tian’s face was deathly pale. He looked up in helplessness as the bright yellow umbrella covered him, tilting slightly toward his side.
Wen Tian felt as though he were dreaming, murmuring, “It’s you, Steward He.”
Wen Tian’s departure from the banquet, or rather, his escape from the Li household, had not gone smoothly.
Relying on his understanding of Li Zhitao, he had managed to evade the spotlight and avoid getting caught up in the drama during the banquet. However, midway through, his identity had been exposed.
The main reason was Li Zhitao’s declaration that the person I love is right here, which made Wen Tian’s whereabouts completely indefensible. Among all the waiters at the banquet, Wen Tian was the only part-timer and also shared the same school as Li Zhitao.
It was only natural that Wen Tian was tracked down by people from the Li family. It wasn’t even Li Zhitao’s parents who showed up, but rather a Li family staff member warning him not to harbor further illusions about tempting Li Zhitao into making mistakes.
Wen Tian found it laughable.
He clearly had never actively done anything. It was always Li Zhitao who inexplicably appeared in his world, acting on his own accord to pursue him, and today even setting up a trap for him to walk into, only for him to be the one warned about being unworthy of Li Zhitao.
That was simply too unfair.
Perhaps Wen Tian’s attitude led the Li family staff member to conclude that he was disobedient, so he was invited into the lounge under the pretext of receiving his part-time wages, and was only permitted to leave after all the guests had departed.
The price of leaving early was losing a thousand yuan in part-time pay, and Wen Tian simply lacked the leverage to fight back.
He needed the money.
He had to endure unwarranted humiliation for the sake of this sum.
When he walked out of the Li residence, Wen Tian’s phone battery was about to die, and he had a thousand yuan on him intended for his younger brother’s medical expenses, money needed to buy his brother’s medicine the next day.
This residential area of the Li family had zero public transportation, the nearest bus stop was over seven kilometers away, and Wen Tian hadn’t eaten anything for more than eight hours.
To make matters worse, the clear weather suddenly turned into a torrential downpour.
Wen Tian was nearly numb to it; even if things grew worse, he lacked the energy for any intense emotional reaction. When he nearly stumbled, he only instinctively tucked the envelope containing the money deep against his chest.
He even found the spare capacity to worry: he wouldn’t even have time to dry the money out, and the hospital required payment before the doctor’s rounds the next day.
Would the hospital still accept wet bills?
Wen Tian steadied himself in the rain, lifting his head to discover someone holding an umbrella for him.
A bright yellow umbrella.
Even beneath the dim streetlights, it looked remarkably cheerful. Wen Tian noticed that the person holding the umbrella shifted it to tilt more toward his side.
This was an experience Wen Tian had never had before.
Ever since he was young, he had been expected to look after his younger brother and shoulder responsibilities, while his perpetually exhausted mother gave whatever little care and favoritism she had left to his ailing brother.
Yet now, a stranger was sharing the majority of their umbrella with him.
Wen Tian stood in a daze for a few seconds before recognizing who it was. He Xingluo asked with a look of astonishment, “How did you end up like this? Even if it’s for…”
Even if it’s to push the plot along, you didn’t have to go this hard, did you?
He Xingluo swallowed those words back, turning to look at Li Zhanbei inside the car while shaking his head and frowning. Why wasn’t Li Zhanbei getting out of the car already? Your wife is about to catch a cold in this heavy rain.
Just wait and see who ends up heartbroken later!
After waiting for less than a minute, Li Zhanbei indeed got out of the car.
He Xingluo looked toward Li Zhanbei, eager to see how the plot forcefully controlled the protagonists. In such heavy rain that facial features were barely discernible, could love at first sight really strike just like that?
After stepping out, Li Zhanbei stood holding an umbrella, his face dark.
Li Zhanbei couldn’t understand why He Xingluo was so eagerly throwing himself out into the rain. Judging by his behavior earlier in the day, it was entirely impossible for him to be that enthusiastic about work.
Then what could possibly be his reason for being so eager?
As Li Zhanbei drew closer to the two of them, he noticed that the rain-drenched passerby in front of the car shifted half a step closer to He Xingluo upon seeing him, while half of He Xingluo’s shoulder was soaked.
Li Zhanbei said with displeasure, “Get in the car already. Is playing in the rain fun?”
He Xingluo was rendered speechless on the spot, whose fault was all of this anyway? Whose romance was this, whose life was this, and who was losing their mind in a torrential downpour?
He Xingluo was furious, but he still had to carry on with the plot. He took a deep breath, adjusted his mood, and spoke: “Young master, this gentleman has been soaked through by the rain. How about we give him a ride home?”
Since you two are destined for love at first sight, bringing him along directly makes total sense, right?
Yet Li Zhanbei remained completely unmoved. His gaze swept over Wen Tian with critical scrutiny, showing zero trace of human warmth: “Leave your umbrella for him, and get in the car with me.”
He Xingluo: “…”
What kind of development was this? He couldn’t figure it out.
Are the protagonists of romance arcs always this abstract? Was love at first sight just handing over someone else’s umbrella? He Xingluo almost really handed the umbrella over, but looking at Wen Tian’s wretched state, his heart couldn’t bear it.
From Wen Tian’s perspective, he was probably just a stranger. Yet He Xingluo, having already read the script, was unilaterally familiar with Wen Tian and simply couldn’t leave him stranded.
Hearing Li Zhanbei’s words, Wen Tian looked up at the umbrella in He Xingluo’s hand. Instead of passing the umbrella over, He Xingluo asked loudly, “Did our driver almost hit you earlier? You seem to be feeling really unwell right now?”
Feeling the goodwill radiating from a stranger, Wen Tian gave a dazed nod.
He Xingluo turned back to say, “Young master, look, he says he’s not feeling well. How about we let him get in the car with us?”
For the sake of successfully marrying your wife, you’d better hurry up and agree.
At that moment, the rain seemed to grow even heavier, driving sideways on the wind. Sharing an umbrella with Wen Tian left He Xingluo thoroughly dampened by the lingering moisture.
Li Zhanbei appeared to give tacit consent: “There are blankets in the car.”
He Xingluo finally let out a sigh of relief, the young master truly was head over heels.
He Xingluo fished out a blanket from the car and handed it to Wen Tian, reminding him, “The air conditioning is running inside. If you don’t dry off, you’ll catch a cold.”
Without waiting for a reply, he practically pushed the man toward the vehicle. Wen Tian exerted a bit of force to pull him back, draping the blanket over He Xingluo’s shoulders instead. “You’ll catch a cold too.”
Hit squarely by this gesture, He Xingluo felt momentarily disoriented. But recalling the system’s remark that Wen Tian is a kind-hearted protagonist, it started making sense again.
He Xingluo thanked him: “Then I’ll grab another blanket for you!”
Li Zhanbei, who had remained silent the entire time, suddenly shot a glance toward He Xingluo.
He Xingluo was puzzled: “?”
What’s wrong? Don’t tell me he’s jealous! He certainly didn’t ask Wen Tian for this!
Unwilling to provoke an unhinged romance protagonist, He Xingluo quickly fetched a second blanket for Wen Tian. Wen Tian climbed into the car, taking a seat in the back row next to Li Zhanbei.
He Xingluo closed the car door himself.
Feeling like an elderly father who had just successfully arranged an arranged marriage for his children, He Xingluo returned to the passenger seat with a deep sense of accomplishment, once again reuniting with his workplace buddy, Teacher Kevin. This time, their shared goal was getting off work.
Clenches fist.jpg
Though nothing much seemed to have happened today, he certainly worked hard enough! Today’s quota of suffering ends right here, and whatever’s left can wait for tomorrow!
Teacher Kevin wore a look of unspoken hesitation, asking softly: “Steward He, if you get into a car accident while driving, how would you handle it?”
He Xingluo was clueless: “Call the police first, then report it to the insurance company, of course.”
Teacher Kevin looked deeply gratified.
He Xingluo: “…”
Enough already.
A moment ago, he was just an ordinary guardian of romance, and besides, since when did CEO romance novels ever care about the law anyway?
Still, He Xingluo bravely reasoned that the situation remained under control, reassuring himself: “Don’t worry, this won’t lead to any trouble.”
Because that was the beginning of true love, something immune to normal logical reasoning!
Having spent years as a corporate worker with hormones stably lingering below average and zero personal romance experience, He Xingluo maintained a very down-to-earth curiosity regarding the two protagonists’ progress. He asked the system internally:
“System, how are their progress levels? Have their eyes started exchanging lingering electric sparks yet?”
The little system floated over to take a look before returning: “Neither of them has even glanced at the other, so there are definitely no sparks.”
He Xingluo pondered this: “That must be shyness.”
The little system strongly doubted that explanation, recalling the scene it had just witnessed. Wen Tian sat with his head lowered, occasionally rubbing the blanket He Xingluo had given him, and seemed to have even smiled softly?
Li Zhanbei hadn’t lifted his head either, instead pulling out a tablet to review a document filled with unknown contents.
Furthermore, he looked to be in a rather foul mood, periodically frowning and zoning out, proof being that his document page only turned after quite a while, falling far short of Young Master Li’s usual reading speed.
Those two weren’t communicating at all! They didn’t even spare each other a single expression. Is this really how human beings fall in love?
The little system voiced its genuine confusion.
Hearing this description, He Xingluo boldly guessed: “Probably because love is an outstretched hand that pulls back. Right now, one is a drowned rat while the other is still in the denial phase of loving without knowing it, so a temporary lack of sparks is totally normal.”
“Even if their eyes aren’t sparking yet, their hearts are probably in stormy turmoil!”
Hearing such well-reasoned logic, the little system bought it immediately and asked with utter admiration: “Host, have you been in love a lot?”
He Xingluo thought: If you phrase it like that, it’s a bit intrusive.
The little system failed to notice He Xingluo’s abrupt silence, sinking instead into rosy imaginations. The upcoming plot would surely unfold right on schedule without any further unexpected twists, right?
This mission was a piece of cake!