Chapter 008 The Young Master – “…Is he shooting himself in the foot?” (08/35)
Shi Jingge was unaware of the minor incident that transpired in the car.
He took a deep breath and jogged into the living room. Upon seeing Shi Rongqing, he rushed over and exclaimed excitedly, “Brother! Brother!”
Shi Rongqing didn’t dodge and was hit square in the chest by Shi Jingge. A smile couldn’t help but appear on his face, though he scolded, “What are you doing? Why are you jumping on me like this? Get off! Get off right now! You little brat—you’re going to break my waist! Get off right now!!”
Shi Jingge didn’t budge, just blinked in excitement at Shi Rongqing and giggled.
Shi Rongqing smacked him on the head, and the smile on his face couldn’t be hidden anymore. “Get down.”
Shi Jingge rolled away and got up. “Brother, do you really know Wen Xusheng?”
“Mm.” Shi Rongqing raised his eyebrows.
“Then why didn’t you tell me?”
Shi Rongqing shot him a sidelong glance. “Did you ask me?”
Shi Jingge rubbed his nose and muttered softly, “…You could have said something.”
”Did you tell me you liked him?“
Shi Rongqing looked at Shi Jingge with a playful smile, but he didn’t expect Shi Jingge to jump up!
Shi Rongqing: ?
”I–I–I–“ Shi Jingge stammered. ”…I don’t like him!”
Shi Rongqing: ???
“I’m just a fan.” The young master paused, then said with great righteousness, “Is there anything wrong with being a fan?”
Shi Rongqing: “…”
Shi Rongqing hesitated. “You never told me you were a fan either.”
Shi Jingge tilted his head and thought for a moment. “…I guess so.”
Shi Rongqing: “…”
Three seconds later, Shi Rongqing stood up.
“What happened?” Shi Rongqing smacked Shi Jingge on the head. “Don’t you realize how long it’s been since you last spoke to your brother? You don’t tell me anything. Am I a mind reader? How am I supposed to know what’s going on? If I were that powerful, would I be getting angry with you?
“This is what happens when you don’t communicate! From now on, you have to tell me everything. We’ll have a mandatory hour of communication every day. Do you understand?”
Shi Jingge was speechless. His dazed expression was surprisingly endearing.
“It’s not my f–” he whispered. “Aren’t you the one who doesn’t want to talk to me?”
Shi Rongqing felt more wronged than Dou E. “When have I ever not wanted to talk to you?”
Shi Jingge hesitated for a moment. “Before, whenever I talked to you, you’d just close your eyes, rub your temples, and look so impatient.”
As Shi Jingge spoke, his voice grew louder, filled with accusation. “It wasn’t just impatience—it was outright annoyance! And you were so mean! You were always scolding me! Do you think I’m wasting your time? Do you think I’m not even worthy of talking to you?”
The young master spoke with a mix of hurt and anger, standing up to leave.
Shi Rongqing grabbed his arm.
The young master angrily exclaimed, “What are you doing? Let go of me!”
His voice betrayed his hurt, and Shi Rongqing couldn’t help but soften.
“Xiao Ge.” Shi Rongqing’s voice was soft, tinged with a hint of weakness. Shi Jingge stiffened on the spot and stopped struggling.
He had always been someone who responded to softness rather than harshness.
“Think about it carefully. What kind of things did you say to me back then? All you ever talked about was Mu Jincheng. Mu Jincheng is good here, Mu Jincheng is good there, Mu Jincheng is good in every way. Or it was always about what Mu Jincheng said, what Mu Jincheng did, how amazing Mu Jincheng is, how incredible Mu Jincheng is.
“If you said thirty sentences to me, twenty-nine and a half of them were about Mu Jincheng. I was so busy back then. When I finally managed to find some time to have dinner with you, all I heard was you talking about Mu Jincheng. Do I want to hear about Mu Jincheng? No, I don’t. I want to hear about you. Every time you mention him, I get annoyed. I’m jealous.”
The last sentence, Shi Rongqing said it straightforwardly.
The young master’s ears turned red. After a while, he whispered, “Then I won’t mention him anymore.”
“No.” Shi Rongqing smiled slightly. “I want to hear about him now.”
Shi Jingge: ?
“Tell your brother what you did with him tonight? Why are you so happy?”
The young master frowned, seeming a bit unhappy.
Shi Rongqing suddenly had an idea and said teasingly, “Mu Jincheng is always so good at making you happy. Maybe I should ask him for some tips on how to make our little master happy.”
The young master: !!!
Never having been hit with such a direct line from Shi Rongqing, the young master was completely flustered.
Shi Rongqing suddenly had an epiphany.
So that’s what his little rabbit liked!
“No, no, I’m not…” The young master paused, feeling that he couldn’t continue, and hesitantly tried to change the subject. “You have no idea. Lately he’s been so dumb, he got tricked so thoroughly…”
Before he finished, the little master seemed to realize he shouldn’t have said that, and after a moment of hesitation, he simply shoved the envelope he had been hiding into Shi Rongqing’s hand.
But the implication in his words was enough.
“…From Wen Xusheng! I’m going to take a shower!”
Shi Jingge dropped the two words and bolted away, rushing off as if someone were chasing him.
Shi Rongqing raised his eyebrows, knowing what was in the envelope. He would let the little brat rest for now. With this, he had no worries that the small rabbit would not make a confession.
In fact, it didn’t matter if the little rabbit didn’t say anything.
Shi Rongqing glanced at Zhu Chu, stood up, and Zhu Chu followed silently, heading to the study to recount everything that had happened that evening in detail to Shi Rongqing.
Zhu Chu had an excellent memory, and combined with certain words spoken by the young master and Mu Jincheng that were particularly memorable, he could almost recite them verbatim.
As Zhu Chu recounted the events, Shi Rongqing’s expression grew increasingly grim. When he heard his little brat had said, “I wish we were real brothers,” Shi Rongqing immediately laughed coldly.
After hearing what those people had done, Shi Rongqing’s face turned as black as the bottom of a pot. Finally, when he heard what had happened in the private room, Shi Rongqing couldn’t help himself and slapped the table heavily.
Well done, Mu Jincheng!
He’d been playing with his family’s stupid brat like a puppet!
He wasn’t very capable, but he was certainly ambitious.
He wanted to be the little brat’s older brother?
Not even in his next life!
Zhu Chu didn’t even raise his head; he just stared at the floor obediently.
“Is that all?” Shi Rongqing said coldly.
“No.” Zhu Chu shook his head obediently, hesitating to say more.
“Speak freely,” Shi Rongqing said bluntly. “I know how foolish this brat is. I’ll need you to keep an eye on him in the future.”
This was a subtle promise.
Zhu Chu hesitated, then said bluntly, “The young master still trusts Mu Jincheng very much.”
Shi Rongqing sneered. “It’s not just trust. I hinted around for so long just now, and this little brat refused to say a single bad word about Mu Jincheng!”
As soon as he said this, Shi Rongqing’s expression grew even colder.
Seeing that he had conveyed the information, Zhu Chu stopped speaking and continued staring at the floor.
Shi Rongqing knew that Mu Jincheng had been plotting for years, and his ambitions were undoubtedly great. He couldn’t allow him to have any further contact with his little rabbit.
However, his little rabbit was a man of honor and loyalty. If something significant didn’t happen to make him see Mu Jincheng’s true colors, they wouldn’t be able to sever their ties completely.
Mu Jincheng was always good at pretending, and he wasn’t stupid. He knew his little rabbit like the back of his hand. Breaking them apart wouldn’t be easy.
The only option was to sow discord and tackle them one by one.
Zhu Chu saw the change in Shi Rongqing’s expression and knew that he had decided on a plan. He felt a little relieved.
“You can go first,” Shi Rongqing said indifferently. “I’ll add ten percent to this month’s bonus.”
Zhu Chu smiled slightly, thanked Shi Rongqing, and left.
As he pushed the door open and left, Zhu Chu couldn’t help but think, ‘What an easy job, and what a generous boss. This is really great.’
Soon, Shi Rongqing knocked on Shi Jingge’s door.
Shi Jingge opened it and peeked out. “What’s up?”
Shi Rongqing raised his eyebrows. “Can’t I even chat with my little brother?”
Shi Jingge hesitated and didn’t speak.
Shi Rongqing smiled faintly. “So, who’s ignoring who here?”
Shi Jingge hesitated for a moment and let his brother in the room.
“Let’s talk,” Shi Rongqing said with a light laugh. “You just stay at home all day doing nothing, not going to school or the company. That’s not appropriate, is it? Speaking of which, you’re an adult now. You should learn to earn your own living.”
Shi Jingge stared at Shi Rongqing in disbelief.
“Be a good boy.” Shi Rongqing patted Shi Jingge on the shoulder in a good mood. “Come with me to the company tomorrow.”
“Are you joking?” Shi Jingge asked in shock.
“Do I look like I’m joking?” Shi Rongqing asked in return.
Shi Jingge: “…”
At first, Shi Rongqing had only been joking, but now, he was really taken with the idea.
His younger brother would be working with him!
In the same office!
Twenty-four hours a day together!
They could talk anytime!
He could even order his younger brother to get him coffee!
Damn, that was too tempting!
After a moment, Shi Jingge looked up and said weakly, “I’m not going!”
“Alright.” Shi Rongqing nodded, very easygoing.
Shi Jingge’s eyes lit up.
Shi Rongqing said lightly, “As the second young master, you don’t even enter the group’s front door once a year, and you spend its dividends like pocket money all the time. Don’t you feel guilty?
“Xiao Ge is a good kid, I know. In order to avoid making Xiao Ge feel uneasy, I have no choice but to suspend Xiao Ge’s dividend payments. Oh, right, Xiao Ge still wants that new sports car, right? Since the dividends are no longer available, Xiao Ge will have to find a way to come up with the money from somewhere else.”
Shi Rongqing patted Shi Jingge on the shoulder with a regretful look on his face.
Shi Jingge: ???
After a long pause, Shi Jingge said loudly, “Who said I haven’t contributed anything to the group?” At that moment, he was like a kitten whose tail had been stepped on, feeling very aggrieved. “I found some talented people for the company!”
Shi Rongqing: “Oh?”
“…Esports is pretty popular lately, right? It’s gaining traction in terms of public interest, traffic, and commercial value. There are all kinds of variety shows and documentaries about it, and it’s really hot right now. I heard there are quite a few esports-themed scripts out there lately. Didn’t our entertainment company acquire a few esports scripts?”
“I found the perfect leads! Well… the two female celebrities who rented my place—they’re amazing at gaming! Their mid-lane and jungle coordination is top-notch; they’re going to take off! No need for special effects or stand-ins!”
Shi Jingge looked up proudly. “Good thing I acted fast; otherwise, someone else would have snatched them up!”
Shi Rongqing: “……………………”
A single ellipsis couldn’t begin to express his inner turmoil; he needed more.
“Actors need acting skills, right?” Shi Rongqing remained silent for a long time before speaking slowly.
“Yes,” Shi Jingge said confidently, “but doesn’t acting require attention to detail, patience, thinking, observation, and focus?”
Shi Rongqing thought this made sense, so he nodded.
“Playing games also requires attention to detail, patience, thinking, observation, and focus!”
“Especially for the mid-lane and jungle positions, you need to carefully observe the enemy’s movements, patiently wait for the right moment, think about when to take down the dragon or provide support, and keep an eye on the opposing team to avoid being caught, all while maintaining a steady rhythm. Doesn’t that also require attention to detail, patience, thinking, observation, and focus?”
Shi Rongqing: “…”
“Since both require the same things, if I say that someone who is good at gaming must also be a great actress, is there anything else to argue about?” Shi Jingge spoke confidently.
Shi Rongqing: “…”
“Alright, no problem.” Shi Rongqing wiped his face. “Then studying also requires carefulness, patience, thinking, and observation. Doesn’t that mean that people who are good at games should also be good at studying?”
“Of course,” Shi Jingge said proudly. “If they have poor grades, it just means they didn’t work hard enough! A person’s energy is limited; if you have to choose between studying and gaming, you can only choose one. They chose gaming.” He gave a helpless shrug.
Shi Rongqing: “……”
Don’t get angry with a little brat, it’s not worth it.
Shi Rongqing’s face turned wooden. “I’m not going to talk about this useless stuff with you.”
Shi Jingge said triumphantly, “Everything I said makes sense. Of course you can’t argue with me. Those two celebrities are really awesome. Brother, just consider it, okay?”
“I can consider it, but you have to come to the company with me,” Shi Rongqing said with a wooden expression.
“I won’t go!” Shi Jingge had a sudden flash of inspiration. “I still have my studies. I have to go to school.”
Shi Rongqing: “…”
Who would believe that?
“Fine,” Shi Rongqing rubbed his forehead and took a step back. “You don’t have to go to the company, but you have to stay at home or school and not go out with Mu Jincheng. You’re not even allowed to answer your phone.”
Shi Jingge stared wide-eyed, unable to believe what he heard. “What? You’re restricting my freedom! Mu Jincheng and I are good brothers! How can I not answer my brother’s calls?”
Though he said that, Shi Jingge knew that everything he had done before had finally paid off.
Though one shouldn’t act OOC, it was normal for one’s personality to change after experiencing major betrayal and setbacks, right?
To be able to act OOC with a clear conscience, he had sacrificed so much—
“Because I’m jealous,” Shi Rongqing said calmly. “I’m your older brother.”
Shi Jingge: !!!
Noticing his brother’s softening attitude, Shi Rongqing slowly took out an envelope, opened it in front of Shi Jingge, and carefully pulled out the signed photo of Wen Xusheng inside.
Shi Jingge’s eyes widened.
“Do you want it?” Shi Rongqing asked with a smile.
Shi Jingge bit his lip, turned his head away, but eventually couldn’t resist the temptation and nodded quickly.
Shi Rongqing extended his hand and smiled, “No contact with Mu Jincheng for three months.”
“One week!” Shi Jingge said firmly.
“Two months.”
“Two weeks!”
“One month,” Shi Rongqing said coldly. “If you don’t agree, then forget it.”
“Deal!”
Shi Rongqing: ???
Shi Jingge took the signed photos from Shi Rongqing’s hand and smiled gleefully.
Shi Rongqing felt a pang of jealousy. “You already agreed, so you can’t refuse this request from your brother.”
“We’re all brothers,” Shi Jingge said casually. “Brotherly love isn’t measured by how often we see each other. A month is just a blink of an eye. It won’t affect us at all! Besides, good brothers always understand each other. I’m sure Mu Jincheng will understand me. A month later, we’ll still be good brothers!”
That’s not certain, Shi Rongqing thought to himself. A month later, if I don’t make sure you two cut ties completely, I’ll write my name backwards!
Shi Rongqing glanced at Shi Jingge and saw that he was holding the autographed photos, flipping through them and taking pictures nonstop.
His eyes were bright and shining.
Shi Rongqing immediately felt unbalanced.
After Mu Jincheng left, here comes Wen Xusheng?
Come to think of it, Wen Xusheng was someone he had invited himself.
…Does this count as shooting himself in the foot?
Edit: Krone
Proofread: Choux_choux
