Chapter 2#

Although sharing both the same school and dorm room with Wang Zheng was something I never expected, fortunately we weren’t in the same class. Who could blame me when my heart has always been fragile, from my past life until now—no matter what happens, big or small, I lose sleep and appetite for quite a while.

So in this life, I often think, even if I hadn’t fallen to my death accidentally in my past life, maybe someday I would have jumped down on my own anyway.

To be honest, I hold no grudges against Wang Zheng or that bastard. But I still have some lingering resentment in my heart.

That’s why, even though quite some time has passed since school started, I leave home earlier than the rooster crows every day. I usually wander around campus, and by the time I return to the dorm, Wang Zheng is already lying in bed reading, not even glancing at me. My eyesight has never been very good—I don’t think it has anything to do with my obesity as a teenager. In my past life, I even had eye surgery after entering university.

In this life, my eyesight is still poor at night, and Wang Zheng’s schedule is so strict it’s almost pedantic—lights out at ten o’clock sharp. I have to take a shower in the dark, being careful not to make too much noise.

Actually, I think I’m a pretty considerate person. Shu Yuan also said I’m a considerate and gentle man. But when she put the divorce certificate in front of me, she also said I was so considerate I was almost weak.

To be honest, I don’t know how to refute that.

“Ren Qiri.” Wang Zheng’s voice startled me. In the pitch darkness, I could barely see, only vaguely making out Wang Zheng sitting up in bed, his eyes frighteningly bright in the dark. I rubbed my eyes. Wang Zheng seemed to be in a bad mood, speaking bluntly: “Don’t you know that coming back this late every time just causes trouble for others?”

I paused. Maybe I closed the door too loudly, waking up Wang Zheng the Peacock. No wonder he was angry. I could only apologize with a smile: “I’ll be more careful next time. I’ll wait until you’re sound asleep before coming back.” Wang Zheng seemed to frown at these words, flopped back down heavily, turned over, and snorted a few times.

Sometimes I think back to what Wang Zheng’s assistant Li Ling said back at the company—“Especially when working with the President, Manager’s menopause arrives early.”

This matter also bothers me quite a bit.

At least in my past life, I never realized that Wang Zheng the Peacock actually had a terrible temper. Especially when it was just the two of us.

Love truly makes people blind. Fortunately, although my eyes are a bit blind now, my heart is crystal clear. Thank the Lord.

Maybe it’s because of my body type that I tend to sweat easily and hate heat. Plus, kids at this age have no concept of inner beauty, so I feel somewhat ostracized in the classroom, even though I perform quite well in all subjects. In their eyes, I fit the truth of “ugly but brainy.” At the end of the day, I haven’t encountered any major trouble. I even got elected as a grade officer—a pretty good position. Everyone praises me when they see me, and passing classmates look at me with a hint of reverence. The main thing is that it suits my current daily routine: early to rise, late to return.

Please call me Sanitation Prefect.

To be honest, I lived thirty years in my past life. Not only had I never cleaned a toilet, I’d barely even seen a broom. Being reborn has given me a chance to train myself—I have to experience life, don’t you think?

So, when I spotted a certain radiant peacock not too far away, walking past surrounded by a crowd of attendants, I definitely felt no jealousy whatsoever…

“Fatty, look at how glamorous your roommate is.” I suddenly felt a pain in my back. Turning around, I saw Cheng Chen poking me from behind with a mop. “Tsk tsk tsk, I heard even the upperclassmen give way to him. Don’t know what his family does to be so impressive—the school’s internally designated next student council president. Not just our grade, even the senior girls throw themselves at him. Damn, it’s infuriating to watch.” Cheng Chen sounded sour, but his eyes were full of amusement, revealing two tiger teeth.

“Wang Zheng is good at studying and good-looking. It’s only natural he’s popular.” I was telling the truth. Cheng Chen hadn’t seen Wang Zheng’s full grandeur from my past life—it was even more exaggerated than now.

“If you ask me, the good grades are real, but his looks… tsk tsk, like a sissy. I’m telling you, he’s the type that gays like.” Cheng Chen’s grandfather was from Hong Kong, so he spoke with a Cantonese accent. But sometimes he was too direct, always making my little heart race a bit. I chuckled and focused on my work. Cheng Chen suddenly snatched the mop from my hand and said irritably, “Fatty, I’m telling you, you’re too honest. I’ve never actually seen anyone take this sanitation prefect position seriously. What, do you get a diligence award? Hell.”

“Hehe…”

“Hehe my ass. It’s because of your personality that the sanitation committee hag pushed this unwanted job onto you, dragging me into this crappy work too. Alright, pack up, let’s go out and play some games.”

Cheng Chen was straightforward and energetic. Although he was in the same grade as me, he was actually two years older. I heard it was because he was too lazy to get good grades—he’d already repeated a preparatory year, then flunked two semesters in first year. It was unprecedented. The school administration was reportedly very disappointed with him, discussing multiple times with his mother about transferring him to a vocational school. But apparently, his mother showed up pregnant and caused a scene a few times, so Cheng Chen gloriously stayed.

On the first day of class, Cheng Chen said he couldn’t stand looking at a bunch of kids, and that I was the only one who looked easy to bully while making him look exceptionally handsome. So he just grabbed a desk and chair and said to me, seated at the very back: “Fatty, you’re not embarrassed taking up such a big space alone? Scoot over!”

“Hey hey, Fatty, look over there—yeah, the one in the miniskirt. Damn, her legs are so white!” Cheng Chen’s mouth was shiny with grease as he spoke, spraying everywhere. I had to grab some napkins to clean up.

“Oh man, that’s messed up! Looking like that and still daring to go out—she’s practically asking for death…” Cheng Chen was famous for having no filter. Fortunately, the McDonald’s was crowded. Watching him hold a burger in one hand and a chicken leg in the other, especially his eating style… well, it’s not appropriate for me to gossip about others.

The moment Cheng Chen stepped out of school, it was like he’d been liberated. He dragged me straight to the fast food joint—to be honest, I really don’t understand why teenagers love this stuff. I’d longed for it too back then, but when I finally tried it, I found it wasn’t as good as I’d imagined. In my past life, apart from my unrequited love, I generally preferred light flavors. Maybe it was because of that bastard living in the main house—Old Madam Ren was strict about diet, and I ended up acquiring those light tastes too.

In this life, with Cheng Chen as my friend, he always dragged me to McDonald’s and KFC. I couldn’t stand the greasy food, but Cheng Chen ordered joyfully—especially since I was the one paying.

“Fatty, hey, are you on a diet or what? Damn, what kind of coffee are you drinking? What, did your roommate get to you? Trying to play the rich young master too? Bullshit—if you actually become like that, I’ll kick your ass.” Cheng Chen grabbed my coffee, took two sips, and immediately complained about the bitterness. Seeing me look at him like he was hopeless, he continued: “Fatty, your bro isn’t trying to screw you over. It’s just that last time I got into trouble, my mom had my dad freeze my account. Now I’m poorer than the beggars on the street. Do you have to look at me like that?”

“Hehe, then hurry up and sign an IOU with your fingerprint, or else pawn off your mom, wife, and daughter to pay me back.”

“I can’t do the wife and daughter. If you want my mom, feel free to take her.”

To be honest, not many things can make me happy. But being with Cheng Chen always reminds me of my… ahem, Wang Zheng’s son.

“Damn! Fatty, look! Girls from the neighboring school! Hot chicks!”

Sometimes, if not for my past life memories being so vivid, maybe I would think that all of it—the pain, the joy, the heartache—was just a dream.

After Cheng Chen had eaten and drunk his fill, I originally tried to find an escape. But not only did my escape fail, Cheng Chen also dragged me to an arcade. Singapore has strict regulations—licensed places usually prohibit minors from entering—so the “good place” Cheng Chen talked about was naturally… well.

As soon as I entered, I frowned slightly at the smoke-filled room. But maybe because of my chubby face, the frown wasn’t visible. Cheng Chen automatically took my wallet and exchanged money for tokens. “Fatty, you’re not playing? It’s super fun.” Cheng Chen greeted a heavily made-up woman at the counter: “Sister Xin, this is my bro, Ren—”

I coughed. “Ren Qiri. Nice to meet you.” I extended my hand. Sister Xin was momentarily stunned, then laughed somewhat exaggeratedly. Cheng Chen slapped my hand away and pinched my face, cursing: “Dead fatty, you’ve got some nerve! Where’d you learn this lousy pickup technique? Damn!” I looked at Sister Xin, stunned. She looked back at me with a teasing gaze, her bright red lips curled, carrying a hint of world-weariness.

To be honest, I didn’t expect the etiquette I learned in my past life to become such a terrible tactic for picking up girls in this one. It made me feel somewhat melancholic…

“Xiao Chen, is this your classmate? He’s pretty cute. Don’t corrupt him. What if his parents come looking for you? Do you really want your mom to kick you out of the house herself?” Sister Xin looked at Cheng Chen with a half-smile. Cheng Chen, rarely flustered, cursed: “Mind your own business! Who’s corrupting this kid? Have a little conscience, will you? He’s hiding from that roommate of his every day. I saw him molding in the library, so I brought him out for some air!”

I looked at Cheng Chen in shock. Cheng Chen looked back at me like I was an idiot, a pitying expression on his face: “Good bro, your thoughts are written all over your face. Your bro here has been through thick and thin with you—do you think I don’t know what you’re thinking when your eyelid twitches?”

No matter what, I hope my good kid doesn’t grow up to be like Cheng Chen. Please, never.

Cheng Chen dragged me to a slot machine and explained for a long time. I still looked at him with an expression of humble inquiry. Later, Cheng Chen ran into some acquaintances. Although they didn’t seem like upstanding people, aside from always smelling like smoke, there was nothing particularly objectionable about them. I greeted them briefly, then sat bored on the side, watching them play enthusiastically.

I had played gambling games in my past life too. For certain social occasions, I’d occasionally go on a cruise ship to play. I had no talent in this area, although the early tutoring I received did cover this subject.

That bastard was very good at it.

I remember back then he could only sit in a wheelchair. When the dealer threw the dice, he just closed his eyes—his hearing had always been excellent, but I never imagined it was so sharp he could tell whether the dice in the cup would land on big or small numbers. I’d witnessed it once before. Back then, like always, he had a slight smile on his face, looking harmless. His pale, sickly complexion paired with that smile was unexpectedly fitting.

His fingers weren’t long, but they were beautiful. I don’t know how to describe them—in my memory, they were the epitome of beauty.

In the blink of an eye, with a gentle, refined smile, he used those beautiful hands to effortlessly roll three sixes.

I’ve thought more than once—he didn’t really need to compete with me for the position of Ren Corporation’s president. Not to mention that if he hadn’t had that accident, Ren Corporation wouldn’t have fallen into my hands in the first place. Besides, with skills like that, I don’t believe he could ever starve…

But I also somewhat understand. He looks gentle and harmless on the surface, but he’s actually black-hearted. Especially back then, when he went after me and Ren Corporation with everything he had…

At that time, I—

“Fatty! Fatty! What are you spacing out for! Let’s go!” Amidst the noisy chaos, Cheng Chen’s anxious voice suddenly cut through. Before I could fully gather my thoughts, Cheng Chen pulled me, saying: “Hurry! Damn! We come out for once and run into trouble!”

What kind of trouble? Before I could ask, Cheng Chen was already dragging me toward the back door. There were many other teenagers too, all rushing out in a swarm—even more chaotic than the time Cheng Chen described the cops showing up.

Suddenly, I heard a huge commotion behind us, like the sound of a fight. Before I could turn around, Cheng Chen was already pulling me, running for our lives. Amidst it all, I only heard someone nearby say: “Holy shit! Did you see that? Brother Kun’s men all brought weapons! This time they’re clearly fighting for territory with Master Han!”

The noisy sounds around me made me extremely uncomfortable. I couldn’t see clearly at night either. After running a few rounds, when I turned around, Cheng Chen was nowhere to be seen.

“Cheng Chen! Cheng Chen!” After the group ran out and dispersed, I was left alone in the blink of an eye. Cheng Chen was nowhere in sight. I couldn’t help feeling a bit worried.

Not so much for myself—I was more afraid that kid had gone to watch the commotion.

To be honest, youthful arrogance. Sometimes I envied Cheng Chen’s personality. Unfortunately, back then, under Old Madam Ren’s iron fist, I was forcibly crushed into an old man. After living one life, I aged instantly. So when a bloody hand suddenly grabbed my shoulder in a dark alley—it was honestly more thrilling than seeing Wang Zheng and that bastard kissing and then rolling onto the sofa in passionate abandon…

I felt a chill at my neck. In the dim light, I could roughly see the person, as well as the knife he held to my throat.

A bit unexpected.

He also looked at me with some surprise.

To be honest, during middle school, there were inevitably gangs and the petty extortion games they played. I remember on the first day of school, when I climbed over the wall because I was late, a group of delinquents tried to make me engage in some immoral transactions. This guy stepped in to help me out—even though he was the leader of that gang of delinquents…

“So… it’s you, you fat bastard.” His voice was very low, or rather, pleasant to the ear. Back then, when I first saw him, I could tell there was a fierceness in this kid’s eyes.

For instance, the knife he currently held to my throat felt pretty fierce.

He looked behind him, as if to make sure no one was following. Only then did I notice he was also wearing a school uniform like me, with a large patch of red on his abdomen—quite gruesome.

No wonder his face was covered in sweat, pale as paper.

I said: “I’ll take you to the hospital.”

He glared at me fiercely. “Are you stupid?” Then he let out a muffled groan. The hand holding the knife went limp, and he collapsed to the ground, his expression pained.

I have to say.

I’ve always been quite compassionate.