Chapter 2: The Arrogant and Domineering Fake Young Master 02 Part 1

Shen Ji heard Li Ye’s words and was briefly dazed. It took him a moment to recall that he’d seen Gu Yu once last week while studying in the library.

There had happened to be an empty seat next to him. Gu Yu asked if she could sit there—it was a library seat, so naturally he had no reason to refuse.

Partway through, Gu Yu asked him a few questions, and he answered them. Beyond that, there had been no further interaction between them.

Shen Ji had thought about it a lot—trying to figure out how he’d offended Xu Zhaochen. But it had never once occurred to him that Xu Zhaochen would come looking for trouble over something so trivial.

Shen Ji licked the metallic taste of blood from the corner of his mouth, finding it utterly absurd and laughable.

He understood Xu Zhaochen had probably misunderstood something, but at this moment, his pride and self-respect wouldn’t allow him to humbly explain that there was really nothing between him and Gu Yu…

Li Ye saw the fury in Shen Ji’s eyes and curled his lips.

This was only the beginning. If he felt wronged, he should seize every opportunity and claw his way up to take back what was rightfully his.

I’ll be waiting for the day you return to the Xu Family.

Li Ye glanced down at his hand, stained with a mixture of blood and liquor. A look of disgust crossed his face, and one of the lackeys immediately handed him a tissue.

Li Ye unhurriedly wiped his fingers clean, crumpled the tissue into a ball, and casually tossed it at Shen Ji’s feet. Without another glance at Shen Ji, he walked right past him.

Wang Shao exchanged a look with the other lackeys, and they all followed Li Ye out.

Only Shen Ji remained in the KTV private room, along with the mess.

He stared down at the bloodstained tissue at his feet. He’d been left here like a piece of trash carelessly discarded… Well, of course. In the eyes of a rich young master like that, what was someone like him worth?

No matter how hard he worked, how diligently he clawed his way into the best university, thinking he’d changed his fate… sometimes the chasm between people was simply insurmountable.

Shen Ji took a deep breath and slowly rose to his feet.

…

Li Ye left the KTV. It was late autumn, and the night wind had already turned chilly. He glanced at Wang Shao, his tone carrying a faint weariness. “Everyone disperse.”

Wang Shao was the best at reading people. He discreetly studied Li Ye, saw that his anger seemed to have dissipated, and smiled. “Alright.”

Li Ye fished the car keys from his pocket and pressed a button. A blue Lamborghini lit up at the curb—this must be Xu Zhaochen’s car. He got in, pulled up the navigation to the Xu Family residence, and lightly gripped the steering wheel. The car, full of power, roared off into the distance.

The Xu Family home wasn’t far from S University, where Xu Zhaochen studied, so he didn’t live on campus—he went home every night.

Though he was a rampaging rich kid out in the world, in front of his parents Xu Zhaochen always played the obedient son. Because only by doing so could he have sports cars to rotate through and a credit card with no limit.

Tonight, Xu Zhaochen had used a class reunion as an excuse, telling his mother he’d be home late.

Li Ye parked the sports car in the underground garage and took the elevator directly up to the villa. He checked the time—not yet ten.

Unfortunately, today luck wasn’t with him. The moment Li Ye stepped out of the elevator, he saw that besides his mother, his father was also in the main hall.

Xu Wenheng had clearly just gotten home; he hadn’t even taken off his jacket. Seeing Li Ye return, he frowned. “Where were you this late?”

He Yaxin immediately rushed to explain. “Chenchen went to a class reunion.”

Xu Wenheng snapped, “Can’t he answer for himself? What’s the rush? I’m not going to eat him.”

He Yaxin shot him a glare.

Li Ye lowered his head, adopting a reserved posture, and quietly edged toward his mother.

The sight of him like this made Xu Wenheng’s blood boil. How had he produced such a useless son? After all these years, he’d long since given up any hope for Xu Zhaochen—he just prayed the boy wouldn’t end up in prison.

Xu Wenheng had been run ragged lately. He had an international video conference at ten, and he truly couldn’t be bothered with Xu Zhaochen. He shrugged off his jacket and headed for the second-floor study.

The moment Xu Wenheng left, He Yaxin grabbed Li Ye’s hand and doted on him. “Why are your hands so cold? I told you to dress warmer—it’s gotten colder recently.”

Unlike his stern, humorless father, He Yaxin—a full-time society wife—had only this one precious son. She was terrified of dropping him, afraid he’d melt in her mouth. From childhood, she’d cherished him like the apple of her eye.

Though Xu Zhaochen was already twenty this year, in He Yaxin’s eyes he would forever be a child.

Li Ye lowered his eyes, deep in thought.

From Xu Zhaochen’s memories, he could see that when Xu Zhaochen was young, Xu Wenheng had tried to cultivate him. But Xu Zhaochen was neither clever nor outstanding, and every time he made a mistake or fell short, he faced Xu Wenheng’s harsh scolding.

And every time Xu Wenheng lost his temper, He Yaxin would shield him. Over time, Xu Zhaochen developed the habit of retreating from problems, of hiding behind his mother for everything.

At home, he was forever met with his father’s disappointed gaze—never once a word of affirmation or praise from his father. And his mother knew only to spoil and protect him blindly.

At home, he was a good-for-nothing who couldn’t do anything right, a cowardly, incompetent child who needed his mother’s protection.

Only outside could he be envied and hated by others, even feared. That rush of having people at his beck and call, of doing whatever he pleased—he never felt that at home. He grew intoxicated by it, until it escalated beyond reason.

In Li Ye’s eyes, Xu Zhaochen—who seemed so untouchable—was actually deeply insecure and sensitive, his heart twisted and pitiful.

When he saw someone like Shen Ji, who was superior to him in every way except status, all he needed was a pretext and an excuse to unleash his malice without restraint.

No matter how worthless he was, he could still trample on someone like Shen Ji.

That was the only place he could find a sense of superiority.

So when Shen Ji’s identity was exposed, Xu Zhaochen hated him with such ferocity—because for a worthless piece of trash like him, the identity of the Xu Family’s eldest young master was all he had left… and he absolutely could not let it go.

He Yaxin saw Li Ye’s silence and worried, “Chenchen, what’s wrong? You can tell me anything, don’t keep it bottled up.”

Li Ye smiled faintly. “I’m fine.”

He Yaxin pressed a few more questions, but seeing that Li Ye’s lips were sealed tight, with no intention of opening up, she had no choice but to let it go. She smiled and changed the subject. “By the way, how are things going with Gu Yu?”

At the end of last month, He Yaxin had enlisted another society wife to arrange a blind date between Xu Zhaochen and Gu Yu.

Though Xu Zhaochen was an uneducated playboy scion, he had enough self-awareness to know he’d eventually have to marry a woman of equal status. Gu Yu was beautiful and elegant, and she was the match his mother had chosen. So he’d pursued her—only to find that Gu Yu looked down on him entirely, favoring instead the penniless Shen Ji. Such a humiliating matter could never be told to his mother.

Li Ye said quietly, “Still pursuing.”

He Yaxin laughed. “Our Chenchen is chasing girls now. You’ve really grown up.”

Li Ye had no desire to continue this conversation with He Yaxin. “Mom, I have class tomorrow. I’m heading up.”

He Yaxin smiled fondly. “Go on.”

Xu Zhaochen’s bedroom was on the third floor.

Li Ye followed his memories to the bedroom. It was a suite—besides the master bedroom, there was a study, a walk-in closet, and a bathroom. Through the wide balcony’s floor-to-ceiling glass, the villa’s back garden was visible. The view and scenery were both excellent.

After a night at the KTV, he reeked of smoke and alcohol. Li Ye frowned and stepped into the bathroom.

Water cascaded from the showerhead, filling the bathroom with steam.

Li Ye closed his eyes and recalled the Plot.

Though the Xu Family was a prominent household in the city, their overly conservative business practices had caused them to fall behind the times in recent years. Traditional manufacturing profits were shrinking by the day, but the massive company was like a rotting machine—too bloated to turn around. By the time Xu Wenheng realized the problem, transitioning was already extremely difficult. He’d made some new attempts, but the results were less than ideal. Beneath the glamorous surface, crises lurked everywhere.

The Gu Family was likewise a prominent household in the city, with even deeper foundations. The current head of the Gu Family was Gu Yu’s Third Uncle—Gu Baichong.

Compared to Xu Wenheng’s stubborn conservatism, Gu Baichong—barely thirty this year—was far more enterprising. The Gu Family had flourished in recent years, and the gap between the two families was growing ever wider. Recently, word had spread that the Gu Family had made a breakthrough in biopharmaceutical research. Once the new drug hit the market, its prospects were enormous.

Xu Wenheng had his eye on this project and wanted a piece of the pie. He’d been negotiating cooperation with Gu Baichong lately, but progress had been less than smooth.

He Yaxin knew Xu Wenheng wanted to curry favor with the Gu Family. And Gu Yu—beautiful, well-figured, from an excellent family—was the perfect daughter-in-law in He Yaxin’s eyes. So she’d pulled every string to arrange the blind date between Xu Zhaochen and Gu Yu. If the two children hit it off, the Xu and Gu families would be united by marriage—killing two birds with one stone.

Unfortunately, neither Xu Wenheng nor He Yaxin knew that every step they took was within Gu Baichong’s calculations.

And soon, the Switched at Birth incident between Shen Ji and Xu Zhaochen would be exposed, sending tidal waves through the Xu Family.

For now, it was merely the calm before the storm.

Li Ye raised his hand and wiped the fogged glass, gazing at the young man in the mirror.

Steam had flushed his fair skin slightly pink. His exquisite, beautiful eyes tilted up ever so slightly at the corners.

Xu Zhaochen looked neither like Xu Wenheng nor He Yaxin.

He had a pair of eyes inherited from Shen Fu.

Li Ye’s eyes curved into a smile—and with that smile, a touch of something more alluring appeared.

He was looking forward to what came next.

…

S University.

Shen Ji walked into the classroom on time, books in his arms. His aura was cold and sharp, his slightly long bangs covering half his eyes. Though he didn’t seem very approachable, his classmates still stole glances at him.

Shen Ji was a prominent figure in their college.

College students still retained some of their innocence—not so quick to worship the rich and despise the poor. Compared to a trust-fund brat like Xu Zhaochen, a handsome academic prodigy like Shen Ji was far more likely to earn their admiration.

Gu Yu, who’d been sitting in the back row, brightened at the sight of Shen Ji. Seizing the moment before the professor arrived, she grabbed her textbook and walked over.

Shen Ji caught her movement from the corner of his eye, and his expression stiffened slightly. He’d always treated Gu Yu as just an ordinary classmate, and he didn’t believe she liked him… There was nothing between them. But thinking of last night, he couldn’t help feeling a bit uncomfortable.