"Welcome home, big brother! Where's our second brother?"
Hearing the door open, Jiang Zixing hurried over.
At the sight of the younger brother he had doted on since childhood, Jiang Huaijin's dark expression softened a little. He reached out and ruffled Jiang Zixing's hair. "Eating ice cream this late? You'll give yourself a stomachache."
Jiang Zixing scooped some ice cream into his mouth and mumbled around the little wooden spoon, "I was craving it."
"Remember to brush your teeth afterward. I'm heading upstairs."
Jiang Huaijin changed his shoes and headed up to the second floor, where he ran into their mother, Deng Shu, coming down. She glanced downstairs and asked her eldest son, "Huaijin, did you bring Xun home?"
Jiang Huaijin gave a flat murmur of acknowledgment and returned to his room.
Only then did Jiang Xun step through the front door. He immediately spotted the person standing in the entryway. Without even guessing, he knew this was the fake young master, Jiang Zixing.
The boy wore loose loungewear. His frequent dancing had given him a slender, graceful figure, and his skin was fair and smooth. One look was enough to tell he had spent his life being pampered.
As for his looks... Jiang Xun swept an expressionless gaze over Jiang Zixing's face. His features were fairly delicate, but his fair skin was his best asset, so he wasn't exactly ugly.
"Second brother, why are your clothes wet?"
Jiang Zixing looked at Jiang Xun in surprise, a hint of concern in his eyes.
Jiang Xun said nothing. He bent down to change out of his shoes, and Jiang Zixing pressed him again, asking with concern whether someone had bullied him.
Jiang Xun had inherited all the original owner's memories and had no favorable impression of this so-called brother he had acquired.
The original owner and Jiang Zixing had been born on the very same day, month, and year, yet Jiang Zixing had called him his second brother at their very first meeting. Had he ever asked the original owner's permission?
Perhaps, from Jiang Zixing's perspective, he truly was innocent. The baby swap hadn't been his fault. He had only been a newborn at the time, with no say over his own fate. His mother's wrongdoing couldn't be held against him.
So the original owner shouldn't have singled him out and bullied him.
But why should Jiang Xun look at things from someone else's perspective? He had been reborn in the original Jiang Xun's body. From now on, he would be living Jiang Xun's life.
The real young master had suffered in a small town without enjoying a single good day, while the fake young master had occupied his rightful place and enjoyed a wealthy heir's life in the big city.
If he had been the original owner, he probably would have become a vengeful ghost seething with resentment even after death.
No more wearing myself down. Less asking why I'm like this, more asking what gives other people the right.
Jiang Xun put on his slippers. As he brushed past Jiang Zixing, his lips curved into something that wasn't quite a smile. "Who do you think you are?"
Jiang Zixing's expression immediately stiffened, hurt and embarrassment showing on his face. Just then, Deng Shu came over and heard what Jiang Xun had said.
She sighed helplessly. Before she could speak, a stern voice rang out behind her. "Jiang Xun, Zixing is concerned about you! Is that any way to speak to him? You have no manners whatsoever!"
Their father, Jiang Shiyuan, strode over and fixed Jiang Xun with a dark stare, anger and distaste in his eyes.
Jiang Huaijin really was his spitting image. Like father, like son.
Jiang Xun watched as though enjoying a show. Jiang Zixing stepped forward and gently tugged Jiang Shiyuan's shirt. "Dad, second brother's just in a bad mood. Don't be angry."
Jiang Shiyuan patted Jiang Zixing's shoulder soothingly and said in a warm voice, "Be good, Zixing. Go back to your room, and remember to brush your teeth after your ice cream."
"Okay."
When he turned back to Jiang Xun, Jiang Shiyuan's expression darkened again. "Jiang Xun, what happened to your clothes? What trouble have you gotten into this time?"
Jiang Xun didn't bother being pleasant to this father he had acquired either. He tossed out, "Forgot to take my clothes off before showering."
"You!"
"Enough. Stop lecturing him." Deng Shu cut her husband off, then told Jiang Xun, "Xun, go back to your room, take a shower, and change. Don't catch a cold. I'll make you some ginger soup."
Jiang Xun gave a sound of acknowledgment and went upstairs without looking back, finding his bedroom through the original owner's memories.
"Shu, you can't keep spoiling him like this. Look at him! Is this acceptable?"
"He keeps targeting Zixing, and Zixing has never held it against him. He even puts it all aside to show him concern and try to please him. And how does he repay that?"
"He always ignores us when we speak to him, like he's deaf. He hasn't got the slightest bit of manners!"
"Then what can we do? We've already scolded him. Has it helped?"
Jiang Xun's hearing was poor, so naturally, he didn't hear the couple's conversation.
He surveyed the room's decor and furnishings. Not bad. At first, the Jiang family really had put a lot of care into this son they had lost and found again.
Still, the best bedroom in the entire villa was across the hall, and Jiang Zixing lived there.
It was spacious and had its own large terrace, with the garden right below.
There was also a huge dance studio on the third floor, fully equipped with all sorts of instruments and equipment. They had given it to Jiang Zixing as a birthday present.
Jiang Xun honestly couldn't understand it. Jiang Shiyuan and Deng Shu were both exceptionally good-looking, and Jiang Huaijin was tall and handsome too. Jiang Zixing looked nothing like them. Had they never questioned his identity in all these years?
Probably because melodramatic novels didn't have much logic to begin with.
Jiang Xun laughed inwardly. It seemed there was no getting out of the side mission.
He turned toward the walk-in closet to get clean clothes for his shower.
But the moment he saw the person in the full-length mirror, he jumped.
Fuck! Who's this dark, tacky lump of coal?!
As if struck by lightning, Jiang Xun took two disbelieving steps closer and stared carefully at the person in the mirror.
Only now did he get a clear look at this body's appearance.
His exposed skin was a dark, wheaten brown, and his frame was thin. Even with shoes on, he was at most 175 centimeters tall. He had probably been tanned by working outdoors since childhood, while malnutrition had kept him from growing taller.
His hair was a little long, partly covering his eyes and giving him a somewhat gloomy air.
His clothes were all designer brands, but he didn't know how to coordinate them, so they looked tacky.
No wonder Chu Xingye and Zhou Ruicheng both called him a country bumpkin. They weren't entirely wrong.
Jiang Xun pushed up his overgrown bangs, revealing his whole face. Above the outer corner of his left eye was a three-centimeter scar, normally hidden beneath his bangs. His adoptive father had burned him with a fire poker when he was little.
His parents had good genes. Aside from being a little dark, this face had a finely shaped outline and delicate features. He took after his mother.
Whether by coincidence or not, he even bore some resemblance to Jiang Xun before his rebirth.
Jiang Xun had been good-looking since childhood and came from a well-off family. With plenty of admirers around him, he had high standards for looks, so naturally, he wasn't satisfied with this body.
Time for a serious makeover.
Unsurprisingly, Jiang Xun couldn't sleep that night. He didn't get up until noon the next day, and no one came to wake him.
It was Saturday, and neither Jiang Shiyuan nor Jiang Huaijin had gone to the office. Before Jiang Xun even came downstairs, he heard cheerful conversation coming from the living room.
"Mom, Dad, how about I wear this outfit to tonight's banquet?"
Jiang Shiyuan said, "Yes, very nice. Our Zixing looks good in anything."
Jiang Zixing smiled shyly, then asked Jiang Huaijin beside him, "What do you think, big brother?"
Jiang Huaijin said, "Of course it looks good. I have a watch that would go perfectly with that outfit. I'll give it to you in a bit."
"Hehe, I knew you treated me best!"
The warm atmosphere in the living room abruptly froze when they saw Jiang Xun.
Deng Shu was the first to speak, smiling. "Xun, you must be hungry. We'll be having lunch soon."
After all, he was the child she had carried for ten months. A mother and son shared a bond, and however disappointed she felt, Deng Shu still wanted to treat him well.
Jiang Shiyuan looked considerably less pleased. "Look at the time. Only getting up now?"
Jiang Xun ignored his acquired father and gave his acquired mother a polite smile. Then he sat down beside Jiang Zixing, picked up a red apple from the fruit platter, gave it a casual wipe, and bit into it with a crunch.
He asked offhandedly, "What banquet is it tonight?"
"A charity gala hosted by the Ji Group. They've invited lots of people." Jiang Zixing asked quietly, "Do you want to go, second brother?"
Jiang Xun asked, "Is Chu Xingye going too?"
Jiang Zixing's expression shifted slightly. "He probably is."
Jiang Xun leisurely finished chewing that mouthful of apple, the corners of his lips lifting ever so slightly. "Sure."
At those words, Jiang Shiyuan's and Jiang Huaijin's faces darkened, and they immediately objected:
"No. You're staying right here at home."
"You even tried to steal your own brother's fiancé, pestering that Chu boy all day long. Haven't you embarrassed us enough?"
The Jiang and Chu families were old friends and had arranged the engagement long ago. Originally, Jiang Zixing was supposed to get engaged to Chu Xingye, but the original owner had suddenly stepped in, demanding to be engaged to Chu Xingye himself.
The original owner had only recently returned to the Jiang family then, and they felt guilty toward him. Since Jiang Zixing was willing to give up the engagement too, both families eventually agreed after discussing it.
Jiang Shiyuan and Jiang Huaijin both thought the original owner was selfish and only wanted to take Jiang Zixing's things because he disliked him.
That wasn't actually the case. At school, the wealthy students around the original owner mocked him as a country bumpkin, saying he could never become a phoenix just by perching on a high branch. They ridiculed and bullied him at every turn. Once, Chu Xingye happened to pass by and casually helped him out.
From then on, the original owner had fallen for Chu Xingye.
Jiang Xun didn't spare Jiang Shiyuan or Jiang Huaijin so much as a glance. He looked pleadingly at Deng Shu. "Mom, I want to go to the gala too."
Sure enough, Deng Shu agreed. "Then go if you want to. But you have to behave. No making trouble."
The father and son wanted to say more, but a look from her silenced them both.
The charity gala was held in the banquet hall of an upscale hotel.
When Jiang Xun arrived with the Jiang family, quite a few guests were already there. Many cast looks his way, eager to watch the spectacle and laugh at him.
Everyone in their circle knew that the Jiang family's rediscovered real young master was a country bumpkin unfit for polite society. He had embarrassed the family plenty of times and couldn't compare to Jiang Zixing.
Jiang Xun had attended plenty of banquets like this in his previous life. Usually, he had been the one everyone tried to flatter and please. This was certainly a novel experience.
He calmly scanned his surroundings, looking for Chu Xingye or Ji Yuntian.
Ji Yuntian was the second male lead-the criminal one. Since the Ji Group was hosting the gala, he might attend.
The novel mainly revolved around the romantic entanglements between the protagonist bottom and the three male leads. To derail the plot completely, Jiang Xun had to prevent those three romances from developing.
Seeing Jiang Xun looking around like an ignorant bumpkin, Jiang Huaijin warned him under his breath, "Stop gawking. Behave yourself."
His voice was too quiet for Jiang Xun to hear. Thinking Jiang Xun was deliberately ignoring him, Jiang Huaijin repeated himself coldly.
Jiang Xun said expressionlessly, "Oh."
The Jiang family didn't know that the original owner was deaf in his left ear. At first, he hadn't wanted to worry them. Later, he had decided there was no point telling them.
Less than three minutes later, Jiang Huaijin discovered that Jiang Xun had vanished.
He cursed inwardly, his face dark.
Jiang Xun hadn't spotted Ji Yuntian, but he did see Chu Xingye. The other boy wore an exquisitely tailored black suit that, paired with his striking face, made him particularly eye-catching.
His expression, however, was foul.
It was Saturday, and he had originally planned to visit the place where Lin Jian worked part-time. Instead, his mother had dragged him to this charity gala.
Boring.
At the sight of Jiang Xun, Chu Xingye's expression turned even fouler.
Jiang Xun was also wearing a black suit that evening. Combined with his dark, wheaten skin, it made him the most conspicuous lump of coal in the banquet hall.
He hadn't had time to cut his overgrown bangs, which concealed his attractive eyes and brows like dust covering a pearl.
He still remembered his side mission: win Chu Xingye's love and get engaged to him before graduating from university.
Honestly, Jiang Xun didn't want to do this mission, but Number Six had said there would be a reward for success-and a punishment for failure.
He grinned at Chu Xingye, showing eight white teeth, and deliberately put on a sweet, affected voice. "Xingye, what a coincidence!"
Chu Xingye's face soured so much that he nearly threw up last night's dinner.
"I have a phobia of ugly people. Stay away from me!"
The beautiful, elegantly dressed woman beside him, however, gave him a tap on the head. "Chu Xingye, what kind of manners are those?"
Then she gave Jiang Xun a friendly smile. "Jiang Xun, this boy's had a terrible temper since he was little. Don't take it to heart."
This must have been Chu Xingye's mother, Fu Sang.
Jiang Xun greeted Fu Sang politely, then said, "It's all right. I like Xingye's terrible temper."
A shudder of revulsion ran through Chu Xingye. He nearly departed this world on the spot, frantically rubbing the goosebumps on his arms. "Have you got no fucking shame?!"
Just then, a commotion rose around them, and most of the guests turned toward the entrance to the banquet hall.
"I didn't expect Mr. Fu to come too."
"Neither did I."
Jiang Xun followed their gazes. His eyes passed through the crowd and landed unerringly on Mr. Fu.
The man looked around thirty. He wore a dark suit and stood at least 188 centimeters tall, with long legs, broad shoulders, and a narrow waist. The fine fabric hinted at the superb lines of the muscles beneath it-a physique worthy of a top male model.
His face was even more enviable. His eyes and brows were deeply set, and his features were handsome to an almost aggressive degree, carrying the distinctive allure of a mature man.
His face had a striking depth to it, though it showed little emotion.
His gaze was cool and unfathomable, as aloof as a god looking down upon all living beings, untouched by the mortal world.
Someone else stood beside him: a young woman in a black mermaid gown. She was tall, beautiful, and sexy, with a touch of rakish confidence.
Her hand was tucked affectionately around the man's arm.
They truly made a perfect pair.
Just as Jiang Xun was thinking that, he suddenly heard Chu Xingye say happily, "It's Uncle and Aunt."