After signing the contract that morning, Nan Qing left Huading Entertainment under the blazing sun.
Things were different now. The pampered young master had lost his personal chauffeur, and there was no longer anyone waiting to hold an umbrella over him when he stepped outside.
Unfortunately, Nan Qing was used to being waited on and had no concept of bringing a sun umbrella himself, so he could only stand in the shade of a corner of the building and try to hail a ride.
Two young women whispered in the lobby, watching through the thick glass. Eventually, one of them worked up her courage and hurried over to Nan Qing.
"You won't get a ride here."
The boy, who had been looking down at his phone, suddenly lifted his eyes. His round eyes sparkled, even his upturned lashes fluttering, and his face was exquisitely beautiful.
The young woman blushed slightly under his gaze and continued explaining.
"You can't get a taxi within three kilometers in either direction. Outside cars can't get in without a pass."
Nan Qing's eyes widened in shock. "Three kilometers!"
Goddamn it!
There had been a raging storm last night, and today the sun was as hot as a furnace. Was it trying to roast him, a malicious cannon fodder, alive?!
Perhaps because he looked so shocked, the young woman standing opposite him seemed a little embarrassed.
"Can you ride an electric scooter? You just scan it with your phone. If you don't know how, I can scan it for you, but you'll still have to ride it yourself."
Nan Qing nodded solemnly. "I can!"
It was only three kilometers!
Something seemed to occur to the young woman before him, and an expression resembling pity and regret appeared on her face.
Nan Qing nodded to her. "Thank you. If you hadn't told me, I would've waited here for ages."
The young woman waved at him, blushing. "It's no problem."
The scorching sunlight baked the earth, curling even the leaves in the flower beds. The glossy tiles laid for decoration gleamed in the sun, glaring straight into people's eyes.
The boy standing beside a row of shared electric scooters bent down, about to scan a QR code with his phone, when a luxury car came roaring past and braked sharply beside him.
"Is that Nan Qing? You haven't fallen so low that you have to ride a shared bike, have you?"
Sitting in the back seat, Bai Ruanruan wore a mocking smile as he glanced sideways at the scooter, undisguised contempt in his eyes.
"Do people actually ride these things? Nan Qing, why don't you beg me? I'll have the driver take you out."
Nan Qing glanced at him, his exquisite face expressionless.
"What, you never rode one before?"
The smile on Bai Ruanruan's face stiffened.
Nan Qing seemed to see through his guilty conscience, his voice turning chilly.
"You bite the hand that feeds you, then put on airs. Who are you trying to impress?"
The driver in the front seemed to want to laugh, but the moment he noticed the gaze from behind him, he hurriedly pressed his lips shut.
He was the Bai family's young master's dedicated chauffeur. He had driven Nan Qing around before, and now it was Bai Ruanruan's turn.
As far as he was concerned, Young Master Nan Qing was far better than this Young Master Ruanruan sitting behind him. Young Master Nan Qing had no hidden agendas and said whatever was on his mind. He was not harsh with the servants, and he was generous, too.
As for this newly arrived Young Master Ruanruan, his name made him sound good-tempered, but he was an expert at hiding needles in cotton. He was stingy and faultfinding, and even driving over a speed bump earned the driver a dirty look.
Bai Ruanruan gritted his teeth.
For some reason, Nan Qing had not been killed by a car as the warning in his dream had foretold. Instead, he had survived and even showed up at the company from time to time to disgust him.
But Bai Ruanruan did not think this was a big deal.
After all, the other boy was nothing more than a pitiful cannon fodder. Even if he had survived, he would still have to serve as Bai Ruanruan's foil on the variety show. At least that trash could be put to use.
Still, Bai Ruanruan did not want to let him off easily, so he simply continued making snide remarks from beside him.
"Listen to yourself, Nan Qing. I'm only trying to help."
"After all, you slunk out of the Bai family yesterday without getting anything. You're so poor now that you can only ride a shared bike. Why not swallow your pride and apologize to me? Maybe I'll even look out for you at the company."
Bai Ruanruan looked Nan Qing's outfit up and down, then suddenly smiled.
"Also, Nan Qing, you're a celebrity, after all. Surely you can't wear knockoffs in public?"
"Or do you think you've already got so much bad press that a little more won't hurt? Bad publicity is still publicity, so you might as well wear these cheap clothes?"
After speaking, Bai Ruanruan rested his fingers on the car window and leisurely waited for Nan Qing to look flustered and lash out in humiliation.
Yet after he finished, Nan Qing wore that same faintly mocking expression again, no different from his former lofty demeanor.
As though Bai Ruanruan had said something stupid or done something foolish.
"Cheap clothes?"
Nan Qing glanced down at his clothes, somewhat speechless.
"Whatever makes you happy."
A smile instantly appeared on Bai Ruanruan's face.
Ever since becoming the Bai family's young master, he had begun mingling with the upper classes. To make him happy, his mother and eldest brother had taken him to various luxury boutiques and bought him plenty of clothes.
Bai Ruanruan had even paid special attention to the brand SN. Nan Qing loved wearing their clothes. It was a top international luxury brand, with expensive, delicate fabrics and absurdly high purchasing thresholds.
To prove that he knew his stuff, Bai Ruanruan had ordered seventeen outfits in one go.
The sales associate had brought out all their new arrivals, and there had been nothing like what Nan Qing was wearing. If Nan Qing's clothes were not fake, what else could they be?
An almost pitying expression appeared on Bai Ruanruan's face. His gaze fell on Nan Qing's wristwatch again, and he curled his lips.
Fakes from head to toe, and he acted as though they were real.
In truth, as the protagonist of this world, Bai Ruanruan had no need to waste much energy on a malicious cannon fodder with no presence like Nan Qing. He knew he was this world's beloved darling, Bai Ruanruan, the future movie star whose fame would spread worldwide. There was no need for him to bother with someone like Nan Qing.
But for some reason, perhaps crossing class boundaries overnight and becoming the prestigious Bai family's young master had inflated his ego a little.
He also needed people to witness his glory, such as Nan Qing, the impostor who had fallen from his pedestal.
Seeing pain and envy on the other boy's face gave him immense satisfaction and made him want even more to trample Nan Qing into the mud.
"You're not going to wear these fakes on the variety show tomorrow, are you?"
Bai Ruanruan tapped his fingers against the car window, a condescending smile on his face.
"Why don't you come back to the Bai family with me? Mom and Dad won't let you inside, but if you squat by the entrance and rummage through the trash cans, you might find a few outfits I threw away."
"Pick them up and wash them at home. That's still better than wearing this garbage tomorrow."
Nan Qing looked perfectly calm. "Humans and pigs walk different paths. I'm not going."
Bai Ruanruan's hand abruptly tightened on the car window. "Nan Qing, you!"
Nan Qing looked away and was about to resume scanning his shared electric scooter when he saw a car approaching out of the corner of his eye. It slowly stopped beside him.
Bai Ruanruan stopped picking a fight, too, his voice full of delighted surprise.
"Mr. Huo's car! Uncle Li, is Mr. Huo here to see me?"