Getting Rich Legally 2

Meng Hui's arms were long and powerful. The smell of smoke on him mixed with a faint scent of sweat, and the hormonal scent of the teenager drilled straight into Lin Qi's nose. Lin Qi turned his head, trying his best to stay as far away from Meng Hui's body as possible.

Meng Hui lowered his eyes, the corners of his mouth curling up slightly as he sized up this teenage version of Lin Qi. His brows were lightly furrowed, seemingly daring to be angry but not daring to speak. He was fair and clean, thin and handsome, his eyes slightly narrowed, and his long, curled eyelashes stuck together at the corners of his eyes. Meng Hui said lazily, "Watch less TV."

Saying something completely out of nowhere again, Lin Qi said softly, "I never watch TV."

Meng Hui glanced at the bulging schoolbag in his arms. "Oh, from studying then."

Lin Qi simply ignored him.

So cute. Meng Hui had spent many years looking at Vice President Lin, who wore gold-rimmed glasses and had a cold expression. He was used to Lin Qi coldly bossing him around. Suddenly seeing the teenage Lin Qi, he wished he could slap himself twice. Back then, why did he just snatch Ge Jianjun's money and turn to leave, leaving such a great treasure right there?

When they met again half a year later, what kind of misfortune had happened to this good student Lin Qi standing before him, turning him into that dropout teenager with a face full of scars and a vigilant gaze?

After Lin Qi died, Meng Hui became superstitious. On one hand, he sought fortune-telling and worshipped Buddha, donating money to every temple he saw. On the other hand, the illicit businesses in his hands were run with less and less of a bottom line. He knew he had lost control, but he didn't know how to stop. He was like someone trapped in a mud pit, sinking deeper the more he struggled, until darkness swallowed him over his head, and then, finally, the light descended anew.

"I'm here," Lin Qi pointed to the tube-shaped apartment building in front of them. "Goodbye." He twisted his body, wanting to slip out of Meng Hui's embrace, but Meng Hui's iron arm didn't budge an inch. Still using that lazy tone, Meng Hui said, "See a good deed through to the end, I'll walk you to your door. Which floor do you live on?"

Lin Qi knew Meng Hui's uncompromising temper very well and couldn't be bothered to argue with him. He lowered his head and said muffledly, "Fifth floor."

"Not high." Meng Hui hooked his arm around him and walked through the blue-painted iron gate. Pushing the gate open, he said with a faint smile, "If you can't climb it, I'll carry you on my back?"

Lin Qi gave him an indescribable look, his eyes practically screaming the word 'sick'. In his memory, Meng Hui was as straight as an arrow, changing girlfriends one after another, both a playboy and heartless, perfectly fitting the character setting of a male protagonist in a male-oriented novel.

"Just a joke." Meng Hui hooked an arm around his neck, and their foreheads bumped—both covered in sweat. Lin Qi hissed in pain but held it in, muttering softly, "Your head is really hard."

Meng Hui subconsciously wanted to say something, his tongue already pressing against the roof of his mouth, a dirty joke right on the tip of his tongue, but ultimately he held it back. Facing such a sixteen or seventeen-year-old little Lin Qi, he couldn't say anything too inappropriate. Thus, he hugged Lin Qi and chuckled softly. Lin Qi hugged his schoolbag, enduring it while thinking he should just treat it as being hugged by a large dog.

The summer weather was hot, and it was exactly dinnertime. Many households had their security doors open, leaving only a screen door. The aroma of food and the sound of conversations mixed together, forming a nostalgic atmosphere of everyday life.

"I see you don't want to eat this meal in peace today!"

A roaring bellow came out, followed immediately by the sound of things smashing and doors slamming. Hearing the 'thump, thump, thump' of footsteps, Lin Qi reacted quickly, turning around to press against the wall and hiding behind Meng Hui, saying sharply, "Don't move!"

A tall, thin man brushed past Meng Hui furiously, his footsteps rushing downstairs sounding like they were going to collapse this dilapidated tube-shaped apartment building.

Meng Hui's gaze followed the man down before pulling back. He turned his face to look at Lin Qi hiding behind him. The lights in the hallway were broken, and that pale face was half-hidden in the darkness, revealing a bit of skin's luster and panic. Meeting Meng Hui's bright eyes, he immediately lowered his head. "I'm here."

Meng Hui took a step forward and saw the open door upstairs. He looked back at Lin Qi, who was hugging his schoolbag and standing on the edge of the hallway.

Looking so pitiful.

"Your dad?" Meng Hui asked casually.

"Mm," Lin Qi said with lowered eyes.

"Adults fighting has nothing to do with kids. Just think of it that way, it's still better than being an orphan with no dad or mom like me," Meng Hui comforted him in a gentle tone.

Those big eyes, framed by long eyelashes, snapped open and lightly glared at him. "That was my stepdad just now."

Meng Hui laughed, revealing a mouthful of neat teeth. "Fuck, why didn't you say so earlier."

Lin Qi, unable to endure it any longer, hugged his schoolbag, bumped past him, stomped heavily upstairs, went inside, and closed the door all in one smooth motion.

Meng Hui leaned against the peeling wall of the hallway, his gaze falling on the chipped brown door. His fingers and lips were both itching. He fished out a crumpled cigarette from his trouser pocket, its tip already wilted. Meng Hui smiled again, muttering to himself, "Why don't I remember being this poorly behaved when I was eighteen?"

From overwhelming wealth and towering skyscrapers, he had plummeted into having absolutely nothing in an instant. Yet, why did Meng Hui feel quite happy? So happy that the smile on the corners of his mouth couldn't stop. He looked up again at the door to Lin Qi's home. A living, breathing Lin Qi. How wonderful.

The smell of cheap perfume flashed past him. An auntie with a perm and a long dress gave Meng Hui, who was standing at the entrance of the hallway, a look full of vigilance, stealthily moving her small purse from her side to her front.

Meng Hui gave a self-deprecating smile, rolled up the wilted cigarette, and swaggered unsteadily downstairs.

The plot had changed again. After closing the door, Lin Qi had calmed down. If it changes, let it change, he would take it one step at a time. His heart hadn't completely calmed down from the pain of his broken heart, and he no longer had the initial surging passion to complete the mission.

"You still have the nerve to come back—" The shrill female voice abruptly stopped upon seeing the frail Lin Qi at the door. Lin Yue'er awkwardly stroked her long hair. "Qiqi is back."

"Mm." Hugging his schoolbag, Lin Qi glanced at the messy living room. The food from the coffee table was spilled all over the floor, tomato soup was splashed on the sofa leaving a pale red stain, and liquor was still gurgling out of a rolled-over bottle on the floor. He withdrew his gaze and said softly, "I'm going to do my homework."

"Go ahead," Lin Yue'er's eye sockets were red, clearly having cried. She still forced a smile in front of Lin Qi. "Mom will boil some dumplings for you."

"No need, during evening self-study today, a classmate gave me bread to eat. I'm not hungry." Lin Qi hugged his schoolbag and walked towards his small room.

Lin Yue'er said, "Won't you get hungry later while writing? If you don't want dumplings, Mom will make you some oatmeal. You can drink it when you're hungry, okay?"

Lin Qi nodded, no longer rejecting Lin Yue'er's care.

Walking into the narrow room, Lin Qi put down his schoolbag and sat at the desk, feeling a little irritated.

Lin Qi's setting in this world was an excellent teenager who dropped out of school after his family encountered misfortune. He followed Meng Hui, who was already hustling on the streets, to be his underling, thereby kicking off Meng Hui's legendary life of becoming a tycoon.

In the past, he had been very focused on doing missions, and everyone was just an NPC in his eyes. He had never cared about anyone. But today, the moment he entered this door and saw the messy scene in the living room, he couldn't help but feel that Mother Lin was quite pitiful. Her original marriage was unhappy, and her second marriage was to a scumbag, ruining her own and her child's entire lives.

Everything seemed to be just a setting, yet everything felt so real, just as real as the feeling Du Chengying gave him.

"Knock, knock," the door was rapped. Lin Qi gathered his spirits, sat up straight, and said loudly, "Come in."

Lin Yue'er pushed the door open, holding a small bowl in her hands. She no longer looked as disheveled as before, appearing clean and refreshed. She placed the still-steaming bowl on Lin Qi's desk. "Just leave it there when you finish drinking. After you go to school tomorrow, Mom will clean it up for you."

"Thank you... Mom," Lin Qi said slightly awkwardly. He felt awkward calling her Mom, but Lin Yue'er misunderstood, thinking that the family matters had upset Lin Qi again. She bent down and stroked Lin Qi's hair. Words of comfort reached her lips, but she didn't know where to start. Lin Qi lost his biological dad at seven and got a stepdad at fifteen, yet the family was constantly plagued by arguments. Holding back the tears in her eyes, Lin Yue'er said softly, "When you finish studying, take a shower and go to sleep. Mom has something to do and needs to go out for a bit. Don't study too late."

"Mm." Lin Qi knew she was going out to look for that husband who ran away from home. He said softly, "Don't be out too late either. It's not safe outside, come back early."

Lin Yue'er hadn't heard words of concern from her son in a long time. She said happily, "Don't worry, Mom will be back soon."

After the door was closed, Lin Qi wilted again. He slumped on the desk, his hand pulling the switch of the desk lamp, turning it on and off.

System: "If you don't want to study, just sleep. You'll drop out of school in half a year anyway."

Lin Qi asked, "Why aren't you watching variety shows anymore?"

System: "They ended, I have a variety show drought."

Lin Qi let out a tasteless 'oh'.

The System, looking at his half-dead state, warned, "You better perk up, Meng Hui is much harder to deal with than Du Chengying."

Lin Qi said angrily, "I wasn't dealing with Du Chengying!"

System: "..." Is this the husband-protecting prowess of a widower? Truly loving it.

System: "Whatever you say. I'm going to find a movie to watch."

Lin Qi: "Thanks, I won't see you out."

System: ... The little Synthetic Human has grown a temper.

The next day, Lin Qi woke up, grabbed his broken schoolbag, and went out of his room. He didn't see Lin Yue'er, and the living room was still a mess. He poured the oatmeal from the bowl into the toilet and flushed it away, washed the bowl and put it back in the cupboard, and after washing up, he sighed and went downstairs.

Hugging the schoolbag that hadn't been opened all night, Lin Qi walked listlessly towards the school, his head tilted to one side, his face full of things on his mind. Suddenly, the schoolbag in his arms was snatched away. Lin Qi turned around following the schoolbag, and unexpectedly yet reasonably, he saw Meng Hui.

Meng Hui was the same as last night, wearing a large school uniform and a white tank top, with a bit of stubble growing on his chin. He looked lazily with a smile at the wide-eyed Lin Qi. "Why are you so distracted while walking? Be careful not to trip."

"What are you doing? Give my schoolbag back," Lin Qi reached out displeased.

"Have you eaten breakfast?" Meng Hui asked instead of answering, slinging the schoolbag behind him, his sharp eyes gliding over Lin Qi's lips. "Your lips are peeling, you lack vitamins."

"You..." Lin Qi was speechless for a long time, finally squeezing out a sentence, "Is it any of your business?"

Meng Hui stretched out his long arm, wrapping it around Lin Qi once again. "I'll treat you to breakfast."

"I already ate, I'm not eating." Lin Qi struggled, trying to pull away Meng Hui's arm wrapped around his neck, but the difference in strength was too great, and he didn't achieve the slightest result.

"No coffee and sandwiches. How about soy milk and fried dough sticks?" Meng Hui said to himself.

Lin Qi gave up struggling in despair. "Why are you like this?"

"How am I?" Meng Hui lowered his eyes, his sharp brow bone raising. "Ge Jianjun scares you into trembling, yet you aren't afraid of me at all." Lin Qi was stunned by his words. Meng Hui's handsome face suddenly drew closer, displaying a bright smile just inches away from Lin Qi. "Only fierce with your own people, huh."

Lin Qi held his breath, not daring to say a single word, for fear of letting this man with beast-like intuition, Meng Hui, figure something out again.

Meng Hui moved his face away and relaxed, saying, "To meet is fate." He glanced at the now obedient Lin Qi from the corner of his eye. "Still remember what to call me?"

"Brother Hui..." Lin Qi said reluctantly.

Meng Hui rubbed his soft short hair, turning it into a disheveled mess, before stopping his ravaging of Lin Qi's hair with satisfaction.

A disheveled Lin Qi thought to himself, 'Just how old was this guy before he was reborn?'

Meng Hui pulled Lin Qi to a breakfast shop to eat soy milk and fried dough sticks. Lin Qi had no appetite, but with Meng Hui staring at him eat, he had no choice but to eat without tasting anything, treating it purely as doing a mission.

Meng Hui leaned back on the plastic chair of the breakfast shop, looking at the listless Lin Qi, and said lazily, "When you're young, you feel like everything is a matter of life and death. Let me tell you, there are actually only two major things in this world."

"What?" Lin Qi picked up the conversation under Meng Hui's predatory stare.

"Eating," Meng Hui said quickly, giving Lin Qi a faint smile. "And finding a partner."