All The Villain Wants Is Money - Chapter 2
On the other end of the line, Xie Wentang was clearly stunned when he heard Xie Gu call out, “Dad.” He didn’t respond immediately.
Xie Gu waited patiently for two seconds, but there was no reply. He called out “Hello” twice and then rudely asked, “Old man, are you deaf?”
A loud, angry roar came from the middle-aged man on the other end. “You’re the one who’s deaf! Is there anyone in the world who would speak to your old man like this?”
Xie Gu chuckled, “Me, of course.”
Xie Wentang snorted. “Figures. Spit it out, you little punk. What do you want from your dad?”
Xie Gu said, “I want to cancel the engagement.”
He was still thinking about what the system had told him earlier about Bai Ying. The one who was supposedly his fiancée, but was actually the female lead.
There was a brief silence on the other end before a loud curse burst out, “What did you say? Cancel the engagement?!”
Xie Gu calmly repeated, “Yes, cancel the engagement.”
“Cancel the engagement, my *ss!” Xie Wentang cursed and got straight to the point. “You little brat, your wings have really grown, huh? You ran away from home to be some kind of celebrity. Now you don’t even want to marry a wife? What’s next? Becoming a monk? Are you going to go against everything your dad arranges for you? Let me tell you, without my money, you’re nothing!”
Xie Gu frowned slightly. Xie Wentang’s harsh words showed just how angry he was, but Xie Gu didn’t shout back. Instead, he patiently waited for him to finish venting before responding calmly, “Yeah, you’re right.”
On the other end, Xie Wentang suddenly fell silent. This wasn’t like Xie Gu at all. Normally, this son of his wouldn’t even contact him unless it was something serious, let alone stay quiet after being scolded!
Suppressing his anger, Xie Wentang carefully thought over the recent news he’d heard about his son. Suddenly, a sense of unease crept up on him. “Son, be honest. Did something happen? Don’t you really like Bai Ying? I heard that that jinxed boy band of yours is about to disband. Are you in some kind of trouble? You… you haven’t gotten leukemia, have you?”
The mere thought sent chills down Xie Wentang’s spine.
He was a rough man with little education. Years ago, he earned his first fortune through hard work and daring, then returned to his hometown to construct a coal mine, which became the foundation of his wealth. Over the years, he’d been mocked by many as a crude nouveau riche, but he didn’t care. The one thing he cherished above all else was his son, the only legacy left by his late wife, who had died of acute leukemia.
Whether acute leukemia was hereditary or not, Xie Wentang had no idea. But when it came to life-threatening illnesses, it was the first thing that came to his mind.
He said urgently, “Why don’t you come home? Dad will find the best doctors to treat you!”
Xie Gu was speechless. How had the conversation taken such a strange turn? But Xie Wentang sounded genuinely anxious…
So Xie Gu coughed weakly and said, “Thank you, Dad. Cough cough. Can you grant me this one last wish? I don’t want to hold her back.”
Xie Wentang’s voice rose in alarm. “What nonsense are you talking about? What do you mean your last wish?!”
Xie Gu coughed again. “Dad.”
Hearing that weak cough, Xie Wentang didn’t dare refuse any further. With a trembling voice, he said, “Alright, Dad will agree! Where are you? I’ll come pick you up right now!”
Xie Gu coughed once more and said, “Then go and tell them right now.” But no, just explaining wasn’t enough. So he added, “Why not announce it to the public and hold a press conference?”
Even Xie Wentang hesitated at this. “Isn’t that unnecessary? We never had such a formal arrangement in the first place.” A press conference? Who would even come?
Xie Gu thought for a moment and agreed. In a feeble tone, he said, “Then just talk to them first. Afterward, send me a recording or a screenshot.”
Xie Wentang hastily agreed, but the next second, Xie Gu ruthlessly hung up on him.
A thought occurred to Xie Wentang. Wait a minute, was I just scammed?
However, thinking back to how fixated Xie Gu had been on this engagement, Xie Wentang decided not to overthink it. Without delay, he called Bai Ying’s father and, per his rebellious son’s request, recorded the entire conversation.
In truth, he didn’t care much about the engagement. The Xie family was a nouveau riche, but the Bai family was old-money on the decline. The engagement had originally been proposed because his unfilial son had been infatuated with Bai Ying.
But in recent years, the Bai family seemed to be on the rise again, and they had started nitpicking on the Xie family. When he had berated Xie Gu earlier, it was partly out of respect for the idea of honoring agreements and partly because he was worried his son might regret it later.
Seeing how determined Xie Gu was, Xie Wentang ultimately agreed and directly contacted the Bai family to propose annulling the engagement.
To his slight surprise, the Bai family’s response was astonishingly straightforward and filled with undisguised joy. They were practically ready to shout, “Thank goodness your trashy son finally wants to break off the engagement!”
Xie Wentang almost started cursing them out but instead angrily hung up and forwarded the recording of the conversation to Xie Gu with a terse message: “Satisfied now?”
A few minutes later, Xie Gu called him back. This time, there was no coughing, no labored breathing—his tone was calm and steady, as if nothing had ever happened. “Thank you, Dad.”
Xie Wentang, his tone still gruff, said, “You’re still in the capital, right? I’ll come pick you up and bring you home.”
While Xie Wentang had made his fortune in coal mining, in recent years, he had settled in Hanyun City, which neighboured the capital city. It was a short distance away—barely half a day by car, and even faster by train or high-speed rail. When he said he’d pick Xie Gu up, he meant he could be there in three hours.
But Xie Gu calmly refused. “No need.”
Xie Wentang fumed with anger. “You’re still planning to stay in the capital? To keep wasting your time with that godforsaken unlucky boy band?”
“No,” Xie Gu replied casually, zipping up his suitcase. “I’ve already booked a train ticket. I’ll be in Hanyun tonight. I’ve sent you the ticket details. Just pick me up at the station.”
???
Xie Wentang was stunned.
“Oh, right,” Xie Gu added, “Dad, lend me 1 million yuan.”
That evening, Wu Borang was still acting the role of an irritable manager and losing his temper. Zhang Shi stood to the side, nervously smiling and trying to appease him, while Xu Yucheng sat silently, his expression equally unpleasant as he bore the brunt of the scolding.
When Wu Borang finally ran out of steam, he lit a cigarette and sank into a chair. “Kong You and Xie Gu still haven’t shown up?”
Xu Yucheng kept his gaze lowered and didn’t respond, but Zhang Shi, ever the cooperative one, quickly chimed in. “Kong You’s caught up in his own mess, so he probably won’t come. As for Xie Gu… I have no idea.”
Wu Borang sneered, choosing not to comment on Kong You. “Looks like Xie Gu doesn’t want to be in this industry anymore.”
That kid, always flaunting himself, always desperate for fame and success. And now? He seemed to have given up on everything.
Wu Borang mentally reviewed the contract Xie Gu had signed. There were no loopholes to worry about—The penalty was a full million yuan. He wouldn’t be able to pay that back even if they sold him off.
Just then, the doorbell rang.
“That must be Xie Gu,” Zhang Shi said as he rushed to open the door, already putting on a cold expression, fully prepared to ridicule the man.
However, when the door swung open, it wasn’t Xie Gu who stood there but a well-dressed gentleman.
“Hello, is this the residence of Mr. Wu Borang?” the man asked politely.
Wu Borang, sensing something was off, got up and walked over to the door. He nodded cautiously. “I’m Wu Borang. What’s this about?”
The man extended a hand with impeccable courtesy. “Good evening, my name is Yu Qiao. I’m the lawyer representing Mr. Xie Gu. I’m here to discuss the settlement terms regarding the termination of his contract with you.”