Become the Sickly Villain in the Novel - Chapter 61

After a few days of silence, Zhang Wanhui contacted Li Nuo again. It was the same coffee shop as before, and he sat by the window.

“This time, you didn’t bring that guy along,” he remarked, glancing behind Li Nuo and seeing no sign of Fang Che.

“He was only temporarily following me. It’s not like he’s someone I hired.”

Fang Che had resigned yesterday. Li Nuo understood that Qin Xu had likely called him back. Previously, Qin Xu had mentioned that someone was tailing him. Li Nuo looked up at Zhang Wanhui.

Well, the person following him was right in front of him.

Though the other party probably wasn’t aware of it.

“What have you been up to lately?”

Zhang Wanhui didn’t bring up past matters but instead engaged in casual conversation.

“I’ve been learning video editing recently. I’m thinking of taking on freelance projects.”

“……” Zhang Wanhui seemed quite surprised. “You… working? Why the sudden change? Anyway, Li Yan is providing for you. You can just continue enjoying yourself. If he stops giving you money, you can come to me. I’ll take care of you.”

Li Nuo, who had just taken a sip of water, gave him a puzzled look. “I’m the older brother. Why should I rely on Li Yan for support?”

“Tons of people rely on their families,” Zhang Wanhui said indifferently.

Li Nuo frowned. “I don’t know what I was like before, but my relationship with Li Yan is good now.”

“Besides, I’ve already told you. The one in debt was my father. Selling the house had nothing to do with Li Yan. I wasn’t honest with you before.”

Zhang Wanhui huffed angrily. “You’ve been deceived by him!”

Li Nuo was momentarily speechless at how he only believed his own version of events. This was written in the novel. As someone who had read the original story, how could he be deceived?

“Anyway, I’m standing by Li Yan’s side now. There’s no need for you to say anything more.” Li Nuo raised his hand to refuse further persuasion.

Zhang Wanhui let out a frustrated sigh.

Still, he glanced at the person across from him.

If he’s lost his memory, all I need to do is rebuild our connection. If I complete the task I was given, he might come looking for me himself.

Resolute, Zhang Wanhui waved goodbye to Li Nuo and left the coffee shop.

……………

“Are you working overtime again today?”

“Sorry, Brother, I’ve been really busy lately,” Li Yan apologized over the phone.

In the past few days, the company had launched a new project, and since Li Nuo’s health had significantly improved and no longer required much care, Li Yan—who had managed to avoid overtime for nearly two months—could no longer escape and had to dive into work.

“It’s nothing to apologize for. Just make sure you eat well even when you’re working overtime. I’ll take care of myself too.”

“Mm-hmm.”

“Li Nuo! Let’s go out and have fun once we’re done with all this!”

Secretary Yang’s loud voice came through the phone, and Li Nuo chuckled in response. “Sure!”

When he had been hospitalized before, Secretary Yang had also visited him.

“Don’t forget to take your medicine. I’ll hang up now.”

“Mm, take care.”

“I’ll be back very late tonight. If you’re tired, just go to sleep first.”

These days, Li Yan often worked until eleven or twelve before coming home. Li Nuo would occasionally send messages to Qin Xu, but since Qin Xu was also busy with work, he rarely had time to reply.

Of course, the person he kept in touch with the most was Mo Chuan. Despite being abroad with a heavy workload, Mo Chuan still made time to chat with Li Nuo almost every day. Sometimes, he would even send pictures of the scenery around him.

Right about now, he should be calling. Just as Li Nuo thought this, his phone vibrated.

Huh? A video call?

He pressed the button, and Mo Chuan’s smiling face appeared on the screen.

“I really wanted to see you, so I made a video call. I hope that’s okay.”

“It’s fine.”

“Where are you right now? Have you eaten?”

“I’m at home. Haven’t eaten yet. I just finished talking with Li Yan.”

“Oh, so it’s that time of day for you,” Mo Chuan said, rotating his phone to show his surroundings. “It’s already past 8 PM here. Look, the night view outside is quite beautiful.”

He turned the camera around, showing Li Nuo the view outside the high-rise hotel window.

“Wow, it really is! Take a picture for me!” Li Nuo said excitedly.

Mo Chuan then flashed a triumphant smile. “If I send it to you, you have to send me a photo of yourself too.”

“Eh—”

“What? You don’t want to?”

“I’ve never really taken any photos of myself,” Li Nuo said, feeling a bit awkward.

“How is that possible? You have your ID photo from work, don’t you? Didn’t Secretary Yang send it to you?”

Li Nuo thought for a moment. He actually did receive it. “Would that work?”

“Yeah, that’ll do.”

Li Nuo sent the photo over, and Mo Chuan also sent back the picture of the night view.

“Alright then, I won’t keep you from your meal.”

“Mm, Brother Mo, you should get some rest too.”

After ending the call, Mo Chuan immediately set Li Nuo’s photo as his phone’s wallpaper.

“If I had known, I would’ve asked for more pictures earlier,” he murmured to himself.

Relying on a cheek kiss to get through a whole month—now he realized that wasn’t nearly enough.

Unlike Qin Xu, who barely checked his phone when he got busy, Mo Chuan never forgot to stay in touch with Li Nuo. Even when exhausted, he would still send him messages.

He lightly tapped on the photo, sincerely wishing that the next few days would pass quickly so he could return.

Even though he wasn’t there, Liu Ming would still send him updates about Li Nuo.

“I heard some trash has been getting close to him,” Mo Chuan gritted his teeth. A lot had happened while he was away.

As if his confidence wasn’t already shaky enough, now some old acquaintance had started appearing too.

“A group photo would have been even better.” Mo Chuan sighed. Liu Ming also sent pictures occasionally, but they were all taken secretly.

“At least he looks well-fed.” Staring at Li Nuo’s slightly fuller face, Mo Chuan recalled how sunken and gaunt he had been while hospitalized. He still needed to put on more weight—being a little chubbier would be better.

“But today’s video call was great. If I had known, I would’ve done this from the start.”

Seeing Li Nuo’s smile in real-time only made him want to return faster.

Without him around, there was probably no one bringing Li Nuo flowers. That wouldn’t do. Li Nuo kept complaining that it was a waste, but he clearly liked them.

……………

Zhang Wanhui had been showing up to see Li Nuo almost every other day, and today was no different. Over the course of their conversations, Li Nuo gradually pieced together how the original owner had lived.

Simply put, in front of Zhang Wanhui, the original Li Nuo had painted himself as a victim.

Li Nuo believed the original owner might have had some degree of paranoia. Of course, this wasn’t entirely the original owner’s fault.

“I think you’re partly responsible.”

“What?”

“You encouraged it, didn’t you?”

The original owner’s extravagant habit of buying shoes hadn’t existed initially; it was only after Zhang Wanhui suggested it that he started purchasing them.

Not to mention, Zhang Wanhui was also the one who got him to download all those dating apps, leading to him juggling multiple casual relationships.

He really lived up to the phrase “bad company.”

Humans are social creatures and easily influenced by those around them. The original Li Nuo had been led astray by Zhang Wanhui, becoming more and more extreme in his behavior.

What was this? Every villain had their own group of friends? And when villains banded together, did they turn into a bigger villain?

Well, in any case, this had nothing to do with the original owner—a mere cannon-fodder villain who died halfway through the novel.

“Are the sneakers you bought still around? Their price has gone up. You could sell them. Do you want to?”

Li Nuo blinked. So the original owner really was selling sneakers. He had suspected as much.

But he had no knowledge of this market. The original owner had so many pairs, yet he barely seemed to sell any.

Seeing Li Nuo’s clueless expression, Zhang Wanhui had no choice but to pull out his phone and show him. “This is the model I meant.”

“Ah… I think I already sold that one.”

“You sold it? When?”

“It was quite early. Just a few days after I lost my memory, I got rid of all the shoes piled up at home.”

“Huh?! Why did you sell them off so hastily? Didn’t I tell you their value would increase? And you sold all of them?”

Zhang Wanhui stared at him in disbelief, eyes wide.

Li Nuo responded with an innocent look.

The more he interacted with Zhang Wanhui, the more he felt that this person was trying to control him. There was no superior-subordinate relationship between them, yet Zhang Wanhui’s actions seemed to imply that Li Nuo had to comply with his wishes.

“I didn’t know that. Well, if they’re sold, they’re sold.” Li Nuo said indifferently.

Zhang Wanhui was momentarily speechless, blocked by his response.

The coffee shop, which had been somewhat noisy, suddenly grew even louder.

“Huh? Who’s that guy?”

Hearing Zhang Wanhui mutter to himself, Li Nuo looked up in confusion toward the entrance. There, he locked eyes with the person causing the commotion.

“Eh?”

Li Nuo’s eyes widened in astonishment as the figure in his sight strode closer, stopping right in front of him.

“…Brother Mo? You’re back in the country so soon?”

Standing by the table, Mo Chuan wore a smile, but the cold look in his eyes and the slight twist at the corners of his mouth betrayed his less-than-pleasant mood. Not that anyone else could tell.

“I told you not to cheat on me. Why do you keep meeting with other people?!”

His tone carried a trace of grievance. He had rushed straight here the moment he landed, wanting to surprise Li Nuo, only to have Liu Ming inform him that Li Nuo was meeting someone else. He had hurried over from the airport immediately.

Seeing it with his own eyes now, it was hard to keep his expression in check, especially after learning that these two had been meeting frequently.

The fact that he was still managing to smile was sheer willpower.

“What are you doing here?” Li Nuo ignored his words and instead asked curiously.

Mo Chuan snorted. He had thought the other person would be happy, yet instead, he was asking why he was here.

That left an unpleasant feeling in his chest. His gaze swept toward Zhang Wanhui. Was he interrupting their conversation?

At the same time, Zhang Wanhui was also sizing him up.

Dressed head to toe in designer brands. Just like that other guy I saw before.

A new person Li Nuo has hooked up with? Is he weighing his options between these two?

He still couldn’t shake his perception of Li Nuo. Perhaps it was because, having been burdened by his health since childhood, Li Nuo had rarely socialized and didn’t quite understand normal human interactions.

Coupled with his naturally striking appearance, even with his odd temperament, he still attracted many admirers. But those people had never truly understood him.

His extreme personality had once made Li Yan suffer greatly. Li Yan had tried to improve their relationship, but nothing worked. In the end, he had given up and simply endured it.

After that, Li Nuo had become even more reckless. And with the added pressure of financial struggles, he developed an obsession with money.

So, these two new acquaintances are both rich?

Li Nuo’s mindset hasn’t changed at all.

A knowing smile crept onto Zhang Wanhui’s face, his eyes gleaming with greed as they landed on Mo Chuan.

Money—who wouldn’t want it?

Mo Chuan had encountered such looks many times before and was utterly disdainful.

Without hesitation, he pulled out a chair and sat beside Li Nuo, meeting his gaze with cold indifference.

Just then, a small hand reached out and tugged at his sleeve. Mo Chuan turned his head, his expression softening instantly. He froze for a moment, exasperated by his own reaction.

It was his own body, yet it felt as if it were beyond his control.

“I thought you wouldn’t be back for a few more days.”

“You didn’t want to see me sooner? You’re not happy?”

“I am happy,” Li Nuo said with a smile. “It’s just surreal. We were just video calling yesterday, and now you’re standing right in front of me.”

“I’m happy too.”

Mo Chuan could no longer hold back. He opened his arms and pulled Li Nuo into an embrace.

Li Nuo was startled. This was a public place!

He struggled to break free, and though Mo Chuan was reluctant, he eventually let go. He wanted to declare to everyone that Li Nuo belonged to him, yet he didn’t want to push him away.

“Let’s go. Since I just got back, shouldn’t you at least take me out for a welcome dinner?”

With Mo Chuan’s pull, Li Nuo got to his feet. He cast an apologetic glance at Zhang Wanhui. “We’ll talk next time.”

Then, hand in hand with Mo Chuan, he walked out of the coffee shop.