Traveling Through the Book and Becoming a Cub Among the Villains - Chapter 41

“Is that okay?” Ye Qingxi asked, tilting his little face up with an innocent look.

Mu Shaoyan looked into his pure, harmless eyes and couldn’t resist, he could only nod.

Ye Qingxi was satisfied, “Then I won’t tell anyone either.”

“Good.” Mu Shaoyan happily patted his head.

After finishing with Ye Qingxi, he turned to the three kids across from him, “You three, too. You can’t tell your grandpas, moms, dads, or any other relatives. Got it?”

“Why?” Zhong Yan asked, resting his face on his hands.

“Because I treated you to lunch. If someone feeds you, you keep their secrets. Since you ate my food, you have to agree to my request.”

Zhong Yan snorted and rebelliously declared, “Then I won’t eat.”

Mu Shaoyan, “????”

Mu Shaoyan turned to his adorable little nephew for help.

Ye Qingxi, “..…”

He could only look at his friends and say, “Just agree to it, okay? I’ll treat you to snacks later.”

Zhong Yan tilted his head, completely two-faced, and said, “If you’re the one treating us to snacks, then I’ll agree.”

Kang Cong nodded.

Pei Liang also gave face and responded with a simple, “En.”

Not bad. Mu Shaoyan didn’t mind their blatant double standards at all. In fact, he was quite pleased. It seemed his little nephew really had some authority in their little group.

Very good!

Mu Shaoyan rubbed his cheek against Ye Qingxi’s face affectionately, “Xiao Xi is such a good boy.”

Ye Qingxi laughed from the ticklish rubbing, then sat back down, ready to eat.

Meanwhile, not far away in the barbecue shop, Wang Xu suddenly put down his skewer, turned to Lu Zhao, and asked, “Do you think Yan-Ge didn’t let us come along because he thinks we’re embarrassing?”

As soon as he said that, Li Shuai, who had been eating his skewer, suddenly found it didn’t taste as good anymore.

“You’re overthinking it,” Lu Zhao said while munching, “His brain works in straight lines, he wouldn’t think that deeply. And besides, he’s treating his nephew to lunch. Why would we tag along? Wouldn’t that be awkward?”

Hearing that, Wang Xu laughed again, “Gotta say though, Yan-ge’s little nephew really is cute. Cutest kid I’ve ever seen.”

“Totally. Fair-skinned, neat and tidy. Looks like such a well-behaved little kid. Completely different from Yan-ge.”

“Exactly.”

The two kept chatting as they happily resumed eating their barbecue.

After lunch, Mu Shaoyan took Ye Qingxi and the others back to school.

Ye Qingxi waved at him and reminded, “Little uncle, remember to go back to class! I’ll be asking you for photos this afternoon.”

Mu Shaoyan, “..…”

All he could do was nod in despair.

He watched Ye Qingxi, and the others walk into the school dorm building, then turned and called Lu Zhao, “I got to head back to school. My nephew’s going to do random spot checks this afternoon.”

“Spot checks?”

“Yeah. No idea where the kid learned this from, he wants me to send selfies from the classroom, exactly where he says. The spot changes every time. He’ll tell me the location via WeChat.”

Lu Zhao, “…..”

“May I ask how old your nephew is?”

“Just 5.”

“5-years-old?!” Lu Zhao was stunned, “A 5-year-old came up with all that?”

“Heh.” Mu Shaoyan instantly puffed up with pride and began bragging, “You have no idea, my little nephew may be young, but he’s a genius baby. This is nothing. He even knows what DNA is and how to do a DNA test. You know Though the Tortoise Lives Long? My little nephew recited it easily and helped my dad win a jade bracelet in a contest. My dad still wears it every day.”

“That’s what you call a genius,” Mu Shaoyan said proudly.

Lu Zhao, …Damn, that’s actually a genius.

“Alright then,” he said, “You’d better head back.”

After all, Mu Shaoyan wasn’t like them. They genuinely couldn’t study and were stuck in a terrible school. But Mu Shaoyan’s school? Top three in the entire city, produced college entrance exam champions. Honestly, he should be studying hard instead of hanging out with them.

“Okay, I’ll hit you up tomorrow morning.”

“Tomorrow morning… wait, won’t your little nephew be doing another spot check?” Lu Zhao asked, soul-piercingly.

Mu Shaoyan, “…..”

Mu Shaoyan was instantly stumped.

Right. Will his precious little baby be checking on him again tomorrow morning?

Mu Shaoyan had a splitting headache.

If he’d known, he wouldn’t have gone out today! And now look. His wonderful carefree life suddenly felt like it had hit rock bottom!

Li Shuai, sitting beside him, noticed that his Yan-ge had gone quiet and said, “It’s fine, bro. Worst case, just let him do the spot checks. It’s not like he can actually do anything to you if you’re not there. He’s your nephew, not your dad!”

“What nonsense are you spouting!” Mu Shaoyan instantly snapped back, “How could I let him do a spot check and not show up?”

That would make Ye Qingxi so sad! He might even cry again! No way he could allow that! Mu Shaoyan couldn’t bear it.

“I’ll talk to him again later,” Mu Shaoyan sighed.

Li Shuai, ??? Wait—bro, that’s really your nephew? Because the way you’re acting… it’s nothing like dealing with a nephew! It’s like you’re talking to your dad!

“I’d heard of guys being whipped by their wives or daughters, but I never thought there’d be one whipped by his nephew. Yan-ge, you’re really… one of a kind,” Li Shuai muttered under his breath.

Lu Zhao chuckled, “Then you go sort things out with your little nephew first.”

“Mm, hanging up,” Mu Shaoyan said and ended the call.

Wang Xu turned to Lu Zhao, “So, are we still going to beat up Liu Qiang tomorrow?”

“Of course we are,” Lu Zhao replied calmly, “That guy’s been hanging around the middle school section lately, clearly looking to pick on kids and extort pocket money. If we don’t deal with him, are we supposed to just wait for him to rob someone else?”

“Shouldn’t we wait for Yan-ge?”

“Nah.” Lu Zhao sipped his tea and said, “Mu Shaoyan isn’t like us. If he shows up, great. If not, don’t call him. He’s a senior, he has the college entrance exams next year.”

“Damn, I totally forgot!” Wang Xu exclaimed.

Then, unable to help it, he added with a bit of melancholy, “Next year… we’re supposed to take the college entrance exam, too.”

For a moment, the three of them lost their appetite. Sure, they were supposed to take the exam, but they all knew they weren’t getting in anywhere. It was just a waste of time.

“Forget it, let’s eat more skewers. Come on, come on—eat, eat,” Wang Xu said, rallying his spirits as he dug back in.

As for Ye Qingxi, since he had promised Mu Shaoyan he wouldn’t tell anyone, he really didn’t say a word. After returning to the dorm at noon, he only told Qin Cheng about the morning’s community service, not a single mention of having run into Mu Shaoyan.

However, while he kept quiet, Chen Xiang practically broadcast it to the whole class.

“Ye Qingxi’s little uncle is so cool! His hair is red, super stylish!” Chen Xiang described with dramatic expressions, “And he has three little underlings who listen to everything he says. His uncle tells them what to do, and they just do it. The ones who helped with our cleaning? All his uncle’s guys!”

Classmates, “Waaah!!!”

“And he’s really generous, too. First time meeting us, and he said he was going to treat us to a big meal!”

“WAAAAHHH!!!” The classmates’ eyes lit up, “Did you guys go?”

“Of course I didn’t,” Chen Xiang said, turning to his desk mate, “Ye Qingxi’s uncle is loyal, and I’m loyal, too. I promised Fang Xin we’d eat lunch together, so I didn’t go. But Ye Qingxi and the others did.”

The whole class immediately turned to Ye Qingxi, eyes full of envy.

“So you guys better show Ye Qingxi some respect from now on. Otherwise, when his uncle shows up, you’re done for. I’m telling you—” Chen Xiang leaned in mysteriously, “I think his uncle is one of those gangsters, with tons of underlings. The three we saw? Just the ones he casually brought while strolling the streets. The real crew? Probably as big as our whole class!”

“WAAAAHHH!!!” the class gasped again, “Ye Qingxi, your uncle is so badass!”

Ye Qingxi, “.….”

Ye Qingxi figured Chen Xiang must’ve watched one too many gangster movies.

At your age, is it really appropriate to be watching all that fighting and violence?! Sit down, now!

All Ye Qingxi could do was smile faintly and quietly return to his seat.

Meanwhile, the allegedly “badass” Mu Shaoyan was currently sitting in his classroom, waiting anxiously for his little nephew’s spot check.

He was about to doze off when WeChat finally chimed. Mu Shaoyan immediately opened it, sure enough, it was from Ye Qingxi.

Except… it was a selfie from Ye Qingxi? Clearly, the kid had gotten to school already. He took the selfie at his desk, wearing a sweet smile, adorable and beautiful.

Mu Shaoyan quickly saved it and started making it into a meme.

Hehe, my nephew’s so cute. It’d be a waste not to meme him.

Before he could finish, Ye Qingxi sent a voice message, “Little Uncle, send me one of you at your seat.”

Mu Shaoyan paused his meme-making, snapped a selfie at his desk, and sent it over. Then he asked, confused, “Why are you sending me your photo? I’m not spot-checking you.”

So unfair~ Ye Qingxi looked at his uncle’s selfie, confirmed everything was in order, and replied, “This way we’re exchanging photos, Little Uncle, don’t say I took advantage of you.”

Mu Shaoyan listened to the voice message and felt like reaching through the phone to rub his little nephew’s cheeks.

Seriously, how can he be so cute! He even worried about him getting taken advantage of. What a sweet kid!

“Then not only did I not lose out, I scored big!” Mu Shaoyan replied.

Behind him, classmates began whispering.

“Why is Mu Shaoyan back in class?”

“Yeah, I thought he barely showed up to school.”

“Look at that hair! Damn, that’s wild!”

“So cool! Fair skin with red hair actually looks amazing!”

“Ugh, if only Mu Shaoyan had better grades. Otherwise, he’d definitely be the most popular guy in school.”

“He pretty much already is. The two who get the most love letters in our class are him and Duan Yi.”

“Well yeah, one comes from a rich family, and the other is a top student. Both are good-looking, too. No wonder girls are lining up to confess.”

Sitting in a corner, He Guang listened and glanced over at that striking red head a short distance away.

High school had grooming standards, but it seemed those rules never applied to Mu Shaoyan. No matter what he did, he could still sit comfortably in the classroom.

Just because he was rich? Because he was the young master of the Mu Group? It was so unfair.

He Guang thought to himself, This world really isn’t fair at all.

Since Ye Qingxi wanted to do spot checks, Mu Shaoyan had no choice but to obediently cooperate. As a result, he actually stayed in class for the entire afternoon.

Once school let out, Mu Shaoyan rushed to a hair salon to wash out the temporary dye in his hair, then headed straight home.

Ye Qingxi was at his desk doing homework.

While he was writing, he heard a knock on the door. The next second, Mu Shaowu’s surprised voice rang out, “Why are you back?”

Who’s that? Ye Qingxi wondered.

His confusion was quickly resolved when Mu Shaoyan’s voice floated in, “This is my home. Can’t I come back?”

“But it’s only Thursday.”

“So what? I missed home. I missed Xiao Xi, is that not allowed?”

Mu Shaowu, “????”

“You miss my son for what?!”

Mu Shaoyan found that comment ridiculous, “Xiao Xi is my nephew, isn’t it perfectly normal for me to miss him?”

“You’ve got more than just this one nephew.”

“Well, Xiao Xi is still the one I miss most!” Mu Shaoyan huffed, brushed past his older brother, and walked into the bedroom.

Ye Qingxi’s desk was in the study connected to Mu Shaowu’s bedroom. Seeing Mu Shaoyan enter, he put down his pen.

Mu Shaoyan noticed he was doing homework and immediately felt a bit awkward, “You keep writing, finish first, then we’ll talk later.”

Studying is important. Can’t disturb that.

“It’s okay,” Ye Qingxi replied, “What do you need, Little Uncle?”

Mu Shaoyan glanced behind him, Mu Shaowu was lazily leaning against the wall, watching. So Mu Shaoyan walked up to Ye Qingxi, scooped him up, and carried him straight to his own room.

Mu Shaowu, “?????”

Ye Qingxi, “……”

Mu Shaoyan set him down on the sofa in his room and sat beside him.

“You didn’t tell your dad about what happened today, right?” he asked worriedly.

“Nope,” Ye Qingxi replied.

Mu Shaoyan once again felt reassured.

It wasn’t that Mu Shaoyan didn’t trust Ye Qingxi, it was just that Ye Qingxi was still so young. Mu Shaoyan worried that, if he wasn’t careful, Ye Qingxi might accidentally get tricked by the ever-scheming Mu Shaowu.

“Well…” Mu Shaoyan looked at him, a bit hesitant.

He was afraid that if Ye Qingxi hadn’t planned to do a spot check tomorrow, asking now would only serve as a reminder.

Ye Qingxi asked curiously, “Well, what?”

“Just… thank you!” Mu Shaoyan said and suddenly kissed him on the cheek.

Ye Qingxi, “!!!!”

Why did he kiss me out of nowhere?! The only one in the Mu family who had ever kissed him was Mu Shaowu!

Ye Qingxi was left a little dazed by the kiss. Still in a bit of a fog, he said, “If there’s nothing else, I’ll go finish my homework.”

“Okay,” Mu Shaoyan replied, “Wait, take this.”

He turned around and picked up a small cake from the desk, “The girls in my class say this is super tasty. It’s so popular you have to wait in line, tons of people want it but can’t get it. Try it and see if it’s as good as they say.”

Ye Qingxi hadn’t expected him to prepare a little cake for him. His heart warmed instantly.

“You waited in line?”

“A little while,” Mu Shaoyan said casually.

“A little while? How little?”

“About half an hour,” Mu Shaoyan replied.

Ye Qingxi, “????”

“You call that a little while?!”

“They said normally it takes at least an hour.”

Ye Qingxi, …Dang, that’s some serious popularity!

“Then how come you only waited half an hour?”

“Of course because I picked class time to go. Everyone was either in class or at work, so fewer people were around,” Mu Shaoyan said proudly.

Ye Qingxi, “????”

“So you skipped class, again?!”

Mu Shaoyan, “!!!!!”

Damn! I slipped up!

He gave a helpless smile, “It was just for a little while. I couldn’t just sleep through everything. I already slept through two classes, got a headache from it. Can’t you forgive me just this once, for the sake of this little cake?”

Ye Qingxi looked at the overly eager smile on his face and felt both exasperated and amused.

He told him to stay at school, was that permission to nap the whole time?!

Ye Qingxi didn’t even know what to say.

Call him disobedient? He did rush back to school right after waiting just half an hour in line and kept sending photo updates.

Call him obedient? This is what he calls obedient?!

Ye Qingxi took the small cake from his hand and firmly set a new rule, “Starting tomorrow, you’ll send me a photo every 20 minutes.”

Mu Shaoyan, “?????”

 Author’s Note:

Mu Shaoyan: You are trying to kill me!

Mu Shaoyan spent an afternoon at school: making Xiaoxi’s emoticons, sleeping, queuing up to buy cakes, playing games, and making new Xiaoxi’s emoticons.

Mu Shaoyan: I already have several Xiaoxi’s emoticons, hehe~

Xiaoxi: …Did I ask you to do all this?!