Almost dropping the fork he lifted, Shen Ziyu tried to remain calm on the outside whilst his thoughts were in turmoil.
Qi Ye?
Who the hell is that?
"I know how much you chase after Qin Kei, but I'm warning you now to stop this foolishness of yours." Shen Han, whose eyes looked like he already killed Shen Ziyu a hundred times in his head, warned him in a harsh tone.
"If only I hadn't gotten such a stupid son like you, then I wouldn't have to deal with all of your naivety."
Grumbling, his father continued, "Just how long are you planning to humiliate me like this? Do you have no brains?"
Being constantly insulted like this, Shen Ziyu was flabbergasted. From what he searched earlier and the picture frames he passed by, he expected this family to be at least a little cheerful.
With the constant berating from Shen Han, Shen Ziyu noticed that his mom and brother never lifted their eyes from the table once. It's like they couldn't even hear the words being hurled at him.
Maintaining his composure, Shen Ziyu let his "father" continue speaking until he stopped. After ten whole minutes of being constantly ridiculed, he had a mental note to bring earphones next time they ever had a family dinner.
Winning the actor of the year award, Shen Ziyu didn't have much trouble keeping his composure.
And with how cowardly the original owner was, he was sure that he was reacting to Shen Han's insult accurately.
After all, why would you want to fight back against someone who clearly had power over you?
It wasn't the time yet, no matter how much Shen Ziyu wanted to jump over the table and give him a good beating. The smarter choice here was to remain quiet.
Taking a moment to breathe, Shen Han finally stopped with his insults and got to the main point. "Shen Ziyu, even if you have no brain, at least make sure to use your body. Qin Ye is currently willing to back up in the business and as an exchange, I decided to trade you for it and he agreed. It seems like your face still has some use, after all."
With his hands shaking, Shen Ziyu could barely stop himself from snapping. Hearing those words reminded him of some painful memories during his early days as an actor.
Using my body?
That was the only insult he would never take in his life.
No, he couldn't allow Shen Han to live freely after this.
Despite the Shen family eventually falling into ruins, Shen Ziyu was determined to be the one dragging his father down for this.
Not noticing the cold aura emitting from his son, Shen Han continued to ramble on, "Although I don't know how you managed to intrigue his attention, I better take this opportunity to help our business grow bigger. Qin Ye said that he'd like to meet you tomorrow at his company."
Before Shen Ziyu could say anything, Shen Han added, "And you better come. This isn't a question, but an order from me. If you decide not to come… then consider yourself an orphan, Shen Ziyu."
What a great family I have, huh?
"Yes, father." Replying with a cool voice, Shen Ziyu could barely hold in the urge to give his old man a beating. But pushing that aside, he also didn't recognize this "Qin Ye" he was supposed to meet.
Finishing up their dinner, Shen Han got up from his chair and left the scene. He never spoke to his wife or his other son – as if they simply didn't exist in his eyes.
As the servants came in and cleaned up the leftovers, Shen Ziyu took this chance to seek out his mom.
Surely, she'll have more information about this.
Just before his mom could follow suit with his brother, Shen Ziyu hastily called out to her.
"Mom."
Although he had a hunch that this family wasn't normal by any means, he was sure that his mom could answer a few of his questions. And judging by how she was treated, it looked like she didn't have much power in this household.
The woman, looking like she's in her fifties, suddenly turned around at this voice. She had grayed hair and a thin body, but she also exuded an unapproachable air to her.
She looked at Shen Ziyu like this was the first time he ever called out to her.
Clearing her throat, she replied, "Yes, son? Did you need something?"
If Shen Ziyu recalled correctly, her name was Shen Jia. While his memory isn't perfect, he had pride in himself for being able to remember things above average… but clearly, he'd need to recheck that since he couldn't recall the man he was sold off to just now.
His brother, pausing to glance at them for a moment, soon left the two to their own accord.
With them being all alone, aside from a few servants, Shen Ziyu questioned, "It's nothing important. Just… I wanted to ask who this "Qin Ye" was again."
Widening her eyes, Shen Jia looked at this dark-haired boy like he had lost his memories.
"Ahem. It's just that… I haven't paid attention to anyone except Qin Kei. I don't really remember anything about the man my father mentioned."
Well, it wasn't too bad of an excuse. "Shen Ziyu" really was crazy for the male lead. It was evident in the messages he had with his friends.
Perhaps buying his pathetic excuse, Shen Jia answered, "He's Qin Bo's son and Qin Kei's cousin. He owns a company in Lumaris called 'Blackwell'".
Sighing as she gazed at her son, she continued, "I know you despise being told what to do, but you should follow your father's words this time. He's a powerful man that can help our family."
Pursing his lips, the dark-haired boy reluctantly nodded.
On the way back to his room, Shen Ziyu's head was filled with thoughts. Since he transmigrated into this novel, he should jot down the details he could remember.
Opening the door, he quickly shut it behind him and opened his phone.
First, he'll search up this "Qin Ye" guy first that Shen Han wants him to meet and get some information about him.
It's always best to know who you're going to be having business with beforehand.
Looking through the countless articles, Shen Ziyu's eyes began to twitch.
Oh, that's right. He was the main villain in this story…
…
Feeling a slight chill in his back, Shen Ziyu grumbled. Just when he thought he could enjoy a life that's free from debt, he'd already dug a hole by having a meeting with Qin Ye.
With his eyes darkening every second, he recollected his thoughts. Opening his notes up, he began to write down the things he remembered.
In the novel, it started off with the main character, Luo Tian, and the male lead, Qin Kei, meeting at this club called "Obsidian". Then, after the two lovebirds hit it off, "Shen Ziyu" began to bully the main character at every convention out of pure jealousy.
But his character was only a mere cannon fodder. The real villain showed up later in the novel when he overheard his friend complaining about it.
From what his friend whined about, Qin Ye was supposedly a black-bellied arrogant man. A psychopath, if you will.
He became a huge hindrance to Qin Kei's company and even tried to flirt with the main character in front of the male lead to evoke anger from his cousin.
Widening his eyes, Shen Ziyu did recall a specific detail. Qin Ye had been partly responsible for the downfall of the Shen family.
He approached "Shen Ziyu" once to talk about a contract, but after being ridiculed by him, Qin Ye took down the family's entire fortune as revenge.
Wow, his luck really was great.