After Unbinding the Simp System, I'm Targeted by the Villain - Chapter 15

Yu Chucheng hid behind a utility pole, staring in utter bewilderment at this sudden turn of events.

The boy simply ditched Duan Huaijin at the repair shop, hopped onto his own bike without hesitation, and grumbled as he pedaled away, “Trying to take advantage of me over twenty yuan? What a joke.”

Duan Huaijin stood his ground without moving or speaking up in his own defense. He simply watched the boy’s retreating back with a steady, fixed gaze.

Yu Chucheng didn’t dare look too closely at Duan Huaijin’s expression. He hurriedly opened his phone to message the boy, wanting to know what the hell happened—this was definitely not the script they had agreed upon.

The only reply he received was a red exclamation mark.

The boy had actually deleted him.

The repairman, having pieced the situation together, waved Duan Huaijin away impatiently. “If you don’t have money, why come here? I’m not a charity. Beat it, beat it!”

Duan Huaijin walked out silently, pushing his chainless bicycle. The dim yellow glow of the streetlamp hit him, casting a long, straight silhouette that looked incredibly lonely and fragile.

Yu Chucheng grit his teeth and tossed the “evidence” in his hand aside. “Wait a minute!”

Duan Huaijin paused, a flicker of something unreadable crossing his eyes when he looked over.

Yu Chucheng didn’t notice. Because he was in a rush, his bangs were swept back as he ran, revealing a smooth forehead and clear, warm eyes.

Just as the repairman was about to close up, he heard the youth who had run over say breathlessly, “I’m his friend. I’ll pay for him.”

“Alright then.” The repairman glanced at Yu Chucheng twice and pointed to the QR code on the counter. “Twenty yuan.”

Yu Chucheng paid without a second thought, looking at Duan Huaijin with a guilty conscience. “That… I just happened to be passing by and saw you. What’s wrong with your bike?”

Duan Huaijin tilted the front of the bike, his voice as calm as ever, as if he were already used to it. “The chain was stolen.”

The repairman, a cigarette dangling from his lips, let out a curious tsk. “Chain thieves were common twenty years ago, but who wants that junk now? You’re the first person this year to come into my shop with a missing chain.”

The culprit, Yu Chucheng, scratched his nose. “Is that so? Whoever stole the chain must be a real bastard.”

Duan Huaijin didn’t say anything. He simply watched him silently, his lips curling up almost imperceptibly.

The repairman pulled a new chain from the warehouse. “You want me to install it, or do it yourselves? I charge an extra five yuan to do it.”

Duan Huaijin propped the bike up. “I’ll do it.”

He took the chain and squatted down skillfully.

This bike had been bought by his family when he was just a child. Initially, it was used for grocery runs, but once he started middle school, he rode it to and from school every day. Over the years, whenever there was an issue, he was the one who dragged it to the shop. Eventually, he learned how to fix it himself.

Yu Chucheng squatted down across from him, his feelings a complicated mess.

The plan to find someone to “warm” Duan Huaijin was a total bust. Not only that, he’d broken the man’s bike and wasted so much of his time for nothing.

Yu Chucheng lowered his head in frustration, looking like a child who had done something bad and was afraid of being caught. He stole a glance at Duan Huaijin.

Duan Huaijin was focused on the repair. His nose was high and straight, and his prominent Adam’s apple was sharp and eye-catching. Whenever the breeze from the shop’s electric fan blew past him, it brought the faint, clean scent of soap.

Yu Chucheng dazed for a moment.

No wonder people said men were most handsome when they were focused. The way Duan Huaijin looked while solving problems at school must have charmed quite a few Omegas.

If Duan Huaijin hadn’t been swapped at birth, he would have been the textbook definition of a novel’s male lead.

“Hey kid, pass me that long wrench.” The repairman was working on another electric scooter and couldn’t reach his toolbox.

Yu Chucheng snapped out of it and looked around. “This one?”

“Yeah, yeah. Just toss it over.”

Fearing he might break something, Yu Chucheng carefully threw the wrench. As he closed the toolbox lid, his hand brushed against something, and he ended up with a palm full of black grease.

A pungent smell hit him immediately.

Yu Chucheng frowned in disgust, holding his palm up in the air, unsure what to do.

Duan Huaijin grabbed a few tissues from the glass counter and took Yu Chucheng’s wrist. “Don’t move.”

The repairman let out an “Oops.” “Something must have spilled. Sorry about that.”

Yu Chucheng stood still.

August in Kyoto was sweltering, even at night, but Duan Huaijin’s fingertips were cool and comfortable against his skin.

Yu Chucheng’s hands were very white, with slender wrist bones and pale pink palms—a sharp contrast to the black grease.

Duan Huaijin first wiped away the bulk of the oil, then folded the tissue and wiped with moderate pressure along the lines of Yu Chucheng’s palm. He was incredibly meticulous, not even missing the gaps between his fingers.

Yu Chucheng’s palm felt itchy. Every time Duan Huaijin pushed his fingers apart, their fingertips inevitably brushed.

Yu Chucheng had never been treated like this before. No matter how good his relationship with Ji Zhou was, Ji Zhou had never wiped his hands for him. This was the first time he had such intimate, detailed contact with someone—not counting the time Duan Huaijin bit him during his rut.

He pulled his wrist back with a bit of force, looking away awkwardly. “That’s enough. I’ll do the rest.”

Duan Huaijin gave him a non-committal look, then tossed the tissue into the trash.

Yu Chucheng didn’t go back to watching him fix the bike. He rubbed his aching legs and looked around the shop for a small stool to sit on.

Suddenly, a familiar voice rang out.

“I knew it! It really is you!”

Yu Chucheng looked up to see Shen Rong appearing at the shop entrance. Behind him were several friends from a distance; they looked like they were out for a stroll after dinner.

Duan Huaijin and the repairman both looked up simultaneously.

“Something wrong?” Yu Chucheng arched an eyebrow. “Surely you didn’t come here just to say hello?”

Shen Rong’s breath was hitching as if he had caught someone in bed together. He pointed at Duan Huaijin. “This must be your new flame, right? I saw you together at the KTV last time. I knew you must have found a replacement; otherwise, how could you have let Hao Jia go so easily?”

New flame? Replacement?

Yu Chucheng frowned, looking at Shen Rong as if he were a confused toddler. “Maybe you should go see a neurologist. I hang out with Ji Zhou all the time; why don’t you say I’m two-timing him?”

“That’s because—” Shen Rong’s face flushed. He couldn’t exactly say it was because Ji Zhou and Yu Chucheng didn’t look like a match at all. “Anyway, you’ve been very strange lately. If you haven’t found a replacement, then why is your attitude toward Hao Jia suddenly so cold? You owe us an explanation!”