After Unbinding the Simp System, I'm Targeted by the Villain - Chapter 9

Yu Chucheng bought a new phone and took Ji Zhou out for dinner to celebrate.

While waiting for the food, Ji Zhou rummaged through the bag on the table. “Whoa, that’s quite a lot. No wonder it was so heavy. And it’s peach-scented; should smell pretty good.”

Yu Chucheng, who had been fiddling with his new phone, picked up a box to check it upon hearing that.

Seeing Yu Chucheng daze out, Ji Zhou asked, “What’s up?”

Yu Chucheng stuffed the box back and tied the bag tight. “Nothing.”

His pheromones were peach-scented—something he only knew because the doctor told him.

Was it a coincidence that Duan Huaijin bought this specific scent of suppressant and blocker, or had he smelled it the moment he bit him?

Yu Chucheng fell into deep thought. Fragments of that day in the bathroom stall flashed through his mind, and for some reason, he felt his ears grow warm.

After dinner, Yu Chucheng received a message from another high school friend, Xie Hang.

Ji Zhou was also on good terms with Xie Hang. Seeing Xie Hang invite Yu Chucheng to dinner without him, he couldn’t help but feel a twinge of jealousy. “Why didn’t he invite me? I knew him first.”

Yu Chucheng figured since Xie Hang’s university wasn’t in Kyoto, they wouldn’t have many chances to meet in the future, so he agreed.

He watched Ji Zhou’s sour expression and frowned in confusion, feeling that something was off.

Logically, Ji Zhou had a better temper and was closer to Xie Hang than he was. Why would Xie Hang only invite him and not Ji Zhou?

But Yu Chucheng didn’t dwell on it, taking the opportunity to poke fun at Ji Zhou instead. “Looks like my personality is just more charming.”

Ji Zhou was annoyed. “Give me a break. What personality? The ‘unyielding spirit’ of a licking dog?”

Yu Chucheng retorted defiantly, “Don’t blame the road for being uneven if you can’t walk straight. You should reflect on whether you’re lacking somewhere.”

The two of them continued bickering back and forth.

However, two days later, Yu Chucheng would find out exactly why Xie Hang had only invited him and skipped Ji Zhou.

* * *

“To love even if it means death—It’s not satisfying unless it’s thorough—”

Inside the KTV, even the soundproofed doors couldn’t muffle the soul-baring singing coming from within.

It was raining slightly outside, the weather was muggy, and thunder rumbled. By the time Yu Chucheng arrived, his pant legs were splashed with rain and his hair felt damp and sticky—very uncomfortable.

He hadn’t seen Xie Hang for over a month, and the guy had undergone a total makeover. He’d transformed from a student with thick glasses to a rather refined-looking young man. Yu Chucheng almost didn’t recognize him at first.

Noticing Yu Chucheng’s curious gaze, Xie Hang sheepishly adjusted his gold-rimmed glasses. “After the college entrance exams, I went to my uncle’s company to get some experience. That’s probably why I’ve changed a bit.”

“Your uncle’s company? This is the first I’ve heard that your family has people in business.”

“To be honest, I didn’t know either. My parents wanted me to focus entirely on my studies, so I only found out after the exams that my relatives are actually quite wealthy.”

“Your parents sure can keep a secret.”

Yu Chucheng pushed open the door to the private room and froze when he saw the people inside.

Hao Jia and several of his friends were sitting on the sofa. Seeing Yu Chucheng, Hao Jia immediately stood up. Some of his friends turned their heads away, while others glared unfriendlily at Yu Chucheng.

The atmosphere turned heavy instantly.

Xie Hang gave a forced smile and nudged Yu Chucheng inside. “Go on in, we’re all old friends.”

He had heard about Yu Chucheng being rejected by Hao Jia at the bar, and that Yu Chucheng had been ignoring Hao Jia ever since.

As Yu Chucheng’s friend, he should have stayed on Yu Chucheng’s side, but he couldn’t withstand Hao Jia’s repeated pleas. Eventually, at Hao Jia’s request, he organized this gathering behind Yu Chucheng’s back, hoping the two could talk things out.

The moment Yu Chucheng saw Hao Jia, he understood.

He scanned the room and found the situation bizarrely funny.

He had moved out of the Happiness Apartments and made things clear to Hao Jia on WeChat. To spare the protagonist’s “fragile soul,” he’d even politely told him that from now on, he, Yu Chucheng, would no longer be his “licking dog” or pester him anymore.

Hao Jia was the one who insisted on finding him today, yet he’d brought a whole crowd with him. One would think Yu Chucheng was the one setting up an ambush.

But Yu Chucheng wasn’t afraid of the numbers; he picked the corner furthest away from Hao Jia and sat down.

“What kind of act is this now?” Shen Rong, sitting next to Hao Jia, let out a contemptuous sneer.

He was Hao Jia’s best friend and had always looked down on Yu Chucheng’s “simp” behavior, often causing obstacles when Yu Chucheng was trying to complete system tasks. Seeing Yu Chucheng deliberately distancing himself now, he only thought Yu Chucheng was playing tricks to get Hao Jia’s attention.

Yu Chucheng ignored him and picked up the drink menu.

Hao Jia nudged Shen Rong’s arm, signaling him to stop.

“Chucheng, I asked Xie Hang to help me organize this today because I wanted to return the ring to you personally. It’s too expensive; I can’t keep it.”

With that, Hao Jia pulled a small, exquisite gift box from his pocket. Inside was the very ring Yu Chucheng had bought for the confession.

Yu Chucheng hadn’t wanted it back before because he didn’t want the trouble, and seeing the protagonist reminded him of his humiliating past life. But now that Hao Jia had gone to the trouble of arranging a meeting and put the ring right in front of him, taking it wasn’t much of a chore.

Yu Chucheng put down the menu and stuffed the ring into his pocket in front of everyone. “Since you don’t want it, I’ll take it back.”

Hao Jia bit his lip. Seeing Yu Chucheng’s current indifferent attitude made him feel a bit dazed.

Ever since that night, he felt Yu Chucheng had become a stranger—as if the guy had never liked him at all, drawing a clean line between them in a single night.

Shen Rong mocked, “Hao Jia, I told you. This ring is so expensive, there’s no way he wouldn’t want it back. Hmph, all men are the same; all that ‘sincerity’ is just a lie.”

Yu Chucheng: “…”

It’s wrong if I take it, and wrong if I don’t. He really wanted to crack this guy’s head open to see what was inside.

When Yu Chucheng was busy pleasing Hao Jia, he couldn’t be bothered to argue with Shen Rong. But now that he didn’t have tasks to complete, he wasn’t about to let himself be insulted.

“This was my gift to give. Since Hao Jia doesn’t want it, I have the right to dispose of it. If I didn’t take it back, was I supposed to give it to you?”

“You—!”

Shen Rong hadn’t expected a rebuttal. The other friends were also confused by the shift in dynamics, looking at each other in silence.

They had come to back Hao Jia up, fearing Yu Chucheng would cause a scene that Hao Jia couldn’t handle alone. But now… it really seemed like Yu Chucheng didn’t like Hao Jia anymore.

Xie Hang quickly jumped in to smooth things over. “Oh, come on, we’re all friends. Don’t argue over small things. Returning the ring was just secondary; the main thing is for us to hang out and sing. Come on, pick some songs. I’ll go grab whatever you want to drink.”

Hao Jia’s hands felt empty, and his pocket felt light without the gift box. He sat down with a sense of loss, a layer of mist clouding his peach-blossom eyes.

In the few days Yu Chucheng had been gone, a huge gap had suddenly appeared in his life. It was like a window with a broken pane; only when the wind blew in did he realize how warm it had been when the glass was intact.

Yu Chucheng didn’t like singing and was tone-deaf to boot. Combined with the bad weather, he’d only come out of loyalty to Xie Hang. Now that he knew it was just a setup for Hao Jia, he didn’t want to stay a second longer.

Before the group could even finish three songs, Yu Chucheng stood up and left without a word.

Seeing Yu Chucheng’s dark expression, Xie Hang didn’t dare stop him.

Shen Rong rolled his eyes and patted Hao Jia’s shoulder. “I saw long ago that Yu guy wasn’t sincere. He’s not worth your sadness.”

“I’m not sad,” Hao Jia defended in a small voice. “I’m just… not used to it.”

He didn’t love Yu Chucheng, but he wasn’t used to not having him around.

Yu Chucheng had just exited the room when he bumped into two girls at the corner of the hallway.

“Ah, sorry!” one of them said immediately, grabbing her partner’s hand and hurrying away.

The two were whispering as they walked.

Yu Chucheng didn’t intend to eavesdrop, but his hearing had become exceptionally sharp. Even though the girls were several meters away, he caught a few sentences.

“If I’d known, I wouldn’t have come to this class reunion. That was terrifying. Let’s get out of here before we get dragged into the mess.”

“Yeah, that Qi Rui hated Duan Huaijin back in school. Now that we’ve graduated, he’s being even more blatant. It’s pure bullying…”