Winning the male lead

On the way to the mansion, Shen Lixing thought about a lot of things. If Shen Le Tian remained unaware, how should he face the innocent Le Tian, the only child he had ever truly cared for in this world?

But now, Le Tian’s reaction had already revealed everything—he knew the truth.

His gaze instantly turned cold. “When did you find out?”

Le Tian awkwardly put down his wine glass and lowered his head, speaking in a small voice, “On my eighteenth birthday.” On that day, he had gained the right to open his mother’s safe, but instead of valuable items, he found only a thin paternity test.

“Heh.”

Le Tian shuddered, too afraid to look at Shen Lixing’s expression. He quietly asked the system, “How does he look right now?”

The system answered, “Very handsome.”

Le Tian sighed, “…I meant, is he angry?”

The system replied, “If it were you, would you be angry? He bought you a yacht just yesterday.”

Le Tian wilted.

If it were him, he’d have a big brother who cared for him, and that brother’s posthumous son—a green sprout—who ate and drank well, living off others while acting as the big young master. He wouldn’t let that sprout wither.

“I’m sorry,” he admitted his mistake, stammering. “Little uncle, please don’t abandon me.” He truly wanted to be a rich young master…

Shen Lixing remained silent for a long time.

This nephew had never been liked by him since birth. He had endured it for the sake of his brother, tolerating it until Le Tian had grown up and finally seemed to understand.

At first, he thought maybe Le Tian had matured after experiencing some hardship.

But now it was clear—Le Tian knew he wasn’t part of the Shen family’s bloodline, and he was afraid, so he returned home, trying desperately to please him.

The motive was very clear.

The thought of being charmed by him, of being treated so well by him, even to the point of having everything left to him in the will, made Shen Lixing’s chest burn with intense fury.

“Get up.” he said coldly.

Le Tian’s face went pale as he slowly stood up. Shen Lixing took another sip of wine to calm his furious heart. “Go back.”

Le Tian moved like a robot, following the command obediently as he walked out.

“Damn it, how did Shen Lixing figure it out?” he grumbled to the system.

The system remained calm. “Shen Lixing is superior in every way, including luck. It’s already impressive that you managed to deceive him for three years.”

Le Tian: “…”

He sulked as he waited for the valet to bring the car. After a while, only the valet arrived, looking awkward as he said, “Sorry, Mr. Shen, Mr. Shen has already sent someone to drive your car away.”

Le Tian: “…” He slowly turned back to glance at the window-side table, where Shen Lixing was still sitting and drinking. Through the reflective glass, he could faintly make out his side profile.

Le Tian muttered, “He’s so handsome, but his heart is cruel. Even after raising a dog for twenty years, there would be feelings involved. Does he really have to be so heartless?”

The system, hearing him compare himself to a dog, tried to comfort him. “Don’t be too upset. At least he’s letting you return to the Shen family. He didn’t throw you out on the streets.”

Le Tian shrugged. “That’s true.” He added, with an optimistic air, “Now that I’ve lost my status as the young master, doesn’t that mean the requirements for finding someone like Old Wang have lowered?”

The system replied, “Yes, thinking like that is a good approach. This is actually a good thing.”

Le Tian sighed deeply, adjusting his glasses, and worried, “But it’s still hard to find someone better looking than me. Heaven is jealous of good-looking men.”

The system: “…” Why does it keep softening its heart toward this fugitive?!

Le Tian, without a care, took a taxi back to the Shen mansion.

Once he learned about Shen Le Tian’s background, he had prepared himself. He saved up quite a bit of secret money, enough to live freely for a while.

“Oh right,” he suddenly remembered, “Forget the yacht explosion. It’s nearly brand new—just sell it as a second-hand item.”

At this point, he had shifted his focus. Once the young master identity was gone, it wouldn’t necessarily have to be Shen Lixing.

After arriving at the Shen mansion, he immediately took a bath, then hid in his room to sleep, so that if Shen Lixing returned, he wouldn’t immediately see him and throw him out onto the streets.

The system said, “Aren’t you rich? What are you afraid of? Go stay somewhere else.”

Le Tian replied, “What are you talking about? Even if I’m rich, I have to be frugal. Why stay somewhere else when I can stay here? I’ll leave when Shen Lixing forces me out.”

The system watched him go from a flashy, extravagant man who wanted to blow up yachts to someone now counting every penny. It couldn’t help but feel… quite pleased.

It wasn’t until late at night that Shen Lixing returned to the Shen mansion.

A home is only truly a home when there are loved ones, but Shen Lixing felt he had nothing.

Standing outside Le Tian’s door, he felt a profound sense of loneliness and betrayal. How could Le Tian deceive him for three years? Perhaps because he had drunk most of a bottle of wine, his anger was slightly subdued. He thought of the obedient child he had cared for for three years…

The door wasn’t locked. Le Tian had kept it that way ever since he returned to the Shen family, signaling his complete trust and dependence on Shen Lixing. Shen Lixing turned the handle, and in the darkness, he could accurately find his way to Le Tian’s bed.

Once his eyes adjusted to the dark, Shen Lixing noticed Le Tian curled up in bed, his brow furrowed. Even in sleep, Le Tian looked restless, uneasy.

Shen Lixing leaned down, and the heated smell of alcohol hit Le Tian’s face. He was groggily awakened by the scent and opened his eyes, only to see Shen Lixing’s face inches away. He nearly screamed out in shock.

In fact, he had already mentally shouted to the system, “Holy shit! Shen Lixing! What is he doing staring at me? Does he plan to strangle me while I’m asleep?”

The system responded, “Murder is illegal.”

Shen Lixing stared intently at Le Tian. “Your eyes are too big.” His personality didn’t resemble anyone from the Shen family. How had he been deceived all this time, never considering it in that direction?

The air was filled with the sweet fragrance of rose petals from the wine. Le Tian, overwhelmed by the smell, closed his eyes for a moment. How much had Shen Lixing drunk? This guy usually didn’t drink much, so his tolerance was probably low. He didn’t want to reason with a drunk, so he tried to move back and escape. But as soon as he moved, Shen Lixing moved too.

He reached out and grabbed the shoulder that was exposed outside the blanket. His eyes fixed on Le Tian. Le Tian, terrified, looked at him, his round eyes glistening with a faint sheen of water in the darkness.

He thought, “!!! I’m scared! What does he want to do?”

The system replied, “Is he planning to strangle you to death, risking legal consequences?”

Le Tian felt an eerie chill as Shen Lixing’s next move was downright unsettling.

With his left hand, Shen Lixing gently traced his shoulder, moving up to his cheek. His large hand firmly covered his round, confused eyes, while his right hand grasped his neck.

Le Tian shivered, whispering, “If I do a fish flop and punch him, would it be considered self-defense?”

The system sneered, “Stop joking. You can’t beat him.”

Le Tian was nearly on the verge of tears, but he couldn’t just let Shen Lixing strangle him.

He decided to struggle, “Uncle…”

Before he could finish, Shen Lixing’s lips, full of the rose-scented wine, suddenly landed softly at the corner of Le Tian’s mouth.

Le Tian: “!!!”

The system: “!!!”

Shen Lixing’s heavy body pressed down on him, his face gradually sliding down to his shoulder.

Is he drunk? Le Tian slowly shifted him, and with a little force, Shen Lixing fell flat on his back onto the floor, motionless. Le Tian murmured to the system, “What a fool. How much has he drunk?”

The system: … It crashed. It couldn’t respond.

Le Tian got up and turned on the lights. He saw Shen Lixing sprawled on the floor, his face flushed a deep red, like high-altitude blushing. He muttered, “How much did he drink?”

The system felt dizzy itself, as if it had drunk too much.

Le Tian didn’t dare leave Shen Lixing unattended. He got up and tried to help him, but since Shen Lixing was too heavy, he couldn’t move him. He decided to let him sleep in his room, and he would sleep in the guest room downstairs.

After throwing Shen Lixing on the bed, the system resumed functioning: “You seem very calm.”

Le Tian replied, “It’s okay. It’s not a big deal. He’s just drunk. It wasn’t intentional. You have to be magnanimous in life.”

The system had a feeling something wasn’t quite right but couldn’t figure out what.

Le Tian took off Shen Lixing’s shoes. He hesitated for a moment when it came to removing his pants but decided against it. He covered him with the blanket, touched his nose, then turned off the lights and quietly went downstairs to sleep.

The guest room was clean and tidy. Le Tian happily lay in bed and closed his eyes. “Being rich is so great.”

The system finally started to react. Le Tian’s behavior didn’t seem quite so straight—he had remained unusually calm after being kissed by Shen Lixing.

The system couldn’t resist asking, “Aren’t you mad?”

Le Tian: “Why would I be mad?”

The system: “… Usually, straight men would be angry if another man kissed them.”

Le Tian: “That wasn’t a kiss. He tried to strangle me, but his strength wasn’t enough, so he passed out. His lips just happened to land on mine. That’s not a kiss. It’s an accidental contact.”

The system: “Even if it was an accident, you shouldn’t be so calm.”

Le Tian: “What do you mean? Are you questioning my orientation?”

The system fell silent. It did have some doubts.

It even wondered if his endless journey through so many worlds was due to this reason.

The romantic male second’s preference for men—how could he still pour his heart out to the female protagonist?

As the system processed all this information, Le Tian slowly said, “Actually, you’re half right. Have you ever heard the saying, ‘I don’t like men, but the person I happened to fall for just happened to be a man’?”

The system was shocked by his near-romantic statement. It had access to all of Le Tian’s data and had never found any indication that he had liked a man before.

It felt like it had finally found something to hold against him and cautiously probed, “Did you fall for someone at work?”

Le Tian answered readily, “Yes.”

The system thought for a moment and speculated, “The male protagonist?” Since Le Tian was the second male lead, the person who could make him fall for them was probably the more perfect male protagonist.

Le Tian sighed deeply. “The man I fell for is the most handsome, intelligent, and charming man in the entire alliance.”

The system began sifting through Le Tian’s past worlds, trying to find such a perfect specimen.

Le Tian continued, “Every time I look in the mirror, I cry because he’s just so handsome.”

The system stopped its search: “…”

Le Tian smiled. “Sleep well, darling. Please stop questioning my orientation. I love myself. Oh yeah.”

The system: “…” It really wanted to curse.