The Supporting Male Characters Who Died Alone All Those Years Later

He Dongchen’s senior year officially began.

Perhaps it was because he was about to face the college entrance examination, or perhaps it was because he had stepped out of the halo of the female lead, the atmosphere in Class 3 of the senior year was much more normal. Classmates buried themselves in studying, not gossiping at all. Their concern about He Dongchen, the school-famous cold academic genius, was whether their grades could keep up, rather than any gossip about pampering sisters.

He Dongchen adapted very quickly. The boys in the dormitory loved cleanliness and weren’t noisy. Aside from the beds being a bit small and not allowing much leg room, everything was extremely comfortable.

Apart from dealing with academics, most of He Dongchen’s energy was devoted to writing.

The original owner liked detective novels and had almost read all the detective novels on the market. Later, when faced with a shortage, he began to write his own stories. Now he had written two or three books, gaining some fame online. Currently, one of his books was being serialized on a website.

Oh, right, this serialized website was also an industry left to the original owner by his late mother, Wen Ya. Now it was managed by a professional manager, and Father He and the Wen family jointly supervised it.

Thinking of that, He Dongchen opened up the plot missions.

He saw that the third mission was to combat piracy. Online piracy had always been a big issue. For many original authors, pirate websites were simply archenemies, irreconcilable!

Those mocking works online that weren’t pirated were angry. They were completely using the author’s identity to play with. What was worse were the water armies of pirate websites, used to control public opinion, reducing the psychological burden of those who read pirated works, creating an illusion that everyone was reading them, making them feel nothing major would happen.

Society was advancing, and copyright awareness was awakening. However, these parasites, to seek free gains, slowly eroded it.

Many young readers who have just come into contact with online literature weren’t conscious of the fact that they are reading pirated versions. They finish it happily and then recommend it everywhere, saying how good the author wrote it, praising the author under their social media. And then find out it has zero subscriptions. A lot of love becomes a joke.

No author would smile at readers who read pirated versions, just like farmers who have worked hard to fertilize and weed their crops, finally harvesting a big, green watermelon, only to have it stolen one day. They don’t know where the people who ate the watermelon got the audacity to say ‘your family’s watermelon is so sweet; or that ‘your family’s watermelon is hard to eat.’

Farmers who have toiled in vain would absolutely bear their hoes and chase them two miles away.

He Dongchen clicked his tongue, pulled out his phone, and searched on Baidu. He scrolled through several pages before finding the title of the original owner’s novel, followed by the pitiful words [genuine version.]

The system immediately popped up, saying, [Boss, I can handle this!]

Since He Dongchen didn’t have a computer at hand, he let the system do the work.

The system stuttered for a moment, then proudly announced, [Mission accomplished!]

He Dongchen searched again and found that the pirated work had completely disappeared, while the genuine version was now at the top.

This looked much better.

The system was still gleeful, saying, [I destroyed their website, seized their accounts, donated the money to charity, and even issued orders to ban them from the internet for a month!]

He Dongchen cleared his throat and reminded, “We are law-abiding citizens.”

[I’m not human, after all,] the system retorted confidently, its chubby little light orb seeming to puff up its chest.

Meanwhile, in a certain studio, someone was happily counting money over tea when suddenly they screamed. Their computer went black, their phone couldn’t connect to the internet, and worst of all, all the ill-gotten gains in their account were gone!!

***

At the He household,

Father He returned from overtime to see his wife greeting him at the door. Inside, on the sofa, sat three stepsons and stepdaughters, indulging in expensive imported fruits and occasionally discussing something on the television.

The house felt warm and cozy, but it lacked his own son. Father He felt a subtle sense of being an outsider.

Sensing the atmosphere, Nian Yao immediately changed the subject, instructing the children to go upstairs and not linger here.

As someone who had married better with three children in tow, Nian Yao wasn’t just for show. She quickly made sure Father He was well taken care of.

Just couldn’t help but worry, knowing that if things continued like this, there would inevitably be problems. Nian Yao privately spoke to her daughter, trying to find a way to persuade He Dongchen to come back home.

“I’m not going to go find him.” Nian Shiyu turned her head away stubbornly, her expression determined. She had convinced herself that He Dongchen had moved up a grade and lived on campus because he disliked her. How could she lower herself to go find him?

Seeing her daughter like that, Nian Yao sighed, patting her head gently, thinking to herself; How carefree youth could be.

She patiently persisted, softly coaxing her daughter a few more times. Nian Shiyu gradually wavered, holding onto her large teddy bear, deep in thought.

By the weekend, He Dongchen hadn’t planned to go back, but his father called urging him to, so he packed up a few things and reluctantly headed home.

As a father, Father He was still competent. He maintained a masterful appearance, always talking about taking care of his younger sister, but in reality, he always prioritized his own biological son. In the previous life, due to Nian Shiyu frequently breaking up He Dongchen’s relationships, Father He’s attitude began to change, becoming increasingly distant towards Nian Shiyu. In the end, his son never married or had children for the rest of his life, which made Father He regret his remarriage many times over, thinking he had ruined his son’s life.

Returning to the present, when He Dongchen arrived home, everyone was already there.

***

For the first time, Father He was enthusiastic, grabbing him and talking non-stop.

“Are you keeping up with your studies? If you have any problems, tell Dad, don’t keep it to yourself.” Father He’s face was full of paternal love, his words sincere and heartfelt.

“No problem, everything is going smoothly,” He Dongchen replied.

Father He was relieved. My son is so capable and reliable!

“Oh, I heard you installed an anti-piracy system on a website. What’s that about? Tell Dad.”

The others at the dinner table perked up their ears, even Nian Shiwen, who didn’t get along with He Dongchen, slowed his chewing, thinking to himself how impressive an anti-piracy system sounded.

He Dongchen didn’t delve into the technical details, simply saying, “I didn’t like my novel being pirated.”

Everyone knew about He Dongchen’s writing novels, and they were momentarily speechless at the mention of it.

Because he was unhappy about his novels being pirated, he installed an anti-piracy system!

Wow! Compared to that, skipping grades sounds just ordinary.

Father He couldn’t stop laughing, his mind full of how amazing his son was! Later, he quickly took out his phone to post on his Moments, showing off!

(T/N: Moments = the social media aspect of WeChat; for posting images and short text.)

***

After dinner, He Dongchen and his father went to the study to chat for a while. Then they went upstairs to rest. As they passed through the corridor, a door with pink wallpaper suddenly opened, and a head poked out, shouting loudly, “Nian Shiwen, Lu Xuyan! Let’s play!”

In response, the occupants of the two rooms opposite, one upstairs and one downstairs, echoed differently; one cheery, the other lazy.

Then the doors of the two rooms opened, and Nian Shiwen came out wearing a blue cartoon pajama, with a matching headset hanging around her neck. Next to her, Lu Xuyan wore a similar black cartoon pajama, his hair freshly washed with water droplets on it, and a few scars added to his forehead.

He Dongchen looked at their pajamas, raising an eyebrow slightly. Then he noticed Nian Shiyu, who had just popped her head out beside them. Brilliantly pink!

A sibling pajama trio?

The corridor was quite spacious, but with four people standing, it suddenly felt cramped.

The atmosphere inexplicably became awkward.

That day, due to the incident with the pen, they dispersed unhappily. He Dongchen swiftly moved out and skipped a grade. The senior year had its own teaching building, and their schedules were different. With He Dongchen’s deliberate arrangements, they had never met since.

While there were adults at dinner earlier, it didn’t feel awkward. But now, with the four of them in the same space, it felt like they were worlds apart.

Even though only a few days had passed.

He Dongchen acted as if he hadn’t noticed their expressions and walked towards his room door, preparing to open it and go inside.

“Um…,” Nian Shiyu spoke up from behind, her voice soft and gentle, tinged with a hint of anticipation. “There’s a new game. Big Brother, do you want to play together?”

“And there are pajamas for Big Brother too, in white.”

Nian Shiyu’s body shrunk behind the door, her head poking out, large eyes fixed on He Dongchen’s back. She looked soft and cute, melting anyone’s heart who looked at her.

Nian Shiwen snorted arrogantly and said to He Dongchen, “Let’s play together, the four of us in a PvP.”

Lu Xuyan leaned against the door frame, limp like a boneless person, eyes half-closed, silently tapping the air with his fingers, creating a melodic rhythm.

All three waited for He Dongchen’s answer.

He Dongchen continued to open the door and casually replied, “I have other things to do. You guys go ahead and play.”

After saying that, he pushed the door open and walked in, then closed it behind him, cutting off the sight.

Nian Shiyu, who had finally mustered the courage to ask, was rejected. Her mouth slowly pouted, then with a bang, she slammed the door shut. What game? I’m not playing anymore! Big brother is so annoying!

Seeing his sister angry, Nian Shiwen knew immediately. He banged on the door from outside for a while, but there was no response from inside. Finally, she stormed angrily towards He Dongchen’s room.

“He Dongchen, are you even a man? Are you really going to hold onto such a small thing for so long? Shi Yu already admitted her mistake, what more do you want?! Come out! Come out!”

He Dongchen had no intention of engaging in a verbal spat with them. He simply put on his headphones and started typing. The world was quiet again.

Finally, Father He heard the commotion and came upstairs. Only then did Nian Shiwen calm down completely.

He Dongchen didn’t plan to get involved in their affairs. He stayed in his room, finishing the unfinished novel left by the original owner. The new chapter was posted, and it received a lot of comments. Some readers pointed out that something felt different; like the writing style had become more rigorous and grounded.

The system cracked sunflower seeds, thinking that with a change of heart, things could be different.

***

The next day, the atmosphere at home became even more silent.

Nian Yao tried to lighten the mood, but others didn’t cooperate.

After breakfast, Father He took He Dongchen out to the Wen family. Today was Wen’s grandfather’s birthday, and they needed to bring a gift.

Nian Yao helped Father He tie his tie, gently asking, “Are the gifts all prepared?”

Father He replied, “Xiao Liu has prepared them.”

Nian Yao furrowed her delicate eyebrows slightly, feeling uneasy. “Xiao Liu is young; I’m afraid his arrangements may not be thorough. Shouldn’t I double-check to make sure nothing is missed and we don’t embarrass ourselves?”

“It’s fine, everything is ready,” Father He interrupted his wife, calling for their son to come out and leave.

Nian Shiyu watched nearby, feeling sorry for her mother, couldn’t help but speak up, “Mom, aren’t you going?”

There was silence in the room.

Father He liked Nian Yao, his second wife. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have remarried in middle age and added three stepsons and stepdaughters to his life. But even with his affection, he wouldn’t have unconditionally brought her to his ex-father-in-law’s house.

It won’t be just about celebrating a birthday; it would be making a scene.

Father He had built and stabilized the company, proving he wasn’t foolish.

He smiled, brushing off the children’s words. He simply said, “It’s the weekend, go out and play, don’t stay cooped up at home.”

After saying that, he left with He Dongchen. Soon after, a black Mercedes-Benz pulled out of the garage and slowly drove out of the villa gate.

Nian Shiyu watched the car leave, feeling disappointed and sorry for her mother.

“They, father and son, really are family…”