The Supporting Male Characters Who Died Alone All Those Years Later

He Dongchen was awakened by the sound of waves crashing. He opened his eyes, the glaring sunlight hitting his face, and he couldn’t help but raise his hand to shield his eyes. His whole body was soaked, especially his lower half, immersed in the sea, almost numb from the cold.

Looking around, there was a golden sandy beach stretching into the distance, with the sea and sky meeting at the horizon. Unidentified seabirds circled above, occasionally diving into the sea, splashing up two water sprays.

There was no one around. He Dongchen furrowed his brow, slowly propping himself up with both hands on the sand, shaking off the sand from his clothes.

The salty sea breeze blew towards him, causing He Dongchen to shiver involuntarily, his lips turning pale.

Things didn’t start well.

[Boss, boss!]

The system flew down in from the sky, without saying a word, using its own little treasury to exchange a clean set of clothes for the boss, presenting them ingratiatingly.

He Dongchen was feeling uncomfortable all over now and didn’t feel like wasting words. He took the clothes and inspected them left and right, then quickly changed in a large pit of rocks nearby.

As the system chattered on for the boss, it also displayed the mission storyline.

[Previous Small World: “The Three School Hunks Are My Brothers!”]

[Basic Mission: Reject the sister spoiler persona (Complete), get married and have children (Complete), combat piracy (Complete).]

[Mission Merit: 503,276]

[Points Gained: 300+ redeemable merit points 503,276 + faith 1,672,468.]

[Current Small World: “The Spendthrift Tycoon”]

[Synopsis: He Bei spent over 20 years drifting aimlessly, and suddenly found by his wealthy parents. His excellent twin brother went missing, needing him to take his place.

Facing his stern brother’s fiancée and various tricky old foxes, He Bei had a splitting headache.

Fortunately, the spendthrift system descended from the heavens, allowing He Bei to reach the pinnacle of life by spending money.]

[Basic Mission: Reject the cannon fodder role (In completed)]

[Mission Merit: 0]

After changing clothes, He Dongchen had already regained the memories of the original owner.

***

Originally born into wealth, kidnapped at 5 years old, luckily escaped, but his twin brother was unfortunately lost with no news of life or death.

The He family was busy searching for their younger son, neglecting the older son, and the original owner felt guilty for not protecting his brother at a young age, resulting in strained family relationships.

For 20 years, the original owner had worked diligently and excelled in everything. After graduating, he entered a company, expanded it greatly, and got engaged to a girl who had been fervently pursuing him, uniting their two powerful families.

Up to that point, the original owner’s life had been smooth sailing. However, during an outing with his fiancée, he fell into the sea and went missing. Upon waking up, he had amnesia and was found by a girl who insisted he was He Bei. Everyone around also claimed he was He Bei, a good-for-nothing slacker except for his face.

Though the original owner felt something was off, he couldn’t believe that the entire town of thousands, including sniffling toddlers, would conspire to deceive him. Thus, he hesitated but gradually accepted his identity as He Bei with the help of a girl named Mu Xue.

He started a stumbling life in the small town, learning to fish and living the life of an ordinary fisherman.

Even after losing his memory, the outstanding traits of the original owner remained. In 3 years, his modest livelihood went from a tattered fishing net to owning a large ship, earning praise from everyone in the town for his late-blooming talent.

Once his career began, he proposed to Mu Xue, who had always been by his side.

However, just before the wedding, several investigators arrived in the small town and recognized his true identity. Shocked, the original owner had an accident and hit his head, which restored his memory.

Upon returning home, he found everything had changed.

During his absence, his younger brother had coincidentally been found and brought back home. During that time, the He family was negotiating with a large foreign company, which admired the original owner. In desperation, the He family had the younger brother He Bei impersonate him. His fiancée from the Ho family, driven by mutual interests, even aided and abetted this deception.

He Bei was originally a lazy idle worthless person and couldn’t possibly pass off as an elite. But since he was the male lead, the spendthrift system descended from the heavens, allowing He Bei to secure the collaboration through lavish spending and to greatly expand the company.

Gradually, the original owner’s fiancée became infatuated with He Bei and was even willing to turn a blind eye, marrying He Bei instead.

At this critical juncture, when the original owner returned home, no one welcomed him.

His fiancée had fallen for He Bei, and the He family cared about He Bei’s financial prospects.

Finally, they decided that for the sake of the union between the two families, He Bei would completely inherit the original owner’s identity, while the original owner would be sent abroad.

Being abandoned by parents and fiancée was already difficult enough. What was worse, Mu Xue found out that the original owner wasn’t He Bei and immediately turned against him, insisting she loved He Bei. She then ran off to compete with the fiancée for He Bei’s affection.

The original owner was overwhelmed with grief. Eventually, he went abroad and lived out his days in loneliness.

***

After reading all that, He Dongchen fell silent, looking down at the fish swimming freely in the water hole, squinting slightly.

After a moment, a fire was lit on the beach, with several prepared fish skewered over it, emitting a fragrant aroma.

He Dongchen went a short distance away and picked a coconut.

Coconut juice with grilled fish, perfection.

As the sun set, the horizon turned a beautiful shade of pink, spreading softly.

Seeing the boss still leisurely grilling fish there, the system anxiously exclaimed; [The storyline has just begun, Boss, you should hurry back! Protect your identity!]

The most tragic thing for the original owner wasn’t that both women had fallen into He Bei’s arms, but that after losing his memory, the excellent identity he had worked hard for 20 years to achieve was easily taken over by He Bei!

The system was practically in a panic, scratching its head anxiously.

He Dongchen calmly pried open a coconut, threw in a straw he exchanged from the system mall, took a sip of the sweet coconut juice, and spoke nonchalantly, “Am I crazy? Going back to find myself a bunch of top-notch relatives?”

The system paused. [What do you mean?]

He Dongchen turned his head, gazing casually in the direction of the sea breeze and the setting sun. “Do you know where the original owner lost? It wasn’t just about returning too late.”

“Was it because He Bei had value, so he was easily abandoned?”

“At that time, the fiancée was all over He Bei, looking down on the original owner who spent 3 years at sea, getting tanned. Naturally, the Ho family behind the fiancée stood by their daughter and supported He Bei.”

Though He Bei couldn’t shake off his hoodlum demeanor ingrained since childhood, he had the spendthrift system to easily earn money.

On one hand, there was He Bei, who could earn money and had the support of the Ho family. On the other hand, there was the original owner who had struggled for 3 years and made a mess of himself. The He family’s choice was obvious.

What He Dongchen wanted wasn’t just to rush back and protect his identity; Where’s the fun in that? He didn’t want the He family and Ho family sucking him dry. He would let them think he abandoned his identity and then make them beg to acknowledge him.

Now, that would be interesting.

After hearing the boss’s plan, the system cried out in dismay, realizing that the boss was still the boss, with a unique way of turning the tables.

It was just a little smart aleck after all.

***

After finishing the grilled fish, He Dongchen tidied up and left the beach. After confirming the direction, he headed towards the small town.

Half an hour later, He Dongchen entered the town, where a young hoodlum immediately approached him, slinging an arm around his shoulder. “He Bei, buddy, where have you been making money these past few days?”

He Dongchen avoided the other’s hand, showing resistance.

The young hoodlum paused, scrutinizing He Dongchen from head to toe. Seeing his brand-new suit, clearly high-end, he chuckled, “Nice, making money and forgetting your brothers, huh?”

He Dongchen nodded politely, then spoke, “Sorry, my name isn’t He Bei. You’ve got the wrong person.”

Then, without waiting for the other’s reaction, he lifted his foot and walked away quickly, distancing himself. Along the way, everyone’s reaction was similar to the young hoodlum’s, calling out “He Bei” one after another, though with a hint of disdain in their tone.

He Bei had been kidnapped and accidentally stranded in this small town. He was adopted by a lonely fisherman and became an orphan at 16 when the old fisherman passed away. Growing up eating at others’ tables, he developed a lazy disposition, often swaggering around town with a few other troublemakers, which made the townspeople dislike him.

The exception was Mu Xue, his childhood sweetheart, who secretly admired He Bei. Later, when the original owner lost his memory and ended up in the small town, He Bei disappeared after being reclaimed by the He family, leaving no word behind. Mu Xue mistook the original owner for He Bei and took care of him diligently.

Thinking about that, He Dongchen frowned.

The system commented, [Mu Xue is quite straightforward. After learning the truth, she wholeheartedly pursued the real He Bei.]

Of course, her ending wasn’t very good either, unable to compete with the wealthy and influential fiancée and later suffering a leg injury in a car accident, leading to a bleak rest of her life.

This time, He Dongchen’s arrival definitely wouldn’t be met with Mu Xue picking him up again. He hoped this time Mu Xue could live her own life.

“He Bei!”

Just as he thought this, a crisp female voice came from ahead, tinged with eagerness and a hint of surprise.

He Dongchen raised his gaze and saw a young girl with braided hair and a floral dress running towards him. Her smile was overly bright, causing him to furrow his brows slightly, suspicion flickering in his eyes.

“He Bei!” Mu Xue ran up to He Dongchen, panting, reaching out to grab his hand. “Let’s go, come back home with me.”

He Dongchen stepped back, avoiding her hand.

Mu Xue froze for a moment, anxiously explaining, “I’m Mu Xue. Don’t you remember me? We grew up together since childhood, childhood sweethearts.”

He Dongchen remained silent. Seeing more people gathering around, he lifted his foot and walked towards a secluded corner. Sensing something amiss, Mu Xue hurried to catch up.

The two reached a grove, where Mu Xue continued to speak rapidly, “Where have you been these days? I’ve been so worried about you…”

Suddenly, He Dongchen spoke up, cutting her off, “Who said I lost my memory?”

“What?” Mu Xue paused, her pupils contracting, momentarily speechless.

Indeed, she shouldn’t know about his amnesia at this point.

Mu Xue’s mind raced.

Since her reincarnation, she only wanted to retaliate against He Bei and Ho Xuan, those two bastards. The He Dongchen who had lost his memory and ended up here was her best opportunity. If she waited a few more months, until she was pregnant with He Dongchen’s child, she could immediately return with him and expose He Bei’s false identity!

By then, He Dongchen would have reclaimed his identity, wielded great power, and she, being well-connected, would become He Bei’s elder sister-in-law. Who could stop her from dealing with those two then!

Excited by her reincarnation, Mu Xue snapped out of her reverie and returned to the beach where she found He Dongchen in her past life, only to find him gone!

She was frantic and sweating profusely, searching around in a panic. When she spotted He Dongchen, she was overjoyed, and in her excitement, she accidentally let it slip.

Mu Xue had always known He Dongchen to be cautious, so now that she had been found out, she felt extremely frustrated.

She could only brazen it out; “I overheard a few people saying earlier that you didn’t recognize them, so I wondered if you had amnesia.”

As Mu Xue spoke, even she felt it was far-fetched. Who would randomly think someone had amnesia?

He Dongchen looked at Mu Xue, whose face had turned crimson, and spoke slowly, “I haven’t lost my memory.”

“That’s impossible!!” Mu Xue shrieked!

He Dongchen continued, “And my name isn’t He Bei.”

“You are He Bei!” Mu Xue’s emotions started to get out of control. How could this be happening? If He Dongchen hadn’t lost his memory, my entire plan would be ruined!

Then how could I exact revenge on those bastards who had crippled me!

Mu Xue’s expression turned fierce.

The system floated around her, clicking its tongue, [This Mu Xue actually reincarnated. What luck.]

He Dongchen thought to himself, indeed, what luck. Unfortunately, she seemed a bit unhinged. He was afraid he couldn’t hold onto this stroke of fortune.

After a moment, Mu Xue forcefully suppressed her panic, took a deep breath, reevaluated the man in front of her, and then suddenly realized, “You’ve reincarnated too!”