The Sickly Beauty Gives Up Struggling [Rebirth] Chapter 30

On Sunday, Li Rong handed over the keys to the court and loaded seven or eight boxes from the house into a van.

Standing in the yard, he turned back to take one last look at the home where he had lived for over a decade.

It stood there, seemingly unchanged, yet it felt entirely different.

Thankfully, Li Rong wasn’t someone prone to nostalgia. He calmly looked away, tightened his coat, and stepped into the van without a second glance.

The van belonged to Lin Zhen’s family. Lin Zhen had seen Jian Fu’s complaints on social media and learned about Li Rong’s move.

Feeling guilty for not helping the day before, Lin Zhen insisted on borrowing the van used for his family’s supply deliveries to save Li Rong the cost of a moving truck.

The van driver took the wheel while Cen Xiao followed leisurely in his own car.

As usual, Li Rong sat in the front passenger seat, while Jian Fu and Lin Zhen sat in the back.

Jian Fu leaned over the back of Li Rong’s seat and asked quietly, “So, you’re just leaving like that?”

Li Rong, resting with his eyes closed, cracked one open and mused, “I thought about selling the tables, chairs, and bed for some quick cash, but time’s too short to find buyers.”

He had genuinely considered it. After all, he doubted anyone buying the house at auction would want the furniture he left behind.

Jian Fu’s expression was full of disbelief. “…How did I not notice before how cold-blooded you are? You could at least cry a little for appearances.”

Yesterday, just brushing against the darkness had left Jian Fu feeling suffocated. He’d wanted desperately to ask his parents what they knew about the situation but swallowed his words at the last moment.

To his parents, Li Rong was an outsider. If Blue Pivot was involved in this, his family might not risk stepping in. Worse, if he accidentally revealed Li Rong’s secrets and gave someone the chance to destroy evidence, it would backfire.

As his brother had said, only when they held power themselves would the real fight begin.

Jian Fu was always the type to muddle through life without ambition, feeling secure in his parents’ status and believing he’d already achieved financial freedom.

But for the first time, watching Li Rong, he felt an unsettling sense of crisis.

What did it matter to be the president of District One of the business association or an honorary professor of Hongsuo? If someone wanted to ruin you, they could easily destroy your reputation, tear apart your family, and leave you destitute.

If he kept slacking off and something happened to his family, he wouldn’t even have the ability to fight back.

Li Rong curved his lips into a faint smile, turning his face to mockingly threaten: “Then you better be careful. Someone as cold-hearted as me wouldn’t spare you either.”

Jian Fu scoffed. “Am I supposed to be afraid of you? You’re so frail you can’t even lift a box.”

Lin Zhen nudged Jian Fu’s arm and jumped in, saying to Li Rong, “Class monitor, maybe after the auction, we can pool some money together…”

In his last life, Li Rong never realized how kind-hearted Lin Zhen was. What kind of mistreatment must he have endured to choose to terminate his contract, even at the cost of being blacklisted by his company?

“Thanks, but there’s no need,” Li Rong replied.

Jian Fu yawned lazily, waving off Lin Zhen’s suggestion. “No need to say it. My brother already asked him, and he refused. Ugh, it’s too early for this; I’m dying here.”

He’d been forcibly dragged out of bed by Cen Xiao. Having gone to bed late the night before, he was so groggy that he could barely function as they loaded boxes this morning.

Li Rong glanced up at Cen Xiao’s profile from the passenger seat and casually asked, “Are you tired?”

It was a concern for everyone’s safety since a drowsy driver could be dangerous.

Cen Xiao took a moment to glance at him, steering the wheel with one hand while the other reached for the center console between their seats. “A little. I’ll drink some coffee.”

Their family driver had a habit of keeping a couple of bottles of coffee in the car for late-night drives. Drinking it helped him stay alert.

Cen Xiao opened the console to grab a bottle, but Li Rong pushed his hand aside and retrieved it first. “Keep your eyes on the road. I’ll handle it.”

Years ago, when Li Qingli drove with Gu Nong and a young Li Rong on board, Li Rong would watch Gu Nong twist open the lid of a teacup to feed Li Qingli some Pu’er tea.

Helping the driver with small tasks seemed like an unspoken duty of the passenger seat.

Li Rong unscrewed the coffee bottle, intending to hand it over, but paused when he noticed Cen Xiao watching him.

Li Rong frowned, sternly saying, “Keep your eyes on the road.”

In his previous life, when Cen Xiao had “kept him hidden,” Cen Xiao was already a key figure in District Three of the business association and always had a driver. He rarely needed to drive himself.

On the rare occasions Cen Xiao did, they were often at odds, with few words exchanged.

This time, Cen Xiao silently slowed the car a little.

Li Rong straightened his posture, leaning forward to bring the coffee bottle to Cen Xiao’s lips.

His hand appeared especially pale against the dark brown coffee, the veins under his skin faintly visible. The needle marks that had once scarred his arm were completely gone, leaving it clean and flawless.

Cen Xiao tilted his head back to take a sip, his Adam’s apple bobbing as the sweet taste spread across his tongue.

Li Rong instinctively moved his other hand to catch any spills, worried it might stain Cen Xiao’s expensive clothes.

“Want more?”

The coffee was a bit low-quality for Cen Xiao’s taste—he rarely drank instant coffee and didn’t like overly sweetened or creamy ones.

But Li Rong’s left hand hovered close to his Adam’s apple. With slight shifts in the car’s speed, his thumb brushed lightly against it, tickling him.

The car’s air conditioning was on, and Li Rong’s hand was unusually warm. The touch left a faint itch.

“Another sip.” Cen Xiao steadied the steering wheel with one hand and lightly pinched Li Rong’s fingertips with the other to stop the random movements near his throat.

Li Rong felt the measured grip on his fingers, raised an eyebrow, and studied Cen Xiao with interest.

There was plenty of opportunity for him to simply grab the bottle himself.

But Cen Xiao remained focused on the road, his expression serious, as if the interaction had no other meaning.

Li Rong smirked, unfazed. He tilted the bottle again, letting Cen Xiao finish the coffee.

After draining the bottle, Cen Xiao released a light sigh. Li Rong shifted his fingers and asked meaningfully, “That tired?”

He remembered that in his last life, Cen Xiao only slept five hours a night, yet still managed to function perfectly. People’s biological needs varied, and Cen Xiao seemed genetically blessed.

Cen Xiao dismissed the observation with a casual excuse: “Slept late last night.”

Li Rong nodded, twisting the cap back onto the bottle and placing it in the console.

“Remember to toss it when we get out.” 

In the backseat, Jian Fu yawned dramatically and mumbled, “Pass me one, too.” He tapped the back of Li Rong’s seat, as the console was easier for the front passengers to access.

Cen Xiao sped up slightly and replied indifferently, “Get it yourself.”

Jian Fu: “???”

His sleepy eyes widened in confusion, and a stray thought popped into his head—a line he’d read somewhere: In a trio of friends, there’s always one who’s unnecessary.

Lin Zhen quickly jumped in to mediate. “I’ll get it for you.”

He leaned forward, efficiently pulling out an unopened bottle and twisting off the cap.

Only after opening it did Lin Zhen feel slightly awkward.

Jian Fu wasn’t driving, and he wasn’t like Li Rong, needing someone to help.

Lin Zhen held the bottle, biting his lip awkwardly, but still handed it to Jian Fu. “Here.”

Jian Fu was taken aback by the gesture.

It was considerate enough that Lin Zhen fetched the bottle for him, but unscrewing the cap felt a bit over-the-top. It gave him an odd sense of being pampered, like he was being treated as a girl.

“Uh… thanks. You’re way more thoughtful than those two.”

He took a few gulps, his earlier annoyance melting away.

No, this wasn’t a three-person friendship—it was clearly a group of four.

Can’t wait until next week to see more? Want to show your support? Come to my Patreon where you can get up to 5 more chapters of The Sickly Beauty Gives Up Struggling [Rebirth] right away ! Or go donate at Paypal or Ko-fi to show your appreciation! :)