After Becoming a Spare Tire, I Was Targeted by the Villain and the Male Lead at the Same Time

Xu Chenghao didn’t respond immediately. Instead, he slouched in his office chair, lazily tapping the armrest with his fingers, deep in thought.

He wasn’t surprised by Grandpa Jiang’s behavior. After all, face in the business world was worthless. Ruan Chenxuan was capable of being flexible and cooperative, even in critical moments. As an experienced person, Grandpa Jiang naturally understood this principle even better.

What he was thinking about was how much the male protagonist had pushed down the price to make Grandpa Jiang personally intervene, sacrificing his own dignity and resorting to old tricks…

But one thing was certain: the more aggressively the price was pushed down, the more advantageous it was for Xu Chenghao. After all, he still had the second contract with the male protagonist, and while the protagonist gained from lowering the price, Xu Chenghao could also profit from it. Xu Chenghao certainly wouldn’t ruin a situation that caused both the male protagonist and the Jiang family to bleed.

…He needed to come up with a suitable excuse to counter Grandpa Jiang.

While contemplating, Grandpa Jiang, on the other end of the phone, thought his tactics were working and asked again, “Mr. Xu, what do you think?”

Xu Chenghao snapped back to reality and pretended to ponder: “Since Elder Jiang has personally intervened, I naturally won’t make things difficult for him. After all, I also hope to cooperate with the Jiang Group.”

“But…” Xu Chenghao suddenly changed his tone, “Elder Jiang shouldn’t think that our Xu family can be easily bullied, deliberately causing trouble for us, right? At least in this project, cooperation based on the previous price is not favorable. Don’t you agree?”

There was a moment of silence on the phone, and Elder Jiang’s aged voice sounded more serious, “Indeed, we didn’t consider this thoroughly. If Mr. Xu feels it’s not suitable, the Jiang Group can make a six-point concession. What does Mr. Xu think?”

Xu Chenghao sighed: “It seems that Elder Jiang is still reluctant, huh.”

The voice of Old Master Jiang instantly turned colder: “Oh? If Mr. Xu is still not satisfied, why don’t we let Mr. Xu himself say what would be an appropriate price for the project?”

Xu Chenghao chuckled lightly, “Not too much, not too little. Just as the Jiang family raised the price before, they can lower it for me. What do you think?”

Old Master Jiang laughed angrily, “The Xu family really excels at taking advantage of others’ misfortune. You’ve truly impressed an old man like me. Impressive! Impressive!”

Xu Chenghao remained composed: “I can’t compare to Chang Ming, personally taught by Grandpa Jiang. We are on equal footing.”

Initially, Xu thought that after sarcastically provoking Old Master Jiang like this, he would surely get angry and hang up the phone. However, after a moment of silence, the other party spoke again, “Previously, it was the Jiang family who made a mistake and should have made concessions. But our Jiang family also has our bottom line, and I believe the Xu family has their own considerations. How about we find a middle ground and lower the price? Would Mr. Xu be satisfied then?”

It seems that the male protagonist is pressing harder than the compromise… Xu Chenghao smiled as he gleaned clues and calmly replied, “I’m sorry, Grandpa Jiang, but our Xu family’s consideration is to lower the price as much as we raised it. Otherwise, if everyone pulls the rug out from under us like this, would our Xu family still be in business?”

Grandpa Jiang sneered, “Since Mr. Xu understands the tricks of doing business, naturally he also understands the principle that one cannot become fat by eating too much at once. Sometimes, don’t be too extreme in your actions. Leaving yourself a way out will always take you further than making enemies!”

“Is that how the Jiang family operates?” Xu Chenghao retorted, “Thank you, Grandpa Jiang, for your guidance. I will definitely take it as a lesson!”

At this point, Xu Chenghao had made his attitude clear—either no cooperation at all or, if there were cooperation, it would be based on how much to raise or lower the price. Talking more was useless; even if the other party was an elder, it didn’t mean he could save face.

After noticing this situation, Grandpa Jiang was no longer entangled and quickly hung up the phone.

—After all, the more someone uses such tactics, the more they understand when it works, when it doesn’t, and where it works best!

Xu Chenghao pondered for a moment and picked up his phone to directly dial his father’s number.

After stepping down from his position, Xu Chenghao’s father started his retirement life, spending his days at home either tending to flowers or walking the dog, living a leisurely and carefree life. When Xu Chenghao called, he was enjoying lunch with his wife.

Xu Chenghao’s mother unleashed her overflowing motherly love after not seeing her son for several days—such as switching the call to a video chat and showing her son the desserts she was enjoying!

Xu Chenghao’s face immediately fell: “No wonder you insisted on video chat. Is this how you treat your own son?”

Mother Xu said proudly: “Who told you not to come back? I’ve been studying cuisine lately. It’s a good deal for your dad that you’re not here to eat. Look, I’ve even made your dad gain weight.”

Xu Chenghao replied, “I’ve been busy lately, really overwhelmed… By the way, I called to talk to you about the recent happenings with the Jiang family.”

After briefly explaining the series of events caused by the project, Xu Chenghao earnestly said, “I just got off the phone with Grandpa Jiang, and things have gotten really unpleasant. I’m letting you know in advance, hoping that when Grandpa Jiang approaches you, you won’t be misled and definitely shouldn’t agree to get involved in this matter.”

“And Dad, you should know Grandpa Jiang’s connections best. Please help with whatever precautions you can take. Also, considering my grandfather’s age and his focus on maintaining his health abroad, there’s no need to let him know about this.”

Xu Chenghao went through all the things he could think of, making sure nothing was left out, before concluding, “That’s all for now… If there’s anything else, I’ll inform you.”

Father Xu nodded and said, “Don’t worry, the Jiang family is already in the wrong in this matter. Even Grandpa Jiang is willing to swallow his pride and get involved. I have nothing to worry about. If he dares to come to my doorstep, I’ll give him a three-day lecture and argue the case properly.”

Xu Chenghao snapped his fingers and said, “That’s the spirit! Alright then, you handle things at home, and I’ll deal with it at the company.”

Father Xu praised: “You’ve grown a lot, you rascal.”

The struggles in the business world never elicit sympathy for the weak; people only befriend the victorious side. Just like what happened in this project, Jiang Changming, who had just taken up the position not long ago, was completely crushed by Xu Chenghao. No one would sympathize with Jiang Changming; instead, they would praise Xu Chenghao’s clever tactics and extraordinary abilities.

It was inevitable that there would be endless praise wherever he went, and everyone would envy the Xu family for having such an outstanding successor. Just the thought of this scene made Father Xu feel comfortable all over, proudly praising, “Well done!”

Xu Chenghao smiled and thought to himself that this was a battle between the main character and the villain; it had nothing to do with him.

As soon as the thought came to his mind, Xu Chenghao suddenly caught a glimpse of a half-face of a handsome person appearing on the small frame of his video call from the corner of his eye. The figure was frowning slightly as he looked at the phone.

Xu Chenghao abruptly turned his head and saw Jing Yicheng, who knows when he managed to come up behind him, leaning over and looking at his phone with one hand supporting himself on the back of the chair.

Xu Chenghao was puzzled: “What are you doing?”

In the video, Father Xu and Mother Xu also looked a bit surprised, exchanged glances, and then turned their heads to focus on this newly emerging influential figure known for his unpredictability.

Jing Yicheng: “…”

Surprisingly, he was at a rare loss for words.

“I thought you were on a voice call, sorry.”

Sitting in his seat, he couldn’t hear what Xu Chenghao was saying. He could only vaguely see the other person talking on the phone. Before he approached, he thought the other person was making a phone call, but to his surprise, he discovered that it was actually a video call! And it was a call with his parents!

Jing Yicheng felt a bit embarrassed. He quickly exited the frame and apologized.

Xu Chenghao looked at his reddening ears with a mix of speechlessness and amusement. He said, “It’s okay. Is there something you need?”

Jing Yicheng said it was nothing and turned back to his own seat, earnestly focusing on his work.

Xu Chenghao didn’t laugh out loud to give him a face, but his eyes had already curved into crescent shapes. After managing to suppress his laughter, he coughed lightly and turned his head back to his phone, only to see his parents eagerly gathered around the screen, showing a gossipy expression—exactly the same gossipy face as Li Nian’s!

…Oh my gosh.

Could this expression mean that they misunderstood something???

Xu Chenghao’s expression changed instantly, and he said earnestly, “Just now, that was the person I am cooperating with, President Jing Yicheng. Currently, we are colleagues.” So please don’t show such an overly speculative expression!

Father Xu managed to restrain himself and nodded earnestly, praising, “Talented, indeed, talented.”

Upon hearing this, Mother Xu also didn’t want to fall behind and praised, “A handsome young man, very good, yes, very good.”

Xu Chenghao twitched his mouth and felt that something was off. He quickly said, “Alright, I’m quite busy here. You can go ahead and eat. I’m hanging up now.”

Without waiting for his parents to say anything else, Xu Chenghao quickly ended the video call, sent a few ambiguous emojis, and then looked up at Jing Yicheng.

Unexpectedly, Jing Yicheng was also looking in his direction. Their gazes met suddenly, and both of them felt a bit surprised and awkward. Various emotions mixed together, creating an indescribable and ambiguous feeling. Neither of them had time to delve into it and quickly averted their eyes, lowering their heads to pretend to be busy.

Xu Chenghao’s mind was initially wandering, but after forcefully reading three lines of text in a folder, he gradually put this incident aside and started working seriously—after all, he had too much to do and no time to indulge in random thoughts.

On the other end of the office area, Jing Yicheng was thinking a lot… From the embarrassment, he accidentally showed in front of Xu’s parents to his current awkward and inexplicably warm reaction. And now, a purple bubble-like atmosphere permeated the air in his eyes…

Purple bubbles?

Jing Yicheng suddenly snapped back to reality, his gaze scanning the quiet office for a while without finding anything that could be associated with purple bubbles.

His brows furrowed instantly, puzzled about where his recent illusion came from.

Just as he thought it was absurd and was about to give up pondering, Jing Yicheng’s peripheral vision suddenly caught a glimpse of something purple. He quickly turned his head, only to find that the direction he just glanced at was actually Xu Chenghao?

Why… is he all purple?

 

 

 

The author has something to say: System: Gay King Halo, possessing it, whether you’re in the closet or open about your sexuality, both genders will fall for you in your tailored pants! Don’t want 998; I only want 188! This is a rare opportunity, don’t miss it if you happen to come across it!! [Drumroll]

Xu Chenghao: @#￥%&%￥#@

 

 

T/N: Finally! It’s starting~ [Evil laughs]