FOBTS CH4

At Song’s residence, Song Ruochen completed his system experiment.

“It works great!” Song Ruochen praised enthusiastically. “Feels amazing.”

[…]
[Who uses a rewind system to draw cards, though?]

“I couldn’t draw any cards before because my luck was terrible,” Song Ruochen said. “But if I roll back a few seconds and try again, I can get results!”

[…]
[You have a message on your phone.]

Song Ruochen turned his attention to his phone.

[“Yan Ci” has requested to add you as a friend.]

[Song Ruochen: Madam, aren’t you sleeping yet?]

[Yan Ci: I’m livestreaming! If I earn more money, I’ll be more worthy of Jian Feng.]

[Song Ruochen: Then he shouldn’t marry an omega; he should marry a bank.]

[Yan Ci: .]

[Song Ruochen: Go to bed early, Madam.]

[Yan Ci: Okay~]

[Yan Ci: Secretary Song, I have an event the day after tomorrow. Can you come with me?]

[Yan Ci: One of the sponsors is a snack brand.]
[Song Ruochen: Snacks aren’t the point. The main thing is I want to accompany Madam.]

[Yan Ci: ^o^]

The event Yan Ci mentioned rang a bell for Song Ruochen. He remembered some unfriendly audience members attending and causing Yan Ci significant distress. The protagonist gong, preoccupied with dealing with the newly-arrived Jian Yuheng at the company, didn’t care about Yan Ci’s feelings, leading to a major fallout between the two.

To prevent the pair from creating a dramatic disaster that would eventually jeopardize Secretary Song’s life, Song Ruochen had to keep an eye on things. Snacks were not the priority.

“I’m tired.” He yawned. “Worked overtime today. I’ll take a day off tomorrow.”

__

The next day, at Xiaoshi Group.

Protagonist gong Jian Feng made five internal calls but couldn’t summon Secretary Song.

“President Jian,” the personal assistant said, pushing the door open, “Secretary Song is on leave today.”

“Huh?” Jian Feng was taken aback.

That secretary, who always seemed to be at his post since starting work, was actually taking a day off?

“Alright, I see,” Jian Feng replied.

The assistant continued with the work report. “As for Second Young Master Jian, I’ve heard that some of the management team at the company are planning to invite him to a swimming pool for fitness activities.”

Jian Feng frowned.

This assistant was someone placed by the old board members, and they clearly disliked seeing employees fawning over the new leader so quickly.

“What did my brother say?” Jian Feng asked.

Jian Yuheng had always loved swimming. These people certainly knew how to cater to his preferences.

“Second Young Master said…” The assistant’s mouth twitched.

“What did he say?” Jian Feng asked.

The assistant: “Second Young Master said he never wants to see a swimming pool again in this lifetime.”

Jian Feng: “…?”

Jian Yuheng, having turned down the group of people eager to curry favor, sat in his office and rubbed his temples.

Yesterday, was he… just too tired?

Why couldn’t he get out of the swimming pool?

But yesterday, what did he even do? He only dealt with that arrogant Secretary Song. An omega shouldn’t have been that much effort.

Speaking of which, after giving him a stern warning yesterday, he hadn’t seen Secretary Song in the company today.

“Have Secretary Song submit a meeting record,” Jian Yuheng said. “And two monthly reports.”

“Secretary Song is on leave,” Assistant Gong replied.

Jian Yuheng looked up. “Is he… unwell?”

When he’d restrained the man yesterday and threatened him with punishment, he might have used a bit of alpha pressure. Could Secretary Song’s small frame handle it?

“No,” Assistant Gong said. “I just checked the system. His leave reason is listed as Antarctic glacier melting.”

Jian Yuheng: “…”

That must have been a joke.

“Secretary Song isn’t simple,” Assistant Gong added. “He looks clean and pretty and speaks gently, but I’ve always felt he’s the type to play dumb while secretly outsmarting everyone.”

Jian Yuheng hummed in response.

He had been somewhat distracted all day and couldn’t spare the energy to think about Secretary Song. After all, the idea of a swimming pool turning into the Atlantic Ocean was too absurd for anyone to believe.

“Let’s call it a day,” he said. “I want to rest early today.”

He drove home steadily, parking in his backyard where the swimming pool was clean and clear.

After some thought, Jian Yuheng changed into his swimwear and entered the water.

The gentle flow of the water embraced him, rippling softly and easing the fatigue of his day.

Jian Yuheng went ashore, entered the water again, and repeated this process several times before finally sighing in relief.

It wasn’t the pool’s fault. Last night must have been a dream—he was sure of it now.

Good. The dream was over, and from now on, his life could return to normal.

__

Song Ruochen spent most of the day holed up in his room, organizing information about various snack shops in this ABO world, preparing to visit them in the future.

The next day, he got into Yan Ci’s car, and they drove to the event venue.

“Some of the audience members at the event might have misunderstandings about you because of past incidents,” Yan Ci’s livestream agent said. “Just ignore them.”

“Okay,” Yan Ci replied obediently.

Song Ruochen listened but didn’t comment.

This wasn’t something that could be resolved by ignoring it. In the original story, the audience favored a different streamer who had personal conflicts with Yan Ci. They had sent people to the event to throw plastic bottles and drinks at Yan Ci, making things very difficult for him.

‘System?’ Song Ruochen asked mentally as he got out of the car. ‘Do we have ultimate skill charges today?’

[Yes, three times. Use them sparingly.]

“Got it,” Song Ruochen replied.

He grabbed Yan Ci from the agent’s side. “Let’s go.”

The promotional event for a certain game was packed with people, and the organizers had even set up a livestream.

Many viewers crowded into the livestream room, flooding it with comments.

[Tsk, Yan Ci again. This little trash really has good connections.]

[Who’s the omega with him? Cold and aloof type—I like it.]

[He’s the secretary to the president of XiaoShi Group. I’ve seen him on the company’s homepage.]

[An omega as a top assistant? He looks so frail. Can he really handle it?]

Suddenly, a fan at the venue cursed at Yan Ci and threw something at him from a distance.

On-screen, Secretary Song calmly pushed Yan Ci forward. His right hand opened an automatic umbrella, blocking the incoming water bottles and splashed liquids.

The crowd gasped in surprise.

[So strong! Is this what a top-tier secretary looks like?]

[Ahhh, another audience member rushed in! That was close, but luckily Secretary Song got Yan Ci out in time.]

[His problem-solving skills are amazing. Such a capable and beautiful worker!]

At the venue entrance, Song Ruochen elegantly completed a rewind.

“Madam,” Song Ruochen said with exaggerated formality, “we have arrived safely.”

The rewind system was excellent. As long as it was used well, he was indistinguishable from the omnipotent Secretary Song in the original story.

The reliable Secretary Song was back.

__

Meanwhile—

At the elevator of Xiaoshi Group, Jian Yuheng was zoning out.

The doors of this private elevator had been malfunctioning recently. When he entered, he was unfortunately caught by the doors.

It was a rare occurrence, so Jian Yuheng didn’t think much of it. He rode the elevator as it slowly ascended, the floor numbers climbing steadily toward his office.

Clang.

The doors caught him again.

Jian Yuheng: “?”

Why was he back on the first floor?

Jian Yuheng slowly stepped out of the elevator, walking a few steps away from it.

The next second, he was back between the elevator doors.

Jian Yuheng: “…”

Jian Yuheng: “…?”

He decided not to move anymore.