The Supporting Male Characters Who Died Alone All Those Years Later

He Dongchen was a man of action. He quickly took advantage of the pretext of inspecting projects to frequently invite Su Li out. Sometimes they discussed matters together in the office, sometimes they met with project personnel, and once they even flew to another city for on-site inspections.

Su Li’s mind was filled with investment opportunities, completely oblivious to the man beside her who was watching her every move, already spreading out a large net for her.

“Dongchen, you’re amazing! You actually exposed their scam!” Su Li looked at He Dongchen with admiration. They had just inspected a company on-site, and Su Li had been completely taken in, eager to invest millions immediately. However, He Dongchen quickly recognized it as a fraudulent company, preying on unsuspecting victims.

“It’s nothing.” He Dongchen smiled casually. In fact, Ke Yu had long eliminated scams of this caliber, but in order to showcase his wit and reliability in front of someone, He Dongchen didn’t mind engaging with the other party a bit, considering it as ridding society of harm.

Seeing Su Li’s admiring expression, He Dongchen rubbed his nose, shifted his gaze away, and changed the subject, “Yesterday, Director Lin called me and said there’s a script he needs investment for. Let’s go to the film and television city.”

(T/N: Film and Television City = a large film studio with all kinds of different sets for different genre of film to rent out, almost larger than a town; Hence called ‘city’.)

“Sure.” Su Li nodded, looking as if she would go wherever directed, obedient and cute.

The two of them headed towards film and television city.

***

This time, Director Lin was introducing a small production web drama, not some cliché campus youth romance, but a story of the love-hate relationship between a top student male lead and a top student female lead. Both leads were newcomers, and the director, Liu Hao, was a student of Director Lin, taking the directorial reins for the first time.

It seemed unimpressive in every aspect.

He Dongchen flipped through the script only because of Director Lin’s reputation and found it surprisingly good, with the potential for success.

Although there were no memories of this TV drama in the original owner’s mind, He Dongchen still decided to investigate.

Upon arrival, He Dongchen met with Liu Hao, the male and female leads, and the screenwriter, discussing the general content. In the end, he decided to invest 15 million yuan. Su Li, who had been a wallflower throughout, unhesitatingly co-invested 5 million yuan, directly using up half of the startup capital.

Seeing that, He Dongchen’s smile deepened. He liked Su Li’s intelligence and initiative, trusting him while also keeping an escape route. If she had invested the full 10 million yuan in one go, it would have seemed contrived.

After reaching a preliminary agreement, Ke Yu took care of the remaining trivial matters, and He Dongchen left the film and television city with Su Li amidst Liu Hao’s profuse thanks.

Midway, Su Li suddenly poked He Dongchen’s arm with her finger. “Hey, that girl over there has been staring at you.”

He Dongchen lowered his head to glance at her fair and tender finger, his gaze darkening slightly. Then, following her finger, he saw the charming profile of a girl in a white dress, Yu Le, chatting and laughing with others in the distance. Her white dress fluttered, faintly outlining her graceful figure, her long hair swaying gently, stirring hearts. Rarely did her cold and elegant face display a smile as radiant as flowers.

If one looked closely, they would notice her stiff expression and unnatural movements, as if deliberately avoiding something yet also seeking attention.

At this moment, if he were a domineering CEO, he would have several possible reactions:

Firstly, how could this woman pretend not to know me!

Secondly, this woman’s strategy of playing hard to get has caught my attention!

Thirdly, this woman finally has some self-awareness, amusing!

Unfortunately, He Dongchen wasn’t a domineering CEO. Although Yu Le’s antics were a bit annoying, she didn’t actively approach to disgust people, which was somewhat peaceful.

Seeing He Dongchen’s silence, Su Li couldn’t help but ask, “Do you know her?”

“We’ve met a couple of times, but we’re not acquainted,” He Dongchen replied, his tone flat.

“Oh,” Su Li felt somewhat happy for reasons she couldn’t explain. She suppressed a smile, her words tinged with a hint of cheerfulness. “Let’s go then, we’ve arrived at mealtime, and I’m hungry!”

Thinking about food, Su Li was full of energy, pulling He Dongchen’s arm as they briskly walked away.

He Dongchen matched her pace, heading towards the parking lot together, wondering when they would progress from arm-in-arm to hand-in-hand.

***

Not far away, Yu Le, who had been keeping an eye on them, saw He Dongchen being pulled away by a girl. Her smile faded slightly, her mind wandering, while the man opposite her seemed oblivious to her change in demeanor, incessantly chattering away, becoming increasingly irritating.

After missing out on ‘Legend of Concubine Ming,’ Yu Le had been in a slump for a while, but she quickly regained her momentum, setting her sights on a campus web drama that was expected to make waves. This drama was primarily aimed at boosting the career of the actor playing the male lead, Hue Lei.

Hue Lei came from a wealthy family and was the main financial backer of the entire production team. With some subtle maneuvers, Yu Le successfully gained Hue Lei’s support and secured the role of the female lead.

Although everything seemed to be going smoothly, Yu Le still harbored a grudge against He Dongchen, feeling that things shouldn’t have turned out this way.

After talking for a while, seeing Yu Le’s impatience, Hue Lei pouted and walked away. As the little tyrant of his family, Hue Lei was used to getting his way since childhood. This time, he genuinely liked a girl, even though he knew she had ulterior motives. He was willing to pretend not to know and hoped that one day he could warm her heart.

But his patience also had its limits. Day after day of warmth towards coldness, Hue Lei’s heart grew colder and his gaze towards Yu Le became increasingly icy.

However, Yu Le, immersed in her own world, was oblivious to all that.

***

He Capital,

Father and Mother He knew their son was investing in a small web drama, and understanding the gist of it, they didn’t interfere. However, upon learning that Su Li from the Su family had also invested five million, it seemed they sensed something fishy.

Ke Yu received a call from the big boss and truthfully replied, “These days, Young Master He has been accompanying Miss Su for activities.”

After hanging up, Father He exchanged meaningful glances with Mother He. It seemed their son’s pursuit was aimed at that Su Li.

“The Su family is good; the younger generation is all hardworking,” Father He said with a smile.

Mother He also chuckled, “I think that girl, Su Li, is polite. She’s a perfect match for our Dongchen.”

The more they thought about it, the more beautiful it seemed, already envisioning the names of their future grandchildren.

As the protagonist of their conversation, He Dongchen was completely unaware. Over the next month, he took Su Li to inspect several projects, successfully investing nearly a billion yuan. Following He Dongchen’s recommendations, Su Li also invested in a small software company, spending the remaining 5 million.

With the funds depleted, He Dongchen couldn’t find an excuse to invite Su Li out temporarily.

After staying at home for 2 days, Su Li suddenly felt idle. It seemed I had lived like this before, so why did it feel so empty now? Am I destined for a life of labor? Did I just enjoy running around outside?

Resting her chin on her hand, her eyebrows forming a frown, Su Li stared out the window at the myriad colors of the garden, lost in thought.

Passing by, Father Su saw this scene and lightly snorted. That little wolf cub, trying to snatch away my precious daughter.

“Isn’t school starting tomorrow? Have you packed your bags?” Father Su spoke up.

Startled by her father’s sudden appearance while lost in thought, Su Li, who was daydreaming, jumped and looked back at her old father, her mouth pouting high. “Dad, did you have to show up out of nowhere and startle me like that!?”

Father Su snorted, “I’ve been behind you for half a while already. What are you thinking about so seriously?”

Su Li rolled her eyes and suddenly felt a bit embarrassed. Feeling guilty, she said, “I wasn’t thinking about anything! I’m going upstairs to pack my bags!”

After speaking, Su Li hurriedly ran upstairs, holding her skirt up.

Father Su clicked his tongue, feeling displeased.

Back in her room, Su Li packed her luggage while unable to stop her mind from wandering, her face blushing.

***

The next day, Su Li went to school. She got along well with her roommates and had never moved out.

Just as she finished packing, she received a text from He Dongchen, saying he would be passing by the school at noon and suggested having lunch together. Su Li immediately replied, agreeing to let him experience the small cafeteria at the school.

“Su Li, come clean! Are you in love or not?” At some point, Su Li found herself surrounded by her three roommates, who stood with their hands on their hips, looking as if they were ready to interrogate her.

Su Li instinctively covered her phone, her gaze shifting. “No way, we’re just friends.”

“Humph, friends don’t smile so lecherously!”

“Yeah, you look like you’re falling in love, you should really take a look in the mirror.”

The roommates pushed a mirror in front of Su Li. Seeing herself in the mirror, she blushed, smiling shyly.

“Come clean, what did you do this summer…”

The three of them bombarded Su Li with questions until it was time for dinner.

Several days later, when He Dongchen saw Su Li again, he keenly noticed she was different. She would sneak glances at him, pay attention to her appearance, giggle foolishly, and do some nonsensical things. In her beautiful crescent-shaped eyes, there was only his figure.

He Dongchen’s gaze softened even more. Sensing a bicycle passing by, he quickly grabbed Su Li’s arm.

The bicycle whizzed past and crashed into a big tree ahead, followed by a scream, drawing the attention of bystanders.

But Su Li foolishly lowered her head, watching her hand being enveloped by a large, powerful hand. That hand was broad and strong, and its pulse thudded against hers, sending ripples through her heart.

In Su Li’s mind, two voices clashed; one urging her to let go, to maintain her composure, and the other suggesting to go along with it, to test the waters.

The two of them stumbled into each other’s arms.

Seeing Su Li staring blankly at their intertwined hands, He Dongchen chuckled softly, naturally continuing to lead her forward. “Let’s go, didn’t you say you’d take me to the small cafeteria?”

Su Li was then led away in a daze. She couldn’t remember what they ate afterward, only that she was led back to the dormitory building holding hands. He Dongchen stood with one hand in his pocket, watching her enter the gate and waiting until she reached the dormitory balcony before waving and turning away.

Even though they were far apart, Su Li could still see the smile on He Dongchen’s face, his scholarly appearance with glasses adding to his charm, both pure and enticing, making her heart flutter uncontrollably.

“Su Li, that’s the guy you like? Isn’t he handsome!”

“Yeah, he should be your boyfriend.”

The three roommates gathered around, teasing as they leaned on the balcony, their laughter echoing in the distance.