Scumbag Chapter 191 The Real Young Master Doesn’t Care For The Crematorium Trope (13)

While he was busy dating Miao Rui, Lu Minghua still kept tabs on Mingting.

Since they were in different cities, Lu Minghua hired a private detective on a yearly retainer to track Mingting long-term.

Fengtian had long since noticed someone photographing Mingting and traced it back to Lu Minghua. It asked Mingting what to do.

Mingting said to let them keep following for now, as there’s no need to rush.

The detective didn’t understand why his employer would have him keep tabs on a college student, but 50,000 yuan a month was a good deal.

Besides, Mingting’s daily routine was just moving between the dorm, lecture halls, library, and cafeteria. Taking photos was easy, and snapping a few casual shots could earn him 50,000 yuan. It was a profitable gig.

Seeing the photos of Mingting sent by the detective, Lu Minghua’s heart grew increasingly jealous.

Just look at him… completing second-year credits in his first year, then skipping straight to junior year in his second year, hailed as an academic prodigy.

The detective was thorough, capturing many moments, like when Mingting speaking confidently in class, working part-time at the library, eating in the cafeteria, chasing after professors to ask questions...

The more photos the detective sent, the more Lu Minghua learned about Mingting.

The other party was very outstanding, so outstanding it was envy-inducing.

Especially when he saw that Mingting had sold a high-priced mobile game called Red Umbrella, Lu Minghua was even more shocked.

While other college students were still studying, Mingting was already making money.

Many of the female students around Lu Minghua were playing Red Umbrella.

It was a very simple nurturing game. Players adopt their own mushroom baby in a nursery, send the mushroom baby to school on time, make nutritious meals to feed the mushroom baby, and accompany the mushroom baby to the playground on weekends.

The reason it was called Red Umbrella was because the city in the game was called Mushroom City.

Every child-related institution in the city, whether kindergarten, elementary, or middle school, was named Red Umbrella.

Little mushrooms attended Red Umbrella Kindergarten, then moved on to Red Umbrella Elementary, and later Red Umbrella Middle School.

The game featured over a hundred types of mushrooms, with adoption being randomized.

After raising their mushroom baby, players would receive detailed information about that particular mushroom… which were poisonous, which were edible, their characteristics, how to handle edible mushrooms, and even recipes.

This nurturing and collection-based game became an instant hit upon release.

A single account could adopt up to three mushrooms, and many players created multiple accounts just to raise more baby mushrooms.

There was one storyline Lu Minghua remembered particularly well, that all educational institutions in the game organized spring and autumn outings for the little mushrooms, with destinations chosen by player votes.

During these outings, villainous bugs and evil birds would appear. They will kidnap and eat the mushroom babies.

If players reported it in time, the Mushroom Sheriff would step in.

After capturing the bugs and birds, the sheriff would punish them according to Mushroom City’s laws, which is forcing them to drink a pot of Red Umbrella mushroom.

Every time the bugs and birds drank the Red Umbrella, the mushroom babies would hold hands, form a circle, and dance around them while singing.

The song they sang was ‘Red Umbrellas, White Stems’ which was popular many years ago.

The little mushrooms’ cheerful singing sent chills down Lu Minghua’s spine.

Especially in the animation, with the mushroom babies happily jumping around while the villainous bugs and birds lay twitching and foaming at the mouth… it all felt eerily unsettling.

He suspected Mingting designed this game because he remembered being kidnapped as a child and harbored a deep hatred for human traffickers.

This wasn’t just a nurturing game. Instead, it was a disguised way to educate children about safety and combat human trafficking.

Lu Minghua was terrified.

‘Did Lu Mingting remember where his home was? Who his parents were?’

‘If that is the case, he would eventually return and become the true young master of the Lu Family!’

Fearing this, Lu Minghua doubled down. He ordered the detective to keep a close watch on Mingting while also redoubling his efforts to impress Miao Rui.

Right now, Miao Rui was practically a princess living in a honey jar.

At home, her parents doted on her, and at school, Lu Minghua catered to her every whim. Miao Rui was overjoyed.

Especially since Lu Minghua would even cook for her, something that made Miao Rui even more smug.

Times had changed. To win a girl’s heart nowadays, you had to win over her stomach first.

But Lu Minghua’s submissive attitude only made Miao Rui grow even more arrogant. She became careless with her words and increasingly domineering in how she treated him.

Privately, Lu Minghua was annoyed, but to secure an alliance with the Miao Family through marriage, he swallowed his pride and endured it.

Fengtian didn’t understand why the Female Lead was acting differently compared to the original timeline.

Mingting explained that humans were complex creatures. Things that required time, effort, and hardship to obtain were often treasured by them, while things easily obtained were taken for granted.

In the original timeline, if Lu Minghua hadn't felt a sense of urgency because the real young master came home, he would not have chosen a spoiled young lady like Miao Rui.

Instead, it was precisely because he remained aloof that Miao Rui stayed meek and submissive.

To put it simply, in their relationship, she was the one lowering herself.

Later, not only was there the obstacle of the Supporting Male Character between them, there’s also the opposition from both families. Under the pressure from the outside world, the two finally united and face the outside world together, strengthening their bond.

But now, Lu Minghua knew about Mingting's existence in advance and took the initiative to pursue Miao Rui.

She was being pampered and spoiled without lifting a finger, so naturally, she didn’t bother pretending to be gentle and considerate like in the original timeline.

This time, it was Lu Minghua who needed this relationship, as he needed a fiancée with a powerful background. Their positions had reversed, and he was now the one in the inferior position.

Besides, in the original timeline, Miao Rui was secretly having an affair with the fake young master under the identity of the real young master's fiancée. Whether there was an element of thrill in that taboo relationship was anyone’s guess.

But now, Mingting hadn’t appeared. Without the ‘third party’ who would have ‘interfered’ with their relationship, things naturally unfolded differently.

[I get it now!] Fengtian nodded.

[It’s like how the eldest daughter-in-law, who was understanding and didn’t ask for a bride price before marriage, ends up being looked down on by her mother-in-law after marriage. She was only praised for how her son managed to marry a wife without spending a single cent. Meanwhile, the younger daughter-in-law, who demanded a bride price and acted spoiled, not only got the bride price but was also treated like a princess after marriage… It’s the same logic.]

Mingting glanced at Fengtian speechlessly, "What kind of trashy family drama have you been watching?"

[Hehehe!] Fengtian grinned, [I just wanted to understand humans better so I can assist you more effectively, Boss!]