After His Wife Left, the Disabled Tycoon Stood Up - Chapter 5

Chapter 5: You Only Learn Through Pain

Chen Xie took off his leather shoes, retracted the rear seat armrest, and rested his head on Shen Changting’s lap. Shen Changting lightly stroked his hair.

Shen Changting’s knuckles were very cool and somewhat rough, his bones long. His fingers slid from Chen Xie’s forehead to his chin, his collarbones, and then caressed his back through his clothes.

Two years. He’s gotten thinner.

“You sold the painting?” Shen Changting asked, knowing full well the answer.

“Mhm…”

“How much did it sell for?”

Chen Xie’s eyes were moist, his cold gaze shimmering with the light of unshed tears that glinted in the dim car like he had been crying. He answered in a hoarse voice, “Fifty million.”

This painting was special.

When Shen Changting gave it to Chen Xie, he had said that Chen Xie could use it to make one request of him—anything at all.

Chen Xie had once made a request: he wanted Shen Changting to be with him.

Shen Changting had rubbed his hair, told him to be good, and told him to pick something else.

From then on, Chen Xie never made another request, and the painting was never hung up again; it was tucked away in a corner as if abandoned. But when he left Shen Changting later, he took it with him.

Chen Xie had also thought that he would eventually use this painting to make another request of Shen Changting.

But he didn’t.

Even he felt it was absurd and ridiculous.

The painting couldn’t buy Shen Changting’s heart, but using a request to trade for five hundred million from Shen Changting would have been no problem at all.

Yet Chen Xie just auctioned it off.

As if he were terrified of having any further connection with Shen Changting.

Inside the quiet car, their breaths intertwined.

Shen Changting’s interest was piqued; his large hand unbuttoned Chen Xie’s shirt. When he touched Chen Xie’s lower back, Chen Xie let out a cry of pain that trailed off into a sob.

That was from the impact earlier.

Shen Changting touched Chen Xie’s lips comfortingly. “Does it hurt?”

“Mhm…” Chen Xie’s palms were breaking out in a cold sweat.

Shen Changting, a refined gentleman, touched Chen Xie’s forehead. “You only learn through pain.”

Shen Changting’s voice was beautiful, magnetic, and held a tone so perfect it made one’s whole body go numb.

He looked at the sweat on Chen Xie’s forehead and coaxed him, “Take it slow.”

Chen Xie fell silent, tilting his head back slightly, trying to undo Shen Changting’s buttons, but his hand was pressed down—a sign of refusal.

Shen Changting was a man of rules.

In a car on the street, doing such reckless and filthy things with a man while various cars and pedestrians passed by—if some paparazzi captured this and it made the news, it would be improper.

Shen Changting came from a family with deep roots; he valued reputation and status above all else.

Chen Xie had been with Shen Changting for two years, and the most unavoidable concept was “propriety.” He stopped his hands, lightly hooked Shen Changting’s hand, and lowered his head to please him.

For a moment, Chen Xie felt as though there was no difference between now and two years ago.

But Chen Xie knew that from the moment he confessed his love to Shen Changting, there was no going back. Fortunately, the current Chen Xie was strong enough and had already matured; he could properly position and see himself for what he was.

“Knock, knock, knock—” The car window was tapped.

Chen Xie’s fingertips flinched, and alarm bells instantly went off in his head. Just as he was about to sit up, Shen Changting—who was intensely focused on tracing the lines of his shoulder blades, pressed down on his shoulder with his other hand, his movement powerful and brooking no resistance.

“Teacher Shen…”

Chen Xie choked, his entire face flushing red due to the lack of air, letting out slight coughs. However, Shen Changting remained indifferent and resolute, the strength in the knuckles he used to hold calligraphy brushes was immense.

A dark fire surged in Shen Changting’s eyes—both heartache and resentment.

Chen Xie first offering a look-alike to him, then selling the painting, and getting involved with Zhong Yue; for every single one of these, he deserved a bit of punishment.

The tears at the corners of Chen Xie’s eyes fell with a “patter” onto the back of Shen Changting’s hand. Shen Changting’s brow furrowed; he let go, removed Chen Xie’s tie, and coiled it around his palm. His large hand rested on his lap, the black tie inconspicuous against it.

Chen Xie sat up. Through the car window, he clearly saw the person outside—Zhong Yue.

By the time Shen Changting lowered the window, Chen Xie had already lowered the rear seat armrest. The two sat in their respective places, perfectly composed and proper; no one would have known of the hidden, grand spectacle inside the car moments ago.

Zhong Yue had a face full of smiles, his eyes glancing toward Chen Xie on the other side.

Chen Xie was currently leaning against the car seat, his chest heaving heavily as he breathed, his face turned toward the window on the far side.

Cold air poured into the window. Chen Xie’s chest was missing its tie, two buttons had burst open, and a startling red hue was visible on his neck. The wind blew open his shirt, revealing pale, flushed skin that was very eye-catching.

But if one were to say what attracted the most attention, it was the tip of Chen Xie’s shoe, which was cocked up and trembling slightly.

Like a loss of control following exhaustion.

Zhong Yue was the wealthiest socialite in Hong Kong who played the most.

In the past two years, he had developed a taste for playing with men.

Aside from the Hong Kong star who made the news after being broken by Zhong Yue and sent to the hospital in the middle of the night, Zhong Yue had also kept several male TVB actors. They often entered and exited his private residence in pairs; to the outside world, they were described as “Mahjong buddies” gathering to play cards.

Zhong Yue said with a smile that there was a banquet for the elder Mr. Zhong next week, and the elder Mr. Zhong had invited Shen Changting to play chess. Shen Changting nodded. Zhong Yue didn’t leave; he looked at Chen Xie again with a meaningful gaze. “President Chen, you should come along too.”

Chen Xie didn’t answer. Zhong Yue left.

Shen Changting called to tell the driver to return. He tossed the tie in his hand onto the armrest between the two of them. Chen Xie knew with absolute clarity that this was the choice Shen Changting was giving him.

Pick up the tie and leave at any time.

Don’t pick it up, and return with Shen Changting to Deep Water Bay.

In the end, Chen Xie did not get out of the car.

After a two-year interval, he once again followed Shen Changting back to his private residence—No. 32 Deep Water Bay.

The driver brought the wheelchair from the trunk, and the butler assisted Shen Changting at the front of the car. When he looked up, he saw Chen Xie also getting out. “I’ll do it.”

Chen Xie reached out to hold the wheelchair, pushing Shen Changting into the villa.

In Hong Kong, where every inch of land is worth its weight in gold and even a toilet is prohibitively expensive, this top-tier ocean-view villa in the Peak district of Deep Water Bay was equipped with its own internal elevator. The elevator here alone was enough for an ordinary person to work their whole life for.

Extravagance, luxury, and nobility—these words fit Shen Changting perfectly.

Chen Xie pushed him into the study.

On the right side of the study was a floor-to-ceiling window. Looking out from there, one could see the shimmering water of the outdoor swimming pool on the second floor. Under the moonlight, the quiet pool rippled gently, and the sound of water could be heard.

Inside the study, the dim, ancient yellow light reflected on Shen Changting’s cold, hard face. His gaze was sharp and chilling. He said coldly, “Stand in front of me.”

Chen Xie stood before Shen Changting.

Shen Changting toyed with the tie. “Raise your hands.”

Chen Xie raised his hands. His right wrist was red, the pale skin looking as if it had almost been rubbed raw. Shen Changting’s brow furrowed. “Stand closer.”

Chen Xie had only moved forward half an inch when his knee was pushed aside by a long leg. His hand braced against Shen Changting’s chest; the man’s cool knuckles gripped his wrist, feeling like ice cubes reducing a swelling.

Inexplicably, his loathing and irritability were suppressed.

Chen Xie overstepped by sitting on Shen Changting’s lap, his voice hoarse: “Teacher Shen… I was wrong.”

A spark lit up in the depths of Shen Changting’s dark eyes. His index finger hooked under Chen Xie’s chin, rubbing his lips, signaling for him to continue.

Chen Xie said, “I shouldn’t have sent Wen Li to you.”

“Mhm.” Shen Changting was a man of few words.

His large hand wrapped around Chen Xie’s waist. The vest outlined Chen Xie’s waistline very clearly. Those smooth lines within his palm, even through clothing, were enough to stir one’s deepest desires.

Shen Changting asked with a smile, “What else?”

“I shouldn’t have sold the painting… I shouldn’t have been angry with you two years ago…” After finishing, Chen Xie kissed Shen Changting’s index finger, his brow furrowing slightly, his gaze full of bitterness and heartache.

“I shouldn’t have asked for love…”

Asking Shen Changting for love was the biggest mistake Chen Xie had ever made.

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