After The Beautiful Drama Queen’s Marriage To The Wealthy Tycoon - Chapter 33

Chapter 33: Good Boy I’m Here

Three days after returning from the mountain villa was Xie Yunting’s birthday. Jiang He and Fang Zhiyi set out from home to meet Qi Hanchuan at his office.

Fang Zhiyi’s expression was tense, and his complexion was pale. The Fang family had messaged him again, threatening that if he didn’t return home immediately, they wouldn’t be “polite” anymore. Although he was staying at Jiang He’s place, Jiang He couldn’t revolve around him forever; the Fang family would eventually find an opening. Even though the Xie family had explicitly rejected the marriage alliance, the Fang family was still hounding him, likely because they had found another suitor to sell him to.

Seeing Fang Zhiyi’s pallor, Jiang He patted the back of his hand to comfort him. “Xiao Yi, don’t worry. I’m here. If Fang Zhixu dares to act up in front of me, I’ll beat him until his face is black and blue.”

Fang Zhiyi managed a small smile. “I’m fine.”

Jiang He puffed out his chest confidently. “With me around, no one can bully you. And if I’m not enough, there’s Qi Hanchuan. Even if the Fang family had a hundred times their current courage, they wouldn’t dare mess with him.”

Having a powerful husband is truly great, Jiang He thought. Luckily, I didn’t sign that paper with Qi Xu back then.

Thinking of that name, Jiang He stroked his chin curiously. “Speaking of which, have you seen Qi Xu lately? That guy seems to have vanished into thin air. I almost forgot he existed.”

Fang Zhiyi pulled himself out of his thoughts and shook his head with a smile. “I’m not close to the Qi family. You should ask Mr. Qi; he probably knows.”

Jiang He thought that made sense. “True. I’ll ask him in a bit.”

Upon meeting Qi Hanchuan, Jiang He asked immediately. Qi Hanchuan replied that Qi Xu had been sent abroad—he might return for the New Year, or he might not return at all.

Jiang He was shocked. “Since when?”

Come to think of it, he hadn’t seen Qi Xu since that run-in at the café. He had assumed Qi Xu was just laying low for fear of Qi Hanchuan’s punishment, not that he had actually left the country.

Qi Hanchuan looked down at Jiang He’s furrowed brows and explained calmly, “Dad sent him. He said Qi Xu being home only makes you unhappy, so he sent him to a branch office to ‘learn.'”

Jiang He muttered to himself, “No wonder I haven’t seen him in forever.”

Qi Hanchuan suddenly dropped a question: “Do you miss him?”

Jiang He leaned back lazily, cradling his head in his hands. “I miss him calling me ‘Little Auntie.'”

Qi Hanchuan’s lips quirked up in satisfaction. “Then I’ll call him and have him say it a few times over the phone.”

Jiang He waved him off. “Nah, forget it. I prefer him saying it to my face so I can see his ‘vibrant’ facial expressions.”

The car stopped at the pier, and Xie Yunting came out personally to greet them. He was dressed in a black suit with his hair slicked back, but his tie was crooked and his top two buttons were undone, giving him a rakish, unruly look.

“A-Chuan,” Xie Yunting called out with a grin. He stepped forward to whisper a “Little Sister-in-law” to Jiang He, then turned his gaze to Fang Zhiyi. A flash of genuine surprise crossed his eyes. “You’re Fang Zhiyi?”

His gaze was far too blatant, making Fang Zhiyi uncomfortable. He gave a muffled “Mhm.”

Xie Yunting stroked his chin, staring straight at Fang Zhiyi. “If I’d known you were this good-looking, I wouldn’t have rejected the marriage alliance.”

Jiang He “tsked” and pulled Fang Zhiyi behind him, glaring at Xie Yunting. Qi Hanchuan also gave his friend an expressionless look of warning.

“Haha, just a joke.” Feeling the icy stares from the couple, Xie Yunting sobered up and gestured toward the ship. “After you, everyone.”

From then on, Jiang He kept a very tight leash on Fang Zhiyi, not giving Xie Yunting a single chance to talk to him. Xie Yunting watched Jiang He’s protective, “mama-hen” behavior and laughed helplessly. “Xiao He, aren’t you being a bit dramatic? You’re guarding him like I’m a thief.”

Jiang He huffed. “The way you look at Xiao Yi, you look like you want to eat him. I regret bringing him.”

“How could I? I just think Young Master Fang is exactly my type,” Xie Yunting said, his eyes drifting over Jiang He’s shoulder to Fang Zhiyi’s face. “Can’t we just be friends?”

Fang Zhiyi wasn’t used to being stared at like that. But Xie Yunting was tall; even with Jiang He blocking him, it didn’t do much. Seeing Xie Yunting’s playboy attitude, Jiang He got annoyed and tugged on Qi Hanchuan’s sleeve, complaining: “Hubby, look at him.”

Qi Hanchuan gave Xie Yunting a flat stare, and Xie Yunting immediately behaved.

Soon, many people came to speak with Qi Hanchuan. Jiang He didn’t like being surrounded, so he told Qi Hanchuan and led Fang Zhiyi to the dining area on the second floor. The Jiang family didn’t attend today; Jiang Xu was on a business trip and Jiang Chenwei had to stay at the company, so Jiang He brought the gifts on their behalf.

Jiang He piled his favorite desserts onto Fang Zhiyi’s plate and grabbed two glasses of juice, settling by the window. He looked out at the view in awe. “Xiao Yi, look! The sunset.”

Fang Zhiyi turned to look and was equally stunned. “So beautiful.”

While the two were admiring the view, an unpleasant voice ruined the mood: “Yo, isn’t this Fang Zhiyi?”

Jiang He glanced at the speaker and asked Fang Zhiyi, “Do you know him?”

Fang Zhiyi shook his head. He was completely unfamiliar with the second-generation wealthy circles and had never seen this man. Since he didn’t know him, Jiang He couldn’t be bothered to engage and went back to eating his cake.

The young man, in his early twenties, looked indignant. He tapped on the table. “Fang Zhiyi, I’m talking to you, damn it.

Fang Zhiyi looked up at the man’s violent, coarse face, looking genuinely confused. “I don’t know you. Who are you?

Anyone at the Xie family heir’s birthday party had to be from a notable family, but he truly didn’t recognize him.

The young man froze at Fang Zhiyi’s expression. “You don’t remember me?

When Fang Zhiyi remained blank, the man turned to his companions and burst into laughter, pointing at his own nose. “Me! I’m Zhang Mang! You actually forgot? Did you forget in middle school when I dragged you into the bathroom and forced you to drink the toilet water? Your memory is crap… but then again, I’ve been abroad for a few years and changed a lot, so it’s normal you don’t recognize me.

Zhang Mang sat down unceremoniously in a nearby chair. “How did a bastard like you get up here? Was it this little beauty sitting across from you who brought you?”

The Zhang family were “new money” upstarts, and Zhang Mang was a true hooligan. Because his family had a bit of cash, he acted lawlessly. Strictly speaking, he shouldn’t have been qualified to attend today, but Fang Zhixu had given him an invitation.

Zhang Mang couldn’t actually break into the inner circle of the wealthy; he only managed to hang around people like Fang Zhixu using his family’s money. Consequently, he had no idea who Jiang He was. He just thought Jiang He was his type and wanted to flirt, not expecting to recognize Fang Zhiyi first.

After years apart, Fang Zhiyi had grown much handsomer. Zhang Mang licked his thick lips, wondering which one to pick. Why not both? He thought. He was backed by Fang Zhixu; even if the little beauty across the table had a good background, surely it couldn’t be better than the Fang family.

The moment Jiang He heard the man mention forcing Fang Zhiyi to drink toilet water, his hand tightened around his dessert fork. He was ready to let some blood out of this “pig head.”

Fang Zhiyi’s pupils shrank. Dark memories flooded back like a tide. He clenched his hands, trying to suppress his terror, his face turning ghostly white. “It’s you!”

“Yeah, it’s me. Don’t you remember all the ‘fun’ we had in middle school?” Zhang Mang laughed, turning to the people around them. “You all know him, right? This is the Fang family’s bastard. We spent a lot of ‘quality time’ together for three years.”

The surrounding guests began to back away, afraid of being caught in the crossfire. Ever since the day the Jiang family’s youngest son married Qi Hanchuan, they had memorized Jiang He’s face to ensure they never offended him. This pig-headed guy was literally seeking death.

Zhang Mang thought the crowd was backing away because they feared him, which made him even more arrogant. “Fang Zhiyi, do you remember crawling through my legs back then?”

Jiang He’s hand was shaking, his beautiful face turning dark and cold.

Zhang Mang continued, getting more offensive. “So, which rich kid did you climb onto to get up here? Someone like you wouldn’t be able to attend this kind of event in several lifetimes. I heard the Fang family is setting up a marriage for you. Why don’t you just marry me? That way, no one will look down on your bastard status.”

He had left the country in middle school and hadn’t been back long; he had no idea what the current situation was in the domestic social circles, nor that Fang Zhiyi was best friends with the Jiang family’s treasure. He was just doing a “favor” for Fang Zhixu to make Fang Zhiyi miserable, but he hadn’t been told who Fang Zhiyi’s companion was.

Zhang Mang kept going, his words getting cruder. Jiang He finally reached his breaking point. In one swift motion, he slammed the fork into Zhang Mang’s arm.

Squelch

The sound of metal piercing flesh rang out. Zhang Mang froze for a second, then clutched his arm and screamed in agony. “Argh! You little bitch, you dared to stab me?! Do you know my relationship with the eldest son of the Fang family?!”

“I don’t give a damn about your relationship!” Jiang He pulled the fork out and slammed it in again. The six-foot-tall Zhang Mang rolled on the floor in pain. Jiang He stepped on him, grabbed the cake from the table, and smashed it into Zhang Mang’s face, grinding it in. “You dare bully Fang Zhiyi? I’ll kill you!”

He raised the fork again, aiming for Zhang Mang’s eye. Fang Zhiyi jumped up and grabbed him. “Xiao He! Calm down! It’s in the past, don’t do something stupid!”

Jiang He’s eyes were red. “He bullied you. He deserves to die!”

Jiang He and Fang Zhiyi hadn’t attended the same middle school. Fang Zhiyi had never told him these things. It was only later, when Jiang He complained about being lonely at school, that he begged Fang Zhiyi to apply to the same high school as him. He never knew Fang Zhiyi had been tormented.

No wonder Fang Zhiyi was so terrified of people when he started high school. No wonder he was afraid to go to the bathroom alone, and why he trembled whenever he met new people. No wonder he would instinctively shield his head when people joked around with him.

It was all because of middle school. It was all because of Zhang Mang.

Qin Xulin saw the commotion and realized Jiang He was involved. He immediately turned to find Qi Hanchuan.

By the time Qi Hanchuan arrived, Zhang Mang was still screaming curses. Jiang He was clutching the fork, his hands covered in blood, while Fang Zhiyi desperately held him back.

The moment Qi Hanchuan appeared, everyone present lowered their heads, terrified of his wrath.

Qi Hanchuan frowned at the man cursing on the floor. He stepped forward and pulled Jiang He into his arms. He wrapped his large hand over Jiang He’s, but Jiang He refused to let go of the fork, his entire body shaking.

Qi Hanchuan said softly, “Xiao He, let go.”

Jiang He refused, struggling in his grip. “I’m going to poke his eyes out.

Qi Hanchuan pressed Jiang He’s head into his chest and slowly, one by one, pried his fingers open. His voice was incredibly tender. “Good boy. Calm down. I’ll handle this.”

Clatter.

The fork hit the floor, blood droplets forming a macabre flower on the ground.

Qi Hanchuan held his hand and gently rubbed Jiang He’s back. “It’s okay. I’ll take it from here. Just breathe.

Jiang He sobbed, “Qi Hanchuan…

Qi Hanchuan responded softly, “Mhm, I’m here. I’m right here.

Jiang He’s rationality finally returned. His frozen blood began to flow again as Qi Hanchuan’s warmth seeped into him. His icy limbs began to warm up, and his rigid body softened as he leaned into Qi Hanchuan’s embrace.

Qi Hanchuan stroked his hair, his broad chest completely shielding Jiang He from the world. “It’s over now.