Gold-Devouring Bottom: A Guide to Pampering - Chapter 2

The journalist at the very front led with a “parting gift” for Shen Xinghuai the moment he opened his mouth: “Mr. Shen, you called us here—is there something you wish to tell us?”

Before Shen Xinghuai could even figure out how to navigate the current predicament, he was bitten by the very reporter he allegedly summoned. Catching a glimpse of Ye Xiuchen’s terrifying gaze out of the corner of his eye, he felt his fate was sealed—he was already dead and buried chest-deep in dirt.

At this point, even if he possessed the most silver tongue in the world, Ye Xiuchen would never believe that he wasn’t the one who called the press.

Every lens and every eye was pinned on him, including Ye Xiuchen’s murderous stare.

Seeing Shen Xinghuai remain silent, the prepared reporter began to coax him: “Mr. Shen, please feel free to speak your mind. Our turnaround for articles is very fast; we’ll ensure your words are publicized immediately.” The subtext was clear: Speak boldly; Ye Xiuchen won’t have time to silence us.

Ye Xiuchen paced toward him, his overwhelming presence forcing Shen Xinghuai to take a step back.

Enveloped in a dark, brooding aura, the man leaned down and pressed close to his ear, his voice a low vibration meant only for the two of them: “You’d go as far as sacrificing your own reputation just to take me down with you?”

With that, Ye Xiuchen stepped back, a faint, phantom smile playing on his lips—the kind of smile a Reaper gives before harvesting a soul.

The smile sent cold sweat pouring down Shen Xinghuai’s back; his heart hammered against his ribs like a war drum.

I don’t want to take you down with me! he thought. The “net” between him and Ye Xiuchen was something he hoped to patch up and survive in for at least another three years.

In a desperate flash of wit, Shen Xinghuai stepped forward and grabbed Ye Xiuchen’s hand. His fair, slender fingers slid into the gaps of the man’s hand, interlacing them. Under the stunned gaze of every reporter, he raised their joined hands and gave them a little shake toward the cameras.

“This is what I wanted to announce to you all today: We are in a relationship.”

The journalists holding the cameras froze. They traded bewildered looks, silently asking one another if they had misheard.

The reporter who had asked the first question pressed on, unwilling to give up: “Mr. Shen, you must be joking with us?”

Shen Xinghuai turned to look affectionately at the stunned Ye Xiuchen, giving him a sweet smile before turning back to the press. “Who’s joking? I don’t even know you people. Everything I said is true.”

Ye Xiuchen’s expression became unreadable and complex.

From the back of the crowd, a death-defying reporter piped up: “Doesn’t President Ye suffer from a certain ‘hidden ailment’? Has Mr. Shen truly thought this marriage through? You aren’t being forced, are you?”

The moment this “brave soul” finished speaking, Shen Xinghuai felt that murderous gaze shift away from him and land squarely on the questioning reporter.

You dare ask that to his face? Shen Xinghuai mentally lit a stick of incense in prayer for the doomed man.

In truth, rumors of Ye Xiuchen’s “hidden ailment” had been circulating for years.

Among the second and third-generation socialites of the upper crust, who didn’t change partners more often than their clothes? Many even juggled multiple flings at once.

Only he, for all these years, had never had a single partner. Not a significant other, not even a one-night stand.

Though he was mad, he was also obscenely wealthy. Many were willing to ignore the madness for the money and threw themselves at him, but without fail, no one could even get close to him.

To Ye Xiuchen, romance was nothing more than a distraction that would slow down the pace of his insanity.

He was a walking insulator against intimacy. Combined with his eccentric and ruthless personality, rumors naturally evolved: He’s impotent. He’s ill. He’s psychologically twisted.

The atmosphere grew so frigid it was hard to breathe. Shen Xinghuai’s hand was being squeezed so hard his bones ached, but the pain kept his mind sharp.

He realized this was an opportunity. If he helped break this humiliating rumor, he might earn a few favor points in the madman’s heart.

He spoke up: “Those are all false rumors. My boyfriend and I are perfectly harmonious in every aspect.” Shen Xinghuai glanced at Ye Xiuchen out of the corner of his eye, but the man’s face remained cold and unchanged.

This lunatic is impossible to read.

Shen Xinghuai felt a bit dejected, but at least this hurdle was temporarily cleared. He waved at the reporters blocking the door. “What I had to announce has been said. You may leave now.”

The reporters had arrived in high spirits and left in utter confusion, leaving two people with very different agendas in the room.

After standing in the living room for about ten minutes, during which Ye Xiuchen studied him as if he were an alien lifeform, the man finally spoke: “Shen Xinghuai, what kind of game are you playing?”

Looking innocent and aggrieved, Shen Xinghuai shook his head. “I’m not playing any games.” I’m just trying to survive the tiger’s den, he thought.

“Shen Xinghuai, you will regret what you did today.”

Shen Xinghuai clutched his chest, his face a mask of sincerity. “I love you so much, I won’t regret it. And I believe even more that you won’t let me lose.” Ugh, I’m going to gag.

Ye Xiuchen: “…” Without a word, his long legs carried him straight toward the door.

Shen Xinghuai called out after him: “Brother, where are you going?” Get me some clothes first!

Slam! Ye Xiuchen didn’t look back; the door rattled on its hinges.

The “loving” expression on Shen Xinghuai’s face vanished instantly.

Ye Xiuchen walked with a wind at his heels, getting into his car with a darkened expression. His assistant sat in the passenger seat, trembling. “Sir, I’ve looked into it. Someone bribed the hotel security last night to send Mr. Shen to your room via the service elevator. The person behind this is well-hidden; we haven’t identified them yet.”

Ye Xiuchen looked through the car window toward the room Shen Xinghuai was in. “Keep investigating. Fire all the staff who were on duty last night. As for those reporters just now, make sure they all disappear from Lincheng.”

The assistant nodded frantically. “Yes, yes, I’ll arrange it immediately. I’ll also notify the engineering department to switch your room’s lock to an independent system.”

Ye Xiuchen’s face remained cold. “Check on Shen Xinghuai too. See what he’s been up to lately and who he’s been meeting.”

“Understood. I’ll get on it.”

Irritated, Ye Xiuchen tugged at his collar and opened his laptop. His long fingers tapped across the keys, and the surveillance feed of the hotel room appeared clearly on the screen.

The moment Ye Xiuchen left, Shen Xinghuai sprinted to the mirror.

The person in the reflection had the same familiar features—height and facial structure hadn’t changed—but the Shen Xinghuai of this world was thinner, his skin paler. When he looked at himself without expression, he felt like a stranger.

In his own world, Shen Xinghuai was bright and cheerful, his eyes always sparkling with a smile. He loved sports, was outgoing, and had many friends.

But the Shen Xinghuai here was different. He was cold, aloof, and detached. Perhaps due to a lack of exercise, his waist and limbs were more slender. Coupled with his arrogant yet melancholy aura, he possessed a fragile, “broken” quality that stirred a protective instinct in others.

Yet, because of his icy personality, he was difficult to approach—the kind of person people desperately wanted but couldn’t have, and couldn’t bring themselves to give up on.

He stared at the mirror in a daze for a moment before snapping out of it. He hurriedly found his phone and scrolled through his contacts. He had no clothes to wear and needed someone to bring him an outfit as soon as possible.

He found the name Tian Yuanyuan. He remembered this person—the original owner’s best friend.

The call was picked up on the first ring. “Huai-huai baby, miss me?”

“Yuanyuan, I need a favor. I’m out right now and something happened. Can you bring me a change of clothes?” Shen Xinghuai kept his tone steady and low. The original owner was reserved; he had to act composed in front of someone who knew him well.

Tian Yuanyuan didn’t suspect a thing. “No problem! Where are you? I’ll be there in a flash.”

Where? Shen Xinghuai didn’t actually know the hotel’s address. He glanced at the embroidery on his bathrobe. “I’m at the Tianheng Hotel. You know the address, right?”

“Holy sh*t! You’re at the Tianheng? Why the hell are you there? Isn’t that Ye Xiuchen’s place?” Tian Yuanyuan was beyond shocked.

It was common knowledge that Shen Xinghuai loathed Ye Xiuchen. When Ye Xiuchen didn’t go home, he usually stayed at the Tianheng. To avoid him, Shen Xinghuai would usually take a detour just to stay away from the vicinity of the hotel. Today, he had actually checked in.

“It’s hard to explain over the phone. I’ll tell you when you get here.” Or maybe you’ll see the news online and I won’t have to explain at all.

Tian Yuanyuan, being easygoing, didn’t overthink it. “Fine. Give me the room number.”

“Hang on.” Shen Xinghuai pushed the door open and checked the plate. “Quadruple nine.”

The other end of the line went dead silent.

Shen Xinghuai thought the signal had dropped. “Yuanyuan? Are you there? Is the reception bad?”

After a long pause, Tian Yuanyuan’s dazed voice came through: “It’s not the signal that’s bad, it’s my heart. Xinghuai, don’t scare me. Say the room number again. Did you misread it?”

Shen Xinghuai checked again, certain. “It’s 9999. I’m sure.”

Tian Yuanyuan’s tone went completely haywire. “Xinghuai, 9999 at the Tianheng is Ye Xiuchen’s private, exclusive suite. You, why are you in there?”

This is his private room? Shen Xinghuai had assumed it was just a regular guest suite. “I’ll explain everything when you get here. Just hurry, I have nothing to wear.”

“Not a single stitch? Do you need underwear?”

Shen Xinghuai hesitated for a second. “Yes.”

The phone call had clearly traumatized Tian Yuanyuan, but it had also ignited a fierce curiosity. “Wait for me, I’m on my way!”

After hanging up, Shen Xinghuai paced around the several-hundred-square-meter presidential suite. The madman’s private room is this spartan? Who knew he was so frugal?

As he walked, his pace slowed. Something dawned on him, and his expression grew solemn as he sat back down on the sofa.

About half an hour later, there was a knock at the door. “Xinghuai, it’s me!” Tian Yuanyuan rushed in, carrying a bag of clothes.

The moment the door opened, Tian Yuanyuan lunged inside and practically shoved his phone into Shen Xinghuai’s eye socket, stuttering with excitement: “Xing! Xinghuai! Tell me quick—this breaking news is just some garbage the reporters made up, right?”

Ye Xiuchen sat in the back of the car, realization dawning on him that he had been watching the surveillance feed for the entire drive. Back at his office, the laptop remained open and waiting on his desk.

As soon as he saw Tian Yuanyuan enter the hotel room on screen, he reached out and turned up the volume.

He knew that Tian Yuanyuan and Shen Xinghuai were best friends; Shen Xinghuai wouldn’t hide anything from him. With the hidden cameras installed in the suite, it wouldn’t be long before he discovered exactly what game Shen Xinghuai was playing.

In the room, Shen Xinghuai took the phone from Tian Yuanyuan and began reading intently.

#Breaking News! Young CEO of Ye Corp Announces Relationship! Partner Revealed to be Famous Pianist!#

The text was brief, accompanied by a high-resolution photo of him and Ye Xiuchen with their fingers interlaced.

Shen Xinghuai tapped the image to enlarge it, clicking his tongue in dissatisfaction. “This reporter’s photography is terrible. The composition is all wrong.”

Tian Yuanyuan’s eyes bulged wider than a meerkat’s. “Xinghuai! Is the composition the point right now? What on earth is going on? How did you end up getting involved with that lunatic?”

Shen Xinghuai’s loathing for Ye Xiuchen was supposed to be bone-deep; it only made sense for the two of them to remain strangers until the day they died. This sudden public declaration of love wasn’t just absurd—it was off the charts.

Shen Xinghuai calmly took the bag of clothes. “We’re in a relationship. We love each other deeply.”

Tian Yuanyuan reached out to feel Shen Xinghuai’s forehead. “Xinghuai, are you sick? Let me take you to the hospital.”

Shen Xinghuai dodged his hand. “I’m not sick.” I’ve just had a change of soul, that’s all.

“Then how could you possibly be with Ye Xiuchen? The man is a psychopath! How could you—”

“Yuanyuan,” Shen Xinghuai interrupted him sharply. “I love him because of his madness.”

Tian Yuanyuan’s entire worldview shattered into pieces. “Did he, did he put a hex on you?”

Behind the surveillance screen, Ye Xiuchen’s expression was even more complex than Tian Yuanyuan’s.

“He is the person I love most,” Shen Xinghuai continued, “and you are my best friend. I don’t want there to be any misunderstandings between the two of you.”

“The person you love most? The person you love most?” Tian Yuanyuan muttered blankly, slumping onto the sofa. He had been so overstimulated today that his expression had gone completely vacant.

Taking advantage of his friend’s dazed state, Shen Xinghuai headed into the bathroom to get dressed. By the time he emerged, Tian Yuanyuan was still staring into space. It took two calls for him to snap out of it.

“Xinghuai, there’s no one else here, just us. Tell me the truth—what are you really doing this for?”

Shen Xinghuai had hated Ye Xiuchen so much he wouldn’t even look at him. This sudden 180-degree turn made no sense to Tian Yuanyuan; he was convinced there was a hidden motive.

Shen Xinghuai hesitated for a moment. “Yuanyuan, fine. I’ll tell you the truth.” He lowered himself onto the sofa beside his friend.

Finally, the truth. A look of mockery and disdain flickered across Ye Xiuchen’s face behind the screen. He picked up the coffee his secretary had just delivered and brought it to his lips.

Shen Xinghuai let out a long, heavy sigh and spoke with utmost gravity. “Yuanyuan, the truth is, I’ve always liked Ye Xiuchen in secret. I’ve had a crush on him for a very long time.”

Pfft!

The coffee Ye Xiuchen had just sipped sprayed across his desk in an uncontrolled burst.