I Became the Darling of the Wealthy Through Gossip - Chapter 11

The sky gradually turned pale, and the streetlights went out one by one. The morning sun streamed through the half-open curtains, casting dappled circles of light on the quilt, warm and cozy.

Qi Beichen turned over. Before he even opened his eyes, his hands instinctively tightened around something. A warm touch, an excellent tactile sensation, smooth and moist skin in an instant, he was wide awake. He couldn’t sleep; he was literally holding a living person in his arms.

He opened his eyes and first saw Bai Muxuan’s face. Sunlight spilled in, gilding him with a warm edge. His eyelashes were long; he was still asleep, fluttering slightly.

Qi Beichen reached out to gently brush the edge of those eyelashes. They fluttered even faster, and he hurriedly retracted his hand, only to be grabbed directly by Bai Muxuan.

“Dare to do it, but don’t dare to admit it?”

Qi Beichen felt like he wanted to spring out of bed. “Um, Brother Muxuan, how did we end up holding each other?”

“Last night, you were the one who said you wanted to watch the stars in the hot spring. Who knew? You drank more than half a bottle of red wine on your own. Once the alcohol kicked in, you stopped watching the stars and wouldn’t let go of me, insisting on telling me everything you had been through.”

Qi Beichen shook his head and pressed his temples gently. It hurt a bit. He tried hard to recall what happened last night, but after dinner, he remembered almost nothing. He asked tentatively, “Um, did… did anything happen?”

Qi Beichen glanced at the floor, where several transparent little balloons lay bloated and plump. His internal alarm bells started ringing wildly.

“What do you want to have happened?”

“No, nothing, I’m just worried. I’m not very graceful when I sleep. What if I accidentally kicked you off the bed? My image would be ruined, wouldn’t it?”

But Qi Beichen’s eyes never left those little bags on the floor.

Bai Muxuan pulled the quilt away. “You didn’t have much of an image to begin with.”

“This was you yesterday, drunk, saying you wanted to blow up balloons to play with. You dismantled several boxes yourself, and only stopped when you were tired of blowing them up. You even asked me why these balloons had such good elasticity, and complained that it was a shame they weren’t colorful so you could give them to the kids to play with.”

“You also said this model of balloon was sturdy and durable, and should be sold for five yuan each.”

I have to say, Qi Beichen wanted to find a hole to crawl into. How could he have been so ridiculous? “Then… the hotel belongs to Xie Zhixu, so…”

“So what? There’s a fixed quantity of these inside. They surely know how many were used. It doesn’t matter; the more you try to explain, the darker it looks.”

Qi Beichen’s collar was slightly open, revealing snowy-white shoulders and exquisite collarbones. Just having woken up, the corners of his eyes were still tinged with a faint red, and his eyes were glistening. Feeling uncomfortable being gripped, he twisted his waist, and a pair of boxers with pink lace peeking out from the edge of his pajamas.

Only then did Qi Beichen feel something was wrong. “Um, Brother Muxuan, my clothes…”

The moment Bai Muxuan handed him his clothes, scenes from yesterday flashed through his brain: He was standing naked in the hot spring, holding several bags of balloons, twisting left and right. “I love taking baths, my skin feels so good, lu-la-la-la…”

Bai Muxuan’s rolling eyes were a critical strike.

“You washed yourself, and you even sang. Later, when you were dazed and confused, I was the one who changed you into your pajamas. You couldn’t just wear a bathrobe; you’d catch a cold. You have to take good care of yourself. Also, don’t drink so much. What if it had been someone else?”

“Brother Muxuan, if it had been someone else, I wouldn’t have drunk at all. This is a sign of my trust in you.”

“What if I weren’t a good person either?”

“Well, my sixth sense is very strong. I feel like you are a good person.”

“Tsk, the human heart is malicious. Watch your butt.”

Qi Beichen patted his butt it was soft and had excellent elasticity.

“This is my dynamic ‘bouncy-bouncy’ butt; one ‘bounce’ for everyone.”

He lowered his head shyly. “My butt isn’t fun to play with.”

“Qi Beichen, I really don’t know what to say to you.”

Qi Beichen noticed his clothes were loose and pulled them up.

“Um, Brother Muxuan, did I do anything bad? If I did, that was all just ramblings from being drunk. You’re a generous person, don’t hold a grudge against a small person like me, I…”

Bai Muxuan wanted to turn over, but was held tightly by Qi Beichen, leaving no room to move. “Beichen, do you like men?”

BOOM. Qi Beichen’s mind went blank. “No, I’m straight as an arrow! I absolutely couldn’t possibly fancy a brother from a family friend’s household!”

“Then why are you hugging tighter and tighter? Or are you feeling cold?”

Qi Beichen let go immediately. “Um, Brother Muxuan, I—I was just doing it subconsciously. Please don’t take it to heart. And, um, no one here knows about this. It’s just heaven knows, earth knows, you know, and I know. I won’t pass this on.”

Bai Muxuan’s expression turned dark. One hand grabbed Qi Beichen’s arm, while the other hooked around his neck. His breathing sounded right by his ear. “Beichen, are you really not going to pass it on?”

“Re—really, Brother Muxuan, don’t scare me. I’m quite timid.”

Bai Muxuan squinted his eyes and breathed into his ear. “I haven’t even said how I’m going to deal with you, and you’re already afraid?”

Qi Beichen’s brain was frozen with nervousness. He couldn’t just “receive his lunch box” (die) like this—he was unwilling! Qi Beixing hadn’t been dealt with, and he hadn’t won the family property yet; it wasn’t satisfying enough!

“Pfft…”

Bai Muxuan released Qi Beichen. “That’s all it took to scare you?”

Qi Beichen paused, then immediately came to his senses. Wrapped in his quilt, he retreated backward until he was at the edge of the bed, half his butt hanging in the air.

“Brother Muxuan, I mean what I say. I absolutely won’t break my word.”

Bai Muxuan got up directly and opened the curtains. He looked outside; the weather was nice, and the sun was shining fully into the room, making it warm. “It’s nothing. You were just drunk. I’m not that petty…”

Beep-beep-beep…

Before Bai Muxuan could finish speaking, Qi Beichen’s phone rang. It showed Qi Run’s number.

Qi Beichen perked up instantly and looked at the time: eight o’clock. Damn it, he’d forgotten something important.

“Dad…”

“Beichen, where are you? Beixing and I are almost at the company; we haven’t been able to reach you.”

Qi Beichen looked at the messages on his phone, and now he was completely awake.

[Qi Run: Beichen, are you awake? A batch of high-end stock is arriving today.] [Qi Run: Still asleep? You can’t be late.] [Qi Beixing: Jinx, get up quickly. What a nuisance.]

Qi Beichen was stunned—drinking caused mistakes, truly disastrous mistakes.

“Beichen, what’s wrong? Why are you suddenly silent?”

“Um, Dad, the signal here is a bit bad. I’m already on the road; I’ll be there soon.”

“That’s fine. See you later.”

Qi Beichen looked sorrowfully at Bai Muxuan, who was standing by the window, like a deflated ball. He looked at the address Qi Run had sent yesterday and pulled up the GPS—it would take at least half an hour to get there. Looking at the segments of red on the road, he was truly done for.

“What do I do? I’m going to be late.”

“Put on your clothes and let’s go right now. What time did you agree to meet?”

“We agreed on nine, but this road seems quite congested.”

Qi Beichen tugged at his clothes, again with those detestable socks he couldn’t get off or on. He spent a long time struggling, panting, with sweat on his forehead.

“It should be fine; we can arrive on time. I’ll drive you over.”

“Then, Brother Muxuan, what about them?”

“Who?”

“The gossipers… they…”

“They probably aren’t up yet. Just leave them a message.”

Qi Beichen thought it was feasible. Besides, slipping away while they were all asleep was a perfect opportunity. If he missed it, this group would likely surround him and ask all sorts of questions, turning white into black.

Bai Muxuan walked over to Qi Beichen with the safflower oil. “Extend your foot.”

Before Qi Beichen’s brain could react, his foot obediently extended. The moment the oil touched the sole of his foot, it was searing hot—it felt different from yesterday by “a billion points.”

“Actually, I can do it myself.”

Bai Muxuan massaged his foot earnestly without looking up. “It’s about force. You’re too soft on yourself because you’re afraid of the pain.”

“Aiy, Brother Muxuan, how did you know?”

“Guessed.”

The soles of Qi Beichen’s feet still ached faintly, but they were much better than yesterday, and the credit, of course, belonged to Bai Muxuan.

Sitting in Bai Muxuan’s car, the faint scent of cologne was a thousand times better than the mixed smells in Qi Beixing’s closet. Such an atmosphere could only relax his mind, and he immediately entered sleep mode.

“Qi Beichen, I’ve discovered you really like to sleep.”

Qi Beichen’s head was about to hit the side window when he jerked back to consciousness. “Um, I’ve just been mentally exhausted the past few days, so I haven’t slept very well.”

“Last night, you slept very well. You held the quilt tight; as soon as I pulled it over, you snatched it back. What’s more, you were like an octopus, wrapping your arms around my waist and refusing to let go.”

Qi Beichen blushed. “Brother Muxuan, I didn’t mean to, do you believe me?”

“I’d have to be a ghost to believe that.”

“Brother Muxuan, heaven knows, earth knows, you know, and I know—no one else will know.”

“You’re quite clever.”

Bai Muxuan chose a remote small road that wasn’t prone to traffic jams. He’d driven this way often before, but with the cooling weather, the scenery outside was desolate, with the occasional “quack, quack” sound of birds.

As he watched the scenery outside become increasingly desolate, Qi Beichen’s heart was in his throat. Twenty-six ways to die cycled through his brain, each one more perverted than the last.

“Brother Muxuan, you aren’t going to kill me to silence me, are you?”

Bai Muxuan watched the road ahead earnestly. “What?”

“You know, the kind where you hack someone into eight pieces, then seal them in a cement barrel. Then, over a decade later, no one knows what’s inside, and then, for some unknown reason, it shifts, and that’s the only way they find the corpse.”

“Qi Beichen, do you watch too many horror movies, or too many decryption blogger videos? This is a society ruled by law; there’s no need to use methods like that to deal with you.”

Qi Beichen carefully moved his wrists. “Really? Or is it that my IQ isn’t worth dealing with…”

Bai Muxuan’s car turned off the small path, and a wide road suddenly appeared before them; the oppression of a moment ago vanished instantly.

“Qi Beichen, don’t overthink it—where would so much ‘stuff’ come from? A left turn ahead is the Qi family’s jade company, and on the other side of the overpass is the hospital where I work. Understand now?”

Qi Beichen breathed a sigh of relief. “Understood. So, the places where we’ll work in the future are so close. Can I hitch a ride?”

He was truly pushing his luck.

“As you like.”

The car stopped in front of the Qi building. Qi Beichen unbuckled his seatbelt and smiled at Bai Muxuan. “Um, thank you, Brother Muxuan. I’m going in.”

He opened the door, and a chill rushed in, making him shiver.

“The temperature is dropping, wear more clothes.”

Qi Beichen nodded and walked toward the company entrance. Bai Muxuan watched his back, looked at the Jiangcheng Hospital opposite, and started the engine, turning into the auxiliary lane.

Qi Beichen glanced at the time. Not bad: 8:58 AM. Exactly two minutes to spare.

“Brother Beichen, coming in right at the last second, I see.”

The voice of Qi Beixing came from behind. Two days of not seeing him, and he was still as punchable as ever.

“There’s still two minutes; it doesn’t count as late.”

“Just getting here is enough. Today’s goal is to let you both see the situation here. After all, I’m getting older, and the company will eventually be handed over to you both.”

“Beichen, follow me, over here.” Qi Run beckoned to Qi Beichen.

The long corridor had entire walls of glass, with sunlight streaming in diagonally, warm and pleasant. The indoor space contained slabs of jade, while some were raw stones that hadn’t been opened yet.

“It’s this room.”

In the enormous room, more than a dozen tables held jade slabs that had already been cut. They were already marked with circular outlines and outlines for small items. With base lights hitting them, the colors were excellent.

Rich green, the agility of “spring color” (lavender and green), and the intensity of yellow jade.

“These slabs all came from the mines in Beijing; the cutting results look quite good.”

Qi Run pointed to the raw jade stones on the floor. “These are materials from the Moxisha mining area.”

Qi Beichen didn’t understand jade, but he’d heard enough introductions on treasure appraisal shows. This kind of intense green ice-seed jade was a high-end commodity, often worth hundreds of thousands or even millions. He swallowed this was a fat piece of meat.

“Tsk, Brother Beichen, what kind of expression is that? Never seen it before?”

Qi Beichen touched the jade slab gently. “Mm, never seen it, it’s very pretty.”

Qi Beixing looked at him with disdain. “These are just a part of the Qi family’s industries.”

Qi Beichen’s eyes sparkled or rather, what was flashing inside were all dollar signs. Everything was money. He lowered his head and looked at the raw stones at his feet, his eyes glowing.

“I’ve already decided. Beichen has had a hard time in the outside world for so many years. Three percent of the company’s shares will be given to him, and we’ll see how he performs.”

Qi Beixing froze, then grabbed Qi Run’s arm. “Dad, Brother Beichen just came back; he’s not familiar with the business here. If you give him the shares and he happens to cause losses, what then?”

Qi patted his hand. “There’s still you here. You’ll always know what’s going on; teach him.”

Qi Beixing glanced at Qi Beichen. “Dad, Brother Beichen is a medical student; he doesn’t know about the jade business at all. If he loses money, what then?”

“If he loses money, the family can cover it; it’s not a big problem.”

“Dad, this is blatant favoritism.”

“Your shares are at five percent; how is that favoritism?”

Fine. They weren’t even acting anymore; this was true favoritism.

“Dad, actually, it doesn’t matter if I get the shares or not. As long as the family is happy and together, that’s the best thing.”

Qi Run stopped walking. “You can’t let outsiders laugh at the Qi family. What’s given to you is yours. The Qi family isn’t short of this little bit.”

“Oh… thank you, Dad.”

Qi Beixing deliberately walked slower and hissed darkly, “Qi Beichen, you just wait.”

Qi Beichen made a face on purpose. “Mm, I’m waiting. Not that I care for it anyway.”