I Became the Darling of the Wealthy Through Gossip - Chapter 3

As dinner approached, the head of the Qi family finally returned. Qi Beichen had not yet met this so-called father and was mentally calculating how to greet him.

He stood in front of a full-length mirror, practicing a fake smile. Eight teeth showing, corners of the mouth lifted. Where are those chopsticks? I need some chopsticks.

Qi Beichen rummaged through his suitcase, and sure enough, he found a pair of disposable chopsticks inside. “Heaven helps me!”

He sat on the bed and snapped the chopsticks apart. “Sss…”

The sharp splinter of the chopstick jabbed into his fingertip right where he had been cut by the blade earlier that morning. A small bead of blood seeped out. Damn, that’s some bad luck.

The phone on his bed flashed with a glint of light, and an idea occurred to him. If he wanted to cling firmly to this “thigh” (his powerful backer), the first step was to get their contact information; only then could the plan proceed smoothly.

Knock, knock, knock.

A flurry of urgent knocking came at the door.

“Get out here, now!”

The voice outside was Qi Beixing’s. That jinx nothing good ever came from him showing up at this time.

Qi Beichen straightened his clothes, stood before the mirror, and turned on his tiptoes. It really was quite good; the deep brown suit was perfectly tailored. Those who didn’t know would think it was custom-made. It was truly perfect.

He opened the door to see Qi Beixing pinching his nose in disgust, leaning against the doorframe. “What is that smell? Tsk. Dad is back, you know? Know what to say and what not to say, you understand?”

“Oh, got it, I understand. Whatever you say, goes.”

“If Mom hadn’t asked me to come up and call you, I wouldn’t even bother with you.”

“Oh, well, if you’re too lazy to bother, you could have just stayed indifferent. But I’m afraid your ‘well-behaved’ image wouldn’t survive that.”

“You!”

“Beichen, Beixing, what are you two dawdling about upstairs? The banquet is starting soon! Hurry up!” Mother Qi’s voice drifted up from downstairs.

Qi Beichen glanced at the time it was only a little past six. In the original owner’s memory, the banquet was scheduled for eight. So, this meant they had nearly two hours; was this a dress rehearsal?

Qi Beichen followed Qi Beixing downstairs. The first thing he saw was a middle-aged man sitting on the sofa. His aura was quite imposing. Looking at his features, one had to admit that blood was thicker than water—they were carved from the same mold.

Qi Run, the head of the Qi family, had made his first fortune in real estate in his early years. Later, he followed the advice of a master from Nanshan Temple, saying that if they wanted to truly stand firm in Jiangcheng, they had to enter the jewelry industry. And look at him now he had transformed into a jewelry tycoon.

“Beichen, come, sit.”

Qi Beichen took small, cautious steps forward and sat at the far end of the sofa.

“Since you’ve returned, we haven’t had a proper chance to chat like this. There’s a mineral vein discovered in Beijing recently, and we’re in the middle of negotiations. Today is your reunion banquet, so I finally found some free time. I haven’t really looked after you—you don’t have any hard feelings about that, do you, Beichen?”

“Dad, work comes first. My personal matters are small things.”

“How can you call this a small matter? This is a major event for the Qi family. In a few days, let’s go to Nanshan Temple together to burn incense and pray. Beichen, how have you been these past few years?”

Qi Beichen had no idea how the original owner had lived, but he had to make something up regardless.

“These years? Hmm, not good, not bad. The head of the orphanage took good care of me. After graduating from university, I studied for my postgraduate entrance exam and succeeded. I suppose I’ve had my own goals to strive for.”

“That’s good. However, Beichen, there are some things I still need to tell you.”

“Yes, Dad, please tell me. I’m listening.”

“Back then, we took you to the amusement park. We never imagined that while at the carousel, you would disappear in the blink of an eye. We searched for a long time afterward. Since we didn’t have any children, we adopted Beixing. It’s been over twenty years, and we have developed real feelings. From now on, you are the big brother.”

Qi Beichen finally understood: they had raised him for twenty years and had feelings for him, so they were reluctant to let him go. Plus, he was raised in gold and silver, carefully cultivated certainly better than a wild child like himself who grew up in an orphanage.

“Yes, I understand. Beixing is my own brother.”

“As long as you understand. At home, we won’t shortchange either of you brothers. Everyone will be treated equally.”

Qi Beichen’s mouth twitched. Whether it was equal or not, he would just go along with it for now. “Yes, Dad, I know.”

“Alright, the time is about right. The guests will be here soon. The Qi family hasn’t been this lively in a long time.”

Truth be told, Qi Beichen was ten thousand times unwilling to stand on that temporary stage. Although there weren’t many guests, the original book had written that these were all prominent figures in Jiangcheng.

Qi Beichen stood on the far edge, while Qi Beixing stood between the couple. No matter how you looked at it, they seemed like the real family, and he was just someone Qi Run had begrudgingly brought back.

A whispering sound rose from the crowd below.

[Is it true? This eldest Qi son disappeared for over twenty years; they used to say he was dead.]

[I heard the Nanshan Temple in Hai City is very effective. We should see what we want to pray for when we go there; maybe we’ll actually get results.]

[Forget it, this is just the Qi family’s eldest son being lucky. Who knows which corner of the world he was dug out from.]

Cough, cough, cough!

The lights in the banquet hall instantly focused on them.

“Everyone, we searched for Beichen for over twenty years. Perhaps the heavens have eyes; we didn’t expect to find him at an orphanage here in Jiangcheng. Our family is finally reunited.”

Su Yao stepped back a few steps, tugged on Qi Beichen’s clothes, and whispered, “Come, Beichen, stand in the middle. We are a family.”

Qi Beichen was pulled and shoved to the very center. He waved at the people below the stage. “Being able to return to my roots and back to the Qi family, I am truly happy. Dad, Mom, little brother, I hope our family can be harmonious and happy every day from now on.”

Qi Run took out a red folder. “Beichen, this is the property deed for the villa in the south of the city. It’s in your name; it’s my gift to you.”

Su Yao held a jade thumb ring in her hand. “Beichen, this was left to me by Qi Run’s mother; now, I’m handing it to you.”

Qi Beixing looked unwilling but held a bouquet of flowers. “Brother Beichen, welcome home.”

Qi Beichen paused, then pinched his palm hard. It hurt enough to make him tremble, allowing him to squeeze out a trace of a sob. “Dad… Mom… Brother…”

The flashbulbs in the crowd began to go “click, click.”

Another wave of whispers spread through the crowd.

[What a touching family drama.]

[Won’t this be the headline in the Jiangcheng Morning Post tomorrow?]

[Maybe the Jiang family’s stocks will hit the limit again, making them rich.]

The noise from below never stopped. Qi Beichen didn’t even know what his expression looked like right now.

The simple reunion act was over.

“Alright, everyone, eat well, drink well, and have a good time!”

Qi Beichen had managed to endure the reunion. Keeping up this facade was truly tiring.

Seeing everyone clinking glasses in the banquet hall, he had no interest. He didn’t know many people here, so he hunkered down on a sofa in the furthest corner, playing with his phone.

He didn’t know until he looked—and once he did, he was shocked. This phone of the original owner was not ordinary.

The content in the message box was even more explosive.

[Qi Beichen: Second Young Master Su, this is Qi Beichen of the Qi family. Do you have time this weekend? Let’s grab a meal together.]

[Qi Beichen: Second Young Master Liang, this is Qi Beichen of the Qi family. I heard a bowling alley opened south of the city. I heard you like bowling. Are you interested in going together this weekend?]

[Qi Beichen: Fourth Young Master Xie, this is Qi Beichen of the Qi family. I recently acquired a jade pendant that I guarantee you will like. When are you free? I’ll send it over to you.]

However, none of these messages received any reply. Perhaps these people didn’t care at all.

Great, the original owner was a social butterfly. No—wait, how did he get these people’s WeChat IDs?

There was no memory of this in the original owner’s mind, but it didn’t matter. What mattered was the phone number of that “thigh”—that was the top priority.

Qi Beichen hurriedly flipped through the contacts. Bai Muxuan. Tsk, it’s actually there. That was effortless! He had originally been wondering how to hug that thigh, but now he had proximity to power. He would just have to build a relationship and cling tight to that thick thigh to ensure nothing went wrong.

“Mom, don’t worry about it. I’ll take big brother to meet our business partners. Besides, those young masters are our age; we’ll be able to talk easily.”

Qi Beichen swirled the red wine in his glass. Qi Beixing’s voice reached his ears.

“Fine, you young people play together.”

Qi Beixing glanced at Qi Beichen, who was sitting in the corner, his face full of smiles.

“Brother Beichen, how boring to drink alone here. Why don’t I take you to meet the young masters of other families, how about that?”

Qi Beichen had no choice; Su Yao was standing right there, so he had no reason to refuse.

“Sure, you’re the boss.”

“Mom, we’re heading over.”

Seeing Su Yao turn away, Qi Beixing showed a look of disgust. “Walking with you is really demeaning.”

“So, you’re a demeaning little brother then?”

“You!”

Qi Beixing followed Qi Beichen, walking side-by-side against his will.

They hadn’t walked for long before they heard whispers everywhere.

[Do you think the Qi family’s business is about to change?]

[Forget it. Haven’t you heard? This guy acts like a social butterfly, talking to the young masters of every family.]

[Exactly. I heard that as soon as he entered the Qi family, he ran into Second Young Master Su and shamelessly demanded his WeChat ID. It’s shameless. Could he be using some dirty tricks?]

A hundred question marks popped up in Qi Beichen’s mind. He already knew this was a BL (Boys’ Love) novel, but the author clearly wrote that it was 1v1. Why did the script seem wrong? It felt like he was buying stocks.

[Right? He was just recognized, so maybe he really has some kind of backer.]

[Look at him. Who is he planning to hook up with this time? But does anyone actually care about him?]

Qi Beichen’s face darkened. What could he do about it?

Thud!

“Which blind fool is blocking…”

Before Qi Beichen could continue, he looked at the man in front of him—he was truly handsome.

A blue gold-embroidered dress suit, a rose tucked into his chest—the typical look of a spoiled rich kid.

Qi Beichen rubbed his head. “Hello.”

“Changed your personality today? So well-behaved.”

“Whoa, so Second Young Master Su is here. Did you run into another porcelain-toucher (scammer)?”

The young man who walked over had chestnut hair and a small ponytail, his gaze locking onto Qi Beichen. “Tsk, it really is a scammer.”

From the man’s words, he learned that the person he had bumped into was Second Young Master Su. So who was this? There were too many people here; it was hard to recognize everyone.

The man looked him up and down. “Clothes really do make the man. After dressing up, you aren’t the little white lotus you used to be; now you’ve become a peacock.”

Qi Beichen was speechless. He hadn’t even figured out what was going on, and he was already being subjected to personal attacks.

“Um, hello.”

Qi Beixing put on a fawning smile. “Second Brother Liang, I brought Brother Beichen over to play with you all. I didn’t expect you to know each other. Well, we’ll head over there; it’s enough that we’ve met.”

“He already ran into Second Young Master Su’s arms, tsk, tsk, tsk. You can’t judge a book by its cover. Second Young Master Su, you’d better be careful.”

Damn. Qi Beichen had no choice but to take the blame.

“Um, everyone, please excuse me.”

He really, really wanted to find a hole to crawl into.

The two walked outside the banquet hall to a lawn. It was yellow and wilted. Since it was nearing winter, there was no one outside, which was quite peaceful.

“Qi Beixing, speak. What are you trying to do this time?”

Qi Beixing shrugged. “I’m not trying to do anything. Besides, today is Brother Beichen’s reunion banquet. What could I do? I wouldn’t ruin it. Look, the young masters of these families are all lining up to get to know you.”

“Is that so? If this ‘blessing’ were yours, would you want it?”

“You!” Qi Beixing was so angry he nearly stomped his foot. “Let’s go, let’s go, it’s suffocating here.”

The air outside was nice, but with winter approaching, a gust of cold wind blew over, making Qi Beichen shiver.

“Why did you bring me to a place like this? Didn’t you say I was going to meet guests? Are there any here?”

Qi Beixing looked at the swimming pool to the side. “Of course there are. This is an excellent spot.” Qi Beixing pointed upwards.

This position was indeed not bad; it was perfectly facing the banquet hall below. Every move made there could be seen clearly from here.

Qi Beixing looked smug. He grabbed Qi Beichen’s clothes and shouted loudly, “Brother Beichen, I was wrong! I shouldn’t have fought you for your position. I am just the adopted son of the Qi family; I’m nothing. You are the legitimate successor!”

Damn. Qi Beichen wanted to let go, but there was a swimming pool right behind Qi Beixing. If he really let go, he’d be finished. This person’s acting skills were superb—it was a waste that he hadn’t become a movie star.

“Qi Beixing, is your acting addiction acting up again? No one is watching the play here.”

Qi Beixing glanced toward the shadows.

“Brother Beichen, you’ve already received Father’s property and the family thumb ring. Can’t you just let me go…”

People appeared from nowhere, beginning to watch this small, trivial farce.

[Is it true that the eldest Qi master knows how to hook up with people? Look at him, with those red lips and white teeth could he have been involved in that kind of business?]

[The younger Qi master is pitiful too. He was raised for over twenty years only to find out he’s adopted. Tsk, here comes a good show.]

[Wasn’t it already said that the Qi family’s assets belonged to Qi Beixing? Could something have changed?]

Qi Beixing curled his lips into a smile. “Brother Beichen, in terms of acting, I’m number one. Just wait.”

Qi Beixing forcefully pushed Qi Beichen back.

Qi Beichen tried to grab him, but due to momentum, he grabbed empty air.

Qi Beixing was about to fall into the water.

A figure rushed up from behind and grabbed him. “Second Young Master Qi, it’s almost winter. An outdoor pool is not suitable for swimming—it’s easy to catch a cold.”

He then casually tossed him aside.

Seeing who had rushed out, Qi Beichen’s eyes immediately filled with stars. It was Bai Muxuan. Last time, it was also Bai Muxuan who rescued him in time. It was him again. He couldn’t… Qi Beichen didn’t dare continue that train of thought.

“Stand still, Second Young Master Qi. If you’re prone to slipping, I suggest you stay away from the pool. The edge is slippery. What if…”

“No, that’s not it—Brother Muxuan, I didn’t slip. Didn’t you see it?”

Bai Muxuan looked at Qi Beichen and smiled at him. “We meet again. You performed well at tonight’s banquet.”

Qi Beichen was so excited he felt like he was flying. “Brother Muxuan, I—actually, I was quite nervous. After all, I’ve never attended this kind of banquet since I was a child.”

“It’s fine. Since you’ve entered this circle, there will be many such banquets in the future.”

“Brother Muxuan, how can you be like this? You’re biased! Clearly, clearly I… was just pushed down!”

Bai Muxuan smiled at Qi Beixing. “Is that so? Did anyone around see it?”

“Brother Muxuan, you’re biased!”

“I just can’t stand it.”

The young masters and ladies who had been watching all turned their heads to chat among themselves, ignoring the situation.

“Everyone, get out of the way!”

Someone suddenly burst out from the crowd, shouting toward them.