My Elite Boss Is Carrying My Child - Chapter 19

Qi Jiezhi said, “I didn’t mean it like that, I’m just afraid people might misunderstand you, Ming-ge.”

Qu Mingluo replied, “It doesn’t matter, or are you afraid they’ll think there’s something between us and it’ll get in your way?”

“I didn’t mean that at all!” Qi Jiezhi quickly denied it. He truly didn’t have such thoughts, so of course, he wouldn’t admit to it.

“Brother,” Xi Xingyu piped up, “Brother Xiao Qi’s face is all red, you’re bullying him.”

“I’m not,” Qu Mingluo said, “I’m just asking.”

Qi Jiezhi nodded, “If Mr. Qu has no objection, then neither do I.”

In any case, there were already plenty of rumors about their relationship, and no one was asking him to manage them. Since Qu Mingluo didn’t see an issue, he decided to stop worrying about it.

Xi Xingyu looked at Qi Jiezhi, then at Qu Mingluo, and asked, “Why do you both look so uncomfortable?”

Qi Jiezhi coughed first, then said, “It’s actually nothing.”

Once he said that, Xi Xingyu believed him, and Qu Mingluo nodded in agreement.

The boy said, “It’s okay, but you both look unhappy, and you shouldn’t be like that.” He thought for a moment before leading them both to a nearby stall. “Quick, pick something you like!”

Hearing this, neither of them said another word. They had a silent understanding that these matters had nothing to do with Xi Xingyu, there was no need to make him worry. He was still just a child, and there was no reason to involve him.

“Then I’ll have something sweet,” Qi Jiezhi said. “Xiao Xing, thank you.”

Xi Xingyu asked, “What about Brother?”

“Let me see,” Qu Mingluo told him.

With that, everyone cheered up. Before long, all three of them had selected the drinks they wanted.

Xi Xingyu truly loved both of his “brothers,” even though Qi Jiezhi wasn’t related to him by blood. He really loved this feeling, as if these two could stay by his side as his brothers forever.

“Brother Xiao Qi, Brother, can we come out to play like this again in the future?” Xi Xingyu asked.

For Xi Xingyu, joy like today’s was rare. Qu Mingluo hadn’t accompanied him much in the past, so the recent change was something he hadn’t expected at all.

Qu Mingluo glanced at Qi Jiezhi, who then asked the boy, “Why wouldn’t we?”

“That’s wonderful!”

After getting that answer, Xi Xingyu was overjoyed. He was always like this, as long as he received a positive confirmation, he would be happy.

After finishing their drinks, they headed back together. Xi Xingyu was a man of his word, so once they returned, he went straight to his desk without needing a reminder. Qi Jiezhi stayed by his side to keep him company, while Qu Mingluo went to handle his own affairs. Everyone had a clear role and didn’t disturb one another.

Xi Xingyu hadn’t been exaggerating, he really didn’t have much work left to finish. Seeing him in this state made Qi Jiezhi feel genuinely happy, to him, Xi Xingyu was no different from a real younger brother. They had known each other for a long time, and having taught him so diligently, Qi Jiezhi felt a great sense of accomplishment seeing the boy improve.

Later in the evening, Qu Mingluo personally brought snacks and drinks to them. Xi Xingyu was quite surprised to see him, as Qu Mingluo had never done this before. He rarely interrupted them and usually had a mountain of his own work to do.

“Brother?”

“You can take a break before continuing,” Qu Mingluo said.

Xi Xingyu was stunned. He knew perfectly well that this wasn’t like his brother’s personality. Qu Mingluo was the type who liked to finish whatever was in front of him before considering anything else. He almost never gave up halfway, nor did he like it when others did. Usually, he wouldn’t say anything, but he certainly wouldn’t actively encourage a break.

“Brother, you’re being very strange today,” Xi Xingyu said. “Do you have something you want to say to Brother Xiao Qi?”

“No, I just saw you two playing for so long and wanted to come back and see if I was interfering,” Qu Mingluo told him.

Xi Xingyu nodded. He thought the reason made perfect sense, his brother was indeed that kind of person.

“Oh, so you were checking to see if I was talking nonsense? Of course I wasn’t!” Xi Xingyu spoke with a hint of pride. He hadn’t been lying, and as he had said before, he was perfectly capable of finishing his tasks.

Qu Mingluo didn’t stay long. After a few casual words, he left without any intention of hovering.

“Brother Xiao Qi, I still think my brother is being really strange,” Xi Xingyu whispered. Qu Mingluo had already left, so he wouldn’t know what they were saying, but Xi Xingyu still glanced toward the door.

“If your brother wanted to tell you, he would. If he doesn’t want to say, we shouldn’t ask,” Qi Jiezhi told him.

Xi Xingyu nodded at that, agreeing that it was the right way to handle it. Qu Mingluo was always capable of managing his own affairs and didn’t need anyone to worry about him, so if he didn’t speak up, there was no need to pry.

Later, after they finished the homework, they went downstairs together. By then, Qu Mingluo had already changed into loungewear. He had clearly showered and would likely go to bed as soon as he finished his remaining work.

Qi Jiezhi stole a glance at him, unable to stop his mind from drifting. He knew it was his own issue because he was gay. He had told himself this many times, yet he still couldn’t control his thoughts. Qu Mingluo was gentle and capable in so many ways, Qi Jiezhi was naturally drawn to that. Even when Qu Mingluo was just acting perfectly normal, without any hidden meaning.

“Brother.”

Xi Xingyu ran to his side and reached out his arms. Qu Mingluo picked him up and sat him down on the sofa, and the two of them huddled together. Qi Jiezhi didn’t say anything, just watched them.

“Brother Xiao Qi, do you want to come sit with us?” Xi Xingyu invited.

Qi Jiezhi walked over and sat down beside them.

“It’s getting late, do you want to go to sleep?” Xi Xingyu asked Qu Mingluo.

“If you’re tired, go rest. I’m not finished with my work yet, I’ll go later,” Qu Mingluo told him.

“Will it take a long time?” Xi Xingyu asked.

“Not necessarily,” Qu Mingluo said. “But you sleep by yourself anyway, you don’t need to wait for me.”

“Alright then,” Xi Xingyu said. “If you say it like that, you obviously don’t want me staying here, so I’ll go.”

Qi Jiezhi wasn’t sure how the boy reached that conclusion, but since he said it, Qi Jiezhi followed suit and said he was going up to rest as well. Qu Mingluo nodded and didn’t say anything more.

Once they were upstairs, Xi Xingyu said, “Goodnight, Brother Xiao Qi.”

Qi Jiezhi replied, “Goodnight, Xiao Xing.”

He didn’t know why, but perhaps because the three of them had spent so much time together today, he felt a sense of emptiness now that Qu Mingluo wasn’t in sight. It was obvious Qu Mingluo had a lot of work to handle, he had so much on his plate that even Xi Xingyu wouldn’t dare disturb him. To the man, he had to control the direction of the entire company. His task was completely different from everyone else’s, if he made a mistake, thousands of people would be affected.

The responsibility he carried was heavy. Thinking about this, Qi Jiezhi finally understood why Qu Mingluo wanted him to come and help look after Xi Xingyu. After all, when someone is alone, there are bound to be oversights.

Qi Jiezhi showered and went to bed. He didn’t spend too much more energy thinking about it, since he couldn’t help Qu Mingluo with his work, thinking about it was useless.

The next morning, he woke up quite early. He sat by himself for a while before Qu Mingluo pushed the door open and walked in. This rarely happened, so Qu Mingluo was a bit surprised.

“Why are you up so early today?” Qu Mingluo asked.

“I woke up and couldn’t get back to sleep, so I just got up,” Qi Jiezhi said. “It was only a few minutes early.”

Qu Mingluo nodded, and Qi Jiezhi said, “Good morning, Ming-ge.”

Qu Mingluo nodded back. “I won’t disturb you. Once you’re ready, we’ll head out together.”

Qi Jiezhi gave a word of confirmation and sat down to eat breakfast. Yesterday had been his rare day off, today, of course, it was back to work.

However, while on the road, he remembered the incident with the “Keyboard Guy” from yesterday. If that man really said something online, there was no way Qi Jiezhi could stop it. If he said a few things in a work group, everyone would see it. It was easy to understand that what someone chose to say was their own business, and others had no right to interfere.

Qi Jiezhi understood this completely and wouldn’t be heartbroken over it. If anything, he was mainly worried about whether this would have any impact on Qu Mingluo. But if it did affect him, what could Qi Jiezhi possibly say to help silence those rumors?

“Why have you looked so down the whole way here?” Qu Mingluo asked him as they were about to arrive.

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