The next morning
When Liang Xiao woke up in Huo Lan’s arms, Huo Lan waited for him to stir before getting up and heading to the bathroom to freshen up.
The butler had been lingering outside the door for quite some time. Seizing an opening, he slipped inside.
“Mr. Liang…”
Liang Xiao, still wrapped in the blanket and somewhat dazed, greeted him, “Butler Huo.”
The butler had intended to explain things in advance.
However, Liang Xiao had spent the entire day filming yesterday and hadn’t had the chance. The butler had planned to catch him before he went upstairs but had missed the opportunity.
By the time the butler arrived last night, it was already too late. He could only watch helplessly as Huo Lan led Liang Xiao into the master bedroom. Ever since, he had been worried about Liang Xiao’s personal safety.
Liang Xiao, perfectly safe but mentally rattled, sighed deeply and pulled the blanket tighter around himself. “What exactly did you tell President Huo?”
“I told him…” The butler braced himself and confessed, “That you have specific sleeping requirements.”
Liang Xiao frowned. “And?”
The butler swallowed nervously. “That you must sleep with a body pillow while lying down.”
Liang Xiao was indignant. “Is there such a thing as a sitting body pillow?!”
“Of course not!” The butler smacked his palm with a fist, earnestly. “But didn’t you also worry that Mr. Huo would be uncomfortable sleeping sitting up? He believed me, so he lay down last night…”
The butler paused, seemingly struck by a thought. He recalled the scene he had witnessed upon entering earlier. “But why―”
“Don’t ask!” Liang Xiao interrupted in despair.
“…Alright.” The butler reluctantly swallowed his words, casting a worried look at Liang Xiao. “Are you… alright?”
Liang Xiao was physically fine, but his mind was a bit overstimulated. He let out a long sigh and buried his face in the pillow, trying to cool down.
Huo Lan’s actions last night had completely caught him off guard. Liang Xiao hadn’t even had time to react before being forced to lie down. He had thought he’d spend the entire night in confusion, eating ten walnut halves to boost his brainpower wouldn’t have been enough to understand Huo Lan’s thought process.
But in the end, Huo Lan simply slept.
The butler couldn’t figure out why Liang Xiao had ended up being held instead of holding the body pillow as planned. Liang Xiao himself, waking up on Huo Lan’s chest and shoulder, was equally perplexed.
Why use Huo Lan’s shoulder as a pillow when a perfectly good one was available?
Why had he, who had been holding the stiff-as-a-board Huo Lan when they fell asleep, woken up nestled snugly in Huo Lan’s arms?
Suddenly remembering the walnut halves, Liang Xiao flipped over in a hurry, diving under the blanket to retrieve the paper packet.
They were intact—every single one of them, not a single piece crushed.
Liang Xiao inspected them carefully, one by one, then let out a sigh of relief and rewrapped the paper packet exactly as it had been.
The butler noticed that Liang Xiao wasn’t willing to get out of bed and cautiously ventured, “Your clothes—”
Liang Xiao replied curtly, “No need.”
“…Understood,” the butler said.
Liang Xiao hadn’t had the chance to change into pajamas, but the soft and comfortable casual clothes he had worn were good enough to sleep in.
At least they hadn’t developed any strange, suggestive wrinkles that might lead to misunderstandings.
There was no need to call someone to bring fresh clothes while he secretly cried.
Liang Xiao just didn’t have the face to get out of bed. He buried himself in the pillow for a while, trying to convince himself that his reaction was merely a residual effect of the temporary marking from the past few days. When that failed, he sighed deeply. “So, I’m that kind of omega after all.”
“You’re not!” The butler, who had wronged him once before, quickly clarified. “Last time was a misunderstanding. We know now! You and Mr. Huo are really—”
Liang Xiao raised his head in a daze, revealing faint shirt imprints on one side of his face—left there by Huo Lan’s collar.
The butler hesitated. “…You and Mr. Huo are really something.”
“…” Liang Xiao climbed out of bed, threw on a jacket, and shuffled out to wash up in the guest bathroom.
Thanks to the production delay, Liang Xiao had no time to rest. The same day he woke up in Huo Lan’s arms, he had to rush to the set of the show On the Road.
“Exploring the world, understanding life.”
On the plane, Duan Ming read the script aloud to him: “Each guest is provided with a starting budget of 10,000 yuan. Guests are free to manage their funds, while the production team only assists with filming.”
Liang Xiao listlessly rummaged through Duan Ming’s bag, nodding absentmindedly.
Duan Ming couldn’t stand his defeated attitude. He opened a bottle of orange juice and handed it to him. “What’s the big deal? So you woke up in President Huo’s arms again. Big whoop.”
Liang Xiao looked up in shock. “Brother Duan, you didn’t used to say things like that.”
When he first took this job, Duan Ming had shaken him by the shoulders, forcing him to swear that no amount of wealth or status could sway him.
“Well, back then, I didn’t know that ‘President Huo slept with you’ could mean something so innocent,” Duan Ming sighed. “I could tell Xiao Gong about it without even needing to censor myself.”
“…” Liang Xiao retorted, “Brother Duan, you’ve been reading my novels again.”
“Do you think I want to?!” Duan Ming snapped, clearly flustered. “You think I enjoy it? You think I’m happy about this? If you two would just hurry up and get together, would I still need to dig through those novels to find experience for you? How much longer do I have to keep doing this?!”
Duan Ming couldn’t bear to watch any longer. He snatched the assistant’s bag that Liang Xiao had rummaged through into a mess, unzipped it, and asked, “What are you looking for?”
“My watch…” Liang Xiao replied.
Duan Ming thought for a moment. “The one you bought last year?”
Liang Xiao nodded.
There were occasions where Liang Xiao had to make public appearances. While outfits could be rented, it wouldn’t do to not have a decent watch on his wrist.
Last year, they had pooled their savings and gritted their teeth to buy one. Normally, it was kept in a velvet-lined box and rarely taken out to avoid damage that would be heartbreaking.
Duan Ming, knowing how valuable the watch was, would never casually leave it lying around. He opened a compartment and took it out for him. “If you want to wear a watch, why not borrow one from Mr. Huo? Honestly, this one isn’t that impressive…”
“I’m not wearing that,” Liang Xiao shook his head. “I have my wristband on, and it doesn’t fit.”
Duan Ming suddenly remembered Liang Xiao’s emergency alert wristband. Thinking about how awkward it would look with either one on each wrist or both stacked on one, he agreed. “Then what do you need it for?”
Liang Xiao opened the box, took out the watch, and placed it in Duan Ming’s hand. Then he retrieved the paper packet and carefully placed it inside the box.
Duan Ming: “…”
Duan Ming hesitated before asking, “Is this… President Huo’s token of love?”
Liang Xiao froze, his hand pausing mid-action. His ears reddened involuntarily as he cleared his throat. “It’s not.”
Duan Ming grew curious. “Then—”
Afraid Duan Ming might overthink things, Liang Xiao patted his arm. “Brother Duan, don’t ask.”
Duan Ming, only aware that the two of them had inexplicably ended up sharing a bed but unaware that President Huo had also given Liang Xiao something, felt much more at ease. Smiling broadly, he said, “Alright, alright, I won’t ask.”
Liang Xiao found a piece of velvet cloth, wrapped the watch temporarily, handed it back to Duan Ming for safekeeping, and slipped the box into his pocket.
Duan Ming was in a good mood and didn’t mind Liang Xiao being wasteful. He accepted the watch and put it away carefully. “Have you decided yet? What are you going to do with the 10,000 yuan?”
The materials sent over from Xingguan were very detailed, and Duan Ming had watched several episodes of the show.
The guests’ ideas were all over the place—some went bungee jumping, others skydiving or hiking trips; one even recited poetry to their manager on a Broadway stage.
“Follow your heart and discover your true self,”
Duan Ming read aloud from the show’s tagline. “We don’t have a set persona to maintain; just relax and do whatever you feel like.”
Liang Xiao took the script and skimmed through it.
“Don’t go too far,” Duan Ming reminded him. “If you dare deposit that 10,000 yuan into a bank account, President Huo might fly straight from the capital to crash the show.”
Liang Xiao was almost tempted by the idea: “…”
“The production team also provided some suggestions.”
Without looking up, Duan Ming casually flipped through the script. “Traveling, gifts, life experiences.”
Liang Xiao thought for a moment. “A 10,000-yuan gift… wouldn’t that be kind of inappropriate for President Huo?”
“You want to give a gift to President Huo?” Duan Ming was startled and immediately extinguished that idea. “Whether a 10,000-yuan gift is appropriate is one thing, but a trending topic with 100 million views on social media is definitely not.”
Liang Xiao had only been toying with the thought. Hearing this, he nodded in agreement and closed the script.
“We still have some time before we land,” Duan Ming said, checking the time. He pulled out an eye mask and handed it to Liang Xiao. “Get some rest and adjust your state of mind.”
Liang Xiao closed his eyes. “Brother Duan.”
“What?” Duan Ming asked.
“All these years…” Liang Xiao began.
He had always wanted to say something like this, but back then, no matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t rise above his circumstances. Saying it would have only added to everyone’s worries, so he’d kept it to himself.
Now that he could see hope and each step forward felt more solid than the last, he finally felt able to express himself.
With his eyes still closed, Liang Xiao smiled faintly. “Thank you for all your hard work.”
The assistant, who was curled up beside him playing a game, looked up in surprise upon hearing this.
Duan Ming’s hand trembled slightly, and his eyes suddenly turned red. He glared at Liang Xiao fiercely. “Why are you getting sentimental for no reason?”
Liang Xiao just smiled without saying anything.
Duan Ming strapped the eye mask on him tightly and dragged the assistant aside to cry quietly. His voice hoarse, he nagged, “If you know it’s been hard on us, then stop making us worry so much. Take care of yourself. Find someone to look after you already—stop getting sick or feeling unwell every other day.”
Using the eye mask as cover, Liang Xiao cleared his throat and defended himself. “I’m actually pretty healthy.”
“To you, anyone who can still get out of bed counts as healthy,” Duan Ming retorted knowingly. “This time, pick something easy for the show. Once it’s done, go home and rest properly before starting work again.”
Over the years, Liang Xiao had focused solely on making money and had never really thought about what he wanted to do for himself. He had no clear ideas now either and mumbled a vague response.
Suddenly struck by inspiration, Liang Xiao spoke up again: “Brother Duan.”
Duan Ming was still wiping his tears and snapped irritably, “What now?”
“With the 10,000 yuan,” Liang Xiao said as he lifted his eye mask slightly, “I know what I want to do.”
“…” Meanwhile, Huo Lan looked up from his work. “What does he want to do?”
The butler hesitated before replying nervously, “Mr. Liang said… over all these years… the thing he’s wanted to do most is make money.”
Huo Lan already knew this but wasn’t asking about that specifically. “Hasn’t the variety show payment already been settled?”
“It has,” the butler confirmed. “But Mr. Liang said that’s separate business.”
Worried that Mr. Huo might not understand fully, the butler took a deep breath and tried his best to explain: “Mr. Liang said that any money that comes into his hands is considered earned already… so new money still needs to be earned.”
Huo Lan closed his eyes briefly and rubbed his temples. “Transfer his 10,000 yuan into Xingguan.”
“Treat it as… buying dry shares. Distribute dividends to him proportionally, refund the 10,000 yuan principal first, and let him do whatever he wants with it.”
The butler looked at him with concern. “Mr. Huo.”
Huo Lan didn’t feel like talking anymore. He placed one hand under the table and found a walnut to squeeze.
“Mr. Liang said he just enjoys making money,” the butler explained. “He can’t sit idle. He thinks traveling is a waste of time and has no interest in it.”
“No,” Huo Lan replied.
The butler paused. “What?”
“He’s not uninterested…” Huo Lan closed his eyes again and didn’t elaborate further. “Let him earn money, but he’s not allowed to set up a stall for phone screen repairs.”
“Mr. Duan stopped him,” the butler quickly reassured. “Mr. Duan said if he dared to set up a stall under the bridge, he’d jump off the top of the bridge.”
The butler added, “He said he’d aim his jump to land right in front of the stall and crash into the ground, forming the Chinese characters for ‘Your Grandpa.’”
Huo Lan was momentarily stunned by Liang Xiao’s manager’s dramatic resolve and couldn’t find words to respond. “…”
“Later, we coordinated with the production team on a few plans,” the butler continued. “In the end, they decided to use the 10,000 yuan to buy a breakfast cart.”
The program only recorded for five days. Huo Lan doubted this type of business model could recoup costs so quickly and frowned. “They spent it all?”
“All of it,” the butler confirmed. “Originally, the 10,000 yuan was the production team’s operational budget, which could be spent as needed, with a maximum allowable overage of double the amount. However, it couldn’t be withdrawn as cash.”
The butler hesitated, struggling to continue. After a few seconds, he finally added, “Moreover… the program has a rule where guests can make one wish.”
“A wish?” Huo Lan asked.
“Yes,” the butler said. “No matter what it is, the production team must grant it.”
“…” Huo Lan asked, “He wished for the production team to buy the truck back?”
The butler nodded numbly. “Mr. Liang said his wish was for the breakfast cart to remain part of the On the Road production team indefinitely.”
Huo Lan sat in silence for a while, even considering bringing Liang Xiao back to work at Xingguan immediately, specifically to handle risk-free money-making schemes.
He might significantly speed up the acquisition of Longtao’s projects.
With the contract almost finalized, Liang Xiao was technically already a Xingguan artist. Worried that Huo Lan might be upset, the butler cautiously tried to justify Liang Xiao’s actions. “The breakfast cart… is also very important.”
“An entire day’s plan depends on the morning,” the butler racked his brains, “Food is heaven for the people.”
The butler stammered, “The car—”
Huo Lan didn’t understand what he was saying and inexplicably looked up.
The butler sighed, “Time waits for no car, and the car waits for no one.”
“I’m not angry.”
Huo Lan couldn’t quite grasp the butler’s point. Judging from his expression, he roughly guessed what he was worried about and paused. “I was just thinking about Mr. Liang.”
The butler: “…”
Their boss’s straightforwardness during his sensitive period would probably overwhelm Mr. Liang if he were here.
“He’s never rested before.”
Huo Lan: “So even if he could relax now, he doesn’t know how to.”
The butler froze.
He hadn’t expected Huo Lan to be thinking about this. Looking at him, the butler couldn’t help but feel a pang of sympathy. “Do you know?”
Over the years, Xingguan and Huo Corporation had flourished like the midday sun. Outsiders only marveled at their success, but no one knew better than the butler how much effort Huo Lan had poured into it.
The butler felt equally sympathetic towards both of them. “You—”
“I know,” Huo Lan said. “I want to teach him.”
“…” The butler: “What?”
Huo Lan closed his laptop and released the mouse.
He didn’t grow up with his parents, but as a child, he would secretly ask bodyguards and nannies to tell him what his parents did each day and where they went.
If they could be together, he could take Liang Xiao to do all those things.
“We could spend an entire day without doing anything serious.”
Huo Lan slowly recalled what the nanny had once said: “Just staying at home.”
Huo Lan: “He could sleep peacefully. If he feels tired, I’ll carry him back to the bedroom and read with him.”
“In summer, we could go to coastal islands; in autumn, we could see auroras in the Arctic Circle; in winter, there are snowy slopes in the Alps.”
Huo Lan remembered clearly: “Traveling broadens one’s horizons and mind.”
Huo Lan: “We could even bathe a dog together.”
“…” The butler worried that in their boss’s next story, this dog might end up being neutered. “Have you said any of this to Mr. Liang?”
Huo Lan fell silent.
The butler was anxious on his behalf. “You need to say something!”
Clearly, behind Mr. Liang’s back, Huo Lan could spin romantic words that could leave the likes of Longtao’s scoundrels speechless. But every time he saw Mr. Liang in person, he couldn’t manage a single extra word.
The butler was so frustrated he wanted to tie the two of them together and force them to talk. His heart was practically on fire. “If you don’t say anything, Mr. Liang will never know! Right now, he still thinks you’re trying to recruit him into the Walnut Enthusiasts Association!”
Huo Lan: “…”
The butler, realizing he had gotten carried away and spoken out of turn, quickly bowed to Huo Lan and awkwardly shuffled away in a hurry.
![After losing all his wealth, the ancestor rose from his coffin [BL]](https://www.freenovels.net/wp-content/uploads/2025/01/Your-paragraph-text-1.png "After losing all his wealth, the ancestor rose from his coffin [BL]")
