PTBLSI chapter 39

 

Qi Xi knew nothing about any of it. He spent two days drawing five drafts. The other side had paid way too much, so he felt bad if he didn’t draw more. He even thought about finishing all five as final pieces.

After communicating with Qi Xi for two days, Xu Chen no longer thought he couldn’t handle business matters. On the contrary, he felt that Qi Xi was extremely good at it. Qi Xi made the client feel that paying even one yuan less would be unfair, and even reflect on whether they should have increased the fee.

In the end, Qi Xi spent half a month completing two final pieces and mailed them. The scanned files were used for applications, and the original artworks ended up in Fu Yanchuan’s hands. He framed them and hung them on the wall of his office.

President Fu, who had always preferred extreme minimalism in black, white, and gray color schemes, suddenly displayed two paintings with such intense colors in his office. Everyone who walked in was stunned, suspecting that Fu Yanchuan had become so stimulated that his sense of aesthetics had changed.

It wasn’t until someone involved in a related project from Ji Yue Tian Cheng recognized the paintings that they realized it wasn’t Fu Yanchuan’s taste that had changed, but rather, he was acting strangely. What did it mean to hang their event’s promotional illustrations in his office?

Qi Xi received his payment as soon as he submitted the artwork. He earned 120,000 after taxes. Once he had money, he wanted to give Fu Yanchuan a gift again. However, he didn’t know what Fu Yanchuan would want, so he asked Xie Hui what gifts men usually like. Xie Hui angrily responded with a voice message.

“Men are trash with brains full of yellow trash[mfn]“黃色廢料” yellow trash/waste is modern Chinese web-novel slang mean “useless erotic content” / “sexually explicit junk.”[/mfn]. Don’t ask him what gift he wants; you’ll regret it! Just give him a tie, a belt, or something similar!”

After listening to this, Qi Xi replied, “You’re right. I think I’ve also turned into that kind of trashy man. Every time I hug him, I want to kiss him. Every time I want him, I want to…you know…! I’m such trash—how can I always be like this toward Brother Yan? Xie Hui, don’t hate me because of this! I don’t want to be like this, but Brother Yan is so handsome. He has a great body, he’s a good person, and he treats me well, too. Every time he kisses me, I can’t hold back. What should I do?”

Xie Hui was working on his final assignment for the semester. After hearing Qi Xi’s words, he couldn’t help but scream toward the sky, scaring his roommate, who knocked on the door to ask what was going on.

He angrily slammed his phone on the table and shouted, “My precious cabbage that I raised for so many years got ruined by a damn Saiyan pig! I’m so pissed!”[mfn]“Saiyan” refers to the fictional alien warrior race from the Japanese manga/anime Dragon Ball, created by Akira Toriyama. “Saiyan pig” is Chinese slang for a brutish, lust-driven man.[/mfn]

The roommate was confused. “What kind of nonsense are you talking about?”

Xie Hui was so angry that he couldn’t speak. He slammed the table hard. Qi Xi, who only cared about appearances, had no idea how dangerous men could be. What if, one day, that Fu guy got tired of playing around and pulled out? What would that idiot do then?

Qi Xi didn’t think that far ahead. He only wanted to give Fu Yanchuan a gift. Accepting Xie Hui’s suggestion, he planned to go buy Fu Yanchuan a tie or a belt or something like that.

He quietly left alone, unaware that a bodyguard was following him. He arrived at Huo City’s most famous luxury street and decided to buy the most expensive item for Fu Yanchuan.

However, after walking around, he ended up liking a pair of underwear. He thought of the swim trunks he had picked out for Fu Yanchuan the last time they went swimming. No matter how he looked at it, he felt that Fu Yanchuan would definitely look good in them.

The clerk asked him what size he wanted. His face flushed red as he shook his head. “I don’t know. Don’t make me go ask him. I won’t ask.”

Luxury stores emphasize considerate service. Seeing Qi Xi’s expression, the clerk thought he was cute and funny. Still, he held back and asked, “You can tell me his height, weight, and size. I’ll choose for you.”

Qi Xi asked in confusion, “What size?”

“It’s… size.”

Fu Yanchuan received a report from the bodyguard that said Qi Xi had gone shopping, but he didn’t know what Qi Xi had bought. When he finished work and went home, he asked Qi Xi where he had gone.

Qi Xi’s face immediately turned red. “I didn’t go anywhere! I stayed home the whole time.”

He didn’t expose it. The group’s annual meeting was usually held about half a month before the Spring Festival. In the blink of an eye, it was time. Since they needed to leave early the next morning, he packed his things the day before and went to Qi Xi’s room to wake him up the next morning.

After winter break, Qi Xi slept in every day until he woke up naturally. Fu Yanchuan had told the aunt not to wake him up. Today was the first time he had gone to wake Qi Xi before he woke up on his own.

An orange cat was sleeping on Qi Xi’s blanket. When the cat saw Fu Yanchuan climb onto the bed, it immediately jumped away.

Fu Yanchuan propped himself up above Qi Xi, gently brushed the hair away from his eyes, and softly said, “Qi Xi, it’s time to get up.”

Qi Xi stretched lazily under the blanket, rolled over, and leaned against the hand that Fu Yanchuan had placed by his head. He had already forgotten that they needed to catch a flight today, as Fu Yanchuan had said last night. His lips rubbed comfortably against Fu Yanchuan’s wrist as he hummed, “Don’t make noise. Brother Yan, come sleep.”

Fu Yanchuan was still wearing his pajamas. The rules he had upheld for more than twenty years had almost all been ruined by Qi Xi.

He lifted a corner of the blanket, slipped in, and hugged Qi Xi from behind. The person whose sleep had been disturbed shifted restlessly, and the warmth under the blanket dissipated. Fu Yanchuan held Qi Xi down helplessly, gently leaned in, and lightly kissed the back of his neck. In an extremely soft voice, he asked, “Don’t want to go anymore?”

Qi Xi couldn’t quite hear what Fu Yanchuan was saying and subconsciously responded with an “mm.” It wasn’t until he felt Fu Yanchuan’s arm around his waist that he started to wake up. He immediately threw off the blanket and sat up. “What time is it?”

Then, he saw Fu Yanchuan on the bed and asked in a panic, “Brother Yan, why am I on your bed?”

Fu Yanchuan chuckled softly. “This is your bed.”

“Why are you on my bed?!”

Fu Yanchuan hooked Qi Xi’s waist, pressed him back down, turned over, and supported himself above him. Then he said to Qi Xi’s half-exposed collarbone, “You invited me.”

Qi Xi didn’t remember it at all, but he could imagine it. It must have been his lust acting up again, having improper thoughts toward his brother Yan.

He immediately wrapped his arms and legs around Fu Yanchuan and pressed close to him. Then, he whispered in Fu Yanchuan’s ear, “Brother Yan, what should I do? I feel like I’m getting… getting more and more… coming wet.”

“How can it be wet?” Fu Yanchuan asked.

After Fu Yanchuan asked, Qi Xi immediately realized how close they were and immediately showed Fu Yanchuan how he was getting wet.

“It’s fine.”

Fu Yanchuan pressed down on one of Qi Xi’s legs, leaned in close to his lips, and said, “I like it.”

Qi Xi’s cheeks flushed red, and he tried to dodge, but he was chased and kissed back. A hand squeezed in between them. Qi Xi used to openly say he wanted to sleep with him, yet Qi Xi had no reaction toward him. Sometimes he didn’t know what to do. Now that QI Xi did, however, he completely stopped mentioning “sleeping together” or “bed” again.

“Qi Xi.”

Fu Yanchuan pulled away slightly from Qi Xi’s lips, his eyes burning as he stared at him. The hand between them moved gently. Qi Xi met his gaze, looking dazed, and grabbed behind Fu Yanchuan’s back, clutching his clothes. He tentatively moved his hand to touch the other side—just a light brush with his fingertips—and Qi Xi shuddered and stared straight at him instantly.

“It’s okay. It’s all right.”

Fu Yanchuan’s hand returned to its original position. Afterward, he asked, “Awake now?”

Qi Xi nodded, looking like a satisfied little dog. Fu Yanchuan released him and got up. “Go take a shower.”

“Mm.” Qi Xi pulled up his sleep pants and ran into the bathroom. Fu Yanchuan looked at his palm, then turned and went back to his room.

The flight was at noon. Fu Yanchuan and Qi Xi ate breakfast and hurried over, just barely making it.

At Fu Yanchuan’s request, the annual meeting was held in a coastal city in the northern part of the country. It had been snowing recently.

The moment Qi Xi walked out of the airport, he felt the temperature difference. Fu Yanchuan hurriedly shoved him into the car, and he felt a little better. He kept breathing into his hands. “Why is it so cold?”

Fu Yanchuan grabbed his hands and wrapped them in his own and asked, “Better?”

The driver had been assigned locally on a temporary basis. He had never seen Fu Yanchuan before and didn’t know who Qi Xi was. He had no idea what was going on when he saw this scene and didn’t dare make a sound. He carefully drove them to the hotel.

The annual meeting schedule was as follows: arrival in the morning, a summary meeting in the afternoon, and dinner at night.

When the summary meeting started, Fu Yanchuan had just arrived at the hotel. Qi Xi didn’t like airplane food, so Fu Yanchuan took him out to eat. Just as they sat down in the restaurant, he received a call from Zhou Zhiwei.

“President Fu, have you arrived? The chairman has asked several times.”

As he poured water for Qi Xi, Fu Yanchuan calmly replied, “President Jinshen will deliver my summary speech. I’ll be there for the evening banquet.”

After saying that, he hung up. The person speaking on his behalf was his sixth uncle. He showed no concern about how Fu Zhenrong would react. He put his phone down and started ordering food.

After eating, he and Qi Xi returned to the hotel. Instead of staying at the hotel booked by the group, he booked a small, single-story villa at a seaside resort.

From the bedroom window, you could see the distant sea. It was snowing, and the coastline was blanketed in pure white snow, merging with the boundless ocean.

Qi Xi was afraid of the cold but loved to play in it. He bundled up and went to the beach to build a snowman, but the wind was too strong. He couldn’t even form a snowball before giving up. He ran over and threw himself into Fu Yanchuan’s arms. He stuffed his icy hands into Fu Yanchuan’s coat and said, “Building a snowman isn’t fun. Let’s go back.”

Fu Yanchuan thought Qi Xi was good at not making things difficult for himself. He gave up immediately when he encountered a problem. Since Fu Yanchuan was already worried about Qi Xi catching a cold, he was satisfied to lead him back inside.

There was a fireplace in the house. Qi Xi sat in front of it and looked at the sea and snow through the glass from the warm room. He felt it was perfect. Amid the ice and snow, this kind of warmth felt unbelievably good; his whole body seemed to melt into the sofa.

The annual meeting would end tomorrow. Fu Yanchuan had arranged for himself and Qi Xi to stay for three days and three nights. He squeezed over next to Qi Xi and asked, “We’re going to the group’s evening banquet tonight. Do you want to come with me?”

Qi Xi was observing the snow and sea outside and replied absentmindedly, “A lot of people?”

“A lot.”

Finally withdrawing his gaze, he answered Fu Yanchuan seriously, “Will it take long? When will you come back?”

“I’ll come back once it’s over. If you’re scared of being alone, I can call someone to keep you company.”

Qi Xi thought for a moment. “Will anyone say anything if I go with you?”

“Who would dare?”

“Then take me with you! I’ve never attended this kind of annual meeting before. Is it fun?”

In Fu Yanchuan’s view, the annual meeting was nothing more than a hypocritical performance. He only found it boring. However, seeing the anticipation in Qi Xi’s eyes, he agreed to go. “If you don’t want to stay, tell me.”

Qi Xi pounced over and curled into Fu Yanchuan’s arms, settling himself comfortably. He grabbed Fu Yanchuan’s hand and promised, “Wherever you are, I’ll be there. I won’t leave your side. I want to be with you forever.”

Fu Yanchuan’s chest trembled slightly. He hooked one arm over Qi Xi and pulled him tightly against him. With his other hand, he held Qi Xi’s neck and slowly slid it upward, making Qi Xi lift his chin and look straight at him. Only then did he speak firmly.

“Qi Xi, remember what you said. You can’t go back on your word.”

 

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