TPW Chapter 8

The next day.

Qin Lezhou stared at the plain ‘Good night’ sitting in the chat log, then looked at Ye Ning’s beautiful face.

He looked at the screen. Then looked at Ye Ning again.

After a long pause, he grabbed a can of beer from the fridge, stood by the floor-to-ceiling window, and didn’t say a word for a while.

“You didn’t read those articles I sent you?” Qin Lezhou’s voice was barely there.

“I did.”

Liar.

He hadn’t even opened them.

“Then how did you come up with only ‘Good night’?” Qin Lezhou crushed the can in frustration. “When you’re not that close yet, saying ‘good night’ or ‘good morning’ is the worst! You should’ve said ‘Are you still awake?’ or ‘I can’t sleep.'”

“And—and did you even look at the time? 2 a.m. Most people are asleep by then, right?”

Ye Ning: “I know.”

That’s exactly why he picked that time—because everyone would be asleep.

And as expected, Lu Sihuai didn’t reply.

When Qin Lezhou turned his head, he saw Ye Ning’s eyes faintly glowing under the morning light.

…He looked like he was happy.

Just one “good night,” and his brother didn’t even reply. How could that make him happy?

Qin Lezhou’s tongue suddenly felt numb. He didn’t know what to say anymore. Thus, he looked down and sent a message to Zhao Haonan.

A minute later, the reply came in.

[Zhao Haonan: Did it ever occur to you that what seems like a casual “good night” to us might’ve already been his limit? It’s not that he didn’t notice the time; it’s that he wrestled with himself until 2 a.m. and finally gathered the courage to send those two words. Even if Lu-ge doesn’t reply, he’s already satisfied!]

Qin Lezhou felt like he’d been hit in the head with the truth. Dizzy and stunned.

He braced himself against the window with one hand, took a long moment to recover, then turned to looked at Ye Ning. “I’m sorry. I didn’t think about that… Take your time.”

Ye Ning: “?”

What now?

Luckily, after that, Qin Lezhou didn’t say anything more about Ye Ning’s ‘deeply emotional’ good night messages. He simply stuck to his daily “Did he reply?” routine.

After Ye Ning sent three consecutive “Good night” messages at 2 a.m. without getting any replies, he felt a huge sense of relief.

This account was probably one of Lu Sihuai’s throwaway side accounts, Ye Ning thought to himself.

Even though Qin Lezhou claimed it was Lu Sihuai’s private account, he probably didn’t know how often it was actually used.

That made Ye Ning feel even more at ease.

And so—

Day One.

[Good night.]

No reply from Lu Sihuai.

Day Two.

[Good night.]

No reply.

Day Three.

[Good night.]

Still no reply.

Day Four.

[Good night.]

Lu Sihuai still didn’t reply.

Day Five… Ye Ning didn’t send anything.

Because his assistant got a call from the chairman and took Ye Ning to the hospital for a follow-up—an extremely thorough checkup, almost like a full physical.

Ye Ning didn’t like the scent of hospitals. Every visit drained him. After he got home, he ate a little, took a shower, and went to bed early.

When he woke up again, the sun was already up.

He reached for his phone and checked it.

7:55 a.m.

He lay there zoning out for a bit, about to get up when his phone went ding.

Ye Ning’s thoughts were slow to catch up. He figured it was probably the housekeeper—his assistant had noticed he looked unwell yesterday after calling his grandfather overseas and likely arranged for a housekeeper to come over.

Ye Ning picked up his phone and unlocked it.

His mind was still a bit foggy, and without thinking much, he started typing a reply: No need to come today…

Wait.

That profile picture…?

His sluggish brain slowly came back online, and his gaze moved up bit by bit.

At the top of the screen, the contact name was written in three cold letters: LSH.

And sitting quietly in the chat list was a message.

[LSH: Where’s last night’s good night?]

Ye Ning’s finger trembled, and he froze right there on the bed.

Was he hallucinating?

He stared at that message for dozens of seconds before fully waking up.

Expressionless, he moved his finger to the lower corner of the screen, pressed and held delete, erased the words ‘No need today’ one character at a time… then tossed his phone to the foot of the bed.

His nerves were stretched too tight—his head ached.

He was probably not fully awake yet, Ye Ning thought.

Meanwhile, on the other end, Lu Sihuai watched the ‘typing…’ indicator appear and disappear. He waited for two minutes but got no reply.

“What are you laughing at?” Yao Bowen, who was in the middle of an online meeting, looked up and saw Lu Sihuai gazing off to the side, quietly laughing at something.

“Nothing,” Lu Sihuai replied calmly. He picked up the lighter from his right side, stood up, and said, “I’m stepping out for a smoke. You all go on.”

—

After the ‘Good Night Incident,’ Ye Ning didn’t send another message to Lu Sihuai.

The good news was that Lu Sihuai didn’t seem to mind.

Even better, Qin Lezhou had been really busy lately—too busy to keep an eye on him.

Ye Ning got to enjoy a couple of days of peace and quiet.

The only thing that made him nervous during that time was a phone call.

The contact was labeled ‘Grandpa.’

When the call came in, Ye Ning was sitting in the courtyard, trying to sort through everything that had happened recently—looking for the cause, hoping to find a way back.

But everything was still a blur.

The plot had gone completely off course—Ye Ning could feel it spiraling out of his control.

Right as he was stuck in that inner struggle, the call from ‘Grandpa’ came through.

For a moment, it felt like he was submerged in low-oxygen water. He couldn’t even breathe.

However, his body reacted faster than his thoughts. He answered the call without thinking.

The voice on the other end sounded energetic but a bit muffled and heavy.

It truly sounded like Grandpa—but it wasn’t him.

Ye Ning didn’t speak. He only listened, word by word, as his chest thudded with a heavy, dull ache. Yet slowly, he managed to gather his emotions and respond gently.

At the very least, while he was in this world, he had to take ‘Ye Ning’s’ place and take care of his grandfather.

The call lasted nearly an hour. It was as if Grandpa wanted to say everything he hadn’t gotten the chance to say lately—from the time he was hospitalized with a fever, to the dishes the housekeeper cooked today. Ye Ning listened carefully and responded to everything with patience.

He’d thought it would be difficult, but saying the word ‘Grandpa’ took no effort at all. It came out so naturally—it scared him a little.

In that moment, all he felt was… softness.

From the surface of his skin to the core of his heart, it felt like something soft was holding him up. That softness gathered, spread, then came together again—like he was floating in water, and that water held nothing but gentleness.

After that call, Grandpa started phoning more often. Considering the time difference, it was usually Ye Ning who eventually had to end the calls.

In the blink of an eye, it was already October in Yunjian.

On the second day of the National Day holiday, Ye Ning received a call from his grandfather’s personal assistant.

“Going out to the sea?”

“Yes,” the assistant said. “A while ago, a directive came down approving Yunjian as a major land-port hub. Haijin Group is leading a hub alliance, and one of the international yacht ports is using this momentum to officially open. This one’s a private event.”

Yunjian had always been a key maritime trading port. With three waterways interlinked and sitting at a central location, it had a highly developed transport network—by sea, land, and air. There were countless golden trade routes. Besides the open international ports, there were also many private docks, and most major groups had at least a few under their control.

What mattered was never the yacht—it was the social scene.

“The one organizing this time is Haijin’s young heir. The yacht is the Huolai Zhe[mfn][T/N: In English, the name of the ship means Latecomer.][/mfn], owned by Daxi Group. A hundred-passenger ship, not that big.”

When the assistant said “not that big,” he meant it compared to the giant thousand-passenger cruise ships. The Huolai Zhe was more of a luxury ‘big toy’ designed for exclusive guests. It had four floors, complete with a theater, pool, climbing wall, and its most famous feature—a prima race track on the top deck, which could hold up to eight racers at once, with a viewing platform alongside.

Ye Ning hadn’t planned to go—until the assistant mentioned ‘yacht.’

—The day he crossed over, he’d also been on a ship, attending the An City Chamber of Commerce anniversary banquet.

Ye Ning couldn’t clearly recall how he ended up in the sea. He only remembered a sudden jolt on the ship, losing his balance, taking two steps back, and the railing behind him vanishing as if it had never been there. He stepped into thin air, was swallowed by the sea and the next time he opened his eyes, he was in that alley.

A yacht…

Ye Ning hesitated for a moment. “Who did Haijin invite?”

The assistant listed a few names. None of them were in Ye Ning’s contacts—meaning they weren’t familiar faces.

That confirmed Ye Ning’s guess.

“I know you rarely go to these kinds of events.”

“This time it’s mostly heirs of old families and a few newly risen elites in Yunjian—fresh faces, not really familiar. Haijin’s heir, Qu Wenxing, is someone who knows how to handle things. He may look unreliable, but he’s actually pretty thoughtful.”

“Daxi’s third young master just returned from overseas—Xu Liangrui. Not much information on him. People say he’s pretty unruly, but apparently Old Master Xu really dotes on him.”

Ye Ning listened quietly, giving a soft ‘mhm’ every now and then.

The assistant wavered for a moment before finally revealing the real reason for the call. “Young Master, you’ve been staying alone in the residence these past few days… The Chairman is a little worried.”

Ye Ning: “Grandpa?”

The assistant: “Mhm.”

Ye Ning went silent for a few seconds.

“Got it,” Ye Ning finally replied. “The day after tomorrow?”

Once Ye Ning agreed, the assistant’s tone noticeably brightened. “Mhm, I’ll arrange for a driver to pick you up.”

“Mhm.”
—
Meanwhile, in the study of Lu Sihuai’s villa—

“That old fox from Xinfang must’ve caught wind of something from someone—he voluntarily shaved off two points and even asked me to pass you a message,” Yao Bowen said, setting down a file as he stepped into the study, relaying the words with meaning, “He says the feng shui in Yunjian nurtures talent, and hopes President Lu will ride the wind and rise with it[mfn][T/N: “借力上青雲” is an idiom meaning to use external momentum or help to rise to great heights, like using the wind to soar into the clouds.][/mfn].”

Lu Sihuai glanced at the signature and replied casually, “He has his own ways.”

Yao Bowen clicked his tongue and caught on. “So you’re planning to be the wind behind Xinfang, huh?”

Lu Sihuai didn’t respond.

“By the way,” Yao Bowen shrugged, “Are you really planning to pause the Jianjing project?”

“No.”

Yao Bowen: “?”

“You know how many people are eyeing that piece of land?” Yao Bowen was genuinely confused now. “You’re not planning to pause, but you’re still here?”

Lu Sihuai remained calm. “Just because I’m not going doesn’t mean Yunxiang isn’t.”

Yao Bowen immediately felt a bad premonition. “Who are you sending?”

Lu Sihuai finally lifted his eyes from the documents.

“What do you think?”

Yao Bowen: “……”

“Come on,” said Vice President Yao of Yunxiang, loosening his tie and leaning back on Lu Sihuai’s desk, “The Xinfang deal is already sealed. There’s no new plan in Yunjian for now, and nothing much going on here.”

Lu Sihuai: “Which is exactly why I’m sending you back to Jianjing.”

Yao Bowen was stunned by how matter-of-fact he sounded. “Then why are you staying here?”

This time, Lu Sihuai didn’t answer.

Yao Bowen upped the threat. “Aren’t you afraid I’ll borrow your name and use it to ‘rise with the wind’ in Jianjing?”

Lu Sihuai: “Be my guest, Vice President Yao.”

Vice-president Yao: “……”

Vice President Yao stormed off in frustration. He had just adjusted his tie and made it halfway down the hall when he suddenly slapped his forehead and turned back. “Almost forgot.”

He said, not too kindly, “Haijin’s Qu Wenxing is throwing a private yacht party. It’s the day after tomorrow.”

“It’s pretty formal—actual invitations and all. You going or not?”

Lu Sihuai had some impression of Qu Wenxing from Haijin, but not much.

He asked casually, “Who’s invited?”

“Yunjian just got the land-port project approved, and Haijin’s leading it, so of course they invited everyone who matters, Qingtai, Huaxing, Rongbao…” Yao Bowen paused mid-thought, then curled his lips into a knowing smile. “Oh right, the Ye Family too.”

“Which Ye Family?”

“Who do you think? How many Ye families are there in Yunjian?” Yao Bowen said. “Qu Wenxing specifically mentioned him.”

Lu Sihuai didn’t show much reaction. He simply tapped his fingers lightly on the desk.

“Boring.” Yao Bowen had expected something more interesting, but that was all he got. He shrugged.

Still, business was business.

Yao Bowen was aware that Lu Sihuai wasn’t interested in private social events. The one doing all the public appearances was usually him, the vice president.

“Fine, I’ll repsond on your behalf and I’ll go instead.”

When Yao Bowen was about to leave, he heard Lu Sihuai speak behind him.

“No need,” he said.

Yao Bowen turned around in surprise. “You’re going?”

Lu Sihuai: “Mhm.”

Yao Bowen: “There’s no contract talk, no business deals, just a bunch of rich second-generation eating, drinking, and making noise. What are you going for?”

Lu Sihuai looked down at his phone.

It had already been a week since the last ‘Good night.’

He remembered the eyes he saw that day on the hospital rooftop.

“To catch someone,” he said.