Chapter 15
Pei Huai rarely evaluates a person.
This isn't very polite, he thought. But in Xiang Mingqi's case, it made perfect sense. This person's behavior was incredibly childish. Rather than "liking" someone, it felt more like a nonsensical pursuit.
What did he want—like? Intimacy? That's all?
Ever since he realized that one-sided admiration, he had thought about drawing a line in the sand and staying away from him. At the very least, he wanted to avoid any unnecessary intimacy with him.
He really didn't like him and didn't trust him. Pei Huai felt that his position had been made clear.
Therefore, he couldn't understand why Xiang Mingqi took the initiative to stand up and got himself hurt. In front of him, "rejection" seemed like a sin.
This was also the first time Pei Huai hoped that he would not say anything.
I hope everything stays the same and I hope he will lose interest in me soon.
As they each thought about their own things, they walked slowly to the front of the store. Regarding the attacker, Pei Huai consulted the company and after a phone call, he was handed over to the relevant department for disposal.
By the time Xiang Mingqi found his seat, the pain in his tailbone had subsided. He peeled back the wrapper and, with his mouth wide open, took a bite of the burger. The generous filling—lettuce, tomato slices, mayonnaise, and onions—beef burst between his teeth, juicy and so rich it nearly overflowed from the corners of his mouth.
He quickly picked up a napkin, wiped his mouth and looked at the person sitting opposite him.
Pei Huai wasn't a fast eater, and while he certainly didn't eat small bites, he did chew his food with a strict adherence to the standard of thirty chews per mouthful. He raised his right hand and smoothed the hair from his forehead.
"Brother, I'm so pitiful and innocent." Xiang Mingqi complained before he even finished swallowing his last bite, his words slurring. "You didn't even see that half of the brick was completely broken, and my butt hurts so much."
Pei Huai's eye twitched as he moved aside.
"Wait, what was that reaction just now? Woohoo, do you dislike me?"
A hand tearing off the wrapping paper was frozen in mid-air. Pei Huai glared at him warningly and continued stirring the mashed potatoes with a spoon.
"But I fell on my butt, not my face." Xiang Mingqi bit his Coke straw in grievance, pouting his lips. "You despise me, despise me who risked my life for you. Ugh, you have no conscience."
There was no answer except the rustling of papers.
In this suffocating atmosphere, where the air seemed to freeze, Xiang Mingqi's shoulders slumped down bit by bit. He bit the straw between his right cheek, his head nearly dropping below the tabletop. He rested his arms on his knees, hunching his shoulders as much as possible. His drooping brow only deepened his sense of humiliation.
However, this trick didn't work on Pei Huai. He remained silent, picked up his drink, blew away the hot air from the lemon tea cup, and began to enjoy his lunch.
After only taking his third bite, this heartless junior regained his composure and started a new topic: "By the way, who was that old man just now? He looked like one of the perverts in your fan club."
Support group? Pei Huai smelled something strange, but still answered him dutifully: "It's the target of the previous commission."
"Doesn't our company not accept commissions targeting poor people? That guy looks dirty and a little neurotic. I can't believe he used to be rich. I'm still..."
"Stop."
"Ohhh okay."
"I have something to ask you."
"Wow, brother, you actually took the initiative to ask a question today. Wait a minute, I want to write it down as a commemoration." Xiang Mingqi said with great surprise as he flipped open his upside-down phone.
"What is a support group?" Pei Huai asked, holding down his rebellious hand.
"Ah, so you didn't know this yet." The latter had no choice but to turn his phone upright, open the app, and tap the expansion icon in the upper right corner. "There's a QQ group nearby called the SAN HING Gay Dating Group. It's almost a thousand people."
"——Brother, you have a lot of suitors in there, and the members ask you every night if you went to the bar, what you were wearing, and who you are with now."
The person involved tutted in resistance.
Xiang Mingqi was climbing the stairs and didn't notice the disgust that flashed across his face. "But this group name is too tacky. Just wait, when I become the group leader one day, I'll change the name to your fan club. I'll also change this avatar; it shouldn't be the most handsome one."
"don't want."
"Why?" Xiang Mingqi looked over in confusion. "I've become a manager now. All for the sake of becoming your fan leader one day."
“…You’re so boring.”
"How can this be boring? Brother, you always deprive people of their hobbies." Xiang Mingqi pinched the straw and stirred the ice on the top with a loud clinking sound. "Then again, that old man is ready to stab you. Are you really going to just leave him to the Bangkok Hotel?"
"This is company policy. You and I shouldn't discuss this privately."
"Alright." He curled his lips, his legs swinging back and forth under the table, his chest rising and falling. "You don't want to tell me anything. It was the same with the flowers I received before, and the same with that trip back to Coal Valley. Why are you so hard to get close to?" He glanced at Pei Huai with puppy eyes and sighed in frustration, "What can I do to make you accept me?"
"To Mingqi."
"Yes!" He sat up suddenly. "Any new instructions?"
"You and I are just seniors and juniors." Pei Huai pressed two fingers forward, pressing down on the placemat. Her eyelashes drooped at an angle, and she didn't look up at him, leaving only a small shadow on her eyelids. "Besides that, nothing else is needed."
"Do you really think so?" He drooped, his muffled nasal voice sounding lost. Pei Huai didn't want to answer. He rubbed the salt on the French fries with his fingers, pressed them down, and dipped them into the thick ketchup.
——Because of this subconscious avoidance, he missed the fleeting emotion on that face.
The ice cubes gurgled as the paper cup hit the table. Xiang Mingqi rested his chin on one hand, tilted his head, and playfully bit his nails. His gaze licked every inch of Pei Huai's body: from his cold face to his neck, and finally stopped at his narrow and powerful waist.
He licked his lips very slowly and said in the most hurt and humble tone: "Brother, I'm sorry. I didn't know you hated this... I'll be good next time."
Finally, he smiled meaningfully.
"must."
-
An hour after submitting the report and entering the review process, Pei Huai received a new commission. The specific content was not specified, but it was only noted that it might contain special requirements.
Therefore, Zhu Zhiyang called them to the office after lunch and explained the general situation.
The target of this debt collection operation was a relationship manager at a listed company who had accumulated a large amount of debt due to his obsession with luxury goods. After his behavior was exposed, his wife sued him in court and they agreed to divorce.
After the divorce, he didn't restrain himself, concealed the truth, and borrowed heavily from unsuspecting firms. Sounds like a tough guy.
Not only that, according to the information provided by the client, the person being debt collected has an even more troublesome trump card - a platinum member of a private club.
After receiving the first demand, the mole hid in the club, intending to squander the previous loan. Considering the special nature of the club, the client had no idea where to start.
To do this, he found the Bangkok Hotel.
It is not a problem for the company to get a pass. It has a large enough network of contacts and it is not difficult to mediate with the relevant departments.
As for what kind of club it was, Zhu Zhiyang glanced at the listener's expression and hesitated whether to explain.
"Go on." - Until Pei Huai had to urge him.
"To put it simply, you have to enter the club, find him, and bring him to the client." Zhu Zhiyang pressed his solar plexus. "I'll email you the rules of this club later." He patted Pei Huai's shoulder gently and said in a low voice, "It's getting cold tonight, so you'd better wear more clothes."
"Um."
Xiang Mingqi looked at the hand covering Pei Huai's shoulder, his lips twitching for a moment, and he gave his senior an innocent smile: "We have to be careful this time. Attracting the patrol is not a big deal, but kissing like last time would be bad."
"What did you say?" Zhu Zhiyang's hand was still raised in the air. He turned around suddenly when he heard the words, and his face was stiff for a moment.
"Do you need me to speak louder, Boss?" He met his boss's gaze with a smile, not thinking there was anything wrong with what he had just said. "Didn't the last commission report mention that? — Then let me add one more thing. My brother and I kissed." He tilted his head, his eyes narrowed cunningly, and smiled brightly, "That's it."
During his vivid description and drawn-out ending, Zhu Zhiyang's face was filled with gloom and a hint of inhuman sternness flashed in his eyes.
"I've known him for ten years, and from what I've heard, he doesn't like your type. Grow up, newbie." He emphasized the words he addressed, emphasizing each one. "A kiss doesn't sound like enough."
Xiang Mingqi's smile remained unchanged: "At least I got it. Isn't it?"
"Xiang Mingqi." Another scolding came from behind.
"Wow, I'm sorry! I thought you had even written this in the report." After being scolded by his senior, he changed from that smiling face that deserved to be slapped back to a droopy state, grabbed Pei Huai's sleeve, and wanted to turn his belly up to please him, "I was wrong. I shouldn't have told him about this. I was wrong, I was wrong." After that, he glanced at his boss without remorse, raised his eyebrows, and stuck out his tongue.
Changing his previous calm demeanor, Zhu Zhiyang narrowed his eyes slightly and sneered: "It seems that he doesn't just want to have a good relationship with you." He looked at Pei Huai, with a self-deprecating smile.
Pei Huai didn't want to listen to their intrigues. He just raised his chin and asked, "...What kind of club is this?"
Childish. He thought that this point, which was just mentioned briefly, was more important than the meaningless jealousy between two men.
As the question got to the point, Zhu Zhiyang lowered his eyelids and looked at Pei Huai with a complicated expression. Pei Huai was hugging his elbows with his brows furrowed, and swallowed the breath that was stuck in his chest.
He said.
"A sexual liberation club."
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