Chapter 85

Chapter 85

Five simple words, spoken by Qin Jianhe, felt like an electric current.

Ye Zhiqiu felt a tingling sensation in his heart, which then became intensely warm.

The two cars stopped one after the other by the roadside. Ye Zhiqiu pushed open the car door and stepped out.

Almost simultaneously, the door of the car behind also opened, and Qin Jianhe's tall figure bent down as he got out.

His beige windbreaker fluttered in the wind, resembling a sail in the dark night or an unfolded protective umbrella.

With his long legs, it took him only moments to reach Ye Zhiqiu.

His large, well-defined hand reached over, and Qin Jianhe smiled as he grasped Ye Zhiqiu's wrist.

The warmth from Qin Jianhe's palm pressed against Ye Zhiqiu's slightly cool skin, instantly warming his heart.

Perhaps because his heart was already full of wounds, this warmth seemed to seep into every crevice.

Even though he should have resisted, the joy and sense of belonging overwhelmed him, causing Ye Zhiqiu to look up at Qin Jianhe with a serene expression.

The orange-yellow glow of the streetlights reflected in his light brown eyes, giving them a faint golden hue, as if they were filled with honey.

Qin Jianhe looked down at him, involuntarily wrapping him in his windbreaker.

"You..." Ye Zhiqiu pursed his lips for a moment before asking, "Have you been waiting at the end of that small road leading from the Ye family residence?"

That small road was the only way out from the Ye family residence.

Although there were streetlights on the road, the end was a dead end and always dark.

Moreover, Ye Zhiqiu had been focused on Li Shaojun's car in the rearview mirror, so he hadn't noticed any other cars nearby.

Hearing this, Qin Jianhe's grip on Ye Zhiqiu's wrist tightened slightly.

"Yes, the view is good there," he smiled. "I could see you as soon as you came out."

So, he had followed them all the way until Ye Zhiqiu separated from Li Shaojun, then called out to him.

As the temperature rose, the night breeze no longer felt cold, just slightly cool.

But Qin Jianhe still touched Ye Zhiqiu's cool hand and led him back into the car.

Seeing them approach, Uncle Li, who had been pretending not to be there inside the car, immediately got out and let Qin Jianhe take the driver's seat, moving to Ye Zhiqiu's car himself.

"Did you wait for a long time?" Ye Zhiqiu finally asked after the car door closed. "Why didn't you call me? I could have come out earlier."

"Qin Jianhe..." Ye Zhiqiu felt he had never talked so much, but he paused mid-sentence.

In the dim light of the car, his gaze unexpectedly met Qin Jianhe's dark, smiling eyes.

Qin Jianhe was looking at him with intense focus and gentleness.

His thick, dark eyelashes were slightly lowered, softening the sharp lines of his eyes into a touch of warmth.

Ye Zhiqiu: "..."

"I didn't wait long." Seeing Ye Zhiqiu stop, he smiled lightly.

After a moment, he leaned forward and pulled Ye Zhiqiu into his arms for a kiss.

Even though Ye Zhiqiu had gained some weight, he was still slender.

Especially now that he had changed into lighter clothing, he felt even more fragile in Qin Jianhe's embrace.

Instinctively, Qin Jianhe's arm tightened, holding him closely.

Outside, the sounds of cars and wind rushed past, but inside the car, it was quiet except for their breathing, creating a warm atmosphere.

Even though they had seen each other earlier that day, they behaved as if they had been apart for a long time.

After a while, Qin Jianhe slowly pulled away from Ye Zhiqiu.

"Home?" he asked, gently swinging Ye Zhiqiu's fingers.

Ye Zhiqiu chuckled at his gesture, and the heavy emotions in his heart gradually dissipated.

"Home," he said.

Adjusting his position, Qin Jianhe fastened Ye Zhiqiu's seatbelt and started the car.

The streetlights began to rapidly recede as Ye Zhiqiu watched outside for a moment, then turned to look at Qin Jianhe again.

"Why are you sneaking glances at me?" Qin Jianhe asked.

His well-defined hands loosely rested on the steering wheel, both his tone and posture relaxed.

Ye Zhiqiu laughed softly, about to speak when his phone suddenly rang.

Though it was just a string of Arabic numerals, he recognized Li Ling's number at once.

Li Ling rarely called him directly unless it was something very important and urgent.

Ye Zhiqiu checked his chat app and saw two messages from Li Ling sent a few minutes ago.

"Soft and small 0: Are you done?"

"Soft and small 0: Why so fast?"

"I’ll take a call." Ye Zhiqiu said to Qin Jianhe.

"Hmm." Qin Jianhe responded softly, the corners of his lips curling slightly.

"Hello," Li Ling’s voice came through as soon as the call connected, barely containing his eagerness, "why did you guys finish so early today? Aren’t you going out for drinks or karaoke or something?"

"What’s up?" Ye Zhiqiu asked, already sensing something was off.

"Gao Wenye went over to Song Lin’s place today," Li Ling said, "and they were about to get down to business when your stepmother suddenly called him to pick up Ye Zhixia."

Li Ling’s tone was full of regret. "If it had been just half an hour later, he would have finished by then."

Then he asked, "Can you think of a way to delay Ye Zhixia?"

The program "Hand in Hand 99" undoubtedly boosts an artist's popularity.

However, such a popular show also comes with staggering penalties for breach of contract.

The show airs weekly, with over a dozen episodes to be recorded, taking at least three to four months to complete.

Given Gao Wenye’s current state, it’s almost certain he will make a mistake during this long period.

Compared to now, exposing their relationship after the show finishes recording would deal a much heavier and more devastating blow to both Gao Wenye and Ye Zhixia.

They are already reaping the benefits of their loving couple image, and "Hand in Hand 99" will push those benefits to the extreme.

However, the higher one flies, the harder they fall.

When that happens, not only will there be the high penalty fees from the production team, but the benefits they’ve gained will come back to haunt them in another form.

So, Ye Zhiqiu wasn’t in a hurry.

"Next time," he said calmly, "I’m almost home now."

"Alright then," Li Ling said, "it’s my fault. I was worried you might be drinking today, so I didn’t contact you in case someone saw me texting or calling you."

"Oh, by the way," Li Ling suddenly laughed, "Song Lin said Gao Wenye got hit by someone today, leaving marks on his face. He probably went there to vent his frustration."

Even though Gao Wenye had already covered up the marks with concealer and foundation,

what is Song Lin known for?

He’s been in the industry longer than Li Ling and has a sharp eye, so he could tell right away.

"Guess what," Li Ling said, "do you think it was Ye Zhixia who hit him?"

Hearing this, Ye Zhiqiu fell silent for a moment, involuntarily recalling Ye Zhixia’s unusual behavior today.

"Maybe," he said.

Since there was no traffic, and Qin Jianhe drove fast and steadily, the car had already entered the Central Business District.

"Let’s talk about this later," Ye Zhiqiu said, "we can discuss it in detail then."

Li Ling is always quick-witted.

Noticing that Ye Zhiqiu was being vague throughout the conversation and now wanted to end the call without saying anything, he realized someone was with him.

"What?" he asked, "are you with that stud?"

Ye Zhiqiu: "..."

The car was already quiet, and although Ye Zhiqiu tried to move away, Qin Jianhe might still have heard bits and pieces of the conversation.

Especially since Li Ling deliberately raised his voice for that last remark.

Hearing this, he instinctively looked at Qin Jianhe.

Seemingly noticing his gaze, Qin Jianhe’s lips curled slightly into a nonchalant smile. "Stud?"

Ye Zhiqiu: "..."

*

A stud is a stud.

That morning, Ye Zhiqiu woke up holding his waist.

It was the weekend, so he hadn’t set an alarm and slept until around nine o'clock.

The other side of the bed was already empty. Ye Zhiqiu changed his clothes and opened the bedroom door, immediately smelling the aroma of chicken soup.

The windows on the balcony were open, and a gentle breeze blew through the curtains.

And Qin Jianhe’s low voice on the phone carried over with the slightly damp morning air.

"Let the old man rest first," he said calmly, "we’ll meet later."

Then he added, "Okay."

Ye Zhiqiu didn’t speak at first. He waited until Qin Jianhe hung up before approaching him.

"Qin Jianhe," he called his name, "do you have plans today?"

Hearing this, Qin Jianhe turned around, his gaze particularly calm as he looked at Ye Zhiqiu.

Ye Zhiqiu was taken aback. "What’s wrong?"

"There is something I need to do," Qin Jianhe said, walking over and taking his hand, "but it’s not urgent."

"Let’s eat first," he said.

"Um." Ye Zhiqiu didn’t think much about it. He had been exhausted from the events of yesterday, and even though he had slept until this late, he still felt a bit tired.

Physical fatigue made his mind lazy too.

Especially with Qin Jianhe around, he instinctively relaxed, feeling particularly at ease.

"I smell chicken soup," Ye Zhiqiu said, lazily leaning towards the dining table.

"I'll serve the rice." Qin Jianhe lowered his eyes and gently rubbed the top of his head.

"Have you eaten yet?" Ye Zhiqiu tilted his face up.

"Not yet," Qin Jianhe looked at him, a hint of a smile finally appearing in his eyes, "I wanted to wait for you."

"Then I’ll bring the bowls." Ye Zhiqiu smiled and got up.

The chicken soup was kept warm in the pot, but the side dishes had already cooled down.

Qin Jianhe served two bowls of chicken soup and brought them to the dining table with Ye Zhiqiu. He then fetched the utensils for him to start eating before going back to the kitchen to reheat the side dishes and bring them out again.

After they finished their meal, Ye Zhiqiu was just about to fetch his leather materials to do some handcrafting when Qin Jianhe suddenly reached out and held his hand.

Across the table, Qin Jianhe’s expression was serious and somewhat solemn.

His dark, deep-set eyes gazed at him quietly and resolutely.

Ye Zhiqiu was taken aback and finally realized that Qin Jianhe’s morning call might have something to do with him.

"Qin Jianhe..." he called his name and then fell silent.

"Ye Zhiqiu," Qin Jianhe squeezed his hand slightly, "twenty years ago, the old driver of your family has been found."

Hearing this, Ye Zhiqiu blinked reflexively, his face gradually turning pale.

"Can I see him today?" Recalling what Qin Jianhe had said on the phone in the morning, he asked, his tone slowly becoming calm.

"Mm." Qin Jianhe responded softly, then after a moment, asked, "Are you scared?"

He was a little scared.

Scared that the truth would be as he imagined, scared that his mother had suffered cruel betrayal and harm before her death.

But not that scared.

Because he had thought about it repeatedly and was already mentally prepared.

"Not scared." He lifted his eyes, the gray tones in them rising, making them particularly cold.

*

A little past two in the afternoon, Qian Wenhua had just finished lunch after a brief rest.

The guest room door was knocked on, and he instinctively straightened his back, nervously brushing away non-existent dust from his jacket before pulling open the door.

Standing in front of him were two young men.

One was tall and handsome, with deeply set eyes, extremely good-looking, but his powerful aura made it hard to look directly at him.

And the other...

Even without an introduction, or if encountered in a sea of people, he believed he could recognize him at first sight.

He looked almost exactly like the beautiful, gentle woman in his memory.

Especially those eyes, light brown with a slight tinge of gray, framed by thick black lashes, curving upwards slightly at the ends.

If the expression in his eyes wasn't so serious and instead carried a touch of warmth and a smile, there would be no difference at all.

Qian Wenhua's hand holding the door frame trembled involuntarily, and tears slowly welled up in his eyes.

"Young... Master." He whispered shakily.