Chapter 128

Chapter 128

It was around three in the afternoon, when the sun had just begun to shift westward but hadn't moved much yet.

The first ray of sunlight had just touched the window frame of the narrow window in the stairwell, but it hadn't yet illuminated the inside.

At this moment, even with only a narrow window separating them, the contrast between the light and shadow inside and outside was particularly stark.

Ye Zhiqiu pulled open the heavy door of the stairwell and stepped onto the third step when he saw Qin Jianhe standing right at the boundary between light and shadow.

The man leaned casually against the window, looking relaxed.

Because he was backlit, his face was slightly blurred, revealing only the deep and chiseled features outlined by the light and shadow.

It was as if the most skilled sculptor had used their utmost passion to carve out such perfection.

So perfect that, despite Ye Zhiqiu's familiarity with this face, he couldn't help but feel a sense of awe.

He was so captivated that he didn't even notice when Qin Jianhe extended his hand to him, inviting him over.

In that instant, the person standing between the light and shadow gave him such a powerful impact that a surge of creative inspiration suddenly welled up within him.

A piece he had revised many times but never quite satisfied with suddenly became clear in his mind.

It seemed that in an instant, the obstacle had been easily overcome.

It was the person standing in the light and shadow who gave him the most beautiful inspiration for using light and shadow.

Standing on that step and tilting his head slightly upward, Ye Zhiqiu hadn't even opened his mouth when he heard Qin Jianhe's deep, pleasant voice echoing through the empty stairwell.

"Ye Zhiqiu," the man called his name, his voice low and tinged with a gentle smile, "come here."

As Ye Zhiqiu stepped up, reaching the last step, his hand was tightly clasped in another's palm.

The setting sun shifted slightly, though imperceptibly, casting a thin line of light from the window frame directly into Ye Zhiqiu's eyes.

For a moment, his light brown eyes almost turned golden, filled with joy and a smile that was breathtakingly beautiful.

"Qin Jianhe," he said, wanting to tell him about the inspiration that had just struck him.

But just as the name left his lips, before the elongated tone could fully fade, Ye Zhiqiu was pulled forcefully into a hug.

Their lips finally met, as if the kiss in the office had never been interrupted.

Ye Zhiqiu's slender waist was held tightly, creating a deep, graceful curve under his loose shirt.

The air was quiet, with only their intermingled breaths echoing in the space, making one's heart race.

After a while, when the line of sunlight piercing through the window glass began to warm the corners of his eyes, Qin Jianhe finally pulled back slightly.

Their foreheads touched, both trying to steady their slightly rapid, entangled breathing.

For a moment, neither spoke.

In the interplay of light and shadow, Qin Jianhe's dark lashes were slightly lowered, his gaze fixed on Ye Zhiqiu's lips, which had been kissed until they were wet and red.

His hand followed his gaze, and he lifted it, gently rubbing his thumb over Ye Zhiqiu's lips.

"What were you afraid of just now?" he asked, his voice slightly hoarse, "If Meng Da sees, let him see."

Ye Zhiqiu: "..."

He opened his mouth to explain, but the mischievous finger took advantage of the opportunity to slip into his warm, soft mouth, pressing down on his tongue and stirring lazily.

Ye Zhiqiu: "..."

Bright saliva trickled down the corner of his mouth, leaving a bright, ambiguous trail on his pale skin.

Unable to bear it any longer, Ye Zhiqiu slowly clenched his teeth, sinking them deeply into the skin until Qin Jianhe laughed softly.

"So fierce," he said.

The rogue finger finally retreated, and Ye Zhiqiu regained his ability to speak.

"Hey!" he said, amused.

"What?" Qin Jianhe asked, teasing him casually.

Feeling a slight warmth in his chest, Ye Zhiqiu was about to speak when the buzzing of a phone echoed through the empty stairwell.

"Answer it," Ye Zhiqiu changed his words, smiling and urging him, "If people find out that the big boss is always slacking off, what credibility will you have?"

"I don't need credibility," Qin Jianhe tried to lean down again but was stopped by Ye Zhiqiu's hand covering his lips.

Those beautiful eyes, already tinged with a faint blush at the corners, smiled warmly, and Ye Zhiqiu urged him, "Hurry."

His laughter was low, almost a nasal sound, and Qin Jianhe finally looked down, pulling out his phone. They both saw the caller's name displayed on the screen.

It was Wei Jie.

Qin Jianhe looked up, meeting Ye Zhiqiu's eyes, then answered the call.

The volume was turned down, and Qin Jianhe put it on speaker so they could listen together.

"Mr. Qin," Wei Jie got straight to the point, "Tang Yue's parents have arrived. Somehow, they found out about Ye Zhixia's ward from a nurse, and Tang Yue's father is causing a commotion."

Not entirely unexpected.

After all, no parent whose child has been harmed like this could remain calm.

Only, the next words from Wei Jie immediately changed the tone,

"Mr. Tang seems..." Wei Jie was a bit hesitant, "not very concerned about Tang Yue's injuries. When he came, he only glanced through the window, then immediately demanded a huge compensation. It was Mrs. Tang who seemed truly heartbroken."

"Of course," Wei Jie added, "I might be overthinking it."

Having both experienced different types of bizarre fathers, Qin Jianhe and Ye Zhiqiu fell silent for a moment, neither offering any comment.

"Is Tang Yue still not awake?" Ye Zhiqiu asked.

Seeming surprised that Ye Zhiqiu was with Qin Jianhe at this time, Wei Jie paused slightly before replying, "The doctor said, most likely tonight."

"Hmm." Ye Zhiqiu responded, his voice very light.

In fact, in front of him, Tang Yue had always appeared particularly gentle and considerate.

This was also why, in the previous life, he had been especially prone to being soft-hearted towards him.

Therefore, when he learned yesterday that Tang Yue had almost been run over by Ye Zhixia, he instinctively felt a moment of softness.

Even a subtle sense of sorrow.

If it weren't for the brutal experiences of the previous life, if it weren't for Jin Baobao's leg and Li Shaojun's face, worn out and devoid of smiles and youthful vigor...

Perhaps, emotion would have overcome reason.

For some reason, at such an important moment, his thoughts drifted far away.

He recalled some things from the previous life.

After Jin Baobao's accident, apart from his parents, it was always Li Shaojun and Baiyou who took care of him.

Back then, his mental state was terrible, leaving no energy for analysis or thought.

It wasn't until later that he had other thoughts.

In times of hardship, Shaojun seemed to hold Jin Baobao's hand, becoming his ultimate support and hope for survival.

Ye Zhiqiu was uncertain, so he had always suppressed this thought.

But for some reason, at this moment, the idea became unprecedentedly clear in his mind.

His eyes felt slightly warm.

And this warmth finally suppressed the inappropriate softness he felt towards Tang Yue once again.

Tang Yue didn't deserve it.

And he had no right to feel soft-hearted on anyone's behalf.

Lowering his eyelashes, Ye Zhiqiu silently pulled his wandering thoughts back, listening to Wei Jie continue speaking.

"I heard that when Ye Zhixia woke up yesterday and learned about her true identity, she almost tore the ward apart. She only calmed down after being sedated," Wei Jie said, "Mr. Tang's outburst seems to have triggered Ye Zhixia again. The hospital is in chaos now, even reporters have come."

Reporters were gathered downstairs, and at this moment, the hospital security personnel were trying to drive them away.

The main reason Wei Jie called was because of this situation,

Although Ye Zhiqiu had already severed ties with the Ye family, how could the outside world possibly not involve him in such a scandal?

"Mr. Tang is now making a fuss about going out for interviews," Wei Jie continued, "To stop him, we'd have to pay that huge compensation for Ye Zhixia."

"That's impossible." Holding Qin Jianhe's hand, Ye Zhiqiu firmly refused, "If you take Tang Yue's father out for interviews, the sooner he speaks, the sooner the reporters will leave. Hospitals are for treating patients; don't let them disturb the patients' rest and the doctors' work."

"Make sure to keep the interview area far away," Qin Jianhe also instructed sternly, "Don't block the emergency exits."

"Alright." Wei Jie responded and hung up the phone.

The sun was setting, golden sunlight streaming in through the narrow window,

Qin Jianhe leaned forward to embrace Ye Zhiqiu, lowering his head to kiss the top of his hair.

"This matter will eventually come to light," Ye Zhiqiu said calmly, "You've already decided to charge him with attempted murder, haven't you?"

Though he didn't specify who, they both understood he was referring to Ye Zhixia.

"Yes," Qin Jianhe replied, "I've already met with the legal team; the minimum charge is attempted murder."

"And," Qin Jianhe continued, "besides Ye Zhixia, I have some information on Ye Zheng as well."

He paused slightly, "Do you want to see it?"

"Sure." Ye Zhiqiu nodded.

He hadn't yet decided on a specific approach for dealing with Ye Zheng.

But Qin Jianhe's arrangement for Qin Weian had given him some inspiration.

Regardless, he needed more information to use as leverage in negotiations.

"I'll bring it to you tonight," Qin Jianhe said, raising his hand to rub the top of his head.

The phone rang again, this time it was Zhou Tongxin.

Ye Zhiqiu knew Zhou Tongxin.

If it weren't for something truly urgent, he wouldn't have specifically called Qin Jianhe,

"You go ahead." Ye Zhiqiu smiled.

Qin Jianhe didn’t move, quietly leaning against the windowsill.

In the shadow, his expression seemed even more profound, deeply focused on him.

"I’ll watch you go down," he said.

Ye Zhiqiu smiled.

In fact, he wasn’t sad at all, not in the slightest.

Perhaps, to most people, the recent series of accidents in the Ye family had caused him to lose many relatives in a short time.

But only he knew that since the previous life, after he and Qi Xin got together, he no longer had any family around him.

In the early years with Qi Xin, he had worked tirelessly to help him build his career, during the period when he hadn’t been completely brainwashed yet, Tao Ruoqing would occasionally give him a call.

Naturally, it wasn’t because she cared about him.

It was to probe his thoughts, to keep him stable, so he wouldn’t become suspicious.

Later, after he became a complete "waste" and posed no threat, no matter how hard his life became, even to the point where he could barely survive, the Ye family never showed up.

Not only that, but even when he returned to the Ye family, he would be turned away at the door.

His family had actually died long ago.

Or perhaps, he had never truly had them.

How could one speak of losing something they had never possessed?

But he didn’t explain this to Qin Jianhe; he just nodded with a smile, "Okay."

As he walked down the stairs, just before he was about to leave Qin Jianhe’s line of sight, the person upstairs suddenly called out to him again.

"Ye Zhiqiu."

"Hmm?" Ye Zhiqiu turned back and saw Qin Jianhe still leaning against the window in the same posture, quietly looking down at him.

For some reason, a sweet, soft warmth welled up in his heart.

He had almost forgotten.

He already had his own, the best and dearest family.

A thousand times better than those people from the Ye family.

"Let’s go eat something good after work," Qin Jianhe said.

"Okay," Ye Zhiqiu nodded, his eyes gradually filling with a warm smile, which also curved his lips.

The sunlight no longer reached him, but his smile shone brightly in the dim stairwell.

Reflected in Qin Jianhe’s dark pupils, it seemed even brighter and hotter than the scorching sun behind him.

One high, one low, the two of them quietly looked at each other for a moment.

Finally, a faint smile appeared in Qin Jianhe’s eyes again.

"Go ahead," he said.

With a smile, Ye Zhiqiu pushed open the door of the stairwell. As he lifted his gaze, he met Sun Chaoyang’s eyes.

Ye Zhiqiu was usually very amiable, always smiling, no matter who he was with.

But at this moment, his smile was clearly different from usual, gentle and tender, filled with sweetness.

If it were another time, if it were someone else, they would definitely have noticed the subtlety.

However, Sun Chaoyang seemed to be preoccupied with something heavy, and he didn’t notice.

"Teacher Xiao Ye," he greeted, pausing slightly as he approached Ye Zhiqiu, as if he had something to say.

"Um," Ye Zhiqiu nodded at him with a smile.

Since Sun Chaoyang didn’t speak, Ye Zhiqiu didn’t linger and quickly passed by him.

But before he had taken a few steps, Sun Chaoyang called out to him again, "Teacher Xiao Ye."

This time, Ye Zhiqiu finally stopped, turning slightly to look at him.

His jaw tightly clenched, Sun Chaoy’s jaw muscles bulged, but after a while, he shook his head, "Never mind."

Since he said never mind, Ye Zhiqiu didn’t ask further.

He nodded at him again and walked toward his office.

As the office door opened and closed, Ye Zhiqiu’s figure disappeared.

Sun Chaoyang’s brows furrowed, whether in frustration or something else, he sighed softly before stepping into the elevator.

Half an hour later, just before four-thirty, a new trending topic predictably appeared online.

News of Ye Zhixia’s hit-and-run incident was reported by the media.

The image of Tang Yue’s father as a simple, honest farmer immediately flooded the screens, his tearful appearance instantly winning the sympathy of most netizens.

In an instant, the internet was in an uproar.

"Damn, isn’t Ye Zhixia just a nobody now? How is he still causing trouble?"

"If it really is as Mr. Tang Yue's father said, that it was intentional, then he would be suspected of murder, right?"

"Wouldn't they end up serving their sentences together, the two of them, husband and husband, side by side?"

"A bit scary, but speaking of which, isn't this Tang Yue the one who plagiarized Ye Zhiqiu before?"

"Yes, yes, that guy is quite crazy. Didn't he even threaten Ye Zhiqiu publicly by threatening to jump from a building back then?"

"I just feel sorry for his father. At such an old age, seeing him so helpless and tearful is truly heart-wrenching."

"Tang Yue is indeed a bit crazy, but I never noticed it before. It turns out Ye Zhixia is also like that?"

"It's like a crazy person bumping into another crazy person."

【It really is a "bump."】

"Can't imagine what Ye Zhiqiu's daily life must be like, living between two crazy people."

"So, does this have anything to do with Ye Zhiqiu? After all, he and Ye Zhixia are siblings, as the saying goes, 'brothers united.'"

"Don't drag Ye Zhiqiu into this. If Ye Zhixia were really doing it for his brother, why didn't he speak up when the incident happened? Baiyou and Meng Qingyan were all speaking up for Ye Zhiqiu, so there's no reason his reaction time would be so long, only to remember to stand up for his brother after so long."

【+1, don't drag Ye Zhiqiu into this.】

"But apart from the incident with Ye Zhiqiu, I can't think of anything else."

"I bet it has something to do with Ye Zhiqiu. Tang Yue is Ye Zhiqiu's classmate; what deep grudge could he have with Ye Zhixia? I'm betting it's because of Ye Zhiqiu."

"Didn't Ye Zhixia seem pretty weak in his relationship with Gao Wenye before? Why is he suddenly acting out now?"

"..."

The internet was abuzz, and even after Qin Jianhe and Ye Zhiqiu sat down in the restaurant that evening, the noise did not subside.

Not only did it not subside, but after fermenting throughout the afternoon, it gave rise to all sorts of outrageous speculations, including some conspiracy theories.

Of course, Ye Zhiqiu's always excellent image gradually became clouded in these discussions.

But Ye Zhiqiu didn't care.

He wasn't a celebrity, and he had long understood that face, this kind of thing, only ever trapped oneself.

And...

He was very certain that this matter would soon turn around.

Sweet seafood congee, a huge Australian lobster, and fresh sweet king crab were placed on the table one by one.

Ye Zhiqiu rubbed his hands together, his curved eyes shining brightly.

Qin Jianhe lowered his gaze to peel the shrimp, placing the tender meat on a small plate and pushing it in front of him.

"Take your time," he said with a smile.

A phone on the corner of the table kept vibrating, but Qin Jianhe glanced at it and then looked away.

It wasn't until Ye Zhiqiu had finished half a bowl of porridge and eaten six or seven shrimps, feeling his stomach was about three-quarters full, that he held the crab leg and asked curiously, "Group chat message?"

"Hmm." Qin Jianhe responded softly.

"Don't need to reply?" Ye Zhiqiu said.

"They're discussing where to go for dinner to calm you down, and also," Qin Jianhe's eyes twinkled with a hint of mischief, "Yu Renzhi mentioned he would kowtow to you, so he can make up for it later."

"Hmm?" Ye Zhiqiu was a bit puzzled, his eyes widening, "Kowtow to me?"

"Hmm." Seeing his curiosity, Qin Jianhe smiled and put down his utensils.

He took a napkin to wipe his hands, then unlocked his phone and scrolled back to the messages from the press conference day, showing them to Ye Zhiqiu.

Ye Zhiqiu took the phone and slowly scrolled through the previous messages, unable to hold back a laugh as he read.

"Yu Renzhi: Holy shit, holy shit, holy shit, the boss behind Yunkai is actually Sister-in-law? Mind blown.jpg"

"Wang Qitang: I can't handle this, never been this shocked before. I keep pinching myself to see if I'm dreaming, my arm is already bruised."

"Wang Qitang: Come to think of it, could it be that Xiao Ye, no, Mr. Ye, saw the relationship between me and Xiao Yu, so he gave the battery cooperation project to New Power?"

"Wang Qitang: Phew, what a close call."

"Meng Qingyan: So shocked today, couldn't get into character at all. The director had no choice but to give me a day off."

"Yu Renzhi: Hahahaha, dying laughing, Qingyan actually can't get into character, blackmail material, screenshot saved just in case."

"Wang Qitang: Is it possible that the director was so shocked he couldn't hold the camera steady?"

"Yu Renzhi: Possible."

"Yu Renzhi: How many more surprises does Sister-in-law have that I don't know about?"

"Yu Renzhi: No matter what, Xiao Yu, hurry up and arrange a meeting with Sister-in-law, I've missed her so much."

"Meng Qingyan: Sister-in-law is someone you can just miss?"

"Meng Qingyan: My blackmail material? Who said the boss behind Yunkai must be an old man?"

"Wang Qitang: Hahahaha."

"Yu Renzhi: ……"

"Yu Renzhi: Who said it's an old man? It must be a handsome young man."

"Meng Qingyan: picture.jpg"

The screenshot was the previous chat record, clearly showing on the screen that Yu Renzhi had previously said the mastermind behind Yunkai was an old man.

"Wang Qitang: Renzhi, shouldn't you apologize to Xiao Ye properly?"

"Meng Qingyan: Kneel down."

"Yu Renzhi: Damn, what’s going on? Just for your beauty, Sister-in-law, I won’t lose anything by kneeling. If you want me to kneel, I’ll do it."

"Meng Qingyan: Save the screenshot."

"Wang Qitang: @Qin Jianhe, remember to make Ye Zong accept this bow later."

"……"

Ye Zhiqiu smiled, "So interesting?"

"Hmm," Qin Jianhe said calmly, "Do you want to join in?"

He hadn’t considered building too close a relationship with Qin Jianhe’s friends before, simply because at the time, he himself didn’t know how things would turn out with Qin Jianhe.

But now, Qin Jianhe’s friends were his friends.

Ye Zhiqiu nodded with a smile.

Moments later, his phone vibrated, and Qin Jianhe had added him to the small four-person group chat.

As soon as the notification of the new member joining popped up, the group immediately burst into activity again.

"Wait until later," Qin Jianhe picked out the crab claw meat and placed it on Ye Zhiqiu’s plate, "I’ll make Yu Renzhi bow to you."