Chapter 33: Collective Meltdown

Chapter 33: Collective Meltdown

After exiting through the side door of the hotel, Li Wenzhao quickly helped Jing Yi into the car and told Uncle Lin to leave immediately, as if they were fleeing a disaster. Seeing this, Uncle Lin sped up even more.

The hotel gradually faded into the distance behind them.

Li Wenzhao didn’t dare to relax. He had no idea why the young butler had suddenly started leaking his inner thoughts on such a large scale, nor the range of this phenomenon. He feared that the young butler might accidentally reveal his identity, which would certainly cause a huge uproar. For now, the priority was to get as far away from the hotel as possible.

Jing Yi, annoyed at having his mouth covered, began fussing in the backseat.

“Why did you cover my mouth?”

Li Wenzhao pinched his cheek. “Don’t speak.”

“I didn’t say anything.”

“If you don’t believe me, just look at my mouth—did it move?”

Li Wenzhao stared at the upturned face. “...”

The car was enclosed, and he was sitting too close to the young butler. The fruity scent of alcohol wafted from Jing Yi’s breath.

Li Wenzhao lowered his gaze and looked at him. “Did you drink?”

The young butler, clearly drunk, shook his head resolutely. “No.”

Still not admitting it, huh? Li Wenzhao was almost amused. “I told you not to drink. You’ve caused quite a mess. Are you bold enough to disobey?”

Jing Yi, feeling extremely dizzy, leaned against the seat cushion and rubbed his face like a sea otter. “I didn’t drink. It was just juice that got me tipsy.”

“...”

Li Wenzhao was just about to say something when his gaze paused at a certain spot—the young butler’s shirt collar was disheveled, his bow tie crooked, and through the open collar, a small, delicate tattoo-like mark was visible.

Li Wenzhao’s long fingers carefully pulled aside Jing Yi’s warm collar, brushing against the soft skin beneath. “What’s this mark?”

Jing Yi, feeling ticklish, moved. “It’s my prominent Adam’s apple.”

Li Wenzhao: “...”

“Are you feeling okay anywhere?” Li Wenzhao asked.

He needed to confirm whether leaking his inner thoughts on such a large scale had harmed the young butler’s body.

If it had, he would need to immediately invite Yin Liancheng over and, to ensure the young butler’s secret wasn’t leaked, sign another confidentiality agreement with Yin Liancheng.

Jing Yi frowned. “...Yes.”

Li Wenzhao’s eyes darkened. “Where does it hurt?”

Jing Yi removed the hand that was on his neck. “It’s itchy, hehehe.”

“...”

It was his mistake to try and discuss something serious with a little drunkard.

A small, mysterious tattoo-like mark shaped like a horn appeared just below the young butler’s Adam’s apple, both strange and striking.

The first time he had been able to hear inner thoughts, Li Wenzhao had wondered how the young butler managed it. He had privately investigated top research from various countries, but no scientific study indicated that a person’s inner world could be projected outward through any acquired means.

Now seeing the tattoo, Li Wenzhao could only vaguely make a guess.

The external sound came from this small speaker tattoo.

But after figuring this out, more questions followed—why could only the Li family usually hear the external sound from this small speaker tattoo? Why Jing Yi? Where did he get the small speaker from? And why did it suddenly lose control tonight, causing a large-scale amplification?

For the last question, Li Wenzhao looked at the young butler next to him and easily found the answer—alcohol.

The young butler, after drinking, was simply like an amplified speaker.

It was unclear whether he would return to normal after sobering up.

Troubled, Li Wenzhao rubbed his head. His phone beeped on his lap, [Brother, did you find Butler Jing? I can't hear anything from here now.]

[Li Mingzhi]: [I found him. I’ll take him home first. Uncle Lin will come to get you later.]

[Li Mingzhi]: [Is Butler Jing okay? Why did he suddenly become a high-powered speaker?]

Li Wenzhao was slightly distracted, just having replied to the message, when a heavy weight suddenly sank onto his shoulder. A fuzzy head thudded onto his shoulder.

Jing Yi: zzzzz……

·

The car arrived at the Li family estate forty minutes later. Jing Yi had completely passed out, his breath heavy with the strong smell of alcohol.

Li Wenzhao carried the drunk out of the car. Uncle Lin quickly offered, “Let me take him, eldest young master.”

“No need.” Li Wenzhao said expressionlessly, “You go pick up Mingzhi.”

Uncle Lin was stunned for a moment. “Alright.”

The young butler had a big appetite, but his weight was truly light. It was unclear where all the food he'd been eating over the past few days had gone.

Li Wenzhao stepped into the house.

Aunt Fang, the nanny, was cleaning the living room. Seeing Li Wenzhao carrying someone in, she instinctively thought it was Li Mingzhi. “Eldest young master, what’s wrong with the young master?”

Upon closer inspection, Aunt Fang saw Jing Yi’s flushed cheeks. “Oh, it’s Butler Jing. His face is so red; is he sick?”

“He’s not sick, just drunk.” Li Wenzhao said, “Aunt Fang, could you please make a bowl of hangover soup and bring it to the butler’s room?”

Aunt Fang: “Ah… okay.”

She stood there, stunned, as Li Wenzhao carried him away.

The servants’ quarters at the Li family estate were behind the main house, with the butler’s room being the largest and equipped with an en-suite bathroom.

This was the first time Li Wenzhao had entered Jing Yi’s room, which was clean and tidy. The large bed in the center of the room looked particularly soft.

As soon as Jing Yi was laid down on the bed, he groggily opened his eyes.

“Are we home now?”

“Yes, that’s right. This is my bed…”

Jing Yi’s mind briefly cleared. He kicked off his shoes, curled up under the blankets like a rice dumpling, and fell into a deep sleep.

zzzzzz……

Before Li Wenzhao could retract his outstretched arm, the person he was holding had already fallen into a deep sleep again: “……”

As if he was just a porter.

Li Wenzhao stood quietly at the foot of the bed. After a long while, he reached out and punitively pinched the red, chubby earlobe of the sleeping person.

Slap—

The person on the bed dissatisfiedly moved, slapped Li Wenzhao's hand away, rolled over, and continued sleeping.

··

The next day, Jing Yi woke up to the dinging and donging of his phone, his head pounding. He rubbed his head and let out a long hiss.

Unbelievable, the drink from last night had quite a kick.

Jing Yi sat on the bed in a daze for a long time, feeling like he had dreamt something. The content was quite exciting, but upon waking, only a few disconnected blurry big scenes remained. He seemed to have been acting justly, what a pity that such a righteous scene wasn’t recorded.

After washing up, Jing Yi wandered out.

He had slept in, and the Li family servants were all busy with their duties, while he had lounged in bed until late morning.

Feeling a bit embarrassed, Jing Yi went to the dining room.

“You’re awake, Jing Butler,” Aunt Fang said with a smile. “Just in time, the hangover soup is still warm. Wait a moment, I’ll bring it over.”

Jing Yi was touched. “Thank you, Aunt Fang.”

“No problem.”

In the dining room, the eldest young master was eating, with the electronic version of a financial news article by his side.

Jing Yi glanced at the time and was surprised. “Big young master, aren’t you at work?”

It was already eleven o'clock.

“Hmm,” Li Wenzhao replied, his gaze shifting over and briefly scanning Jing Yi’s throat. His fair skin bore no trace of the tattoo.

He calmly retracted his gaze. “Resting this morning, going to work in the afternoon.”

Jing Yi nodded in approval. “A very well-planned schedule.”

It would be great if it could always be like this.

Aunt Fang brought the soup over. Li Wenzhao, wanting to test if the young butler’s mental broadcast was still malfunctioning, called out, “Jing Yi.”

“Hmm?”

“Pass me a spoon.”

“Oh.”

The young butler turned around and left.

Li Wenzhao: “？？？”

"Why aren't you mentally complaining?"

Jing Yi returned with the spoon and sat down, ready to drink the hangover soup. He had never tried hangover soup before and wanted to see how it tasted.

Li Wenzhao: "Jing Yi."

"Hmm?"

"Can you grab another pair of chopsticks?"

Jing Yi shot him a weird look. "Don't you have some right there?"

Li Wenzhao remained expressionless. "They're dirty."

Jing Yi eyed him suspiciously for a couple of seconds, then got up to grab another pair of chopsticks.

However, just as he sat down, Li Wenzhao spoke again. "Can you get some salt too?"

Jing Yi was stunned and began to show his claws.

"Eldest young master, are you made of toothpaste or something?"

"Squeeze out a bit, get a little—can't you just ask for everything at once?"

Li Wenzhao: "..."

He glanced at Aunt Fang. Her expression was normal, and she didn’t seem to have heard anything out of the ordinary, which meant the mind-reading device had returned to normal.

Seeing Li Wenzhao quiet down, Jing Yi was suspicious—

"What's going on? Why does it feel like the eldest young master is deliberately asking for trouble…? Hiss, can't be… Has he developed some masochistic attributes…?"

Li Wenzhao: "..."

Just drink your soup.

·

·

After resting at home for half a day, Jing Yi still tagged along with Li Wenzhao to the Li Corporation to make some extra cash.

But today, the Li Corporation seemed much livelier, with all sorts of excited gossip buzzing around the offices.

"Did anyone catch today's entertainment news?"

"Yes, it blew my mind for the entire year!"

"I heard the person who leaked the info vanished without a trace, and no one can find them. I really want to know who is upholding justice!"

"But these reports don't have concrete evidence. Could they be fake?"

"How could they be? Haven't you noticed that none of the people mentioned have come forward? They must be feeling pretty guilty."

"Pei Pei and Yang Zailun are quite shocking. I heard reporters actually found the 'stepmother' in the parking lot!"

"That's nothing. The most shocking is the revelation about Best Actor Qiu Guzheng. I've been a fan for over a decade, and if he's involved in a rape scandal, I'm done with stardom for life."

"Huh? What kind of gossip is that?"

Jing Yi had just walked into the office when he was hit by an overwhelming wave of gossip.

"Let me have a taste too."

Li Wenzhao saw the eagerness in his eyes and chuckled, "Want some of this juicy gossip?"

Jing Yi quickly turned his head, "You're in on it too, eldest young master?"

"I'm not partaking," said Li Wenzhao. "I usually just watch the scene live."

"……?"

A question mark slowly appeared above Jing Yi's head. Can scandals really be watched live?

Why wasn't I invited to this drama fest?!

Li Wenzhao said, "Didn't you check your phone this morning?"

Jing Yi: "No."

He fumbled for his phone, shocked by the barrage of notifications.

#Cen Mingming caught evading taxes, 500 million yuan confirmed!#

#Popular male star Fang is actually the top figure in an underground bar, click to watch the hot dance video#

#Younger sister knowingly became the mistress and plotted against her sick elder sister#

#Famous actor Yang and his stepmother's shady encounters in the underground parking lot#

#Acting legend Qiu Guzheng involved in a rape scandal, reportedly taken away by the police#

"……"

Jing Yi was at a loss for words.

Seeming to notice his confusion, Li Wenzhao said pointedly, "How do you feel after watching?"

Jing Yi frowned and clicked his tongue, "You guys here…"

Li Wenzhao appeared completely unfazed.

Jing Yi: "Are these scandals coming in waves?"

His fingers scrolled through the screen, "Too many juicy stories, can't keep up at all."

Li Wenzhao: "……"

Li Wenzhao's expression was inscrutable. "Do you really not remember anything?"

Jing Yi thought for a moment, "What am I supposed to remember?"

Li Wenzhao smiled mysteriously and tapped the screen where it said "mysterious insider," then knocked on his head, "You were the one who spilled all these beans."

"!!!"

Jing Yi's heart pounded in shock, "I… I did it?"

"Yes," said Li Wenzhao.

Scared now, huh? If you don't keep your mouth shut when you're out there, you'll definitely run into trouble. Not only will you invite revenge, but you might even get kidnapped for research.

Li Wenzhao cleared his throat lightly: "Behave yourself from now on..."

"Then I'm pretty amazing!" Jing Yi exclaimed. "I exposed five bad apples in just one night!"

Li Wenzhao: "..."

He then headed into the office.

Jing Yi quickly swiped his phone, finished the last bit of outdated gossip, and chased into the office. "Eldest young master, how did I spill the beans?"

Li Wenzhao glanced at the young butler's fair and flawless neck. "You turned into a loudspeaker last night."

"!!!"

Jing Yi hurriedly asked about the incident. After listening, he fell silent for two seconds, then swiftly undid his collar and stretched his neck towards Li Wenzhao. "Can you check if the tattoo is still there?"

With the fair neck suddenly exposed, Li Wenzhao's eyes lingered for a moment. "...It's not."

"Not even a trace?" Jing Yi tugged at his collar and leaned in closer. "Maybe it's just faded. Can you take another look?"

The door clicked open.

"CEO, these are the financial reports for this month..." Secretary Fan's calm voice suddenly stopped, his hand trembling, nearly dropping the documents.

In the formal office, Jing Butler unbuttoned his shirt, leaning provocatively towards Li Wenzhao.

Quite the forbidden office romance scene!

The slight vibration of light glided over his glasses as he smoothly turned around. "Oops, wrong room."

Li Wenzhao: "..."

Jing Yi: "..."

Li Wenzhao came to his senses. "Jing Yi."

Jing Yi adjusted his collar, and Li Wenzhao said, "No scandalous scenes in the office, okay?"

Jing Yi buttoned his shirt. "I was just looking at the neck—why do you always think dirty thoughts?"

Jing Yi couldn't figure out why his inner thoughts became a loudspeaker, but since he felt fine, he didn't plan to dwell on it.

Recalling Shen Shubai's little actions at the banquet last night, Jing Yi said, "Eldest young master, do you have Secretary Zou's address?"

Li Wenzhao seemed to frown slightly. "What do you want to do?"

The young butler spoke solemnly. "I'm going to make Shen Shubai estranged from everyone!"

Li Wenzhao sighed. "Secretary Fan has it."

"Oh, okay." Jing Yi drifted away.

Still shaken from earlier, Secretary Fan wasn't in the main office. Jing Yi wandered around for a long time before finally catching him in the rest area.

"Secretary Fan, do you have Secretary Zou's address?"

Fan Ming, upon seeing him, was startled: "...Yes, I do."

Jing Yi held up his phone: "Please share it."

The phone vibrated, and Secretary Fan sent over an email address.

"...," Jing Yi emphasized, "I don't want a virtual address; I need one where I can catch him offline."

Secretary Fan was taken aback by his wording: "Catch him?"

Jing Yi pressed his lips together: "Just a figure of speech."

After hesitating and struggling internally for a while, he still couldn't help but speak up: "Butler Jing, next time if you and Mr. Li are horsing around in the office again, you might want to lock the door."

"..."

[Horsing around.]

Jing Yi immediately narrowed his eyes and looked over warily: "Oh, so you're another secretary with dirty thoughts!"

Secretary Fan: "..."

Jing Yi, while placing an order for civil service exam materials, tried to convince Secretary Fan: "We're all guys; what's the big deal about looking at someone's neck? You shouldn't be so judgmental, Secretary Fan."

Secretary Fan seemed to have noticed something: "Butler Jing, is this how you've always viewed Mr. Li?"

Jing Yi, nonchalant: "Yeah."

Secretary Fan gave a meaningful smile: "Oh, that's good then."

Jing Yi turned his head: "But your expression says otherwise."

Secretary Fan: "?"

Jing Yi stared at him: "Your face looks like it's been pixelated."

Secretary Fan: "..."

He subtly shifted his gaze and saw Jing Yi open the payment interface, with the address filled in as Secretary Zou's home, "What are you buying for Secretary Zou?"

Jing Yi: "The Complete Guide to Headhunting."

Secretary Fan didn't quite agree: "Secretary Zou is the most loyal person by Mr. Shen's side; no matter what you offer, it's unlikely to succeed."

Jing Yi typed in his password: "It will work; I'm recruiting top talent for the nation!"

"?"

Secretary Fan leaned over to look at the payment interface and understood: "Butler Jing, not everyone from Shandong wants to work in civil service; that's just a stereotype."

"I know." Jing Yi finished the payment, swiftly closed his phone: "I'll just send some materials to pique his interest. Being from a province known for civil service exams, I can't see how he won't be interested!"

"..."