Chapter 100

Chapter 100

"What did you say?"

The conference room fell completely silent.

Zhang Ming kept his head bowed over the documents, not daring to look at Yan Tingshen, who was on the phone.

The others in the room held their breath, each speculating what news Yan had just received from the call.

Soon after, Pei Sheng walked in carrying files. Noticing the tense silence and Yan Tingshen rising from his seat, he paused, realizing something.

Sure enough.

The next second, he heard Yan Tingshen speak.

"Take over Yuning’s operations. Settle it quickly."

Settle it quickly?

Pei Sheng froze, but before he could confirm, the tall man beside him had already swept past, heading for the door.

The gust from his stride lifted the open pages in Pei Sheng’s hand, laced with an urgency Yan Tingshen never showed.

And it was always because of him.

Pei Sheng watched Yan Tingshen’s retreating figure, recalling his words.

Settle it quickly.

Were they no longer hiding what happened in Yuning?

Or had Qin You already found out?

"President Pei?"

Pei Sheng hesitated, then turned and gestured to the others before quickly catching up to Yan Tingshen. "President Yan, about Yuning—should we loop in Qin You—"

"Deal with it first," Yan Tingshen cut in, his voice low. "We’ll discuss the rest later."

Hearing this, Pei Sheng halted mid-step.

Yan Tingshen never glanced at him, striding forward, typing a few words on his screen before deleting them all. Eyes shadowed, he dialed a number.

"..."

—

In the study, a ringtone cut through the silence.

Qin You took out his phone, about to reject the call. But upon seeing the caller ID, he gave Yan Xingjun an apologetic glance before stepping outside to take it.

"..." Yan Tingshen paused before asking, "Are you on Fuzhong Road?"

Qin You shut the door, chuckling. "How did you know?"

Yan Tingshen’s grip on the phone tightened. "Are you alright? Did he hassle you?"

Qin You said, "Don’t read too much into it. Old Man Yan just asked me over for tea."

Yan Tingshen pressed further, "What did he say?"

Catching his unease, Qin You replied succinctly, "Naturally, he wants us to split."

"..." Yan Tingshen froze. "You..."

Qin You chuckled lightly. "Chill. I said no."

Yan Tingshen clenched his jaw.

Qin You added, "So the old man’s riled up now. Don’t come over and stir the pot."

Yan Tingshen stood still for a moment before saying, "I’ll get you."

Qin You replied, "Don’t bother. My ride’s out front."

Yan Tingshen fell silent again. "Qin You, you..."

"Me what?"

When no further words came, Qin You laughed. "You think he can turn me against you that easily?"

Yan Tingshen said, "...That’s not what I meant."

Qin You raised an eyebrow. "Then what’s eating you?"

Hearing only dead air on the other end, he chuckled again. "We’ll hash this out tonight. For now, Boss Yan, get back to work."

"..." Yan Tingshen said, "I’ll leave on time tonight."

Qin You played dumb. "No burning the midnight oil?"

Yan Tingshen replied, "...No."

Before Qin You could say more, he added, "I’ll swing by your office at five this afternoon."

Qin You didn’t refuse. "Alright."

After exchanging a few more words, they hung up, and Qin You returned to the study.

Yan Xingjun was still seated in the same spot, but he’d checked out of the conversation.

Had he known Qin You would prove just as hardheaded, he wouldn’t have arranged this meeting today.

In fact, compared to Yan Tingshen, Qin You was even more dug in.

With a reckless rich kid who showed no regard for his family’s business, unless he was willing to burn bridges with the old bastard and teach Qin You a lesson, there was truly nothing he could do.

But fighting that losing battle would be unnecessary and not worth it.

Yan Xingjun gave Qin You a cold glance, said nothing more, and lifted his teacup, giving a pointed cough.

Getting the message, Qin You grinned and dipped out.

He turned and left Fuzhong Road, headed back to Qin Corp.

At 4:55 sharp...

The phone chimed with a message notification, and Qin You glanced at his watch.

Cui Ling went quiet, though he hadn’t left yet when Qin Hengzhong entered from outside.

Seeing Qin You looking ready to leave, Qin Hengzhong frowned. "It’s not time to leave work yet. What’s the rush?"

Qin You checked his watch. "Sorry, I have plans."

Hearing this, Qin Hengzhong’s face darkened, and all his prepared arguments fell flat.

No need to wonder who Qin You was meeting.

He stared at Qin You’s receding figure, then turned to Cui Ling with another frown. "Did Qin You not go out today?"

This much of his schedule was common knowledge among the executive secretaries, so Cui Ling didn’t hide it. "Young Master Qin went out once at noon, but he came back before work started again."

Qin Hengzhong pressed further, "What was his mood when he returned?"

Cui Ling thought back. "Same as always, nothing unusual."

Qin Hengzhong’s frown deepened.

After meeting, and still acting like usual.

That useless old fool, Yan Xingjun.

With that thought, Qin Hengzhong looked back toward the door.

Qin You’s figure had already disappeared around the corner.

As the elevator descended, Qin You replied to the message Yan Tingshen had sent.

。: Let’s eat first. I booked your favorite restaurant.

Q: Okay.

Soon, the elevator doors opened.

As Qin You stepped out, he could see someone waiting by the car from afar.

The next moment, that person walked over.

Qin You smiled at him, taking his hand casually as they returned to the car. "You could’ve just come after work."

Yan Tingshen replied, "It’s no trouble."

He studied Qin You’s expression briefly, but said nothing more.

Qin You didn’t push it.

Soon after, they got into the car and arrived at the restaurant.

But even after finishing the meal and returning to Cang Yuan, beyond small talk, Yan Tingshen didn’t mention anything else.

It wasn’t until after they had gone upstairs, finished getting ready, and Qin You lay down in bed with the lights off that he finally heard a soft voice behind him.

"Aren’t you going to ask me anything today?"

Qin You replied, "Some things are up to you to bring up."

Yan Tingshen raised his hand and pressed it against Qin You's shoulder.

Qin You turned around, making out his silhouette in the dim light.

Yan Tingshen looked down. "I'm sorry. No matter what, I shouldn't have hidden the problems with your projects from you."

The topic that should have come up last night only came up when Qin You asked tonight: "Why did you hide it from me?"

Since the afternoon meeting with Yan Xingjun, every problem, big and small, had been exposed one after another, no longer concealed. The manager was already swamped, but fortunately, they all turned out to be "close calls," so no real damage was done.

He knew Yan Tingshen had adjusted the strategy.

But it sounded like the adjustment had been made reluctantly.

Yan Tingshen pursed his lips.

He countered, "The Yuning project is your hard work. Now that it's implicated, it'll be a hundred times harder to develop. Of course, aren't you worried?"

"Of course," Qin You replied.

Yan Tingshen's hand tightened a little as he looked up at him.

"But these anticipated risks are inevitable. What's a little difficulty?"

Qin You covered Yan Tingshen's hand with his own. "No one's life is smooth sailing. Even you—has everything always gone perfectly for you?"

Feeling the warmth from Qin You's hand, Yan Tingshen gently clasped it in return.

Looking into Qin You's eyes, he asked again, "If it's not just difficulty—if, for a period of time, any project under your name would fail the moment it left the Qin Group, and you couldn't shake them off... would you regret it?"

Qin You let out a short laugh after hearing this. "So, this is what Mr. Yan told you."

Yan Tingshen's expression faltered.

Qin You asked him, "What do you think I would choose?"

But Yan Tingshen looked away and only said, "You promised me that no matter what trouble you face, you wouldn't leave."

Observing his reaction, Qin You started to turn away.

Yet, the moment he moved, Yan Tingshen noticed.

He tightened his grip on Qin You's shoulder, leaning in closer.

As they shifted, he asked in a low voice, "Are you leaving?"

Held in place, Qin You said with a sigh, "Turn on the light."

The bright lights came on immediately. Yan Tingshen squeezed his eyes shut before burying his face against Qin You's neck.

Qin You cupped the back of his head, adjusting the lighting with his other hand before saying, "I think we need to have a proper talk."

At these words, Yan Tingshen froze mid-movement, his grip on Qin You's shoulder tightening and loosening. "What do you want to talk about?"

Qin You pulled him into his arms and kissed his forehead. "First, let's talk about why you don't trust me."

The voice in his ear carried an unmistakable hint of amusement. Yan Tingshen finally looked up, arching an eyebrow as he met those peach-blossom eyes.

Yan Tingshen averted his gaze: "It's not that I don't trust you—"

"It's more than just distrust."

Qin You studied him intently, "You think I'd bail when things get tough and are still doubting my integrity."

"This has nothing to do with your integrity."

At this point, Yan Tingshen no longer concealed anything, "Qin You, I've never doubted you. But this concerns your future and your freedom—"

As he spoke, his tone grew detached, as if he'd thought of something, "No matter what you choose, to stay or leave, I respect your decision."

Qin You waited for him to finish before asking, "If that's the case, why did you hide the project issues from me?"

"..." Yan Tingshen's breath hitched slightly, remaining silent.

Qin You pressed further, "...and why make me promise never to leave you?"

"..." Yan Tingshen wrapped his arms around him, pressing his thin lips against the pulse point on Qin You's neck, his lips brushing against each steady pulse as he spoke, "...at that time, I hadn't thought it through yet."

"Thought what through?"

Qin You glanced over, seeing only his profile, but didn't mind, saying quietly, "If you trusted me, you'd understand that since I agreed to be with you, I must have known what I'd face. In your eyes, do I lack even that much resilience?"

Yan Tingshen said, "Even if you're with me, must you keep compromising your principles?"

Qin You chuckled, "You're reading too much into this."

"Am I?"

Yan Tingshen continued, "Are you telling me you don't want to leave Jingqi, the Qin family, this dog-eat-dog world, nor do you want an easier, low-key life?"

Qin You paused.

He had indeed mentioned leaving to Yan Tingshen before—but only once. He was surprised Yan Tingshen remembered so vividly and guessed his thoughts so accurately.

Yan Tingshen took his silence as confirmation and paused briefly before adding, "You've been buying property in Yuning. I know it's preparation for this."

Hearing this, Qin You raised a hand to Yan Tingshen's shoulder, trying to push him away, but the arms encircling him only pulled him closer.

Yan Tingshen said, "Qin You, if you want to leave, I respect your decision."

"You—"

"Because," Yan Tingshen interrupted, "I'm coming with you."

Qin You's hand went still against Yan Tingshen's shoulder.

Yan Tingshen's voice, typically low and measured, remained calm: "I'll give up my claim to Junmin."

Qin You frowned, "What did you say?"

"Since we're together, I must understand what we'll face."

Yan Tingshen repeated Qin You's earlier words, loosening his grip slightly to meet his gaze, his expression impassively calm, "Then why should you give up your ideals while I come out ahead?"

Meeting that gaze, the tension in Qin You's brow gave way to mild frustration, "Don't be ridiculous."

Yan Tingshen wasn't who he was in his past life, and to him, Junmin Group wasn't some burden—it was the throne he was destined to claim.

Giving up the Qin family is entirely different from giving up Junmin.

Yan Tingshen braced his elbow against Qin You's shoulder, leaning slightly as he looked down at him. "Now, it's you who doesn't trust me."

Qin You chuckled. "Very well, I believe you. But I advise you not to do this."

"You can't have it both ways."

Yan Tingshen raised his hand to cup Qin You's cheek, his thumb brushing lightly over his lower lip. "We're both businessmen after all—we should understand the need to make choices."

Qin You caught his roving hand, still smiling. "Your choice is to wander the world with me?"

Yan Tingshen replied calmly, "How I choose is my decision."

Hearing those words, Qin You's gaze flickered with something unreadable.

As Yan Tingshen finished speaking, he slowly bent down, closing his eyes as he kissed Qin You's lips.

"Qin You—you're the only one I want to choose."