Chapter 7

Chapter 7

After handling the warehouse business, Qi Mo headed straight for the Panlong Mountain Waterfall twenty miles away...

Huo Liangzhou was on a business trip to Haicheng today—the bidding conference was being held.

Winning the bid wasn’t the point. Just being there was enough to screw with Chen Feng.

Whatever the young master had asked for, Huo Liangzhou would do it if he could.

When he finished work and called home from his hotel, he found that his wild little master hadn’t just gone out again—he’d pulled an all-nighter.

Worried about where the young master might have taken the kid, Huo Liangzhou gave his younger brother a call.

He said he was out of town and a bit concerned Xiao Mo might not be looking after the child properly.

Huo Liangchuan, who was at school, grew a little worried too—without the big brother around, maybe Xiao Mo really couldn’t handle their little nephew.

"Don’t worry, bro. I’ll head home right now and make sure the young master and the kid are taken care of," said clueless Huo Liangchuan, completely unaware his brother was playing him. He immediately took leave and raced home.

But when he got back, Huo Liangchuan discovered the young master had already taken the kid out for the night.

At Panlong Mountain Waterfall, the night was still, just stars and the hum of crickets.

Qi Mo picked a bend in the mountain stream where the water was deep and slow-moving.

After parking the RV in the nearby lot, he wrapped the little one in a small blanket, shut the door, snagged a heavy-duty flashlight, and crushed through the underbrush toward the stream.

Then he set his water tanks sideways in the stream one by one.

The large-mouthed tanks quickly filled with clear spring water, disappearing underwater...

Once a tank was submerged and wouldn’t float off, Qi Mo placed the next one right away.

After setting down dozens, his stomach growled.

Time to grab some dinner.

His phone started vibrating.

Qi Mo answered the call while eating the spicy chicken stew he’d bought earlier.

"Yo, Liangchuan, what’s going on?" Qi Mo asked.

Huo Liangchuan: "Dude, where the hell are you? Why aren’t you back yet? Where’s the kid?"

"Just camping, eating right now," Qi Mo replied.

Of course, Huo Liangzhou was so hung up on him being out all night—terrified he’d cheat, make him look bad, or wreck his rep—that he even sent his brother to check up. What a control freak.

Qi Mo sent Huo Liangchuan a photo—the little one was spread out, fast asleep on the RV bed.

"So when are you coming back?" Huo Liangchuan asked.

Qi Mo shoveled a spoonful of rice into his mouth. "Back tomorrow morning."

"Alright, be careful out there. Nights in the mountains get freezing—keep the kid warm. Hit me up if anything goes wrong," Huo Liangchuan reminded.

Qi Mo nodded. "I got it. No worries."

After eating, Qi Mo glanced at the baby—still asleep. The car was parked right by the mountain stream, so he’d hear if the baby cried. He took the chance to hurry back and check the water containers; the earlier ones should be full by now.

Walking down to the stream, Qi Mo retrieved one container and confirmed it was indeed filled—the waterfall here had a strong current.

After collecting fifty or sixty water containers from the stream, Qi Mo ended up with a pile of fish, shrimp, and small crabs that had been forced into them by spatial repulsion.

He tossed the larger fish and shrimp from the stream into a plastic bag he pulled from his space and carried it along.

Once they were dead, he could store them in his space.

Qi Mo started placing the water containers back into the stream again.

This time, it took longer, and he placed about sixty or seventy of them.

From one end to the other, Qi Mo planned to check the first container he had set out—it might already be full.

Around the mountain bend, headlights suddenly appeared.

Qi Mo was startled—was it inspectors?

He decided to head back up. It was too dark for anyone to spot the containers anyway.

He made his way back up the stream and stood at the edge of the parking lot.

A jeep drove into the parking area.

Huo Liangchuan immediately spotted the RV ahead—it belonged to Xiao Mo, his brother’s boyfriend.

Opening the door, Huo Liangchuan hurried over to the RV.

Just as he was about to knock, not wanting to wake the baby, Qi Mo called out, “Liang Chuan, don’t knock.”

“Xiao Mo, why aren’t you inside? Where’s the baby?” Hearing the voice, Huo Liangchuan turned and saw the figure lit by the headlights.

Though twenty-one and already a parent, Qi Mo still looked like a high schooler—seventeen or eighteen at most.

Especially now, dressed in sportswear and sneakers, with neatly trimmed short hair.

At 176 cm tall, fair-skinned and petite, with a small face, large eyes, and a wide-eyed, deer-in-the-headlights look, he seemed utterly harmless. His smile even revealed two little dimples…

His brother was probably hooked on this innocent, cute act from the Qi family’s young master.

“The baby’s sleeping. I stepped out for some air. Don’t you have class?” Qi Mo asked as he walked over.

“I needed to handle something at home and noticed you weren’t there. I got worried. This is the middle of nowhere—not safe,” Huo Liangchuan said.

“Don’t worry, it’s fine. Jiangcheng’s always safe,” Qi Mo replied.

He’d lived through the apocalypse—even if he didn’t last long, it didn’t mean he was helpless.

Precisely because he looked soft, gullible, and like a pushover, he’d been made to learn taekwondo back in middle school.

He hadn’t fought many people, but against one or two adults, he could hold his own.

Besides, he currently had a 100,000-volt taser strapped to his waist.

Useless post-apocalypse doesn’t mean useless now.

Roaming around with Baby Yan, how could he not have any defenses? He’s not the same naive sweetheart from pre-apocalypse days.

He has evolved into a post-apocalypse sweetheart with claws and guard up.

Huo Liangchuan, just because others haven’t had accidents doesn’t mean you won’t.

You’re prime kidnapping material, young master—easy to abduct and guaranteed to fetch an unimaginable ransom. If you run into criminals, it’d be a carnival for them.

Not to mention, you’re carrying a little one worth hundreds of millions, who can’t even crawl far. Easier to swipe—just pick him up and bolt.

Qi Mo opened the RV door.

Huo Liangchuan followed right in and immediately went to check on the baby.

Baby Yan looked exactly the same as in the photos, as if he hadn’t moved at all.

He slept peacefully, not a whimper.

Seeing Huo Liangchuan about to touch the baby, Qi Mo quickly warned, “Did you wash your hands?”

Huo Liangchuan wasn’t like him. Schools were germ factories, and he kept the baby clear of crowds to avoid infections.

Huo Liangchuan relented. “Alright, I’ll wash up.”

He washed and even disinfected his hands, just to gently touch the baby’s little face.

He barely dared to move, afraid of waking the sleeping baby.

Xiao Mo might be naive, but he was very attentive to the baby. It was just unclear when he’d start paying attention to his brother.

His brother aced everything—except when it came to pursuing someone. He was clueless.

After all this time, he still hadn’t cracked the young master’s heart.

Baby Yan, the newcomer, had already settled in. Meanwhile, the big brother—the father—was totally failing.

Qi Mo turned to Huo Liangchuan and asked, “You crashing here tonight, Xiao Chuan?”

Huo Liangchuan immediately shook his head. “No, Xiao Mo, you and the baby sleep here. I smoke—I’ll bunk in the SUV.”

If he dared spend the night in the RV with the young master, his brother—that sly, calculating bastard—would make sure he paid for it.

The Chen family used to be a second-tier family in Jiangcheng, but ever since his brother met the young master of the Qi family, the Chens went downhill fast.

Chen Feng, poor sap, still thought he’d scored big with the Huo family.

And the Qi family—after the young master’s parents died in a sudden car accident, before he could even recover from the shock, the rest of the Qi family tried to skin him alive. Then his brother stepped in, and the Qi family fell apart without a whisper.

As for his brother being poisoned with a death sentence at twenty-seven—there had been dozens, if not more, such incidents.

How come he’d never been affected before, but this time it happened so easily?

Was it his brother deliberately going along with it, or was it truly an accident? Your guess is as good as mine.

All Huo Liangchuan knew was that the young master landed in their laps, had a baby, and ended up as his sister-in-law.

His brother now had an adorable baby courtesy of the young master.

Those big eyes, like a deer’s, were heart-meltingly cute—utterly adorable, making you want to cradle them in your hands.

Qi Mo watched as the inspection staff finally left the RV. He glanced out the window, waiting until his younger brother-in-law Huo Liangchuan fell asleep before he could retrieve [the item].

He checked the time—9:30 p.m.

Qi Mo prepared formula milk, changed the baby’s diaper, and fed the little one. After setting an alarm for 4 a.m. the next day, he finally lay down to sleep, cradling the baby.

Haicheng, 9:00 p.m.

Huo Liangzhou stood on the hotel balcony, gazing at the ocean view.

The adjacent balcony door creaked open, and out stepped a man in a white Tang suit.

“Well, well, President Huo, what a coincidence,” said Bai Jiu, a notorious figure nicknamed the “White-Faced King of Hell,” holding a cup of tea as he turned to speak.

Huo Liangzhou knit his brows. This guy showing up right next to him—coincidence? He never believed in such things.

He curled his lip slightly. “Third Master Bai, don’t you have anything better to do?”

“I keep busy too, just here for some seafood and sightseeing,” Third Master Bai replied cheerily.

Huo Liangzhou scoffed—clearly, the man had too much time on his hands. Probably here to stir up trouble.

What was there to even see here?

He hadn’t heard of anything.

Unless… it was about *him*?

What’s so interesting about me?

“The scenery here is indeed nice. Enjoy it at your leisure, Third Master,” Huo Liangzhou said before turning back inside.

Shortly after, he messaged his executive assistant, instructing him to dig into Third Master Bai and see if there was any connection between them.

An hour later, Executive Assistant Wu Di sent over a message.

It was a long-distance photo—one capturing a VIP room in a teahouse.

Inside, his young master was having tea with Third Master Bai.

Fortunately, they sat across from each other with a tea table between them—nothing suggestive going on.

Why would his young master bother with Third Master Bai?

Bai wasn’t exactly an upstanding citizen, and his young master usually kept to himself whenever possible. Had someone put ideas in his head?

Was it Chen Feng? Su Huai? As for Jiang Nuan—his young master never liked spending time with her.

Huo Liangzhou told his assistant to dig into why his young master had met with Third Master Bai.

He drummed his fingers thoughtfully. His young master wouldn’t give Third Master Bai a second glance—after all, the man was so unremarkable, couldn’t even hold a candle to Chen Feng.

He could only pray that Third Master Bai wouldn’t try to make a move on his young master. If he dared…

Otherwise, Huo Liangzhou’s eyes turned icy…