Chapter 64

Chapter 64

Xie Yunshen returned to his room and took a hot shower. He tossed his wet clothes into the laundry basket, buried his face in the water, and wanted to die of embarrassment.

The most mortifying scene of his life was undoubtedly this.

How could Lin Jin, that total straight guy, come up with such a cliché proposal stunt in the trunk?

After his shower, he did half an hour of conditioning training in his room. The charity event organizers sent someone to deliver the "Mountain Rain Over a Hundred Li" painting, which Uncle Zhao brought to him.

The painting was stored in a wooden box, perfectly preserved. Xie Yunshen opened it and looked at it again and again, feeling an indescribable emotion surge within him for some reason.

A gift is all the more special because of who gave it.

Early the next morning, Lin Jin showed up at his place.

Xie Yunshen had just returned from his workout in the back hills. Seeing Lin Jin standing in the Yan family living room looking pissed, his footsteps faltered.

"Well, look who's back, our F1 racing champion?"

Xie Yunshen made an awkward noise and, unusually, spoke to him nicely. "Don't worry, I'll get your car fixed."

Lin Jin's expression changed again. "You damaged my car?"

Xie Yunshen quickly tried to placate him. "It's not a big deal, I just accidentally crushed the trunk..."

Lin Jin's eyes widened. "The trunk? So, you actually opened my trunk?!?!"

Seeing Lin Jin about to blow a fuse, Xie Yunshen sighed deeply. "It had a banner and kept blaring non-stop."

Lin Jin's face was full of resentment. "I spent two days preparing that surprise for Jinyan."

"I'll pay you back. Double."

"You jerk! How can you pay me back for that? I might have to retake my driver's test!" Lin Jin clenched his heavy fist.

"What do you want then?"

Lin Jin leaned in closer, having planned this all along. "Give me that painting."

"No way." Xie Yunshen was adamant.

"You're a die-hard straight guy, what do you need that painting for?"

"Well... Mr. Yan gave it to me, after all..."

Lin Jin gave him a look that clearly said, "Something's off with you."

"Spit it out." Xie Yunshen shot him a dead-fish stare.

"Does this seem normal to you?"

Xie Yunshen snorted twice. "It's totally normal."

As they spoke, they had already reached the garage.

Seeing the sorry state of his beloved car, Lin Jin's mouth twitched, and he cursed a blue streak.

"Did you use my car as an airplane?"

Xie Yunshen said, "I checked. This car costs ten million. I'll pay you double, and on top of that, I'll teach you that technique. Is that acceptable?"

Lin Jin had been puzzling over the move Xie Yunshen used to break free from the chokehold on the cruise ship. Hearing this offer, he reluctantly agreed.

"Alright then."

Just then, Lin Jin's phone rang.

He listened silently for two minutes, then hung up. He opened the DMV app and looked at Xie Yunshen with a complicated expression.

"You don't have to compensate me."

"What do you mean?" Xie Yunshen was taken aback.

"The secretary from Yan's Group just called. They've explained the situation to the DMV, and the violation records have been cleared."

"It must have been arranged by Mr. Yan." Xie Yunshen felt that Mr. Yan always handled things perfectly.

Lin Jin sighed with emotion. "See, it's good to be an influential entrepreneur. One word from them is worth us breaking our backs. No matter how much money people like us have, we still lack a bit of social status."

Xie Yunshen disagreed. "You only see the glamorous side. You don't realize that with great power comes great responsibility."

The things Mr. Yan had to consider daily were on a completely different scale compared to people like them who relied on physical strength.

No wonder he often deals with headaches and insomnia.

"Not just that," Lin Jin continued, "the dealership also messaged me. They'll deliver a brand new car to me next week. As for the Tian Mobai painting, your Mr. Yan's secretary said there's an even more valuable piece in Yan's vault, and they'll give that to me as well."

"Yeah, you hit the jackpot!" Xie Yunshen sneered.

Damn it, is this the main character's luck?! I really want to strangle him.

Lin Jin smiled meaningfully. "However, your personal debt to me can't be entirely repaid by your Mr. Yan, right? Does our earlier agreement still stand?"

"It stands..." Could he really take back what he said?

After finally sending Lin Jin off, Xie Yunshen went back and took a cold shower. His body, still sweaty from the workout, first rinsed with hot water and then shocked by the cold, felt refreshed and invigorated, his very soul cleansed.

It's just that the weather was too cold now; using this method required care to avoid catching a cold.

Returning to the dining room, Yan Shiqi was almost finished with breakfast. Seeing him enter, he said, "I've already had someone take care of Lin Jin's matter."

"I know, Mr. Yan. You're too generous with him."

Yan Shiqi stood up, put on his suit jacket, and fastened his cufflinks.

"I just don't want to owe him a favor. Especially, I don't want you to feel indebted to him."

Xie Yunshen was momentarily stunned, then smiled. "Mr. Yan, don't worry. That guy owes me far more favors."

Yan Shiqi was just straightening his sleeves, head bowed. Hearing this, he looked up at him. His gaze was somewhat piercing, but he merely nodded before walking out of the dining room.

A moment later, Xie Yunshen said with a hint of uncertainty, "Was Mr. Yan a bit unhappy just now?"

Yi Wuyi said, "Took you long enough."

"What did I do?" Xie Yunshen was a bit puzzled.

"Use your head for something other than fighting and training once in a while," Yi Wuyi remarked.

"..."

Yan Shiqi had an important event these past two days—a business forum hosted by the Southern Provincial Government.

The meeting was held in City C, more than a thousand kilometers away. Since they hadn't filed a flight plan for the private jet, they were flying commercial today.

Because it was last-minute, they couldn't get first-class seats on the short-haul flight, only business class on a smaller plane.

As usual, Xie Yunshen sat beside Yan Shiqi, while Yi Wuyi and the assistant sat behind them.

After scoping out the area and making sure it was safe, Xie Yunshen started getting sleepy not long after takeoff.

The plane’s air conditioning was cranked up like it was free. Xie Yunshen had only worn a black tracksuit when leaving home, and maybe because he'd taken a cold shower that morning, he felt a little cold as he slept.

Halfway through his nap, he suddenly felt everything get much warmer and faintly caught a familiar scent.

He loved that unique, gentle scent. He couldn’t help but lean closer to the pleasant aroma, vaguely sensing a hand gently stroking his forehead and temples.

Mr. Yan, who'd been going over documents earlier, had somehow fallen asleep beside him.

When Xie Yunshen opened his eyes, the first things he saw were those sweeping, straight, lead-gray eyelashes and that straight, well-defined nose bridge.

He was dazed for a moment before slowly sitting up straight, careful not to disturb him, not daring to move his shoulders. As he lifted his head, he caught that lingering, elegant fragrance again—whether it was the styling gel in Mr. Yan’s hair or the scent the butler had infused into his custom-tailored suit.

Xie Yunshen stretched his neck slightly, his nose lightly brushing against Mr. Yan’s hair as he inhaled. But when he tried to truly capture the scent, it seemed to grow fainter and more elusive.

It was as if he could only catch that fragrance from Mr. Yan at unexpected moments.

Like a hidden elk in a misty forest, once discovered, it would leap lightly into the moonlight-drenched fog and vanish without a trace.

Watching Yan Shiqi sleep so soundly, Xie Yunshen couldn't help but feel happy.

He pulled a corner of the blanket from himself and gently draped it over Yan Shiqi’s shoulder, covering both of them before closing his eyes again.

The plane soon landed, and Yan Shiqi was woken up by the announcement, frowning as he opened his eyes.

Xie Yunshen spoke with a hint of praise, "Mr. Yan, you slept for a full three hours today."

Yan Shiqi rubbed his temples and sighed softly, his voice still low from just waking up, "In that case, it’ll be hard to fall asleep tonight."

"Don’t worry, Mr. Yan. I’ll work the wrist exerciser for you tonight until you fall asleep," Xie Yunshen volunteered immediately, unscrewing the cap of his water bottle and handing it to him.

Yan Shiqi took the water, lowered his gaze, and smiled faintly.

The forum wouldn’t start until the next day, so they stayed at a Yan Group hotel as usual.

While checking in at the front desk, a man’s hand nearby caught Xie Yunshen’s attention.

The hand held a leather wallet, with slightly protruding thumb knuckles.

The voice saying "Room 603" also sounded somewhat familiar.

Such familiar hands.

Xie Yunshen suddenly realized something. He pulled Yi Wuyi aside to a corner, "Old Wu, do you still have that video of Bai Le Bai masturbating?"

Though puzzled, Yi Wuyi took out his phone and searched for the video, "What? Did you suddenly get interested?"

Xie Yunshen was speechless, "Are you crazy?"

He took the phone, opened the video, and saw that the hands in the footage were identical to the ones he had just seen—even the voice sounded similar.

"That guy must be Bai Le Bai!"

Yi Wuyi tried to turn around to look, but Xie Yunshen stopped him, "Don’t look back. He might notice."

"Would he even know what Black Impermanence looks like?"

"No, I’m not sure..." Xie Yunshen narrowed his eyes, "But haven’t you wondered why it’s such a coincidence that he’s staying at the same hotel as us?"

"You think he knows your identity?"

"No, not that. If he’s the one who killed Yang Qingxi, it means he’s likely an assassin, and his target is probably Mr. Yan."

Xie Yunshen’s sharp reasoning surprised Yi Wuyi, but he brushed it off, "An assassin hides in the shadows. It’s impossible for them to expose themselves in front of their target in such a setting."

"Anyway, we should be careful tonight."

When picking up the room key, Xie Yunshen suddenly said, "I’ll share a room with Mr. Yan tonight."

Yi Wuyi looked at Xie Yunshen, "Why share a room?"

Every time they traveled, they stayed in the same suite as Mr. Yan, which already counted as close protection.

What did he mean by that?

"Isn’t that safer?" Xie Yunshen said with a serious expression.

The incident in the underground parking lot still haunted him, and now he needed to stay by Mr. Yan’s side at all times.

The assistant glanced at Yan Shiqi.

Surprisingly, the latter acquiesced.

Thus, the assistant handed the master bedroom key card to Xie Yunshen.

The suite was reserved for Mr. Yan by the hotel and had two rooms.

This way, Yi Wuyi would stay in the secondary bedroom.

Xie Yunshen swiped the key card to open the master bedroom door, "Mr. Yan, don’t worry. I’ll sleep on the sofa. Even if I snore occasionally, it’ll be very, very soft—I won’t disturb your rest."

Yan Shiqi said, "I know you don’t snore."

"You know that?" Xie Yunshen said, pleasantly surprised.

As soon as he entered the room, he quickly drew the curtains on both sides, routinely checking for hidden cameras or listening devices. He then inspected the walk-in closet and bathroom, confirming everything was safe before saying, "Mr. Yan, you can go shower now."

When Yan Shiqi finished showering and came out, he saw Xie Yunshen sitting on the sofa at the foot of the bed, holding a wrist exerciser. Patting the bed enthusiastically, Xie Yunshen said, "Mr. Yan!"

Yan Shiqi found it amusing but went along with it.

He turned off the lights and lay down on the bed.

Xie Yunshen worked the wrist exerciser for a while, noticing that Yan Shiqi had closed his eyes and wasn’t moving. Had he fallen asleep so early today?

"Mr. Yan?" he whispered, gently poking the back of Yan Shiqi’s hand.

The person on the bed didn’t stir.

Xie Yunshen got up and slipped away quietly.

"Where are you going?"

Xie Yunshen halted, turning around sharply in surprise. "Mr. Yan, you were faking sleep?"

Yan Shiqi opened his eyes, his gaze deep. "I thought we agreed to share a room?"

Xie Yunshen sat on the carpet beside the bed, looking at Mr. Yan's profile in the darkness. He'd meant to change the subject, but looking at that imposing face, he found himself completely unable to tell a lie.

Finally, he spoke evasively: "I was just going to step out for a moment and come right back."

He couldn't very well say he planned to go give that guy Bai Le Bai a beating to teach him a lesson.

Yan Shiqi turned onto his side to face him, reached out, and gently massaged the area around his neck and the back of his head.

His bright eyes gleamed in the dim room like two perfectly cut diamonds.

Xie Yunshen lowered his head slightly, leaning into his touch—so docile, he seemed even more like a big dog now.

He sensed this intimate contact was different from before, but couldn't pinpoint exactly how.

"What's wrong, Mr. Yan?"

Yan Shiqi remained silent. His palm rested against Xie Yunshen's neck, his thumb gradually brushing his ear, the warm pad of his finger gently rubbing the curve of his ear.

Xie Yunshen's gaze drifted down, looking at his wrist, then tracing up his arm, all the way to his calm, deep face.

God, looking at him like this, Mr. Yan seemed even more handsome tonight.

"Before me, has anyone ever done this to you?" Mr. Yan's voice was different from usual—very soft, yet carrying a uniquely deep tone.

"No," Xie Yunshen answered truthfully.

However, he firmly grabbed Mr. Yan's hand, his expression serious. "Mr. Yan, you can't keep doing that."

"Why?"

"It'll make me fall asleep."

Xie Yunshen closed his eyes, resting his cheek against the edge of the bed, letting Mr. Yan's hand stay on his head. "Mr. Yan's hand is more comfortable than a spring breeze."

So comfortable he was about to fall asleep.

"If I fall asleep, who's going to help you get to sleep?"

"..." Yan Shiqi withdrew his hand and gave his ear a flick.

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Author's Note: Since many readers said the villain in the next chapter is a bit scary (I didn't feel it while writing [facepalm/laugh-cry]), you can choose whether to skip the next chapter or not.