Chapter 21

Chapter 21

Lin Ze arrived punctually at the school's designated gathering point at eight o'clock.

The other teachers going to the training greeted Lin Ze, and he responded to each one.

Then they boarded the vehicle provided to take them to the training location.

He sat next to the omega assistant. Lin Ze asked for her help, "Could you snap some pictures during the training and send them to me?"

The omega agreed.

The vehicle broke down halfway. Lin Ze got out and contacted Lin Zhuo.

Hua Yu happened to be going on vacation to a secluded spot in Country A. Lin Ze and Lin Zhuo drove there together.

When they arrived, the school party had also reached the training site. The omega sent Lin Ze a photo of a building. Lin Ze saved it and then forwarded it to Li Xiujin...

It showed as 'read,' but there was no reply...

Hua Yu's assistant was at the resort hotel, waiting for Lin Ze and Lin Zhuo at the entrance. "President Hua sleeps during the day and is only fully alert in the evening. Let me take you to eat first."

Lin Ze didn't dare take pictures of the resort's meals, worried Li Xiujin would notice. He sent the photo from the omega to Li Xiujin again...

Lin Zhuo watched him do these things with an amused look.

Lin Ze put down his phone, feeling ashamed. To an outsider, constantly texting like this probably looked like a sign of a close relationship. Only Lin Ze knew the real reason.

"Brother, actually, wouldn't it be fine to just tell Li Xiujin what you're here for?"

Lin Ze lowered his eyes. "...He would get angry."

"Is he scary when he's angry? Would he hit you?"

Lin Ze quickly shook his head. "He's not that kind of person. He wouldn't get violent. He would just..."

The words that followed were difficult for Lin Ze to say.

"Just what?"

"Nothing, it's nothing..."

"Xiao Zhuo, after this matter is resolved, please listen to me. Resign from the Su Group and go work for Li Xiujin, okay?"

"He just seems cold on the surface, but he's actually reliable and kind..."

"Who did you say is kind?" Lin Zhuo interrupted him.

"Li Xiujin..."

Lin Zhuo looked at Lin Ze's expression and saw that he genuinely meant it. He felt a complex mix of emotions.

His older brother seemed unaware that Li Xiujin's kindness was exclusively reserved for him.

The phone on the table buzzed. Lin Ze glanced at the name and immediately tensed up. He gave Lin Zhuo an apologetic look, grabbed his phone, and hurried to a quiet restroom.

Lin Zhuo followed him, listening at the door as he spoke to the person on the other end of the call.

"My leg... my leg doesn't hurt anymore..."

"I'll be back as soon as I can..."

"No, no need to come pick me up..."

It really was Li Xiujin calling.

After the meal, they went to rest in the room Hua Yu's assistant had arranged for them. Lin Zhuo couldn't sleep, but Lin Ze seemed worn out, curling up on the bed and falling into a deep sleep very quickly.

Lin Zhuo watched him from beside him, inevitably noticing the numerous red marks on Lin Ze's neck, clearly from someone kissing and biting him.

At eight in the evening, Hua Yu's assistant finally came to invite them to meet.

"Are you really sure about this?" Lin Zhuo asked.

"Hua Yu and I were actually friends before."

"I never heard you mention it. But if you were friends, the chances of success should be relatively high."

Lin Ze's expression was unreadable. They had indeed been very good friends before, but one day Hua Yu's attitude towards him suddenly turned cold. Before Lin Ze could figure out why, his parents passed away, and he followed Lin Zheng to Country A.

Later, when Lin Ze became a colonel, he saw Hua Yu once at a gathering. They only exchanged a few brief words.

Lin Ze wasn't sure if he could succeed, but he could only gamble on it.

The assistant pushed open the door. Several businessmen Lin Ze had met long ago but didn't know well were seated around a round table. In the main seat in the center was a handsome-looking alpha. Seeing Lin Ze, his lips curved into a smile. "Long time no see, Colonel Lin."

Lin Ze also smiled politely. "Long time no see, President Hua."

"My assistant said you wanted to see me. I could hardly believe it! I thought Colonel Lin had almost forgotten about me."

There was a hint of mockery in his tone, letting those present sense a whiff of past grievances.

"No, I haven't," Lin Ze said sincerely.

Hua Yu gave a light, scoffing laugh.

Though they were there to talk business, the real discussion couldn't start until after the meal and drinks. Before coming, Lin Ze had already learned about this cooperation from Lin Zhuo. After having Lin Zhuo present the project proposal, he tried his best to use his eloquence to persuade Hua Yu.

Hua Yu didn't state his position. He called his assistant, asked if there was an online meeting scheduled next, and after the assistant nodded, he left with him.

Lin Ze hadn't really expected to reach an agreement right away, so he wasn't too disappointed. He was just worried that if this attempt failed, he would have to wait for Li Xiujin to be on a business trip before he could try to help Lin Zhuo again.

Unexpectedly, just two hours after he and Lin Zhuo returned to their room, Hua Yu's assistant knocked on the door again. "President Hua says he would like to discuss the details of the cooperation with you."

Lin Zhuo wanted to go with Lin Ze, but the assistant stopped him. "President Hua only wants to see Colonel Lin alone."

"It's fine. Wait for me here," Lin Ze said, then followed the assistant and was taken to where Hua Yu was resting.

Hua Yu sat at a desk with many bottles of liquor on it. "Discussing cooperation also requires showing sincerity, Colonel Lin. At least let me see your sincerity."

"Of course," Lin Ze smiled, picked up a glass, and started drinking. Back when he was still a colonel, he also had to attend social engagements. Lin Ze's alcohol tolerance was decent.

After drinking, Lin Ze asked, "Did I do something wrong when we were kids? Why did you suddenly cut ties with me?"

Hua Yu's expression turned unpleasant. Actually, it wasn't anything major. Back then, he only had Lin Ze as a friend, but Lin Ze had many friends. Then, by chance, he happened to see Lin Ze casually give away a gift he had given him to someone else.

Lin Ze was the first person to make him feel what it was like to have genuine feelings trampled underfoot. He should be grateful that he was a magnanimous person; otherwise, over these past seven years, he would have had plenty of ways to ruin him.

"Colonel Lin, finish these, and I'll give it some real thought," Hua Yu teased.

Lin Ze poured himself another glass. Maybe because he hadn't drunk in so long, after just a few cups, his whole body got hot and flushed, and a strange, achy tightness welled up in his lower abdomen...

Hua Yu had wanted to see Lin Ze drink himself into a stupor, looking a complete mess, but he soon noticed something was off.

His snow-white face was now deep red, his gaze unfocused, and his breathing got fast and ragged, like he'd been drugged...

Hua Yu picked up the glass and sniffed it, then called his assistant. "You tampered with the wine."

The assistant grinned smugly. "Yeah."

Hua Yu kicked him hard. "You trying to get fired?"

The assistant lay sprawled on the floor. "Boss, I did it for you! You're the one who said he broke your heart! That's why I drugged him..."

Hua Yu shoved his hair back and kicked him again. "Idiot!"

Hua Yu tried to help Lin Ze to a bedroom, but the moment he touched him, Lin Ze fumbled for his gun and pointed it. "Don't touch me..."

Hua Yu raised his hands. "Don't get the wrong idea. I'm not into you like that."

So, he and the assistant stepped out, then called Lin Zhuo to help figure things out.

"You bastard..."

Lin Zhuo cursed, but then his peripheral vision caught something, and he froze.

Ahead, a tall, grim man in a three-piece suit, with a menacing air, was walking toward them with several bodyguards.

That was...

Lin Zhuo drew a sharp breath and muttered, "Mr. Hua, we're both in deep trouble now."

Inside the room, Lin Ze trembled as he gripped the gun.

Hua Yu probably didn't have those kinds of feelings for him, so why drug him? Was it for someone else...

Lin Ze cut off that thought. Even though they'd fallen out, he didn't want to speculate about his former friend like that.

Whoever drugged him seemed determined to plunge him into desire. Waves of heat crashed over him, along with this unbearable, itching ache...

He wanted to be held tightly, to be filled. In his muddled state, his mind conjured the searing heat of Li Xiujin's lips and tongue, the roughness of his fingers, and that terrifyingly huge part of him.

This made his already flushed cheeks turn an even deeper, more shameful red...

The door suddenly swung open. Lin Ze braced himself, trembling as he tightened his grip on the gun. Right now, he'd shoot anyone who came near him, no questions asked.

But when he saw who entered, the gun clattered to the floor. Lin Ze curled up in extreme embarrassment, hiding his face...

Author's Note:

Writing plot makes me listless, but writing *ahem* scenes? Hehe.

General Li, go for it!!!