Chapter 308: The Sixteenth Day in the ABO World

Chapter 308: Day Sixteen in the ABO World

Wei Yang thought about it more and more... could this actually work?

Although the "sugar daddy" method sounded a bit strange, it always worked in the novels!

He and his brother were so far apart in status, and his brother had never given him any clear indication—maybe he could use this to test his brother's attitude?

What if... what if his brother found him pitiful and adorable, and actually agreed?

He could always climb his way up afterward.

Or at least it could get his brother to give him a clear answer... hopefully.

Once the thought took root, he couldn't shake it.

He took a deep breath, and while fishing out a slice of fatty beef for An Yi, he set down the strainer, his hands nervously clutching his knees under the table. His cheeks were flushed from the hot pot steam and his nerves.

He reached up to pull his collar open a bit, showing off his muscles—wasn't that how it always went in the novels?

First seduce, then get kept.

But in the end, he couldn't go through with it.

Forget it, forget it—what if his brother got the wrong idea and thought he wasn't virtuous?

An Yi watched him fidgeting in his seat. What was wrong with him?

Then Wei Yang looked up, his eyes a mix of reckless determination and shyness, gazing at him:

"Brother... I know I might not be good enough for you... but I really, truly like you!"

Wei Yang set the stage first, then steeled himself, closed his eyes, and blurted out the "trump card" he'd learned from the novels:

"And I've got a decent face and a good... body too! You can check out the goods first!"

He opened his eyes, face red: "Keep me, brother!"

"..."

Check out the goods?

An Yi's chopsticks stopped mid-air.

He slowly looked up, his eyes full of obvious bewilderment and a bunch of tiny question marks.

Keep him?

Did he hear that right?

So this was what Wei Yang had been so restless about?

He looked at the tall, handsome young man before him—pure-eyed, eyelashes trembling from nerves—who had just said "check out the goods" and "keep me" in the most sincere tone?

An Yi was silent for a few seconds, then set down his chopsticks.

He leaned back slightly, his gaze calm and direct, as if trying to see into Wei Yang's soul.

Feeling his gaze, Wei Yang immediately sat up straight.

"Wei Yang..." An Yi's voice was still gentle, but serious: "I don't quite understand what you mean."

Wei Yang's skin crawled under his stare, and half his courage instantly deflated. He stammered: "It's, it's... like... you, you give me money, or resources... I, I..."

He kept stammering "I" but couldn't get out the words "I'll sleep with you," his face burning bright red.

His main goal was to sleep with him, then move up the ranks afterward.

But it was too embarrassing—even though he wanted to, he couldn't say it.

An Yi shook his head, cutting off his rambling. He looked directly into Wei Yang's eyes, his tone leaving no room for negotiation: "I will never keep anyone."

Wei Yang's heart sank. He'd messed up!!

An Yi continued calmly, each word hitting Wei Yang hard: "In my view, between two people, either you start a relationship on equal footing and date seriously, or you keep your distance and don't bother each other. There's no such thing as 'keeping someone'—that twisted concept that objectifies people and is built on unequal relationships."

He looked at Wei Yang's flushed face and suddenly dimmed eyes, paused, frowned slightly, and pressed: "So, Wei Yang, tell me—why did you think of this? Or did you approach me just for this?"

Wei Yang was thoroughly scared by An Yi's blunt, serious words, realizing he had indeed messed up—and messed up completely.

He waved his hands frantically: "Absolutely not! I didn't mean it!"

"I'm sorry, brother! I, I was joking! That's not what I meant! Don't, don't be mad! Don't ignore me!"

"Joking?" An Yi's brow furrowed even deeper, clearly not buying it: "You joke like this?"

Trapped with no way out, Wei Yang looked at An Yi's all-seeing gaze, knowing he couldn't hide it. He hung his head like a golden retriever that had done something wrong, face red, voice getting softer and softer as he confessed:

"I... I read a lot of novels, those CEO romance ones... in them... they said if the gap is too big, you can try asking to be 'kept'... maybe... maybe it would work..."

"Besides that, there's also deliberately running into you, pretending to be weak, playing hard to get... stuff like that..." He trailed off, his voice barely a whisper, so embarrassed he wished he could crawl into a hole in the floor.

An Yi: "..."

Listening to his stumbling confession and watching him look like he wanted to bury his head in the hot pot, An Yi was silent for a full ten seconds.

Then he suddenly laughed out loud.

He was genuinely entertained.

He raised a hand and rubbed his forehead, as if both exasperated and amused. Finally, looking at Wei Yang, who seemed to want to shrink into a ball, he said in a tone full of amusement and helplessness, lightly scolding:

"You idiot."

Wei Yang's head shot up. He saw the undisguised smile on An Yi's face. Even though he'd been scolded, the storm he'd feared never came.

He stared blankly at An Yi: "Brother... you, you're not mad?" he asked cautiously.

An Yi shook his head, the smile still lingering in his eyes: "I was angry just now. I thought I'd been played, that you'd played with my feelings. Good thing that's not the case."

"Now I'm not really angry, just thinking..."

He paused, as if searching for the right words: "You should take those things you read with a grain of salt. Reading too much of that stuff affects your intelligence."

Looking at Wei Yang's terrified expression, he added, his tone returning to its usual calm: "Next time you have any thoughts, just ask me directly. No need to beat around the bush or learn from all that nonsense."

Wei Yang's suspended heart finally settled back into place. The implicit indulgence in An Yi's words made his nose tingle.

He nodded vigorously, his voice slightly choked: "Mm! I understand, brother! I won't read those trashy novels anymore! I'll listen to everything you say! Just... don't ignore me, okay!"

Seeing his pitiful, eager-to-pledge-loyalty look, the last trace of displeasure in An Yi's heart from that absurd proposal dissipated.

He picked up his chopsticks again, grabbed a slice of fatty beef, and dipped it into the rolling red broth to cook it, his tone returning to its usual casualness: "Hurry up and eat."