Chapter 9 Lord Patron

Chapter 9 The Sugar Daddy

Lin Xishan stayed in the bathroom for a few extra minutes.

Well, he was, after all, at that age—young and full of fire.

After that little episode, even though his opinion of Pei Zhi was at best that of a lifeline, he still felt a stir.

Once he'd fully calmed down, he left the bathroom, and the first thing he saw was Pei Zhi already lying on the single bed.

"You sleep on the inside," Pei Zhi said, eyes still closed. "I'll sleep on the outside."

"Why?"

"Afraid you'll fall off."

Lin Xishan looked at the bed—no matter how he figured it, it was a single bed. Two grown men lying side by side would probably fall off with a single roll.

"...Fine," he said, then turned off the light, climbed onto the bed in the pitch black, and lay down pressed against the wall.

The bed was really small. His shoulder brushed against Pei Zhi's, and he could feel the warmth of the other guy's body.

He could even hear Pei Zhi's breathing.

"Lin Xishan." Pei Zhi's voice sounded in the darkness.

"Hm?"

"That experiment you mentioned—did you get it done?"

Lin Xishan hadn't expected him to still remember that little detail: "Finished."

"Did it work?"

"Yeah, it worked."

Lin Xishan thought he would say more, but Pei Zhi didn't say anything else.

His breathing gradually became slow and steady.

Lin Xishan stared at the ceiling, listening to the breathing of the person beside him, his head a mess.

He remembered what Pei Zhi had said—"Only this environment fits me."

He remembered how unbothered he looked when swallowing the pills.

He remembered how cautiously he'd said "thanks," like he was scared of being turned down.

What the hell had this guy been through?

Lin Xishan turned over, facing the wall.

Forget it, I'll worry about it tomorrow.

No, wait—why tomorrow? What did any of this have to do with him? He only needed Pei Zhi to help him escape the control of the plot.

The next morning, Lin Xishan was jolted awake by his phone ringing.

He sleepily fumbled for his phone, squinted at the screen, and saw it was Lin Jichuan.

He hit answer, his voice a bit hoarse: "Hello..."

"Hey bro, why didn't you come back to the dorm last night?" Lin Jichuan's voice came through the receiver. "Where are you? You're not with Ye Jiaonan again, are you..."

"Shh." Lin Xishan instinctively lowered his voice and glanced over. "It's not him."

Pei Zhi was still asleep, curled up under the blanket with only half his head poking out, his hair all over the place. His sleeping face was much softer than when he was awake, lacking that "stay away from me" vibe.

Tsk, he looks pretty docile when sleeping.

With that, he looked away.

"Not him? Where are you?" Lin Jichuan said suspiciously. "You've got someone there?"

Lin Xishan pushed off the blanket, quietly got out of bed, and walked barefoot to the window: "I'm at a friend's place. Had a few drinks last night, so I stayed over."

"You've got other friends?" Lin Jichuan's tone was full of suspicion.

"Lin Jichuan, you looking for a beating?"

"Fine, fine, I won't ask." Lin Jichuan quickly changed the subject. "It's the weekend. Got any plans?"

Lin Xishan glanced out the window—the sun was already up.

"Got work." He lied without missing a beat.

Well, in a sense, he wasn't lying. After all, the boss was paying him to do a job.

So calling it work wasn't a lie, right?

"Alright, I was going to say we could have a meal together..." Lin Jichuan's voice suddenly turned serious. "Oh yeah, bro, Ye Jiaonan came to the dorm looking for you last night. I said you weren't there. He seemed off."

Lin Xishan's brows furrowed: "What did he say?"

"He didn't say much, just asked where you went. I said I didn't know. He stood there for a while and then left." Lin Jichuan paused. "Bro, did you offend him? He had a weird look in his eyes."

"Don't worry about it. I'll deal with it myself." Now that he had Pei Zhi, he had a bit more backbone when dealing with Ye Jiaonan.

"Alright, then. Make sure you're back early today." Lin Jichuan reminded him.

"Got it." Then he hung up.

He turned and saw Pei Zhi was awake, lying on his side, watching him.

"Who was that?" Pei Zhi asked, voice raspy from sleep, eyes half-lidded.

Lin Xishan paused.

Honestly, just saying "my brother" would be the easiest answer.

But if Pei Zhi looked into "Lin Jichuan," his cover would be blown in seconds.

Right now, to this guy, he was a broke student with nothing to his name. If Pei Zhi found out he was the Lin family heir, the thought alone gave him chills.

"A friend," Lin Xishan said. "Also my roommate."

Pei Zhi's face changed.

Those phoenix eyes narrowed slightly, the lazy drowsiness from just waking up fading, replaced by a sharp, calculating look.

"What kind of friend?" he asked. "Calling to check up on you this early in the morning?"

"Not checking up on me, just asking why I didn't come back last night."

"He's worried about whether you come back or not?"

"He's my roommate, just looking out for me."

"Would a regular roommate care that much?"

Lin Xishan was getting annoyed by the questioning. "Pei Zhi, you interrogating a criminal or what?"

Pei Zhi pressed his lips into a thin line.

He knew he was asking too much.

Aggressive and pushy, like a dog guarding its food—not dignified at all.

But he couldn't stop himself.

Everything that happened last night was too much—too much for this body that had been dormant for years, too much for everything he knew about "intimacy."

He didn't want to lose Lin Xishan, so he was naturally wary of anyone getting close to him.

"You're right." Pei Zhi sat up, the blanket sliding to his waist, his tone back to that businesslike manner. "But we're in a sugar daddy arrangement now."

Lin Xishan was stunned for a moment.

"You have your own life, and I won't interfere." He got off the bed, barefoot on the concrete floor. "But you should also have basic morals about being kept."

Lin Xishan: "..."

Morals for being a kept man?

Those words coming out of Pei Zhi's mouth sounded absurd no matter how you looked at it.

"What morals?" Lin Xishan asked with a tone that said, "Let's hear what you can come up with."

Pei Zhi walked to the table, poured himself a glass of cold water, and took a sip.

"First," he raised one finger, "you come when I call."

"What am I, your dog?"

"Dogs don't get a million bucks."

Lin Xishan was at a loss for words.

Pei Zhi raised a second finger. "Second, no one else is allowed to touch you."

"What counts as 'touching'?"

"Any form. Holding hands, hugging, standing too close... none of that."

Lin Xishan frowned. "What about sitting next to a classmate in class?"

Pei Zhi thought for a moment. "That doesn't count."

"What about high-fiving my teammates when I play ball?"

Pei Zhi's eyes darkened slightly. "...That doesn't count either."

"You're doing this on purpose?" Pei Zhi interrupted.

Lin Xishan blinked innocently. "I'm just clarifying the rules so I don't mess up and get my pay docked later."

Pei Zhi stared at him for two seconds, the corner of his mouth twitching as if he wanted to laugh but held it back.

"Third," he raised a third finger, "you can't be alone with Ye Jiaonan."

Lin Xishan raised an eyebrow, his expression changing. "You noticed him?"

"Hard not to." Pei Zhi set the cup down, picking his words carefully. "You look at him like he's something you want to both get close to and run away from."

Lin Xishan leaned against the wall, arms crossed, not denying it.

"And when he held your arm, your body went stiff. But you were going along with him verbally." He paused. "Is that what you meant by 'feeling trapped'?"

Lin Xishan didn't answer right away.

In this cramped rental, morning sunlight streamed through the window, casting a hazy patch of light on the floor.

He stared at that patch of light, silent for a few seconds.

"Something like that," he finally said. "But I don't want to get into it right now."

Pei Zhi didn't push it further.

"Fine," he said. "So, do you agree?"

Lin Xishan thought about it. "First, coming when called. I can only promise to try my best. I still have classes and a part-time job. I can't just drop everything the moment you call."

"Just let me know in advance."

"Second, not letting anyone touch me. I'll try. But if someone suddenly pats my shoulder or something, I can't exactly punch them into orbit."

"That's an accident. It doesn't count."

"Third, not being alone with Ye Jiaonan. Deal."

Not even alone—he didn't want to see Ye Jiaonan ever again, Lin Xishan thought.

Pei Zhi nodded.

Then he took a cigarette from the pack on the table, put it between his lips, but didn't light it.

"So from now on," he said, the cigarette bobbing between his lips, making his words slightly slurred, "you're my kept man."

Lin Xishan looked at him trying so hard to act all mature and couldn't help but laugh.

"Alright, my lord."

Pei Zhi froze.

He looked at Lin Xishan's smile, his eyes darkening, then took the cigarette out of his mouth and looked away.

"Don't call me that," he said, his ears turning red.

Lin Xishan played dumb. "Why not?"

Pei Zhi replied somewhat stiffly, "It sounds odd."

Lin Xishan was even more amused: "Then what should I call you? Pei Zhi? Zhi-ge? Boss Pei?"

Pei Zhi's ears turned even redder.

"Just Pei Zhi," he said, his voice stiff. "Don't call me any of that stuff."

Lin Xishan was about to tease him more, but his phone buzzed again.

He glanced down and saw a new message pop up on the screen:

"Xishan, are you free today? I'd like to see you."

The phrasing was obviously from Ye Jiaonan.

Lin Xishan stared at the message, but that manipulated feeling didn't kick in.

Pei Zhi was still right there.

He noticed Lin Xishan's expression shift and asked, "That roommate of yours again?"

"No." Lin Xishan showed him the screen. "It's Ye Jiaonan."

Pei Zhi glanced at the screen, and his eyes went cold instantly.

"What do you plan to do?"

Lin Xishan thought for a moment, then typed a few words on the screen:

"Not today. Some other time."

He hit send.

Then he looked up, meeting Pei Zhi's eyes with a smirk: "Is that okay, Lord Patron?"

Pei Zhi's mouth twitched as he said, "I told you not to call me that."

But he was quite satisfied with this reply.