Chapter 251: The No-Name Star Beckons, the Benefactor Becomes a Simp 24

Chapter 251: A Nobody Crooks His Finger, and the Sugar Daddy Turns into a Lapdog 24

He didn't even know why he was so worked up, but he couldn't stop himself from wanting to bolt.

But Qin Song simply wouldn't give him the chance. With a gentle tug, he pulled Lin Huaiqing back down onto the sofa.

He quickly explained, "Maybe I didn't explain myself clearly earlier. I'm not on board with the whole CP publicity stunt because I don't want to fake something as important as feelings between us. Why can't we just actually be together?"

Lin Huaiqing's dull, downcast eyes suddenly lit up like stars piercing the night sky.

Seeing the dead-serious look on Qin Song's face, Lin Huaiqing finally realized that Qin Song wasn't joking with him.

With Qin Song looking at him so earnestly, Lin Huaiqing finally voiced his guess: "Are you trying to... make me your kept man?"

"..."

Qin Song, who'd ruled the business world for years with a no-nonsense, cutthroat style, finally ran into the biggest challenge of his life at thirty-two.

Could someone please explain why Lin Huaiqing's brain worked like that?

What was obviously a mutual romance, he'd turned into some kind of flesh-for-cash deal.

Did what he just said make him sound like some creepy pervert? Why would Lin Huaiqing get such a wrong idea about him?

Or was it...?

"You... into that kind of stuff?"

Lin Huaiqing shook his head like crazy.

Of course not!

"Then why'd you think I want to keep you? Huaiqing, are you short on money?" Qin Song looked at Lin Huaiqing again, this time with a touch of pity in his eyes.

Well, um...

Lin Huaiqing nodded without thinking, then quickly caught himself and shook his head.

He was a little short on cash, sure, but he wasn't about to sell himself just to make a buck.

"I just figured a big shot like you, even if you took a liking to a nobody D-lister like me, would at most just want to play with my feelings and get your physical needs met on the side. Then once you got bored, you'd toss me out and move on to the next one...

Oh wait, you're not going to make me call you Daddy, are you?"

Qin Song was a few years older, sure, but not old enough to be his dad. One dad was more than enough, thanks.

No way was he accepting that.

Lin Huaiqing couldn't accept it, and neither could Qin Song!

Qin Song's brow furrowed deeper and deeper as he listened, and at one point he nearly choked on his own spit. He quickly cut him off. "Alright, baby, stop... Tell me, who taught you this stuff?"

Even though this kind of thing was pretty normal in their circle, he was definitely not one of those guys!

"Well... I read it in a novel on my phone."

"Baby, your number one priority right now is deleting that Shuqi Novel app off your phone!"

"So then? Not a CP stunt, not keeping me. Are you saying you actually want to be with me for real?"

He had no idea his charm was this strong.

"You finally get it. Honestly, I should've made it clear during the livestream that day. I don't just share a bed with anybody, you know."

Thinking back to how Qin Song had personally taken care of him in the hospital, Lin Huaiqing suddenly had a lightbulb moment.

So Qin Song had already had a thing for him back then.

No wonder every time he had to go to the bathroom, Qin Song never complained and insisted on carrying him there.

"Wait, hold up! My crutches were always out of stock—was that your doing too?" It suddenly hit Lin Huaiqing.

He'd actually bought Qin Song's story!

How could a big hospital be that slow ordering a pair of crutches, not getting them done until after he was discharged?

It had all been Qin Song's scheme!

He'd thought Lin Huaiqing was slow when it came to feelings, but turns out he was pretty sharp about everything else.

Called out to his face, Qin Song didn't feel a shred of shame—on the contrary, he was pretty pleased with himself.

When it came to winning over his man, how could he succeed without a few tricks up his sleeve?

"So have you made up your mind? You get what you want, and I get what I want. Isn't that a win-win?"

By the time Qin Song said that, Lin Huaiqing was already starting to cave.

Over this time, he'd come to see that Qin Song was way better than Fei Xiu. He was good-looking, and his personality and character were top-notch too.

He had none of that rich-guy arrogance, unlike Fei Xiu, who couldn't even handle basic life skills.

Most importantly, he needed a partner like Qin Song right now—someone who could be by his side, work with him, and hit their goals together.

At the very least, he had zero aversion to Qin Song.

"Oh, and one more thing—if we're together, I won't pay you a salary or an allowance. Because this isn't a sugar arrangement, and there shouldn't be any money involved between us!"

Before Qin Song said that, Lin Huaiqing had still been on the fence.

Finally, all his doubts vanished in that instant.

"Okay! I'm in!"

What really moved him was the respect Qin Song showed him.

"Really?" Qin Song's face lit up.

"Yeah! From now on, we're a couple. Qin Song, take good care of me!"

Qin Song couldn't hide his grin as he pulled Lin Huaiqing into his arms, his eyes full of affection and satisfaction.

He even wondered for a second if fate had been setting this up all along. He'd been single for over thirty years, and it was all just so he could meet Lin Huaiqing at this exact moment.

Even though they'd known each other for less than a year and hadn't had any earth-shattering romance.

Yet somehow, the moment he first set eyes on Lin Huaiqing, it felt like he'd found his person for life—like he'd give up everything for this guy.

He'd half-assedly said yes to Qin Song's confession, and he was totally out of it when Qin Song dropped him off at the office.

If he didn't have a shoot tomorrow, Qin Song wouldn't have been so quick to send him home.

Just moments ago, sitting in the car, they'd been all over each other for a bit.

Qin Song kept pushing to set him up somewhere closer to work, didn't want him crashing in the staff dorm.

But he shot it down flat.

Since they'd agreed this wasn't some sugar daddy arrangement, he wasn't about to make the same mistake twice.

He didn't want Qin Song's house, money, or car—nothing except the man himself.

Getting kicked out of Fei Xiu's place was still fresh in his mind.

Even though he knew Qin Song was nothing like Fei Xiu, this was his principle.

Back at the dorm, Lin Huaiqing had already showered and was about to hit the sack. As he was drying off, he suddenly heard his phone going off nonstop from outside the room.

Text after text kept coming in, and it was making his heart pound with dread.

He stepped out of the bathroom, towel in one hand, phone in the other.

That's when he saw his Weibo DMs were blowing up with fans asking questions.

Last time, he'd only turned off likes and notifications, but he forgot to mute his DMs.

In his DMs, fans were losing it, all asking if the hand in the photo was his.

Confused, he tapped on the photo and saw it was taken just now, in the car when Qin Song dropped him off.

Their hands were tightly interlocked, fingers clasped together.

So that's why! Qin Song had been so insistent on holding his hand—he was secretly snapping a pic.

And he'd even posted it online!

Now the whole internet knew about their little affair.

But luckily, it was just a pair of hands, impossible to tell who they belonged to. Plus, Qin Song's ambiguous and suggestive caption was enough to spark wild speculation without providing solid evidence.

Clever! Truly worthy of a big boss—that business acumen was something else.

They'd just gotten together, and he already knew how to play the publicity game!