Chapter 15 Part 1

“Zhu Ran, do you have a conscience?! Is this how you treat your good brother?”

“It’s fine. Mr. Huo is magnanimous and won’t mind.”

“Let me ask you…”

The young men bantered back and forth, laughing and shoving as they fled in disarray.

Huo Boyan stood at the entrance of the art museum and watched Zhu Ran’s figure disappear into the sunset. Then he dialed his subordinate’s number but didn’t speak right away.

Chen Jiaming: “You were looking for me?”

Huo Boyan slowly exhaled before saying, “Stop investigating Zhu Ran.”

Chen Jiaming: “What about the people on his side…”

“Pull them all off.” Huo Boyan said decisively.

There was no point in investigating Zhu Ran anymore. He wouldn’t see Zhu Ran again in the future.

Huo Boyan closed his eyes and repeatedly warned himself not to let his desires continue to swell unchecked.

.

The next morning, Zhu Ran saw Song Xingchen off at the airport, then took the subway back to his downtown hotel.

As he passed a small shop near the subway entrance, two men in black suits suddenly blocked his path. In a harsh tone, they said, “Mr. Zhu, please come with us. The boss wants to meet you.”

Zhu Ran’s gaze turned wary, but he figured it was a busy street and nothing would happen. He looked up at the two men and asked, “Who’s your boss?”

Suit man: “You’ll find out when you get there.”

“Only an idiot would go.” Zhu Ran tossed out the words and bolted.

The two suit men chased after him. Zhu Ran was cornered at a turn, where a cha chaan teng happened to be open right next to him. He pushed the door open and went inside, only to find the place eerily quiet.

It was peak dining time for the cha chaan teng, yet there was only one man seated inside.

The man had tousled golden hair and wore a red single-sided earring. He held a thick printed porcelain cup and sipped his Yuenyeung Milk Tea leisurely, so calm it was almost suspicious.

Something was off.

Alarm bells rang in Zhu Ran’s mind. He turned to leave, but when he looked up, the two suit men had already blocked the door.

That was when Zhu Ran realized he’d walked into a trap.

“Haven’t had lunch yet, have you?” The blond man set down his tea cup and smiled at Zhu Ran. “What do you want to eat?”

Narrowed eyes—he didn’t look like a good person.

Zhu Ran’s tone was icy: “I thought there were no more triads on Hong Kong Island these days.”

“Hahahahaha.” The man burst out laughing as if he’d heard the funniest joke, doubling over. Then he propped his chin on one hand and said, “Mr. Zhu, we’re all law-abiding citizens. Last year, I even did a good deed and got awarded Hong Kong Island’s Hot-Hearted Citizen.”

Zhu Ran wasn’t fooled by the man’s relaxed tone. He stayed calm: “I don’t know you.”

Man: “I’m Huo Xitong. You might have heard of me.”

Huo? Zhu Ran frowned: “You’re from the Huo Family?”

Huo Xitong: “My dad is Huo Zhixiao.”

Zhu Ran grew even more vigilant and asked, “What do you want with me?”

“Relax, I just want to make friends with you.” Huo Xitong handed over a gold bar with a smile. “A meeting gift.”

“No need.” Zhu Ran stood to leave. “Mr. Huo is so rich—why not donate it to charity?”

“Why don’t you listen?” Huo Xitong sighed, his smile suddenly fading. “Zhu Ran, my dad sent me. If it were someone else, they might not be as nice as me.”

Zhu Ran caught the threat in those words, but he didn’t know Huo Zhixiao at all. He’d only been on Huo Boyan’s plane once and vaguely remembered seeing the man at the airport.

Zhu Ran took a deep breath and turned to Huo Xitong: “What do you want from me?”

“I don’t know. My dad loves collecting people. He builds all sorts of connections—might use them once in a lifetime or never at all. As for you…”

Huo Xitong paused there, his gaze sweeping up and down Zhu Ran’s body before continuing, “I don’t know why he wants to buy you off either. He doesn’t like boys—maybe he wants you to help with some tasks.”

The words were so blunt they made Zhu Ran uncomfortable. He frowned and rejected firmly: “I can’t help you with anything. I’m just a tourist student who’ll be leaving anytime.”

Zhu Ran walked to the door after speaking, but the two suit men still blocked it. He looked back at Huo Xitong, who shrugged regretfully and waved for the suit men to let him go.

Zhu Ran ran off as fast as he could. He didn’t dare renew his hotel booking and hurried back to his little aunt’s house with his luggage.

Huo Xitong stayed in the shop and ordered a bowl of bamboo-pole noodles. As he slurped them up, he said into the phone, “Dad, the guy ran off. I told you he wouldn’t agree. He’s so handsome—if he needed money, he could just ask Huo Boyan. Being an influencer pays well too. Why do this kind of thing?”

Huo Zhixiao: “…Did you say something stupid again?”

“No way,” Huo Xitong said between slurps. “Don’t believe me? Ask A-Feng and A-Hao. I said exactly what you told me to.”

“…I spoon-fed you instructions and you still screwed it up. Get back here.”

Huo Xitong didn’t care and took another sip of milk tea: “Can I keep meeting up with Zhu Ran then?”

“…”

“He’s totally my type—super hot and feisty. I want to date him.”

Beep—beep—

“What the hell? He hung up on me?” The screen went dark, and Huo Xitong grumbled, “Since you didn’t say no, I’ll take that as a yes.”

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