I’m Keeping the Overbearing CEO After He Went Bankrupt [Rebirth] 4

Chapter 4: The Overbearing CEO Sells Cuteness

After returning to Chu Qing’s small apartment, Huo Li pulled his suitcase along and followed the young man inside.

After all, if he wasn’t allowed to stay, he’d have to sleep in the park. How tragic.

Chu Qing’s home was neither large nor small, and the inside looked a bit plain, clearly neglected—except for the flowers and plants on the balcony. Those colorful potted plants made the entire balcony flourish, instantly breathing life into the otherwise dim home.

The grand piano in the living room also caught Huo Li’s eye. He took a look; the piano was a bit old, but it was the object in the entire house that showed the most signs of use.

“The place is a little small,” Chu Qing said, looking down, a bit embarrassed. He pointed to a door. “This is the guest room. I’ve cleaned it.”

“The guest room?” Huo Li raised an eyebrow.

Leaning against the doorframe with his arms crossed, Huo Li said, “If I sleep in the guest room, how am I supposed to fulfill my duties as a kept man?”

“…”

It took Chu Qing a moment to understand.

“N-No, that’s not necessary…!”

My butt and my waist are still aching, Chu Qing thought. I still have to walk with my legs subtly apart, almost in a waddle. If I have to fulfill any more duties, is he trying to cripple me…?

“That won’t do. You provide the money, I provide the labor.”

“…Really, it’s not necessary. I’ll go make dinner.” Chu Qing dodged the topic and turned to head for the kitchen.

When Chu Qing opened the refrigerator, he found only a few eggs inside.

He took a deep breath, only now remembering that he usually ordered takeout or ate instant noodles at home. In short, he lived a very casual life, often skipping meals altogether.

“What’s wrong?” Huo Li followed him over.

“I…” Just as Chu Qing was about to say something, the doorbell rang.

“Chu Qing! Qingbao!”

[T.N: Qingbao means treasure or baby. It’s a very common and affectionate nickname in Chinese, similar to calling someone “honey” or “sweetie.”]

The sound was accompanied by an enthusiastic shout.

Chu Qing jumped.

“Who is it?” Huo Li’s eyes narrowed slightly. If one looked closely, they could see the dissatisfaction and jealousy in them.

“It’s, it’s my friend. Why don’t you… hide for a bit…?” Chu Qing was nervous.

The visitor was his only good friend in the entertainment industry, Yu Weixi, a top-tier celebrity who could command the wind and rain.

“Why should I hide?” Huo Li looked down at him. “Who is he to you?”

“He’s really just a friend,” Chu Qing said anxiously, half-pushing, half-pulling Huo Li onto the balcony next to the kitchen. Then, with a shhhlick, he drew the curtains shut.

The magnificent CEO Huo Li was thus hidden on the balcony by his new sponsor.

Huo Li: “…”

“What took you so long?”

When the door opened, the top-tier celebrity Yu Weixi stood there, holding up a bag of food with a grin. “Did you just run out of the bathroom or something?”

Yu Weixi was exceptionally handsome, with bewitching features that held not a trace of effeminacy. His face had once been voted the most beautiful in Asia, and his smile was even more irresistible.

Yu Weixi hadn’t come alone; he had brought a friend with him, someone Chu Qing recognized as his group-mate, An Yize.

An Yize nodded a greeting to Chu Qing.

Chu Qing took the bags of cooked food and snacks from them. Then, he watched as Yu Weixi plopped down on the sofa and complained, “I heard you terminated your contract with the company?”

“Yeah,” Chu Qing nodded.

An Yize frowned slightly, while Yu Weixi cursed outright, “F*ck that black-hearted dog of a company! They have no sense of responsibility at all. Are you interested in coming over to my side? I can have my manager arrange things for you, get you on a few suitable shows?”

“No need.” Chu Qing shook his head, not wanting to trouble others. Besides, Yu Weixi’s company specialized in idols, which wasn’t a good fit for Chu Qing.

“Fine. What are your plans then?” Yu Weixi frowned. “If you run into any trouble, just come find me.”

“Thank you…”

“And if something’s wrong… don’t keep it bottled up.” Yu Weixi glanced at Chu Qing, his meaning clear. “It’s better to talk about it. If you feel lonely, come find me, okay? I can introduce you to my teammates. They’re all a bunch of easy-going idiots.”

The easy-going idiot An Yize shot Yu Weixi a look.

Chu Qing knew why Yu Weixi had brought An Yize today. He knew Yu Weixi had always hoped he would make more friends and get out and connect with him more often.

Chu Qing just smiled and looked down, not saying anything.

Meanwhile, Huo Li, still hiding on the balcony, grew increasingly dissatisfied.

He recognized this Yu Weixi. In his past life… he had seen him at Chu Qing’s funeral. He seemed very close to Chu Qing.

Huo Li’s eyes narrowed, the unseemly possessiveness in his heart about to overflow.

Clatter!

Just then, Huo Li accidentally bumped into a hanging plant pot. The pot swayed and knocked over a nearby broom, making a noise.

An Yize exclaimed in a low voice, “What was that sound!”

Yu Weixi looked towards the balcony warily. “Don’t tell me there’s a thief!”

“N-No, it’s not, it’s…” Chu Qing said nervously.

“Hmm?” Both of them were suspicious.

And then, CEO Huo Li did something he thought he would never do in his entire life.

He didn’t want to truly embarrass Chu Qing in front of his friends, so he had to endure the humiliation, break through his own boundaries, and let his persona fly free.

“Meow…”

Chu Qing: “………”

A “meow” came from the balcony. Because of the distance, it wasn’t very clear, so Yu Weixi and An Yize didn’t notice anything strange.

“Ah, so it’s a cat,” Yu Weixi laughed. “Did you get a cat?”

“No, no, it’s probably…” Chu Qing paused for a moment, suppressed his shame, and said, “It’s probably a stray cat from somewhere.”

“Oh, okay.”

The three of them chatted for a bit longer before leaving.

As soon as Yu Weixi and An Yize were gone, Chu Qing immediately rushed over and pulled open the curtains.

“Mr. H-Huo!”

Huo Li looked at Chu Qing without any expression.

“Mr. Huo…”

Huo Li’s lips curved slightly. “A little stray cat, was it?”

The tall man stood before Chu Qing, a few beads of sweat on his forehead from the heat. Chu Qing felt a shadow fall over him.

“…I’m sorry.”

“It’s fine. I’ll just consider it one of my sponsor’s little quirks,” Huo Li said, raising an eyebrow. “Who were those two?”

“Xixi is my friend. He’s a really amazing top-tier celebrity, and he’s great at dancing. The other one is Xixi’s teammate. He’s a very famous socialite in the gay community.”

“Oh? You’re very close with Yu Weixi?”

“He’s my only friend… What’s wrong?” Chu Qing preferred weak ties, so he didn’t contact Yu Weixi often.

Huo Li reached out and wrapped an arm around Chu Qing’s waist, his voice low. “Nothing. I just naturally hope my sponsor will be loyal to me alone, and not go picking flowers and grass outside and get snatched away by someone else.”

Chu Qing changed the subject. “Xixi brought food. Let’s eat together.”

Huo Li just smirked.

After dinner, Huo Li proactively offered to do the dishes to fulfill his duties, but ended up breaking one of Chu Qing’s plates and two glasses.

Later that night, CEO Huo remained persistent. He carried a basin of water into Chu Qing’s room.

Chu Qing: “?”

Huo Li held the basin and mimicked Yu Weixi’s call, “Qingbao, I’ve come to wash your feet.”

Chu Qing: “…”

Chu Qing clutched his little blankie, desperately tucking his feet in.

…Please, just let me go.

Huo Li, the strong man, squatted down, half-kneeling in front of Chu Qing’s bed. “Put your feet out,” he said gently.

Chu Qing tried to press himself into the wall.

“M-Mr. Huo, you don’t have to…”

“It’s fine. I tested the water temperature; it’s not too hot.” Huo Li tried hard to prove himself. “I learned massage before when I sprained my ankle. My technique is good.”

“You don’t have to…”

However, the tall man squatted before the bed like an ice sculpture, trying his best to soften his expression and conceal the coldness in his eyes.

From Chu Qing’s angle, he could see the curved, taut lines of his back.

He clearly had no intention of giving up until he achieved his goal.

Chu Qing paused, then had no choice but to helplessly, tentatively, and cautiously extend his foot.

Chu Qing was slender, with almost no excess fat on his body. Huo Li could grasp his entire ankle with one hand.

Chu Qing turned his head away, not daring to look at Huo Li, his body tense, almost turning himself into a statue.

Huo Li took Chu Qing’s foot and submerged it in the water.

“I’m starting.”

Huo Li squeezed the sole of Chu Qing’s foot.

“Hiss…!”

A jolt ran through Chu Qing’s entire body, and he instinctively lifted his foot in pain.

The movement was a bit too violent. As he lifted his leg, he knocked the basin over completely.

Splash—

Water flew everywhere.

The basin was kicked over, and the water inside splashed all over Huo Li.

Chu Qing looked at the soaked upper body of Huo Li: “…”

Huo Li looked at Chu Qing, whose face had turned pale from the pain of pulling on his wound while kicking: “…”

…

The worst part was the sudden silence in the air.

Oh, wait, at least there was the “drip, drip” of water falling from Huo Li’s clothes.

Huo Li: “…I’m sorry.”

Chu Qing: “…I’m sorry.”

They both apologized at the same time.

Huo Li was thick-skinned and had trained in combat for years, so he naturally used a lot of force when massaging. It was also his first time massaging someone else, so for a moment, he hadn’t controlled his strength well.

On top of that… Huo Li was single-mindedly focused on performing well, so he had gathered all his strength, thinking he had to knead properly. Little did he know, he had nearly subjected Chu Qing to torture, pressing right on his tendons.

Chu Qing had almost passed out.

“This is my first time serving someone,” Huo Li said, glancing at Chu Qing’s hand, which was pressing on his own waist. For the first time, he seemed a bit flustered. “It’s also my first time doing it with someone else. I’m sorry, I’ll learn.”

“It’s okay. It’s my first time playing this role, too…” Chu Qing felt this conversation was a bit silly and said helplessly, “Why don’t you go change your clothes first? They’re all wet.”

“No need. Let’s just move on to the next stage,” Huo Li said, starting to unbutton his shirt, preparing to take it off without a second thought.

“???”

“What next stage?” Chu Qing asked warily. “What stage?”

“The nighttime sponsor stage.”

This should be the most important part of a ‘kept’ relationship, right? Huo Li thought.

Chu Qing couldn’t engage in any overly strenuous activities right now, but besides penetration, there were plenty of other things they could do.

Chu Qing immediately pressed himself back into the wall. He was about to refuse when he saw the man in front of him unbutton a few buttons, climb onto the bed, and say sincerely, “Qingbao, I know I didn’t do a good job the first time. How about… a discount? I can be a little cheaper.”

Chu Qing: “…”

What discount? He wants a refund right now.