I’m Keeping the Overbearing CEO After He Went Bankrupt [Rebirth] 40

Chapter 40: Qingbao’s Thank You

No, wait.

Why run away?

Clearly… clearly it’s Mr. Huo’s fault!

After running out of the room, Chu Qing realized that this was a hotel, not a homestay, and there were no practice rooms. So he had to stand alone on the balcony outside, in a daze.

After thinking about it, it was still Mr. Huo’s fault.

He angrily slapped the balcony railing hard with his palm.

Breaking his promise.

Slap!

Deceiving and hiding things.

Slap!

And… and…

He was still thinking of what crimes to list, but he was suddenly hugged from behind.

“Baby, Qingbao…” Huo Li’s voice was hoarse, and he held him very tightly.

“If you keep hitting this railing, it’s going to fall off.”

His face immediately turned red. He had just pounced on Huo Li, and now he was caught being angry here. He immediately felt ashamed and struggled to run, but he was held tightly by Huo Li and couldn’t break free at all.

“Mr. Huo…! Let go of me…”

“I won’t.”

“Mr. Huo!” his eyes were red, and he struggled with all his might.

“Qingbao, listen to me. Be good, listen to me.”

Huo Li said in a logical manner, “Mr. Pan and I are sworn brothers. We’ve drunk sworn brotherhood wine. When I went bankrupt and came back, it could even be considered a betrayal to him. But he doesn’t mind. Just now, he took me to see a project partner, Mr. Brian Lawler. You should know him, one of the big bosses and rich men in the US. They did have a lot of men and women for company, but I came back after discussing the project and didn’t touch anyone else. And it’s impossible for me to touch either of them, right?”

He was stunned.

“You and… Mr. Pan…”

Sworn brothers…?

He paused, then understood.

Right. Even if Huo Li is bankrupt, he’s still not an ordinary person. This is the gap. No matter how hard he tries, it’s all in vain.

“Right, I know it’s hard for me to explain it to you clearly, but I really wasn’t there to play. If I had really done something… the smell wouldn’t be just like this, and my clothes wouldn’t be without a trace.”

Huo Li swore, “Of course, if you still don’t believe me, I’ll take off my pants and let you check.”

As he spoke, he reached for his belt.

Chu Qing: “…!”

“I believe you,” he said.

He twisted his body and frowned. “You… you let go of me!”

“I won’t. I’ll never let go. I’m yours, Qingbao,” he said, his tone still a little unsteady, and his hold on him was firm.

He lowered his head and kissed his neck. It was a sensitive spot, and he couldn’t help but shrink his head and let out a soft, unbearable hum.

“Qingbao… I’m yours,” he said, biting his Adam’s apple.

“Don’t…” his legs were a little weak, and he desperately pushed him, but to no avail.

Huo Li was already on a high now. After explaining, he eagerly picked him up in a princess carry.

“Mr. Huo!”

“Be good.”

He carried him back to the room.

“Don’t shout. If you wake up the other contestants… I’m not responsible.”

“Ngh…!”

A cornered rabbit will also bite. As Huo Li was opening the door, he looked up and bit his shoulder.

Huo Li: “…”

The bathrobe fabric was very thick, and he was not strong. It was no different from tickling, and it only made Huo Li even more… excited.

Fck.*

Huo Li’s voice was hoarse. “Little one, don’t be naughty.”

“You put me down…!”

Click. Huo Li freed a hand to open the door. Just as he was about to carry him in, he lowered his head and was stunned.

He was crying in his arms, his cheeks flushed red, his eyes and nose also red, like a pitiful, bullied rabbit.

Huo Li felt that he was really not a beast, but looking at him like this, he was even more excited.

However, no matter how excited he was, he was really crying. He had no choice but to suppress his own emotions and put him down, a little at a loss. “What’s wrong? What’s wrong?”

His mind was at war now. He really didn’t understand what he was thinking.

He clearly said he liked me, so why does it seem like he doesn’t like me now?

He stood on the side, crying and trembling.

“Qingbao…” Just as Huo Li was about to raise his hand, he was pushed hard by him and stumbled back a few steps.

After he pushed him away, he rushed into the room, closed the door, and locked it.

His movements were faster than the wind.

Bang! Huo Li looked at the door panel that had almost hit his nose, stunned.

…???

Huo Li: “…”

He slammed the door. “Qingbao! Don’t be naughty!”

There was no response from inside.

“Qingbao, don’t force me to pick the lock.”

“You can’t get in…!”

“You can try.”

“…”

Huo Li was in a bathrobe, full of lust, and now he was inexplicably locked out of the door, so angry he was about to die on the spot.

He was not only angry but also worried, afraid that he was crying inside.

“Qingbao! Open the door!”
“Qingbao!”

He banged on the door, not daring to knock too loudly to attract attention, like an abandoned wife, which was very tragic.

“Qingbao!” he said, leaning close to the crack in the door. “I swear I won’t touch you! Let me in!”

“…”

Just then, An Yize, who was always on point with the drama, walked out of his room and stared at him blankly.

Whoa…?

Huo Li was also stunned when he saw him.

An Yize cleared his throat, turned his head, and said with a dry laugh, “Um, if there’s anything, can’t you just contact him on WeChat? Saying it so loudly, it’s so embarrassing.”

Huo Li: “…”

After he finished, he quickly slipped away, looking like he really didn’t want to get involved in this dispute.

He helplessly opened his phone and bombarded him with a series of life-threatening messages.

Huo Li: I won’t touch you. If you don’t agree, I will absolutely not cross the line. I’ll do as I say

Huo Li: Daddy, please believe me. I’m really very good

Huo Li: Qingbao, open the door. Let me be with you, okay?

…

A moment later, he slowly opened the door, sobbing as he did so.

“Mr. Huo is a bastard…”

“Yes, yes, yes, I’m a bastard,” Huo Li said, going over and pinching his cheek. “I’m a bastard. Please don’t cry, okay?”

“I’m not,” he sniffled.

“Let me in, okay?” he said cautiously. “I’ll sleep on the sofa tonight.”

“…” he lowered his head. “Really?”

“Really. You’re in charge of everything.”

“…”

Humble Huo Li finally entered the door. Congratulations.

“Qingbao, don’t be like this… why did you lock me out?” he said, sitting on the sofa, trying to shrink himself to reduce his aggressiveness and sharpness, looking pitiful.

“Because… because Mr. Huo wouldn’t reason with me,” he said, standing on the side, looking even more aggrieved with his head bowed.

And he was forcing me.

Huo Li: “…I’m sorry.”

He scratched the back of his head. “It’s all my fault. You’re so good-looking and so cute. I just… I just couldn’t help it.”

This was not a teasing tone; it was sincere.

His face was a little red, and he nervously twisted the hem of his clothes.

“Because you said…”

“I’m sorry,” he said, sitting on the bed with his back to him, interrupting. “I’m sorry, Mr. Huo. I’m really sorry…”

Huo Li looked at his back and said gently, “But I’m very happy.”

He was stunned.

“I’m really very happy,” he said.

He didn’t reply, just lay down and turned his back to him, pretending he was asleep.

“Mr. Huo, good, good night…”

Huo Li looked at him helplessly.

“Good night…”

After he fell asleep, he stood up, turned off the light, and pulled up the blanket for him, and then… he went to the toilet himself.

Life is too hard.

: )

…

The next day, he didn’t say anything more to Huo Li and just started to concentrate on his creation.

Seeing that he seemed to want to devote himself to his creation, Huo Li couldn’t continue to worry over anything with him and just quietly accompanied him, bringing him warm water and candy, and making sure he ate well.

Now, the production team was constantly hyping up the grand finale. The discussion online was quite high, and people were constantly guessing the rankings other than first place.

After all, it went without saying that first place was in his bag. Everyone was too lazy to guess.

XXX: Teacher Chu’s last stage was so amazing! He’s really all-around! Classical and modern, artistic and commercial. Awww, Qingqing is a perfect musical talent!

XXX: I wonder how Teacher Chu will perform this time? So looking forward to it!

XXX: Don’t get your hopes up too early. The reason he was able to break through last time was because Yu Weixi and Jonathan were there. Without them, he might not be able to make music that is different from his style.

XXX: The idiot above, don’t come out and show off your intelligence, okay? Seriously, if he can handle the kind of musical style he had before, it’s a piece of cake for him to go into pop music, ok? It’s really a downgrade in difficulty.

XXX: Some idiots, don’t confuse the issue of who created the music last time, okay? Xixi has already posted that the lyrics and music were all done by Teacher Chu. They just gave suggestions. And can’t you hear the Chu-style flavor in “Wake Up” before? Do you really think “Wake Up” is a simple pop song? That’s too shallow

XXX: Anyway, Teacher Chu is amazing. I’ll say it countless times!!! I love him!

Everyone was looking forward to what he would bring and how he would compete, but he was never affected by these outside voices.

He still scrolled through Weibo as usual, but he also went his own way and created the music he was satisfied with.

This time, he had also invited a teacher, a short, chubby, middle-aged foreign man who came with a harp.

This was one of his teachers when he had studied abroad before. This time, the teacher happened to be traveling abroad, so he had asked if he could come and help with the performance. The teacher had heard that he was participating in a competition and had readily agreed.

Huo Li was a little surprised. “You can also play the harp?”

He only knew that he could play the piano, violin, and guitar. He didn’t expect him to also be able to play the harp.

“I can. I learned it along the way, but I’m not an expert,” he said. “My major is piano.”

Huo Li smiled and shook his head.

He believed his “along the way” and “not an expert.”

So for the next few days, the melodious and ethereal ancient music could be faintly heard from his room.

Time passed in the blink of an eye, and the grand finale finally arrived as scheduled.

…

The grand finale was held in a spacious grand theater, with top-notch sound and venue.

There were many seats this time, and a large audience, but they had all been strictly screened. The contestants had also gone backstage early to get their makeup done and prepare.

This time, the contestants still had a special seating area, separate from the audience.

Chu Qing was wearing a very simple white hoodie and was sitting alone, waiting for the show to start.

The other audience members were a little surprised. His makeup today was too… plain.

He had no makeup on his face, his hair was not specially styled, and even his clothes were so casual. If you didn’t know, you would think he was also in the audience.

Everyone guessed that maybe he would go backstage to get his makeup done later.

After waiting for a moment, the host finally came on stage to introduce today’s competition rules. Today, only six contestants would participate in the competition and enter the voting. The remaining six contestants who had been eliminated in the semi-finals were here to perform.

The first to go on stage was a contestant who had been eliminated in the previous round, probably to warm up the venue.

After that, the contestants went on stage one by one.

An Yize challenged himself and broke through his style, trying a dark style. From the audience’s expression, it seemed the response was not bad, and they were all a little surprised.

Wang Shiwei came up with a rap this time, which was also very cool.

Chu Qing had drawn the fourth spot.

When it was his turn, the audience looked at him on stage and was completely stunned.

—Empty.

There was no band, no piano that he had always used, and no extra decorations.

There were two people sitting on the stage, one was him, and the other was a middle-aged foreign man. There was a harp next to each of them.

And he was still wearing that simple white hoodie with no extra design, holding the harp and waiting with his eyes closed.

It was so simple that it didn’t look like a competition performance.

But with just those two harps, it still added a bit of beauty and romance to the monotonous stage.

In people’s minds, the harp was perhaps already connected to the romantic Aegean Sea.

The audience couldn’t help but hold their breath, looking forward to the performance.

Then the man began to play, his fingers plucking the thin strings. The twang of the harp sounded in front of the microphone, the aftertaste melodious, as gentle as a lover’s whisper in the ear.

He also began to hum.

“Muse…s…”
“My… Muse…”

His lyrics had always been simple, and this time, it wasn’t just simple, it was almost non-existent. The whole song was mainly humming, with not many words, but the emotion was not lacking at all.

Sometimes, many things did not need words to be expressed.

“My Muse, you gave me the spark…”

The audience below was stunned.

They were shocked.

There were only two harps on the stage, the music as monotonous as it could be, but with his singing, it was as if they had seen an ancient myth, seen the surging sea and the romantic moonlight.

The fat man was not supposed to be associated with beauty, but at this moment, his somewhat fat hands had created an enchanting world.

And as for him, it was needless to say. He was a scenery just sitting in front of the harp. At this moment, as he played and hummed, he was like an angel who had accidentally fallen into the mortal world.

Returning to the basics.

This time, everyone had thought that he would bring out some innovative piece or a completely different style from before, but they didn’t expect him to still be so spontaneous, choosing his favorite way and using the simplest presentation.

In the grand finale, everyone was going all out, but only he had gone straight back to the original starting point.

After the performance was over, the audience was stunned for a long moment before they all stood up and applauded. Some even cried.

The bullet comments also went crazy.

XXX: Oh my god… I, I’m gone. I’m gone, I’m gone, I’m gone!!

XXX: I really didn’t expect two harps to have such an effect!

XXX: So this is what it means to be simple to the extreme and yet wonderful. It’s so rich. Teacher Chu is so amazing…!

XXX: Teacher Chu is so beautiful when he plays the harp… frantically taking screenshots. He seems to be able to play any instrument… so scary

XXX: I don’t know why, but I suddenly feel that it doesn’t matter whether he gets first place or not. Teacher Chu doesn’t need it… he really doesn’t need it. He’s different from us, and different from this world

…

“Thank you,” he said. After the performance, he stood up and bowed to the audience first, then turned and bowed to the man. “And thank you to my teacher, Mr. Betty. Thank you for your performance.”

“It’s nothing. Chu is also the pride of our school,” Betty grinned.

The host came on stage, as excited as ever.

After all, this host was also a music lover, so he would get excited every time he finished a performance.

“That was so beautiful!! So well-played! I didn’t expect Teacher Chu to also be able to play the harp. He’s really a treasure of a boy!” the host then asked the usual questions about the initial intention and inspiration for creating this song.

“Because I feel… this is the grand finale. It’s different. So I want to use the simplest way to create the simplest music. Music is originally very simple,” he said, trying to organize his words. “I… I don’t know how to say it, but I want to sing the music in my heart to everyone. It’s also a summary of this competition.”

He paused and lowered his head a little embarrassed. “And also… this song, I actually wanted to give it to someone. It’s a gift, so it’s called ‘Muse’.”

The audience was in an uproar, and the host was also stunned.

He never said who his songs were for, who he was singing for.

This was the first time that his creative purpose included “wanting to give it to someone.”

“I participated in this show because you asked me to. Thank you for letting me come,” he said, his head bowed, slowly. “Because of this, I was able to force myself to grow, to force myself to create, and not to continue hiding at home. Because of this, I’ve found my passion for music again. This is what I’m good at, and I’m sure of it now.

“You are my Muse.”

And at this moment, he was so unreservedly in front of the countless audience and cameras, slowly, with the most sincere attitude, continuing to speak, “Now I can face everything on my own. I can. Thank you.”

And so, he put a perfect end to his variety show.

The bullet comments went crazy again.

XXX: woc———— who is that person! Who is it!!!! Awwwww Qingqing is still young, mommy won’t let you fall in love!!

XXX: I don’t think it’s necessarily a lover. It could be a benefactor or a family member, but… ahhhhhhhhhhh I’m so jealous, who is that person!!

XXX: 😭😭😭😭😭 Qingqing! Mommy will always be with you! I’m so sorry I wasn’t there when you were bullied by those negative rumors and anti-fans and had to temporarily retire! I’m late!

XXX: Qingqing will be fine in the future!!

…

The lighting on the stage was soft. He stood on the stage, smiling at Huo Li against the light.

Huo Li stared blankly at the stage, his figure submerged in the crowd, but his gaze still met his.

For a moment, the world fell silent.

So good, Huo Li thought.

Of course, if he had known that the main point of his speech was that he could face things on his own, and that after the grand finale, he would move to Yu Weixi’s house to avoid him and even write him a letter to end the sponsorship, then… he probably wouldn’t be able to smile.

Huo Li: “…”

Life is really too hard.

: )