HR Chapter 15

Chapter 15: Visiting the Sick

Xiao Qi shifted uncomfortably, Lu Qinyuan’s voice, carrying warmth, entered his ears: “Don’t move, you can’t see.”

Xiao Qi couldn’t help but shrink his neck, adjusted the angle of the book, and put aside that inexplicable feeling in his heart to concentrate on reading.

Lu Qinyuan was clear in his heart that he was also responsible for Xiao Qi’s discomfort. With guilt in his heart, he was intentionally gentle on the bed, considering Xiao Qi’s body and not going all the way. Xiao Qi, however, tasted an unspeakable sweetness from this tender affection, like honey water wrapping him, layer upon layer, almost suffocating him.

The lotus flowers in the pond were budding and about to bloom, the lush green lotus leaves swaying in the breeze. Xiao Qi leaned over, holding the nearby buds and kissing them, gently smelling the green lotus fragrance inside.

Xiao Qi wore a white T-shirt with a chinchilla print on his upper body, paired with loose jeans. His waist-length hair was tied behind him, bending into a beautiful arc as he leaned over, revealing delicate white skin that he had to worry about getting sunburned even after a short while in the sun.

Min Jia sat under the flower trellis, his fingers flying across the keyboard. Seeing that Xiao Qi was in the sun and not coming back, he stopped: “Xiao Qi, come back quickly, don’t get sunburned.”

“Got it.” Xiao Qi’s small face was flushed from the sun, with fine beads of sweat on his forehead. He sat down opposite Min Jia, biting on a straw and drinking the sour plum soup made by Sha Tang to quench his thirst and relieve the heat.

He stopped halfway through. Xiao Qi had a habit of always leaving half of what he was drinking, as if he had forgotten it and then suddenly remembered, and would continue drinking after a while.

Xiao Qi said, “The fish in the pond are so beautiful.”

Not only beautiful, but also delicious. The larger the koi in the pond grew, the more tragic their fate became. When they grew up, they were destined to be eaten. Sha Tang was like a supervisor, coming to feed the fish every day, watching their growth. When they were about the right size, he would start preparing barbecue ingredients, choose a day when he was in a good mood for grilling, move out the grill, and have another wild feast.

Min Jia’s fingers danced non-stop on the keyboard: “The flowers are beautiful too.”

The flowers on the pomegranate tree gradually withered, leaving behind a tree full of flower buds like small red lanterns adorning the tree. The lotus flowers, however, were only just forming buds, with some opening two or three petals, the blooming and fading of the flowers staggered in an orderly manner.

Xiao Qi turned his head, looking at the scenery around the flower trellis, nodding in agreement, holding the crystal cup and biting on the straw to continue drinking the remaining sour plum soup.

Zhu Yan returned from outside and saw the two people sitting under the flower trellis, waving to them: “Xiao Qi, Uncle brought you something good.” But his eyes were only on Xiao Qi. Min Jia didn’t even pay attention to Zhu Yan, not even lifting his eyelids, only hearing a burst of rapid footsteps approaching.

Xiao Qi had already jumped up and ran out to greet him when Zhu Yan spoke, flying into Zhu Yan’s arms like a happy bird, asking in quick succession, “What good things? Where are they?”

Zhu Yan hugged Xiao Qi, easily carrying him on his shoulders, walked into the flower trellis, put Xiao Qi down on the chair, and took out a pink crystal butterfly hairpin from his shirt pocket, holding it in front of Xiao Qi like a treasure: “Look, I saw this in a jewelry store and thought of you, so I bought one for you.”

The hairpin was a very ordinary style. The butterfly was made of crystal, reflecting dazzling light in the sun. Xiao Qi took it and stroked it with affection, and in the next moment, clipped it in his hair, asking Zhu Yan, “Is it pretty?”

“Pretty.” Zhu Yan’s rugged face was full of tenderness, and his smile was a bit silly.

“Really? Min Jia-ge?” Xiao Qi didn’t forget Min Jia. Min Jia glanced at the pink hairpin in his hair, met Xiao Qi’s bright smiling eyes, and nodded slightly: “Not bad.”

Xiao Qi was very happy, hugging Zhu Yan’s head and kissing him heavily on the face: “Thank you, Uncle.”

Zhu Yan, like a young boy, stood stiffly with his hands tied, too shy to know what to do.

What a big fool.

Zhu Yan’s affection for Xiao Qi was obvious to everyone, and Xiao Qi should have understood it too. But when it comes to matters of the heart, no one can say for sure.

Zhu Yan had recently been suddenly dispatched on frequent missions. Every time he came back, he would bring all kinds of exquisite trinkets for Xiao Qi, sometimes a chinchilla helium balloon, sometimes a sugar gourd, sometimes a beautiful little stone, sometimes a beautifully packaged candy, every little bit was care.

Sometimes Zhu Yan’s eyes were very similar to Xiao Qi’s, as if he was reminiscing about someone.

Zhu Yan was through Xiao Qi, Xiao Qi was through Min Jia.

Therefore, their feelings were so close, because they were both living in a daze, not knowing what time it was.

Seeing his subordinate showering attention on the person he liked, Lu Qinyuan was very tolerant, turning a blind eye as if he didn’t know. But when the person he liked always mentioned another man in front of him, even if that man didn’t have any bad intentions, hearing it too much wouldn’t lead to immunity, but jealousy.

The light emitted by the cheap diamond pierced Lu Qinyuan’s pupils with particular sharpness. Lu Qinyuan couldn’t help but frown slightly. His subordinates were getting better and better at exploiting loopholes.

The two got along peacefully. When Lu Qinyuan didn’t lose his temper or find fault, Xiao Qi played his own games. He was in Lu Qinyuan’s eyes when he was needed, and not when he wasn’t.

Stimulated by the pink hairpin with a strong girly aura, Lu Qinyuan suddenly changed his mind and began to implement the idea of letting Xiao Qi go out more often.

Countless remote conference calls directing from afar produced considerable results. The nets cast needed him to personally collect. Always shrinking in his shell was too disgraceful for the Weak Yama King’s reputation.

When going out, Lu Qinyuan personally tied Xiao Qi’s hair. The smooth hair was black and shiny, forming a sharp contrast with those light gray eyes. He always felt that the color of these pupils had probably fallen on his hair.

“Where are you taking me?” Xiao Qi held a book in his hand, obediently letting Lu Qinyuan do as he pleased. He was very happy to be able to go out, but also curious about the unknown destination.

“I won’t sell you.” Lu Qinyuan turned him around, took a simple and elegant neutral hair accessory and put it on Xiao Qi. He looked at it left and right, very satisfied, and led Xiao Qi out the door.

Zhu Yan was away on a mission, Shu Xiu was not around, and the responsibility of protecting Lu Qinyuan’s safety fell on Bai Ze. Bai Ze arranged the outing. This time he didn’t wear a suit, but casual clothes that couldn’t hide the rigor and dignity that permeated him to the bone, and his thinness.

The Doll House was a luxurious and extravagant den for the upper class, the ultimate temptation luring people to their deaths. But even if the corpses piled up like mountains under their feet, some people would still step on the corpses to win the coveted dolls.

Some people had no interest in this. Lu Qinyuan before was one of them, but now he wasn’t anymore. He had a doll with the Doll House mark next to him.

The friendship from childhood was incomparable. Although the two had some rifts because of what happened before, they were used to messing with each other since they were young. No one would put that energy on the surface. Friends were still friends, and they still wouldn’t be soft when it was time to mess with each other.

As soon as their car stopped, Cheng Ruoyu came out to greet them, happily opening his arms to give Lu Qinyuan a hug: “Ah Yuan is here, a rare guest.”

Lu Qinyuan patted Cheng Ruoyu’s shoulder, glanced at Xiao Qi beside him, and said calmly: “Came out for some fresh air, afraid he’d get bored.”

Cheng Ruoyu glanced at Xiao Qi and noticed the jewelry clipped in Xiao Qi’s hair. It looked ordinary, but it was from a well-known designer and a limited edition. He said with a smile, “Well, this jewelry looks good.” His gaze fell on Bai Ze behind him, his critical eyes sizing Bai Ze up and down: “Well, this outfit also looks good.”

Bai Ze didn’t appreciate his praise: “Let’s go in.”

They entered through the back door, going directly to Cheng Ruoyu’s private residence here, equivalent to a small living room, with complete furniture and a dreamy design, the overall look being illusory and beautiful.

A wall-sized display case was filled with various dolls. A stepladder was placed next to the display case, and you needed to climb the stepladder to see the higher ones. Opposite this wall was Cheng Ruoyu’s workbench, with various polymer clays and tools on it.

Cheng Ruoyu was known to the upper class for his real-life dolls, but his identity as a polymer clay sculptor was famous among all walks of life. He gave himself an artistic name, Zha Yu Hai Han, and got a nickname called Stupid Da.

Anyone who saw the entire wall of dolls and the entire wall of tools would feel a visual shock, plus the dreamy design, feeling like they were in another fantastical space.

But not everyone was qualified to enter this room to appreciate such a magnificent design.

Lu Qinyuan and Bai Ze were regulars and not very surprised by this. Xiao Qi, however, was stunned, lying on the glass of the display case, looking at each one, row by row, each one exquisite and beautiful, like a small version of a real person. Each doll’s facial expression was different, even more subtle micro-expressions were expressed vividly.

Lu Qinyuan never drank alcohol when he was out. Cheng Ruoyu made tea and brought it over, pouring it for the two, and pouring a cup for himself, blowing on the heat and taking a sip: “Shu Xiu is in the inner bedroom. He woke up for a while just now, and he should be asleep again now.”

“I’ll take a look.” Bai Ze got up and went to the bedroom. He came out after a while, frowning slightly: “How could he be so badly injured? Who did it? Him?”

Cheng Ruoyu put down the teacup, crossed his legs, and leaned back lazily on the sofa, looking at the ceiling above his head and sighing: “It doesn’t seem like Uncle Hei’s people. No matter what, he’s still his own son. He knocked on the door in the middle of the night yesterday, covered in blood, almost scared me to death. A knife was stuck right in his chest. I thought I couldn’t save him.”

“Could it be Yan Wuchang?” Bai Ze denied this guess himself, shaking his head: “If Yan Wuchang made a move, there’s no way he would still be alive, and he has no reason to do it.”

Cheng Ruoyu laughed: “If it were really Yan Wuchang, he would definitely send you a literary invitation in advance, inviting you to your death. Unlike these people who sneakily attack in the dark, it’s obvious that they’re seeking revenge. I guess Shu Xiu offended someone outside, and they came for revenge.”

Everyone in the underworld knew that Shu Xiu was a sword in the hands of the Weak Yama King, incomparably sharp. Because of his youthful appearance, ruthless methods, and transcendent status, he was given the nickname Ghost Crown Prince. Who would be so reckless as to move the Ghost Crown Prince? Lu Jianwei didn’t need to wait until now to make a move, and that one has always been upright. Those who really had the guts had gone to the underworld to drink tea, and those who didn’t have the guts were still cowardly, continuing to hate and curse him in some corner.