HR Chapter 38

Chapter 38: An Yu

Xu Baichuan was an old subordinate of Lu Jianwei’s, said to have started as a low-level thug, fighting his way up through blood and grime. Lu Jianwei valued him greatly as his right-hand man. Lu Qinyuan had seen him many times at home when he was a child, and he used to call him Uncle Xu back then. Lu Qinyuan had come in person, intending to leave him a way out, but unfortunately, the man didn’t appreciate it, so there was nothing he could do.

Leaving Di Fang, Lu Qinyuan saw Shu Xiu sitting on the hood of the car waiting. He said, “You handle the rest, don’t delay the evening’s business. There’s a Doll inside; send him to Lan Yuan.”

“A Doll?” Seeing the weariness barely concealed between his brows, Shu Xiu advised, “Brother, why don’t you go back and rest? I can go to the other places for you.”

“We’ll talk about it tomorrow.” Lu Qinyuan got into the car, lowered the window, and said to Shu Xiu, “Be careful.”

“Yes!” Shu Xiu answered happily, practically bouncing into Di Fang.

Lu Qinyuan inspected a few places, and the problems weren’t significant. Finally, he went to the company. Zhang Yue Group had undergone significant personnel adjustments internally, with several senior executives being subtly demoted despite apparent promotions. The shareholders had also made a fuss. When he arrived, they had just finished a meeting, and the expressions on their faces were rich and varied. Ye Xing sat in the boss’s chair with a calm expression, giving him a slight smile as he saw him.

Xu Baichuan had been very good at dealing with people when he was young, loyal and generous to his friends, always ready to help. He had made many brothers for life, and he had a lot of prestige. Therefore, the news of Xu Baichuan’s demise spread like wildfire throughout Shang Ning City, immediately quieting many people down. Those who had been sitting on the sidelines immediately called to express their loyalty, vowing never to betray him.

However, now Lu Qinyuan wanted more than just loyalty; he wanted to usher in a new era, a complete cleansing from the inside out. Loyalty could certainly save one’s life, but it couldn’t necessarily protect one’s wealth.

When he returned to the villa, dinner had already begun. Shu Xiu had returned early and brought back Cheng Yu by the way, who was piling food into his bowl. Min Jia looked sleepy, having just woken up, with a hint of anger on his face. The Doll slave, looking unwilling, sat at the end of the table holding a Chihuahua, seemingly refusing to join the crowd.

Sha Tang rubbed his swollen eyes, adjusting the gold-rimmed glasses on his nose. “Has anyone seen Xiao Qi? He hasn’t been back since he went out yesterday.”

His words made Cheng Yu a little anxious. “He hasn’t been back since yesterday?”

Everyone looked at him, and Shu Xiu said with a hint of jealousy, “Good riddance.”

Min Jia, half-closing his eyes, made a reckless guess, “He probably ran away.”

Lu Qinyuan happened to come in and heard this sentence, adding, “I agreed to let him go.” He walked to his seat, and as he looked up, he met the Doll slave’s eyes. “Doll, are you being so distant?” He picked up some food, intending to put it into the other person’s bowl, but abruptly diverted it back into his own, inwardly chuckling at how terrible habits were!

“Don’t call me Doll, I have a name. An Yu.” An Yu emphasized, “Call me An Yu!”

“How old are you, An Yu?” An Yu had a buzz cut, thick eyebrows, big eyes, and a high nose. He wasn’t exquisite or beautiful, but his lips were as red and lustrous as cherries, a stark contrast to his ordinary features. Yet, it didn’t seem out of place, but rather like the finishing touch on his face.

“Are you checking my household registration?” An Yu’s tone was terrible, as it was bound to be. He looked at Shu Xiu, who had a pleasing baby face, but whose methods of punishment were shocking. He had watched his boss have his legs broken and dragged away, leaving a trail of blood on the ground. This little monster had walked up to him and uttered one word: “Ugly.” Then he was bound, kidnapped, stuffed into a car, and brought here.

Looking at the others sitting there, the little monster wasn’t wrong; he was indeed considered ugly. An Yu had never cared about his appearance, but he couldn’t shake off that single word of judgment. So what if he was ugly? It was none of your business!

“Twenty-five, one year younger than Bai Ze. How long have you been with Xu Baichuan?” The dinner was made by the other servants, and Sha Tang had spoiled their palates so much that every dish tasted bland. Only the sweet and sour peanuts were flavorful, and Lu Qinyuan ate them one by one as a pastime.

An Yu stroked the Chihuahua’s head, thinking for a moment. “In another month, it’ll be exactly three years.”

“Oh, you remember so clearly.” Lu Qinyuan put down his chopsticks, picked up his wine glass, took a sip, and asked Sha Tang, “Do you know how to take care of dogs?”

“No.” Sha Tang stretched his index finger under his glasses and pressed his still-swollen eyeballs, propping his head up and looking at An Yu. “Do you know how to take care of dogs?” Otherwise, he couldn’t imagine what Lu Qinyuan had kidnapped this kid for.

An Yu said with a straight face, “Yes.”

“Then you’ll take care of Lai Xi from now on.” Sha Tang unloaded a heavy burden, immediately feeling much lighter, with a hint of a smile on his face.

An Yu still had a straight face, and there was a hint of anger in his eyes. He asked, “Who is Lai Xi?”

“A cute little Tibetan Mastiff.” Shu Xiu couldn’t help wanting to see the expression on An Yu’s face, staring at him expectantly after saying that.

An Yu’s face changed as expected. He put the Chihuahua on the table and pointed at Lu Qinyuan across the table, saying, “Da Qiu, go, bite that person to death!”

The Chihuahua, wearing a small shirt and pants, took small steps through the gaps between the tableware, barked twice at Lu Qinyuan, and Lu Qinyuan offered his hand. The Chihuahua lowered its head to bite, then released and licked it, wagging its tail behind it in a flattering manner. Lu Qinyuan stroked the Chihuahua’s head and smiled, “Good baby.”

An Yu stared in astonishment, his mouth wide enough for a fly to enter, pointing at the Chihuahua and angrily saying, “Just like your owner, forgetting your roots for the sake of beauty!”

Shu Xiu was in a particularly good mood today, and he also talked more. He comforted An Yu, “Don’t argue with pets. Lai Xi is a Tibetan Mastiff. Once it’s accustomed to you, it won’t leave anyone. It will bite whoever it’s told to bite.”

An Yu refused to back down, pointing at the Chihuahua and ordering, “Come back!”

The Chihuahua then passed through the various delicacies, returning to An Yu’s side, where it was grabbed by An Yu and held on his lap, furiously stroking its fur, making the Chihuahua whine softly.

The Chihuahua had passed through the delicacies, leaving a few dog hairs on the edge of the bowl. Min Jia stretched out his chopsticks, hovering in mid-air, and finally put down his chopsticks, groaning, “So sleepy! So hungry!” He pushed away the dishes in front of him and fell asleep on the table, his eyes cracking open to look at Sha Tang. Seeing that he was sitting still, he weakly added a title, “Sweetie!”

Sha Tang practically jumped up from his stool, pointing at An Yu and saying, “Come help me! You’re causing trouble on your first day.”

“I’m not going!” An Yu had a very bad temper. He turned his head away, hugged the Chihuahua, went upstairs, and kicked open a random room to sleep in.

Hearing the closing door, Shu Xiu guessed which room An Yu had entered. He looked at Lu Qinyuan with some uneasiness. “Brother, he went into the room that Xiao Qi used to sleep in.”

Lu Qinyuan didn’t care, “That’s not Xiao Qi’s room. If he wants to live there, let him.”

Sha Tang could only fight alone, making a bowl of tomato and egg noodles for everyone. After drinking it warmly, they returned to their rooms to rest, conserving their energy for the battle tomorrow.

That guest room was adjacent to Lu Qinyuan’s bedroom. It had always been empty, and suddenly someone moved in, filling Lu Qinyuan with inexplicable satisfaction, and then finding it ridiculous. He was so tired that he fell asleep as soon as he closed his eyes, sleeping soundly through the night.

As he walked out of the room, the door next door suddenly opened, and An Yu walked out holding the Chihuahua, his eyes retaining a lingering look of panic. When his eyes met Lu Qinyuan’s, he turned away somewhat awkwardly, subconsciously coughing twice, wanting to say something to cover it up, but ultimately couldn’t utter a word. The two stood in awkward silence for a while, and An Yu was the first to give way, stepping back to let Lu Qinyuan pass.

As Lu Qinyuan passed by, he suddenly smiled and said, “Good baby.” An Yu’s hand holding the Chihuahua suddenly tightened, as if a hand had suddenly grabbed his heart, the original wound bursting open, fresh blood filling his entire chest.

Cheng Ruoyu was sitting at the dining table in a bathrobe, eating a meal, his hair still dripping water. He had to rush to the hospital. Early in the morning, Song Ci had called to say that Bai Ze had a low fever last night, and although the situation had improved, he still wanted him to come as soon as possible.

The breakfast was made in a hurry by the servants, toast with fried bacon plus a boiled egg and a glass of milk. Influenced by Bai Ze, Cheng Ruoyu had a special affection for eggs, but he didn’t like to eat them, especially the yolk, which was particularly dry. He had to drink half a glass of milk every time he ate it.

Lu Qinyuan washed up and went to the study first. Sha Tang had gotten up to work in the middle of the night, and in one day and two nights, he had developed considerable dark circles under his eyes. With panda eyes, he wailed at him, “Master Lu, why don’t you call Sheng Fei or Yi Wei to cover for me? I want to sleep.”

“No, they have their own work.” Lu Qinyuan refused ruthlessly, picked up a stack of documents on the table and flipped through them casually, saying, “You have a ready-made genius at home, but you have to ask for help from afar. Who else is going to get tired if not you.”

Sha Tang shook his dazed head. “Min Jia, Mr. Min, the great hacker, I can’t get him to move.”

“Then I’m afraid you’ll just have to work yourself to death.” Lu Qinyuan pulled out two or three sheets from the documents and slapped them on the table in front of Sha Tang, pointing to several items in turn. “Pay attention to these places and find someone to keep an eye on them.” He patted Sha Tang on the shoulder. “I’ve prepared a coffin for you long ago, so you won’t be left without a place to rest. Hehe, come down for breakfast, don’t starve to death before you work to death.”

Coming out of the study, he met Cheng Ruoyu in the corridor. He called to him, “Is something wrong with Bai Ze?”

“I don’t know yet, Uncle Song asked me to go over.” Cheng Ruoyu said anxiously as he went downstairs. Lu Qinyuan took out his phone and dialed as he walked downstairs, first asking, “Did you sleep well last night?”

“Ah? Very well.” Qi Yue belatedly said, “Bai Ze is also very well, you don’t have to worry.” He said so, but his mind couldn’t help but become active. Lu Qinyuan wouldn’t ask him if he slept well for no reason. Something must be up, something related to him, what could it be? Something related to Bai Ze? The low fever thing?

Lu Qinyuan walked into the dining room, placed a slice of bacon on the bread, then covered it with a slice of bread, a simple sandwich freshly baked. He picked it up, took a bite, and put it down, took paper and pen and quickly wrote a few lines, pasting it in the most conspicuous place on the dining table, saying to Qi Yue, who was racking his brains and reflecting on his actions on the other end of the phone, “Ruoyu and I will go over in a while, we’ll talk when we meet.”

Lu Qinyuan hung up the phone with a snap, took the unfinished bread and chased after him, opened the car door and sat in the back row.

Cheng Ruoyu didn’t start the car immediately, placing his hands on the steering wheel, looking straight ahead. “Xiao Qi really left?” He glanced through the rearview mirror, observing Lu Qinyuan’s expression.

Lu Qinyuan’s expression remained unchanged. He stuffed the last bite of bread into his mouth and said, “He begged me, and I agreed.”

Cheng Ruoyu chuckled softly, starting the car and driving to the hospital.

He begged you, so you agreed? You are not a soft-hearted person! Love, hate, and passion, once you are moved, even a saint cannot control himself, let alone a mortal.