Is This The Right Way To Repay A Favor? Chapter 77

Warning

“Why would you…” Jiang Zhou still couldn’t quite bring himself to say things like ‘like me.’

“There’s no why. Liking someone just is.”

Liking someone is a very metaphysical thing. Shen Zhiyu previously thought he only liked Jiang Zhou’s body, but the closer he got to him, the more he understood him, the more he couldn’t help but want to tease him. Sometimes, just quietly holding him was enough to feel a sense of peace.

“But I…”

“Are you questioning my taste?” Shen Zhiyu’s eyes conveyed a dangerous message.

The phrase ‘I’m not worthy’ was forcibly swallowed back under that gaze.

“I’m not.” Jiang Zhou answered sullenly. He noticed that the figure who had been standing high above him had turned around and stepped down a level toward him. And he, it seemed, had also been granted the qualification to take a step up.

“That’s good.” Shen Zhiyu reached out and touched the corner of his reddened eye. “Can you still go home?”

Jiang Zhou knew what he was referring to, and he nodded, blushing. “Yes.”

Shen Zhiyu casually found a trench coat in his closet and put it on, glancing at the clothes soaking wet in the bathroom. “Help me put those clothes away. Just leave them here. You’ll have something to change into when you come here later.”

The implication of that statement was too obvious, and Jiang Zhou, who had just gotten out of bed, stumbled slightly at the words.

Shen Zhiyu stepped forward, supported his arm, and then picked him up. “It looks like you’re really exhausted. Come on, hook your arms around my neck.”

Jiang Zhou didn’t want to go downstairs with him like this. He struggled twice. “I can walk by myself.”

“I just broke my fast, my energy is surging.” Shen Zhiyu warned, “I advise you not to move. Otherwise, you won’t be going back home.”

Jiang Zhou sensed the threat and immediately hooked his arms around Shen Zhiyu’s neck, burying his face in his collarbone, not forgetting to remind him, “Wear a hat.”

Trying to cover up the obvious.

But Shen Zhiyu still took a hat from the closet and put it on.

—

Shen Zhiyu’s live stream confession that he had someone he liked remained a trending topic for several days. Everyone was guessing who that person was, speculating on candidates from domestic to international, from female to male, but there was no definitive answer.

Shen Zhiyu truly launched a full-scale pursuit, sending daily greetings and providing transportation.

On the third day, he even sent flowers.

When Jiang Zhou received the flowers delivered by Wei Yan, he looked at him strangely.

“What is this?”

Wei Yan: “Flowers from Mr. Shen.”

Jiang Zhou: “???”

The bouquet contained several sprigs of Australian waxflower, with tiny, pearl-like white buds dotting the slender branches, accompanied by a few sprigs of grayish-green dusty miller. There was no strong fragrance, no dazzling color; the overall tone was a quiet and sophisticated gray-white and green.

Jiang Zhou took the flowers, holding them somewhat awkwardly, his fingertips feeling the cool vitality of the plant stems and leaves.

Wei Yan left.

Jiang Zhou noticed a card tucked into the bouquet.

He pulled it out; it contained a handwritten message from Shen Zhiyu.

“Saw them on the way, thought they suited you, so I bought them.”

The cool, elegant scent of the plants subtly lingered in his nostrils. The small Australian waxflower buds clustered together, quiet yet abundant. Jiang Zhou’s fingers tightened slightly around the bouquet.

A sudden surge of bittersweet, turbulent heat rushed to Jiang Zhou’s eyes. He abruptly lowered his head, burying his face between the gray-green and pure white. The cool scent of the plants mixed with the smell of kraft paper, strangely soothing his churning emotions.

Shen Zhiyu’s video call came through.

Jiang Zhou freed one hand to answer the call.

Shen Zhiyu saw Jiang Zhou holding the flowers. The gray-white and cyan-green tones made Jiang Zhou’s cool-toned white skin appear even more radiant, his cheeks tinged with a faint pink.

He knew his taste couldn’t be wrong; these flowers truly suited his Ah Zhou.

“Get off work early today. I’ll pick you up at five.”

“Where are we going?”

“I’m taking you to check into a room.”

Jiang Zhou: “???”

Shen Zhiyu enjoyed the sight of a certain person’s cheeks gradually turning red and shy.

Then he slowly explained, “Cai Zhiyang is celebrating his birthday in Yuncheng today. We’re going to join the fun. Tomorrow is the weekend, so we’ll stay there for two days.”

So that’s what he meant by checking into a room.

This person really knows how to say things that make people’s minds wander.

“Oh.”

“What? Are you disappointed?” Shen Zhiyu looked at him and smiled.

“I am not.” Jiang Zhou argued quietly.

“I am disappointed.”

“Jiang Zhou.”

“You’re too weak.”

Jiang Zhou: !!!

“You’re the weak one!”

Hearing this, Shen Zhiyu chuckled softly, “Yes, I am weak—”

He admitted it, but his tone was ambiguous and sticky, making one’s ears tingle.

Jiang Zhou had thought that after Shen Zhiyu broke his vow last time, their intimate relationship would be different. But it wasn’t.

Jiang Zhou was simply too sensitive, and he couldn’t endure more than three times every night.

Shen Zhiyu adhered to the principle of double repayment, and by last night, the number of repayments had finally dropped below double digits.

Wei Yan knocked on the door, and Jiang Zhou prepared to hang up.

Shen Zhiyu demanded a goodbye kiss before ending the call.

Lu Shen, who had witnessed the entire exchange: …..

“You’re sickeningly flirtatious.”

Shen Zhiyu stabbed directly at his heart. “Just because you don’t have a man, you won’t let others be flirtatious?”

Lu Shen rolled his eyes and returned to the main topic. “They are planning to release the information about Xie Xuan these few days.”

“Do his parents know?” Shen Zhiyu sobered up.

“We haven’t found his parents yet.” After Xie Xuan committed suicide, his parents went into hiding and started teaching in a mountainous area.

Shen Zhiyu sighed softly. “Can we stop it?”

Lu Shen shook his head. “We can’t. They wanted to talk to you about Xu Binbin’s matter last time, but you refused to meet. They are preparing to go for the kill this time.”

“Did their old man agree?”

“They say he went to Xiangshan Sanatorium for recuperation.”

It was nothing more than a pretense of leaving, so that if the situation got out of hand, he would have a reason to return and clean up the mess.

A well-calculated plan.

“Oh, and they also sent a generous gift to CEO Jiang.”

Shen Zhiyu raised an eyebrow slightly.

“They want Languang Media to abandon you.”

“Heh—” Shen Zhiyu sneered. “They think they’re worthy!”

“In any case, they are coming on strong this time. You should remind CEO Jiang to be careful.”

“Mhm.” Shen Zhiyu checked the time, preparing to go pick up Jiang Zhou.

Before leaving, he still asked his friend a question.

“Are you really done with the one surnamed Yuan?”

“Yes.” Lu Shen lowered his eyes. “The family arranged a blind date for tomorrow with Minister Yuan’s granddaughter. I will go.”

Shen Zhiyu frowned in disapproval. He patted his friend’s shoulder. “Live like a human being.”

—

Wei Yan brought news from the Ye Group.

The other party suddenly approached them seeking cooperation, willing to invest hundreds of billions to jointly develop a film and television production base with Languang Media.

The more Jiang Zhou listened, the more something felt wrong.

The Ye Group was an established conglomerate in Jingshi, with wide-ranging interests covering film and television, real estate, education, medical care, and many other fields. It was a globally ranked company.

Languang Media had risen rapidly in recent years and secured a place in the entertainment industry, but compared to these established conglomerates, it was insignificant.

Even if the Ye Group wanted to develop a film and television production base, they could do it alone; there was absolutely no need to find a company to share the profits.

Jiang Zhou didn’t know how Languang Media had attracted the attention of the Ye Group.

Wei Yan: “They sent a representative to negotiate. Does CEO Jiang want to meet them?”

“Let them come in.” Jiang Zhou wanted to know what scheme they were plotting.

The representative sent by the Ye Group was a woman, dressed smartly and elegantly, with shoulder-length short hair and a bold temperament.

“Hello, CEO Jiang. I am Ye Qin.”

Jiang Zhou politely shook her hand.

Wei Yan brewed the tea and tactfully left the office.

“CEO Jiang, I won’t beat around the bush. I’ll be direct.”

“I am here on behalf of the Xu Group to discuss the cooperation on developing the film base with Languang Media. Languang Media doesn’t need to do anything, just lend its name, and it will receive 10% of the profits.”

This was equivalent to a windfall.

The Ye Group was not a poverty alleviation organization; how could they do something with no return?

“What are the conditions?”

“We want Shen Zhiyu’s contract.”

Hearing this, a vein pulsed in Jiang Zhou’s forehead, and an inexplicable panic welled up in his heart. It seemed like something aggressive was about to break through the surface.

“Why?”

“CEO Jiang doesn’t need to know the reason, just whether you agree or not. This is a highly profitable opportunity, and not everyone gets it.”

“Oh.” Jiang Zhou glanced at the bouquet on his desk, and his heart gradually settled. “It seems I, Jiang, am not blessed with such fortune.”

Ye Qin reminded him, “Does CEO Jiang know the consequences of refusing?”

“I do. Please bring it on. Languang Media will see this through to the end.”

Ye Qin suddenly smiled at his words. “CEO Jiang’s personality is completely different from what Ah Mo described. He really should see you now, or he wouldn’t keep praising you for being gentle.”

Ah Mo? Ye Mo?

Ye Qin had already stood up. “I hope CEO Jiang can persevere. I hope… I haven’t misjudged you.”

“Alright.” Jiang Zhou watched her leave.

Wei Yan returned to the office. “CEO Jiang, we found it. The person who gave Xu Binbin money is connected to the Ye Group. It’s just that the money was transferred through several accounts, so we couldn’t trace the source before.”

“Why would the Ye Group try to smear Mr. Shen?”

Jiang Zhou, prompted by Ye Qin, had already figured it out.

All of this was related to Ye Mo.

Shen Zhiyu had mentioned that Ye Mo’s parents had an unhappy relationship, and his mother passed away at the end of last year, which was why he brought Ye Mo back to the country at the beginning of the year.

Jiang Zhou could guess that the Ye family wanted to fight for custody of the child, and Shen Zhiyu refused, leading to these incidents.

Now that the Ye Group had approached him, it meant that more actions would follow.

He needed to guard against the future. “Have them investigate the Ye Group.”

Wei Yan acknowledged the order and left.

Jiang Zhou remained in the office, but his heart couldn’t calm down.

The matter with Xu Binbin was a warning, just like the warning Yuan Chong received from the Lu family back then.

If Shen Zhiyu still refused to back down, the consequences would be more severe than this.

The Ye Group was coming on strong. He wasn’t sure if the Ye Group had any dirt on Shen Zhiyu, but even if they didn’t, they could fabricate so-called evidence.

Just like the Xu Binbin incident, they could make Xu Binbin risk imprisonment to frame Shen Zhiyu with a fabricated charge. The subsequent methods would only be dirtier.

Jiang Zhou sorted out the whole sequence of events, yet he felt the same helplessness and panic as when Yuan Chong received the Lu family’s warning.

He was afraid he couldn’t protect Shen Zhiyu.