Unmatched Chapter 22
byChapter 22: Turning the Fake into Reality
The Board of Directors conference room was located on the top floor of the Chaoyang White Tower, offering a panoramic view of the entire city through its three walls of floor-to-ceiling windows.
Zhao Fengli once lamented by those windows: The higher you stand, the colder it gets.
However, countless climbers brave the cold and danger. Zhao Huaicheng was one of them, and so was Zhao Shuyi.
Now, this “perilous peak,” unattainable for most, was reduced to a stack of papers pressed beneath Xie Qi’s palm.
The two dozen people present were stunned into silence. Some thought he was joking, others thought he had gone mad. It wasn’t until the secretary circulated the documents around the conference table that the room fell completely silent. Various gazes turned toward Xie Qi, filled with deep shock and incomprehension.
—How many billions did he just say?
No one knew the valuation of Chaoyang’s shares better than these veteran directors. 12.8 billion plus a portion of asset collateral would easily amount to tens of billions.
What did tens of billions mean? Admittedly, for most people, when money reaches a certain level, it becomes just a string of numbers, numbing the senses. But in terms of physical assets—building a landmark structure the size of the Chaoyang White Tower wouldn’t cost tens of billions.
Even if Xie Qi was the Princeling of Ringzhou Group, it would be difficult for him to produce such a large amount of liquid capital in a short time. Moreover, on what grounds was he producing it?
How could the finance department approve this? Did the senior management have no objections? What about Xie Jianhe? Why didn’t he stop it?
Zhao Shuyi’s expression was complicated, but Xie Qi personally picked up the signing pen and forcefully handed it to him. “Sign your name. Don’t waste time.”
“…”
His attitude was still terrible, as if he hadn’t exerted any effort for this matter, merely handing Zhao Shuyi a small gift—one that must be accepted, or else it would be seen as disrespecting him.
The signing pen scratched across the white paper, leaving behind strokes that were breathtakingly significant.
Zhao Shuyi signed slowly, his wrist faintly numb when the final stroke was completed.
The conference room was deathly silent.
In just a quarter of an hour, the situation had dramatically reversed. Zhao Huaicheng’s “coronation speech” never materialized; a surge of anger and confusion was lodged in his throat like a stone, turning his face blue and purple.
Clearly, today’s meeting was over. It was impossible for anyone to continue calmly. Zhao Shuyi stood up and scanned everyone present. There was no hint of triumph on his face; instead, he looked even more serious than before.
“Shall we continue?” he asked symbolically.
The directors exchanged glances. Qin Zhi looked down without speaking. Zhao Huaicheng violently flung his hand, dropped the line, “I’m not feeling well, let’s reconvene another day,” and left without looking back.
A murmur of whispers arose. Zhao Shuyi said thoughtfully, “My Second Uncle is getting on in years; it’s normal to feel unwell occasionally. Let’s adjourn the meeting.”
“…”
An hour later, Zhao Shuyi and Xie Qi walked out of the headquarters building together.
Zhao Shuyi hadn’t noticed when Qin Zhi left, treating her as if she were air, unwilling to spare her another glance.
Xie Qi’s car was parked downstairs. After dismissing the few people he had brought with him, he drove himself and asked Zhao Shuyi, “Where to?”
Zhao Shuyi silently studied him, not answering. His gaze was more serious than usual, but overly serious to the point of seeming a little distant. Xie Qi was displeased. “What are you looking at?”
The long National Day holiday had just ended. The autumn air was crisp and the sun was bright. Xie Qi’s face was clearly visible in the strong light. Zhao Shuyi looked at him as if seeing him for the first time, observing him carefully from his forehead to his neck, even scrutinizing the small shadows cast by his long, thin eyelashes on his skin for a few seconds, as if conducting some kind of secret assessment.
Xie Qi felt a prickle all over from being stared at. “Hey, what’s wrong with you?” He waved a hand in front of Zhao Shuyi’s eyes. “Are you stunned with happiness?”
Zhao Shuyi’s face showed no sign of happiness.
But he smiled and said sincerely, “Thank you for helping me today, Xie Qi.”
The words of thanks made him sound even more distant, but those share transfer documents and that amount of money were truly astonishing; no one could accept them with a clear conscience.
“Why did you do this?” Zhao Shuyi asked. “Did you not encounter any obstacles? Did your father agree?”
Xie Qi snorted. “That’s my business. You don’t need to worry about it.”
Zhao Shuyi thought for a moment, then thanked him again. “I will pay you back, but… it’s too much. I don’t know when I’ll be able to clear the debt.”
It wasn’t just a matter of whether he could repay the money. This favor, a lifeline in the snow, was too heavy. Zhao Shuyi felt his hands burning just holding it.
“I won’t be overly polite with you,” he said, still trying to be as polite as possible. “How much did you spend in total? Let me have a number in mind.”
Xie Qi didn’t say anything for a long time. Zhao Shuyi had to continue, “If you ever have difficulties in the future, please tell me. No matter what it is, I won’t refuse to help if I can.”
Xie Qi looked at him coldly. “I didn’t help you just to hear you say things like that.”
“…” Zhao Shuyi paused. “What do you want to hear?”
“I want—” Xie Qi stopped mid-sentence and changed his mind. “I have no motive. I just didn’t want to see them bully you.”
Zhao Shuyi was stunned.
Xie Qi turned his face away, maintaining his usual arrogant demeanor. “I promised your Grandfather I would take good care of you, and besides…
“You saved my life before, and I haven’t thanked you for it yet.”
Zhao Shuyi was speechless. “Is that all?”
“What else?” Xie Qi denied it preemptively, as if afraid of being exposed. “It’s definitely not because we’re dating. I couldn’t possibly turn this fake relationship into reality with you. Don’t you dare fall in love with me because of today’s events!”
“…”
Zhao Shuyi was speechless. “Do you know that your quick denial makes it seem like you have something to hide?”
“Stop being so self-absorbed,” Xie Qi buckled his seatbelt and opened the navigation app. “You don’t like me, so how could I possibly like you?”
After a few exchanges, Zhao Shuyi’s tense state finally relaxed a little. There were still many troubles to deal with later, but he could catch his breath today.
Once he relaxed, his words became less guarded. Zhao Shuyi glanced at Xie Qi’s profile as he drove, and surprisingly found it more pleasing to the eye than before. Even if he looked at it for a lifetime, he might not grow tired of it.
“How about… we try turning the fake into reality?”
Zhao Shuyi casually dropped a bombshell. Xie Qi swerved the steering wheel, nearly crossing the line, then quickly corrected it. A horn blared outside the window, the non-verbal expression of dissatisfaction from the driver in the next lane.
Xie Qi seemed distracted and hadn’t heard him clearly. “What did you say?”
“Nothing.” Zhao Shuyi actually retracted the statement. Whether he was deliberately teasing him or speaking on a whim, he regretted it immediately after saying it.
Xie Qi pressed him. “What is ‘nothing’?”
Zhao Shuyi gave him a look. “You heard me clearly.”
“No, I didn’t,” Xie Qi denied. “I didn’t hear clearly. Say it again.”
“Forget it. I said the weather is nice today.”
“…”
Xie Qi was silent. Zhao Shuyi said, “Don’t go home. Let’s find a restaurant to eat. I’m hungry.”
“Which restaurant?”
“Anywhere.”
Xie Qi silently changed the route, driving toward an unknown destination. Zhao Shuyi didn’t ask, lowering his head to reply to messages on his phone.
The streetscape outside the window flew by. The previous topic had ended a long time ago, but Xie Qi suddenly picked it up, saying awkwardly, “Zhao Shuyi, I heard you clearly. You want to turn the fake into reality with me.”
“I didn’t say that,” Zhao Shuyi countered. “Why are you changing my lines?”
“It’s close enough. Didn’t you want to try it?”
“Yes.”
“Then let’s try it,” Xie Qi said in a ‘who’s afraid of whom’ tone. “We’re already tied together anyway. There’s no difference between real liking and fake liking, is there?”
Zhao Shuyi nodded in agreement. His gaze inadvertently fell on the steering wheel, where he saw an inconspicuous damp mark, slightly reflecting the strong sunlight.
Xie Qi’s palms were sweating.
Zhao Shuyi said, “Can we find a place to pull over?”
“What’s wrong?” Xie Qi was puzzled, but he listened and pulled over to the side of the road.
Zhao Shuyi unbuckled his seatbelt, leaned forward toward Xie Qi, suddenly wrapped his arms around his neck, and kissed him forcefully.
Xie Qi’s eyes widened.
Unlike the venting intimacy of last night, Zhao Shuyi added a degree of seriousness, pouring his rare, bright mood after days of suppression into this kiss, which was almost lingering:
“Since there’s no difference… Xie Qi, I’m going to start liking you, starting today.”