Qiao Jin couldn’t sleep on the plane. He hadn’t fully recovered from his cold, and he was a bit airsick, so even though his head was pounding, he couldn’t fall asleep.
This was a bidding meeting for an urban development project. The total investment was substantial, but with government support, the returns were also significant. There were quite a few attendees, all of whom were CEOs worth over a hundred billion.
Lu Pingzhang arrived late, but it didn’t matter. He only intended to observe this project for now, mainly to support Beikayuan and take Qiao Jin out to relax.
Beikayuan had reserved a seat for him. Lu Pingzhang sat down, pushed his nameplate forward, and took his first sip of water.
Bei Kaiyuan glanced at him, leaned in closer, and whispered, “Qiao Jin didn’t come with you?”
“He did,” Lu Pingzhang swallowed his water. “He’s sleeping at the hotel.”
“Why is he sleeping in broad daylight?”
Bei Kaiyuan rolled his eyes, then after a moment, he nudged Lu Pingzhang’s arm with his elbow and gestured for him to look behind them.
Lu Pingzhang turned his head and saw Hou Wude.
Bei Kaiyuan said, “Old Hou’s eyes are sparkling. I think he’s going to compete for this project.”
“A project no one competes for isn’t profitable.” Lu Pingzhang no longer looked that way, glancing instead at the speaker on stage and the journalists snapping photos around him. “How did they manage to get him here?”
Bei Kaiyuan looked too, sighing, “It’s a provincially supported project. Of course they’d bring in two influential figures to speak.”
Lu Pingzhang listened for a moment and concluded, “Alright. In that case, you’ll need to tighten your cash flow and keep an eye on the market. If things get too volatile, the stock prices will drop.”
Bei Kaiyuan tapped his arm, indicating that the two were on the same page.
“I just don’t know how much we can get,” he said, watching the person on stage with both admiration and caution. “Help me connect with him at the banquet. I’ll arrange some gifts to send over in the next few days to see if we can get any leads.”
Lu Pingzhang nodded and picked up the water to drink.
Bei Kaiyuan couldn’t help but laugh, “What’s going on here? You’re late, and when you arrive, you just drink water. Did you get drained dry at home before coming here?”
Lu Pingzhang swallowed the water and didn’t wait to speak before Bei Kaiyuan asked again, “Will Qiao Jin be coming tonight?”
As Lu Pingzhang swallowed the water, he also swallowed the word “get lost.” The words “Qiao Jin” had an excellent calming effect on him.
“He should come,” he said.
“My wife is coming too.” “ Bei Kaiyuan said with a smile, ”It should have been this way all along. Now that you have someone, you can be open about it. Take him everywhere with you. If you can’t say it openly, just say he’s your younger brother.”
Lu Pingzhang couldn’t express his suffering.
After suddenly losing his family that year, he was left with severe psychological trauma. Although Qiao Jin accompanied him through those difficult days, he was still very afraid.
He feared Qiao Jin would be in a car accident, feared his pain, feared his tears.
He feared losing him again.
The psychologist suggested he try to change. He agreed to expose Qiao Jin to others not to solve his own issues, but to alleviate Qiao Jin’s emotions.
He wanted to give him more—joint ownership of property, a sense of security, or something else—to make his identity more clear. Maybe you’ll suddenly see things clearly, and then you’ll thank me.”
Lu Pingzhang had been in meetings all day and rushed back to the hotel to pick up Qiao Jin before the dinner party began.
At first glance, water could extinguish fire, but the tiger wouldn’t let go of its claws and would crush the rabbit to death.
Lu Pingzhang couldn’t stand the word “death” and felt that the master was just here to cause trouble.
He opened the hotel room door and immediately saw Qiao Jin.
He was sitting on the sofa, facing away from the door and toward the window. Upon hearing the sound, he turned his head and saw it was him, his expression changing for an instant before returning to normal.
“You’re back,” Qiao Jin said.
He noticed that the lunch on the table had barely been touched, and some boxes hadn’t even been opened: “Didn’t you eat lunch?”
Qiao Jin stood up and buttoned his suit jacket: “I ate a little, but I wasn’t hungry.”
As he stood up, his tall, slender figure was illuminated by the light. The suit fit him perfectly, every edge and silhouette just right.
Lu Pingzhang’s mind was filled with the meeting points from the day, all of which had flown out of his head.
Lu Pingzhang’s eyebrows twitched involuntarily.
Lu Pingzhang wanted to say, “Isn’t it because you’re too delicate to go?” But Qiao Jin still looked tired, so he paused and didn’t say it, following him downstairs.
Qiao Jin took it, opened it, and took a sip. As soon as the car started moving, he put it back.
He leaned back in the rear seat, his knees slightly apart, his body relaxed as he looked out the window.
This was his usual way of alleviating motion sickness.
Lu Pingzhang looked at his profile for a moment, then took out a velvet box the size of his palm from his coat pocket. Inside were a pair of black gold whale tail cufflinks inlaid with hand-polished jade.
Qiao Jin heard the click of the clasp opening and turned his head to look.
The scenery outside the window flew by, and Lu Pingzhang took his hand, removed one of the cufflinks, and fastened it on him. He studied it for a moment with his eyes lowered, then shifted his gaze back to his face: “It looks good.”
Qiao Jin looked at it for a moment and silently agreed with his assessment.
Lu Pingzhang satisfiedly put the other one on himself.
This time, Qiao Jin’s gaze lingered a bit longer. He looked at the cufflink on Lu Pingzhang’s sleeve, then looked at Lu Pingzhang himself.
Lu Pingzhang’s expression was naturally lacking in liveliness, and even his eyebrow-raising and eye-lifting movements were barely noticeable: “Do you like it?”
Qiao Jin’s eyes flickered, and the cufflink occasionally glinted faintly in the corner of his eye. Lu Pingzhang asked again, “Do you like it?”
Qiao Jin hesitated for a moment before slowly nodding.
Lu Pingzhang’s lips twitched slightly as he said, “One for each of us.”
Qiao Jin’s gaze lingered on the two cufflinks, but Lu Pingzhang no longer intended to say more. He held his hand and closed his eyes to rest.
It seemed that the real purpose of his return was for this matter.
Lu Pingzhang brought Qiao Jin to the banquet, and naturally attracted some attention.
Due to his status, whether he brought a male companion or a friend, it would attract a lot of attention and speculation.
There were quite a few male companions at the banquet, many of whom were famous celebrities. That was no big deal; it was just a “friendly exchange” behind closed doors.
Yet no one in the circle had ever seen anyone like him before.
Hou Wude never expected to see Qiao Jin again.
Last time, he had slept with Lu Pingzhang’s female companion, Bai Yuan, and was now being hounded by her, finding it tedious and uninteresting.
But Qiao Jin was different. He had been attracted to him the last time he saw him, but hadn’t had the chance to act on it.
Hou Wude only had to look at Lu Pingzhang’s back in the distance and Bei Kaiyuan standing beside him to know that he would definitely get involved to help Bei Kaiyuan bid for the project.
He was getting fed up. Whenever Lu Pingzhang was around, it was almost impossible for him to get any benefits.
“I’m sorry, I took some medicine before coming here, so I can’t drink alcohol.” Qiao Jin gave him an apologetic look.
Qiao Jin nodded and turned to leave.
Hou Wude paused for a moment: “Wait, you haven’t given me an answer yet.”
“Does it have to be explicitly stated to count as an answer?” Qiao Jin asked.
Hou Wude didn’t understand.
Qiao Jin stopped and actually calculated: “Lu Zong gives me roughly… twelve million a year, not including other things. If everything needs to be included, I might need some time. It’s definitely not a small number. Hou Zong, are you sure you want me to consider it?”
Hou Wude’s eyebrows twitched, and his gaze clearly shifted to one of appraisal and speculation: “He? Spending that much money to keep a mistress?”
The word “mistress” didn’t faze Qiao Jin; he stood calmly across from him.
Hou Wude couldn’t discern his exceptional qualities just by looking at him, even though his face was indeed striking.
“How old are you this year?” This number made him rein in his curiosity, but he was still restless. “Where are you from?”
“No rush. Let’s tackle one question at a time.” Qiao Jin said, “First, does Mr. Hou still want to keep me as a mistress?”
Hou Wude hesitated, looking at him. Before he could answer, Lu Pingzhang strode back.
Qiao Jin shrugged, showing no sign of regret or relief, and met his gaze directly. “Not yet. Mr. Hou said he’d pay to sponsor me, but he’s been dragging his feet on the price. It probably won’t happen.”
Lu Pingzhang looked at Hou Wude, the warmth in his eyes steadily fading.
Hou Wude snorted with a laugh, his gaze shifting between them. “New favorite? Can’t bear to let go?”
Lu Pingzhang’s eyes were cold and unsettling, but his lips curled into the typical merchant’s insincere smile. “Name your price. I’ll listen.”
Qiao Jin didn’t want to listen to their sarcastic remarks, so he handed the red wine to Lu Pingzhang and turned to leave to eat dessert.
Hou Wude watched his indifferent back, but Lu Pingzhang clinked his wine glass against Hou Wude’s with a “clink,” pulling his gaze back.
“This is no fun,” he gestured. “Finish this glass, and let’s go over there to drink.”
Hou Wude watched him tilt his head back and drink the red wine in one gulp, his eyebrows nearly knotting into a knot.
He hesitated several times before gritting his teeth and finishing the wine in his hand.
Lu Pingzhang reached out and pulled him along, as if there were no hard feelings, forcing him to follow him to the wine table: “That’s right, drinking should be done to the fullest.”
Qiao Jin ate a few bites of dessert to fill his stomach, then wandered over to the seafood section.
He held a white plate, and when he saw something he liked, he would eat a little, but not take too much, and then move on to another place.
The glances from those around him never ceased, but since he didn’t need to bid or build connections, there was no need to make new acquaintances.
Qiao Jin saw him about to lean on the table and caught him before he could: “I’m full. How much did you drink?”
The alcohol had torn open a crack in his dignified facade, making him look like he could erupt violently at any moment.
Qiao Jin was hit by the smell of alcohol and the hot breath on his face, and couldn’t help but frown and say, “You’ve had too much to drink.”
“Hmm,” Lu Pingzhang admitted frankly, “A little, but I’m not drunk.”
Qiao Jin glanced at his watch and noticed the whale-tail cufflinks, which softened his tone slightly: “Shall I take you back to the hotel?”
Qiao Jin was pressed against the table by him, forced to listen to his words.
The food at the banquet had been served in two rounds, half the people had already left, and the rest were clinking glasses, their intentions clear and obvious, with no time to spare for their corner.
Lu Pingzhang squinted under the lamp, making no unusual moves. Whether drunk or sober, he remained the composed Mr. Lu.
“Let’s go home,” he said.
Qiao Jin sighed helplessly, “We’re in Guangzhou.”
“I know.” “ Lu Pingzhang examined Qiao Jin’s eyelashes one by one, watching them tremble slightly with his breath, his eyes deep and unfathomable. ”Take me back to the hotel. The hotel is home.”
Leave a Reply