Chapter 54

In the backseat of the Maybach, Qi Xu let out a frustrated huff and punched Xie Huai in the shoulder. “Next time, can you not wait until the very last second to tell me this stuff? You had to drop it over the phone?”

Xie Huai took the punch without a word. Then, like it was nothing, he said, “It was between me and your brother. You chose him.”

Qi Xu: “…”

Why did that sound so hurt?

“I didn’t choose him! You didn’t say a word! If you had even grunted, I would’ve gone with you instead. Now I had to pull off a full-on sprint just to catch up…”

The light ahead turned red, and the driver, Lao Gao, gently stepped on the brake. Qi Xu hadn’t even finished ranting when Xie Huai turned and wrapped him in a hug.

Lao Gao kept his eyes firmly on the road—but lowered the privacy screen without hesitation.

Now sealed off from the outside, Qi Xu could clearly feel Xie Huai’s breath against his neck. The space between them? Nonexistent.

Qi Xu froze up, unsure how to react. When Xie Huai didn’t let go, he slowly—awkwardly—lifted a hand and laid it on Xie Huai’s back like a very confused father.

His fingers brushed the fabric, then clenched slightly.

His voice came out stiff, like a robot: “What are you doing?”

After a long moment, Xie Huai finally spoke—not moving, just murmuring next to Qi Xu’s ear: “You promised nothing would go wrong. I never should’ve let you face Gao Wenjun alone.”

Qi Xu had promised Xie Huai, or he never would’ve been allowed to join the group outing, let alone the KTV session afterward.

He replied dryly, “Nothing did go wrong. He ran into trouble, not me.”

Xie Huai’s slightly coarse hair brushed against Qi Xu’s chin and neck, making him flinch from the tickle. But as he leaned away, Xie Huai’s hand pressed firmly against his waist, not letting him retreat.

“Don’t twist it. You broke our agreement. Next time, I won’t let you run off like that again.”

Xie Huai’s voice in his ear was low and rhythmic—almost like a lullaby. Qi Xu sighed and slumped, resting his chin on Xie Huai’s shoulder. “Fine, whatever you say.”

He felt the tension in Xie Huai ease, even his breath turning lighter. Clearly satisfied.

Qi Xu let out a small laugh. “Okay, can you let go now? This angle’s really uncomfortable.”

He paused, realizing how that sounded. “I don’t mean hugging you is awkward. I mean, hugging while twisted like this is awkward.”

His words started tangling like a tongue-twister. Even he didn’t know what he was saying anymore.

A soft laugh sounded in Qi Xu’s ear. He immediately reached back and grabbed a handful of Xie Huai’s hair at the nape of his neck, yanking gently as he pulled away. “What are you laughing at?”

Because Xie Huai still had a hand on his back, Qi Xu couldn’t move very far. In the dim light from the roadside, he could barely make out Xie Huai’s expression.

He tried to read something from that face—anything—but came up blank. It made Qi Xu wonder if he’d imagined the laugh entirely.

Seeing that Xie Huai wasn’t saying anything, Qi Xu thought for a moment and continued, “Gao Wenjun didn’t even touch me. I thought he was disgusting, so when I tied him up, I just grabbed his sleeves and did it half-assed. I used a lot of force though, probably left bruises on his wrists.”

Still, Xie Huai said nothing, eyes lowered, gaze unfocused.

The air between them hung heavy for several seconds. Outside, the wind roared past the car windows, dragging someone’s heartbeat along with it.

Qi Xu slowly realized—Xie Huai was probably worried about him. Maybe even shaken.

After all, if Qi Xu hadn’t insisted on using himself as bait to lure the target out, he never would’ve ended up locked in a room alone with a guy like Gao Wenjun.

If something had happened, the consequences would’ve been unthinkable.

Qi Xu had never seen Xie Huai like this—not in either of his lives. His first memory of him was still frozen in time: Xie Huai refusing to clink glasses with him. He’d held a grudge for two lifetimes over that.

Then later, they met across the negotiating table—Xie Huai calm, sharp, in total control.

And now? Now he was this strange mix of nosy, sharp-tongued, and quietly attentive. Bickering with Qi Xu constantly but also growing increasingly invested in his business.

But this version of Xie Huai… this one sitting in front of him right now… Qi Xu had never seen before. The kind of side no one else knew existed. A side that only he got to see.

Qi Xu didn’t know what to say, so he followed instinct. He reached out, gently squeezed the back of Xie Huai’s neck, and said, “I promise it won’t happen again. I broke our agreement this time—do whatever you want with me.”

They looked at each other for a few seconds—three, maybe four—and Qi Xu’s heart visibly skipped a beat.

Xie Huai pulled him into another hug. “Whatever I want?”

Qi Xu nodded. “Yeah.”

Xie Huai didn’t hesitate: “I’m moving in with you.”

“…Huh?”

By the time Qi Xu snapped out of his daze, the car had already pulled up in front of Munyi.

He glanced out the window. “Wait—weren’t we going to my place?”

Xie Huai opened the door. “The bed hasn’t been delivered yet. Give it a few days.”

Qi Xu suddenly realized he’d just been played. And worse—he hadn’t even agreed to any of this.

“Hold on, what do you mean ‘a few days’? You think you can just move in because of a bed? That’s not how this works,” Qi Xu said, following him out of the car, trying to reclaim some control of the situation—though over what, he wasn’t entirely sure.

Xie Huai acted like he was placing an online order. “I’ll bring over a washing machine, dishwasher… maybe even a fridge. Whatever appliances you’re missing, I’ll take care of it.”

Qi Xu: “…”

Okay, now it was really sounding like a dowry.

“So,” Qi Xu said, squinting at him, “you want to live with me because… you don’t have a place?”

Xie Huai, heir to the Xie family, not having a place? Yeah, right.

But Xie Huai nodded, playing it straight: “I’m starting a business. Most of my money’s tied up in investments right now. A place to live isn’t a priority. And the dorm’s too crowded. I need space.”

“You own a Cullinan, a Koenigsegg, and an Aston Martin. You could sell any one of them and buy a whole apartment. Don’t give me that ‘poor’ crap,” Qi Xu shot back, refusing to be swayed by looks alone. The guy had already pulled a move on him in the car—thank God he’d kept it together.

Xie Huai saw Qi Xu wavering and changed tactics. “I’m not asking to live there for free. I’ll pay rent. Buying that apartment of yours wasn’t cheap. Let me help you get some return on it.”

That hit home.

Even though Qi Xu saw buying the place as an investment, he was in the middle of starting a business. Money was tight. Getting a little back wouldn’t hurt… especially if it came from Xie Huai’s pocket.

It looked like Xie Huai genuinely wanted a space of his own. If Qi Xu got to make some money out of it, maybe it wasn’t such a bad deal.

Xie Huai accepted a room card from the front desk manager. Qi Xu followed him silently, deep in thought.

—

Same penthouse suite as before. Qi Xu made himself at home, grabbed a bottle of water from the minibar, and took a few big gulps.

“You can rent it,” he said at last. “I’ll apply for another access card in a few days. The door code’s the same as my phone passcode. As for utilities, I’ll send you the bills when they come in.”

Xie Huai adjusted the central AC settings. “Got it. No rush.”

Qi Xu might’ve never been a landlord, but he knew how these things worked. A lease was necessary, and he wasn’t even sure how much to charge.

He slouched casually against the armrest of the sofa and asked, “How much rent do you think is fair?”

Bit backward, really. What kind of landlord asks the tenant to name their own rent? Of course the tenant would want to say “zero” and just move right in.

Xie Huai walked up to Qi Xu, nudging apart his legs with one foot and casually claiming the space between them like it belonged to him.

Qi Xu suddenly felt a strange pressure. There was something different about the Xie Huai standing in front of him—so much so that he half-suspected he was dealing with an alien in disguise. He looked up, trying to catch any telltale signs.

Looking down at him from above, Xie Huai said, “You’re asking me about rent?”

Qi Xu gave a grunt of acknowledgment. “Where else are you gonna find a landlord this nice, huh? Letting a tenant name his own price—you should be thrilled.”

Xie Huai replied plainly, “It’s free.”

Typical tenant logic.

Qi Xu was speechless for a moment, choked on words. He lifted his foot and gave Xie Huai’s shin a light kick with the tip of his shoe, but thanks to his awkward sitting posture, it barely counted—more like a nudge than a real kick.

“Get lost.”

Xie Huai raised a brow at his reaction. “And here you are complaining, even after I told you.”

Qi Xu crossed his arms and looked up at him, chin slightly raised. “Go on then, let’s hear it.”

Xie Huai reached out and pinched Qi Xu’s earlobe, rubbing it gently as he spoke in a low voice: “Didn’t Xu-ge want to see my abs? I’ll show them to you every day. Let’s see what that’s worth.”

Qi Xu grabbed Xie Huai’s wrist bone, lifted his eyes with a smirk, and tilted his head. “Is Huai-ge planning to sell his body now?”

Xie Huai didn’t respond. He just stood there, quietly watching Qi Xu, like trying to take in every detail of someone so vividly alive.

Qi Xu pulled down the hand from his ear. He could feel the heat still lingering there, and he knew—something about Xie Huai tonight was off. Very off.

“It doesn’t count. We’ll tally it up, one by one.”

Qi Xu playfully shoved Xie Huai aside and stood up with a stretch. “It’s late. I’m going to bed.”

He slipped away without much resistance, heading straight to the room with the floor-to-ceiling windows. Because of that, he missed the complex emotion flickering in Xie Huai’s eyes.

Back in the room, Qi Xu went straight into the bathroom. In the mirror, he saw that his ear—still burning from the touch—had turned noticeably red.

What the hell. Did Xie Huai grow thorns in his hands or something? Just a few rubs and his ear was like this.

From that hug in the car to the intimacy just now, Qi Xu barely had time to process anything.

There’d been no lead-up, no signals. Just whatever Xie Huai felt like doing.

But strangely, he’d never seen Xie Huai act like this with Xu Yichen—not even once.

Those two had been best friends for over a decade.

Qi Xu couldn’t recall Xie Huai ever treating anyone else like this either. So what the hell was going on with him?

That night, for the first time in forever, Qi Xu couldn’t sleep.

He tossed and turned, obsessing over what exactly was wrong with Xie Huai. Maybe he should drag him to Old Man Xu tomorrow and get some herbal meds to balance out whatever inner fire he had going on.

Usually he woke up late already, but after losing sleep last night, he ended up sleeping through lunch altogether.

The next day, Xie Huai was sitting in the living room going over some work after breakfast when he received a call from Grandpa Shen.

“Grandpa Shen,” he answered.

The old man had only just learned what happened the previous night. He’d tried calling Qi Xu, but that rascal wasn’t picking up, so he had no choice but to call Xie Huai instead.

“He’s with me,” Xie Huai replied. “Still asleep. Maybe his phone’s on silent—but he’s fine.”

Grandpa Shen got straight to the point. “I heard he wants to press charges?”

That worthless second son of his had shown up first thing in the morning, saying it was all a big misunderstanding, that it could be resolved with a simple explanation.

But the moment Grandpa Shen realized it involved Shen Zeyu again, his heart turned cold. That couple still hadn’t figured things out—still expected their own son to give way for the sake of appearances.

If it really was just a misunderstanding, Qi Xu wouldn’t be so adamant about going through legal channels.

So the old man didn’t say another word. He just kicked them both out of the ancestral home.

“He said he’s pressing charges,” Xie Huai confirmed.

Grandpa Shen’s tone stayed even. “Alright. I’ve arranged for a lawyer. Have him come back and talk.”

“Grandpa Shen, Lawyer Guan already started looking into the case last night. If there’s any progress, I’ll have him call you directly,” Xie Huai replied, glancing toward the now-open bedroom door—Qi Xu’s robe was tied tightly shut this time.

They locked eyes for a moment before Qi Xu picked up a change of clothes and retreated into the room again.

“Guan from De Ying Law Firm?” Grandpa Shen asked.

“That’s the one,” Xie Huai confirmed.

There was a pause on the line before Grandpa Shen replied, “Tell Old Master Qin I owe him. I’ll visit your grandfather soon.”

By the time Qi Xu came out after washing up, Xie Huai had already ended the call and lunch was set on the table.

Qi Xu sat down, and Xie Huai joined him from the couch.

“Did you eat already?” Qi Xu asked.

“Yeah.” Xie Huai got a close look at the dark circles under his eyes. “Didn’t sleep well last night?”

Qi Xu’s chopsticks paused for a second before he casually continued picking up food. “Probably because I visited a police station before bed. First time in my life—of course I was a little worked up. Couldn’t sleep. Totally normal.”

Xie Huai clearly saw through the excuse, but let it slide. “Grandpa Shen called me earlier. You should give him a call.”

Qi Xu blinked, then got up to grab his phone. It had been on silent. He hadn’t heard a thing.

He called the old man back right away and spent some time calming him down—because the old guy had been ready to charge over in person to defend him.

“What could possibly happen to me? Your grandson’s not the type to take losses.”

“Please, just take a break. Don’t meet with anyone from that side. Or how about this—I’ll treat you and Grandpa Xie to a nice vacation.”

Qi Xu eventually managed to talk the old man down.

After hanging up, he flopped onto the sofa with a deep sigh.

That sincere concern from Grandpa Shen—it made him feel something warm, something that felt like a real sense of home. A home that was his. Not the Shen family’s.

In their past life, he hadn’t spent much time with the old man. But this time around, they’d shared a lot more moments. Maybe too many, even—some of them had been pretty stressful.

Xie Huai sat down beside him, holding a glass of water. “What are you thinking about?”

Qi Xu blurted it out without thinking, his worries spilling out unfiltered: “What do you think my life would be like if I weren’t part of the Shen family?”

Xie Huai leaned back on the sofa, fingers absently tapping against his glass. He actually gave it serious thought. “Not a Shen? You’d still get into Q University. We’d still meet. We’d become friends.”

Qi Xu sat up straight and leaned toward him. “That’s not a given.”

Xie Huai turned his head to look at him. “You mean you wouldn’t get into Q University?”

Qi Xu wouldn’t allow anyone to question his intelligence. “Of course not. I have full confidence in Qi Xu’s IQ. I mean, we might not have become friends.”

Because he already knew—he had lived it once.

In their past life, they had both attended Q University, but majored in different fields. They barely crossed paths.

Even though they’d technically known each other beforehand, they still didn’t become friends. After graduation, things were purely transactional.

If Xie Huai hadn’t collaborated with the Shen Group back then, Qi Xu wouldn’t have even spared him a glance.

Back then, the two of them were more like mutual irritants. Sitting down and chatting like this? Unimaginable.

But Xie Huai disagreed. “I know myself pretty well. We definitely would’ve become friends. And if we didn’t, then something was wrong with both of us.”

Qi Xu laughed. “I was fine. It was clearly your problem. You have high standards—someone like me wouldn’t have made the cut.”

“Qi Xu,” Xie Huai said his name, voice low.

Qi Xu raised an eyebrow. “What?”

“I don’t think I’ve ever told you this,” Xie Huai said quietly. “But just you standing in front of me would’ve drawn me in.”

Qi Xu froze.

Xie Huai continued, “I’d have found my way closer to you, always. As long as you let me. If you pushed me away, yeah, I’d feel it. I’m not made of stone.”

And somehow, that brought a flood of memories from their past life crashing into Qi Xu.

At that Fang family gathering, he’d been set up and ended up in a scuffle with Xu Yichen. Afterward, he vaguely remembered Xie Huai telling him to get his injuries treated—but back then, he trusted no one. He left on his own.

Then, there was that time in college—Shen Zeyu threw a fit, and the family driver came to pick them up. After Shen Zeyu got in, he told the driver Qi Xu had something to do and would head home later. Qi Xu ended up alone at the campus gate and only realized the car was gone after it was too late. Xie Huai had happened to be passing by, stopped, and offered him a ride. Qi Xu rolled his eyes. Who even are you to me?

And Xie Huai’s nineteenth birthday party—he offered Qi Xu a piece of cake. Qi Xu didn’t take it, turned his head, and walked away.

Sure, he rejected him. But there was context. What right did Xie Huai have to approach him like that?

Back then, Qi Xu’s mindset would’ve never allowed for a friendship. He loathed that whole circle—equally and completely.

Still, Qi Xu couldn’t help but ask, “Then why didn’t you toast me?”

Xie Huai didn’t hesitate. “Maybe you weren’t feeling well that night. I didn’t want you drinking.”

Qi Xu frowned. “I wasn’t sick. You just didn’t want to clink glasses with me.”

Xie Huai stood by his word. “Then that assumption doesn’t hold. I wouldn’t have refused your toast for no reason.”

Qi Xu suddenly became aware of his own irrationality. Maybe it really was that moment—the refusal to toast—that had stung him back then. It had been their first time seeing each other again after years apart.

“…Sorry. I shouldn’t have asked you that.”

How could eighteen-year-old Qi Xu have possibly known what twenty-eight-year-old him would be carrying? And this Xie Huai—this one in front of him—hadn’t lived through any of that.

Pushing him like this was truly unfair.

Xie Huai didn’t ask why Qi Xu suddenly brought that up. Instead, he simply handed him the warm glass of water from his phone tray. “Rest a bit. We’ll need to head to the station again later.”

Qi Xu took the glass, but the moment his fingers touched it, a memory flashed through his mind—
Back then, his arm had been cut by shards from a broken vase. When he went to the hospital to get it bandaged, they told him to avoid alcohol and spicy food to prevent inflammation.

Could it be… Xie Huai had known about that?

But how would he have known?

Why would he?