When Qi Xu received the transfer from Xie Huai, he was discussing matters with Li Kaixing in the office.
Qi Xu sent Xie Huai a message to ask about it and found out it was a birthday red envelope, asking him to keep it.
Li Kaixing continued talking about the annual meeting: “Xie Shao is coming tonight, right? Do I need to prepare anything?”
Qi Xu asked back, “What do I need to prepare?”
“For example, I could have my assistant place a sign saying ‘President’s Wife’ at his seat, or open a back door for him so he can win a prize at the annual meeting, making him feel lucky tonight and have a good experience.”
After saying this, Li Kaixing noticed Qi Xu leaning back in his chair and laughing. Had he said something funny?
Xie Huai’s appearance at Yunrui’s annual meeting immediately drew the attention of all the employees, especially since he was standing beside their Yunrui president.
Judging by his demeanor and appearance, he wasn’t an ordinary person. Was he a business partner, or perhaps Qi Xuxu’s friend? Regardless, having another handsome man standing beside a handsome man was indeed a pleasant sight.
Originally, they were discussing what the prizes for tonight would be, but now they were directly discussing the handsome men.
“Who is he? He seems very familiar with Director Li. Is he Mr. Qi’s friend?”
“I don’t know. Seeing a handsome man of this caliber before the holiday makes me feel energetic for the Spring Festival travel rush tomorrow. Iron bars can do it.”
More and more people gathered around to join the discussion. People are naturally curious.
“When I came in, I heard the general manager of Mu Ni call that person Xie Shao. Could he be the young master of the Xie family?”
Everyone looked surprised. Who didn’t know the Xie family enterprise, which had almost monopolized the industry and solidified its position as the commercial leader?
“Don’t forget, our boss Qi is the young master of the Shen family, and being friends with Xie Shaoyou is perfectly normal.”
Someone asked, “The groom is here, but where’s the bride?”
Yunrui’s senior management greeted Xie Huai. Through Li Kaixing’s introduction, they all got to know this young master of the Xie family.
Qi Xu led Xie Huai to his seat, and Su Kehao turned to ask Li Kaixing: “Is Xie Young Master planning to invest in Yunrui and conducting an on-site inspection of our company’s scale?”
Li Kaixing followed behind: “Your mind is only on investment. Don’t say I didn’t remind you—Xie Young Master is attending as a family member.”
Su Kehao understood. Oh, Mu Ni is a Xie family business, so they sent the young master over as a family member.
Yunrui’s annual meeting banquet was also lavish. The employees had worked hard for half a year, working overtime non-stop during the early stages of the business. The compensation was decent, but at the annual meeting, everyone was surprised to see the seafood and various high-end ingredients.
Li Kaixing held the microphone on stage and said, “Eating Yunrui’s New Year’s Eve dinner makes you part of Yunrui. From now on, stick with Yunrui, and Director Li will take you to eat and drink to your heart’s content.”
Such a gangster-like statement—those who didn’t know might think Yunrui was some kind of gang.
He went up again to make a fool of himself, and in the end, Li Kaixing was chased off the stage by Zhong Aiming.
The entire audience burst into laughter.
Qi Xu watched their antics, leaning back in his chair and laughing along, until a peeled shrimp appeared in his bowl.
With a smile still on his lips, he leaned toward Xie Huai and said, “Did the family come over tonight just to peel shrimp for me?”
The family member replied without blushing or hesitation, “We came to serve you.”
Qi Xu remembered that the person in front of him was celebrating his birthday today. He picked up the shrimp from his bowl and placed it by Xie Huai’s mouth: “You eat first.”
Xie Huai lowered his eyes: “Testing for poison?”
Qī Xǔ pursed his lips: “Yes, I want to poison your mouth.”
Xie Huai bit into the shrimp on Qī Xǔ’s chopsticks, then peeled another one for him.
In front of everyone, the two didn’t hide their actions. Su Kehao, who was sitting at the same table, saw this scene and paused for a moment, then turned to look at Li Kaixing, who had already returned to his seat, with a perfectly normal expression.
He looked at Zhong Aiming again and exchanged a puzzled glance with him.
It was obvious who had the problem.
Su Kehao thought he was drunk, but no, he hadn’t even started drinking yet.
So when everyone took their drinks to toast Qi Xu, he was the one drinking the most.
Qi Xu, as they say, never turned down a drink, calmly downing them all.
However, when Qi Xu reached his limit, Xie Huai grabbed his hand, naturally took the wine glass from him, and said to the person in front of him, “Sorry, your boss is drunk. I’ll drink this glass for him. Do you mind?”
The person met Xie Huai’s sharp gaze, sobered up a little, and shook his head, saying, “I don’t mind.”
Su Kehao approached with a wine glass: “Mr. Xie, I’ve heard a lot about you. Welcome to our Yunrui Annual Meeting. Have a good time tonight.”
Xie Huai clinked glasses with him and drank it all in one gulp.
Su Kehao toasted Xie Huai several times, drinking it all down very generously.
After that, when others came to toast, Xie Huai drank on behalf of Qi Xu. Qi Xu, who was half-drunk, sat silently in his seat, his eyes betraying a sense of ease that came with intoxication.
The raffle was the most anticipated part of the annual meeting. Li Kaixing still wanted to give Xie Huai a backdoor deal, but when he turned his head, Qi Xu and his family were gone.
At that moment, the screen was displaying the numbers for the grand prize, and it stopped at 28. The host announced, “Congratulations to number 28 for winning the grand prize—an 8,888 cash award!”
The host called out several times, but no one came forward to claim the prize. Li Kaixing noticed two pieces of paper on the empty seat and, on a whim, opened them to take a look.
Number 28 belonged to Xie Huai, who seemed to be having an unusually lucky day.
Su Kehao noticed the number in his hand and hurriedly said, “Where did Xie Shao and Mr. Qi go? Quickly call them and ask them to come back to claim the prize.”
Li Kaixing was a shrewd man. He had someone collect the award for Xie Huai and said to Su Kehao, “Mind your own business. You’re courting death, getting Xie Shao drunk in front of Qi Zong like that.”
Su Kehao was confused. “Guests should be treated well. I was just trying to build a good relationship. Who knows, maybe there will be project collaborations in the future.”
Li Kaixing scoffed, “Do they really need you to build a relationship for them?”
Su Kehao looked stunned, staring at Zhong Aiming in disbelief, “You know too?”
Zhong Aiming nodded, “I know.”
Su Kehao looked at the marketing manager beside him, who opened his mouth: “I just found out. I saw them hugging each other as they entered the elevator when I went to the restroom. I didn’t force them to drink, though.”
He was the most oblivious person in the room, and Su Kehao was a bit worried that his year-end bonus might be deducted.
Qi Xu had been forced to drink a few cups of alcohol, and there was a hint of drunkenness on his face as Xie Huai wrapped his arm around his waist and helped him into the car.
As soon as the two got into the car, Chen Wei immediately raised the partition.
Xie Huai glanced at the partition, and the next second, Qi Xu took the initiative to sit across his lap, half-kneeling in the back row and kissing without warning.
Qi Xu hooked his arms around Xie Huai’s neck, pressing him against the seatback, taking control, and easily parting his lips.
Xie Huai didn’t react at first, letting himself be led by Qi Xu’s kiss, submitting obediently.
It was unclear who had drunk too much, but by the time the kiss ended, both of them had a hint of drunkenness on their faces.
Xie Huai ground his lips against Qi Xu’s: “Is the birthday gift starting now?”
Qi Xu’s eyes were tinged with drunkenness, and when he raised his eyebrows and smiled, he looked radiant: “Appetizer.”
His candor and directness made Xie Huai eagerly anticipate the main course’s surprises.
Qi Xu straightened up and kissed him again. Seeing that Xie Huai’s breathing hadn’t changed, he said, “Xie Shao, you have such a high tolerance for alcohol. How come you’re not even a little drunk? Were you pretending to be drunk when you confessed to me that day?”
It was an inexplicable settling of accounts.
Xie Huai remained composed in the face of countless cups of wine, but now, in front of Qi Xu, his breathing had become unstable: “Every inch of you.”
Qi Xu tilted his head and whispered, “Let me play with you tonight, okay?”
Drunk until the end of time, the heavens and earth know nothing, only you and me.
Xie Huai struggled to control himself. The partition rose, but the car window was not one-way glass. As the car traveled along the road, he did not want anyone to see Qi Xu’s naked form.
The temperature in the backseat kept rising. Xie Huai’s restraint was evident in the few broken buttons on Qi Xu’s shirt and the bracelet Qi Xu had put on Xie Huai’s wrist.
As soon as the words left his mouth, the car came to a stop.
Qi Xu froze in surprise. How could they be home so quickly? He hadn’t had enough fun yet.
Xie Huai calmly picked Qi Xu off his lap, put his coat on him, and wrapped his scarf around him, making sure not a single cold breeze touched his body. Qi Xu was unusually docile, letting him handle him like a doll.
But if you looked closely, the coat wasn’t buttoned, the scarf was loosely wrapped around a few times, and the belt was already half undone, making it easy to take off.
Chen Wei stared straight ahead at the windshield, feeling the back door open and close, then speeding away in an instant.
The two returned home at the same time as the aunts and uncles from the building were taking their evening stroll. They all knew that Qi Xu and Xie Huai were brothers, brilliant graduates from Q University with promising futures.
Xie Huai politely greeted the people in the elevator, but Qi Xu noticed the depth in his eyes, which made him feel an unpredictable sense of danger.
Before the storm comes, there is always a moment of calm.
The aunts and uncles got off at their floor, and as the elevator doors closed, Qi Xu’s hand was pulled forcefully, and he was dragged out of the elevator, unable to keep up with Xie Huai’s pace.
Click. The fingerprint lock opened, and as they entered the door, Qi Xu took the initiative to hug Xie Huai: “Carry me to the living room.”
Without even turning on the lights, Xie Huai steadied Qi Xu’s legs with one hand.
From the entrance to the living room, the coat, scarf, and belt were already lying on the floor.
Xie Huai saw a birthday cake with candles lit on the dining table and said in a low voice, “Candlelit dinner? What about dinner?”
Knowing the answer, Qi Xu had to respond, rubbing his nose against Xie Huai’s hair: “Far away yet close at hand.”
Qi Xu was placed on the table, and Xie Huai opened the wine bottle and poured red wine.
In the flickering candlelight, Qi Xu’s eyes brightened: “Red wine is festive. I want to drink a toast with you.”
Xie Huai’s heart was pounding, and he couldn’t help but feel moved again.
He seemed to have spoken out of turn. Qi Xu wasn’t without deep feelings, but once those feelings took root, they would attract countless moths to the flame. It was just that this particular thread of emotion was destined to entangle around him.
Even if he didn’t wrap himself around him, he would tightly encircle him, forming an impenetrable safe zone, allowing it to wrap itself around him.
Their hands intertwined, and the two lowered their eyes, each solemnly sipping a mouthful of red wine.
Then he raised his eyes to look at Xie Huai, inexplicably recalling the cup of wine from his previous life that had never been toasted, which had now become a cup of wine shared between them.
Xie Huai accurately noticed Qi Xu’s distraction. It had been a long time since he had seen that look in his eyes, looking through him at someone else.
Qi Xu casually swirled his wine glass: “I am thinking of you.”
Xie Huai closed his eyes, then opened them after a moment and blew out the candles.
He asked, “Want some cake?”
Qi Xu countered, “Do you want some?”
Xie Huai’s eyes were stormy, looking a bit fierce.
Qi Xu slowly picked up the wine glass, took a big sip, and then pressed it against Xie Huai’s lips.
Xie Huai glanced at it vaguely, and before he even reached the room, the ribbons on the gift were already untied one by one.
The scent of red wine, the faint fragrance of roses, and Qi Xu’s own alluring aura all captivated Xie Huai.
The mattress on both sides had sunk in, and Qi Xu’s hands were pinned above his head by a hand with prominent veins. The bracelet had returned to its rightful owner.
Fragments of red rose petals covered the bed, Qi Xu’s back, knees, and entire body were stained with red roses, the vibrant red and pale white intertwining to create an incredibly stunning visual impact.
At 23:59:59, Qi Xu lifted his tear-soaked eyelids and gazed blankly at Xie Huai.
“Happy birthday.”
“The first person to say ‘happy birthday’ to you will also be the last person to say ‘happy birthday’ to you.”
“A promise of forever, for a lifetime.”
The lights above flickered faster, and Xie Huai’s response was hidden in the moments of joy, causing the air to tremble slightly.
