Chapter 52: Pursuing Men

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As Qi Xing descended the mountain, his mind was still a bit hazy. He tried to make conversation: "If you would have said you were coming to watch the sunrise earlier then I wouldn't have come. I'd rather go home and sleep and not have to deal with your boring romantic nonsense. Who cares about it..."

Ye Xingzhou turned his head to look over and as their eyes met, Qi Xing's voice trailed off, feeling embarrassed to continue.

Well, it wasn't that he didn't care at all. Although he really did want to sleep but that moment when Ye Xingzhou had called him to look outside still sent shivers down his spine.

Ye Xingzhou lightly hummed in response with his gaze returning to the road as he focused on driving.

Qi Xing picked up his phone and tried to distract himself. He sent a message to his mom and said that he had left early in the morning. 

But in that short sentence, he ended up typing several wrong words due to his distraction as his mind was completely occupied with the thoughts of Ye Xingzhou.

As he put down his phone, he pressed his hand against his chest and sighed, "Stop racing. If you keep this up then I might really end up in the hospital."

At that moment, he finally realized that he had feelings for Ye Xingzhou that went beyond being friends with benefits. 

He felt jealous and angry when Ye Xingzhou was involved with others, couldn't help but think of him when they were apart and felt an urge to be close to him when they met. Even hearing him talk about the past made his heart ache.

Qi Xing panicked while thinking, ‘Have I really fallen for this jerk? He actually likes Ye Xingzhou?’

The feeling of liking someone was almost foreign to him. He had been attracted to many people before but it was always just physical attraction and he had never truly cared for anyone. This feeling of longing and restlessness was something he had never experienced before and now that it had emerged, it left him feeling helpless.

...How did he end up liking Ye Xingzhou?

Qi Xing felt frustrated. Could it really be that time had fostered these feelings? Although he was the one being pursued.

His dad had said that Ye Xingzhou was gloomy, unpredictable, arrogant and cold-hearted, always ready to set a trap for someone to fall into. Yet, he had somehow fallen for this very Ye Xingzhou.

Qi Xing rolled down the car window and let the cold wind in while he was trying to clear his head.

But it was no use as Ye Xingzhou was sitting right next to him and they had just made love an hour ago. The scent and warmth of this person enveloped him.

The more he tried to ignore it, the more it lingered with his heartbeat growing louder and louder.

Qi Xing closed his eyes and leaned back in his seat, feeling despondent. 

He was doomed.

It must be that jerk Ye Xingzhou who had cast a spell on him.

The car drove back to the city and stopped in front of a tea house. Qi Xing while in a daze, followed Ye Xingzhou out of the car and into the tea house for breakfast.

"What are you thinking about?" 

When Ye Xingzhou's voice broke through, Qi Xing jolted back to reality and instinctively looked up.

Ye Xingzhou, calm and composed, poured him tea and added a shrimp dumpling to his bowl.

Qi Xing stared at his face. This person hadn't slept all night but still looked refreshed. Aside from his slightly messy hair which added a touch of wildness, he showed no signs of fatigue. Whenever Ye Xingzhou's gaze casually fell on him, his heart would flutter.

...Maybe he should go to the hospital for a check-up after all.

"Still daydreaming?" Ye Xingzhou set down the teapot and raised an eyebrow.

Qi Xing snapped back to attention then lowered his head and took a sip of tea to suppress his tumultuous emotions.

This wouldn't do; he felt too vulnerable.

How could he act like a lovesick teenager? 

No way, absolutely not.

He quickly composed himself and finished his cup of tea.

He would just deny it. 

This bastard Ye Xingzhou, why did he always have the upper hand?

If he was one-sidedly in love then he would never admit it. 

But if Ye Xingzhou was truly secretly in love with him, then this jerk had to be the one to confess first.

Resolute, Qi Xing playfully hooked his foot around Ye Xingzhou's calf under the table and asked with a calm smile, "Ye Xingzhou, I thought you were a blockhead but it turns out you have quite the knack for charming people, huh?"

Ye Xingzhou continued pouring tea then glanced at him, "Did I make you happy?"

Qi Xing raised his chin proudly, "It was so-so but there's room for improvement. Keep it up."

"Qi Xing," Ye Xingzhou called his name and paused for a moment before continuing, "You're blushing."

Qi Xing: "..."

He opened his phone to check his reflection but there was nothing. 

This jerk Ye Xingzhou was teasing him again!

Ye Xingzhou's eyes held a fleeting smile as he continued to serve him snacks, "Stop looking as the camera can't capture it nad just eat."

Qi Xing put down his phone and under the table, his foot teased Ye Xingzhou for less than two seconds before he kicked him.

Just as he was about to scold this jerk, Ye Xingzhou's phone rang.

It was a call from an old classmate of his in the capital. Informing him that Lin Hongfei had gone to the capital a few days ago and met with Wang Pengfa from Shengfa. They had likely reached some sort of agreement and Lin Hongfei had pledged all the assets under his company to Shengfa.

"I see no good coming from those two teaming up. If Lin Hongfei can persuade the people in his company to agree to the deal with Wang Pengfa, who knows what benefits Wang Pengfa promised him? Wang Pengfa is still continuing to acquire shares of your Ye family, right? You should handle this."

Ye Xingzhou frowned slightly and thanked his old classmate before hanging up.

Ye Xingzhou had the phone on speaker and Qi Xing casually listened in, curious, "That Wang Pengfa was rejected by my dad before and now he's getting involved with the Lin family? Isn't Uncle Lin in a tough spot? Does he even have the money to team up with Wang Pengfa?"

Ye Xingzhou replied coldly, "That's why he pledged all his assets to Shengfa."

Qi Xing's eyes widened as he understood. The Ye family's intention to acquire Bosun was already common knowledge in the Huaicheng City business circle. Ye Xingzhou had even convinced several shareholders and directors of Bosun. As long as they pressured Lin Hongfei together and had him sell it but now the tables had turned. 

This person was actually colluding with Wang Pengfa and even willing to pledge the company assets to him rather than give Ye Xingzhou an advantage.

"Wang Pengfa definitely can't afford the price you can but if he can get the other shareholders of Bosun to agree then Wang Pengfa must have promised them some other benefits. Could it be that Wang Pengfa really thinks he can take advantage of your Ye family and, after succeeding, share the spoils with Bosun?"

As he spoke, Qi Xing couldn't help but feel a bit schadenfreude: "Daddy Ye, you have your missteps too? You tried to take advantage of someone else's company but now, not only they refuse to cooperate but are also trying to take advantage of your company. But where does that Wang Pengfa get the confidence that he can succeed? Have you found out where he got the money to buy your Ye family's stocks?"

"Yeah," Ye Xingzhou didn't take his mockery to heart and even leisurely sipping his tea as he explained, "Half a year ago, he quietly invested in a film and television investment company. The headquarters of this company is overseas and through a cross-border capital pool, they continuously transfer money from abroad to the domestic market. He then withdraws the money as a shareholder and after some operations in his financial management company, the amplified funds are enough for him to purchase shares of the Ye family in the secondary market."

Qi Xing looked surprised: "Money from overseas?"

Ye Xingzhou nodded, "Wang Pengfa is just the frontman; the real backer is Ye Wanyao."

Qi Xing suddenly realized that it was still an internal struggle within the Ye family: "Then Second Young Master Ye is so wealthy if he has that much cash on hand even though you exiled him. But he still can't stay put and wants to stir up trouble, huh?"

"He inherited a lot of overseas assets from his grandfather. He sells them off and yield a small sum but there might be other sources of funding. As long as Wang Pengfa holds more than four percent of the shares, then the combined stake of Ye Wanyao and his group will surpass mine. He can swagger back to the company and kick me out, so he’s using this roundabout way to keep it under wraps.

If I hadn't discovered Wang Pengfa's little moves from the start and as long as he bought less than five percent of the Ye family's stocks then he wouldn't even need to announce it as Ye Wanyao could come back and catch me off guard. And even if I found out, as long as I didn't know that Wang Pengfa's backer was Ye Wanyao, I wouldn't think that his acquisition of such a small amount of stock would have any significant impact. They could still catch me by surprise.

Ye Wanyao must have promised Wang Pengfa enough benefits. Wang Pengfa is a gambler but although he's bold, he hasn't lost his mind. He knows that if he loses this gamble, then he’ll have to repay the huge interest he owes from amplifying the funds, so he’s trying to pull in some people to back him up, including his previous interest in Ronghua Corporation. If he hadn't slipped up then they might really have succeeded.

I also didn't expect that the person he dragged down with him would be Lin Hongfei, but at this point, it doesn't matter."

Ye Xingzhou's tone was dismissive. He was clearly planning to turn the tables and catch all these people in one fell swoop.

Qi Xing slowly swallowed the shrimp dumpling in his mouth while feeling relieved that his father hadn't gotten involved. Otherwise, they would definitely be caught in this net too.

This cold tyrant Ye Xingzhou would be unlikely to let them off the hook.

"What if my dad really gets involved?" he asked while pretending to be cheerful.

Ye Xingzhou replied, "I warned you before that you should tell your dad to not get involved."

Qi Xing said, "I can't control him because who knows if he ever loses his mind."

Ye Xingzhou fell silent for two seconds, then said, "He won't be implicated."

Once those words left his mouth, Qi Xing, although still wearing that unchanged smile, seemed very satisfied. 

In a way, he was indeed easy to please.

Feeling happy, Qi Xing also picked up a piece of dessert for Ye Xingzhou while sweetly saying, "A little something for my dear daddy."

Ye Xingzhou smiled, "Thank you."

Qi Xing felt his heart race again from his smile before quickly lowering his head and pretending to play with his phone.

With a heart full of youthful longing and nowhere to express it, he finally distractedly sent a WeChat message to Yang Kaiming, asking, "What do you think I should do to ensure I can successfully pursue a man?"

After sending it, he felt that asking Yang Kaiming was pointless but he was too lazy to take it back.

Surprisingly, Yang Kaiming had gotten up quite early today. Within a few minutes, he replied: "Qi, which wild man have you set your sights on this time? You don't want your dear daddy anymore???"

Qi Xing: "It's him."

Yang Kaiming: "..."

Qi Xing: "Do you have any objections? Help me think of a way to pursue my dear daddy so that he will love me wholeheartedly."

As he sent this, he suddenly recalled the first time Ye Xingzhou had teased him and even mocked him with, "You look like you've been taken advantage of just from a little touch. With you like this, you want to learn how to pursue men?" At that time, he had dismissed it but now he felt he had slapped himself in the face.

The wheel of fortune turns as not only he planned to pursue a man but was also after Ye Xingzhou himself.

Yang Kaiming replied with a very speechless emoji.

"Qi, are you kidding me?"

Qi Xing: "Of course I'm serious."

Yang Kaiming: "You have so much experience pursuing men and you're asking me, a 24k pure straight guy?"

Qi Xing: "Those were different."

No matter how experienced he was in pursuing men, it was nothing compared to him wanting to pursue Ye Xingzhou. None of those people could compare to his dear daddy.

Yang Kaiming: "Alright, I get it. Your dear daddy is a different kind of firework. But don't overthink it and just tell your dear daddy that you love him and he'll definitely fall for you. Trust me."

Qi Xing: "No, I can pursue him but he must confess his love for me first."

Yang Kaiming stopped replying. Clearly thinking that Qi Xing was just messing with him or was bored and wanted to show off his affection.

Qi Xing angrily poked his phone screen a couple of times before continuing to scroll through his WeChat list. When he saw a certain name, he paused and sent a message.

"Ning Ge, do you know how to pursue a man?"

Half a minute later, Ning Zhiyuan replied: "Little friend, I think I've told you before that I'm straight. If you want to ask about relationships between men then you've come to the wrong person."

Qi Xing: "I don't believe you. Your brother named the new company after your couple's name. Me and my dear daddy didn't even know if it still had something to do with us because of its name. So who are you trying to fool here?"

Ning Zhiyuan: "…I'm scared of you. Which man are you trying to pursue? Your dear daddy? You two haven't even broken that barrier yet?"

Clearly, this one was much smarter than that silly Yang Kaiming. Qi Xing felt there was hope and continued, "Of course it's him. Who else could it be?"

Ning Zhiyuan: "Are you not sure if he likes you?"

Qi Xing: "I think he likes me a lot but he won't admit it."

Ning Zhiyuan: "Then it's simple. You need to be both proactive but not too eager. Don't be too pushy but also don't be too cold. Give him some sweetness while keeping him guessing. Be elusive and use a strategy of retreating to advance and attack his heart. It’s best to find a more stylish rival to stimulate him thrn he’ll definitely come to you."

Qi Xing's face fell.

It was all too complicated.

"Who are you messaging? Hurry up and eat." Ye Xingzhou reminded him.

Qi Xing finally replied to Ning Zhiyuan and reminded him not to tell his brother about the questions he asked, then put away his phone and forced a smile at Ye Xingzhou: "Nothing."

Ye Xingzhou squinted at him while staring.

Qi Xing lowered his head because he was feeling a bit guilty.

After finishing breakfast, as they got back in the car, Qi Xing recalled Ning Zhiyuan's words and said as Ye Xingzhou started the car, "Can you take me home?"

Ye Xingzhou raised an eyebrow: "Home?"

Qi Xing: "I have relatives visiting and my mom asked me to come back for dinner."

He wasn't lying; his mom had indeed sent a message saying there were guests at home. They weren't people he had to meet, but he had changed his mind about going back.

This jerk Ye Xingzhou was so composed and at ease, so he really couldn't be too eager.

"Hurry up, if I get back late, my dad will lecture me again. It's so annoying," Qi Xing urged.

Ye Xingzhou's expression clearly showed that he didn't believe him but since Qi Xing insisted on going back, he said nothing and started the car.

Twenty minutes later, the car stopped across from Qi Xing's neighborhood. As he opened the door to get out, Qi Xing suddenly turned, then leaned in and quickly kissed Ye Xingzhou on the cheek.

Before Ye Xingzhou could react, he tossed out, "Bye, let's meet up again sometime," and dashed across the street.

Once he entered the neighborhood gate, he stopped to bend over and catch his breath.

Going back was fine because if he stayed with Ye Xingzhou any longer then he was sure to have a heart attack from his racing heartbeat.

Qi Xing squatted down on the spot but accidentally trampled a freshly bloomed wildflower while he was lost in thought for a moment. Just then, his phone buzzed with a message from Ye Xingzhou: "Rest well, see you next time."

That slight feeling of gloom was instantly swept away.

He buried his head between his knees while quietly letting out a sigh of relief and smiled silently.

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