Chapter 49 - Qiu Yanzhi Hatefully Grit His Teeth

Qiu Yanzhi could no longer find the toy he had lost.

He could no longer piece together the bubble he had popped.

He Zhou now hated him to the bone, to the point where he never wanted to see Qiu Yanzhi again.

And there was nothing he could do about it.

So he decided to just leave it be.

Although he was sad and reluctant…

Although he missed that person deep down inside…

Qiu Yanzhi might not be good at a lot of things, but he was an expert at cutting ties.

He lived with his grandmother in a village when he was very young. When she passed away, he was taken to the city by his parents.

Then his father went to prison.

Next his mother jumped to her death.

In the end, even Little Trash left him.

Now He Zhou didn’t want him either.

Qiu Yanzhi found it strange that people always called him cold-hearted and ruthless when he was the one left behind every time.

But fortunately, he was always able to quickly get a hold of himself.

This time was no different.

Qiu Yanzhi downed his beer in one go.

Then he phoned his dad and told him about the engagement being canceled.

After a moment of silence, Qiu Qingcang asked him why.

Qiu Yanzhi said calmly, "Because I never liked him. I was only with him because he looked like someone else.

There was another lengthy pause before Qiu Qingcang replied, "I see. I’ll talk to your mother about it," and hung up.

Qiu Yanzhi thought it was better to make a clean break rather than dragging things out like he did at the hospital this afternoon.

So he immediately wrote up a letter of resignation and sent it to the HR manager of He Zhou’s company via email.

After the movers loaded his things at He Zhou’s house into their truck...

Everything would be over!

Inexplicably, Qiu Yanzhi felt relieved.

It was as if an aching tumor had been removed.

He felt both pain and relief the moment it was cut off.

***

The head secretary knocked on the door.

"Come in." He Zhou said.

"President He, Manager Liu from HR just received a resignation letter."

"Whose is it?" He Zhou didn't even raise his head from the document he was perusing.

The head secretary hesitated for a moment. "...It's Mr. Qiu’s."

The head secretary wasn't a fool. She had reported to President He at the hospital at noon today regarding work matters. She didn’t notice anything at first, but gradually she sensed that President He and Mr. Qiu seemed to be having a dispute of sorts.

But she didn't take it to heart back then. “It was probably just a spat between lovers,” she thought.

After all, Mr. Qiu was always very congenial to President He. He always has a smile on his face. The head secretary thought that the two of them would make up in a few days.

However, Mr Qiu submitted his resignation that evening.

He Zhou’s hands paused for a moment when he heard this, but he quickly looked down and continued flipping through the document. He nodded like it didn’t concern him. “I see. Expedite the resignation process for me.”

"Yes, President He."

He Zhou looked down at his watch. "Everyone’s worked hard today. Go out and tell them they can go home for the day.”

"Understood, President He."

The head secretary wanted to say something like, "President He, you've worked hard too”. But the expression on He Zhou’s face made her reluctant to say such overly intimate words.

Actually, the head secretary found this situation quite strange.

She clearly saw President He incapacitated in bed with an arm and a leg in casts at noon today, but in the afternoon he was full of energy and seemingly uninjured.

...Was he faking it earlier?

The head secretary was puzzled.

The head secretary’s eyes happened to glance at the trash can on the floor. What she saw there made her heart skip a beat.

Inside were two colourful jars of fruit candies.

Other people might not know why these jars of candy were here, but she did.

...President He bought them specifically for Mr. Qiu.

A notification popped up on He Zhou's phone at that very moment.

It was Qiu Yanzhi.

Qiu Yanzhi had somehow pulled him into a group chat with just the two of them.

The name of this group chat was: "Capturing my junior and leaving the game cooperation team”

He Zhou: "......"

What followed were three messages from Qiu Yanzhi.

“Ye Mingxu capture progress 0%. President He, I'm going to make my move now."

"Can you help me tell Yang Fengcheng that we’ve broken up? He’s Ye Mingxu's cousin."

"Let's go, let’s go! I'll be out of here in no time!"

Then there was a picture of a big, confident looking rooster with its right fist raised in the air.

He Zhou: "......"

He Zhou almost crushed his phone right then and there.

"Get Yang Fengcheng over here." He Zhou expressionlessly told the head secretary.

About two minutes later, Yang Fengcheng came in. "President He, I heard you were looking for me?"

He Zhou's face was expressionless. "I broke up with Qiu Yanzhi."

Yang Fengcheng: "...Huh?"

Why, ah? Wait a minute, why are you telling me about your breakup? Why are you looking at me like that, ah? Was I the reason you two broke up or something?? What did I inadvertently do? Or is President He just angry with me because I know Qiu Yanzhi? Is he going to fire me?!

"Ding."

Another text message arrived.

Qiu Yanzhi: "If possible, you should subtly impress upon him that he shouldn’t keep this a secret. Tell him to share this information with Ye Mingxu if he wants."

The message was closely followed by a gif of a little yellow duck spinning in place.

He Zhou looked up at Yang Fengcheng again, saying coldly, "Share this information with Ye Mingxu."

Yang Fengcheng: "...Huh?"

"Ding!"

Qiu Yanzhi: "Remember to be subtle! Don’t make it too obvious!”

He Zhou: "......"

He Zhou put his phone face down on his desk before looking up at Yang Fengcheng. "Remember to be subtle."

Yang Fengcheng: "...Huh?"

"You can leave."

He Zhou said.

So Yang Fengcheng left more confused than ever.

He had no idea what just happened.

He Zhou said a bunch of inexplicable words to him. Then he replied with three huhs and left.

Yang Fengcheng sat down dumbly at his workstation and started spacing out.

He spaced out for a while before he suddenly remembered to call Ye Mingxu.

Ye Mingxu: "Ge?"

Yang Fengcheng blurted out, "Qiu Yanzhi broke up with our President He!"

As soon as Yang Fengcheng finished speaking, he slapped his head.

Damn, I forgot to be subtle.

Ye Mingxu was silent for a long time. Then suddenly said, "You know what, Ge?"

Yang Fengcheng was about to ask him what he heard Ye Mingxu continue, "Yes, I do like Qiu Yanzhi, but that doesn't mean I’m shameless enough to chase after him as soon as he breaks up.”

Ye Mingxu took a deep breath and then said, "Ge, I have something else to do. I'll hang up now."

Yang Fengcheng stared at his phone screen as it turned off automatically. He blinked, somewhat incredulous.

WTF? My little cousin’s actually gay? And he likes my former dormmate??

...Why's the world so confusing nowadays?

***

"Did you tell him?" Qiu Yanzhi sent another message.

It took about six or seven minutes for a reply.

He Zhou: "Yes."

Qiu Yanzhi flipped through his emojis and sent a gif of a bouncing Teletubby.

Then he added: "Don't worry, He Zhou. I will definitely, definitely leave as soon as possible and disappear from your world forever!"

But this time there was no reply.

"What are you doing, ah?" The slightly drunk Zhang Yuxuan wobbled over.

"Nothing." Qiu Yanzhi put his phone away casually.

He looked at the table and frowned. "Why did you drink so much?"

Zhang Yuxuan giggled. "My alcohol tolerance has improved a lot lately."

Of course it did. You get plastered every time.

Zhang Yuxuan pouted. "But none of this alcohol is good."

Qiu Yanzhi gave him a look. "Then what do you want to drink? I'll go and have the bartender make it for you."

Zhang Yuxuan shook his head. "No, they can't make what I want. Only...only Liu Cheng can make it..."

Qiu Yanzhi suddenly remembered that Liu Cheng had worked as a bartender before in this very bar.

Once Liu Cheng was mentioned, Zhang Yuxuan started to cry again.

"Yanyan...Liu Cheng lied to me..wu… He slept with my senior and lied to me about it..."

At that very moment, the door to their compartment was suddenly opened.

Qiu Yanzhi froze for a moment.

Zhang Yuxuan looked up with teary eyes. He suddenly stopped crying.

...It was Liu Cheng.

Liu Cheng closed the door behind him. He looked pale and miserable.

He took two steps forward before suddenly kneeling on the floor.

Zhang Yuxuan was so startled that he hiccupped. His mind had mostly cleared up by now.

From where he was kneeling, Liu Cheng looked up at Zhang Yuxuan. "Zhang Yuxuan, I was wrong. I shouldn't have lied to you."

Zhang Yuxuan: "You...you should get up first."

Liu Cheng: "Zhang Yuxuan, I didn't want to lie to you. I was just afraid that you would kick me out if you knew."

Zhang Yuxuan stood and tried to help him up. "...Get up."

Liu Cheng's mouth was pursed tightly. Then he said, "I’m really out of options at this point. Ye Hongyuan will kill me if he catches me. Zhang Yuxuan, I’m begging you...don’t kick me out, don’t hand me over to Ye Hongyuan. Please save me…”

Liu Cheng looked up with red rimmed, teary eyes.

"I'm begging you...please save me."

This was the first time someone pleaded so earnestly to Zhang Yuxuan. Not to mention that this wasn't exactly a stranger. He had lived with this person for almost a month.

This person did his laundry, cooked and cleaned for him.

This person even bought Zhang Yuxuan a dress, chose a wig, and did his makeup.

This was Liu Cheng, who kept him company and made him happy everyday.

Zhang Yuxuan leaned over to wipe the tears from Liu Cheng's face. He stammered somewhat helplessly, "Get...get up. I won’t...I won't kick you out. I won't kick you out, okay?"

Liu Cheng stood up and wiped his eyes. He broke into a smile. "Zhang Yuxuan, you’re such a kind person."

Zhang Yuxuan looked away and murmured uncomfortably, "But that doesn't mean I've forgiven you."

Liu Cheng: "I don't expect you to forgive me. Letting me stay is already enough."

Qiu Yanzhi watched as Zhang Yuxuan went from shouting at Liu Cheng earlier to now squirming and handing him tissues.

This Liu Cheng fellow has some real skill.

Qiu Yanzhi thought to himself as he munched on sunflower seeds.

…But it isn’t necessarily all an act. Liu Cheng’s really in a pretty bad place right now.

"You guys seem to be about finished your drinks. Should I go get more?" Liu Cheng asked after he calmed down.

Zhang Yuxuan: "I want the drink you made for me last time."

Qiu Yanzhi: "I get drunk easily so just get me a beer."

"Okay." Liu Cheng said and left.

Qiu Yanzhi asked, "Zhang Yuxuan, are you really not mad at him anymore?"

Zhang Yuxuan pursed his lips. "Of course I'm angry with him, ah. But what can I do, he...he was on his knees! And it’s not like he wanted to lie to me, he's just really scared of Ye Hongyuan..."

Qiu Yanzhi: "Zhang Yuxuan, do you still like your senior? Are you still going to pursue him?"

Zhang Yuxuan hung his head. "I don't know... Yanyan, I’m starting to think that my senior doesn't like me at all..."

Qiu Yanzhi let out a long sigh.

Zhang Yuxuan asked, "Yanyan, why are you sighing?"

Qiu Yanzhi reached out and tousled Zhang Yuxuan's hair. "Zhang Yuxuan, you have to find someone as kind and cute as you in the future. Someone who likes you just as much as you like them. Got it?”

When Liu Cheng came over with the cocktail, Qiu Yanzhi immediately lost interest in his beer.

This cocktail was blue on top and gradually faded to purple underneath. As the glass reflected the light, it looked like an entire galaxy was swirling within.

Zhang Yuxuan turned to Qiu Yanzhi and said, "This is a drink that Chengcheng made himself. He called it, called it...what was it called again?"

"Admiration." Liu Cheng said.

"Yes, Admiration! And it's so, so tasty!" Zhang Yuxuan exclaimed.

Qiu Yanzhi’s interest was piqued. "Is it really that good?"

Liu Cheng smiled and said, "If you want to have a taste, I’ll go fix one up for you right now.”

After Liu Cheng left again, Qiu Yanzhi sniffed the fragrant beverage and licked his lips. "Zhang Yuxuan, let me try a sip first."

Zhang Yuxuan graciously gave it to him.

Qiu Yanzhi tasted it. It really was good.

He couldn't resist and finished half of the drink before reluctantly handing it back to Zhang Yuxuan.

"Isn't it good? Chengcheng's cocktail is the best cocktail I've ever tasted!" Zhang Yuxuan had a proud look on his face.

Liu Cheng soon returned and handed the freshly made drink to Qiu Yanzhi. He smiled and said, "This doesn’t contain too much alcohol so it suits you.”

Qiu Yanzhi basically threw all caution to the wind after hearing that.

He emptied the glass in a short while.

Liu Cheng looked at his watch. "Maybe we should head back. It's getting late."

Zhang Yuxuan was a bit drunk. He laid down on the sofa after taking off his jacket and throwing it aside. "I don't want to move… Why don't we sleep here tonight? I've booked the room out already."

Qiu Yanzhi rubbed his head and said, "I'm going to the bathroom."

He was a little dizzy when he stood up.

When he came out of the washroom, he felt even more out of sorts.

He sluggishly thought, "Maybe I had too much to drink today?”

Even though the cocktail was low in strength, he'd had a glass and a half.

Plus quite a few beers from earlier too.

But this felt different from the previous times he was tipsy.

There was an indescribable dry heat scorching his entire body.

It was so hot that Qiu Yanzhi still felt far too warm after taking off his jacket.

It was like his body was emitting a constant stream of heat. His face was almost scalding when he touched it.

Even his consciousness became a little muddled.

Qiu Yanzhi returned to the compartment and tried to open the door.

It was locked.

...Is this the wrong room?

Qiu Yanzhi squinted up at the compartment number.

No, it’s the right one. Why is it locked then?

Qiu Yanzhi knocked on the door, but there was no answer.

As he was about to knock again, he suddenly heard strange sounds coming from inside.

Qiu Yanzhi pressed his ear to the door. Only then could he hear it clearly.

His whole body froze into a statue.

...Wait.

How did Zhang Yuxuan and Liu Cheng get it on in there?!!!

Then a thought struck Qiu Yanzhi like lightning.

He remembered that blue and purple cocktail.

More specifically, Zhang Yuxuan's cocktail.

He drank it, and so did Zhang Yuxuan.

....Fuck.

That bastard Liu Cheng actually drugged Zhang Yuxuan!!!

Qiu Yanzhi held the door handle and gasped for air.

The current problem was:

--Zhang Yuxuan has Liu Cheng to deal with the effects, but what was Qiu Yanzhi supposed to do?

His wallet and phone were in the compartment.

And no one was answering when he knocked.

He couldn't even rent a room to deal with it himself.

Qiu Yanzhi wracked his brain for any nearby bodies of water, but he realized there weren’t any.

So he tried his best to hold on to consciousness as he headed to the bathroom.

Qiu Yanzhi threw his jacket on the floor. Turning the tap on as high as it would go, he put his head underneath.

Ice cold water rushed down Qiu Yanzhi's head.

Half of him was scorching hot while the other half was freezing cold.

At least his head was clearing up now.

Qiu Yanzhi hatefully grit his teeth.

Liu Cheng! Tomorrow morning will be the last time you draw breath!

At that very moment, someone lifted Qiu Yanzhi out of the sink by his collar.

A mature man's voice came from above his head.

"What are you doing here, Qiu Yanzhi."

Qiu Yanzhi saw He Zhou's face.

...

All the effort he just went through to clear his head…

It all went to waste.