Additional Inheritance - Chap 73

Chapter 73

After Chinese New Year, Wen Xiaohui went around socialising with Shao Qun whilst preparing for the opening of his own studio.

All of a sudden, his life became very busy, and even though he felt really tired, it was fulfilling. Every day, his brain was full of all sorts of things like choosing the location, interior decor, equipment, furnishings, and recruitment. He had practically no time to think about anything else. It was at that point, he realised he’d finally woken up. It turned out he shouldn’t have relied on alcohol and gaming to get over Luo Yi, he just needed to keep busy.

One day, while he was supervising the refurbishment, he accidentally swiped on a news article in a pop-up window. It was news of Chang Xing’s trial commencing.

The hand holding the mobile phone trembled. Wen Xiaohui hesitated for a long time before he clicked on it. Written in formal language, the news article summarised Changhong Corporation’s stock, misappropriation of capital, bribery, and other issues. All of these had been circulating as rumours online for a long time. Chang Xing’s photograph unexpectedly captured Wen Xiaohui’s attention. It was a profile view photo where he wore an impeccably straight suit, looking calm and solemn, without a hint of awkwardness. From this angle, he looked a lot like Luo Yi – his nose bridge that was as straight as the edge of a blade, his lips in a tight line, and his tense jaw. Although Luo Yi’s facial features resembled Luo Yaya more closely, his expressions and his imposing manner were clones of Chang Xing.

Wen Xiaohui remembered that Luo Yi had said he and Chang Xing were the same kind of people and only one of them could exist. He let out a sigh as he closed the webpage. Chang Xing’s case would have diverted a lot of Luo Yi’s attention, so everything went smoothly for Wen Xiaohui for the best part of six months. He was initially anxious because he was worried about Luo Yi finding him, but now he felt numb.

He’d gotten used to this unfamiliar city and his new life, and he’d also made new friends. After settling down this year, he’d be able to go to the US to see his mum. In summary, life was slowly getting back to normal, and although part of his heart had completely died, it didn’t hinder his efforts in seeking out the joys of life. He really hoped that was the end of it and that he’d be able to start a new chapter.

His studio officially opened its doors in summer. Shao Qun hired more people after his project commenced, so he didn’t really need Wen Xiaohui, and Wen Xiaohui was able to dedicate all his energy to his studio.

Of the people he hired, a few recognised him, and Wen Xiaohui ordered them to keep it secret. He was just a tiny influencer; it wasn’t as if he had much influence, so he didn’t feel too worried.

Wen Xiaohui had both the skills and the experience for running a studio, so it became very successful. Within the second month of opening, a local fashion magazine wanted to interview him, but he declined.

During this time, there was an issue with his nose, and he went to the hospital to get it fixed. The result was that it looked more delicate than before, and he was delighted.

———————————

Pengcheng’s hottest season arrived during August and September. The streets were full of women wearing dungaree shorts and Wen Xiaohui also started to show off his figure. Not only had he reverted back to a satisfactory weight, his figure and muscles looked better because he’d been exercising for a period of time. He also felt more energetic. Every day, he led a group of employees, giving them talks and helping them practise. When he heard them calling him teacher, it brought him back to his time at Juxing – the best time of his life when he had everything – family, career, and love.

That day, Wen Xiaohui was sprawled out in his office enjoying the air-con when his assistant knocked on the door and went inside. “Young Master Shao’s here.”

“Oh.” Wen Xiaohui straightened his hair and left.

Shao Qun was standing by the door and like always, he looked extremely handsome. Wen Xiaohui was surprised to discover there was another person behind Shao Qun.

The guy was similar in age to Shao Qun and of medium height. He was very slender and his skin was extremely pale. He was dressed in very simple clothing that could be considered outdated. He kept his head down, making him look shy.

Wen Xiaohui was surprised not because Shao Qun had brought someone along with him, Shao Qun had in fact brought a fuckbuddy over before. He was surprised because this guy and Shao Qun seemed to belong to two different worlds; he began to suspect that they happened to be standing next to each other by coincidence.

Shao Qun said hello to him.

Wen Xiaohui was stumped. He put on a professional smile. “Oh Young Master Shao, I haven’t seen you in ages.”

The guy behind Shao Qun lifted his head. He had a delicate and beautiful face, a set of piercing and bright eyes, scarlet lips, and a round nose. He looked gentle, shy, and a little feminine. Standing there in his simple clothes and unstyled hair, he seemed out of place.

Wen Xiaohui immediately thought of Luo Rui – not the current, beautiful and elegant Luo Rui, but the one from 10 years ago who walked around with his head lowered and shoulders slumped. Luo Rui’s expression used to resemble that of a frightened deer. He was autistic and repressed. He wouldn’t get dressed up, speak, or socialise like a normal person because he was often bullied. He used to be timid, weak, and quiet. If Luo Rui had never met Wen Xiaohui, he might have continued to be like this, and it would have gotten worse as he grew older. This guy in front of him, was it because he never met someone like Wen Xiaohui?

But why did he show up with Shao Qun?

In order to ease his doubts, Wen Xiaohui took a deep breath, and walked over swaying his hips seductively.

Shao Qun glanced at him and sneered, “Did you get a new nose again? Didn’t the last one look alright?”

“I’m1 a perfectionist.” Wen Xiaohui replied coyly as he reached out to tug on Shao Qun’s arm.

Shao Qun let out a cough and frowned at Wen Xiaohui.

Wen Xiaohui secretly gloated. Did he really have to watch the sheep walk into the wolf’s mouth? He smiled at the guy and said softly, “Hi, I’m Adrian. You can call me Adi.”

The guy nodded sluggishly. “Hi, I’m Li Chengxiu2.” After he finished speaking, he glanced at Wen Xiaohui and self-consciously lowered his head.

Wen Xiaohui let out a sigh in his heart.

Shao Qun tapped Wen Xiaohui on the shoulder. “Can you give him a hairstyle that makes him look more lively?”

Wen Xiaohui smiled as he said to Li Chengxiu: “Follow me, please.” He escorted Li Chengxiu to the hair washing basins. The trainee came over and Wen Xiaohui said, “It’s fine, I’ll do it.”

The trainee was shocked. “Are you going to wash his hair?”

“Go get my stuff ready.”

Li Chengxiu lay back obediently, closing his eyes nervously. It seemed as though he’d never had treatment like this before. His neck tensed as if he was worried that his head would feel too heavy resting on other people’s hands.

Wen Xiaohui said softly, “Don’t be so nervous and relax your neck. It’s fine.”

Li Chengxiu slowly relaxed.

“Your hair’s so soft, it feels nice.”

Li Chengxiu replied quietly, “Mn”.

Wen Xiaohui asked openly, “How did you and Young Master Shao meet?”

“He… hired… me to cook.”

“Oh? I don’t think it’s straightforward.” Wen Xiaohui wondered to himself why Li Chengxiu was stammering.

Li Chengxiu pondered. “We were classmates… in secondary school.”

“So you were classmates.” Wen Xiaohui struggled a little inside. He definitely shouldn’t get involved in Shao Qun’s business, but seeing Li Chengxiu reminded him of Luo Rui. He thought of the once timid and gentle teenager. He’d protected Luo Rui by preventing Shao Qun from getting close to him because he was fully aware of the kind of person he was. In Wen Xiaohui’s eyes, Li Chengxiu was like a blank sheet of paper, and in Shao Qun’s eyes… It’d be easy for him to mess with Li Chengxiu, but Li Chengxiu didn’t appear to be the kind of person who could afford to be messed around. Wen Xiaohui really couldn’t understand why Shao Qun, who was heartless and wary of trouble, would get involved with such a wholesome man. From what he knew, Shao Qun only liked those who pretended to be innocent, he didn’t like those who were actually innocent. The reason was none other than wanting to steer clear of trouble.

Li Chengxiu didn’t say anything. Even his posture while lying down seemed so proper.

Wen Xiaohui clenched his teeth, he couldn’t help himself from saying: “Chengxiu, there are certain things that I shouldn’t say, but I can see that you’re an honest man, so… ugh. I’m the kind of person who can’t bite my tongue, I’ll panic if I don’t say it. Shao Qun is a bastard, so you should be careful.”

“Huh?” Li Chengxiu’s eyes widened.

“I’m just warning you. I don’t know if I’m thinking too much. It’s not convenient for me to say anymore, I’ll be screwed if Shao Qun finds out. You don’t look like you’re from his circle of friends, so you should be careful. Be wary about what he says and don’t believe everything. Do you understand what I’m saying?”

Li Chengxiu nodded and he gave Wen Xiaohui a look of gratitude. “Thank you.”

Wen Xiaohui secretly sighed again.

He personally styled Li Chengxiu’s hair, and it looked neat and tidy. Li Chengxiu’s looks weren’t bad in the first place, and although his facial features weren’t outstanding, the combination made him look nice and meek. He made people feel comfortable. The more you looked at him, the better he looked. With his soft hair flicking outwards, he looked as though he was brimming with youthful energy.

Shao Qun seemed very pleased. He was standing at the side with both hands in his pockets and tilted his head for a while before he smiled ambiguously. “Chengxiu, you look beautiful.”

Wen Xiaohui had never seen Shao Qun behave in such a gentle manner towards anyone, but this conversely made him feel scared. If someone like Shao Qun had to conceal his true intentions, it was either because he truly valued Li Chengxiu or because he hadn’t obtained him yet. In any case, he was putting on an act. Wen Xiaohui hoped that he was wrong.

After Shao Qun took Li Chengxiu away, Wen Xiaohui felt a bit depressed. He called Li Shuo to invite him out to dinner because he wanted to chat with him and talk about Luo Rui. After all, only Li Shuo had memories in common with him in this city – Shao Qun didn’t count since they had never been friends.

——————————————

When he was having dinner with Li Shuo that night, Wen Xiaohui started talking about his and Luo Rui’s school days. As soon as he got to the fun parts, he laughed uncontrollably.

All along, Li Shuo had been smiling faintly as he observed Wen Xiaohui. “I haven’t seen you smiling so happily in a long time.”

Wen Xiaohui smiled and said, “Really? Everyone says I look nice when I’m smiling, of course I need to smile more.”

“Yeah, you should smile more.”

“Oh yeah, how are you and your boyfriend getting on?” Wen Xiaohui eyed him curiously.

He knew that Li Shuo had a new boyfriend recently. He’d seen photos and heard that he was a university student with very good looks. However, during this period of time, they stopped contacting each other. Li Shuo had previously vented to Wen Xiaohui about his boyfriend’s immaturity, and he mentioned he was going to see how things progressed.

Li Shuo was exasperated as he replied, “We were arguing every couple of days and he threatened to break up with me. I agreed to break up, but then he started crying and shouting about how we couldn’t. Sigh… I think our personalities differ too much. He wants someone to spend time with him, and I want a more mature relationship.”

Wen Xiaohui giggled. “Didn’t you say that he was cute at the beginning?”

“He is really cute, but he’s also very willful – it’s just his personality. Sometimes, he’s really attractive and sometimes, he’s a headache. I’ve considered this carefully; I shouldn’t waste his time if I can’t tolerate everything about him.”

Wen Xiaohui shook his head. He smiled as he replied, “You’re always like this.”

“Like what?”

“I don’t think he wants a partner who comes as soon as he calls.”

Li Shuo raised his eyebrows. “Then what is it? You’ve never met him.”

“Yeah, but I’ve met you.” Wen Xiaohui winked. “I can imagine what you’re like when you’re together.”

“Like what?”

“Calm and rational, like you’re holding something back. Li-dage, you’re great, but your love life isn’t going smoothly for a reason.”

“What is it?”

“Did he ever say ‘I don’t feel like you love me’?”

“He really did say that before.”

“Yeah, that’s that impact you have on others.”

Li Shuo narrowed his eyes, and after a while, he smiled. “That’s interesting. I always feel like I haven’t done anything wrong, but I still get criticised. It’s not just him, it’s happened in my previous relationships.”

Wen Xiaohui shrugged. “I don’t know if it’s because you didn’t like them enough or if you were just born like this. You’re like a boyfriend for hire – considerate and perfect – but there’s no feeling of love.”

Li Shuo sighed, “I don’t know either… I really liked all of them. I try my hardest to do what a boyfriend should do, but…” He looked a little distressed.

“Just forget it. There’s no use worrying about this. I think maybe you haven’t found true love yet.” Wen Xiaohui aimed his fingers at Li Shuo like a gun and made a ‘pew’ sound. “You’ll be screwed when you meet your fated one.”

Li Shuo laughed, “Are you serious?”

“Haha, I’m bullshitting. It’s karma. I’m just putting on an act.”

“I think it’s a personality issue.” Li Shuo said seriously, “I should find someone who is gentle, content and doesn’t cause trouble.”

“Yeah, maybe. Good luck with that.” Wen Xiaohui raised his glass.

They gently clinked their glasses, smiled at each other, and downed them.

———————————–

After dinner, Wen Xiaohui drove his provocative little sports car home. As he waited for the lights to change, an idea popped into his head. Wasn’t Li Chengxiu the wholesome husband type that Li Shuo wanted?

He was stunned by his own intelligence.

It was a shame that Li Chengxiu was going to be defiled by Shao Qun unless he could protect him. Feeling helpless, he sighed.

He couldn’t stop himself from pulling out his mobile phone and opening up his emails. He sent Luo Rui an email: Baby, I really miss you. Are you dating anyone?

Luo Rui soon replied: Nope, they’re not interested in me.

Wen Xiaohui replied: He must be fucking blind, we can find a better guy. You need to be careful when you’re meeting people.

He was tricked by Luo Yi because he was fucking blind

Luo Rui responded with: I know. Love you most.

Wen Xiaohui smiled and sent across a kiss emoji. Although they’d only met once, he was praying silently for Li Chengxiu due to his resemblance to a dearly missed friend.

Footnotes:

人家 is used for I in this instance, which is often has a flirtatious connotation.

Main character from Sissy. Shui Qian Cheng loves her cameos in the 188 universe.