Chapter 28
The bathroom lights were on, and the faint sound of water came from inside.
Lu Bai was half sitting up, looking at the bathroom door somewhat dazedly. And then, his lips rose into a light smile. Probably afraid of scaring him, Qu Xueyu had gone into the bathroom, so that he could take advantage of this opportunity to leave.
Unsurprisingly, the young teenager from the moonlight had grown into a brilliant young man, and some things remained unchanged as if they would remain the same forever.
Qu Xueyu had been drugged, and tonight should be very difficult for him. Lu Bai believed that for the sake of that year’s goodwill, he could not just leave him here alone. He took out his phone and sent a message to Ruan Jiangjiu, “Xiao Ruan. Tonight I have to take care of Qu Xueyu at the hotel. I’ll be home in the morning.”
Lu Bai just sent a message, and Qu Xueyu’s cell phone on the other side of the bed buzzed. He only thought it was a coincidence that someone had messaged the other person at the same time, so he didn’t pay much attention.
As he looked at the message he had sent, Lu Bai’s heart suddenly felt a kind of inexplicable reticence. Xiao Ruan was waiting for him to go home, but he had to attend to another man in a hotel. This strange feeling came out of nowhere, and Lu Bai could not figure out why. It just happened to strike him that if Xiao Ruan had done this, he would have been very angry—but the reason for this anger was like it was hidden by a layer of gauze through which he could not clearly identify it.
Thinking of this, Lu Bai sent another message to him. “Xiao Ruan, there is nothing between him and me. It’s just that he helped me and now needs care, so I can’t leave.”
Qu Xueyu’s cell phone which was placed on the bed buzzed again.
Lu Bai stared at the phone lying on the bed for a moment; suspicion traced in his eyes. There was a truly earth-shattering idea in his heart that flashed by, but he failed to grasp it immediately.
As he picked up his phone to send yet another message to Ruan Jiangjiu, the bathroom door opened.
Qu Xueyu was wearing a loose bathrobe that exposed most of his chest. His still-damp black hair was a bit tousled, giving him a more aggressive look. The drug was really strong, and even after showering, he could still feel his cheeks and neck burning, and his body was extra heavy. Qu Xueyu’s eyes were cold. If Lu Bai had really drank that glass of champagne, then what was the other party planning to do? The most fortunate thing he did today was probably to drink that glass for Lu Bai by chance.
“After having a good shower, get some rest. I’ll watch over you tonight.” Lu Bai looked away from the other person and sighed. If there was really an emergency later, they were going straight to the hospital.
Qu Xueyu’s eyes narrowed when he heard his voice, and he looked up incredulously at the side of the bed to see that the young man who should have already left was presently sitting at the head of the bed, looking at him.
Qu Xueyu sat down in the soft chair by the bed and quietly regarded Lu Bai. He huffed out a low laugh, and his eyes curved up: “Why didn’t you leave?”
To say that ‘I stayed to take care of you’ was too nauseating, but Lu Bai couldn’t think of anything else to say, so he only muttered in a small voice, “How could I leave you like that?” Only after the saying out loud did he realize that it seemed to be even lamer than that one sentence but it was too late to take it back.
Qu Xueyu smiled even more. Who knows what came to his mind? But he raised an eyebrow and teasingly asked, “Your ‘Xiao Ruan’ will not be angry?”
Lu Bai was shocked, and he lowered his eyes and sullenly stated, “Yes, I think so.” However, when he finished, his brow furrowed, and stared up at Qu Xueyu, suspicion appeared again on his face. “How do you know about Xiao Ruan?” His Ruan Jiangjiu was very well protected, and Ruan Jiangjiu had not yet made his debut. Reasonably speaking, Qu Xueyu and Ruan Jiangjiu had not crossed paths at all, and it seemed impossible for Qu Xueyu to be aware of his existence.
Qu Xueyu smiled and shrugged, as he watched the teenager with deep eyes, “Ah yes, Xiao Bai. how do you think I know about your Xiao Ruan?”
Lu Bai frowned even more, his face revealed some bewilderment. After a long time, he asked, ” Did I accidentally tell you?” But that shouldn’t be ah, before tonight, any encounters with Qu Xueyu were limited to when he found him to be troublesome. Later, he helped him out. And, he was always very careful about the news of Ruan Jiangjiu, he couldn’t have mentioned anything to Qu Xueyu.
Qu Xueyu shook his head: “Xiao Bai. You have not.” This young man did not reveal the existence of “Ruan Jiangjiu” to “Qu Xueyu”.
Lu Bai: “Could it be that you happened to meet my Xiao Ruan and thought he was better looking than you? And you thought he would be your rival and threaten your position in the future, so you had to investigate him?” If the Qu family wanted to investigate, he, alone, really could not hide anyone.
Qu Xueyu: “…”
He took a deep breath and sighed, “Xiao Bai, although in a sense he is indeed my rival. I don’t think he is better looking than me.” Qu Xueyu felt like he was going crazy for this teenager, so childish that he was drinking his own vinegar1common slang for being jealous..
Lu Bai’s look of ‘I don’t agree with you but I’ll let you go because you’re not feeling well tonight’: “Confidence is a good thing. Especially for a big star like you, I can understand.” He digressed rather thoughtfully and quickly changed the subject and said, “You should rest early.”
Qu Xueyu: “…”
Taking a deep breath, he managed to answer, “Yeah.” Perhaps tonight was not really the right occasion to confess.
~~~~~~
On the bedside was a lit sconce, and the room was blanketed in tranquility and soft light.
Qu Xueyu was lying on the bed, and Lu Bai had moved to the soft chair closer to the bed and sat on it to keep an eye on him.
“Xiao Bai, come up to sleep.” Qu Xueyu whispered with his eyes closed. Only after saying this did he realize that he was now “Qu Xueyu” who was not close enough with the teenager to share a bed.
“No. Don’t worry, I can watch over you tonight.” Lu Bai then reached out to touch the other man’s forehead. Some of the fever eased, but he was still a little hot.
The teenager’s voice was gentle and comforting, and his hand was cold and comfortable. Qu Xueyu’s furrowed brow smoothed out slightly, and his breathing finally became long.
It was very late into the night, and Lu Bai’s eyelids became heavy as he leaned back in his chair. After a long battle, he reached out and touched Qu Xueyu’s forehead again, he felt the temperature finally subsided. He was finally able to relax a little, and simply lay down on the side of the bed to get comfortable, but never thought he would fall asleep.
~~~~~~
Early the next morning.
“Mmm, Xiao Ruan.” Lu Bai somehow managed to move from the chair to the bed. Muttering, he rolled into the arms of the person beside him, who was also quietly sleeping but felt Lu Bai’s presence and subconsciously wrapped his arm around his waist in a possessive manner.
Lu Bai slept in a fuzzy mood; he usually can recognize his bed. But the bed here was really uncomfortable for him. He frowned slightly and felt discomfort. Yet, the breath of the person holding him to sleep at his side was so familiar and comforting that he was able to sleep in peace after rolling into the other’s arms.
“Mmm, Xiao Ruan, you’re so great.” The young man who was mumbling in his sleep subconsciously nuzzled the chin of the man whose arms were around him, and the man hugged him tighter as he usually does.
~~~~~
When Qin Gu got into the elevator, he pinched his brow with an aching headache. Last night’s banquet had ended quite late, and after that his father had dragged him out to socialize—he did not like the hypocrisy of exchanging a few rounds of drinks, but being in this position, even he sometimes had to do so. Both his mother and father, together with his extended family, used the word “responsibility” to decorate and polish him as well as to imprison him. The term had become increasingly overwhelming, and there was no escape for him.
Qin Gu mocked himself a little; the omnipotent brother in Lu Bai’s eyes, in fact, had long died. The teenager always loved to cling to him, but what would he think if he saw himself in this almost wretched state?
“Mr. Qin,” his secretary followed Qin Gu into the elevator whilst saying, “You are free to rest in your room for the morning, and in the afternoon, you need to fly to Chunming for a meeting.”
Qin Gu nodded expressionlessly as he walked forward briskly.
The secretary hesitated for a moment looking at Qin Gu but finally said, “Mr. Qin, Mr. Xiao said you were busy and he couldn’t bear to disturb you and asked me to convey to you at your convenience, to please take care of your health.”
Qin Gu took an unsteady step at his words; he looked over at his secretary and remarked, “In the future, you don’t need to waste my time by delivering such nonsense.”
The secretary was flustered and hurriedly exclaimed, “Yes.”
Qu Xueyu’s words suddenly crossed his mind. Qin Gu frowned in thought, and then told his secretary, “In the future, you should pay attention to Xiao Yang.”
The secretary was confused, “Mr. Qin…?” Because Mr. Xiao, like Young Master Lu, was considered special to the Boss. Outsiders like them did not dare to get involved.
Qin Gu maintained his calm face as he said, “He’s still my brother, but from now on, pay attention to him. Take note of what he is doing and who he is involved with, got it?”
The secretary quickly nodded his head.
When they reached the door of his room, the secretary hastily took out the room card to open the door for Qin Gu and then followed him in. Once they entered the living room, Qin Gu loosened his tie and hung up his jacket, then passed a document to the secretary. The secretary collected it. and was about to talk about the rest of the day’s schedule, when an unfamiliar voice suddenly was heard.
“Mmm, Xiao Ruan. Hug tighter, this bed feels really uncomfortable today.” This voice was soft and sticky, seemingly coquettish. But since the bedroom door was open, anyone in the living room would be able to hear it plainly.
Qin Gu’s eyes narrowed, and the secretary’s eyes widened. He gulped and suddenly dared not look at his boss’s face—this voice was all too familiar. All too often, the teenager had appeared around his boss, so he was forced to learn by heart. But his impression of that teenager was usually domineering and arrogant and never spoke to anyone in such a spoiled manner.
The secretary secretly swept his eyes over Qin Gu’s fiercely cold and intimidating frown. Only then did he suddenly remember one of the most crucial questions: who is the one in Young Master Lu’s mouth, ‘Xiao Ruan’?
The bedside sconce was still glowing with a warm yellow light. At this time, the sky was already bright, and the sunlight outside the window came through a few shafts through the gaps in the curtains, falling onto the messy clothing on the floor.
The snow-white quilt on the bed was in a heap, with the handsome young man’s unkempt black hair, crisp jawline, and disorganized bathrobe. The entire figure was in a state of wantonness, and in his arms, he held a teenager snugly. The teenager was wearing a white shirt with its buttons undone, curled up closely in the arms of the young man, and his exposed arms were intimately wrapped around the neck of the man, white and glowing from the light.
“Xiao Ruan, what’s for breakfast today?” The teenager was still sleeping, but he intimately nuzzled the other’s chin again, as if he was acting spoiled, muttering.
The secretary had been shut outside the door, and Qin Gu looked like an enraged lion at this moment. His hands were tightly clenched into fists, the tendons on the back of his hands were protruding, and his voice was frighteningly frigid as if it had been dipped in ice.
“What exactly are you guys doing?”
Qu Xueyu frowned slightly and then opened his eyes. He first caressed the teenager’s hair before covering him with the quilt.
Then, he sat upright and calmly faced Qin Gu, thinking of last night. He asked, “This is your room?”
Qin Gu gritted his teeth, cynically laughed, and remarked, “What do you think?”
Qu Xueyu’s eyes dropped to the ground. The drugged wine, the bribed waiter, Qin Gu’s room. What would have happened if it was Lu Bai who drank that glass of champagne last night?
Qin Gu felt like his heart was ablaze—he finally had to admit today that it was jealousy.
He was about to speak again, but then he saw Qu Xueyu put his finger to his lips.
Qu Xueyu looked down at the teenager who was slightly frowning from the noise. His eyes looked like a warm spring after the ice had melted, and he gently stroked the other’s hair and looked back at Qin Gu. However, his face was indifferent, and he calmly said: “Shh. Don’t disturb his sleep. Let’s talk outside.”
T/N: Here is release 2 of 2!
Jealousy/Vinegar I believe the origin was from a story where a wife was so jealous of a concubine that she tried to drink poison, but it ended up being a bottle of vinegar. huh.. looked it up and I was pretty close.
” the saying of jealousy is said to have come out from the Tang Dynasty. The story goes that in the Tang Dynasty, Emperor Taizong Li Shimin, in an attempt to win people’s hearts, saw that Prime Minister Fang Xuanling was childless, his wife was infertile and jealous, and forbade Fang Xuanling from approaching other women, so he had the idea of giving Fang Xuanling a concubine.
However, Minister Fang’s response was unexpected. He refused to accept the offer, which made Li Shimin wonder, there is no man who does not love beauty. Refusing to accept a concubine in the house of Lord Fang Xuanling had to be for a reason. Li Shimin then thought of Fang Xuanling’s wife, so he sent someone to Fang Xuanling’s house to persuade Lord Fang’s wife to accept Fang Xuanling’s concubinage, but who would have known that Fang Xuanling’s wife is not greedy, and not even missing a beat, she insisted she wouldn’t accept a concubine for Fang Xuanling.
This really irritated Li Shimin, so he issued an edict to give Mrs. Fang a pot of poisoned wine. His message was that Lord Fang had worked so hard for the country and was so meritorious that he had been rewarded with several beautiful women, and if she wanted to resist the decree, then she would drink the poisoned wine and have her own closure, but who knew that Mrs. Fang Xuanling was also a very strong character and drank the poisoned wine with the mindset that she would rather break the jade than the tile, and as a result, she felt that the taste of the wine was not right and that it was not the taste of wine, but vinegar. ” — Baidu
So I was pretty close, But basically, it does boil down to a wife being so stubborn about not wanting her husband to have a concubine she says she would rather die first. The emperor said “bet” and sent her a jar of vinegar disguised as ‘poisoned’ wine. She drank it and won, leading to the story getting passed down and making “drinking vinegar” synonymous with jealousy.
Edit: Krone
Proof: Nitta
