Chapter 28: Let the Body Know Who the Real Master Is
Ye Ran’s gaze swept carelessly across the floor, landing on the object trailing a red string before he bent down to pick it up.
It was the peace talisman Qiao Yubai had sought for him. The edges of the red charm were embroidered with a delicate circle of gold thread. He had absentmindedly stuffed it into his pocket back at the Ye residence, and it must have fallen into the closet at some point.
Ye Ran had never believed in such things and generally didn’t care for them. The trash can in the walk-in closet was only two steps away. He pinched the red string of the peace talisman and raised his hand, intending to toss it in.
His hand stopped mid-air.
Staring at the circle of gold thread, Ye Ran suddenly recalled the way Qiao Yubai looked when he gave him the talisman. When he had accepted it, the boy’s eyes had looked as if they were filled with stars. That pure, innocent look belonged to a nineteen-year-old kid.
But he was different. He was twenty-one—not the same as a little kid.
He wasn’t childish.
Thinking back to the original plot, the chaotic battles between him and Qiao Yubai were all unilaterally instigated by him. As the only villain in the book, his frequency of causing trouble accounted for 99.99% of the story.
Ye Ran was well aware of the situation where the author focused all their “trolling” on one person. He was the villain, and in the end, he was the one whose “backside” hurt from the smut.
Since he wanted to resist the plot, he couldn’t follow its lead.
Ye Ran thought for two seconds before finally withdrawing his hand. He looped the red string around his fingertip and tucked the peace talisman into his pocket.
Ye Ran wasn’t some saint, but he didn’t enjoy being the type of person who went out of his way to oppose others. It was honestly quite boring.
On his way to the gym after changing, he ran into Xin Yu.
Even though Chi Yuheng had gone to the company, he had given Xin Yu a day off, delegating tasks like taking meeting minutes to the secretarial department.
As Chi Yuheng’s assistant and bodyguard, Xin Yu naturally lived at the Chi residence. When he had a day off, he liked to stay home, but his version of staying home was different from others. He didn’t like surfing the web, binge-watching shows, or playing games; instead, he liked working out or taking walks in the yard.
Ye Ran had complained before that Xin Yu’s stamina for walking was so great that even two Huskies combined couldn’t outpace him. He also noted that while working out was good, having a great body without going out to socialize meant he’d never get a girlfriend.
Was this kind of life really interesting?
Xin Yu had smiled, unmoved. “Watching over a trouble-making ancestor like you for the Eldest Young Master is pretty interesting.”
Ye Ran: “…”
To sum it up in one sentence: as long as Ye Ran caused trouble and Chi Yuheng gave the word, Xin Yu would have to come and catch him.
At this moment, the importance of fitness manifested. Because Xin Yu’s physical strength was truly excellent, even when Ye Ran was running out of breath, Xin Yu looked the same as when he had first started.
Running into Xin Yu right when he was heading to work out was simply perfect.
Ye Ran pulled the man toward the gym room. Xin Yu, being pushed along, was a bit dazed. “Young Master Ye, what are you doing?”
“Let’s go, let’s go. Coach me through a workout…”
Xin Yu was more than qualified to be Ye Ran’s fitness coach; he could have handled two more people like Ye Ran.
However, Xin Yu remembered the look in Chi Yuheng’s eyes when he held Ye Ran that day. He knew Chi Yuheng liked Ye Ran.
Being together since childhood, covering for him, and pampering him limitlessly—that affection had long since ceased to be just family-like protection.
So, knowing Ye Ran was working out, it would be inevitable for him to get hot and lift his shirt or reveal his abs.
Xin Yu, pushed along by Ye Ran, helplessly tossed out a sentence: “I can’t go.”
Ye Ran’s footsteps paused. “Why?”
Xin Yu: “I want to live.”
Ye Ran: “Huh???”
What did working out have to do with living or dying? Ye Ran found it bizarre.
In the end, under Ye Ran’s strong insistence, Xin Yu had no choice but to make a “three-chapter covenant” with him.
First, he couldn’t wear clothes that were too short. Except for arms and legs, no other part could be exposed.
Second, Ye Ran was the one who demanded the coaching; he was forced into it. If Chi Yuheng asked, Ye Ran had to speak up for him.
Third, in case of any accidents, refer to the first two rules.
Ye Ran: “…”
Ye Ran didn’t understand, but Ye Ran respected it.
After a simple warm-up on the treadmill, Xin Yu led Ye Ran through strength training—twelve reps per set, four sets for each exercise. Ye Ran trained with particular enthusiasm.
Two hours passed in a flash. While Xin Yu took a half-time break, Ye Ran was still hitting the punching bag.
Xin Yu sat on the floor nearby, took a few sips from a water bottle, and watched Ye Ran, who still showed no sign of stopping. Xin Yu spoke up, “Young Master Ye, take a break. You can only continue training once your body has rested.”
Rest? He didn’t want that.
Ye Ran’s eyes were bloodshot as he hit the bag. “I’m not tired. I have to let this body know who the real master is!”
Xin Yu: “……..???”
It wasn’t until his arms were so sore that he truly had no strength left to throw another punch that Ye Ran finally stopped.
The result of such intense training was that he couldn’t even crawl the next day. Every movement brought muscle aches, and the most painful part was going downstairs; his legs shook uncontrollably.
The more exhausted his body was, the more at peace Ye Ran felt.
He didn’t believe that in this state, his body could still be controlled. Rather than being controlled to go find someone, he wanted it to be voluntary—coming from the bottom of his heart.
After lunch, Xu Huiyang called.
“I say, busy man, what have you been up to lately? You’ve vanished since we left the bar. Have you forgotten your brother?”
Ye Ran poured himself a glass of water and finished it in a few gulps. “Busy looking for abuse.”
“Holy shit!” Xu Huiyang exclaimed. “Since when did you develop such a hobby?”
Ye Ran coolly tossed out two words: “Just now.”
Xu Huiyang: “…”
As Ye Ran’s “best dog friend,” he had the same thought as Ye Ran, which was…
Xu Huiyang didn’t understand, but Xu Huiyang respected it.
“Fine then. Since you’ve abused yourself, you can’t abuse me anymore.”
In response, Ye Ran gave a sinister laugh. “Depends on my mood.”
This scared Xu Huiyang so much he nearly lost his good mood.
“I was thinking of asking you out to play. Now that you’re like this, should I stay away from you?”
Hearing the word “play,” Ye Ran immediately perked up. “Where are we going?”
Calculating it, Ye Ran hadn’t gone out to have proper fun in a long time. He was either busy fighting the plot or arranging his own workouts. Perhaps to the author, Ye Ran was just a “paper person” she created, but paper people had their own worlds, emotions, and preferences too.
For example, playing.
More than half of the summer vacation had already passed. Winter break would be freezing—not the best time for going out. The next summer vacation would have to wait until next year.
Truly, if he didn’t play now, there wouldn’t be any time left.
Two people who loved to play could always come up with a good place.
“The government developed a plot of land on an island outside Jing City. My brother secured that land and built an island resort hotel. Let’s go play there.”
The two hit it off immediately and decided to depart tomorrow.
Hanging up the phone, Ye Ran was in a good mood, thinking about the things he needed to bring to the island.
After a few minutes of thought, the phone beside him rang again.
Caller ID: [Qiao Yubai]
Translator’s Note:
- Paper Person: A slang term for fictional characters in novels or games.
- Three-chapter Covenant: An idiom meaning a formal agreement or a set of rules.
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