Chapter 108
“Thirty thousand!”
The number sent a jolt of panic through Xiao Xiao. He had read the contract when he signed it, and he was sure there was no clause like that. He tried to shove the manager’s hand off his arm. “That’s impossible! I read the contract, and that wasn’t in there. You’re lying!”
Even though he couldn’t read well, he always paid attention to these things, especially in a messy place like a bar. He had specifically checked the contract to make sure there were no problems before signing his name.
But the manager was an alpha. A beta was naturally weaker, and against an alpha, Xiao Xiao had no power to resist.
His eyes, rimmed with red, filled with tears, but he stubbornly refused to let them fall.
“I’m not lying to you,” the manager sneered. “Did you really think you could make five thousand a month just for sweeping floors? That there was such a good deal in this world? What am I, running a charity?”
The manager grinned and pushed Xiao Xiao into another man’s arms. “Be a good boy and keep President Liu company,” he said with a smirk. “Otherwise, not only will you not get paid this month, you’ll owe us. Think it over carefully.”
President Liu chuckled, holding Xiao Xiao tight. “You little slut,” he rasped as he started dragging him upstairs. “Still hoping the manager would help you? Dream on! Hahahaha…”
Terrified, Xiao Xiao squeezed his eyes shut in despair.
But just then, a gentle voice cut through the noise. “President Liu, what do you think you’re doing?”
Xiao Xiao’s eyes flew open. Gu Qian was smiling and nodding at him.
For a moment, Xiao Xiao was stunned. Between Gu Qian’s smile and his commanding presence, all his fear vanished.
President Liu laughed. “President Gu, what brings you here? Oh, this? I just found a disobedient little thing. Thought I’d take him back and teach him a lesson.”
Gu Qian’s gaze shifted to Xiao Xiao, a hint of confusion in his eyes. “Disobedient?”
A smug look crossed President Liu’s face. “Yeah, a bit feisty. But it’s no problem for me. Even the wildest beta can be tamed.”
“Then give him to me.”
Gu Qian reached out and took Xiao Xiao’s left hand. Xiao Xiao flinched, snapping back to reality. So, Gu Qian wasn’t a good guy either. He also wanted to…
He knew there was no escaping his fate today. He lowered his head in defeat, and the next second, he was pulled into Gu Qian’s arms. But President Liu still had a grip on his other arm.
President Liu looked conflicted, glancing at Xiao Xiao, unwilling to let go. “President Gu, this…”
Gu Qian looked down at the hand on Xiao Xiao’s arm, and his smile turned cold. “What? Is President Liu reluctant to part with him?”
President Liu immediately let go. “No, not at all! Please, be my guest.”
He turned and practically ran, as if a wolf was chasing him.
Xiao Xiao bit his lip as tears streamed down his face. It’s okay, he told himself. It’s just one time.
Besides, this alpha was handsome. He wasn’t exactly losing out.
He’d just wait until the alpha went to shower, then he’d grab his money and run away with An Le.
They could just start over somewhere else. It would be fine.
Crying silently, Xiao Xiao comforted himself as Gu Qian led him to a room upstairs.
But the alpha didn’t go to the shower. He didn’t ask Xiao Xiao to do anything. He just sat on the edge of the bed, looking at his phone.
Xiao Xiao stood frozen by the door, not daring to move, his eyes locked on the alpha.
Ten minutes later, there was a knock on the door.
Curious, Xiao Xiao glanced back but didn’t move.
Gu Qian put down his phone and leaned back against the headboard, a playful look in his eyes. “What are you standing there for? Go open the door.”
Xiao Xiao went to the door. A waiter stood outside, holding the contract he had just signed and a set of his clothes.
The waiter handed him the items, then closed the door and left.
Xiao Xiao stared at the contract and his clothes, completely baffled. He didn’t understand what the alpha meant. Was he letting him go? Or did he want something else?
He looked at the alpha, who just smiled at him. “You have your things back now,” Gu Qian said. “From now on… be more careful. You won’t always be lucky enough to run into a good person like me.”
“A… a good person…”
Xiao Xiao’s head was spinning. Could it be that this alpha had really just saved him? That he wasn’t going to make him do anything he didn’t want to do?
“You don’t believe me?” Gu Qian chuckled. “I suppose you shouldn’t. After all, I didn’t save you for no reason. I wouldn’t care if some other little lamb got tricked, but you’re different.”
Gu Qian paused. “I’ve seen you before.”
Xiao Xiao was even more confused. Had they met? He searched his memory but couldn’t recall anything about this alpha.
“On the street. You were sitting next to a trash can. You looked… so pitiful.”
Gu Qian got up from the bed and walked slowly over to Xiao Xiao. He tilted Xiao Xiao’s chin up, forcing him to meet his gaze. “So very pitiful,” he said with a smile.
Gu Qian didn’t consider himself a saint. He had done plenty of shady things that weren’t exactly illegal. He’d seen men force others into prostitution plenty of times and had never once intervened.
But Xiao Xiao was an exception.
Every day, driving through the north side of the city, he would see Xiao Xiao. Especially around lunchtime, Xiao Xiao would be sitting on a bench by a trash can, eating a steamed bun and drinking water.
He looked pathetic.
Gu Qian had seen people far more pathetic than Xiao Xiao. Still, he felt Xiao Xiao was different. He never disturbed him, at most stealing a few extra glances from his car window when he passed by.
He never expected to run into him at a bar today, tricked into signing a fake contract.
That helpless look on his face… it was just so pitiful.
Uncomfortable with Gu Qian’s forwardness, Xiao Xiao instinctively pushed his hand away—not with the force he’d used on President Liu, but with a gentle shove.
Gu Qian let his hand drop and pulled a business card from his pocket, handing it to Xiao Xiao. He patted his shoulder. “If you really can’t find a job, come work at my company. I promise there will be no… ‘unspoken rules’.”
With that, Gu Qian left.
Xiao Xiao was alone in the room.
He looked at the card in his hand. Xiao Ya Group, Gu Qian.
He knew of the Xiao Ya Group. In his words, everyone who worked there was… rich.
But a big company like that would only hire highly educated people from famous universities. He hadn’t even finished elementary school. The only job he could possibly get there was as a security guard, right?
Xiao Xiao thought for a moment, then tore the fraudulent contract to shreds. He took his clothes and the business card to the bathroom to change.
As he took off his pants, a wad of pink bills fell out. It was the three hundred yuan that President Liu had stuffed into his pocket.
He picked it up and threw it into the trash can with disgust.
“Who wants money from scum like that!”
He wiped his tears, and after changing, he put Gu Qian’s business card in his pocket and walked out of the bathroom.
But he stopped in the middle of the room, then turned back. Swallowing his pride, he reached into the dirty trash can and retrieved the three hundred yuan. He carefully smoothed out the crumpled bills, folded them neatly, and put them in his pocket, fresh tears welling in his eyes.
The next day, he went to Gu Qian’s company to apply for a job.
But the job waiting for him wasn’t as a security guard. Someone took him upstairs, patiently taught him how to use a computer, and then showed him how to do his work.
From that day on, his life became stable.
He always suspected that Gu Qian had other intentions, and he was secretly on guard. But after some time, he realized Gu Qian truly had no ulterior motives, and he finally relaxed.
He worked steadily at Gu Qian’s company for two years and even saved up a good amount of money.
In those two years, Gu Qian never made a move on him, but he, on the other hand, had started to develop feelings for Gu Qian.
And he didn’t dare say a word.
Back when he was in such a desperate situation, Gu Qian could have easily taken advantage of him, but he hadn’t. He hadn’t threatened him at all. That had to mean that Gu Qian didn’t see him that way, that he wasn’t interested in him at all.
His crush was destined to go nowhere.
Even if he hyped himself up every day, telling himself he would confess and pursue his dream guy, the moment he actually stood in front of Gu Qian, he knew he couldn’t. If he confessed, it would shatter the relationship they had.
Gu Qian might even be disgusted by him. Or fire him.
He just never thought Gu Qian would be the one to warn him off.
Xiao Xiao sniffled, his vision blurring.
He didn’t know how much time had passed, but it was now the end of the workday. He wiped his eyes and gathered his things, ready to leave. He had to work overtime tonight, so he needed to get something to eat first, or he’d get drowsy later.
Xiao Xiao didn’t like the company cafeteria. Even though the food was cheap, he preferred a small street stall outside the office. Their scallion pancake wraps were his favorite.
Every time he worked late, he’d eat one for dinner and buy another to take upstairs, eating it on his way back to the dorm after his shift.
But today, after buying the wrap, he found he had no appetite.
He stood by the side of the road, holding the wrap, feeling lost. An Le had an alpha now and didn’t need him anymore. Gu Qian had warned him not to have any improper thoughts. So… what was he supposed to do now?
Other than An Le, he had no family. He didn’t own a house, so he didn’t have to worry about a mortgage. He didn’t have a car payment. And the person he liked didn’t like him back.
What was the point of living?
Nobody needed him.
In a daze, he saw his mother. She was sitting in a room, laughing hysterically, talking to him as he cowered in a corner. “Xiao Xiao, there’s no point in living. This world isn’t good at all. Why don’t you come with me, okay? Come here, come here, Mommy will take you somewhere…”
“Xiao Xiao, let’s just stop living, okay?”
“Xiao Xiao, what do you think it would feel like to jump from the roof of that building across the street?”
“Xiao Xiao, won’t you keep Mommy company? I’m too scared to go alone…”
“Xiao Xiao, why is your name Xiao Xiao? Are you laughing at me because I don’t have the guts to jump?”
“Xiao Xiao, Xiao Xiao, Xiao Xiao…”
Xiao Xiao lowered his head and took a bite of the scallion pancake wrap, chewing mechanically with a vacant expression.
Suddenly, a shadow fell over him. He looked up, confused, and saw Gu Qian’s smiling face. “Is this what you’re having for dinner?”
Xiao Xiao stared for a second, then nodded. “Yeah.”
“A five-yuan pancake wrap for dinner,” Gu Qian said. “Xiao Xiao, you’re going to give people the wrong impression that I don’t pay you enough.”
What did he mean by that? Did he think he was paying him too much? Was he going to fire him?
Panic seized Xiao Xiao. “…No, that’s not it. I… I just like eating this.”
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