Chapter 4: Only Someone With Bad Eyesight Would… With Lu Ciheng
Night gradually approached, and a black coupe drove along the asphalt road.
Xie Shibai drove to the Xie family’s ancestral home. The classic, majestic building stood tall against the mountains shrouded in the night. The pitch-black mountains loomed like giants looking down on everything, their oppressive aura akin to a confining prison.
The black coupe slowly drove into the garage. The incandescent light flickering between brightness and darkness was blinding, seemingly inducing a somatic response to his condition. The air became thin, and every breath was exceptionally difficult.
Old Master Xie’s special assistant was waiting early at the elevator entrance.
Expressionless, Xie Shibai put the platinum ring on his ring finger. He pushed open the door and got out of the car. His tall, slender figure cast a shadow as he looked up to meet the gaze of Zhou Chengping, who had come to receive him.
The platinum ring glimmered slightly under the incandescent light.
Zhou Chengping didn’t notice the fleeting platinum glimmer at first. It was only when Xie Shibai turned sideways that he noticed it. He frowned for a few seconds before quickly masking it and smoothing his expression, praising, “The ring is very beautiful.”
Xie Shibai gave a faint “En” and walked straight into the elevator.
Zhou Chengping followed closely behind. As the elevator ascended, he pushed up the glasses on the bridge of his nose, looked at Xie Shibai, and feigned confusion, “Although it is very beautiful, isn’t it a bit inappropriate to wear it on the ring finger?”
Xie Shibai turned the ring, dropping a depth charge with a calm, ripple-free tone: “If a wedding ring isn’t worn on the ring finger, where should it be worn?”
“Wedding ring?” Zhou Chengping’s pupils trembled slightly, and his fingers paused imperceptibly for a few seconds. His tone inevitably lost some composure as he quickly said, “The Old Master will be angry if you do this.”
Xie Shibai seemed not to hear this sentence, the ring firmly circling his ring finger.
Zhou Chengping’s tone could not hide a hint of toughness, as if he were truly considering Xie Shibai’s best interests. “Please take it off. There is no need to anger the Old Master in this way; it will do you no good.”
Ding. The elevator doors opened.
Xie Shibai cast a sideways glance at Zhou Chengping, neither cold nor warm, and stepped out of the elevator to walk toward the innermost study. His tone was indifferent. “Special Assistant Zhou, you are overstepping.”
“Apologies.” Zhou Chengping apologized, then paused for a few seconds before adding, “But I am doing this for your own good.”
Zhou Chengping was only a few years older than Xie Shibai. His father had toiled for the Xie family for half his life, and when he could no longer continue due to illness, he arranged for Zhou Chengping to enter the Xie Corporation.
He had often followed his father to the Xie home when he was young. In his father’s private words, he could be considered Xie Shibai’s half-brother.
Because of his father, Old Master Xie valued him highly after he became a special assistant. Zhou Chengping had access to more of the Xie family’s core matters; there were few things in the Xie family he didn’t know about.
But now, Xie Shibai had silently put on a wedding ring, catching people off guard, like a bird escaping control.
Xie Shibai: “Special Assistant Zhou, do you still remember your identity?”
Zhou Chengping realized that his words were somewhat presumptuous. “Apologies, I misspoke.”
He understood that some words could be thought in the heart but not spoken aloud.
After Xie Shibai left, Zhou Chengping watched his back and made a call, instructing someone to investigate Xie Shibai’s recent activities.
Xie Shibai knocked on the study door. A serious and aged voice came from inside.
“Come in.”
Xie Shibai pushed the door open and called out “Grandfather” respectfully.
Old Master Xie, advanced in years with graying hair, wore glasses on the bridge of his nose. He was looking down at paper acquisition documents. Hearing the voice, he ordered without lifting his head, “Have a meal with the Wang family’s child tomorrow. Special Assistant Zhou will notify you of the specific time.”
Xie Shibai turned the ring on his hand and spoke, “Tomorrow is not convenient.”
Old Master Xie exuded authority without anger. “Cancel tomorrow’s schedule. I have met the Wang family’s child; they are barely considered well-behaved and obedient.”
He had held a high position for years and never felt that anyone would disobey his orders, especially the grandson raised by his side since childhood. Like a bonsai by the window, he should grow according to the perfect plan; any branches that did not conform to aesthetics and affected growth would be trimmed.
Xie Shibai: “Can’t cancel.”
He had agreed with Lu Ciheng to move tomorrow. Even without this plan, he would not have obeyed this arrangement.
Two consecutive refusals displeased Old Master Xie. His attention shifted from the documents to Xie Shibai. The gaze behind the reading glasses caught the extra ring on Xie Shibai’s hand, and his brow furrowed tightly. “What are you wearing on your hand?”
Xie Shibai raised his hand to make the ring more obvious. “Wedding ring. I’m afraid I cannot accompany you for tomorrow’s dinner.”
The bonsai by the bed, in an unnoticed corner, revealed hidden, lush branches. Even the sharpest scissors could not cut off the vigorous life.
Bang—
A precious white porcelain cup flew past the side of Xie Shibai’s face and smashed against the wall of the study with a bang, exploding beside his ear. Flying shards of white porcelain scattered all over the floor. A sharp fragment cut Xie Shibai’s cheek, leaving a long, narrow wound below the corner of his eye. Blood, accompanied by a dull pain, quickly seeped out, exceptionally distinct against his cold white skin.
Xie Shibai seemed accustomed to this. His figure remained upright and respectful without shifting a bit, straight as a green pine. Beads of blood gathered on the wound, and there were also splashes of tea on his skin. The water stains splattered on his face with spots of scalding heat, and the white porcelain fragments at his feet mixed with the tea, emitting steam.
Zhou Chengping, waiting outside the door, heard the noise inside and immediately pushed the door open to enter. He first glanced at the fragments on the floor, then immediately walked over to support Old Master Xie.
“Old Master, the doctor instructed that you cannot get angry.”
Old Master Xie pushed away Zhou Chengping’s hand. His aged, majestic voice suppressed anger, his chest heaving violently as if he were short of breath from rage. “You are becoming more and more capable. When did this happen?!”
Xie Shibai blurred the time, speaking calmly, “The last few days.”
Old Master Xie breathed rapidly. “Good, good, good. Your wings have truly hardened. Do you not understand why I asked you to contact the Wang family?! Do you want to be like your good-for-nothing father? What does the Xie family mean to you?! You unfilial, selfish thing!”
Before Xie Shibai could say anything, Zhou Chengping handed water to Old Master Xie and awkwardly spoke of the little unclear information he had found. “Old Master, Young Master Xie must have been deceived by that man.”
The assistant responsible for watching only noticed that Xie Shibai entered the Civil Affairs Bureau with a man. Because the other party was covered too tightly, his specific appearance could not be distinguished. After checking the license plate, it was under an entertainment company. That company had countless stars, big and small, making it impossible to tell who it was.
“What?!” Old Master Xie almost couldn’t catch his breath. “It’s a man?! Where is my discipline ruler!”
Zhou Chengping hurriedly smoothed his back. “Same-sex marriage laws have been implemented for many years; this is quite normal. Please don’t be too angry.”
Xie Shibai watched the clumsy acting before him with detached indifference, as if everything had nothing to do with him. After the expensive antique clock ticked a few times, a familiar and perfectly timed exclamation came from behind him.
He moved a step to the side, allowing the new actor to perform more smoothly.
“Oh my goodness! What happened here?”
Xu Ruixin looked anxious. “Dad, what’s wrong? Special Assistant Zhou, what are you staring for? Call the doctor quickly!”
Zhou Chengping smoothed Old Master Xie’s back while calling the family doctor.
Xu Ruixin hurriedly handed water to Old Master Xie, speaking with concern, “The child is ignorant. Dad, why are you getting angry with him? If the doctor knows, he’ll say you aren’t resting well and ruining your body again.”
Old Master Xie couldn’t vent his anger and pointed at Xie Shibai. “You must go see the Wang family’s child for me tomorrow!”
Xu Ruixin glanced back and forth between the two. She had overheard most of it outside just now. Calculating in her heart, she added fuel to the fire while acting as a peacemaker.
“Dad, drink some water to calm down first. Shibai is just a child who was a bit impulsive, marrying a man of unknown origin. It’s not a big deal; it’s not worth ruining your health over this.”
She looked at Zhou Chengping and asked, “Special Assistant Zhou, have you investigated Shibai’s marriage partner? Where is he from? What does he do?”
Zhou Chengping understood and said, “I only found a little. He might be a small celebrity.”
“Peers are good; the two will have common topics,” Xu Ruixin laughed dryly.
The two echoed each other, and soon the family doctor arrived. It was an old ailment that came with age for Old Master Xie; the doctor gave instructions while chiding him.
Xu Ruixin took the opportunity to go to Xie Shibai’s side. At first glance, she exclaimed, “Oh my, what happened to your face? Why is it bleeding?”
Xie Shibai took half a step back.
Xu Ruixin seemed not to notice the gap. First observing Xie Shibai’s face, she reached out without warning to grab his hand, her eyes full of concern. “Your hand is so cold, too. Were you frightened?”
Xie Shibai’s body stiffened imperceptibly for a few seconds. Dense pain rose in his arm, and his stomach felt as if it had been thrown into a washing machine, churning with malice and chill. He quickly withdrew his hand, distancing himself from her.
Xu Ruixin’s hand hung awkwardly in mid-air. She changed her tune with a smile. “By the way, how is your illness? No relapse, right? Your father has been talking about this matter these past few days.”
Xie Shibai’s gaze was cold. “No need for you to worry.”
Xu Ruixin said, “Your grandfather is in a fit of anger right now. Why don’t you go back first and talk properly after he calms down in two days? I’ll test the waters for you then and send you a message when it’s okay for you to come over. Your grandfather’s health isn’t good to begin with; it would be bad if he got sick from anger.”
“When the time comes, call your marriage partner over, and we can have a meal together as a family.”
Xu Ruixin confidently guessed that the marriage partner Xie Shibai found must not be much, otherwise Zhou Chengping wouldn’t be vague.
She hid the mockery in her eyes, seemingly forgetting that Xie Shibai was an actor, and said charitably, “Even if he’s a small celebrity, don’t be embarrassed to bring him back. Our family isn’t that old-fashioned. As long as he doesn’t show his face in public as a star in the future, everything is negotiable.”
Xie Shibai suppressed the nausea in his stomach and asked back, “Is this Auntie Xu’s experience?”
How could Xu Ruixin not hear the sarcasm in Xie Shibai’s words? Her face sank instantly, and the smile on her face twitched as she struggled to maintain it for a few seconds.
When she met Xie Huacheng back then, she was also a small celebrity, but she retired early. She thought that with Xie Shibai’s mother, Ming Yu, as a precedent, Old Master Xie’s attitude toward the entertainment industry wouldn’t be so opposed. Who knew that Old Master Xie, citing public exposure as the reason, wouldn’t relent at all, abruptly making her a joke for over a decade.
Especially later, when Old Master Xie agreed to let Xie Shibai go into the entertainment industry, it was as if he were telling everyone in the circle that she was unwelcome.
Xu Ruixin gritted her teeth.
Double-standard old thing.
Xie Shibai’s eyes under his long lashes were cold. Looking down from above, he had long seen through Xu Ruixin’s character. “This kind of experience isn’t needed, after all, it’s useless.”
Xu Ruixin was poked in a sore spot, but remembering to leave a good impression in front of Old Master Xie, she forced a smile. “Look at what you’re saying.”
The study was noisy. Xie Shibai had no intention of staying longer. Before turning to leave, as if remembering something, he reminded her, “If you have time, you might as well care more about Xie Lingxi.”
Xie Lingxi was Xie Shibai’s half-brother, only a few years younger than him.
Xu Ruixin had a bad premonition. “What do you mean?”
Xie Shibai stopped there, leaving Xu Ruixin with a rising anxiety in her heart. She called Xie Lingxi, but he didn’t answer for a long time.
Old Master Xie was angry, and Xu Ruixin couldn’t leave for a while. She still remembered what she had to do while enduring humiliation. At the same time, she was faintly uneasy and couldn’t concentrate on her tasks. clumsily, she didn’t even have time to adjust the water temperature of the tea, and the scalding hot water almost sent Old Master Xie away.
Old Master Xie couldn’t catch his breath and coughed. “Do you want to scald me to death?”
Xu Ruixin froze, hurriedly pouring a cup of cold water to remedy the situation.
Old Master Xie had suffered twists and turns all night and was mentally exhausted. He waved his hand for her to get out quickly.
Inside the car, Xie Shibai took out disinfecting alcohol and sprayed a lot on his hands.
Scrubbing, repeating the motion, until his knuckles were rubbed red and the skin broke. The alcohol seeped into the wounds, stinging painfully.
He was in no state to drive, so he could only park the car on the roadside and switch to the passenger seat to wait for his assistant to arrive.
After waiting not long, a taxi stopped in the opposite lane, and the little assistant ran down from the car in a hurry.
Assistant Lin transferred money to the taxi driver and then ran over to knock on the car window, a thin layer of sweat still on his forehead.
He sat in the driver’s seat, skillfully fastened his seatbelt, panted twice, and chattered, “Just now on the road, there was a reckless driver who ran a red light. It scared the taxi driver quite a bit; he stopped by the road to calm down for several minutes before starting again.”
“By the way, brother, did you eat dinner?” Little Assistant Lin turned his head to look for a few seconds and sharply spotted the wound on Xie Shibai’s face. He let out a cry.
“Brother, what happened to your face? Which bastard did this? Tell me, I’ll go kill him!”
Xie Shibai said calmly, “My grandfather.”
Assistant Lin knew he couldn’t win, so he behaved himself. After being quiet as a chicken for a few seconds, he whispered, “Then I’ll use my newly learned divination to curse him.”
Xie Shibai listened quietly to Assistant Lin’s words. The discomfort in his body made his temples throb with swelling pain.
Assistant Lin noticed Xie Shibai’s complexion wasn’t good and asked, “Brother, does your stomach hurt again?”
Xie Shibai: “It’s okay.”
Assistant Lin gripped the steering wheel tightly, instantly guessing it. He said indignantly, “I knew nothing good happens whenever we come here. Those bastards, I’ll use divination to curse them with constipation for a year!”
Xie Shibai: “…Drive properly.”
“Okay brother, don’t worry.” Assistant Lin was a chatterbox. While driving, he chattered on, also harboring the intention of distracting Xie Shibai. “By the way, Brother Xie, you didn’t see me killing it on the internet last night. None of Lu Dog’s fans could fight; their most important task at this stage is kindergarten-to-primary transition.”
“But I heard a rumor that a very popular male star seems to have gotten his marriage certificate today. Any more news was bought out, so I don’t know who did such a career-ending thing. I’ll go back and curse it to be Lu Dog. Better get photographed quickly and let him collapse!”
Xie Shibai’s attention was diverted by Assistant Lin’s words.
Assistant Lin pursed his lips and continued to gossip, “Then again, with Lu Dog’s personality, who with bad eyesight would take a fancy to him and marry him? Tsk tsk tsk.”
The actual person who got the certificate with Lu Ciheng, Xie Shibai: …
He thought of the marriage certificate in the back seat and silently hid the hand wearing the ring. The plain platinum band felt a bit hot.
“You don’t have to talk so much.”
Assistant Lin thought Xie Shibai wasn’t feeling well and wanted a quiet environment. He immediately made a zipping motion over his mouth. “Alright, I understand. Brother, if you’re uncomfortable, sleep first. Little Lin Express, mission guaranteed.”
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