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Chapter 68: A Kiss in Exchange for a Slap
“What did you call it just now?” Xie Shibai asked.
Lu Ciheng paused. “Bobby, ah.”
Xie Shibai raised his eyes and looked at Lu Ciheng indifferently. “Oh, that Biao?”
“Woo wang woo wang woo wang!”
The Potato Puppy ran to Xie Shibai’s feet, rubbing against his leg and emitting hysterical complaints. The aggrieved woo-ow sounds seemed like it was tattling.
Lu Ciheng: “……”
Fine, not only can it eat, but it can also tattle.
He leaned in with a smile. “What Biao? Teacher Xie, you heard wrong.”
Xie Shibai took a half-step back, looking at Lu Ciheng with a smile that wasn’t a smile.
Lu Ciheng said honestly, “Biao, the Biao as in fat (fat biao).”
Xie Shibai raised an eyebrow slightly and glanced at the Potato Puppy. “Then from today on, you’ll be called Lu Biao.”
“Woo wang!” Karma!
The Potato Puppy, now having someone to back it up, puffed out its chest and raised its head. Its snout pointed to the sky, its expression somewhat similar to a beagle showing off.
Lu Ciheng, the happy recipient of a new name, coughed lightly and asked, “Is being called Xie Biao okay?”
Xie Shibai gave him a strange look, discovering that Lu Ciheng wasn’t joking, and actually felt pretty good about this name.
“……”
The Potato Puppy was also stunned, not understanding how some people could be more dog than a dog.
Xie Shibai’s lips parted slightly, his tone unhurried as he looked at Lu Ciheng who was leaning in. “Xie… Biao?”
Lu Ciheng went “Mn mn” twice, carrying out the matter of being a dog for Xie Shibai to the end. His eyes smiled like a puppy begging for pets as he pressed his face close, as if saying puppy is very good, please touch puppy.
Xie Shibai lowered his eyes and raised his hand to pat Lu Ciheng’s face, neither lightly nor heavily. “Not being human anymore?”
Lu Ciheng’s pitch-black eyes were bright, the corners of his lips hooked up, as if saying he is a puppy, he isn’t human, being a dog for Xie Shibai was a gain: “Mn, being a puppy for Teacher Xie.”
Xie Shibai had no interest in raising a puppy named Xie Biao; it sounded like he was some strange person.
“Aren’t you recording? Why did you come back?”
Lu Ciheng curved his lips. “Felt like Teacher Xie needed me very much, so I came back.”
Xie Shibai’s fingertips paused slightly. He stared at Lu Ciheng’s face for a few seconds. Such an answer was illusory, but the beating of his heart was solid. His heart beat rapidly thump-thump for a few seconds. This feeling was very subtle; his heart seemed filled for a moment. It wasn’t annoying; he was even somewhat attached to it.
Lu Ciheng was very well-informed. After Xie Shibai went to the hospital where Grandfather Xie was, Lu Ciheng took leave from the production team and came back.
It wasn’t hard to see that the source of Xie Shibai’s illness was the Xie family.
Xie Shibai looked at the puppy barking wang-ji at his feet, twisting its butt like a gas canister when viewed from above. He was silent for a few seconds. The word “Biao” (fat) wasn’t wrongly chosen.
But the puppy was just plump and roundly cute. Puppy good, human bad.
The Xie family was just as Xie Shibai expected. Although Grandfather Xie woke up, his health was much worse than before. The struggle for the inheritance position had long been surging with undercurrents.
Relying on Grandfather Xie being hospitalized, Xie Huacheng stretched his hand very long, as if determined to achieve some results in front of Grandfather Xie. Large-scale M&A investments, roping in many high-level executives holding shares, and repeatedly contacting Chen Qisheng in an attempt to get back Xie Lingxi’s share of the stocks.
The couple put all their effort into completely suppressing Xie Shibai.
Xie Huacheng appeared to have more advantages. He held the securities company and multiple branch companies. Meanwhile, since Grandfather Xie woke up, Xie Shibai didn’t have any substantial Xie family assets in his hands.
Externally, the outcome seemed to have no suspense. Even the hidden observers within the circle were paying attention to this battle for the heir position, some even secretly placing bets on who would become the new master of the Xie family.
In the upper circles, brothers fighting for inheritance until heads broke and blood flowed was common, but a father and son fighting was truly the first case.
And what Xie Huacheng worried about most was that the Lu family would step in to help Xie Shibai fight for real power. Although Xie Huacheng hadn’t seen it, rumors had long circulated within the circle. Xie Shibai’s marriage partner was the heir of the top-tier wealthy Lu family. The variety show heat was tumultuous; no one in the circle didn’t know. Grandfather Xie not giving Xie Shibai any real power since waking up was exactly this idea—attempting to suck the Lu family’s flesh and blood to save the crumbling Xie family.
Including the circulating rumor that Ye Yingpu ended up where he was today because he offended Xie Shibai, causing the Lu family to step in.
Yet Xie Shibai seemed to have admitted defeat from the start, quiet and silent. No Lu family, no help from Grandfather Xie. This was quietness with no intention of fighting for the inheritance position.
Xie Huacheng was initially worried Xie Shibai was pretending, maintaining vigilance and probing for a long time, until he discovered Xie Shibai really just simply had no thoughts, and was mostly too lazy to fight.
Xie Shibai not fighting didn’t mean the Xie family branch members wouldn’t divide the cake. Xie Huacheng raised his spirits to a hundred and twenty percent.
Every time, the outside of Grandfather Xie’s ward became a battlefield.
Xie Shibai arrived at the ward as usual, ignoring every hypocritical face. At this stage, he was investigating Grandfather Xie’s illness.
Outside the ward, Xie Huacheng lowered his voice. “Your grandfather painstakingly raised you as an heir since childhood until now, and you aren’t fighting at all?”
Xie Shibai looked at him indifferently. “Father hopes very much that I fight?”
Xie Huacheng didn’t; he was just worried Xie Shibai was holding back something bad. Just as Xu Ruixin said, although Ye Yingpu’s class differed greatly from theirs, this person was very good at serving dishes based on the guest. Moreover, his wife’s father had high prestige; basically everyone would give him some face. But he didn’t expect such a Ye Yingpu to be completely buried by the Lu family with just a move of their hand, scandals of academic plutocrats flying everywhere.
If the Lu family didn’t help, Xie Huacheng would have a ninety percent chance.
Xie Huacheng: “Find time to think of a way to get your brother’s shares back! Look at the shady friends you made; they actually even scammed your brother!”
Xie Shibai swept a mocking glance at him. If not for Xie Lingxi’s own greed—insufficient heart trying to swallow an elephant—looking for a pie falling from the sky, how could he have lost that bit of equity?
Dozens of chances to repent, yet Xie Lingxi didn’t grasp a single one.
Stupid, just like Xie Huacheng who had one foot in the trap.
Xie Shibai withdrew from the center of the power struggle, sitting on the mountain to watch the tigers fight. He watched Xie Huacheng do anything to oppose the Xie family branch members, having long lost judgment under the blinding lust for profit.
Without Grandfather Xie pressing down on his head, Xie Huacheng controlled the decision-making power for M&A investments himself. People tasting power for the first time easily became addicted, stepping into a well-disguised trap with one foot.
During this period away from the show recording, Xie Shibai was busy enough that his feet didn’t touch the ground. Chen Qisheng’s business trip plan was urgently called off.
He practically lived at the company.
Chen Qisheng had dark circles under his eyes. “Boss, what exactly does your dad want to do? Kicking east then west, it’s tiring just watching.”
Xie Shibai opened a canned coffee, took a sip, and frowned. His taste had been spoiled; coffee not brewed by Lu Ciheng was hard to swallow. But for several consecutive days, he could only rely on convenience store canned coffee to alleviate the anxiety of caffeine addiction.
Xie Shibai leaned against the back of the chair, twirling a pen in his fingers. “Wants to build cars, wants to expand the business map to squeeze into the new energy market. Also greedy; just acquired Huayang and wants to fight for the development of the new district technology park. Also wants to grasp hardware again to achieve self-sufficiency.”
Chen Qisheng watched tiredly, but understood a principle: biting off more than one can chew. “From the perspective of sustainable development prospects, the path is actually correct. But the cost is high and the return is slow and low; this is destined to be a path of no return. With so many car factories running away, consumers won’t trust emerging new energy products anymore. Feel like we don’t even need to do anything; he’ll play himself to death.”
Xie Shibai stared at the screen for a while, twirling his pen. “Who says otherwise.”
He just had to do nothing, and Xie Huacheng would walk towards destruction himself.
Xie Shibai didn’t want to let them off so easily.
He wanted to watch the Xie family ruin everything.
With a ding-dong, Xie Shibai received a barrage of messages from Lu Ciheng.
[Noisy but Durable: Teacher Xie, come back quickly and manage Lu Biao]
Attached image: Puppy chewing a shoe.
Since the name reveal, Lu Ciheng had completely changed the Potato Puppy’s name to Lu Biao, and called it very cheerfully.
[Noisy but Durable: Teacher Xie Teacher Xie Teacher Xie]
[Noisy but Durable: Sigh, can a discarded husband like me still wait for Teacher Xie to turn my green head card (choose him for the night)?]
Xie Shibai’s lips hooked up slightly: [Cannot.]
The next second, the chat box sent a lot of emojis made from photos of the puppy Bobby, except the uploaded name was Lu Biao, directly reducing the desire to use them.
Chen Qisheng tsk-tsked a few times, looking at Xie Shibai. “No wonder my sister said you changed; it’s actually true. That marriage partner of yours?”
Xie Shibai: “……You love gossip very much?”
Chen Qisheng finally found a chance. “I’ve been working overtime, can’t I relax a little?”
Xie Shibai: “……”
He turned off his phone, turned around, and left, leaving Chen Qisheng to work overtime alone.
Chen Qisheng: “No, wait a minute! You’re not working overtime anymore?”
Xie Shibai swept him a glance indifferently. “Mn. I am just an employee. Boss, you do your best.”
Chen Qisheng: “……Who exactly is the boss between us?”
After the recording of the second phase ended, the production team prepared for the third phase non-stop. Because the third phase location was abroad, there was more preparatory work. After notifying all guests, they started the relevant procedure filings.
Xie Shibai sat on the sofa, recording the envelope-opening segment as requested by the production team. He took the card with the recording location information out of the envelope. After seeing the location clearly, surprise flashed across his expression.
It was the city where he got lost when traveling abroad with Ming Yu and Xie Huacheng as a child.
Lu Ciheng propped both hands on the back of the sofa Xie Shibai was leaning on. looking down at the recording location in Xie Shibai’s hand, surprise flashed across his expression before he chuckled lightly. “To think it’s actually here.”
Xie Shibai looked up. “You’ve been there?”
Lu Ciheng nodded. “I stayed there for a few years.”
Xie Shibai’s eyelashes drooped lightly.
He seemed to haven’t understood Lu Ciheng carefully.
“Teacher Xie.”
Xie Shibai’s jaw was held and lifted by fingers; lips pressed against a heat source.
Lu Ciheng stood behind the sofa. From top to bottom, his movement was natural and familiar as he lowered his head to kiss Xie Shibai. His low tone was slow: “Teacher Xie, give me a kiss.”
Xie Shibai’s eyes widened slightly. Catching a glimpse of the recording camera from the corner of his eye, he raised his hand and slapped it onto Lu Ciheng’s face with a pa. “I am recording!”
Lu Ciheng’s face solidly caught Xie Shibai’s slap. The tip of his tongue pressed against his cheek, feeling that this kiss was both refreshing and a gain. His black eyes shone as he glanced at the recording phone camera. The palm with protruding veins pinched Xie Shibai’s jaw and kissed him again. His low voice was muffled: “Crop it out later. Teacher Xie, we haven’t kissed yet today.”
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