Chapter 83: Hunter and Prey
[LMAO, Lu-gou really can’t stay serious for even a second.]
[I thought the familiar cool guy was back, but he crumbled the moment he got in front of Xie-laoshi.]
[Lu-gou truly deserves the title of the entertainment industry’s number one ‘simp.’]
[He’s not a simp in the traditional sense, though. Lu-gou actually manages to get what he wants from Xie-laoshi.]
[Not only does he get it, he hypes it up too.]
[Who would’ve thought? When the show was announced, everyone thought he was just a desperate chaser. Now that it’s airing, Lu-gou is the one winning everything.]
[Not to rain on the parade, but they might announce their breakup as soon as the show ends. They don’t look like they’re dating at all.]
[Our CP are a married couple; of course it doesn’t look like they’re just ‘dating’ anymore, duh.]
“Is Xie-laoshi tired of holding him? Let me take over.” Lu Ciheng stared at the small dog lying comfortably in Xie Shibai’s arms with a look of dissatisfaction. As a human-sized Beagle, he couldn’t stand seeing another dog—even a real one—be more comfortable than him when he didn’t have the chance.
Xie Shibai shook his head. “No need.”
The little puppy, Tudou, lay lazily in Xie Shibai’s arms, with a small fan blowing cool air onto its belly.
Xie Shibai adjusted his hold to cover the puppy’s belly.
Lu Ciheng’s frustration grew as he watched for a few more seconds. He reached out and poked the puppy’s head. “Lu Biao is so fat; your arms are going to lose strength, Xie-laoshi.”
Xie Shibai gave him a dry look. By now, he knew exactly what Lu Ciheng meant the moment he opened his mouth. He said coldly, “Xie Biao, you’re very noisy. Be quiet.”
The livestream chat froze for a few seconds before exploding into a frenzy.
[Xie Biao?!]
[Hahahahaha, what kind of pet name is this?!]
[Just hearing the surname ‘Xie’ attached to him must be making Lu-gou ecstatic.]
[How is this any different from a owner marking their territory?!]
[I’m already tired of saying how lucky Lu-gou is.]
Just as the chat predicted, simply being given the surname ‘Xie’ made Lu Ciheng light up with excitement. He stood by Xie Shibai’s side with a grin, staying unusually quiet.
Although the production team had arranged an ‘Economy Tour,’ boarding the ship was still quite fast. The ship itself was expensive, and tickets were limited. Even an economy trip on this vessel was far better than a luxury tour on a standard ship.
Tudou had been excited since they boarded. Even though it was on a leash, the little thing—on its first-ever boat trip—bounced around the deck with boundless energy.
A staff member on board smiled warmly and reminded them, “Don’t let him run around alone. There’s an area near the stern where the railings are quite low. This little guy might tumble overboard. There will be safety manuals provided later; please make sure to read them carefully.”
The other groups acknowledged the warning one after another.
Xie Shibai stood at the end of the line. The hand holding Tudou’s leash paused for a moment. His gaze flickered behind him; at the second-floor railing, a dark figure had flashed by.
His hand tightened slightly. That figure felt strangely familiar.
Lu Ciheng, looking down at Xie Shibai, noticed his unease immediately. He asked with concern, “What’s wrong?”
Xie Shibai shook his head. “Nothing.”
Lu Ciheng’s dark eyes followed Xie Shibai’s gaze, but there was no one there. His brow furrowed imperceptibly, a seed of doubt planted in his heart.
They didn’t stay on the deck for long and headed to their assigned rooms according to their tickets.
Everyone was on the same floor. Along with the production crew, it felt as though they had booked the entire level.
Safety manuals were placed in every room. Initially, when the crew mentioned an ‘Economy Tour,’ neither the guests nor the netizens expected much. However, when they opened the door after moving their luggage, the space was surprisingly large.
It was a sea-view room with large floor-to-ceiling windows and a private balcony, offering a perfect view of the ocean. Opening the window allowed the scent of the sea breeze to waft inside.
As soon as the luggage was down, the ‘evil Beagle’ Lu Ciheng immediately banished the ‘fat little round dog’ he had been glaring at to its newly prepared bed.
He ignored Tudou’s protesting whines with absolute tyranny.
Xie Shibai was busy dealing with the ship’s internet connection. He didn’t even look up, having grown accustomed to the bickering between the two ‘dogs.’
After exiling the puppy, Lu Ciheng prioritized finding the indoor slippers they usually wore from the luggage. His gaze swept over Xie Shibai’s focused face. Without making a sound to disturb him, he knelt on one knee before Xie Shibai. He grasped Xie Shibai’s pale ankle, slipped off the disposable hotel slipper, and helped him into the new one.
The netizens in the livestream went wild at this sight.
[Is he proposing?!]
[Propose for what? They’re already married.]
[The marriage certificate was probably fake; they’re likely not actually married.]
[How dare he take the chance to touch Xie-laoshi’s foot! Lu-gou is truly a dog.]
[Oh, he’s just putting on slippers.]
[Kneeling on one knee to put shoes on his wife… Lu-gou really knows what he’s doing.]
Xie Shibai froze for a second, his attention snapping back to Lu Ciheng. He instinctively tried to pull his foot back. “What are you doing?”
Lu Ciheng’s large palm tightened around Xie Shibai’s ankle. Against his hand, the pale ankle looked exceptionally slender. He looked up, his eyes filled with a look of utter innocence. “I haven’t finished yet. Don’t move.”
With his ankle held captive, Xie Shibai could feel the high temperature from Lu Ciheng’s hand transferring heat to his skin. He couldn’t pull away, so he had to let Lu Ciheng hold him while changing his slippers.
One slipper took ages to put on.
Xie Shibai endured it for a few minutes before snapping, “Let go. I’ll put them on myself.”
Lu Ciheng looked up, his thumb grazing Xie Shibai’s toes. He said innocently, “Almost done.”
Xie Shibai: “…”
Losing his patience, he raised his foot and kicked Lu Ciheng squarely in the shoulder, shoving him away with force. “Get lost.”
[One slipper took that long? You really are something, Lu-gou.]
[He’s such a dog.]
[If I didn’t know better, I’d think those shoes had a hundred laces. It was just a slipper! Lu-gou’s schemes are too obvious, LMAO.]
[Lu-gou: Yes, I just wanted to touch my wife’s foot.]
[That kick… Lu-gou definitely enjoyed it.]
[I suspect Lu-gou did it on purpose. Being that shameless just to get hit by Xie-laoshi.]
Lu Ciheng behaved a bit more after being kicked, but not entirely. He caught the foot Xie Shibai had used to kick his shoulder, gripping the ankle and lamenting the other slipper that hadn’t been put on yet. He tried to negotiate for himself, “Xie-laoshi, the other foot isn’t on yet.”
Just then, a knock sounded at the door. Su Xingran’s voice drifted in, “Xie-ge, are you in there?”
Xie Shibai kicked Lu Ciheng again, signaling him to open the door.
Lu Ciheng stood up reluctantly, his mind still lingering on wanting to touch the other foot.
Su Xingran wasn’t the only one visiting; Li Lechi was there too. Both of them were looking for Xie Shibai.
Lu Ciheng leaned against the door with his arms crossed, staring at the two of them with an unfriendly gaze.
The two ‘Chihuahuas’ remained unfazed, not even sparing the Beagle a glance as they gathered around Tudou’s bed, making cooing noises.
Xie Shibai asked, “What is it?”
Su Xingran noticed the faint red mark on Xie Shibai’s ankle. The mark was light, but it stood out vividly against his pale skin. With just one look, Su Xingran’s face began to heat up.
Li Lechi noticed it too and stared at the ankle for a few seconds.
The next moment, both of them simultaneously felt a murderous gaze boring into their backs.
Li Lechi wanted nothing more than to make Lu Ciheng miserable. He kept staring on purpose, wanting to get his fill; if Lu Ciheng was unhappy, he was happy.
Su Xingran cursed inwardly but smiled. “Xie-ge, I just looked it up. People say there’s a restaurant on board that’s delicious and a great value. I asked Zhenzhen-jie and the others, and they all agreed to go. Do you and Senior Lu want to join?”
Xie Shibai gave a soft hum of agreement.
The others were waiting for them, so Xie Shibai and Lu Ciheng didn’t waste much time. They finished changing their shoes and left the room.
When they arrived at the restaurant, Xie Shibai felt that gaze on him again. When he turned his head, the sensation vanished instantly. Like a rat, it was hiding in a dark corner, peeking out.
Xie Shibai had already guessed who it was. A wave of irritation spread through his heart.
Lu Ciheng had been paying close attention to Xie Shibai’s mood. Taking everything in, his mind began to race with thought.
After dinner, Xie Shibai took advantage of a bathroom break to avoid the cameras and called Chen Qisheng to ask about the current situation of the Xie family.
Chen Qisheng reported honestly, “Your grandfather is still in the hospital. I heard he collapsed suddenly and isn’t allowing visitors. Your father did exactly what we predicted and stepped into the trap again; it’ll be hard for him to climb out this time. However, your stepmother doesn’t seem to have made any moves lately. She’s being very quiet.”
Xie Shibai lowered his gaze.
Silence was the biggest red flag.
When it came to money, Xu Ruixin was no fool. With the Xie family in sudden turmoil, she wouldn’t just sit quietly and wait. She would be plotting to maximize the benefits for Xie Lingxi.
And Xie Lingxi was still burdened with the debts left over from his failed business gambles.
The current Xie family was being torn apart by internal fighting. The profitable industries had already been snatched away, and most of the ‘pension insurance’ was still held by the old man. Those remaining were all incompetent. She wouldn’t sit and wait for death; if she wanted to make a comeback, she had to seize what was left.
And to get those, she had to bypass two people.
Xie Shibai and Old Man Xie.
After the car accident and the blow of bankruptcy, Old Man Xie was no longer what he used to be. Even if he passed away, there was still Xie Shibai.
Therefore, the optimal solution was to eliminate Xie Shibai. Just like the orchestrated car accident before, an ‘accident’ would ensure Xie Shibai ended up like the old man—either not long for this world or dead on the spot to end all future troubles.
During the previous investigation, they found that Ye Yingpu and Xu Ruixin were in contact.
He hadn’t expected that in a time like this, Xu Ruixin would choose Ye Yingpu to be her executioner.
International waters, a cruise ship… it was indeed a perfect place to end all troubles permanently.
Xie Shibai actually felt like thanking her.
She had handed him such a perfect opportunity.
Xie Shibai gazed at the sea outside the window, a hard-to-detect madness hidden deep within his calm eyes.
Perhaps it was his true nature, or perhaps it was the resistance and struggle the eight-year-old boy had kept hidden all this time. Beneath the calm surface of the sea, there were always turbulent waves.
After hanging up, Xie Shibai went to the washroom to rinse his hands. The cold water made his mind even clearer. He dried his hands and, as he left, he calmly brushed past Ye Yingpu, who was wearing a mask and hat and thought he was well-hidden.
The arrogant hunter thought himself the master, unaware that he was actually the prey being watched.
On the way back to the room, Lu Ciheng looked at Xie Shibai, his brow furrowing slightly. He had a vague, uneasy intuition.
When it came to Xie Shibai, his intuition was always spot on.
Translator’s Note:
- Xie Biao vs. Lu Biao: The name “Biao” (彪) suggests something fierce or tough, but it’s often used as a slightly silly or “country” sounding name for pets. By calling Lu Ciheng “Xie Biao,” Xie Shibai is teasingly claiming him as his own “dog” with a silly name, much to Lu Ciheng’s secret delight.
- CP: Stands for “Couple Pairing,” a common term in fandoms for a romantic duo.
- XQL: Short for “Xiao Qi Lu” (小两口), meaning “young couple” or “husband and wife.”
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