HTI: Chapter 116

After the party, Elder Tao went to the suite on the next floor to rest. Tao Yang took Qiu Xing and Xie Yang down the stairs to the door of the suite. He opened the door with the key card and invited the two people inside.

“Grandfather is in the study on the right. Chairman Qiu, please feel free.”

Qiu Xing didn’t move. He glanced sideways at Xie Yang and frowned.

Xie Yang patted Qiu Xing on the shoulder. “Go, I will be fine.”

Qiu Xing glanced at Tao Yang with a bit of irritation but didn’t say anything. He leaned in and kissed Xie Yang’s forehead. “I will come out soon.”

Xie Yang nodded.

Tao Yang politely lowered his eyes and stood aside. After the two people finished their exchange, he raised his eyes again and walked with Qiu Xing to the door of the study, helping Qiu Xing open the door.

Once Qiu Xing entered the study, the nurse who took care of Elder Tao came out of the study. Tao Yang sent him away and turned to Xie Yang. “Can we chat here?”

Xie Yang also didn’t want to be too far away from Qiu Xing and nodded. The two of them sat on the sofa. Tao Yang reached out to make scented tea with the tea set on the coffee table and asked, “What does Vice-chairman Xie want to say?”

“It depends on what Senior Tao wants to do.”

Tao Yang smiled with a gentle and kind look. “Vice-chairman Xie, I don’t understand what you mean. I vaguely feel that Vice-chairman Xie is a bit hostile to me but I don’t know where this hostility comes from. Did I do something to offend you?”

Xie Yang returned Tao Yang’s words. “I vaguely feel that Senior Tao is malicious to me but I don’t know where this maliciousness comes from. Is it because I got too deeply involved in the Qiu family and hindered Senior Tao?”

The little kettle on the coffee table made a whistle as the water boiled.

Tao Yang and Xie Yang looked at each other. After a few seconds, Tao Yang retracted his gaze, picked up the kettle and slowly poured the tea into the delicate glass teapot while replying, “Vice-chairman Xie, you seem to have a misunderstanding of me. I just returned to China. I don’t know much about the domestic situation and might’ve ignored some things when speaking. If I accidentally offended you then I’ll apologize first. However, I promise that it was unintentional. The age difference between you and me isn’t big and we are both in the entertainment industry. I hope to have a good relationship with you.”

The smell of flower tea emerged. It was as described in the original novel. Tao Yang was indeed very polite and humble.

Xie Yang smiled. “There are so many things that you didn’t intend. In fact, I have always wanted to ask Senior something.”

“What does Vice-chairman Xie want to ask?”

“Senior said that you went to the graduation ceremony for a family member. Is your family member in the same year as me? Did he participate in today’s birthday party? If so, I wonder if it is convenient for Senior to introduce him to me?”

Tao Yang wiped the table with a tissue he picked up and poured a glass of scented tea. He gave it to Xie Yang and regretfully replied, “My distant cousin didn’t come to the birthday party today. The next time I get the opportunity, I will definitely introduce him to you.”

“I see.” Xie Yang changed his sitting position and leaned slightly closer to Tao Yang. “Three years ago, Qiu Xing stayed abroad for a period of time because of a project. In the same year, you went abroad to study fashion design and your teacher happened to be one of the designers for Qiu Xing. A year and a half ago, Qiu Xing returned to China and started flying all over the country and abroad. In the same year, you created your clothing brand and started flying back home and abroad to investigate the market.”

Tao Yang’s expression slowly changed as he watched Xie Yang. Xie Yang stared directly into Tao Yang’s eyes and smiled. “Are these things all a coincidence?”

“…Of course.” Tao Yang also poured himself a cup of tea and took a sip. “If you hadn’t told me then I really wouldn’t have known that my teacher is Chairman Qiu’s designer.”

“It won’t be for long.” Xie Yang leaned back. “A year ago, Qiu Xing and I obtained our marriage certificate.”

Tao Yang’s hand holding the cup shook and the tea splashed a bit.

Xie Yang raised his eyebrow. “Senior Tao, I might misunderstand your reaction.”

Tao Yang controlled his expression, put down his tea cup and pulled out a tissue to wipe the liquid on his hands. “Sorry, I was too shocked. You and Chairman Qiu… have already obtained the certificate?”

“Naturally we’ve obtained it. Otherwise, Qiu Xing’s will wouldn’t be so easy to make. Senior, do you want to guess what I will do with Rongding if Qiu Xing fails in his treatment?”

Tao Yang lowered his head to throw away the tissue, his tone slightly harder than before. “I can’t guess this. However, is it good for Vice-chairman Xie to say this? I think Chairman Qiu’s body is pretty good. In addition, I know that chairman Qiu actually cares for his nephew. Rongding might not enter your hands.”

He finally exposed his tail.

“Senior is right. Rongding really won’t enter my hands. If Qiu Xing survives then Rongding will belong to him. If Qiu Xing dies then it doesn’t matter if I donate it or close it. I will guarantee that Rongding will never again belong to a second person. As for Feng Qinglin, it seems that Senior doesn’t know much about domestic affairs. Don’t you know that Qiu Xing and Feng Qinglin have completely fallen out?”

Tao Yang raised his eyes to look at Xie Yang.

Xie Yang watched Tao Yang and continued, “Senior, I am cautious when it sounds good and suspicious when it sounds bad. I will repeatedly scrutinize the words and deeds of anyone who enters my life circle and guess their purpose and motive. Then I will examine all the unusual things that have happened around me since they appeared in my life and exclude things one by one. For example, the sudden leak of my itinerary a few days ago and the pursuit of the selfish fans. I have already sent people to investigate the matter.”

These words of testing and hitting were clearly telling Tao Yang, ‘I have discovered that you aren’t honest. I’m investigating and vigilant towards you. I’m not fooled and you better not have bad ideas about me.’

Any smart person with intelligence and their own interests would know it was time to put away his paws after receiving this beating. Tao Yang’s psychological quality was really good and he could actually hold steady at this time. “Vice-chairman Xie is doubting me?”

The hook was too straight but Xie Yang naturally couldn’t follow.

“Of course not. Senior Tao, did you do anything that would make people doubt you?”

“There is naturally nothing.”

“Then why should I doubt Senior? It is just like Senior said. You and I aren’t that different in age and we have similar backgrounds in the entertainment industry. If possible, I hope to have a good relationship with you.”

Tao Yang looked at Xie Yang.

Xie Yang smiled kindly.

“……”

Tao Yang took back his gaze, refilled his tea and took a sip. “Does Chairman Qiu know that Vice-chairman Xie is so… sensitive and thoughtful?”

He still hadn’t given up.

Xie Yang raised his eyebrow. “It is my sensitivity and thoughtfulness that he likes. It isn’t just that. He also likes my ruthlessness, my pettiness, my revenges and my retribution.”

Tao Yang was sluggish for a moment before shaking his head and smiling. “Vice-chairman Xie must be joking.”

“I’m not joking. It is like the saying ‘birds of a feather flock together’. A stingy and vengeful person like Qiu Xing is only worthy of being with me so we can torture each other.”

Tao Yang stopped smiling and his voice was stiff again. “Vice-chairman Xie, the Chairman Qiu you speak of seems somewhat different from what I know.”

“It is normal. Qiu Xing has the burden of an elder. Every time he faces the younger generation, his attitude becomes milder and his tolerance is higher, even if he isn’t much older than the younger generation. He is very bad to his peers. If you provoke him then he will become angry and not care about who you are.”

Tao Yang once tried to stamp the relationship between Qiu Xing and Xie Yang as that of an elder and junior. Now Xie Yang turned it around and returned this relationship to Tao Yang. Tao Yang’s tone softened and his mouth twitched. “It seems that vice-chairman Xie has a lot of grievances against Chairman Qiu? Isn’t Chairman Qiu good to you?”

Xie Yang shook his head. “Qiu Xing is just bad to his peers. To his partner, he rarely makes mistakes. From the moment we got together, he has always put my feelings first and is very tolerant of me.”

Tao Yang suddenly put down his tea cup and stood up. “Sorry, I have to go to the bathroom.”

“Please feel free.”

Xie Yang watched Tao Yang leave and leaned against the sofa. He recalled Tao Yang’s various reactions just now and took out his phone to send a WeChat message to Qiu Xing.

Xie Yang: What did you do to provoke Tao Yang?

Previously he just had a vague feeling. Now he was certain that Tao Yang had a bit of an idea about Qiu Xing. Then why wasn’t it mentioned at all in the original book? In the original book, Tao Yang even became good friends with the heroine that Qiu Xing liked.

***

10 minutes later, Tao Yang returned. He had regained his gentle and polite appearance and pulled Xie Yang to talk about his daily life. It was as if the mutual testing from before had never happened. The Tao family was still useful to Qiu Xing so Xie Yang calmed down and chatted with Tao Yang.

Around 15 minutes later, Qiu Xing walked out of the study and the two of them stopped talking. There was a round of greetings and Qiu Xing and Xie Yang bid farewell. Then Tao Yang sent the two of them to the elevator.

As the elevator came up, Xie Yang deliberately stepped behind Qiu Xing and glanced at Tao Yang. “Senior Tao, there is something I forgot to tell you.”

Tao Yang wondered, “What’s the matter?”

“In order to avoid unnecessary misunderstandings, every time I chat with Senior, I share the content of our conversations with Qiu Xing. This time is no exception. I hope Senior doesn’t mind.”

‘In other words, I will analyze your careful thinking to Qiu Xing.’

Tao Yang’s expression changed sharply.

Xie Yang smiled. “Also, I am the type of person to bear grudges.” After speaking, he stepped into the elevator beside Qiu Xing and pressed the close button.

***

Back in the car, Qiu Xing immediately explained, “I didn’t provoke Tao Yang.”

Xie Yang squinted at Qiu Xing. “What are you nervous about? Did I say something?”

Qiu Xing rubbed Xie Yang’s head. “Don’t make this expression.”

“Overbearing.” Xie Yang wasn’t frightened of Qiu Xing and looked at him sideways. “What did you talk about with Elder Tao?”

“He asked me if I wanted to help Qinglin reach the top. If I wanted it, he could help me. Then he asked me to help the Tao family after the matter is over and let Tao Yi and her children go.”

“How did you answer?”

Qiu Xing rubbed Xie Yang’s face and replied, “I told him that I won’t intervene in any matter in the Feng family. I suggested that if he wants to get rid of the current situation of being tied up with the Feng family, he should talk to Feng Qinglin for cooperation. I can only guarantee that if he doesn’t harm Feng Qinglin, I won’t move against the Tao family.”

“How did Elder Tao react?”

“He is a wise man.” Qiu Xing put down his hand and sat upright. He grabbed Xie Yang’s hand and placed it in his lap, gently kneading it. “The Feng family should become messed up.”

***

The day after the birthday party, Qin Cheng reported the results of his investigation to Xie Yang.

“The identity of the scalper has been checked. There is nothing suspicious. He was hired by an obsessive fan and it isn’t information that he sold. The Weibo account that revealed your itinerary deleted the post shortly after you called the police. The Weibo account was also cancelled and the source couldn’t be found. I checked the photos of the dinner encounter that was sent to Weibo but couldn’t find anything special. In short, nothing was gained.”

Xie Yang asked, “What about the fans who started it?”

“I’ve discovered a few things. The fans who drove the rhythm are still in the group. They are very active and their accounts are okay. The only thing suspicious is that they all happened to join the group in October or November last year. Xie Yang, can I ask what you want to check?”

From October to November was the time when Qiu Xing started customizing clothes for him in bulk. Xie Yang considered it for a moment before telling Qin Cheng about his doubts. Qin Cheng’s tone immediately became cautious. “I understand. I will set all your schedules to be encrypted in the future and will shift through the large fan groups again.”

“It is hard on you.”

“It’s fine. It is always better to be careful. By the way, the magazine cover you’ve shot will be on sale tomorrow. Remember to go on Weibo to promote it. Or do you want me to help you promote it?”

“It’s fine. I can do it myself.”

At 8 o’clock in the evening, the official Weibo of the V Group released a preview of this month’s issue while @Xie Yang and sent out nine photos in a row.

In those nine photos, Xie Yang wore a total of three sets of clothing. There was a grey-toned dark purple retro suit, a red devil-style tuxedo and a black and white silk shirt with black pants. There were three sets of clothing and three different styles. The purple suit was elegant and restrained, the red tuxedo was wicked and the black and white silk shirt was cool.

Xie Yang remembered to go on Weibo to promote the magazine at 8:30 and the preview post by the V group was sent to the top by excited fans.

To Xie Yang’s surprise, among the three styles, the most popular one with fans was the last shirt with contrasting colours. Among them, the photo of him lying on a dark velvet bed in this shirt received the most praise. The fundamental reason was…

Xie Yang looked at the first hot comment.

Setting Sail: Fu*k! Fu*k! Sisters, look at the eighth photo! Yang Yang is lying down and he has a mole on his waist! It is also red! What desire! I can do it!”

The door was suddenly pushed open loudly. Qiu Xing, who said he was going to the study to deal with official duties after dinner, stood at the door of the room with a dark face and his mobile phone in his hand. “What photos did you take… I haven’t seen your mole with my own eyes yet!”

Xie Yang, “……”

It was over. The vinegar jar was turned over.

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Proofreader: Paranoid Kitten