Bai Jin’s throat tightened at the retort, and he was completely speechless. He could only glare blankly as Chi Anyu left.
Butler Ling continued whispering in Chi Anyu’s ear, just loud enough for Bai Jin to hear. “Young Master, stay away from people like this in the future. They might use some underhanded tricks behind your back.”
Taking advantage of this time, he had to hurry and get the young master over here.
System 07 was practically laughing itself to death.
Under the bewildered and shocked gazes of the servants, Bai Jin went back, washed up with a sullen face, changed into a fresh set of clothes, and came out again. When he went downstairs, he looked through the second-floor window and immediately saw Chi Anyu sitting in the backyard pavilion with one leg crossed over the other, playing a game, while Xie Junyi sat beside him.
Xie Junyi patiently peeled a grape and fed it to Chi Anyu’s mouth. After Chi Anyu ate it, Xie Junyi held out his palm in front of him until Chi Anyu spat out the grape seed, then withdrew his hand.
Bai Jin stared at the scene with jealousy and hatred burning in his eyes. Why was Chi Anyu so lucky? Wasn’t it just because he had been born into a good family? A second-generation rich kid who only knew how to eat, drink, and play around… how could he compare to himself? And yet people still gathered around him.
Xie Junyi noticed the gaze from the second floor. He lifted his thin eyelids and looked sideways, carrying a sharp killing intent.
Bai Jin immediately pulled back his gaze and hid to the side.
As for Xie Junyi, thinking of that night, Bai Jin still felt a little wary of him deep down.
When he saw that the figure at the second-floor window was gone, Xie Junyi relaxed his expression. Only then did he look back at Chi Anyu and say in a calm voice, “This morning… I didn’t mean it that way. I was just worried about you being alone.”
Chi Anyu was completely absorbed in the game and gave a perfunctory reply. “I know, I know. I’m playing a game. Don’t bother me.”
Xie Junyi’s gaze sank completely. From an angle Chi Anyu could not see, those pitch-black eyes held not the slightest trace of light… heavy and dark. A sickly, gloomy smile tugged at the side of his handsome face.
“I’m thirsty. Feed me some water.” Chi Anyu manipulated the buttons on the screen with his fingertips, not even lifting his eyelids, commanding people as if it were perfectly natural.
Xie Junyi lowered his eyes, poured water into the cup, and held it to Chi Anyu’s lips. His eyes were fixed intently on the rolling Adam’s apple and the water stains left at the corners of those lips.
After Chi Anyu finished drinking, a little water remained in the cup. Xie Junyi’s gaze deepened. He pressed his lips to the spot Chi Anyu had drunk from and drank the remaining water in one gulp.
With one hand, Xie Junyi silently wrapped his arm around Chi Anyu’s waist. The distance between them suddenly closed, close enough to see each individual eyelash on Chi Anyu.
His lips were alluringly full, like a ripe peach.
Xie Junyi stared at him with longing in his eyes.
That water did not satisfy him at all. He wanted to kiss him again. It looked so easy to kiss.
“Don’t crowd me so closely. It’s hot.” Chi Anyu frowned and turned his head away.
System 07, always eager to watch the fun, said, “Host, just slap him across the face. He’ll behave after that.”
Chi Anyu rolled his eyes at the system, stood up, moved away from Xie Junyi, and sat somewhere else, never stopping his game.
Xie Junyi: “…”
Just as he was about to move closer and sit beside him, Butler Ling happened to send a message. Xie Junyi paused and opened the chat window.
“Young Master, I’ve already given instructions to the estate in advance.”
Xie Junyi replied with a single word: “Mm.”
…
The banquet was held at a top-tier estate.
Chi Anyu rarely changed into a custom-made formal suit, and he followed Father Chi into the estate unwillingly.
The brightly lit estate was filled with luxury and extravagance.
When Chi Anyu followed Father Chi into the first-floor banquet hall, he was already thinking about finding a chance to slip away. Chi Fei was shrewd and calculating. He naturally knew exactly what kind of son he had, so he had tightly grabbed Chi Anyu’s wrist in advance to prevent him from sneaking off.
Chi Anyu: “…”
“Behave yourself tonight.” Chi Fei warned in a low voice beside Chi Anyu’s ear.
“President Chi, long time no see.”
A voice as warm and polished as jade came over.
Qi Si held a goblet and walked over with a smile. As the host of today’s banquet, he was always attentive and courteous.
Chi Fei also quickly raised his glass and exchanged a few polite pleasantries.
“This must be Young Master Chi. He really is quite impressive.”
Chi Fei naturally knew that the other man was only being polite, so he smiled and responded in kind.
He brought Chi Anyu into the circle to socialize and discuss business. The Qi family’s banquet today was not only meant to expand business connections, but more importantly, the Qi family’s eldest young lady had already reached marriageable age.
Everyone present was sharp. In the wealthy elite circle, nothing mattered more than matching family status.
The reason Chi Fei brought Chi Anyu along was also deliberate. He only had this one son. He did not expect the Chi Family to flourish in Chi Anyu’s hands in the future, and even if his son was hopeless, he still had to find a way to pave the road ahead for him.
While Chi Fei was talking business with someone, Chi Anyu slipped away again.
He had barely found an unnoticed corner to sit down and was about to have a drink when a waiter came straight toward him carrying a glass.
The man leaned down and smiled slightly. “Young Master Chi, try this fruit wine. It tastes very good, and the alcohol content is a little lower, so it’s less likely to get you drunk.”
Chi Anyu: ???
“Let me bring you some pastries as well. They’re all made by top-tier pastry chefs, with blueberry and mango flavors you like. They should suit your taste.”
Chi Anyu asked the system, “Are the waitstaff here really this attentive? They even know what I like.”
System 07 clicked its tongue. “Get used to your current life as a young master. This is at least an estate. The waitstaff here are definitely professionals.”
However, Chi Anyu soon realized something was wrong. In the hall, some of the waitstaff would occasionally glance his way while working, and they always seemed to anticipate what he wanted in advance.
He felt something was off, so he stood up and left the hall.
The estate was huge. Outside the main residence were guest villas and leisure and entertainment areas. The place was nestled among mountains and water, and quite a few people had gathered outside, chatting and laughing.
“Did you see that in the hall just now? The young master of the Chi Family came too. The Chi Family has been making waves in the business world lately. It’s hard on Chi Fei, working so hard. Who knows whether his son will even be able to hold on to the family fortune in the future.”
“Chi Anyu has a reputation for being arrogant and overbearing. Chi Fei probably can’t count on this son at all.”
Hearing people talking about him, Chi Anyu immediately perked up his ears, afraid of missing any gossip.
“The Qi family and the Xie family must have a pretty deep relationship, right? Isn’t this top-tier estate under the Xie family’s name? The Qi family borrowed it to hold the banquet, and the Xie family actually agreed.”
Someone quickly cut in, “Could it be that the Qi family wants to arrange a marriage alliance with the Xie family? But hasn’t that heir apparent of the Xie family been missing for six years? I heard he’s still unaccounted for and nobody knows what he looks like.”
“These two families aren’t even on the same level. The Xie family has at least a century of heritage; they’re a wealthy aristocratic family. How could they possibly look twice at the Qi family? I think the Qi family just has some connection with Old Madam Xie.”