By the time Shen Qingyi learned about the situation between Shen Qi and Lin Ruohuai, they had already turned into butterflies and flown away…
One cannot make phone calls on a helicopter, so Shen Qingyi had no choice but to message his brother.
Shen Qingyi: You just took him away like that does Xie Yusheng know? And you said before you wouldn’t hire another caregiver. What’s going on this time? Don’t bully people too much. Stop joking around; let Lin Ruohuai go once you get home.
Big Brother: He has no job; I am providing one. 300,000 a month, free room and board. He was the one who clung to me wanting to come along.
Shen Qingyi stared at these words, not recovering his senses for a long time:
“Why did Big Brother Shen leave on his own without taking you?” Zhou Gaoyi walked over, holding two glasses of wine.
Shen Qingyi looked at him in a daze. Zhou Gaoyi pointed toward the back: “That’s the Shen family helicopter, right? I didn’t see it wrong, did I?”
No, you didn’t see it wrong. That is my brother’s helicopter, and he’s even taken away Xie Yusheng’s boyfriend.
Shen Qingyi pursed his lips and spoke cautiously: “Gaoyi, if I gave you 300,000 a month, covered your food and housing, and kept you worry-free, what would you think? Would you want to follow me?”
Zhou Gaoyi’s eyes filled with terror. He hugged his own arms tightly with both hands in a self-protective stance: “I keep myself pure! I don’t accept being kept as a sugar baby!”
Shen Qingyi: “…”
You’re thinking too much.
Shen Qingyi sighed and looked out at the night sky, which had been washed clean, hoping that he was indeed the one thinking too much.
It was Lin Ruohuai’s first time on a helicopter; he was beyond excited. Looking down through the window, the night lights of the forest city were scattered like stars, making for a very spectacular view.
It was so beautiful that he accidentally spoke his true feelings: “I’ve grown up this much and have never even been on a plane.”
Assistant Lin smiled and picked up the conversation: “Mr. Lin must be joking. How could you have never been on a plane?”
Lin Ruohuai covered up his thoughts and shifted his seat. “What’s with you? Are you Mr. Shen’s assistant? How come I haven’t seen you these past two days?”
“I appear at the appropriate times and do not appear most of the time.” Assistant Lin’s answer was profound and mysterious.
Lin Ruohuai understood. So Shen Qi had intentionally told his own assistant not to show up just so he could order him around?
Was Shen Qi really that childish?
He was playing with him.
But he could give 300,000.
He was playing with him.
But there was 300,000.
Then let him play.
After his left and right brain wrestled for a few seconds, Lin Ruohuai came to his senses. He glanced at Shen Qi and found him resting with his eyes closed. Worried about disturbing him, Lin moved his butt again probably less than two centimeters when Shen Qi’s long eyelashes twitched, and he spoke in a deep voice: “Stop squirming. Are you planning to dance here?”
Lin Ruohuai stopped moving, becoming like a stiff piece of wood.
The helicopter was very fast. After passing over the city, it quickly moved away into a quiet, deep forest. In the distance, he could see well-arranged buildings hidden there.
As they descended, his body suddenly lost its center of gravity. Lin Ruohuai curled his toes tight until they landed safely. He was stunned by the several side buildings in front of him, his face full of disbelief.
He knew Shen Qi was rich, but he didn’t know he was this rich.
In his heart, his favorability toward Shen Qi shot up plus one, plus one, non-stop plus one.
In front of the buildings was a circular flowerbed with streetlights designed on both sides, making it as bright as day. However, when his gaze passed through the white light toward the dense forest behind, it was so dark it seemed bottomless quite intimidating.
Lin Ruohuai swallowed and gripped the wheelchair handles, slowly pushing Shen Qi inside. It wasn’t convenient for Assistant Lin to follow them in; he was getting off work. See you tomorrow.
Transportation here didn’t seem convenient. Lin Ruohuai frowned: “Assistant Lin, don’t you live here?”
Assistant Lin smiled, his eyes expressing a ‘Are you kidding me?’ look: “This is Mr. Shen’s place. As a subordinate, it’s not convenient for me to go in and out. I only enter for work reports. Most of the time, I work at the Group headquarters. This is my business card.”
Lin Ruohuai took it blankly. It read: Assistant to the Vice President of the Second Branch of the Shen Group.
Wow, so impressive!
Lin Ruohuai’s gaze toward him immediately became much more fervent, as if he had placed a filter of “knowledge,” “executive status,” and “wealthy person” over the man.
Sitting in the wheelchair, Shen Qi glanced back at him expressionlessly, his lips flat: “You will have one in the future too.”
Lin Ruohuai was flattered: “A—a President?”
“A business card.”
Well, that was fine too; better than nothing. Lin Ruohuai became happy again. “Thank you, Mr. Shen.”
Shen Qi curled his lips.
Assistant Lin drove away himself. There was a two-story underground garage here; he could pick any car this was a work benefit.
At this time, the heavy iron gates opened, and a butler wearing a tuxedo walked out slowly. His hair was graying, but he was high-spirited; he was the old butler of the estate.
His voice also had the flavor of experience. The old butler bowed slightly, his glasses chain dangling: “Young Master, welcome home.”
Lin Ruohuai hadn’t really felt a sense of groundedness, but as soon as the old butler spoke, a heavy sense of a prestigious family lineage washed over him.
The first floor was the lobby. He didn’t know how much electricity it took to turn this pitch-black place into something so bright. Lin Ruohuai was completely immersed in the artistry of the house, failing to notice Shen Qi’s displeasure at being ignored.
“Mr. Lin, won’t your boyfriend be angry if you just follow me away so abruptly without reporting in?”
Lin Ruohuai was about to blurt out ‘He can’t control me,’ but thinking of his persona, he became obedient: “Mhm, mhm, I should. I’ll tell him first, so he won’t get anxious if he can’t find me.”
Like hell. He was probably having so much fun with Shen Qingyi he wouldn’t know where to play, or maybe he was getting slapped somewhere again.
Lin Ruohuai found his “File Transfer” chat and sent himself a message: My god, Shen Qi’s is huge.
Only after typing did he realize he missed the word “house.”
Oh, it was fine; it wasn’t for anyone to see anyway.
Just as he turned his head, he found the butler had already pushed Shen Qi into the elevator. Lin Ruohuai jogged over, unconsciously lowering his voice: “Why didn’t you wait for me?”
Acting spoiled again. What was the meaning of this?
Shen Qi’s brow was stern: “Mr. Lin, I have no obligation to wait for you.”
Lin Ruohuai froze, then lowered his head, looking at the tips of his shoes: “Sorry, I’ll be careful next time. I won’t send personal messages during work hours.”
Which means he’ll send them in private.
Shen Qi’s temples throbbed. They were flirting in places he couldn’t see, having long, nauseatingly sweet, and meaningless flirtatious conversations on WeChat.
The old butler looked at the Young Master, then at this new employee, and fell into silence. How interesting; it had been a long time since he’d seen the emotions of a living person on the Young Master’s face.
It seemed the house would be lively from now on.
It was too late; Shen Qi needed to rest. Lin Ruohuai wasn’t familiar with the layout of the house, so he could only follow step by step behind them.
Shen Qi also lived on the top floor here. The corridor was several meters wide, a clever wrap-around design with glass floor-to-ceiling windows and an oil painting art gallery. The most ordinary side was semi-open; right now, the wind drifted in from a distance. In the weather just after the rain, it was quite chilly.
Before leaving, Shen Qi gave Lin Ruohuai a ghostly look, but his words were directed at the butler: “Take him to get familiar with the environment here over the next few days. He will be living here from now on.”
Lin Ruohuai saw a trace of resentment in his eyes. He looked back a bit blankly, then leaned forward with curious eyes.
Shen Qi frowned slightly. What are you acting cute for? Have you forgotten your place again?
The butler masked the surprise in his eyes and quickly returned to normal: “Understood.”
On the way back, the butler led the way. Lin Ruohuai got dizzy after a few turns. Crap, he wasn’t very good at recognizing paths.
Lin Ruohuai moved his lips and said softly: “Old gentleman, how should I address you?”
The old butler smiled; the boy was polite enough. “My surname is Chen. Most people call me Uncle Chen.”
Lin Ruohuai became alert, wondering if he counted as one of those “most people”: “What about the minority?”
“They call me Manager Chen.”
Everyone here was some kind of manager or executive; was he at the very bottom of the food chain?! How should he address him then?
The old butler saw his dilemma and said with a chuckle: “We’ll be colleagues from now on; just call me Uncle Chen.”
Lin Ruohuai called out obediently: “Uncle Chen.”
The house was silent and empty; even a slightly loud sound would produce an echo. Uncle Chen led him to a room on the second floor. The floor height was almost five or six meters, and the door was about three meters high. Uncle Chen said: “This is your room.”
Just then, the corridor lights all went out. Voice-controlled night lights emitted a faint glow. The surrounding decor became blurry, but it was just enough to see the path.
Uncle Chen explained: “We have the most advanced power-saving system here. It automatically switches to night mode at a certain time.”
“Then I won’t disturb your rest, Mr. Lin. Sweet dreams.”
Lin Ruohuai quickly asked: “Uncle Chen, don’t you sleep here?”
“I live in the side building. I am not qualified to live in the main building.”
Lin Ruohuai stared blankly as the butler’s figure gradually disappeared around the corner, thinking, Then how am I qualified.
Woo—woo—
A sound of wind from somewhere made Lin Ruohuai shiver. He didn’t think too much, pushed open the door, turned on the light, and observed the environment. It was a suite. The furniture should be new; the bedding had a faint scent of wood-toned incense.
He took a quick shower, changed into one of the sets of loungewear in the closet, and pa—he flopped onto the bed and rolled back and forth.
Wow, so comfortable.
After a while, Lin Ruohuai’s phone ding-donged. The old butler had sent a PDF of precautions and a complete architectural floor plan.
Most of it was about Shen Qi. Lin Ruohuai called it the “Shen Qi Raising Manual.”
He hadn’t even signed the contract yet, and he was already being rushed to work like an ox or a horse.
The 300,000 he was determined to get it.
As a result, Lin Ruohuai grew sleepy while reading. He fell asleep with his legs sprawled. Half-awake and half-dreaming, his legs twitched violently. He realized his mouth was dry and wanted to drink water, but there wasn’t even a cup in the room.
Sigh, bear with it. There were only three hours until dawn.
Lin Ruohuai covered himself with the quilt peacefully. His lips unconsciously licked, and his throat desperately swallowed; it was so dry it felt like it was catching fire.
Thirst is unbearable—it’s much the same as the urge to pee.
Lin Ruohuai flipped off the quilt and left. As soon as he stepped out, the night lights came on. The kitchen was on the first floor, so he didn’t need the elevator. He wore cotton slippers, going da-da-da downstairs, found the water dispenser, and gulped down half a cup.
With a head of messy hair, he headed back the way he came. After walking groggily for a long time, he opened a room that wasn’t his. This one wasn’t it either; that one wasn’t it either.
Lin Ruohuai stood in the middle of the corridor, completely awake from his dream.
It’s over. He was lost.
Lin Ruohuai stared fixedly ahead. The area lit by the night lights was limited. Ahead of him looked like an endless abyss quiet, appearing like a massive black curtain that sparked infinite imagination. All the scenes from horror movies and novels Lin Ruohuai had ever seen came rushing back.
Would a zombie suddenly pop out? Or a ghost trapped here for many years, rushing over with resentment and a blood-red mouth?
Lin Ruohuai’s skin crawled. He turned his head and saw an oil painting on the wall a European woman with a faint smile. Was she smiling at him? He snapped his head to the right; it was a hanging plant, moving… but this was an enclosed space, there was no wind.
Lin Ruohuai’s face turned pale. He staggered and ran all the way in the direction behind him. Stopping out of breath, he looked up and saw the distant, dense forest shadows flickering outside the window. The whistling wind, mixed with traces of rain, seemed to hide something disgusting and unspeakable.
He backed away two steps and ran again.
Lin Ruohuai was trembling. His blood seemed frozen, and his limbs were so weak they were uncontrollable. He slumped in the middle of the corridor, huddling on the ground, covering his eyes, his body curled into a ball and shaking.
So scared, so scared, so scared!! He wanted to go home; he wanted to go home.
Just then, a buzzing electric sound came from behind very faint, but exceptionally clear in this dead-silent night. It drilled into his ears and pores without reason.
Lin Ruohuai stopped all his emotions stiffly. With trembling fingers, he looked back. Shen Qi, sitting in his wheelchair, slowly emerged from the darkness. His silhouette was clear, his features deep so handsome he could ward off evil.
Shen Qi noticed he was barefoot and frowned: “What’s wrong with you?”
Lin Ruohuai went limp. Thank god, it was a person, not a ghost.
He started to speak: “I…”
He realized his voice was choked up, as if he would cry the moment he spoke, so he could only purse his lips, planning to wait a moment before speaking.
He emitted a weak aura. His eyelids were lowered and tinged with deep red. His lips were moist, and he was unconsciously biting and licking them, full of a “pure yet sensual” vibe that sparked wandering thoughts.
Shen Qi’s Adam’s apple moved slightly. He didn’t look away. Turning the ring on his right hand, the wheelchair moved slowly, stopping in front of Lin Ruohuai.
“Afraid of the dark? Afraid of ghosts?” Shen Qi lowered his eyelids, his gaze deep, staring at the red corners of Lin Ruohuai’s eyes. “What kind of trick are you trying to play now?”
Three questions in one breath. Lin Ruohuai’s thoughts returned, and his head was buzzing. He wiped his eyes and stood up: “I got lost.”
Lin Ruohuai repeated in a slightly hoarse voice: “I couldn’t find the way. I was almost scared to death just now.”
Shen Qi: “…”
Lin Ruohuai looked truly shaken, his face full of “Who am I? Where am I?” a bewildered expression as if his soul had been snatched.
Touching the edge of the wheelchair, he said pitifully: “Can you take me back?”
Shen Qi kept his eyes lowered: “Uncle Chen arranged it for you, not me.” The implication was that he didn’t know where the room was either.
Suddenly, something dazzled his eyes.
It was Lin Ruohuai’s feet—very white.
Brighter than the night lights.
Lin Ruohuai sniffled. His calves were a bit sore an aftereffect of his frantic running. Suddenly thinking of something, he squatted down, his voice trembling: “Can I stay at your place temporarily? I mean, I came here to take care of you anyway. I should be by your side at all times to monitor your condition it’s my responsibility.”
The corners of Shen Qi’s lips curled slightly and then went back down. How sweet he talks; this must be how he coaxed Xie Yusheng into losing his mind.
His gaze moved down.
The toes curled slightly in nervousness quite long and delicate.
Shen Qi stared, his tone leisurely: “What ‘condition’ could there be while lying in bed sleeping? For example?”
“If you need to get up to pee at night, I can help you.” Lin Ruohuai’s bright red small mouth opened and closed.
Shen Qi raised an eyebrow with interest: “How will you help?”
Lin Ruohuai’s mind went blank: “I’ll—I’ll help you hold it.”