As soon as he stepped out of the company, Qin Quan felt exceptionally agitated and nearly rear-ended another car on the road.
Along the way, Jiang Qiong’s phone calls kept flooding in. Unwilling to answer, Qin Quan rejected several, but the other side remained relentless, calling continuously like a death notice.
Growing utterly annoyed, Qin Quan answered and barked, “What is it?”
Jiang Qiong let out a light hum, showing no anger whatsoever at having his calls declined. “Baby, I am in your office. Where are you?”
“I am fucking driving. Stop calling me that at the company, and don’t let anyone hear you.”
“Alright, alright, calm down,” Jiang Qiong coaxed. “I heard that the Duan Group cut down their investment. Is that true?”
“I am on my way to ask Duan Jingyuan to clear things up. If that is all, I am hanging up.”
“Wait,” Jiang Qiong’s voice sounded somewhat displeased. “Qian, I betrayed Mu Nian for you. Even if the Duan Group really cuts funding this time, I do not care. I can work for you without getting paid. Can you give me a little reward tonight?”
The hands gripping Qin Quan’s steering wheel tightened, and he let out a heavy sigh. “Tonight, book a room and send me the room number.”
“Alright then, I will wash up and wait for you, baby.”
Hanging up, Qin Quan cursed aloud and slammed his palm heavily on the horn, producing a piercing blare. Once the car ahead moved aside, he pressed the accelerator all the way down and reached the Duan Group within twenty minutes.
Arrogantly parking his car right in front of the main building, he pushed past the security guards trying to stop him and headed straight into the reception lobby.
“Sir, sir! Please move your car.”
Pushing aside the obstructing security guard and glaring at him, Qin Quan said, “I am here to talk business with Duan Jingyuan. I will leave right after. Move.”
Taking advantage of the security guard trying to restrain Qin Quan, the receptionist quickly called Duan Jingyuan, covering her mouth as she whispered, “President Duan, President Qin from DEW is here, and he parked his car right in the middle of the plaza. Look at this.”
Duan Jingyuan sighed and gave the receptionist a few instructions.
Hanging up the phone, the receptionist hurried over to stand between the security guard and Qin Quan. “President Qin, President Qin! Our President Duan asked if you could hand your car keys to security so they can park it for you. You can just head right up.”
Throwing his car keys aside, Qin Quan marched straight toward the elevators.
When he reached Duan Jingyuan’s floor, burning with rage and having completely forgotten all about manners and tact, his voice arrived before his person: “Duan Jingyuan, explain to me why you suddenly pulled two-thirds of the investment!”
As a group president, being shown such disrespect twice in a row pushed even Duan Jingyuan’s mild temper close to the edge.
Yet, because he could do nothing against Bai Shijin and genuinely felt indebted to Qin Quan, he found himself unable to vent his anger, nor could he simply let it go.
Waving a hand, Duan Jingyuan locked the office door and motioned for Qin Quan to calm down. “Relax, relax. Such a pretty face does not look good when it is angry.”
“Do not give me your sweet talk,” Qin Quan bellowed. “You fucking slept with me, and this is how you repay me?”
“Shh, shh, shh!” Panicking, Duan Jingyuan reached out to cover Qin Quan’s mouth. “Ancestor, can you keep your voice down? Do you want every employee outside to know you traded your body for a partnership?”
“I am not afraid of losing face, so what are you afraid of?” Qin Quan flashed a sarcastic smile, his long, narrow eyes exuding a seductive charm. “The ten million we agreed on turned into three million. Duan Jingyuan, are you not going to explain?”
Rubbing the bridge of his nose, Duan Jingyuan played dumb. “The contract originally stated that it would fluctuate between three and ten million. I did not breach the contract.”
“You certainly did not talk like that in bed!”
“Can you stop always bringing that up?” Duan Jingyuan glared at him. “Why do you not reflect on what kind of person you have offended first? It is just ten million. Do you think the Duan Group is short of ten million?”
“Who did I offend? You broke your word, and you are blaming me for offending someone? I have been at the company preparing projects for the past two days and have not even gone home. Who could I possibly have offended?”
“If you did not offend anyone outside, then you must have offended someone inside the company. Can you use your brain?”
Frowning deeply, Qin Quan stayed silent for a long time.
Seeing that Qin Quan genuinely could not figure it out, Duan Jingyuan decided to spell it out for him. “Bai Shijin. Ring a bell?”
“Bai Shijin?” Qin Quan had zero impression of the name. “We do not have anyone like that at our company.”
“He works part-time at DEW, so it is normal you do not remember him. In any case, if you had not gone around the company bragging about your partnership with the Duan Group, would things have come to this?”
“No,” Qin Quan asked, “this Bai Shijin you mentioned, what is his background? Even you are wary of him?”
“It is not being wary; I just prefer not to provoke him. He is no pushover. I have no idea why he decided to work part-time at your company, but he came and told me personally that you stepped all over his face.” Duan Jingyuan sounded entirely justified. “He wanted me to cut the partnership right away, you know. It took a lot of talking on my part to still leave you with three million. Do not be too greedy.”
Hearing the reason, Qin Quan grew even angrier. “Damn it, I do not even know who he is, so how could I have stepped on his toes? Is this just some excuse you made up?”
“If you do not believe me, go check whether your company has someone named Bai Shijin. Do you think I have so much free time that I need to make up stories to trick you?”
Massaging his temples while carefully weighing his words, Qin Quan finally spoke. “So you are just going to let this go? Duan Jingyuan, is my body really that cheap?”
“Calm down. Why are you treating yourself like a commodity?” Lazily settling into his executive chair, Duan Jingyuan propped his long legs up on the desk. “Once this period passes, keep a low profile, and I will fund a new project for DEW. Twenty million. How is that?”
Qin Quan paused. “Really?”
“Why would I lie to you? If you do not believe me, we can write it directly into the contract this time. But there is a condition.”
“State it.”
Resting his chin on his hand, Duan Jingyuan raised an eyebrow. “Do you have any fresher models over there? I have been too exhausted these past few days and need to reward myself.”
Qin Quan asked, “Do you have anyone specific in mind?”
“Mm. The one called Jiang Qiong. He is pretty decent.”
After a brief silence, Qin Quan said, “You two are the same type.”
“Same type or not, how would you know?” Duan Jingyuan lifted his gaze. “Have you slept with him?”
“I do not remember clearly.” Stroking the sleeve of his suit, Qin Quan answered indifferently. “Probably? So many guys have touched me, how could I remember all of them?”
Duan Jingyuan let out a cold snort and slowly stood up. Reaching out to stroke Qin Quan’s face, he murmured near his ear, “No wonder he knows how to please people so well. Turns out it is all from experience.”
Duan Jingyuan’s warm breath brushed against Qin Quan’s neck, but Qin Quan remained unmoved. He unlocked his photo album and handed his phone over. “These ones are more obedient and can play the bottom role. See if there is anyone you like, and I will arrange it.”
Duan Jingyuan casually swiped through a couple of pictures without seeing anyone to his liking. Clicking his tongue impatiently, he muttered, “People looking like this can be models nowadays? They are not even as good-looking as you.”
Turning his head away, Qin Quan said, “Swipe some more. There are more further down.”
Duan Jingyuan swiped again. Just as he was about to give up hope, he actually flipped to a genuinely attractive face.
Turning the phone around to show Qin Quan, he said, “I like this one.”
Taking a closer look, Qin Quan saw it was a photo of Mu Nian.
Frowning, Qin Quan snatched the phone back. “Not him.”
“Why not?” Duan Jingyuan asked. “Someone of yours?”
“He is not a model.”
“Oh,” Duan Jingyuan chuckled. “Well, that is rare. Not a model, yet prettier than any model?”
“Duan Jingyuan, I advise you not to entertain any ideas about him.” Qin Quan’s expressionless face turned even colder. “He is DEW’s other president, and he has a boyfriend.”
“I am sleeping with him, not dating him. Having a boyfriend makes no difference to me.”
Narrowing his eyes, Qin Quan said, “Duan Jingyuan, are you incapable of understanding human speech? He is DEW’s president, not some toy duck you can summon and dismiss at will.”
The corners of Duan Jingyuan’s mouth twitched as he hooked his finger under Qin Quan’s chin. “Are you not also DEW’s president? Do you not still cry out quite nicely underneath me?”
“You!” Speechless, Qin Quan flushed with anger. “He is different from me. He is not the type to resort to any means to achieve his goals. He will never sleep with you.”
Duan Jingyuan’s brow knitted together, his tone arrogant. “I have set my sights on him. You figure out a way.”
“What way could I possibly have? Should I drug him and deliver him to your bed?”
“Drugging?” Duan Jingyuan’s eyes lit up. “Good idea.”
“A good idea?” Qin Quan was infuriated. “Have you lost your mind? That is called drugging and sexual assault!”
“Of course I am not talking about a drug that leaves him completely unconscious and motionless. How boring would that be?” Duan Jingyuan said. “I mean an aphrodisiac. That way, he puts up a reluctant resistance, and even after sobering up, it can just be passed off as an impulse caused by overwhelming desire that neither of you could control.”
“Forget it.” Qin Quan glared at him. “No way.”
Duan Jingyuan’s face darkened, his eyes half-closing. “Thirty million.”
“What?”
“The next project, I will invest thirty million. That will be enough to elevate DEW to a second-tier brand. I know you want to enter the Twilight Fashion Competition and win the Gold Cup, but the current DEW does not even qualify to participate. Securing this investment will bring you one step closer to your dream, will it not?”
Qin Quan’s pupils trembled slightly.
He finally understood. Duan Jingyuan’s usual playful demeanor was all an act. Beneath the guise of a wealthy, frivolous playboy lay a mind full of calculated schemes.
He understood all too well how to pinch others where it hurt most. With just a single sentence, he had thoroughly tempted Qin Quan.
“Well? Are you going to help or not?”
Recalling the image of Mu Nian from the photo, Duan Jingyuan felt an intense itch in his heart. Missing out on such a stunning beauty would be a lifelong regret.
Closing his eyes, Qin Quan conceded, “Fine. I will help you.”
“Such a good boy.”
When Duan Jingyuan reached out to wrap an arm around his waist, Qin Quan ducked away. “Duan Jingyuan, if you trick me this time, I will kill you.”
“Such a venomous beauty.” Tilting his head, Duan Jingyuan leaned in and kissed Qin Quan.