Duan Yang and Fu Xingchen stayed and hung out until past midnight before taking their leave.
Considering that the next day was the weekend and Huo Tingxiao might not get up early, Lin Xun didn’t wait for him and went for his morning run alone.
As it turned out, he was caught up with before he could even run two hundred meters.
“Why didn’t you wait for me?” Huo Tingxiao asked.
Having brought no phone on the morning run, Lin Xun pressed his palms together beside his face, gesturing a sleeping pose. Huo Tingxiao smiled faintly and strode right past him.
Lin Xun stood frozen in place.
After running a few steps, Huo Tingxiao slowed his pace, jogging backward amid the lush green woods and scattered speckles of morning sunlight as he waved to him: “Don’t zone out, keep up.”
For some reason, the anxiety that had weighed on his heart all night suddenly settled into tranquility before Huo Tingxiao like this.
The two ran five laps along the back garden trail.
Upon returning to the villa, changing clothes, and preparing to eat breakfast, the doorbell rang.
When Uncle Ji went to answer the door, a crisp female voice drifted in: “Where’s Tingxiao? He didn’t forget what we’re supposed to do today, did he?”
Her voice arrived before her presence.
Lin Xun had just finished brewing coffee, and hearing the voice, he burnt his fingertip slightly.
Huo Tingxiao cast a glance at him.
The click-clack of high heels drew near as a young, beautiful woman stepped into the dining room within a few paces, looking entirely at home.
“Having breakfast?”
Shen Fei pulled out a chair and sat down. Seeing the coffee cup by Huo Tingxiao’s hand, she asked, “Did you add sugar and milk?”
Huo Tingxiao said, “No.”
Shen Fei picked up the cup, taking a sip with a slight frown.
Huo Tingxiao poured himself another cup and asked her, “Have you eaten? You came so early.”
“No, I’m on a diet.” Shen Fei let out a sigh, then looked up with a smile at Lin Xun, who was standing by the table. “Who’s the handsome guy?”
Lin Xun wanted to ask who she was, too.
However, as the employer, Huo Tingxiao had no obligation to introduce the identity of a visitor to a bodyguard like him.
“A new bodyguard?” Shen Fei asked.
Huo Tingxiao put it slightly differently: “He’s here to protect me.”
Shen Fei uttered an “Oh,” missing the subtle difference in phrasing. Giving Lin Xun a playful wink, she smiled: “You can step down for now; I have some private matters to chat with him about.”
Seeing that Huo Tingxiao didn’t object, Lin Xun nodded, turning around to walk into the small dining room next to the kitchen.
After taking only a few bites of breakfast, he was already full. As he cleared the dishes and carried them into the kitchen, he happened to see Shen Fei leading Huo Tingxiao upstairs, followed by two people carrying several outfits covered in dust bags.
His hand slipped, and a plate shattered on the floor.
“Oh my, Xiao Lin! You’ve lost your mind first thing in the morning!” The housekeeper, Auntie Chen, hurriedly pulled him aside. “Don’t move, don’t move! Be careful not to step on the glass!”
Lin Xun bowed to Auntie Chen.
After cleaning up the shards, he loaded the tableware into the dishwasher, then snatched the vacuum cleaner from the cleaning lady, insisting on sweeping the entire main hall clean.
When he reached the piano corner, Huo Tingxiao and Shen Fei came downstairs.
Shen Fei had changed into a black camisole mini dress that accentuated her curvaceous figure, making her look all the more eye-catching. Wearing stiletto heels, she leaned gracefully on Huo Tingxiao’s arm as they walked down, talking about who-knows-what with a bright, radiant smile painted across her face.
Lin Xun silently turned the vacuum cleaner up to maximum power.
A loud roar boomed through the hall, drowning out all conversation.
Huo Tingxiao told Shen Fei to get into the car first, then walked over to Lin Xun and said, “Go change your clothes.”
Lin Xun didn’t hear him clearly. Switching off the vacuum cleaner, he cast a questioning look with his eyes.
“Change your clothes and come out with me,” Huo Tingxiao said with a smile. “I need your protection.”
Lin Xun felt his face flush hot, hurrying back to his room to change.
He didn’t have many clothes, so he dug out a black shirt to put on—on TV, he saw bodyguards dressed like this, and they even wore sunglasses to look imposing.
However, his black shirt was a casual style with a somewhat wide collar that wasn’t formal enough, so it had to do for now.
Sunglasses were out of the question; he couldn’t wear those.
Once changed, he went to the entryway to put on his shoes.
Huo Tingxiao was standing under the porch, talking on the phone with Assistant Ding.
Hearing the movement, he turned his head and saw Lin Xun bending over. Beneath the loose collar, the black choker fit snugly around his slender neck. His collarbones were deeply defined, and the fair, delicate skin nearby looked almost fragile enough to be marked by a single touch.
“Mr. Huo?”
On the receiver, Ding Jun’s voice carried a hint of confusion. “Do you need me to come over?”
“No need,” Huo Tingxiao said. “Lin Xun is here.”
Hearing his name, Lin Xun looked up.
Huo Tingxiao hung up the call, his gaze sweeping upward from Lin Xun’s collar as he said, “Today is the opening day of the UNRC. It’s not particularly dangerous, so just stay close to me.”
UNRC stood for the Alliance Rally Championship.
The tournament spanned three days. The first day featured a short-course race held in a closed sand circuit, where scattered spectators occupied the four stands.
Huo Tingxiao and Shen Fei sat in the front row, while Lin Xun sat behind Huo Tingxiao, slightly to the left.
The view was broad and clear; if any suspicious person approached, he could spot them immediately.
Once the reconnaissance vehicle finished its pre-race sweep of the track, the competition began. The participating cars departed every two minutes, timed individually, as the roar of engines echoed endlessly.
The two sitting in the front row sat shoulder to shoulder, occasionally leaning in to whisper to each other. The man’s profile carried a sharp, handsome silhouette accompanied by a gentle smile.
So Huo Tingxiao looked just as gentle when in love as he had imagined.
Lin Xun stared blankly at the sand and dust flying across the track, touching the cigarette pack in his pants pocket.
Huo Tingxiao didn’t seem to smoke—at least, since coming to the Huo residence, Lin Xun had never seen him smoke—so he had refrained from touching them himself.
Right now, however, he felt a craving.
Suddenly entering a restless phase of nicotine withdrawal, Lin Xun felt the sun burning his skin with a sharp sting, while the choker made it hard to breathe smoothly.
With great effort, he held out until the race ended, only to find there was a post-race party.
Driver No. 010, whom Shen Fei had taken a fancy to, took first place in the stage. In her excitement, she warmly invited all the drivers and co-drivers to a private club for dinner and massages.
It was clearly an impromptu arrangement, yet Huo Tingxiao actually went along with her.
A gathering like this was unsuitable for a bodyguard to wander around. Holding a glass of orange juice, Lin Xun stood near the entrance, gazing at Huo Tingxiao from afar as he accompanied someone else with gentle patience.
At this moment, he clearly realized that standing behind Huo Tingxiao was far more tormenting than staying far away from him.
He had overestimated himself, believing that even after coming closer, he could still exercise restraint.
Yet the reality was that unbridled love and desire surged, fueled by greed; as an ordinary mortal, he couldn’t help but harbor wild fantasies, succumb to feelings of inferiority, and burn with jealousy.
He was driven mad with jealousy.
“Hey, what’s up with your little bodyguard?”
Shen Fei covered her lips and leaned close to Huo Tingxiao’s ear, saying through gritted teeth: “If he keeps glaring over here, my fish is going to be scared away.”
Huo Tingxiao let out a low chuckle: “It’ll be fine if you just stay a bit further from me.”
Shen Fei glared at him.
Huo Tingxiao cast a casual glance toward the doorway and said, “If your fish doesn’t take the bait soon, we’ll do things my way.”
“What’s your rush? It wasn’t easy to track down this lead; if you startle him now, searching for it again will be difficult.”
With a flawless smile painted on her face, Shen Fei locked her gaze on her target, and as if sensing it, the other party looked over as well.
She raised her wine glass toward him.
“He bit. You just need to follow me into the private room later—speak less and don’t blow my cover.”
Huo Tingxiao asked as if to confirm: “Are you sure you want me present?”
“Of course,” Shen Fei said. “I’ve already made inquiries; that kid loves nothing more than cuckolding people. Word is, the handsomer the guy is, the harder he falls for it.”
“…” Huo Tingxiao cast a sideways glance at her. “Where did you hear all this from?”
“Mind your own business,” Shen Fei sneered coldly. “A dating novice trying to instruct me on how to angle for men.”
Before the words had even fully landed, Driver No. 010 approached with a glass in hand to greet Shen Fei.
His appearance blocked Lin Xun’s view.
After a brief exchange, Huo Tingxiao placed an arm around Shen Fei as they stood up, and the three of them crossed the hall together, heading toward another exit.
Lin Xun made a move to follow them.
However, a stop gesture from Huo Tingxiao pinned him right in place.
He silently tightened his grip on his glass.
Once all three had vanished from his sight, he raised his head, downed the orange juice in one gulp, and headed to the restroom.
Next to the restroom was a designated smoking area. Lin Xun tapped a cigarette out of his pack, holding it between his lips. Exercising restraint time and time again, he eventually pulled out a lighter anyway.
His hands weren’t quite obeying him, failing to spark a flame after several attempts.
As he knitted his brows in frustration, a flicker of flame suddenly leaped into his line of sight.
The person offering the light was a stranger. Seeing that he wasn’t moving, the stranger smiled and nudged the lighter forward a bit more.
Lin Xun leaned slightly forward and lit the cigarette.
He nodded to the man to express his thanks.
Lighting a cigarette for himself as well, the man leaned against the side and struck up a casual conversation with Lin Xun: “Quite boring at events like this, isn’t it? That’s why you came out to get some peace and quiet.”
Lin Xun gave a faint smile. As the smoke passed through his lungs, he tasted a mouth full of bitterness.
“I didn’t expect to run into you here—looks like today isn’t so terrible after all,” the man said with a smile.
Lin Xun looked sideways at him through the swirling clouds of smoke.
With the cigarette dangling from his lips, the man reached out his hand to him and raised his eyebrows: “Huo Cheng. I stuffed a business card into your hands back at the Blackstone Club.”
Lin Xun froze for a moment; it seemed there really had been such an incident.
At the same time, he found the name and the face oddly familiar.
“I’m Huo Tingxiao’s younger brother—or rather, older brother…” Huo Cheng shrugged nonchalantly. “Whatever, it doesn’t matter. He doesn’t acknowledge me anyway.”
Lin Xun remembered.
Back in his school days, he had seen this Huo Cheng once or twice around campus. Because of the rumors about the poor relationship between the Huo brothers, he had even secretly tossed trash into Huo Cheng’s desk.
It was just that after his own misfortune caused him to drop out of school, he never had any further contact with anyone from the Huo family.
Huo Cheng gave the tips of Lin Xun’s fingers a light, brief squeeze.
“He’s extremely strict with the people around him. Ding Jun works for him like a robot on 24-hour standby.”
Looking at Lin Xun with concern, he asked, “What about you? Are you under a lot of pressure, too?”
Lin Xun knitted his brows slightly.
What did Huo Cheng mean by saying this? Trying to drive a wedge between them?
Though, being by Huo Tingxiao’s side, his heart truly was hanging in suspense every single moment.
Afraid of being remembered, afraid of letting his slip show.
He had to constantly alert himself not to cross the line, and to exercise restraint.
“If—”
“I mean if, you ever want to switch jobs, you might as well come over to my side.”
Extinguishing his cigarette, Huo Cheng pulled out a business card and waved it in front of Lin Xun.
This was the second olive branch he had extended.
“Back at the Blackstone Club, I already appreciated you very much; it’s a pity I was one step too late. As for me, I have no grand ambitions, nor am I as serious as Huo Tingxiao. Working with me will be much more relaxed.”
Lin Xun wanted to wave his hands in refusal, but Huo Cheng placed the business card into his palm before he could do so.
“Don’t be in a rush to refuse; give it some thought,” Huo Cheng tapped the contact information on the card. “I have the patience to wait for you.”
With that, he turned and walked away.
Lin Xun stared blankly at the business card in his hand.
Until the cigarette burned out completely, burning his knuckles.
[1]
【Author’s Note】
Huo Cheng: A relentless business-card-handing demon, professionally poaching talent.
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References[+]
【Author’s Note】
Huo Cheng: A relentless business-card-handing demon, professionally poaching talent.
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