HOYSE CHAPTER 78

Chapter 78 — His Man

“Why would I knock you out?”

“Our compatibility score is 99.999%, practically a perfect match. What do you think would happen?”

Gu Xi thought about it seriously for a moment, then repeated what Rong Jing had threatened him with that morning.

“F*** me to death?”

“…”

Rong Jing almost covered his face. He had been a bit provoked then and wanted to warn Gu Xi, so he ran his mouth. No, not a bit. Way too much.

Gu Xi looked at the traffic light ahead, lips quirked, and glanced sideways at him. A lot of the time he seemed like a snowman without feelings. Even his comeback had zero flirtation in it, yet it still managed to stomp all over Rong Jing’s heart.

When Rong Jing stepped out of the elevator onto the Xie Group’s top floor, Xie Ling was just coming out of the conference room with a line of branch presidents trailing behind him, all on edge. He was rearranging posts; some rejoiced while others worried, and he did not even notice his younger brother had arrived.

The executive who had just been removed was a senior old-timer and the classic fence-sitter. Competence mediocre, coasting on seniority, and now squarely on the chopping block. His private life was a mess too. He had tangled relationships with his secretary and a front-desk clerk. When his wife found out, she retaliated by selling some internal documents he kept to another company, causing heavy losses for the Xies. The group was now suing the couple for economic crimes.

The man begged hard, hoping Xie Ling would spare him for the sake of the years he had stood beside the old master fighting the early battles. Xie Ling had spent years cleaning out old rot. At this critical stage of reform, mercy was not on the table.

Seeing Xie Ling unmoved, resentment flashed in the executive’s eyes. Then he spotted Rong Jing walking over, as if something occurred to him, and stopped talking.

Xie Ling gave the man a long look, then walked into his office as if he had not seen Rong Jing at all.

Anyone who did not know them would think the eldest young master despised this brother without blood ties and that the rumors of sibling harmony were just a Xie-family smokescreen. In reality, the Xies had never accepted Rong Jing. So they would think.

Rong Jing had come to HQ to handle his own work anyway. He had a few rising startups that needed syncing with headquarters.

After finishing up, he sensed eyes on his back. He turned and saw the same executive from before. The man made a small signal. Rong Jing walked on as if he had not seen him, took out his phone, and sent Xie Ling a text. He said nothing aloud and slipped the phone back into his pocket.

Then he strolled to the emergency stairwell, pulled out a cigarette, and lit up with a world-weary air.

That hesitant, wounded look really did lower defenses. The executive hemmed and hawed, then came up to him with apparent resolve.

It took only a moment for the tears to flow. He looked pitiful as he claimed it was not him who betrayed the company, it was his wife. He was the victim. At worst, he was guilty of poor judgment. If charged with economic crimes, win or lose, no one in the industry would hire him again. He begged Rong Jing to leave him a way out.

He said his merits should not be erased. He said the Xie Group had become Xie Ling’s one-man show and that if things went on like this they would all be finished. Xie Ling would drive everyone to the wall.

“Second Young Master is in prison now. I do not know the exact charge, but it must be Xie Ling’s doing. He has tricks for days. Young Master, you cannot beat him. Second Young Master is your warning. Be careful.”

“I understand. Thank you for the reminder.” Rong Jing listened to the whole tirade and patted his shoulder in consolation.

They chatted a bit more. Rong Jing subtly teased out more holes in the story.

Before long, the executive was spilling his heart to Rong Jing. Every word was heard by Xie Ling. Rong Jing played along just enough to coax the man into offering a token of “sincerity,” soothed him for a while, then let him leave, satisfied.

Rong Jing returned to the top-floor office and unceremoniously claimed Xie Ling’s favorite swivel chair, spinning in a lazy 360 while taking in the city through the floor-to-ceiling glass.

Xie Ling shot his languid little brother a glance, went into the small break room himself, and brought out some snacks, placing them within Rong Jing’s reach.

Rong Jing tore open a bag and bit into a potato chip. “Ge, after what I said, he will definitely slip up. Put a tail on him and dig. He claims his wife took documents from his safe behind his back and ‘betrayed’ the company. I do not buy it. What is this story, does he think I have no brain?”

Just looking at the man had given Rong Jing a headache, and he could not remember his name. Which meant the guy was likely one of the hurdles set by Heaven’s script. Rong Jing suspected there was a bigger fish behind him.

Xie Ling had already sensed as much and had set his own plan in motion. “I know.” He paused, then went back to reading reports. The steady crunch-crunch of chips did distract him. Trained as an elite all his life, he could not understand eating junk while discussing business.

Crunch, crunch.

One bag gone.

He opened another.

He could not hold back any longer. “Cut the junk. Too much salt.”

Rong Jing said, “Occasionally. It is not like I am making you eat it.”

Xie Ling had so few honest sentences in his mouth that as soon as he finished the last word, the kid shoved a chip between his teeth and silenced him.

Eyes wide, chip in his mouth, Xie Ling looked a bit ridiculous. Rong Jing propped his chin with a rogue’s grin. “Ge, you never eat this stuff, do you?”

He did not. From the moment he could remember, he had been reminded again and again that he was the Xie heir. He could not do anything unbecoming of an heir. He had to be excellent, the Alpha who could hold up the family.

As a child, he had wanted to try them and had been forbidden. He thought that when he grew up and had the power, he would eat whatever he wanted. Yet once he grew up, he had forgotten those childish wishes.

Xie Ling chewed slowly.

So this is what chips taste like.

A bit salty. Not as good as he had imagined, but not bad either.

“Too much sodium if you overdo it. One bag a day, at most.”

He had barely finished when another chip was offered to his lips.

Lately, the brothers squeezed out time whenever possible to visit the old master at the sanatorium. After handing over the second password, the old man seemed to have the life drained out of him. His clear spells were shorter and shorter. He was fully prepared to let go. What awaited Xie Ling was a mountain of work and a brutal calendar.

Xie Ling sniffed and opened a drawer, then tossed something over. Rong Jing caught it. A bottle of scent-blocking spray.

Xie Ling looked disgusted. “You reek of Omega. Flashing it around the office.”

Rong Jing was not afraid of that cold face at all. He spritzed while talking. “Want some too? I will have Zhou Xiang send a few to you.”

Respect for seniority, do not stand on ceremony. As for Xie Zhanhong and the other philanderers, big brother could handle those.

“No way,” Xie Ling said without thinking. “They wish.”

Rong Jing took the point. The Omegas wishing to cling to him were the ones dreaming.

“Ge, one thing…”

“Say it.”

“I will just ask straight. Are you… inexperienced in that department?” You are not getting any younger.

Xie Ling paused, then snorted. “And you are a veteran? How many times?”

“You are being unfriendly.”

“Likewise.”

Their back-and-forth continued like two chicks pecking each other.

---

After dropping Rong Jing at the Xie Group, Gu Xi received a message from a close friend. He met Guan Hongyi at a very discreet club for dinner. Guan was in women’s clothing again, today in a forest-core look: a loose pale green sweater with a beige lace long skirt, very ladylike. A newly minted director, he had been shut in shooting a film. When they wrapped, he checked the trending topics and nearly fell over.

He had found him. The man on the hot search was the Alpha who had rescued him that night. When Guan saw him at the cat café, he had thought the guy was super handsome. With that face, you could forgive anything.

Between face bias and a life debt, his filter for that Alpha was thick.

They finished eating and settled into a lull of chatter. During a pause, Gu Xi opened Rong Jing’s Moments. A few minutes earlier Rong had posted a photo: on a marble coffee table sat a plate of chips and a steaming cup of coffee.

“What brand is that?” Gu Xi zoomed in and showed the pic to Guan.

“X-brand original,” Guan said.

Gu Xi ordered a few bags online, then switched to a small account and gave Rong Jing’s post a like. Only a few very close friends and family knew it was him.

Guan suddenly remembered his big discovery and got excited. The one who had nearly died that night, who else knew about it besides Gu Xi? “Do you remember the night you came to Xielier to pick me up?”

Gu Xi nodded. That had been the night his path crossed with Rong Jing again.

“Look.” Guan pulled up a link and pushed his phone toward Gu Xi.

It was a police bulletin with a photo of a very ordinary-looking man. He had murdered several Omegas, the methods extremely cruel. The suspect had strong counter-surveillance skills and likely an accomplice. He was still on the run.

Because the crimes were so vicious, the police had released his photo and issued a nationwide wanted notice, asking for tips.

Gu Xi’s expression turned grave. “You know him?”

“Not his face,” Guan said. “It was dark and I was drunk. But I remember a big wine-red birthmark on his neck, just like in the photo. From the police details, this should be that psycho who pretended to be a driver.”

“So that night you almost…” Every victim had been assaulted and then killed, and beheaded. The man’s psyche was twisted, with a rabid need to perform. Even while on the run he kept hunting. Gu Xi and Guan looked at each other and saw fear and relief in the other’s eyes. Random attacks like that are almost impossible to prevent.

“If that person had not shown up when he did,” Guan said, “I might have…”

Gu Xi knew how grateful Guan was to his savior. Even during his shut-in shoot, Guan had been talking about finding the man.

Gu Xi felt the same. Guan was one of his very few true friends. He could not imagine losing him.

According to Guan, the Alpha was tall and handsome, with a low, magnetic voice. Generous, gentlemanly, not one to take advantage. The ultimate dreamboat who would have Omegas throwing themselves at him.

Gu Xi thought Guan was seeing through a filter, beautifying the man to match his fantasy. There were no such Alphas. Most of them were all desire and endless encroachment.

Guan was not discouraged for long. His eyes lit up. “I found him. It is Rong Jing.”

“…Who?” Gu Xi asked.

“Rong Jing, the one you are working with. Are you two not on good terms? What did he do to you?”

“He did nothing,” Gu Xi said. I am the one poking at him.

Guan exhaled in relief. “Good. If you two were at odds, I would have to play peacemaker before I started chasing him.”

Gu Xi’s expression was complicated. “You want to chase him?”

“I know my history,” Guan said. “But this time is not like before. I am serious. I do not know if he will look down on me. I plan to wash off my marks before I pursue him. All of them. Clean.”

When Gu Feng took over, Gu Xi had been like someone with split personalities, switching back and forth. It was Guan who had calmed him then. Gu Xi had always seen him as a mix of mentor and friend.

Guan’s parents divorced. Relatives swallowed the family assets and shipped him to a boarding school, where he became a target for bullying. His first love had helped him, but that love turned out to be scum who seduced him on a bet, stealing the most precious thing an Omega has.

Cheated of body and heart, Guan stopped believing in love. The first scumbag’s temporary mark remained on him. Years had passed, and the hate had never really faded.

That he was willing to remove those marks for Rong Jing meant he was serious and wanted to treat this Alpha sincerely.

Gu Xi had always thought that if Guan ever opened his heart again, he would help him with everything he had. Just then, he did not want to help at all. He realized he was selfish. And wicked.

“Do you still have scenes tonight?” Guan asked.

Gu Xi shook his head and fell uncharacteristically quiet.

“Open a bottle. Celebrate your film festival wins, and celebrate me finally letting go.” Guan, beaming, rang for the waiter and ordered a few bottles.

Seeing Gu Xi’s face, Guan frowned. “What are you thinking about?”

Gu Xi shook his head. When the liquor arrived, he tipped back a deep swallow. “I am happy for you.”

“Hey, hey, not like that,” Guan cried. “This stuff is strong!”

Gu Xi despised himself for that shabby thought and could not face his friend. “We are happy today. Do not kill the vibe. Not drunk, no going home. Deal?”

He glanced back with a chilly smile tinged in the faintest wicked charm. Even Guan, an Omega, blushed. No wonder this guy had had confessions from Omegas and even caused a stir.

Rong Jing saw that Gu Xi’s dot on the map had not moved since the afternoon. He zoomed in to 3D view. The Wolxue Club.

The name sounded familiar. Right. Wasn’t that a Wu-family club? Wu Fuyu had even invited him there once. Officially it had nothing to do with the Wus, but in reality, it was their networking spot for the upper crust. The secrecy and strict membership rules made it very popular.

Rong Jing did not dare delay. He dialed. After a few rings, Gu Xi’s voice came through, a little mushy. “’Lo~”

Alarm bells ringing. “You have been drinking?” Who had the guts to pour alcohol into him?

Gu Xi had been holding it in for hours. Hearing Rong Jing’s voice was like fresh spring water to a parched field. He slumped over the table, eyes unfocused on the plate before him. “You guess.” The rising lilt hooked like a fishhook.

No need to guess. He was drunk.

“I am not guessing.”

“So cold. Do you have another dog out there? So heartless.” Gu Xi jabbed a finger at a piglet-shaped bun the waiter had just brought. Custard oozed from the nose. Ew, gross. “Who was it that said… Alphas’ mouths are the mouths of liars! You Alphas are the most heartless, loving anyone who crosses your path. New love in, old love out… hic.”

Guan Hongyi: That sounds like something I said during my chuunibyou era. You remembered it all this time? That memory of yours is terrifying.

Rong Jing’s grip tightened on the phone. “How much did you drink?” What was this garbled nonsense.

When Gu Xi was drunk, he looked exactly the same as usual. Cold, calm, no flushed cheeks. Guan stared, stunned. They had known each other for over a decade. Since when did Gu Xi act cute with anyone? And this tone? It was pure Omega coyness.

Usually, Gu Xi scarcely displayed any Omega traits. No sweetness, no soft talk. A hedgehog who pricked others and chilled himself.

“Faster,” Rong Jing told Zhou You.

“If I go any faster, we will get a ticket,” Zhou said, pained.

Rong Jing said to the phone, “Is someone with you? Put them on.”

Gu Xi glanced at Guan, who was watching with round, curious eyes, and his face changed. “No. Do not even think about it.”

If he still had the sass to throw a tantrum, it was probably fine. Rong Jing softened his tone. “Go out and look at the room number. Tell me. Otherwise I will make your friend take the phone.”

He added one word. “Good.”

Guan watched Gu Xi drift out like a ghost, check the number, shut the door, and report it quietly into the phone. Whatever the other end said, Gu Xi clearly did not like it, yet he still nodded and murmured his agreement

Guan was slack-jawed. Gu Xi was stubborn drunk or sober and never took orders from anyone, especially an Alpha.

After Gu Xi hung up, Guan asked, “That was an Alpha?”

You hate Alphas more than anyone. What happened while I was on set?

Gu Xi nodded.

“Dating?” Wonders never cease.

“…” The words stabbed something. Gu Xi fell silent.

He looked at Guan for a long time. When Guan’s nerves were about to snap, Gu Xi whispered two words. “A friend… not even. He pities me.”

Two words, a storm of information.

Guan asked carefully, “You are not… in love with him, are you?”

Gu Xi stared at the piglet bun that had been poked into a leaky mess. It looked like him. Ugly.

He bit it in half and muttered, “Bitter.”

“How could any Alpha resist you?” Was the man a monk in a past life?

Gu Xi ate too fast and almost choked. He thumped his throat, drained his glass, swallowed, and said, calm again, “He likes girls.”

Guan began to understand. There are indeed straight-As who only like women. The barrier stands, depending on how straight.

“Why am I not a girl?” Gu Xi murmured, tapping the rim of his glass and spinning it.

“What are you envying girl-Omegas for? Are they prettier than you, stronger than you?” Guan was exasperated.

He hated seeing Gu Xi like this. Because of his beauty and his scent, the man had suffered too much since childhood. A beauty like him should have been carried on palms, yet none of those Alphas truly saw him.

“You are great, Xixi,” Guan said, hugging his head like when they were kids. “If he does not like you, that is his loss. We will cut out that rotten flesh. You deserve the best.”

Catching that familiar smell, Gu Xi closed his eyes. “My man-mom, you are the best.”

“Get lost. I am still young. Sew that mouth shut.”

Gu Xi giggled. The laughter faded, then disappeared.

He patted his chest and pointed to his heart. “He is here. If I cut it out, I will die.”

Guan stared at him, stunned.

Gu Xi lifted his head suddenly. “Xiao Hong. His name is Rong Jing.”

“!” Guan swore under his breath.

Gu Xi looked at him calmly. “Let us compete fairly.”

Guan: I do not want to compete. I just want to lie down.

A knock came. The waiter entered with the hangover soup Guan had ordered, and in the corridor a balding, Mediterranean-hairline executive caught sight of a familiar back. Wasn’t that Gu Xi, the one who had rejected his unspoken rules and then had gotten him thrown into detention?

Baldy instantly let go of the beauty on his arm and strode in. “Well, if it isn’t Gu Xi. What are you doing here? Come have a drink in our private room.”

The wall of smoke and liquor made Gu Xi nauseous. He hated smokers most. Seeing the sleaze in the man’s eyes, Gu Xi flicked his wrist and splashed his drink. The man was soaked, dripping.

He had only stepped in to say one line and got slapped in the face like that. He shoved aside the waiter who tried to intervene. The waiter, sensing trouble, ran to get the manager.

Baldy wiped his face and snarled, “Do not refuse a toast only to drink a forfeit. Do you know who is in our room? Someone you cannot afford to offend. Be smart and come with me.”

Gu Xi slipped aside from his reaching hand and stood up abruptly. He grabbed a bottle, slammed it against the table, and it shattered with a clang, shards spraying everywhere.

A sliver nicked his cheek. The man froze at Gu Xi’s viciousness. He felt he had run into a mad dog.

Holding the glass stump, red wine slid down Gu Xi’s fingers. He swiped his thumb across the blood on his cheek and mixed it with wine, then lazily licked his finger like a cat. “What did you just say?”

“D-Don’t you dare get violent,” the man stammered, more timid than an Omega.

Gu Xi smiled, pure and harmless. “You think too much. I am dealing with myself. The headline will read: ‘Omega Suffers Assault, Defends Himself, Then Self-Harms.’ How is that for clicks?”

The cold glint in his eyes sent a chill up Baldy’s spine. Gu Xi was serious.

Just then, a sweet, warm voice drifted down the hall. “Mr. Rong, how about the second-floor VIP suite? If you do not mind, I can take you there.”

Gu Xi’s killing aura vanished in an instant. He turned soft and harmless. Even Guan was stunned. Face-change like a Sichuan opera.

Baldy had no time to react before Gu Xi stuffed the broken bottleneck into his hand.

Gu Xi looked around in a panic, then plopped down on the carpet nearby with his head lowered, the very picture of a bullied little white flower.

Guan: “…”

Baldy: “…”

Rong Jing turned down the manager’s sales pitch. He had not expected to be treated like royalty the moment he walked in. At registration the greeters had discovered he was a Black Diamond VIP. Years ago Wu Hanqi had given him a gold card that conferred VIP status at all Wu properties.

He barely listened to the introduction, scanning for Gu Xi’s room. A flustered young female Omega was standing by the door. Rong Jing quickened his pace. “No need. I am here for someone.”

At the doorway he saw the mess inside. A greasy middle-aged man clutched a broken bottle, the wine dripping on the carpet. Gu Xi seemed to have been pushed down. Glass glittered nearby. Was he cut?

Gu Xi’s head was lowered. His expression could not be seen.

Rong Jing’s heart thudded. He kicked Baldy aside, skirted the shards, and pulled Gu Xi into his arms.

“Are you okay? Are you hurt?” He caught the heavy reek of alcohol on Gu Xi and flicked a cold glance at Guan playing background extra.

“I am scared,” Gu Xi murmured, burying his face in Rong Jing’s chest, timid as a kitten.

Guan looked at Rong Jing. The Alpha was as devastating as the first time, unfairly handsome. Then he looked at Gu Xi. Who was this delicate wind-blown Omega? Did he know him? Had he just spent all that time comforting… air?

Rong Jing patted Gu Xi’s soft hair. “It is fine. I am here now.”

Baldy bared his teeth in pain. Rong Jing was a trained fighter and had not pulled his kick. Baldy thought something had snapped.

He glanced at the little lover who, moments ago, had clung to him. Now contempt shone in the kid’s eyes. Baldy felt he had lost face and pride.

He burned with rage. “Who are you?” Where had this guy even come from?

Rong Jing said, “His man.”

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