Chapter 36#

Qiao Nanqi looked at him and stepped closer.

Zhao Rong raised his eyes, and the smile that had been in them during his conversation with Liu Shun and the others vanished instantly.

When Qiao Nanqi had appeared earlier, things had happened so fast that Zhao Rong hadn’t even had time to be surprised. Now that he had regained his composure and sensed the puzzled looks from everyone at the table, Zhao Rong lowered his voice and said, “What are you doing here?”

Perhaps because his displeasure was too obvious, Qiao Nanqi paused and didn’t move any closer.

He just looked at him, his voice slightly raspy: “…I came to see you.”

However, Young Master Qiao was used to being condescending. Even though these words were clearly a concession, they still carried a hint of dominance coming from him.

Zhao Rong didn’t understand.

He said word for word, “I think I’ve made myself very clear.”

He had thought that the connection between him and Qiao Nanqi had been severed from the day he moved out of Qiao Nanqi’s house.

After that, the biggest obstacle should have been himself—he needed to completely let go. But he truly hadn’t expected the abnormal one to be Qiao Nanqi.

Why did he insist on seeing him?

If this man just spoke, it would be easy for him to find a pleasing bed partner. Why did he have to waste Zhao Rong’s time again and again?

He didn’t want to like Qiao Nanqi anymore, didn’t want to be a dispensable “lover” anymore. Wasn’t that enough?

Zhao Rong really didn’t understand Qiao Nanqi.

He even understood this person less and less.

It wasn’t that he hadn’t seen the message Qiao Nanqi sent him, but he also knew very well that those words weren’t true.

He didn’t even want to argue about the rights and wrongs with Qiao Nanqi. This relationship had already exhausted all his energy over the past ten years; he had no strength left for it.

So when he saw Qiao Nanqi’s calls and messages, he just glanced at them and closed them. Anyway, after he left, they might never see each other again in this lifetime.

Thousands of words boiled down to one—what’s the point?

Zhao Rong withdrew his gaze, stopped looking at Qiao Nanqi, and walked around him.

Qiao Nanqi’s eyes remained fixed on him, turning as he did. He said, “I was wrong before…”

In such dim light, the faint mole at the corner of his left eye was barely visible, with less gloom and more of an unfathomable sorrow.

To someone who didn’t know him, it would probably be impossible to connect him with the brilliant Young Master of the Qiao family.

Zhao Rong didn’t look at him.

He didn’t even hear clearly what Qiao Nanqi said.

He just slowly sat back in his original seat, eyes slightly curved, and gave a faint smile: “What were we talking about just now?”

After Yu Xian and his group left, only the few people Liu Shun brought were left.

Unlike Zhao Rong, some of the others had never even seen the Young Master of the Qiao family. Although Liu Shun had seen him, it wasn’t often. Qiao Nanqi had only been facing Zhao Rong just now, so the others could only see his profile. Until now, no one had recognized him.

They only saw Zhao Rong say a few words they couldn’t hear clearly to this sudden newcomer, and then sit back down.

And this person actually followed him over.

Even in this decadent place of pleasure, Qiao Nanqi had reined in his high-and-mighty arrogance, but sitting there, he still looked out of place.

Up close, Liu Shun found him more and more familiar. After a few looks, when he recognized him, he completely froze.

While he was frozen, the others who didn’t recognize Qiao Nanqi were different.

Perhaps because Young Master Qiao was indeed acting quite abnormal right now, different from his usual stern and unapproachable self, he wasn’t exactly making people back away.

The person whose features somewhat resembled Lu Xingping’s sat beside Zhao Rong and asked, “Third Young Master, who is this?”

Qiao Nanqi gave him a cold glance: “I am Zhao Rong’s—”

“A friend,” Zhao Rong cut him off, “a regular friend.”

Qiao Nanqi’s eyes darkened.

Another person said, “A friend, huh? Want to sit down and have a drink together?”

Liu Shun, the only one who recognized Qiao Nanqi, winked frantically, but the light was too dim, and not a single person noticed him.

Qiao Nanqi’s gaze remained fixed on Zhao Rong. Hearing this, the Young Master Qiao, who usually detested playboys, actually didn’t refuse. Instead, he took the nearest empty seat to Zhao Rong.

From beginning to end, he kept looking at Zhao Rong.

His gaze was undisguised and too overt; Zhao Rong could feel it the entire time.

His grip on the edge of the table tightened slightly.

The moment Qiao Nanqi sat down, Zhao Rong was unexpectedly surprised for a moment, and anger surged in his heart.

What was this?

It was one thing for this person to suddenly appear here, but he actually intended to stay?

“People like us, when we gather, we all love to drink,” he said pointedly, his tone slightly cold despite his restraint.

Zhao Rong rarely lost his temper.

He had never been someone who could act willfully, either before or after transmigrating. Being gentle was almost a subconscious way of interacting with others. Even with someone like Yu Xian, he didn’t really have a temper; he had only handled things that way today because he didn’t want people whispering about Zhao Ming behind her back.

So he had basically no experience in controlling his temper. Now that he had a once-in-a-lifetime temper, he couldn’t control it at all, unable even to maintain a polite fake smile at this moment.

He heard Qiao Nanqi say slowly, “Okay, I’ll drink.”

Such words of compliance and concession, coming from Qiao Nanqi’s mouth, still carried a sense of solemnity.

Zhao Rong had always avoided offending Qiao Nanqi—this man could make him lose everything with a mere whim. Plus, with his one-sided feelings for Qiao Nanqi over the years, he even had a subconscious avoidance of Qiao Nanqi ingrained in his habits. Normally, if he heard such a still somewhat proud response, he would likely have stopped there.

But whether it was because this man repeatedly wore down his remaining dignity, or because his temper was uncontrollable at the moment, he didn’t choose to resolve the matter thoughtfully. Instead, he said nothing and just called the waiter, ordering a table full of alcohol—both wine and liquor. Only in front of him remained that single cup of steaming tea.

The implication of drinking was already very clear.

Except for Qiao Nanqi, everyone else here loved alcohol—otherwise, they wouldn’t have come to a place like this to play.

Zhao Rong had also said all the bills today were on him. With a table of good alcohol served, why wouldn’t they drink?

Except for Liu Shun, who had no idea what was going on and didn’t dare to move, and Zhao Rong, who didn’t drink, the others immediately started drinking.

Liu Shun looked at Zhao Rong, then at Qiao Nanqi, who usually wouldn’t appear before someone like him. He wanted to ask Zhao Rong but didn’t dare to ask in person—after all, Qiao Nanqi was right there.

This person who looked like Lu Xingping was someone he had brought; would Big Qiao notice?

Could it be that Zhao Rong’s plan to pursue Lu Xingping had been discovered by Big Qiao, and he was here today to settle scores and issue a warning?

Looking at Big Qiao’s expression…

It really seemed like it.

However, Qiao Nanqi’s hostility didn’t seem directed at Zhao Rong, but rather at the young man sitting beside him.

The person Liu Shun brought, whose features somewhat resembled Lu Xingping’s, also seemed to sense something—Qiao Nanqi didn’t look at him often, but every time his gaze swept over, it was chilling.

The person was a bit spooked by the looks and gave a forced smile, raising his glass to Qiao Nanqi: “Would the Third Young Master’s friend like a glass too?”

Zhao Rong actually didn’t stop him. Instead, as if waiting for Qiao Nanqi to lose his temper, he leisurely picked up the teacup in front of him and took a sip.

Liu Shun’s heart was in his throat: Good grief, that was Young Master Qiao, whom even his parents wouldn’t dare ply with alcohol…

—Then Qiao Nanqi directly picked up the glass Zhao Rong had poured for Yu Xian earlier and gulped it down.

Zhao Rong hadn’t expected that either. His expression paused, his brow furrowed as he looked at Qiao Nanqi, a hint of confusion flashing in those light and slightly bright black eyes.

But that emotion didn’t last long before he withdrew his gaze.

Qiao Nanqi had intended to finish the glass Zhao Rong had personally poured in one gulp.

But as the strong liquor hit his throat, the intense flavor stimulated his senses. He choked, the spilled liquor wetting the collar of his white shirt.

He coughed several times.

A terrified Liu Shun pushed a tissue toward Qiao Nanqi, but Qiao Nanqi didn’t use it.

He caught his breath and finally finished the glass.

He had just drunk with Lu Xingping and Xia Yuantu two days ago, but at that time his heart was a blank, and he had drunk in a daze, feeling both his stomach and his heart ache, getting drunk quickly.

But this time, others wanted to ply him with alcohol.

He never had a good temper. Except for when he had endured to deal with He Nan, if anyone else had dared to do this, Qiao Nanqi would have long ago turned cold. But right now, knowing Zhao Rong was watching, knowing Zhao Rong was a bit angry at his appearance, and thinking that if his drinking along made Zhao Rong even slightly happier or offered a moment of venting, he actually felt a bit of sweetness in it.

Zhao Rong wouldn’t answer his calls or reply to his messages these past two days. Now that he finally had the person before him, if he went along with Zhao Rong, Zhao Rong might be willing to talk to him.

He hadn’t been good to Zhao Rong before.

When he asked Xiao Wu how he had treated Zhao Rong, he had expected at most an answer like “not very well.” But when he heard Xiao Wu’s answer, which placed Zhao Rong entirely in the position of a lover, it was a rude awakening—it was far more than just “not very well.”

But he could change.

He liked Zhao Rong, and Zhao Rong liked him.

As long as Zhao Rong was willing to talk properly with him about the future, as long as Zhao Rong didn’t like someone else, they could start over.

As long as Zhao Rong was willing.

Thinking this way, he didn’t refuse anyone who drank with him. The others thought he loved drinking too and plied him even more.

In the blink of an eye, a mix of wine and liquor had been consumed.

Although he didn’t refuse when others offered him drinks, he didn’t talk to the others at all, his gaze firmly fixed on Zhao Rong. He wanted to speak with Zhao Rong, but Zhao Rong ignored him, instead chatting occasionally with the young man beside him.

The features of this young man felt familiar for a moment. He didn’t have the heart to think about where he’d seen him, but every time Zhao Rong turned to look at someone else, he couldn’t suppress the irritability in his heart, yet he was helpless.

The others thought he just wasn’t much of a talker and didn’t mind. In the middle of the noise, he was the only one who was silent among the crowd.

As Zhao Rong chatted sporadically with the others, he occasionally smiled, looking no different from the gentle, temperless Zhao Rong that Xia Yuantu and the others spoke of.

For a moment, it felt like returning to the time before they were together, with Zhao Rong chatting freely in a place of pleasure like this.

Except now, the one drinking was Qiao Nanqi, and the one always looking at the other was also Qiao Nanqi.

Zhao Rong seemed to truly treat him as just a passerby who came to drink. From beginning to end, he didn’t even mention his name.

After a while, Qiao Nanqi felt a headache, and drunkenness felt ready to surge at any moment.

But he couldn’t get drunk now.

He hurriedly got up and went to the restroom.

Zhao Rong glanced at Qiao Nanqi’s back.

Liu Shun had held it in for so long. Now that the person was temporarily gone, he looked at Zhao Rong, almost on the verge of tears: “Third Young Master… what on earth…”

Zhao Rong sighed silently.

He was a bit tired but didn’t want to show these emotions to unrelated people. He tilted his mouth into a smile for Liu Shun and said, “Don’t worry, it’s nothing major.”

He picked up the tissues from the table. “I’ll handle it. Liu’er, you guys go play somewhere else. I’ll settle the bill.”

Qiao Nanqi threw up the alcohol he had just drunk.

The sensation was not pleasant, especially for Qiao Nanqi, whom no one had dared to make socialize like this for years. He threw up until the veins on his forehead bulged slightly. Leaning with both hands on the edge of the sink, he was momentarily dazed.

He was usually very fastidious about cleanliness and stayed by the sink for a long while after finishing.

Looking at his hair dripping water in the mirror, he remembered that when Lu Xingping first brought Zhao Rong into their circle, Zhao Rong seemed to frequently leave the table midway to go to the restroom. Every time he came back, there were always some water droplets on his face.

Zhao Rong’s face flushed easily when drinking, his cheeks always becoming hot and rosy. Qiao Nanqi just assumed he went to wash his face with cold water.

Once he saw Zhao Rong with a face full of water, looking innocently cute in his obedience.

He had taken off his scarf and given it to him to wipe his face. Later that scarf…

Someone came in to wash their hands, and the sound of rushing water pulled Qiao Nanqi’s thoughts back.

His heart felt heavy, an indescribable mix of pain and bitterness.

He took a few deep breaths, turned, and walked out of the restroom, intending to find Zhao Rong.

But as soon as he stepped out, he saw Zhao Rong waiting for him in the long, narrow corridor outside. As soon as their eyes met, Zhao Rong walked toward him, meeting Qiao Nanqi’s gaze.

Qiao Nanqi’s eyes lit up. Without a second thought, he stepped forward a few paces to meet him.

Up close, in the dim light, Zhao Rong’s light-colored sweater made him look exceptionally clean. The collar of the dark shirt underneath wrapped around his slender neck, making his skin tone appear even cooler.

In the past, when Zhao Rong walked toward him like this, he would surely have a gentle smile on his face, his eyes shining brightly, making anyone he looked at feel lightheaded. But now, Zhao Rong was expressionless, his gaze also indifferent, without any hint of joy.

Zhao Rong stopped in front of him and reached out, opening his palm. On his palm was a new pack of tissues and a small jar of what looked like medicine.

“For you,” he said.

Qiao Nanqi immediately took them.

He was still somewhat drunk, his head a bit dizzy. He thought Zhao Rong was waiting for him here and giving him tissues because…

“The tissues are new; you can use them with confidence. The other is stomach medicine; vomiting like that hurts the stomach,” Zhao Rong said instead. “Today you were the one who took the initiative to sit down, and you were the one who took the initiative to drink. It’s not their fault. Those people don’t know you and have no sense of boundaries. Consider these as my apology on their behalf; they should be enough. Mr. Qiao, you should go back. Next work week, I’ll go to your company to return the shares to you.”

His tone was still level, but every word was coated with a layer of politeness.

Qiao Nanqi understood instantly.

Zhao Rong wasn’t caring for him; he was drawing a line under what Qiao Nanqi had done tonight, leaving no strings attached.

The tissues and stomach medicine in his hand suddenly felt heavier than a thousand tons, making him want to just drop them.

After saying this, Zhao Rong directly turned to walk back.

Today’s matter was somewhat caused by him. To prevent Qiao Nanqi from settling scores with the others after sobering up, he had made this trip.

Now that it was settled, he naturally wouldn’t stay.

But just as he turned around, the man behind him suddenly grabbed his hand.

Zhao Rong instinctively tried to pull away, but his movement only made the other person tighten his grip.

The man gripped him forcefully and pulled him toward the wall. Zhao Rong’s health wasn’t good to begin with, and his strength couldn’t possibly match Qiao Nanqi’s. He was easily pinned down by Qiao Nanqi.

His vision blurred for a second, and then there was a wall behind him and Qiao Nanqi before him, whom he couldn’t push away.

“Let go!” he said sharply.

But he had no experience in losing his temper, nor did he have experience in being fierce. Even his sharp tone lacked actual momentum.

The man before him wasn’t intimidated at all. He just pinned Zhao Rong’s hands, lowered his head, and rested his chin in the crook of Zhao Rong’s shoulder, as if blocking him against the wall, as if hugging him, or as if leaning on him.

It was an intimacy they had never had that truly felt like lovers, yet it wasn’t something the current Zhao Rong liked.

“Zhao Rong,” Qiao Nanqi’s slightly drunken voice came from beside Zhao Rong’s ear, “I like you.”

Those were words that had never come from Qiao Nanqi’s mouth in the past dozen or so years.

Unlike the wordless text that appeared in a chat box, each word moved slowly into Zhao Rong’s ear, wrapping around Qiao Nanqi’s voice like a fantasy.

It was too sudden.

In this instant, Zhao Rong’s struggling paused.

He tilted his head back against the wall, his eyes vacantly looking upward, unsure where to look. Anywhere but at the person before him.

The noisy music of the bar continued to flow incessantly, the narrow corridor outside filled with clamor.

Yet between them, it was very quiet.

After a long while.

“Qiao Nanqi, let me go.”

Zhao Rong didn’t respond to Qiao Nanqi’s words at all.

His tone wasn’t as heavy as before, but rather sounded like an exhaled breath after exhaustion, wrapped in a thick layer of weariness.

“I hate the smell of alcohol on you,” he said. “It smells sickening.”