ABSTIWTVMST Chapter 80

Jing Yicheng looked at his distraught appearance,  leaned closer, and said, “Are you scared?”

 

Xu Chenghao subconsciously turned his head away. “No, I’m just thinking about how to tell my family.”

 

Jing Yicheng suggested, “The weather is getting colder. Elderly people don’t like winter. You can find a warm place to travel to so they come back after the New Year.”

 

Xu Chenghao nodded twice. “Okay, I’ll go contact my family. You rest, goodnight.”

 

Jing Yicheng was still worried. “Are you really not scared?”

 

“No.” Xu Chenghao threw a pillow at him, hurriedly retreated to his room, closed the door, and began to regret his cowardice. How could he be so spineless? He probably didn’t notice, right? Hmm… he probably didn’t.

 

After comforting himself, Xu Chenghao felt slightly relieved and took out his phone to contact his family, preparing to send the elderly at home on a trip to avoid the recent unrest.

 

In the guest room, Jing Yicheng stared at the bedroom door for a while to make sure the other person wouldn’t come out, then closed the door and started to busy himself. He contacted his assistant first to ensure the arrangements for protecting Xu Chenghao and his family and finally dealt with some less important matters… such as Zuo Meixue.

 

The assistant said, “Recently, Zhuo Meixue has been liquidating her assets for cash, and she has contacted two fugitive gamblers through the internet. It’s preliminarily judged that it might be related to Ruan Chenxuan and you. Rest assured about your safety; we won’t have any shortcomings. This time, we also want to ask how you plan to deal with her?”

 

Jing Yicheng remained silent for a few seconds, then said lightly, “Report.”

 

The assistant was somewhat surprised. “Report?”

 

Jing Yicheng’s expression changed instantly. “Is that not allowed?”

 

The assistant broke into a cold sweat. “No, no, of course, it’s allowed… This is the first time you’ve reported in nearly ten years. I believe the protection agency responsible for your personal safety will also be very happy.”

 

Of course, Zhuo Meixue hiring assassins in such a high-profile manner was obviously asking for trouble, and the consequences of reporting would only be bad, not good. She basically doomed herself for the rest of her life.

 

Jing Yicheng wanted precisely this effect. Strictly speaking, he was still taking the legitimate route, restraining his own dangerous thoughts… Well, tomorrow he would ask Xu Chenghao for a reward!

 

The idea was good; however, after a busy night, Xu Chenghao, to prevent worrying at night, drove back to the Xu family the next day and stayed in the old house, not returning for two consecutive days.

Jing Yicheng was furious. Every day, he drove past the old Xu residence but didn’t dare to go in. When he got home, he would sulk even more, especially since nobody came to coax him!

 

His assistant watched as his boss’s temper grew worse by the day. Even when reporting work, he would nitpick at every detail. So, the assistant secretly called Xu Chenghao and cleared his throat, saying, “Mr. Xu, could you perhaps coax our boss?”

 

Xu Chenghao: “???”

 

Is this the same elite assistant?! Did he lose his phone or something?!

 

Xu Chenghao was skeptical at first, but after listening to his assistant’s words and finding out that a car passed Xu’s residence every hour, he almost burst out laughing and called Jing Yicheng immediately.

 

Jing Yicheng picked up almost instantly: “Xu Chenghao! You said you weren’t afraid!”

 

Xu Chenghao stood by the second-floor window, smiling, “I didn’t say I was afraid.”

 

Jing Yicheng: “Then why don’t you come back to live here? And why haven’t you called me?”

 

Xu Chenghao: “I’ve been busy arranging a family trip, so I haven’t had time to come back. Besides, if I don’t call you, won’t you call me?”

 

Jing Yicheng was momentarily speechless. “I… I thought you were afraid of me, so you didn’t dare to call.”

 

Xu Chenghao replied, “No, my family has a flight tomorrow morning. I’m going to the greenhouse to pick peppers in the morning, so I’ll come home in the afternoon.”

 

Jing Yicheng was reluctantly satisfied. “Okay then, I’ll wait for you at home.”

 

Xu Chenghao asked, “Is there anything else?”

 

Jing Yicheng instantly said fiercely, “Yes! Don’t hang up!”

 

Xu Chenghao was amused. “Okay, go ahead.”

 

Jing Yicheng continued, “… Zhuo Meixue hired someone to kill, and it was aimed at me. I didn’t do anything and reported it directly to the relevant department. Even my assistant said it was the first time I’ve reported something in nearly ten years. Shouldn’t I be rewarded?”

 

Xu Chenghao caught sight of a car slowly passing by Xu’s house and immediately said, “Park your car, I’ll come over right away.”

 

Jing Yicheng slammed on the brakes, first surprised and then realized after hanging up the phone that he had inadvertently revealed his whereabouts.

 

… But it didn’t matter; he wanted to see Xu Chenghao anyway!

 

Jing Yicheng sat confidently in the driver’s seat waiting. Three minutes later, the passenger’s door was pulled open, and a figure wrapped in cold air swiftly sat down, shivering and quickly closing the door. “It’s so cold!”

 

Jing Yicheng reached to adjust the temperature inside the car and frowned. “Why are you dressed so lightly?”

 

Xu Chenghao was wearing thin home clothes, with just a cotton jacket on top; even his ankles were exposed. It was currently four degrees below zero; how could he not feel cold going out like this?

 

Xu Chenghao rubbed his hands together. “I’m just going out for a while. It’s too much trouble to change clothes,” he said.

 

Jing Yicheng looked at him disapprovingly and threatened, “How do you know I won’t drive off and leave you here?”

 

Xu Chenghao tilted his head to look at him. “Would you?”

 

Jing Yicheng paused, then replied, “…No.”

 

Xu Chenghao smiled and took out a seven-colored ballpoint pen from his jacket pocket. He found the yellow button and pressed it, then extended his hand to Jing Yicheng. “Give me your hand.”

 

Jing Yicheng handed over his right hand. “Is this a reward?”

 

“Yes,” Xu Chenghao said as he held his hand, carefully drawing on the back of it with the ballpoint pen. First, he outlined an oval shape and slowly filled it in with yellow. Then, he switched to black to draw the eyeballs and used red for the mouth…

 

As the tip of the pen gently rubbed against his hand, Jing Yicheng felt a faint itch. He stared at the person drawing on his hand so earnestly and suddenly felt a tightness in his throat, making him feel uneasy all over.

 

In theory, this slight itch was negligible to him, but the influence inexplicably traveled to his heart along with his blood, making him feel completely off and inexplicably empty, wondering what to use to fill himself…

 

“Dang dang dang, this is your reward, do you like it?” Xu Chenghao suddenly looked up; the smile in his eyes hadn’t fully spread before it turned into surprise.

 

Did he just accidentally touch Jing Yicheng’s chin when he looked up?

 

Xu Chenghao stared at the person who was leaning too close, not daring to move. “What are you doing?”

 

Jing Yicheng remained silent. In fact, he didn’t know what he wanted to do either. He just felt comfortable being close to Xu Chenghao and was very happy… He even wanted to get closer…

 

Xu Chenghao suddenly withdrew from his closeness, avoiding it. “Don’t mess around… Look at your reward first. It’s the first time I’ve drawn for someone. Is it good-looking?” Probably feeling embarrassed, Xu Chenghao quickly changed the subject.

 

Jing Yicheng glanced briefly at the cartoon duck pattern on the back of his hand and looked at Xu Chenghao. “It’s very cute.” After a moment’s thought, he added while looking at Xu Chenghao, “I really like it.”

 

Xu Chenghao coughed uncomfortably. “As long as you like it.”

 

Jing Yicheng frowned. “But it will wash off.”

 

Xu Chenghao: “It’s okay. As long as you do well, there will be more rewards in the future.”

 

Jing Yicheng nodded silently.

 

The car suddenly fell into silence. Xu Chenghao put the ballpoint pen back into his pocket and hesitated for two seconds before speaking, “Is there anything else? If not, I’ll head back first.”

 

Jing Yicheng immediately said, “Remember to come home tomorrow.”

 

Xu Chenghao: “I will. You should head back soon too.”

 

Jing Yicheng nodded. “See you tomorrow.”

 

“See you tomorrow,” Xu Chenghao waved his hand and turned to leave.

 

Jing Yicheng watched him enter the Xu family’s house, glanced at the cartoon duck pattern, and finally felt relieved after several gloomy days. He drove home happily.

 

When the assistant came back to report on work, he clearly felt the boss’s good mood and uncontrollable sense of pride. So, after the boss inadvertently showed the back of his hand multiple times, he praised, “What a cute little duck!”

 

Jing Yicheng tried to manage his expression and pretended to be calm. “Xu Chenghao drew it for me.”

 

The assistant, unfazed, continued to praise, “Mr. Xu is very talented, and it’s his first time drawing something for someone. To draw something so intimate on the hand, it seems Mr. Xu and the boss have a very close relationship.”

 

Jing Yicheng looked at the duck pattern with satisfaction and said without reservation, “Of course.”

 

The assistant gritted his teeth and struggled to hold back his smile, so as not to show any inappropriate expressions—he had anticipated that the boss would be coaxed when he informed President Xu. But he never imagined that their boss, who was usually stern and unapproachable, would be so easily won over by a little yellow duck drawn with a ballpoint pen!

 

In this situation, the assistant could only silently exclaim in his heart: President Xu is mighty! President Xu is amazing! President Xu is invincible!

 

A pleasant ringtone interrupted the assistant’s self-praise. After realizing it was his phone, he quickly answered. After a few seconds, he regained his seriousness, and after hanging up, he whispered, “Boss, someone from above is here.”

 

Jing Yicheng’s mood suddenly turned sour, his face instantly darkening. “Don’t let them in.”

 

The assistant helplessly replied, “They’re already at the door.”

 

Knock knock knock—the knocking sounded timely, and a calm and unfamiliar male voice penetrated through the door crack, clearly audible: “Mr. Jing, hello. I’ve come on behalf of my superiors to assign you a task and request a meeting.”

 

“…”

 

The next day.

 

Xu Chenghao personally saw his family off at the airport, and after watching the plane disappear into the distance, the stone in his heart finally dropped, and he let out a long sigh of relief.

 

His eyelid had been twitching severely since last night, and it had been non-stop, continuously twitching, making him feel uneasy. He always had a foreboding feeling hanging over him when his eyelid twitched—after all, it never boded well whenever it happened.

 

But now that his family had left, Xu Chenghao could be half at ease. After leaving the airport, he hurried to the greenhouse to check on the peppers. This time, he deliberately came half an hour earlier, sat in front of the computer, and stared at the screen displaying the pepper seedlings, waiting for the results.

 

Everything went smoother than he had expected. The greenhouse successfully yielded 24 intact peppers and 30 deformed ones; the little yellow duck yielded 9 intact peppers and 6 deformed ones. Even after planting the third batch of peppers, there were no unexpected incidents.

 

Xu Chenghao became increasingly uneasy in the face of this outcome. After much deliberation, he suddenly remembered that there were still peppers to be picked in the large flowerpot on the balcony at home. Instantly realizing this, he immediately called Jing Yicheng. Unfortunately, contrary to usual, the phone, which was usually answered in seconds, was unexpectedly switched off today.

 

To make matters worse, Xu Chenghao’s car broke down!

 

Xu Chenghao: “……”

 

Damn, so the twitching eyelid was waiting for me here?!!

 

Feeling both angry and helpless, Xu Chenghao was relieved that the car Jing Yicheng had left for Chen Long and the others to use last time was still there. In a hurry, he drove off directly in this car, leaving Chen Long and the others to wait for the towing truck to arrive.

 

He didn’t know if he could still make it in time to pick the peppers…

 

Just as this thought flashed through Xu Chenghao’s mind, he felt the car shake violently as if it had been fiercely struck from behind. In the midst of dizziness, all he remembered was the looming shadow of a massive object approaching, and then he lost consciousness amidst the intense pain.

 

T/N: I dunno who is more whipped between XCH who ran out of his home in a cold weather to draw a duck or JYC who was coaxed by a drawing on his hand ahaha. The real mvp of this chapter is our honorable assistant! Our man deserves a raise!