TCFGBH Chapter 23

This chapter is sponsored by Nochu on Ko-fi! Thank you for your support 

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Eating melons¹Gossiping is human nature.

Today, Xia Yan has become wildly popular due to the promotional photos for Beaufort, attracting many face-con fans. People have dug into his past, uncovering all sorts of things, including some less-than-glorious moments.

But considering that time, he might not have been dating Tu Xi yet, so he had a colorful dating history at most.

Around 1 AM, people began posting pictures of Xia Yan on social media. He was wearing Beaufort’s latest season jacket, sitting at a dimly lit bar, his crimson lips slightly curved in a half-smile, gazing teasingly at a curly-haired boy beside him.

A group of people surrounded him, like stars circling the moon, placing him at the center of attention.

【Spotted Xia Yan at a bar; he’s stunning—way better looking in person than in the Beaufort promo photos. But he’s also truly scummy. It only took him ten minutes to hook up with a fresh-faced boy, and they were ready to head to a hotel.】

【Tell us more, OP.】

【Tu Xi: Where’s my knife?】

【Uh…are you sure? Wouldn’t Xia Yan be smart enough to wear a hat or mask, at least if he meets someone like this? He’s a celebrity, after all.】

【As a straight guy, I saw Xia Yan today and felt like I was about to turn. He’s that good-looking.】 The fifth-floor commenter wrote a long post praising Xia Yan for his appearance before getting to the point.

He posted three candid photos and said, 【I was lucky enough to snag a good spot today and overheard Xia Yan talking with him, and him, and him.】

【Wait, let me count…three ‘hims’?】

【Is he playing that wild?】

The fifth-floor commenter continued, 【At first, Xia Yan seemed interested in the curly-haired guy, flirting with him and exchanging suggestive glances. Then, Xia Yan asked the curly-haired guy to drink a Long Island Iced Tea. Regular bar-goers should know what kind of drink that is; if you don’t, look it up yourself. Back to the point—Xia Yan said whoever could down that drink would be the one to leave the bar with him. I regret not being fast enough to grab that spot, sigh!】

【Are you seriously trying to be the third wheel here?】

The fifth-floor commenter defended himself, saying, 【Even if it weren’t me, it would’ve been someone else. Xia Yan wanted to cheat; no one could stop him. Tu Xi probably knows his personality and is willing to wear a green hat. No need for you all to play justice warriors.】

Everyone: ???

Are you okay?

His victim-blaming attitude infuriated many readers, especially Tu Xi’s fans, who wanted to drag him to a morality class.

But the fifth-floor commenter ignored the backlash and continued recounting the events at the bar.

His words were vivid, drawing readers into the scene. With occasional comments from the original poster, the entire incident became clear.

As a public figure, Xia Yan was hooking up with multiple people—not just one, but three men at the same time.

Morally bankrupt and shameless.

【Even though I’ve joked before about only caring about his looks…this is just so gross!】

【I don’t understand Xia Yan’s logic. If you’re in a relationship, just be serious about it. If you fall out of love, then break up. Now you’ve been exposed.】

【Tu Xi, please wake up!!! Break up with him already!!!!】

【Well…couldn’t the four of them getting into the same car be friends going home together? Why does everyone immediately think it’s something inappropriate?】

【Sis, stop deceiving yourself, okay?】

…

…

The internet was in an uproar.

Tu Xi’s agency tried several times to remove the trending topics, but as they say, the more you try to suppress something, the stronger it fights back. Their actions only fueled the public’s rebellious spirit, causing Xia Yan’s name to become popular.

Things had spiraled out of control.

Then, at 2 AM, a video posted by a random anonymous account threw fuel on the fire.

In the video, the alluring young man tugged on another man’s tie, their faces so close they were almost touching. The atmosphere was tense, as if they were about to kiss.

The distance in the video made the audio unclear, but a few scattered words could be heard:

“…compared to…more interested in you…”

“I really like it.”

“A billion…to date you…”

The young man’s voice was lazy and casual, with a hint of nonchalance and a teasing tone at the end, making it incredibly seductive and recognizable.

Once the video was posted, the internet’s gossip scene erupted.

【Emmm, does anyone still not know? In the circles of wealthy second-generation heirs, Xia Yan is just a plaything. After all, for someone as beautiful as him, you know what I mean.】

【Think about it for a moment. How does an ordinary high school graduate with no background consistently get resources? Isn’t it obvious he relies on sponsors?】

【The other person in the video was blurred out, so you can’t see his face, but his watch is a Breege 2020 Spring Limited Edition, worth over ten million.】

【He’s priced at one billion. If anyone wants to sleep with him, you can start a crowdfunding campaign.】

…

With both pictures and videos as proof, even the sceptics had to believe it.

Xia Yan’s reputation plummeted rapidly.

*

“Ding-ding—”

In a spacious and luxurious bedroom, the urgent ringing of a phone broke through the stillness of the night.

“Ugh…”

A man groaned in pain, groping around on the bedside table with his eyes closed. But instead of the table, his hand touched the cold floor.

The hangover instantly cleared his mind. He sat up from the floor, picked up the glowing phone, and answered the call, “Wenhan, what’s up?”

“Brother!!! What on earth is going on between you and Xia Yan?”

“?”

“Why did he say he likes you? Why did he follow you? Wait! Forget it, we’ll talk about that later.” Zhao Wenhan’s words came out in a rush, and his voice trembled with anger and tears, “The people online are talking nonsense. They don’t know anything, so why are they slandering Xia Yan…”

It was 5 AM, and the sky was still dark.

Zhao Wenxiu groped for the switch by the bed, pressing it to flood the room with a warm yellow light that dispelled the darkness. He pinched the bridge of his nose, still feeling a bit dizzy.

“Slow down.”

Zhao Wenhan quickly explained the situation, cursing the people who posted the video and the paid trolls who were stirring up trouble. After a few seconds, he cautiously asked, “Brother, is Xia Yan with you?”

“How could he be—” At my place?

The last few words froze in his throat.

A flood of memories suddenly surged back: his drunken foolishness, insisting that Xia Yan come with him, and then arguing with a mixed-race curly-haired guy like a child in kindergarten.

Zhao Wenxiu sat on the edge of the bed, his gaze landing on the curly-haired boy sleeping on the floor. His face turned pale, then flushed, and a wave of despair washed over his eyes.

He wanted to die.

Right now, immediately.

Zhao Wenxiu rubbed his forehead, questioning his life choices.

On the other end of the line, Zhao Wenhan, oblivious, kept calling out, “Brother?”

“Xia Yan…” Zhao Wenxiu took a deep breath, turning his head in resignation to see the young man’s messy hair and peaceful sleeping face. Feeling utterly defeated, he muttered, “…is here.”

“…” Zhao Wenhan was silent for a long time. “Brother, you and him…”

“No, nothing happened.”

“Really? If it’s with you, brother…I…” The young man gripped his phone tightly, his fingers turning white as he bit his lip hard and forced out five words, “I can accept it.”

After saying this, he waited for a while but didn’t hear his brother’s denial.

Some things don’t need to be said too clearly.

The dignity of adulthood teaches people to know when to stop.

Zhao Wenhan let out a small sob, which was quickly swallowed back. He awkwardly changed the subject, “Please take care of the situation online, brother.”

“Okay.”

The call ended, and Zhao Wenxiu didn’t have time to process his complex emotions. His fingers moved to open social media, and his brows furrowed deeply when he saw the trending topics.

Quickly scrolling through the online discourse, he saw many people confidently claiming that Xia Yan was greedy for money, willing to do anything for cash. He used his looks to curry favor with sponsors and amass wealth.

He nearly burst out laughing in anger.

A job with a six billion annual salary and Xia Yan could say no without hesitation.

When faced with the colossal Zhao family, the young man treated the two brothers like toys, eager to see what drama would unfold.

Greedy?

Pandering to sponsors?

If Xia Yan had even possessed a hint of those “wonderful” qualities, Zhao Wenxiu wouldn’t still be single today.

Zhao Wenxiu reached out, intending to wake Xia Yan, but a despicable thought popped into his head halfway through. If Tu Xi misunderstood this… would he break up with him?

After a moment of hesitation, he walked out of the bedroom barefoot, closed the door behind him, and entered the study to make a phone call.

The call was quickly answered, but neither party spoke.

After a long silence, Zhao Wenxiu tentatively broke it, “You’ve probably seen the video online.”

Tu Xi didn’t say a word.

Zhao Wenxiu continued, “I offered one billion dollars to tempt Xia Yan.” He wasn’t lying; he wasn’t telling the whole truth, letting the other man draw his own conclusions.

“He was only tempted.” Tu Xi’s voice came through the phone, slightly distorted, cold, and suppressed. “I know he didn’t cheat.”

“Oh? You’re that confident in your charm?”

“No!”

“?”

“I believe in reality,” Tu Xi said. “If you called just to test me, then leave. I’m busy right now.”

Attempt to sow discord: failed.

Zhao Wenxiu sighed silently and said, “I’ll help you deal with the public opinion online. Don’t reject it. This situation is partly my fault for not paying attention to the surroundings, leading to someone recording a video.”

“Also… there’s no quicker way to clear things up than for the people involved to make a statement.” He chuckled, “Isn’t the internet already spreading rumors that I’m Xia Yan’s sponsor?”

Tu Xi: “What do you plan to do?”

“The wealthy sponsor spends six billion just to make Xia Yan happy, but Xia Yan remains pure and uncorrupted by money—a righteous and principled star.”

Though, in reality, he spent the money for his brother, the outcome was the same.

And besides, he also…

Tu Xi: “Fine.”

“The video is taken care of. Should we spend money to suppress the rest of it?” Zhao Wenxiu recalled the online gossip that had unearthed dozens of Xia Yan’s supposed boyfriends, with one every month on average, plus the incident at the bar last night…

If he were an ordinary person, at most people would call him a scumbag for being unfaithful.

But for a celebrity, cheating was a fatal flaw.

“You don’t need to worry about that. I have my ways,” Tu Xi said coldly. “The sky is about to brighten. Get Xia Yan some congee. After staying up all night, his stomach won’t handle anything else.”

Click—the call ended.

Zhao Wenxiu looked at his phone, a strange expression on his face.

Why was Tu Xi so certain Xia Yan was at his house? And he wasn’t jealous at all, as if he knew a third person was involved.

As dawn broke, coloring the sky with a rosy hue, Zhao Wenxiu, still dealing with a lingering headache from his hangover, rubbed his temples and pushed his thoughts aside. He ordered three bowls of porridge from Qingfang Zhai.

The PR department could write the PR statement, but given the delicate nature of the situation, he personally opened his laptop and tweaked the wording for half an hour before the porridge arrived.

He shut the laptop and went to the bedroom to wake the other two.

Having stayed up late, the young man was still fast asleep. Hearing someone calling him, he childishly pulled the blanket over his head, hiding beneath it.

“I just want to sleep a little longer.”

“Eat breakfast first, then sleep.”

“No…”

System: [Host.]

Xia Yan: [Don’t bother me… Five more minutes, just five minutes.]

System: [Host!!! You’ve completed Task 6!!!]

[Task…completed…] Jolted awake as if from a deadly illness, the young man suddenly sat up straight, blinking dazedly around the room. Not seeing the task panel, his groggy brain finally caught up…

He should check it in his mind!

He pulled up the panel, and the large words [Task Completed] brought tears to his eyes.

Glancing downward, he saw that Task 7 had already refreshed, and… there was no Task 8 waiting to be unlocked. In other words, this role-playing mission was almost over?!

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