TCFGBH Chapter 26

Zhao Wenxiu was determined to clear Xia Yan’s name, even at the cost of his own reputation.

Xia Yan, unable to stop him, sulkily set down the laptop. His delicate, beautiful face was frustrated as if someone had forced him into doing something unpleasant.

“Brother,” the curly-haired man called out cautiously.

Just moments ago, the young man had been enthusiastically chatting with him. But now he gave him a cold, emotionless glance before turning away to hug a pillow and curl up on the couch like a colorful little mushroom in isolation.

The drastic change in demeanor tugged at the heartstrings.

The curly-haired man ruffled his hair in frustration, glaring at Zhao Wenxiu. He muttered, “If he doesn’t want to do it, why are you forcing him?”

“Go away,” Zhao Wenxiu snapped as he forwarded the announcement to Wang Dazhuang. His fingers touched the indentation on the mouse, and his expression was filled with suppressed anxiety and unease. His gaze couldn’t help but drift toward the young man, even though he was certain his decision was right. Yet, going against Xia Yan’s wishes still caused him pain.

The curly-haired man was still young, and his love was unconditional compliance, with no consideration for consequences. But he was already in his twenties; he couldn’t afford to be like that.

Wang Dazhuang, likely well aware of Xia Yan’s self-destructive tendencies, had quietly changed the password of his Weibo account, leaving Xia Yan unable to stir up any more trouble.

Xia Yan: “…” Why!!!

This won’t do! He couldn’t just sit around and wait.

The young man’s eyes darted around, scanning the living room as a plan formed in his mind. In a fit of frustration, he threw the pillow aside, his face full of irritation. “So noisy! Can’t  I get some rest?”

The laptop’s built-in membrane keyboard was very quiet, but Xia Yan was clearly venting his anger.

Zhao Wenxiu paused briefly, then got up good-naturedly and said, “I’ll go handle things in the study. Feel free to explore the house. I’ve already ordered lunch; it’ll be delivered at noon.”

Xia Yan: “…” Are you not even angry?

Even after Zhao Wenxiu left, he was still in a daze.

Plan A failed. Time to initiate Plan B.

He couldn’t access his main account but still had his side account! The young man took a deep breath and opened his phone’s camera. He quickly snapped a self-incriminating photo.

Hmm! one doesn’t seem exciting enough.

Xia Yan’s eyes wandered, landing on the innocent curly-haired man.

Although he didn’t particularly enjoy close contact with others, desperate times called for desperate measures.

Curly-haired man: “?”

“Come here.” Xia Yan tilted his head and spread his arms, revealing his firm chest. Under the curious gaze of the curly-haired man, he pulled him into his embrace.

On the wide black leather sofa, the two bodies intertwined. They could feel each other’s body heat through the thin summer clothing.

The curly-haired man let out a muffled groan, stiffly resting his head against Xia Yan’s chest. His cheek pressed against the firm yet soft chest muscles, and his nose was filled with a faint, sweet fragrance.

It smelled so good.

A blush slowly crept up from his neck, spreading across his face.

Chu Zizhe turned completely red, like a boiled shrimp from head to toe.

Despite his baby-faced appearance, which made him look innocent and youthful, he was actually three or four centimeters taller than Xia Yan and had a bigger build.

This position didn’t look like Xia Yan was holding him in his arms—it looked more like he finally couldn’t resist and had pounced on Xia Yan.

Unaware of this, Xia Yan opened the front-facing camera.

“Come on, let’s take a picture.” Xia Yan’s lips curled into a mischievous smile as his soft arms wrapped around Curly Hair’s neck, pulling him closer. “Don’t worry, I’ll censor your face.”

Curly Hair: “?”

Censor, my foot! Just send him the picture.

Though that’s what he thought, Curly Hair didn’t dare say it. Instead, he obediently pretended to be compliant, his misty emerald eyes full of affection as he gazed at the camera.

Xia Yan quickly took a few pictures with his phone’s front-facing camera.

As for the “censorship” he mentioned… He used a pixelation tool to crudely blur out Chu Zizhe’s entire face, leaving only the intimate posture visible to the online viewers.

Chu Zizhe almost burst out laughing.

If only Xia Yan had done a little research, he’d know that pixelation isn’t very effective—there are always skilled tech enthusiasts who can restore the image.

“You’re really happy, aren’t you?”

Curly Hair adjusted his position, hiding a certain part of himself, and innocently said, “Well, big brother just hugged me, so of course I’m happy.”

Xia Yan gave him a suspicious look before continuing to operate his phone.

A minute later, the photo was sent.

With Xia Yan’s rising popularity, it didn’t even take ten minutes for the picture to get flooded with responses.

【Is this really him?】

【Holy crap! You’re something else! Still dating Tu Xi, yet here you are being intimate with another guy—and you even posted it online.】

【Let me just tag @TuXi for you.】

【If you’re bold enough to post the picture, why bother censoring it? Trying to protect your sidepiece?】

【Do you think we can’t figure it out? Just wait and see.】

【Okay, I’m just going to ask—am I the only one who’s envious? Xia Yan’s chest muscles look so soft, I’m drooling.jpg.】

【Same here…】

【He’s so bad, but his face and body are really hitting all my buttons.】

【Even with just the phone’s basic camera, he looks this good. He must look even better in real life… Is he going to the bar tonight? Some perv is scheming to track him down.】

Xia Yan: “…”

【Sisters, Xia Yan’s main account just made a statement.】

The traffic on his main account was far greater than on his side account, and the comments grew rapidly. People were also repeatedly reviewing the explanation post he had forwarded.

【Oh my god! Is the Zhao family… the one I’m thinking of? This can’t be a fake account, right?】

【It’s a verified account. It’s the official main account.】

【Look at the video. I thought 100 million RMB was already a lot, but it turns out it’s 100 million US dollars. At today’s exchange rate, that’s a full 700 million RMB. Damn, I don’t deserve to even admire Xia Yan’s body.】

【What’s even more important… he turned him down! And that was Zhao Wenxiu.】

【Here, let me show you Zhao Wenxiu’s photo—handsome, steady, and incredibly attractive. He came with a billion-dollar offer, and Xia Yan rejected him!!!】

【Is Xia Yan’s heart made of stone?】

【But… isn’t he like, a homewrecker or something?】

【Zhao Wenxiu: I’m not here to break up this family, I’m here to join it. [doge emoji]】

【Tu Xi: MMP.】

【Wait a minute… Xia Yan just posted a picture. Even though the person in his arms has a censored face, the curly hair clearly isn’t Zhao Wenxiu, so who is he with now?】

【Picture.jpg.】

【Look at the picture. Last night, Xia Yan first flirted with a mixed-race guy, then Zhao Wenxiu suddenly showed up, and finally, four people left together. Could this picture be… post-hookup?】

【Tu Xi just posted on Weibo, saying he believes Xia Yan wouldn’t cheat.】

【???】

【Xia Yan, you’re a legend.】

【Zhao Wenxiu and Tu Xi are bending over backward to clear his name, but Xia Yan is busy cuddling up with someone else and posting intimate photos.】

【I really want Xia Yan to write a relationship guidebook. I’d buy it in a heartbeat.】

【I want to believe Xia Yan didn’t cheat, but… he literally posted bedroom photos. I can’t even pretend to be blind anymore!】

A scumbag is easy to criticize.

But when a scumbag is openly scummy and still has two exceptional men completely devoted to him, public sentiment becomes a bit more complicated.

Xia Yan backstabbed himself, gleefully watching his failed attempt at redemption.

Wang Dazhuang was furious, calling him like crazy. Xia Yan guiltily set his phone to Do Not Disturb mode, too scared to answer.

Instead, Wang Dazhuang sent him a voice message, transforming into a ranting emperor.

“Do you realize what time it is? And you’re still being reckless? If it weren’t for Tu Xi, Beaufort would’ve come knocking at your door today to demand compensation. Do you even get that?”

“Tu Xi arranged for a private jet and flew back from France last night, staying up all night for you.”

“He truly cares for you. If you don’t like him—” Wang Dazhuang swallowed the rest of his words, but he wanted to say, ‘then break up already and stop torturing him.’

He handed his phone to the man next to him.

Tu Xi hadn’t slept all night, and his eyes were bloodshot. The habitual smile on his face was gone, replaced by a certain coldness in his expression.

But when he spoke to Xia Yan, his voice remained as gentle as ever.

“Did you have fun?”

“You can do whatever you want; it’s fine.”

“Leave the rest to me.”

Wang Dazhuang: “…” Who’s the crazy one here?

Xia Yan: “…” Help! Why is the protagonist shou is so good to a cheating scumbag?

Tu Xi wasn’t just making empty promises. His team quickly got to work, and soon, countless pictures of Xia Yan from last night started circulating. They were all from the bar, and while some were quite suggestive, it became clear that Xia Yan hadn’t even touched the other person’s hand when viewed from a different angle.

【I was shocked when I woke up this morning and saw that Brother Xia was trending. As one of his rumored boyfriends, I couldn’t help but speak up. Although Brother Xia seems like a player who’s always cheating, it’s all just an illusion! We never held hands in the half-month I spent at the bar with him.  Every time we left the bar and you guys saw us getting into the same car, you probably thought we were going to hook up, right? But… every time, Brother Xia would drop me off at the hotel and make an excuse to leave. Later, I guess he noticed I was getting too attached. I mean, it’s hard not to fall for him, so he started ignoring me and found a new drinking partner.】

To prove his point, the poster even shared a picture of himself and one of the “cheating” photos the paparazzi took.

With one person stepping forward, a second and a third quickly followed.

【I thought I was the only one who never got to hold Brother Xia’s hand. [kneeling emoji]】

【Same here. I spent that whole time doubting my attractiveness. I feel a bit better now that I see everyone else had the same experience.】

【When people online say Brother Xia sells his body for resources, I have to laugh. If Brother Xia asked, I’d be willing to throw money at him to make a movie. [screenshot of bank balance]】

【Exactly! I’d do it in a heartbeat if Brother Xia wanted me to fight for him. The idea of him selling himself to me… I wouldn’t even dare dream of that.】

【Anyone who tries to mess with Brother Xia would be up against the whole country!!! After Brother Xia’s relationship goes public, there will probably be a ton of people secretly cursing for it to end.】

【The slanderers are thinking too small—selling his body? Seriously? Tsk tsk.】

【No need to worry, Zhao’s family has already reported it to the police. Those malicious pests will be caught soon.】

The people who came forward to speak out were all second-generation heirs of wealthy families. Their previous Weibo posts were filled with luxury yachts, private jets, and designer goods.

Netizens were left dumbfounded.