DASFAM_41

The two tacitly shelved that boundary-crossing intimacy and kept silent about it.

Perhaps because he had been a 'salted fish' for too long, Bai Xu's latent workaholic nature was stirring restlessly again. After thinking it over, he still agreed to Shang Yanxiao's cooperation request—

Firstly, because the "Eaglet Cinema" project truly hit his interest points perfectly.

Secondly, because no one can get along badly with money, and Bai Xu was no exception. Since Shang Yanxiao was willing to place this 'bet' on him, he naturally had the courage and confidence to accept it all.

The two communicated smoothly on this matter and even formally signed an official cooperation agreement—it was all strictly business.

When the news reached Chu Yate, the other party thoughtfully found a suitable temporary office location for Zhouye Investment.

Ding dong.

The elevator doors opened in response.

Looking at the four characters 'Zhouye Investment' that came into view, Bai Xu raised his eyebrows in praise, "Yo, this facade looks pretty good."

Shang Yanxiao was also satisfied, "Mm."

Just as his words fell, Chu Yate's figure emerged from the conference room.

He leaned against the doorframe and greeted them, "Two bosses, you've finally deigned to come? Where's the logic in making me, your ally, wait here with the team members?"

Xie Qi, who was at his side, explained on their behalf, "Mr. Chu, sorry, there was a traffic accident on the necessary route, so there was a bit of traffic jam."

Chu Yate smiled, showing no intention to blame.

Bai Xu and Shang Yanxiao exchanged a glance and walked forward, "Alright, no more nonsense, let's start directly."

This was the first gathering of the project team members, the most necessary meeting.

Chu Yate sat back in his seat and got straight to the point, "Chu's Group Investment, led by Chu Yuncheng, will participate in this competition. My identity makes it inconvenient to go against my own family, so all future projects will be under the name of 'Zhouye Investment'."

"These four are all project team members I carefully selected—capable." Chu Yate swept a glance around and emphasized, "Tight-lipped, won't go out and talk nonsense."

The four employees maintained consistent politeness, "Hello Mr. Shang, hello Mr. Bai."

Even though they weren't clear about Shang Yanxiao and Bai Xu's true backgrounds, but as 'working people,' whoever pays the salary is the boss—no need to ask about everything, and being a blabbermouth is an absolute workplace taboo.

Shang Yanxiao nodded slightly and gave Xie Qi a look.

Xie Qi, as an experienced project hand, understood and got acquainted with the team members Chu Yate brought, proactively cueing the process, "Then shall we first briefly go over the information on all the competitors this time?"

"Alright, let me start—"

An employee responded actively, bringing up preliminary research materials, "Currently, we can confirm eight companies participating in the bidding..."

The project meeting lasted a full three hours before it was declared over.

Bai Xu showed no sign of fatigue; instead, he vaguely felt an excitement of opening 'difficult mode', "The difficulty is considerable."

Besides Chu's Group's project investment department, two overseas-funded companies were also coming on strong. Compared to these companies, Zhouye Investment was like a small fish and shrimp in the ocean, easily overlooked as a token participant.

Shang Yanxiao detected his barely concealed excitement, "Having difficulty makes it fun, doesn't it?"

Compared to projects where victory was assured from the start, success as a latecomer would be more interesting.

Bai Xu understood tacitly and smiled in response, "Mm."

The two acted as if no one else was around, forming their own barrier.

The elevator stopped at the negative first floor and opened in response.

Chu Yate drank the last sip of his coffee, trying to interrupt, "You two, the meeting's already over, how about having dinner together?"

Just as Bai Xu was about to accept, Shang Yanxiao beside him declined first in a light tone, "Another time. Tonight we have another appointment—it's inconvenient."

"......"

Another appointment? How come he didn't know about it?

Bai Xu looked at Shang Yanxiao in bewilderment, "Hm?"

Shang Yanxiao stood up and indicated, "Going to pick someone up at the airport. If we go now, the timing is about right."

Chu Yate didn't suspect anything, "Alright then, let's meet up next time. I'll head out first."

"Take care."

It wasn't until they got in the car and closed the door that Bai Xu showed a face full of suspicion, "What are we going to the airport for? You're not making up an excuse to avoid dinner, are you?"

Shang Yanxiao indicated for him to fasten his seatbelt and answered indirectly, "Didn't you notice I had Xie Qi take a taxi home first?"

Bai Xu nodded, "So what?"

Shang Yanxiao looked at the empty back seat, "So, we really are going to the airport to pick someone up."

Bai Xu's curiosity grew stronger, "Who?"

Shang Yanxiao played it mysterious, "You'll know when we get there."

Bai Xu clicked the seatbelt into place with a 'snap' and complained, "Why are you being all mysterious about it?"

Shang Yanxiao let him grumble and pressed the gas pedal to drive off.

One hour later, at the N City International Airport terminal.

Bai Xu held a cup of sparkling water he'd bought on the spot, leaning listlessly against the car door, "Who is it? Why haven't they arrived yet?"

Shang Yanxiao sat in the car confirming messages, "Soon."

Bai Xu took a sip of his drink and hummed jokingly, "I'd like to see who's so important that Third Young Master has to personally come pick them up?"

Just as his words fell, Bai Xu heard an extremely excited and resounding call:

"—Bai Xu!"

"?"

Bai Xu looked in surprise toward the source of the sound. Before he could make out the figure clearly, the person enthusiastically ran over and threw themselves into his arms.

"......"

Bai Xu was 'bumped' back against the car door, nearly dropping the drink in his hand. Familiar brown curly hair came into view, easily revealing the person's identity.

"Changning? How did you get here?"

Zhang Changning released him from the embrace, expression as arrogant as ever, "Didn't expect it, did you? I came too."

Bai Xu pressed further, "Did you come alone?"

Shang Yanxiao in the car also spoke up, "Where's your brother?"

Zhang Changning bent down to greet Shang Yanxiao in the car and explained, "Third Brother, my second brother is still waiting for luggage. I was afraid you'd get impatient waiting, so I came out first."

Bai Xu caught on from the conversation and asked again, "You two brothers came to visit? How long are you planning to stay?"

"My friend is holding an art exhibition in N City. Tomorrow's the opening day, so I came to show support. My brother happens to have a medical symposium to attend the day after tomorrow, so we figured we'd come together."

Zhang Changning explained the purpose of coming here, "We'll stay three or four days and then head back."

Bai Xu glanced at Shang Yanxiao in the car and teased, "No wonder our Third Young Master had to personally come pick you up. Looks like we need to throw you two brothers a proper welcome dinner tonight?"

Zhang Changning wasn't one for false modesty at all—his pampered demeanor from childhood came out immediately, "Third Brother, I want seafood."

Shang Yanxiao had always treated him like a younger brother and responded, "Your brother already told me. Don't worry, it's all prepared. We'll eat at home tonight."

"Great!"

Shang Yanxiao, concerned about his real younger brother back home, asked, "How's Queyan doing?"

Zhang Changning answered, "Pretty good. Rehabilitation is going smoothly. He can walk normally for a while now."

Bai Xu followed up with another question, "What about the studio?"

Zhang Changning made an "OK" gesture, "Sister Qiu is watching over it. Everything's normal."

Bai Xu smiled, "That's good then."

Zhang Changning wasn't in a hurry to get in the car, just said, "My brother should be out soon."

The three waited on the spot for a while before seeing Zhang Changxu walk out pushing two large suitcases.

Zhang Changning's eyes suddenly lit up, "Brother! Over here!"

Seeing the super-large size of the suitcases, Bai Xu looked shocked, "You two brothers are only here for three or four days? Do you really need such big suitcases? And two of them?"

Meeting Bai Xu's questioning gaze, Zhang Changxu showed his usual calm composure, "Most of what's in the suitcases is Xiao Ning's stuff. Ask him."

Bai Xu looked at Zhang Changning, "What did you bring?"

Zhang Changning looked innocent, "Nothing much, all necessities."

Zhang Changxu only said a few extra words when facing his own younger brother, "He's picky about beds. Every time he goes out, he has to bring his sleeping pillow, sheets, and duvet cover. He won't even leave behind his usual aromatherapy diffuser. He's been a troublemaker since childhood."

Hearing this, Bai Xu silently gave a thumbs up.

As expected of Third Young Master Ning from the original book, pampered by his family since childhood—this level of refinement was unmatched.

Zhang Changning suddenly felt a bit embarrassed and turned to mutter at Zhang Changxu, "Second Brother, you were clearly the one who packed both these suitcases. Stop mocking me in front of Bai Xu."

Zhang Changxu hit the mark, "Who gave the orders?"

"......"

Zhang Changning huffily turned his head away and stopped responding.

Bai Xu suppressed a laugh and unconsciously looked at Shang Yanxiao, who had gotten out of the car, "Shall we go?"

"Mm, right away."

Shang Yanxiao walked around to the trunk and indicated to his friend, "Let's load the suitcases."

Zhang Changxu nodded, "Alright."

...

As dusk fell, inside the duplex villa.

The butler and servants had already prepared a lavish dinner under Shang Yanxiao's advance instructions, and the aroma of seafood filled the entire house.

"Oh my god, I'm drooling just looking at it." Zhang Changning couldn't wait to sit down, and didn't forget to pull Zhang Changxu to sit beside him, "Brother, hurry and sit down!"

Seeing his usual fixed seat taken by his friend, Bai Xu's steps paused slightly.

Shang Yanxiao seemed to notice his hesitation and simply moved the chair at the head of the table to face the two brothers, "Come here, sit next to me."

Bai Xu had no better option and walked over.

The butler proactively asked, "Mr. Shang, should I open a bottle of red wine?"

Zhang Changning quickly responded, "Yes!"

Zhang Changxu helplessly gave a light pat to the back of his head, "You're a guest, don't be so improper."

Zhang Changning retorted in an extremely small voice, "Third Brother isn't an outsider."

"It's fine, we should open a bottle to welcome you both." The corners of Shang Yanxiao's mouth curved up, and he immediately asked Bai Xu's opinion, "You want to choose?"

Bai Xu didn't decline, "That white wine from last time, is there any left?"

The smile in Shang Yanxiao's eyes deepened a bit, "You want to drink that wine again?"

"......"

Bai Xu suddenly recalled some scenes and quickly rejected it, "I just thought that wine tasted good, is that not okay?"

"Okay, you have the final say."

Shang Yanxiao instructed the butler to fetch and chill the wine, then said to everyone at the table, "Start eating."

"Wait!"

Zhang Changning suddenly called a halt and, on a whim, took out his phone, "I'm going to take a video to show off to Queyan."

Bai Xu was amused by his behavior, "Knowing he's alone back home, why do you have to provoke him?"

Zhang Changning laughed back, "Teasing him is fun, of course."

With that, he used his phone to record a particularly 'asking for a beating' show-off video—

Not only did it feature the entire table of delicious food, but he also filmed all three other people at the table, ending with Zhang Changning's especially boastful laughter.

Swoosh!

The video was successfully sent to Shang Queyan, who was far away in China.

Zhang Changning was satisfied, "Alright, we can dig in now!"

Zhang Changxu let his younger brother eat heartily and looked at his friend across the table, "Before I left this time, the Old Master specifically instructed me to come 'check on' you."

"The Shang family hasn't discovered any clues yet, but for authenticity, how about you come with me to the hospital tomorrow and put on a show? I'll take a video for the old master as proof?"

Shang Yanxiao unhurriedly put on gloves, "Fine."

Zhang Changning swallowed a mouthful of pan-fried clam meat and, taking advantage of everyone present being familiar faces, asked, "Third Brother, I've never understood. Why are you pretending you haven't woken up? Is there something suspicious about the car accident?"

"......"

Shang Yanxiao's movement of peeling shrimp paused, and a rare trace of hostility flickered across his brow.

Bai Xu and Zhang Changxu simultaneously sensed it, their gazes separately falling on the two of them.

Zhang Changxu softly stopped him, "Xiao Ning."

Bai Xu looked at the silent Shang Yanxiao and answered on his behalf, "The situation on the Shang family's side is too chaotic. The first and second branches fight endlessly all day long."

"Yanxiao doesn't want to waste his energy on that kind of place, so he borrowed the 'coma' excuse to start fresh in the Singapore."

This was the truth, but not the real reason.

Zhang Changning roughly realized he'd spoken too quickly and asked the wrong question, and hurriedly made amends, "That's true, with Third Brother's abilities, he can succeed anywhere!"

Shang Yanxiao passed the small plate of peeled shrimp to Bai Xu and shifted the dinner table conversation, "Eat up, I peeled them for you."

Bai Xu's heart stirred slightly, "You didn't eat anything this whole time just to peel these for me?"

Shang Yanxiao replied in a low voice, "You said last time you like eating them but find it troublesome and don't want to dirty your hands? Eat more, if it's not enough I'll peel more for you."

Bai Xu curved his lips, "Thanks."

Zhang Changxu sensed the further intimate atmosphere between the two people across from him, and a trace of understanding flickered in the depths of his pupils.

After a while longer, the butler returned with the white wine in an ice bucket and poured it for each of the four people at the table.

Zhang Changning seemed to suddenly remember something, "Wait, why hasn't Queyan replied to my message this whole time?"

He picked up his phone and casually opened WeChat to send a message.

In the blink of an eye, a bright red circle with an exclamation mark appeared on the screen:

—Message sent but rejected by the recipient!

"......"

Zhang Changning was dumbfounded for a few seconds and immediately made a fuss showing his phone screen, "What the—he actually blocked me! Is Shang Queyan a sore loser or what?"

Seeing this situation, Bai Xu immediately laughed so hard he choked.

Shang Yanxiao showed concern, "Slow down, are you okay?"

"I'm fine." Bai Xu took a sip of wine to soothe his throat, still finding the elementary school squabble across from him amusing, "He really blocked you?"

Zhang Changxu looked at the indignant Zhang Changning helplessly, "I told you not to provoke him for no reason?"

Zhang Changning was unconvinced, "When I get back home, he's done for."

The meal was fairly enjoyable overall.

Seeing the dinner was almost over, the butler timely asked, "Will the two Mr. Zhangs be staying here tonight?"

Zhang Changxu said, "We booked a hotel in the city center."

Bai Xu checked the time, "It's almost nine o'clock. Why don't you not bother going out tonight and just stay here?"

Shang Yanxiao also thought it was fine and instructed the servants to prepare the guest room.

The servant nodded, "There's only one guest room left in the house. Would it be okay for the two gentlemen to share?"

Zhang Changning was busy drinking the last sip of wine, his cheeks flushed. Hearing this, he looked at Zhang Changxu beside him, then on a whim directed his gaze at Bai Xu.

"Bai Xu, how about you and I squeeze together and sleep tonight! I'm not that picky about beds!"

As soon as his words fell, Shang Yanxiao and Zhang Changxu said in unison, "No."

"......"

"......"

Bai Xu narrowed his eyes subtly, and Zhang Changning was so startled he hiccupped from the alcohol.

Zhang Changxu reached out to pat his back, "You'll sleep with me tonight, stop making trouble."

Zhang Changning obediently responded, "Oh."

Shang Yanxiao followed up, "Then it's settled. You two brothers will stay here tonight, and it'll be convenient to go to the hospital together tomorrow."

"Alright."

...

A peaceful night.

Bai Xu slept until he woke naturally, had a simple lunch, then returned to his room and began working on his computer on the preliminary preparations for the "Eaglet Cinema" project.

The sunlight outside the window shifted slowly and steadily until the sound of knocking came.

Zhang Changning asked from outside the door, "Bai Xu, can I come in?"

Bai Xu pulled himself out of his focused work state and rubbed his stiff neck, "The door's not locked, come in."

Zhang Changning walked in.

Bai Xu turned around, chair and all, "Awake? You didn't get dizzy from drinking too much last night, did you?"

"I'm fine. My second brother gave me hangover medicine before I went to bed last night. I just slept in late, so I woke up late too."

Sure enough, when he opened his eyes it was already one-thirty in the afternoon.

Zhang Changning saw the piles of project materials on his computer desk, "You're busy? Did I interrupt you?"

Bai Xu shook his head, "No, I'm pretty much done here. I was just about to take a break."

Hearing this, Zhang Changning extended an invitation, "Then do you want to come with me to see my friend's art exhibition?"

"Me?"

"Yeah."

Zhang Changning nodded affirmatively, "My brother sent me a message. He and Third Brother just arrived at the hospital. We'll meet up after they're done. My friend's performance art exhibition is quite interesting—come with me?"

Bai Xu hadn't been out to properly wander around in a long time. They hit it off immediately, "Alright, wait while I change my clothes first?"

Zhang Changning smiled broadly, "Okay!"

...

The venue for this performance art exhibition was in the city center. It was still the first day of a workday, so the foot traffic in the exhibition hall wasn't much.

Zhang Changning brought Bai Xu to complete the sign-in, and only then did they browse through the exhibition halls one after another.

When they saw the exit sign of the last exhibition hall, Zhang Changning finally asked, "How was it? Not bad, right?"

Bai Xu agreed, "Quite interesting."

It had to be said that this artist friend of Zhang Changning's had some imaginative ideas.

Though it was called a performance art exhibition, it wasn't vulgar, bizarre, or strange. The arrangement of each scene carried a novel elegance that was quite immersive.

"I heard from my friend that this exhibition tour is arranged for five countries and eleven cities. Singapore is the first stop."

Zhang Changning revealed in a low voice, "By the way, he's German, a whole cycle older than me, and he's a marriage-free advocate. His daily mantra is to enjoy the present and seize the day."

Zhang Changning belatedly paused, "That's strange, why didn't I see him inside the exhibition hall just now?"

As soon as the words left his mouth, a shout came from behind them, "Ning~"

Speak of the devil. Bai Xu and Zhang Changning turned their gaze—

A handsome-looking foreign man was walking quickly toward them. He wore a white T-shirt covered with handwritten signatures in watercolor pen, many of them overlapping and illegible.

Zhang Changning waved at him, then acted as intermediary for introductions, "Bai Xu, this is Andrew, the main exhibitor."

"Andrew, this is my good friend from China, Bai Xu."

"......"

The two met eyes under Zhang Changning's introduction.

Andrew saw Bai Xu's appearance clearly, and obvious interest spilled from his amber pupils. He even spoke in Chinese right away, "Hello, nice to meet you for the first time. I'm very pleased to meet you."

Zhang Changning was startled.

Usually the two of them communicated in English. He hadn't expected the other's Chinese to be quite good.

Bai Xu returned the same courtesy, speaking in fluent German, "Thank you, I'm also very pleased to meet you. This exhibition is excellent."

At this, Zhang Changning's round eyes widened even more, "Bai Xu, how do you know German too?"

Bai Xu was modest, "Just a little bit of basics, not proficient."

Andrew praised him, "You already speak it very well."

Zhang Changning asked, "Where are you coming back from?"

Andrew pointed at the ceiling, "The bar upstairs. I booked it for the whole day as a celebration and reception venue. Many friends and guests are there."

He extended an invitation with a smile, "Do you two want to come up for a drink?"

Hearing about drinking, Zhang Changning instantly perked up, "Bai Xu, should we go?"

Bai Xu didn't immediately agree, "How much longer will your brothers be?"

"They haven't said anything yet. Probably got held up with something."

"But they'll definitely come find us when they're done. I sent the specific address to my second brother."

Zhang Changning added more content in the chat interface, then simply grabbed Bai Xu's wrist, "Let's go, let's go sit upstairs. We'll just have one or two light drinks."

Andrew smoothly made an inviting gesture, "Please, honored guests."

...

Night fell, and the liveliness in the bar grew even stronger with the darkness.

Zhang Changning was naturally sociable and quickly became one with the friends around him. Bai Xu, on the other hand, found it a bit too loud for his ears after staying for a while.

He patted Zhang Changning's shoulder, "Changning, I'm going to the open-air terrace to get some air."

Zhang Changning responded, "Okay, Third Brother and the others will be here soon. I'll come get you in a bit!"

Bai Xu picked up the half glass of whiskey left on the table and quickly distanced himself from the noise.

Once the night breeze on the open-air terrace hit him, his heart quieted down.

Bai Xu couldn't help but sigh, "Finally some peace and quiet."

The next second, a light laugh came from behind him, "It seems Mr. Bai doesn't like bar environments like this? I've been a poor host."

Bai Xu turned to see Andrew walking toward him and smiled politely but distantly, "It's my own issue, nothing to do with your arrangements."

"If the guests don't have a good experience, then I've fallen short." Andrew lightly clinked his own glass against Bai Xu's, "My apology."

With that, he drank it all in one go.

Bai Xu's eyebrows rose slightly, and he boldly followed suit, drinking it all, "I'll match half a glass."

Andrew saw his action and grew even more interested, "No wonder Mr. Bai can be friends with Ning. You two are equally adorable."

"Adorable?"

Bai Xu didn't think this adjective could be applied to himself, "Changning is more adorable."

Andrew didn't refute this, and even said bluntly, "Ning is very adorable, but not easy to pick up."

"......"

Bai Xu was stunned, "You're pursuing him?"

"Pursuing?" Andrew shrugged his shoulders, boldly making his attitude clear, "I'm the type who never pursues stable partner relationships."

"When I first met Ning, I really wanted to have intimate, in-depth contact with him, but unfortunately, he jumped up and refused me."

Bai Xu knew that foreigners were always direct in their expressions, so his expression remained calm.

But when he heard the description of 'friend jumping up to refuse,' he laughed out loud, "Changning is more suited to being a friend."

Andrew replied, "I think so too. After all, when he refused me, he said he already had someone he liked."

"......"

Changning has someone he likes?

This was the first time Bai Xu knew about this. His surprise was fleeting, and instead he felt it was just a random excuse his friend used to put Andrew off.

Andrew gazed at Bai Xu's face and easily breached the safe distance between them, "Then what about you, Mr. Bai?"

A hint of rejection was suppressed in Bai Xu's eyes, but because he was leaning against the railing, he had nowhere to retreat, "What?"

Andrew made no attempt to hide his desire, "I liked you from the first moment I saw you, Mr. Bai. You're more attractive than Singapore's night scenery. If you're willing, I think..."

Bai Xu remained unmoved, "You think what?"

Andrew continued his advance, "We could talk about nothing else and just spend this beautiful night together?"

Everyone has different attitudes toward life and romance. A one-night stand after a chance encounter indeed fit the standards of 'seize the day' and 'enjoy the present' that Andrew spoke of.

However, this set of standards didn't suit Bai Xu.

Bai Xu raised his hand and pressed the empty glass against Andrew's chest. There was no direct physical contact between them, but his rejection had already quietly surfaced.

Andrew looked down, "Mr. Bai?"

Just as Bai Xu was about to voice his direct rejection, a familiar voice, low and cold, came from the terrace entrance.

"Sorry, am I interrupting?"

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