He Pulled Me Into His Coat….and Called Me Beautiful

Ning Shixue was stunned by the kiss.

He didn’t even think to move away.
His eyelashes fluttered, his gaze blank, staring at Xie Zhaozhou.

Xie Zhaozhou looked up.
His eye sockets were deep, making his phoenix eyes seem deep and full of emotion.
The corner of his mouth curved up bit by bit.
Suddenly, he grabbed his fingertip and kissed it again.

Ning Shixue finally reacted.
The tips of his pale ears reddened to the point of bleeding.
He almost couldn’t stop himself from slapping Xie Zhaozhou.

But he wasn’t quite ready to be widowed yet.

“…What are you doing?”
Ning Shixue’s whole body burned.
Whether it was from the fever or because Xie Zhaozhou was braced on the bed, now leaning over him.

Too close.
Their breaths mingled.

Xie Zhaozhou half-lowered his eyes, his gaze falling on Ning Shixue’s thin, red lips.
Ning Shixue instinctively pressed them together.
Then he heard this shameless man ask quietly,
“Can I kiss you?”

Ning Shixue: “…”

What do you think?

Xie Zhaozhou’s Adam’s apple moved.
His voice was gentle and low, this time actually coaxing him.
“Just one.”

Ning Shixue pushed him away, his face bright red.
Afraid of hurting his hand, Xie Zhaozhou let himself be pushed back.
But he reached out and touched Ning Shixue’s burning forehead.

It had been over half an hour since the IV finished.
And the fever reducer was the first one administered.
There was still no sign of the fever breaking.

Ning Shixue’s pale cheeks were burning red.
His eyelashes were damp.
His whole being was listless.

Xie Zhaozhou stopped teasing him.
He took off his down jacket, sat beside Ning Shixue, and held his hand.

“Second Brother, do you want to sleep?”
Ning Shixue moved over a bit, making room on half the hospital bed.

Xie Zhaozhou’s eyes still held a faint trace of exhaustion.
Ning Shixue didn’t know how long he had gone without sleep.
But coming all the way from Yan City overnight, he definitely hadn’t rested well.

Hospital rooms weren’t always available.
The director had managed to get a single room.
The conditions weren’t great either.

And there was no bed for an accompanying person.

Xie Zhaozhou shook his head.
The bed was too narrow.
He was afraid of hurting Ning Shixue’s hand.
He pulled the blanket up to cover him properly and said quietly,
“You sleep. Don’t worry about me.”

Ning Shixue really couldn’t hold on anymore.
He hadn’t slept much before.
With people coming and going in the hospital corridor, he thought he wouldn’t be able to sleep.
But smelling the cold perfume on Xie Zhaozhou, holding a few of his fingers, he actually fell asleep.

Xie Yaoyao wanted to find Ning Shixue.
Not even Ultraman could distract him.
His eyes were red-rimmed, his little face full of grievance.

He slept with the baby every night.
But these people wouldn’t let him go find the baby.

He Lin didn’t dare take him.
Otherwise, he would definitely cry.

Besides, Ning Shixue really wasn’t in good shape right now.

When the wind and snow subsided a little, the director quickly arranged a hotel nearby for the guests to sleep in.
But he and the assistant director, and the program team staff, were still at the hospital.

Ji Qing and Ji Xiao were also there.

The criticism under the official Weibo grew more intense.
The director was so worried he didn’t dare leave, afraid Ning Shixue might have problems in the middle of the night.

He couldn’t answer to anyone.

When Xie Zhaozhou arrived last night, his expression had also been very dark.
He tactfully didn’t follow him and didn’t dare say much.

The live stream viewers were all scared.
They had all seen Ning Shixue go to save Ji Xiao.
As soon as Ning Shixue pulled Ji Xiao into his arms, the camera suddenly shook and went dark.

Actually, as soon as the director and the others were rescued, they immediately posted a notice suspending the live stream.

Then, at the hospital, after the examinations, they said Ning Shixue and Ji Xiao were fine, with no serious injuries.

He quickly had the official Weibo post a message, saying it was just minor injuries, they were at the hospital, and everyone should rest assured.

But no one believed him.

[??? You say minor injuries, they’re minor injuries? Whether you open a live stream or post a video, I want to see them now. @Let’sGoBaby @DirectorMengPing.]

[That frozen lake is really deep. Falling in is no joke. In this weather, even if you can swim, it’s useless.]

[I saw Xiaoxiao seemed to hit his leg when he fell. How can the director have the nerve to say he’s okay?]

[Who are you trying to fool? If you guys from this crappy show really had nothing to hide, you would have started streaming long ago, right???]

The bullet comments weren’t wrong.
If everything was really fine, the director would definitely be eager to livestream and prove it.
Although some viewers would blame them for not protecting the guests properly, it would blow over in a few days.
It wouldn’t be irreparable.

The problem was, the director wasn’t sure about Ning Shixue’s condition now.
What if he said he was fine, and then Ning Shixue developed complications from the high fever?
How would he explain that then?

“Director Meng, we can’t just keep stalling like this,”
the assistant director said worriedly.
“How about we go see Ji Xiao first?”

The director was already annoyed and couldn’t help snapping,
“What’s the use of just clarifying for him?!”

If he only did a live stream for Ji Xiao and didn’t mention Ning Shixue, wouldn’t that just make people more suspicious that something was wrong?

But the assistant director had a point.
Since Ji Xiao wasn’t asleep yet, he should go see him.

When they went over, Ji Qing wasn’t there.
Only a staff member the director had arranged to take care of him was there.

The director couldn’t help frowning.
Actually, he blamed Ji Xiao a bit.
Wasn’t this kid usually very obedient?

Filming a parenting show was very difficult.
Little kids were too uncontrollable.
He had been very careful with Ji Xiao, thinking he was the easiest to handle.

He never expected Ji Xiao to cause such a big problem.

Thinking of Ji Qing also annoyed him.
Even if the program team couldn’t spare anyone to help, why didn’t he watch his own child properly?

Forcing himself to calm down, he crouched down and spoke gently to Ji Xiao for a while.
When Ji Xiao wasn’t so scared of him, he discussed it with him.
“Uncle will make a video for you, okay?”

Ji Xiao obediently nodded.

Everyone was asking if Ji Xiao’s leg was hurt.
The director had someone roll up Ji Xiao’s pants to the knee, wanting to film a video as proof.
But as soon as they rolled up the pants, his face suddenly changed.
The staff member beside him gasped and covered their mouth.

Ji Xiao was thin, but he was still a three-year-old kid with some baby fat.
On his soft little leg were several bruises and swellings.
Against his pale skin, they were glaringly obvious.

He had filmed parenting shows for several years.
He had seen all kinds of families and children.
These bruises weren’t from falling.

Ji Qing… He barely dared open Weibo.
The trending searches were a mess.
Some were cursing him, some were comforting him.

[With such heavy snow, even if you didn’t hold the child’s hand, you shouldn’t have let him walk on the outside. Isn’t that common sense? What was Ji Qing thinking???]

[Xiaoxiao was too obedient. No one expected him to suddenly walk away. If something happened to Xiaoxiao, Ji Qing would definitely be the saddest. I don’t understand why people are cursing him now.]

[I just want to know how Ningning and Little Tangyuan are doing now. Why is the director silent? I’m really panicking.]

Ji Qing’s agent cursed him out.
He had managed Ji Qing for several years, put so much effort into him.
Now, with this one show, it was all ruined.

But when Ji Qing told him Ji Xiao was fine, he finally breathed a sigh of relief.
That meant it was just an accident.
In a few days, when things calmed down a bit, he could properly apologize.

Ji Qing, however, felt uneasy.

He walked towards the hospital room with his phone and saw the assistant director standing outside the room, peeking in, along with a cameraman.

He panicked instantly, his face pale, and walked over, asking,
“Director, what are you…”

Inside the room, Ji Xiao’s pants were still rolled up to his knees.
The bruises were clearly visible.
The director’s face was extremely dark as he asked him,
“Teacher Ji, what exactly is going on here?”

He would have liked to find an excuse for Ji Qing.
Maybe the nanny abused him, maybe one of their staff privately abused him.

But how could that be?

Even a fool wouldn’t be fooled.

Since the show started, the child had always been with Ji Qing.
And these bruises were still swollen.
They clearly happened in the last day or two.
They had been streaming 24 hours a day for the past few days.
If anyone had gotten close to Ji Xiao, it would have been caught on camera.

The only places not filmed were places like the bathroom.

Who else could it be but Ji Qing?

Now, it was over.
He couldn’t clarify anymore.
If he filmed a video, it would definitely be seen.
Should he take a photo and then photoshop it?
The consequences of that, their program team couldn’t bear.

“Teacher Ji, think about it tonight,”
the director said with a dark face.
“Give me a solution tomorrow morning. Otherwise, I’ll have to stream it like this.”

Ji Xiao looked up blankly, not understanding what they were talking about.
But Ji Qing looked shaky, his face extremely pale.
He also sensed something was wrong and quickly pulled his pants down with his little hands.

After the director left, Ji Qing instantly slumped onto the hospital bed, his hands trembling.
He hadn’t dared tell his agent about hitting Ji Xiao before.
Just last night, in a fit of anger, he had hit him with a clothes hanger.
He never expected to be discovered.

Still unwilling to give up, he messaged Xie Hanzhou.
Xie Hanzhou ignored him.
He then went to Qiu Mingchuan and the others.

Then he was blocked by Qiu Mingchuan.

Ji Qing’s hands and feet were cold.
He forced himself to calm down, went out to find a nurse, and got some medicine to put on Ji Xiao’s bruises.

He comforted himself with self-deception.
Maybe tomorrow would be fine.
If they moved the camera further away, they might not be able to see it.

The director definitely wouldn’t want this kind of thing to happen on the show either.
He would help him if he could.

After Ji Xiao put on the medicine, he lay in bed to sleep.
He wanted Ji Qing to sleep with him.
But Ji Qing was neurotically biting his nails.
He didn’t dare speak.
He just tried to curl up.

He didn’t want to make his uncle sad again.

Ji Qing’s whole body was tense.
He held on until the middle of the night before finally giving in to anxiety and falling asleep.

But he never expected that around 3 AM, a photo suddenly spread online.
It was clearly a candid shot.
They had taken a picture of Ji Xiao’s little leg, not his face.
But from the clothes, you could tell who it was.

And Ji Xiao’s little leg had a little crescent-shaped birthmark.
After so many days of the show, the live stream viewers recognized it.

[??? Holy crap, what’s going on?]

[Could it be what I think it is?]

[Ji Qing abused the kid? Or did someone else hit him?]

[These are the pants Xiaoxiao wore today. It’s the first time he’s worn them on the show. And those are snow boots. He’s definitely in the northern city. Who else could it be but Ji Qing?]

[I always felt Xiaoxiao was scared of him before, but every time I mentioned it, I got cursed by his fans. What kind of person makes a kid study constantly on a variety show?]

[No wonder the director hasn’t posted a clarification yet. He doesn’t dare, right? Or maybe Ji Qing won’t let him stream?]

[@JiQing, explain?]

Of course, Ji Qing’s fans didn’t believe it and were still defending him.
It was late at night, and not many people had seen this Weibo post.
It wasn’t until around 5 or 6 AM that #JiQingAbusedChild# suddenly shot to number one on the trending list.

Ji Qing was woken by his agent’s call.
He hadn’t changed clothes all night.
He stumbled over and grabbed his phone.

“Ji Qing!”
his agent shouted angrily.
“Are you f*cking done? What’s the deal with that photo?!”

Ji Qing didn’t know what had happened yet.
But the taut string of tension in his heart suddenly snapped at that moment.
It felt like something terrible had finally happened.
His hands trembling, he logged onto Weibo and looked.
His vision went black.

How was he supposed to know who took it?!

Now, the trending searches were completely out of control.
Originally, it might have been glossed over.
But now everyone was demanding to see Ji Xiao’s injuries.

Ning Shixue’s fever broke in the middle of the night.
When it broke, his whole body was soaked with sweat.
In his sleep, he tightly held Xie Zhaozhou’s hand.
When he finally opened his eyes, besides Xie Zhaozhou, Xie Yaoyao was also there.

Xie Yaoyao was sticking out his little bottom, lying beside his pillow.
His soft, chubby cheek was buried in the hollow of his neck.

Seeing that he was awake, the director finally felt relieved.
He came over with a flattering smile, saying he wanted him to log onto Weibo and tell everyone he was okay.
Ning Shixue didn’t refuse.

He took a photo of his bandaged hand.

[Ning Shixue V: Just a scratch. Nothing serious.]

As soon as he posted it, a flood of comments appeared.
His phone even started to lag.

“Eat first,”
Xie Zhaozhou said, having gone downstairs to buy breakfast.

Ning Shixue hadn’t eaten much since last night.
Now that the fever was gone, he realized he was hungry enough to have a stomach ache.

Ning Shixue obediently hummed in agreement.
But he kept scrolling on his phone.
Only then did he learn what had happened last night.

Ji Xiao’s bruises weren’t healed yet.
His legs had been frostbitten yesterday.
The bruises were still very visible.
Ji Qing couldn’t clarify at all.
He also didn’t dare admit it.
He hadn’t spoken yet.

The longer he stayed silent, the more it proved he had something to hide.
If he were really innocent, who would willingly accept the label of ‘child abuser’?

Wouldn’t they all rush to explain?

And the fact that Ji Qing was kept by Xie Hanzhou wasn’t a secret in the industry.
He could get so many lead roles because Xie Hanzhou asked Shengxing Entertainment for them on his behalf.

Xie Hanzhou didn’t really care about Ji Qing.
When Ji Qing asked him for resources and he didn’t have any, he would casually kick out a few actors and let Ji Qing buy his way into the production.
He never considered how Ji Qing would manage in the industry.

Over the years, Ji Qing had offended many people.

But before, with Xie Hanzhou protecting him, who dared to provoke the Xie family’s third young master?
They could only swallow their anger.

Now, seeing on this show that Xie Hanzhou and Ji Qing had fallen out, and Ji Qing had this serious child abuse scandal, people finally started secretly fanning the flames.
Buying marketing accounts, hiring trolls, even posting directly on their own Weibo with veiled sarcasm.

[I’m going to die laughing. Did anyone actually think Xie Hanzhou was dating Ji Qing? Besides dating, didn’t you know there’s something called keeping someone?]

[Buying your way into productions to steal others’ roles, and then playing the innocent white flower. Can you really call that dedicated?]

Ji Qing’s mind was a blank mess.
He didn’t know what he should do anymore.
He just mechanically scrolled through Weibo.

Every word stabbed into his heart like a knife.

His delicate features were almost twisted.
Wasn’t this enough?

Were these people trying to drive him to suicide?!

He never once thought about how much pain Ning Shixue must have endured, being cursed for three full years because of him and Xie Hanzhou.

He couldn’t even take one night of being cursed.
And he still had so many fans, still defending him.

The situation grew bigger and bigger.
Ji Qing had never been on so many trending searches at once in his life.
Since his debut, this was his most popular day.

Some people had already thought the thing about Ning Shixue being cursed for chasing an old man was suspicious.
Why, as soon as Xie Hanzhou came, did Ning Shixue suddenly hit the trending searches?
It was like he was being used as a stepping stone.

Now, amid the storm of criticism, everyone was demanding answers from the marketing account called EntertainmentFrontline.

Ji Qing had anonymously tipped off the marketing account.
But EntertainmentFrontline never expected it to be false news.

He had almost no false leads in all his years.
That’s how he had built this marketing account so big.

Ji Qing had completely screwed him.
He lost hundreds of thousands of followers that night.
Now, anything he said was met with suspicion.

How could he swallow this?
He privately tried everything and finally discovered it was Ji Qing who did it.

But he also knew Ji Qing was kept by Xie Hanzhou.
He didn’t dare offend Xie Hanzhou.
He had originally planned to just swallow his anger.
Who knew this day would come?

He simply posted everything.
The person who sent him the message was definitely Ji Qing’s agent.

[@EntertainmentFrontline: Here’s everything you wanted to know. I’m not taking the blame this time.]

He had solid proof.
It was definitely Ji Qing’s agent who gave him the fake info.
Ji Qing couldn’t have been completely unaware.

Ji Qing’s persona completely collapsed.

[I’ve been his fan for three years. Suddenly, I feel like a joke.]

[No wonder he panicked so much when President Xie came. He couldn’t step on Ning Shixue to climb up anymore. How could he not panic?]

Ji Qing was completely cornered.
Even his agent stopped answering his calls.

Ning Shixue was arranged to be transferred to another hospital.
The other guests also left the hotel and went to Grandpa Mu’s house.
Afraid Ji Qing might be emotionally unstable and do something to Ji Xiao, the director took Ji Xiao away first.

Now, at the foot of the snowy mountain, in this cold hospital, only Ji Qing was left alone.

But the matter wasn’t over yet.

Xie Hanzhou had kept him for three years.
He had been ambiguous with him, never explaining or acknowledging anything.
But that evening, he suddenly posted his first clarification in three years.

He completely denied any romantic relationship with Ji Qing.

But they had indeed been seen together too often.
Photographed going to hotels, Ji Qing going to his house, more than once.

By doing this, he was essentially confirming the kept relationship.

[How absurd.]

[Suddenly feel Ning Shixue was really wronged. Even though he was a simp, he wasn’t actually a homewrecker.]

[I really want to know now, how did Ji Qing’s fans have the nerve to curse Ning Shixue all these three years? Is being kept more noble???]

[Shouldn’t they all apologize to Ning Shixue?]

[Help, I’ll never curse Ning Shixue again. What drama queen? Can I have one of these drama queens?]

Ning Shixue was transferred to the central hospital in the northern city.
The director had him go through a full examination.
It was two or three hours later when they finished.
He also saw Xie Hanzhou’s Weibo post.

He had to say, every time he thought Xie Hanzhou couldn’t be any more scummy, Xie Hanzhou would set a new low for himself.

By doing this, Xie Hanzhou had completely cut off Ji Qing’s path.
Ji Qing would never have a chance to clear his name again.
With such a serious child abuse scandal, he could never make a comeback.

The person who shared his bed dealt the fatal blow.

Talking about the kept relationship wasn’t great either.
But it wasn’t Xie Hanzhou who was being kept.
And by cutting ties now, Ji Qing’s child abuse scandal wouldn’t affect him.
In just a few months, not years, people would stop talking about it.

After Ji Qing retired from the industry, when it came up again, they’d at most say he kept some minor celebrity.

Who would even remember who it was?

Ning Shixue, even though he considered himself cold-blooded, had to admit he couldn’t compare to Xie Hanzhou.

No wonder the original novel often said, the hearts of the Xie family were cold.

The guests had all gone to Grandpa Mu’s house.
The director had taken Xie Yaoyao and Ji Xiao there too.

Ning Shixue’s fever was gone, and the examination results showed nothing wrong.
But he still had to get an IV and stay in the hospital another night.

Xie Zhaozhou hadn’t slept for almost three days.
He lay down on the bed next to him for a while.

When he woke up, Ning Shixue was still sleeping.
His IV wasn’t finished yet.
His long, dark eyelashes drooped, casting a shadow on his pale cheeks.
The tip of his pale chin was buried under the blanket.
He was already very thin.
After this high fever, he seemed even thinner.

Xie Zhaozhou held his slender fingertips for a moment, then went out to buy dinner.
In the hospital corridor, he ran into He Lin.

He Lin was also worried.
“No more fever?”

“Mm,”
Xie Zhaozhou responded.

He Lin hadn’t expected Ning Shixue to go save Ji Xiao.
Anyone might have, but Ning Shixue was the least likely person.
And Ji Xiao was actually saved by him.
Except for Ning Shixue’s hand being more serious, the two could be said to be unharmed.

Even Tang He’an might not have been able to do it.

He suddenly realized something was off.
Ning Shixue had really changed.
It was like a completely different person.

He originally thought, anyway, Xie Zhaozhou was married to Ning Shixue now.
They couldn’t divorce for a few years.
And Ning Shixue seemed more obedient than before.
It wasn’t impossible to just make do.

But now he thought, it could be serious.

Xie Zhaozhou was different from him.
He wasn’t the type to play around.
And He Lin knew about the mess in the Xie family.
If it were him, he didn’t dare imagine what he’d be like now.

He might have been driven to death by the Xie family already.

He was a director, with a very sharp eye for people.
He knew Ning Shixue was equally cold to all of them.
At first, he was even cold to Xie Yaoyao.

But the night Ning Shixue went to grab the star for Xie Yaoyao, and the moment he unhesitatingly went to save Ji Xiao, there was a deeply hidden passion in him, bright as a star.

Who had the courage to face death?
He certainly didn’t.

Even though he knew Ning Shixue was a terrible actor, at that moment, he almost wanted to ask Ning Shixue to act in his film.

If only Ning Shixue wasn’t completely without talent and willing to listen to him, he could definitely make him famous.

And Ning Shixue seemed to like Xie Zhaozhou a little.

Although he had no proof.

If Ning Shixue was willing to stay with Xie Zhaozhou in the Xie family, that wouldn’t be a bad thing for Xie Zhaozhou, would it?

He admitted thinking this way was a bit selfish.

He Lin was rarely this serious, trying to say something to Xie Zhaozhou.
But this bastard was lazily leaning against the car door, not even looking up.
He couldn’t be bothered anymore.

He came to the hospital to get Miaomiao’s asthma medicine.
He Miao had a bit of asthma, not serious, but she felt unwell in the evening.

Xie Zhaozhou went out to buy dinner at the restaurant across from the hospital.
When he got to the restaurant, he scrolled through Weibo and finally understood why Xie Yaoyao wanted a billion from him.

Xie Zhaozhou: “…”

Xie Zhaozhou’s head hurt from this filial piety.
But when his gaze fell on Ning Shixue, he couldn’t help being stunned.
He suddenly realized that Ning Shixue, with him, didn’t seem to have ever smiled this happily.

When Ning Shixue woke up, the IV needle had been removed.
Xie Zhaozhou wasn’t there.
His down jacket was draped over the chair.

In the down jacket pocket were the gloves he had worn yesterday.

This time, his clothes weren’t dirty.
Afraid Xie Yaoyao and the others would see the blood on his hand, Ning Shixue had put on gloves first, then put his hands in his pockets.
But the gloves were dirty, the cotton soaked with blood.

Ning Shixue lowered his eyes and threw them aside.

He had lain until his whole body was weak.
He got up and went to the bathroom.
When he came out, Xie Zhaozhou happened to push the door open.

This cold front in the northern city was fierce.
It was snowing again at night.
Xie Zhaozhou’s shoulders were covered in snow.
But his down jacket wasn’t zipped.
Just looking at him made Ning Shixue feel cold.

“Ningning, come here,”
Xie Zhaozhou called him from the door.
Both his hands were full of things.

Ning Shixue: “…”

Ning Shixue suddenly didn’t want to go.
He remembered that he usually called Xie Yaoyao like this, like calling a little dog.

What goes around comes around.

But he still walked over.
His face was a bit blank as he looked up and asked Xie Zhaozhou,
“What for?”

Xie Zhaozhou raised his hand, telling him to take something from the inside pocket of his down jacket.
The tips of Ning Shixue’s ears reddened.
Xie Zhaozhou really couldn’t free his hands.
But taking it like this was also strange.

He tried his best not to touch Xie Zhaozhou, and not to look at him.
When he took it out, his eyes widened in surprise.
It was a new pair of gloves.

Thick and warm.

As soon as he took them out, Xie Zhaozhou suddenly closed his arms, like a trap, pulling him into his arms.
Xie Zhaozhou’s down jacket was already open.
He was perfectly wrapped inside.
When he looked up, his nose brushed against Xie Zhaozhou’s Adam’s apple.

“…”

It was hard not to suspect this was on purpose.

Xie Zhaozhou’s arms wrapped around him.
Ning Shixue was wearing a hospital gown, his whole body cold.
Now he was even a bit hot.

He didn’t know where to put his hands.
He didn’t want to hug Xie Zhaozhou’s waist, so he just let them hang limply.

Xie Zhaozhou looked down at him.
Ning Shixue’s face was red.
He felt awkward and wanted to step back, but couldn’t.
Looking up, he stammered,
“What are you looking at me for?”

He Lin’s meaning, Xie Zhaozhou actually understood.
But he didn’t need Ning Shixue to save him from his deep-rooted problems.
He just wanted him to be happy, like now.

Xie Zhaozhou still stared at his face.
But those deep, dark eyes curved.
His voice carried a lazy tease as he chuckled softly and said,
“Admiring Teacher Xiao Ning’s beauty.”