A Preposterous Proposition and Public Humiliation

The sudden silence was almost suffocating.

Blinded by desire and with his mind racing, Si Xi had concocted this preposterous idea, yet he harbored not a single regret.

After all, this man perfectly suited his tastes; as Shao Xun, that scoundrel, would say, to miss out would be a lifelong regret.

He was only twenty-one, and with his engagement to Shao Xun falling through, another arranged marriage would be a year or even longer away.

During this interim, keeping a man for a bit of fun wouldn’t be too much to ask, would it?

He could even end things whenever he pleased later, without truly toying with someone’s emotions.

As for the upkeep, he lived with his uncle, who ensured Si Xi maintained the dignity befitting a young master of the Si family, but wouldn’t give him too much money.

Fortunately, he had a crisp ten-million-yuan check tucked warmly in his pocket.

The man happened to be short on cash, and he had a windfall of such magnitude—if this wasn’t a match made in heaven, what was?

Using a scoundrel’s money to keep a man for entertainment, the thought itself was quite thrilling.

However, this man didn’t seem like someone who would sell himself for money.

Still, knowing he was in need of money meant he had a weakness, and Si Xi could slowly wear him down.

Upon hearing Si Xi’s words, the man’s face showed no trace of humiliation.

On the contrary, he seemed rather intrigued, his usually placid features now held a flicker of interest.

“Then how much are you prepared to spend to keep me?”

Si Xi, who had already braced himself for the man to angrily storm off, could barely conceal his delight, his mind whirring as he offered an astronomical sum that would be difficult to refuse.

“Five hundred thousand a month, how does that sound?”

It wasn’t his own money, after all, so there were no pangs of regret.

The man raised an eyebrow at this.

“Am I really worth that much?”

Si Xi gave him an ambiguous smile. “Are you interested, though? While I may not be a peerless beauty like Pan An, I do possess a certain charm; you wouldn’t be at too much of a loss.”

The man’s gaze swept over Si Xi’s exquisite face.

Calling his looks ‘a certain charm’ was clearly an understatement.

The man before him possessed stunning good looks that would make even women envious, with a pair of captivating eyes that were both bright and intelligent, and an aura of pure clarity; he was a truly captivating beauty, one who could undoubtedly make countless men and women fall at his feet.

The man remarked sagely, “I’d be gaining quite a lot.”

Si Xi’s joy intensified.

There was a chance, a real chance!

Instead of striking while the iron was hot and asking if the man was willing, Si Xi simply beckoned with a finger.

The man narrowed his eyes slightly, then walked over to the car window.

Si Xi tucked something into the chest pocket of his shirt, patted it twice, and said with a knowing smile, “Fenghes Hotel, 9 PM tonight. Just mention the name Mr. Si. Don’t disappoint me, alright?”

As soon as Si Xi finished speaking, he rolled up the car window, giving the man no chance to immediately refuse.

On the surface, he projected the nonchalant air of a seasoned player, yet the moment the window closed, he sagged completely.

He released his grip on the steering wheel, the area where he’d been holding it damp with sweat from his palms.

His heart hammered like a drum, pounding relentlessly.

Si Xi exhaled deeply, then couldn’t help but chuckle.

He had always followed the rules his entire life; this was the first time he had done something so wild, and it brought an indescribable thrill.

He just wondered if the man would show up.

It wouldn’t matter if he didn’t; Si Xi already knew the man’s workplace. If the man accepted, it was Plan A; if not, he would initiate Plan B.

****

Meanwhile, the man watched Si Xi’s car leave the construction site, then pulled out the item Si Xi had tucked into his pocket, chuckling softly to himself.

It was a solid gold leaf, surprisingly heavy.

On its gleaming yellow surface, four characters were embossed: ‘I’ll keep you’.

The man took out his phone again and saw a message in the chat window: [The other party retracted a message.]

Below it was a new message.

[My apologies, President Huo, I’m guilty! I sent it to the wrong person!]

The man dismissed this rather absurd misunderstanding and turned to walk inside.

Just as he reached the main entrance, a group of people wearing hard hats came to greet him.

The person leading them, wearing a white hard hat, said, “President Huo, the moment I heard your car had broken down, I immediately dispatched someone to pick you up. I didn’t expect them to come back empty-handed; it turns out you came yourself.”

The man hummed a soft affirmation and, amidst the throng of people, entered the construction site.

Unfortunately, Si Xi missed this scene; he had already driven straight to Fenghes Hotel.

This sort of affair was a complete novice experience for Si Xi. He recalled how the various scions he knew boasted of their conquests and promptly booked the presidential suite on the top floor.

He took a shower, then sat by the floor-to-ceiling window overlooking the scenic view, opening WeChat, which he hadn’t checked all afternoon. As expected, messages flooded in like a tide.

The most bustling was a group chat named “Eating Watermelon in Haute Couture.”

This group was essentially a gathering spot for the playboys of Jiang City, and true to its name, it was a hotbed of juicy gossip, far livelier than any entertainment news headlines.

Si Xi had been lurking and ‘eating melon’ for nearly two years, and now, he had finally become a ‘melon producer’ himself.

[This gentleman looks so familiar. Isn’t he your fiancé, @WhyDontYouAscend?]

‘WhyDontYouAscend’ was Si Xi’s WeChat name, and this message was followed by several pictures.

The first showed Shao Xun holding a massive bouquet of red roses, smiling at a delicate-looking man.

The second picture depicted the man holding the same roses Shao Xun had just held, while Shao Xun reached out to caress his head, his gaze filled with undisguised affection.

The third showed Shao Xun pulling the man’s luggage, walking side-by-side with him as they left the airport.

All three photos were sickeningly sweet, so much so that even a passing dog would bark out, “What a perfect match!”

[It’s not ‘looks like,’ it *is* him! This man is Wang Yang, Young Master Shao’s ‘white moonlight’ after all.]

[Didn’t Wang Yang say he wouldn’t come back when he left? It’s only been three years, and he’s already returned?]

[Wait, aren’t Shao Xun and Si Xi getting married at the end of the month? The invitations have already been sent out. What kind of stunt is this?]

[(Covering mouth with hand emoji) Just an old flame from three years ago. How could he compare to Yan Jing’s foremost beauty, Si Xi, his new flame? @WhyDontYouAscend, wouldn’t you agree?]

[@WhyDontYouAscend, stop lurking! Bring out your empress-like dignity and tell everyone you two are doing great, and the wedding will proceed as scheduled.]

The Si family’s standing was not as formidable as the Shao family’s. Si Xi, without parents, had secured his position through his uncle’s maneuvering and his engagement to Shao Xun.

Moreover, Shao Xun was quite handsome, attracting many admirers, and their engagement had attracted considerable envy.

So now, seeing Shao Xun with another man, these people were undoubtedly gleefully malicious, eagerly anticipating Si Xi’s downfall and ridicule.

Si Xi couldn’t even imagine how much of a laughingstock he would become once the news of their canceled engagement was released.

Such irresponsible scoundrels deserved to be thrown into a deep fryer!

Si Xi was not one to suffer in silence. If he wasn’t happy, then Shao Xun certainly wouldn’t be either.

He scrolled down to the latest messages and saw another picture posted.

[Wow! OMG! Ran into the two leads of the gossip having a candlelight dinner at Silver!]

Si Xi zoomed in on the candid photo; it was indeed Shao Xun and the man from the previous pictures dining together.

Candles flickered, and their conversation flowed freely.

Silver was a famous French restaurant in Yan Jing, a hallowed ground for lovers’ dates. This photo, once released, virtually confirmed their rekindled romance, immediately elevating the group chat’s atmosphere to its peak.

Many people tagged Si Xi, urging him to catch them in the act.

Si Xi closed the chat group, skipping over various greetings, some genuine, some gleefully malicious, and opened another chat window.

–Wake up, time to earn some money.

The reply was almost instantaneous.

–I’ll do a carp flip, flash before you with puppy-dog eyes, and declare: Money! Money!

What a lunatic! It made Si Xi crack a smile.

Si Xi pressed the voice message button, conveyed his request, and then saved Shao Xun and Wang Yang’s photos from the group chat to send to the person, so they could recognize their faces.

The reply came: [No problem, leave it to me! I’ll make sure it’s handled beautifully!]

Si Xi then eagerly awaited the show.

Half an hour later, the same person who had posted the picture of Shao Xun and Wang Yang dining at Silver popped up in the group chat again.

[Holy mother, holy mother! I just witnessed a spectacle that shattered my worldview, involving Shao Xun and Wang Yang, hahaha! You guys have to watch the video I’m sending!]

The video took a moment to upload. Si Xi clicked it open and saw a muscular man, clad in a flamboyant crop top vest and tight leather pants, clutching a small women’s handbag. He gesticulated with a naturally effeminate ‘orchid finger’ hand gesture, so camp and greasy, it was absolutely blindingly gaudy.

He was storming up to Shao Xun and Wang Yang’s table, pointing an accusatory finger at Shao Xun’s nose and unleashing a torrent of abuse.

“You heartless scoundrel! Yesterday you were whispering sweet nothings to me in bed, and today you’re on a date with this man? Didn’t you say you only liked my type, and couldn’t get it up for bland, unexciting men like him?”

Shao Xun looked utterly bewildered. “Hold on, buddy, who are you? You’ve got the wrong person, haven’t you?”

“You, you, you, Shao Xun, you damn scoundrel! I’ve slept with you countless times, and you’re still pretending not to know me here? You might not know me, but your butt certainly knows me!”

This statement was packed with an incredible amount of information, prompting a small gasp of shock from the live audience in the video.

Shao Xun’s face instantly turned green. “Don’t spout nonsense! I don’t know you! Be careful, or I’ll sue you for defamation!”

“Go ahead and sue me if you dare! It would be even better if the whole world knew you slept with me and then denied it!”

Shao Xun trembled with rage. “You, you…”

“Nothing to say now, huh, you scoundrel? I don’t want anything to do with you anymore, hmph!”

The man stomped his feet twice, gave an effeminate ‘Hmph!’, covered his eyes, and ran off, sniffling dramatically.

Shao Xun was utterly flustered and enraged.

“Don’t you dare leave! Explain yourself clearly! I don’t even know you! Hey!”

The man scurried away with a swivel of his hips, moving incredibly fast. Shao Xun chased him for a few steps but couldn’t catch up, letting out a ‘tsk’ before turning back to explain to Wang Yang that he didn’t know the man. This made Si Xi roll around on the bed with laughter.

He had only intended for someone to disgust Shao Xun a little, but he never expected this person to be so dedicated, performing with such vivid realism. And to top it all off, he claimed to have slept with Shao Xun—it was beyond hilarious.

Silver’s seating was semi-open, so this entire farce could be witnessed by virtually all the diners.

He couldn’t even imagine how much ‘social death’ Shao Xun must be experiencing.

Just as Si Xi was cackling with amusement at Shao Xun’s predicament, the doorbell rang twice, ‘ding-dong, ding-dong’, making Si Xi freeze entirely.

He had specifically instructed the hotel staff not to disturb him for anything, except to bring up the very handsome gentleman, lest he mistake a staff member for the man and only be met with disappointment.

Therefore, the person ringing the doorbell at this moment was, nine times out of ten, that very gentleman!