While He Held Me All Night… The Xie Mansion Suddenly Caught Fire

Xie Zhaozhou’s suit jacket was open.

A few buttons of his shirt were undone.
His tie was wrapped around his hand.
His whole body carried the smell of alcohol.
His thin lips were especially red.
He looked like some dissolute, disheveled playboy.
But his eyes were very deep, staring intently at Ning Shixue.

Ning Shixue had thought he was drunk.
Now he wasn’t so sure.
He raised his hand and waved it in front of Xie Zhaozhou’s eyes.

Xie Zhaozhou didn’t react.
Ning Shixue looked at him with pleading eyes.
He took his hand and stuck the little red flower on the back of it.
But as soon as he stuck it on, Xie Zhaozhou grabbed his wrist.

The night’s scenes were all finished.
The crew was wrapping up.
Many people were passing by.
The parenting show director hadn’t left either.

Ning Shixue couldn’t help struggling a bit.
He couldn’t break free.
So he stopped moving.
He leaned his cheek against Xie Zhaozhou’s arm and looked up, asking very quietly,
“Second Brother, what’s wrong?”

“Nothing,”
Xie Zhaozhou said, holding his pale, cold fingertips and warming them in his palm.

Actually, he hadn’t drunk much at the banquet.
But on the drive to the set, the alcohol slowly started to hit him.

Xie Xiangshan’s tears made him a bit sick.

Ning Shixue’s cold fingertips were warmed.
But his face was still pale and thin.
The moonlight shone on him in the deep night.
It always made him look very cold.
Xie Zhaozhou took off his jacket and draped it over his shoulders.
Then he reached out and pulled him into his arms.

“Are you cold?”
Xie Zhaozhou asked, lowering his head to kiss the top of his head.

Ning Shixue shook his head.
Since Xie Zhaozhou wouldn’t tell him, he guessed,
“Second Brother, did you go to the old residence tonight?”

Anyway, whenever Xie Zhaozhou was in a bad mood, it was always because of people like Liao Yanwan.

“Xie Xiangshan came to the company to see me,”
Xie Zhaozhou said, no longer hiding it.

What Xie’s father had said to him was half-truth, half-false.
It couldn’t be fully trusted.
At the very least, his sympathy for Jiang Zhan and Jiang Xin was mostly fake.
His willingness to cover for Jiang Zhan wasn’t out of guilt either.

Xie’s father actually had some self-awareness.
He knew he wasn’t cut out to inherit the Xie Group.
But Xie Sui was his eldest son and was very filial to them.
He was very willing for Xie Sui to be the heir.
He and Liao Yanwan’s old age would definitely not be worse than Old Master Xie’s.

But Xie Sui died.

Xie Zhaozhou was distant from them.
Xie Hanzhou’s personality wasn’t one to be easily manipulated either.
Xie’s father finally panicked.

That’s when Jiang Zhan appeared before him.

Xie’s father was fooled by Jiang Zhan’s acting.
He thought Jiang Zhan really admired him and looked up to him as a father.
After all, he had also grown up as the pampered eldest son of the Xie family.
Wasn’t it normal for Jiang Zhan to admire him?

Jiang Zhan was his own son.
And he had leverage over him.
He could maybe even become his pawn.

Xie Sui was dead.
His grief was real.
His scheming was also real.
The tears he shed were crocodile tears.

Xie Zhaozhou remembered that many people had died in the old Xie residence.
He had lived there since he was little.
The corridors were deep and narrow.
Everywhere was dark at night.
Even with the courtyard lights on, it was still very dark.
Even the shadows of the trees weren’t lit.
The Buddhist shrine was enshrining hundreds of spirit tablets.

Xie Yaoyao’s mother was practically forced to death by Liao Yanwan.

Liao Yanwan had never agreed to her marriage with Xie Sui.
Xie Sui had always listened to her since he was little.
But for this woman, he argued with her.
She disliked her even more.

Especially after Xie Sui died.
Liao Yanwan didn’t want her to raise Xie Yaoyao.
She directly took Xie Yaoyao to the old residence.
But Xie Yaoyao hadn’t even been weaned yet.
He cried so hard that Liao Yanwan had no choice but to let her stay too.

When Xie Zhaozhou saw her again over a year later, she was already sick.
She was skinny, just skin and bones.
Lying in the hospital bed, she grabbed his wrist and, with her last breath, begged him to take Xie Yaoyao away.

Tears uncontrollably streamed down her face.
She knew that doing this might very well get Xie Zhaozhou killed.

What right did she have to ask Xie Zhaozhou to risk his life to protect her and Xie Sui’s child?

But at the point of death, she couldn’t help being selfish.

Xie Zhaozhou just stood by the bed.
He watched her breathe her last.
Then he turned and left.

Xie Zhaozhou had no extra feelings for these people.

He hadn’t even told He Lin about many of these things.
But tonight, with the alcohol hitting him, he suddenly felt an indescribable restlessness.

Until he saw Ning Shixue.

When he arrived at the set, Ning Shixue was still filming with Xie Yaoyao and the others.
The night was deep, the moonlight bright.
Ning Shixue was leading Xie Yaoyao and the others down the hillside.
His skin was pale.
His peach blossom eyes were full of moisture, exceptionally bright under the night sky.
Even though Ning Shixue didn’t see him while filming, he was always running towards him.
In his tipsy state, Xie Zhaozhou almost had the illusion.

It was like the moon in the sky was about to fall into his arms.

Clearing all the dust and ashes from his heart.

None of the Xie family mattered anymore.
Looking into Ning Shixue’s eyes, he felt like he was bewitched.

While Ning Shixue and Xie Zhaozhou were talking quietly, Xie Yaoyao’s little mind was wandering.
He didn’t hear anything.
He stood between Ning Shixue’s legs, raised his little arms, and hugged Ning Shixue’s neck.
His soft cheek rubbed against the hollow of Ning Shixue’s neck.

Ning Shixue played with his little bear tail.
He didn’t dodge.
His eyes were still sparkling as he stared at Ning Shixue.

Xie Yaoyao the Great Demon King loved it most when the baby held him by the bottom, like he was still a little baby.

The parenting show director was excited beside them.
He had originally thought that with Xie Yaoyao here, and Ning Shixue still having to film, he wouldn’t get many shots tonight besides the little red flowers.

He didn’t expect Xie Zhaozhou to suddenly show up.

He pointed the camera at them.
Xie Zhaozhou glanced at him but didn’t stop him.
So he filmed them.
Even though he couldn’t live stream, he had the staff quickly edit a clip.

“????? What is President Xie doing?”

“Let go of that innocent little tail! Let me tug it too! (just kidding)”

“Holy crap, was this filmed tonight? I don’t remember seeing these little bear overalls. Why is it only President Xie and the kid? Where’s my wife? I haven’t seen my wife in thousands of minutes. Do you think that’s reasonable??? @director”

“I think President Xie seems off? He hasn’t moved from this position at all.”

Xie Zhaozhou rarely got drunk.
He didn’t move.
His suit was still immaculate.
Even his fans had never seen him like this.

Anyone else, who would want to take advantage of this kind of bastard?

This clip quickly shot up the trending searches.

The director couldn’t help himself.
Anyway, Ning Shixue had already finished filming.
He wanted to livestream with Ning Shixue for half an hour.

Ning Shixue’s wrist was still held by Xie Zhaozhou.
Xie Yaoyao thought they were playing.
His big, dark eyes were full of excitement.
He pounced into Ning Shixue’s arms and hugged him, refusing to let go.

The whole family, dragging and pulling.

Ning Shixue: “…”

Was this really suitable for live streaming?

Luckily, He Lin rescued him.
He Lin, after finishing his work, noticed Xie Zhaozhou had arrived.
He pointed at Xie Zhaozhou with his script and said,
“Hey hey, let go. Don’t harass the actors in my production.”

Xie Zhaozhou actually let go.
He even put Xie Yaoyao aside.
Ning Shixue was finally able to stand up.

The director opened a temporary live stream.
Even though they hadn’t announced the live stream in advance, using the clip as a teaser, the viewer count was still impressive.
Bullet comments poured out nonstop.

“Wifey I want you! Wifey I want you! Wifey I want you!” (Puppy hugging leg crying.jpg)

“Where is this? Doesn’t look like Yan City. What are Ningning and President Xie doing out here in the wilderness late at night? I paid. What is there that I can’t see!!!”

“Probably at Director He’s set. But honestly, I’d also like to see something that requires payment.” (Lighting a cigarette.jpg)

“Dammit, with so many directors here, can’t someone film a bed scene?”

“My pants fell off. Gotta pick them up.”

The director followed Ning Shixue and filmed the wrap-up for a while.
Xie Zhaozhou never spoke.
He just followed behind Ning Shixue.
His arm was draped with Ning Shixue’s jacket.
He was also holding Ning Shixue’s water bottle.

At Xie Yaoyao’s strong request, Ning Shixue had bought the same little dinosaur water bottle as him.

Late at night, the warm yellow lights of the set shone on them.
Ning Shixue lowered his head to remove his makeup.
When he finished washing his face and looked up, Xie Zhaozhou had already handed him a towel.
Ning Shixue恰好 caught it.

The live stream only had Xie Yaoyao’s little mouth constantly chattering.
He spread his arms and fluttered like a little fat butterfly between the baby’s and Big Daddy’s legs.

The director pointed the camera at his chubby face.
Xie Yaoyao stood on tiptoe and leaned in.
“The baby gave me this oh.”

He still had the little red flower Ning Shixue had stuck on his cheek.

There wasn’t anything particularly exciting happening, yet the live stream was still extremely popular. The bullet comments kept flowing.

“President Xie taking care of wifey is so skilled, it’s almost pitiful.”

“Sorry, not going to be lewd tonight. It’s just nice to have something this warm.” (Covering mouth crying.jpg)

The live stream ended.

Xie Yaoyao was already sleepy, and the old butler carried him off. Ning Shixue also stepped forward, but he paused. Something felt off. He turned and saw that Xie Zhaozhou hadn’t moved.

“Second Brother?” Ning Shixue asked, confusion written all over his face. Xie Zhaozhou didn’t look too drunk to walk, yet he still hadn’t moved.

Ning Shixue had no choice but to go over and help him. But the moment he got close, Xie Zhaozhou looped his arm around Ning Shixue’s shoulder and irresistibly pulled him into his arms.

Ning Shixue, caught off guard, bumped into his chest.

Xie Zhaozhou lowered his head.
His scorching breath hit Ning Shixue’s cheek.
His lips even brushed against Ning Shixue’s ear.
His narrow, dark eyes curved.
His tone was quite plaintive.
“You didn’t wait for me.”

“…Wait for you for what?”
Ning Shixue’s pale ears were bright red.
He said angrily,
“Can’t you walk by yourself?”

Xie Zhaozhou lowered his eyes.
Half his face was in shadow.
His eye sockets were deep.
He looked a bit lonely.
He rubbed against Ning Shixue’s temple.

This was no different from acting cute.

Ning Shixue’s conscience twinged.
The great antagonist was already sad.
And he hadn’t waited for him.
Was that really too much?

“?????”

“Precious footage of humans taming a wild CEO.”

“Fine, fine, I’ll ship it. Is it okay? Tricking me into watching this late at night just to kill me.” (Crying.jpg)

This time, Ning Shixue let Xie Zhaozhou hold him properly. Xie Zhaozhou curved his knuckles and rubbed his cheek—he didn’t pull away. He lowered his head and pinched the tip of Ning Shixue’s chin. His face was flushed enough to look like it could bleed, but he restrained himself and didn’t move further.

It wasn’t until Xie Zhaozhou couldn’t help but chuckle softly above his head that Ning Shixue finally realized: damn it, he’d been tricked again.

Embarrassed and flustered, Ning Shixue tried to push Xie Zhaozhou away and walk toward the car. But Xie Zhaozhou caught up in long strides, pulling him firmly back into his arms. His voice was low, suggestive,
“What’s wrong? Didn’t Teacher Xiao Ning want to comfort me?”

Xie Zhaozhou wasn’t really sad about the Xie family, but every time Ning Shixue showed concern for him, that tiny bit of mischief inside him would start to overflow. He couldn’t resist teasing.

“Do you need comforting?” Ning Shixue asked, ears still red, turning his head stiffly.

They had already reached the car door. Xie Zhaozhou opened it slowly and said,
“No.”

“….”

Ning Shixue really thought he didn’t need it—but somehow, hearing him say it annoyed him. If Xie Zhaozhou didn’t need it, was he just flattering himself?

Xie Zhaozhou’s phoenix eyes curved, deep and gentle in the night. Before Ning Shixue could get angry, Xie Zhaozhou added with a natural, instinctive honesty,
“Just seeing Teacher Xiao Ning makes me feel better. I don’t need comforting.”

The bullet comments didn’t know what had happened or why comforting was needed—but that didn’t stop them from shipping it enthusiastically.

“President Xie, a man with a mouth deserves to have a wife. Who supports? Who opposes?”

“Sniff, this bastard is using his kid to seduce my wife again.”

Ning Shixue was already soothed before he could even get angry. He wanted to be mad, but his face was hot, and he was choked up. In the end, he just stammered, embarrassed and silent.

He shook off Xie Zhaozhou’s hand and followed the old butler and the chubby kid into the car, still flustered.

The live stream ended for the night. The crew wrapped up, and Ning Shixue went home with Xie Zhaozhou.

They arrived home after one in the morning. The old butler took Xie Yaoyao to the playroom to sleep. Xie Zhaozhou, shameless as ever, stayed in Ning Shixue’s bedroom—but he didn’t want to trouble him further. He simply hugged him, blanket and all, and went to sleep.

Until Xie Zhaozhou’s phone rang in the middle of the night.

He covered Ning Shixue’s ears—but Ning Shixue was already awake, groggily rubbing against him. The moment Xie Zhaozhou answered the call, he instantly became alert.

“President Xie,” Song Li’s anxious voice came through, “the old residence is on fire!”