Xi Zhengqing

Biodata

Background

Xi Zhengqing is the second child of his generation, with an elder sister eight years his senior. As the Xi Family heir, he grew up alongside Pei Guangji and Zuo Yongyan; Qiu Yuan joined their circle later, during middle school 15 22.

His sister left the family to marry a Beta from the Sixth District. After prolonged domestic abuse, she killed her husband to protect their son, Xi Xiaode, and returned to the Xi Family. Zhengqing helped handle the aftermath and supported Xiaode’s recovery 15.

Appearance

Xi Zhengqing is tall and handsome, with sharply defined features and a refined bearing. He is lean and muscular, with broad shoulders, a narrow waist, and visibly mechanized portions of his torso 15 35.

• Glasses and eyes: He wears gold-rimmed glasses over gray prosthetic eyes. The prosthetic eye’s pupil can contract and turn pitch-black 15 18 24.
• Mechanical torso: Patterned mechanical structures and blue-purple lines run along his rib cage, with faint currents visible beneath them 15 35.
• Pheromones: His Alpha pheromones have a wild musk scent 20.

Personality

In public, Zhengqing presents himself as a courteous, approachable businessman. He attends charity galas, founds welfare institutions, and advocates unemployment benefits and equal pay across ABO categories. His philanthropy also serves a strategic purpose: he expects public goodwill to help the Xi Family secure a monopoly if the major conglomerates destroy one another 19.

Privately, he is controlling and drawn to the destruction of beautiful, fragile things. At four, he crushed roses in his hand and found pleasure in the experience; as an adult, he collects gems and porcelain and keeps a darkroom of images 18 24.

His initial interest in Xin Hexue is possessive and destructive, but it develops into romantic attachment. Although he becomes attentive to Xin Hexue’s health and ambitions, he continues concealing the deception on which their relationship began 32 35 38 42.

Abilities & Skills

Bionic modifications

Zhengqing’s body contains extensive mechanical components. His prosthetic eyes can record images, and he uses one to magnify his view and scan Xin Hexue’s citizen identification 18 24.

• His mechanical stomach can digest most toxic substances, allowing him to eat a week-old cake without apparent harm 19.
• He has a pacemaker for a hereditary family heart condition and a spare bionic heart 19.
• His mechanical parts are waterproof 35.

Archery and horsemanship

The Xi Family trains its heirs in archery and horsemanship from childhood. Zhengqing later coaches Xin Hexue in archery at a North City resort 34.

Items & Collection

• Moonstone necklace — Made from a gemstone in his secret collection and given to Xin Hexue as a birthday present 19.
• Dog collar and silver chain — Xin Hexue puts a collar on Zhengqing while he is impersonating Pei Guangji; Zhengqing later gives Xin Hexue a silver chain for it 19 25.
• Heart of Eternity — An eighteenth-century royal antique necklace Zhengqing gives Xin Hexue at a charity gala. Xin Hexue accepts it only to keep it safe for him 38.
• Promise rings — Zhengqing presents a pair to Xin Hexue aboard Qiu Yuan’s cruise ship 41.
• Secret collection room — Contains rare gems and valuable porcelain. Zhengqing prevents Xin Hexue from entering its concealed entrance at the Xi Residence 50.

Relationships

• Xin Hexue — Zhengqing first approaches him while impersonating Pei Guangji, then courts him as himself. They become a couple and later prepare for an engagement banquet; Xin Hexue knows about the impersonation, though Zhengqing believes otherwise 18 37 43 50.
• Pei Guangji — A childhood friend and fellow conglomerate heir. Zhengqing exploits Pei’s coma to approach Xin Hexue and later competes with him for Xin’s affection 15 18 42.
• Xi Xiaode — His nephew. Zhengqing helps care for him after the death of Xiaode’s abusive father and discusses the boy’s psychological treatment with Pei Guangji 15.
• Mrs. Xi — His mother. She welcomes Xin Hexue and hopes the couple will marry, choosing not to repeat the interference that contributed to her daughter’s unhappiness 45.
• Pei Ying — Pei Guangji’s younger brother. He suspects Zhengqing’s deception and punches him outside the villa 21 22.
• Qiu Yuan — A member of Zhengqing’s childhood friend group, though their differing personalities and views make their friendship fragile. Qiu later discovers Zhengqing’s impersonation 22 37.
• Zuo Yongyan — A childhood friend from a Federation media family 16.
• Number One — The experimental bionic android Zhengqing sends to replace Xin Hexue’s previous butler 23 38.

Story Role

Impersonating Pei Guangji

After confirming that Pei Guangji is comatose, Zhengqing visits the mountainside villa and uses Xin Hexue’s face blindness to pose as him. He claims an accident damaged his vocal cords and communicates by typing. When Xin Hexue offers him spoiled cake and a dog collar, Zhengqing accepts both to maintain the disguise 18 19.

He subsequently introduces himself to Xin Hexue under his own name, presenting himself as Pei Guangji’s childhood friend. He also blocks the real Pei’s contact on Xin Hexue’s communicator and replaces the villa’s robots, including its butler 21 23.

Courtship and the Pei banquet

Zhengqing realizes he has developed romantic feelings for Xin Hexue and asks him out as himself, but Xin rejects the invitation as inappropriate. Zhengqing continues alternating between identities and takes Xin to Pei Ying’s coming-of-age banquet while posing as Pei Guangji 24 25.

When Xin Hexue disappears after being exposed to a drugged drink, Zhengqing searches for him and detains the waiter who last saw him. At the hospital, Zhengqing falsely tells Xin that he was the one who slept with him that night, then offers to date or become engaged. Xin rejects the proposal and asks him to keep the incident from Pei Guangji 28 30 31.

Relationship and engagement

Zhengqing begins an overt courtship, bringing Xin Hexue meals and flowers during his hospital stay. He later takes him to a resort, supports his interest in acting, and publicly admits that he is pursuing him 32 34 38 40.

After Pei Guangji wakes with memory loss, Zhengqing claims Xin Hexue is his boyfriend and conceals his earlier impersonation. Xin moves into an apartment with Zhengqing and accepts his marriage proposal. On the day of their engagement festivities, Zhengqing stops him from entering the hidden collection room 42 43 46 50.