Watching Jiang Qiao

Shi Junyi glanced at the gun in Jiang Qiao's hand, pulled him into his arms, covered Jiang Qiao's hand with his right hand, loaded the gun with his left, aimed at the bullseye, and fired.

Jiang Qiao's back pressed against Shi Junyi's chest. He clicked his tongue. "Brother's shooting is really accurate."

Shi Junyi pretended not to understand Jiang Qiao's insinuation and merely patted his arm. "Focus. Relax your index finger. Keep this part straight."

"Hold it steady. Line up your eye, the rear sight, and the front sight. Aim at the lower edge of the ten-ring circle."

As Shi Junyi spoke, his warm breath brushed the back of Jiang Qiao's ear, making the hairs on his forearm stand on end.

Jiang Qiao's hand trembled, and he accidentally pulled the trigger.

He missed the target.

Damn it.

Shi Junyi heard Jiang Qiao's silent curse and chuckled, placing his left hand on Jiang Qiao's waist. "Why are your hands shaking?"

Jiang Qiao gave a dry laugh. "Brother's standing so close to me. I'm nervous."

Did he take the wrong medicine? He doesn't stick close when he should, but he's all over me when he shouldn't be. Is this bastard deliberately trying to watch me make a fool of myself?

Shi Junyi raised a brow, the corners of his lips curling upward. "Jiang Qiao, you're not secretly cursing me in your head, are you?"

Shi Junyi was standing too close. Jiang Qiao's legs had gone somewhat stiff from certain indescribable changes in his body, but his expression remained flawless. "How could I? Brother's teaching me so seriously. I'm just stupid."

Bastard. Why aren't you this proactive in bed? Teasing me here... I'm remembering every bit of this.

"Is that so? Then try again. Be careful not to miss the target this time," Shi Junyi said.

Jiang Qiao shifted forward, putting a palm's width between himself and Shi Junyi. He steadied his arm, narrowed his eyes halfway, and pressed down with his index finger.

Ten rings.

Shi Junyi pinched Jiang Qiao's waist and let go. "Not bad. Keep going."

He beckoned, and Chen Sheng jogged over from not far away, handing Shi Junyi his coat.

"You're leaving?" Jiang Qiao asked.

Shi Junyi hummed in acknowledgment and said to Jiang Qiao, "Practice slowly. Get familiar with the feel first. You'll officially join training tomorrow morning."

He wore a smile, and his tone was gentle, creating the illusion of tenderness. It made Jiang Qiao restless in broad daylight, wanting to do something to him.

"When can I stand night watch for Brother?" Jiang Qiao asked, his Adam's apple bobbing.

"Depends on my mood." Shi Junyi lifted a hand to stroke Jiang Qiao's temple hair, then turned and left.

Jiang Qiao watched Shi Junyi's retreating figure, licked the corner of his lips, and cursed under his breath, "Vixen."

The moment Shi Junyi left the training grounds, his expression turned cold.

Shi Youxi's every move was under Shi Junyi's control.

Some time ago, Shi Youxi had taken a fancy to a girl.

The girl came from a poor family, but she was beautiful, hardworking, and ambitious. She had no desire to get involved with a notorious, extravagant, debauched rich boy like Shi Youxi, so she rejected his pursuit.

After repeatedly harassing her without success, Shi Youxi saw that she was getting along quite passionately with another man and immediately flew into a rage out of humiliation.

First, he had someone beat the man badly enough to land him in the hospital. Then he ordered Zhao Xu to kidnap the girl and teach her a harsh lesson.

Zhao Xu pretended to comply while secretly letting the girl go.

Shi Junyi had originally planned to wait until Shi Youxi had completely broken Zhao Xu's loyalty before finding a way to bring Zhao Xu over to his side.

He had not expected Jiang Qiao to appear out of nowhere.

Shi Junyi did not know what Jiang Qiao had done to make Shi Youxi emerge from the locker room less than ten minutes after entering with Zhao Xu, the two coming out one after the other.

Shi Junyi said to Chen Sheng, "Keep an eye on Jiang Qiao."

Chen Sheng nodded. "Yes, Young Master. Regarding the previous night attack, we found that it was likely connected to General Manager Pang from the project department."

"Pang Fei?" Shi Junyi asked.

"He works for Madam. Should we interrogate him?" Chen Sheng said.

Shi Junyi sneered. "No need. Chop him up and feed him to the dogs."

"Understood," Chen Sheng said.

Jiang Qiao stayed at the training grounds until after eight in the evening before going to the locker room to shower and change.

By the time he returned to the dormitory after eating at the restaurant, it was already past nine.

Shen Guiyi was not there. She had left Jiang Qiao a note saying that she had gone to play mahjong with Shi Jiao and telling him to leave the door unlocked for her that night.

Jiang Qiao took out that copy of Bizarre from the bookshelf, then found several other magazines that met Shi Youxi's requirements. He found a small cardboard box and stuffed them inside.

He casually flipped through the magazines. There were pictures and text, even brief interview accounts of how the models had felt during the shoots.

Jiang Qiao could not help imagining Shi Junyi as the protagonist.

It could not be helped. Men were driven by food and sex. Perfectly normal.

Jiang Qiao recalled what had happened between them on the small bed at his home. He put down the cardboard box and went to the bathroom for another shower.

At 9:45, he hurriedly took care of himself, changed into a fresh set of clothes, picked up the cardboard box, and headed out.

Jiang Qiao often could not fully understand the Shi family's way of doing things.

If one called them frugal, they were extravagantly lavish when it came to food, clothing, housing, transportation, and all kinds of daily necessities.

At the restaurant, he had heard the chef who specialized in cooking for the Shi family say that, leaving aside everything else, they had bluefin tuna once a week without fail.

Yet if one called them wasteful, once night fell, they would not even turn on a single light in the several halls and corridors on the first floor.

Jiang Qiao felt his way through the darkness and circled the first floor of the Shi family residence before finally finding the room where they kept sharks.

He sneaked inside, hugged the cardboard box, and sat in the corner of the sofa. By the faint blue light reflected from the fish tank beneath the glass floor, he stared at the clock on the wall.

When the hour hand pointed to ten, the room's door opened with a soft click.

Jiang Qiao looked toward the newcomer. It was a small, thin man dressed in the uniform of a servant assigned to odd jobs.

Just as expected, Shi Youxi obviously would not come out in the middle of the night to collect this kind of shameful thing himself.

"Where's the stuff?" the man asked.

Jiang Qiao patted the cardboard box in his hands. "Cash on delivery."

The man rummaged in his pocket and took out two hundred-yuan bills. "Here."

Jiang Qiao said unhappily, "That's all? Even my cost price was more than that."

The man sneered. "Take however much you're given. What's with all the nonsense?"

Jiang Qiao stared at him for a long while. The Shi family's servants were paid on an entirely different scale from the bodyguards. Their salaries were only slightly above average, though their benefits and meals were far better.

He rose to his feet and looked down at the man coldly, grabbing him by the collar. "Is the young master trying to stiff me, or are you trying to stiff me?"

The man tried to break free, but Jiang Qiao's grip on his collar did not budge.

"Let go of me. Be careful, or I'll tell the young master," the man warned Jiang Qiao.

Hearing that, Jiang Qiao not only did not release him but tightened his grip, lifting him straight off the ground and slamming him back-first against the wall behind him.