Actively Seducing Huo Wenye?!

Huo Wenye narrowed his eyes slightly, his gaze openly falling on Xie Chen's handsome face, taking in every one of his expressions.

Shock, astonishment, confusion, and even a little... disdain?

Xie Chen didn't like that joke?

Didn't he find it humorous and down-to-earth?

Couldn't it change Xie Chen's impression of him?

The Buddha of Beijing's elite circle was full of questions, yet he still maintained an expressionless face. "Going back to rest? Did you see the trending topics online?"

Xie Chen still felt that he had come with ill intent. He instinctively stepped back half a pace, putting some safe distance between them. "What trending topics? Oh, you mean those posts that fought back for me? I saw them. The comment control and momentum were handled pretty well."

"You said just now that you wanted to leave the entertainment industry?" Huo Wenye glanced at the distance between them. A trace of displeasure flickered across his peerlessly handsome face as he took a step forward. "Why?"

His scorching breath, carrying a cool fragrance, suddenly washed over him with an intensely invasive force. Xie Chen froze slightly. "Y-you heard my phone call?"

"It has everything to do with me!" Huo Wenye's low, husky voice came. "I invested in this variety show because I took a liking to you. We may need to work together to film more seasons afterward. If you suddenly leave the industry, I'll suffer enormous losses."

Having been reborn, Xie Chen had no intention of worrying about that. He turned, ready to snap, "Who cares whether you suffer losses or not?" But just as he was about to speak, his gaze crashed into those deep, shadowy eyes.

For a moment, he forgot to struggle free. His body seemed tightly bound by an invisible net.

He even had the illusion that he was prey that had long been fixed in a predator's sights, while the beast had already bared its fangs...

"I-I understand!" Xie Chen finally came to his senses. He forcefully pulled back his wrist, spun on his toes, and headed toward the guesthouse.

He moved so fast, as though some terrible beast were chasing him from behind.

Huo Wenye stood where he was. The night concealed his features, leaving his expression unreadable. Only after a long while did he let out a sigh. "Did I still scare him?"

Xie Chen had barely bounded into the guesthouse in a few quick strides when he was about to turn back and see whether that Buddha of Beijing's elite circle had followed him. Before he could, a sarcastic, sneering voice struck his ears.

"You think you don't need the Xie Family anymore just because you've latched onto a powerful patron?! Heh, you must be dreaming. Who does Huo Wenye think he is? Why would he ever take an interest in you?!"

Even thinking with his toes, Xie Chen could tell that voice belonged to that idiot Xie Ran.

"You want another beating?" Xie Chen looked back, his gaze sharp. "Whether I latch onto anyone or not, what the hell does it have to do with you?!"

Xie Ran lifted his chin. "Go on, hit me if you want. Let's see if you dare. If I get hurt, Third Brother won't let you off..."

Before he could finish, a loud slap rang out.

His head buzzed, and his left cheek burned with pain.

It took Xie Ran several seconds to react before he turned back in disbelief. "Y-you actually—"

"You, you, you—screw you. Say one more word and I'll slap you again. Hurry up and go cry your eyes out to Third Brother. Let's see if I'm scared!" Xie Chen threw down those harsh words and raised a foot to leave.

Xie Ran wanted to chase after him, but he was too wary of getting beaten again. Then, from the corner of his eye, he caught sight of a figure passing by and immediately clutched at the chance like a lifeline.

"Cameraman, you saw Xie Chen hit me just now, right?! I didn't even say anything. He came right up and slapped me. You..."

"It's too dark, and I'm too sleepy," the cameraman cut him off directly. "I didn't see a thing!"

After saying that, he slipped into his own room as though his feet had been greased, leaving Xie Ran no chance to question him further.

Only Xie Ran remained in the corridor, the pain in his left cheek still reminding him of the humiliation he had just suffered.

Xie Ran clenched his fists and bit down hard on his lip.

He had never wanted to join this variety show in the first place.

It was full of bizarre nobodies who only got attention through scandals.

Their status was especially low.

Even if the show had plenty of topics and high traffic, it still dragged down one's standing.

The only reason he had come was Huo Wenye.

Xie Ran had no opportunity to come into contact with someone as noble as Huo Wenye, a member of Beijing's elite circle. He could only rely on the variety show to find a reason to get close.

Yet after coming here, not only had he been excluded by a bunch of losers, he had also seen Xie Chen actively seducing Huo Wenye!

How shameless could he be?!

Did he really think he was a young master of the Xie Family?!

He was nothing more than an abandoned infant from an orphanage. His identity and status were lowly to the bone, yet he still dared to overestimate himself?!

The more Xie Ran thought about it, the less he could swallow this insult. He turned and returned to his room, intending to complain tearfully to Third Brother, but the moment he reached the door, he heard a phone call from inside.

"I know. After all, he was with the Xie Family for so many years. If we don't have to tear things apart, then we shouldn't. When I get the chance, I'll try to persuade Xie Chen again. If he's willing, the Xie Family will still have a bedroom for him..."

Upon hearing this, Xie Ran's expression instantly turned venomous.

They really still wanted Xie Chen to come back!

Was an impostor really that important?

Even after publicly announcing on Weibo that they had severed the adoption relationship, they still wouldn't give up?

Could it be that they had gotten addicted to raising a dog?!

Just as that thought crossed his mind, Xie Jinran's ambiguous voice came from inside. "Even if he were a dog, after all these years, there'd be feelings involved. I don't believe Xie Chen can be so heartless toward his owners!"

Only then did Xie Ran smile. He took out his phone and looked through the photos he had secretly taken earlier.

The angle was highly suggestive. It looked as if Xie Chen had been clinging to Huo Wenye, only to have his hand shaken off.

With the Buddha of Beijing's elite circle's popularity, if these photos were released, Xie Chen would definitely be cursed to death online.

With that in mind, he directly sent the photos to an entertainment reporter from a third-rate magazine whom he had added not long ago, then transferred another sum of money.

Note: Make the caption explosive. I don't mind if Xie Chen gets cyberbullied.