Lin Fengmian was this lazy entirely because Xia Qinghe spoiled him

[Wear that court-style shirt with the lace trim. It's the third one in the second row of your wardrobe.]

[Pair it with black riding breeches, the tenth pair in the first row of your wardrobe.]

[And the second pair of boots in the seventh row of your shoe cabinet.]

Xia Qinghe's messages rattled out like machine-gun fire.

Lin Fengmian: "..."

He simply called him. "Is your date this time a man or a woman?"

Xia Qinghe's aggrieved voice came through the receiver. "A woman. The same girl from my last blind date. I thought I'd scared her off, but my mom told me to ask her out, and she agreed right away. I'm so pissed."

"She was clearly squirming in her seat that day, awkward as hell, but it turns out she didn't mind at all."

"And I can't even beat her up, because she's the granddaughter of an old friend of my grandfather's." Xia Qinghe wasn't the sort of man who never hit women. If someone provoked him, he didn't care whether they were a man or a woman. If they deserved a beating, he'd still give them one.

Lin Fengmian understood. "You've met your match this time."

Aside from Lin Fengmian, the only people in the world who could make Xia Qinghe hold back were Qian Yulan and the maternal grandparents who had poured their hearts into raising and teaching him.

However arrogant and immoral he was, he still had to show his grandfather some respect.

Xia Qinghe fell silent on the other end. Exactly. He really had met his match.

"So you're planning to have me pretend to be your boyfriend so she'll give up? Let's not. It's not like we haven't tried that before. They don't even mind you being gay if it means becoming Mrs. Xia."

"They're even willing to have your babies."

They had tried that trick a couple of years ago, and it hadn't worked at all.

Xia Qinghe was utterly miserable as he reviewed documents with an icy expression. "Then what should I do?"

"I don't get that feeling with her, like one glance could last an eternity."

Lin Fengmian: "...You've watched too many dramas. An eternity? By then, you'd have turned into organic matter and been recycled by the earth."

Xia Qinghe felt even worse. Why did Lin Fengmian refuse to believe his intuition? "That's the feeling I had when I first saw you. That's why we became brothers and have been close for over twenty years."

"That proves my instincts aren't wrong at all. I have to find someone who gives me that same feeling to be my wife."

"If I can't, I'd rather stay single."

Hearing Xia Qinghe's resolute words, Lin Fengmian fell silent.

Ever since they were children, Xia Qinghe had kept telling him that he'd liked him so much the first time they met and felt they could become brothers despite having different parents. Then they had indeed been brothers for over twenty years.

Apart from Lunar New Year, when Xia Qinghe had to visit his maternal grandparents in Lingcheng, they had practically never been apart, even after graduation.

One had become a layabout, the other President Xia, yet Xia Qinghe still called him every day.

Their brotherhood hadn't grown distant after graduation.

If that affection were directed toward someone even closer, like a wife...

Thinking further, Lin Fengmian sighed. "If you really find someone like that, I feel like you'd have a terminal case of love brain."

Then he recalled what Lin Sui had said. If Xia Qinghe really found someone like that, he, the best friend, might actually have to take a back seat.

And if that person held grudges like Xia Qinghe did-Lin Fengmian jolted upright on the couch. What if Xia Qinghe's future wife wanted to recover all the money Xia Qinghe had transferred to him over the years?

Lin Fengmian felt as though he were suffocating. He hurriedly opened his calculator, pulled up the transfer records, and did the math. Then he went completely silent.

Fuck. He hadn't even counted the expenses before university. Just from university until now, over ten years, he'd spent two billion of Xia Qinghe's money.

Two billion in cash would be enough to bury him.

What on earth had he spent it on?!

Boohoo.

The day Xia Qinghe got married would be the day he, Lin Fengmian, became saddled with debt.

Lin Fengmian picked up his phone and silently returned the ten million Xia Qinghe had transferred to him a few days earlier, paying an extra ten thousand in transaction fees.

"That's possible. If that person really exists, I really might become completely lovesick, with no one but him in my heart or my eyes, just like I've always put you first all these years." Xia Qinghe's deep voice came through the phone.

Those words sentenced Lin Fengmian to death on the spot. "..." Thank you so much for your honesty.

When your wife demands those two billion back, could you at least waive the interest for the sake of our brotherhood?

Lin Fengmian rubbed his face hard. Even without interest, I can't pay it back.

He slapped the back of his own hand hard. That'll teach you to spend. Look where it's gotten you now.

"What was that sound?" Xia Qinghe picked up his phone and discovered that Lin Fengmian had transferred him ten million. "Lin Fengmian, why are you sending me money?"

"I'm returning it." Lin Fengmian stared at the back of his hand, which he'd slapped red. "Didn't you transfer me ten million a few days ago? I've taken on some work recently, so I have money now."

"What work? Why didn't you tell me? Is there a catch? Don't get scammed and end up helping them count the money they made off you." His Mianmian was so beautiful, and both the entertainment industry and the legal world were a complete mess. He couldn't let anyone trick him.

Xia Qinghe stopped looking at his documents and stared at his phone, wishing he could go over right now and help vet things for Lin Fengmian.

"All right, I'm hanging up. I'm calling Lin Sui."

Once Xia Qinghe hung up, Lin Fengmian immediately instructed Lin Sui, "If Xia Qinghe asks, tell him I have work."

Lin Sui, who had been there the whole time: "..." I've become part of your little game.

Why don't you just kill me to spice things up for you two? Stop making life difficult for a lowly employee like me.

The moment Lin Fengmian finished speaking, Lin Sui's phone rang without even a second's pause. It was Xia Qinghe, calling in such a rush that he seemed to be trying to prevent the two of them from conspiring to deceive him.

"Lin Sui."

"Yes, I'm here."

"What work has Mianmian taken on?"

Lin Sui's brain short-circuited. "He's just appearing as a guest supporting singer."

"How much?"

"Ten million."

"That little? Why the hell bother? Turn down anything under a hundred million. I can make billions from a single contract. There's absolutely no need for Mianmian to put up with being someone else's supporting act."

Lin Sui: "..." You're rich. Good for you.

But that's your money. What's it got to do with Lin Fengmian?

You make it sound like your money belongs to Lin Fengmian. If you've got the guts to keep supporting your best friend after you get married and have a wife, then I'll respect you as a real man.

"The contract's already signed. If we turn it down now, we'll have to pay a penalty. Three times the fee."

As soon as Lin Sui said that, he saw Lin Fengmian looking at him speechlessly.

What? Had he said something wrong?

The next second, Xia Qinghe let him know exactly what he'd said wrong. "I'll pay the penalty. Go turn it down. My Mianmian is far too precious to be anyone's supporting act."

Lin Sui had only one thought: I'll fight you, you rich bastard.

Lin Fengmian returned ten million and received fifty million back.

As for why it was fifty million, the original ten million plus thirty million in penalties came to forty million, but Xia Qinghe thought the number four sounded bad and was unlucky, so he'd added another ten million.

Lin Sui was numb. When he left the Lin Family home, all he wanted to do was bash his head against the ground. Lin Fengmian was this lazy entirely because Xia Qinghe spoiled him.