Ji Dongsheng took An Yubei to a bar street in the capital called Silitun.
The entire street was lined with fairly expensive bars and nightclubs, with luxury cars gathered outside like a massive car show.
Although An Yubei no longer lacked money, the dazzling sight still made him marvel inwardly at how nice it was to be rich.
To think he had worked so hard, working nine to nine, six days a week, every month, with frequent overtime, only to earn enough for a bottle of liquor.
As soon as Ji Dongsheng entered, countless people greeted him, all politely calling him Brother Dong.
Even amid the deafening music, those calls of Brother Dong were not drowned out. Instead, they rang out loud and clear.
Ji Dongsheng socialized with ease, familiar with everyone while maintaining just the right boundaries with each of them.
He was neither too intimate nor too enthusiastic. Ji Dongsheng had an excellent grasp of that balance.
For An Yubei, who was hopeless at socializing and a little socially anxious, it was enough to inspire envy with a capital E.
Good lord, if he had that skill, promotions and raises would be just around the corner.
The book had described Ji Dongsheng as a love-brained man content with the status quo and without much ability, which was why he had handed the position of heir to someone else.
Now it seemed Ji Dongsheng was not only far from useless, but actually very capable.
He simply disliked managing a company. His ambitions lay elsewhere; it was not that he did not know how or lacked the ability.
[Dad really keeps his talents hidden. A true reclusive master.]
Ji Dongsheng pricked up his ears, eager to hear more, but An Yubei stopped thinking about it.
Still, Ji Dongsheng was very happy. He felt he had taken the leading position in An Yubei's heart and had already surpassed Ji Shang.
Yes! I have to beat that ice face.
Surrounded by the crowd, Ji Dongsheng led An Yubei to a booth on the second floor.
It offered a good view of the entire venue.
The first floor was more tightly packed, with a bar for mixing drinks, booths, and a dance floor filled with loud music and energetic dancing.
Men and women twisted their bodies with abandon, seemingly venting their emotions. They lost themselves completely, even forgetting who they were!
An Yubei glanced around casually and could only think how noisy it was. Even his heart beat along with the powerful music.
Touching his chest, An Yubei felt he was ill.
Ji Dongsheng leaned over and asked, "What's wrong, Xiao Bei? Not used to it?"
An Yubei shook his head. He did not want to spoil the fun.
Ji Dongsheng added, "This is where adults should come. You're young, so don't act old before your time like your brother. Young people should have youthful energy."
"Come on, have a drink with Dad."
As he spoke, Ji Dongsheng pushed a mixed drink over to him.
An Yubei licked his lips. "Dad, I don't know how to drink."
The drink before him was colorful and very pretty. An Yubei really wanted a taste, but then he remembered he could not drink. What if he got drunk and made a fool of himself?
Ji Dongsheng laughed. "What kind of man doesn't know how to drink?"
"Don't worry, yours is a cocktail. It won't get you drunk."
With that said, An Yubei had no more reservations. Since it would not get him drunk, a taste would be fine.
An Yubei downed it in one go. A burning sensation surged up from his stomach, and he nearly spat it out.
This tastes awful!
Before he could react, An Yubei's brain rapidly slowed down, and all his responses began to turn sluggish.
His head hurt terribly, and his heart beat faster and faster. His cheeks flushed, An Yubei looked at Ji Dongsheng and grinned foolishly.
Ji Dongsheng was drinking imported liquor with a relatively high alcohol content. After finishing his drink and setting down his glass, he noticed An Yubei's reaction.
Unable to hold back his laughter, he kneaded An Yubei's fleshy cheeks and said, "Xiao Bei, you need to work on that one-glass-and-you're-down tolerance, or you'll end up being taken advantage of."
Once An Yubei went to college, he would be making new friends. How could he go out for a meal with friends without drinking?
With a tolerance like this, drinking could easily lead to trouble!
An Yubei blinked his watery eyes. "Eat what? Why do I have to eat a loss? I don't want to eat a loss. I want to eat food."
Ji Dongsheng laughed at An Yubei's silly words.
"All right, Xiao Bei loves eating food. With Dad around, no one will dare make Xiao Bei suffer a loss."
An Yubei wrapped his arms around Ji Dongsheng affectionately and said dizzily, "Thank you, Dad."
Ji Dongsheng shed an old man's tears, feeling utterly delighted.
There was a sense of fulfillment in being needed.
Even as a child, Ji Shang had been rather composed, neither acting cute nor crying much. Having a child like that was like raising a robot.
Only after adopting An Yubei had he finally enjoyed the pleasures of being a father.
But as An Yubei grew older, more and more weighed on his mind, and he stopped acting cute with him.
Now his affectionate little padded jacket was back, and Ji Dongsheng was so happy he nearly cried.
"What are you thanking me for? Dad is here to back you up."
"Mm!"
Seeing that An Yubei was woozy and looked ready to fall asleep at any moment, Ji Dongsheng lost any desire to stay. He supported An Yubei, intending to leave, but ran into someone he knew.
It was a friend he often spent time with. There had recently been a promising investment opportunity, and the two had decided to invest together.
Since they happened to meet, he was in no hurry to leave and sat down to exchange a few words.
Seeing An Yubei sleeping soundly, Ji Dongsheng felt at ease talking with his friend.
The music was rather loud, making it unsuitable for conversation, so they leaned close to each other's ears and spoke loudly.
As the conversation went back and forth, they lost track of time.
When they finished discussing the matter, Ji Dongsheng turned to look at An Yubei, only to discover he was gone.
Oh no, my precious boy is gone.
A few minutes earlier, An Yubei had been woken by the need to pee. Seeing Ji Dongsheng talking to someone else, he went downstairs alone to find the restroom without saying anything.
His head was woozy, and his steps were unsteady. He walked with a hand on the railing or the wall the whole way.
Along the way, he bumped into a man. An Yubei hurriedly apologized. Rather than blame him, the man kindly steadied him.
"Where are you going?"
An Yubei blinked his watery eyes. "I want to go to the restroom. I can't find it?"
An Yubei looked terribly aggrieved, and combined with his beautiful face, it inexplicably stirred a sense of tenderness.
There was also the way he hung against him as though he had no bones, his waist slender and his body fragrant.
The man lowered his head and sniffed, saying greedily, "How about I take you to the restroom?"
An Yubei nodded. Immediately afterward, he felt an arm wrap around his waist, and discomfort swept through his entire body.
An Yubei felt he and this man were being overly intimate.
But then he thought they were both men, so there was no need to make too much of it. Besides, he really could not walk any farther.
Upon reaching the restroom, An Yubei staggered into a stall. Before he could lock the door, the man behind him followed right in, pressing close.
The restroom stall was narrow to begin with. One person was fine, but two made it rather cramped.
Caught off guard, An Yubei fell back onto the toilet. He looked at the man in confusion and said, "What are you doing? Why did you follow me in?"
Alcohol had numbed his brain, slowing his reactions considerably, and he had not realized that danger was upon him.