Nan Qing muttered something under his breath. Huo Yuzhou heard him calling him stingy.
Huo Yuzhou said nothing and turned back to his documents.
The pretty boy beside him edged closer again, calling his name in a tiny voice,
"Huo Yuzhou, help me."
His soft, gentle voice drifted through the air, like little hooks catching at Huo Yuzhou's heart.
But Huo Yuzhou's heart was iron. He did not even look at him.
Nan Qing gently tugged his sleeve and shook it, speaking very, very quietly in that soft, pleading tone people used when they had done something wrong,
"Wasn't I wearing this for you?"
"If I hadn't thought you liked clothes like this, why would I ever wear a dress meant for little girls..."
He spoke slowly, his ears heating up again as he continued his specious argument,
"Anyway, you're the reason I put this on, so you can't just leave me to deal with it."
The man's dark gaze fell on his legs.
The short, narrow fabric fanned out as he sat, but it could only cover the tops of his thighs.
His luminous, snow-white skin gleamed under the light, even prettier than the thick blanket of snow that settled on the attic roof at the first snowfall.
Huo Yuzhou's Adam's apple bobbed sharply. With immense difficulty, he looked away.
But Nan Qing thought he simply did not want to help.
His rounded almond eyes blinked, and the young master, who knew when to bend and when to stand tall, decided to start saying nice things.
He had to go to the company!
In a place that trampled the lowly and fawned over the powerful, who knew how they would target him today now that they knew he had lost his backing?
If he went in wearing a dress like this, someone would probably secretly photograph him the moment he arrived and post it on an entertainment account, making him a laughingstock across the internet.
"Huo Yuzhou, please help me."
He held the man's wrist, his voice soft,
"You know you're the only friend I have left."
"If you won't help me, who will?"
Lowering his voice only made him sound more pitiful.
Not to mention those dewy eyes looking straight at him, their clear pupils shimmering with moisture, as though rejection would make them fill with tears the very next second.
Huo Yuzhou's fingers tightened around the document.
A small, soft hand held his wrist, and even through the thin layer of silk pajamas, the warmth of Nan Qing's skin reached him.
It burned all the way from his wrist to his heart.
Long, straight lashes cast dense shadows beneath his eyelids. The morning sunlight fell across the man's handsome face as he strove to maintain its usual indifference.
This little bastard was best at taking a mile when given an inch.
If he glimpsed even a trace of tenderness on Huo Yuzhou's face, he would naturally lump him into the ranks of his suitors, along with all those worthless men.
Then he would use love as a bargaining chip and effortlessly play him in the palm of his hand.
Huo Yuzhou looked at him calmly.
His gaze traveled from those rounded eyes to his straight, slightly upturned nose, then from those petal-like lips to his slender neck.
He could not help marveling at the wonders of the Creator.
Someone who looked so delicate and frail could display almost omnipotent powers once he wielded love as a weapon.
Huo Yuzhou's cold, unfeeling stare made Nan Qing's scalp prickle.
Almost instinctively, he looked down at his own hand holding the man's wrist, inwardly shocked:
Surely not?
Could this insane world take the villain boss's chaste nature so absurdly far that anyone other than Bai Ruanruan touching his wrist would send him into a towering rage?
If Huo Yuzhou got angry, I'd definitely end up a corpse within five paces!
Damn Huo Yuzhou! He didn't get angry yesterday when he should have, and now he was furious when he shouldn't be!
Nan Qing snatched his hand back as though electrocuted and quickly put distance between them,
"Forget it, forget it. If you don't want to help, I'll just ask someone else..."
He quickly tugged at his skirt and made to bolt.
But before he could leave, a large hand pulled him back, sending him tumbling onto Huo Yuzhou's lap.
Nan Qing cried out in surprise.
He was just about to curse when he met the man's fathomless eyes.
Those long, deep eyes faced him, with cloudlike shadows spreading beneath the lids.
Perhaps it was a change in the light, but Nan Qing kept feeling that Huo Yuzhou's impassive face had taken on a sinister beauty. Even his voice was so cold it seemed water could drip from it,
"Ask who?"
The question gave Nan Qing a fright.
Was he going to interrogate me about my accomplices?
Nan Qing instinctively pursed his lips. Facing the man's cold, hard expression, he said something he did not mean,
"Anyone. I used to be so generous to my friends. Surely they wouldn't be so stingy they wouldn't even lend me some clothes..."
When he said "stingy," Nan Qing stole a glance at Huo Yuzhou, taking the chance to make a dig at him.
But Huo Yuzhou seemed not to notice that word. Instead, his handsome face looked terrible, and even his voice was frighteningly low,
"You're going out in this... dress to see those men?"
Nan Qing thought he was being inexplicable,
"What else?"
"I can't exactly go out naked, can I?"
His eyes widened into circles as he explained in all seriousness,
"Streaking is illegal in this country."
Huo Yuzhou was so angry his heart hurt.
He merely pressed his well-defined fingers to his forehead, his icy voice ringing through the air,
"Do you really think those disreputable friends of yours are decent people?"
"Keeping young models, keeping celebrities, street racing downtown, beating people up while drunk..."
Huo Yuzhou paused, his eyes unfathomably dark,
"How do you think they'll treat you if you go to see them dressed like this?"
"Now that you're no longer the Bai Family's young master, will they still put you on a pedestal and willingly act as your lackeys?"
Nan Qing felt that Huo Yuzhou was calling him stupid.
But he certainly could not admit he was stupid, so he could only steel himself and argue,
"Stop thinking the worst of everyone. It's just some clothes..."
Huo Yuzhou raised his eyelids and handed him his phone.
Nan Qing glanced at him and dialed a number.
To avoid embarrassing himself in front of Huo Yuzhou, Nan Qing specifically chose Qi Bin, the most reliable one. The Qi Family was of ordinary standing, nowhere near their social circle.
Back then, Qi Bin had fawned over his group of friends like a lapdog, being bullied like a clown. Nan Qing could not stand watching and had helped him out, then put in a word with his father to let them get involved in the Bai Family's business.
Only then had Qi Bin gained a foothold in their circle.
Qi Bin was loyal, bringing him bags upon bags of gifts every holiday.
Even when Nan Qing had been thrown out of the Bai Family home, Qi Bin had angrily joined him in cursing Bai Ruanruan, thanking Nan Qing for his past help and saying he could come to him with any problems in the future.
Calling him just to borrow some clothes should not be a problem.
The phone rang twice before Qi Bin's voice came through. "Is that Nan Qing?"
Nan Qing gave a hum of acknowledgment and got straight to the point,
"Qi Bin, I've run into a little trouble. Can you lend me twenty thousand yuan? I need to buy some clothes."
The man on the other end readily agreed. "Of course."
Nan Qing lifted the corners of his eyes and blinked smugly at Huo Yuzhou.
The next second, he heard the man on the other end speak again, his voice carrying a smile,
"But Qingqing, you have no way of earning money. You can't keep borrowing forever."
"I do have a good idea that could help you maintain your old standard of living. Do you remember Uncle Zhou from Shenghe Real Estate?"
Nan Qing did not know why he had suddenly brought up that sleazy old man with a bald head and a beer belly. Before he could speak, he heard Qi Bin laugh again on the other end,
"Nan Qing, Uncle Zhou really appreciates you."
"He wants to spend more time with you, and he's willing to fund your acting projects. As long as you keep him company every few days, he'll give you anything you want!"