Lan Xi slept wonderfully.
When he turned his head, his phone and notebook were sitting neatly beside him. He instinctively reached for the phone—ah, he could move freely again!
Completely naked, he rolled out of bed and wandered around the unusually spacious bedroom, whose front and rear sections had been opened into one.
Paintings he could not understand hung on the walls, half-person-high vases stood on the floor, and the breeze lifted the elegant gauze curtains. Beyond them he could see a pond, where graceful flowers bloomed at the center and sent over a faint fragrance.
Lan Xi had never seen a place like this before. He walked over and pushed at the glass door.
It opened with a push.
Nobody came to stop him.
Lan Xi looked around, walked into the courtyard by himself, circled the artificial rockery three times, plucked a flower, and finally crouched down to play with the fish.
Would this taste good cooked?
That was the scene Fu Hui saw when he arrived.
Naked and frolicking all over the place—the sight nearly made his vision go dark.
He grabbed a robe, walked over, and wrapped Lan Xi in it. “I left you clothes. Why didn’t you put them on?”
Lan Xi said, “Can I not wear them?”
Fu Hui: “…”
Fu Hui really had considered simply depriving Lan Xi of the right to wear clothes and completely confining him here.
But he had never expected that arrangement would suit Lan Xi perfectly.
The thought that Lan Xi did not even care about running around naked in front of the bodyguards gave Fu Hui a headache.
“You have to wear them.” Fu Hui forcibly tucked Lan Xi under one arm, carried him back to the bedroom, and first dragged him into the bathroom for a bath.
Afterward, he checked the soles of Lan Xi’s feet to make sure he had not cut himself.
Then he held him down and dressed him.
By the time Fu Hui finished the whole process, he felt as though he had aged ten years on the spot.
“I don’t like it here,” Lan Xi said from within his arms.
Fu Hui said nothing.
It was normal not to like being imprisoned.
“There aren’t any sparkling lights…” Lan Xi pointed at the decorations outside. “All those things look old.”
“…”
The Chinese-style residence was filled with antiques, and its overall aesthetic was restrained and elegant, dignified and grand.
But Lan Xi did not care how valuable any of it was.
Give him an eight-yuan piece of plastic that refracted colored light and he would treasure it.
Fu Hui made no comment. That afternoon, however, he had people move several things in.
A projector and game console covered entertainment. Oh, and he also had a trampoline placed in the courtyard for Lan Xi.
Coral carvings, jade-bead curtains, pearl crowns… those provided visual enrichment, each vividly colored and glittering in its own way. Oh, even the bowl Lan Xi ate from was replaced with an emerald bowl.
The lights had to be changed too, with crystal carved into blooming magnolias… That was as far as Fu Hui was willing to compromise with the Chinese-style décor.
In the blink of an eye, the entire bedroom became a dragon’s hoard.
It was the sort of thing Lan Xi had only ever heard about in legends when he was little.
Lan Xi was extremely satisfied with Fu Hui’s service and immediately pushed his luck. “I want to sleep on gemstones.”
Lan Xi thought, If I’d known locking me up would make him this easy to talk to, giving me whatever I ask for…
I would’ve let him lock me up ages ago!
Fu Hui: “…” “They’ll dig into your butt.”
Lan Xi wanted to say he was not afraid of that.
But after thinking about it, he realized that would not persuade Fu Hui.
Besides, Fu Hui might sleep with him that night, and Fu Hui definitely would not agree then.
Lan Xi stopped arguing, silently walked to one side, and crouched down.
Fu Hui stared at his miserable-looking back. “…………”
Forget it.
Whenever Lan Xi suddenly became quiet, it was never a good sign.
“I’ll figure something out,” Fu Hui said blandly.
Without turning around, Lan Xi answered, “Mm-hm.”
Fu Hui went off to solve the problem for him, while Lan Xi spent half the day lounging around like a little lord. Only belatedly did he remember that his great undertaking was still unfinished.
He took out his phone, his gaze skipping straight over all those unfamiliar apps.
He called Wen Yue.
Dark shadows hung beneath Wen Yue’s eyes as he rested in his office.
Nobody could withstand sleeping badly day after day.
When his phone screen lit up and clearly displayed the name “Lan Xi,” he was so dazed he almost thought he was dreaming.
“Hello.” Wen Yue answered. Afraid the person on the other end might be Fu Hui, he cautiously asked, “Lan Xi?”
Lan Xi said, “Mm.”
“Where are you right now?” That was the question Wen Yue had asked most often lately. Second place belonged to “What has Fu Hui done to you?” Wen Yue had never imagined there would come a day when he became a powerless broken record.
“Don’t know.”
Those two words made Wen Yue dizzy.
He forcibly calmed himself. “Can you hear any sounds around you?”
“Mm… the wind.”
“Are you by the sea? Can you smell anything?”
“Mm. A little flower scent, and wood.” After answering, Lan Xi corrected him. “I’m not by the sea. I’m in the mountains.”
“But there are lots of mountains outside the city… Can you move around freely right now? Are you being kept underground? Send me a picture.”
The more Wen Yue spoke, the more something felt wrong. “Why did Fu Hui return your phone so easily?”
Lan Xi grew impatient. “Why are you asking so many questions?”
Wen Yue choked. “I want to know where you are.”
“That’s easy. Last time Fu Hui sent something to my WeChat, some kind of… some kind of sharing thing… and then he knew where I was.”
“Location sharing?”
“Mm-hm.”
Wen Yue: “…” He had spent so long reasoning everything out that he had forgotten the obvious.
So back in Hai City, Fu Hui had used this method to find Lan Xi as quickly as possible.
All he had to do was trick Lan Xi into tapping the location-sharing request…
Meanwhile, Wen Yue had painstakingly sent employees out to look for him, only for them to find nothing and be driven back by the typhoon rain.
Wen Yue swallowed again before finally lowering his head and sending Lan Xi a WeChat request.
Fortunately, he had not been deleted.
“Do you know where I am now?” Lan Xi asked.
Wen Yue drew a deep breath, his tone heavy. “I know.”
Lan Xi said, “Then secretly come see me.”
Wen Yue’s voice became strained. “That may… be difficult. There are two sanatoriums in that area, and many important people recuperate there. The security is terrifyingly strict.”
No wonder Fu Hui did not care whether Lan Xi contacted him.
Lan Xi frowned. “Then what do we do?”
Fu Hui had put Lan Xi there. That was outright “imprisonment.” Wen Yue could not simply watch it happen… He raised a hand and rubbed his temple.
“As long as you can leave that place, even for half an hour… that would be an opportunity.”
“But if Fu Hui brought you there, he won’t allow you to leave.”
The more Wen Yue thought about it, the worse he felt.
“Lan Xi, wait for me to contact you.”
“Fine.”
At the moment, Lan Xi was more excited about sleeping on gemstones that night.
After hanging up, Wen Yue also filled Wen Ming in.
But no matter how long the two of them thought about it, neither could come up with a good solution.
When they returned home that evening, Wen Lan was there too. Seeing their unpleasant expressions, he gloated, “How come you still haven’t brought Lan Xi back?”
Neither brother acknowledged him.
“That Fu Hui—is he really that powerful?”
Wen Ming suppressed his irritation. “If you don’t understand, don’t talk. Do you even know where Lan Xi is right now?”
“Where?”
“Jiuding Mountain.”
Wen Lan shrank back and stopped talking.
But very quickly, he had another idea. “If we can’t go up there, can’t we make him come down?”
“You think we haven’t considered that? If Fu Hui were willing to loosen his grip and let him come down, we wouldn’t have to worry about how Lan Xi is doing.”
“Make a huge scene.” Wen Lan offered his usual solution to everything.
Nobody answered.
It would be miraculous if making a huge scene actually worked.
But Wen Lan really did come up with a crooked idea. “An ordinary tantrum obviously won’t work. But what if there’s a reasonable excuse?”
This sort of thing truly was his specialty.
Half an hour later, Wen Yue and Wen Ming had both fallen silent after listening to him.
“I’ll call Lan Xi.” Wen Yue stood.
Wen Ming instinctively followed.
Wen Yue glanced at him but said nothing. When Lan Xi answered, he even put the call on speaker.
“Hello?” Lan Xi’s voice came through. At least he did not sound aggrieved or miserable.
Wen Ming relaxed slightly.
“Lan Xi, is anyone else beside you right now?” To be safe, Wen Yue asked first.
He did not dare send the specific steps of the plan to Lan Xi through WeChat.
Fu Hui might be no less thorough than Wen Yue when checking a phone. If he looked, he would definitely find it.
“Yes.” Lan Xi watched a bodyguard walk in.
Wen Yue’s voice tightened. “Then wait until he leaves and we’ll—”
“Ah!” Lan Xi suddenly shouted and hung up.
Lan Xi threw himself forward and covered the dishes in front of him. “Don’t touch them!”
The bodyguard pulled his hands back. “You can’t eat any more today.”
Lan Xi was displeased. “I want to see Fu Hui!”
The bodyguard said, “That’s Sir’s instruction.”
“Where is Fu Hui?” Lan Xi asked fiercely.
The bodyguard said, “…Outside.”
“What time is he coming back?”
“Seven… maybe?”
“What do you mean, maybe?”
“If there’s more work to deal with, he’ll come back a little later.”
Lan Xi was very unhappy now. He simply made something up and, without caring whether it made sense, accused Fu Hui first. “Why doesn’t he come home earlier? Is he cheating?”
The bodyguard jumped. He had not expected Lan Xi to have learned that new term too.
He hurriedly waved his hands. “No, no!”
Then he said, “I’ll call Sir!”
The bodyguard hurried out, his expression impossible to describe.
Originally, he had thought Sir might have gone too far. Locking someone up like this might ultimately lead to a terrible ending.
But looking at things now… who exactly was imprisoning whom?
At that moment, Wen Yue and Wen Ming were not feeling any better.
Wen Ming asked with difficulty, “Why did he suddenly scream and hang up?”
Wen Yue’s brows drew tightly together, and he could not answer.
Wen Ming could not resist saying it again. “It’s still my fault…”
Wen Ming also knew that repeatedly blaming himself accomplished nothing. He gave a bitter laugh and joked, “If I still can’t sleep properly tonight, sooner or later a blood vessel’s going to burst.”
He had barely finished speaking when Wen Yue’s phone rang.
“He’s calling back.”
Both men’s expressions immediately turned serious. Countless possibilities flashed through their minds in an instant, and they even prepared themselves to face threats from Fu Hui.
Wen Yue answered.
“Hello.” It was still Lan Xi’s voice on the other end.
The brothers stared at each other in surprise.
Wen Ming could not hold back. “Are you all right?”
Lan Xi pretended not to hear Wen Ming. “Continue.”
He was obviously speaking to Wen Yue.
Wen Yue glanced at his younger brother’s awkward expression, then still asked with concern, “What happened just now?”
“Nothing.” Lan Xi certainly was not going to admit that someone had tried to snatch food from a demon’s mouth. That would be far too humiliating for a demon.
But because he avoided answering, the brothers each interpreted it in their own way.
Their expressions immediately worsened again.
Their only option now was to get Lan Xi out of that “demon’s den” as soon as possible.
Wen Yue lowered his voice. “There’s one method…”
What was that method?
Lan Xi would pretend he had suddenly heard that Fu Hui had recently grown close to some wealthy family’s daughter and suspected Fu Hui might be planning to marry someone else. Then he could demand that Fu Hui take him out and appear publicly with him. If Fu Hui refused, that meant something was suspicious.
Then Lan Xi could cry, make a scene, and threaten to hang himself.
But this plan…
“First, it has to be based on one thing… Fu Hui likes you. He absolutely cannot tolerate hearing you threaten to die.”
But what if Fu Hui did not care at all?
The more Wen Yue explained it, the less reliable the plan sounded even to him.
Lan Xi, however, sounded completely certain. “He likes me!”
Wen Yue fell silent.
Lan Xi was displeased by his silence. Is he doubting a demon’s charm?
Of course Fu Hui has to like me!
Lan Xi was just about to speak again.
But Wen Ming suddenly cut in first. “If we’re going to say that, we’d have to invent a specific girl from a specific family. Making up a story about an innocent person like that isn’t very good.”
Wen Yue’s eyes shifted. “The plan can be improved. And this version is something Fu Hui absolutely can’t avoid.”
“The Wen family really did receive an invitation from the Song family. That can’t be faked. What if a rumor starts circulating in the circle that Fu Hui has some kind of relationship with the Wen family’s youngest young master?”
“If Fu Hui wants to prove that the person he’s involved with is you, then you and Wen Lan will have to appear at the same event.”
With Fu Hui’s pride, how could he tolerate being linked to Wen Lan?
Lan Xi was still listening when a faint click suddenly sounded behind him.
Hearing the familiar footsteps, he did not even need to turn around. “Fu Hui’s back.”
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