TUMZ Chapter 13

| Previous | Table of Contents | Next | 

Qiu Zheyan asked his senior, “What’s wrong? Who did you mistake him for?”

His senior hesitated before saying, “Mr. Zhuang looks a bit like someone I met in S City… I saw him at a business exchange event… Maybe I’m mistaken. That was five or six years ago.”

Zhuang Hanxue replied calmly, “I have a pretty common face. Haha.”

But the more his senior thought about it, the more something felt off.

In private, he told Qiu Zheyan, “I remember now. I have seen Mr. Zhuang before, but he wasn’t like this back then. It was at an investment promotion event. He seemed pretty influential at the time, with lots of people surrounding him, trying to get his investment. I even took some photos. I’ll find them later and show you.”

Qiu Zheyan found it amusing. “You must be mistaken.”

He couldn’t imagine Zhuang Hanxue as a serious investor and couldn’t help but chuckle. “No way, absolutely no way.”

His senior became anxious. “I’m serious! Why would I lie to you? Be honest with me—who exactly is your boyfriend? I’m short on cash right now…”

Qiu Zheyan still shook his head. “You’ve got the wrong person. I’ve been with him for a long time. Don’t you think I’d know? When he moved in with me, he only had 5,000 yuan in his bank account. Before that, he worked in Y City as an ordinary employee for three years. He’s no tycoon.”

His senior was skeptical but sighed. “Alright. I’ll figure something out. Do you have any extra cash? Could you lend me some? I’ll pay you back after the new year. I’ll even write you an IOU.”

Qiu Zheyan nodded. “How’s your company doing? How much do you need?”

Huan Hao said, “Two million.”

Qiu Zheyan thought about his bank savings and agreed without hesitation. “Alright, I’ll transfer it to you tomorrow.”

Later that night—

Qiu Zheyan casually mentioned the mistaken identity story to Zhuang Hanxue as a joke. “He said he once met some kind of top investor who looked just like you.”

Just as he finished speaking, he got a message from his senior.

Qiu Zheyan opened it—it was a group photo from an investment promotion event. The person circled in red… damn it, really did look like Zhuang Hanxue.

Zhuang Hanxue laughed heartily. “Hahaha, this is hilarious.”

Qiu Zheyan showed him the picture. “No… the resemblance is uncanny. The height is the same. Even the way he stands is the same—one shoulder slightly higher than the other.”

Zhuang Hanxue glanced at it and had a complicated expression. “Yeah… yeah… it does look a lot like me.”

Qiu Zheyan turned his head to stare at him. “This is you, isn’t it?”

Zhuang Hanxue’s heart raced. His happy little life as a kept man was on the verge of collapse. But in a stroke of genius, he subtly said, “I… I was embarrassed to tell you…”

Qiu Zheyan frowned and sucked in a breath. “So it is you?”

Zhuang Hanxue: “I ended up like this… how could I have the nerve to talk about my past?”

Qiu Zheyan: “What the hell happened?”

Zhuang Hanxue vaguely replied, “Well… it’s a long story. I… I used to have a bit of money, but life is unpredictable. Then I ran out of money…”

Qiu Zheyan didn’t doubt him but suddenly had an epiphany. “No wonder you dated Jiang Ruoyun. And all your exes were rich and beautiful.”

Thinking more carefully, it all made sense—why Zhuang Hanxue, at his age, was still so pampered, why he could talk about luxury cars so fluently, why he knew every high-end brand without ever craving them. If he was a rich kid before, everything checked out.

But why had Zhuang Hanxue kept it from him? Why lie? If there weren’t concrete proof, Zhuang Hanxue would probably still be denying it.

Qiu Zheyan frowned, displeased. “Why did you never tell me?”

Zhuang Hanxue blinked pitifully. “I… I didn’t dare tell you.”

Qiu Zheyan looked at him, curled up like a frightened little animal, sitting there foolishly like a drenched puppy—completely pitiful.

He simply couldn’t bring himself to be angry.

His heart ached for Zhuang Hanxue.

No wonder he was so unambitious now. He must have lived a privileged life since childhood, only to have it all come crashing down in an instant—falling from heaven straight to the depths of hell. Once a high-spirited, proud young man, he had now fallen to such a state. His family must have gone bankrupt, probably drowning in debt. No wonder he couldn’t recover from the blow.

That’s why, despite his excellent education, Zhuang Hanxue was stuck in an ordinary job, having completely given up on ambition, just drifting through life aimlessly.

That’s why he had become the person he was now.

So pitiful, truly pitiful.

Qiu Zheyan apologized, “I’m sorry for bringing up something so painful for you…”

Zhuang Hanxue had no idea what Qiu Zheyan was thinking, but it seemed like he had successfully dodged the issue. He shook his head. “It’s okay. It’s all in the past.”

A surge of determination filled Qiu Zheyan’s heart. “I will always be good to you!”

Zhuang Hanxue smiled, kissed him, and said, “You’re already so good to me, Qiuqiu. Do you want to have some fun today? I’ve been using face masks every day, my butt is super smooth now. Want to touch it?”

He kissed Zhuang Hanxue with overwhelming tenderness.

Today, Zhuang Hanxue was especially obedient, melting into his embrace with gentle compliance.

For a fleeting moment—just a single instant—Qiu Zheyan felt that Zhuang Hanxue truly liked him.

But only for a moment.

Suddenly, Qiu Zheyan understood why Zhuang Hanxue had become so distant and indifferent toward everything.

When he went bankrupt, all those women must have left him.

A heartbroken twenty-something-year-old Zhuang Hanxue, unable to trust love anymore—that must have been why he rejected Qiu Zheyan’s proposal.

Because he lacked a sense of security. After all, they had only been together for two or three months. It was reasonable for him not to believe in a lifetime promise.

Qiu Zheyan deeply realized that this man—no longer young, not particularly clever, and utterly broke—had no one to rely on but himself.

A bittersweet feeling of tenderness welled up in his heart.

He needed to treat Zhuang Hanxue even better.

But he hadn’t forgotten about that “Little Master Jiujiu.” Who was this person, and what was their relationship with Zhuang Hanxue?

Lately, Zhuang Hanxue had been acting suspiciously, as if he were hiding something from him.

Qiu Zheyan wanted to wait for him to speak up on his own, but Zhuang Hanxue never did. Every day, he just laughed and played around as if nothing was wrong.

Qiu Zheyan thought: Maybe I’m just overthinking? Maybe it’s just an ordinary online friend, and there’s nothing shady going on?

But was "Jiujiu" a term of endearment or a name?

Come to think of it, "Jiujiu" sounded familiar—like a nickname for a girl.

Zhuang Hanxue sometimes called him “Qiuqiu” too. The pronunciation was similar. Could he be a substitute? That would be way too dramatic.

But looking at their messages, that Jiujiu had known Zhuang Hanxue longer. He was the one who came later.

Could it be that they had something ambiguous before, but while that person was away, Qiu Zheyan swooped in and snatched Zhuang Hanxue up first? And now that Jiujiu was back, realizing that the cabbage he had his eyes on had already been eaten, he was trying to stir up trouble and take Zhuang Hanxue back?

Qiu Zheyan knew he could just confront Zhuang Hanxue and force him to choose.

But by now, he had figured out Zhuang Hanxue’s temperament. He seemed like someone who wouldn’t respond to force, but in reality, he actually gave in to softness rather than toughness. If pushed too hard, he might just shrug indifferently and ask, “Do you want me to move out today?”

He couldn’t exactly keep Zhuang Hanxue under house arrest.

That wouldn’t be any fun.

There were only three days left until the New Year.

Qiu Zheyan had booked a three-day, two-night trip to Japan, planning to take Zhuang Hanxue on a getaway.

Today, he finished work earlier than usual—before midnight—and sent Zhuang Hanxue a message saying he was coming home early.

The moment he stepped inside, he heard Zhuang Hanxue laughing.

“Little Master, Little Master, just let me win once, please? We’ve been playing all night, and you haven’t let me win even once. You’re the best, Little Master, I’m begging you~”

Zhuang Hanxue often used this same coquettish, whiny tone with him when asking for things. Even before they officially got together, when they played games together, he acted the same way. That was part of why Qiu Zheyan had suspected his online friend had feelings for him.

But was it really just a game? Did he have to talk so sweetly?

So this was just how Zhuang Hanxue talked to everyone?

A rush of heat surged straight to Qiu Zheyan’s head—he felt like he was glowing green with jealousy.

He strode straight to the study.

Zhuang Hanxue was wearing headphones. That must be why he hadn’t seen Qiu Zheyan’s messages or heard him come home.

Qiu Zheyan stood behind him ominously, but Zhuang Hanxue, still laughing and joking, didn’t notice.

A few seconds later, Zhuang Hanxue finally sensed a chill down his spine. He turned around, saw Qiu Zheyan, and his laughter stopped abruptly. He stared blankly and took off his headphones.

Qiu Zheyan grabbed him and pulled him up from his chair.

Zhuang Hanxue froze in shock.

Qiu Zheyan, seething, asked, “I’ve been meaning to ask you—who is Jiujiu?”

“Where did you meet this woman?”

“I’ve noticed for a while now that you’ve been acting weird. What exactly are you hiding from me?”

“They even told you to borrow money and move out.”

“Are you planning to break up? Do you want to move out?”

“What haven’t I done well enough? What are you dissatisfied with?”

“What do you take me for?”

Zhuang Hanxue was completely stunned by the barrage of questions. He backed toward his desk. “I-I’m still streaming… Let me at least tell them—”

Qiu Zheyan, blinded by anger, snapped, “Streaming? What streaming? Don’t change the subject! Answer me—do you like me or not?”

“I-I…” Zhuang Hanxue looked utterly wronged and innocent, stammering as if he had no idea what he had done wrong.

His expression only made Qiu Zheyan angrier. He grabbed him tighter. “Tell me clearly! If you don’t, don’t even think about getting out of bed tonight.”

Zhuang Hanxue blurted, “No, I really am streaming! A gaming stream—there are tens of thousands of people watching!”

Qiu Zheyan paused, then turned to look at the screen.

Sure enough, there was a live streaming platform open in a small window. The chat had already exploded:

【?????????】

【What’s happening?】

【Public coming out??】

【First gaming streamer to come out of the closet???】

【Didn’t he always say he had a wife? Is this cheating???】

【Wait, this other guy’s voice is kinda hot…】

【Is this about to turn NSFW?】

【Keep streaming! I’m living for this drama!!!!】

Qiu Zheyan: “……”

T/N: Please give support on my ko-fi for more updates🍊🍊🍊