TUMZ Chapter 22
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They didn’t go home that night and just made do by sleeping at the company.
The next morning.
Qiu Zheyan was surprised to find that Zhuang Hanxue had woken up even earlier than him and had already gone out to buy breakfast. A tray of soup dumplings, a tray of shumai, and two bowls of beef and spicy pepper soup.
While eating his soup dumplings, Zhuang Hanxue smiled at him and said, “Xiao Qiu, I couldn’t sleep last night, so I was thinking things over. I’ve found a way. Don’t agree to the acquisition. I’ll bring in some investment for you—this time, it’ll definitely work.”
Qiu Zheyan asked curiously, “What investment? Who do you even know that’s that influential?”
At this point, even if Zhuang Hanxue claimed to know the president of some country, he wouldn’t outright deny it.
Zhuang Hanxue even formed a Buddhist hand seal, posing like a Buddha, and mysteriously said, “Ah, for now, the secrets of heaven cannot be revealed. You’ll find out when the time comes—I have great powers.”
Qiu Zheyan was amused by his antics and said, “Alright, then I’ll hold on a little longer. Anyway, Mr. Chu said that, since your little master pleaded for you, he’s willing to wait a bit longer before getting an answer. How much investment are you planning to bring in?”
Zhuang Hanxue’s eyes sparkled as he said, “Just wait and see. I’ll borrow some money for you. Will one hundred million be enough?”
Qiu Zheyan: “???”
The number was too big for him to take seriously. If Zhuang Hanxue had said a few tens of millions, he might have believed it outright, but a hundred million? He couldn’t even imagine it. Where would Zhuang Hanxue get that kind of money? Qiu Zheyan laughed, “Hahaha, with that, not only can I come back to life, I can expand and thrive.”
Zhuang Hanxue nodded. “That’s right!”
Zhuang Hanxue also took some time to contact the livestreaming company, saying that he wouldn’t be able to maintain his streaming schedule anymore. If he couldn’t put it on hold, then they might as well terminate the contract.
The company warned him sternly that if he unilaterally breached the contract without a special reason, he would have to pay a breach fee of over a million.
Zhuang Hanxue didn’t even blink and said generously, “Yeah, I know. Terminate it. I’ll pay the penalty.”
Once he got home, this amount of money would be nothing.
Zhuang Hanxue thought he wasn’t just unambitious—he was a full-fledged wastrel. He had been making money as a streamer, but he hadn’t earned much, and now he had to pay out of pocket. If he had known earlier, he wouldn’t have started streaming at all. He had even come out publicly online and hurt Jiji in the process. It was truly a loss with no gain.
He opened his streaming room.
He was still in the middle of a storm.
Someone had written a long comment in his chat, accusing him of lying from start to finish—that he never had a boyfriend, that there was no company financial crisis, and that the reason his “boyfriend” hadn’t appeared recently was that he had just hired someone to act the part, and that person had now quit. They accused him of scamming money, being shameless, and pretending to be gay.
Zhuang Hanxue calmly read through it all and then started his livestream.
Because he hadn’t been streaming regularly, his viewership had hit a new low, and since he hadn’t announced the stream beforehand, not many people joined at first. But a group of loyal fans still came to watch, and the number of viewers gradually increased.
Zhuang Hanxue composed himself and said:
“This is probably my last livestream because of some changes in my real-life job—I don’t have time to stream anymore.”
“The contract termination is already being discussed.”
“No, I’m not switching platforms. I’m really quitting streaming.”
“Ah, and no, it’s not because of online harassment. I don’t even care what those haters say.”
“Stop sending me gifts—seriously, the more you send, the more I have to pay in penalties. I’m begging you, stop.”
“…Never mind, do whatever you want. It’s not like I care about this little bit of penalty money.”
“You’re asking what I’ll do after quitting? What else? I’ll go work in a company like a normal person.”
"To be honest, I really enjoyed being a streamer. I was happy, and you were happy too. If I brought you some joy during this time, then I’m satisfied."
"I like you all."
"The green hills remain, and the waters flow on. If fate allows, we’ll meet again someday."
It was already Tuesday.
Zhuang Hanxue had promised his mother that he would go home before Friday.
He had to tell Xiao Qiu about this before then.
He used to be able to tell Xiao Qiu everything, but this time, he kept delaying, unable to bring himself to say it.
How should he even begin?
Even he wasn’t sure what would happen after he went back.
Even though he was now the only son who still listened to his mother, it wasn’t like he could just easily get his hands on that much money. The only way was to return to the company and inherit the family business. But he had run away once—had been gone for six or seven years. If he went back this time, he might not be able to escape again.
To inherit the family business meant following his family's wishes.
His mother said she wouldn’t force him anymore, but he knew that was just a temporary lie to lure him back. Parents always coaxed their children like this—get them back first, and then they could do whatever they wanted with them.
There was no guarantee that he could continue his relationship with Qiu Zheyan.
His mother would definitely force him to get married.
How annoying.
But if he didn’t go back, Xiao Qiu’s company would be doomed.
Even more annoying.
He’d deal with it when the time came. First, he had to save Qiu Zheyan’s company. Then he’d see if he could escape.
And if he couldn’t… well, he’d take it one step at a time.
First, he’d trick the money out of them. Then he’d figure out a way to slip away and return to Xiao Qiu.
And if he failed?
Zhuang Hanxue thought, Well, I’m just a useless guy anyway. I’m not exactly a great boyfriend.
Besides, I’m not even Xiao Qiu’s unforgettable first love. He thought sourly. At this moment, he felt a little jealous—jealous of Qiu Zheyan’s first love, and jealous of whoever would spend a lifetime with him in the future.
But at least for now, he was sure that Xiao Qiu liked him.
Even though he had no idea why.
Sure, he had a nice butt, but it wasn’t the best-looking butt in the world, was it?
How was he supposed to tell Qiu Zheyan?
No matter how he thought about it, if he told the truth, Qiu Zheyan definitely wouldn’t let him go home.
If he didn’t go home, he wouldn’t be able to borrow the money. Without the money, Xiao Qiu’s company would be finished.
Forget it. He’d just say he was going back to his hometown.
Would Xiao Qiu think he was just being lazy and running home? Well… he did enjoy an easy life.
He kept putting it off, until the very last day.
Zhuang Hanxue had originally planned to tell Qiu Zheyan after he got home, but they ended up working late into the night at the company. There was no good opportunity to bring up his departure.
Qiu Zheyan, exhausted, said, “I’ll just sleep here at the office tonight.”
Zhuang Hanxue was stunned. “You’re not going home?”
Qiu Zheyan rubbed his temples. “Too tired. You go home, change your clothes, and bring me a fresh set. I’ll stay up at the company—I’ll just take a short nap.”
Zhuang Hanxue panicked. “No way.”
Qiu Zheyan asked, “Why not?”
Zhuang Hanxue stared at him, his chest tight with unspoken words. His face even turned red, but still, he couldn’t say it.
Qiu Zheyan seemed to realize something. He smiled knowingly, grabbed Zhuang Hanxue’s hand, pulled him over, and settled him onto his lap. “Are you thinking about that? It has been a while since we’ve been intimate.”
Zhuang Hanxue’s face turned completely red. He hesitated, thought about it, thought again… and finally muttered, “Yeah, it’s been a while.”
If he couldn’t come back, wouldn’t this be his last chance to be with Xiao Qiu?
But he was a little worried. “You’ve been so exhausted lately… Can you even manage?”
A man can never say he can’t!
Hearing that, Qiu Zheyan immediately perked up. He chuckled. “Why don’t I let you experience firsthand whether I can or not?”
But this time, Zhuang Hanxue didn’t obediently go along with it like before. Instead, he frowned slightly, looking a little confused.
He removed Qiu Zheyan’s hands from his waist, stood up, and moved Qiu Zheyan’s chair to the side. Then, he knelt down in front of him and reached out his hand.
Qiu Zheyan instantly realized what he was about to do, and his ears turned bright red.
Zhuang Hanxue had never done this for him before.
Qiu Zheyan reached out, gently cupped Zhuang Hanxue’s face, and asked in a soft voice, “Didn’t you say you don’t like this?”
Zhuang Hanxue knelt down, lifted his head, glanced at him, and asked, "You don’t want it?"
Qiu Zheyan swallowed and, in the end, spoke honestly, "...I do."
Zhuang Hanxue nodded and eagerly asked, "Xiao Qiu, I’ve never done this before. Tell me how you want it, teach me, I’ll follow your lead."
The next day.
When Qiu Zheyan woke up, Zhuang Hanxue was already gone.
He found a note on the table, left by Zhuang Hanxue. It read:
[Xiao Qiu, I went home. —Zhuang Hanxue]
He must have gone home to shower and change.
Qiu Zheyan smiled knowingly. So Zhuang Hanxue still had a bit of shame, after all. He had assumed that after all the times they had done it last night, Zhuang Hanxue would be too exhausted to get up before noon. Yet, somehow, he still had the energy to go home.
Looks like he hadn’t been vigorous enough.
Lately, work had been too exhausting.
But by the afternoon, Zhuang Hanxue still hadn’t returned to the office.
Qiu Zheyan figured he was probably sleeping at home. That lazy guy—he’d already been working himself to death lately, and on top of that, they had messed around on the office desk last night. He should let him rest.
The more Qiu Zheyan thought about how Zhuang Hanxue had actually taken the initiative to serve him last night, the more affectionate he felt. His heart was overflowing with love for Zhuang Hanxue.
Now, more than ever, he was sure—Zhuang Hanxue really did like him.
They were truly in love now!
Just the thought of it made the corners of Qiu Zheyan’s mouth curl up uncontrollably. His heart felt as sweet as if someone had knocked over a jar of honey. In an instant, he felt like he was bursting with energy—he could go a whole day without sleep and still keep working!
He returned to their tiny rental apartment.
As soon as he stepped inside, he called out, "Lazybones, are you still sleeping?"
No response.
Qiu Zheyan noticed that the living room was spotless, and the bedroom blanket was neatly folded.
But there was no sign of Zhuang Hanxue.
That lazy guy actually did housework?
Something didn’t feel right.
Maybe he had just gone out?
Qiu Zheyan wandered around the small apartment in confusion. Then, after a delayed realization, he finally noticed that something was truly wrong.
Zhuang Hanxue’s dog, Doudou—along with its food bowl—was gone.
Qiu Zheyan remembered that when he had first tricked Zhuang Hanxue into moving in, Zhuang Hanxue had only brought one small suitcase and a dog.
The first thing he had done while unpacking was take out the dog bowl and place it down. He had said, "My Doudou loves this bowl. If you feed him with any other bowl, he won’t eat."
Now, Qiu Zheyan noticed that Zhuang Hanxue’s suitcase was gone, too.
His toothbrush, his cup, even his small pillow—everything was gone.
...Where had Zhuang Hanxue gone?
T/N: Please give support on my ko-fi for more updates🍊🍊🍊
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