Pei Xu’s body stiffened slightly.
He slowly raised a hand and placed it on the back of Qiao Nan’s head, his five fingers threading through the soft black hair.
The movement was gentle, yet subtly conveyed a sense of control.
This was a very dangerous position.
With just a slight increase in pressure from his palm, Qiao Nan would be forced to press tightly against him, unable to move.
Perhaps he would even struggle and cry out from panic and fear.
Pei Xu gazed at him with deep eyes, his Adam’s apple slowly bobbing, while Qiao Nan remained oblivious.
He always enjoyed such intimate gestures.
After a long while, Pei Xu’s hand moved down the curve of Qiao Nan’s rounded head to his back, patting it gently a few times, signaling him to get up, “Don’t say things out of anger.”
It wasn’t said out of anger.
But Qiao Nan didn’t argue.
He scrambled up and said, “I’m going to take a shower.”
He rushed upstairs in a few strides.
Pei Xu remained where he was, taking a deep breath to compose himself for a moment before slowly ascending the stairs.
At the turn of the staircase, he bumped into Zhou Ruo, who was coming down.
Zhou Ruo glanced in the direction of his room and smiled, “Nan Nan still likes clinging to you just like when he was little.”
She shook her head, “He’s such a big person now, yet still like a child.”
Pei Xu’s heart sank abruptly, then steadied.
He calmly replied, “It’s been over ten years; I’m used to it.”
“Yes, just like that, so many years have passed…”
Zhou Ruo said with some emotion, “Your Uncle Qiao and I were busy with work in our early years and didn’t have much energy to spare for Nan Nan. Uncle Wang and the nannies handled everything, big and small.”
She gestured, “I remember Nan Nan was only this tiny back then. Every time I came home, he would run and pounce into my arms, calling ‘Mommy,’ and cling to me, begging me to stay with him longer… Every time I had to leave, even though he wouldn’t cry or fuss, he would look at me with longing eyes and softly ask, ‘Mommy, when are you coming back next time?'”
Her eyes were slightly red, “Then, at some point, he stopped asking when Mommy was coming home, and he didn’t really act spoiled with me anymore…”
“From childhood, he was always more sensible than other children… I always thought I’d come back to spend more time with him after this busy period, but whenever I was about to return, I’d always get tied up with all sorts of things… As a result, in the blink of an eye, he’s already grown so much.”
“Nan Nan will understand,” Pei Xu took out a handkerchief and offered it to her.
Zhou Ruo took it, lowered her head to wipe her tears, and shook her head, “It’s not the same. Many things, once that time is missed, it’s hard to make up for them.”
She looked at Pei Xu and smiled, “The smartest thing I did all these years was bringing you back to the Qiao family. Thank you for taking care of him for me all these years.”
Pei Xu remained slightly silent, his gaze fixed on her nose bridge, avoiding eye contact with her, “If you hadn’t stepped in to handle my parents’ funeral arrangements back then, I don’t know what state I would have ended up in. I’ve always seen you as a mother. Nan Nan is my brother; it’s my duty to take care of him.”
“Regardless, I still want to thank you.”
Zhou Ruo composed her momentary emotional breakdown, patted his shoulder firmly, and continued walking downstairs.
Pei Xu turned sideways, watching her receding back.
In his memory, Zhou Ruo had always been the decisive, strong woman who handled his parents’ affairs.
She was undoubtedly a powerful, elegant, and beautiful woman, and time had treated her exceptionally well, leaving few marks on her.
But at this moment, he suddenly realized that Zhou Ruo had also aged without any of them noticing.
Pei Xu stood still for a long time before turning around and walking heavily back to the bedroom.
The sound of rushing water came from the bathroom; Qiao Nan was clearly taking a shower.
The sound of the water was unsettling.
Pei Xu pushed open the sliding door and went to the balcony, looking at the deep night outside, suddenly feeling like a cigarette.
He didn’t actually have a smoking habit; he only smoked a cigarette when the craving in his heart was truly unquenchable.
Strong nicotine could numb overwhelming emotions, allowing him to temporarily regain calm.
Qiao Nan came out of the shower and saw his brother standing on the balcony, lost in thought.
He crept closer, suddenly jumped onto his back, and called into his ear, “Brother!”
The recently bathed youth still carried a fragrant dampness about him.
The scent melted into the air, entering Pei Xu’s nostrils, making his gaze even more obscure.
He put one hand in his pocket, rubbed two fingers together hard, barely maintaining his composure, and patted him with his other hand, “Stop messing around.”
But his palm touched not fabric, but smooth, soft skin.
—Qiao Nan hadn’t put on his clothes properly after showering again.
Pei Xu retracted his hand as if electrocuted, closed his eyes tightly, and said in a deep voice, “Go put on your clothes.”
His tone was a bit harsh, sounding somewhat stern.
“Why are you so fierce?”
Qiao Nan sulkily let go of him, grumbling as he went to the wardrobe to find his pajamas, “I have a towel around me; there’s no one else here.”
Pei Xu did not turn to look at him the entire time.
It was already late.
Qiao Nan changed into his pajamas and burrowed under the covers.
He didn’t hold a grudge.
After turning off the main light, he said “I’m sleeping, goodnight” to Pei Xu and closed his eyes, falling asleep.
His sleep quality was always excellent; he would fall into a deep sleep almost as soon as his eyes closed.
Pei Xu stayed on the balcony for a long time before entering the room.
He walked to the bedside, looking down at Qiao Nan. What flashed through his mind was Zhou Ruo’s slightly reddened eyes.
A heavy sense of guilt flooded him like a tide, making him unable to breathe.
He could no longer face Qiao Nan.
He fumbled for a pack of cigarettes in the nightstand and went to the balcony again.
Thin wisps of smoke lingered throughout the night, and Pei Xu remained sleepless.
***
The next day was Qiao Nan’s birthday banquet.
As the guest of honor, he was woken up early for styling, preparing for the upcoming banquet.
By the time he was finally ready, it was already noon.
His banquet suit was chosen by Pei Xu.
A deep blue, almost black, notch-lapel casual suit jacket with matching trousers, paired with a light blue shirt underneath.
The shirt collar was untied, with the top two buttons undone, the stand collar casually open to the sides, conveying a hint of casualness without being impolite due to lack of formality.
To match the suit’s style, Qiao Nan’s slightly longer bangs weren’t gelled up but parted in a three-seven split, subtly separating to either side of his forehead, partially revealing his full forehead and beautiful eyebrows and eyes.
Qiao Nan looked in the mirror, affirming his brother’s taste.
Pinning the same diamond brooch as Pei Xu onto his collar, Qiao Nan asked, “Where’s my brother?”
“He seems to have gone to the first-floor hall,” the designer said.
Qiao Nan clattered downstairs, scanning the area before finding Pei Xu, who was still confirming the banquet schedule.
He leaned in, forcibly squeezing his face between Pei Xu and the tablet, and asked cheerfully, “Where’s my gift?”
Pei Xu helplessly put down the tablet and pointed to a safe box carefully placed in a corner of the hall: “It’s over there.”
Qiao Nan couldn’t wait to unwrap his birthday gift.
The painting was already framed, its four corners protected with anti-collision material, and the bottom lined with dark red velvet.
Qiao Nan initially wanted to take the painting out himself but was afraid of damaging it.
He called two housekeepers over for help before carefully moving the painting out.
He admired it with fascination for a while, extremely happy, “I have to hang it up! I want everyone to see it later!”
Pei Xu looked helpless, only able to watch him happily go off to choose a spot to hang the painting.
***
The birthday banquet was in the evening, but from noon onwards, relatives and friends of the Qiao family and Zhou family began arriving one after another.
Qiao Nan and Pei Xu followed Mr. and Mrs. Qiao Shi’an to greet guests, smiling until their facial muscles were stiff and sore.
It wasn’t until the dinner officially began that Qiao Nan finally found a moment to breathe, secretly slipping upstairs to find Qian Chuan and the others.
However, he went upstairs only to find them gone.
Upon asking Uncle Wang, he learned that they had all gone to see his birthday gift.
Qiao Nan went back downstairs to look for them.
As soon as he arrived, he saw Qian Chuan’s face almost pressed against the painting’s glass, making sounds of admiration.
He quickly pulled him away, “Why are you so close? Since when do you understand paintings?”
Qian Chuan’s face was full of envy, acidly saying, “I don’t understand paintings, but I understand this.”
He pressed his thumb, index, and middle fingers together, making a “money” gesture.
At this point, Xiao Rang interjected, “Is this an original?”
“Of course, it’s real; why would I put out a fake?”
Qiao Nan was puzzled, then couldn’t help but show off, “This is my brother’s birthday gift to me.”
Qian Chuan’s expression grew uglier; he even started to resent the rich, “Why can’t my brother learn from yours?!”
Qiao Nan was stared at with such an envious gaze, growing even more confused, “I remember for your birthday last year, your brother gave you a Porsche 918, didn’t he?”
He patted Qian Chuan’s shoulder, earnestly saying, “Don’t be so competitive.”
Qian Chuan was so angry his face twisted, “This one painting of yours could buy ten Porsche 918s!”
Qiao Nan froze, “That expensive?”
He remembered that Lai Ying’s most expensive painting only sold for seventy-five million, with other works ranging from twenty to fifty million.
Xiao Rang saw that he still didn’t know and pointed at the painting, asking, “Your brother didn’t tell you the price?”
Qiao Nan shook his head.
Qian Chuan couldn’t help but interject, “This painting was leaked by an insider and even trended online. It was supposedly going to be auctioned, with a starting bid of fifty million. But a big shot found Lai Ying through connections and directly acquired it. Do you know what the leaked price was?”
Without waiting for his answer, Qian Chuan said, “One hundred and ten million. Because of this painting, Lai Ying’s value has now risen to over a hundred million.”
“Your brother really spent a fortune,” Qian Chuan’s face was contorted with jealousy, “My parents wouldn’t even spend a hundred million on me.”
Qiao Nan blinked, feigning a sigh, “But no matter how much you envy it, he’s still my brother.”
Not waiting for Qian Chuan to get angry, he threw out a “I’m going to find my brother” and ran off.
In a corner of the hall, Pei Xu was talking with Qiao Nan’s second and third aunts.
Although Pei Xu was an adopted son, Mr. and Mrs. Qiao Shi’an had been generous in nurturing him over the years.
According to Qiao Shi’an, he had originally wanted Pei Xu to join the Qiao Group after graduation.
However, Pei Xu turned out to be more accomplished than anyone imagined.
He chose not to rely on the Qiao Group but instead ventured into the drone industry, an area Qiao’s had no involvement in, and built his own empire.
Talented young people are welcomed wherever they go.
Since Qiao Nan was still young, the aunts, whose matchmaking enthusiasm had nowhere to go, set their sights on Pei Xu, who was at an eligible age.
Pei Xu, out of politeness, had been navigating and dealing with them for a long time.
It wasn’t until Qiao Nan suddenly rushed over, grabbing Pei Xu and pulling him outside to the courtyard, that he was finally rescued.
Looking at the young man whose bangs had fallen loose from running, Pei Xu raised a hand to brush the hair from his forehead to the side, “What’s wrong?”
“Qian Chuan said Wildfire was internally priced at one hundred and ten million.”
Pei Xu simply “oh’d”, “Although I pulled some strings, many people wanted Lai Ying’s paintings, so I raised the price a bit.”
“Why didn’t you wait for the auction?”
After Wildfire was released, many people speculated on the final auction price, but none exceeded one hundred million.
When Pei Xu was in graduate school, he didn’t rely on the Qiao Group’s resources.
He single-handedly founded Xu Nan Technology, and at first, it wasn’t easy.
It wasn’t until the domestic market was developed in the last two or three years that Xu Nan Technology rapidly captured eighty percent of the entire market, which allowed it to gain momentum and soar.
Although Qiao Nan didn’t know exactly how much Xu Nan Technology had earned over the years, one hundred million in liquid capital was certainly not a small sum for his brother.
“The auction was originally scheduled for June 10th. If we waited for the auction process to complete, it might not have made it in time for your birthday,” Pei Xu didn’t think much of it, explaining softly, “A late birthday gift isn’t a surprise.”
Qiao Nan felt a bit bad for his brother’s wallet, but he couldn’t help but be happy because of his brother’s thoughtfulness.
The smile on his lips was almost impossible to suppress.
Finally, he said very earnestly, “This is my favorite birthday gift.”
After saying that, he thought of something, pulled out all the bank cards from his pocket, and shoved them into his brother’s hand, “These are all the allowance money from relatives and elders, all for you. And the money Mom and Dad used to give me, I haven’t touched it; it’s in the bedside drawer, also all for you. You don’t want Mom and Dad’s money anyway, so you can use it when the company’s cash flow is tight.”
Pei Xu, of course, wouldn’t use his money.
He smiled and patted his head, “Don’t worry, I can still afford to support you.”
But Qiao Nan wouldn’t listen.
He kept stuffing the bank cards into his pocket, whispering conspiratorially, “Then you save it all for me, consider it my investment in Xu Nan.”
He lifted his chin proudly, “This is all my wife’s dowry money that I’ve saved since I was little.”