***
Bonus chapter! Thank you to JustSomeOne for the donation! ^^
***
The current posture between Ruan Qing and Qi Yi was somewhat ambiguous. Qi Yi was holding his hand, and they stood rather close to each other—from a distance, it truly looked like there was something going on between them.
Especially in the dead of night.
Hearing Lin Zhiyan's voice, Ruan Qing stiffened slightly and instinctively pulled his hand back. He turned to Lin Zhiyan, urgently explaining, "Mr. Lin, you’ve misunderstood. I don’t know him."
"He only grabbed me because I was about to fall."
After speaking, Ruan Qing glanced at Qi Yi, his beautiful eyes filled with silent pleading and urgency—anyone could tell he wanted Qi Yi to explain quickly.
Qi Yi had frozen the moment he grabbed Ruan Qing’s hand. When Ruan Qing pulled away, his fingers twitched slightly, as if resisting the urge to hold on.
But in the end, he let go.
Expressionless, Qi Yi stared at the pleading young man for two full seconds before finally giving a slow nod.
The nod was meant to confirm Ruan Qing’s explanation, but because Qi Yi never took his eyes off him, it instead looked like… he was going along with a fabricated story.
And doing a terrible job at it.
From start to finish, he hadn’t so much as glanced at Lin Zhiyan—not even when Lin Zhiyan spoke. There wasn’t even a hint of perfunctory acknowledgment.
Lin Zhiyan’s gaze turned icy. He strode forward, letting out a cold laugh. "What, coordinating your stories right in front of me?"
Ruan Qing’s eyes widened in shock. He shook his head frantically. "No! I don’t even know him! He just suddenly knocked on the door—"
"You don’t know him, yet you opened the door?" Though Lin Zhiyan’s words were directed at Ruan Qing, his sharp stare remained fixed on Qi Yi, exuding an unspoken threat.
Ruan Qing seemed frightened by his tone. He shook his head again, his beautiful eyes brimming with panic, his voice tinged with helplessness. "I didn’t open it—he opened it himself!"
"He pushed the door so hard that it knocked into me—that’s why I almost fell!"
A faint mist of tears glistened in Ruan Qing’s eyes, his small voice carrying a trace of grievance—the kind that came from being wrongly accused.
Anyone would feel wronged after nearly falling and then being misunderstood. But to someone who didn’t know the truth, seeing their lover entangled with another man in the middle of the night would only stoke their anger.
Such pitiful grievances might very well just add fuel to the fire.
But the young man was too exquisite—so flawlessly beautiful—and the sight of his distress instinctively made one want to soothe him.
Just as Lin Zhiyan's gaze softened slightly and he was about to speak, Qi Yi spoke first.
Qi Yi looked at Ruan Qing, his voice hoarse as he said, "I was the one who opened the door."
Lin Zhiyan, who had just begun to relax, immediately turned cold again.
Rooms on the tenth floor couldn’t be opened from the outside without a special access card.
There were only three access cards for the tenth floor—one held by the lead staff member, one in the young man’s possession, and the last in Lin Zhiyan’s hands.
Which meant these two were lying.
Even if Xia Qing had no interest in this man, it was clear this man had improper thoughts about Xia Qing.
Lin Zhiyan’s expression darkened, his eyes narrowing as he stared at Qi Yi, a faint trace of killing intent flickering in his gaze.
Qi Yi seemed highly sensitive to hostility. For the first time, he finally turned to look at Lin Zhiyan, his face as expressionless as ever.
As if he were naturally a man of few words—or as if he simply didn’t consider Lin Zhiyan worth his attention.
The tension between the two men instantly thickened, oppressive and dangerous, so palpable even Ruan Qing could feel it.
But all he could do was stand there helplessly, looking pitiful and lost.
The livestream audience, who had just been terrified by the countless eyes, suddenly erupted with excitement. The screen flooded with comments once again.
[Fight! Fight! Come on, fight! If no one dies here, I’ll be disappointed! Qi Yi, I’m rooting for you—kill that bastard who took advantage of our wife!]
[Heh, if that useless trash surnamed Qi can’t step up, at least these two new rivals can throw down! Go on, fight! One less competitor means our wife can shine alone!]
[Every time I watch this streamer, it feels like I’m watching a harem battle royale. I know it’s kinda messed up, but lowkey, I’m always waiting for him to crash and burn.]
Ruan Qing could see all these off-topic livestream comments, and honestly, he wouldn’t mind if these two started fighting either.
But he couldn’t let it show.
After Qi Yi spoke, Ruan Qing—as if completely oblivious to Lin Zhiyan’s darkening mood—nodded quickly. "I really didn’t open the door for him. He opened it himself."
Lin Zhiyan didn’t outright reject their explanation, merely letting out a noncommittal "Mm." Then, he turned to Qi Yi, his tone indifferent as he spoke.
"Sir, you’re one of the lucky winners selected for this trip, correct?"
"I believe the cruise rules were distributed to all guests upon boarding." Lin Zhiyan smiled faintly. "So, sir, would you mind explaining why you’re here?"
All guests who passed the screening process to board the cruise ship received a manual outlining the ship's rules and general information.
It clearly stated that non-paying guests were prohibited from accessing any decks above the sixth level.
In other words, to go above the sixth floor, one had to spend money to become a legitimate guest of the cruise ship.
Qi Yi didn’t answer Lin Zhiyan’s question. He simply stared at him with an impassive expression—had he not spoken earlier, one might have mistaken him for a mute.
Lin Zhiyan paid no mind to his silence. His smile remained polished as he continued, "Since you’ve boarded this ship, I hope you’ll abide by its rules. You should know where you’re allowed to go… and where you’re not."
"You should also know… which people are off-limits."
"After all," Lin Zhiyan lowered his gaze, sweeping a disdainful glance over Qi Yi, his aloofness dripping with undisguised contempt, "not just anyone has the means to access the decks above the sixth floor."
Qi Yi had never cared about others’ words, nor did he bother responding to them. But this time, he spoke—uncharacteristically.
"I know."
Expressionless, he met Lin Zhiyan’s eyes, enunciating each word with deliberate clarity:
"I have money."
Six simple words, delivered in a flat, almost robotic tone—yet they carried an unmistakable air of provocation.
As if he were openly challenging Lin Zhiyan.
The atmosphere instantly thickened, the silence so absolute one could hear a pin drop. Lin Zhiyan’s eyes darkened, swirling with a storm of dangerous intensity.
Just as the live-stream audience braced for a fight, a faint ding echoed—so soft it went unnoticed by most.
After all, everyone’s attention was fixed on Lin Zhiyan and Qi Yi.
But one person noticed.
The moment Lin Zhiyan heard that ding, he recognized it—the sound of an elevator arriving at its destination.
The noise was barely audible; unless you were inside the elevator, you could only hear it when it reached your floor.
Someone had come to the tenth floor.
And that someone was most likely Qi Lintian.
In one swift motion, Lin Zhiyan shoved Ruan Qing beside him, pushing him back into the room. Before Ruan Qing could even register his shock, the door slammed shut behind him—sealing him inside.
In the blink of an eye, only two of the three at the doorway remained.
After finishing his actions, Lin Zhiyan turned his head slightly toward the elevator at the end of the hallway, which had just opened. Three people stepped out—two dressed in black suits adorned with the insignia of the Malegobi cruise ship, and at the front was... Qi Lintian.
Lin Zhiyan watched as the man approached, then spoke with practiced politeness, "Mr. Qi, what brings you here so late?"
Qi Lintian strode gracefully toward them, pausing when he noticed the two standing at the door. His gaze lingered on Qi Yi, a flicker of confusion crossing his face—as if wondering who this person was.
Lin Zhiyan followed his line of sight, his own eyes briefly lingering on Qi Yi’s silhouette, which bore an uncanny resemblance to someone. A barely perceptible glint passed through his eyes before he smiled gently.
"Mr. Qi, this is... my..."
"Lover."
Everyone present: "......?"
The hallway fell into stunned silence. All eyes snapped to Lin Zhiyan—Qi Lintian’s, Qi Yi’s, even the live-stream audience’s.
[Huh??? What’s happening??? What’s happening??? Weren’t these two just love rivals a second ago?? Lover?? WHAT LOVER?? Did I black out or something???]
[This plot twist just short-circuited my brain. Is Boss Lin covering his ass so trash Qi doesn’t realize the ‘wife’ isn’t his ex? So he’s using Qi Yi as a human shield?? City folks really play dirty huh.]
[Got it. Current sugar daddy doesn’t want ex sugar daddy to realize his ‘wife’ isn’t ex’s ‘wife,’ so he claims the new affair partner is his ‘wife’ to trick ex into thinking his ‘wife’ isn’t ex’s ‘wife.’]
[HELP ME. What kind of cursed storyline is this?? Other horror game streams are busy analyzing clues and surviving, meanwhile I’m here untangling this mess of a love polygon.]
Back in the office, Lin Zhiyan had shielded Ruan Qing so thoroughly that even his hair length was indiscernible—only a slender, beautiful silhouette had been visible.
Qi Lintian studied Qi Yi, frowning. The man’s figure was indeed delicate, similar to the silhouette he’d seen earlier... yet something felt off. He couldn’t pinpoint what, but that inexplicable flutter of attraction was entirely absent now.
Perhaps it couldn’t be called genuine attraction—just the restlessness of being single for too long, suddenly stirred up by that ambiguous scene in the office.
Though Qi Yi didn’t fully grasp the situation, he had watched Lin Zhiyan shove the young man into the room.
Clearly, Lin Zhiyan didn’t want this man to see him.
And while this man deserved to die, for once, their thoughts aligned. Qi Yi, too, felt an inexplicable reluctance to let anyone else lay eyes on the boy.
After a brief silence, Qi Yi let out a noncommittal "Mn," barely acknowledging Lin Zhiyan’s words.
But the moment he did, Qi Lintian’s eyes narrowed. "His voice… sounds different from before."
Lin Zhiyan chuckled lightly, his tone almost patronizing. "You might not be aware, Mr. Qi, but a person’s usual voice… and their voice during certain moments are naturally distinct."
"You’ll understand once you’ve experienced it yourself."
