Chapter 150: I Am An Evil Pen (VII)

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Chapter 150: I Am An Evil Pen (VII)

“Have you seen enough?” An icy voice reached Ge Junxuan and Bai Lin’s ears.

Ge Junxuan spread his hands innocently. “You two were kissing like you’d forgotten the rest of the world existed. You can’t blame us for watching.”

Wen Jingrong walked out from behind the curtain with an arm around Shang Ke.

Shang Ke’s face was still flushed from their passionate kiss, his clear eyes shimmering like spring water. Ge Junxuan silently compared him with Bai Lin. The two were evenly matched in looks and figure, yet if they stood side by side, Shang Ke would unquestionably be the first person anyone noticed. There was an indescribable charm about him that made him impossible to forget.

As expected of someone who had caught Wen Jingrong’s eye. He truly was extraordinary.

“That’s Ge Junxuan from Yongshao, and this is Bai Lin from Qingwei.” Wen Jingrong kept one arm around Shang Ke as he introduced him. “His name is Shang Ke. He’s my lover.”

“Hello. Nice to meet you.” Ge Junxuan smiled and held out his hand.

Shang Ke felt Wen Jingrong stiffen and knew exactly what he was nervous about. He did not react dramatically and simply shook Ge Junxuan’s hand calmly. In front of outsiders, he had no intention of embarrassing his man. Even if they were going to torment each other in the name of love, that was their private little “romance” game.

Wen Jingrong’s brows relaxed, pleasure flashing through his eyes as his arm unconsciously tightened around Shang Ke.

Now it was Shang Ke’s turn to tense all over. Wen Jingrong’s brilliant good fortune stabbed painfully into his skin, and only through sheer effort did he manage to keep himself from trembling.

Shang Ke shifted his heel and “gently” stepped on Wen Jingrong’s toes.

Wen Jingrong’s eyes flickered, but his expression did not change. His fingers lightly pinched Shang Ke’s waist as though soothing an irritable beloved pet.

“Since we happened to run into each other, why don’t we go have a drink?” Ge Junxuan suggested enthusiastically.

Wen Jingrong glanced at Shang Ke in his arms. “Next time. I still have something to do today, so we’re leaving.”

Ge Junxuan shrugged in disappointment.

Watching them leave, Bai Lin felt a nameless anger rise inside him. Shang Ke’s appearance had not only interrupted his attempt to discuss cooperation with Wen Jingrong, but had reduced Bai Lin himself to nothing more than background decoration, depriving him of even the opportunity to make an impression. After barely a single meeting, Bai Lin had already developed hostility toward Shang Ke.

Wen Jingrong shoved Shang Ke into the car, fastened his seat belt, then climbed into the driver’s seat and sped toward his villa.

“How did you escape?” Wen Jingrong asked. Security at his villa was extremely tight, and bodyguards secretly protected them whenever they went out. Even if Shang Ke somehow managed to escape, there was no way he should have been able to disappear so silently. Combined with the complete lack of any records on him, Wen Jingrong found Shang Ke’s identity increasingly suspicious. The feeling of being unable to control the situation made him intensely irritable.

“I have my ways.” Shang Ke glanced at him and complained inwardly, Would a “prisoner” tell the warden exactly how he broke out?

Wen Jingrong knew he would not get an answer, so he changed the question. “Why were you at the banquet?”

“I was accompanying my girlfriend,” Shang Ke replied heartlessly.

A sharp squeal of brakes rang out. Wen Jingrong’s face darkened as he gripped the steering wheel tightly, desperately suppressing the violent rage inside him.

A moment later, he started the car again and stormed back toward the villa, baleful energy surging around him the entire way.

The moment they entered the house, Wen Jingrong pushed Shang Ke down in the entryway.

“Starting tomorrow, you’re staying beside me every second of the day!” Wen Jingrong declared while thrusting inside him.

The next day, Wen Jingrong indeed brought Shang Ke to the company and installed him in his private lounge.

“There’s a computer inside. You can go online to pass the time. Tell me if you need anything.” After speaking, Wen Jingrong lowered his head to kiss him, only for Shang Ke to dodge away.

Wen Jingrong’s eyes chilled. One arm wrapped around Shang Ke’s waist while the other held the back of his head, and he forced a deep kiss on him without allowing him to refuse.

“Shang Ke, you’d better get used to this soon. Otherwise, even I don’t know whether I’ll end up doing something that hurts you.” Wen Jingrong left those words beside his ear before slowly releasing him and walking out of the lounge.

Shang Ke gave the door a halfhearted kick, then walked over to the computer and began browsing the internet out of sheer boredom.

Wen Jingrong sat behind his desk and turned on the surveillance feed, handling work while keeping an eye on the lounge.

At that moment, his computer notified him of a new email. He opened it and found a preliminary cooperation proposal from Bai Lin concerning the bid for Pano Island’s development rights.

Wen Jingrong read it carefully and, finding nothing obviously wrong, picked up his smartpen to sign his name. He intended to send the proposal to the board for evaluation afterward. Once approved, they could formally sign the cooperation agreement.

Ge Junxuan was a partner Wen Jingrong trusted, and Bai Lin’s company also had a respectable reputation in the industry. There seemed to be no reason for either of them to risk their credibility just to cheat him out of one or two hundred million.

Wen Jingrong moved the pen across the signature field with practiced ease, but no writing appeared.

He frowned and tested the pen elsewhere. It wrote perfectly normally. For some reason, it simply refused to sign the cooperation proposal.

Puzzled, Wen Jingrong decided to change pens—only to discover that the one in his hand seemed glued to his fingers. No matter what he did, he could not put it down.

What the hell is going on? Since when has my pen been this temperamental? Is it getting old?

Wen Jingrong did not dare force it off for fear of damaging the pen. While he was wondering what to do, his gaze fell on the screen and a thought suddenly occurred to him. Could there be something wrong with this proposal?

He read it several more times. The clauses were clear, the responsibilities well defined, and it looked like a perfectly standard cooperation proposal.

But Wen Jingrong believed there was always a reason behind anything abnormal. Out of caution, he decided to conduct another detailed investigation into Bai Lin’s Qingwei and eliminate any possible risk.

He made a call and issued the necessary orders. The instant the call ended, the pen naturally released his fingers and dropped onto the desk with a soft clack.

Wen Jingrong could not help laughing. “Don’t tell me you’ve become a spirit?”

Inside the lounge, Shang Ke’s lips curved upward and his eyes bent into cheerful crescents.

The rest of the day passed peacefully. Once work ended, Wen Jingrong brought the thoroughly idle Shang Ke back to the villa.

Ever since tasting Shang Ke’s cooking, Wen Jingrong regularly had fresh ingredients stocked so that Shang Ke could use them whenever he wished.

Shang Ke never mistreated Wen Jingrong when it came to food. No matter how much “tortured romance” they were supposedly playing at, he had no desire to damage his man’s health.

Once well fed, Wen Jingrong practically glowed with good fortune. Shang Ke wanted absolutely nothing to do with getting close to him and could only curl up alone on the living-room sofa to watch television. The show currently airing was a blood-pressure-raising melodrama in which the male and female leads endlessly hurt each other, remained tangled together, fought incessantly, and somehow still loved each other to death.

Naturally, Shang Ke was not interested in their earth-shattering love. He was studying the methods they used to torment each other and felt he might be able to borrow a few ideas.

He summarized the formula into roughly three points: first, all sorts of bizarre misunderstandings; second, unreasonable tantrums thrown for no discernible reason; third, an overflowing case of pathological saintliness.

Misunderstandings required the right time, place, and circumstances, so he could skip those for now. Besides, he already had a fictional “girlfriend,” which should keep that angle going for a while.

As for pathological saintliness, its essence lay in forgiving enemies who had hurt you beyond recognition, “generously” surrendering the person you loved, forever placing yourself in the most tragic position possible, using other people’s generosity to perform your own kindness, and enthusiastically helping enemies while refusing to rationally support your own friends and family.

Shang Ke thought about it and decided that one was a little difficult. He would have to improvise if the opportunity arose. That left only “throwing unreasonable tantrums.”

There were several ways to behave unreasonably. One was starting an argument at the slightest disagreement, but that did not suit his style and would damage his image, so he rejected it. The second was creating all kinds of troublesome messes. The third was destroying things the other person treasured, and so on.

Shang Ke thought the second and third options were worth trying.

The thing Wen Jingrong probably valued most in the house was his laptop. It contained many important files, so destroying it would certainly make him furious.

While Wen Jingrong was showering, Shang Ke stood before the running laptop with a cup of hot water. One pour and the computer would be ruined. The little devil inside Shang Ke let out a sinister laugh and urged him to hurry up and do it.

But after struggling for a long time, Shang Ke still could not bring himself to act. Supporting an entire company was hard enough for his man already. Causing him a major loss just to stage one “unreasonable tantrum” would be far too cruel!

Shang Ke took a deep breath. Better choose something else! Maybe the cup Wen Jingrong used all the time, that favorite suit of his, or perhaps the cactus on the windowsill.

All right, even if Shang Ke smashed ten thousand things like those, Wen Jingrong probably would not so much as wrinkle his brow. He might even build a warehouse specifically for Shang Ke to destroy.

So was there anything Wen Jingrong valued deeply that could be damaged without causing too great a loss?

While Shang Ke was thinking, Wen Jingrong emerged from the bathroom trailing steam. Seeing him standing blankly in front of the computer, he walked over, hugged him, and asked, “What’s wrong?”

Shang Ke jerked from the pain and replied dully, “Nothing.” Just thinking about exactly how I should pose to perfectly carry out my “unreasonable tantrum” plan.

“It’s getting late. Go wash up and get ready for bed.” It was rare to see Shang Ke being this obedient, and Wen Jingrong could not resist patting his head.

Shang Ke naturally went to the bathroom. Only after he started showering did he suddenly realize—why was he being so obedient? What happened to his plan to make trouble?!

Besides, why the hell was a spirit like him even taking a shower? His entire body was so clean he did not even have a single stray body hair!

Shang Ke turned off the shower and stood before the mirror with his arms crossed in thought. Steam filled the room, his naked figure reflected in the misted glass.

Suddenly, inspiration struck. He knew exactly what Wen Jingrong valued enormously but could damage without causing any financial loss!

“You.” Shang Ke pointed firmly at his reflection.

A hunger strike, jumping out a window, cutting his wrist, passive resistance… He could make this melodrama as miserable as he wanted!

Having made his decision, Shang Ke stormed out of the bathroom, planning to begin putting it into action in a few days.

Wen Jingrong’s eyes darkened when he saw Shang Ke walk out naked. He said nothing and merely stared until his blood heated, then dragged Shang Ke into bed to begin another round of “training”…

A few days later, after continuously losing a considerable amount of baleful energy, Shang Ke was finally ready to begin his hunger strike.

“I’m taking you somewhere,” Wen Jingrong suddenly told Shang Ke as they left the company.

“Where?” Shang Ke was curious inside but maintained an indifferent expression.

Wen Jingrong did not answer immediately. Instead, he drove Shang Ke directly to a factory building under renovation at the edge of the city.

Shang Ke looked at him in confusion.

Wen Jingrong smiled. “I’m planning to turn this place into a handicraft workshop and use it to provide jobs for those laid-off workers.”

Surprise flashed through Shang Ke’s eyes.

“Automated factories don’t require much human labor, but in an era that values individuality, professionally customized handmade products are still very popular,” Wen Jingrong explained. “The work itself isn’t highly technical, but the procedures are numerous and detailed, and the products are distinctive enough to appeal to younger customers. Those workers have no experience, though, so they’ll need a period of training first. Anyone who fails to meet the standard will still be eliminated. I hope you understand that.”

Shang Ke stared at the nearly completed workshop, emotions surging inside him. Wen Jingrong had quietly arranged all of this for the unemployed workers without Shang Ke noticing at all. Strange—Wen Jingrong carried him around every day, so how had he known nothing about it? Had everything been arranged during the periods when Shang Ke sneaked away? God, he wanted to throw his arms around his man, kiss him hard several times, push him down onto the ground, yank off his pants, and ride him himself!

What “unreasonable tantrums”? How could he possibly make unreasonable trouble for his man? What nonsense! Their relationship was wonderful!

Shang Ke pressed his lips tightly together and used every ounce of self-control he possessed to keep his true thoughts from showing.

Seeing no expression at all on Shang Ke’s face, Wen Jingrong could not help looking disappointed.

Don’t be disappointed! I’m really, really happy! Come here and give me a hug!

Unfortunately, Wen Jingrong could not hear his heartfelt cries. He said quietly, “I did all of this because I want you to be happy. I’m willing to spend the rest of my life earning your forgiveness and your love.”

Shang Ke lowered his head so Wen Jingrong would not see the emotion in his eyes.

Wen Jingrong gazed at him for a long time, then took his hand and said gently, “Let’s go home.”

Shang Ke did not pull away, despite the stabbing pain in his palm.

Tell him the truth. Shang Ke wanted to love him openly and honestly, without misunderstandings, concealment, lies, or pain.

But without enough baleful energy, how long could Shang Ke remain beside him? Would the energy absorbed in dreams be sufficient to offset what Wen Jingrong’s good fortune consumed during the day?

After weighing the matter repeatedly, Shang Ke decided to experiment first.

That night, Shang Ke stopped resisting and had thoroughly satisfying sex with Wen Jingrong.

Wen Jingrong was ecstatic and eagerly held Shang Ke close as they had sex to their hearts’ content. In the middle of the night, Shang Ke was awakened by the growling of Wen Jingrong’s stomach, so he got up and went to the kitchen to make him a late-night meal.

The moment Wen Jingrong felt his arms were empty, he woke in alarm and rushed out of the bedroom. He did not relax until he found Shang Ke in the kitchen.

“Perfect timing. I made two bowls of noodles. Let’s eat together.” Shang Ke washed his hands and carried the noodles to the table.

Wen Jingrong looked at the steaming bowls on the table, then at Shang Ke removing his apron, and almost thought he was dreaming.

He walked up behind Shang Ke and helped untie the apron. “Keke, are you… willing to accept me now?”

Shang Ke looked down at his hand, which was flickering between solid and translucent after consuming too much baleful energy, and slowly said, “How about we try dating for three months first?”

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