Chapter 268: This Life—The Beginning (IX)

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Chapter 268: This Life—The Beginning (IX)

Shang Ke and Wei Xun entered a cold war—one-sided on Shang Ke’s part, but airtight all the same. In only half a day, Shang Ke changed every password and setting in the villa’s security system and even upgraded it while he was at it. A key was now useless. The reason he had agreed so readily to move here in the first place was precisely because the security was so strict.

The first time Wei Xun found himself shut out by high technology, the frustration was indescribable. At the same time, he realized that from now on, casually breaking into Shang Ke’s home was no longer going to be so easy.

Although the two were business partners, Shang Ke was mainly responsible for the technical side. There was no need for him to participate in the early construction phase.

“Mr. Shang, the ingredients you ordered have arrived,” the security guard’s voice came through the intercom.

The courtyard gate opened, and the deliveryman crossed the small garden with practiced ease, set the groceries outside the door, and left.

A short while later, Shang Ke came out and carried everything inside.

Behind a curtain in the neighboring house, a tall figure stood in shadow, silently watching Shang Ke disappear through the door. Ever since that day, Shang Ke had avoided him for more than ten straight days. He refused his calls, ignored his messages, and communicated only when work required it. He stayed home doing research and ordered all his daily necessities online. Even the brief periods when he went outside always happened to coincide with the times Wei Xun was away.

“I heard your family arranged another blind date for you?” Inside the room, a man with phoenix-shaped eyes sat elegantly on the sofa and smiled at Wei Xun. “The Wang family’s daughter, right?”

“Mm.” Wei Xun sat down beside the sofa, picked up the red wine on the coffee table, and poured himself half a glass.

“I’ve met Miss Wang. She’s beautiful, plays the piano very well, and has a good personality. Your families are well matched too. Talented man, beautiful woman—the whole package.”

“Since when did you become a matchmaker?” Wei Xun did not even lift a brow as he sipped his wine.

Ji Mingzhe spread his hands. “I had no choice. Your honored mother entrusted me with the mission of persuading you to spend some proper time with Miss Wang.”

Wei Xun could not remember what Miss Wang looked like at all. Other than Shang Ke, everyone’s face appeared to him like unfinished lumps of dough, nearly impossible to distinguish. Even the close friend sitting in front of him, whom he had known for more than ten years, was no exception.

Wei Xun’s prosopagnosia was not congenital. It was a lingering effect of an accident and the reason he had been forced to leave the military. He usually concealed it well enough that, apart from his private doctor and several personal bodyguards, even his parents did not know the truth.

Seeing that he remained unmoved, Ji Mingzhe continued, “Wei Xun, neither of us is the type to believe in so-called true love. At the right age, there’s nothing wrong with marrying a woman you get along with. You’re thirty-four already. How much longer are you planning to put it off?”

True love? Wei Xun indeed did not believe in it. But he had already found someone he wanted to drag into bed at every opportunity. The instant that thought surfaced, his mind supplied the enticing image of that man writhing beneath him, and his gaze unconsciously darkened.

Just then, the phone in his pocket rang. Wei Xun listened for a moment, then stood. “Come on. Come meet someone with me.”

Ji Mingzhe followed him out, thoroughly confused.

Shang Ke had just finished taking out the trash when he turned around and found a familiar figure blocking the entrance to his home.

Wei Xun? Hadn’t he driven out? When did he come back?

Shang Ke instinctively glanced toward Wei Xun’s parking space. His car was nowhere in sight.

“I came back in my friend’s car,” Wei Xun explained, as if he had read Shang Ke’s mind.

Shang Ke: …He could do that too? Careless.

“Wei Xun, who’s this?” Ji Mingzhe curiously sized Shang Ke up, visibly struck by his appearance.

“He’s the developer behind the robot project, Shang Ke.” Wei Xun introduced them. “Keke, this is Ji Mingzhe, one of the investors in the technology park.”

“Hello.” Shang Ke politely shook his hand.

“It’s almost lunchtime. Would it be convenient for you to invite us in for a meal?” Wei Xun had deliberately dragged Ji Mingzhe along because he was certain Shang Ke would not reject him in front of an outsider.

Sure enough, Shang Ke agreed.

Wei Xun stepped closer and, as though casually, rested a hand on Shang Ke’s waist.

Ji Mingzhe happened to notice. Although he found it a little strange, he did not think deeply about it. He was merely surprised that Wei Xun would behave so intimately with someone outside his usual circle.

The lavish lunch earned endless praise from Ji Mingzhe, who openly envied Wei Xun for supposedly being able to come over and freeload every day. He had no idea that a certain someone had not eaten Shang Ke’s cooking in quite some time and had only managed to get his wish today thanks to Ji Mingzhe himself.

Once lunch was over, Ji Mingzhe’s usefulness had expired. While Shang Ke was brewing tea, Wei Xun mercilessly “escorted” him out.

Wei Xun entered the kitchen, came silently up behind Shang Ke, wrapped an arm around his waist, and murmured beside his ear, “Finished throwing your tantrum?”

Shang Ke paused, then calmly continued filling the teapot.

“I’ll allow you to lose your temper once in a while, but don’t take it too far.” Wei Xun lightly bit at his ear.

“Wei Xun.” Shang Ke turned to face him. “Do you want a trustworthy business partner, or an obedient bed partner?”

“Both,” Wei Xun answered without hesitation.

Shang Ke gritted his teeth. “People shouldn’t be too greedy.”

“I can afford to be greedy, can’t I?”

Shang Ke: I really want to slap that arrogant face.

“How about this…”

Wei Xun lowered his head and swallowed the rest of his words with a kiss.

“Keke.” Between kisses, Wei Xun’s voice turned hoarse. “Don’t lock me out again. Otherwise, every time I catch you afterward, I’ll fuck you hard enough that you won’t be able to get out of bed for at least three days.”

“You—!”

Before Shang Ke could truly lose his temper, Wei Xun had already pinned him against the kitchen’s glass door…

Outside the window, Ji Mingzhe’s eyes widened as he stared in disbelief at the two men entangled in the kitchen. He instinctively backed away several steps.

Wei Xun had shoved him out for no apparent reason, and Ji Mingzhe had only intended to circle around to the kitchen and say goodbye to Shang Ke. Instead, he had stumbled onto this shocking scene. Using his physical advantage, Wei Xun had Shang Ke firmly restrained, one leg wedged between Shang Ke’s thighs while his hands roamed over him. Shang Ke’s shirt had been roughly pulled open, exposing a large expanse of skin. His struggles were useless against Wei Xun’s strength, and the flush staining his cheeks made his already handsome face even more striking, lending his features an indescribably seductive quality.

Ji Mingzhe’s mouth went dry. He did not dare keep watching and hurried out through the garden. After he left, another figure emerged from behind a tree and silently stared toward the villa…

Once again, Shang Ke forgave Wei Xun. Whenever he remembered that this man had endured countless lifetimes of loneliness, separation, and bereavement for his sake, he could not bring himself to push him away completely. It was only that Wei Xun in this lifetime was impossibly hard to reason with. The moment they disagreed, he resorted to force, as though he had gone several lifetimes without sex.

After thinking it over repeatedly, Shang Ke decided to lay down three rules. At most once a week, and Wei Xun had to use protection; during work periods, a session could not last longer than three hours, and sex was restricted to home; and if anything important came up, Wei Xun had to discuss it with him first instead of making decisions on his own.

After reading them, Wei Xun changed “once” to “five times,” “three hours” to “five hours,” and “restricted to home” to “any secluded location.” He raised no objection to the final rule.

Shang Ke said, “I’ve already compromised, yet you’re still pushing me and refusing to leave me any room to breathe. Wei Xun, do you want us to get along like friends, or do you want me to resent you like an enemy?”

Wei Xun remained silent for a long time. In the end, he said nothing, but he stopped insisting on his changes.

The two finally reached an agreement and began maintaining a relationship that looked harmonious and tacitly cooperative on the surface while remaining secretly intimate in private. Despite this small breakthrough, Wei Xun still watched Shang Ke extremely closely, mainly because of Qi Chen. Ever since that phone call, Qi Chen had not met Shang Ke in person again and only contacted him occasionally by phone. Wei Xun still refused to relax his guard; the relationship between Qi Chen and Shang Ke was simply too easy to cross the line.

A few months later, Shang Ke’s patents passed review without issue. Planning for the technology park was also complete, and construction was proceeding at full speed. At the same time, Unit One’s core program finished debugging, and the first pet robot was officially born. In truth, Unit One was closer to a comprehensive, general-purpose robot, with broad functionality and exceptional intelligence. By modifying and partitioning its existing architecture, they could rapidly develop robots specialized for other functions.

Everything seemed to be progressing smoothly. Then, while Wei Xun was overseas attending a business conference, something happened to Shang Ke.

When Shang Ke woke from unconsciousness, he found himself lying in a sweltering, damp alley reeking of filth. The passage was so narrow that even the sunlight outside barely penetrated it.

For one instant, Shang Ke almost thought he had transmigrated again. He used the wall to pull himself upright and found that his entire body ached, as though he had been thrown around and struck repeatedly. Lifting his shirt, he saw several bruises of varying shades scattered across his skin.

His memories gradually returned. Before losing consciousness, he had been on a flight to Lincheng. He had received an invitation to a technology exposition and set out with a bodyguard. Because he had assumed Wei Xun had arranged the invitation—and because the first-class tickets had already been booked—he had not been suspicious. By the time he realized something was wrong, it was too late.

This had clearly been a premeditated operation aimed specifically at him. The bodyguard was the key. He worked in security under Wei Xun’s company and therefore could approach Shang Ke without arousing suspicion. As for who could order such a man around… the likeliest answer was Wei Xun’s family.

Following that line of reasoning, the Wei family had probably discovered his relationship with Wei Xun long ago and simply waited in silence. Only after Unit One was complete and Shang Ke had supplied the core code did they finally act. Once they possessed that code, even without Shang Ke himself, the other technicians could still extract plenty of useful results.

Expressionless, Shang Ke stumbled out of the alley. Once his eyes adjusted to the harsh sunlight, he finally saw his surroundings clearly. Most of the people moving along the street were dark-skinned foreigners with sharply defined features. The surrounding buildings were old and dilapidated, makeshift stalls crowded the roadsides, shouts and curses rang without pause, and the oppressive heat made the air feel suffocating.

He had to admit, the truly dangerous dogs were the ones that did not bark. His enemy had disposed of him without ever showing their face. Dump him penniless in an impoverished foreign country where he did not speak the language; if he died, there would be no obvious connection to them, and even if he somehow survived, he would have difficulty proving anything. All they needed was to use his identification and travel records to make it appear that he had gone abroad voluntarily.

Shang Ke stood alone on an unfamiliar street, penniless and without anyone to rely on.

And yet, faced with such desperate circumstances, he smiled.

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