DLRAS Chapter 111

Chapter 111: Surprisingly, without any aggressiveness

The two lay in the cabin of the cruise ship, and before long, Chen Wengang rolled into Huo Niansheng’s arms. In truth, the stories Huo Niansheng told weren’t made up. Twenty years ago, street gangs were rampant in certain districts, and many underground industries lurked in the gray areas. When Chen Wengang was a child, he and Lu Chenlong would listen to the adults talk about these things in the alleys as if they were storytelling sessions. That night, Chen Wengang even had a nightmare.

Consequently, he snuggled closer. When Huo Niansheng woke up the next morning, he saw Chen Wengang curled up under his arm, his breathing light and airy.

This posture felt as though he had tucked Chen Wengang away beneath his wings. Huo Niansheng counted his eyelashes, holding him and unwilling to move. They didn’t get up until mid-morning. When they went to the restaurant to eat, others cast them ambiguous, knowing glances, assuming they had enjoyed a whirlwind romance.

Of course, the days of the “King of Gamblers” were history. While Wang Qiming had some background, he wasn’t quite reckless enough to be completely lawless. After this trip, Chen Wengang confirmed that Wang Qiming was indeed running some shady business in international waters—it was a loophole in the law. Since no one filed a complaint and the authorities didn’t investigate, combined with the fact that he had several uncles protecting him from within the official ranks, he had remained carefree until now.

They encountered no storms at sea, enjoying sunny days for a week until the cruise ship returned to shore in one piece.

Then, it was back to the routine of work.

Chen Wengang had been at the Huo Foundation for some time now. He had become quite familiar with his colleagues. The atmosphere on the 19th floor was laid back, and most people didn’t mind having an easygoing colleague; he had actually cultivated quite a good reputation there.

A few days later at noon, Chen Wengang went to the staff canteen with Xiao Li and two other secretaries.

Suddenly, there was a small commotion at the entrance. Everyone looked over in unison. Leading the group, the Second Uncle of the Huo family marched straight into the executive private room.

This Second Uncle was dressed with extreme ostentation. His hair was dyed pitch-black, without a single strand of silver, slicked to the side with brilliant pomade. His leather shoes were so polished they could almost serve as mirrors. However, his face was dark and gloomy, as if someone had provoked his fury.

From a distance, even Xiao Li didn’t dare to breathe too loudly. She whispered, “What happened?”

Another colleague lowered her voice. “Don’t you know? An executive director of the group, [Redacted], was arrested by the police. That’s bad enough, but because it also violated company bylaws, the board is holding a meeting to vote on whether to kick him out.”

Xiao Li made a sound of surprise. “It wasn’t this Director Huo who was arrested, so why is he so angry?”

Chen Wengang said indifferently, “That director is his own person, so of course he isn’t happy.”

Since the passing of Huo Kaishan, the factions of the Second and Third Uncles had been locked in a constant struggle, essentially aiming to seize more control of the group. However, the Third Uncle already occupied the Chairman’s seat, consistently keeping the Second Uncle’s faction a step behind.

If he wanted to make a comeback, he couldn’t bypass the need for money. If one wanted to raise and mobilize large sums of capital, what were the quickest ways to make it?

Having seen Wang Qiming’s way of playing on the cruise ship, Chen Wengang understood—if one could play like that at sea, there must be corresponding channels on land. Huo Niansheng hadn’t hidden this from him; when they talked behind closed doors, he admitted that it was Huo Yingfei who had introduced these channels to Wang Qiming.

Combined with the hefty annual “tribute” paid to obtain protection from the Wang family’s power, the industries under the Second Uncle had not been clean in recent years. The underground casinos and brothels he secretly invested in made massive profits precisely because of such a protective umbrella.

When Huo Kaishan was still alive, the Second Uncle had been more restrained. But after his father passed, the Second Uncle was desperate to expand. The current stance of the Third Uncle was to “sever the ties” and resolve this hidden danger that threatened himself as soon as possible. Yet, he was cautious—afraid that breaking the vase would hurt the mouse—because family scandals shouldn’t be made public. If the economic crime police were to make a grand entrance to arrest his own biological second brother, it would be sensational news the next day, and the outside world would only see it as the Huo family colluding in wrongdoing.

As Chairman, he certainly didn’t want the company to endure such a shock. Kicking out the director was a signal.

But these were matters for the big shots at the top. The small fry like them at the dining table had no say.

Chen Wengang placed his tray at the collection point.

Returning to the office, he saw a message from Huo Niansheng asking what he had eaten for lunch.

Chen Wengang smiled.

He scrolled up their chat history; most of it consisted of mundane things. Sometimes, he could flip through these meaningless records for a long time. In his heart, Chen Wengang knew the root of his anxiety, but Huo Niansheng had never shown that he cared. When Chen Wengang wanted to send a message, Huo Niansheng would reply. Now, it was Chen Wengang who had become a bit calmer.

Lawyer Zhu had recommended that he seek psychological counseling; it wasn’t a bad suggestion.

It was just that he couldn’t find the time for it right now.

The changes in the Huo upper management weren’t something Chen Wengang could easily intervene in, but he still had his own business to attend to. At the university, Chen Wengang had submitted his application for a graduate program. Although he was switching majors, his undergraduate grades were solid, his future research direction was clear, and he had been communicating with the professor for a long time. He had received an email confirming that his materials had passed and that he would soon receive an interview notice.

Additionally, Huo Zhenfei’s wife, Fang Qin, had called to delegate work. Among the regular projects of the Huo Foundation, there was an annual charity art exhibition for leukemia. It usually took place in late autumn or early winter, and the date was approaching again.

Xiao Gao brought the materials and press releases from previous years for Chen Wengang to reference.

Fortunately, there wasn’t any particularly difficult work to do. Everything could follow tradition; the exhibition itself would be outsourced to an exhibition company and art galleries. He basically just needed to approve the budget on behalf of the acting chair, Fang Qin, and oversee the overall process.

However, Chen Wengang was stunned when he saw the list of participating artists: “How were these candidates determined?”

“They were all recommended by the Art Association,” Xiao Gao said. “Actually, we can’t invite famous big-name painters. Their paintings are worth a fortune, and they can support charity themselves; they rarely participate in such joint exhibitions. Most of those willing to donate their paintings for the charity auction are ‘nobodies’ who want to make a name for themselves but lack the connections. Being able to use the Huo brand as a platform to gain some exposure and win a good reputation is more worthwhile for them.”

Chen Wengang stared at the name “Mu Qing” on the list, deep in thought.

He only then remembered he hadn’t seen the other party for a long time.

Previously, he had heard from Zheng Baoqiu that Mu Qing, through the resources of Qi Tongzhou’s family, had found a guide in the art circle. For a while, he had been the center of hype, labeled in reports as a “young genius painter.” He was a clearly rising star until he was unexpectedly exposed by Li Hongqiong and his reputation suddenly collapsed. Many of the “olive branches” that had been extended to him were withdrawn. It was said he originally had a chance to send his works to international competitions, but later, that fell through.

On second thought, it wasn’t accurate to say he hadn’t seen him in a long time; the other party had even shown up at the engagement party last time.

Mu Qing had been very low-key back then, lacking any presence. He had just politely greeted Zheng Bingyi and Huo Meijie in public, proving that the bond between nephew and uncle still existed. While he had a bad reputation, it wasn’t a death sentence, and excluding him without rhyme or reason wasn’t appropriate either. The art circle had never been clean; there were plenty of artists with questionable personal morals—those who used drugs, cheated, or engaged in sexual misconduct were not uncommon.

Xiao Gao didn’t understand: “Chen-ge, is there a problem with this person?”

Chen Wengang paused and said, “No, just process it according to the normal procedure.”

Because of this, when he went to the art gallery to inspect the venue, he ran straight into Mu Qing.

Mu Qing was wearing jeans and a black hoodie. His expression was as cold and detached as before, but there was still a feeling that something had changed. If Qi Tongzhou were present, he might have been able to tell that he didn’t resemble Chen Wengang as much as he did when they lived together in the past.

The two met in the hallway, and Mu Qing was the first to take out his earphones: “I heard you went to sea with Huo Niansheng?”

Chen Wengang asked, “Didn’t you used to call him ‘Huo-ge’?”

Mu Qing gave a self-deprecating laugh: “I’ve left the Zheng family. Who knows if others are still happy to hear me call him that? Maybe I should call him ‘President Huo’ instead?”

His tone was sarcastic. Chen Wengang pretended not to notice and nodded, preparing to leave.

Mu Qing spoke from behind him: “Do you know how I heard about it? There don’t seem to be any paparazzi on your ship, but reporters are well-informed. As long as they want to know, they have a way. Now that you and Huo Niansheng are public, your little romance story is enough to write about for a while. You want to be noble, but you can’t be. As long as you are with him, no one will think you are equals!”

Chen Wengang turned around, confused: “Then write it. I don’t care. If it gets too excessive, I’ll just send a lawyer’s letter.”

Mu Qing stared at him with an inscrutable look.

The atmosphere between the two was delicate. A young, fashionably dressed man chased over—he looked like a wealthy second-generation heir—and stood solicitously by Mu Qing’s side, glaring at Chen Wengang with a sense of shared enmity. Chen Wengang, on the contrary, was startled, a bit shocked, not quite sure about the relationship between the two.

That evening, Zheng Baoqiu said over the phone, “I’m also surprised! Nobody knew he liked men before, right!”

Chen Wengang couldn’t help but be curious; even in his previous life, he hadn’t heard a whisper of it: “You didn’t know before?”

“I really didn’t,” she said. “Of course, there are two possibilities: first, this was his orientation all along, and he just didn’t dare to reveal it before Dad; the second possibility is that he felt your relationship with my cousin was too good, and he couldn’t help but want to imitate you.”

Chen Wengang laughed, telling her not to talk nonsense.

During the preparation period for the art exhibition, Chen Wengang found it interesting and often went to the gallery to observe, sometimes even rolling up his sleeves to help.

With him there, Huo Niansheng naturally became a frequent visitor. Chen Wengang intended to put the matter of Mu Qing behind him, but he still ran into him and that wealthy heir a few times. The other person—whether a suitor or someone already confirmed in the role—was very devoted to Mu Qing and always looked at Chen Wengang with a hostile attitude. That was until he discovered that he and Huo Niansheng were a couple, at which point his attitude did a 180-degree turn.

Once, when Chen Wengang went to the fire escape to move things, he heard the two arguing and quietly backed away.

After working busily for over a month like this, the art exhibition was held successfully, and the proceeds from the charity sale were donated to a leukemia charity. The final press release was sent to the media. Fang Qin, as the Chair, was very happy and called Chen Wengang to say that this project had been very successful this year.

Her suggestion was to go out to relax, and with her son Huo Yuxiang begging, they decided to go clamming during the weekend.

The weather was getting colder. For clamming in early winter, one had to go during low tide between noon and afternoon.

Fang Qin’s belly was noticeably larger; she was afraid of falling, so she just sat far away in the car parked on the side of the road, waiting. Therefore, Chen Wengang and the others took Huo Yuxiang down. He was having a blast, wearing thick clothes and tall rain boots, carrying a small iron shovel and a small bucket, squatting on the mudflats to dig for clams. Oysters grew on the reefs and required a small hammer to pry apart.

Jiang Cai was also wearing rain boots, standing in the back with a look of extreme disgust on her face. She had been caught by Chen Wengang while skipping class to go home and was forcibly brought along to participate in the family activity. If Chen Xiangling hadn’t been busy studying hard, she should have been happily appearing on the scene as well.

Chen Wengang squatted on the ground, wearing nylon gloves, and moved a stone to find a crab.

Huo Yuxiang let out an exclamation of “Wow” in admiration.

Jiang Cai couldn’t help but glance at it a few more times: “How did you find that crab? Why can’t I catch any?”

Chen Wengang kept his eyes on the ground: “You have to look. Crabs are usually under stones; you have to find their footprints.”

Jiang Cai leaned on her knees, bending over like a shrimp, frowning as she looked at the ground, when suddenly she turned her head. Huo Niansheng was standing silently behind them.

Jiang Cai was startled to see him bathed in sunlight, uncharacteristically showing no hostility at this moment. Huo Niansheng was also looking at the ground, turning his head from time to time, his gaze spilling tenderly onto Chen Wengang’s face. Chen Wengang moved a stone and tossed the crab into the bucket he was holding.

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