25 2.12

While Feng Kuo was coaxing Ren Yijun in the restaurant, Ren Xiang was being prodded and scrutinized like a piece of meat. He was still in his late thirties, but due to his lifestyle, his physical condition had already degraded to that of a fifty-year-old.

Reviewing the checkup results, the loan shark frowned and called Ren Anjing. "Mr. Ren, your son's body is not as healthy as we were hoping for. Unless you have any alternatives, we'll need to extract quite a number of organs. However, we can't guarantee that the operation won't be fatal."

Before the negotiations could continue, Ren Xiang yelled for his father. He was generally a stupid person who would blindly follow all of Ren Anjing's orders, but he'd had a bad feeling from the moment he'd stepped into this makeshift hospital. Combined with the few words he'd overheard, he was almost certain of what was going on, so he ran over and seized the phone.

"Father, Father, what's going on? What are these people trying to do to me?"

In response to his anxious blubbering, Ren Anjing suppressed his shame and consoled, "Xiang'er, I told you about Ren Yijun's offer, right? You know this is a chance we have to take! But to get that much money together...we have to make some sacrifices. Do you understand?"

Ren Xiang couldn't say anything for a long time and stood stock still, dazed at the verification that he'd been sold.

But this didn't have any impact on the proceedings, his consent had never been a factor anyway.

The moneylender calmly retrieved his phone, finalized the details with Ren Anjing, and signaled his subordinates to prepare for surgery.

Three days later, Ren Xiang was having a difficult recovery while Ren Anjing rushed to deliver the funds in full to Ren Yijun. Including his son's shares, he now controlled 47% of the company. With the support of a few investors, he could vote out Ren Yijun to officially take over Ren Development Group. At that time, the debts he'd been struggling with would be nothing!

Unfortunately, Chen Yu didn't give Ren Anjing the chance to humiliate him. Since he didn't have anything else he wanted from Ren Development Group, he quietly bought complete ownership of the subsidiary Ren City Development and resigned from his CEO position without any drama.

Yang Shu initially worried that her darling son was quitting because he'd been bullied, but after numerous reassurances, she accepted that he genuinely had something else he wanted to focus on. Satisfied, she disregarded the gossip outside about Ren Jia's young master, who outwardly performed well but couldn't last, ultimately being forced to give up the company to his uncle. Although everyone shook their heads, pitying Ren Daquan for not leaving a capable heir, the Ren family members were actually very pleased. Now that Ren Yijun had quit, he didn't need to work so hard!

Thus, Chen Yu enjoyed some time off, filled with pampering at home from his family and outside from his lover.

Feng Kuo's proposal of selling himself to Ren Yijun had appeased Chen Yu's desire to discipline him, so he didn't punish either of them by resisting for too long. However, because Feng Kuo was still worried that Jun would misunderstand his intentions, the most he dared to do was hug and kiss. After a week of this, Chen Yu decided to make a move.

Today, Feng Kuo had picked Chen Yu up and driven him to his penthouse for a home-cooked dinner. Chen Yu was rather stimulated watching the tall, well-muscled man moving in the kitchen, his strong arms and long legs that were outlined sharply in a collared shirt and suit pants made him impatient. So once they'd finished the meal and were relaxing on the couch, he struck.

While he was lying on Feng Kuo's thighs idly eating a stick of candied fruit Feng Kuo had prepared to satisfy his sweet tooth, the youth suddenly wondered, "Uncle Kuo, why don't you call me 'pet' anymore?"

Feng Kuo looked up from the documents he'd been reading. Tenderly wiping the sticky syrup off the glossy thin lips, he helplessly answered, "You didn't seem to like it."

Chen Yu: "..."

So he'd noticed his resistance before and had continued to do it? Chen Yu really had thought it irritating at first, but he'd gotten used to it and instead felt a bit odd not hearing it now. "That was before...it's different when you're the one saying it." His cheeks slightly flushed, Chen Yu swept his fan-like eyelashes down and started on another fruit, acting as if he didn't mean anything by what he'd said.

Studying the red tongue and white teeth nibbling on the stick, Feng Kuo's eyes darkened. Further aroused by the sweet words, he was unable to stop himself and leaned down, plucking the dessert away. Meticulously sucking the traces from Jun's lips, he hoarsely murmured, "Pet...then it's okay, right?"

Chen Yu didn't speak, only nipping Feng Kuo's lip as if angry that he was embarrassing him.

Ambiguous sounds soon filled the air.

Two weeks passed in this way. Finally, Ren Anjing had returned to reality from his celebratory mood and combed through the company's financial documents, only to discover how Ren Yijun had transferred liabilities to Ren Development Group and profits to Ren City Development.

Furious, he called that vicious, scheming brat. "Ren. Yi. Jun! Very good, you truly have guts, selling your debts to me while stealing my money!"

It was late afternoon when he phoned. Feng Kuo had kept Chen Yu in his office after their lunch date, and Chen Yu was curled up on the couch scrolling through a proposal for a joint venture while Feng Kuo was properly working at his desk. Ren Anjing's voice was so loud, however, that Feng Kuo could hear his shrill berating even from where he was sitting.

Frowning, he stood up, itching to handle that old man—not only did he resent Ren Anjing for abusing Jun, but also, if the bastard hadn't broken his pet's trust, their relationship might not have started off so badly. But when he sat next to Jun, the young man cleverly snuggled close to him like a naughty kitten in a carefree manner. Understanding the hint, he restrained himself, simply embracing the thin waist and leaning his chin on his shoulder.

Despite the fact that he knew there was no way to retaliate, Ren Anjing continued to vent for almost half an hour. Chen Yu also allowed Ren Anjing's fury to build, since at last count, his mission completion rate was still at 68%. Probably, this was because he hadn't manipulated both protagonists, but he didn't have any intention of messing with Du Guang. As for Feng Kuo, he'd played enough with him, he'd resolved to treat him sincerely.

When Ren Yijun insisted on keeping silent, Ren Anjing burst out, "Are you a human being? Do you know what your cousin went through because of you? He's lost a kidney, liver, even his eyes, and he's still lying in bed! Now that loan shark you introduced to us is hounding us for payments, Xiang'er might lose more body parts. You're just a beast!"

Finally, Chen Yu spoke, but his words made Ren Anjing turn purple. "So what? I'm not the one who sold him, you are."

Ren Anjing was stifled. His teeth itched with frustration, but indeed, he'd been the one who'd exposed his ploys too early, he'd been the one who'd been blinded by ambition and tricked into borrowing huge sums of money, he'd been the one who'd sent Xiang'er to that place.

He abruptly calmed down at the realization. With an eerily mild tone, he asked, "What do you want? Ren Xiang can't be your goal, am I the one you're targeting?"

Chen Yu smiled approvingly. Apparently he wasn't an idiot after all. "Well, Uncle—" Feng Kuo bit his neck at this, so Chen Yu cleared his throat and began again, "Well, CEO Ren, as businessmen, we should be fair and impartial, don't you agree? So I won't demand much, just an equal exchange."

Ren Anjing's expression didn't change, he merely confirmed, "A life for a life."

Feng Kuo squeezed his eyebrows together, concerned that Ren Anjing was trying to trap Jun. Focused on smoothing out his lover's wrinkles, Chen Yu hummed a faint "If you think that's appropriate" and hung up.

Feng Kuo immediately grasped the finger that was playing with his brows and pecked it before seriously asking, "Pet, he might have been recording your conversation. Do you want me to have him eliminated?"

Chen Yu smirked. "No need to worry, I've hacked into his phone long ago." Feng Kuo stilled, then his eyes stared heatedly at Jun. Naturally his pet was so amazing, he was an expert investor, hacker, lover...

Noticing the intense gaze directed at him, Chen Yu glanced down. As expected, the man was eager for some exercise. But he'd decided it was time to clean up the loan shark who'd finished serving his function, so he added, "He'll take care of himself, but I do have someone I need you to deal with."

"Oh? Just give me the name." Feng Kuo agreed easily, distracted by the Adam's apple sliding up and down that slender throat.

He was considering how angry Jun would be if he left visible marks when Chen Yu clarified, "I don't want him to be killed, Uncle Kuo." The unforeseen caveat startled Feng Kuo out of his daze. In contrast to his merciful words, Jun's narrowed eyes and faint sneer gave off an evil charm.

"Then should I take off a couple limbs?"

Chen Yu shot a disdainful glance at him, plainly expressing that his lover was really not civilized enough. "Do you have any openings in one of your brothels for a middle-aged man?"

Feng Kuo caught on and nodded. He'd intended to handle the matter immediately, but that genteelly bloodthirsty look was too seductive, simply irresistible. He carried Jun swiftly to his desk. The youth twitched as if to refuse, so he persuaded, "We've never done it in an office, pet, don't you want to try it?"

Some caresses later, Chen Yu could only say, "Lock the door..."