What To Do When The Boss Takes A Liking To You chapter 74

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Back at home, Xu Le had barely touched the bed when his words were cut off by a kiss.

…

He felt like he had been flipped like a pancake, turned over and over again, thoroughly cooked and carefully attended to.

Lan Qing’s stamina was exceptional. His ferocious appearance was a stark contrast to his usual cold and restrained demeanor, as if he were two different people. Facing him, Xu Le felt like a herbivore targeted by a predator, ending up completely consumed, bones and all.

The intensity surpassed the first time.

…

When Xu Le woke up, his head was pounding, and his body was sore and weak. The consequence of being overly aroused was the pain during the subsequent recovery phase.

The bedside was still empty, indicating that Lan Qing had risen at his usual time.

Dragging his heavy body, gritting his teeth, Xu Le awkwardly made his way out step by step. The faint smell of food drifted in, stirring his appetite, and his stomach rumbled timely.

Hearing the noise, Lan Qing, who had been frowning at the computer screen, looked up. His expression softened when he saw Xu Le: “Awake?”

“Mmh. What did you cook? It smells so good!” Xu Le asked eagerly.

Lan Qing went to the kitchen and brought out a hangover soup, a bird’s nest and shredded chicken congee, and a bowl of vegetable and lean meat noodles, all light but fragrant and appetizing. Xu Le eagerly ate it up.

As he slurped his congee, Lan Qing frowned at the computer, typing more urgently than usual.

While working, Lan Qing maintained his usual cold and stern demeanor. But Xu Le rarely saw him in this current state, not just serious, but seemingly dealing with a particularly challenging problem.

Moreover, Xu Le could clearly sense that Lan Qing was angry. His lips were tightly pressed, his brow furrowed, though he was clearly trying to contain it.

Quietly setting down his spoon, Xu Le nervously asked, “What’s wrong? Did you encounter a difficult problem?”

Although he had little experience and might not be of much help, he still wanted to see if he could assist in any way.

At his words, Lan Qing looked up at him. There was a moment of cold severity in his expression that he couldn’t quite hide, making Xu Le even more nervous.

“What’s wrong… why are you looking at me like that?” he asked cautiously.

“Lele, from now on,” Lan Qing softened his expression, paused for a moment, and continued, “no matter what news you see, don’t believe it, and don’t act impulsively. Trust me, I’ll handle everything.”

Seeing his serious demeanor, Xu Le’s pupils contracted slightly. His heart felt like it was being squeezed, twitching involuntarily. “What… what’s… happening?”

Lan Qing hesitated for a moment but didn’t directly tell him. “It’s just a boring matter. But I’ll resolve it as soon as possible.”

The phone on the table vibrated. After seeing the message, Lan Qing’s expression turned colder. He got up and said to Xu Le, “I need to go out for a bit. Rest well at home and don’t worry about anything.”

With that, he hurried out, leaving Xu Le watching his departing figure with a growing unease.

“Don’t believe anything and don’t act impulsively.”

That was Lan Qing’s parting advice.

Xu Le’s sense of unease grew stronger. He took a deep breath and retrieved his phone from the bedroom. To his surprise, there were dozens of missed calls from Li Dongming and his WeChat was blowing up.

Taking a deep breath, he unlocked his phone. Just then, Li Dongming called him.

As he answered the call, Li Dongming immediately rushed, “Lele, do you know you are all over the news and hot searches? Even though it’s just a few photos, I can tell it’s you!”

Xu Le was bewildered. News? Hot searches? Him?

“What do you mean, Li? How could I possibly be in the news?” Completely puzzled, he had no idea what was going on.

Li Dongming heard the hoarseness in his voice and thought Xu Le might be sick with a cold or fever. He asked with concern, “What’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell? Do you need me to bring you some medicine?”

Xu Le cleared his throat, trying to cover his embarrassment, and casually replied, “No, I just drank with friends yesterday and slept late. What’s going on exactly? My phone is about to explode with all these messages and calls. I thought it was doomsday…”

“I’ll send you the link. Take a look yourself.”

“Okay.”

As soon as Xu Le responded, Li Dongming promptly sent him the link. When Xu Le opened it and saw the headline, his heart skipped a beat.

【The suspected inheritor of the Starlight Group has a kept relationship with a male employee】

The post included several blurry photos. The whistleblower probably dared not truly offend Lan Qing, but Xu Le recognized it at first glance. These were photos from yesterday when he and Lan Qing watched a movie together and queued for milk tea. One photo surprised him even more.

It was a set of nighttime beach photos, taken on the day he and Lan Qing confirmed their relationship. There were shots of them holding hands, Lan Qing embracing him, and the two of them walking side by side, chatting and laughing.

Seeing these photos, Xu Le’s initial reaction wasn’t embarrassment but anger. The relationship between him and Lan Qing was being used as leverage.

Xu Le wasn’t the brightest, but he had received a good education in media studies. He immediately thought that the person behind this news had clear intentions—to threaten Lan Qing. It wasn’t just about tarnishing Lan Qing’s reputation; perhaps they also aimed to deal with the Starlight Group behind him.

Suppressing his disgust and anger, Xu Le continued reading and found the accompanying text even more outrageous.

Not only did they depict him, one of the parties involved, as someone who climbed up by selling himself, but they also vividly described the “transactions” between Lan Qing and him. With these “conclusive” blurry pictures as evidence, it seemed even more believable.

“Lele, Lele, say something! Did someone intentionally take these photos to threaten you and President Lan?” After not hearing any movement from Xu Le for a while, Li Dongming asked worriedly.

“Don’t take it to heart. It’s probably because I’m familiar with you that I recognized you in the photos. Others might not be able to.”

Xu Le uttered an “Mm.”

He scrolled through the comments under the news. This news had generated significant heat and even climbed to the top of the trending list. Xu Le had never dreamed that he would appear in such a way on the trending list.

No wonder before Lan Qing left, he had said those words to him. He must have gone to handle this matter.

As he read through the comments, several highly upvoted ones were quite harsh.

【In this day and age, even men can be kept. This young man is shameless!】

【Disgusting. They do things sneakily like this, and then they’ll turn around and marry a good girl?】

【Laughable. How good-looking must this guy be to catch the eye of the Starlight Chairman’s son? The photos are so unclear; he doesn’t seem that impressive, does he?】

…

Xu Le gripped his phone tightly, veins popping slightly on the back of his hand, fingertips turning pale.

He took a deep breath, trying to calm himself down. What should he do now? He lacked money and power. Although he had an A station account with tens of thousands of followers, if he spoke out, would it bring more trouble to Lan Qing?

Moreover… what these netizens said was right. Lan Qing’s identity was extraordinary. Even though he loved him deeply now, could their relationship really go that far?

Xu Le remembered the matching rings on Chen Wang and Huai Jing’s left ring fingers.

He wasn’t worried about his parents; they had always respected and supported him. He also believed Lan Qing was outstanding enough to be accepted by his parents. But would Lan Qing’s parents accept him?

Just as he was feeling troubled and lost in thought, a comment suddenly topped the news.

【I am a university classmate of this male employee. When he was in university, he had ambiguous relationships with many girls, and it’s said he even had a flirtatious relationship with a male junior. Oh, and he’s also a small internet celebrity on A station, with around several hundred thousand fans. Feel free to connect the dots yourselves.】

This comment stirred up a storm instantly, and people quickly began to dig into several A station bloggers.

Xu Le’s A station account, “UncLele,” naturally became a target.

Netizens soon replied under this comment.

【No way, Lele can’t be like this. I don’t think he’s the kind to be kept.】

【Right, I’ve followed Lele for a long time, from his sophomore year to now working. I’ve watched all his videos. He’s definitely a straight guy!】

【Exactly, we girls tease him, and he blushes shyly. When faced with teasing from those old sisters on A station, he’s just more adorable!】

【It’s just a persona; who knows what he’s really like in private in front of his sponsors.】

【You’re right. You only know someone’s appearance, not their true self behind the screen. And I’ve compared, although the photos are blurry, the physique does resemble him.】

【Am I the only one curious about what President Lan of Starlight looks like? From his figure, he seems very handsome. If he’s really with that A station guy, I’d really want to know…】

【He’s tall, that’s all. Can’t even see his face clearly. Besides, can those bosses really be good-looking? If they’re decent to look at, that’s already good enough.】

…

Despite the trending topic being quickly taken down, speculation that Xu Le was involved intensified, with more and more people heading to his Weibo and A station accounts to inquire about the situation.

Information about him exploded exponentially, and for a moment, his head was throbbing. He simply switched his phone to Do Not Disturb mode and set it aside.

In his mind, he quickly devised solutions. Given his abilities, what could he actually do in this situation? The discussion had already escalated, and simply removing the trending topic wouldn’t solve the problem…

He was anxious and restless, wanting to message Lan Qing to ask about the situation at his company. But he hesitated, worried that it would distract Lan Qing. With such a scandal out, the stock price of Starlight might drop, and Lan Qing would be even more stressed than him.

He didn’t know how long it had been when Lan Qing messaged him.

【I’ve ordered delivery for you, and Anthony will bring it over. Remember to eat well. I’ll be back late today. You should rest first, stop overthinking it, and you don’t need to go to the company tomorrow.】

Seeing Lan Qing’s message, Xu Le felt strangely calmed.

“Okay, make sure to eat well too. I’ll be waiting for you at home!”

He replied with a sticker of a puppy hugging.

Lan Qing instantly replied to Xu Le with the same sticker. All the stickers on his phone were collected from Xu Le and he only used them for Xu Le.

Lan Qing did come back very late. Xu Le was sitting and holding Fa Cai absentmindedly. When he heard the sound, he turned to look at the door.

Lan Qing walked over, squatted down, and hugged both Xu Le and the cat together, “Why aren’t you sleeping? Are you still feeling unwell?”

Xu Le blushed, “I’m alright, much better than last time… But did you find out who was secretly taking photos of us?”

Lan Qing rested his chin on Xu Le’s shoulder and hugged his waist tightly, “If my guess is correct, it’s the company’s supervisor. His seniority is even higher than my mother’s, and he’s the second largest shareholder in the group with significant influence. He’s always opposed my reforms in the group. However, he wouldn’t directly do something like this. It’s likely his nephew.”

“His nephew?” Xu Le frowned.

“Zeng Junhua,” Lan Qing’s deep blue eyes flashed with a sharp light.

Xu Le was momentarily stunned to hear this familiar name and then immediately said angrily, “How is he still so shameless!”

Fa Cai was startled by Xu Le’s outburst. Sensing Xu Le’s bad mood, it meowed softly and snuggled closer to him.

Xu Le quickly soothed Fa Cai, “I’m sorry, Fa Cai, I didn’t mean to scare you.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Xu Le felt himself being lifted up. Lan Qing had picked him up, and Fa Cai obediently jumped down.

“What are you doing?”

Without a word, Lan Qing carried him steadily to the bed and gently placed him down. Xu Le looked at him, puzzled.

Lan Qing leaned down and kissed the corner of his lips, “You need to rest well. Why aren’t you sleeping yet? It’s already midnight.”

“Ah, it’s midnight already?” Xu Le hadn’t noticed the time.

“Go to sleep first. I’m going to take a shower.”

Lan Qing tucked him in, and Xu Le, feeling a bit drowsy, almost fell asleep by the time Lan Qing came back.

Feeling the familiar embrace from behind, Xu Le instinctively leaned back and fell into a deep, peaceful sleep.

…..

The next day, Lan Qing left as usual.

Xu Le still felt a bit unwell and, with the ongoing news scandal, decided to ask Lucy for leave again. Lucy agreed without questioning him.

Several colleagues, including Cao Xinyi, sent him messages. Interestingly, none of them mentioned the news. Instead, they expressed concern for his health.

Xu Le felt a warmth in his heart but also guessed that with their skills, they had probably already figured out his relationship with President Lan…

“Hey, Lele, I found out that the commenter claiming to be your college classmate is actually Zhao Zhiang’s alternate account. I followed the account’s content and discovered his identity. The bastard even admitted it!”

Seeing Li Dongming’s message, Xu Le frowned. Honestly, he had suspected Zhao Zhiang when he first saw the comment. Despite having generally good relationships in college, Zhao Zhiang was the only one he didn’t get along with.

After thinking for a long time, he called Li Dongming, “Li, I think I can’t stay silent any longer. Tonight, I plan to do a livestream to clarify things.”

Li Dongming seemed taken aback for a moment before speaking, “Lele, are you sure?”

“Yes, I’m sure. It’s better to clarify things than let rumors spread uncontrollably. Being proactive is better than being passive,” Xu Le said firmly.

“What are you going to deny? That the person in the photo isn’t you? Or your relationship with President Lan?” Li Dongming gasped.

Xu Le was silent for a moment before speaking slowly, “He’s not an ordinary person, and now might not be the right time to go public, so I have to deny everything.”

……

At 8:30 PM, Xu Le started the livestream.

He didn’t look at any of the explosive comments. Having made up his mind, he didn’t want to give himself a chance to regret.

As soon as the livestream started, the number of viewers surged.

【Oh my, the alleged main person is streaming. Is he going to clear his name?】

【Clear his name? Lee wasn’t involved in the scandal to begin with. How can some random supposed college classmate defame him?】

【Starlight isn’t a small company, there are plenty of young employees. Why pinpoint Lele?】

【Come on, fool yourselves if you want. There are photos, it’s confirmed. Your idol definitely sold himself to a man. What are you still trying to deny?】

【This is A-station, not some fan circle. We’re just viewers of Lele’s videos. He’s a skilled content creator.】

【If it’s not about his looks, where did all these fans come from? Claiming he’s a content creator is laughable. Do you really believe he’s a straight guy?】

…

The comments were mixed, with most viewers there to watch the drama.

Xu Le tried to put on a relaxed smile, “I know everyone has been following the gossip, so I’m here to make a very serious and formal statement.”

【A statement? Is he going to deny being a kept man?】

【Lele, you’re still as handsome as ever, but you look a bit tired, haha!】

【Tired from thinking of a countermeasure, I bet. He waited a day to go live. I’m more convinced he’s guilty now…】

…

Xu Le took a deep breath, just as he was about to speak, he heard the sound of the door opening from the living room. His expression changed slightly as he looked towards the door.

It had to be Lan Qing. He came back much earlier today than yesterday.

Xu Le was a bit surprised but quickly recollected himself. He had informed Lan Qing about the livestream to clarify things, and Lan Qing would certainly cooperate by staying out of the room for now.

So, he quickly regained his composure and continued, “I know everyone is speculating. Some netizens think that based on the so-called college classmate’s comment, the people in the photos are me and the heir of Starlight Group. They even say I’m being kept.”

Xu Le laughed: “Actually, I’m just as surprised as you are, because I didn’t even know I was being kept.”

At this point, the comment section exploded.

【I knew it! Lele couldn’t be the one in those scandalous photos! It’s hilarious how some people overreacted. He didn’t even know he was being kept, so the person in the photos definitely isn’t him!】

【I know you’re eager, but calm down. Just because he says so doesn’t mean he’s not the person in the photos. He could be lying.】

【This is too funny. I wasn’t sure at first, but watching the live stream, the more I see, the more I think he looks like the guy in the photos.】

【He really is good-looking. His ‘sponsor’ must be happy. A shy straight guy being kept by another man～】

Xu Le tried his best to ignore the comments. These malicious remarks were just a way for people to vent their dark thoughts. He calmly said, “It looks like I’m going to disappoint some netizens. My relationship with Lan, the CEO of Starlight Group, isn’t a ‘kept’ relationship, but rather—”

Before he could finish, he felt a weight on his shoulder. Someone was resting a hand on it.

Xu Le turned around in surprise.

【Whose hand is that? So pale and long, so beautiful!】

【Is that a man’s hand? Who is it?】

【Is it Lele’s roommate? But I thought he lived alone?】

【Isn’t the focus supposed to be on the scandal? Why is everyone talking about the hand? Move aside, let me admire it first!】

The next moment, a flawless, handsome face appeared in front of the camera. Deep, icy blue eyes captivated everyone even through the screen.

The barrage of comments suddenly stopped.

“I’m his boyfriend. Any more questions?”