Evil Love Appears chapter 91

Although it was a work-related meeting, the place that Wen Huaixuan had chosen didn’t look very professional.

It was a luxurious rooftop restaurant in a grand hotel, with Japanese-style private rooms. The window seats provided a view of the entire city of B at night.

Before Fu Xiaoyu could say anything, Wen Huaixuan immediately spoke up, “The private room is quieter and more convenient for discussing matters.”

“Alright,” Fu Xiaoyu didn’t say much and lowered his head to look at the menu. In the end, he simply ordered a sashimi platter.

Wen Huaixuan was sitting across from him, silently anxious. But he had to patiently wait for the omega to finish perusing the menu before casually suggesting, “This place is famous for its Wagyu beef sukiyaki. Mr. Fu, you must try it.”

Fu Xiaoyu was wiping his hands with a hot towel and smiled slightly when he heard the suggestion. “Well, Mr. Wen, please recommend some more dishes. I’m not very familiar with this place.”

“Uh…” Wen Huaixuan’s smile was light but undeniably charming. He looked back at the menu and added a few dishes that he thought had the best flavor and presentation. He then added, “Oh, and, Mr. Fu, I hope you don’t mind drinking a bit less whiskey tonight. How about I order a bottle of Yamazaki?”

In fact, this was the third time within the week that Wen Huaixuan had invited Fu Xiaoyu out.

The first time, the two of them had found a Cantonese restaurant near the LITE company, and they chatted for over an hour, mainly about work.

The second time, Wen Huaixuan invited Fu Xiaoyu for hotpot in the evening but was declined due to an alleged meeting.

And now, this was the third time.

It was worth noting that there was a significant difference between a casual business lunch and a lavish dinner.

Fu Xiaoyu had turned down a dinner once, but not the second time. Wen Huaixuan thought this might imply something.

The appetizers and drinks arrived promptly, and Wen Huaixuan stood up to pour a small glass of Yamazaki for Fu Xiaoyu. “Mr. Fu, today…”

He was secretly delighted and initially intended to bring up another topic.

But when he turned back to Fu Xiaoyu, he noticed that Fu Xiaoyu had already pushed a folder out from his bag towards him. He said, “Mr. Wen, we’ve made some revisions based on our previous discussions. Please review it.”

This omega always displayed a certain level of firmness when discussing business matters.

“Alright…”

Wen Huaixuan reluctantly took a sip of his drink.

Truth be told, Liam had a business manager, and Wen Huaixuan was the beloved only son of the Wen family, not to mention an alpha. He had rarely reviewed a collaboration case in such detail. This was a result of necessity.

During their previous dinner, he had merely skimmed through the materials, not taking it very seriously. As a result, when Fu Xiaoyu had asked for specific opinions later, he had been completely at a loss.

If not for his generally easy-going and optimistic personality, it might have been an embarrassing situation.

Wen Huaixuan focused and carefully reviewed the materials. “This version does seem better. I think we should proceed with this plan.”

“Mr. Fu, what do you think…?” He looked up, but suddenly stopped.

“It’s raining.”

Fu Xiaoyu was gazing out of the window, seemingly lost in thought.

Indeed, it was raining. Raindrops pattered on the floor-to-ceiling windows, refracted by the colorful city lights outside. They reflected a myriad of colors on Fu Xiaoyu’s fair complexion.

Fu Xiaoyu had quite sharp facial features, but his eyes seemed to hold a contradictory blend of sharpness and vacancy. His eyelashes fluttered gracefully, and the juxtaposition of these contrasting qualities created a remarkable beauty.

Wen Huaixuan couldn’t help but take a deep breath.

“I’m sorry, what were you saying earlier?” Fu Xiaoyu turned back and asked after a brief moment.

“I said, let’s proceed with this plan,” Wen Huaixuan responded.

“Alright.” The trace of vacancy in Fu Xiaoyu’s eyes had vanished entirely. He took another sip of whiskey before speaking decisively, “I’ll create a DingTalk external group later to add relevant members from both sides. This will make coordination easier.”

The meal didn’t take too long. Once the work matters were settled, the two of them engaged in some casual conversation. However, Fu Xiaoyu soon mentioned that he had to return to work.

Wen Huaixuan certainly didn’t want to push him to stay longer.

He got up and made an excuse to leave for a moment. Initially, he had planned to pay the bill, but when he inquired outside, the waiter informed him that it had already been settled.

Wen Huaixuan was taken aback. When he returned, he saw Fu Xiaoyu, the tall and slender omega in a mint green shirt, walking out of the private room. Fu Xiaoyu explained, “I settled the bill when I went to the restroom. Let’s go.”

“Mr. Fu, I can’t let you pay,” Wen Huaixuan objected.

“The last time, you were the host. This time, it’s my treat. It’s a matter of courtesy,” Fu Xiaoyu replied with nonchalance.

Wen Huaixuan was left a bit bewildered.

Although the two meals had different price ranges, it was the intention that mattered. The amount wasn’t a concern for Wen Huaixuan.

Together, they entered the underground parking lot, and Wen Huaixuan’s heart was racing. It was only now that he realized what he had been thinking since adding Fu Xiaoyu on WeChat.

When he first added Fu Xiaoyu, the omega’s profile picture was a formal and stern business portrait. Although equally attractive, it lacked a certain charm. However, when Fu Xiaoyu changed his profile picture to an image of himself smoking a cigarette in light snow, Wen Huaixuan’s interest was sparked.

Now, as he saw Fu Xiaoyu’s profile picture with a parachute, he was reminded of that initial attraction when he clicked on Fu Xiaoyu’s profile picture.

He had a feeling that this omega was genuinely cool.

“Mr. Fu,” Wen Huaixuan spoke up on the way to the drop-off, “I heard you’re heading to Vietnam in a few days, to Ho Chi Minh City, right?”

“That’s correct.”

“Isn’t that a coincidence?” Wen Huaixuan turned into Junya’s neighborhood and continued, “I’ll also be in Ho Chi Minh City at the same time. How about we meet for a meal?”

He was aware that his intentions were apparent, but he didn’t mind. Everyone was an adult, and there was no need to hide anything.

“Sure,” Fu Xiaoyu responded nonchalantly. “Let’s contact each other when the time comes and see if we can make it.”

…

That night, Wen Huaixuan proactively initiated the official collaboration between Liam and Lite by creating a DingTalk group. The group included not only the business and marketing teams from both sides but also several top executives from Lite: Wen Ke, Fu Xiaoyu, and Wang Jinglin. Even Xu Jiale, who hadn’t withdrawn his shares and was still part of the General Office group, was unexpectedly added.

When Xu Jiale was added, he happened to be taking a shower. When he came out, his phone had dozens of DingTalk messages from the “Liam-Lite, Let’s Go” group.

He was a bit confused but decided to open the group chat. It was Wen Huaixuan who had sent a message in the group: “Everyone, let’s cooperate well in the future.”

He added a somewhat clumsy smiling emoji at the end.

Xu Jiale tossed his phone onto the bed and then lowered his head, hugging Xia’an to his chest while rubbing her head. However, he couldn’t resist picking up his phone again and clicking on Wen Huaixuan’s profile picture.

It was the typical Wen Huaixuan-style profile picture, this time not on a horse but a picture of someone parachuting.

Xu Jiale reluctantly closed Wen Huaixuan’s profile but noticed that Fu Xiaoyu had also replied to the group with a concise message: “Thanks to Mr. Wen and everyone at Liam for their support. Let’s work hard together.”

He stared at this short message for a long time, hesitated for a moment, and only after seeing that Wen Ke, Wang Xiaoshan, and a dozen others had posted thumbs-up or OK emojis in response, he, too, cautiously replied with a “flower-giving” emoji beneath Fu Xiaoyu’s message.

His emoji blended in among others and didn’t seem to attract anyone’s attention.

…

The “Liam-Lite, Let’s Go” group received numerous messages every day, but most of them were about operational details. As a result, top-level executives like Fu Xiaoyu, Wen Ke, Wang Xiaoshan, and Wen Huaixuan didn’t use message notifications and only checked the group when they were mentioned.

The only exception was Xu Jiale, who didn’t mute the group’s messages.

He had been quite busy these days. During the day, he spent time with Nanyi, and in the evenings, he reviewed some materials provided by his professor. Even so, he read every message in the group every day and even opened every file sent, even if these things seemed unrelated to his work.

However, it wasn’t entirely useless.

A few days later in the afternoon, Wen Huaixuan posted a picture from Vietnam in the group and then mentioned Fu Xiaoyu, saying, “Fu, I’m in Vietnam now. Where are you staying? How’s it going?”

After a few minutes, Fu Xiaoyu replied, “Rs, it’s fine. Just that the balcony is so large I forgot to close the door, and mosquitoes bit me. How about you?”

Wen Huaixuan responded, “I have a place in Ho Chi Minh City. I’m staying there. After Liam opens in Ho Chi Minh in the future, you can try staying at Liam. Rs is nice, but Liam might be an option once it opens.”

Wang Xiaoshan added, “Little dog goes clubbing.jpg.”

Fu Xiaoyu concluded with, “Of course.”

Xu Jiale read through their conversation carefully, his emotions a mix of confusion. He couldn’t help but keep reading, even though it felt uncomfortable. He wasn’t sure what he was hoping to find in the messages.

However, he couldn’t bring himself to leave the group.

His discomfort persisted until the following evening, around 8 PM in China. Wang Xiaoshan shared a document in the group and mentioned Fu Xiaoyu and Liam’s business manager, saying, “Hey, you two, I’ve organized the promotion timeline. Please take a look when you have the time.”

Fu Xiaoyu replied promptly, “Wait a moment, I need to make some adjustments. I’ll leave comments and send it to you shortly.”

Wang Xiaoshan acknowledged, “Alright!”

Liam’s business manager responded politely, “I’ll wait for Mr. Fu’s comments before reviewing it.”

Xu Jiale was taking Xia’an to the pet groomers in the northern part of the city, and Xia’an wasn’t the most cooperative during baths. He spent a good amount of time coaxing her during her bath, but she finally finished.

Around 9 PM, he instinctively checked the group chat. However, Fu Xiaoyu, who had said he’d send his comments shortly, hadn’t responded.

By all accounts, anyone who had worked with Fu Xiaoyu knew that when he said “shortly,” he meant within an hour. If it took longer than that, he would always specify a time. That was how meticulous Fu Xiaoyu was.

Had he sent his comments to Wang Xiaoshan privately? But that wouldn’t make sense either.

Xu Jiale didn’t want to jump to conclusions. He considered the weather in Vietnam using a weather app and had no idea why he was even doing that.

After a while, he couldn’t resist any longer and sent a private message to Wang Xiaoshan, “Did Mr. Fu send his comments to you?”

Wang Xiaoshan replied, “Huh?”

He was clearly taken aback but then realized and said, “You’re asking about the one in the group chat, right?”

Xu Jiale confirmed, “Yes.”

Wang Xiaoshan replied, “No.”

Xu Jiale wondered, “Should I ask him again?”

He was impulsively typing this message and feeling very embarrassed. He was being much too meddlesome for his own good.

Wang Xiaoshan also appeared perplexed, “Mr. Xu, should I prod him again?… Besides, Mr. Fu seemed a bit off this afternoon, like he wasn’t feeling well. Maybe he went to bed early.”

Xu Jiale asked, “He wasn’t feeling well?”

While Wang Xiaoshan’s words should have been reassuring, they had the opposite effect, making Xu Jiale even more anxious. He spent a few moments scrolling through the group’s messages and then checked the weather in Vietnam on a weather app again. It was as if he didn’t know what he was doing.

After a while, unable to bear it any longer, he sent another message to Wang Xiaoshan, “I don’t have a good feeling about this. How about you give him a call?”

Wang Xiaoshan hesitated, “Should I… give him a call?”

Xu Jiale couldn’t help but feel the awkwardness, too. Then, after a minute or two, he sent another message, “I mean… Isn’t it a bit strange that he hasn’t replied at all? Perhaps you should try calling him.”

Wang Xiaoshan replied, “I’ll give him a call.”

Xu Jiale could sense Wang Xiaoshan’s bewilderment. A while later, he received a message, “Mr. Fu isn’t answering the call.”

Wang Xiaoshan seemed lost as well and sent another message: “Um… I called twice, but he didn’t answer.”

Xu Jiale was genuinely anxious now. He rushed into the bedroom, turned on his computer, and started booking a flight to Vietnam. In the first few seconds, he could hardly concentrate, with every line of text feeling misaligned. After taking a few deep breaths, he managed to find the earliest flight departing at 2:30 AM. He booked it right away before the booking deadline.

Wang Xiaoshan: …Xu Ge, are you really concerned?

Xu Jiale: Mm.

Wang Xiaoshan: Okay.

Wang Xiaoshan was initially puzzled by this, but he eventually responded to his old title, “Xu Ge.” He didn’t know what to make of it either, but he was becoming just as anxious.

Xu Jiale, feeling even more unsettled, watched the progress of his flight booking. In theory, he didn’t have concrete evidence to support his concerns. He knew this wasn’t actual proof. But at this moment, all reason had gone out the window.

Wang Xiaoshan, too, was starting to feel at a loss. He managed to find someone from the hotel’s front desk and was in a heated conversation with them. However, it seemed that the hotel staff agreed to check on Fu Xiaoyu. The background noise over the phone grew chaotic.

Xu Jiale, still In his desperation called Wang Xiaoshan again but he didn’t answer, so he attempted to call Fu Xiaoyu multiple times, but there was still no response.

Damn.

Xu Jiale felt like smashing his phone into pieces. Those short ten minutes felt longer than ten years.

Finally, Wang Xiaoshan called back. This time, his sounded frantic, speaking incoherently, “Xu Ge, Mr. Fu has a high fever. It’s made him disoriented. We’ve finally managed to wake him up. He’s burning up. We’re calling a car to take him to the hospital—”

Wang Xiaoshan didn’t even finish the sentence, but Xu Jiale had already grabbed a small bag with his passport and was rushing out the door.

Regardless of how crazy and absurd the situation seemed at this moment, he no longer felt anything else but one thought: he had to go to Vietnam.