Boyfriend Always Thinks I’m a Little Pitiful Chapter 74

He didn't check the time, didn't know what hour it was, only knew that the person in his arms had fallen asleep after a long silence, breathing softly and steadily, and the grip around his waist had loosened.

Gu Yufeng rarely stayed so still in bed, not making any small movements or speaking, yet Xie Ci felt as if he could hear him repeatedly whispering in his ear, "I don't want to leave," "I don't want to be apart."

Xie Ci gently stroked his hair, his mind filled with the image of Gu Yufeng's angry yet helpless face when he called in the afternoon.

This person was always confident and at ease in business matters, admired in any setting, never having put himself in such a predicament.

Without fully engaging with the stakeholders beforehand, relying solely on his relationship with Caitlin, he attempted to overreach and do things beyond his current capacity. It was too passive, too uncertain, completely unlike Gu Yufeng's usual style.

Facing a parachuted high school student, not to mention the other members of the Qingfeng board, even Caitlin might harbor doubts about Gu Yufeng's proposal.

And he couldn't help at all, only offering verbal comfort, coldly watching the situation unfold, no different from any passing stranger.

He didn't want to be just a useless outsider.

After returning home from Yulin Snow Mountain, Gu Yufeng flew back to Country D. On the eighth day, Xie Ci met with Lei Qiliang to confirm the progress of several previous cases, spending the rest of the time at home playing games with the old men in the son's group.

Perhaps he won too much, hurting the pride of these wealthy old men, as they kept inviting more people into the group, claiming they would defeat him.

By the day before school started, the group had expanded to 102 members.

Xie Ci glanced at the screen full of "daddy" messages and saw a few familiar IDs. He wondered which mischievous person had pulled in the soon-to-retire bank manager, who lost miserably in the first round, complained after calling him daddy, and ranted in the group.

Ada: [@Smith Are you messing with me? Didn't you say it was easy to win?]

Smith: [I said you'd easily win if you played, but I've never won myself. 🤷‍♂️]

Ada: [I'm not convinced, let's go another round!]

Smith: [Let's go! This time I have two helpers with me, confident we can beat the group leader!]

Nok: [This time it's the 26th member's turn to set the game conditions, looking forward to it!]

FULI: [Does anyone know the group leader's identity? I'd love to have him manage my money.]

Smith: [+1 It's a pity the group leader's identity is mysterious, and he doesn't take on financial business.]

Nok: [With his professional skills and keen sense of the stock market, I bet he's a practitioner! Maybe he doesn't care for the small change in your pockets.]

FULI: [That's negotiable, I hope the group leader will seriously consider it.]

After organizing the study materials on his desk and putting them into his backpack, Xie Ci saw the 99+ group messages, quickly skimmed through them, and replied.

XC: [I'm starting school, won't be participating in the next few rounds.]

A row of question marks followed.

FULI: [Are you pursuing further studies at a prestigious school after work?]

Smith: [Is it far from City N? I'd like to meet you in person.]

Ada: [Is your study schedule that tight? You can trade stocks during class.]

Nok: [How many days will you be away?]

Xie Ci replied: [I also have to participate in a competition, won't be free for the next month or so.]

Nok: [Is it a finance competition? Sounds exciting! Which school, can I come watch?]

Xie Ci replied: [No, it's a high school math competition.]

The group chat paused for a moment, then a flood of expletives appeared.

[High school???!!!!!!!]

Before returning to school, Xie Ci transferred all the money back to his bank account.

Xie Qian, who was working in the studio, saw the amount in the text message and was so shocked he dropped his paintbrush and rushed to find Xie Ci, who happened to be coming downstairs.

"Where did all this money come from? Did you sell a few more of my paintings?"

"Earned from financial management."

Xie Ci called Xiao Fang over to prepare for a walk, casually saying, "If you don't understand the tax stuff, let Xiao Yang help you, or wait for me to handle it when I get back."

He said it so lightly that Xie Qian even began to doubt if he had misread the balance. The domestic account had increased by over 50%, and the dollar account had multiplied several times. What kind of financial management was this profitable?

Xie Ci led the dog out, and as he reached the door, he suddenly thought of something, turned back to Xie Qian, and said, "This time, it's also a 10% cut, just leave it with you."

Xie Qian quickly said, "The profit part is all yours."

Xie Ci didn't refuse.

Having capital is better than having none.

Xie Qian watched Xie Ci leave in a daze, then looked at the text message on his phone, feeling complicated.

Isn't this the kind of son a father would want?

Unfortunately, he could never learn.

Until school started, Gu Yufeng hadn't sent any messages.

After evening self-study, returning to the dormitory, Xie Ci glanced at his upper bunk. The bedding was still in the messy state Gu Yufeng had left it in, standing out in the dormitory, constantly reminding him that the owner of this bed hadn't returned.

"Old Gu has been gone for a long time this time."

Zhang Ruochuan placed his textbook on his desk, hesitantly asking Xie Ci, "Did he say when he'd be back?"

"He didn't."

Xie Ci sat down to change shoes and socks, suddenly remembering last year when Gu Yufeng casually stuffed his dirty socks into his shoes.

After washing up, it was still early, so Xie Ci sat down to do another set of papers. Halfway through, he felt something was missing, unconsciously looking up at the opposite side, where the space was empty, no one working, no one using their toes to tease him.

After lights out, lying in bed, many memories flashed before Xie Ci's eyes.

Gu Yufeng pretending to be sick to occupy his bed and getting caught...

Lying on his bed saying, "The shirt is yours too, might as well take it off"...

Returning to school on Sunday, a feverish Gu Yufeng curled up on his bed, groggily holding him and saying, "Headache."

This dormitory was filled with Gu Yufeng's presence.

Xie Ci couldn't remember if, in his past life, when he returned alone to the home he shared with Gu Yufeng, he was as restless as he was now.

Thinking of the upcoming plans, Xie Ci raised his arm to cover his eyes.

It's only been a few days, and he couldn't bear it. What about the future?

On the other side, Gu Yufeng followed Caitlin to the top-floor meeting room at Qingfeng Headquarters.

All the board members were already present, surprised to see Gu Yufeng.

This was the most favored junior of the family, and Caitlin seemed to want him to familiarize himself with the business in advance, preparing him to enter Qingfeng.

Many speculated it might be related to the previous FA acquisition proposal being rejected, as it was the young master's first proposal, and rejection would naturally cause dissatisfaction.

"Bringing your son here, you're not here to settle scores, are you?"

Aoliqi crossed his hands in front of him, glancing at Gu Yufeng, speaking in a tone meant for a child, with a somewhat mocking smile, "Young master, this isn't a place for playing."

Gu Yufeng placed his hands on the table, meeting his gaze, and returned the smile, "Is that so? You seem to be having a lot of fun."

One sentence and the tension rose.

The bald man in a suit sitting to Aoliqi's right took over, his voice rough, "There are still many important topics to discuss in today's regular meeting, irrelevant people should leave early."

"Irrelevant people?"

Gu Yufeng seemed to have heard something amusing, his smile deepening, "Better than some who bite the hand that feeds them."

The other board members were momentarily puzzled.

This was clearly aimed at Aoliqi, and it seemed to carry some deeper meaning.

Aoliqi, considering himself a senior, was not pleased to be directly challenged by a teenager like Gu Yufeng.

"What do you mean? Coming here to cause trouble because your proposal wasn't approved?"

"Before questioning me, perhaps you should think about how to explain these."

Gu Yufeng gestured behind him.

Robertson immediately handed over the documents he was holding.

Gu Yufeng pulled out a stack of photos and slapped them onto the conference table, the photos scattering across the surface.

There were photos of Masha meeting with Aoliqi, and Masha meeting with people from Desen, most of which clearly showed faces.

These were taken by a private investigator he hired, spending over a month to capture photos of Aoliqi and Masha meeting.

"Spying on me?!" Aoliqi slammed the table and stood up, his face livid with anger, "This is an invasion of my privacy, I can sue you!"

Unfazed by his outburst, Gu Yufeng tapped his fingers on the table, coldly retorting, "You colluded with the opposition, selling group intelligence, I can sue you too."

The other board members' expressions changed slightly, each taking a photo to examine.

"Utter nonsense!"

Aoliqi pointed at Gu Yufeng, looking at Caitlin, "Are you just going to let him do this?!"

Caitlin, sitting in the president's seat with her chin resting on her hand, had remained silent since entering, allowing Gu Yufeng to act. Hearing Aoliqi's questioning, she showed little reaction, "You should explain why you had private meetings with people from Desen."

"I don't need to accept this kind of questioning!"

Aoliqi kicked his chair aside and headed for the door.

"Wait."

Gu Yufeng called after him, "I'm not finished talking, and you think you can just leave?"

Ignoring him, Aoliqi opened the door, only to be blocked by a group of bodyguards.

"Someone who can't even explain their own actions, I don't think is suitable to be a director at Qingfeng."

Gu Yufeng straightened up, speaking slowly and deliberately, "Initiate the director removal process immediately, anyone who wants to oppose, think carefully about your position."

"You don't have the authority to initiate a removal process!" Aoliqi growled.

Gu Yufeng: "I don't, but my mom does."

"Do as Xiaofeng says, Qingfeng's top management cannot allow any internal traitors."

Caitlin's gaze swept over everyone, her voice firm, "Even suspected ones are not allowed."

The board members glanced at the furious Aoliqi, then at the expressionless Parick from the branch family, whose face was beyond unpleasant.

Today's situation wasn't just about the young master venting, it was also a confrontation between Caitlin and Parick.

The board had just rejected the young master's proposal, and now Aoliqi was caught red-handed. Such decisive action was truly impressive.

After the meeting, Gu Yufeng and Caitlin left together, returning to the president's office.

"I've submitted the MM acquisition proposal, please help me push it forward."

Gu Yufeng took the tea Fiona handed him, speaking to Caitlin sitting on the opposite sofa, "I'm heading back to the country this afternoon."

Caitlin gave him a longer look.

She knew her son had been locked in the study working on proposals these past few days, and now she understood it was all to return sooner.

"What's there that's worth you being so attached?" Caitlin sipped her tea, her tone probing.

Gu Yufeng: "Of course, something good."

Caitlin tested, "A handsome young man?"

Gu Yufeng paused slightly, meeting Caitlin's sharp gaze, instantly understanding.

Mom knew about his relationship with Xie Ci.

Gu Yufeng placed the cup down lightly, his tone cool, "All these years, I've never questioned your relationships, you'd better not meddle in mine."

As a minor, being exposed for having a relationship with the same sex could indeed cause trouble, but it was clearly no longer a secret.

"What kind of attitude is that?"

Caitlin frowned, her tone no better than Gu Yufeng's, "You're dating a boy, and I, as your mother, can't intervene?"

Standing by the sofa, Robertson had a look of disbelief.

What was going on? He hadn't noticed, how did the boss figure it out?!

The young boss was dating Xie Ci?! What?!

"This is my personal matter."

Gu Yufeng's attitude was firm, "Since you've already noticed, I'll make it clear: if you want me to enter Qingfeng, don't interfere with my relationship, or you can clean up the mess at home yourself, I'll go independent and start my own business."

"Gu Yufeng!"

Feeling threatened, Caitlin slammed the armrest in anger, "Giving up your career for a relationship, is this what I taught you?!"

"Qingfeng doesn't equal my career."

Gu Yufeng placed the cup on the side table and stood up, looking at Caitlin expressionlessly, "Leaving Qingfeng, I'll still do just fine, hope you understand, it's not me who needs Qingfeng, it's Qingfeng who needs me."

Caitlin: "You're young, but your tone is quite bold."

"Don't believe me? Try it." Gu Yufeng walked around the sofa towards the door, "Don't worry about Qingfeng, I'll be happy to be free."

Watching him leave, Caitlin was filled with frustration, seeing Robertson lurking, she took it out on him: "I told you to keep an eye on him, how were you watching?! Always saying nothing happened, and now he's been taken away and you didn't even notice!"

Robertson shrank his neck, taking the scolding, thinking to himself, was this really his fault?

If the young boss wanted to hide it, who could find out?

Gu Yufeng walked outside, took out his phone to call Xie Ci, having said several times before that he would come to pick him up, and this time it happened to be the weekend.

The number dialed, but the voice prompt said it was turned off.

"Turned off on a weekend?"

Saying he would return that day, Gu Yufeng still stayed three more days for the MM proposal, ignoring Caitlin's obstruction, and flew back to the country.

Seeing it was just past ten in the morning domestically, he tried sending Xie Ci a message.

[Still busy?]

Just after sending it, he received a call from Xie Ci.

"Break time?" Gu Yufeng asked, "I called earlier, but your phone was off."

Xie Ci's voice came through the phone, "Went to participate in a math competition."

Gu Yufeng remembered this, asking, "Is it over now? How did you do?"

"It's over, both Lao Fang and I got early admission offers." Xie Ci's tone was very calm.

Gu Yufeng chuckled, "You really can achieve anything you set your mind to, what reward do you want?"

Xie Ci: "Anything I say?"

Gu Yufeng raised an eyebrow, "Of course."

Xie Ci: "Your bedding's been left there to mold, hurry back and tidy it up."

"..."

Gu Yufeng was exasperated, "Do you want me to tidy up the bedding, or do you want to see me?"

Just after speaking, he heard a low chuckle in his ear, and Gu Yufeng couldn't help but imagine what Xie Ci looked like now, his gaze drifting.

The class bell rang, and after a few hurried words, they hung up.

Gu Yufeng arrived at the school just as the morning classes ended. In the classroom of Class 1, Grade 3, students were packing up their stationery to go eat, and he stood outside in the corridor, ready to give Xie Ci a surprise.

Jiang Chenyu and the others saw Gu Yufeng at the door and immediately surrounded him excitedly.

"Old Gu, you're finally back!"

Jiang Chenyu, with his arm around Gu Yufeng's shoulder, was thrilled, "I thought you weren't coming back, the dorm's been so lifeless without you."

Gu Yufeng smiled, "I'm back now, aren't I?"

Jiang Chenyu: "If you didn't come back, you wouldn't have seen Old Xie."

Gu Yufeng was a bit puzzled, "Is he participating in another competition? He didn't mention it."

Fang Size and Zhang Ruochuan were frantically giving Jiang Chenyu signals, but Jiang Chenyu didn't understand, completely missing their hints.

"Have you eaten? Let's go to the cafeteria together." Fang Size changed the topic.

Zhang Ruochuan agreed, "We can chat while we eat."

Gu Yufeng looked into the classroom, "Where's Old Xie?"

Fang Size: "He was called by Lao Xiang, told us to go to the cafeteria first."

Thinking of Xie Ci's good results, Gu Yufeng was in a great mood, adding, "Lao Xiang must be overjoyed, two people from one class getting offers."

"Isn't he? The day the results came out, Lao Xiang was so excited he cried."

Saying this, Jiang Chenyu became a bit melancholic, "But this means Old Fang and Old Xie have essentially graduated early, they don't even need to attend classes, and Old Xie said he's going to study abroad in Country M, it'll be hard to meet in the future—"

"Study abroad?"

Gu Yufeng stopped, the smile on his face fading, "He told you he's going to study abroad in Country M?"

Jiang Chenyu nodded, "Yeah, Lao Xiang knows too, he just called him to the office to discuss studying abroad."

Fang Size and Zhang Ruochuan couldn't stop him in time, only watching as Gu Yufeng's expression changed, thinking this wasn't good.

This kind of thing should have been told to Old Gu by Old Xie himself, not found out from others, making it seem like Old Xie was deliberately hiding it.

Jiang Chenyu sensed something was off, puzzled, he saw Xie Ci coming out of the office and waved, "Old Xie, Old Gu's back, come over!"

Gu Yufeng turned his head, meeting Xie Ci's gaze.

He was still in jeans and a short down jacket, with that cream-colored sweater Wang Hao's mom knitted underneath, his face cold and fresh, eyes slightly downcast, even without much expression, still drawing attention. Many times, Gu Yufeng felt that Xie Ci was the embodiment of "first love."

"When did you get back?" Xie Ci took a few steps closer, noticing Gu Yufeng's intense gaze, his expression not quite right, "Are you feeling unwell?"

"You decided to study abroad in Country M?" Gu Yufeng asked directly.

Xie Ci's eyes flickered, his gaze sweeping over Fang Size and the others, understanding, he said softly, "I planned to tell you when you got back."

Gu Yufeng was silent for a moment, nodding, "Who tells me doesn't make a difference."

After speaking, he avoided Xie Ci's gaze, turning to leave, "Congratulations."

"Yufeng!"

Xie Ci didn't miss the hurt in Gu Yufeng's eyes before he lowered them, turning to try and grab his wrist, but caught nothing, hurriedly chasing after him.

"Hey, what's going on? Is Old Gu angry?" Jiang Chenyu wanted to chase after them, but Fang Size and Zhang Ruochuan held him back.

"They'll sort it out themselves." Zhang Ruochuan put his arm around Jiang Chenyu's shoulder, heading in the opposite direction.

Xie Ci chased to the stairwell, seeing Gu Yufeng suddenly sway halfway, as if he was about to fall forward, he quickened his pace to catch him.

Gu Yufeng's face was a bit pale, his brows furrowed, after a while he recovered, shaking off Xie Ci's hand.

"Don't move, you don't look well."

Xie Ci couldn't let go, holding him in front, lifting his chin to look closely, asking in a deep voice, "Did you not rest well while at home?"

"Don't worry about it." Gu Yufeng coldly grabbed his wrist to move it away, turning to leave.

"If you struggle, I'll carry you to the infirmary." Xie Ci was equally strong, not giving an inch.

"Fine."

Gu Yufeng laughed in anger, turning to look at Xie Ci, "I want to see if you dare to do it in front of all these students—"

Before he finished speaking, Gu Yufeng was lifted off his feet.

In the astonished eyes of all the students, Xie Ci carried him down the stairs.

"What the hell are you doing?" Gu Yufeng didn't expect him to actually do it, "Put me down!"

Xie Ci: "Weren't you too sick to walk and wanted me to carry you?"

Gu Yufeng: "Are you putting me down or not?"

Xie Ci: "Not putting you down."

The students around listened to the two bickering all the way to the infirmary, looking at each other.

"Xie Ci's arm strength is amazing, carrying a 1.9-meter guy just like that..."

Nearby, Yang He and the others who happened to witness the situation: "..."

Somehow, arm strength doesn't seem to be the main point here.

The check-up results showed overexertion and low blood sugar.

Xie Ci casually pulled a piece of candy from his pocket and handed it over, but Gu Yufeng didn't take it, getting up to leave, only to be stopped by Xie Ci.

"Don't provoke me." Gu Yufeng said with a stern face.

Xie Ci originally wanted to take him to eat, but given the current situation, it seemed they needed to talk things out.

"Let's go to the dorm, we need to talk."

At this time, everyone had gone to eat, so the dorm was empty.

Gu Yufeng sat by the desk, watching Xie Ci lock the door, his tone cold, "You've already decided, what's there to talk about?"

"Whether we stay together in the country or go to Country D, neither is a good choice, you should understand."

Xie Ci walked over, placing his hands on either side of Gu Yufeng, "Avoiding won't solve the problem, we have to face it."

"Easy for you to say, why must you go to Country M?"

Gu Yufeng felt frustrated, "You can develop just as well in Country D, or just ditch that mess, we can start a business together, afraid of starving?"

After saying this, Xie Ci just looked at him, not speaking.

This was a refusal to back down even a step, and Gu Yufeng was so angry he felt suffocated, "Are you so sure we can withstand a long-distance test? Not afraid I'll find a bunch of Xiaofang outside?"

Xie Ci: "Tired of being a CEO in your past life, switching to pig farming this life?"

"..."

Gu Yufeng was still angry, pushing him away, deciding to unilaterally end the conversation.

"Yufeng."

Xie Ci hugged him from behind, his tone more serious than ever, "You just keep moving forward, I'll catch up."