Ch45 - Relationship

Three days later, the five members of ID were called to the company by Duan Yikun, who claimed that he needed to meet with them as soon as possible.

All five of them arrived and sat together in a circle, waiting for Duan Yikun to arrive.

Ji Jie raised the question: “Will the Captain still not show up today?”

While he seemed to be fielding responses from everyone, everyone present was interested in Xiao Xie Ge’s response. After all, the Captain only went AWOL after the two of them fought. This time was different from the last time too. Even though he was absent for two to three days last time, at least people could get their calls through to him then. This time, he seemed to have turned off his phone altogether.

Xie Zhuxing kept his head lowered. It seems that he had no intention to answer the question.

Amidst the silence, Duan Yikun entered the room.

The members stood up to greet him. “Sit down, sit down,” Duan Yikun said in response.

While he always wore a smile on his face, today, he donned a solemn expression.

Everyone began to have a bad feeling about this sudden meeting.

Duan Yikun shut the door close, walked toward them, and opened his mouth again with a torn expression: “I have gathered you here today to inform you…of an unfortunate event. The Shanghai fan meet on the 29th, Leo won’t be able to attend.”

Every single one of the members was surprised. Even Xie Zhuxing began to frown: it’s one thing if he had thrown a tantrum and decided not to participate in practice and rehearsals, but not attending such an important event?

Duan Yikun continued to explain: “Our company had already discussed this matter with the entertainment company in charge of organizing the Shanghai fan meet. We will announce to the public that his recent work intensity had caused serious discomfort, hence he will miss the event this time. We are fortunate that this fan meet isn’t large in scale – had it been a concert, we would be in massive trouble. Our company’s public relations will handle any follow-up problems accordingly. If and when you’re asked about him during an interview, just follow the script given by public relations.”

Everyone was silent, unsure of what reaction they should give to their agent.

Duan Yikun adjusted his glasses and dropped an even heavier bombshell: “Since everyone here trusts each other, I will give you the truth, but don’t go around telling anyone else. The real situation is – your Captain Wang may quit the group soon.”

“I won’t quit the group!” Captain Wang rolled and kicked on the ground at home, screaming as he complained: “Who gave you the right to tell them that I’ll be quitting without even asking! I won’t quit! No way!”

Wang Qi said: “I already saved your reputation, and you want me to ask you? Why didn’t you ask me when you used my credit card to buy luxury handbags as gifts for the girls you hooked up with!”

Wang Chao, who thought himself to be financially independent, stated confidently: “I will give you the money back! And you will give me my phone back! I want to give my agent a call!”

Wang Qi held his words in contempt: “During the few months since your debut, you’ve spent more than you’ve earned. How capable do you think you are?”

Wang Chao had absolutely zero idea about his own earnings and expenses, and retorted: “Even if it doesn’t earn much, it’s still my career! You’re ruining my career out of nothing, who gave you the right to do that?”

Wang Qi glared at him: “I paved the path for you to enter this field! We agreed on it then: I’ll haul your ass back home if you don’t listen. Only a moment ago did your habit of sleeping around get exposed, and a moment later you’ve been caught by me to be sleeping with a prostitute, and a male one at that! Who gave you the shame to mention your career, bullshit career! Stop wasting your words with me. As the saying goes, You have no right to speak.”

Wang Chao was utterly infuriated: “What ‘an elder brother is like a father’! Our father is still alive and healthy, who gave you the right to be my father instead! You can’t even produce a child yourself, yet you always want to be my father!”

When Wang Jin had returned home from work at night and went upstairs to unlock the door, he noticed with only one glance that his younger brother’s face was more bruised and swollen than in the morning. Confused, he asked: “Our elder brother came here again in the morning? How did you manage to piss him off again?”

Aggrieved, Wang Chao sobbed as he complained: “He didn’t discuss with me before he said to my agent that I’m quitting the group. I reasoned with him, and then he hit me!”

Wang Jin handed him the tissue box and consoled him: “He did that for your good. Your personality isn’t a good fit for the entertainment industry. Quitting it is not a big deal.”

Wang Chao refused to accept the explanation and argued: “He probably hit an obstacle somewhere else and used me as a punching bag. He’s confined me at home for three days already, and he came home everyday for the explicit purpose of beating me up. For my good? Fuck that!”

Wang Jin responded: “Stop with that nonsense. He’s your real brother – if he’s not doing this for your good, would he be doing it to harm you then?”

Wang Chao wiped his tears off and continued: “You didn’t listen to our parents when you were insistant on being with that partner of yours back then. Why weren’t you thinking ‘those were your real parents, would they be doing this to harm you?'”

Wang Jin: “…”

Wang Chao was entirely unaware that he had just rubbed salt onto the other man’s wound. He crumpled up and tossed the used tissue on the ground and asked: “Ge, let me use your phone to make a call.”

Wang Jin cast him a sidelong glance: “Want to use it?”

Wang Chao nodded pitifully.

Wang Jin laughed mercilessly: “Ha, no way!”

Wang Chao: “…”

What kind of bloody luck did he have that he ended up with these two brothers?!

He had been confined in this room, without his phone or computer, for three days. The only options for entertainment within the room were a couple of magazines and a piano.

He had flipped through the magazines so much that the binding had begun to loosen. He didn’t want to play the piano either. He had no affection for it, and the only skill he had was the result of being forced to attend piano classes for over a decade. He would only voluntarily play it for a bit when he wanted to, on occasion, show off to other people. Normally, he’d stay as far from it as possible.

With nothing to do, he was very, very bored. Since Wang Qi wanted him to reflect on his mistakes, he did it in earnest.

After much reflection, he concluded that his biggest mistake was that he shouldn’t have fought with Xiao Xie. If he had not touched that shimei‘s boobs, then no problem would have ensued. It was all on him for not being able to control his hands.

Not sure if Xiao Xie had contacted him during these couple of days. Maybe he’d already forgiven and wanted to make up with him. But his phone had been confiscated by Wang Qi, so Xiao Xie wouldn’t be able to reach him. Then, when he hears that he’ll quit the group, would he think that he’s assuming their relationship to be “over”? It can’t be actually over. He’s still waiting for Xiao Xie to buy a house in Beijing. Then, they would be able to live together.

When will his eldest brother let him out? He still has to go to Shanghai on the 29th. When they were exploring the Guangzhou tower last time, Xiao Xie said that he had been to Shanghai for a couple of performances as a back dancer. Since the schedule was tight, he didn’t even have any time to check out the top of the Oriental Pearl TV Tower. During their visit, he even promised Xiao Xie that they would check out the top of that tower together during the weekend of the fan meet.

He tossed and turned in bed. He wasn’t sleepy, nor did he want to sleep. He only noticed that he had wasted hours thinking random thoughts when the clock struck past twelve, at which point he realized that all of his thoughts were about whether Xiao Xie was still mad at him, did Xiao Xie miss him…probably not; Xiao Xie wasn’t confined, so he probably wasn’t be as free. Then what has Xiao Xie been doing these couple of days?

Why were his thoughts constantly about Xiao Xie? Just because he was in a relationship with him? What is a “relationship,” anyway?

As soon as Xie Zhuxing returned to his residence, he called his roommate’s boss. They’ve exchanged numbers for a while, but they’ve never directly contacted each other.

Liang Xi was a bit surprised and greeted him politely: “Ah, Xiao Xie. What’s up? Do you need something?”

Xie Zhuxing said: “So, here’s the thing. Wang Chao hasn’t shown his face for several days, and no one could reach his cell. I’m afraid that something had happened to him. Since he’s close with you, I thought that you wouldn’t probably know what’s going on with him.”

Liang Xi, however, replied in confusion: “I don’t know. I’ve been quite busy these past few days, and haven’t reached out to him once. Did he decide to take a spontaneous vacation somewhere?”

Xie Zhuxing: “…I see. Sorry for troubling you, Liang Ge.”

He had decided to ask Liang Xi not because he was certain that the latter had this information, but that besides Liang Xi, he couldn’t think of anyone else that he could ask.

Wang Chao is somewhat of a weirdo. He seems to be having lots of fun outside all the time. As matter of fact, the majority of the random people at that club where they met each other for the first time had known him. Therefore, he thought that Wang Chao was popular. It wasn’t until when they got closer that he discovered that the latter has almost no friends. Everyone else flattered him because he was loaded and had an influential elder brother. They even thought him stupid – but the latter understood their intention. Whenever people fawned on him, he would hang out with them, but that was it. Not to mention friends, he didn’t even bother to remember their names.

They’ve known each other for so long, yet besides Liang Xi and someone surnamed Zheng, he’s never brought up another friend to Xie Zhuxing.

He lives in his own neverland, a place not everyone can enter.

Liang Xi began to wonder about Wang Chao’s whereabouts too. He gave the latter a call, and as Xie Zhuxing said, it didn’t get through. He had to call Wang Jin before he learned that Wang Chao got confined at home again.

Why “again”? The last time that Wang Chao was confined at home was the summer of the previous year. When he was discharged from the hospital after his kidney stones were successfully expelled, he was confined at home by Wang Qi for half a month. The time before the last time was because he was drunk driving; even though he had returned home safely, he was caught red-handed by Wang Jin. Wang Jin pinched him as punishment and told wang qi about this. Wang Qi rushed home, beat him up, and then confined him for a week. The time before the time before the last time was because he found someone to take the English Level 4 examination for him. The school announced its criticism of his action, and Wang Qi beat him up directly at school, then dragged him home and confined him there. For three days, Wang Chao memorized English vocab without any breaks or rest.

The next day, Liang Xi excitedly headed to the Wang family’s fourth-time confined Wang Xiao San Er.

The bruised and swollen Wang Xiao San Er was playing “Little Star,” the one that twinkles.

Liang Xi was surprised: “Did you refuse to pay a prostitute? In that case, aren’t you supposed to be playing 'Little Schlong' instead of ‘Little Star’?”

Wang Chao: “…Thank god you’re not my actual brother.”

Liang Xi laughed heartily and said: “If you were my actual brother, the grasses on your grave would already be near twenty feet hight.”

Wang Chao didn’t laugh and only asked: “Is my second elder brother still downstairs?”

Liang Xi answered: “He’s reading downstairs. He said that he took a day off to keep a watch on you at home.”

It could be said that Wang Chao hates his two brothers to the score at this point. He angrily cursed and said: “Let me use your…”

Liang Xi interrupted him: “Phone? Already confiscated by Wang Jin before I came up. He said that he would give it back to me when I leave.”

Wang Chao was so angry that he smashed the keys of the piano without a second thought.

Liang Xi mentioned what happened yesterday: “Your teammate even called me yesterday to ask me about your situation.”

Wang Chao’s ears instantly perked up: “Was it Xiao Xie?”

Liang Xi knew that these two were close, so he didn’t think further before he answered “mhm.”

Wang Chao’s butt had already left the stool before the ‘hm’ was voiced. “What did he say?” Wang Chao asked with excitement.

Liang Xi responded: “He asked if something had happened to you since no one could reach your cell. I hurriedly gave Wang Jin a call afterwards and heard that you were beaten up, hence why I came here today.”

Wang Chao jumped up from the stool, fidgeting as he paced back and forth in front of the piano. “He looked for me! He looked for me!” He yelled happily.

Liang Xi was baffled: “So what? He owes you money?”

Wang Chao was somehow shy, an emotion that he himself didn’t quite understand. Regardless, he was embarrassed to voice it, and diverted the topic: “Aren’t you super busy? How come you have time to specifically come see me get beat up?”

Liang Xi replied with a contrived coyness: “I’m not that busy recently, only occupied with my new relationship.”

He was waiting for Wang Chao to ask him for details so that he could show off his relationship.

Who knew Wang Chao would then rub his own cheeks and say: “What you tryna show off? You think you’re the only one with a partner? I’m in a relationship with someone too.”

Liang Xi was shocked: “It couldn’t be that little prostitute that your eldest brother caught, could it?”

Wang Chao said: “The fuck? Of course not…I, I’m…Xiao Xie and I are in a relationship.”

—

Translator’s note:

Thank you to the anonymous supporter on Ko-fi for being my first ever supporter & getting us closer to another extra chapter update!