BPDSB Chapter 22: “I don’t owe money. I don’t take out loans. I’m broke.”

At first, Xu Xiliu was a bit puzzled when the man said he could see everything on Weibo’s trending topics. But then he thought, since he already suspected this to be the handiwork of the villain, then the battle of wits between the villain and the protagonist must be intense and full of sparks—there could be all kinds of tricks. Maybe the villain had pulled something again.

These were things a tool character like him couldn’t get involved in anyway, so he just listened and let it go. He had no intention of digging deeper.

Now that things had calmed down and it was late at night, Xu Xiliu couldn’t help but feel a wave of drowsiness. He stifled a yawn, and a thin layer of moisture fogged up his peach blossom eyes behind the gold-rimmed glasses. He blinked a few times to clear it. Just as he was about to tell the protagonist gong that he’d be heading out if there wasn’t anything else, the man suddenly stood up and took one step forward before freezing in place. His handsome face was twisted with a dark, vicious expression.

He looked like he was about to chop someone up with a knife.

Xu Xiliu’s heart skipped a beat from the fright. Half his drowsiness vanished on the spot. He instinctively took two steps back, eyes wide as he stared.

What was going on?

Playing red light, green light?

As he watched the man’s expression shift from vicious to dazed to confused, like he was grappling with some lifelong dilemma, Xu Xiliu hesitated for a second before softly asking, “Mr. Qin, are you… okay?”

“Is it dizziness, or something else?”

Qin Li was jolted back to his senses. All his dark, bloodthirsty thoughts vanished, and his attention focused entirely on the lower half of his body. His brows were furrowed tightly.

What exactly happened during that short spell when he lost control?

Unfortunately, he didn’t know.

So Qin Li turned his gaze to the only other person present. After a long pause, he asked, “Do you know what happened to my pants?”

“…”

P-pants!!!

Oh god, did he find out?

Those two words instantly triggered the alarm in Xu Xiliu’s mind. His previously relaxed expression vanished in a flash, replaced almost instantly by a countermeasure. A faint, graceful smile reappeared on his face, gentle and composed to the extreme. He lightly shook his head, exuding pure innocence, so untainted that no one could possibly associate anything improper with him. “Of course not. I just checked you over to see if you had any injuries, I didn’t touch your pants, Mr. Qin.”

“Oh right, Mr. Qin, you’ve got a small cut on your finger. Would you like a bandage?”

Xu Xiliu, considerate as ever, took the lead and asked with a caring tone.

Qin Li didn’t care in the slightest whether he had injuries or not, let alone a mere cut on his finger. He waved dismissively, clearly impatient. “No need.”

He wanted to move, but for some reason, every slight shift tugged at something, and Qin Li froze again.

His handsome face flickered with unpredictable expressions.

Glancing up at the private doctor nearby, Qin Li found the smile on the man’s face unbearably irritating—at least, he had no desire to see it right now. Besides, this… situation of his couldn’t possibly be exposed to someone like that, could it?

So Qin Li gritted his teeth and forced himself to stay still. He waved his hand again, signaling for his tactless private doctor to leave at once.

“It’s late. You should go. Call Uncle Zhong over—I need to speak with him.”

Hearing this, Xu Xiliu inwardly rolled his eyes.

What kind of tone was that? Talking like he was dismissing a servant. He wasn’t one of your household staff.

But whatever, better to just leave. Any later and he feared the protagonist gong might really start suspecting him about the whole pants situation.

Xu Xiliu left in a flash.

True to his word, he called the butler back.

While talking, he learned that the butler had stepped away briefly to prepare a guest room for him. The man said it was too late to drive back, and suggested he stay the night again, just like last time. Xu Xiliu gladly agreed.

Now that he was familiar with the place, he didn’t need the butler to lead the way. He went on his own.

Before leaving, he saw the butler enter the protagonist gong’s study. Faintly, he could hear the gong’s gloomy and confused voice questioning something from inside.

Xu Xiliu picked up his pace as he walked away.

He didn’t know how the man ended up dealing with the pants situation—but at least, in the end, he wasn’t the one being suspected.

Xu Xiliu was truly exhausted. After washing up, he collapsed onto the bed, shut his eyes, and didn’t even feel like touching his phone.

In the quiet room, he gradually drifted into sleep.

Just as he was about to fall asleep, the phone by his pillow suddenly rang. The screen lit up with an incoming call.

Groggy and startled awake, Xu Xiliu cursed under his breath, clearly annoyed. But the ringtone was relentless, as if it were possessed, determined to keep ringing until he answered. Irritated, he picked up the phone and squinted at the screen—it was an unknown number.

He flopped back down, dead tired, and answered the call without even opening his eyes.

Before the person on the other end could speak, Xu Xiliu launched into a preemptive strike with the phone against his ear, eyes still closed:

“No, I’m not signing up for anything. I’ve already graduated college.”

“I don’t owe money. I don’t take out loans. I’m broke.”

“Not looking to date, not doing online romance. I’m gay.”

With that, he hung up cleanly and decisively.

On the other end, Qin Zhangyuan: ???

He stared at the disconnected call in disbelief, then, undeterred, dialed again.

Xu Xiliu had just started drifting off again when the ringtone pierced the silence once more. He let out a disbelieving hiss, now thoroughly irritated. Furious, he answered the call. “You damn scammer, can’t you take a hint? If you’ve got the guts, call me during the day! Keep this up and I’ll call the cops on you for harassment—”

Qin Zhangyuan’s temple throbbed with a pulsing vein. He finally couldn’t take it anymore and cut in, “Doctor Xu.”

Xu Xiliu became even angrier: “Yo, you even know my surname, you’re quite capable……”

Qin Zhangyuan was silent for a moment, his face turning a bit red with anger.

He drew in a breath, gritted his teeth and emphasized his tone, and in the end still reported his own name: “Doctor Xu, I am Qin Zhangyuan.”

He suspected that this damned doctor had already forgotten him.

Xu Xiliu was still entangled with sleepiness, and upon hearing this, spoke with disdain: “Why should I care who you are, it’s not like you’re the only one with the surname Qin……”

……Surname Qin?

Qin… what was it again?

Qin Zhangyuan?

Isn’t that the name of the big villain in the text?

I go!

Xu Xiliu suddenly opened his eyes, the sleepiness flew away without shadow or trace.