Shi Xingwu, realizing his mistake, became extremely attentive in the following period, fussing over Miao Tong and being busy all around, making Miao Tong quite uncomfortable.
Especially after learning that his playful self-introduction as "Little Uncle" could be misheard as "Little Crisp," leading Xia Qingyu's classmates to believe he was a gigolo, Miao Tong was too embarrassed to even raise his head.
Good heavens, he, a pampered young master of the Miao family, never imagined he would one day be mistaken for a gigolo!
This was a path he had never envisioned.
This... this was Miao Tong's first taste of the feeling of being unable to speak even though he had something to say, having a bitter experience with no way to express it.
Oh my... my head hurts...
As for Li Xiaozhong, although he suspected Nie Qingkong had stirred up trouble and used Shi Xingwu, he lacked evidence. Shi Xingwu, with his loyal and simple nature, took all the blame upon himself without mentioning any fault of Nie Qingkong.
With no way to deal with Nie Qingkong, Li Xiaozhong could only tell Shi Xingwu to use his brain more when doing things in the future.
Miao Tong knew he was in the wrong, Shi Xingwu was easily fooled, and Li Xiaozhong had no proof. However, Xia Qingyu was convinced that this was definitely a misunderstanding caused by Nie Qingkong.
Nie Qingkong was unusually well-behaved for once, not loitering around Xia Qingyu or saying things that intentionally angered her.
After supper, everyone gathered in the game room for a while before returning to their respective guest rooms to rest.
Shi Xingwu, having had his fill of fun earlier, now felt tired. He took a shower and fell asleep early.
Li Xiaozhong wanted to lecture Shi Xingwu a bit more, but seeing that he was already fast asleep, he could only shake his head and go to bed himself.
On the other side, Xia Qingtian and Xia Qingyu slept in the same guest room. The atmosphere of sisterly late-night talks and laughter was quite pleasant.
It wasn't until Xia Qingyu asked about changing Miao Tong's room that Xia Qingtian slapped her forehead, saying she had forgotten to ask Bai Shao about it.
Earlier, they had been discussing the mysterious young master with Gu Yaoyang and Bai Yuqi, and then Miao Tong was inexplicably beaten by Shi Xingwu as a thief.
Afterward, Nie Qingkong stayed quiet and unseen, so Xia Qingtian forgot about it.
"Speaking of which, Miao Tong shouldn't be this unlucky, being beaten and then..." Xia Qingtian thought seriously and said, "What if Miao Tong also likes it?"
"Even if Little Uncle was beaten many times, it doesn't prove he's a masochist, okay?" Xia Qingyu said helplessly. Even if Miao Tong had been beaten several times in his short stay in City Z, it didn't prove he enjoyed being beaten.
If anything, Nie Qingkong was too detestable. It was enough that he targeted her, but how could he bully others?
No, she had to find a way to properly deal with that guy.
Xia Qingtian covered her mouth with one hand and yawned, "It's just for one night, nothing will happen. Don't worry, if he's unwilling, Miao Tong will cry out."
"Alright," Xia Qingyu could only nod and pull the quilt up.
Miao Tong had cried out quite loudly when he was being beaten.
If something really happened, she should be able to hear it, as they were just across the hall.
At this moment, Miao Tong was lying in bed, pretending to be asleep.
Nie Qingkong was also closing his eyes, pretending to be asleep.
He thought Miao Tong and Xia Qingyu were in that kind of relationship. He didn't expect this guy to be Xia Qingyu's uncle!
Nie Qingkong's mood was a bit complicated, not just because he had hit the wrong person, but because through this incident, Nie Qingkong discovered that his concern for Xia Qingyu far exceeded his admiration for a financial genius, and had even escalated to a somewhat possessive desire!
This realization made Nie Qingkong toss and turn. He couldn't have such desires; this feeling would only interfere with his decisions.
As the young master, everything he had to bear did not allow him to have such personal emotions.
Xia Qingyu's face reappeared in his mind. Nie Qingkong clenched his fist under the covers.
He had to resolve this matter quickly.
After a while, Miao Tong felt that enough time had passed. Listening to Nie Qingkong's breathing, which was steady and calm, he seemed to be asleep.
He lifted the quilt, got up carefully, put on his shoes quietly, and walked out of the room with his phone.
As soon as the door closed, Nie Qingkong opened his eyes.
There was a bathroom in the guest room. If Miao Tong needed to get up in the night, there was no need to go out.
What was he going to do?
With some doubt in his heart, Nie Qingkong also got up, carefully pushed the closed door open a crack, and saw Miao Tong's retreating back.
After a moment of thought, Nie Qingkong followed.
Miao Tong moved quickly and cautiously on the way, looking back several times but not seeing Nie Qingkong following behind him, and walked down the stairs briskly.
The more Nie Qingkong followed, the stranger he felt. This Miao Tong was too cautious.
If he said Miao Tong wasn't hiding anything, Nie Qingkong wouldn't believe him.
Following the stairs all the way to where Miao Tong had been mistaken for a thief and beaten by Shi Xingwu, Miao Tong slowed down, lowered his body, sniffed the air carefully, and tried to see the scene before him.
Just then, with a click, the lights on the first floor suddenly turned on. Miao Tong's eyes were dazzled, and he immediately raised his hand to cover them, thinking "not good" in his heart.
Nie Qingkong immediately retracted his foot that was about to step forward and shrank back into the corner of the stairs.
"What? Is this a sudden late-night treasure hunt game?" Bai Yuqi, with blonde hair, shook his wine glass and sat on a leather sofa not far from Miao Tong. "Why didn't anyone tell me, the host?"
Miao Tong gradually adapted to the brightness before him and looked at Bai Yuqi. "Young Master Bai isn't resting either?"
"What? You're allowed to go on a late-night treasure hunt, but I'm not allowed to catch you in a jar?" Bai Yuqi retorted.
"Catching someone in a jar or something..." Miao Tong chuckled, trying to bluff his way through. "Young Master Bai wouldn't think I'm going to steal something, would he?"
"The Miao family is a family of witchcraft and sorcery, so why would they be interested in my toy boat?" Bai Yuqi's smile didn't reach his eyes. "After all, he's one of the candidates for the head of the Miao family. Young Master Miao wouldn't do such a thing."
Hearing Bai Yuqi's words, Miao Tong's smile froze.
Nie Qingkong, hidden in the corner, also frowned. The Miao family of witchcraft and sorcery?
How could someone from the Miao family be Xia Qingyu's uncle?
"Young Master Bai knows a lot." Miao Tong looked at Bai Yuqi, a hint of wariness in his playful smile.
"Not much. If I knew enough, I could guess why Young Master Miao is here at this time." Bai Yuqi tapped the armrest of the leather sofa with his fingertips, his pleasant voice echoing. "Young Master Miao, let's talk..."
"Talk about what?"
"Let's talk about why you're approaching the Xia sisters, and what secret the Miao family and the Tang family have been deliberately acting out a fake enmity for all these years to conceal!"