KN | Chapter 26

He Is Free

Chen Wan hesitated over whether to play the Ghost King. He Shengyuan lowered his voice and said, “Ah Wan, show some of the nerve you had at the hearing.”

Chen Wan’s hand paused slightly. He turned his head and met He Shengyuan’s smiling gaze.

Chen Wan smiled calmly as well. “Mr. He is here too?”

“I’m in the gallery,” He Shengyuan exhaled a stream of smoke. “I recognized you the moment you came in.” Chen Wan’s calm composure at the hearing was very different from today. It would not be an exaggeration to say he seemed like a completely different person.

Chen Wan turned back to the cards in his hand. “Is that so?”

“For that Shenzhen project?” The project was somewhat connected to him, so He Shengyuan asked, “Not afraid of offending Luo Qiansheng?”

Chen Wan did not deny it. If you don’t enter the tiger’s den, how can you catch the cub? He only said, “I’ve already offended him. Being afraid won’t help.”

Something about that struck He Shengyuan as funny, and he burst out laughing. Chen Wan was puzzled. He Shengyuan patted his shoulder. “No need to be afraid.”

Chen Wan: “Hm?”

He Shengyuan looked at him. “Looking forward to working together.”

Chen Wan was quick-witted. He smiled and said, “Then I’ll be relying on President He’s care.”

They spoke in low voices. Zhao Shengge assumed they were discussing their play. After waiting for quite a while, he reminded them politely but with distance, “Are you taking this card or not?”

This time, Chen Wan truly brought out the decisiveness he had shown at the hearing. He went all in. The Ghost King came out, forming consecutive flushes. It would not be appropriate to let his future half-client lose two rounds in a row.

But tonight Zhao Shengge seemed determined to press them to the end. He revealed the base cards from the previous round again.

Second round, over.

He Shengyuan lost, but was not angry. He poured him a drink. Chen Wan smiled helplessly. He had not managed to let the other side win even once in two rounds, and he felt rather apologetic. Taking the drink, he poured one for He Shengyuan as well. “Sorry, Mr. He. My skills are inferior.”

He Shengyuan said to Chen Wan, “You’re too straightforward.”

Two consecutive losses made the atmosphere subtly awkward.

Yet despite winning twice in a row, Zhao Shengge showed no sign of pleasure. He had always been like this, his emotions unreadable.

After the round ended, someone handed him a cigarette in congratulations. Zhao Shengge declined and took a sip from the drink beside him.

That glass had already been topped up by the boy. Seeing that Zhao Shengge had not refused his earlier offer, the boy began speaking to him. Zhao Shengge lowered his head to look at his phone. It was unclear whether he was listening.

He Shengyuan pulled Chen Wan aside and insisted on analyzing the previous round, determined to find exactly where they had started slipping into the opponent’s net.

After reviewing it over and over, they realized it was impossible to pinpoint. From the very beginning, Zhao Shengge had already laid down hidden threads.

Zhao Shengge said, “Final round.” His dark, steady gaze swept between Chen Wan and He Shengyuan. “The two of you together?”

Chen Wan looked at He Shengyuan. He did not have the standing to decide.

He Shengyuan refused to believe it, waved his hand decisively, and appointed him. “Chen Wan will continue in my place.”

Chen Wan agreed.

Zhao Shengge said, “Then I’ll switch someone on my side.”

“Fine,” He Shengyuan agreed readily. “President Zhao, as you wish.”

Zhao Shengge casually tilted his chin toward the boy beside him. “You play.”

The guests’ gazes grew somewhat subtle. The whole room became a little noisy. Outside the window, it was unclear whether it had started raining.

Chen Wan’s hands did not stop shuffling. He lifted his eyes slightly. In his peripheral vision, the boy’s face flushed red. Flattered and startled, he said, “I, I don’t know how. Mr. Zhao, I won’t play well…”

Zhao Shengge had already lowered his head to his phone again. While replying to messages, he said, “It’s fine. You can lose.”

His tone was calm and unconcerned. To others, it might even sound like indulgence.

Chen Wan focused on shuffling. He felt a little thirsty and reached for the glass beside him.

The condensation on the glass dampened his previously warm fingers. The berry-colored liquid slid down his throat, bringing a faintly stimulating sensation. It was cold, but it cleared his mind quickly.

Clear enough that he immediately warned himself to regulate his emotions and behavior, not to make mistakes like in the previous two rounds that others could see through. That would be unprofessional.

Right now was already unprofessional.

His mind still replayed the scene from the last time they played stud poker on the open sea, when Zhao Shengge had called his name and said, “Chen Wan, when I play, I play to win.”

But now Zhao Shengge was saying, it’s fine, you can lose.

The third round began quickly.

The boy played first. He had told Zhao Shengge that he did not know how to play, but he could not truly be incapable. That was merely a form of coyness and showing weakness.

He could not tell whether Zhao Shengge wanted to win or lose this round. After letting him play, Zhao Shengge truly stopped paying attention to the table. He did not look at the cards or ask about the plays at all. He was either replying to messages or speaking with his secretary.

As a result, the boy’s plan to seek his guidance fell through.

But he soon realized something.

Whether he won or lost was not up to him at all, because Chen Wan was very strong.

He played seriously, but they were not on the same level.

The boy looked up. It was hard to imagine that the refined and gentle man across from him would play so ruthlessly. The points accumulated over the previous two rounds had already been mostly consumed in this single round.

Fortunately, there were only three rounds in total. The game ended, and thankfully he had not lost everything to Chen Wan.

As a result, although Zhao Shengge had won two consecutive rounds, by the end, the total scores of both sides were almost the same. The onlookers all chimed in, saying that Mr. Zhao and Mr. He were evenly matched, evenly brilliant. If they joined forces, it would be a powerful alliance. It showed that this cooperation would be a perfect pairing.

The poor boy could not understand the intentions of those above him. Chen Wan noticed the boy looking at him with a probing gaze and returned a polite smile.

He Shengyuan found the third round quite enjoyable. Although he knew Zhao Shengge had deliberately sent in someone inexperienced to give him face, watching Chen Wan play was indeed satisfying.

In the next round, he planned to play personally against Shen Zongnian and invited Chen Wan to watch from the side.

Chen Wan only stepped away from the table after accompanying them for three rounds.

After leaving the side hall, he glanced around but did not see Zhao Shengge. Only when he walked to the window did he realize that it had indeed started raining outside at some point.

Xiaotan Mountain was not high, but the trees were dense. The forest leaves roared softly, and the rain fell in straight, pale lines into the sea.

The girl who had originally been arranged to sit beside Chen Wan poured him a drink. Chen Wan checked his watch and asked, “What time do you get off work?”

The girl found him gentle and answered honestly, “There isn’t a fixed time.”

Chen Wan understood that this meant the people here could be taken away freely by guests. Zhao Shengge and the boy beside him were already gone.

Chen Wan said to the girl, “You can head back first. I don’t need anything here.”

The girl froze for a moment and said softly, “Mr. Chen, did I do something…”

“No,” Chen Wan said immediately. “I don’t have any other needs. Don’t overthink it.”

The girl left, reassured.

Chen Wan picked up a drink for himself. Zhuo Zhixuan slowly walked over and asked if he was alright.

Chen Wan did not understand.

Zhuo Zhixuan hesitated. Chen Wan thought something had gone wrong at the banquet. But after stammering for a long time, Zhuo Zhixuan finally said, “He’s not usually like this…”

“?”

Zhuo Zhixuan muttered in a low voice, “No idea what kind of madness he’s on tonight.”

“….” Chen Wan understood and did not know whether to laugh or cry. “What exactly is going on in your head?”

Zhuo Zhixuan’s face practically said, “It’s fine, you don’t have to force a smile.”

“….” Chen Wan said, “I’m really fine. Don’t be like this…”

Zhuo Zhixuan did not believe him. Thinking about how to explain, he said, “You know how Tan Youming and I mess around outside. I won’t tell you fake comforting nonsense, but Shen Zongnian and Zhao Shengge are not like that…”

“….” It was getting more and more absurd. Chen Wan could not take it anymore and interrupted him. “A Xuan.”

Chen Wan looked at him and said calmly, “He is free, and I am free.”

There was nothing between them. If one had to say it, they did not even count as friends.

“Although I don’t know how to explain it to you, I still think you don’t need to pity me.”

An unacted secret crush means that in terms of feelings, both sides remain equal. Zhao Shengge has the freedom to seek pleasure, and he has the freedom to stop dreaming.

As long as it remains a one-person game, the initiative is always in his own hands. He can call it off at any time.

Seeing how unrestrained he appeared, nothing like someone trapped in a long unrequited love, Zhuo Zhixuan could only mockingly praise him as a master of secret crushes. He added, “Don’t drink anymore tonight. Monica said last time that your current medication shouldn’t be mixed with too much alcohol. It will irritate your nerves.”

Chen Wan said alright, put down his glass, and went to the restroom. The warm-toned space and faint fragrance made his head feel heavy. He had just turned on the faucet, intending to splash his face.

Click.

The stall door opened.

He suddenly met a pair of dark, calm eyes and instantly sobered.

“Mr. Zhao.”

“Hello.”

Zhao Shengge glanced at him, walked over, and stood beside him at the sink. He turned on the faucet, pressed soap, rinsed, and dried his hands.

Chen Wan lowered his gaze to his well-defined hands and suddenly thought of the pair of legs beneath the tablecloth earlier, although he knew that could not have been Zhao Shengge.

“What is it?”

Zhao Shengge asked.

“Nothing.” Chen Wan showed no trace of guilt on his face and smiled. “I thought you had already left.”

Zhao Shengge threw the used paper towel into the trash, lifted his head, and looked at him through the mirror. “Were you looking for me?”

Chen Wan paused, then quickly said, “No.”

“……”

Zhao Shengge had likely come out for some air. Seeing that he did not immediately intend to leave, Chen Wan would not let the conversation lapse. “Mr. Zhao has had good luck tonight.”

“Thank you. However,” Zhao Shengge adjusted his sleeve and slowly lifted his eyelids, giving a serious evaluation, “you’ve regressed.”

Chen Wan was surprised by his bluntness and smiled. “That time, I was only borrowing a bit of Mr. Zhao’s luck.”

Perhaps because they had not met much recently, that night on the open sea when they joined forces and dominated the table felt very distant.

Zhao Shengge adjusted his watch, which had shifted while washing his hands. He raised his eyes in the mirror, slightly lifting his chin as he looked at Chen Wan. “You can borrow President He’s instead.”

His tone and expression were casual, as if it were just an offhand joke without deeper meaning. Yet his gaze remained fixed intently on Chen Wan.

“……”