DCEO VS DCEO | Chapter 3

Following his father’s orders, Fu Yan took Gu Zhan to the hospital, while Yao Jing took a taxi home.

In truth, even if Fu Hongping hadn’t insisted, Fu Yan wouldn’t have ignored Gu Zhan. Regardless of the reason, he had injured someone, and that left him somewhat in the wrong.

Besides, Gu Zhan was sitting quietly in the passenger seat, lips pressed together as he cradled his arm. Tiny beads of sweat shimmered faintly on his porcelain-white forehead, making it seem as though he was genuinely in pain.

This version of him was completely different from the confident, aggressive President Gu everyone knew.

For a fleeting moment, Fu Yan even thought he looked rather pitiful.

At the hospital, Fu Yan handled everything himself—opening doors, calling elevators, registering appointments. Whenever the crowd became dense, he carefully shielded Gu Zhan from being bumped again.

After examining the injury, the doctor said:

“The bones are fine. Just take some medication and you’ll be okay.”

“Huh?”

Gu Zhan adjusted his glasses.

Having dealt with countless people throughout his career, he had already noticed that although Fu Yan hadn’t said anything, he felt guilty and was trying hard to take care of him.

If things worked out as planned later, there would be a perfect story:

Fu Yan fought over someone he loved, injured Gu Zhan badly enough to send him to the hospital, and felt guilty about it.

The opportunity had practically fallen into his lap.

Why waste it?

Furrowing his brows dramatically, Gu Zhan said in a pained voice:

“But my arm really hurts. What if it’s serious muscle damage? Shouldn’t we do a scan? Look—I can’t even use any strength. I can barely move it.”

As he spoke, he deliberately let both arms hang limply like empty shirt sleeves blowing in the wind.

“Yes, doctor, perhaps you should check again.”

Fu Yan looked genuinely concerned.

The doctor peered at them over the rim of his thick glasses.

Young people these days really can't tolerate even the slightest discomfort. It was just a minor strain, yet they were acting as though the world was ending.

Sighing, he said:

“If you’re really worried, you can get an MRI.”

“MRI? An MRI sounds good.”

The doctor typed rapidly on his keyboard.

“Go pay first, then sign the consent form.”

“Consent form?”

“Yes. You need one for an MRI.”

The doctor glanced at Gu Zhan’s arm.

“You can’t write right now, can you? A family member can sign instead.”

Gu Zhan immediately looked troubled.

“My family isn’t in town.”

“I’ll sign.”

Fu Yan stepped forward.

“You?”

The doctor looked at him over his glasses.

“What’s your relationship?”

“We’re... friends.”

Honestly, Fu Yan didn’t particularly want to call himself Gu Zhan’s friend.

But at this moment, he only wanted him treated quickly.

“Friends can’t sign. It has to be family.”

The doctor rejected the idea outright.

Fu Yan gritted his teeth.

Then, as if forcing the words out through sheer willpower, he said:

“I... I’m his boyfriend.”

“Holy crap!”

Gu Zhan nearly shouted aloud.

The two of them had met exactly three times.

Every meeting had ended in conflict.

Twice they had nearly come to blows.

The distance between their actual relationship and being boyfriends was enough to circle the globe several times.

The doctor raised an eyebrow.

“What? He’s not your boyfriend?”

To Gu Zhan’s surprise, the doctor appeared completely unbothered.

At this point, what choice did he have?

If he wanted to continue setting up the heir of the Fu Group, he could only go along with it.

Rolling his eyes, he muttered:

“Y-yes... boyfriend.”

And thus Gu Zhan proudly received a perfectly healthy MRI report.

Truthfully, he had known all along that he wasn't seriously injured.

The MRI was simply intended to make things seem more dramatic and increase Fu Yan’s guilt.

After all, Fu Yan had charged out of nowhere and attacked him without knowing the full story.

Someone like that deserved a lesson.

By the time they left the hospital, it was already late.

Since Gu Zhan supposedly couldn’t drive, Fu Yan naturally had to take him home.

When they arrived downstairs at his apartment building, Fu Yan carefully unfastened his seatbelt.

“Are you sure you don’t want me to make you dinner?”

“No.”

Gu Zhan’s mood wasn’t great.

“I'm afraid you'd poison me.”

Thinking about the bruises and the inevitable disruption to tomorrow’s work schedule made him irritable.

“Then I can order takeout for you.”

“No need.”

“Can your arm even use a phone?”

“I’ll have my assistant do it.”

Gu Zhan glanced at the guilt written all over Fu Yan’s face.

“President Fu, if you really feel bad about today, then stop thinking about stealing my person.”

“My person?”

The moment Yao Jing was mentioned, Fu Yan’s mood darkened.

“What do you mean, your person?”

“Yao Jing never rejected my pursuit.”

Gu Zhan answered confidently.

“That makes him mine.”

“He didn't reject you because he couldn't!”

The righteous indignation immediately returned to Fu Yan's face.

“Oh, that's true.”

Gu Zhan smiled lazily.

“Someone like me is generally pretty hard to refuse.”

“You…”

Fu Yan bit down hard enough to stop himself from swearing.

“Anyway,” Gu Zhan continued, “Yao Jing and I like each other. If you interfere halfway through, that's immoral.”

Having delivered his declaration, he strode away.

Fu Yan was left fuming at the man's shameless confidence.

━━━━⊱⋆⊰━━━━

Over the next several days, Gu Zhan worked remotely from home.

Yao Jing repeatedly asked to visit and take care of him, but Gu Zhan declined every time.

He had decided it was time to cool things down.

Fishing requires patience.

Sometimes you tighten the line.

Sometimes you loosen it.

If he continued seeing Yao Jing too often, he worried Fu Yan might do something even more extreme.

After all, the man had already gotten physical in the parking garage.

The relationship between himself and Fu Yan couldn’t become irreparably hostile.

He only needed to demonstrate enough affection toward Yao Jing that, once Fu Yan eventually "stole" him away, the guilt would grow stronger.

That balance had to be carefully maintained.

Besides, distancing himself also created opportunities for Fu Yan and Yao Jing to spend time together.

At this point, Gu Zhan practically wanted Fu Yan to hurry up and win Yao Jing over.

He had invested too much already—even suffered injuries twice.

As a businessman, he expected returns far greater than his investment.

He was eager to reel in the net and collect the fish.

━━━━⊱⋆⊰━━━━

One evening, Yao Jing gathered with friends at a restaurant.

The conversation naturally drifted toward the internet sensation of the moment:

Yao Jing himself.

Thanks to the viral incident, he'd gained a fair amount of online fame.

His friends eagerly demanded details.

Who were the two CEOs?

Were the rumors true?

Once they learned the identities of the two men involved, the entire table erupted.

Several of Yao Jing’s friends were also gay.

Upon hearing the story, they became visibly jealous.

Gu Zhan was a young, successful entrepreneur.

Fu Yan was a wealthy overseas-educated heir.

Both were handsome.

Both were highly desirable.

Among their social circle, they were practically dream partners.

Everyone wanted to know:

What was it like being pursued by two men like that?

Which one was better?

Which one did Yao Jing prefer?

As alcohol flowed, the conversation inevitably became more suggestive.

Then someone asked:

“So... which one would be better in bed?”

Yao Jing immediately lowered his head.

Unfortunately, he wasn't qualified to answer.

He hadn't tried either one.

The table burst into teasing.

“You idiot! This isn't the time to act innocent.”

“Meat delivered right to your mouth—if you don't take a bite, another little fox will.”

“Exactly. Forget the future. Enjoy first, worry later.”

“Think about who these men are. If you hesitate too long, you might miss the opportunity of a lifetime.”

Just as the discussion reached its peak—

Speak of the devil.

Fu Yan happened to be entertaining clients in a private room at the same restaurant.

As he was leaving, he spotted Yao Jing in the main dining area.

The restaurant was crowded and noisy, so he had no idea what the table had been discussing.

He only noticed Yao Jing's flushed cheeks.

Apparently he'd had a little too much to drink.

Being courteous, Fu Yan approached and asked whether Yao Jing needed help getting home.

The moment Yao Jing’s friends saw him, their eyes lit up.

Birds of a feather flock together.

As friends of the little "seducer," they shared similar outlooks—and some were even more adventurous than Yao Jing.

Immediately they ushered Fu Yan to the seat of honor, poured drinks, and showered him with attention.

The scene resembled a monk wandering straight into a den of temptresses.

If you think they merely wanted to befriend the heir of the Fu Group, you'd be underestimating them.

One particularly clever friend exchanged meaningful glances with the others.

Instant understanding spread around the table.

They began taking turns urging Fu Yan to drink.

Polite and well-mannered as always, Fu Yan wasn't good at refusing people.

And with Yao Jing present, he didn't want to seem arrogant or disrespectful toward his friends.

So he accepted each drink.

Unfortunately, he had already been drinking in the private room earlier.

Before long, he was overwhelmed.

Dizzy and exhausted, he wanted to leave.

And that was exactly the opportunity everyone had been waiting for.

The group practically pushed him into Yao Jing’s arms and encouraged Yao Jing to escort him home.

They were all adults.

After working so hard all evening, wasn't the goal obvious?

To help their friend get closer to one of his admirers.

Naturally, Yao Jing wasn't about to waste their efforts.

He called a taxi and took Fu Yan to a hotel.

Supporting the swaying, intoxicated man all the way, he finally opened the hotel room door.

The warmth of the room made the alcohol hit even harder.

Fu Yan loosened his tie while walking.

“So hot...” he muttered.

Having navigated nightlife since his teenage years, Yao Jing had met all kinds of people.

Men like Fu Yan and Gu Zhan—powerful men accustomed to control—usually preferred partners who seemed innocent and uncomplicated.

That image had always been Yao Jing’s strategy.

But his friends were right.

Fairytale endings rarely happened.

Especially not in a relationship society often viewed as unconventional.

Gu Zhan remained unpredictable and difficult to read.

Yao Jing knew he wasn't clever enough to outplay two powerful CEOs.

Perhaps it was better simply to enjoy the moment.

“President Fu, you're hot?”

Yao Jing smiled.

“Let me help.”

This time, he stopped pretending to be innocent and reached up to loosen the buttons of Fu Yan’s shirt.

One by one, the buttons came undone, revealing a broad, athletic chest with sun-kissed skin.

It rose and fell with his heavy breathing.

The sight radiated unmistakable masculine energy.

Unable to resist, Yao Jing lightly brushed a hand across his chest before helping the unsteady man toward the bed...