“9:30AM, meeting.”

“11:30AM, the meeting ends.”

“11:35AM, in the office. Looking at your financial report.”

“12:30PM, eat. Attached photos 1, 2, 3, it’s not as delicious as your cooking.”

“1:30PM, meeting with clients. Negotiation topics include…..”

“4:00PM, go back to the office. Process documents.”

“6:00PM, get off work. Driving to pick you up.”

“6:30PM, traffic jam. Want to call you.”

“7:30PM, I’m at the gate of your school, do you want to drink milk tea?”

“…..”

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Starting from that day, Tao Mu would receive at least 15 FlyNews messages from Li Xiaoheng every day. At an average of one message every one to two hours reporting his daily itinerary. If Tao Mu did not reply on time, Li Xiaoheng would know that Tao Mu was busy, so he would wait patiently. If Tao Mu responded on time, Li Xiaoheng would call immediately to say a few words while racing against time——

Generally speaking, the time for phone calls was at noon or during traffic jams when getting off work every evening. The content of the calls were very varied, from work to life to Tao Mu’s acting classes.

Knowing that Tao Mu was filming a drama performance for finals, Li Xiaoheng also subtly proposed that he wanted to watch Tao Mu’s performance. As a qualified capitalist, Mr. Bigwig Li especially knew to bring in allies when making a request. He successfully lobbied for Mr. Song, Liu Yao, Meng Qi, and dean Tao, who also wanted to watch Tao Mu’s finals drama performance, to watch Tao Mu’s performance in the form of a family member group.

Tao Mu would never refuse Mr. Song and his Dads, and dean Tao, who had recently been depressed and finally managed to cheer up and say she wanted to watch him act. So Li Xiaoheng incidentally got a ticket as well.

Song Ji.

Tao Mu cooked seriously in front of the stove. Li Xiaoheng took off his coat and suit jacket, wearing only a shirt, and sat at the dinner table looking at his laptop. Although the short trade in the international crude oil futures market had been almost finished being dealt with, Tao Mu and Li Xiaoheng still didn’t want to let go of the international market. From international crude oil to the trading of various commodities, from the financial market of country M to the international banking and insurance industry, as well as the global manufacturing industry that was unsustainable by the financial crisis.

It was just that what was different from the previous situation was that Mr. Li nowadays would spare some of his energy from the computer screen every once in a while, and use the brief moments of resting his eyes to pour a glass of water and dry a towel for Tao Mu. Occasionally, he would also go to Mr. Song and ask what kind of soup is good to drink for those who often stay up too late and if he would teach him the steps to cooking it.

At this time Tao Mu would subconsciously raise his head, his eyes falling on Li Xiaoheng, who was humbly asking for advice from Mr. Song. After a few glances, he would go back to paying attention to the stove in front of him.

Li Xiaoheng generally did not chat with him while Tao Mu was cooking so as not to distract Tao Mu. But after he cooked a pot of health soup under the guidance of Mr. Song, he would serve Tao Mu the first bowl, and let Tao Mu comment on his craftsmanship.

The next few bowls naturally belonged to Mr. Song and Tao Mu’s Dads. Sometimes when dean Tao came over, he would also share a bowl with dean Tao. The rest would then be packed and taken home for his parents to drink.

After cooking soup so frequently, Li Xiaoheng would buy a new batch of ingredients for Song Ji under the excuse of him having consumed too many ingredients. Of course, Tao Mu used the weekend time to accompany him to the farmer’s market early in the morning to buy these ingredients.

Then Li Xiaoheng would treat Tao Mu to a meal and watch a movie on the grounds that Tao Mu had tired himself out while buying food with him so early in the morning.

Although he wanted to pursue Tao Mu, Li Xiaoheng’s presence was not very strong most of the time. He would not pull any sensationalist acts under the excuse of pursuit like those eighteen or nineteen-year-old boys.

Except for the daily reporting of his itinerary, and taking Tao Mu to Song Ji from school on time, the way the two got along was almost the same as before the confession. At best, Li Xiaoheng really started to learn how to cook.

However, even if there was no change in the communication mode of the two, and they rarely even mention the words related to dating in the conversation. Some people still keenly perceive that the atmosphere between the two had become different.

Except Tao Mu, Mr. Song, who had never taught others how to cook, silently taught Li Xiaoheng to cook soup. He actually didn’t agree with Tao Mu being with a man. Song Daozhen’s character had always been rigid and traditional. He believed that men were born to marry wives and have children and carry on the bloodline.

Not mentioning the harmony between yin and yang being the right way. Just saying two men being together was originally an unreliable thing. Even young men and women, there was still a chance of breaking up. Even if they married, if they didn’t have children, it was very easy to break up. Therefore, a family was complete and stable only after having a child. Children were the bond that maintained both parents. But if Tao Mu was with Li Xiaoheng, he might never have a child of his own in this life.

Besides, Li Xiaoheng was born in such a family. Could his family agree with Li Xiaoheng marrying a man? Their Tao Mu was originally an orphan, and hadn’t enjoyed what it was like to be part of a normal family for so many years. The gap between the two families was so big, the two households not matching in status at all. If Tao Mu was bullied by the Li family, he could certainly drag his old bones over to ask for an explanation. But the key was that when two people got married and lived their own lives, was it just to fight and argue?

So, Mr. Song didn’t say anything in front of Li Xiaoheng, but he held Tao Mu’s hand behind his back and tried to persuade him. He wanted to take this chance while the feelings between the two had not yet deepened. It’s not that grandpa doesn’t let you find a man, but even if you are looking for a man, we have to find the right one, and find someone you can manage. That way in the future, we will not be afraid of being at a disadvantage when you two get married and have a quarrel.

Liu Yao and Meng Qi also thought the same too. After knowing that Li Xiaoheng started chasing Tao Mu, Liu Yao even sent Da Hui to inquire about Li Xiaoheng’s personality. When he was studying in M ​​country, was his private life a mess, whether his family had already decided on a fiancee for him, or even if he was not engaged, whether they already had a daughter-in-law choice in mind. And also the Li family’s style of acting, were they the kind of people who would throw a check and insult others if they didn’t agree with their son’s choice of life partner?

“Our Mu Mu is such a good boy. Establishing FlyNews.com when only 18 years old. Having shorted oil and made hundreds of millions of dollars. And on top of all that he also looked handsome and has a good personality. How could he not be able to find a suitable life partner? If he really wanted to date surnamed Li, we also don’t have to look down on ourselves.”

The couple didn’t think about it as long-term as Mr. Song. Getting married and having children or something. Their Tao Mu was only nineteen years old. Even if he played around for the next ten years he still wouldn’t have reached 30, so why be worried? The ones who should be anxious were Li Xiaoheng and the Li family. If they could afford to wait then wait, if not then just find someone else.

“In these three to five years, you should just ignore him.” Meng Qi told Tao Mu, “Anyway, didn’t you plan on not dating? Men should put their careers first, once your career is on track what kind of men and women can’t you find? Besides, if you plan to be an actor, will there be a lack in pretty girls and handsome boys in the entertainment industry? Moreover, they can play and have fun, unlike that Mr. Li, who can’t even say ten words a day. Only knowing to work, and then thinking of chasing you in his spare time when there is no work.” Did he take their Tao Mu as a pastime?

Meng Qi was worried that Tao Mu was too young and inexperienced and had not met many men, let alone men willing to treat him well. And as a result just casually getting touched by Li Xiaoheng’s pursuit. So Meng Qi deliberately distorted Li Xiaoheng’s actions to let Tao Mu remain vigilant at all times.

“No matter whether men or women, they are bad in nature. Those who they easily get they won’t cherish. Have you heard of sunk costs? How much he spends on you, how much he invests in you, proves how valuable you are in his eyes. So don’t believe in the bullshit they use to fool innocent boys and girls outside. If a man refuses to spend money on you when he is poor, and refuses to spend time and money on you when he is rich, then it proves that even if he has feelings for you, these feelings are also limited.”

As the once popular male escort at Night, Meng Qi believed that he had a special understanding of the relationship between men and women, men and men. In a few words, if Tao Mu was really an innocent boy unfamiliar with the world, he would definitely be fooled.

However, Tao Mu had lived two lifetimes, and he had his own unique insights on feelings: “Li Xiaoheng shouldn’t be that kind of person. I believe he is sincere at this moment.”

However, Tao Mu had experienced the whole process of “sincere feelings becoming hateful enmity” in his previous life. And more than once. So even if Li Xiaoheng was really interested in him at this moment, Tao Mu didn’t dare to believe it.

Back then, when Zhuo Yan chased him, they went from sincere lovers who share the same bed to turning into enemies. Just happened to come across the seven year itch. How long could Li Xiaoheng’s sincerity last?

When the warranty period had passed, everyone could withdraw, but Tao Mu was afraid that he would not be able to withdraw.

He had no strength anymore to once again commit suicide by jumping off the building.

Even if there was no romantic love in this life, he could also just be content with familial love from old man Song, Yao Dad, Xiao Qi Dad, and dean Tao, and could still live quite well.

“I don’t think what Xiao Qi Dad said is necessarily correct. Even if the rich are willing to spend time and money when chasing you, once they have you and want to break up, considering the sunk costs, they may not be able to part ways peacefully.” And sometimes it was not just a matter of sunk costs.

“So you can rest assured. I will not agree to Mr. Li’s pursuit. It is just that I haven’t figured out how to refuse. Just take it gradually.”

Even if it was a refusal, there was a possibility that the disagreement might turn into enmity. But it couldn’t be delayed for too long. Otherwise, others could still accuse him of playing with emotions and deliberately looking for a spare tire. Tao Mu had experienced too much of this kind of thing in his last life, and it left a psychological shadow on him as well as solutions to solve it.

Habit was the second nature.

Li Xiaoheng obviously did not know that his actions could be deliberately misinterpreted by Tao Mu and his Xiao Qi Dad. And he definitely did not know that what Meng Qi said only strengthened Tao Mu’s determination to not talk about feelings.

The road to chasing his wife was long, and the most visible results of all Li Xiaoheng’s efforts was his growing cooking skills. So much so that everyone in the Li family all plumped visibly after drinking soup for half a month.

On the other side, Tao Mu, who had been busy with his finals rehearsal, finally ushered in the drama performance final.

The drama performance final of class 1 of the 2008 Drama Department was “Modern Version of Flowers as a Matchmaker”. That’s right, as soon as one heard this name, one would know that this script was carefully adapted and presented as a gift by classmate Du Kang.

In fact, when they first saw this topic, all the students in class 1 of the 2008 Drama Department, except Tao Mu, rejected it. Although everyone was not as burdened by idol baggage as Tao Mu, for young 18 or 19 year old teens like them, who didn’t want to perform something more lofty. It was fine if the school wouldn’t give classic scripts for lower grade students to perform. They could write a script themselves but who knew that the script they adapted turned out to be a two-people rotation (TN: two-people rotation is a genre of local folk dance and song from Northeast China, usually involving two performers. The dance uses folded fans or square-shaped red handkerchiefs, which are twirled as the songs are performed)

Who wanted to perform a two-people rotation on the stage at the end of their first semester! If it spread out, would they even be able to find a girl(boy)friend?

In this regard, the future director Du insisted that this was not an adaptation of a two-people rotation: “Can you people have a little culture? A little quality? A little bit of the most basic understanding of Chinese local opera? It is called Pingju ( TN: local opera of north and northeast China)! Do you understand Pingju? It is equivalent to the two-people rotation. Just like between me and Tao Mu, there is a Wen Bao!”

“Huh??” Classmate Wen Bao, who had been sitting next to them eating melons, rage-quit: “What do you mean?”

“I’m talking about height! Height!” Classmate Du Kang compared himself with Tao Mu, and said euphemistically: “It’s a rhetoric about a special image that can be seen at a glance.”

My ass! Wen Bao instantly rage-quit and pounced over to give the other a beating.

Tao Mu carefully read the script adapted by Du Kang. How to put it, although the name and theme was a bit vulgar and funny, the content was actually very innovative and of good quality. In fact it was better than most of the scripts their classmates came up with.

Tao Mu felt that, regardless of whether the script was adapted from Pingju. From the perspective of the plot and the characters alone, the characters were rich in personality with ups and downs. As expected of a great future director.

Tao Mu himself really liked it anyway and had a desire to act it out. So with Tao Mu’s help and persuasion, the class 1 students also reluctantly agreed to Du Kang’s script.

It was just that everyone was secretly rumoring that Tao Mu must have developed masochistic qualities due to Du Kang’s quiz question. He actually wanted to act out such a weird script.

In this regard, screenwriter/director/guest actor Du Kang expressed his gratitude. In order to reward Tao Mu for his level of artistic appreciation, Du Kang decided to give Tao Mu the important role of Wang Zunqing, the protagonist.

“Don’t you mean Wang Junqing?” Don’t think Tao Mu hadn’t read the original work. He went to see the movie after seeing Du Kang’s adapted screenplay alright.

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“That’s right, it’s Zunqing. The expression of art is different, so the feelings when the lines are recited will naturally be different. That’s how we say it!”

Tao Mu: “…..” Fine! You are the director, you have the final say!

So when Li Xiaoheng accompanied old man Song and the others to sit at the Beijing Film Art Center, he couldn’t imagine what kind of show he would see. And what kind of Tao Mu.

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After dinner, Li Xiaoheng sent Tao Mu back to school as usual.

When checking out, Li Xiaoheng also asked the waiter to help pack the eight piece dining set used to peel crabs for Tao Mu. Although the confession failed, Mr. Li felt that his first confession was still worth remembering. He decided to take this set of diningware as a souvenir of his confession towards Tao Mu.

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When getting in the car, Li Xiaoheng said to Tao Mu with emotion: “I know, you still don’t believe that I am serious about you. But I can prove that my feelings for you are like the steel used to create this eight piece dining set, it will always be firm and will never change, nor will it rust.”

Tao Mu: “…..” How lame.

Li Xiaoheng looked at the slight disdain that flashed across Tao Mu’s face and couldn’t help but smile.

He felt that although his first confession had failed. But to a certain extent, it was also considered a success. At least Tao Mu was now aware of his intentions. Just like a good project chased by many capitals, now Party B had seen his intention to cooperate. So next, he only needed to prove his sincerity and ability to Party B——

The sincerity to join hands for the rest of their lives, and the ability to solve any problems after the two merged.

Li Xiaoheng felt that he should go back and write up a plan. Not only must Tao Mu see his sincerity, but Tao Mu must also see his executive ability.

And before Tao Mu accepted his pursuit, Li Xiaoheng believed that he must use 200% hard work and enthusiasm to impress this talented but difficult to convince partner.

Thinking optimistically, business partners and life partners were both two word terms. It took him half a year to achieve the former. There was only a one word difference. In terms of time, he planned to give himself at least one and a half years of preparation time.

Having Tao Mu agree to his pursuit would be equivalent to a year and a half to facilitate the establishment of the project. When Tao Mu accepted his pursuit, that was, when Party B agreed to the cooperation, the following dating time would be equivalent to the merger negotiation. When the time for getting along was almost done, they could then consider the merger. Which was basically talking about marriage. And life after marriage was equivalent to strategic adjustments and structural changes after a business merger…..

That night, Li Xiaoheng spent a whole night drafting an “Arbitrage Merger Plan.” And before going to work the next morning, the first part of this plan——how to win the cooperation intention of Party A’s work process, was photographed and sent to Tao Mu’s FlyNews.

At that time Tao Mu was practicing morning exercises on the campus field and reciting lines, when he heard the phone alert. Shivering from the morning chill, he took out his phone and opened it: “?”

Tao Mu didn’t understand it at first, and thought that Li Xiaoheng was planning to engage in some sort of arbitrage trading company acquisition. He was now the chief analyst and senior partner of Xiaoheng Capital, and of course he should not act willfully in his work. So he was just about to take a closer look, combining his previous life experience to provide professional and effective advice to Li Xiaoheng. But when his frozen fingers swiped down, all he saw were “Reporting the schedule every day, learning to cook for Tao Mu, providing convenience in work and life, and trying hard to learn to take care of Tao Mu” and so on that was nothing like what would appear on an arbitrage mergers and acquisitions plan.

What the hell!

“Tao & Li, you are in the front, and I am in the back. Taoli for short.” Li Xiaoheng sent a message through FlyNews especially earnestly to explain: “The unspoken rules established on the negotiating table. Whoever has the first name will have greater leadership. In the cooperative relationship, Party A’s rights and status are higher than those of Party B. Party B needs to serve Party A wholeheartedly and strive for the favor and satisfaction of Party A. I hope that between the two of us, you can occupy more leadership while I will serve as Party B and provide you with more services.”

“As for the merger…..” Even though the other was on the other end of the phone line, Tao Mu’s face was not visible at all, Li Xiaoheng still felt his ears warm up: “I hope our relationship can go from cooperation to merger, from dating to marriage.”

He explained to Tao Mu his theory of “dating/marriage = commercial mergers” that he had thought over about last night: “Because the morning time is not enough, I will only send you the first part of how to pursue you. If you think that something is not good, you can directly tell me. I will continue to modify it according to your suggestions until you are satisfied.”

After a pause, Li Xiaoheng asked a little shyly: “If you are also interested in other procedures, I can send you the whole document later.”

Tao Mu sighed. He had lived two lifetimes, but he had never heard of using commercial mergers and acquisitions methods in dating. Li Xiaoheng was able to write up a whole plan…..even giving it the name Taoli Merger…..mental!

“Mr. Li!” Tao Mu scratched his head with his hand in annoyance: “You are a person who is destined to be Party A all your life. Why distress yourself to be Party B. There are so many good projects in the world, and a capital bigwig like you can completely choose at will. You can choose whatever you want. Party B will never reject a Party A like you. So why can’t you put yourself in the place of Party A instead of wasting time in finding another Party A, who might not be so good, and turn yourself into Party B?”

“Because all the Party B’s are not you.” Li Xiaoheng’s voice came from the other end of the line, gentle and firm: “There is another traffic jam. The traffic in Beijing is like this. Traffic jams every day. But every morning, you have to drive out to go to work. This is not a waste of time, but a rigid requirement.”

“Tao Mu, you are my rigid requirement. Everything I do for you is a strategic need, and nothing is a waste of time.” If necessary, even a capitalist’s sweet talk could be more pleasing than that of a poet.

Because poets did not make money most of the time when they wrote poems. So he wrote from emotion, first pleasing himself, and then touching others. But every word the capitalists say was for profit. So he must find the lifeblood before he acted. Sometimes direction was more important than hard work. But in order to maximize the benefits, both direction and effort were indispensable.

Li Xiaoheng believed that successfully pursuing Tao Mu was related to his life-long interests. So he had to find the right direction, then bombard and open the gates around the heart that Tao Mu had set up a heavy guard around.

This was a protracted battle that required unremitting efforts and perseverance. Of course, during this period, it might also require countless early-stage capital expenditures. Li Xiaoheng was already fully prepared for this.

“I am a shrewd businessman. I have the ability to discern right from wrong and possess business insight. I can take responsibility for the decisions I make. I know exactly what I am doing and what kind of person I want.” Li Xiaoheng chuckled warmly: “Xiao Mu, I don’t quite understand what your concerns are. What I am referring to is you not being confident in yourself. But I think even if you want to dispel my enthusiasm, at least don’t question my judgment and execution. Because we all know what kind of people we are.”

“You——” Tao Mu was speechless. Noticing that his classmates were no longer memorizing lines around him, and were instead secretly eavesdropping. Tao Mu got up and walked to the edge of the campus field.

“What do you like about me? Is it because I have a good stock market vision? Can cook? Or because I have good looks?” Tao Mu thought about it for a long time last night, but still couldn’t figure out what about him attracted Li Xiaoheng.

Li Xiaoheng said that they knew who each other was, but Tao Mu felt that what he said was wrong. Tao Mu really knew who Li Xiaoheng was. But Li Xiaoheng didn’t necessarily know who Tao Mu was. Because Tao Mu in Li Xiaoheng’s eyes was not the real Tao Mu. It wasn’t the Tao Mu who was vicious, paranoid, cowardly, and didn’t even have the courage to live. But a fake elite who was wrapped in the halo of having knowledge of a decade into the future from his rebirth.

After ten years passed, when he could no longer produce accurate and effective investment reports and his true nature revealed itself, Li Xiaoheng would be disappointed in him. Like so many people he had ever met, they would abandon him like a worn shoe or even become enemies with him.

“You are indeed really handsome. I admit that you are the most handsome man I have ever seen.” On the other end of the line, Li Xiaoheng couldn’t see Tao Mu’s expression, but he could hear the rollercoaster of emotions in Tao Mu’s voice: “But I can’t guarantee that this is a subjective bias due to my liking you. Because I like you, I think you are the best.”

“Your vision in the financial field is really superior. But I think if it is just because of your high financial talent, I would not like my business partner so casually. Before you, I did not like the other talented financial analysts and stock traders I’ve met. No matter how excellent the other was or how strong the talent shown in the financial field. It can be seen that this is not a necessary condition for me to like you.”

“The dishes you cook are also delicious. But I don’t think I will like a person just because they cook delicious food. If I like to eat delicious food, I can go to the restaurant. In fact, if you want, I am also willing to cook for you.”

“So you see, I like you completely because you are Tao Mu. All the other external conditions are only part of you.” Li Xiaoheng analyzed rationally: “They are not even your bonus points. Because we all know, even if you can’t trade stocks or cook, I will still like you.”

“But if I’m not handsome, you might not like me anymore?” Tao Mu raised his eyebrows. He didn’t know how he was in the mood to joke.

Li Xiaoheng chuckled: “I have to admit this. I liked you when I first met you. Your appearance is very in line with my aesthetics. If it weren’t for your face, I don’t think I would have continued to contact you and gradually develop the curiosity to understand you. Moreover fall in love with you.”

Tao Mu’s ears became slightly heated: “You guys who come back from studying abroad, do you all speak in such sappy ways?”

“This is honesty.” Li Xiaoheng said solemnly: “You have to admit that I am at least an honest and reliable partner.”

Tao Mu didn’t know what to say.

Li Xiaoheng laughed lightly: “I have a meeting at half past nine. It will be held for about an hour and a half. Can I invite you to lunch at noon?”

Tao Mu silently breathed a sigh of relief when Li Xiaoheng took the initiative to change the subject. He must admit that even if he didn’t want to accept Li Xiaoheng’s pursuit, he didn’t want to fall out with Li Xiaoheng. The cost of their cooperation collapsing was too great, at least the current Tao Mu couldn’t afford it: “I have to film a drama performance recently for the finals. There’s no time to go out to eat at noon.”

“Then can I apply to visit the set?” Li Xiaoheng asked, “Didn’t you say that you want to eat hot pot? I can call Shujin Pavilion in advance and ask them to prepare the ingredients and chef and go to Beijing Film to cook it for you.”

“Don’t make such a fuss. My classmates will be uncomfortable.” Tao Mu said, “I’m just going to eat randomly in the cafeteria at noon.”

“Don’t eat randomly.” Li Xiaoheng frowned, “Didn’t you always advocate that one should eat well, no matter how busy one is at work, one must eat seriously. This is what you told me.”

“That’s because you have stomach problems. Besides, I just eat like this once in a while. Isn’t this because of the finals and we have to take all the time to rehearse?” Tao Mu said, “Don’t worry. I will definitely take good care of myself, I absolutely won’t treat my own health casually.”

“That’s good.” Li Xiaoheng thought for a while, and then said, “Are you still going back to Songji to cook at night? How about I drive to school to pick you up?”

“I can drive back by myself.” Tao Mu said, “If you are busy——”

“I want to eat your pot simmered deer tendon dish.” Li Xiaoheng said warmly: “I said yesterday that I will just take a day off and then eat your dishes every day.”

Without waiting for Tao Mu to respond, Li Xiaoheng said again: “And I want to learn more cooking techniques from Mr. Song. You invite me to eat the dishes you cook, and I should also invite you to eat the dishes I make. How much did you already cook for me? Now, I have to at least cook twice as more for you. This is the consciousness that Party B should have during the cooperation period.”

Tao Mu frowned: “Brother Li, you don’t have to do this.”

“Why not? Haven’t you always been doing this before?” Li Xiaoheng said lightly: “During our cooperation, no matter how much I give you, you will try your best to return it to me several times or even dozens times more. Short selling in the international crude oil market is the case, and the same is true for short selling in the international financial market. Xiaoheng Capital was also allowed to act as the title sponsor for the opening of the charity event “Holding Hands and Offering Love”.”

Tao Mu interrupted Li Xiaoheng’s words: “Brother Li is too courteous. We are partners, and these are what I should do.”

“I am your admirer. Being good to you, and getting your approval is what I want to do.” Li Xiaoheng continued: “Xiao Mu, I am now chasing Party A with a Party B’s mindset, and solemnly request you to give me this chance.”

Tao Mu was speechless. After a long while, he sneered and said, “Brother Li, do you know how many Party A’s will be chased by one Party B in a year?”

“I don’t know.” Li Xiaoheng slowly inched his car forward, and said directly amidst the surrounding honking of car horns, “I don’t care how other people do business. I only know that I, Li Xiaoheng, will be Party B for you alone in this life.”

The cold winter wind blew past. The knife-like biting cold wind blew cuttingly across people’s cheeks, blowing away the white breath that misted from the nose and mouth. Tao Mu held the phone stiffly with his fingers, feeling that his chin was almost frozen off. He couldn’t even say a word.

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Li Xiaoheng continued: “Before the new partnership is reached, everyone will have a certain degree of doubt about their partners. This is human nature. Even after the cooperation has started, there will be many partners who hold a certain degree of vigilance. Because they feel uneasy and are afraid of betrayal.”

“But my reputation in the industry is pretty good. I will not actively betray my business partner, nor will I betray my life partner. You can set an evaluation period for me. I especially look forward to taking on your assessment.”

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Before today, to be precise, before this meal, Li Xiaoheng had imagined many times what his first confession should be like.

Take Tao Mu on his private jet overlooking the rivers, lakes, mountains, and other famous sceneries, or take Tao Mu on his private yacht to admire the sea scenery, and then at night, when the fireworks exploding in the night sky, kneel down to Tao Mu on one knee to make his confession. Or he should have at least booked a restaurant with a chef prepared romantic candlelight dinner, a large bouquet of roses, a love confession cake, and a pianist or violinist on the side playing the song “Romantic Wedding” or something…..

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All in all, it should definitely not be the way it was now, eating food, holding a half peeled crab in his hand, facing a table full of crab shells and shrimp skin leftovers, confessing hastily and recklessly.

——Would Xiao Mu think I am too casual? No sincerity at all?

I really shouldn’t be so impulsive. I should continue to subtly and quietly accompany Xiao Mu until Xiao Mu is completely accustomed to me and begins to have good feelings about me before confessing.

But what if in the meantime, someone confessed to Xiao Mu ahead of me, and Xiao Mu agreed?

In an instant, Li Xiaoheng’s mood was full of remorse and entanglement. Wanting nothing more than to rewind back ten minutes. However, even if the time really went back ten minutes, Li Xiaoheng was reluctant to miss this opportunity to confess.

There was no expression on Li Xiaoheng’s face, as if he was at the negotiating table about to sign a contract worth hundreds of billions of dollars at any time. One couldn’t see even a hint of the crazy barrage of 10,000 mud horses running across his inner bullet screen.

Li Xiaoheng squeezed the crab with both hands, and looked at Tao Mu with anxiety. Seeing Tao Mu’s expression shift in just a few seconds, from stunned at first, then amused, then turning into a sneer, and then quickly transitioning from a sneer to thoughtful indifference, and finally freezing into an interested and curious expression: “How did brother Li come to like me?”

There was something wrong!

Although he had not known Tao Mu for a long time, he was very familiar with Tao Mu’s true reactions in various environments because of Li Xiaoheng’s deep-rooted one-sided feelings. He could even tell from Tao Mu’s subtle expression what Tao Mu was thinking, so Tao Mu’s current state was definitely not curious why Li Xiaoheng liked him.

Li Xiaoheng frowned subtly, feeling that the situation might not be very good, as expected, one would face a high probability of failure if one did not fully prepare before the negotiation.

Fortunately, Li Xiaoheng had never imagined that Tao Mu would immediately accept his confession. He just hoped that Tao Mu could give him a chance to pursue him——

“Speaking of, I met brother Li during the summer vacation.” Tao Mu called him brother Li, but in Li Xiaoheng’s ears, the “brother Li” this time was not even as close and familiar as the “Mr. Li” just now.

“We met for the first time on July 7th, which is only half a year to make a full calculation. During that time, brother Li was dealing with business in Country M for most of it, which means that we actually only spent a little over two months together in actuality.” Tao Mu looked at Li Xiaoheng with a gentle smile. The expression conveyed surprise, with a little embarrassment and shyness: “In such a short period of time, I can actually make someone as good as brother Li like me. Say, I am really flattered. It seems that my personal charm is also not bad.”

No, you don’t think so in your heart. Li Xiaoheng looked at Tao Mu’s expression, and his excitement after the impulsive confession gradually declined. He keenly sensed that Tao Mu seemed to be putting up guards against him.

——Tao Mu was indeed the case.

Li Xiaoheng’s confession reminded him of his terrible last life. Before returning to the Shen family’s house, Tao Mu actually attracted a lot of mad bees and butterflies because of his face. Even with Liu Yao protecting him, Tao Mu had no lack in experiencing his path blocked by luxury cars at the school gate and being requested to become ‘friends’.

Later, when he returned to the Shen family, some people might be looking at the wealth of the Shen family at the beginning, or at his face. Maybe they found it particularly novel, so they put on an attitude of “I like you”. Even in Shen Yu’s harem group, many of them at first became interested in him, but in the end they all became attracted to Shen Yu without exception. And in the end, they would put on the disgusting attitude “I didn’t expect you to be this kind of person, you really disappointed me. I must have been blind to be interested in you”. These people would step on him even more than those who liked Shen Yu from the beginning. Their damage index was absolutely no less than the lethality of a big fan turning into an anti.

Tao Mu was actually not afraid of anyone playing tricks on him. After all, he grew up in an environment of repeated manipulations and scheming since he was a child.

But people who just made sweet promises to him, only to in the next second turn around to help Shen Yu deal with him. After experiencing this for too long, Tao Mu would also become tired.

The most important thing was that having to solve the mess that ensued was too troublesome. Just like Zhuo Yan, when he first chased him, he was extremely sweet and good. He was so caring and showed his affection to the extent that it was nauseating. Coaxing Tao Mu, who was full of wariness from the beginning to eventually soften and give over his trust. So, the two became the closest people sleeping on the same bed. Tao Mu even thought about when to take time out to get a marriage certificate with Zhuo Yan. But the result was that the pursuer in their relationship got bored first.

Feeling that the scheming big leopard with ruthless and cruel methods had become boring, and was not as good as the soft and cute Persian cat.

But the point was that it was fine if you got tired, after all even condoms have a shelf life. Who hadn’t experienced a seven-year itch? What Tao Mu couldn’t understand was that even if you didn’t like him anymore, so long as they had an open talk, Tao Mu was not the kind of person who would pester and harass and refuse to let go.

Wasn’t it good to break up decently and maturely?

The key point was that Zhuo Yan was not——it should be said that anyone Tao Mu had contact with who had repeatedly said that they admired him was not like that.

When breaking up, they just had to turn it into a matter of deep life-long hatred. It was clearly themselves who got tired in the relationship but they insisted on placing that responsibility on Tao Mu. And they dare to put on an innocent victim’s face, accusing Tao Mu with a wounded expression, and shamelessly say that they didn’t expect Tao Mu to be such a scheming and ruthless person——motherf**kers, is this is the first day you all met me?

Every time he was pursued and began dating, they would end up as enemies. No wonder Tao Mu was now reflexively wary when he heard related words.

He really had a headache. He wasn’t happy at all about being pursued and liked by an excellent suitor. On the contrary, the better the person who liked him, the more worried Tao Mu would be. If this was the case, how much effort must he put in to settle the civil strife?

Besides, he didn’t see how Li Xiaoheng liked him?

The two of them, since meeting to now, in total had only been half a year, and the number of times they met in person could not be said to be a lot. During this period, there were only a handful of times when they talked about private affairs——most of the time, they only talked about work and how to short the international market.

That’s right! Tao Mu came back to his senses when he thought of work. Sh*t, most of his wealth was still within Xiaoheng Capital.

He originally thought that his luck had turned for the better after rebirth, and he could easily hug a golden thigh. The two would cooperate happily and tacitly, with one responsible for providing financial reports and the other responsible for the specific trading. Tao Mu could also enjoy the pleasure of having a large amount of money flowing into his bank account just while he relaxed on the bed.

Unfortunately, his partner experienced a sudden and unexpected convulsion, suddenly confessing nearing the end of their meal.

——F**king mental! On a whim? Struck by lightning? Could this be any more messed up? Ordinary white-collar workers still know not to engage in office romances. Yet a big capitalist with a great future like you insist on talking romance with your business partner?

Even if they both liked men, rabbits still don’t eat the grass around their nests. Everyone is a bunny here. Couldn’t you follow the most basic species habits and ethics inherited from species genes?

Thinking of Li Xiaoheng’s methods and the great affluence of the Li family, Tao Mu, instead of being delighted by being confessed to by such a suitor, felt the fear of being dominated by the “friends to enemies halo of hatred”.

If this talk accidentally took a turn for the worse, could his little bit of savings withstand the revenge of Li Xiaoheng?

Tao Mu took a deep breath and felt that he was about to have a heart attack. Should he think of a way to first withdraw his funds from Xiaoheng Capital?

However, the top priority now was to appease the business partner who suddenly went into convulsions when he was not looking.

“Brother Li.” Tao Mu forcefully suppressed his complaints and slanderings, and said with a gentle smile: “Your sudden confession is really surprising to me. How to put it, I think we don’t know each other that well. You know what I am like, I am not that kind of innocent and pure good person——”

“I know.” Li Xiaoheng nodded and interrupted Tao Mu’s words: “You don’t believe that I really like you. Maybe you are even worried that after rejecting me, I will become angry and ruin our cooperative relationship.”

Tao Mu didn’t expect Li Xiaoheng to directly point out his worry. Suddenly he was a little embarrassed: “How could that be. I still trust brother Li’s professional ethics. Our cooperation has been pleasant so far, and we have earned tens of billions of dollars in the international crude oil market. It is conceivable that the future gains will definitely be greater than now. Mr. Li is also a businessman, how can you let emotions take over reason.”

Tao Mu’s words were so conclusive, sincere, and earnest, that ordinary people might really believe it.

However, Li Xiaoheng was not an ordinary person: “I know you don’t believe me. I admit that today’s confession was too abrupt. I didn’t make you feel the importance I attach to this relationship. Or, to be precise, I didn’t make you feel the serious attitude a pursuer should have, but I really hope you can give me a chance to pursue you formally.”

“You don’t need to accept my confession. I just need you to officially allow me to pursue you.”

In Tao Mu’s heart he let out a sarcastic chuckle and asked, what kind of attitude? The more formal and solemn your attitude, the more lethal the damage would be in the future when you go back on your words. All of this is directly proportional.

Besides, everyone here was an adult. What was the use of just looking at attitude alone? So long as the benefits were sufficient, he could even put on a kind and caring face towards Luo Yang and Cheng Baodong and show them the utmost respect. But did that mean he really liked these two people?

In fact, Tao Mu was not afraid of Li Xiaoheng discussing interests with him. Because he believed that he could bring his business partners huge profits that were beyond the expectations of the other party. He was only afraid that Li Xiaoheng would become headstrong, and would not even discuss interests with him.

At this time Tao Mu thought of Luo Yang again. Suddenly he remembered that Li Xiaoheng was Luo Yang’s childhood friend. Although the weight of this ‘childhood friendship’ was still to be discussed. But at this moment, the wise saying that birds of a feather flock together was now showing its lethality.

Sh*t, each and every one of them just liked to give him headaches.

Tao Mu’s inner bullet screen was continuously plated in the background, but he still had to remain calm on the surface: “Business is business. I really feel that the relationship between the two of us is not suitable for dating.” The following projects they had in their agenda were worth at least tens of billions of dollars.

Isn’t it a good thing for everyone to sit together and make money, why do you have to think about romance and dating. At that time, you become emotionally unstable and want to split up, how much money would I have to lose!

Tao Mu scratched his head with his hands miserably. If Li Xiaoheng could maintain his emotional stability the whole time, even if he wanted to date him because of suddenly being hit with convulsions, he could lower his head and coax Li Xiaoheng for the sake of their business cooperation.

But could Li Xiaoheng’s mood remain stable the whole time? Who could give a guarantee!

Even someone like Zhuo Yan, who was promoted personally by him, could betray him just like that, without any hesitation, and even aiming straight at his lifeblood.

Tao Mu knew about his own affairs, he knew that his character was ruthless and vicious, and the longer others got along with him, the better they would be able to see his personality. After some people turned their heads and became enemies, the main reason their methods when dealing with him were so ruthless was because they were afraid that he would retaliate, so they wanted to strike first and gain the upper hand.

This was human nature, but he couldn’t understand it: “Tell you the truth.”

Tao Mu carefully looked at Li Xiaoheng’s expression: “Although I like men, but in this life I have never thought of seriously dating and being in a relationship. Brother Li, you are a good person, so I won’t delay you?”

Xiao Mu doesn’t like me.

Although he didn’t know Tao Mu’s previous life experience, from Tao Mu’s reaction after hearing his confession and his subconscious attitude of weighing the pros and cons, Li Xiaoheng still clearly saw the most important point.

This was long expected.

Li Xiaoheng inhaled slightly, and he smiled slightly at Tao Mu. With a gentle smile that had a trace of affection: “My willful confession caused you trouble, right?”

Tao Mu’s polite words were about to blurt out when his eyes touched upon the unconcealed warmth and affection in Li Xiaoheng’s eyes, and he hesitated for a moment. Slowly he nodded, and smiled bitterly: “A little bit.”

“Sorry.” Li Xiaoheng continued to smile. He poured himself a cup of warm tea, took two sips slowly, and calmed himself down: “You are right. If it was for long-term cooperation, I shouldn’t have willfully confessed. We should not mix too many personal feelings into our relationship. This will lead to our cooperation becoming unstable because of personal feelings…..”

Li Xiaoheng’s mind was a bit messy that moment, but he was also very clear-headed. He knew he had to do something to soothe the leopard who was so nervous that he was about to explode.

“I’m really ashamed. Despite being several years older than Xiao Mu, yet on these issues, I am not as clear-minded as you.”

Tao Mu smiled gently, and observed Li Xiaoheng subtly, judging whether the other party was making polite talk, or he really thought so.

Of course, no matter what Li Xiaoheng truly thought. If he could be rational, he should know that their stable cooperative relationship was far more important than the relationship controlled by hormones.

A future capitalist bigwig should understand how to weigh these two relationships.

Thinking of Li Xiaoheng’s reputation and status in the international capital market in his previous life, Tao Mu was still optimistic about Li Xiaoheng’s decision.

“So after careful consideration, I have decided…..”

You c an fi nd t he la te st cha pte rs at ( th e bl mu se . c o m )

Sure enough. The bigwig is a bigwig. Even if they occasionally convulse, their reason and sense could still be trusted——

“Just like when we are working together, with you choosing when to short on a project, while I am responsible for the specific trading. I will also give you the power to decide on our personal relationship. I am only responsible for pursuing you. As for whether to accept my pursuit, it’s up to you to decide.”

“…..Huh?” Tao Mu looked at Mr. Bigwig Li with a dazed expression, you messing with me, right?

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