APCF – Chapter 138 Extra 1

“My god ahhhhhh, he’s really so handsome!!”

“Hehe, I told you I wasn’t lying.”

“Wuwuwu, why didn’t I listen to you and come earlier!”

“Don’t blame yourself. I didn’t believe our school had such a handsome teacher either at first.”

“…The girls in the second-to-last row,” Qi Xingchen, finally unable to bear their stares, pointed at the projector helplessly, “There are no exam questions on my face—look at the textbook.”

As soon as he finished speaking, all the girls in that row immediately lowered their heads.

Qi Xingchen: “…”

He had only meant to remind the two girls on the far left.

In reality, it wasn’t just the second-to-last row. Out of nearly two hundred students in the large lecture hall, about 70% weren’t there to attend class seriously. Some of them were even faces Qi Xingchen had never seen before.

They were all there for the eye candy.

After coming out of the book world, Qi Xingchen graduated smoothly and, thanks to his assistance with his advisor’s research during school, got the opportunity to stay on as a university lecturer.

This was his fourth class of the semester. From a modest forty or fifty students in the first session, it had ballooned to the point where not only was the room full, but people were standing outside to watch—all within just half a month.

Since Qi Xingchen’s identity in the real world was different from that in the book—once an ordinary student, now an ordinary university teacher—to avoid causing him trouble in life or stirring issues for the school, he and Bo Ye chose not to make their relationship public.

At the same time, after Bo Ye’s contract ended, he terminated it with his old company and started his own studio, signing a few singers and actors. His focus gradually shifted behind the scenes. Aside from releasing albums and holding concerts, he rarely took on commercial gigs or appeared on variety shows, so he was spending a lot more time at home.

Qi Xingchen had originally thought that after returning to reality, the script waiting for him would be “celebrity constantly busy, non-industry boyfriend left alone crying in their empty house.”

He never expected the reality to be “non-industry boyfriend constantly busy, crying in the middle of the night.”

If he didn’t have class the next day, he’d often be crying into the late hours of the night.

Just thinking about it made Qi Xingchen’s lower back ache faintly.

Thanks to his reminder, the girls finally stopped staring at him openly and switched to stealing glances. Qi Xingchen had no choice but to tough it out and continue lecturing.

By the end of the class, he felt like he’d been stared at until he had holes in him.

And even after class, a few girls didn’t let him off the hook. They followed him off campus, chattering nonstop:

“Professor Qi, how old are you?”

“Twenty-four.”

“Wow, only twenty-four? Then you must not be married yet, right?”

“No, not married.”

“Then do you have a girlfriend?”

“No girlfriend,” Qi Xingchen paused, “but I have a boyfriend.”

The girls, just about to cheer: “…”

Still, they weren’t ready to give up. It wasn’t that they liked Qi Xingchen that much—more like they just couldn’t resist a pretty face.

“Professor Qi,” one of the girls asked curiously, “What does your boyfriend do?”

“Uh…” Qi Xingchen casually made something up. “He’s a doctor.”

“A doctor! Isn’t that kind of strict and boring?”

“He’s alright.” Qi Xingchen smacked his lips, just about to say that sometimes he was pretty strict—

Then he heard a “beep” from nearby.

Bo Ye had arrived at some point, and his car was parked less than a meter away from him.

Back in Peach of the Night, Qi Xingchen hadn’t thought Bo Ye had that many cars—after all, no matter how many, it couldn’t compare to the Qi family’s garage.

But when he returned to the real world and saw Bo Ye’s personal collection, he immediately felt like his boyfriend was way too extravagant.

It was actually understandable. To avoid being followed by reporters, Bo Ye had to constantly switch cars.

The campus was crowded and unsafe. Not wanting to linger in front of the students, Qi Xingchen waved them off. “Let’s chat another time—my boyfriend’s here.” With that, he quickly got in the car.

The female students: “…”

“Have you ever seen a doctor who drives a Mulsanne?”

“Maybe his family’s rich…”

Since he didn’t want to be recognized, Bo Ye usually had Alan drive when going out. As Qi Xingchen settled into the back seat, he suddenly felt a cool touch on his arm.

He turned his head and saw a cup of milk tea beside him.

“Double grass jelly, double pearls,” Qi Xingchen happily picked it up and gulped it down. “Thanks, Brother Ye!”

Bo Ye glanced at him sideways but said nothing.

Qi Xingchen felt his boyfriend’s expression was a bit strange, so he leaned over and rubbed his nose against Bo Ye’s cheek. “This place really is delicious. How long did you wait in line?”

Before Bo Ye could answer, Alan interrupted: “First, I was the one standing in line to buy it; the boss just paid for it. Second, no public displays of affection in front of me, or I’ll drive the car into the river.”

The kid was already driven crazy. Feeling Alan’s strong resentment, Qi Xingchen straightened up, hooked his arm around Bo Ye’s, and obediently sipped his milk tea.

Strangely, Bo Ye didn’t say a word the entire way.

When they got home, Qi Xingchen finally understood why Bo Ye was so silent. Bo Ye pinned him against the closet, biting his lip fiercely as he asked, “Am I very strict? Very boring?”

Qi Xingchen felt a little pain from the bite but also a bit moved. The longer they were together, the more he didn’t see any flaws in this person before him—on the contrary, he liked him more and more. He loved his smiling lips, furrowed brows, the way his eyes tilted up when pretending to be angry… Every expression, every movement, every subtle detail he adored.

He liked him hopelessly.

Qi Xingchen whispered, “I was just bluffing them.”

“I heard you say ‘he’s alright’ myself,” Bo Ye raised his left eyebrow, “I think you’re bluffing me.”

“I wouldn’t dare bluff you even if I had a hundred guts!”

“Who knows how many guts you have,” Bo Ye quickly took off his boyfriend’s jacket, “You say I’m a doctor, right? Come on, let me check.”

Under the pretense of a “physical exam,” Bo Ye dragged Qi Xingchen into the bedroom. He fully embodied the doctor role, checking whether his back muscles were strong, then examining if his prostate was healthy…

After repeated checks twice over, night fell, and Doctor Bo finally let him go. Out of the kindness of a healer’s heart, he went to the kitchen to cook.

The milk tea with double grass jelly and double pearls was nearly digested, and Qi Xingchen rubbed his slightly bloated belly, planning to do something else to distract himself.

He remembered Peach of the Night, got out of bed, turned on his computer, and clicked the page he saved two years ago—

A flash of white light passed by, and suddenly the world spun around him…

When he recovered from the dizziness, Qi Xingchen was shocked to find that he wasn’t at home but standing on a street.

The street’s name was very Mary Sue—didn’t belong to the city he and Bo Ye lived in, yet somehow felt familiar.

He thought hard for a few minutes, then suddenly realized—wasn’t this the street name from Peach of the Night?!

Could it be… he had crossed into the book again?!

Carefully observing the surroundings, he noticed the area around the street sign looked faint, blurry to the naked eye. Qi Xingchen walked over and tried to reach his arm into that space.

A strong suction force pulled at him, almost dragging him in.

Qi Xingchen was overjoyed. It seemed like he had found a medium that allowed him to travel between reality and Peach of the Night.

Because that very street sign was where he had just fallen from!

In other words, as long as he opened Peach of the Night, he could enter. To leave, he just needed to come back to the street sign!

After starting work, Qi Xingchen had become much steadier, but at this moment he couldn’t help bouncing excitedly a few times. After bouncing, he ran forward impatiently.

He had been here many times before and would never forget—just around the corner was the Qi family company, Qi Group!!!

The time in the book matched the real world—just past six in the evening. Ignoring the stares of passersby, Qi Xingchen ran madly.

Sure enough, rounding the corner, a skyscraper came into view.

Qi Group must have been renovated; the entire building looked more modern and grand than before. Most of the lights were already off, with only a few offices lit on the top floor.

Having been away for over two years, a tidal wave of longing for his family washed over Qi Xingchen. He rubbed his aching nose, pulled out a mask and sunglasses, put them on, and rushed into Qi Group, heading confidently toward the elevator shaft.

The security guard on duty quickly stood up and blocked him. “Sir, sorry, we’re closed.”

Qi Xingchen was about to say, “Guess who I am,” but then remembered his real-world appearance was a little different from the original owner’s. The facial features were similar, but he was taller and had a sharper jawline.

He was certain that this body was truly his own, not the original owner’s.

The marks left from his past affair on his arm were still there—just the thing to help him confirm his identity.

Since his appearance was different, impersonation wouldn’t work. Qi Xingchen forced down his impulse and kindly explained, “Hello, I’m looking for Qi Yunxiao.”

“You’re looking for Chairman Qi? Chairman Qi has already left work and gone home.”

Chairman Qi…

In Qi Xingchen’s impression, Old Master Qi was “Chairman Qi,” and his eldest brother was “President Qi.” Could it be… could it be that his father’s health had declined?

Qi Xingchen grabbed the security guard’s arm tightly: “Where is Qi Xiaoming?”

“You mean Old Chairman Qi? He’s handed over most of the business to Chairman Qi and doesn’t come around much anymore.”

“And his health…?”

“He’s doing great! He came by for a work inspection the day before yesterday, even praised me for doing a good job, hehe.”

Hearing that his father was healthy, Qi Xingchen finally breathed a sigh of relief. Before restarting, Qi Xiaoming had always wanted to hand over the company to his eldest son, and it now seemed almost accomplished.

However… Qi Xingchen curiously asked, “Chairman Qi went home, but who’s working overtime upstairs?”

“I’m not quite sure. Maybe the Third Young Master. I only saw him come in today, didn’t see him leave.”

The term “Third Young Master” caused a sharp disconnect in Qi Xingchen’s mind. He froze for a moment, unable to say anything.

“Oh, speak of the devil, here comes the Third Young Master.”

Qi Xingchen suddenly snapped out of it and looked in the security guard’s direction. He saw a young man so familiar it was uncanny descending from the elevator, wearing a smoky gray suit jacket casually draped over his arm, a crisp white shirt and straight black trousers, with a gentle expression.

It seemed as if he sensed someone watching him, and his eyes turned that way. The guard thought the young master was looking at him and quickly stood straight.

Afraid of being noticed, Qi Xingchen immediately lowered his head and pretended to be playing on his phone.

A minute later, he saw those polished men’s shoes stop right in front of him. The owner’s eyes widened slightly, voice trembling noticeably: “Are you… another me?”

“When Sister Tao Tao first gave me that letter, I thought it was some prank. Until April 2nd, when Zhou Yu actually challenged me in the company corridor, I slowly began to believe what you said. That day, I didn’t fight him. As you said, I recorded a video of him insulting me and Sister.”

“I gave it to Sister. She immediately broke up with Zhou Yu. Later, she found a new boyfriend — good education, looks, family background, and he treats her well. Dad’s very satisfied and they’re already preparing for marriage.”

“I also followed what you wrote about Jia Ze. It’s incredible. That temperamental kid willingly started following Tao Xuan around for extra classes after they met. Last year, Tao Xuan had a kidney transplant, and Jia Ze even stayed by his bedside for a few days, which really worried Sister Tao.”

“But the surgery went well. Not long after discharge, both of them took the college entrance exam together. They all got into the capital city schools and just recently came back for winter break.”

“Dad’s health is good, especially after handing the company to big brother. He’s carefree now, drinking tea every day, practicing calligraphy, cultivating himself. Big brother naturally is much busier and has no time for romance. Sigh, I wonder when he’ll bring home a sister-in-law.”

The original owner’s eyes were filled with melancholy, clearly worried about his eldest brother’s future. Qi Xingchen couldn’t help but smile: “You’ve said so much, what about you?”

“Me…”

The original owner blinked, lowered his eyes, and after a moment quietly said, “I’m not with Liang Jing.”

“I’ve reflected on my feelings for Liang Jing. There’s undeniably some dependence, but more than that, I like him. I’m sure I like him.”

“I tried to improve myself and become better to approach him again. But it seems he’s hiding something… or someone. After rejecting me, he went abroad. Uncle Liang said he’s probably settling down there and won’t come back.”

“But I don’t regret it,” the original owner took a deep breath. “I tried hard, and if I couldn’t have it, I wouldn’t regret it. And I’m doing quite well now. See?”

He shook the shirt on his body. “This look’s good, right?”

“Very handsome,” Qi Xingchen asked, “Have you gone back to the family company?”

“Yes. I originally signed with Nuoya just to rebel against my family. Later I realized my family really loves me, so I terminated the contract with Nuoya. Singing, dancing, acting were boring — nothing compared to finance, which I find interesting. I’m now applying to big brother’s school. If I get in and finish my studies, maybe I can help him more.”

Qi Xingchen’s heart swelled with happiness for him: “Congratulations, you’ve found your path.”

Like two old friends chatting, the car had already arrived at the Qi family compound’s gate. Qi Xingchen took a deep look, then put his mask and sunglasses back on: “Alright, you go in. I’ll leave first. I’ll come visit you if there’s a chance later.”

“Why are you leaving?” The original owner looked puzzled. “We’re right at the door, come in and sit for a bit!”

Qi Xingchen firmly refused: “No way. We look too much alike. What if we scare Dad… or your family? That wouldn’t be good.”

“No, come on! My home is your home. Come in!”

Saying that, the original owner grabbed Qi Xingchen’s arm. Qi Xingchen was bigger, but with an empty stomach, he was actually pulled into the courtyard.

With every step closer to the villa, his heart grew more uneasy and anxious.

At this moment, he clearly felt what “homesickness mixed with fear” meant, until the original owner pushed him into the living room.

The lights were dim but cozy, the evening news playing. Qi’s father, Qi Yunxiao, Qi Yuji, Qi Jiaze, and Tao Xuan sat on the sofa eating fruit and discussing current affairs.

Hearing the noise, they knew the Third Young Master was back, and all turned toward the door.

The moment their gaze landed on the young man wearing sunglasses, they suddenly felt a long-missing gap in their hearts being filled, an inexplicable regret that had been growing for days suddenly soothed.

It was like a circle missing a piece that had been sought forever — finally, the lost part was found.

In this life, finally complete.