Chapter 3232: Saving the Zero‑Protein Bai Ze Love Story 33

Bai Ze pressed down on Yi Qi's knee under the table, gesturing for him not to move, "Don't act yet; we'll talk after we successfully get the X potion tomorrow night."

Yi Qi's brows slowly furrowed, "I've already endured twice, am I a ninja... ow!"

The next second, Yi Qi's head took a hit, he jerked his head sideways, and saw Jin Chen half‑leaning against the chair back, idly twirling another fork, acting like a big shot.

"With so many people in the restaurant, do you still want to make a move here? Why bother hiding your identity?"

Yi Qi held his aching head, about to retort, but Chenshu cut in, "At least... openly today is not allowed."

Yi Qi blinked, seeing his cheap older brother Dage continue eating breakfast without changing expression, his mind turned, and he suddenly realized.

The older one is still more scheming.

Yi Qi finally calmed down for a few seconds, and in his peripheral vision he caught sight of the white‑haired Qibu Man, accompanied by several people behind him, striding over in this direction.

Qibu Man looked down at Bai Ze, who wore a mask behind Yi Qi, his brows furrowed slightly—like, yet not quite.

Just as Qibu Man was about to question him, Yi Qi slammed the table.

"What are you looking at!"

Yi Qi suddenly turned, lifted a leg to kneel on the chair, his whole body facing Bai Ze—exactly the spoiled young master who catches his boyfriend glancing at others and erupts in jealousy.

He poked Bai Ze's chest twice with noticeable force, pushing Bai Ze's back backward, "Were you just checking out someone else?"

Bai Ze staggered from the poke.

He had just been thinking of a countermeasure, all his attention focused on Qibu Man, but Yi Qi's interruption left him unable to react.

Bai Ze gazed at Yi Qi through the gaps in his bangs and mask, bewildered and doubtful.

Yi Qi didn't give him a chance to respond, yanking the hoodie's drawstring in one grip, his motion looking like he wanted to wrap it around Bai Ze's neck, his tone fierce and urgent.

"You're still glaring at me? Don't pretend you don't know—were you just looking at your lover's affair partner?"

Jin Chen and Chenshu: "……?"

Yi Qi didn't give Bai Ze a chance to speak, turning his head back with a fierce aura, his gaze locked on Qibu Man's face, his amber‑brown eyes sweeping up and down, then he lifted his chin and demanded, "What are you looking at?"

Before Qibu Man could speak, Yi Qi had already assigned him the blame, "Not speaking? That means it's you!"

"You're the lover's affair partner!"

Qibu Man:?

The few people behind him exchanged bewildered glances, none expecting this turn of events.

Qibu Man's face darkened slightly, "What did you say……"

"Shut up! Do you know who I am!"

Yi Qi slammed the table hard, making the cups and plates on it jump, "You lot……"

He paused, apparently unsure what to follow with, so he vaguely skipped ahead, "If you're not the lover's affair partner, then why are you coming over to interfere with my disciplining of my person?"

All eyes in the restaurant turned toward them.

The big shots and great families who came for the four‑district auction items usually dismissed such minor disturbances, but Yi Qi's outburst was so loud it made people uncertain of his background; his overbearing, no‑respect attitude is usually only seen in those with strong backing.

Qibu Man's face alternated between pale and green; he really couldn't tell which household this utterly spoiled young master belonged to—if he kicked an iron plate, today's mission would be impossible to report. Although the Mamen Institute has influence in District Nine, here he still couldn't afford to offend just anyone.

Yi Qi left him hanging there and turned back to Bai Ze.

The fire in his heart was partly genuine; thinking that this white‑haired man had known Bai Ze even earlier than he had, and even trained together for years, the jealousy surged up on its own, no acting needed.

Yi Qi half‑knelt on the chair, leaning toward Bai Ze as if to choke him, his mouth never stopping, "Speak up—this white‑haired guy is your lover's affair partner, right?"

"Did you two know each other long before me? Or am I the third wheel?"

"Cough cough cough cough……"

Yi Qi hadn't used any force, yet Bai Ze turned his head and coughed twice, purely from being startled.

He shrank back into the booth, and in the eyes of everyone in the restaurant he looked like a pet kept by some young master—unallowed to show his face or have his own social circle, yet still being publicly questioned like this.

Qibu Man's brows knit tighter as he stared at the exposed eyes and brows of Bai Ze; it really resembled him, but this person before him… looked utterly weak, nothing like the cold, decisive Bai Ze he remembered—if it were Bai Ze, even driven to desperation he would never shrink into someone else's arms putting on such a pliable act.

……What's more, there's also an unknown‑identity jealous‑husband lunatic!

Qibu Man hesitated a moment, then ultimately didn't press the issue, simply stepping back half a step.

Coincidentally, as he spoke, Yi Qi worked himself up into a genuine fury, the sourness in his heart surging up uncontrollably.

He applied a little force with his hand, forbidding Bai Ze from looking at anyone else, and lowered his head to bite Bai Ze's neck.

Among the people behind Qibu Man, several had trained with Bai Ze for years; they didn't recognize him, but Bai Ze knew them.

Now they were being stared at like that……

Bai Ze closed his eyes, truly unable to look at anyone else.

Qibu Man, at a loss for words, withdrew his gaze and turned to look at Chenshu and Jin Chen across the table.

The two sat there eating breakfast and drinking tea, from earlier until now barely lifting their eyelids.

Qibu Man frowned, his tone mixing probing and impatience, "You two are his attendants, right? Take your young master to get his head checked."

He pointed at Yi Qi, "I'm just passing by!"

Chenshu: "……"

Beside him, Jin Chen finally lifted his head, getting a role at last, and replied with relish, "Our young master has always been like this."

"Just letting him go out clothed now is already a big improvement."

The restaurant crowd pricking up their ears to watch the drama: "……"

"You big‑family folks are really perverted!"

Qibu Man, headachy from this family's commotion, was about to lead his people away when the man behind him who knew Bai Ze best stepped forward unwillingly, hoping to ask Bai Ze to take off his mask and show his face: "Take off your mask, let me see your face."

Yi Qi's spine stiffened, then he slowly turned his head.

He looked at that person, his irritation undisguised, he kneaded the drawstring in his hand, which had been twisted and crumpled from his fiddling.

Yi Qi's tone was icy, a stark contrast to the earlier noisy young master: "I don't like anyone looking at him."

"If you look again, I'll personally chop you up and bottle you as tonight's auction item."

Qibuman seized the arm of the person behind him in one grab, jerked it back, and kept his voice low: "You got it wrong, go."

Their main task isn't to cause trouble; it's to get the X potion the Dean wants. In a place like this, creating more trouble isn't worth it.

Yiqi watched their backs disappear at the restaurant entrance, then fiercely swept a glance around the other people in the restaurant who were still secretly looking this way.

Wherever his gaze fell, heads lowered one after another—those eating rice kept eating, those drinking tea kept drinking, and nobody dared glance over again.

Chenshu rested his chin on his hand, watching the whole passionate performance, a smile he couldn't suppress tugging at the corner of his mouth.

He pinched a piece of watermelon and brought it to Jin Chen's lips, "Yiqi's dramatics like this—definitely learned from you."

Jin Chen opened his mouth to take the watermelon piece, chewed twice and swallowed, gave a noncommittal hum, lowered his head and gripped the finger Chenshu had used to offer the fruit, kissed the fingertip, and lowered his voice: "Yeah, yeah."

"Who let me be raised beside the Master since childhood? Untaught... it's your fault."

Chenshu's forehead twitched; he pulled back his hand and, annoyed, poked Jin Chen's cheek.