Wang Zitong thought it was quite……miraculous.

Looking at this big man who obviously didn’t know what to do next, Wang Zitong was helpless: “But now the pot is broken, and you may have to buy a new one if you want to continue cooking.”

“I’ll go buy it!” Full of energy, Lucas looked at the supermarket opposite the hospital, and ran downstairs.

Wang Zitong: “…….”

Half an hour later, when Lucas returned to the kitchen with a bag of kitchen utensils, he saw that Luo Cheng was there.

Lucas didn’t think too much. He had told Rong Duo the day before that he wanted a man and a woman, so that the heavy work could be done for Luo Ran.

“What next?” Lucas didn’t know which kind of pot to buy, so he just bought them all and carried them up.

Wang Zitong said: “The rice must be washed first.”

It took Lucas a very long time just to wash the rice, and his movements were very clumsy. After finally putting the rice into the rice cooker, there were even more challenges. 

“Fried eggs, made with love.” Lucas indicated: “Luo Ran likes them medium-rare.”

This was a pretty large goal.

Unlike Luo Cheng, who had just arrived, Wang Zitong was pretty much immune. She calmly took the egg and touched the bowl lightly: “Knock the eggs open first.”

Lucas reached for an egg from the basket.

Pa—!

Lucas: “? ? ?”

Lucas looked at the shattered egg in his palm. Viscous egg whites and yolk overflowed and dripped from his fingers, and his entire person was dumbfounded again.

Fuck, why were things in the kitchen so dangerous!

Wang Zitong: “……”

Luo Cheng: “……”

Wang Zitong gently persuaded: “Admiral, don’t use so much strength. Eggs are delicate and light, just hold it softly.”

Lucas took another one to try, but after a “pa,” it still shattered.

Lucas: “…….”

He felt that he was already being very light, but he couldn’t control his strength. And…..most of his fingers were mechanical, so he didn’t have much of an idea about such delicate things.

Luo Cheng couldn’t stand it anymore. He stepped forward and said: “Admiral, don’t force yourself. Let us help you?”

“No need!” Lucas now had more fighting spirit than at the beginning.

Hah! He no longer believed that he couldn’t do it. He was going to cook for Luo Ran today and make him feel his sincerity!

Afterwards, Lucas was able to hold the egg with great difficulty, followed by another long round of learning to knock, break, and fry the egg.

As he went, Lucas broke and wasted the rest of the eggs in the basket, so he rushed downstairs again to purchase more.

Cooking the eggs was the toughest part.

Even with Wang Zitong and Luo Cheng on hand to guide him, the poor eggs were either burnt or too raw, sticking to the pan or deformed.

“Why didn’t this egg cook well?” Lucas bared his teeth, oil splashed all over his body from cooking eggs.

As a teacher, Luo Cheng had met all kinds of students and was very patient. At present, he slowly guided: “It’s okay, come on, you can do it. Now, turn it over from the left.”

Luo Ran woke up early, and was called downstairs by Shen Xiluo for his examination.

Neatly and dignified, not knowing that next door, his parents had been teaching Lucas how to make eggs all morning.

It was already noon when Luo Ran returned from his physical examination. Seeing that no one was in the ward, he didn’t mind, and took out his terminal to read official documents.

In the end, before he could even read one, the door of the ward was pushed open.

Wang Zitong and Luo Cheng entered together.

Luo Ran was a little surprised, but before he could greet them, he saw Lucas follow them in with a plate of food.

Luo Ran: “? ? ?”

Why were they……together?

Luo Ran was so surprised that he was unable to speak for a moment.

If he wasn’t in the hospital, he would have thought it was his birthday, and everyone had come in with a cake to congratulate him.

Lucas brought the tray to Luo Ran and said: “Eat breakfast……lunch!”

Luo Ran glanced at Lucas, and then at his parents. 

“Oh…..?”

Luo Ran accepted the bowl in a daze, took a mouthful of porridge, and ate it.

“Where did the Admiral get the porridge?”

“Bought it,” Lucas scoffed coldly.

Luo Ran thought it might have been brought by Wang Zitong and the others, so he said honestly: “The taste is strange, but it’s still okay.”

“Oh.” Lucas looked like a big dog with his ears down.

Both Wang Zitong and Luo Cheng couldn’t bear it anymore, and even couldn’t help but feel affectionate.

Wang Zitong said: “Ranran, the Admiral has been working hard on it all morning, from early morning to now, and he even went to the supermarket twice.”

Luo Cheng said: “Yes, ah. It’s not bad for a first try. The Admiral has worked hard.”

Luo Ran: “ ? ”

Did something happen that he didn’t know about?

As soon as Lucas heard Wang Zitong’s words, he slapped the table and stood up, shouting: “I’m the only one who can call him Ranran!”

How could outsiders address him so intimately!

Luo Ran: “? ? ?”

At this moment, Luo Ran understood what was going on and immediately grabbed Lucas with one hand, calling: “Admiral!”

Luo Ran tugged Lucas to sit, and held down this restless big pig. “Those are my parents…..!”

“Ha?” Lucas froze.

Luo Ran took Lucas’s arm and said with a smile: “Admiral, let me introduce you. This is my father and my mother.”

“Dad, Mom, this is Admiral Lucas.”

“Then we’re officially meeting now.” Wang Zitong smiled and said: “Admiral, I’ve admired you for a long time.”

Luo Cheng also nodded with a smile.

Lucas: “……”

Lucas: “…………”

He was petrified in place, motionless.

Fuck.

This was actually his father-in-law and mother-in-law.

Fuck.

What had he done.

Fuck.

He had already planned it beautifully. He wanted to show his heroic side to his father-in-law and mother-in-law when they met for the first time, and had even researched strategies on the Starnet and planned to buy a lot of gifts.

“Admiral.” Luo Ran squeezed Lucas’s back and reminded: “Aren’t you going to say hello, Admiral?”

Say hello……

Lucas stood up with a whoosh, raised his hand to the edge of his temple, kicked his feet together, and stood up straight.

“Lucas Aldor!”

A military salute was performed.

“…….”

Luo Ran covered his face, wanting to bury himself directly under the quilt.

He had imagined taking Lucas home, and the perfect first meeting was replaced by this stupid as hell scene before him.

“Pfft……” Wang Zitong smiled and said: “Don’t be nervous, we just came to see Ranran, everything is okay. When Ranran comes back this weekend, he should bring the Admiral with him. Let’s talk again at that time. It happens that Xingyuan is coming back, and he and the Admiral can get to know each other.”

Luo Ran said: “Okay……”

After Wang Zitong and Luo Cheng left, Lucas immediately closed himself off.

Fuck.

He was a majestic officer of the Empire, an iron-blooded Admiral, one man who could hold back ten thousand. 

He was so nervous just now that he even did a military salute.

“Admiral, that……” Luo Ran tried desperately to hold back his laughter, but his shoulders kept shaking.

“Laugh once and I’ll make you cry once,” Lucas said with his back to Luo Ran. “Laugh one more time.”

“I won’t laugh.” Luo Ran embraced Lucas from behind and lay his head gently on the other’s back, saying with a smile: “Don’t worry, Admiral. My parents seem to have changed their minds about you, and even asked me to bring you back. I assume they mean to learn more about you.”

“……Really.”

“Yes, ah,” Luo Ran said. “And the food the Admiral cooked is delicious.”

Lucas turned around and hugged Luo Ran with a hum: “Really?”

“Super delicious.” Luo Ran smiled and said: “I’ll finish it.”

Then, Luo Ran really finished eating it, and it was indeed not unpalatable.

. . . . . . .

After spending a day in the hospital, Luo Ran returned to work the next day.

He accompanied Lucas to military headquarters.

This morning, a group of soldiers from the frontier were set to return. When the battleship landed, Luo Ran went to pick them up in person.

“Ranran!” The man in the lead saw Luo Ran from a distance, then stepped off the battleship quickly.

After climbing off, Luo Xingyuan couldn’t hold back, and gave Luo Ran a bear hug.

The man in the military uniform was big and tall, with upright and gentle facial features, and his frame had changed due to the harsh climate of the frontier, becoming more solid.

“Ge.” Luo Ran hugged him back with a smile.

Standing behind Luo Xingyuan was Rong An, who saw Luo Ran and gave a respectful military salute.

“You go to the office and wait for me. I’ll bring my brothers to report to the Admiral and then come to you.” Luo Xingyuan squeezed Luo Ran’s shoulder, then left with the team.

Luo Ran was reading official documents in the office when Luo Xingyuan returned in the afternoon.

The two brothers greeted each other for a while before Luo Xingyuan scratched the back of his head and said with a bit of embarrassment: “Then……you’re together with the Admiral? I heard what they’re saying.”

Luo Ran paused, then acquiesced with a smile.

“Oh…..then you……” Luo Xingyuan didn’t know what to say. Moreover, Lucas was still his superior, the one whom officers like him obeyed unconditionally, the one who had promoted him and given him a chance.

Luo Xingyuan hesitated, and then just handed Luo Ran a small card.

“This is….?” 

“My savings.” Luo Xingyuan said with some shame: “With this, you can take whatever you want without my fingerprints, since it would be inconvenient with me being out of the capital all year round. I…..I had originally thought of posting it to you directly, but it isn’t easy for me to send such a large monetary transaction with my identity, so I’ll just leave the account to you for safekeeping.”

“……Ge.” Luo Ran said with a frown: “There’s no need for this.”

“I knew you would say that.” Luo Xingyuan smiled and said: “So I just added your name to the account.”

“You……” Luo Ran didn’t know what to say.

“Aiya, we two big men don’t need to dilly-dally. You also get along with the Admiral. I just hope that……no matter what happens in the future, you can protect yourself.” Luo Xingyuan grinned and said: “The more money you have, the more convenient it will be for you.”

“I also……” Luo Xingyuan scratched the back of his head and said: “Big brother also wants to protect you. At least our family now has a military commander, so you can have more confidence. If anything happens, there are many people under my command who will swear to protect you and the Admiral to the death.”

Luo Ran was silent for a moment, then said hoarsely: “Thank you, Ge.”

He knew what his family members were worried about, especially Luo Xingyuan. He was a soldier who had been long prepared to die in the line of duty.

And Lucas was in such a sensitive position. To put it bluntly, if Lucas followed in Admiral Alton’s footsteps one day, whoever possessed Luo Ran would pretty much have the support of the military.

“It’s nothing. Since it’s been done, we’re prepared.” Luo Xingyuan patted Luo Ran on the shoulder and said: “We’ll solve things together.”

Luo Ran hadn’t expressed it before, but now he had agreed to be with Lucas forever. Once Luo Ran made up his mind, he would not even try to change it again, and there was no such thing as withdrawing.

That was why it had taken Luo Ran so long to consider it.

“En,” Luo Ran said with a smile. “Okay.”

After leaving military headquarters, Luo Ran planned to go back to his apartment to pack up and get some clean clothes before heading home for the weekend. He might also need to pack an overnight bag.

“Ah?”

Lucas frowned. “You’re going home? Not staying overnight?”

Lucas was dissatisfied.

“En,” Luo Ran said. “It’s been a long time since I went back to clean up. Not going back won’t work.”

“Then I’ll go back with you!”

“……??”

Thus, Lucas went back with Luo Ran in this way.

It was not the first time Lucas had been to Luo Ran’s home, but it would be the first time if he stayed the night.

“Admiral, you…..you do as you please.” Luo Ran poured a glass of warm water for Lucas, and said with some embarrassment: “The house is a bit small.”

Lucas sat on the small sofa and looked around.

Luo Ran’s home was indeed small, but it felt very comfortable. The main reason was that the owner had a habit of cleanliness, and it was neat and tidy.

Lucas knew this well. After all, his office and bedroom were also spotless.

“Just do what you want, don’t worry about me.” Lucas waved his hand and said: “I’m going to sleep.”

“Okay.”

Luo Ran took out spare pillows and a quilt and put them on the sofa.

Then he went to take a shower.

Lucas got up and prepared to look around. The house was full of drop lights, small cabinets, wall shelves, potted plants and humidifiers emitting steam. Lucas also saw many murals and artworks.

Lucas thought to himself, hypocrite.

Isn’t this just a house? Such clutter…..

However……

Lucas thought to himself, he had always lived at the office, and had no real “home.”

He and Luo Ran were together now. Could……

Lucas glanced at the windowsill. Could this be his future home? After all, he would retire one day.

Gurgle—

Water splashed as Luo Ran bathed.

Lucas suddenly became nervous.

He belatedly realized that he……was going to stay overnight at Luo Ran’s house tonight.

Lucas touched his nose.

He felt that he was getting stranger and stranger. He didn’t even think about such things before, but after spending more time with Luo Ran, he would always think about some strange things.

Now, for example.

It seemed to be only him who was secretly watching adult videos, and always thinking about Luo Ran. At this moment, he was thinking about Luo Ran bathing without any clothes on. His collarbones, chest, waist, and……

Hiss, can’t think about it anymore.

Lucas also didn’t go into the bedroom, lest he have more disrespectful thoughts toward Luo Ran.

Lucas sat down again on the small sofa in the living room, and suddenly felt something touch his ass.

He reached down to take out the things stuffed under the sofa, and found that it was a stack of books.

Comics?

— “Four Admirals, One Secretary! Extremely ♂ refreshing ♀ ~”

— “Super rough!! 38 cm made the Secretary cry!”

Lucas: “…………”

Fuck.

---

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Chapter Seventy-Two << Table of Contents >> Chapter Seventy-Four

Gao Lin was standing on the side of the road, talking to the guards, and watched his family’s prince approach from a distance, walking in a hurry. Thinking that someone important must have happened for him to walk so urgently, he rushed forward to ask for clarification. Liang Shu suddenly stopped in his tracks and glanced back slightly from the corner of his eye. Liu Xian’an also stopped not far away and didn’t hit his head on the other’s back as someone expected. It could be seen that Second Young Master Liu was going back and forth, but was superior to a duck after all.

Liang Shu touched the bridge of his nose, the corners of his mouth rising slightly, and suppressed his smile.

Gao Lin looked at the prince’s teasing expression and felt that he still lacked professional experience. Excuse me, I will leave now.

But Liu Xian’an greeted him: “Lieutenant General Gao, we’re going to see Yu Cong, you should come along.”

Gao Lin said politely, “I won’t go, it’s not suitable for me to go.”

Liang Shu frowned and said: “We’re looking at a big man, not a big girl, yet you’re actually using all kinds of excuses and acting coy.”

It was a grievance for Gao Lin to be scolded. You’re going together, so it would be wrong for me to disturb you, right?

Yu Cong was imprisoned in a separate courtyard. After Liu Xian’an’s diagnosis and treatment, his physical condition had improved greatly. Ironically, he attributed all of this improvement to the gods, and even created a theory of his own. He felt that it was because he sacrificed his son that his lifespan had been extended. In this way, the sadness in his heart dissipated like a cloud of smoke, and he meditated in bed all day long, with a profound and detached appearance.

The “detachment” couldn’t be believed even by the guard in charge. He understood that everyone wanted to live forever, but his own son’s life was lost, and the old man was still happy that he had taken his son’s life. How was this different from being a beast? He put the food on a small table and turned around to leave, but saw Liang Shu walk in. He hurriedly saluted: “Your Highness, Lieutenant General Gao.”

Gao Lin glanced into the room and saw Yu Cong still sitting in bed, muttering something, so he asked: “Is he always like this?”

“Yes,” the guard said. “I have guarded the prison for thirty years, and I have never seen such a prisoner. His corrupt practices are very evil.”

Hearing the movement, Yu Cong opened his eyelids slightly. He just felt the sunlight at the door flickering and dimming, making his head a little dizzy, and the backlight was such that he couldn’t see the faces of the people who had come. He was once again in the midst of ignorance and nothingness, and squeezed out a dry murmur from his throat, closing his eyes again.

Liang Shu regarded the shriveled old man before him and thought of the charred black corpses he had seen before. It could be seen that Yu Cong truly revealed the wickedness in his heart on his face. The dry, wrinkled skin wrapped around his skeleton, and the corners of his mouth were stiff with a seemingly desireless smile. But the smile was so strange that ordinary people would have at least one night of nightmares upon seeing it.

With him being so thin and yet still continuing to breathe, Liang Shu believed Liu Xian’an’s previous diagnosis — Yu Cong’s physical foundation was actually very good. If he hadn’t been poisoned in small doses by Yin Die for so many years, he might really have lived to be one hundred years old. Because of this, the current facts seemed even more ironic and absurd. He asked: “Were the bones in the back courtyard all your work?”

Yu Cong shook his head slowly: “They just dedicated their lives to the gods, and the gods gave these lives to me. Their lives are still here, so they are still alive, and their lives are more valuable than before.”

Gao Lin was stunned by this nonsense theory: “Even if they’re the same lives, those little girls were worth more than you, a man with half his neck buried in the grave, right?”

“They had desire in their lives, and even if this desire was satisfied, the next desire would soon arise. Thus, their lives were filled with one pain after another that could never be satisfied. Even if I carefully selected the most innocent girls, they would be the same.” Yu Cong said, “But I have no desires. Without desires, there will be no pain. A life without pain is of course more valuable.”

Gao Lin gasped in amazement. An old lecher who had murdered countless young girls said so brazenly that he had no desires. Where the hell did he get his face? It stood to reason that the criminal evidence collected so far was enough to cut off Yu Cong’s head with a sword, but he also felt that such a quick and decisive decision was going easy on him. With such a complete set of fallacies and heresy, perhaps this old man would regard going to the execution grounds as a joyous ascension to the heavens. How could this comfort the wronged souls of Wan Yuan and the other girls who died tragic deaths?

Liang Shu said: “Pain must be repaid with pain.”

Liu Xian’an then said to Yu Cong: “Your son also had desires. He was greedy for money, lustful, addicted to drinking and gambling, and never believed in the gods. This sort of life without blessings would only be more painful than those girls’, so naturally it won’t allow you to live for too long. You’ve had a stabbing pain in your ribs lately because there’s a gap there. The gap is your son’s unsatisfied desire before he died, and your life will flow out from there continuously.”

Gao Lin thought to himself, I just heard some nonsense.

He looked at his prince with a solemn expression. How could Second Young Master Liu also have such research on cults? What sort of devilish books were hidden in Baihe Mountain Village? Did the court really not need to investigate it?

Liang Shu put his hand on Liu Xian’an’s shoulder, encouraging him to continue talking.

And Yu Cong had already covered the left side of his chest. There was indeed a stabbing pain in his heart from time to time, and after this reminder, the pain became more obvious, as if he was being pierced by a thousand needles. His face paled. He had thought that if he sacrificed his close relative, his merits would increase greatly, but Liu Xian’an said: “The most valuable life should be like yours, with no desire. And there are really too few people in this world who have no desires. The only one I have met recently is a little girl.”

He added: “A ten-year-old girl, who was born beautiful and delicate, and likes to wear red dresses. The most important thing is that she grew up in the deep wilderness since she was young, and has never set foot in the world of mortals. Her eyes are as clear as lake water, and her voice is as melodious as that of an oriole. She also believes in the gods. She originally came to Huaizhen City to see Yin Die, but it is a pity that Yin Die is already dead.”

Yu Cong was fascinated by what he heard, and asked obsessively: “She, where is she?”

“Still in the city, ready to marry a fifty-year-old bachelor.” Liu Xian’an’s tone was like a cold spring. “She is ignorant of the world, so she has no desires, and when she heard that Yin Die was dead, she sat resting at the gate of Yu Manor. A man passed by at this time, and she followed along with him after a few coaxing words.”

“No! No!” Yu Cong yelled, “She should be mine! She was sitting at the door of my house!”

Gao Lin drew his sword out of his sheath to block the old man who was rushing forward, but Yu Cong didn’t care. Even though the skin on his chest was cut, he still stretched out his arms like the walking dead, trying to grab Liu Xian’an: “You bring her here!”

“I can’t bring her, she’s already going to the wedding ceremony.” Liu Xian’an sighed. “Perhaps she was really given to you by the gods to fill the gap in your heart. It’s a pity, if only it was ten days earlier.”

Yu Cong’s facial features distorted, and the sound that came from his throat was that of a trapped animal. Liu Xian’an grabbed Liang Shu’s wrist, then turned and left the small courtyard. This time, the one going faster and faster was Second Young Master Liu, who was panting at the end of the walk. Liang Shu just held his arm and stood still, patting his back. “Are you uncomfortable?”

Liu Xian’an nodded.

Even though it was a made-up story, to make up a ten-year-old girl’s wedding ceremony still made his hair stand on end, and he felt uncomfortable all over. Liang Shu then took him into the warm winter sun for a while, and said comfortingly, “It will be alright.”

Liu Xian’an took a deep breath.

Liang Shu said: “With your story, his pain has officially begun.”

“Actually, I originally wanted to destroy the gods in his heart,” Liu Xian’an said. “But when I saw him, I thought that there was no need to waste more words. It is enough for him to experience the same fear and pain as his victims before they died. Some people do not deserve to know the truth.”

Liang Shu rubbed his head: “It’s perfectly all right, why are you squatting down again?”

Liu Xian’an hugged his knees: “I’m tired of walking, so I’m taking a rest.”

Liang Shu smiled, and also squatted down with him: “Then rest a little longer.”

That ten-year-old girl was an image that Liu Xian’an further created based on Xiao Hua’s appearance. Childish, desireless, beautiful, bent on dedicating herself to the gods. Ordinary people may be skeptical when they heard this story, because there should be no such girl in Huaizhen City. But Yu Cong was different. He also thought that such a little girl should not appear in Huaizhen City, so if she appeared, it should be a gift from the gods, and she should belong to him from head to toe.

Ten years old, delicate and beautiful. Yu Cong paced around the room, blood pouring down his stomach. His lips and hands trembled, and he cried out from time to time. The jailer obeyed the prince’s orders and asked people to carry a few firecrackers and set them off neither far nor near. The crackling sound exploded, and Yu Cong became even more crazed, holding the window lattice tightly with his emaciated hands and squeezing half his head out: “Who, who is getting married?”

The jailer said casually: “Zhou Duyan. I heard that he was lucky and picked up an obedient little girl.”

“No! They can’t marry!” Yu Cong scratched at the air. “She’s mine, I’ll give you money, I’ll give you silver, go and get her!”

“I cannot accept that.” The jailor looked at him sympathetically. “Seriously, shouldn’t she belong to you , Master Yu? It would have been great if she had come ten days earlier. This girl with no relatives and no reason, anyone who saw her would take her to Yu Manor. After all, the family has a great destiny, doesn’t it? Alas, what a pity.”

Ten days, only ten days earlier, ten days away. Yu Cong panted heavily, his eyes and heart filled with these words. He felt that he had been deprived of what belonged to him, and his own life was also taken away, so he burst into tears.

After finishing what he was supposed to say, the jailor immediately retreated outside the courtyard, thinking in shock, whether he was crazy or not, he had been fine in the morning. Then he plucked up the courage to ask Gao Lin beside him: “Lieutenant General Gao, did what Second Young Master Liu told Yu Cong make him crazy?”

Gao Lin nodded with a sigh, how wretched, ah.

The jailer agreed, yes, ah, yes, ah. At such an old age, it seemed like a crime.

Gao Lin slapped him on the head. You don’t know a fart, I mean that my prince is wretched.

With Second Young Master Liu’s mouth, if they got married in the future and quarreled…..how could he miss that magnificent scene?

In the future, he must buy a house next to Xiao Wang Palace.

Liu Xian’an squatted for a while, but was still quite tired, so Liang Shu walked with him on his back, and asked while walking: “What would you do if you were tired and I wasn’t here?”

“Then I would keep going for a while.”

Liang Shu loosened his grip, trying to put him down, but Liu Xian’an wrapped his arms tightly around his neck. The dignified Dayan general was caught off guard, and was almost strangled by those thin arms, but the pain in his flanks was also very sweet, because love was unreasonable.

The sunlight was comfortably warm.

Liu Xian’an said: “The prince smells very good, exactly the same as that quilt.”

Liang Shu asked: “The quilt still has a scent?”

Liu Xian’an responded calmly, it is already very weak. 

Although Liang Shu really wanted to push the relationship further, it was really not good to say, “then I’ll make you sleep better” at such a time. It sounded like his brain was really not working well, so he changed his mind and lifted this person up: “If it smells good, then smell it more.”

Liu Xian’an thought, why don’t you continue to give me quilts.

Liang Shu no longer paid attention to his family background. He ran out at this time to run errands, not to traffic quilts, and Gao Lin snatched the current quilt on his body from A-Ning. In order for his bachelor brother to succeed in having a successful courtship, Liang Yu had prepared a lot of beautiful hairpin jewelry, as well as rouge powder made by the court perfumer, seventy or eighty things in total. Beauty was beauty, but the gender was wrong, so His Royal Highness Xiao Wang could only hold out a palace quilt as a gift to his sweetheart, which seemed very frugal and pragmatic.

---

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Chapter Sixty-Five << Table of Contents >> Chapter Sixty-Seven

T/N: Thank you to Parasim2323 for the Kofi! Here’s a double update!

Liu Meng didn’t think he was a “hero.” What he understood as a hero was someone who rode a horse to roam the world, intervening when he saw an injustice, and driving dozens of ruffians away with a loud shout, wise, brave, and carefree. Sending out a kite dummy and pretending to be a ghost, worrying every day that someone would find out, how could that match up with a “hero?” He could at most be counted as a “person.”

Liu Xian’an had already come out of the temple, just in time to hear this modest sentence. He had previously only read about people in books who were beautiful without knowing it, but Liu Meng’s remarks could also qualify as being a hero without knowing it, so he said: “To be willing to help others is saintly, to take action is to be brave, to ignore rewards it to be righteous, to devise schemes is to be wise, and to be compassionate is to be benevolent. Little Brother Liu was willing to make preparations for Xiao Hua, who has no blood relation, and relocate his family to the end of the world. Not only is he wise and brave, but saintly and courageous, with wisdom and benevolence. Can this not be considered a ‘hero?’”

Hearing this, Liu Meng was stunned. It turned out that those great scholars talked like this. No wonder Zhuge Liang could use his tongue to compete with Confucians. Ordinary people could really not stand up against this rhetoric.

Liang Shu asked: “How is he?”

Liu Xian’an said: “The poison is so potent that it cannot be cured, but he won’t die immediately. He should be able to wake up after a while.”

He didn’t say that he was dying of illness, but that he was dying of poison. The people around could hear the abnormality, and Liang Shu said: “Poison?”

“This person has been poisoned for many years, but the poison is not fatal and only causes discomfort. It is easy to detoxify, but no matter how easy it is to detoxify, the residual toxins accumulated in the body are not a small dose. If it were another old man, he would have died long ago, but Yu Cong’s body is much stronger than that, so he was able to hold on until now before collapsing.”

“He’s been poisoned for many years?” The common people were speechless when they heard this, and their first reaction was that Yu Zhong had done it! After all, it was not uncommon for such a son to wait for his father to die because of the family property. Yu Zhong pointed at Yin Die and cursed: “The only pills my father takes year-round are the ones you made. No wonder he’s been sick for the past two years. You started as soon as you came to the house and conspired to use Wan Yuan at the time, so he immediately felt comfortable the next day. It turns out it is because of this!”

Yin Die had collapsed on the ground. There was no telling which bones had been broken by Gao Lin, but he was wriggling like a worm.

Tong Ou stepped forward and slashed open the skirt of his clothes with his sword, and it turned out to be the totem of the Baifu Sect again. Before the common people could riot, Yu Zhong smacked his thigh and howled: “Father, you said that you believed in the religion of prolonging life, how could it be such a thing?”

“Save your throat, ba.” Tong Ou put his sword back into its sheath heavily. “You will have plenty of time to cry in the future.”

Yu Zhong met his gaze and felt a chill on the back of his neck. He wanted to argue more, but someone suddenly came out from the temple and shouted, “Doctor Liu, Yu Cong just woke up and fainted again!”

Liu Xian’an hurried over: “Why did he faint again?”

The guard said: “Maybe he laid down in the wrong place.”

There were many Buddha statues in the temple, dignified and glaring. Just as Yu Cong opened his eyes tremblingly, he saw gods and Buddhas all over the ceiling staring at him in a circle and was so frightened that his soul practically flew out, and with a kick of his legs, he passed out.

When the common people heard this, they couldn’t help but laugh. And after being amused, they were worried about the little girl just now, so they followed the team in the direction of the government office. Liu Xian’an half crouched in the carriage to administer acupuncture for Yu Cong. He was concentrating so much that even though it was a cold day, there was a fine sheen of sweat on his forehead. The old guard next to him had met him a few times while patrolling the streets, and considered him half an acquaintance, so he whispered: “Doctor Liu, why save this kind of person? In any case, since his son confessed, there’s no chance that the Yu family will get away with it.”

“I want to revive him.” Liu Xian’an turned the silver needle in his hand. “Even without any testimony, he should face the punishment he deserves in person. Otherwise, if he just dies like this, he would have lived a life of glory through evil, which is contrary to the fairness and justice that all righteous people in the world strive to maintain.”

Yu Cong was spellbound, and sought out the Dao of Longevity all his life. At this time, he finally met a genuine miracle doctor who could prolong life, but on the eve of his death. This absurd karma made even the old guard sigh with emotion. It seemed that people should not be too conscienceless throughout their lives.

Liu Xian’an asked: “That Dan-daren, what sort of official is he?”

The old guard gave a hehe and said: “Dan-daren, to be honest, can’t really be considered a corrupt official. Because if you’re greedy, you have to do things for others, and you have to bother to weave a network of relationships. He’s really too lazy to do this.” But he didn’t say the second half of the sentence, that he was too lazy to be greedy, but was simultaneously too lazy to do practical things for the common people.

Not seeking merits, but seeking a lack of faults, it didn’t matter if this sort of official was placed at the feet of the Emperor, but when placed at the southwestern border where cults were frequent, how could the common people not suffer? With a wave of his hand, Liang Shu signed a transfer order, sending Dan Qing to Yunling in Qingzhou, to raise horses — these were not important war horses, but red ponies used in sacrificial ceremonies. He would be a dispensable idler, suitable for such a dispensable lazy person.

In the end, Yu Cong was stabbed alive by Liu Xian’an. The sad thing was that after the matter had come to this point, he still firmly believed that Yin Die was an envoy of the gods. Yu Zhong burned with rage, and didn’t know how his father’s brain had developed this way. Seeing that life and death were at stake, why not rush to blame Yin Die?

He couldn’t care less anymore, and confessed to Liang Shu that he had agreed to the absurd matter of a living sacrifice because he wanted to save his father. But in fact, deep down in his heart, he hated Yin Die to the extreme. In order to make this statement more credible, he said that he had prepared poison and bought a killer, planning to eliminate the harm for the common people after the sacrifice, so as to prevent Yin Die from doing more unconscionable acts.

The poison and the killer were real, and there was corresponding evidence, because he had indeed planned to kill Yin Die previously. Liang Shu nodded slightly and said: “Good, if Young Master Yu is willing to hand over everything without concealment, then I will promise to spare your life. But it is impossible for you to stay in Huaizhen City. How about going to Yunling in Qingzhou with Dan Qing to raise horses? Hmm…..if he is the horse raiser, then you will be the groom.”

Yu Zhong was overjoyed, and hurriedly kowtowed to express his gratitude. He had always heard that this prince killed people without blinking an eye, and thought that he would die at this time, never entertaining the thought that he could live. As long as he could live, why would he fear that he could never leave that Yunling horse farm?

So he tried his best to ingratiate himself and follow Liang Shu’s wishes, picking out a few wicked things that Yin Die had done and said. Among them, there was indeed the kidnapping of women and children, who were sold to other places. But he was not like ordinary traffickers, who knocked them unconscious and kidnapped them in a secluded place. Instead, he got close to the men of these families, and brainwashed them to believe in a doomsday salvation doctrine, making them willing to sacrifice their most beloved family members with both hands.

Liu Xian’an gave a slight sigh. All living beings suffered, and heresy was truly abominable.

Yu Zhong spoke eloquently at one end, while at the other end, Yin Die kept silent. Gao Lin was born in a military camp, and had no gentlemanly rules. Picking up a leather whip, he whipped the cunning villain until his entire body was dripping with blood. He stepped on his chest with one foot and crouched down, saying: “You and I both know that shit was just a pretense to make money. Now that you’ve fallen into my hands, your wealth is certainly gone, and your life is forfeit, but if you give up your co-conspirators, you can at least suffer less.”

Yin Die lay there with no waves in his eyes.

“What, are you afraid that if you give them up, they will kill your family? Ridiculous. It turns out that you, a bastard who specializes in wife-killing, also has family members.” Gao Lin lifted his foot and stood up, saying condescendingly, “But not for long. Chengbi Village on Eighteen Ridges Mountain. They live there, right?”

As if struck by lightning, Yin Die struggled to get up: “You!”

“The garrison here has been secretly investigating you, and the search has been quite detailed.” Gao Lin said, “Don’t worry, if your family members did nothing wrong, then they might not necessarily be executed. At least your son, who is less than one year old, can survive. But if you keep clenching your teeth like you are now, without any meritorious deeds, then that would really implicate the whole family. Not to mention the one-year-old, the one-month-old will also be executed. The specific process is roughly like this, first we’ll cut off your flesh as punishment, and then his.”

Yin Die’s chest heaved violently.

Gao Lin threw the pen and paper heavily in front of him.

The trial for this case went on for seven consecutive days, and after those seven days, the testimonies of the two were compared one by one, and each was convicted. Yin Die was beheaded at the execution grounds, and before the execution, he had already been beaten to the ground by the onlookers. Yu Zhong was locked in a prison cart and escorted all the way to Qingzhou, but before he got ten li away, his head also flew.

When Gao Lin returned to report this matter, Liu Xian’an was beside Liang Shu, talking to him about Yu Cong’s condition. He was unavoidably surprised upon hearing this, and said: “I thought the prince really wanted to preserve his life.”

Liang Shu nodded: “This lord said so, and he has always kept his word.”

Gao Lin answered: “Right, but I’m such a rebellious person, and preferred to go against the prince. Please punish me, Your Highness.”

Liu Xian’an: “…….”

In the end, he was fined a day and a half’s salary. As for why this small amount was still deducted, it was because the penalty was originally three days, but His Royal Highness Xiao Wang was magnanimous and didn’t want to see the lieutenant general cry, so he generously gave him a discount.

Liu Xian’an said: “So the prince is this kind of person.”

Liang Shu grabbed his hair band: “What kind of person?”

Liu Xian’an said: “Very natural and unrestrained.”

Liang Shu smiled and said: “I thought you were going to say that I don’t keep my word.”

Liu Xian’an shook his head and insisted, “Just natural and unrestrained.” It was fair to repay kindness with kindness, grievance with grievance, nobility with nobility, and wickedness with wickedness.

Liang Shu released his grip: “How is Xiao Hua?”

“She is in good health, but doesn’t like to talk and is afraid of meeting people. However, Commander Tong and Aunt Liu are accompanying her, and the little girls in the city also bring fresh fruits to visit her every day. A-Ning says that she is much more cheerful. Even Aunt Mu Cuihua brought a bowl of chicken soup over at noon today. The common people are kind. A city should be like this.”

“Let Tong Ou stay with his daughter for a few more days without disturbing them. He will still be busy in the future.” Liang Shu asked, “What about Yu Cong?”

“His life is also pretty good.” Liu Xian’an said, “It seems that he still has the mentality of becoming an immortal who is about to ascend to the holy land.”

“In recent years, due to the cult’s ways, he has been running among the children all day long. How many girls has he jointly harmed with Yin Die in secret? A pile of bones was just dug up in the back courtyard of Yu Manor recently. How can this old bastard still want to become an immortal?” Liang Shu said, “Let’s go, follow me to see him.”

Liu Xian’an agreed, and trotted two steps to keep up. The dauntless general from the Northwest military camp walked, and the soft-boned lazy person from the Jiangnan waterside pavilion also walked with perhaps seven or eight times the number of steps. But Liang Shu didn’t slow down, and instead lengthened his strides — just because he felt that the other party following along hurriedly like a duckling just out of its shell was rather cute.

---

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Chapter Sixty-Four << Table of Contents >> Chapter Sixty-Six

Qin Yishun immediately understood what Pei Yi wanted to express, and his long, narrow eyes sharpened.

“Pei Huan! Let me ask you, when Pei Yi was ten and  fell into the swimming pool, was it accidental or not?”

The question was simple and straightforward, with the answer almost pinned down. 

Bo Yueming frowned slightly. His focused gaze fell on his lover’s face as he quietly waited for the situation to develop.

When the Pei couple and An Yang heard this sudden question, their faces showed disbelief—

Looking at the entire wealthy circle of the Imperial Capital, there was no one who didn’t know that the young master of the Pei family, Pei Yi, accidentally drowned at the age of ten, and after being rescued, he became a fool and a public laughing-stock.

No one had ever suspected that it was not an accident, but man-made!

Pei Ruzhang didn’t expect that this old incident would come up today. He was already in a state of confusion, and immediately said, “Yishun, that is enough!”

“You’re the big brother, and instead of trying to be good, you’re always provoking conflicts!”

First, he suspected that Pei Huan had hurt the old man and blamed Li Yuan, and then he suspected that Pei Yi’s drowning was caused by Pei Huan? How old were they then? How could it be possible?

Pei Ruzhang glanced at Bo Yueming, who had nothing to say, and spoke a little more politely, “Xiao Yi’s mind is limited, just listen to this nonsense, how can it be taken seriously?”

Qin Yishun entered “brother protection mode” again and retorted coldly, “It is because you’ve always treated Xiao Yi as a fool that even if he tells the truth, you will treat it as a lie.”

“Pei Huan!”

Qin Yishun ignored Pei Ruzhang’s attempt to stop him and called him out again. 

He asked relentlessly, “Let me ask you, did Pei Yi’s drowning back then have anything to do with you!”

Qin Yishun’s aura had been tempered in a rain of bullets, with real guns and knives, and when he moved for real, few people could withstand his questioning.

“…….”

No matter how well Pei Huan disguised himself, his breath still shook for a moment.

Pei Yi noticed the softening of the person in front of him, and a cold light flashed in the depths of his eyes. As a transmigrator, he had never thought about this matter carefully—

Firstly because there was no detailed description in the original text, so there was no way to analyze it;

And secondly because it was so far in the past, and the original owner didn’t retain his memories of before and after the drowning.

Therefore, Pei Yi took it for granted that the original owner accidentally fell into the water by himself until he learned about the past from Qin Yishun just now—

Pei Huan dared to push the six-year-old original owner down the stairs when he was a child?

His bad roots had clearly developed since childhood!

Since there was a first time, there was no guarantee that there wasn’t a second time!

Pei Yi’s intuition told him that this was a possibility, and he took the opportunity to ask a tentative question. Pei Huan’s silence just verified his guess.

Things had come to this point, and there was no possibility of turning around.

Pei Yi had never thought of himself as a good person in the strict sense, and he also had a bit of stubbornness in his bones.

Now that he had the opportunity, he didn’t mind adding some more information to this undecided “fact.”

“It’s you, push me!” Pei Yi got closer to Pei Huan, and said face to face, “I’m uncomfortable, you watch, don’t help.”

Ten words were enough for everyone to make up the storyline.

When everyone heard Pei Yi’s brief but affirmative accusation, their expressions varied.

“…….”

Pei Huan, who was in a storm of public opinion, was calm on the surface, but his heart was wrapped in deep fear from the past. He never thought that the old accounts from four years ago had just been turned over, and now there were old accounts from twenty years ago—

Although the recent paternity test had confirmed his identity, in the eyes of Pei Huan as a child, both he and Pei Yi were grandsons of Old Mr. Pei.

He was also one year older than Pei Yi, and was the rightful eldest grandson!

However? For as long as he could remember—

The attention of Old Mr. Pei and Old Mrs. Pei had always been on Pei Yi. Every time they went out to a banquet, they would let the other party follow them and never pay too much attention to Pei Huan. 

Pei Yi could get countless compliments no matter what he did, but he himself was always asked by Pei Ruzhang to become better and surpass the other boy in everything!

Pei Huan remembered when he once asked Pei Ruzhang aggrievedly: Why have I worked so hard, but Grandpa and Grandma still like Little Brother?

Pei Ruzhang answered him: Because you are my son, and because you are not good enough. If you want your grandparents to pay attention to you, you have to be the only one.

The only one?

What did being the only one mean?

Just like when Uncle passed away, and Father became Grandfather’s only son?

No one knew that Pei Ruzhang’s simple, casual words had planted a seed of evil in Pei Huan’s heart, which quickly took root.

The first time Pei Huan acted on this evil was when he pushed Pei Yi down the stairs and was caught by Qin Yishun.

Under the strict education of the other party, his guilty conscience and fear caused him to cry and beg for mercy, inhibiting the growth of his evil thoughts.

But it was just education without punishment, and if seeds weren’t pulled out by the roots, there would be a day when they rose again!

When Pei Yi was ten years old, he won first place in the elementary school mathematics competition, while Pei Huan, who also participated, only won third place. After the news reached home—

Pei Ruzhang closed the door and scolded him for being worthless, saying that he was no match for Pei Yi.

The old Pei couple said that the two children were both excellent, but their preference for Pei Yi was still obvious.

Jealousy gave birth to the evil thoughts that had not been expressed for many years, and Pei Huan once again thought of what Pei Ruzhang had told him—

Only when Pei Yi disappeared could he be the only one!

Strictly speaking, Pei Yi had fallen into the water by himself, but Pei Huan witnessed all of this with his own eyes next to the pool.

During that long minute, Pei Huan, who was hiding behind the swimming pool’s decorative pillars, ignored his little brother’s cries for help.

His feet seemed to be fixed, his mouth sealed, and his eyes just watched the other person lose his strength little by little as he sank.

Later, Pei Yi was rescued by a passing housekeeper.

Pei Huan was terrified afterwards, fearing that the other party would accuse him of not helping after he woke up. He was afraid of the disappointed and disgusted eyes of the adults falling on him.

But God favored him after all—

After waking up, Pei Yi had become a fool, and no longer possessed his former cleverness!

The disappointed Old Mr. Pei began to turn his attention toward Pei Huan, and he finally became the only outstanding young master of the Pei family, just as he wished!

Over the years, Pei Huan was always afraid that Pei Yi would recover, so he would make insinuations and tell Pei Ruzhang and Deng Xiuya in private that the other was a potential threat. 

No parents wouldn’t think about their own son, and that was why they continued to beat and scold the other boy out of sight, stimulating Pei Yi to go crazy and become more and more reticent.

Pei Huan knew all of this, but looked on coldly, feigning ignorance.

Breaking free of his memories, Pei Huan denied it, “Pei Yi, don’t talk nonsense here! I didn’t do it! How can you blame me for your own mistakes?” What the other party said was not completely true to the facts.

What’s more, twenty years had passed, so what evidence was there to pursue now?

“Is Pei Yi talking nonsense, or are you just guilty?” Qin Yishun caught his target accurately. “Pei Huan, don’t forget, you are no longer the young master of the Pei family.”

“……”

Qin Yishun asked rhetorically, “If the old man finds out that you hurt Pei Yi, what do you think he will do to you? Do you think you can remain in the Pei residence?”

These few simple sentences directly hit Pei Huan’s vital point.

Before he could figure out a solution, the quietly watching Bo Yueming said, “No need to wait for Old Mr. Pei to make a decision.”

Everyone’s eyes moved away one after another.

Bo Yueming’s eyes hidden under his glasses were very calm, and spoke volumes. “DIrector Pei, from now on—”

“If Pei Huan remains in the family for one more day, the Pei family will never receive any benefits from Bo Group.”

Regardless of whether the truth of their childhood could be revealed one day, Pei Huan did try to do something to Pei Yi for profit before.

This alone was enough for Bo Yueming to not tolerate him!

Pei Ruzhang was not intimidated.

Hearing Bo Yueming take things to this level, he choked up. “Mr. Bo, what do you mean? Our Pei family and Chairman Bo signed a contract!”

Bo Yueming sneered. “You signed a contract? The contract based on my marriage to Pei Yi?”

“…….”

Pei Ruzhang was speechless.

Bo Yueming wore guide glasses for the blind as a disguise, but his powerful, superior aura could not be resisted. 

“Do you think that a contract signed by someone like Bo Guancheng can still be counted?”

“Of course, Director Pei can continue to guard his imposter, as long as he can bear the consequences.”

Bo Yueming threatened outright, “It would not be difficult for me to bring down the Pei family.”

Pei Ruzhang’s expression froze.

He had almost forgotten that the one standing before him was not the Bo Yueming who had been forced to abdicate half a year ago!

Bo Yueming’s method of handling affairs was very similar to that of Old Mrs. Bo back then. He was vigorous and resolute, and was still doing well in Bo Group. Even Bo Lihui was afraid of him!

If the other party took over Bo Group one day, it was really possible for him to do as he said and bring down the Pei family!

At the same time, the stubborn Pei Huan also became flustered—

Having lived in the Pei family for the past twenty-five years, he understood the selfish natures of Old Mr. Pei and Pei Ruzhang.

Half a year ago, the father and son forced Pei Yi to marry for the benefit of the Pei family. What about now? In order to protect the Pei family, they would give him up, a person who had no blood relationship!

Pei Yi took in the expressions of the two of them, and his heart rejoiced.

He let out a sigh of relief not only for himself, but for the original owner!

Pei Yi unconsciously turned to look at Bo Yueming, and seeing him standing behind him like a solid backer, he felt an indescribably excitement and admiration. 

He even foolishly thought—

Ah!

So handsome!

I like him so much!

I really want to kiss him!

Bo Yueming’s eyes hidden under the lenses had already met his lover’s shining gaze. His heart warmed, and he didn’t want to waste time in this sort of place.

To him, it didn’t matter if Old Mr. Pei was okay or not. What mattered was sleeping with the kitten in his bed.

. . . . . . . 

The atmosphere was silent once again, and the lights in the emergency room finally went out.

A nurse came out. “Is Pei Yangsheng’s family here?”

Pei Ruzhang immediately rushed forward. “Hello, that’s me!”

“The operation was successful. You family members can pay first and go through the hospitalization process, and wait for the patient to be transferred to the ward later. There will be a special doctor there to discuss the details with you.”

Qin Yishun and Pei Yi, who had not come forward, also heard the report and breathed sighs of relief—

For the former, out of a slight concern for an elder and family member.

And for Pei Yi, out of happiness for his friend. Fortunately Old Man Pei didn’t encounter any major misfortune, and Li Yuan could be relieved of an unnecessary burden.

Pei Ruzhang took the report from the nurse and thanked him twice.

When he was about to go downstairs to pay the fee, Pei Huan followed him and volunteered, “Dad, leave this to me.”

Pei Ruzhang thought of what had happened just now, and after noticing Bo Yueming’s figure from the corner of his eye, he tactfully pushed away Pei Huan’s assistance. 

“No need, this husband and wife will be responsible for the old man’s affairs.”

“…….”

Not parents, but husband and wife.

It was a seemingly ordinary change of address, but the change it represented behind the scenes was huge.

Pei Huan gazed after Pei Ruzhang’s unsentimental departing figure. His expression twisted for a second, and he tugged Deng Xiuya’s hand hard.

“Mom, do you believe me?”

His eyes reddened again with grievance, unwillingness, and pleading. “You watched me grow up, you should know what kind of person I am, ah!” 

Could it be that just because there was no blood relationship, his existence and all of his actions had become mistakes?

“Yes, ah, I watched you grow up from a young age.” Deng Xiuya’s tears were about to fall, and her heart was in a mess. “How could I not understand you?”

It was precisely because she knew him so well that she could tell whether Pei Huan’s defense was true or false.

In the past, Deng Xiuya always looked at her child through a filter. Even if there was something wrong, she would automatically find a reason to excuse it.

But today was different—

Pei Huan “stole” Li Yuan’s grades as early as in university, and today he still tried to use Old Mr. Pei to frame Li Yuan.

Deng Xiuya’s mind still lingered on the image of Li Yuan’s back as he left. She couldn’t imagine it. How much grievance and suffering had her own son gone through all these years that he no longer had the slightest hope for familial affection?

In contrast, under the support of their husband and wife, when had Pei Huan not had a smooth life?

A mistake was a mistake. She and all of them needed to reflect!

Deng Xiuya couldn’t just abandon the child she had raised for more than twenty years, but she could no longer favor one over the other as she had before.

She painfully pulled away from Pei Huan’s grasp, and forced herself to ignore his emotions. “Xiao Huan, ah, don’t run to the hospital for the time being these few days. We will take care of Grandpa.”

“You’re tired today, go back and rest early.”

“…….”

Deng Xiuya followed closely in her husband’s footsteps.

Pei Huan laughed miserably. He didn’t say anything, but understood everything.

Qin Yishun sighed unnoticeably and took out his phone to check the time. “It’s getting late. Xiao Yi, let’s leave too.”

“En.”

In front of Qin Yishun, Pei Yi ran back to Bo Yueming’s side and habitually held his hand. “Er-ge, let’s go.”

Qin Yishun took in this scene, and his eyes darkened slightly.

The footsteps gradually faded away, taking with them the tension in the atmosphere.

Pei Huan took half a step back unconsciously, but his legs went weak out of nowhere and he fell to the ground. He covered his face and laughed wildly, his emotions already on the verge of collapse—

After twenty-five years of living in a wealthy family, he never knew what it was like to fall from heaven into the mud. Could it be this difficult?

Why?

Why was it that in just one afternoon, he was left with nothing?

This was the only question left in Pei Huan’s mind, and his heart was even more terrifyingly hollow.

An Yang narrowly emerged from the information overload. “Xiao Huan!”

Seeing Pei Huan alone and pale, she rushed forward to help him, but was pushed away—

“Don’t touch me!” Pei Huan stared at the familiar yet unfamiliar An Yang, and the accumulated resentment in his heart these past few days finally broke out.

“If you hadn’t suddenly gone crazy and ran into my birthday party to make a big fuss, I wouldn’t have ended up where I am today!”

“Why? Why couldn’t you have told me in private?”

“Why did you insist on making all of this known! It’s your fault, it’s all your fault!”

An Yang’s blood surged up, and she said tremblingly, “Xiao, Xiao Huan?”

In the past, whether at home or outside, Li Yuan would never yell at her in such a tone or be fierce toward her. Even when her illness got out of control, Li Yuan would give her the most meticulous comfort and companionship he was capable of.

“I am your mother, ah!”

An Yang thought for a long moment, but could only choke out this powerless sentence.

Pei Huan recalled everything he was about to lose, and mocked this ridiculous remark, “You used these words to kidnap Li Yuan all these years, right?”

An Yang’s face paled.

Pei Huan got up on his own, looking at An Yang coldly. “Mother? How much is that title worth? What can your Li family bring me?”

“Based on the low worth of Dawn Games, that idiot Li Yuan may be willing to work hard all over the place, but I’m not!” 

If it was the past, Pei Huan would have still been willing to do some superficial work—

After all, as long as he took advantage of the more than twenty years of getting along with each other and found a way to hug the relatively thick tree of the Pei family, he could still live the life he wanted.

As for “Dawn Games,” as long as he relied on the title of “Young Master Pei” and his connections, he could support himself with just a single investment.

But now? He was about to lose everything!

“I don’t care about being your son! The farther away you are from me, the better!” Pei Huan left behind these cold and heartless words, exiting the corridor without looking back.

An Yang was left on the spot, staring blankly at his figure disappearing around the corner. However, Li Yuan’s disappointed eyes suddenly appeared in her mind.

One second, two seconds, three seconds.

An Yang finally couldn’t help but cover her face, crying bitterly as she belatedly realized—

What she had done in the past four years had lost her the most precious and most sincere child!

. . . . . . .

Pei Yi took Bo Yueming’s hand and walked to the parking lot with Qin Yishun.

“Are you hungry?” Bo Yueming asked Pei Yi in a low voice, and then extended an invitation to Qin Yishun ahead of them. “Mr. Qin, do you want to get something to eat together?”

Qin Yishun paused and turned around to look at the two people in front of him with a complicated expression. After some thought, he chose to use the most straightforward way. “Both of you, stop pretending in front of me.”

In the hospital corridor just now, Pei Ruzhang and the others were all preoccupied and didn’t have time to observe too many details, but as an outsider, Qin Yishun could see clearly—

“Mr. Bo, haven’t your eyes healed a long time ago? And Xiao Yi, you’ve already recovered your mind and can communicate with us normally, right?”

“…….”

“…….”

Qin Yishun’s straightforward words caused Pei Yi and Bo Yueming to fall into a brief silence as they faced each other.

Bo Yueming knew that the other party was a clever person, and that there was no point in pretending.

He took the initiative to remove the obstructive guide glasses, and admitted, “Mr. Qin, apologies. We didn’t mean to hide it from you.”

It was only that he needed to maintain a certain level of vigilance against Pei Ruzhang and the others, lest the other party and the Bo family collude against him in secret again.

Hearing Bo Yueming’s frankness, Qin Yishun fixed his eyes on Pei Yi again.

Pei Yi panicked. “Brother, I’m sorry, I…..”

Qin Yishun interrupted him, calling Pei Yi’s full name for the first time, “Pei Yi, come with me.”

“……”

Pei Yi took a tight breath, and inadvertently glanced at Bo Yueming.

Bo Yueming whispered, “Go, I’ll wait for you in the car.”

The way he saw it, Qin Yishun wouldn’t do anything to hurt Pei Yi. It was just that with this candid and forced reveal, there would definitely be fluctuations in the other party’s emotional acceptance.

Thud.

The car door shut.

Pei Yi sat in the passenger seat, carefully observing Qin Yishun’s expression. “Brother, I was wrong.”

“I, I really didn’t mean to hide it from you, it just that I’ve been too busy lately. I thought I’d confess to you around New Year’s Day or the Spring Festival.”

Among the two groups of people who now knew of Pei Yi’s true character—

Bo Yueming uncovered his disguise early on, and living under the same roof, Uncle Kai and Lin Zhong also found out by the way.

Li Yuan knew because of their partnership and friendship, and since if he wanted to advance his career, he had to be honest and follow up on the project.

Pei Yi’s “playing the fool” had initially just been to maintain his character, but later, it was for convenience and to avoid any unnecessary trouble.

Pei Yi never felt sorry, but towards Qin Yishun, Su Wan, and Pei Yuan, he had a strong guilty conscience.

Not only because he was forced to replace the vanished original owner, but also because he truly cherished this belated familial love and care.

“When did it happen? Why did you keep it from me?”

Qin Yishun took a deep breath, trying to suppress his depression and confusion. “Xiao Yi, do you not think you can trust me?”

“That’s not it!”

Pei Yi lowered his head, regret and guilt intertwined in his heart. “Before marrying into the Bo family, I escaped and fell into the river. After I was rescued, I recovered a bit.”

Qin Yishun frowned upon hearing this.

“At that time, my ID card was in the hands of Pei Ruzhang and the others, and I didn’t have enough money to escape, so I had to go to the Bo’s first.”

“In the beginning, I was more defensive toward the people around me. It was also at that time that you rushed back to find me and I deliberately smashed a wound into Sun Yelong’s forehead, for self-defense and to teach him a lesson.”

Pei Yi had no way to tell the entire story of his transmigration, so he could only be as frank as possible about his own experience.

He included that he was going to stay at the Bo residence temporarily, but then developed true feelings for Bo Yueming after spending so much time together.

And his game partnership with Li Yuan, their careers that were in their infancy.

By the end, his face had lowered so much that it almost couldn’t be seen.

“Brother, I’m sorry.”

Qin Yishun looked at Pei Yi’s head, and for a moment, he felt that the person before him was far removed from the little brother in his memory.

After some thought, the picture of the two getting along after they met appeared in his mind again—yes, the closeness that Pei Yi showed to him was true.

Time passed minute by minute.

Pei Yi suffered in silence. He usually appeared confident and decisive, but he was most afraid of hurting those he trusted or was close to.

“Will you hide it from me next time?”

Pei Yi shook his head like a rattle, and murmured a few beats later, “Brother, you…..you’re not angry, ah?”

Qin Yishun asked back, “Is anger useful? Should I simply deny that you’re my little brother? Or give you a spanking?”

When he heard the second part of that sentence, Pei Yi subtly moved his body to the side of the car. “It’s great that you’re not angry.”

And also great that there was no spanking.

Qin Yishun saw his cute behavior, and the displeasure in his heart was washed away. “You’re really with that Bo Yueming?”

“En.”

Just as Pei Yi answered, he suddenly saw Qin Yishun frown again, and his heart skipped a beat. “Brother, what’s wrong?”

Qin Yishun clenched his back molars and picked up the airs of a big brother, “He’s cheap!”

“…….”

Pei Yi was stunned for a couple of seconds, then instantly smiled.

Seeing him smile, the corners of Qin Yishun’s mouth softened slightly. “I still have some business to deal with tonight, so I need to hurry back. Let’s forget about dinner.”

“Next time there’s an opportunity, bring Mr. Li with you.”

Qin Yishun’s first impression of Li Yuan was not bad. Although the other party was unwilling to return to the Pei residence, that didn’t mean they couldn’t get to know each other.

Pei Yi nodded. “Okay, I’ll go and talk to him!”

The two of them exchanged a few more words. Afraid of delaying Qin Yishun’s important business, he hurriedly got out of the car.

But after getting out, he walked around the front of the car to the driver’s side door and knocked on the window. “Brother!” 

Qin Yishun rolled down the car window. “What is it?”

There was still a trace of guilt in Pei Yi’s heart, and he felt like he had to do something. “Why don’t I find you at the company tomorrow? I’ll bring you coffee?”

“…….”

When Qin Yishun heard the word “coffee,” he felt that he could taste the bitterness on the back of his tongue. He hadn’t told anyone, but the last time he drank the cup of coffee his little brother brought him, he almost didn’t sleep the entire night.

Qin Yishun revealed a rare trace of hesitation. “It’s fine for you to come, just forget about the coffee.”

If he had time to drink something so incredibly bitter, it was better to eat dessert with his little brother.

. . . . . . .

When Pei Yi got into the car again, Bo Yueming was the only one there.

He glanced at the empty seat in front of him and asked, “Er-ge, where is Lao Fu?”

Bo Yueming put down his work tablet. “His wife came to the hospital with their child and said she had a sudden fever. Since you hadn’t come back for a while, I asked him to take half an hour to check on the situation.”

Bo Yueming had always been tolerant toward his trusted subordinates.

“You’ve cleared things up with Mr. Qin?”

“En.”

Taking advantage of the fact that there were no outsiders in the car, Pei Yi directly straddled Bo Yueming’s lap.

Bo Yueming was surprised by his lover’s initiative, but didn’t refuse, and instead put his arms around his waist. “I just called Yan Cen. Mr. Li should be fine for the time being.”

“I also sent a message to Uncle Kai and asked him to prepare something for us to eat when we get home. Are you hungry now?”

Pei Yi listened to Bo Yueming explain everything in detail, and his heart warmed. “I’m fine.”

He remembered the other party’s domineering defense of him in the hospital just now, and couldn’t help but compliment, “Er-ge, the way you defended me just now was very handsome!”

In the past, Pei Yi didn’t like to rely on others and was self-reliant in everything. However, he gradually discovered that being protected by the person he liked was also a very fortunate and happy thing.

Bo Yueming chuckled, and then saw the kitten in front of him get closer and closer, their breaths mingling, desire rising.

“What are you doing?”

“Don’t move.”

Pei Yi kissed him lightly on the tip of the nose, ready to make trouble, and said, “I’m going to kiss you to tears tonight!”

---

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Chapter Sixty-Eight <<Table of Contents >> Chapter Seventy

T/N: Thank you to iceleaf for the Kofi! Here’s a double update for you!

The door to the living room closed gently.

Li Yuan turned around and looked at the grandfather and grandson who had come uninvited. Out of politeness, he took the initiative to pour a cup of tea for Old Mr. Pei. “Old Sir, please sit down.”

Seeing his manners, a hint of admiration flickered in Old Mr. Pei’s eyes.

Li Yuan avoided meeting his gaze, and glanced at Pei Huan next to old Mr. Pei, his face pale—

Regardless of the choice An Yang made in his sophomore year, it was the difference in attitude she showed on their birthday that deeply hurt Li Yuan from beginning to end.

Li Yuan felt that he was not a saint, nor did he have the heart of a Bodhisattva. 

Whether or not Pei Huan had known about it, he really couldn’t treat a person who had taken his future away with a sense of balance.

Old Mr. Pei didn’t know his hidden past, but he saw Li Yuan’s expression change slightly.

He glanced at the slightly awkward Pei Huan, and took the initiative to explain, “I asked Xiao Huan to bring me to you. No wonder he didn’t talk to you beforehand and make an appointment to have someone in your company greet us.”

“I heard from Xiao Huan that the two of you were university classmates?”

Old Mr. Pei picked up the hot tea Li Yuan had poured, carefully observing his face through the steam. The charm of his features really resembled his wife’s when she was young.

Li Yuan gave an unnoticeable laugh, once again regaining his venomous tongue and coldness toward the outside world. “The Old Sir is joking. Mr. Pei is a young master from a wealthy family, how can I deserve to be a ‘university classmate’ of his?”

“I just studied the same major for a year, which doesn’t count. I’m not familiar with him.”

“…….”

Hearing the stabbing intent in his words, Pei Huan’s eyes froze slightly.

Old Mr. Pei also noticed this, and paused while serving tea. “Child, I checked on the situation of the Li family in recent years before coming here. You have suffered.”

Li Yuan responded indifferently, “It’s no good to bother the Old Sir with our Li family affairs.”

Old Mr. Pei heard the firmness in his words, and disagreed, “How can the affairs of the two families be discussed separately at this point? You should know the reason why I came to you today.”

Li Yuan naturally knew, but he didn’t care.

Old Mr. Pei smelled the ordinary scent of the tea and was about to put it down, but remembering that this was the first cup of hot tea that Li Yuan had poured for him, he still took a few dignified sips.

“Ruzhang and his wife have already done a paternity test with Xiao Huan, and so have Ms An and Xiao Huan. Xiao Huan……”

Old Mr. Pei paused, but still laid the facts down in front of the two children. “It is true that he has no blood relationship with our Pei family. He is the son of the late President Li and Ms. An.”

“…….”

A trace of unwillingness flashed deep in Pei Huan’s eyes. Rubbing his fingertips, he forced it down.

Li Yuan learned the truth, and the fog-covered mirror in his heart finally became clear. He saw his reflection, but didn’t recognize himself.

“So what?”

After a long silence, Li Yuan only asked these two simple words.

“I hope you can return to your position as ‘Young Master Pei,” so that we can make up for what we’ve owed you over the years.”

Old Mr. Pei’s gaze remained on Li Yuan’s face.

Having lived to this age, he always saw himself as invincible, but now, he couldn’t help being nervous as he anticipated the other party’s answer.

Pei Huan at the side saw Old Mr. Pei’s rare look of eagerness, and felt a sense of dissatisfaction in his heart.

Now that everything had happened, he was no longer qualified to express his unhappiness. Instead, he had to try his utmost to stabilize his position.

Pei Huan regained his spirit, and apologized to regain his sense of existence. “Mr. Li, I’m truly sorry, and I’m willing to give back your position.”

Upon hearing this, Old Mr. Pei finally remembered Pei Huan. “Xiao Huan, you are also a victim in this matter.”

Regarding this farce, the real fault lay with the hospital. Li Yuan was innocent, Pei Huan was innocent, and the two families were even more innocent!

When all the dust settled, they would sue the person in charge of the hospital!

People’s hearts were made of flesh.

Pei Ruzhang and Deng Xiuya were reluctant to part with the child they had raised for twenty-five years, and Old Mr. Pei also recognized Pei Huan’s filial piety and hard work all this time.

“The matter has already happened, and we must find a way to solve it.”

“Fortunately, the family has been relatively well-off these years. Whether one child or two, we can afford it.”

“You can afford it?”

Li Yuan seemed to have heard something ridiculous. “Since you can afford it, why did you send Pei Yi off to get married in the first place?”

If he hadn’t met Bo Yueming who was cold on the outside but warm on the inside, and if Pei Yi hadn’t been of sound mind, he would have been ridiculed and bullied outside!

Li Yuan had seen the true faces of the rich and powerful. Hadn’t he encountered such a situation during the first meeting between him and Pei Yi?

“……”

Old Mr. Pei didn’t expect Li Yuan to be waiting for him at this pass, and his expression changed slightly.

Thinking of his little grandson whom he had placed high hopes on since he was a child, but turned out very disappointing, he couldn’t feel happy. “Why mention him out of nowhere?”

Li Yuan saw the indifference in Old Mr. Pei’s attitude, and the hesitation in his heart completely dissipated. “Old Sir, are you just going to recognize me back into the Pei family casually without doing a paternity test? Aren’t you afraid you’ll recognize the wrong person a second time?”

Old Mr. Pei set the teacup on the table and said confidently, “Of course one cannot make the same mistake twice. Since I sought you out today, of course I confirmed your paternity test.”

Li Yuan was taken aback. “What do you mean?”

“You’ll have to ask Ms. An about this, she is the one who provided us with your test items.”

Old Mr. Pei explained this without any scruples, and looked fixedly at Li Yuan. “Of course, it would be great if you are willing to cooperate with us and go to the hospital for another examination.”

“……”

Li Yuan heard Old Mr. Pei’s casual tone, but his heart was filled with shock—

What was this?

Without his knowledge or permission, the other party “stole” items that could be used for a paternity test?

Then, with the established results and a natural tone, he wanted him to return as “Young Master Pei?”

“Sorry, I think you’ve made a mistake!”

Li Yuan suppressed his anger and incredulity, and simply stood up. “From beginning to end, I never thought about doing a paternity test or going back to the Pei residence!”

Old Mr. Pei’s eyes followed him closely. “What?”

Pei Huan was also a little surprised by Li Yuan’s attitude—

He had originally thought that the other party would eagerly “abandon” the Li family and “return” to his identity as the young master of the Pei family.

After all, the benefits and status the Pei family could bring were far superior to the currently defeated Li family.

“Your care, companionship, and family affection for the past twenty-five years don’t belong to me, but now you want me to come back because of a blood relationship?”

“Young Master Pei?”

Li Yuan looked at Pei Huan and gave a cold laugh. “No matter what my name is, I will create my own identity instead of relying on family background and wealth in exchange for my career and pursuits!”

“……”

Pei Huan could hear Li Yuan’s meaning, and it was as if he was being strangled by an invisible hand.

Before Pei Huan could saying anything, Old Mr. Pei slammed down his cane and stood up. “Outrageous! Do you think I came here to be taught a lesson by a child like you?”

“I thought you were a good boy with good manners and an understanding of right and wrong, but now it seems that you are not a good boy! You have the blood of the Pei family in your body. If you don’t return to the Pei residence, where else can you go?”

Seeing his angry face, Li Yuan only found it extremely amusing. These three or four years of experience being alone had allowed him to discover the ways of the world among these old foxes—

Leave the “foolish” Pei Yi alone, and instead let him return as a child without sentiment?

In the end, the Pei family just needed a true blood heir, and it had nothing to do with the fact that he was Li Yuan!

They wrapped their inner selfishness in grandeur, and captured his will with the so-called blood relationship. What kind of familial affection and compensation was this?

Pei Yi helped him to break free of his shackles, and he didn’t intend to jump into another deep pit!

Sneering, Li Yuan refused. “Save your rhetoric for someone else.”

This was the first time Old Mr. Pei had been disrespected by someone of the younger generation, and he grabbed the other’s hand angrily. “Li Yuan, what do you mean? Did Li Xiao teach you to be so disrespectful before he died?”

“The Li family raised you as a waste!”

When Li Yuan heard Old Mr. Pei’s indiscriminate condemnation, a trace of long-lost anger welled up in his heart. “Enough! Who do you think you are?”

Li Yuan had always been grateful and filial to the Li family. Even though An Yang snubbed him after learning the truth, Li Xiao had already given him all the love he had as a father before his death.

“You have no right to control me! You have no right to talk about them!”

After Li Yuan’s loud refusal, he suddenly broke away from Old Mr. Pei’s restraint, and an unexpected accident happened!

. . . . . . .

The hospital operating room.

Sitting on the bench at the outermost corner, Li Yuan finally said it all in the lounge.

He glanced at the still-lit emergency lights, his heart filled with unprecedented self-blame. “I, I didn’t do it on purpose. I didn’t use that much strength.”

Pei Yi and Bo Yueming exchanged glances, and Pei Yi temporarily disregarded his lover’s jealousy, taking the initiative to hold his friend’s trembling hand. “Li Yuan, take it easy. We all believe in you.”

Bo Yueming’s gaze fell sourly on their hands.

When he received the WeChat message from his lover, Bo Yueming happened to be on his way to pick him up, and quickly changed lanes.

“You shouldn’t.”

Li Yuan shook his head unsurely. 

He was still immersed in replaying the situation just now in the lounge, and looked at this friend who had absolute trust in him. “Pei Yi, Pei Huan was standing behind the old man at that time. Even if he fell, he should have been able to catch him immediately.”

Pei Yi heard something abnormal in these words, and exchanged a dark look with Bo Yueming.

Li Yuan cast Yan Cen an uncertain glance, fearing that the other party would misunderstand and think that he was trying to shirk responsibility.

He quickly turned his gaze back and covered his face, taking a deep breath. “Whatever the case, I shouldn’t have argued or exerted strength on him.”

If Old Mr. Pei really had an accident due to the fall, how could he escape the self-blame deep in his heart?

Li Yuan really didn’t like the “family patriarch’s” coercive tone, but he never intended to hurt him!

Yan Cen saw his overwhelming anxiety, and comforted him in a gentle voice, “I think Old Mr. Pei must have a heart condition. He’s prone to sudden onset of his illness due to his age. Don’t panic or worry.”

As soon as these words fell, there was the sound of more disordered footsteps.

Pei Yi saw the tall figure clearly, and quickly got up and waved. “Brother!”

“Xiao Yi!” Qin Yishun walked over in large strides, and immediately brought his little brother within his range of protection. “Are you all right?”

Bo Yueming was unexpectedly pushed aside. His expression changed slightly, but he, who was formally dating Pei Yi, remembered Qin Yishun’s identity and had to temporarily suppress the incongruous sourness in his heart—

The situation was important, he couldn’t make things difficult for his brother-in-law!

Another familiar voice rang out, “Where is the old man? Where is he?”

Behind Qin Yishun were three anxious-looking people – Pe Ruzhang and his wife, and An Yang, who had come after hearing the news from some unknown source.

“……”

Pei Yi didn’t have a good impression of these three elders.

He took advantage of Qin Yishun’s figure to avoid any possible line of sight with these people.

Qin Yishun saw that his little brother didn’t like them, so he directly disregarded their relationship. “We met at the gate of the hospital and walked in the same direction.”

Of course Pei Yi wouldn’t doubt which camp Qin Yishun was in. He looked around, feeling a little more confident—

Five against four!

In the case of a team battle, they had a chance of winning!

Qin Yishun glanced at Bo Yueming and the others and cut to the point, “What’s the old man’s situation now?”

Yan Cen thought of his friend’s “inconvenience,” and answered in his stead, “It’s been half an hour since he went in, and he hasn’t come out yet. We had a project meeting with Mr. Li today, and happened to meet.”

As soon as he spoke, Pei Huan, who was alone at the door of the emergency room, came over in search of the voices.

“Dad, Mom, I’m sorry. I didn’t take good care of Grandpa.”

His eyes were flushed red with forbearance, a sense of guilt emanating from his entire person.

The distressed An Yang wanted to push away the crowd, but when she met Li Yuan’s gaze, she stopped in her tracks and could only say in embarrassment, “Xiao An, what is going on here?”

At the same time, Deng Xiuya kept looking at Li Yuan, her emotions fluctuating violently. Her heart, which had gradually grown hollow since the birthday celebration, seemed to suddenly grow flesh and blood.

Pei Yi, Bo Yueming, and the others remained silent for the moment, and didn’t speak rashly.

Seeing this, the older Pei Ruzhang directly threw the question to Pei Huan, “Xiao Huan, tell me! What is going on here?”

Pei Huan knew that there must be an explanation, and the self-blame in his tone continued. “Grandpa insisted on meeting Mr. Li. I couldn’t deter him, so I took him there.”

Pei Ruzhang realized something. “The results of the paternity test came out this morning?”

Pei Huan nodded with difficulty.

The paternity test results came out just this morning, so Old Mr. Pei came to the door in a hurry.

With the truth thoroughly confirmed, Deng Xiuya suddenly covered her mouth, her eyes sore and astringent.

She really wanted to rush up and hug her son, who had never been loved well since birth, but when she thought of her mocking and ridicule on the other party’s birthday—

She wanted to slap herself twice! How could she say such mean words!

“Grandpa was trying to persuade Mr. Li to come home. He said that he wanted to make up for the debt owed over these years, but Mr. Li refused to recognize the Pei family no matter what, and after talking for a while, it became a little unpleasant.”

“…….”

Li Yuan’s hands unconsciously clenched at his sides, but he couldn’t refute—what the other party stated was indeed the truth, but what was with the strange tone? It made him feel unspeakably aggrieved!

Pei Ruzhang took a deep look at Li Yuan, and said, “Then what? The old man usually has such a strong body, how could he fall down and pass out for no reason!”

“Mr. Li wanted to leave, but Grandpa refused, and then something happened,” Pei Huan said briefly. These words left a lot of room for imagination.

Qin Yishun couldn’t bear the half-spoken and half-concealed remarks, so he looked directly at Pei Huan and asked, “You’re saying that the reason the old man fell and passed out is because Mr. Li pushed him?”

“…….”

Pei Huan got stuck.

He looked at  Li Yuan and hesitated to speak, as if hiding something for the other party and making a silent accusation.

Li Yuan couldn’t explain directly, and said with a pounding heart, “I just broke free, I didn’t push him on purpose!”

Pei Yi believed in his own discernment of people, and also believed in Li Yuan’s conduct. He watched Pei Huan’s peerless pantomime performance and quickly rushed to his friend.

“Li Yuan is good! You’re bad!”

Pei Ruzhang’s heart was a mess, and he seethed with anger. “Pei Yi, what are you doing here! What’s the matter with you, fool!”

This indiscriminate accusation quickly roused the ire of both Bo Yueming and Qin Yishun—

“Mr. Pei.”

“Uncle.”

With just a few words of address, the collective aura that burst out was enough to make Pei Ruzhang freeze in place.

Bo Yueming took the opportunity to lure his family’s kitten back into his arms. “Pei Yi, come here.”

Pei Yi easily fell into his arms, and didn’t forget to cleverly remind, “Camera.”

Yan Cen caught the key point, and pretended to be neutral, “That’s right, I remember that there are cameras everywhere in YWY Studios. Shouldn’t they also be installed in the lounge? When there’s time, check the recordings.”

“Also, I think Old Mr. Pei’s symptoms just now are more like a heart attack than a coma caused by a contusion.”

“…….”

A trace of panic flashed through Pei Huan’s lowered eyes, and he recalled the situation in the lounge just now—

Li Yuan broke free, but the force used could not be considered a “push.” It was only that Old Mr. Pei fell ill for some reason and was not able to remain standing.

Standing behind him, Pei Huan could have caught him in time, but at the critical moment, he suddenly had a wicked thought but had no time to reflect on it.

Turning to one side, Pei Huan pretended to be too late to steady him, and let Old Mr. Pei fall onto the coffee table and then to the ground.

Everything had happened too fast, too suddenly.

Pei Huan watched as Old Mr. Pei had an accident, and it was too late for regrets!

Thus, he could only take advantage of Yan Cen and the others rushing over to secretly push everything onto Li Yuan.

Presently, Pei Huan’s mind was like a machine running at high speed, and countless thoughts emerged.

Surveillance?

Why didn’t he notice it beforehand?

What if the surveillance captured him stepping back?

No, if there was video evidence, why would Li Yuan be so worried?

“……”

Pei Yi stared at the subtle changes that came over Pei Huan in just a few seconds, and knew there must be something wrong. “Lie!”

The lounge was monitored, but the angle might not have been able to capture everything.

The reason he brought up “surveillance” was to deceive Pei Huan into reacting. No matter how well the other party hid it, his fearful reaction to the unknown evidence was still there.

At this moment, everyone’s eyes were on Pei Huan.

Pei Huan took a tight breath and argued loudly, “I didn’t! How could I be lying?”

Qin Yishun’s unfathomable eyes shifted from Pei Yi’s face to look at Pei Huan. He had seen through the latter’s character earlier than anyone present, and asked in a deep voice, “Then why do you look guilty?”

Pei Huan’s body went rigid, and his voice quivered, “Da-ge! I know you prefer Xiao Yi, but how can you doubt me because of his illegible accusation?”

“I have always seen you and Grandpa as family, what good does this accident do me? I don’t have any blood relationship with you, so I deserve to be blamed?”

Pei Huan was red-eyed and unwilling, as if he had been greatly wronged. 

“As family?”

Qin Yishun could hear Pei Huan sneakily changing conceptions, and wasn’t fooled at all. “When you pushed Pei Yi down the stairs when you were young, did you ever think of him as family?”

“……”

Pushed him down the stairs?

Learning this for the first time, Pei Yi’s eyes shifted slightly, and a terrible guess flashed through his mind.

Qin Yishun continued to speak, “When you colluded with Bo Guancheng to bring Pei Yi to Sun Yelong’s room, did you ever think of him as family?”

“Pei Huan, you have been raised to be ruthless and ungrateful since you were a child, and you only know how to please the old man and look good on the surface!”

“The old man’s accident doesn’t do you any good, but you blame all these trumped up charges on Li Yuan? Why should he carry the pot?”

Qin Yishun questioned him calmly and forcefully, leaving Pei Huan speechless.

Pei Yi’s eyes brightened slightly, and he wished he could jump up and applaud—

Sure enough, this was the “brother-con” that fans of the original text unanimously recognized. When it came to related incidents, his fighting power was simply off the charts!

“…….”

Pei Huan’s breathing was a little disordered, and he subconsciously cast a helpless look at An Yang.

Listening in a daze, An Yang felt the child call to her for help for the first time, and her heart fluttered.

She hastened agitatedly to Pei Huan’s side. “What was it you said, Mr. Yan? There is a high probability that the old man has a heart problem. What matters here is Old Mr. Pei’s situation, why are you making nonsense accusations?”

Deng Xiuya also defended automatically, “Yes, ah, Xiao Huan is the child we raised, he wouldn’t hurt the old man.”

Li Yuan’s heart was completely chilled by these words, and he laughed out loud. “Whether he doubted me intentionally or unintentionally just now, have you trusted me or stood up to say a word for me?”

“Xiao An.”

“Yuan.”

An Yang and Deng Xiuya spoke in unison, the former feeling guilty, and the latter blaming herself.

Li Yuan looked at his friend standing guard in front of him, and his cold heart regained a little warmth.

He patted Pei Yi on the shoulder, and took the initiative to step forward and face the wind and rain. “Whether you believe it or not, I didn’t push the old man, and I’ve never thought of hurting him!”

“Also, while everyone is here, I’ll say something for the last time—I don’t want to know whose son I am at all, and I don’t want to become some family’s young master with a false reputation!”

“Mr. Pei, Mrs. Pei, I can’t afford to pay for the birthday party you specially prepared for Pei Huan. If I didn’t have this blood relationship, I would still be a worthless, nameless child in your eyes.”

“No, Y-Yuan!”

Deng Xiuya waved her hands in a panic, wanting to touch him, but afraid of making him unhappy. “My emotions were unreasonable that day, and I didn’t speak well. Don’t…..”

Halfway through the excuses, she was stopped by the indifference in Li Yuan’s eyes. 

Li Yuan looked at An Yang, who was protecting Pei Huan again, and the last trace of nostalgia in his heart vanished completely. 

“You too, without this blood relationship, I would be worthless in your eyes.”

Identical sentences extended different meanings.

“As early as sophomore year, when you gave Pei Huan my competition proposal, you had already chosen to abandon me.”

“Since this is the case, let’s settle the accounts thoroughly. I will return Dawn Games to you, so that you can have something to give to your precious son.”

“Xiao An?”

An Yang stepped forward in a panic, and Li Yuan simply retreated. “Don’t worry, Dawn Games is in a much better state now than when I first took over. In any case, you can give it away.”

For four full years, Li Yuan felt that he had done his best! An Yang was the one who didn’t want him now!

Li Yuan gave Pei Huan a cold look, and for the first time, didn’t hide his disgust. “Pei Huan, from the day you took away my bidding proposal, you were doomed to be a despicable thief!”

“You have never been the victim of this farce! No matter how much they love and defend you, I, Li Yuan, will always hate what you have done!”

After Li Yuan said what was in his heart, he turned around and left.

Pei Yi watched his friend’s free and easy back as he left, and was sincerely happy for his disengagement.

After waiting for so long, the day of truth finally came!

“Is the competition plan he mentioned just now what I think it is?” The silent Yan Cen took two steps forward and looked at Pei Huan. “Was Yuan the real owner of that account?”

The gaze under those lenses had lost the tenderness it once had.

Pei Huan’s heart tightened, and he didn’t know how to answer. “S-Senior.”

“Don’t call me that, I can’t shoulder this address of yours!”

“…….”

Pei Huan’s face paled. He really had a crush on Yan Cen, and didn’t expect that there would come a day when he would be exposed!

Yan Cen recalled his initial admiration for the person before him, and now only found it extremely ironic. “Taking the achievements of others and discussing them with me? Blushing and talking about how hard you worked?”

Those lenses reflected a cold ruthlessness.

Yan Cen was angry at being deceived, but also annoyed at not being able to perceive people clearly.

Seeing Yan Cen’s attitude, An Yang’s heart beat like a drum. “M-Mr. Yan, was that investment competition so important?”

Yan Cen felt it was necessary for An Yang to understand how terrible this behavior was. “With Mr. Li’s ability, the spectacular content of that competition was enough for him to create ten times or a hundred times more achievements than ‘Dawn Games’ in the circle after graduation!”

Pei Ruzhang and Deng Xiuya looked at each other in blank dismay. They were completely unaware that such an incident had happened back then!

They had always thought that Pei Huan was excellent in university, but didn’t expect that his excellence came from stealing the efforts and achievements of their own son?

“Ms. An, you nearly ruined his life and his future, but now you ask him to accept everything calmly? Is this possible?”

Yan Cen threw down this heavy rhetorical question, then quickly chased after Li Yuan.

“…….”

The emergency room lights were still a blinding red, and it remained silent outside in the corridor, with an invisible pressure quietly spreading.

Bo Yueming didn’t want to stay here any longer and waste time with this bunch of irrelevant people.

He lowered his head imperceptibly and bit his kitten’s ear. “Shall we leave too?”

Warm, numbing breath entered that ear instantly.

Pei Yi unconsciously remembered the love activities before going out that morning, and his heart pounded. He even wanted to raise his head and ask for a kiss from Bo Yueming.

It was a pity that the occasion was wrong, and he still had an uncertain suspicion to voice.

Pei Yi lightly rubbed Bo Yueming’s wrist twice with his fingertips, signaling to his lover to remain calm. He walked steadily up to Pei Huan, and slowly pulled out the remaining truth from that year—

“It was you……who pushed me?”

Pei Huan’s heart skipped a beat. “What?”

Qin Yishun suddenly realized that something was wrong, and quickly walked up behind his little brother. “Xiao Yi, what did you say?”

Pei Yi stared straight at Pei Huan, and affirmed his guess, “Swimming pool, he pushed.”

Back then, when the original owner fell into the swimming pool at ten years old, it was probably not an accident!

---

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Chapter Sixty-Seven <<Table of Contents >> Chapter Sixty-Nine

The two started from the border and traveled southward for some time. The land here was sparsely populated, and they often traveled for a day without seeing anyone.

After sleeping in the carriage for a few nights, Zhao Yelan couldn’t wait to find an inn and have a good rest in a bed. However, they never got to the inn. When they passed by a farmer’s house, Yan Mingting asked Xiao Gao to stop the carriage and proposed to stay there for a night.

Zhao Yelan considered it for a moment, then agreed.

When the farmers heard that they would pay money, they readily acquiesced, and they were even more enthusiastic after receiving the huge reward. They slaughtered one of the sheep and gave them roasted lamb legs to eat that night.

The group of people sat around the fire, staring at the lamb legs that were dripping with oil.

The hostess was sitting next to Zhao Yelan, weaving a woolen blanket. She was also very enthusiastic and feared that they would be bored, so she kept chatting with them, asking where they were from and what their relationship was.

“We’re from the capital.” Zhao Yelan thought for a moment, then pointed at Yan Mingting and said, “This is my brother.”

Yan Mingting was taken aback, and looked at him suspiciously. When he saw his teasing expression, he agreed: “Right, these two brothers ran away from home.”

The corners of Zhao Yelan’s mouth twitched.

The hostess asked curiously: “It seems that you’re not very young, almost thirty? Why did you run away from home?”

These words made Zhao Yelan and Yan Mingting happy, and they opened their mouths and began making up stories.

Zhao Yelan: “He ran away from marriage. His family told him he was going to be wed, and he refused.”

The hostess: “Seeing what a talented person this young master is, could it be that the girl was not good-looking?”

Zhao Yelan: “No, it’s because he likes men.”

Yan Mingting: “Yes, ah.”

The hostess was startled, and nearly stabbed herself with the needle. Her eyes widened, and she felt that she was being discourteous, so she turned and asked Zhao Yelan: “Then why did you run away from home?”

“Because he also likes men,” Yan Mingting said.

The hostess held her breath and dared not breathe it out for a long time.

Yan Mingting: “My little brother, ah, there’s nothing wrong with him except that he looks good. Countless people in the capital fell in love with him, but he fell in love with a man. Of course, that man is also very romantic, and the two agreed to elope together.”

The hostess wasn’t even knitting her blanket. She just listened intently, and suddenly looked at Xiao Gao, who was staring at the lamb legs and practically drooling: “Could it be that your little brother eloped with this young man?”

The two people: “…….”

Xiao Gao, who hadn’t been paying attention to their conversation at all, turned his head and looked over: “Did you say something about me?”

Zhao Yelan decided not to tease her anymore, and was about to explain when he heard the host call out: “The lamb is ready to eat.”

Xiao Gao and Yan Mingting immediately left their seats and rushed over, and the hostess also went to cut the mutton.

The seats on both sides of Zhao Yelan were empty, so he got up and walked over to eat.

The freshly grilled meat was tender and fragrant, and the seasoning suppressed the smell of the mutton. The taste was very good. The group of people stood by the fire, talking and laughing as they ate meat. With the addition of two cups of wine, it quickly became cheerful.

In the evening, the hostess shared with her husband the big secret she had heard that night: “Those two good-looking ones are brothers. The dumb-looking one next to them eloped with the younger brother!”

“Really?” The husband was shocked.

“Really, they told me themselves.”

“Then should I bring this hot water or not?” The husband was carrying a basin of hot water for them to wash their feet.

“Bring it. Although they like men, they have to wash their feet. After all, they’ve already given money,” the hostess said.

The two of them came to the door with water in their hands. Just as they were about to knock, they heard the voice of the ‘younger brother’ inside: “Ah, take it easy!”

Immediately afterwards, they heard the older brother’s voice: “Sorry, I drank alcohol and I can’t control my strength. If it hurts, just say something, ah.”

“Are you going to maim me to death? So annoying, I told you not to drink so much. What are you trying to do tonight?”

“Sorry, sorry, I drank a little too much when I was having a good time. Bear with it, the pain will stop soon.”

“Yes, ah, that’s good, right there. You can use a little more force.”

Listening to this strange conversation, and the “younger brother” who gradually began to moan, the couple looked at each other in shock. The door opposite from the room opened at this moment, and Xiao Gao saw them carrying the water. He said: “Just leave it at the door.”

The husband and wife set down the water tremblingly and quickly ran back to their room, discussing under the covers in fright: “What should we do, should we tell that fool that he’s been cheated on by those two brothers? No, the two of them are making so much noise, and that fool must know that they are in the same room. He asked us to put the water down, which means that he already knew about it!”

The husband: “Help, ah, are the people from the capital so scary? They’re brothers! How can this be so!”

“Right, ah!”

And the two people in the other room were unaware, continuing their massage.

Zhao Yelan’s back ached from sleeping in the carriage. Yan Mingting had promised to massage him tonight, but after drinking, his strength was unexpectedly not as controlled as before.

Zhao Yelan hit him several times before he found the right strength and position.

When having breakfast the next day, the two found that the couple couldn’t look them in the eye, and didn’t ask them much. Anyway, they were leaving.

Before they left, Zhao Yelan paid an extra sum for the mutton, but the hostess refused to accept it, looking at him in a panic: “N-no need, we’ve already been paid, you brothers keep it.”

When Zhao Yelan got into the carriage, he said to Yan Mingting: “The people here are really simple.”

The husband heard this, and seeing Yan Mingting lead him into the carriage while that foolish boy took the initiative to drive for them, he thought: we can’t keep up with you city folk who know how to play!

The carriage continued forward for more than ten days. It was early autumn, but snow-capped mountains could be seen nearby. The towering peaks were covered in white, and the temperature was very low. Yan Mingting took out a thick robe from his luggage and put it on Zhao Yelan, rubbing his hands as he asked: “Are you still cold?”

Zhao Yelen shook his head: “I want to go out and have a look.”

“Let’s go.” Yan Mingting lifted him down from the carriage, and the two walked slowly to the foot of the mountain. The rolling mountains looked like pillars supporting the heavens, lifting up the entire sky.

Zhao Yelan was drawn in by this natural scene. During the time, he had seen a lot of scenery that he had never seen before, and his mind was greatly broadened. He felt that the world was so vast, and people were so small. What troubles could there be in his heart?

Just the other day, he and Yan Mingting had a one-sided conflict.

The reason was that while Yan Mingting was assisting him in bathing, he picked up a gray hair out of nowhere and said with a bit of excitement: “Huh? You have gray hair?”

Zhao Yelan’s expression froze: “No?”

“You really do.” Yan Mingting directly pinched the strand of hair and placed it carefully in front of him. “Look, isn’t this a gray hair?”

Zhao Yelan’s face immediately changed. “No need for you to wash it. Get out.”

He sulked all night by himself, and when he woke up in the morning, he didn’t even look in the mirror. He was sleepy all day, everything he looked at irritated him, and he was too fed up with Yan Mingting to talk to him.

Yan Mingting asked him what was wrong, but he didn’t want to answer.

How could he answer?

How could he say that he couldn’t accept that he suddenly had a gray hair?

This gray hair reminded him that he was aging. His body would worsen in the future, his movements would be slow, his teeth would fall out, his face would be covered in wrinkles, and no matter how beautiful his clothes were, they couldn’t hide his old age. 

Why did he have a gray hair in the blink of an eye?

“Look at that mountain, doesn’t it look like a sword?” Yan Mingting pointed at the mountain behind them.

Zhao Yelan said: “It clearly looks like a sickle.”

“Sword.”

“Sickle.”

“Sword!”

“Xiao Gao, tell me, is it like a sword or a sickle?” Zhao Yelan turned and asked Xiao Gao, who was sitting on the carriage.

Xiao Gao looked left and right, and said, “It looks like a hoe.”

The two: “You’re so unreasonable.”

They left Xiao Gao behind and went inside. Zhao Yelan felt a little hungry, and touched his bosom. Fortunately, he had prepared some snacks in the morning.

Seeing him open a bag of food, Yan Mingting looked over curiously, but saw that it was full of dark things. When he took one out, it was a sesame ball.

“When did you fall in love with these?” Yan Mingting had thought it was preserved fruit or something.

“I fell in love with them today. Is that not allowed?” Zhao Yelan bit into one and glanced at him.

Yan Mingting was very curious. Seeing him eating several balls one after another, he couldn’t help but feel a little greedy, so he asked for one. Unexpectedly, the other party took the bag back as if preserving his own life, and didn’t give him a single one.

“How cruel.” Yan Mingting laughed, inexplicably attracted by the cuteness of his food hoarding. He reached out to press his head, bending down to kiss him. 

When he let go, Zhao Yelan tidied his messed up hair and suddenly glimpsed a gray hair that was blown into his eyes by the wind. After thinking for a moment, he tore it out and let the wind blow it away.

Seeing this, Yan Mingting’s eyes fell on the gray hair that was drifting away.

“It looks like there’s snow there.” Zhao Yelan noticed that there seemed to be snow at the foot of the mountain ahead, so he ran over quickly.

“Don’t run too fast,” Yan Mingting called out.

The two walked for a while before arriving at their destination. The snow was not padded up, and only amounted to a thin layer, but it was surprising at this time of year.

He touched the snow for a moment, and suddenly heard Yan Mingting call, “Menting, look at me.”

Zhao Yelan turned his head to the side, and suddenly froze—

Yan Mingting had smeared a layer of snow on his hair, and his entire head was snow white.

“How is it? Do I look good?” Yan Mingting asked with a smile.

Zhao Yelan was visibly moved. His lips trembled for a moment, and then he smiled: “What are you doing?”

“Showing you what I’ll look like in the future.” Yan Mingting stepped forward and looked at him with an earnest gaze. “Do you hate the way I look with white hair?”

Zhao Yelan shook his head lightly.

“Then would you like me with gray hair?”

Zhao Yelan looked away from his face, raising his gaze to look at the snow-covered hair that was like a gift from heaven. He slowly stared into Yan Mingting’s eyes. “I would.”

“Then what if my face becomes like this?” Yan Mingting suddenly made a twisted face.

Zhao Yelan smiled slightly. “I would.”

“Me too,” Yan Mingting said seriously. He stretched out a hand to caress his left cheek, rubbed his fingertips across his brow, then fell along the bridge of his nose to his lips, and then to his right cheek. He said warmly, “Beauty is beyond the skin. Your bone structure is unique in this world, and I have stroked it so many times. Let alone getting old, I would still recognize you even if you turned to ashes.”

Zhao Yelan: “Are you being polite?”

Yan Mingting smiled and said: “What I mean is that no matter how your appearance changes, nothing will change how you are in my heart. Even if with the passing of time, your face is full of wrinkles, that is my favorite Zhao Mengting.”

Zhao Yelan raised his eyes: “You’ll also like me if I lose all my teeth?”

“I’ll like you. Then I can feed you, and if you can’t eat, I’ll chew it first.”

“Okay, stop talking.” Zhao Yelan quickly covered his mouth.

The two looked at each other at close range and incidentally kissed again. There was no telling who took the initiative first. In any case, the two of them had formed a tacit understanding over the years. When they looked at each other on occasion, they would be attracted by the other party and subconsciously desire more intimate behavior.

While being kissed, Zhao Yelan reached out to pat the snow off the other party’s head. His hair was already a bit wet. He pushed him away and said softly: “Go back to the carriage and dry your hair.”

Yan Mingting did not comply. He chased his lips and kissed him again.

Seeing that it was getting dark, Zhao Yelanpushed this person away again, touching his red and swollen lips: “Are you a dog?”

“Woof woof.”

“Pfft.”

The two slowly returned to where the carriage was parked. Seeing Xiao Gao squatting to the side and staring in a certain direction, Zhao Yelan asked: “What are you looking at?”

“My lord, no matter how I look at it, that mountain looks like a hoe.” Xiao Gao turned his head and stated this firmly.

“……”

The two looked at each other and smiled helplessly.

Zhao Yelan: “Let’s go. Don’t look at it, let’s set off.”

Yan Mingting: “Go, la.”

Sitting in the carriage, Zhao Yelan took out a dry handkerchief and dried the other party’s hair. Thinking of the night before, he asked: “Why did you smile so happily when you saw the gray hair on my head last night?”

“I just thought about the two of us truly growing old together, so I was really happy,” Yan Mingting said.

The corners of Zhao Yelan’s mouth hooked up: “It had better be like this.”

Yan Mingting held his hands and kissed the tips of his eyes. There were already faint signs of age there when he smiled, but it still moved his heart.

“Don’t be afraid of gray hairs. Just think of it as snow that the gods sprinkled onto our heads.”

---

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Extra 5 <<Table of Contents >> Extra 7

The little girl was sweating profusely, dressed as a bride and crying like a weak animal. Tong Ou hugged her tightly, the hand on her back trembling slightly. And the common people who were watching were already frightened by this scene. Using a living person as a sacrifice to the River God, they had thought this kind of thing only appeared in the older generation’s stories, and didn’t expect to witness it with their own eyes today.

The stone shell was thick and hollow, like a human-shaped sarcophagus. It fell with dark eyes onto the bright red firecracker debris all over the ground, looking particularly terrifying. The world seemed to stand still at this moment. There was only the chilly wind blowing across the river bank, giving the common people goosebumps. Everyone had originally come here in the mood for a wedding celebration, but couldn’t imagine that they had almost sunk a little girl into the river while applauding and cheering.

The little girl was still whimpering half-consciously. A-Ning brought a few guards from Xiao Wang Palace to help, and at this time there were a few kind-hearted aunts who saw that it was inconvenient for all of the people around her to be men, so they bravely stepped forward together. They were locals and knew all the little dolls in town, but they had never seen this girl. Although ill and haggard, she was still a little beauty, with curved eyebrows and a slightly rounded nose tip. One of the aunts took a second look and murmured to herself, isn’t that nose just like Wan Yuan’s when she was a child?

“Commander Tong.” A-Ning urged, “It’s too cold here, let me take her back to rest first.”

Only then did Tong Ou release his grip, and the little girl was sent into a carriage that had already been prepared on the street. Presently, the local magistrate Dan Qing also rushed over with some officials. On the way, he had already heard about the real person hidden inside the stone shell, and his head was about to explode. As a magistrate, he actually knew that Yu Manor was not as clean as it appeared on the surface, but as long as there were no major disturbances, he also didn’t bother to care. After all, which manor with many courtyards didn’t have any dirty laundry? But who would have thought that although there were no accidents in the Yu family, there would be the huge event of human sacrifice. This……would this fall on the head of those at the top?

Tong Ou stood up slowly and looked at the three people on the platform.

The Yu family father and son didn’t know that he was the hunter from back then. They only thought that he was a soldier sent by his superiors to catch the ghost, and this just happened to occur.

Yu Cong sat on the chair, out of breath, and after Yu Zhong angrily reprimanded Aunt Liu, he belatedly realized his recklessness. Seeing that Dan Qing and Tong Ou were both there, he could only grit his teeth and continue on to say: “Master Dan, Commander Tong, this……this marriage was proposed by the wizard. My father is very old and got obsessed. Once he heard it, he couldn’t unhear it, and I really couldn’t persuade him, ah.”

“Fool!” Dan Qing scolded in front of the whole city, “Whose girl is that?”

“…….” Yu Zhong hesitated for a moment, then said, “She was bought from a kidnapper.”

“She wasn’t bought from a kidnapper.” Suddenly, another voice came from the crowd. It was Aunt Liu. She stood at the front and said loudly, “This child has been raised in the back courtyard of Yu Manor since birth!”

Yu Zhong’s expression changed. Disregarding that Dan Qing was still there, he ordered his servants to drag her away. Liu Meng stood in front of her with a big knife and said, “I’ll see who dares to touch my mother!”

Dan Qing saw that Aunt Liu knew a lot of the inside story, so he ordered servants to take her to the government office first. There was also a selfish desire to not let her tell more shocking scandals in public. The trouble of a human sacrifice was shameful enough. If she revealed something else, how could he be promoted or transferred in the future? He feared that even the official position he held now would be hard to protect.

Liu Meng stood in front of Aunt Liu, preventing the servants from approaching. Dan Qing’s expression sank: “Bold! Didn’t you hear what I said?”

“Did Liu Meng not hear what Shan-daren said, or did Shan-daren not want to listen to the common people?” Liang Shu glanced at the circle of government servants, and finally set his eyes on Dan Qing. Dan Qing’s heart went numb from the shock of this look, and he still couldn’t determine the identity of the other party. Yu Zhong sensed that the government didn’t want to make a big deal out of this, so he shouted: “Our lord is talking, how can you interrupt!”

Dan Qing saw that everyone was looking his way and knew he had to make a decision, so he gritted his teeth and waved his hand: “Forget it, everyone go back to the government office first. Wizard Yin Die, you come as well!”

Yu Zhong was relieved, and hurriedly ordered his servants to come over with the sedan chair, ready to put his father inside. Yin Die also followed behind the government servants with a gloomy expression. Seeing this, the common people murmured one after another, and when Liu Meng saw that the government servants were going to take his mother away, he was also anxious. While stretching his arms out to block them, he quickly shouted: “Hey, didn’t you say you’re a prince?”

As soon as these words came out, Dan Qing’s brain buzzed! But Yin Die’s reaction was even faster than his. He immediately fled into the crowd, his thin body like a fluttering kite as he flew several zhang away in a flash. Where could the common people have seen these strange movements before? They hurriedly hid with their heads in their hands, for fear that they would be taken away as hostages if they hid too late. But Yin Die had already fallen from the air with a scream. Gao Lin retracted his sword and landed on the ground. With one hand wearing a silver glove, he dragged the old villain covered in poison and threw him in front of Liang Shu: “Your Highness.”

Dan Qing knelt on the ground with a plop and saluted with no color to his face: “Xiao Wang……Your Royal Highness Xiao Wang.”

The surrounding people also reacted and knelt in a circle. Yu Cong was still having difficulty breathing in and out. Liu Xian’an stepped forward and opened his eyelids to look, and said: “Carry him to that empty temple, I’ll give him acupuncture.”

Yu Zhong’s head was drenched in sweat, and he only nodded, but didn’t hear what he said at all. Several servants hurriedly carried their master away. Gao Lin had already asked the common people to get up, and helped Aunt Liu sit down on a chair. She had been working in Yu Manor all these years, mainly to support that little girl. 

The little girl’s name was Shi Taisong. The name sounded sturdy, but it was calculated by Yin Die, and implied the stubborn stones and green pines on Mount Tai, signs of longevity. Aunt Liu said: “The child’s mother is Wan Yuan.”

The common people were dumbfounded. Wan Yuan, that girl from the Wan family? When did she have a baby?

It was born a few months after her imprisonment.

Back then, the hunter had not returned for a long time, and Wan Yuan had a child in her belly, so she knew that she must live in the city for a short time. She planned to take Wan Gui with her to a foreign country, but when she was inquiring about horses and a carriage, she saw that Yin Die was preaching to the proprietress of the carriage shop and stepped forward to expose him, thus incurring his hatred.

All of these things were told by Wan Yuan herself to Aunt Liu later when she was imprisoned in the back courtyard of Yu Manor. She was young and bold, straightforward in everything she encountered, and never thought that someone would catch her with a dirty trick. A few days after buying the carriage, she went to the street to buy other things, but a ruffian approached her out of nowhere with an unclean mouth and vulgar hands, and said not to follow the hunter, but follow him instead. How could Wan Yuan bear this humiliation? So she raised her hand and slapped him, and the ruffian also slapped her. The two scuffled together, and neighbors rushed to pull them away. After they were pulled apart, government officials also rushed over and brought the two of them to the government office.

Then came the news of Wan Yuan’s suicide.

Aunt Liu said: “But in fact, she was drugged into fainting, and was sent to the Yu residence.”

Liang Shu looked at Yu Zhong coldly, and Yu Zhong said in a trembling voice: “It was Yin Die. He got very close to my father seven or eight years ago, and my father obeyed him. My father happened to be in poor health at that time, so Yin Die said that he had done the calculations. Wang Yuan was auspicious, and if they married, my father could live a long life. But my father didn’t agree at that time!”

The common people would secretly spit at him. A seventy-year-old man and a seventeen-year-old girl, you want him to agree?

“But Yin Die insisted that if he wanted to continue his life, there was only one way. My father finally believed it and gave him a large sum of money, which almost emptied half of the family’s wealth. Yin Die also said that he gave Li-daren a lot.”

Wan Yuan “died” in just one day. She was unconscious when she was sent to Yu Manor, and when the doctor performed a routine check of her pulse, he found that there was already a child in her stomach. Yu Cong was cuckolded before he could marry, and was instantly furious. Yu Zhong was also waiting to see Yin Die become a joke, but the old wizard told lies one after another without blinking his eyes.

Yu Zhong said: “He insisted that his fate was calculated correctly. If Wan Yuan was of no use, then the child in her belly would do as well, regardless of whether it was a girl or a boy. The child would be raised to the age of fourteen before consummation, and my father could at least live another twenty years.”

In addition, Yu Cong’s body really did feel better the night Wan Yuan entered the manor, so he believed it again.

Wan Yuan was cared for by Aunt Liu at the time. After she woke up, she begged her to help her report the news, but Aunt Liu knew in her heart that the officials in the city were colluding with the Yu family, and Wan Gui had an unreliable, disagreeable mind. If he knew the truth, he would in all likelihood go to Yu Manor with a knife in his hand and ask for his daughter. Not only could he not save her, but he would also be implicated.

Aunt Liu lamented: “I didn’t know that the Yu family only wanted the child, and thought they wanted to lock up both the mother and child. I advised the Wan girl to live with peace of mind first, and I went out to be her eyes. If there was news of the hunter, I would tell her.”

There was nothing Wan Yuan could do, and she was concerned about her child, so she could only agree. She was locked in a small, lonely courtyard, seeing few people and full of worries. Thus, she was constantly ill and the child was born prematurely. The baby cried weakly and did not even drink a mouthful of mother’s milk before being taken away by the midwife. Wan Yuan was already dying at the time, but seeing that the child was about to be snatched away, she summoned her strength and rushed forward to grab it, but was kicked by Yin Die at the door, causing her to spew a mouthful of blood.

Aunt Liu hurriedly shielded her and dragged her bodily to the bed, wanting to call a doctor, but apart from the guards, there was nobody in the courtyard who could be of help. There was not even a brazier in the cold winter, so Aunt Liu could only pick up some charcoal from her own house. But when she returned, Wan Yuan was already dead.

Tong Ou stood to the side and listened quietly with no expression on his face. Only those near him could detect the bulging veins on the backs of his hands.

Because of the charcoal, Aunt Liu was given a severe lesson for meddling in other people’s business. At that time, Uncle Liu’s leg was injured and Liu Meng was only ten years old, so she had no way out, and couldn’t worry about that poor child, either. So she swallowed everything back into her stomach, and could only use the little money left in the family to ask a servant close to her not to abandon Wan Yuan’s body in the wilderness.

“Don’t worry, Auntie,” the servant whispered. “The dead still need to be buried. It happens that the grave is ready-made. If she was thrown outside and dug up by wild dogs, there would be no way to explain it.”

Wan Yuan was buried just like that.

Aunt Liu continued to stay in Liu Manor in order to take care of the child. She hated the name “Shi Taisong” from the bottom of her heart, so she called her Xiao Hua, Little Flower. Firstly, it was fresh and lively, and secondly, even if someone else heard it, the little doll’s nickname was so common that she couldn’t be blamed, ah.

Xiao Hua’s health wasn’t good, and her personality was dull, but she grew up well. Yu Cong came to visit her every now and then, with gray hair and liver spots all over his face. Aunt Liu was horrified to see him sitting in the courtyard and holding this girl who could be his great-granddaughter. She had discussed with her son a long time ago, and wanted to find a chance to take Xiao Hua and flee elsewhere, thinking that there were at least five or six years to slowly plan. But she didn’t expect for Yu Cong to fall ill again this winter, so sick that he could only breathe his last breath.

It was unknown whether Yin Die still held a grudge against Wan Yuan, or if he was just used to disregarding human life, but with a single word about worshiping the River God, he pinched the budding little flower by the roots. Security in the back courtyard got tighter and tighter, and even if Aunt Liu wanted to take the risk of whisking the girl away, she was unable to. Liu Meng proposed to dig up Wan Yuan’s grave himself, and used a kite dummy to create the illusion of a female ghost, forcing Yu Manor to cancel the Many-Color Festival. 

Liu Meng said: “The ghost was indeed my invention. The kite and clothes are in the cellar of my house.”

There were a few other young men beside him who heard this tale in disbelief, and they all patted his arm at this time, saying in admiration: “Brother Meng, a hero of the jianghu, ah!”

---

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Chapter Sixty-Three << Table of Contents >> Chapter Sixty-Five

The round pebbles were covered in slippery green moss. Liang Shu picked up Liu Xian’an and strode atop them, steady and reliable. Liu Xian’an lay one hand on his shoulder lazily, his thoughts wandering to nowhere. So Liang Shu began to give his opinions. I’ve worked so hard, why did you secretly sneak out for an appointment with those old white-bearded men again?

“I didn’t,” Liu Xian’an said. “I just remembered a legend.”

It was told in the folktales that in the Southwestern barbaric lands, wizards often dried the corpses of children and used special techniques to make them immortal. Then they put them in colorful new clothes, nailed a wooden cross to their backs, and held them up with one hand to walk the streets together. They were called “ghost boys,” which was probably the same as book boys, except that these boys were not responsible for the basic necessities of their masters, but for casting spells and poisons.

Liu Xian’an gestured: “Like the prince is holding me right now, it looks similar.”

Liang Shu ground his molars upon hearing this: “What the hell are these things, don’t think about them, think about something else!”

So Liu Xian’an really thought of something else, but it was also inseparable from demons and ghosts, because the talismans on both sides of the river were so eye-catching and gloomy at this time. It offset the atmosphere, and he felt that if a group of walking dead didn’t jump out of the river, Yin Die’s overwhelming posting method would be in vain.

“The walking dead are like this.” Liu Xian’an stretched out his hands straight in front of him.

Liang Shu rewarded him with a spank: “You’re not allowed to think about the walking dead.”

If it couldn’t be thought about it, that was fine, but this spank was not in the right place. It was below the waist, which was indecent, and even for someone as indifferent as Second Young Master Liu, it seemed that this time, such a thing was not acceptable.

There were roughly two types of beatings. One was like his father and elder brother, who indiscriminately used a ruler to teach him a lesson. This kind of beating was painful, but there was no disturbance in his heart. He only shook his head and sighed, feeling that most people in the world were like this, and even close relatives were no exception. So he looked up to the sky and exhaled, and was beaten as he leisurely thought about the vast difference between heaven and earth, eternally forlorn.

The other type was like His Royal Highness Xiao Wang, whose palm slapped down not lightly but not hard, and wasn’t painful at all. Through the thick winter robes, he couldn’t even feel it, but a spring tide was flowing in his heart, and dreams and reality seemed to fuse a little bit. Liu Xian’an said: “There are no stones here, I will walk by myself.”

Liang Shu put him down gently, and reached out to tug on the other party’s disheveled cloak. So Liu Xian’an’s mood became even more chaotic, and he quickly turned his head to look at the talismans, thinking for a moment about an evil ghost with a blue face and fangs. Liang Shu accompanied him to walk slowly for a while, then suddenly bent sideways so that they were face-to-face. Liu Xian’an was in a trance, and was suddenly startled by this up-close face. Liang Shu looked at him and smiled, dazzling in the splintered golden light on the river, and stretched out a hand to grab his face: “What is it? You’ve been refusing to talk to me.”

Liu Xianan made an excuse: “I’m not, I’m just thinking about tomorrow.”

“I’ll be here for tomorrow’s matters, don’t worry about it.” Liang Shu said, “The laws of heaven are clear, and the vast majority of wicked people in this world will receive their retribution.”

Liu Xian’an made an affirmative sound. The Yu Manor servants were still busy by the river, adorning everything around them grandly. He gazed at the bright red all the way back to the inn, and A-Ning asked keenly: “Young Master, do you have a fever?”

“I don’t.” Liu Xian’an handed him the cloak. “It’s just that my ears are a little hot.”

A-Ning said firmly: “It’s too cold, you need to take some medicine, otherwise you’ll get frostbite.”

Liu Xian’an: “It’s really not that cold.”

The servants of Baihe Mountain Village followed medical principles in everything they did, but Second Young Master Liu’s state at this time clearly had nothing to do with illness. He washed his hands and sat at the table, turning out all the stories and poems about love in his mind, flipping through them quickly. He confirmed one thing, and then let out a long, forlorn sigh.

At this sigh, A-Ning rushed over to test the temperature of his forehead, and pulled over his wrist to test his pulse. After testing for a long time, he said cautiously: “The young master’s heartbeat seems to be a little fast. You’re frowning so much, did something bad happen?”

“It’s not bad, just troublesome,” Liu Xian’an replied.

“It doesn’t matter if it’s troublesome. Even if the young master can’t handle it well, there is still the prince.” A-Ning comforted him, “Take your time, it will always be resolved.”

But Liu Xian’an said: “The troublesome thing is the prince.”

A-Ning didn’t quite understand, why would the prince be troublesome? All this way to the south, the prince had provided them with a lot of convenience.

Liu Xian’an still sighed, because he was really afraid of trouble, and the most troublesome thing in this world was “love.” Tossing and turning, losing sleep, lack of appetite, one’s whole heart held by another person. Weeping, crying, laughing, meeting and parting in the world of mortals. Even growing old together, bumpy roads and chaos were always unavoidable in life, and if you couldn’t live together and wanted to break up halfway, then life would be even more uneasy. His back went numb at the thought, and he wished he could ride a white crane into the clear sky and never come back.

A-Ning was stunned: “What did you just say?”

Liu Xian’an repeated: “I seem to not only want to travel the famous mountains and rivers with the prince.”

A-Ning stammered: “W-w-what else is there?”

Liu Xian’an replied: “I don’t want him to marry anyone else.”

The young master didn’t want His Royal Highness Xiao Wang to get married. A-Ning remembered this, but he also remembered his young master always saying “anyone is fine,” but now it had become “not anyone else.”

The gap between the two phrases made A-Ning faintly uneasy, and he swallowed with difficulty: “Then……then, Young Master, let’s stop talking about it and think it over again.”

Liu Xian’an felt that there was no need to think about it again. He had already come to terms with reality. Liang Shu could not marry others, but could only marry him.

The shocked A-Ning attempted to remedy: “Really? But it’s not a big deal, the young master has always been able to accept anyone, and the prince is not special.”

Liu Xian’an explained: “The one who can’t have just anyone is the prince, and the one the prince can have also can’t have just anyone.”

A-Ning was a little dizzy upon hearing this. In fact, whether he heard it or not, he was still a little dizzy at the moment. However, as a loyal servant, he would stand as a united front with his young master no matter what, so even if he was dizzy, he still braced himself on the table and persisted in asking: “Then does the prince know about this?”

Liu Xian’an shook his head: “I haven’t talked to him yet.”

A-Ning quickly reminded him: “Young Master, don’t worry. This kind of thing can’t be rushed, you must go along at a steady flow. Before our family’s Master Tang went to marry Miss He, they pretended to meet by chance for half a year.”

No matter how one looked at it, the prince should be more difficult to marry than Miss He. A-Ning said: “Young Master, let’s settle the matter of Huaizhen City first, ba. Anyway, we will spend a long time with the prince along the way.”

They would spend a long time with the prince. Just hearing this sentence made Liu Xian’an feel that life was beautiful, even though he knew that there was miasma and heresy ahead. From this point of view, even if he rationally knew that he shouldn’t ask for trouble, he really didn’t know what had happened, and this sort of thing couldn’t be controlled.

Not even a forty-eight thousand year-old immortal could achieve it

Having thought of this point, Liu Xian’an fell asleep in an extremely relaxed state and woke up the next day refreshed, even earlier than Liang Shu.

Yu Manor was also very busy. The stone bride was “invited” out amidst the deafening sound of firecrackers and several aunts wrapped it in colorful silk and satin, placing a veil on its head. Master Yu was also shakily helped over by someone to knock on the stone shell with his cane and say a few words of marriage blessings. He had been lying in bed for several months, and when he went out again at this time, the servants almost didn’t recognize him. They muttered, why is he so thin?

Yu Zhong said loudly: “Okay, Dad, let’s go. The sedan chair is ready.”

Yin Die had also put on a new robe and stood at the front of the procession. When the auspicious time came, the sedan chair was set up, and the shining procession left all the way from Yu Manor. The common people crowded on both sides of the street to watch the excitement. The stone bride was dressed in red silk and carried by eight strong men. When the dazzlingly bright sun shone on it, a timid child was frightened and immediately began to cry. His mother quickly covered his mouth and scolded in a low voice: “The River God’s marriage is a happy event, and there will be delicious food later. Why are you crying, stop crying, be careful not to be blamed by Master Yu.”

The child was still choked up. He always played the marriage game, and the girls he married were all girls similar to him, so it should be taken for granted that when he grew up and married a wife, she would also be similar to him. Now, suddenly discovering that it was possible to marry this terrible thing, it was like a thunderbolt from the sky. He asked in a whimper: “Why is the River God marrying a rock?”

“That’s not a rock.” A clear and gentle voice came from behind.

The little boy raised his head.

Liu Xian’an handed over the sugar cake in his hand: “Don’t watch if you’re afraid. It isn’t a good thing.”

This sentence caused everyone around to turn their heads to look at him. Although they all thought the bride looked very strange, it seemed a bit brainless to say it so openly. Mu Cuihua glanced sideways and said harshly: “The River God is getting married, so it’s fine for you to come and eat a free meal, but you won’t even say auspicious words.”

She was carrying a food box in her hand, ready to take things to eat before the tables opened. A young man nearby said: “Aunt Mou, you haven’t eaten since last night, so you’re hungry and waiting for today’s meal, right?”

Mu Cuihua cursed with a smile. At this time, the sound of firecrackers by the river grew increasingly intense, and the ceremony was about to begin. Everyone crowded forward, trying to occupy the best positions. Officials shouted loudly for order, and Tong Ou also led a garrison to form a human wall in order to prevent people from falling into the river.

Liang Shu held Liu Xian’an’s hand to prevent him from being pushed to the other side. Neither of them had ever experienced such a lively folk wedding scene. They didn’t understand why the common people were crowding until they got to the front of the crowd and realized that there were red envelopes for the people in the front row.

Mou Cuihua had already collected a thick stack. The person who was giving out the red envelopes was Yin Die, who raised his head to regard Liang Shu and Liu Xian’an with a hostile expression. Liang Shu smiled and stretched out his hand: “Merchants from abroad, coming to join the fun.”

Yin Die’s tone was stiff: “Abroad where?”

Liang Shu said: “Wangcheng.”

Yin Die’s complexion changed slightly. The two people were so exceptional, and they were from the royal city……he lowered his eyes slightly, handed over the red envelope, and hurriedly turned to the elevated platform: “Do the salutations!”

Yu Zhong, who was carrying a gong and drum, was taken aback: “Ah, now? But it’s not time yet.”

“It is!” Yin Die ordered in a low voice, “The time is now!”

Yu Zhong thought to himself, he really is a liar. He said the time in the morning, and then turned around and forgot at noon. But he couldn’t be bothered to care about these things, so he beat the gong in his hand: “Worship!”

The stone bride was pushed up. Yu Cong sat on the Eight Immortals Chair. His eyes were cloudy, and there was some water in them as he stared raptly at the bride. Others urged him two or three times, but he didn’t speak. Yu Zhong could only bend down and remind him next to his ear: “Dad, it’s fine. After the River God marries, you will be hale and healthy, don’t be reluctant to part with it.”

Yu Cong sighed: “Life is bitter, life is bitter, ah! Forget it, worship!”

Children grabbed colorful rice and threw it on the head of the “bride,” and the strong men mustered themselves to lift the stone bride into the river. Mou Cuihua, who was at the front, once again screamed like a goose being strangled by the neck, making the people around her feel numb. Another aunt scolded her dizzily: “What’s wrong with you?”

“T-t-the……the bride seems to be crying!” Mou Cuihua’s face turned pale.

As soon as this nonsense came out, the surrounding people were frightened into silence. So in the silence, everyone heard the stone bride crying, as well as a miserable, “Help me!”

Mou Cuihua, who was closest to her, gasped. Her body, which hadn’t been fed for two meals, couldn’t bear the stimulation. She fainted from fright and fell back limply.

The stone bride swayed at this moment, as if trying to break free from the red silk. This was much more frightening than Wan Yuan crawling out of her grave. The people at the scene were so shocked that they fled to their homes one after another, and even the courageous ones also retreated dozens of steps away, hiding behind the garrison and watching in terror.

For a moment, only the stone bride, Liang Shu, Liu Xian’an, and the unlucky and unconscious Aunt Mou were left in the empty field. On the elevated platform, Yin Die’s palms were covered in sweat, and he looked at the two men with gloomy eyes. Yu Cong on the side had already fallen from the chair. Yu Zhong supported his father and turned his head to look at Aunt Liu among the servants, cursing furiously, “Bitch! How did you do that!”

Aunt Liu didn’t say a word. The bag of Mongolian sleeping medicine was still in her sleeve, and she hadn’t taken it out at all.

At this time, Tong Ou strode forward and pried the stone bride apart with a sword.

A thin girl of seven or eight years old fell limply out of it.

---

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Chapter Sixty-Two << Table of Contents >> Chapter Sixty-Four

The First Prince’s case was finally filed, but this was just the beginning. There would still be a long tug-of-war.

His side had formed an excellent team of lawyers, but Luo Ran’s side was not bad either.

Originally, even though he was wealthy, Yuan Han couldn’t find a reliable lawyer because of the First Prince’s connections, but it was different now. With Lucas and Luo Ran coming forward, the team of lawyers on the military’s side was no worse than that of the First Prince.

Now the general public and media were in an uproar, with analysis and discussion posts appearing endlessly on the Starnet.

— War between the Admiral and the Royal Family?! What does this mean?

— Analysis of the competition for Crown Prince. What role does the Admiral play?

XXXX: Oh my god……so Yuan Han’s accusation is actually true? The First Prince not only violated an Omega, but also embezzled? The First Prince is so disgusting and terrible, ba! How can such a person be the ruler of the Empire? It’s not worth the internal and external troubles!

XXXX: It’s so complicated. I don’t know about this, but I’ll follow in the Admiral’s footsteps. He won’t harm us or the Empire. He does what he says!

XXXX: I really don’t know what to say. The star bandit problem hasn’t been solved yet, the Empire needs more weapons and mechas, and the frontiers need stronger protection so that we can gain a foothold in this vast galaxy. Not to mention that the development of desolate stars is also imminent, and the First Prince is actually putting money in his own pockets? Isn’t it unbelievable?!

XXXX: Uh…..maybe the First Prince was framed? According to analysis, the Empire has a Second Prince and Third Prince who might pretend to be a pig to eat a tiger. The forces of the Council are also very complicated. First of all, the Admiral must not be a bad person, but what if he is being used by others to bring down the First Prince? After all, he came forward at this time because the construction funds for the military base are suspected of being embezzled.

XXXX: Agreed, the case has been filed, and not much has been found yet. Let’s wait and see. The First Prince doesn’t look like this sort of person, and he’s handled the Empire’s official affairs very well all along.

XXXX: There’s presently no solid evidence of corruption. What if the Yuan Han incident was a honey trap?

. . . . . .

Pa!

Zhou Mingyu put his terminal on the table, feeling a little frustrated.

He had been cautious for many years and traded with the star pirates during this time, so how did he make a mistake here?

Why did the military department suddenly investigate at this time?

Could it be that Lucas was trying to find out about the drugs that night, and this was the outcome…..?

He had seen the video frantically reposted on the internet. It was a surveillance clip of him holding Yuan Han down in the hallway and entering a room with a kiss.

He had been careful to make sure that there was no surveillance in the room, but this……

The day before, he really couldn’t control his emotions.

It was indeed a single mistake that would cause everlasting regret.

“Don’t worry, Your Highness, they have no solid evidence.” Cyril filled Zhou Mingyu’s wine.

The two of them were presently in a small private room of Zhou Mingyu’s own restaurant, a place where no one else would find them.

“How do you know?” Zhou Mingyu took it with a frown and said, “Did you inquire?”

“This……”

Cyril said with some embarrassment: “I had people negotiate, but Huntsman wasn’t willing.”

Now that a case had been filed, Zhou Mingyu was in a very sensitive position, and the prosecutorial and military departments were also investigating him. Zhou Mingyu thought that he must get out as soon as possible and at least cut off contact with the star pirates for the time being. It wouldn’t be too late to establish a contract with them later if needed. Otherwise, it wouldn’t be good if some clues were found.

But Huntsman was unwilling.

Cyril frowned and said: “They may have tasted the sweetness of the J5 factory and don’t want to leave. They are unwilling to terminate the transaction with Your Highness.”

“Furthermore, Huntsman said they are producing the first batch of Meteor Showers, and they’re almost finished. They need funds and materials very much, and can’t just leave so abruptly.”

Zhou Mingyu set down the cup with a bit of annoyance.

“Dogskin plaster.”

“This…..we can only endure it. We need them, after all.” Cyril paused, then smiled and pantomimed slitting his throat. “We can’t fight against the Admiral alone.”

“En.”

They could only hope that everything went well.

. . . . . . 

Luo Ran stayed in the office with Lucas these two days.

Lucas was safe and healthy, and still lost his temper in the office as usual. Word spread quickly about how the abuse of adjutants in the military was treated, reassuring the whole country.

Then, it was almost New Year’s Eve.

On January 1st, the Empire would set off the most splendid fireworks. The whole country would make New Year’s wishes together, and family members would gather together for dinner.

Luo Ran glanced at the date. At this time, soldiers on the frontier could come back in batches to reunite with their families, and his older brother……would be back soon.

Luo Ran couldn’t help looking forward to it, and happily made a tick on the calendar.

In the second year that Luo Ran had become Lucas’s secretary, Lucas noticed that Luo Ran’s brother — after graduating from the military academy, Luo Xingyuan received an S rating due to his extremely excellent grades and initial mission, and was directly promoted to Second Lieutenant under Lu Cheng’s command.

Lucas personally assessed Luo Xingyuan, and he was promoted to Major half a year later, becoming the commander of a border area.

Luo Xingyuan’s promotion could be considered a rocket soaring straight into the sky. Therefore, when he went to the frontier, he was naturally questioned by the people below him, who said that he had entered through a back door because of Luo Ran.

It couldn’t be said that Luo Xingyuan hadn’t relied on Luo Ran at all, but in less than half a year, he proved himself with his own strength, gained a foothold on the frontier, and was now a bigshot.

“Is Secretary Luo’s brother coming back too?”

Seeing Luo Ran looking at the calendar all the time, Rong Duo also leaned over and said with a smile: “My brother is coming back as well! He is Major Luo’s adjutant.”

“Rong An. I heard my brother mention him.”

“Really?” Rong Duo was clearly very happy, and smiled as she said: “My brother and I end up talking about Major Luo every day. He says he’s super capable and handsome, the best Beta ever seen. I say that Major Luo’s younger brother, Secretary Luo, is the best Beta, and we quarrel about it every day.”

Luo Ran also smiled.

His brother was indeed the pride of their family.

Back then, Luo Ran and his mother worked tirelessly to pay Luo Xingyuan’s tuition, and got the best return.

“That’s right,” Rong Duo said with a smile on her face, “The secretary’s office is going to buy milk tea for lunch, shall I order one for the Secretary too? The store that just opened is very popular, and it’s a very happy thing to drink, tasty and sweet.”

“Thank you.” Luo Ran nodded.

Near noon, a male Beta from the secretary’s office, really came with a big bag of milk tea.

“It’s here, it’s here!” Rong Duo and the others in the secretary’s office came out to greet him.

“Thank you for your hard work.”

“It’s not hard work at all. The best and most special one is for Secretary Luo!”

Seeing everyone buzzing with excitement, Luo Ran smiled and stepped forward to take his cup.

Coconut milk tea, full of coconut pulp.

Luo Ran gave a nod and sat back in his original position, poking it open with a straw to drink it.

He lowered his head for a sip, drinking while reading through official documents.

Concentrating on his work, time passed unknowingly.

It was already after evening when Luo Ran set down his pen.

Luo Ran was planning to rest for a while when there was a stabbing pain in his stomach. It came so suddenly that Luo Ran was taken off guard, and immediately bent over holding his stomach.

“Secretary Luo…..?”

“What’s wrong with Secretary Luo?!”

Seeing this, the rest of the people immediately gathered around.

Luo Ran was dripping with cold sweat from the pain, his face pale.

As soon as he went upstairs, Lucas saw the people in the secretary’s office surrounding Luo Ran. He frowned and asked: “What’s wrong?”

Lucas stepped forward and was taken aback.

Luo Ran bent forward and placed his forehead on his knees, saying: “I’m……fine. I’ll just take some painkillers.”

Lucas noticed the empty disposable cup on Luo Ran’s desk with a few pieces of coconut remaining at the bottom.

“Coconut…..?” Lucas saw it and was instantly furious. He picked it up and threw it in the trash can to the side, then yelled: “Didn’t I tell you not to eat coconut? You have a bad stomach and you’re allergic to it!”

It was no wonder Luo Ran didn’t remember. After all, he didn’t often encounter it, and even if he did, Lucas took it away and ate it. 

“Sorry…..” Luo Ran lowered his head and said hoarsely, “The medicine……is in the drawer.”

Lucas took a deep breath and opened the cabinet door roughly to search for it. After the box of medicine was found, Rong Duo quickly poured warm water from the kitchen.

Lucas directly had Luo Ran take the medicine, and then…..picked him up horizontally.

The movement was gentle and careful.

“I’ll take him to the hospital for an examination.”

Lucas strode down the stairs and onto the aircraft just like that.

But Luo Ran was actually fine. What could be so bad about a stomachache? It was only that Lucas was anxious, and the doctor asked Luo Ran to stay in the ward for an exam. In the end, Shen Xiluo would come to re-examine him.

Luo Ran’s spiritual state had improved by now, and he could even establish a spiritual connection to comfort Lucas, but Lucas had not quite stabilized yet.

“The Admiral isn’t angry anymore…..?” After taking the medicine, it didn’t hurt so much. Luo Ran lay on the hospital bed, smiling as he gazed at Lucas, who was beside him pouring water.

“I am, ah.” Lucas said coldly with a straight face: “But I still need you to edit official documents for me, and I can’t leave you alone even if I’m angry.”

Luo Ran just smiled: “The Admiral is so kind to me.”

“Don’t use this act.” Lucas pointed at Luo Ran and said, “I’m not buying it!”

Luo Ran chuckled.

Lucas laughed angrily.

Luo Ran had a very, very good memory, as everyone knew. He could remember every little detail, but couldn’t even remember his own taboos.

“Don’t be angry, Admiral. This is a chance for Dr. Shen to come and give me a thorough examination tomorrow.”

“Go to sleep.” Lucas poked Luo Ran’s nose and said: “Don’t talk, and don’t sneakily stay up late to read official documents for me, or I’ll find out and beat you up.”

“Okay.”

Luo Ran smiled and nodded.

Then, Lucas seized the time to return to the office to grab the official documents and help Luo Ran finish his last bit of business.

Luo Ran remained alone in the ward. It was still early and he couldn’t fall asleep, so he took out his terminal and went surfing the Starnet.

The Starnet was full of discussions about the First Prince and the struggle for power. Luo Ran read for a while, and after finding out which way the wind was blowing, he didn’t feel like reading anymore, and went to the CP exclusive section instead.

[Blessings]: I wish Secretary Luo a swift recovery!

[Dry Goods]: The intimacy of the office elevator, I was in the crowd, too shameful, la!

[Dry Goods]: Princess carry! Secretary Luo wasn’t feeling well, and the Admiral sent him to the hospital himself!

XXXX: Ahhhh, I am a small employee at the office, and was fortunate enough to witness two beautiful love scenes! First there was the elevator incident a few days ago, and today Secretary Luo fell weakly into the arms of the Admiral. The Admiral picked him up in a handsome and heroic manner, and boarded the aircraft faster than lightning! The Admiral in wartime can hold a pass against ten thousand enemies, but facing Secretary Luo, he is even stronger!

XXXX: Yiiiiii! Will the secretary act spoiled and say that if he is given ten kisses, his stomach won’t hurt?

XXXX: Ahhh maybe the Admiral will say “go a round with me” and it won’t hurt anymore!

Luo Ran: “…….”

His parents must have seen this news, as it was popular and on the front page.

Luo Ran: “……”

So shameful.

Luo Ran could only report to his parents first that he was safe. He said that he was undergoing a physical examination at the hospital, and it was just common stomach pain, so they didn’t have to worry.

And then Luo Ran fell asleep.

Of course, he didn’t expect that his parents would come visit him the next morning due to their worry.

. . . . . . .

The next morning, Lucas came to the hospital early, before dawn.

Lucas wanted to give Luo Ran a surprise, so he went next door to the kitchen provided by the VIP ward.

He was extremely proud. He would make breakfast for Luo Ran today, a pot of delicious porridge!

Lucas thought to himself that he had probably seen the work of the military department’s cooking class before, so he was confident.

The first step should be to cook the rice.

Lucas opened the rice bucket, grabbed a large handful of white rice and threw it into the frying pan, directly turning on the fire.

. . . . . . .

Luo Cheng was still at work, so Wang Zitong came to the hospital first.

She registered downstairs, and after confirming her identity, the military personnel on guard allowed her to go up.

Wang Zitong saw movement in the kitchen next door, and the door was still open, so she turned in to have a look.

Bang—

As soon as Wang Zitong stepped inside, there was an explosion.

Wang Zitong: “…….”

What she saw was Lucas, who was looking at the frying pan with a dazed, slightly gray expression.

The pan and electric stove were also smoking, and the pan had been fried into several pieces.

Reasonably speaking, no matter how capable an electric stove was, without water or oil, if you directly heated the dry rice, it would be unable to handle the abuse and explode.

Wang Zitong: “…….”

Lucas: “…….”

Silence.

Eerie silence.

Lucas was also startled. He first glanced at Luo Ran next door through the window, and was relieved to find that he hadn’t woken up.

Unexpectedly, there were dangerous weapons in the kitchen. Lucas looked innocently at the pot, and then at Wang Zitong.

“I didn’t do anything!”

Fuck!

Wang Zitong was wearing white today, very elegant, so Lucas thought it was the nurse that Rong Duo hired the night before.

Lucas shouted: “What is the matter with this rice?”

Wang Zitong paused, then said with a smile: “What is the Admiral trying to make?”

“Porridge.”

Wang Zitong was a little surprised. She didn’t expect Lucas to know how to cook.

Although……it was more like setting the kitchen on fire than cooking.

“Can I try?” Wang Zitong took in the smoking kitchen again and said: “If the Admiral wants to drink porridge, I can help.”

After all, it was just washing the rice and putting it in. It didn’t take much time.

“No! I want to do it myself.” Lucas puffed up his chest and said proudly: “I want Luo Ran to feel my sincerity!”

“Later, you can teach me how to cook a fried egg with love!”

Wang Zitong: “…….”

Wang Zitong: “Okay, ah.”

She didn’t expect that Lucas would……cook for Luo Ran.

---

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Chapter Seventy-One << Table of Contents >> Chapter Seventy-Three

Pei Yi and Bo Yueming already lived under the same roof, and having been together for half a year had given them enough of an understanding about one another’s life habits.

After puncturing the window paper and becoming lovers, the two hardly had to expend any effort to get along.

“Mm—”

Pei Yi woke up once more in a warm and secure embrace, and gave a kittenish hum.

Still drowsy and buffering, he was in no hurry to open his eyes, but reached out and felt Bo Yueming’s brow, nose, and lips. “Er-ge, good morning.”

There was a hint of laziness in his voice after just waking up.

“Good morning.” Bo Yueming took the opportunity to kiss his fingertips.

“Are you going to the studio today or staying at home?”

“Going to the studio.”

Pei Yi opened his eyes with some difficulty, and muttered today’s work plan, “The Last Fog is coming soon. Today, I want to communicate with your GM about various operations and publicity plans. Pear Garden let me be there.”

The Last Fog 1.0 was scheduled for release on New Year’s Day, and there was only the last half of the month left. The preheating and closed beta of the game would officially begin next week—it involved the operation plan of the game script, and Pei Yi needed to personally handle the details.

Bo Yueming glanced at the time. “Then it’s time to get up. I’ll drop by and take you to the studio first as usual.”

Upon hearing the words ‘get up,’ Pei Yi quickly pulled the quilt over his head and said reluctantly, “Isn’t it fine to lay down for an extra minute? Waking up to work in winter is torture.”

Bo Yueming saw a tuft of his silly hair exposed outside, and comforted him jokingly, “You’re allowed to lay down for five more minutes. I’ll go to the bathroom to prepare your toiletries first.”

Pei Yi revealed his eyes again, a smile on his face. “En.”

Bo Yueming got out of bed and walked steadily to the bathroom.

Pei Yi’s eyes followed him, and he let his thoughts drift away—

It had only been a week since their relationship became official.

Pei Yi had originally thought that when Bo Yueming mentioned “sleeping together,” he meant something else, but later discovered that his own “bad thoughts” were mistaken.

The intimacy between lovers should be gradual.

However, just holding hands, hugging, and kissing every day already gave Pei Yi an unprecedented feeling of security and happiness.

“Wu~”

In the cat’s nest, Inspector turned over and fell soundly asleep on its belly.

Pei Yi’s envy toward his pet doubled again. He had no choice but to resign himself to his fate and crawl out from under the soft, warm quilt, making a decision in his heart—

As soon as The Last Fog was released, he would avoid going to the studio. 

In any case, he relied on intelligence and creativity to make money, so he couldn’t sacrifice the opportunity to stay in bed in winter.

Five minutes passed in the blink of an eye.

Pei Yi just managed to suppress the drowsiness that was still troubling him, and quickly walked into the bathroom. “Er-ge?”

“I’m here.”

Bo Yueming responded briefly. He turned sideways and handed over the dental kit he had prepared next to him. “Here.”

Pei Yi made a happy sound and took the time to clean himself up.

He glanced at Bo Yueming, who was waiting behind him, and his eyes flashed with slyness. “Er-ge, come here.”

“Hm?”

Bo Yueming sensed something, but still listened to him and approached.

Pei Yi nimbly turned and kissed Bo Yueming’s Adam’s apple mischievously. “Good morning.”

Ever since he found out that the Adam’s apple was Bo Yueming’s sensitive spot, Pei Yi had developed a daily habit—he would do his utmost to tease and provoke, and would not give up until he saw the flush of red he wished for.

Pei Yi liked the Bo Yueming who changed moods for him, and he also liked the Bo Yueming who controlled himself for him.

“……”

Bo Yueming’s breathing went tight, and he said helplessly, “Making trouble again?”

Having succeeded in playing a trick, Pei Yi feigned ignorance. “Let’s go downstairs for breakfast.”

Before he could step out, Bo Yueming grabbed his arm and made him turn around and face the bathroom mirror.

Pei Yi instinctively reached out to hold himself up on the sink, and in an instant, Bo Yueming pressed in from behind, locking him up tightly.

“…….”

Through the mirror, Pei Yi saw Bo Yueming’s eyes behind him. They were like an underwater volcano that had been silent for tens and thousands of years, and was showing faint signs of eruption.

The red mark on his Adam’s apple didn’t fade away, but became increasingly obvious.

Pei Yi spied out his intentions, and unconsciously swallowed. Before he could “beg for mercy,” Bo Yueming lowered his head and captured the back of his neck.

No longer restraining himself, he wantonly licked and kissed that little mole.

“Er-ge.”

Pei Yi’s breathing was chaotic, like a fragile little animal being held at its vital point.

He raised his neck to try to escape the sensitivity, but actually sent himself more into Bo Yueming’s hunting range. The latter tempered himself a bit, his strength moving between gentle and harsh.

There was a soft whimper, accompanied by a trace of moisture.

Bo Yueming came to a halt after an unknown amount of time, the sealed desire in his eyes about to break through.

He looked at his stimulation-stunned lover in the mirror, then at the small, incredibly red mole on the back of his neck, and a sense of satisfaction rose from the bottom of his heart.

“I told you not to make trouble. This is your punishment.”

“……”

Pei Yi turned to face him. His fair face was flushed, and his eyes were still misted over, looking pitiful as he tried to put on a brave face.

He was sluggish for a long moment, and could only just barely say, “You, you’re not a good person.”

“En.” Bo Yueming appropriately took this for granted, and turned back the label given by Pei Yi, “Like you said, I’m a villain.”

“……”

Pei Yi rested his head on his shoulder and took it easy for a moment before belatedly worrying, “You kissed too heavily, will it leave a mark, ah? I have to go to the studio today.”

Bo Yueming walked out with his arms around him. “In that case, I suggest that my Little Sir wear a shirt with a high collar today.”

When he heard this, the heat on Pei Yi’s face never dropped.

Unresigned, he moved toward Bo Yueming’s Adam’s apple and bit it for a moment, then replied, “I suggest that Mr. Bo also wear a high collar.”

Bo Yueming was pleased by his cute behavior. “Okay, Little Sir.”

. . . . . . .

The project launch meeting was scheduled for 3pm in the meeting room of Dawn Games.

YWY Studios and Dawn Games had completed their independent separation this week. After unanimous discussion, the main person in charge of the studio became Pei Yi, and Li Yuan became the operations coordinator and a shareholder of the studio.

As for the equity of Dawn Games, it had not changed for the time being, and remained in accordance with its original configuration.

Thanks to Bo Yueming’s personal connections, the new location of the studio had been found, and renovation was currently underway. The core studio team would move over before the Spring Festival holiday.

Pei Yi closed the game information that he already knew by heart, and said to his friend before the GM staff arrived, “Today, I’m only responsible for the ‘game selling points’ part of the launch. I’ll leave the rest to you, ah, little Mr. Li.”

Li Yuan was the original operations coordinator of the studio, so this was natural.

Pei Yi sensed the deviation in his friend’s state, and asked with a smile, “Are you nervous right now? I still remember the bidding in the capital, when someone hid in the bathroom to calm down.”

“…….”

Li Yuan recalled the situation four months ago, and let out a sigh. “Today is different. Now, I’m not fighting alone.”

Now, Li Yuan was free from the shackles of his overwhelming responsibility, and was no longer met with ridicule and haughty gazes all day long when trying to attract investment.

Now, he had friends, a career, and colleagues in the true sense, and his former self-confidence and self-esteem were recovering bit by bit.

Pei Yi smiled back. “En, that’s how it should be. After the meeting is over, shall I treat you tonight? If you don’t get drunk, you don’t go home!”

“If you don’t get drunk, you don’t go home?”

Li Yuan already knew that the “King of Alcohol Capacity” was capable of one glass, and mocked, “Don’t you need to report to your boss? Not afraid that he’ll punish you if you get drunk, ah?”

Punish?

Pei Yi thought of his punishment this morning, and felt that the back of his neck was numb and itchy.

He let out a muffled cough and said with a little courage, but not much, “I’m not afraid, he listens to me”

—Knock, knock.

A knock on the door ended the teasing chatter between the two.

The front desk staff opened the meeting room door and turned sideways, inviting the person sent by GM to come in. 

Pei Yi saw the representative and was surprised for a moment. “Mr. Yan?”

As soon as he spoke, he heard a clack from the side—

The documents and pen in Li Yuan’s hands had fallen to the ground. He quickly bent down to retrieve them, and when he straightened up again, his expression was a little stiff. “Mr. Yan.”

The address was normal, but it sounded unusually restrained.

“…….”

Was it not agreed that he wasn’t nervous?

Pei Yi saw through him but didn’t say anything, and took the lead in approaching Yan Cen and the other two GM staff. “Good afternoon, everyone. Welcome to our YWY Studios.”

His tranquil and fearless gaze turned to Yan Cen, and he asked, “Why has Mr. Yan come here in person today?”

Yan Cen recognized Pei Yi beneath the mask and peaked hat, and replied in a serious tone, “Song Ci was originally supposed to be in charge of the operation, but her father is ill, and she asked for leave to return to Germany.”

“The Last Fog is one of our GM’s key investment projects, so I’ll take a look at it on her behalf. You don’t don’t mind?”

Pei Yi replied with ease, “Mr. Yan is our investor boss, of course you have the final say.”

Yan Cen pushed up his glasses with a smile, and unconsciously focused on Li Yuan. “Mr. Li, long time no see.”

Li Yuan stepped forward, and there was still a trace of unnaturalness that could only be noticed by acquaintances in his voice, “Mr. Yan, good afternoon.”

“…….”

Pei Yi watched the brief back and forth between the two, seeing to the core of it—

One said he wasn’t nervous, but dropped his pen and paper. One said that he was free and was a replacement, and said long time no see?

If he remembered correctly, the two met just last week because of the “studio separation” thing, right?

Pei Yi could see it clearly due to being an outsider, but no matter how good his relationship with Li Yuan was, matters of feelings had to be sorted out by the other party himself.

After all, he had only just fallen in love, and had no experience or confidence in guiding others. What if he led his friend astray?

Pei Yi restrained his thoughts and got to the point. “Mr. Yan, you take your seats first. Our meeting will officially start at three o’clock.”

“Okay.”

The front desk staff soon brought tea and coffee, and Lou Yang and Xiang Nansheng, the department directors, also arrived.

Pei Yi was a practical person, and would never procrastinate during working hours. “Mr. Yan, since everyone is here, shall we start the meeting? I’ll go first.”

“Of course.”

Taking the lead, Pei Yi showed no stage fright.

Even through a mask, his voice was clear and organized, and it could be seen that he was the absolute core of the entire project.

This was Yan Cen’s first contact with Pei Yi in work mode. He was inwardly amazed at the other party’s ability, and finally came to a complete understanding—

Pei Yi could restrain his temper and play the fool, fight back when necessary, and show off his confidence in the field he loved. He was indeed a character who could not be underestimated.

It was no wonder that his good friend Bo Yueming had a soft spot for Pei Yi.

The proceedings of the meeting were well-organized—

First, as the core person in charge, Pei Yi finished going over the game concept and optimization. Then Lou Yang and Xiang Nansheng explained their respective advantages, and finally, Li Yuan summarized the whole project.

The launch meeting covered all aspects in less than two hours.

“Then we’ll continue according to what you’ve said.”

Yan Cen responded with satisfaction, and sorted out an approximate timeline.

“Next Monday, we will start contacting the major application platforms to schedule communication channels and simultaneously arrange pre-heating publicity on major social and game forums. The first wave of internal testing begins next Friday, right?”

Pei Yi and Li Yuan nodded in unison. “Yes.”

. . . . . . .

The launch meeting was thoroughly completed.

At Yan Cen’s signal, the GM representatives returned to the company first to carry out a comprehensive meeting, divide labor, and issue assistance instructions.

Li Yuan looked at Yan Cen, who had remained behind, and asked uncertainly, “Mr. Yan, do you have any questions?”

Yan Cen asked back, “No questions, can’t I just leave a little later?”

“……”

Li Yuan got stuck, and the fingertips gripping his papers once again showed signs of redness.

Yan Cen turned his gaze to Pei Yi and asked, “Are you free tonight? If you don’t mind, I’ll wait here for you guys to get off work, and then ask Yueming to come with us?”

The purpose of this outing was not to drink, but to pick pears, ah.

To be honest, Pei Yi wanted to create opportunities for Li Yuan to spend time with the other man. As for whether his friend would grasp those opportunities, and whether he had the same feelings for Yan Cen as he did in university?

It all depended on Li Yuan himself.

“That works, we were planning to meet up tonight,” Pei Yi readily agreed. “However, it will have to wait for half an hour. Pear Garden and I can’t leave early during this critical period.”

Considering the fact that it got dark early and winter nights were cold, Pei Yi and the others had a discussion and changed their off-duty time two days ago, moving it forward half an hour.

“Pear Garden?”

Yan Cen faintly repeated the nickname, and there was a hint of amusement beneath his lenses. 

“This is Mr. Li’s forum ID, right? It’s quite unique.”

Li Yuan opposite took an uncomfortable sip of water. His eyes lowered slightly. “I’ve made Mr. Yan laugh. I just took the name casually.”

Why did the same name being called from the mouths of Pei Yi and Yan Cen respectively give him different feelings?

Knock, knock.

There was a knock at the door again.

It was the front desk employee. She pushed the door in carefully and immediately set her sights on Li Yuan. “Mr. Li, I apologize, are you done?”

Pei Yi, who was closer, asked first. “What is it?”

Seeing Yan Cen in the meeting room, she hesitated a little.

Li Yuan saw this, and said in a gentle voice, “It’s fine, just say it directly.”

“An old man claiming to be the chairman of Pei Group came to the door without an appointment.”

The front desk employee thought of the old man’s serious, unsmiling appearance, and her heart trembled a bit. “He insists on seeing you. Saying anything was useless, and he wanted to rush in here right away.”

“…….”

“…….”

When these words were spoken, Pei Yi and Li Yuan’s expressions changed simultaneously.

Yan Cen, who was a relative outsider, recalled everything that happened at the birthday party that day, along with the gossip that came after that. He could roughly guess the situation, but was not in a hurry to speak out.

Pei Yi asked, “Where is that person now?”

“I saw that the old man was using a cane. I feared that he would fall to the ground in his agitation, so I temporarily arranged him in the outermost lounge.”

The front desk employee was unaware of the grievances and enmity between the rich and powerful, and her considerations were all on the company’s behalf.

“Right, not long after the old man entered the lounge, another younger Mr. Pei came. He said that he and Xiao Li were classmates in university.”

Pei Yi glanced over at Li Yuan and Yan Cen, and surmised affirmatively, “It’s Pei Huan.”

Seeing Li Yuan’s shifting expression, the front desk employee quickly explained, “I, I didn’t let him in directly! I heard that the meeting was over, so I came to ask you for instructions.”

Li Yuan’s heart tightened slightly, but he still came to a decision. “Let that Mr. Pei enter the lounge too, and just say that I’ll be there later.”

“Okay.”

The front desk employee received her instructions and backed out quickly.

Pei Yi looked at his friend. “Yuan, are you sure you want to see them?”

“The day was going to come sooner or later. Since I can’t hide from it, I might as well make things clear.”

By now, the circle was full of gossip, and there was no need for either of them to hide.

“My answer is still the same. I don’t want to do a paternity test, and I don’t want to get involved in unnecessary relationships with the Pei family. The life I’ve established will not change.”

So what if he was misplaced?

Could he switch back after the results came out?

“No matter what my surname is, I’m Li Yuan. Nowadays, there is no need to rely on this so-called blood relationship and family background to live, is there?”

Li Yuan inadvertently met Yan Cen’s admiring gaze. He was taken aback for a moment, and then quickly avoided it.

He looked at his friend again. “Pei Yi, you should hide for a while. Other than the few of us who have a good relationship, haven’t you avoided revealing yourself to outsiders for the time being?”

Pei Yi wasn’t worried about giving himself away. He was only anxious that his friend wouldn’t be able to handle this. “Pear Garden, can you do this alone?”

Li Yuan suppressed his hesitation and pretended to be calm. “They aren’t wolves, tigers, and leopards, what can they do?”

Pei Yi thought of Old Mr. Pei’s character and Pei Huan’s conduct. He hesitated to speak, and waws preempted by Yan Cen next to him—

“As such, Pei Yi and I will find a place to wait for you. If you need help, we can support you at any time.”

Pei Yi hastily nodded. “I agree.”

Li Yuan didn’t know Old Mr. Pei’s temperament, and feared an unexpected accident occurring, so he acquiesced to the method proposed by Yan Cen.

. . . . . .

The three of them walked out of the meeting room together, and as soon as they approached the outer lounge, the door opened from the inside—

Pei Huan was by Old Mr. Pei’s side. When the grandfather and grandson saw the person at the door, their expressions changed in unison.

Pei Huan’s heart tightened. “Senior, why are you and Xiao Yi here?”

Yan Cen met his gaze, and gave his pre-prepared explanation in an estranged and polite manner, “GM and YWY are cooperating on a project. Little Mister Pei made a fuss again, and was clamoring to come and play with Mr. Li.”

“Yueming has been busy at Bo Group recently and can’t get away, so he requested that I take him here.”

“…….”

Pei Huan had no mind to doubt this at the moment.

He was aware of the friendship between Yan Cen and Bo Yueming, and could tell at the birthday party last time that this fool Pei Yi liked Li Yuan.

Old Mr. Pei didn’t expect to meet his little grandson whom he hadn’t seen in a long time, and frowned for a few seconds.

As soon as Pei Yi met Old Mr. Pei’s gaze, he ducked away. Holding back the true disgust in his heart, he hid behind Yan Cen fearfully, still a timid fool who had never seen the world!

Old Mr. Pei appeared displeased, and changed his target to Li Yuan.

Their eyes met.

A long-lost complication surged up in his unyielding heart. “You are Yuan?”

“I am.”

Li Yuan responded calmly, “Old Mr. Pei, if you’ve come to see me about something, please, let’s go in and talk about it. It’s nearly the end of the workday, and I don’t want my private affairs to fall into the ears of the employees.”

Old Mr. Pei saw Li Yuan’s bearing and demeanor as he spoke, and gave his hard to come by consent. “All right, we’ll listen to you. Let’s go inside and talk.”

“……”

Seeing Old Mr. Pei’s surprisingly cooperative attitude, a trace of uneasiness flashed in Pei Huan’s downturned eyes .

He stabilized himself again and said softly, “Grandpa, shall I help you inside?”

“All right.” 

Old Mr. Pei did not reject Pei Huan’s filial piety, but turned his attention to the “outsider” Yan Cen and Pei Yi behind him.

“…….”

Yan Cen was an astute person.

He understood the expression in those eyes to mean that they were being dismissed, and pushed his glasses up slightly. “In that case, I will take Pei Yi away first, and you can talk slowly.”

“En. Mr. Yan, walk slowly.”

The lounge door closed again.

From beginning to end, Old Mr. Pei never cared about his little grandson Pei Yi.

Pei Yi scoffed wordlessly and simply walked out from behind Yan Cen. “Come with me, we’ll circle back from the outside.”

The office space was a two-storey duplex. Not only could one go upstairs and downstairs within the company, but via the security access door outside, one could also return to the side door on the second floor and reach the office.

Yan Cen was concerned about the situation in the lounge. “Pei Yi, according to what you know about Old Mr. Pei, him coming to seek out Yuan at this time……what does he want with Xiao Li?”

“Also, is what happened on his birthday true?”

Yan Cen was not a person who liked to gossip, but when Li Yuan was involved, he couldn’t help but worry a little more.

Pei Yi opened the door of the office and gestured for Yan Cen to rest on the sofa while they waited. “It’s true.”

“At the birthday party before, An Yang made such a fuss in public. Even if Pei Huan and the Pei couple don’t believe it, people’s words are formidable, and if they are passed on to ten, and ten to a hundred, they would reach Old Mr. Pei’s ears eventually.”

Pei Yi thought of the introduction and analysis of Old Mr. Pei in the book, and shook his head imperceptibly. “The old man values blood kinship and bloodline inheritance.”

Qin Yishun was his grandson, but no matter how good he was, it was impossible for him to inherit and manage the Pei business.

“He hasn’t counted on me for a long time. In the past, Pei Huan was the only one he valued and cultivated. Now that the news has spread, according to his temperament, it is impossible for him to sit idly by.”

Pei Yi still remembered that in the original text, it was “Pei Huan” who offered to do a paternity test, and the reason he gave was also very beautiful—

“I want to get everything back on track. If Li Yuan and I were switched at birth, then I hope that he can return to the Pei family early to make up for the family’s regrets over so many years.”

“As for me, no matter where I am in the future, I am willing to assume the grace of the Li family for giving birth to me and the love of the Pei family for nurturing me.”

As for the result of the paternity test, it was self-evident.

Pei Huan had no blood relationship with Deng Xiuya and Pei Ruzhang, and was the child of An Yang.

Old Mr. Pei had sent someone to verify the delivery records of the hospital that year, and became more and more convinced that Li Yuan was the real child of the Pei family.

“Li Yuan expressed his thoughts just now in the meeting room. He doesn’t want to be bound by the co-called blood relationship, and shouldn’t be responsible for past mistakes.”

Pei Yi looked at Yan Cen and didn’t forget to say good things about his friend. “Yuan is a very strong and responsible person at heart. I believe that he can handle relationships well.”

“As his friend, I respect all of his decisions.”

Yan Cen chuckled, and also favored Li Yuan, “En, he is very outstanding.”

The two waited quietly in the office. Suddenly, Xiang Nansheng knocked and pushed open the office door.

“Little Mr. Yi, something happened downstairs! Can you go over and have a look?”

There was a rare urgency in his tone. 

Pei Yi frowned. “What’s wrong?”

Xiang Nansheng made the story short, “I don’t know exactly what happened, but I heard an unusual noise and realized something was wrong, so I opened the door and went in—”

“The old man had already fallen to the ground. It seemed that his heart had been stimulated. I was afraid that Mr. Li wouldn’t be able to handle it alone, so…..”

Before he finished speaking, Yan Cen rushed down as fast as he could.

Pei Yi hurriedly said, “Brother Xiang, help me call an ambulance! Let all the employees off work through the side door. They are not allowed to gather, and not allowed to leak any information.”

Xiang Nansheng cooperated unconditionally, “Okay!”

Pei Yi didn’t waste any more time talking. While adjusting his state, he seized the time to go downstairs. 

The outermost lounge on the first floor was a mess.

The ceramic decoration on the coffee table had fallen and shattered on the floor.

“Grandpa! Don’t scare me!”

Pei Huan knelt on the ground, panicking as he held up the nearly unconscious Old Mr. Pei. He didn’t forget to yell at Li Yuan, “Li Yuan! What are you still doing in a daze! Come here and help!”

Li Yuan was short of breath, and just as he was about to step forward and help, Yan Cen rushed in after hearing the news.

“What happened?”

Yan Cen’s intention was to support Li Yuan, but Pei Huan seemed to have seen a savior, and said first, “Senior, please call an ambulance for me.”

Having spoken, his eyes turned again to Li Yuan, both angry and confused.

“Grandpa hasn’t had any malice toward you from beginning to end. Even if you’re dissatisfied, you shouldn’t vent it on him!”

Pei Huan’s eyes were red, and he asked earnestly, “Li Yuan, if something happens to him, can you have a good conscience?!”

“……”

Facing Pei Huan’s questioning, Li Yuan subconsciously glanced at Yan Cen, but before he could say “I didn’t—”

Yan Cen quickly approached and crouched beside Pei Huan and Old Mr. Pei. He said in a calm voice, “Yuan is not that kind of person. This is a company, please speak cautiously.”

Pei Huan was taken aback. “Senior?”

“Saving his life is critical.” Yan Cen didn’t bother to calm Pei Huan’s emotions. He could tell that Old Mr. Pei must have heart pain. “Have him lie down first.”

Pei Huan’s eyes shifted slightly, but he still followed Yan Cen’s words. “…..Okay.”

Li Yuan looked at the figures of the two and unconsciously retreated.

In the next second, Pei Yi rushed over and grabbed his wrist. “Pear Garden!”

Li Yuan’s pupils trembled for a moment. “Pei Yi? I…..”

“I believe you.”

Pei Yi gently but forcefully stopped his unnecessary justifications. “Don’t panic, Brother Xiang has already called an ambulance. No matter what happens next, I will stand by your side.”

Li Yuan’s nearly frozen heart was injected with a warm current. “En.”

. . . . . . .

Ten minutes later.

Pei Huan followed Old Mr. Pei into the ambulance. Pei Yi and Li Yuan also got into Yan Cen’s private vehicle and followed them to the hospital.

The matter had already happened, and Old Mr. Pei’s situation was still unclear, so it was impossible for them to sit idly by.

The scenery of the streets sped by rapidly on both sides. Pei Yi looked at the fidgeting friend beside him, and remembered the phone call Pei Huan had made to the Pei couple after the accident—

For some reason, he felt that something big was about to happen.

He recalled the scene in the original text when Li Yuan was isolated and helpless. After some thought, he still had to call his own people for help.

“Brother!”

“Er-ge!”

---

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Chapter Sixty-Six <<Table of Contents >> Chapter Sixty-Eight