The atmosphere at dinner was decidedly strange.
Xiao Yi sat at the head of the table, silent and cold-faced. Xiao Ji ate distractedly farther down. Beside him, Song Liang held a spoon in his left hand and devoted his full attention to his meal.
The servants standing nearby barely dared make a sound.
They had worked here for years. Some had practically watched Xiao Ji grow up, and they knew how close the uncle and nephew were. Their dinners were normally nothing like this.
Usually, they discussed everyday matters or difficulties Xiao Ji had encountered at work. Xiao Yi would patiently offer advice and explanations. Their manner wasn’t effusive, but it was harmonious.
Then today’s arrival had successfully transformed the atmosphere of the entire household.
The tension was inexplicably dreadful.
Finally, Song Liang broke the silence, asking Aunt Jiang, “Is my room ready?”
Both other men at the table paused.
“Everything is ready,” Aunt Jiang replied. “The sheets and duvet cover have been changed too.”
Song Liang nodded, as though the question had simply occurred to him, and resumed eating.
The other two men, however, lost their appetites.
Xiao Ji was irritated. They weren’t even engaged yet, and Song Liang had already begun questioning his private life. If they shared a bedroom and something happened, the man would probably become even more presumptuous.
The thought alone annoyed him.
He glanced at Song Liang, who was concentrating on his food without looking at him once.
It took 3085 prodding him inside his head.
【Stop eating. The male lead is looking at you!】
Song Liang looked up, still chewing, and raised his eyebrows to ask what he wanted.
That arrogant manner only infuriated Xiao Ji further.
How had this man changed so much in little more than a month?
A month ago, he would never have believed Song Liang capable of jumping into the sea. Nor would he have believed the man could use the Emperor’s Tear—acquired from who knew where—to force him into an engagement.
He had even dared appear openly beside him in front of his uncle.
When Xiao Ji failed to speak, Song Liang couldn’t be bothered to ask again. He tried to scoop some vegetables from a serving dish with his spoon. When that failed, he turned toward Xiao Ji and signaled for help.
Xiao Ji: “…”
Taking a deep breath, Xiao Ji looked at Aunt Jiang behind him.
“Help him, please.”
Aunt Jiang stepped forward to serve Song Liang. Xiao Ji took the opportunity to wipe his mouth with his napkin and address Xiao Yi.
“Something’s come up at the office. I need to go back and work late.”
Xiao Yi paused in his meal but didn’t look up.
“Will you be home tonight?”
Xiao Ji pressed his lips together.
“Not necessarily.”
Xiao Yi acknowledged him and told him to look after himself.
Xiao Ji agreed, put on his coat, and left without saying a single word to Song Liang.
Song Liang didn’t ask anything either. Resting his chin on his hand, he watched him leave.
3085’s worried voice sounded in his head.
【Going out this late? Has he already gone after the other lead?】
Song Liang replied casually, 【Couldn’t he actually be working late?】
【Are you kidding? Domineering CEOs never work overtime. This is romantic fiction, not wage-slave fiction.】
Song Liang: 【…】
His silence made the system anxious again.
【…You’re not really going to castrate him, are you?】
Of course not.
It wasn’t that he lacked the nerve. It would probably just be useless.
Ever since identifying the real reason for the instance’s increased difficulty, Song Liang had come to recognize the Main System’s power—and the formidable momentum of this world’s destined course.
In a sense, kicking Xiao Wenyu and choosing to jump into the sea had appeared to break the plot. In reality, both had fallen within the Main System’s predictions, allowing it to calculate the increased difficulty in advance.
With such powerful predictive abilities and such relentless narrative momentum, he doubted that disrupting the leads’ first encounter on the yacht would truly prevent everything that followed.
He was considering his options when a low voice sounded nearby.
“The end of the year is always busy.”
Song Liang paused and turned toward the man opposite him.
Xiao Yi was still wearing the fitted black turtleneck from the glasshouse. He sat upright, head slightly lowered as he ate. His movements were unhurried, elegant without affectation.
Even eating dinner, he was a pleasure to look at.
That black turtleneck looked particularly good on him, creating an entirely different impression from the shirts and suits Song Liang had seen before.
“Xiao Ji may have some habits typical of wealthy young men, but he isn’t someone who behaves recklessly.”
“…”
“This project is tied to the vice president’s position. The proposed marriage to the Qiao heiress was also intended to strengthen it. There was no intimate relationship between them privately.”
“…”
“Whatever his reasons, once he decides to be with you, he’ll give you the respect you deserve. That’s something I’ve taught him since childhood—”
Xiao Yi restrained himself, then tried again.
Finally, he couldn’t bear it any longer and looked up.
“Have you stared enough?”
Song Liang shifted his gaze away from the full chest and firm contours outlined by the sweater, meeting his eyes innocently.
“I wasn’t staring.”
Xiao Yi: “…”
3085 exploded.
【Tell me the truth. Are you gay or not?!】
Song Liang remained composed.
【I have amnesia.】
【Amnesia, my ass! Your eyes are glued to the villain every day. Anyone would think he was the romance target! You’re practically drooling!】
Song Liang disagreed.
As far as he was concerned, everyone enjoyed admiring beautiful things. He was no exception.
Across the table, Xiao Yi watched him lie without blinking and took a deep breath. His hand slowly curled into a fist against the tabletop as he suppressed his emotions.
“…I’m simply telling you he won’t behave irresponsibly. You can trust him.”
Song Liang suddenly realized something.
“You heard what I said to Xiao Ji in the glasshouse?”
Xiao Yi paused slightly.
“I went to fetch something and happened to overhear.”
He was explaining that he hadn’t deliberately eavesdropped.
Song Liang thought that entirely unnecessary. Even at his most foolish, he wouldn’t imagine this man stooping to listen in on them.
He was concerned with something else.
“Why are you telling me all this?”
Given how much the man disliked him, surely he ought to welcome Song Liang stewing in jealousy and losing his mind over Xiao Ji’s cold treatment.
Then, like the original owner, he could do all sorts of terrible things until Xiao Ji despised him completely and dumped him.
Why was Xiao Yi reassuring him instead, acting as though he wanted peace and harmony in the household?
Xiao Yi’s gaze paused.
Why?
There wasn’t any particular reason. He simply felt that Xiao Ji’s character shouldn’t be misunderstood.
Yet the things Yang Xuan had told him came back to mind—the things everyone had known except him. So did the silent, lonely figure walking away after Xiao Ji’s remark in the glasshouse that afternoon: “Remember your place.”
“I don’t want you to misunderstand Xiao Ji,” he said.
Song Liang clicked his tongue inwardly.
If he hadn’t known the plot, he would truly have believed these two would remain as close as father and son forever.
How touching. Even disliking him so much, Xiao Yi was still trying to ease their relationship for his nephew’s sake.
“Uncle,” he couldn’t help saying.
Xiao Yi looked up at him, his expression calm.
Song Liang curved his lips.
“You look really good in that turtleneck.”
Xiao Yi’s face darkened.
This man would never change!
Leave a Reply