Chapter 52

Chapter 52

Liang Huiwei didn’t want the toxic online rumors to affect Ye Mingzhao’s mood or allow malicious gossip to plant seeds of doubt in everyone’s minds. So, she decided to resolve the issue as soon as possible.

But before Liang Huiwei could make a move, the news about "#Ruan Cuimei Faking Illness#" suddenly topped the trending list.

"It was orchestrated by Lin Feng and Gu Tingjun," Chu Hengyi quickly revealed, after getting the scoop from his private investigator.

"Is this also part of your calculations?"

Asked directly by Chu Hengyi, Ye Mingzhao lounged lazily on the bamboo recliner in the glass greenhouse. The recliner was nestled among the lush blooms, swaying gently. A fluffy white blanket made his fair skin and dark hair appear even more striking.

A snow-white Persian cat, Snowball, lay lazily in Ye Mingzhao’s arms, its fluffy tail swishing gently. It was a pet that Liang Huiwei had carefully raised for over a decade.

Ye Mingzhao’s slender hands idly combed through Snowball’s fur. His knuckles moved deftly through the soft fur, making it hard to tell whether the cat’s fur or Ye Mingzhao’s hands were whiter.

A small, intricately patterned tea table stood next to the recliner, bearing a few delicate snacks and a pot of steaming flower tea.

The mingling scents of flowers and freshly brewed tea filled the air, lulling one into a sleepy haze. Chu Hengyi pushed the recliner, causing it to shake violently. Snowball swiftly jumped down and disappeared into the flower bed, and the person pretending to nap finally opened his eyes.

"Don’t you have anything better to do?" Ye Mingzhao asked with a hint of exasperation. Lately, Chu Hengyi had been sticking around him a lot.

Chu Hengyi slightly bent down and leaned toward Ye Mingzhao. "Are you hoping I stir up some trouble?"

Chu Hengyi’s warm breath subtly invaded Ye Mingzhao’s personal space. He pushed Chu Hengyi’s head away and slowly sat up.

Outside, the wind howled and snow fell heavily, but inside the glass greenhouse, it was as cozy as spring.

Feeling a bit thirsty, Ye Mingzhao poured himself a cup of tea and casually said, "Jiang Shangyun dragged the Gu family jewelry business into the mess just to gain sympathy. It’s only natural that Gu Tingjun and Lin Feng would strike back. The fight between them has nothing to do with me, does it?"

"Don’t go trying to pin everything on me."

Seeing Ye Mingzhao so quickly distance himself from any responsibility, Chu Hengyi wasn’t surprised.

That was Ye Mingzhao for you. He could manipulate everyone skillfully yet still manage to extricate himself effortlessly.

"But how do you plan to use Jiang Shangyun and Ruan Cuimei to trap Zhou Heting?" Chu Hengyi asked, genuinely curious.

Ye Mingzhao, of course, didn’t answer, and Chu Hengyi never expected him to. He ate more than half of the snacks on the table before suddenly asking, "What do you want to eat tonight?"

Ye Mingzhao paused slightly, a strange expression crossing his face as he looked at Chu Hengyi.

Chu Hengyi casually picked up a snack and tossed it into his mouth. "Mom sent me to ask what you’d like to eat tonight. She wants us to celebrate."

Ye Mingzhao slightly frowned. "She’s your mom too, you know."

Ye Mingzhao knew that in the original story, due to his own instigation, Chu Hengyi had become estranged from the Ye family. However, in reality, because Ye Mingzhao had deliberately controlled the situation, the Ye family treated Chu Hengyi very well. Chu Hengyi had been back with the Ye family for a long time but still viewed his blood relatives as enemies, which was something Ye Mingzhao couldn’t agree with.

Chu Hengyi ignored Ye Mingzhao’s accusation and repeated, "What do you want to eat tonight?"

Remembering a scene from the original story, Ye Mingzhao suggested, "How about barbecue?"

"How about the whole family eats barbecue together?"

Chu Hengyi’s expression turned thoughtful. He stood up slowly, towering over Ye Mingzhao, who sat calmly sipping tea on the recliner. "How do you know?"

"Know what?" Ye Mingzhao asked with a feigned look of surprise, well aware of what Chu Hengyi was referring to.

Chu Hengyi narrowed his eyes, looking at Ye Mingzhao, who had excellent acting skills but was now giving an incredibly perfunctory expression. He remained silent for a long time.

After middle school graduation, Chu Hengyi was forced by the Chu family to drop out of school and work. He had no education and no skills, so he could only take on low-level manual labor jobs at first, such as delivery driver, server, security guard, and laborer.

All those jobs were undeniably tough.

But many of them brought more than just hardship—they also brought endless pain and loneliness.

In the original story, it was described that when Chu Hengyi first dropped out of school, he worked as a server in a barbecue restaurant for a while. As he toiled away, guests would walk into the restaurant, a family united in happiness. The joyful atmosphere, mixed with the strong aroma of food, was like a prolonged and grand execution, slowly eating away at Chu Hengyi’s soul.

The unaware Chu Hengyi often questioned his fate, wondering why his family treated him so harshly, why his peers could attend school carefree while he had to hustle for a living, trying to raise tuition for his younger brother and cover household expenses at the same age.

The moment the Ye family found him marked the end of his long ordeal. But the torture of his soul had just begun.

The estrangement of blood relations and the abuse from his adoptive parents gradually shaped Chu Hengyi into a more humble, twisted, and obsessive personality. At some point, Chu Hengyi silently developed an obsession—he wanted to take the whole family out for barbecue.

An environment that wasn’t exactly clean, where the atmosphere grew louder as people drank more, filled with the smell of barbecue spices and smoke—a street-side barbecue stall.

Unfortunately, such dining environments never matched the tastes of the Ye family. So in his previous life, Chu Hengyi never fulfilled this wish before he died.

In the original story, after being reborn, Chu Hengyi did take the Chu family to eat barbecue. Sitting in the smoky street-side barbecue stall, laughing heartily with his adoptive parents and younger brother, drinking beer and eating barbecue, Chu Hengyi seemed to have made peace with his past self. He decided to accept the Chu family as his own. Even though they weren’t good to him, compared to the Ye family, the poor and greedy Chu family clearly needed him more.

However, in reality, because Ye Mingzhao exposed the true face of the Chu family, Chu Hengyi, who had already broken ties with them, clearly wouldn’t acknowledge the Chu family as his own or take them to a street-side barbecue stall again. But a lifelong regret continued to haunt Chu Hengyi’s soul.

So, on a whim, Ye Mingzhao decided to make up for Chu Hengyi’s regret.

—Not to fill the void in Chu Hengyi’s heart, but out of curiosity to see what excuse Chu Hengyi would use to seek revenge when the Ye family had done nothing wrong to him.

*

"Do you want to go to a street-side barbecue stall?" Liang Huiwei looked at Ye Mingzhao curiously. "Why the sudden idea?"

The food at street-side stalls is so unhygienic! Just thinking about it gave Liang Huiwei a headache. "How about we have a barbecue party at home instead?"

She could call the most famous barbecue restaurant in Xinhai City, invite the best barbecue chefs to cook at home, and even contact farms worldwide to have the freshest ingredients air-shipped over immediately.

Liang Huiwei couldn’t quite understand why Ye Mingzhao, who never ate street food, would suddenly want to go to a street-side barbecue stall.

"I just think the atmosphere at street-side barbecue stalls is different." Ye Mingzhao said with a smile. "I experienced it once while filming on set, and it was pretty good."

As he spoke, Ye Mingzhao deliberately looked at the silent Chu Hengyi and added leisurely, "And this is also Chu Hengyi’s wish."

"He really wants to go eat barbecue with his family."

Chu Hengyi averted his gaze expressionlessly after Ye Mingzhao revealed his wish.

"It’s Mingyi’s wish?" Liang Huiwei blinked, curiously looking at Chu Hengyi. "Do you like eating barbecue?"

Liang Huiwei realized that despite Chu Hengyi being home for so long, he had never really shared his preferences.

Since that was the case...

Chu Hengyi’s expression clearly stiffened, and he replied stiffly, "I don’t care. He had enough money to eat alone; he didn’t need company."

Liang Huiwei noticed Chu Hengyi’s subtle emotions. She had been concerned about the unhygienic and not fresh ingredients at street-side barbecue stalls, worried that the family might get upset stomachs from eating out. But she suddenly changed her tune. "Then let’s give it a try."

Her tone became excited and expectant. "I’ve never eaten at a street-side barbecue stall in all my life! I wonder how good the barbecue is there."

Seizing the opportunity, Ye Mingzhao pulled out his phone. "I’ll inform Dad, Big Brother, and Second Brother, and have them meet us at the street-side barbecue stall after work."

As he spoke, Ye Mingzhao glanced at Chu Hengyi with a knowing smile and smoothly steered the conversation. "You’ve worked at a barbecue restaurant before, right? You must know where the best street-side barbecue stall in Xinhai City is, don’t you?"

In the original story, the male lead, Chu Hengyi, had put in a great deal of effort to gather information about the flavors and reviews of all the barbecue restaurants in Xinhai City just to treat his family to a nice meal. Unfortunately, his efforts went unappreciated.

It wasn’t until after his rebirth that Chu Hengyi finally fulfilled this wish with the Chu family.

Though Ye Mingzhao couldn’t quite understand why Chu Hengyi, who had worked so many jobs, was particularly fond of barbecue, he fully respected Chu Hengyi’s food preferences and emotional attachment.

"It’s just a barbecue meal! Worst case, the whole family gets a stomachache, and we’ll call it a team-building activity!"

Chu Hengyi briefly held his breath, pondered for a moment, and somewhat awkwardly said, “If you really want to eat, I can recommend a place.”

*

The barbecue joint recommended by Chu Hengyi wasn’t too far from Ye Group. It was less than an hour’s drive away. Whether he had considered this convenience when choosing the place was unclear.

It was during the evening rush hour, and the Ye father-son trio, just off work, were stuck in traffic on their way.

Having arrived at the barbecue shop first, Ye Mingzhao sat inside a brightly colored plastic tent, holding a flashy menu, and enthusiastically discussed the dishes with Liang Huiwei.

Always dressed in elegant attire with a designer handbag and perfectly applied makeup, Liang Huiwei had changed into a casual sports outfit, her long hair tied into a bun, her makeup light. She looked as if she were twenty years younger.

With the Ye family trio all being good-looking, they immediately attracted the attention of many customers as soon as they sat down. Some people even approached Ye Mingzhao to ask for his WeChat or take photos with him.

“Are you Ye Mingzhao? The male lead from *Prince of Beggars*? I attended the premiere.”

“You’re even better-looking in person than on TV. Keep it up. I support you.”

“Are you really not going to forgive your birth mother?”

“Did you hear about your birth mother faking illness? Is it true, or is someone trying to smear her?”

An array of odd questions kept pouring in, and Chu Hengyi belatedly realized that maybe recommending this place wasn’t such a good idea.

But Ye Mingzhao didn’t mind at all. He even pulled the restaurant’s server aside to ask about the specialty dishes. Seeing Chu Hengyi’s scowling face, he casually handed him the menu, saying, “You recommended this place. You should know what’s good here, right?”

As he spoke, the sound of wind chimes rang out, and a blast of cold wind and snow blew in. The well-dressed Ye father and sons appeared at the entrance of the barbecue joint.

The noisy atmosphere of the joint came to a brief silence. The customers looked at each other, curiously observing the out-of-place trio in suits at the door.

Someone with sharp eyes recognized Chairman Ye, frequently seen on financial magazine covers, and Ye Mingchen. The diners eating barbecue were in an uproar and hurriedly whipped out their phones.

Ye Mingchen discreetly wrinkled his brow at the messy environment of the joint. The three of them looked around and spotted Ye Mingzhao and the others waving at them from beside the grill.

The Ye father and sons strode over. As soon as they sat down, Ye Mingxi asked, “Why did you suddenly think of coming to a place like this for barbecue?”

“Just trying something new!” Liang Huiwei replied with a smile. She pushed the cucumber salad and fried peanuts placed on the table toward everyone, saying, “Try this. It’s a free appetizer from the house. I think it tastes pretty good.”

Ye Mingxi enthusiastically picked up his chopsticks and tossed a peanut into his mouth, “Not bad indeed.”

He then looked at the menu in Chu Hengyi’s hand, “Have we ordered?”

Chu Hengyi snapped back to reality, feeling conflicted, and said, “Not everything. I’ve only ordered some of the recommended specialty barbecue dishes.”

Ye Mingxi waved his hand generously and said, “Then let’s order everything on the menu.”

After that, Ye Mingxi began to order drinks, “Mom, would you like Coke or beer?”

The Ye family looked at Ye Mingxi curiously, “Have you been here before?”

“When I was in college, I often went to barbecue joints with my classmates and roommates.” Ye Mingxi paused for a moment, “But I’ve never been to this shop before. It was too far from my college.”

Everyone suddenly realized. Ye Mingchen examined the scratched glass cup and tentatively touched the slightly sticky tabletop, finding the bowls and chopsticks not entirely clean either.

Upon seeing the situation, Ye Mingxi asked the waiter for a pot of hot water and scalded all the bowls and plates in it. "That should do the trick!"

Afterward, he rubbed his hands eagerly and asked, "Do the staff here grill the meat, or do we do it ourselves?"

The Ye family looked at Ye Mingxi, who seemed particularly familiar with the process, and felt as if they had discovered something entirely new.

*

Liang Huiwei had thought her delicate stomach wouldn't handle it, but to her surprise, she ended up quite full after the meal.

"The food is really delicious. It's completely different from having grilled meat at home," Liang Huiwei's eyes sparkled with excitement. While eating the grilled meat, she even drank a bottle of beer and a glass of cola. This was the first time in her life that she had beer and cola with grilled meat.

—Before, she had only drunk red wine!

Liang Huiwei found the experience refreshing. "The honey chicken wings are really good too."

Ye Mingzhao, who had a similar taste to Liang Huiwei, immediately nodded in agreement. "And the secret-recipe beef ribs are great too."

Ye Mingchen summed up with a blank expression, "The complimentary peanuts are the best."

Ye Mingxi snapped his fingers and asked curiously, "Why have we never made fried peanuts at home?"

Chairman Ye, the most qualified to speak, interjected softly, "Because your mom has never heard of this dish."

Liang Huiwei protested, "Am I really that ignorant? I just thought you all didn't like this kind of cold dish, so I didn't bother having the maid make it."

A cold breeze swept through, carrying away the strong smell of grilled meat from their clothes.

Chu Hengyi, who was a few steps behind, stared silently at the Ye family's retreating figures for a long moment without saying a word.

Luckily, Liang Huiwei noticed Chu Hengyi falling behind and waved at him with a smile. "The grilled meat at the recommended street stall today was really good!"

"Turns out our Mingyi knows so much about good food! We must ask him to recommend more places in the future."

After eating so much, the Ye family spent over an hour working out at the gym when they got home.

Ye Mingzhao, who preferred not to sweat before bed, raised the temperature of the indoor pool and swam a few laps.

Just as he was about to get out of the pool, he noticed Chu Hengyi standing by the poolside.

The clear water gave off a soft blue glow, casting shifting shadows on the walls and ceiling, making the outlines of the swimmers appear more ethereal.

Like a serene moon suspended in the night sky.

But for a moment, he felt as if moonlight were truly shining on him.

"Note"