Chapter 91

Chapter 91

Tipsy from the alcohol, Su Xingyao rambled on about various things to Lu Jiuxu.

Later, he couldn’t even remember what he had said and dozed off in his arms.

Lu Jiuxu carried him back to his room.

Before they made their relationship official, he had rarely entered Su Xingyao’s bedroom alone.

So when he switched on the bedside lamp and discovered that Su Xingyao had placed the red envelope he had given him, along with photos of himself and the sunset coral, like prized possessions behind the lamp.

Lu Jiuxu’s heart melted like cotton, completely tender.

He bent down and gently watched the peaceful, sleeping figure, his eyes involuntarily falling on the other’s pink lips.

A smile unconsciously crept onto his lips.

Lu Jiuxu leaned down and softly kissed the corner of his lips.

He lingered, watching him for a while.

After tucking him in and double-checking the blanket, Lu Jiuxu turned off the light and was about to leave.

But the moment he turned around, he felt a warm hand lightly tugging on his sleeve.

The person who had been sound asleep on the bed had somehow woken up and was now squinting sleepily at him in the dim light.

"Lu Jiuxu..."

Su Xingyao softly murmured his name.

After a pause, he puffed his cheeks and mumbled.

"You haven’t said goodnight to me yet."

...

The next day, Lu Zhiyun, who had been kicked out by his brother and left to wander all night, came back to the villa first thing in the morning.

After coming home and seeing that the downstairs was empty, Lu Zhiyun brought Sunset and Coral upstairs to find Su Xingyao to wish him a happy new year.

"Su Su, Su Su."

As far as Lu Zhiyun knew, Su Xingyao always woke up early in the morning.

So today, as usual, he didn’t think he might still be asleep.

Lu Zhiyun lightly tapped on his door, excitedly saying, "Su Su, happy new year, I’ve prepared a..."

Before he could finish, he saw that the person who opened the door was... Lu Jiuxu.

Suddenly running into his brother at Su Xingyao’s door, it’s no exaggeration to say.

Lu Zhiyun was completely stunned by the sight.

Speechless, he didn’t even think to put away the big red envelope he had prepared for Su Xingyao, still mindlessly waving it in front of his brother.

"...Brother."

After his mind raced like a machine, Lu Zhiyun finally managed to utter a syllable.

Seeing his brother in Su Xingyao's room early in the morning, combined with the memory of his brother telling him to get lost last night...

Some odd thoughts started to sprout in his mind.

However, just as he was wondering if he had come at the wrong time,

he suddenly noticed Su Xingyao, fully dressed, standing behind Lu Jiuxu.

"Zhiyun."

Su Xingyao was very composed, his smile as warm as sunlight.

"What brings you here?"

Lu Zhiyun didn’t hesitate and quickly handed over the red envelope he had specially prepared for Su Xingyao.

"I came to give you my New Year’s wishes."

As he handed the red envelope to Su Xingyao, he saw that Su Xingyao was already holding another red envelope.

And that red envelope seemed much bulkier than his, clearly stuffed with a lot more money.

Lu Zhiyun felt instantly overshadowed: ...

His pride took a blow.

But Su Xingyao didn’t seem to notice and instead cheerfully took the red envelope.

"Thank you!"

Seeing how happy Su Xingyao was, Lu Zhiyun suddenly realized why his brother was in Su Xingyao’s room so early.

Turns out, he was just like him, coming early to hand over a red envelope.

Realizing he’d misjudged his brother, Lu Zhiyun quickly turned to Lu Jiuxu with a pleading look, eyeing the red envelope in Su Xingyao’s hand and boldly asking,

"Bro, did you come to wish Xingyao a Happy New Year too? Hehe, since Xingyao got his, where’s mine? Huh?"

Lu Zhiyun, begging for a red envelope, looked like a big dog wagging its tail for its owner.

If he had long fur like a sunset, Su Xingyao really wanted to give him a good pat.

But, to Su Xingyao’s dismay, the eagerly hopeful Lu Zhiyun was met with Lu Jiuxu’s cold reply.

"I forgot about it."

Lu Zhiyun: ?????

He stared at him in disbelief.

He’d clearly remembered to prepare a huge red envelope for his wife,

but for his own brother, he just forgot?

Finally realizing that his brother was truly this cold and indifferent to him, Lu Zhiyun's expression resembled that of a wronged puppy.

He couldn't help but complain, "Brother, do you even have a place for me in your heart..."

Lu Zhiyun looked like he was about to fall apart.

His brother, Lu Jiuxu, openly laughed in his face.

Lu Zhiyun was even more upset.

Luckily, his sadness was instantly eased.

Su Xingyao handed him a red envelope.

"But I got one for you. Happy New Year, Zhiyun. Hope you stay happy every day."

When he suddenly got a red envelope from Su Xingyao, Lu Zhiyun jumped up in excitement.

He almost said, "Thanks, sis-in-law," but instead hugged Su Xingyao, "Hehe, Su Su, you’re the one who really cares about me."

With his New Year’s red envelope in hand, Lu Zhiyun happily headed downstairs.

But just a few steps later, he caught his brother’s jealous tone.

"Where’s mine?"

Getting his red envelope before his brother, Lu Zhiyun’s grin was ear-to-ear.

He hurried off, clutching the red envelope like a treasure.

Oh man, someone’s jealousy is showing bright and early~

*

After making things official with Lu Jiuxu, Su Xingyao wanted to tell his roommates right away.

But last night he was too busy watching fireworks and stargazing with Lu Jiuxu to check his phone.

So when he checked his phone today, he saw that all four roommates had sent him New Year’s wishes right at midnight.

But these four were a bit odd.

After texting him individually, they’d also sent "Happy New Year" in the group chat.

Su Xingyao: Happy New Year!~

As soon as Su Xingyao sent that, it was like flipping a switch—all four replied at once.

Louis: Happy New Year, Yao, but it’s been nine hours already 'sad'

Lance: Happy New Year, Yao, but it’s been nine hours already 'sad'

Leon: Happy New Year, Yao, but it’s been nine hours already 'sad'

Hermann: Happy New Year, Yao, but it’s been nine hours already 'sad'

Seeing his roommates’ identical replies, Su Xingyao felt guilty.

Su Xingyao: Sorry, I got caught up with something last night.

Su Xingyao: Cat bowing.jpg

Su Xingyao: Cat being adorable.jpg

Su Xingyao’s roommates were pretty easy to win over. Just two emojis, and they were all good.

After chatting with the group for a bit, Su Xingyao found an opportunity to break the news about his relationship.

Su Xingyao: I’ve got something to tell you all.

Lance: "Listening"

Leon: "Listening"

The other two were still searching for the right emoji when Su Xingyao's next message appeared.

Su Xingyao: I’m seeing someone now.

Su Xingyao: His name is Lu Jiuxu, I’ve told you about him before.

Hermann and Louis, who were a bit slower, saw the message and immediately gave up on finding the "listening" emoji, instead quickly tapping the first emoji in their library.

Hermann: Sad puppy.jpg

Louis: Sad puppy.jpg

The other two didn’t even bother with emojis and began typing furiously on their phones.

Lance: Is it that jerk who’s living with you?

Leon: I knew that guy was bad news.

Louis: Our Yao is so sweet and kind.

Hermann: And now he’s been taken in by that sly pig, boohoo.

Su Xingyao: He’s not a jerk.

Su Xingyao: He’s a really great guy.

When Lu Jiuxu leaned over to Su Xingyao, he saw a flood of messages from his four roommates, all whining and calling him a jerk.

Su Xingyao chuckled and explained, "They're all my roommates."

He glanced at the nicknames in the group and quickly added, "They don’t mean any harm, they’re just... really sarcastic."

Lu Jiuxu nodded, not seeming bothered at all.

He skimmed through the chat history and instead asked Su Xingyao with interest, "Mind if I say hi?"

Su Xingyao nodded and passed him the phone.

The next second, a new message appeared in the group.

Su Xingyao: Smirking cat.jpg

The chat, which had been buzzing, went dead silent upon seeing this emoji.

A few seconds later, the mood shifted.

Hermann: That’s definitely not him.

Lance: That’s not Yao typing.

Su Xingyao: Hey roommates, I'm Xing Yao's boyfriend.

Su Xingyao: Next time you're in China, let's all hang out! ^_^

After showing off with his greeting, Lu Jiuxu handed the phone back to Su Xingyao.

The roommates in the group, totally owned by that smug ^_^, were both annoyed and speechless, furiously tapping at the emoji on their screens!!

*

On New Year's Day, Qin Mingchuan and Fu Qingyan crossed paths again.

After their last fight, they had pretty much cut ties completely, unable to forgive each other for the pain they'd caused Su Xingyao.

After months of feeling down, they started to come to their senses after learning that Chu Zian had tried to kill Su Xingyao.

So this time, sensing something was off, they finally met on New Year's Day, gritting their teeth and putting up with the awkwardness.

When Qin Mingchuan arrived, Fu Qingyan was already there.

He walked over with a stern look, ready to say something, when he noticed the other's phone was playing a video of Su Xingyao.

Qin Mingchuan sneered and mocked, "Couldn’t send your New Year’s wishes, so you’re just watching official videos to feel better?"

Qin Mingchuan knew exactly what video Fu Qingyan was watching.

It was a New Year's greeting video Lanxing had posted on their official site at 8 a.m.

He’d watched it over and over before coming.

Fu Qingyan ignored him, leaving a comment under a burner account: "Xing Yao, Happy New Year."

After posting it, he shot back, "Did I ask for your input?"

Qin Mingchuan, stung by the retort, immediately felt like he’d stepped into it.

He’d sent Su Xingyao a New Year’s text the night before.

Su Xingyao hadn’t replied to Fu Qingyan, so naturally, he hadn’t replied to Qin Mingchuan either.

He pulled out his phone and scrolled through his messages.

In past years, Su Xingyao had always been the first to text him a New Year’s wish at midnight.

What he’d once brushed off as just a New Year’s text now felt like nothing.

But this year, the tables had turned.

The text he’d sent first thing that morning had gone unanswered, and no matter how much he anxiously checked his phone, there was still no reply.

Those little things that used to happen without a second thought now felt impossible.

Fu Qingyan and Qin Mingchuan’s New Year’s Day felt as lonely as two abandoned dogs.

After trading barbs, they finally sat down.

Without bothering with pleasantries, they got straight to the point.

"I wanted to ask you—doesn’t everything seem off to you?"

"The fire incident—it’s like we were all under a spell. We took Shen Huaixi’s word at face value, no questions asked. No one doubted, and you didn’t even think to verify it with Xing Yao face to face," Qin Mingchuan said. "That’s not like you."

Qin Mingchuan and Fu Qingyan have been close since childhood.

He knows that, normally, Fu Qingyan wouldn’t behave this way.

But oddly, both Fu Qingyan and he were equally deceived.

"Me too... The engagement feels like a curse haunting me."

"Since I learned about it, I’ve changed."

"Doesn’t it all seem too coincidental and odd?"

"Everything—whatever Shen Huaixi said, we believed. We acted like mindless NPCs, never questioning anything."

Qin Mingchuan and Fu Qingyan shared a look.

Clearly, they both noticed it.

Reflecting on the past, so much seems utterly irrational.

They can’t even comprehend their own actions back then.

"Now, whenever I recall the past, my memories are hazy, like they’re behind a veil."

Fu Qingyan agreed with a nod.

"Something feels off."

"We overlooked the details that led to these issues."

Wen Ningshu came to.

*

After meeting Su Xingyao that night, she fell gravely ill and was out cold for three days.

When she woke, Wen Ningshu was noticeably calmer.

Though still haggard, she didn’t break down like she used to.

Shen Liangyu hurried over the moment he heard his wife was awake.

But seeing her, he sensed a change.

"Wife..."

Hearing this, Wen Ningshu slowly met his gaze.

Her dull eyes locked with his as she spoke calmly.

"Sever all ties with Shen Huaixi."

Shen Liangyu was taken aback by his wife’s first words upon waking.

Startled, he began to speak.

But ultimately, he stayed silent.

Having already anticipated what he was about to say, Wen Ningshu issued him an ultimatum.

"We have our own flesh and blood; there’s no need to raise a child who isn’t related to us by blood."

"I don't want Xing Yao to be troubled and saddened by this anymore."

Wen Ningshu gave a faint smile, "Of course, you can also disagree."

"I can file for divorce immediately and move out on my own."

Wen Ningshu's decisiveness sent a shiver down Shen Liangyu’s spine.

Though he still couldn’t fully grasp why Wen Ningshu, who had always treated Shen Huaixi as her own son, would suddenly despise him, ignoring years of affection, he eventually agreed to her proposal.

Shen Liangyu handled the matter swiftly.

Thus, at the beginning of the new year, Shen Huaixi, still asleep, was coldly expelled from the Shen family.

Upon learning that Shen Huaixi was ordered to pack up and leave within a day, Auntie Liu was as frantic as an ant on a hot skillet.

"Mr. Shen, Huai Xi is a good child. No matter what has happened recently, please don’t blame him. After all, you've raised him for so many years."

Shen Liangyu glanced at Auntie Liu, his face stern. He said nothing, merely shaking his head.

Realizing there was no turning back, Auntie Liu reluctantly wiped her tears and made her way to the door to see Shen Huaixi off.

She gently comforted him, "The master and mistress are likely just temporarily confused; they’ll come back for you eventually."

"Remember to eat well, take care of yourself, and call me if anything happens."

Auntie Liu sadly watched Shen Huaixi get into the car.

Her expression seemed even more pained than if her own child had been expelled.

Silently leaning on the second-floor railing, Wen Ningshu remained silent.

Her gaze quietly fell on Auntie Liu and Shen Huaixi, deep in thought.