Chapter 90 If: Modern Extra 3

Chapter 90 If: Modern Extra 3

Lewis was released after being locked up for half a day.

He left in confusion, returned to his room in confusion, and then came to Bai Yu in confusion.

Bai Yu's room was right across from his. Lewis pushed the door open and said loudly, "Bai Yu, I was let out. Did you get someone to help?"

He was full of suspicion. After being locked in the cabin for half a day, Lewis had been at his wit's end, trying to figure out how to scrounge up the huge gambling debt. But before he could even repay it, he was suddenly released.

Bai Yu's savings were clearly not enough to cover the debt, and the only person he knew on the ship was Bai Yu.

Bai Yu said flatly, "I asked someone for a bit."

Lewis flopped onto the sofa with a confident sprawl. "Asked for a bit? That much money—where did you get it from? I’ve known you for so long, and I never knew you were some secret millionaire... Huh, where’d this cat come from?"

Bai Yu was leaning against the floor-to-ceiling window, reading a newspaper with a cup of coffee in his left hand and a small cat cradled in his right.

The cat was silvery-white all over, with fluffy fur and a bushy tail like a squirrel’s swaying lazily as it napped in the doctor’s arms. Hearing the noise, it lazily opened its aqua-blue eyes, glanced at Lewis dismissively, then tucked its head back down to sleep.

The doctor scratched its chin and smoothed the fur on its back.

"Wow, a cat with such good breeding—must’ve cost tens of thousands, right? Where’d you get it?"

Lewis stepped forward, reaching out to pet the cat.

But before his hand could even touch it, the cat suddenly flicked its tail, smacking his hand away, then gave him a disdainful look, shook its fur, stood up, and nimbly leaped onto the doctor’s shoulder.

—Who does this commoner think he is, daring to touch this Duke!

"Whoa, this furball’s got attitude," Lewis said in surprise. "Weird, usually cats love me and avoid you. Why’s this one so different?"

Bai Yu was a doctor and always carried the scent of disinfectant, while Lewis was the boss—someone who spoiled cats but never lifted a finger, occasionally opening a couple of cat treats to tease them. Normally, the cats in the shop all preferred Lewis.

The platinum cat’s defiance clearly got his competitive juices flowing. Lewis stood up. "Hey, I don’t believe this."

He hiked up his sleeves and tried to grab the cat off Bai Yu’s shoulder.

The cat stood up, hissing at him as if ready to claw him to death. Bai Yu swatted his hand away and said coldly, "You can’t touch this one."

The doctor rarely spoke so sternly. Lewis awkwardly withdrew his hand and sat back down. "Fine, but seriously, where’d this cat come from? You didn’t snatch it from some passenger on this cruise, did you?"

His expression turned serious. "Bai Yu, I gotta make this clear—pets aren’t allowed in standard cabins on this ship. Only suites and grand suites can bring them, and the guests in those rooms are all loaded. If you stole someone’s cat, you’d better watch out when the owner comes knocking."

Bai Yu replied indifferently, "Yeah, whatever."

Lewis slapped the armrest. "Bai Yu, don’t brush this off! This cat’s champion-bred, pedigree stock—the kind you can’t even buy with money. Its owner must be..."

Before he could finish, Bai Yu picked up his coffee. "How does it compare to Imuir?"

Compare to Imuir?

Lewis froze. "How can you even compare? There’s no comparison! Imuir’s at the absolute apex of our circle—the pinnacle, you get it? Bai Yu, why bring him up? Did that one look in the bar really get to you? Are you still stuck on him? Listen to me—don’t even think about crossing him, don’t! Or you’ll die without even knowing how!"

Lewis spoke fast and urgently. When he said "the apex," the cat in Bai Yu’s arms proudly raised its tail. When he mentioned being "stuck," the cat’s tail curled into a question mark. And when he said "don’t," Imuir unsheathed his hind claws, crouched low, and assumed an attacking stance.

Bai Yu soothingly stroked the cat’s pricked ears and planted a small kiss on its fluffy head, successfully calming the Duke. "Alright, Lewis, you’ve been through enough. Go back and rest early."

The doctor had always disliked noise. Lewis didn’t suspect anything. He stood up. "Alright... Hey, wait—To celebrate my release, I’ve reserved a table tonight. You’d better be there."

Bai Yu paused: "Can't do tonight, got plans with someone. Rain check?"

—Imuir had also made a reservation. He'd been ignoring his wife for months and now had some serious making up to do.

Lewis was suspicious as hell: "Wait, Bai Yu, I was only in there for half a day. Who're you seeing? Who's got your attention?"

Bai Yu sighed: "Later."

If he told Lewis now, he'd lose his shit.

Lewis looked Bai Yu over, seeing he wasn’t planning to explain, and smirked suggestively: "Alright, Dr. Bai actually interested in someone? That's new. Wouldn't wanna crash your... *date*. Let’s meet another day."

He snagged his coat and left.

*

Since the reservation couldn’t be canceled, Lewis went to the restaurant alone that evening.

The cruise ship had like fifty restaurants, some you gotta book way ahead—like this Michelin three-star French place.

He flipped through the menu, threw in his order, then set up his silverware while waiting for the food. Just as his drink arrived, before he could take a sip, he faintly heard a familiar voice—with that cool, measured tone with that something special.

…Bai Yu?

Looking through the colored glass divider, Lewis squinted—

It was indeed Bai Yu.

The doctor wore a crisp white coat over a charcoal-gray turtleneck, his hair slightly styled. He’d even paired his silver-framed glasses with a matching chain that draped over his shoulder, reflecting little silver glints. His hands, usually steady with a scalpel, now held silverware as he meticulously cut foie gras and steak, then passed the prepared portions to his companion.

…

Seeing the aloof doctor do something like this was kinda wild.

Lewis picked up his wine glass, his gaze shifting slowly to see which beauty had snagged the clinic’s untouchable heartthrob.

When his eyes landed on the person beside Bai Yu, he choked, spitting it everywhere, then burst into violent coughing. His cutlery clattered to the floor.

A waiter approached: "Sir?"

Lewis waved frantically: "N-nothing. Just... gimme a sec."

He gulped down some water, his brain short-circuiting.

Imuir? How could it be Imuir? How was it *possible* for it to be Imuir?

Bai Yu was *with* Imuir?

That's the goddamn Hradelier family head!

Lewis’ hands trembled around his utensils, already picturing how the doc would die.

What fate awaited someone who dared to toy with the Hradelier patriarch?—Thrown overboard? Fed to the fish? Dismembered? Sunk in a lake?

The thought of such bloody horrors made the meal tasteless.

Lewis mechanically stirred his food, mechanically swallowed, mechanically returned to his room, and mechanically barged into Bai Yu’s once he was back.

Bai Yu was clueless to the trauma he’d inflicted on his boss’ fragile psyche. He was still cradling the mysterious platinum kitten, sitting at the desk and sketching something.

The cat was solemnly staring at Bai Yu's draft paper, nodding occasionally with the serious expression of a student paying attention in class.

Lewis marched over: "Bai Yu, come here and explain this to me... Hey, stop writing and talk to me first—wait, what are you even writing?"

He snatched the draft from Bai Yu's hands.

Bai Yu closed his fountain pen: "Plans for meeting the parents."

"???"

Lewis's mind was blown once again.

"Whose parents?"

Holy shit, they just met yesterday, and now they're already rushing to meet the parents?

But didn’t Imuir lose both his parents? What kind of parents are they meeting? Is this doctor playing the field or something?

Lewis nearly fainted.

Bai Yu gave him a disdainful look: "Of course, my parents. Who else's would it be?"

On the surface, they'd just met—man and cat. In reality, they were already an old married couple—destined to spend their lives together. Bai Yu's parents were open-minded people, so of course, he had to take Imuir home to get the marriage settled.

"..."

Lewis wiped his face.

Jesus, after one fucking meeting, Bai Yu was already taking the head of the Holladriel family to meet his parents???

Rockets move slower than this!

Lewis was completely wrecked.

Under Bai Yu's baffled gaze, he staggered back to his room like a zombie.

For the rest of the voyage, he kept stumbling upon Bai Yu and Imuir making out in random spots—sometimes doing the *Titanic* pose at the bow, sometimes getting romantic under the stars. Finally, Lewis could only watch helplessly as the cruise docked in China, with Imuir holding Bai Yu’s hand as they disembarked together.

"..."

He frantically texted Bai Yu: "Bro, you're actually taking him to meet your parents?"

Bai Yu: "?"

"No joke."

"..."

Was the world insane, or was Lewis losing it?

Lewis: "...Dude, you’ve got balls. Don’t call me to haul your corpse away when you die."

Bai Yu: "...Relax, it won’t."

Lewis: "Relax? The hell you know? That’s the fucking head of the Holladriel family!"

Expressionless, Bai Yu put him on mute.

Meanwhile, where Lewis couldn’t see, the supposedly 'formidable head' of the Holladriel family was sweating bullets.

Imuir anxiously clutched Bai Yu's sleeve, nearly wrinkling the fabric beyond repair.

He hadn't been raised by his parents—his mother had been separated from him since childhood, and his father was as good as a sworn enemy. He had no idea how to navigate such relationships. Family warmth was an alien concept to Imuir. Perhaps as a child, he had once yearned for an ordinary, loving home, for the affection and acceptance found in stories. But as he grew older, he gave up on such pipe dreams.

Yet now, he was about to meet Bai Yu's parents.

Bai Yu pried his sleeve free from the kitten’s grasp, leaned down to kiss him, and reassuringly held his hand. "Don’t worry, they'll like you."

Imuir lifted his lake-blue eyes. "But what if they don’t?"

You could practically see the anxiety on him.

Bai Yu sighed. "Then I’ll take you away on the spot, hide you somewhere just for us, and never let them see you again. How's that?"

With this reassurance, Imuir relaxed slightly. He tried to haul two boxes of cash as gifts to bribe Bai Yu's parents into approving, but Bai Yu sternly stopped him.

The doctor sighed helplessly. "Your Grace, please don’t make it seem like my parents are selling their son, alright?"

Imuir's brain was in a state of shutdown, unable to think clearly. He clung tightly to the doctor's sleeve as if afraid he might run away, blurting out, "Then would they be willing to sell? I’d pay any amount— Mmph!"

He was silenced with a kiss.

Bai Yu: "What kind of strange thoughts are you even having?"

In the end, the Grand Duke could only buy some traditional Chinese herbs and medicinal wine—a rather "unpolished" choice for a first visit.

Unlike his nervousness, Bai Yu’s parents were over the moon. They had been eagerly awaiting their child's partner, and now, at last, he was here.

Both were open-minded, unconcerned about whether their child's partner was male or female. What had worried them was Bai Yu's lifelong aloofness—he had never shown interest in anyone, seemingly destined for lifelong bachelorhood. Now that he had brought Imuir home, a man with striking looks and poise, the old couple was thrilled.

They prepared a table full of dishes and spun funny childhood tales about Bai Yu, slowly melting the Grand Duke’s stiffness.

After several rounds of drinks and dishes, Bai Yu's father stayed to chat with Imuir while his mother mysteriously pulled Bai Yu aside. "Honey, mind if I ask you something?"

Bai Yu's eyebrow twitched. "Go ahead."

His mother lowered her voice. "Are you the pitcher or the catcher?"

Bai Yu: "..."

Under his mother's expectant gaze, he silently pointed a finger upward.

His mother drew out her tone. "Oh—"

She mused, "So he’s the bride, huh. Such a beautiful bride... Hmm, we ought to treat him like a proper bride."

Bai Yu facepalmed.

Thus, when Imuir left, he received a large, thick red envelope.

Nervous, his smile frozen, he only relaxed halfway through. Unfamiliar with local customs, he took the envelope, baffled, followed them out in a daze, and returned to Bai Yu's apartment.

The kitten perched nervously on the couch, gingerly opening the envelope to find 10,001 yuan inside.

He showed it to Bai Yu.

Bai Yu: "Yeah, it’s a local custom—it means you’re one in a million. They really like you."

The doctor thought idly: *More than one in a million—I’ve basically eloped with Illyria’s most exalted Grand Duke.*

Imuir let out a long sigh and relaxed.

Bai Yu thought the matter had passed peacefully. He planned to discuss with the kitten where they would work and live, then find a country that allowed same-sex marriage for their wedding. But the next day, Bai Yu found Imuir stuffing money into a suitcase.

He had bought an oversized suitcase and was packing it with alarming force, like someone making a frantic getaway. It seemed he wouldn’t stop until the suitcase burst.

Bai Yu gave him a suspicious look. "What are you doing?"

Imuir: "Sending it to your parents."

Bai Yu: "...?"

He hesitated, his tone changing slightly. "Do you really want to buy me? ... Buying people is illegal here."

Imuir tilted his head. "Isn't it your custom? The 'perfect match' thing—you're my perfect match."

The kitten's blue eyes locked onto his with complete seriousness. "One in a hundred thousand, one in a million, countless perfect matches... Mmph!"

Imuir's earnest expression was both ridiculous and endearing. Bai Yu was getting more and more skilled at this.

Successfully kissing Imuir into a daze, Bai Yu scratched his nose. "There’s no such thing as 'countless perfect matches.'"

Bai Yu was indeed exceptional, but if Imuir kept going, he’d soon be saying "the only one in the world."

Imuir scowled, unconvinced. "...But it’s true."

After a childhood of hardship and rising to power young, having met countless people, Bai Yu was the only one Imuir had ever loved.