Chapter 57

Chapter 57

Why did the original author spend two whole chapters describing the love-hate drama in Yu Fada's family?

Of course, it's because Hai Chao is also a rival love interest candidate, a competitor to the male lead. Naturally, the author had to lay the groundwork for Hai Chao's tragic backstory to give him and the male lead some common ground.

—Tian Ruan had no idea how this so-called "common ground" came about. One was an illegitimate child, the other was a down-and-out—completely unrelated. But if the author said they had common ground, then they did.

However, in Tian Ruan's eyes, while both had a defiant nature, Lu Qiuyan was far more likable. Even though his family had gone bankrupt, leaving him buried in debt and hounded by debt collectors, there was an inherent dignity and honesty about him.

Hai Chao, on the other hand, seemed brooding—his father weak, his mother a mistress. No matter how hard he tried, he couldn’t change the circumstances of his birth. At his core, he was bitter and radical.

Tian Ruan wasn’t about to play matchmaker. Only his beloved "son," Yu Shang, was worthy of Lu Qiuyan.

He decided to let things play out.

A few days later, Yu Fada divorced and remarried. Out of guilt, he gave most of his assets to his ex-wife and Yu Jun, including the villa. He bought a high-end flat and moved in with Hai Mingyue.

Hai Chao couldn’t accept it and insisted on staying in their dingy old place.

Yu Fada even said, "Hai Chao is just being thoughtful, giving us space for our new life together."

Hai Mingyue gave him a look like he was stupid and laughed. "Since we’ve moved, why not invite Grandpa, Third Brother and his wife, and Fourth Brother and his wife over for a visit?"

The "Fourth Brother and his wife" she referred to were Yu Jingmo and Tian Ruan.

Yu Fada extended the invitations, but all were declined.

"..."

Tian Ruan went to school as usual. He had already lost those five pounds of fat, and his abs were back. But he knew better than to get complacent, so he continued walking part of the way. As if by unspoken agreement, unless he was busy, Lu Qiuyan would always join him for the ten-minute walk to Deyin.

One day, they ran into Hai Chao again, confronted by that same Mary Sue girl from before.

After being rejected, the girl shouted, "Hai Chao, I know you’re the Yu family’s illegitimate child! How am I not good enough for you?"

Hai Chao snapped. "Get lost."

Then he turned and spotted Tian Ruan and Lu Qiuyan in the crowd. "..."

Tian Ruan acted like he hadn’t seen and said to Lu Qiuyan, "Let’s go."

Lu Qiuyan muttered disinterestedly, "Yeah."

Soon, the traffic police arrived to disperse the girl’s fan club and the crowd. Once again, Hai Chao was the one being questioned.

But what Tian Ruan never expected was that the rumors spread like wildfire through Deyin, eventually twisting into: "Yu Jingmo and Tian Yuan have a seventeen-year-old illegitimate child."

Seventeen? Illegitimate child? All eyes landed on Yu Shang.

Shocking—Yu Shang wasn’t adopted after all, but an illegitimate child!

Tian Yuan was even more impressive—he’d had a child at three years old... Yu Jingmo was basically a predator.

Tian Ruan: "..."

Yu Shang: "..."

Absolute nonsense.

Not long after, that overly perfect girl was expelled from school, and the rumors fizzled out on their own.

When Tian Ruan returned home, Yu Jingmo didn’t mention the matter at all, implying it was just a casual gesture, and he didn’t care about such baseless gossip.

“There’s an auction in Su City on Sunday evening. Do you want to go?” Yu Jingmo asked while they were eating dessert after dinner.

Tian Ruan happened to be bored, so he said, “I’ll go.”

“Mhm.”

“Yu Shang, are you going?”

Yu Shang: “Yes.”

“Then let’s bring Lu Qiuyan along too, so he can get some exposure.”

“You think he hasn’t seen it before?”

“...” Lu Qiuyan was once a wealthy young master, so of course he had.

Tian Ruan looked at Yu Shang with exasperation—this dense kid couldn’t even seize a chance for a date.

He’d have to play Cupid himself.

So, on Sunday, Tian Ruan messaged Lu Qiuyan on WeChat: *Come over.*

Lu Qiuyan: *Busy with work. Can’t.*

Tian Ruan immediately called the hotel’s general manager. “I want to give my friend a paid day off.”

The manager fawned, “Of course, Madam, right away!”

After receiving the notice, Lu Qiuyan was stunned for a moment before packing his bag and heading to the Yu family estate.

In the afternoon, the sun was perfect. Tian Ruan had finished his homework and was reading and drinking tea in the tea lounge. Servants waited on him, refilling his tea and bringing snacks from time to time.

Amid the fragrant tea and serene atmosphere, Tian Ruan experienced the joys of being wealthy—he didn’t even have to lift a finger, and a crowd of people would flatter him.

For example, the butler would occasionally report which family had sent gifts and ask Madam to inspect them.

Tian Ruan had never even heard of those NPC names. Since the butler accepted them, it meant they were acceptable. Tian Ruan checked them one by one—most were items like bone china dishes, vases, calligraphy sets, gold-plated fountain pens, coral and pearl ornaments, as well as premium teas, bird’s nests, shark fins, lobsters…

“Why have so many gifts been sent recently?” Tian Ruan was particularly interested in the gold-plated pen, playing with it in his hand.

Butler: “In two months, it’ll be New Year.”

Tian Ruan: “...” Giving New Year’s gifts two months in advance—these people really had money to waste.

The butler smiled. “Madam, pick whatever you want. The rest can be sent to the old master and Third Madam.”

Tian Ruan only took the pen. Liu Ma came over and declared, “Keep all the good food. Madam has lost weight recently and needs to build her strength back up.”

Tian Ruan: “...No need to fatten me up. I don’t want to get a heat flare-up.”

If he fainted from nosebleeds due to “so-called tonics” again, Yu Jingmo would just laugh at him.

The gate at the entrance opened, and the butler went out to greet him. “Mr. Lu has arrived.”

Tian Ruan got an idea. “Liu Ma, prepare two servings of bird’s nest soup—one for me and one for Lu Qiuyan.”

Liu Ma: "Right away."

These fine things might be useless to Tian Ruan, but Lu Qiuyan was chronically undernourished and definitely needed some nourishing.

Lu Qiuyan wore the ripped denim jacket he’d bought at the amusement park, his pants also full of holes, looking like he'd catch a chill in the late autumn weather. Tian Ruan immediately took him to his wardrobe room and rummaged through a pile of oversized clothes, saying, "I don’t wear these anymore—you can have them."

Lu Qiuyan said flatly, "If I walk around in these expensive clothes, I’ll get robbed before I even make it home."

Tian Ruan: "...Then pick a few that aren’t so flashy."

Lu Qiuyan looked them over. "All your clothes are pretty flashy."

It wasn’t that Lu Qiuyan was being picky—the clothes Tian Ruan had picked out weren’t just oddly shaped, they also displayed prominent brand logos. Each piece looked like it belonged on a runway, and wearing them in real life would just make people think he was crazy.

"Then just pick whatever," Tian Ruan said.

Lu Qiuyan gave him a look. "Did you call me here just to 'bestow' things on me?"

Only then did Tian Ruan realize his actions might have hurt Lu Qiuyan’s pride. "I just have too many clothes I don’t wear, and throwing them away would be a waste. That’s why I thought of you. I didn’t mean anything else by it."

Lu Qiuyan had some understanding of Tian Ruan’s way of thinking by now and knew he meant no harm. "It’s not like I don’t have clothes to wear. If I ever end up with nothing, then I’ll come pick through your leftovers."

Tian Ruan thought for a moment. "Actually, you don’t have to pick mine. You could pick Yu Shang’s—he’d definitely be happy to help."

"..."

"Heh heh heh." Tian Ruan grinned with a matchmaker's grin, imagining a down-and-out Lu Qiuyan seeking out Yu Shang, asking just for a set of clothes to wear, only for Yu Shang to be overcome with pity and protective instincts, leading to a certain sequence of events that would naturally bring the two together in love.

Lu Qiuyan: "...If you keep grinning like that, I’ll hit you."

Tian Ruan immediately wiped the smile off his face. Shipping couples really did warp one’s expressions, turning people into human emojis.

Lu Qiuyan turned to head downstairs. "If you’ve got nothing else, I’m off to my second job."

"You have a second job?" Tian Ruan’s expression was like that of someone scolding a cheating jerk. "Does the salary from Macchiato Hotel not cover your expenses?"

Lu Qiuyan: "Young master, my family owes millions in debt."

"...Oh."

Millions—even if Tian Ruan wanted to help, there was nothing he could do. He’d have to wait seven or eight years until Yu Shang took control of part of the family fortune and cleared Lu Qiuyan’s debts for him.

"But I want to hang out with you," Tian Ruan said.

Lu Qiuyan paused mid-step and turned back to look at Tian Ruan’s innocent expression. "Hang out how?"

Tian Ruan didn’t directly invite Lu Qiuyan to the auction. As long as Yu Shang returned, the world would naturally progress the storyline between the protagonist and his love interest. Instead, he said, "Let’s go square dancing."

Lu Qiuyan: "???"

It was late afternoon in late autumn, the weather crisp and the sun bright. Normally, when the family members were either at work or school, Liu Ma would lead the servants in square dancing during this time.

It was just a way to pass the time—otherwise, things got too dull.

Liu Ma brought out the prepared bird’s nest soup, and as Tian Ruan ate, he announced, "As a reward for everyone, I’ve decided to join you all in square dancing."

"Huh?" Liu Ma was flattered and immediately fetched the small speaker, setting it up in the courtyard and calling all the willing participants to join the square dancing session.

The security staff were particularly enthusiastic—after all, they often joined in.

Mao Qi didn’t understand but didn’t refuse—after all, Tian Ruan had given the order.

The women stood in front, the men behind, with Tian Ruan and Lu Qiuyan on the side, all neatly lined up.

Liu Ma, leading the group, bent down reverently and pressed the play button on the speaker.

In an instant, lively, melodious music poured out, accompanied by the high-pitched singing of middle-aged women. Everyone swayed like synchronized robots.

Liu Ma took the lead, twisting her hips, waving her arms, and stepping in time.

Tian Ruan caught on quickly, clapping to the beat and mastering the moves in no time.

Lu Qiuyan: “…”

Gradually, Lu Qiuyan caught on too. The moves were repetitive—not too hard to master.

Surprisingly, the bodyguards were even more nimble than the maids, clearly dance veterans.

Except for Mao Qi. At first, he stood stiffly like a stone, unmoving. But slowly, as if the peppy music got to him, he began to sway awkwardly along.

Square dancing was downright hypnotic.

Everyone danced along, grinning.

Outside the estate gates, a Maybach pulled up, and the gates swung open to let it through. The guard nervously glanced at the lively square dance scene—no signs of slowing down.

Even the butler was into it too.

Yu Jingmo pushed open the car door and stepped out, immediately hit by a wall of blaring music. If the estate hadn’t been so far from residential areas, the neighbors would’ve called the cops.

Not a single person noticed the master’s return, all too absorbed in their dance frenzy.

Yu Jingmo walked right through—

The speaker sat right in the middle of the path. Yu Jingmo lifted his polished leather shoe and cleared it in one stride.

In an instant, Liu Ma froze.

The butler froze too.

Like dominoes, the rest of the group stiffened mid-move, as if hit with a freeze-ray, toppling over haphazardly, not daring to make a sound.

Lu Qiuyan jerked to a stop and stood ramrod straight.

Tian Ruan, bouncing like a bunny, was going too fast to brake and nearly crashed into Yu Jingmo.

Yu Jingmo reached out, snagged him mid-hop, and tucked him under his arm.

The crowd: ‘……’