Chapter 047 Return to Yaoxing 05

Chapter 047: Return to Yaoxing 05

Declining Zhou Mo's invitation for the three of them to stay at the Zhou residence, Zhou Younan stated frankly, "Brother, we'll stay at a hotel."

"That's fine too." Zhou Mo arranged for someone to drive them to a nearby hotel and personally booked two rooms.

"Two rooms?" Wei Qing was the first to object.

Zhou Younan also looked at Zhou Mo in confusion.

Zhou Mo flashed them an innocent smile. "There's a tradition in Yaoxing—when newlyweds visit the spouse's family home, they aren't supposed to stay together."

Wei Qing's expression darkened. "I'm not from Yaoxing. I don't care about—"

Zhou Mo quickly interjected, "Legend says that if this custom is ignored, the couple will inevitably argue and be unhappy in the future."

Wei Qing, who had just "finished arguing," fell silent.

Zhou Mo persuaded, "Zhou Younan is part of the Zhou family, so he counts as a Yaoxing native. I'm just looking out for you. If the Marshal doesn’t care about rumors, you're welcome to insist on sharing a room. But I’ve heard this rumor is quite accurate."

"Tch." Wei Qing scoffed coldly.

Zhou Younan, who had been silent until now, tugged at Wei Qing's sleeve. "Let's sleep separately. I'll share a room with Luo Luo so we can talk."

Wei Qing pulled Zhou Younan close with a pout. "Fine, two rooms then. Sweetheart, we’ll definitely be happy in the future."

Seeing Wei Qing agree, Zhou Younan gave a soft "Mhm."

Zhou Mo watched their interaction with a faint smile but said nothing.

After Zhou Mo left the hotel, Zhou Younan walked him out.

Outside the hotel entrance, Zhou Mo said to Zhou Younan, "I’ve informed the family head about my return to Yaoxing. He's planning a homecoming banquet for me at the Zhou residence tomorrow. My mother will also return from the recovery planet. You should come back to the Zhou residence too—let’s all have dinner together."

Zhou Younan’s first instinct was to refuse. He didn’t want to return to the Zhou family. But since he had already turned down Zhou Mo once, refusing again would seem cruel, especially since Zhou Mo had helped him and Luo Luo.

"I’ll… think about it," Zhou Younan replied.

"Alright." Zhou Mo waved at him. "No need to see me off. Go back—the Marshal is waiting for you."

Zhou Younan waved back and turned to re-enter the hotel.

Standing by the hovercar door, Zhou Mo watched as Zhou Younan walked inside. Wei Qing immediately approached him, and the two walked off hand in hand, talking as they headed deeper into the hotel.

Once seated in the car, Zhou Mo looked away. His fingers drummed lightly on his knee, silent.

"Master Zhou, the master has been waiting for you in the study for two hours," the driver, Zhou Ge, informed him respectfully.

"Let him wait a little longer. No hurry." Zhou Mo’s narrowed eyes gleamed with calculation. "Take me to the nutrition plant first. It’s been a while since I’ve been back—I want to see the situation for myself."

"Right away, sir."

***

At 8 p.m., Zhou Younan announced loudly, "Luo Luo, bath time!"

After saying this, he glanced at Wei Qing.

He had said it on purpose—Wei Qing had been lingering in his and Luo Luo’s room, refusing to leave.

Wei Qing didn't take the hint. He also urged Luo Luo, "Hurry, your brother told you to take a bath."

"Oh." Luo Luo quickly headed into the bathroom.

Seeing that Wei Qing still wasn't moving, Zhou Younan had no choice but to grab a towel and follow Luo Luo, intending to bathe him.

Wei Qing stopped him. "What are you going in there for?"

Zhou Younan looked confused. "To bathe Luo Luo?"

"You’re bathing him?" Wei Qing frowned. "Doesn't he bathe himself?"

"He can, but he’s only five. He doesn't get clean enough."

Wei Qing nodded, getting it. He remained seated on the sofa, turning to stare off at the moonlight outside the window, lost in thought.

Zhou Younan entered the bathroom and closed the door.

He ran the water and began bathing Luo Luo.

Zhou Younan had done this many times before.

Midway through, when Luo Luo was soaking in the tub, Zhou Younan stepped out to grab a forgotten shirt—only to find Wei Qing gone from the sofa.

"He left without saying anything?" Zhou Younan didn’t think much of it and returned to scrubbing Luo Luo in the bathroom.

Luo Luo, small and soaking in the oversized tub, looked up at Zhou Younan sitting on the edge.

"Brother, did you come back this time to take me away with you?" Luo Luo’s mood sounded down.

"That’s exactly why I came back—to take you away from here."

"Mm." Luo Luo looked even sadder.

"What’s wrong?"

"While you were gone, I made some friends at school. I’ll miss them."

"You can make new friends when we get to our new place."

Luo Luo pouted and said nothing.

To cheer him up, Zhou Younan mentioned meeting Noah.

"Brother Noah said before that he’d teach me how to play games," Luo Luo perked up a little.

"You can learn from him when we see him."

"I really want to see him." At last, a smile appeared on Luo Luo’s face.

After bathing Luo Luo, Zhou Younan took a quick shower himself.

Standing under the spray, he felt a sudden wave of nostalgia.

It had been a long time since he’d showered like this. Wei Qing disliked water—both at home and on the ship, they used plasma cleansing devices instead.

Wei Qing disliked water.

Suddenly, the image of the empty sofa flashed through his mind.

After turning out the lights, Zhou Younan lay down on the bed with Luo Luo.

Zhou Younan prepared to talk to Luo Luo about Fan Ke.

He asked the boy lying beside him, "Luo Luo, do you like Teacher Fan Ke?"

Luo Luo hesitated for a moment before saying, "If Gege doesn't like Teacher Fan Ke, then I don’t like him either. Gege, don’t be angry."

"Don’t you want to know why Gege doesn’t like Teacher Fan Ke?"

"No." Luo Luo hid his face in the blanket. "We’re leaving here. We won’t see Teacher Fan Ke anymore."

"We’ll never see him again," Zhou Younan repeated softly, echoing Luo Luo’s words.

"Luo Luo."

"Hmm?"

"Gege doesn’t like Teacher Fan Ke because..." He might be your biological brother.

The second half of the sentence stuck in his throat, and Zhou Younan couldn’t bring himself to say it.

Luo Luo blinked his big eyes, looking at him in confusion.

Zhou Younan sighed and asked instead, "Luo Luo, back when the Zhou family came to the prison to find me, how did you feel when you learned I had family?"

Luo Luo answered without hesitation, "Happy for Gege."

His response made Zhou Younan feel a pang of guilt. He thought his own weakness was nothing compared to Luo Luo’s strength.

"Didn’t you... ever worry that if I had family, I might abandon you?"

"Impossible." Luo Luo snuggled into Zhou Younan’s arms and said firmly, "I know Gege loves me. Even if you have family, you’d never abandon me."

Though the little one spoke with conviction, his hands gripped tightly at Zhou Younan’s clothes, as if he would never let go no matter what.

Zhou Younan held Luo Luo close, as if holding his most precious thing. "Gege won’t abandon you. How could I ever abandon you?"

Worn out from playing all day, Luo Luo soon fell asleep. Zhou Younan gently pulled his clothes free from Luo Luo’s grip and looked at the small hands still clenched tightly. He sighed softly.

At first glance, Luo Luo’s hands looked normal, but upon closer inspection, one could see he had six fingers—a thumb and five long fingers. It wasn’t a deformity, just an extra finger.

When he was younger, Luo Luo had once asked Zhou Younan, "Gege, why are my hands different from yours?"

Back then, Zhou Younan had told him, "Because Luo Luo is smarter than Gege. Only smart people have an extra finger."

His mind filled with thoughts of Luo Luo and Fan Ke, Zhou Younan, unable to sleep, got up to tidy the just changed clothes.

A note fell out of Luo Luo’s pocket. Zhou Younan picked it up and unfolded it. It read:

"Young Master Zhou Younan, your parents were murdered."

***

After inspecting the factory, Zhou Mo returned to the Zhou family’s ornate mansion with a grim expression, his steps slow and heavy.

The butler, dressed in a perfectly fitted tuxedo, stood at the entrance with a line of servants waiting.

The moment Zhou Mo appeared, the waiting staff bowed in unison and greeted, "Welcome back, Young Master Zhou."

Zhou Mo’s face darkened further. He stopped in front of York. "I’ve said before—I dislike these formalities."

York, his white hair neatly combed, glanced furtively at Zhou Mo’s expression and replied awkwardly, "Young Master, your father specifically ordered this."

Zhou Mo’s voice was icy. "Where is he?"

York lowered his head respectfully. "Waiting for you in the study."

Zhou Mo rode the elevator with Zhou Ge.

Zhou Ge was an ordinary square-jawed Alpha with the scent of fish. He was a trusted subordinate of Zhou Mo.

"Who is his current lover?" Zhou Mo suddenly asked, his eyes fixed ahead, his tone laced with anger.

Zhou Ge answered plainly, "Not from our circle. Two days ago, your father brought back an 18-year-old Omega from outside. He’s been quite fond of him lately, keeping him close at all times."

Silence filled the elevator.

"What a beast in constant rut," Zhou Mo muttered in disgust.

As the elevator doors opened, his gaze fell on the illuminated corridor. He murmured to himself, "And a disobedient one at that. I really don’t see the point in keeping him around."

From inside the study came the sounds of ragged breathing and moans. Standing at the door, Zhou Mo felt an intense disgust.

Mother's coming home tomorrow.

He repeated the thought silently, and at the reminder, the tension in his brow eased slightly.

At Zhou Mo’s signal, Zhou Ge used his clearance to unlock the study door. Without hesitation, Zhou Mo walked right in.

The study was a mess—papers and pens strewn about. A completely naked man lay sprawled across the desk. Zhou Quan’s pants were around his thighs, his bare ass exposed as he pounded into him.

Hearing footsteps, the man on the desk bit his lip, stifling his cries.

"You came at the right time." Zhou Quan rammed in twice hard before stopping.

The man on the desk let out a shrill scream.

Soon, the study fell silent. The man lay panting on the desk while Zhou Quan withdrew, without changing expression as he adjusted his pants.

He turned to Zhou Mo. "Lately, you’ve been seeing the Hall family’s Omega. You’re only a Beta—you can’t mark an Omega, so you’ll have to depend on technique to win them over."

"I found this one for you to practice on, but I heard the Hall family’s Omega is already engaged to someone else?"

A fatherly smile spread across Zhou Quan’s face as he reached out and slapped the man’s buttocks, producing loud smacks.

"Since he’s already here, no sense wasting him. I tried him out—decent. If you don’t mind, you can still practice on him."

The man on the desk lifted his head and looked at Zhou Mo.

His eyes were a bright purple, glazed with desire and a hungry gaze as he stared at Zhou Mo.

Like him. And like him.