Chapter 66: Tennis Match

Chapter 66: Tennis Match

"What the hell?!" Yun Fan froze, his voice a little too loud.

The old house had poor soundproofing. Hearing Yun Fan's shout, Wen Zhaofu sat up. Rubbing his eyes, he didn't move but called out, "Xiao Yun, what's wrong?"

"Sir, I'm fine. Go back to sleep," Yun Fan quickly replied, then spoke into the phone, "Spit it out."

The person on the other end rattled on, and Yun Fan extracted one key piece of information: Cheng Yu liked him and had paid someone to confess on his behalf, detailing the pros and cons of them being together and urging Yun Fan to accept.

"Mr. Yun Fan, do you understand?" The person on the phone spoke a bit quickly. "Please confirm."

"I'll confirm my..." Yun Fan bit back the word "ass."

He said coldly, "Did Cheng Yu say he finds me rather special?"

"Ah... yes, Mr. Cheng did say that."

"Well, I think he's special too," Yun Fan snorted. "Specially annoying!"

With that, Yun Fan hung up, angrily rolled over, and burrowed under the covers, fuming.

Who does he think he is? Yun Fan thought. Acting all high and mighty, as if announcing an imperial edict?

Hearing that Yun Fan had settled down, Wen Zhaofu lay back. He wasn't curious about who had woken Yun Fan, knowing that if it were important, Yun Fan would tell him. If he didn't bring it up, it meant he didn't want to talk about it, so Wen Zhaofu wouldn't press further.

Yun Fan was angry all night but still managed to sleep fairly well. Mainly because he didn't dwell on it, as he felt Young Master Cheng wasn't serious either. Plenty of people found him special—one more was nothing. Yun Fan slipped on his shoes and went out to find Wen Zhaofu.

Unexpectedly, Wen Zhaofu was waiting outside his door, still in his pajamas, his hair slightly messy.

"Big brother, you're up early," Yun Fan said, quickly pulling Wen Zhaofu into his room.

Wen Zhaofu glanced around. Yun Fan's bedroom was as tidy and simple as it had been in Hong Kong. Previously, he thought Yun Fan kept it this way because he was prepared to leave at any time, but now he realized it was just his habit.

"Everything okay?" Wen Zhaofu took his cane and stood up. "If someone upset you, you should tell me."

Yun Fan laughed and lunged into Wen Zhaofu's arms. "It's nothing, just a little thing."

"Then what counts as a big thing?" Wen Zhaofu pinched Yun Fan's cheek and wrapped an arm around his waist.

Yun Fan tilted his head up, resting his chin on Wen Zhaofu's collarbone, then leaned up to kiss Wen Zhaofu's lips.

"Good morning, sir," Yun Fan nuzzled against Wen Zhaofu's neck. "Haven't seen you all night—missed you."

Hearing words warmer than the morning sun, Wen Zhaofu shook his head and smiled. He held Yun Fan tightly, feeling utterly defenseless. He was completely swayed by this, completely swayed by Yun Fan.

"Love you," Wen Zhaofu pecked Yun Fan's nose.

*

Young Master Cheng, whose heart had been pierced yet again by Yun Fan, was not so happy.

Sitting in a conference room with a fresh air system that still felt stuffy to him, he frowned deeply. He replayed the recording again and again, still unable to believe it.

He had spent the money, hired the people, so why wasn't Yun Fan moved?

Weren't these so-called "Confession Squads" supposed to have a 100% success rate? Didn't they claim that anyone who heard the name would understand the significance of the call and immediately agree?

After a moment, Cheng Yu snapped out of it and pointed at the curtains in front of him. "Change them. Light blue, like the sky."

Seriously, Cheng Yu had only been here a few days and was already changing this and that—truly disruptive.

Clearly, Cheng Yu realized he'd lost his mind. Who hires someone else to confess for them? Even if you have money, you shouldn't spend it like that.

Confessions can be casual remarks during time spent together or a promise made under bright lights after careful preparation, but they should never be said by someone else.

In ancient times, people hired assassins; nowadays, no one spends money to have others confess for them.

Even Wen Haochen wouldn't do something like this.

"Shooting oneself in the foot" perfectly described this situation.

At this moment, what worried Cheng Yu more than Yun Fan's rejection was whether this whole thing would become known to others. Like that annoying Liu Erxing, or that perpetually dazed Wen Haochen.

And most importantly, his mother Cheng Bixia must not find out, or her low tolerance for stupidity would be triggered by him.

But in this world, there are no secrets that don't get out, especially for such an extravagant endeavor. Within two hours, Cheng Bixia called, not bothering to spare Cheng Yu's dignity, and scolded him harshly.

Wen Zhaofu, who was accompanying Yun Fan browsing flea markets in a small town, received the same news. Reading the brief two-line message on his phone, he glanced at Yun Fan's carefree back and felt a twinge of sympathy for Cheng Yu.

But more than that, he felt Cheng Yu was misguided. If you want to love someone but constantly take the wrong path, the problem must lie with yourself.

Since his experience hunting for antiques in Jin City, Yun Fan got excited whenever he came across such street markets. Wen Zhaofu was still in a wheelchair, so Yun Fan was always mindful of him, glancing at the stalls and then back at Wen Zhaofu, feeling a little awkward.

Wen Zhaofu called out, and Yun Fan quickly returned, leaning down. Wen Zhaofu reached up and touched his forehead. "Just focus on looking around. I'll keep an eye on you and follow along. No rush, we have no other plans today."

"But you..."

Wen Zhaofu smiled again. "I'll follow you. I won't get lost."

Yun Fan knew Wen Zhaofu didn't want him to hold back, but leaving Wen Zhaofu alone was out of the question. So whenever Yun Fan found something interesting, he brought it over to examine with Wen Zhaofu. Unexpectedly, Wen Zhaofu wasn't just a collector but also skilled at appraisal, engaging in a lively discussion with Yun Fan.

"The texture here isn't quite right," Yun Fan said, holding a ceramic bowl. "Feel it, brother."

Wen Zhaofu glanced at him calmly, already distracted, and reached out to touch it. "Ah, you're right."

"Forget it, it's not worth much," Yun Fan decisively abandoned it and moved on to the next opportunity.

Overall, the items on this street were rather dull. Yun Fan only bought some old coins. He didn't let Wen Zhaofu pay; there was no mobile payment here, and it was inconvenient for Wen Zhaofu to handle cash.

As long as Yun Fan was happy, Wen Zhaofu let him be. After all, the antiques at home would all be managed by Yun Fan in the future—profits would be Yun Fan's, losses would be Wen Zhaofu's.

It was just money, and Wen Zhaofu didn't think it was a big deal.

Yun Fan drove them to a Chinese restaurant in the town, where they enjoyed a satisfying meal. Staring at the moist pan-fried dumplings, Yun Fan couldn't help but sigh, "I've never missed someone so much before."

"Who?" Wen Zhaofu laughed.

"My Uncle Man!" Yun Fan sighed. "I thought about Uncle Cheng a little, but not much. Oh, and Xiao Shan—I wonder how his newly planted lotus is doing."

"It hasn't bloomed yet," Wen Zhaofu replied one by one. "Uncle Man has learned a few more Sichuan dishes and often says he wants to cook for you. As for Uncle Cheng... Uncle Cheng is doing alright."

Wen Zhaofu omitted the part where Zhu Zhiqian took a punch from Wen Haochen. He felt Yun Fan didn't need to know, at least not now. Nothing should disturb their date.

Yes, a date. Once they returned to Hong Kong, they might not have this kind of freedom. The thought made Wen Zhaofu feel a bit guilty.

"Sir, we can't go public yet," Yun Fan said directly, startling Wen Zhaofu.

Wen Zhaofu opened his mouth to say that if Yun Fan wanted to go public, he could announce it to the world immediately. But Yun Fan seemed a bit shy, his cheeks slightly flushed as he smiled and continued, "I want us to keep our relationship underground."

What? An underground relationship? Wen Zhaofu was even more confused. He always thought the four-year age gap was no issue, so why did he now feel like he couldn't understand Yun Fan's words?

Wen Zhaofu rarely failed to keep up with Yun Fan's pace, but now he found himself somewhat dumbfounded as he looked at Yun Fan.

"Underground romance is more exciting!" Yun Fan scratched the back of his head. "Ah, sneaking around and plotting in secret—just thinking about it gets me pumped!"

Yun Fan let out an "Aiya," waved his hand, and declared boldly, "Well, don’t worry—my feelings for you aren’t underground; they’re right here in my heart!"

Wen Zhaofu couldn’t help but chuckle. Whatever Yun Fan said was fine by him; he had no objections. So he leaned forward, took Yun Fan’s hand, and gave it an affectionate squeeze: "Alright, whatever you say."

"Hehe!" Yun Fan tilted his head and grinned, looking especially radiant.

*

The next time they saw Cheng Yu was on the tennis court. Nowadays, sporting events had also become social occasions—tickets were hard to come by, yet everyone wanted one.

When Cheng Yu found them, he thought his eyes might be playing tricks on him, because he could have sworn he saw Yun Fan sitting next to Wen Zhaofu, and it looked like they had been holding hands.

Yun Fan merely uttered a faint "Young Master Cheng" and offered no further attention to Cheng Yu. Cheng Yu sat down next to Wen Zhaofu, feeling a knot of frustration in his chest.

"Da Liu is competing in the non-professional group," Wen Zhaofu initiated conversation with Cheng Yu today. "I asked some friends to help train him, and he won the first round."

"You’ve always had such grace," Cheng Yu said with a smile. "Even willing to support a competitor."

"Doesn’t that make it more interesting?" Wen Zhaofu turned to look at Cheng Yu, his face expressionless.

In that instant, Cheng Yu was certain Wen Zhaofu already knew about his underhanded moves and was inwardly mocking him fiercely.

Now wasn’t the time for conflict, and besides, Cheng Yu had no way to defend himself, so he chose to remain silent.

Yun Fan tugged at Wen Zhaofu’s sleeve, and the two leaned close to talk, making Cheng Yu feel as if his throat were clogged with blood. He hadn’t wanted to come to this match, but Ms. Cheng Bixia had given him several social tasks to complete, so he had to make up for his mistakes.

Perhaps because he had just failed in his own romantic pursuit, Cheng Yu now felt that Yun Fan and Wen Zhaofu seemed closer than ever. Wen Zhaofu smiled more often, and Yun Fan appeared calmer than usual. By Wen Zhaofu’s side, he seemed to have no worries at all.

Did Wen Zhaofu really have that much magic? Cheng Yu didn’t understand. It was a question he had been asking since childhood, and he still hadn’t found the answer.

Sticking to the principle of an underground romance with Yun Fan, Wen Zhaofu didn’t display any overly intimate behavior in public. But sometimes, out of habit, he nearly forgot to follow the rules.

For instance, when Yun Fan took a sip of coffee and set the cup down to his right, Wen Zhaofu instinctively reached for it and almost brought it to his own lips. A collective "Wow!" from the crowd over an exciting shot brought him back to his senses, and he quickly set the cup aside, breathing a sigh of relief.

It turned out that forming a habit could be this easy—it didn’t even take 21 days. Wen Zhaofu thought to himself that if it took that long, it just meant the love wasn’t strong enough.

"Aiyo, it’s just losing a match—why so angry?" Yun Fan leaned close to Wen Zhaofu and nodded toward the person smashing their racket. "Brother, I don’t want to watch anymore."

"Why’s that?" Wen Zhaofu’s speech was increasingly mirroring Yun Fan’s.

"It’s sunny, and I’m feeling dizzy." Yun Fan looked at Wen Zhaofu with pleading eyes.

Wen Zhaofu couldn’t resist giving Yun Fan’s hand a squeeze and coaxed, "Alright, let’s go."

Cheng Yu could only watch helplessly as Wen Zhaofu and Yun Fan left together. Of course, he was deeply unwilling, but he couldn’t bring himself to move.

Leaving wasn’t just about walking away. Wen Zhaofu had abandoned the day’s social engagements—whether it was people he wanted to see or those who wanted to see him, he shut them all out.

In the past, Cheng Yu thought Wen Zhaofu wasn’t free, but now, he was the one trapped by circumstances. Wen Zhaofu could decide everything for himself—that was true ultimate freedom.

Back at the estate, Yun Fan rubbed the back of his neck and smiled at Wen Zhaofu. Wanting Wen Zhaofu to move around after sitting for so long, Yun Fan took him to the forest behind the estate.

"Xiao Yun, look who’s here." Wen Zhaofu took Yun Fan’s hand and gave it a gentle squeeze.

Turning around, Yun Fan spotted a familiar face wearing glasses: "Doctor Shi!"

"Well, what should I call you now?" Shi Ning teased. "Zhao Fu, who is this?"

Wen Zhaofu raised an eyebrow: "The love of my heart."