Chapter 91 Which Side?

Chapter 91: Which Side to Choose?

The second voice came right on the heels of Yan Zhoubai's words. Yan Zhoubai looked up and saw a tall figure push the door open.

It had been almost half a month since he last saw Zhan Jiayu.

Although they had kept in touch before, it wasn’t unusual for them not to meet often—everyone had their own busy lives. But now, seeing Zhan Jiayu again felt like an eternity had passed.

Zhan Jiayu was dressed in a dark gray suit, as if he had just stepped out of a formal event, his hair meticulously styled.

Yan Zhoubai had seen his casual, everyday side at home, so he was certain Zhan Jiayu must have just dealt with something important to be dressed like this.

"President Yan, good to see you again."

After entering the room, Zhan Jiayu casually greeted Yan Anxuan, then closed the door and pulled up a chair by Yan Zhoubai’s bedside without hesitation. He reached out and touched Yan Zhoubai’s cheek.

"You’ve gotten thinner," he said in a low voice.

Yan Zhoubai blinked his big, dark eyes at Zhan Jiayu, letting him touch his face. The fluttering of his eyelashes made Zhan Jiayu’s heart itch with tenderness.

From the moment Zhan Jiayu entered, Yan Anxuan and Bu Qiran’s expressions turned sour—especially when they saw Zhan Jiayu sitting so casually by Yan Zhoubai’s bedside, as if the two of them were invisible.

"President Zhan, why didn’t you let us know you were coming?" Yan Anxuan forced a smile, though it held no sincerity.

Yan Zhoubai glanced at his older brother and felt the atmosphere in the room turn strangely awkward with that smile.

"Whether I give notice or not, President Yan doesn’t seem very welcoming. Is there a difference?"

Zhan Jiayu didn’t look back at Yan Anxuan. Instead, he carefully examined Yan Zhoubai from head to toe, then touched his arm and held his hand, as if to reassure himself that Yan Zhoubai was okay before finally relaxing.

Bu Qiran watched from the side, itching to intervene. What was this? Wasn’t he just taking advantage of Yan Zhoubai right in front of them, as if they were dead?

Yan Zhoubai hadn’t seen Zhan Jiayu at the college acceptance celebration, but Zhan Jiayu had seen him—watching as he was rushed into the emergency room.

That day, Yan Zhoubai had lain on the stretcher in pain, drenched in sweat, making Zhan Jiayu’s heart ache with worry.

By the time Zhan Jiayu rushed to the hospital, Yan Zhoubai already looked lifeless, his face ashen. At that moment, Zhan Jiayu felt as if his own heart had died along with Yan Zhoubai’s fading vitality.

Now, seeing Yan Zhoubai alive and well felt like a dream. He was afraid that if he blinked, everything would disappear, and Yan Zhoubai would once again lie silent on the operating table.

"President Zhan, if you have something to say, say it plainly."

Seeing Zhan Jiayu’s attitude, Yan Anxuan decided not to bother with pleasantries. Sooner or later, things would have to be made clear.

Zhan Jiayu didn’t move, but glanced coldly at Yan Anxuan standing diagonally behind him. However, when his eyes returned to Yan Zhoubai, they immediately softened.

"Xiao Chuaner, let me explain the situation. Your second uncle’s attempted poisoning has uncovered a case involving an international drug trafficking ring. Until this case is resolved, your uncle can’t be truly brought to justice."

"Your family is eager to see him punished and to avenge you, but this drug ring has been rampant for a long time, and the police haven’t found a breakthrough. Coincidentally, the organization’s base is in Country A, where the Zhan family has considerable influence, so we’ve been able to assist the police. Your uncle is now undergoing trial and will soon face judgment."

Yan Zhoubai already knew most of this, but hearing it from Zhan Jiayu himself felt different.

Zhan Jiayu made it sound simple, but Yan Zhoubai suspected that dealing with a drug ring that had long troubled the police must have been complicated, even with the Zhan family’s power—yet Zhan Jiayu mentioned none of that.

"This matter means the Yan family owes President Zhan a favor," Yan Anxuan interjected abruptly. "President Zhan is a businessman, and business is business. He can’t offer this favor for free, so he’s made a request: he wants you to go with him. He believes the Yan family isn’t safe enough and that you’ll be safer by his side."

Yan Anxuan’s tone was neutral, as if all emotion had been drained when he first heard Zhan Jiayu’s request.

Yan Zhoubai looked from Zhan Jiayu to Yan Anxuan, confused about what "going with Zhan Jiayu" meant.

Bu Qiran, seeming to understand Yan Zhoubai’s confusion, spoke impatiently, "He wants you to live with him instead of staying with the Yan family. What do you think? You’re not actually considering going with an outsider, are you?"

Bu Qiran had been irritable ever since hearing Zhan Jiayu’s request. He’d been staying at the hospital, in Yan Zhoubai’s room, because he felt he needed to keep an eye on him—only by having Yan Zhoubai in his sight could he ease his anxiety.

How did this happen? Wasn’t Zhan Jiayu supposed to be the arrogant villain boss? Why was he interested in Yan Zhoubai?

He’d asked the system for an explanation, but the chatty AI, despite detailing the original plot, had never mentioned this.

"Damn it," Bu Qiran cursed inwardly. Was that the point?

What "clinging to a powerful figure"? These two were already being physically affectionate right in front of him—was the system blind?

"Go with you? Not live with the Yan family? Why?" Yan Zhoubai looked at Zhan Jiayu, puzzled, wanting to know why he would make such a request.

"Xiao Chuaner, your condition was critical that day. Critical condition notices were issued multiple times, and you almost didn’t make it. If such a serious incident can happen at your own banquet, I don’t trust them. I’ll only feel at ease if you’re by my side."

Zhan Jiayu gently brushed aside the hair covering Yan Zhoubai’s forehead and spoke earnestly while looking into his eyes.

"President Zhan, there’s no need for such talk. This was an accident. Who could have predicted that old man would go to such extremes? Even by your side, can you guarantee nothing like this will happen?"

"We agreed to let him choose. Why are you trying to sway him emotionally? And what’s with 'Xiao Chuaner'? His name is Xiao Bai!"

Yan Anxuan and Bu Qiran’s expressions darkened at Zhan Jiayu’s "I don’t trust them." Yan Anxuan clenched his right fist, veins bulging on the back of his hand, but Bu Qiran spoke first.

Zhan Jiayu wanted to take Yan Zhoubai away, but the Yan family disagreed—unanimously, including Bu Qiran, who usually didn’t get along with Yan Zhoubai, and even Bai Rong, who had never shown much concern for him.

The compromise they reached was to let Yan Zhoubai choose for himself, out of respect for his autonomy. He wasn’t an object to be taken away at will.

Even so, they hadn’t told Yan Zhoubai the full truth because they lacked confidence—they weren’t sure he would choose the Yan family.

They all knew Yan Zhoubai hadn’t had an easy life with the Yan family.

And Zhan Jiayu, who had gone to great lengths to mobilize the Zhan family’s overseas resources to help with the case, would undoubtedly treat Yan Zhoubai well.

Moreover, the two of them already had a good relationship.

Zhan Jiayu made no effort to hide his feelings for Yan Zhoubai, but how Yan Zhoubai felt about it remained unknown. What if Yan Zhoubai felt the same way?

So, they had no certainty.

Yan Zhoubai finally understood the whole situation, including the background and current circumstances.

He glanced at Yan Anxuan for confirmation and, seeing his nod, knew it was now his turn to choose.

"Baby, this is a great opportunity! Didn’t we always want to leave the Yan family? Your dad wouldn’t agree before, but now we can leave legitimately—and with the villain boss, no less. It’s killing two birds with one stone!"

The system was so excited it was almost incoherent.

Like Yan Zhoubai, it hadn’t known about the agreement reached between the Yan family and Zhan Jiayu during Yan Zhoubai’s coma, but this was good news for them.

"Now it's my turn to choose, right?"

Yan Zhoubai ignored the system's frantic yelling in his mind and glanced at the three people present.

"Right," Zhan Jiayu nodded. "I want to take you with me. Didn’t we agree before that you’d intern at my company and be my secretary? It’ll be more convenient if you come with me."

Zhan Jiayu didn’t forget to continue campaigning for votes.

He wasn’t really worried that Yan Zhoubai wouldn’t choose him. He knew Yan Zhoubai didn't really want to stay with the Yan family either. Most importantly, he was determined to take Yan Zhoubai away from the Yan family. There were many ways to achieve this—if soft methods didn't work, he'd use hard ones.

If the Yan family proved to show incompetence, he wouldn’t hold back.

The moment Bu Qiran heard "company internship," he immediately remembered Yan Zhoubai mentioning earlier that he had found a very impressive, high-paying internship—turns out it was being Zhan Jiayu’s secretary. Instantly, he was so angry he gritted his teeth.

Going off to be someone else’s secretary? What kind of secretary? A proper one? So clueless, he’d be devoured whole without even realizing it.

Damn it! How could Yan Zhoubai be so foolish!

But there was nothing he could do. If even his father and Yan Anxuan couldn’t handle this, what could he, a mere second son who had just returned to the family with no real power, possibly accomplish?

In the end, he was still too weak—he didn’t even qualify to face off against Zhan Jiayu.

Zhan Jiayu would only exchange greetings with Yan Anxuan; he wouldn’t even glance Bu Qiran’s way, because Bu Qiran was beneath his notice.

In that moment, Bu Qiran felt as if all the superiority he had built up over the years through his own abilities and intelligence had completely vanished. He felt utterly powerless.

"Why should I choose? What gives you the right to make me choose? Was I even informed when this matter was being discussed?"

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Author’s note: Here we go, [Let me see what's happening]