Chapter 49

Chapter 49

Friday came around quickly. It was the day of the Shen family matriarch’s birthday celebration, which had drawn countless prominent figures from Haicheng.

Although Shen Yue had left work early, dusk was settling by the time he returned to the ancestral home. He handed the car keys to the butler after parking outside and walked straight in.

His elder brother stood at the entrance greeting guests, holding a glass of wine. Tall and poised, he occasionally bent down to exchange pleasantries with arriving elders. Setting aside his usual assertive demeanor, he appeared quite the debonair gentleman.

Not spotting his grandmother, Shen Yue quietly sighed in relief. He strolled leisurely over to Shen Cuo, scanning the hall as he asked, "Are Mom and Dad not back yet?"

"Their flight was delayed, but they should still arrive today."

Shen Cuo checked his watch, then glanced behind Shen Yue. "Alone?"

Shen Yue smiled. "How many people did you expect me to bring back?"

Shen Cuo shook his head and, considering Shen Yue had been driving for a while, suggested he go to his room to rest and change.

But as a host—especially with their parents absent—Shen Yue had little time to rest. After changing, he returned to the hall to help Shen Cuo entertain the guests. Charming and handsome, Shen Yue had everyone smiling in no time, as if he were their own son.

Amid the lively chatter, a man suddenly asked, "Speaking of which, young master, you’re not so young anymore. I wonder if you have a girlfriend yet?"

Here we go again.

Though he knew it was unavoidable, Shen Yue always felt a flicker of impatience at times like this. He had been engrossed in conversation earlier and took a moment to recognize the man as Song Cunyi, who had a son and a daughter. Shen Cuo had previously mentioned him as a potential match for an arranged marriage, but Shen Yue, who wasn’t straight, had always brushed him off.

Likely because he had never given a direct response, the Song family had misunderstood, leading to this public questioning of his relationship status.

"No," Shen Yue replied, his smile fading slightly.

Just as every family had a "model child," Shen Yue felt he was the "delinquent" others warned their children to avoid. Once, while visiting a relative, he overheard them praising his brother as "exceptional" while lamenting why their own children couldn’t be more like Shen Cuo. When they turned to Shen Yue, they fell into a long silence before finally muttering, "Stay away from him."

People loved gossip. Even Linda, the seasoned professional at their company, couldn’t resist curiosity about his "exes." Shen Yue doubted Song Cunyi was unaware of his reputation, yet the man still pursued a marriage alliance—wasn’t that essentially selling his daughter for money?

Disdainful of such behavior, Shen Yue took a sip of wine and fell silent.

Unfortunately, Song Cunyi was oblivious to social cues. Smiling, he pressed on, "What a coincidence! My daughter is the same—absolutely refuses to date, says marriage is too troublesome. What’s with young people these days? I really don’t get it."

Shen Yue smiled without responding.

Song Cunyi waved to someone behind him. "Actually, President Shen quite likes our Huihui. He once suggested arranging a meeting between you two, but you’ve always been too busy. Since you’re both here today, why not get acquainted? You might even find some common ground."

"Maybe we will," Shen Yue said, raising an eyebrow as a figure approached at Song Cunyi’s gesture. He lifted his glass in a faint toast. "We could discuss our preferred types of men."

"Preferred... men?" Song Cunyi had heard rumors about Shen Yue’s lifestyle, but he never expected him to openly declare his sexual orientation at such a public event—the Shen matriarch’s birthday, no less. He stumbled over his words.

As expected, Shen Yue’s remark caused quite a stir. Unfazed, Shen Yue pointed to the man behind Song Cunyi. "Is that your son?"

Puzzled, Song Cunyi turned and saw his son approaching instead of his daughter. Seeing Shen Yue’s ambiguous smile, a sense of unease washed over him, though he quickly dismissed it. "Yes, does the young master know my son?"

He then turned impatiently to his son. "Why are you here? Where’s your sister? Where did she go?"

Gazing at the familiar, eager face behind Song Cunyi, Shen Yue smiled. "Yes, we’ve met."

He swirled the liquid in his glass, feigning thought—though it was unnecessary, as he and Song Jiang had parted ways only six months ago and had been on good terms. He hadn’t forgotten him so soon.

"I haven’t met your daughter, but your son left quite an impression on me," Shen Yue said, his provocation perfectly pitched—expressing dissatisfaction without making Song Cunyi too uncomfortable as a guest. "He pursued me. We were together."

"..."

Ignoring Song Cunyi’s distressed reaction, Shen Yue excused himself and discreetly summoned the family doctor to keep an eye on him, lest the man actually have a heart attack at his home.

After mingling, the guest of honor finally made her entrance amidst much fanfare. Shen Yue retreated to the second-floor balcony to get some air, wanting nothing more to do with Song Cunyi or anyone else.

The early autumn night was chilly. Even in long sleeves, Shen Yue felt a slight cold, but he had no desire to move. Leaning against the balcony railing, he gazed at the stars, his striking features blending into the dark night—ethereal and serene.

His phone buzzed several times—messages from the late-arriving Wei Jinchuan asking for his location. Shen Yue felt too lazy to move, so he silenced his phone. But before he could enjoy the hard-won peace, a voice sounded behind him:

"Enjoying the quiet, are you? You nearly gave Song Cunyi a heart attack. He came to cozy up, but now he’s gone home."

An annoying voice.

Shen Yue didn’t turn or respond. The gentle night breeze tousled the fine strands of his bangs, adding a casual elegance to his appearance.

"Why are you here?" he asked coldly, his tone belying his calm exterior. "I thought you disliked these kinds of events."

"How touching that you still remember my preferences after all these years."

Zhou Yutang chuckled delightedly, moving from behind Shen Yue to lean beside him on the vine-wrapped white marble railing. "But if I hadn’t come, wouldn’t my fiancée have been stolen away?"

His words carried insinuations—perhaps about Song Jiang, but he couldn’t resist bringing up others spitefully. "Downstairs, that youngest Wei has been asking your brother about your whereabouts. Seems you’ve made quite some progress lately?"

Shen Yue remained silent, seeing no need to report his private affairs.

"Don’t be like that. I’m just curious. If you don’t like it, I’ll change the subject." Zhou Yutang raised his hands in mock surrender, though his voice held none of the pretended meekness. "Xiao Yue, you wouldn’t want him coming up here, would you?"

"Just a pity," Zhou Yutang said with genuine regret. "If I hadn’t gone abroad, would things be different between us? Would we be together by now?"

Shen Yue had no interest in such pointless hypotheticals; he found them almost laughable. "You think we ended up like this because you went abroad?"

"Isn’t it?" Zhou Yutang’s hand shifted slightly, quietly covering Shen Yue’s fingers. Shen Yue remained unmoved—neither pulling away nor responding.

Shen Yue felt as if he’d heard something absurd but couldn’t bring himself to laugh. "Zhou Yutang, I’m genuinely starting to wonder—what did you really think of me back then?"

Zhou Yutang watched him. Shen Yue faced the darkness beyond the balcony, his back to the bright lights inside, making his expression unreadable.

Yet his voice held a hint of emotion only someone who knew him well could detect.

Zhou Yutang gently brushed the back of Shen Yue’s hand. "The night before I left, you kissed me."

Shen Yue froze.

"Zhao Lian was drunk that night, but I wasn’t. I was just a bit tipsy and wanted to rest my eyes, but then..."

Shen Yue realized. "You were pretending to be asleep."

"I was confused—I didn’t understand. I’d never been in that situation before and didn’t know how to react, so I pretended to be asleep."

In the darkness, he turned to gaze at Shen Yue, though he couldn’t make out his features. "I’ve always liked teasing you—your reactions amuse me. But I... I never thought I could actually like men. Xiao Yue, all these years abroad made me realize—I do like you. If I hadn’t run away back then, would you have..."

By the time he got to this point, he had completely shed his initial frivolous and unserious demeanor. The words that followed were so faint they were barely audible, as if he weren't sure who he was saying them to: "Are you... finally mine?"

"..."

Shen Yue stood right beside him and heard every word crystal clear, yet his heart remained as still as an ancient well. He had no desire to say a single word.

"Back then, I didn't get it. If I had known, maybe I wouldn’t have chosen to study abroad. You have no idea. That one kiss... for these eight years overseas, I couldn’t sleep. Every night, I’d think about that kiss. Why did you kiss me? You clearly detested it when I called you my fiancée, but if you liked me, when did it even start? I didn’t know how to face you."

Shen Yue seemed to recall something and let out a scoffing laugh. "So that’s why you cut ties with me?"

Even if Zhou Yutang had gone abroad, it didn't have to end up like this. It’s the 21st century, technology is advanced—a computer or a phone could have kept them connected. A plane ticket and a nap later, they could have seen each other in person. How did it ever come to this?

The reason they ended up like this was simply because Zhou Yutang, upon leaving the country, had blocked all of Shen Yue’s contact methods without a word, while staying in touch with everyone else as usual.

Shen Yue had a poor memory for most things, but he held grudges exceptionally well. Zhou Yutang’s one-sided blocking was a clear provocation to him. He wasn't one to cling to a friendship out of sentiment—if it was over, it was over. As for the rest... Zhou Yutang could think whatever he wanted.

He wasn't having it.

Zhou Yutang, aware he was in the wrong, gave a wry laugh. "If you hate me, you can punish me—but only on the condition that I get to stay by your side."

"We’re both adults. I don’t play such childish games."

Shen Yue finally withdrew his hand. Zhou Yutang’s words almost made him laugh. If he had once doubted himself over his friend’s sudden disappearance, now he found his past sincerity ridiculous.

He had actually agonized over such a meaningless, pointless thing for so long.

Now that the truth that had haunted him for eight years had surfaced, Shen Yue only felt like his past self had been an idiot. Suddenly, he felt a sense of release—whether it was regarding Zhou Yutang, himself, or the friendship they once shared.

As for now? Friendship? That was bullshit.

He turned sideways, resting an arm on the railing, his index finger tapping lightly on it from time to time, making his mood impossible to decipher.

Abruptly, he asked, "Do you smoke?"

"No," Zhou Yutang was taken aback, not expecting the question. "When I was studying in Germany, a lot of classmates tried to get me to smoke weed. I was afraid they were setting me up, so I never picked up the habit."

"Good habit," Shen Yue pulled a cigarette from his pocket and clicked his lighter, the dim yellow flame casting a faint glow on his face. "Mind if I smoke?"

Zhou Yutang looked at him. "Suit yourself."

Shen Yue placed the cigarette between his lips and lit it.

His movements were elegant; even lighting a cigarette looked graceful. The flickering flame reflected in his downturned eyes, outlining the shape of his beautiful peach-blossom eyes. His pupils lifted slightly, carrying a teasing, half-smiling glint. He didn’t look like he was smoking—he looked like he was using the moment to openly seduce him.

A thrill ran through Zhou Yutang. He reached out and took a cigarette from Shen Yue’s pack, leaning in just as Shen Yue was about to click the lighter shut.

In this small, flickering firelit moment, the slender flame of the lighter ignited the tips of the two cigarettes as they touched. Because of their positions, the two men were extremely close, their foreheads nearly bumping, their intertwined breaths burning hot.

The warm flame danced in their eyes, yet neither was looking at the fire below. Two men, neither willing to lose, locked eyes, neither wanting to be the first to look away.

Shen Yue took a drag into his lungs and blew the stinging smoke directly into Zhou Yutang’s face. "How is it?"

Zhou Yutang was a complete novice. He didn't know how to inhale or smoke properly; the unpleasant smell alone, trapped in his nasal passages, was enough to make him wince. He finally turned his head away.

"Cough, cough..." He coughed a few times, taking the cigarette from his mouth and frowning. "It smells awful. How can you like this?"

Shen Yue smiled faintly. "Once you’re hooked, you can't quit."

Zhou Yutang glanced down at the lively hall below, where scattered laughter occasionally drifted up. Suddenly, a thought struck him. "Shall we go to bed?"

"..." Shen Yue was baffled by his erratic train of thought and kindly reminded him, "I have a boyfriend."

"I guessed as much." Zhou Yutang grinned mischievously. "Don’t worry. It’s just a fling. Nothing more."