Chapter 108

Chapter 108

Xie Yunshen had just come downstairs when Yan Shixin immediately rushed over to him.

Xie Yunshen scooped him up. "Shixin, look how tall you've gotten!"

"Shixin... what's going on?" Seeing his own son hug someone out of the blue, Third Uncle naturally felt wary of Xie Yunshen's unfamiliar face and was utterly baffled.

Xie Yunshen just smiled, saying nothing on purpose. Yan Shiqi looked grave; he was lost in thought and quiet.

With the outsider, Gao Langdong, there, the others didn't know how to explain either.

This chaotic situation continued until Yan Shiying intervened. "Third Uncle, we just wanted to give you a surprise."

He glanced at Gao Langdong. "Dr. Gao, you're here too? Please, have a seat."

"Oh, I recently finished a research project at the Academy of Sciences. I discussed some matters with Mayor Yan and happened to hear he was coming over, so I dropped by uninvited. My apologies." Gao Langdong maintained his modest manner.

Xie Yunshen, still holding Yan Shixin, naturally took a seat next to Yan Shiqi. As he did, he felt Gao Langdong's gaze resting on him.

"Dr. Gao, why do you keep looking at me?"

Gao Langdong took off his glasses and smiled slightly. "No, it's just that your vibe reminds me of an old acquaintance."

Xie Yunshen said, "It's me, Xie Yunshen! Don't you recognize me? I went abroad to get some work done. What do you think? Does it look good?" As he spoke, he touched his own face.

Before Gao Langdong could express surprise, Third Uncle and Third Aunt's worldview shattered first.

"I can see the surgery was very successful, Mr. Xie," Gao Langdong replied with a helpless smile.

Xie Yunshen looked puzzled. Did this guy also get plastic surgery but it failed? Otherwise, why would his skin look like that?

He was no good at hiding his feelings. He just stared blankly at Gao Langdong, his face a clear giveaway of what he was thinking.

The others nearby cringed on Gao Langdong's behalf.

"This is a side effect from some medication I took recently due to stress," Gao Langdong calmly explained.

Xie Yunshen raised an eyebrow. Really? Shouldn't a pharmacology and biology PhD know this stuff best? Even he has moments like this?

However, Gao Langdong was, after all, the hero who toppled the Top Star Group. In Xie Yunshen's mind, he was a righteous figure, so he couldn't help but feel some sympathy. But how could he have imagined that this doctor would be at the center of a series of events that would overturn his own worldview?

Yan Shiqi's "return from the dead" threw the Yan Family Manor into an uproar for two or three nights. Let's skip the trivial details.

Apart from the Yan Family Manor merging with Yan Shiqi's villa, the cityscape of City A also became more cramped.

Yan's Group was still in the city center, about a dozen kilometers from the manor, just as one would expect.

Cloud Banner Tower was located near City A's landmark, visible from the manor's rooftop.

The Bodyguard Association, the J Country where the perverted Crown Prince resided, and Pang Hairu's hotpot brand—all existed in this world.

But Xie Yunshen's little building was gone. His golden armor was gone.

"Is there a bug or something?"

His huge golden armor, made of pure gold! Even if sold for its weight in gold, it would be worth tens of millions.

Besides, that was...

"That was a limited edition..." Only three existed in the entire world.

During breakfast, Xie Yunshen was so upset he couldn't swallow a bite.

"A Shen." A warm hand rested on his shoulder.

Xie Yunshen turned his head to look at Mr. Yan. "Hmm?"

"What's wrong?"

Xie Yunshen's vacant gaze focused on Mr. Yan, gradually softening with a gentle strength.

When he realized that some things in this world could be severed—meaning, they could vanish—the pain in his heart instantly transformed into immense relief. He was relieved that only his little building and armor had vanished, not Mr. Yan.

Mr. Yan hadn't disappeared from this world. He was still by his side.

"Mr. Yan!" Xie Yunshen rested his head on his shoulder and nuzzled against it. Yan Shiqi had no choice but to hold him.

The others eating breakfast nearby: "..."

"Gay." Yan Shizhou mercilessly mocked Xie Yunshen using the same rhetoric Xie Yunshen had used years ago.

Xie Yunshen slowly lifted his head from Yan Shiqi's shoulder: "..."

?

"Fucking gay." Yan Shizhou raised an eyebrow.

"Don't you dare say that about Mr. Yan." Xie Yunshen said with a serious expression.

"Cough!" Yan Shiling almost choked.

A vein throbbed on Yan Shizhou's forehead. "...I was talking about you."

Xie Yunshen sat back in his chair, fist propped against his temple, looking sideways at him. "Is there a difference? Talking about me is the same as talking about Mr. Yan, because the word 'gay' refers to a pair. Third Young Master, do you have one? Do you have a pair?"

He glanced at him sideways.

Yan Shizhou gave him a dead-fish stare. "Psycho."

"You can call me sister-in-law." Xie Yunshen was now completely immune to this title.

As soon as he said this, even Yan Shiqi couldn't help but laugh, his eyes fixed on Xie Yunshen.

Yan Shizhou looked at Yan Shiling. "Has your sister-in-law always been this... divine?"

Yan Shiling immediately seized his slip-up. "Hmph, exposed! What 'yours' and 'mine'? That proves you're not really my big brother's brother!"

Yan Shizhou sighed. "..."

This world has truly gone mad.

Watching all this, Yan Shiying's mind was in turmoil. It seemed he still hadn't adjusted to the fact that his big brother was suddenly with Xie Yunshen. Although after his big brother's suicide attempt, he realized how deep his feelings for Xie Yunshen were, it had never been so concretely displayed before his eyes.

In his heart, his big brother had always been that serious, aloof, perfectly in-control family head.

Now, seeing his big brother naturally respond to Xie Yunshen's puppy-like nuzzling and hugging, some of Yan Shiying's strange stereotypes were quietly shattering.

Even so, big brother was still big brother.

He set down his chopsticks, frowning seriously, a vague sense of foreboding stirring within him: Had their Yan family been cursed by some kind of gay hex?

It seemed the heavy responsibility of continuing the family lineage would fall squarely on his shoulders.

In Uncle Zhao’s eyes, the bustling breakfast was full of energy—a scene unseen in the entire manor for three years.

Only Yi Wuyi remained composed as he finished his meal.

A heavy snow fell in City A, and the sedan glided smoothly along the city’s wide roads.

The snow from the previous night had already been shoveled to the sides.

Today was the day for the Five Colors Conference to re-elect its president, and as usual, the five major families were expected to attend.

“Huang Jianxing aims to replace the Yan family. In fact, I’ve been thinking that the Yan family should just withdraw from the conference altogether; it hasn't helped us at all.”

In recent years, it had been Yan Shiying acting as the chairman of the Five Colors Conference.

The original purpose of the Five Colors Conference was to promote solidarity and support among the five families. But in reality, it was just a last-ditch effort by the Huang and Zhu families—after the collapse of the Top Star Gate—to latch onto the other three families and avoid total collapse.

However, the Huang family had genuinely managed to turn things around, while the Zhu family was in steady decline.

“What about the Bai and Chen families after I died?” Yan Shiqi asked again.

“The Chen family has been unremarkable. Although they’ve seen some progress compared to a few years ago, their capabilities are limited. The Bai family, on the other hand, is on the rise, especially the daughter's fiancé, Lin Jin. Not only is he a world-renowned physician, but he’s also established ties with the Mo family in the Northern Realm. Over the past two years, the Bai family has received a steady flow of resources and contracts, becoming a prominent family in the Northern Realm that others can hardly match.”

Xie Yunshen listened nearby, thinking to himself—the male lead was indeed the male lead, succeeding regardless of the circumstances.

The Bai family had forged ahead relentlessly, becoming a first-rate family.

“Speaking of which, Lin Jin and Miss Bai’s wedding is next month. Xie…” Yan Shiying suddenly paused, looking at Xie Yunshen with his brows knit tight. Finally, he blurted out stiffly, “Big…”

Xie Yunshen promptly covered his mouth, glaring fiercely. “Second Young Master, just call me A Xie like Old Fifth does! Please!”

Yan Shiying didn’t understand but could only nod in deference.

Every time the Five Colors Conference convened, they used a conference hall from the municipal government as a temporary venue.

As they neared their destination, a breaking news bulletin cut in.

“At 10:40 AM local time in Country E, Prince Blanken was found dead in his room. According to the prince’s psychologist, since the princess consort succumbed to illness, Prince Blanken’s mental state had been unstable, with multiple signs of suicidal tendencies.”

Xie Yunshen gazed fixedly at the news displayed on the privacy partition.

The news footage flashed images of Prince Blanken and the princess consort, both now turned gray.

The princess consort had been bedridden with a serious illness—how could she have died so suddenly? And now Prince Blanken was dead too?

“Currently, the Royal Police of Country E do not rule out the possibility that Prince Blanken’s death was a suicide…”

Yan Shiqi looked at Xie Yunshen.

“How could this happen?” Xie Yunshen frowned, pulling out his phone and dialing a number.

The call didn't go through.

He then tried the unfamiliar number Prince Blanken had used to call him before—it also showed as a dead line.

“…What’s going on?” Despite the winter cold, sweat formed on Xie Yunshen’s forehead from anxiety.

Yan Shiqi grasped his hand. “A Shen, calm down.”

Xie Yunshen remembered something. “He definitely didn’t kill himself!”

Not long ago, Prince Blanken had called to tell him that if he ever died, it would definitely not be suicide! He would have been murdered.

He should have realized something was wrong back then, but he had been distracted by other matters. Looking back now, his indifference had essentially made him an accomplice.

“His fate wasn’t caused by you.” Yan Shiqi saw through Xie Yunshen’s inner thoughts and pressed a hand to his shoulder.

Xie Yunshen rubbed his hands over his ears, cheeks, and eyes, pressing his head in agony. “No, he told me about it! If I had helped him back then… he wouldn’t have died!”

“You had already retired by then. How could you have helped him? By risking your life again, disregarding your own safety? As much as I hate to say it, the average lifespan of E’s royal family members doesn’t exceed thirty. That place is full of scheming. Even if you had gone, you would have been dragged into it. You couldn’t have protected him forever.” Yan Shiqi reminded him almost cruelly.

Xie Yunshen looked up at him, dazed. Yan Shiqi’s brows were tightly furrowed, and silence fell inside the car.

The most nervous one was actually Yan Shiying.

Though he didn’t fully understand what was happening, he sensed that this prince held special significance for Xie Yunshen. His brother’s words were too harsh, and he expected Xie Yunshen to angrily refute him at any moment.

Just like in every TV drama, where the male and female leads would have intense arguments over differing values.

No matter whose side he took then, he’d end up offending both.

Why did he, a single man, suddenly have to deal with such complicated interpersonal conflicts?

“…But he was only twenty-five,” Xie Yunshen murmured.

Yan Shiqi suddenly embraced him. “I’m sorry. I don’t want you blaming yourself for this.”

Xie Yunshen hugged him back.

“…” Yan Shiying watched the two. The imagined argument never came, though he still didn’t understand why his brother had apologized.

But he made up his mind: next time, he would never ride in the same car with them again.