Chapter 57

Chapter 57

After finalizing every detail of the plan to ensure it was foolproof, the three men left the study.

Somehow, even though they were just a floor apart and not far away, a sudden impulse surged through Li Yanchuan.

A desperate urge to see Song Nian.

The elevator seemed to crawl slower than usual. When the doors opened, through the narrow gap, he instantly spotted the person he was longing for.

Song Nian sat on the sofa with his back to the elevator, playing a game with little Xiao Chen.

"Xiao Chen, do you like Brother Yanchuan?"

Song Nian asked while patting his head.

"Yes, I do."

Hearing this, Xiao Chen nodded hard.

"I like him too. Your Brother Yanchuan is actually really gentle. When you grow up, you gotta treat him well."

Thinking that the little kid next to him was the future protagonist, the kind with that built-in protagonist aura, Song Nian couldn't help hinting to him to be good to Li Yanchuan in the future.

Maybe he could even rub off some of that aura on Li Yanchuan.

"Okay!"

Xiao Chen raised his hand and promised seriously.

—"I like him too."

Whether true or false, whatever kind of like it was, hearing this, Li Yanchuan looked at them with eyes as soft as water.

He wheeled himself forward and called softly:

"Song Nian."

"Huh? Hubby, you guys done chatting?"

Seeing them, Song Nian turned around and smiled at him.

Gazing at those smiling eyes and that slightly raised mouth, Li Yanchuan really wanted to hug Song Nian.

But it wasn't right to do that in front of the elders.

So he quietly reached out and secretly took Song Nian's hand, gently squeezing it.

Suddenly having his hand grabbed, Song Nian blinked slowly. Once he realized, he didn't pull his hand back but mischievously scratched Li Yanchuan's palm.

It was tickly and warm.

In a corner where no one was looking, their fingers laced together.

————

After sitting a bit longer, seeing it was getting late, Old Zhuang and his crew left first.

The lively living room went quiet in an instant.

But it didn't feel cold.

"Hubby?"

Seeing they were still holding hands, Song Nian tried to pull his hand free but couldn't, so he tentatively said.

Li Yanchuan didn't answer and didn't let go. His gaze locked directly onto Song Nian's face.

The next second, with a pull of their joined hands, Song Nian, caught off guard, lost his balance and got yanked into his arms.

His forehead smacked against the firm chest, leaving him dizzy. It took him a minute to come to his senses.

He tried to get up, but a strong arm around his waist held him tight, forcing him to kneel in the tight space on the man's lap.

Looking down, he met Li Yanchuan's gaze looking up at him.

Their eyes locked.

Only then did Song Nian realize that Li Yanchuan had been really into holding him lately.

"What's wrong?"

He gently patted Li Yanchuan's arm and asked.

The man across from him still didn't speak, his deep gaze burning with intense heat, greedily tracing over him.

His eyes first landed on Song Nian's forehead, where his fine bangs covered the smooth skin, faintly showing the pale skin underneath.

Then moving down, they landed on those moist, puppy-dog eyes, always shimmering with tears, like a spring lake rippling with warmth.

Perfect features, fair cheeks—every part was a pleasure to look at.

Finally, his gaze settled on Song Nian's lips.

Song Nian's lips weren't thick, but they weren't thin and mean either. The corners naturally turned up, a born smile that made him look like he was always smiling.

His lip bead was plump and pouty, tempting you to want to knead and mess with that spot.

In a daze, Li Yanchuan remembered the first time he met Song Nian.

When he first saw those lips, his thought had been:

"They instinctively make you want to wipe off the lipstick."

Damn alluring.

Now, he felt the same, and he acted on it.

His large hand instinctively caressed Song Nian's cheek, pinching his chin to tilt it up.

His thumb gently touched the lip bead, rubbing and pressing slowly until it turned red and swollen from the teasing. Then he swiped across the lip surface horizontally.

If there were lipstick, the corner of his mouth would probably be smeared with a bright red mark.

The touched area was moist and hot, soft as Jell-O, with a faint, barely there dampness that wet his thumb.

Even being treated like this, Song Nian stayed docile, giving a puzzled look, but still obediently parting his lips a little, letting him do it.

Gazing infatuatedly at the bright red lips in front of him, Li Yanchuan narrowed his eyes, a dangerous glint flashing deep in them.

Reason had completely disappeared, and the prideful restraint and composure had been cast aside. Raging desires clamored and swelled in the depths of his heart.

He figured, aside from his leg problem, he must have contracted another illness.

A terminal illness, with no cure or treatment possible.

Unable to control himself, he leaned forward, and the distance between them grew closer.

So close that their breaths mingled.

Watching the man’s face grow larger and larger in his sight, Song Nian's eyes flickered, and he froze in place.

Or rather, he had already been stunned ever since Li Yanchuan's fingers touched his lips.

With the broad palm pressed against his cheek and his chin pinched to force his head up, that intensely predatory gaze instantly gave him the illusion of being prey.

Especially when the pad of his finger touched his lips, it was as if an electric current shot straight from the base of his spine to his brain, sending a thrilling tingle through his whole body.

Would he kiss him?

Involuntarily, this thought surfaced in his mind.

His heart pounded wildly, thumping in his chest, as if it knew what was coming.

He could have turned his face away to avoid it, but for some reason, Song Nian simply stood there, motionless.

It was hard to tell if he didn't want to avoid it or was looking forward to it.

He merely slowed his breathing and waited quietly.

For a moment, the air in the living room grew thick and heavy, and the overhead light seemed to be shrouded in a hazy mist, filled with an ambiguous atmosphere.

Without thinking, Song Nian slowly closed his eyes.

His dense lashes fluttered slightly, casting tiny specks of shadow on his eye sockets like specks of stardust.

Seeing that he didn't seem to reject it, Li Yanchuan's eyes brimmed with tenderness.

Inching closer, their lips were about to meet, leaving less than a centimeter of distance.

In that almost-touching state, a sudden illusion arose that they had already kissed.

Until the next second, a sharp dog bark sounded in his ear:

"Woof!"

Startled, both immersed in the romantic tension, felt their hearts skip a beat.

They exchanged a glance and turned their heads in unison.

They saw Rookie with its front paws resting on the coffee table, trying to reach the snacks on the surface.

After repeatedly failing to reach them in frustration and waiting in vain for the oblivious humans, it barked in frustration.

Seeing that the two humans in the living room had finally noticed it, it got off the table, stomped its feet like a little bully, and gestured frantically.

— They had almost forgotten that Rookie was staying over tonight.

They'd been too absorbed to notice it was there.

Looking at the indignant Rookie, Song Nian and Li Yanchuan stared at each other.

Then both of them burst out laughing.

The earlier ambiguous atmosphere was shattered by that bark, and only then did they both feel shy.

"Well, I'll go get some food for Rookie."

Song Nian blushed, averted his eyes, scratched his cheek awkwardly, and stiffly climbed off him.

"Mm."

Li Yanchuan coughed in embarrassment, turned his face away, and looked calm on the surface, but the tips of his ears had already turned red.

Unbeknownst to them, the bright moon outside the window had quietly hidden behind the clouds, as if embarrassed by the lovey-dovey couple.

————

The days that followed became increasingly fulfilling.

In addition to his rehab, Li Yanchuan was busy every day with preparing the details of his plan, waiting for the day of implementation.

After a short break, Song Nian continued to take on some minor publicity gigs.

Although these gigs were not as high-quality as before, they were still work.

After the TV drama aired, if his popularity goes up, hopefully the quality of work will improve too.

Besides having busy work schedules, their lives also changed in other ways.

That is, they got more care and attention from their elders.

In the morning, Uncle Zhuang Linyan, on his way to work, would go out of his way to bring warmth; at noon, Aunt Zhuang Chengyi would drop off a big box of delicious food; in the evening, Old Master Zhuang would come over with Xiao Chen.

Even though these elders were Li Yanchuan's blood relatives, they also treated Song Nian like their own kid.

They gave Li Yanchuan and Song Nian the same amount of love.

Because they all believed that Song Nian was a very likable child; from the way he acted and treated people, he wasn't a bad guy, and he had helped and changed Li Yanchuan a lot.

He was like a little sun, loved by everyone.

Wrapped in such strong love from his elders, Song Nian found a sense of belonging in this new world.

To be precise, it was probably different from the feeling of his former home, since in the past, as the eldest son, he wasn't the one being spoiled at home.

As days passed, a few months later, the time was right, and everything was in place.

Not just Li Yanchuan's plan, but also Song Nian's TV debut.

It seemed Li Yi couldn't stay still any longer and wanted to promote his younger son. Half a month ago, he had officially announced a shareholders' meeting for next Monday.

He believed that with the number of shares he held, he had enough leverage to completely push Li Yanchuan out of the group's management and hand the family business over to Li Wenguang.

Unfortunately, he didn't know that he was walking right into a trap.

As luck would have it, the TV drama starring Song Nian was set to air next Tuesday, and next Monday he would go to an in-person promotional event.

"Don't worry," he said. "Just focus on your in-person event. You don't have to worry about things on my end."

Seeing the hesitation on his face, Li Yanchuan raised his hand and gently patted his head, and offered a suggestion.

"Are you sure it's okay?"

Hearing this, Song Nian was still uncertain.

Deep down, he wanted to accompany Li Yanchuan to the shareholders' meeting, after all, he was worried that Li Yanchuan might lose control when facing Li Yi and his father head-on.

Ideally, though, he couldn't just irresponsibly abandon his work. Although he wasn't the lead, the drama promotion relies on the whole team; missing anyone could easily affect the overall effect and cause a stir.

After some persuasion from Li Yanchuan, Song Nian finally decided to go to work.

Each would go fulfill their own duties, and meet again after successfully completing their tasks.

On Monday, when he was about to leave, he was like a parent worried about their child at home when going on a long trip, carefully cupping his face and going over a list of reminders about various matters.

"Alright, I understand."

Li Yanchuan gave a slight smile and covered the back of his hand with his own.

"Don't worry, I should finish before you do. I'll come pick you up then."

"Then I'll wait for you!"

Having never heard such a suggestion before, Song Nian nodded eagerly.

As he waved goodbye and went out to work, he turned away and did not notice the change on Li Yanchuan's face behind him.

Only after Song Nian had completely disappeared from sight did Li Yanchuan's warm expression fade.

Replaced by a cold, sharp look.

"To the Li Group building."

He told the driver coldly, like a drawn sword, sharp and icy.

A storm was about to sweep through the entire Li Group, bringing a thorough upheaval.