Chapter Seventy-One — The Master of the House

“Is the master of the house not here?” Yan Lu’s words were startling.

Yishu had been about to check Xu Shixi’s bedroom to confirm, but Yan Lu’s blunt question made her stop in her tracks. “He might be…” she stammered, her words faltering.

Without seeing it herself, Yishu couldn’t be sure whether Xu Shixi was at home, just because of the pair of sneakers at the entrance. He might have come back during the day to get something and left again.

“You’re not going to say he’s at the hospital, looking after that woman, are you?” Yan Lu’s ability to analyze and speculate was truly impressive.

“Uh—” Yishu couldn’t help but laugh. That was exactly what she had been thinking.

“I knew it. Women like her have all sorts of tricks up their sleeves, every scheme comes easily to them. It’s just that you’re too naive to match wits with an old fox,” Yan Lu let her hidden screenwriter’s imagination run wild. “A fox that’s lived a thousand years.”

Has she watched too many palace dramas? Yishu was surprised by her choice of words and vivid imagination. Tang Dai didn’t seem so despicable, did she? If she put herself in the other’s shoes, many of her actions were understandable. But in this opposition of camps, there could only be one outcome—one survives, one falls, and there could be no peaceful coexistence.

Still, Yishu admired Yan Lu’s frankness, daring to voice the thoughts she herself was too frustrated to say.

“Even if she is a vixen, I still believe Shixi has a sharp and discerning heart,” Yishu mimicked Yan Lu’s way of speaking, starting to utter words of superstition, “Nothing evil could ever touch him.”

Seeing Yishu’s stubborn refusal to admit defeat, after hearing the same kind words for the eight-hundredth time and yet only getting contradiction in return, the smoldering flames in Yan Lu’s heart ignited.

Lu Xugao, sensing things were heading for disaster, hurried to play peacemaker. For two close friends to have a shouting match over a man who wasn’t even worth a mention in their lives was too foolish, too pointless.

Who says men mature later than women? Lu Xugao was an exception. Since the sixth grade, he had known what he wanted in life. He possessed a maturity far beyond his peers, but not without the innocence of youth. That was why, when he confessed his feelings for Yan Lu in front of Yishu, she could so keenly sense his sincerity and passion. Love painted by youth always carried a bittersweet taste—never cloying, never painful, just a faint and gentle sweetness.

“My two lovely ladies,” Lu Xugao leaned close to Yan Lu’s ear and looked warmly at Yishu, “if it really is an external enemy, you should unite against them; if it’s just much ado about nothing, why not just laugh it off?”

Usually so obedient, Lu Xugao’s uncharacteristic boldness filled Yan Lu’s eyes with disbelief.

She was about to retort when the door of the guest bedroom creaked open.

Yishu turned her head; Yan Lu and Lu Xugao both shot their gazes over at once.

Xu Shixi emerged, wearing a wrinkled shirt and slacks with the left leg rolled up twice. His hair, flattened for too long, stuck up in every direction.

Yishu was shocked. Meticulous about his appearance as he always was, yet here he was, so disheveled, not even bothering to change into clean clothes before collapsing into bed. The exhaustion of a day and night had utterly defeated him.

“Back already?” Xu Shixi, awakened by the commotion outside, rolled off the bed and rubbed his aching, swollen head, still half asleep.

After finishing his IV, Qiao Siming ignored the medical staff’s advice and insisted on going to Tang Dai’s ward to keep watch over her. At the door, he found Tang Chao standing like a statue at the entrance. When it came to Tang Chao, he was timid, yielding, compliant, patient. After all, he was her younger brother. If he failed to handle relations with her family, the road ahead would only become harder and more treacherous.

Xu Shixi was called out and received a stern lecture. He felt that if he stayed any longer, he would become the fickle, greedy scoundrel Qiao Siming accused him of being. Remembering Yishu’s desolate expression when she left, and the entanglement he had to break off, he decided it was best to go. Besides, with Tang Chao by her bedside, nothing unexpected would happen. Though usually careless and unreliable, at crucial moments Tang Chao gave off a warm energy that could melt any chill.

His gaze was cold as ice. Xu Shixi suddenly remembered how, during college, Qiao Siming had distanced himself without warning. Thinking back, it seemed to have happened right after he learned that Xu Shixi and Tang Dai were dating—his attitude changed abruptly and without explanation. Now, with old patterns resurfacing, that forgotten chapter was being reopened.

Tang Dai fell asleep after taking her medicine, while Tang Chao, half-awake, was full of energy.

Xu Shixi walked over and quietly spoke to him.

Tang Chao leapt to his feet, grabbing Xu Shixi’s sleeve. “How can you just leave? I always saw you as my brother-in-law, helping clear every obstacle for you.”

“Tang Chao, you’re grown up now, sensible too. Don’t act like a child anymore.” Xu Shixi, adopting the tone of an elder, gently admonished him. “I’m glad you like me, but what happened between your sister and me is in the past. The past cannot be reclaimed.” He paused, then added, “If you’re willing, I can still be your big brother.” He reached out to pat Tang Chao’s head as he used to when they were young.

Time flies; once a blink of an eye, now Tang Chao was two or three centimeters taller than Xu Shixi. Reaching out to ruffle his hair now seemed almost comical.

“I don’t need a brother,” Tang Chao rejected him flatly. Even his sister was a dispensable presence at best, something was better than nothing, but a brother—what was the use? Now that he was a grown man, he no longer needed affection or protection. Better to hold onto himself, or embrace someone else—such as Su Yishu.

“If you want to go, I won’t stop you,” Tang Chao raised his brow. “But I have one condition.”

Seeing Tang Chao relent, Xu Shixi’s frown slowly relaxed. What complicated demand could a wealthy young master possibly make? He answered readily, “Go ahead—name it.”

“I want Su Yishu’s contact information,” Tang Chao said. “All of it, if possible.”

Xu Shixi was caught off guard; Tang Chao’s request was beyond anything he’d expected. He listed off the messaging apps he could think of, but aside from WeChat, he knew nothing. As for apps like Facebook and Instagram, which required a VPN to access, Yishu probably hadn’t even heard of them.

“I’m afraid I can’t give you her contact details,” Xu Shixi refused, politely yet directly.

What was his real intention? He knew well that Yishu and he were a couple in love, yet this infatuated boy insisted on playing out a melodramatic soap opera, forcing himself into the narrative.

What had really happened that chaotic night, what unexpected stories unfolded? Xu Shixi couldn’t help but cast a shadow of suspicion over that past.

Trust someone long enough, and doubt is sure to sneak in.

“If you won’t tell me, then you can’t leave,” Tang Chao raised his brow higher, refusing to relent.

Xu Shixi’s face was full of discomfort—how could he hand over his girlfriend’s contact details to another man with ulterior motives? Even though, in his eyes, Tang Chao had once been a childish boy, now he was tall and grown, and such worries and precautions were necessary.

Qiao Siming, seeing their deadlock, seized the opportunity to dash into the ward. Tang Chao’s sharp eyes caught sight of the intruder, and, forgetting his quarrel with Xu Shixi, rushed in to “vanquish the demon.”

A chance from heaven—Xu Shixi breathed a long sigh of relief, let down his rolled sleeves, and headed for the elevator.

“Back already?” Yishu sidestepped his question, responding with her own.

“You’re finally back!” Yan Lu’s tone was forceful. Though she’d only met Xu Shixi a few times, she acted as if they were old friends.

“You’re all here?” Xu Shixi felt inexplicably awkward, embarrassed to be seen so disheveled by outsiders, wishing he could find a hole to crawl into.

The three of them seemed to be holding a conference titled “Back Again.” But as for the reasons and details of their return, not a word was spoken.

“We’ve known each other for a while,” Yan Lu said mercilessly, “but you never once invited us over. Yet some uninvited guests are welcomed with open arms.”

Huh? Xu Shixi was utterly confused. Who did she mean? His dazed mind grew even more muddled. “That was my oversight; I should have invited you all over long ago. Why don’t you have a seat while I…” He suddenly remembered all the groceries at home had been used up. It was about seven o’clock now; if he went out to buy more, it would be too late. By the time he finished cooking, it’d be closer to midnight.

“Are you going to cook for us?” Yan Lu teased him. “Forget it. We’re planning to eat out—come along, the more the merrier.”

Xu Shixi bit his lip, hesitating. With Tang Dai lying in the hospital, going out to dinner with friends felt wrong, as if he were celebrating her accident.

Yishu gazed at him beseechingly, though perhaps it wasn’t so much a plea as the countless icy crystals sparkling in her eyes.

“Why not change your clothes and come with us?” There was a note of request in Yishu’s voice.

Xu Shixi tried to smooth his messy hair and agreed to their proposal.

He took ten minutes to wash up, and soon reappeared before them in his brightest form, renewed and refreshed.

This was his true self; he should always be like this.