Reasons to Celebrate

Cen Muxiao stiffly adjusted his direction and sat down smoothly, as if he had not heard Guo Lantai's barely concealed excitement at all. He picked up his chopsticks and began eating with a solemn expression.

Guo Lantai was neither annoyed nor upset at receiving no response. After sitting down, he swept his gaze over the dishes before him. They were as lavish as ever, yet something seemed to be missing.

At last, his gaze landed on the glass of juice before him, and sudden realization dawned on him. That was it!

"Uncle Meng, could you open a bottle of red wine?"

He looked at Uncle Meng, who stood waiting nearby, with an exceedingly devout expression. His debut livestream had been a huge success today. It would be such a pity not to have a drink to celebrate!

Besides, he wanted to celebrate not only successfully taking his first step into livestreaming, but also Song Anning walking right into the trap. His little act with Wu Tianyong had not been in vain.

"Ah? Mr. Guo would like red wine?"

Uncle Meng repeated the question after coming back to his senses. At the same time, he turned to look at his young master, silently asking with his eyes whether he should agree.

Unless there were special circumstances, their young master never served alcohol with meals at home. There was only freshly squeezed juice and plain water, absolutely healthy and harmless.

Especially after Song Anning returned, their young master's meals had become much lighter than before in consideration of his feelings. If it had not been for Mr. Guo having some knack for inexplicably changing their young master's mind, he would probably have had to stick to a bland diet along with them.

Now Mr. Guo wanted red wine, and he clearly intended to drink it right in front of their young master. Their young master had already been greatly displeased when they drank beer with barbecue last time. This time, he was swapping beer for red wine. Uncle Meng had no choice but to ask his young master's opinion.

Cen Muxiao naturally caught his look, but he did not respond immediately.

He raised his eyes to look at Guo Lantai and asked bluntly, "Why do you want to drink for no reason?"

"Do you need a reason to drink?"

Guo Lantai looked back at him with innocent confusion. Meals had to follow his rules, but did drinking now require filing a report in advance too? Please, could he not be such a killjoy?

"Drinking harms the body."

The moment Guo Lantai heard that, he let out a sigh of relief. He had thought Cen Muxiao was going to mention drunken misconduct. How little would that man have to trust his drinking habits to say that? Still, he clearly was not genuinely worried about Guo Lantai's health. He simply disapproved of what he was doing.

"Sir, you really know how to stay healthy. But I'm not someone who craves alcohol. If you want a reason, I have one!"

As Cen Muxiao watched him speak, Guo Lantai quietly pushed aside his glass of juice, carefully moving it out of the way. It was obvious that he believed his reason would definitely make Cen Muxiao agree.

"Then stop beating around the bush. Go on."

The moment Cen Muxiao said it, he realized that he must have had too much time on his hands. It was not as though his household begrudged him a drink. Why was he standing here arguing with him over whether he could drink or not?

No matter how much he disliked the man, he would not casually deprive him of the right to drink, would he? How had he let Guo Lantai set the pace in everything?

Still, he had already spoken, so there was no point dwelling on it. He set down his chopsticks, straightened his back, and waited at ease for him to give his so-called reason.

Guo Lantai was clearly pleased with his response. Since he had been told to speak, he did. "Isn't there a perfectly good reason right in front of us? Tonight is our rare chance to have some time alone together. I'm happy, so naturally I need a glass of red wine to liven things up!"

The moment Cen Muxiao heard that, he thought, Sure enough, I never should have given him the chance to speak. Has he gone mad wanting to be alone with me? He can even use that as a reason?

He could not help letting out a cold snort. "If that is the reason, then you are deeply mistaken. Remember this: there is no need for any time alone together between us, nor will there ever be any. It is neither worth nor necessary to celebrate. You can save yourself the wine and simply not drink."

If Song Anning's absence alone was enough for this man to smugly seize an opening and take advantage, then sorry, but plenty of people had been alone in a room with him. Guo Lantai probably did not even qualify to stand in line.

"Tsk, tsk! Sir, you really are heartless. Your words come with chunks of ice in them. Ah, my poor little heart. It's been stabbed so badly that cold wind is blowing through it now. Do you believe me?"

Guo Lantai could not help pursing his lips, his eyes and face full of exaggerated disappointment. Yet inwardly, he sighed. Luckily, his skin was thick enough to withstand Cen Muxiao's verbal blows. If it had been the original owner's fragile heart, he would probably be wiping away tears and sobbing by now.

Of course, he was disappointed too, but Cen Muxiao's reaction did not surprise him. He must have thought Guo Lantai was forcing up an excuse just to get closer to him.

Well, was that not exactly what he was doing? Would he not be stupid not to take advantage of an opportunity?

Besides, he did not think his efforts were pointless. That big jerk had done plenty of things where his mouth said no while his actions said otherwise. If Guo Lantai did not show a little initiative at the right moments, he would never be able to test the man's bottom line.

Just as he was claiming his heart had gone cold, Cen Muxiao suddenly spoke with some impatience. "If you want to drink, then drink. There is no need to make excuses. Uncle Meng, get it for him."

The moment Cen Muxiao heard him say that, he regretted not agreeing from the start. After all that talking, Guo Lantai had begun putting on another sentimental performance. His words sounded fake, and his expression was somewhat exaggerated. As usual, he was glib-tongued, with zero sincerity.

Yet for some inexplicable reason, Cen Muxiao felt a little stifled inside. It was as though the heart being stabbed was not Guo Lantai's, but his own. What the hell was wrong with him?

For a moment, he could not understand whether he was disappointed because Guo Lantai's words were too fake, or whether he regretted speaking too harshly and forcing him to put on a false front in response.

Uncle Meng stood to one side, eyes lowered and minding his own business. At last, he received an order. With relief, he hurriedly answered, "Yes, all right. I'll get it right away. Mr. Guo, do you have any preferences for red wine?"

Guo Lantai smiled faintly. "No, you can choose. Thank you."

"All right, I'll be right back!"

Watching Uncle Meng leave to fetch the wine, Guo Lantai could not help sighing. "After what you just said, I should drink even more. Didn't the ancients say, 'drown one's sorrows in drink'? It fits the occasion perfectly, doesn't it?"

At those words, Cen Muxiao felt his breathing suddenly stop. After pausing for a moment, he raised his brows and looked at him. "You're already drunk before drinking. Eat."

"All right, eating."

Guo Lantai obediently answered and lowered his head. Before long, however, he raised it again, his eyes curving into crescents as he looked at Cen Muxiao. "Sir, I have another piece of good news to share with you. This is also one of the reasons I want to celebrate. Do you want to hear it?"

For some reason, Cen Muxiao, who had still been harboring a trace of gloom just moments ago, saw Guo Lantai's suddenly smiling face and instinctively blurted out three words. "All right, tell me."

The next second, beneath his seemingly impassive expression, a chilly line of words drifted through his mind: Fine, I'll let you speak. If you don't say something worthwhile, don't even think about having a single drop of wine tonight!

Immediately afterward, he could not help gritting his teeth inwardly. Had his soul been hooked away? Why had he agreed so readily?