Secret Crush for Years

Some things Second Brother said clearly hadn't meant that, but once you cut out the context before and after, they sounded completely different.

Second Brother quickly realized what was happening and pulled out the USB drive, but the people present questioned whether he was guilty. Liu Lei also stepped forward and said he could testify for Hu Xue.

Liu Lei said that Hu Xue wasn't the only one Second Brother had harmed—he had been harmed too. Second Brother told them to produce actual evidence if they could.

But Second Brother didn't know that Liu Lei had shown Hu Xue all the drafts from this project, so there really were similarities between the two sets of designs.

The press conference was ruined, and so was Second Brother's career as a designer. Every social media platform was filled with people calling Second Brother a plagiarizing bastard.

Shen Can sighed. Did you think that was enough? It wasn't. Just when things were about to blow over, Liu Lei released a whole pile of chat logs.

They were edited. The messages he posted were full of Second Brother ordering him around, paired with his own complaints. Everyone thought Second Brother was cold-bloodedly exploiting others.

After Second Brother's talent was denied, his character was smeared too. Later, he didn't even dare look at social media or leave the house.

He didn't even dare face his family. Not only had you been ruined, but the Shen Household's reputation had been ruined as well. People questioned what kind of family could raise a son like that.

Shen Chi, who worked in the entertainment industry, suffered the fiercest backlash. People asked why he had a brother like that, or what good could Shen Chi possibly be with a brother like that.

Of course, Second Brother wasn't completely defeated. When they released the drafts, he found a way to obtain two of them. He went to testing agencies, hoping they could determine the exact dates of the handwriting.

When one agency couldn't do it, he went to another. One of the drafts couldn't be tested because the time gap between yours was too large. But the other showed a difference of more than a week.

Second Brother remembered that he sometimes took his drafts home to work on them, and he felt fortunate. He happily grabbed his car keys and headed out, thinking that as long as he cleared up the plagiarism accusation first, then cleared up the accusations of exploitation, everything would be fine.

But how could the plot let Second Brother clear his name? So he got into a car accident and died on the spot. What were you thinking as you lay dying, Second Brother?

Heaven knew how tightly the Shen family had to clench their hands to suppress their emotions. The Shen family had always been close, and the brothers weren't far apart in age.

Shen Yu was only three years older than Shen Ze. Shen Ze and Shen Chi were only a year apart, while Shen Chi and Shen Yao were two years apart. They had grown up together and shared an exceptionally close bond. How could they possibly stay calm after hearing what had happened to Shen Ze?

They didn't know that someone else was enduring just as much. Lu Shao clenched his teeth so hard that he barely stopped himself from cursing aloud. Fuck, this Liu Lei actually dared bully one of mine. I'll make sure he regrets it.

Don't worry, Second Brother. Can Can will definitely handle this press conference for you. I won't let anyone ruin it, and anyone who wants to damage your reputation can forget about it.

Hu Xue, right? I'll buy laxatives and put them in her drink that day. Let's see how she gets onstage. I'll stay by Second Brother's side the entire time and never give Liu Lei a chance to switch the USB drive.

Shen Ze smiled when he heard Shen Can's thoughts. To be honest, when he learned that Liu Lei would actually set him up, he was angry and saddened.

He didn't understand why Liu Lei would do this. Had he wronged him somehow? Was that why Liu Lei wanted to hurt him like this?

Liu Lei was a junior from the same department whom he had met when he returned to school. His family circumstances were average, and his abilities were ordinary, but he had seemed fairly dependable.

So when Liu Lei asked whether he could work at his company, Shen Ze agreed, though he said Liu Lei could only start as an assistant. Liu Lei's skills definitely weren't enough for a designer position at their company.

Shen Ze had started this company in his freshman year, and after all these years, it had grown to a considerable scale. Their designers naturally needed a certain level of ability.

Was Liu Lei dissatisfied with the assistant position? If he claimed Shen Ze had harmed him, why had he agreed in the first place? Forget it. With family who cared for him so much, why should he dwell on someone like Liu Lei?

In the Original Plot, Mom was first harmed and lost her standing among the wealthy socialites. Then Second Brother was framed and even lost his life. From then on, the Shen family suffered one misfortune after another. The atmosphere at home became unbearably heavy, and no one in the family was ever happy again.

If nothing happened to Second Brother, Mom wouldn't become even more depressed like she did in the Original Plot. Dad wouldn't get sick from anger either. They wouldn't be persuaded to go away and relax, only to encounter a plane crash.

Shen Yu clenched his fists even tighter, only releasing them when his palms began to ache. Thankfully, it hadn't happened yet. Thankfully, they had Shen Can.

Lu Shao was also grateful that he could hear Shen Can's thoughts and change Shen Ze's fate. As long as Shen Ze was safe, his parents would surely be safe too.

Second Brother must have had regrets as he lay dying, right? His name hadn't been cleared, and during those final days, he barely got to spend time with his family or the person he loved.

The person he loved? Fuck, who did Shen Ze love? Lu Shao had known Shen Ze for so long—how had he never known Shen Ze liked someone? Lu Shao became unsettled, even involuntarily angry and unhappy.

Shen Father and Shen Mother were also puzzled. Did this child have someone he liked? Why had he never mentioned it? They had never seen him treat anyone especially differently.

Shen Ze didn't stop Shen Can from continuing her thoughts. After learning that he had died unexpectedly in the Original Plot, he imagined what it would be like in his final moments. He probably would have regrets.

Who would have thought that Second Brother liked Lu Shao? I bet no one in the family could tell. Second Brother's feelings could be summed up in one sentence: I've been secretly in love with my straight best friend for years.

Who did his second brother like? Lu Shao? Shen Yao was confused. Weren't they good brothers, just like he and his comrades in the military?

Liked me? Who liked me? Shen Ze? He must have misheard. How could Shen Ze possibly like him? Or maybe Shen Can had gotten it wrong.

Second Brother had liked Lu Shao for a long time. Even Second Brother himself probably couldn't say when it began.

But once he fell in love, he fell in love. From the age of sixteen until now, at twenty-six, he had spent ten years by Lu Shao's side as his best friend.

When Second Brother first realized he liked Lu Shao, he probably did imagine a future for them. But the more time they spent together, the more impossible it seemed.

So he didn't dare confess his feelings. After all, Second Brother thought Lu Shao was straight. He thought Lu Shao couldn't possibly like men, so he could only stay by Lu Shao's side as his best friend.

He had carefully hidden those feelings deep in his heart all this time. Lu Shao hadn't noticed even the slightest thing was wrong, had he?

The person he loved was right in front of him every day. Sometimes, because they were close, they even had physical contact. Yet there was no possibility between them at all. How painfully and exhaustingly Second Brother must have endured it.

Yes, it had been too painful and too exhausting. So he had to tell Lu Shao. He had to tell him that he liked him.

Even if Lu Shao distanced himself afterward and never spoke to him again, he still had to say it.

If he didn't say it, he would be trapped in these feelings forever. Only after he confessed and received an answer could he truly bring it to an end.

His family was not in a stable situation. Rather than spending time thinking about a love that had no future, he might as well help his family more.