Chapter 48

Suddenly slapped across the face, Su Yuanzhou's expression darkened. He frowned and glared at her, but Mother Su had no time to care about that. With Su Hui filling her mind, she furiously pointed at his chest and cursed, "It was all your decision. Do you have any conscience at all? You used your own son's happiness as a bargaining chip."

Of course, the son Mother Su meant was Su Hui, not Su Yu.

Father Su had indeed made the decision himself back then. Marriages like this were perfectly normal in their circle; when he and Mother Su had married, it had also been because both families wanted something from the arrangement. But he had never expected Su Hui to refuse no matter what, so he simply had Su Yu marry in Su Hui's place.

[Absolutely brilliant.]

[If only there were some popcorn.]

Su Yu lowered his head and checked the time on his phone.

[It's almost noon already. Why isn't this over yet? It's delaying lunch.]

[Also, why can't I do anything yet?]

He still could not control his body. Otherwise, he would have sat there with Gu Lin and watched the show.

Seeing the scene before him, the Alpha's eyes remained utterly calm. He casually glanced at Su Yu and saw him secretly looking at his phone. Although Su Yu had little presence and no one cared what he was doing, Gu Lin caught every small movement.

The Alpha slowly rose to his feet. His handsome face was indifferent, and even his voice seemed devoid of emotion, as though he were issuing an order. "Since what follows is a private matter between your family, I'll be leaving first. I want an answer before midnight tonight."

Mother Su had no time to worry about him, and Father Su was already overwhelmed. The Su family was in complete chaos.

As for Su Yu, hearing that Gu Lin was leaving, he did not know whether to stay or go until Gu Lin blandly said, "Let's go."

"Who said you could leave?"

Su Wang suddenly grabbed Su Yu's arm. Caught off guard, Su Yu nearly lost his balance. Gu Lin seized his other arm, his expression changing abruptly. His face seemed to frost over as he looked coldly at Su Wang. "Let go."

Su Wang gritted his teeth. "No."

The house had become like this because of him. How could Su Wang possibly let Su Yu leave just like that?

And he still dared ask for shares in the Su family? In his dreams.

Not only did Su Wang refuse to let go, he tightened his grip. He did not know his own strength, and Su Yu's wrist began to ache faintly. He heard Su Wang snort coldly. "You really have no shame, joining forces with an outsider to steal the family's shares."

"You're nothing but a bastard. Even your mother didn't want you. What makes you think anyone else would? You like our eldest brother, don't you? Let me tell you, he doesn't want to see you at all. He hates you just like we do."

"He knows everything. He knows perfectly well about you being bullied at school, but he never wanted to interfere because you're just a disgusting illegitimate child."

"You think he was genuinely concerned every time he asked what happened? He only wanted to know whether your injuries had anything to do with me."

As an observer, Su Yu naturally understood everything perfectly. He could guess that Su Tinghuai had actually known all along. But the original owner had not thought so. He had always believed Su Tinghuai was different. He had believed Su Tinghuai cared about him.

Ever since he could remember, no one had ever asked him what had happened. No one had ever cared for or defended him. So he had naturally taken Su Tinghuai's repeated questions as concern and affection. He had even believed that he held some place in Su Tinghuai's heart.

Bastard, illegitimate child, unwanted... The original owner had heard such words since childhood. At school, his desk and chair had been covered in marks, every word and phrase brimming with malice. Even when he walked through the corridors, his ears were filled with his classmates' mockery. Whenever he lifted his head, he would see their contemptuous stares.

He had never dared look people in the eye, never dared speak to anyone, never dared argue back. He was inferiority-ridden and timid.

The memories that suddenly surfaced nearly made Su Yu lose himself. For a moment, he even thought it was him standing there being mocked. He barely heard what Su Wang had just said. He only found the other man noisy, irritating, and desperately wanted to hit someone.

Gu Lin suddenly felt the Omega's originally weak hand tense with strength. He slowly lowered his gaze and saw Su Yu clench his fist. He could even faintly hear his knuckles crack.

Gu Lin released his hand. The next second, that fist landed squarely on Su Wang's face. Unprepared, Su Wang cried out in pain and let go of Su Yu, covering his face as he stumbled back a step. Su Hui hurriedly supported him from the side.

Gu Lin's brow twitched hard. That ruthless?

Su Wang stared at Su Yu in disbelief. "You actually dared to hit me?"

Su Yu said nothing. Leaving the group behind, he turned and went upstairs. Before long, everyone saw him quickly come back down, dragging a guitar behind him. Unprecedented anger filled his clear green eyes, like a feral cat that had been pushed too far.

It was the first, and only, gift he had ever received in the Su family. Su Tinghuai had given it to him on his eighteenth birthday.

Su Yu had been happy for quite some time then. Su Wang had said it was something Su Hui did not want, then mocked him for having no artistic talent and said his playing sounded terrible. He had even threatened to smash the guitar if Su Yu played it again. Afraid Su Wang would really destroy it, Su Yu hid it in his room and never took it out again.

It was something others had picked over and discarded, yet he had treasured it like a priceless possession.

Now, he did not care about it anymore. He was going to use it to smash Su Wang's precious treasure.

Su Wang had a bad feeling. When he saw Su Yu leave the house, he soon spotted him through the living room's floor-to-ceiling window, dragging the guitar straight toward the lawn where his motorcycle was parked.

Ignoring the pain in his face, Su Wang rushed outside and shouted, "Su Yu, what the fuck are you doing? If you dare touch my bike, I'll fight you to the death!"

Su Yu turned a deaf ear. He raised the guitar and smashed it against Su Wang's motorcycle. The repeated bangs drew everyone's attention. Su Wang, who had been about to rush over, was stopped by Gu Lin. His face flushed red with rage, veins bulging on his forehead as he glared at Su Yu with bloodshot eyes. His voice rose from a low growl into a roar. "Don't smash my bike, Su Yu! Stop!"

He knew how much Su Wang treasured that motorcycle. Even a tiny scratch would make him heartbroken.

But he was going to smash it. Even if he could not walk out of the Su family's gates today, he was still going to smash it.

Mother Su, who had rushed over after hearing the commotion, blamed Father Su as she hurried over. "This Su Yu has gone completely out of control. Look at what you brought home. He has no upbringing at all."

Father Su was already upset enough. Hearing that, he could not help retorting, "Who knows what's wrong with him? He was never like this before."

At that moment, Su Tinghuai's car happened to enter the estate. He heard the commotion from afar, and after getting out, he could not help frowning at the sight before him. Only one morning had passed, yet it seemed the house had undergone earth-shaking changes.

After smashing the guitar to pieces, Su Yu dusted off his hands and jumped down from the flower bed. He had not expected to run into Su Tinghuai, who had just gotten out of his car.

Su Tinghuai frowned. "Su Yu, what exactly are you doing?"

"You came at the right time. There, I'm giving that trash back to you." Su Yu pointed at the utterly destroyed guitar beside the motorcycle.

The moment Su Wang broke free, he rushed to check on his motorcycle. Su Yu was in a good mood. After walking over to Gu Lin, he bumped him with his elbow like they were old buddies and said, "Let's go eat. My treat."

So this was... the real him?

"Eat. Why do you keep staring at me?"

The Omega seemed very busy—busy eating. He was so exaggeratedly focused that he looked as if he had been starving for days, and even looking up at Gu Lin seemed like an incidental action.

"No need."

Su Yu scooped up a bite of dessert, his cheeks puffing out as he chewed. "Do you have something you want to ask me? Go ahead. If I can answer, I'll tell you the truth."

"I have no questions."

Everything he wanted to know had already been answered.

The Alpha's reply seemed to catch his attention. Su Yu looked at him with some confusion, narrowing his eyes. "Don't you think my personality changed rather abruptly?"

"I don't."

"Oh, all right." Su Yu bit down on his fork and nodded thoughtfully. Then he suddenly remembered something, slapped the table, and raised his hand. "I have a question for you."

Su Yu was usually quiet and unobtrusive. Even when he made small movements, they were hard to notice. But the current Su Yu drew attention with every move because he really moved around a lot.

Gu Lin began convincing himself that he needed to learn to accept it.

"Ask."

"Well... ex-husband, when are we going to the Civil Affairs Bureau to get our divorce certificates?" After saying that, he checked the time on his phone and continued, "They'll get off work right after we finish eating. No time like the present, so why not go today?"

Gu Lin: "..."

Su Yu waited eagerly for Gu Lin to nod.

One second, two seconds, three seconds...

The atmosphere at the table was exceptionally quiet. Su Yu, blankly waiting for an answer, blinked.

Under the table, the Alpha's long fingers interlocked slightly. "I didn't bring the documents. Another day."

Su Yu breathed a sigh of relief. "You should've said so earlier. I thought you didn't want a divorce." He scooped up a spoonful of ice cream beside him and said as he ate, "It's fine. We can go back and get them. There's still time. The Civil Affairs Bureau should close at five."

"Right, right. I think the date on that agreement is up too. Don't worry, as soon as I get the divorce certificate, I'll move out immediately. I definitely won't appear in your sight again."

The Alpha said expressionlessly, "I don't have time today. I still have work."

"Then... tomorrow?"

"I'm going on a business trip tomorrow."

"Mm... what about the day after tomorrow?"

"I'll be on a business trip then too."

"The day after that?"

"Business trip."

Su Yu: "...You're not going on a business trip for an entire week, are you?"

"Theoretically, yes. It depends on the circumstances."

Su Yu did not quite believe him. He stared at Gu Lin with a trace of suspicion, as though trying to find signs of a lie on his face. "Or are you doing this on purpose? You don't want to get the divorce certificate."

But Gu Lin gave a cold laugh, looked him up and down, and said, "What exactly about you is worth my attachment?"

"True enough." Realizing the other man was putting him down, Su Yu immediately retorted, "What do you mean, what's worth it? I'm full of good qualities. If you can't see them, that's because you have no taste."

"Wait a little longer. The matter with the Su family hasn't been resolved yet."

Su Yu agreed reluctantly. "Fine, then."

Anyway, now that he could speak and control his own body, staying at Gu Lin's house for a few days was not impossible.