Perhaps This Is What a White Moonlight Is Like

All day long, Zhu Wen watched Yu An with a scrutinizing, critical gaze.

Whenever Yu An got even slightly distracted while studying, Zhu Wen would suddenly appear like a ghost.

In an unfathomable tone, he would say, "Young Master Yu An, you have many competitors. The moment you slack off, you will be defeated."

Before, when He Li'an was not around, Zhu Wen had always addressed him as "you."

But today, every other word out of Zhu Wen's mouth was "sir."

Such a respectful attitude was nice enough.

But Yu An did not understand. "Who am I competing with, and for what?"

Zhu Wen glanced at his phone case, his smile carrying a trace of strange... fatherly affection.

"Keep it up, Young Master Yu An."

"..."

What exactly was he supposed to keep up!

What exactly was he supposed to compete for!

Could he just explain it clearly already!

That evening, when He Li'an returned, he saw Yu An standing guard eagerly at the entrance to the hall with his crutch.

"Why are you here?" He Li'an had his uniform jacket draped over his arm and wore only a crisp white shirt.

Every button of his shirt was fastened to the top, and his tie was tied in a simple, neat four-in-hand knot. He looked refined and abstinent, but as he walked, certain parts of his shirt stretched over his firm muscles, brimming with masculine strength.

Yu An's gaze lingered over He Li'an's body before he replied a beat late, "Zhu Wen has been acting strange..."

"How strange?" He Li'an reached out to support him.

Yu An secretly gave his arm a squeeze and brushed it off. "I can't really explain it."

It was hard as a rock.

Just as solid as he had expected.

Unable to resist, he reached out again and squeezed He Li'an's upper arm.

He looked lean, but he felt incredibly solid, like stone. He was really strong.

So enviable.

Only when he felt the man's arm stiffen did he slowly look up and meet He Li'an's complicated gaze.

Yu An felt that secretly feeling someone else's muscles was perhaps a little impolite.

As he hesitated over whether to apologize first or compliment him first, he heard He Li'an ask, "How was your day at home?"

The change of subject was incredibly abrupt.

As though He Li'an himself were the one with a guilty conscience.

Yu An blinked in confusion, then complained to He Li'an, "I was exhausted today. Zhu Wen kept supervising me while I studied."

He Li'an frowned. "I'll speak to him."

"Thank you." Yu An was sincerely grateful to He Li'an.

He was not actually opposed to studying.

It was just that studying voluntarily and being forced to study under someone's supervision were not the same thing.

He Li'an smiled. "It's alright if you can't keep up with your studies. You can catch up later. The most important thing for you right now is recovering from your injury."

His tone became as gentle as before, as though he had not been the one whose muscles were just touched.

Perhaps this was what a white moonlight was like.

Kind, generous, and forgiving.

He possessed both a beautiful body and beautiful character.

His beautiful character was obvious for all to see.

It would be even better if Yu An could see that beautiful body again.

After dinner, Yu An planned to rest for a while before going for a walk.

He had just sat down in the living room when he caught sight of He Li'an leaving with Zhu Wen from the corner of his eye.

Yu An remembered how he had complained to He Li'an earlier.

Was He Li'an going to scold Zhu Wen again?

Wonderful.

He was going to eavesdrop on Zhu Wen getting scolded.

Yu An followed them to the covered corridor in the back garden.

He hid behind a clump of plants and pricked up his ears intently.

"Zhu Wen, you overstepped. Yu An is a guest. You should not force him to do things he does not want to do."

It was He Li'an's voice, stern and serious.

When Yu An had eavesdropped yesterday, he had discovered that He Li'an usually treated people gently, but when he reprimanded someone, he was actually quite imposing—the kind that made people want to stand at attention and admit their mistakes on the spot.

Sure enough, Zhu Wen immediately apologized. "I'm sorry, Young Master. I simply felt that if Young Master Yu An wished to be worthy of you, he should work harder. After all..."

"Zhu Wen!" He Li'an sounded somewhat annoyed.

He calmed himself before continuing, "Don't do unnecessary things. Yu An is still young. He doesn't understand anything."

Yu An:?

He had read so many books! He clearly understood everything!

Why was He Li'an looking down on him like that!

Zhu Wen clearly did not agree. Respectfully, he said, "Young Master Yu An is already an adult. I think he is a very pure and courageous person, not as ignorant of the world as you believe."

Zhu Wen, who had been hostile toward him, was actually praising him?

Had these two gotten their lines mixed up?

He Li'an fell silent. After thinking about something unknown, he raised a hand to signal Zhu Wen not to say any more.

Yu An could not understand the cryptic exchange between them and quietly left.

Zhu Wen was a very loyal man. After He Li'an spoke with him, he stopped supervising Yu An's studies as he had before.

But his attitude toward Yu An remained quite good.

Yu An never figured out why Zhu Wen's attitude had changed.

But he was very good at solving problems.

So, while He Li'an was out, he went directly to ask Zhu Wen.

"Zhu Wen, why do you think I'm a courageous person?"

Zhu Wen's pupils trembled slightly. "You overheard my conversation with Young Master?"

Yu An said, "Mm."

"..."

An unnatural look flashed across Zhu Wen's face. Then he sighed. "You are the first person willing to injure yourself just to get close to Young Master. You are far more sincere than those other people after his money or his body."

Yu An felt like he understood.

But at the same time, he seemed not to understand at all.

He frowned and asked, "You don't blame me for jumping into the lake to frame you anymore?"

"Although your method was somewhat extreme, you merely wanted to earn Young Master's pity. I don't blame you." Zhu Wen even revealed a faint smile.

Yu An took a frightened step back. "What pity?"

At the time, Zhu Wen had ambushed and threatened him. He had only retaliated against Zhu Wen within a range that did not put his life in danger.

"I've been there before. I understand it all. Our young master is actually someone who needs warmth very badly. You suit him well." Zhu Wen raised his hand to check his wristwatch. "Young Master will be back in another hour. I'll go have someone prepare dinner first. Oh, and tonight's after-dinner fruit is the baby carrots you like."

Zhu Wen was a meticulous and responsible butler. He had easily noticed Yu An's preferences.

Yu An was completely confused, but he really did like baby carrots. Happily, he thanked Zhu Wen.

"Thank you."

Based on Yu An's injury, He Li'an had only arranged one week of leave for him.

The week passed quickly, and in the blink of an eye, it was a new Monday.

Early that morning, Zhu Wen brought servants to deliver Yu An's neatly pressed uniform.

After Yu An changed into it and came out, Zhu Wen gestured for the servants to step forward and help straighten it.

Yu An backed away to avoid them. Just then, He Li'an knocked and entered. Seeing this, he hurried over. "I'll do it."

After saying that, he turned to ask Yu An's opinion. "Is that alright?"

Yu An nodded obediently and stepped forward to stand before He Li'an.

Compared with everyone else, He Li'an was absolutely safe and reliable. After spending a week together, Yu An was no longer so resistant to He Li'an's touch.

As He Li'an bent down to straighten Yu An's collar, Yu An saw Zhu Wen smiling as he led everyone out from the corner of his eye.

Yu An:?