When Xie Zhitan stopped smiling, his gentle air vanished without a trace

"Second Brother? What made you think to call me?"

When Hua Jian received Xie Zhitan's call, his taxi had just arrived at the Egret River Villa District.

"That'll be 165 yuan," the driver said, turning to Hua Jian after checking the meter.

"Sure." Hua Jian turned back to his phone. "Don't hang up, Zhitan. Let me pay with my phone, then we can talk."

"All right."

Xie Zhitan listened to Hua Jian talking to the driver, the beep confirming the mobile payment, and the sound of the car door closing.

"Second Brother, are you still there?"

Xie Zhitan snapped out of his thoughts. "Yes. I'm eating at a private restaurant right now. I saw a boy in the courtyard who looked a lot like you. That was you, wasn't it?"

Hua Jian chuckled. "You've got sharp eyes, Zhitan. It was me, but I saw your friend calling you. You know I don't like greeting strangers, so I left first."

"So that was it."

After Xie Zhitan said that, they both fell silent.

He wanted to ask what exactly Hua Jian had meant earlier, but he didn't know where to begin.

Then Hua Jian suddenly said, "Zhitan, you haven't been home lately, have you? Zhiyan got into trouble a couple of days ago."

Xie Zhitan's pupils contracted, and he immediately asked, "What did Zhiyan do this time?"

Xie Zhiyan was the same age as Hua Jian, yet he had always acted like a child, doing one reckless thing after another and leaving him and their eldest brother to clean up the mess.

"Because of a man named Shu Yao, Zhiyan hit Tan Xilin, the Tan Family's young master, and split his head open. Mrs. Tan almost called the police to have Zhiyan arrested."

Xie Zhitan's expression changed drastically. "How are things now? Why would Zhiyan split Tan Xilin's head open? Those two have never gotten along, but it's never gone this far."

As he spoke, he suddenly recalled what Hua Jian had just said: "Because of a man named Shu Yao."

He abruptly turned toward the closed door of the private dining room, his expression unreadable.

He meant the Shu Yao in this room, didn't he?

"Don't worry, Zhitan. Luckily, our eldest brother managed to find the surveillance footage someone had deliberately hidden. Otherwise, we'd never have known someone had set Zhiyan up that day."

Xie Zhitan had been frightened for nothing. He had skipped breakfast that morning, and when lunchtime came, he hadn't touched any of the spicy dishes on the table. Now his blood sugar was low, leaving him dizzy.

Ignoring Shu Yao's attempts to stop him, a furious Qin Ci yanked open the door, intending to confront Xie Zhitan.

But the moment he opened it, he saw Xie Zhitan standing outside, his face deathly pale.

For some reason, Qin Ci's anger was like an inflated balloon punctured by a tiny needle.

It vanished in an instant.

"Hey, Xie Zhitan, what's wrong with you? Why do you look so awful? Fuck, you're not about to faint, are you? Hey, don't scare me. I was just talking nonsense earlier! Did I do this to you?"

"Ah, Professor Xie, what's wrong? Qin Ci, what did you do to Professor Xie?"

"Both of you, shut up!"

Hearing the commotion over the phone, Hua Jian sighed inwardly.

Today should have been Shu Yao and Xie Zhitan's first meeting. He wondered whether his warning to Xie Zhitan had come too late.

Here was a young man with an IQ of 180 and impeccable values, who had gone out of his way to tutor "Hua Jian" for his college entrance exams despite the time difference.

Hua Jian couldn't bear to let Qin Ci and Shu Yao ruin him.

"Xiao Jian, tomorrow's the weekend. I'll pick you up, and we'll have a meal together. I'm hanging up now."

"All right, Zhitan. Your friend said you looked pale. Is your blood sugar low again? Hurry and eat something."

His concern warmed Xie Zhitan's heart.

Qin Ci's gaze flickered. Xie Zhitan's expression was gentle now, without any of the coldness he had shown in the private dining room.

Who could be on the other end of that call...?

Xie Zhitan hung up and frowned at Qin Ci. "Did you invite me to lunch today just to get Shu Yao a place in my class?"

Qin Ci faltered. That was indeed the case. He usually partied hard and enjoyed lively company, while Xie Zhitan did nothing but read and watch opera.

Abroad, they had been in the same city and even lived in the same house, yet they had barely seen each other.

If not for Shu Yao, he never would have thought to invite Xie Zhitan to lunch this time.

Xie Zhitan looked at Shu Yao without much expression. "If you want to take my class, follow Imperial University's regulations. That's fair to both you and the other students."

Shu Yao's face flushed crimson, his eyes full of shame. "I'm truly sorry, Professor Xie. I didn't mean to seek special treatment."

His willingness to admit his mistake softened Xie Zhitan's expression a little, but only a little.

Thinking of how Zhiyan had fought with that brat Tan Xilin because of him, Xie Zhitan sighed inwardly and said, "Sorry, I'm not feeling well. Please enjoy your meal. I'll head back first."

"Xie Zhitan!" As he was about to leave, Qin Ci grabbed him.

When Xie Zhitan stopped smiling, his gentle air vanished without a trace. He stared steadily at Qin Ci.

Qin Ci abruptly let go as though he had been burned. "It's just taking a class. Why are you making such a big deal out of it?"

But Xie Zhitan ignored him entirely. The moment Qin Ci released him, he strode away without lingering for even a second.

Left embarrassed by his behavior, Qin Ci looked a little sheepish.

"Sorry, Shu Yao. I didn't expect Xie Zhitan to be such a spoilsport. If you like finance, I'll find you another finance professor's class, okay?"

Shu Yao was reluctant to give up, but he could tell Qin Ci was growing impatient, so he could only agree.

Smiling, Qin Ci put an arm around Shu Yao's shoulders. "Come on, let's go back in and eat. Forget Xie Zhitan. I'll find you an even better finance professor."

Shu Yao agreed aloud, but inwardly he was scornful.

Qin Ci really was as empty-headed as everyone said.

Xie Zhitan had become a professor at Imperial University at such a young age. Rumor had it that several corporate groups had also hired him as an investment adviser.

Those groups, with assets worth tens or hundreds of billions, all treated Xie Zhitan as an honored guest. Naturally, attending his lectures wasn't merely about listening to him teach.

What Shu Yao wanted more was to use him to gain access to higher social circles.

He sighed inwardly. Forget it. I'll find another chance to "run into" Xie Zhitan on campus and apologize.

Meanwhile, Hua Jian hung up and rang the Qi Family's doorbell.

Qi Fanling was still asleep, so Butler Chen had Hua Jian wait in the covered walkway in the backyard.

Apparently, Qi Fanling had told Butler Chen beforehand that she wanted to have her lesson with her alien teacher, Mr. Hua, in the backyard.

Hua Jian happily agreed.

It was early summer, and the Qi Family's villa had a large swimming pool in the backyard. Beside it stood a small pavilion covered in green branches.

The scorching sunlight filtered through the gaps in the foliage, casting patches of light and shadow on the ground that reminded Hua Jian vividly of staying at his grandmother's house in the countryside as a child.

He walked toward it. Just as he was about to step into the shade, he heard a soft, delicate voice calling from behind him.

"Mr. Hua!"

Hua Jian stopped and turned to look.

Qi Fanling had woken up and was calling to him from her second-floor bedroom.

Hua Jian instinctively broke into a radiant smile and waved enthusiastically at her. "Good afternoon, Miss Fanling!"

The young man wore a very ordinary white T-shirt and gray trousers. Half his face was bathed in sunlight, full of smiles, while the other half lay in shadow, its expression hidden.

Qi Fanling happily ran out of her room, not even noticing that her favorite uncle's bedroom door was open.

Once the little girl disappeared from the window, Hua Jian withdrew his gaze and happened to catch the curtain in the neighboring room moving slightly.

He paid it no mind, assuming a servant was cleaning.

When the little girl's pounding footsteps faded, Bo Lin left the window and returned to his chair. He looked calmly at his computer and said, "Go on."