A terrifying older brother

They said beauty lay in the bones, not the skin, and Liang Xingyao saw this beauty's true appearance at a glance.

He had loved beautiful things ever since he was little. He refused to let his father touch him, for instance, and only liked being held by his beautiful, gentle mother. The moment his father touched him, he would cry or look thoroughly disgusted.

According to his mother, his father had nearly thrown him away.

As he grew older, looks became his top priority in everything he used, and his future partner had to be beautiful too.

Yet after searching all these years, Yu Qingluo was the only person he found attractive. The brothers Lu Shiyi and Lu Shiming were naturally beautiful as well, but they shared his role in a relationship, so he simply couldn't feel attracted to them.

Although the beauty before him still had a rounded figure, his peach blossom eyes were bright and gentle, like lake water. His bone structure was perfect too, with finely arranged features that made him instantly appealing.

The only regrettable thing was the heart-shaped mark on his face. But on closer inspection, it seemed like a tiny flaw in flawless jade, making him all the more memorable.

Still, he was walking in the middle, with Lu Shiming beside him being conspicuously attentive and protective. His identity was obvious: he was the Yu Family's eldest son, Yu Qingchuan.

Liang Xingyao wondered how Yu Chenyi, whose looks were merely decent, had managed to produce two such beautiful sons.

And privately, he thought Yu Qingchuan's looks were even more stunning than Yu Qingluo's.

Given time, once he slimmed down, he would probably stun everyone.

But he was Lu Shiming's boyfriend. Liang Xingyao couldn't covet his friend's partner, so he could only regretfully bury his admiration and extend a hand to Yu Qingchuan with a smile. "Good afternoon, Mr. Yu."

Yu Qingchuan hadn't expected Liang Xingyao to be so courteous, or even address him as Mr. Yu. He smiled too. "Hello, Mr. Liang. I've heard so much about you."

As he spoke, he reached out to shake Liang Xingyao's hand.

Liang Xingyao felt as though he were holding a piece of warm jade. The hand was warm and smooth to the touch, and especially pleasant to hold.

His first thought was, Oh, that Lu fellow has a thing for hands.

That thought made the handshake linger a little longer. Lu Shiming knew Liang Xingyao well and immediately grew wary. Protecting his sister-in-law was his responsibility as the younger brother. He promptly took Liang Xingyao by the wrist and pulled his hand away. "President Liang, where should we discuss business?"

Liang Xingyao smiled. "Let's go to the conference room."

In the conference room, Yu Qingchuan first handed Liang Xingyao the finished oil painting and explained, "President Liang, I wasn't sure what style you liked, so I painted this. I hope you like it. The paint hasn't dried completely yet, so you can wait a few more days before having it framed."

As Liang Xingyao looked at himself in the painting, his eyes slowly widened.

Was this him?

He was this beautiful?

Yu Qingchuan's painting skills were superb, and oils brought out the subject's beauty to the fullest. The figure in the painting was so lifelike that he seemed ready to step out at any moment...

He stared at the breathtaking Nine-Tailed Fox Lord in the painting, whose allure could captivate anyone, and practically fell in love with himself!

Could he really not steal Yu Qingchuan away? If he did, he could have him paint lots of portraits of him!

For someone with such an extreme obsession with good looks, Liang Xingyao was truly satisfied this time.

He reluctantly tore his gaze from the painting and offered his warmest smile. "Mr. Yu, personally, I think Shiming is a little immature. Perhaps you could consider someone better."

Lu Shiming protested, "Hey, hey, Brother Yao, that's going too far."

He had known his sister-in-law was so wonderful that bad people would covet him. He had to keep a close eye on him for his brother.

Yu Qingchuan smiled too. "Sorry, I'm not considering that at the moment."

Liang Xingyao knew he couldn't force the issue, but he truly regretted it. His only request was, "If you paint a few more portraits of me, we can proceed with today's partnership entirely on your company's terms."

Yu Qingchuan hadn't expected things to go so smoothly. The Yu Corporation employees who had accompanied him, expecting a tough battle, were all rather bewildered.

"Of course, no problem. It's an honor to paint for you, President Liang." Yu Qingchuan took out the contract he had prepared. Liang Xingyao gave it a quick look, then signed it with a flourish.

"Here's to a successful partnership." Liang Xingyao stood up again to shake Yu Qingchuan's hand.

"To a successful partnership."

The entire process had taken just ten minutes.

All the preparations Yu Qingchuan had made over the past few days had gone to waste.

Still, he was happy to have secured the contract.

Liang Xingyao had no intention of keeping them for dinner. He personally saw them off, then hurried back to his office to admire his own beauty.

Once again, he regretted not meeting Yu Qingchuan sooner. If he had, Lu Shiming wouldn't have stood a chance.

Terrified that Liang Xingyao might actually steal Yu Qingchuan away, Lu Shiming kept badmouthing him on the way back. "Sister-in-Law, don't you dare think Brother Yao is a good person. His obsession with looks is terminal. There's no saving him. Living with him would be exhausting!"

"According to you, neither your brother nor President Liang is a good person." Yu Qingchuan held back a laugh.

Lu Shiming thought about it, and that did seem to be the case. He grinned. "Probably because I think you're the best person in the world, Sister-in-Law. Nobody else deserves you!"

Yu Qingchuan really loved Lu Shiming's personality. He was warm, sunny, considerate, and attentive. As expected of the novel's lead top.

He thought he knew what to paint for Lu Shiming now.

They returned to the Yu Corporation. Yu Chenyi was briefly stunned to hear that they had already signed the contract, and grew rather skeptical when he learned it was because Yu Qingchuan's painting had won Liang Xingyao over. After all, he knew something of his son's painting skills.

"Did you paint it yourself?"

Yu Qingchuan had been about to say yes, but stopped before the word left his mouth. He smiled instead. "Whether I painted it or not, we secured the contract. There might even be more opportunities to work together in the future."

Painting depended heavily on talent, and the body's original owner hadn't had any. If Yu Qingchuan exposed himself, Yu Chenyi and Su Ningyue might grow suspicious, so he simply neither admitted nor denied it.

Hearing this, Yu Chenyi automatically assumed that Yu Qingchuan had hired an artist to paint it for him and didn't pursue the matter. Securing the contract was what counted.

"You did very well. I'll give you the highest possible commission on this project. If you're interested, you can also continue overseeing it."

Having achieved his goal, Yu Qingchuan agreed. "All right."

With the project contract secured, Yu Qingchuan didn't actually need to keep coming to work. Eager to return home to care for Lu Shiyi and paint, he packed his things and prepared to leave.

In the corridor, however, Yu Qingchuan suddenly ran into Yu Qingluo, who was carrying a stack of documents. Both froze for a moment.

Looking at Yu Qingchuan, who had lost quite a bit more weight, Yu Qingluo felt a tangle of emotions. His older brother seemed so much more dazzling than before.

Yu Qingchuan wasn't quite sure how to face him either. So far, Lu Shiming and Yu Qingluo hadn't developed any feelings for each other, and it all seemed to be because of him.

Yu Qingluo spoke first. "Brother."

"Mm." Yu Qingchuan nodded. "I have something to do, so I'll be leaving. Bye."

Seeing that Yu Qingchuan was about to leave, Yu Qingluo hurriedly said, "Wait a moment."

"What is it?"

Yu Qingluo chose his words carefully. "Brother, Lu Shiming is a very good person too. If you've fallen for someone else, don't keep wavering and hurt him."

Hmm? From the Male Protagonist Shou's tone, did he have feelings for Lu Shiming?

Yu Qingchuan had initially been afraid of the Male Protagonist Shou, because he had hurt the body's original owner, even if that had been because the original owner was particularly arrogant and vile.

But he wasn't afraid anymore. Lu Shiming and Lu Shiyi had given him plenty of confidence.

"What standing do you have to give me that warning?" Yu Qingchuan asked in return. "You should pay more attention to yourself."

With that, he ignored him and left.

Yu Qingluo stood there watching for a long while before lowering his eyes and leaving.

After returning home, Yu Qingchuan started a new painting. He wanted to paint Lu Shiming as a dashing young general. He thought it would suit him perfectly.

Lying in bed, Lu Shiyi sensed that Yu Qingchuan was painting in oils again and felt a little displeased. Who was he painting this time?

He had to wake up as soon as possible and monopolize all of Yu Qingchuan's attention.

That evening, Lu Shiming came over for dinner. When he saw his new character design, he was delighted. His sister-in-law was the best of all time!

The oil painting was less than halfway done, but the sketch was complete. He rode a mighty horse, holding a red-tasseled spear and wearing silver armor. He looked incredibly handsome.

No wonder Brother Yao liked his portrait so much. Lu Shiming loved his too!

Could his sister-in-law paint him another one? He wanted to wear a mech suit too!

When Yu Qingchuan went downstairs to wash some fruit, leaving Lu Shiming alone in the room, Lu Shiyi slowly opened his eyes. His gaze was icy, as sharp as a blade.

There was no hiding a look that said you wanted to stab someone.

Lu Shiming: (ΩДΩ)

Sister-in-Law, aaaaaah, help!

Guilty, Lu Shiming took to his heels, without the slightest desire to speak to his brother.

Seeing Lu Shiming rush downstairs in a panic, Yu Qingchuan's heart tightened. "What happened?"

"Nothing, nothing." Lu Shiming sounded as though he had been frightened to tears, choking out loudly, "My brother and I just repel each other because we're both men. I'm afraid that if we're alone together, he'll jump up and beat me. My childhood trauma runs too deep."

He would need a lifetime to recover from that look alone.

Yu Qingchuan: "..."

Lu Shiming didn't dare stay and promptly said goodbye and left. Yu Qingchuan returned upstairs and looked at Lu Shiyi, who lay quietly asleep. He couldn't resist poking his cheek and asking with a smile, "Brother Yi, why are you so mean to your little brother?"

Lu Shiyi sneered inwardly. Because he's asking for a beating.

After showering, Yu Qingchuan was actually a little torn over whether to keep sleeping beside Lu Shiyi. The doctor had said he might wake up. If Lu Shiyi suddenly woke in the middle of the night while they were sleeping together, it would be terribly awkward.

Yet although Yu Qingchuan had already reached the door, he couldn't resist the temptation and came back. He inwardly scolded himself for being utterly shameless.

At the same time, he thought that if Lu Shiyi woke up, he would take to his heels just like Lu Shiming.

Having only just woken up, Lu Shiyi probably wouldn't have the strength to get out of bed and chase him down to beat him, right?

With that thought, Yu Qingchuan lay down beside Lu Shiyi again.

The days that followed were ordinary. Yu Qingchuan finished Lu Shiming's painting and received lavish praise from him. Lu Shiming gleefully took a photo and sent it to Liang Xingyao. He had his own oil painting too!

Yu Qingchuan occasionally visited the laboratory and factory to check on the project's progress, and found it quite interesting.

After completing a course of medicine, Yu Qingchuan returned for a follow-up. The doctor said that half the toxins in his body had already been cleared out! Normally, a single course would remove at most a fifth. The mark on Yu Qingchuan's face had faded considerably, becoming almost invisible unless someone looked closely.

But the remaining toxins would be difficult to eliminate, so the elderly doctor adjusted Yu Qingchuan's prescription and added another treatment: acupuncture.

He would have it three times a week to help expel the toxins.

The doctor also gave Yu Qingchuan his first session that very day. The aching pain as the hair-thin silver needles pierced his acupuncture points made his eyes redden with distress.

When he got home, he hugged Lu Shiyi and cried. It really hurt!

That night, the sudden change in prescription and the acupuncture left Yu Qingchuan feeling unwell, and he slept fitfully. In his daze, he felt someone gently massaging the place on the back of his hand where the needles had left bruises.

At first, Yu Qingchuan thought he was dreaming. But a moment later, he realized someone really was holding his wrist!

His eyes flew open. By the glow of the night-light, he saw Lu Shiyi with his eyes open!

Lu Shiyi-he, he was awake?!