Off to the side, Zhou Anyang suddenly covered his face and began crying. The sound came so abruptly that everyone turned to look.
Seeing how genuinely upset he seemed, a boy who was fairly close to Zhou Anyang walked over to him.
"What's wrong, Anyang?" Wang Nuosen rested a hand on Zhou Anyang's shoulder, his voice gentle and soothing.
Of everyone here, he was probably the closest to Zhou Anyang. Even though no one else reacted much to his tears, he instinctively went to comfort him.
Zhou Anyang had been waiting for someone to ask. Wang Nuosen's question gave him the perfect opening to perform.
"I don't know what Shu Le has misunderstood about me. I did exchange a few words with Jiang last night, but Shu Le, I really wasn't trying to steal him from you. Don't overthink it... Even if you're jealous, you can't just blame me for things I haven't done."
"Yesterday... I was downstairs the whole time yesterday. I didn't even know where Jiang went afterward. You can't blame something like this on me just because you're being paranoid."
"Drugging someone... I wouldn't dare!"
Zhou Anyang cried in earnest, his expression stubborn, as though he was struggling to hold something back. He looked very much like the resilient, innocent darling of a TV drama. He sobbed so hard he could barely catch his breath, and Wang Nuosen hurried to rub his back, his heart aching for him.
Everyone exchanged glances. No one picked up on Zhou Anyang's words.
Zhou Anyang said, "Shu Le, you can't forget your friends over a man. I'm heartbroken."
Xia Shule sounded utterly unconcerned. "Look at you. What are you getting so worked up for? I already said it was an accident. Don't take it so seriously! Just look at this guy-he's whipped up a whole dissertation."
"You always joke like this, Shu Le. You never know where to draw the line." Zhou Anyang lowered his head, wiped away his tears, and let the corners of his lips rise slightly.
Still, no one spoke. Even if it was only a joke, everyone seemed to have tacitly accepted it.
"Let's eat!" Chen Jin called out, breaking the silence in the room.
Big Fool Chun still had no idea what was going on. He couldn't make sense of the drama from the sidelines, so he simply urged everyone to get on with eating.
Joking or not, as long as Xia Shule didn't shoot him, he could do whatever else he wanted.
Clearly, this clueless straight guy hadn't considered anything beyond that.
Xiang Lin, meanwhile, had already figured out what was going on. Xia Shule definitely wasn't joking; he must have had his own reasons. But Xiang Lin was completely incapable of holding things in, so he shot Zhou Anyang a vicious glare.
A knock at the door briefly put an end to the strange atmosphere at the table. The ice cream cake Xiang Lin had ordered had arrived. While Chen Jin cut it, he quietly pulled Xia Shule away.
"It was Jiang Gechen and Zhou Anyang, wasn't it?" Xiang Lin's face was grave.
He had disliked those two bastards from the very beginning. Even their faces annoyed him, but Xia Shule just had to like that Jiang Gechen, and he had even saved Zhou Anyang before.
That being the case, he had kept his mouth shut. But if those two bastards dared hurt Xia Shule, they couldn't blame Xiang Lin for showing no mercy.
Xia Shule said, "Yes, but there's no concrete evidence yet."
Jiang Gechen was cunning. He had deliberately chosen places without surveillance cameras. Their only lead was the bartender who had infiltrated the Yan Family.
There had been no word of any progress lately. At first, Xia Shule had worried that President Yan hadn't investigated at all, but after learning that the gardener was President Yan, he inexplicably felt much more reassured.
As things stood, President Yan's lack of action could only mean that they hadn't managed to make the bartender talk yet.
How much had Jiang Gechen paid him? He still wouldn't confess?!
"Fuck!" Xiang Lin cursed under his breath. One bastard after another. "I told you that piece of shit was no good, but you just wouldn't listen, you little idiot! Look where that got you! Serves you right if it hurts like hell!"
Despite his scolding, Xiang Lin had already turned away to secretly wipe at his tears. He gritted his teeth, determined to hold them back. In his head, he had long since cursed eighteen generations of both men's ancestors in the foulest terms imaginable.
"All right, save those insults you're throwing at me for them." Xia Shule's face was full of disgust, his eyes rolling practically into the next galaxy. He made no effort to hide his loathing.
Xiang Lin stared at him suspiciously. "You've finally come to your senses?"
Xia Shule looked up at the sky. "Once you've died, you ought to figure out what you couldn't understand before."
"Pah, pah, pah, pah! You're fine, aren't you? Stop saying such unlucky things!"
Lin, that wasn't what I meant.
Xia Shule wiped the lingering tears from Xiang Lin's eyelashes. "Come on, let's go back, you little firecracker!"
Xiang Lin haughtily swatted Xia Shule's hand away, only to carefully cradle his injured one. No one did a sharp tongue and a soft heart quite like Xiang Lin.
When they returned, Chen Jin was still cutting the cake. Xiang Lin silently cursed him for taking so long.
While they were out, Zhou Anyang had changed seats and sat beside Chen Jin. Thinking no one could tell, he was subtly pressing himself against him.
The instant Xiang Lin entered the room, he couldn't help rolling his eyes spectacularly.
"Here, ice cream cake. Eat it before it melts." Chen Jin offered the first slice to Xia Shule.
Before Xia Shule could take it, however, another hand intercepted it.
Zhou Anyang held the cake, his eyes wide in an innocent, bewildered expression. That look was meant for Chen Jin. Xiang Lin couldn't see it from his angle.
But Xia Shule, still holding out his hand for the cake, had a perfect view of his profile.
Dude, who are you trying to fool?
"Hm?" Chen Jin looked at Zhou Anyang in confusion.
Then he tipped his chin toward Xia Shule, indicating that he should pass it over.
When Zhou Anyang didn't respond, Chen Jin jerked his chin again. "Give it to him already. What are you doing?"
Zhou Anyang was speechless.
Clueless fucking straight guy. I thought he'd be easier to seduce, but now I might as well keep working on Jiang Gechen.
Chen Jin, don't regret refusing to join my side. When the Xia Family is destroyed, you won't escape either.
Zhou Anyang inwardly sneered, pitying Chen Jin.
Then he reluctantly handed the cake to Xia Shule.
Xiang Lin hated the way he dragged everything out. "What are you dawdling for? It's going to melt!"
Chen Jin didn't like sweets, so he hadn't cut a slice for himself. Once he had handed out everyone's cake, the scene looked fairly harmonious, at least for the moment.
Xia Shule had only returned to the country a few months ago. Since then, he had spent all his time revolving around Jiang Gechen and hadn't gotten together with them at all.
So now everyone was asking Xia Shule about his life abroad.
"Shu Le, you're the most delicate one of us. Did you get used to living abroad alone?"
The question came from a girl, the only girl in their group.
Her name was Ruan Jiaojiao, and she had a fiery temper. But she was always gentle with Xia Shule and looked out for him whenever they were out.
Xia Shule was close to her too. "Not at first, but I got used to it after a while. It was all right. Other than the people on the streets looking different, nothing changed that much."
Ruan Jiaojiao laughed. "Go downstairs right now and everyone will look different too!"
"Hahahahaha!"
"Hey! Why didn't Jiang come?" a boy at the table asked innocently.
Ruan Jiaojiao punched him on the head. "Weren't you in the room earlier?"
The boy looked aggrieved. "No..." He really hadn't been. He had put his bag down and gone straight to the bathroom, and had only just returned.
"Oh..." Suddenly at a loss for words, Ruan Jiaojiao scratched her head awkwardly.
After a moment of silence, Zhou Anyang picked up the question. "Jiang? He argued with Shu Le that day. He's probably still angry. Honestly, Shu Le, you knew Jiang was still upset, yet you went up to him like that! Next time I'll cover for you, so don't be so careless!"
Zhou Anyang's tone carried reproach, smugness, and an unmistakably lecturing air.
"Are you lecturing me?"
"I wouldn't dare, Shu Le."
"If you don't dare, keep it to yourself."
"..." Zhou Anyang fell silent.
In the past, Xia Shule had known he was a little closer to Jiang, so even if he disliked him, he had shown some restraint. Who knew what had happened after that day? Had he knocked something loose in his head?
Zhou Anyang seethed. It had only been a few days, and now Xia Shule was talking to him like this.
If Xia Shule wanted to see Jiang again, Zhou Anyang swore he would make things as difficult as possible for him. "Shu Le, what's gotten into you lately? Why do you keep treating me like this? Can't we talk things through and solve the problem? Stop throwing childish tantrums!"
"Throwing childish tantrums? I don't think you've ever seen me throw a real childish tantrum."
With that, Xia Shule set down his chopsticks and stood. After changing seats, Zhou Anyang was now two seats away from him.
Xia Shule walked over and leaned close to his ear, though his voice was loud enough for everyone present to hear clearly. "You'd better keep a low profile. My wrist still hurts. Jiang Gechen is an expert at saving his own skin. If you don't believe me, we can wait and see. Once the evidence of the drugging comes out, will he protect you, or... pin it all on you?"
Zhou Anyang panicked, squirming in his seat with guilt. "Don't talk nonsense, Shu Le. I don't know anything. How can you be so certain I was involved too? Haha, Shu Le's unreasonable jokes just keep getting more outrageous."
Xia Shule straightened. One little scare and the guy folded. How boring.