At those words, darkness churned in Fu Xiuyuan's eyes. He had uncovered what these people had done to Gu Nian'an back then.
The man took a small sip of tea, concealing the emotions in his eyes.
Zhang Xiaoyuan stared fixedly at the two of them, feeling waves of resentment and jealousy rise within her.
"How did Mr. Fu and Nian'an meet? Speaking of which, does Mr. Fu know about Nian'an's high school days?" Her voice grew somewhat shrill, a trace of malice appearing in her eyes.
With a hint of laughter in her voice, she added with an air of mystery, "Speaking of which, Nian'an, do you still remember those boys who confessed to you back then? Does Mr. Fu know about that?"
Gu Nian'an frowned at her words, remembering who she meant. Back in high school, a few students had been attracted to the original owner's face but refused to admit they were gay, so they had decided to mess with him.
They had planned a so-called confession, which had ended with the original owner being publicly reprimanded before the entire school, while those boys were said to have been "seduced" by him.
In reality, however, they had cornered the original owner in an alley and tried to grope him. The original owner had escaped, and the matter had ended up at the police station.
At the thought, a trace of mockery flashed through the young man's eyes.
They had fabricated lies to cover it up, and the police could not be bothered with such a trivial matter. In the end, the original owner had received a disciplinary mark, while those boys had gotten off unscathed.
Everyone instantly fell silent. The incident had caused quite a stir back then. Many of them knew what had really happened, but they still turned their eyes toward the man.
Fu Xiuyuan scoffed as though he had heard something amusing, then curled his lips slightly. He said slowly, "Zhang Xiaoyuan, the project your father, Zhang Jianguo, is handling has yet to receive my approval."
At those words, Zhang Xiaoyuan stiffened all over. She had let her emotions cloud her judgment and made a terrible mistake. If her father found out, she would be finished.
The man's dark eyes seemed to hold no regard for anyone, and an icy aura radiated from him.
Yet his gaze held an added air of nobility and untouchable distance as he said without a flicker of emotion, "I only came here to pick up my partner and, while I was at it, see what the people who bullied him back then were like. Everything leaves a record these days. Watch what you say and do."
With that, the man turned his head and gently asked the young man whether he had eaten his fill.
Gu Nian'an nodded slightly.
Fu Xiuyuan rose, took the young man beside him by the hand, and headed straight for the door. Upon reaching it, he did not forget to leave them with another remark. "My partner is a celebrity. You should all know what you should and shouldn't say."
The man's tone was very gentle, but the chill in his words sent shivers down their spines.
Looking at his seemingly ice-cold gaze, everyone felt a chill in their hearts. There were indeed records of what they had done back then. After all, there had been so many people at school. If he wanted to investigate, it would be easy to uncover with the Fu Family's resources.
"If I'd known, I would've apologized to Gu Nian'an when I got here."
A man smacked his own head in frustration. He was in business too and knew Fu Xiuyuan's methods well.
This matter probably would not end so easily.
Zhang Muyü watched the two departing figures, lowering her eyes to conceal the emotions churning within them.
The others felt the same and could not help casting resentful looks at Zhang Xiaoyuan. If not for her, they would not have ended up like this.
Feeling their gazes on her, Zhang Xiaoyuan turned angrily, her eyes full of disgust. She mocked them sharply, "Which one of you is any better than me? Now you want to blame me?! Weren't you the ones who joined me in bullying him in the first place? Why are you playing the victims now?!"
Everyone lowered their heads.
In the garden, the evening breeze brushed gently over their faces.
Fu Xiuyuan took off his jacket and draped it over the young man, then drew him closer into his arms.
"Are you very upset?" the man asked softly.
Gu Nian'an shook his head, but bitterness still welled uncontrollably in his eyes.
Even in another world, the memories and feelings from his previous life continued to haunt him, although seeing faces just like those people from his previous life had filled him with nothing but irritation.
Yet, for some reason, ever since Fu Xiuyuan appeared, waves of heartache had risen uncontrollably within him. If-if someone had helped him back then too, would he have been spared so much hardship?
He had thought he no longer cared, that he had already forgotten the pain. It turned out he had merely grown numb to it.
Now someone had suddenly, gently uncovered it, and brilliant sunlight had streamed in, making those long-rotted scars throb with pain.
He looked up at the sky, trying to let the evening breeze wipe away his tears.
Fu Xiuyuan slowly reached out and gently brushed the tears from the corners of the young man's eyes.
Gu Nian'an froze for a moment, then rested his head against the man's chest.
Just a little while. Just a little while. Let me be a little willful.
After an unknown amount of time, the man felt the young man's breathing gradually settle in his arms. Lowering his gaze, he saw that he had fallen fast asleep.
Fu Xiuyuan gently lifted the young man into his arms. Feeling the warmth against him, tenderness rose involuntarily in his heart. His eyes flickered as he slowly walked toward the room.
The following evening, Fu Xiuyuan came home early and found Gu Nian'an sitting on the sofa, petting the cat.
He walked over and patted the young man's shoulder.
Gu Nian'an turned to look at him in puzzlement, only to see the man take an exquisite gift box from his pocket. When it was opened, a beautiful sapphire stud earring lay inside.
The gemstone was cornflower blue, sparkling beneath the light.
A trace of puzzlement flashed through Gu Nian'an's eyes as he looked at the stud.
"Do you like it?" Fu Xiuyuan asked gently.
Looking at the sapphire on the stud, Gu Nian'an suddenly thought of the sapphire on Fu Xiuyuan's ring and nodded as though under a spell.
"Shall I put it on for you?" Fu Xiuyuan chuckled, touching the young man's earlobe.
Gu Nian'an felt a strange emotion well up inside him and instinctively agreed.
Seeing that the young man had agreed.
Fu Xiuyuan took out the alcohol he had prepared beforehand, disinfected the stud and the young man's earlobe, and placed the stud in the piercing gun.
With a click, a slight pain shot through his earlobe, and the sapphire stud was in Gu Nian'an's ear.
Fu Xiuyuan gently stroked the side of Gu Nian'an's face. Looking at the young man's fair neck and the sapphire in his ear, he praised him with a smile in his eyes. "Beautiful."
Gu Nian'an turned to look and met the man's smiling gaze. At that moment, time seemed to stop.
He froze, feeling Fu Xiuyuan's warm breath fall against his cheek, and his heart began to pound.
Only after a long moment did he hurriedly avert his eyes and stammer, "Why did you suddenly buy a stud earring?"
The man said casually, "I happened to see it and thought it would suit you, so I bought it."
He stroked the young man's slightly reddened earlobe again and said softly, "It really does suit you. Don't take it off, all right?"
Gu Nian'an touched his still faintly aching earlobe and obediently agreed.
Fu Xiuyuan gazed at the sapphire on the young man's earlobe, a smile curling his lips as his eyes grew ever darker.
Before you continue