Everyone present swallowed the words of persuasion that had reached their lips.
Chu Yannan looked at Liu Muyan. For some reason, his heart hurt, terribly, terribly. He wanted to clutch his chest and make it stop.
Mu Mu wasn't joking. When he realized that, it felt as though he had been struck by lightning. His blood surged. The cake in his mouth wasn't overly sweet or rich, yet he felt so sick he wanted to vomit.
The look in Mu Mu's eyes had changed. When had their relationship begun to change?
Was it because he hated the identity that bound him to her, or because he had arrogantly assumed their relationship would never change, no matter what?
Their families had been close for generations. They had gone from childhood playmates to attending the same school. He had found something that interested him, and he also felt he had met the person he was destined to be with.
Had it begun when he wished for freedom after turning eighteen, or when he kept thinking of the life arranged for him every time he saw Mu Mu?
He had always felt he should choose his own life. His eldest brother did nothing but work all day. He didn't even have a private life because of his work, because that was the path their parents had arranged for him.
He didn't want to become someone like that. He was afraid. He wanted to be himself!
But what about Mu Mu? She had done nothing wrong.
He had been the one to innocently propose their childhood betrothal. He had also been the one who said he would protect her for the rest of his life. He was the one who had promised they would get into the same university, and now he was the one going back on his word.
An Qian saw that his face had gone pale, his whole being like fragile glass. She cried out anxiously,
"Yannan, Yannan, what's wrong? Are you all right?"
"We won't eat the cake anymore. Let's stop eating, okay?"
An Qian was getting scared. None of the people here were good. Yannan was already suffering so much, so why were people still forcing him?
An Qian's voice grew choked. There was too much cake in front of them; they couldn't possibly finish it. She had been so glamorous when she came in, yet now she was here eating cake, surrounded by so many people.
"An Qian, let's eat. I'm fine," Chu Yannan said softly. His eyes couldn't focus, and he didn't dare look toward Liu Muyan.
An Qian stopped him.
"Yannan, something will happen if you keep eating like this. It's your eldest brother's birthday today. Does it have to turn into such an embarrassing scene?"
An Qian didn't understand. She had only come to a birthday party. How had it turned into this?
"My brother. My brother's birthday. I, I..." Chu Yannan couldn't get the words out. His heart hurt terribly. Eating something sweet would make it better. He picked up the cake and stuffed it into his mouth.
Shen Zhiyi wasn't particularly satisfied, because she thought that if she ruined someone else's birthday party, Chi Ye would be implicated too.
She couldn't drag Chi Ye into this. She had to leave quickly. She wasn't afraid of offending them on her own, but it was different for Chi Ye.
Sorry. I couldn't control myself today.
She turned to Liu Muyan and tugged at the corners of her mouth, wanting to comfort her, but she really couldn't smile, so she gave up.
"I'm leaving first. You should leave soon too. I did this. Make sure you explain it properly to your family."
She had said and done too much tonight, as though she were exhausting all her energy to give her final instructions. Liu Muyan was a little worried.
She reached out and stopped Shen Zhiyi.
"No. We haven't done anything wrong. My parents won't blame me. Brother Chi told me to look after you. I can't let you leave alone."
Shen Zhiyi tried to pull free, but Liu Muyan held on tightly. She lowered her voice and said,
"Too many people are watching. We can't drag Chi Ye into this. I'm not afraid of them. I just don't want to cause Chi Ye trouble. Chu Yannan won't come after me, and neither will the others.
"But you're all part of this circle, after all, so listen to me."
She had said so much in one breath that her throat felt as though it were about to burn, and her voice had grown considerably hoarser toward the end.
Liu Muyan was torn. On one hand, Shen Zhiyi was right, but on the other, she couldn't forget Chi Ye's instructions. Her head was spinning, and anxiety was written all over her face.
"You can stop now," Liu Muyan said, turning to Chu Yannan and the other two. She was thinking of the bigger picture. Unless something unexpected happened, people from both the Chu Family and the Liu Family would arrive soon.
Chu Yannan hardly looked good right now, but he had certainly been cast as the victim, while they had all become the villains.
Hearing this, Shan Yirou immediately dropped the cake in her hand and looked happily at Chu Yannan beside her, shooting An Qian a glare along the way before saying,
"Yannan, Mu Mu told us to stop. She still cares about our friendship."
Chu Yannan looked up in delighted surprise. "Really?"
An Qian was pleased too. They finally didn't have to eat anymore. She took Chu Yannan's arm and tried to get up. But several figures approached from beyond the crowd, their bearing striking, though their expressions were terribly dark, especially the one in front.
"Sit down. Every last one of you is going to finish!"
The harsh, low voice rang out, and everyone turned in surprise to look at the newcomers.
Since he was attending a banquet, he had put on a suit for once. The crisp, straight-cut suit clothed his frame, and his hair was swept back, revealing his finely shaped brows and eyes.
His thin lips curved in a mocking smile, and the stud in his ear reflected a lovely gleam. Tall and long-legged, he reached the center of the crowd in a few strides.
After saying that, he didn't even look at the three of them. He hurriedly caught Shen Zhiyi by the arm and looked her up and down. The fierceness in his eyes instantly changed to concern and an inconceivable tenderness as he looked at her.
There truly was tenderness in Chi Ye. Even his voice grew quieter, as though it only needed to reach Shen Zhiyi.
"Are you all right? Are you feeling unwell?"
Shen Zhiyi had thought Chi Ye would come over, but he should have appeared after she left. Now everyone's eyes were on them.
Behind him were Chu Yanqing and several people who were clearly Chi Ye's friends.
Shen Zhiyi first shook her head, then looked at Chu Yanqing and said apologetically,
"I'm sorry, Mr. Chu. I ruined your birthday party. I'll definitely make it up to you afterward."
Chi Ye was angry and replied irritably,
"What are you apologizing for? You don't need to apologize at all. I'll make up for Chu Yanqing's birthday. I'm asking you right now, are you feeling unwell?"
Seeing Chi Ye's anxious state, Chu Yanqing replied to Shen Zhiyi,
"It's all right. I'll go deal with things first."
Chu Yanqing turned his gaze toward Liu Muyan, and his still-smiling face darkened slightly. Seeing his expression, Liu Muyan thought he was going to lecture her again, and she couldn't stop the hurt from welling up inside.
"Mu Mu, are you all right?"
His cool voice held concern, not the reprimand she had expected, leaving her staring at him in surprise.
Chu Yanqing looked her over and relaxed when he saw she was unharmed. He had searched all the way here, heard everything he needed to hear, and learned everything he needed to know.
Chu Yannan had truly gone too far this time. Quite apart from the fact that the two families hadn't explicitly settled things, he should never, ever have brought someone here in this manner. Wasn't this a slap in the Liu Family's face?
"You didn't even get any cake because of these three?" Chi Ye asked angrily.
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