Smack-
"Su Youchuan! I don't care what you've been doing in private with those disreputable friends of yours! As long as you don't bring disaster on the Su Family, I wouldn't care even if you fooled around with ten men, but look at what you've done!"
Song Yanqing's maneuvers had kept Su Youchuan awake all night. He had only started feeling sleepy at nine in the morning and had slept for less than two hours before urgent knocking disturbed him.
He went downstairs with a dark expression. Before he could demand to know who had interrupted his pleasant dreams, he opened the door and was slapped across the face.
He failed to dodge in time, and five vivid red finger marks instantly rose on his face. His head turned to one side, and he stood frozen as though he had stalled. Only after a long while did he raise his head to look at the visitor.
The visitor wore a black suit, his hair slicked back, and held a gem-studded cane. It was his biological father, Su Hua, that self-important man who reeked of nouveau riche ostentation, kept three mistresses, and had even brought them into his home, infuriating his first wife to death.
His face was livid now. The way he looked at Su Youchuan was less like looking at a son who shared his blood and more like looking at merchandise that was gradually losing its commercial value, ready to be discarded or sold at any moment.
"You actually dared to provoke the Songhui Aristocratic Family! Have you grown tired of living, or have your wings grown strong enough that you think you can fly?! They've sent their lawyer's letter straight to me! You've disgraced me utterly, you unfilial son!"
As soon as Su Hua finished speaking, he raised his cane to strike Su Youchuan's leg, only for him to catch it. Su Youchuan looked at Su Hua, his straight brows drawn tight and a mocking smile curling his lips.
"All they did was send a lawyer's letter, and you're already this scared! If they sent a court summons instead, would you jump off a building to keep my mother company?!"
Su Youchuan stared at Su Hua with icy eyes, his clenched fists cracking. Disappointment and bitter hurt spread through his upturned phoenix eyes. He released the cane and gave it a push.
"Unfortunately, you won't get to see my mother. Trash like you would only go to the eighteenth level of hell even after you died. You could never set half a foot in heaven! Get out!"
With that, Su Youchuan slammed the door shut. His icy gaze had made Su Hua's scalp prickle, and before he could react, he had been pushed outside, stumbling and nearly falling flat on his face.
"Su Youchuan! You-you unfilial son!"
After steadying himself, Su Hua did not think he had done anything wrong. What was wrong with wanting to protect the Su Family and make it prosper? It was all that unfilial son Su Youchuan's fault for stirring up trouble!
"You unfilial son! I don't care how you do it, but you must resolve this! If you really can't, go to that young master of the Shang Family."
"Everyone in our circle knows he likes you! Lower yourself and beg him, and you'll surely be able to resolve it! I'm only giving you three days! Hmph!"
Su Hua delivered his threats to the closed door, then turned and left the courtyard of Su Youchuan's estate. He got into his car and drove away, not caring in the slightest how humiliating Su Youchuan's situation might be.
"Ha ha... heh, hahahaha..."
Leaning against the door, Su Youchuan raised his head to look at the empty living room. Suddenly, he covered his face and laughed aloud. As he laughed, tears slipped from the corners of his eyes, flowed over his palms, then fell from them and struck the floor, heavy as a crushing weight.
"Likes me? Heh... he's nothing but a liar! If he really liked me, he wouldn't have blocked me!"
Su Youchuan slid down against the door onto the cold floor. Memories surfaced in his mind of the passionate, vibrant Shang Shujue unexpectedly bursting into his life.
Shang Shujue had been so confident and radiant, his smile brilliant. He lived in the sunlight, possessed boundless vitality, creativity, and imagination, and his love was fervent and scorching.
He was sincere toward everyone, so sincere that even when people called him a fool, he could still laugh happily. Sometimes, even Su Youchuan thought he was a fool.
[Su Youchuan, I like you. I know Hu Yichen is your white moonlight, but he doesn't like you, and he's already settled in another country.
Stop liking him and like me instead, okay? I'm very easy to like. Just say you like me, and I'll be with you. Look at me... please?]
[Su Youchuan... can you really not like me? Not even once?]
It was Shang Shujue's almost pleading voice...
[Su Youchuan, I'm moving abroad. I don't like you. I hope you find happiness of your own.]
It was Hu Yichen's cold, heartless voice...
[Young Master Su, you really shouldn't drink when you're unwell. As an innocent person who came to take care of you, this puts me in a very difficult position, so could you give me the alcohol?]
It was Zhang Zhichen's gentle, understanding voice...
Suddenly, Su Youchuan heard many echoes of Shang Shujue's voice, saw the scene of Hu Yichen leaving, and the tender scenes of Zhang Zhichen caring for him, among others.
They appeared separately or overlapped, every word steeped in deep love.
Clutching his head, he recalled memories of the three of them. They overlapped or crossed and diverged, before finally all converging into the screen with the red exclamation mark showing he had been blocked.
"Shang Shujue... you're the second person after Hu Yichen to make me this angry... you were the one who provoked me first. If you think you can walk away unscathed now, that's impossible!"
Su Youchuan felt a dull ache throughout his head, and his whole being was in such pain that he wished he were dead. Whether physically or mentally, he had long since been ill, without even knowing it himself.
All he knew was that someone like Shang Shujue, who had once loved him to the point of madness, had suddenly stopped loving him one day.
He even wanted to take back all that love, give it to someone else, and join the person he liked in using every means to deal with him...
Su Youchuan refused to accept such an outcome! He could refuse to like Shang Shujue, string him along, and even toy with him as he pleased, but he would not allow himself to be treated this way.
He was selfish to his core, but so what? Since he could not destroy everything now, he would try another way, one that would make everyone uncomfortable.
Shang Shujue, since you've climbed onto a lofty branch, I'll cut down the branch you're clinging to and grind it into the dust, whatever the cost!
After this incident, Su Youchuan seemed to have suddenly become even more volatile and inscrutable.
Putting his glib tongue to work, he published a blog post. It contained no attempts to elevate anyone by putting someone else down and could even be considered a positive response. At the end of the post, he also tagged @Song Yanqing.
Seeing how open and aboveboard he was, the fans instantly switched sides again. Song Yanqing, who was sleeping, knew nothing about this and had no time to pay him any attention either.
The people he had sent to investigate Su Youchuan were already on their way. He had better pray he had covered his tracks well enough. Otherwise, what awaited him would be widespread condemnation, universal censure, a ruined reputation, and utter ruin with no hope of recovery for the rest of his life!