The corridor was completely silent. In the light and shadow cast by the autumn breeze, Huo Yuzhou, who had been standing behind Nan Qing, curled his thin, crimson lips into a smile, his eyes filled with laughter.
He didn't speak.
His eyes were overflowing with love and indulgence.
A tall figure stood behind Nan Qing, like a malevolent dragon coiled in the abyss, dark and powerful, drawing him into its sphere of influence.
A cocktail party, attended by half of S City's celebrities.
From now on, no one will dare to look down on him.
A gaze swept across the crowd and landed on him.
Huo Yuzhou lifted his thin eyelids and looked in a certain obscure direction.
She chuckled softly and raised an eyebrow.
His overconfident rival looked grim, the lamplight illuminating his shocked and bewildered peach blossom eyes.
Amidst the crowd, a handsome young man with a cold expression stood up and, in full view of everyone, grabbed Huo Yuzhou's hand.
Huo Yuzhou quickly gripped his hand in return.
Fingertips caress, then interlock between fingers.
After watching the show, Gu Xingchen smiled and coughed at Huo Yuzhou.
He smiled innocently, trying to smooth things over.
"It's windy outside, so I specially saved some good wine for my sister-in-law. She's already been sobered up, come on—"
The crowded throng automatically parted to make way for the handsome man, who, hand in hand with his victorious sweetheart, traversed the sea of people amidst a variety of gazes.
Two figures stood side by side, their faces strikingly different.
It felt like a scene from a wedding ceremony; they walked hand in hand through the guests.
Huo Yuzhou was in a great mood and sat down in the seat of honor.
Nan Qing was led by the butler to wash her hands.
Watching the figure disappear, Gu Xingchen stood side by side with Huo Yuzhou, his voice dripping with sarcasm.
"Stop pretending, bro."
"Being protected by your sister-in-law, it must feel amazing!"
Huo Yuzhou glanced at him with a half-smile.
"You, who don't even have a wife, actually know this?"
Gu Xingchen clicked his tongue.
"Seriously, bro? That expression of wanting everyone to know you're married is way too obvious!"
"However, your arrogant attitude after successfully climbing to the top is indeed quite aggressive--"
Gu Xingchen nudged his shoulder, gesturing for him to look in the other direction.
"You don't know, my sister-in-law just admitted you're her boyfriend, and that bastard Xi Juan turned pale."
"This guy is interesting. He didn't seem to mind getting beaten up, but he reacted strongly when his sister-in-law called him 'husband.' He completely lost control of his facial expressions, and the muscles in his arms were practically shaking."
"However, I did observe that idiot from the Bai Family for a while,"
Gu Xingchen paused, her brows furrowing.
"His finger bones were completely intact; there wasn't a trace of fracture, not even a scar or bruise."
"This kid's up to something, it's not logical."
Huo Yuzhou hummed in agreement, his long, slender fingers gripping his wine glass, and frankly stated...
"His background is questionable."
Gu Xingchen didn't react.
"What's the problem? Is he a Buddhist from the Beijing circle, or a Daoist priest from Mount Mao? He's a living, breathing person; he can't be possessed by a ghost, can he?"
The chilled red wine, cool to the touch, was served in a clear Louis XIII glass, resembling thick, cooled blood.
Huo Yuzhou held the glass and took a sip, his narrow eyes reflecting the cold light emanating from it.
"Want to see a magic trick?"
Huo Yuzhou's eyes curved into a smile, his dark pupils shimmering with a captivating light. His deep voice echoed amidst the cheerful violin music, carrying a dangerous yet delightful depth, like the murmur of a demon.
"The show is about to begin."
-
Gu Xingchen's family owns a very large winery.
The bathroom is decorated in a European retro style, with oil paintings hanging in the spacious corridor, and wall lamps illuminating the entire space.
Nan Qing bent down and turned on the tap to wash her face.
His cheeks were burning.
He said that Huo Yuzhou had some serious illness, and that on the surface he looked like a high-and-mighty flower, aloof and cold as frost, but deep down he was a soft and juicy person.
He helped Huo Yuzhou drive away Bai Ruanruan.
Huo Yuzhou, on the other hand, whispered something to him in front of so many people in public.
In a hoarse voice, with a blunt tone, she praised him.
"Honey, you're amazing."
That's awesome, my foot!
Is this something that's appropriate to say in public?
Nan Qing splashed water on her face several times until the heat on her face returned to normal.
Her eyelashes were wet, and the stray hairs on her forehead were also damp, sticking wetly to her snow-white skin.
Nan Qing wiped his face with his hand, intending to pull out a tissue to wipe it, but before he could even extend his fingers, a light gray plaid handkerchief was handed to him and landed right in front of him.
Nan Qing froze on the spot.
A man in a dark suit appeared in the huge mirror in front of the sink, seemingly out of nowhere.
Black hair, deep eyes, sharp and piercing features, eyebrows pressing down on his eyes, mature and handsome.
Nan Qing lowered her eyes and saw a handkerchief held in a large palm, but her eyes couldn't help but turn red.
Same action, similar handkerchief.
I wiped the dirt from his mouth, which was stained from eating, and the tears that streaked his face when he was beaten.
He was too naughty and got injured while learning to climb trees. Qin Mubai used a clean handkerchief to bandage his wound. He covered his bandaged arm, leaned on Qin Mubai's back, and swayed home in the sunset.
Qin Mubai is unkind to everyone except him.
Qin Mubai doted on him for twenty years, longer than the love his biological parents had given him in his previous life.
But he still didn't understand why he and Qin Mubai had ended up like this.
Nan Qing's eyelashes trembled, and she coldly slapped Qin Mubai's hand away.
"Get away!"
The clean handkerchief swayed and drew an arc in the air before falling to the ground.
Nan Qing walked past him, but suddenly her arm was tightened as the man grabbed it.
A wave of grievance welled up inside her, like a dense net. Nan Qing didn't want to show vulnerability in front of him, yet she inexplicably began to feel irritable.
"Can't you understand human language, Qin Mubai? I told you to let go!"
" Qingqing,"
His resistance caused Qin Mubai's brows to furrow slightly, and he tried to soften his icy voice.
"Can you listen to your older brother?"
You're not my older brother!
The boy whose arm he was gripping had bloodshot eyes and glared at him.
"What exactly do you want, Qin Mubai? You're drunk before the party even starts. What kind of drunken antics are you causing me?"
"What's our relationship? We have absolutely no relationship! Who's your brother? The one outside who's eager to be someone else's mistress is your blood-related brother!"
"I'm just an outsider, what exactly do you want to nag me about?"
"You feel your younger brother has been wronged, so you came to me to plead your case and get revenge for him?"
He grabbed Qin Mubai's hand and pulled it towards his own face.
"Come on, or do you want me to slap you?"
Qin Mubai stopped what he was doing, pain flashing in his dark eyes, and whispered...
" Qingqing, don't do this."
"So what exactly do you want from me?!"
Tears welled up in her eyes, and Nan Qing suddenly swung her arm. The black cloth swayed in the air, creating an arc, and with a sharp crack, her palm went numb from the impact.
Long, slender fingers exposed to the air slapped Qin Mubai's face.