My Brother's Arranged Marriage Partner Is My Boyfriend - Chapter 1

“Nanxing, your neck…”

His roommate, Yan Mo, pointed toward his own throat, signaling Bai Nanxing to pay attention to his neck.

It was hard to miss. Bai Nanxing’s neck was covered in red marks, resembling mosquito bites, but larger in scale, spreading from his throat down beneath the collar of his high-necked sweater.

The marks were heavy and would not fade anytime soon. Judging by the depth of the color, they had been inflicted recently—they were still fresh.

At most, they were no more than a night old.

Yan Mo remembered that Bai Nanxing hadn’t returned to the dormitory last night, which meant he had spent the entire night at the Mo residence.

“The neck is such a fragile area. How could he bite you so hard? Isn’t he afraid of causing some serious damage?”

Bai Nanxing traced the marks on his neck with his hand. The area still stung slightly, and the residual heat of last night’s intimacy lingered, making his heart feel stifled.

The neck was actually the “cleanest” area Yan Mo could see. Elsewhere, beneath his clothes, it was a sight one couldn’t bear to look at—a vast expanse of red and purple. If he didn’t know better, he might have been mistaken for a victim of domestic violence.

The more he had resisted, the harder that lunatic Mo Leyang had bitten him. He hadn’t even been allowed to cover the marks with anything; it was pure, deliberate provocation.

Just thinking about it made Bai Nanxing’s teeth itch with irritation. He considered buying a bottle of laxatives the next time he went over. After all, laxatives weren’t lethal; at most, they would leave that freak Mo Leyang with no time to mess with him.

This seemed like an excellent method; he might just try it next time.

He truly looked forward to seeing what kind of expression that lunatic Mo Leyang would make while suffering from diarrhea; it would surely be a sight to behold.

At the thought of this, Bai Nanxing couldn’t help but feel a surge of excitement, and his lips curled into an involuntary smile.

Thinking he had been traumatized to the point of mental instability, Yan Mo asked worriedly, “Nanxing, are you… alright?”

Bai Nanxing snapped back to reality. “What’s wrong?”

Yan Mo said, “I saw you smiling for no reason. It’s a bit scary. Did he… bully you too harshly?”

Harsh?

If being driven to the point of begging for mercy counted as harsh, then yes.

That freak Mo Leyang only had his ways with him in bed. If he dared to act like that out of bed, Bai Nanxing would surely ensure the lunatic ended his family line right then and there!

Though Mo Leyang was a pervert in that regard, through this opportunity, Bai Nanxing could finally escape Bai Yi’s control and become a free man.

For that point alone, he was still somewhat grateful to Mo Leyang.

As for the marks on his body, he didn’t care. His relationship with Mo Leyang could be understood as a mutual exchange of needs, with Mo Leyang acting as his benefactor. He could understand a benefactor’s possessiveness—it was nothing more than wanting to keep others from sharing what belonged to them. All of that was fine; he didn’t have anyone he liked yet, so anything went.

As long as he didn’t have to go back to the Bai family.

Bai Nanxing pulled his collar up. “Can you still see it now?”

Yan Mo nodded. “I have a mirror with me. Do you want to see if those clothes of yours can actually hide it?”

Bai Nanxing simply gave up. Everyone around him knew he was in a relationship anyway; they just didn’t know who the specific person was. “It’s fine. Let it be.”

Yan Mo remained concerned and asked again, “Are you really, okay? Do you want to go to the school clinic? Look at how you’ve been bitten; you’re not a hornet’s nest!”

The weak often possess a sense of empathy, perhaps because they both belong to the vulnerable side, hoping to provide warmth to others through their meager inquiries.

In this world, such a thing was especially precious.

Bai Nanxing waved his hand to dismiss the concern. “Don’t worry. At most, it’s just a case of… overindulgence. As the saying goes, only the ox gets worn out from plowing, never the field. If anyone’s going to die, it’ll be him, not me.”

Seeing how confident he was, Yan Mo didn’t press the matter further, only telling him to be careful. The neck was full of blood vessels; if one wasn’t careful, a bite could lead to a major problem.

Bai Nanxing naturally knew this.

The process hadn’t been as easy as he made it look to Yan Mo. What kind of place was the Mo family? A multi-generational wealthy clan, a place that devoured people without leaving even a bone. Anyone who entered would lose a layer of skin. Mo Leyang, in particular, was the madman who made everyone in the Mo family tremble—even dogs would retreat at the sight of him, let alone a human being.

Their marriage, to put it nicely, was an alliance; to put it bluntly, Bai Yi had sold him to exchange for the interests he desired.

That was the nature of such families: no affection, only profit. The children born into them were merely links in the chain of interests, devoid of choice.

Mo Leyang was the fiancé to whom he had been sacrificed.

No, to be more precise, his original plan involved only the eldest young master of the Mo family, Mo Yichen. He was the future heir of the Mo family. As long as Bai Nanxing secured Mo Yichen, he could leave the Bai family forever, escaping that hellish place that had made the first half of his life miserable, and then fly far away to another country. But he never expected that the freak Mo Leyang would suddenly return to the country at such a time, throwing almost all his plans into disarray.

Several months ago.

Inside the Bai Family Villa—

“Nanxing, how have things been at school lately? Are you keeping up with your studies?” Bai Yi suddenly asked with feigned concern.

If these words had come from any other parent, Bai Nanxing would have found them normal, but Bai Yi was different. Having lived in the Bai family for over a decade, he was well-acquainted with Bai Yi’s character; he was a man who never spared a thought for him. Whether he was sick or in trouble, Bai Yi would only watch coldly from the sidelines.

As expected,.

Before Bai Nanxing could even answer, Bai Yi continued, “You are an adult now. There has been a collaboration with the Mo family these past few days. You should also be aware that wealthy families only maintain friendly relations through marriage alliances. I have already stated the Bai family’s conditions, and Mo Yuncheng has agreed.”

“So…?”

“The person for this alliance with the Mo family is you.”

Bai Nanxing knew he had no room to refuse, but he was curious: which young lady of the Mo family insisted on having him?

Was it merely because he was handsome?

But looks couldn’t put food on the table. As an illegitimate son, his status was already awkward. If she truly married him, wouldn’t she be unable to hold her head up in front of the clan in the future?

Would that young lady of the Mo family truly be willing to give up everything for him?

Or was it that the fiancée he was being betrothed to share a status like his—an illegitimate daughter?

Seeing him lost in thought, Bai Yi’s expression darkened slightly. “Ningning is still young and not suited for a marriage alliance. Don’t blame your father; this time, the Mo family specifically asked for you by name, and I couldn’t very well refuse. The Bai family’s strength is inferior to the Mo families, as you should know. I hope you can understand your father’s painstaking efforts.”

The Mo family of Yancheng was known to everyone. If the Bai family was considered wealthy, the Mo family was the elite among the elite. Regardless of status or position, they were a presence incomparable to other wealthy families.

Connections, resources, wealth—the Bai family could only dream of everything the Mo family possessed.

Bai Nanxing understood perfectly. “Do I have the right to refuse?”

Bai Yi laughed. “Of course not. This matter didn’t even need to be discussed with you, but the Mo family asked me to come and seek your opinion, so I had to comply.”

Indeed, it was merely a notification; there was no need to care about what he thought.

“Finished? Then can I leave?”

Bai Nanxing didn’t want to stay in this house for a single moment longer, especially having to face Bai Yi’s face, which caused him physical revulsion. It was simply sickening.

The terrifying thing was that he didn’t know how much longer he would have to look at this loathsome face; there seemed to be no end. He didn’t want the last thing he saw before closing his eyes forever to be this face that made him gag.

At that thought, Bai Nanxing wished he could poke his own eyes out.

Perhaps everyone else rejoiced in having biological parents, not having to wander the streets, not having to go hungry, and certainly not having to endure the cold stares of others. When bullied, someone would shield them; when hungry, someone would cook for them—a life that was plain yet happy.

But Bai Nanxing was different.

He didn’t dare to hope for happiness.

As an illegitimate son, he had been hidden from the light since childhood. The way others looked at him was no different from how they looked at a rat in the street—if there was a difference, it was only that he was still human, while a rat was a beast.

Bai Yi noticed his disdain but wasn’t particularly angry. He felt a strange sense of familiarity with this illegitimate son. That woman back then had been the same way; her eyes were full of disdain, and no matter what he did, she had never looked at him directly.

Even until her death, she remained that way.

In this regard, his illegitimate son was a perfect one-to-one replica.

“The way you look at me always reminds me of your mother; she often looked at me with that same expression.” Bai Yi leaned back on the sofa, a cryptic smile playing on his lips.

But Bai Nanxing did not take the bait, simply repeating what he had said before: “If you’re finished, can I leave?”

As if intentionally trying to make him uncomfortable, Bai Yi acted as though he hadn’t heard and talked to himself. “Your mother originally wanted to abort you. It was I who allowed you to live until now. You should be grateful to me as your father. Now that the Bai family needs you to make a contribution, and the marriage partners are the young masters of the Mo family, it isn’t an insult to you. If a young master of the Mo family truly takes a liking to you, anything you want would be yours with just a word. You should be happy.”

Bai Nanxing couldn’t help but laugh. “So, I should thank you for securing such a wonderful marriage for me, is that it?”

“Is it not? Without me, where would you be today?”

“My mother was right to want to do it.”

Hearing this, Bai Yi’s face immediately fell. “You want to follow your mother? Let me tell you, don’t even think about it!”

Bai Nanxing was only speaking his mind. He valued his life; he still wanted to live to leave the Bai family. If the day truly came when he had to die, he wouldn’t be a ghost of the Bai family. “True. If I died, you wouldn’t be able to give the Mo family an explanation. But don’t you still have Bai Ruoning? Joining a wealthy family is such a wonderful thing; I think he would be quite willing.”

Bai Yi said nothing.

Whether it was a “wonderful thing” was another matter; whether one could come out of the Mo family in one piece was still an unknown.