No One Is Allowed To Lay Eyes On The Evil God’s Precious Beauty - Chapter 22

Chapter 22: I Have Already Died Once

In the dead of night, a torrential rain suddenly broke, dispelling the lingering night mist winding through the mountain forests. The barking of village dogs grew increasingly distant as a drunken man dragged a thin, frail boy along, cursing and swearing while trekking toward the mountain summit.

In the middle of the night, a torrential rain suddenly fell, dispersing the night fog lingering among the mountain forests. The barking of dogs in the village gradually grew distant as a drunken man dragged a thin, weak boy, cursing as they walked toward the mountains.

It was already mid-winter, but the child being dragged by his back collar wore only thin, tattered clothes. His shoes had been kicked off somewhere, and his bare, pale feet dangled limply as if they had lost all sensation.

Not until lightning cracked across the sky like a white whip, startling the man, did he angrily throw the boy onto a protruding mound of earth.

“Can’t find your early-dead mother’s grave! Why bury her so high up? Thinking she’ll become an immortal!”

The child was about five or six years old. He lay disheveled and powerless on the mound, dazed as he raised his head to reveal a bruised and swollen face. Blood surged from his forehead, diluted by the falling rain as it trickled into his eyes and down his cheeks.

Everything before him was a smear of crimson, turning even the full moon overhead into a blood moon.

“Money-loser! Didn’t you want to find your mother? She’s long dead! You can wait here to die too!”

No… I don’t want to die…

Waves of pain struck his brain. His frail body trembled violently, but he couldn’t muster an ounce of strength.

He was soaked to the bone. His body grew cold from blood loss, yet his dark pupils remained wide open. An intense will to survive seemed to breed a final sliver of strength; his numb hand groped instinctively, suddenly touching a cold, wet stone tablet.

It was a gravestone.

Despite the clashing of thunder and lightning, he could accurately hear the man’s staggering footsteps as he left, along with the pungent smell of alcohol that drifted away with him.

Am I going to die here? Dying on top of someone else’s grave—will anyone bury me in the dirt?

His body shook uncontrollably. He was nearly in despair, murmuring for his mother, but he lacked the strength to speak. The desire to live flooded his mind, so intense it nearly consumed him.

Crimson blood was washed down by the heavy rain, soaking into the mud.

His consciousness began to fade, yet his eyes remained fixed open despite the pain, until his vision blurred.

The feeling of impending death was not pleasant. A ray of white light suddenly fell, and his eyes stung as if pricked by needles. In that second, he seemed to regain a faint strength and wearily opened his eyes.

Under the pouring rain, a blue glowing butterfly landed on his blood-stained fingertip.

His dark pupils reflected that beautiful and majestic light. He hardly dared to blink, staring foolishly at the butterfly fluttering its wings in the rain.

A bolt of lightning fell, and the ground was suddenly illuminated by a blinding white light. Amidst this violent roar, the boy suddenly heard a faint, ethereal sigh.

“Do you want to live?”

Who was speaking?

The voice came from nowhere, ethereal and deep, seemingly carrying a hint of compassion, yet it was utterly cold.

“I…” the boy’s breath was like a thread, his voice hoarse, “I do.”

He wanted to live. He didn’t want to die.

At that moment, a certain thought in his heart reached its peak. His body felt light, and he actually began to float slowly into the air, as if lifted by some invisible presence, suspended in the void.

There was no sensation of touch; he felt light as a feather. However, the surrounding temperature suddenly became extremely low, more chilling than the rain or the winter night wind. His body couldn’t help but tremble violently; compared to the pain all over, this cold actually made him feel more terrified.

Is it an immortal? An immortal has come to save him.

The rain poured down. Cold water smashed down fiercely but stopped half an inch away from the boy’s body, flowing along the air to the ground as if something invisible was shielding him from the wind and rain.

“A life is too precious. Are you willing to exchange everything you have for it?”

The boy was still young and couldn’t fully grasp the meaning, but his strong will still drove him to control his incredibly weak self and nod slightly.

“As you wish.”

The boy’s eyes, filled with the desire to live, remained wide open until his eyelids finally succumbed to the weight and slowly closed.

The howling wind and rain stopped abruptly. All was silent.

A semi-transparent black mist transformed into a slender finger, still stained with crimson blood, and gently stroked that cold cheek. The rain vanished quietly, revealing the bruised and battered face beneath the scars.

A mark turned into blue light and suddenly darted into the boy’s brow. Quietly, the scars on his body disappeared bit by bit.

As his chest began to rise and fall again, his eyes suddenly snapped open. His water-blue pupils were clear and clean, filled with a touch of innocent confusion.

It was like a rebirth.

…

The grief from the dream did not dissipate upon waking. Wuyi opened his eyes dazed, seeing the golden sunlight reflecting off the floor from the ceiling. His body still had a fine tremor, as if he were not in a warm room but on that deserted, rainy mountain peak from his dream.

Dazed, a pair of hands slowly picked him up.

His eyelashes fluttered as he raised his eyes slightly to see a large mass of black mist, which gradually merged with the images from his dream.

He remembered asking Qing Zhu if they had met in the orphanage, and Qing Zhu had told him to think about it himself.

It was that early?

So Qing Zhu had been by his side even before he was sent to the orphanage.

“Why can’t I see you?” he murmured, instinctively burying his face further into Qing Zhu’s embrace. Feeling that coldness, he didn’t pull back but instead hugged him tightly.

His question was ill-timed, but Qing Zhu understood.

“You were too small. Your body was weak.”

Wuyi thought about it. He actually couldn’t remember many things from his childhood. He used to think it was just his poor memory, but now, combined with the dream, he realized it was because his soul was unstable.

His hand fiddled with the collar of Qing Zhu’s clothes, his eyes somewhat unfocused. “Was that a dream?”

“No.”

“Then I’ve really died once?” He spoke in a very light tone, as if telling a small secret that couldn’t be shared.

This time, Qing Zhu paused for a long while before saying, “It’s enough that you are alive now.”

The door was pushed open. Wuyi was placed gently on the bed. He curled up but instinctively grabbed Qing Zhu’s clothes. Looking up from this angle, he felt like he had forgotten something again.

“How did you return to normal?”

His memory was a bit fuzzy; it seemed like his old childhood ailment had flared up again, making it hard to remember things clearly.

Qing Zhu simply sat down beside him in that position. After a moment of thought, he didn’t answer the question.

“The Qin family has something that deliberately excluded me, which is why I was slightly injured.”

Wuyi snapped out of it instantly, and the worry he felt before falling unconscious surged back.

“What is it? Why can it hurt you?”

Reasonably, they shouldn’t even be able to see Qing Zhu.

“Not sure.”

“Do you just not want to tell me?” Wuyi pouted, feeling discouraged. “You’ve been hiding everything from me lately. Do you think I’m useless and want to get rid of me?”

His current state was wrong; as soon as these topics were brought up, his eyes felt sore again.

Qing Zhu: “I didn’t say that.”

“But you did it. You followed Qin Sijin to the Qin house without saying a word to me. You snuck away. If I hadn’t gone looking for you, who knows what state you’d be in now.”

Wuyi sobbed, his fair little face flushed and hot from the room’s heating, looking exceptionally pitiful.

“You had business to attend to. I didn’t want to disturb you.”

He wasn’t sure if it was his imagination, but Wuyi felt like that sentence sounded a bit sarcastic.

“What do you mean?”

He tried to sit up but was wrapped in the soft quilt and couldn’t straighten himself. He could only lie back down, throwing a huffy tantrum.

“I was just chatting. Couldn’t you see I didn’t even know that person?”

Qing Zhu stopped talking.

“Anyway, it’s your fault.”

Qing Zhu remained silent, reaching out to help him pull the quilt straight.

To Wuyi, this action was a gesture of goodwill. He was never hard to coax by those he trusted, so he took this as a signal that Qing Zhu was softening the relationship.

“You’re not allowed to do that again, or I’ll never listen to you again.”

His voice was soft, with a slight post-crying nasal tone. No one could stay angry in this situation.

“Okay.”

Wuyi was satisfied now. “Then tell me, what exactly happened at the Qin house?”

Qing Zhu didn’t hide it any longer and briefly told him everything that happened.

“…”

By the time he finished, the horizon outside had turned pale—it was almost dawn.

Wuyi let out a big, tired yawn but ignored it, wiping his moist eyes as he hurriedly said, “You said your state felt wrong as soon as you got close to that woman? Is there something on her?”

Qing Zhu’s memory of that moment was also very faint. All along, other than the weakness caused by his unstable soul, he hadn’t received any other shocks, let alone such a powerful force.

He had finally recovered a bit of power and memory through the energy stored in the Fu family heirloom, but for him now, this was still just a drop in the bucket. He needed more.

After a moment of thought, he told Wuyi the truth.

“I can feel that that power is very similar to mine, but it consistently excludes me.”

“What does that mean?” Wuyi was a bit dazed. He tucked his chin into the soft quilt, blinking his eyes a few times before reacting. “You mean… is it possible they have something you gave them before? Like an amulet?”

“Probably.” Qing Zhu seemed a bit weary.

Wuyi became sour again. “You’ve never given me one. Our relationship isn’t deep enough, I guess.”

Qing Zhu: “…”

In any case, after this incident, the two were finally able to confirm that Qin Yifan’s family was the “Old Qin” mentioned in Fu An’s diary—one of the servants who stayed by Qing Zhu’s side before he fell into his long sleep.

With such progress, they should have taken the initiative, but Qing Zhu seemed to have been truly injured. For the next two days, he remained in a deep sleep to recover and didn’t appear.

Wuyi wanted to find time to ask about the Qin family, but he was afraid of involving Fu Liuye and Cen Yue too much and causing bad consequences, so he could only sneakily search online by himself.

To his surprise, Wuyi discovered that the old patriarch of the Qin family was actually still alive.

“Qin Donglin, the patriarch of the Qin family. He is elderly and has retired, leaving all industries to be managed by his only daughter, Qin Nianyu. The Qin Yifan and Qin Sijin we saw before are Qin Nianyu’s children—Qin Donglin’s grandson and granddaughter.”

In the evening, Wuyi happily shared his discovery with Qing Zhu, who had finally woken up.

Qing Zhu didn’t transform into human form but coiled around the lamp stand on the nightstand, watching the little guy on the bed, dressed in shorts and socks, lying on his stomach playing with his phone. His thin legs were swinging back and forth in a proud, attention-seeking posture.

He withdrew his gaze and released a wisp of black mist, which picked up a thin blanket and let it fall lightly, covering Wuyi’s body.

“What are you doing!”

Instead of praise, he got a blanket over his head. Wuyi huffily pulled the blanket off his head, about to get angry.

“The one I saw that day was Qin Nianyu.”

Hearing this, he couldn’t get angry anymore. He could only give a cold snort. “Then let’s not go looking for her, so as not to hurt you again. After all, you’re so fragile now.”

Looking at a photo of Qin Donglin’s birthday banquet from two years ago on the screen, Wuyi thought for a bit: “Then let’s go directly to him. He’ll definitely recognize you. We won’t even have to say anything then—we can just take back your things.”

“Not necessarily.”

“Why?”

“Can you be sure I look the same now as I did before?”

Wuyi was troubled. “How is that possible? But don’t you just look like this…”

He gestured to a large mass, still muttering about “black and blurry.”

Qing Zhu sighed. “I can’t go with you. If they have an amulet I left behind, it’s impossible for Qin Donglin not to have one on him.”

“You were too generous.” Wuyi pouted. “Then I can go myself. I’ll find an opportunity.”

He pondered this by himself, and before long, he pushed the matters he cared about to the back of his mind.

Qing Zhu didn’t have the energy to chat much with him and instructed him not to act rashly, falling back into a deep sleep shortly after.

Wuyi thought for a long time and planned a route using a map, preparing to find an opportunity to check the surroundings of the Qin house. After finishing his plan and relaxing, he received a message on his account.

Shen Yue: Are you free this Saturday? Our orchestra has a performance. Shen Yue: Sent a location

Wuyi’s eyes lit up. He immediately stated he was free. After asking if he could bring someone and getting a positive answer, he told Cen Yue the good news.

Cen Yue, naturally, agreed without a second thought.

Xie Jingchuan: Qin Yifan came to school.

Before the joy could dissipate from his heart, the appearance of this message made Wuyi’s heart jump instantly. He thoughtlessly told Xie Jingchuan to keep him there, but before the message could be sent, Xie Jingchuan called.

He answered, and the sound on the other side was very chaotic.

“Wuyi.” Xie Jingchuan’s voice was a bit hoarse. “Qin Yifan said he wants to talk to you and asked me for your contact information.”

Wuyi froze for a moment, about to agree.

“I feel like he’s not quite right. It’s better not to give it to him. Plus, he said he wants to talk to you in person.” Xie Jingchuan’s voice was clearly lowered, as if he were secretly tipping him off.

Wuyi sat up from the bed and quickly had an idea: “It’s okay, don’t give him my contact info either. Tell him to wait for me at the dessert shop. I’ll head over now.”

Xie Jingchuan was clearly hesitant: “He doesn’t come with good intentions. You’d better not meet him.”

“It’s fine. Remember to tell him, or I’ll have made a trip for nothing.”

Wuyi didn’t waste any more words. It would take some time for him to get there. He opened his wardrobe, preparing to find an imposing set of clothes to completely crush Qin Yifan with his aura!

After lingering for over half an hour, when he arrived at the dessert shop and saw Qin Yifan, Wuyi realized he actually didn’t need to dress so beautifully.

Qin Yifan sat by the window looking haggard. He hadn’t brought a single lackey. Instead, Xie Jingchuan was sitting opposite him. The two were silent, and the atmosphere was mysteriously awkward.

“Boss, what would you like to drink?” Wen Ya skipped over wearing her apron and greeted him.

“Give me a cup of hot cocoa.”

“Alright, it’ll be up soon.”

Wuyi sat beside Xie Jingchuan. Both men were startled and looked at him together.

Xie Jingchuan’s face was full of worry, while Qin Yifan’s gaze was very complex.

Taking off his soft down jacket, Wuyi wore a beautiful V-neck sweater inside, paired with the necklace Fu Liuye had bought him, making his already exquisite, straight collarbone line look even more beautiful.

“What do you want to say?” He asked proactively, taking control of the conversation.

An iced Americano was placed in front of Qin Yifan. He had drunk half of it. When he spoke now, his voice was hoarse.

“Apologize to you, what else? You’re quite capable—even my sister can be bought off by you.”

Wuyi pretended not to understand what he was saying. “You should apologize to Xie Jingchuan.”

Qin Yifan closed his eyes, clearly suppressing the urge to roll them.

“Fine, then I apologize to both of you. Sorry, okay?”

“No.”

Wuyi’s words angered Qin Yifan again. He glared over. “Don’t go too far. Is this really my fault? He was clumsy and broke my things—can’t I retaliate? Who told him to be poor? If he can’t afford to pay, can’t he only serve others like an ox or a horse?”

“…”

Wuyi saw Xie Jingchuan’s hand on the table slowly clench at those words, as if suppressing some emotion.

“I already said it wasn’t intentional. Besides, I never like touching other people’s things. It was you guys who insisted on showing me some video and handed the phone to me… I made sure Wang Hao had a steady grip before I let go. Who knew it would fall to the ground?”

Xie Jingchuan spoke with his head lowered, his tone not particularly strong. Although he tried hard to maintain his calm, Wuyi could still hear the grievance hidden within.

Qin Yifan gave a snort of laughter. “So it still has something to do with you?”

“Then why don’t you blame Wang Hao? It was clearly him who didn’t hold it steady.” Xie Jingchuan couldn’t help his anger.

Qin Yifan looked at him with surprise. “What kind of joke are you playing? Wang Hao is my friend. How could I blame him? Besides, he said you let go first when you handed it over. Now you’re using this reversed explanation—aren’t you just trying to shirk responsibility?”

“One is my friend, and one is someone I dislike. Which is more important? Do you dare say you’re completely blameless?”

“…”

Listening to their conversation, Wuyi felt like his head was about to explode.

Xie Jingchuan gritted his teeth tightly. “Then what about after that, when you let them bully me? I already said that once my part-time job money comes in, I would pay you back in installments. You insisted on making me work for you guys for a week, saying that would cancel the debt for the phone.”

“Yeah, so isn’t that a gain for you? Could you earn ten thousand yuan in a week by working?”

“You…”

Xie Jingchuan was clearly no match for the unreasonable Qin Yifan. His bloodshot eyes stared fixedly at the man opposite him, yet he could do nothing to him.

Everyone in the major knew that Qin Yifan’s family was wealthy. He was supposed to study abroad, but because he didn’t want to go, he came to this school.

Sitting on the side, Wuyi frowned as he listened.

“Xie Jingchuan,” he called out softly.

Xie Jingchuan snapped out of it, rubbing his stiff face before suppressing his anger and giving an “mhm.”

“Does your family not give you living expenses?”

Xie Jingchuan froze for a moment, not understanding why he suddenly asked this, but he still nodded. “My family’s conditions aren’t good. My living expenses are all earned by myself.”

“Then you’re working so hard. If you didn’t do part-time jobs, you wouldn’t even be able to top up your meal card.”

If Qin Yifan had said such words, Xie Jingchuan would definitely think it was mockery. But as Wuyi looked at him with those beautiful blue eyes, his tone serious, he couldn’t feel an ounce of anger.

“Yeah.”

The hot cocoa was served. Wen Ya also specially brought a portion of freshly made sliced cake.

Wuyi touched the side of the cup, wrapping his hands around the warm drink to heat them, before glancing at Qin Yifan opposite him.

“You see, some people are so childish. They think they’re being generous, but they’re so stupid they don’t even realize people need to eat.”

Xie Jingchuan was stunned, and Qin Yifan also realized at this moment that he was being subtly insulted.

His expression turned ugly. He instinctively wanted to say something but choked his words back when he thought of the scolding he received in the hospital these past few days.

“If you keep doing evil like this, your life won’t be long!”

His grandfather’s voice was old but sharp. Since he was a child, he trusted his grandfather the most. Now, he didn’t expect to hear such words from him.

Thinking of this, he actually forced back his resentment.

“Fine, I’ll count this as my lack of consideration. I won’t worry about that phone anymore. I’ll top up five thousand on your meal card as an apology, okay?”

“No need. I’ll pay you back the money.” Xie Jingchuan said with a cold face.

Wuyi blinked and said, “Is that phone completely unusable?”

“Just the screen is cracked,” Xie Jingchuan said.

Qin Yifan pouted. “I don’t use broken things. It’s so unlucky to have it right after buying it…”

“Enough.” Wuyi didn’t want to hear his complaining. “Repairing a screen doesn’t cost that much. If Xie Jingchuan really wants to compensate you ten thousand, then you should have the phone repaired and give it to him.”

“…”

That seemed to be the logic.

Qin Yifan didn’t want to bicker anymore and waved his hand. “Whatever. Anyway, I don’t want to owe you guys. I’ll still top up the meal card, and I’ll have Wang Hao apologize to you. After that, this matter is settled.”

“That won’t do.”

Hearing him still talking, the veins on Qin Yifan’s temples throbbed. He had lost his patience.

“What exactly do you want to do? Can you finish it all at once?”

Wuyi spread his hands, not feeling guilty at all. “What was just said was the compensation plan for Xie Jingchuan. Mine hasn’t been mentioned yet. Did you think it would end with just an apology to me?”

“What else do you want?”

“Mmm… you invite me to your house for a meal as an apology.”

Wuyi felt this arrangement was seamless.

But Qin Yifan’s face went cold after hearing this. “Don’t even think about it. It’s impossible for our family to set a banquet specifically to apologize to you.”

He didn’t care about himself—he was shameless outside—but these things definitely couldn’t be brought home. This was a major matter affecting family honor.

“When did I ask for such a big production? I just want to go to your house for a meal.” Wuyi saw his attitude change so quickly and felt puzzled.

Is it that exaggerated?

Qin Yifan said with a cold face, “In short, no. I can treat you to a meal outside, but you can’t go to our house.”

“What big secret does your family have? Is it necessary?” Wuyi said intentionally.

As soon as he finished speaking, he noticed a subtle change in Qin Yifan’s expression. Although it was quickly controlled, it was still captured by him.

“Don’t guess blindly here. How could I let my family worry about the trouble I cause outside? You can figure it out yourself.”

Wuyi: “You don’t have to talk about our matter. I’m just going for a meal.”

“I said no.”

Qin Yifan seemed to have no patience to talk to him anymore. He stood up abruptly, took his phone and keys from the table, and left.

Wuyi originally wanted to stop him, but the man was out the door quickly. Before he could even stand up, he could only lean back against the chair again.

Beside him, Xie Jingchuan hesitated for a long time before asking, “Why do you insist on going to his house?”

“Just curious.” Wuyi found a random excuse.

Xie Jingchuan didn’t know whether to believe him, but in short, he nodded and didn’t continue asking, saying instead, “I’ve been to Qin Yifan’s house before.”

“For real?” Wuyi became energized again after hearing this.

“Yeah. Wang Hao and the others forced me to go, but I only sat in the living room for ten minutes. His house is very big and luxurious.”

Wuyi had only seen it from a distance. “Is there anything interesting?”

“Interesting?” Xie Jingchuan didn’t seem to understand the meaning. It took a long time for him to think of one point. “There is one thing that’s quite strange.”

“Hmm?”

“His house is a villa, surrounded by green barriers. Logically, there should be plenty of light, but their house is always very dark… I can’t describe the feeling, it’s just a bit chilly. But his family seems used to it.”

Xie Jingchuan smiled somewhat awkwardly. “Maybe rich people’s ideas are different from ours.”

No, this is indeed not right.

Wuyi’s breathing gradually slowed. “Is it because their house is on the shady side?”

“It seems like that. Anyway, it’s just not right. It was a sunny day, but their house still had to have the lights on.” Speaking of this, Xie Jingchuan suddenly remembered something else. “By the way, Wang Hao and the others mentioned before that Qin Yifan’s house has a basement. They threatened me then, saying if I didn’t listen to them, they’d lock me in the basement, and no one would know if I died.”

As he spoke toward the end, his voice gradually lowered, clearly recalling that period again.

Wuyi couldn’t help but feel angry listening. “It’s okay. They won’t dare mess with you anymore. If they bully you again, just tell me.”

As he spoke, his eyebrows flowed with that proud self-satisfaction again, like a shining diamond, unsparingly releasing its light and charm.

The corners of Xie Jingchuan’s lips curled up unconsciously, and he nodded as if possessed.

“Do you think the Qin family is perverted? Building a basement at home, making the house pitch black—it feels so creepy. No wonder Qin Yifan is a psycho. Do you think they’ll know your identity and be unwilling to give you the things? What if they can use your abilities?”

The large concert hall was bustling with a full audience. Wuyi sat in his seat whispering, the little snake on his wrist moving slightly, though it was unclear if it heard his words.

“Qingqing, did you hear? I bet your body is definitely in their basement.”

Qing燭: “I know.”

“You aren’t curious at all…”

He was about to say more when Qing燭 suddenly interrupted: “Don’t you still need to take photos for the platform?”

“Oh, right!”

Wuyi snapped out of it, pulled his phone out of his backpack, found a suitable angle, and took a picture of the stage. He also took a picture of his hand resting on his knee, intentionally revealing the limited edition diamond-studded bracelet from Brand K on his cuff and the luxury backpack by his leg.

Then he lowered his head to edit the content.

Invited to a concert, really like this relaxing feeling

Click to publish. In less than half a minute, the phone screen lit up repeatedly. The likes and comments in the background gradually refreshed, soon surpassing a hundred likes.

So envious of this life The hand looks so good Eh? Is that Shen Yue performing? Are you a friend of Shen Yue? Your life, my dream

“Hum hum hum.” Wuyi exited the post with satisfaction, glancing at his skyrocketing follower count.

Since the day he attended the banquet, his account had suddenly gained a lot of heat. Every update he posted had one or two thousand comments, and his follower count had directly surpassed ten thousand.

Since discovering this, he had fallen in love with updating his status.

“Fu Liuye was right. My posts hadn’t entered the traffic pool before. Now that they’re running, everyone is giving me likes.”

He happily picked a few comments to reply to, not hearing Qing燭’s somewhat ironic light chuckle.

A performance ended, and applause erupted from the audience. Wuyi was still wanting more. Just as he stood up to leave with Cen Yue, an assistant approached them.

“Mr. Shen would like to invite you two to dinner together.”

Cen Yue knew that Wuyi and Shen Yue had chatted at the banquet. She didn’t show surprise at this moment, only turning to Wuyi with a smile.

“Do you have anything else to do this afternoon?”

Wuyi was actually planning to go play near the Qin house, but with an invitation from a new friend, he felt a bit embarrassed to refuse.

Before he could struggle for long, gasps sounded nearby. Looking up, he saw that Shen Yue had come out directly wearing his performance clothes.

The elegant man nodded with a smile to the surrounding guests, then walked straight toward Wuyi.

“Xiao Yi, Ms. Cen.”

Cen Yue also responded with a smile.

Shen Yue exchanged a few pleasantries with her before turning to Wuyi. “Is it inconvenient?”

Wuyi hesitated. “I don’t want to go out to eat today.”

Shen Yue explained, “It’s not going out. I wanted to invite you to my house. I just moved to a new place and was planning to invite a few friends to host a small party at home. I guessed you might like it, so I asked if you’d go.”

“Where is your house?”

Shen Yue gave a name.

Cen Yue reacted first, smiling. “The houses there aren’t cheap. Mr. Shen is young and promising.”

“Please don’t tease me. What does that count for in your eyes?” Shen Yue just smiled, his gaze never leaving Wuyi.

Wuyi wasn’t listening to their pleasantries at all. He lowered his head to search on his phone’s navigation and found that Shen Yue’s house and Qin Yifan’s house were actually very close. His eyes lit up instantly.

“Okay, okay! Are we going now?”

His attitude changed so quickly that Shen Yue was only surprised for a moment before nodding with a smile.

“I’ll go over after I change my clothes.”

Seeing this, Cen Yue said considerately, “I won’t join your young people’s gathering. Xiao Yi, come back earlier tonight and remember to report your safety to me.”

“Mhm mhm!”

Wuyi was taken to the backstage to wait. There were beautiful formal gowns hanging nearby, and he couldn’t help but look at them a few more times.

Shen Yue changed very quickly and soon took him back to his home.

Shen Yue’s sports car was very beautiful. Wuyi really liked the smooth lines on the front of the car. He toyed with the bracelet on his wrist, a bit unaccustomed to the sensation of it being warmed by his body temperature.

“Do you prefer eating sweets?” Shen Yue engaged him in conversation.

Wuyi didn’t hide anything. “I like all of them. I eat sour, sweet, and spicy, but I don’t like bitter things.”

Shen Yue glanced at him and smiled. “I can tell.”

This simple and clean boy even had water-blue irises that were different from ordinary people, like a pool of clear water that one could see to the bottom of at a glance.

He also seemed like the sweetest and most lovely existence, built from cakes and fruits.

Wuyi pulled out his phone, pulled up the front camera, and took a photo of himself and Shen Yue. He took two photos before remembering he should ask for an opinion.

“Can I take pictures?”

“You can.”

Taking advantage of the gap while waiting for a red light, Shen Yue even leaned over and made a gesture to the camera.

“So good-looking.”

Wuyi was very satisfied with these two photos. The sunset happened to fall on the tops of their heads, dyeing his pitch-black hair with a faint golden hue, which was very unique.

“Can I post this on my social platform?”

Shen Yue naturally had no objection and was even a bit flattered. “Of course.”

Wuyi smiled at him. His red lips and white teeth looked exceptionally good. Shen Yue was startled for a moment. Seeing the green light out of the corner of his eye, he had to focus on turning left, but the smile on his lips didn’t fully fade the whole way.

[Finished watching the concert, going to eat!]

Wuyi put a cat-head sticker over himself in the photo, only revealing below his neck, while Shen Yue beside him had no covering and was smiling very gently.

The army of comments arrived quickly.

My god, is this really Shen Yue? The blogger is too powerful! At first glance, I thought his face was shown. What a cute cat! Going to Shen Yue’s house for a meal? So envious!

Wuyi really enjoyed the praise and envy in these comments. After finishing the latest comments, he wanted to exit with satisfaction, but suddenly caught a new comment popping up.

So why hide the face? Could it be the blogger is actually an ugly person? chuckle

“…”

Wuyi was a bit angry. He wasn’t ugly at all.

Clicking on that comment, he started typing seriously, but before he could finish typing the words “protecting privacy,” he saw that comment being attacked.

Lmao, do you have X-ray vision to just say that? Why should a private person show their face? Or are you just salty from seeing the blogger is rich? chuckle In my view, all the parts the blogger revealed are proportionate and beautiful; he’s definitely not ugly. Instead, can you first delete the ‘looking for a rich lady’ marriage post and bare-chested photos on your homepage? I wonder if you’ll ask to be kept after discovering the blogger is good-looking? [chuckle

Wuyi was dumbfounded. Not long after, he saw that comment delete itself.

Lmao, finished reading the comments, nothing to add. Isn’t the blogger a man though? Why would that person ask the blogger to keep him? Maybe because the blogger is too pretty—after all, who could refuse a cutie who can make cakes? Yi Yi, we love you~

Yi Yi was Wuyi’s online name. Seeing the discussion starting in the comment section, he felt a bit embarrassed but couldn’t suppress the joy in his heart.

“We’re here.”

Shen Yue drove the car into the underground garage, turning his head to see Wuyi’s flushed cheeks. He was a bit curious. “What’s wrong?”

The matter was already resolved, and Wuyi didn’t want to cause him trouble, so he just shook his head. “It’s nothing.”

He pushed the door open and got out, seeing a very beautiful sculpture standing in the small garden. He couldn’t help but circle around and study it for a long time.

“So beautiful.”

Shen Yue parked the car and walked over, saying, “I chose these myself. This was shipped from France, a master’s work.”

As he spoke, he put his arm around Wuyi’s shoulder and took him upstairs for a tour.

When they had seen enough, Shen Yue’s other friends also arrived. They were all experts in musical instruments. Wuyi sat obediently on the side listening to them chat and was also very interested in the topics of past memories.

They chatted until eight-thirty. Wuyi was a bit sleepy but still remembered his official business, standing up to leave first.

Shen Yue was the first to notice him standing up and followed him without a second thought.

“Are you going back? I’ll have a driver take you.”

“No, I have to go to another place.” Wuyi was a bit conflicted, not knowing if he could tell him.

He couldn’t tell Fu Liuye and Auntie Cen because they knew exactly what he and Qing燭 were doing. As long as he made a request, it would definitely be related to those matters, which was called intervening in cause and effect.

But if they didn’t know… it should be fine.

Wuyi thought about it. Looking at Shen Yue’s gentle and serious expression, he still honestly showed him the location.

“I need to find someone here.”

Shen Yue had drunk a bit of wine. He leaned in now with a faint scent of alcohol, but it wasn’t unpleasant.

He squinted his eyes for two seconds and quickly said, “A-Mu lives right over there. I’ll ask him for you.”

After speaking, he called out into the house.

A man wearing a shirt and vest came out quickly. “What? Looking for me?”

After speaking, he looked at Wuyi again, tapping his shoulder with great interest, his finger accidentally brushing across his cheek.

“Is the little friend going back?” Seeing Wuyi nod, he smiled at Shen Yue again. “Where did you meet such a little friend? Too cute.”

Shen Yue said helplessly, “He’s my fan. You can’t be envious.”

“For real?”

A-Mu was about to say more, but Shen Yue interrupted him, handing the location to him.

“Do you live here? Xiao Yi needs to find someone there.”

A-Mu only took one glance. “Yeah, then I’ll take him.”

Seeing him take on the task, Shen Yue didn’t say more, only turning his head to ask Wuyi for his opinion. “Is that okay? Do you want me to go with you guys?”

“It’s okay. I’ll go by myself.”

Wuyi put his hands behind his back, looking like an obedient boy.

In fact, A-Mu was tall with a somewhat rugged appearance. He often scared children, so much so that when Wuyi—who looked no different from a child in his eyes—agreed so easily, it actually made Shen Yue feel a bit uneasy.

While Wuyi went in to put on his clothes, he whispered a few more instructions to A-Mu. After receiving a positive reply, he watched with relief as Wuyi skipped out of the yard and drove away in A-Mu’s car.

They entered the community very smoothly. Wuyi leaned on the window looking outside, quietly directing A-Mu on the route.

Before long, the car stopped outside the familiar yard. A-Mu poked his head out to look at the yard where lights were shining through.

“Is it here? I think I know this family. Is the surname Qin?”

“Yeah.”

Wuyi hesitated for a moment and turned his head to say, “Uncle, don’t get out with me. I’ll just look around outside myself.”

The smile on A-Mu’s face froze for a moment. “Un… uncle?”

“Thank you.”

Wuyi gave him a smile, then pushed the car door open and got out on his own, leaving the old-looking A-Mu frozen in the car.

Last time he came, Wuyi hadn’t studied this house carefully. With Xie Jingchuan’s reminder, he stood outside the yard and watched for a long time before discovering that the layout of this house was indeed quite special.

In a community with such high privacy, most would be made with wide floor-to-ceiling windows to ensure sufficient lighting, but the Qin family’s windows were very small and specially avoided directions with long sunlight hours.

At this moment, Wuyi stood outside the yard gate, looking up at that tall house. It was like a ghost standing in the darkness, showing that heavy sense of ominousness and death.

Qing燭 might be right. The Qin family seems a bit different from the Fu family.

A strong sense of unease rose in his heart, and his heart throbbed. His eyelid twitched, and he instinctively wanted to turn around and leave first.

Unexpectedly, as soon as he turned around, a car approached from a distance and stopped directly in front of him. The headlights shone directly in his direction, and someone pushed the door open and got out.

From the moment that person appeared, Wuyi’s heart rate surged. That strong premonition from when something happened to Qing燭 surfaced again, making him almost instinctively wary of the person before him.

He raised his hand to block his eyes. His gaze touched the half-bracelet dangling from his wrist, and that sense of urgency dissipated briefly for a moment.

He touched the bracelet, making sure that the sleeping Qing燭 wasn’t affected, before he felt relieved. He took a deep breath and stepped forward.

“Who are you?”