The Beta Wife Claimed by Competing Alphas - Chapter 48

“When you first came to find me, I was wondering…”

Shang Qiyue reached out and touched his face. Mu Yan hadn’t cried just now; his face was dry and warm.

“The young master of the Lu family in City A—why wouldn’t he even part with 150,000 yuan for you?”

Mu Yan’s heart felt as if someone had squeezed it hard, like a piece of rotten fruit. It ached terribly.

Shang Qiyue wasn’t entirely right. No matter how rich Lu Chong’s family was, he had no obligation to give him money.

But Lu Chong had everything: wealth, family, and a beautiful, gentle Omega partner of equal social standing.

Why did he spend three years stealing a bit of affection that was worthless to him? And why did he use a mere 150,000 yuan—a pittance to him—to prove how utterly insignificant Mu Yan was in his life?

Did he think… it was fun?

The dinners prepared in advance, the hot water left waiting, the concern that might have been seen as nagging—these things, though trivial to Lu Chong, were everything Mu Yan had to give.

If Lu Chong didn’t need them, why didn’t he just say so?

Mu Yan had thought… he had thought Lu Chong liked him and cared for him, even if only a little.

That was why he had poured his heart into the relationship and seriously planned a future with him.

Shang Qiyue tilted Mu Yan’s face up, revealing a face covered in tear tracks.

His eyes and nose were bright red, his eyes bloodshot, and tears fell uncontrollably.

“It wasn’t like that… I just wanted ten thousand from him. It was my own savings… I just wanted it back…”

Perhaps because it was someone else’s engagement banquet, Mu Yan cried with extreme restraint. Aside from his breathing being slightly more labored than usual, he made almost no sound.

Shang Qiyue listened to him for a long while. Mu Yan kept crying, and the man didn’t quite understand.

To Shang Qiyue, he shouldn’t have been particularly curious about such things. The fact that Lu Chong treated Mu Yan poorly was good for him. The fact that Mu Yan was crying over ten thousand yuan rather than Lu Chong himself was even better.

It was a strange feeling. This wasn’t the first time he’d seen Mu Yan cry, but this time felt different. Seeing Mu Yan cry himself into a mess made his own heart ache, as if it were being squeezed tight.

Mu Yan didn’t actually look beautiful when he cried.

The “beauty in tears” that artists sought was like Daiyu burying flowers—flushed corners of the eyes, eyes that didn’t swell, a single tear rolling slowly down the cheek.

Mu Yan was the opposite. He looked wretched. After Shang Qiyue pulled him into his arms, Mu Yan pressed his entire face against the man’s chest. His shoulders shook violently, and before long, his tears soaked Shang Qiyue’s lapel.

Even though the man in front of him had caused him to cry with that single sentence, he still clung to the culprit’s embrace as if seeking comfort.

So obedient, so pitiable.

Shang Qiyue was enveloped in a sense of inexplicable pleasure. He held Mu Yan like a child, patting his shoulder to soothe him.

“Baby, good baby. Cry if you want to.”

They leaned together, looking no different from any other pair of lovers.

Lu Chong seemed to glance over here casually.

His gaze was cold and detached, as if he were indifferent to everything. He looked no different from the young master Shang Qiyue had known before.

He really can keep his composure, Shang Qiyue thought.

“Shall I get revenge for you? I’ll call him to the guest lounge on the second floor and make him pay back that ten thousand with interest. There’s champagne here; you can splash it on him. I’ll take responsibility for whatever happens.”

Mu Yan lay in his arms, his shoulders shaking slightly.

The world seemed separated from him by a thick wall. He couldn’t get out, and others’ voices reached him only as a blur.

His head was heavy; he felt dizzy from crying.

Shang Qiyue was exceptionally patient at this moment, gently patting Mu Yan’s shoulder and continuing to coax him.

Mu Yan gradually stopped crying. Shang Qiyue looked over his shoulder and triumphantly met Lu Chong’s gaze in the distance.

The man’s fury was on the verge of tearing through his cold, elegant facade. The veins on his hand holding the wine glass bulged, as if he were about to crush it.

From their brief encounters at various events, Shang Qiyue had an impression of Lu Chong as someone who cared deeply about face and was very possessive.

And then? Shang Qiyue thought leisurely.

Will he leave behind a puddle of red wine that looks like blood?

He gently stroked the head of the man in his arms. Mu Yan looked up, his eyes swollen from crying.

“Is Baby feeling better?” Shang Qiyue asked softly.

“I’m sorry, Sir. Did I ruin your mood today? You… probably shouldn’t have brought me.”

Mu Yan felt guilty and self-reproachful toward Shang Qiyue, never suspecting that this might have been the man’s intention all along.

“How could you?” Shang Qiyue smiled and stroked his head, offering gentle comfort. “As long as you look forward and move on, it’s fine. It’s normal to meet a few rotten people when you’re young. Even Edison experimented thousands of times before he found the right filament.”

“What did you say to me while I was crying… I didn’t quite hear it. You…”

Stifling his cries had strained Mu Yan’s voice. Having cried so hard for so long, his throat was now raspy.

“Drink some water first.” Shang Qiyue was in no hurry. He called a waiter over to pour a glass of hot water.

Mu Yan took a few sips, and his throat felt a bit better.

“I was saying,” Shang Qiyue looked at him and spoke slowly, “shall I get revenge for you?”

Mu Yan was stunned, seemingly not understanding Shang Qiyue’s meaning.

“Don’t you want that ten thousand back? He was so mean to you. Don’t you want to punch him? At the very least, splash a glass of champagne on him.”

Hearing this, Mu Yan lowered his head and thought for a long time.

Revenge?

He did want it.

He wasn’t made of clay; he had a temper too. He wanted to vent his dissatisfaction at Lu Chong without restraint, just as Lu Chong had lost his temper with him countless times in the past.

After crying for so long, his face was pale. He stood frozen, his fingers clutching the hem of his clothes, his lips trembling slightly. After more than a minute, he shook his head at Shang Qiyue.

“Thank you, Sir, but I…”

“Don’t worry about causing me trouble,” Shang Qiyue interrupted immediately, assuming Mu Yan was afraid of being a nuisance. “It’s no trouble at all. Mingkang does physical business, and his family does finance. My family doesn’t have much business dealings with theirs. Besides, in matters between juniors, Lu Chong might be too embarrassed to tell his family anyway. It won’t have any impact.”

But Mu Yan still shook his head.

“Thank you, Sir. But… no need.”

Shang Qiyue’s expression instantly turned cold.

Mu Yan saw the change in his face and froze.

He knew Shang Qiyue was angry.

He was actually quite afraid of Shang Qiyue’s anger.

“What? Still harbor feelings for him? Can’t bear to do it?” Shang Qiyue sneered.

Mu Yan wanted to explain, but Shang Qiyue’s cold face didn’t give him a chance.

“You might harbor feelings, but he might not. See that? He’s already on a blind date with an Omega. Does he even remember who you are?”

The man’s expression was grim, his eyes filled with undisguised anger.

“…It’s not that I can’t bear to. I just feel that now… now isn’t appropriate.”

“Giving yourself to someone for free for three years and not even daring to ask for your own ten thousand back—with a spineless personality like yours, it’s no wonder he doesn’t take you seriously.”

Mu Yan had wanted to explain, but hearing this, he suddenly snapped his head up. His pupils constricted, and his face went completely white.

His throat felt as if it were stuffed with cotton, and his heart contracted sharply. It was incredibly painful.

After the words left his mouth and he saw Mu Yan’s pale face, Shang Qiyue felt a twinge of regret.

When he had mentioned Lu Chong to Mu Yan before, he had always referred to him as his “ex-boyfriend.”

In Mu Yan’s mind, his relationship with Lu Chong wasn’t like his relationship with Shang Qiyue—a transaction, a benefactor and a canary.

But what was the difference? Would Lu Chong really have treated him like a future wife? Wasn’t he just telling the truth?

“I’m not…” Mu Yan lowered his eyelashes, his voice low. He took a deep breath, as if finally gathering his courage. “I just feel that today… today is someone else’s engagement banquet…”

“It only happens once in a lifetime; it’s a very important day. He’s still the bride’s brother. The bride certainly wouldn’t want something like that to happen, even if it’s not in the main hall…”

Shang Qiyue stared at Mu Yan for a few seconds. When he finally realized what Mu Yan was worried about, he nearly laughed out of frustration.

Mu Yan meant that if it were him, he wouldn’t want anything less than perfect to happen at his own engagement banquet.

Would Lu Zhi and Fu Jiayan care about that?

They only cared if the dignitaries they invited showed up, and whether the media’s framing and headlines highlighted their partner while downplaying themselves.

The number of lovers those two had kept over the years could form a football team.

He really wanted to crack open Mu Yan’s head to see what was inside. Did he really think those two were like a couple in a novel who had finally found their happy ending?

The reason was so stupid. If anyone else had said it, Shang Qiyue would have thought they were playing him, using such a lame excuse to put him off.

But the person across from him was Mu Yan. Shang Qiyue just wanted to uninstall all the romance novel apps on Mu Yan’s phone immediately.

Shang Qiyue looked at the side of his face. His eyes darkened for a moment, then he suddenly laughed. He reached out and stroked Mu Yan’s hair, his movement unexpectedly gentle.

“So stupid.”

Shang Qiyue said this in a tone that was intimate and nonchalant.

As long as it’s not because he can’t let go of Lu Chong, it’s fine. Let him be a bit dim.

Mu Yan trembled at the sudden intimate gesture. He felt a bit hurt by what Shang Qiyue had just said.

But he had no right to lose his temper in front of Shang Qiyue. So, he said nothing and simply leaned obediently into Shang Qiyue’s hand.

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