The Wealthy Old Man Carried a Child After His Divorce - Chapter 2

Ye Lang’s fingernails were sharp. Even after treatment, a mark remained on Louis’s face, so Bai Yifeng had no choice but to apply a bandage for him.

“Does this clash with your style?” Bai Yifeng asked apologetically. Louis touched the bandage on his face and said calmly, “As long as it does not affect my work, it is fine. Thank you, Mr. Bai.”

He originally wanted to tell Bai Yifeng that there were medical robots in the manor, but it seemed Bai Yifeng’s handiwork was slightly better than a machine’s. Louis did not want to brush off his kindness, so he swallowed his words.

After packing the first-aid kit, Bai Yifeng asked out of the blue, “When will Fang Yang be back?”

“Mr. Bai, the Eldest Young Master usually does not spend the night at the ancestral home,” Louis replied hesitantly. Just as he thought Bai Yifeng was about to start acting sentimental and tearful again, Bai Yifeng clapped his hands and said, “Take me to the printing room first.”

Although Louis did not know why Bai Yifeng had not relapsed into his usual behavior after asking about Fang Yang, his professional habits led him to obey. He brought Bai Yifeng to the printing room, which Bai Yifeng realized looked more like an organized storage room.

It made sense. Bai Yifeng glanced down at the serial number on his wrist. This was clearly a high-tech era; printers were likely considered ancient relics.

Even if it was an antique, it was a model Bai Yifeng had never seen. However, relying on his years of experience as a corporate drone, he quickly figured out how to use it. Under Louis’s guidance, he began typing and sending text to the printer. Hearing the familiar mechanical whirring, Bai Yifeng asked nonchalantly, “What is the date today?”

“Today is October 17th, Star Calendar Year 5103,” Louis answered instantly without checking. Bai Yifeng suppressed the urge to praise his professionalism and nodded. “I see. Are there any major events lately?”

“No,” Louis replied, his tone suddenly stiffening. Bai Yifeng sensed he was hiding something, but he did not care. The printer dinged and produced several pages. Bai Yifeng quickly gathered them, confirmed there were no errors, asked Louis for an envelope, and handed the sealed documents back to him. “Put this in the most conspicuous place possible.”

“What is Mr. Bai planning to do?”

“Just leave it there. Do not open it,” Bai Yifeng thought to himself. Even if the smart-brain technology was convenient, he could not bring himself to call Fang Yang. This direct method was better.

He had prepared a divorce agreement. He wanted no compensation other than money. He knew that regardless of the amount he asked for, Fang Yang would likely give more just to save face. Fang Yang was obsessed with his reputation, which was one of the few traits Bai Yifeng actually remembered about him.

Louis had no choice but to comply. He took the file to the first-floor living room and placed it on the most prominent coffee table. He then noticed Bai Yifeng had followed him down and was sitting on the sofa, scrolling through news on a floating holographic screen.

Louis did not know the cause of Bai Yifeng’s strange behavior today, but at least he had not caused trouble yet. Based on his knowledge of Ye Lang, the boy would not tell Fang Yang about his encounter with Bai Yifeng, especially since today was the day that person returned from the military.

Fang Xu was Fang Yang’s younger brother. One brother handled business and politics to manage the family, while the other joined the military to protect the country; both earned a prestigious reputation for the Fang family. Fang Yang could ignore Ye Lang, but he could never ignore Fang Xu. His younger brother was his only weakness.

Bai Yifeng had picked up fragments of this from the news. He watched an interview video of an Alpha standing next to Fang Yang. This man looked more heroic and bright than his older brother. Bai Yifeng did not linger on the image; to him, the two looked almost identical. He preferred to use the time to learn more about the settings of this world.

The Star Calendar Louis mentioned followed rules similar to the modern world. Weeks, months, and years were basically the same, but the holidays were entirely foreign. He noted a few dates that seemed important based on their names and clicked back to the news feed, where a notification popped up.

Bai Yifeng mused that this world was not so different from his own. Push notifications were still a thing. He expected entertainment gossip, but the character “Fang” caught his eye. The news stated that the Fang family patriarch’s 370th birthday was approaching. All descendants would return to the ancestral home to celebrate. The article mentioned Fang Yang’s pitiful original spouse, Bai Yifeng, but he ignored the commentary.

His eyes were fixed on the words “370 years old.”

“Louis, how old are you?” Bai Yifeng asked, his voice trembling slightly.

Louis paused before answering, “Mr. Bai, I will be sixty in two months.”

Bai Yifeng forced himself to swallow the question “What about me?” and began searching for age-related information. Although different galaxies and races calculated age differently, the average lifespan here was five to six hundred years.

Five to six hundred years! Did that mean he had to work for another five centuries? Bai Yifeng nearly blacked out at the thought. Fortunately, Louis interrupted his spiral. “Does Mr. Bai think we look the same age?”

“Oh, yeah,” Bai Yifeng replied blankly.

“Mr. Bai is only thirty-six. You are in the prime of your youth.” Louis might have been comforting him or using a metaphor; Bai Yifeng’s brain was too overwhelmed to process it. Since he and Fang Yang were childhood friends, he could confirm Fang Yang was also in his thirties. The younger brother appeared to be in his early twenties.

Once he had mapped out these relationships, Bai Yifeng relaxed, and his stomach immediately growled. Louis said, “I will prepare a meal for you.”

“No need, I want to eat out today,” Bai Yifeng said hesitantly, adding, “Is that okay?”

“Of course. I will go prepare the car.”

Watching Louis leave, Bai Yifeng realized that the statement “you can do as you please here” was actually true. Fang Yang likely kept him at the ancestral home to stay away from him while maintaining the persona of a good husband to the public. But if he hated seeing him that much, why was his movement not restricted? Was he not afraid they might accidentally run into each other? Bai Yifeng could not figure it out.

“The car is ready. Where would Mr. Bai like to dine?” Louis’s voice came from the door. Bai Yifeng turned to see a strangely shaped vehicle. Bai Yifeng walked around the object. It was rounded and smooth, with no visible seams for a door. He dared to act this way because he figured the original Bai Yifeng, who had trapped himself in the manor, probably had not gone out in a car much.

Louis did not suspect him. Instead, he carefully explained how to open the door and the safety precautions. There seemed to be no chauffeur, so Louis acted as the driver and repeated his question. Being new to the area, Bai Yifeng had no idea where to go, so he let Louis decide. Louis set the coordinates, and Bai Yifeng realized the car was self-driving.

He could not help but stare at the back of Louis’s head. Was this man accompanying him for safety or for surveillance? He felt irritable. This made him want to leave even more. He needed to find a way to remove the serial number and the smart-brain, though he suspected Fang Yang would not even care where he went. Just as he did not care if Fang Yang was dead or alive, as long as he stayed at the ancestral home, the world would view Fang Yang as a devoted husband.

Louis brought him to a high-end nutrition club in the center of the main city. Bai Yifeng was still a bit groggy when he got out of the car. He realized that while Fang Yang wanted him far away, he had not realized how far the drive took nearly two hours, during which he had napped.

“That place next door is…” Before entering, Bai Yifeng looked at the bustling shop next to the club. The sign was written in a messy script he could not read. Louis glanced at it and said, “That is a bar. Mr. Bai, it is best if you do not go inside.”

Bai Yifeng nodded, thinking to himself that he definitely had to check it out. The nutrition club was too quiet for an escape; a bar was the perfect place to disappear into a crowd. He had left the divorce papers at the house. Fang Yang would see them eventually. He had already signed them; as long as Fang Yang signed, the agreement would be valid. Bai Yifeng bet that he would.

Bai Yifeng wanted to run away and vanish quietly. He would find a place, get a job, and wait for the compensation money to hit his account so he could enjoy these several hundred years of life.

“Hey, isn’t that the car from the ancestral home?” Ye Lang stepped out of another vehicle and pointed it out to Fang Yang. The latter, however, was focused on discussing news with his brother, Fang Xu, and did not hear him. Ye Lang bit his lip, looked at the nutrition club next to the bar, and sent Fang Yang a message saying he was going to grab a snack before heading inside.

Inside, Bai Yifeng had just sat down. While Louis was ordering, a service robot poured him a drink. Its mechanical female voice wished him a pleasant meal. Fascinated, Bai Yifeng took a sip. It was a mango-flavored drink, not too sweet. It seemed he could get used to the flavors here; there were no bizarre alien foods as he had feared.

“Mr. Bai, the meal will be ready shortly.” Louis walked in and stood beside him, seemingly not intending to join. At Bai Yifeng’s insistence, he reluctantly sat down. Bai Yifeng had wanted to order alcohol to use as an excuse to leave, but Louis did not give him the chance. The meal was pleasant enough. To Bai Yifeng, this was his last meal as someone connected to Fang Yang. According to his plan, he needed to find an opening to slip away.

“I am going to the restroom,” Bai Yifeng said, wiping his mouth. “You do not need to follow. I will just get some fresh air at the door and come right back.”

Louis stood up to follow, but Bai Yifeng pressed him back down and promised, “I will be right back. I will not even go for air, okay?”

Louis did not insist further and watched him walk toward the restroom. Just as Louis was about to sit back down, he spotted Ye Lang standing at the entrance, peeking toward their table. Louis sensed something was wrong and immediately followed after Bai Yifeng, but after searching the restroom, he could not find a trace or even the scent of the Beta.

At that moment, Bai Yifeng was not feeling great either. His plan seemed to have hit a snag. There was something wrong with the food. The Beta leaned against a wall and took several deep breaths, but he could not calm the rising heat in his body. He did not know who would drug him, so he chalked it up to bad luck. He was just glad he had climbed out of the restroom window where no one would notice him hiding.

Just as he thought this, a sweet, floral scent drifted under his nose. A string in the Beta’s mind snapped, and he instinctively followed the fragrance. It was evening, and the sunset was blooming across the sky. Many people were taking photos with their smart-brains; no one noticed an unremarkable Beta staggering past the bar’s entrance and stumbling over the threshold.

Fang Xu tugged at his collar and looked back impatiently at Ye Lang, who was clinging to Fang Yang. The brothers should not have come here, but Ye Lang had insisted on dancing, and Fang Xu did not want to ruin his older brother’s mood. He hated places like this, just as he disliked Ye Lang.

A tall, thin figure flashed through his mind. Fang Xu grimaced, but then a wave of heat pressed against his arm. He looked down and met the dazed eyes of Bai Yifeng. Both were stunned. Bai Yifeng was wondering why this person looked so much like Fang Yang yet lacked the repulsive aura. The floral scent on him smelled so good.

“You are Sister-in-law?” Fang Xu grabbed the man before he could slide to the floor. Bai Yifeng let out a pained moan. Fang Xu leaned in and first smelled a scent of wood, the specific scent of the ancestral home, mingled with the unique, inherent fragrance of a Beta.

Fang Xu’s breathing became unsteady as he finally heard what Bai Yifeng was whispering: “Help, help me.”

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