“Knock knock.”
“Get out of the car!”
He Xing looked up to see a young traffic officer outside, staring at her seriously.
She rolled down the window. Seeing her red eyes, he choked on the lecture he was about to give. Dryly, he said, “If you really want to cry, find a parking lot. Crying on the roadside is dangerous, and parking is prohibited here. Follow traffic rules, and also—get out and pay the fine.”
He Xing forced her tears back. Stepping out, the officer glared at her feet. “High heels while driving? Trying to waste points on your license?”
“Oh… I forgot to change. I have backup shoes, can you forgive me once?” He Xing wiped her tears and bent down to fetch flats from the car.
The young officer was stunned by her sudden change in expression. Coming to his senses, he sternly lectured her for three minutes, then deducted two points and fined her three hundred. Only after she swapped heels for flats was she allowed to go.
Returning home, Lu Xianqing was eating—a mere bit of milk.
Anning sat beside him, trying to make him laugh with a cat. Occasionally, he smiled, but it was bittersweet. He Xing drew deep breaths, forcing a faint smile.
“Oh, having a meal?”
Lu Xianqing looked up at her. She explained the orphanage situation and, along the way, recounted her humiliating traffic encounter, slamming the fine on the table. “Reimburse this.”
Lu Xianqing smirked. “Why drag me into your traffic ticket? He Xing, come on, make sense.”
He Xing pulled up a chair. “Make sense? Ask Jiang Zhen how reasonable you are now. Endorsements canceled, TV shows and variety programs terminated, even Weibo blocked—you’re socially dead.”
Lu Xianqing took a sip of milk, his voice calm. “Isn’t he supposed to be in poor mental condition? I sent him abroad for recuperation. Starting today, he doesn’t even need to attend work—this is for his own good.”
He Xing felt a chill run down her spine. Lu Xianqing’s temperament was usually difficult, but he rarely held grudges. If he had, Qin Sizheng wouldn’t have survived in the entertainment industry when he clashed with him back then.
Jiang Zhen, however, had crossed his bottom line.
At that moment, Jiang Zhen was completely stunned, still screaming as two men hoisted him onto a private plane. “You’re illegally detaining me! This is human trafficking! You’re criminals! I’m calling the police! I’m calling the police!”
One of the men’s voices was cold. “Didn’t you get your visa ready to go abroad for recuperation yourself, Mr. Jiang?”
The other added, “He’s mentally unstable. Hold him down, don’t let him lose control.”
Jiang Zhen struggled desperately. “I’m not sick! I want to see Lu Xianqing! Let me see him!”
“Who’s Lu Xianqing? We don’t know him. We were just hired by your family to accompany you… until your last day,” one man said as he shut the cabin door. The plane took off.
All of Jiang Zhen’s last flicker of hope was snuffed out. He despaired—had Lu Xianqing bought off his family? Threatened them? They hadn’t even told him about this!
He finally understood how terrifying Lu Xianqing could be. Destroying someone was as simple as crushing an ant.
He should have realized it earlier, back when Lu Xianqing quietly eliminated Sheng Yu and took away Qin Sizheng’s freedom. Confronting him head-on was only courting disaster.
Jiang Zhen raged at the original story. Had it not been for that cursed book, he wouldn’t have been so obsessed with obtaining Lu Xianqing!
Wasn’t he supposed to be the protagonist?
Where does a protagonist get mercilessly exiled by another protagonist, without even a glance?
Reborn this time, he felt it would have been better not to have been reborn at all.
He Xing watched him finish half a cup of milk. “What did he eat today?”
Anning gestured—just this little milk.
Lu Xianqing stared at the red marks on his wrist, lost in thought. He Xing knew what he was thinking and urged gently, “There’s still a chance. Give Sizheng some time. Trust that he trusts himself too—he didn’t love the wrong person.”
Lu Xianqing lowered his gaze, lashes casting shadows over a deep melancholy. He hadn’t loved the wrong person, but Qin Sizheng had.
“And… Wen Li is still Sizheng’s mother. Should we tell him?” He Xing left the second half unsaid, but after years of working together, Lu Xianqing knew what she meant.
Mother and son are connected, and with this latest development, if Qin Sizheng sided with Wen Li, it would be even harder for him to handle.
“No need to tell him.”
He Xing wanted to argue further but was cut off when Anning arrived with a phone. “Fourth brother, a call from Director Ye.”
Lu Xianqing accepted and swiped to answer. Ye Xu’s smiling face appeared. “My dear son, what are you up to? In a few days is your grandfather’s birthday banquet. Bring Sizheng home for dinner, okay?”
Lu Xianqing had forgotten; this reminder brought it back.
Ye Xu continued cheerfully, “Should I have Yalusi design matching outfits for you two? If someone takes photos, it’ll look nice… nah, too formal. It’s not like a party school. Casual clothes work. Sizheng in a white shirt and jeans would look fresh and youthful. You can just wear anything.”
Lu Xianqing couldn’t bring himself to say that he and Qin Sizheng might have already ended things. But he also couldn’t hide it for long. When Ye Xu went on and asked, he said, “Mom, Sizheng is busy with work. Next time we’ll bring him back.”
Ye Xu frowned slightly. “Work so urgent? Can’t even take a half-day?”
“He can’t. The whole crew would have to pause. Don’t let people gossip. I promise, we’ll go see grandfather when we can.”
Though slightly disappointed, Ye Xu accepted the explanation. “Alright. Oh, by the way, I’m going on a business trip to Jiangcheng in a few days. Take Sizheng out for a meal. There should be time, right? Also, your gift should arrive in the next couple of days. Have Anning receive it.”
Lu Xianqing’s escape route was blocked. He could only say, “We’ll see.”
After hanging up, He Xing looked worried. “If Director Ye comes over, it might be hard to keep things hidden.”
“Maybe there’s still hope,” Lu Xianqing muttered to himself. At that moment, his phone lit up with a message from Yan Yan.
He fumbled and dropped it.
He Xing’s face went pale, incredulous. Could it really be that precise?
Anning bent down and handed the phone back. He Xianqing’s hands shook so much that he couldn’t hold it steadily. Several attempts failed to unlock the screen. His eyes reddened, pupils trembling.
He didn’t dare open the message.
Had Qin Sizheng finally decided to break up with him, or had he decided to accept him again? For the first time, Lu Xianqing felt like a coward, unable to even glance at a single message.
He couldn’t. He was afraid of losing.
He would rather endure this silent war than hear that Qin Sizheng had chosen to leave him entirely.
He Xing helped unlock the phone and saw the brief message:
[Happy Birthday.]
She froze slightly. Had it been sent by mistake? Didn’t Qin Sizheng already celebrate his birthday?
“He must have forgotten… oh, I made you confused.”
Lu Xianqing had lied to Qin Sizheng about his birthday before, letting him cook a meal and teasing him. In reality, today was his real birthday.
No wonder Ye Xu mentioned a gift. She had thought it was for a wrap-up celebration, not his actual birthday.
In the brief pause, Lu Xianqing suddenly rose, rushing out. His steps were frantic, chest pounding with the urge to see him, nearly exploding—the four words almost unbearable in their brevity.
He Xing called after him, “Fourth brother! Where are you going?”
At the door, her voice pulled him back to reason. Yes, where was he going? Perhaps Qin Sizheng was only following his kind instincts, saying a simple “Happy Birthday.”
He lowered his gaze at the red marks on his wrists, reminders of the handcuffs. The memory of agreeing not to seek him yet again made seeing him now all the more painful.
Suddenly, the sound of an engine stopped outside the door, and a young boy wearing a mask stepped down from the vehicle.
Lu Xianqing gripped the doorframe, his eyes red and brimming with tears, staring at the boy walking toward him against the sunlight. It was as if the light itself wrapped around him. When the boy reached him, Lu Xianqing pressed his lips into a small smile, forming two dimples.
“Fourth Brother.”
His eyes burned, tears swelling instantly, blurring the boy before him. He bit down hard, tasting the metallic tang of blood.
Qin Sizheng, seeing him almost in tears, called again, bewildered: “Fourth Brother?”
Before his voice even fell, Lu Xianqing had pulled him into a firm embrace, so strong it felt like being slammed against a mountain wall. His chin hit Lu Xianqing’s shoulder, sending a sharp pain through his chest.
Qin Sizheng felt the man’s restrained trembling, as though he was holding something precious he had regained. Soon, even Lu Xianqing’s neck was wet—he must be crying.
“Fourth Brother, can you let go? You’re holding me so tight I can’t breathe.”
Lu Xianqing’s back stiffened. Afraid of scaring him away, he finally loosened his grip and stepped back, his voice still thick with emotion. “Have you… figured it out?”
Qin Sizheng blinked. “Figured out what?”
Lu Xianqing didn’t press. “It’s fine. Take your time… just think it through, it’s okay.”
Qin Sizheng nodded and noticed He Xing and Anning standing behind him. He gave them a shy little greeting. Anning had already started crying; He Xing forced a small smile.
“Fourth Brother, are you upset? Did I suddenly come and disturb you? If so, I can come another day…” Qin Sizheng’s voice was tentative.
“Not disturbing.”
Still unsure, Qin Sizheng watched as Lu Xianqing turned his head, regulating his breathing. Nervously, he said, “Last time you said you wanted to eat something I cooked. Since it’s your birthday and I have time today, I made a meal for you… and I brought a cake. I hope you like it.”
Lu Xianqing finally noticed the small paper box he was holding—pink and blue, from the Songluo Pastry Shop.
He Xing, though still uneasy about the situation, thought it was a good sign that Qin Sizheng had come to see him. “You two talk. I have things to do, so I’ll leave first.”
Anning was pulled along as well.
Lu Xianqing closed the door, took the cake from Qin Sizheng, and placed it on the table, fighting the urge to hug or kiss him, forcing his expression to appear calm.
Qin Sizheng glanced around and was suddenly bumped by a black object. Startled, he stumbled back two steps before realizing it was a cat.
“Yanyan!”
“Ah?”
Lu Xianqing’s expression briefly stiffened, knowing he didn’t like that nickname. He picked up the cat from Qin Sizheng’s arms, holding it awkwardly while clearing his throat.
Qin Sizheng didn’t get upset; instead, he poked the cat’s head.
“It’s so ugly,” he teased, laughing with the cat. Lu Xianqing watched him.
The air seemed to freeze. When Qin Sizheng noticed Lu Xianqing’s lingering gaze, he turned away quickly. “Fourth Brother, can you not look at me like that?”
He reverted to the formal “you,” creating an invisible distance, signaling a subtle refusal. Lu Xianqing’s chest ached, but he forced a forgiving smile.
“Alright, not looking. Fourth Brother won’t look.”
He suppressed all his emotions, turned with the cat, and led him into the kitchen. Back turned, he said, “Just cook whatever you like. I’m not picky.”