The Li family’s car had already arrived.
Just one door away, across the wide foyer, Su Fengxian was formally acknowledging an illegitimate child—
and that child was Su Pu.
Seated in the center of the sofa, Su Fengxian got straight to the point. He said that after watching him all these years, he believed Su Pu was a good kid.
He apologized for never giving Su Pu’s mother a proper place in the family back then. But as he spoke, his eyes flicked around, and he took a slow drag from his cigar.
“But… I haven’t treated you badly all these years, have I?”
Su Pu’s eyelids drooped as he stared at his feet.
The soles of his slippers were soft, already worn through at the toes of his thin white socks.
He shook his head.
“I still failed to give you a complete home.”
Standing, Su Fengxian approached him. His arms lifted slightly as if wanting to hug him, but he awkwardly folded them behind his back instead.
There was no basis for intimacy between them.
In the end, he slipped a jade bracelet onto Su Pu’s wrist.
“This was your mother’s.
She told me to give it to you on your wedding day, so you could put it on the girl you like…”
The afternoon sun flooded the reception room, gilding the edge of everything it touched. It lit Su Pu’s brown-tinged hair with a golden sheen.
Light settled between his eyelashes, and when he looked up, his eyes gleamed like glass catching the sun.
For a moment, Su Fengxian stared, stunned.
In those eyes, he could vaguely see the silhouette of the woman he’d nearly forgotten—Su Pu’s mother.
Mother and son were both heartbreakingly beautiful. Especially their eyes—pure yet dangerously enticing. Easy to fall for.
No wonder. If he hadn’t fallen for her, Su Pu would never have been born.
He only hoped the boy hadn’t inherited her stubborn streak as well…
“Ahem.” Su Fengxian cleared his throat. “This whole situation is unfair to you. I know that.”
“But you see, your father only has you and Huihui. Huihui’s still in grad school—he can’t be distracted with something like this…”
“Your mom passed early. You’ve been alone for so many years. This marriage—it doesn’t matter if it’s with a man or a woman—you’d finally have a home, right?”
Su Pu rubbed the smooth jade with his thumb. Then he pulled out his phone, typed a line, and showed it to him.
【You want me to marry Li Jichuan in Huihui’s place?】
Awkward laughter slipped out of Su Fengxian, and he didn’t deny it.
“The Lis had a master calculate our family’s compatibility! Don’t worry, I had someone check too. Your birth chart matches Li Jichuan’s even better than Huihui’s. You two are practically destined!”
A faint confusion flickered in Su Pu’s expression. After thinking for two seconds, he lowered his head and typed again.
Guilt prickled at Su Fengxian’s conscience. He couldn’t handle that innocent, clear gaze. He rushed on, mumbling excuses.
“Look, even though Li Jichuan can’t walk well right now, he’s still extremely capable. Otherwise he wouldn’t have climbed to that position at such a young age, right?”
“And he looks decent too. Maybe—maybe his temper is strange, but as long as you don’t provoke him, just go along with him a little, he shouldn’t make things hard for you… probably… probably not.”
After saying it aloud so many times, even he began doubting himself.
What kind of person Li Jichuan really was—he honestly couldn’t say for sure.
After all, the Su family’s position in the business world was far below the Lis’, and Li Jichuan had joined the family corporation straight after graduation. In just two or three years, he’d reached the upper ranks, his momentum impossible to ignore.
Rumors about him were endless—
that he was ruthless in business and demanded perfection from himself;
that despite becoming the general manager, he still trained and studied every day.
That he appeared restrained only because he was impotent, and thus harbored a twisted envy and destructiveness toward handsome young men, which was why the people around him were all older aunties and uncles.
That he was completely tone-deaf in romance, having been sent on nearly a hundred blind dates by his family—almost every respectable family in Yuncheng had tried.
And the best outcome was a polite rejection.
Many stormed out cursing him.
As for the car accident two years ago—the one that crippled his leg—people said he deserved it.
There was no shortage of suspects:
relatives, business partners, competitors, blind dates, and even the young men he’d fired without cause…
Anyone touched by his cold indifference could have snapped and gone to extremes.
The thought made Su Fengxian shiver.
If Su Hui married into that kind of nightmare, wouldn’t he be crying and threatening to die every single day?
Just imagining it made his heart ache.
And so, he had no choice but to acknowledge Su Pu, send him to Li Jichuan in Su Hui’s place, and conveniently push forward the cooperation between their families.
If the marriage actually went through, his company would have the Li family’s backing—and all he’d have to do was lie back and count the money.
Lost in his calculations, he finally noticed that Su Pu had finished typing.
The boy held the phone out.
【I agree.
But you can’t go back on your word.
Don’t interfere in my life again, and don’t come to my workplace.
You’ll disturb the others.】
So many no’s in one short message made Su Fengxian frown.
Su Pu was the fallout of his youthful indiscretion.
Really, it was that woman’s fault for being too beautiful—seductive enough to make him commit “the mistake any man would make.”
Coming from a well-off family, he was used to dealing with this sort of thing. He tossed her a sum of money and expected the matter to end there.
He never imagined that she’d misunderstand and stubbornly use that generous “compensation” to give birth to Su Pu.
And as fate would have it, almost at the same time, his lawful wife gave birth to a son.
Naturally, he refused to disturb his legitimate family’s harmony, and he crushed that woman’s hopes without hesitation.
She spiraled, her mental state fluctuating wildly. In that environment, Su Pu grew until the age of eight.
Whether due to malnutrition or a congenital issue, the next time Su Fengxian saw him, the boy couldn’t speak and had barely seen the world.
He would crouch in some dim corner, lips trembling, tears falling in fat drops.
Timid, obedient, docile—that was the extent of Su Fengxian’s impression of his illegitimate child.
So when did this kid grow a spine?
He was nothing more than a hidden mistake, and within half an hour of being acknowledged, he was already acting like some young master bargaining terms?
Su Fengxian’s face darkened; he let out a displeased grunt.
“I worked hard to find you such a powerful backer, and you’re acting wronged?”
Su Pu looked up at him with those round, gentle eyes—like a lost fawn.
“If you’re really that upset, then don’t marry.
And don’t come into this house again.
Just pretend none of this ever happened!”
At that, Su Pu’s gaze wavered anxiously. He quickly shook his head, bent over his phone, and tapped furiously.
A moment later, he held it up again.
Only three words remained on the screen.
【I agree.】
That satisfied Su Fengxian.
Truthfully, he didn’t expect Su Pu to do anything for the Su family. Sending him over was already doing the Lis a favor.
Given Li Jichuan’s personality, a naïve boy like Su Pu would be toyed with and broken within days.
His ending was unpredictable.
But the benefits to the Su family would be very real.
With that thought, Su Fengxian let go of his last shred of guilt and pushed Su Pu lightly on the shoulder.
Su Pu pocketed his phone, touched the bracelet again, and seemed about to ask something.
But Su Fengxian only gave a greedy, calculating smile and urged, “Go on.”
Su Pu never received a father’s embrace.
Walking out alone toward the entrance, he heard movement from the staircase behind him.
He hesitated and turned back, just in time to see Su Hui at the second-floor landing, freshly woken.
Su Hui rolled his eyes and grinned smugly—
He hadn’t expected their father to help him get rid of two troublesome burdens at once.
Su Pu stared up at him, his black-and-white eyes carrying a fleeting hint of amusement.
Then he turned away, opened the front door of the Su residence, and stepped into the waiting car.
The car soon exited the villa district, and the scenery along the road gradually became unfamiliar.
Sitting in the back seat, Su Pu felt his heartbeat quickening—an odd mix of nerves and excitement.
He couldn’t speak and had no way to vent his emotions. Whenever they surged too strongly, he recorded them in his phone’s memo app.
Now, he pulled out his phone and tapped rapidly, unable to stop the corners of his mouth from lifting.
He wrote:
【I’m getting married today.】
【Su Hui, don’t regret it.】
…
Li Jichuan’s residence was on the other side of the city. By the time they arrived, the horizon was already washed with deep blue.
The butler met him at the entrance of a sleek, modern high-rise and escorted him into the elevator, taking him all the way to the top floor.
“Mr. Li’s mobility isn’t great,” Uncle Wang explained as they walked. “He moved here early this year. It gives him a bit more freedom to get around…”
“This area is the lounge. But Mr. Li doesn’t like noisy environments. If you watch TV, please keep the volume low.”
“This is the dining area. All three meals are prepared by a nutritionist. Mr. Li eats lunch at the company, and the driver goes to pick it up. If you’re hungry, just use the intercom and they’ll prepare something for you…”
“Uh—” Uncle Wang suddenly paused, remembering that Su Pu was mute. “Or, well, you could send them a message instead. I’ll try to improve the intercom system later…”
Su Pu waved his hand and typed quickly.
【It’s fine. I rarely get hungry.】
“You still have to eat.”
【I can cook for myself.】
Uncle Wang blinked, but decided not to argue. He’d fix the system later.
After all, this was Mr. Li’s little spouse now—whether the young master liked him or not, they couldn’t treat him poorly. Li Jichuan’s reputation was already hanging by a thread.
They continued the tour—past the private theater, the recreation room, the office, the rehabilitation suite…
Only then did Su Pu truly understand how powerful Li Jichuan was. He had purchased the entire top floor of the building and broken through all the walls to create a massive, single-level living space.
So… where did Li Jichuan actually sleep?
Lost in thought, Su Pu didn’t even realize they had entered a bedroom. The butler’s words drifted faintly around him.
“This is the walk-in closet. We’ve cleared two sections for you. Mr. Li doesn’t like people touching his things—please be mindful…”
“And further in—” Uncle Wang’s voice slowed, hesitant.
But Su Pu was still spacing out, moving forward on instinct. The air around him grew warmer, carrying a fresh aquatic scent.
“Su—Mr. Su…”
Only when Uncle Wang’s nervous voice rose behind him did Su Pu sense something was wrong.
Where…where had he wandered into?
Warm steam curled around him. Flustered, he stumbled into a room—
and was met with a cold, sharply handsome face.
“Get out.”
The shout hit him like a blow. He jolted, wanting to retreat, but the more he tried to move, the heavier his legs felt.
His gaze flitted to the side—and he suddenly understood the anger.
The fierce-looking man wasn’t wearing clothes.
No wonder he wanted him out.
But—move, legs, move!!!
His body refused to obey.
Because the man in front of him wasn’t just anyone.
It was his husband—Li Jichuan.
Aaaaaaaaa!!
A completely naked Li Jichuan!!!
The sheer shock made his legs buckle, and he dropped to the floor.
And from that angle…
he had an unobstructed view.
The little mute forgot to breathe.
“…heh.”
Li Jichuan actually let out a laugh—half annoyed, half amused.
Su Pu stared up at him, stunned, meeting those pitch-black eyes. He instinctively hunched his shoulders.
“Not wasting time, are you? Going straight for the main point.”
Su Pu blinked.
Main point?
Me? What main point??
“If you’ve seen enough,” Li Jichuan drawled, “then come here and get the water on me…”
He paused mid-sentence.
Su Pu waited anxiously, lifting his chin a little, hoping for the rest.
A beat later, Li Jichuan’s lips curled, and his voice dropped into a chilling growl.
“Lick it clean.”
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