Chapter 21

Xiao Yi let out a sigh of relief after venting his frustrations at the bar. He returned home, took a shower, and lay down on his bed. As he looked up, he noticed the dolphin toy on his bedside table.

Oh right, Fu Yu had slept on this bed before…

When Fu Yu slept, his usually sharp features softened, perhaps because his cold gaze was closed. His long eyelashes brushed against his fair skin, which had a faint blush. It happened once when he was drunk and another time when he had a fever. He lay on this bed, all soft and cozy, with a slight flush from his ears to his nose, but the most flushed were his thin lips, slightly parted as he breathed, revealing a glimpse of his tongue…

Xiao Yi couldn’t help but touch his own lips with his fingertips, feeling a slight warmth, as if he had absorbed the temperature of those thin lips. His body heated up, and his mind started to wander.

Twenty minutes later, he decided to take another shower.

Returning to his bedroom, he used a towel to dry his hair and sent a message to Fu Yu on his phone:

“[Have you had dinner? If not, I can bring you something.]”

Fu Yu replied quite quickly, his tone still cold: “[I’ve eaten, no need.]”

Reality and fantasy were indeed quite different.

Xiao Yi thought for a moment and decided to soften his tone: “[I took your words from earlier seriously. I won’t cause trouble with him, so don’t worry.]”

Minutes passed without a response from Fu Yu, and Xiao Yi assumed he was busy with something. He was about to check his work reports when his phone chimed with a new message, this time in voice format.

“You thinking like this is good. There’s something I want to ask you. I saw you outside the bar with someone earlier,” Fu Yu’s tone seemed hesitant, “What’s your relationship with that person?”

Xiao Yi was taken aback. It sounded like jealousy, didn’t it?

He quickly made a voice call to clarify, “There’s absolutely no relationship! I met someone at the bar who kept bothering me, so I had my people send him home. Nothing happened!”

Fu Yu responded with a simple “Hmm” after a few moments of silence, and the conversation ended.

Xiao Yi had been about to chat with him further but was interrupted. He said, “I’ll talk to him later to clear things up. Maybe there’s a misunderstanding.”

“Oh, come on. Do you really think he’ll tell you the truth? You’re too naive!” Chen Shaoguang sighed deeply. “You can continue being friends with him. If things don’t work out, you can break up again. I’m the one who’ll be in trouble. Xiao Yi never liked me in the first place. If he finds out I badmouthed him in front of you, he’ll probably beat me to half-death and might even abuse his power to suppress my family’s company.”

“Don’t worry; I won’t say anything, and he’s not that kind of person.”

“How would you know? He used to be ruthless in fights, and among our classmates, only you weren’t afraid of him.”

“Trust me, I made him promise not to trouble you.”

Chen Shaoguang’s eyes brightened. “Really? Thank you so much, Fu Yu.”

“No problem. If he can’t keep this promise, I won’t need you to tell me. I won’t be friends with him again,” Fu Yu reassured.

A few days later, the construction project at the Xiao Group faced a minor issue that required some adjustments in the design. Xiao Yi decided to visit Dongjian Corporation in person, without notifying anyone. However, when he arrived, he was informed by the secretary that Fu Yu was out for business, and they didn’t know when he would return. Disappointed, Xiao Yi considered sending a text message to inquire when Fu Yu would be back, but unexpectedly, he bumped into Chen Shaoguang in the parking lot.

They locked eyes briefly, and Xiao Yi let out a cold snort.

He could visit Fu Yu anytime without an appointment, as the people at Dongjian Corporation were familiar with him, and no one would stop him. However, it seemed that Chen Shaoguang was treated the same way.

Thinking about Chen Shaoguang receiving the same privileges made Xiao Yi’s anger flare up again. But he remembered Fu Yu’s warning and forcefully suppressed his anger, walking past Chen Shaoguang as if he hadn’t seen him.

To his surprise, Chen Shaoguang took the initiative to call him over.

“Xiao Yi, I’d like to talk to you.”

Xiao Yi stopped in his tracks and turned to face him, raising an eyebrow, “I don’t have time.”

“It’s about Fu Yu!”

Xiao Yi paused and then reluctantly turned to listen, “Speak.”

Chen Shaoguang seemed anxious, glancing around nervously before speaking cautiously, “Fu Yu… has been quite troubled these past few months because of you. He’s willing to forgive you out of kindness, but I don’t think you should bother him anymore.”

Xiao Yi was taken aback. He never thought that Chen Shaoguang, who was usually timid and cautious, would have the courage to talk to him like this. After his surprise wore off, anger surged within him. Who was Chen Shaoguang to give him advice? Why was he meddling in his affairs?

“Heh,” Xiao Yi snorted and grabbed Chen Shaoguang’s collar, lifting him off the ground. He smirked, “What do you think you are? Do you think I don’t know what you want from him? Chen Shaoguang, let me tell you, you should be grateful that you can stand here unharmed today. Do you really think I won’t dare to beat you?”

Chen Shaoguang trembled in fear, struggling to breathe as Xiao Yi’s grip tightened. Despite his struggles, he continued to bravely speak, “Fu Yu is my best friend, and I have a responsibility to protect him! If you hit me, aren’t you afraid he’ll end his friendship with you?”

“Ending the friendship,” those words pricked Xiao Yi’s heart.

“I see you don’t want to live!” he shouted.

With that, he released his grip on Chen Shaoguang and shoved him forcefully. Chen Shaoguang stumbled backward, crashing into the front of a car, causing it to emit a screeching sound as the alarm went off. Xiao Yi reached out to grab him again, ready to strike, but someone intervened.

“Stop!”

Xiao Yi’s swinging arm froze in mid-air, and then it was forcefully pulled away. He staggered back and looked at the person who had intervened – Fu Yu, who was helping Chen Shaoguang up.

“Are you okay?” Fu Yu furrowed his brows.

Chen Shaoguang, in pain but trying not to show it, said, “I’m fine, I’m fine,” and then glanced at the motionless Xiao Yi, adding, “We had a disagreement, and things got a bit heated. Please don’t misunderstand.”

Fu Yu checked Chen Shaoguang’s body but found no injuries, which relieved him. “You should go to the office. I need to talk to him.”

Chen Shaoguang, still holding his side, left for the office, leaving Xiao Yi standing in place, seemingly frozen.

“What’s wrong with you?” Fu Yu turned to him and asked sternly.

Xiao Yi saw the disappointment in Fu Yu’s eyes, and suddenly, he felt drained of all his energy. What could he say? He had indeed wanted to hit Chen Shaoguang, and he couldn’t deny it. But the reason he had acted in anger was that he was jealous of Chen Shaoguang – jealous that Chen Shaoguang could gain Fu Yu’s trust and become his best friend, something that used to be Xiao Yi’s privilege.

Xiao Yi forced a bitter smile and said in a strained voice, “You really care about him.”

Fu Yu had witnessed Xiao Yi’s actions and heard their heated argument in the parking lot, so he couldn’t reassure Chen Shaoguang with the usual “Xiao Yi is not that kind of person.” Xiao Yi’s recent behavior had made that impossible.

“I… I’ll talk to him again,” was all Xiao Yi could manage to say.

In the end, that was all he could promise.

 

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