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The next morning, Gu Yifeng brought his people and arrived on time at the meeting place agreed upon with the Fu family.

The car came to a steady stop. The driver opened the door, and Gu Yifeng strode down.

He walked out a few steps, but realized the person behind him hadn’t kept up.

That little fool always seemed to be a beat too slow¹A musical term used colloquially to describe someone whose reactions or comprehension is slightly delayed compared to a normal person. like this.

Gu Yifeng’s mood was already not considered good. At this time, he was even more impatient. Turning around, he immediately urged, “Can you hurry up?!”

Upon turning his head, he exactly caught sight of Shu Baiqiu’s face.

The morning sunlight was just right. The clear, bright sunlight spilled across the young man’s pale and exquisite brows and eyes, even more so contrasting and bringing out a beauty that made one stunned for a moment.

Shu Baiqiu indeed looked very good-looking.

Even though he was so emaciated and frail, it did not diminish his beautiful bone structure and contours in the slightest.

This was the last day Shu Baiqiu would be following him.

In Gu Yifeng’s mind, this thought suddenly popped up.

At the same time as thinking of this, Gu Yifeng also noticed that although Shu Baiqiu still had a thin, weak figure and a pale face, the other party’s face did not have any on-edge panic, or deeply worried apprehension.

Having been so fiercely threatened yesterday, Shu Baiqiu, however, seemed to have not the slightest sign of tossing and turning sleeplessly, or listless dejection.

Gu Yifeng even suspected a bit that this little fool simply didn’t know what they were going to do today.

“The Fu family wants to do a chongxi marriage for a sick person. Once you go over, you will immediately have to marry Fu Si’an.”

Gu Yifeng crossed his arms and looked at Shu Baiqiu, asking him deliberately.

“Hey, do you know what marriage means?”

Shu Baiqiu had already walked over, his footsteps seeming even a fraction slower than usual.

And just like usual, towards this question, Shu Baiqiu also did not utter a sound.

Gu Yifeng wasn’t very surprised—this little fool probably didn’t understand anyway.

After he finished scaring the person, he originally already intended to leave. However, at this time, a blind flying insect flew onto his nose.

Gu Yifeng frowned, and couldn’t help but swat at it, wanting to drive away the flying insect.

When he frowned and raised his hand, Shu Baiqiu in front of him instead subconsciously turned his head and lowered his eyes. It was as if he was startled, no longer able to maintain his silence.

The young man softly opened his mouth.

“Marriage is two people who love each other being together.”

“Living together… Happy and sweet.”

Although his voice was a bit hoarse and low-soft, the young man’s enunciation of the words was very precise, allowing people to hear clearly.

It also made Gu Yifeng, amidst his surprise, feel a sense of weirdness.

People who love each other, happy and sweet?

Gu Yifeng couldn’t help but recall that he had indeed heard before that Shu Baiqiu’s parents had a very good relationship—a deeply loving husband and wife.

Perhaps exactly because of this that this little fool also felt that “marriage” was a very beautiful word.

It was as if up to this point, he still completely didn’t know what he was going to encounter.

Inadvertently, Gu Yifeng also caught a glimpse of Shu Baiqiu’s hands. The young man had changed into a different top today, and the sleeves were not as long as before. More than half of his hands were exposed on the outside, thin and dangling, with nowhere to hide.

It also makes the marks on those pale hands visible at a glance.

After a whole day had passed, Shu Baiqiu’s allergic symptoms had subsided a lot, but there were still a few long red marks scratched by the stone edges that remained conspicuous.

Gu Yifeng’s breathing paused slightly.

Yesterday, in a fit of anger, he also didn’t expect…

That he would hurt the person like this.

Opening his mouth, Gu Yifeng wanted to say something, yet he didn’t know how he should speak.

As Gu Yifeng didn’t move, the young man in front of him didn’t ask either, just stopping there quietly like this.

That silence, rather than being called calm, should more accurately be called a barrier.

It was like his entire person was isolated from the outside world, wrapped and protected by a thick layer of cocoon membrane.

Gu Yifeng had actually discovered very early on that this little fool was very difficult to be emotionally touched.

He was often unaffected, and rarely had any fluctuations.

Even later on, only when Gu Yifeng was being fierce to him, would one see Shu Baiqiu slightly curl up and tremble.

Revealing fearful, genuine emotions.

“Boss… Boss?”

When the assistant’s low-voiced reminder came from the side, only then did Gu Yifeng suddenly snap back to his senses.

The next second, Gu Yifeng couldn’t help but get annoyed again.

How could he actually blank out and feel soft-hearted towards a fool?

Just as he was about to urge him, a gruff, middle-aged male voice had already come from not far away.

“Boss Gu?”

The newcomer was a tall and burly man, with a gentle and lovely woman linking arms by his side.

It was exactly the guests who had an appointment with Gu Yifeng today—Fu Shanying and his wife.

Gu Yifeng nodded and greeted the two of them. He then saw Fu Shanying look past him, his gaze stopping directly on Shu Baiqiu.

“He is that fool, Shu Baiqiu?”

Fu Shanying’s gaze was like a torch²An idiom used to describe a stare that is highly piercing, intimidating, and sharp., straightforwardly sizing up the thin young man.

“When he has an episode, is he aggressive?”

The scrutinized Shu Baiqiu didn’t speak. However, Gu Yifeng felt very displeased hearing this. He frowned, then replied.

“What episode? He is just slow to react and a bit foolish—he’s not a lunatic.”

Fu Shanying stood two steps away, and still asked.

“Does he have any infectious diseases then?”

Gu Yifeng was even more displeased. “Of course not!”

He was practically about to feel that Fu Shanying was the sick one.

Seeming to see his impatience, Fu Shanying’s wife, Xu Yunyi, softly supplemented.

“Mr. Gu, we are just asking routinely.”

“Let’s go inside to chat.”

Gu Yifeng, who originally wanted to flare up, could also only forcibly endure his temper, and went into the tearoom to talk.

However, when actually talking, it actually didn’t take up too much time.

The Fu family had already been asking about this matter for a long time. The conditions had essentially all been negotiated previously, and Fu Shanying was giving cash upfront, so both parties very quickly finished signing the contract.

Subsequently, both parties went to a notary office not far from the tea house to process the procedures for terminating the adoption relationship.

The adoption relationship between Gu Yifeng and Shu Baiqiu was terminated. The latter was completely handed over to the Fu family, only waiting for the Fu family’s eldest son to return, to then be able to handle the marriage matters.

Throughout the entire process, Shu Baiqiu did not have much of a reaction, only acting as a quiet backdrop.

It was Gu Yifeng instead who inexplicably and suddenly thought of the day he first met Shu Baiqiu.

The weather that day was the same as today. The sunlight was bright and beautiful, and the clear breeze was just right.

The young man at that time was also similarly so thin, weak, and frail.

In the beginning, Gu Yifeng had also once felt that he could take good care of this person, waiting for him to slowly recover and get better.

However, he didn’t expect the jadeite stone industry to be so hard to muddle through, making himself continuously lose so much money into it.

When walking out of the notary office, Gu Yifeng, holding that certificate of abandoned adoption relationship, suddenly stopped his footsteps for some unknown reason, and turned his head to take a look.

He saw Shu Baiqiu lagging a few steps behind, trailing alone at the very end of the Fu family’s group.

A gentle breeze swept past the corner of the young man’s clothes, outlining an excessively lean and thin body contour.

It made that person appear even more isolated and alone, solitary and frail.

However, Shu Baiqiu did not turn his head back even once.

***

The Fu residence was very spacious and imposing—it was a three-story villa with a lawn.

Walking into the house, Xu Yunyi said in a gentle voice.

“I forgot to ask just now, and I also don’t know to what extent he is foolish—can he understand human speech?”

She was speaking to Fu Shanying, and Fu Shanying also didn’t pay much mind.

“As long as he doesn’t have an episode and cause trouble, it’s fine.”

They also didn’t plan to truly get along with a fool.

Fu Shanying then called over an assistant, “Go to the eldest’s room and have him wash up, tidy him up a bit cleaner.”

Throughout the entire process, these dialogues that were either hurtful or disdainful, completely did not avoid Shu Baiqiu himself.

They were all said right in front of his face.

Shu Baiqiu, however, did not shrink back or feel sad.

The young man’s thin and slender shoulders and back instead even had an imperceptible slight relaxation.

It looked like, for the time being, he seemed to not be getting beaten.

Being discarded and changing hands like this without asking for his willingness, Shu Baiqiu had already experienced it an unknown number of times. However, every time, to him, it still remained starting over from scratch.

Shu Baiqiu was led by the assistant to a bedroom on the north side of the first floor. In this entirely unfamiliar environment, he was going to have to start a new round of groping about and adapting.

However, Shu Baiqiu did not look around in all directions. Even the movement of his line of sight looking at the surroundings was of a very small magnitude.

He did not want to attract any superfluous attention.

He only wanted to lower his own presence as much as possible.

Compared to the luxuriously decorated living room, this bedroom appeared slightly simple and plain. It seemed that no one had lived in it for a long time, and it was only temporarily cleaned and tidied up; the smell of cleaning agents was still drifting in the air.

However, compared to the damp, narrow and stuffy small room from before, the situation was already much, much better.

Shu Baiqiu went to the bathroom in the bedroom to wash up. In the living room, the Fu couple were still conversing.

“Husband, has the flight been confirmed.” Xu Yunyi asked, “Is Si’an arriving in Mingcheng today?”

“Yeah, he should have arrived this morning.”

After bringing up the eldest son, Fu Shanying frowned, and his tone wasn’t considered good.

“How long has he been away already, and he doesn’t even know how to come home and take a look? I urged him several times before he was willing to come back!”

“After all, he is studying in North America—it’s so far away.”

Xu Yunyi said in a gentle voice and soft words.

“Moreover, he is studying medicine—he must be very busy.”

“Who knows what kind of crazy fit he had? Refusing to be in a perfectly good ancestral family business, he instead ran off to study some medicine!”

Fu Shanying was still displeased, his thick, heavy long eyebrows twisting up tightly.

“There isn’t a single person in the family doing this! Back then, he didn’t even discuss it with us for a second!”

Fu Si’an is the son of Fu Shanying’s former wife; six years ago, the eighteen-year-old Fu Si’an encountered an accident while going out. He suffered severe brain injuries, and had almost been handed a death sentence.

However, no one expected that Fu Si’an would actually miraculously wake up.

At that time, it was exactly the period for applying to universities and filling out preferences. According to the Fu family’s original arrangement, Fu Si’an should have selected a major like financial management, so as to be related to the family’s antique and cultural plaything³Often translated as “literati toys” or “antiques/curios.” These are small collectible items historically appreciated by Chinese scholars and literati, such as carved jade, writing brushes, inkstones, walnuts, or Bodhi seeds used for meditation and play. industry.

As a result, after his biological mother passed away from illness, Fu Si’an, who had just awakened not long ago, discussed it with no one, and directly ran off alone to a foreign country to study medicine.

Over these six years, he had almost never returned to the Fu family.

“Young people—it’s inevitable they have their own ideas.” Xu Yunyi softly advised and mediated, “Calm your anger.”

“With Si’an coming back this time, it can finally bring some good news to Dad’s illness.”

Old Master Fu was already critically ill; this sudden marriage was exactly to perform chongxi for his illness.

Fu Shanying’s tone only then calmed down a bit, nodding as he said, “The person has also been delivered now, so let’s wait until the eldest arrives home, and I will bring up the marriage matter with him.”

It was exactly at this time that the second son of the Fu family walked down from the stairs.

Xu Yunyi then greeted her son, saying.

“Xiao Ming, your dage⁴In Chinese, 大哥 (dàgē) literally means “elder brother,” but its usage is broader and more nuanced than the English term. is coming back today. You guys must get along well.”

Fu Ming slept until noon before just waking up, so his face was full of morning crankiness. After hearing this, he impatiently said, “No time.”

Who wants to waste time getting along with that kind of trash.

Fu Ming and Fu Si’an are not full brothers. They have a relationship of sharing the same father but different mothers.

Six years ago, not long after Fu Si’an’s biological mother passed away, Fu Shanying married his current wife.

He was brought into the door together with her, and was also a younger brother who was only two years younger than Fu Si’an.

Moreover, this younger brother Fu Ming, was similarly Fu Shanying’s biological son.

When Fu Ming returned to the Fu family, Fu Si’an had already gone to North America to study.

Over so many years, let alone fighting over family property, even regarding the matter of their father’s cheating, Fu Si’an had never publicly expressed any dissatisfaction.

Towards this kind of good-for-nothing who voluntarily hid away, and even hid for six years without daring to return—

Fu Ming simply didn’t put him in his eyes at all.

Fu Ming walked downstairs while looking at his phone. “I am going out immediately.”

Fu Shanying dissatisfiedly said, “Going to fool around with those bad friends of yours again?”

Xu Yunyi also said, “Xiao Ming, go out a bit later.”

“Wait for Shu Baiqiu to come out. We still need to ask him about the Shu family’s matters.”

She advised her son.

“You also have to understand a bit of these matters.”

“Who?” Fu Ming had a face full of disgust. “That fool?”

“Don’t call him that.”

Xu Yunyi rebuked lightly.

“That is the person who is going to marry your dage after all.”

Her words were correcting on the surface, but in reality, it held more of a placating intent.

Xu Yunyi knew that the reason her son was so resistant to that little fool was precisely because for this marriage arrangement, Fu Shanying had previously originally also thought of letting his second son fulfill it.

Fu Ming was thoroughly disgusted, and resolutely refused to marry a fool. After that, only then did this matter fall onto the head of Fu Si’an who had been abroad for many years.

The situation is now set.

Even if he is even more foolish, that is still Fu Si’an’s person.

It has completely no relation to Fu Ming.

Fu Ming, however, completely failed to hear the underlying meaning of his mother’s words, still full of disgust.

“What does that have to do with me then? I don’t want to listen to a fool talk.”

He even maliciously thought.

That good-for-nothing is actually quite a good match for this little fool.

“How does it not matter?”

Fu Shanying said, tapping the tabletop with his finger.

“The family is about to start preparing for the jade stone business—the Shu family is a carving family that has been going on for a hundred years.”

Xu Yunyi also said, “The brand of Shu Yuxiang is placed right there. Even if they went bankrupt long ago, it was so prosperous back then—they definitely must have left some good materials in their hands.”

The only descendant of the Shu family now—isn’t it exactly that little fool who fell into their hands?

Fu Ming, however, still didn’t have much patience, his whole mind only thinking about going out.

When they were at a stalemate, the sound of a door opening came from the side.

An unfamiliar young man walked out from the bedroom on the north side.

He was called out by the assistant, and he seemed to have already stayed inside for quite some time.

The young man’s hair had already been completely blown dry. The slightly light hair color puffed out a pale gold luster, it was so soft and smooth it tempted one to just want to reach out a hand and touch it.

His complexion was also no longer purely pale like before. Having been steamed by the water vapor to produce a faint blood color, it made that exquisite face appear even more beautifully vibrant.

Fu Ming was stunned for a moment. “This is…?”

When he reacted and realized this was that little fool, he showed an even more unbelievable surprise.

Fu Ming fundamentally didn’t expect the other party to look like this. It was completely unlike the foolish appearance with crooked brows and slanted eyes he imagined.

Even the photo just received on his phone, which made Fu Ming longingly want to go out immediately, seemed to suddenly become not that attractive anymore.

It’s just that he’s a bit too thin…

Fu Ming thought secretly in his heart.

He looked so malnourished, looking like he would be a bit bony to the touch.

Shu Baiqiu was stared at like this right after coming out. His hands originally hanging by his sides, at this moment, slowly moved a bit.

He secretly hid it further to the back.

***

The same day.

Shencheng.

In a spacious and bright study, a young and handsome man was currently sitting at a desk, checking the computer in front of him.

His refined and elegant rectangular, narrow-framed glasses faintly reflected moving frames, and what was displayed on the computer screen was exactly an extremely clear video.

The video had a spacious and bright experimental site as a background, with quite a few researchers in white coats busy in their respective work areas.

Moreover, in the close-up foreground section, several experiment leaders wearing nametags sat around a table; among them, the leading one was currently standing next to a whiteboard, giving an explanation of the latest research progress.

In front of the screen, Fu Si’an was wearing a Bluetooth headset. His ten fingers intertwined, his profile’s lines cold and clear, currently looking on silently and attentively.

It was like he was seriously watching an expensive, highly sophisticated academic course available only for invited members to review.

With a soft “buzz,” the cell phone on the desk vibrated, and lit up with a call notification.

The screen displayed the other party’s name.

“Fu Shanying”

Fu Si’an was still looking at the computer screen. Extending a long finger, he directly pressed the call off.

After a while, the call notification rang again.

It was similarly cut off.

However, the other party seemed determined to dial in, and the call relentlessly lit up once again.

Fu Si’an only then swept a glance over. His elegant, handsome, and cold brows and eyes are calm and indifferent, unable to see any obvious emotions.

At the same time Fu Si’an turned his line of sight away, the video explanation on the computer screen also stopped at the right time.

In the spacious and quiet study, Fu Si’an finally opened his mouth.

He did not answer the phone, however, but directly said in English.

“Continue optimizing—introduce an amino group at the 6-position of the benzene ring, then go test the inhibitory activity of compound G.”

The experiment leader on the screen immediately responded.

“Okay.”

This was unexpectedly not a pre-recorded course video.

However, it was an intercontinental real-time video call.

The report had already ended, and the experimental team members, hearing Fu Si’an’s pointers, one after another went to their respective busy tasks.

After turning off the transnational video, Fu Si’an only then picked up the phone in his hand.

A robust voice from Fu Shanying immediately came from the cell phone.

“What’s going on? What time is it already, so how come you still haven’t arrived home?”

Fu Si’an did not pick up the cell phone on the desk, letting the call play out loud on the side.

Instead, he picked up a black and gold gilded fountain pen, casually opening a report on the desk.

While rapidly skimming the English report, Fu Si’an carelessly said.

“Is there a matter?”

“How is there no matter?” Fu Shanying was quite angered by his attitude. “Didn’t we agree that you would arrive in Mingcheng this morning?”

“It’s almost your mother’s death anniversary. If you don’t come back earlier, how will you make it in time to sweep her tomb⁵Refers to the traditional Chinese practice of visiting, cleaning, and paying respects at ancestors’ graves (most famously done during the Tomb-Sweeping Day / Qingming Festival, but also done on death anniversaries).?”

The tone in the phone was full of coercion, but the questioned listener completely did not mind.

“The death anniversary is only at the end of the month.”

Fu Si’an brought over the richly fragrant coffee on the side and took a sip. He chuckled lowly and asked.

“Urging me back so anxiously—is it to force me to get married?”

The person on the other end of the phone was obviously silent for a moment—clearly none of them had expected it.

Even though it was deliberately concealed, Fu Si’an actually knew about this matter in advance.

“No need for the trouble.” Fu Si’an indifferently put down the coffee cup in his hand. “I don’t have this intention.”

“Si’an.” A soft female voice came through, and Xu Yunyi on the other end of the phone persuaded gently, “You also know that Grandpa’s health is not good. He’s very sick right now, and was just waiting for this marriage to wash away the bad luck with joy.”

“Moreover, this is also for your own good. Before Su-jie⁶In Chinese, 姐 (jiě) literally means “older sister,” but it is also widely used as a respectful and affectionate form of address for a slightly older woman, whether or not there is a blood relationship. left, her biggest concern was you; once you get married and start a family, those things Su-jie left behind can finally be safely handed over to you…”

As soon as she opened her mouth, she brought up the inheritance of Fu Si’an’s biological mother.

After all, to an ordinary twenty-four-year-old youth, that could also be considered a substantial amount of wealth.

Moreover, at this time, Fu Si’an happened to raise his eyes, casually looking out towards the window.

It was exactly afternoon, and the sunlight was bright and clear. Outside the huge floor-to-ceiling windows, the calm river surface sparkled with rippling light. The high-rise buildings on the bank stood closely packed in rows, the bustling and beautiful scenery taken in at a single glance.

On this riverside land where an inch of land is worth an inch of gold⁷A Chinese idiom describing highly valuable, premium real estate where the land is incredibly expensive., this sole six-star hotel in Shencheng had actually built every room exceptionally luxuriously and spaciously.

The presidential suite where Fu Si’an was located furthermore sat upon the best location for viewing the river scenery.

This place was obviously also not a place an ordinary twenty-four-year-old could afford to consume.

“For my own good?”

Fu Si’an looked as if he was smiling yet not smiling.

“So you find a fool for me to marry?”

“You—who did you hear all this from?!” Fu Shanying lost his composure, angrily asking, “Which bastard spoke this nonsense?”

Fu Si’an answered just as straightforwardly, “Xu Fei.”

“You…!”

Fu Shanying suddenly choked on his words.

It was because Xu Fei was exactly his son’s maternal uncle, Xu Yunyi’s biological younger brother.

His curse of “bastard” directly scolded onto the head of his own brother-in-law.

Xu Fei had always idled about, often using his brother-in-law’s name to swagger and act outside.

That he would blabber and proclaim these things out loud, to the point it reached Fu Si’an’s ears—this kind of thing was not rare at all.

Xu Yunyi couldn’t quite maintain her face⁸“Face” (面子 – miànzi) is a core cultural concept representing dignity, prestige, or social standing. Being unable to maintain face means she felt intensely embarrassed, awkward, or exposed by the blunt call-out., forcing a smile as she tried to patch things up, saying.

“Oh my, how could that be. That child is perfectly fine, and he even looks very good…”

Fu Si’an was already preparing to hang up the call. He had no leisure to listen to this nonsense.

Although Fu Si’an had a reason he must return to the country, he also flew directly from Boston to Shencheng, simply not planning to go to Mingcheng this week.

It was just that, right when Fu Si’an was about to press end call, on the other end of the phone, Xu Yunyi happened to directly turn on the video.

She turned the camera to another direction, aiming it at Shu Baiqiu who was sitting quietly a few steps away.

“You see, isn’t he quite nice? The person is also delicate and pretty…”

Xu Yunyi actually lacked a bit of confidence. The marriage matter originally should have waited until after Fu Si’an returned to slowly and systematically discuss it, yet now, it was learned by the other party in advance.

It seemed that the matter was about to spawn unexpected complications.

However, the next second, the expected refusal from the other end of the phone did not come.

“What is his name?”

Fu Si’an suddenly asked.

“Shu Baiqiu.”

Hearing his name called, Shu Baiqiu, who originally had his head lowered being asked something by Fu Ming next to him, paused his figure slightly, looking over a beat too slow.

The young man’s slightly dazed front face thus completely revealed itself in the video.

That excessively slender and excessively beautiful face was too easy to provoke an instant flutter at the tip of the beholder’s heart.⁹“Heart’s apex palpitating.” A poetic way to describe a sudden, intense emotional strike or heartbeat skip, usually out of pity, shock, or attraction.

Born looking like this, he completely did not look like the imagined annoying and detestable little fool.

—Instead, he looked more like a pitiful child who had been lost for too long and couldn’t find his way home.

The fountain pen between Fu Si’an’s fingers that was originally writing paused slightly, the pen tip suspended in mid-air.

With a faint, soft “click,” the expensive fountain pen had its cap closed.

A faint, low male voice immediately came from the call.

“Understood.”

The call was hung up just like that.

• 1
  A musical term used colloquially to describe someone whose reactions or comprehension is slightly delayed compared to a normal person.
• 2
  An idiom used to describe a stare that is highly piercing, intimidating, and sharp.
• 3
  Often translated as “literati toys” or “antiques/curios.” These are small collectible items historically appreciated by Chinese scholars and literati, such as carved jade, writing brushes, inkstones, walnuts, or Bodhi seeds used for meditation and play.
• 4
  In Chinese, 大哥 (dàgē) literally means “elder brother,” but its usage is broader and more nuanced than the English term.
• 5
  Refers to the traditional Chinese practice of visiting, cleaning, and paying respects at ancestors’ graves (most famously done during the Tomb-Sweeping Day / Qingming Festival, but also done on death anniversaries).
• 6
  In Chinese, 姐 (jiě) literally means “older sister,” but it is also widely used as a respectful and affectionate form of address for a slightly older woman, whether or not there is a blood relationship.
• 7
  A Chinese idiom describing highly valuable, premium real estate where the land is incredibly expensive.
• 8
  “Face” (面子 – miànzi) is a core cultural concept representing dignity, prestige, or social standing. Being unable to maintain face means she felt intensely embarrassed, awkward, or exposed by the blunt call-out.
• 9
  “Heart’s apex palpitating.” A poetic way to describe a sudden, intense emotional strike or heartbeat skip, usually out of pity, shock, or attraction.