Chapter 214: Thank You

The day before New Year's Eve, the young masters of Beidu City's top circles specifically organized a gathering at Nanshan; this place had always been a den of iniquity open only to the nobility, filled with debauchery and nightly revelry.

The space inside the private room was extremely spacious, with soft, warm lighting tones creating a luxurious atmosphere; in the very center sat a huge leather sofa, and on the wine rack behind the small bar in the corner were displayed expensive spirits.......

Ling Wu felt a bit stifled, and when he came out of the private room for some air, he happened to run into Shen Zhaojue, who was holding a cigarette between two fingers; he hadn't seen this young master Shen for a long time and didn't know what to say.

Shen Zhaojue was clearly stunned as well.

He had thought Ling Wu would refuse this kind of gathering, and hadn't expected to run into him in a place like this.

Shen Zhaojue leaned back against the railing, his elbows resting naturally upon it; his dark gray overcoat opened slightly with his movements, and the cigarette held between his fingertips drifted out white smoke, framing his face, his whole person appearing somewhat somber.

It was he who greeted Ling Wu first: "Long time no see."

Ling Wu nodded: "Long time no see."

Shen Zhaojue's feelings upon seeing Ling Wu were very complex.

At the very beginning, he was willing to play with Ling Wu, and even had people drag Chu Yi, who had offended him, to Darkness, not for any other reason, but simply because he liked that beautiful and conquering face; at that time, Ling Wu had not yet recovered his status, and Shen Zhaojue looked down on him from the bottom of his heart.

Pretty faces are a dime a dozen.

Shen Zhaojue had almost lost interest, but who knew what Ling Wu was thinking, insisting on saving Chu Yi, who was still a Special Student, from his hands.

Making him demand an explanation from the Jin Beidu, that cold and arrogant air, paired with that face that could be called a trump card, was like a gust of wind, instantly igniting the interest that had been almost extinguished but still held a spark in Shen Zhaojue.

These were all things Shen Zhaojue reminisced about later.

In fact, at the time, he was unconvinced in his heart.

Ling Wu was arrogant, so he, Shen Zhaojue, had to be even more arrogant.

Who wasn't born into a noble family?

He, Shen Zhaojue, at least had the status of an heir, while Ling Wu was just someone found halfway through; who knew what had happened, who knew if he could recover his status and gain the recognition of the nobility.

By what right was he so wild in front of him?

That bit of displeasure and a man's competitive spirit made him provocatively tease Ling Wu out of a deep-seated flaw, clamoring to drive him out of the Academy, and he joined forces with Wei Ranxu to call a group of people, originally wanting to scare the seemingly delicate and weak Ling Wu.

Hey, but who knew that those people were all sent to the Police, and the two of them ended up in a mess themselves.

From this moment on, Shen Zhaojue understood that Ling Wu was not someone to be bullied; he was soft on the outside but firm on the inside.

After this incident, the displeasure in Shen Zhaojue's heart vanished, but the competitive spirit remained.

He just couldn't stand Ling Wu's cold and aloof face, always wanting to leave something in his heart; after being slapped and coming out of that empty classroom, he happened to run into Jin Bei, another of Ling Wu's nominal younger brothers.

The two of them could be said to be birds of a feather, hitting it off immediately, and wanting to cooperate right then and there.

But clearly, the cooperation plan between Shen Zhaojue and Jin Bei was a hollow promise, and they didn't even have time to implement it, because there was simply no opportunity.

Shen Zhaojue accepted it, sigh, alright, it was fortunate they didn't get to implement it.

Because he discovered he had fallen for Ling Wu; what a bolt from the blue, how could he possibly like Ling Wu? He had originally wanted to tell him to get out of Sike Academy.

Crazy.

Truly crazy.......

He was too proud to accept it, distancing himself while deliberately finding excuses, throwing away Ling Wu's love letters, unable to stop himself from wanting to know more about him, until after his plastic brother Wei Ranxu pointed out his feelings....... Pop! The two had a falling out.

Wei Ranxu! He! Actually liked Ling Wu too!

Thus, plastic brothers instantly became real and fake love rivals, jealous and fighting, evenly matched!

Hearing this, it's fantastic enough, right?

The even more fantastic part is coming!

That's right, Wei Ranxu got engaged to Jing Du; he went to attend the wedding, and from the perspective of a clear-eyed bystander, witnessed the birth of a pair of miserable spouses with his own eyes....... these two people were not in a relationship of mutual affection, right! They had someone they both liked, and that person was called—Ling Wu!

By now, the name Ling Wu was already thunderous to the ears.

Shen Zhaojue really wanted to scream at the top of his lungs, what a fucked-up world, what a fucked-up Beidu City, this circle is truly chaotic, um....... although he was in the circle too.

But it was of no great consequence, because Jing Du and Wei Ranxu, they ca-ca-ca-canceled the engagement again; it was truly full of twists and turns.

Then, Shen Zhaojue figured out his heart, but before he could put it into practice, that ignited spark was doused by cold water; yes, the Ling Wu he liked was going to get engaged to Yu Shixue, how could the word "miserable" even begin to describe it.

Shen Zhaojue took a drag of his cigarette, his expression gloomy: "Ling Wu, I heard you're about to get engaged to Yu Shixue?"

Ling Wu naturally didn't know that Shen Zhaojue had gone through their "first half of life" in his mind and erupted in sharp wails in his heart; he said very naturally: "Yes, the wedding date is January 15th."

January 15th......

Shen Zhaojue suddenly raised his eyes; wouldn't that be less than half a month away?

Damn it!

Shen Zhaojue cursed under his breath.

If he had known, he wouldn't have put on such an act; only knowing how to throw love letters in secret, what kind of skill was that? In the end, it was all for nothing, and it wasn't even completely nothing, at least he got a slap.

Shen Zhaojue asked: "Not getting engaged first?"

"No." Ling Wu looked at the night view of the mountains and the brilliant stars: "He said he wanted to get married quickly."

Who this "he" was, went without saying.

What else could Shen Zhaojue say?

He could only say that Yu Shixue had a good fate and a good background....... but he pondered for a long time, his throat full of bitterness, his handsome face blown by the wind looking lonely, and he still said: "Then I'll wish you a happy marriage in advance."

Ling Wu smiled: "Thank you."

"I'll send you a wedding invitation."

Shen Zhaojue of course knew that invitations were distributed to every noble in Beidu City, and it couldn't be sent to him individually; he turned his back, looking at the vast sky, his thin lips pursed around the cigarette, inexplicably possessing a bit of a mature man's sexiness: "Forget it, I won't go, it's meaningless."

Ling Wu accepted it gladly.

Then he heard him say: "Don't worry, I'll give a generous gift, separately to you; don't go spreading it around that I, Shen Zhaojue, am a stingy person."

A stingy person, he was not.

A coward, he surely was.

This extraordinary unrequited love ended on this ordinary night.

It wasn't like in a soap opera with wind and rain; in such a high-altitude place, not even half a snowflake was to be seen, not even hysteria...

Forget it.

Forget it.

Shen Zhaojue had had all kinds of people he liked; there were plenty of fish in the sea, why pine for just one?

He was an adult and understood the logic, but when it came to himself, he was far less broad-minded than when he was counseling others; it was truly maddening.

Ling Wu tilted his head slightly: "Shen is generous."

"Hey." Shen Zhaojue took the Cigarette Case out of his pocket and shook it in front of him: "Want one?"

Seeing Ling Wu didn't speak, Shen Zhaojue was a bit helpless: "No way, I'm telling you Ling Wu, you're a grown man, you don't smoke or drink, how much fun are you missing out on?"

Ling Wu: "........"

Then he took the Cigarette Case; he actually could smoke this kind of ordinary cigarette, but he did it very rarely. He beckoned, and Shen Zhaojue took out a lighter, cupping his left hand to light it for him.

Shen Zhaojue saw his practiced posture in holding the cigarette: "No, you really can do it; your good-boy image has collapsed."

Good?

Ling Wu sneered.

"Don't say I'm belittling you, I'm really sorry for making you drink in the private room last time; I didn't know you really couldn't drink, I thought you were just putting on an act for me, but after you finished, you looked like you'd been pulled out of a steamer, you were red all over..." Shen Zhaojue glanced at his complexion: "Forget it, whether you drink or not, you've lived well until now."

"Lucky you."

Ling Wu twitched the corner of his mouth: "Your words are nasty enough."

He choked: "Cough! Cough! Cough cough..."

A violent coughing sound rang out, Ling Wu's chest heaved, and a flush of red quickly appeared at the corners of his eyes.

Shen Zhaojue moved his gaze away from those moist eyes, swallowed his saliva in defeat, and hurriedly patted his back: "If you can't smoke, don't smoke; if word gets out, it'll look like I'm bullying you again. What would people think if they saw this?"

As soon as he finished speaking, he looked up and met Yu Shixue's pair of pitch-black, cold eyes.

The temperature seemed to drop a few degrees.

Shen Zhaojue knew his posture with Ling Wu was ambiguous right now; in front of Yu Shixue, the official partner, his status and standing instantly shrank a notch...

Yu Shixue stood where he was, his gaze falling on their two bodies pressed close together, a cold light flashing in the depths of his eyes; he was like a lazy lion: "Ling Wu, come here."

Shen Zhaojue not only didn't let go, but openly patted Ling Wu's back.

"Are you okay?"

Yu Shixue took Shen Zhaojue's hand off Ling Wu's back and then threw it away with disgust: "Get your dirty hands off!"

Shen Zhaojue extinguished the cigarette and watched Yu Shixue take Ling Wu away; he lifted his foot, walked forward a few steps, stared at the two retreating figures thinking about something, but still didn't chase after them.

Yu Shixue dragged Ling Wu into the hallway, looked at the cigarette butt in his hand, and braced his hand against the wall, his aura somewhat overbearing: "Just a few days without seeing you, Ling Wu, have you gone wild? You even learned to smoke like others."

"Do you have to control me even for such a small matter?" Ling Wu met his gaze.

Yu Shixue put his hand down, his tone softening: "I'm not trying to control you... I'm just angry that Shen Zhaojue is leading you astray; don't you remember when we were at the Academy?"

"He and Wei Ranxu are the ones who want to deal with you; he doesn't have any good intentions, stay away from him, okay?"

Yu Shixue's expression was a bit grave: "I'm really worried."

【Worried?】

【What are you worried about? Because your marriage alliance was obtained through improper means, you're afraid others will use the same methods?】

【The status of an official partner, the heart of a mistress!】

"Ling Wu?" Yu Shixue bent his body, cupped his chin with his palm, and suddenly said softly: "Why aren't you talking? Are you unhappy?"

"Tell me whatever you want to play with, there's no need to find others; smoking is bad for your health. If you're really interested in this, I can..."

Ling Wu's voice was icy, interrupting him: "No need."

【Smoking is bad for your health? So you knew that deep down, Yu; I thought you usually smoked cannons.】

【High-sounding excuses.】

【Jealousy is just jealousy, and it's bad for your health.】

【Yu, I've never seen you smoke any less of these cigarettes.】

Ling Wu didn't need this kind of bossy concern; in the end, it was just Yu Shixue satisfying his desire for control and possession.

People are independent individuals; why interfere so much in other people's affairs?

Ling Wu didn't understand.

And he didn't want to understand.

Forget it, let it be whatever it will be; there was half a month left, and he could be free... completely free from all of this.

The smile on Ling Wu's face was a bit stiff, looking somewhat fake upon closer inspection; he quickly covered it up and nodded: "I don't like smoking, it was just stuffy in the private room, I came out for some air, and happened to run into Shen Zhaojue."

Yu Shixue hadn't expected Ling Wu to be willing to explain to him at all; in the past, all he would get was a cold face. Could it be... that Ling Wu liked him a little too?

Otherwise, why explain?

He must be afraid of making him sad.

Ling Wu logically introduced the topic he wanted: "I saw the newly released news about the marriage alliance."

"Have you chosen the wedding location? Listen to me, let me pick a place."

Seeing that he was willing to take the initiative to bring up the wedding, Yu Shixue was so happy his head went hot, casting all the previous unpleasantness to the back of his mind; he felt like the surrounding air was bubbling with pink.

To a somewhat hopeless degree.

Looking at Ling Wu's face through the soft light, the more he looked, the better it looked, the more he liked it...

Yu Shixue lowered his status to coax him: "A-Wu, can I call you that? Wu-wu? I'll listen to you, I'll agree to whatever you say."

"Where do you want to set the place?"

Ling Wu gave a location as if handling official business: "Let's do it on the sea."

Yu Shixue was drowned in joy and didn't notice the cold gaze of the person before him.

Yu Shixue could not help but begin to imagine: facing the vast sea, accompanied by a melodious wedding march, walking along a red carpet surrounded by flowers toward a longing for the future, exchanging rings with Ling Wu under the witness of the crowd, making a lifelong vow, and welcoming the sound of blessings........

"So, you will give me a grand wedding, right?"

Yu Shixue was pulled back to reality by Ling Wu's voice, yet the salty sea breeze seemed to linger in her ears; his clean, pleasant voice was just like the song of a siren, carrying a sense of enchantment.

She nodded immediately: "I will."

"Ling Wu, this is all something I should do; even if you didn't say it, it would be impossible for me to treat you poorly."

Ling Wu then stretched out his arms and hugged her with purpose, his slender arms wrapping around Yu Shixue's toned waist; those cold eyes were like a frigid pool, possessing an innate indifference and aloofness, and with a smile that did not reach his eyes, he said meaningfully: "That's good, thank you so much........"