Chapter 217: Hide-and-Seek

The beloved is always in the superior position, secure in the knowledge that they are favored; whether it was Ling Wu in the past, or Jing Du at present, both fit this point perfectly.

That is why Jing Du understood even more clearly when his weakness was exposed: he was finished.

"Bang!"

Brilliant fireworks rose into the night sky, splashing ink wantonly across this desolate and empty black canvas; those colors collided, intertwined, and flickered and fell like the trails of meteors...

Nanshan seemed to have been pressed on mute; everyone held their breath, looking up at the night sky one after another, counting down the time to welcome the brand-new year.

Jing Du's thoughts were disrupted by the noisy sound of the fireworks.

He focused his vision on Ling Wu, and as the fine, blooming light fell upon him, the world before Jing Du's eyes began to pulse with an artistic aura, frame by frame, just like a movie playing.

The edges of the darkness were gradually lit up, becoming clear...

Everyone cheered and jumped for joy:

"3!"

"2!"

"1!"

"Happy New Year!"

Ling Wu's eyes were like clean windows, reflecting the faint light and shadows; his cold, pale face, accompanied by the rise and fall of the fireworks, was painted with the unique splendor of the New Year atmosphere. He watched quietly for a few seconds before lowering his head to look at Jing Du, who was nearby: "Happy New Year."

Jing Du had not yet broken free from the sound of his own turbulent heartbeat when the person who had stirred up such a great commotion disappeared straight around the corner.

"Ling Wu!"

"Ling Wu..."

Ling Wu had just left that side and walked to a crowded place when he heard Yu Shixue calling his name. He stood on his tiptoes and waved: "I'm here!"

Yu Shixue looked toward the source of the sound and quickly walked in front of him, his tone a bit anxious: "Where did you go?"

"Do you know how worried I was that I couldn't find you?"

"I just felt a bit of tightness in my chest, so I wandered around a bit. I didn't pay attention to the time; I didn't expect it to be 12 o'clock so soon." Ling Wu could tell from the tense expression on the man before him that he was a bit unhappy, so he quickly responded: "Shixue, Happy New Year."

Yu Shixue pulled him into his arms, snuggling like a lover: "A-Wu, Happy New Year."

Standing under the eaves, Yu Tingyun looked toward them with pitch-black eyes. Noticing the two bodies embracing, a strange feeling surged in his heart, and he then turned and left.

【Happy New Year!】

【One is feigning affection, the other is sincere.】

【Look at that worthless look on you; you're almost being coaxed into an embryo.】

【The second male lead is an excellent preschool teacher. After coaxing Jing Du and Yu Shixue, he should just go ahead and coax that peeping younger brother over there who almost bit his back teeth to pieces.】

【Ling Wu-spouse just has a magnetic field that makes everything feel immoral no matter who he is with...】

【Family, who understands that look from Yu Tingyun? You could practically write a whole novel based on it: My brother is getting married, but I don't know when I started having secret little thoughts about my sister-in-law. At first, I didn't take it to heart, but until I saw my beautiful sister-in-law, who always cared for me, take the initiative to throw himself into my brother's arms, I could only hide in the dark, peeping at their happiness from afar.】

【The one above, is this a meal? Just serving it up like that.】

The night grew deep, the wind at Nanshan grew stronger, and many people left one after another.

Wei Ranxu came out of the club and tossed his keys toward Yu Shixue: "Young Master Yu, didn't you drink? Do you want me to give you a ride?"

Yu Shixue couldn't be bothered to expose Wei Ranxu's intentions; in other words, he had never regarded this person as a romantic rival or a competitor.

He maintained an attitude of ignoring him.

Yu Tingyun shook his index finger: "No need to trouble yourself, Brother Ranxu. I didn't drink tonight, I can drive. The night is dark and the road is long, you drive carefully."

When he smiled, it made his features look very innocent, but after his tone was blown by the cold wind, it caused a chill to rise in one's heart for no reason.

Wei Ranxu was clearly not afraid; he shrugged, opened the car door, and sped away.

Yu Tingyun took the car keys from his brother's hand, and then Yu Shixue got into the back seat, the intention clearly being to sit with Ling Wu and leave the passenger seat empty.

Naturally, Yu Tingyun couldn't say anything. He didn't fight or compete; before opening the driver's side door, he leaned down to Ling Wu's ear and said: "You lied to me just now, didn't you?"

"Sister-in-law."

The two simple and clear sentences were spoken by him in a lingering, ambiguous way, his gaze also intentionally or unintentionally glancing toward Yu Shixue in the back seat.

When Ling Wu left, he had asked Yu Tingyun to wait for him, but he didn't go back to find him, leaving the person alone in the cold wind; no wonder those eyes had been filled with dissatisfaction since just now.

So, he patted his shoulder: "Are you angry?"

Yu Tingyun dodged his body, as if he didn't want him to touch him.

His two thin lips closed; when he wasn't smiling, his whole person appeared sharp and cold, and then he sat into the driver's seat.

Ling Wu knew he was in the wrong, so he laughed it off and didn't argue with him.

After getting in the car, Yu Shixue asked Ling Wu: "What were you two talking about just now?"

Yu Tingyun, who had been thought to be unwilling to speak again, started the car and suddenly looked back, saying innocently: "I was asking if the fireworks tonight were beautiful."

The scenery on both sides receded.

Yu Tingyun drove very steadily; he glanced at the time: "It's almost 3 o'clock."

"Brother, don't I have a villa near Nanshan? Let's just make do and stay there for the night. Brother Ling Wu, don't go back to the old house either; it's remote and far away. It's more convenient to stay with us."

Just like that, Ling Wu moved into Yu Tingyun's villa near Nanshan as a matter of course.

He took a hot shower, locked the door, and lay on the bed. For Ling Wu, he suffered from severe insomnia at night; lying with his eyes open until dawn was the same wherever he was.

"Click!"

The sound of the door lock being turned.

Then the door opened silently.

That tall figure walked to the bedside by the moonlight, and just as he was about to lift the quilt, he was met with a fierce and ruthless side kick aimed at his face.

Yu Tingyun was quick-witted and fast-handed; he grabbed Ling Wu's ankle, and the two immediately began to fight.

Things in the room were knocked to the floor, making a noise.

Yu Tingyun wiped the corner of his mouth where the skin had been broken and looked at the man by the window—a man with a lean build but explosive, immense strength: "Sister-in-law has good skills; how many years have you been practicing?"

"Tingyun, so it was you." Ling Wu spoke in a tone of apology, as if only realizing who it was after finishing beating the person up: "I thought an intruder had broken into the house."

Yu Tingyun stood up: "Of course not."

"I found a new quilt and, thinking you might be cold while sleeping, I specifically brought it over."

"I didn't expect to get a beating for it."

Ling Wu picked up the quilt he had brought from the floor: "It seems I have failed your good intentions."

At this moment, the desk lamp on the nightstand wobbled, and finally fell heavily to the floor.

"Bang!"

Not long after, Yu Shixue stood outside the room and knocked on the door: "A-Wu?"

"A-Wu?"

"What fell? Are you alright? Can I come in and see?"

Yu Tingyun covered his mouth in surprise. He was very scared, yet he pitifully leaned toward Ling Wu, his eyes looking exceptionally mischievous in the dark night: "What should we do, sister-in-law?"

"I was just afraid you were cold and was caring for you on behalf of my brother, simply coming to bring you a quilt... I know we are both innocent, but in the middle of the night like this, if my brother opens the door, what if, what if... he misunderstands us?"

At this point, how could Ling Wu not understand that tonight's events were deliberately designed by Yu Tingyun just to take revenge on him for not keeping his promise.

The owner of the villa was Yu Tingyun, and he had spare keys in his possession, so he could easily open the door to every room.

Truly an extremist.

Ling Wu turned a deaf ear to his words and found another way: "That's easy to solve."

He grabbed Yu Tingyun and pressed him against the window without a moment's hesitation: "You jump down from here."

"All problems will be solved."

Yu Tingyun: "........"

Yu Tingyun felt aggrieved: "But... but this is the third floor; I'll be crippled if I fall."

Ling Wu comforted him: "You have a thick skin and sturdy flesh, are you still afraid of this?"

Yu Tingyun was cunning: "Sister-in-law, this method won't work. I will definitely cry out, and then my brother will surely discover something unusual... He is a deeply suspicious person; if he sees me injured the next day, he will definitely be suspicious."

"Sister-in-law, you know you are a feast for the eyes, right?"

He put both hands into his trouser pockets. The light in the room was dim, and the pale moonlight dyed his golden hair a bit whiter, with fine, scattered strands hanging over his rugged brow bone, his whole body exuding a cynical, roguish air: "My brother might very well think we attempted to have an affair."

Yu Shixue didn't get a response and knocked on the door forcefully: "Ling Wu!"

"Why aren't you speaking?"

The door was slapped until it made a loud clattering sound.

Judging by that posture, Yu Shixue was about to open the door.

Yu Tingyun said slowly: "Oh no, I forgot to lock the door when I came in."

"It's all my fault."

"It's all my fault..."

Ling Wu's eyes were terrifyingly cold. Those emotions were very complex, and Yu Tingyun couldn't fully read them for a moment. If he had to describe it, it might be the kind of anger one feels when something meticulously planned for a long time is about to be ruined.

That intense emotion made Yu Tingyun feel that he had really gone too far.

He immediately remedied the situation: "Don't be angry, don't be angry, I did lock the door, but if Brother Ling Wu doesn't speak again, he might really break in."

Ling Wu stared at him, his gaze filled with scrutiny.

Yu Tingyun knew the story of the boy who cried wolf and understood that his credibility score with Ling Wu had already been deducted to a negative number, but he still shook his head: "I promise, I won't speak this time."

He then tightly covered his mouth, as if to prove his sincerity.

Ling Wu threw Yu Tingyun onto the bed, his slender hand gripping his jaw tightly, forcing him to open his mouth, and then used the quilt he had brought to wad it up and stuff it into his mouth from the corner, until the corners of his mouth were stretched white and could not hold another bit of anything.

"Uh..."

Yu Tingyun could only emit a faint sound from his nasal cavity.

Ling Wu controlled the back of his neck with one hand, pressing him onto the bed. With his whole face buried in the bedding and feeling the struggle of the person beneath him, he simply parted his legs and knelt on the bed, pressing his knee against his lower back, and said intolerantly: "Don't squirm, you won't suffocate."

"If you act recklessly again, I might very well break your neck."

Yu Tingyun's hands hung limply at his sides, and he was almost out of breath.

His head was dizzy, and he thought to himself that this person Ling Wu was truly ruthless, like a Rakshasa Yama...

Only then did Ling Wu shout loudly toward the door: "I'm fine. I just accidentally knocked over the desk lamp while going to the bathroom."

Yu Shixue was deeply suspicious and, sure enough, sensed something was wrong.

If he accidentally tripped over the desk lamp, how could the commotion be that loud?

And it was even less likely that he wouldn't answer the first time he asked.

He knocked on the door: "A-Wu, are you really okay?"

"Do you want me to come in and see?"

The next second, Ling Wu predictably declined: "No need, you should get some rest early, I'm very sleepy too."

Gradually, Yu Shixue could no longer hear any sound from inside the room.

Yu Tingyun didn't know how long he had been pressed down, but until he was sure Yu Shixue had left, he patted Ling Wu's thigh to signal that he was about to suffocate, and only then was he released as if being granted a favor.

"Uh... cough, cough."

Yu Tingyun pulled the dampened bedding out of his mouth and lay limp on the bed, face up. After catching his breath for a while, he said: "You really intended to smother me to death, didn't you?"

He propped up his body with his left hand, turned his face toward the moonlight, and presented it to Ling Wu, saying maliciously: "The corners of my mouth are almost torn; now it's even harder to explain."

Ling Wu bent down to pick up the desk lamp and said irritably: "Shut your dog mouth."

Yu Tingyun made a zipping motion with his hand across his mouth.

The room fell quiet.

But a person like Yu Tingyun was clearly both dishonest and untrustworthy. He soon broke the silence and, as if remembering something, warned seriously: "Ling Wu, I advise you to pretend to be asleep and lie down now, otherwise we are both going to be in big trouble."

Two minutes later.

"Snap!"

Yu Shixue jumped over from the balcony next door, pushed open the glass door, and entered Ling Wu's room; he walked in from the balcony, pulled back the curtain, and saw Ling Wu's profile as he slept peacefully, hearing his steady breathing.

There was no one else.

Yu Shixue continued to examine the room's layout, his gaze finally landing on the desk lamp on the nightstand, which had some scuff marks from being knocked over by external force, all of which matched Ling Wu's words.

Everything was normal.

Was it really just him overthinking things?

Was Ling Wu not being held hostage by anyone?

【Wow, buddy, are you Spider-Man? Where did you climb in from?】

【I see your Yu Family really has quite the reputation; the young ones are petty thieves, and the old ones are wall-vaulting acrobats.】

【How did this turn into a horror channel halfway through? Yu Shixue, do you have any idea how terrifying your behavior is?】

【I finally understand what it means to be deeply suspicious...】

【I'm stunned watching this; if you encounter a male ghost like Yu Shixue, you really should sleep with your eyes open at night.】

【Am I the only one who noticed how hard the male supporting character is trying to pretend to be asleep?】

At this moment, Yu Tingyun lay under the bed with a look of contentment on his face; the cold moonlight spilled under the bed, shining into his eyes, and as Yu Shixue's footsteps moved in front of the bed, the heartbeats of the three people in the room—though it appeared to be only two—all accelerated in unison...