Chapter 19: Couldn’t Avoid It

Yan Xinfeng asked, “Are you going?”

“I haven’t decided,” Wei Tingxia said. “I’m not familiar with them.”

If there was any good time in university suitable for cultivating friendships, Wei Tingxia had spent it all on Yan Xinfeng.

His mission in this world was to end the protagonist. Since he had already connected with Yan Xinfeng, no matter how it happened, there was no need to shake him off and do something else.

This line of thinking was correct. But Wei Tingxia had guarded against everything and hadn’t anticipated that one day he would come back.

He complained, “I don’t know those people at all.”

Yan Xinfeng comforted him. “At least you remembered the name. Li Yan, right? Your memory is still so good.”

System 0188: [Haha.]

This was what it meant to have one’s flattery backfire.

Wei Tingxia kicked him with his foot. Yan Xinfeng took the kick out of nowhere and looked bewildered.

“If you don’t want to go, then don’t,” he changed the subject. “In a few days, I’ll take you out to play.”

“Where to?”

“You pick.”

“Then it has to be far from water and mountains,” Wei Tingxia muttered to himself. “Don’t want to end up arguing and, in a fit of anger, push you into the water.”

He was really tired, and his words didn’t go through his brain—he just said whatever came to mind.

Yan Xinfeng: …

“Should I thank you for caring so much about my safety?”

“You’re welcome,” Wei Tingxia patted his shoulder. “I’d be very sad if you died.”

Yan Xinfeng felt he must be sick. Normally, if someone cursed him like that, he would have flipped out. But Wei Tingxia cursed him and then casually soothed him with a sentence, and he actually felt happy.

“Then go to sleep quickly,” Yan Xinfeng said calmly, shocked by himself once again. “Reject them tomorrow.”

“Okay.”

Wei Tingxia slid off the sofa. As he walked, he brushed the hair from his face. The sound of him climbing the stairs dragged on, making one worry he’d fall asleep halfway.

Yan Xinfeng listened patiently. Only after confirming Wei Tingxia had entered the bedroom did he get up and find Yao Ling.

Yao Ling was wiping wine glasses. Hearing footsteps, she turned around. “Mr. Yan.”

“How was his mood this afternoon?” Yan Xinfeng asked.

Yao Ling recalled. “Couldn’t tell. But Mr. Wei… seemed quite anxious?”

What was there to be anxious about when viewing a house?

He must have gotten angry again.

Yan Xinfeng nodded and left.

…

Meanwhile, Li Yan finished the gathering and changed venues with her girlfriends to get a spa treatment.

In the comfortable silence, Li Yan recalled the scene in the parking lot that afternoon and casually said, “I ran into Wei Tingxia.”

“Who?” Her girlfriend hadn’t heard clearly.

“Wei Tingxia,” Li Yan repeated. “He was in the same class as me in university. Very pretty.”

With that, her girlfriends remembered.

“The one who dated Yan Xinfeng?”

“Yes,” Li Yan closed her eyes, feeling the soft mist caress her skin. “He also bought a house near my family’s.”

Her girlfriend snorted with laughter. “Not necessarily bought. Could be breakup money.”

Having been in their circle for a while, they had a whole new understanding of what happened in university. Some relationships were nicely called dating, but bluntly, they were kept lovers.

But trading for such a big house was worth it.

“Hey, isn’t your family’s company having some issues?” her girlfriend suddenly remembered. “Invite him to the class reunion and introduce him to the class monitor.”

“The class monitor?”

“Yeah, doesn’t he like Wei Tingxia? You play matchmaker. Whether it works or not, he’ll owe you a favor and help you out later. Your family’s problems will be solved.”

Li Yan had organized this class reunion precisely to connect with the class monitor. Her girlfriend’s reminder made her realize it.

Li Yan hesitated a bit. “But I don’t know if he still likes him. It’s all old university stuff.”

Her girlfriend asked, “Is Wei Tingxia still good-looking now?”

Li Yan thought back to their meeting and couldn’t lie against her conscience.

“Then that settles it,” her girlfriend spread her hands. “Who falls for someone not good-looking?”

Anyway, Li Yan was just making an introduction. Success or failure, she lost nothing.

…

Meanwhile, Wei Tingxia still didn’t know two people were scheming to introduce him to a new sugar daddy.

After sleeping until late morning, he opened his eyes and was surprised to find Yan Xinfeng hadn’t gone to work. He was sitting right beside him.

“You didn’t go to work?”

“No,” Yan Xinfeng flipped a page of the newspaper without looking up. “The company went bankrupt. No need to go.”

“Oh.”

Wei Tingxia lay flat on the bed and blinked. “That’s too bad.”

His tone was vague, like he wasn’t fully awake. Yan Xinfeng responded. “Yeah, too bad. Now you can plan your escape route.”

“Not planning to escape for now,” Wei Tingxia yawned. “Be grateful!”

He finally struggled out of bed, swaying with every step as he stumbled into the bathroom. His sleep shirt was a random T-shirt pulled from the closet, washed to faded white, very comfortable on him.

Yan Xinfeng pulled away from the newspaper and watched Wei Tingxia’s back. His gaze softened the instant it landed on the sleep shirt.

Water ran in the bathroom for a while. Then a clean, freshly washed face poked out.

Wei Tingxia was finally awake. “Did you really go bankrupt?”

“No,” Yan Xinfeng shook the newspaper, in a good mood. “Just teasing you.”

The teased Wei Tingxia flipped him the bird and went back to washing up.

Relying on his youth and good looks, his condition was fine without skincare. After washing his face clean, he returned to bed dripping water. Seeing his phone, he remembered he had something to handle that morning.

[Sorry,] he typed rapidly, [I have some things those few days.]

The message sent successfully. Ignoring Li Yan’s reply, Wei Tingxia tossed the phone aside, scooted over, lay on Yan Xinfeng’s chest, and played with unbuttoning his shirt.

Yan Xinfeng let him. When only the last button on the upper half remained, he set the newspaper down and grabbed Wei Tingxia’s hand.

“If you unbutton that, we won’t go out this morning.”

Wei Tingxia struggled a little. “What about breakfast?”

“There won’t be any.”

Not going out in the morning was fine, but no breakfast was unacceptable.

After stating the consequences, Yan Xinfeng moved his hand away, letting Wei Tingxia decide.

Wei Tingxia didn’t hesitate. His fingertip casually flicked, and the last button came undone. Yan Xinfeng’s upper body was completely exposed.

Meeting his darkening gaze, Wei Tingxia smiled carelessly. His fingers trailed downward with suggestive intent.

“I suddenly think skipping breakfast once in a while is fine.”

…They ended up eating lunch.

The play spot Wei Tingxia ultimately chose was a seaside resort manor near the sea in City A.

He had heard the manor’s manager had recently invited two state banquet-level chefs, one of whom made excellent sea fish. Wei Tingxia wanted to try it.

After they checked into the pre-booked suite, Wei Tingxia suddenly realized that since returning, Yan Xinfeng hadn’t gone back to the Yan Residence.

“Aren’t you going back to check?” he asked half-curiously.

Yan Xinfeng paused in unpacking his clothes and recalled the call from his mother that day.

He straightened up, his tone unreadable. “I probably won’t need to go back anytime soon.”

“…”

Wei Tingxia observed his expression and realized Yan Xinfeng must have done something behind his back, serious enough that even his mom didn’t want to see him.

The last time there was such an effect was when someone had spread their matter to his parents. Yan Xinfeng’s face had been dark for days.

After watching for a bit, before Yan Xinfeng could get suspicious, Wei Tingxia turned away.

“If you get hit, tell me,” he instructed. “I’ll feel bad.”

Behind him, Yan Xinfeng chuckled. Who knew if he believed it.

Because Yan Xinfeng’s net worth had multiplied several times, Hu Yao always followed no matter where they went. This time, they booked a whole house, with Hu Yao and the others downstairs.

Wei Tingxia changed clothes. While waiting for Yan Xinfeng, he heard a server knock and deliver the menu customized by the head chef based on today’s ingredients.

“You two can choose to dine in the room or go to our prepared restaurant with various styles.”

Eating in the room was boring. Wei Tingxia casually picked one that caught his eye. The server left to prepare.

By the time Yan Xinfeng finished packing, the prep time was nearly up. The two strolled to the manor’s pre-arranged room. Hu Yao went in first to check, confirmed no issues, and left.

Wei Tingxia heard Hu Yao close the door and propped his chin. “He doesn’t pay much attention to me now.”

Yan Xinfeng said, “He never liked dealing with people before.”

“It’s still a bit different.”

Yan Xinfeng deftly cracked a crab leg. “If it really is different, you should know why.”

The snow-white crab meat went into a plate, then was served to Wei Tingxia, steaming and trembling.

Yan Xinfeng’s words seemed casual, offhand. But Wei Tingxia wasn’t stupid; he knew it was a deliberate hint.

The illusion of a happy, harmonious romance revealed its pale, powerless essence bit by bit in such details.

Wei Tingxia ate some crab leg and didn’t dwell on Hu Yao’s attitude. He didn’t really care anyway.

The head chef lived up to his state banquet level. While keeping his personal style, he handled the ingredients perfectly, retaining the fresh fish flavor. Wei Tingxia rarely ate until full. When he set down his chopsticks, he thought they could stay here for half a month.

“Like it?” Yan Xinfeng asked.

Wei Tingxia nodded.

“Good.”

“What does ‘good’ mean?”

“I had my assistant contact this chef to see if he accepts private employment.”

Wow.

Wei Tingxia tilted his head. The allure of money felt especially real at that moment.

His phone vibrated abruptly. He glanced at the screen—it was still that glaring unknown number.

In the call from the Faroe Islands, his attitude had been clear enough. Anders shouldn’t pester anymore. This call now probably meant something tricky.

“Baby, wait for me. Taking a call.”

He took the phone and left the room, finding a secluded viewpoint and slipping into the shadows to answer.

“What is it?”

…

At the same time, on the path downstairs, a group chatted and laughed toward the restaurant. A man in a suit with a fawning smile flattered the person beside him vigorously. He happened to look up, his gaze locking onto the figure in the viewpoint’s shadows.

The man froze, squinting to confirm for a while. Only after his companion shoved him did he snap out of it and lower his head.

“Hey, look,” he pointed upward excitedly again, voice uncertain but thrilled. “Isn’t that… Wei Tingxia?”

The others hadn’t reacted yet. The arrogant man he fawned over abruptly looked up.

Behind his glasses, his eyes filled with deep, viscous greed.