Late at night at the Xi family home, Jiang Jing, eager to make her son’s winter break special, personally prepared a table full of delicious dishes. However, despite the meal being ready, the main guest had yet to appear.
“You go call him,” Jiang Jing nudged her husband.
Father Xi adjusted his glasses, still absorbed in his newspaper, and replied dismissively, “He’s already an adult. If he’s hungry, he’ll come out on his own.”
Jiang Jing frowned and leaned in closer. “Have you noticed? He’s been acting differently these past six months.”
Father Xi finally glanced at her. “For example?”
Jiang Jing listed them off: “For a while, his notebooks were filled with dense tutoring notes. He’s never been this serious about his studies. Then he suddenly decided to live in the dorms. During New Year’s, instead of coming home, he went to Bingyuan Town. And just recently, Jianxing told me he had someone keep an eye on the Yang family. What do you think he’s up to?”
At the mention of the Yang family, Father Xi finally looked serious. “The Yang family?”
“Yes, they’ve been trying to pull strings with you for years.”
Jiang Jing’s frown deepened.
For years, their families had maintained a superficial relationship. Since the Xi family didn’t have many young people, and her son wasn’t the type to engage in meaningless socializing, she had originally been pleased that he interacted with the Yangs.
But ever since the real-and-fake-young-master scandal erupted, she found the Yang family’s actions increasingly unreasonable. So when she learned that her son had distanced himself from Yang Shule, she had subtly encouraged it.
Now, however, things seemed different.
Was he taking an interest in the Yang family again? Could it be because of the son they had brought back?
Father Xi hesitated for a moment before regaining his calm. “He has the old man’s connections and will inherit the Xi family sooner or later. If he can’t even balance his personal matters, what kind of future does he have?”
“I’m just afraid he’ll stir up something big!”
Jiang Jing grew annoyed. “He’s still a high school student! Aren’t you worried he’ll get himself into trouble?”
Father Xi chuckled. “As long as he doesn’t kill someone or break the law, what trouble could be so bad?”
Jiang Jing took a deep breath and rolled her eyes. “Fine, just ignore it. You never cared about your son anyway.”
At that moment, the sound of footsteps came from upstairs.
Father Xi waved his hand. “Ayan, come sit down.”
“Dad,” Xi Siyan greeted as he walked over, phone in hand, and took a seat across from his parents.
Even in front of his own family, Xi Siyan maintained his usual composed demeanor. He wasn’t particularly close to them, but there was an unspoken trust between them.
Father Xi smiled. “What were you busy with upstairs?”
Xi Siyan spun his phone absentmindedly and chuckled. “Nothing much, just chatting with some classmates.”
“Really?” Father Xi nodded approvingly before steering the conversation. “That child the Yang family brought back—what do you think of him?”
Xi Siyan paused slightly, glancing first at his father, then at his mother.
Then, he leaned back into the sofa and smiled. “The Yang family’s situation was so public—do you still need to ask me?”
Father Xi remained composed. “We’re not the type to make assumptions. Since you interact with him directly, your perspective is the most accurate.”
Xi Siyan raised an eyebrow and, after a moment of thought, said, “He’s a good person.”
“Just good?”
“If you really want an answer…” Xi Siyan paused, then added, “Being born into the Yang family was his greatest misfortune.”
Both parents were startled and exchanged a look.
Jiang Jing hesitated. “Son, you and he…?”
“Hm?” Xi Siyan looked over.
Jiang Jing immediately shook her head, forcing a smile.
For a moment, she had felt that the way her son spoke about Chen Mo wasn’t like a friend evaluating a classmate at all. But how could that be possible?
Quickly changing the subject, she asked, “Since you think so highly of him, does he have a girlfriend? Your aunt’s daughter, who has been studying abroad, is coming back for the New Year. Maybe they should meet.”
Xi Siyan let out a laugh, as if finding the idea amusing.
“He doesn’t like girls.”
His parents both looked at him with suspicion.
Standing up, Xi Siyan calmly added, “Don’t look at me like that. There’s nothing between us. Let’s drop it.”
Before they could sigh in relief, he continued, “But as for myself… I can’t guarantee who I’ll marry in the future, or whether I’ll like men or women. I just hope you won’t interfere.”
With that, he nonchalantly announced, “Let’s eat,” and walked toward the dining room.
Jiang Jing turned to her husband.
“Why does this feel like he’s preparing us for something?”
Father Xi watched his son’s retreating figure and sighed. “At least he’s giving us a warning. That’s more than you did. Remember what you did to marry me?”
Jiang Jing shot him a glare. “Shut up.”
Three days into the winter break, the final exam results for the semester were released.
Even though Xi Siyan and Xue Ping had missed much of the semester due to competition training, they still secured the top two spots in the grade. Sun Xiaoya, who had briefly tasted victory, was thoroughly defeated.
Even more shocking—Chen Mo was now ranked third.
He had officially overtaken Sun Xiaoya.
Outraged, Sister Ya declared in the class group chat that she wanted to challenge Chen Mo head-on.
But Chen Mo had never been particularly attached to grades.
His foundational knowledge was strong, and although he didn’t put in as much effort as the others in the experimental class, he consistently improved. It felt like taking a shortcut.
So early on New Year’s Eve, when his uncles and aunts visited, they all gathered around Yang Shule, showering him with praise.
“He’s getting more and more outstanding!”
“Not only is he the pride of the school, but his grades are top-tier!”
Chen Mo, lounging lazily nearby, merely smirked.
He already knew how this New Year’s Eve would unfold.
It wasn’t just Yang Qi’an and Zhou Yaoqing who felt awkward—it was also the younger generation of the Yang family.
Yang Shule, for whatever reason, seemed preoccupied, and the fact that his final exam results had plummeted by nearly 100 places was something only known to a few elders.
Among them, Chen Mo’s aunt was the most excessive.
Back in her youth, she had pursued love freely but unfortunately placed her trust in the wrong person. Her marriage had been a mess for years, forcing her to return to the Yang family every so often to complain about her financial struggles. Her husband, whom she constantly belittled, had also been placed in a managerial position within the Yang Group, which only added to her sharp-tongued bitterness.
She paid no mind to the warning glances her son and daughter shot her. Knowing that Zhou Yaoqing favored Yang Shule, she first flattered him endlessly before turning to Chen Mo.
“Xiao Mo, don’t take it to heart,” she said with a tone that feigned concern. “Given the kind of education you had before, it’s only natural that you can’t compare with Ren Lele. But don’t get discouraged—just keep working hard.”
At that moment, Chen Mo was casually sipping a glass of milk from the kitchen.
He took another sip, nodded seriously, and said, “Auntie, you’re absolutely right.”
“Really?” She looked pleased with herself and turned to Zhou Yaoqing. “Chen Mo is actually quite polite.”
Zhou Yaoqing’s smile stiffened.
She had never liked some of the Yang family’s relatives, but she also hadn’t expected Shule’s grades to drop so drastically this time.
Still, she invited them into the house.
Lunch was a strictly Yang-family gathering. With this particular aunt present, the dining table was never short of lively conversation. The scene somewhat resembled what Chen Mo had experienced in his past life, but with some differences.
For one, he didn’t flip the table this time.
After eating, he switched to drinking wolfberry and red date tea, lying lazily on the sofa while listening to the relatives—unaware of the truth—heap praise upon Yang Shule yet again. He simply echoed, “Yes, you really have good taste.”
His aunt, now fully enjoying herself, didn’t miss another opportunity to take a jab at him.
“Chen Mo, just look at how you’re sitting,” she scolded. “You don’t have the posture of a proper young master at all. And what are you even drinking? I brought you some brain supplements—those will be much better for you. You should really correct your bad habits and learn from Shule. It’s for your own good, even if it sounds unpleasant—”
Chen Mo, half-drowsy, cut her off lazily. “Everything you said is right. In fact, you should go shout it through a loudspeaker on the main street.”
The ones acting superior thought he was being uncooperative.
Meanwhile, the younger cousins, who had been squirming in discomfort the whole time, finally found their moment. They couldn’t bear it anymore and spoke up:
“Can you please stop talking? My cousin ranked third in the grade—his grades are excellent.”
“Exactly! Meanwhile, Brother Shule… didn’t he drop to, like, over a hundredth place?”
“Brother Mo, how did you improve so quickly? Teach me!”
The younger children suddenly looked at Chen Mo with admiration.
After all, they were also frequently scolded by their parents, but unlike them, Chen Mo had the remarkable ability to let it all go in one ear and out the other. Occasionally, he’d even throw out a one-liner that left their parents red-faced and speechless.
Once the elders realized the truth, the room fell silent.
With that, Chen Mo finally got some peace. But to avoid being chased around by a bunch of curious kids, he retreated to his room, put on a movie, and fell asleep halfway through.
Later, he was awakened by the notification sound of his phone.
It was a message from Yang Zhi.
Zhou family relatives had arrived, along with some of Yang Qi’an’s business partners. Yang Zhi told him to come downstairs and greet them.
If not for his grandmother from the Zhou family, Chen Mo would have ignored the message altogether.
He checked the time—it was already four in the afternoon.
Since it was winter, the sky outside was darkening early. A cold wind swept through the courtyard, rustling the dead leaves on the ground, adding to the bleak atmosphere.
Chen Mo sighed, got up from the carpet, changed his clothes, and put on his shoes.
Just then, he overheard Yang Shule speaking on the phone outside.
“I couldn’t find him. Can you call Chen Mo for me?” His tone was laced with complaint. “You know how bad his temper is—what if he gets angry at me for waking him up? Besides, Dad was the one who asked me to find him…”
Chen Mo stood up, about to announce that he had seen the message himself.
But just as he raised his head, a pair of unfamiliar shoes appeared in front of him.
Thinking it was Yang Shule, he was about to speak.
The next second, he felt a firm push against his shoulder.
Before he could react, he was forced back into his room—one bare foot still exposed outside. Then, with a soft click, the door shut behind him.
“You f—”
Chen Mo’s cursing stopped abruptly when he looked up and saw the person in front of him.
The curtains in his room were half-drawn, casting the space in dim lighting. But it didn’t obscure his view of Xi Siyan leaning against the door.
One hand rested on his waist, while the other had been used to prevent Chen Mo from falling.
Chen Mo blinked, utterly confused. He looked at Xi Siyan, then at the closed door.
“What the hell is going on?”
He didn’t remember the Xi family visiting the Yangs on New Year’s Eve in his previous life.
Xi Siyan’s gaze shifted downward—to where Chen Mo’s bare foot was touching the cold floor. Without hesitation, he lifted Chen Mo’s foot onto the top of his own shoe.
“Don’t step on the ground,” Xi Siyan said. “It’s cold.”
