Chen Mo’s foot was lifted off the ground, and his upper body instinctively leaned forward, bringing the two of them even closer. He had no idea how Xi Siyan managed to do that so effortlessly. His first reaction was sheer disbelief.
“I weigh over a hundred pounds, and you just made me look like a weakling.”
“Is that the point?” Xi Siyan lowered his gaze.
The distance between them was so close that Chen Mo could feel his breath.
Realizing the awkwardness of the situation, Chen Mo shifted uncomfortably. “Let go first.”
“Where are your shoes?” Xi Siyan didn’t release him and instead glanced around.
Chen Mo rolled his eyes. “Outside the door. If you hadn’t pushed me just now, would I have kicked them out?”
“My bad.” Xi Siyan’s chest shook slightly, as if suppressing a chuckle. “I ran into someone I didn’t want to deal with and had no choice but to hide here with you.”
Chen Mo thought about the person Yang Shule had just mentioned on the phone and immediately figured out who Xi Siyan was avoiding.
But if he didn’t want to see her, why was he here at the Yang family’s residence in the first place?
Chen Mo asked, “Why are you here?”
“Am I not allowed?” Xi Siyan countered. “Your family sent an invitation to my parents. They were too busy with their own family gatherings, so they sent me instead.”
That explanation sounded reasonable enough.
If the Xi family hadn’t attended this banquet in his past life, Chen Mo might have believed that Xi Siyan was simply maintaining the friendship between their families.
But he didn’t press further. Instead, he placed a hand on Xi Siyan’s shoulder, ready to hop out on one foot and grab another pair of shoes.
Just as he lifted himself slightly, a knock came from the door.
“Chen Mo, are you there?”
Yang Shule’s voice was cold and stiff, filled with reluctance.
Chen Mo froze mid-step and replied, “Yeah.”
“Big Brother asked you to come down now.”
Yang Shule’s tone suggested he was about to leave immediately.
After today’s humiliation at the hands of their relatives, he had no interest in talking to Chen Mo. But just as he turned to go, his eyes caught something on the ground.
A single shoe, overturned.
For some reason, an uneasy premonition hit him.
He hesitated for a couple of seconds before speaking again.
“Chen Mo.”
“What now?”
The voice from inside confirmed that Chen Mo was indeed in the room.
But what kind of situation would make him leave a shoe outside while remaining inside?
Yang Shule asked directly, “Did you see Brother Yan?”
Hearing the question, Chen Mo glanced at the person in front of him.
Xi Siyan had already let go of his waist and was now leaning lazily against the door, as if waiting for his response.
Chen Mo remained silent for a moment.
Xi Siyan mouthed silently: Say I’m not here.
Chen Mo gave him an exasperated look. Why?
Xi Siyan’s eyes glinted, and he suddenly leaned in closer, forcing Chen Mo to turn his head slightly. Then he whispered into his ear, “If I walk out of here now, within half an hour, your parents will have told all their relatives and business associates that Yang Shule and I have an excellent personal relationship.”
Chen Mo instinctively tilted his head back to escape the sudden proximity. “Shouldn’t you have been mentally prepared for that when you came?”
“I was.” Xi Siyan nodded. “But isn’t the person I’m actually close to you?”
Chen Mo was momentarily speechless.
Something about this whole night felt strange—something different from his memories.
And the two of them were standing way too close.
Chen Mo suddenly smirked and said, “Then beg me.”
Without missing a beat, Xi Siyan responded, “Please.”
Chen Mo was taken aback. “How can you be so shameless?”
Xi Siyan replied matter-of-factly, “When someone encounters a difficult situation, it’s only natural to ask for help. Isn’t that just human instinct?”
Human instinct, my ass.
For a brief moment, Chen Mo seriously considered whether the person in front of him had been possessed by something.
Yet, the serious and unexpected way he made his request was so Xi Siyan.
Outside, Yang Shule seemed to grow impatient. The knocking became more urgent.
“Chen Mo, why aren’t you answering? I asked if you saw Xi Siyan—he wouldn’t be in your room, would he?”
The next second, the door cracked open with a click.
Chen Mo poked his head out, expressionless. “I haven’t seen him. He’s not here. Anything else?”
“Are you sure?” Yang Shule reached out, trying to push past him to take a look inside.
Chen Mo grabbed the doorframe with one hand, tilted his head, and grinned. “What’s this? You’re acting like you’re catching a cheating spouse. Isn’t that going too far?”
Yang Shule’s face darkened. “You always have to be so ridiculous.”
“Thanks.” Chen Mo flashed a smirk. “I just like talking nonsense. Xi Siyan is right behind me. He came to see me specifically. We even hugged just now. Do you believe it? Want to come in and watch?”
Yang Shule froze for two seconds.
Then, convinced that Xi Siyan wasn’t actually there, he turned on his heel and left angrily.
Chen Mo crouched down, picked up his shoe, and hopped back into the room.
Without even looking at Xi Siyan, he sat on the bed, lifted his knee, and put his shoe back on.
“The guy’s gone. You came mainly to visit my grandfather, right? He should be entertaining guests on the third floor. If you want to avoid unnecessary interactions, I suggest waiting half an hour before going up.”
After he finished speaking, he noticed that Xi Siyan was still standing there, watching him.
With a small smile, Xi Siyan teased, “Didn’t you just tell him I came specifically to see you?”
“Sure,” Chen Mo replied, patting his shoulder. “A joke is only funny when one person makes it. When two people do it together, it’s overkill. If I really wanted to ruin your reputation, I’d go to your Xi family’s doorstep and throw myself at your feet.”
Xi Siyan raised an eyebrow. “Are you planning to reenact The Butterfly Lovers?”
“Yeah,” Chen Mo said casually as he tied his shoelaces. “Didn’t you say you don’t like men?”
That line had always stuck with him.
Back in their previous life, rumors had spread about Xi Siyan and Yang Shule. Chen Mo had strong reasons to suspect that Yang Shule had orchestrated the whole thing.
And in the end, those rumors led to the belief that after coming out, Xi Siyan was forced to leave the country by his family.
Chen Mo asked again, “Are you planning to go abroad after graduating high school?”
Xi Siyan looked surprised. “Who said that?”
See, this was exactly why.
Chen Mo sighed and advised, “If you don’t plan on leaving, you really need to stay away from Yang Shule. You can use my room—just stay here for half an hour before coming out.”
After saying that, Chen Mo opened the door and stepped out first.
So, he missed the moment when Xi Siyan, standing behind him, subtly raised an eyebrow and showed an expression as if he had just shot himself in the foot.
But that fleeting awkwardness quickly disappeared from Xi Siyan’s face.
His phone rang.
It was a call from the person he had assigned to monitor the Yang family’s movements.
The voice on the other end reported, “Master Yan, you asked me to check whether Chen Mo had ever transferred money to Chen Jianli. From what I’ve found, aside from the initial transaction meant to lure Chen Jianli into the game, he never gave him money again. There was no case of threats or blackmail.”
Standing by the window in Chen Mo’s room, Xi Siyan pulled open the curtains and nodded.
Outside, the sky was darkening.
But even in the dimming daylight, the room’s interior was clearly visible—spacious and luxurious, yet cold and impersonal. There were almost no traces of personal belongings, no signs of someone truly living here. It was like a temporary stop, not a home.
The voice on the phone continued, “However, I did uncover something unexpected, so I thought I should tell you.”
“What is it?” Xi Siyan asked, turning his gaze back to the window.
“Chen Mo has a substantial amount of money in his personal account. Apart from the living expenses and tuition that the Yang family regularly deposits, his own investments and financial management are doing well, and he’s been making significant profits. About two months ago, he transferred a large sum of money to a university student.”
Xi Siyan frowned. “Who?”
“Not a suspicious person. Just a student from a struggling family. There’s no apparent connection between them—it seems like an act of charity.”
Whether it was truly a charitable act remained debatable.
However, since Chen Mo wasn’t being blackmailed by Chen Jianli, Xi Siyan ended the inquiry there. “Don’t dig too deep into his private matters. That’s enough.”
“Understood,” the other party replied.
But after a brief hesitation, he couldn’t help but ask, “Why are you so concerned about Chen Mo?”
Xi Siyan looked out at the cold wind sweeping through New Year’s Eve.
After a long pause, he answered, “You can think of it as guilt.”
It was difficult to pinpoint when that guilt had begun, but it had been there for a long time.
Lately, he had been recalling his first visit to that remote mountain village. Back then, he had never even stepped out of the car. Why? Was it unfamiliarity? Arrogance? Prejudice? Or was he just accustomed to seeing such dramas unfold in the wealthy world, assuming Chen Mo would be no different?
Whether it was power struggles or suffering as the unwanted heir, none of it had anything to do with him.
But in the end, he had miscalculated.
He had overestimated himself and underestimated Chen Mo.
Now, he kept asking himself—what had Chen Mo endured to become the person he was today? How much had he struggled internally? Did he ever consider giving up everything and compromising with reality?
He found himself unable to look away, unable to remain impartial.
He reminded, interfered, and even… cared.
And at some point, he realized that his emotions had shifted.
This lingering pain was not just a momentary pang of sympathy—it was a slow, relentless ache.
During tutoring sessions, at the Chinese medicine clinic, in Bingyuan Town, and every time he looked into Chen Mo’s direct, unguarded gaze, he finally understood.
It wasn’t just guilt.
It was heartache.
How ridiculous.
The only other time in his life that he had ever felt sorry for something was when he was five years old and saw a stray cat die under the wheels of a car before he had the chance to take it home.
He had looked into that cat’s glassy eyes.
It had huddled in the corner, wanting to get close to people but too afraid to do so.
It was completely different from Chen Mo.
And so, his heartache for Chen Mo was different, too.
At five, his instinct had been to take the cat home and hide it.
At seventeen, he had learned to step back.
Because stray creatures—only when they were riddled with wounds and had no other choice—would finally lower their guard and dare to approach those who schemed to tame them.
Xi Siyan didn’t stay in Chen Mo’s room for the full half-hour.
Since he had indeed come to pay his respects to Old Master Yang, he left after ten minutes and headed to the third floor.
No one knew what was said during that meeting.
All they knew was that before the banquet started, he helped the old man downstairs, and they seemed to be having a pleasant conversation.
Meanwhile, the scene downstairs had become increasingly lively.
There were far more guests this year than in the year Chen Mo remembered from his past life.
There were distant relatives as annoying as his aunt from earlier, the polite but distant visitors from the Zhou family, screaming children racing through the hall, and minor corporate executives sneaking around, handing out business cards left and right.
It was nothing short of chaotic.
At that moment, Chen Mo was leaning against a glass window in the back hall, watching this so-called New Year’s Eve banquet—a supposedly joyous occasion that, in reality, felt more like a ridiculous farce.
His gaze swept over Yang Shule, who was thriving in the best of both worlds.
Then over to Yang Zhi, who was conducting himself with all the social finesse expected of a successful businessman.
And finally, to Xi Siyan.
As soon as he entered the hall, supporting the old master, the entire room fell silent.
Across the room filled with people raising their glasses and exchanging pleasantries, Chen Mo locked eyes with Xi Siyan.
Dressed impeccably in a tailored suit, standing beside the old master, Xi Siyan exuded the effortless confidence of someone born into power and prestige.
The moment he stepped out of the private room, his entire aura changed.
Gone was the boy who had leaned against Chen Mo’s door and whispered pleas in his ear.
Now, he looked untouchable.
Like a true heir, distant and refined, exuding an air of superiority that made it impossible for people to approach him casually.
Chen Mo let out a loud whistle.
A crisp, sharp sound that cut through the heavy silence of the banquet hall.
Heads turned instantly.
And what they saw was the young heir that the Yang family had found—dressed in an understated yet luxurious suit, exuding a natural elegance that was impossible to ignore.
Then they saw him—Chen Mo.
Even in formal wear, he still carried a hint of nonchalance, lounging against the glass window with an air of relaxed amusement.
Compared to the poised, aristocratic presence of the Xi family’s young master, no matter how they looked at him…
He just seemed like a little troublemaker.
