6

"Young Master, I suddenly remembered that there is still a document that I haven't processed. Please allow me to take my leave for now." Rose heard her own stiff, flat voice.

Xu Qi turned and glanced at him, then nodded and said, "Go ahead."

With a blank expression, Rose opened the door and walked out. She knew she had reached her limit. If she didn't leave, she would definitely lose her composure. The Sicilian Godfather—none of that mattered to her. All she knew was that the man she deeply loved was about to marry another woman. The eldest son of a powerful family conglomerate always carried a destiny he couldn't choose; their marriages and families existed solely for the sake of the family. Although Xu Qi's current position in the family gave him the power to defy the policy of marriage, he loved his younger brother and, knowing he couldn't have him, didn't care who he ended up marrying. Even if he couldn't have Xu Yi, another woman would take his place.

He had always known this in his heart. But he always held onto a sliver of hope, wishing that the man would refuse the marriage because of his love for his younger brother. Even if it was later. He and that man were already far apart; if that man had a legitimate wife, then that man would only be more unattainable for him—although, in reality, there was no fundamental difference as things were now.

Stumbling out of the place that had instantly turned into an ice cave, Rose felt like laughing. He thought he had reached the depths of despair, but he was too naive and overestimated his own resilience. Just hearing the news that this man might be getting married had left him so distraught. If he were to witness him walking down the aisle with another woman, he would go insane, even killing the bride without hesitation. Then, perhaps that man would finally look at him with respect. Maybe he would even mercifully grant him a bullet—to die at the hands of the man he deeply loved might be his final act of happiness.

He walked slowly alone on the road, not caring where he would end up. If only he could just keep walking like this until he reached another place—a place where he would never again suffer pain and despair because of that person.

He wandered the streets for half a day, and as darkness fell, his legs grew numb. He stopped at the bar from the previous night, then stepped inside. Unexpectedly, he had become so cowardly as to resort to alcohol to numb his pain.

Sitting alone in the corner, he drank one glass after another, and gradually, he became a little drunk.

"Hi, Calvin, we meet again." Anthony wanted to shout praises to God that he and his beloved had actually "coincidentally" met on the very second he fell in love! Did this mean that even God approved of their relationship? Poor Anthony completely forgot that God never approved of homosexual relationships. Moreover, as the only son of the Sicilian Godfather and the next Godfather, he shouldn't have violated this taboo. People are like this: when faced with difficulties, they pray for God's help; but when God's commandments hinder their own interests, they selectively ignore them.

Rose looked up blankly, her gaze sweeping over the man before her, before recognizing him as the blond man from last night. He slowly lowered his head again, picked up his wine glass, and drank it all in one gulp.

Anthony then noticed the several empty bottles of liquor in front of him. Seeing that he was about to drink again, he quickly reached out and snatched the glass from his hand: "No!"

Rose gave him a cold look: "Get out of the way." As soon as the words left his mouth, he realized his voice was extremely hoarse. He gave a self-deprecating laugh: Useless man.

Anthony noticed something was wrong with him: "Calvin, what's wrong?"

Rose's face darkened: "This is none of your business."

Anthony grew increasingly uneasy. While the beauty hadn't paid him much attention last night, it wasn't like this; her gaze was icy. He cautiously sat down beside Rose: "Calvin, I just..."

She glanced at him, then suddenly smiled: "Do you like me?"

Anthony's face flushed red, and he stammered, "W-what? Calvin...I...I..."

With a hint of malice, Rose leaned closer to his face and whispered, "Want to sleep with me?"

“Calvin! I don’t…” Anthony frowned, saying each word clearly, “I like you. But please don’t insult my feelings for you.”

With a sneer, Rose glanced at him sideways: "So you want to be platonic with me?"

Anthony frowned even more: "I don't want to lie to you. I'm not a saint. It's impossible for me not to want to hug you. But I hope you can seriously consider my feelings."

"To say such things to someone you just met yesterday, your love comes on incredibly fast." Rose's face showed a mocking smile. "But sorry, you should give up. I'm a pure top."

Anthony's face was filled with shock: "You...you..."

Ignoring the shocked man, Rose turned to grab another bottle. Suddenly, Anthony grabbed her forearm: "I've really fallen in love with you! I want to pursue you! If you accept me, I'll let anyone be on top!"

Rose slowly turned to the side, looking at him with a half-smile: "I won't believe you so easily. Unless..." He paused, staring at the man meaningfully.

Anthony instinctively sensed danger, and sure enough, he heard Rose say next, "Let me go first."

This was probably the biggest problem he had ever faced in his life. Anthony pursed his thin lips, his face somewhat pale.

Somewhat bored, Rose shook her head and shook off his hand: "How boring."

He took a deep breath and made up his mind. Anthony spoke with difficulty, "Calvin, if this will make you accept me, I'm willing."

The one who falls in love first loses—it's so true. Who told him to fall in love first?

Rose was taken aback, not expecting him to be so straightforward. Then he smirked: "Did you really think I was interested in your ass?"

Anthony was getting annoyed: "Then what do you mean by all this?" A man as charming as him, who had always been successful in love, had never been played like this before. Moreover, this was the first time he had taken a relationship seriously, and the other party was so dismissive, which hurt him a little.

Rose's smile faded. "It's nothing. Don't bother me anymore, or I won't have the patience this time." He stood up unsteadily, feeling dizzy. He held his forehead, trying to steady himself.

Anthony immediately stood up and helped him up: "No! I can't just leave you like this! I'll take you home!"

"Who said I was going home?" Home? Did he even have a home? The Xu family had never been his home; it was someone else's home—and perhaps soon there would be a new mistress. Thinking of this, he became even more agitated. He impatiently pushed Anthony's hand away and walked towards the door.

Anthony was not about to give up so easily. He didn't try to pull the rose, but simply followed silently behind her.

Leaving the noisy bar, Qiangwei looked up and saw the sign for a nearby hotel: "MoonLight." Because it was next to a gay bar, most of the people who frequented it were gay, and he and Xu Yi would occasionally spend the night there. He stood there for a few seconds before finally walking towards the luxurious entrance.

He didn't want to go back, at least not tonight. He didn't want to see the man he loved so much that it hurt his heart.

Anthony was startled: Could it be that he's going to... No way!

He quickly followed Rose to the front desk, where he saw Rose take a room key and walk into the elevator. He immediately asked for the room next door and entered the elevator on the other side.

Rose knew the man was following her, but she couldn't be bothered to care. She figured he wouldn't dare barge into her room, so she could just ignore him.

He picked up his phone and dialed Xu Qi's number: "Young Master, I have some business to attend to tonight and cannot return."

The voice on the other end of the phone sounded a little hoarse, and Xu Qi asked in confusion, "Are you still having a cold?"

"No, it's just a bit of wind, I'm fine," Rose said with a wry smile.

After hanging up the phone, Xu Qi was somewhat stunned. Qiangwei was clearly acting strangely today. Not only did she leave midway through his conversation with Shao Yang, but she also didn't come home last night. What was wrong? This girl always prioritized his affairs above everything else, keeping her own worries to herself and never sharing them with him. Although she wasn't as reserved as before, there was always a barrier between them.

He sighed. In terms of maturity, Qiangwei was far superior to Xu Yi, which was why he felt comfortable letting her stay with Xu Yi. But ever since the child returned to New York, she had become increasingly distant from him. As her nominal adoptive father, he felt utterly inadequate.

He had seriously considered what Shao Yang said today. Regarding the meeting with the godfather's only son, he had already begun the process and would receive a reply by tomorrow night at the latest. As for Yao Jinghan, he couldn't marry her. That woman was determined to marry another man; why should he invite trouble?

He has two options: first, to stall and find another suitable partner; second, to directly refuse the marriage proposal to his father. For now, it seems best to stall; he doesn't want to openly defy his father unless absolutely necessary.