Chapter 25 My Brother Doesn't Need to Be Timid
In the classroom, the air conditioner worked hard to cool the room, but it couldn't contain the intense heat as the end of the semester approached. Teacher Li, our homeroom teacher, stood at the podium and knocked on the desk, quieting the buzz of discussion.
"Students, please be quiet. Important announcement!" Teacher Li pushed his glasses up, his expression serious. "Next week is the final exam. I don't need to emphasize the importance of this exam. Not only will it determine your final grade for the semester, but more importantly, it will be weighted and averaged with the scores from the previous monthly exams to form the final ranking, which will directly determine your class placement next semester."
There was a sudden sound of people gasping in shock in the classroom.
Gu Ye sat in his seat and subconsciously glanced at Chu Yan beside him when he heard this. Chu Yan still looked calm. He retracted his gaze and looked down at the textbook spread out in front of him. A few months ago, he was still ecstatic about being on the verge of the top 80%, and was still worried about the class division and couldn't sleep at night. But now he is no longer the Gu Ye who can only passively wait for the results. His ranking is firmly in the top 40%, and the increasing number of red ticks on his report card and the occasional approving glances from the teachers are all silent proof of his transformation.
Even if he was not assigned to the same Class A as Chu Yan after this final exam, he was confident that with the foundation he had laid and the hard work he put in, he would be able to pass the next exam with confidence.
A busy and fulfilling week of review flew by. It was Friday night, and tomorrow was the day we had agreed to go to the go-kart track.
In Chu Yan's apartment, Gu Ye was enthusiastically stuffing a sports bottle and a small towel into a backpack, humming a tuneless song. Chu Yan sat on the sofa, sorting through several newly printed project documents, preparing to review them later.
Suddenly, the sound of a cell phone ringing broke the silence in the room. The screen lit up, and the caller ID had only one word: [山]
Gu Ye paused as he stuffed his things. He had never seen this note before, but the answer came to his mind almost immediately. The "date" that made Chu Yan disappear every weekend. He lowered his head, pretending to concentrate on adjusting the straps of his backpack, but his ears couldn't help but perk up.
Chu Yan glanced at the screen, stood up as usual, took his phone and walked to the balcony, closing the glass door to block out the sound.
On the balcony, Chu Yan pressed the answer button, and Gu Xu's deep, magnetic voice immediately came: "A Yan, the same place tomorrow?"
Chu Yan leaned on the balcony railing, gazing at the distant city lights, his voice tinged with a nonchalant smile, "Not tomorrow, Mr. Gu. I've made plans with classmates to go to the newly opened go-kart track tomorrow." He paused, his tone taking on a hint of teasing, "Besides, the way we are now, we always seem to get straight to the point every time we meet, like sex buddies. Isn't that a bit too unromantic, Brother?"
There was silence on the other end of the line for a few seconds. When Gu Xu's voice rang out again, he said, "Ayan, are you complaining about me? Or are you hinting at me?" He tried to regain the initiative.
"It's not a complaint, it's more of a hint..." Chu Yan's ending tone was drawn out, with a hint of ambiguity, "It depends on how Mr. Gu understands it. I still have some things to pack up here, so I'll hang up first." Without waiting for Gu Xu to speak again, Chu Yan hung up the phone neatly.
In the living room, Gu Ye still maintained the same posture as before, with his head lowered, his hands unconsciously tugging at the strap of his backpack. He looked a little dazed, as if the pause button had been pressed.
Chu Yan walked up to him and flicked his forehead lightly with his finger: "What are you daydreaming about? Have you packed your things?"
"Ah?" Gu Ye snapped back to his senses, as if startled. When he looked up, his eyes were still a little dazed. When he saw Chu Yan's smiling eyes, he realized that Chu Yan had rejected the "mountain" for the sake of their appointment tomorrow.
He quickly lowered his head to hide his burning cheeks, and said with a bit of a stubborn tone, "Who's in a daze? I'm just a little tired from sorting things out, so I need a break!"
Chu Yan looked at him pretending to be calm, the smile in his eyes deepened, and he was about to say something -
The cell phone on the coffee table suddenly rang again.
This time the ringtone was a special reminder tone set by Chu Yan.
Chu Yan's smile faded slightly, and a hint of surprise flashed in his eyes. He picked up his phone, and the screen showed: [Chu Yu].
At this hour... Chu Yu? Chu Yan raised his eyebrows slightly. Chu Yu was a man who paid close attention to propriety and efficiency. Unless it was an extremely urgent matter, he would never call at this private time.
He pressed the answer button: "Brother Yu?"
However, a completely unfamiliar voice came from the other end of the phone: "Hello? Hello! Is this Mr. A Yan? Sorry to bother you. I'm Xiao Chen, a waiter at the Yunqi Club. Mr. Chu Yu drank too much here, and we can't contact his driver now. Could you come and pick up Mr. Chu?" Xiao Chen was also helpless. Mr. Chu's address book was full of big bosses, and the only one who seemed a little closer was Mr. A Yan.
Chu Yan: “…”
He looked up at the wall clock and saw it was almost ten o'clock. He glanced at Gu Ye who was listening intently.
"Send the address to my cell phone. I'll be there in twenty minutes." Chu Yan's voice was calm, without any emotion.
"Okay, okay! Thank you so much!" The person on the other end of the phone felt as if they had been pardoned.
After hanging up the phone, Chu Yan looked at Gu Ye with an inquiring look and explained simply: "A friend drank too much and couldn't contact anyone, so I had to go pick him up." He picked up the car keys on the sofa and said, "You go to sleep first and don't wait for me. I'll be back as soon as possible." After that, he strode towards the entrance and his figure quickly disappeared outside the door.
Gu Ye listened to the sound of the security door closing, then looked down at his half-filled backpack and the karting track brochures scattered on the sofa, and threw the backpack onto the sofa in annoyance.
Yunqi Club, top VIP box area.
The corridor was thickly carpeted and silent. Chu Yan gave his name, and the waiter respectfully led him to the door of a private room.
Pushing open the door, I didn't see the expected chaotic mess of cups and plates, or the boisterous roar of drunken men. The private room was unusually quiet, the lights dim and subdued. Bottles of expensive foreign liquor were neatly arranged on the bar, with a half-empty glass next to them. A single person sat on the large, circular sofa.
He sat upright, his back straight. His dark grey suit jacket was impeccably fitted, even his tie was neatly tied. His head was slightly lowered, and his hair fell across his forehead, partially obscuring his features.
Hearing the door opening, Chu Yu slowly raised his head.
His face lacked the usual flush or blur of drunkenness; instead, it was a calm expression. However, his sharp eyes seemed a little out of focus, as if covered by a layer of mist, staring fixedly at the door.
Chu Yan closed the door and walked over. He stopped in front of Chu Yu, leaned forward slightly, and waved his finger in front of Chu Yu's blurry eyes.
Chu Yu's eyes followed the finger's movement very slowly, and then his gaze finally focused on Chu Yan's face. He parted his thin lips slightly, speaking clearly, even with a hint of his usual coldness, as he uttered two words:
Chu Yan looked at him, clearly drunk but still trying to maintain his elite persona, and felt both angry and amused. He curled his eyes and said in a playful tone, "Brother Yu, have you had too much to drink?"
Chu Yu didn't respond immediately. He frowned slightly, as if contemplating an extremely complex business problem. After a full ten seconds, he gave a solemn, subtle nod and replied in the serious tone of a work report, "Yeah. A lot."
Chu Yan finally couldn't help but chuckle. He reached out and pulled Chu Yu up from the sofa: "Let's go, I'll take you home."
Chu Yu's body was heavy, but he was surprisingly cooperative. He obediently let Chu Yan hold his arm. Although his steps were a little unsteady, he tried hard to maintain his balance and followed Chu Yan step by step out of the box and out of the club.
The black sports car drove smoothly on the empty road late at night, with only the low roar of the engine inside the car.
Chu Yan held the steering wheel with one hand, his posture relaxed. His other hand rested casually on the lowered window frame, feeling the cool night breeze. In the passenger seat, Chu Yu sat upright, his back straight, his hands on his knees, his gaze fixed forward, as if he were attending a solemn ceremony. If it weren't for the faint smell of alcohol and the slightly glazed look in his eyes, he'd hardly be able to tell he was drunk.
The car was completely silent. Chu Yan was just thinking about putting on some music to break the silence when Chu Yu suddenly turned his head with a serious expression, his eyes fixed on the hand Chu Yan had placed on the car window.
"Chu Yan." Chu Yu's voice was slow, typical of drunkenness, but extremely clear and serious.
"Hmm?" Chu Yan turned his head to look at him.
"Obey traffic laws." Chu Yu emphasized each word very seriously, "When driving... you cannot hold the steering wheel with one hand. It's dangerous." He even tried to raise his hand to point at Chu Yan's "illegal" hand, but his movements seemed clumsy and slow due to the paralysis of alcohol.
"Pfft..." Chu Yan couldn't help but burst out laughing. Seeing this usually cold, ruthless, and decisive heir of the Chu family, he had such a contrastingly cute side when drunk. He obediently placed his other hand back on the steering wheel, suppressing a laugh. "Okay, as you command, Brother Yu. There are a thousand ways to go, but safety comes first."
Chu Yu seemed satisfied, nodded, and looked forward again. But after a few seconds, he seemed to remember something extremely important, and his brows furrowed tightly again, emitting an extremely unhappy, even a little aggrieved aura.
"Gu Xu." Chu Yu suddenly spoke, his voice cold and hard with undisguised disgust.
Chu Yan raised his eyebrows, waiting for his next words.
"He is not a good person." Chu Yu spoke slowly, but each word was as if tempered by ice. "His mind is deep. His methods are despicable." He began to launch an all-round and extremely subjective attack on Gu Shi, ranging from Gu Shi's business methods, to his way of dealing with people, to his private life. His logic was leaping and lacked supporting evidence, but his tone was extremely firm and indignant, just like a patriarch who was eager to protect his children and thought everyone was a bad guy.
Chu Yan was driving, listening to Chu Yu's rare "long speech" and emotionally charged accusations, finding it both amusing and sad. It seemed that Chu Yu was completely obsessed with Gu Xu's "evil intentions", and even when drunk, he was obsessed with "eliminating the threat".
Chu Yu criticized for a full five minutes. Finally, he turned his head abruptly and stared at Chu Yan again with his unfocused yet dignified eyes, concluding his speech in a decisive tone:
"So stay away from him and ignore him, do you hear me?" His tone was so domineering that it left no room for doubt.
Chu Yan suppressed his laughter and said casually, "I know, I know. But Brother Yu, the Gu family is powerful, I can't be too disrespectful to them, I just have to try not to offend them."
"No!" Chu Yu immediately retorted, his voice suddenly rising, "You are... my brother!" He uttered these words forcefully and clearly, "My brother doesn't need to be timid!"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
