Chapter 61 Back then
Old Master Lu had long harbored hatred for Su Fengyao, and once he started talking, he couldn't stop. In addition, the Yu family members thought this was a good opportunity to divert attention, so they all joined in. Thus, what should have been a parent-teacher meeting turned into a denunciation session of Su Fengyao.
“I think the old man is only good at fighting.” Fu Yanle whispered in Yu Jingchen’s ear, “He’s completely being led astray.”
Yu Jingchen reached out and ruffled his hair, and whispered, "It's been a long time since I've held a grudge, so I just had to get it off my chest. Besides, your grandfather meant well."
Fu Yanle smiled. He knew the old man had deliberately brought up Su Fengyao, because the Yu family was intolerant of any imperfections, especially since the old man had always valued Yu Jingchen and was extremely picky about his partner. His relationship with Su Fengyao wasn't a secret, and the old man was sure he had some reservations about him.
After all, Yu Jingchen is the rightful heir of the Yu family. It's one thing for him to date a man, but to choose one who's already embroiled in all sorts of rumors. If he were Old Master Yu, he would be unhappy too.
In this situation, the old man brought up Su Fengyao for three reasons: first, to support him; second, to save face for him; and third, to show that he had misjudged Su Fengyao and that he had now completely severed ties with him.
Everyone launched into a tirade of insults against Su Fengyao. Old Master Lu was blunt and direct, Old Master Yu was cunning and manipulative, Yan Chaoqing was all smiles and hidden daggers, and little Yan Zhihuai was eloquent and quick-witted, in no way inferior to the adults.
Yu Jingchen, Lu Minghe, and Fu Yanle sat in a row, unable to get a word in edgewise, like outsiders.
"Everyone, please take a rest!" Yu Zhouxing popped his head out from outside the hall. "Please move to the dining table."
"Dinner's ready, come on, Lele!" Yan Chaoqing stepped forward and took Fu Yanle's arm. "Your dad rarely cooks, but he's really good at it. He used to win me over with his cooking skills back then."
Yu Zhouxing retorted calmly yet with concern, "This is just one of my strengths."
“Yes, your father does have many good qualities.” Yan Chaoqing smiled. “After all, acknowledging his goodness is affirming my own judgment!”
Fu Yanle: "Haha!"
Shan and the others entered the dining hall. The two old men sat in the main seats, and Fu Yanle was arranged to sit next to Yu Jingchen. Upon seeing this, Yan Zhihuai quickly ran to the seat directly opposite the two.
This position is the most convenient for Yan Zhihuai to observe Yu Jingchen and Fu Yanle. He wants to learn some dating skills from their interactions and accumulate rich theoretical knowledge for his future pursuit of Ruan Ruan.
Fu Yanle glanced at the dishes on the table and realized that Yan Chaoqing was indeed not acting out of love; the dishes were truly delicious and visually appealing.
"When the family eats together, there's no need for formalities," Yan Chaoqing said. "Lele, Xiaohe, you two don't need to be polite. You must give Chef Yu Zhouxing, who rarely cooks, the respect he deserves. Also, these two bottles of Bai Cui are ones I just brought back. If you don't like them, I'll get you something else."
"Thank you, Auntie. I'll have this." Lu Minghe stood up. "Uncle, you've worked so hard. Let me first toast you on behalf of my stomach and my mouth."
"You're too kind. I don't drink much these days, but it's alright. Uncle will take this glass from you. Come on!" Yu Zhouxing said as he took the glass and quickly downed a large glass with Lu Minghe before the meal.
What a joke! I finally found a chance to drink, so I'll drink as much as I can.
With a smile on her face, Yan Chaoqing gave Yu Zhouxing's leg a warning tug under the table, gritting her teeth: "Drink less."
"Politeness is essential," Yu Zhouxing muttered in defense, then gave Fu Yanle and Yu Jingchen a wink as he turned his head: Hurry up and come drink with me!
Yu Jingchen kept his eyes down, pretending not to see anything.
Fu Yanle is caught in a dilemma: Yu Zhouxing just wants to drink but is afraid of his wife, what did he do wrong? But who should he offend this time?
He secretly tugged at Yu Jingchen's sleeve, asking for help.
Yu Jingchen said, "Why does Father keep blinking this way? Is your eye uncomfortable?"
Yan Chaoqing's deathly gaze immediately shot over, and Yu Zhouxing immediately sat up straight, smiling as he said, "I'm just moving my eyes around, nothing's wrong, I'll eat your food."
That gritted teeth weren't even slightly obvious. Fu Yanle buried his head in his food, then turned to Yu Jingchen with an admiring look: One move to defeat the enemy, fatherly love and filial piety, amazing!
Yu Jingchen replied gently, "Thank you for the compliment."
His favorite shrimp was right in front of him, but Fu Yanle glanced at it several times without picking at it. As a good-for-nothing who disliked peeling shrimp and removing bones, he preferred not to eat it.
Just then, a peeled shrimp gently landed on his plate. Fu Yanle immediately turned his head and gestured with his eyes: Don't peel it for me!
Yu Jingchen raised an eyebrow slightly: Why?
Fu Yanle: Of course, it's because I want to avoid giving my elders the impression that I'm lazy and good-for-nothing!
Yu Jingchen smiled, then added another shrimp, saying, "It'll get cold if you don't eat it soon."
Everyone's gaze turned towards him simultaneously. The usually arrogant and domineering little prince of the company immediately lowered his eyelids and secretly touched the tips of his ears, turning them red. Yu Jingchen found this amusing and also thought he was quite adorable.
"Oh dear, so spoiled!" Old Master Lu said with a chuckle. "My grandson has been pampered by me since he was little. He has to be spoiled. Jingchen, you have a good understanding of this!"
Help! Fu Yanle wished he could shove his head into a bowl.
She had been pretending to be well-behaved and sweet for most of the day, but in the end, all her efforts were ruined by just one sentence!
Yu Jingchen placed the shrimp next to Fu Yanle's chopsticks, pointed at the plate as if giving a command, and looked up to say, "Everyone has their own little habits, and besides, Lele is so good, she should be spoiled."
After he finished speaking, he lowered his eyes and saw that Fu Yanle obediently ate the shrimp.
“That’s right, that’s right. Lele is so lovable, who wouldn’t want to spoil him?” Yan Chaoqing looked at her two sons with eyes full of pink bubbles. “I don’t like peeling shells either. Before, my older brother would peel them for me at home, and later Zhouxing would peel them for me.”
Yu Zhouxing, who was secretly competing with Yu Jingchen in peeling shrimp, immediately seized the opportunity to show his loyalty, "It's what I should do. Come on, eat some shrimp."
Yan Zhihuai looked at his brothers across from him, then glanced at his aunt and uncle beside him, and couldn't help but feel a little envious. If Ruan Ruan were here too, there would be three good men peeling shrimp for their lovers at the table.
*
After dinner, the two old men went for a walk in the garden, Yan Chaoqing and Yu Zhouxing went out to see a movie, and Lu Minghe and Yan Zhihuai, who were both alone, got together to play video games.
Fu Yanle sat on the cushion at the top of the stone steps, propping himself up on his arms and looking up at the moon. As the light faded, the lonely moon, dim and silent, with few stars in sight, stirred a rare tenderness and restraint in Fu Yanle's heart.
"Damn it!" Lu Minghe roared from afar, "What's wrong with this idiot? It's like Cao Pi's wife entering the vegetable garden and Zhen Ji picking vegetables!"
"..." Fu Yanle was instantly distracted and glanced at Lu Minghe's back with a cool look.
Yu Jingchen walked over with a small cup and said, "Want some yogurt?"
Fu Yanle took it, "You rushed back today, have you arranged your work?"
“I’ve taken care of everything that needed to be done. Xu Shuo can decide the rest.” Yu Jingchen thought for a moment, “We need to give Xu Shuo a raise next year.”
Fu Yanle asked with a smile, "Has Assistant Xu been with you for a long time?"
Yu Jingchen said, "We met once in high school, at a math competition. Later, we became alumni in college. We happened to be in the same research group. During that time, I noticed that he was quick-witted, never competing or vying for attention, but always able to accurately grasp the situation and hit the mark. That's when I started to notice him."
“You two are really destined to meet,” Fu Yanle said. “You were able to choose the same school in a foreign country and even be assigned to the same research group.”
Yu Jingchen pinched Fu Yanle's nape and said, "Later, when I joined the group, I recommended him to my father. But I didn't expect my father to say that Xu Shuo had already come to the group for an interview. Moreover, among the many young talents, my father liked Xu Shuo the most and even promoted him to be his assistant."
"So Dad wants to train Assistant Xu first, and then leave him to you, right?" Fu Yanle put down the empty cup. "After all, you are still so young. There are too many difficulties to overcome in order to fully take over a group. You must have a capable assistant by your side. Assistant Xu is a newcomer, young and excellent, but he has no roots in the group and is not involved with any party. He is the most suitable person to follow you."
“That’s right.” Yu Jingchen patted Fu Yanle’s head, praising him like a child, “Lele is so smart.”
Fu Yanle was unimpressed and said, "Don't praise me for being smart so casually, it makes me look stupid."
"Okay," Yu Jingchen said, "I've got it."
Fu Yanle gave a soft hum and said, "I realize that I don't know anything about the old you. All I know are some adjectives, and most of them are things I've heard from other people."
“It’s alright,” Yu Jingchen said.
“But you seem to really know me from the past.” Fu Yanle turned to look at him. “I specifically looked through Grandpa’s photo album, but I didn’t see those childhood photos on Weibo. So, Brother Chen, where did you get them from?”
Yu Jingchen was silent for a moment, then said, "I saw you not long after you were born. My mother took me to the hospital to visit my aunt, and you were sleeping in the crib next to her. You had a chubby face and were very quiet. At the time, I thought to myself, you're such a tiny little thing, you look so soft and delicate, like you would break if you were touched. But before I left, I still secretly poked your face. I promise, I was very gentle."
“…I was so young, and you poked me.” Fu Yanle reached out and poked Yu Jingchen’s face twice. “I’ll pay you back double!”
Yu Jingchen squeezed his fingers. "The next time I saw you was on the day of your aunt's funeral. Everyone was outside, but I sneaked in and found you. You were sitting on the edge of the bed crying, and the nanny was trying to comfort you, but you kept crying. I sent the nanny away and showed you a puppy toy, and you stopped crying quickly. I rubbed the toy against your face, and you even smiled. You probably don't know..."
He paused for a moment and said, "Lele, back then you weren't afraid of me and were willing to be close to me."
But why did Fu Yanle become afraid of him after he grew up? This question was like a curse that had troubled Yu Jingchen for many years.
"..." Fu Yanle was speechless.
Yu Jingchen said, "Didn't you ask me before when I started liking you?"
At that moment, Fu Yanle was filled with fear. He was afraid that Yu Jingchen would give a terrible answer, and behind that answer was a debt that he could not make up for.
Yu Jingchen lowered his head and kissed his fingertips.
"I think I liked you the moment I first learned the meaning of 'like'."
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