Chapter 1
In the golden autumn of October, the evening sunset and the street lights illuminated the ground with golden color. Fine raindrops beat the city's neon lights onto the ground. The glass door of the exit of Ningcheng International Airport opened with a "ding" and a tall man walked out. His long legs were wrapped in his straight suit pants, and his well-cut shirt was matched with a black dark-patterned tie, revealing a pair of inky eyes.
He raised his eyes slightly, his gaze as deep as a pool, holding the phone to his ear, and walked out of the airport exhausted.
"Hey, Heng, have you landed yet? Go home quickly and pack up. Don't forget the party tonight."
"The driver is here to pick us up. What party?" The overcast and rainy weather brought a low-pressure atmosphere. The man sitting in the back seat of the car wore a black mask, making it difficult to see his facial expression. His eyes lightly swept across the crowd outside the window, and feeling annoyed, he closed the window and raised the baffle inside the car.
The person on the phone was still chattering, "I'm throwing you a party! I'm going! You didn't forget, did you? It's tonight at 10:30 at NK! It's to celebrate your return to the motherland."
NK is the most prosperous club in Ningcheng in the past two years. Because it is backed by the big Yixing Group, the recently popular traffic star Guan Xia also often appears here. Many celebrities, Internet celebrities, and paparazzi often wait here to meet Guan Xia by chance, and it is difficult to get a seat.
Yan Yuheng leaned back in the car seat, closed his eyes, rubbed his temples, and took off his mask. His low voice came through the phone coldly, "Okay, I know. I'll just sit for a few hours. I have a morning meeting tomorrow." The person on the other end of the phone chuckled, "Okay, Zhang Qianyi has also returned to Ningcheng. From what I hear, he means he's not leaving. Let's have a good time together this time! I'm hanging up first, my girlfriend is urging me."
After Yan Yuheng hung up the phone, he opened WeChat. Sure enough, everyone in the high school group chat was discussing his and Zhang Qianyi's return. He casually scrolled through a few pages of the chat history and exited. His gaze fixed on the pinned chat box. He reached out and stroked his profile picture before turning off his phone.
The car stopped in front of a villa. After crossing the yard, Yan Yuheng stood at the door for a long time, and then walked in as if he had made up his mind.
"Xiao Heng, you're back!" A dignified woman in a dress walked out of the elevator. She rubbed her hands and slowly walked over to him. "Dad has a social event tonight. What do you want to eat? Mom asked Auntie to make it." Yan Yuheng sighed softly. "No need, Mom. I just came back to see you and pick up some things. I have a meeting with my high school classmates tonight. I'll be staying in the large flat near the company from now on. If you need anything, just call me."
Yan Yuheng finished speaking and strode forward towards the elevator. Pei Man's trembling voice called out to him from behind, "Xiaoheng, are you still blaming mom and dad? Mom really can't accept Xiaosen's situation for the time being. I'm sorry."
Yan Yuheng walked into the elevator and pressed the top button. Before the elevator door slowly closed, he slowly said, "It's all over. Let's just leave it at that."
Yan Yuheng took a deep breath and walked into the dusty room. He slowly walked to the cloakroom and turned on the lights. The room was illuminated by rows of incandescent bulbs. Yan Yuheng picked up the suitcase from the closet and walked to the back cabinet to pack the clothes that didn't fit his size into the suitcase. He then opened the bottom of the jewelry cabinet and pulled out a box from the bottom to put it into the suitcase. After doing all this, he pulled up the suitcase, turned off the lights, left the room, and pressed the elevator to the basement.
Entering the garage on the second underground floor, Yan Yuheng drove a low-key Range Rover, put the luggage in the trunk, drove out of the villa and returned to his large flat. He hired a cleaner to tidy up the new house, put the clothes in the bedroom closet, and took out the box in the suitcase and slowly opened it. A pair of diamond cufflinks sparkled under the light. Yan Yuheng took out the cufflinks and put them on his shirt. After doing all this, he went to the underground garage and drove the car into NK's parking lot.
After entering NK and showing the reservation text message on his mobile phone, the waiter took him to the private room on the top floor. As soon as he pushed the door open, he heard the nagging voice from before, "No way!!! Mr. Yan! Why are you wearing a suit and tie to the bar! You make me feel like I'm having an early morning meeting in the bar. No, how come you've become so handsome! Is the climate and soil in the United States so nourishing? You have thick eyebrows and big eyes, and there is three parts of indifference and two parts of indifference in your eyes..." The other party was interrupted before he finished speaking. Yan Yuheng touched the diamond cufflinks on the side and gave him a blank look, "Fat Tiger, stop watching brainless dramas with your girlfriend. You only grow belly but not brain." Hu Peng touched the back of his head and chuckled after hearing this.
Everyone present today was Yan Yuheng's high school classmates, practically all of whom were invited by Hu Peng. Yan Yuheng had spent every day in high school hanging out with his childhood friends, so he wasn't exactly close to them, at least not close enough to attend a party together. Also present was Wen Xian, Yan Yuheng's partner in Country M. They had both arrived in Ningcheng around the same time, and since he'd been in NK that evening, he'd come along to join in the fun.
"Hey, Yuheng, long time no see." The man sitting on the sofa stretched out his hand to greet him. His neat short hair matched his upright face, sharp eyebrows and bright eyes, and he was flamboyant.
He was holding a man in his arms, a statuesque figure. Beneath his short white hair were delicate fox eyes, a blood-red teardrop mole beneath them that betrayed his extraordinary and mysterious nature. He leaned against the man, looking arrogantly at Yan Yuheng and raising an eyebrow.
The man on the sofa waved at him, "Come, Yuheng, let me introduce you. This is my boyfriend, Hu Yichen." Now it was Yan Yuheng's turn to be stunned. After two seconds of reaction, he punched his shoulder and sat down next to him, "Zhang Qianyi, when did you get a boyfriend? Didn't you like...?"
Yan Yuheng stopped talking halfway. Hu Yichen pricked up his ears and looked at Yan Yuheng with desire in his beautiful eyes, hoping to hear something from him.
Zhang Qianyi quickly sat up straight on the sofa and covered Hu Yichen's ears, "Don't say such words that are not conducive to unity, my baby will be angry. The past is the past, and the present is now. I only love my baby." After that, he kissed Hu Yichen on the face. Hu Yichen seemed to be very happy and squinted his eyes, and his white hair rubbed against Zhang Qianyi's face.
Yan Yuheng felt something blocking his chest when he saw this scene. He threw down a few words and fled towards the door in a daze, "I'll go downstairs and take a look. You guys play first."
The music downstairs constantly assaulted his eardrums, noisy and boring. Yan Yuheng recalled what had just happened and felt increasingly agitated. He hurried to the bathroom to wash his face. If those things hadn't happened back then, would he and Xiao Sen also...
"Don't you have eyes? The water on your hand splashed onto my pants. Can you afford to pay for it?" Yan Yuheng raised his head and saw a bartender opposite with his head down and his ears twisted. The fat and big-eared man next to him was still talking non-stop, "Can you hear me talking to you? Your eyes and ears are not working, are they not working too? Speak!" The man reached out and slapped him. Because the force was too great, his whole face turned sideways to face Yan Yuheng, his long eyelashes drooped, and there was no expression on his fair face, only half of his face and ear were red and swollen.
Yan Yuheng stared at that face, his pupils suddenly constricting and bloodshot. It was him. Although his appearance had changed a bit, the small mole on the tip of his nose was unmistakable. Yan Yuheng's bloodshot eyes watched everything unfold, his vision blurring.
"Are you deaf, blind, and dumb? What a waste of such a nice face." A greasy voice spewed out many dirty words, and his hands had already touched the bartender's waist. Yan Yuheng cursed inwardly, and suddenly stepped forward to push the man away and shove him to the ground. He grabbed the bartender's hand and hugged him in front of him to protect him. The bartender's face was buried in Yan Yuheng's shoulder, and he couldn't see who it was. He resisted and tried to push Yan Yuheng away. More and more people gathered around. The man on the ground cursed and called the manager. He was too drunk to stand up.
"It's okay, Xiaosen, don't be afraid, I'm here." Yan Yuheng stroked his hair gently and soothed him along his back with his big palm.
The person in his arms trembled when he heard the word "Xiao Sen" and stopped pushing. He put his hands on Yan Yuheng's chest and tightly grasped the fabric of his shirt. Yan Yuheng only felt the temperature on his shoulders getting higher and higher. He gently comforted the person in his arms, "Don't cry, Brother Heng is here."
The manager arrived in a few minutes. He first helped the man on the ground up, then glared at Yan Yuheng with a look of disappointment on his face, "Do you know who this person is? The vice president of Hang Lung Group is his cousin! Are you crazy? You have to provoke him!" Yan Yuheng had just returned to China and not many people knew him. He held the person in his arms, lowered his head with some anger and sent a message. The people around him were still chattering about them.
Hu Peng rushed downstairs the moment he received the news. "Oh my god, Master Yan, you're such a character! You're causing trouble on your first day back home. Who's that waiter in your arms? How could you make such a fuss right after returning home?" Hu Peng glanced sideways at the man next to him and jumped to the side in fright. "Oh my god, who is this fat, big-eared pig? You'll have to pay me if you stand here and scare me, young master, you know?"
Hu Peng arrived and fired back like a machine gun, leaving everyone present dumbfounded. "You guys go back upstairs first. I'll take care of this little thing. Oh, and Zhang Qianyi upstairs still owes me a drink. Don't let him default on it. If his boyfriend wants to drink for him, remember to make him drink a double. You know what, his boyfriend is really good-looking and can hold his liquor well. I don't know how many drinks he's already drunk for Zhang Qianyi..."
Yan Yuheng interrupted his chattering and went upstairs with the person in his arms, "Okay, I'll take Xiaosen away first, you handle it." Hu Peng thought for two seconds after listening, and suddenly turned around with wide eyes and shouted, "Oh my god! Xiaosen! Mo Yousen! You found Mo Yousen!"
Upon hearing the news, the bar owner rushed over and brought a group of people to clear the restroom. "Sorry, Mr. Hu. This new manager doesn't know the situation. How about this? I'll have the manager go to the private room and apologize in person. I'll also strengthen the management of the bar staff in the future. How about I personally pay for your private room?" Hu Peng pointed at the man next to the manager. "What about him?"
"Are you kidding me? Who the hell are you? My cousin is the vice president of Hang Lung, did you know that? Can you afford to offend him?" The man was already drunk, and the sight of Hu Peng's arrogance only intensified his anger. The manager who was supporting him realized something was amiss and kept his head down, saying nothing.
Hu Peng laughed heartily when he heard the name Hang Lung. "Hang Lung? Who the hell is your cousin? Of the three vice presidents at Hang Lung headquarters, which one is your cousin?"
Seeing this, the bar owner quickly interrupted and forced the manager to apologize, "Yixing's general manager is still sitting upstairs! Mr. Hu is Mr. Zhang's friend, so apologize and get out."
The two men, who had been so arrogant, knew they couldn't afford to offend this man and quickly apologized. The drunken man staggered and bowed deeply to Hu Peng. His cousin was just a small vice president of a branch company, so how could he dare to offend Hu Peng? It was fine to act arrogant and show off normally, but when he met a tough opponent, he was out of luck.
Hu Peng poked the man's beer belly, which looked like it was six months old, with his finger and said, "If you don't have the ability, don't bother to put on such a scene, don't you think? Little Vice President, you're ridiculous." After saying that, Hu Peng washed his hands and went back upstairs. The man fell to the ground and rubbed his face.
Yan Yuheng brought Mo Yousen to an empty box on the top floor. He held the man tightly in his arms, muttering to himself, "Xiaosen, where have you been all these years? Mo Guozheng said you were sick and studying and receiving treatment abroad. He didn't let us contact you, saying that you would be stressed by everything you saw back home. I asked him where you were, but he refused to tell me. Xiaosen, I miss you so much. Why haven't you contacted me for all these years? Xiaosen, Xiaosen, can you please say something?"
Mo Yousen slowly pushed Yan Yuheng away, staring at him with empty eyes. He didn't say a word from beginning to end, but just kept looking at him with a dead heart.
After an unknown amount of time, Mo Yousen felt a splitting headache, unable to bear everything around him. He pushed Yan Yuheng away and ran out of the box. It all happened so quickly that Yan Yuheng fell to the ground before he could even react, his arm scraped. He stumbled as he tried to chase him. Mo Yousen ran so fast that when he opened the door, he couldn't find him. Yan Yuheng could only call Zhang Qianyi and ask him to check the surveillance footage as soon as possible. He had to find Mo Yousen. He had to find him.
After Zhang Qianyi answered the phone, he quickly rushed to the monitoring room. Hu Yichen followed him calmly. Yan Yuheng was already waiting outside the monitoring room, staring at them with bloodshot eyes, his voice trembling. "Zhang Qianyi, hurry! It's Xiaosen. We must find him."
Hu Yichen climbed onto Zhang Qianyi's shoulders, looked at him slyly, and rubbed his head against him. Zhang Qianyi knew what his gesture meant, so he lowered his eyes, smiled, and said soothingly, "Xiao Sen is our childhood friend and also my younger brother. Do you remember the group photo in my office? Xiao Sen was the one with yellow hair."
Hu Yichen nodded with satisfaction and ordered the security guards to quickly check the surveillance footage. They had immediately tracked down Mo Yousen's direction of escape, having escaped through the back door and then bolted down the street. The street surveillance cameras weren't there, and everything came to a screeching halt. Zhang Qianyi took a photo and sent it to the bar owner, asking his men to find it. Yan Yuheng slumped in a chair in the surveillance room, his head hanging limply.
After escaping from NK, Mo Yousen took out his mobile phone and sent a message to the foreman, telling him his request to resign. The foreman knew that the man he was handling did not have a good family background, but he was down-to-earth and hardworking, and his sales of alcohol were usually good. He must have encountered something he could not solve to make this request. With his education level that did not even graduate from high school, this was the highest-paying job he could do. The foreman transferred him 500 yuan privately and promised to pay him his salary at the beginning of next month. Mo Yousen thanked him.
Mo Yousen didn't know where to go at this point, so he went to a convenience store, bought a bottle of Niulanshan and a few beers, and drank them as he walked, wandering aimlessly on the street. After following his subconscious for hours, Mo Yousen arrived at the cemetery. He looked up to make sure he was in the right place. His mother, yes, her mother was there.
Mo Yousen walked towards Tang Miao step by step, and lay on Tang Miao's tombstone. Ningcheng's changeable weather started to rain again. The night enveloped the entire cemetery. Only a few guiding lights beside the steps illuminated the way forward. The drizzle soaked Mo Yousen all over.
Mo Yousen poured the wine down his throat with the rain, "Mom, Mom... If you were still here... Wouldn't I be bullied? They all bully me. I don't have a mother, what should I do? Mom, I obviously have one, you are my mother." Mo Yousen's tears fell to the ground drop by drop, and he was still talking incoherently. Later, he didn't know whether he fainted from crying or drinking, but fell in front of the tombstone. He had a dream, a dream of his past self...
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