Chapter 79 Birthday
The room was quiet, and Mu Yan's breathing gradually became steady and even, as if he had fallen asleep.
But Shang Qiyue knew that he was not actually asleep. When Mu Yan was asleep, his heartbeat was even slower than this.
He looked at Mu Yan, wanting to say something, but in the end he said nothing.
Two days later, two days later is his birthday.
He could see the search history on Mu Yan's phone. A month ago, Mu Yan had searched for "birthday gifts for successful alphas under thirty" several times on search engines, and had also searched for similar items on shopping apps.
But now, there isn't a single record like that left.
It's okay, Shang Qiyue comforted himself. Hadn't Mu Yan already given him that owl?
There are still two days left. Maybe Mu Yan hasn't forgotten yet. Maybe he'll buy himself a cake that day. Maybe Mu Yan will kiss him that day.
Mu Yan's breathing gradually became long and even. Shang Qiyue waited for a long time before carefully reaching out to hug his waist from behind.
Mu Yan has lost some weight, and his waist is even thinner. He has been in a bad mood since he came here, which has also affected his appetite, so he eats very little.
With Tangyuan around, he should be in a better mood. When Tangyuan gets a little older, they can go for walks together, and with more exercise, he should eat more.
The familiar smell of buttered bread was gone, but Shang Qiyue still felt incredibly content and at ease lying next to Mu Yan.
It had been a long time since he had slept so soundly. The next day, Shang Qiyue woke up, snuggled into Mu Yan's bed, and stayed in bed for a while before getting up.
The phone kept ringing for a while. Shang Qiyue hadn't brought his work phone home; his friends were probably discussing his birthday.
Meng Simiao had been urging him to prepare for the birthday party for a long time. They are not as well off as before. They have all taken over the family business one after another, and some have joined the military. There are not many days when the group can get together. The last time was when Fu Jiayan got engaged.
After hearing that his pheromone disorder was cured, Meng Simiao and the others were happier than anyone else. They all said it was a pity that he hadn't been with an omega for so many years, and they competed to introduce him to omegas. However, Shang Qiyue immediately turned cold and said that he didn't want an omega.
Seeing that he was really going to die for that beta, his friends didn't say much. Regardless of what they thought in their hearts, they all wished them a long and happy marriage.
Shang Qiyue got up and washed up. When the driver came to pick him up from the villa, he started replying to messages in the group chat on the way.
"Let's just have a simple meal and some drinks. If you want to go to Liuguang, I'll treat you, but I probably won't be going."
Everyone joked that he was good, keeping himself pure and virtuous. Fu Jiayan then said that he was married and wouldn't be going to the second half of the game, so everyone could have more fun.
After Fu Jiayan said that, everyone started teasing him about being henpecked. Fu Jiayan has always been quite easygoing about these kinds of things, so he readily admitted it.
Shang Qiyue's birthday fell on a workday, and when he woke up, Mu Yan had already gone to work.
Maybe she just didn't want to wake him. Shang Qiyue comforted himself, washed his face, and then fed Tangyuan some snacks.
Tangyuan seemed to be in a bad mood. Mu Yan must have left not long ago, and it was already sad again.
Shang Qiyue found the owl. Online sources said that these owls would respond when called by name, but Mu Yan kept telling him that this owl didn't have a name. Shang Qiyue searched online for a wake-up tutorial, turned it on, gave it a random name, and called out to it several times, but it didn't turn its head or chirp.
Mu Yan must have given it a name back then.
Tangyuan found it novel and ran over to try and take it away to play with, but Shang Qiyue held the toy up a little higher: "This is mine, I can't give this to you... I've already bought you so many toys, and you're still wanting more than you have. Don't you already have a little bird toy? You're greedy."
Tangyuan had no idea what greed was. When it couldn't reach the toy, its face immediately fell. It let out a pitiful whimper and tried to raise its front paws to reach it.
"I can't give you this one, I'll buy you the same one next time," Shang Qiyue put the doll on a high place, picked up Tangyuan, and fed it some snacks to appease it. "You get upset as soon as things don't go your way. It's a good thing you're not a child, or I would be driven crazy by you."
Although it was his birthday, Shang Qiyue still had to go to the company. Tangyuan's separation anxiety hadn't subsided much, but thankfully, Auntie had just returned from grocery shopping, allowing Shang Qiyue to escape.
Upon arriving at the company, his close subordinates all wished him a happy birthday, and by the end of the day, Shang Qiyue was almost exhausted from dealing with them.
His phone kept ringing, but he waited until the afternoon and still didn't receive a happy birthday message from Mu Yan.
He glanced at the time he had arranged to meet his friend, hesitated for a moment, and then decided to drive back to Yuejing's villa first.
When he got home, Mu Yan had already come home from get off work and was squatting on the carpet watching Tangyuan eat dog food. For some reason, even though Shang Qiyue had come home specifically to hear Mu Yan wish him a happy birthday, he just couldn't bring himself to remind him.
"...Its stomach is a little better now," Shang Qiyue said after waiting for a while. "The dog food doesn't need to be soaked so soft anymore."
Mu Yan nodded and replied with an "okay".
"I'm going out for dinner with some friends tonight."
Mu Yan hummed in response, without looking up at him.
"Could you come pick me up? I might have had a few drinks and can't drive myself," Shang Qiyue said again. "I..."
No matter the reason, they all sounded lame, so Shang Qiyue simply went all in: "Could you come pick me up? Just this once, consider it..."
Consider this your birthday present to me.
As he spoke, Shang Qiyue was prepared to hear Mu Yan's refusal. But unexpectedly, before he could finish speaking, he heard Mu Yan softly hum in agreement.
Shang Qiyue was overjoyed, but then he was afraid that Mu Yan hadn't listened to what he was saying and had just agreed casually. He paused, hesitating whether to repeat what he had just said.
"Around what time will it end?" Tangyuan had almost finished eating the dog food when Mu Yan stood up, looked up at him and asked.
"Around nine o'clock, they're going to the second half, I'm not going," Shang Qiyue saw Mu Yan nod indifferently and quickly changed his mind, "8:30, it should be over by 8:30."
“I didn’t go to bed that early. Nine o’clock is fine. There’s no need to rush to finish. Call me when you’re almost done and I’ll come pick you up.”
"If you don't want to drive, then don't. I'll just arrange a designated driver in advance."
Mu Yan hummed in agreement and said, "Anything is fine."
When Shang Qiyue arrived at the hotel, almost everyone had already arrived and were chatting enthusiastically.
Shang Qiyue opened the door to the private room. He had lost a lot of weight recently. Although he wasn't exactly emaciated, he was wearing a wedding ring, and his playboy demeanor had completely disappeared, which surprised everyone.
Although I had heard about the series of absurd things he had done for that beta, seeing him like this in person still made me feel a little emotional.
They were all respectable people. Although they all secretly felt that Shang Qiyue's actions for a mistress he kept outside were somewhat contrary to their values, these self-proclaimed friends and wealthy young men wouldn't really say anything when they met.
Everyone toasted and drank, keeping quiet about Mu Yan's matter. Even if they accidentally mentioned it, they wouldn't say anything that would make Shang Qiyue uncomfortable.
“Well, it’s fine. It doesn’t matter who you marry. Your own happiness is more important than anything else,” Zhao Hetang said. “Your dad is really something. He’s ignored you all these years. When you and Meng Simiao fell like dog shit while skiing in the mountains of R country, he didn’t ask a single question. He has to worry about things that are not his concern.”
"Hey," Meng Simiao said, displeased when he brought up that incident, "You have to bring it up, don't you? You just fell less badly, is it necessary to keep bringing it up?"
"I dodged it thanks to my superior skills!"
“Actually,” Fu Jiayan, who had been smiling and agreeing without saying much, suddenly spoke up somewhat inappropriately, “there’s really no need to be in such a rush to spend your whole life with someone, after all, you haven’t known each other for very long.”
Fu Jiayan is a steady and mature person, and he rarely says things that sound inappropriate. Everyone was stunned and didn't know how to smooth things over for him.
“He’s not what you think… Anyone can say that, but you can’t. I’ve told you before,” Shang Qiyue’s face immediately darkened. “He saved me twice.”
“Jiayan didn’t mean that. I’ve met that… I’ve met your wife,” Meng Simiao hurriedly swallowed back the word “that beta.” “I feel that your wife is a good person, gentle and sensible. Jiayan probably just wanted to give you some advice as someone who has been married before.”
“Even if you’re only after money, it’s fine. We have plenty of money anyway,” Ren Chengzhou said with a smile, trying to salvage the situation. “What’s wrong with Fu Jiayan? Did you have a fight with Miss Lu, or did your brother-in-law upset you again?”
"What kind of trouble has he caused this time?" Shang Qiyue disliked Lu Chong and knew that Fu Jiayan was gentle and polite and rarely clashed with people directly. Seeing this, he frowned and asked Fu Jiayan.
“No,” Fu Jiayan smiled gently as if nothing had happened. “I don’t live with him either. If he’s angry, it’s my father-in-law. I probably spoke faster than I thought just now. I’ll punish myself with a drink.”
They were drinking baijiu (Chinese liquor), and punishing themselves with a cup was no small matter. In reality, Fu Jiayan only picked up the cup and took a small sip. Everyone scolded him for cheating, and the little incident passed by.
Although it was Shang Qiyue's birthday today, he was still a little upset by what Fu Jiayan had just said.
He had only told Fu Jiayan about the car accident and the markings. He wouldn't have been so angry if anyone else had said it, but it was Fu Jiayan, who had learned the whole story from him, that made him feel particularly unhappy.
How good Mu Yan is, how much Mu Yan cares about him—he and Mu Yan are a match made in heaven, having overcome many obstacles. Others may not know, but at least Fu Jiayan, who is closest to him, should know.
Feeling down, and with food and wine on the table, Shang Qiyue silently drank quite a bit, only occasionally responding with a smile to the laughter and chatter around him, completely unaffected by the joyful atmosphere. Several friends had initially tried to cheer the birthday boy up, but seeing that he seemed genuinely troubled, they gave up.
Drinking alone is the easiest way to get drunk. Near the end, although Shang Qiyue was already tipsy, he forced himself to send a message to Mu Yan and then booked a private room for Liuguang's front desk.
Mu Yan replied quickly, saying that he had arrived at the parking lot and the designated driver would be there soon.
Fu Jiayan helped him walk towards the parking lot. Shang Qiyue's car was not hard to find; the Rolls-Royce Phantom was familiar and ostentatious. Fu Jiayan walked up and tapped on the car window with two fingers together.
Hearing the noise, Mu Yan assumed it was a designated driver. He got out of the car, smiled politely at the person, and happened to make eye contact with the alpha who had brought Shang Qiyue back.
"Since you've come to pick him up, I'll leave him here." Fu Jiayan smiled politely.
Mu Yan politely said thank you, then subtly looked away and helped Shang Qiyue into the car.
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