The stilt house is simple and natural. In order to ensure the unity of style, the booths are separated by bamboo curtains. Although they divide the two spaces, they can only block the line of sight and cannot isolate the sound.
Song Xuanhe's expression froze. What did he just say?
Those were all random words he said just to appease Qian Ping. He couldn't remember them clearly at the moment, but he remembered the most unwilling sentence very clearly - I just like him too much.
When Xiao Yuanmu and Wei Chen appeared in front of them, Song Xuanhe had already lost all expression.
The first person Qian Ping saw was Wei Chen. Even though he hadn't been home for a long time, they had lived in the same compound and played together when they were young, so he recognized him at a glance. He smiled brightly and stood up and said, "I didn't expect it. I was just talking about you with Song Er, and you're here!"
Wei Chen also recognized Qian Ping. He smiled and said, "I heard that Qian Bo will be transferred back soon. Congratulations."
"Come on, come on, sit together." Qian Ping smiled even more and pulled Wei Chen to sit next to him.
Song Xuanhe had already completely digested the embarrassment of being caught. He said to Xiao Yuanmu as if nothing had happened, "Sit down."
After Xiao Yuanmu sat down, Qian Ping noticed him. He first looked at Song Xuanhe in confusion, then hesitantly asked, "Is this Xiao Yuanmu?"
"Yes." Song Xuanhe pretended not to see Xiao Yuanmu's gaze and introduced calmly: "It's what you always wanted to see."
Qian Ping's eyes moved to Xiao Yuanmu's face again, and he looked him up and down, and gave a conclusion: "He is quite energetic."
Song Xuan paused with his hands holding the crab claws, and when he looked up, he saw Qian Ping turning his gaze away without any interest, and then enthusiastically talked to Wei Chen about the medical robot project he had just mentioned.
For some reason, Song Xuanhe couldn't help laughing when he saw Qian Ping's dull look, but after laughing he began to reflect on himself.
Xiao Yuanmu was indeed very good-looking, so good that he almost didn't look like a real person. It was not an exaggeration to describe him as breathtaking. However, as a designer, he was so surprised that he forgot about a person's appearance. No matter how perfect and good-looking he was, he could not gain the recognition of everyone in the world.
Aesthetics have never been unified. From race to region, from culture to customs, there are huge differences in aesthetics between people.
This was Song Xuanhe's first lesson on aesthetics when he was a freshman. His instructor had told him that all beauty deserves respect, but all beauty should be explored from the perspective of real existence and discovered from the inside out. However, as a designer who had already gained some fame, he forgot what he learned in the first lesson after seeing Xiao Yuanmu for the first time.
The book says that Xiao Yuanmu is handsome and has perfect appearance. In Song Xuanhe's aesthetic sense, Xiao Yuanmu is indeed like that, so he uses his own aesthetic sense to speculate the aesthetic sense of everyone in the world.
This was due to his doubts about whether the world was real, and also to his over-reliance on the contents of the book in his mind.
But, in everyone's aesthetic sense, is Xiao Yuanmu the most perfect existence?
Qian Ping’s performance today suddenly woke him up. In fact, it was not the case.
At this moment, he realized that he had only seen the truth about Xiao Yuanmu before, but had not seen the truth about this world.
Xiao Yuanmu is real, and this world is also real, more real than he had realized before. The people here are the same as those in the world he lives in. They grew up in different families, came into contact with different groups of people, and have their own independent thoughts and aesthetics. Like him and Xiao Yuanmu, they are flesh and blood and are independent and living individuals.
After realizing this, Song Xuanhe felt that the sense of confusion and vanity that had been lingering in his heart suddenly disappeared. When he looked at the scenery of the lake outside the window, he seemed to see more bright colors.
Xiao Yuanmu had been quietly observing Song Xuanhe's expression. He saw that after Qian Ping finished speaking, he lowered his eyes and seemed to be thinking about something. The corners of his mouth were slightly pursed as if he felt a little guilty. However, just a few seconds later, he raised his eyes and looked out the window. His slightly curved eyebrows showed his good mood, as if he had figured something out and suddenly became enlightened.
It was at this time that Song Xuanhe turned his head and looked over. This was the first time Xiao Yuanmu saw Song Xuanhe with such a calm expression. Even when he looked into his eyes before, his eyes that seemed to be able to see through him at a glance seemed to hide something, making people want to peel it off and dig out his true thoughts bit by bit.
But at this moment, there was a smile in his eyes, and his bright pupils seemed to be dotted with starlight, dazzling and clear, making him want to raise his hand to grab the starlight, and he also wanted a pair of eyes that only reflected him and could only look at him for the rest of his life.
Xiao Yuanmu's eyes changed slightly, and the corners of his mouth, which had a barely detectable smile, even straightened a little. He wanted to look away, but he didn't know if it was the memory before his rebirth that was playing tricks on him, controlling his body and preventing him from moving as he wished.
However, Song Xuanhe just glanced at him, then he turned around and looked at Qian Ping and Wei Chen opposite him with the same eyes, and the smile on his face was even more real and obvious.
Xiao Yuanmu heard him say to Qian Ping: "You want to join the Wei family's project. My uncle has information. I will ask him for you."
Qian Ping was delighted, Wei Chen looked at him in astonishment, and Xiao Yuanmu's eyes suddenly sank.
"Your uncle has the information. Even if you want it, it may take a lot of effort. Are you sure he will give you money?"
It was Wei Chen who spoke first. The astonishment on his face faded, but there was still a hint of doubt in his tone.
Although he did not have much contact with Song Xuanhe, from the few contacts he had, he could tell that Song Xuanhe, the second young master of the Song family, was not as domineering and brainless as the rumors said. On the contrary, although he seemed to be wanton and lazy, he was actually very smart and had his own methods in dealing with people. It was just that he was warm on the outside but cold on the inside, and was not an easy person to deal with.
As far as he knew, his relationship with Qian Ping was not that close, even closer than that of Lu Chao who was thrown into the swimming pool by Song Xuanhe in the previous rumors. Why would he suddenly want to help Qian Ping get the information? You know, Zhou Nan, who had a better relationship with him before, didn't even get a word like this from him.
Qian Ping calmed down after his overjoyed state. He had a very good relationship with Song Xuanhe when he was a child, but they seldom played together after junior high school, and later they left the imperial capital. Their relationship could not be said to be close. He could not imagine why Song Xuanhe would offer to help him get Professor Li's information.
If he didn't know his own strengths and weaknesses, he would have suspected that Song Xuanhe had other intentions towards him.
Since Song Xuanhe didn't have any other intentions towards him, he naturally couldn't owe him such a big favor that he might not be able to repay, so Qian Ping smiled and said, "Song Er, I know you are a good brother, but forget about asking your uncle for information. If your father finds out, won't he break your legs?"
Everything that happened in the Song family during this period has become a hot topic. Qian Ping naturally knows about the turmoil in the Song family, and he and Song Xuanhe were very good friends when they were children, so he knows even more about Song Guochao's attitude towards Song Xuanhe and the Li family.
Song Xuanhe treats him as a brother, so he can't betray him.
Hearing Qian Ping's words, Song Xuanhe supported his chin and smiled, "Come on, I just asked for you. Do you think I'm going to my uncle's place to bleed? It's as if you owe me a big favor. No matter if it succeeds or not, remember to reserve a private room at Zhenxiu Pavilion."
Qian Ping's eyes lit up and he smiled cheerfully: "One meal is nothing. Just ask for me. As long as my uncle is planning to sell it, I will try to buy it if I can afford it. If he doesn't plan to sell it, it's okay. I can still afford to treat you to three or five meals."
When Wei Chen heard him say this, he knew that he really wanted to help Qian Ping, but he didn't expect that Qian Ping had such a good relationship with Song Xuanhe. Song Xuanhe was willing to help in this way, which meant that he really treated him as a brother. Zhou Nan didn't even receive this treatment before.
Thinking of this, Wei Chen subconsciously glanced at Xiao Yuanmu's face, and sure enough, he saw his frozen eyes.
Wei Chen laughed secretly in his heart. The depression that he had just felt pressured by the amount of money proposed by Xiao Yuanmu, but had to sign the contract because of his advanced ideas and absolute skills, disappeared immediately and he felt refreshed instantly.
People outside said that Song Xuanhe used his power to pressure Xiao Yuanmu to be his lover, but in his opinion, Song Xuanhe did not seem to like Xiao Yuanmu that much. Instead, the man who was forced to be with Song Xuanhe would be jealous when he saw him smile at others.
No matter what the truth is, Wei Chen only believes his own eyes.
Song Xuanhe didn't pay any attention to Xiao Yuanmu's expression. In fact, he couldn't tell even if he paid attention. After all, Xiao Yuanmu's ability to keep his emotions hidden was a skill he had mastered before his rebirth. In his opinion, except for the two times he smiled occasionally, Xiao Yuanmu always had the same expression.
Qian Ping had just given him a sudden epiphany, and all of a sudden a lot of design inspiration came to him. Song Xuanhe would naturally not be stingy with a small favor of just talking.
Besides, he also said that he was just going to ask, and if his cheap uncle didn't agree, he wouldn't ask for more money.
Qian Ping was happy and grateful, and he remembered the doubts that he had ignored before because of seeing Wei Chen. He looked between Song Xuanhe and Xiao Yuanmu and asked, "Mr. Xiao knew Wei Chen before? Why did you come to eat together?"
Xiao Yuanmu's eyes fell on Qian Ping, and he concealed the dim light in his eyes and said in a calm voice: "I know him, let's talk about something."
"What's the matter?" Qian Ping continued to ask with a smile.
Seeing Xiao Yuanmu's eyes that seemed calm but were actually dark and unpredictable, Wei Chen's heart skipped a beat and he just wanted to shut Qian Ping's mouth. He knew before that this kid couldn't read people's expressions, but now he felt that maybe his eyesight wasn't bad, but his brain was.
However, Qian Ping didn't feel the complaints from Wei Chen who was sitting next to him. Seeing Xiao Yuanmu didn't say anything, he looked at Song Xuanhe and said, "Song Er, didn't you say before that you had a quarrel with him? Now that you've seen each other, there's no need to have a cold war anymore."
The smile on Song Xuanhe's face paused, and he suddenly wanted to take back what he had said before. If he knew that Qian Ping was so lenient, he would definitely watch Wei Chen reject him quietly without saying a word.
However, once words are spoken, they cannot be taken back.
Xiao Yuanmu had just heard him talk about their quarrel. Even if Qian Ping didn't bring it up at this time, Xiao Yuanmu would probably think too much about it. Moreover, for someone like Xiao Yuanmu who has so many thoughts on his mind, it would be better to explain it clearly.
Song Xuanhe figured out the pros and cons in a few seconds, and said calmly: "I was just teasing you just now. We didn't quarrel. I was just too lazy to call him."
Qian Ping frowned and said disapprovingly, "It's normal for couples to quarrel. Didn't you just say that you haven't seen each other for more than ten days? You can go back with Mr. Xiao later. How can you reconcile if you haven't seen each other for a long time?"
Seeing Xiao Yuanmu's eyes instantly clear of the gloom, Wei Chen almost clapped his hands in praise. He finally believed why the ancients said that fools have good fortune. Qian Ping was not good at reading people's expressions, but this sentence probably touched Xiao Yuanmu's heart.
"Who said we won't meet?" Song Xuanhe wanted to stop Qian Ping from talking, but she still had a smile on her face: "He and I work in the same company, so how can we not meet? Besides, I have too many things to do at home during this period and I can't leave. I haven't finished eating the crabs yet, so eat quickly and don't waste them."
Hearing Song Xuanhe say this, Qian Ping also remembered what happened in the Song family. He nodded in understanding and turned the topic to the Song family: "Auntie, is everything okay?"
Qian Ping finally stopped nagging about him and Xiao Yuanmu. Song Xuanhe breathed a sigh of relief and answered with a slightly more cheerful tone: "It's okay. The one who's in trouble is Song Guochao."
Hearing this, even Wei Chen became interested. He asked, "I heard that Mr. Song was directly stripped of his power by Mr. Song, and now he reads newspapers in the general manager's office every day. Is it true?"
Song Xuanhe couldn't help but chuckle and said, "Zhou Nan told you."
Wei Chen curled his lips and agreed.
"He doesn't miss any gossip." Song Xuanhe didn't care and said with a smile: "Then do you know that Song Guochao not only lost his position, but also held less than 1% of the shares. He can't even sit at the board of directors' table."
Qian Ping opened his eyes wide and said in surprise: "I remember that Uncle Song and Auntie jointly held 20% of the shares. Could it be false?"
"Really." Even though Song Xuanhe didn't have much affection for the Song family and the Song Corporation, the transfer of shares was still a secret of the Song Corporation and it was not suitable to be said in front of others, so he just smiled and said, "Grandpa took it back."
Wei Chen sneered when he heard this: "For a woman."
"That was his first love." Song Xuanhe said in a light tone.
Instead of avoiding the topic, he now needs to lay bare the bad and almost frozen relationship between him and Song Guochao in front of outsiders. This will be more beneficial to him in the future. Besides, he has always looked down on Song Guochao, and his disdainful tone when talking about him is straightforward and frank.
"But that woman isn't very smart either." Qian Ping shook his head and said, "How could she have the confidence to approach the Song family? Uncle Song actually ignored her?"
Qian Ping knew when he was a child that Song Guochao didn't care about Song Xuanhe at all. He had heard his parents privately mention that he was irresponsible at home, and he always had a bad impression of him. It was just because he was a friend of Song Xuanhe that he didn't want to talk about other people's elders. Seeing that Song Xuanhe was completely disappointed at this time, there was a hint of indignation when he spoke.
Song Xuanhe smiled faintly and did not answer the question. Seeing this, Qian Ping thought that he was still sad, so he quickly changed the subject: "Actually, I came back for another thing this time."
Without waiting for the others to ask, Qian Ping said, "The Dilbarro will dock at the southern coast of Blue City. Do you know about this? I heard that the Dilbarro auction, which takes place once every ten years, will be held this time. I came back just for this."
Lan City is the capital of Jiang Province. It is a very prosperous coastal city not far from the imperial capital. It only takes four or five hours to drive there, and less than an hour by plane.
Qian Ping had an expectant expression and a tone full of longing as he chattered on and on about the deeds of the Dilbarro, completely unaware of the expressions of the other people present.
Hearing the name of the cruise ship, Song Xuanhe felt a little familiar. Before he had time to think, he heard the system say in his mind: [This is the next plot point. It is not very important, but it is a necessary plot because the rich businessman who asked you for Xiao Yuanmu in the book fell in love with him on this cruise ship, and he couldn't forget him, so he asked you for Xiao Yuanmu on the day of the major plot point. 】
Song Xuanhe's pupils trembled, then he lowered his eyes and said: [Where did the rich businessman see Xiao Yuanmu? 】
[It’s not mentioned in the book, so I don’t know. 】The system said:【When the time comes, you only need to take Xiao Yuanmu onto the cruise ship, and don’t worry about anything else. 】
Song Xuanhe did not answer, but lowered his eyes as if thinking about something.
Because he hadn't raised his eyes, he didn't see Xiao Yuanmu's sudden cold expression. Only Wei Chen, who had known about the Dilbarro cruise ship and had little interest in it, noticed the different expressions of the two people opposite him.
Does the Del Barro cruise ship have special meaning to Song Xuanhe and Xiao Yuanmu?
Wei Chen raised his eyebrows and suddenly became interested. In that case, he had to go and see the fun.
Qian Ping finished talking about the cruise ship auction and while sipping tea to moisten his throat, he realized that the other three people were not listening to him at all. They all looked lost in thought and no one knew what they were thinking about.
He couldn't help but ask: "Will you go?"
"Let's go." Wei Chen was the first to speak, and said with a smile, "I heard that there will be good things in this auction, of course I have to go and take a look."
Qian Ping shifted his gaze to Song Xuanhe, who had also come back to his senses. With a faint smile on his face, he said, "I should go too."
"Then let's go together." Qian Ping said with a smile, "I just heard that a new horse farm has opened in Hai City, and there are several racehorses. We can go there in advance and have some fun."
Song Xuanhe didn't comment and just smiled faintly.
Wei Chen glanced at Xiao Yuanmu, whose face had already turned indifferent, and Song Xuanhe, who seemed to have thought nothing, and smiled without saying a word.
"You take Xiao Xian with you. By the way." Qian Ping asked curiously, "Xiao Yuanmu, how old are you?"
Xiao Yuanmu retracted his gaze and replied, "Twenty-two."
"What month?"
"January."
Qian Ping exclaimed, and said with a smile: "You are half a year older than Song Er, and older than me too, so I will call you Brother Xiao."
Wei Chen noticed Xiao Yuanmu's expression, thinking that he would not agree, but he did not expect him to remain calm and nodded lightly, as if accepting Qian Ping's title.
Qian Ping decided on how to address Xiao Yuanmu, looked at Song Xuan and said with a smile: "You can bring Brother Xiao with you when the time comes. The cruise ship can only be boarded at night, and we can ride horses together during the day. We can also watch horse racing there, which is quite interesting."
Not to mention that he always loses when he gambles, even if he didn't lose, Song Xuanhe didn't want to ride a horse with Xiao Yuanmu.
There is a passage in the book which Song Xuanhe remembered very clearly. It was when Xiao Yuanmu had just returned to the Xiao family and his status was still very unstable that someone invited him to a horse race. That person knew that Xiao Yuanmu grew up in an orphanage and had never ridden a horse, so the invitation was intended to deliberately make things difficult for him and make fun of him. Unexpectedly, Xiao Yuanmu learned very quickly, and a fierce horse that was deliberately given to him was trained to be obedient after running two laps.
However, when that person brought up the idea of horse racing, Xiao Yuanmu still pretended to be unfamiliar. Finally, after he persuaded him many times and assured him that nothing would go wrong no matter what, and that Xiao Yuanmu would not be held responsible if anything went wrong, he pretended to agree reluctantly.
As a result, the man had two ribs broken and one leg broken by Xiao Yuanmu's horse, causing permanent damage. He then stayed in the hospital for half a year, and his legs could not fully recover to normal condition.
Because it was that man who proposed the horse racing, and he had also said in advance that Xiao Yuanmu would not be responsible if anything went wrong, and more importantly, everyone thought it was just an accident, so in the end Xiao Yuanmu did not need to take any responsibility, and everyone else just thought that the man was unlucky.
Although Xiao Yuanmu acted more ruthlessly and openly later on, causing some to speculate that the man's injury was not merely an accident, Xiao Yuanmu had already secured his position as the patriarch of the Xiao family by then, and no one dared to mention the matter. Even if there were speculations, they would have kept it to themselves, not to mention that there was no evidence at all.
Song Xuanhe certainly wouldn't be stupid enough to compete with Xiao Yuanmu in horse racing, but he was afraid that Xiao Yuanmu would ride his horse and break his ribs if he was unhappy. After all, he knew that if Xiao Yuanmu wanted to do it, he would definitely do it cleanly without leaving any trace.
Because of this, he would never go to the horse farm with Xiao Yuanmu. Even though he had not really offended Xiao Yuanmu yet, he still felt resistance when he thought of that plot.
So Song Xuanhe refused outright: "I don't like horse racing, go by yourself, and I will meet you directly on the cruise ship."
Although Qian Ping was a little disappointed when he heard this, he didn't think much about it, so he nodded and said nothing more.
The crabs on the table had been eaten long ago, and the snacks and drinks brought by the waiter were slowly running out. After Qian Ping had enjoyed the conversation, he realized that he should leave.
He smiled and said, "Let's stop here today. I haven't gone back to see my grandfather yet. Let's make an appointment next time."
Wei Chen and the other two naturally had no objection. However, after leaving the stilt house, Song Xuanhe felt a little embarrassed because Wei Chen and Qian Ping left alone, leaving only him and Xiao Yuanmu.
Although he was unwilling to see Xiao Yuanmu off, and given his personality he could have just walked away, but looking at Xiao Yuanmu, who had a calm expression but never took his eyes off him, he couldn't bring himself to ask him to go back by himself.
The two stood outside the car, the atmosphere was somewhat tense, and in the end it was Xiao Yuanmu who spoke first. He said in a calm voice: "You don't want to see me because you cried and called me daddy that day?"
The author has something to say: Xiao Yuanmu: I like it very much, call me more often.
Song Xuanhe: I want to let you know who the real father is!
…
Song Xuanhe: Dad.
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com
