At this moment, a hand with distinct knuckles suddenly appeared, and the dog was lifted and placed back into the cage.

Noticing Yu Qingyue’s stiffness, Yu Wanlai had no choice but to return the dog to the cage. Well, he thought that Yu Qingyue had been here for a while and must like the little creature. “I thought you liked it too, but it turns out you’re afraid of dogs. Why didn’t you say so earlier? I’ll just keep them in my room from now on.”

Yu Qingyue’s ears turned red, and he stubbornly replied, “Who’s afraid of dogs? It’s so small, why would I be scared?” Yu Wanlai nodded, stretching his tone with a serious expression, though the teasing in his words couldn’t be hidden, “Yeah, yeah, you’re not afraid!”

Thinking about his fried rice that he still hadn’t eaten, he realized that if he didn’t hurry, it would get cold. He quickly turned and walked toward the dining room, having only intended to bring a glass of orange juice earlier.

Yu Wanlai had always thought he might return to the original world, so he never felt a sense of belonging here, nor did he think of this world as his own. But now, it seemed that whether he wanted to stay or not, he had no other choice. Everything felt foreign, and there was nothing truly his around him. But now, it was different—these two little cats and dogs truly belonged to him.

After taking a bite of fried rice, the emptiness in his heart eased a bit. When he returned to the living room after finishing his meal, as expected, Yu Qingyue was no longer there, but the glass on the coffee table was empty. Yu Wanlai hadn’t noticed before, but recently, no matter what he gave, Yu Qingyue, who used to refuse everything first, suddenly started accepting everything. Just like earlier, even though Yu Qingyue had been stiff, he hadn’t thrown the puppy on the floor and walked away.

Yu Qingyue noticed recently that his ears had been quieter. It seemed that apart from work, he rarely saw Yu Wanlai at home or in the company. One evening, when Yu Qingyue went to the basement’s wine cellar to pick a birthday gift for Bai Yi, he chose a bottle of white wine. As he was about to go upstairs, he passed by the piano room and suddenly heard some piano notes spilling out, as if someone was testing the sound.

He remembered this piano room had only been used by him when he was a child. Back then, he spent almost every day here, and half of his weekends were spent in this room. Later, as he got busy with academics and company matters, this place had rarely been used. The only time it was opened was when the cleaning lady came, and she never touched the instruments.

Yu Qingyue, holding the wine bottle with the cool bottle surface, wore only a simple autumn home outfit, feeling a sudden chill that made him more awake. He extended his free hand, pushed open the door, and entered the dimly lit corridor. Suddenly, bright lights from the room poured through the crack of the door, accompanied by a low, pleasant sound. It was “Canon,” a simple piece with harmonies, but you could still hear the smooth and skilled technique of the player.

Yu Qingyue: …That’s why the violin Yu Wanlai played earlier seemed so familiar!

Yu Wanlai was sitting at the piano with his back to the door, completely immersed in his own world. He didn’t notice the door opening and closing, nor did he notice the new person in the room. It had been a long time since he played the piano. During autumn, when the weather was still warm, he had taken the violin to the small garden to play for a while. But as the weather got colder and work became more demanding, he no longer had the energy to practice. Only in the past few days had he picked up this hobby again.

Yu Wanlai believed that no matter what position he held, he wouldn’t stay in the company or in this home forever. One day, he would leave. So, whether as a hobby or a future livelihood, he couldn’t give up on music.

The piece finished, and Yu Wanlai stretched his fingers a bit before yawning. Since tomorrow was Saturday, he had stayed a bit longer today, and it was probably already quite late.

He stood up, ready to go upstairs to wash up, but as he turned around, he saw someone sitting on the sofa by the wall. Yu Wanlai’s heart skipped a beat, and after realizing it was Yu Qingyue, he reached out to pat his chest and sighed in relief. “Phew—” That scared him! He had no idea when this person had entered, and he didn’t make a sound. Yu Wanlai walked closer and realized that Yu Qingyue was leaning back on the sofa, his head tilted back… asleep. Yes, that’s right! Asleep! No wonder he hadn’t moved, even though Yu Wanlai had been standing for a while. He felt like his fists clenched! Was this mocking how badly he played? He played badly, yet stayed here and didn’t leave—what did it mean? Was he planning to criticize him to his face?

Just as Yu Wanlai was about to reach out to wake him, his peripheral vision caught sight of the wine bottle in Yu Qingyue’s hand slipping. His heart skipped a few beats, and he hurriedly reached out to steady it. However, he forgot that there was a small step here, as the instruments in the piano room were placed on a raised platform. The area near the resting zone was at a lower level. So, as he took half a step forward, he missed his footing and stumbled, his body pitching forward.

Yu Qingyue was woken by the noise in front of him. He opened his eyes and saw Yu Wanlai kneeling on one knee in front of him, holding the wine bottle in one hand, while the other was pressed against his thigh. Yu Wanlai steadied the bottle, but as he raised his eyes, he met Yu Qingyue’s gaze.

Yu Qingyue, still half-asleep, blinked and noticed the sensation on his leg. He immediately reached out to push him away. Yu Wanlai’s body lost support and suddenly collapsed into Yu Qingyue’s arms. He used one hand to hold the wine bottle and the other to desperately find something to hold onto. He finally grasped the corner of a table, but his chin still hit Yu Qingyue’s leg. Yu Wanlai’s vision went black for a moment, and as he regained his senses, he immediately bounced backward with such speed that even Yu Qingyue didn’t have time to scold him.

Yu Qingyue didn’t expect to wake up to such a dramatic scene. The corners of his mouth twitched twice, and he rolled his eyes, standing up and patting his clothes. He didn’t pursue the accidental situation but even made a rare joke, although it sounded more like a mockery to Yu Wanlai. He said, “Although your playing is average, with only me as the audience, you don’t need to go to such lengths to thank me.”

Yu Wanlai: …He really came here just to mock me, I knew it! He stood up, shoved the wine bottle back into Yu Qingyue’s hand, muttered a hum, and was the first to open the door and leave.

Behind him, Yu Qingyue’s lips subtly curled into a smile.

Actually, taking the wine out earlier would affect the taste, but Yu Qingyue had originally planned to place it in the small fridge in his room. Falling asleep here was an unexpected turn of events.

The Yu family and the Bai family had long been close, even neighbors in the past. Recently, Bai Yi had gained favor with the elder Mr. Bai, and this birthday party was a grand event with invitations sent to many social elites. The Yu family naturally had to attend. Yu Wanlai only learned about this during breakfast. The Bai family wasn’t mentioned much in the novel. The only thing he knew was that the female lead was from the Bai family. Oh, and that he had met Bai Yi a few times—this year’s birthday party’s host.

Thinking of Bai Yi, Yu Wanlai rolled his eyes. This kid was so rude! The first time they met, he called him a bastard. He remembered it clearly. Hmph! A gentleman takes ten years to repay a grudge. Today, he was going to choose a nice outfit and steal that kid’s spotlight, showing him some manners!

The sandwich in Yu Wanlai’s hand was almost deformed from squeezing it. Just as Yu Qingyue lifted his head, he noticed Yu Wanlai glaring fiercely at the sandwich, its salad dressing squeezed out from the pressure. Yu Qingyue frowned slightly, stretched his leg under the table, and kicked Yu Wanlai’s calf.

As expected, when Yu Cheng was about to turn and discuss the party arrangements with Yu Wanlai, he saw the pitiful state of the sandwich. Yu Wanlai, snapping back to reality, heard Yu Cheng’s voice exploding next to his ear, “If you don’t want to eat it, eat something else! Don’t ruin it like this! It’s ruined, give it to the dog!”

Hearing Yu Cheng scold him again, Yu Wanlai, still holding the sandwich, took a few bites. After chewing a few times, he heard the last remark. Yu Wanlai paused for a moment—who is he calling out? He wanted to rebut, but he had just eaten too much, and his mouth was stuck. He couldn’t speak for a long time.

Yu Qingyue merely glanced at Yu Wanlai before looking away in disgust. He felt incredulous and started doubting whether this person in front of him was the same one who played the piano last night.

Not long after finishing breakfast, the custom-tailored brand they regularly ordered from brought the latest collection over, followed by a team of stylists. The living room was filled with nearly ten people, creating an unprecedented buzz.

After finishing his meal, Yu Wanlai went upstairs to his room. He added more dog and cat food to their bowls, knowing that today might be busy, and he didn’t want to forget.

Yu Cheng and Qin Shuang didn’t know that Yu Wanlai kept pets. The two little ones were still small, and for the past few days, they had been kept in Yu Wanlai’s room, so neither of them had any idea. When the clothes arrived, Qin Shuang went upstairs to call them down to choose outfits. As she passed by Yu Wanlai’s room, she was about to knock on the door when she saw Yu Wanlai sitting cross-legged on the floor, holding something fluffy and petting it.

Qin Shuang didn’t intend to pry into his privacy, and in fact, she rarely went upstairs. But since Yu Wanlai’s door was wide open, it would have been hard not to notice. She lightly cleared her throat and knocked on the door. Yu Wanlai looked up and, seeing that it was Qin Shuang, paused his actions for a moment, giving an awkward smile. “Auntie, is there something you need?”

Qin Shuang responded, “The clothes for the party have arrived. I came to call you both down to choose.” After speaking, she turned to go to Yu Qingyue’s room, but Yu Wanlai hurriedly called out to her.

Yu Wanlai stood up, holding the cat in his arms. “Auntie, do you mind if we keep cats and dogs here? I…” Since she had already seen them, he felt it was better to ask.

Qin Shuang was momentarily surprised. She saw that Yu Wanlai was just holding a cat, but when he moved aside, she noticed a little white dog behind him. Qin Shuang: …Well, that’s quite complete.

“It’s fine. You can keep them. There’s no need to hide them in your room; this is your home,” she said.

Yu Wanlai gently squeezed the cat’s paw and politely said, “Thank you, Auntie.”

Since the cat and dog were still small, Yu Wanlai was worried they might run around and get stepped on, so before going downstairs, he put them back in their cage.