WARNING: homophobia

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Feng Yan didn’t notice anything wrong. He was used to ordering Bai Rui around, so he spoke to him harshly.

“What are you asking about? Get back to your room immediately! My son absolutely cannot be a disgusting homosexual!”

Bai Rui sneered, then turned around and, right in front of Feng Yan, he deeply kissed Xiao Zhan. Xiao Zhan quickly and happily responded to his lover, and the two only reluctantly separated after a long while.

By this time, Feng Yan was already trembling with rage. Just as he pointed at Bai Rui, about to curse him, Bai Rui spoke in a mocking tone.

“Patriarch Feng, perhaps you’ve spent too much time in the hospital. You should mind your own business and take a good look at the Feng family first.”

“What do you mean?”

As soon as Feng Yan heard the mention of the Feng family, he immediately became nervous. He had exhausted all his efforts—even taken lives—to seize control of the Feng family. His position as the family head absolutely couldn’t be jeopardized. After hearing Bai Rui’s words, he suddenly found himself far less concerned about what had just happened.

But Bai Rui completely ignored Feng Yan and simply pulled Xiao Zhan along toward the front door. As they passed by Jiang Peipei, Bai Rui leaned in and whispered in her ear:

“Miss Jiang, you’re quite the schemer. But unfortunately, you seriously lack self-awareness. I’d advise you to stop coveting other people’s men.”

Jiang Peipei’s heart tightened at his words. Facing Xiao Zhan’s cold gaze, she found herself utterly unable to utter a single word in defense.

At this moment, Feng Yan had no time to worry about Bai Rui and Xiao Zhan. In a panic, he hastily made calls to the heads of his various businesses. His mind was in turmoil, convinced that Bai Rui’s words were far from baseless.

Meanwhile, Bai Rui and Xiao Zhan sat in the car. Bai Rui glanced at the man beside him, whose expression was stern and tense. With some force, he tugged at the taut skin on Xiao Zhan’s face.

“Did you do it on purpose, hmm?”

Bai Rui didn’t believe for a second that with Xiao Zhan’s sharp instincts, he could have failed to notice Liu Xue approaching. Today was clearly just an intentional move to confront the Feng family. But then again, Bai Rui had willingly indulged him.

The young man’s voice carried a teasing lilt at the end, making Xiao Zhan’s throat tighten. Instinctively, he swallowed hard. He opened his mouth to speak but, in the end, only let out a soft sigh.

Seeing Xiao Zhan’s aggrieved expression, Bai Rui found it amusing. He leaned in to plant a kiss on Xiao Zhan’s cheek—then playfully bit down, leaving a faint imprint of his teeth.

“If you wanted to go public, why didn’t you tell me? What makes you so sure I’d object? Watching those clowns make a scene is entertaining, sure, but your feelings matter far more to me.”

As he spoke, Bai Rui reached out, intertwining his fingers with Xiao Zhan’s, his voice soft and gentle.

“Let’s book the tickets now! We’ll fly to Country Y and get married—then we can both be at ease!”

The moment Xiao Zhan heard Bai Rui’s words, he was completely stunned.

“Xiao Ran! You… you just said…”

“I said, let’s get married. Do you not want to?”

Bai Rui blinked, a hint of grievance in his expression.

“I do! I do!”

Xiao Zhan suddenly pulled Bai Rui into his arms, overwhelmed with joy; he felt as if his heart was about to leap out of his chest. With slightly trembling hands, he reached into his pocket and pulled out a small red box, opening it right in front of Bai Rui.

Inside, two silver rings lay quietly. The design was simple—just plain silver bands—but for some reason, they made Bai Rui’s eyes water with emotion.

Taking a deep breath, Bai Rui suppressed the tears welling up in his eyes. Smiling, he picked up the smaller ring and slipped it onto his own finger. Then, without hesitation, he naturally took the larger one and placed it on Xiao Zhan’s finger.

“Why are you carrying rings with you?”

Bai Rui wiggled his fingers, letting the ring catch the light, then pressed a soft kiss onto it.

Xiao Zhan’s voice was hoarse with emotion as he kissed his lover’s lips.

“Because every single moment, I hope you’ll marry me, that you’ll belong to me. And I… will always belong to you.”

It wasn’t just about possession—it was about devotion. Two people in love, making a promise to each other.

Bai Rui had no idea when Xiao Zhan had mastered the art of romantic words, but he couldn’t deny how moved he felt. Without hesitation, they excitedly booked their flights and flew to Country Y that very day to get married.

Holding the legally binding marriage certificate in his hands, Xiao Zhan traced their names over and over again, unable to stop himself. Bai Rui, watching his lover treasure the document so dearly, found it both amusing and deeply gratifying.

Coming to this world and meeting Xiao Zhan was the greatest stroke of luck Bai Rui had experienced across all the worlds he had traveled through.

While the two of them were basking in their honeymoon bliss, the Feng family had completely fallen into chaos.

Feng Yan had just discovered that, without him even realizing it, the entire Feng family business had undergone a name change. Now, all that was left in his hands was an empty shell.

But what shocked him even more was the new name on the ownership papers—the name of the son he had never taken seriously: Feng Ruiran.

In other words, Feng Ruiran was now the actual head of the Feng family. The assets that once belonged to Feng Yan had long since been gambled away by Liu Xue—and had ended up in Xiao Zhan’s hands.

Feng Yan refused to believe that Feng Ruiran had the ability to pull this off on his own. He was convinced that Xiao Zhan was the one manipulating things behind the scenes. Furious, he stormed into Xiao Zhan’s company to confront them—only to be told that the two had left the country on a business trip.

After countless unanswered calls to Bai Rui, Feng Yan’s initial rage gradually faded into cold calculation.

He knew that the situation was no longer in his favor. His only hope now rested on Feng Ruiran. Fortunately, his youngest son had always craved his attention.

Feng Yan was certain that as long as he provided Feng Ruiran with a little so-called warmth, he would inevitably fall back under his control.

Feng Yan waited outside Xiao Zhan’s apartment every day, and finally, after a week, he saw the two return. Watching them walk hand in hand, he forcibly suppressed his anger and stepped forward.

Bai Rui glanced at Xiao Zhan beside him. Xiao Zhan gave a slight nod before heading inside, leaving Bai Rui to deal with Feng Yan.

Feng Yan took a deep breath and tried his best to speak to Bai Rui in a gentle tone.

“Ruiran, you’re back! I was wrong before. You know how difficult the road of being gay is—I didn’t mean to say such harsh words. Why don’t we sit down as father and son and have a good talk?”

Bai Rui wasn’t surprised to see Feng Yan at all. He knew that Feng Yan had only come to soften his stance after realizing the state of the Feng family’s business. In fact, Bai Rui had to admit he admired Feng Yan’s ability to bend when necessary—even now, he was still trying to use the so-called “fatherly love” card to manipulate him.

If it were the old Feng Ruiran, perhaps he would have been grateful beyond words.

But unfortunately for Feng Yan, the one standing before him now was Bai Rui.

The corners of Bai Rui’s lips curled into a smirk as he looked at Feng Yan and said—

“Patriarch Feng, you only came to find me after realizing the problems with the Feng family’s business, didn’t you? Unfortunately, people don’t stay foolish forever. That ‘father and son’ title you just used—I truly don’t feel worthy of it.”

Hearing Bai Rui’s words, Feng Yan was so furious that his face turned red with rage. He roared in anger.

“Feng Ruiran, don’t forget your surname! Without the Feng family behind you, do you really think you can last? Right now, you might think you have everything, but in the end, you’re nothing more than Xiao Zhan’s puppet! He’s only using you to control the Feng family. Once you’re of no use, he’ll kick you aside without hesitation!”

Watching Feng Yan bluster with false bravado, Bai Rui merely chuckled and shook his head.

“Even if he’s using me, it’s still better than the Feng family. When did any of you ever treat me as family? To you, I was just a tool to curry favor with the Xiao family. And behind my back, Liu Xue went so far as to call me a bastard. A ‘family’ and ‘support’ like that? I’d rather have none of it.”

With that, Bai Rui turned and walked away without a second glance.

The moment Feng Yan heard the sound of the door locking behind him, his rage exploded. No matter how hard he pounded on the door, it never opened again.

Frustrated and defeated, he returned home. The moment he stepped inside, Liu Xue rushed up to him eagerly, ready to ask about what had happened—only for Feng Yan to slap her across the face.

Liu Xue clutched her cheek in disbelief, staring at him with wide eyes. But Feng Yan, still burning with fury, only roared at her—

“If you had treated Ruiran better from the start, would he have been forced to completely cut ties? And now you dare to come asking me why? Get out of my sight!”

Feng Yan ignored the dazed and devastated Liu Xue, storming off to his study alone.

He refused to accept this outcome. There was no way he would hand over the Feng family’s empire to Bai Rui without a fight. He needed to think—there had to be a way to take back everything.

Just as he was deep in thought, the door to the study suddenly swung open.

At home, no one ever entered his study without knocking, so he never bothered locking it. The unexpected intrusion caught him completely off guard. But what surprised him even more was who had entered—Jiang Peipei.

A young woman appearing in his study in the dead of night might have sparked scandalous thoughts in another man. But Feng Yan felt no such thing.

He had long seen through Jiang Peipei—ambitious and calculating. The fact that she had chosen this moment to seek him out only made him more curious about her motives.

“What are you doing here?”

His tone was harsh, but he didn’t immediately throw her out.

Jiang Peipei, ever respectful in her demeanor, simply smiled and asked—

“Chairman Feng, do you want to take back everything that belongs to you?”

Her words were enticing.

Feng Yan narrowed his eyes, watching her silently, making no move to stop her from continuing.

“Making Feng Ruiran submit isn’t difficult at all. Right now, the only reason he dares to disregard you is because he relies entirely on Xiao Zhan. But if Xiao Zhan were to lose interest in him—or if he were to lose faith in Xiao Zhan—I believe he would come back to the Feng family without hesitation.

Matters of the heart may not be something Chairman Feng concerns himself with, given your busy schedule, but as a woman, I understand them very well.”

Feng Yan gave Jiang Peipei a deep, scrutinizing look before lighting a cigarette.

“What exactly do you want to do?”

Seeing that she had piqued his interest, Jiang Peipei leaned in closer and spoke softly.

“I want to work with you. I hope you can recognize me as your goddaughter. As for Xiao Zhan… I will make him mine.”

Feng Yan nodded slightly. He had already heard Liu Xue suggest pairing Jiang Peipei with Xiao Zhan before, but things hadn’t seemed to go smoothly.

Now, however, he was running out of options.

“Fine. As long as you succeed, the position of the Feng family’s young mistress will be yours.”

Jiang Peipei was merely asking for a title—something that would make it easier for her to approach Xiao Zhan. If she could truly win him over and make Feng Ruiran return to the Feng family, then everything would have a chance to be resolved.

“Do whatever you need to. If you succeed, the Feng family will reward you well.”

Jiang Peipei let out a soft chuckle, her tone carrying a hint of malice.

“If Feng Ruiran were to witness his own man cheating on him right before his eyes… do you think he’d still be able to act so confident?”