On the nine-hour flight back home, Yan Chen didn’t sleep at all.

Every time he closed his eyes, he would recall every detail of tonight’s encounter with An Yi in the car.

Especially the words “I slept with someone else.” An Yi’s tone was calm and indifferent, yet cruel enough for Yan Chen to fully comprehend only before the plane landed.

An Yi must be lying to him!

Telling such a lie was intended to make him jealous, to make him angry. The more furious he became, the more it would highlight An Yi’s importance in his heart.

People in love always bring up old grievances during quarrels, even if An Yi was gentle and understanding, he would surely not be able to avoid it.

Yan Chen thought that although he had been surrounded by lovers before, none of them lasted long. This must have made An Yi feel insecure, especially with the news of his marriage. So, he deliberately used such a lie to hurt him.

With this thought, Yan Chen suddenly felt much better.

Anger plus sadness, it’s normal for An Yi to say such things. It’s better to understand him more and comfort him.

As soon as the plane landed, the car from the Yan family was waiting under the gangway, not giving Yan Chen any chance, and directly taking him back to the old mansion of the Yan family.

Yan Chen sneered at this situation, and the first thing he did after getting off the car was to complain to his eldest brother, “Such a big scene, are you shooting a police movie?” Being surrounded by many people at the airport just now felt embarrassing.

Standing under the porch, Yan Heng, his eldest brother, looked at him disapprovingly.

Yan Chen raised an eyebrow, and as he walked in, he saw his father sitting in the main seat of the living room on the first floor, his face dark and imposing.

And his second sister Yan Jin, who usually focused on her work and rarely came home, was surprisingly here too.

“What’s up,” Yan Chen frowned, “What’s with the full house?”

“You still have the nerve to ask?” Yan Chen’s father, Yan Jingwei, threw a newspaper at his feet, “Look at what you’ve done!”

Yan Chen looked down and saw a photo of him fighting with Xie Nancang at the entrance of a hotel, prominently featured on the front page. He frowned even more tightly, and heard his sister beside him scoffing, “Newspapers still exist these days?”

Yan Jingwei glared at her and forcefully knocked the floor with his cane, “You’re quite something, fighting and being jealous over a man. It’s disgraceful!”

“Did you win?” Yan Jin interrupted.

Almost making the old man faint from anger.

“Xiao Jin,” Yan Heng sighed helplessly, “Don’t interrupt dad.”

Yan Chen was indifferent, “I’ve already fought, what else can I do? Haven’t you ever fought when you were young?”

Yan Heng and Yan Jin exchanged a helpless glance.

Yan Jingwei choked for a moment, his face turning red with anger. “You sound pretty proud! You’ve embarrassed me even overseas! Tell me, how are you going to explain this to the Zhou family?! How are you going to explain it to Qianyu?!”

“I’ve already made it clear over the phone,” Yan Chen still had that indifferent look, “Whoever you want to marry off, go ahead, but it’s not going to be me.”

“Say that again!” Yan Jingwei stood up, leaning on his cane, glaring at him in anger.

Yan Chen showed no fear at all, instead, he became more resolute. “I said, I’m not getting married. Let Qianyu hold onto her five million and scram!”

There was a moment of silence in the hall. Yan Jin put down her phone and looked at her younger brother as if she was seeing him for the first time, “Wow.”

Yan Heng: “…”

“We have a long-standing relationship with your Uncle Zhou, and you grew up with Qianyu. Moreover, this concerns the long-term cooperation strategy between our Yan and Zhou families. You say you’re not getting married, and that’s it?” Yan Jingwei was frustrated.

“There are plenty of people I grew up with. Can I marry all of them?” Yan Chen had a sarcastic tone, “If you want to cooperate, negotiate the contracts properly. Don’t meddle in the affairs of sons and daughters. Sleeping with Qianyu and having a child doesn’t count as an achievement!”

“You—” Yan Jingwei was so angry he grabbed his cane and struck Yan Chen’s knee joint.

Yan Chen winced in pain, dropping to one knee.

Yan Heng and Yan Jin quickly stepped in, one on each side, supporting the old man as they backed away.

Yan Jingwei was still not relieved, trembling as he pointed at Yan Chen, his face filled with frustration. “I’ve spoiled you since you were young! Who taught you to speak like this?! I bet you’ve lost your mind, fooling around outside!”

“I don’t know if I’ve lost my mind, but I’m definitely not getting married!” Yan Chen was defiant. “I’m gay, know what that means? It means I like men! This thing of mine doesn’t stand up for women! If Dad doesn’t want to lose face anymore, hurry up and go tell your old friend Zhou to cancel the marriage. Otherwise, who knows what kind of ugly rumors might spread in the future!”

Yan Jingwei knew that his son fooled around with men, but he thought it was just a youthful whim, not something serious.

Yan Chen was the youngest in the family, spoiled since childhood, and had a bit of a temper, but he always had a sense of propriety in business matters. When he had his fill of fun, he would naturally compromise for the sake of the family’s interests.

Moreover, the engagement was agreed upon beforehand, but then he disappeared for over a month and came back refusing to go through with it.

Naturally, Yan Jingwei attributed all of this to An Yi.

“You’ve been bewitched by that An surname!” Yan Jingwei exclaimed in anger.

Yan Jin couldn’t help but interject, “He does look quite obedient, I like him.”

Yan Heng: “…Xiao Jin!”

Now, Yan Jingwei only found his eldest son agreeable. He ordered Yan Heng to find a way to keep An Yi far away, preferably never returning to the country again.

Yan Chen became anxious upon hearing this. Though he knelt straight, his demeanor was still arrogant. “Whoever touches him, I’ll have a falling out with!”

Yan Heng frowned, “Calm down before you speak.”

“Fine, then I’ll say it seriously and calmly now,” Yan Chen stared straight into his father’s eyes, “Even if I can’t be with An Yi, I won’t marry Qianyu.”

Yan Jingwei was momentarily stunned by his son’s determination.

Then, the whole villa descended into chaos.

After being harshly beaten on the back a few times with the cane by his father, Yan Chen refused to change his mind no matter what was said.

Yan Jin, unable to stop him, called her close friend Qi Yue and gave her a real-time broadcast over the phone. Yan Heng, physically and mentally exhausted, tried to persuade one after another until he finally managed to drag Yan Chen upstairs to the bedroom, locking him inside to “reflect.”

“Don’t give him any food! Don’t give him any water!” Yan Jingwei said angrily, “If he won’t yield, then my cane will!”

Yan Jin sneered, “At this rate, his corpse will be the hardest.”

“…Go do your own thing! Who asked you to come back?!” Yan Jingwei said impatiently.

“Don’t be stubborn with him. If he doesn’t want to do something, pointing a gun at his head won’t help.” Yan Jin took out a folder from her bag and threw it on the coffee table, “These are the financial statements of the Zhou family for the past few years. Take a look and then talk. I’m off.”

After saying that, she waved to Yan Heng and left gracefully.

Yan Chen’s phone was confiscated, unable to contact the outside world. There was a tablet and a TV in the room, but because the network cable was unplugged, he couldn’t check the news.

Therefore, he was unaware that on the third day of his “reflection,” he and Zhou Qianyu were declared to have “peacefully parted ways.”

This high-profile marriage, from engagement to breakup, didn’t even last a hundred days, sparking discussions in both business and entertainment circles.

When An Yi saw this news, he had just returned to China and got a new domestic number with Xie Nancang outside the airport.

He looked dazed for a while when he saw it, then put away his phone.

In the distance, there were rolling green mountains, and the sky was clear for miles. His mood remained stable, which was a good sign.

“The scenery in Ling’an is beautiful, and there’s a 5A-level scenic spot nearby,” Xie Nancang said as he approached An Yi with his luggage, putting a wide-brimmed straw hat on An Yi’s head. “After we get home, adjust to the time difference, and I’ll take you for a walk.”

An Yi smiled at him and still hesitated after getting into the car. “Maybe I should rent a place outside first. It’s not appropriate to go straight to your house.”

“Whatever makes you comfortable,” Xie Nancang said understandingly. “But it won’t be possible today. Just consider it staying with a friend for a few days. My grandfather is very easygoing.”

“…Okay.”

An Yi looked out of the window at the rapidly retreating beautiful scenery, feeling a bit absent-minded.

This wasn’t overseas, nor was it the sea, let alone Xichuan, where he had lived for nearly thirty years. He felt a sense of unfamiliarity.

It wasn’t until his feet stepped on this patch of yellow soil that he felt a little real.

Xie Nancang took the luggage from the taxi’s trunk and led An Yi, “This way.”

Ling’an was a small tourist city with an ancient charm, surrounded by mountains and water. There were many porcelain factories and kilns in the lower districts, forming a complete industrial chain. Xie Nancang said, “My grandfather goes there to check on the clay and kilns from time to time. If you’re interested, I’ll have him take you there when the time comes.”

“That would be great. I’ve only used electric kilns in the studio before. The last time I went to that kind of kiln was when I was a child.”

Seeing An Yi’s eyes light up, Xie Nancang couldn’t help sighing.

“What’s wrong?” An Yi asked inexplicably.

Xie Nancang chuckled, “I admire myself for bringing you here. It was such a wise decision.”

An Yi couldn’t help but smile at that.

As they chatted and walked, they passed through a small garden and stopped in front of a three-story small Western-style building with red tiles and white walls.

This place was similar to An Yi’s childhood home. The front yard was also cleared out, with a simple shed for stacking clay and glaze materials. Various types of ceramic blanks were drying outside the shed.

“Master Xie, where is he?” Xie Nancang carried the luggage up the steps, pushed open the door, and shouted into the house.

An Yi nervously took off his hat and gripped his clothes tightly.

Xie Nancang shouted again, “Grandpa,” but before he finished, steady footsteps came from the east side of the villa. “Here I am, here I am. Why didn’t the brat tell me he was coming back!”

An old man in a gray cotton short-sleeved shirt with gray hair walked over, stepping over several roses blooming vigorously under the wall, with grayish powder falling from his hands as he walked.

Seeing Xie Nancang still standing beside a fair-skinned and tall young man, he couldn’t help narrowing his eyes.

An Yi quickly bowed to Xie Fei Nian and greeted him, “Hello, sir. My name is An Yi. Quiet An and lively Yi.”

Xie Nancang added, “It’s quite a coincidence. An An is actually your old acquaintance’s grandson.”

“Who?” Xie Fei Nian walked over saying, “Look up at me.”

An Yi raised his head, showing a cautious smile. “My maternal grandfather is…”

Suddenly, Xie Fei Nian raised a finger to signal him to be silent. Then he walked around An Yi, gesturing with his hands in the air, coated with clay. He recalled a long-lost name from his memory. “Fei Bai! Are you Fei Bai’s grandson?!”

An Yi was very surprised. “How did you… know?”

Xie Nancang innocently raised both hands and smiled. “I didn’t reveal it beforehand.”

Unexpectedly, Xie Fei Nian pinched An Yi’s cheek and said astonishingly, “Of course, I remember! You’re the granddaughter-in-law I once betrothed, and I even named you.”

An Yi, “…”