Chapter 23

Buo Yi walked out of the clubhouse with lingering fear.

As he descended the steps, he was suddenly startled by the bright sun outside the porch.

The doorman, leaning on the car door, waited for a while before turning back in surprise to see Buo Yi standing stiffly behind him, his face uncertain.

“Mr. Buo…?” The doorman cautiously reminded. Buo Yi’s expression froze with a certain degree of gritted teeth.

He regained his composure and said, “Wait a moment.”

After that, Buo Yi took out his phone and deliberately moved to the side.

His finger scrolled through the list of contacts with the letter ‘S’ and finally stopped between two names that were listed one above the other. — “Shang Xian” and “Shang Xiao”.

His thumb hovered over the first name for a few seconds, but in the end, Buo Yi gritted his teeth and moved down half an inch, dialing the phone number of the second name.

Buo Yi took a deep breath and held his breath.

“Ring… ring…”

“I’m sorry, the user you are trying to reach is currently unavailable, please try again later-”

Buo Yi: “?”

Refusing to give up, he dialed again.

“Ring…”

“I’m sorry, you-”

“Ring…”

“I’m sorry, you-”

Buo Yi: “…”

After dialing the 7th call expressionlessly, Buo Yi finally heard the vibration of the phone connecting before the seventh “I’m sorry”.

The person who answered the call was a timid male voice. “Hello?” The voice sounded like his own disciple.

Thinking of Shang Yan’s words, Buo Yi’s face darkened.

“Isn’t this Shang Xiao’s personal number?”

“I… I’m the boss’s new assistant. The boss is shooting a music video. Do you have any business with him?”

“Let Shang Xiao come to the phone.”

“Um? But our boss doesn’t allow interruptions during the shoot.”

Buo Yi’s temple twitched as he reluctantly revealed his name, “Tell him it’s my call.”

There was silence on the other end for a few seconds. Then the timid assistant asked, “Who is this?”

Buo Yi: “…”

Buo Yi: “Who am I? Can’t you see the caller ID?”

“Caller ID…” The assistant sounded almost on the verge of tears, “There’s no caller ID, just a string of numbers…”

Buo Yi: “…Didn’t he add a note for me?”

“Y-Yes.”

Buo Yi: “…” Buo Yi took a deep breath and spoke again, “Then tell him it’s his brother-in-law calling.”

“Oh, oh, okay, sir, please wait a moment.”

There were murmurs on the other end, and Buo Yi heard the voice of the assistant saying, “Boss, it’s your call. The gentleman on the other end says he’s your brother-in-law.”

The air fell silent for a few seconds, and then a deep, magnetic, and cold voice came through the phone.

“Brother-in-law?”

The assistant: “Yes, that’s what he said.”

“I don’t know him.”

The assistant: “…”

The person on the other end of the phone could clearly hear everything.

Buo Yi: “…”

Are all the sons of the Shang family dogs??

Unable to bear it any longer, Buo Yi finally exploded again, “Shang Xiao! Your family is about to have a little pervert, don’t you care?!”

This time, the silence on the other end was particularly long. After a while, the person holding the phone changed, and the low, magnetic voice came through the receiver.

“Buo Yi?”

“…”

Although this voice had held the title of “the sexiest bass in the entertainment industry” for several years in a row, and could make any random passerby scream when heard outside, when Buo Yi heard the other person call his name with a tone of “who is this”, he really wanted to hang up the phone in frustration.

Buo Yi took a deep breath and silently recited “I have the best self-control in the world” three times before finally calming down.

“…It’s me.”

“Hmm.”

Once his identity was confirmed, the voice on the other end relaxed, with a lazy tone.

“Who’s the weird one, Shang Xian?”

Silence for three seconds, then Buo Yi jumped in place— “My wife is so cute! How could she be weird?”

A pause from the other side.

Then a calm voice responded:

“Your wife, Shang Xian, being cute—these three things are unrelated in pairs.”

Buo Yi: “…………”

He really didn’t understand how Shang Xiao managed to convey such a strong sense of being despised with such a cold, indifferent tone.

Buo Yi weakly wiped his face.

“In any case, when you have time, pay more attention to your youngest son in your family… I feel like he’s on the verge of going crazy and exploring weird things.”

“Huh?”

Shang Xiao: “What did he do?”

“He hasn’t done anything yet.” Buo Yi’s expression was blank, “But I feel like he’s contemplating some bestial actions that are illegal.”

Shang Xiao: “……”

“In any case, be vigilant.” Buo Yi muttered as he turned back, “Otherwise, if he goes astray, my wife and my future father-in-law might break my legs…”

“And then.”

“And then what?” Buo Yi stopped by the open car door, bending down to get in, “There’s no ‘and then’.”

A noise from across the way, the phone seemed to be returned to the assistant.

The hesitant voice of the assistant came through—”Boss, the call… hasn’t ended yet.”

“Mm.”

The perfect blend of sexy and aloofness resonated calmly:

“End the call, block them.”

Buo Yi: “…………”

Buo Yi: “???”

Several seconds later, from the extended limousine leaving the club, there came a roar— “Remove all of Shang Xiao’s signature billboards from the main and branch stores! All of them!!”

…

When Shang Yan returned to the room, there was a hint of gloom in his eyes.

Just as he approached the door, a student by the door intended to greet him, but upon seeing his expression, even the raised hand involuntarily froze in mid-air, and the words that were about to be spoken were forcibly swallowed back.

Shang Yan didn’t notice, nor did he care.

He stopped by the door, looking contemplatively at his usual spot.

But unexpectedly—beside his usual spot, the girl, whose figure seemed even smaller against the high stool, was bowing over the bar in front of her.

Shang Yan furrowed his brow.He walked straight over.

When he arrived, he paused, scanning the girl who was lying on the table, then looked at Wu Hongbo on the other side.

“What’s going on?”

Wu Hongbo awkwardly and guiltily explained, “They just brought out new fruit wine, and Little Su cup was supposed to be the one without alcohol, just juice, but the colors were similar and placed together, I didn’t notice, it seems like her cup was taken away, and Little Su probably ended up with the one that was originally supposed to be mine…”

“…”

The rest of the explanation wasn’t necessary; Shang Yan already guessed.

His gaze became even more somber.

Wu Hongbo felt deeply guilty under Shang Yan’s gaze and bowed his head, “I’m really sorry, Brother Yan, I really didn’t notice… and it seems like Little Su really can’t touch any alcohol, her face turned pale after drinking it, it just got a lot better, and then she seemed a bit drunk.”

Shang Yan lowered his eyes to look at Su Miao Miao.

Sure enough, during their conversation, the girl had only slightly turned her face and pressed her wrist against the table, not moving.

Her delicate eyelashes trembled slightly, lying quietly like a silkworm cocoon, a faint blush showing through her porcelain-smooth cheeks.

Quiet and beautiful, like a sleeping porcelain doll.

“…”

Shang Yan leaned on the edge of the bar counter, lowering his body, and leaned over to the girl’s face.

“Kid.”

Su Miao Miao didn’t open her eyes, she just pursed her lips lightly, the somewhat dry skin moistened, resembling rain-soaked petals with a faint watery hue.

Shang Yan’s eyes deepened with emotion. Before he could speak again, the lights in the large private room suddenly dimmed.

—

Unlike the previous changes in brightness, this time the lights dimmed to almost an unseeable level. Only around the oval-shaped stage next to the bar, small LED lights illuminated the perimeter.

Shang Yan furrowed his brow. “What’s causing this disturbance again?”

Wu Hongbo explained, “Just now, when Brother Yan wasn’t here, I heard them saying that Shu Wei’s party this time seems to have specially invited a few minor celebrities and bands to entertain… They’re probably starting the performance now.”

Upon hearing this, Shang Yan’s brow furrowed even tighter in the darkness.

He stared at the unconscious child for a few seconds, then lifted his hand and removed his coat.

Standing close to the stage, Wu Hongbo could see his actions clearly under the stage lights and couldn’t help but be stunned: “Brother Yan, what are you…?”

Shang Yan didn’t speak, instead demonstrating his intentions through actions—he reached out and gently lifted the sleeping Su Miao Miao, draping his coat over her.

Afterwards, Shang Yan explained, “Kids can’t stand loud noises.”

Saying this, Shang Yan walked between two high stools, steadying the drunken girl comfortably against him, allowing her to rest quietly in his arms.

Su Miao Miao, even in her drunken stupor, was quite sensitive. Sensing she was moved to a less hard “surface,” she murmured softly, nuzzled her head, and finally found the most comfortable position, quietly settling down.

Shang Yan stood still without moving.

Beside him, Wu Hongbo stared dumbfounded.

After a while, Wu Hongbo managed to regain his voice: “Uh… Brother Yan, if I knew being your apprentice came with this kind of benefit, no, this kind of treatment… I bet all the girls in the school would’ve gone crazy trying to join the computer club.”

Shang Yan lazily glanced at him, too lazy to respond.

On the stage, a singer was already performing, luckily the music wasn’t too loud, rather soft and soothing.

Shang Yan temporarily abandoned the idea of carrying the child out.

He stood there quietly, like a tree bear holding a sleeping tree.

Thinking of the way the girl had lightly pursed her lips earlier, then imagining a baby koala chewing leaves to sleep, Shang Yan’s mouth couldn’t help but curl slightly.

—

This small-scale song and dance show lasted about twenty minutes.

As the music rhythm intensified towards the end, the excitement of the students in the private room was stirred up.

Until the young singers and bands took their collective bow, applause gradually erupted in the private room. The girl nestled in front of Shang Yan stirred, slowly opening her eyes in a daze.

—

Familiar dimness.

And a familiar mint-like scent.It seemed like… déjà vu.

Su Miao Miao lazily raised her hand, pulling down the coat that had been draped over her head.

She looked up and met a pair of dark, glistening eyes.

In the dim light, those eyes seemed to sparkle with fragments of starlight.

Recalling her experience of being covered by a coat last time, Su Miao Miao fell silent, cautiously asking:

“Did someone splash juice on me?”

Shang Yan was taken aback.

Then he smiled, “Kid, you had less than three-degree fruit wine, fell asleep, and had a dream on top of that?”

Su Miao Miao pursed her lips, relieved….It seemed not.

She sat up slightly, scanning her surroundings in the dimness, finally settling her gaze on the stage.

After a pause, she curiously asked, “Is Shu Wei going to dance?”

Shang Yan turned to look.

On the stage, Shu Wei had somehow taken the stage.

Her outfit had changed too, now in a red fishtail gown. The upper half of the gown was replaced with translucent red gauze, revealing her waist and designed to accentuate her figure. The gown featured a large slit from the right leg down, faintly revealing her snow-white legs.

Amidst the murmurs and discussions in the private room, Shu Wei looked over here with a complex expression, both proud and resentful and plaintive.

When she finally met Shang Yan’s gaze, she smirked, raising a finger lightly.

Music filled the private room.

“Oh my god, this is something else!”

Wu Hongbo exclaimed beside them.

Shang Yan raised an eyebrow, turning to look.

Beside him, Su Miao Miao also asked curiously, “What’s… something else?”

“You didn’t know about this?” Wu Hongbo asked in astonishment, then excitedly explained, “It’s the super popular dance track of a Korean girl group. When I saw Shu Wei’s outfit just now, I had a feeling it looked like it, and sure enough!… She’s daring enough to choose it!”

Su Miao Miao became even more curious, “What’s special about this dance?”

Wu Hongbo slapped his thigh, “This dance is one of those especially hot and spicy ones in broadcasted tracks! Especially the beginning, oh yes, this part right now, the ‘Cat Claw’, it’s enough to make people’s noses bleed—”

Midway through Wu Hongbo’s explanation, Shang Yan reached out and covered the girl’s ears.

Originally, she was attentively watching the stage performance while listening to Wu Hongbo’s interpretation—

Su Miao Miao: “….?”

Shang Yan lowered his eyes, giving Wu Hongbo a smirk that was neither a smile nor a smile, his gaze cold.”Ignore his nonsense, not suitable for kids.”Wu Hongbo: “……..”As the dance track progressed halfway, the private room was filled with suppressed whispers. If it weren’t for Shang Yan’s presence, there might have been boys whistling at the stage by now.

Watching the dancer on stage swaying her hips, touching her legs, and flipping her hair while maintaining eye contact with him, Shang Yan let out a disdainful sound and lowered his gaze.

Dark emotions flickered in his black eyes.

“….”

After a moment, he turned his gaze away.

The child beside him was much more engrossed than he was.

Recalling the scene that had flashed through his mind earlier, Shang Yan squinted slightly.

“….Kid.”

“——?”

Su Miao Miao heard her name hidden in the music, turned her head, then heard Shang Yan’s slightly hoarse voice ask, “Do you also have a red dress?”

Su Miao Miao was puzzled for a moment, then realized that Shang Yan was referring to the red dress she wore when they unexpectedly met at the restaurant.

Su Miao Miao nodded honestly.

Beside her, Wu Hongbo heard this and teased with a grin, “Brother Yan, you’re not planning to make Little Su dance this too, are you? She can’t, our Little Su is a fairy type, not cut out for this.”

Su Miao Miao heard Shang Yan chuckle softly.

A hint of dry sarcasm permeated his low voice.

“Dancing dressed like this, then you’re out of the sect.”

Wu Hongbo choked.

Shang Yan leaned slightly towards the girl.

His black eyes deepened.

“Do you know the consequences of being expelled from the sect?”

Su Miao Miao hesitated, shaking her head.

The corners of his lips curved slightly.

“Legs broken.”

Su Miao Miao: “……..”

The lights in the private room suddenly brightened.

Su Miao Miao snapped out of her thoughts, realizing the dance track had ended.

The other students in the room were applauding and cheering, and Su Miao Miao instinctively looked towards the stage.

There, Shu Wei in the red dress, her chest rising and falling slightly, stared at her with an almost livid expression.

Her gaze carried an unmistakable threat.

Su Miao Miao fell silent.

She was innocent.

She hadn’t done anything, and was simply watching with great enthusiasm…With this dance heating up the atmosphere, the students in the private room became even more lively.

Several members of the computer club also moved to the sofas.

Singing, gaming, drinking games…Everyone was having a blast.

The only protagonist of today’s party, Shu Wei, remained composed after coming down from the stage.

However, she accepted every glass offered to her without refusal.

Her gaze was fixed on one person the entire time.

At a certain point, Shu Wei slammed her glass onto the marble tabletop with force.

The loud noise silenced the lively atmosphere in the private room.

Everyone stared at Shu Wei in shock.

She then stood up abruptly, striding towards the corner sofa area of the private room, and suddenly stopped.

All eyes followed her gaze.

—

On the soft sofa, the girl nestled in the corner was covered with a coat noticeably several sizes too big for her, sleeping peacefully.

Beside her, the young man sat sideways, lazily toying with a glass of liquor, his gaze seemingly absent but actually enveloping her figure.

Shu Wei clenched her fist.

“Shang Yan—”

In the suddenly quiet private room, Shu Wei’s voice was particularly clear.

Shang Yan snapped out of his thoughts, raising his eyes.

On his handsome and clear face, there was just a hint of a smirk, chilling Shu Wei to the bone.

She gritted her teeth, fueled by the alcohol she had just drunk and the emotions surging within her, she squeezed out each word—

“Think carefully, do you still want to be with me?!”

“……!”

In the already quiet private room, as these words fell, the silence became even more profound.

All eyes simultaneously turned towards Shang Yan.

Except for those close to Shang Yan, the other students naturally assumed the answer.

—

Shu Wei was beautiful, with a good figure and an outstanding family background; they simply couldn’t find a reason to refuse her. However, in this silence, when their gazes fell on Shang Yan, he furrowed his brow slightly.

He glanced at the girl sleeping beside him before refocusing his gaze.

His tone was icy and indifferent—

“Don’t wake her.”

“……”

The smiles on many students’ faces froze.

Meanwhile, Shu Wei’s eyes welled up in an instant.

“Do you still want to be with me, after giving it some thought!”

“Don’t wake her.”

—

For her, there was no more hurtful way of rejection.

“Shang Yan, don’t regret this!” Shu Wei gritted her teeth angrily.

Shang Yan gazed back at her calmly and indifferently.

Enraged by such a gaze, Shu Wei turned her head towards a boy from her class—”Xin Haoqing, do you like me?”

The boy was taken aback.

“Speak!”

“Yes… I do like you—”

Before he could finish his sentence, Shu Wei directly hooked her arms around the boy’s neck, tiptoed, and kissed him.

The private room fell silent for a moment.

Everyone was dumbfounded.

A few seconds later, someone couldn’t contain themselves any longer, and whistles and exclamations resounded one after another.

Amidst the commotion, Su Miao Miao was still awakened.

Partially confused due to the lingering effects of alcohol, the girl rubbed her eyes and sat up straight.

The noisy voices flooded her ears—

“What the heck, Shu Wei has gone crazy, right?!”

“Damn, she just wants to embarrass Shang Yan!”

“Damn it…”

“——Shang Yan! Who’s afraid of whom? Why don’t you find a girl to kiss back!”

Upon the last suggestion, a large number of people immediately echoed.

Following that, all eyes naturally converged on the girl who had just woken up.

Su Miao Miao’s eyes were still filled with the haze of just waking up, her awareness not yet clear, completely unaware of the tumultuous situation unfolding.

In the sudden barrage of gazes, she instinctively turned her head and looked at the boy sitting beside her.

“Master…?”

“Kiss him! Kiss him! Kiss him!”

People in the private room started to cheer.

“……”

Shang Yan lowered his eyes to the girl in front of him.

His pupils were as dark as ink.

The clamor around him grew louder.

And the girl innocently and defenselessly stared back at him.

The Adam’s apple rolled in the boy’s slender neck.

Before Su Miao Miao could respond, she blinked and turned to look at the center of the room.

Two figures embraced each other, seeming…

Suddenly, Shang Yan moved.

He leaned forward.

—

The slender phalanges covered the girl’s eyes.

His voice was slightly hoarse.

A laugh tinged with helplessness.”….Don’t corrupt the child.”