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“Mr. Zhao seems distracted,” the middle-aged man chuckled. “Are you worried about Mr. Zheng?”
The news of Zheng Yixu’s injury had spread widely, and many people were aware of it. Zhao Louqin and Zheng Yixu’s deep affection was well-known, having lasted for over a decade. It was understandable that Zhao Louqin would feel so agitated; there was no one else he would worry about besides Zheng Yixu.
The middle-aged man looked at the even more charismatic Zhao Louqin than he was over a decade ago and sighed inwardly. Back then, Zhao Louqin had attracted countless admirers as soon as he debuted, but his background was deep, and no one dared to touch him. Even if everyone couldn’t have him, little did they know that Zhao Louqin quietly married Zheng Yixu during the rise of his career.
Now, in his thirties, Zhao Louqin was at the peak of his charm as a man. The number of people infatuated with him was growing, and his fan base was expanding rapidly. What was commendable was that over these many years, Zhao Louqin had indeed stayed devoted to Zheng Yixu for over a decade without a hint of scandal.
Setting aside Zhao Louqin’s wealth, those who pursued him included many attractive men and women. However, none of them could gain any advantage. During Zheng Yixu’s injury, countless people secretly prayed that Zheng Yixu would remain in the hospital, clearing the position of Zhao Louqin’s partner for them.
Zhao Louqin sighed softly, tacitly agreeing to something.
Feeling somewhat obedient, especially with no one answering the phone at the villa, he decided it was best to finish the business discussion early and head back.
As Zhao Louqin lowered his head and caught his reflection in the tea cup, he couldn’t help but feel pleased. Finally, he had slimmed down a bit, something Little Sunshine would surely be happy about.
Despite his dislike for Zheng Yixu’s vanity, Zhao Louqin couldn’t help but feel proud that he could easily captivate Zheng Yixu with his looks. Perhaps this was what they meant by “laws for thee but not for me”?
Zhao Louqin’s grasp of language had always been taught by his physical education teacher—interpretation, just interpreting.
Flowers blossom on each branch, each showing its unique beauty.
Meanwhile, Zheng Yixu and Lin Ninghua had finally arrived at their agreed location.
Lin Ninghua and Zheng Yixu were still relatively unfamiliar with each other at present. Even though Lin Ninghua wanted to show some courtesy, he restrained himself from being too eager. What if he scared Zheng Yixu away by appearing too enthusiastic?
Zheng Yixu was quite satisfied with Lin Ninghua’s distant attitude. Right now, he wished Lin Ninghua would treat him like a complete stranger. No matter how attractive Lin Ninghua was, there were always thorns.
“What would you like to eat, Mr. Zheng?” Lin Ninghua knew Zheng Yixu’s preferences like the back of his hand, but he had to ask as if he didn’t.
“… Just something casual,” Zheng Yixu quickly scanned the menu, already having an idea of what he wanted to eat. However, he dared not reveal his preferences. He wasn’t sure how much Lin Ninghua, this rival, knew about him.
There’s a saying that goes, the person who knows you best is often your enemy.
Zheng Yixu could tell Zhao Louqin and Zhao Jiusi that he had been reborn, but he couldn’t let Lin Ninghua catch even a hint of his intentions.
Otherwise, he wouldn’t know how he died.
Taking the menu from Zheng Yixu, Lin Ninghua quickly ordered several dishes, all of which Zheng Yixu loved to eat. “That’ll be it for now. Is there anything else you’d like to add, Mr. Zheng?”
Zheng Yixu was slightly surprised that Lin Ninghua had ordered dishes he loved. It seemed Lin Ninghua had spared no expense for Zhao Louqin, even finding out what Zheng Yixu liked to eat.
“No need, this will be enough,” Zheng Yixu nodded slightly, his expression unchanged.
Lin Ninghua smiled, “It seems like Mr. Zheng has recovered well.” Lin Ninghua also worried that Zheng Yixu’s amnesia might have other lingering effects.
However, seeing Zheng Yixu’s healthy complexion, Lin Ninghua knew that Zhao Louqin had taken good care of him.
If he were together with Zheng Yixu, Lin Ninghua would certainly take good care of him too. Suppressing his jealousy, Lin Ninghua thought to himself.
Zheng Yixu’s vigilance rose in his heart.
Could Lin Ninghua’s words be a warning?
Recently, Zheng Yixu had been idle in the villa, watching too many palace intrigue dramas, and was extremely fond of parsing a simple sentence into several meanings. For example, this sentence could be analyzed in the following ways:
Tsk tsk, to think that three possible meanings can be analyzed from such a simple sentence. If only I had this skill during my Chinese language exam in high school, maybe I would have stepped up to university level.
In the past, those who meticulously picked apart words in their writing of palace intrigue novels must have been repeatedly trained on Lu Xun’s essay topics.
Ahem, I’ve drifted off again.
Zheng Yixu quickly brought his wandering memories back in line. If he kept reminiscing like this, he might just cement the rumors of his injuries not fully healing and his mind slowing down.
Huh? Is there such a rumor? Oh well, never mind.
“Thank you for your concern.” Zheng Yixu managed to muster a faint smile, giving off a slight warmth. He deeply believed that the only way to prevent others from seeing through your thoughts is to maintain a poker face throughout.
It’s just that when others show special concern for you, remaining poker-faced might make you seem aloof from affection.
Lin Ninghua steered clear of that topic and casually began discussing various things with Zheng Yixu. They talked about the recent sensational events in the entertainment industry, national policies, trending topics on social media, and so on—basically, staying very down-to-earth. It was quite a contrast with Lin Ninghua’s stunning looks, which were completely out of touch with such topics.
However, Zheng Yixu seemed to enjoy the conversation. After all, these were the things he kept up with at home, right? As for all those high-end topics like economics and finance, he only knew the basics. He could bluff his way through with outsiders, but discussing these with Lin Ninghua was like showing off in front of Guan Gong.
After the meal arrived, following the principle of eating in silence, both Lin Ninghua and Zheng Yixu tacitly fell silent.
Once they finished eating, Lin Ninghua enthusiastically invited Zheng Yixu to go watch a movie or something similar. However, Zheng Yixu declined with a dark expression. It wasn’t for any other reason but because shortly after they left the restaurant, people who knew them started bombarding them with questions. Some journalists even mobilized, ready to ask questions like “What are your thoughts upon leaving the hospital?” or “What do you think about your partner, Zhao Louqin?”
Being regulars in financial newspapers and notable figures on the young and wealthy list, they attracted both admiration and envy.
As a high-profile and wealthy young man who was envied and hated, Zheng Yixu suddenly understood the loneliness at the top, feeling like it could freeze a person.
Frozen, yet oddly content.
Even though Zheng Yixu currently only had credit cards that could be swiped multiple times over a long period, Lin Ninghua looked at him with some regret. He had wanted to take the opportunity to go see a horror movie with Zheng Yixu.
In the past, whenever they watched horror movies together, Lin Ninghua would use the excuse of being scared to snuggle up directly into Zheng Yixu’s arms. It was an old trick, but effective. Back then, he could make Zheng Yixu fall in love with him, so surely he could do it again now.
Lin Ninghua’s thoughts were optimistic. He wanted to relive the moments they had shared before Zheng Yixu lost all his memories. Surely, Zheng Yixu, without any memories, would fall in love with him again just like before. As long as this time he avoided mistakes and guarded against Zhao Louqin, everything would be fine.
Unfortunately, Lin Ninghua and Zheng Yixu were no longer the unknown students they once were. Now, whenever they went out together, a crowd would gather around them.
Lin Ninghua escorted Zheng Yixu back and pondered how to find a suitable excuse to ask Zheng Yixu out next time. Zhao Louqin, that jerk, definitely wouldn’t sit idly by, so Lin Ninghua had to seize the opportunity while he was absent and become Zheng Yixu’s “good friend.”
As Lin Ninghua thought slowly, he stared at Zheng Yixu without blinking. He watched as Zheng Yixu stepped into the villa and closed the door. For the first time in over a decade, Lin Ninghua felt that the distance between him and Zheng Yixu could be this close.
Zheng Yixu had just stepped into the villa when he saw his handsome son, Zhao Jiusi, sitting straight on the sofa, staring directly at him with a pitiful expression that was hard to bear. It was as if Zheng Yixu had committed some heinous crime.
“Uh, Jiusi, weren’t you supposed to be in class?” Zheng Yixu suddenly felt a ridiculous sensation as if he had been caught red-handed. Haha, this must be a misunderstanding, a misunderstanding, hahaha.
“Dad, no one answered the home phone, and your mobile has been off. So Dad called the school and asked me to come back and check on you,” Zhao Jiusi explained the situation and continued to gaze at Zheng Yixu with sorrow. “Dad, where have you been?”
With a soft tone, Zheng Yixu almost instinctively reached out to pat Zhao Jiusi’s head gently.
“I went out for dinner. I didn’t feel like cooking today, and I remembered a interesting restaurant I saw last time I was out with your father, so I went there,” Zheng Yixu explained, omitting some details. He wasn’t lying per se, just choosing not to disclose everything.
“Oh, I see,” Zhao Jiusi stared at Zheng Yixu for a while, seemingly assessing the truthfulness of his words. “Next time, Dad, please leave a note at home or send a text before you go out. It’s dangerous now that you don’t remember anything.”
“Uh-huh, uh-huh,” Zheng Yixu nodded eagerly, as obedient as a cat being petted.
“Oh, and Dad, Father will be back in three days,” Zhao Jiusi tilted his head, “Dad, please don’t go out, okay? Tomorrow’s a holiday, I can stay home with Dad.”
Zheng Yixu didn’t dare to refuse. He quickly put on a happy expression. Actually, he was genuinely happy about it too. Spending the weekend playing games and enjoying time with the handsome young man sounded wonderful