Originally, they thought the event would last several more hours, but unexpectedly, Yu Lin and Jiang Mo returned before dinnertime.

After a busy day, dinner was settled at a restaurant near the pedestrian street. To celebrate the smooth conclusion of his speech, Yu Yan loudly insisted on treating everyone and told them to order freely. However, no one listened to him.

Jiang Mo propped up a tablet on the table, repeatedly playing a video of Yu Yan’s speech. Three heads leaned in front of the screen—Yu Lin and Jiang Mo sat on chairs while Shen Yuchen bent over, supporting himself on the back of their chairs.

When the video reached a key moment, Jiang Mo paused it and said, “This part was written by Xiao Yan himself. His brother helped him polish it a bit.”

“No wonder. I was just saying this part is the best-written in the whole speech,” Yu Lin chimed in.

“This section is the most practical,” Shen Yuchen nodded.

In an instant, Yu Yan’s scalp tingled. It was as if three versions of He Zhiyu were staring at him.

Forgotten in the corner, Yu Yan cleared his throat, attempting to draw their attention. “Can someone pay attention to me? It’s time to order.”

Jiang Mo and Yu Lin ignored him, but Shen Yuchen casually responded.

“Order for yourself.”

Yu Yan: “…”

Left with no choice, Yu Yan placed the order himself, rinsed the bowls and chopsticks with tea, and neatly arranged them for everyone.

By this time, the video had already looped four times.

One dish after another was served, but they held no appeal for the three in front of the screen.

When the video looped for the sixth time, Yu Yan couldn’t stand it any longer. He forcefully took the tablet away. “No more watching! Time to eat!”

Jiang Mo looked at his ears, red as if they were about to drip blood. “What’s the matter? Feeling embarrassed?”

Of course he felt embarrassed—having his speech video played on a loop right in front of him!

Yu Yan shifted the topic. “If you want to watch, do it under the covers by yourselves. Don’t watch it in front of me.”

“Alright, Mom will watch it tonight,” Jiang Mo said with a smile.

Yu Yan exhaled. “Hurry up and eat. Do we have anything else to do? When are we going back?”

Yu Lin thought for a moment. “Tomorrow we’re meeting a friend, so we’ll probably need two or three more days. Ah Chen, when are you heading back?”

“Uncle, I’ll go back with you all. I still have two construction sites to inspect,” Shen Yuchen replied. His main purpose for coming to Rong City was to inspect the sites, especially after an incident in a neighboring city involving illegal construction waste disposal. He couldn’t afford to be careless.

In two or three days, Song Yunjing’s documentary filming would also wrap up, so it was a good time to return together.

Worried about not getting adjacent seats, Yu Yan specifically asked for Shen Yuchen’s ID number and took it upon himself to book the plane tickets.

“Ah Chen, did your mom return to the country?” Jiang Mo hesitated slightly before asking. “She sent me a message last night asking about you. I’m guessing she saw my post on Moments.”

Jiang Mo’s Moments featured Yu Yan as the main subject, but since Yu Yan had been standing close to Shen Yuchen during their visit to the pedestrian street, Shen Yuchen was also captured in the photo.

“She recently came back and probably plans to stay for a while,” Shen Yuchen explained politely.

“Are you living together?” Jiang Mo asked again.

“No, she took Cannan back to the old family home.”

Jiang Mo couldn’t possibly not know who Zhang Cannan was, as Zhang Shujun’s Moments were filled with pictures of her daughter.

Jiang Mo nodded slowly. “She invited me to dinner last night.”

Having grown up with Yu Chen, Shen Yuchen knew full well how much care Jiang Mo and her husband had shown him. If Zhang Shujun invited Jiang Mo for dinner, it was undoubtedly to inquire about Shen Yuchen.

Jiang Mo’s unexpected comment was also her way of probing if there was anything Shen Yuchen didn’t want revealed.

Before Shen Yuchen could respond, Yu Yan couldn’t hold back any longer.

“Mom, can we just eat without talking about this stuff?” Yu Yan didn’t want Shen Yuchen’s scars to be brought up.

Jiang Mo snapped back to her senses. “You’re right, let’s eat first.”

“It’s fine. My mom just got back and probably wants to catch up with her friends.”

“This soup is pretty good. Let me serve you some,” Shen Yuchen said, trying to start a new topic.

Before he could continue, Yu Yan interrupted.

Yu Yan busied himself serving bowls of soup, placing them in front of everyone.

Everyone at the table, seasoned in the ways of the business world, quickly picked up on Yu Yan’s intention and seamlessly shifted the conversation.

Thanks to the impromptu speech analysis, the meal lasted much longer than usual. By the time they finished, it was completely dark outside, and they all returned to the hotel together.

Yu Yan stayed in the suite with his parents. After returning to the hotel, he went straight back to his small room.

In the elevator, he asked Shen Yuchen for his room number. They were only two rooms apart.

After freshening up, Yu Yan didn’t bother with messages; instead, he directly called Shen Yuchen on a video chat.

In just three to five seconds, the call was connected, but Shen Yuchen had his camera off, leaving the screen completely dark.

“Why didn’t you turn on your camera?” Yu Yan pouted, expressing his dissatisfaction.

“I just finished showering. Do you want me to turn it on?”

Guessing that he might be in a bathrobe and feeling it wasn’t appropriate, Yu Yan declined, “Forget it. Are you going to the construction site tomorrow?”

“I’ll need to check it out, but I should be free in the afternoon.”

“Alright then, come with me in the afternoon to pick out souvenirs. I promised someone.”

“Okay.”

There was some rustling noise coming through the speaker, possibly Shen Yuchen getting dressed.

“About what my mom said today, don’t take it to heart. She was just casually asking.”

Yu Yan originally planned to gradually ease into the topic with a prepared set of comforting words. However, the more he thought about it, the more awkward the script seemed. It might even prolong the conversation unnecessarily. Instead, he decided to address it directly.

He regretted never having worked in sales before. If he had, his speaking skills would be sharper, and he wouldn’t find himself lost for words in moments like this.

Shen Yuchen chuckled lightly, “I understand. Auntie was just looking out for me. I didn’t take it the wrong way. She’s practically half a mom to me—why would I be upset over something so trivial?”

Perhaps Yu Yan thought that one’s family of origin was a heavy shackle for Shen Yuchen, which was why he interrupted earlier to stop him from recalling painful memories. Hearing Yuchen’s words, he felt a bit of relief.

“Half a mom?”

Immediately, several terms flashed through Yu Yan’s mind, like “godmother” or “mother-in-law.”

“I used to stay at your house a lot. The room your brother is in now used to be mine.” Shen Yuchen explained that he used to stay at the Yu family’s house when he couldn’t get into his own home because he didn’t have a key. At the time, his stepmother had taken his younger brother to her family’s home.

Yu Chen had originally lived in Yu Yan’s current room, but it was taken over by Yu Yan later, forcing Yu Chen to move to the smaller room.

Yu Yan suddenly understood and joked, “My brother’s so mean, taking your room. Guess you can’t stay over at our house anymore.”

“Why not? Can’t I just stay in your room?” Shen Yuchen played along.

Yu Yan was momentarily taken aback. “Sure, I’ve slept in your room before anyway.”

Shen Yuchen chuckled softly, “Open the door.”

“Huh? What door?”

Still stuck on the topic of sleepovers, Yu Yan hadn’t caught up with the sudden change in topic.

“The hotel room door,” Shen Yuchen said as he turned on his camera, revealing that he was standing in the hallway.

Yu Yan, barefoot, ran across the carpet to open the door.

Shen Yuchen was still in his daytime outfit, not looking like someone who had just showered.

“What are you doing here?”

“Came to crash.”

“Huh? Crashing at a hotel?”

Shen Yuchen laughed and raised a bag in his hand. “Brought you some mung bean cakes.”

“Thanks, bro. Please come in.” Yu Yan’s demeanor did a 180-degree turn as he bowed at a full ninety-degree angle and made a welcoming gesture.

Earlier that afternoon, he had wanted to buy mung bean cakes after leaving the restaurant but gave up when he saw the long lines. He hadn’t expected Shen Yuchen to get them for him.

At this hour, both Jiang Mo and Yu Lin were already resting. So Yu Yan didn’t turn on the living room lights and carefully led Shen Yuchen to his room in the dark.

He moved cautiously, not making any noise, and only breathed a sigh of relief after closing and locking the door behind them.

When he turned around, he found Shen Yuchen grinning uncontrollably. Confused, Yu Yan asked, “What are you laughing at?”

Shen Yuchen looked at him, amused. “The way you’re acting makes me feel like we’re doing something shady.”

There were many “shady” things one could imagine, but as soon as Yu Yan heard this, his brain automatically translated it to “an affair.”

Flustered, he awkwardly changed the subject. “Is the mung bean cake okay? I won’t eat it if it’s broken.”

“Not broken.” Shen Yuming placed the bag on the table and was about to open it when his movements suddenly stopped.

On the table was a crystal glass vase, different from the ordinary vases commonly seen in hotels. This vase appeared to be imported, delicate, and beautiful.

Inside the vase was a bouquet of fiery red roses, though they looked a little wilted.

The roadside bouquet of roses didn’t match the vase. He thought he should’ve bought a better bouquet.

Yu Yan noticed his gaze and nudged him with his elbow.

“Nice, right? My mom carefully picked out this vase. It’s a pity I can’t take the flowers back, but I did pluck a few petals to take with me.”

His tone, as if seeking praise, made Shen Yuming smile unconsciously. “It’s beautiful.”

He didn’t use a fork; instead, he picked up a piece of mung bean cake with his hand and brought it to Yu Yan’s lips.

Yu Yan took a bite and began to chatter again. “My mom gave me flowers today, too. They’re in the living room. Did you see them?”

“I saw them.” Shen Yuming nodded, his gaze falling on Yu Yan’s lips, which were moving as he spoke and still had a bit of mung bean cake stuck to them.

Yu Yan’s tongue quickly swept over, finishing the piece of mung bean cake in Shen Yuming’s hand. “Next time, I’ll send flowers to you guys too.”

Shen Yuming paused for a moment. Seeing Yu Yan pick up a fork to eat the mung bean cake himself, his fingers lightly curled twice.

It seemed Yu Yan interpreted the flowers he sent and the flowers Jiang Mo sent in the same way, seeing them as the same kind of gesture. Shen Yuming softly hummed in response, saying nothing further.

It was getting late, so after delivering the mung bean cake, Shen Yuming left.

For the next two days, Yu Yan didn’t join his parents in visiting relatives. On the first day, he accompanied Shen Yuchen to a construction site and picked out lots of gifts. On the second day, he visited Song Yunjing on set.

By the morning of the third day, the group finally headed to the airport to prepare for their flight home.

In the airport lounge, Yu Yan had just pulled out his phone when he noticed the group chat had become lively again.

The commotion was sparked by a fan who had recognized Song Yunjing and taken a photo, posting it online. It had already gone viral.

The photo was mainly of Song Yunjing, but everyone else in the group had ended up in the frame as well. Fortunately, it didn’t spark much discussion.

Strangers wouldn’t recognize them, but anyone familiar would spot them right away.

Just as Yu Yan was about to ask if the circulation of the photo might cause any negative impact, he refreshed the trending topics and found that the photo had already been taken down, likely by the company.

[He Zhiyu: @Song Yunjing, you’re on the same flight as President Shen?]

[Song Yunjing: Yep, along with Yan-ge’s mom and dad. Auntie not only introduced me to work but also praised me! I’m so touched. 😭]

[He Zhiyu: Don’t get too emotional just yet. Prioritize your survival.]

[Song Yunjing: What do you mean?]

[He Zhiyu: A friendly reminder: treasure your life, stay away from Yan-ge. Otherwise, you might face President Shen’s icy stares, mental attacks, and, if things get serious, even career setbacks.]

[Yu Yan: ???]

System Notification: He Zhiyu has retracted a message.