“Mom, good afternoon to you too,” Yu Yan replied like a personal assistant, repeating her words.

Jiang Mo didn’t pressure him. “Good afternoon, sweetheart. Come over and have some nuts. Aunt Zhao had someone send them over to thank you.”

Yu Yan realized it was because of Zhao Han. “There’s no need to thank me. I should be thanking her for helping me save money.”

The costumes for the production were all sponsored by Zhao Han for free. He only needed to pay a styling fee, which was already a great deal. Plus, since the two families had a good relationship, it was only natural for him to promote Zhao Han’s brand.

“The economy hasn’t been great these past two years. Hanhan’s clothing brand caters to the middle class, but the market hasn’t fully opened up. Your help will make a big difference. She’s been so busy lately that she hasn’t even been home,” Jiang Mo explained briefly.

“How’s the movie coming along?” Yu Chen asked, concerned about his younger brother’s venture.

After all, this was Yu Yan’s first self-invested film, and the whole family was taking it seriously.

“Not bad, just a bit busy. I just finished discussing the script with them,” Yu Yan replied, steering the topic toward something he cared about. “By the way, bro, did you come back alone?”

“Yeah, your sister-in-law didn’t come along,” Yu Chen answered casually.

Yu Yan hesitated before asking, “What about… Eric?”

“He’s still abroad handling some matters. He’ll be back in a few days. Fang Chi and the others said they’re planning a welcome banquet for him. I’ll bring you along then.”

A welcome banquet?!

Yu Yan’s internal alarms went off instantly. Asking him to attend a “Shen Yuming” welcome banquet was no different from throwing him into the fire.

“I’ll pass. I’m a bit busy these days.”

“Busy with the movie? He studied something related to the entertainment industry. You might even have common topics to talk about,” Yu Chen said, trying to build a connection for him.

“Shen Yuming” has a family company, doesn’t he? Why would he enter the entertainment industry?

Yu Yan didn’t dig deeper into the question. He had no interest in anything related to Shen Yuming.

Normally, Yu Yan would’ve confided everything to his family. But with Yu Chen’s wedding just days away and the entire household busy, he didn’t want to add to their worries.

So, Yu Yan mumbled a few vague replies without outright rejecting the idea.

“Is he going to be your groomsman?”

“He and Shen Yuchen will be,” Yu Chen said, having already made the decision.

Even though he hadn’t met Shen Yuming yet, Yu Yan was already dreading the encounter. He just hoped the man wouldn’t cause trouble at his brother’s wedding banquet.

Yu Yan sighed, feeling a bit down, and said nothing more.

“What’s wrong?” Yu Chen noticed his low spirits.

After some hesitation, Yu Yan said, “It’s nothing important. I’ll talk about it in a few days.”

“Let Mom guess,” Jiang Mo suddenly said with a smile. “Is it because our Yan Yan has grown up and found someone he likes?”

Hearing this, Yu Yan’s face turned bright red in an instant. “Mom, stop it.”

“Alright, you can decide when to bring him home,” Jiang Mo said warmly. It had taken her three whole days to accept that her son liked men, but no societal judgments or prejudices mattered to her more than Yu Yan’s happiness.

Yu Chen took a while to process this. “Since when?”

“Just… not long ago. Mom’s already agreed,” Yu Yan said, linking his arm with Jiang Mo’s. “Right, Mom? You’ve agreed, haven’t you?”

Jiang Mo’s smile grew wider. “It’s your choice. Mom won’t interfere.”

“Mom, have you already met the girl?” Yu Chen lamented, upset that his business trip had made him miss the chance to meet his future sister-in-law.

If Yu Chen knew who this “girl” actually was, he probably wouldn’t be smiling so brightly. Yu Yan silently apologized to him in his heart and gestured for his mom to keep quiet for now.

The mother and son duo seemed to be speaking in riddles, their back-and-forth making Yu Chen even more curious.

“Are you pursuing this girl, or are you already dating her?” Yu Chen became intrigued. “You don’t have much experience in chasing someone, do you? Let me pass on my precious knowledge to you. I guarantee you’ll win her over in no time.”

Thinking about those dozens of A4 pages filled with advice, Yu Yan felt uneasy. “No need, bro. We’re already together.”

“Fast worker, huh? When are you bringing her home for me to meet?” Yu Chen beamed, his grin widening.

“We just got together, so maybe after a while.” At least after his brother’s wedding—it wouldn’t be as chaotic then if things got messy.

Yu Chen patted his shoulder. “Alright, your big brother will just wait to attend your wedding.”

Yu Yan felt oddly guilty but nodded stiffly to agree.

Perhaps it was the resolution of some business trouble, or maybe it was just the news of Yu Yan being in a relationship, but Yu Chen seemed to be in an excellent mood. He even hummed a tune as he went upstairs.

Back in his study, Yu Chen didn’t dive straight into work. Instead, the first thing he did was call Shen Yuming.

The call was answered within seconds, suggesting Shen Yuming had some free time.

“What’s up?”

Yu Chen’s tone was lighthearted, his voice bright. “Oh, nothing major. Thanks for helping me connect the dots—the contract has been signed, and Chao Xing’s smart home exports won’t be stuck anymore. When do you have time to grab a meal?”

“Not anytime soon. Let’s talk after your wedding,” Shen Yuming replied bluntly, clearly not wanting to meet at the moment.

Yu Chen, undeterred by the rejection, maintained his cheerful mood. “Alright then. Eric’s coming back in a few days—there’s going to be a welcome party. Let’s have a few drinks then.”

“Sure.”

“Man, time flies—I’m about to get married. You need to pick up the pace, too. Speaking of which, our family’s luck has been great this year. Double blessings!”

Shen Yuming paused for a moment, suppressing the urge to hang up as he casually probed, “What’s the other good news?”

“My brother is in a relationship! Did you know? The kid even hid it from me. Mom has already met the girl, and she’s very satisfied. Apparently, she’s exactly his type. Their relationship seems stable. They’ll probably get married soon. I’ve even prepared my wedding gift for them. You’d better hurry up too, or I won’t be able to return the favor.”

Once excited, people tend to ramble. Yu Chen didn’t care whether Shen Yuming wanted to hear it or not—he just kept going.

Initially, Yu Chen had worried that Shen Yuming might be leading Yu Yan astray. But now, after a short trip away, his younger brother’s future was suddenly all settled.

On the other end, there was a long silence before Shen Yuming finally uttered a simple “Mm.”

Still riding his excitement, Yu Chen didn’t notice the shift in Shen Yuming’s tone and continued, “You and my brother have known each other for a while now and are pretty close friends, right? When he gets married, you better prepare a generous gift.”

“Of course. If there’s anything else I can help with, I’ll do my best,” Shen Yuming replied calmly.

“That’s great. Oh, and don’t forget, you’re one of my groomsmen,” Yu Chen said, fiddling with some documents on his desk.

There was a hint of hesitation from Shen Yuming. “Who else is there?”

“Eric. It’s been over a year since I last saw him. The kid’s really grown into himself—he actually looks the part in a suit now. I almost forgot his dad sent him abroad because he got into a fight,” Yu Chen explained.

The name “Eric” now equated to “Shen Yuming” in Yu Yan’s mind. Just hearing it felt like a flood rushing in, leaving him emotionally unsteady. Judging by Yu Chen’s current state, though, it seemed he hadn’t realized this yet.

Shen Yuming, unwilling to stir up any trouble before the wedding, asked, “What about Yan Yan?”

“I was going to have him as a groomsman, but thinking about the alcohol he’d have to block for me, I couldn’t do it. He’ll just help our parents host the guests instead.”

Shen Yuming let out a faint sigh of relief. “Alright.”

“Settled, then.”

After hanging up, Yu Chen was still in high spirits. He immediately texted Xi Yuan, sharing the good news and asking her to help pick out a gift for his future sister-in-law.

After he sent the message, the “typing…” notification appeared on and off for about a minute before Xi Yuan finally replied.

[Xi Yuan: You’d better mentally prepare yourself. Let’s talk after you meet her.]

[Yu Chen: Prepare for what? My brother’s a total face-judge. His taste shouldn’t be that bad, right?]

[Xi Yuan: …We’ll see.]

Yu Chen, deep in thought, guessed that Xi Yuan might not know much about his future sister-in-law’s preferences, so he decided to drop the topic. It wasn’t too late to choose a gift after meeting her anyway.

During dinner, the whole family learned that Yu Yan was in a relationship. Although they were curious, no one said much about it.

Yu Yan guessed that his father probably knew as well but just chose not to bring it up.

After returning to his room and finishing his evening routine, Shen Yuchen called him via video chat.

“Brother, why are you still at the office? Working overtime?”

Shen Yuchen rubbed his temples. “I still have some work to finish.”

Yu Yan let out an “Oh” and offered, “Then I’ll keep you company.”

He propped up his phone against the wall so that his entire body could be seen in the frame, then sat on the floor and started sorting through Lego pieces.

Ever since Jiang Mo discovered his fondness for sitting on carpets, she had laid thick rugs in his room and the living room.

The carpet had just been cleaned a few days ago, and there was still a faint scent of laundry detergent lingering on it.

“Your brother called me this afternoon,” Shen Yuchen suddenly said.

Yu Yan immediately sat upright, the movement so abrupt that the two longer strands of hair on his head swayed along. “What did he say?”

“He said you have a little girlfriend, that you’re deeply in love, you’ve already introduced her to the family, and even set a wedding date. He also mentioned he’s planning to send me an invitation.” Shen Yuchen’s lips curved slightly as he stretched out his words, “Baby, is this little girlfriend me?”

Yu Yan: “…”

And that’s how rumors spread. All he had said was that he was in a relationship, and while his mom knew, somehow, through Yu Chen’s retelling, it had completely transformed by the time it reached Shen Yuchen.

“It’s not…”

“It’s not?” Shen Yuchen raised an eyebrow.

Yu Yan bit his tongue lightly. “That’s not what I meant. There’s no little girlfriend. My brother just misunderstood.”

“How did he misunderstand?”

Shen Yuchen was curious. He could guess Yu Chen’s intentions—nothing more than leveraging this situation to remind him and Yu Yan to maintain proper boundaries.

During the call, Yu Chen had been so enthusiastic, chatting away endlessly, that Shen Yuchen couldn’t bear to interrupt.

Yu Yan gave a hasty explanation, “I just wanted to give my brother a heads-up, you know, a gradual process. Over time, he’ll get used to it.”

“He didn’t get used to it. He’s boasting and even asked me to prepare a wedding gift for you.”

For some reason, Yu Yan picked up a faint trace of grievance in Shen Yuchen’s tone.

Yu Yan hadn’t expected things to take this turn. “Reality doesn’t always align with expectations. I’ll tell him after his wedding is over.”

“Alright.”

Shen Yuchen didn’t want to pressure him but also disliked the idea of sneaking around in their relationship.

Once Yu Chen’s wedding was over, there were some things Shen Yuchen planned to come clean about to Yu Yan. Otherwise, it felt like a ticking time bomb that could go off at any moment.