After his heartbeat calmed down, Yu Wanlai glanced at Qin Shuang and was also startled. Her complexion was really pale. He then looked at Yu Cheng, and their eyes met. Yu Cheng’s face also looked bad. He cleared his throat and put down his bowl and chopsticks. “What are you all dragging your feet for? Once you’ve eaten, hurry and go to work. It’s snowing and the roads are slippery. You need to leave early.”

Qin Shuang hadn’t eaten much of her noodles. She shook her head, looked at Yu Qingyue, and although there were waves in her eyes, she tried to hide them. “I didn’t sleep well last night. I’ll skip work today. Be careful on the road, you all.” After saying that, she went upstairs.

Yu Qingyue looked up and kept watching Qin Shuang until she turned the corner and was out of sight. He felt uneasy the whole morning. His mom was definitely hiding something, but they didn’t tell him anything, which made Yu Qingyue even more restless. He couldn’t sit still. During lunch break, Yu Qingyue drove straight home. Only after confirming that his mother was fine could he feel at ease to return to work.

When Yu Qingyue arrived home, he couldn’t find Qin Shuang anywhere. He asked Wang Ma and found out that Qin Shuang hadn’t even had lunch yet. Eventually, he passed by a storage room and noticed the door slightly ajar. It had been a long time since anyone had visited this room. He felt a sense of relief, thinking he had found her, and was about to push the door open when suddenly he heard Qin Shuang’s desperate scream, “What exactly do you want to do?!”

He couldn’t make out what the other person was saying, but Qin Shuang’s hand, holding the phone, was slightly trembling. “No! You’re not allowed to see him! I won’t allow you to see him!”

“If you dare to hurt him… Hello? Hello!” Before Qin Shuang could finish, the call was abruptly ended. She threw the phone away, grabbed a photo album from the table, and a few tears fell, soaking the edges of the pages.

Yu Qingyue stood at the door, unsure whether he should go in. He had never seen Qin Shuang like this before. Her voice was full of anger, helplessness, and even fear. After hesitating for a while, he decided to push the door open. He couldn’t just stand by.

Hearing the door open, Qin Shuang thought it was Wang Ma. She quickly wiped her face and forced a smile, turning to see Yu Qingyue standing there. She froze for a moment before snapping back to her senses.

She dropped the photo album and hurried over to Yu Qingyue. “Yue Yue, why are you back? Did you forget to take a document? Why didn’t you call? I could have had the driver bring it to you.”

Yu Qingyue stepped closer and could see the redness around her eyes. He smiled softly. “No need to trouble Mom. I saw you weren’t in a good mood today, so I thought I’d come back to check on you. Wang Ma said you haven’t had lunch yet…”

Qin Shuang couldn’t hold back and almost cried again. She turned her head, her gaze landing on the photo album on the table. “…Did Wang Ma complain about me? It’s just that the company has been so busy lately, and I got tired. Don’t worry, go back to work, everything’s fine.”

“Today’s the rare day off, so I thought I’d look through the photo album. I lost track of time. Come to think of it, I almost forgot what you looked like when you were younger.” She said, her voice trembling uncontrollably.

Qin Shuang turned to walk to the table, wiping her eyes on the way. “You haven’t eaten yet, right? Go eat first, and then go back to the company quickly.”

The sunlight outside was filtered into pieces by the branches, shining through the window and casting a long shadow behind Qin Shuang.

Yu Qingyue parted his lips but couldn’t figure out how to ask her what was going on. It seemed that Qin Shuang had no intention of telling him. “…Alright, I’ll go downstairs first. Remember to come down soon.”

After Yu Qingyue left, Qin Shuang finally broke down and cried out loud while hugging the photo album.

Yu Qingyue sat in the dining room, glancing at the door from time to time, but Qin Shuang didn’t come down until he finished eating. He vaguely felt that something was related to him, and that was why he couldn’t understand why Qin Shuang wouldn’t tell him.

His dad… Yu Qingyue’s gaze fell ahead, and he suddenly remembered the expression on Yu Cheng’s face this morning. It seemed like his dad knew something. Maybe…

Lunch break was almost over, and Yu Qingyue had to head back to the company. Before leaving, he made sure to tell Wang Ma to keep an eye on Qin Shuang.

At dinner, Qin Shuang’s complexion looked a little better, and Yu Qingyue felt slightly relieved.

“Knock knock—” The study door was gently knocked on. Upon hearing Yu Cheng’s response, Yu Qingyue pushed the door open. Yu Cheng looked up at the visitor and, seeing it was Yu Qingyue, his eyes trembled slightly. “Is something happening at the company?”

Yu Qingyue shook his head. “It’s not about the company. It’s probably something to do with our family. Dad, what exactly happened?”

“If it involves me, I believe I have the right to know,” Yu Qingyue added.

Yu Cheng suddenly looked up at Yu Qingyue, his nerves taut, but he relaxed when he heard the rest of the sentence. He waved his hand. “If there’s nothing else, you can leave. This is something your mother will handle. I can’t interfere. When she’s ready to tell you, I’m sure she will.”

Yu Qingyue pressed his lips together. So, the matter really was related to him, but they just refused to tell him.

Yu Wanlai was about to go downstairs to get some water when he bumped into Yu Qingyue coming out of the study. He blinked in confusion. Something was off with this family today. Now even his usually easy-going younger brother seemed out of sorts. What was going on? He scratched the back of his neck. He had been here for almost half a year, and his memory of the plot, which he didn’t fully understand, was even more blurred now. He honestly couldn’t remember what happened at this time in the Yu family. According to the story, most things were caused by him—the antagonist, right? But he hadn’t done anything!

Yu Qingyue didn’t notice Yu Wanlai. He went straight to his room after leaving the study.

After drinking some water, Yu Wanlai was about to head upstairs. Halfway there, he returned to the kitchen and took out a bottle of coconut water from the fridge. He opened it and poured the coconut water into two cups. Holding one cup, he walked upstairs carefully, worried he might spill it. When he reached Yu Qingyue’s door, he realized his hands were both occupied and he couldn’t knock. After a brief hesitation, he pressed the doorknob with his elbow and pushed the door open. After all, they were both men, and if something awkward happened, it wouldn’t be a big deal.

Yu Qingyue was sitting in a lounge chair, holding a white plush pillow and staring blankly. When he heard the sound, he turned his head and, seeing it was Yu Wanlai, calmly turned back to face the front again.

“What are you doing here?” Yu Wanlai raised an eyebrow. This was the first time he’d seen Yu Qingyue so listless. He didn’t even care that he entered his room without permission? He walked a few steps over to Yu Qingyue and handed him one of the cups of coconut water.

Yu Qingyue glanced at Yu Wanlai, furrowing his brow. “I don’t want it, take it away.”

Yu Wanlai’s hand extended a little further. “When you’re in a bad mood, you should drink something sweet. Here, take it.”

Yu Qingyue didn’t believe it. The source of his bad mood was unresolved issues. How could sweetness help if the problem wasn’t solved? But seeing that Yu Wanlai was holding the cup as if he wouldn’t let go until he accepted it, Yu Qingyue took a deep breath and reached for the cup, taking a sip.

The coconut water instantly hit his mouth, and it wasn’t sweet at all. Yu Qingyue glanced at Yu Wanlai. As expected, he was a liar.

“Did something happen? Am I the only normal one in this family now? Do you want to talk about it?”

“Maybe it’ll be worth it,” Yu Qingyue replied, scanning Yu Wanlai up and down. “Talk to you? What good would that do? It’s none of your business.”

Yu Wanlai felt a sharp pang in his heart. Was he being looked down upon again?! Even though he was relieved that the matter wasn’t related to him, he was still angry and determined to get something out of Yu Qingyue today. He sat down on the bed, reaching out to steady the slightly swaying lounge chair. “How do you know I can’t help if you don’t talk about it… Otherwise, you think you can just talk to someone else?”

Yu Qingyue had to admit that what Yu Wanlai said made some sense. He himself really didn’t have any way to solve it, but perhaps Yu Wanlai might have a clue…

After hesitating for a while, Yu Qingyue finally spoke, his voice as low as possible. If Yu Wanlai hadn’t been close, he might not have heard it at all. “I was wondering why you were missing at noon today. I even bought a delicious cake, planning to share half of it with you…”

Seeing the impatient look on Yu Qingyue’s face, Yu Wanlai hurriedly got back to the main topic. “Alright, alright, let’s talk about the serious stuff. So, you saw your mom crying while holding your photo album, and that made you think the situation is related to you, and then you confirmed with your dad—Mr. Yu—that your guess was right, right?”

Yu Qingyue nodded, his eyes hiding a trace of expectation.

Yu Wanlai took a few sips of coconut water. Although he had forgotten most of the plot, and even if he hadn’t, he couldn’t recall the exact timeline, he still knew a little about these characters from the book. For Qin Shuang, who was usually calm and composed, to be so shaken… it must be related to Yu Qingyue.

Suddenly, Yu Wanlai had a realization, and his heartbeat quickened. He swallowed nervously, glancing at Yu Qingyue. To his surprise, Yu Qingyue had been watching him the entire time.

Suddenly choked by the water, Yu Wanlai coughed a few times, hastily turning his gaze away, looking elsewhere. Could this really be the influence of the plot? He hadn’t done anything, so why was everything still unfolding according to the original storyline? The stakes were getting too high now, and if they came after him, he’d be finished.

Yu Wanlai’s heart skipped a beat. He quickly finished the water in his cup and looked at Yu Qingyue, forcing an awkward smile. “Sorry, I don’t think I can help. I’d better…”

Yu Qingyue watched Yu Wanlai’s reaction for a while. He was sure that Yu Wanlai had figured something out, but when he heard that Yu Wanlai wasn’t going to share it, he immediately felt anger rising, his eyes turning red. Everyone was hiding things from him. Clearly, it was something related to him, so why couldn’t they just tell him?

He reached out and grabbed Yu Wanlai’s arm, lifting his eyes to meet his, his gaze stubborn. “Did you figure something out, didn’t you?!”

Although he didn’t understand why Yu Wanlai knew something he didn’t, he couldn’t care about that right now.

Yu Qingyue stood up quickly, but he forgot he was still sitting in the lounge chair. With one sudden movement, the chair began to wobble, and he immediately lost his balance, falling toward the ground.