Unlike the Song family, the master of the He family was the cousin of the governor of Jiangqu. In other words, he was a rich businessman with close connections with the military. This was also the reason why Mrs. Song wished for her son to marry Miss He.
The tailored suit was exquisite. The dark black material had fine patterns that could be discerned if one looked carefully. It was matched with a white shirt and a black tie.
After changing, Xu Qichen waited for Song Yuanyan, while thinking that it was pretty difficult being a young master in this era. Even on such a cold day, when anyone would wish to wear a down jacket, he had to wear a suit to look good.
He knocked on Song Yuanyan’s door, and entered upon hearing his assent.
Song Yuanyan’s suit turned out to be white. He was standing in front of the mirror. When he saw Xu Qichen coming in, he turned around, and all Xu Qichen saw was the white of snow.
He was the very image of Prince Charming.
“You came just in time. Do the tie for me.” His hair was combed neatly, exposing his elegant forehead and brows. In his hand was a gray tie. “I can’t seem to do it right.”
Xu Qichen took the tie and draped it around his neck. “Lower your head.”
Song Yuanyan obediently lowered his head. He was so close that his breath made Xu Qichen’s eyelashes tremble.
Still, his fingers skillfully tied a knot before carefully sliding it up. “Done.”
“Thank you.”
Xu Qichen could feel his ears warming. They were really standing far too close. He took a few steps back, but Song Yuanyan pushed the hair on his forehead aside, and pressed his palm against Xu Qichen’s forehead, “Aren’t you going to comb it?”
Xu Qichen shook his head, “I’m just your servant, so I don’t have to dress that formally.”
Song Yuanyan lowered his hand, turned around and walked to a round table. He picked up a long box and handed it to Xu Qichen.
“What’s this?”
“It’s for you.”
Xu Qichen opened the box to find an exquisite mahogany walking stick. The dark red wood was carved ingeniously with circular markings resembling water ripples, inlaid meticulously with precious sapphires. The handle was polished to the sheen and smoothness of a pearl. It had a comfortable grip.
“This is too valuable,” Xu Qichen wanted to close the box and return it to him, but Song Yuanyan quickly snatched the stick out and spun it around only to rest it against Xu Qichen’s heart.
“If you don’t accept it, I’ll burn it.”
It was a pretty straightforward threat.
Xu Qichen glanced at him, then sighed. He took the walking stick, “Fine.”
Song Yuanyan immediately grinned widely, his expression clearly indicating extreme satisfaction with himself. “Hang on…” He opened his wardrobe and removed a black jacket, “I got someone to make this for me a few days ago, but it’s a little too tight at the shoulders, I can’t wear it.” He put the jacket over Xu Qichen’s shoulders. It matched the suit he was wearing very well. “It looks good.” He grinned and got another jacket from the wardrobe. This one was a very warm, dark camel colored, long overcoat.
This time, Xu Qichen did not bother rejecting. If Song Yuanyan wanted to give him something, it would inevitably end up in his hands.
On the way to the He Residence, Xu Qichen felt somewhat anxious. The party this time was specially hosted by Old He for his precious daughter who had just come back from overseas. All the important figures of Jiangqu would surely be there.
As a matter of course, the Xie family’s eldest daughter should have known about Sun Mengdie, but at this point, she still did not know that Sun Lin was the orphan from that incident.
But there was no way to hide this. As long as she wanted to investigate, all she had to do was send someone to the village and question Sun Lin’s grandfather. Should he seal the grandfather’s lips beforehand?
But he did not know the details of what happened that year, so he did not know who else knew about it. Simply silencing one person might be of no use.
In the original text, the Xie family took Sun Lin away in the end, and Sun Lin became the rightful young master of the Xie family. That is to say, even if he managed to prevent Liu Mingde from finding him, the Xie family would still take him back, and everything would be in vain.
As long as his identity was known, they would not be far from the bad ending.
There was too little time.
He could not resist glancing at Song Yuanyan.
What if, like in the novel, he only saw him as a friend?
How could he pierce through that barrier?
“Young master, we have arrived.”
They got out of the car. There were quite a few cars, similarly stopping around them. Probably because they looked good, even the dense Xu Qichen could feel the gazes of the ladies, old and young, directed towards them.
He could not help thinking that he was truly a face-con; of all the characters he had created, not a single one of them was less than beautiful.
Xu Qichen followed the rules of etiquette and did not walk side by side with Song Yuanyan, instead just following him with his head down and his walking stick on the ground, making a gloomy sound matching his steps.
The romantic French architectural style of the He residence is vastly different from that of the Song residence, which was more calm and inclined towards the German style. There were many celebrities in the hall. All kinds of cheongsam and dresses were shimmering under the crystal chandelier hung on the ceiling, making for a truly dazzling sight.
Their appearance caused a stir.
“Which family’s young master is that?”
“That’s Song family’s young master ah, how could you not know?”
“I know, I mean the one behind him, in the black jacket.”
“Ah… that’s just one of Song’s servants.”
“Servant?” The hand of the young lady holding a wineglass shook, and the wine almost spilled on her own expensive dress. “How could the servant be like the young master…”
“That’s not any regular servant. You didn’t grow up here, so you don’t know.” The woman in a dark green cheongsam tossed her curly hair off her shoulders, “That’s young master Song’s talisman.”
There was a lot of talk in his ears. The young man walking slowly in front was naturally the focus of the crowd, so it was unavoidable that he, who was walking right behind him, was also a topic of discussion. Xu Qichen was prepared for this.
A young lady in a light yellow dress came over. The sound of her high heels clicking on the marble floor was as bright and clear as the clink of wine glasses.
Her voice was also very sweet, “Young master Song, may I have a dance?”
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
Her cheeks were tinged with rouge, her delicate curls swayed gently with her confident words, and her hands in white lace gloves were long and beautiful, stretching out in front of Song Yuanyan.
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It was a beautiful sight, but somehow, Xu Qichen felt uncomfortable looking at it.
They were clearly a very nice match, so why did he feel uncomfortable?
He heard the sound of approaching footsteps.
“This gentleman, you came straight for the wine…”
Xu Qichen turned slightly in response. It was a woman in a dark red cheongsam with fox fur on her shoulders. Her long hair hung down like silk, and a pair of jade earrings on her earlobes swayed gently.
“Do you not like to dance?”
Xu Qichen simply raised the walking stick in his hand in reply.
“I see.”
His coldness and gentleness interweaved to form a very attractive temperament. The woman gently swirled the wine in one hand, while her other bejeweled hand gently covered Xu Qichen’s right knee. “Is it this leg?”
There was no stirring of emotion in Xu Qichen’s heart. His eyes unconsciously searched for that person in white on the dance floor.
Coincidentally, to the seductive tune of the violin, their eyes met.
The other party looked quite upset, and even accidentally stepped on his partner’s toes.
“Yes.”
Xu Qichen looked back at the woman and finally replied with a smile.
Seemingly encouraged, she gently rested the hand on Xu Qichen’s shoulder, “How did it happen?” Her tone sounded concerned, as she added, “If the question offends you, please do not answer it.”
Xu Qichen deliberately did not hide. He did not know what he was doing now. It felt like he was taking his anger out on someone, yet he was enjoying it.
Like a low-risk game.
His voice was not gloomy, and there was a natural tenderness in his low voice.
“Was run over by a car.” Xu Qichen lowered his head and drank the last bit of wine. “Fortunately, an operation saved my leg.”
She apologised in a slightly accented English, which sounded deliberate yet subtly provocative.
Xu Qichen lowered his head and felt her step closer, her fingers rubbing across his jacket, as lightly as the brush of a petal.
“Your perfume smells very good, what brand is it?”
A pair of familiar leather shoes appeared in the field of his lowered gaze.
The next second, the hand on his shoulder was caught.
The woman looked a little stunned, but when she saw the face of the newcomer, she couldn’t help softening down, “Young master Song?”
Song Yuanyan moved her hands aside and nodded gentlemanly.
This gesture made Xu Qichen want to laugh.
“Ask him ba.”
Xu Qichen’s words seemed out of context, and the woman did not understand immediately, making a questioning sound.
Xu Qichen placed the empty wineglass on the bar counter and smiled, “The perfume you said smelled good, is his.”
The woman clearly did not understand, and only found the atmosphere strange.
The sword had been drawn, but the intention was still quite ambiguous.
More and more people stepped onto the dance floor.
The music suddenly stopped, and the dancing couples also stopped one by one. Whispers arose in the crowd, as they looked around and finally found the young woman who stood at the top of the long and circuitous stairs.
In a long black dress with diamonds scattered on the hem like a dazzling river of stars, a slanted palm sized hat stylishly adorning neat short hair, and a small piece of black gauze delicately hinting at her left profile and flirtingly kissing a pair of red lips, she looked particularly beautiful.
She had the same valiant bearing as when they first met.
“Miss He is here.”
“That’s Miss He? What a beauty…”
“The host of the party is finally here…”
Xu Qichen cleared his throat and gestured to Song Yuanyan.
Your ‘Miss Mission’ is here.
The woman beside them saw that both of their attention had been caught by Miss He and left in a pique.
Miss He walked down slowly and saw Song Yuanyan who was the most outstanding among the crowd. But it seemed that he was not her ultimate goal, but a road sign.
Because where he was, Xu Qichen would not be too far away.
As expected, Miss He walked directly to the twin stars of the party, coldly rejecting offer after offer from the various young men.
Her heels clicked with every step on the shiny floor.
Until finally, she stopped in front of Xu Qichen and Song Yuanyan.
“Mr. Sun,” Miss He gave him an enchanting smile, “you came.”
Xu Qichen did not expect that she would greet him first, so he politely stood up from his chair and bowed to her, “Miss He.”
“I’ve already said, call me Nancy.” Compared with the last meeting, today’s Miss He had a little more of a woman’s gentleness. But such tenderness and friendliness are more like hypocrisy in Song Yuanyan’s eyes.
Xu Qichen did not correct himself and simply returned the smile.
Miss He generously extended her hand, “Will you be my partner for my first dance tonight?”
Xu Qichen glanced at her fingers, then glanced at Song Yuanyan standing beside him.
Attempting to find information from Song Yuanyan’s every move and gaze to infer his mood at the moment.
When he felt that this time bomb bearing elegance and gentlemanliness was about to count down to the last second, Xu Qichen refused the invitation. “Sorry, my legs make dancing rather inconvenient. I’m afraid I can’t dance with the young lady.”
Miss He glanced at Xu Qichen’s legs and his walking stick, and smiled very politely, “What a pity, you are the only one I wish to dance with tonight.”
This was overly straightforward, making Xu Qichen embarrassed.
In the original text, this young lady could be regarded as his rival in love, but now she had become his admirer.
And the two people in front of him…
What’s up with this lovers-to-rivals plot between them?
He did not forget Mrs. Song’s instructions, so he tapped Song Yuanyan’s heel with his cane and whispered to him, “Invite Miss He to dance.”
Song Yuanyan glanced at him. Xu Qichen’s open gaze, made his heart feel stuffed, like a thick sponge, absorbing moisture and expanding.
“I drank too quickly, so I’ll go out for some fresh air.” Xu Qichen bowed slightly to Miss He, “Excuse me.”
Watching Xu Qichen leave, Song Yuanyan held out his hand to Miss He without speaking.
Miss He’s hand in long black gloves was gently placed in the palm of Song Yuanyan’s hand, as they approached the center of the dance floor.
The sound of the piano suddenly changed, and the gaps and pauses between the notes were full of a sense of rhythm.
They dance together, and each pause was consistent with the piano and the drums. In the eyes of outsiders, such a tacit understanding was mutual attraction between the golden pair, but only they themselves knew that it was in pursuit of the same person and mutual exclusion.
Song Yuanyan held Miss He’s hand and forced her into a spin, “You like him?”
Miss He spared him a glance and said straightforwardly, “Yes.”
Song Yuanyan admired her directness, but only for a second. He held Miss He’s hand and gently pushed her out. “He won’t like you.”
Miss He returned to him after half a turn. “Is that right? Young Master Song is so certain?”
Song Yuanyan laughed, “I grew up with him.”
“So, you’re friends.” The way Miss He held Song Yuanyan’s shoulder, looked very intimate, “You can’t decide who he likes.”
The sound of the piano became faster and faster, and the two danced in tandem with its speed, as if competing with each other.
In the final two bars, Song Yuanyan’s leather shoes nudged the heels of Miss He’s stilettos, and she was dipped without any warning.
“I can.”
The music stopped, and the game was over. As Miss He straightened within the circle of his arms, he leant close to her ear, in an apparently affectionate posture in the eyes of the onlookers and said with great deliberation, “He will like me.”
A startled look flashed across Miss He’s eyes, but Song Yuanyan cynically lifted his eyebrows and left the glittering and gorgeous dance floor with his hands in his pockets.
The He residence was very big. Xu Qichen came out of the hall and walked towards an unlit place. There was a gap between two structures, resembling a dark narrow alley. He stood with his back against a gray brick wall, at the entrance of the alley.
He had drunk the wine too quickly, leaving his mind a bit confused. The cold wind cleared his head a little, but the weather was too chilly. He wrapped himself in his coat and decided to wait for a while before leaving.
As he was about to leave, he heard someone’s voice.
He subconsciously took a few steps back and hid in the shadows.
“Did you see the young lady dancing with Song Yuanyan? That’s Old He’s only daughter.”
It was a middle-aged woman’s voice.
“So what? Old He has three sons. How much can his daughter possibly inherit?”
Xu Qichen frowned. This voice was very familiar… where had he heard it before?
“How can you be so dumb? All you think about is the inheritance. Don’t you know how much he dotes on her? If you manage to form a relationship with Miss He, you will be able to become a relative of the governor.”
“Mother, I know, but that Miss He went straight towards the Song guy, what can I possibly do?”
“So, you just lack good looks. You take after your father, how useless.”
“What’s the use of good looks? He looks so sickly, who knows if he can even live past 30 years? Just like uncle, sooner or later…”
“Ssh!” That woman suddenly stopped her son from speaking, “Do you know where we are? Stop talking nonsense.”
“Oh, what are you afraid of?” His voice was lowered. “I asked the doctor last time. He could last another winter at most. Ah no, if he continues to take those drugs, he would not last even this winter…”
“Don’t forget, he still has that son. If he dies, the old man would surely try to look for him…”
This pair… It’s Liu Mingde and his mother!
Xu Qichen’s hands began to shake uncontrollably.
Liu Mingde’s voice was vicious and cunning, like a venomous snake spitting maliciously.
“If he can find him, can’t we too? If we find him, and get rid of him…”
Suddenly, a cat in the alley cried out.
Xu Qichen’s heart almost stopped. In a TV drama, shouldn’t he be discovered only if he accidentally stepped on something?
How could he be so unlucky?
Liu Mingde immediately stopped talking. Then he continued in a lower voice, which Xu Qichen could not make out.
He heard a shushing noise.
Then, there were sounds of almost imperceptible footsteps.
The moonlight lengthened the shadows of the two; slender and strange shadows moved to the narrow alley entrance, and danger approached step by step.
Xu Qichen’s heart felt like it was trying to jump out of his chest.
He took step after step backwards, his steps getting more and more hurried.
If he were discovered, would they silence him?
Given their personalities, they would surely kill him.
The palm holding the walking stick was covered in sweat.
Suddenly, he stepped on something.
And his terror hit a new high.
In an instant, he was wrapped in something heavy like a curtain and pressed on the cold wall.
Fear and uneasiness made his consciousness unclear. He was pressed tightly against the wall, and a thumb pressed against his lips.
The unknown person put his arms around his waist aggressively, then bowed his head and kissed him.
But it was a kiss on his thumb, and not on Xu Qichen’s lips.
Xu Qichen’s vision was completely blocked. It was completely dark and he could not see anything.
He could only vaguely hear the approaching footsteps of the two.
“This…?”
The man who held him down finally loosened a little, hid him quietly behind him, and opened his mouth in a drunken and frivolous tone, “Who? Daring to disturb this young master?”
“Young Master Song?”
The woman’s voice seemed puzzled. Song Yuanyan turned around, his tie was askew, and the collar of his shirt was wide open.
“Wh- what are you looking at? What a bummer…” He turned back around and wrapped the jacket more tightly around the person behind him, as though afraid of exposing him, then he wrapped his arms back around him, murmuring, “Hey, beautiful… let’s carry on…”
Liu Mingde made a sound of disdain. “A sick man has the face to learn such shameless acts.”
The sound of heels and leather shoes got further away.
Song Yuanyan still held him tightly, with his head buried in Xu Qichen’s neck, his breaths felt hot and humid.
When finally no sound could be heard at all, he slowly loosened the camel colored jacket that had wrapped Xu Qichen within, revealing his eyes.
Under the sparse moonlight, the atmosphere was ambiguous and awkward.
The thumb that had been pressed against Xu Qichen’s lips was now hotly moving subconsciously across his cheek.
Song Yuanyan made a relieved expression and tried to ease the atmosphere with a smile.
Xu Qichen leant back against the wall and looked into his eyes motionlessly.
“Did I frighten you?” Song Yuanyan started, and paused, “The situation was urgent…”
Xu Qichen shook his head.
From the moment he came to his senses, he knew who it was.
Because he was completely wrapped in the smell of Song Yuanyan.
Song Yuanyan took half a step back, “Good thing I came out to look for you…”
Xu Qichen’s hand suddenly grabbed his tie, which was about to come undone, and dragged him back onto his body, pressing their chests together.
He had already gathered sufficient evidence.
It was time to end this game of dancing around each other.
Gathering his courage, he pressed his lips against Song Yuanyan’s, though only for a moment, like a dragonfly skimming across the surface of a pond.
Stir up his heart, and then leave suddenly.
“Muru,” Xu Qichen leant close to his ear, and finally used his courtesy name.
It was warm and soft, just like the moonlight.
“You like me, right?”
Finallyyyyy!! Yay! They have pierced the paper window…
thanks for the chapter <3
What a power move Qichen
♥️♥️♥️
AHH NO SJSHSHZ that was too cute that’s illegal