When Su Chengning stepped out of the hospital, he made a point to check the time and mentally calculated the progress of the competition.
By this time, it was too late for him to head back to Jingda University, so he could only send an apology to Tang Mo.
Tang Mo had just returned home when he received the message from Su Chengning. The gloom that had originally clouded his mood instantly brightened up.
Tang Mo: Brother, I’m very sad.
Su Chengning looked at the sentence and raised an eyebrow slightly.
Su Chengning: What’s wrong? Did you lose the competition?
Tang Mo: How is that possible!
Tang Mo: I worked so hard to win the match, yet I have no one to share my joy with. Don’t you think I should be sad?
Su Chengning let out a somewhat helpless laugh.
Su Chengning: My fault. How about I make it up to you?
Tang Mo’s eyes lit up. He began to ponder what kind of compensation would be best, only to see the next message pop up.
Su Chengning: I’ll treat you to dinner.
Just dinner?
Tang Mo’s handsome face slumped, clearly dissatisfied with this form of compensation.
Su Chengning, however, seemed to think it was a great idea and went ahead to set the time and location.
Su Chengning: It’s been a while since I’ve had the food at this place. Want to come and try it with me?
Would Tang Mo ever refuse a dinner date sent by the person he liked?
Naturally, that was impossible.
Tucking his phone away gleefully, Tang Mo finally pushed open the door to the study. “Dad, I have something to tell you. It’s about Eldest Brother.”
An hour later, Tang Mo walked out of the study and considerately closed the door behind him.
Just before the door shut, he happened to see his father dialing Tang Chen’s number. Even through the door, the stern, questioning voice carried a heavy tone of intense dissatisfaction.
With a smile, Tang Mo sent a message to Wang Shu.
Tang Mo: I owe you a favor for this.
Wang Shu: We’re brothers. It’s just a surveillance video; there’s no need for favors.
Tang Mo thought about it and didn’t stand on ceremony with him.
The surveillance footage captured the scene of Tang Chen and Jiang Baiyu being intimate at a hotel. Although it didn’t show what the two did inside the hotel room, the sight of them unable to wait, kissing passionately in the hallway, was enough for anyone to infer what followed.
Originally, Tang Mo hadn’t planned on bringing this matter to the old man’s attention, but since Tang Chen still intended to pester Su Chengning, Tang Mo naturally wouldn’t let him have his way.
Wang Shu: Will your old man really be furious about your brother’s affair?
Wang Shu was still a bit skeptical. After all, affairs were commonplace in high-society circles; he couldn’t even guarantee his own old man didn’t have illegitimate children outside.
Tang Mo was naturally confident that the old man would explode with rage. After all, years ago, the old man had personally caught his ex-wife in the act of cheating. If that woman hadn’t died in an unexpected car accident, the entire Beijing circle would likely have been laughing at the Tang family.
Since the deceased was gone, the old man had kept the scandal hidden.
Now, Tang Chen’s actions were perhaps even more disgraceful than those of his shameless mother. Furthermore, the old man had always placed great importance on the marriage alliance with the Su family.
Wang Shu: Based on what you’re saying, your old man still intends to go through with the alliance.
Tang Mo: Naturally, he wouldn’t want to give it up.
Wang Shu: Then have you ever thought if your big brother can marry your Great Beauty, why can’t you?
Tang Mo froze for a moment.
Wang Shu: Since you’ve already exposed your brother’s infidelity, why not be proactive and change the subject of the alliance to you and the Great Beauty?
Tang Mo stared at the words, remaining motionless for a long time.
It seemed he had only thought about sabotaging the marriage between Tang Chen and Su Chengning, but he had never considered what would happen if the person marrying Su Chengning one day… became himself.
Su Chengning arrived at the restaurant first.
Since it was still a bit early for the appointment, Su Chengning sent a message to Tang Mo and asked the waiter to lead him to the reserved private room first.
As he passed by another private room, an ear-piercingly familiar voice drifted out from inside.
Su Chengning stopped in his tracks. Through a gap in the door that hadn’t been closed tightly, he inadvertently caught sight of a familiar figure.
He was slightly surprised, but his handsome brows furrowed deeply.
With a cold expression, Su Chengning followed the waiter into his reserved room and dismissed him.
The room was very quiet. Su Chengning contemplated for a moment before finally calling his mother.
“Mom, are you and Dad back?”
“Just got back two days ago.”
“Did you enjoy your trip?”
Su Chengning chatted with his mother for a bit. He could tell from her tone that they had thoroughly enjoyed their vacation.
Then, he asked, “And Dad? Is he resting at home too?”
“Your father said he was meeting an old friend for a gathering. He’s been out for most of the day.”
“Is that so?” Hearing this, Su Chengning’s expression shifted. “Then this old friend of his must be a very close one.”
Close enough to be intimate and lose himself in a restaurant booth.
When Tang Mo entered the room, he immediately noticed something was off with Su Chengning. Even though a smile was plastered on his face when they met, there was a lingering chill in his eyes.
“Brother, are you unhappy?”
Tang Mo sat down beside him. The two were quite close—so close that beneath the table, their legs pressed against each other, allowing them to feel the warmth of one another.
“I just saw a person I despise.”
Su Chengning retracted the coldness in his eyes and spoke in a flat tone.
Tang Mo assumed he was talking about Tang Chen and felt a bit pleased in his heart.
“Since they’re someone you despise, just don’t see them again in the future.”
Su Chengning glanced up at him and said distractedly, “That won’t work.”
Even if the father-son relationship was strained, there would always be moments when they had to meet.
The light in Tang Mo’s eyes dimmed for a split second, and he said somewhat sourly, “Why won’t it work?”
“You said it’s someone you despise. Since you despise them, why do you still need to see them?”
“Brother, you’re being contradictory.”
Tang Mo cupped his face, and Su Chengning was forced to look up at him.
“If it were me, I would just block them directly. Even if I ran into them on the street, I’d treat them like a stranger.”
“Is there a need to be so decisive?”
For a moment, Su Chengning didn’t quite understand his reaction. Although he didn’t necessarily have deep fatherly affection for Su Binghai, Su Binghai had always played the role of a qualified, loving father in front of him. He truly hadn’t thought about a complete fallout.
However, the sight of Su Binghai acting sweet and intimate with a mistress a stark contrast to his persona at home truly bothered Su Chengning.
Seeing his hesitation, Tang Mo was very dissatisfied.
“Naturally.”
“Brother, by being so indecisive, you are essentially enabling the other person.”
“This will only make him more brazen in the future.”
Su Chengning frowned, his face looking a bit grim.
“Cheating only happens zero times or infinite times,” Tang Mo continued. “Brother, if you can forgive him once, can you forgive him countless times?”
“Anyway, I couldn’t do it.”
“If the person I liked did something like this behind my back, I would rather discard them than tolerate it.”
“That would be irresponsible and cruel to oneself.”
His voice carried a heavy sense of grievance, while also harboring a hint of resentment that Su Chengning cared so much about Tang Chen so much that he would actually consider tolerating his infidelity?
Su Chengning was lost in thought and didn’t notice the nuance.
Su Binghai’s infidelity was indeed a result of his mother’s initial tolerance. Sometimes, he didn’t understand his mother’s thoughts. Ms. Su had been strong-willed all her life, yet her attitude toward this matter was incredibly strange.
He thought that perhaps he should have a proper talk with his mother about why she allowed his father to cheat and keep a mistress.
“You’re right.”
Once Su Chengning cleared his thoughts, he planned to head home later.
“Then Brother shouldn’t see him anymore.” Tang Mo leaned intimately against Su Chengning. With a slight movement, he could touch his neck.
Su Chengning felt a bit ticklish and leaned back to dodge.
He muttered, “Stop messing around.”
“I’m not messing around.” Tang Mo leaned in and gave him a heavy suck, intentionally leaving a deep red mark on Su Chengning’s fair neck.
The itchy, tingling sensation made Su Chengning’s waist go soft, and he was pulled into Tang Mo’s arms by the waist.
“Brother, you clearly invited me for dinner, but I want to eat you instead.”
In that moment, Su Chengning felt as though he were positioned under the jagged teeth of a predator. With even the slightest resistance, his neck would be snapped, and he would be devoured.
The waiter waited for an hour before receiving the order request. When he entered the private room, he only saw a young man studying the menu intently, occasionally saying a few words toward the direction of the bathroom.
He waited quietly for the young man to finish ordering, but the other guest never emerged from the bathroom.
As he walked out and turned to close the door, he saw the young man walking toward the bathroom with a charming smile on his handsome face, saying to the person inside: “Brother, how about I help you? It might be inconvenient for you to do it alone.”
The person inside seemed to be embarrassed and angry: “Get lost! This is all your doing!”