Two days after the incident, Xie Wangzhou started working at the Xinda Law Firm. Actually, he had wanted to begin working the very day after, but after returning home, he came down with a low-grade fever.
While mixing his fever-reducing medicine, he still forgot to curse Pei Yuan a few times.
After gulping down the fever medication, Xie Wangzhou received a phone call from An Zhinan.
“Wangzhou, are you free today? My parents invited you over for dinner tonight, and your sister-in-law will be there too.”
“Brother Zhinan, I have a client to meet tonight. I am so sorry. We will definitely do it next time.”
He considered himself capable of both holding on and letting go. Since An Zhinan was already married, he would not tactlessly insert himself further, especially since An Zhinan’s parents did not welcome him.
He thought of the guarded look An’s mother had cast his way at the wedding.
Xie Wangzhou wiped the water droplets from the corner of his mouth, lowered his head, and smiled, his eyes filled with self-mockery.
What, were they really afraid he would snatch the bride?
Xie Wangzhou had forgotten the exact date An’s mother discovered his feelings for An Zhinan; he only remembered that it was the night before their college graduation.
At the time, he and An Zhinan were in the bedroom. Both had drunk too much at noon. An Zhinan sat quietly on the bed looking at his phone, while Xie Wangzhou held a book, pretending to read while actually gazing at An Zhinan.
This scene was walked in on by An’s mother, who was delivering hangover soup, and Xie Wangzhou had not yet had time to withdraw the look full of love and admiration in his eyes.
An’s mother was quite experienced in matters of the heart; how could she not understand Xie Wangzhou’s gaze? She said nothing, simply placed the two bowls of hangover soup down, and quietly walked out of the room.
At the dinner table that evening, An’s mother brought up the subject of An Zhinan having a girlfriend, urging him to find one quickly.
An Zhinan smiled, “Mom, why did you suddenly start worrying about this? This kind of thing depends on fate.”
An’s mother bit her chopsticks and tentatively asked, “I heard that my colleague’s son is dating a boy. Zhinan, you wouldn’t also…”
An Zhinan laughed out loud, “Mom, what are you thinking? I am not gay. Please don’t urge me about having a girlfriend; I already have someone I like.”
“That’s good, that’s good.” An’s mother glanced sideways at Xie Wangzhou, who was lowering his head to eat, and continued, “Don’t mess with homosexuality; it’s disgusting.”
An Zhinan said with a straight face, “Mom, what’s wrong with homosexuality? Talking like that is too biased.”
With that, he put down his chopsticks, wanting to continue arguing with his mother.
An’s father hurriedly smoothed things over, “Nobody said anything is wrong. As long as you have a girl you like, be proactive. Don’t make the girl proactive.”
Mentioning the person he liked caused a blush to appear on An’s face; whether from the lingering effects of the alcohol or shyness, it was impossible to tell.
Xie Wangzhou kept his head down, eating his meal without speaking.
Ever since that night, Xie Wangzhou never stayed overnight at the An household again.
Xie Wangzhou knew tact. After An Zhinan got a girlfriend, he once came alone to see An’s father and mother.
“Uncle and Auntie, thank you for taking care of me all these years. Afterward, I am going to start a business with a friend and rent a place over there, so I won’t be coming back here frequently.”
An’s parents secretly breathed a sigh of relief, though this was still caught by Xie Wangzhou.
“Take care of your health normally. If you lack anything, tell Auntie, and she will send it to you.” After all, he was a child she watched grow up; An’s mother held Xie Wangzhou’s hand and instructed him on many things, but in the end, she still said, “Just… try not to trouble Zhinan.”
Xie Wangzhou’s eyes turned red, and he stood up to bow to the two of them, still saying, “Uncle and Auntie, I must confess one thing to you: I am gay.”
Xie Wangzhou could have chosen not to say these things, continuing to gloss over the peace and occasionally returning to the An household for a holiday meal.
But Xie Wangzhou was unwilling; escaping and shrinking back was not his personality.
Before leaving, he caught the look of disappointment An’s mother cast toward him. Xie Wangzhou knew that it would probably be difficult for him to come here for dinner in the future.
“Wangzhou, are you listening?”
An Zhinan’s words pulled Xie Wangzhou back from the memories of the past.
“What did you say?” asked Xie Wangzhou, whose mind had clearly wandered.
“I said, whenever you are free next time, let me know in advance. My parents and they miss you a lot too. Ever since college graduation, you’ve been busy every day and hardly ever come over for dinner. This time your sister-in-law just entered the family, and she insisted we must have a meal together. You are my most important younger brother, after all.”
An Zhinan spoke sincerely, and he truly was a sincere person.
Xie Wangzhou thought, What a pity; the only insincere one is myself.
“Alright, Brother Zhinan. I will definitely tell you when I am free next time. I miss Uncle and Auntie too.”
After exchanging a few polite remarks, Xie Wangzhou hung up the phone and curled himself up in the blanket, his phone screen turning to his Moments feed.
Until he saw the Moments post published by his father: “Family Reunion.”
Only then did Xie Wangzhou realize that today was the Mid-Autumn Festival.
And the picture attached by his father was a family portrait of three.
Beneath his father’s Moments post was one posted by his mother.
“The smashed cucumbers made by my son.”
The attached picture showed a seven-year-old child cutting cucumbers.
Xie Wangzhou put his phone aside, stared at the ceiling, and wondered what he was thinking.
After a long while, he suddenly sat up and shouted toward the door, “Yuanyuan!”
Immediately, a Golden Retriever rushed in and pounced onto Xie Wangzhou.
Xie Wangzhou stroked the Golden Retriever’s head. “Son is truly a good boy; Daddy will take a picture of you.”
With that, he hugged the Golden Retriever for a selfie, posted the picture to his Moments, and added the caption: “Reunited with my son every day.”
The photo angle was terrible, but it couldn’t hide Xie Wangzhou’s good looks.
A large number of comments quickly poured in underneath.
“Brother Xie is looking handsome again, huh.”
“Happy Mid-Autumn Festival, Lawyer Xie.”
“Old Xie, let’s get a drink together when you have time.”
“Yuanyuan is really cute, but the man next to him is ordinary.”
The last comment was posted by Lu Wensheng.
Xie Wangzhou curled his lips, and shortly after, Lu Wensheng’s call came through.
“What is big Lawyer Xie busy with? Come over to my house for dinner.”
“If Lawyer Lu is a lonely singleton, I can reluctantly accompany you for a meal.”
Even though he said that, Xie Wangzhou still got up and changed his clothes.
“Then don’t come. My younger brother is back home for the holiday; don’t disturb our family reunion.”
Lu Wensheng’s younger brother, Lu Jinzhao, was currently studying in Beijing, majoring in the violin.
“That younger brother of yours, how rarely does he come home? You’re practically turning college into a day school,” Xie Wangzhou accurately roasted him. “Occasionally maintaining a sense of distance helps family harmony.”
“Get lost, roll over here early to dish out the plates.”
When Xie Wangzhou arrived, Lu Jinzhao was just serving the last dish.
“How could we bear to let our violinist’s hands serve the dishes? Let me, let me.” Xie Wangzhou said that, but his footsteps didn’t stop, and he marched straight to a chair and sat down.
Lu Wensheng sat smiling beside Xie Wangzhou, his tone amiable, “Everything on this table is cooked by me; hurry up and taste if it fits your taste.”
Lu Wensheng’s parents had passed away early, and Lu Wensheng single-handedly raised the little cub, naturally cultivating great cooking skills. However, Lu Wensheng only cooked for his precious younger brother.
Xie Wangzhou had not gotten to eat it many times.
Xie Wangzhou raised his eyes and looked warily at Lu Wensheng, “Do you have a favor to ask of me?”
Lu Wensheng picked up a piece of sweet and sour pork for Xie Wangzhou and smiled with a hint of a guilty conscience, “There is a matter to discuss with you.”
“Permission granted.” Xie Wangzhou bit the meat into his mouth, his imperial heart greatly pleased.
“It’s also a lawyer from our school. His ability goes without saying, and his character is also quite good. Every month he participates in legal aid, and some time ago he even helped migrant workers claim their unpaid wages for free.”
Xie Wangzhou nodded approvingly, “Sounds like his character is fine. You want to poach him? You don’t need to discuss this kind of thing with me.”
Although the law firm was run in partnership by the two of them, Lu Wensheng still held the lion’s share. After all, his father was also a lawyer before he died, as well as a partner at a certain red-circle law firm in Beijing. Although he passed away early, he left Lu Wensheng with plenty of resources. Their law firm’s rise to prominence was largely thanks to those resources.
Therefore, for most decisions, Xie Wangzhou listened to Lu Wensheng.
“Originally, I couldn’t poach him, but since he helped migrant workers recover unpaid wages, he probably offended a big boss and can no longer survive in the circle in Haining City. I was thinking we are all alumni, so we should help where we can.”
“I have no problem with that, of course. What is that lawyer’s name? Is he from our graduating year?” Xie Wangzhou wanted to ask the other person’s name, but just as the word “year” slipped out, a pair of chopsticks placed another piece of food into the small dish before him.
Xie Wangzhou looked up, and it turned out to be Lu Jinzhao.
Lu Jinzhao smiled, “Brother Wangzhou, would you like to listen to me play the violin?”
“Listen, listen, listen.” Xie Wangzhou had good musical aptitude and dabbled blindly in many instruments when he was young; it was just a pity he couldn’t stick with any of them.
Therefore, his regret also became a part of his love for music, especially since Lu Jinzhao’s violin playing had won international awards, yet in private he only played for Lu Wensheng.
Where had Xie Wangzhou ever enjoyed such treatment? He hurriedly urged Lu Jinzhao to go get his violin. Thus, immersed in anticipation, Xie Wangzhou failed to notice Lu Wensheng quietly giving Lu Jinzhao a thumbs-up.
After dinner, Xie Wangzhou bid farewell.
Even though Lu Jinzhao came home almost every day, the two brothers still liked to cling together. Xie Wangzhou had no intention of disturbing them, and he envied this kind of relationship.
Even if their parents died early, this pair of brothers still had a home.
On his way back, Xie Wangzhou received a call from a real estate agent. He planned to rent out the house next to the An household.
That was left to him after his parents divorced, so he didn’t have any fond memories of that apartment. After starting work, he bought a large flat near the law firm, and right now he was just a little short of paying off the mortgage. Coupled with An Zhinan’s marriage, he was even less willing to return over there.
Better to rent it out and trade for a new car. Xie Wangzhou had been eyeing a Porsche sports car for a long time; living in the moment was his current life motto.
“Xiao Wang, what’s up?” Wang De had previously hired him for a lawsuit, and the two had maintained a good friendship. This time, Xie Wangzhou bypassed the agency company for his house and directly contacted Wang De.
“Brother Xie, that house of yours has been rented out.”
“Really? So fast.”
“Yeah, you were in a hurry to sell/rent it out, low price and good location, naturally you don’t have to worry about finding someone. Heard the other party is also a lawyer, seems to have come back from Haining City.”
While Wang De was saying this, Xie Wangzhou was unlocking his door. Yuanyuan heard the commotion and pounced over. Unprepared, Xie Wangzhou took a few steps backward before barely steadying himself, and thus did not clearly hear Wang De’s last two sentences.
“Then that’s it. Turn around and get the contract ready; I’ll sign it when I’m free.”
After hanging up the phone, he rubbed the dog’s head: “Good boy.”
Xie Wangzhou played with Yuanyuan for a while when another dog’s face suddenly flashed through his mind.
“Pei Yuan, wonder what he’s doing at this hour. He should have gone back to Haining by now.”
The fact that Pei Yuan left Beijing back then truly gave Xie Wangzhou a shock. After all, at the time they both received offers from the same law firm, and he originally thought the two would continue competing, but Pei Yuan’s preemptive escape stripped Xie Wangzhou of any desire to go to that law firm, turning instead to start a business with Lu Wensheng.
And the day before Pei Yuan left Beijing was when An Zhinan announced their relationship to the two of them.
Xie Wangzhou always felt that Pei Yuan left Beijing out of disillusionment, running away after losing, which made him hold him in extreme contempt.
Xie Wangzhou patted his head. Why was he thinking about that dog anyway?
Regardless of the past, from now on, he and Pei Yuan were destined to be two parallel lines. With An Zhinan’s marriage, the two of them were even less likely to intersect.
Thinking of this, Xie Wangzhou hummed a little tune, preparing the case materials for the upcoming court trial.
And then, the next day.
He saw that parallel line appear right at the entrance of his office.
“Pei Yuan?!”