Both sides of the phone went quiet for a moment. No one spoke; only the sound of their breathing and Xiang Shuyu’s soft sobbing could be heard.
Duan Yue felt a surge of irritation. He didn’t like people crying in front of him—he never had. In the past, when Xiang Shuyu cried before him because of his excessive behavior, Duan Yue only found it cute.
But that feeling only applied to matters in the bedroom. Outside of that, crying and making a scene over such a small thing only made Duan Yue feel annoyed.
He felt that Xiang Shuyu wouldn’t actually break up with him over this. The arguing, the harsh words, and the weeping were all just ways to hold onto the relationship.
It showed that he cared deeply.
Duan Yue hadn’t been in a relationship for many years, but he had seen plenty of his friends’ love lives. Though he hadn’t “eaten the pork,” he had seen “the pig run”—he was certain this was the reason.
Once Xiang Shuyu calmed down for a couple of days, he would go and explain things properly, and this matter would be put behind them.
Thus, Duan Yue said, “Let’s both cool off for a while. Think it over. Also, I don’t agree to you settling down in Nancheng. Come back next week.”
He wasn’t negotiating with Xiang Shuyu; he was giving an order. Having finished, he hung up the phone.
Listening to the silence on the other end, Xiang Shuyu felt a momentary sense of absurdity and ridicule.
Even at this point, after everything he had said, it was still nothing more than a “temper tantrum” to Duan Yue.
Duan Yue simply would not take his demands seriously.
Xiang Shuyu’s tears fell rapidly. He wiped them away with his hand, feeling both heartbroken and lost.
Duan Yue wanted him back next week. If he returned, all the effort he had put into coming to Nancheng would be for nothing.
The more he thought about it, the more wronged he felt. He hid away and cried for a while until Ping Wenchun sent him a message asking, “Where did you go?”
Xiang Shuyu sniffled, forcing back his sobs, and replied with blurry vision, “I’m going to the restroom.”
“Okay, we’re waiting for you in the hall. No rush! Nothing much to do today, just getting to know each other.”
Ping Wenchun’s message broke Xiang Shuyu’s emotional spiral. He finally managed to stop crying and tried to refocus his attention on work and moving.
He wouldn’t listen to Duan Yue. He could follow Duan Yue’s lead in matters of the heart, but not in anything else.
He might lack a strong will and be “spineless,” but perhaps because he had been obedient for so long, many had forgotten that he had a mind of his own. Otherwise, it would have been impossible for him to leave the Xiang family to study the guzheng abroad.
Xiang Shuyu found a restroom and tidied his appearance. Aside from his slightly red eyes, one couldn’t tell he had been crying.
When he returned to the studio entrance, he saw that Duan Lin hadn’t left yet. Seeing that face—identical to Duan Yue’s—standing before him made Xiang Shuyu’s heart feel complicated; he wanted to cry, and his mind was a mess.
Meeting Duan Lin’s gaze brought more trepidation than anything else.
Ping Wenchun didn’t notice the silent exchange between them and said, “You’re back.”
Xiang Shuyu’s voice was a bit nasally: “Mhm.”
“Perfect. Since CEO Duan is here today, let’s have lunch together. Oh, about finding you a place to stay—I originally picked an apartment, but I heard there was a homicide there recently, so you can’t stay there for now. I’ve switched it to another one.”
Xiang Shuyu had only casually mentioned wanting to rent a place to Ping Wenchun. He hadn’t expected her to take it to heart, and for a moment, he felt a spark of gratitude toward this kind female Omega.
Xiang Shuyu said gratefully, “Thank you.”
“Don’t thank me,” Ping Wenchun smiled, patting the shoulder of Duan Lin beside her. “The person to thank is CEO Duan. He’s the one who looked for the house.”
Xiang Shuyu froze. He turned to look at Duan Lin, who still wore that cold expression as if he had merely done something minor and didn’t require any thanks.
Xiang Shuyu felt awkward, but still whispered, “Thank you.”
Duan Lin said nothing.
The two of them accompanied Xiang Shuyu to the apartment to drop off his luggage. On the way, Ping Wenchun mentioned that the place was very suitable and wouldn’t require much upkeep.
Only upon arriving did Xiang Shuyu realize Ping Wenchun wasn’t lying. Everything in the apartment was ready, as if someone lived there regularly; nothing was missing.
Ping Wenchun added, “It’s perfect, right? And the price is reasonable. You can completely afford it on your salary.”
Xiang Shuyu dithered for a second, feeling something was a bit fishy. “Do you have the landlord’s contact info?”
“I do,” Ping Wenchun said. “I’ll send it to you.”
Xiang Shuyu added the landlord. It seemed to be a middle-aged man who replied instantly to everything. Xiang Shuyu relaxed slightly and thanked Ping Wenchun again.
By now, Ping Wenchun had figured out Xiang Shuyu’s temperament: soft-hearted, easily swayed, but very polite. He looked like the type who was easily bullied.
However, his professional level in the industry was undeniable. For years, there had been rumors about him taking any performance for money, but after listening to the audio clips he sent, she couldn’t find a single flaw.
She wondered what some clients were thinking—letting such a talent go and allowing her to take advantage of it.
Ping Wenchun booked a restaurant and took the two of them to lunch.
She drove, while Xiang Shuyu and Duan Lin sat in the back. Xiang Shuyu could constantly feel Duan Lin’s subtle but unignorable presence, which made him feel uneasy.
Xiang Shuyu lowered his head and scrolled through his phone aimlessly to distract himself. He looked at the cluttered messages but felt no desire to reply to any of them.
Because Duan Lin was still watching him.
His eyes are still red, Duan Lin thought.
He must have cried.
What a pitiful Omega.
He had noticed when Xiang Shuyu went to take the call. He knew it was Duan Yue, and he had anticipated the call wouldn’t be pleasant.
He didn’t understand Xiang Shuyu well, but he understood Duan Yue perfectly.
With Duan Yue’s foul temper, once provoked, he would only respond with harsh words, showing zero regard for the other person’s feelings.
Looking like this, Xiang Shuyu must have fought with Duan Yue.
Duan Lin was never one to show his cards. He simply lowered his head and used the motion of pushing up his glasses to hide the slight smirk at the corner of his mouth.
Xiang Shuyu scrolled back to the chat with Duan Yue.
The overwhelming barrage of messages Duan Yue had sent felt like they were crashing down on him. He couldn’t even process what Duan Yue was saying anymore; his mind was filled with the words from the phone call, which felt like a dull knife grinding against his heart.
How can he ignore my feelings like this?
Xiang Shuyu felt miserable.
But being in someone else’s car, he couldn’t show his emotions. It would be too embarrassing.
Xiang Shuyu exited the chat, pretending he hadn’t seen Duan Yue’s messages, and kept him on “Do Not Disturb.”
Just as he was about to turn off the screen, a call from Jiang Xiayue jumped out.
In an instant, Xiang Shuyu felt as if Duan Lin’s gaze had also shifted over, landing on his phone screen.
Seeing Jiang Xiayue’s name gave Xiang Shuyu a sense of suffocation. His heart raced as if he had developed some terrifying trauma. He was terrified of calls from Jiang Xiayue because, subconsciously, he felt they never brought anything good.
His finger hesitated, but the ringtone was like a death knell, showing no signs of stopping.
It made Xiang Shuyu feel nauseous.
In the next moment, a hand reached out and snatched his phone away.
Duan Lin expressionlessly hung up the call and smoothly added the contact labeled “Mom” to the blacklist.
Xiang Shuyu’s eyes widened instantly. “You—”
“If you don’t want to answer, then hang up,” Duan Lin said indifferently. “Do you really not even know how to say or do what you want or don’t want?”
The sentence struck Xiang Shuyu’s sore spot. He felt humiliated, but mindful of Ping Wenchun in the front seat, he only whispered an explanation: “That’s my mother.”
“So what if it’s your mother?” Duan Lin asked, sounding somewhat aggressive. “If you don’t want to answer, you can’t hang up?”
Xiang Shuyu fell silent and didn’t try to snatch his phone back.
The phone was in Duan Lin’s hand. As an Alpha, Duan Lin’s pheromones were naturally oppressive. Being near him felt like sitting on needles; Xiang Shuyu simply didn’t have the courage to fight him for it.
So, Duan Lin kept the phone for the rest of the ride, occasionally checking the news.
Duan Yue had already had the news about the blind date taken down, but what was the point?
Even if a thorn is pulled from the heart, a wound remains. Restoring things to how they were would take a very long time.
Duan Lin did feel a bit sorry for his elder brother, but that guilt was meaningless. He was selfish. He didn’t want to hurt his brother, but even more so, he didn’t want to mistreat himself.
Lunch was tasteless. Xiang Shuyu was exhausted both mentally and physically. He had nothing to say to Ping Wenchun, and even less to say to Duan Lin. The dinner table felt more like a business meeting between those two.
Xiang Shuyu hastily finished his meal and stood up with his phone. “I’m going to the restroom.”
Ping Wenchun said, “Go ahead, go ahead.”
As soon as Xiang Shuyu left, Ping Wenchun teased Duan Lin with a smile, “Do you like him? Are you pursuing him?”
Duan Lin’s expression didn’t change; he still looked cold, but there was a faint, relaxed smile in his eyes that silently conveyed the answer.
Ping Wenchun wasn’t close to Duan Yue—only to Duan Lin. She didn’t know the real connection between Xiang Shuyu and Duan Lin and assumed they just knew each other but weren’t close.
She cautioned, “Xiang Shuyu doesn’t seem interested in you.”
“He will be,” Duan Lin said softly. “No need for you to worry.”
He had countless ways to force Xiang Shuyu to move toward him.
In this regard, he and Duan Yue weren’t entirely the same.
Duan Yue had been better at socializing since they were young; he was popular and always the center of attention. It was natural for Xiang Shuyu to be attracted to someone who “preened” like that.
But that kind of love could only ever be superficial. Once shattered, it would be very difficult to fix.
Thinking of this, Duan Lin flipped his phone over and sent a message to his subordinates.
Xiang Shuyu eventually called Jiang Xiayue back.
He felt he could guess what she wanted to say. She must have seen the news and known about Duan Yue’s upcoming marriage.
But she didn’t know yet that he had already been with Duan Yue.
He felt he should have let her know earlier. That way, she would understand that even if they were together, the gap between their families was like a chasm—it would always lead to a breakup.
But upon further thought, he felt not saying anything was also right. Otherwise, Jiang Xiayue would blame him for being useless—blame him for not being able to hold onto the man despite being together.
Regardless, Jiang Xiayue would always find a reason to scold him.
Xiang Shuyu had prepared himself to be berated, but the moment the call connected, he regretted taking her out of the blacklist.
Duan Lin was right. If you don’t want to take a call, you don’t have to.
He was an adult, and an adult shouldn’t always live under the control of their parents.
“What are you doing?” Jiang Xiayue’s tone was unusually calm.
“I…” Xiang Shuyu was silent for a moment. “I’m discussing a job offer.”
“Whatever,” Jiang Xiayue’s voice was cold. “You can never do what I ask anyway. You’re just that useless.”
Xiang Shuyu’s heart throbbed with pain, but he said nothing.
Jiang Xiayue continued, “Come home as soon as you’re done with the contract.”
“I…” Xiang Shuyu grit his teeth. “I’m not coming back.”
“You must come back,” Jiang Xiayue said, leaving no room for argument. “I told you to seduce Duan Yue and marry into the Duan family, but look at you—you did nothing. Now that Duan Yue is engaged to someone else, I’ll see what chance you have left… That’s it. I see that Xiang Han likes you so much. Come back early and settle the marriage with him—”
Before she could finish, Xiang Shuyu’s phone was snatched away again.
Duan Lin stood behind him expressionlessly, one hand propped against the counter, trapping Xiang Shuyu at the sink. He looked down and hung up on Jiang Xiayue.