“Did you ever get in touch with that person whose contact you exchanged at the bar the other day?”
Ling Xinlu looked puzzled at the mention of the bar, but soon murmured, “Ah,” as the memory came back. He seemed to finally piece together why Yuri’s reaction had been subtle.
Though Ling Xinlu didn’t go out that often, he occasionally enjoyed nightlife. Yuri wasn’t hired as his bodyguard, so she didn’t have to accompany him, but she usually did. Their nightlife outings were never to shady places—just pubs with light music where they’d have a drink or, more rarely, clubs to enjoy music.
Recently, he’d suddenly said late at night, “I want to eat skewers,” and they went to a bar in an alley not far from the mansion. Sitting across from each other eating skewers and drinking beer, Yuri noticed Ling Xinlu’s gaze fixed intently on one person. More precisely, his eyes weren’t fixed on a place but on a person, following their every movement.
Noticing Yuri’s eyes following his, Ling Xinlu smiled and turned to her.
“Don’t you think her eyes resemble Tai’s a bit?”
“…Maybe?”
After hearing that, Yuri thought they did look a little alike. East Asian faces weren’t sharply distinct, but Yuri had enough eye for detail not to think all looked the same. The shape of the eyes—slightly droopy as if smiling even when not—definitely bore some resemblance.
“Seems like it,” Yuri nodded. Ling Xinlu, seeming pleased, asked, “Right?” Then suddenly called the waitress over with a wave. Yuri barely paused, surprised, but Ling Xinlu smiled cheerfully and ordered another beer, skillfully starting a friendly conversation.
“There are a lot of people today; it must be tiring to work,” he said smoothly. Within moments, he was chatting so naturally that he even exchanged phone numbers with the waitress. When she shyly smiled and headed to the kitchen, Ling Xinlu gave a light wave that hinted at some worldly experience.
“…You’re good at this.”
“Really? It’s my first time doing this.”
Her innocent smile didn’t seem like a lie. Yuri thought to herself that even if it was her first time, Ling Xinlu proved once again how skilled he was at things others might find difficult.
He even managed to get a phone number from a waitress at a normal bar—it was a little impressive, and Yuri remembered watching his happy grin with a slight weight on her heart.
“He hasn’t contacted her. We talked a few times, but it wasn’t very interesting.”
Ling Xinlu waved his hand in boredom, then suddenly laughed.
“So that’s why, when you asked me if I was secretly seeing someone, I couldn’t answer?”
“Ah, really?” he said, making a face as if exasperated but still smiling.
“And I don’t secretly date anyone. I’m not committing a crime—why hide it? I bring them home and introduce them to everyone openly.”
He stopped there and stared at the setting sun for a moment, then glanced at Yuri as if hesitating. After a sigh, he said,
“Would it be better if I didn’t tell you? If you didn’t deliberately dig into my business, I could keep it hidden if I wanted to.”
His calm tone and direct gaze made Yuri realize he might be trying to be considerate—he understood her feelings even without explicitly saying so. Both knew she silently observed him closely.
Still, neither had brought it up because it wouldn’t affect their relationship, and probably wouldn’t in the future.
Yuri thought for a moment, then shook her head.
“I think it’s better not to.”
If he got a partner, it wouldn’t be something to hide, but no need to announce either.
Ling Xinlu nodded as if expecting that answer.
“I don’t mean to hurt your feelings, but I’m not going to act cautiously or do anything I don’t want just to spare your feelings.”
He took off his shoes and sat on the wooden floor. Musing about having a girlfriend, he seemed to imagine the idea for the first time, but shook his head as nothing came to mind. Then he looked at Yuri, half seriously.
“For example, if someone who liked me wanted to sleep with me casually, just for fun, it wouldn’t bother me—if boundaries were respected. But honestly, I’m not in the mood for that.”
His shrug conveyed both a metaphor and a message to Yuri.
“I’m greedy in many ways, but I’m naturally simple in that regard. I don’t really want to do that with someone I don’t like. So if I ever slept with you, Gabe, it would be me ‘doing a favor’—and I hate doing favors for others.”
“I'm a little selfish, as you know, Gabe. I’d rather pay money than put in effort,” he added with a sigh. Yuri quietly chuckled.
Though his words were blunt—almost bordering on insulting if said carelessly—they felt refreshing. Many spoke directly, but few were as openly frank as Ling Xinlu when face to face.
“If I were just a bit off, it’d sound like mockery, but it doesn’t.”
Feeling amused, Yuri imitated something Ling Xinlu often said. He stared at her with a strange expression—neither smiling nor frowning.
“…I’m not mocking you.”
“I know.”
That was a common exchange between them, but with the roles reversed now. Ling Xinlu looked strangely at Yuri but eventually smiled when she kept quietly laughing. “Really, people get annoyed even when you’re honest,” he muttered.
After a moment, Yuri composed herself.
“Thanks for caring. I like giving and receiving favors, but I don’t like them when they’re forced. So you don’t have to worry about that.”
She looked at him quietly after adding “Really.”
Ling Xinlu smiled, teasing, “I’ll do it if I feel like it later.” Yuri replied, “Thanks.”
Feeling lighter, Ling Xinlu grinned and then suddenly turned over, lying down beside her. After a moment, he slowly moved to rest his head on her thigh.
“If you hear any interesting gossip, tell me. Kids sure pick up weird stuff.”
Murmuring that it’s hardest to keep lower-ranked people quiet, Yuri thought that if she told him the rumor about the youngest master secretly dating a commoner, he’d probably laugh loudly.
Suddenly, Ling Xinlu raised his head and looked at her.
“If you have something to say, don’t keep it inside.”
“Nothing.”
“Really?”
“Nothing.”
But Yuri knew that if she said that, Ling Xinlu would laugh and then ask who spread such nonsense. So she lied coolly just this once.
Ling Xinlu turned sideways and gently patted the thigh he was resting on.
“Don’t wait until you can’t walk to say it. If you say ‘I can’t walk, so I’ll sleep here,’ I’ll get mad.”
There was a reason Ling Xinlu insisted on returning to the mansion before midnight, except when unavoidable circumstances forced him to stay at the main house.
A few days ago, Ling Xinlu had fallen asleep resting on Yuri’s thigh while getting an eye massage, and Yuri had sat still for hours. When he finally woke and moved, he couldn’t move because his leg was numb, so she had to stay longer. The source of this chapter is novelping dot com.
Although it was her fault, Ling Xinlu scolded her coldly for not waking him, but eventually helped massage her legs while grumbling.
“Twenty minutes should be okay.”
“Twenty minutes… fine.”
Checking the time, Ling Xinlu settled his head more comfortably on Yuri’s thigh. Yuri, used to rubbing his eyes at night, covered his eyes with her hand. Ling Xinlu hesitated, so she quietly asked if she should remove it. He shook his head.
“No, it’s dark and nice.”
With his head on her thigh and her hand on his eyes, Yuri thought he looked like a curled-up cat.
“.......”
Maybe more like a sweet mocha bread than a loaf of bread, she mused, gently touching his soft hair.
“If you lie down defenseless like this…”
Ling Xinlu murmured drowsily.
“From Gabe’s perspective, this is a really easy position to kill me in if he wanted to.”
“…I know.”
Though she wondered why he said that now, she answered curtly.
Ling Xinlu stayed silent for a while. He didn’t seem to want to change his position, just lying comfortably.
Just as Yuri was about to forget he said that while gazing down at the garden, Ling Xinlu, who seemed asleep, muttered softly.
“At Seringe, I sometimes went to see Tai— not to meet him, but just to check on what he was doing.”
“.......”
“I saw that guy resting his head on Tai’s lap, even napping. Tai complained about the weight but moved his head without waking him. He was so comfortable.”
If it had been Ligrow, he wouldn’t have woken up even with noises, or if awake, he’d lazily keep his eyes closed and let Jeong Tae’s actions happen. But Ling Xinlu wasn’t talking about that.
Yuri also knew what he meant.
He’d seen that scene a few times in Seringe and had always found it fascinating.
Ling Xinlu muttered, as if daring someone to try, “If you think you can kill me, go ahead.” But he knew that wasn’t true. Yuri knew it too.
Ligrow could snap someone’s neck if they attacked even in that position. But it wasn’t arrogance that made him lie around lazily in front of Jeong Tae.
“.........”
Yuri silently stroked his eyes and gently touched his hair. He said nothing for a long time, as if asleep.
It was long ago, now sunk deep in his heart. But perhaps Ling Xinlu recalled these small moments every time they came up—even if his voice was calm now, unlike before.
“Tai’s doing well, right? I hope he is. I get emotional thinking that. If Tai’s doing well, that guy must be too.”
Ling Xinlu murmured sleepily, almost like talking in his sleep. Yuri felt his eyelids twitch slightly. His expression hardened.
His mind might not have been as calm as his voice suggested. Muttering, “Ah, this sucks...” Ling Xinlu turned his head away. His head moved from Yuri’s thigh to her stomach, burying his face. He didn’t want to show his expression.
“.......”
Yuri lowered the hand that had been drifting in the air and placed it on Ling Xinlu’s head, stroking his hair gently.
“Take care of yourself too, Ling Xinlu. Don’t be frustrated.”
When Yuri spoke bluntly, Ling Xinlu barely turned his head, and she could see his eyes glaring fiercely.
“Is that up to me?”
His grumpy tone was less unstable than before, so Yuri felt a little relieved.
“It will be.”
“.........”
“It will.”
More than comfort, Yuri really believed it would be so.
Ling Xinlu still glared with fierce eyes, like venting his anger at Yuri, but then sighed and buried his face in her stomach again.
A moment of silence passed.
Yuri kept her hand on his head, gazing quietly, then looked up at the courtyard dyed in the golden evening light.
So peaceful. This man is still struggling.
Yuri softly fiddled with his hair.
After some time,
“Twenty minutes now.”
From the face buried in her stomach came a muffled voice.
“I was trying to take a nap, but you kept talking and I couldn’t sleep.”
Ling Xinlu muttered, putting his weight firmly on her thigh as if refusing to move.
“…You’re the one who kept talking…”
“Ah──Really, you kept talking so I couldn’t sleep.”
Yuri stared blankly at the grumpy, somewhat unreasonable man. Her leg was already numb, and she looked helplessly at him, but the small movements of his lips didn’t turn into words and he quietly closed his mouth. This chapter was copied from novelping(.)com without permission.
—People have always been attracted to him a lot since he was young.
Yuri recalled something Ling Xinlu said a long time ago, and found herself understanding it.
She knew Ling Xinlu attracted people. If anything, she was one of those drawn to him. Wherever he went, eyes followed and even the slightest gesture caught attention. She’d noticed and experienced it many times. But this was the first time she had seen it so clearly.
She leaned against the corridor pillar. The wide-open space inside the corridor was filled with people, too many to count at a glance. Among them, without much searching, her eyes immediately found Ling Xinlu.
Today was someone’s birthday party.
She’d overheard the name and seen someone pointed out at the entrance, but it would be hard to pick the birthday person out of the crowd now.
…No, she knew who it was.
Apart from Ling Xinlu, who stood out dazzlingly among the crowd, several people were clustered around one person. Others approached, greeted, and talked to that person, who was presumably the birthday celebrant.
“Wow... seeing it like this really shows the contrast. I didn’t realize when I was in the crowd.”
Xiaojun had come up quickly to Yuri and whispered in admiration as they looked at the corridor. From here, the corridor’s center was visible all at once.
Though Xiaojun attracted attention fairly easily, standing with Yuri in this quiet corner, some waved or nodded but none approached to speak.
“Are those people you don’t know all relatives?”
“No, only cousins around the same age. It’s not like the whole family gathers because it’s a birthday. Mostly siblings and their partners.”
Xiaojun pointed out a well-dressed young man talking nearby.
“My boyfriend came too.”
“Is it really important enough to bring a lover?”
“Nah, it’s just an excuse to gather and have fun. Only a few siblings have birthdays worth that much. Like our older brother or the youngest uncle Xinlu. The youngest uncle’s birthday is amazing—the corridor fills with presents.”
Indeed, grandchildren’s birthdays were numerous, but the beloved youngest son’s birthday was a different level. Though many siblings celebrated their birthdays, today’s celebrant, a man who didn’t shine much here, glanced at Ling Xinlu a bit from afar.
In contrast, Ling Xinlu, just a guest, stood confidently at the center, naturally attracting attention without trying.
“Look at the youngest uncle—he’s completely in the flowerbed.”
Xiaojun ran over, grabbed two drinks, and handed one to Yuri, mumbling. Ling Xinlu was surrounded by beautiful young women.
“The youngest uncle is always popular. There are at least ten ladies trying hard to get his attention. That one in yellow near him too.”
“Then I shouldn’t stand on that side; I have to be on the right or I won’t be in his view.”
Yuri muttered calmly to herself. Xiaojun, rolling her eyes, clapped after a moment.
“I forgot because it’s just like anyone else.”
Embarrassed, Xiaojun whispered excuses. Yuri comforted her with, “I forget sometimes too.” Though she rarely did, Ling Xinlu was so natural that anyone unaware wouldn’t guess he had a disability.
“…Is the lady in the white dress standing next to the youngest uncle his girlfriend?”
Curious Xiaojun looked at the young woman close to Ling Xinlu, standing so close their arms almost touched, chatting happily. From afar—or even close—it really looked like a loving couple.
“Probably not.”
Yuri muttered ambiguously, wetting her dry lips with a drink. She’d been watching them so long she hadn’t eaten.
“Really? They seem so close. It’s the first time I’ve seen the youngest uncle talk only with one person. Who is she? Did they meet here?”
Xiaojun watched them excitedly, wondering if the youngest uncle was really getting a girlfriend. Yuri said nothing. Her heavy gaze wasn’t only because of Ling Xinlu but also because the woman’s smile—her eyes and mouth resembled Jeong Tae.
Maybe it was just a feeling, but the woman seemed to stand close to the birthday celebrant, warmly chatting, just like a couple.
“.........”
But when Ling Xinlu approached and spoke a few words, she quickly moved away to stand beside him, so Yuri’s worries might just be baseless.
Yuri watched the woman talking excitedly by Ling Xinlu, then glanced at the birthday man glaring fiercely at Ling Xinlu, and sighed softly.
“By the way, where’s Pei?”
After finishing her drink, Yuri finally noticed something was missing. Pei, who usually stuck with Xiaojun at such family gatherings, wasn’t around.
Since Pei, as the eldest son and heir of the Ling family, was likely invited to the event, he often came with his sister. But scanning around, he was nowhere to be seen.
“He’s busy learning from Father lately. He said he’d come after dinner, so maybe he’ll show up soon.”
Yuri nodded. That matched what Ling Tangyun had mentioned—that he was starting to teach his son the business.
After graduating school and returning, it was time for him to start working. Especially since Pei was the eldest son and heir, his responsibilities were heavy.
Most of all, if he was to inherit the Ling family business, it would be even more so.
“I hope it goes well.”
Yuri murmured to herself.
What exactly she hoped for wasn’t clear, only that Pei’s life would go as he wished.
Xiaojun nodded silently, sharing the same sentiment.
She knew many family businesses were run with a mix of open and secret dealings, some hidden from view.
If Pei began handling the family business—some not entirely moral or lawful—she could neither stop him nor cheer him on. She stood on that delicate line, like Yuri.
But since it was her own family business, and he’d been prepared from a young age, she wasn’t as resistant as one might expect.
“By the way, it looks like the youngest uncle is starting to learn the business, too.”
Xiaoyuan murmured, glancing at Ling Xinlu some distance away. Yuri said nothing.
Like Pei, it was already expected that Ling Xinlu would take part in the family business. Had he stayed at UNHRDO, he might have lived differently. But now that he’d returned to Lingga, he’d sooner or later have to help.
Yuri glanced at Xiaojun.