“So, it is you.”
Yu Yanzhuo nodded slightly, appearing to understand.
Seeing that he remembered him, Shi Yuyang felt a surge of joy and put on a somewhat regretful expression.
“Last time, because the timing was not ideal, I did not get the chance to strike up a conversation with you, Young Master Yu.”
Yu Yanzhuo recalled their previous encounter. He usually had an excellent memory, but when he looked back on that night, he could only remember Shi Jingyan’s appearance: that coldness mixed with resistance, and the tension he had hidden so well.
As for Shi Yuyang, he merely remembered that the man had been saying something to Shi Jingyan at the start.
Shi Yuyang stared at him expectantly, seemingly hoping that Yu Yanzhuo would follow the topic or show some interest in him. Instead, Yu Yanzhuo seemed to be thinking of something else. After a long pause, he gave a perfunctory nod and said, “What a coincidence.”
The perfect smile on Shi Yuyang’s face cracked slightly.
Great men have short memories, it seemed. Yu Yanzhuo clearly had not been left with much of an impression of him.
Yu Yanzhuo paused, then suddenly looked at Shi Yuyang. “I remember you were with someone else last time, chatting?”
When he said the word “chatting,” Yu Yanzhuo’s tone dipped slightly, ending on a skeptical note. Based on what he had witnessed, those two were definitely not engaged in a friendly conversation.
Shi Yuyang was taken aback but quickly smiled. “That is right. I ran into an acquaintance back then, so we spoke for a bit.”
He paused, intentionally trying to draw Yu Yanzhuo’s focus, and added a reminder.
“It was the person you eventually left with that night. He and I have some history.”
An acquaintance?
Yu Yanzhuo recalled that Shi Jingyan and Shi Yuyang shared the same surname. He arched an eyebrow.
Were they brothers? But their appearances were entirely different, and brothers usually did not refer to each other in such a distant tone.
He became interested.
“Oh? What kind of grievance do you have?”
This was exactly what Shi Yuyang wanted him to ask.
Shi Yuyang still remembered how Yu Yanzhuo had walked away with his arm around Shi Jingyan. Given Yu Yanzhuo’s reputation and the circumstances at the time, he could practically guess what had happened afterward.
However, looking at Yu Yanzhuo now, he did not seem particularly close to Shi Jingyan.
Shi Yuyang had been brooding over that incident, terrified that Shi Jingyan had used the opportunity to climb onto Yu Yanzhuo’s level. If that happened, neither he nor the Shi family could ever hope to compete.
Why should that fake, who had occupied the first twenty years of his life, get such an advantage?
In front of Yu Yanzhuo, however, he did not dare to ask directly about their progress. He could only beat around the bush.
“To call it a grievance is perhaps too strong.”
Shi Yuyang adjusted his expression, smoothing out the slight sneer that had formed at the memory of Shi Jingyan, and returned to his humble smile.
“That person is, in name, my older brother.”
Yu Yanzhuo raised an eyebrow.
So they really were brothers?
Shi Yuyang observed his reaction and continued slowly. “Sigh, it is actually an old family matter. My brother, he is not actually my parents’ biological son. There was a mix-up at the hospital twenty years ago. It sounds like a plot from a movie or a novel, but it really happened to us.”
He lowered his voice, as if sharing a shameful family secret that should not be spread.
“It was only cleared up a few years ago. I am the true child of the Shi family.”
He watched Yu Yanzhuo’s face, but the man only listened with a slight curl of his lips. There was no sign of disgust, sympathy, or any indication that he was taking Shi Jingyan’s side.
Relieved, Shi Yuyang continued in a tone that mixed tolerance with a faint, underlying contempt.
“My parents are kind-hearted. Knowing he had no one to rely on, they did not kick him out immediately. They even let him work in the family company. However,” he sighed and shook his head, “perhaps because we do not share the same blood, his mind is inevitably restless. His vision and way of doing things are quite different from ours. Later, he suggested leaving on his own, and we could not force him to stay.”
After finishing his story, Shi Yuyang noticed Yu Yanzhuo remained silent with a thoughtful expression. He could not help but add, “I only mentioned this because you seemed quite familiar with him last time. I did not mean anything else by it.”
Yu Yanzhuo looked at him. His expression was normal, as if he really meant nothing by it.
“Alright, I see.”
To Shi Yuyang’s surprise, Yu Yanzhuo did not continue the topic. His expression did not change at all as he gave a faint response, making it impossible to read his thoughts.
Just as Shi Yuyang wanted to say more, the driver stopped the car and respectfully opened the door for them. Shi Yuyang had to give up and follow Yu Yanzhuo upstairs to their reserved table.
The elevator doors slid open silently, revealing a vast, luxurious space and an unobstructed, glittering city view. Huge curved floor-to-ceiling windows offered a panoramic view of the city, making one feel as if they were standing above the clouds.
The interior design was grand and extravagant. Even the open seating area was divided by waist-high partitions between tables, ensuring a degree of privacy while allowing a clear view of the windows.
“Young Master Yu, this way.”
The waiter led them to their reserved spot, a table with an excellent view by the window. Shi Yuyang bowed slightly, gesturing for Yu Yanzhuo to sit first.
Yu Yanzhuo did not stand on ceremony. He pulled out a chair, sat down, and remarked casually, “Nice view.”
Shi Yuyang smiled. “Of course. I paid double the price to reserve the spot with the best viewing angle.”
Double the price?
Yu Yanzhuo’s gaze swept over the surroundings. This was essentially just a common dining area. Although there were partitions, they only blocked the front and back; anyone across the aisle could see clearly. It was neither private nor quiet.
To Yu Yanzhuo, even the most expensive private suite in this place was only a phone call away.
However, he did not interrupt Shi Yuyang’s self-satisfaction. He tilted his lips into a smile. “How thoughtful.”
Encouraged by those words, Shi Yuyang seemed determined to impress him. He skillfully ordered several dishes from the waiter and inquired after Yu Yanzhuo’s preferences with extreme diligence.
While Shi Yuyang was communicating with the waiter, Yu Yanzhuo’s gaze drifted across the hall. Suddenly, he saw something, and his eyes stopped.
Shi Yuyang waved the waiter away and turned back to Yu Yanzhuo, only to see him staring at a spot not far away. He followed the man’s gaze.
A middle-aged man with a protruding beer belly, his shirt buttons nearly bursting at the seams, was holding a wine glass and speaking grandiosely.
And the person sitting opposite him was Shi Jingyan.
He sat opposite the middle-aged man, wearing a sharp black suit. He nodded or chimed in occasionally as the man spoke. His expression was hard to see due to the angle.
However, it was likely that same cold, irritating look as always.
Long ago, when Shi Yuyang first went to the Shi family to reveal the truth, Shi Jingyan had stood by with an expression so calm it bordered on indifference. At the time, Shi Yuyang thought it was a form of arrogance stemming from his long tenure with the family, and he had hated him for it.
But even when Shi Jingyan left the Shi family, that expression remained.
Even during their encounter at the bar last time, he had maintained that same calm, weary look, seemingly unmoved by anything.
How disgusting.
Shi Yuyang looked back at Yu Yanzhuo and saw him still staring in that direction, lost in thought.
“I heard that my brother is now running a small to medium-sized enterprise. He seems to be working quite hard every day. After all, having left the Shi family, he has to rely on himself for everything. It must be difficult to get used to the gap after living a life of luxury for so long.”
Hearing the voice from across the table, Yu Yanzhuo glanced at him.
Shi Yuyang looked toward the other table as well, his tone full of pity. “My brother probably regrets it quite a bit. If he had not left the Shi family out of a momentary fit of pique, my parents would have ignored the past and continued to support him. He would not have to accompany people to social functions like this.”
Shi Yuyang stared at the middle-aged man for a moment longer. “That person should be the owner of Boxi Shopping Mall. I heard their mall is currently recruiting brands to move in. They are likely discussing that.”
Boxi was a daily-use mall in the south of the city. Its grade and consumption level were only average at best. With the rise of other malls and chains, fewer people had been going there in recent years. In terms of foot traffic and profit, it could not even compare to a fraction of Huanya.
How pathetic, brother.
Shi Yuyang studied the oily-faced middle-aged man and then looked at the familiar back of the other man. A surge of pleasure welled up in his heart.
He was able to discuss cooperation with Huanya and eat at the same table as Yu Yanzhuo. Meanwhile, his fake brother could only accompany a mall boss, listening to him brag while sycophantically pouring drinks.
So what if he had been lucky enough to get close to Yu Yanzhuo before? He was probably just used as a toy for a night and then discarded.
That is what happens to fakes.
Thinking this, Shi Yuyang looked back at Yu Yanzhuo, his tone sympathetic yet testing.
“When I ran into you at PULSE last time, that might have been an opportunity he fought hard to get.”
“After all, someone of your status is a presence that he usually could not even come into contact with. He probably tried everything he could to find a way to speak with you back then, right?”
Based on the situation at the time, Shi Jingyan must have seized an earlier chance to make himself a familiar face to Yu Yanzhuo, allowing him to approach him again at the bar.
Yu Yanzhuo glanced at him.
He could clearly feel Shi Yuyang’s hatred and rejection toward Shi Jingyan, as well as the malice that was poorly hidden in his words.
However, Yu Yanzhuo was in no mood to debate with Shi Yuyang about how pathetic Shi Jingyan might be.
He was starting to get hungry.
A sweet, cloying fragrance drifted over from that direction, lingering in his nose. Because Shi Jingyan had likely been drinking, the sweet scent mixed with the aroma of alcohol, making the food on his own table seem tasteless.
Just as Shi Yuyang was about to add more fuel to the fire, the person in front of him suddenly stood up.
Yu Yanzhuo did not give him a single look, nor did he offer a polite excuse to leave.
He walked straight toward the other table.