The protagonist “Shou” was named Ruan Chen. True to his name, which suggested a quiet sinking, he exuded an aura of fragility and helplessness from head to toe, aside from his beautiful face.
The winter night was biting, and the basement was even more chilling. Ruan Chen was currently soaked to the bone, his lips bruised, huddled like a shivering lamb.
It wasn’t until the side door opened completely that he slowly raised his head to look at the person in the doorway.
Qi Fan leaned against the wall, his silhouette hidden in the darkness, remaining unseen.
Ruan Chen instinctively wanted to cry out for help, but upon recognizing Sheng Zhiyu’s face, he swallowed his words.
Sheng Zhiyu looked at his trembling body and spoke in an extremely soft voice, “Why are you here?”
Ruan Chen seemed surprised that he would speak. His hands tightened around his knees as he whispered, “…Sheng Li made me come here.”
His phrasing was cautious.
Sheng Li was the White Moonlight’s cousin. A classic “rely on others’ power to bully” minor villain common in dog-blood melodramas.
He had set his sights on Ruan Chen in the front hall. Sensing Madam Sheng’s displeasure, he took it upon himself to act.
He first slapped Ruan Chen twice, poured a bucket of cold water over him, and finally issued a warning: “If you don’t stay here quietly, I’ll break your legs.”
From the shadows, Qi Fan watched Sheng Zhiyu’s silhouette. According to the original plot, Ruan Chen should have been rescued by Gu Wangzhou the moment he received the first slap; this current sequence shouldn’t have happened.
The plot was derailed, yet Sheng Zhiyu showed no signs of distress or frustration.
Was it because missions under S+ contracts often faced derailment, making him desensitized to it?
Ruan Chen observed Sheng Zhiyu warily. His impression of this “older brother” remained fixed on the welcome-home banquet. Sheng Zhiyu standing in the middle of the crowd, elegant and gentle.
He was indeed the White Moonlight whom Gu Wangzhou had pined for over a decade.
Ruan Chen gave a self-deprecating smile. He lifted his face and spoke with a sense of self-abandonment, “So, are you also here to remind me that I’m just an illegitimate son who shouldn’t crave things that don’t belong to me… like status, position, and Gu Wangzhou?”
Sheng Zhiyu remained silent. Ruan Chen gripped his water-soaked sleeves. “They say the Eldest Young Master Sheng is well-bred. Why do you also enjoy watching people in such a wretched state?”
As soon as he finished speaking, Sheng Zhiyu pinched his face.
Qi Fan raised an eyebrow slightly, feeling a subtle sense of irritation.
This gesture was identical to the one Sheng Zhiyu had used on him in the study.
Sheng Zhiyu’s movement wasn’t gentle, but it wasn’t exactly brutal either; it carried a hidden, contrary streak of perversity.
Forced to tilt his head up, a flash of panic crossed Ruan Chen’s eyes. He clearly hadn’t expected such a direct confrontation.
“You have a sharp tongue. If you could show this much backbone to Gu Wangzhou, would you still be at his beck and call?” Sheng Zhiyu slowly exposed his emotional wound. “How much must you debase yourself to go around pointing fingers at others?”
The color drained from Ruan Chen’s face.
Sheng Zhiyu remained expressionless. “Besides, do you think a few biting words can cover up the fact that you were eavesdropping just now?”
Despite the cold treatment he’d received all evening, this person had managed to thoroughly provoke his deepest insecurities.
Ruan Chen reached up to grab Sheng Zhiyu’s wrist, but he was intercepted mid-way.
Qi Fan stepped out coldly from the darkness, standing to Sheng Zhiyu’s right. He pinned Ruan Chen’s hand down with an unfriendly smile. “Since you’ve already heard… Mr. Ruan, please have some self-respect.”
Only then did Ruan Chen see who was standing there. His pupils trembled.
“Qi… Qi Fan…”
Having been by Gu Wangzhou’s side for years, he knew of Qi Fan.
The cynical playboy, the ruthless head of the Qi family.
The man Gu Wangzhou trusted most, yet also feared most.
And now, he was with Gu Wangzhou’s White Moonlight…
Before Ruan Chen could process this terrifying thought, his vision went black.
Qi Fan looked at the hand that had stopped struggling, let go casually, and looked at Sheng Zhiyu. “You used a Memory Deletion Card?”
A Memory Deletion Card was an item that could be exchanged for points, allowing the system to select and alter specific memories. Perfect for accidents like this.
Sheng Zhiyu looked away, his expression grim.
Qi Fan: “…Deletion cards aren’t cheap. If you’re unhappy, I’ll return one to you after the world ends.”
Sheng Zhiyu turned back and gave him a cold sneer.
Qi Fan: “.”
Qi Fan: “I’ll return two?”
Lin Weiyu wore a look of disdain in front of the terminal.
Don’t they say scumbags are good at reading people? Can’t he see that Xiao Yu isn’t angry because the card is expensive?
Sheng Zhiyu had a slight perfectionist streak. He hadn’t touched a single point-shop card during his first mission, and since then, he avoided using points whenever possible.
After all, the Quick Transmigration Bureau had no record of anyone completing a contract without using a single point.
Sheng Zhiyu looked at the unconscious Ruan Chen in the confinement room and turned to close the door.
Qi Fan continued to watch him. He sensed Sheng Zhiyu’s mood but couldn’t pinpoint the reason. He whispered, “Leaving?”
Sheng Zhiyu gave him a cold sideways glance. “You can stay here and guard the door if you like.”
Naturally, Qi Fan wouldn’t stay.
Although the protagonist Gong and Shou were currently in a cold war, Gu Wangzhou knew how the Sheng family felt about Ruan Chen. If Ruan Chen didn’t return all night, he would definitely investigate.
Once that cannon-fodder villain confessed, Ruan Chen would be rescued.
The best course of action was indeed non-interference.
However, the confinement room was no longer a secret. Where was Sheng Zhiyu going to take him?
…The answer was Sheng Zhiyu’s bedroom.
If Gu Wangzhou came to the Sheng residence to find someone, he would search the guest rooms, but he wouldn’t step into Sheng Zhiyu’s private room.
Despite the logic, Sheng Zhiyu struggled internally for a moment before pushing the door open.
【Fine, fine. Am I about to witness the ice breaking between the White Moonlight Department and the Scumbag Department?】
Lin Weiyu commented from the bottom of his heart:
【When others break the ice, they exchange contact info at most. You two are sleeping in the same bed. Impressive, truly impressive.】
Sheng Zhiyu coldly threw a set of bedding onto the floor and drew an imaginary line in the air.
“The Chu-Han Border.” (Meaning: No crossing).
This was said to Qi Fan, but even more so for that gossip-hound Lin Weiyu.
【Mhm, mhm, I totally believe you’re keeping a clear boundary. So, can you not block me tonight?】
Lin Weiyu tried to act cute, with significant effect.
Sheng Zhiyu blocked him the instant he finished speaking.
He checked the time; it was nearing midnight. Gu Wangzhou should be interrogating Sheng Li by now.
Sheng Zhiyu didn’t want any more pointless suspicions, so he headed into the bathroom to shower.
Although the wound couldn’t touch water, fortunately, it was on his left hand, so it wasn’t too much of a hindrance.
Just as he thought that, he saw the reflection of his right hand in the mirror. The cufflink caught a ring of light under the bathroom lamp.
A flamboyant scumbag like Qi Fan wore cufflink styles that differed from the norm. It wasn’t just a simple clasp; there was an extra fixing button.
With the wound on his left palm, closing his hand caused sharp pain. Performing such a delicate task was pure torture.
Sheng Zhiyu exhaled deeply. Just as he was trying to digest his anger, there were two knocks on the bathroom door.
“Sheng Zhiyu.”
He became instantly alert. “What?”
“Are your clothes off yet?”
The unexplained question gave Sheng Zhiyu a sudden sense of danger. He scanned the vanity and grabbed his toothbrush. “No. Why?”
“Then I’m coming in.”
Before he could finish, Qi Fan pushed the door open and entered.
Sheng Zhiyu’s dark eyes narrowed at him until Qi Fan approached. He raised a hand to block him. “Qi Fan.”
Qi Fan gave a very light laugh. “Hmm?”
“What are you coming in for?”
“…To return a favor?”
Just as Sheng Zhiyu was about to ask if something was wrong with his brain, Qi Fan caught his sleeve and gently unfastened the cufflink.
“Taking this thing off is more troublesome than putting it on. Your hand is injured; it would’ve taken you a while.”
Sheng Zhiyu paused, shifting his gaze to the mirror.
Qi Fan held the cool object in his palm and squeezed it lightly. “This cufflink has caused quite a significant butterfly effect.”
Gu Wangzhou seemed to have acted strangely ever since he came into contact with this thing.
“You seem to be enjoying this?” Sheng Zhiyu said mockingly. “What a twisted sense of humor.”
“How is it twisted?” Qi Fan said. “Didn’t you say you liked it that night?”
Sheng Zhiyu froze.
In fact, during the night he was resting with a fever, Sheng Zhiyu had recovered most of his memories through fragmented dreams.
…Most of it involved him being unreasonable after drinking, clinging to Qi Fan and causing trouble.
There were also some physical sensations.
But nothing related to the cufflink.
Sheng Zhiyu calmed down, his expression turning even colder as he turned his head. “Qi Fan, is lying with a straight face a required course for scumbags?”
Qi Fan savored the meaning behind that question and took a step forward, his palm resting on the sink. “Even though I no longer expect you to recover the memory of that night, you can’t distort reality just because you can’t remember it, right?”
“You said with your own mouth that because this cufflink was beautiful, I wasn’t allowed to take the shirt off.”
Sheng Zhiyu: “…”
If he was referring to the shirt…
He remembered.
But his understanding was different from Qi Fan’s.
…That night, when Qi Fan fished him out of the bathtub, Sheng Zhiyu had reached his limit of endurance.
But because it was his first time, he couldn’t comfortably be naked with a stranger.
Especially since the man’s physique was too much to his liking; he was feeling a bit dizzy and unable to control himself.
What ultimately preserved his dignity was his pride. He had mumbled something about keeping the clothes on.
Qi Fan had asked him why, as a soaked shirt was uncomfortable.
The drunken Sheng Zhiyu had stammered for a long time, unable to voice that embarrassingly sentimental reason, so he made up an excuse:
“I like your cufflinks. You’re not allowed to take them off.”
…So, this man thought he liked the cufflink, and that’s why he’d hidden it in his sleeve?
What was this? A one-night-stand souvenir?
Sheng Zhiyu’s face remained cold and distant.
Qi Fan smiled nonchalantly.
“I hope I can wait until the day you remember everything completely.”
Sheng Zhiyu: “…”
________________________________________
Gu Wangzhou returned to the manor at 3:00 AM.
He arrived with such aggression that even the resting Mr. and Madam Sheng were awakened.
“Didn’t Wangzhou leave already? What’s going on?” Madam Sheng hurried downstairs, pulling her robe tight.
Then she saw Sheng Li lying on the ground, his face bruised and swollen.
“Xiao Li!” Madam Sheng rushed to him, reaching out to support him. “What happened to Xiao Li?”
Seeing his aunt, Sheng Li seemed to find his backbone. He wailed and clung to Madam Sheng’s arm.
“Auntie, save me… he… they’re going to kill me…”
During the years Sheng Zhiyu was studying abroad, Madam Sheng had projected her affection for her son onto this nephew. Now, her heart was breaking.
“Wangzhou, what is the meaning of this?” she asked, cradling him. “Xiao Li still has a childish temperament. What mistake did he make to provoke such anger?”
“If I recall correctly, Mr. Sheng Li turned 22 three months ago. I don’t believe this can be attributed to an age of ignorance.” Gu Wangzhou kept one hand in his trouser pocket, his gaze cold and condescending. “Indulgent spoiling is never good. Taking a lesson early might still offer a chance for correction.”
Madam Sheng hadn’t expected Gu Wangzhou to be so ruthless. She quickly looked down at Sheng Li.
Sheng Li lowered his voice: “It’s that wild Ruan Chen.”
Madam Sheng’s face froze.
Gu Wangzhou knew exactly what had happened tonight from her expression. He flashed a grim smile.
“They say Madam Sheng is a gracious host. At such an important banquet, how can even the Sheng bloodline be treated so harshly?”
Family scandals shouldn’t be aired in public. Now, being lectured by a junior, Mr. Sheng could no longer maintain his composure. He said deeply, “Wangzhou, this is after all our family matter. Is it appropriate for you to disturb your elders in the middle of the night for someone of… such status?”
Gu Wangzhou turned his head. “Such status? Does Mr. Sheng feel his own son is unfit for public view?”
“Tell Xiao Yu to come down.” Madam Sheng stood up, her voice trembling slightly.
Mr. Sheng looked disapproving. “Xiao Yu only recently recovered from illness…”
Madam Sheng looked up at Gu Wangzhou, a sliver of hope for reconciliation still in her eyes, but the latter only maintained that cold, superior air.
“Have him come down.” Madam Sheng’s hand balled into a fist. “He will be the head of the Sheng family in the future. If his childhood friend comes to interrogate us in the middle of the night, how can he be absent?”
Mr. Sheng glanced at the two of them and turned to go upstairs.
Sheng Zhiyu had anticipated this. He opened the door before Mr. Sheng could knock.
Qi Fan stood behind the door, quietly watching the moon outside the window.
“Xiao Yu? You’re not asleep yet?” Mr. Sheng was surprised.
“With such a commotion downstairs, how could I sleep?” Sheng Zhiyu smiled faintly. “So, what’s happening?”
Seeing he could no longer hide it, Mr. Sheng confessed the matter regarding the “illegitimate son.”
“We originally arranged for Ruan Chen to just show his face, since some in the circle know of his identity. But I didn’t expect your cousin to be so impulsive and cause trouble.”
Sheng Zhiyu glanced at Mr. Sheng’s distressed face and sneered inwardly.
It seemed this useless man didn’t know yet that his impulsive nephew had locked his younger son in the confinement room of this very house.
Yet, his face showed only surprise and sorrow.
“I’ll go down and see.” As Sheng Zhiyu moved, he caught a glimpse of the man behind the door in his peripheral vision.
Qi Fan had been staring at him for an unknown amount of time, his gaze deep and unblinking.
The usual casualness was gone, replaced by a chilling strangeness.
Sheng Zhiyu didn’t know how long he had been watching. He pulled back his drifting thoughts and followed Mr. Sheng downstairs.
He had a mission to complete; he didn’t have time to think about that man.
Although this part of the plot had been moved forward, his mission content remained unchanged.
The White Moonlight couldn’t monopolize the protagonist Gong forever. Especially in conflicts involving the Shou, Ruan Chen, Sheng Zhiyu would always stand in opposition to Gu Wangzhou.
Sheng Zhiyu pulled his sleeves tight, looking sleepy and confused as he faced the crowd downstairs. “How did Cousin Li get so injured? Ah Zhou, what’s going on?”
Before Gu Wangzhou could speak, Sheng Li crawled to Sheng Zhiyu’s feet.
“Cousin Sheng, tonight was your big day, but that wild illegitimate son Ruan Chen came back. Not only was he restless, but he insisted on coming to the hall. I was afraid he’d cause trouble for you, so I gave him a little lecture… then he ran off in a huff, and now Mr. Gu is demanding him from me.”
Sheng Li had no redeeming qualities, but he excelled at distorting the truth. With his tearful eyes and distorted face, he made it sound real.
Gu Wangzhou watched his clumsy performance and raised his eyes coldly.
He had once wondered if Sheng Zhiyu would believe this lying cousin… perhaps with confusion or misunderstanding, he could explain it slowly.
But Gu Wangzhou hadn’t expected the calm on Sheng Zhiyu’s face.
Whether Sheng Li was fabricating Ruan Chen’s behavior or showing off his own wounds, Sheng Zhiyu appeared concerned on the surface, but his eyes showed no emotional fluctuation.
…Like an indifferent bystander.
Gu Wangzhou suddenly felt as if the White Moonlight he had pined for all these years was suddenly covered in a strange mist.
Yet, this mist brought with it a lethal attraction.
Sheng Zhiyu indeed couldn’t skillfully project pity and concern for such a vile cannon fodder.
Sheng Li’s lies were self-contradictory. One moment saying they met in the front hall, the next saying he saw Ruan Chen wandering the parking lot. Sheng Zhiyu tried to help him smooth over the story several times, but the man just kept whining and crying.
Idiot.
Sheng Zhiyu waited until he finally shut up, then looked at Gu Wangzhou. “Ah Zhou, I didn’t review the guest list, so there might have been some oversights. But I know what happened now. I’ll have people look for him.”
Gu Wangzhou looked at him calmly. He wasn’t as rude as he had been with the Sheng couple, but he lacked his usual warmth. “Xiao Yu, I didn’t come here tonight to notify anyone.”
The smile on Sheng Zhiyu’s face lost some warmth. “Are you saying you don’t believe I’ll help you find Ruan Chen?”
Gu Wangzhou said nothing, his deep eyes like ink, making his thoughts unreadable.
But Sheng Zhiyu knew exactly what he was thinking.
That was Gu Wangzhou’s personality. He was loyal only to himself. Even if he had grown closer to the White Moonlight because of the cufflink that morning, once his “caged bird” went missing at night, he would turn a cold face even to the White Moonlight.
This was also why Ruan Chen was kept hanging by a thread every time his heart withered.
Sheng Zhiyu smiled, his voice slightly hoarse. “Although Mr. Ruan Chen and I aren’t on harmonious terms nominally, he is still someone with Sheng blood. I wouldn’t be unreasonable when a life is at stake.”
Gu Wangzhou’s voice was icy. “If you know a life is at stake, then let me search.”
This was a total blow to the White Moonlight’s dignity.
Sheng Zhiyu’s thin lips pursed. Even with his good breeding, he couldn’t force a smile at this moment.
“Why don’t you believe me? Or is it that Ruan Chen is that important to you?”
Gu Wangzhou fell silent, wordlessly confronting the White Moonlight.
Sheng Zhiyu took a half-step forward and gently grabbed his sleeve, lowering his voice. “…I will give you an explanation.”
This was the fragile White Moonlight’s submission and plea to him.
However, Gu Wangzhou raised his hand and brushed his fingers away.
The Sheng couple sensed the tension between the two. Only Sheng Li, like a blind man, endured the pain to stand up, acting as if he were protecting Sheng Zhiyu. “Because you were abroad, Xiao Yu, you don’t know—that fellow Ruan Chen seduced Mr. Gu by relying on the fact that he looks thirty percent like you!”
Although his words were aimed at Gu Wangzhou, he didn’t dare offend him, so he pushed the blame onto Ruan Chen.
Sheng Zhiyu’s face went pale, his gaze momentarily dazed.
He turned to look at the silent Gu Wangzhou and spoke softly, “Ah Zhou, are you and Ruan Chen together?”
According to the original plot, Gu Wangzhou wouldn’t admit it because he couldn’t afford to lose the White Moonlight yet but couldn’t let go of the Shou either.
So, he would simply bypass Sheng Zhiyu to search the manor.
But now, Gu Wangzhou only stared at Sheng Zhiyu.
His eyes, like a scalpel, traced Sheng Zhiyu’s features as if trying to peel away the flesh to see something deeper.
Amidst the dead silence of the living room, Gu Wangzhou spoke slowly: “Yes.”
“Ruan Chen and I are together.”
“During the years you were gone.”
His admissions became heavier and colder with each sentence.
Madam Sheng was the first to react, looking at him in disbelief. “Wangzhou, didn’t you agree to wait for Xiao Yu to return? How could you…”
“See!” Sheng Li almost jumped. “I said that bastard Ruan Chen had ill intentions. He has a mother like that as a role model; how would he know anything about shame…”
Halfway through his curse, Sheng Li was pinned to the ground by Gu Wangzhou’s men, his shoulder twisted.
Gu Wangzhou bypassed these irrelevant people and walked straight to Sheng Zhiyu, seemingly indifferent to his current grief.
He tilted Sheng Zhiyu’s chin up, cruelly analyzing the expression on his face.
There was belated sadness, disappointment, bitterness, and pain.
Rich and correct.
But the more Gu Wangzhou looked, the clearer it became—it all seemed meticulously prepared for this very moment.
Just like the dream he had yesterday.
Even though he was the one admitting to betrayal, Gu Wangzhou felt more vividly… that the current Sheng Zhiyu’s emotions were thinner than his own.
Gu Wangzhou suddenly smiled. “What, aren’t you disappointed?”
He asked this with feigned calmness, but in his heart, it felt like a heavy object had dropped, sending wave after wave of shock through him.
—He wanted to see Sheng Zhiyu’s emotions waver for him, whether it was disappointment, anger, or heartbreak and jealousy.
Not like now, not like the dream—hidden behind an impenetrable mist.
“…Let go of Sheng Li.” Sheng Zhiyu lowered his eyes and spoke coldly.
Gu Wangzhou remained unmoved.
Sheng Zhiyu strode to the henchman and forcefully grabbed his wrist. “Let go!”
Gu Wangzhou’s men were always loyal; they didn’t back down even before Sheng Zhiyu.
Madam Sheng’s voice choked with anger: “Xiao Yu’s hand is still injured! Don’t touch him!”
Gu Wangzhou turned to see the red spreading across Sheng Zhiyu’s palm. That tiny spark of heartache was covered by a twisted scarlet. As if possessed, he quietly watched the blood seep from Sheng Zhiyu’s palm.
Not until half the palm was red did he step forward and press down on Sheng Zhiyu’s shoulder, signaling his men to let go.
Sheng Li rolled aside.
Sheng Zhiyu, his eyes red, broke free from Gu Wangzhou’s grip.
Gu Wangzhou paused for a moment before withdrawing his hand, maintaining a deliberate indifference.
“Pardon me. Search the place.”
Sheng Zhiyu sneered. “What, Mr. Gu not only insists on having his way but also intends to throw the Sheng family’s dignity to the ground?”
Gu Wangzhou lowered his gaze and said again, “Except for the family’s private rooms, search every other corner.”
Half an hour later, the unconscious Ruan Chen was carried out of the confinement room.
Gu Wangzhou stepped forward, wrapped the man in his own jacket, and picked him up.
Sheng Zhiyu always understood that for someone like Gu Wangzhou, there was a difference between someone he liked without realizing it and someone he thought he liked.
As Gu Wangzhou turned to leave, Sheng Zhiyu blocked his path, prompted by Lin Weiyu.
His face was chilled by the winter night. In a tone only the two of them could hear, he asked, “Gu Wangzhou, you’re taking him away. Then what am I to you?”
Gu Wangzhou’s icy eyes looked at him. Sheng Zhiyu’s cold face, glistening with tears under the dim light, looked even more pitiable than the person in his arms.
A strange emotion urged Gu Wangzhou to respond, but a survival instinct for danger reined in his logic.
After a long confrontation, Gu Wangzhou’s voice was hoarse.
“Sheng Zhiyu, move.”