Lu Yuxing said, “No need.”
Shang Jue hadn’t really intended to show himself, so he just replied, “Oh.”
“I have to go back now.”
Shang Jue only had a new toothbrush here, and Lu Yuxing’s morning routine last night had been very rushed. Shang Jue irresponsibly tossed him into the living room without even throwing him a blanket, and after sleeping for a night, Lu Yuxing’s neatly pressed shirt was now wrinkled in several places. Fortunately, there had been heating last night, so he wouldn’t catch a cold this morning.
But now, looking this disheveled was something he couldn't accept.
“Mm, bye, baby.” Shang Jue couldn’t wait for him to leave.
Before he left, Lu Yuxing asked him, “Besides seafood, what else are you allergic to?”
Shang Jue looked at him in confusion.
Lu Yuxing continued, “Tell me, and I won’t forget this time.”
Shang Jue zoned out for two seconds before realizing it. He lowered his eyes and honestly replied.
After sending Lu Yuxing off, he looked down at his phone.
There were a few messages from yesterday. His contact was set to Do Not Disturb, but Shang Jue had replied.
【Dad】: Don’t forget to come home for dinner this Saturday afternoon.
【Dad】: Your mom and Xiaoyu will be there.
Shang Jue replied with a simple “Okay.”
Since the end of his first year of high school, there was an added rule in the Shang family, set by his dad, Shang Xinrong: they would have a family dinner once a month. The purpose was probably to show family harmony.
Scrolling up, another red dot appeared on the top of the screen.
【Lu Yuxing】: I just forgot to say, remember to take your medicine again.
Shang Jue blinked, sent a reaction, and went to take his medicine.
After procrastinating until the afternoon, he set off back to the Shang family.
The family dinner was at a fixed time, and Shang Jue arrived home right on the dot. After entering, he greeted the three people happily chatting on the sofa.
“Dad, Mom.”
Shang Xinrong sat in the center, every wrinkle at the corner of his eyes exuding authority. He had gained some weight in recent years, the belt around his waist now tighter with several extra pounds. The woman cuddled up to him had also aged, but her well-maintained face looked much younger. She gently called out to Shang Jue when she saw him.
On the other side of the sofa sat a boy in his twenties, sitting a bit further away from the couple, playing a game on his phone. He wasn’t as good-looking as Shang Jue, but his trendy dyed hair and earrings pieced together could still be called handsome.
Shang Jue's gaze shifted to this boy around his age, and he smiled with his fox-like eyes, “Xiaoyu.”
Shang Yu glanced up at him, ignored him, rolled his eyes, and went back to playing his game.
Shang Xinrong’s expression darkened, while Min Hong frowned, feeling frustrated yet helpless, and could only advise, “Xiaoyu, your brother is greeting you. Why are you so inconsiderate?”
Shang Jue smiled generously, “Xiaoyu is half a year younger than me, so it’s normal for him not to understand.”
The four people on the sofa fell into a moment of silence.
Shang Yu’s finger slipped, causing him to prematurely unleash his special move. His face turned the color of liver, and he wanted to curse but couldn’t get the words out.
Shang Xinrong raised his hand, gesturing for Shang Jue to sit closer.
Shang Jue stood still and asked, “Is dinner not ready yet? I’m a bit hungry after coming all this way.”
A rare hint of fatherly warmth appeared on Shang Xinrong’s serious face. “Aunt Zhang has been ready for a while; she’s waiting for you.”
With that, he let go of Min Hong and stood up, placing an arm around Shang Jue’s shoulders. The father and son walked toward the dining room.
Min Hong shot a glance at the boy sitting nearby. Shang Yu acted as if he didn’t see her.
At the dinner table, it was inevitable that they would chat about family matters, even if Shang Jue wasn’t particularly close to two of them.
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Min Hong was Shang Xinrong’s second wife, married a few years after his divorce, and Shang Yu was her son. Shang Jue’s birth mother, Chen Xuerong, divorced Shang Xinrong when he was in his first year of high school and remarried two years ago.
However, there was still a connection between Shang Jue and Shang Yu; they both carried Shang Xinrong’s blood. One was a legitimate son, while the other was Shang Xinrong's illegitimate son from an affair during Chen Xuerong's pregnancy.
“Didn’t Shang Jue choose his major last month? Why didn’t he mention it to the family?” Min Hong asked, serving Shang Xinrong a bowl of soup and carefully placing the spoon.
Shang Jue watched this scene with curiosity, as if Shang Xinrong’s status in the family had suddenly soared to that of an emperor after remarriage. When Chen Xuerong was around, he had been like a powerless eunuch, unable to express his anger.
“Yeah, I’m studying mathematics,” he smiled. “Basic subjects are all the same, no matter what you choose.”
Shang Xinrong spoke sternly, “Back then, I wanted you to choose business. Once you graduated, you could learn to take over the company…”
Shang Jue smiled to himself, thinking: What’s there to take over with your shabby company? No scale, no prospects, no talent. Only Min Hong treats it like a treasure.
Min Hong quickly interjected, “Shang Jue is smart; it doesn’t matter what major he picks in college. Just like those executives in your company, not all of them studied management in college.”
“What do you know?” Shang Xinrong frowned and began a lengthy analysis.
Shang Jue was suddenly poked by this authoritative remark filled with masculinity, biting his lip to stifle a laugh at the dinner table.
His shoulders couldn’t help but shake, so he quickly took a bite of rice to cover it up.
Shang Yu, sitting across from him, glared at him. He didn’t notice Shang Jue was holding back laughter; he simply felt annoyed.
After being stared at for a while, Shang Jue set down his bowl and looked back at his younger brother with a smile, saying leisurely, “How have you been lately, Xiaoyu?”
Meeting his warm smile, Shang Yu felt a chill run down his spine.
Shang Xinrong said, “He’s still at the same school he got into; what else could it be?” His tone turned gloomy. “I wanted to send him abroad, but he insisted on making a fuss for some guy. What a lost cause!”
His words were harsh, and both Min Hong and Shang Yu’s expressions changed simultaneously.
Shang Jue exclaimed, “Oh, you mean that blonde guy? The one with tattoos?”
Shang Yu: …………
Shang Xinrong’s face darkened.
“Ah, not that one?” Shang Jue said in a brotherly tone. “If he likes men, let Xiaoyu like who he wants. But if you’re going to date, do it seriously. Don’t keep changing partners. You’re just starting college; if you keep swapping bed partners, what if you get sick…”
“What do you mean by ‘bed partners’? How can you—”
With a clatter, Shang Xinrong slammed his chopsticks down heavily, and Shang Yu unwillingly fell silent.
Shang Xinrong valued face above all and was extremely vain. Ever since he learned that his younger son was gay, his affection for Shang Yu had noticeably diminished.
The dinner was tasteless, with each of the four harboring their own thoughts.
Shang Yu felt even more despondent. After the meal, he ignored everyone and stomped upstairs to his room to rest.
Shang Jue was leaving that evening, and Shang Xinrong kept him downstairs to chat, while Min Hong tactfully followed him upstairs.
She entered her son’s room.
As soon as the door closed, Shang Yu's face was filled with anger. "Mom, can’t you see? He’s clearly staying here to annoy us."
Min Hong's expression was not good. "Do you really like men, or is it just a joke?"
"I..." Shang Yu was at a loss for words, feeling more and more frustrated.
His liking for men shouldn't have been known so early. He was a year younger than Shang Jue. When Min Hong had just married Shang Xinrong, he had transferred to Hai Zhong for his first year of high school. Who would have thought that when he was with his ex-boyfriend, Shang Jue just happened to see them!
That hypocrite smiled at the time, saying nothing, but then he went home and told on him.
Shang Xinrong flew into a rage on the spot. Min Hong had only been in the Shang family for a few months, and because of this, his attitude toward her took a sharp turn.
He couldn't swallow this anger and had secretly retaliated against Shang Jue a few times, but unfortunately, nothing came of it.
Min Hong said coldly, "If he saw me the day before, your dad would have had one word, and he could have called me 'Mom.' If you could learn even a tenth of his generosity, your dad wouldn’t be so biased toward him."
"Is that generosity? That’s clearly deep scheming! You're a mistress; what normal person would meet their dad's extramarital affair partner for the first time and call them 'Mom' without any hesitation?"
"..." Min Hong's lips parted several times, then closed again, left speechless by her son’s remark of “mistress.”
But she had to admit that Shang Yu was right.
At that time, when she arrived at the Shang family, Shang Xinrong brought Shang Jue in front of her. In front of their son, Shang Xinrong tried several times to find the right words but ultimately gave up on his dignity: "This is your Aunt Min Hong; she’ll be your mom from now on."
She knew perfectly well how she ended up marrying in. Even when naming Shang Yu, she had provocatively chosen "Yu" to match the character "Jue," so she never expected Shang Jue would treat her well.
Yet, a light, yet heavy voice landed: Shang Jue called out to her.
She looked up in surprise and saw the sixteen or seventeen-year-old boy smiling, though his eyes were calm.
Min Hong thought, no wonder Chen Xuerong would leave this kid in the Shang family. He would definitely make their mother-son duo uneasy.
—
Downstairs, Shang Jue glanced out the window; it was getting late. He thought about heading home earlier, but Shang Xinrong's voice wouldn’t stop. "Recently, has your mom contacted you?"
Shang Jue turned back. "Which mom are you talking about?"
Shang Xinrong's expression changed several times before finally settling into a stiff, dark face: "Your biological mother."
"No, she’s not in A City; why would she contact me?" Shang Jue lost his patience and stood up.
Shang Xinrong asked, "Aren't you sleeping at home tonight?"
"Nope." Shang Jue made up an excuse: "I have a competition early tomorrow morning."
Shang Xinrong’s expression softened slightly, pleased. "Just don’t overwork yourself; your dad is counting on you to take over."
Shang Jue smiled but didn’t respond. He had seen how Shang Xinrong's attitude toward Shang Yu changed and didn’t care for this worthless importance.
"I'll have the driver take you."
"No need; just send Shang Yu. I’ll take a taxi home."
—
The gathering in dorm 323 was scheduled for tonight.
Ge Zhicheng had just cooked hot pot with Lin Xuying in the dorm two days ago, but stepping outside into the cold made him crave it again, so he turned around and found a place.
Lu Yuxing didn’t eat spicy food, so he ordered a half-and-half pot.
Ge Zhicheng added shrimp paste to the pot. "Lu Ge, where did you go last night? You’ve been hard to find lately; Yingzi and I are always looking for you."
Since Lu Yuxing returned from a hospital visit last month, he had been going out all the time. During the midterm exams, it was understandable that he went to the library, but in the past few days, after the exams, they still couldn’t find him. As someone with amnesia, it was worrisome that he kept running around outside; the other two in the dorm couldn’t help but feel concerned.
Last night, Lu Yuxing didn’t return to 323, although he sent a message to the group saying not to worry; he didn’t explain further.
“I was…” Lu Yuxing paused.
He couldn’t truthfully say he stayed at Shang Jue’s place, but he also didn’t like lying.
“I was with my brother.”
Shang Jue could be considered a brother.
“Oh, oh!” Ge Zhicheng realized.
Lin Xuying said, “No wonder. Brother Yunshen usually isn’t in the country, and now that he’s back for a while, you two must be catching up.”
Lu Yuxing silently picked up a large helping of food from the spicy pot, ate a couple of bites, and immediately broke into a sweat, his lips turning red from the spiciness.
Seeing him unable to speak from the heat, Lin Xuying quickly handed him a bottle of yogurt from beside him, and the conversation couldn’t continue.
On the way back to school, the three of them took a taxi, and Lu Yuxing received a call from Shang Jue in the car.
The light in the car was dim; Lin Xuying was beside him and, noticing Lu Yuxing's phone lighting up, his gaze was instinctively drawn to the only light source in the back seat.
Lu Yuxing discreetly turned the screen at an angle and put on his headphones to answer.
“Baby, baby?” Shang Jue’s voice was clearer than usual, with a slightly cheerful tone at the end.
“Hmm.”
At that moment, no one in the car was talking, and Lu Yuxing's sudden reply made Ge Zhicheng turn his head to look. “Lu Ge?”
“It’s my brother’s call.”
“Oh, oh.”
A soft laugh came from the headphones, causing Lu Yuxing's ears to tingle.
Shang Jue called out “Baby” again in a teasing manner, making Lu Yuxing's ears heat up.
The voice in the headphones carried a playful tone: “Baby, baby, baby, I miss you.”
Lu Yuxing felt extremely uncomfortable being called like that in the confined space of the car, surrounded by people. He could only ask, “Where are you? I’ll come find you.”
There was a sudden silence on the other end, as if Shang Jue hadn’t expected such a response to his teasing.
His voice hesitated: “No need… it’s troublesome.”
“Not troublesome. Are you at home?”
“… Yes.”
“Okay.”
After hanging up, Lin Xuying asked, “Lu Ge, are you going to see Brother Yunshen?”
Lu Yuxing answered, somewhat against his conscience, “Yeah.”
The taxi just happened to stop at the school gate, and the three of them got out, still smelling of hot pot.
Ge Zhicheng asked, “So Lu Ge, are you coming back tonight?”
Thinking of Shang Jue’s reserved nature, Lu Yuxing replied, “I’ll come back.”
As he spoke, he walked towards the campus, planning to stop by his dorm.
Ge Zhicheng asked, “Lu Ge, do you still need to get something?”
“No, I’m just going to shower and change clothes.” He didn’t want to smell of cooking oil around Shang Jue.
Ge Zhicheng looked surprised: “Oh… Lu Ge, do you need to shower before seeing your brother?”
Lu Yuxing froze, lowering his eyes. “I’ll be back late, and I don’t want my shower to disturb your rest.”
“!!!” Ge Zhicheng was very touched. “Lu Ge, you’re so considerate!”
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