Chapter 21: Heaven’s Will Is Hard to Predict!

“…”

Lin Jiangye was so shocked he could not speak. He could not understand—is this the human way of thinking?

Just now, Yu Lin had still been angry, acting like a thug and causing a scene at A University’s back gate. How could he instantly drag the topic to becoming a mistress?!

“I can keep giving you money. Whatever Yu Wangxiao gives you, I can give too. I’ll give you a lot of money.” Yu Lin seemed to be seriously planning this matter. His hand habitually lifted and rested on Lin Jiangye’s knee, just like when they had been dating before.

Although Lin Jiangye reflexively pushed him away, he was not angry. After giving up on himself, softening his attitude seemed perfectly natural. He said in a low voice, “I’m sorry. Think about it, okay? I’m a very difficult person to deal with, Lin Jiangye. You know you can’t get rid of me.”

“…You couldn’t have fallen in love with me, right?” Lin Jiangye paused, uncertain. “Or do you really have a mental illness now?”

“I’ve always liked you.” Yu Lin smiled with red eyes. “Otherwise, why did I shamelessly chase you before? Because I was bored out of my mind?”

“Of course it was to make Lin Jingyao jealous. During the process, you couldn’t help treating me as a substitute, but you also thought I wasn’t worthy, so you despised me. Even now, you’re still lying?” Lin Jiangye said without politeness, and his expression gradually turned cold.

In the original book, Yu Lin’s unbearable psychological process was written very clearly. Lin Jiangye could practically recite it backward. Even if Yu Lin really fell in love with the original owner later, that was only after going through storms in the group and gradually maturing in character that he recognized the original owner as the only person who loved him unconditionally…

Lin Jiangye really did not like this kind of inexplicable love story. Now that he was forced to be involved in it and was standing in the eye of the storm where the protagonist gong vented his emotions, it was simply even more stuck in his throat than a family ethics war.

So before the stunned Yu Lin could react, Lin Jiangye suddenly stood up and glanced behind him. “Uncle Chen, stop hiding. Hurry and catch Young Master Yu back.”

As soon as his words fell, Chen Ming awkwardly appeared from behind a food truck selling beef offal. He was wearing a baseball cap, and in his hand was a matcha soft-serve cone used as cover.

“Is it tasty?” Lin Jiangye had been unhappy just now, but he was instantly attracted by that refreshing, vivid green.

The three of them looked at one another in silence for a moment. Chen Ming lightly coughed and smiled. “…Ice cream is too cold. You can’t eat it in this weather.”

“Oh.” Lin Jiangye nodded obediently, then politely urged again, “Could you take him away? He’s very annoying.”

Chen Ming was courteous. He smiled and approached Yu Lin without actually laying hands on him. “Young Master Lin, let’s go. Your leg injury still needs a recheck. We’ll go to the hospital first.”

Yu Lin’s face turned cold. He gave a light scoff, as if he was so angry he had laughed.

“Chen Ming, you heard everything, didn’t you? So what? You people just love these shady methods. Is eavesdropping glorious? You don’t even want face anymore.” He deliberately raised his volume, as if he wanted the passersby secretly listening to the gossip around them to hear too. “Whatever. If I want to be someone’s mistress, I’ll be someone’s mistress. What the hell does it have to do with Yu Wangxiao? Speaking of which, he was the one who became a mistress first!”

Lin Jiangye abruptly frowned. “He didn’t. You dumped me first.”

“…Lin Jiangye, shut the fuck up.”

“And he’s emotionally stable. He never curses. Unlike you.”

Yu Lin suddenly fell silent. The corners of his lips, which were always raised, flattened slightly, making him look very pained.

As if he had suddenly deflated, he looked deeply at Lin Jiangye, then turned and limped away, seeming to only now remember that his leg had fractured not long ago. Chen Ming followed unhurriedly, not forgetting to leisurely enjoy the matcha soft serve in his hand along the way.

Lin Jiangye sighed. He helped the trembling barbecue stall owner set the tables and chairs back in place, picked up the disposable cutlery scattered all over the ground, and even compensated the owner for the losses.

Now Yu Lin owed him two sums of money. After causing such a random mess, who knew what meaning it had?

However, Yu Lin’s appearance was not entirely useless. The information that his mother was “crazy” sounded worth investigating.

There had to be something wrong with the Yu family structure, perhaps even more serious than the Lin family’s. Otherwise, they would not have turned into this, with every old and young member looking like they had mental illnesses.

Even Yu Wangxiao, who seemed the most normal, if Lin Jiangye was being honest, was actually not that normal either. It was just that Lin Jiangye’s mind was not that sensitive. He could fully accept some strange monitoring behaviors, that was all.

But by now, Yu Wangxiao’s parents, that is, Yu Lin’s grandparents, had already passed away, and they had died rather early.

If he wanted to know some hidden Yu family history never mentioned in the original book, he either needed to secretly search for the branch relatives who had gone to the Yu family old residence for Mid-Autumn before, ask Yu Lin, or directly inquire with Yu Wangxiao.

Given Yu Wangxiao’s personality, he naturally would not be dissatisfied with him because of that. But in recent days, Lin Jiangye had more free time and had watched quite a few films and dramas made by humans… so he had developed the concept of “investigate more, verify carefully.”

Just in terms of obtaining information, someone would definitely lie to him along the way, someone would coax him, someone would harm him… In short, a Rashomon situation was bound to appear.

Thinking about these things, Lin Jiangye wandered to the cafeteria and bought a late-night snack—a whole roast chicken.

After returning to the dorm, he first washed his hands unhurriedly, put on gloves, and under everyone’s drooling gazes, thoroughly dismantled the whole roast chicken like a master butcher, enjoying it beautifully… Afterward, Lin Jiangye pulled Gu Jiu’an to the balcony.

Gu Jiu’an was very bewildered. Beneath that cold, indifferent face that was always expressionless, there was actually a faint, barely noticeable awkwardness.

It was not really the first time the two of them had avoided others to whisper on the balcony.

But every time, Gu Jiu’an had been the one to speak first. This was truly the first time Lin Jiangye had taken the initiative to look for him.

After all, he and Lin Jiangye were not familiar.

Really not familiar.

Usually, he buried himself in studying and also had to go to Gu Corporation every other day to learn management practice. Lin Jiangye also ran everywhere as soon as class ended… The two of them almost never got the chance to talk.

Yet from some indescribable, inexplicable instinct, Gu Jiu’an always wanted to take care of him a little more, and he would not coldly measure benefits and returns. This strange pull sometimes grew stronger, sometimes weaker, and recently it had become so abrupt that it made him irritated.

At first, he had only wanted to pull Lin Jiangye out of the muddy pool that was the Yu family. But Lin Jiangye at the time had not listened to him at all. His words were rather harsh, and his attitude was also very firm.

He had already hit a wall once. Why did he need to interfere with someone else’s private affairs again and again, and worry on his own?

It could not be because Lin Jiangye was very good-looking, right?

Fine, he was indeed good-looking.

Previously, Li Yushen had given him the nickname “Little Lamb.” The people around Lin Jiangye all felt it was very fitting, and it spread almost in the blink of an eye. Everyone called him that very smoothly.

Only Gu Jiu’an felt it was not quite right.

A little lamb was white, soft, herbivorous, a little silly, with well-groomed wool that was very pretty. It was most adorable in its youth and suited being held in the palm as a little pet. But Lin Jiangye was not like that.

He felt Lin Jiangye’s personality was extremely, extremely strange. He was not at all like a young master who had been switched at birth and neglected and mistreated by both sets of parents. After Gu Jiu’an deliberately observed him and compared him to the awful things he himself had experienced, he gradually discovered—Lin Jiangye’s confidence was simply too strong. Stronger than his own. It was practically difficult to understand.

Even if Lin Jiangye was truly relying entirely on Yu Wangxiao’s backing, he also did not seem blinded by the glamour of high society. He had always kept his head down doing what he wanted to do, completely unconcerned with other people’s opinions.

From a certain perspective, there was even a bit of willfulness to it.

For example, at this moment, before being pulled to the balcony by Lin Jiangye, Gu Jiu’an had been buried in front of his computer sorting through miscellaneous company documents. He was very busy.

But Lin Jiangye directly called him out without the slightest intention of reading his expression. Yet Gu Jiu’an was utterly useless. Not only was he worrying heavily and thinking nonsense, he could not help moving closer to observe Lin Jiangye’s face again, trying hard to guess what the person before him was thinking.

This was his survival instinct, but Lin Jiangye would never be like him.

So when he met those dark eyes in the night, Gu Jiu’an subconsciously asked carefully, “Is there something you need my help with? I’ve been free recently.”

“Talk gossip with me.”

“…Mm?”

Lin Jiangye squeezed out a friendly smile. “Before, you strongly opposed me dating Yu Wangxiao, right? Why? I want to know the real reason. It would be best if there’s evidence. If not, I also like listening to gossip.”

Gu Jiu’an paused. He silently considered his wording for a while before speaking with difficulty. “Don’t tell Yu Wangxiao that I said this.”

This sentence itself already revealed very useful information. After Lin Jiangye’s many verifications, plus Li Liang’s earlier sincere example-based advice—the lumber mill fire—it was enough to explain where Yu Wangxiao’s problem lay.

Perhaps Yu Wangxiao really was someone with a strong desire for revenge. Even if he appeared warm as a breeze on the surface, he must also be very petty.

This kind of contrast was rather interesting. Lin Jiangye wanted to laugh a little and worked hard to hold it back.

“Mm, I promise you.”

Gu Jiu’an struggled for a moment longer before slowly saying, “Yu Lin’s parents were made miserable by him. I encountered it by chance once and saw it with my own eyes. It’s said that the old Chairman Yu and Old Madam Yu back then were also dealt with by Yu Wangxiao, and not a single one of the illegitimate children scattered outside dared to return. They were long driven overseas to fend for themselves.”

“So amazing…” Lin Jiangye paused as he said it and quickly reorganized his words. “Did you see it with your own eyes? When was it?”

Being stared at so expectantly, Gu Jiu’an clearly could not leave without explaining clearly. Helpless, he forced his dry throat to hold out and told the entire story.

That cold, damp plum-rain night. That young, indifferent Yu Wangxiao. That pair of handmade leather shoes stepping on Yu Chaoyuan’s face. Beneath the black umbrella, the faint smell of roasted meat from cigarette burns…

Human memory was not reliable. It was a string of data that could be repeatedly extracted, transcoded, and recorded again. Naturally, a certain amount of loss would occur, constantly losing details and distorting the truth during repeated recollection.

Therefore, old experiences would be filtered, white moonlights would be sanctified, and small frights could step by step transform into man-eating monsters, turning into unbearable shadows and nightmares.

Gu Jiu’an could only do his best to be objective. As for how Lin Jiangye interpreted it, outsiders truly had no power to interfere.

“Your heartbeat is so fast… Are you okay?” After Lin Jiangye listened seriously, he only said this.

“I’m fine.” Gu Jiu’an insisted, clearly knowing that cold sweat was seeping down the back of his neck.

Lin Jiangye thought for a moment. “Yu Lin’s father was once driven overseas for five years. What about his mother? Did she go crazy during that period?”

“Mm. But the news was suppressed very secretly. Auntie should have been receiving long-term treatment at home and never stayed in a hospital.”

“You’re so well-informed. Amazing.”

“…Don’t force praise. Anything else you want to ask?”

“I’m thinking, why does their whole family have problems? Could it be related to Old Chairman Yu’s generation? For example, inherent genetics or an overly bad family atmosphere.” Lin Jiangye looked serious.

Gu Jiu’an suddenly laughed. His desire to confide abruptly surged out uncontrollably. “In our circle, whose family doesn’t have problems? Look at my grandma. Now she’s so dried-up and terrifying like a wooden carving. From morning to night, she sits in the living room without moving, staring at me without speaking. My uncle wasn’t born infertile either. He was beaten into that state with a baseball bat. My dad’s private life is even more chaotic than his. My mom even went crazy long ago, and I’m not exactly a good thing either.”

Lin Jiangye was shocked, and also faintly guilty. After all, Gu Jiu’an’s grandma, that dried-up Old Madam Gu… had actually long since become living dead. For some inexplicable reason, several more of her had appeared and were probably still crawling all over Moros Manor right now.

But if he said this out loud, it would probably make the unfortunate Student Gu even more unfortunate.

Out of this guilt, Lin Jiangye boldly proposed a compensation plan.

“Let me give you a suggestion, Student Gu. Take your grandma’s shares into your hands as soon as possible, preferably leaving concrete proof before the weekend. If it really doesn’t work, prepare a transfer contract first and hold your grandma’s hand to sign directly. If your dad comes forward to obstruct you, just say I forced you to do it. Then mention the almond milk incident to threaten him and use force to pressure him.”

“…”

“If that really doesn’t work, I’ll call Chen Ming to help. Just knock him unconscious directly. He probably won’t dare call the police either.”

“…”

Who exactly was spreading that Lin Jiangye was a little lamb? This style was obviously too wrong, right? Gu Jiu’an could not help crazily complaining in his heart.

When talking about beating people, causing trouble, and stealing shares, the usually quiet Lin Jiangye’s aura actually changed completely. He looked full of life, and his eyes even seemed to faintly sparkle, as if he came with mysterious special effects…

Of course, Gu Jiu’an was not stupid either. After being shocked and dazed for a moment, he instantly recalled their last conversation on the balcony and quickly understood Lin Jiangye’s hint.

His father would almost certainly get into trouble within this week, so he needed to prepare in advance, grasp enough speaking power, and prevent internal chaos in Gu Corporation.

Time would not wait for him to grow. The Gu family would not continue giving him the chance to further study and accumulate power either. It seemed he could only be forced into position.

“Thank you.” After understanding some things, Gu Jiu’an did not hesitate. His reply was brief and solemn.

“You’re welcome. If there’s any gossip in the future, remember to tell me in advance.”

Lin Jiangye politely stuffed a piece of candy into his hand and left in satisfaction under Gu Jiu’an’s once again bewildered gaze.

His recent schedule was very regular. He washed up early. Before sleeping, he even helped Li Liang play a few more ranked matches, winning with crushing force and once again earning several calls of “Foster Father.”

After all, ever since Yu Wangxiao’s favorability progress bar exceeded halfway, his reaction speed had greatly improved. Playing PVP games… always had a sense of dimensional suppression. It was unreasonable. Even people from the esports club had visited, saying they wanted to recruit talent.

Lin Jiangye did not rashly agree at the time. He was still thinking about how he should make money in the future. It was impossible to keep playing Yu Wangxiao’s lover forever.

But every time he thought of these things, Yu Wangxiao’s image would form in his mind, and he did not know what was going on. Sometimes, while lying in bed and thinking, that handsome man would inexplicably turn into a liquor-filled chocolate, fragrant and delicious, letting him peacefully fall asleep in hunger.

And he slept very soundly.

Gu Jiu’an stayed on the balcony for a while longer. Holding the fruit candy in his hand, he was silent for a long while, then put it into his pocket and quietly looked at the night as he lit a cigarette.

Ding—

He took out his phone, his expression changing slightly.

The message came from Yu Wangxiao’s assistant, a bespectacled man named He Chen… Gu Jiu’an had met him at his grandma’s birthday banquet. He was cold and did not look like he had a very good temper.

They had exchanged official greetings and added each other’s contact information, but had not talked since. After all, Gu Corporation was currently under his management.

But this time, he could not coldly ignore it.

He Chen sent him a chibi sticker of pushing up glasses. It looked very cute, but the following message was not cute at all.

AAA He Overtime: Student Gu, good evening. Friendly reminder: it’s best not to accept candy from Student Lin again. Beware of bloody disaster. Thank you for your cooperation. Happy cooperation.

Gu Jiu’an: Alright, I won’t accept it again… May I ask if this is Chairman Yu’s meaning? Does he even mind this? Assistant He, you’ve worked hard.

Gu Jiu’an: Shared contact card — A City Monocle King · Private Exclusive Customization.

AAA He Overtime: Good, good, good. Little Student Gu, you’re a good person. Ai, heaven’s will is hard to predict! In order to return to A City half a day earlier, that person is now rushing his schedule with a gloomy face all day. The feeling of working with a lump of dark cloud is simply more unbearable than having my salary deducted. If you haven’t ended up with such a petty superior, you should secretly be happy…

Gu Jiu’an stared at his phone, expression dazed, even forgetting to smoke.

He had merely shared the contact information of a high-end custom glasses artisan, yet he actually managed to get this much out of He Chen. Was that normal?

From the small, one could see the big. Yu Wangxiao’s state of mind seemed not too normal either.

Holding an indescribably subtle mood, Gu Jiu’an left the balcony and discovered Lin Jiangye had long since fallen asleep. He wanted to remind him, but also did not know how to say it. He always felt that if he involved himself in someone else’s relationship matters again, it would make him seem especially ill-intentioned.

He silently placed the fruit candy back on Lin Jiangye’s desk, then washed up and went to sleep with complicated feelings, but he did not sleep peacefully.

As expected, early the next morning…

Lin Jiangye lazily picked up his phone and glanced at it, then directly flipped over and jumped down from the bed.

When he landed on the ground, he made no sound at all. His body was frighteningly agile. Gu Jiu’an woke early, and his attention quietly fell to Lin Jiangye’s side, but he was still startled by him.

Lin Jiangye had no time to care about his fright. He quickly washed up, changed clothes, and went out. Abandoning the slow elevator, he ran downstairs.

That familiar black sedan was parked beneath his dormitory building at this moment.

He was not even panting much when he pulled open the car door and stood outside, looking at Yu Wangxiao for a moment. Yet in his heart, for some inexplicable reason, there rose a feeling of being timid near home.

The Yu Wangxiao on the phone screen looked much worse than the real one. Sure enough, the real person was better, and he also smelled very fragrant. Lin Jiangye stared at him, quietly breathing, unable to help smiling.

It was still a proper black suit, but the style seemed a little different. The hem was designed to cinch the waist more, and he was not wearing a tie. The shirt collar was open, inappropriate yet making him seem a little more unrestrained than usual.

In the end, it was Yu Wangxiao who gently broke the silence.

“You don’t have class this morning, right? It’s cold. Come in and sit first?”

“…Mm.”

Lin Jiangye discovered that his reaction was half a beat slow. He had just sat inside the car when his left hand was caught again.

The dry, warm touch slid upward along the gaps between his fingers, stirring unfamiliar itchiness and ripples. Very soon, that hand also held his wrist and pinched it, as if weighing whether he had gained flesh. The strength was neither light nor heavy, strange.

For a moment, Lin Jiangye did not know what he should say. Instinctively, he shifted closer, touching shoulders with him, their legs pressed together. Heat passed through the fabric, much slower than from the palm.

This also seemed strange, but Yu Wangxiao did not move away. So Lin Jiangye felt there was nothing inappropriate about it. Taking the chance, he tilted his head again and sniffed this most fragrant human.

After closely smelling the human, the satisfied Lin Jiangye finally came up with a brilliant topic.

He confidently spoke, “I ate.”

Yu Wangxiao curved his lips. “Mm, I missed you too.”