Chapter 71: The Senior’s Childhood Friends
What about Wen Rong? Would he be willing?
Shi Ye guessed that Wen Rong probably wouldn’t be. He only wanted Leon.
In his heart, Leon was even more important than the three from the Journalism Club.
This was normal because at the start of school, only Leon had been good to him.
Messy thoughts tangled in his brain. Shi Ye suddenly curled the corners of his mouth in a helpless smile.
Laughing at himself for seriously considering the matter of “joint custody.”
No matter how you beautified it, this was being a homewrecker.
His beautiful life had been ruined by that mistress, Zhang Wanfei, yet now he wanted to be the other man.
Crazy.
The enormous Science Museum was quiet. occasionally, researchers walked by talking, proving he wasn’t alone, yet he felt singular and solitary.
His chest felt tighter and tighter, as if pressed by the air. His breathing grew labored.
He shook his head and left the gloomy corridor. At the entrance, the mountain wind blew, dry and cold, forcing his hair to stand on end and forcing his brain to sober up.
Wen Rong didn’t only spend time alone with Leon; he had spent time alone with him too.
When he taught Wen Rong tennis, Wen Rong mimicked his movements. When he said “wrong,” Wen Rong would go “Huh?”, his pink lips parting slightly, the tip of his tongue touching his lower teeth—a bit dazed, a bit silly. Shi Ye couldn’t help reaching out to correct him, grasping that slender wrist. Wen Rong didn’t resist, letting him move him as he pleased.
The obedient student look was more docile than a cat, greatly satisfying Shi Ye’s “desire for control.”
In that moment, he really wanted to pick Wen Rong up like a cat, bury his face in his hair, and inhale that scent that even Wen Rong himself couldn’t smell.
Just fantasizing about such behavior made the corners of Shi Ye’s mouth lift uncontrollably. His wind-chilled brain heated up and swelled.
But when such fantasies turned into a movie, where Wen Rong became a stranger across the screen and the person beside him changed to the golden-haired Leon, a wave of cold assaulted his entire body again.
Shi Ye lowered his head, the light in his eyes dissipating.
These past two days, thoughts of Wen Rong occurred more and more frequently.
More than before.
Because Wen Rong was very good at making him happy, making him feel surprised, and even… torturing Zhou Xie.
Shi Ye knew Leon, and he knew Zhou Xie. He knew exactly what expression Zhou Xie would have when seeing the trending topics. So, all the anger he felt from being tormented by Zhou Xie dissolved the moment he knew Wen Rong had dug a pit for him—He actually dared to make Zhou Xie eat crow! What a clever and interesting person!
It was precisely because of this that he became more and more attracted, unknowingly crossing the barrier of “I’ve fallen for the same person as my best friend.”
He wanted to be with Wen Rong. He wanted it badly. Very badly.
“Did Senior invite Shi Ye too?” A voice suddenly came from behind.
The muscles on Shi Ye’s back twitched, and he turned around mechanically.
Wen Rong walked out holding a museum brochure. Leon followed behind him, playing with a ball of white stuff in his hand, winding it in circles.
Shi Ye looked closely and realized it was the stockings Zhang Lin gave Wen Rong this morning. Although Wen Rong didn’t wear them in the end, Leon winding that thing around his fingertips felt somewhat ambiguous.
His stern face went through a myriad of changes, while his azure eyes remained unreadable. “Mm. It was bad of me to force you to stand someone else up, so I thought we could all have dinner together.”
Then he looked straight at Shi Ye. “Have the three from the Journalism Club not arrived yet?”
The unspoken understanding of growing up together let Shi Ye instantly grasp Leon’s meaning. He turned silently to grab his phone and message Lin Qizheng.
Lin Qizheng: [That’s not appropriate~]
Shi Ye: [Get here now.]
Lin Qizheng: [With your lineup, you should call Senior Liang. If you want, you can call Shi Jing too. Anyway, this isn’t an occasion we NPCs should attend.]
Ever since he took Lin Qizheng to the villa for a private interrogation, Lin Qizheng had started giving him attitude.
Shi Ye felt deeply that his status was low and his words carried no weight. He turned off his phone. “None of them are coming.”
“Then… if you don’t mind, shall the three of us go together?” Leon looked at Wen Rong.
Shi Ye saw “expectation” in that look. And saying “if you don’t mind”—his gut told him Leon was hoping Wen Rong would refuse.
Wen Rong would definitely refuse.
Shi Ye wanted to be tactful and leave early, but then Wen Rong nodded vigorously. “Okay!”
The corner of Leon’s mouth stiffened slightly. Shi Ye felt flattered and surprised. “You really want me to join you?”
Wen Rong continued nodding. “Senior and Shi Ye haven’t seen each other for a long time either. It’s a chance to get together.”
Leon smiled again. “Mm, you’re very thoughtful.”
On the return trip, they took Shi Ye’s car.
Leon had called a dedicated museum car to get there, but now that they were going to eat, he naturally felt embarrassed to ask them for help again.
Shi Ye, happy for only a few minutes about successfully joining the pair, looked at the two in the backseat through the rearview mirror and cursed himself for having too many cars and taking too long to choose. If he hadn’t forgotten to bring the two-seater LaFerrari, he wouldn’t be sitting alone in the front now, gripping the steering wheel, acting like a completely negligible chauffeur.
If he had been nicer to Wen Rong at the start of school, Leon would be the driver right now.
“Senior, were you responsible for this too?” Wen Rong suddenly pointed to a spot on the brochure and leaned in close to Leon.
Shi Ye was drawn in as well, watching through the mirror as Leon turned his head to answer, “No.”
Then Leon added regretfully, “I’m actually not as amazing as you imagine, and I don’t know how to do everything.”
Shi Ye: ?
Leon knows how to be humble?
Wen Rong was shocked. “How can that be? Senior, you are the most amazing person I know.”
“Really?”
“Mm.”
“Senior is very happy you said that. It’s a very powerful way to compliment someone; you can praise people like that often in the future.”
“Mm-hm.”
Fuck!
Shi Ye slapped the steering wheel hard. It felt like four-dimensional wisdom had been injected into his brain—disbelief and shock: You can do that???
The road ended, and they pulled into the parking lot. Shi Ye unbuckled his seatbelt and got out as if escaping for his life.
He didn’t walk a few steps before realizing that not only was he the driver and the third wheel, but now that he was charging ahead, he was bound to secure a table and make arrangements. Wouldn’t that make him the mysterious wingman found in every romance movie?
To hell with being a wingman.
He refused to be a wingman.
So he reversed like a robot, stood stiffly to the side, and waited for Wen Rong and Leon to get out before walking.
Even though Wen Rong looked at him with strange eyes.
“What are you looking at?” Shi Ye couldn’t control his emotions and asked gruffly.
“Nothing…”
Wen Rong lowered his head and continued reading the brochure.
Shi Ye: “…”
It’s over.
The polished walls of the hotel’s VIP elevator reflected everything brightly. As the doors closed, Shi Ye, realizing his attitude had been poor, couldn’t help glancing at Wen Rong to see if he was angry about his outburst.
Brochure in hand, expression calm, eyes full of thirst for knowledge.
Looks like he isn’t.
Leon seemed to know Wen Rong’s preferences better than he did. With just a slight move, Wen Rong displayed a fondness he usually didn’t show.
Shi Ye thought he definitely hadn’t observed Wen Rong enough—not as carefully as Leon. Inadvertently, he locked eyes with a pair of azure eyes beside Wen Rong.
The corners of Leon’s mouth curved; he didn’t seem surprised by Shi Ye’s peeking.
Shi Ye hurriedly looked away, wondering what Leon meant.
That look of knowing everything, yet remaining as calm as the wind—watching the fire from the other side of the river.
Does he not like Wen Rong that much?
Shi Ye shoved his hands into his pockets, clenching them into fists.
Wen Rong seemed to like Leon a lot. If Leon didn’t like Wen Rong that much, wouldn’t Wen Rong be very sad?
Although they were friends, Shi Ye always felt Leon wasn’t exactly a “good person.” At least, his personality in intimate relationships was definitely not good enough.
A Leon like that certainly wouldn’t like Wen Rong forever. Maybe in a few years, his family would arrange a marriage, and he would dump Wen Rong immediately.
Shi Ye hung his head and frowned, his thoughts driving into a no-man’s-land—heading wherever the terror was.
What if Leon doesn’t like Wen Rong?
What if Leon plays with Wen Rong’s feelings?
If that’s really the case, I—
Ding.
The elevator doors opened, and light spilled in. The no-man’s-land was suddenly equipped with signal towers, becoming much clearer.
He shouldn’t doubt his friend. Leon wasn’t a playboy who messed around in their circle. At least on major matters, Leon had always been reliable. So the affection Leon showed Wen Rong was real.
Shi Ye opened his mouth and exhaled.
But when he looked up and saw the two people practically blocking the elevator doors, he took a deep breath again.
Once more, he hated that he had driven to this hotel so casually, and come to this floor so casually.
His mother’s tea parties had too profound an influence. He, Leon, Zhou Xie, and Li Ao—the overlap in their lives was frighteningly high.
Sure enough, Wen Rong stepped back, half his body hiding behind Leon.
Outside of school, no one wore Floriman Academy uniforms. But Zhou Xie and Li Ao followed rules normal people didn’t—white shirts, black suits, black coats—looking like they had just finished an international conference.
Zhou Xie lowered his chin, his eyes scanning from the tallest, Shi Ye, to Leon, and finally passing through the golden hair tips to land on the pale, handsome little face.
What bad luck. Having been played in the morning, he came out to relax. Just as his mood was improving, he ran into the instigator who had played him.
Lingering spirit.
Stalking.
Unshakable—
Zhou Xie looked away, thinking about how many people were dizzied by that face. Shi Ye was one thing, but Leon was also partial to him. He couldn’t help but sneer.
How much charm does he have?
Curiosity compelled him to look up, aiming back at the face behind Leon’s shoulder.
The skin had an unhealthy whiteness, devoid of color. Beneath the bangs, thick eyelashes outlined deep eye contours, cradling two pools of water. Inside the water were large glass beads—indistinguishable in color, very light. Under the orange elevator lights, they glimmered with multicolored brilliance.
“What a coincidence.”
Leon’s voice snapped Zhou Xie back to reality. He lowered his eyes and gave a simple “Mm.”
He was about to leave when Leon called out to him again. “Since you’re here, let’s eat together.”
Zhou Xie intended to refuse, but Leon turned his head to say to Wen Rong, “Just a simple meal. It’s good to clear up any misunderstandings.”
He was presumably talking about the morning’s events.
Zhou Xie’s brain worked fast; in the blink of an eye, he understood Leon’s intent.
Leon must have been in a bad mood after learning everything this morning. Now that he had calmed down, he realized Wen Rong would gain nothing by opposing Zhou Xie, and wanted to mediate.
Wen Rong was indeed an annoying thorn. Not quite an opponent, but he always inexplicably invited trouble. Zhou Xie thought, It really is time to resolve this, otherwise who knows how much trouble he’ll cause in the future.
Li Ao assumed Zhou Xie’s silence meant refusal and took the initiative to say, “We have things to do tonight.”
Zhou Xie raised a hand to stop him from speaking further. He turned slightly to look at Leon. “You’re treating.”
You’re treating—
Zhou Xie made his attitude clear: He was not in the wrong; Wen Rong was. Therefore, Leon, the one standing behind Wen Rong, had to pay as an apology.
Leon lifted the corner of his mouth indifferently. “Of course I’m treating. Since we were kids, haven’t I always been the one to treat?”
Leon had always been the lubricant in the four-person relationship. Shi Ye was a warlike competitor who loved victory; Zhou Xie was a scheming superior. Neither would bow their heads. When conflicts arose, only Leon could mediate.
The four people present harbored their own thoughts. Only Wen Rong stood behind Leon, not knowing what to do.
After all… he still had a big move planned for later. If he made peace with Zhou Xie now, it would be hard to unleash that move.
“Senior, the elevator doors are closing,” Wen Rong said, changing the subject since he couldn’t reject Leon’s face directly.
Shi Ye was the first to step out of the elevator.
Leon explained to Wen Rong, “When I was little, my mother always took me along when she gathered with her friends. But she didn’t want me disturbing their conversation, so she would book a suite in this hotel and let me play inside by myself.”
In the hallway, the five of them walked with messy footsteps, each lost in thought, their shoes clicking against the floor.
As the footsteps grew more chaotic and the air tighter, Wen Rong worried about the “peace talk” and listened absently to Leon’s explanation.
“My mother’s friends thought the same way, so their children were in the same suite with me.”
Hearing about friends, Wen Rong perked up. “Wow, so you guys count as childhood friends?”
“Mm.”
“Your mothers’ friendship extended to you. That’s fate. Does Senior still keep in touch with them?”
“Mm.”
“Then you must absolutely be the best friends in the world.”
The footsteps stopped abruptly. Faces turned. Four pairs of eyes—eight eyeballs—hit Wen Rong like stage spotlights all at once.
Wen Rong: “…………”
Wen Rong: ?
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