Chapter 9: Concealment and Conflict
While his wound was being treated, Shen Zhouyue glanced cautiously at Yu Tingzhou, trying to gauge his mood, but saw that he was expressionless.
Shen Zhouyue wanted to say something to alleviate the atmosphere, so he whispered something about the souvenirs.
But Yu Tingzhou acted as if he hadn’t heard a thing.
On the way back to the hotel, Shen Zhouyue secretly went online for help.
[I hid some things and made my contract marriage partner angry. What should I do?]
Someone replied to the post very quickly.
Shen Zhouyue looked expectantly, only to see the reply saying: [If a contract marriage partner is angry, let them be angry. It’s not like you guys are real anyway.]
[Of course, if you have a crush on him, pretend I didn’t say anything!]
Shen Zhouyue didn’t think he had a crush on Yu Tingzhou. Seeing this message, he angrily pressed his phone screen until it clicked.
[I don’t like him! I just have a reason to need to be tied to him. If he ends the agreement in a fit of anger, my plan will be affected.]
Before hitting send, Shen Zhouyue’s rationality returned. Realizing how ridiculous his behavior was, he silently deleted the typed words.
Through the rearview mirror, Yu Tingzhou noticed Shen Zhouyue immersed in his own world, the expression on his face constantly changing. He got even angrier.
He silently pressed harder on the accelerator. The car suddenly sped up, causing Shen Zhouyue, who was fiddling with his phone, to look up in fright.
“You… slow down…”
His voice was lost in the wind; Yu Tingzhou’s speed didn’t decrease.
Shen Zhouyue bit his lip hard. His lips were pale, and beads of sweat rolled down his forehead.
Noticing Shen Zhouyue’s expression, Yu Tingzhou silently reduced the speed.
Finally, the car screeched to a halt at the hotel entrance. Shen Zhouyue immediately unbuckled his seatbelt and moved to get out of the car.
His legs were weak and he couldn’t exert much strength.
Just as he left the car, his legs gave way, and he almost fell to the ground.
Fortunately, he held onto the car door in time to steady himself, but his stomach churned, and he vomited.
Seeing Shen Zhouyue in this state, Yu Tingzhou bought a bottle of room-temperature water from a nearby vending machine and handed it to him.
Shen Zhouyue certainly hadn’t forgotten why he felt so terrible. With red eyes, he glared at Yu Tingzhou, unwilling to accept his water.
The corners of his upturned phoenix eyes were tinged with red, making him look like he had been bullied severely.
A look of guilt appeared on Yu Tingzhou’s face. “Sorry.”
Shen Zhouyue caught his breath, glared at Yu Tingzhou again, and walked huffily into the hotel without sparing him another glance.
Noticing the gazes of people around them, Yu Tingzhou rubbed his nose awkwardly and hurriedly chased after him.
Back in the room, Shen Zhouyue took a long time to calm himself down and put the matter behind him.
It seems I need to implement the plan as soon as possible; I can’t go on like this…
But for the next few days, Yu Tingzhou left early and returned late. Shen Zhouyue couldn’t run into him at all, let alone carry out his plan.
This made Shen Zhouyue very frustrated, and his mood was quite low.
When he received a call from Fang Hanyun, he forced himself to perk up to deal with it.
“Zhouyue, how is the honeymoon going with Tingzhou?”
Shen Zhouyue tried his best to cover up, but Fang Hanyun was a seasoned veteran.
She was already suspicious of their relationship, and hearing Shen Zhouyue’s stuttering explanation, she immediately became skeptical.
After all, Shen Zhouyue wasn’t her son, so she couldn’t question him directly. Therefore, immediately after the call ended, she contacted Yu Tingzhou.
Receiving Fang Hanyun’s call, Yu Tingzhou had a bad premonition.
The next second, the premonition was verified.
“I heard you’ve been negotiating a lot of business deals for the company these past few days?”
Yu Tingzhou coughed awkwardly. “I snatched a moment of leisure to discuss a few deals.”
“Did you go for a honeymoon, or to discuss business!”
“Or is it that the honeymoon is fake, and the marriage is also lying to me?”
Yu Tingzhou had never realized his mother was so sensitive in this regard. He immediately explained, “Of course it’s real.”
“I have no need to lie to you about this kind of thing, do I?”
After Yu Tingzhou’s repeated explanations, Fang Hanyun barely believed his words, but she still gave him a warning.
After hanging up, Yu Tingzhou found he was covered in sweat.
He walked to the door of Shen Zhouyue’s room and knocked gently.
If no one opened the door, he would just pretend he hadn’t received his mom’s call today!
Chapter 10: The Auction
Shen Zhouyue didn’t know what Yu Tingzhou was thinking.
Hearing the knock, he wiped his dripping hair and walked slowly to the door to open it.
Yu Tingzhou’s face, looking somewhat conflicted, appeared in Shen Zhouyue’s line of sight.
“Something the matter?”
He stopped what he was doing. Water droplets from his hair ran down the strands onto his collarbone, and more drops flowed along his skin toward where the bathrobe concealed him.
“Ahem…” Yu Tingzhou looked away uncomfortably. “Tomorrow night, there is an auction here. You will attend it with me.”
Dropping this sentence, Yu Tingzhou turned and left before Shen Zhouyue could react.
Hasn’t he been avoiding me? Why suddenly…
Shen Zhouyue was a bit confused.
He returned to the room, and while drying his hair, he began to look up information on the auction.
Suddenly, he received a call from An’an.
Shen Zhouyue immediately tossed everything else aside.
In the video call, An’an’s face was a bit pale, and he looked unhappy.
He asked in a milky voice, “Daddy… when are you coming back…”
“An’an hasn’t seen Daddy for… three, four… so many days.”
“Daddy has something very important to do. After this is done, An’an won’t have to stay in the ward all day and can do what he likes just like everyone else.”
Hearing Shen Zhouyue’s words, An’an was a little happy.
He rolled excitedly on the bed. “Then when can Daddy come back!”
“An’an is looking forward to it so much… and An’an misses Daddy…”
Shen Zhouyue’s eyes reddened. The longing for An’an that he had been suppressing these past few days suddenly bubbled up.
“Daddy misses An’an too!”
“Daddy bought you your favorite Rubik’s Cube and already mailed it back. An’an might see it as soon as he wakes up tomorrow.”
An’an was happy about receiving a gift, but he wanted Shen Zhouyue to come back and keep him company even more.
He pursed his lips and said aggrievedly, “Then when is Daddy coming back…”
“It’s An’an’s birthday in a month. Can Daddy come back to be with An’an?”
Looking at An’an’s expectant face, Shen Zhouyue couldn’t bring himself to refuse.
He promised immediately, “Don’t worry, An’an. Daddy will definitely come back for your birthday!”
If worse comes to worst, I’ll just say I want to go to France for a honeymoon.
With a plan in mind, Shen Zhouyue looked a bit more relaxed.
“Daddy will prepare a big gift for An’an.”
He coaxed An’an for a while longer until the boy’s voice became groggy and his eyelids closed. The person on the other end of the video call switched.
Seeing Yun Xing appear, Shen Zhouyue said hurriedly, “It’s getting late, I’m tired. Let’s talk next time.”
Then, without giving the person on the other end a chance to speak, he hung up.
Early the next morning, not long after Shen Zhouyue got up, he was taken to a styling studio by Yu Tingzhou.
He looked at Yu Tingzhou with a face full of confusion. “This is… for what?”
“The auction has a dress code.”
Shen Zhouyue suddenly understood.
He vaguely remembered seeing that part in the information he looked up yesterday.
He sat obediently in front of the mirror, letting the makeup artist paint on his face with various tools.
He hadn’t slept very well last night because he was a bit excited from An’an’s call.
Closing his eyes now, his consciousness grew hazy, and he actually fell asleep.
It wasn’t until he heard, “All done, Mr. Shen, you can open your eyes now!” sounding in his ear that he was startled awake.
Opening his eyes, he saw a version of himself in the mirror that looked like it had been put through a filter.
“Um… isn’t this a bit too exaggerated…”
His originally upturned eyes had been modified by the makeup artist to become somewhat rounder, giving them the appearance of almond eyes.
He felt that the person in the mirror didn’t look like himself, but more like Yun Xing…
Could it be that Yu Tingzhou did this on purpose…
Shen Zhouyue was confused.
The makeup artist didn’t know Shen Zhouyue was confused and pulled him over to pick out a suit.
When everything was ready, Shen Zhouyue walked in front of Yu Tingzhou.
He was wearing a light blue formal suit. Because he wasn’t used to it, he tugged at his clothes from time to time, looking somewhat constrained and bewildered.
This reminded Yu Tingzhou of the first time he saw his junior…
In a trance, he took a step forward and called out softly, “Yun Xing…”
Hearing this name, Shen Zhouyue’s mood cooled instantly.
He realized that the gentle look Yu Tingzhou had inadvertently revealed earlier wasn’t for him, but for Yun Xing.
“I am not Yun Xing.”
Shen Zhouyue’s tone was cold. This was the first time he had shown such an expression.
Yu Tingzhou snapped out of it immediately and rubbed his brow. “Sorry, I mistook you for someone else.”
“You look very beautiful like this.”
“Thank you, you too.”
The two exchanged polite and distant pleasantries, like two strangers meeting for the first time.
“It’s getting late, we should get going.”
“Okay.”
Shen Zhouyue followed behind Yu Tingzhou and set off for the venue hosting the auction.
It was a very large estate. The location was a bit remote, but the scenery was extremely beautiful.
Yu Tingzhou briefly explained the situation of the auction, then took Shen Zhouyue to meet a few of his friends.
“Xuanting, Fang Mo, this is my partner, Shen Zhouyue.”
Aren’t we in a contract marriage?
Why bring me to meet your friends…
Shen Zhouyue looked up slightly, glancing at Yu Tingzhou out of the corner of his eye, wanting to confirm what mindset led him to introduce his identity this way.
Hearing Yu Tingzhou’s words, Liu Xuanting’s gaze landed on Shen Zhouyue’s face.
His expression changed instantly, looking somewhat incredulous.
“You found a stand-in? No way, playing it this big!”
Because he was too excited, Liu Xuanting didn’t control the volume of his voice, even raising it, which attracted the attention of quite a few people.
“No, don’t overthink it. There’s nothing between Yun Xing and me. He’s been married for so long; isn’t it normal for me to find a partner?”
The more Yu Tingzhou explained, the more it revealed his guilty conscience.
Shen Zhouyue wore a well-behaved and gentle smile, standing beside Yu Tingzhou as if he hadn’t heard what Liu Xuanting had just said.
“President Yu, long time no see. I was just mentioning you to Kerri and the others!”
Yu Tingzhou hadn’t come here just for the auction; he also planned to meet more partners here.
He glanced at Shen Zhouyue, who was following beside him, lowered his head slightly, and whispered in his ear, “You stick with Fang Mo for a while.”
“The auction hasn’t started yet, and I have other matters.”
The warm breath on Shen Zhouyue’s ear made him feel a bit ticklish.
He controlled the urge to touch his ear and nodded obediently. “I understand.”
After Yu Tingzhou left, Liu Xuanting couldn’t wait to start gossiping.
“How did you and Tingzhou meet? When did you get together?”
Shen Zhouyue gave Liu Xuanting a perfunctory answer, avoiding the heavy details.
He was worried his story wouldn’t match Yu Tingzhou’s.
Liu Xuanting didn’t notice anything wrong at first, but when every question received only a brief two or three-word answer, no matter how dense he was, he could sense something was off.
And Liu Xuanting wasn’t dense.
“Are you patronizing me?”
Liu Xuanting’s face went cold, and he questioned unhappily, “What kind of attitude is this? Tingzhou and I are very good friends. Aren’t you afraid I’ll badmouth you in front of him?”
Shen Zhouyue calmly took a few steps back to avoid Liu Xuanting’s gaze. “Sorry, if you are interested in the matters between Tingzhou and me, you can ask him directly.”
“I think the relationship between you and him should be closer than his relationship with me!”
Such an answer didn’t satisfy Liu Xuanting. Just as he was about to say something, he was pulled back by Fang Mo.
“This is Tingzhou’s private affair. Don’t meddle too much; it’s not appropriate.”
Fang Mo’s words interrupted the anger Liu Xuanting was about to vent.
But his expression was unpleasant.
“Hello, I don’t think I’m disturbing you, am I?”
Suddenly, a somewhat familiar voice came over.
Shen Zhouyue looked over in confusion and saw Chris.
Thinking of Yu Tingzhou’s hostility toward Chris that day, Shen Zhouyue said somewhat embarrassedly, “Sorry. I said I’d treat you to a meal that day, but we ended up parting on bad terms.”
Chris glanced at Liu Xuanting, then withdrew his gaze and smiled. “It’s fine.”
“Speaking of which, we are quite destined to meet again here.”
“I see you don’t seem to like the atmosphere here very much. On the way to the back garden, there is a corridor with many paintings by famous artists hanging on it. I wonder if you are interested in going to appreciate them with me?”
Hearing the words “paintings by famous artists,” Shen Zhouyue’s eyes lit up instantly, as if a true soul had been injected into this well-behaved shell.
“Of course I’m interested, let’s go now!”
Shen Zhouyue actively tugged at Chris’s clothes, wanting to see those paintings a little sooner.
“Hey, you are Tingzhou’s partner, how can you be so intimate with someone else?”
Shen Zhouyue turned a deaf ear to Liu Xuanting’s words.
He felt he couldn’t get along with Liu Xuanting and didn’t want to waste time interacting with him.
Compared to these irrelevant people, the paintings Chris mentioned were much more important.
Under Shen Zhouyue’s expectant gaze, they soon reached their destination.
The paintings hanging in the corridor were indeed by famous artists.
Each painting was very distinctive and stylish.
Shen Zhouyue’s favorite was a landscape painting.
The artist’s brushstrokes were soft and used large areas of warm colors, making one feel warm just looking at it, and all negative emotions in the heart disappeared.
“This painting is also on the list of auction items today. If you like it, I can bid on it and give it to you.”
Chris’s voice sounded from very close by, startling Shen Zhouyue, who had been immersed in the painting.
He waved his hands frantically. Just as he was about to refuse, he heard a burst of footsteps approaching.
Immediately after, Yu Tingzhou’s displeased voice rang out.
“No need to trouble Mr. Chris. Whatever my lover wants, I will naturally bid on it for him.”
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