Chapter 14

Chapter 14

Gu Yihong immediately felt that Yu Li was completely unreasonable.

He knew all of Gu Yubai’s friends, and this person definitely wasn’t in his circle of friends.

Yu Li was most likely a neighbor who had moved in recently, within the past month. Gu Yihong had been too focused on his online feud with the Su family to notice his presence.

But friends? Impossible!

There wasn’t a single friend of his big brother’s that he didn’t know about!

Instead of staying at a perfectly good hotel near his company, Yu Li insisted on staying at their home—this guy definitely had ulterior motives!

Thinking back to the swarm of admirers who had flocked around Gu Yubai during their school days because of his calm and gentle personality, Gu Yihong glanced up at the obviously much older and successful CEO Yu Li, growing worried.

He had a strong sense that Yu Li was up to no good—that he was here to steal his brother away.

Just as he was about to quietly pull Gu Yubai aside for a quick word, Gu Yubai suddenly let out a laugh.

He turned to Gu Yihong and said, “Yu Li and I really aren’t strangers.”

The memory of their first meeting flashed through Gu Yubai’s mind—Yu Li holding a towel in one hand, his face full of panic as he pushed a milk tea into his hands. He couldn’t help but smirk at the recollection.

The teasing in his tone was unmistakable. Yu Li abruptly whipped his head around to look at him, his eyes flickering with visible tension, a stark contrast to the relaxed indifference he had shown while talking to Gu Yihong earlier.

When Gu Yubai met his gaze, Yu Li turned away again, acting casual, though no one noticed the faint hint of annoyance in his eyes.

If Gu Yubai hadn’t brought up their first encounter, Yu Li could have comforted himself with the thought that maybe Gu Yubai didn’t even remember it.

But after this exchange, Yu Li realized it wasn’t a matter of forgetting—Gu Yubai remembered it vividly!

Gu Yubai’s eyes crinkled slightly. “Before this, Yu Li helped me handle a tough customer while I was out. Besides, his company is near the milk tea shop where I work part-time, so we’d occasionally run into each other. That’s how we became friends.”

His big brother had actually made a friend behind his back! And he hadn’t even known about it!

Gu Yihong’s first reaction was a pang of hurt, but then a flicker of realization crossed his face.

If that was the case, then it made sense.

No wonder his big brother was willing to let this guy stay at their place temporarily.

Gu Yihong had nothing left to say. He huffed.

“Brother, you’re too much. Now you’re making friends without even telling me. Am I still your favorite brother or not?”

Gu Yubai rubbed Gu Yihong’s messy hair with slight annoyance.

“What kind of nonsense is that?” Anyone listening might think he’d gone behind his brother’s back to found a boyfriend!

-----

The door was left open—Gu Yubai had rushed out in the middle of the night and hadn’t locked it. Earlier, the fire department and property management had also inspected the apartment and confirmed that aside from the electrical issues, there was no damage. They had even notified Gu Yubai specifically.

Now, the morning sunlight flooded in, warm and gentle at around eight or nine o’clock.

The electricity hadn’t been restored yet, but the apartment was still bright and clean, with faint dust motes floating in the light.

Yu Li spotted the suitcase in the living room and glanced at Gu Yubai, asking pointedly, “Is someone going on a trip?”

Gu Yubai was still working out how to set up his adoptive father’s old bedroom for Yu Li to stay in for a few days, so his reaction was delayed.

Gu Yihong answered first. “That’s mine. I made plans with a long-time online friend to go on a cruise. I’ll be away for a few days.”

Yu Li’s movements froze. A strange glint flashed in his eyes as he weighed his words for a moment before suddenly asking, “You’re not doing this to avoid the Su family, are you?”

Without waiting for Gu Yihong’s reply, Yu Li continued swiftly.

“I saw it online. You’re the True Young Master the Su family recently took back. You and the Su family had a falling out over that false young master, Su Shengli. But didn’t you confidently declare online that you’d give the Su family three days to respond? Why the sudden trip? Unless… you never actually planned to forgive them, and the three-day ultimatum was just a pretense?”

Gu Yihong’s pupils visibly dilated. A look of surprise flashed in his eyes as he blurted out, “How did you know?!”

So, he’d guessed correctly.

Yu Li narrowed his eyes thoughtfully. If Gu Yihong had taken Gu Yubai’s place as the True Young Master not for the Su family’s wealth or power, then what was his real motive?

Gu Yihong’s actions completely contradicted Yu Li’s previous assumptions.

Was Gu Yubai unaware, or had he quietly agreed? Or was this all part of their plan from the start?

Yu Li suddenly smiled.

“No offense, but this isn’t a good idea.”

Gu Yihong blinked, then grinned back.

“So what? As long as the Su family is humiliated, that’s all that matters to me. The rest doesn’t concern me.”

Yu Li was strikingly handsome. Even in a suit and dress shoes, his extraordinary looks gave off an intimidating first impression—someone not to be trifled with.

But more striking than his appearance was the commanding aura of a leader who tolerated no argument.

When he was serious and unsmiling, he exuded an oppressive presence that made people question whether they’d done something wrong—a classic trait of a long-term successful executive: steady, mature, intelligent, and disciplined.

Only at second glance would people notice his exceptional features—his pale, flawless complexion, sharp and dark eyebrows, deep and mesmerizing eyes that seemed to see through people, a tall and straight nose, and lips that were thin, red, and treacherously kissable.

Gu Yihong only had time for a quick glance at his face before a ripple of unease stirred in his heart.

Who was this guy? Someone so unforgettable—why had he left no impression in his past life?

In his previous life, as a businessman who stirred up storms in Mingcheng after his big brother Gu Yubai, Gu Yihong was certain he had met most of the outstanding young talents in the city, if not the entire country.

If someone like Yu Li had appeared before him, he wouldn’t have forgotten.

Unless this man had been abroad his entire past life—or had died early.

Gu Yihong frowned slightly, uncertain if Yu Li was a variable or something else entirely.

This sense of losing control unsettled him, as if fate had derailed from its intended course.

Gu Yihong couldn’t be bothered to speculate about Yu Li’s stance. He asked bluntly,

“What? Are you going to tattle to the Su family?”

His hostility was blatant, as if the moment Yu Li said yes, Gu Yihong would immediately brand him an enemy.

The kid is truly arrogant and heartless—nothing like the obedient lapdog he used to be around Gu Yubai.

Yu Li smiled.

His tone unusually softened: "Of course not. Our company doesn’t have much business with the Su family. Besides... I’m just an employee. I don’t want to, nor do I have the right to meddle in your rich people drama."

Gu Yihong’s identity theft didn’t appear self-serving.

As long as it didn’t harm Gu Yubai, no matter how strange his actions were, Yu Li would pretend not to notice.

Yu Li relaxed.

He paused, then said, "I was just genuinely curious. Your older brother is my friend. I’ll always be on your side."

----------

While the two were butting heads, Gu Yubai went to tidy up the house.

He changed the bedsheets for his foster father’s bed, opened the window to air it out, then turned around.

When he reached the living room, he found only Yu Li there, and the suitcase by the sofa was gone.

Gu Yubai did a double take. "Where’s Yihong?"

Yu Li chuckled. "He took his luggage and went traveling. He just got a call—his online friend drove over to pick him up because he flaked on them last night and didn’t show up at their agreed meeting spot."

Gu Yubai let out an "Oh," then walked to the window near the north door. From a distance, he saw Gu Yihong happily dragging a suitcase toward the front gate. He promptly stopped giving it another thought.

Yu Li paced around the place for a bit before he failed to stifle a yawn, a tear forming at the corner of his eye.

Counting yesterday, he had been running on empty for a full day.

Gu Yubai turned and led him to the door of his foster father’s bedroom.

"There aren’t any guest rooms in my house, so I’ll have to ask you to stay here for now. This room is currently unoccupied."

He smiled. "Later, I’ll give you a copy of the house key. That way, no matter how late you get off work, you can get inside."

Yu Li relaxed completely, looking at Gu Yubai with a gentle smile.

His voice was husky and warm.

"Honestly, I’m the one cramping your style. I haven’t even thanked you for helping me out."

Gu Yubai waved it off, fighting sleep himself.

After pointing out the available space to Yu Li, he returned to his own bedroom to sleep.

Having been woken up in the middle of the night, he had only clocked two hours of sleep and was running on fumes.

Luckily, he had already put in for time off from the boba shop manager since he needed to return to school after his college entrance exam results came out. He didn’t have to work these next few days.

Gu Yubai had a habit of locking his bedroom door when he slept.

When he woke up, he realized he had slept through the entire day. A comforter covered him, and the air conditioner above his bed hummed as it blew cool air downward.

The electricity must’ve come back on at some point.

The AC in his room had probably been turned on by Yu Li from the main switch in the living room.

Gu Yubai rolled out of bed and noticed the door to his foster father’s bedroom was open. The fresh linens were neatly folded, and the person who should have been catching up on sleep was nowhere to be found.

He assumed the man must have gone back to work.

Picking up his phone, he saw a message from Gu Yihong:

"If the Su family can’t find me, they’ll probably come looking for me at home. Big bro, I’m worried they’ll mess with your routine. Don’t forget what I told you before."

Gu Yubai replied with a thumbs-up frog meme.

-------

The Su family arrived the next day.

When the door got hammered, Gu Yubai happened to be home for once, prepping his talking points for the post-college entrance exam media interviews scheduled for his return to school the following day.

He was buried in his notes in the study, fully absorbed, and only realized someone was knocking after a long while.

A scowl formed on his face.

It couldn’t be Yu Li—Yu Li had a key.

Nor could it be Gu Yihong, who had left just a day ago. It wasn’t even the property management.

Gu Yubai knew exactly who it was.

Walking to the doorbell cam, he saw exactly what he expected: a group of people on the screen.

At the front was Su Linyuan, dressed in a white shirt and dress pants, his entire demeanor oozing privilege. Beside him stood Su Shengli, putting on his choirboy act.

Su Linyuan’s face was stormy with disapproval, not exactly coming in peace. Meanwhile, Su Shengli played the sympathetic one, though the glee in his eyes was barely concealed.

Behind them hovered an assistant.