Chapter 30: The Runaway Fiancé

Chapter 30: The Runaway Fiancé

Wen Yu changed into a clean white shirt and dark casual pants. No one was home, and Wang Shoucheng glanced at his phone.

"Young Master, it's not good to be cooped up at home all day. The engagement banquet is tomorrow—why not go out for a bit?"

Wang Shoucheng had already prepared a pair of sneakers for him. "As it happens, the eldest young master is out on business, so you're free to go have some fun."

Wen Yu looked down at the shoes, said nothing, and bent over to put them on.

Golf course.

The sun was brutal. Wen Yu squinted as he looked around, spotting Wen Baichuan holding a putter, his easy, practiced stance relaxed as he chatted about business with a group of people.

His eldest brother, Wen Hanzhou, stood beside Wen Baichuan, speaking in low tones with a business partner.

He wore a dark navy shirt, his demeanor calm and composed.

Wen Hanzhou noticed Wen Yu, his gaze sweeping over casually, and gave a slight nod.

Wen Yu stood quietly off to the side. Only after the conversation ended did Wen Hanzhou turn around and take a spare club from the golf cart.

"I brought you here to unwind," Wen Hanzhou said, handing the club to him.

Wen Yu took the club and hefted it in his hands.

Feeling nervous, Wen Yu took a swing at the ball.

Wen Hanzhou stood nearby watching, tilting his head slightly, silent for two seconds, as if making sure he wasn't seeing things.

"You're leaning too far forward."

Wen Hanzhou reached out and adjusted Wen Yu's grip on the club.

Wen Yu adjusted his stance as instructed, and the ball veered off crookedly.

Wen Hanzhou said, "You're getting engaged tomorrow. Are you sure about this?"

Wen Yu's fingers curled a little tighter around the club, his lashes drooping as he gave a soft "Mm."

Wen Hanzhou didn't continue speaking.

Wen Yu wondered—after the engagement, would he have to see Brother Yubai with that first love every day?

These past few days, he'd noticed it. Shen Yubai was everywhere like a ghost, always having that old flame in tow. No matter where Wen Yu went, even to feed strays by the roadside, he'd see those two all over each other.

It was like someone was doing it on purpose to mess with him.

Wen Yu was confused and looked at Wen Hanzhou. "Brother, once you're engaged, you're not supposed to cheat, right?"

"Huh?" Wen Hanzhou was taken aback by Wen Yu's odd question. "Wen Yu, what have you seen?"

"They say Brother Yubai has a first love, like he prefers her more." Wen Yu's voice was subdued.

Wen Hanzhou was silent for a few seconds. "You mean that young lady from the He family?"

Wen Yu nodded.

"Her? She and Shen Yubai apparently used to be together," Wen Hanzhou said slowly, as if recalling something from long ago. "For whatever reason, they broke up two years ago, and reportedly, Mrs. Shen didn't approve of their relationship."

In these circles, no secret stays hidden—everyone just pretends not to know.

Wen Hanzhou didn't elaborate further.

Wen Yu kept his head down, idly tracing circles in the grass with the club head.

"Don't worry, Wen Yu. You're the only one for this arranged marriage. As for Miss He, it's impossible," Wen Hanzhou reassured him.

Wen Yu didn't really care who he ended up marrying in the end.

Maybe everyone thought he was after the title of Shen family's young mistress.

After all, who enters a marriage between wealthy families for anything else?

But that wasn't him.

What bothered him was—why could someone have their cake and eat it too?

That thought stuck in his heart like a thorn.

It was plain to see Shen Yubai's gaze on Miss He was different.

It was obvious Shen Yubai's tone with her was different.

It was obvious to everyone that Shen Yubai preferred Miss He.

So why marry him at all?

"Brother," Wen Yu took a deep breath, "if I'm unhappy, would you let me call off the wedding?"

Wen Hanzhou's hand froze for a moment.

"Your fiancé at least has decent character—he won't let you be wronged."

The engagement banquet for Wen Yu and Shen Yubai was held in the garden hall of the Shen family's old residence.

Wen Yu wore a white suit with a lily of the valley pinned to his chest, standing beside Shen Yubai.

.

Shen Yubai wore a black suit, standing tall and straight as a pine.

Midway through the engagement ceremony, just as the host was about to invite both sets of parents up to speak, Shen Yubai's phone buzzed suddenly.

He glanced down at the screen, his brow furrowing almost imperceptibly.

"Sorry, I have to take this," he said to Wen Yu beside him, then turned and headed toward the terrace off to the side of the hall.

Wen Yu's eyes followed his retreating figure, watching him push open the glass door—the night wind rushed in, fluttering the hem of his suit jacket.

The door closed.

Wen Yu stood where he was, the bouquet in his hands crushed slightly out of shape.

About two minutes went by, and Shen Yubai still hadn't come back.

Wen Yu quietly inched a few steps toward the terrace. Through the glass door, he saw Shen Yubai with his back to the hall, one hand holding his phone, the other resting on the railing.

Shen Yubai's back went rigid all of a sudden.

The glass door to the terrace wasn't fully closed, leaving a thin crack—the sound slipped through it, a woman's voice, choked with tears and breaking apart.

"Yubai... I miss you so much."

Wen Yu stood rooted to the spot.

"Don't get engaged, okay... I only have you... Yubai, I'm scared, I'm so scared..."

Wen Yu saw Shen Yubai's hand holding the phone trembling slightly.

"Wanyue, listen to me."

Shen Yubai's voice was edged with panic.

From that angle, Wen Yu had a clear view.

In the video, He Wanyue was in a white nightgown, hair loose, eyes red and puffy, a white bandage wrapped around her wrist, with a faint pink seeping through beneath it.

"Yubai..." Her voice was weak and trembling, like a string ready to snap. "I... I miss you so much."

"I don't want to live anymore, Yubai." He Wanyue's tears fell in big drops, splattering on her phone screen and smearing her features. "You're engaged... you don't want me anymore... I don't know what's the point of living anymore..."

Wen Yu saw Shen Yubai's shoulders snap tight.

"Yueyue, listen to me," Shen Yubai's voice was shaking. "Put the knife down, just put it down, okay?"

In that moment, Shen Yubai fell apart.

"Don't do anything stupid. I'm coming over right now, you hear me? I'm coming right now."

Wen Yu stood there, his face reflected in the glass door—along with his white suit, still bearing a youthful sheen, and eyes that had suddenly gone completely dead.

The glass door was shoved open hard.

Shen Yubai nearly burst out, tie crooked, hair wind-tossed, eyes rimmed in red.

He spotted Wen Yu at the door and hesitated.

Their gazes locked.

"Brother Yubai..." Wen Yu asked, almost nonsensically, "...where are you going?"

Shen Yubai's lips parted. "I'm sorry, Wen Yu."

Wen Yu stood frozen as Shen Yubai took off.

Wen Hanzhou was in conversation with an elder, but caught sight of Wen Yu from the corner of his eye and sized him up discreetly.

"Wen Yu, you okay?" he asked in a low voice.

Wen Yu shook his head, grabbed a glass of champagne, and took a small sip.

The golden liquid went down his throat—a little bitter.

The party went on, lively as if in another world. No one noticed Shen Yubai was missing, and even fewer cared that Wen Yu's eyes were a little red.

That champagne's bitterness felt like the heavy stone in his chest.

He wanted to go back to the mountain village, to see the greens in the fields, all lush and green.

Grandpa once said a person has three big things in life: first, family and friends always around you; second, making a name for yourself through studies.

The third is marriage.

But he felt so wronged. The marriage was arranged, and the person he was marrying was in love with someone else. Yet he also felt Shen Yubai wasn't to blame.

Because there was no love, there was even more reason to use him as a front.

Wen Hanzhou could tell he was upset. "Wen Yu, it's just a family alliance marriage. We're doing this for you. Marrying Shen Yubai isn't a bad deal—at least he's accomplished young. Marriages in rich families have never been just about two people. Love is a luxury—nice if you have it, but if you don't... you can still manage."

He took a deep breath, his gaze landing on the oil painting on the opposite wall. "Having someone else in the picture is normal."

Wen Yu slowly raised his head. "Then, big brother, would you have someone else on the side?"

Wen Hanzhou was speechless.

"Big brother." Wen Yu spoke again.

"Even if it's not love,"

"Then why can't both sides be devoted to each other?"

Wen Hanzhou was stunned by Wen Yu's words.

Wen Yu was too simple—he saw everything in black and white.

Even if it wasn't love.

Even if it was just a marriage alliance.

Then why couldn't they take this relationship seriously? Why couldn't they keep the other person in their heart? Why was there even such a thing as "it's normal to have a third party"?

Wen Yu didn't get it.

He really didn't get it.

"Big brother," Wen Yu's voice softened. "I know Shen Yubai is a good person, a great fiancé, but he hasn't handled things with Miss He well. That's him being irresponsible."

"He cares about Miss He, but he's forgotten me."

"If he really loves Miss He, why doesn't he drop everything and run off with her?"

Wen Yu's voice finally trembled a little. "Do you all really care about me?"

"Did you bring me back to patch up family ties, or to use those ties?"

"You all think I'm dumb, but I've figured it out. You made me go meet the fiancé you arranged, and accept the arrangement to go to school."

"I never wanted to be in that circle of the rich. I never wanted to be bullied. When I was being bullied by them, where were you all?"

Wen Hanzhou's heart clenched. "Wen Yu, be good, okay? You can go to a prestigious school. Don't you want to build a good road in the mountain village where you grew up?"

"Sending you to school to study finance and investment—isn't that so you can have your own assets in the future? Letting you enter this marriage alliance—you'll have resources. With the Shen family's help, the Wen family will prosper too."

"Your father loves you very much. The marriage alliance was originally your second brother's matter, but for your sake, to give you something better, he overlooked your second brother."

Wen Yu listened, feeling two fires colliding in his heart.

In the end, his thoughts came to rest on Wen Hanzhou's words.

It was as if his mind had been reprogrammed.

Was he just overthinking things?

Wen Hanzhou's expression was calm, yet he spoke with warmth, "Wen Yu, you have to believe that we are family, and we will treat you well."

Wen Yu shook his head, his brain feeling like mush.

"I—"

"I get it now, I think I was overthinking it."

"Sorry, big bro."