Chapter 24

024.

The Ferrari tore through the snow at full speed, its striking red coming to a graceful stop at the club entrance. Lu Yan casually tossed the keys to the attendant who rushed over, wearing a face that screamed "life's a bore, let's just drop dead." He made his way to the top floor and pushed open the private room door.

"Well, well, look who decided to show up—the big star himself!" Qi Shuyang craned his neck out from behind a pile of liquor bottles, waving enthusiastically. "I thought we wouldn't be able to drag you out, since you always make a beeline for your A Yuan the second you're back—"

Before he could finish, his tone shifted, and Qi Shuyang squinted in shock: "What the hell, why do you look like death warmed over? Did you use 'visiting A Yuan' as a cover to sneak off and meet some secret boyfriend or girlfriend?"

Lu Yan was too exhausted to even speak. He felt like he was hallucinating—whether his eyes were open or closed, all he could see were those dense medical terms.

But Qi Shuyang's nonsense was too ridiculous. He rolled his eyes and said coldly, "What the hell are you on about? I don't have any mysterious boyfriend or girlfriend. But I do have one bratty little brother."

Qi Shuyang: "?"

Just two days ago he was all "my darling A Yuan, my precious," and now it's "bratty little brother"?

His nose for drama tingling, Qi Shuyang immediately guessed there was some juicy story behind this. He grabbed Lu Yan by the sleeve and yanked him over, then eagerly poured him a glass of seven-figure wine: "Try this—just got it in at the club. After you drink it, don't forget to spill the tea about you and your brother's love-hate drama."

Lu Yan did need someone to listen to his story.

One drink per plot point, he told the story with full dramatic flair.

"That's too much." Lu Yan was getting teary-eyed as he drank. "He actually told Brother Yu to make me copy it a hundred times! And the kicker? Brother Yu went and doubled it to two hundred! Over sixteen million characters—I'll be copying it till I'm six feet under!"

Qi Shuyang's mouth fell open in shock, and after a long moment he finally got out: "Damn."

"?"

"What the heck?"

Qi Shuyang's eyes lit up as he slung an arm around his buddy's shoulder, speaking with conviction: "Don't you see? A Yuan actually had the nerve to suggest Brother Yu punish you! And the craziest part? Brother Yu actually went along with it! You've known Brother Yu for so long—have you ever seen him listen to a single soul?"

"Maybe he's trying to make it up to him."

After returning to Villa No. 2, Lu Yan had found out from Chen Chi that Lu Yuan had gone to see Bai Yu to recite his thesis, only to almost fall down the stairs and throw out his back. Chen Chi said that since Bai Yu was one of the ones responsible, he was now handling Lu Yuan's recovery.

...Probably part of the rehab was just doing whatever Lu Yuan asked.

But Qi Shuyang clicked his tongue: "Making amends in person? Is it that hard to just hire someone?"

Lu Yan understood what he meant and shot him a look: "Hey, that's the Lu family's young master. Of course Brother Yu should apologize in person!"

He put extra emphasis on "in person."

Qi Shuyang: "You're also a Lu family young master, and look what you got—two hundred copies."

Lu Yan: "..."

He jumped up from the couch, fist raised, furious: "Are you messing with me on purpose?!"

"No, no!" Qi Shuyang quickly apologized. "I just think it's wild, that's all. I'm serious—if my own biological brother had thrown out his back, I doubt Brother Yu would personally take care of me either."

As the son of Bai Yu's own aunt, Qi Shuyang was definitely closer to Bai Yu than Lu Yuan was. But over the years, even when Qi Shuyang had colds, fevers, or even broken his leg and couldn't move around, Bai Yu had never once looked after him.

Even bothering to swing by the hospital to see if he was still breathing was already more than he could hope for.

Thinking back, comparing how Bai Yu treated Lu Yuan versus him, Qi Shuyang couldn't help but let out a few sighs. Lu Yan was getting annoyed by all the sighing and frowned: "Quit sighing and help me figure out what to do."

"What else can you do? Just go memorize the damn paper."

"If I could memorize it, do you think I'd be sitting here drinking?"

"...Good point."

As a close buddy who'd been in the same class as Lu Yan since kindergarten, Qi Shuyang knew damn well that the other three Lu brothers had split all the brainpower that should've gone to Lu Yan. From Lu Ke and Lu Zhuo to Lu Yuan—every one of them was a top student at a prestigious university in China. Only Third Brother Lu was a slacker, and asking him to memorize something that technical was a pipe dream.

Of course, Qi Shuyang couldn't exactly look down on Lu Yan either—his own college entrance exam score was twenty points lower.

He rubbed his nose, looking sheepish: "How about we try to butter up Brother Yu? See if we can get him to cut you some slack and give you a few more days?"

Lu Yan was doubtful: "Will that even work?"

Qi Shuyang wasn't sure either: "Maybe, perhaps, kind of? Eh, we've got nothing to lose. Won't know till we try."

Lu Yan: "I'm afraid he'll think I'm trying to pull a fast one, and turn two days into one, two hundred copies into three hundred."

Qi Shuyang: "That's not gonna happen."

He stroked his chin in thought.

"Back when I needed something from him, buttering him up with a few sweet words actually helped a bit. Just try it. Honestly, two days or one day—doesn't matter, you can't memorize it either way. And two hundred or three hundred copies—doesn't matter, you can't finish either way."

...That was true.

Lu Yan downed his glass in one go, looking revived, and declared with gusto: "Another round!"

*

That evening.

Lu Yuan, who was working hard to dodge reciting his second thesis, had originally wanted to personally cook a lavish dinner for Chairman Bai. But thanks to his terrible cooking skills, he got kicked out of the kitchen by both chefs.

The old butler watched Lu Yuan squatting by the kitchen door, looking so glum he might as well have mushrooms sprouting from his head, and sighed to himself—

Ah, the Lu family's young master really treats their master so well.

Bringing coffee during the day, and personally cooking dinner at night. Those two in the kitchen really had no clue.

Just as he was about to go comfort Lu Yuan, Bai Yu's voice rang out from behind him: "What are you doing squatting there in those ugly slippers?"

The old butler was taken aback.

Oh my, their master actually notices what slippers the young master wears!

He looked at Lu Yuan's feet and nodded to himself. They were definitely unique, but not ugly at all—actually kind of cute. Turning around, the old butler met Bai Yu's eyes directly. He didn't say a word, but his eyes were full of disapproval.

Bai Yu didn't get what the old man was disapproving of, but it was probably just that he thought Bai Yu's tone was too cold and harsh.

He paused, then said flatly: "Eat dinner early and get some rest."

Then he turned his gaze back to Lu Yuan: "Does your back still hurt?"

Lu Yuan looked up, grinning through gritted teeth: "Is it possible that I can't stand up precisely because my back hurts?"

Hearing this, the old butler immediately urged Bai Yu: "Oh dear, if he can't stand up, that won't do. Master, go help him up quick."

The moment he noticed Bai Yu looking at him, the old butler seemed to hunch over even more, shuffling away with shaky steps while shaking his head: "Ah, I'm old and useless now. If I tried to help, I'd end up needing help myself."

As if afraid he might actually get roped into helping, the old butler shuffled away quickly despite his unsteady gait, and within moments his figure vanished into the living room.

Bai Yu stood at the kitchen doorway, looking down at the sad little rubber duck.

Lu Yuan noticed he hadn't moved for a while and couldn't help but feel nervous, his brows furrowing tightly. He asked tentatively, "Given our relationship, you wouldn't just leave me squatting here, would you?"

"Then, based on our relationship, do you want me to pull you up, or carry you, young master?"

Lu Yuan was taken aback by the offer.

There was even a carry option? He didn't need to be that thoughtful.

He said, trying to sound dignified, "Just pulling me up is fine."

Bai Yu readily held out his hand. Lu Yuan gripped his forearm, but the sweater was slippery, so Bai Yu rolled up his sleeve. The skin under his palm turned warm, and the veins bulging with effort became clearly visible.

Lu Yuan felt a strange wave of embarrassment, his grip instinctively loosening, but the next second, a firm grip closed around his wrist.

Looking up, Bai Yu's hand completely wrapped around his wrist, his thumb pressing on his pulse. With a slight tug, Lu Yuan was yanked to his feet, and he yelped immediately, "Slow down, slow down."

His other hand moved to support Lu Yuan's waist, and he finally straightened up, then stomped his feet twice, trying to shake out the numbness in his calves.

The duck slippers slapped the floor twice, making quite a racket.

Bai Yu gave the slippers another glance.

The young master's taste really needed work.

As they walked toward the dining room, Lu Yuan expressed his gratitude to Bai Yu, his lifesaver: "I originally wanted to cook you dinner myself to show my thanks, but the two chefs didn't agree."

Without even looking up, Bai Yu said, "Then they really saw it coming."

Huh?

How was that foresight?

Lu Yuan frowned, about to argue that he could cook just fine—at least in his past life, he hadn't starved—he'd died from overwork—when Bai Yu said, "No one in your family can cook worth a damn. Your uncle blew up the kitchen in the name of love, Lu Zhuo landed himself in the ER. For my own safety, the chefs who stopped you today deserve a raise."

Lu Yuan: "...Then my DNA must've been factory-upgraded. My roommate sang praises for my instant noodles for three days straight and wholeheartedly crowned me the god of instant noodles."

"We don't have instant noodles at home, and I don't want to see them either." Bai Yu looked down at him. "Oh god of instant noodles, promise me your followers won't show up in front of me, alright?"

Lu Yuan felt Bai Yu's eyes were also saying: Otherwise, I'll slaughter all your followers.

Lu Yuan: "...Okay."

Thoroughly threatened, Lu Yuan let out a dejected sigh as he walked to the dining table. Just as he sat down, the supposedly frail old butler dropped his hobbling act completely and moved at lightning speed. Catching Lu Yuan's stunned look, he let out an "Oh no!"

Forgot to keep pretending!

But the old butler figured his face was already as thick as tree bark, so he pretended nothing happened, pointed at the door, and said in a hurry, "Third Young Master Lu sent a cat over, saying it's a gift for you, sir."

A cat?

Lu Yuan froze for a second, then slapped his thigh hard.

Why didn't he think of buttering him up like that!

There goes another chance to skip reciting an essay.

Regret aside, Lu Yuan was really curious about the cat. Craning his neck, he asked, "Is it still at the door? Can I go take a look?"

The old butler said, "Come with me, young master."

The old butler kept moving fast, and the guy with the sore back surprisingly kept up. At the door, Lu Yuan immediately spotted a kitten meowing inside a box. It looked like some pricey breed, still young—round face, round eyes, a bit chubby, with long fur, and totally adorable.

Lu Yuan held out a finger, and the kitten leaned in, licking and nuzzling it.

Suddenly, a hand reached out from next to him. Bai Yu bent down and picked up the card in the box. It was written in neat regular script that Lu Yan had spent half a day on:

Brother Yu, since the cat's so cute, can you give me a few more days to memorize the essay? (╥╯^╰╥)

PS: This is a brown tabby and white Maine Coon! The cattery owner said it's the best-behaved one in the whole place. Brother Yu, you're gonna love it!

Bai Yu: "..."

Bai Yu looked down at the young man already playing with the cat like old pals, and asked, "Why did Lu Yan send me a cat?"

He hadn't missed the flash of shock and regret on Lu Yuan's face when he heard the butler say Lu Yan had sent a cat.

Lu Yuan freed a hand to poke at the card in Bai Yu's hand, going "Mm": "Doesn't it say? He's sending you a cute cat so you'll let him off the hook."

Bai Yu: "And where's he getting that confidence?"

Lu Yuan picked up the cat: "Didn't you ask him if he'd ever had a cat? We figured you wanted one."

Noticing Bai Yu didn't seem too moved by the adorable cat, Lu Yuan paused and asked softly, "You don't like it?"

Bai Yu looked at him quietly for a moment, then said flatly, "I prefer something else."