Chapter 6

006.

Lu Ke still didn't stay the night. After eating and walking it off with Lu Yuan, he took off.

Lu Yuan watched his black Maybach drive out of the villa area and out of sight, feeling a little wistful all of a sudden.

He sent Chen Chi and the rest off to bed, then moseyed upstairs.

It was around eight at night.

After finally wrapping up his last surgery of the day, Lu Zhuo peeled off his mask, changed, and scrubbed his hands thoroughly.

His colleague Xu Feihang stood next to him, sporting massive bags under his eyes, yawning as he washed his hands, looking like he could pass out right then and there.

Still, he managed to force one eye open through sheer willpower to talk to Lu Zhuo: "Thanks for watching my kid the other day, man. Isn't my daughter just the cutest and easiest kid? Like a total angel?"

Lu Zhuo shot him a glance. "Didn't see it."

The kid was young, but damn, she could talk. She'd even picked up this snarky attitude from somewhere, leaving the department head next door completely speechless.

Only Xu Feihang, the blindly devoted dad, thought his daughter could do no wrong.

Lu Zhuo figured Xu Feihang was willfully blind, while Xu Feihang figured Lu Zhuo had zero taste. He clicked his tongue, ready to fire back, when he saw Lu Zhuo dry his hands and whip out his phone.

His eyes landed on the screen.

Lu Ke: .

Lu Ke: You there?

Lu Zhuo raised an eyebrow.

The brothers had each other on WeChat, sure, but they usually just called each other to keep in touch.

Texting "You there?" like this was a first.

He replied: Just got out of surgery. What's up?

Lu Ke: Nothing, just wanted to let you know—A Yuan called me "bro" today.

Lu Zhuo: "...?"

Lu Ke: I figured our sudden appearance might take some getting used to, but he warmed up to me pretty fast. You gotta step it up too. Don't let A Yuan down.

Lu Zhuo: You're so hyped about A Yuan calling you "bro" that you timed a text right when I get out of surgery?

Lu Ke: .

Lu Zhuo stared at that lone period and almost laughed out of pure annoyance.

He jabbed at the screen in frustration, then fired off one word: Scram!

Slap.

The screen went black. Xu Feihang cautiously leaned over, his earlier exhaustion gone, replaced by pure nosiness and curiosity: "Who were you texting? You look pissed enough to have your mouth all twisted up."

Lu Zhuo was in a foul mood. He shot him a look and spat venom like a cornered snake: "Worry about your own eyes first. They're puffed up like fish bladders. Aren't you going to your daughter's field day tomorrow? If your ex-wife's new man sees you looking like this, he'll laugh his ass off."

Xu Feihang: "..."

Wh-what the hell? Why the sudden personal attack?

Watching Lu Zhuo walk off, he felt uneasy and quickly pulled out his phone, opened the front camera, turned off the beauty filter, and frowned at his reflection.

Huh, they really do look a bit puffy. What's a guy supposed to do about that?

*

Late night at Jing City Airport.

Qi Shuyang leaned over the second-floor railing, sunglasses pushed up on his forehead, letting out his thirty-second yawn of the day.

Why the hell hasn't he come out yet? Lu Yan is way too slow.

He glanced down at his phone and started typing: Did you fall in the toilet? If you can't get out, text me 1 and I'll send someone in to fish you out.

Before he could hit send, a cold laugh sounded right by his ear: "I'll fish your grandpa out."

Whoa!

Startled, Qi Shuyang nearly dropped his phone, barely stopping it from becoming an airborne projectile: "Damn, you scared the shit out of me—"

He turned around and was floored by the other man's getup.

A black long down jacket down to his ankles, chestnut wavy hair to his waist, sunglasses, mask, women's handbag—all of it somehow coexisting on Lu Yan's body.

It was Qi Shuyang's first time picking up a celebrity, and his jaw dropped before he managed two words: "Damn."

The disguise was ridiculous, but it did the job. At least Qi Shuyang got Lu Yan all the way to the parking lot without any fans spotting them. Of course, Qi Shuyang figured, if Lu Yan would let him sling an arm around that waist, this disguise plan would get a perfect score!

"With the long wavy wig to dodge fans, wouldn't it be more convincing if I walked with my arm around you—like a husband picking up his wife late at night? You're so against it, you're gonna get us caught by fans."

Lu Yan let out a cold laugh: "A husband who cheated, got caught, and then shamelessly showed up at the airport to beg for forgiveness—shouldn't the wife be allowed to be a little disgusted?"

Qi Shuyang: "..."

Didn't this guy get famous for singing? Did he switch to acting or something? He's got one hell of an imagination!

With a slam of the car door, Lu Yan quickly stripped off his disguise, revealing a bare face with sharp, striking features. He pulled down the sun visor, flipped open the mirror, checked himself left and right, and nodded in satisfaction.

Good, no allergic reaction to the makeup this time around. Tomorrow he could show up with the best face in the family to meet his little bro.

The G-Wagon rolled out of the airport.

Qi Shuyang turned to him: "Drop you at Songlan Mansion?"

"Why would I go to Songlan Mansion? It's late—my brother's definitely out cold by now. And this is our first meeting, so I gotta prep. Take me back to Qingyue Court first."

Qingyue Court was Lu Yan's usual spot in Jing City. Qi Shuyang had bought a place upstairs from Lu Yan to get closer to the brothers.

Going back there was perfect—saved him from having to drive home after getting Lu Yan settled.

"Oh, by the way, that yacht you mentioned—I booked it. Eighteen meters long, top-tier furniture and flooring, the latest smart marine tech, and maxed-out safety. Only problem is you won't see it until this time next year."

"Going that big—you got enough cash?" Lu Yan raised an eyebrow, and sure enough, Qi Shuyang shook his head. "Hell no. Top-tier mid-size luxury yacht, total cost 42 million. Where the hell would I get that kind of money?"

Lu Yan hadn't even responded before Qi Shuyang chuckled slyly: "I borrowed twenty million from Brother Yu."

Lu Yan: "..."

He'd specifically gone to Bai Yu to borrow money—this guy really did look out for his little brother.

Not bad at all.

Giving the young man's shoulder a firm pat, Lu Yan said, "Now that's my bro. This yacht can double as a one-year-homecoming gift for my brother. He'll definitely remember Brother Qi's kindness."

"Damn right!" The light turned red, and Qi Shuyang stomped on the brake, reaching over to poke him. "Got any pics of your brother for me to see? Brother Zhuo won't stop talking about how hot he is—I'm dying to see."

Photos? Yeah, he had them.

He'd cropped them from Lu Yuan's profile.

Since Qi Shuyang's welcome gift was pretty solid, Lu Yan decided to give him an early peek at the holy face, so he wouldn't make a fool of himself when he saw the real thing and got stunned by his brother's looks.

But just as he pulled out his phone, a message came in first.

The contact name said: Second Brother.

He tapped on it.

Second Brother: You landed?

Huh, what's the special occasion today? His second brother was checking if he'd landed? Back when he was always flying out for gigs, his second brother had never been this caring.

Surprised, but still a little touched, Lu Yan replied: Yeah, just landed. I'm in Qi Shuyang's car right now.

Second Brother: Cool.

Second Brother: [Image.jpg]

It was a screenshot of a conversation.

Lu Yan pinched to zoom in on the screenshot, squinting to read it, and his eyes zeroed in on the line: "Nothing much, just wanted to let you know—A Yuan called me 'bro' today."

He looked at the sender's profile pic—a plain landscape shot of mountains and fields, the kind Lu Yan would call "old-man vibes" every time he saw it.

Best-Looking in the Family: ?

Best-Looking in the Family: Isn't it just because I'm not in the capital right now? Otherwise, how would he get to hear that "bro" first!

Best-Looking in the Family: /sneer /disdain /contempt /disgust /eyeroll

Lu Zhuo didn't bother responding to his nonsense. He didn't have any hidden agenda—he just figured since Lu Ke loved showing off so much, as his younger brother, he should help him out.

What's the fun in showing off to just one person?

Second Brother: Going on duty.

Best-Looking in the Family: K.

After replying, Lu Yan immediately started pushing Qi Shuyang: "Drive faster."

Qi Shuyang: "Huh?"

He glanced down at the speedometer: "Dude, the airport highway speed limit is 120. We're already going max speed. Any faster and I'll get a speeding ticket. If my dad finds out, they won't even get to do the yacht launch—they'll be holding my funeral instead."

His dad was already pissed at him for messing around with cars. If he caused any more trouble, his dad would bury him right then and there.

"Anyway, we can't see my brother until tomorrow. Why the sudden rush?"

Lu Yan: "Face mask, beauty rest."

Qi Shuyang: "..."

Freak!

At 12:18 AM, the G-Wagon finally pulled into Qingyue Court.

By the elevator on the 28th floor, Lu Yan waved at Qi Shuyang, then quickly swung his door open, tossed his bag, and disappeared into the bedroom.

He'd thought his face was already top-tier, but apparently there was still room for improvement. Tomorrow, he absolutely had to make a killer first impression on Lu Yuan and get him to call him "bro"!

He'd already fallen behind because of work, but he absolutely couldn't fall two steps behind.

Between Lu Zhuo and him, Lu Yuan had to call HIM first, no question!

Rushing into the bathroom, he turned on the shower, his eyes sweeping over the bathtub that had been out of commission forever and was purely for show. Lu Yan made a snap decision—turned around, filled the tub, then rummaged through the storage room for ages. Finally, he stood up straight and called his manager.

His manager, who had just barely fallen asleep: "Hello?"

Lu Yan: "That bath oil I endorsed last time—the brand sent me a ton that I never used. Where'd you put it?"

His manager shot up in bed and yelled, "Lu Yan, are you crazy? It's past midnight and you're calling me about bath oil?"

Lu Yan: "Where is it?"

Manager: "...Storage room, shelf 2, third row. Find it yourself. I'm hanging up. Freak!"

Lu Yan didn't care about being called a psycho—finding that bath oil was the top priority. His manager had a decent memory, and Lu Yan easily found several bottles of different scents on the third row of the shelf. He spent a full twenty minutes deliberating before hesitantly picking a black pomegranate-scented one.

He soaked in the tub for fifteen minutes, then did the whole routine—face mask, anti-aging serum, eye cream, lip care. By the time he finished and checked the time, it was 1:30 AM.

Lu Yan: "..."

No no no, gotta get to sleep, fast.

At 7 AM, the alarm he'd set the night before went off in the pitch-dark room. Lu Yan dragged himself out of bed, stumbled to the bathroom mirror, and examined his face... Was it a little puffy?

His sleep-deprived body felt weak, like he was floating as he walked on the floor. With a foggy head, Lu Yan made himself an iced Americano, chugged it, then spent forever picking out clothes.

Suit? Nah, too formal.

Puffer jacket? Ugly as hell, a total waste of his good figure.

Fur coat? Made him look like new money.

Lu Yan frowned and called his manager.

His manager, deep in a sweet dream: "...Hello?"

Lu Yan: "What do you think I should wear to look the hottest? Preferably something that shows off my one-of-a-kind vibe."

His manager snapped his eyes open, glanced at the caller ID, and cursed: "Are you actually crazy? Get lost!"