Chapter 25: The Rival Always Wants to Taste Him Again [25]

Chapter 25: The Rival Can't Stop Wanting Another Taste of Him "25"

"No, Ziyu, today is your big brother's date. You already ruined my movie earlier, and now you're not going to mess up my dinner too."

Before Shi Mo could say anything, Cheng Sunan was the one to smile and turn him down first. As he refused him, he also pulled his hand out of Cheng Ziyu's grasp.

The smile on Cheng Ziyu's face vanished almost instantly. A wild madness churned in his pitch-black eyes, but it was reined in just as quickly.

He timidly tugged at the hem of Cheng Sunan's shirt and said in a slightly hurt voice:

"Brother... are you really going to abandon me?"

"You just met him today for the first time. Fine, if you don't want to come home and have dinner with me, but now you won't even let me come along..."

As he spoke, Cheng Ziyu's voice started to tremble, and his eyes began to well up with tears.

"If you two end up together someday, are you just going to throw me away? Were all these years of our bond just a lie? Brother..."

However, Cheng Sunan, who had always been gentle and doting on him, simply pried his hand off again.

"Ziyu, you're all grown up now. You're not a kid anymore, so stop acting like a spoiled kid, got it?"

Watching the exchange between the two, Shi Mo raised an eyebrow and let out a soft chuckle.

He had figured it out now—Cheng Sunan wasn't trying to help him at all—he was clearly using Shi Mo to get under Cheng Ziyu's skin.

But that was fine. As partners, using each other was just the bare minimum.

After all, he also wanted to use Cheng Sunan to get a rise out of Ye Qi.

Seeming to go along with it, but actually pulling all the strings—and even enjoying it.

"Let's go, A Mo. I already made a reservation. It's the perfect time to head over now."

Cheng Sunan reached his hand out to Shi Mo, a slight smile tugging at his lips, looking like he was in a fantastic mood.

The moment their eyes met, Shi Mo's lips curved into a smile too, and, completely ignoring Ye Qi, he took Cheng Sunan's hand.

At that moment, both of them knew they had achieved their goals, so naturally, they were both in good spirits.

However, this scene was especially hard to stomach for the other two.

The moment Cheng Sunan turned around, Cheng Ziyu immediately dropped the pitiful, wronged look on his face.

He stared at their backs with a dark, brooding gaze, his face cold, he spoke up from beside Ye Qi:

"President Ye, what's your take?"

"Didn't your assistant say you got into a car accident, which is why you pushed back the contract signing?"

Ye Qi glanced at Cheng Ziyu indifferently: "I seem to recall your secretary also saying you weren't feeling well today, President Cheng."

Cheng Ziyu said with conviction: "Ye Qi, you like him, right?"

Ye Qi merely nodded slightly: "So what if I do?"

Cheng Ziyu chuckled lightly: "Since you like him that much, why don't you just confess to him? Is it because you're sworn enemies, so you're too scared?"

Ye Qi: "..."

What was that sudden pang in his heart?

Ye Qi: "That's none of your business. You don't need to try to get a rise out of me. Instead of trying to use me to take A Mo away so you two can have your alone time—"

"You'd be better off figuring out how to keep that precious brother of yours away from A Mo... What's the matter? Your brother likes you so much but still won't be with you—is it because you're the one who doesn't want it?"

Cheng Ziyu: "..."

It felt like something just shattered. Oh, right—it was his heart.

Cheng Ziyu took a deep breath and forced down the emotions churning inside him, then forced a smile at Ye Qi.

"In that case, why don't we work together?"

"You take your guy, I take mine. That way, we both win."

Ye Qi mulled it over for a moment, looked at the outstretched hand, and shook it anyway, effectively agreeing to the alliance. He then asked:

"What's your plan?"

A flicker of madness flashed in Cheng Ziyu's eyes, quickly replaced by an endless smile.

"Don't worry, you don't have to do anything. Just come pick him up when I text you."

Seeing the slightly cold look in Ye Qi's eyes, Cheng Ziyu seemed to feel that his words had come out a bit too harsh. He paused and then spoke slowly:

"Don't give me that look. I'm not going to hurt them. If you don't trust me, you can come along."

"Fine."

Ye Qi nodded in agreement without a second thought.

Cheng Ziyu: "...You really don't trust me one bit, and yet you still want to be allies."

Ye Qi: "Can't help it. You don't trust me with your brother either, right?"

Cheng Ziyu shot him a long, hard look and said nothing.

However, what Ye Qi didn't expect was that Cheng Ziyu's brilliant plan was simply to have Cheng Sunan's friends invite him out for a night on the town.

Not only that, he also had Cheng Sunan bring Shi Mo along.

The group met up in a private booth at the Royal Club. Cheng Sunan smiled and took all the drinks for Shi Mo.

In a brief lull, he leaned back slightly and whispered in Shi Mo's ear:

"Tsk... just some kid stuff."

"A Mo, teach me sometime how you whip people into shape. No matter how much I provoke my kid, the only tricks he knows are these kinds of childish ones."

Cheng Sunan let out a soft sigh, his tone laced with resignation.

Shi Mo swirled the fruit tea in his glass, eyes narrowing into a smile as he spoke:

"Brother Sunan, you spoil him too much."

"The second he cries or throws a fit, you go soft. You knew he was using these people to get you drunk and drag you off, yet you still showed up and you're drinking all this—isn't it just to play along with him?"

"But if you keep playing along, he'll keep thinking this trick works. When he runs into similar situations later on, he'll naturally reach for this same trick first."

Shi Mo lowered his eyes, clinked glasses with Cheng Sunan, and drank the fruit tea in one gulp.

"You can spoil a kid, but don't go overboard, or you won't get what you want."

Cheng Sunan stared at Shi Mo with an unreadable expression, then, after a long pause, nodded and smiled:

"A Mo, you're right..."

They kept their voices low, so only the two of them could hear.

The others couldn't hear what they were discussing, only saw how close and familiar they seemed.

Pretty much everyone in the circle knew each other, and even if they weren't close to Shi Mo, they still knew him.

Now, watching Shi Mo and Cheng Sunan sitting together drinking, looking so chummy,

for a moment, everyone exchanged glances, their eyes full of curiosity and unspoken questions.

Someone even snapped a photo and posted it on their social media.

It was just a casual, no-big-deal thing.

But in that photo, Shi Mo was leaning his head against Cheng Sunan's shoulder, eyes slightly closed, a smile on his lips, a faint flush on his face.

Cheng Sunan had his arm draped over Shi Mo's shoulder, looking down at him with gentle concern.

The photo was way too suggestive.

Cheng Ziyu gritted his teeth, his eyes dark with anger, then sent a message to someone else.

Ye Qi's expression was cold, a storm churning in his dark eyes, with a hint of madness mixed in.

His hand at his side was clenched into a fist, nails digging into his palm and leaving red marks.

"You said all I had to do was come and take him away. When can I do that?"

"Soon, just wait a little longer."