Only he could help Si Ye get it?
Chen Xu didn’t think he had such an ability, but if he could help Si Ye, he was willing.
“I’m willing.” Chen Xu only thought briefly before decisively agreeing.
His lack of hesitation made Si Ye chuckle softly, “You agreed so quickly. Aren’t you afraid I might sell you off?”
Chen Xu lifted his head, his dark, round eyes innocently looking at Si Ye. “Uncle Si, would you?”
Si Ye’s heart instantly softened. This child always knew how to make him give in. “No, I couldn’t bear to.”
Chen Xu leaned against Si Ye’s chest and grinned.
“The company has run into some trouble recently. Several senior shareholders of the Si Corporation were my father’s close friends. Now, they’re trying to unite and force me to step down as chairman. I don’t have enough funds on hand and need a large sum of money to turn the situation around.”
Si Ye paused at this point, staring at the pitch-black night outside the window, lost in thought.
Chen Xu put some distance between them, quietly gazing at Si Ye, waiting intently for his next words.
Si Ye withdrew his gaze and met Chen Xu’s eyes. He reached out, took Chen Xu’s warm hand, and said, “My father left me an inheritance before he passed away. If I use this inheritance, I can easily get through this crisis.”
“There’s a condition, isn’t there?”
Based on what Si Ye had said earlier, Chen Xu could roughly guess that there must be a condition attached to accessing the inheritance. And that condition—Si Ye had already hinted—was something he could help him fulfill.
What could it be?
Chen Xu couldn’t figure it out for the moment.
“Hmm, very clever.” Si Ye squeezed his palm, his eyes filled with amusement.
Chen Xu liked hearing Si Ye praise him—he could never hear it enough.
“What is it?”
Si Ye’s pitch-black pupils locked onto Chen Xu’s gaze, making his heart tighten for a moment.
“It’s actually not difficult. If I want to inherit this sum, I need to be married.”
Chen Xu was stunned for a moment. Why would Si Ye’s father impose such a condition? Was he worried that Si Ye wouldn’t get married and would be alone for life?
Thinking back to his previous life, when he was twenty-two, Si Ye was already thirty-two and still single—continuously ranked at the top of the list of the internet’s “Most Eligible Bachelors to Marry.”
Considering that, his father’s concerns weren’t without reason.
“But how could I…”
Chen Xu was about to say that he couldn’t possibly help Si Ye with this, but halfway through his sentence, he suddenly realized—Si Ye meant to marry him?!
Seeing that Chen Xu had caught on, Si Ye smiled slightly. “You already agreed just now.”
Chen Xu immediately wished he could go back a few minutes and cover his own mouth. He really hadn’t expected that the favor Si Ye needed was something this huge.
“But… but you’re my Uncle Si…”
How could he and Si Ye possibly get married?
He had never even dated before, and now he was supposed to jump straight into marriage? This was really skipping straight to the finish line.
“We have no blood relation, not even any familial ties. Why not?”
Si Ye refused to back down, pressing forward step by step.
Chen Xu’s mind was in turmoil. “But… I’m only eighteen… and I’m a guy…”
“Same-sex marriage has been legal in our country for years, and eighteen is the legal age for marriage.”
Si Ye countered smoothly, giving Chen Xu no room for regret.
That’s right—same-sex marriage had long been legalized, and the legal marriage age had been changed to eighteen. He was already at the age where he could get married.
Chen Xu felt like Si Ye had completely led him into a trap.
Seeing the confusion and dazed expression on Chen Xu’s face, Si Ye couldn’t help but laugh. He reached out and ruffled Chen Xu’s soft black hair. “Just teasing you. Did I scare you?”
“Huh?”
Now, Chen Xu was completely lost.
So, was everything Si Ye just said a joke?
Knock, knock, knock.
Uncle Zhong entered with two glasses of milk and a plate of snacks, set them down, and then left.
“Come and eat something.”
Si Ye gestured to Chen Xu.
Chen Xu felt that the way Si Ye beckoned him over, combined with his expression, was exactly like coaxing a child.
His sleepiness had been completely scared away by Si Ye. But now, eating the sweet pastries and drinking warm milk, he relaxed a lot and started to feel drowsy again.
“Uncle Si, you really are short on money, right?”
Chen Xu asked, still uneasy.
“Mm. My father’s inheritance is also real.”
Si Ye nodded slightly, taking a sip of milk with a slight frown.
Chen Xu held his cup in both hands, sat in silence for a while, then turned to Si Ye.
“Will you find someone to marry?”
Si Ye didn’t answer right away.
The brief silence and waiting made Chen Xu feel a sudden wave of anxiety—he didn’t want Si Ye to marry someone else.
Chen Xu pressed his lips together, licking away the milk residue on his upper lip. Then, he spoke seriously.
“Uncle Si, I can marry you. Once the company’s financial situation stabilizes, we can get a divorce. Is that okay?”
Si Ye hadn’t expected this response at all.
“You’re only eighteen. Do you understand what marriage means?”
“In the future, if you meet someone you like, how will you explain that you’ve been married before?”
“It doesn’t matter.”
Compared to some vague, uncertain future partner, the person in front of him was more important.
In his previous life, he had lived to twenty-two and never met anyone who made his heart flutter.
Maybe he was just that kind of indifferent person, destined never to fall in love with anyone.
Si Ye reached out and pulled his head onto his shoulder, his voice low and husky in his ear.
“Silly.”
His voice seemed to travel straight from Chen Xu’s ears into his heart, making his cheeks flush with warmth.
Uncle Si’s voice… why did it sound so good?
After drinking milk and eating snacks, Chen Xu was held by Si Ye. Before long, he actually fell asleep in his arms.
When Si Ye tried to move away, he found that Chen Xu was sleeping soundly against him. Helplessly, he placed a light kiss on Chen Xu’s forehead, then carried him into his own bedroom and tucked him into bed.
This was the second time Chen Xu had slept in his bed. Unfortunately, both times, he couldn’t do anything to this little guy. Si Ye’s fingertips brushed against Chen Xu’s long eyelashes as he whispered, “Don’t make me wait too long.”
—
The next morning, Chen Xu opened his eyes and found his surroundings unfamiliar.
This wasn’t his room.
He rubbed his eyes and took a moment to clear his head before realizing—this must be Si Ye’s room.
Did he fall asleep last night?
Si Ye didn’t send him back to his own room but let him sleep here instead?
He slept in Si Ye’s bed… then where did Si Ye sleep last night?
The faint scent of Si Ye’s cologne still lingered on the pillow—light and pleasant. Chen Xu unconsciously turned his head and took a deep breath.
So fragrant.
After completing this whole sequence of actions, Chen Xu suddenly realized what he had just done.
Too embarrassing.
He looked like a total pervert.
Face flushed red, he jumped out of bed, slipped into his slippers, and hurriedly walked downstairs.
Luckily, he didn’t run into anyone along the way, avoiding any gossip-filled stares.
—
Back in his own room, Chen Xu took a shower.
Thinking back to the conversation he had with Si Ye last night when he wasn’t fully awake, if he and Si Ye got into a fake marriage, it would actually be beneficial to him.
Becoming Si Ye’s partner and forming a relationship based on mutual interests was far more reliable than depending on Si Ye’s affection, which was intangible and uncertain.
He didn’t really want to become Si Ye’s heir. What he wanted was simply to prevent Si Yichen from taking that position.
As long as he could achieve that goal, it didn’t matter in what role he did it.
After sorting out his thoughts, Chen Xu went downstairs for breakfast.
At the dining table, Tong Jiaxi and Sun Wei’ang were already eating.
Seeing Chen Xu come down, Tong Jiaxi ignored him, but Sun Wei’ang acknowledged him with a glance.
Chen Xu walked over, pulled out a chair, sat down, placed his breakfast order, and took out his phone while waiting for the meal to be served.
“I heard you got an admission letter from A University. Congratulations.”
Sun Wei’ang took the initiative to speak to him.
Normally, he was indifferent to everyone, and his relationships with people were lukewarm at best. Because of that, his congratulations felt more genuine than anyone else’s.
“Thanks.”
Chen Xu remembered that Sun Wei’ang was currently a sophomore, studying new media at a university next to A University. They were quite close in distance.
After a brief exchange, Chen Xu’s breakfast was served, and the dining table fell silent again, with only the sounds of utensils clinking.
—
After finishing breakfast, Chen Xu went back to his room to work on his illustrations.
He had just taken on two commercial illustration commissions, so he worked non-stop until noon.
It wasn’t until a servant knocked on the door to ask if he wanted lunch that he realized it was already 12:30.
He chose to eat in his room.
Sun Wei’ang had gone out, and Si Yichen had been sent to intern at a subsidiary of Si Corporation by Madam Tao.
That meant only he and Tong Jiaxi were left at home.
Chen Xu didn’t want to see Tong Jiaxi at all, so he decided not to leave his room.
—
Summer vacation was long, and Chen Xu planned to use this time to work part-time and study finance.
Guan Qingqing’s sister, Guan Shuang, had a friend who saw his photo and wanted to collaborate with him.
Guan Shuang messaged him to ask if he was interested.
For three years in high school, Chen Xu had worked part-time for Guan Shuang.
Back then, Guan Qingqing thought Chen Xu was poor, so she had begged her sister for a long time to let him model for her. She even asked her sister to pay him more.
Initially, Guan Shuang had assumed that Guan Qingqing was just biased because of her crush, but when she saw Chen Xu in person, she willingly agreed to pay him more.
They had a great working relationship over the past three years, and Guan Shuang had looked out for him a lot.
Because of that, Chen Xu didn’t want to reject her friend outright, so he said he’d take a look first.
—
Arriving at Guan Shuang’s place, Chen Xu spotted a muscular man with a pink hair clip standing next to her.
“This is my friend, Wang Jian,” Guan Shuang introduced.
Unlike her younger sister, Guan Shuang always kept her hair cut short.
She had a blue flower tattooed on the back of her left hand near the web between her thumb and index finger.
She was also quite tall—about 1.73 meters.
Chen Xu’s gaze kept drifting toward the pink hair clip on Wang Jian’s head, but his face remained calm.
“Hello, I’m Chen Xu.”
Noticing his gaze, Wang Jian chuckled, took off the hair clip, and explained, “This belongs to my daughter. It’s cute, isn’t it?”
Guan Shuang pointed at Wang Jian and teased, “Don’t be fooled by how tough this guy looks—he’s a total girl-dad. His entire social media feed is just photos of his daughter.”
Wang Jian squinted with a wide smile. “Of course I have to show off how cute she is.”
—
The three of them entered a milk tea shop, with Guan Shuang leading the way.
“What do you guys want? My treat,” she asked.
“Matcha milk cap, thanks,” Chen Xu replied without hesitation.
“Got it.”
After getting Wang Jian’s order, she went to the counter to place the order.
Wang Jian smirked and leaned toward Chen Xu. “That shop has a new employee. Guan Shuang is trying to flirt with her.”
Chen Xu followed Wang Jian’s gaze and saw Guan Shuang chatting and laughing with a girl with long, jet-black hair.
If he had been drinking water, he would have choked.
The girl Guan Shuang was flirting with…
Was Si Yichen’s future fiancée.
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