ARBRMW : Chapter 51

“Tomorrow is my grandfather’s birthday banquet. Shouldn’t you accompany Uncle to go?” Sun Weiang opened the can of cola with a ‘pop’, and the sound of bubbles gradually subsided.

“Mm.” Chen Xu nodded.

“You better not go.” Sun Weiang also didn’t drink, holding the cola in his hands, looking up at Chen Xu.

“Why?” Chen Xu asked puzzledly. Could it be that there were still some hidden dangers in the Sun family?

“My grandfather might give you a hard time.” Sun Weiang wasn’t particularly kind-hearted; he just saw that Si Ye doted on Chen Xu a lot. Si Ye might tolerate others disrespecting him, but he absolutely couldn’t stand anyone giving Chen Xu a hard time.

His grandfather had always wanted to introduce the daughter of his third uncle to Si Ye. Although they hated the Si family, they still tried every means to curry favor with them. They wanted to use Sun Keting’s death as a bargaining chip to have Si Ye marry a girl from the Sun family.

But their plan hadn’t been implemented yet, and Si Ye had silently gotten married first.

The Sun family couldn’t move Si Ye, but Chen Xu was different. With his low background and being a student, he looked like a delicate flower, very easy to deal with.

No matter how Sun Weiang tried to persuade them, they stubbornly refused to listen. Sun Weiang had no choice but to start with Chen Xu.

Chen Xu raised his half-closed eyes and put the can in his hand on the table. “Then you should go and persuade them not to do this stupid thing, instead of coming to me and asking me not to go.”

Sun Weiang frowned, showing a frustrated expression, without responding.

Chen Xu saw the answer from his face, “I understand now. The Sun family doesn’t listen to your advice? That’s why you came to me.”

Being guessed right about his intentions, Sun Weiang almost crushed the can of cola in his hand. “Mm, it makes no difference whether you go or not. If you go, Si Yichen might still resent you. It’s better to give this opportunity to him.”

Hearing Sun Weiang mention Si Yichen, Chen Xu raised his eyebrows and showed a somewhat unruly expression. “So, does that mean I’m afraid of Si Yichen?”

For the first time, Sun Weiang felt that Chen Xu was somewhat unreasonable. “Aren’t you afraid of him? He has Mrs. Tao behind him, and he’s Uncle’s adopted son. The Si family will eventually be handed over to him. What’s the benefit of offending him? Maybe you have Uncle to protect you now, but can you guarantee how long Uncle will like you?”

Thinking about the future of the Si family being handed over to Si Yichen, Sun Weiang showed disgust.

Sun Weiang actually never liked Si Yichen, but he was very tactful and never provoked Si Yichen.

Chen Xu took a casual sip of his drink and said, “I’m happy.”

“Are you out of your mind?!” Sun Weiang never expected his answer to be these three words. Because he’s happy, he opposes Si Yichen at every turn?

At this moment, Sun Weiang’s mind suddenly flashed with four words: relying too much on favor.

Isn’t that describing Chen Xu?

Chen Xu lowered his eyebrows and stared at Sun Weiang with cold eyes. “I don’t want to ruin your grandfather’s birthday banquet. You better go back and persuade them to think twice before acting. What’s the use of telling me as an outsider? Aren’t you afraid I’ll turn around and complain to Uncle?”

Sun Weiang choked, looking like he had eaten shit.

In the evening, Si Ye came back early for dinner, unusually finishing work at six.

Although Chen Xu felt embarrassed, his legs moved faster than his brain. When he heard the car returning, he hurried downstairs. He hadn’t seen Si Ye in a week, yet he was so eager to see him.

Seeing Si Ye walking into the house, Chen Xu’s gaze met his, and he suddenly realized that their previous embarrassment hadn’t been resolved yet, freezing in place.

However, Si Ye casually walked over and hugged him, “Haven’t seen you in a week. Let me see if you’ve lost weight.”

Before Chen Xu could react, his feet were suddenly lifted off the ground, and Si Ye actually lifted him up in full view of everyone.

Chen Xu, who was no longer a child, blushed furiously, feeling like a cooked shrimp, curled up in Si Ye’s arms, burying his face in Si Ye’s shoulder.

Si Ye lifted him up and shook him lightly, pretending to be serious. “Haven’t you been eating properly at school? Why do you seem to have lost weight?”

Chen Xu hugged Si Ye’s neck, softly refuting, “I haven’t lost weight.”

Uncle Zhong happily watched as Si Ye carried Chen Xu upstairs. The relationship between the young master and the young master was really good.

“Why did you finish work so early today?” Chen Xu asked, tilting his head.

He remembered that Si Ye usually worked until nine o’clock.

“Why do you think?” Si Ye didn’t answer, but instead lowered his head, gazing meaningfully at Chen Xu.

Chen Xu suddenly felt timid and retreated into Si Ye’s embrace without a word.

Si Ye took a shower in the bathroom, while Chen Xu originally planned to finish the unfinished painting. However, the sound of water from the bathroom prevented him from concentrating.

The hot water seemed to be pouring on him instead of Si Ye, making his snow-white nape and moist ears flush with blood.

The pen in his hand remained still on the paper, not moving at all. Si Ye went in looking one way and came out looking the same.

Chen Xu suspected he was going through a second puberty; otherwise, why would he feel so easily agitated?

With his back to Si Ye, Chen Xu’s pen tip poked a heavy black dot on the snowy white paper.

He didn’t know when Si Ye had come behind him, exuding steam from his body.

“Paint a picture for me sometime.” Si Ye stood behind him and spoke, perhaps because he had just showered, or perhaps his hands were naturally hot, or perhaps Chen Xu’s perception was wrong, but at that moment, he only felt Si Ye’s hand burning hot, as if he had lit a fire on his shoulder, and the flames quickly spread all over his body.

Setting his body aflame.

Si Ye bent down, leaning against Chen Xu’s slightly thin back, leaving a devilish whisper in his ear.

After understanding Si Ye’s request, even if Chen Xu remained calm, his neck and face blushed, and in his mind flashed the image of Si Ye, whom he had accidentally seen without clothes that day.

He grasped the hem of his shirt tightly, lips pursed into a straight line, unsure how to respond to Si Ye’s request.

Just as the atmosphere became increasingly ambiguous, and Chen Xu’s face was almost burning up, Uncle Zhong knocked on the door to remind them to go to the dining room for dinner.

Feeling as if he had been granted a reprieve, Chen Xu stood up suddenly, pushing Si Ye away and walking out, “Uncle Si let’s have dinner , I’m hungry.”

Si Ye shook his head helplessly and followed Chen Xu out, “You and Uncle Zhong go down first. I’ll change clothes and come over.”

Chen Xu and Uncle Zhong went downstairs, while Sun Weiang and Si Yichen were already sitting at the dining table. Among the five people at the table, only the two of them were present now. Chen Xu hadn’t settled down at Si Ye’s table yet, but he felt the piercing gaze of Si Yichen.

Only after Si Ye took his seat, Sun Weiang and Si Yichen started eating.

Si Ye saw that most of the dishes on the table were his favorite, and a slight smile appeared on his lips. While serving Chen Xu some food, he asked him, “Did you order the menu?”

Caught off guard, Chen Xu’s ears turned hot. “No, Uncle Zhong ordered it. I just added a few dishes.”

However, Uncle Zhong didn’t take credit for it, smiling and saying, “All the dishes were ordered by Young Master Xu. I asked Young Master Xu to choose some dishes he likes to eat. I didn’t expect that all the dishes Young Master Xu ordered were the ones you, Master, like. Young Master Xu was thinking of you.”

Chen Xu blushed red, silently burying his head in his meal. Si Ye’s smile deepened, serving Chen Xu more dishes and reminding him, “Don’t just eat rice. Eat more dishes.”

Si Yichen sat beside them, watching the harmonious scene with a cold gaze, feeling even more resentful. After dinner, Si Yichen was puzzled as to why Si Ye hadn’t talked to him about attending Mr. Sun’s birthday banquet tomorrow. In previous years, when attending such banquets, since Si Ye never brought a female companion, Si Yichen was always the one accompanying him. Initially, he was adopted by Sun Keting and his wife, so Si Ye always asked him to accompany him.

He took the initiative to approach Si Ye and asked him.
Si Ye coldly said, “Tomorrow, Xiao Xu will accompany me. You go busy yourself.”

Si Yichen felt like he had been struck by lightning, feeling completely frozen in place. Si Ye had frozen his card and deprived him of the opportunity to intern at the subsidiary company. What else did he have to keep himself busy?

“Father, in previous years, I accompanied you. Chen Xu isn’t familiar with the proceedings. It’s more appropriate for me to accompany you.” Si Yichen caught up to Si Ye, trying to persuade him.

Si Ye stared at Si Yichen with cold eyes, “What proceedings do you need to attend a banquet? Moreover, he is my legal spouse. Who is more suitable than him?”

Si Yichen felt like he had been hit by a thunderbolt, standing frozen in place. He couldn’t refute Si Ye’s words.

“But… but…” Si Ye didn’t want to listen to him anymore, and went straight upstairs. Si Yichen didn’t dare to follow him upstairs and could only stand on the stairs, watching Si Ye’s departing figure in loneliness.

Si Yichen clenched his fists in frustration, angrily returning to his room. The first thing he did was call the private detective he had hired to find out how the investigation was going.

“It’s been too long. The people who worked at the Chen family back then have long since changed. I managed to contact the nanny who took care of Chen Xu back then. According to her, Chen Xu is indeed not the biological child of the Chen couple. Sixteen years ago, Old Master Chen suddenly brought back a two-year-old child.”

“That child was not in good health, often having fevers at night, crying until dawn, crying like a little cat, as if he would not be able to hold on for another second. Old Master Chen personally took care of him day and night for half a year. After the child’s health improved, he handed him over to the Chen couple to raise, saying he was to give Chen Hao a playmate. However, Chen Hao was always hostile towards him, often bullying him behind his back. The Chen couple turned a blind eye to it, pretending not to know.”

Si Yichen frowned and asked, “Did you find out where Old Master Chen brought Chen Xu back from?”

“I’m still investigating. It’s strange. This child seems to have appeared out of thin air, and there is no information about him before he was two years old.”

“I see. Continue your investigation. You won’t be short of money.” Si Yichen hung up the phone, sitting in silence for ten minutes. A terrible guess suddenly arose in his mind.

Sixteen years ago, two years old, suddenly brought back to the Chen family. These pieces of information all faintly pointed to a horrifying answer.

No, he comforted himself, it couldn’t be so coincidental.

But what if it was?

This matter absolutely cannot be known by anyone.