"Xu Su."
Ning Nan called out his name with a joyful tone, but his steps felt as heavy as thousand-pound stones, unable to move. He stood there, his deep gaze fixed tightly on the faint shadow flickering in the darkness. What answered Ning Nan was endless silence and stillness. He lowered his head, seemingly convinced by Ning Bei's words—that Xu Su didn't want to see him at all right now. Yet what was he even doing, barging in so rashly like this? With that thought, he shook his head, no longer waiting for Xu Su's reply, and slowly turned to leave.
"Giving up so soon?" Xu Su, with his back to Ning Nan, seemed to sense something and spoke faintly into the air.
Hearing this, Ning Nan's steps faltered. "You don't want to see me right now."
As the words fell, Ning Nan glanced sideways at the unmoving shadow, a bitter smile curling at the corner of his lips. "I was too abrupt today. You, get some rest. I'll go now."
"You're not me, how do you know I don't want to see you?"
"So you do want to see me?"
Xu Su stepped out of the darkness expressionlessly, walking into the moonlight, staring straight at Ning Nan. The air seemed to thin; being stared at by Xu Su gave Ning Nan a feeling of having no escape. He took a breath and silently shuffled his steps toward Xu Su.
Seeing this, Xu Su frowned and took a step back. The smile on Ning Nan's face instantly froze, and he stopped in his tracks, staring at Xu Su in disbelief. "I understand."
Ning Nan turned and walked away without looking back, no longer bothering to see Xu Su's expression. That backward step had already been branded into his heart like a scar.
The door was closed.
Ning Nan stood at the entrance, asking casually, "Xu Su, what are you doing?"
"Leaving so soon?" Xu Su's cold voice slowly echoed through the room. Ning Nan took a deep breath and fell silent for a long time.
Xu Su stood still, expressionless, his eyes fixed on Ning Nan. "Why did you come to find me?"
"I saw you've been busy lately, and it's been too long since I last saw you, so I thought I'd take the time to come see you," Ning Nan said without changing his expression, as if convincing himself that this was exactly why he was standing here.
"Is that the answer you're giving me?"
"Mm..."
"You can go now."
Ning Nan looked at the suddenly unlocked door. Now that Xu Su was telling him to leave, he didn't want to go. He hesitated, taking a step forward, then suddenly remembered that ever since their feelings had changed, it was almost always Xu Su who took the first step toward him. With that thought, he took another step back and walked straight toward Xu Su. The two were nearly the same height, and now Ning Nan locked his gaze on him, lips parting, unsure where to begin.
"Why aren't you leaving?"
"Suddenly, I don't want to."
"Have you thought it through? I gave you a chance to leave." Xu Su looked seriously at Ning Nan, speaking coldly, his dark brown pupils reflecting Ning Nan's image. He reached out and grabbed Ning Nan, emphasizing again, "Ning Nan, you know I'm serious."
"I know you're serious, and right now, I'm serious too. Xu Su, I know you've been tired along this journey, so this time, let me take over."
"Not worried about the old man anymore?"
"What you can do for me, I can do too. Trust me." Ning Nan's confident demeanor fell into Xu Su's eyes, still carrying a hint of instability. Indeed, as he said, ever since this protracted battle with Old Man Ning began—when he insisted on entering the entertainment industry against the Ning family's objections—his scandals had been endless. The one handling everything behind the scenes was Xu Su, the only person who, even without understanding him, could still stand by his side and help build his fortress.
******
Ning Nan canceled all his recent commitments and vanished, and Xu Su disappeared from everyone's sight along with him. Ning Xi saw Ning Bei sitting in front of him with a worried face and couldn't take it anymore. He kicked him directly. "Little bro, I think second brother has eloped with that guy Xu Su. Don't worry about it. Besides, with Xu Su around, can second brother really suffer?"
Ning Bei shot a glare at the calm Ning Xi and said gloomily, "Today, big sister-in-law is being discharged. The old man ordered everyone to come back. Tell me, now that second brother is nowhere to be seen, are you going to face the old man tonight?"
"Getting anxious now won't help either. Besides, with big sister-in-law there, the old man's anger won't be too fierce. And if it gets bad, there's still Lu Zhengting."
"Yeah, yeah, you're right. Third brother," Ning Bei pointed to the empty seat next to him, signaling him to move over, "If the old man finds out about second brother, it'll probably stir up another storm."
"No doubt. And then there's the Xu family. Xu Su is the only male heir in this generation of the Xu family."
When Lu Zhengting and Xia Yan arrived at the villa unhurriedly after receiving Ning Xi's call, they saw the two whispering in the living room. He led Xia Yan over casually, glanced at them, and said, "Can't reach them?"
"Yeah, they're having a good time." Ning Xi grinned slyly, not sure what he was thinking, but suddenly felt a chill in a certain spot and dared not continue that train of thought.
Of the three present, probably only Xia Yan didn't notice Ning Xi's odd behavior. But she had learned from Lu Zhengting that Ning Nan had disappeared after making a phone call.
Lu Zhengting's phone rang. It was Ning Nan's agent. Ning Nan had canceled all his previously scheduled commitments, and his sudden disappearance had caught the agent off guard. The breach of contract penalties involved amounted to up to a hundred million. That kind of money wasn't a big deal to Lu Zhengting, so he had the company's legal team handle it.
Still, that debt was one he intended to settle with Xu Su. And coincidentally, he had a tricky project on hand that he could now pass off to Xu Su.
Ning Bei and Ning Xi exchanged glances, sensing a hint of scheming. Ning Bei shrugged, leaned over to Xia Yan, and lowered his voice, "Little sister-in-law, did you see that sly smile on his face?"
"You saw it too?" Xia Yan mimicked Ning Bei's gesture, deliberately lowering her voice as well, sneaking a cautious glance at Lu Zhengting, who was still on the phone, while covering her mouth with her hand and whispering.
"Oh man, little sister-in-law, you really noticed?"
"Of course. Whenever I see that smile on Lu Zhengting's face, I know someone's about to be in trouble. I just wonder who the unlucky one will be." Xia Yan rubbed her chin, then suddenly met Lu Zhengting's gaze. She couldn't help but shiver, immediately putting on a fawning look at him, as if she hadn't been the one speaking just now.
Seeing this, Ning Bei couldn't help but give Xia Yan a thumbs up. Good thing he hadn't voiced that "great minds think alike" thought. He crossed his legs, lounging casually, and shot a look at Ning Xi—better to keep his distance from Xia Yan for safety. After all, in Lu Zhengting's eyes, any man might harbor improper thoughts about his woman.
Finding common ground, Ning Xi fully understood Ning Bei's reasoning. The two brothers-in-arms almost hugged each other, both consciously scooting a bit further away from Xia Yan.
Night fell, lights glittered, and neon flickered. Xia Yan sat nervously beside Lu Zhengting, gazing at the night view of Beicheng outside the window. She'd long heard that Beicheng's nightscape was stunning, but right now she had no mood to take it in. She looked up, touched her cheek, turned to stare at the man feigning sleep with his eyes closed, and tugged at his hand a few times.
"Lu Zhengting, is Old Man Ning a really stern person?"
"Old Man Ning is very kind."
"Really?" Xia Yan looked at Lu Zhengting with disbelief. She had secretly asked Ning Xi and Ning Bei before, and both of them described Old Man Ning as a very strict and rigorous man—someone who had weathered storms all his life, and in his old age, the atmosphere at home was practically no different from being in the military.
"Really."
Because of Jiang Mingxiu, Xia Yan had become sensitive about parental figures. Hearing this, she absentmindedly turned her gaze back to the window. Forget it, she'd stop thinking.
Cars drove into the compound one after another. Xia Yan noticed soldiers patrolling everywhere starting from the entrance. Before even meeting anyone, she already felt like backing out. A warm, sturdy hand gently held hers. Xia Yan looked up at Lu Zhengting and blinked. "Lu Zhengting, I'm nervous."
"Don't be nervous. Old Man Ning really likes girls."
Xia Yan had no energy left to figure out whether Lu Zhengting was comforting her or if the old man truly liked girls as he said.
When Ning Xi and Ning Bei saw Lu Zhengting glare at them as soon as he got out of the car, they immediately remembered the scare tactics they'd used on Xia Yan. Their hearts skipped a beat—could they be the ones in trouble next?
Old Man Ning spotted Ning Xi and Ning Bei at once and bellowed with vigor, "Third, little one, come here."
"Grandpa."
"I'm asking you, where is that unfilial grandson?"
"..." Ning Xi shot a pleading look at Ning Dong. He knew about second brother's situation. Xu Xiao, sitting beside him, quickly held the baby in her arms up to the old man.
"Grandpa, look, the little one is smiling."
"My little treasure, come let Grandpa see."
Ning Xi and Ning Bei barely had time to breathe a sigh of relief, thinking the old man's attention had been diverted, when they heard him say without even lifting his head, "If that brat doesn't come back tonight, then he doesn't need to come back at all."
"..."
When they sat down for dinner, the old man had Lu Zhengting sit beside him, and Xia Yan naturally had to sit next to Lu Zhengting. She smiled, sitting with perfect posture. Catching the old man's appraising gaze on her out of the corner of her eye, Xia Yan's hands on her thighs instantly clenched together, tense.
"Zhengting, is this the girl you mentioned?"
"Mm, old man, this is Xia Yan."
"Xia Yan, not a bad name, but is this child too nervous?"
Hearing this, Xia Yan quickly looked up and waved her hands. "Grandpa, I'm not, not nervous."
"Pfft..."
Xu Xiao couldn't help but laugh out loud. Seeing the sweat on Xia Yan's forehead, she grabbed a tissue and handed it to her. "Yan Yan, wipe it off."
Awkward. Xia Yan took the tissue with a sheepish smile. Glancing at the old man out of the corner of her eye, she saw his kind expression—not as intimidating as they'd described. She dabbed at her forehead, then suddenly noticed the atmosphere had turned strange.