Zhu Liuyue dragged Xiao Qitang to the parking lot.
He was still grinning like a rascal.
“Explain yourself. Why did you deliberately provoke Ye Yunche?” Zhu Liuyue asked, folding her arms as she leaned against the car. Her posture was sharp and carefree.
She looked down at Xiao Qitang, who stood some distance away.
Xiao Qitang blinked innocently. “I didn’t. He was the one who tried to hit me first.”
Zhu Liuyue rolled her eyes.
“Speak plainly!”
Xiao Qitang looked aggrieved. The thought of it made him feel even more miserable.
“You’re always like this. You were like this when we broke up, too. I clearly hadn’t done anything wrong, yet you suddenly decided you wanted to break up with me.”
“Zhu Liuyue, you’re such a heartless woman!”
He wasn’t entirely wrong. Zhu Liuyue had indeed been a little heartless.
Liuyue agreed with him on that point.
But he was a grown man who had been dumped. What was with all the crying and whining?
“If you don’t like someone anymore, you break up with them,” she said.
Xiao Qitang looked even more hurt. “Then if you don’t like Ye Yunjin, why did you get engaged to him?”
Oh.
So that was what this was about.
Zhu Liuyue examined him carefully. “You’re not usually someone who gets carried away by love. Why are you asking such a ridiculous question? Ours is a business engagement.”
Xiao Qitang said awkwardly, “I can accept a business engagement, too.”
Zhu Liuyue stared at him. “The Zhu family is in the medical industry, while the Xiao family is in the restaurant business. How exactly are we supposed to form an alliance?”
It wasn’t as if one family could drug people while the other saved them.
Of course, that was just a cold joke.
Xiao Qitang looked even more aggrieved after hearing it.
Zhu Liuyue lowered her eyes and said earnestly, “Xiao Qitang, stop pestering me. I’m engaged now. There’s no chance for us anymore. Focus on being a singer. How long has it been since you released a song? Hurry up and move on to your next relationship.”
Xiao Qitang didn’t have a new ex-girlfriend, so he couldn’t write any new songs.
She was practically urging him on behalf of his fans.
Xiao Qitang pouted.
“What about Ye Yunche?”
Zhu Liuyue pretended not to understand. “Hmm?”
Xiao Qitang exploded in frustration. “That brat is even worse than I am! At least you’re my ex-girlfriend, so it’s perfectly normal for me to have feelings for you. But you’re engaged to his brother, and he still wants to… That’s completely outrageous!”
Zhu Liuyue rubbed her forehead helplessly.
“What does Ye Yunche’s business have to do with you?”
Xiao Qitang gave a soft little snort. “If he can do it, then so can I.”
The conversation had officially failed.
Before leaving, however, Zhu Liuyue still warned him not to cause any more trouble.
That included provoking Ye Yunjin or Ye Yunche.
“Oh.” Xiao Qitang obediently agreed, but his eyes kept darting around mischievously.
…
A week later, Xiao Qitang’s fans celebrated wildly.
Their beloved singer had finally released a new single.
It had been nearly three years.
Ever since “My Little Moon,” their idol hadn’t found any new inspiration.
With no new songs, their only consolation was that he didn’t seem to have a new girlfriend.
But without a new girlfriend, there were no new songs.
They had fallen into a vicious cycle.
Sometimes, his fans even had the bizarre thought that perhaps their idol should date someone, then break up with her. They didn’t know whether he would be heartbroken, but at least they would have a new song to listen to.
So when the new song “Cold Moon” was released, fans immediately began discussing it.
[Did our idol get dumped again? Wonderful! We finally have a new song to listen to.]
[That can’t be right. He hasn’t announced a relationship in ages.]
[And don’t you find it strange? This song and the last one have a character in common.]
[Who exactly is this former girlfriend called “Moon”? She inspired him to write two songs about her.]
[That’s not the point, everyone! The key point is that after three years, our idol still hasn’t forgotten this “Moon.”]
As soon as “Cold Moon” hit all the major music platforms, it became a huge sensation.
Xiao Qitang had always followed the route of a romantic ballad prince. His songs could be sweet or sorrowful.
But this song was heartbreak taken to the extreme.
Many fans commented, “Listening to this song made me remember the night I got dumped. I suddenly feel like having a good cry.”
Zhao Xin supported her cousin, so she immediately sent the song to her friends as soon as it was released.
After listening to it herself, she felt teary-eyed, too.
But then she thought about it and realized something was wrong.
Sister Liuyue already had a fiancé. What exactly was her cousin trying to do?
Was he trying to steal someone else’s fiancée?!
That was immoral. Completely immoral.
Zhao Xin sent him a message condemning him.
Xiao Qitang quickly replied: “They’re only engaged, not married. You’re just a little girl. How are you even more conservative than I am?”
Zhao Xin was stunned. “…”
Xiao Qitang added: “By the way, if you’re free, spend more time hanging out with Sister Liuyue.”
Zhao Xin tried to stand on principle. “Am I the kind of person who would do that? I absolutely refuse to become your accomplice.”
The next second, Xiao Qitang transferred her one hundred thousand yuan.
Xiao Qitang: “Take your time together. Have some coffee and dessert. Your big brother will cover the bill.”
Zhao Xin immediately changed her tune. “Of course! Don’t worry, I’ll take excellent care of my cousin-in-law.”
She put her phone away.
Zhao Xin decided that it wasn’t that she lacked principles.
It was simply that her cousin was offering far too much money.
…
Ye Yunche was listening to “Cold Moon,” too.
He listened while complaining the entire time.
“What kind of nonsense is this? And here—Xiao Qitang definitely added that breathy tone on purpose.”
Ye Yunjin sat at the desk nearby, looking completely relaxed.
Ye Yunche was restless. He paced back and forth several times.
“Xiao Qitang is provoking us.”
“What if Sister Liuyue listens to the song and softens toward him?” he muttered.
Ye Yunjin remained calm.
“Brother, why aren’t you saying anything?”
Ye Yunjin glanced at him indifferently and said in an even tone, “Relax. Ours is a business engagement. One song won’t change anything.”
“At the last engagement banquet, I made such a serious mistake, but Liuyue still went through with the engagement as usual. That shows how much the Zhu family values its cooperation with the Ye family.”
It was a painful thought.
But compared with his own speculation about their feelings, the need for cooperation between the two families had become the source of his confidence.
Ye Yunche instinctively began, “That’s not it. It’s because she…”
The rest of his words died in his throat.
Ye Yunche didn’t want to admit it, and selfishly didn’t want his brother to know.
Zhu Liuyue had continued with the engagement ceremony even after the person she loved was gone because she liked his brother, Ye Yunjin.
From Ye Yunche’s perspective, Zhu Liuyue liked Ye Yunjin.
From Ye Yunjin’s perspective, Zhu Liuyue had personally told him that she liked Ye Yunche.
Both of them believed they knew the truth.
The difference between the Ye twins was that Ye Yunjin was a little smarter.
Before Ye Yunche could finish speaking, Ye Yunjin had already figured it out.
“You mean… Liuyue continued with the engagement ceremony because she likes me, and it had nothing to do with the cooperation between our families?”
Ye Yunche puffed out his cheeks.
He really didn’t want to admit it.
More than that, he felt as if his brother were showing off right to his face.
Hmph! How infuriating!
Wasn’t it enough that Zhu Liuyue liked him? What was there to show off about?!
Besides, he had already decided that he wasn’t going to like Zhu Liuyue anymore.
