Chapter 10

The next day, weekend.

Yu An hadn’t set an alarm the night before and only got up after hearing noises outside the door.

When he opened it, the servants were already greeting guests.

Ignoring the faint glances cast his way, he calmly finished washing up and returned to his room.

He had tidied up the night before and packed his important belongings into a backpack, deciding to move to a rental apartment today.

At nine o’clock, Yu An received a message from Qi Qi saying he had arrived, so he went to the door to meet him.

It was Qi Qi’s first time at Yu An’s home, and upon seeing Yu An’s room, he couldn’t help but frown.

“Is this really where they let you live?”

Yu An replied calmly, “I used to move around a lot, which was too much hassle, so I settled here.”

Seeing Qi Qi’s angry expression, he smiled indifferently, “Actually, it’s quite nice here—very quiet.”

But Qi Qi felt a lump in his throat.

There was nothing entertaining in the room, so Yu An took him to the back garden.

Along the way, many eyes gathered on them, and faint whispers drifted by:

“Hey? That’s the Yu family foster son? How does he look like that...?”

“What do you mean by that tone? Does he look bad or good?”

“He’s too good-looking!”

“Looking at him, he seems more like the young master of the Yu family than Yu Qing…”

“If that’s the case, you better watch what you say, or Qin Ran will come scolding!”

“...”

Qi Qi, walking beside Yu An, smiled slightly at the words.

He looked around and brightened when he spotted the swimming pool near the garden.

“Can you use your family’s pool?”

Yu An nodded. “Sure. Do you want to swim?”

Qi Qi took a sip from the watermelon juice set aside and said, “No, there are too many people here, and I didn’t bring a swimsuit.”

Knowing Yu An could swim, he invited, “Another day, come to my place—we’ll have a race.”

Yu An agreed.

The surrounding gossip was loud, still focused on Yu An’s looks and temperament. Some young girls even approached him, asking for his contact information.

Yu An politely declined.

Qi Qi couldn’t help but stifle a laugh. “What do you think Yu Qing would say if he saw this? He’s so hypocritical—he hates you but won’t let anyone get close to you. It’s sick.”

Yu An wasn’t interested in Yu Qing’s reaction and didn’t respond.

—

On the second floor of the villa, in the south room.

Looking in from the door, the room was fully furnished: living room, sofa, TV, bed, plus a separate washroom, walk-in closet, and game room. The space was huge.

Qin Ran entered, eyes full of envy. “Qingqing, your room is so big!”

Yu Qing was still changing clothes—the outfit he had carefully prepared.

Hearing Qin Ran’s voice, disdain filled his eyes, but his tone was friendly. “Your room’s big too. I heard your brother bought you a new set of gaming gear?”

Qin Ran lifted his chin confidently, “Of course. My brother is the best to me.”

Then, noticing Yu Qing’s clothes, he reached out to touch them. “This must be expensive, right?”

Yu Qing nodded happily. “Mom bought it for me.”

He wrinkled his nose in frustration. “I can’t even wear half of it. There are still many tags on some clothes!”

Qin Ran stepped closer to look, but when he saw the dance costume, his face suddenly darkened.

“Qingqing, if it weren’t for your second brother, I could have gone to the theater long ago. But now, no theater will have me, so I can only stay home, doing nothing!”

Thinking of his parents’ subtle disdain, Qin Ran hated Yu An with a burning passion!

“He’s just a foster son—what right does he have to steal your parents’ favor? Doesn’t he see who he really is?!”

Hearing the words ‘foster son,’ Yu Qing clenched his fists, nails digging into his skin.

Still wearing a naïve expression, he said, “Second brother isn’t what you think. I’ll ask him if he can help you get into the theater sometime.”

Qin Ran’s face lit up. “Really? Qingqing, you’re too good to me!”

Just then, a knock sounded on the door.

Yu Qing went to open it and smiled upon seeing their mother. “Mom.”

Their mother smiled back. “An’an, you look so pretty in this outfit. Let me do your hair.”

She glanced around the room. “Is this convenient?”

Yu Qing nodded. “Yes, Mom. This is my friend.”

Qin Ran immediately said, “Hello, Auntie.”

Their mother was in poor health. After braiding Yu Qing’s hair, she left.

The door closed again. Qin Ran recalled the woman’s gentle demeanor—so much better than his own mother—and jealousy welled up inside him. But remembering his older brother’s advice, he restrained himself and asked another question.

“Qingqing, why does your mom call you An’an?”

Yu Qing’s smile faltered. “Mom hopes for my safety.”

Qin Ran nodded, then remembered something else. “Your nickname is An’an, but Yu An only changed his name after coming to your house, right? And he even changed it to sound like your nickname. Is he trying to copy you?”

“Exactly. I knew it. He must have learned dancing from you too. That’s so shameless!”

Yu Qing’s smile completely vanished.

When he was twelve, he found an old photo of Yu An as a child.

The photo showed long black hair and a red dot between the brows, dressed for an opera performance.

He heard Yu An had studied opera and dance since childhood. So, Yu Qing also grew his hair long and learned dance and opera.

The teacher’s sighs felt like slaps in the face.

He knew he could never match Yu An; he had no talent for it.

He hated Yu An. Every time their mother called him An’an, it was as if she was telling him he was just a substitute for Yu An.

He didn’t want to carry that name his whole life. One day, he would break free from that identity!

Suddenly, Qin Ran felt a chill down his neck but ignored it when Yu Qing mentioned Gu Yuzhou.

“The day I went for the theater audition, I saw him.”

Yu Qing paused, looking at him. “What did you say?”

Qin Ran replied, “After my audition, I saw President Gu enter the theater. I later found out he occasionally goes to watch performances.”

He thought of Yu Qing’s opera lessons and felt a pang, but still praised him. “You’ve studied opera too—maybe you’ll catch President Gu’s eye!”

Yu Qing lowered his head, smiling shyly, but his eyes were icy cold.

Yu An works at the theater—would he encounter Gu Yuzhou? Or have they already met?

—

Gu Corporation building.

After concluding a business deal, Gu Yuzhou returned to his office and received a call from Yu Ling.

“Yuzhou, come have lunch at my place.”

Gu Yuzhou was about to refuse when she added, “It’s the weekend. You can pick up Yu An on the way and bring him along.”

He paused, then responded with a short “Mm.”

After hanging up, Gu Yuzhou saw Yu An’s number sent by Yu Ling and saved it.

He took the elevator down and drove to the Yu residence.

—

Eleven in the morning.

The gathering began. Yu Qing descended the stairs, receiving praise and envious glances from the crowd.

Yet, his eyes were fixed on two figures in the distant garden. Seeing the taller one smile and wrap an arm around the other, he tightened his grip on the stair railing.

In an instant, he returned to his usual self, mingling with others like a beloved little prince.

—

Qi Qi rested a hand on Yu An’s shoulder, clicking his tongue. “Yu Qing with that long hair looks just like a girl.”

Yu An said nothing, lowering his head to reply to Teacher Yu’s message.

The banquet was boring. Qi Qi yawned. “Yu Qing isn’t hosting a party; he’s inviting a group of flatterers.”

Yu An chuckled. “You go ahead. I’ll treat you to a meal another day.”

Thinking the event would soon end with nothing major happening, Qi Qi left first.

After seeing Qi Qi off, Yu An returned to his room to get his backpack.

Passing by the pool, Yu Qing stopped him.

“Brother, didn’t you promise not to hang out with Qi Qi anymore?”

Yu An ignored him and kept walking.

Yu Qing acted as if he didn’t notice his coldness and continued, “Did you know the family used to have a cat?”

Yu An paused and looked at him.

Yu Qing smiled faintly. “You’re wondering where it went, aren’t you?”

He slowly approached Yu An and whispered:

“That cat was small, dirty, and pitiful. For some reason, I hated it the moment I saw it.”

Yu An’s breath caught—that was the cat he had found outside.

Small and skinny but full of life, never sick, obedient, and clingy. But when he returned to the Yu family, his brother said it had died.

Yu Qing said, “It was sharp-mouthed and always bit me in secret corners. So, I accidentally opened the big door. It slipped out by itself—ah!”

Yu An’s eyes reddened as he gripped Yu Qing’s shoulder tightly. “Why did you do that?”

The commotion seemed to draw attention; people looked over.

Yu Qing’s expression turned pitiful. “Brother, what’s wrong?”

Hearing the whispers, Yu An forced himself to calm down, his tone growing icier.

“Did you do it on purpose to provoke me? So I’d push you in front of everyone? Or hit you? To ruin my reputation? Get fired from the theater? Lose Dad and brother’s trust?”

Tears welled in Yu Qing’s eyes as he staggered to the ground.

Yu An caught him and suddenly laughed. “Do you think I’m afraid? I don’t expect family affection, but you can’t trample on me to get it!”

Yu Qing sensed something was wrong and tried to break free, but to little effect.

In Yu Qing’s panicked eyes, Yu An forcefully shoved him into the pool.

A loud splash rang out as Yu Qing sank hard beneath the water, his nostrils flooding, and breath instantly cut off.

Yu An wiped the water from his face expressionlessly and walked away.

Silence fell. In the pool, Yu Qing struggled desperately until someone spoke up, “Does he even know how to swim?”

Three minutes passed before a Yu family servant dove in and pulled him out.

Yu An went straight to his room, grabbed his already packed backpack, and left the Yu residence without looking back.

On the way, memories of that little cat surfaced repeatedly, always gently sniffing his palm with its tiny nose…

His phone rang twice before he noticed.

It was an unknown number. He sluggishly brought the phone to his ear and heard a familiar voice.

“It’s me, Gu Yuzhou.”

Yu An opened his mouth, “Mr. Gu, I just did something very bad.”

“Are you hurt?” Gu Yuzhou’s calm voice came through the line.

Yu An was stunned, paused, then smiled, saying no, but his vision blurred suddenly.

In the haze, a familiar tall figure approached him.