Chapter 206

Chapter 206

Even without asking Xiao Huai, Zhong Jiangyuan knew exactly whom the word “he” referred to.

“He said he’d wait for you at the Jinlemen Club. He’ll explain to your teacher that you were late today.”

Zhong Jiangyuan faithfully relayed Lu Yuanshi’s message to Xiao Huai.

Xiao Huai pressed his lips together and ran a hand through his hair. “Mm. Got it.”

Just as Xiao Huai made to leave, Zhong Jiangyuan stopped him. “Oh, right. He prepared these for you.”

Zhong Jiangyuan handed Xiao Huai something resembling a lunch box.

Xiao Huai opened it and found that food really had been packed inside.

There were sticky rice dumplings and plenty of sweets.

For some reason, a smile appeared on Zhong Jiangyuan’s face. “That kid Lu Yuanshi really knows what he’s doing.”

Xiao Huai took a bite, not understanding. “Knows how to do what?”

Zhong Jiangyuan raised an eyebrow. “You don’t know?”

“I know.” Xiao Huai still had a sticky rice dumpling in his mouth. “I know he’s quite good at cooking.”

Zhong Jiangyuan fell silent.

Whatever you say.

Zhong Jiangyuan said, “True. He is quite good at cooking.”

He nodded calmly.

What he had meant was that in a place where food was relatively scarce, Lu Yuanshi had still managed to prepare so much for Xiao Huai. Surely that meant…

Forget it. Perhaps Zhong Jiangyuan was imagining things.

As Xiao Huai left Red Mansion, he encountered Chen Chong searching nearby for clues.

Chen Chong greeted him. “Yo, finally awake, bro?”

Xiao Huai glanced at him and continued toward the exit. From behind him, Chen Chong said,

“This time, Meimei and I are on your side. No matter what you decide to do in the end, you saved our lives. We’ll do everything we can to help you too.”

Chen Chong often coasted through games. Survival was not difficult for him, after all.

But after being saved, his attitude had changed.

He had to do something to repay them, did he not?

Xiao Huai stopped. He looked sideways at Chen Chong from the corner of his eye and spoke quietly, his voice just loud enough to reach him.

“Do your best.”

The corners of Chen Chong’s mouth lifted when he heard it. “I will.”

After Xiao Huai left, Jiang Wenmei looked down from the second floor at Chen Chong, who still stood there in a daze. “What are you spacing out for?”

Chen Chong muttered to himself, “I was thinking, if Xiao Huai were a girl, I’d definitely chase him. One hundred percent.”

After he said this, Chen Chong had no idea why the entire Red Mansion seemed to fall silent.

It was as if Zhong Jiangyuan and Shen Yun had blades of ice hidden in their eyes. Jiang Wenmei looked at Chen Chong as though he were an idiot.

“You’re hopelessly stupid.” With that, she turned and went to search for other clues.

Had he really failed to notice the look in Lu Yuanshi’s eyes?

Women tended to have much sharper instincts about such things than men.

She would never forget the way Lu Yuanshi looked at Xiao Huai.

It was as though four words were written there:

“He belongs to me.”

* * *

Jinlemen Club

Onstage, Huo Dieyi was discussing details from the script Xiao Huai had devised with the opera performers. She was so absorbed that she failed to notice his arrival.

She caught a glimpse of him from the corner of her eye and jumped.

“You’re here.” Huo Dieyi turned to look at Xiao Huai.

Xiao Huai nodded. “Sorry. I couldn’t get up this morning.”

Several strands of his hair were still sticking up. Huo Dieyi naturally noticed, and for some reason, the corners of her mouth curved upward.

After all, she had heard an interesting story not long ago.

Several opera performers had noticed on their way to work that Lu Yuanshi had come from the direction of Red Mansion.

Red Mansion had an unwritten rule: only couples and lovers shared a room.

That was why the beds in its rooms for couples were extraordinarily large, while those in its ordinary single rooms were of a more normal size.

When Lu Yuanshi arrived, he had said with a cheerful smile, “Xiao Huai was exhausted last night. He’s still sleeping in.”

Huo Dieyi was not an especially strict teacher to begin with. Teasingly, she asked,

“How do you know? Don’t tell me you were in the same bed.”

It had only been a joke, yet Lu Yuanshi answered without the slightest hesitation,

“Mm.”

“What? Are… are the two of you together like that? Ahem, ahem. Never mind. All right, all right. I understand.”

Huo Dieyi immediately stopped asking questions. After everything she had experienced, she had long since learned to respect other people’s choices and wish them well.

Yet she could not stop thinking about it. Xiao Huai had been exhausted last night and was still sleeping in.

Damn it, her face turned scarlet with a rush of heat. What nonsense was she imagining?

Even now that Xiao Huai had returned, she was still thinking about it.

Xiao Huai watched as Huo Dieyi’s face turned bright red, almost as if steam were rising from her head.

“What’s wrong?” Xiao Huai asked softly.

Huo Dieyi said, “Ah! Nothing, I’m fine. More importantly, are you all right?”

Xiao Huai frowned slightly. What could possibly be wrong with him? He had merely killed a few rubber dolls, run desperately for his life, and overslept from exhaustion.

“Did Lu Yuanshi tell you something strange?” Xiao Huai asked in a low voice.

Huo Dieyi hurriedly shook her head. “No! Nothing at all. He only said you were sleeping in.”

“Oh.” At least Lu Yuanshi had known better than to embellish the story.

Xiao Huai and Lu Yuanshi knew nothing about the unwritten rule behind Red Mansion. Without either of them realizing it, Huo Dieyi had already placed them in a different category of relationship.

Lu Yuanshi came out from backstage and rested his chin against Xiao Huai’s back. “You’re finally here. Rehearsals are so dull without you.”

“You could have woken me.” Xiao Huai stepped forward, then turned to face Lu Yuanshi.

Huo Dieyi automatically put some distance between herself and the two of them. She also called the other opera performers away to discuss the script somewhere else.

Better not disturb the two of them.

Lu Yuanshi suddenly leaned close to Xiao Huai, his gaze fixed on Xiao Huai’s lips. Xiao Huai froze slightly. His heartbeat inexplicably quickened in an instant. Only when their eyes met did he notice the obvious laughter hidden in Lu Yuanshi’s gaze and the faint curve of his lips. As Lu Yuanshi raised a hand as though to touch him, Xiao Huai unconsciously held his breath.

Lu Yuanshi’s hand brushed past his earlobe, then moved upward and settled on the upturned ends of his hair.

Only after a long moment did Xiao Huai slowly release the breath he had been holding.

What was wrong with him…? Why had he held his breath for no reason?

Xiao Huai lifted his eyes. He was about to catch Lu Yuanshi’s restless hand when he saw the radiant smile on his face.

It was as if ten thousand lights had appeared in those ink-black eyes, like the sudden flare of starlight becoming countless meteors that scattered across the mortal world. For one instant, all sound faded away, leaving only the beat of a heart.

His heart began pounding beyond all restraint.

Xiao Huai’s pupils widened slightly, and he immediately turned his head.

The warmth of Lu Yuanshi’s palm seemed to linger in his hair. It spun itself into fine threads that traced and wound themselves around his heart.

From Lu Yuanshi’s angle, he could see Xiao Huai’s lightly trembling lashes in profile and the glances Xiao Huai kept stealing in his direction.

He slowly moved closer to Xiao Huai, bent down beside his ear, and whispered,

“Same answer as before: I couldn’t bear to.”

He could not bear to wake Xiao Huai.

That had been true in the past, and it was still true now.