Lu Yizhou accompanied Ren Zexi to send off the last guests — Old Master Meng and Meng Yun, the female protagonist. Old Master Meng's expression was filled with sympathy as he patted Ren Zexi's shoulders. "It's okay, child. This kind of thing will be ordinary once you step foot into the business world. People will either try to get close to you or bring you down. You have to get used to it."
Ren Zexi nodded humbly. "Thank you very much, Old Master Meng."
The elderly patted her granddaughter's back and only then did Meng Yun begrudgingly say, "It's nice to meet you, Young Master Ren. Let's keep in touch." Yet none of them moved to exchange contact information. Turning to Lu Yizhou, Meng Yun flashed a sweet smile. "Thank you for the invitation, Uncle Lu. You look quite exhausted. Please get some rest."
Lu Yizhou hummed. "Thank you for coming, Old Master Meng, Miss Meng."
"Finally!" Ren Zexi stretched his waist after the two people got into the car and left. "Ugh, now I know why you hate parties and crowds, Uncle Lu."
Lu Yizhou patted his head helplessly. "Don't become like me. You have to socialize with others. It's important to increase your network and resources."
The teenager grumbled but still nuzzled his head closer for Lu Yizhou to touch. "But you're still one of the most successful businessmen even with your nonexistent social life."
What he got next was a flick on the forehead. "Don't refute my words."
Ren Zexi giggled and rubbed the place where Lu Yizhou had just flicked. As always the man didn't use any strength at all, it felt ticklish instead. He glanced up at Lu Yizhou and saw that the man indeed looked tired just like that annoying girl, Meng Yun, said. Ren Zexi got worried again and ushered him in. "Why is your complexion so poor? Let's go. We should go back to our rooms and rest."
That was just as Lu Yizhou wanted. He nodded and together, they rode the elevator and separated on the fork in the hallway after Ren Zexi bid goodnight. Lu Yizhou entered his room and closed the door behind him. In an instant, the faint sound of servants cleaning downstairs vanished, replaced by the still silence that he had gotten very familiar with.
[666: Host, are you unwell again?]
Lu Yizhou rubbed his chest and felt the irregular thumps of his heartbeat. [A little. Well, nowadays if I sleep a little late, my chest will start to hurt. It's really inconvenient.]
[666: Umm...do you want to purchase a Body Nourishing Pill?]
[Hearing this sentence coming from a system who just complained earlier about the point being too low is kind of funny.]
[666: Hmph! 666 means well! 666 is always thinking on behalf of Host!]
[Yes, yes.]
One human and one system bickered back and forth until Lu Yizhou came out from the bathroom donned only in a black satin robe with its sash tied loosely around his waist and comfy pants. He had just wanted to get to bed when a knock resounded through the room. "Uncle Lu…? Are you asleep yet?"
Lu Yizhou paused and went to open the door. Ren Zexi stood behind it, clad in a similar robe, one of many habits he had picked up when living with Lu Yizhou. The teenager's hair was still damp with droplets of water trailing down his neck. Warm mists radiated from his body and his watery eyes told Lu Yizhou that he had just taken a nice, hot bath.
"Do you need something?" Lu Yizhou asked and opened the door wider for him to come in.
Ren Zexi often slept here when he was young. However, since he started middle school and got his first wet dream about Lu Yizhou, the number of times he spent the night here could be counted with one hand. He stepped in gingerly and stood in the middle of the room, an awkward expression on his face.
Lu Yizhou had gotten better at reading Ren Zexi's expressions, especially when the teenager behaved like an open book in front of him. Tentatively, he guessed. "Scared by the incident earlier? Want to spend the night here?"
Ren Zexi nodded gingerly, his head hung low.
Lu Yizhou walked past him, took off his robe and climbed onto the bed with his upper body naked. "Then what are you waiting for? Dry your hair and get in."
Ren Zexi blinked and his eyes brightened up in the next second. "En!" He stormed to the bathroom and dried his hair until it got soft and fluffy, then eagerly got under the cover and laid beside Lu Yizhou. There was silence for a while. Ren Zexi stared up at the white ceiling and whispered. "Uncle Lu?"
"Hmm?" Came the low, throaty hum from the side which made Ren Zexi's blood thrum inside his veins.
He shook his head to eliminate any inappropriate thoughts. "What's with Jing Xuehao? He said something about affairs and evidence…"
"No need to care about him." Lu Yizhou answered curtly. "He won't ever appear around you anymore."
Ren Zexi saw that Lu Yizhou wasn't willing to continue the topic thus he gave a nod. Afterall, everything Lu Yizhou had done was for his own good. Ren Zexi believed in him 100%. Most importantly, he didn't want to talk about Jing Xuehao at this moment, not when they finally got some quality time together.
"He was with that person. That's...my uncle, isn't it? Actually, I heard everything he said. Did you really do something to him, Uncle Lu...?"
Ren Zexi waited with bated breath, which was unnecessary because Lu Yizhou replied with almost no hesitation. "Yes. Not long after I took you in, he started to frequent Lu Group's building and stalked in the parking lot for days. His intention was anything but good." Lu Yizhou paused and then, a slight rustle sounded, he had turned to the side to face Ren Zexi. "Do you blame me?"
"How can I?!" Ren Zexi's tone raised in rebuttal. "I—I am just surprised, that's all. I have no idea that he has been searching for me all these times. You have really protected me well, Uncle Lu."
He had no idea which sentence he said made Lu Yizhou happy but the man's lips suddenly curled into a smile. Not the faint, indiscernible smile that vanished within a blink, but a genuine smile that reached his eyes. The gentle ray from the lamp by the nightstand illuminated his silhouette, making his features look softer than ever. Ren Zexi's heart skipped a beat at the sight.
He cleared his throat and abruptly shifted the topic. "W—Wha about Old Master Meng's granddaughter? She...She said that you deliberately left us alone." Gone was his thundering heartbeat and in place was a gloominess that weighed down on him. "Is that true…?"
Lu Yizhou didn't answer directly and raised another question instead. "Do you like her?"
"No!" Ren Zexi sprung up sitting and stared at Lu Yizhou with an appalled look. "I don't like her at all! You don't need to worry about this kind of thing, Uncle Lu! Could it be that because—" because Lu Yizhou found out about his feelings and that's why he wanted to pair Ren Zexi with another woman? He couldn't bring himself to finish the sentence.
It was unknown whether Lu Yizhou understood the unspeakable meaning behind his pause but in the end, he just patted Ren Zexi on his shoulder to calm the teenager down. "Don't get so worked up. I was just casually asking."
Ren Zexi loosened his fists and laid back down, this time face to face with Lu Yizhou albeit he still didn't dare to look straight into the man's eyes. "I don't like her…" He repeated once again with an aggrieved tone.
"Okay, I know." Lu Yizhou answered softly. "Sleep."
The ticking clock and the other person's breathing became the only sounds they could hear. When Ren Zexi was sure that Lu Yizhou had closed his eyes, he slowly lifted his eyelids to steal a glance. "Uncle Lu…?" He called out softly and waited. Yet no answer came except for Lu Yizhou's smooth breathing.
Ren Zexi heaved a sigh of relief and sat up slowly, his eyelashes fluttering. His sight landed on Lu Yizhou's hand outside the blanket and he gingerly reached for it, checking the man's reaction along the way.
Lu Yizhou didn't react. "It seems like he has really fallen asleep…" Ren Zexi sighed in relief and held his hand tighter. "Well, Butler An also said that Uncle Lu is sleeping longer and longer…" The words died down in his throat. Staring at Lu Yizhou's peacefully sleeping face, Ren Zexi brought the man's hand into his lips and gently kissed his knuckle one by one, his expression pious as if the person in front of him wasn't a human but a God with its holy, untainted presence instead.
"Lu Yizhou…" He whispered, eyes landing on the faint white scar on Lu Yizhou's chest. In that instant, his heart constricted painfully. "In this life, I, Ren Zexi, will not like anybody but you. Only you. Do you hear that?" Then very, very slowly he bent down to drop a butterfly kiss to Lu Yizhou's cheek. "Since my confession, I haven't been giving you daily kisses. I almost regretted having told you my feelings. So...just consider this as my real birthday present, okay?"
Ren Zexi spent some time staring at Lu Yizhou's face fondly until he gradually fell asleep.
The clock turned and struck exactly at twelve. It was yet another day.
Finally, he had officially become an adult.
***
Time passed. Autumn leaves made their nest on the ground and winter quietly arrived. After Ren Zexi reached adulthood, he had taken over more and more of Lu Yizhou's work and his face gradually appeared regularly on economic channels as the most promising junior entrepreneur.
When the first petals bloomed in spring, Lu Yizhou had almost been stripped of his job, leaving him with idle days filled with reading, sunbathing and sometimes, important meetings to relinquish his position and slowly handed his authority over to Ren Zexi.
Along with the change in season, the teenager's height sprouted up like bamboo shots, his shoulders broadened and his facial features gradually opened up. He had completely turned into a handsome and dashing young man, placing him second place for the List of Top Bachelor in the country — the first was always Lu Yizhou. He had no idea either how he retained the first position for so many years when he very seldom showed his face on screen.
On one sunny day in mid spring, Lu Yizhou's phone rang. He put his book down and answered it. Secretary Nan's voice came through, hurried with a tinge of excitement. "CEO Lu, the police have just notified me that they have successfully caught Feng Chaoluo red-handed and are currently on the way to confiscate all of the illegal properties under Feng Clan! Their demise is set in stone this time. Do you have some free time later at noon? They want to meet you in person to relay their gratitude!"
The Old Master of Feng Clan, Feng Chaoluo, the one who took Ren Zexi under his wings as well as the one who caused his ruin in the original plot, had finally ceased to become an obstacle.
Lu Yizhou let out a sigh of relief and intended to reply when the system's familiar chime rang in his mind.
[System notification: Congratulations! You have successfully completed your mission in this world! The exit portal will be opened in the next three days. Please prepare yourself for it!]