After a few days, everything returned to normal in S-City. No one talked about Song Yi Ming's mysterious death or about the Li family who attended it.
All the news of that day was buried by even more big news which made all the citizens gossip about it.
Xiao Bo didn't want to move to B-city before he graduated.
The Li family decided to stay in S-city to support Xiao Bo's decision and to get closer to him slowly day by day without making him uncomfortable.
This was what made headlines. The most powerful Li family's decision to stay in S-City leaving the capital to live with their youngest son whom they found after so many years.
No one knew the exact details about who the youngest son of Li's family was. The only news that was released to the public was someone to take revenge on their family switched their youngest son at birth with a dead baby and that the Li family found about it out now.
Most of the business magnates became joyful that they could make connections with the Li family in S-City unlike in B-city where they couldn't even get near their gate to meet them.
Everyone's attention was on Li's now. They all entirely forgot about the Song family's existence. As if that family never existed in S-City.
After the funeral procession, Wei Chen disappeared. He only left a small message for Xiao Bo that he would come back soon and to not look for him meanwhile, but the smaller was worried and Mu Chen promised him that he would bring his big brother back so he sent his men in search of him.
The Li family requested Xiao Bo to live with them while he attended the University but the smaller wanted to stay in dorms with his friends that he made in this life.
They didn't force him further rather they asked if it was okay to spend time with them on weekends even if it was for an hour.
Xiao Bo didn't want to reject them again and again so he agreed to it. The family was happy with just that and they even decided who would be the first one to spend time by playing rock paper scissors among them and the Li Grandmother won the first chance.
But unexpectedly she couldn't meet him on the weekend as all the departments of S-university decided to conduct the freshers' party to welcome the new students.
It has been postponed for a while now because the seniors at the university had exams and they finally decided to throw the welcome party on the weekend.
All the departments have different ways to celebrate the event. Some departments do it together while some separately.
The business administration department decided to do it together with high school students as always.
This time Wang Mu Chen who never gave any attention to such events in the past, participated in the discussion and preparation actively shocking his fellow classmates.
It was Wang Mu Chen's suggestion that this time the event be held at J-city's beach which was near to S-City.
Everyone agreed immediately cause who doesn't like partying at the beach when Mu Chen would be the one to ask permission from the new principal who feared the Wang family's young master as the last principal was replaced by him.
All the students knew it was a done deal and they were going to enjoy their weekend at the beach.
It was a two-day program. They would leave for J-city on Friday evening, check out their accommodation, have some rest, and start partying the next day then return to S-city on Sunday night.
Everyone was so excited. Especially Mu Chen, as he wanted Xiao Bo to become cheerful. The younger has been too gloomy after his elder brother's sudden disappearance.
Xiao Bo felt like he was left all alone again. His fears filled up his overthinking brain and started gnawing him. Mu Chen realized it and to lift his spirits he thought that a change of scenery was a must.
Wang Mu Chen carefully asked about Xiao Bo's preferences during their casual talk and then planned everything meticulously to make the younger happy.
Feng Xin Yi and Cao Shen Yu took Xiao Bo shopping and bought some beach clothes. The younger didn't want to but Mu Chen also requested him to buy whatever he wanted to enjoy the event to the fullest.
Xiao Bo hesitantly agreed yet relished shopping for clothes together with his friends as it was also his first time doing that.
The Qi twins, Li Fan and Mei Lian were called back to the main family—the Li mansion in S-City and Grandpa and Grandma Li asked them to take care of their younger cousin Xiao Bo and inform them immediately if anything happened.
Both Li Fan and Mei Lian were shocked after knowing that the Xiao Bo they thought so badly of due to the circulating malicious rumors was their youngest cousin who grew up in an abusive household and was misunderstood by everyone till now.
They felt guilty at first and then they became determined to protect Xiao Bo from any harm to make up for everything they did and said without knowing about him much.
Li Fan from the start didn't have much opinion of Xiao Bo and he met with him occasionally because they lived side-by-side and also because his roommate and fiance, Cao Shen Yu was friends with him.
Later he thought the rumors were misleading and erased all his misconceptions about Xiao Bo in his heart. But Mei Lian was different. She believed the rumors as the truth cause she never really interacted with the younger much to begin with.
But to think Xiao Bo was their family. They realized never to trust rumors again without cross-checking them several times. They learned an important life lesson that day.
Everything was set and everyone was excited as they sat on their seat in their respective buses that were traveling to the destination.
However, Xiao Bo was anxious. He remembered the start of his doom in his last life started exactly at the freshers party in the same beach.
He was so immersed in all the other things that it totally left his mind. But as soon as he sat down and saw the trees passing by through the window, the cool breeze and the scent of the ocean hit his nose his memory was refreshed.
Though Mu Chen sat beside him holding his hand, smiling at him, he couldn't hide his panic.
"Snowball, is something bothering you?" Mu Chen gently stroked the hair of the younger who seemed a little out of it.
The warmth in his tone made Xiao Bo's heart hurt. Cause this person who was so kind to him now grabbed him by his neck in the past the next morning they did the deed under the influence of drugs.
It was a horrific memory that imprinted terror in Xiao Bo's mind against Mu Chen cause at the time the look on the elder's eyes, the killing intent toward him was so intense that at that time the younger thought he would die that day by the elder's hands.
In the last life, Song Yi Ming who grew impatient sent his men to drug both Mu Chen and Xiao Bo and lock them up in a room during the freshers' party.
Wang Mu Chen under the influence slept with Xiao Bo. Both of them had no idea how they ended up in the same room all hot. That night was mind mind-blowing experience for them.
Nevertheless, the next day Xiao Bo had to face the enraged Mu Chen who accused him and almost strangled him to death thinking that it was the younger who drugged him and took advantage of him.
It was also the day, Mu Chen who never really gave attention to Xiao Bo started hating him so much, and also the day the Younger started fearing him so much despite his love for him.
Also, the day, which resulted in Xiao Bo's pregnancy. That day was the mark of his future sufferings and the cruel death of him and his unborn baby.
Xiao Bo's eyes became glossy thinking about his unborn baby. How he found out about it by accident, how desperately he wanted to give birth to the baby by moving and living far away from everyone peacefully, and how all his dreams were shattered in the blink of an eye.
The tears in the younger's eyes couldn't contain anymore as they sidled by his cheeks making Mu Chen all alert.
"Snowball, what happened?" Mu Chen wiped off the tears gently and asked in a worried tone.
Xiao Bo leaned on Mu Chen's shoulder, clutching the elder's shirt with one hand as the other one was intertwined with the elder's hand already, and shook his head.
Wang Mu Chen side-hugged the younger tightly. He was also feeling uneasy seeing the surroundings as the bus passed by. It felt so unfamiliarly familiar to him and he had been haunted by some realistic nightmares the past days after the headache at the funeral of Song Yi Ming.
He saw Xiao Bo crying, suffering, and asking for his help in those nightmares but Mu Chen could neither move nor lend a hand to the younger.
It was torturous for Mu Chen to witness Xiao Bo in pain. He felt helpless and was suffocated by those nightmares. And now seeing how the Younger was also being so emotional out of nowhere he became edgy.
...
On the other hand, Li Feng Mian was searching for Wei Chen like a madman. Finally, he got a clue after a week.
His men found out that there was a residence under Wei Chen's secretary's name which belonged to Wei Chen.
The secretary spilled that Wei Chen bought it without his father's knowledge and used to spend his time there whenever he was down or having some problems.
When his men sent the address Feng Mian noticed that it was the same apartment just the above floor, the one where he lived with Wei Chen.
He was stunned. Feng Mian rang the bell in hopes that Wei Chen would open it but no matter how many times he pressed no one opened it.
Wei Chen's secretary who used to restock groceries knew the password. Feng Mian unlocked it and went inside.
He searched in all the rooms but found no one and it seemed Wei Chen didn't come there recently as it was dusty and unorganised.
After exploring every room he stopped in the study room. There were books of the author Feng Mian loved. He found it amusing that Wei Chen too was a fanboy of that author just like him.
But soon he knew he was wrong. Feng Mian causally turned on the system which had no password unusually and saw the opened document on the screen.
He was beyond shocked at that moment. It was the continuation chapter of the second volume of the book that author 'Geranium' had yet to publish.
"Impossible..." Only that word left out of his mouth.
He minimized the document and then decided to check the emails. Then he confirmed that Wei Chen was the famous mysterious author known for his romantic thrillers all around the country.
Those emails were a conversation between the CEO of the country's no.1 publishing company, 'Magic Peony Pages', MPP in short. The emails also had conversations between the editors, proofreaders, publishers, and directors of the company.
Also, the raw chapters of the previously published novels were in the documents. Feng Mian was speechless. If he was the famous author then Wei Chen was as rich as his family.
Yet, he endured every insult. Why? Feng Mian had no clue. If Wei Chen wanted he could have left the Song family way before and lived a peaceful life away from everything with his popularity and wealth.
That was when Feng Mian remembered their talk.
*****
[Ms. Villainess's note: This scene occurred in Chapter 11]
Feng Mian removed his crossed legs and sat straight feeling something deep inside his heart seeing how dejected the other's eyes were.
"Then why are you putting up with him? It's not like you are minor or something. You can just leave and live your life," Feng Mian questioned.
"You think if I had that chance I wouldn't have done it? But if I left home selfishly thinking about my happiness then what about my little brother? He is still a minor, he can't leave the home with me and my Father will..."
Wei Chen's voice stuck in his throat as his eyes got glossy.
*****
Now Feng Mian knew Wei Chen chose not to do that just because he didn't want to leave his younger brother all alone with his greedy father. He was waiting until Xiao Bo turned eighteen to take him away along with him.
That was how much Wei Chen cared for Xiao Bo yet Feng Mian misunderstood and treated him so badly because of a video.
The remorse Feng Mian felt at the moment was beyond anything. His chest squeezed in pain thinking about how he hurt the other.
He could've never guessed that the anonymous mysterious author by the pen name, 'Geranium' was a man because all the fans thought the author was a woman because the pen name was of a flower.
Because of that stereotype, Feng Mian never could've guessed even in his wildest dreams that Wei Chen was the same author he so much loved and was the same person on whom he inflicted so much agony.
This twist of fate crushed Feng Mian's heart into the abyss as he fell to his knees looking blankly at the screen. Suddenly he felt nauseous, and his head started aching terribly as it was being split apart.
He felt as if his surroundings were in a rollercoaster. With a thud, his body fell limp on the ground. Feng Mian was unconscious.
*****