Chapter 39: The Unveiling of Deception

Guan Qing broke out in a cold sweat.

The photo appeared utterly ordinary at first glance. However, upon closer inspection, his mother’s face was pale, and her smile, though present, held an unnatural stiffness. What the lens revealed was even more terrifying—this was…

Stalking. Surveillance.

Someone was controlling and threatening his mother, yet he… had been completely oblivious.

Ye Anxian was a quintessential Southern woman: gentle, cultured, and virtuous.

However, she also struggled with making decisions and was often indecisive when faced with major issues.

While she certainly possessed her own principles and pride, in most matters, she chose inaction, neither contending nor vying for anything.

From a very young age, Guan Qing had therefore learned to be self-reliant and strong, so he could protect his mother.

This was also why, when confronting significant problems, the person he first considered reliable wasn’t his mother, but Ye Zi.

Naturally, after his mother remarried, his attention toward her diminished considerably. Her husband was an honest and dependable man, capable of protecting his wife, and they were deeply in love.

Yet, he never anticipated that danger would still strike.

“Was it something I… did wrong?”

Guan Qing covered his eyes, his face ashen.

Why had this happened? They were merely ordinary citizens, and his stepfather was just a professor at a regular university—an honest man who had never made enemies. Such a thing shouldn’t, shouldn’t…

No, there was also Xie Xu’s mother.

Recalling Xie Qing’s company’s sudden financial crisis, and his mother being watched and controlled, a vague idea surfaced in Guan Qing’s mind. Yet he couldn’t grasp it.

He was simply too panicked, his entire body trembling, for this was a consequence he could not bear.

That was his mother.

Guan Qing’s mind was in utter turmoil.

****

Amidst the chaos, a voice suddenly cut through. It was incredibly gentle, speaking unhurriedly: “What’s wrong? You look awful.”

He chuckled, “Surely my confession didn’t scare you that much, did it?”

Ye Zi, still wearing his glasses, scarf, and overcoat, hadn’t yet had a chance to take them off. A touch of rain clung to him, making him appear both travel-worn and incredibly gentle. This attire was remarkably similar to his student days, and on such a stormy winter day, Guan Qing felt a momentary sense of temporal dislocation.

He froze, locked his phone screen, and shook his head awkwardly. “It’s nothing.”

He was somewhat distracted, most of his thoughts suspended in worry for his mother, with a small fraction reserved for his embarrassment.

He considered his attitude toward Ye Zi to be that of a junior toward a senior, with no excessive intimacy or ambiguity. Moreover, Ye Zi was so outstanding.

Although he had vaguely sensed Ye Zi’s feelings for him, he first believed Ye Zi wasn’t serious, and second, he hadn’t expected Ye Zi to vocalize them.

Ye Zi was such a composed and discerning person. Adults typically didn’t declare their feelings outright; it was too impulsive and too passive. Most adult relationships resembled a masquerade ball, with mutual speculation, tentative probing, and a constant chase, where no one wished to fall behind.

But Ye Zi had confessed, catching him completely off guard.

“How did you end up in the hospital again?” Ye Zi asked softly, as he removed his scarf and hung it on the coat rack.

Guan Qing saw that he didn’t bring up the previous matter, so he found it awkward to say anything himself. He could only chat casually about something else.

“Sometimes I wonder, what do you like about Xie Xu?” Ye Zi held an apple, slowly peeling it. Beside him, two bodyguards watched intently, their gazes turning sharper at the question.

Ye Zi, however, ignored them, continuing his gentle conversation with Guan Qing.

“I guess he’s handsome.” The atmosphere felt a little too relaxed, and Guan Qing’s mind wasn’t truly on the conversation. He was busy contacting a friend on a business trip in Europe, hoping someone could help. Hearing Ye Zi, he casually made a joke.

Ye Zi fell silent.

Guan Qing looked down at his phone for a while, then looked up to find Ye Zi quietly watching him.

Guan Qing rubbed his nose, a bit embarrassed. “Well, I’m not very good with words… ‘Love knows no origin,’ I suppose.”

You don’t know when it takes root and sprouts. By the time you realize it, the feeling of love has already grown into a lush canopy. You think of him, care for him, miss him, want to kiss him upon meeting, love him so much you can’t hide it at all—it’s completely revealed the moment you see him.

Sometimes, feelings are just like that.

If not for Xie Xu, he might have fallen for Ye Zi. But when it came to such matters, there were never any ‘ifs.’ His heart held only a tiny space, just enough for one Xie Xu, and it was already completely full.

“Ye Zi… Senior, thank you. You’re such a good person, you deserve…” Guan Qing said, his expression serious.

This was a subtle rejection, and Ye Zi wouldn’t fail to understand.

Yet, Ye Zi remained silent for a long time.

“I’ve thought about it for a long time. You’re truly amazing, and there’s nothing I can do to help you,” Guan Qing said with an embarrassed smile. “I just—”

“I’m not good.” Ye Zi finally spoke, interrupting Guan Qing.

A hint of coldness and sharpness, tinged with a thick layer of gloom, flickered in his eyes. In just a few seconds, he seemed to have transformed into a different person.

Ye Zi took off his glasses, pinching the temples. Without the glasses to obscure them, his eyes were.

“Guan Qing, sometimes I think, after all these years, you still haven’t seen me clearly.”

He shook his head, then continued, “Being deceived by me is one thing, but that fool Xie Xu, he can string you along with just a few casual words.”

Ye Zi’s words were utterly merciless. The way he looked at Guan Qing was almost as if he were looking at a stranger.

Guan Qing’s smile froze on his face.

“Ye Zi, don’t… don’t say that,” he said, feeling a dryness in his throat and an even greater turmoil in his heart.

“Still don’t understand?” Ye Zi smiled and said:

“It was all my doing.”

“I was the one who had your classmates isolate you in university. I was the one who installed a virus on your laptop. I was the one who framed you for plagiarism, destroyed the evidence, and took that letter.”

His tone wasn’t self-deprecating; it was no different from his usual way of speaking—still gentle, calm, and deliberate.

He even analyzed it for him with clear logic and sound reasoning: “The first time you discussed your thesis with me, I checked your IP address; it was at Xie Xu’s house. Later, when you came out for dinner, your keychain didn’t have a USB drive, so I guessed you’d left it behind. When the incident occurred, you were completely unguarded and handed me the USB drive directly—that’s when the virus was installed. I’m curious, did you trust me that much?”

He shrugged. “Also, why do you think your university classmates isolated you for no reason? Who would want to mess with someone who gets good grades?”

Guan Qing was silent for a long time.

When he finally spoke, his voice was trembling slightly: “This makes no sense. What good did doing all this do you? And since you did it, why are you telling me now?”

“I want you to wake up.” Ye Zi’s eyes, cold and calm, stared at him, seemingly trying to pierce into Guan Qing’s very soul. “Don’t be naive, still thinking everyone around you is good. If I’m half the mastermind, then your Xie Xu is an accomplice.”

Guan Qing had changed too much recently. He had become more prone to smiling, always carrying a gentle smile when talking to people; the former gloom, inferiority, and distortion were completely gone.

This was utterly unacceptable. Why could Guan Qing leave, while he alone had to struggle in the mud?

“You think Xie Xu helped you out of kindness at the freshman registration desk? It was nothing more than a bet between us. His later concern and help for you were merely because of that wager. We’ve always played like this since we were kids—betting on ball games, horse races. You were just another form of entertainment.”

Ye Zi slowly took a sip of tea. “Speaking of which, you two are of the same kind, no wonder you ended up together. Xie Xu was also foolish when he was little, always wanting to be my friend—did he even deserve it?”

Ye Zi’s eyes curved, reflecting a glass-like, detached, and indifferent sheen. His entire being exuded an arrogance deeply hidden beneath a calm exterior. Outside, it began to rain again, raindrops tapping lightly against the window. A fleeting emotion, perhaps a hint of softness or vulnerability, flickered in Ye Zi’s eyes, but it was faint and quickly vanished.

Guan Qing was speechless.

His mind was in utter disarray; he couldn’t even discern his own emotions—sadness, anger, sorrow?

After a long silence, he heard his own hoarse voice: “Then… my mother’s situation also…?”

Ye Zi didn’t speak. After a moment, he smiled and said:

“If I said no, would you believe me?”

Guan Qing remained silent.

He suddenly remembered his mother calling him from the market not long ago. When he hung up, what had Ye Zi asked him?

Ye Zi had asked…

—”What? Is Auntie still in the Czech Republic?”

His mother and stepfather were on a free tour in Europe, and two days prior, they had been in Switzerland. They had suddenly decided on a whim to go to the Czech Republic. He had never mentioned this to anyone. How had Ye Zi known his mother was in the Czech Republic?

Guan Qing froze.

He looked up at Ye Zi and asked, “Whether this is related to you… I don’t care.”

Ye Zi’s hand clenched slightly, but he quickly relaxed it. He looked up at Guan Qing, gave a self-deprecating smile, and seemed about to say something, but ultimately fell silent.

Guan Qing’s throat felt incredibly dry. He deliberated for a long time, hesitated for an even longer time, and with great effort, finally squeezed out the rest of his question:

“I want to know… does Xie Xu know?”

📚 Also on NHV Novels

I Was Born, and the Vixen Was Already Waiting

Ancient SettingsDarkRomanceDragons

Read Now →
Not interested