Xiao Zhu looked at Li Yu, genuinely troubled.
Moreover, this man shared a past with Jian Suiying that he knew nothing about.
He nudged Li Yu aside slightly, opened the door, and intended to let Jian Suiying decide how to handle the situation.
Xiao Zhu stared dumbfounded at the two soundly asleep figures.
He stood frozen in the doorway for a full two minutes before finally dragging Li Yu inside and laying him on the wooden floor.
The heating was cranked up high inside, easily twenty-six or twenty-seven degrees Celsius. Stepping in made him sweat instantly—sleeping anywhere wouldn't be too cold.
. Still, Xiao Zhu fetched two blankets from the room and covered them both.
He stood up to clean up the mess Jian Suiying had made, then started cooking. Unfortunately, by the time he finished cooking, Jian Suiying still hadn't woken up.
It wasn't until after 10 p.m. that Li Yu's phone suddenly rang.
The room had been quiet and tidy, so the abrupt, loud sound startled Xiao Zhu. The two sleeping figures also
stirred.
Seeing both of them start to stir, Xiao Zhu panicked. He froze beside them as Jian Suiying climbed out of bed.
"Damn... so damn loud..." Jian Suiying's head throbbed painfully. Rubbing his eyes as he stood, he saw Xiao Zhu standing nearby, looking at him with concern.
"Suiying..." Xiao Zhu poured him a glass of water. "Drink some water." "What noise? It's so damn loud. Turn it off, turn it off."
Xiao Zhu glanced awkwardly toward the floor near the doorway.
Jian Suiying followed his gaze and turned his head, only to see Li Yu groggily fumbling around for his phone.
"What's he doing here?"
Xiao Zhu replied, "He fell asleep by the door. I was afraid he'd catch a chill." Jian Suiying frowned. "Throw him out. He won't freeze to death."
Xiao Zhu glanced at Li Yu and whispered: "You go ahead."
Jian Suiying walked over to Li Yu and kicked him. "Get out. You're making too much noise."
Li Yu groggily scrambled to his feet, glancing at Jian Suiying with a mix of confusion and delight in his eyes. He finally found
the phone, but after glancing at the screen, his fingers drifted toward the hang-up button.
Jian Suiying quickly bent down, snatched the phone from his hand, and saw it was Li Xuan calling. She answered it immediately.
Li Xuan's furious shouts came through the phone, "Did I tell you to run off?! Mom and Dad are furious! Where the hell did you go now?!"
!"
Jian Suiying replied, "He came looking for me. I'll bring him back right away."
Li Xuan paused, "Jian Suiying?" Then cursed under his breath, "Where? I'll come get him." Jian Suiying gave him the address and told him to hurry. Only then did she toss the phone back to Li Yu.
Li Yu scrambled to his feet, scanning the room before his gaze settled on Xiao Zhu. Xiao Zhu glanced at him, then turned his head away.
Li Yu croaked, "You've been living here this whole time?" Jian Suiying pointed toward the door, silently watching him.
"I won't look, and I don't want them. Your fight to the death with Jian Suilin has nothing to do with me."
Xiao Zhu interjected, "Suiying, let's eat first." His intention was merely to remind Li Yu once more that they were dismissing him.
but the word "Suiying" made Li Yu's body freeze instantly.
He sat up straight, narrowing his eyes at Xiao Zhu. "What did you just call him?" Xiao Zhu flinched, lowering his head to stare at the floor.
Li Yu sprang to his feet, taking two steps closer as his voice rose. "What did you just call him?" Jian Suiying shoved him aside, arching an eyebrow. "None of your damn business."
For the first time, he felt an unbearable sense of crisis.
Even though he despised Xiao Zhu, he had never considered him a threat. But when he heard Xiao Zhu call out Jian Suiying's name with his own mouth, his heart clenched in pain.
He dared not think further. The possibility of Jian Suiying shifting her affections would absolutely make him lose control on the spot. Xiao Zhu’s face was pale, as if he felt utterly ashamed.
Jian Suiying frowned. " " Li Yu's forehead veins throbbed. Jian Suiying's attitude only made his unease grow like wild grass. He slowly clenched his fists, joints cracking.
Veins bulged on Li Yu's forehead. Jian Suiying's attitude only made his unease grow like wild grass. He slowly clenched his fists, knuckles cracking.
Xiao Zhu wasn't the bold type. Seeing Li Yu's menacing expression, he trembled with fear. Li Yu ground out a few words through clenched teeth, "Jian Suiying, you let him call you that."
In truth, Jian Suiying didn't consider this a major issue.
The reason he hadn't let Li Yu call him by name was partly because of what happened in bed—he couldn't get any satisfaction from Li Yu, and it left him feeling a bit stifled.
He felt a bit stifled, and having Li Yu call him "brother" would at least restore some of his dignity. He was thoroughly annoyed by Li Yu's murderous glare as he confronted Xiao Zhu.
Jian Suiying snapped, " " "Li Yu, are you deaf? I told you to get out. Now. Immediately."
How pathetic. How had Li Yu ended up like this?
His voice grew fainter with each word. Yet to Li Yu, it still thundered like a clap of lightning.
Jian Suiying frowned, watching the two of them.
But he snapped out of it quickly, pulling Li Yu away and slapping him hard across the face. "Have you lost your mind, barging into someone else's home to cause trouble?"
Li Yu glared at him with a look of grievance.
Just as the three stood locked in a standoff, the doorbell rang. Jian Suiying instinctively knew it was Li Xuan.
He hadn't expected Li Xuan to arrive so quickly—it had been barely twenty minutes since he'd hung up the phone. Jian Suiying snapped at Xiao Zhu, "Go answer the door."
Xiao Zhu was only too eager to escape Li Yu's clutches and hurried to answer the door.
The instant his hand touched the doorknob, Jian Suiying added, "Then come inside."
Xiao Zhu's body froze, a lump forming in his throat. He "Mm" opened the door, then turned and retreated into the bedroom.
Li Yu slowly lifted his head, eyes red. "Brother, don't try to control me. You can't. I like him. I can't even control myself."
Jian Suiying closed his eyes. Every word from Li Yu struck his heart.