Chapter 183: Identity Exposed
As soon as Yin Chengjue arrived home, he received a phone call from Yin Qiushi.
As soon as Yin Chengjue answered, he heard Yin Qiushi's firm statement from the other end: "Ah Jue, are you gay?"
Yin Chengjue: "Did someone tell you something?"
Yin Qiushi: "Do you think I'm blind?"
Yin Chengjue carefully chose his words: "Uncle, I think... finding a partner is quite nice."
Yin Qiushi: "It is quite nice, it's just that if the gender is wrong, it can easily cause many problems. This is not an easy road to walk, it might even be a dead end."
Yin Chengjue: "The road before each person is different. Without walking it, no one can say for sure if it's a dead end. Sometimes a path of life can turn into a dead end, and a dead end can sometimes become a path of life."
Yin Qiushi: "Ah Jue, don't play word games. I'm not discussing this with you."
Yin Chengjue: "Uncle, I'm not discussing it with you either. I am serious."
Yin Qiushi: "I think you are seriously trying to anger your grandfather and your mother to death."
Yin Chengjue: "I will definitely do a good job persuading them. I had already thought of this when I decided to walk this path."
Upon hearing this, the other end of the phone fell silent for a long time.
Yin Chengjue waited quietly without hanging up.
"Ah Jue, do you know? I heard words very similar to these many years ago, only, it was a woman who said them to me." Yin Qiushi said gravely. "That person was your mother."
Yin Chengjue immediately thought of Yin He's stubbornness from many years ago and her current outcome, instantly understanding Yin Qiushi's meaning.
"No, it's different." Yin Chengjue said.
Yin Qiushi: "Tell me, where is it different? Ah He's stubbornness made her never willing to listen to Dad's and my opinions. What about you now? You have your own sets of theories, but have you listened to our opinions? It's exactly you people who refuse to turn back until you hit the southern wall!"
[不撞南墙不回头 (bù zhuàng nán qiáng bù huí tóu): lit. Will not turn back until hitting the southern wall; fig. Stubbornly sticking to one's course until one meets with failure or disaster.]
Yin Chengjue: "No, Xiao Yu won't be a second Feng Chengda, they are different!"
"Exactly, of course he's not!" Yin Qiushi's tone was tense and sharp: "Because he is Murong Bo's youngest son. He lacks nothing and has no need to rely on you to achieve any goals. But, have you considered whether Murong Bo over there will agree? As far as I know, that man Murong Bo cares immensely about face. Previously, a nanny in his household had a loose mouth and spread the news about his third son coming out and running away from home. Murong Bo was so angry he directly replaced all the nannies in the house, found the one with the loose mouth, and sued her!"
As Yin Qiushi chattered on over there, Yin Chengjue was completely stunned on the spot.
What did I just hear?
Murong Bo's third son?
Who?
Rong Yu?
"...Are you listening to me?" Yin Qiushi, a man who usually spoke with composure, rarely erupted like this, showing his shock after learning the truth. "The waters of the Murong family are even deeper than the Yin family's. If you sink into them, you might be dissolved until not even your bones remain! You might be able to persuade your mother, you might be able to have a cold war with your grandfather, but do you think you can just flap your lips and persuade Murong Bo? Do you think you can?"
Without waiting for Yin Chengjue to answer, Yin Qiushi answered for him: "You cannot, so I advise you to stop early, if you don't want the Yin Group to be buried along with you."
Yin Chengjue: "...You said, Rong Yu he... he is from the Murong family?"
"...Earlier, Murong Shu came to see me," Yin Qiushi paused here, then his tone suddenly rose: "What? You didn't know he is Murong Bo's third son? You've been together for so long, and you never investigated him?"
Yin Chengjue was still in shock, completely unable to imagine things developing like this: "I, I thought... this is his privacy. He didn't say, so I didn't ask..."
Yin Chengjue glanced at the bathroom door.
After the two rushed back, Rong Yu had gone to freshen up first. Now there was still the sound of water from the bathroom, clearly indicating he wouldn't be out for a while.
Yin Chengjue sank back into the sofa, listening to Yin Qiushi's voice coming from the phone, his mind involuntarily recalling bits and pieces of his time with Rong Yu.
From those fragments and Rong Yu's few words, he pieced together Rong Yu's family background, then placed it within the context of the Murong family...
Finally, the contents of that locked room unexpectedly barged into Yin Chengjue's thoughts, occupying all his mental space.
Right... Without that kind of family background and resources, how could he have possibly tracked and photographed me all these years, without a single break?
Yin Chengjue hung up the phone, tossed it aside, and lay on the sofa, feeling his mind was a tangled mess, impossible to sort out.
Until Rong Yu's voice came from the bathroom, asking Yin Chengjue to bring a towel.
Only then did Yin Chengjue stand up, somewhat dazed, and go to the balcony to get a towel.
The bathroom door opened, steam rushed out, eagerly clouding Yin Chengjue's vision. After his eyes adjusted, he saw under the showerhead, long fingers threading through jet-black hair, pushing the wet strands that had fallen onto the forehead back behind the ears, revealing a face slightly flushed red from the hot water.
Amidst the shimmering mist, hearing the door open, Rong Yu glanced sideways. A pair of black eyes glistening with moisture, the slightly blushed corners of his eyes, and wet eyelashes appearing even darker and thicker. A faint, almost imperceptible smile played on Rong Yu's lips, and his facial contours seemed softened by the steam.
Looking further down, on fair skin tinged with pink, were familiar mottled blue and purple marks.
Yin Chengjue: "..." Ah, this damn temptation.
"Brother, want to shower together?" Rong Yu asked with a chuckle.
And so, this shower took another two-plus hours to finish.
Yin Chengjue carried Rong Yu, flushed red from the hot water, out of the bathroom, laid him on the sofa, carefully wrapped him in a bath towel, and placed the TV remote within his easy reach.
After tidying up, Yin Chengjue went to the kitchen and prepared a fruit platter. He stuck a toothpick into a piece and gently fed it to Rong Yu, saying softly, "Wait here and watch some TV for now. I'll go make lunch."
"Mhmm." Rong Yu chewed the piece of apple in his mouth, humming with satisfaction: "I want to eat my fill today! Sister Sally said I have to go record 'Wisp of Smoke' tomorrow, and might stay there for a few days. The program also requires guests not to bring food, so I won't be able to eat brother's cooking for a few days."
Yin Chengjue was taken aback: "You're going on 'Wisp of Smoke'?"
Hearing his tone, Rong Yu found it strange: "You didn't know?"
Yin Chengjue: "My new company has been a bit busy these past few days. I just told Sally to arrange a few more variety shows with high viewership for you. I didn't expect her to arrange 'Wisp of Smoke' for you."
Rong Yu was puzzled: "What's wrong with 'Wisp of Smoke'? Can't I go on it?"
Yin Chengjue: "...It's, it's not a question of whether you can go... mainly, 'Wisp of Smoke' is a lifestyle variety show, about experiencing life in rural villages and fields."
Rong Yu waved his hand with a laugh: "Don't worry, brother! I'm not some delicate young master who's never lifted a finger. I'm not afraid of getting dirty or tired!"
Yin Chengjue: "..." Young Master Murong, you certainly aren't afraid of hardship or fatigue, but...
Yin Chengjue: "'Wisp of Smoke' has a very important segment: the resident guests and visiting guests help out together in the kitchen to cook meals."
Rong Yu: "That sounds really fun!"
Yin Chengjue: "In the kitchen. Cooking meals."
Rong Yu pretended not to understand: "So what?"
Yin Chengjue sighed. "Well, you certainly wouldn't think much of it. But that kitchen might have a thing or two to say about it—who knows."
Rong Yu: "...Brother, you do look down on me! I hardly break things in the kitchen anymore now!"
Yin Chengjue hurriedly comforted him: "I don't! Absolutely don't! You just freely unleash yourself in the program crew. If anything happens, I'll handle it for you!"
Rong Yu: "..." Why does that sound even more off?
But Yin Chengjue had already slipped away, scurrying off to the kitchen to work.
From the sofa, Rong Yu had a clear view: Yin Chengjue, wearing only a bathrobe, took down a dark blue apron, tied the top strings around his neck and the bottom ones around his waist, perfectly outlining that narrow waist.
Rong Yu narrowed his eyes slightly, his dark pupils deepening.
He said: "Brother."
"Hmm?" Yin Chengjue looked up at him.
Rong Yu waved the air conditioner remote in his hand: "I've already turned on the A/C."
"Hmm?" Yin Chengjue was somewhat confused, but then saw Rong Yu lick his lips and say in a teasing tone: "So, brother, take off your bathrobe."
What kind of strange request is this again?
Seeing Yin Chengjue not moving, Rong Yu deliberately made a face, pouting and acting cute, his tone coquettish: "Brother~ Take off your bathrobe, just wear the apron, okay? Please~"
Yin Chengjue: "..." Well then, that act is full marks!
Yin Chengjue only regretted not being able to capture this cute expression of Rong Yu's in time.
Seeing Yin Chengjue, though his face was full of reluctance, still obediently comply, Rong Yu let out a burst of delighted laughter. Restlessly shifting on the sofa, he tried to get a better view. "Brother, don't always hide inside. Come out occasionally, come over here by the doorway~ I can't see you clearly~"
"Brother, the scratch marks on your back seem a bit faded. I miscounted~"
"Brother, look back at me~"
Hearing this, Yin Chengjue looked back and saw Rong Yu lying over the back of the sofa. The TV behind him was on, playing a melodramatic soap opera where a woman was sobbing. Rong Yu had his back to the TV, looking at him in the kitchen, his eyes curved into smiling crescents.
"Little vixen, are you planning to get full just by looking at me?" Yin Chengjue couldn't help teasing. "Then I'll just cook a pot of rice, and you can have plain rice while watching me eat."
"That's fine. I'll have the plain rice with you, one bite at a time." Rong Yu raised an eyebrow.
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