Chapter 102: A Serious Face, A Really Solemn Expression

translator: Eve

editor: Kara

"Song Er!"

Zhou Nan chased after him and wrapped an arm around his shoulders, a bright smile on his face. "Don't be so stingy, it's just one meal."

Guan Zhi also followed after them. He reminded Song Xuanhe, "You still owe me a meal. Don't forget."

Song Xuanhe stopped walking and turned to face Guan Zhi. His eyes swept over the other's youthful face. "Answer my question, and then, I'll treat you."

Guan Zhi: "What's your question?"

Song Xuanhe's expression changed slightly. "Why did you come to China?"

"To eat."

Song Xuanhe rolled his eyes and turned back around to leave.

"Did he believe me?" Guan Zhi asked Zhou Nan.

Zhou Nan shrugged. "Probably not."

"Why doesn't he believe me?" Guan Zhi frowned. He caught up to Song Xuanhe quickly and said, "I came back to China, because you promised to treat me to a meal. Are you going to go back on your word?"

By the time they had reached the elevator, Wei Chen had also caught up. He just so happened to hear Guan Zhi's question. With a smile, he said, "I can confirm that he really only came back to eat with you."

"But, you can ask him who had reminded him of that promise."

Song Xuanhe stepped into the elevator after it had opened. He then glanced at Guan Zhi.

Although Guan Zhi was blunt, he was not slow-witted. He immediately realized why Song Xuanhe had asked that question just now. Completely unburdened, he decided to sell Xiao Yuanmu out. "Xiao Yuanmu told me to come. His noodles are really yummy. He promised that he'd make me noodles again if I visited China for a few days."

As soon as he spoke, everyone else's expressions changed.

Young master Guan, who wasn't very familiar with the breadth and depth of the Chinese language, furrowed his brows. He thought that Song Xuanhe wanted to renege on his promise. He snorted. "You already promised to treat me. Are you backing out now?"

Song Xuanhe coughed once before pressing down on a button in the elevator. He said to Zhou Nan, "Why didn't anyone select a level?"

"How about B2?" Zhou Nan came back to himself. He grinned. "My car's in the parking lot. Since you're treating us, I'll drive you, free-of-charge."

Faced with Guan Zhi's pure gaze, for the first time, Song Xuanhe felt he was unable to refuse. He could only nod. "Fine."

Guan Zhi couldn't hide his emotions. When he had heard Song Xuanhe agree, he smiled in relief. He then turned to look at Wei Chen: "We're going out to eat. You go back on your own."

Wei Chen glanced at Song Xuanhe. Lips curled into a smile, he planted a hand on Guan Zhi's head. "How can you speak to your cousin like this? You had even called me Gege earlier when you came to ask me for help. And yet, you won't even let me tag along for this meal."

"Song Xuanhe's the one treating us. He's the host, and I'm just a guest. I don't have the authority to invite you."

Wei Chen then looked over at Song Xuanhe. Guan Zhi also turned to face him. Even Zhou Nan cast his gaze in his direction, evidently wanting to join in on the fun.

Three pairs of eyes fell onto him. Song Xuanhe didn't even bat an eye as he said in a flat voice, "You can come, but you're paying for yourself."

Wei Chen looked him up-and-down, a smile that didn't reach his eyes plastered on his face. "Sure."

As soon as they had reached the parking lot, Song Xuanhe's phone started to ring. When he saw the caller ID, he paused. He then signalled for Zhou Nan and the others to head to the car first.

Neither Zhou Nan nor Guan Zhi thought much of this. They headed straight to the car. Only Wei Chen's eyes paused on Song Xuanhe for a moment. When Song Xuanhe looked up upon sensing his gaze, Wei Chen slowly looked away. He then left, a casual air to his stride.

Song Xuanhe looked away from him. His eyes fell onto the hand of his watch. "Why are you calling me at this time?"

Xiao Yuanmu's slightly hoarse, chilly voice sounded from the other side: "My evening meeting just ended. I recalled that you would probably be having dinner now. What are you eating?"

"I haven't eaten yet."

Since Xiao Yuanmu had told Song Xuanhe not to go to the Xiao Family banquet, things had gotten weird between them. Their relationship wasn't cold, but they didn't feel close either. They were enveloped in a baffling, faintly discernible atmosphere.

"Oh?" Xiao Yuanmu got up. He ignored the two people behind him and headed for the window. As he stared down at the quiet, dark streets of Y City and listened to the faint breathing coming from the receiver, his lips curled into a shallow arc. "You're usually done eating by now. Did something happen?"

Song Xuanhe looked at Guan Zhi, who was retracting the roof of Zhou Nan's convertible while chatting with the latter. He then looked away, a smile forming on his lips. "I encountered someone I wasn't expecting to see. I promised to treat him to a meal. We're about to eat now."

Xiao Yuanmu asked: "Guan Zhi? I recall that he flew to China today."

Song Xuanhe's smile deepened. "Wei Chen."

Xiao Yuanmu's eyes narrowed, and the smile on his face gradually disappeared. However, his tone didn't change. "How did you end up bumping into him?"

A crafty light flashed through Song Xuanhe's eyes. A hint of irreverence appeared on his lips, reflecting how pleased with himself he currently felt. "Didn't I just tell you? I owe him a meal. Isn't it normal to see the person you're going to eat with?"

"Why didn't I know that you owed him a meal?"

Recalling the news he had received a few days ago, Xiao Yuanmu's lips pursed slightly. His eyes darkened, and his voice grew several degrees raspier.

"You're not in China right now," Song Xuanhe said in a languid tone, "Isn't it normal for you to not know?"

The moonlight traversed through the dark city and cast a faint light through the French windows. Xiao Yuanmu tensed, and the darkness in his eyes dissipated. His eyes shifted up towards the almost-full moon. The moonlight reflected in his eyes was bright, but when he looked down, that light disappeared. His Adam's apple bobbed, and his voice grew light. "You're right."

"But, the reason I had met up with Wei Chen was indeed Guan Zhi." Song Xuanhe changed the topic. "Guan Zhi said that you had bribed him to come to China with a bowl of noodles. Why?"

"The Xiao Family is working together with the Guan Family. Guan Zhi frequently comes looking for me. But, I'm too busy."

Xiao Yuanmu denied having bribed Guan Zhi. He also skilfully skipped over the important details and focused on the trivial ones. He didn't talk about his motive for sending Guan Zhi to China. Instead, he had said that the Xiao Family and the Guan Family were working together and that his company was also involved. In a few words, he was able to rid himself of the responsibility.

"What's with the noodles?" Song Xuanhe asked, "Was it because you found him too troublesome? You enticed him into coming to China with a bowl of noodles in exchange for a few days of peace?"

Xiao Yuanmu's reply was curt and confident. "Yes."

Song Xuanhe laughed. He knew that it was impossible to hear what he actually wanted from Xiao Yuanmu. Therefore, he didn't bother saying anything else. "They're still waiting for me. I'm going to hang up first."

Xiao Yuanmu's gaze darkened. His chin that had been slightly raised slowly lowered. His gaze was still on the clear but faint moonlight on the ground. He made a soft sound of acknowledgement but didn't hang up.

Listening to the quiet breathing from the other side, Song Xuanhe froze just as he had been about to hang up. He knew that if he didn't hang up, Xiao Yuanmu wouldn't either. It was always like this. No matter how busy Xiao Yuanmu was, he would never be the first to hang up.

A few seconds later, he could still hear the quiet breaths from the other side. Xiao Yuanmu's eyelashes quivered slightly. He had just been about to say something when a knock came from his door. Yang Jie had just come back. When Yang Jie saw Xiao Yuanmu look at him, he silently waved the phone in his hand.

Xiao Yuanmu's pupils constricted slightly. His gaze that had just softened became frigid once more. His previously lowered eyelashes once again rose. They now resembled unsheathed swords and carried a chill with them.

At the same time, Song Xuanhe's voice came through the other end: "I'm fine."

Two words. And then, silence. He had hung up.

This was the first time Yang Jie had ever seen Xiao Yuanmu's mood improve after a phone call. He turned to glance at Louis with a surprised look in his eyes. Louis had also noticed this abnormality. He immediately sobered up from his tired state. Written all over his face was a desire to listen for gossip. He looked like one of those aunties on the neighbourhood committee.

"Xiao, did you hear some good news?"

Xiao Yuanmu turned around, casting the moonlight behind him. However, the moonlight continued to chase after him, illuminating his profile with its soft light. It shone down on his high brows and long, slender eyelashes. Under this fragmented light, one could see affection in those eyes. It looked like they held a deep, endless love within them.

Louis was taken aback for a second. When he had snapped out of it, he sucked in a deep breath. If he wasn't 100% certain that he was straight, he might have been enchanted by Xiao Yuanmu just now. For a moment, he had even thought that Xiao Yuanmu might just be just a bit sexier than he was.

"Yeah."

By a bit, he meant just a teeny-tiny-super-little bit. At most, it was only by 0.00000001% or something like that.... Louis had been in a daze. But when he had heard Xiao Yuanmu's response, he raised his head in an abrupt motion. He was in disbelief.

Xiao had answered his question?

Ever since Louis had found out about Song Xuanhe, he was extremely curious. He wanted to know just what kind of person could make Xiao Yuanmu fall in love with them. Just how talented could he be? If it hadn't been because Xiao Yuanmu had warned him not to do it, he wouldn't have been able to help himself from investigating Song Xuanhe privately.

Nonetheless, Xiao Yuanmu had never sated his curiosity. Forget the documents that the bodyguards in China sent over, Xiao Yuanmu had never spoken about anything related to Song Xuanhe at all, let alone had he ever answered one of Louis's questions.

If Xiao Yuanmu was a Western dragon, Song Xuanhe was like his precious treasure that he had deeply hidden away. If Xiao Yuanmu was an Eastern dragon, Song Xuanhe was like his reverse scale. Forget about touching him, just mentioning him would get you killed.

Therefore, Louis was so moved at this moment that he nearly cried from how moved he felt upon hearing Xiao Yuanmu's short, single-word response. He felt like he had finally been allowed into the cave Xiao Yuanmu was guarding, like he was finally allowed into the group of those permitted to look at what he cherished the most. He felt like he was finally allowed to know about Xiao Yuanmu's personal life like Yang Jie. He could finally water his curiosity that had been barren for so long.

Louis parted his lips. He had just been about to ask for more details, but when Xiao Yuanmu's gaze swept over, he immediately shut his mouth. He could tell that everything just now was an illusion.

Yang Jie glanced at Louis, rolled his eyes, and then looked away. He walked over to hand the other phone to Xiao Yuanmu.

Xiao Yuanmu accepted the phone and quietly listened to the report. Two minutes later, after the person had finished speaking, he asked, "Is Zhou Rong at the police station right now?"

The person on the other end said in a respectful tone, "Yes. It was what Mr. Song wanted."

Xiao Yuanmu's gaze was on the floor. He held back the dense darkness within his eyes, and the temperature of his originally chilly voice dropped several degrees. "Since that's what he wants, do as he wishes.

"However, I hope that those two will be sentenced to go to rehab before being sent to prison."

There were no emotions within that cool voice, but the person on the other end felt the cold nonetheless. It felt like his scalp had frozen over. All of the hair on his body stood up on end.

However, the feeling had only lasted a moment. Very quickly, he was able to come back to himself. "Understood."

Eve: Ruins the mood a bit but at the part where neither of them hung up, all I could imagine was a crack version of XYM and SXH going 'no you hang up first, no you~'

Announcement: Hi everyone. This has been on my mind for a very long time and it's been a long time coming. I've been struggling with my mental health for a long time and it's finally hit the lowest point. So I've decided to stop translating. What does this mean for RMLE? Nothing really. I have almost finished translating the novel and xiin (who I am extremely grateful to) has agreed to help edit and post the rest of the chapters. The end will come one way or another. You might still see notes from me at the end of the chapter (they're from when I first translated the chapter) but I won't be monitoring discord or comments anymore. I don't know if I'll come back to translating ever. But for the near future, I will be seeking help and try to take care of myself. Thank you everyone for all of your support until now. I hope that you will continue to give that love and support to xiin and Kara, and to Song Xuanhe and Xiao Yuanmu. It has been such a joy to have translated this story.

Goodbye,

Eve

Kara: I sincerely hope you recover and feel better soon, Eve! Thank you for being such a wonderful translator, bringing us so many amazing projects, and choosing me to be one of your editors! It's been so much fun and an absolute blast. I will miss Eve like Mumu misses He bao. QAQ Thank you as well to xiin for helping out and taking over! Please continue to cheer us on, fellow readers! <3

xiin: *hugs Eve* i'm ... just going to be a transparent nobody who posts (& kinda edits) the chapters Eve has already finished. if she's not back when her stockpile runs out, i'll be finishing off the translation~ updates will continue 3x a week like before, on Tuesdays, Thursdays, and Saturdays.