After a brief silence in the restaurant, discussions erupted:

“What’s going on?”

“Who is this person?”

“No idea!”

“Looks like he’s here for Meng Yue.”

“But judging by how rude he is to Meng Yue, could he really be Meng Yue’s…”

“No,” Chu Cheng interrupted without even thinking, frowning with his eyes fixed on Ran Jing, and repeated, “He’s not.”

Although Chu Cheng didn’t yet know exactly what had happened between Ran Jing and Meng Yue, he was certain that Ran Jing and Meng Yue absolutely couldn’t be in the kind of relationship people were speculating.

On stage, Ran Jing seemed to have noticed Chu Cheng by now, glanced in his direction, then quickly looked away. He took a deep breath, raised the microphone again, and continued, “Meng Yue, I know you’re here, come out quickly. If you don’t come out now, I’ll—”

At that moment, a voice filled with suppressed anger rang out: “Ran Jing, what do you think you’re doing?!”

Ye Leyao followed the sound and only then realized that, at some point, Meng Yue had already walked out from the inner hall, leaning on a cane.

Upon a closer look, Ye Leyao’s eyes widened slightly:

[Wait, did Meng Yue change his outfit?!]

Qin Yao and Huo Yan immediately turned to look.

He really had changed outfits!

Just moments ago, he had been wearing a black suit, but in a matter of minutes, Meng Yue had somehow changed into a white suit!

Huo Yan glanced at the restaurant’s romantic décor and then back at Meng Yue’s white suit, silently clicking his tongue in his mind:

Honestly, it does match the restaurant’s overall decorations pretty well, but Chu Cheng didn’t even spare a glance at Meng Yue.

Ever since Ran Jing appeared, Chu Cheng’s gaze hadn’t left him!

This Meng Yue, he really has no self-awareness.

At that moment, Ye Leyao’s slightly puzzled voice could be heard again:

[So, when Ran Jing rushed onto the stage earlier, was Meng Yue in the inner hall changing clothes?]

Ye Leyao suddenly thought of something and couldn’t help but laugh out loud:

[Hahaha, no wonder. I was wondering why Meng Yue didn’t rush out right away. Turns out he was changing clothes.]

[Makes sense; Meng Yue had been preparing for this confession for two days. He planned everything, from arriving at the restaurant before Chu Cheng to timing the VCR playback and, of course, leaving enough time for himself to change outfits. But what Meng Yue didn’t expect was that, just as the VCR started playing and he had just gone inside, Ran Jing would arrive, right?]

[Look how anxious he got—he even buttoned his shirt wrong and rushed out in a hurry.]

With Ye Leyao’s reminder, Huo’s mom and dad, who had just arrived, also looked over.

As their gaze fell on Meng Yue, the couple couldn’t suppress their smiles.

He really had buttoned his shirt wrong!

How anxious must Meng Yue have been to mess up his shirt buttons?

But on second thought, they couldn’t really blame Meng Yue for being so flustered. After all, today he was preparing to confess to someone he had secretly loved for over ten years. Yet, before the confession even began, someone had crashed the event. Who wouldn’t be anxious?

Still, Huo parents genuinely felt that Ran Jing’s interruption was well-timed.

After all, Chu Cheng’s birthday party was a perfectly normal event. Inviting Meng Yue was just a gesture of social politeness.

But Meng Yue not only tried to upstage the host by booking the restaurant on Chu Cheng’s behalf, he even planned to confess in front of all of Chu Cheng’s friends. Wasn’t he putting Chu Cheng in a very awkward position?

Though Meng Yue’s confession was certainly carefully planned, had he even considered Chu Cheng’s feelings?

Everyone knows that unless the feelings are mutual, confessing in public is emotional blackmail!

Chu Cheng didn’t even recognize Meng Yue at first glance, let alone like him.

Meng Yue’s stunt today, at best, could be called self-indulgence, and at worst, pure madness!

It’s only because today is Chu Cheng’s birthday that he probably doesn’t want to make a fuss with Meng Yue.

But now—

Huo parents couldn’t help but glance at Chu Cheng.

Chu Cheng’s eyes had never left Ran Jing!

At this moment, everyone in the restaurant was focused on the two people on stage.

Meng Yue’s face was full of anger. Leaning on his cane, he quickly walked up to Ran Jing and angrily whispered, “Didn’t I tell you not to show up in front of me again?!”

The two were standing close together, and Ran Jing had the microphone held to his chest, so even though Meng Yue spoke in a low voice, his words were clearly transmitted through the microphone for everyone to hear.

Ye Leyao immediately burst into laughter.

[What’s this? A loud secret?]

[Hahahahahahahaha—]

A flash of irritation swept across Meng Yue’s face.

As for Ran Jing, he was even more amused by Meng Yue’s words. “President Meng, let’s not talk about the fact that our contract has already ended, so I don’t have to follow your orders anymore. And besides, do you really not know why I showed up here today? Wasn’t it you who forced me to come?”

The moment he said this, not only did Meng Yue’s face darken, but even Chu Cheng’s expression became extremely unpleasant.

Everyone present was stunned.

“Contract?”

“What contract?”

Some people started jumping to conclusions:

“Is it a love contract?”

“A marriage agreement?”

“No way! I’ve never heard of Meng Yue being married!”

“Yeah, plus, wasn’t Meng Yue supposed to confess to Chu Cheng today…?”

“Ran Jing,” Meng Yue stared fiercely at the young man in front of him, trying hard to suppress the anger on his face, “What exactly are you trying to say?”

“If you have a problem with me, we can talk about it later,” Meng Yue said in a low voice, “But definitely not now.”

Meng Yue had meticulously planned this confession for a long time, and he didn’t want anything to go wrong.

With that, Meng Yue turned directly to the security guards who had arrived and ordered, “Take him away!”

Ye Leyao panicked instantly, but before he could say anything, Chu Cheng raised his voice and said, “I’d like to see who dares!”

At some point, Chu Cheng had walked up to the stage. He went straight to the two, gently pulling Ran Jing behind him, and coldly stared at Meng Yue. “President Meng, what do you intend to do to the friend I invited?”

As his words fell, Meng Yue froze on the spot.

Meanwhile, Ye Leyao was beyond excited.

[Ahhhhhhhhh, I must say, Chu Cheng’s entrance was a bit cool!]

Qin Yao immediately turned to look at Ye Leyao.

Unfortunately, Ye Leyao had his eyes fixed on the three people on stage and didn’t notice Qin Yao’s gaze at all.

Qin Yao couldn’t help but sigh softly to himself. Just as he was about to refocus on the stage, he noticed that Huo Yan was also looking at Ye Leyao.

Before Qin Yao could look over, Huo Yan had already turned his gaze away.

Qin Yao furrowed his brow slightly, pondering something.

On stage.

Ran Jing was also somewhat stunned. He truly hadn’t expected Chu Cheng to step onto the stage at this moment and even shield him behind his back.

Although Ran Jing hadn’t spoken very clearly just now, he knew that Chu Cheng had likely already guessed the nature of his relationship with Meng Yue.

To portray someone convincingly, you must first understand them.

Though Ran Jing wasn’t familiar with Chu Cheng and didn’t have much interaction with him, he actually understood Chu Cheng better than anyone present.

It was precisely because he understood Chu Cheng that Ran Jing was so shocked that Chu Cheng had stepped out to protect him.

Looking at the tall figure standing in front of him, Ran Jing felt a mix of emotions.

When he turned to look at Meng Yue again, he could tell that Meng Yue was genuinely flustered.

Meng Yue never expected that Chu Cheng would step up to defend Ran Jing at this moment, even calling Ran Jing his friend.

Since when were Chu Cheng and Ran Jing so close?

Hadn’t Ran Jing promised him that he’d never show up again?

Why was he here today?

Ye Leyao watched Meng Yue’s expression with great amusement, the corners of his mouth lifting high:

[Wow, you can really tell that our President Meng is a bit panicked.]

Meng Yue, troubled and unsettled, had no choice but to explain to Chu Cheng, “Chu Cheng, I… I’m sorry… I didn’t know you invited him too.”

Chu Cheng’s expression remained indifferent, and he didn’t respond.

Meng Yue continued explaining, “Also, I had prepared a surprise for you, but I didn’t expect it to be interrupted by Ran Jing, so I was so angry just now and wanted to get him…”

“What you prepared wasn’t a surprise,” Chu Cheng finally spoke, his gaze toward Meng Yue filled with coldness. “Compared to a surprise, it feels more like you prepared a shock for me.”

As soon as he finished speaking, Meng Yue’s face turned pale.

Ye Leyao couldn’t help but grin widely:

[A surprise, by definition, is something the other person is looking forward to. But clearly, Chu Cheng wasn’t looking forward to your confession at all. Did you not get that, President Meng, who’s late on payroll?!]

When Qin Yao heard this from Ye Leyao, the corners of his mouth also lifted slightly.

The crowd below had also started to realize what was going on.

“So, Chu Cheng doesn’t like Meng Yue?”

“Damn, what was I doing just now? I even pushed Chu Cheng toward Meng Yue…”

“Don’t say it. I’m already regretting what I did earlier.”

Everyone here was Chu Cheng’s friends and classmates. Initially, they thought Chu Cheng had secretly started dating Meng Yue, which was why Meng Yue had prepared such a big event for Chu Cheng’s birthday. But judging by Chu Cheng’s attitude toward Meng Yue now, something clearly wasn’t right!

They couldn’t help but feel a little regretful.

If they had known, they wouldn’t have stirred things up earlier.

After reflecting on their actions for a moment, someone couldn’t help but ask:

“So what’s really going on here?”

“I don’t know…”

“The only thing that’s certain is that Chu Cheng definitely doesn’t like Meng Yue.”

That much didn’t need to be said. Everyone could see it with their own eyes.

If Chu Cheng liked Meng Yue, he wouldn’t have shielded Ran Jing behind him, and he certainly wouldn’t have used the word “shock” to describe Meng Yue’s actions.

Meng Yue’s face had gone pale.

He stood there in disbelief, gripping his cane tightly, his eyes fixed on Chu Cheng. Yet, after a long moment, all he saw on Chu Cheng’s face was cold indifference, with no other emotion.

It was only then that Meng Yue fully realized Chu Cheng wasn’t joking.

He really didn’t like the surprise he had prepared.

Meng Yue was deeply shaken, and he instinctively said, “But… but the video hasn’t finished playing yet. You didn’t see the end, and you haven’t even seen the gift I prepared for you. I…”

“I don’t need to see the end,” Chu Cheng cut him off, sounding slightly irritated. “I know what you’re trying to do. You’re trying to confess to me, right?”

Meng Yue’s eyes lit up instantly.

Chu Cheng knew how he felt, which meant… maybe that also meant…

Meng Yue, excited, said, “Yes, Chu Cheng, I—”

“President Meng, did you forget something?”

Suddenly, Ran Jing’s voice came from behind Chu Cheng.

Chu Cheng glanced at Ran Jing in surprise.

By now, Ran Jing had stepped out from behind Chu Cheng.

Seeing Ran Jing again, Meng Yue snapped back to reality.

Oh right, Ran Jing was still here.

If he didn’t deal with Ran Jing’s situation, there’s no way he would let it go.

Meng Yue frowned, coldly glaring at Ran Jing. It was at that moment that he suddenly realized why Ran Jing had come today.

Meng Yue said, “You came to see me today just to ask for money, didn’t you? Go down for now. I’ll have my assistant wire you the money.”

When Ran Jing heard this, he immediately became furious. “What do you mean I just want to ask for money? You make it sound like I’m some unreasonable person trying to extort you. Please get it straight, President Meng—it was you who owed me wages first. After trying to contact you and your personal assistant several times with no response, I had no choice but to come here to find you in person!”

“If you hadn’t delayed my payment, would I be making a scene here?” Ran Jing grew angrier the more he spoke. “You haven’t even settled my wages, and you’ve got the nerve to confess to Chu Cheng here?”

As soon as these words were spoken, not only was everyone present shocked, even Chu Cheng seemed a bit surprised.

Ran Jing had mentioned a “contract” earlier. Wasn’t he implying that he and Meng Yue had a contractual relationship?

If that was the case, and they were under contract, how could Meng Yue not pay him?

The people in the audience stared at Meng Yue with accusatory eyes.

It’s one thing to play around, but to not pay him like some scumbag?

When Meng Yue turned his head, he met Chu Cheng’s slightly shocked gaze, and his heart sank. He instinctively denied it, saying, “I don’t owe you any wages. You must be mistaken.”

Ran Jing was dumbfounded. “Mistaken? President Meng, are you pretending to be ignorant now?”

Ye Leyao, watching this unfold, seemed to have figured it out:

[Meng Yue will never admit it.]

[If he admits it now, it would mean he’s acknowledging that Ran Jing was just his stand-in. And he’d be doing it in front of Chu Cheng.]

Sure enough, after a brief moment of panic, Meng Yue quickly regained his composure. He looked calmly at Ran Jing and said in an even tone, “I don’t understand what you’re talking about. If it’s true that I owe you wages, you should have contacted the finance department of my company, not me.”

Ran Jing was really infuriated by Meng Yue’s attitude.

If this had been the past, Ran Jing definitely wouldn’t have dared to speak to Meng Yue like this, but things were different now. He was no longer the stand-in Meng Yue kept by his side.

So Ran Jing let out a cold laugh and said, “President Meng, do I really have to lay it all out in the open before you’ll stop?”

Meng Yue’s expression changed slightly. After a brief two-second pause, he turned to glance at Chu Cheng.

Chu Cheng looked away.

Meng Yue’s face showed deep hurt, and he quickly explained, “Chu Cheng, don’t listen to him. There’s nothing between me and him. It’s him—Ran Jing—he’s the one…”

Ye Leyao couldn’t take it anymore.

[At this point, does Meng Yue really think he can pin everything on Ran Jing and make himself look innocent?]

Ran Jing hadn’t expected Meng Yue to try and shift all the blame onto him, and he couldn’t help but laugh out of sheer frustration.

The night Ran Jing saw Chu Cheng at the bar, he knew his job was likely over. And after Ye Leyao’s warning, Ran Jing moved out of the villa Meng Yue had provided for him that very night.

But it was impossible for him to pack up everything in one night, so he went back to the villa the next day. This time, he wasn’t even allowed in; he was stopped at the gate.

The security guard told him that all of his belongings had been cleared out and that he should never return to the villa again.

Ran Jing was furious, but since the things left in the villa weren’t valuable or important, he decided to just let them go.

But Ran Jing couldn’t just leave things unresolved, so before leaving, he called Meng Yue.

Meng Yue answered.

Over the phone, Meng Yue formally informed Ran Jing that he was fired and instructed him not to contact him again. He also asked Ran Jing not to appear in front of him anymore.

Ran Jing naturally agreed, but he also asked that Meng Yue settle the wages owed to him before he left.

Over the phone, Meng Yue had agreed readily, but from that day until now, Ran Jing hadn’t received a single penny, nor had he been able to get in touch with Meng Yue.

Ran Jing understood why. Meng Yue was angry because Chu Cheng hadn’t recognized him immediately that night and had instead focused his attention on Ran Jing.

Meng Yue was trying to punish Ran Jing.

But because of this punishment, Ran Jing had nearly lost his mother forever.

If it hadn’t been for the fact that Chu Cheng happened to help him cover the surgery costs—

“Fine,” Ran Jing clenched his teeth, staring at Meng Yue before suddenly smiling. “Alright then, since it’s come to this, I’ll just lay it all out in front of Chu Cheng.”

Meng Yue’s expression suddenly changed drastically. “Ran Jing, don’t you dare—”

“What don’t I dare?” Ran Jing smiled. “President Meng, you should know, I’ve never been a good person. I’ve always been someone who’d do anything for money.”

Ran Jing knew very well that without Meng Yue, he wouldn’t have found such an easy job to pay for his mother’s medical expenses and clear his family’s debts.

He truly should be grateful to Meng Yue for giving him so much money.

But what Ran Jing didn’t want to see even more was someone as good as Chu Cheng being deceived by both him and Meng Yue.

Ran Jing was a bad person, and Meng Yue wasn’t a good person either.

That’s why Ran Jing wanted someone as good as Chu Cheng to see who they really were. He didn’t want to deceive Chu Cheng anymore, and he especially didn’t want Meng Yue to have another chance to get close to Chu Cheng.

After finishing, Ran Jing directly turned and walked towards Chu Cheng.

Chu Cheng stared at Ran Jing in shock, just about to speak, when he heard Ran Jing say in a voice only the two of them could hear, “I’m sorry.”

Chu Cheng was stunned.

The stage lights were bright, and Ran Jing looked directly into Chu Cheng’s eyes. “You probably noticed by now, right? I look a bit like you.”

As soon as the words fell, the room fell into complete silence.

Then a wave of murmurs spread through the crowd:

“What?”

“To be honest, they do look a little alike!”

“His eyes, yeah… no wonder I thought this guy looked kind of familiar just now…”

Upon hearing this, Meng Yue’s eyes were filled with fury. “Ran Jing! Stop talking!”

But Ran Jing didn’t care. He spoke quickly and spilled everything at once: “Just like I said before, President Meng and I have a contract. But don’t worry, the contract isn’t illegal. It’s a labor contract, and my job was to play you in front of President Meng.”

“You might be confused by that, so let me put it simply: I was your stand-in. Chu Cheng—”

Ye Leyao suddenly shouted, “Ran Jing! Watch out—”

Before anyone could react, Chu Cheng reached out, pulling Ran Jing aside. As they dodged, a black cane slammed into the ground with a loud “bang.”

[Ahhh, that scared me! Thankfully, Ran Jing is okay!]

Ye Leyao let out a sigh of relief and then glanced at Meng Yue, frowning:

[As expected, anyone who keeps a stand-in has to be a bit psychologically twisted!]

Meng Yue’s eyes were bloodshot, glaring at Ran Jing with rage. “Ran Jing! Shut up!!!”

Chu Cheng, still shaken, looked at the cane on the ground and snapped, “Meng Yue! Are you insane?!”

At that moment, several of Chu Cheng’s friends rushed onto the stage.

“Chu Cheng, are you okay?”

Hearing their voices, Meng Yue’s whole body trembled, as if only now realizing what he had just done. He looked at Chu Cheng in a panic. “I… Chu Cheng, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean to hurt you, I just…”

“Enough!” Chu Cheng said coldly, “Isn’t today’s farce enough for you? You’ve completely ruined my birthday party; are you satisfied now?”

Meng Yue’s pupils shrank. “Chu Cheng, it’s not like that…” He shook his head, mumbling, “I didn’t… I just wanted to surprise you, I…”

“You certainly gave me plenty of surprises today,” Chu Cheng released Ran Jing, staring directly at Meng Yue as he spoke each word clearly: “Not only did you keep a ‘me’ by your side, you even owed someone money, and now you’ve ruined my birthday party. Are you satisfied?”

With every word Chu Cheng spoke, Meng Yue’s face grew darker.

Meng Yue stood there, helplessly shaking his head. “No, Chu Cheng… I did have a stand-in, but I don’t like him! I like you, I’ve always liked you, that’s why I…”

“If you liked me, what were you doing before?” Chu Cheng asked coldly.

Meng Yue froze.

Ye Leyao couldn’t hold back any longer: “Chu Cheng just went abroad; he didn’t move to another galaxy. If you liked him, why didn’t you go after him? You think keeping a stand-in makes you look deep and affectionate? Do you know that your actions have hurt two people?”

As soon as Ye Leyao spoke, the audience couldn’t help but chime in.

“Yeah, if you liked Chu Cheng all this time, why didn’t you tell him?”

“If you really liked someone, how could you even stand having someone else?”

“A stand-in? That’s disgusting.”

Every word was like a dagger stabbing into Meng Yue’s heart. He shook his head in disbelief. “No, Chu Cheng… I really do like you; I just missed you too much, so I…”

“Meng Yue,” Chu Cheng’s voice was soft, “let’s end it here. I don’t like you, and from now on, let’s try not to see each other again.”

Meng Yue, devastated, staggered forward two steps. “Chu Cheng—”

Chu Cheng’s friends immediately blocked him. “Stay back!”

“He doesn’t like you; he rejected you, and you still want to cling to him?”

“President Meng, you’re the head of Meng Corporation, aren’t you? You wouldn’t want to blow this up, would you?” Chu Cheng asked coldly.

The veiled threat made Meng Yue freeze on the spot.

Chu Cheng turned away, no longer looking at Meng Yue. He looked down at the still-stunned Ran Jing instead. “Shall we go?”

Ran Jing, surprised, looked up. “I…”

Chu Cheng smiled at him. “My head’s still a bit of a mess, but my birthday’s not over yet.”

Ran Jing’s eyes turned red, and he lowered his head, saying, “I’m sorry, I shouldn’t have…”

“No, thank you,” Chu Cheng said. “If it weren’t for you, today would’ve been even more awkward. At least one problem’s been dealt with.”

Chu Cheng led the way off the stage.

Ran Jing, seeing this, followed him.

Once they left, the crowd naturally dispersed as well.

But after all, they were still a bunch of young people, and they couldn’t help but mutter quietly as they walked away.

“Never seen such an idiot.”

“Chu Cheng is really unlucky to have met him.”

“Who wouldn’t agree?”

The restaurant quickly emptied out. After enjoying Meng Yue’s expression for a bit longer, Ye Leyao was about to leave when a boy suddenly blocked his path.

Ye Leyao looked at him in confusion.

He was certain he had never seen this boy before.

The boy was dressed casually, with long hair tied up into a small bun at the back of his head. He looked quite cute and, standing in front of Ye Leyao, started hurriedly gesturing something.

Ye Leyao was even more confused.

[Is this sign language?]

[I can’t understand this.]

Hearing the commotion, Qin Yao turned around to look.

The boy raised his head and, noticing Qin Yao behind Ye Leyao, became even more flustered, gesturing even faster.

Ye Leyao was completely lost: “What are you trying to say? Do you have a phone? Why don’t you type it out?”

After saying this, Ye Leyao handed over his phone.

The boy stared at him for a second, then had a sudden realization. He shook his head at Ye Leyao before running off toward a nearby waiter.

By this time, Huo Yan had already walked up to Qin Yao’s side. Frowning slightly, he asked, “Who’s that boy?”

Qin Yao shook his head. “No idea.”

While they were talking, the boy came running back to Ye Leyao. He handed Ye Leyao a piece of paper and then quickly ran out of the restaurant.

Ye Leyao watched as the boy ran up to a stranger outside. The man patted the boy’s head before taking his hand and walking away.

Huo Yan called out, “Ye Leyao, let’s go! Was that boy a fan of yours?”

Ye Leyao shook his head and unfolded the note in his hand. On it was a single, brief line:

u, have you found a way to save ** yet?

Ye Leyao was completely baffled.

[What’s this ‘u’?]

[And what are those two words in the middle? Why are they so hard to read?]

[Don’t tell me he’s some kind of edgelord, like my third brother?]