Chapter 88

Her relationship with Wu Wanqian was distant, so Lu Yuezhi couldn’t possibly only now understand it. Her own relationship with her parents wasn’t good either, so she wouldn’t ask such a shallow question. Thus, Xiao Luyan knew right away that what she really wanted to ask about was the deeper matters.

Those matters… In the past, she had wanted to find someone to confide in, but there had never been a suitable listener. Later, as she grew up, she preferred to numb herself and not dwell on it, not expect anything, and she became too lazy to mention it to anyone.

For some reason today, she suddenly felt like talking about it again.

Xiao Luyan sighed softly. “It’s a long story.”

Lu Yuezhi thought she probably didn’t want to say more upon hearing that. Whenever family matters came up in the past, she acted the same way.

She was just about to offer some comfort and change the subject when Xiao Luyan continued. “It’s not that it’s bad.”

Lu Yuezhi was surprised and immediately turned to look at her.

She only saw Xiao Luyan’s tense profile, as if it hid deep entanglement and pain.

“To be precise, I… kind of hate her.” She didn’t know when the change had happened, but Xiao Luyan knew clearly that she resented her, hated her.

She had never imagined she would blurt it out so unprepared one day. But after saying it, she felt an infinite sense of relief, as if half the resentment that had been stuck in her chest had dissipated, the refreshment obvious.

Lu Yuezhi’s surprise intensified a bit as she kept staring at her.

Xiao Luyan turned her head. “Scared?”

Would this shatter the goddess filter in Lu Yuezhi’s mind? Xiao Luyan chuckled inwardly, but this was her, the real her.

Lu Yuezhi shook her head. “Not scared, but it hurts.”

Xiao Luyan looked at her again.

“When you needed protection and care the most, the person closest to you, the one most worth relying on, just watched coldly from the sidelines. You must have been so scared back then, right?”

Xiao Luyan’s eyes instantly reddened.

The childhood shadows assaulted her again, vivid beyond measure under Lu Yuezhi’s sympathetic questioning.

She could protect herself now, but that fear and helplessness were deeply branded in her heart.

Xiao Luyan was silent for a long time before she said, “Not only did she not protect me, she even blamed me, said I wasn’t cautious enough, steady enough.”

It was ridiculous! Lu Yuezhi found it utterly absurd.

But thinking of her own parents, it wasn’t that surprising. No one understood Xiao Luyan’s frustration better than she did. Lu Yuezhi didn’t care about whatever Wu Wanqian had reminded her of earlier.

She hugged Xiao Luyan without hesitation.

She couldn’t say she had come too late, nor did she want to make too many passionate promises. At this moment, she just wanted to hold Xiao Luyan.

The future was long. She wouldn’t let Xiao Luyan suffer like that again.

The sudden embrace interrupted the bitterness of Xiao Luyan’s recollections. The real body warmth and strong arms silently conveyed the other’s heartache and anger.

She was sad for her, furious for her.

Xiao Luyan smiled silently and slowly raised her hand to hug her back.

This shoulder was the first place in her life that felt truly heartwarming, a place that could give her a moment of warmth.

She didn’t know how long they hugged, but Xiao Luyan felt it was getting really hot.

Lu Yuezhi’s embrace was like a furnace, and she held her so tightly.

Xiao Luyan gently pushed her. “I can hardly breathe.”

Lu Yuezhi finally let go, embarrassed. “I got a bit excited.”

Xiao Luyan’s mood had improved a lot. She didn’t want to dwell in that past memory.

But since they were on the topic of her family relationships, she took the opportunity to explain the birthday banquet matter.

“My great-grandpa and Grandpa Quan used to be close, but after Grandpa Quan got promoted, things between them became quite delicate.”

Lu Yuezhi hadn’t expected her to volunteer this information, but she was indeed curious, so she listened quietly.

“There was indeed a plan for marriage alliances, but the Quan Family holding down the Wu Family and Xiao Family really is frustrating.”

Xiao Luyan glanced sideways coolly, indifferent and calm. “What marriage alliances need most is consideration of interests. When status is imbalanced, interests inevitably suffer.”

As for the later shifts in direction and policy adjustments, they were just catalysts.

What Wu Hengnian tabooed most was Old Master Quan climbing higher than him so quickly, which made him feel defeated and out of control.

The Xiao Family’s recent surpassing had already annoyed him. If they allied with the Quan Family too, it would put the Wu Family completely at a disadvantage. If there really was a reckoning later, the Wu Family would be thrown out as cannon fodder first.

Lu Yuezhi asked again, “But we always go back to the Wu Family. Doesn’t the Xiao Family have any objections?”

“There are objections, but they won’t voice them.” Xiao Luyan had a look of having seen through it all long ago. “The Xiao Family now can’t wait to distance itself from the Wu Family, so there’s no need for me, the so-called link, to go back diligently.”

Hearing her refer to herself that way made Lu Yuezhi feel bad.

“I’m the evidence of the Wu Family and Xiao Family marriage alliance, and also a product.” Xiao Luyan paused bitterly. “Of course, I’m also my parents’ task. After they completed the task, they didn’t need to keep up the constant closeness anymore.”

No wonder Auntie Wu and Uncle Xiao didn’t live together.

“But they always appear together at various events. Do they plan it in advance?”

Xiao Luyan curled her lip. “Is that strange?”

Lu Yuezhi was indeed surprised. She knew their relationship wasn’t great, but she hadn’t realized it was that bad.

Xiao Luyan walked to the car first and placed her hand on the door, not continuing.

She seemed to have made a decision and turned around to ask, “Yuezhi, want to change places and keep talking?”

Lu Yuezhi had thought she didn’t want to bring it up more, but she hadn’t expected her to be willing to continue. This was exactly what she had hoped for.

Her eyes sparkled, her tone sincere and excited. “Sure! Where to?”

Seeing she wasn’t just going along but responding so readily and happily, Xiao Luyan felt happy too.

She wanted to say a lot tonight, but most of it wasn’t fun stuff. She wanted to talk more with Lu Yuezhi but worried she’d find it boring.

Now it seemed she had overthought it.

The two discussed and decided to go to Xinran Cafe.

At this hour, the owner, Sister Ya, smiled when they arrived. “Coming for coffee so late? Not afraid of insomnia tonight?”

Lu Yuezhi was quite familiar with the place and chimed in. “We come here because we like the atmosphere, not necessarily for coffee.”

Sister Ya and Xiao Luyan had long been acquaintances and knew her personality well.

She glanced at Xiao Luyan. “Not bad, she gets what you want.”

Xiao Luyan kept her eyes down on the menu, as if she hadn’t caught the implication.

Sister Ya smiled without saying more and waited patiently for them to order.

They had eaten a lot for dinner and had no appetite for drinks or desserts.

Lu Yuezhi was honest. “Can I have a cup of warm honey water and a cup of plain boiled water?”

Xiao Luyan paused.

Sister Ya chuckled lightly. “Just that?”

“Charge the full price, of course.” Lu Yuezhi explained, “We come here to relax, so going with what feels right is best.”

Sister Ya didn’t mind these things. With her friendship with Xiao Luyan, she could even comp it. But she could tell that tonight was Lu Yuezhi’s idea, and Xiao Luyan was going along with her arrangements.

This Lu Yuezhi was unique and considerate, quite interesting.

“No problem. Guests can request anything.”

Coming here had indeed been Lu Yuezhi’s suggestion. Besides home, this was probably the place Xiao Luyan liked and could relax in most.

But normal people rarely chose a cafe at this time. In the past, those who asked her out would deliberately “considerately” emphasize it was too late for coffee.

But Lu Yuezhi said that as long as it let her relax comfortably, the place didn’t matter.

Now it seemed weekends really could be pleasant. Xiao Luyan curled her lip, looking forward to her cup of honey water.

The marriage alliance between the Wu Family and Xiao Family wasn’t just the one pair of Wu Wanqian. The rift between the two families had only become more obvious in recent years, so cutting ties wasn’t that quick.

Xiao Luyan’s tone was indifferent, but she explained the internal relationships in detail.

This time, Lu Yuezhi really understood. Some of her previous guesses had been wrong. But that wasn’t what made her happiest; what did was that Xiao Luyan was willing to talk about it voluntarily. It meant she was one step closer to her life.

They stayed at the cafe until almost closing time. Most of the time, Xiao Luyan spoke calmly, and Lu Yuezhi listened quietly.

By the time they got home, it was nearly 11 p.m., but Xiao Luyan felt incredibly refreshed, even more than after a gym session.

She had been too busy lately and hadn’t exercised properly in a while.

“Yuezhi, are you free tomorrow?”

Lu Yuezhi recalled her work schedule. “Need two hours for photo retouching, nothing else.”

Xiao Luyan hesitated. “Then tomorrow, gym?”

Lu Yuezhi suddenly remembered her brother crazily training regardless of his life back then and inexplicably wanted to laugh.

Xiao Luyan saw her odd expression and couldn’t guess why. “Is going to the gym weird?”

“Not weird.” Lu Yuezhi smiled. “I just remembered my brother saying you like strong builds, so he trained like crazy. So stupid.”

It had been a while since Lu Feicheng’s name came up, and Xiao Luyan hadn’t expected to hear “stupid” from Lu Yuezhi’s mouth.

But thinking about it, it fit. When had she ever liked strong builds? Lu Feicheng was self-assured, truly stupid.

Lu Yuezhi no longer minded that her brother had known Xiao Luyan earlier. The more she understood, the more certain she was that he didn’t even know Xiao Luyan’s basic preferences; it was all blind confidence.

When Lu Yuezhi studied abroad, classmates often dragged her to the gym too, but she only trained for lines, not excessively pursuing strength.

She grew curious about Xiao Luyan’s gym habits, wondering what she preferred. As long as it was with Xiao Luyan, she was interested in anything.

“Then tomorrow together.”

Xiao Luyan took out her phone. “I’ll book it then.”

Lu Yuezhi worried it might be too early. “No need to book super early. We can sleep in.”

Xiao Luyan paused. “What if we oversleep?”

Lu Yuezhi shrugged nonchalantly. “Then just reschedule.”

Gym wasn’t a big deal; no need to be tense all the time.

Infected by her relaxed vibe, Xiao Luyan felt there was no need to be strict and pushed the booking later.

With everything set, Xiao Luyan suddenly realized weekends could be pretty fun.

The Touring Exhibition shoot went quite smoothly. The first set of photos was complete and formally sent to Madam Li. She needed to approve the style and creativity before the next set could proceed, giving the photography team a rare breather.

Deyou Nian held a wine party as both a reward and encouragement. As project lead, Xiao Luyan naturally bustled everywhere.

But she spent the most time talking with Su Yiqui.

The collaboration had been pleasant, and she appreciated Su Yiqui’s professional level. Still, she kept Lu Yuezhi’s matter in mind. Even if matchmaking couldn’t be rushed, she wanted to inquire more about River.

She increasingly didn’t want to see Lu Yuezhi unhappy. If River really overshadowed her later, how could she bear it?

Xiao Luyan wasn’t usually sociable; others usually approached her. But tonight, she actively sought topics, and everyone could see she was chasing after Su Yiqui to talk.