DCTMOAS Chapter 43

Seeing that someone was already entertaining the guest, Yu Xiang slightly bowed her head in apology. “You all have a chat—I’ll excuse myself to change.”

The rest moved further into the entry hall.

“What’s with all the sudden commotion?” The birthday boy poked his head out from near the spiral staircase. When he saw who was standing in the foyer, he called out in surprise, “Mr. Chu!”

Chu Cheng smiled at him. “Happy birthday.”

The tall teenager ran over, grinning even brighter when he spotted the cake box in Chu Cheng’s hand. “Is that especially for me?”

Chu Cheng replied, “Of course.”

“Thank you, Mr. Chu!” Lu Yan eagerly guided him over to the living room sofa to sit down.

The cake was my purchase. I just let him carry it.

Yu Siting looked at the boy’s enthusiasm and had words right on the tip of his tongue, but in the end, he kept his promise to a certain someone—the gentleman’s agreement—and swallowed them back down.

“You all sit for a bit. Dinner should be ready soon. I’ll head to the dining room and check on the preparations.” Yu Chen, seeing how naturally the group was getting along, could already picture how they must be at school—clearly very in sync.

Chu Cheng glanced up at Yu Siting.

The latter immediately understood and called out to Yu Chen just as she was about to leave, “Is Aunt Chen here today?”

Yu Chen nodded. “She is. I originally wanted to give her a longer break so she could head home early for the New Year and take care of the twins. But she insisted on staying to cook for Xiao Yan’s birthday before leaving.”

Yu Siting nodded. “Aunt Chen really cares. All these years, if Lu Yan celebrated his birthday at home, she always handled everything herself.”

“I’m just that lovable, what can I say? Back when I had gastritis, she even went all the way to Tingzhou to make me nutritional soup.” Lu Yan looked rather proud of himself.

Yu Siting ruffled his hair. “Dinner’s almost ready. Go clean up that mess of presents you’ve scattered everywhere, and change into something tidy. Look at you—covered in dirt—and still cozying up to Mr. Chu like that?”

Lu Yan looked down and noticed that his hoodie had bits of flower soil stuck to the front. He muttered, “It was my aunt. She insisted I open her blind boxes. She said there was jade inside—but all I dug up was a bunch of glass shards.”

“Hey! Don’t pin this on me, kid,” Yu Chen grinned, arms crossed. “You’re the one who said jade was old-fashioned and diamonds were cooler—wanted to inlay it into your test-bubbling pen so that if you lost it again, you could report it as stolen!”

Lu Yan shot back, “Still doesn’t make it not glass.”

“Alright, alright. You want me to use my holiday time to mediate a playground brawl between you two?” Yu Siting cut in before things escalated, though his tone was suspiciously biased. He turned to Lu Yan with a low voice and added, “How many times have I told you not to play with her? What good ever comes from it?”

Yu Chen clicked her tongue from the side, momentarily unable to maintain her sweet “second-sister” act. With a fake smile, she pinched her younger brother hard.

“Don’t touch me,” Yu Siting said with a look of disgust, brushing her hand away. Then he turned back to the loitering Lu Yan, “Go.”

“Okay…” Lu Yan obeyed, but before heading upstairs, he turned and said, “Mr. Chu, make yourself comfortable—I’ll be back soon.”

Yu Chen was long used to her younger brother’s standoffish attitude and didn’t take it personally. She simply turned and headed toward the dining room.

Yu Siting looked at Chu Cheng. “I’ll go with you.”

Chu Cheng: “Alright.”

The other gifts he brought were still sitting in the foyer, but he picked up just the baby supplies and followed Yu Siting, who led him to the kitchen to meet the family’s nutritionist.

Aunt Chen was younger than Chu Cheng had expected—she looked to be not even fifty, with neatly parted short hair that was both comfortable and stylish.

Chu Cheng explained his reason for coming, but Aunt Chen looked a little unsure of how to respond.

The end of November had been when the boy-girl twins in her family were born, and she had taken a leave of absence from the Yu household—there was no way she could have been in Tingzhou then.

Naturally, Aunt Chen wasn’t about to openly contradict her employer’s story, but she also felt it would be inappropriate to accept a gift when she hadn’t actually done anything. She cast a subtle, questioning look to the side.

Yu Siting, however, remained calm and said, “It’s just a token of appreciation from Mr. Chu, to congratulate you on the new additions to your family. You’ve worked hard today—when you’re done here, you should head home and get some rest.”

Aunt Chen immediately understood.

What Young Master Yu meant was: even if there had been a mix-up, the gift was genuine and came from the heart—she could accept it without worry. As for the private matter behind it all, she of course had no intention of prying.

“These are all so beautifully picked out. You two really put a lot of thought into this. Alright, I’ll accept it then.” Aunt Chen gave special thanks to Mr. Chu and mentioned that dinner would be ready in just a few moments.

“Then we won’t get in your way,” Chu Cheng said with a smile and a polite nod.

As Yu Siting led his guest out of the kitchen, Yu Chen leaned against the wall thoughtfully. She vaguely recalled receiving a phone call from her younger brother earlier, but…

Knowing him as well as she did, it didn’t take long to piece together what had happened. Clearly, Mr. Chu’s gift had hit the mark, because he had indeed benefited from one of Aunt Chen’s special digestive soups.

Looked like she had accidentally stumbled onto a juicy little secret. She chuckled to herself in silence. What was it that her little brother had said earlier? “Congratulations on the new additions to your family”?

What a nice phrase. She wouldn’t mind hearing that in their own household someday.

Dinner was soon ready, and Yu Xiang and Lu Yan, both freshly changed, returned to the dining room and took their seats.

Since there weren’t many people usually eating at the old family home, there were no fixed seats. Chu Cheng ended up between Lu Yan and Yu Siting, with Yu Chen and Yu Xiang sitting side by side across from them.

The Yu family didn’t have any rule about staying silent at the table. Yu Xiang spent most of the meal chatting with Chu Cheng about Lu Yan’s childhood, and the two got along very well. However, the other three at the table looked distinctly less pleased.

Lu Yan was annoyed because all his embarrassing childhood stories were being exposed; Yu Chen was annoyed because it made her look like she didn’t have the same rapport with their guest; and as for Yu siting himself… perhaps he just hated how irrelevant he seemed at the dinner table.

Yu Chen shot her brother a look, clearly saying: Can you do something before this turns into a full-on parent-teacher conference?

Yu Siting ignored her completely.

She rolled her eyes at him, then turned back to their guest with a sweet smile. “Mr. Chu, there’s something I’ve been dying to ask—but I was afraid it might be impolite.”

Chu Cheng put down his chopsticks. “No worries. Please ask.”

Yu Chen said, “I was wondering… what’s your relationship to Mr. Chu Lining?”

In truth, the question wasn’t that forward. Chu Cheng had expected it—after all, he’d come bearing gifts prepared by the old man himself.

He answered gently, “He’s my father.”

“I thought so. Then I wasn’t mistaken.” Yu Chen smiled, then added frankly, “Actually, I have a bit of a connection to your father too. My most recent novel got signed to the same publishing house as his upcoming book. He even promised to write the calligraphy for my cover title.”

Chu Cheng replied, “Really? That’s quite the coincidence. When your new work comes out, I’ll definitely give it a read.”

Yu Siting froze mid-motion with his chopsticks. That sounded way too natural. Why did this guy call everyone “teacher”?

Yu Chen smiled gracefully, the kind of easy, well-mannered smile that put people at ease — but when he lowered his head, his gaze couldn’t help drifting toward the person opposite him, whose face was growing darker by the second: See that? I can hold a conversation just fine.

“Seems like you won’t be reading anything new for a while,” Yu Siting said blandly, picking up a piece of okra and dropping it onto his plate. “Some writers, once their inspiration runs dry, end up dragging out their drafts for ages. It’s like they’re being hounded by debt collectors every day, so they just barricade themselves at home, going crazy, drinking themselves stupid, and tricking their nephews into unboxing blind boxes to kill time. For such colleagues, I wonder — what does teacher Yu think of that?”

Yu Chen: “…”

I honestly wonder how your mouth has survived five years at work without someone tearing it off your face.

The tension at the table was thick enough to slice through, when Aunt Chen came out from the kitchen carrying a soup pot.

“That’s all the dishes for tonight, everyone, please enjoy. If you need anything, just let us know.” She lowered her gaze to look at Lu Yan by her side, her voice warm. “And of course — happy birthday, Xiao Yan.”

“Thank you~” Lu Yan beamed. He loved the family’s stomach-soothing soups best, so he scooped some into a small porcelain bowl and passed it to Chu Cheng first. “Teacher Chu, you have to try this — my favorite, Mai Dong black-bone chicken soup.”

Chu Cheng lowered his eyes to the little bowl by his hand. It looked just like the one he’d had during his hospital stay — a delicate mix of codonopsis, longan, astragalus, and goji berries. Its color was clear and appetizing.

Yu Chen ladled himself a bowl too, gently stirring it with his spoon — but he didn’t forget to avenge his brother while he was at it, remarking airily, “This soup is really good. Aunt Chen’s cooking — I’m sure Teacher Chu is no stranger to it.”

Chu Cheng lowered his head and took two sips. A strange glint flickered across his clear eyes.

This soup…

His tongue was always sharp — he could taste the difference in skill and timing right away. This bowl of black-bone chicken soup, though mild as usual, was especially rich and flavorful — nothing like what he’d had before. It didn’t seem to come from the same pair of hands at all.

Chu Cheng tilted his head slightly to glance at Lu Yan, who was sipping his soup without a care in the world, looking perfectly at ease. With no sign of anything amiss, he had no choice but to press down his doubts.

Dinner wound down. Everyone moved on to cutting the cake. After the birthday song finished, soft, mellow jazz started playing through the speakers in the front room. Under the warm amber glow of the crystal chandelier, the atmosphere felt just right — gentle and intimate.

Lu Yan, being young, had already forgotten the sting of his recent wound and went off to open gifts with his aunt again, only to be tricked into digging around in the flowerpots.

Left on the sofa were Yu Xiang, Yu Siting, and Chu Cheng, chatting idly.

When the eldest sister stepped aside to take a work call, Yu Siting leaned against the armrest, inching a little closer to Chu Cheng, and murmured with an unreadable look, “Told you — she’d be more than happy to chat with you.”

Chu Cheng tilted his head too, the corners of his mouth lifting slightly. “I’m hardly the only teacher that parents like, you know.”

Yu Siting’s remark had basically backfired — throwing a stone only to drop it on his own foot. Left speechless, he could only laugh it off, raising his half-finished glass of red wine to drink alone in silence.

The night grew deeper, and Chu Cheng finally got up to take his leave.

Yu Siting rose too, blurting out without thinking, “I’ll walk you out.”

Chu Cheng turned back to glance at the empty wine glass in the cabinet behind him, his tone calm as he reminded him, “Teacher Yu — you’ve been drinking.”

“Then—”

“As a teacher, you’d better abide by the law,” Chu Cheng cut him off with a light teasing smile before Yu Siting could say anything else. “I’ll just call a ride. Help me drop a pin for the exact location here.”

Yu Siting pulled out his phone. “Alright.”

The rideshare driver was close by and arrived in less than ten minutes. Chu Cheng said his goodbyes to the Yu family while Yu Siting and Lu Yan walked him out.

The winter night air bit cold and sharp. Neither of the two who came to see him off had thrown on thick coats in their hurry, so they didn’t get far before Chu Cheng shooed them back inside.

Yu Siting pushed open the still-unlocked living room door, but before he’d even stepped in, the strong smell of spirits hit him — and it sure as hell wasn’t the wine they’d had at dinner.

He frowned. “Drinking again? Didn’t you say you were quitting?”

“Playing the good girl is exhausting.” Yu Chen was holding a glass whiskey bottle, taking a rough swig. She kicked off her slippers, shrugged off her fitted dress shirt, and flopped onto the sofa, her pale slender legs propped right up on the coffee table.

Yu Siting’s voice dropped cold. “I already told you — he’s seen you drunk and acting like a lunatic in the street. You really don’t need to keep pretending to be some virtuous saint.”

“I didn’t want to scare the kid — fresh out of a respectable family, so sweet and pretty too, mm~” The alcohol was hitting Yu Chen fast as always. Her eyes were glassy, fingers raking through her long hair. Her ‘lovestruck’ expression twisted into one of pure disdain. “But you? You really brought him into this mess of a family? You think you deserve him? Hic — does he?”

The eldest Yu sister, who’d been dragged into this conversation out of nowhere, sat to the side replying to work messages, pointedly ignoring the nonsense.

Yu Siting grabbed a blanket from the side, intending to cover the drunkard, but Yu Chen yanked him down before he could.

“Forget quitting tonight. It’s a day to celebrate! My one and only little brother brings a man home on the tenth anniversary of his coming out — ten years! Finally got yourself a target, huh? Otherwise I’d honestly been wondering whether you were actually gay or just pretending.”

Yu Chen still remembered clear as day — it had been Xiao Yan’s birthday that year too. Their father had looked like a kid himself, sitting cross-legged on the floor singing birthday songs to his grandson, bragging that he still wanted a granddaughter one day.

And then his one and only son, just eighteen at the time, told him: Give it up, old man. The old guy had nearly passed out from rage on the spot.

“Let go.” Yu Siting turned his head, repulsed by the smell of alcohol wafting up his chest.

“Nope.” Yu Chen fisted his hair, slurring her drunken truths right into his ear. “But you better grab this chance, you hear me? Don’t think sneaking around washing vegetables and making soup is enough. Chen Auntie’s cooking is way above anything you can slap together to pass off as yours. Watching you at the dinner table today — you’ve got a long way to go, baby brother. You might’ve pissed Dad off so bad he fled the country, but at least I’m on your side—”

Yu Siting finally wrestled free from her death grip after a long struggle, his brows cold and sharp as a blade. “I didn’t drive Dad away — you did. Leaving Stanford behind just to play at being a freelance writer, scribbling your damn suspense novels. Running around chasing inspiration, living like a drunk in a haze. Filthy.”

“It wasn’t me — it was her who drove Dad away!” Yu Chen suddenly swung the blame at Yu Xiang. “She had a kid out of wedlock before she even finished college. The old man asked who the father was — she straight-up said she didn’t know. Then she changed her major halfway through, nearly killed herself studying finance day and night, and took over the company. Dad, trying to heal his precious daughter’s heartbreak, threw his full weight behind her career.

And what did she do the moment she got to the top? She blew up her own side just to bankrupt that scumbag’s entire family business!”

Click.

The sound of someone cracking their knuckles echoed through the living room.

President Yu’s number one pet peeve in life was anyone dragging up that incident, but she still maintained her cold, elegant image. She only lifted her eyelids a fraction and said calmly, “Lu Yan, drag your little aunt down to the basement garage — maybe that’ll sober her up.”

“Uh…” Poor Lu Yan had been doing his best to shrink into the background during this three-way sibling war, but now that he’d been called out, he had no choice but to step up.

“Don’t touch me! Don’t you dare, you filthy pervert!” Yu Chen slurred a few protests, then curled up on the couch and fell silent.

Yu Siting could feel the headache pounding at his temples. Honestly, he should’ve taken a picture of this beautiful trainwreck — his sister sprawled out, limbs all over the place. Next time she had a book signing, he’d share it with her thousands of adoring fans so they could see the real ‘graceful, intellectual Teacher Yu Chen.’

Finally, the living room quieted down.

Yu Xiang’s gaze drifted from her laptop to her brother, calm and unflinching. “Was what she said true? You like Teacher Chu?”

Yu Siting didn’t answer directly. “I know what I’m doing. I don’t need you two interfering.”

“Got it.” Yu Xiang gave a small smile. “If you ever need the family to pitch in for a betrothal gift, just say the word. Other than the little piece of the company you hold, everything else is under my name. The old man abroad can’t make things difficult for you.”

Yu Siting took two long strides forward, bent his tall frame down, and calmly pried the whiskey bottle out of Yu Chen’s hands. “I’m not interested in any of that — and neither is he.”

“Ah-ha~” Suddenly, the drunk on the sofa jolted upright like a zombie coming back to life.

Lu Yan nearly jumped out of his skin. “Ah! Auntie, what now?”

“Inspiration just hit…” Yu Chen, miraculously sober, ran a hand through her messy hair and got up to go write. “I swear — tonight, I’m finishing this draft for real!”

“Hold it.” Yu Xiang’s voice cut in sharp. Her naturally red lips moved just slightly as she looked at her siblings, every word crisp and clear. “One thing I have to restate — Dad didn’t run off abroad because of me.”

She didn’t wait for any response — just grabbed her laptop off the table and headed upstairs, her steps almost carrying a breeze behind her.

Yu Siting let out a soft snort, tossing out as he headed back to his room, “Dad didn’t run off because of me, either.”

“Dad definitely didn’t leave because of me.” Yu Chen, her beautiful eyes still unfocused from the booze, turned to the only person left standing there.

Lu Yan felt a chill crawl up his spine. “Why are you looking at me? I never did anything to piss Grandpa off!”

“That’s why you’re the sweetest.” Yu Chen reached out, gave his face a sloppy little squeeze, then staggered off half-awake to find some water.

Lu Yan let out a sigh like a man who’d just survived a war, glancing around the finally peaceful old Yu house.

His birthday wish this year? Please bless me with a future little uncle who won’t completely lose his mind after marrying in.