YMW CH 39

Defying Fate

Cen Wu’s palm rested on Xie Guilan’s abs, his mind in turmoil. The power had been out for over a minute now, and some students had already turned on their phone flashlights. If one of those beams swept over them, they’d be caught red-handed.

But Xie Guilan still hadn’t let go. His calloused fingers pressed firmly against the back of Cen Wu’s hand, fingertips slipping into the gaps between his fingers, heat seeping through his skin. Cen Wu’s palm was already slick with a thin layer of sweat.

Blushing fiercely, Cen Wu struggled to pry Xie Guilan’s hand off, his voice trembling. “Y-you… let go first…”

“Why?” Xie Guilan lifted his head.

His nose bridge was sharp, his profile bathed in pale moonlight. The glow illuminated only half his face, casting a stark contrast of light and shadow. His voice was cold, detached.

Looking at his face, one might think he was engaged in something entirely proper. But beneath his palm, his abs burned like fire—his breath was slightly uneven, the muscles shifting with every inhale.

Like a flame igniting beneath ice, licking at Cen Wu’s fingertips, melting through skin, flesh, and bone.

“…This is crazy.”

Cen Wu’s heart pounded wildly, yet Xie Guilan remained utterly nonchalant. He didn’t even seem to care if someone caught them—like being exposed didn’t matter.

A mix of fear and an inexplicable ache surged in Cen Wu’s chest. Xie Guilan wasn’t just indifferent to others—he was indifferent to himself too.

In the original story, this was what was said about him the most: that he was cold-blooded, ruthless, willing to do anything to achieve his goals. Dignity, life—none of it mattered to him.

“I… I’ll delete them.”

Cen Wu finally managed to calm down a little. He curled his fingers and lightly brushed Xie Guilan’s abs in a comforting motion—not intimate, just soothing.

“Don’t be like this.”

Although he didn’t understand why Xie Guilan cared so much, deleting a few friends wasn’t a big deal.

Xie Guilan lowered his eyes, his thin lips pressed together. He loosened his grip on Cen Wu’s hand just a little, giving him the chance to quickly pull away. However, the sudden absence of warmth left Cen Wu’s hand feeling strangely empty.

Not enough.

As he silently scolded himself—how could he do this to a friend?—he took out his phone and started deleting contacts.

This time, he deleted over a hundred.

At first, Xie Guilan remained calm. However, as the number climbed past thirty, his expression darkened noticeably. By the time Cen Wu reached one hundred, he turned his head and met Xie Guilan’s pitch-black, brooding gaze—along with an equally dark expression. His hand trembled slightly from the shock.

“I… I,” Cen Wu stammered. “I’m done.”

He had intended to keep going, but seeing how rattled Xie Guilan already looked, he hesitated. After all, his current expression was on the verge of complete collapse.

Although frustration welled in Xie Guilan’s chest, when he met Cen Wu’s cautious, almost quail-like gaze, he realized he had pushed too hard and scared him. So, instead of pressing further, he reached out and ruffled Cen Wu’s hair.

Cen Wu didn’t dare dodge. His eyelashes fluttered, and he carefully raised his eyes. Only when he confirmed that Xie Guilan wasn’t actually angry did he finally put his phone down.

Xie Guilan lowered his gaze again. As he idly played with the tip of Cen Wu’s pale ear, his fingers brushed over the small, crimson mole there and gently rubbed it. Each time he did, Cen Wu shivered slightly, looking especially pitiful.

Forget it. Why was he making such a big deal out of this?

He’s so well-behaved—so what if he’s dated a few guys?

It’s not like I care.

Cen Wu, of course, had no idea what Xie Guilan was thinking. Before he could dwell on it, the school’s power was suddenly restored—sooner than expected. In less than half an hour, the evening study session bell rang, forcing him to rush back to his seat.

Lying on his desk, Cen Wu couldn’t stop himself from overthinking. Eventually, he stealthily pulled out his phone and sent a message to Lu Wang.

【Cen Wu: If someone insists on letting you touch their abs, what does that mean?】

Although Lu Wang’s cold wasn’t serious and he had almost fully recovered, his family was overly cautious. Since they worried he wouldn’t know how to take care of himself, they had forced him to rest a few extra days.

With nothing else to do, Lu Wang had been playing on his phone, so he replied quickly.

【Lu Wang: How could this happen?】

Cen Wu immediately nodded to himself—exactly, how could this happen? He waited nervously for Lu Wang’s follow-up message.

But then, Lu Wang responded in an entirely different tone.

【Lu Wang: You touched abs without me?】

He had never touched abs before! If he ever got the chance, he’d definitely invite Cen Wu along. But now, Cen Wu had gone ahead without him?

Cen Wu: “…”

Helplessly, he tried to appease him.

【Cen Wu: It wasn’t even good. I didn’t like it at all—so stiff, totally boring.】

In reality, Xie Guilan’s abs weren’t stiff at all. They had the perfect balance between youthful elasticity and mature definition—very different from the version of him in the later parts of the novel.

In the original story, which was mostly focused on business conflicts, Xie Guilan was always dressed in a sharp black suit. By then, he had fully grown into his frame—tall, imposing, and completely adult. His once-broken hand had healed in a way that left his knuckles slightly twisted. Paired with his pale skin, it gave him an oddly rough and restrained allure.

Even in bed, he would remain cold-faced, issuing commands that left no room for negotiation. He was never gentle, never concerned with anyone’s feelings. No matter how brightly someone burned for him, their fire would never reach him—a cruel man through and through.

In the novel, Xie Guilan had never had any intimate relationships—or at least, it was never explicitly mentioned. After all, a novel couldn’t detail every little thing.

So why, then, had he voluntarily let Cen Wu touch his abs?

Did Cen Wu really seem that desperate to?

Shaking off his thoughts, Cen Wu refocused. The monthly exams were coming up soon, and he needed to finish his assignments. Whenever he hit a difficult problem, he brought it to Xie Guilan.

Initially, he had worried that Xie Guilan would be annoyed, especially since most of his questions were at a first-year or even middle-school level. However, despite his typically cool tone, Xie Guilan always provided multiple solutions for each question.

Even when Cen Wu got something wrong, he never scolded him.

Glancing at Xie Guilan’s eyelashes, Cen Wu hesitated before leaning closer. Resting his head on Xie Guilan’s papers, he tentatively asked, “I… I still have a lot I don’t understand. Could you… could you tutor me?”

Xie Guilan paused.

“I’ll pay you market rate,” Cen Wu quickly added.

Xie Guilan knew this was just an excuse for Cen Wu to give him money, but since he hadn’t accepted it before, he couldn’t start now. If he wanted to say he liked Cen Wu, then he couldn’t let Song Lingwei become a burden to him—even if the Cen family wouldn’t care about such a small amount.

Otherwise, what right did he have to claim he liked him?

Cen Wu could tell he was refusing, so he didn’t push further. Instead, he shifted back to his seat.

And promptly turned to see Meng Liangping’s massive face right in front of him.

Cen Wu: “…”

Cen Wu: !!!

His face went completely pale from fright.

“What are you two talking about?” Meng Liangping leaned in, smiling in a way that wasn’t quite friendly. “Why don’t you include me in the conversation? Twisting your neck like that must be tiring—should I assign you two as desk partners instead?”

Cen Wu’s lips trembled. “N-nothing…”

Meng Liangping had been watching them all evening. Cen Wu had barely done a few problems before turning to whisper with Xie Guilan. He had planned to put on a stern face and lecture them, but before he could, Xie Guilan cut in.

“Teacher,” Xie Guilan said, “I was the one talking to him.”

He was even defending him.

Meng Liangping’s brows furrowed sharply. He knocked on their desks in warning but said nothing more.

Cen Wu exhaled in relief. He didn’t dare move for the rest of the lesson. Only after evening self-study ended did he quickly grab his bag and dart after Xie Guilan.

However, just as he reached Class One’s door, he nearly ran straight into Xie Shangjing.

Xie Shangjing was barely holding back his frustration. When he first spotted Cen Wu, he had assumed Cen Wu was looking for him. But instead, Cen Wu rushed past without even sparing him a glance.

Turning his head, Xie Shangjing immediately saw that guy.

Why the hell would Cen Wu be interested in someone like that?

He knew Cen Wu liked to hang around male models, but if he openly admitted to being gay, he might as well hand the Xie family over on a silver platter. He had thought Cen Wu understood this, which was why he had always turned a blind eye.

And yet, now Cen Wu was mixed up with Xie Guilan?

What the hell was he thinking?

Face darkening, Xie Shangjing impatiently reached out and grabbed Cen Wu’s arm.

“Come with me,” he ordered.

Xie Guilan’s gaze darkened instantly. He had deliberately walked ahead a little before stopping, just so Cen Wu would have to catch up. For some reason, he liked watching Cen Wu run after him.

Class Three’s classroom wasn’t at the very end of the hallway, but it was still a bit far from the stairs. As Cen Wu ran toward him, the lights in the surrounding classrooms flickered off one by one. In the dimming corridor, only Cen Wu’s eyes remained bright, curved like two little crescent moons.

But before he could reach Xie Guilan, Xie Shangjing blocked his path.

Cen Wu waved a hand at Xie Guilan, signaling him not to come over, then frowned and turned back to Xie Shangjing. “I… I have to go. Let… let go of me.”

“What’s wrong with your speech?” Xie Shangjing’s expression remained cold. “Why are you stuttering?”

He had noticed Cen Wu’s sudden stutter days ago and had assumed it would go away soon. But clearly, it hadn’t.

Under the night sky, Cen Wu’s expression was also cold. His long lashes lifted, the snowy white of his skin blending with the deep black of his eyes, giving him a weary and detached look.

Xie Shangjing had never seen this expression on him before. Ever since that night at the stables, Cen Wu had stopped clinging to him—he didn’t even bother pretending anymore.

He had never cared much about this idiot anyway. After all, Cen Wu always came back to him on his own. Who would’ve thought that this time, Cen Wu would never return?

Honestly, Cen Wu thought the original host and Xie Shangjing made a good pair. He had even started shipping them. Other couples were made for each other; these two were doomed from the start. Their relationship was one of mutual deception.

To be precise, they hadn’t even started dating yet and were already scheming against each other.

“You like him?” Xie Shangjing’s face darkened to something terrifying.

“I don’t.” Cen Wu dodged his grip. The moment he said that, Xie Shangjing’s icy expression seemed to ease, but then Cen Wu continued in the same indifferent tone, “I don’t like you either.”

Xie Shangjing’s face twisted in anger. His voice dropped into a growl. “Say that again?!”

Cen Wu couldn’t be bothered to argue. Xie Guilan was still waiting for him, and he didn’t want him to suddenly walk over. That would only bring back his uneasy feeling of standing between two people, and he really didn’t want Xie Guilan and Xie Shangjing to fight.

Xie Shangjing, however, scoffed, his anger turning into a cold sneer. “Don’t say I didn’t warn you. If you keep hanging around him, you won’t even know how you end up dead.”

With that, he shoved Cen Wu aside and walked off, leaving him stumbling from the force.

Xie Guilan’s eyes grew colder. A moment ago, he had been waiting obediently like a loyal dog—Cen Wu told him to stay put, so he did. But now that Xie Shangjing had laid a hand on him, the darkness in Xie Guilan’s gaze deepened. Without hesitation, he strode toward them.

“Forget it, forget it.”

Cen Wu hurriedly grabbed him. It wasn’t like Xie Shangjing had actually killed him. There was no need for a fight—especially not here, where they didn’t even have a dance studio to brawl in.

Originally, Xie Guilan had planned to go to the hospital. But since Xie Shangjing decided to stir up trouble, he ended up walking Cen Wu home first before heading there.

Cen Wu felt a little weird about it. He was supposed to be the one walking Xie Guilan home, but somehow, it had ended up the other way around. Still, no matter what, every night in their second year of high school, they always went home together.

With the monthly exams coming up, Cen Wu forced himself to stop thinking about abs. But unfortunately, Lu Wang was still hung up on it.

The next morning, the moment Lu Wang arrived at school and spotted Cen Wu, he immediately asked, “Whose abs did you touch?”

Cen Wu, who had just set his backpack down: “…”

Xie Guilan, who had just reached the back door of the classroom: “…”

Cen Wu’s heart pounded in panic. His face burned as he glanced at Xie Guilan, then quickly changed the subject. “Today we… we have to turn in the math worksheet from Wednesday. Did you finish it?”

“I did.” Lu Wang immediately forgot about his original question and pulled out his worksheet to compare answers with Cen Wu.

Though honestly, with them being the second-to-last and last in the rankings, comparing their answers was pointless. They might as well show them to Xie Guilan instead.

Xie Guilan took the papers. With his deep-set eyes and ever-present shadows, his expression always seemed cold and distant. He glanced at Lu Wang’s worksheet first and said flatly, “All wrong.”

Then he looked at Cen Wu’s. His Adam’s apple bobbed slightly as he scanned the chaotic mess of scribbled answers. It seemed like he was searching for something to praise, but after a long pause, he finally softened his tone and said, “Not bad. You got three right.”

Lu Wang immediately started wailing. He had spent six hours on this last night and still got nothing right.

And he wasn’t just pretending—he was genuinely heartbroken. He sobbed pitifully, shaking with grief. It wasn’t Xie Guilan’s criticism that got to him; it was the sheer number of mistakes. Cen Wu, startled by his tears, shot a disapproving look at Xie Guilan.

Xie Guilan: “…”

Usually, Lu Wang didn’t seem that dumb. But now that he was crying, he really looked like a clueless child—helpless and miserable.

Some students from Class Eight happened to be passing by outside. When they heard Lu Wang sobbing, they hunched their shoulders, struggling to hold back laughter. But in the end, they couldn’t resist.

“This idiot actually takes exams?” one of them snickered. “He can’t even remember his own exam room.”

Lu Wang did, in fact, frequently go to the wrong exam room. At No.1 High School, exam seating was arranged from best to worst scores. During the first exam of their freshman year, he had originally been placed in the last room. But instead of going there, he had gone to the second-to-last room, thinking he’d be sitting with the original host.

When the actual seat owner arrived, Lu Wang, clueless as ever, refused to move. He simply assumed he was supposed to take the test with the original host.

At the time, the original host had been utterly mortified. After the exam, he had chewed Lu Wang out, reducing him to tears. In the end, Lu Wang had to buy him a pair of sneakers worth over 30,000 yuan to make up for it.

Everyone in school knew about this incident.

Damn the original host.

Cen Wu’s sense of impending doom grew stronger. There were only a handful of prominent families in Huaijing, and every single one of them would probably be after his life in the future. He really needed to start planning his escape.

His face turned cold as he prepared to chase those students away, but before he could, Lu Wang moved faster. Still crying, he hurled a piece of trash at them and shouted, “I’ll have my little brother beat you up!”

Cen Wu: “…”

Was he trying to rebel against the heavens?

If he remembered correctly, Lu Wang’s younger brother was still in kindergarten.

The Class Eight students, knowing Lu Wang was the eldest son of the Lu family, didn’t dare push him too far. They laughed and walked away, leaving him alone.

Cen Wu patted Lu Wang’s back as he hugged him.

Lu Wang sniffled, then suddenly had a realization.

Cen Wu and Xie Guilan were kind of like his parents. At home, his mom would scold him, but his dad would always comfort him afterward.

Cen Wu didn’t mind him anymore. Lu Wang felt like Cen Wu had become a completely different person, but he didn’t care. He only cared about those who were good to him, and no matter who it was, no one should take Cen Wu away from him.

Lu Wang wiped his tears and started working on the test paper again. No matter how many times he tried, he just couldn’t grasp it, but Cen Wu never lost patience. He explained the questions he knew to Lu Wang.

And he was very encouraging.

“Wow… so amazing, I wouldn’t have gotten that at all.”

“You finished so fast… and got it all right. Next time, you’re definitely coming in second place in the grade.”

Lu Wang was flattered, but also a little dissatisfied. He asked, “Why not first?”

What else could Cen Wu say?

In his heart, there was only one eternal first place—someone who would never fall from the pedestal, never be replaced by anyone.

Suddenly, Lu Wang shivered. It hit him—Cen Wu must have touched Xie Guilan’s abs before, right?!

His neck went cold. He turned his head and realized that Xie Guilan had been staring at him for who knows how long. His deep black eyes were impenetrable, locked onto Lu Wang’s hands like a predator.

Lu Wang was still holding onto Cen Wu’s waist. It felt like he had been stabbed with a knife. He immediately let go and then suddenly remembered something. He turned to Cen Wu and said, “The chemistry competition trophy seems to have arrived. I just saw Bald Qiang go to the sophomore office. A bunch of people were taking pictures, but I didn’t see Xie-ge’s trophy.”

The Qingyue Cup was the largest competition in the entire province and had always garnered a lot of attention. In previous years, winning an award could earn extra points for the college entrance exam, though that benefit had been removed in the last couple of years.

Xie Guilan only cared about money. Grades and trophies didn’t matter to him. Unless necessary, he wouldn’t go out of his way to collect them.

There had even been a provincial competition where the school wanted to keep his trophy on display for a while, and Xie Guilan didn’t bother to intervene.

But Cen Wu felt uneasy. Something had to be wrong again. If he couldn’t see the trophy, he just couldn’t relax.

So, he went to the office.

The office was surrounded by a crowd—so many people that Cen Wu’s scalp tingled. But despite his stiff legs, he forced himself to move forward. Sure enough, he couldn’t see Xie Guilan’s trophy anywhere, and he immediately panicked.

Teacher, where’s our Xie Guilan’s trophy?

He jumped a few times before finally spotting Meng Liangping holding the gold trophy like a precious treasure. Only then did he breathe a sigh of relief.

He stood by, waiting for the interview to end. He thought it would be over in ten minutes, but once Meng Liangping started talking, he just wouldn’t stop. Cen Wu squatted until his legs went numb, almost late for class, before Meng Liangping finally finished criticizing the Qingyue Cup judges. Then, still reluctant to let go, he took a final photo with the trophy before wrapping up.

“Mr. Meng… Meng!” Cen Wu hurried over and said, “I’ll take… take the trophy to Xie Guilan.”

In the past, Meng Liangping might have been suspicious. Who knew if Cen Wu wanted to sneak off and break Xie Guilan’s trophy? It wouldn’t have been unlike him.

But after the Cen family stepped in to help, Meng Liangping realized Cen Wu had truly changed. It made him feel a lot more reassured.

Meng Liangping handed him the trophy.

Cen Wu carried it back to the classroom with great care. Even when he had won awards in Berlin, he hadn’t been this careful.

Xie Guilan had noticed him leaving earlier but hadn’t expected him to be fetching the trophy. His eyes flickered in surprise.

“For you,” Cen Wu said, setting it beside him.

Xie Guilan found it hard to describe how he felt. Even Song Lingwei had never cared about his academic achievements. Maybe she had, before they moved to Huaijing—but when he was seven, his world turned upside down.

“Young master,” Xie Guilan tapped the trophy and said, “as long as I’m first place in your heart, that’s enough.”

But to Cen Wu, that wasn’t enough. What he thought didn’t matter—what mattered was that Xie Guilan got what rightfully belonged to him.

Cen Wu parted his lips as if to say something, but in the end, he stayed silent. Several classmates had already gathered around Xie Guilan.

The whole class had gradually realized that Xie Guilan wouldn’t actually hit people, so one by one, they dared to approach.

“Xie-ge, Xie-ge, the monthly exam is coming up! Let me rub some of your luck!”

“Who the hell just shoved me? I was here first!”

Of course, Xie Guilan wasn’t going to shake hands with anyone, and no one really dared to try. Most of them were just here to touch the trophy.

“This is all just superstitious nonsense,” Zhang Yuanzhou scoffed. “Ignore them, Xie-ge. If shaking hands could help you score high, then hugging should make you rank first in the grade. A kiss? Straight into the exam committee!”

Someone actually started staring at Xie Guilan’s face. His expression immediately darkened, scaring them into running for their lives.

Zhang Yuanzhou grinned mischievously. “Don’t run! Xie-ge is too much for you? Fine, I’ll kiss you instead.”

The guy clutched his nose and pretended to gag.

“Xie-ge,” Cen Wu turned around as well. He stretched out his hand, fingers opening and closing like a little cat’s paw. Blinking, he asked, “C-Can I shake your hand?”

Xie Guilan clasped his hand.

Cen Wu had only meant to shake once and let go, but Xie Guilan’s grip was like iron, locking him in place.

Cen Wu: ?

Xie Guilan: “One shake isn’t enough for it to work.”

Cen Wu hadn’t expected Xie Guilan to actually believe this stuff. But since it was for his own good, he didn’t pull away and let Xie Guilan hold his hand for a while.

Even when the class bell rang, Xie Guilan still hadn’t let go. Cen Wu’s palm grew sweaty, and his face turned red. He stomped on Xie Guilan’s foot a few times before Xie Guilan finally released him.

“Is that enough?” Xie Guilan lifted his gaze slightly.

Cen Wu: “……”

What else did you expect?

Cen Wu didn’t catch on to the hint. He obediently turned back, grabbed a test paper, and started working, though his ears remained flushed.

Xie Guilan stared at him for a few seconds before finally looking away.

So slow. If he hadn’t realized Cen Wu liked him, how long would it have taken for this idiot to confess?