ALCSRB Chapter 91

The next day—birthday banquet day.

The Meng family estate had a dedicated banquet hall large enough to hold over a hundred guests.

Everyone who came was either a Meng relative or a guest with close personal ties to the family. The hall was filled with the clinking of glasses and lively conversation.

After presenting his prepared birthday gift to the old lady, Jiang Mingyi quietly sat off to the side.

His gaze drifted toward Shen Xingyan, who was mingling with people in the crowd. The lilting background music drowned out the distant chatter, so he couldn’t hear what they were saying to Shen Xingyan—only that, after speaking to him, several of them turned to look in his direction.

Jiang Mingyi instinctively pulled out a smile, just a polite greeting.

As soon as those people started talking again, he immediately wiped the smile off his face.

He poked his own cheek. “That smile was kinda fake.”

But it was just socializing—so what if it was fake? It’s not like he had anything to do with those people anyway.

“When is this banquet going to end? I want to go home.” Jiang Mingyi tapped his phone a few times, then gave up on the idea of calling Shen Xingyan back.

At that moment, a few young men with wine glasses walked over through the banquet hall.

Jiang Mingyi only looked up when he noticed the light in front of him was blocked.

A few unfamiliar young men, and Meng Yan, who looked rather troubled.

He gave Meng Yan a cold glance. “What is it?”

Yesterday, Meng Yan’s sudden words had startled him so much he hadn’t dared to respond and just kicked him out directly.

Now seeing him again, it would be a lie to say it wasn’t awkward.

But seeing the blatant looks from those other young men, Jiang Mingyi’s expression turned cold.

“Meng Yan, is this the pretty boy you were talking about?” the leading young man said, his eyes openly scanning Jiang Mingyi up and down. “Gotta say, he really is quite the looker.”

Jiang Mingyi didn’t like being looked at that way. His face cold, he stood up.

“Hey, don’t leave so soon, pretty thing.” The young man raised his hand to block his way. “Heard you’re the adopted son of the Shen family. They sure know how to raise someone—look at your smooth skin, delicate like a flower. Bet you’re pretty spoiled.”

A few other rich kids nearby laughed in agreement. “Not just spoiled—he looks stuck-up too.”

“Don’t be like this,” Meng Yan said anxiously, trying to explain to Jiang Mingyi. “I didn’t mean it like that, they just wanted to meet you, so I brought them over…”

Jiang Mingyi gave him a cold look, brows knitted with impatience. “I’m not interested in meeting you people. You can leave now.”

“Well, we’re interested in meeting you,” the young man leaned in closer, his expression smug. “When the banquet started, the Shen family’s eldest son was sticking right by you. Now he’s off socializing and just left you all alone?”

“Why don’t you come play with us for a bit?”

Smack—just as one of them was about to touch his face, Jiang Mingyi slapped the hand away.

“And who do you think you are? You think I’d want to ‘play’ with people like you?” Jiang Mingyi said coldly, holding back his irritation.

He absolutely despised people like this—frivolous, arrogant playboys. Whether they were relatives of the Meng family or some other guests, he didn’t care.

Jiang Mingyi was never afraid of offending anyone.

He raised his chin proudly, glaring at the young man who now looked annoyed after being slapped. “Out of respect for the Meng family, I won’t make a fuss about you trying to lay hands on me. But if it happens again, I won’t mind teaching you a lesson on behalf of your family.”

The group of rich kids were clearly stunned by how fierce his attitude was.

Then Jiang Mingyi turned to Meng Yan. “These are your guests. You deal with them.”

Meng Yan nodded apologetically. “I’m sorry.”

Jiang Mingyi frowned. He really didn’t like Meng Yan’s soft, indecisive personality.

Not wanting to say another word to these people, Jiang Mingyi turned to leave.

But just as he took one step, someone grabbed his arm forcefully.

Jiang Mingyi stumbled, almost falling.

Furious, he looked up at the young man who had grabbed him. “What the hell are you doing?”

“Did I say you could leave?” The grip on his arm tightened.

Jiang Mingyi frowned in pain, his voice laced with anger.
“Let go!”

The young man froze under his icy gaze. “If I let go just because you told me to, wouldn’t that make me lose face?”

Just then, a deep, cold voice suddenly rang out. Though the words sounded mild, they carried an undercurrent of chilling displeasure.

A pair of dark, fathomless eyes, utterly devoid of emotion, locked onto the hand gripping Jiang Mingyi.
“If you let go now, I might still give you some face.”

The young man instinctively released him, feeling an invisible pressure crash down on him. By the time he realized he had shown weakness, Jiang Mingyi had already dashed to Shen Xingyan’s side.

“Ge, this guy’s awful.”

Clutching Shen Xingyan’s arm, Jiang Mingyi pointed at the man and complained with righteous indignation.
“He tried to mess with me just now—he even wanted to touch my face. I only defended myself by hitting his hand, but then he tried to beat me up. And he said that since I’m just the Shen family’s adopted son, even if he bullied me, the Shen family wouldn’t stand up for me.”

As he spoke, Shen Xingyan’s handsome face darkened into something terrifying.

The young man hadn’t expected to be accused like this and grew furious.
“Stop spouting nonsense! I never said that.”

“So you admit you were about to hit me, then.” Jiang Mingyi shrank his shoulders, trembling as though pitiful.
“A few grown men ganging up on one delicate, helpless boy—you guys are shameless.”

The young men: “…”

Who’s bullying who here exactly?

“Is that so?” Shen Xingyan’s cold gaze swept over them one by one.
“Then it seems you really are shameless.”

The young men: “…”

Somehow it felt like his “shameless” wasn’t quite the same thing Jiang Mingyi had just said.

They actually didn’t know Shen Xingyan very well—after all, the imperial capital and Haishi were worlds apart. But on their way to the birthday banquet, they’d overheard their parents mention him. Now, faced with his suffocating aura of “keep away from me,” they couldn’t help but falter.

Meng Yan spoke up softly.
“Cousin, they didn’t mean it. On their behalf, I’ll apologize to little Brother Yi.”

Jiang Mingyi gave a cold snort.
“What good is your apology?”

Only then did Shen Xingyan glance at Meng Yan.
“Today is Great Aunt’s birthday banquet, so for her sake, I’ll let it go. But if there’s a next time, I’ll have a word with your fathers about what proper upbringing means.”
The latter half was directed squarely at the young men, his voice carrying an icy, inhuman warning.

“Cousin, there won’t be a next time.”

Quickly, Meng Yan dragged the others away.

Watching their retreating backs, Jiang Mingyi flipped them the middle finger.
“Idiots. Lucky you ran fast.”

“You seem to be in good spirits,” Shen Xingyan said, letting the chill in his presence fade as he smiled at him.
“Looks like I worried for nothing.”

“Not really.” Jiang Mingyi pouted.
“I was feeling pretty down at first, but since someone came to provoke me, of course I had to fight back.”

Seeing his aggrieved expression, Shen Xingyan felt a pang of heartache.
“I regret it now. I should’ve beaten them senseless to vent your anger.”

“No need for that. We still have to give Aunt and Uncle face.”

Jiang Mingyi hadn’t intended to make a scene anyway. He’d been sitting off to the side, and if Shen Xingyan hadn’t been keeping such close watch on him, probably no one would have even noticed the small scuffle.

Jiang Mingyi sat back down, and Shen Xingyan sat beside him.

“You’re not going to keep mingling with those people?” Jiang Mingyi asked, his tone tinged with disdain as he recalled the crowd that had surrounded Shen Xingyan earlier.

“They’re nothing compared to you.”

Shen Xingyan reached out and took his hand, but suddenly his brows furrowed.
“Why are your hands so cold?”

Jiang Mingyi tried to pull his hand back but couldn’t.
“It’s probably just that the air conditioning in the banquet hall is too cold.”

Seeing that Shen Xingyan was about to take off his jacket, Jiang Mingyi immediately stopped him.
“No, don’t. I’m not wearing your jacket.”

Today he was dressed in a light-colored suit, while Shen Xingyan wore the same style in a darker shade. Their outfits already gave off a couple-like vibe. If he put on Shen Xingyan’s jacket, who knew what others would think?

He definitely didn’t want more people speculating about their relationship, especially now that Meng Yan had already found out.

“I’m worried,” Shen Xingyan said in a low voice. Without another word, he wrapped both of Jiang Mingyi’s hands in his own, warming them with his touch.

“I’m not that delicate,” Jiang Mingyi muttered, giving him a sidelong glance, though his eyes darted nervously around the room.

Suddenly, his gaze collided with another pair of eyes. Jiang Mingyi froze.

Noticing his strange reaction, Shen Xingyan asked, “What’s wrong?”

Jiang Mingyi quickly looked away, yanked his hands free with a sudden force, and blurted out in a fluster,
“I’m going to the bathroom.”

On the other side of the banquet hall, Su Wanxin quietly withdrew her gaze.

A wealthy lady beside her chuckled,
“Wanxin, that adopted son of yours seems like such an interesting child.”

“Yes, I chatted with him the other day. He’s very well-behaved, his voice all soft and sweet—clearly, he’s been raised well under your care,” another woman praised.

Su Wanxin smiled.
“Don’t praise him directly in his face, or it might make him proud.”

“A child that obedient and sensible deserves some praise,” one replied.

“Speaking of which, your son and your adopted son get along really well. Not like my two—if they’re not fighting, that’s already considered good.”

“I agree. Wanxin, you’re really blessed. Your husband treats you well, and your two sons are so harmonious.”

“Harmonious? I’d call them affectionate. If my boy saw the way yours interact, he’d die of envy.”

“He’s got plenty to be jealous of! I heard your two sons even share a room. Their relationship is so close it could practically be described as inseparable.”

Su Wanxin listened quietly as they chatted, until one of the ladies suddenly said:
“Wanxin, don’t tell me that child isn’t an adopted son but… a child bride?”

Meanwhile, Jiang Mingyi hurried into the bathroom.

Shen Xingyan followed him in and saw him turn on the faucet to wash his face, his brows furrowing tightly.

“Your hands are already that cold, and you’re still using cold water? Aren’t you afraid of catching a cold?”

“Ge, don’t jinx it.” Jiang Mingyi splashed water on his face, taking a moment to calm down.

He’d just noticed Su Wanxin looking at him strangely. But since he and Shen Xingyan hadn’t done anything overt, it shouldn’t be a big deal… right?

Shen Xingyan pulled a tissue and gently wiped the water from his face, then raised his hand to touch his cheek.

Sure enough—just as icy as his hands.

“And who was it yesterday complaining about a stuffy nose? Maybe you’re the real jinx here.”

Jiang Mingyi: “…”

“What, should I play along and fake a sneeze for you?”

But Shen Xingyan suddenly leaned closer.
“If you dare sneeze, I’ll kiss you. One sneeze, one kiss. Two sneezes, two kisses.”

Jiang Mingyi was left trapped—sneeze and he’d be kissed, don’t sneeze and… he’d still be kissed. In the end, he puffed out his cheeks and glared at him.

“Not sneezing?” Shen Xingyan’s eyes curved with amusement. “Then I’ll just kiss you anyway.”

The words had barely fallen before Jiang Mingyi’s lips were firmly claimed. His eyes widened in shock.

“A reward,” Shen Xingyan murmured softly.

“You—”

Jiang Mingyi had only just spoken when another voice, filled with surprise, came from the bathroom doorway.
“What are you two doing?”