Chapter 14: If I Fall, You Fall Too
The Shen residence, second-floor master bedroom.
Shen Shan stared darkly at the woman seated before the vanity, dressed in a silk nightgown.
“Why are you wearing Pin… your sister’s clothes?”
Zhou Qinqin turned halfway around, her eyes trailing up at him from below. “If we’re going for thrills, we might as well go all the way.”
At forty, she still retained her charm—now layered with the allure that came from years of refinement.
Heat stirred in Shen Shan’s chest. His usually stern face even broke into a rare smile. “You’re so naughty.”
Desire overtook reason. Shen Shan stepped forward and wrapped his arms around her from behind.
“I showed up at your house so suddenly. President Shen won’t blame me, will he?”
“We’re family. Why would I blame you?”
“What kind of family?” Zhou Qinqin asked deliberately.
“You know very well…” Shen Shan affectionately tapped her nose. “Even if there’s no official title, Ah Zhou is still our son. That’s something that can’t be shaken.”
“But in the public eye, your only son is Mingjun.”
“Haven’t I told you before? Whatever Mingjun has in the future, Ah Zhou will have a share too.” Shen Shan sighed. “Sometimes I wonder if I chose the wrong person back then.”
“Ah Zhou is far more capable than Mingjun. If he were my son in name, I’d have far fewer worries.”
Zhou Qinqin scolded him playfully, though she couldn’t hide the happiness on her face. But in the next second, her smile faded as she glanced toward the door.
After saying all those pretty words, Shen Shan was already eager to move on to more pressing matters.
Yet Zhou Qinqin, sensing something off, was less responsive now—there was even a faint hint of resistance.
“Relax. I sent the maid out. Your sister has a beauty appointment and won’t be back before dark. Ah Zhou and Mingjun are still in class…”
Soon, sounds of harmony filled the room.
Outside the door, Shen Mingjun’s eyes were so red they looked ready to bleed.
He had thought he’d come at the wrong time.
He hadn’t expected he’d come at exactly the right time.
His father actually believed that Yu Zhou—that kept-man wannabe living off others—was more outstanding than him.
Other than slightly better grades, what did that guy have that could compare to him?
All along, Shen Mingjun had believed he was the only son. No matter how much his father belittled him, as long as he endured it, everything in the family would eventually belong to him.
But now, it clearly wasn’t that simple.
Yu Zhou.
A suffocating wave of fear swept over him. Shen Mingjun swayed, nearly losing his footing. But he didn’t dare stay—what if the people inside came out and saw him?
He wasn’t ready to tear down that final veil yet.
He hurriedly left, only to run into someone on the way.
“Well, if it isn’t Young Master. Just came from home?”
Shen Mingjun’s already sour expression darkened further. It was Xiao Chen, an employee from his father’s company.
“Young Master, I’ve handled the matter you assigned me last time. What do you think?” Xiao Chen asked with a fawning smile.
“Oh, that? It’s fine.” Shen Mingjun brushed him off and tried to leave, but Xiao Chen blocked his path.
“My drinking tolerance isn’t great. I made a scene at a company dinner before and wanted to apologize to President Shen. I was wondering if you could help introduce me.”
Shen Mingjun looked at him mockingly.
He had heard about it—an employee had hit a company executive at a banquet, and that executive had sworn to blacklist him from the industry.
So helping out had just been an excuse to bring this up.
Who did this guy think he was, daring to negotiate terms with him?
Recalling the earlier scene, Shen Mingjun’s tone turned especially cutting. “If you want to see him, go yourself. Got some nerve.”
“You’re going to stiff me?” Xiao Chen’s voice trembled.
Shen Mingjun almost laughed from anger. How could someone be this clueless? “What’s your status? What’s mine? Keep pestering me and I’ll make sure you really can’t survive in this industry.”
Seeing the much older man rendered speechless improved Shen Mingjun’s mood.
That feeling of crushing someone with power refreshed him immensely. He couldn’t even remember how long it had been since he’d felt this way.
He’d grown up pampered—until he entered Guanli High and got placed in Class Eleven. That was when his nightmare began. One student after another came from stronger backgrounds, each with worse tempers. There was barely anyone he could afford to offend. The few he dared challenge were sharper-tongued than him and left him speechless.
Just as he was about to leave after claiming victory, Xiao Chen suddenly grabbed his wrist.
“That won’t do,” Xiao Chen said in an odd tone. “This isn’t something you can just call off whenever you feel like it.”
Before Shen Mingjun could flare up, Xiao Chen shoved a lit-up phone screen in front of him.
The moment he saw what was on it, Shen Mingjun’s face changed drastically. He lunged to snatch the phone. “Who told you to post this?!”
The phone hit the ground with a crack. The already worn screen went completely black.
“Young Master, what’s the point of smashing it? I already posted it,” Xiao Chen said, his voice still trembling—but underneath was unmistakable excitement.
“Forwarded with additional details: The wealthy ‘G’ family mentioned in the post refers to Gu’s Jewelry. The younger brother who fought over love back then is the current president of Gu’s Jewelry.”
Shen Mingjun felt dizzy. “Who told you to name names?!”
Xiao Chen ignored him, growing more agitated. His voice rose loud enough that passersby began slowing down to watch.
“Not only that—he’s kept that child of questionable parentage by his side. According to a former servant who worked for the Gu family, the two of them seem to maintain an unspeakable relationship.”
Shen Mingjun felt as if he’d fallen into an ice cellar. “When did I ever tell you any of that?”
“I—I just wanted you to vaguely leak something, make things difficult for Gu Yang. Are you trying to get me killed?!”
“Didn’t you tell me to use my own judgment?” Xiao Chen finally seemed calmer.
“…Delete it.”
“My phone’s already smashed, isn’t it?”
“Use mine. Hurry—delete it!”
“I won’t delete it.” Xiao Chen was fully composed now.
Shen Mingjun’s mind replayed the last time he had leaked gossip about the Gu family on a forum and ended up being publicly exposed. He Ming’an had directly called his family under the school’s name, and Shen Shan had whipped him brutally with a belt. Even now, recalling the pain made him shudder.
This time it was even bigger.
And now there was Yu Zhou in the picture too. Would Shen Shan simply abandon him?
“What do you gain from targeting the Gu family?”
“Are you mistaken? I didn’t target the Gu family—you told me to. What’s your status, and what’s mine?” Xiao Chen spoke clearly. “The chat records are still there. I can recover them on another device.
“When President Gu, President Shen, or whoever comes asking, I’ll just show them the chat logs. I’m done for anyway—if I’m going down, you’re not getting off easy either.”
“They’re already trying to blacklist me. I might as well gamble.” His face carried a strange calm after chaos. “Young Master, I’m just a pitiful wage earner. Help me earn President Shen’s forgiveness and I’ll stop. Otherwise… I can’t guarantee what I’ll post next.”
“Oh, and you’ll compensate me for that phone too. I want the newest Fruit Pro Max.”
Looking at the employee who had completely flipped the hierarchy, Shen Mingjun finally understood what it meant to be stuck riding a tiger.
He was about to agree just to stall him when his phone rang.
It was Shen Shan.
Under Xiao Chen’s gaze, Shen Mingjun answered shakily.
A furious roar exploded in his ear:
“I don’t care where you are. Get your ass back here right now—!”
—
Cold wind howled past his ears. Gu Yang tugged at the scarf around his neck.
He stood by the roadside in a daze as subtle, assessing glances drifted his way.
“Is that him? The one from the trending topic?”
“Looks like it. Same as the leaked photo. What a coincidence.”
“He’s actually pretty handsome in person—not a catfish.”
“Keep it down. What if he hears?”
As the whispers grew bolder, Song Yinxing finally couldn’t stand it. He strode forward, grabbed Gu Yang’s wrist, and pulled him into a nearby alley.
“Song… Yinxing?” The boy in front of him called his name.
“Mm. I work part-time at the fried chicken place nearby,” Song Yinxing explained quickly, worried about misunderstandings.
He organized his thoughts. “That shop mostly gets students from nearby schools. They’re all around our age. It’s normal they pay more attention to trending gossip. Don’t overthink it—it’s not that widespread.”
“Why are you still working at the fried chicken shop?” Gu Yang asked curiously.
The book hadn’t mentioned Song Yinxing juggling this many jobs. Was it because of the ten thousand yuan he owed him?
Song Yinxing fell silent, looking at him.
The decorative scarf—more for style than warmth—had been tugged askew earlier. Gu Yang’s nose was red from the cold, making his already pale complexion resemble porcelain tinged faintly blue.
Was he really just that oblivious?
“It’s near my house. The owner’s an aunt I know. I help out when I can. Paid hourly.”
“I see.” Gu Yang nodded. After satisfying that curiosity, his thoughts jumped back. “So you saw that gossip about me too.”
Only then did Song Yinxing realize he’d reacted too impulsively. He nodded awkwardly. “It popped up on my homepage. I didn’t mean to look.”
“Really? Why didn’t the algorithm push it to me? I had to click the class group link.” Gu Yang adjusted his scarf before it slipped off completely.
Song Yinxing opened his mouth. He had imagined countless possibilities—but hadn’t expected such a casual, normal response to gossip.
“So…” After fixing his scarf, Gu Yang lifted his head lazily.
“Is there anything you want to ask me?”
