Chapter 51: You Deserve the Best
Lin Jiu was completely stunned, dumbly touching his now-reddened lips.
Si Xu’s breath deepened, and he averted his gaze, afraid he wouldn’t be able to control himself.
“Ah Xu? Are you upstairs?” Jiang Ge’s voice suddenly called from downstairs.
Lin Jiu snapped out of it and quickly jumped off Si Xu’s lap. Si Xu reached out to steady him, pushing the solid wooden table back a little to avoid Lin Jiu.
“Be careful.”
Lin Jiu: “…”
Si Xu withdrew the magic energy, and the black longsword retracted like a liquid, wrapping around his wrist and transforming back into a wristguard.
Si Xu looked at the thing on his wrist, remaining silent for a long time.
It seemed his worldview, already reshaped once, needed to be reshaped again.
So extraordinary—it really must have the same origin as the potion.
“Let’s go down now. We’ve been delayed too long. Your family is probably getting anxious.”
Lin Jiu pulled Si Xu up. As soon as they took a step, Lin Jiu stopped again, turned back to look at Si Xu, noticing his slightly disheveled clothes and hair. Lin Jiu quickly tried to fix them, but Si Xu grabbed his hand.
“Shall we give it a try?”
Lin Jiu dared not look at Si Xu, feeling terribly guilty. If they tried now, once Si Xu learned the truth about the past, he probably wouldn’t want to try anymore. They might not even be able to remain friends. Who would want to associate with someone who tried to extort money after helping them?
The incident had caused quite a stir back then. Both sides fought bitterly. Si Xu, being a public figure, suffered a great deal of negative publicity. At the time, every media outlet was reporting that Si Xu had hit someone with his car. There were no surveillance cameras on the small road in the remote county, and back then, dash cams weren’t common. Si Xu had been working nearby, driving a colleague’s car, which didn’t have a dash cam, so he couldn’t clearly explain what had happened.
The only evidence available was the testimony of the pedestrians and some video footage, all of which were unfavorable to Si Xu. Lin Jiu’s family wouldn’t let go of Si Xu, demanding compensation, but Si Xu refused. The media exaggerated the story, painting Si Xu as a bully who hit someone and refused to pay. At just 18 years old, Si Xu faced immense public pressure.
Back then, Lin Jiu was only 10 years old. Reporters constantly hounded him, asking leading questions, eager to confirm the hit-and-run incident so they could label Si Xu as a cruel, heartless villain.
Initially, young Lin Jiu tried to explain to his family that Si Xu hadn’t hit them—that they had fallen on their own. But his family shouted him down. Lin Hai repeatedly warned him not to speak out, threatening that if they couldn’t get compensation, they wouldn’t spend a penny on the old man’s surgery. He even said they’d let the old man die in the hospital and that their family might get arrested for extortion.
Terrified, Lin Jiu kept silent, scared that if he told the truth, he’d be arrested. He couldn’t speak the truth, nor could he lie—he could only stay silent.
That was until he overheard Si Xu talking to his manager on the phone. Si Xu had asked his manager to make an anonymous donation so that Lin Jiu’s grandfather could have surgery. At the time, Si Xu had been on the stairwell making the call, and little Lin Jiu had been sitting on the lower steps, crying.
Lin Jiu’s family, intent on escalating the situation, refused to pay for the surgery, not signing the consent forms, insisting on getting compensation first. Lin Jiu could only helplessly cry while his grandfather groaned in pain.
The next time the reporters questioned him about whether Si Xu had hit his grandfather, Lin Jiu finally summoned the courage to repeatedly tell them, “No, it wasn’t him. He didn’t hit anyone…”
When the police came to question him, Lin Jiu trembled in fear, ready to be taken away. He just wanted his grandfather to have the surgery, even if it meant being arrested.
At that moment, little Lin Jiu chose to trust the kind stranger over his own family.
He told the truth: Si Xu hadn’t hit anyone. His grandfather had ridden his electric bike out of a side road without seeing the car. The car had stopped just in time. They were all frightened, and the electric bike had toppled onto the car. Both he and his grandfather had fallen to the ground, and his grandfather had been unable to move. It was Si Xu and a passerby who had carried his grandfather into the car and driven him to the hospital…
“Is Ah Xu upstairs?” his grandfather’s voice called from downstairs.
“I don’t know, but Lin Jiu’s upstairs,” Jiang Ge replied.
Thinking back on those shameful memories, Lin Jiu’s mood plummeted. “Let’s just go downstairs.”
He couldn’t bear to imagine what would happen when Si Xu learned he was that little boy.
Would Si Xu hate him? Of course, he would.
Would Si Xu despise him? Undoubtedly.
If the roles were reversed, Lin Jiu felt that if he had encountered such an incident, he would never forgive such a family. They were too shameless, too selfish, willing to do anything for money.
When they reached the bottom of the stairs, Jiang Ge and Lin Jiu’s grandfather first saw Lin Jiu rushing down, followed by Si Xu slowly following behind.
Seeing the state Si Xu was in, Jiang Ge was shocked. “What happened to you? Why do you look like you’ve been through something rough?”
Lin Jiu had just reached the last step when he slipped and almost fell, but Si Xu caught him in time.
Si Xu’s cold gaze shot directly at Jiang Ge.
Jiang Ge: “…”
W-why is he looking at me like that?
Lin Jiu, feeling downcast, didn’t return to the dining room. “You guys eat first. I’ll clean up the kitchen.”
Si Xu could tell something was wrong with Lin Jiu’s mood. He stood in the doorway for a moment, then silently walked into the dining room.
Lin Jiu never came back into the room until the birthday celebration ended.
Jiang Ge ended up paying more than two million yuan. He smiled bravely, thinking, “At least we got to the second floor. The money doesn’t even matter!”
When Lin Jiu saw them off, Si Xu made sure his family got into the car before returning.
Lin Jiu looked at him in confusion.
Si Xu said, “I’ll wait for you to finish work.”
Lin Jiu replied, “No need, you should go. Don’t keep your family waiting.”
Si Xu gazed at him, trying to figure out what Lin Jiu was thinking. Many times, he felt like Lin Jiu was different with him, but now, after the kiss and the confession, Lin Jiu’s attitude had suddenly turned distant.
Lin Jiu lowered his eyes. “Your blood may be different from human blood. Make sure to get it checked when you do your follow-up. You should go home now.”
Si Xu stood there for a while before finally saying, “Call me when you get home.”
Lin Jiu nodded absentmindedly.
Only then did Si Xu turn around, get into the car, and leave.
Lin Jiu went back to clean up the private room and asked the system if there was any chance of being forgiven in such a situation.
[Based on the cases I’ve gathered online, it’s already merciful that the idol didn’t sue you all for extortion back then. To be responsible, let me tell you, if this gets dug up by the idol’s fans, I suggest you flee to the Demon Sea to save your life. They’ll definitely tear you apart.]
His already low spirits plummeted even further.
Lin Jiu gloomily finished cleaning the small shop, then rode his bike home, his mind filled with thoughts about how he absolutely couldn’t let this secret come out. Otherwise, he was done for.
He had completely forgotten about making a phone call. After a long day, he was exhausted. He washed up and went straight to sleep, completely unaware that things were blowing up online.
The reason? Qiu Yuxi had also posted a Weibo.
Qiu Yuxi: “Thank you, friend, for celebrating my birthday with me. [Picture]”
The picture showed a birthday cake.
Posting a Weibo like this with a cake image right after Lin Jiu’s “friend’s birthday, shop closed” post seemed like a deliberate response, almost confirming the accusations of riding the wave. Unfortunately, the timing was off.
Not long after Qiu Yuxi posted, Si Xu’s fans began sharing pictures of the small longevity peaches Boss Lin had made for them, with some even snapping photos of Si Xu hugging Lin Jiu. There were pictures of them standing together, along with security guards holding steamers full of longevity peaches.
Regardless of how Si Xu’s fans felt about Lin Jiu, today, they all flocked to his Weibo, leaving comments thanking him for the peaches and the birthday feast he had prepared exclusively for Si Xu. As Si Xu’s fans, they were quite proud.
Qiu Yuxi’s Weibo quickly became a target of ridicule. Her fans scrambled to explain it was just a coincidence and that certain people’s fans shouldn’t take it personally. Are they the only ones allowed to have birthdays?
Early in the morning, Lin Jiu was woken up by his phone ringing.
He fumbled to answer it and heard Huo Wei’s voice, “Qiu Yuxi asked me for your number. Should I give it to her?”
Lin Jiu forced his eyelids open, trying to shake off his drowsiness. “Why does she want my number?”
He didn’t feel he knew her that well.
Huo Wei snickered, “She said she wants to apologize. Yesterday’s Weibo was posted by her manager, not her.”
Lin Jiu fought against his sleepiness, finally managing to open his eyes. “What Weibo?”
Huo Wei: “The one riding your wave.”
Lin Jiu: “Don’t give it to her.”
He hung up, tossed the phone aside, and went back to sleep.
After a while, Lin Jiu picked up his phone again, logged into Weibo, searched for Qiu Yuxi, and glanced at her post before tossing his phone aside again.
There was no way for Lin Jiu to respond to that Weibo. Qiu Yuxi hadn’t mentioned any names. He couldn’t exactly step forward and claim it as his.
What Lin Jiu didn’t expect was that last night, Si Xu had also posted a Weibo.
Si Xu: “Thank you @Lin Jiu [Picture]”
The picture showed a table full of exquisite dishes, with a seafood cake at the center.
Si Xu’s post was essentially a direct response to Qiu Yuxi’s Weibo. Unlike Qiu Yuxi, who had been vague to avoid being called out, Si Xu directly tagged Lin Jiu, publicly acknowledging him as the “friend” mentioned in Lin Jiu’s post.
The comment section exploded with excitement.
An idol who hadn’t posted on Weibo in ages was always going to draw attention when he did. Fans seized the opportunity to ask about Si Xu’s health, when he would hold a concert, and what his relationship with Boss Lin was.
Haters quickly arrived to nitpick. They mocked the birthday meal for being too modest, the birthday cake for being too small. Was Si Xu washed up? Celebrating a birthday so poorly with such a small table — didn’t a single friend even show up?
Fans immediately fought back.
Jiang Ge, always ready to jump into the fray, logged on with his main account.
Foodie Jiang Ge: “Haters, before calling the birthday meal ‘modest,’ take a look at yourselves in the mirror. I guarantee you won’t make enough in your lifetime to afford this spread! And for those saying the cake is too small, most of the meal’s cost went into that cake! The Demon Fish restaurant doesn’t do waste. How big of a cake do you need? Try smiling through that, I dare you.”
Jiang Ge’s Weibo instantly drew a flood of hate. Trolls accused him of flaunting his wealth, then turned back to Si Xu, accusing him of extravagance and waste, dragging the Demon Fish restaurant into the fray for its high prices.
So this morning’s trending topics were “Si Xu Responds” and “Expensive Cake,” with many people digging into just how costly that cake really was.
Lin Jiu pursed his lips and started typing on Weibo.
Lin Jiu: “You deserve the best @Si Xu.”
Lin Jiu: “The Demon Fish restaurant doesn’t let just anyone in. I won’t deny the prices are high. You get what you pay for. Knowing it’s expensive, yet people still want to eat here every day — do you think they’re fools?
As for those calling Si Xu wasteful, I won’t tolerate either ‘extravagance’ or ‘waste.’
The birthday meal was my creation; Si Xu didn’t even order. It’s on me. I used premium ingredients, and now I’m being called extravagant for it. I can’t use my own stuff however I want?
And regarding waste, I think you’re challenging the restaurant’s ‘No Waste’ policy. We never waste food here. Order as much as you can eat, but you’d better finish it. If it’s not enough, you can always order more, but you can’t leave anything uneaten!”
Lin Jiu’s fans: “…”
“Damn, I think Boss Lin’s been hacked. No way he wrote this many words!”
“I think the boss is angry, but… um… what exactly is he mad about?”
“Boss Lin’s got his blacklist ready. Anyone who insulted Si Xu is getting added to it!”
“Boss, don’t draw heat to yourself. Can’t we just quietly watch the drama? You stayed silent when they attacked you, but now you’re jumping into the fray and attracting all this attention. Don’t you know how brainless these trolls can be?”
“Boss, can you tell us what’s so good about the expensive stuff? Give me some motivation to save up for a meal there!”
“Ahhh!!! The benefits of the high prices are right here! Go check it out! @StockGodOldJiang”
“Whoa! I’m doubting the authenticity! Can some expert unlock this and see if it’s edited?!”
“Oh my gosh!!!”
Many people rushed to Stock God Old Jiang’s Weibo. Just a moment ago, he posted a video.
In the video, a car’s right rear tire is stuck in a drain, with the cover tilted and wedged between the wheel and the drain. A few people are gathered around, and someone brings over a jack, trying to lift the car.
Nearby, a man is on the phone, arguing with someone and looking very angry. After hanging up, he stares at the stuck wheel for a while, then suddenly pockets his phone, walks over, bends down, grabs the bottom of the trunk, and with a strong lift and push, the car is freed from the drain.
The expressions on the people around were identical—everyone looked shocked and bewildered.
The video ends there, and Stock God Old Jiang added a caption:
“That guy lifting the car is my friend, and I was there. It was like a scene from sci-fi!
My friend owns a company, has money, and loves seafood—he’s a regular at Demon Fish restaurant. He’s mentioned to me before that every time he eats there, he feels full of energy, and much more vibrant.
A few days ago, he even bragged about how much stronger he’s gotten. I thought, sure, getting stronger isn’t unusual if you go to the gym. But I didn’t expect ‘this’ kind of strength!
Now I just want to ask, does anyone else who frequents Demon Fish restaurant experience this? If so, I’m definitely tagging along with my friend next time—this is like getting superpowers from eating! How cool is that?!”
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