Chapter 64

After Yuan Yi left, Tao Ru and Yang Min leaned in and teased, "Dahe, you've really got it, huh? Even the Second Boss listens to you."

"Listen to me? Not at all; he's just being considerate," Yan Xi, unfazed by her friends' teasing, said with a smile. "Come on, let's keep shopping."

"Tsk, tsk, tsk," Tao Ru deliberately poked Yan Xi's ticklish spots. "Now you're even trying to protect your boyfriend's dignity in front of us. Yan Dahe, you've abandoned us for a man."

"Ridiculous! I treat everyone equally. Who was it just now calling him 'Brother Yuan' over and over?" Yan Xi dodged Tao Ru's tickling hands. "And yet you say I'm unfair? Where's your shame?"

"To please someone important, why would I need face?" Tao Ru joked, her spirits high. "But seriously, seeing how well he treats you, I can rest easy now."

"People say a woman pursuing a man is as thin as a layer of silk, but things that come too easily are often taken for granted. I was afraid that if you were too forward, Yuan Yi wouldn't take you seriously." Tao Ru relaxed with a smile. "When you first came to the capital, I was worried. But it seems I was overthinking."

"I know you both care about me." Yan Xi hugged her two friends and laughed. "Love you both, muah muah!"

"Who wants your muah muah, shameless!" Yang Min pushed Yan Xi's face away in mock disdain. "Go away."

Yan Xi covered her face and laughed. It felt like they were back three or four years ago, when they were carefree students, laughing without a worry on the tree-lined paths.

"Mr. Yuan, we've arrived," the driver said after stopping the car. He thought Yuan Yi was asleep, as he had been leaning back in his seat with his eyes closed.

"Thank you." Yuan Yi opened his eyes, which were bright and alert, showing no trace of sleepiness.

Getting out of the car, Yuan Yi looked at the luxurious villa in front of him, sighed, and walked inside.

"Second Young Master, you're back," the housekeeper Aunt Wang whispered. "Sir is in a bad mood today, so please try not to argue with him." She had worked in the Yuan household for several years and knew the relationship between father and son was strained. Worried they might argue, she gave Yuan Yi a little heads-up.

"Thank you, Aunt Wang. I understand."

"Why are you lingering at the door? Change your shoes and come in," Yuan Yasen called from the staircase, frowning as he saw Yuan Yi at the entrance. "Finally decided to come home, have you?"

Yuan Yi ignored him, bent down to change his shoes, then walked to the sofa in the living room and sat down. "Dad," he greeted calmly.

"Xiao Er, is that you?" Xu Ya, Yuan Yi's mother, heard his voice and hurried downstairs from the second floor. "Are you comfortable living alone? How's the security in your building?"

"It's good," Yuan Yi replied. Seeing Xu Ya reaching to peel an orange for him, he stopped her gently. "Mom, I just had lunch, so I'm too full for anything else."

"Oh." Xu Ya put down the orange, took out a tissue, and carefully wiped her hands, even cleaning the spaces under her nails.

Yuan Yasen looked at his son's impassive expression, his initial anger tempered by restraint. "Your mother has been missing you these past few days, worried that you might not be used to living on your own. Why not stay here tonight?"

"I'm perfectly comfortable. I used to eat the meals Aunt Li prepared, and now I still do," Yuan Yi replied calmly. "Living here would interfere with your lives, so it's better I stay at my own place."

"Your own home?" Yuan Yasen was infuriated by Yuan Yi's words. "Your mother and I are still here. If this isn't your home, where is?"

Yuan Yi looked at his father's angry face, remained silent for a moment, then smiled. "Dad, you're really something. When I was a kid, you told me that parents don't need to worry about their children all the time and should have their own lives. Now that I've moved out, you're saying I should stay here. So, what exactly do you want?"

"What do I want?" Seeing Yuan Yi's nonchalant expression only angered Yuan Yasen further. "Your mother has been so worried about you that she's almost fallen ill, and you're still holding a grudge over trivial things from years ago?"

"Which 'trivial thing' are you talking about?" Yuan Yi chuckled. "Was it when I was five, and you both went on a trip, leaving me to be abused by the nanny until I ended up in the hospital? Or was it when I was so terrified that I asked you to sleep with me, only for you to drag me out of bed? Or was it when I had an appendectomy as a teenager, and neither of you were there even after the surgery ended?"

"There are too many of these 'trivial things' for me to count," Yuan Yi said, not interested in reasoning with his father, as he believed there was no point. "Besides, when did I ever say I was holding a grudge against you?"

"Xiao Er," Xu Ya's eyes reddened. "I'm sorry, we neglected you."

"It's okay. As a married couple, you two had the right to enjoy your own world," Yuan Yi smiled. "I'm the one who interrupted your lives."

"Enough!" Seeing his wife's pained expression, Yuan Yasen cut him off. "You've always had the best of everything growing up. What more could you possibly be unhappy about? Your mother went through so much pain to bring you into this world, yet you can only remember the bad things and not the good. It would have been better to raise an animal than you."

"You're lucky I'm your son because if I were an animal, I'd have long since run off," Yuan Yi muttered sarcastically. "Dad, if you called me back just to talk about moving back in, I'm sorry, but I enjoy living on my own. You two have such a strong relationship, so I'd just be in the way as your third wheel. Doesn't that make sense?"

Seeing Yuan Yi's casual attitude infuriated Yuan Yasen even more. Taking a few deep breaths to calm himself, he asked, "What's going on between you and that young host?"

"Exactly what you're thinking." Yuan Yi picked up an orange and fiddled with it. "She's my girlfriend, your future daughter-in-law."

"I don't agree!"

"It's not your wedding, so why do you need to agree?" Yuan Yi raised his eyebrows, his smile a mix of mockery and amusement. "Dad, I respect you and Mom's life, so I hope you can respect mine."

"What does that host have to compare to your mother?" Yuan Yasen's temples pulsed with anger. "Your mother is from a distinguished family, well-educated, a top university graduate, and she's never flirted with other men. What is that young host worth? You and that Song family boy even made a public scene online fighting over her, making a joke of yourselves for everyone to see. Aren't you ashamed?"

"My woman is charming and completely loyal to me. What's there to be ashamed of?" Yuan Yi tossed the orange back onto the fruit plate. "What's truly shameful is someone who tried to be a third party and failed."

"You... you... you..." Yuan Yasen's hands shook with rage. "Look at yourself! Do you even realize how you're acting?"

Yuan Yi picked up an orange and handed it to his father. "You're already over sixty. This isn't a big deal. Why get so worked up? Here, have an orange to cool off."

The more nonchalant Yuan Yi acted, the angrier Yuan Yasen became. He slapped Yuan Yi's hand away. "Don't smile at me like that. No matter what you say, I won't allow that young host into the Yuan family. If you insist on being with her, then get out of the Yuan family and don't come back."

"Lao Yuan!" Xu Ya quickly intervened, realizing her husband had gone too far. "Talk to him properly."

"He has such a bad attitude because we've been too lenient with him. He's opened a few useless companies and thinks he's amazing. Does he ever consider why people call him 'Second Young Master Yuan' instead of 'General Manager Yuan' when he's out in public? People are looking at the Yuan family's face, not his!" Yuan Yasen had long been dissatisfied with his son, and today, years of father-son resentment finally erupted. "Now, I'm giving you two choices: either break up with that female host, or I'll strip you of your shares and position in Changfeng. From now on, Changfeng will have nothing to do with you."

"Heh." Yuan Yi let out a short laugh and stood up, meeting his father's gaze. "Dad, I've never thought Changfeng had anything to do with me, so this choice only has one outcome for me."

"Xiao Er," Xu Ya stood up and took hold of Yuan Yi's hand as he was about to leave. "What your father said was just out of anger; don't take it seriously."

"Mom," Yuan Yi gently removed her hand. "I'm almost twenty-eight; I can tell if he's serious or just angry."

"No..." Xu Ya looked anxiously between her husband and son, feeling heartbroken.

"Let him go. If he leaves, he shouldn't come back," Yuan Yasen said, putting an arm around Xu Ya's shoulder. "I want to see how capable he really is without the Yuan family."

Yuan Yi felt that this argument was pointless. He shrugged and said, "If saying that makes you feel better, I don't mind."

After saying this, he turned and walked out. As he reached the door, he bumped into Yuan Bo, who had hurriedly returned.

Upon receiving a call from the housekeeper saying that his father was pressing his younger brother to come home for a talk, Yuan Bo suspected trouble and had left his work to come back immediately. But it seemed he was still too late—the talk had already ended.

Yuan Bo didn't see any dissatisfaction on Yuan Yi's face, which made him wonder if he had been overthinking things.

"Hey, bro," Yuan Yi greeted him.

Yuan Bo wanted to ask what had happened, but seeing his parents standing in the living room, he held back and simply patted Yuan Yi's shoulder. "You didn't sleep well last night; you have dark circles."

"In a good mood, so I stayed up late," Yuan Yi said with a smile, hands in his pockets. "I'm heading off."

"Take care," Yuan Bo replied, watching him drive away before turning back into the house.

Taking off his coat, he looked at his father's unhappy expression and frowned slightly. "Dad, what did you discuss with Xiao Er?"

"Don't mention that brat to me!" Yuan Yasen lightly patted Xu Ya's back. "I'm going to call the lawyer. From now on, the Yuan family has nothing to do with him..."

"That's enough!" Yuan Bo's face darkened, his tone indifferent. "Besides using the family assets to threaten him, what else can you do?"

Yuan Yasen was taken aback, surprised that even his usually silent elder son was against him. For a moment, he was at a loss for words.

"Do you even care about how Xiao Er usually spends his days, how he's doing? And now you use your assets to threaten him as if he cares?" Yuan Bo put his coat back on, saying coldly, "I'll be moving out for the next few days. Don't make my meals."

Leaving through the main door, Yuan Bo took a deep breath, tightened his coat around himself, got in his car, and drove away from the Yuan estate.

"They're both so ungrateful!" Yuan Yasen muttered angrily at the empty doorway. "They're going to drive me to my grave."

Xu Ya gently patted his chest. "They're still young. It's normal for them to be a bit temperamental. Next time, don't argue with them like that. When they have kids of their own, they'll understand our difficulties."

Yuan Yasen let out a heavy sigh. "They're nothing but trouble. If I'd known they'd turn out this way, I wouldn't have had them."

Xu Ya looked at him, deeply troubled. All these years, she had never had conflicts with either of her sons. She never realized that the family tensions had reached this level.

Over the weekend, Yan Xi spent the entire two days having fun, maintaining her good mood through to noon on Monday, after her live news broadcast. In the afternoon, she had to go out to shoot footage for a program, so after lunch, she and Zhao Peng left.

This episode of the show was still about elderly people, but rather than showcasing their hardships, it was focused on their optimism.

Due to media portrayals, many young people thought elderly people were either difficult to deal with, lonely and desolate, or out of touch with modern times—a misconception of the era.

Yan Xi wanted to highlight the charm of older adults.

For instance, an elderly man skilled in calligraphy, an old lady who could belly dance, a sixty-year-old gamer achieving a "pentakill," and retirees who spent their time collecting trash in parks or volunteering as traffic marshals with red armbands.

In the evening, Zhao Peng and Yan Xi went to a park. To make the elderly people more comfortable with being interviewed, Yan Xi joined the square dancing crowd, learning a few moves from a nearby lady.

With a relaxed attitude, Yan Xi started chatting with several elderly people, conducting the interview in a casual tone.

"Auntie, what time do you usually finish dancing?"

"Around eight. After that, we go for a stroll and chat without disturbing anyone's rest."

"Are there a lot of people here to dance?"

"Plenty, even some young folks come and join us. But the young ones are much better looking when they dance than us old-timers."

"Oh, you're too modest. I don't look nearly as good as you when I dance."

"You're an exception."

When this episode aired on TV, Yan Xi was playfully teased by viewers, who said she had lowered the square dancing standard for young people and should practice for a month to redeem herself.

Some viewers praised the elderly people as endearing, with an admirable, positive approach to life. They also commented that Yan Xi looked amusing doing square dancing, like a "silly deer in a herd," showing great commitment to the program.

Viewer 1: She's a rich, beautiful woman with an influential boyfriend, yet she's so down-to-earth for the show. I'm in love with this lady.

Viewer 2: Her dancing was no match for the elderly, but seeing her trying so hard, I can't bring myself to laugh. Haha.

Viewer 3: Did anyone notice the look of distress on her face when the aunt called her the "exception" among young people? She's so cute, it makes my heart flutter.

"Ms. Shen, what are you looking at?" Her assistant entered and saw Shen Xingyan scrolling through her phone, softly reminding her, "Please take a rest. You have a recording at the station tonight; I'm worried about your health."

"No worries," Shen Xingyan smiled, putting her phone away. She was becoming more interested in that young host named Yan Xi.

That distressed expression was indeed adorable.

At the TV station, Xiao Yang approached Yan Xi quietly. "Xiao Yan, something big happened. Check out the trending news on Weibo."