translator: Eve

Ever since Xiao Yuanmu had come back from visiting Xiao Lin in the hospital, his expression had been a lot heavier.

Except for Song Xuanhe, no one else noticed this change. However, those closest to him did sense that something was off.

“Song, I really want to praise you with the most beautiful of words.” Louis grabbed Song Xuanhe’s arm, a look of gratitude in his eyes. “Ever since you visited the company, Xiao has started to come more frequently to work. The reason why he’s come to work every day for the last few days must be because you agreed to come with him. Your existence has decreased the amount of work I have to do by half. You are an angel. Most importantly, I can finally start going on dates again!”

Song Xuanhe smiled and pulled his arm out. “Congratulations.”

“It’s all because of you!” After Louis gave his sincere thanks, he expressed his sympathies. “But Xiao is really too clingy. You must be bored, having to stay at the company with him every day.”

“Not at all.” Song Xuanhe smiled. “You forgot that I’m busy with designing every day.”

“Even so,” Louis shook his head, “It must be hard not having any personal space…oh! I just remembered that I have a lot of work to do! You and Xiao are a match made in heaven! I’ll be taking my leave!”

Louis uttered incoherently before rushing off without looking back.

Song Xuanhe didn’t even need to turn around to figure out whose footsteps those were. He laughed. “Why’s Louis so afraid of you?”

“Probably because he can’t afford to get his date cancelled today.” Xiao Yuanmu glanced in the direction Louis had left in. He wrapped his arms around Song Xuanhe and rested his chin on the other’s shoulder.

“He’s been working here for so long. You’re his business partner, not his boss. Give him a break. Otherwise, if he keeps working without rest, his productivity will decrease,” Song Xuanhe said.

“No need to worry about him.” Xiao Yuanmu didn’t like Song Xuanhe talking about someone else this much. He wiggled his chin until Song Xuanhe’s attention was back on him. “Do you think that I’m too clingy? Do you want personal space?”

“Honestly, I never expected that you would be this clingy.” Song Xuanhe felt Xiao Yuanmu’s arms tightened around him. He then continued, “But I know why you’re like this.”

Xiao Yuanmu was quiet for a moment. He then let go of Song Xuanhe and quietly said, “Xiao Lin’s condition is worse than I had thought.”

Song Xuanhe nodded softly as he quietly listened to Xiao Yuanmu speak.

“The Xiao Family has gotten messy in the last few days. The people following Xiao Baicong are gathering the support of the Xiao Family and the subsidiary families while figuring out how to attack RE. There are also a lot of people who are making the situation worse. I’m worried that they’ll try to hurt you with any means. That’s why I’m always at your side.”

Song Xuanhe was stunned. He knew that the reason why Xiao Yuanmu was even more apprehensive regarding him was because of Xiao Lin. This was because the change in Xiao Yuanmu had occurred after visiting Xiao Lin. But he didn’t expect that the situation regarding the Xiao Family had already reached such extents, let alone that Xiao Yuanmu would give up the optimal opportunity to seize the right to succession for his sake by staying at his side.

“Xiao Lin has been unwell for some time now. Some people have become restless after his prolonged absence. Although they can’t really do anything, I’m afraid they’ll accidentally hurt you. Furthermore, Xiao Baicong acted out against Xiao Shenglin. Although it had been done very cleanly, I was still able to get dirt on him. I’m afraid that he’ll throw caution to the wind and do something to you in fear that I do or say something with that information.”

As he thought of this possibility, Xiao Yuanmu’s lowered voice became almost tangibly chilly. Song Xuanhe’s arms tightened around him.

“I’ll be fine,” Song Xuanhe said, “Don’t worry.”

When Song Xuanhe saw that Xiao Yuanmu wanted to retort, Song Xuanhe interrupted him, his lips curled up. “Besides, didn’t you assign a team of four or five to tail me secretly? What’s there to worry about?”

Xiao Yuanmu’s Adam’s apple bobbed and he looked away. “They’re there to protect you.”

“I know.” Song Xuanhe raised a brow, “Just like how those photos of me in the drawer of your study were taken to protect me.”

Xiao Yuanmu nodded, his eyes lighting up slightly. They looked innocent and beautiful. “Exactly.”

Song Xuanhe couldn’t help but kiss him. Xiao Yuanmu lowered his head, wanting to deepen the kiss, but Song Xuanhe pushed him away slightly. “There’s still something you haven’t said. Keep going.”

Xiao Yuanmu’s happy expression disappeared. He quietly said, “I’ll probably have to visit the main residence again in the next few days. Because of a few things, I can’t take you. But it’s too dangerous for you to return to China right now. That’s why I was hoping you would be willing to live with Louis for a while. His identity will be enough to make those people hesitate before acting.”

“Will you be in danger?”

Xiao Yuanmu looked startled. A few seconds later, his jaw tensed and he lowered his gaze. “No.”

“You’re lying.”

Song Xuanhe had never seen such an obvious guilty expression on Xiao Yuanmu’s face before. He subconsciously knitted his brows.

“Where’s the main residence?” If it’s really dangerous, can you refrain from going?”

Song Xuanhe knew that his words were too naive as soon as he said it. His lips pulled into a tight line.

“In S Country.” Xiao Yuanmu said coolly, “I have no choice.”

Upon hearing ‘S Country’, Song Xuanhe frowned. He felt like he had heard about this country before but he couldn’t recall what it was at the moment.

He shelved the memory he couldn’t recall and asked the burning question on his mind. “Is the Xiao Family’s main residence safe?”

“The main residence….”

Xiao Yuanmu thought of the giant, antiquated castle. He thought of the elders who scrupulously abide by the old ways and the servants who were overly solemn and ridiculously over-qualified. He thought of how he had lived there alone in his last life, how stifling it had been under the constant monitoring.

Xiao Yuanmu’s gaze darkened. Song Xuanhe couldn’t decipher his tone. “It is both the safest and most dangerous place in the world.”

Song Xuanhe suddenly recalled what Xiao Shenglin had said about Xiao Baicong and the Xiao Family.

He asked, “Your younger brother, Xiao Baicong…just how many people are under him? Will you be in danger? He grew up in the main residence in S country but it’s completely foreign to you. You’ll be at a disadvantage if you go to the main residence. Moreover, if everyone there is on his side, will you….”

“I promise I won’t be in any danger.”

Xiao Yuanmu smiled when he saw the worry in Song Xuanhe’s eyes. “Most of Xiao Baicong’s people have moved to America with him. There aren’t many left in S country. Most of them are those in charge of managing his funds and room. The people who return to S Country with him will also be the people who take care of his daily needs. They won’t pose much of a threat.”

As Song Xuanhe heard Xiao Yuanmu confirm that Xiao Baicong had at least ten people by his side in this downplayed fashion, he recalled Xiao Shenglin’s exaggerated numbers. He couldn’t conceal his curiosity. “Do you know how many people Xiao Baicong has by his side?”

“What kind of people are you referring to?”

“The people on his side. The people who will fight with him. The people who will definitely fight with you over the right to succession.”

“I’m not sure.” Xiao Yuanmu said, “I know that there are at least fifty who make up the people who grew up with him, his assistant who takes care of his daily necessities, his bodyguards, his doctor, his fund managers…. If we have to include the people who will stand by his side while fighting for succession, we would also have to include people from the Xiao Family and the subsidiary families. Aside from them, there are also the stockholders of the companies under the Xiao Family name. It’s very difficult to get a concrete number.”

Song Xuanhe frowned at this. “What about you?”

Xiao Yuanmu mumbled to himself. It seemed like he was deep in thought. A few seconds later, he said, “I can count on one hand the number of people in the Xiao Family who would genuinely want to help me. Most of them will only help me if there is an equivalent exchange. Ideally, they would even prefer if they profited more than I did. If I were to count the number of people who were truly on my side, then I guess there’s only three people.”

Song Xuanhe: ….

This difference was like that of Heaven and earth.

“You…” Song Xuanhe licked his lips. With some difficulty, he asked, “Where does your confidence come from?”

In the book, Xiao Yuanmu had also experienced many trials and tribulations before succeeding the Xiao Family. However, the Xiao Yuanmu in the book had had no confidence in winning. In the every beginning, he hadn’t been willing to fight Xiao Baicong. It was just that the events that happened later on forced him to have no choice but to take on that mantle.

In contrast, for some reason, the current Xiao Yuanmu was confident that he would inherit the Xiao Family. He was also certain that he would not encounter any danger in the main residence. But when they looked at pure numbers, Xiao Baicong seemed like he would crush him.

As the saying goes, two heads are better than one. Xiao Yuanmu has three people on his side, while Xiao Baicong probably has three hundred. It wasn’t even like it was three against one. Xiao Baicong could make it thirty to one. How could he lose?

As he thought of this, he paused. Song Xuanhe frowned.

He remembered that Xiao Yuanmu didn’t have much ambition in the beginning, when he had just returned to the Xiao Family. He had been dragged into the fight for succession by some members of the Xiao Family. Even after succeeding the Xiao Family, he still wasn’t all that ambitious. Most of the things he did had been in compensation to Xiao Yuanmu. He had even thought that, if Xiao Baicong wanted it, he would even be willing to hand over the position of patriarch to the other at a timely opportunity.

But the current Xiao Yuanmu was determined to win. He was also filled with enmity towards Xiao Baicong. This was the complete opposite of the Xiao Yuanmu in the book.

In the past, when he had thought of these things separately, they didn’t seem strange. But now that he linked everything together, he realized that the current Xiao Yuanmu was very distinctly different from the Xiao Yuanmu in the book.

Song Xuanhe looked up and his gaze met with Xiao Yuanmu’s. The light in his eyes flickered.

Eve: We’re finally finishing up the Xiao family arc. Woot woot. And we’ll get to find out more about what happened in XYM’s previous life.