TL: Hua
Chapter 1: Alliance between two families
“What?! You sold me?!”
Yu Haozhou rushed back to the family villa from the sports field, only to find out the “urgent matter” his parents mentioned was arranging a marriage for him.
His mother, Kang Lanxiang, looked at him with a disapproving expression. “Son, don’t say such unpleasant things. This isn’t selling you; it’s an arranged marriage.”
Yu Haozhou, not giving in, turned to his father. “Dad, are we so poor we can’t afford to eat? You’re resorting to selling your own son?”
Kang Lanxiang tsked, giving him a sharp slap on the arm. “It’s an arranged marriage! An arranged marriage! Do you even know what that means? Did all those years of mandatory education go to the dogs?”
Yu Haozhou clutched his arm, wincing at his mother.
Yu Xiang, his father, joined the conversation with a big smile. “That’s right, son. We’ve already checked out the boy you’re marrying. We guarantee he’s just your type.”
Yeah, right. Yu Haozhou thought. What kind of taste could two people with astigmatism and presbyopia have?
Noticing his son’s skepticism, Yu Xiang shot a look at his wife.
Kang Lanxiang immediately picked up where he left off, gesturing wildly with her hands. “That boy! I don’t know what he ate when he was little, but he’s incredibly tall. I heard he’s almost 190 cm tall. He’s a little thin, but he’s got muscles. You can tell he works out. He’s way more solid than your scrawny frame; it’s a pleasure to look at.”
“…” Yu Haozhou was speechless. Why did she have to insult him while complimenting someone else?
He crossed his arms, getting more annoyed. He let out a cold snort and, under his parents’ expectant gaze, said, “I. Refuse.”
He stood to leave, but his father quickly grabbed his arm. “Son, you can’t refuse this! You’ll be the death of your father!”
Kang Lanxiang added, “And your mother!”
Yu Haozhou, though he didn’t care much, had a bad feeling. “What’s wrong? Is the company really going bankrupt?” He stared intently at them.
His parents looked a little guilty. Yu Xiang slowly let go of his arm, speaking vaguely, “Well… it’s not quite that bad.”
Yu Haozhou, however, saw right through them. Something big had to have happened at the company. Maybe not a bankruptcy, but a major problem nonetheless.
He fell silent. Yu Haozhou thought about how he’d been a carefree slacker all his life. Even after graduation, he hadn’t cared about helping with the family business. He’d just enjoyed his life, perfectly content to live off his parents.
His parents had never pressured him. They never forced him to study finance or management, always letting him do as he pleased while securing his future. They would never have brought this up unless the company was in real trouble. He knew their personalities; they always shared good news and kept the bad to themselves.
A wave of guilt washed over him. He took his parents’ hands, suddenly acting very mature. “Dad, tell me what’s wrong with the company. How much money do you need? I’ll ask my friends for a loan.”
How could he explain it? It wasn’t the company that was in trouble, but his future son-in-law—er, no, daughter-in-law? That didn’t seem right either. His future son-in-law, his future son-in-law, had given him so much.
Obviously, this cannot be said; otherwise, Yu Haozhou would scold them for being heartless and giving away their son for a little money.
Kang Lanxiang, however, didn’t see it that way. “Zouzhou, listen to me, this time it’s different. You’re going to love him!”
Yu Haozhou was confused. “So did the company have an accident or not?”
Kang Lanxiang was blunt. “What could happen? Your father and I got the real inheritance from your grandfather. Even if you don’t do a thing for the rest of your life and just spend money, you’ll never run out.”
Yu Xiang tried to cover her mouth but couldn’t.
Yu Haozhou stood up to leave, but Yu Xiang went all-in. “Son, they’re giving us so much! Just agree to this marriage!”
“No way!” Yu Haozhou refused without a second thought. “I already have someone I like.”
The couple exchanged glances, not bothering to hide their surprise, and nodded in silent agreement, as if they had made a firm decision.
Kang Lanxiang said, “Does he like you? Is his family rich? Do his parents know he’s gay? Can you be happy together?”
Numbly, Yu Haozhou answered in his head: He doesn’t like me. He’s my sworn enemy. His family isn’t rich; he’s a pauper with no parents. We could never be together. Even if we were, he’d probably have some evil scheme to get rid of me without a trace.
It was a dead end.
Yu Xiang continued his psychological attack, saying, “The other party is the true heir that the Xie family, the richest family in the capital, just found. He said he saw you on a playing field by chance, fell in love with you at first sight, and his family has hundreds of billions of assets. The rich parents dote on him so much. What they give us isn’t important. As long as he likes you, you’ll definitely be happy together!”
Comparing the two, even a fool would know which one to choose.
—
Yu Haozhou ran away from home.
He couldn’t stand his parents constantly brainwashing him, tormenting him like a Buddhist chant.
But when he calmed down, Yu Haozhou realized his parents were already very open-minded.
As the family’s only child, he didn’t need to bear the burden of carrying on the family line. His sexual orientation was respected, and he didn’t need to painstakingly master incomprehensible astronomical figures to manage the company.
Even the Xie family’s marriage proposal was agreed to out of sheer sincerity. Before the wedding, they had already given their group three percent of their shares, which were worth hundreds of millions.
Yu Xiang said, “With a family like that to back you up, your mother and I won’t have to worry about you suffering or being bullied after we’re gone. We just want you to live a happy, carefree life.”
He had to admit that one sentence made his heart waver.
It wasn’t his fault that he likes Zhou Zizheng. But he also soberly knew that the two of them had no future, and he couldn’t even express his love.
As for the Xie family’s young master, whom he had never met, even if he was quite attractive, the other party had only seen him once, and even without his knowledge. How was he so eager to get married?
Damn, that’s such a casual way to fall in love.
Why did he feel an inexplicable sense of dread?
All kinds of worries piled up in his mind, and Yu Haozhou’s head felt like it was about to explode. Unable to sleep in the middle of the night, he drove a flashy red sports car from his garage to his own bar, “Dazzling Night.”
The valet staff waiting at the door immediately recognized their boss and quickly used their walkie-talkie to call the manager. “Boss is here. Just one person. Should I take him to the private room?”
The keys flew in an arc and landed in the valet’s hand. Yu Haozhou waved his hand. “Don’t bother me. Don’t ask any questions. Just bring the drinks.”
The manager hurried over. The valet looked at Yu Haozhou’s back and whispered, “The boss looks like he’s in a bad mood today, huh?”
“Nonsense.” The manager glared at him. “You think I can’t tell?”
“Go park the car. Stop staring.”
“Alright, uncle.”
Dazzling Night was still bustling with business late at night. Yu Haozhou found an empty seat in the main hall. Not long after, the manager brought several bottles of his usual drinks.
Yu Haozhou glanced at them and said, “Uncle Jiu, bring more. That’s not enough.”
Uncle Jiu hesitated. “Haozhou, you don’t have a high alcohol tolerance—”
“Uncle, don’t try to stop me,” Yu Haozhou interrupted, bowing his head in thought. “I have my own pace.”
“…”
Uncle Jiu had never seen the young master so strange and was about to go and tattle on him to his father. He hadn’t even taken a step when Yu Haozhou’s voice, full of malice, rang out from behind him. “Uncle Jiu, if you dare to tell my dad, I’ll tell Auntie Jiu that you were secretly looking at pretty girls at work again!”
“Hey, I wasn’t. Don’t make things up.” His voice grew smaller and smaller until he finally gave in under Yu Haozhou’s gaze. “Fine, fine, I won’t say anything, but you should drink less. It’s not good for your health.”
“Oh, Uncle Jiu, you wouldn’t understand my pain.”
No one would understand. To think that a dashing young master like him would one day be forced into a marriage with a man from a family with hundreds of billions in assets. No one would understand his pain. It was a complete humiliation.
But if he refused, a powerful family like that, having their pride hurt, would definitely find a way to retaliate. At that point, his family’s company might truly go bankrupt.
Sacrificing his own love was the most cost-effective option.
Just let it be. Anyway, he and Zhou Zizheng had no future.
No, why is Zhou Zizheng a pauper? Why?!
Guests in the dance hall came and went. The lights were always flickering. Unknowingly, a pile of empty bottles had accumulated on the table in front of Yu Haozhou.
His alcohol tolerance was truly low; one bottle was enough to get him drunk.
But there were already four or five empty bottles on the table.
When Uncle Jiu came to check on him, he felt like the sky was falling. “My dear boy, you’re going to be the death of me. How am I going to explain drinking so much to Mr. Yu?”
Uncle Jiu was pacing anxiously.
He was about to call someone to send Yu Haozhou to his exclusive private room to sober up when a hand patted his shoulder. He turned around and was covered by a shadow. The person was tall, and he had to look up to see their face.
Zhou Zizheng didn’t know the bar belonged to Yu Haozhou; he just thought he was close with the manager here. “Uncle Jiu, this is my classmate. I’ll take him back.”
Uncle Jiu had seen him before but didn’t know he was acquainted with the young master. Still, he said, “It’s alright, this—”
“Zhou Zizheng?”
Yu Haozhou opened one eye and vaguely looked at the person in front of him, thinking he was hallucinating. When he heard the other person say “mm,” he weakly lifted his hand and pointed at him.
Just as his hand was about to fall and hit a bottle, Zhou Zizheng reached out and grabbed his slender wrist. “You’re drunk.”
“Exactly.” Yu Haozhou took the opportunity to clench his hand into a fist, wanting to punch him to vent his anger, but he couldn’t break free. “It’s all your fault.”
Uncle Jiu sensed that the relationship between the two was a bit unusual and felt that if he listened any longer, something bad would happen. He didn’t hesitate to hand Yu Haozhou over to Zhou Zizheng’s care and quickly made his escape.
“If you’re drunk, go home. It’s not safe outside.”
As he spoke, Zhou Zizheng had quietly sat down next to him, completely blocking the boys and girls who were eager to come over and flirt.
Yu Haozhou was completely unaware of this.
He just thought that if Zhou Zizheng was annoying in real life, he’d be nagging him like his dad in his dreams, too. He was already in a bad mood today.
He poked the man’s rock-hard pectoral muscles again and again, his face flushed. His chin was almost resting against the other man’s powerful heart. He looked up at Zhou Zizheng’s eyes, his own eyes glazed over. “Besides you, who else would dare bully me, huh?”
