TSLSILMH Ch 6

Chapter 6

When the servant outside called out repeatedly, “Yu Langjun,” Xi Mo’s face lit up with pride. He quickly ran over to open the door, poked his head out for a look, and then his eyes sparkled as he turned back to Xie Shu, saying, “Master, it really is Yu Langjun!”

Xie Shu was mildly surprised to hear this. After all, he had just seen Yu Chuxi that afternoon and knew he was a man occupied with many pressing affairs—yet now he had come again in person.

Naturally, Xie Shu stood up to greet him. But since he hadn’t fully recovered from his illness and his body was still weak, the sudden movement caused a discomfort in his chest, making him lower his head and cough softly.

This exact scene happened to be witnessed by Yu Chuxi as he stepped inside.

Yu Chuxi lowered his eyelids slightly, his gaze settling on the slender and refined face of the man before him. Without the stone-blue cloak he’d worn earlier, it became obvious how lean his body now was.

And somehow, that thinness made his neck appear more graceful, his bearing more genteel. When his pale fingertips pressed lightly against the smooth curve of his jaw, it gave off an unexpectedly elegant and sensual air.

Yu Chuxi couldn’t help but smile faintly to himself.

He had always known that his “husband” possessed a fine appearance, but it was something he had never paid much attention to before.

Now, however, he realized—when someone attractive does something decent, it becomes all the more agreeable.

Earlier, Yu Chuxi had originally planned to send the medicine over simply out of curiosity—he wanted to test just why Xie Shu had changed so drastically.

After all, this was a critical moment in Yu Chuxi’s control over the Yu family. He couldn’t afford a single misstep, and any decision had to be made with utmost care.

At that moment, Yu Chuxi had been informed that Yu Wanchun had returned and was bringing several business stewards along to see him. But midway, he encountered Xie Shu instead, and after a brief exchange between the two, Yu Wanchun had turned back without continuing to the study.

Of course, Yu Chuxi immediately understood Yu Wanchun’s true intention: the man had rushed back from an out-of-town trip to interfere.

Just days ago, their father—bedridden with illness—had finally relented and allowed Yu Chuxi to take over the family business. Naturally, that had drawn the attention of many would-be contenders, and not every firm’s steward was willing to submit to his control.

Yu Chuxi had no choice but to implement new regulations and use them to sort out and promote loyal personnel. He had timed all of this for when Yu Wanchun happened to be away in Jinling, hoping to settle things before his return.

So when Yu Wanchun came back ahead of schedule, Yu Chuxi had braced himself for a confrontation—it would no doubt take a lot of energy to handle the elder properly. After all, Yu Wanchun held sway in parts of the family business and wouldn’t hesitate to use either seniority or tactics to exert pressure.

Yet now the man had suddenly withdrawn without a word. Knowing Yu Wanchun’s guarded and calculated personality, Yu Chuxi was certain something had changed behind the scenes.

Upon hearing that Yu Wanchun had bumped into Xie Shu, Yu Chuxi couldn’t help being surprised.

He did briefly consider the possibility that Xie Shu had struck some clandestine deal with Yu Wanchun. However, as there had been multiple witnesses to their meeting, that seemed unlikely.

But exactly because of that, Yu Chuxi was now even more curious—what, exactly, was going through the mind of this “husband” of his, who seemed entirely transformed?

As Xie Shu raised his head, Yu Chuxi returned from his thoughts.

Smiling faintly, Yu Chuxi opened his mouth and said, “Just now, I heard someone say the storeroom was short on a few medicinal ingredients—ones you happen to need. So I had someone pull better stock from elsewhere and personally brought them over.”

He didn’t mention the earlier unpleasantness with the storeroom staff—after all, they were technically his people.

And while his explanation was simple, even casual, it nonetheless felt entirely sincere.

Xi Mo immediately forgot all his earlier suspicions. See? He knew it—those servants must have just been negligent. Now they had to be deeply regretting it!

Feeling thrilled, Xi Mo readily accepted the medicine from Yu Chuxi’s maidservant, and, with thoughtful tact, motioned for the reluctant girl to withdraw, leaving the two alone with ample space.

Xie Shu hadn’t expected Yu Chuxi to visit—let alone to personally deliver the medicine.

Looking at the man before him, Xie Shu couldn’t help but smile lightly himself, though his tone remained earnest: “Thank you, Langjun.”

But rather than feeling pleased, Yu Chuxi was oddly unsettled by the gratitude.

He thought to himself—we’re doing this again.

The other man behaved with a kind of elegant reserve, yet he never avoided eye contact. In fact, Yu Chuxi could sense Xie Shu’s gaze brushing repeatedly over the red mole at the corner of his eye, almost as if he were particularly fond of looking at it.

Yu Chuxi drew in a deep breath; still, instead of avoiding the gaze, he met it steadily.

With slight dissatisfaction in his voice, he asked, “Why do you keep looking at me like that?”

But to Xie Shu, the moment unfolded quite differently.

In his eyes, the beautiful and striking Langjun before him opened his elegant phoenix eyes⁽¹⁾ wide to look back at him. The eyes were slightly narrow and perfectly shaped, with a clear contrast of black and white. And when widened, the upward tilt of the corners gave them an added brilliance and noble charm.

Especially the red mole at the eye’s edge—it stood out even more vividly now.

Those eyes practically looked like they could speak.

Xie Shu didn’t quite know how to describe the feeling in his heart. It was the first time he realized a man’s eyes could be this beautiful—so much so that it made him feel a little awkward for staring.

Yet Yu Chuxi’s sudden question made it obvious—people must often commented on his looks, perhaps even with inappropriate remarks, which would explain his sensitivity.

Although Xie Shu didn’t know how such features were judged in this ancient society, even in modern open-minded times, beauty was often used as an easy target for disdain or slander.

Therefore, instead of looking away, Xie Shu met Yu Chuxi’s question seriously and responded directly, “Langjun’s bearing is peerless—a true delight to behold.”

This was the first time Yu Chuxi had ever heard such bold and candid praise. Though Xie Shu’s words weren’t exactly unseemly, the nature of their relationship made him momentarily suspect the man was expressing affection for him.

But when Yu Chuxi saw the gaze behind Xie Shu’s words—still as clear as before, filled with genuine admiration, and painted softly with a sort of tender warmth—his suspicions faltered.

In the end, it was Yu Chuxi who looked away first.

His gaze slipped from Xie Shu’s face. He gave an awkward little laugh and muttered, “Hmph, you’ve become quite good with words lately.”

Xie Shu had no idea how he’d behaved in the past, so he simply smiled without responding, his gaze resting quietly on the other.

The atmosphere between them quickly became oddly difficult to navigate. Yu Chuxi changed the subject out of necessity, not knowing what tricks Xie Shu might have up his sleeve. But one test would make things clear.

He casually brought up the earlier encounter between Xie Shu and Yu Wanchun: “I heard Second Uncle returned just now. He’d gone to Quanzhou to handle the timber trade and wasn’t due back for another ten days. I wonder why he came back early.”

He deliberately didn’t reveal that he already knew they had met—he wanted to see what Xie Shu would say.

Hearing that Yu Wanchun had returned unexpectedly, Xie Shu thought back to what he’d overheard from the man and his stewards, as well as their brief encounter. And from what Xi Mo had told him, he’d already formed a less-than-favorable impression.

Compared to the composed and discerning Langjun before him, the difference was like night and day.

So Xie Shu chose to be forthright. “I happened to run into Second Uncle earlier. He was bringing others with him, probably on their way to see you. But we had a disagreement—let’s just say we parted on bad terms.”

“Oh?”

Yu Chuxi’s brows rose slightly in surprise. That was indeed unexpected.

After all, the man in front of him now always projected a kind and courteous demeanor, while his second uncle was famously all smiles. It was hard to imagine conflict between them.

Still, what Xie Shu had said was the only thing that made sense.

Yu Chuxi found himself growing curious—what had happened exactly?

Noticing Yu Chuxi’s long lashes flutter with interest, Xie Shu had a hunch about his curiosity. It was difficult to bring up, honestly—after all, their statuses were different, and any issues involving Yu Wanchun also touched on family ties.

Xie Shu didn’t quite know what to call Yu Chuxi in terms of family yet—not “brother-in-law,” surely. But Yu Wanchun was blood-related, and familial closeness had its obligations.

Still, after a moment’s hesitation, Xie Shu decided to speak honestly. Looking directly at Yu Chuxi with sincerity in his eyes, he said:

“He said some things in front of me that tarnished Langjun’s reputation.”