MSRBMH Ch 20

"Brother, I'll handle things myself."

Su Yu cut off Su Yan's words—for the first time in so many years.

Su Yan was visibly taken aback, scrutinizing him with a measuring gaze. His lips parted slightly, but in the end, he said nothing more.

Su Zhaofeng was furious with his son. With a sharp flick of his sleeve, his tone turned even sterner. "No remorse at all. Your brother is only looking out for you! Don’t come crawling back to me later."

His anger triggered a coughing fit.

Su Yan quickly steadied him, rubbing his back. "Dad, don’t get worked up. Let’s go sit over there."

As they walked away, Su Zhaofeng shot Su Yu a glare, letting out a loud, disdainful hmph.

The confrontation left Su Yu with a headache. Strangely, he felt a wave of relief once they were gone.

He instinctively raised a hand to rake through his hair but was stopped by a light grip around his wrist.

"Don’t. You’ll mess it up."

His hair had been lightly styled with gel to keep his bangs in place—something he’d forgotten in his frustration.

Su Yu exhaled sharply through his nose. "I’m going to the garden for some air."

"It’s my fault."

The moment Su Yu took a step, the man behind him suddenly spoke up with those inexplicable words.

A faint smile tugged at Su Yu’s lips. "This has nothing to do with you. What exactly are you at fault for?"

Ji Yanli was silent for a moment before answering. "I never considered your feelings enough before. That’s why your family dares to treat you this way."

Unconsciously, the two had already wandered into the garden, surrounded by pink roses. The scene was almost romantic—though the word hardly suited them.

Su Yu turned to look at him, puzzled. "What?"

Since losing his memory, Ji Yanli’s train of thought had become increasingly hard to follow.

Ji Yanli’s shirt was now unbuttoned to the second button, revealing a stretch of skin. His Adam’s apple bobbed slightly as he spoke, his voice strained. "I used to neglect you. That’s why your family thinks they can speak to you so disrespectfully."

"I know life at home hasn’t been easy for you. But now that you’re married to me, the Ji family is your home. You don’t have to be upset anymore."

The words tumbled out like rapid gunfire, spoken with such conviction it was as if they were fact.

Su Yu was utterly lost. It took him a full two minutes to process the new storyline Ji Yanli had fabricated in his head.

He pointed at himself in disbelief. "You think I left the Su family to marry you?"

"Mn."

Ji Yanli reached out and wrapped his fingers around Su Yu’s extended index finger. "Don’t worry. I’ll treat you well from now on."

Su Yu’s emotions were a tangled mess. The earlier encounter with his family had left him frustrated, but now he was torn between irritation and the absurd urge to laugh.

"Are you out of your mind?"

The words slipped out before he could stop them. He shook off Ji Yanli’s hand impatiently. "Never mind. You are out of your mind. What’s the point of arguing with you?"

The delusions in Ji Yanli’s head were growing wilder by the day. If left unchecked, who knew how far they’d spiral?

Su Yu turned to face him squarely, his tone serious. "Listen. You’re Ji Yanli. I’m Su Yu. We’re sworn rivals—possibly even love rivals. Do you understand?"

Ji Yanli frowned in confusion. "Wife, what are you talking about?"

Su Yu pulled out his phone, scrolling through his contacts before shoving the screen in Ji Yanli’s face. "Look. I don’t even have your number saved. No messages either. Because we couldn’t stand each other. We’d start fighting the moment we met."

The moment the words left his mouth, his phone was snatched away.

Ji Yanli stared at the contact list for a long time, his eyes flickering with something unreadable. After a heavy silence, he finally spoke. "Wife… what do I need to do for you to forgive me? Please don’t block or delete me…"

Su Yu’s headache intensified.

What was the damn point? He’d revisit this conversation once Ji Yanli’s brain was functioning normally again.

[President Ji is completely unreachable right now…]

[Wife… How could you say you’re rivals? My heart hurts too.]

[Sigh. Deep-seated beliefs are hard to change. Hope President Ji succeeds in winning his wife back soon.]

[President Ji, fight on! You have to win your wife over!]

"Yanli-ge? Xiaoyu-gege?"

A soft, melodious voice called out from beside them.

Su Yu’s gaze shifted, and sure enough, there stood Song Yanchu, dressed in a blue suit with a shawl draped over his shoulders. 

His face was pale, but he smiled warmly at them. "What are you two doing out here?"

He coughed lightly, a faint blush coloring his cheeks.

"Yanchu, why aren’t you resting at home? Have you taken your medicine?"

Seeing him like this tugged at Su Yu’s heart. Song Yanchu had always been sickly and frail—thin as a whisper.

Song Yanchu’s eyes curved into crescents. "It’s nothing serious. I just heard Yanli-ge and Xiaoyu-gege would be here, so I came to see you."

It had been a while since the three of them had met.

Su Yu smiled in understanding. "I see. Let’s go inside and find somewhere to sit."

He had barely taken a step when a hand seized his sleeve, yanking him backward until he was half-shielded behind Ji Yanli.

Ji Yanli’s eyes were sharp with suspicion as he scrutinized Song Yanchu.

"Where are you going?"

Oh no.

Song Yanchu, Ji Yanli, and himself—the trio was complete.

Terrified of what outrageous thing Ji Yanli might say next, Su Yu quickly shook off his grip and stepped forward. "Ji Yanli, we’re just going inside to chat."

Song Yanchu tilted his head in confusion, his eyes filled with concern as he reached out toward Ji Yanli’s sleeve. "Yanli-ge, are you feeling unwell?"

Before his fingers could even brush the fabric, Ji Yanli jerked away, his voice icy. "Don’t touch me."

The words were like a winter gale. Song Yanchu flinched, his voice trembling. "Yanli-ge… Did I do something wrong?"

If these two kept talking, things would spiral out of control fast.

Su Yu quickly stepped between them, forcing a lighter tone. "Alright, alright. Let’s talk inside. It’s cold out here."

It was midsummer—thirty degrees Celsius. Cold was a blatant lie.

Song Yanchu sniffled but obediently walked ahead, his silhouette looking heartbreakingly lonely.

Su Yu and Ji Yanli followed at a distance.

"Don’t talk to him like that. He didn’t do anything to you," Su Yu muttered under his breath.

Ji Yanli pressed his lips together stubbornly. "Wife, you shouldn’t associate with shady people."

Song Yanchu was still within earshot. The moment the word wife left Ji Yanli’s mouth, Su Yu nearly jumped out of his skin. 

He shot a frantic glance ahead to confirm Song Yanchu hadn’t heard, then glared daggers at Ji Yanli. "Don’t call me that. Didn’t I warn you?"

"Xiaoyu-gege, Yanli-ge, why are you two walking so slow?"

Before they could settle the matter, Song Yanchu turned back, looking lonely as he urged them to hurry.

Su Yu shot Ji Yanli one last warning look. "Remember. No nonsense." 

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