In the days that followed, Yin Xigui began going out far more often. At first it was once every two days; soon, he was leaving every other day.
Before each trip, he reported to Sheng Linyou that he and Li Nian were discussing how to handle their families' arranged marriage. He always spoke in that soft voice of his and demanded a quick kiss before he would leave.
Sheng Linyou never stopped him. But whenever the door closed, he stared at it for several seconds, then went to the balcony and watched the pink-haired figure climb into a car at the end of the lane. Only after its taillights vanished around the corner did he crush out his cigarette and return inside.
He had glimpsed the location Li Nian sent to Yin Xigui's phone: a café far from the villa.
That night, Yin Xigui returned carrying a faint but unmistakable perfume—cloying sweetness over a woody note, nothing like his usual clean soapberry scent. He rushed in and hugged Sheng Linyou, rubbing his face against his chest.
“What did Brother do at home today?”
“Nothing.”
Yin Xigui looked up with crescent eyes. Sheng Linyou brushed the pink strands from his forehead, fingertips lingering there.
“You smell like perfume.”
Yin Xigui blinked, sniffed his sleeve, and wrinkled his nose. “It's Li Nian's. She sprayed too much today. I don't like it either.”
“Stay farther away next time.”
“Mm. I know.”
He showered, changed into pajamas, and curled into Sheng Linyou's arms as usual. Sheng Linyou held him, chin resting on his hair, but sleep would not come. Something felt wrong.
The next time Yin Xigui went out, Sheng Linyou said, “Don't stay out too long.”
Still changing his shoes, Yin Xigui smiled back. “I'll be home before dinner! What do you want? I'll buy groceries.”
“Anything.”
“Anything it is.”
As the door closed, Sheng Linyou saw his smile fade into another expression. He stared at the door for a long time, pulled on a jacket, and followed.
Unaware, Yin Xigui took a taxi to an ordinary-looking teahouse in the west of the city and went straight upstairs. From across the road, Sheng Linyou watched Li Nian enter the same building.
He waited against a wall for forty minutes and smoked three cigarettes. When the wind lifted a curtain upstairs, he saw them sitting opposite each other. Papers covered the table. Li Nian was writing while Yin Xigui watched with his chin propped on one hand, relaxed and familiar.
Sheng Linyou ground out his cigarette and left.
Yin Xigui came home for dinner with groceries and busied himself in the kitchen. Sheng Linyou leaned against the doorway, watching him cut potatoes into neat, even strips.
“Brother, why are you standing there?”
“Watching you.”
Yin Xigui paused and glanced over. “Then keep watching. Don't I look good cooking?”
Sheng Linyou said nothing and looked out the window.
That night, Yin Xigui clung to him as usual. After his breathing steadied, Sheng Linyou slipped free and went to the balcony. A message from Lin Zhi glowed on his phone.
“Why are you investigating Li Nian?”
“What kind of person is she?” he replied.
After a pause: “An unfavored illegitimate daughter of the Li family, pushed forward for the marriage. Why? Don't interfere too much in Xigui's affairs.”
Two days later, Yin Xigui went to meet Li Nian for the third time. Sheng Linyou did not follow him. Instead, he waited outside their usual café.
It was nearly dark when Li Nian emerged. A hand blocked her path. She looked up at Sheng Linyou beneath the streetlamp, jaw taut.
“Sheng—”
“Let's talk.”
She glanced behind him. “He's not here,” he said. “Just me.”
Li Nian stepped back warily. “About what?”
“Stay away from Yin Xigui. I don't know what you're planning, and I don't care. Just don't drag him into it.”
After several seconds, she gave a strange little smile. “Mr. Sheng, you know my family forced me into this marriage. I don't want to marry him.”
“Then why meet so often?”
“To plan against the Yin family,” she answered frankly. “We're trying to free him from their control. I won't hurt him.”
“You expect me to trust that?” Sheng Linyou stepped closer, towering over her. “Yin Xigui trusts too easily. He can't see through girls from families like yours. If you're targeting him, you won't leave this street.”
Li Nian held her ground. “I mean him no harm. If you truly care for him, help him finish this. Unless he escapes the Yin family, you'll wear that collar for the rest of your life.”
His expression shifted. She moved around him, then stopped.
“Don't make things harder for him, Mr. Sheng. If you keep obstructing him, he'll be trapped between both sides.”
Her heels clicked away into the night.
When Sheng Linyou returned, Yin Xigui sprang from the sofa to greet him, then stopped. “Brother, what's wrong? You look awful.”
“Nothing.”
“Liar.” A warm palm cupped his jaw. “Your mouth is all tight. Something happened.”
Sheng Linyou caught that hand and stroked its back. “You've been seeing too much of Li Nian.”
Yin Xigui blinked. “We have things to discuss. I told you—we're trying to make my father relent.”
“What requires this many meetings?”
“I…” Yin Xigui hesitated, then smiled. “I'm sounding her out, looking for leverage against the Li family. Don't worry. I won't lose.”
“Yin Xigui.” Sheng Linyou's voice sank. “Don't see her again.”
The smile froze, then returned. Yin Xigui looped his arms around Sheng Linyou's neck. “Brother, are you jealous?”
Sheng Linyou stood still.
“There's truly nothing between us,” Yin Xigui coaxed beside his ear. “She's only a pawn. Once I'm finished, I'll discard her. Don't be angry, all right?”
Sheng Linyou wrapped an arm around his waist and tightened it. “I said, don't see her.”
Yin Xigui lifted his head and kissed the corner of his mouth. “Fine. If Brother says no, I won't.”
But the next day, he went out again.
From the balcony, Sheng Linyou watched the gray car leave the lane until his cigarette burned his fingers. On the coffee table sat water Yin Xigui had poured for him. Beside it, a message lit the abandoned phone.
Li Nian: “Three this afternoon, same place. I brought the item.”
Sheng Linyou stared at it, changed his shoes, and left.