Evil Love Appears chapter 96

Fu Xiaoyu returned to his home country two days after his dengue fever symptoms had subsided.

His physical recovery was coming along quite well, but he still felt a subtle fatigue mentally.

During the short flight, he dozed off intermittently on the plane and had a hasty dream. In the dream, he found himself back in his teenage years. It felt like an exam day, and after everyone else had completed their papers and left the examination room, he remained alone, sweating profusely, and struggling with the exam paper. Strangely, he couldn’t answer any of the questions on that paper. He was filled with anxiety, drenched in cold sweat, and it was as if he was eternally trapped in the examination room—a truly terrifying scenario for someone who had always aimed for perfection.

This dream jolted Fu Xiaoyu awake.

“Mr. Fu, are you okay?” Wen Huaixuan asked softly from the side.

“I’m fine, just… I had a dream,” Fu Xiaoyu replied somewhat dazed, and his mouth felt dry, probably due to the sudden awakening.

“Let’s get you a cup of hot milk tea,” Wen Huaixuan suggested and ordered a cup of milk tea.

Fu Xiaoyu didn’t want to refuse, so he took a few sips and set it aside. He then turned to talk quietly with Wang Xiaoshan for a few minutes.

Wen Huaixuan had rescheduled his flight to return with Fu Xiaoyu to China. However, this decision left Fu Xiaoyu feeling somewhat awkward given the circumstances. But in the current situation, he didn’t have the mental capacity to ponder how to interact with Wen Huaixuan in a more suitable manner.

After getting off from the plane, the extended Bentley from the Wen family was waiting outside. Wen Huaixuan gallantly opened the car door, originally intending to drive Fu Xiaoyu and Wang Xiaoshan home.

Surprisingly, Fu Xiaoyu had no intention of going straight home and wanted to go to the company for a brief meeting.

Unable to convince him otherwise, Wen Huaixuan couldn’t help but say, “Mr. Fu, you’ve just recovered from an illness, so you should rest more. You’re a young and beautiful omega; you should take care of yourself. You don’t need to work so hard.”

Fu Xiaoyu didn’t respond immediately. Instead, he silently observed Wen Huaixuan for a moment, and a subtle sense of awkwardness gradually filled the air.

“It’s alright,” Fu Xiaoyu finally smiled slightly and calmly said, “I’m just going to have a brief meeting at the company, and then I’ll go home to rest. Mr. Wen, thank you for taking care of me these past few days.”

“Very well, I’ll drive you there,” Wen Huaixuan agreed and asked the driver to take them to Fu Xiaoyu’s company. He then left on his own.

In truth, Fu Xiaoyu had a positive impression of Wen Huaixuan, especially for the help and care he had provided during this period. Such kindness was impossible to ignore. However, their interactions were often filled with moments of awkwardness.

Wen Huaixuan gave off the impression of being carefree and sunlit, a second-generation wealthy individual who had seemingly never faced hardships. Despite his overseas education, he had a somewhat traditional alpha mindset, subconsciously believing that omegas should be more delicate.

He loved fitness and various expensive extreme sports, maintained a healthy diet, and would take photos to post on his social media with uplifting captions, such as “Enjoy every moment of life; happiness is everything.”

As Fu Xiaoyu described him, he had some similarities with his past self, particularly in terms of sports, diet, and an interest in a glamorous lifestyle.

However, Fu Xiaoyu felt that he had changed significantly over the past year. Sometimes, during conversations with Wen Huaixuan, certain remarks would suddenly make the interaction lose its flavor—a tinge of melancholy that occasionally surfaced from the depths of his heart.

Fu Xiaoyu shook his head and stopped dwelling on these thoughts.

For some reason, he felt like he was wound up like a clock these days. Even when he was lying down, he constantly thought about work. He wanted to keep working because not working would leave his mind empty, and then he would start thinking about… other things.

He just didn’t want that.

“We need to make some changes here, the third line, the fifth line, and also…”

There weren’t many people in the company at the moment. Wang Xiaoshan was showing Fu Xiaoyu the meeting presentation he had prepared, and Fu Xiaoyu was thoughtfully clicking away with his mouse.

At that moment, Wang Xiaoshan’s DingTalk message suddenly blinked. Lost in his thoughts, Fu Xiaoyu momentarily forgot that it was Wang Xiaoshan’s computer and impulsively clicked to read the message.

Xu Jiale: Have you returned to the country?

Fu Xiaoyu was momentarily stunned.

“Ah!”

Wang Xiaoshan was almost frightened out of his seat. In a state of complete panic and confusion, he uncommonly and inappropriately burst out, “Mr. Fu, that’s my computer!”

After a brief second of outburst, Wang Xiaoshan quickly reverted to his usual timid self in front of Mr. Fu and said quietly, “I…”

Fu Xiaoyu immediately closed the chat window.

There was indeed a split second where he had the urge to scroll up and see what Xu Jiale had said to Wang Xiaoshan. However, it was Wang Xiaoshan’s words that ultimately stopped him. In any case, he wasn’t the type of person to casually invade his subordinates’ privacy by browsing through their chat logs.

Fu Xiaoyu returned to his office with an expressionless face.

After a few minutes, Wang Xiaoshan hesitantly knocked on the door and entered, looking somewhat dejected. “Mr. Fu.”

“I didn’t really say anything to Mr. Xu, I promise. He asked me about your condition during those two days in Vietnam, and when you’d be returning. Besides that little conversation, there was nothing else, truly…”

He held out his phone with a pleading look. “See for yourself, if you don’t believe me.”

At first, Fu Xiaoyu remained noncommittal. He merely maintained a stern expression and typed a few random words on his computer. But in the end, he couldn’t resist and took the phone from Wang Xiaoshan.

Xu Jiale: Xiaoshan, I have something to ask you.

Xu Jiale: Did Fu Xiaoyu ever tell you about what color he might like, or which car brand he prefers? Not sports cars, but something comfortable for commuting.

Wang Xiaoshan: Mr. Xu, you’ve already started preparing for his birthday gift, haven’t you? I somewhat know about it, so I’ll give you the details when I call you tonight. But, you know, getting this kind of information from me comes at a price, so I hope you have your benefits and confidentiality fees ready.

Xu Jiale: No problem. After we finish our busy period, I’ll take you and Xiaoyu out for a big meal by the seaside.

Wang Xiaoshan: The dancing dog.jpg

By the way, Xu-ge, what’s your budget?

Xu Jiale: Sky’s the limit.

The dancing dog.jpg

Even though it had only been a month, looking at it now, it felt like a distant pang of sadness.

Fu Xiaoyu’s fingers paused for a couple of seconds, and Wang Xiaoshan, who was watching, became even more anxious. However, Fu Xiaoyu quickly continued scrolling down.

The conversation between Wang Xiaoshan and Xu Jiale was really brief, basically jumping straight to after they broke up —

The night he suddenly had a fever in Vietnam.

Actually, before that, Fu Xiaoyu had only heard Wang Xiaoshan say roughly that Xu Jiale found something amiss when he didn’t reply on DingTalk. Although his DingTalk also had several missed calls, it wasn’t as exaggerated.

That night, in just a few short hours, there was a continuous stream of messages, over twenty DingTalk calls from Xu Jiale to Wang Xiaoshan. Except for the five hours on the plane in the middle, it almost didn’t stop. When he swiped down with his finger like that —

He saw the anxiety and unease of that Alpha on that night, directly and vividly for the first time.

The Xu Jiale in his memory seemed like he had never been this flustered before.

The subsequent conversations became even fewer.

After Xu Jiale returned from Vietnam on the same day, he sent a message to Wang Xiaoshan: Is he still feeling unwell?

But on that night, Fu Xiaoyu knew that both Wang Xiaoshan and he were quite tired, so they went to bed early. Therefore, Wang Xiaoshan didn’t reply.

Xu Jiale seemed not to have slept and sent another message in the early hours: Xiaoshan, is he still feeling unwell?

The same question was sent again in the early morning around four or five o’clock.

Fu Xiaoyu just stared at those words through the screen and felt a heavy weight in his chest.

He hastily handed the phone to Wang Xiaoshan, and continued typing on the computer without saying a word. After a while, he didn’t mention Xu Jiale’s messages at all and just calmly said, “I’ve marked the areas to be modified inside. Adjust them a bit before the meeting, and then you can go.”

Although Wang Xiaoshan was relieved, he still observed Fu Xiaoyu for a moment before carefully leaving.

In the afternoon, both Wen Ke and Wang Jinglin came for a short meeting, but Xu Jiale was absent.

Fu Xiaoyu didn’t ask and carried on with the meeting as usual. However, while walking down the corridor during the break, he vaguely overheard Wen Ke and Wang Jinglin discussing sending flowers or something to Xu Jiale’s side.

He stood there for a moment, holding a coffee cup. In the end, he asked, “What happened?”

“Oh, Xiaoyu, I was just about to tell you.” Wen Ke, holding a coat, looked like he was about to leave. “Xu Jiale’s Omega father just had a chest biopsy surgery today.”

Wen Ke paused and looked at Fu Xiaoyu’s expression before saying in a low voice, “It’s nothing to worry about for now. The surgery seems to be going smoothly. They just need to analyze the nodule to see if it’s harmless or cancerous. If it’s cancerous, it won’t be good. I’ll go visit later. You don’t have to think too much about it. The company will send some gifts in the name of the board of directors to show our concern. Don’t worry.”

“Alright.”

Fu Xiaoyu nodded and turned to enter his office, holding his coffee cup. But while packing his things, he felt somewhat uneasy.

Halfway through, he called Wang Xiaoshan in again.

“Prepare some gifts. Tomorrow morning —”

At this point, Fu Xiaoyu suddenly became annoyed, stuffed his MacBook into his bag, and shook his head. “Forget it, it’s fine, no need.”

…

Fu Xiaoyu didn’t intend to think about these things anymore.

That night, Tang Ning came over from Shuncheng, and Fu Jing said he was going to make dumplings. He had instructed Fu Xiaoyu to come back early.

When he returned home, Tang Ning was already there, busy making dumplings in the kitchen with Fu Jing. The scent of fresh shrimp and chives filling wafted from the kitchen, and in the living room, a plump cat was running around.

“Is this Da Pang?”

As soon as Fu Xiaoyu saw the cat, a smile appeared on his face. Without even changing his clothes, he bent down to pick up the cat and held it in his arms.

Before this, he had only received photos of Da Pang from Fu Jing, so this was the first time he had seen the cat in person. When he lifted the cat, he felt how heavy it was. Although it didn’t look as big as Xia’an, it was actually heavier than Xia’an.

Da Pang let out a meow but showed no resistance, snuggling softly into Fu Xiaoyu’s arms.

“So heavy.”

Fu Xiaoyu walked into the kitchen, still holding him.

“It’s all your dad’s fault; he overfeeds him.” Tang Ning’s hands were still covered in flour. She looked Fu Xiaoyu up and down and said in a low voice, “Your dad said you got sick in Vietnam?”

“It’s nothing,” Fu Xiaoyu replied. “Just a little cold.”

He didn’t tell Fu Jing about having dengue fever.

“Look at you, hugging the cat without even changing your clothes.” Fu Jing was not busy making dumplings and had clean hands. He pulled Fu Xiaoyu over and patted his clothes. “These clothes are expensive, and you’re getting them all covered in fur. Don’t ruin them.”

He scolded Fu Xiaoyu, a bit unable to control his temper. “Why have you lost weight again? Did you not eat properly in Vietnam? What’s wrong with you?”

“Ah Jing, it’s normal not to eat well abroad,” Tang Ning quickly added. “Let Xiaoyu eat more tonight.”

Fu Jing’s anger subsided, and he mumbled a few more words before going to the side. He washed a big pear and handed it to Fu Xiaoyu. “Have a pear first. After we finish making this batch of dumplings with your auntie, we’ll steam them.”

Lately, he often acted this way. Sometimes he got angry, scolding Fu Xiaoyu, but as he spoke, he’d suddenly become despondent.

Actually, it wasn’t just because Fu Xiaoyu hadn’t been in good shape recently. Since Fu Xiaoyu uttered those resolute words about severing their relationship, he had been secretly worried. During the time when they decided to cut off contact, he didn’t know how many tears he had shed in secret. However, due to his pride, he hadn’t been willing to seek reconciliation.

It wasn’t until Xu Jiale sent that message to Tang Ning that he couldn’t care about his pride anymore and hurried to B City. But even though they repaired their relationship, he suddenly didn’t have the same enthusiasm as before.

After all these years, he seemed to have realized that the child had grown up, only after Fu Xiaoyu had resolutely rebelled against him.

He couldn’t control and shouldn’t be controlling as much.

“Auntie, how long will you and Da Pang stay?” Fu Xiaoyu put Da Pang down, washed his hands, and ate a pear while asking.

“About a week?” Tang Ning, skillfully making another dumpling, smiled and said, “We’ll see if your dad continues to stay with you or comes back with me. Of course, it’s all up to you; we don’t want to intrude.”

Even though she was smiling, she was still cautious when asking.

“You can make your own plans; don’t worry about me.”

Fu Xiaoyu said softly, feeling a strange sense of bitterness. He added, “Staying a few more days is also fine.”

There were rarely moments in Junya’s home with such a family atmosphere.

After the dumplings were steamed, Fu Jing took care of the cold dishes, Tang Ning opened a bottle of red wine, set the table with bowls and chopsticks, and Da Pang followed Fu Jing around like his shadow. Wherever Fu Jing went, he went, occasionally meowing a few times.

“You glutton.” Fu Jing placed a steaming plate of dumplings on the table as he spoke to the cat.

Fu Xiaoyu sat by the table, although he just washed his hands, he couldn’t resist reaching out to pet Da Pang’s furry round head.

“Let’s eat.”

“Have a bit of wine,” Tang Ning poured a half-cup of red wine for Fu Jing and herself, but only a small amount for Fu Xiaoyu. “Xiaoyu, you had a cold a few days ago, so take it easy on the wine.”

Fu Xiaoyu nodded and started to eat his dumplings absentmindedly, playing with Da Pang with his feet.

Fu Jing and Tang Ning constantly engaged in affectionate conversation, and Fu Jing, who had had a bit too much red wine, rested his head on Tang Ning’s shoulder halfway through dinner. Tang Ning patted his head and got up to pour him a cup of hot tea.

Fu Xiaoyu watched this, then quietly set his chopsticks down.

The desolation that had appeared briefly when he talked with Wen Huaixuan upon arriving from his flight resurfaced. Perhaps it was a deeper sense of loneliness that overshadowed mere desolation.

Taking advantage of Tang Ning’s distraction, he took a few more sips of red wine.

Although he had a good alcohol tolerance, for some reason, he felt a bit light-headed, perhaps due to his emotions or physical condition.

“I’ll find some toys for Da Pang.”

Fu Xiaoyu suddenly remembered he had bought several cat toys for Xia’an when he stayed at his place. He had bought too many, and since Xia’an already had some at Xu Jiale’s place, he didn’t give them all. Now, he could use them for Da Pang.

He went to the storage room, where the cat’s things were piled in a corner. Upon closer inspection, there were quite a few items: a multi-level cat tree, a round cat toy with a revolving disk, a cat scratching post, and a few electronic toy mice.

Fu Xiaoyu bent down to put down Da Pang, then started taking them out one by one. But as he took out each item, he couldn’t help but think of Xia’an.

He really missed Xia’an.

Xia’an was a cat that adored him, a cat that would nuzzle against him. When he was working, Xia’an would lie by his computer; when he was taking a bath, Xia’an would sit nearby, anxiously watching him until Xu Jiale would come in and remove the troublesome Xia’an.

Thinking of Xia’an was safe, but he feared that thinking further will lead to other thoughts.

As he was about to leave the storage room, he caught sight of something on the floor. He picked it up, and it was a small, inconspicuous plastic tag, like a cat’s ID tag. It seemed vaguely familiar but he hadn’t paid much attention to it.

In the light, Fu Xiaoyu carefully examined the small round tag, which had a small piece of paper with slightly blurry writing on it. The date was from April, but the numbers were difficult to make out. The writing said:

Name: Xia’an

Contact: Xu (followed by a string of numbers, which look like a phone number)

Date: April x

All the numbers were hard to discern due to fading.

Fu Xiaoyu looked blankly at the small round tag for a few seconds and then suddenly recalled its origin.

In April, when he was heartbroken and in pain in Shuncheng because of Han Jiangque’s coma, Xu Jiale had urgently sent him a WeChat message asking for a favor, telling him he needed to go to Vietnam for a few days and needed help looking after Xia’an.

Fu Xiaoyu had agreed, and then Xu Jiale had shown up in Shuncheng with Xia’an in a carrier bag three hours later.

The small round tag had been in a small inner pocket of the cat carrier bag, and Fu Xiaoyu, who had just glanced at it, had never paid attention to it again.

But now, thinking back, when he brought the cat carrier bag from Shuncheng to B City, and in all the shuffling around, the small round tag had accidentally fallen out.

Fu Xiaoyu’s fingers trembled.

In April, before Xu Jiale came to Shuncheng to see him, he had already arranged for Xia’an to be boarded.

Yes, even though it seemed urgent and last-minute, how could he not find someone to take care of the cat?

That night in Shuncheng, he believed he had set the stage for his own love with Xu Jiale.

He had always thought that it was all his initiative, his conquest.

But it wasn’t. From the very beginning, it was just that Xu Jiale wanted to see him.

Even though it might seem clumsy, it was because of his inexperience that he hadn’t noticed.

Fu Xiaoyu’s nose suddenly tingled.

He had been reluctant to think about Xu Jiale.

But the fact was, how could he not miss him?

He remembered Xu Jiale, wearing a black leather jacket, arriving in Shuncheng in the evening, holding a cigarette, telling him to live well. He had thought that alpha was so cool.

He remembered when he confessed, Xu Jiale, although startled and unable to contain the fiery gaze in his eyes, took the initiative to meet his gaze.

He remembered when they were together, working until past 11, with a busy schedule, and then he playfully said to Xu Jiale, “I need some stress relief sex.”

Xu Jiale would give his neck a gentle scratch, pretending to be angry, saying, “Using my sexual services as stress relief, you’re too disrespectful.”

Even so, that alpha would climb into bed and patiently caress him, much like he would pet a cat, even though he wasn’t in heat. Then, he would caress his face to help him fall asleep.

Thinking of that alpha, who had discovered his urgent situation and rushed to Vietnam with stubble on his face, only to return to the country the next day and even sent a cautious message to Wang Xiaoshan in the middle of the night to inquire about his condition but didn’t get a reply.

Once the floodgates were opened, all the memories came pouring in.

It wasn’t until more than ten days after their breakup that he suddenly realized.

Xu Jiale’s love for him, and perhaps even Xu Jiale’s affection for him, might have came before his own feelings.

But that affection had never been as graceful or as cool as he had imagined.

He didn’t really understand Xu Jiale, nor did he understand Xu Jiale’s hidden vulnerability all along.

Only at this moment did he realize that the alpha had been there, all along, carefully, quietly, and subtly loving him.

But what did it matter now that he had realized?

Damn it.

Xu Jiale, who clearly loved him, who had loved him all along, had given up on him.

Xu Jiale, you bastard, you coward, you timid soul with your tail between your legs.

He had never cursed someone so harshly, not even in his thoughts. He even wanted to grab Xu Jiale and give him a good beating.

But standing in the storage room at that moment, two emotions, unprecedented, swept over him like a raging sea, uncontrollable and overwhelming the emotions he had been trying to suppress all along.

Anger left Fu Xiaoyu somewhat at a loss. He harshly closed the website for “Jing’s Cat Inn” on his phone and instinctively opened the recently vibrating WeChat.

It was Wen Huaixuan.

Wen Huaixuan: I’m having dinner with my family at Junya tonight. Do you have any plans for tonight? Do you want to drive and see the night view on the mountain? Actually, there’s something I want to talk to you about.