Gu Erqi waited all night, his frustration bubbling into outright aggression. Tonight, he was determined to catch his sister-in-w red-handed. After all, who did Su Bai think he was? Always acting obedient, as if trying to earn favor points with his dage, Gu Ming. He wasn’t fooling anyone. Not him.

  He paced the house like a caged tiger, his jaw tightening with every passing hour. Su Bai wasn’t just disrespecting the family rules—he was deliberately provoking him. All the chores Su Bai had been handling so diligently? A calcuted move to show them that he could do it all alone. The cooking, the cleaning, the managing of the household—all a facade to cim the moral high ground. But as if he forget himself who kicked out all the servants to give someone a hard time.

  “Does he need that person to teach him right from wrong?” Gu Erqi sneered inwardly. “A person who didn’t care for his own frail brother suddenly wants to care about this family? As if!”

  But his anger wasn’t just simmering—it was boiling over. By morning, when exhaustion finally cimed him and he fell into a fitful sleep, he was rudely awakened by the sound of the front door opening. His parents had returned from their trip, ughing and chattering joyfully, utterly oblivious to his sleepless night.

  The sight of their carefree expressions was like a match to dry kindling.

  “Do you even care what’s going on?” Gu Erqi barked, his voice echoing through the house. His parents froze, stunned by his outburst—he rarely ever raised his voice. But now, his frustration spilled out like a dam bursting.

  “While you were off gallivanting around, your precious daughter-in-w was out all night! Didn’t even bother to come back! Who knows what he’s scheming this time?” He smmed his fist on the table for emphasis. “And on top of that, I haven’t eaten a single thing since st night! I’m starving, and no one even cares!”

  The sharpness of his words silenced his parents. Their joy evaporated, repced with shock.

  Mrs. Gu recovered first, her face twisting into a scowl. “That scheming b*tch must be up to something new again,” she hissed. “When he comes back, we’ll—”

  Her tirade was cut short when her eyes nded on a piece of paper lying neatly on the table. Curiosity piqued, she snatched it up and began reading. As her eyes scanned the words, her expression shifted from anger to shock, her hand trembling slightly.

  “What is it?” Mr. Gu asked, his voice wary.

  Wordlessly, she handed him the paper. He read it, his jaw tightening as confusion and unease spread across his features.

  “What’s wrong with you two?” Gu Erqi demanded, snatching the paper from his father’s hands. His eyes darted over the page, and his smug expression quickly turned to one of disbelief.

  The three of them stood there, stunned into silence. The paper was short but enough to send shockwaves through their minds. Su Bai was gone.

  He’d left the house—and not just temporarily. His message was clear: he wasn’t coming back.And he knew Su Nan was back.

  The realization hit them like a thunderbolt, but it wasn’t just his departure that shook them. Deep down, they all knew something else: Su Bai had been the backbone of the household. Despite their disdain for him, he had kept everything running smoothly—the meals, the cleaning, the endless little details they never even noticed.

  Without him, the house was already beginning to feel chaotic.

  “Definitely pying hard to get,” Gu Erqi muttered, breaking the silence. He crossed his arms, his tone dripping with disdain. “That scheming person wouldn’t dare leave my brother for real. He’s just trying to make dage feel guilty. Hmph, I’ll bet he’s plotting to cause trouble for Nan-ge.”

  His words seemed to ease the tension in the room slightly, giving Mrs. Gu a scapegoat to cling to. “We’ll deal with him once your brother comes back,” she decred, her voice firm.

  But Gu Erqi wasn’t done venting his frustration. His stomach growled loudly, reminding him of his hunger. “Mom, make me something to eat,” he demanded, his tone petunt.

  Mrs. Gu frowned, reluctant. She had never cooked a day in her life, but her youngest son’s compints left her no choice. With a sigh, she trudged to the kitchen, only to find the cupboards nearly bare. All she could manage was a pot of instant noodles.

  When she pced the bowl in front of him, he stared at it incredulously. The noodles were overcooked and swimming in far too much water. “What is this?” he snapped, his frustration bubbling over.

  Mrs. Gu, already annoyed, muttered under her breath. “That Su Bai must have emptied the kitchen supplies before he left. He’s always pnning something.”

  But Gu Erqi was too hungry to argue. He grudgingly took a bite, only to gag at the taste. “Even instant noodles? You can’t even make this properly?” he yelled, pushing the bowl away.

  Without another word, he stormed out of the house, determined to find something edible elsewhere. As he walked through the vilge, his stomach growled in protest, and his thoughts turned bitter.

  “That damn Su Bai. He’s spoiled me with his cooking. Now nothing else even tastes good.”

  For all his anger and disdain, a small, grudging part of him realized just how much Su Bai had done for them. But he quickly shoved that thought away, bming his hunger for his sentimentality.

  “When he comes back, I’ll make sure he pays for this.”

  __________

  Su Bai finished packing his belongings, carefully zipping up his suitcase as if sealing away a chapter of his life. He checked out of the hotel with a calm expression, though his heart felt heavy. Instead of calling for a cab, he decided to walk to the hospital. It wasn’t far, just a few minutes away, and the quiet stroll would give him time to clear his mind.

  The morning air was crisp, the soft sunlight filtering through the trees lining the street. As he walked, Su Bai let his thoughts wander, taking in the peaceful scenery. The rhythmic crunch of his footsteps on the pavement and the distant chirping of birds helped soothe his frazzled nerves. For the first time in a long while, he felt a flicker of peace.

  Along the way, he pulled out his phone and booked two tickets back to his hometown. His resolve had solidified overnight. Adopting was the right choice. He couldn’t let himself remain in the suffocating loneliness that had consumed him for so long. If he stayed alone—if he allowed himself to spiral like he did yesterday—he might do something irreparable. He touched his abdomen gently, a silent promise forming in his heart.

  He couldn’t afford to be mentally unstable anymore. For himself. For his baby.

  "Responsibilities will make me stronger," he murmured under his breath, almost like a mantra. With a deep breath, he straightened his back and stepped into the hospital, his heart a little lighter.

  But what Su Bai didn’t know was that someone had been eagerly trailing behind him.

  The man arrived at the hotel moments after Su Bai had left, his dark brows furrowed in frustration. He checked with the receptionist, only to learn that Su Bai had checked out just a short while ago. His lips pressed into a thin line, the veins on the back of his hand faintly visible as he clenched his fist.

  His sharp eyes scanned the empty lobby, as if hoping to catch a glimpse of the person who’d slipped through his fingers. When it became clear that Su Bai was already gone, his frustration boiled over.

  “He didn’t even write anything about me in his letter,” the man growled under his breath, the weight of those words striking a chord he didn’t want to acknowledge.

  Schemer. That’s what Su Bai was. A cunning, calcuting schemer. He wasn’t going to let him get away so easily.

  But for now, with his stomach grumbling and his patience worn thin, the man strode into the nearest café. He ordered a bck coffee and sat at the corner table, his mind racing with pns. Su Bai thought he could leave just like that? Without so much as an expnation?

  Not a chance.