Chapter 19: An Ex Who Knows Their Place Should Be as Good as Dead

Ming An asked her, “So is it officially over between you and Gu Shiyan? Did you two break up?”

Luo Xing bit on her straw, took a hard sip and swallowed, “We didn’t say it, but we both know. It’s over.”

Yao Xiangming clapped his hands. “I get it now. You both realized the other didn’t like you anymore, so you drifted apart and silently agreed on the breakup, right?”

Luo Xing nodded.

Yao Xiangming grinned, resting his hand on Shen Que’s shoulder. “That’s easy, though. It’s true you didn’t actually say it. You didn’t officially break up, so what’s the harm in saying you haven’t? Couples fight and give each other the cold shoulder all the time—what you’re doing is no different.”

Ming An nodded. “Exactly, Yao Xiangming’s right. If Gu Shiyan asks you, just say you two never formally broke up.”

Shen Que watched the three of them tossing out suggestions, then took Luo Xing’s nearly empty cup and filled it half full with water.

“No need to complicate things. A proper ex should be like the dead—silent and gone.”

Shen Que spoke slowly, “Delete Su Mo. If Gu Shiyan looks for you, just ignore him. That’s what a breakup is.”

Yuncai swallowed nervously. “Shen Que, I seriously suspect you’re secretly dating someone behind our backs.”

Ming An nodded. “You know an awful lot.”

Yao Xiangming eyed Shen Que, “Come on, out with it.”

Luo Xing raised her hand, indicating she was suspicious too.

Shen Que looked at the culprit—Luo Xing.

“You’re the one who comes to my place to do homework, insisting on watching TV while I teach you. Watch enough, and you start to understand.”

Luo Xing shrank her neck. “Fine, but I forget everything after I watch it. I can’t believe you remember.”

Soon, the food and drinks they ordered arrived.

Luo Xing gazed at the sparkling drink in her glass, as beautiful as a starry sky, and the troubles in her mind faded like passing clouds, forgotten in an instant.

In Private Room 1002.

Gu Shiyan sat in the center. The black leather sofa matched his clothes, but it did nothing to hide him in the dim light—his presence was unmistakable.

He paid no attention to Su Mo, who had come with him. There were plenty of unfamiliar faces here anyway. Everyone was just here for a night of fun, and would part ways as strangers.

Li Zhao, holding a glass of liquor, walked over to where Gu Shiyan leaned against the high-backed sofa, bent down, and patted his shoulder. “Bro, you just here to sit and daydream? Drink with us.”

A man in a leather jacket next to them tried to make conversation. “I heard Old Master Gu’s been ill lately. If you see him, put in a good word for me, will you?”

Gu Shiyan remembered the unread message on his phone and responded perfunctorily. He glanced down at the screen.

He wasn’t much of a talker—people usually approached him first. He’d reply with a few lazy words.

If he was in the mood, maybe a sentence more.

By contrast, Su Mo, who’d come in after him, sat quietly in a corner, but plenty of people came over to chat.

At first, some wondered if Su Mo had something going with Gu Shiyan, since she’d come with him. But seeing Gu Shiyan seated in the center and Su Mo several seats away in an inconspicuous corner, they understood.

Clearly, there was nothing between them.

Su Mo’s face was pure and innocent—a rarity in a bar full of heavily made-up women. Long black hair, a white dress down past her knees—she looked like a model student.

Sitting in the corner made her status clear. She wasn’t someone they couldn’t afford to offend.

Su Mo dealt nervously with two or three men in front of her. She’d come in with Gu Shiyan, and if she wanted to sit next to him, he wouldn’t have stopped her. Sitting in the corner was Su Mo’s choice.

She wanted to hint to these rich young men that she was of low status and unrelated to Gu Shiyan.

The ones bothering her were the fish she’d hooked.

All she needed was the right moment to draw the net closed.

She’d seen enough of men like Gu Shiyan to know that overt flirting led nowhere. If she’d sat beside him from the start, no one would dare touch her, but she’d never have any chance with Gu Shiyan.

Distance was the first step to drawing him in.

Su Mo glanced at the message from Luo Xing on her phone.

A faint smile played on her lips.

“Su, put that phone away and come here.” A tipsy man rested his arm on her shoulder, topping off her glass. “What’s so great about your phone? Let’s have some fun instead.”

Su Mo gripped her knees tightly, shrinking back, but the sofa blocked her retreat.

She forced a calm look, eyes lowered. “I—I don’t drink.”

Yi Chuan glanced her way, then looked at Gu Shiyan.

After all, Gu Shiyan had brought her. If something really happened, he’d feel responsible.

The man beside Su Mo was getting bolder, his hand inching up her thigh.

Yi Chuan clinked glasses with Gu Shiyan. “Shiyan, that girl?”

A sharp-eared man nearby overheard and quickly leaned in. “Chuan, should I call someone over? I can handle it.”

Yi Chuan hadn’t reacted yet when the man waved someone over. “Bring a few girls to join us.”

That just meant more people to drink with—nothing unusual. Yi Chuan knew the man had misunderstood, but didn’t bother to explain.

He pointed his glass toward Su Mo. “Shiyan?”

Gu Shiyan glanced that way and saw Su Mo trying to shrink away as the man pressed closer.

Su Mo’s words echoed in his mind. “Gu Shiyan, we’re really the same kind of people.”

She gripped her vibrating phone. “I—I’m sorry, I need to step out.” She hurried to her feet, passing Gu Shiyan as she left.

She answered as she walked, “Hello, Luo Xing…”

Gu Shiyan paused, glass at his lips, and his dark eyes flickered behind the rim before lowering again.

A trace of liquor clung to his lips, glimmering in the dim light.

Su Mo pressed her phone close and quickened her steps out the door.

Gu Shiyan’s gaze followed her retreating figure until the door closed behind her.

He set down his glass and stood up to leave as well.

Yi Chuan noticed. Li Zhao, chatting nearby, saw Gu Shiyan heading out and hurried over. “Why’s Shiyan leaving?”

“Su Mo went out, and so did he,” Yi Chuan replied.

Li Zhao remembered—Gu Shiyan had never brought a girl to these gatherings before. Su Mo was the first.

He exchanged a look with Yi Chuan. “Do you think Shiyan actually likes Su Mo?”

“I don’t know. Things aren’t settled with Luo Xing yet, are they?”

Li Zhao shook his head toward the door. “You know Shiyan better than I do. Does he strike you as nostalgic? I think this Su Mo might really be something.”

Glasses clinked, crisp and clear, sending ripples through the liquor as the five of them drank together.

Shen Que watched Luo Xing down most of her glass in one go and frowned. “This isn’t strong, but you don’t usually drink. You should slow down.”

Luo Xing waved her glass, swaying her head. “That’s exactly why I need to drink—because I never do.”

Yuncai raised her glass to clink with Luo Xing’s. “Come on, it’s your first time at a bar. Let her be. Even if she gets blackout drunk, we’re here to take care of her.”

“That’s her third glass already,” Shen Que protested, pushing a plate of fruit toward Luo Xing. “At least eat something.”

Luo Xing picked up a cherry, popped it in her mouth, and chewed, then looked at Shen Que, pouting. “No taste.”

Ming An retrieved a large, dark red cherry from Luo Xing’s lace skirt. “That’s because you were chewing air.”

The other four burst into laughter, except for Luo Xing.