Chapter 48 If You Really Like Him, Then Keep It Hidden

It was past nine at night when Lu Er dragged his exhausted body back to the villa.

The living room was silent, with only a floor lamp casting a soft, warm glow.

Throwing himself onto the sofa, Lu Er stared at the ceiling in a daze for a while before pulling out his phone and calling Leng Keyan.

He had planned to tell Leng Keyan that he would be flying to City H tomorrow for filming, and to ask him to keep an eye on Song Jingmo—reporting any updates at any time, and not letting anyone with ulterior motives take advantage of his absence to “dig into his corner.”

But the call rang several times before it was finally picked up, and the voice that came through wasn’t Leng Keyan’s.

“Yan Yan… don’t… really, no more…”

It was Yin Siyao’s voice.

Lu Er felt as if he had been struck by lightning, freezing on the spot with the phone in his hand.

That voice… why did it sound so… intimate and suggestive?

Wasn’t Leng Keyan moving a little too fast?

He hadn’t even properly held Song Jingmo’s hand yet, and Leng Keyan had already gone all the way?

Comparing people really was infuriating.

“Hello, Uncle?”

Leng Keyan’s bright voice finally came through, and faintly, Yin Siyao’s indulgent yet helpless sigh could be heard in the background.

“You… you two…” Lu Er stammered, his face flushing with embarrassment. “I didn’t interrupt anything, did I?”

“Haha, not at all,” Leng Keyan replied cheerfully. “What’s up this late?”

From the other end came Yin Siyao’s irritated voice: “Why didn’t you explain? We clearly weren’t doing anything.”

His voice grew louder. “Don’t listen to Yan Yan’s nonsense—we were just eating fruit. Not eating anything else.”

Lu Er blinked innocently. “I didn’t say… you were eating anything else…”

He let out a sigh of relief, only to be immediately overwhelmed by a strong wave of jealousy.

It had only been a few days, and Leng Keyan had already made himself at home—spending late nights together, feeding each other fruit.

Maybe… even feeding each other mouth to mouth.

Unlike him—completely alone.

Pathetic didn’t even begin to cover it.

Yin Siyao: With a fork! A fork!

“Ahem.” Lu Er cleared his throat, lowering his voice as he rarely did, sounding almost humbly curious. “Tell me honestly—how exactly did you win him over?”

Leng Keyan chuckled smugly on the other end, his voice not loud but perfectly clear: “The secret is just three words—have no shame.”

“Huh?”

“I got in by being shameless,” Leng Keyan declared firmly. “That’s how I managed to move into Teacher Yin’s place. Look—hasn’t he already gotten used to me now?”

From the background came Yin Siyao’s embarrassed and annoyed voice: “Leng Keyan, who’s gotten used to you?”

Listening to their playful bickering, Lu Er felt a mix of emotions.

Holding the phone, he fell silent.

Shameless…

Thinking back on how he had acted in front of Song Jingmo recently, it really did seem like he hadn’t been shameless enough.

No wonder he had failed.

After hanging up, Lu Er lay on the sofa, staring at the chandelier on the ceiling, his thoughts in complete disarray.

Although he hadn’t fully confirmed whether Song Jingmo was “the one,” one thing was certain—he liked men.

And sooner or later, he would have to face that.

Taking a deep breath, Lu Er sat up and opened his sister-in-law’s WeChat.

Back when he had insisted on entering the entertainment industry and clashed fiercely with his mother and older brother, only his sister-in-law, Luo Bingbing, had stood by his side.

Carefully choosing his words, his fingers typed and deleted over and over again. After several attempts, he finally steeled himself and sent the message:

[Sister-in-law, I think I’ve fallen for a man.]

After sending it, there was no reply for a long time, and Lu Er’s heart hung in suspense.

Meanwhile, in the living room of the Lu family’s old residence—

Luo Bingbing was chatting with her mother-in-law and husband when her phone lit up.

She casually picked it up, but the moment she saw the sender and the message, her hand trembled, nearly dropping the phone.

“What’s wrong?” Lu Chen noticed her reaction and asked with concern.

Lu Er’s mother also glanced over. Seeing Lu Er’s profile picture on the screen, her expression immediately darkened.

“Did that brat cause trouble again? Or get caught fooling around with those shady friends in the industry?”

Luo Bingbing’s heart pounded as she quickly locked the screen.

Forcing a composed smile, she said, “No, Mom. Don’t worry. Xiao Er just mentioned there’s an auction in City H in a few days and asked what I like.”

Lu Er’s mother snorted. “At least he’s doing something proper for once. This is all because you spoiled him—insisting on supporting him to become some kind of actor.”

After changing the subject and chatting a bit longer, Luo Bingbing excused herself, saying she was tired, and went upstairs.

The moment she entered the bedroom, she locked the door, hid in the bathroom, and reopened the message, her fingers trembling:

[Are you joking with me?]

Lu Er replied instantly: [I’m not joking. I’m serious.]

Luo Bingbing sighed and tried to persuade him:

[Did you pick this up from the entertainment industry?]

[That place is full of trouble. Listen to me—quit as soon as possible. If your brother and your mother find out, this family will be thrown into chaos.]

Reading her reply, Lu Er felt his heart grow colder bit by bit.

He hadn’t expected that even his most supportive ally would react so strongly upon learning he liked men.

Was he about to lose even his last supporter?

Luo Bingbing simply assumed Lu Er had been misled and fallen for someone unsuitable.

Hearing a knock on the door, she hurriedly sent another message:

[If you really like him, then keep it hidden. Don’t let the family find out—especially your mother.]

For a top-tier wealthy family like the Lus, there were countless ways to make a person disappear.

Lu Er read the message and replied: [Okay. Thank you, sister-in-law.]

An indescribable sense of sadness and loneliness washed over him. Absentmindedly scrolling through his contacts, his gaze finally landed on a name he had almost never contacted—

His father.

The man who had abandoned the family when he was young, leaving with nothing and eloping abroad with a lover.

Driven by a reckless impulse, Lu Er sent the same message to that distant number:

[I’ve fallen for a man.]

He had expected the message to sink without a trace—or perhaps be met with a long lecture telling him to walk the right path and not repeat old mistakes.

But when the reply came, Lu Er was stunned—and warmth spread through his chest.

[Life is short, and the world is unpredictable. You only live once—don’t leave yourself with regrets. Eat what you want, meet who you want, see the scenery you love, and do what you want to do.]

No judgment. No blame. No preaching.

Just simple, powerful encouragement.

Lu Er stared blankly at the message, his eyes growing warm.

He had never imagined that the one to offer him even a trace of understanding and comfort would be the father who had been absent for most of his life.

His sister-in-law’s opposition showed him how difficult the road ahead would be—

But this unexpected warmth planted a faint glimmer of hope deep within his despair.