Around his neck was the soft scarf that Dr. Ding had helped him tie earlier, the fluffy fabric framed his face, making it look even smaller and more delicate in the dim light.
As he stepped into the courtyard, the air was cooler than inside, but the refreshing breeze instantly cleared away the stuffy feeling from the banquet hall.
Even the warmth lingering on his cheeks from when Dr. Ding had leaned close to fix his scarf began to fade.
He exhaled softly, watching a small cloud of white mist form in the air.
"Are you cold?" Ding Yixin asked gently, his deep voice carrying a quiet concern.
Rong Xingyu shook his head. "No, I’m fine."
They walked slowly along the stone path that wound through the courtyard.
The night sky was clear and calm; a few faint stars glimmered above, and the moonlight was soft and pure.
The pale glow of the moon spread over the garden, coating the path, the trees, and the two of them in a thin layer of silver.
The moment felt peaceful, almost perfect.
Rong Xingyu opened his mouth and about to say something when a sudden voice called out from behind him.
"Rong Xingyu!"
He stopped and turned around instinctively.
Beside him, Ding Yixin also came to a halt and turned his head in the same direction.
When Rong Xingyu saw who it was, surprise flashed in his eyes.
Ding Wei?
The tall young man was walking toward them with long strides, the moonlight catching the sharp lines of his handsome face.
Before Rong Xingyu could even speak, Ding Wei’s expression suddenly changed and surprise flickered across his face.
"Uncle?" he blurted out.
...
"Where’s Xiaoyu? Why hasn’t he come back yet?"
Qian Zhijun glanced toward the champagne table, but Rong Xingyu was nowhere to be seen.
He scratched his head feeling puzzled. "Didn’t he say he’d be right back?"
"Maybe something else came up," Zeng Youzhen said casually while adjusting the straps of her short dress. Then she suddenly turned to Yue Yeqiao. "Hey, what was the name of that milk tea guy Xiaoyu mentioned earlier? What was his last name?"
"I think... it was Ding?" Yue Yeqiao tilted her head, thinking. "Didn’t Xiaoyu call him Dr. Ding? Why?"
Zeng Youzhen shook her head. "It’s probably nothing. I’m just overthinking."
Still... could it really be a coincidence that he shared the same surname with Ding Wei’s uncle?
The realization hit Rong Xingyu all at once.
He turned his head sharply and looking back at Ding Yixin, his eyes widening in sudden understanding.
Ding Yixin turned toward Ding Wei with a faint smile and greeted him casually, "Xiao Wei."
The moment the word left his lips, Rong Xingyu felt as if someone had struck the back of his head with a heavy object.
A sharp ringing filled his ears and his surroundings blurred.
He could no longer hear anything clearly, the voices of the uncle and nephew speaking beside him seemed to fade away, becoming distant echoes.
He lowered his head, his lips trembling as he whispered under his breath, "...Uncle?"
Suddenly, flashes of images burst violently into his mind.
The onslaught of memories came too fast, too strong, making his head feel like it was splitting open.
He clutched his head in pain and groaning uncontrollably as his knees gave way.
Even though his eyes were tightly shut, he could still see fragments of images flashing across his mind like a movie reel he couldn’t stop.
In one of them, someone’s hand grabbed his chin roughly and forced his head up.
When he looked up, the one holding him was Dr. Ding?!
But this wasn’t the gentle man he knew.
The expression on Dr. Ding’s face was cold, almost cruel, with a sharpness that made him look like a completely different person.
From above, the man stared down at him, his eyes were dark and deep, like a bottomless abyss.
Rong Xingyu could see his lips moving, saying something cruel, mocking, laced with anger and emotions he couldn’t even begin to understand.
The sight made his chest ache painfully and he could feel the suffocating pressure that stole the air from his lungs.
His chin hurt, it felt like it was about to shatter under the man’s grip.
His entire body trembled violently and despite the freezing winter air, sweat soaked through his back.
He shook his head frantically, like someone trapped in a nightmare he couldn’t escape.
His voice rose, cracking with fear and despair.
"I don’t know! I really don’t know where he went!"
"Yuyu!"
A pair of strong arms suddenly wrapped around him and pulling him into a tight embrace.
It should have felt safe and warm as always but Rong Xingyu only felt colder.
His heart sank like a stone into an icy lake and his body kept trembling uncontrollably in that familiar hold.
Ding Yixin’s brows furrowed deeply as he felt the shivering against his chest.
His heart clenched painfully and he instinctively tightened his arms, holding Rong Xingyu closer.
No matter how many times he called his name, the young man didn’t answer, he just bit down on his lower lip hard enough to draw blood.
Ding Yixin’s frown deepened.
He was just about to lift Rong Xingyu into his arms when the boy finally raised his head.
Rong Xingyu’s face was completely drained of color.
The eyes that usually sparkled with quiet warmth were now bloodshot and red, filled with pain and confusion.
His lower lip was bitten raw, marked with deep, red indentations.
He looked up at Ding Yixin and before he could say a word, a single tear slid down his pale cheek.
The clear tear slid from the corner of Rong Xingyu’s reddened eyes, tracing down his pale cheek before falling heavily to the ground.
"Dr. Ding," he whispered, his voice trembling, "why did you lie to me?"
At the sound of his words, Ding Yixin’s Adam’s apple moved slightly.
For the first time, an unfamiliar sense of panic appeared in his usually calm heart.