Chapter 66: Last Resort
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Under the illumination of the lights, Shen Yao lifted his hand and gently placed it on Xu Yibai’s hand. Led by Xu Yibai, he stepped onto the ascending stage.
Both his solo dance and Xu Yibai’s solo performance held special significance.
On the stage, there appeared a white high stool, inconspicuously positioned to the side, facing the audience. It blended seamlessly with the background and stage setup, avoiding any sense of abruptness.
Like the final piece of a complete puzzle, Shen Yao sat on the stool, feeling the beam of light shining upon him.
However, Xu Yibai, who was supposed to return to the piano, didn’t leave. He lowered his head and gently kissed Shen Yao’s forehead, like a light feather.
As his lips descended, Shen Yao cooperatively closed his eyes, creating a perfect and beautiful scene. The audience below erupted in friendly applause.
The only one still standing on the balcony, Yan Zhixing, showed no expression on his face. His hand, however, tightly gripped the handle of his cane, as if trying to embed it into the hard tiles.
Chen Shuang, sensing the undercurrent beneath the calm, called out softly, “Sir.”
Yan Zhixing’s jawline tensed, his gaze unwaveringly fixed on Shen Yao, gradually relaxing his grip on the cane.
Amidst the enthusiastic applause, Yan Zhixing remained expressionless as he thought:
“I’m different from Guan Shu. No matter who Shen Yao kisses, it’s impossible to stimulate him. Every time Shen Yao’s emotions fluctuate and he behaves inappropriately, it’s merely due to the instincts of an Alpha.”
At this moment, Shen Yao slowly lifted his face, his movements appearing to slow down under the scrutiny of everyone’s gaze. Although he had no idea where Yan Zhixing was, he precisely looked up towards the second floor.
In that fleeting moment when the piano played, their gazes met in the air, and Shen Yao’s eyes seemed to speak.
Sitting in the spotlight, every expression on Shen Yao’s face was so vivid. Yan Zhixing watched as Shen Yao gently hooked his lips at him, a beautiful and fleeting sight, like a midnight-blooming cereus.
It was like a subtle seduction, just like in the past.
Shen Yao always enjoyed doing these things to him. He wouldn’t eagerly reach out and embrace him, nor would he say “I love you.” He would openly and subtly reveal his beautiful facade, striking at the moment when the prey was most relaxed.
And he would never make the same move twice.
Yan Zhixing thought this way, but he didn’t even realize that his fingers were exerting force again, causing his knuckles to turn pale.
As the last note of the piano fell, Xu Yibai’s finale piece concluded flawlessly. Despite the perfect ending to the performance, there was no relaxed or content smile on Xu Yibai’s face.
He stood up from the piano and performed the final gesture of the performance.
In theory, he could leave the stage now, but when he suddenly grabbed Shen Yao’s wrist and led him towards the backstage, everything still seemed rushed.
There were several staff members in the backstage corridor, and their initial reaction upon seeing Xu Yibai was to congratulate him. However, Xu Yibai bypassed them directly, tightly gripping Shen Yao’s wrist.
Shen Yao, following behind him, stumbled slightly in his footsteps, but he calmly smiled apologetically at the staff on behalf of Xu Yibai.
The staff members were momentarily taken aback. They noticed that despite Xu Yibai’s seemingly calm expression, it strangely gave the impression of a jealous husband.
As if the omega behind him had committed adultery.
But over these days, they had also interacted with Shen Yao quite a bit. He always accompanied Xu Yibai to handle matters, appearing to be a well-behaved and handsome boyfriend. They were inseparable, and their relationship seemed fine.
The door to the dressing room was slammed shut by Xu Yibai, making a loud noise, yet he still didn’t release his tightly clenched hand.
Shen Yao leaned against the door, his wrist aching from Xu Yibai’s grip. He lightly furrowed his brow and said, “It hurts, let go.”
But the pressure on his wrist only tightened instead of easing. Shen Yao gave up resisting and allowed him to continue gripping it.
“Xu Yibai, haven’t I complied with your wishes in every way?” Shen Yao calmly tilted his chin up slightly. “You took away my phone, kept me confined every day, didn’t give me any freedom. Have I ever been angry with you or argued with you? Why are you getting angry at me now?”
Finally, Xu Yibai’s hand suddenly loosened, and then his palm quickly moved upward, grabbing onto Shen Yao’s arm. It was as if only by tightly holding and touching Shen Yao like this could he feel at ease.
He knew Shen Yao fully understood why he was angry, but Shen Yao deliberately provoked him like this.
Just like in the past few months, Shen Yao hadn’t once shown anger towards him. He even cooperated with Xu Yibai very tactfully, never questioning his arrangements or complaining.
However, in reality, Shen Yao had always erected an invisible barrier between them. He never took a step forward, nor did he allow Xu Yibai to get closer.
He had only succeeded in keeping Shen Yao bound to him. But unless he maintained this level of vigilance for his entire life, constantly keeping a close eye on Shen Yao without revealing any flaws, sooner or later, Shen Yao would fly away. He was like a fierce dragon guarding a treasure, where the slightest disturbance would ignite his nerves.
“You looked at him,” Xu Yibai’s voice was calm but noticeably tense. He didn’t even want to mention Yan Zhixing’s name. “And you smiled at him.”
Xu Yibai couldn’t control himself and forcefully pushed Shen Yao, causing him to collide with the door behind him. “I took you away from his engagement banquet, and now you’re smiling at him. Is it too quick for you to fall in love with someone else?!”
“Can’t I even smile? Then why don’t you just lock me up and keep me from appearing here?” Shen Yao knew the meaning behind that smile, but he feigned a puzzled expression. “You’re really strange. Am I not obedient enough to you? After you gave me a new identity, I introduce myself like that every time, but you don’t seem happy about it. Why, Xu Yibai?”
“You’re really greedy,” Shen Yao sighed helplessly. “You want me to be by your side and like you without any reservations.”
Xu Yibai’s rationality was slowly being worn down. He raised his hand and forcefully slapped the door, causing it to shake violently.
Perhaps because Shen Yao had hurt him too many times, Xu Yibai’s eyes, now reddened, no longer shedding tears. He questioned, “Is that so difficult…? Haven’t I been deceived by you? Shen Yao, haven’t I been deceived by you so many times?”
“As compensation, haven’t I already played the house game with you for such a long time? We’ve been playing until now. Have you had enough?” Shen Yao looked at him, as if he had reached the extreme of exhaustion, and he pushed Xu Yibai’s hand away. “I’ve been confined by you until now without my sanity collapsing. You should be grateful for my decent mental resilience. I’ve already said it once, but I’ll say it again.”
“Let’s get a divorce. I don’t want to be with a resentful husband.”
Xu Yibai’s gaze gradually froze. He had long known that Shen Yao had never given up on this idea.
He had always wanted a divorce, and Xu Yibai’s mind went blank. He almost wanted to scream that he didn’t want that, and the air was filled with his rapid breathing.
Xu Yibai’s pupils contracted and dilated, tiny dots of light gathering before his eyes, creating a blurry dizziness.
Suddenly, his peripheral vision caught a glimmer of silver on the table—a sharp fruit knife. Xu Yibai didn’t know what he should do to keep Shen Yao, his mind went blank, and he abruptly turned and walked towards the table.
Xu Yibai immediately grasped the handle of the knife. He had lost all reason and only wanted to do whatever it took to keep Shen Yao by his side.
The blade shimmered with a deadly silver light as Xu Yibai lowered his gaze. He looked like a calm murderer in a movie, but the direction the tip of the knife was pointing at was his own hand, which displayed distinct knuckles—a hand that had just finished a performance.
He had even resorted to such unorthodox means to hold Shen Yao hostage.
The tip of the knife approached dangerously close, and Xu Yibai lifted his face, his expression serious as if he wasn’t joking. “Back then, you agreed to marry me out of guilt. So if my hand really gets injured, you shouldn’t divorce me, right?”
His out-of-control rationality could no longer discern cause and effect. After uttering those words, Xu Yibai didn’t even furrow his brows. He firmly grasped the knife handle and decisively thrust downward, coming within millimeters of his own hand.
“Xu Yibai, I promised to tell you why I love watching you play the piano after your solo performance is over,” Shen Yao spoke up. “You can hear it and then decide if you still want to harm your hand.”
The hand gripping the knife handle finally stopped. Xu Yibai’s Adam’s apple moved slightly, and he asked, “Why?”
Shen Yao stood not far away, his gaze fixed on Xu Yibai’s hand. He approached step by step, saying, “That time in the dance studio wasn’t our first meeting. And when I said I saw you feeding cats outside the teaching building, it wasn’t the first time I saw you.”
Xu Yibai’s expression froze, and he vaguely felt that he had forgotten something important. His brain began to backtrack immediately, causing him a splitting headache. It felt like he had grasped something, only for it to slip through his fingers in an instant.
“The first time I encountered you was at my parents’ funeral,” Shen Yao summarized the events concisely. “You were startled when I found you crying in the garden, and to comfort me, you played the piano.”
A buzzing sound echoed in Xu Yibai’s ears as memories surged forth like a tidal wave. Forgotten moments illuminated his mind like a sudden burst of light.
Xu Yibai’s lips parted in disbelief as the once blurry memories gradually became clear, as vivid as if they had happened just yesterday.
Inside the room where the funeral was held, there was a heavy atmosphere. After Xu Yibai spoke to his parents, he walked out into the small garden outside.
Several stray kittens had run into the garden from outside, meowing and rubbing against Xu Yibai’s legs, hungry for food. He had nothing to feed them, so he squatted down and stroked their heads.
It was at this moment that he saw the small omega hiding among the flowerbeds. His eyes glistened in the moonlight, appearing slightly red and swollen from crying. He stared at Xu Yibai, resembling an untamed little wild animal, which startled Xu Yibai.
After recovering from the initial shock, Xu Yibai realized that this young boy was quite beautiful. He wore a small black suit with a white flower pinned to his chest. His cheeks still carried traces of baby fat, but he looked at Xu Yibai with a cautious expression.
Perhaps due to spending too much time in the garden, a few petals had stuck to his head, unbeknownst to him.
“Whose child are you?” Xu Yibai, only slightly older, crouched down and wanted to reach out to hold his hand. “Shall I take you inside to find your parents? Sss…”
The hand he reached out was fiercely bitten by the young boy. Shen Yao regarded all alphas his age as enemies, biting down harder, his eyes round as he remained prepared for any retaliation.
But even when bitten like this, Xu Yibai never retaliated. He instinctively released his own pheromones, trying to convey that he meant no harm.
The biting force on his arm seemed to loosen a bit, and Xu Yibai noticed the piano under the garden pavilion. He didn’t have candy in his pockets and didn’t know how to appease a child. Almost unconsciously, he said, “How about I play the piano for you?”
Perhaps his words had an effect, as Shen Yao finally let go of his teeth. Still not trusting Xu Yibai, he avoided his hand when it reached out again, rolling around on the grass and then struggling to get up.
However, Shen Yao also slowly moved his feet and followed behind him.
They were both still young, and sitting together on the piano bench didn’t feel crowded.
Xu Yibai played the piano for him for a long time. The child beside him must have been exhausted from crying. As he listened, his head tilted, and suddenly, without any guard, he leaned against Xu Yibai’s shoulder and fell asleep.
With the weight on his shoulder, Xu Yibai turned his head carefully, afraid of disturbing the omega beside him. But he gently picked the flower petals off his hair.
They sat here for a very long time, long enough for all the ceremonies inside to be finished before someone remembered the missing child.
A maid rushed over with an anxious expression, and when she saw Shen Yao sitting on the chair, she seemed relieved.
Before Xu Yibai could stop her, she had already awakened the deeply asleep Shen Yao. Shen Yao rubbed his eyes, still bearing the imprints of redness on his cheeks.
He was held by the maid’s hand.
As Shen Yao stood up, he noticed the tip of Xu Yibai’s nose and slowly said:
“I don’t have parents.”
Xu Yibai was momentarily stunned, but then he realized that this was an answer to his initial question.
He watched the fading figure of Shen Yao being carried away and instinctively stood up, wanting to catch up, but in the end, he just sat back down in his original position.
Xu Yibai’s fingers touched the piano keys, producing a faint sound.
He thought, forget it, this little omega doesn’t seem to like him very much.
Xu Yibai forgot to breathe and slowly overlapped the face of the omega with a bit of baby fat from before with the current beautiful and confident Shen Yao. He had undergone significant changes, but he could still trace the traces of the past.
He shouldn’t have been only one year older than Shen Yao. He should have been much older, so he could have picked him up, protected him, and never let him be bullied when he first saw Shen Yao in the past.
That was Xu Yibai’s first thought.
“At that time, I didn’t know your name, and I don’t remember what you looked like. But I always remembered that you played the piano well, and I always remembered you—” Shen Yao interrupted his reverie with his voice and placed his finger precisely on a mole on Xu Yibai’s nose.
“So when you saw me in college, you remembered me, right?” Xu Yibai’s limbs went numb, his consciousness scattered, and he didn’t know why, but he started apologizing, “I’m sorry…”
“There’s nothing to apologize for. That was just an ordinary day, and we didn’t have any promises between us,” Shen Yao understood and said, “You were so young at that time, it’s normal not to remember me.”
Tears welled up in Xu Yibai’s eyes, and he asked in a low voice, “If I remembered you… would things be different between us? If I had met you back then…”
If he had caught up with Shen Yao at that time and grown up together with him, would everything be different?
It was he, himself, who missed this best opportunity.
At this very moment, Shen Yao reached out to the mentally dazed Xu Yibai and asked, “Can you give me the knife now?”
Xu Yibai regarded his own piano playing as the last thing that could please Shen Yao, so he doubled his practice time before the concert. If he was once persistent, now he was obsessed. He didn’t allow himself to make the slightest mistake on stage.
Even when he saw the exchanged glances between Shen Yao and Yan Zhixing on stage, he didn’t make a single mistake.
And now, he realized even more how important his hands were.
Xu Yibai gripped the handle of the knife and raised his hand. Without hesitation, he handed the fruit knife to Shen Yao.
Shen Yao caught the handle of the knife and seemed about to put the fruit knife down gently, but the next second, the blade suddenly turned, facing himself.
“Shen Yao!”
Xu Yibai’s eyes widened, and he lunged forward at a fast speed, but he couldn’t stop Shen Yao’s action in time.
“Splurt—”
The blade pierced into Shen Yao’s soft abdomen, and fresh, bright red blood instantly flowed out.
Xu Yibai only managed to hold onto Shen Yao. His white suit was instantly stained red by the blood, and the warm blood seemed to cling to his flesh, making Xu Yibai lose all warmth.
He didn’t have time to question why Shen Yao did this. He fell to his knees in a disheveled state, frantically calling out, “Shen Yao… Shen Yao…!”
Large patches of red stained Xu Yibai’s eyes. His hands trembled, shaking violently as he picked up the phone from the table.
“Xu Yibai, the nearest hospital from here is Yan Zhixing’s.”
Shen Yao still had some consciousness left. His skin, already excessively fair, now appeared almost translucent, as if he would vanish in the next second. His eyelashes quivered lightly, and his breath seemed to grow weaker. He grabbed onto Xu Yibai’s wrist, anticipating:
“But you will still take me there, won’t you?”
Xu Yibai was meticulous in his thinking. He dared to bring Shen Yao here for the concert, so he must have made thorough preparations.
His extreme action now was merely a last resort.
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