Liu Yan was a man of decisive action. Since there was no longer any reason to stay in Zhennan City, he spent a day packing his bags and prepared to return directly to Xi’an Street.
Before leaving, he took one last, deep look at the room where they had shared countless beautiful memories. With a heavy sigh, he turned and walked away.
He left no word behind.
Fortunately, he still had his family and his brothers.
Although Tang Jiu and the others were surprised to see Liu Yan back at Xi’an Street so soon, they saw his wretched state and listless spirit. They didn't press him for answers; instead, they all smiled and said they would host a welcome-back feast for him, promising to drink until they dropped.
Liu Yan forced a slight tug at the corners of his mouth and embraced them gratefully. "Alright. Tonight, we drink until we drop."
The group of men first gorged themselves at a late-night snack stall before moving on to a KTV, where they wailed like banshees. Li Zhenting, who had long since quit drinking, covered his ears, unable to stand the noise.
Out of the corner of his eye, he noticed Liu Yan quietly slipping out alone, so he followed him.
"Xiao Liu, did something happen? Did someone wrong you? You can tell me; I'll set things right for you."
In the restroom, Li Zhenting watched as Liu Yan stood with a wooden expression, splashing cold water over his face. His eyes were bloodshot. Li Zhenting couldn't help but speak up.
At the question, Liu Yan finally broke.
"Brother, Tianwu broke up with me."
Like a child, he clutched his head and slumped to the floor, tears streaming uncontrollably from his eyes.
"It hurts so much."
Li Zhenting froze. "Why? Weren't you two doing so well?"
"I don't understand either. She suddenly brought up the breakup. She said she still prefers Omegas, that there’s no future for us, that she was just playing around with me..."
The usually optimistic and strong man looked up at his elder brother with a look of pure grievance and heartfelt confusion. He pleaded for an answer:
"Brother, must an Alpha really only be with an Omega? Is that the only way to be happy? Is having your own children the only way to have a complete, blessed relationship? People always talk about liking someone, about love, about staying together forever—can none of those words be taken seriously?"
"I don't understand. I just love her. Is that still not enough?"
Liu Yan asked Li Zhenting in a state of collapse, yet it felt as though he were asking the world at large.
Li Zhenting’s hands trembled slightly. He couldn't give Liu Yan a firm answer to those questions because he, too, was afraid.
A few days ago, he had visited the home of the woman who was his biological mother.
The family had been kind and welcoming, but he felt utterly out of place. Especially when he saw the four of them interacting with such unspoken understanding—watching Xiao Ai nestle in their arms and act spoiled—he felt a profound sense of alienation. At the same time, he couldn't deny the infinite envy and longing for such a bond that stirred in his heart.
Later, his mother had asked about his situation in private. When she learned that Li Zhenting’s partner was an Alpha and that her circumstances were far superior to his in every way, she expressed her concerns.
She said that back then, she too had thought love was enough—that as long as there was affection, all other practical problems could be overcome. But she had underestimated the fragility of emotion and overestimated how steadfast both parties would be. They thought having a child would deepen the relationship, but when the child actually arrived, the underlying problems began to surface. Without the support of their families, without their own careers, and without mature minds, it ended in disaster.
She said that after meeting her current husband, everything had gone smoothly. Especially after having two children, the entire family became more tightly knit, and the love between her and her husband grew more mature.
She said she wasn't optimistic about Li Zhenting’s relationship, but she had no right to interfere and was willing to support him.
Li Zhenting didn't know, and he didn't understand. Perhaps it was enough for lovers to just have each other, or perhaps it wasn't. But ever since his grandmother passed away, he truly craved a family. He wondered if he could have what outsiders considered a "complete" family. He wanted to know what it felt like to have parents, and whether he could have a "crystallization" of love—a child who would trust and rely on him and his lover completely.
Li Zhenting felt a twinge of guilt. His grandmother had given him so much love; why was he still unsatisfied?
Li Zi had given him a home, too. They had a place to live together. Wasn't that enough?
"Xiao Liu, I don't know how to answer you because I don't know the details of what happened between you and Yu Tianwu. But those reasons you just mentioned... I think there might be something wrong there."
"Li Zi’s friend shouldn't be that kind of person," he guessed, though he sounded uncertain.
"But I believe you must have tried your best. No matter what, we will always have your back."
Li Zhenting stepped closer, patted Liu Yan’s head, and pulled him up. "Alright, let’s not cry here. It stinks too much."
Liu Yan had been filled with sorrow, but hearing his big brother say "don't cry here, it stinks" caused his composure to crack. The uncontrollable emotions receded just a fraction.
"Brother, is this how you comfort people? How does Sister Li Zi put up with you?" He stood up, his voice still thick with tears as he teased Li Zhenting.
"What? You brat, do you want me to hug you, kiss you, and lift you up high?" Seeing his mood improve, Li Zhenting played along, making a move as if to lecture him.
Liu Yan quickly ducked his head and ran out. "Brother, I'm going back to the booth!"
Li Zhenting watched him slip away with a sigh, the smile fading from his face. He knew Liu Yan couldn't possibly recover this quickly; he would likely hide under his covers and cry once he got home.
He could only tell the others at the shop to look after him more.
***
On Li Zi’s side, she was dealing with another victim of heartbreak.
After discovering that Liu Yan had moved out, Yu Tianwu found a bar and drank herself into a stupor.
Ever since she had obediently broken up with Liu Yan and denied his existence to his face, her parents hadn't been pressing her as hard. They hadn't insisted she get engaged immediately.
Of course, this was partly due to her own efforts and the support she received from Wang Jing’an’s side; that boy didn't actually want to settle down so soon either.
She had finally found an opportunity to sneak out and vent the agony in her heart.
Halfway through her drinking, she started getting rowdy. The bartender snatched her phone and called a number, telling them to take her home or the bar would call the police.
Li Zi and her other roommates arrived, settled the tab, and helped her back to the dormitory.
The three of them stood around the drunkard, feeling helpless.
"Waaaaah... Brother Yan..."
"I was wrong, don't go."
"Why do this to me..."
"Why do you always have to do this to me..."
She mumbled incoherently, slumped against Hua Yi and sobbing. Xie Bing went to get hot water and medicine, while Li Zi exchanged looks with Hua Yi.
"What happened? A breakup?" Hua Yi asked.
"Yeah, though I don't know the reason," Li Zi nodded. She figured her own partner was likely looking after the other heartbroken soul.
"Weren't they very stable? They even lived together. Why the sudden breakup?" Hua Yi didn't quite understand them.
"I'm afraid only she knows the answer to that." Li Zi looked at Yu Tianwu, whose eyes were closed but whose tears wouldn't stop flowing.
Yu Tianwu wasn't actually that drunk. Her tolerance was excellent; it was just that her heart hurt too much. She wanted to get wasted, but her mind remained stubbornly clear.
Hearing her roommates' conversation, she finally spoke up. "It's all my fault. Brother Yan did nothing wrong."
By then, Xie Bing had returned with the supplies. She fed her a few sobering pills and told her to wipe her face.
"Then why? You don't like him anymore? Your parents don't approve of the relationship?" Hua Yi pressed.
"..." Yu Tianwu shut her mouth again, refusing to answer.
Li Zi was likely the only one there who had an inkling of her situation. After a moment of deliberation, she chose to speak. "Tianwu, if you were firm enough, Liu Yan wouldn't have given up on you."
These words seemed to strike a nerve. Yu Tianwu’s expression became even more distraught.
Li Zi struck while the iron was hot. "Is it your parents? Why must you break up with him just because they don't allow it? You're an adult; you have the right to decide your own relationships."
"You don't understand... none of you understand... they are too terrifying..."
For the first time, Yu Tianwu revealed her fear of her family to outsiders.
"Once they decide something, it cannot be changed. Nothing I do matters."
Hua Yi was baffled. "Why do you say that?"
Xie Bing chimed in, "Tianwu, don't get worked up. Tell us what the trouble is. Aren't we friends? Maybe there's something we can do to help."
Yu Tianwu looked up at the three people caring for her, then lowered her head and sobbed, hesitating.
"Tianwu, believe in yourself, and believe in us," Li Zi said, placing a hand on her shoulder.
"I... the two of them have been extremely controlling and dictatorial since I was a child. When I was little, they sent me to participate in shows. If I didn't perform well during the day, they wouldn't say anything in public, but they would scream at me all night. During the day, they would pinch me in the camera's blind spots to remind me to act exactly as they said."
"Later, it was only because my grandparents intervened that they finally let me be and stopped using me for publicity."
"When I was a kid, I wanted a pet. They refused, saying it would make the house dirty and messy. Later, I secretly brought home an injured stray dog. When they found out, they threw the dog straight out. It was the middle of winter; the puppy froze to death very quickly..."
"From childhood to now, I was only allowed to learn things they deemed useful. I wasn't allowed to touch anything else I wanted to try. Do you know, I've never even been to an amusement park? Even my friends in school were carefully selected by them. I only kept up with painting because I have talent and it gives them 'face.'"
"Fortunately, as I got older, their need for control seemed to weaken."
"Then... I fell in love with an Alpha. When they found out, they were livid. They locked me in my room and cut off all the water and electricity. They said they’d let me out when I realized my mistake, and they only gave me a tiny bit of food every day."
At this point, Yu Tianwu gave a mocking laugh.
"I was so stupid back then. I thought I had found someone who truly loved me. While they were away at an event, I escaped through the window. I went to find that guy, thinking he would be willing to run away with me. He had said nothing would stand in the way of his love for me."
"But when I arrived at school, looking like a total wreck, he refused to acknowledge our relationship. He told everyone I was just joking, that I was just rehearsing a scene with him. No matter what I said, they all treated me like I was going crazy."
"I didn't understand why it turned out like that. Then my parents arrived. They even thanked him, saying it was a bother for him to look after me. In that moment, I understood. His dream was to enter the entertainment industry. My parents could help him climb up much more easily. The price was simply telling a lie and denying our relationship."
Except for Li Zi, no one knew that Yu Tianwu had such a past. They had always thought she was just a carefree girl who had grown up with everything going her way.
"I understood then. Is resistance useful? They will always use any means necessary to achieve their goals. So what was the point of me struggling alone? I might as well enjoy brief moments of happiness, because in the end, they’ll arrange everything anyway."
Seeing that she had finally let it all out, Li Zi went straight to the heart of the matter. "Did your parents threaten you? Did they say they’d lock you up? Or would they do something to Liu Yan?"
Yu Tianwu nodded. "You don't understand their influence. I don't want Brother Yan to be hurt because of me. As long as I'm obedient, they won't pursue him anymore."
Xie Bing found this utterly incomprehensible. She was a child who had fought her way up alone; aside from relying on adults to fill her stomach when she was small, everything she had now, she had earned herself.
She asked Yu Tianwu, "Have you never thought about cutting ties with them completely and living independently? Is there really no way to escape their control?"
Hua Yi added, "It might sound bad to say this, but perhaps you have some evidence that could restrain their behavior? Their method of upbringing is definitely a major problem. As public figures, if they were exposed for controlling and abusing their child, the impact would be massive."
It was the first time Yu Tianwu had heard such a suggestion. She hesitated. "They are my parents, after all. Is it okay to do that?"
It seemed Yu Tianwu did indeed know many of her parents' secrets.
Li Zi gave her a final push. "You don't necessarily have to do it, but you can use it as a bargaining chip against them. Tianwu, parents who truly love you don't control their children in the name of love. You're an adult now; you have enough strength. And you have friends. We will help you."
"You have to think clearly for yourself. After every compromise, can you truly let go? In the future, will you regret the freedom you're giving up now? Will you live with that regret for the rest of your life?"
"Are you really willing to let it end with Liu Yan just like this?"
***
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