FI CH89: They Are All My Wings

A stack of invitation cards lay on the table.

Lin Su grabbed them again, fanned them out, and said to He Zhenling, “Come on, let’s act like big shots~”

He Zhenling watched in silence for a few seconds.

Then he pulled two more cards from his coat pocket, inserted them into the fan, and said, “Here are two more for you, sent via the Association.”

Lin Su was speechless.

With a full hand of invitations, he couldn’t even hold them all with both hands. “So, whose invitation should we use to get in?”

“Heh… whose are you inclined to use?”

“Of course, I treat them all equally.”

He Zhenling retracted his faintly smiling gaze and casually tossed his jacket aside. “Then just hold them like that and let the person at the door draw one. We’ll use whichever one they pick.”

Lin Su shook his head. “Wouldn’t that show favoritism?”

He thought for a moment, then suddenly said, “I have a genius idea.”

He Zhenling paused and looked up. “?”

Lin Su took a piece of string from a drawer, strung the ten invitation cards together vertically, and then stacked them one on top of the other. He stood up and demonstrated for He Zhenling. “Look.”

He pinched the topmost card and lifted it.

Whoosh—

A row of invitation cards fell like dominoes.

He Zhenling was speechless.

Lin Su looked down and stacked them back up. “The ranking is not in order. This is how I’ll show it to them when we get there.”

He Zhenling said gently, “…As long as you’re happy.”

Lin Su lowered his eyes and put the invitations down. Damn it, he’s so indulgent with me.

Xuenima chuckled twice and carried the invitations off to the children’s play area.

…

It was already six o’clock.

Lin Su ignored Xuenima and took out his phone to send a message. “I’ll have the butler come and make dinner.”

“What dinner?”

He turned his head to see He Zhenling smiling, looking at him with pointed meaning. “Didn’t you say I arrived right at ‘mealtime’?”

“……”

Lin Su was suddenly reminded of his flirty comment from earlier.

He Zhenling was still standing before him, his form-fitting base layer revealing a firm, streamlined physique. His well-defined hand rested casually on the edge of the table, his gaze falling upon him.

“Oh… just a casual remark?”

Lin Su collected himself. “…How could it be?” He placed a hand on the tie of his robe, his tone composed. “Can’t be helped then. I’ll let you have a little appetizer.”

He Zhenling’s gaze deepened as he watched him for two breaths.

Then, as a blush slowly crept up Lin Su’s face, he stood up and walked over. Gripping his waist, he pushed him a few steps into the bedroom behind them and closed the door with a backhand motion—

Click. The door shut behind them.

A single door created the most private of spaces.

He Zhenling leaned his back against the door. Lin Su, with his waist held, braced his hands on either side of him and looked up to meet his desire-tinged gaze. He Zhenling’s eyes slowly lowered.

“Teacher Kun Kun… where do we start?”

Lin Su’s breathing hitched. “From…”

As he started to speak, he suddenly remembered something else. “Didn’t you say you’d let me have the ‘good fruit’ next time?”

The man above him seemed to pause. Lin Su pressed his attack. “It’s my turn to start.”

Their eyes met for a few seconds.

He Zhenling’s shoulders relaxed, and the hand on his waist loosened slightly. “…Alright, then you may pick as you please.”

Lin Su reached for the waist he had been longing for. The area below instantly tensed, and the hem of the shirt was pulled up. The fabric at the side of his waist was narrower, and when he tugged it up, it got stuck, hanging just below the collarbone.

He tried to pull it higher, but his hand was caught.

He Zhenling leaned against the door and looked down. “That’s as far as it goes.”

Lin Su obediently stopped and began to examine it closely. At such a close distance, the pattern of the crane feather was revealed in full detail. It was the first time he had seen He Zhenling’s, and it was indeed identical to the one he wore…

The man’s warm body heat seemed to wash over his face.

As he was looking intently, the breathing from above grew heavier. “Didn’t you say you were going to…”

He looked up and saw He Zhenling mouthing the words.

Lin Su trembled, then leaned in and buried his face.

The body before him jolted violently! His neck arched back, the prominent Adam’s apple bobbed, and a hand pressed tightly against the small of his back.

…The metal accessory scraped against his teeth. Lin Su, finding it a bit of a hindrance, pushed it aside, which was met with an even more intense tremor. He suddenly remembered something, reached up, hooked the ring on the man’s earlobe, and gave it a gentle tug—

The hand holding him nearly melted him into his embrace.

The veins on He Zhenling’s hand bulged as he held back a muffled groan.

A moment later, Lin Su lifted his head. Both sides were glistening. He Zhenling stared at his lips and only found his deep, hoarse voice after a long moment. “……Happy now?”

Lin Su pressed his lips together. “It was acceptable.”

A low chuckle came from before him, and then a hand cupped his face and kissed him.

Lin Su lay against He Zhenling, head tilted back as he was kissed for a while. Only when his body swayed and he was lifted up did he pull back. Their eyes met. He Zhenling’s bangs had fallen, his coolly handsome face was flushed red, and his neat clothes were messily pulled up.

He looked at the man for several breaths. “What a messy eater.”

Lin Su tried his best to compose himself. “…It’s a family dinner, help yourself.”

He Zhenling laughed, then took another two seconds to recover before straightening up slightly. “How much longer until the butler arrives?”

“Thirty, forty minutes.”

A hot breath escaped, and the hand on his waist loosened. “I’m going to take a shower.”

Lin Su stepped back a little. He Zhenling pulled his shirt down, turned, and opened the door to leave.

Once the sounds from outside moved into the bathroom, Lin Su also took a moment to recover in the room.

A moment later, he tucked in the corner of his robe, slipped out into the living room, and dug Xuenima out of the ball pit on the balcony, lifting it shyly. “Ni Ma, I had a feast.”

[?]

Xuenima glanced at the closed bathroom door, then at Lin Su’s rosy lips, and said coldly, [Be gone.]

Sigh… Lin Su put it down, still savoring the moment.

The succession banquet was on the weekend.

Two nights before the banquet, Bai Jiang sent a message: Brother Teacher! The banquet, you’re going, right?~

[Su]: I will.

[Bai Jiang]: Should I meet you at the door? To prevent any clueless… hosts from offending you. o*^▽^*o

Lin Su was speechless.

[Su]: It’s fine, I’m going with Xiao He.

[Bai Jiang]: …Okay then. ▼v▼

He put his phone away. Xuenima sighed benevolently. [Xiao Bai worries too much.]

“That’s not necessarily true.”

Lin Su met Xuenima’s round, dark eyes and patted it. “Go to sleep. We need to be full of energy for the party the day after tomorrow.”

[Ang-da! =0w0=]

The banquet was scheduled for Saturday noon at the Maple Mountain Pavilion.

The day was bright and sunny. The vast banquet hall was situated at the foot of a quiet mountain, surrounded by maple forests. The tips of the green leaves were already turning a brilliant, clear gold.

Lin Su went with He Zhenling.

He had changed into an emerald-gold outer robe, worn over a snow-white inner garment. A delicate, fine chain was fastened at his chest, with a small golden leaf pendant. Silver rings with tassels hung from his shoulders.

At a glance, he was more vibrant than the surrounding mountain scenery.

When they got out of the car, He Zhenling turned his head and looked at him for a couple of seconds, then said in a low voice, “Dressed so nicely?”

Lin Su couldn’t help but be flirty. “It’s even better without…” A hand immediately pressed into his side, stopping him. He turned to He Zhenling. “Don’t worry, I’ll only let you see it at home.”

He Zhenling took a deep breath and suppressed his reaction. “Heh… I’ll remember that.”

“……” Lin Su turned his head as if nothing had happened. “Let’s go.”

The two arrived at the entrance of the banquet hall.

People were trickling in with their invitations. Lin Su was one step ahead. The greeting disciple was first stunned by Lin Su’s appearance, then recognized He Zhenling behind him.

“Chairman He, you may go straight in.”

He then looked at Lin Su. “Sir, please show your invitation.”

He Zhenling started, “We are…”

Before he could finish, there was a whoosh!

Lin Su unfurled his invitations. A long, red strip fluttered in the wind like a door couplet, imprinted with the family seals of the Qi, Lu, Bai, and Yi families. Even He Zhenling’s was strung in among them—

The greeting disciple’s gaze fell upon it, and he trembled. …What is this!

Lin Su explained, “Both of ours are here.”

“……” The disciple stepped aside, dazed. “You… may enter.”

Lin Su looked down, folded the invitations section by section, tucked them back into his robe, and walked in with a thoughtful-looking He Zhenling.

…

The two entered the banquet hall.

Quite a few people had already arrived. One side of the hall was a full-length glass window reflecting the mountain scenery outside. The central ceremonial stage was still empty, but a crowd was mingling below.

As soon as they entered, all eyes turned to them.

“…Supervision Association, He Zhenling. The one next to him is ‘that person’…”

“Dual S-class with special privileges.”

“I heard he’s on good terms with the Bai family, but before, the Cheng family…”

As the low murmurs began, a few cold, hostile gazes were mixed in.

Not far away, Cheng Xuehui held a glass of wine, standing with members of several other prominent families. The group stared at Lin Su for a few moments before looking away.

“See? That’s him. Arrogant and lawless, just because he has the Bai family’s backing and his own high case ratings!”

“He simply looks down on all the other prominent families.”

“Now that everyone is here today, if we don’t teach him a lesson, I won’t be able to stomach this resentment!”

They muttered amongst themselves.

One of them hesitated. “What if we offend the Bai family, and they cause trouble for us in the future?”

Cheng Zhuo, beside him, immediately said, “Uncle Xiang, Xiang Yuan had his credits deducted and almost couldn’t graduate!”

Cheng Xuehui also clapped him on the shoulder. “Old Xiang, with the weight of our families combined, what do we have to fear from the Bai family? Besides… as for the top spot among the four great families, do you think the other three don’t have ideas? Are they not afraid of one family becoming too dominant?”

“And don’t even mention He Zhenling. We’re not breaking any laws. If he dares to abuse his power, we’ll drag this new official down from his horse too!”

A surge of anger rose in Xiang Donghao. “That’s right. Even if we can’t take him down right away, we have to give him a good, hard time.”

Cheng Zhuo felt a wave of satisfaction and looked towards Lin Su.

In front of so many prominent families, they would definitely make sure he couldn’t save face!

On the other side, Lin Su had just reached the food table.

Many people had tried to greet him on the way, but he used his old trick of sending He Zhenling out to fend them off.

Xuenima observed. [He actually seems quite happy to do it.]

Lin Su helped himself to some small fried meat. “You’ll know why if you go listen to what he’s saying.”

A ball of white light drifted away. Half a minute later, it floated back numbly. [“Yes, we have a marriage contract.”]

Lin Su sighed in appreciation. Of course.

With no one bothering him for the moment, he calmly scanned the room. There weren’t many familiar faces. The representatives of the four great families hadn’t arrived yet.

—They would probably make their entrance last.

As he was standing there alone, he suddenly saw a group of people heading his way.

Cheng Zhuo watched from a distance behind them, ready for a good show.

Lin Su raised an eyebrow slightly.

The group quickly reached him.

Led by Cheng Xuehui, they appeared very polite and greeted him. “You must be Teacher Lin, correct?”

They made the first move, intending to launch into their topic once Lin Su replied.

Lin Su savored the title for a moment, then turned his head after two seconds. “No.”

“………” The group was stunned. ?

Their line of conversation was abruptly cut off, and the group almost lost their composure. Cheng Xuehui sneered, “Teacher Lin must be joking. We wouldn’t mistake the person.”

Lin Su didn’t even turn his head back. “Then why did you ask?”

Cheng Xuehui’s anger was almost instantly ignited!

He held it back, but someone behind him couldn’t and retorted angrily, “Teacher Lin is just as arrogant as the rumors say!”

The voice was loud, and everyone around them looked over.

Lin Su feigned surprise. “Rumors? Who spread these rumors?” He recalled, “…The laid-off Professor Cheng?”

Someone let out a snort of laughter. Pfft!

Cheng Zhuo’s face, not far away, instantly turned ugly.

Cheng Xuehui, having his sore spot stepped on, finally couldn’t hold back his anger. “Fine, you dare bring that up? Professor Cheng Qikang worked diligently at the school for so many years, and just because he offended a ‘specially appointed’ teacher like you, he was kicked out of the school by the Bai family!”

He intentionally and unintentionally emphasized the prominent family, downplaying the real reason.

Lin Su raised his eyebrows. “Are you saying his crime was ‘offending Lin Su’?”

Cheng Xuehui was momentarily choked for words.

Xiang Donghao seized the opportunity. “In any case, the matter started because of you. It’s a fact that you have a close relationship with the Bai family. Are you going to deny it?”

The group in front of him stared, poised to strike, like venomous snakes that had set a trap—

If he denied it, it would be a backstab against the Bai family.

If he admitted it, he would be putting himself on the hot seat. Furthermore, being tied to the Bai family would make the other three families wary of him for the sake of balance of power.

Hearing this, Lin Su curled his lip into a smile but said nothing.

In the quiet hall, a triumphant look was already appearing in the eyes of Cheng Xuehui and his group, just waiting for him to be publicly humiliated.

Just then, the sound of footsteps approached.

He Zhenling walked through the hall, came to them, and stopped. His cold, heavy gaze swept over them, and the group’s hearts tightened slightly. Is he here to back him up?

Perfect, we’ll drag him down too…

The next moment, however, they saw Lin Su turn his head as if nothing had happened. “You’re here. Hold my plate for me, I need to wipe my mouth.”

The group was confused.

He Zhenling naturally took the plate. “Mhm.”

Lin Su handed him the plate and fumbled in his pocket for a tissue.

As he pulled out the tissue, a thud was heard, and a long string of items seemed to have been inadvertently pulled out with it.

All eyes fell to the floor, where a row of invitation cards lay.

The long strip nearly reached the ground, bearing the seals of all four great families—

The air around them instantly froze.

Cheng Xuehui and his group held their breath.

“Oh dear.” Lin Su acted as if it were an accident, bending down to pick up the string of invitations. He then suddenly seemed to remember something. “Right, you said I have a close relationship with the Bai family…”

He shook his head. “How could that be?”

As he spoke, a commotion was heard from the entrance. The members of the four great families were about to make their successive entrances.

Familiar figures could be vaguely seen at the doorway.

He stacked the invitations one by one. “They are all my wings.”

Author’s note:

Kun (Sleepy): They are all my wings, in no particular order!

Big Bird He: What about me?

Kun (Sleepy): You’re the big bird, silly. (indulgently)

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