Jiang Yue tried to focus on her food. Really, she did. But it was hard to ignore the weight of Li Zhenkai's gaze or the subtle tension that seemed to simmer under the surface of their rooftop lunch.
Xu Jianyu's questions had shifted from casual to probing. "You mentioned logistics in the meeting," he said, leaning back in his chair. "That wasn't beginner's luck. Who taught you that?"
Jiang Yue froze mid-bite. "Uh… YouTube?"
Qin Yunze raised a brow. "Unlikely."
Fang Zixuan laughed. "Oh, come on. Can't a girl be accidentally competent?"
But Xu Jianyu wasn't laughing. His sharp eyes seemed to look straight through her. "You don't act like someone who stumbled into this world blindly. You react too fast. Think too fast. You're… deliberate."
Jiang Yue's stomach tightened. If he only knew how literal that was.
"I'm just… adaptable," she said quickly, forcing a smile. "Bad luck makes you creative."
Fang grinned, clearly unconvinced but amused. "Creative, huh? That's one word for it."
But it was Qin Yunze who broke the tension, his calm voice cutting in like a knife. "Leave it. If she was a threat, Zhenkai would've noticed by now."
Li Zhenkai didn't say anything. He just picked up his glass and took a slow sip of water, eyes fixed on her the entire time.
And somehow… that was worse.
The rooftop lunch shifted after that. Fang tried to lighten the mood with more teasing, but Jiang Yue couldn't shake the weight of Xu Jianyu's words or the silent intensity of Li Zhenkai's stare.
Then Fang said something unexpected.
"You know," he drawled, swirling his drink lazily, "I miss the days when it was just us. Remember that summer? LEGOs, stolen snacks, and Zhenkai punching that kid in the face because he broke our tower?"
Xu Jianyu sighed. "You make it sound less dignified than it was."
"It wasn't dignified," Qin Yunze said, his tone dry. "We nearly got suspended."
Jiang Yue blinked. "Wait. You guys… grew up together?"
Fang grinned. "Oh, sweetheart, we're practically brothers. The terrifying lawyer, the stoic tech genius, the playful billionaire, and our fearless CEO—"
"Stop talking," Li Zhenkai said flatly.
Jiang Yue covered her mouth to hide a laugh.
But Fang ignored him. "We made a pact when we were thirteen. No distractions. No weakness. Just the four of us building an empire."
Xu Jianyu adjusted his glasses. "And we've kept it. Mostly."
Qin Yunze gave a rare smirk. "Until you showed up."
Jiang Yue froze.
The words weren't mocking, but they were heavy. Weighted. As if Qin Yunze was observing and not teasing.
Li Zhenkai didn't react outwardly, but his jaw tightened almost imperceptibly.
"Don't read into it," Fang added lightly, winking at her. "The iceberg doesn't melt for anyone. Probably."
Probably? Jiang Yue's heart did an uncomfortable little flip.
Her system pinged:
[Emotional Impact on ML: 23%.]
She choked on her water.
Lunch wound down, but Xu Jianyu didn't stop watching her. Even when Fang cracked jokes or Qin Yunze calmly shot down Fang's ridiculous business "ideas," Xu Jianyu's sharp gaze tracked every word and every reaction Jiang Yue gave.
Finally, he said, "You know, for someone cursed with bad luck, you haven't quit yet."
Jiang Yue raised a brow. "Should I?"
"Most would," Qin Yunze said. His tone wasn't cruel. Just… matter of fact.
Jiang Yue smiled faintly, resting her chin on her hand. "Maybe I don't like quitting. Or maybe I'm just too stubborn to die."
For the first time, Xu Jianyu's lips curved in the smallest, briefest smirk.
Even Fang looked impressed. "You might actually survive him," he said, jerking a thumb toward Li Zhenkai.
Li Zhenkai's gaze sharpened just slightly at that sentence though, of course, he didn't say a word.
But Jiang Yue's system did.
[Luck Boost: +5. Reason: ML Affinity Stabilization.]
Whatever that meant.
---
Jiang Yue didn't know it, but as she laughed at one of Fang's absurd jokes, Li Zhenkai's mind wandered uncharacteristically to the past.
Three boys in an old courtyard, building empires out of LEGOs. Fang arguing over "aesthetic choices," Xu Jianyu calculating the most stable base structure, Qin Yunze silently reinforcing every piece.
And he was keeping them all together.
He remembered the first fight. Some older kids had mocked Fang's loud mouth. Zhenkai had bloodied his knuckles for the first time that day.
"No distractions," he'd told them afterward. "No weakness. We win. Always."
And for years, they had.
Until now.
He glanced at Jiang Yue again, and for just a fraction of a second, that memory cracked like thin ice under pressure.
Because somehow, without meaning to, she didn't feel like a distraction.
She felt… inevitable.
Jiang Yue had no idea about his thoughts. She was too busy laughing at Fang's latest attempt to charm heran attempt that was promptly shut down by Li Zhenkai's glacial stare.
"Wow," Fang muttered, leaning back with a grin. "If looks could kill."
Jiang Yue blinked between them. "What just happened?"
"Nothing," Qin Yunze said smoothly.
Xu Jianyu smirked faintly. "Everything."
Jiang Yue frowned. "You guys are weird."
Fang raised his glass. "And you're doomed, sweetheart. Welcome to the family."
She laughed, but there was a warmth in her chest she couldn't explain. For the first time in this cursed novel, surrounded by these men who seemed larger than life, she didn't feel quite so… alone.
And for Li Zhenkai, watching her laugh, that was the problem.
Because this wasn't part of the plan.