The Man in the Black Sweater - Chapter 21 — Finding the Sweater

Luo Xu crouched beside the suitcase, watching Pei Yan in the distance as he spoke to Uncle Cui about some last-minute matters.

He was wearing a dark blue checkered coat — elegant, composed, and effortlessly charming. It was impossible for a man like him not to attract attention.

After a moment, Pei Yan walked over. Seeing her squatting there with the same blank expression as Ross, who sat loyally by her side, he couldn’t help but think the two really did look like siblings.

“I’m going on a business trip to Japan,” he said. “If you need anything, talk to Uncle Cui. He and Aunt Chen will take good care of you.”

“Mm.” Luo Xu nodded, head lowered, her voice small and soft.

Pei Yan gave a slight nod in return, grabbed his suitcase, and turned toward the car.

Luo Xu hesitated, lingering there without following to say goodbye.
By the time the car rolled out through the gate, it was too late to regret it.

Japan… I wonder how many pretty girls are there, she thought, sulking. And they say Japanese girls really know how to charm men, don’t they…

From a distance, Uncle Cui called out to her, asking her to help trim the remaining potted plants.

“Oh, coming!” Luo Xu stood and made her way toward the flowerbed. After half a month of practice, she was finally no longer completely hopeless with plants — at least she could help a little now.

Still, life at home was unbearably dull, especially with a certain someone away.

Fortunately, Tang Yu had found a teacher for her art lessons, and the next day she sent an excited message urging Luo Xu to go and “pay respects to her master” immediately.

“This teacher is incredible,” Tang Yu said, head held high with pride. “Most people can’t even dream of getting him to teach them.”

“What kind of teacher?” Luo Xu asked. “Like… one of those old professors?”

“He is a professor, but not an old one.” Tang Yu grinned mysteriously and refused to elaborate.

Since the heiress was finally in a good mood and not giving her attitude for once, Luo Xu decided not to push it further and let her keep her little secret.

But when the teacher finally appeared in front of them, Luo Xu was stunned.

So this young, handsome man was the “incredible professor” Tang Yu had been talking about?

“Hello, my name is Ji Zhi,” the man said, extending his hand toward her. His fingers were long, his joints well-shaped — elegant and flawless, the kind of hands Luo Xu thought only pianists possessed.

“H-hi, I’m Luo Xu,” she stammered, completely thrown off by how good-looking he was.

Tang Yu reached over and clapped Ji Zhi on the shoulder proudly. “The youngest Golden Color Award winner in the country — the one and only.”

She looked practically radiant with pride, as if his success were hers.

“That’s amazing…” Luo Xu breathed, wide-eyed with admiration.
Tang Yu looked very satisfied — until Luo Xu tilted her head and asked cheekily, “Just out of curiosity, what’s the relationship between you two?”

Tang Yu rolled her eyes. “How vulgar.”

Ji Zhi chuckled lightly. “Tang Huan and I are good friends.”

“And with me?” Tang Yu shot back, pretending to pout.

Luo Xu’s eyes sparkled as she stared intently at Ji Zhi, making Tang Yu turn to her in disbelief.
“What’s with that look? You look like you’re about to betray my brother any second now!”

Luo Xu reluctantly tore her gaze away, wiping at the corner of her mouth in mock drool. “Your brother and he each have their charms. I’m just appreciating him — purely appreciating!”

“Yeah, right,” Tang Yu snorted. “You’ll forget him in five minutes anyway.”

“At least I’ll have a beautiful impression to remember. If someone mentions Ji Zhi later, I’ll know instantly — oh, that’s the handsome one!”

Ji Zhi stood by, watching the two women bicker back and forth with a puzzled smile, not quite sure how to react.

Later, Luo Xu would learn that it wasn’t unusual at all for people — like Tang Yu — to like him.
This young painter lived in a remarkably pure world. Despite all his awards and achievements, he’d managed to stay lighthearted and free-spirited — someone who laughed easily, teased often, and could be amused for an entire day by Luo Xu’s little clumsy mistakes.

Being around someone like him, no one could ever feel tired.

Strictly speaking, the three of them were around the same age — but compared to the other two, Luo Xu was actually the more mature one.
Not that this was necessarily a good thing… at least, not for the people around her.

Ji Zhi liked talking with Luo Xu because she came from a world completely different from his own — one he had never even touched.

“You’ve never seen marijuana before?” Luo Xu asked in disbelief, staring at the two of them.

Both of them stared back, equally shocked. Ji Zhi said, “Not seeing it is what normal people call normal, you know…”

“Really?” Luo Xu faltered for a moment under their looks.

Tang Yu narrowed her eyes. “Have you smoked it?”

“No!” Luo Xu raised her hand immediately, grinning mischievously. “But I’ve seen people who did. Actually, selling to those kinds of people was pretty easy. That stuff makes you hungry afterward. So, if you went around the NYU boys’ dorms at night with a box of cookies or snacks, you’d make a fortune!”

Ji Zhi and Tang Yu both gaped at her, their innocent worldviews thoroughly shattered.

Luo Xu’s world was colorful, chaotic, and full of wild ups and downs — the parts they saw were only the surface.

Tang Yu found herself seeing Luo Xu in a new light.
Before, she’d just thought of her as the woman her brother liked — someone a little unusual, perhaps, but nothing more.
After spending a few days together, she realized there was so much more to her than that.

Luo Xu was like a closed book — until you turned the page, you’d never know what the next chapter would reveal.

Tang Yu liked that mystery.
She liked Luo Xu’s world — that raw, grounded reality.

“Like it? You sure?” Luo Xu looked up from her sketchbook. “Hungry, cold, constantly worrying about survival — that’s the life you like?”

Tang Yu leaned against the edge of the drawing table. “At least you live each day seriously. I just… waste mine.”

“If I could, I’d gladly help you waste them too,” Luo Xu said sincerely, nodding.

Tang Yu laughed. “If you were me, I guarantee you wouldn’t last a week.”

“Aren’t I basically living like you already?” Luo Xu gestured toward herself. A big house, a car to get around, a butler and a driver, people always watching her every move — she could hardly step outside. Living under someone else’s roof wasn’t exactly freedom.

“It’s not the same.”

Luo Xu looked confused and turned to Ji Zhi, who was quietly reading nearby. “Are all the girls nowadays this ungrateful?”

Tang Yu bonked her on the head with a pen. “Hey, who are you calling ungrateful?”

Luo Xu rubbed her head, half laughing. She’d almost forgotten — this hot-tempered heiress might look like a lamb sometimes, but underneath, she was still a little wolf.

Ji Zhi shrugged and said honestly, “I’d like to try your kind of life too — maybe not as dramatic, but still.”

Luo Xu glanced back and forth between the two of them and concluded decisively, “You’re both crazy. Completely crazy.”

After the lesson that day, Luo Xu’s hands were not only stained black with charcoal but so sore she could barely lift them.

When Tang Yu came out from washing her hands, she said, “I’m going to my uncle’s place for a bit. I won’t be dropping you off today — wait here for the driver to pick you up.”

“Your uncle’s place?” Luo Xu caught the keyword immediately, raising an eyebrow.

“Shen Yuqing asked me to pick up some things for her. For old time’s sake, I agreed to help once,” Tang Yu said casually, wiping her hands.

Shen Yuqing — Pei Heng’s ex-girlfriend.

“I’ll go with you,” Luo Xu offered immediately.

“You? What for?” Tang Yu turned to look at her skeptically.

“It’s boring to go home this early. I’ll tag along and keep you company.”

Tang Yu nodded. “Fine. Once I’m done, I’ll give you a ride back.”

Luo Xu bent down to put on her shoes, her heart pounding wildly — she looked exactly like someone about to do something she wasn’t supposed to.

Pei Heng’s house… there had to be something in there she needed to find.

Tang Yu had gotten her driver’s license when she turned eighteen, and now, after three years behind the wheel, she was a confident driver. The two girls were around the same age, chatting idly as they drove.

“So, you met my uncle at a lingerie show?” Tang Yu asked.

“Yeah.”

Tang Yu clicked her tongue. “Didn’t think he was that shallow.”

“Well, just because he appreciates a good figure doesn’t mean he’s shallow. Everyone likes beautiful things, right?”

Tang Yu glanced over at her — almost forgetting to watch the road. “You?”

Luo Xu pouted. “Before I got pregnant, my figure wasn’t bad at all, okay?”

Tang Yu gave her a quick once-over and smirked. “Heh.”

“…”

The most unfriendly sound in the world — heh.

Tang Yu pulled smoothly into Pei Heng’s driveway, clearly very familiar with the place.

“Hey, what exactly am I supposed to be looking for?” Tang Yu asked into the phone.

“A cup? What kind of cup? Gold? Diamond-encrusted?” she asked irritably.

Luo Xu froze for a moment, remembering something. She followed behind Tang Yu and quickly grabbed a cup from the cabinet, tucking it into her coat. Then she coughed lightly. “Let’s split up — there are a ton of cups here.”

Tang Yu hung up and snorted. “She wants me to find a cup? Of all the things in this house, she wants that?”

“Maybe it’s a keepsake or something,” Luo Xu suggested.

“I’ll check the kitchen… seriously, a cup? Ugh!” Miss Tang was clearly irritated — having to fetch a random mug made her feel way too underutilized.

If it were something fancy, like a porcelain vase or an antique, she’d at least feel more dignified about it.

While Tang Yu rummaged noisily downstairs, Luo Xu quietly slipped upstairs — straight toward the walk-in closet.

“Carved poetry on a cup? What kind of terrible taste is that?” Tang Yu muttered as she searched. When she turned back, Luo Xu was gone. “Huh… she didn’t go digging through the bathroom, did she?”

Upstairs, Luo Xu moved quickly, checking drawer after drawer, scanning every shelf — as fast as she ever had in her life.

“Luo Xu, did you find it? You upstairs?” Tang Yu called.

Startled, Luo Xu’s hand twitched. “Not yet! You keep looking downstairs!” she shouted back.

Tang Yu crossed her arms, muttering, “Maybe he smashed it already. My uncle’s not that petty… right?”

Then Luo Xu opened the last wardrobe door — and froze.

There, neatly folded on the top shelf, was a black sweater.

For God—

The door to the closet swung open. “Why are you looking in here?” Tang Yu asked.

Luo Xu reacted instantly, stuffing the sweater under her down jacket. Her face flushed a deep red — she looked completely suspicious.

“What’s wrong with you?” Tang Yu asked, narrowing her eyes.

“Nothing… I just bent over too long, got a little dizzy.” Luo Xu’s voice trembled slightly as she placed a hand on her stomach.

Tang Yu looped an arm through hers. “Come on, I’ll help you sit down for a bit. Don’t overexert yourself — I don’t want you tiring out my nephew.”

“Heh… sure,” Luo Xu said weakly.

Tang Yu’s hand brushed over her belly, and Luo Xu’s forehead vein almost popped.

“Wow, your belly’s gotten big!” Tang Yu exclaimed.

“Yeah… growing fast, huh.”

“Let’s go.” Tang Yu led her downstairs, chatting casually. “I bet the reason we can’t find the cup is because Uncle smashed it. Serves that Shen woman right for being so heartless.”

“If you dislike her that much, why are you helping her?”

“She did me a small favor once,” Tang Yu said matter-of-factly. “And I don’t like owing people.”

“I see…”

Just as they reached the staircase, a noise came from the front door.

“Is the cleaning lady here already?” Tang Yu went to open it.

The door opened from the outside — and in came Pei Heng, dragging a suitcase with his keys still in hand. He looked up — only to find two uninvited “guests” standing in his living room.

“What are you two doing here?” he asked flatly.

Tang Yu didn’t even flinch. Smiling brightly, she greeted, “Hey, Uncle! You’re back early?”

“Yeah. Got things done sooner than expected.”

But before his voice faded, another figure appeared behind him — tall, elegant, slightly tired from a long flight. His sharp brows held traces of fatigue, but his eyes were still bright, calm, and deep — cutting right through everything and landing squarely on Luo Xu.

“What are you doing here?” Pei Yan’s voice was quiet but heavy with meaning.

Luo Xu jolted — nearly dropping the sweater hidden under her coat.

This was not what she had expected.
And when his gaze drifted — unerringly — to her stomach, which was just a little rounder than before…

Tang Yu might not have noticed anything unusual.
But Pei Yan… Pei Yan knew exactly how big it should be.