Five years later.

Xu Qing stepped off the plane and was greeted by a wave of summer heat. He was a refined man with an imposing presence, wearing elegant gold-rimmed glasses and head-to-toe international high-end custom clothing. His broad shoulders and narrow waist gave him an excellent physique. Naturally, such a radiant figure frequently attracted sideways glances from passersby.

Fortunately, after just a few minutes, his good friend who had come to pick him up ushered him into the car.

His friend teased him with a wink and a nudge, "How come you could bear to come back? Are the beauties abroad not to your taste?"

Hearing this, Xu Qing couldn't help but reveal a bitter smile. "Alright, stop mocking me."

He had originally planned to stay abroad for another two years before considering returning to China. But unexpectedly, half a year ago, the youngest daughter of the Laust family had taken a liking to him and launched a frenzied pursuit. After encountering his repeated rejections, she had even unscrupulously applied pressure through the family, wanting to have a business marriage with him.

But for someone like Xu Qing, who appeared gentle and refined on the surface but had an extremely strong desire for control, let's not even mention that he had no feelings for that woman to begin with. Just based on the fact that she had the audacity to use tricks to try to force him, he could never accept this woman.

However, their family still had cooperation with the Laust family, so even if he was impatient, he couldn't directly tear off the facade. He could only retreat and settle for the next best thing, taking the initiative to request a transfer to the domestic branch company.

After his friend had a good laugh at his expense, he casually asked, "What are your plans this time? How long will you be staying?"

Xu Qing smiled elegantly. "Hard to say. Let's see how things are here first."

His friend was long accustomed to his smiling tiger demeanor and helplessly rolled his eyes. "Okay, okay, I just don't believe you can hide in China forever."

Xu Qing answered in a tone that seemed both genuine and fake, "Who can say for sure?"

Coincidentally, his friend's joking remark had hit the nail on the head. This time when he returned, he truly had some thoughts of long-term development in China. Although the Xu family had made their fortune in China, they had later focused on overseas markets and had not invested much energy domestically.

However, with the frequent policy changes in China in recent years, he had keenly guessed that this might be a good opportunity to expand the domestic market.

As the legitimate heir of the Xu family and recognized for his exceptional abilities, Xu Qing naturally took the position of general manager as soon as he returned to China. This prince, who had long enjoyed a great reputation, did not disappoint people's expectations of him.

In the short span of a few years after returning to China, he had led the originally mediocre branch company to make great strides forward, causing even those who had heard of his reputation to exclaim in surprise.

Of course, that was all a matter of a few years later. As the legitimate heir of the Xu family, now that he had returned to China, the first thing Young Master Xu had to do was naturally to show his face at a banquet and expand his social circle to pave the way for the future.

This banquet happened to be the 90th birthday celebration of Old Master Mo of the Mo family. Because it was a full birthday and had the number nine, it was held with particular grandeur. Xu Qing happened to arrive at this juncture, so he immediately tidied himself up and went alone to pay his respects to Old Master Mo.

The reason he went alone, of course, was not because he couldn't find a female companion. In fact, with Xu Qing's status, even though he had just returned to China and his foundation was not yet stable, there were plenty of daughters from major families willing to eagerly join him if he wanted a female companion.

However, Young Master Xu had just miserably escaped from a woman who was like a ravenous wolf, so in the short term, he really didn't want to have any close contact with this kind of creature again. Thus, he went to the banquet alone as a bachelor.

The good friend who had picked him up from the airport also went to this birthday banquet. Seeing him looking lonely and helpless, he had no choice but to abandon his female companion with a headache and go keep him company to meet people.

Because it was a birthday celebration for someone else, and the Mo family's status in the country was obviously higher than their family's, Xu Qing naturally didn't dare to be negligent and came early. Those guests also had the same idea as him, each arriving earlier than the other. As a result, when all the guests had arrived, the hosts still needed half an hour to be seen.

Xu Qing looked around the extremely luxurious venue and couldn't help but sigh in his heart: the Mo family's development in the IT field had been getting better and better in recent years, as if they had turned on a cheat code, breaking through several technical difficulties in succession. Now, not only in China but even internationally, the Mo family had already squeezed into the ranks of top IT companies.

Before returning to China this time, his father had repeatedly reminded him to maintain a good relationship with the Mo family's head. Even if they couldn't establish a good relationship, they must never become enemies. His father even had the idea of marrying his only daughter to this family head.

However, thinking of the news he heard from his good friend, Xu Qing couldn't help but shake his head. His sister indeed had enough beauty, and the status of this pearl in the palm of the Xu family was not too low for Mo Yitao, but the problem was that the gender was not right!

The guests had only exchanged pleasantries in twos and threes for a short while when the hosts appeared. The guests went up to offer birthday wishes one after another. Although the Xu family's development in China was average, considering their family's development momentum abroad, everyone still gave him face on the surface. Even Old Master Mo spoke to him kindly for a good while.

Old Master Mo was a long-lived person, but after all, he was old.

He had suffered a serious illness in the past two years, and his complexion looked obviously declining. It was estimated that he didn't have many years left to live.

Moreover, now the Mo family was under Mo Yitao's control, and Old Master Mo was just a figurehead. Therefore, even though the protagonist of this birthday banquet was Old Master Mo, the main object of everyone's flattery was obviously the Mo family head standing behind Old Master Mo.

Theoretically, Mo Yitao was also in his forties, but his face was so handsome that it angered both heaven and man, and he maintained himself well. His figure had not deformed in the slightest.

At first glance, he was just a charming mature man in his early thirties. Judging solely by appearance, no one would associate his age with those middle-aged bosses present who had beer bellies and oily faces.

Xu Qing compared himself with the Mo family head back and forth and finally had to admit regretfully that even though the Mo family head was more than ten years older than him, he was not inferior to him, a young and handsome man, in terms of figure and appearance.

Moreover, from a certain perspective, the Mo family head, who had been in a high position for a long time, had more of an air of steadiness and composure compared to him.
However, apart from Old Master Mo and the Mo family head, what interested Xu Qing the most was the young man standing beside the Mo family head.

Xu Qing was not short, standing at 1.82 meters tall. The young man beside him appeared slightly shorter. In this southern city where men's average height was relatively low, he could be considered standing out like a crane among chickens.

However, compared to the nearly 1.9-meter-tall Mo family head, he was still half a head shorter. The youth had a beautiful appearance with exquisite features - a pair of large, clear round eyes, black hair, and red lips. He was pretty, yet strangely did not appear feminine.

Logically speaking, the young man's looks could not be considered top-notch, but he seemed to possess a peculiar charm that unconsciously attracted people. The more one looked at him, the more one felt unable to look away.

No wonder the Mo family head was so obsessed, appearing determined not to marry and have children for the sake of this youth.

As if sensing his gaze, the young man suddenly turned his head and glanced at him. Xu Qing lightly coughed and immediately shifted his eyes away.

That glance completely contradicted the youth's harmless appearance. It was indifferent and cold, actually bearing some resemblance to the icy Mo family head beside him. Xu Qing thoughtfully realized that it seemed the Mo family head's little lover was not a simple character either.

Because Old Master Mo was in poor health, after exchanging greetings with a few guests, he went to rest. The Mo family head did not leave, but also showed no intention of socializing. He walked arm in arm with the youth beside him to the rest area as if no one else was present.

Sitting on the soft loveseat, He Yan casually leaned against the Mo family head's firm shoulder, playing with the man's large hand while asking, "Was that the Xu family's crown prince who just returned?"

Mo Yitao also squeezed his slender, fair hand in return, his tone steady: "Why are you asking about him?"

Perhaps due to late development, the once skinny little youth had slowly grown taller over the past few years, shedding the baby fat that Mo Yitao loved to caress. He had become refined and handsome, and even his once soft little belly gradually developed firm muscle contours.

Of course, Mo Yitao was equally captivated by this young man. Over the years, their relationship had remained intimate. Even when occasional displeasure arose, faced with the youth's aggrieved stare, he would quickly surrender and coax this stubborn little one.

Moreover, to his surprise, Mo Qi turned out to have a talent for computers. In recent years, the company's achievements all bore his influence to varying degrees. To avoid wasting the young man's talent, he had countless times wanted Mo Qi to work at the company, but the youth always ruthlessly rejected him, citing it as "troublesome".

He now clearly saw that this little one was far from as harmless as he appeared. In fact, he was cunning and willful. But so what?

He just wanted to spoil this person. Even when the youth acted up, he would find it adorable. It seemed he was beyond help.

He Yan glanced at him with a smile that was not quite a smile. "Just showing some concern for your competitors on your behalf."

Perhaps having lived comfortably for too long and nearly forgotten about those things that never came to pass, he felt a bit surprised upon hearing the name "Xu Qing" just now.

Wasn't this Mo Lanyu's destined soulmate? So he returned to the country at this time.

He just didn't know if Mo Lanyu could still get involved with this lofty family heir like before. After all, in the original trajectory, Mo Lanyu had crossed paths with Xu Qing due to work after entering Mo Corporation.

But this time, although Mo Lanyu would not be blamed by the Mo family head after Mo Tiangao and Shen Cuiwei's plot to harm He Yan was exposed, she definitely could not enter Mo Corporation anymore, naturally making it impossible for her to meet Xu Qing through that channel.

Just as he was thinking this, the corner of He Yan's eye suddenly caught a somewhat familiar figure.

Speak of the devil. He had just started worrying about his cousin's lifelong affairs, and here the person in question had arrived. It seemed that some things were truly... destined.

He Yan closed his eyes, suddenly feeling a bit conflicted.

Noticing the youth's distraction, the Mo family head couldn't help but tightly grasp his hand, frowning. "We're not even in the same field, so there's no competition to speak of. What are you thinking about? You seem so listless today."

He didn't know if it was his misconception, but he always felt that the youth was a bit too concerned about that Xu Qing. You should know that before, aside from him, the youth couldn't be bothered to waste energy on anyone else.

At that moment, the Mo family head suddenly developed a subtle hostility towards that refined and handsome Xu family heir he had met for the first time.