Rebirth Begins with Rejecting my Childhood Friend - Chapter 517

Xu Xiuwen felt a tightness in his chest at Fu Mengrui’s gaze.

He already had enough romantic entanglements—he couldn’t afford to invite more trouble.

To escape Fu Mengrui’s eyes, Xu Xiuwen continued drinking with Li Heng, Ma Pengyi, and the others. Before long, he drank too much and passed out.

He had no idea how much time had passed when he groggily opened his eyes.

It felt like he had returned to his residence in Jinling.

And he saw An Shishi.

She was sitting by the bed, lowering her head as she used a cool towel to wipe his feverish body.

Maybe it was the harsh lighting or the lingering effects of alcohol, but he couldn’t see An Shishi’s face clearly—just a vague outline. But she looked stunning.

There was a dreamlike beauty to her.

He hadn’t seen An Shishi in so long.

Xu Xiuwen missed her terribly—not just her tenderness but her body as well.

His heart burned with desire.

He reached out and grabbed An Shishi’s hand.

Time seemed to freeze.

An Shishi also noticed that he had woken up.

She asked with concern, “You’re awake? How do you feel?”

Xu Xiuwen barely heard her words, nor did he try to listen.

He pulled her hand, drawing her into his embrace.

An Shishi let out a startled cry, her upper body falling onto him.

And then—

Xu Xiuwen wrapped his arms around her, flipped over, and pinned her beneath him.

The positions had reversed.

He leaned in, wanting to kiss her.

But for some reason—

An Shishi was unusually resistant tonight.

She wasn’t cooperating at all.

Xu Xiuwen grabbed her hands and pinned them above her head.

With a chuckle, he said, “Baby, I missed you so much. Let me kiss you.”

An Shishi’s expression was panicked, her body stiff.

She anxiously cried out, “Xiao Xu, calm down! I’m your Aunt Gu! You can’t do this!”

Xu Xiuwen froze.

Then he laughed.

So An Shishi wanted to play another role-playing game with him?

Back when they were together, she loved to act out different roles—

From a younger cousin to a sister-in-law, even a seductive enchantress…

She had even played a cute, loyal little animal for him before.

Xu Xiuwen assumed this was just another one of her games.

But this time, she was being incredibly bold—

She was pretending to be Aunt Gu?

From a man’s perspective, Aunt Gu was indeed beautiful.

But Xu Xiuwen had never thought of her that way.

However, if it was An Shishi playing Aunt Gu…

Hmm.

That was actually pretty exciting.

…

The night passed in silence.

He had no idea how long he slept.

When Xu Xiuwen finally woke up, he opened his eyes to see the ceiling of a hotel room.

He froze.

Wait… wasn’t he at home?

He stared blankly at the ceiling for a long time.

Then, suddenly, he shuddered.

Xu Xiuwen bolted upright in bed.

He looked around.

This wasn’t his place in Jinling.

It was a hotel.

And then—memories flooded back like a tidal wave.

Everything from last night came rushing back.

He had gotten drunk and been sent back to the hotel.

Aunt Gu had helped him to his room.

And then—he had mistaken her for…

As realization struck,

“Slap! Slap!”

Without hesitation, Xu Xiuwen slapped himself—hard—twice.

“Xu Xiuwen, you’re a fucking beast!”

He cursed himself viciously.

He knew he was a scumbag—heartless and greedy.

But he had never set his sights on Gu Pandi.

Because he knew the difference between who he could touch and who he absolutely couldn’t.

And yet—

Because of one drunken night…

The worst possible thing had happened.

Regret consumed him.

But he quickly forced himself to calm down.

Now wasn’t the time for guilt.

The most urgent thing was to handle Gu Pandi.

If she told Uncle Jiang or Ning Wanqiu about what happened last night…

Either one of them—

Would be enough to end him a hundred times over.

“Aunt Gu… Where’s Aunt Gu?”

Xu Xiuwen scanned the room. No sign of Gu Pandi.

He rushed into the bathroom—still nothing.

When he stepped back out, he suddenly noticed something—

Aunt Gu’s suitcase was gone.

His first instinct was that she had found her ID and simply booked another room.

But he dismissed that thought immediately.

Because—

On the desk by the window, there was a piece of paper.

Xu Xiuwen walked over, picked it up, and read the single line written on it:

Forget about last night. I’m leaving.

There was no signature.

But he knew it was from Gu Pandi.

He stared at the note for a full ten minutes before finally snapping out of it.

The moment he did, he grabbed his phone and started calling her.

First call.

Hung up.

Second call.

Hung up again.

Third call.

Phone turned off.

Xu Xiuwen sighed and put his phone away.

The fact that she wasn’t answering meant one thing—

She had no idea how to face him.

He knew he had hurt her—deeply.

Not just physically—but emotionally.

At this point, he didn’t even dare hope for her forgiveness.

He just wanted her to be okay.

To take care of herself.

With that thought, he lowered his head and sent her a message:

“I’m sorry, Aunt Gu. I was drunk last night. I know no amount of apologies can change what happened. I don’t expect you to forgive me. I just hope you’ll take care of yourself. If you ever run into trouble, please let me know.”

Xu Xiuwen knew she wouldn’t reply anytime soon.

So he didn’t bother staring at his phone.

Originally, his plan was to come to Beijing on August 20 to discuss business.

Regardless of the outcome, he was supposed to fly back to Jinling on the 21st.

But now—it was already the 22nd.

The business deal fell through.

And he was left with a complete disaster.

It felt like Beijing was cursed for him.

He had no reason to stay any longer.

Xu Xiuwen decided to fly back to Jinling that afternoon.

But—

Fate had other plans.

Just as he finished packing his belongings—

His phone rang.

It was Li Heng.

On the phone, Li Heng invited Xu Xiuwen to have lunch at the Li family residence.

He also revealed that Li Pingguo wanted to meet him.

At that moment, Xu Xiuwen realized—he couldn’t refuse.

He had no idea why Li Pingguo wanted to see him, but he could guess—it had to be about Li Haimei.

After a brief internal struggle, Xu Xiuwen decided to go.

Noon.

The Li family sent a car to pick him up from the hotel.

As he sat in the vehicle, heading toward the Li estate, he recalled how last time, he had been blindfolded when brought here.

He had no idea back then how strict their security was.

This time, he saw it for himself.

Even though he was in a car sent by the Li family, the guards at the entrance still conducted a thorough inspection before letting him through.

And that wasn’t the only checkpoint—

He had to pass three separate security checks before finally arriving at the Li family compound.

When he got out of the car, the housekeeper appeared and led him inside.

Inside, Xu Xiuwen saw Li Heng.

Li Heng walked over and said, “Xiuwen, have a seat in the living room for now. My father is in his study. Once he’s done with his call, I’ll take you to see him.”

“Alright.”

The housekeeper had someone bring out a pot of freshly brewed tea.

Li Heng smiled. “Relax, Xiuwen. Try this—it’s Mao Feng, a famous tea from your province.”

Xu Xiuwen nodded, then asked, “What kind of tea is this?”

Li Heng chuckled. “Didn’t I just tell you? Haha… Xiuwen, seriously, you don’t have to be so nervous.”

Xu Xiuwen thought to himself—

Easy for you to say.

Li Heng could see how tense he was and added, “If you stay this nervous, I’m worried you won’t even be able to talk properly when you meet my father.”

Xu Xiuwen had to admit—that made sense.

He picked up the teacup and took a few big sips.

The premium Huangshan Mao Feng had an incredibly refreshing taste. It was light yet full-bodied, soothing yet invigorating.

After just a few sips, he felt his nerves gradually settling.

He found it almost magical and took a few more gulps.

Li Heng saw him gulping down the tea but didn’t say much—just smiled.

Soon, a servant came in and informed them, “Mr. Xu may go up now.”

Li Heng stood up. “Xiuwen, I’ll take you there.”

Xu Xiuwen followed Li Heng to Li Pingguo’s study.

At the study door.

Xu Xiuwen took a deep breath—

Once.

Twice.

Three times.

Then, he pushed the door open and stepped inside.

The study was minimalist in design.

Li Pingguo sat in his chair, head lowered, reading a newspaper.

He didn’t seem to notice Xu Xiuwen entering and kept his eyes on the paper.

After a few seconds of silence, Xu Xiuwen had no choice but to speak first.

“Good afternoon, Uncle.”

Li Heng, who had walked in right behind him, froze on the spot.

His mind went blank for a second before snapping back—

Xiuwen, my guy…

When it’s just the two of us, sure, we call each other ‘brother’ casually. But right now, you’re standing in front of my father as my aunt’s boyfriend.

And you just called him ‘Uncle’?

That messes up the entire family hierarchy!

But then another thought hit him—

If Xu Xiuwen doesn’t call him ‘Uncle’… then what?

Call him ‘Big Brother’?

That would make him equal in rank to his dad, which was a death sentence if his father found out.

Call him ‘Brother-in-law’ instead?

That felt way too soon.

No matter how he addressed him, it was going to be awkward.

Li Heng sighed internally.

This isn’t even Xu Xiuwen’s fault.

It’s just that the age gap between Xu Xiuwen and his aunt was too damn big—

Making the whole situation a complete mess.

Li Pingguo was slightly surprised by Xu Xiuwen’s choice of address.

If Xu Xiuwen had immediately called him “Brother-in-law” or “Big Brother,” he would have thought this young man was arrogant and disrespectful.

But calling him “Uncle”? That naturally placed Xu Xiuwen in a lower generation.

This showed humility.

Because of this, Li Pingguo’s first impression of Xu Xiuwen wasn’t bad.

He nodded slightly and said, “So, you’re Xiao Xu? Sit, let’s talk.”

Then, after a brief pause, he turned to Li Heng.

“You step out first. Tell the kitchen to prepare lunch. Xiao Xu will stay and have a home-cooked meal.”

Li Heng nodded, then left the room.

As the study door closed, Xu Xiuwen suddenly felt… relaxed.

This subtle shift in his demeanor didn’t escape Li Pingguo’s sharp eyes.

Even seasoned veterans felt pressure in his presence.

Yet this nineteen-year-old kid could compose himself so quickly.

Just this alone made Li Pingguo’s opinion of Xu Xiuwen rise.

Now that he was no longer nervous, Xu Xiuwen stopped focusing on Li Pingguo’s identity and status.

Instead, he treated this meeting like an ordinary conversation with his future brother-in-law.

He took the initiative and asked, “Uncle, what did you want to talk to me about?”

Li Pingguo’s voice was calm. “I heard that Xiaomei got a boyfriend. A man who’s more than ten years younger than her. Naturally, I wanted to see for myself—who is this person that caught my sister’s eye? And whether he had any ulterior motives.”

Xu Xiuwen answered without hesitation. “Uncle, Haimei and I are together purely because we’re drawn to each other—there’s no hidden agenda. Before coming to Kyoto, I didn’t even know about her family background. So you don’t have to worry about me approaching her with bad intentions.”

Li Pingguo shook his head. “You’re still leaving something out.”

Xu Xiuwen frowned. “Uncle, what do you mean?”

“I’m talking about your relationship with Xiaomei.”

Xu Xiuwen hesitated. “But… don’t you already know?”

Li Pingguo’s eyes narrowed slightly. “What I don’t know is whether Xiaomei is your girlfriend or just your lover.”

Xu Xiuwen instantly broke into a cold sweat.

His throat went dry. “Uncle, what do you mean by that?”

Li Pingguo’s tone remained steady. “You seem to have quite a few women around you. Don’t you think you owe me an explanation?”

Xu Xiuwen met Li Pingguo’s sharp gaze.

He wasn’t sure how much the man already knew.

Now, he had two choices—

Deny it or admit it.

But considering Li Pingguo’s level of influence,

It was almost impossible to keep this a secret.

If he tried to lie and got exposed, it would only be more humiliating.

After careful thought, Xu Xiuwen decided—

To be honest.

He nodded. “I admit it—I have other girlfriends. But I was already in those relationships before I met Li Haimei. I didn’t betray her.”

As he spoke, he closely observed Li Pingguo’s expression.

He saw that the man’s face had darkened.

His heart sank.

He immediately added, “Haimei knows about them.”

Li Pingguo’s expression remained stern, but his mind was calm.

He had already investigated everything before meeting Xu Xiuwen.

He knew about Xu Xiuwen’s entanglements with other women.

He also knew Li Haimei was aware of it.

If Li Haimei hadn’t known and Xu Xiuwen had been cheating behind her back,

This meeting wouldn’t even be happening.

Xu Xiuwen would have already been dealt with.

To Li Pingguo, it wasn’t unusual for a man to have multiple women.

But in his world,

The only woman Xu Xiuwen could have… was Li Haimei.

His voice was firm. “When do you plan to marry Xiaomei?”

Xu Xiuwen was caught off guard. “…Uh… Uncle, I’m still young. I haven’t really thought about marriage yet.”

Li Pingguo’s tone turned cold.

“Xiaomei is already thirty-six. She doesn’t have time to waste. Either you marry her, or you break up. Choose.”

Xu Xiuwen forced a bitter smile. “Uncle, why are you putting me on the spot like this?”

Li Pingguo furrowed his brow slightly. “If I wanted to make things difficult for you, one word from me could make your company and your distillery go bankrupt. If it weren’t for you saving Xiaomei, and for Xiaomei liking you, do you think you’d still be sitting here in front of me?”

Li Pingguo’s presence exuded authority, and his words carried weight, yet Xu Xiuwen wasn’t intimidated.

“Uncle, pressuring me won’t work. Even if I agree to marry Haimei, she might not. My mother doesn’t know about this, and there are many issues I still need to resolve. I can’t get married right now.”

Li Pingguo’s expression didn’t change, but his voice was firm. “I’m guessing you’re reluctant to leave the women around you, aren’t you?”

Xu Xiuwen hesitated but then responded honestly, “Well, that’s part of it. I promised my girlfriend I’d marry her.”

Li Pingguo’s gaze was steady as he continued, “Break up with your girlfriend and marry Xiaomei. I will help you.”

Xu Xiuwen didn’t doubt the sincerity of Li Pingguo’s offer. He knew the man had the power to make things happen.