Chapter 17: The Seventeenth Step to Becoming the Matchmaker: Don’t Pick a Rookie as Your Brother  

The sky was so blue.  

Why, in the angel’s time-frozen zone, did a car come barreling out and send him flying?  

This wasn’t logical!  

But that wasn’t the point.  

Was the Matchmaker booklet hinting at something?  

Being touched didn’t just change his gender—it could copy abilities?  

But a car wasn’t human.  

Why, after being hit—er, touched—by a car, would he gain its powers?  

Would he turn into a car?  

Did cars have genders?  

He had no clue how to matchmake cars.  

A red Rolls-Royce Phantom Collector’s Edition with a BMW X6M?  

What kind of bizarre pairing was that?  

He couldn’t comprehend it.  

Red cars weren’t necessarily “girls”—maybe the opposite?  

As Chang Fei spun through the air, these thoughts raced through his mind.  

He crashed to the ground, realization dawning.  

No need to worry about a car’s gender!  

Humans could be gay—why couldn’t cars just love without labels?  

“Hit… hit someone!”  

A shout rang out.  

Chang Fei’s vision was a blur of red, itching to see the reckless driver who didn’t rush him to a hospital.  

A pair of shiny sneakers stepped out of the car.  

Tch!  

Athletic sneakers, no less!  

Rich people, huh?  

Chang Fei was in too much pain to do more than grumble inwardly.  

Wait—his pain felt like an illusion.  

Aside from a rusty taste, he didn’t hurt anywhere.  

The driver, unaware of his thoughts, stepped closer, sneakers nearly in his face.  

Why was there a red string on those shoes?  

Chang Fei squinted, his mind foggy.  

He wanted to gloat over the shoes, but looking closer…  

He’d never seen so many red strings tangled on one foot!  

Red strings?  

On a foot?  

What went on the hand then?  

Chang Fei felt the crash had blinded him.  

He tilted his head up, seeing the driver turn, phone in hand, voice familiar.  

“Hey, Sebastian? I hit someone. Can you help me handle it? Yeah… yeah, huh? It’s at my usual café… how’d you know? What? You’re here too? Father’s here? Wait, who’d I hit? What do they look like? Uh, black hair, black eyes… got it! Super cute! Wearing… looks like clothes from one of Father’s brand stores? How’d you know…”  

The boy’s voice trailed off.  

He spun around, and Chang Fei finally saw his hand.  

Countless red strings on his pinky!  

Not just the pinky—his body was a mess of tangled strings.  

Chang Fei could barely see his hand through the web.  

A family bond string was linked between them!  

And it wasn’t that simple.  

A black enmity string on the boy’s thumb—the only finger not swamped—connected to him!  

Chang Fei wanted to snap that new string off.  

He’d rather die than be tied to this guy.  

But cutting the red string last time nearly broke him.  

Would cutting a black string be even worse?  

Now wasn’t the time to think about it.  

The boy stared at him, eyes full of dissatisfaction and surprise.  

He hadn’t crouched earlier but did now, studying Chang Fei with a weird expression.  

“You look my age. Who’s your mom? How’d she climb into my dad’s bed?”  

Chang Fei’s temper flared.  

What did he mean, *climb into his dad’s bed*?  

Like his mom was some mistress!  

Frowning, Chang Fei opened his mouth to retort, but Sebastian rushed over, holy light glowing in his hand.  

Seeing him charge, Chang Fei nearly shielded his head but remembered he’d been hit by a car.  

A normal reaction would be immobility.  

His earlier instinctual move hadn’t escaped the driver—Lezheng Chu’s—notice.  

Lezheng Chu’s hand pressed his head, his voice as domineering as Lezheng Tingyu’s.  

“Don’t move! We’re not hurting you, just dealing with you.”  

“Deal with me? Like disposing of a body?!” 

Chang Fei almost cursed aloud but felt a warm sensation over his worse injuries.  

He froze, seeing Sebastian glare at Lezheng Chu, grumbling.  

“Young Master Chu, can you stop injuring people and expecting me to heal them? I’m not a doctor!”  

“But you’re way better than a doctor!”  

Lezheng Chu’s smug, show-off face—the same one that taunted Chang Fei before—flashed a normal, age-appropriate smile.  

Chang Fei was stunned.  

This was the Lezheng Chu who’d tormented him?  

The spoiled Lezheng heir gone astray?  

No way!  

That smile was cheating!  

If he were a girl, he couldn’t stay mad at that face!  

What did those words mean?  

“Dealing” with injuries meant healing, not what he thought?  

But Xu Shaxue died!  

She said Lezheng Chu tied rocks to her feet and pushed her into the lake by that haunted building!  

“Was Xu Shaxue lying?” 

Why would she joke about her own death?  

Chang Fei sensed things weren’t as simple as he thought.  

He wanted to find Xu Shaxue—no, Leng Yiqing—and ask about that night.  

But first…  

Sebastian, half-smiling, lifted the not-so-big Chang Fei.  

“Feeling better?”  

“Try getting hit by a car,” Chang Fei shot back.  

Sebastian chuckled.  

“I’ve healed your wounds.”  

“But my pure heart’s traumatized. I need compensation for mental distress.”  

Chang Fei demanded payment with a straight face.  

Sebastian raised an eyebrow, amused.  

“Compensation? Name your price.”  

Chang Fei smirked, sensing an opportunity.  

He wasn’t letting this slide.  

Lezheng Chu, still crouching, watched suspiciously.  

“You’re too calm for someone just hit by a car.”  

Chang Fei ignored him, focusing on Sebastian.  

“Make it quick. I’ve got places to be.”  

Sebastian sighed, setting him down.  

“Young Master, you’re as stubborn as your father.”  

“Chang Fei bristled.”  

“Don’t compare me to him!”  

Lezheng Chu scoffed.  

“You’re definitely his kid. Same attitude.”  

Chang Fei glared, the black enmity string pulsing.  

He wanted to cut it, but not now.  

He needed to regroup, find Leng Yiqing, and sort out this mess.  

The red strings on Lezheng Chu were a problem.  

Too many connections, too much chaos.  

Was he a walking romance magnet?  

Chang Fei groaned inwardly.  

Being a Matchmaker was exhausting.  

He had to protect Leng Yin’ning and Kading Che’s bond, deal with his calamity dad, and now handle this rookie brother.  

Lezheng Chu was trouble.  

That smile, those strings—too dangerous.  

Chang Fei couldn’t let him near Leng Yiqing.  

He’d play innocent, keep the rookie at bay, and unravel this tangle later.  

For now, he’d stick close to Sebastian.  

The angel butler might be useful against those matchmaker girls.  

He glanced at the frozen café crowd.  

Time was still stopped—except for him, Lezheng Chu, and Lezheng Tingyu.  

Why wasn’t Chu affected?  

Another “powerful bloodline” nonsense?  

Chang Fei rolled his eyes.  

He’d figure it out later.  

Right now, he had to stay sharp and keep his dignity intact.  

Or what little was left of it.  

***

Shang Zhi’s note:  

Tried for humor, keeping it light.  

Brothers, don’t fight each other!  

Chang Fei: Tell that to Lezheng Chu!  

Lezheng Chu: Huh? What’d I do wrong?