When he woke up, Liu Zhenqing was dizzy from drinking and enjoying the heated water.

He turned around to look and, sure enough, he was gone again.

When he was drunk the night before, Liu Zhenqing was too lazy to think much and enjoyed being enveloped by Huo Fenglie’s solid body. Perceiving Huo Fenglie’s patience and gentleness, of course he knew the other’s situation.

Thinking of this, Liu Zhenqing couldn’t help but spread his hands and look at them, as if the tactile impression from last night still remained.

It was truly astounding that his hands were still sore when he woke up.

Liu Zhenqing smiled contentedly. This further development was all thanks to his wit.

The previous night, in the midst of chaotic thoughts, Liu Zhenqing suddenly had an idea. In order to keep him from looking at the tattoo, Huo Fenglie kept pressing his head with one hand. The other hand was helping him, so Liu Zhenqing took the opportunity to quietly place his hands into the water.

By the time the shy and patient Huo Fenglie reacted, it was too late. His entire body trembled and he tried to push him away, to move his hand and stop all factors that may get out of control. But sadly, he found that he could just barely use one hand to capture those two troublemaking ones.

Liu Zhenqing was naturally dissatisfied and scolded him not to stop. In the end, even without looking, he could tell that Huo Fenglie was bullied so much that he had no choice but to be obedient and allow Liu Zhenqing to break the barrier between them.

Huo Fenglie’s green and immature reaction surprised Liu Zhenqing. In the end, it turned out that he was bullying the other.

When Huo Fenglie couldn’t endure it anymore, it seemed that the word ‘Qing-ge’ was constantly called out in his ear. He also bit him on the shoulder, but fainted in the end and didn’t know what happened next.

Yes, this was a big step.The two of them were absolutely free of sin. He would see what this kid ended up doing.

Liu Zhenqing seemed to derive some delight from the mutual help between the two, and was extremely satisfied.

When he got up, he looked at the time. It happened to be time for Huo Fenglie to undergo acupuncture, so Liu Zhenqing went over with a bun in his mouth.

As soon as he entered the door, he saw Huo Fenglie sitting on a stool with his upper body bare. Han Ye on the side was using acupuncture on his own head and to Huo Fenglie.

“What are you doing?” Liu Zhenqing stepped forward curiously.

Han Ye glanced at Liu Zhenqing in displeasure. “Hangover.”

Shocked, Liu Zhenqing said: “It was only three cups.”

Han Ye was instantly unhappy, and said: “I don’t usually drink!”

Liu Zhenqing quickly coaxed: “Yes, yes, you haven’t practiced.”

Han Ye scoffed coldly.

When Liu Zhenqing was done speaking, he walked up to Huo Fenglie. The other seemed to lift his head to glance at him, but quickly looked away.

Liu Zhenqing snickered and chose to sit in the seat in front of him, which put Huo Fenglie at a loss.

Han Ye suddenly exclaimed: “Do you have an allergy? Why are there so many red marks on your shoulders and neck, ah?”

Huo Fenglie froze. Liu Zhenqing raised his eyes to look over, the corners of his mouth curling up slightly: “He doesn’t.”

Han Ye looked at Liu Zhenqing in surprise: “You can determine this?”

Liu Zhenqing looked at his apprentice and thought that he must have gone silly due to only wanting to study medicine. He couldn’t comprehend this sort of thing, and wore an expression that said, ‘I haven’t even figured it out, so how can you be so sure?’

Suppressing his laughter, Liu Zhenqing raised a suggestive eyebrow and said: “I can, ah. Because I did that last night.”

Huo Fenglie sucked in a deep breath, and the hands on his knees involuntarily clenched.

Han Ye was about to give himself another needle to keep his judgment and thinking clear, but when he heard this sentence, the silver needle almost stuck in crookedly.

“You…..you guys!” Han Ye choked out.

“Why are you so surprised? You’re also a grown man.” Liu Zhenqing spoke much more straightforwardly, and there was even a smile in his words. This was obviously a tone meant for teasing children.

Han Ye wished he could stab himself to deafness, while Huo Fenglie was also shaken at the moment.

He didn’t understand……he really didn’t understand Qing-ge’s meaning.

Wasn’t it just on a whim after drinking last night? Shouldn’t it be hidden in silence?

Why was Qing-ge like this? Was it on purpose?

He really wasn’t afraid that Huo Fenglie wouldn’t be able to endure anymore…..he really compelled him!

But everything last night was like a dream to him. He came to the sudden and humbled realization that Qing-ge teasing him like this was also good. Even if he was using him like this to express his loneliness, he was willing.

But Han Ye was not willing. His roar made the perpetually teasing and unserious Liu Zhenqing run away wildly. 

He had nothing to do, so he walked a few rounds to wake up. Suddenly, he saw Song Xingmu running past in a panic, clutching his clothes. Very much like a rogue flower picker who did something bad and slept with the wrong person.

Liu Zhenqing called out, and Song Xingmu’s eyes suddenly lit up. He rushed over and said: “Last night…..what did I do last night?”

Liu Zhenqing: ……

“You threw me into Huo Fenglie’s bathtub.”

Song Xingmu was startled. He touched his chin and said: “I have an impression of that, but what happened next?”

The corners of Liu Zhenqing’s mouth curled up slightly. He wanted to show off how happy he was last night.

However, Song Xingmu seemed to understand his brother’s bad nature and immediately interrupted: “I’m asking what I did.”

Liu Zhenqing’s urge to share was disrupted, and he said directly: “How would I know? Didn’t you run away with Yi Chuan?”

Song Xingmu’s expression was suddenly difficult to parse.

“It’s odd. Seeing you like this, perhaps you couldn’t control yourself last night and messed around with someone? Weren’t you protecting your integrity like jade for Yi Chuan?”

Song Xingmu said with a mournful expression: “It was Yi Chuan, ah.”

“What?!” Liu Zhenqing said in shock. “Could it be that you were drunk? That’s not right, ah. You can only use one hand, Yi Chuan wasn’t drunk, and his martial arts are higher than yours…..” Speaking of this, Liu Zhenqing suddenly gave an ohhh. “Could it be that you were given…..by him? Should I say congratulations?”

It seemed that Song Xingmu originally topped……

“No, I don’t know what happened either. I seem to remember kissing him. I’m dead, I’m dead. Wait and see, it might not be long before you have to collect my body,” Song Xingmu said with a long face. He usually made trouble and took advantage of that person, but Song Xingmu had never actually taken action.

Just a kiss?

Liu Zhenqing looked at Song Xingmu speechlessly. Then Yi Chuan’s voice sounded.

“What are you doing here?”

Song Xingmu instantly hid behind Liu Zhenqing, watching Yi Chuan cautiously.

“It’s time to treat your hand,” Yi Chuan said to Song Xingmu impatiently, stepping forward.

“You…..” Seeing that Yi Chuan was acting normal, Song Xingmu couldn’t help but wonder if that kiss was a dream. “Um, I woke up in your room. Did we sleep together last night?”

The disdain on Yi Chuan’s face grew even stronger as he said: “You were drunk and absolutely refused to go back. You insisted on sleeping with me.”

“You actually let me?” Song Xingmu asked in surprise.

Yi Chuan narrowed his eyes and said: “Because if I didn’t let you, you would have fought me with an injured hand.”

Song Xingmu: ……

Liu Zhenqing looked at Song Xingmu with raised eyebrows. What could be seen in Yi Chuan’s reaction? Was there…..actually no kiss? After all, Yi Chuan hated men being together.

Song Xingmu also thought of this, and couldn’t help asking: “Apart from that, what else did I do last night?”

Yi Chuan said calmly: “Nothing. Hurry up and get your hand treated.”

Song Xingmu’s eyes were filled with questions. He could only follow along while putting on his clothes, and didn’t see Yi Chuan turn his head with glinting eyes.

Yi Chuan comforted himself that he had only been forcibly kissed by a drunk and shameless scoundrel. His reaction to being kissed until his legs went weak was just because he had never been kissed before and had no experience. It wasn’t a big deal.

Lowering his head, Yi Chuan rubbed his hands. It seemed like he could still feel his hands running through the tips of Song Xingmu’s hair during the struggle last night, as well as touching his cold earrings. In the next second, he had been grabbed by Song Xingmu’s fair and slender hands and pressed down. If he hadn’t been worried about his hand, he wouldn’t have been held down so easily.

Song Xingmu passed out in the end. If his sleeping face didn’t look so much like a woman’s, he would have punched him. 

Because Yi Chuan had told Song Xingmu to go for treatment, Liu Zhenqing thought it must be time for Huo Fenglie’s treatment to end, and followed after them.

As a result, just as they came to the courtyard, they saw a figure flash past. It was another disheveled fellow. Why was it so fashionable to run around in underclothes now?

Looking at the figure rushing into the room, Liu Zhenqing recognized him as He Lan.

When they came to the door, they saw He Lan grasping Huo Fenglie’s arm as he asked: “You really don’t know why Qin Yu left alone? Doesn’t he tell you everything?”

Seeing that He Lan was growing angry with worry, Huo Fenglie could only say: “Were you with him last night?”

He Lan choked. It could even be said that Qin Yu was still in his arms just an hour before he fell asleep.

Huo Fenglie looked at him and didn’t inquire deeply. He just said: “He didn’t leave a single word?”

He Lan quickly said: “There was a note saying that he would return to the capital, but he clearly promised me that he wouldn’t go back for the time being.”

Huo Fenglie was slightly surprised: “He promised?”

He Lan froze, recalling that yes, ah, Qin Yu didn’t promise. It was just that Qin Yu took the initiative the night before, making He Lan think that the relationship between them had changed.

He didn’t believe that Qin Yu couldn’t hear what he meant. He just didn’t want them to get involved in a troublesome relationship when they returned to the capital. He thought they could simply spend time together without so many worries, and then go further…..

But Qin Yu left anyway, ignoring his proposal in order to return to the capital alone. Was this…..rejection? Sure enough, he was really…..not important at all in his heart.

He Lan gritted his teeth and said: “Does him leaving alone have something to do with the secret he spoke with you about before?”

Huo Fenglie took in He Lan’s tangled appearance and said: “If you want to know, go back and ask him.”

He Lan raised his head to look at Huo Fenglie. “We are all brothers. Why won’t you help me at all?”

Huo Fenglie replied: “It is because we are brothers that I can only say this.”

He Lan couldn’t be bothered to argue with Huo Fenglie anymore, and said angrily: “Hmph, I won’t accompany you for treatment. I must return to the capital to report on my work!”

Having said this, he turned around and ran.

Liu Zhenqing followed Huo Fenglie out, watching the departing He Lan. He said: “Letting him go back might not be a good idea. There are still the Jinyiwei behind him, and there may be conflicts. Then they will be in a dilemma.”

Huo Fenglie said: “If I don’t let him go back and something happens, he will blame me. And…..no matter how difficult the road is, they can walk it themselves. They don’t need me to help them choose.”

“Really?” Liu Zhenqing looked at Huo Fenglie and said, “Aren’t you worried?”

Huo Fenglie shook his head and suddenly murmured: “Leaving my side early may not be a bad thing. Perhaps in the future, we will also be on opposite sides.”

Liu Zhenqing was shocked, staring at Huo Fenglie in confusion. Huo Fenglie never abused his power and was loyal to Yuan Jue. As long as those two people didn’t betray the emperor, it could be said that they would never stand on the opposite side from Huo Fenglie.

“Why are you saying that out of nowhere?” Liu Zhenqing asked in concern.

Huo Fenglie said nothing more about it, turning around to say: “I’ll go back and see if there are any problems with the return trip arranged by the court.”

Liu Zhenqing suddenly held onto him, and Huo Fenglie’s body trembled.

Liu Zhenqing smiled. Sure enough, Er-gou was pretending to be calm and was looking for a reason to get away quickly.

He said: “We haven’t had breakfast yet. Let’s eat before we go.”

Without any explanation, Liu Zhenqing pulled Huo Fenglie to the kitchens, moved a bench, and sat in front of Huo Fenglie to watch him eat.

Huo Fenglie had just taken a bite of a bun under his coercion when he heard Liu Zhenqing say slowly: “How did you feel last night?”

With a grunt, Huo Fenglie nearly choked on the bun. He quickly swallowed it, not knowing what to say.

“I’m asking you, did you feel good last night?”

Huo Fenglie couldn’t bear it anymore, and was somewhat unable to swallow, patting his chest. When Liu Zhenqing handed him the soup, he took it at once and drank it.

Liu Zhenqing continued as he watched him drink the soup: “In any case, I felt rather good. Er-gou’s hands are big and have calluses from sword practice…..”

“Pu!”

A mouthful of soup spurted out.

“This was my first time helping someone else. If I didn’t do it well, you need to tell me so that I can improve.”

Huo Fenglie suddenly raised his head and looked at Liu Zhenqing in disbelief.

Liu Zhenqing said with a sincere expression: “I’m probably the only one who does this sort of thing.”

Huo Fenglie seemed a little overwhelmed. “Qing…..Qing-ge?”

Keeping up his efforts, Liu Zhenqing reached out to help the stunned Huo Fenglie wipe the soup splashed on his lips. He wiped his lips lightly, and finally placed his index finger on his mouth to clean it. This whole move caused Huo Fenglie’s pupils to quiver.

Liu Zhenqing supported his head, all smiles, and purposely moved his fingers in front of Huo Fenglie. “My hands were really tired last night. I’m not very skilled. Next time…..I should be a little better.”

After speaking, Liu Zhenqing raised his eyes slightly to look straight at Huo Fenglie, who seemed to have ascended to heaven. He had anticipated this reaction. 

But his luck was bad. In just a short while, Song Xingmu and Yi Chuan also arrived to have breakfast.

When they came in and gave their greetings, Huo Fenglie took the opportunity to gust out like the wind.

“Why did he leave so quickly? To meet the officials?” Song Xingmu touched his chin and looked at Liu Zhenqing, saying: “Were you bullying someone?”

Liu Zhenqing stretched, looking refreshed. “No way.”

He was about to leave, but was stopped by Song Xingmu: “By the way, Yi Chuan has something to say.”

Liu Zhenqing glanced at Yi Chuan.

Yi Chuan said: “I received news from the cells this morning that an original islander reported a clue in order to atone for his crimes. It passed through my hands first and then was handed over to the officials from the capital, and has to do with the outsiders on the island.”

Liu Zhenqing instantly became energized, and looked at Yi Chuan somewhat tensely.

Yi Chuan said: “They said they saw a man with great martial arts skills, who had the symbol of a noble from the Southern Shu Kingdom on his body.”

The Southern Shu Kingdom. Liu Zhenqing knew it well. It was one of the three southwest kingdoms that were defeated by Huo Fenglie.

Song Xingmu said with a chuckle: “This discovery will soon reach the emperor’s ears. I suppose the Western Shu Kingdom will ask for an explanation, but it’s unexpected that the rebels were also involved with foreigners.”

More backstage manipulators involved with the capital and the Dongchang. And they were foreigners.

Liu Zhenqing’s unease grew incrementally, and just as he was lost in thought, he saw Han Ye walk over.

Song Xingmu and Yi Chuan quickly invited him to eat.

Han Ye asked Liu Zhenqing when he planned to leave for Medical Valley.

The location of Medical Valley was at the junction of Southern Shu and Great Zhou.

Liu Zhenqing naturally said that he would wait for Huo Fenglie to determine the time.

Huo Fenglie didn’t return until noon. As soon as he came back, he said to Liu Zhenqing: “The emperor has given me a secret decree.”

Liu Zhenqing was a little surprised: “Haven’t those court officials been here for several days?”

“It was delivered this morning.” Huo Fenglie directly showed the secret decree to Liu Zhenqing.

Liu Zhenqing opened it and read through it, frowning. What a coincidence?

The secret decree stated that it was recently discovered that the Southern Shu Kingdom intended to make a move, and that something felt wrong. Huo Fenglie should go directly to Nanfeng City to look into it on the emperor’s behalf. The emperor had already sent a message to the City Lord of Nanfeng City, telling him to receive Huo Fenglie.

And Nanfeng City was separated from the Western Shu Kingdom by a dense, primitive forest.

---

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Chapter Ninety-Eight << Table of Contents >> Chapter One Hundred

The October morning breeze was cool and clear. The temperature brushing against the surface of his skin was enough to make him shiver, but unfortunately could not extinguish the silent, burning flame in Pei Xi’s heart.

After exiting the winding villa community and before going to work, he had to return home first and change out of his overly youthful clothes.

Emails and messages had piled up after just one day. He briefly scanned the subject lines in the car and did a quick review of the backlog of messages.

Simple policy decisions and planning mandates had already been made on his behalf. Assistant Xiao Gu had handled the situation very well, and did not create any trouble for him nor any messes that needed to be dealt with.

In the end, there was nothing that was not satisfactory.

He put down his phone and rubbed the space between his eyebrows with his fingertips, trying to diffuse the worries accumulated there.

However, his success was minimal.

Before exiting the car, he called Xiao Gu and informed him in advance that he would be arriving at the company in half an hour, and asked him to move all of his afternoon meetings to the morning.

And in addition, to collect all of the projects that needed to be finalized by him personally. He would handle it all within the day.

“All of it…..today?”

Xiao Gu couldn’t help his astonishment, and confirmed again: “President Pei, there are two meetings today, a partner who needs to see you in person, five project plans, and annual financials—”

“All of it.”

Pei Xi interrupted him in a low voice: “Send the reports to my email. Don’t make me ask a second time.”

“Oh, yes, of course, of course.”

Xiao Gu responded hastily. Listening to the sound of the phone being hung up neatly, he could only wipe the non-existent sweat from his forehead.

It was here.

The long-unseen pressure of his immediate boss in a bad mood had come once more.

*

*

The feeling of an empty stomach was not pleasant. When he got home, Pei Xi had originally planned to eat something to hold him over before changing his clothes and going out.

But as soon as he stepped into the kitchen, he saw two sandwiches in various degrees of mutilation on a plate at the far side of the counter, and the anger that had just been deliberately numbed by a busy work schedule rekindled with raging momentum.

Before today, he had never felt so ridiculously naive.

Had he actually thought He Chuzhou was a good person?

Short-term obligation fundamentally did not represent long-term good behavior. It was very possible that this was just his psychological adjustment due to extreme exhaustion and overindulgence.

A person who went to nightclubs to drink with a gang of scoundrels, how good could he be?!

For people like He Chuzhou, who had long-frequented the red-light district, there was no bottom line or lower limit. There was no telling how many companions he had gone through in bed. No wonder he could deal with people so easily and skilfully.

It was unknown how many times he said those sweet words, how many people had been coaxed using the same tricks, how many occasions he spent so much money, and how many little companions he cooked dinner for with endless attentiveness and patience.

He truly couldn’t accept that after losing his memory, he could be coaxed by these tricks.

There were so many unsettling emotions, not just the anger of being deceived, but even more so the humiliation of being teased at will when his self-awareness was weak.

The transfer of memories went one way, and he remembered everything that happened when he was confused, frame by frame, with incomparable clarity.

But it was precisely because of this that the intense emotions he felt then were so hard to get rid of now.

He was like an inexperienced fool, a dunce, believing that everything was real, actually believing in full that that person was really…..really…..

His dislike for that person had reached a whole new level!

The congested and stuffy feeling in his chest persisted, spreading throughout his body as he breathed. It seemed that even his empty stomach was full to the brim, leaving him with no appetite at all.

He closed his eyes, exhaled a heavy breath, and neatly tipped the two cold sandwiches into the trash can.

He went back to the bedroom and changed clothes, doing up his tie. Before he finished up and left, his gaze happened to land on the rubber pig beside the bed.

On four short hooves, it stood silently on the edge of the bedside table, and at this moment, its originally innocent and naive look revealed an incomparable mocking ridicule.

Pei Xi fixed his eyes on it for two seconds, his expression frosty.

When this person left and quickly closed the door, the bedside table was empty.

The rubber pig lay silently inside the trash can, a foolish smile on its face.

*

*

“President Pei, the minutes for yesterday’s meetings have been sorted out and sent to your mailbox.”

“The plans for several recent projects are on your desk, and the modified areas need your reconfirmation.”

“The list of visitors with appointments is also there. I’ve rejected all of the unnecessary ones for you.”

“In addition, some developers from tech companies want to recommend some new products to you…..”

Inside the office, Xiao Gu methodically conveyed the current work progress to Pei Xi.

Afterwards, the latter’s attention was focused on things unrelated to work.

Yesterday had to be the last time.

He absolutely could not let himself go looking for that bastard today.

If he entered a nightclub with pools of wine and forests of meat, who knew if he would be coaxed by a night of soft whispers, or whose bed he might wake up in.

“The projects that have begun are progressing smoothly, and the workload is much lower than before. You can have a good rest…..”

Xiao Gu’s speech gradually slowed. As he spoke, he carefully observed his boss’s face.

Hm…..it wasn’t very good.

Had that plan been poorly revised?

Why did he need to stare at it for so long?

The paper was crumpled.

“……President Pei?”

He hesitated for a moment, then asked tentatively: “Is there a problem with the project?”

“President Pei? President Pei?”

Pei Xi returned to his senses and looked up. The light reflecting from his lenses made it difficult to see the emotion in his eyes: “What?”

Xiao Gu could only ask again: “Is there something wrong with the project? Does it need to be revised?”

“No need.” Pei Xi set the documents aside and removed his glasses, rubbing the bridge of his nose: “Just act according to the above and make adjustments during the follow-up. I have nothing else, you go and get to work.”

Xiao Gu nodded, and couldn’t help but express his concern before leaving: “President Pei, you don’t seem to be feeling well. Would you like to rest first?”

“No need.”

The last thing he should do now was rest. “Make me a cup of coffee, no sugar.”

Xiao Gu delivered the coffee quickly and went out again. Steam wafted from the coffee cup, and the bitter scent filled Pei Xi’s nose. He took a small sip and put it down with a frown.

The feeling of dizziness grew increasingly worse. Excluding lack of sleep, it could only be a cold.

He gripped the table to stand up, planning to go to the lounge and find the medicine left there last time. It took him two steps to realize that his limbs felt weak, and so did the rest of his body.

This anything but reassuring premonition caused him to endure the discomfort and persist in walking to the sofa.

Unfortunately, he didn’t even have time to sit down before his vision went black and he fainted onto the carpet.

The afternoon sun shone through the gaps in the thick clouds, striving to form radiant shapes that spread from the floor-to-ceiling windows to the lounge in straight lines.

As time went by, the area of light spread inch by inch.

Just as it was about to climb onto the smooth back of his hand, the owner of the hand slowly opened his eyes.

In the empty lounge, he gasped softly and tried several times before he finally raised his upper body to recline on the sofa.

His eyes circled around blankly, and finally landed on the cell phone lying silently on the floor.

An indescribable feeling of fatigue enveloped his entire body. He leaned into the sofa and closed his eyes for a while, then reached out for the phone and dialed a familiar number.

*

*

“President He, this is our latest developed robotic arm. It has adopted the most advanced smart chip technology, and it is also equipped with an infrared sensing function, face scanning, and QR code scanning……”

His pocket vibrated several times, and He Chuzhou took out his cell phone. Above was Wu Qing’s urging message: 

[What time do you get off work? Come here quickly, I’ve ordered everything.]

[/picture]

[There’s not only duck heads, but also marinated spicy crayfish that Laurel’s chef purchased at a high price. The taste is different from outside. It’s so delicious.]

[/picture]

[There’s a new gadget, smart 4D projection glasses. Wear it, and there will be countless handsome guys and beauties partying around you!]

[Hurry up, ah, they’re waiting for you!]

He Chuzhou actually didn’t quite understand why this guy was so fond of going to bars to eat duck heads and crayfish.

He exited the image, and had opened the keyboard to reply when a sudden call came in.

When he saw the caller, he raised his eyebrows without a hint of surprise. There was a hint of a smile in them that he didn’t even notice, and he said with self-satisfaction after the call connected: “Xiao Pei, where did you run off to again?”

The promoter of the robotic arm had recommended himself for the job. He had full confidence in the research and development, and had made sufficient preparations before coming, so he was bound to be able to sell it.

But who could have known that unplanned changes would occur.

Just as he was about to announce the climax, where the robotic arm would mix drinks, the important audience member hastily left the venue after receiving a phone call, leaving only one sentence: “Further details should be directed to my assistant.”

Directed…..to the assistant…..

The promoter withdrew his stunned gaze from where He Chuzhou’s back had disappeared and turned to look at Yun Ji, who was smiling but obviously not easy to fool.

“…….”

He was fucked.

*

*

Pei Xi couldn’t remember why he was here, nor could he take out his employee card and use the special elevator.

He Chuzhou had no choice but to take this person down the employee elevator, and in front of Pei Group’s employees, “swaggeringly kidnap their president.”

Thus, unsurprisingly, the gossip groups on both sides contributed new information: 

[President He came to the door and took my President Pei away!]

[What’s the situation? Have they actually been to the Civil Affairs Bureau?]

[Ahhhhhhhh, screaming and running wildly. I set loose 800 wild boars!]

[No, I don’t agree with this marriage]

[Commander-in-chief He has returned, but the best dowry for a man is chastity, ah, my people! He is not worthy of him!]

[Then you are appointed to break them up. Are you going or not?]

[President He is moving too fast. How long has he been in pursuit? President Pei, President Pei can’t keep up, ah!]

[The good crop~is being eaten~by a pig~]

[Plus, they were holding hands when they went out. Okay, President He must be satisfied to death, right?]

*

*

His life arranged beyond recognition, He Chuzhou stood before the door of the car. He looked at the person in the passenger seat, who refused on his life to go to the hospital from beginning to end, and looked at him from head to toe. He asked repeatedly: “You’ve really recovered? You’re not dizzy anymore?”

Pei Xi drank some energy water and ate the chocolate cake He Chuzhou had brought at the last minute, gradually gaining strength. Although he was mentally distressed, his expression wasn’t as bad as before.

“How could you have hypoglycemia?”

Frowning, He Chuzhou helped him hold the water: “Don’t tell me you haven’t eaten all day.”

Heavens knew how alarmed he was when he received the call just now and heard Pei Xi say pitifully that he had just fainted and woken up. His heart was beating so fast.

On the way here, he accidentally ran a red light and was probably slapped with an electronic ticket.

It was a pity that Pei Xi couldn’t remember.

He didn’t even remember why he was alone in his dad’s office.

“Maybe he wanted you to go over and deliver some documents or something.”

He Chuzhou randomly made up an excuse and leaned down to touch his face. It was still cold: “Are you hungry?”

Pei Xi nodded.

After that, he seemed to feel that he hadn’t expressed his hunger well, so he added rigorously: “Very hungry.”

Okay, it seemed that he hadn’t eaten all day.

He Chuzhou was so angry that his teeth itched. It was difficult not to act fiercely, but he could only grind his back molars and rub his hair hard: “You’re so worrisome!”

He couldn’t tell which was more important, work or his body.

Pei Xi lowered his head and said nothing. When He Chuzhou finished venting his anger, he silently pulled the other’s hand down and buried his face in it.

Long eyelashes fluttered across his palm, tickling slightly.

Now he couldn’t even be angry anymore.

He Chuzhou let out a resigned sigh and held that face with both hands, giving it a comforting squeeze: “Forget it. Finish the cake first and then think about what else you want to eat. I’ll take you to get it.”

Pei Xi thought seriously, then shook his head: “Chuzhou, I have no appetite.”

That said, he handed the cake in his hand to He Chuzhou: “I don’t want to eat anything.”

He was very hungry, and still didn’t want to eat?

How could this be?

He Chuzhou quickly ran through the restaurants he knew in his mind, but before he could narrow them down, Wu Qing sent another message:

[What are you doing?]

[I’ve been waiting until all the flowers have withered, why haven’t you come?]

He Chuzhou didn’t have time to deal with him at the moment. But just when he was about to turn the phone off, he had a sudden flash of inspiration.

He scrolled up in his chat history and clicked on the image of spicy duck head on a platter, showing it to Pei Xi: “Do you want to eat this?”

It looked excellent in color, aroma, and taste, and could very easily whet the appetite.

Pei Xi stared at it for a few seconds, and his curiosity was greater than his appetite: “I haven’t eaten it before. Is it tasty?”

“Definitely.”

Seeing that he had fallen into the trap, He Chuzhou raised his lips in a smile and put away the cell phone. He ate the cake that Pei Xi couldn’t finish in a few bites and shut the car door: “I’ll take you to have a taste.”

---

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Chapter 18 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 20

Liu Zhenqing expressed his disdain: “No matter how beautiful the night is, how can you help me?”

“Don’t forget that when I pursue a person, I catch them easily.” Song Xingmu raised his head proudly.

Liu Zhenqing remained stubborn, saying: “Why should I pursue someone? I just want him to hurry up and face the facts. I’ve begun to wonder if he only loves the Liu Zhenqing of the past.”

“Why do you care so much? Just be happy while you have the chance, it’s too late to change anything now. There’s no use in using drugs on you, but it’s fine to give them to him and make him unable to control himself.” Song Xingmu said this with a wicked smile.

Liu Zhenqing’s heart palpitated at just the thought, ah, because he was impatient with Huo Fenglie’s restraint.

But he still said decently: “Am I this kind of person?”

Song Xingmu said: “The brave will sate their hunger and the timid will starve. Look over there.”

Liu Zhenqing looked over and saw that at some point, He Lan had placed a hand on Qin Yu’s shoulder. With an extremely enthusiastic attitude, he tried to get Qin Yu to drink wine. This evil intention could be clearly seen across the table.

What surprised Liu Zhenqing was that Qin Yu was very cooperative this time and didn’t kick that person away. Could it be that their relationship had truly made great progress? Or was he already drunk? But the wine He Lan had found really had a lot of stamina.

“Men, ah, as long as they have sex, anything can be figured out. You should have sex first, then fall in love.” Song Xingmu said boldly: “And if there are any problems again, just do it a few more times. Once the body is exhausted, the heart will be happy.”

Hearing these words, even Liu Zhenqing felt a little uncomfortable. This person really deserved to be the Sea King.

Liu Zhenqing poked fun at him, saying: “Are you planning to use this trick on Yi Chuan, ah? He has been by your side for many years, but you’ve never made a move. I thought you kept him at your side because of your attraction to him.”

“It’s because I didn’t think his talent should be wasted, okay?” Song Xingmu was quick to speak resolutely. 

Liu Zhenqing squinted at him.

Song Xingmu felt that he couldn’t hide anything from this brother who knew everything. “Fine, I fell in love with him at first sight. It is no exaggeration to say that my feelings for him are getting deeper and deeper, but he is a person who hates men to the extreme. You also know the reason for that. There is really nothing to be done in such a situation. I can’t force him to think of such a sad thing. So I just can’t pursue him, that’s all. It’s not bad to be together like this for the rest of our lives.”

Liu Zhenqing gave a small sigh. It was unknown if choosing someone unattainable could be considered the Sea King’s retribution. After all, what happened to Yi Chuan’s brother had once dealt a heavy blow to him. This kind of psychological problem was difficult to deal with, and Song Xingmu could only hold back in order to avoid hurting him. As a result, so many years had been wasted.

“Then what if he wants to get married and have children in the future?” Liu Zhenqing asked curiously. After all, Yi Chuan was younger than Song Xingmu.

Song Xingmu stared blankly and said: “Then I will probably find a way to snatch away his fiance and not give him a chance to marry. Just with my face and my ability to coax girls, it would be easy to win against a youngster like him.”

Liu Zhenqing opened his mouth wide in astonishment, but Song Xingmu smiled and said: “I’m just kidding. Naturally, I would send gifts and blessings.”

According to Liu Zhenqing’s understanding of this brother, it hadn’t felt like a joke at all. He even thought that this kind of thing might have happened before, and that anyone who fell in love with Yi Chuan would be lured away by Song Xingmu before he turned around. He was so petty. How could he allow the person he liked to become someone else’s?

While the two of them talked, they were unaware that Yi Chuan was crouched at the foot of the outer wall of the courtyard with a heated bottle of wine. His head was buried in his arms, completely concealing his expression.

When Yi Chuan returned with the wine, Song Xingmu’s conversation topic had evolved to a restricted level.

“Be honest, do you know what goes on between men? It’s not just touching like last time.”

“Nonsense, of course I know.” Liu Zhenqing had drunk a little too much alcohol and was unwilling to be looked down upon.

Song Xingmu instructed: “No matter how you look at it, you are the one who will be the recipient. So you’ll have to be prepared, otherwise you will suffer a lot when the time comes. Just looking at Huo Fenglie’s physique…..”

Before he could finish speaking, he was interrupted by a bang.

Song Xingmu looked up and saw that a dark-faced Yi Chuan had put the bottle down. Song Xingmu promptly waved his hands and said: “You sit aside and drink. Don’t listen, kid.”

Yi Chuan really didn’t want to listen to this kind of thing, so he might as well sit farther away. But when he thought of what Song Xingmu had said before, he couldn’t help but prick up his ears.

In fact, ever since he completed his studies and descended the mountain to follow Song Xingmu, although Song Xingmu behaved wildly, he really never really did anything with others. So even though it was known that Song Xingmu liked men, it was still not clear whether he was the giver or receiver in a relationship between men.

Yi Chuan glanced at Song Xingmu. After so many years, he felt that the other man could still pass for a man or a woman, so he should be the receiver.

In fact, Yi Chuan often thought that if Song Xingmu was actually a woman, he would have already established a successful career and married him. After all, he was the one who fell in love with Song Xingmu at first sight when he was dressed as a woman.

Over there, Song Xingmu drank too much, talked too much, and continued to disseminate common sense to his good brother.

When he heard that Liu Zhenqing really hadn’t seen Huo Fenglie’s size, the drunk Song Xingmu said that he would take him to go and have a look. So without saying a word, he grabbed Liu Zhenqing’s collar and flew away with him.

Seeing that Song Xingmu was clearly drunk, Yi Chuan was afraid that he would mess with his hand, so he followed after him quickly.

The remaining two people returned to their senses when they saw such commotion.

“What are they doing?” Qin Yu asked.

“They drank too much, so they’re going to use the latrine. Don’t worry about it, let’s keep drinking,” He Lan said enthusiastically.

Qin Yu pushed away his offer to drink: “I won’t.”

After saying this, he stood and went to leave, but he didn’t even take two steps when he began to stumble. He Lan stepped forward and held him: “I told you that your drinking capacity is not as good as mine. Come on, I’ll take you back.” As he spoke, his hands touched Qin Yu’s slender waist from time to time.

Qin Yu gave him a sideways glance, but didn’t stop him, allowing He Lan to carry him back to the room.

He Lan spoke with a smile: “Right, Zhanyuan and the others will be leaving in two days. We might as well go with them. In any case, someone from the capital will naturally handle the rest. We’ve worked so hard all the way, so we should have a good rest.”

“You’re probably afraid to return to the capital,” Qin Yu said in a heavy voice.

He Lan said in an exaggerated manner: “Yes, ah, I’m so afraid. Afraid that I’ll be enslaved when I go back, and I want a vacation, a vacation! So, ah, Qin Zichuan, you can’t go back either. If you go back, you will expose me.”

Qin Yu said nothing. In fact, they both knew that when they returned to the capital, they would no longer be just Qin Yu and He Lan. And they were Dongchang and Jinyiwei. Even if both of those looked good on the outside, nobody knew what they were like on the inside.

He Lan put him on the bed and deliberately didn’t get up, deliberately keeping that position for a while. Then he raised his head with a smile: “What should be done? I seem to be drunk too. I can’t stand up, and I can’t go back. How about you let me sleep here?”

He Lan gave a shameless smile, and Qin Yu looked at him expressionlessly.

He Lan raised an eyebrow, and ambiguity gradually gleamed in his eyes. “Zichuan, do you want to…..”

Suddenly, Qin Yu flipped over and reversed their positions.

He Lan was startled. Thinking that Qin Yu couldn’t resist exploiting an opportunity, he raised his hand to cover his face.

But in the next second, gentle lips descended.

This was the first time Qin Yu had taken the initiative to kiss him. He Lan was very confused for a moment, but when he reacted, he was like an eagle catching prey, never letting go.

But this night, Qin Yu’s behavior was different. The previous times happened due to drugs, and Qin Yu was almost always passive. But this time, without the drugs, Qin Yu’s initiative almost made He Lan want to stay in bed with this person until death.

Looking back afterwards, perhaps it was because Qin Yu thought it would be their last time. Only then could he give up all dignity and only seek satisfaction without leaving behind any regrets.

And that night, that fair, delicate body took control of the situation in bed for almost half the time, yet was still weak and boneless. The image could never be erased from He Lan’s mind.

On the other side, Liu Zhenqing was slightly rejuvenated by the cool breeze on the roof. When he was able to react, he saw Song Xingmu point to the roof tiles and say: “Go down and have a closer look, ah.”

Liu Zhenqing: ……

Before Liu Zhenqing could do anything, Huo Fenglie’s voice came from below. He had great martial arts skills, and could certainly sense it when there were people standing on the roof.

But he couldn’t leave the medicinal bath, so he could only give a warning.

“Who is it?”

As soon as he heard the voice, Song Xingmu looked troubled and said quickly: “Hurry up.”

Liu Zhenqing was still confused when he saw Song Xingmu use his good hand to lift up the tiles and open a skylight in the room. Then he was grabbed, and Liu Zhenqing felt the belt of his robes being ripped off as he was thrown down from the skylight.

Yi Chuan to the side watched everything, dumbfounded. In the blink of an eye, he was dragged away by Song Xingmu. It seemed that he was playing a prank, and he really was drunk.

A cry stunned Huo Fenglie, who was preparing to take action. He instantly knew who was falling, and could only use his internal strength to slow him a bit. Then he heard a splash as Liu Zhenqing completed his previously unfinished goal of bathing together and fell directly into Huo Fenglie’s medicinal bath.

Water splashed everywhere. Liu Zhenqing felt Huo Fenglie reach out to support him, but water had splashed into his eyes and he could only open one of them.

But the moment he opened his eye, Liu Zhenqing seemed to see that a leaf had fallen on Huo Fenglie’s shoulder.

His vision was blurry and he couldn’t see clearly. When he was about to open his eyes and take a closer look, Huo Fenglie suddenly pushed Liu Zhenqing into the water as if startled and slightly frightened. He didn’t give him a chance to see it again.

But at this time, Liu Zhenqing could see everything under the water from a different angle.

Cross-legged, Huo Fenglie sat in the bath with nothing covering him. After Liu Zhenqing was pushed down by Huo Fenglie, he almost had a face-to-face encounter with a certain thing.

This moment of stimulation caused Liu Zhenqing to choke on water.

Huo Fenglie also reacted quickly and fished this person out, pulling the back of Liu Zhenqing’s head with one hand and covering his eyes with the other.

Liu Zhenqing coughed for a while before stopping, but his head was still buzzing. Everything had happened so fast just now. He didn’t even know what was going on, but he had achieved his purpose in coming here tonight. He really saw it.

Although he had vaguely seen it through clothing and had touched it casually, he had never really observed it.

Liu Zhenqing didn’t even care about Huo Fenglie covering his eyes, and muttered to himself: “So…..so big.”

It simply made a man feel inferior after seeing it. Right now it was sleeping, but when it woke up, Liu Zhenqing would truly worry about his future, ah!

And Huo Fenglie was also nervous, because at this moment, the tattoo on his body was completely visible. He was afraid that Liu Zhenqing would see it just now, so he had pushed his head down in a hurry. After he came to his senses, he could only cover Liu Zhenqing’s eyes.

As a result, he was caught off guard when he heard such a sentence. It took him a moment to realize what Liu Zhenqing was talking about, and his face instantly turned red with embarrassment.

“Qing…..Qing-ge? What are you doing here?”

Liu Zhenqing quickly shirked the blame and said: “I had nothing to do with it. Song Xingmu got drunk and acted crazy.”

Huo Fenglie looked at the disheveled Liu Zhenqing before him. His undershirt completely outlined the curves of his body due to being soaked, and his black hair was stuck to his crystal-clear skin. He exuded an aroma of wine that made a person dizzy.

Feeling that he could no longer stay like this, Huo Fenglie said: “Let’s get out…..”

“Wait, you haven’t spent enough time in here yet.”

“Then…..you get out.”

Liu Zhenqing was about to acquiesce, but then realized that his eyes had been covered. Speechless, he tried to push Huo Fenglie’s hand away: “What are you doing, ah?”

Huo Fenglie remained silent and didn’t respond, nor did he remove his hand. With one hand on the other’s head and the second covering his eyes, he guarded against Liu Zhenqing, fearing that he might suddenly see something.

“I just saw it in the water, there’s no need to be shy. You should be proud.” Liu Zhenqing spoke with a smile, wondering if there was a reaction. So he was embarrassed to let him see it. Hehehe, then he certainly had to take a look.

Huo Fenglie became a bit hotter when he was told this. “Qing-ge…..please move to the back of the tub.”

“Okay, ah. Move your hand, I’ll close my eyes. I promise not to look,” Liu Zhenqing said.

Probably because Liu Zhenqing spoke so airily, Huo Fenglie fell silent.

Liu Zhenqing continued to coax, “Qing-ge swears that he will never look. Whoever opens his eyes is a dog.”

Huo Fenglie still didn’t move. Yes, ah, who was the dog in this trick? Every time, Qing-ge was the one who woofed, showing no credibility at all.

But Huo Fenglie was at his wit’s end. He really wanted to cover himself with a bath towel, but then he would have to let go. According to his understanding of Liu Zhenqing, he would certainly take this opportunity to cause trouble.

However, Liu Zhenqing was currently restless. Knowing that Huo Fenglie would not let go, he began to reach out and feel around.

From Huo Fenglie’s face, to his chest, and then farther down. It was obvious that he was trying to intimidate Huo Fenglie.

Huo Fenglie’s body tensed: “Qing-ge!”

“What are you doing? You can block me. Otherwise I’ll continue to touch the beauty blindfolded.” Liu Zhenqing gave an evil smile and used his trump card, stretching out his hand toward a certain place.

Startled, Huo Fenglie suddenly pulled Liu Zhenqing into his arms, hugging him tightly. Or rather, capturing him. This forced Liu Zhenqing’s arms to go over Huo Fenglie’s shoulders and rest outside the tub. Due to being held tightly, Liu Zhenqing’s hands naturally couldn’t mess with Huo Fenglie’s body.

Liu Zhenqing tried to turn his head and look, but Huo Fenglie held his head down with one hand. This way, even without blindfolding him, Liu Zhenqing couldn’t see any of what was on Huo Fenglie. Now Liu Zhenqing was no threat to Huo Fenglie at all, and could only smack him on the head angrily.

Huo Fenglie had just breathed a sigh of relief when he felt the person in his arms move.

His face suddenly tensed. Because this action basically made Liu Zhenqing sit on Huo Fenglie in the most intimate position.

And the place where…..

Liu Zhenqing chuckled in his ear, stirring up waves of heat and embarrassment and making him too ashamed to show his face. Did Qing-ge feel it?

At this time, Liu Zhenqing was also a little slow to react, and Huo Fenglie was able to pull himself up to sit. This was not what he had wanted to cover up before, but the tattoo.

The tattoo was revealed after being exposed to hot water for a time, so Huo Fenglie took his medicinal baths alone.

Liu Zhenqing asked directly: “You don’t want me to see the tattoo? What is the secret, ah?”

“There isn’t one!” Huo Fenglie said quickly.

Liu Zhenqing discovered that this was really a taboo for Huo Fenglie. He didn’t need to dig up the other person’s little secrets to prove his own importance, but he still cared a little bit inside.

“You really can’t show it to me?” Liu Zhenqing lay leisurely in Huo Fenglie’s arms as he said this almost coquettishly.

Huo Fenglie was silent for a moment. “I can’t.”

Such a straightforward statement. What else could Liu Zhenqing say? Everyone had little secrets, and he also had a secret that he dared not tell Huo Fenglie, ah.

So Liu Zhenqing no longer pushed. “Okay, I won’t look at it. However…..”

Liu Zhenqing abruptly turned his head. His lips nearly touched Huo Fenglie’s earlobe like a kiss, and he instantly turned red.

“I really drank too much, and now I’m being tormented like this by you.” Liu Zhenqing twisted like a willow in the water, letting Huo Fenglie feel the changes in his body. “You know we’re both men, Fenglie. Help me like you did before.”

Huo Fenglie was shocked, and said almost dumbly: “Qing-ge, like this…..it isn’t good.”

“You dislike it?”

“N…..no.”

“Then help me. Hurry up.”

---

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Chapter Ninety-Seven << Table of Contents >> Chapter Ninety-Nine

“Why did you say we are just good friends?”

Pei Xi’s unhappy mood did not improve from the moment they left the shopping mall to getting into the car. The corners of his mouth were practically a flat line: “We are clearly married.”

“Can good friends hold hands? Can they kiss? Can they sleep—”

“It was just a more fun way of saying it.”

He Chuzhou hastily interrupted the dirty words that were about to come out of Pei Xi’s mouth and summoned up the courage to explain: “And those clerks actually noticed our relationship.”

Pei Xi was suspicious: “Really?”

He Chuzhou affirmed: “Really.”

Pei Xi: “How could they tell?”

“We’re a well-matched couple, ah.” He Chuzhou’s expression didn’t change: “People who have lived together a long time will gradually grow closer in appearance. Don’t you think we are quite similar?”

Pei Xi stared at his face and examined it.

“……”

Forget it, this question was more subjective. He chose not to answer, and expressed his doubts again: “Then how is it fun to call ourselves good friends?”

He Chuzhou: “It’s just like how many people like to call their significant other their roommate. You can think of it as a sort of teasing fun.”

He was really more and more impressed with himself.

Ever since Pei-calico arrived, his ability to bullshit had been improving at the speed of light.

Considering the authenticity of his words, Pei Xi abruptly thought of something and his displeasure turned into curiosity: “So some girls also call their boyfriends ‘brother-in-law’?”

He Chuzhou: “? ? ?”

He suddenly felt as if his own family’s child had been corrupted by the dirty information in this world: “Where did you hear that?”

“When I came to find you this morning.”

Pei Xi said: “I saw a couple come out of a house. The woman called the man ‘brother-in-law’ and asked him if her sister would be angry that he bought her a bag.”

He Chuzhou: “……”

Pei Xi: “So the ‘sister’ in this sentence is also fictional, and to add fun?”

He Chuzhou: “………”

When faced with Pei Xi’s eyes, which were so rigorous that he seemed to be verifying the entire history of human civilization, although He Chuzhou was in a very complicated mood, he could only submit himself to the hole he had dug: “Right, that’s it.”

Pei Xi nodded slowly. He accepted this explanation and did not ask further questions on the topic.

But He Chuzhou looked at his thoughtful expression and felt uneasy, like something wasn’t right.

There was still work to be done in the afternoon. Based on the experience last time, He Chuzhou took him directly to his office.

When work was over, He Chuzhou followed Pei Xi’s wishes to not eat out for dinner and instead went to the nearest supermarket to buy ingredients to cook at home themselves.

Of course, “themselves” referred specifically to He Chuzhou.

Pei Xi didn’t seem to have an understanding of He Chuzhou’s true level of cooking skills, and was still thinking about making a sumptuous dinner to make up for the meal earlier.

But He Chuzhou’s understanding was already very clear.

So after arriving at home, he decisively took over the responsibility of cooking and refused to let Pei Xi touch a single knife, dish, pot, or bowl in the kitchen.

And he named it euphemistically: An inspection of the results of his teaching.

Pei Xi was very worried about him: “Are you able to do it? Can you recognize sugar and salt? Can you tell the difference between shallots and garlic sprouts?”

“Naturally.” He Chuzhou tied an apron on himself. “I’m your proud disciple, Pei-laoshi. Have more confidence in yourself.”

When he was alone in a foreign country, the people there rarely had hot, freshly-cooked food, and it was so unpalatable that it could ruin a person’s taste buds. He had developed his cooking skills at that time.

He prepared the raw materials, skillfully blanched them in a pot, washed and chopped the vegetables, and handled the complex cooking process with ease.

Pei Xi stood to the side and watched for a while. The initial worry in his eyes gradually faded, and they quietly became dim and lost.

“Chuzhou, you’re so skillful.”

He spoke in a whisper, the volume so low that it was more like he was talking to himself: “You learned so well and so quickly, and you’re even better than me.”

Fortunately, the two of them were very close, and He Chuzhou heard every word he said. Thinking once again of the other’s chaotic cooking skills, he was amused, but responded modestly: “No, no, it is Laoshi who taught me well.”

When he said this, the person next to him went quiet and didn’t say anything for a long while.

He Chuzhou couldn’t get used to it, and turned to look at him, only to realize that Pei Xi was in a low mood.

The few days they had spent together was enough for him to glean a bit of information.

For example, that Pei Xi preferred light colors, he didn’t like to eat fish, and…..and that Pei Xi in pet mode was as fragile as a snail that had lost its shell. He needed to be coaxed, accompanied, cared for, and comforted. He needed someone to hold him with one hand and cover his eyes with the other, creating a new shell for him to protect him from the wind and rain.

So he slowed down and spoke softly, his smile never fading: “Xiao Pei-laoshi, why are you unhappy?”

Pei Xi glanced at him, then lowered his head and continued to stare at the steaming pot: “Why did you want to learn to cook, and why are you so good at it?”

He Chuzhou: “Isn’t it a good thing that I’ve learned?”

“It’s not good.”

Pei Xi spoke, and after a couple of seconds’ pause, he whispered again: “It’s not good.”

How could it be good?

“Now that you’ve learned, you don’t need me anymore.”

The sweet and sour pork ribs were almost ready, and the aroma suffused the kitchen. Pei Xi sniffed it attentively and felt that it was much better than he was capable of.

He could do it himself.

Of course Pei Xi was no longer needed.

His thoughts drifted away with the steam and he lost his center of gravity, swaying as he fell into confusion……

Then the top of his head was stroked, neither lightly nor forceful.

He returned to his senses and raised his head just in time to watch He Chuzhou straighten up. The scattered hair over Pei Xi’s forehead was a little messy after being ruffled.

“My hands aren’t free, so I can only do this.”

He Chuzhou’s voice was helpless, his expression particularly lazy and relaxed when he looked down. 

His eyes were deep and level, with no trace of gloom inside them.

“Don’t think up nonsense. It’s unnecessary.”

“Think about how difficult it is to cook. Since I’ve learned how, you can be liberated from it.”

“Besides, I studied well just so that I could take better care of you, didn’t I?”

Pei Xi was taken aback by his unhurried tone. It was like some desolate place was being carefully filled, and his eyelashes trembled. He didn’t speak again for a long time.

The pork rib sauce was almost ready. He Chuzhou estimated the time, opened the lid, brought over the plate, and got to work.

When he took the last spoonful, there was suddenly a tight grip on his waist, along with a warmth on his back that didn’t belong to him. 

Pei Xi hugged him from behind and buried his head in his shoulders like a clingy koala. The muffled “thank you” sounded childish.

He Chuzhou had never been hugged in such a way before, and wasn’t used to it. He felt a little itchy, and his ears were a bit warm.

Putting the last spoonful of ribs on the plate, he moved his hand to the side and was about to speak, when he heard the koala clinging to his back say in a muffled voice: “Brother-in-law.”

He Chuzhou: “……”

He Chuzhou: “……….”

The heat on his earlobes receded as fast as lightning.

His hand shook, and a piece of ribs rolled to the ground. He Xingxing, who had been squatting there for a long time, excitedly took it back to his kennel.

*

*

“Don’t use ‘Brother-in-law.’”

“That sort of thing is for young people nowadays.”

“Not that you aren’t young……and I’m certainly not old.”

“We are honorable scholars and intellectuals who don’t use such language for lewd fun.”

After dinner, He Chuzhou spent a full five minutes firmly warning Pei Xi to not use words involving proper human relationships so casually, such as “Brother-in-law.”

Pei Xi listened attentively like a good student, and asked: “Then when exactly can it be used?”

He Chuzhou: “Don’t use it at any time! Be obedient.”

“Okay.”

Pei Xi responded calmly, but his tone was somewhat disappointed: “I thought you wanted to have fun with me.”

He Chuzhou: “……”

He had lifted a rock and dropped it on his own foot again. If it could be visualized, he would be partially disabled from the ankles down.

Never mind.

He patted his forehead and stood up: “I’m going to take a shower first.” A cold shower to calm down.

Pei Xi gave a hum and stood up with his pajamas, following him step by step.

He Chuzhou turned back: “What are you doing?”

Pei Xi said in a matter-of-fact tone: “In a normal marital relationship, this shouldn’t be considered lewd fun, right?”

He Chuzhou: “……”

He Chuzhou held his shoulders, turned him around, and gave him a gentle push: “Not really, but it’s unnecessary.” 

“I move around a lot while bathing, and I would end up slamming you into the wall.”

Holding the pajamas in his arms, Pei Xi could only watch as He Chuzhou walked into the bathroom. He turned back to the bed and sat down, in a daze for a while. Then he picked up his phone and started to search for the correct way to peel a tomato.

Before the page loaded, the screen suddenly went black.

It was out of battery.

Looking around, he used the cable on the bedside table to charge it. Then he picked up the black cell phone next to him and asked the person in the bathroom: “Chuzhou, can I use your phone to check something?”

His voice came from the other side of the door: “Go ahead. The unlock password is the same as the payment password.”

Pei Xi entered 049123, and it unlocked successfully. The main page wallpaper was a rolling quantum ball, with a featureless system customization.

Not good-looking.

Why wasn’t there a photo of them together?

Pei Xi frowned slightly and opened the wallpaper settings, only to find that there were no pictures of them together in the album. There were all sorts of photos of He Xingxing, occasionally interspersed with a stuffed toy and a cow-spotted cat.

The furrow on his brow deepened.

He exited the settings, turned on the camera, and took a few shots of himself.

Then he clicked into the settings again and set one of them as the wallpaper.

This was much more pleasing to the eye.

He exited with satisfaction and opened the webpage to continue searching for tomato scrambled egg recipes.

Not long after, a pop-up window suddenly appeared at the top of the screen:

[Laurel came up with a new trick, and I also ordered some spicy duck heads. You’ll definitely like them. Let’s try it together tomorrow night?]

Laurel?

New trick?

Duck heads?

What.

Pei Xi didn’t understand it, but this did not affect his real-time delivery: “Chuzhou, Wu Qing sent you a message.”

He Chuzhou: “Don’t worry about it, I’ll get back to him later when I come out.”

Pei Xi also had no intention to care about it, and dismissed the pop-up window, continuing to study the recipe intently.

One after another, they finished taking their showers, and when Pei Xi came out, He Chuzhou was already reclining in bed as he looked at his phone.

He slipped into bed with ease and buried his head between He Chuzhou’s shoulder and the pillow to avoid the light, looking like he was going to sleep soon.

He Chuzhou: “You’re sleepy already?”

Pei Xi responded vaguely.

He Chuzhou stopped looking at his phone and turned the light off: “Okay, then go to sleep.”

He paused for a moment, then said worriedly: “This won’t work. If I sleep like this, will I get kicked again tomorrow?”

Just as he finished muttering, a head crept into his arms.

Pei Xi hugged him and buried his head into his chest, as if seeking a sense of security: “Chuzhou.”

He Chuzhou: “En?”

Pei Xi: “You’ll stay with me always, right?”

The room wrapped in darkness was dim and unclear, making Pei Xi’s voice particularly distinct and vulnerable.

He Chuzhou gave a quiet sigh, and was once again defeated in a draw.

“Definitely, ah.”

He lifted his hands to hug him back and patted his back comfortingly: “I’ll be there whenever you need me, so go to sleep.”

He could endure as long as he didn’t die.

He was in a good state of mind beforehand, but unfortunately, that did not transmit to him after falling asleep.

Early the next morning, when he was rolled out of bed with the quilt by force again, he was still breathing deeply, half-asleep, with a befuddled look on his face.

Looking at the cold-faced Pei Xi, he got up and quickly changed his clothes. Gradually waking up, he rubbed the bridge of his nose in exhaustion: “You—”

“Shut up.”

Pei Xi’s voice was darker than his expression, practically forming a layer of frost: “Don’t let me hear your voice.”

He Chuzhou: “……?”

With question marks blooming on his head, he watched Pei Xi’s back as he strode away and dazedly stoked the head of the excited dog next to him.

What was going on?

Hadn’t they both adapted to it?

Why was his temper still getting worse?

Was he not a morning person?

Or had he rolled over and crushed him during the night? ? ?

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T/N: Sorry for the sporadic updates, everyone! Me and my cat Willow have both been sick the past week, but we’re improving with meds and rest!

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Chapter 17 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 19

Three years later.

“The road to happiness is strewn with setbacks. Professor Wei’s art exhibition has been successfully held after being postponed for so long. On behalf of my newspaper, I would like to express my congratulations to you, and I would also like to ask, are the rumors that you plan to settle in Russia true? Will you still teach at Beihua University in the future?”

“Teacher, it is said that you intend to adopt a child as a single person. Does this mean you don’t plan to remarry? And do you plan to give your child the surname Wei or Wen in the future?”

“Have you moved on from the car accident four years ago?”

On the day of the exhibition, some reporters from the cultural and art circles come and gather around me when I exit the car.

They ask all kinds of questions, and I choose a few to answer.

“I have no intention of settling in Russia. It’s too cold there, and there are bears. I intend to remain with my family in Yuhua.”

They can’t help but laugh when they hear my words, and they ask me to answer other questions.

I think seriously and say: “I do plan to adopt a child, but because I want to adopt a girl, according to law, I must wait another ten years until I’m forty years old.”

“As for what happened four years ago……” I gained the attention of reporters after the car accident four years ago. They have wanted to interview me one after another in the past few years, and this is the first time I’ve answered this question head-on.

Today is the auspicious day I’ve chosen for my painting exhibition, and everything is going well. Although it is late in the wintery twelfth month, the weather is very good, and the warm winter sun is also bright.

I answer them with a smile: “Yes, I have moved on from it. I moved on from it three years ago.”

. . . . . . . 

Opening an art exhibit requires a lot of work. In order to allow Pi Gao to take charge of his own work as soon as possible, I lead him step by step throughout this exhibition.

Over the years, I have accepted several more students. There are two girls who are very talented and willing to endure hardships. I have high hopes for them, and sent them abroad for a study exchange several years ago.

Pi Gao has mediocre talent, but is willing to strive hard in his studies. He got married to his girlfriend last year, and plans to stay with me in China in the future. I plan to have him study at Beihua.

All in all, my work has gone relatively smoothly these past few years. After being busy with the art exhibit for half a month, it is almost the New Year.

I give my students a vacation and go home alone.

The Wen family business is also prospering with Mingyi’s help. She has become increasingly busy in the past few years, traveling around the country and abroad. She exchanges New Year’s gifts with us every year, but never has time to come back and celebrate it.

The year before last, her parents suddenly divorced. Father Wen suffered a stroke as a result, and has been recuperating abroad.

And it was by chance that I learned that Mingcheng’s mother actually knew Master Mei Yin. She even knew that Mingcheng was by my side.

She was also shocked to learn that Mingcheng was not an evil ghost, and still had memories of his past. I wanted them to meet, but she was hesitant, and refused. She has been worshiping Buddha on the mountain these years.

So I celebrate New Year’s at my own home.

Because I now live in the Wei family house, and my mother is getting older and is particular about going back to her hometown to celebrate the New Year, my eldest brother and the others come home to see me during the holidays, which saves me a trip.

As soon as I walk in, my little nephew rushes toward me in his brand new children’s toy car.

“Little Uncle!”

As he rampages toward me, my sister-in-law takes him out of the car and smacks him on the butt: “How impolite. Let your uncle watch you draw multiplication tables, and don’t pester him to draw Ultraman, do you hear me?”

He is just five years old, with a plump face and a furry bunny hat, like a big, energetic rabbit. Every time he sees me, he pesters me to draw him Ultraman and pretty anime girls.

My mom and elder brother are rushing around the kitchen. My elder brother hears this and corrects his wife: “He doesn’t like Ultraman now, he likes big sisters like Kinimoto Sakura.”

I can’t help but laugh. I have no idea how he can comprehend girls’ cartoons at such a young age.

After being teased and laughed at by the family, he sits on the sofa with a long face and fumes for half an hour, then nuzzles next to me like a dog.

“Little Uncle, I want Sakura.”

Taking a covert look at his parents working in the kitchen, he picks up his small school bag and pulls me into my studio. Then he takes out a bunch of colored paper and anime cards, handing them to me: “You draw her for me.”

He digs out too many things at once, and it is a bit difficult to hold them in his little arms. A decorative anime character item falls to the ground.

The small item rolls twice on the floor, and when he lowers his head to search for it, an unobservable force sends it to my hand.

I calmly look at what has appeared in my hand, glance surreptitiously to my side, and bend down to hand it back to the child. “Next time, don’t take so much. What will you do if they fall?”

He looks at the small item that had appeared in my hand and touches his head in confusion: “Ai? Little Uncle, when did you pick it up? I didn’t see you bend down.”

I smile: “I have magic.”

He gives me an admiring thumbs up and says, “You’re so awesome.”

Then he tells me that he has been very good, having personally wiped his grandfather’s portrait clean, and only came to celebrate the New Year after offering tribute.

“I also put all my tasty snacks in Uncle’s room, the same room where you put his portrait.” When I burn incense for him, he asks to say some good words to Mingcheng. “Asking Uncle to please bless me to be as handsome as him when I grow up.”

I can’t help but laugh: “Okay, he agrees.”

“Really?” He is very surprised. “You can hear him?”

I say: “He also says that if you don’t memorize your multiplication tables, you will be blessed to look like Grandpa.”

He cries out when he hears this and says that he will never like Uncle again.

After coaxing the child away, I glance at the person gradually appearing out of thin air: “Do you like children that much?”

He closes the door and walks to me with long strides, smiling at me with squinted eyes. The upward curve of his lips is gentle and sweet, his features handsome, refined, and incredibly profound. “He looks a lot like you when you were a child.”

I retort at once: “How could I be so fat when I was a child?”

He smiles even brighter. Hugging me from behind, he pinches the flesh on my waist and abdomen with one hand: “You could eat better than me when you were a child, have you forgotten?”

We fool around quietly for a while.

He suppresses his smile as he speaks, and lowers his head from behind me. Pressing his lips to the corner of mine, he says in a low and apologetic voice: “In the period where I had no memory, I was like an evil ghost, haunting you and going crazy. Were you frightened?”

“It’s good that you know. Drinking your own vinegar, you really are something.”

I raise my eyes to look into his, letting him nip my lips.

I had thought a ghost was impersonating him, never expecting it to actually be him. He only remembered our names, and really did seem like an imposter.

In a stroke of luck, I had actually found Master Mei Yin. It was probably the will of the heavens that Mingcheng destroyed the Black Nanjia himself, but resurrected during my spiritual summoning ceremony.

Now that we are reunited, I feel that providence is extremely kind to us, and now I have nothing to be dissatisfied with.

As our lips and tongues intersect, our breathing becomes heavier. His palms move from my waist to my collar, and his fingers touch my buttons……

“Little Uncle, it’s time to eat!” At this moment, the door is pushed open by the young boy.

“Cough, cough…..got it.” I choke myself a bit in my startlement.

While puffing out his cheeks as he chews on something, he looks at me doubtfully. “Little Uncle, why is your face so red? Why is your mouth red too?”

Humiliated into anger, I glare at him: “Why are there so many little children in the house?”

He harrumphs, staring at me: “Huh? Why is it even redder?”

When we eat, my older brother wants to take a family photo first. My mother sits on the couch with the child, and my older brother and sister-in-law stand next to me.

After my little nephew sets up the camera, I take a step to the side. My older brother looks deeply at me, as if aware of something, then embraces his wife and leans to the side to give me space.

And so beside me, a person nobody else can see comes into the shot.

He holds my waist. He’s actually sprayed a bit of cologne on his body.

I whisper: “My older brother seems to have discovered something.”

He kisses the side of my face as if no one else is watching: “It doesn’t matter, Brother-in-law has a good personality.”

As the camera counts down, my older brother claps and gives a congratulatory speech: “Alright, then wishing our elders long lives, our children good health, and for our young people, the end of bitterness and the beginning of sweetness. Love and happiness for all. Say eggplant~”

“Eggplant~”

Kacha! The photo is taken.

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T/N: Thank you to everyone who gave this story a chance! It was such a gem to stumble upon.

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Chapter 36 << Table of Contents

T/N: Thank you so much to FynnGi for the Kofi donation! These last two chapters are for you!

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I knew that I might die, but I didn’t expect death to come so quickly.

We had just returned to China, and I hadn’t even had time to bring A-Zhen home.

A sports car rushed over from the opposite direction. It was dark, and it didn’t have its headlights on. By the time I noticed it, it was already too late, and I barely had time to turn the steering wheel.

The cars collided with an earth-shattering noise. The front of the car was instantly deformed and caught fire. The window glass shattered from the heat and impact, and fragments from the front of the car flew everywhere.

A-Zhen and I turned toward each other at the same time.

He rushed toward me and stretched out those beautiful hands to try to protect me, but didn’t notice the shattered glass spraying toward him.

“A-Zhen—”

Disregarding everything, I pushed him down hard. I was so anxious that I likely used too much force, and his head hit the car door.

I pressed against his body and intended to ask him if it hurt, but as soon as I opened my mouth, I saw blood spurt out of nowhere and splatter all over his face.

His eyes were bewildered, and he looked back at me with almost concrete fear, his eyes going bloodshot from the corners to the tips. He reached out to touch my neck and wept miserably: “Mingcheng! Mingcheng! No – help, help, help.”

I wanted to comfort him, but found that I couldn’t speak.

And in the next moment, I saw myself from his eyes.

A piece of glass as wide as the mouth of a bowl had penetrated into my neck. Blood gushed out whenever I spoke, and half of my body was already dyed red. The half of my face by the window had already been cut and turned into a hideous, bloody mess.

I instantly covered his eyes.

“Don’t look at me…..don’t be afraid, don’t be afraid……”

The deformed roof squeezed us together like the lid of a coffin.

He held my neck and cried heartbreakingly, beating on the roof that was pressing on us with his bloody hands, calling for help.

But how could a person shake a block of iron? Even though he smashed his hands against the roof of the car, it was impossible to make the roof budge, let alone save me, who was about to bleed dry.

His fingers must have been injured. I tried to stop him, but I had no strength left.

I died.

He also knew I was going to die.

When I was alive, I was pathologically obsessed with him. Even when I made a wish to that evil god, I wished that my soul would return to him. But when it was time to die, I suddenly looked away.

I could ask for nothing.

As long as he could live well.

At the beginning of his life, there was no me.

Perhaps Wei Zizhen might have been able to live well without Wen Mincheng.

I used the last of my strength to smile and press my lips to his…..

It’s okay, A-Zhen.

Live healthily and well.

Perhaps someone else will love you after I’m gone. If you want to, go ahead. I won’t blame you.

Thank you for loving me for so many years.

Goodbye, Wei Zizhen.

Don’t be sad about me, and don’t forget me.

I can’t bear to die, I can’t bear to leave you.

I love you.

*

*

I didn’t know who I was or where I was.

It was like I had no body. I couldn’t touch, and I couldn’t feel. I seemed to be in a space composed of light, shadows, and fragmented colors. Sound and consciousness were far from me.

I didn’t know if the world was nothingness or if I was nothingness.

But I felt something in a certain direction. There was a voice in my heart telling me to go quickly in just that direction.

A-Zhen…..

A-Zhen?

I spoke aloud the name of someone I didn’t know, and with indescribable eagerness, I rushed toward the direction in my heart without hesitation.

“Mingcheng?”

“Why didn’t you go to work today?”

Suddenly, there was a man speaking to me.

Just at this moment, I had a body.

Air penetrated my mouth and nose and rushed into my lungs. I felt my torso, my limbs, the cool air touching my skin.

I heard the sound of the wind, the chirping of birds, and smelled the fragrance of flowers.

I also saw the person who had spoken to me.

He stood not far from me. His features were elegant, with a tranquil beauty, and he looked at me with a soft gaze. He called me “Mingcheng.”

I remembered.

I remembered.

My name was Mingcheng, and his was Wei Zhizhen.

He was the one I was looking for.

I liked him at first glance.

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Chapter 35 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 37

“Changing one’s fate is against nature, and heaven’s will is irreversible. It is not so easy.” He sat on a futon, already understanding my purpose.

I had a black leather lockbox brought in. It was not big, but it was heavy, and took four strong bodyguards to carry it in.

Once those people left, I entered the password to open the box and looked at him: “Would it be easier this way?”

The moment the box was opened, a golden light suddenly appeared in the room. The box was neatly packed with gold bars.

Money was the law of the human world.

His expression changed for a moment, and he slowly raised his head to look directly at me. “Mr. Wen, he is a mortal man. There is a saying that when death comes, there is no postponement. There is no way in this world to make a mortal person live longer, unless…..someone dies in his place. If someone gives their life in exchange for his life, he will live. Moreover, the person who dies must be willing, as the slightest resentment will damage his life.”

I slammed down the lid of the lockbox and walked over to him and sat down. Dipping my fingers in some tea, I wrote the password of the lockbox on the table in front of him. “Please give me some advice, Master.”

Soon after, he told me to shower and change my clothes, then sit cross-legged in front of a Buddha statue. The statue was about the height of a person, sitting on a high platform. Its eyes were as terrifying as those of a divine warrior.  It had the majestic aura of Buddha, and under its feet was the date of my birth.

There was a circle of Mei Yin’s disciples around me, lowering their heads to chant Buddhist sutras. Each one held a torch in their hands.

And underneath me was a platform made of dry firewood and straw.

He said that as long as I was burned to death in front of the Buddha statue, A-Zhen would live.

He could gain my destiny of good health and long life.

This act of exchanging a life for a life sounded absurd and evil. In the past, I would have thought that people who believed in this method were crazy, but I didn’t understand this feeling until I got to this point myself.

This was not belief. It was desperation. 

As long as my loved one could be spared from pain and live healthily, I was willing to die.

But unfortunately, I failed.

It was not that my death had no effect, but that it rained when Mei Yin told his disciples to burn me to death.

It was a downpour caused by a typhoon along the coast. It began to rain almost instantly, and it was so intense that people couldn’t breathe or open their eyes. Within minutes, white mist filled the air and turbulent water surged from the ground.

Mei Yin pulled me into the room, looked at the heavy rain in the courtyard, and said: “This is divine providence, ah. Heaven’s will cannot be disobeyed.”

Heaven’s will?

I found it amusing, and couldn’t help but laugh.

He and his disciples looked at me in surprise, but I just couldn’t help it anymore. I leaned against the doorframe and burst into laughter, unable to stop. 

Did Heaven have eyes?

The Wei family harmed no one, but suffered the disaster of being ruined and destitute. The eldest brother of the Wei family was kind and talented, but his right hand was ruined. I was the one who committed evil and deserved retribution, but A-Zhen was the one who suffered the consequences, and it was A-Zhen who would lose his life.

This was Heaven’s will?

If it tormented A-Zhen to make me suffer retribution, then I had to admit that it had succeeded. But I couldn’t stand it, let alone accept it.

I told the bodyguards to surround everyone present. After the rain stopped, I dragged Mei Yin outside and forced him to find a solution for me.

“Master, you are a believer in the gods. If the flames also burn upon you, is Heaven’s will worth it?”

This was actually meant to frighten him. I wouldn’t kill him, because he could at least give me the elixir.

But I really didn’t seem like a good person, and his terror of me was not mild.

Thus, he told me another way. “Mr. Wen, the gods and Buddha are not willing to help you. There is really nothing I can do, except there are not only good gods in this world, but also evil gods…..”

He told me of a country in Southeast Asia, where there were many evil paths. The most powerful was the temple dedicated to the black and golden gods.

“The Golden God had become a true god through hundreds of years of worship. If you take your loved one with you, he may be able to bless you, but the black god is still an evil god. It is about to perish without the worship of believers, so it is very eager for them. If you are willing to become its believer, I think he will be willing to fulfill any wish you have.”

“It is just that asking a person to do something for you requires money, but asking a god to do things may cost you your life…..”

“How can I know you’re not lying to me?” I was somewhat interested, and asked him to tell me about these two gods in detail.

He told me that the black and gold gods were called Nanjia in the local language. They had suddenly come into the world, and were both evil at first.

He talked to me earnestly for a long time. After listening to Mei Yin’s words, I felt that they were most likely ancient sacrificial objects that possessed evil powers after bloody sacrifices. The Gold Nanjia was not so extreme, so it was worshiped by people and actually became a god over time. The Black Nanjia was more powerful and more evil, so it was feared by others, and after a long period of time where no one believed in it, it fell into decline.

I thought I would give it a try.

But there were too many unpredictable factors when worshiping an evil god. I feared that it would get angry if things weren’t done right, so I thought about it for a long time.

During this period, A-Zhen was taking pills. He looked exactly the same as when he wasn’t sick. He had started to gain weight, and had decent energy and complexion.

I continued to lie to him about his gastrointestinal problems, and he believed me, thinking that what he had was an illness not worth mentioning. After he was no longer feeling uncomfortable, we started to prepare for the wedding.

He was busy and brimming with anticipation as he planned where we would go after we got married. He said that we would adopt a couple of children when we were in our thirties, and also said that he would tidy up the old house so that we could move in when we grew old…..

He looked forward to a long and beautiful life, but little did he know that he was relying on sorcery to maintain his life and that death was imminent.

I scheduled our trip to Southeast Asia for our honeymoon after the wedding.

I had to marry him first.

If it failed, I would bury his body with my own hands and carve my name on his tombstone.

If it succeeded, my beloved A-Zhen would put on mourning clothes, hold my portrait, and bury me. He would inscribe on my tombstone, “Late husband Wen Mincheng.”

Even after I died, I would still be his husband and his man.

The wedding went smoothly. It was grand and ceremonious, full of guests. I invited almost everyone I knew, so much so that A-Zhen went on strike and refused to write invitation letters. I even allowed reporters to interview and take photos on the wedding day.

Everyone blessed us, and I didn’t hesitate to show our wedding to the public. If possible, I hoped the whole world could know about it.

I drank a lot that day, and asked him to call me ‘husband’ over and over again. He was very embarrassed at first. When he heard this title, his face grew visibly red, but it became easier after the first time he said it.

He found amusement in it, and asked me to call him that.

I called him that very easily, and he blushed again.

On the wedding night, we made love passionately.

About half a month after the wedding, I bought a lot of the pills I got from Mei Yin to keep A-Zhen alive, so that he could stay as healthy as possible.

At first, the priests in the temple were not willing to receive me after finding out why I had come. Then I contacted the local government and expressed my willingness to donate money to their impoverished areas.

Under pressure from the government, they had no choice but to acquiesce.

That day, we first worshiped the Gold Nanjia. Then I told A-Zhen that I was very interested in the local culture and wanted to have a private chat with the divine attendant, and asked him to wait for me outside. When I saw that he wasn’t suspicious, I went to the Black Nanjia’s pagoda alone with the divine attendant.

There was no one at the pagoda. After leading me to the top floor, the divine attendants seemed to be afraid of something and had me enter the room alone. When they saw me coming in at the door, they left together with expressions of panic on their faces.

That was the most bizarre thing I had experienced.

Unlike the huge statue of the Gold Nanjia, the Black Nanjia was very small, only about twenty centimeters. I couldn’t tell what sort of material it was made out of. The soles of its feet and the top of its head were engraved with sacrificial drawings. The body was densely covered with ancient characters, and the eyes were embedded rubies, which looked strange and exquisite.

It seemed to know that I was there for it, and was also very impatient for my arrival, its last believer.

When I held it in my hands, I felt a jolt that seemed to come from my soul.

It was as if the other being was trying to tell me of its ecstasy.

Maybe Mei Yin was right. Gods were very persistent about having believers, especially gods that were about to fall.

I lowered my head to look at it, and a realization suddenly flashed through my mind.

As long as I believed in it, it could fulfill any wish I had.

This was not my own speculation, but an idea that suddenly came to me, as if someone had spoken these words into my soul.

I understood, and raised it above my head reverently.

“Black Nanjia, I am your most devout believer……”

After I spoke, its ruby eyes suddenly emitted a dark red light. I saw the ancient characters on it seem to come alive, merging into it and emerging out of its body.

And the ancient sacrificial characters on its legs and feet also began to move. The woman presiding over the ceremony was clad in animal skins, and cut off the head of the sacrifice with a butcher’s knife. After peeling off its skin and plastering it to her body, she raised her arms and announced the beginning of a prayer.

I laughed. They were mad with exultation, and so was I.

I said to it: “My devoted god, please grant my wish……”

“I wish for my lover to live a long life.”

“I wish for my soul to return to him.”

“Eternal life. Eternal life.”

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Chapter 34 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 36

What sounded like a grand statement instantly caused Zhao Haicheng to collapse.

They were trivial details in the eyes of those who did great things. Just like Song Xingmu said, how many of those in high positions would consider their lives?

They were mere ants in the eyes of those people, and the only person who cared about their lives…..

Zhao Haicheng rose with sudden violence and pounced on Uncle Hai, who was close to him, and directly bit his throat. Blood-curdling screams and the sound of spurting blood turned the cell into a bloody scene.

It was like Zhao Haicheng had gone insane. No matter how hard the others tried to pull him away, he would not let go until he bit Uncle Hai to death.

In the next second, he looked up toward the sky and roared, then suddenly fell to the ground. Finally, a picture came to his mind.

There was a person standing on the shore. With a beauty that surpassed that of mortals, he gazed calmly at the sea. The warm afterglow of the setting sun could not enter his eyes, which were like the darkness of the deepest seabed where light could not penetrate. He was alone there, seemingly in eternal loneliness and coldness.

Watching secretly, Zhao Haicheng felt at that moment that there should be someone standing next to Liu Zhenqing, holding his hand. He stepped forward impulsively, but in the next second, he saw Liu Zhenqing pick up the jade hanging from his waist. It was a small toy carved from jade, just a two-layered small square. He had seen Liu Zhenqing playing with it often, as if playing with it would make him happier when he was in a bad mood.

This time, Zhao Haicheng had no excuse to step forward, and he never got the chance again.

Unexpectedly, before he died, what he regretted most was this scene…..

When everyone came to their senses and rushed to find a doctor, it was already too late. 

Likely unable to accept the facts in front of him, Zhao Haicheng died of the stimulation.

Huo Fenglie looked silently at Zhao Haicheng’s eyes, which were gradually turning gray, then turned and left.

After he left the cell, his steps grew increasingly fast. He needed to find Qing-ge. When he walked out of the courtyard where the cell was located, Liu Zhenqing appeared in the other courtyard, seemingly about to leave.

Hearing a sound, Liu Zhenqing turned his head just as someone rushed up to embrace him.

Liu Zhenqing was stunned for a moment before he realized that Huo Fenglie had taken the initiative to hug him. This…..situation was a bit strange, ah.

Feeling inexplicably flattered, Liu Zhenqing quickly drew close and hugged him, as if he had gotten a great bargain.

Huo Fenglie hugged him tighter.

Liu Zhenqing finally realized that something was off about his mood and asked in a low voice: “What’s wrong? Are you feeling unwell? Why are you here?”

Huo Fenglie said hoarsely: “Qing-ge, I’m fine. I just…..missed you a little.”

In an instant, Liu Zhenqing felt as if his heart had been electrified. Er-gou finally got the idea! That’s right, after having a near-death experience, he finally managed to clear the clouds and see the moonlight!

Liu Zhenqing hugged him happily, and the troubles just now didn’t seem to matter anymore.

And Huo Fenglie couldn’t help but think, why should such a good person bear infamy for eternity? He should be remembered forever. 

Suddenly, Huo Fenglie said: “Qing-ge, shall we find a way to vindicate you?”

Liu Zhenqing stared blankly, a little confused. He had thought Huo Fenglie knew he didn’t care about these things and couldn’t be bothered with them. So before, no matter what Bai Su or He Lan and Qin Yu said, Huo Fenglie didn’t say much and gave Liu Zhenqing’s opinion on it the priority. What had happened today?

Liu Zhenqing said: “I’m perfectly fine. What can be said? I have no objections that need to be rectified. I did what I did, and no matter how others see it, there isn’t much good to say about it.”

Huo Fenglie was silent for a moment, then suddenly said: “I am unwilling to accept it.”

Liu Zhenqing said uncertainly: “Why do you suddenly…..”

Huo Fenglie spoke briefly of Zhao Haicheng, and Liu Zhenqing knew that Song Xingmu just wanted to take this opportunity to let Huo Fenglie know about the truth of that year.

He said with a helpless sigh: “But I did plan to obtain the 30,000 troops, and also injured Yuan Jue. There’s nothing good to say about this, ah.”

Huo Fenglie just repeated: “I am unwilling to accept it.”

Liu Zhenqing realized in an instant that Huo Fenglie had always been unwilling. After all, Er-gou had been in love with him for many years, so how could he be willing to let his sweetheart be slandered by the world? It was reasonable for him to want others to have a clear understanding of his sweetheart. He didn’t take action or say anything in the past, because he was abiding by Liu Zhenqing’s wishes.

And now he finally couldn’t help but speak out, even though he knew that rehabilitating his image meant standing on the opposite side from Yuan Jue. It was equivalent to telling all the people in the world that they were wrong, and that the emperor was wrong. Needless to say, this sort of thing would be very difficult, but Huo Fenglie really wanted to do it.

It seemed like Er-gou had a hard time enduring it, ah.

Liu Zhenqing smiled and couldn’t help but pat Huo Fenglie’s butt. The smacking sound broke the solemn atmosphere, and Huo Fenglie released Liu Zhenqing to look at him speechlessly.

“But I cherish this hard-won happiness even more. The person in front of me is more important than my name. Why waste your time worrying about it?” Liu Zhenqing spoke with a relaxed expression and a raised eyebrow. How could he be willing to let Er-gou get into trouble? It was unnecessary to drag him down just for the sake of reputation.

What he was more concerned about was that Huo Fenglie’s actions just now were intended to comfort him, rather than the beginning of a new sweetness between them. It really made a person depressed.

“Qing-ge, you…..”

Liu Zhenqing suddenly raised an eyebrow and said with a smile: “It’s just right that we met, I have something to ask of you.”

Huo Fenglie stared blankly and could only ask: “What is it?”

Liu Zhenqing’s eyes narrowed slightly and he gave an evil smile.

Soon, there was the sound of splashing water in the room where Liu Zhenqing was temporarily staying. There was a screen between the compartments, and the slender silhouette of a person bathing could be seen.

Huo Fenglie sat stiffly outside, seemingly unable to react.

“Er-gou?”

Huo Fenglie instantly felt uneasy and said: “I’ll go out and wait for you.”

“Go out?” Liu Zhenqing’s voice seemed to carry a bit of disbelief, and he said directly, “What are you going out for? Come in.”

Huo Fenglie’s expression stiffened, and he heard Liu Zhenqing say: “You just said you would help me scrub my back. When I went to the cells, it was so cold and damp that I felt uncomfortable all over.”

Huo Fenglie didn’t know how to refuse. His footsteps were rigid.

“What’s wrong? There’s no part of my body that you haven’t touched, ah. I asked you to rub my back, but why are you resisting and giving me the cold shoulder?” Liu Zhenqing said deliberately.

This voice was as hazy as water vapor, but when it sounded, it burned Huo Fenglie’s face red like a flame.

Huo Fenglie now felt that it was difficult to breathe, and wanted to rush out the door.

Liu Zhenqing said impatiently: “Come in, you’re not a girl!”

It was clear that Liu Zhenqing was unhappy. Huo Fenglie dared not continue to be stubborn, and could only brace himself and walk inside.

He walked cautiously with his head lowered, not even daring to glance inside the tub. Only wafts of steam could be seen.

Suddenly, a jade-white arm covered in water droplets reached out and handed over a small wash cloth. There was a splashing movement, and it seemed that the person in the tub had changed position. 

“Come on, scrub my shoulders first.”

Now Huo Fenglie had to look over. The thin steam didn’t cover anything at all, and the bath towel that should have been covering his body was placed next to the tub. The water was crystal clear, the view unobstructed. His skin was like jade, with beautiful contours. Although he had seen it several times, Huo Fenglie’s blood still surged every time. He could only avert his gaze as much as possible. After determining the position, he was about to take action when he saw his own teeth marks right there. His hand instantly shook, and they began to move with an almost delicate level of force.

“Er-gou, I like it a little harder. How can it be comfortable when it’s that light?”

Huo Fenglie didn’t know if it was just him, but he felt that the final notes of Qing-ge’s words rose at the end, like he was deliberately teasing him.

Huo Fenglie gradually increased his strength. He was accompanied by sighs and calls for him to go harder or softer, or that it felt good.

After his shoulders and arms were scrubbed, Liu Zhenqing deliberately raised a hand to hook Fenglie’s chin, just like teasing a puppy.

“It feels so good, ah. Er-gou, you went to the cells too. Are you really not going to come in and soak together?” Liu Zhenqing extended the invitation again.

Huo Fenglie still refused decisively. “I….I need to take a medicated bath tonight.”

Liu Zhenqing raised his eyes and glanced to the side. Caught off guard, Huo Fenglie met those damp eyes. His movements froze for an instant, and he immediately lowered his head. Changing the topic, he said: “Qing-ge, why did you go to the cells?”

Liu Zhenqing’s eyes narrowed in displeasure, but he didn’t conceal anything, saying to Huo Fenglie: “I went to see the rebels in secret to ask some questions.”

“What questions?” Huo Fenglie asked.

“Who is the martial arts master who rescued He Lan and Qin Yu? And…..if their rebellion was successful, who did they want to be the emperor? Apart from those who were caught, was there anyone else behind them?” Liu Zhenqing said: “It’s a pity that I couldn’t get anything from them.”

“They won’t speak.” Huo Fenglie said directly: “If they don’t speak, they can bet on a chance of survival, but if they speak, they will certainly die. But Qing-ge also feels that there is someone behind them.”

“Of course. Weren’t there killers arranged to assassinate us? Regarding the people we’ve caught so far, I don’t think they have the ability to exploit the tax money and disaster relief funds for their own use. They don’t have such sharp brains, so they must have a leader.” Liu Zhenqing raised his body to allow Huo Fenlgie to continue to scrub downward.

“It’s a pity, they seem to have been used as well. So maybe it’s not that they don’t want to speak, and they are unaware that they’ve become a knife in the hands of others.” Liu Zhenqing couldn’t help but sigh after analyzing this. The rebel case was over on the surface, but the story behind it was growing deeper and deeper, and there were more and more suspicions.

He was even more worried that the situation before him may actually be his fault.

Thinking of this, he couldn’t help but let out a downcast sigh. Suddenly, he heard Huo Fenglie say: “Qing-ge can reach the rest.”

Liu Zhenqing’s attention was diverted. When he took the small wash cloth and saw Huo Fenglie turn around to leave almost immediately, his heart felt itchy. “I’m too lazy to move, I’ll leave it all to you.”

Having said this, he dipped the wash cloth in his hand into the water, wrung it out, and tossed it to Huo Fenglie again.

Huo Fenglie had just caught it when he heard a splash. Looking up, he saw that Liu Zhenqing had stood up with his back to him. Water droplets slid down the back of his fair neck, passing down the flexible contours of his back that were shaded by candlelight. They passed over curves, some dripping while others merged into the water in the tub along his legs, as if experiencing a beautiful journey.

Huo Fenglie gritted his teeth, telling himself that he was just going to help scrub his back.

But in the next second, as if to help facilitate Huo Fenglie’s movements, Liu Zhenqing sat directly on the edge of the tub.

In an instant, the impact of the scene caused Huo Fenglie to suck in a deep breath. He could see a wet beauty sitting on the edge of the tub, as well as the indentation of flesh where he sat. The beautiful shape of his back was perfectly highlighted as his hands supported him at his sides, and the indent of his back revealed beautiful butterfly bones, as if he was about to fly away.

Huo Fenglie felt that his nose was hot, as if something was about to flow out. He quickly held his breath and rubbed it sporadically. Before Liu Zhenqing could stimulate him with his rambling, Huo Fenglie said: “Finish scrubbing, Qing-ge. It’s too hot in here, I’ll go out and get some fresh air first.”

Before Liu Zhenqing could reply, he had already thrown down the wash cloth and run out like the wind.

Liu Zhenqing was left speechless for a while. He showed off his body like this, but Huo Fenglie was still unmoved. Was it really because he wasn’t attractive enough?

When Huo Fenglie went out, he sat in the hall and adjusted his breathing for a long time before it steadied and the nosebleed finally stopped. He was inwardly vexed for a time, and then remembered that Qing-ge hadn’t brought a change of clothes when he went in. After some thought, he went to the room to find clothes for him.

As a result, he found a somewhat damaged scroll.

Huo Fenglie was taken aback, and opened it to take a look. The wedding portrait was still beautiful, but the scroll surrounding it was slightly damaged. It seemed that someone would need to be found to repair it.

Looking at the two moles under Liu Zhenqing’s eye in the portrait, he was inexplicably lost in thought.

“Do you like it that much?”

Suddenly, Liu Zhenqing’s voice sounded with unclear meaning. Huo Fenglie returned to his senses and looked back, only to see Liu Zhenqing wearing a thin inner layer. It was tied loosely, and the simplicity of how he wore it made it seem like it could slip off his shoulders at any time. Leaning against the door like this, with his head tilted and an unclear expression on his face, he looked a bit dangerous.

“Uh…..” Huo Fenglie momentarily didn’t know how to answer.

In a bad mood, Liu Zhenqing stepped forward and approached Huo Fenglie. Passing by the table, he moved his hand and rolled up the scroll. Out of sight and out of mind.

Huo Fenglie was a bit nervous due to Liu Zhenqing’s sudden approach. Just as he was about to retreat, Liu Zhenqing grabbed his collar and pressed him against the table. Liu Zhenqing leaned closer and asked: “Was my appearance in the past so much better than it is now?”

You would rather come out and look at a dead thing instead of the live thing that is readily at your fingertips. Tell me, wouldn’t this make a person angry? Liu Zhenqing now began to wonder if Huo Fenglie solely loved the appearance he used to have.

“They are both Qing-ge,” Huo Fenglie was somewhat discerning, and said quickly, “They are the same.”

Liu Zhenqing narrowed his eyes slightly and said: “I don’t believe you. Prove it to me.”

“How do I prove it?” Huo Fenglie asked.

The corners of Liu Zhenqing’s mouth lifted, and he raised his hand to grasp Huo Fenglie’s chin. Just as he was about to tease him, he heard movement outside the door.

“Ya, you two! Why didn’t you close the door? I’ve been looking for you for half a day, and it turns out you’re here! He still isn’t healed!”

Liu Zhenqing was displeased when his little apprentice interrupted his good deeds, but Huo Fenglie left readily, as if he had been saved.

This caused Han Ye to look at Liu Zhenqing the wrong way, and even wondered if his master was forcing Huo Fenglie into something.

Liu Zhenqing was wronged, ah.

A few days later, people from the Imperial Court finally arrived. Once the prisoners were handed over, everyone breathed a sigh of relief. He Lan found some good wine who knows where and invited everyone to relax together, except Huo Fenglie, who was taking a medicinal bath and couldn’t participate. Even Han Ye was called over to drink.

Seeing Han Ye not looking very poised when holding the wine cup, Liu Zhenqing said with a smile: “People from Medical Valley are not good at drinking. If you can’t drink, don’t force yourself.”

The obstinate bones in Han Ye’s body had probably grown against Liu Zhenqing, and whatever Liu Zhenqing said, he would do the opposite.

As a result, after three cups of wine, Han Ye had already passed out on the table with a thud while the others were just getting started. Everyone laughed extremely hard.

On the side, He Lan kept urging Qin Yu to drink, and Song Xingmu also asked Liu Zhenqing to drink with him. After all, he recalled that Liu Zhenqing wouldn’t get drunk after a thousand cups. But Liu Zhenqing didn’t have this ability now, and refused to fight to the death.

“You should drink less,” Yi Chuan suddenly said to Song Xingmu, gesturing toward his hand.

Recently, Song Xingmu had been receiving treatment from Han Ye. He was originally supposed to go with them to find the master, but the medical skills of the King of Hell many years later were incomparable compared to those of the past, and what he couldn’t treat before, he could treat now. Therefore, he simply used his time here to stabilize Huo Fenglie and treat Song Xingmu’s hand.

The treatment process was still very difficult and painful, and the hand would be completely unusable for a short period of time. Song Xingmu had become one-armed, so Yi Chuan could only follow along to help him. Song Xingmu enjoyed it quite a lot, but it was rather painful to have his food and drink strictly managed by others. 

“Okay, okay, I’ll drink less. Such a housewife.” Song Xingmu deliberately teased him, but only received a glare from Yi Chuan. However, Yi Chuan still helped him warm the wine so that he wouldn’t drink it cold.

Song Xingmu looked at the rear view of Yi Chuan and smiled.

“Stop looking, you’re about to drool like a pervert,” Liu Zhenqing said.

“You have some nerve saying this to me. I heard that you asked a certain someone to wash your back not long ago, but looking at your expression now, you don’t seem happy. Sure enough, you achieved nothing? He didn’t want what was delivered to his door? Does he dislike this cut of meat because it doesn’t taste good, or is there some other reason? Why not take advantage of this beautiful night? Gege will help you…..”

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Chapter Ninety-Six << Table of Contents >> Chapter Ninety-Eight

There was an ATM next to the hospital. Before they departed, He Chuzhou took Pei Xi there and withdrew two thousand in cash.

“This should be enough to take a taxi for emergencies and such. Any more, and you wouldn’t be able to fit it in your pocket.”

He folded the money and put it into Pei Xi’s pocket with a pat: “Okay, let’s go back and find your phone.”

Pei Xi couldn’t help but touch it, then touch it again.

He Chuzhou laughed: “What are you doing?”

Pei Xi: “It seems I haven’t carried cash with me for a long time. It feels……”

He couldn’t think of a suitable word to describe his current mood, and in the end, he could only give a general summary: “It feels very amazing.”

“Just this is amazing? I’ll take you to experience something even more amazing when I have time.”

He Chuzhou smiled, spun the car key around his finger twice, and walked toward the parking lot.

But after taking a few steps, someone grabbed his sleeve from behind.

He turned around, but the person behind him wasn’t looking at him. Instead, his head was lowered as he moved his hand down to find his palm and hold it.

Pei Xi was not as tall as him, and his build was not bigger than his, so of course his hands were not as big either.

His fingers were slender and well-proportioned, with distinct bones and a slightly cool temperature. That hand would certainly not be mistaken for a girl’s, but holding it now, it gave him a different feeling.

When their palms touched, He Chuzhou’s brain suddenly jammed.

He didn’t know how to describe this feeling. After some thought, he could only use the word he had just laughed at: 

Really……amazing.

It was subtle and indescribable.

Unexpectedly good to hold, unexpectedly a perfect fit, and unexpectedly amazing.

Holding his hand, Pei Xi found that this person was not going anywhere, and wondered: “Chuzhou, what’s wrong?”

“Hm? Oh, nothing.”

He Chuzhou rubbed the tip of his nose with his other hand, looking away from their clasped palms: “I was just thinking about what we should have for lunch later.”

He started to walk forward again, only the presence of that hand was so strong that he couldn’t help but looked sideways at the glass windows of the roadside shops.

Two figures with different body shapes, but equally slim and tall, were reflected in the windows. Holding hands tightly, they walked side by side under the blue sky and white clouds.

*

*

“Have you looked under the bed?”

“In the drawers in the study?”

“What about the cracks in the sofa?”

“There’s nothing here, did you leave it in the kitchen?”

“No, I didn’t do anything last night—”

Pei Xi fell silent mid-sentence, then fell into self-doubt with a frown: “Did I cook for myself last night? Why don’t I remember……”

He tried hard to remember what had happened the night before, repeatedly teetering on the edge of dizziness. A big palm descended from the sky in time to grab the crown of his head, pressing down on it with a bit of force: “Stop!”

Pei Xi was like an old radio with the stop button pressed. Once his thoughts were interrupted, he immediately returned to a blank state.

“Stop thinking about it. The more you think about it, the more confused you’ll become.”

He Chuzhou stopped him from recalling memories that were useless and had a high probability of hurting his head: “First, we’ll search everywhere, and if we can’t find it, I’ll buy you a new one. It’s just that there might be some trouble with the card replacement and data retrieval.”

Pei Xi nodded obediently: “Okay.”

Preparing for the worst, He Chuzhou told Pei Xi to find his ID card and get it ready. Then he made his way to the kitchen and rummaged around in a final attempt.

Unexpectedly, it actually bore fruit.

He took the nearly battery-drained phone down from the top cabinet. Not only was he surprised that Pei Xi had put his phone in such a tricky place, but he was also surprised that—

“You can actually cook?”

Hearing this, Pei Xi was silent for a moment: “Chuzhou, that means you think that all the meals I cooked for you before were actually takeaway, right?”

He Chuzhou: “…….”

Damn. He carelessly didn’t keep his mouth shut.

“No, of course not.”

His mind spun rapidly as he tried to salvage the situation: “What I meant is that…..”

“It’s no use quibbling.”

Pei Xi calmly put the ID card he had just found into his hand, pushed him aside, and said word by word: “We’re having lunch at home today. I’ll cook while you watch.”

He Chuzhou touched his nose angrily and stood in the corner in a well-behaved manner, where he wouldn’t get in the way, and to atone for his “indiscriminate words.”

Pei Xi easily found a bright blue apron in the bottom cabinet. He arranged the cooking table, then turned and took the ingredients he needed from the refrigerator.

Everything proceeded in an orderly and convincing manner.

He Chuzhou watched for a while, lamenting his mistake.

But he couldn’t be blamed entirely. After all, Pei Xi seemed like someone who was above the material attractions of the world, and was incompatible with the mundane workings of the kitchen and daily life.

In order to prove himself, Pei Xi did not allow him to step in and help. He Chuzhou had nothing to do, so he took advantage of his penalty period to secretly look at the two revised plans in his email box.

When he was finished reading, he took a look at the ID card Pei Xi had just thrust into his hand—

Twenty-six?

He was actually two years younger than He Chuzhou!

His eyebrows jumped, and his guilty conscience from coaxing a certain someone to call him ‘gege’ also immediately vanished without a trace.

He was only twenty-six, so it was natural for him to call him ‘gege.’

The ID card was valid for ten years, and the photo was still from when Pei Xi was a teenager. His appearance was not much different from now. He was already good-looking enough to leave others in the dust, only at that time, he was more immature and boyish.

……Seventeen-year-old Pei Xi.

He chewed these words over, and the corners of his mouth turned up uncontrollably.

At seventeen, he would have been in high school.

The best high school in Wancheng was the high school affiliated with Wan University. It had capable teachers and a superior teaching environment. Even the school uniforms were famously good-looking.

Pei-calico’s beautiful and refined face, paired with a youthful school uniform. There was no telling what kind of stir he caused at school back then.

It was a pity.

Such a pity that he had already gone abroad at that time.

He took a few more regretful glances, then finally put his phone back into his pocket and looked up—

The person who had caused a stir on campus was calmly throwing two pitted tomatoes he had failed to peel into the trash can.

“?”

His smile paused, and he shifted his gaze to the right.

There were a lot of things on the previously empty cooking table: 

Potatoes cut into various shapes; pieces of broccoli in disarray; green onions chopped into thin pieces; Wagyu beef that had been blanched in boiling water but was still not yet thawed inside…..

“……?”

He was about to say something, but Pei Xi suddenly turned around and stretched out his hand: “Chuzhou, give me my cell phone.”

He reflexively handed over the phone: “What do you need it for?”

Pei Xi’s expression remained unchanged: “I forgot how to do it, so I’m going to look it up.”

“…….”

He hesitated to speak several times, and in the end, he decided to keep his mouth shut.

Pei Xi cooked at his own pace.

Even though he kept making mistakes, and even though he failed to follow the step-by-step tutorial, he still showed extraordinary calmness.

The original plan was to make scrambled eggs with tomato first, but because he failed to peel the tomatoes, the Baidu recipe became egg and three delicacy soup.

But after beating the eggs into the hot water along with their broken eggshells, he discovered that the eggs in three delicacy soup must be stirred and fried first.

Thus, the website page changed from three delicacy soup to boiled poached eggs.

As a result, there were more eggs than water. In addition, he felt uneasy seeing the white foam floating on the water’s surface, so he kept fishing and fishing it out…..

In the end, his query turned from boiled poached eggs to pan-fried poached eggs.

Disregarding the taste, boiled-then-fried eggs were not very elegant or attractive in appearance.

Pei Xi cared about this very much, so after brief consideration, he turned to take a bag of bread from the refrigerator, then put the eggs on the bread along with some greens that he mistook for lettuce leaves.

When a sandwich with a ridiculous production process and an outrageous shape was handed to him, He Chuzhou felt that his brain had shrunk.

He had made a mistake, and spoken too early.

Pei Xi: “Okay, try it.”

He Chuzhou silently adjusted his breathing.

Bear with it. Children needed encouragement when they tried something for the first time.

With this idea in mind, he grabbed the sandwich and took a cautious bite.

Pei Xi tilted his head: “How is it?”

He Chuzhou: “……The taste is very rich.”

Soft yet crispy, charred yet fragrant, with some eggshells for good measure.

Pei Xi was very satisfied. He took the other half and put it into his mouth.

He Chuzhou: “ ! ”

He grabbed it with quick reflexes and took two more hasty bites to show that it was indeed delicious. Then he set his piece aside and took this person straight out of the kitchen.

Pei Xi didn’t understand: “What’s wrong?”

He Chuzhou: “Be good, let’s go out to eat.”

Pei Xi: “Why? Isn’t everything already done?”

He Chuzhou: “I remembered that I made a restaurant reservation this morning. If I don’t go and get my deposit back, I’ll lose money.”

Pei Xi was mystified: “What kind of restaurant requires a deposit?”

He Chuzhou skewed his eyes: “I don’t know, I’ll take you to see and experience it. Let’s go~”

*

*

The restaurant was located in a shopping mall in the city center. It had a nice environment, and the taste was pretty good.

But Pei Xi wasn’t very hungry yet, so he put his fork down without eating much. His attention flickered, falling on the young couple at the table in front of them.

The young couple were taking photos. Wearing clothes of the same style and in similar colors, they made faces and smiled broadly, appearing very intimate.

He watched them thoughtfully for a while, then quickly looked at the person opposite him: “Chuzhou, want to go clothes shopping?”

He Chuzhou didn’t know where this sudden idea had come from, but it happened to be convenient that they were at a shopping mall. After dinner, he took this person to the men’s clothing area on the fourth floor.

Like a lot of men, He Chuzhou had never been interested in shopping.

He always stuck to the same brands aside from custom-made suits, and the rest was all due to Ms. Chu picking up a couple of pieces for him when she went shopping for new clothes.

In the words of Ms. Chu, when it came to food and clothing, He Chuzhou was as easy to handle as his father.

But today was different.

He seemed to have discovered something he had never known before, the fun of shopping that Ms. Chu and He Aiyue were so passionate about.

“This one, this one, this one.”

“This one isn’t bad either.”

“You haven’t tried this color yet, have you? How about you try this one on?”

He turned to pick out a bunch, and Pei Xi didn’t object. He accepted them all and returned to the fitting room to try them on one by one.

“My Pei-calico looks good no matter what he wears.”

He Chuzhou happily paid outside and asked the clerk to pack up all of the things he had just tried on, leaving nothing behind.

Pei Xi quickly changed into the last set and came out.

The inner layer was white, and the casual jacket was light blue with white lines. The light color scheme went with his cool, neither arrogant nor impetuous look, lending a pure, clean aura to his face.

This was very different from his usual suit-and-tie appearance. If he was thrown into a crowd of students at the gate after school, he would definitely not seem out of place.

He Chuzhou’s eyes flickered, and his smile widened.

Every outfit had looked good.

But this was the best one today.

There were quite a few girls choosing men’s clothing in the store. Holding clothes in their hands, they couldn’t stop looking in this direction with bright eyes, and whispered to the clerk accompanying them to ask if he had more in the same style.

He Chuzhou went over to help Pei Xi adjust his collar, and suddenly asked: “Have the uniforms of the university-affiliated high school changed over the years?” 

Pei Xi thought for a moment, then shook his head: “I don’t know, I haven’t been there in a long time.”

Sure enough, it was that secondary school.

Success flashed through He Chuzhou’s eyes, and he retracted his hand: “Just wear this for now. It will be a hassle to change.”

Pei Xi had no objections: “Okay.”

The clerk packed Pei Xi’s original clothes with the others, and while He Chuzhou was leaving his address and delivery time, Pei Xi asked the clerk: “Can you help me pack another set of these same styles?”

The clerk was taken aback: “You mean you want two sets of each style?”

Pei Xi nodded: “The size should be two sizes larger.”

Noticing the confused look from He Chuzhou’s side, he turned around and asked naturally: “Aren’t you going to wear one?”

He Chuzhou looked at these clothes that clearly did not match his style……

It wasn’t impossible.

Thus, he took out his phone and payed the bill again, in good spirits: “Do what he said, please.”

“You brothers have such a good relationship.”

The clerk said with a smile: “The last time someone bought the same style in our store, it was a pair of twins who had just graduated and were inseparable.”

“Brothers?”

When Pei Xi heard this, he frowned and corrected him firmly: “We’re not brothers, we’re husb—mmph!”

He Chuzhou covered his mouth with a quick hand.

Facing the clerk with a question mark on his face, He Chuzhou smiled and explained: “What he means is that we are such good friends it’s like we’re related, but we’re not brothers.”

“En, he is not good with words and occasionally has a bit of an accent.”

---

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Chapter 16 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 18

Pancreatic cancer. I had only heard of it before, but never seen it, and didn’t know that this disease was so cunning. It could impersonate many diseases, most commonly gastrointestinal disease.

Having a loved one be seriously ill was a very common scene in TV dramas. When the protagonist heard the news, they would be sad and devastated, holding their lover and crying until their heart broke. But I actually felt none of those emotions when I heard the news.

My heart was very calm, like an empty world or a placid, dead sea.

I could even clearly feel the spring breeze blowing on my face and the warmth of the sun falling on my body.

There seemed to be a child passing by with his mother, greeting me warmly.

It was too absurd. My brain wouldn’t accept or digest the news, and my heart certainly wouldn’t respond either. “Could it be an error? I take him for a physical exam every year. We just had a physical exam at the beginning of last year.”

But the doctor said: “The chairman is not wrong. It is a very typical pancreatic cancer, almost in the third stage. This is how the disease is, very difficult to detect in the early stages…..”

He told me that this disease was very difficult to detect early. It could imitate many diseases that were not easily taken seriously, and the most common one was gastrointestinal disease. It only took half a year to go from the early stage to the late stage, and life and death were just a matter of seconds.

I could take him for treatment as soon as possible, but the so-called treatment was not to cure the disease and prolong life, but to reduce the pain of the patient in his last days.

It was as if my numb brain was finally starting to connect with the world, gradually understanding and digesting information.

Different from the scenery that would often appear on TV, heaven would not block out the sun with heavy rain because of someone’s tragedy.

On the contrary, the weather that day was very good. Spring was in full bloom, the sun was shining brightly in the sky, and the branches and leaves of the landscape trees beside the road gently swayed with the wind. The light that fell on them was shattered to pieces, and the light and shadow on the ground moved with the wind like the gleaming reflection of a lake.

The spring light also fell on me generously, but nerves and hormones rushed through my body with magma-like signals, burning my body and my soul. I couldn’t feel the world outside of myself.

I took the report out of my bag and looked at it all on the street. A few pieces of wedding candy I had selected in the morning fell to the ground due to my movements, but I had no time to care about them. People coming and going looked at me in bewilderment.

I tried to find evidence of a mis-diagnosis, but I could find nothing.

“Mincheng?”

He called me from behind, and my whole body froze. I heard him, but I didn’t look back.

I spoke to him in a calm voice. I told him I was going to buy something, and notified the driver at home to pick him up. I asked him to wait here for a while, and then ran to the hospital as if running away.

I abandoned him, and didn’t dare to look back.

I was afraid that he would notice something off about me, afraid of seeing his clueless face.

It seemed that if I could escape, he would be hale and healthy out of my sight.

Starting from noon that day, I did not go home for two consecutive days. I found the top experts in the country and invited some heavyweight researchers from abroad. They studied his medical records for a long time and told me tactfully that the five-year survival rate for the advanced stage disease was only 3%. With some hard work, he may be able to prolong his life for a while.

But there was no hope for a cure.

This was the malevolence of heaven, and humans had no way to resist.

After a few days, I finally went home.

It was evening, and there were no lights on at home. He was huddled on the sofa alone, watching TV. The light and shadow of the television flickered on and off his face. He looked desolate and lonely.

The sound of me opening the door caught his attention. He paused. His eyes moved from the TV to me, and he ran to me barefoot in pleasant surprise. “Why are so many things happening in the company suddenly? Have you rested well these days?”

I was like a machine. My body skillfully made various expressions and movements, but my soul was numb and unfeeling.

I stretched out my arms to him. He looked at me for a moment and then took the initiative to hug me. A hand touched my chin, and there was a worried look on his face. “You don’t seem to have shaved, Mingcheng. I don’t think you look right. Is something wrong?”

I shook my head, grabbed the hand that was touching my face, and kissed it. I said with a smile on my face and a helpless expression: “Nothing’s wrong. I was just in such a hurry to come back and see you.”

He continued to watch me when I was changing clothes. I knew that he was worried about me.

In order to keep him from noticing, all of my actions seemed perfectly natural.

I just didn’t know why the cold water splashed on my face made my eyes sting.

“Mingcheng?” Suddenly, he walked to my side.

I took out some face towels and wiped my face, smiling at him normally. After so many years, my smile should be perfect: “What’s wrong? Are you hungry? What do you want to eat in a while?”

I wiped the water off my face while talking to him. There was no smile on his face. I wanted to ask him if he was unhappy, if he was angry because I hadn’t been home in several days, but he suddenly reached out and touched the skin beneath my eyes.

“Mingcheng, you’re crying. Why?”

When these words sounded, my throat suddenly swelled and became blocked. I couldn’t speak for a long time.

Slowly, I turned my eyes to look at myself in the mirror.

The man in the mirror had a gentle smile on his face. Even his eyes were smiling, and the tears seemed to have fallen by mistake. They looked disharmonious on this face, as if a painter had made an error, but they really existed.

A-Zhen took the trouble to wipe away my tears. After a long while, I said calmly: “The water was too cold. It got into my eyes.”

I probably gave myself away, because my speaking voice was very ugly, like it had been scoured by sand hundreds of times, making it tattered and hoarse.

After that, I pretended to work normally and went out every day, coming home after five o’clock in the evening.

He must have thought I was at work, but in fact, I had been going back and forth to various hospitals at home and abroad during the day.

I took him to see many doctors on the pretext of treating gastrointestinal problems, but in the end, I found nothing.

It was too late. Too late. A life could be exchanged for money, but fate could not be changed. No matter how much money was invested, it could only be extended for a short period of time.

This was the answer I received.

I began to despair. Where he couldn’t see me, I became irritable and full of rage, breaking things at every turn. I lost the gentleness he liked and turned into the kind of person he despised.

I really couldn’t figure it out. Why were the heavens so malicious toward me?

Why did they allow him to get this disease?

The doctor told me: “There are many reasons why people get sick. Did he have pancreatitis before? Does he have the habit of smoking or drinking? Does he have any relatives who are sick? There is also emotion. If the patient is in a poor mood for a time, that may be a cause. There is a saying that disease comes from the heart, and of course there is also the saying that fate plays tricks on people……”

He did not have pancreatitis, and did not smoke or drink. Did the disease come from the heart, or was it caused by nature?

He had done no evil, and retribution should not befall him.

That night, I no longer hid my pain, and it could be said that I could no longer hide it anymore. I burst into tears quietly in front of him at the dinner table.

Because I refused to tell him the reason, he gave up questioning me in the end and silently poured me a drink.

He poured white wine into a crystal-clear glass and handed it to me, curving his lips in a faint smile. There were no lights on that day, only a nightlight on the table. His face looked exceptionally white and clear, like all that remained of the light in this world.

“I noticed that something was wrong with you the day you came back. Although you refuse to tell me, I’m very pleased that you are willing to show me your sadness.”

“Mingcheng, I understand your unwillingness to tell me. There were times when I was very sad, but unfortunately, I didn’t tell you at that time. I regret it very much.” He poured himself a glass of wine too.

I subconsciously wanted to stop him, but looking at his calm face, I gave up in the end.

He finished his glass of wine and said to me: “It is very precious to walk out of dark times with a loved one by your side. I should have told you then.”

“Mingcheng, I’m telling you now. Can you tell me your sad things too?”

For a long while, he told me a story in which we were the protagonists.

“You spent seven years with me in Russia. I never told you the reason why I dropped out of school. Now that I think about it, it wasn’t fair to you. Actually, it was because of that incident when we were still young. I couldn’t get out for a while…..”

The records of our room rental and photos were sent to his home. The Wei family parents were very conservative, and he was the most beloved son in the family. The Wei family parents didn’t celebrate the Lantern Festival that night, and he hid in his room for a long time while his parents quarreled fiercely outside.

“It was a long time before I could forget the disappointed look in their eyes when they looked at me. I took those photos back to my room and lit a fire to burn them, but the smell of smoke drew the attention of the auntie at home. I was pulled out and beaten by my dad again. He called me a person with no dignity in front of the whole family and the auntie, and I was so humiliated that I couldn’t face anyone in the family. He was so angry with me that he took heart attack pills in front of me. It was only then that I knew he had a heart disease.”

He smiled bitterly. The smile was fleeting, and he lowered his eyes to fill our two wine glasses again.

“My mother said that he had been ill for a long time, and never told me because he was afraid that I would be worried. My dad loved me very much, but he didn’t speak gently to his children. Every scolding word he gave me made me have nightmares for a long time. Back then, I felt so desperate that I wanted to jump off a building and die, but I really couldn’t bear to let go of you.”

He got up and approached me, sitting down next to me. “I was probably in shock at that time. Young, and without much experience. When I looked at the photos from the school cameras, I felt like everyone at school knew, and they were all mocking and despising us. Now that I think about it, I was actually worrying too much. There weren’t that many people in the world who were paying attention to me.”

“But I’ve never been a lovable person. You know that my classmates in school despised me after playing with me for a while. I was really afraid of seeing other peoples’ disgusted eyes aimed at me. I probably had depression during that time, but I didn’t know what it was back then…..”

He seemed to have really come out to tell the story of his past, but every word shocked me on the spot. One by one, they were like slaps to my face, bundles of arrows piercing my heart, smashing it into bloody pieces. 

This was the first time I understood the harm I had done to him. I really wanted to apologize to him and say that it wasn’t his fault. They didn’t hate you, they liked you. It was all my fault. I was the hateful one, the vicious one.

But I had no way to say it anymore. To this day, I could no longer expose my lies and dared not take off my disguise.

He apologized to me instead, wiping my tears with his hands: “I wanted to flee to a place where no one knew or hated me. I was too immature and weak, so I had to drop out of school. I’m sorry. I know you wouldn’t have dropped out of school if you hadn’t been with me. You should have gone to the best economics and management school, and not gone through so much hardship with me.”

“My father died later, and my brother was injured. I wasn’t with him when he died. I didn’t even see him for the last time, and burned his works with my own hands. Every day, it really was torture.”

At this point, he cried.

I held him in my arms, and we embraced each other with affection, kissing each other with love.

He wiped our tears with his hands and said to me: “Mingcheng, all of them left me over the long years. Only you have accompanied me. I only have you, and you me. We are going to get married and spend the rest of our lives together, so…..let me bear your pain with you. Can you tell me what happened? No matter what it is, I will accompany you to the end.”

When he said these words to me, he showed me his sincerity, but I didn’t dare look him in the eye, so I covered his eyes and kissed his lips.

You can tell me your pain, but I can’t do the same. I don’t deserve it.

In your life, I am the one who caused you the most pain.

I remembered that my dad once told me he regretted not strangling me to death, and I felt the same regret. 

It was Wei Zhizhen’s misfortune to fall in love with me.

. . . . . . .

This disease worsened very quickly. No matter how expensive the injections were, they only relieved him of pain. He was losing weight day by day, vomiting day and night, and even vomited blood and fainted.

Scientific methods had failed, so I began to pray to God and worship Buddha.

No one knew better than me that this was useless, but every time a charlatan was recommended to me, I was still willing to believe. 

In the past few months, I invited the Fox Fairy and the Queen Mother of Xishan, begged for life from the gods, and even went to the ancestral graves at home.

Without any suspense, they all failed.

Then one time, a very capable Confucian scholar in the circle gave A-Zhen boiled talisman water to drink. After he drank it, he vomited violently on the spot. In a fury, I pulled out the Chinese Anzhai knife from the table and pressed it against the scholar’s neck. 

He knelt down and begged for mercy, telling me: “Mr. Wen, I am not deceiving you. I really can do it. Real estate boss Zhao drank my water and lived for another three years. I really didn’t expect Mr. Wei’s situation, but my shifu is very capable. My shifu is better than me. Let me go, let me go and I will take you to see him. He can change fate, it’s true.”

So I met a fake monk. His name was Mei Yin. It was said that the legitimate monk was very talented in his early years, but later practiced evil skills by chance and was kicked out by the other disciples. 

This man wavered between good and evil, but he was mine and A-Zhen’s turning point.

I didn’t believe him at that time, so I tossed him a case of money just as I had those scholars.

He looked at the banknotes in the case and smiled at me: “You are the most generous customer I have ever met.”

He took out a pill and handed it to me, telling me to go back and give it to A-Zhen.

I took it and said to him: “Master, you had better tell your own fortune first. If my lover eats this and something bad happens to him, I will kill you.”

He smiled and nodded: “No problem.”

This elixir gave me hope. 

At that time, A-Zhen had already received so many injections, relying on the million-to-one chance of miracle drugs. But in my opinion, they were actually painkillers to maintain his life. These injections were made by the research team I hired. The injections were given once a week, and as long as they continued, he seemed to regain health and become a normal person within a few days.

Even he himself thought he had a minor illness such as gastroenteritis, which easily relapsed, and it would be fine if he took the injections on time.

I didn’t dare tell him the truth about his pancreatic cancer, and continued to lie to him about his gastrointestinal problems. And he believed me.

But then the medicine began to wear off, and he couldn’t eat for several days.

I felt that he may have begun to doubt his condition as well. 

I was desperate, so when I got home, I pressured him to take the elixir semi-forcefully.

When he swallowed painfully, I expertly placed my hand on his mouth, prepared for him to vomit. But he didn’t.

He slept.

I knelt on one knee beside the bed and gazed at him. I feared that his heartbeat would suddenly stop, so I kept my palm on his chest.

Nearly ten hours passed like this before he woke up.

His face actually looked rosy. The bloodshot eyes caused by the disease had vanished, and he appeared energetic.

Changed from the life-threatening weakness from a few days ago, he blinked and looked at me, smiling as he said: “Mingcheng, it’s so nice to see you when I wake up in the morning.”

He reached out and hugged my neck, ruffling my hair mischievously: “What should we eat this morning? I’m so hungry.”

I made him breakfast doubtfully, a light bowl of vegetable porridge.

However, he no longer had difficulty swallowing like he had in the past few days, and looked very hungry. After a few sips, he asked me for more.

There was nothing to be afraid of now, so I gave him what he wanted, and cooked whatever he wanted to eat.

That day, I watched with my own eyes as he ate three normal meals. He even ate some fruit, and slept normally at night.

He was in this state every day afterward. His cheeks, which had been thin before, began to grow flesh, and even the doctors were shocked speechless by his condition.

Although it was a pity that this situation lasted less than half a month, it gave me great hope.

I found Master Mei Yin, and this time, I intended to change fate.

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Chapter 33 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 35