Chapter 11#

Nan Shuyi carried Jiang Yicen back to the temporary “bridal suite” prepared for them by the hotel.#

He worked out regularly, so Jiang Yicen’s weight was no issue at all. Carrying Jiang Yicen into the room, he kicked the door shut with one foot, sealing off the lively noise from outside.

At this moment, Jiang Yicen’s hands were tightly clutching the previously crisp, ironed jacket of Nan Shuyi. Not only was his heart racing, his whole body trembling and cold, but he was also suffering from dizziness and tinnitus.

All he wanted was to escape from the barrage of gunfire. He couldn’t remember how many times he had been shot, but he knew it hurt terribly at the time.

After arriving in this new world as a lonely ghost, his attention had been captured by this new era. He thought he would gradually forget the images of his death, but he never expected that he would be terrified of sounds so similar to gunfire and cannons. He simply couldn’t forget the successive gunshots and the bullets that struck his body.

Jiang Yicen was in extreme discomfort, unable to control the images flooding his mind.

The first bullet hit his knee, the second his shoulder, the third, the fourth…

Pain, so much pain.

Nan Shuyi laid Jiang Yicen on the bed and saw cold sweat beading on his forehead. “What’s wrong? Is it low blood sugar?”

Jiang Yicen frowned deeply, pressing his forehead tightly against Nan Shuyi, clutching at him as if grabbing a lifeline.

“It hurts so much.”

Nan Shuyi asked him anxiously, gently rubbing his back. “Where does it hurt? Should I call a doctor? Among the guests, there’s a doctor from a medical family; I can ask them to come and take a look at you.”

Jiang Yicen shook his head. Listening to his voice, the images in his mind gradually diminished. The cannon fire stopped, and he felt much better.

He found his voice again: “No, no need. I’ll be fine after resting a while.”

Nan Shuyi didn’t agree with his current state, but he chose to listen to Jiang Yicen—he knew his own body best.

“Let me get you some hot water?”

“Mm.”

Nan Shuyi poured some hot water. When he handed the cup to Jiang Yicen, he noticed his hands were still trembling. Afraid he might not be able to hold it, he simply brought the cup directly to his lips. Jiang Yicen took two sips from his hand, but due to the angle, water spilled from the corner of his mouth, about to trickle down his collar and soak his clothes. His hand moved faster than his mind, making a decision for itself—he reached up and wiped the water from his lips.

Nan Shuyi saw that Jiang Yicen’s lips were pale, his heart tightened slightly, but he didn’t think much of it.

After drinking half a cup of hot water, the trembling symptoms gradually eased, the tinnitus lessened significantly, and the bone-deep fear slowly receded.

Seeing Jiang Yicen’s face gradually regain color, Nan Shuyi reviewed the timing of his symptoms, which had started right after the firecracker display. A guess formed in his mind.

“Are you afraid of firecrackers?”

Jiang Yicen’s reaction was a bit slow. “Mm.”

Actually, it wasn’t that he couldn’t stand the sound of guns or cannons at all—if the bullets weren’t hitting him, he only felt a sense of fear in his heart. But when he had personally experienced facing multiple opponents alone, he might have been brave, yet his whole body ached. Not knowing how many bullets had struck him, that fear gradually magnified into what it was now.

Nan Shuyi understood immediately. That’s how it was in a country with zero-cost shopping. Jiang Yicen had lived there alone for six years; it was only natural to experience some culture shock.

“Were you involved in a shooting in the U.S.?”

Jiang Yicen never expected Nan Shuyi to think of that. He said ambiguously, “Something like that.”

He still couldn’t go into detail. If he told Nan Shuyi he had encountered one, the other might press for more. His mind was still hazy, and he didn’t have the energy to come up with excuses—nor did he want to.

Nan Shuyi, however, knew when to back off. Since Jiang Yicen clearly didn’t want to talk about it, he didn’t push further. He understood that Jiang Yicen was probably suffering from gunfire-related stress disorder.

Generally, only people who had been shot or experienced war developed this, but it wasn’t impossible that Jiang Yicen had been frightened into this state by a shooting in the U.S. He couldn’t imagine how terrifying that shooting must have been.

They often joked about gun incidents in the U.S., and sometimes friends would tease about it at dinner, but only those who had truly experienced it knew how terrifying firearms could be.

Nan Shuyi grew a little curious about Jiang Yicen’s life in the U.S.

The Jiang family’s business hadn’t been as prosperous in recent years, but they still lived in a garden villa—there was no way he would have lived in a poverty-stricken neighborhood where gunfire was a nightly occurrence.

Now wasn’t the time to discuss his six years studying abroad there.

Nan Shuyi pulled open the silk duvet on the bed. “Rest for a while. I’ll call you when it’s time to go out for the toasts.”

Jiang Yicen was indeed drenched in cold sweat, his legs still a bit weak. If he went out for toasts now, he would only be rude.

Nan Shuyi prepared to leave but found himself hindered. The corner of his shirt was tightly gripped by Jiang Yicen.

Jiang Yicen blinked slowly at him, a hint of pleading in his eyes. “Could you stay with me for ten minutes?”

The stress response had drained a lot of Jiang Yicen’s energy. Seeing no color on his face, Nan Shuyi knew he couldn’t be faking it.

“Alright. Rest and recover first; then we’ll proceed with the next steps.”

“Thank you.”

Jiang Yicen closed his eyes gently. He let go of Nan Shuyi’s shirt and grabbed the blanket instead. Nan Shuyi was close by, and the scent of tea on him momentarily helped Jiang Yicen forget those terrible memories.

The temporary “bridal suite” was a large suite. Jiang Yicen’s head was still spinning, and he couldn’t recall for a moment whether the last person to stay in this expensive suite was a high-ranking official or a celebrity.

Someone brought them clothes—the suits they needed to wear for the next toast session.

The suites at Yongjiang Hotel were all spacious. Jiang Yicen could barely make out what Nan Shuyi was saying to the person delivering the clothes in the outer room. Then the person left, and Nan Shuyi closed the door. After that, he talked softly on the phone with someone. Probably because Jiang Yicen wasn’t feeling well and needed a moment to rest, Nan Shuyi lowered his voice and tone, making it very magnetic, low and soft, drifting into Jiang Yicen’s ears, helping him relax—it became an unusual kind of lullaby.

He had woken up early that morning, been fussed over from the start, and now, without realizing it, Jiang Yicen, with his eyes closed, actually fell asleep.

When he woke up, it was half an hour later. His head was no longer dizzy, his body wasn’t cold, his mind was clear, and his limbs could move normally again.

He didn’t see Nan Shuyi. He must have gone out for something.

In the outer living room hung a suit in his size. When they had chosen their attire, they had ruled out white. The designer had presented many color options, and they finally settled on light gray plaid suits—not too formal, relatively casual, suitable for the toast occasion.

He changed into the suit before looking for his phone.

Phones were great things; WeChat was a great thing. Modern advanced technology created countless conveniences.

It turned out Nan Shuyi had already left him a message on WeChat. He thought, Nan Shuyi was a considerate person.

[Nan Shuyi: I’m going to get some food. When you wake up, change clothes first. Don’t leave the room.]

[Jiang Yicen: I’m awake.]

Replying like this on WeChat always felt like something very intimate. In the past, even between very close family members or friends, there was rarely such exchange.

After today, he and Nan Shuyi would be closer than family, surpassing the bonds of kinship—the closest person to him in this new world.

Perhaps it was because he had grown up following his grandfather and studying the classics, rarely exposed to romantic relationships, that he had never thought of being intimate with anyone. Later, his fiancée called off the engagement, which actually brought him relief. He had never felt much for the fiancée he had never met since childhood; breaking off the engagement was the best outcome.

Then war descended upon the land of Lin City. No one knew if they would live to see tomorrow. Many things happened. After his family passed away one by one, the family business fell to him. He learned from scratch, stayed up all night studying, squeezing every hour into twenty-five. Matters of love and romance had no room to squeeze in.

Even now, he was still confused—could he really accept a man?

At this moment, his mind was filled with Nan Shuyi’s handsome face. His voice could even help him sleep. Living with him wouldn’t be impossible. He could accept it.

In their time, he also knew that many famous people actually liked men, but they still married women and had children, and no one spoke of it openly. In that era, most people were much more open-minded and accepting than Jiang Yicen had thought.

When it came to survival, there wasn’t much need to bind oneself with so many rules. Those were things people thought up only when they had too much leisure time.

Having finally landed in an era without war, being able to live safely—any way was fine.

The message had been sent for less than three minutes when the door opened. Nan Shuyi held a tray with two bowls of noodles—one light and plain, the other covered in chili oil and red pepper.

Nan Shuyi set the noodles on the table. “Have a little first.”

Jiang Yicen was indeed hungry, so he didn’t stand on ceremony. He reached for the plain bowl.

Only then did Nan Shuyi pick up his own.

Noodles were easy to digest and could be eaten quickly.

Nan Shuyi ate very fast. Jiang Yicen was a bit slower, but still faster than when he had drunk soup earlier.

Jiang Yicen left half a bowl uneaten and put down his chopsticks. He normally shouldn’t waste food, but it seemed he had passed the peak of hunger—once he was mostly full, he couldn’t eat any more.

Nan Shuyi asked him, “Not eating anymore?”

Jiang Yicen hesitated, still trying to force himself: “I’m a bit full. It would be a waste not to finish.”

The Jiang family in Lin City had indeed been wealthy, but he had been taught from childhood to cherish food. Whatever was put before him had to be finished.

After the war, Jiang Yicen treasured every grain of rice even more.

Seeing him struggle to eat, Nan Shuyi slid the half bowl over to himself. “If you can’t eat, don’t force it.”

Jiang Yicen was surprised by his action. “I already ate from that.”

Nan Shuyi chuckled lightly. “What are we doing today?”

Jiang Yicen understood instantly. Finally, some color returned to his face. He said quietly, “Getting married.”

They were getting married today. Could their relationship be closer than yesterday?

Nan Shuyi took two bites, and most of the noodles were gone. One more bite emptied the bowl, leaving only the broth.

Just then, someone came to urge them out for the toasts. The guests had started their meal fifteen minutes ago, and the dishes were already more than halfway through—the liveliest moment.

The two returned to the banquet. The feast had already begun, and on stage, a round of host-guest interaction had just ended.

Jiang Yicen followed closely behind Nan Shuyi. Both sets of parents were arranged on stage to toast the guests together.

Then Nan Anru led Nan Shuyi and Jiang Yicen to toast the elders one by one. Actually, their cups contained only water, so there was no risk of getting drunk.

The toast session wasn’t long. With so many guests, it was just a formality. The real trouble came from Nan Shuyi’s group of friends. They immediately swapped Nan Shuyi’s water for alcohol. The elders were polite enough not to call out the newlyweds, but friends didn’t care about that—they were determined to get Nan Shuyi drunk. Some also tried to ply Jiang Yicen.

“Fourth Young Master, you’re both men—how can you not drink? Come, come! Here’s to a long and happy marriage!”

Words of blessing.

Jiang Yicen, being toasted like this, found it hard to refuse. This person knew how to talk.

“Alright.” Jiang Yicen didn’t intend to refuse. He picked up the small shallow wine glass and prepared to down it in one go.

After becoming the owner of Yongjiang Hotel, he had trained himself from being completely abstinent to being able to toast difficult guests without changing his expression.

The liquor was hard to swallow. He didn’t like drinking.

His father was gone, his mother was gone, his brothers were gone too. He had to carry everything on his own.

Here, he was only entering into a marriage of convenience. Jiang’s father treated him like a pawn; Jiang’s mother didn’t care about her son. He still had to rely on himself.

He raised the glass. “I’ll drink it all.”

But at that moment, a warm hand grasped his wrist. The glass changed direction in midair. Nan Shuyi drank the wine from his hand.

Nan Shuyi smiled at the group with narrowed eyes. “No one’s allowed to force him to drink today.”

The group of friends instantly erupted.

“Look for a husband like Master Nan—already protecting him!”

“Boyfriend power MAX!”

“Nan Shuyi, if I’d known you liked men, I’d have volunteered back then—let you take the drink for me when we went out.”

Nan Shuyi spat two words at them: “Get lost.”

Amidst the lively chatter of everyone, Jiang Yicen’s heart was unusually calm. He kept looking at Nan Shuyi.

This man had taken a drink for him.

This man had become his husband.

He thought, perhaps he was lucky.