Chapter 55 - 1#
There was no rehabilitation training today. Jing Shun and his friend spent a leisurely afternoon until evening—
“Woof!”
“Arf woof!”
The two dogs, who had been playing outside, suddenly barked one after another. Eone, usually quiet, barked even more excitedly.
Yu Zhen recognized his dog’s voice and stood up anxiously. “Jing Shun, you stay seated. I’ll go check it out.”
Jing Shun nodded and glanced at the time—
Just past five o’clock.
There was still a little while until Chi Gui got off work. Should he head back to the North Pavilion early to wait for him?
This thought had just crossed Jing Shun’s mind when Yu Zhen, who had rushed out first, suddenly let out a short scream and bolted out the door.
“…”
Jing Shun thought something urgent had happened and quickly maneuvered his wheelchair to the door. Only when he got outside the villa gate did he see the scene before him—
Qin Ye, who should have been in Macau, had suddenly appeared at the entrance.
At that moment, Yu Zhen had already flung himself into his lover’s arms like a koala, wrapping his arms and legs around Qin Ye.
Probably in too much of a hurry, Yu Zhen had even lost one of his slippers on the way.
Eone, incredibly clever, ran over, picked up the shoe with its mouth, and circled around its two masters, wagging its tail.
“Woof~”
Dog Bao ran back to Jing Shun’s side, seemingly confused as to why its big brother had suddenly gotten so excited.
Jing Shun looked at the reunited couple, holding each other as if they couldn’t bear to part, and rubbed Dog Bao’s head. “Let’s go. Let’s not disturb them.”
There was a small fence path on the side of the villa that could bypass Qin Ye and Yu Zhen and lead to the main road.
One person and one dog slowly made their way back to the North Pavilion, where they happened to run into Chi Gui at the door.
“…”
“…”
Their eyes met, and once again, fragmented images from last night’s kiss flashed through Jing Shun’s mind.
The lingering heat in his heart instantly surged, along with that tingling sensation returning.
Jing Shun pressed his lips together and moved closer slowly. “Why are you back so early today?”
Chi Gui explained, “There weren’t many important meetings this afternoon, and I got a call from Qin Ye out of the blue, so I went to the airport to pick him up and came over together.”
He discreetly observed Jing Shun’s condition. “Do you feel unwell today? That alcohol last night had a pretty strong aftereffect.”
Jing Shun shook his head. “Not really.”
Chi Gui raised an eyebrow, knowingly asking, “Your face looks a bit flushed.”
Embarrassed to admit he was thinking about those ambiguous moments, Jing Shun made an excuse. “It’s hot.”
Chi Gui wasn’t about to let him off that easily. He leaned in closer. “Jing Shun, you didn’t black out, did you? Do you remember what you said to me last night?”
Jing Shun’s gaze shifted to Chi Gui’s thin lips and quickly looked away before his thoughts could wander further. “I remember.”
Chi Gui pressed further, “Are the things you said still valid?”
Jing Shun had no intention of backing down. He nodded seriously. “They’re valid. I’ll pursue you. I’ll find a way to win you over.”
“…”
Chi Gui struggled to suppress the impulse to pull him into his arms and worked hard to keep the corners of his mouth from curling up too much. “No regrets? You won’t give up halfway?”
“No.”
Jing Shun rubbed his fingertips and murmured, “I’m very devoted.”
Chi Gui noticed this small gesture.
It was the other’s habit whenever he was nervous, so he reached out and wrapped his hand around those fingertips.
“Stop pinching. They’re red already.”
What pursuit or not?
Ever since Jing Shun had taken that first step, Chi Gui would never let him go, even if the other regretted it.
“…”
Jing Shun looked at their intertwined hands and couldn’t bring himself to pull back. “Want to go inside?”
Chi Gui got down to business. “We can’t tonight. The two of us need to go out and treat our guests.”
As the hosts, they had to fulfill their duties as good hosts.
Jing Shun then remembered the other two and chuckled. “Okay.”
…
Ten minutes later, they reconvened.
Chi Gui and Qin Ye went into the garage, leaving Jing Shun and Yu Zhen waiting outside.
Seizing the moment, Jing Shun kept glancing at his friend, curiosity hanging on the tip of his tongue, ready to spill out.
Yu Zhen met his gaze and was in a great mood. “What are you looking at~ If you want to ask, just ask~”
Jing Shun teased him, “You’re all about giving me advice with your ’lessons’ every day, but when it comes to yourself, all you can do is scream.”
Yu Zhen wasn’t embarrassed. “Who told him to surprise me like that? It’s only human nature.”
Jing Shun asked, “What did you two do just now?”
“In such a short time? Nothing. We just kept hugging.”
“You hugged for that long?”
“Yeah, it’s not illegal.”
The smile at the corners of Yu Zhen’s eyes was as sweet as honey. He crouched down unceremoniously beside Jing Shun’s wheelchair. “Listen up, Teacher Yu’s lesson continues—”
“Between lovers, sometimes a hug can be more addictive than kissing or making love.”
Jing Shun didn’t respond, quietly learning and pondering.
Yu Zhen teased, “Don’t believe me? Try it with Chi Gui?”
Jing Shun let out a soft huff, mentally filing this away.
…
Inside the private room, the four of them sat together for a rare meal.
Jing Shun asked casually, “Yu Zhen, what are your plans next?”
He remembered his friend saying that because the Qin family’s roots in Macau were too tangled, he didn’t want to become Qin Ye’s exposed weakness, so he had chosen to stay apart and come back to the mainland.
Yu Zhen didn’t answer. Instead, he looked at his lover.
Qin Ye gave Yu Zhen a reassuring look before turning to the two across from them. “Thanks to you two looking after Xiao Zhen in Haishi, I was able to focus on handling the troublemakers in Macau.”
Now, the internal power struggles within the Qin Corporation had been mostly suppressed by Qin Ye, and the ownership of the underground casinos had also been restructured.
In other words, Qin Ye was no longer the nominal holder of the Qin Corporation, though the news hadn’t fully spread yet.
The other three in the room all knew this.
Yu Zhen immediately got anxious. “Qin Ye, you…”
Qin Ye placed a hand on his to calm him down. “Don’t worry. Let me finish.”
“I no longer want that position now, and I won’t let those with ulterior motives have it. The current holder is a trusted subordinate I personally cultivated.”
Qin Ye was smart enough and bold enough. After extracting himself, he still retained most of his rights and interests.
“I’ve been firmly seated as the head of the Qin family for over a decade. I’ve had enough of money, fame, and power. Even if I let go now, I won’t have to worry about food and clothing for the rest of my life.”
With that, why be stuck in an empty position and make his lover worry every day?
Qin Ye effortlessly took Yu Zhen’s hand and looked at Chi Gui across the table. “I asked Mr. Chi to help me find an RV earlier. It should be finalized next week, right?”
Chi Gui nodded. “Mm.”
“Xiao Zhen, haven’t you always wanted to travel? From now on, I’ll take you and Eone around to have fun. When we get tired, we’ll settle down in Haishi or Sushi.”
“You love making desserts and cakes so much, we’ll open a little shop. Then I’ll be your assistant.”
Qin Ye paused, coaxing Yu Zhen, “Then it’ll be up to Boss Yu to pay me. It’d be great if we could rake in money and have you support me instead.”
Yu Zhen’s eyes were slightly red, but he was happy. “Dream on. Whether we make money or not, I’m not paying you a salary~”
Jing Shun felt a twinge of envy and acknowledged, “Yu Zhen’s cooking is really good. It’ll definitely be popular.”
“Of course it will.” Yu Zhen showed a hint of pride and didn’t forget to make a reservation. “You’ll have to promote me for free in the future. It’s not every day I get to know a celebrity friend like you.”
Jing Shun laughed. “Boss Yu promises me unlimited desserts, and I’ll promote you.”
Yu Zhen agreed without hesitation. “Definitely!”
Watching the two of them go back and forth, basically sealing their future collaboration, Chi Gui and Qin Ye chuckled and raised their glasses, clinking them together. Everything was understood without words.
…
By the time they returned to the North Pavilion, it was just past nine. The elevator stopped on the second floor, but Jing Shun was reluctant to leave just yet.
He was thinking of a topic to linger a little longer with Chi Gui when he heard the person next to him say, “Go get washed up first. Then come upstairs to find me?”
Jing Shun hadn’t expected the invitation. “Huh?”
Chi Gui held the door open button and gave him a half-smile. “Didn’t you say you were going to pursue me? Can’t you even take that much initiative?”
“I never said I couldn’t.” Jing Shun curved his lips. “Then I’ll come upstairs to find you later?”
Chi Gui nodded. “Mm. See you in a bit.”
Jing Shun went back to his room, washed up as quickly as he could, and then wheeled himself upstairs.
Dog Bao, who had come along, was now familiar with the place on the second visit and entered the room quickly, as if it already considered Chi Gui’s master bedroom its own territory.
Chi Gui let the dog do as it pleased and gestured for Jing Shun to come in. “It’s still early. Want to watch a movie?”
A movie at least lasted an hour.
Jing Shun agreed. “Sure. What do you want to watch?”
Chi Gui seemed to have already decided. “Let’s watch your debut film.”
Jing Shun was surprised. “Mine?”
So far, his only film was the literary piece “For Anhe,” which he wrote, directed, and starred in.
However, the film’s tone was too literary and realistic. It performed poorly at the domestic box office and never had a Blu-ray release.
To watch it now, he’d have to find it in a streaming subscription library.
With memories from both this life and his past life jumbled together and so much time having passed, Jing Shun couldn’t recall which video site had the film.
Chi Gui sat down beside him and effortlessly opened the film from the site’s search history, hitting play.
Jing Shun witnessed this and a flicker of unexpected joy caught in his heart. “You’ve watched it more than once?”
Otherwise, how would it be in the playback history?
Chi Gui didn’t deny it.
The opening studio logo appeared.
It had been a long time since Jing Shun had watched this film, and he found himself focusing on it.
" For Anhe " was a typical literary film, with the main character being “Anhe” from the title.
Anhe, a recent college graduate, had his parents divorce and remarry into new families. When he finally found out, he was deeply scarred and wanted to go somewhere no one knew him to live alone.
Just when he had nowhere to go, he came across an ad for a remote island lighthouse keeper—
Salary: ten thousand a month. Room and board on the island required. At least one year commitment.