Chapter 126#
Lu Lin arrived at the house in the family area.
He got stuck in rush hour traffic for a while and didn’t arrive until almost eight o’clock. At dusk, most windows were lit, but their house was dark.
Lu Lin’s heart suddenly tightened. He took out his keys while quickly going upstairs and inserted the key to open the door.
Inside the door was silent and dark, with only the sound of dripping water.
Lu Lin closed the door silently, took off his coat, changed into shoes, and entered the house. The moonlight and lamplight from outside shone in at the same time, and the floor was covered with light and shadow like water ripples. The fish tank was also lit with a faint orange warm light. The balcony door was left ajar, and the wind blowing in made the white gauze curtains sway slightly.
Yan Heqing wasn’t there.
Lu Lin was about to go to the bedroom, but stopped after two steps, turned sideways to listen for a while, and then changed direction to go to the bathroom.
The dripping sound wasn’t from the fish tank, but from the bathroom.
Arriving at the bathroom, the begonia glass revealed a faint light, casting a few irregular small circles on the floor in front of the door.
Lu Lin raised his hand and knocked lightly on the door. Just as he was about to speak, the door slowly opened.
The words stuck in his throat. Lu Lin was full of doubts. He stepped in. The sound of water came from the bathroom inside.
Through the begonia glass partition, Yan Heqing’s figure was not seen.
Drip, drip.
The continuous sound of falling water came from the bathtub.
Lu Lin quickened his pace and entered the bathroom. His eyes narrowed slightly.
The double bathtub he had replaced was filled with water, and the surface was covered with rose petals. The faucet was on, and water was trickling down.
The bathroom light was not on, only a few scented candles were placed on the windowsill, and the air was filled with the scent of white plum.
A gentle, cold fragrance of flower branches quietly blooming in the midnight snow.
But Yan Heqing’s figure was still nowhere to be seen.
Lu Lin gently pinched his Adam’s apple and was about to turn around to go out and find someone. Just as he turned, the rose petals swayed, and a slender, snow-white hand reached out and grabbed Lu Lin’s hanging hand.
Lu Lin realized something, his throat tightened painfully. He turned back, and with a splash of water, the person he was looking for emerged from the water.
In the hazy light and shadow, the young man looked up at him, soaked all over. His hair was slightly curled and dripping water. A few dark red rose petals were stuck to his snow-white face. His light-colored eyes were soaked in water, covered with a misty, warm, and moist light.
Yan Heqing was still wearing a shirt.
The white shirt was wet, translucent and clinging to his body. Two buttons were undone, and a rose petal was stuck to his collarbone. The small patch of chest exposed was dazzlingly white.
Lu Lin’s eyes were as dark as the night. His Adam’s apple rolled several times before he managed to utter a hoarse voice, “My shirt.”
“Yes.” Yan Heqing looked at him without blinking, using his hand to get up. The shirt just reached his thighs. His slender legs were about to step out of the bathtub when Lu Lin’s other hand clasped his waist, not letting him move.
Still feeling too far away, Lu Lin stepped into the bathtub. The water in the bathtub instantly overflowed, flowing onto the floor, covering it with rose petals.
Lu Lin held him tightly in his arms. The water was very hot, but the person in his arms was as cool as a white plum. His fingers slowly inserted into Yan Heqing’s hair, his heavy breathing spraying behind Yan Heqing’s ear. “Help me unbutton.”
Yan Heqing raised his hand to find Lu Lin’s shirt buttons. Just as he was about to unbutton them, Lu Lin’s hand slid down from his hair, held his hand, and unbuttoned them together.
He lowered his head and kissed Yan Heqing’s eyes, moving down along the corner of his eye, and finally rolled up the two lips that seemed to be stained with the fragrance of white plum. Lu Lin’s shirt fell to the ground, and he embraced the person and fell into the bathroom together.
Petals continuously splashed onto the ground with the water.
Yan Heqing looked at the bizarre ceiling. The bathtub wall was slippery. He had to grab the edge with one hand and encircle Lu Lin’s neck with the other, as if holding onto his only driftwood. If he let go, he would fall into the deep sea.
Lu Lin also noticed Yan Heqing’s predicament. He moved closer and gently nibbled his earlobe. “Encircle with your right foot too.”
Yan Heqing’s consciousness was hazy. Hearing Lu Lin’s voice, he raised his foot the next second.
A series of crisp silver bell sounds suddenly rang out.
Lu Lin took a moment to glance back at the sound, and his dark eyes instantly surged with dark red.
The swaying candlelight shone on the slender ankle. A string of red rope and small silver bells reflected a faint light, making a chaotic sound with Yan Heqing’s movements.
Lu Lin turned back and bit Yan Heqing’s earlobe with a little force, his voice so hoarse it was almost inaudible. “Where did you learn this?”
Yan Heqing lifted his eyelids, a touch of red also dyeing the corners of his eyes. His answer was broken by the sound of silver bells. “On… online…”
The petals splashed up, this time covering Yan Heqing’s eyes. His vision went from blurry to dark. The only thing he could perceive was the heat of their bodies pressed together.
The bathroom floor was covered with petals and water. The faucet continuously added warm water to the bathtub, but the water still gradually cooled down. When it was completely cold, Lu Lin picked him up and returned to the bedroom.
The lights in the room were not on, only the gauze curtains were drawn. A faint light fell on the bed through the gauze curtains. It was almost dawn.
Yan Heqing’s back was against the soft down quilt. Just as Lu Lin was about to get a set of pajamas for Yan Heqing, he was pulled again.
Lu Lin brushed aside the stray hair on his forehead, his voice so gentle it could knead out spring water. “Sleep, I’ll help you put them on later.”
Yan Heqing’s fingers clutched the bedsheet tightly, then quickly loosened.
Using action instead of an answer, he pulled Lu Lin down and sat on top of him.
“This time it’s my turn.” Before Lu Lin could speak, he lowered his head and whispered the last three words in Lu Lin’s ear, “Uncle Lu.”
An overwhelming sense of numbness swept over Lu Lin, instantly swallowing the last bit of reason he had left.
The silver bells rang until the sky was bright.
…
Yan Heqing woke up first.
Or rather, he had been pretending to be asleep.
The blackout curtains were drawn, isolating the bedroom from the bright sunlight, plunging it into a quiet darkness. Having adapted to the darkness, only when close could one see the person in front.
Yan Heqing raised his hand. Not wanting to wake Lu Lin, his fingertips were about a centimeter away from Lu Lin’s face, slowly tracing his contours, eyes, nose bridge…
He traced for an unknown amount of time, until he could draw Lu Lin’s appearance in his mind with his eyes closed. Only then did he withdraw his hand and lightly plant a kiss on Lu Lin’s lips.
“Sweet dreams.”
Yan Heqing left the bedroom silently.
In the darkness, Lu Lin slowly opened his eyes.
After a while, he heard the soft sound of the door closing.
He had noticed something was wrong with Yan Heqing since the Lu family banquet.
He was going to deal with his creditors again and didn’t want him to follow.
Lu Lin took his phone and dialed a number.
“Follow him and protect him.”
His brow was heavy. “No need to report what happens today. Your only duty is to ensure his safety.”
He hung up the phone.
*
Yan Heqing only turned on his phone when he arrived at the entrance of Beijing University.
Sure enough, Lu Muchi’s call came in quickly.
“Qingqing, you just woke up? I’m out!” He was out of breath, probably having run a considerable distance. “I’m taking a taxi to your place—let’s meet at a shop. I’ve called a car, come quickly.”
He gave an address.
Fearing Yan Heqing didn’t remember, he repeated it again, “It’s Yunding Coffee on Yinjin Road.”
Yan Heqing hung up the phone.
This coffee shop, he was very familiar with.
Last autumn, at four in the afternoon, he almost signed that death warrant.
It was also almost four o’clock now.
He looked up at the sky.
The difference was that it was pouring rain that day, but today the sun was bright. Yan Heqing closed his eyes and felt the sunlight for a while. Soon, a taxi slowly stopped in front of him.
He opened the car door and got in. “Yunding Coffee on Yinjin Road.”
The driver responded, stepped on the gas, and merged into the traffic.
Yan Shengbing had been following the taxi for almost an hour. It finally stopped. Lu Muchi got out of the car and rushed into the coffee shop. Yan Shengbing swallowed nervously. He had waited for so long, and finally waited for Lu Muchi to come out alone.
His hands were trembling. He dialed several times before successfully dialing the number.
Cheng Jian answered quickly. “Succeeded?”
Yan Shengbing kept licking his lips. “No, he went into the coffee shop.”
Cheng Jian cursed. “Keep a good watch, it must succeed today!”
“Boss Cheng…” Yan Shengbing’s legs were trembling. “I’m nervous…”
The phone was passed to Zhao Weifang. He smiled and said, “What are you nervous about? You’ve got the five million. Hurry up and have a drink, drink more, so your blood alcohol concentration is high, so they can’t trace it to you, understand?”
Yan Shengbing looked at the wine Zhao Weifang had prepared for him in advance, a bottle of baijiu worth several thousand yuan! His turbid eyeballs lit up. He said “ai, ai” a few times, put down the phone, and reached for the wine bottle with trembling hands. Grabbing the bottle, he bit off the cap and took a sip. It immediately went to his head. He smacked his lips in satisfaction and drank one mouthful after another.
Just as Yan Shengbing was starting to curse while drinking, a taxi stopped opposite.
Yan Heqing observed his surroundings out of the corner of his eye.
It didn’t take much time to find Yan Shengbing’s car.
He knew the license plate number.
Yan Heqing remained expressionless and calmly entered the coffee shop.
Lu Muchi had deliberately chosen a table by the window. He saw Yan Heqing get out of the taxi. He stared intently at the door. When Yan Heqing came in, the waiter led him over.
Lu Muchi had already tidied his clothes many times, but as Yan Heqing walked towards him, he still nervously pulled his collar again.
He had jumped out of the window and was still wearing a black suit.
Similar to the one Yan Heqing wore on the day of the family dinner.
Yan Heqing was almost there. Lu Muchi quickly got up to pull out the chair opposite him, his gaze firmly nailed on Yan Heqing. “Order a drink first.”
Yan Heqing sat down. Before the waiter could come, Lu Muchi preemptively handed over the menu.
Yan Heqing didn’t take it and said politely to the waiter, “A cup of black coffee.”
Lu Muchi quickly said, “The Black Forest cake here is also good.”
Yan Heqing didn’t reply. Lu Muchi felt snubbed. He didn’t look at the waiter and returned to his seat. “Two cups of black coffee.”
As soon as the waiter left, Lu Muchi asked impatiently, “What’s the meaning of that video you took?”
He stared intently, not wanting to miss any of Yan Heqing’s expressions. Just then, his gaze froze, staring at Yan Heqing’s left earlobe. It wasn’t very obvious, but there was a small mark, and the color was darker than elsewhere.
Lu Muchi’s breathing suddenly sank.
He did it often, he knew too well, that was definitely not a mosquito bite!
Yan Heqing also noticed Lu Muchi’s gaze. His expression was natural. He had discovered the mark on his left ear when he was washing up. After thinking about it, he didn’t cover it. He ignored Lu Muchi and replied calmly, “I’m reminding you to stay away from me in the future.”
He paused, waited for the waiter to put down the coffee, and then continued, “I’m getting married to your uncle next month…”
“Don’t mention him!” Lu Muchi roared without warning.
The waiter walked away quickly.
Yan Heqing curved his lips, smiling even peacefully. “He is my legal husband, why shouldn’t I mention him.”
Yan Heqing’s answer once again shattered Lu Muchi’s delusion. He clenched his hands. “I don’t believe you haven’t had feelings for me!”
His voice carried some hysteria. “Haven’t you ever, for a second, liked me?”
Yan Heqing looked at him, his light-colored pupils gradually darkening.
Those fragments described in the original text flashed before his eyes, and finally all converged on Lu Muchi’s face and disappeared, leaving only his face.
A face.
That made him nauseous.
A disgusting face.
The corners of his mouth were devoid of warmth, and he spat out a sentence heavily, “Every second I face you, I feel disgusted.”
Lu Muchi stood up abruptly. He grabbed Yan Heqing’s collar across the table, but stopped when he saw the mark on his collarbone.
Yan Heqing shook off his hand in disgust. Lu Muchi didn’t move, his eyes filled with jealousy, hatred, and shame, and finally nothing.
A large part of Lu Muchi’s heart was empty. He couldn’t even breathe. He no longer looked at Yan Heqing, bumped into the table, and slowly left.
Yan Heqing didn’t look back.
The coffee in front of him exuded a rich aroma. He knew it was very bitter.
Yan Heqing called the waiter. When the waiter came over, he smiled and said, “Please give me a portion of sugar.”
The waiter quickly brought a plate of sugar cubes, eight pieces, stacked into a small tower. There were tongs for picking up sugar next to it. He picked up two sugar cubes.
Just as he was about to put them in the coffee, a loud bang suddenly came from outside the window.
Immediately following were several gasps from behind. “There’s a car accident!”
Yan Heqing’s hand loosened.
Thump, thump.
Two sugar cubes fell into the coffee cup.