Lu Yuxing sent Shang Jue to the bottom of his apartment building.
After going back and forth for no reason, Shang Jue thought this behavior was simply inexplicable. However, Lu Yuxing seemed quite happy about it, even appearing a bit reluctant to part ways and wanting to walk a bit longer with him. Shang Jue didn’t invite him up, and Lu Yuxing didn’t bring it up either.
He squeezed Shang Jue’s hand and called his name without any real purpose.
“What is it?” Shang Jue asked.
Lu Yuxing fell silent for a moment.
He didn’t know why he had called Shang Jue’s name. He wasn’t as perceptive or as smart as Shang Jue and couldn’t tell what was wrong with him. But he could vaguely sense something—when Shang Jue smiled at him at the school gate, it didn’t seem genuine.
“I’m your boyfriend,” he said seriously. “You can rely on me.”
“…”
Damn, this guy is annoying.
Shang Jue slowly lowered his head, tucking his chin into the loose collar of his shirt. After a while, he reluctantly replied with a “mm.”
—
A few days later, the ice and snow melted. Chen Xuerong had stayed in A City for ten days, and her work had also been delayed for that long. She wasn’t the kind of person who could easily let herself relax for too long; after spending enough time with Shang Jue, she decided to go back.
On the day of her departure, it just so happened that Shang Jue didn’t have any classes, so he planned to take Chen Xuerong to the airport.
When he messaged Chen Xuerong about it, he hadn’t realized anything was off. It wasn’t until later that he suddenly remembered that his mother hadn’t come alone this time. To avoid making him uncomfortable, Chen Xuerong hadn’t introduced him to her husband, Mr. Qin, during her stay in A City, causing Shang Jue to gradually forget about him.
However, since he had already sent the message about going to the airport, he couldn’t back out, so he went anyway.
Chen Xuerong’s husband was in his forties, well-dressed and looking far better than the slightly overweight Shang Xinrong. When he met Shang Jue outside the hotel, he smiled and called him “Little Shang,” chatting with him like a typical elder, but then he mostly fell silent during the car ride.
Shang Jue felt a strange sense of awkwardness, just a little bit, and they remained quiet the entire way.
He thought he would feel sad when he saw Chen Xuerong off, but when they actually arrived at the airport, he experienced an unexpected sense of relief.
After reaching the airport, they first went to the check-in counter. Shang Jue stood some distance away, watching the two of them check in. There wasn’t any obvious intimate behavior, but Chen Xuerong unconsciously leaned very close to the man.
Compared to a few years ago, there was so much about Chen Xuerong that felt unfamiliar to Shang Jue. But he was genuinely happy for her.
Once the check-in was done, Chen Xuerong walked over to him and stood in front of him, gently pinching his right cheek with a hint of reluctance. “Mom is leaving.”
Shang Jue smiled at her, “Mm.”
Chen Xuerong moved her lips, her thin eyelids hiding a hint of complex emotions in her eyes, similar to Shang Jue’s.
“Are you doing well at home?” That was a question she had asked him on WeChat before; no guessing was needed for the answer, which would surely be “pretty good.”
She probably had a lot to say, but after all these years, Shang Jue had grown from that youthful boy in a school uniform into what seemed like a very mature adult. Whatever she might say now felt somewhat out of place.
Chen Xuerong’s palm fell from Shang Jue’s face to rest on his shoulder, measuring his height with her gaze before letting go and waving goodbye with a smile.
Shang Jue stood at a corner of the airport, watching her walk back to her husband and leave with him. Their backs looked exceptionally harmonious; at least, he had never seen such a warm atmosphere between Chen Xuerong and Shang Xinrong.
It seemed she had finally let go of the messy business with the Shang family; this time, she hadn’t even asked about Min Hong’s situation.
Shang Jue thought: that’s good.
He had been raised by Chen Xuerong. Shang Xinrong and Chen Xuerong were only superficially together; his focus had long since shifted to Min Hong, leaving little genuine concern for him. Shang Jue knew how much energy Chen Xuerong had devoted to him.
She hadn’t done anything wrong; leaving him with Shang Xinrong during the divorce wasn’t a mistake at all.
So her finding happiness was undeniably deserved, right? Yes.
Shang Jue gently furrowed his brow, feeling something perplexing.
What about the others? Shang Xinrong had cheated on his wife during her pregnancy, and Min Hong had chosen to be the mistress despite knowing he had a wife. As for their son… the existence of Shang Yu seemed inherently problematic.
These three people could easily fit into any cliché modern drama as the antagonists, yet they stubbornly endured for twenty years, a mismatched trio living together, and now it seems they’re... doing okay? Min Hong, Shang Xinrong—one is willing to fight while the other is willing to take a beating. This family of three can barely be described as “happy.”
It seems everyone is living quite well.
It’s only natural that those who haven’t made mistakes live happily, while those who have managed to escape divine retribution live on just fine.
A confused voice emerged in Shang Jue’s mind.
... What about me?
The moment that voice broke free from his mind, Shang Jue suddenly felt a chilling sensation, as if haunted by a ghost.
His scalp went numb, and he stood frozen, waiting for this strange and eerie feeling to slowly peel away from his body.
This process seemed to take a long time, during which he heard the sound of countless suitcases rolling past him.
“Cough...” After a long time, he finally cleared his throat, stretched out his hands at his sides, then clenched them again, flexing his stiff fingers. He raised his hands and rubbed his face vigorously to bring his rationality back.
I really should go back.
But just before he moved, Shang Jue suddenly thought of someone who had run to the subway station and then returned to embrace him.
His legs, which had taken two steps, came to a halt again. He gazed into the distance where Chen Xuerong had left, mindlessly waiting an extra two minutes.
Naturally, no one returned.
After all, Chen Xuerong was a normal person, unlike some fool.
Shang Jue: “...”
His temples throbbed, and he felt like an idiot.
Not everyone is as neurotic as Lu Yuxing.
It seemed he had really caught the infection.
The human brain is probably wired to lean toward the dark side; once some terrible thoughts get a foothold, they become unstoppable.
When Shang Jue arrived home, those chaotic emotions not only didn’t dissipate but intensified.
He endured until nightfall, unable to stop his spiraling thoughts, and eventually even doubted why he had worked so hard to get into A University.
Was it to pursue a bright future?
But what kind of future is bright? Making a lot of money? Starting a company? Then living like Shang Xinrong?
No, that’s not it...
Shang Jue began to trace back through his twenty years of life.
Since childhood, he had done his best to meet Chen Xuerong’s expectations. After she left, this behavior became a habit, a routine he continued to this day.
So was it to maintain that habit?
Maintain a habit... damn, can that be a reason for living!
Shang Jue felt something was wrong, realizing he should stop thinking immediately, but his brain was like a runaway horse, continuously producing more thoughts.
He forced himself to take a quick shower, changed into pajamas, and lay in bed, trying to numb his mind by sleeping.
But his mind retaliated against him, recalling a classmate’s joke from childhood: You look like a corpse when you sleep, like lying in... uh, a coffin!
In the cold winter, Shang Jue broke out in a cold sweat in his well-heated bedroom.
He shivered and sat up, gritting his teeth. He took out his phone and sent a message to He Yang.
He felt his mental house urgently needed a support beam, or it would collapse.
【Shang Jue】: Little He, are you asleep?
【He Yang】: Zzzz...
Shang Jue: “...”
Zzzz, stop sleeping, you idiot! Your brother is about to collapse!
—
Lu Yuxing periodically glanced at his phone in the library.
He knew this action was pointless because Shang Jue wasn’t the type to frequently text his lover, unlike other couples who had endless conversations and shared every trivial detail.
He used to think that was quite nice...
His right hand unconsciously clicked on his phone again. Lu Yuxing: “...”
He could no longer tolerate it, locking the screen and tossing it into his backpack, out of sight, and refocusing on his book.
Recently, he had nearly finished self-studying his freshman courses, and soon he would begin preparing for this semester’s material, possibly avoiding a make-up exam next semester.
Lu Yuxing returned to the dorm after studying until closing time.
In the dorm, the other two were fully engrossed in playing games online. He entered quietly, went back to his spot, and began his evening routine.
At eleven, the dorm lights went out. They had a rule since the beginning of the semester: stay quiet after lights out. The other two stopped talking and quietly finished a game before heading to bed.
After washing up, Lu Yuxing also went to bed. Since tomorrow was a holiday, he didn’t rush to sleep and scrolled through his phone for a while.
A message popped up on the screen.
【Boyfriend】: Baby
Lu Yuxing almost dropped his phone.
He rolled over in bed, making some noise.
Lu Yuxing stared at the screen, quietly waiting for the next message.
But the next message never came; the “Baby” was quickly retracted by Shang Jue.
Lu Yuxing was taken aback. Just as he was about to type a question, another message from Shang Jue popped up.
【Boyfriend】: Sorry, baby, wrong person
【Boyfriend】: Haha, you should be asleep, right?
Lu Yuxing: “……”
He sat up and quietly got out of bed.
The slight noise caught Ge Zhicheng's attention, who poked his head out from beside his bed to see Lu Yuxing changing out of his pajamas and into regular clothes.
“Hmm? Lu Ge, you’re going out this late?”
Lu Yuxing pulled up his jacket. “Yeah.”
He took a deep breath.
“Baby.”
“Sent it to the wrong person huh…”
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