The world for the two of them was always bound to come to an end.
A few days later, Mu Yuman and Gu Ting returned from their trip. On the day they got back, they arrived at Duan Zhuang's house around noon, taking over his kitchen and preparing to show off their cooking skills.
Mu Yuman was responsible for the cooking, while Gu Ting, despite his lack of culinary skills, enjoyed helping her.
He had instructed his assistant to buy the ingredients in advance, which arrived in several trips, including live lobsters packed in foam boxes and an excessive variety of vegetables and premium beef.
The assistant assumed that his boss was hosting distinguished guests, so the ingredients had to be top-notch!
As soon as the ingredients were delivered, Gu Ting felt a wave of regret for not reminding his overly clever assistant to “just buy some regular ingredients.”
This was his first time performing in front of his wife’s brother, and he ended up looking like a nouveau riche.
However, the ingredients had already arrived, and he could only put on a brave face and pretend to be calm.
This meal was mainly to invite Ji Mian; he had only met Gu Ting once on the wedding day and hadn’t come back since the ceremony.
Mu Yuman had been looking for an opportunity to let the two of them get acquainted.
Gu Ting was in the kitchen handling the ingredients, while the living room only had the three of them.
Mu Yuman hadn’t seen Ji Mian for a long time, so she sat close to him, asking about his recent experiences at school and work.
The scene of the two chatting together was very warm. Duan Zhuang leaned against the windowsill, expressionless, watching Ji Mian’s smiling face without saying a word.
The years when Ji Mian passionately pursued Mu Yuman were not good memories for Duan Zhuang.
Especially since they had only been together for a few days; it was hard not to suspect whether Ji Mian still had lingering feelings for his sister.
After so many years of affection, it was indeed impossible to just forget. Thinking of this made Duan Zhuang's teeth ache.
[Oh, look, the affection value unexpectedly jumped up by ten points; this is the only income in the past two months.] The system was amazed.
It thought that the affection value in this world had remained fixed since Mu Yuman's wedding days.
Hearing this, Ji Mian paused for a moment, unconsciously glancing at the only man present who could contribute affection value—the one who was looking at him with a gloomy face.
“…”
Ji Mian suddenly realized that maybe the affection value was directly proportional to Duan Zhuang's jealousy.
At this moment, Gu Ting walked out of the kitchen and said to Mu Yuman, “It’s... all ready.”
Everyone turned to look in his direction.
They saw that Gu Ting’s collar and cuffs were wet, his neatly pressed coat and lining had several creases, and there were faint water stains on his face that he hadn’t wiped clean.
His coat was also lightly scented with sea brine, a result of splashing water while handling the lobsters.
Having been thrown into disarray by the two lobsters and embarrassed repeatedly in front of his wife’s family, Gu Ting's expression was somewhat grim.
“The rest can wait; I’ll do it later,” Mu Yuman said, getting up. “You can chat with Ji Mian and Duan Zhuang.”
“Okay.”
The atmosphere between Duan Zhuang and Gu Ting had always been somewhat off. It wasn’t that they were at odds; it was just that when they stood together, the air felt stagnant, leaving them exchanging glances without words.
“Cough.” Gu Ting cleared his throat and took out two cigarettes from a pack in his coat pocket, offering one to Duan Zhuang.
Gu Ting didn’t have much of a craving for cigarettes; he just wanted to do something to ease the stiff atmosphere between them.
But the latter simply smiled and shook his head, refusing the cigarette that carried the scent of the sea.
Duan Zhuang's intention was straightforward; he was currently trying to quit smoking. However, in Gu Ting's eyes, it turned into a blatant rejection of him.
Gu Ting: “…”
The only thing left in the atmosphere was embarrassment.
And although he had cigarettes in his pocket, he had no lighter.
That morning, before getting on the plane, he had thrown away his lighter.
“Can I borrow a light?” he said to Duan Zhuang.
Before Duan Zhuang could respond, Ji Mian spoke up: “Oh, my brother's lighter is with me. I’ll go get it.”
“…” Gu Ting was taken aback for a moment. Thinking of how his wife usually praised Ji Mian, he hesitated before asking, “You… smoke too?”
Ji Mian didn’t know how to explain, so he made up a reason: “No, it’s just that my brother accidentally left it upstairs.”
Then he stood up to go upstairs to get Duan Zhuang's lighter.
Ji Mian had only been gone for half a minute when Duan Zhuang looked in the direction he left and stood up, saying, “I’ll go help him find it.”
Gu Ting felt a bit puzzled, thinking to himself, did it really take two people to look for a lighter?
He nodded in response: “... oh.”
—
Ji Mian took the aluminum metal piece from the bedside table and placed it in his pocket.
Just as he was about to go downstairs, the front door suddenly opened from the outside.
Duan Zhuang walked in. Seeing Ji Mian preparing to go downstairs, he not only didn’t step aside but also quietly closed the door behind him.
“Brother, why are you up here too?”
Duan Zhuang didn’t answer.
“Brother?”
“... I’m craving a smoke.”
Ji Mian: …
Duan Zhuang walked towards him, and Ji Mian warily covered his pocket, feeling the hard touch of the metal inside.
But Duan Zhuang smiled, ignoring the object Ji Mian was tightly guarding, and directly wrapped his arms around his waist, then leaned down to kiss the slightly protruding Adam's apple on Ji Mian's fair neck.
“Mm…” Ji Mian was startled, shrinking back, and his calves tensed.
With Duan Zhuang holding him, he had nowhere to retreat.
Soon after, Duan Zhuang turned him to the side, swapping their positions.
Ji Mian found himself pressed against the door by Duan Zhuang, his sensitive Adam's apple teased by the warmth of his lips and tongue, causing him to weaken and cling to Duan Zhuang's neck to stand upright.
“Brother, don’t kiss there; I will…”
Duan Zhuang paused, raising his eyes to meet Ji Mian's misty gaze. He swallowed and knowingly asked, “Will what?”
“…”
Ji Mian bit his lip, not wanting to respond, while Duan Zhuang lowered his head and kissed him.
He started with Ji Mian's eyelashes and the corners of his eyes, then moved down to his fair, soft cheeks, licking at his jawline. Duan Zhuang kissed without any technique, as if he wanted to kiss wherever his lips could reach.
But ultimately, his target was always Ji Mian's lips.
Their breaths intertwined, hot and humid, and the soft sounds were swallowed within their sealed lips.
Ji Mian arched his back unconsciously, until his skin at the waist brushed against Duan Zhuang’s lower abdomen, feeling the other person's rather excited reaction.
He opened his lips, wanting to speak, but his voice was immediately silenced by Duan Zhuang's tongue. Earlier, he had even said Duan Zhuang had a clumsy tongue that couldn’t eat fish.
Unable to speak, Ji Mian could only release one hand to pat Duan Zhuang's head.
If they continued kissing, something would definitely happen.
Duan Zhuang reluctantly released him, licking the moisture off his lips, his gaze fixated on Ji Mian's face.
“Brother, you... should calm down.”
Ji Mian reached out to turn him around and gave him a gentle push on the back, indicating for Duan Zhuang to go somewhere else.
Duan Zhuang was pushed open and reluctantly sat down on the sofa.
After a while, Ji Mian asked in the living room, “Are you done?”
“No.”
Ji Mian was stunned. “Then what should we do?”
They had been up for a long time.
Duan Zhuang clenched his teeth tightly. “I’ll go to the room and stay away from you.”
They had only been together for two days, but now he had to let Ji Mian leave his sight.
His body hadn’t calmed down, but his expression had turned cold. This coldness wasn’t directed at Ji Mian but rather at the fact that it was only noon.
Having been pent up for too long, a man with unfulfilled desires looked at every bright day with resentment.
“...Oh.”
—
When the two of them went back down, it was already five minutes later.
It had been almost fifteen minutes since Duan Zhuang left.
As soon as they entered, Gu Ting got up from the sofa, the cigarette he had been holding had already been returned to its pack a few minutes ago.
“Did you search for a long time?” he asked in surprise.
“Yeah, it accidentally fell into a corner,” Ji Mian replied, handing him the lighter from his pocket.
Duan Zhuang followed behind him, his expression unchanged. He looked a bit somber, seemingly because they had searched for too long.
“...” Gu Ting hadn’t expected that casually asking for a cigarette would make the two of them busy for so long.
He accepted the lighter with guilt, shaking his hand to light the cigarette—Gu Ting had never smoked a cigarette so carefree in his life.
After an excessively lavish lunch, Ji Mian and Duan Zhuang began cleaning up the kitchen. This was the default rule: if you didn’t cook, you were responsible for washing the dishes.
Ji Mian was busy, and Duan Zhuang stayed right behind him, bustling around together, with whispers and laughter faintly echoing, but it was hard to hear clearly.
“They really have a good relationship,” Gu Ting remarked, watching the two backs in the kitchen with a sigh.
He was born into a prestigious and wealthy family, but his siblings were always plotting against each other. Seeing the affectionate “brotherly bond” between Ji Mian and Duan Zhuang made him feel a sense of emotion.
“Few brothers can be as close as they are,” he said with a hint of envy.
Mu Yuman had heard his words and smiled as she looked into the kitchen.
After watching for a while, she noticed that no matter what Duan Zhuang was doing, he always stood by Ji Mian’s side. When Ji Mian finished washing, he leaned over to help wash the stack of plates; when Ji Mian wiped the stove, he picked up a rag as well; when Ji Mian cleaned the oven, he stood beside him, getting in the way.
—Almost like a dog.
Mu Yuman watched, entranced, for some reason feeling a strange sense of suffocation that made her dizzy.
The two were at the sink, and a drop of soapy water accidentally splashed onto Ji Mian’s face; his hands were wet, making it impossible for him to wipe it off.
Duan Zhuang noticed, turned his head, and raised his hand to wipe away the droplet from Ji Mian's face.
Then, his fingers pressed lightly on Ji Mian’s delicate cheek. A smile played on Duan Zhuang’s lips, and the expression held an unexpected gentleness that didn’t match his usual demeanor.
However, that gentle smile suddenly made Mu Yuman feel as if she had fallen into an ice cave, a shiver of eerie sensations shooting straight to the top of her head.
Her hand, which was clasped with Gu Ting’s, stiffened, and her mind spun, feeling that the situation was utterly absurd.
“Manman?” Gu Ting frowned, noticing Mu Yuman’s unusual reaction.
Mu Yuman said nothing, her gaze drifting from the kitchen, staring blankly at the white wall in front of her.
Gu Ting had never seen her so serious before and felt a bit worried, sensing that it wasn’t the right time to speak.
Ten minutes later, Gu Ting glanced at his watch.
He had work in the afternoon, and Mu Yuman was also on duty later.
He said, “I have to go.”
“You go ahead; I’ll be right there.”
“Okay.”
Gu Ting told the two who were still busy in the kitchen that he was leaving, and Ji Mian and Duan Zhuang came out to wash their hands and send him off.
After seeing him to the door, Gu Ting had already gone downstairs, but Mu Yuman stood in the living room, watching them.
“Sister Yuman, aren’t you going with brother-in-law?” Ji Mian asked in confusion.
Mu Yuman said nothing, silently watching Duan Zhuang, her expression very cold.
She didn’t ask anything, but when Duan Zhuang met her gaze, he suddenly understood everything.
He smiled and said, “Yes.”
Slap!
Mu Yuman’s palm struck Duan Zhuang’s face, her breath heavy. “You!”
Then she couldn’t say anything more.
Duan Zhuang received her slap, but the smile at the corner of his lips didn’t fade. Mu Yuman was usually gentle, but this slap to her younger brother was firm, with no hesitation.
Ji Mian was still confused when Duan Zhuang said “yes,” not knowing what was happening.
Seeing this sudden change now, he froze for a moment and then quickly realized what was going on.
What could make Mu Yuman so angry, if not this?
“You...” Mu Yuman had never imagined that Duan Zhuang would do something so out of line.
She had no objections to homosexuality; if Duan Zhuang suddenly told her at dinner, “Sister, I like men,” she wouldn’t say a word in response.
But the person he was with was Ji Mian.
Mu Yuman thought Ji Mian must have been “tricked” by her younger brother.
He was so sensible that it was heart-wrenching and respectful towards Duan Zhuang; it was clear that Duan Zhuang had probably coaxed and deceived him into being with him.
Thinking of this, Mu Yuman’s eyes turned red with anger.
She couldn’t find her voice, raised her hand, and prepared to slap again, but someone stepped in front of Duan Zhuang.
“I-I’m sorry, Sister Yuman...” Ji Mian shielded Duan Zhuang behind him, his voice tense.
He wanted to say something to calm Mu Yuman down or take the blame on himself.
“It’s all my fault; it’s me... who led my brother astray.”
“...”
Duan Zhuang was shielded behind Ji Mian, who was much shorter than him, and couldn’t help but chuckle.
It felt like Ji Mian had unexpectedly stuffed him a piece of candy.
Forget about a slap; even if he were stabbed a few times, Duan Zhuang could still laugh at this moment.
Mu Yuman was furious, and hearing this, she paused for a second; the anger was interrupted by Ji Mian’s words and couldn’t return to its peak.
Seeing Duan Zhuang laughing, she shot him a glare like a knife and said, “You come out here.” Then she turned and walked out the door to have a serious talk with Duan Zhuang outside.
Duan Zhuang stood still, unconsciously pinching Ji Mian’s cheek, like a peacock that didn’t know its own demise.
“Wait for me.”
Mu Yuman had already lifted her foot to leave but halted, turning back to grab a feather duster.
Duan Zhuang: ...!
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