79

After bidding farewell to the college students, the two slowly merged into the bustling night market near the school. The marketplace was noisy and crowded, shoulder to shoulder. Due to the press of people, Jiang Yuanye and Zhou Chaosheng, who had initially kept some distance between them, inevitably brushed shoulders.

Both held their breath, neither making a move, until someone barreled toward them. When Jiang Yuanye remained still, Zhou Chaosheng instinctively reached out, pulling him into his arms.

Laughter, hawking calls, and casual chatter filled their ears, but in the midst of all the noise, Zhou Chaosheng could only hear the breath of the person close to him.

A second later, a low chuckle rumbled from Jiang Yuanye’s throat, vibrating through the thin fabric between them and landing clearly against Zhou Chaosheng’s chest.

“Chaosheng, you’ve gone soft.”

The reckless passerby brushed past them, stirring up a small gust of wind—one that carried the warmth of that laughter straight into Zhou Chaosheng’s heart.

Zhou Chaosheng let go and, with a slightly exasperated tone, asked, “You did that on purpose?”

Jiang Yuanye admitted without hesitation, “Mm, on purpose.”

“Why?”

“Because I wanted you to pay attention to me.”

Zhou Chaosheng paused, then said, “You know that’s not what I meant.”

Jiang Yuanye chuckled. “Oh? Are you still upset that I didn’t eat the wonton you fed me?”

“Am I upset?”

As soon as those words fell, Jiang Yuanye realized from Zhou Chaosheng’s tone that he was indeed displeased. Quickly, he dropped the teasing and softened his tone. “No, no, that’s not what I meant.”

Zhou Chaosheng remained silent.

Jiang Yuanye peeked at his expression, then carefully tugged at the hem of his coat, coaxing, “I was wrong, baby. I shouldn’t have said that. I just didn’t expect you to be upset about it for so long…”

Zhou Chaosheng averted his gaze, looking ahead at the lively young faces in the crowd.

Maybe it was just a momentary realization, or maybe it was Jiang Yuanye’s words, but suddenly, Zhou Chaosheng found it all tiresome—repeating the same conversation over and over. Maybe it wasn’t his way of expressing things that was the issue. Maybe Jiang Yuanye just wasn’t listening.

“It’s fine,” he said.

Jiang Yuanye hesitated. “Really?”

Zhou Chaosheng’s voice was unreadable. “Mm. Really.”

Hearing that, Jiang Yuanye finally sighed in relief. “That’s good… So, where do you want to go now? Do you want to take a walk by the river or wander around the campus?”

Half an hour ago, no matter what suggestion Jiang Yuanye made—even something as absurd as catching a flight to Iceland—Zhou Chaosheng would have agreed without hesitation.

But now…

He just couldn’t bring himself to care.

Zhou Chaosheng shook his head, politely declining. “I’m a bit tired.”

The moment Jiang Yuanye heard the word “tired,” he immediately changed his tone. “Then I’ll take you home now. You’ve been working all day you should get some rest.”

“No need,” Zhou Chaosheng said, subtly distancing himself. “I have to stop by the main house tonight. Liu De and the others will take me.”

Jiang Yuanye sensed something was off. “Are you really okay?”

Zhou Chaosheng hummed in response. “Yeah.”

Jiang Yuanye didn’t believe him. “If you’re fine, then why are you suddenly going back to the main house?”

Zhou Chaosheng lifted his gaze and said lightly, “I’m planning to come out to my family. Want to join me?”

Jiang Yuanye: "…"

“This late at night?”

“No.” Zhou Chaosheng turned to look at him. “If you come with me, you can stay at the main house for the night and meet my parents in the morning.”

Jiang Yuanye was stunned. “You’re not joking?”

Zhou Chaosheng raised an eyebrow. “Do I look like I’m joking?”

Jiang Yuanye’s expression shifted multiple times before he finally fell silent.

Neither of them spoke again until they reached the alleyway.

Jiang Yuanye hesitated, then reached out to tug at Zhou Chaosheng’s sleeve.

Zhou Chaosheng turned, his tone distant. “What?”

“You… Can you…”

Not come out yet?

Just as Jiang Yuanye was about to stammer out the rest of his sentence, Zhou Chaosheng cut him off.

“No.”

Jiang Yuanye stiffened, slowly looking up.

Against the backlight, Zhou Chaosheng’s expression was unreadable. Through the shadow cast by his long eyelashes, Jiang Yuanye could only vaguely make out the emotions hidden in his eyes.

That feeling was reflected in the way Zhou Chaosheng was looking at him right now. In those dark and cold eyes, Jiang Yuanye actually saw a sharpness and iciness that was rarely seen.

"Jiang Yuanye, I said no. Did you hear me?"

Maybe it was because they had been too close this past month that Jiang Yuanye had almost forgotten how strong-willed and indifferent Zhou Chaosheng had been when they were at odds.

The other had merely restrained his sharpness in front of him.

Jiang Yuanye felt a headache coming on, as if two little figures were warring in his mind—one side in pain, the other in guilt. The side in pain kept insisting, I don't want to leave him with no way out, repeatedly denying itself. The guilty side deeply regretted his reckless feelings and his disregard for the other’s wishes.

“…I heard you.” Jiang Yuanye slowly moved closer, coaxing softly, “Don’t be mad, okay?”

Zhou Chaosheng sighed in his heart.

He didn’t know why, but his bottom line kept lowering when it came to Jiang Yuanye. Until now, with just those few coaxing words, he found himself unable to stay angry.

“I’m not mad,” Zhou Chaosheng said.

“Alright, alright, you’re not mad…” Jiang Yuanye continued coaxing.

Zhou Chaosheng glanced at him.

Jiang Yuanye immediately shut his mouth.

After a minute of silence, Zhou Chaosheng spoke again, his tone serious. “I meant what I said just now.”

Jiang Yuanye’s lips parted slightly. “…What?”

“I want to take you to meet my parents,” Zhou Chaosheng said.

Jiang Yuanye froze, his expression flustered. “No…”

Zhou Chaosheng cut him off, not giving him the chance to fully refuse. “Not tomorrow.”

Jiang Yuanye was silent for a few seconds before speaking slowly. “Then… when?”

“When I’ve taken care of everything.” Zhou Chaosheng looked straight into those clear, light-filled eyes. He couldn't help but soften again, reaching out and pulling Jiang Yuanye into his arms right there on the bustling street, openly embracing him.

Jiang Yuanye instinctively wanted to pull away, but his emotions, along with his fear of upsetting Zhou Chaosheng again, made him hold back and force himself to stay still.

“…Ah.”

Zhou Chaosheng rubbed his head lightly against Jiang Yuanye’s neck, half accusing, half dejected. “You were just about to push me away, weren’t you?”

Jiang Yuanye: “…No, how could I?”

Zhou Chaosheng thought to himself, Liar.

But he didn’t dwell on it. He simply held Jiang Yuanye in silence.

No one knew how much time passed before Jiang Yuanye finally heard Zhou Chaosheng call his name, pulling him out of the daze caused by the surrounding stares—curious, scrutinizing, judging, even contemptuous.

When those gazes fell on him, he could bear it. But when they landed on Zhou Chaosheng, he felt as if an invisible hand was gripping his heart, suffocating him.

In an instant, he felt himself struggling to breathe, just as he was about to process Zhou Chaosheng’s words—when suddenly, a sharp and prolonged car horn pierced the air.

“…Don’t do this again,” Zhou Chaosheng said softly.

Jiang Yuanye only caught the second half,

“If it happens again, I’ll really be mad.”

Afraid that Zhou Chaosheng would get angry and ignore him, Jiang Yuanye immediately hugged him back, promising, “It won’t happen again. I swear I won’t make you angry anymore.”

Zhou Chaosheng lowered his gaze, looking at Jiang Yuanye’s soft, slightly curled hair. He wasn’t sure if Jiang Yuanye had heard the first half of what he said.

What he really said was: ‘I have a heart too I can’t take being pushed away by you over and over again.’

But that car horn had come at just the right moment, drowning out his words.

Even though he was almost certain Jiang Yuanye hadn’t heard him, Zhou Chaosheng didn’t intend to repeat himself.

Because he had already said it before.

He had always believed that some things only needed to be said twice. For Jiang Yuanye, he was willing to lower his standards and say them a third time. But rather than directly telling him, he hoped Jiang Yuanye would realize the problem on his own, instead of making him repeat it over and over.

---

In the end, it was Jiang Yuanye who drove him back to the main residence.

When they arrived, Zhou Chaosheng didn’t immediately open the door. He simply unbuckled his seatbelt, turned his head, and silently looked at Jiang Yuanye, who was sitting in the driver’s seat, staring into his eyes until the other also unbuckled his seatbelt, leaned toward him, and placed a shallow kiss on his lips.

Zhou Chaosheng raised his hand to the back of Jiang Yuanye’s head, his long fingers threading into the other’s soft black hair, gradually deepening their kiss.

It was a long time before Zhou Chaosheng finally let go.

Jiang Yuanye’s face was slightly flushed, but he didn’t immediately return to his seat. Instead, he hooked his finger under Zhou Chaosheng’s chin, carrying a teasing tone as he joked, “Want to try car sex? Before you go inside.”

Zhou Chaosheng met his gaze. “Okay.”

Jiang Yuanye: “…”

Jiang Yuanye quickly took back his words. “No, no, I was just joking! Why are you taking it seriously?”

They had parked near the main residence, still within the surveillance cameras’ range. If they really did anything here, it wouldn’t be much different from openly putting on a show for Zhou Chaosheng’s parents.

Jiang Yuanye couldn’t even imagine it.

Zhou Chaosheng raised an eyebrow. “I’m serious. You can always find another place.”

At that, Jiang Yuanye finally caught the casual teasing in his words. So, instead of pressing the issue, he continued the lighthearted exchange.

“So what if I really find a place?”

“Go ahead. Just don’t back out when we get there.”

Jiang Yuanye laughed, then leaned down again and lightly pecked Zhou Chaosheng’s lips. “Be honest was it good for you last time?”

Zhou Chaosheng lifted his gaze. “Wasn’t it for you?”

Jiang Yuanye hummed. “Not so much at first.”

“And later?”

Jiang Yuanye was momentarily startled. He truly hadn’t expected someone as composed as Zhou Chaosheng to say something so suggestive. And the way he said it, it was completely a double entendre.

“…Which ‘later’ are you referring to?”

“What do you think?”

Jiang Yuanye hissed softly. “Alright, alright, it was great.”

Zhou Chaosheng let out a small chuckle, then suddenly asked, “Do you feel wronged?”

Jiang Yuanye was puzzled. “What do you mean, wronged?”

“Being the bottom,” Zhou Chaosheng said.

Ever since they had taken that step physically, he had been dwelling on this question.

How should he put it? Even though many people online claimed that the one on the receiving end actually felt better while the one on top did all the work, he still couldn’t picture himself in that role.

It wasn’t about male pride, it was just that he had been in control for so long that he found it hard to imagine himself in a submissive position.

But at the same time, he worried that Jiang Yuanye might feel wronged because of it.

Jiang Yuanye was stunned for a moment, completely unprepared for Zhou Chaosheng to say such a thing. “…Why would you think that?”

Before he could respond, Zhou Chaosheng had already lowered his gaze, unintentionally missing the suppressed amusement on Jiang Yuanye’s face.

Zhou Chaosheng didn’t answer his question, only lowered his head in silence. After a long while, he finally spoke softly: “…How about we take turns?”

Jiang Yuanye was completely dumbfounded.

He wasn’t stupid, piecing together the conversation, it wasn’t hard to figure out what Zhou Chaosheng meant by “taking turns.”

It simply meant that since Zhou Chaosheng had been the one on top last time, this time, he was willing to switch.

But that wasn’t the issue.

The issue was that the proud and composed Zhou Chaosheng had actually lowered his head, setting aside all his usual demeanor, just to ask if he felt wronged. In the end, he even quietly compromised.

It was a rare sight.

A surge of excitement and complex emotions rose in Jiang Yuanye’s chest, making him want to take out his phone and record this moment, to keep it permanently in his album.

Even if, one day, they were no longer together, the video would remain, preserving the evidence that Zhou Chaosheng had once loved him.

Love…

It wasn’t the first time this word had crossed Jiang Yuanye’s mind.

As he looked at the man before him, a strong, overwhelming emotion surged within him, drowning out every bit of hesitation and negativity.

At that moment, he finally realized,

He had fallen in love with Zhou Chaosheng.

---

“I don’t want to.” Jiang Yuanye replied softly.

Zhou Chaosheng was stunned for a moment. “Are you…?”

“No.” Jiang Yuanye interrupted his guess, speaking with sincerity as he opened up to him. “I just want to be on the bottom.”

“I admit, before we did it, I never thought about being on the bottom. But afterward… I realized it’s actually pretty nice.”

That was the truth.

Less work, not tiring, just lying there and enjoying it who wouldn’t like that?

Zhou Chaosheng was momentarily speechless, not expecting Jiang Yuanye to say something like that. “But before, you were moving so hard…”

Jiang Yuanye quickly covered his mouth.

“…That was just me cooperating with you, making it easier for you to go deeper… Alright, alright, let’s drop this topic.”

If they kept talking about it, he would really want to find a hole to crawl into.

Zhou Chaosheng, with his mouth covered, could only look at Jiang Yuanye with his sharp nose and beautiful eyes, staring unblinkingly at him. Seeing that there was no trace of a lie in his eyes, he finally felt relieved.

“Hm?”

Jiang Yuanye let go of his hand. “What did you say?”

Zhou Chaosheng repeated, “I said are you serious?”

Jiang Yuanye cupped his hands around his mouth like a megaphone and called out, “I am.”

Zhou Chaosheng: “You don’t feel wronged?”

Jiang Yuanye chuckled. “Are you kidding me? I was too busy feeling good. How could I feel wronged? Stop overthinking, will you?”

Zhou Chaosheng stared at him for a few more moments.

Suddenly, he leaned in and, catching Jiang Yuanye off guard, pressed a light kiss to his eyelid.

It was brief, but then he kissed him again.

Jiang Yuanye’s eyelashes trembled slightly.

That kiss was gentle, yet carried a deep sense of solemnity.

When it landed on his forehead, it felt as if Zhou Chaosheng was silently making an unspoken vow before him.

“Xiao Ye, you’re really wonderful.”

Hearing those almost tender words, Jiang Yuanye couldn’t help but think why is he like a child, getting satisfied so easily…

Though that thought crossed his mind, it didn’t stop the feeling of joy and contentment from surging in his heart. Or rather, he was completely indulging in it.

“You too, Chaosheng. You’re the best…”

Of course, I love you the most.

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