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"Are you going back to Jinzhou in a few days?"

"Yeah, on the 16th."

"Have you bought your ticket?"

"Mm-hmm."

Zhou Chaosheng lowered his eyelashes and hugged the other person tighter. "Alright then."

Jiang Yuanye chuckled. "Can't bear to part with me?"

Zhou Chaosheng answered honestly, "Yeah, I can't."

Jiang Yuanye was briefly stunned. He rarely saw Zhou Chaosheng being this sentimental. He joked, "See? This is karma. Who told you to kick me out of Jingdu back then? If you hadn’t, I wouldn’t have to leave in three days. I’d just stay here and cling to you for a lifetime."

Back then, Rongge’s headquarters was based in Jingdu, but later, it was forced out by the capital power Zhou Chaosheng wielded, relocating to Jinzhou instead.

"It was my fault," Zhou Chaosheng said.

Hearing that, Jiang Yuanye was even more surprised.

He didn’t argue back?

Zhou Chaosheng gently rubbed his head against Jiang Yuanye’s ear. "I shouldn’t have acted so ruthlessly without investigating properly."

Jiang Yuanye consoled him, "Don’t blame yourself. It’s all in the past."

"Xiao Ye," Zhou Chaosheng softly called his nickname. "I’m really sorry."

Jiang Yuanye was momentarily stunned, unsure how to respond. Normally, he was articulate, but when he was with Zhou Chaosheng, his vocabulary suddenly felt inadequate. There were so many things he wanted to say, yet he always hesitated.

In the end, he clumsily replied, "...It’s okay."

Zhou Chaosheng fell silent.

That "it's okay" carried a heavy weight. It held all their past clashes, the countless battles they fought in the business world.

Every time they went against each other, they always struck back. Today he would set a trap to make the other lose big, tomorrow the other would deliberately trip him up.

Those struggles and calculations weren’t something that could just be brushed off with a few words.

Zhou Chaosheng knew deep down that he was only benefiting from their current relationship.

If they weren’t together, he might never have heard a single concession from Jiang Yuanye, let alone the words "it’s okay."

Judging from his behavior lately, Zhou Chaosheng held back before finally speaking his mind. "Xiao Ye, I think you’re being a little too accommodating to me…"

"This isn’t good."

Jiang Yuanye didn’t seem to realize there was an issue. "Am I?"

Zhou Chaosheng: "Yes."

Jiang Yuanye didn’t understand. "Isn’t it good to go along with you?"

Zhou Chaosheng: "No."

Jiang Yuanye: "Why not?"

Zhou Chaosheng let go of him and looked into his confused eyes, feeling a bit helpless. "Let me ask you when you agree with me, do you ever consider your own feelings?"

Jiang Yuanye lowered his head slightly, his eyes darting around before he slowly nodded. "...Probably."

Hearing this, Zhou Chaosheng curled two fingers and flicked Jiang Yuanye’s forehead. "Liar. You clearly don’t."

Jiang Yuanye covered his forehead, feeling a little wronged. "So what? I go along with you because I want to. Does it really matter that much whether I think about myself?"

"Besides, isn’t there a saying online that for a relationship to last, one person has to compromise? With how stubborn you are, you’re obviously not going to be the one to give in every time, so in the end, it has to be me."

"Also, you get angry so easily, and when you're mad, you need someone to coax you. If I don’t compromise, how am I supposed to calm you down? Otherwise, you’d stay mad for days, and what if you end up breaking up with me? I’m just trying to maintain our relationship what did I do wrong?"

Zhou Chaosheng patiently listened to Jiang Yuanye’s complaints. Instead of getting angry, he even smiled a little. "Yes, exactly."

This was the Jiang Yuanye he knew.

Jiang Yuanye had gone on a whole rant, yet instead of making Zhou Chaosheng upset, he somehow got praised instead. His frustration immediately dissipated.

"...Huh?"

Zhou Chaosheng explained, "Every time you just go along with me, I feel like I’m bullying you, and you’re just making compromises for no reason."

"Xiao Ye, I don’t need you to blindly follow everything I say or want. If you think I’m doing something wrong or if I say something that upsets you, you should tell me. That way, I can change. Otherwise, I won’t know what you’re thinking."

"Also, I actually liked how you used to argue with me. You don’t have to change anything for me, just be yourself. If something bothers you, if you’re upset, just tell me directly. Don’t hold it in, okay?"

Jiang Yuanye froze, his heart suddenly swelling with an emotion he couldn’t quite describe. His nose felt a little sore, like he wanted to cry.

But he didn’t want to lose face in front of Zhou Chaosheng.

So he tilted his head back, trying hard to hold back his tears.

After a long pause, Jiang Yuanye finally spoke. "...Then what if we argue?"

Zhou Chaosheng answered softly, "Then we argue."

Jiang Yuanye: "But arguing hurts our relationship."

Zhou Chaosheng: "There are also arguments that don’t harm a relationship, Xiao Ye. You can’t see things in such an absolute way. We’re both adults. If there’s a problem in our relationship, we should just solve it. Whoever’s wrong should change. Of course, I won’t deny that arguing can hurt feelings, but sometimes, a few arguments might help us recognize problems we haven’t noticed before."

Jiang Yuanye nodded. "You’re right. But what if we can’t change?"

Zhou Chaosheng: "Then we compromise with each other."

Jiang Yuanye hummed. "Then can’t I just compromise with you?"

Seeing that Jiang Yuanye still didn’t understand, Zhou Chaosheng smiled helplessly. "You’re such an idiot."

Jiang Yuanye was a little annoyed. "How am I an idiot? You just said compromise, and I’m doing exactly what you said."

"Yes, you are." Zhou Chaosheng held his hand. "But you’re ignoring the key point."

Jiang Yuanye: "What key point?"

Zhou Chaosheng: "The point is that you need to bring up the issue first. You have to clearly tell me how you really feel and what exactly I did wrong. If I truly can’t change, then we can talk about compromise but not before that. You can’t just keep everything to yourself and silently endure it for my sake."

Jiang Yuanye made a small noise, lowering his head slightly. After a long pause, he finally said, "...I’m afraid saying it will hurt our relationship."

Zhou Chaosheng: "?"

"Hurt how?"

He was genuinely curious.

Jiang Yuanye fell silent.

Seeing this, Zhou Chaosheng nudged him. "Are you going to say it or not?"

Jiang Yuanye was like a roly-poly doll, he only moved when pushed.

After a few nudges, he ended up bumping into Zhou Chaosheng’s chest. He buried his head against his shoulder, then suddenly bit him lightly.

"...Are you a dog?" Zhou Chaosheng asked, amused.

"I’m a rooster. I specialize in pecking people like you."

"What kind of people?"

"People who are both lovable and infuriating."

Zhou Chaosheng chuckled. "Feeling better now?"

Jiang Yuanye muffled a soft "mm."

Zhou Chaosheng asked again, "So, what exactly did I do to upset you?"

Jiang Yuanye went silent again.

Zhou Chaosheng: "Jiang Yuanye."

"Okay, okay, I’ll say it," Jiang Yuanye mumbled, his voice even quieter than before. "Because… because you’re too big."

Zhou Chaosheng: "...."

Jiang Yuanye continued, "At the beginning, it really hurt. I wanted you to stop, but you didn’t..."

Zhou Chaosheng hadn’t expected this. "...Then next time, you do it?"

Jiang Yuanye shook his head frantically. "No, no, no, you keep doing it. I actually enjoy being underneath."

Zhou Chaosheng didn’t even know how to respond. "...That’s it?"

Jiang Yuanye hummed and added, "I was joking. I wasn’t actually mad at you."

Hearing this, Zhou Chaosheng immediately knew he was lying.

What he was saying now completely contradicted what he’d said before. It was obvious he didn’t want to admit the real problem, so he made something up to deflect the conversation.

Zhou Chaosheng sighed inwardly. He had no idea how Jiang Yuanye developed this bad habit.

But he was too lazy to press further. If Jiang Yuanye didn’t want to talk about it, then fine—he’d just wait until a real issue arose and figure out how to get the truth out of him then.

Zhou Chaosheng glanced at his watch. "Are you meeting up with friends tonight?"

The moment he changed the topic, Jiang Yuanye visibly relaxed. "Yeah, with some old college friends."

"Where?"

"...Are you checking up on me?"

"Mm."

Jiang Yuanye laughed. "Don’t worry, I’m not going to a bar."

"Then where?"

Jiang Yuanye hesitated for a second before saying, "...Racing."

Zhou Chaosheng glanced at him. "Alright, be careful."

Jiang Yuanye was surprised. "Aren’t you supposed to stop me?"

Zhou Chaosheng was even more surprised. "Why would I stop you?"

"Because it’s already late—it’s past eleven. Shouldn’t you be telling me to go home and sleep? Or maybe telling me that racing is too dangerous and you don’t want me to go?" Jiang Yuanye listed out two reasons logically.

Zhou Chaosheng: "So you know that, huh?"

Jiang Yuanye: "So… do you not want me to go?"

Zhou Chaosheng: "I don’t, but I won’t stop you."

"Huh? What’s the difference?"

"I don’t want you to go because I’m worried about your safety. But I won’t stop you because I trust your ability to judge risks for yourself. Xiao Ye, I’ll say it again you don’t need to cater to my thoughts or emotions. Just be yourself. You can do whatever you want, including racing."

Jiang Yuanye was touched, so touched that he wanted to grab Zhou Chaosheng’s face and kiss him all over. "Chaosheng, you’re really good at talking."

Zhou Chaosheng: "...You’re making me sound like some smooth-talking playboy."

Jiang Yuanye: "No, you’re better-looking than a playboy."

Zhou Chaosheng: "...Thanks."

Jiang Yuanye burst out laughing. Zhou Chaosheng watched him, noticing how his eyes curved into crescents, filled with a brightness like a sky full of stars.

"Xiao Ye, I meant everything I said today."

"I know."

"You don’t."

Jiang Yuanye hummed. "Then I’ll go back and think it over carefully?"

Zhou Chaosheng nodded and reminded him, "Be careful while racing. And come home early after you’re done. Don’t stay up too late."

Jiang Yuanye leaned in and kissed him. Laughing, he said, "Got it, I promise to behave."

Zhou Chaosheng’s eyes softened with a hint of a smile.

"Alright, I’m going now."

"Mm-hmm, bye-bye."

Zhou Chaosheng opened the car door and stepped out, but he didn’t close it immediately. Instead, he rested his arm on the top edge of the door, leaned in slightly, and said to Jiang Yuanye, “Send me a photo when you arrive, and when you get home too.”

Jiang Yuanye gripped the steering wheel and turned his head slightly. “Alright, alright, I’ll make sure to report back to you on WeChat.”

Zhou Chaosheng: “I didn’t ask you to.”

Jiang Yuanye chuckled. “I’m doing it voluntarily.”

Zhou Chaosheng hummed in acknowledgment. “Bye, drive safely.”

Jiang Yuanye waved. “Bye-bye. I’ll come find you the day after tomorrow.”

“You’re not coming tomorrow?”

“Tomorrow, aren’t you spending the day with your parents?”

“I won’t be with them in the afternoon.”

“Alright, then just send me a message once you’re done talking with them. I’ll come pick you up.”

Only then did Zhou Chaosheng look satisfied. “Okay. I’m leaving now.”

“Mm-hmm, bye-bye.”

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