Translator: Lynn
Of course, Li Weidu knew that it was a disease to be too lenient.
The previous failed love experience had warned him with countless facts that putting too much thought on the other person would put pressure on others, and in the end, he would be resented and disliked.
But, he can’t control himself.
He’s really worried about Ji Kai, and he even worries like what a parent should worry about—’if you are used to being so free and loose, it will be a good thing for me to take care of you for the rest of your life. But if something happens to me one day, what will you do?’
Doing physical work is not a long-term solution. Yes, he will still have an apartment given to him by Zhu Ling, and maybe some savings, but if something unexpected happens, it may not be enough.
With his legs disabled, he can only rest on the sofa every day. Simply turn off the TV, take away the phone, and put a stack of art books and picture albums on the glass coffee table next to him despite Ji Kai’s wails.
“While you have nothing to do these days, you can read these books.”
“……”
“If you have any other areas of interest, you can also tell me. I will buy you books and choose an institution to send you to school in the future.”
Or, go get a notarization someday, or simply get a certificate and put several properties in our city in your name.
However, Li Weidu knew that Ji Kai would most likely not accept his ‘charity’.
He was also very helpless—when they were clearly not together, Ji Kai would not refuse anyone who came to buy clothes or something. But after they got together, he became unwilling to let him spend more money.
”’As a grown man, young and capable, you can’t always count on others.’ Weidu, you said this to me personally when we first met, right?”
“I think you also said, ‘If you can’t support yourself, you’ll be disliked by your partner when you return home.’ We didn’t know each other well at that time, so what you said at that time were your true thoughts in your heart right?”
“…” Li Weidu was very upset. It’s not the same thing at all, okay?
What I’m saying is that Zhu Ling will dislike you, not that I will dislike you!
Look at you, you can’t go to work for so long, and you won’t be able to support yourself by the minute, so why don’t you let me support you. Why do you have such a big heart? Don’t you worry about your future life?
“Weidu, I actually… really think that my current job is pretty good.”
There are winter and summer vacations, and there is no need to work, and interpersonal relationships are simple—but before these words could be said, they were ruthlessly interrupted.
“After all, you are just lazy, content with the status quo, and completely unwilling to consider complex issues, right?”
Ji Kai: “….”
“You obviously have a good brain, and I can provide you with enough financial support. Wouldn’t it be better for you to study more and learn something you are interested in as a career in the future? Many people would like to have such an opportunity. If not, you should at least pursue something in your life”
Hey, wait, what do you mean?
Teacher Ji frowned, feeling a little strange in his heart.
What’s the situation? Now you dislike me for having no pursuit in life?
Fortunately, I’m not really a bricklayer! If I am really a bricklayer, do I still have to sit here and listen to your advice, forcing me to work hard and make progress, and endure that my male dignity is being hurt?
Can’t I just be a migrant worker and move bricks happily? Or is it that we have finally entered the burnout period after being together for half a year? From being ‘extremely good, the best, and I love it so much’ to being a little bit disgusted with the uneducated migrant workers and not being worthy of the highly educated CEO?
“… Weidu, if you talk about me like this, I’ll be a little unhappy.”
In fact, this was really not a big deal.
Compared with the various misunderstandings in the past where he was dismissed as a ‘yellow-faced man’ and ‘relying on Zhu Ling’, it is really nothing, let alone having to argue to the top.
But at this moment, Ji Kai’s mind flashed through Zhu Ling’s crying accusation on the phone on that rainy night.
[Brother Kai, if I say or do something wrong, make you unhappy or angry, wouldn’t it be better if you teach me a lesson on the spot? Why keep it in your heart? 】
If Ji Kai could draw any decent ‘lessons’ from that failed relationship. That’s all he has to say.
So, he looked at Mr. Li seriously and expressed his dissatisfaction sincerely in a matter-of-fact manner.
“’Li Weidu, you can’t say you like me and dislike me at the same time, right? Even if I am a bricklayer, you enjoy my bricklayer’s figure, but you can’t accept this bricklayer’s freedom, saying that I lack culture, right? Isn’t it a bit excessive?”
“…”
“…”
After a while of silence, Li Weidu asked, “What did you call me just now?”
Ji Kai: “???”
‘”’Li Weidu’? I just gave you a few words of advice, and you called me by my first and last name??”
Ji Kai: “?!?!”
Without completely understanding what was going on, the little puppet over there fell into a low-pressure state with dark clouds above his head. He turned around mechanically, took his coat, staggered to the door and started to put on his shoes. Ji Kai remembered that he had seen this kind of situation before. Last time, he chased after him and dragged him back to the sofa to coax him.
The problem is that now that his foot is injured, he cannot get out of sofa quickly and chase people.
“…Wait a minute, where are you going?”
“…”
“Talk!”
“Can’t, can’t I go and buy groceries? I want to take care of it!”
Ji Kai: “…”
“’Oh, that’s not right! Didn’t you just buy a refrigerator full of groceries yesterday?”
However, the door has been slammed shut. Professor Ji sat blankly on the sofa, thinking about the famous philosophical question ‘Who am I, where do I come from, and where do I want to go’ with a confused look on his face.
Really, see you soon??!W-What happened to him all of a sudden? Just, just because I called you by your full name? Is it that serious?
No, no, he tilted his head and thought for a while. Li Weidu, this person is sensitive, delicate and a little bit arrogant, you don’t know, with him, you can’t be rough and careless, he must be treated as a precious glass product, be careful and pay attention to it!
Sighing, he reached for the phone from the coffee table and dialed. The room next to him sounded. Li Weidu didn’t take his mobile phone with him when he went out.
…Then, wait for him to come back?
Is he really going to buy groceries? Why does he have to go to some weird places to sulk over such a trivial matter?
After hanging up the phone, the background of the phone automatically returns to the lock screen. Among the green grass, a little puppet is hugging a fluffy honey bear from behind.
It was obviously a super-level taut on his face, but his eyes were vaguely warm and happy.
Ji Kai stared at it for a while, and his heart ached.
No matter what, he has… suffered a lot of grievances in the past.
It’s really too much. he can’t let him suffer anymore. Not even a little bit, or even for a while, so he got up decisively.
After more than ten days of hospital treatment, cushion paralysis, and Shi Quan Da Bu Tang1Ten Perfect Tonics Soup , the pain in the thigh is actually not so bad anymore. He just can’t lift his leg, and he can’t do anything like running. But he can move slowly and carefully, thus walking is still possible.
Gritting teeth, he put on his sweatpants, shivered, and stood up against the wall.
The supermarket is not far away. Go find and coax him quickly.
……
Today at noon, he had already planned to make Ji Kai’s favorite stew of yellow cauliflower, tea tree mushroom2, fungus, radish, and meat stew.
The meat was marinated in cooking wine and braised soy sauce, the tea tree mushrooms were soaked, and the radishes were peeled…
Nothing is missing at home, and there is absolutely nothing to buy.
He wandered around the supermarket like a wandering spirit. In March, the supermarket’s air conditioner was still on, making the room hot and dry. Only the fresh food freezer gave off a cold breath. Li Weidu stood there stupidly, staring at the cold seafood.
In fact, Li Weidu also knew that what he had just said was a bit hasty and some of his unscrupulous words were annoying.
But it’s all out of worry for him and good intentions for him! He got better, with a serious and fierce face, and he tried to reason with him like a teacher lecturing a student, and even ‘Li Weidu’ came out! He has the ability to reason, but does he have the ability to study?
Really… he has never heard him calling him like that before. First, it was ‘Mr. Li’, then ‘Weidu’, but never even the full name!
Feeling wronged and heartbroken.
“…” After being blown by the cold air for a while, his burning brain slowly calmed down.
Shaking his head, what’s wrong with him?
Why are you aggrieved? Think about it carefully, what is going on? Think back to how you lived in the past ten years or so. At that time, you suffered so many grievances and blows, but you could digest them silently, but what about now?
How much do you have to be pampered and domineering every day to make you extremely unhappy because of such a trivial matter?
…Ji Kai is so good.
In the past, when Li Weidu sent messages to Ye Yin, he almost never received a reply. Even when Ye Yin did respond, it was usually just a brief “Oh.” It felt as if Ye Yin were merely sending messages to himself, day after day.
In contrast, Baby Bear was always different. Replies came promptly and were far more detailed than the initial messages, often including charming bear emojis and animated pictures. Each message radiated warmth and affection.
Li Weidu remembered a particularly tough period—when the company was floundering, college final exams were looming, and Ye Yin had ended their relationship. He had been lost in a daze, sitting on the sofa, flipping through his books for ten minutes, then pondering the breakup for five minutes, crying over it; followed by another five minutes of worrying about the company’s future and feeling helpless, crying once more.
After calming down, he would remind himself of the looming exam and continue to study for another ten minutes. This cycle repeated until the end of the exam period.
…How miserable it was when he didn’t meet Ji Kai. So, what is there to be dissatisfied with in life now? So what if he is free and loose? At worst, if he secretly buys him a trust fund to protect him for the rest of his life, why bother urging him to work hard?
Besides, if he doesn’t move bricks, he is so good, can he still find you?!
The more he thinks about it, the more stupid he feels.
So stupid that he almost cried. He couldn’t help but laugh and raised his sleeve to wipe his sore eyes.
……
Ji Kai tried hard not to look like a disabled person.
He slowly moved into the supermarket. Fortunately, it wasn’t too big inside. After searching for a while, he saw a familiar figure in the distance.
Well, standing in front of the frozen fish cabinet, the tall, rich, and handsome pufferfish was staring at the chilled salted halibut in the freezer.
Both frustrating and funny.
What about braised pork as promised for lunch today? Are you planning to buy fish to trick me again?
……
After having several vegetarian feasts during the previous quarrel, Mr. Li suddenly became more sinister. He probably also realized that if he always made a vegetarian banquet, he would have to eat fast and chant Buddha’s name with Ji Kai, so he decisively changed his strategy.
He started cooking fish.
Fish is simply wonderful. To Li Weidu, it is meat, and to Ji Kai, it is the same as vegetables. After finishing it, he could pick up the fish bone and eat the meat beautifully every time, and he had a lot of time to watch Ji Kai’s unhappy face of dissatisfaction.
To be serious, Li Weidu made fish head stewed with tofu and so on. It tasted quite delicious after eating it once or twice.
But since there were only fish for several days in a row, Ji Kai couldn’t hold on any longer. In the end, he coaxed him shamelessly on the bed.
Weidu, it’s enough for me to eat your tofu every day.
At other times, would you consider giving me meat?
Later, he was indeed rewarded with several meals of ‘meat’, but this meat was not that kind of meat. Teacher Ji, whose body was hollowed out and not replenished every day, was on the verge of crying.
Just as he was filled with regrets, he suddenly saw Li Weidu lowering his head and wiping his eyes.
Damn it!
OK, OK! I eat fish, isn’t it okay to eat fish? Don’t…
Ji Kai’s heart suddenly stopped working, and he felt so overwhelmed with self-blame. Is there something wrong with his brain? He actually quarreled with him over trivial matters, which made him so sad. He even kindly bought groceries for me to cook.
“Wei—”
Just as he was about to step forward and hug him, his wrist suddenly felt heavy and someone grabbed him from behind.
……Warm.
During these days, Ji Kai had become accustomed to Li Weidu’s long, cold hands, and had almost forgotten the warmth and touch of a ‘normal person’.
“Brother Kai.”
The familiar voice came creepily close, and it was just jarring.
Ji Kai looked back slowly as if facing a formidable enemy. At first glance, he saw the dazzling sparkle of the earrings and diamonds.
One winter has passed, and Zhu Ling has returned from the traces of the sun in South America. His whole body, with white skin and dark eyes, has completely returned to his shining and handsome state, almost exactly the same as when they first met.
Today he is not fully armed.
There was only a black low-brimmed metal buckle hat, a pair of frameless glasses that covered the face, and no mask.
……
Probably because this is a supermarket in a villa area nearly 20 kilometers away from the city. It is out of the way and has no other store. The probability of meeting entertainment reporters or fans is not high.
But then again, this is a supermarket in a villa area 20 kilometers away from the city!
Why are you running here when you have nothing to do? The unscrupulous stores in this damn place rely on the fact that there is no competition, and the goods are neither complete nor cost-effective, which is very deceptive…
Zhu Ling squeezed him tightly with his left hand, stretched out his right hand, and slowly stroked the rows of red wine above the shelves.
“I remember that you used to like this brand of wine the most. I just wonder if, by now, you’ve tasted better or more expensive ones and forgotten the old favorite, perhaps even liking something else?”
Ji Kai: ‘…’
“You block me, don’t answer my calls, and don’t reply to my messages—that’s one thing. But you’re not even taking care of Xiao Yan? He’s your son. You can’t even spare a little time to be with him for the New Year?”
No, actually I also want to spend the New Year with my son.
I really want to.
The problem is, you had him call me and ask me to ‘come to Grandma’s house for dinner’ on New Year’s Eve (at Zhu Ling’s mother’s place). The feeling of it being a Hongmen Banquet3“Hongmen Banquet” symbolizes a situation where an event or invitation appears friendly and welcoming on the surface but is actually a trap or has hidden, hostile intentions. It conveys a sense of deceit and potential danger under the guise of hospitality. is too obvious, and I’m worried about causing trouble or overthinking it. I genuinely don’t dare to go!
“… You’re not staying at home, and you can’t be found at your campus, so I had no choice but to come here to find you.”
Zhu Ling’s gaze was somewhat cold and distant. He looked around at the shelves filled with expensive imported goods, and with a beautiful yet cold smile, he said, “We’ve only been apart for a few months, yet it seems you’re already very comfortable here.”
“Indeed, living in a luxurious mansion must feel quite different from an ordinary apartment, right?”
Ji Kai finally understood after hearing this——
So, you came all the way here specifically, just to provoke me?
Okay, you came just in time.
He had been feeling frustrated for a while, especially since he was embarrassed by the last confrontation that ended with him being reduced to tears. He was particularly annoyed with himself and had replayed at least 108 methods of ruthless retorts in his mind, wishing he could go back to that day at the amusement park and redeem himself.
And now, you came knocking on the door yourself.
His anger flared up instantly, ready to explode, but he suddenly realized he was still holding onto his hand. He hurriedly shook it off!
It doesn’t matter anymore. What do you mean by harassing me in broad daylight? This is a same-sex situation where physical contact isn’t appropriate, but please don’t make my vinegar jar4The term “醋” (vinegar) is used metaphorically to describe the feeling of jealousy, particularly in romantic relationships. Just as vinegar adds a sharp and unpleasant flavor to food, jealousy is seen as a sharp, unpleasant emotion that can affect one’s mood and interactions.
So a Vinegar Jar is someone very very easily get jealous over small things. CEO turn around and see this!
Please let me know if there are typos/mistakes in the chapter.