From more than half a month before his birthday, Ji Kai could clearly see that Li Weidu was racking his brains under various calm appearances.
He secretly asked Zuo Yan. Zuo Yan said, “I am harassed by him every day. He asks me what you like, I betray you without conscience, and receive a lot of red envelopes.”
He secretly poked Qi Yang again, Qi Yang: “Don’t mention it, I’m filming in Europe, and he asks me to buy local limited luxury goods all day long, so you can help me ask him if he can reimburse me for the new suitcase I bought for him?”
Frightened, Ji Kai turned around and hurriedly comforted and educated as soon as possible: “Let’s keep everything simple! Isn’t it just a birthday? Don’t be extravagant, it’ll be stressful!”
What’s more, if you buy, buy, buy, so much without limit, how can I pay you back when it’s your birthday and I only have so little savings?
Pay it back with his own body? No, no, this old waist is already scrapped, scrapped!
Li Weidu responded to all requests with a good-natured “En, en, en.”
But on the morning of his birthday, everything that should be received where presented glamorously.
Red Roses, forget-me-not—the kind that you can only watch others post online, never fantasize about having, and never feel that he should as a rough man. Massive ribbon gift boxes and flowers appear out of nowhere, and the entire living room is filled with gifts.
Obviously, before going to bed last night, there was nothing. Where did he hide it?
He told him to keep it simple…… Professor Ji was speechless and picked up a, uh, handmade wallet from a certain big brand. He knows that Li Weidu has been unhappy with his little yellow chicken wallet for a long time, but that’s it, where should he stuff so many clothes and accessories?
The wardrobe was full, Ji Kai felt like an emperor, sitting on 3,000 fine clothes. It would take 3-5 years to change clothes to a new one every day, which was very resource-intensive and wasteful.
Is Mr. Li afraid that it is not enough to show his love? Obviously, his own amount of clothes is normal, but he often buys things for Ji Kai like crazy.
Mr. Li: “No worries, there’s still an empty room, right? We can call someone to convert it into a walk-in closet one of these days.”
This is what you call a domineering CEO making bold, sweeping decisions.
Just as Ji Kai was thinking about what to do with all the extra stuff, Mr. Li, with an earnest, innocent expression and deep affection in his eyes, grabbed his hand and said, “Actually, none of this really matters. These are just things money can buy. I also made you a gift with my own hands, something no one else in the world has.”
Ji Kai couldn’t help but feel a little bit of anticipation.
He thought it would be a handwritten card, or perhaps a clumsy little drawing—something small and easy to keep. He could stash it away for decades, only to pull it out one day from the bottom of a box and tease someone about how innocent and cute they once were.
As long as it wasn’t a song recording, anything would be fine. If it were a song, that would be a real problem. With your tone-deaf singing, should I make it my ringtone or… just not?
Never in his wildest dreams did he expect Mr. Li to pull him over to the computer, grinning proudly as he logged into the online game Flourish1I… forgot the game name. I didn’t save the name in the notes that I have, I’m not sure if it’s ever been revealed, but I’ll upload this first and re-read the chapters and revise it soon!. “Look, I made a custom dungeon just for you!”
Ji Kai: “…”
Ji Kai: “???”
Recently, Flourish players have been riding a wave of excitement.
For the PvE crowd, a new high-level map had been released, including a high-reward, high-difficulty 50-player raid in the Blood Palace. Meanwhile, for those interested in plot gossip, well… let’s just say the game didn’t disappoint. The ambiguous relationship between the Devil Sect’s young master and the blacksmith at the gate was becoming more obvious by the day.
And the final boss of the new dungeon? None other than the Devil Sect’s leader, Li Aotian, along with his strapping companion, Bear Number Two.
With the new model update, Bear Number Two’s face has been upgraded several notches in terms of attractiveness. Unfortunately, his bare chest was now fully covered, wrapped tightly in a cool and flashy couple’s outfit shared with the Devil Sect’s young master.
Li Weidu was secretly very pleased with himself.
He had personally input all the stats for the new boss, and when he keyed in the height of 183 cm, he smiled at the screen in a way that sent shivers down the spines of everyone in the office.
“…” Ji Kai was completely bewildered, watching Li Weidu log into his fully-geared, overpowered account.
Li Weidu then summoned a group of top-tier players via the megaphone feature, took the helm as the raid leader, and began issuing commands. The group entered the custom dungeon and faced off against the two bizarrely intimate bosses.
With all sorts of fancy moves—spinning, leaping, arrows flying—they spent more than thirty minutes fighting. Countless players fell, got back up, and fell again before they finally managed to slash the two bosses down, draining their health bars to zero. The game was won.
Wait… the issue is, didn’t both me and the Devil Sect’s young master get killed?!
Sure, the post-battle cutscene showed them both still standing, stubbornly muttering, “Not bad, young hero, your skills are quite impressive to match us so equally,” but the fact remains—they both got taken down during the fight, didn’t they?
A custom dungeon as a birthday gift. Only the head of a game company could come up with such a bizarre idea!
Even though Ji Kai was brimming with criticisms, he had to grit his teeth and offer mindless, over-the-top praise. “I love it, I really love it!” he said, flattering his silly CEO into a proud smile.
—
It was a weekend on his birthday, and the luxurious villa was decked out with all sorts of colorful lights, spray-painted candles, balloons, and streamers—once again setting the stage for a lively party.
Zuo Yan, Ying Jian, Jiang Xiaobai, and the others had all grown familiar with Li Weidu after the New Year’s party and snowball fights. From what he could see, Ji Kai’s entire “Take Medicine to Fight East China Hongxing Gang” was present, even the usually absent types like the busy surgeon Li Mingxin and the homebody painter Lei Nanyu.
Amid the sea of familiar faces, one stranger successfully caught Li Weidu’s attention.
The young man was dressed in a simple navy hoodie with a small black chain around his neck.
Neither tall nor short, a bit on the thin side. His face wasn’t particularly handsome, nor remarkably distinctive, except for his smile, where his eyes disappeared entirely. The only notable feature might have been his hand, which looked quite nice when he took a juice from Ji Kai, wearing a black digital watch.
…He’s probably one of those gentle, harmless “salt-faced” guys, the kind that exudes a simple, clean, and natural vibe as if the air around him were filled with fresh oxygen.
Ji Kai was chatting with him the whole time, laughing and clearly in sync. Li Weidu didn’t consider himself the jealous type, prone to overreacting, especially over just a few exchanged words…
“Baby, who’s that? I don’t remember seeing him before.”
The background hum of the blender roared in the open kitchen as Ji Kai, startled by the sudden “Baby,” almost dropped a bag of instant noodles.
Turning to look at Li Weidu, who was perched casually on the kitchen counter, legs swinging as if he didn’t care, eyes darting with a hint of arrogance and a dash of mischief, Li Weidu looked as though he was the very image of effortless charm.
“Zhou Yi’an, you’ve met him before!”
The pot was bubbling, filled with ham, eggs, tomatoes, and seaweed, releasing a delicious aroma.
“Met him?” A potential threat like that? I should have alarms blaring in my head!
“You probably don’t remember because the last time you saw him, he was in uniform. Remember when someone took over my apartment? He’s the police officer who helped us—he’s ‘Old Zhou the Cop’ from our meds group who always grabs red envelopes but hardly ever speaks.”
“…The same ‘Old Zhou’ who never says a word but always wins the biggest red envelopes?”
Li Weidu nodded. Now he remembered.
“Actually, he’s the one I’ve known the longest in the group. Our families used to live across the hall from each other. We’ve been playing together since we were kids, over twenty years now. We even went to X University together. He and his dad took great care of me. If it weren’t for them, I probably…”
Probably what?
Li Weidu waited, but Ji Kai didn’t continue. He just shook his head slightly, his smile a bit strained, and his hand, stirring the noodles, became a little unsteady.
“Anyway, Old Zhou didn’t go to grad school. He took the civil service exam after graduation and became a police officer. You know how busy police work is—no holidays or time off. I don’t like disturbing him, so if we see each other two or three times a year, that’s already great.”
“But it doesn’t matter, because our bond won’t weaken after so many years just because we don’t meet often. To me, he’s like… a little brother.”
Why did you have to pause before saying “little brother”?
Li Weidu finally felt the tension in his heart ease, the metaphorical stone dropping away. He had almost been scared to death!
……
“Wow, smells amazing!”
A steaming pot of tomato noodles—turns out it was made for that young police officer. Li Weidu tried hard not to hum in displeasure.
“Don’t, don’t mind me,” Zhou Yi’an, who had been stared down from head to toe by Ji Kai’s cool and noble partner the whole time, squinted and smiled sheepishly. “I’m just like this. No matter how good gourmet food is, I’m only used to simple dishes and noodles like this.”
“Wait a minute, Kai-ge2Ge means brother, but in this context, they’re not siblings. They have a very close relationship! You really went all out! You gave me two eggs?”
“Yeah, didn’t we make a deal back then? Once we could afford it, every time you eat noodles, I’d give you two eggs.”
“Hehe, you still remember,” the young police officer smiled again. While slurping down the noodles, he waved his chopsticks and explained to the clearly envious Li Weidu, who was struggling to hide it. “There’s a story behind this.”
“Back in the day, when Kai-ge and I were roommates in college—he had an issue at his part-time job once, and that month he didn’t get paid. By the end of the month, we were barely scraping by on my little bit of earnings.”
“We held out until the 27th, and all I had left was 3.50 yuan…”
Ji Kai chimed in: “So that night, he dragged me to the cafeteria, bought a big bowl of tomato soup instant noodles for 3 yuan, and added a 50-cent soft-boiled egg. He ate the egg and gave all the noodles to me.”
“I didn’t give them to you! I just prefer eating soft-boiled eggs!”
Zhou Yi’an puffed up his cheeks and slurped his soup, “Anyway, after that meal, we were officially broke. We spent the next three days surviving on cold water until the next month’s paycheck came in. Thank goodness that month only had 30 days!”
“But, Old Zhou, I’ve thought about it since,” Ji Kai said with a frown. “Why didn’t you use the 3.50 to buy buns? They’re only 20 cents each, you could’ve gotten more than 10. We wouldn’t have been starving those next few days.”
Zhou Yi’an stammered, “I-I just wanted to make sure you had something good to eat!”
Listening from the side, Li Weidu felt a wave of heartache wash over him.
My poor Baby Bear… There were days when he couldn’t even afford a meal? If only I had been with him back then! I’d have bought out the whole cafeteria for you! You could’ve eaten whatever you wanted!
……
Zuo Yan called Ji Kai over to mix some cocktails, and Ji Kai got up and went.
Li Weidu remained on the sofa, intently watching the young police officer eat noodles. “What was Ji Kai like when he was younger?”
“Hm?”
“Tell me, I really want to know.”
“Pfft, wasn’t he just the same as he is now? Kai-ge’s always been like this.” Zhou Yi’an bit his chopsticks and laughed, though his eyes disappeared when he smiled, it still felt a bit shy and restrained.
Li Weidu felt a pang in his chest. This young officer’s inexplicable, overflowing charm was like a superpower that couldn’t be imitated!
He’s… he’s straight, right?
Childhood friends with the advantage of time and familiarity—if he’s not straight, what chance do I have? Li Weidu, uneasy, held it in for a while longer. “He, he said that you two have always been really close and that you and your father used to take care of him a lot…”
“Well, we were neighbors, so wasn’t it natural to look out for each other? With what happened to Kai-ge’s family, who could just sit back and do nothing? Besides, Kai-ge helped me a lot too. My dad always said, if it weren’t for those years that Kai-ge lived with us, there’s no way I would’ve even made it into a technical school, let alone X University.”
Wait, he lived with your family? What exactly happened to his?
“Li-zong3“总 zǒng” is a special title used frequently in business occasions in China, It is a short form general manager, chief director, CEO, CFO, president of a company, chairman of the board, etc. It is used after people’s last name., Kai-ge really had it rough for a long time. I’ve always heard people say you’re really good to him, and seriously, Kai-ge is such a great person, you’ve got to treasure him.”
Li Weidu had wanted to ask more, but the words got stuck in his throat.
Zhou Yi’an looked so trusting as if he was handing over his elder brother to Li Weidu with full confidence, clearly assuming Li Weidu already knew everything about Ji Kai’s past.
But he didn’t know anything at all.
……
Even though it was already late March, a cold front had swept in for several days, suddenly bringing back the winter-like chill to the air.
The small villa was always a few degrees cooler than the city center, and the already harsh environment worsened when, after the party ended late that night, the power suddenly went out with a “click.”
The air conditioning and heating both shutdown, and the cold became unbearable.
The unfortunate property management office was located in the city, so even if they got up right away and drove over, it would still take over half an hour. It was a helpless situation.
Li Weidu deeply regretted his decision. Was it really worth the trouble to buy a house in such a place?
Fortunately, the house came with its own warm “bear cub,” whom he clung to in bed, enjoying a 360° hug.
No matter how interesting the soul, in this freezing cold, you still need a warm body to cling to. He was utterly content, holding tightly onto the soft and bouncy body in his arms, which radiated a delicious warmth. It was the ultimate satisfaction in life.
The only downside was that he had drunk too much at the party and was now very thirsty. But the water dispenser had long run out.
“I’ll go boil some for you,” Ji Kai offered.
“No, don’t! It’s cold!”
Ji Kai chuckled, “In this house, only you are afraid of the cold. I’m not.” He tossed the blanket aside and, wrapping himself in his clothes, headed out to the living room.
This house… Li Weidu felt a warm, bittersweet sensation in his heart. Listening to those reassuring footsteps, he snuggled into the blanket, basking in the lingering warmth and closing his eyes.
Now, I’m your home too, aren’t I?
No matter what happened to your home before, at least now, you have me.
Within seconds, Ji Kai returned under the moonlight, dragging his slippers. “I guess the repairmen were worried about safety or something—they’ve turned off the gas too, so the stove won’t light.”
Just as Li Weidu was about to say it was fine and that he didn’t need water anymore, Ji Kai clapped his hands and said, “No worries, I’ve got another idea!”
……
A strange noise drew Li Weidu out of bed, wrapped in a coat.
Pushing open the door and stepping into the courtyard, his eyes sparkled with curiosity. He stood there with his mouth forming a triangular “△” shape, watching Ji Kai’s wild survival skills in action.
Yes, Ji Kai had fetched the practically useless German-imported boning knife from the kitchen and was now using it to chop down some dry wood in the small courtyard. “Crack, crack,” he chopped, then swiftly split the logs. He gathered some dry grass on the small stone platform in the courtyard, struck a match, and with a “whoosh”—the dry wood ignited.
Li Weidu was like a child watching fireworks, no longer feeling the cold. Although, in reality, it was freezing in the courtyard. But seeing Ji Kai doing all this was fascinating!
Ji Kai, amused by Li Weidu’s amazement, pulled him closer to the fire to warm his hands. Rich city boys really had no childhood. Back in the day, he and Zhou Yi’an would roast grasshoppers, go fishing, sneak into cornfields to steal ears of corn—there wasn’t a prank they hadn’t pulled. What was a little survival skill compared to that?
Half an hour later, Li Weidu was curled up in bed, cradling the hard-earned hot water like a precious treasure, nestled against Ji Kai’s warm chest, blowing on the water slowly.
After finishing the drink, he felt wide awake. Leaning against the warmth of his Baby Bear, he gazed at the stars through the skylight.
“Ji Kai, tell me honestly.”
“When I pushed you to study before, insisting on sending you to school… did you feel I was being particularly overbearing or just causing unnecessary trouble?”
Ji Kai chuckled, playing with Li Weidu’s fingers in his hand. His chin brushed against Li Weidu’s shoulder as he softly laughed, “No, not at all. I was the one teasing you first. I know you were doing it for my own good.”
Li Weidu sat quietly for a while, then stammered, “Ever since we’ve been together, I’ve never been truly angry with you. I’ve always thought you were wonderful, and always felt incredibly lucky. I know sometimes it might seem like I’m being sulky, but that’s only because…”
…only because I’ve never felt this happy before, from childhood until now.
I never imagined I could be this happy. The sweetness runs deep in my bones, and I’ve come to realize that the world can be so beautiful, that someone could treat me so well. And yet, at times, it stirs up memories of old pains.
Thinking about the hard days of the past, I can’t help but feel like a child who’s endured countless hardships, finally finding their way home and wanting to be endlessly spoiled by the one they love.
…I almost forgot.
The warm little bear beside me, the one I can hug and kiss whenever I want, might not be as strong as he seems.
He’s just grown used to being the one others seek comfort from, the one who’s always there to warm someone else. No one has ever hugged him and asked, “Are you okay?”
Li Weidu remembered clearly that this man hadn’t shed a tear when he got divorced. That very night, he even grilled meat and laughed with a group of people, as if nothing had affected him at all.
But in his most critical moment, the name he called out was Zhu Ling’s.
……
Placing the cup on the bedside table, Li Weidu climbed up, sitting face-to-face on top of his baby bear. The moonlight that night was dim, and in that soft glow, he mustered the courage to take a bold step.
“Ji Kai, I really, really like you.”
The sound of breathing was quiet. His voice was hoarse, and he could hear his own anxious heartbeat.
“Just now, I heard Zhou Yi’an mention that something happened with your family in the past.”
The body, pressed so close to his, trembled slightly.
“It seems like you rarely mention anything about your family, and I… I never even thought to ask. I’ve been so careless. Maybe I just like you too much, always thinking about how happy I am every day. But… I know nothing about your past.”
“It’s not your fault.”
As Ji Kai said this, he made an instinctive movement—he reached for a cigarette.
But they were in bed, with Li Weidu on top of him, and besides, Ji Kai had quit smoking long ago. There were no cigarettes.
Li Weidu noticed everything. Even in a moment like this, his baby bear tried to hide his unease, still looking out for his feelings: “Mostly it’s because I didn’t talk about it. The stuff with my family… I usually don’t like to bring it up.”
After holding this warm, soft baby bear for so long, it felt as though Li Weidu had finally touched an unreachable wall for the first time.
But strangely enough, for the first time, Li Weidu didn’t feel a trace of disappointment or self-pity. Instead, he reached out and hugged the person in his arms even tighter.
A faint voice whispered in his mind—until this day, until this very moment, perhaps all he had been yearning for was Ji Kai.
Yearning to be loved, yearning for happiness, for salvation, and bliss.
But now, it was as if a boundless source of strength had suddenly emerged. The things he yearned for had transformed into a desire to fully integrate into this person’s world. Perhaps he could find that hiding little bear in the dark forest, becoming his support, his solid foundation, sharing his past, present, and endless future.
In the stillness, Ji Kai leaned closer to him, his voice unsteady, tinged with a heart-wrenching rasp.
“I’m afraid… that if I talk about it, I’ll feel sad or angry. And I don’t want the person listening to feel down either.”
“Back then, Uncle Zhou, Zhou Yi’an’s father, he advised me. He always said, ‘Some things that can’t be changed, it’s better to bury them. Only by forgetting can you move on and live a good life.'”
“He said that my parents and sister would also want me to be happy.”
In the vast night, Li Weidu’s narrow eyes slowly closed and opened again, gradually brightening with starlight.
He felt an immense sense of honor. Ji Kai had no walls, no defenses—not with him, at least.
The story continued in quiet murmurs. Though Li Weidu had grown up in a cold, luxurious mansion, he couldn’t quite picture the soft beauty of the sunny small town, the shimmering water, and the drooping willows that Ji Kai described.
But as he listened to the story, it was as if he could see two clear lines of fate in the darkness. With a faint glow of starlight, these completely different lives had finally intertwined, becoming inseparably bound together.
At that time, Li Weidu didn’t yet know.
Ji Kai had never told anyone, not even Zhu Ling, about everything that had happened to him.
Translator: Lynn
Translations are not 100% correct. Please let me know if there are typos/mistakes in the chapter.
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