T.N: Thank you dear Maëvalily for your donation and kind words! I hope you’ll end up loving this novel! (づ๑•ᴗ•๑)づ♡
Shu Ran was not a slow person, so he closed his mouth, leaving some space for Xu Shen to digest. Feeling that it was almost done, he gently handed a handkerchief over: “Here.”
“Yes…” Xu Shen took the handkerchief, wiped his face, and looked at him: “I have never eaten longevity noodles in my life.”
Shu Ran saw that his eyes were as red as a rabbit’s, and his own nose became sour: “It’s okay, I will cook a bowl for you every year from now on.”
For the original Xu Shen, his life spanned only thirty-seven birthdays but, with Shu Ran there, he was determined to celebrate at least a hundred more.
“Okay.” Xu Shen said while eating the remaining noodles and soup together. After calming down a little, he took the music box: “Is this for me too?”
Shu Ran: “Yes, take a look.”
Xu Shen looked at it and saw two children spinning around on the musical instrument. When they came together, they kissed each other. He chuckled and said: “It’s your style.”
Shu Ran also smiled. “Isn’t it cute?”
“Cute.” Xu Shen accepted the gift and praised it: “Very cute.”
He took it to the bedroom and placed it on a shelf, next to the photo frame the two brought from Nanshi, feeling the joy of his birthday.
Next, he picked up Shu Ran and walked to the bed. After rubbing their ears and temples together for a while, Xu Shen took out his wife’s medicinal jade and went into battle himself.
Shu Ran was trembling. Xu Shen kissed his smooth forehead with hazy eyes.
…”Happy birthday.” He didn’t know how much time passed, but Xu Shen murmured, holding Shu Ran’s ear in his mouth.
As for Shu Ran, he was almost unconscious at that moment. However, his eyes widened suddenly when he heard him… What did Xu Shen say?! It was indeed his original birthday… Shu Ran’s mind collapsed, and then everything became a mess.
“You… Are so excited…” Xu Shen couldn’t bear his excitement, forcing him to finish early.
Shu Ran gasped for air, and at the same time, he felt guilty and his heart beat wildly. He didn’t dare to ask Xu Shen why he said “Happy Birthday”. Fortunately, the other party did not push it further.
Forget it… Then he will continue to act like a fool as if nothing has happened!
“Do you want to sleep?” Xu Shen came over and asked in a low voice.
“I don’t want to…” Shu Ran whispered, listening to his heart. “Let’s do it until dawn.”
It was a rare birthday, so they could be as willful as possible.
“You said it.” Xu Shen took a breath. “Then I will…”
Shu Ran smiled, full of understanding.
It was still a long time till dawn, so Xu Shen prepared a wet towel to keep beside the bed. The cold touch would bring Shu Ran a brief moment of calmness every once in a while, but it was only short-lived.
More often than not, he would get stuck in a whirlpool.
“Wife, do you want to go to bed now, or eat something before going to bed?” In the morning, Xu Shen sat next to Shu Ran, supporting his body with his arms, and asking in a particularly gentle voice.
Shu Ran recalled their achievements, closing his eyes and feeling weak: “Can you still stand up and go get food?”
He heard his own voice, which was very tragic, and realized it was all over… He was actually worried that the neighbor next door had been disturbed all night long, making him feel completely embarrassed.
However, when he was in the mood, he really couldn’t pay attention to all those details…
“That’s right…” Xu Shen sighed softly. “My legs are weak.”
Shu Ran almost couldn’t laugh. That person was… So honest. “Ahem… just lie down.”
“I’m just kidding.” Xu Shen smiled and looked at his wife: “Although I’m weak, I still have the strength to stand up.”
“No need.” Shu Ran closed his eyes and continued: “I don’t have the energy or appetite to eat. See you in the evening.”
The loss was too great, and this sleep would not be enough unless he slept for at least half a day!
“Okay.” Xu Shen stopped forcing him and lay down next to his wife: “See you in the evening.”
As expected, the two slept until late in the afternoon. When Shu Ran woke up, Xu Shen was cooking dinner in the kitchen. He got up and put on his boyfriend’s shirt. Thinking of what happened early in the morning, his heart started pounding.
He didn’t expect Xu Shen to really cry.
Shu Ran thought sullenly that he, as the boyfriend, didn’t understand Xu Shen as well as Chen Sen did.
However, Xu Shen would definitely lose face if he reported it!
But he couldn’t go back on his promise to Chen Sen… Shu Ran took advantage of the fact that Xu Shen was busy in the kitchen, and went to the living room to call Chen Sen. He still had to search several factories before finding the person.
“Brother Sen!” Shu Ran shouted.
“Well, what’s the matter?” Shu Ran called all the way from Beijing, so Chen Sen thought he had something important to tell him.
“Yeah, it’s nothing. I’ve finished making noodles for Brother Shen…” Shu Ran said.
“How was it?” Chen Sen immediately asked curiously.
Shu Ran reported in a low voice: “Awesome, Brother Sen, you really guessed it!”
“He cried?!” Chen Sen’s voice suddenly rose eight tones, with a sense of joy that betrayed the fact that he heard what he loved to hear.
Shu Ran quickly said: “Easy, easy, this is a secret, don’t tell anyone! It will be the end of us if you tell!”
“Okay.” Chen Sen agreed and continued: “If you want to learn anything else in the future, just tell me.”
Xu Shen cried.
“I won’t learn anymore…” Shu Ran said with a smile. “I’ll just cook him a bowl of noodles for the rest of my life.”
Hearing Xu Shen come out of the kitchen, he quickly hung up the phone: “We’re having dinner, see you soon, Brother Sen!”
Xu Shen brought the dishes to the table. “Did you call Brother Sen? What were you doing?”
“Ask if the sample had been sent.” Shu Ran replied.
“They can handle these trivial matters on their own.” Xu Shen said unhappily: “You have made yourself so tired, how can you still have the time to enjoy life?”
If you’re so busy and tired, what’s the point of making more money?!
“Yes, yes, you are right.” Shu Ran sat down comfortably, accepting the criticism humbly.
In the early stage, he really wanted to do more things, lay a solid foundation, and make everyone’s work go smoothly. But later on, he quit and rarely even went to the factory.
Xu Shen, the one who was both brave and careful, suddenly asked: “Did Brother Sen teach you how to make noodles?”
Shu Ran felt the hairs on his body stand on end and hesitated: “…Yeah.”
Xu Shen snorted, half-smiling but not really, as if he had seen through everything. Just when Shu Ran was beginning to get extremely nervous, he said casually: “It doesn’t matter, it’s not embarrassing to be moved to tears by my own wife.”
Shu Ran looked at him in surprise.
“I actually want others to know.” Xu Shen said while eating slowly. “It’s best if the whole world knows that you love me so much.”
Shu Ran thought for a while: “That’s not impossible… When I write an autobiography in the future, I will definitely focus on describing the scene where you were moved to tears by me.”
After all, that Brother Shen, with red and moist eyes, was also very handsome.
It’s just that he was so frightened last night that he didn’t have time to take a closer look. Now that Shu Ran thought about it, he realized that he was a very beautiful man when he showed a sense of brokenness.
Xu Shen laughed. “Okay, remember to write.”
He thought to himself that if Shu Ran really wanted to write an autobiography, it wouldn’t be called an autobiography, but a diary of their love.
…………
The next day, after taking a day off for his birthday, Xu Shen went to the shop to help the masters work. For the time being, only he could understand Shu Ran’s demanding decoration requirements.
Shu Ran also had his own things to do. He wanted to follow the address from the portfolio and visit the designer he liked.
The other person lived in the Academy of Fine Arts, but he didn’t know if he was a student there. However, Shu Ran didn’t mind. As long as he could produce, it didn’t matter if he was in school or not.
When going to meet fashionable people, you should also dress fashionably.
Thanks to the fact that Xu Shen was not afraid of carrying weights, Shu Ran packed two large suitcases of clothes and shoes from Nanshi, so he didn’t have to worry about not having enough.
That day, he wore a light set with a salt and pepper texture that was clean and neat, looking casual and relaxed.
When Shu Ran arrived at the Academy of Fine Arts, he was worried that he wouldn’t be able to get in. However, he got into the Academy of Fine Arts smoothly.
After following the house numbers, he came to the door of a staff dormitory. Shu Ran knocked on the door, and not long after, a young man with pigtails opened it. He looked to be in his early twenties, with a little paint on his upright face. Both of them were stunned.
“Who are you?” The other party asked.
Shu Ran said: “Hello, I’m looking for Xie Yuan.”
“I am.” Xie Yuan asked again. “Who are you?!”
Shu Ran quickly introduced himself: “Hello, I am one of the owners of “Tongxin Garment Factory”. My name is Shu Ran, I liked your designs after seeing them and want to talk to you…”
Xie Yuan’s face was blank, and after a while, he said: “Shu Ran… I remember now!”
Shu Ran smiled awkwardly: “Your Majesty, you forget so many things…”
Xie Yuan smiled: “I submitted it casually, it was just an impulse at that time.” His portfolio was full of random, old works torn out of various sketchbooks, just as Shu Ran said. Bold and individual.
“Ah?!” Shu Ran had a feeling… This trip was bound to be in vain, right?!
“You come in first.” Xie Yuan invited him and continued: “I didn’t expect you’d like it. I’m surprised.”
Shu Ran was a newly rising star in the cultural circle, mysterious and dazzling. The whole campus was full of fans of his books and students discussed his works wherever he went.
…Not only his books but also his heroic deeds, appearance, career, clothing, etc. People couldn’t wait for him to be in the newspapers every day.
“Your designs are very good.” Shu Ran walked into Xie Yuan’s dormitory, which was full of things related to painting. “It seems that painting is your main business.”
“Yes!” Xie Yuan found a relatively clean chair, asked Shu Ran to sit down, and introduced himself: “I am a low-level painter who makes a living by copying for others.”
“Aren’t you a teacher?” Shu Ran was surprised. He lived in the staff dormitory, so he thought he was a teacher.
“No.” Xie Yuan sat down casually on the floor, twirling a paintbrush with his finger: “I’m not a student either. I live here just because… My parents are teachers and I didn’t pass the exam, haha.”
“Haha…” Shu Ran also laughed and closed his mouth after laughing.
“It’s okay!” Xie Yuan smiled even more happily, and his neat teeth were particularly white: “Failure to pass the exam doesn’t mean you have no future. Aren’t you here to give me a chance?”
Shu Ran nodded solemnly: “Yes. If our ideas can be integrated, I hope to ask you to be the designer for our brand.”
“What style do you want?” Xie Yuan asked directly. Although it was just a casual shot, since he was selected, he cherished that job opportunity.
“The portfolio you gave me is very good, the designs are both soft and strong, and it has the… Mysterious charm of androgyny.” Shu Ran recalled with squinted eyes: “I have rarely seen designers who could express that concept so well…”
When it came to androgyny, most designers would present it in terms of alternation of soft and hard, tailoring, and color, which could easily lead to a sense of rigid division.
However, Xie Yuan’s creations were well-integrated, innately sensual, and full of aura.
“You have contacted many designers?” Xie Yuan was surprised, but thought it was normal. There should be many designers vying to submit their works to Shu Ran during that period.
Xie Yuan admired this younger brother who was so young and yet so high-spirited in two circles at the same time.
But he also knew that such people were very few and he should not use them for comparison.
“There’s quite a lot.” Shu Ran also saw a lot.
Xie Yuan casually picked up a sketchbook, took the pencil from his ear, and started to draw a few strokes. A figure was immediately outlined, followed by clothing lines: “You are very keen. In fact… I wanted those designs to be for men.”
Shu Ran blurted out: “For men like you?”
After saying that, he was stunned. Oh no, he swore he didn’t mean to just blurt that out!
Xie Yuan was silent for a moment and asked: “Do you think it’s perverted to design women’s clothing for men?”
“I don’t think so.” Shu Ran said immediately: “Some men like to wear women’s clothes and some women like to wear men’s clothes. It’s normal.”
Xie Yuan had never heard of such an argument before, so he looked at Shu Ran blankly. Everyone must know that men who wore women’s clothes on the streets were seen as hooligans. If he really dared to go out like that, he could only be arrested and put in a jail cell.
But Shu Ran said it was normal.
“Really? Do you really think it’s normal?” Xie Yuan was incredulous.
“Yes, it’s normal.” Shu Ran understood him. It turned out that Xie Yuan liked women’s clothing. He smiled and continued: “It’s very normal. Do you want to share with me your treasured little skirts?”
Xie Yuan laughed when he heard Shu Ran’s bold words. He really wanted someone to admire his clothes, but it wasn’t suitable for the first meeting, right?!
“Next time!” Xie Yuan suppressed his desire to share and said shyly: “Let’s talk about work first.”
After listening to Shu Ran, Xie Yuan wanted that job even more. He drew a lot of creative ideas in one breath and explained them endlessly. Shu Ran liked the state he was in very much.
“You are very talented.” Shu Ran said with approval and then glanced at the strong-smelling painting tools in his room: “Stop copying. This will ruin your talent. Come and work in our company.”
“Okay!” Xie Yuan nodded and said solemnly: “Thank you!”
Shu Ran could tell that Xie Yuan needed money, so he wanted to generously hand the other party fifty yuan, but when he checked his pockets, he only had a few dime tickets for the train ride…
Help! How embarrassing!
In order to complete his idea, Shu Ran came again the next day and finally handed Xie Yuan fifty yuan in a bold manner, asking him to pack up and prepare to join their company.
“Do I have to move?” Xie Yuan cleaned up all the paintings yesterday, and he now looked very clean.
“It’s hard to communicate if you live here, so it’s better to be closer.” Shu Ran said.
“Okay!” Xie Yuan seemed to be a rebellious artist at first glance, but after getting along with him, he had the character of a little bunny. Very easy-going and would move wherever he was asked.
Back at home, Xu Shen found out about Xie Yuan and thought about renting a large courtyard in case anyone else needed to move over in the future.
Since it was not cost-effective to find an agent because of the agency’s fee, Xu Shen asked his neighboring aunt, finding out that there was a courtyard at the end of the alley that could be rented.
With the auntie’s enthusiastic help, the problem of accommodation was quickly fixed.
“Brother Shen is so awesome! You can move so fast!” When Shu Ran came back, he heard that everything was already done, making him feel like praising his man to the end of the world!
“Auntie helped me a lot.” Xu Shen said.
“Xie Yuan and I will go clean tomorrow.” Shu Ran asked him for the key.
“I’ll go too.” Xu Shen handed over the keys and touched Shu Ran’s hand.
“Aren’t you going to supervise the work?” Shu Ran was not so reserved. He directly touched whatever he wanted to: “The workload shouldn’t be heavy, it’s enough for the two of us.”
“Ah, well, I’ve already explained everything that has to be done. I just sit there whenever I go over.” Xu Shen hugged him: “Why, you don’t want me to go with you?”
“What do you think?” Shu Ran’s hands continued to take advantage of everything: “I wish I could be stuck to you every day!”
“You…” Xu Shen suppressed his voice and chuckled: “You writers are so precise in your word choice.” He felt the need to repeat it: “Very precise.”
“Brother Shen, you are so pure.” Shu Ran kissed him.
“Why do you say that?” Xu Shen looked at his wife.
Shu Ran leaned into his ear and smiled: “If it was an old pervert like me, I could easily connect the sentence smoothly… Stuck to me where?”
That picture was very vivid!
“…”
Xu Shen felt embarrassed to be teased. Apart from smiling sourly, he couldn’t find any saucy words that could compare to Writer Shu’s: “Let me just take it one day at a time…”
Since Xie Yuan was coming in the morning, Shu Ran asked Xu Shen to wait at the entrance of the alley and help him carry his things. Xu Shen waited at the alley for more than half an hour until he finally saw an artist who fit Shu Ran’s description.
Long hair, bright red and purple clothes, tight jeans. After hearing that description, Xu Shen could only imagine the old Chen Kai. However, when he finally saw it, he found that it was way better than Chen Kai.
“Are you Xie Yuan?” Xu Shen rode his bicycle over to say hello: “I’m Xu Shen, Shu Ran’s friend, here to pick you up.”
Xie Yuan had already seen Xu Shen standing idly on the roadside. He was tall, handsome, and with very long legs. At first glance, he thought he was just good-looking, but upon closer inspection, he thought he was too good-looking and cool: “Brother Shen, right? I heard Shu Ran talk about you.”
“Hello.” Xu Shen nodded to him and pointed to the back seat of the bicycle: “Put your luggage on it and we’ll push it back.”
“Is it far to walk?” Xie Yuan said. “How about you take me on your bike?”
“It’s not too far, let’s walk.” Xu Shen said with a smile. “I’m sorry, I can’t carry anyone on the back seat of my bicycle.”
“Oh?” Xie Yuan smiled and said he understood, but he really didn’t. Anyway, it was good that Xu Shen still had that kind of persistence.
“You should be older than us, right?” Xu Shen said. “I am twenty-three, and Shu Ran is nineteen.”
“No.” Xie Yuan gritted his teeth and answered: “I’m only twenty-two, do I look very old?!”
“Oh, maybe because you’re dressed maturely.” Xu Shen knew after listening to the designers many times that colors with a higher saturation looked mature.
“Do you also know about design?” Xie Yuan looked at his outfit. “You’re dressed so well…” The style was quite unique and something he had never seen before.
“Shu Ran dressed me up.” Xu Shen also glanced at himself. “I don’t know anything about design, so I’ll just wear whatever he tells me to wear.” Pointing to his hair, he continued: “He even decides my haircuts.”
“Is it?” Xie Yuan asked hesitantly. “Then… Will he also interfere with my freedom of dressing?”
Xu Shen glanced at him and thought, you have such a beautiful idea…
“No, you can do whatever you want.”
“That’s good.” Xie Yuan breathed a sigh of relief.
The two of them chatted all the way back, and Shu Ran said from the door: “Hey, it seems you two had a pretty good chat.”
“Shu Ran.” Xie Yuan was worried about Shu Ran changing his appearance so he said: “How can you interfere with Brother Shen’s freedom of dressing?”
He was quite sensitive about it, feeling that everyone should defend their right to dress however they wanted, so he had to ask.
“I…” Shu Ran looked at Xu Shen. “I didn’t interfere with his freedom of dressing. I just took over. You ask him whether he’s happy with it or not.”
Xu Shen nodded cooperatively: “Happy, happy!” It was just dressing up. What’s more, he thought with a smile, even if Shu Ran asked him to get a tattoo or something, that would be just as fine.
Xie Yuan suddenly didn’t know what else to say. Maybe that was the difference between people… As for himself, even if he was killed, he wouldn’t let others make the decisions.
Shu Ran secretly laughed in his heart, a married man still wanted to be able to dress freely?!
Maybe in his dreams… Where he could wear whatever his wife asked him to wear and cover himself with whatever his wife wanted! Such a good life to have!
After putting down Xie Yuan’s luggage and having a sip of tea, they went to the courtyard to clean together. The yard was quite big, and when he heard that he lived alone, Xie Yuan looked embarrassed: “I am the only one living in such a big yard… I’m scared.”
Xu Shen: “You can get two dogs to guard the yard.”
That suggestion quite suited Xie Yuan’s heart. He liked dogs, but never had the means to keep one before: “Okay, it’s best to have a wolfdog!”
Xu Shen had no objection, but Shu Ran said: “What a beautiful idea, wolfdogs don’t cost money? Just adopt some pastoral dogs.”
“What’s a pastoral dog?” Xu Shen and Xie Yuan asked together.
“A… dog.” Shu Ran said.
Xu Shen smiled. “Okay, then let’s get a pastoral dog.” A writer was indeed a writer, even his word for “dog” was so elegant.
Xie Yuan, who had no right to speak for the time being, thought about it but still decided to get a wolfdog as soon as he had some money.
It wasn’t that Shu Ran was reluctant to part with money. The wolfdog was a large dog and had to be walked around. It was strange for an artist to have time to walk his dog. Pastoral dogs were different and they could be let out for a walk by themselves.
There was no good furniture in the rented courtyard, so it was quite shabby to live in. Xu Shen, the big spender, said: “Throw out the old furniture and put in something new.”
Xie Yuan looked at Shu Ran subconsciously. Would the stingy Boss Shu agree?!
“Okay.” Shu Ran was not stingy. Really. Xie Yuan would find out later that everyone just spent their money randomly.
After cleaning and going home to cook, Xie Yuan looked at Xu Shen’s back as he entered the kitchen and asked: “Brother Shen is cooking?”
“Well, isn’t it awesome?” Shu Ran whispered: “I can’t even go to the hall, let alone enter the kitchen. Brother Shen is a truly great man. Whoever marries him would have smoke coming out from their ancestral grave!”1I think it means their ancestors would rejoice and celebrate such a good marriage
Xie Yuan said seriously: “Awesome, you are all so awesome, you make me feel ashamed.”
Also in their twenties, but already reached the peak of their lives… And him… A few days ago he was still worrying about living expenses and quarreling with his family about his future, with his life in a mess.
Ideals and life were always so far apart.
If he hadn’t seen it with his own eyes, Xie Yuan would have found it hard to believe that someone could really do whatever they wanted and live their life the way they imagined.
Shu Ran patted him on the shoulder: “You will become better, just give it some time.”
“I’ll do my best…” Xie Yuan smiled and suddenly felt very grateful for that portfolio filled with random designs that he casually submitted.
After eating for a while, Shu Ran held his bowl and continued to brag: “Brother Yuan, have a good taste! No one else has eaten the food cooked by Brother Shen. I was the only one who could enjoy it before!”
Xu Shen’s eyebrows jumped and he immediately observed Xie Yuan’s reaction. He didn’t trust the person just yet and didn’t want to expose his relationship with Shu Ran.
However, Xie Yuan’s reaction was one of gratitude: “Thank you, Brother Shen! For your hard work, Brother Shen!” He hadn’t had home-cooked meals for a long time, and his cooking skills were not very good, so he consciously washed the dishes after eating.
Xu Shen took the opportunity to pull Shu Ran into their bedroom, held him in his arms, and coaxed him: “How many times have I told you that you can’t say such ambiguous words outside? And you still don’t remember?”
Shu Ran said too much to Xie Yuan, so he had to ask: “Which sentence was ambiguous?”
Xu Shen kissed him: “You said that the food I cooked is yours alone.”
“Is this sentence ambiguous?” Shu Ran thought it was okay.
“By your own standards… It’s not considered ambiguous unless you directly kiss my face in public.” Xu Shen continued helplessly: “But to others, it’s ambiguous.”
Shu Ran reflected on himself: “Okay, I understand.”
In fact, it was not bad since he also knew Xie Yuan’s secret. Everyone was so shady that if they got exposed, they could only keep each other company in jail… Protecting each other’s secrets was a given.
“Well, bear with it for now.” Xu Shen hugged him and sighed. “I know how you feel, and I feel the same.” Maybe even worse.
In the evening, Xie Yuan stayed over in their guest room, and Shu Ran deceived him without blinking: “This is where I live. In order to let you sleep here tonight, I’ll go and squeeze in with Brother Shen.”
“I’m so sorry. Can you always live with him? How about you give me this room?” Xie Yuan’s sudden turn caught Shu Ran off guard. He kept on saying pitifully: “I’m really afraid of living alone…”
But Shu Ran refused ruthlessly: “No, I’ll go and get a dog for you tomorrow, and you’ll live with the dog.”
“Okay…” Xie Yuan said. “Then we have to get a few more dogs.”
To coax him, Shu Ran finally nodded: “I can buy you a whole nest.”
…………
The next day, Shu Ran went next door and borrowed a bicycle for Xie Yuan to ride, planning to go to the market to look at furniture and dogs.
Xie Yuan remembered Xu Shen’s problem of not carrying anyone on the back seat of his bicycle, so he patted his and greeted Shu Ran: “Come on, Brother Yuan will take you!”
“No need.” Shu Ran sat on the back seat of Xu Shen’s bicycle and continued: “Brother Shen, you take me.”
Xie Yuan stared at Xu Shen: “Didn’t you say you won’t carry anyone?!”
Xu Shen also looked at him: “If I don’t carry a person, I’ll have to carry a dog. What will you choose?”
Xie Yuan saw that they had already set off, so he gritted his teeth while thinking, do I still have a choice?!
In the furniture store, Shu Ran asked Xie Yuan to choose what he wanted for his own house: “You can do whatever you want and don’t worry about the price. Just take whatever you fancy.”
Even though he said so, Xie Yuan still didn’t dare to choose at will.
As for Xu Shen, he didn’t say anything. He just touched what he liked and asked the boss to calculate the total price. When Xie Yuan looked at the price, he took a deep breath… How rich were those two people?!
Shu Ran sighed: “Really, you can choose whatever you want. Brother Shen is rich.”
After so much talking, Xie Yuan relaxed and bought everything based on Xu Shen’s eyes.
“I finally know why you donated your royalties. You just don’t care at all!” Xie Yuan said sadly. After going on a shopping spree with those two, his view of money was slightly affected.
Shu Ran smiled and answered: “You have to get used to it in advance, otherwise you will be too weak to spend money in the future.”
If someone had said that to Xie Yuan before, he would definitely not have taken it seriously. But now, he was full of longing.
After buying things for the courtyard, the three of them went to the free market to see if anyone was selling dogs. Dog sellers were still very common, so the place was full of puppies that had just been weaned.
Xie Yuan had his eyes stuck on a litter of three little spotted dogs. Since Shu Ran and Xu Shen were accompanying him, he had the final say.
Shu Ran also bought him the tools he needed to draw designs. And so, everything he wanted but couldn’t afford before was just handed to him.
“You still like painting, right?” Shu Ran said. “Just buy some paint, it doesn’t matter.”
Xie Yuan thought for a while and didn’t refuse. He had such a good harvest and, after returning home, he began to create behind closed doors.
He used to quietly disappear from the Academy of Fine Arts before, and everyone probably thought he had gone to another place to continue his depravity.
Since he had a fight with his parents before leaving, Xie Yuan swore to not come back unless he became successful.
In that alley, Xie Yuan was not the only young man full of fighting spirit and dreams. The courtyard diagonally across from him housed a group of music players. Occasionally, you could hear the sound of music and singing. The door was always crowded with fashionable young men and women who came and went.
Some people also shoot movies. In the early morning, you could see them smoking cigarettes, sitting dazed under the wall. Maybe they thought about the script, or maybe they worried about funding.
That group of dreamers was usually unkempt and casually dressed, and only a few were as glamorous as Shu Ran and Xu Shen. Over time, the two of them became special beings in the alley, attracting people’s attention every time they appeared.
However, when they heard they were wealthy entrepreneurs, everyone had the same reaction: Tut-tut! Back in those days, many people had an unpopular impression of entrepreneurs, taking them as speculators.
Xu Shen drove Shu Ran out. He noticed those looks as he drove by and said: “The neighbors here spread unprofessional gossip. Why didn’t they say you’re a best-selling novelist?”
Although he was very busy every day in Beijing, Xu Shen still continued to pay attention to the sales of Shu Ran’s new book, which had already reached a very high ranking.
“You’re so upset.” Shu Ran pinched his waist. “Why don’t you go off the field and pass the ball in person?”
“Okay!” Xu Shen turned around and said with a smile: “Just wait, I’ll clear your name when I have free time.”
“You’re such a busy man, take a good rest when you have free time. Don’t show off outside every day…” Shu Ran also occasionally went to the store for inspection and discovered that the way the decoration masters looked at him was somewhat wrong. After asking around, he realized that, thanks to someone’s loose mouth, he had become the pride of their hometown!
“As if you didn’t show me off?” Xu Shen felt there was no way for Xie Yuan to not see through their relationship sooner or later.
“I can’t help it, I can’t help it.” Shu Ran promised: “I won’t mention you in front of others in the future.”
“Yeah.” Xu Shen sighed softly: “If you can’t help it, just tell Xiao Hua.” Xiao Hua was one of the dogs in the courtyard. The puppy liked Shu Ran very much and treated him warmly every time he went there.
“No, even dogs dislike the sour smell of love.” Shu Ran lowered his head and smiled: “I won’t torture dogs anymore.”
Xu Shen also laughed for a long time: “How can a dog understand it? It’s still young.”
The store’s decoration work was progressing very well and had the potential to be completed ahead of schedule, around mid-August.
After Shu Ran saw the results, he rushed back to the courtyard to urge Xie Yuan, telling him to hurry up.
“Woof woof!” Xiao Hua jumped out to greet him. In addition to the little flower, there were two slightly bigger flowers, all of them plump and juicy.2Xiaohua means “little flower”
Shu Ran picked up Xiao Hua and entered Xie Yuan’s room: “Brother Yuan, how are you doing? Do you need me to give you some inspiration?”
Xie Yuan leaned back and stretched out on the chair: “No need, I have good food and good accommodation here. I have too much inspiration, okay?!”
“Let me take a look.” Shu Ran put down the puppy and sat over, looking at the sketches, and said: “When you weren’t here, I had to think about the designs myself.”
“Oh?” Xie Yuan looked at him.
“But I’m not good at women’s clothing design, and I don’t have much inspiration.” Shu Ran flipped the sketchbook: “I’m more interested in men’s clothing.”
Xie Yuan knew that the clothes they all wore were produced by Shu Ran: “Actually, they are very good, but they are quite selective and only those with good conditions can wear them well. They are not suitable for the general public.”
Shu Ran nodded since it was originally made according to one specific person: “You’re really a genius.”
“Let me show you the skirt I made.” Xie Yuan raised his eyebrows and opened his wardrobe with a smile: “I’ll try it on for you. Is that okay?”
“Of course, it doesn’t matter.” Shu Ran reiterated: “I can accept men wearing women’s clothes, even though I don’t wear them myself.”
Encouraged, Xie Yuan wore women’s clothing for the first time in front of others, and even let his long hair down.
“I like to imagine myself walking on the catwalk and being recognized.” He smiled shyly and took two steps like a model, with the hem of his skirt flying on his slender calves.
It was very beautiful, but it made Shu Ran feel a little melancholy. It was impossible now and… When the environment finally permitted it in the future, Xie Yuan will be old, already sixty.
So Shu Ran said: “You can find a partner who appreciates you.”
However, Xie Yuan shook his head: “Which woman would be happy for her man to wear women’s clothing?!”
“Yes, she would…” Shu Ran thought, “but not in this era.” Forty years in the future, there would be many domineering older sisters who liked Xie Yuan’s style.
But would Xie Yuan be that lucky? To meet a young lady who traveled forty years in the past just to make him happy?
The chances were too slim.
Xie Yuan himself took it lightly. It was not easy to find someone willing to see him model women’s clothes, so he went to change into a second outfit with great interest. Only Shu Ran was still worried about the fact that he could not meet a lover who fully accepted him.
After returning to his home, Shu Ran was still a little sad and worried, not for himself, but for countless other people.
“Why do you have such an expression?” Xu Shen saw Shu Ran coming back, but his face was in a daze, with a rare sense of vulnerability on it. His heart tightened, so he held Shu Ran’s hand with concern and asked: “Who made you feel wronged?”
“No one…” Shu Ran shook his head. No one had ever wronged him personally. It was just that era. He felt that whether they were gay or cross-dressers, they were simply a minority abandoned by the times. It was too difficult to achieve happiness.
When Xu Shen had nothing to do, he liked to think about the person next to him, so he knew Shu Ran’s temper quite clearly. Maybe he was sentimental again, so he hugged the other person and put his head on his shoulder: “If you have anything, just tell me. Don’t think about it on your own.” ”
“Yes.” Shu Ran leaned in Xu Shen’s arms with peace of mind, feeling both thankful and emotional. At least, he and Xu Shen were extremely lucky.
When it came to love, they had each other.
The author has something to say:
Brother Shen with red and moist eyes, every once a year, suck.jpg
The meaning of nǚzhuāngzǐ is: A man who likes to wear women’s clothing, but his sexual orientation is still straight.
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