The scene was indeed extremely embarrassing, and because Shen Zhirou really didn’t know what kind of face to make, she simply went deadpan. However, in her heart, winter had arrived, and with it came a storm.
…Shen Zhifan was even more embarrassed.
“I,” Shen Zhirou paused, the corners of her stiff mouth barely managing a dry smile, “Uh…I’m home.”
This was really—not the time.
Actually, at this time, Yan Shuo and Shen Zhifan had not been doing anything unsuitable for children’s eyes, just…they had just finished kissing, and Shen Zhifan had been embracing Yan Shuo serenely. From Shen Zhirou’s point of view though, it did look like the two had been caught in the act.
Shen Zhifan cleared his throat, face suddenly completely flushed. Although Yan Shuo said nothing, Shen Zhirou’s presence had the two separating smoothly and tacitly.
“Shen Zhirou, ” Shen Zhifan sighed, walking towards the still-petrified Shen Zhirou, expression inscrutable, “Where have you been?”
Since Shen Zhirou looked rather lively, Shen Zhifan’s heart, which had just been sunk in an ice-house, was suddenly full of blooming flowers. However, the anger at his little sister’s unapproved disappearance also bubbled up.
“Don’t always act so willfully.”
As soon as Shen Zhifan’s words became harsher, he regretted it. He opened his mouth slightly, suddenly not knowing what else to say.
“No, I—I’m not scolding you…I just…”
“It’s alright, ” Yan Shuo paused, face completely devoid of embarrassment—of course, who knew what was going on in his head? The esteemed General’s art of expression was extremely well done, “It’s good that she’s back, you don’t need to worry anymore. Zhirou, don’t be angry either.”
Shen Zhirou, “…” What was this weird sister-in-law feeling? Was she misreading something?
Some people really got into character quickly, without blushing or a racing pulse.
Shen Zhirou wouldn’t know how to explain herself even if she had a hundred mouths.
She’d originally wanted to give her brother a loving hug, with them both crying and consoling each other over her escape from the claws of evil.
At the end, they would reminisce about how everything had been so hard back when they had been homeless and miserable, and how difficult it had been to survive.
Unfortunately, before anything could happen, the news that her brother had seemingly been snatched away by an incubus was plastered onto her face.
To be honest, although her brother wasn’t an extremely muscular or an extremely masculine man, he was still handsome and coldly aloof. Even though good looks were good looks, it didn’t mean that he was actually that fruity, right? Especially for a guy whose talent with mechs was praised as reaching perfection…blah blah blah, in any case, he’d been praised by the whole world.
How many fangirls had he attracted? Although there were also a few…But, her mouth opened, expression completely stupefied.
How did this…hm?
“Uh, brother, who is he?” Shen Zhirou couldn’t really oppose Shen Zhifan; after all, the things she’d just learned really raised her admiration for her brother by several degrees. Plus, being scolded a little wasn’t an unusual occurrence.
Shen Zhifan froze, face flushing again.
Shen Zhifan was still the sixteen-year-old Shen Zhifan, who had never even thought there’d be a day where he could be with Yan Shuo. At that time, he had been stuck in a loop of ‘save up some money to explore the world in the future, then keep saving to see my male god’.
So, he’d never thought of such a question — ‘how to explain after getting caught kissing my male god by my little sister’.
Because it was completely impossible.
So when his dreams became reality, the questions seemed to follow as well.
“He is…” Shen Zhifan’s voice naturally dropped somewhat, “General Yan. You met him a few days ago.”
Shen Zhirou, “…Oh. I remember. Brother, I’m not dumb.”
Shen Zhifan knew what Shen Zhirou’s question meant. She wanted to know who Yan Shuo was to Shen Zhifan, but in reality…he didn’t even know what to say.
“Oh, no need to explain,” Shen Zhirou gave Yan Shuo a once-over, face frozen, “Are you guys dating?”
Shen Zhifan looked over at Yan Shuo. Yan Shuo lowered his eyes to look at him.
“Never mind.” Asking a question like that, she sounded like an idiot—it was really unnecessary since she’d almost been blinded. Oh—wait a minute, why was she asking again? With great effort, Shen Zhirou smiled at Shen Zhifan, “Brother, didn’t you like girls before?”
Shen Zhifan was silent.
He didn’t know whether to tell Shen Zhirou that he actually…had never liked girls, but he’d never denied liking them before either.
This was a rather troublesome question about his history.
Although Shen Zhirou had known that her brother hid magazines with men on the covers, he’d always been very ordinary and she’d only teased him, for the most part.
Even though two…handsome men standing together was indeed quite easy on the eyes, this didn’t mean that Shen Zhirou was pleased with watching her brother standing. Together. With a man. Kissing.
Though it was also admirable. After so many years, even though people became more open-minded, with two men—or between two men whose genes seemed to be those of regular humans—having an heir was always an unavoidable question.
They wouldn’t be able to have children that belonged entirely to each other, and although Shen Zhirou didn’t care whether her brother would have a squishy, silly child in the future, she remembered that her mother had really cared.
Her mother had always wanted a grandchild. Shen Zhifan was handsome and many girls liked him—she’d always joke about him marrying and starting a family early.
Shen Zhirou didn’t know what in the family line had made her mother ugly…but she definitely hoped for their bloodline to continue, especially with beautiful children like Shen Zhifan.
As soon as Shen Zhirou thought of her late mother, she was filled with fire, turning fiercely towards General Yan.
“General Yan,” Shen Zhirou looked at him unkindly, “Are you going to date my brother seriously? I seem to recall that you have a fiancée, don’t you? Would your family allow you to do this? Or are you just making a joke of my brother?”
After this series of questions, never mind Yan Shuo, Shen Zhifan was the one who was shocked.
He suddenly realised that in these seven years, Shen Zhirou had really grown up, from the absentminded, skinny little girl that she had been. She knew what to think, what to confront, and what to prepare for.
Yan Shuo calmly and attentively looked at the young girl before him, “I will answer all of your questions in time. For now, let me say that I have always been serious.”
“Brother,” Shen Zhirou turned to look at him. Shen Zhifan saw her eyes redden, and couldn’t help but reach out to wipe her tears, but Shen Zhirou avoided him. “Really?”
“I…” Shen Zhifan didn’t know why he was momentarily speechless.
Shen Zhirou suddenly moved away, brushing straight past Shen Zhifan. Completely silent, she ran upstairs and closed the door.
Shen Zhifan looked worriedly in the direction of her bedroom door, eyebrows slightly furrowed.
Yan Shuo abruptly felt somewhat nervous.
His relationship with his family had always been quite weak, whether it be his mother or father. Since he passed the age of sixteen, his mother had completely lost all control of him, and he’d always tread poorly with his father.
Despite the fact that Yan Shuo was his heir, with brilliant military successes that had practically re-established the Yan family as the greatest clan.
But he still disliked Yan Shuo, or perhaps considered him disposable.
Luckily, Yan Shuo hadn’t had any unwarranted expectations of a creature like his father since the age of three, so he wasn’t hurt at all. Although the two were father and son, they maintained the status quo of ‘never making contact since there was no need’.
So he’d always been thinking about how to eat Shen Zhifan up, and never really considered whether the other party’s relatives would care.
Shen Zhifan and Shen Zhirou had always relied on each other, especially in the days when he wasn’t even in the picture.
Yan Shuo tried to make himself look calmer. He wasn’t a little brat anymore. He’d always been rather mature, and after becoming an adult, was exposed to both experiences and glory that ordinary people couldn’t even fathom.
He had solidified himself early, but towards these kinds of things…He actually was at a loss.
If he hadn’t met Shen Zhifan again two years ago, he didn’t know if he’d ever find a companion in this lifetime. Because of that dream-like loss back then, the love and hate of a normal human that had hardly appeared from him took the chance to hide away again.
Plus, there were really not many people in this world who could touch one’s heart.
You wouldn’t have just been fated to spend three days together on a strange, remote planet, with the extreme weather howling outside, with the two of you nestled in a clean, warm place. Although you were wounded, you were still awake enough to feel the other’s tenderness.
A romance of trial and tribulation created a love that always seemed more precious and indelible.
The shy smile of that young man, his attentive care, and his perfect warmth…Yan Shuo had beautified that youth in his heart countless times. There was really no one else who could compare.
How hard was it to have such a coinciding destiny in this world, to meet such a perfect young man?
There was nothing wrong with ending up alone—he had always been used to it. Five years ago, that bashful youth had become the white moonlight of his heart. Just as Yan Shuo learned from him what love at first sight was, he also didn’t know whether he could…still experience that kind of emotion in his lifetime or not.
Or perhaps he refused to.
So he couldn’t imagine what he would feel if Shen Zhifan really separated from him for these reasons.
Should he respect him?
To love a person is to respect them, so if he chose to break up for this kind of reason…would they really just part?
To part with the man he had longed and dreamed for. No, what kind of ridiculous reason was this?
His heart shuddered, and long-held thoughts and feelings suddenly burst out again. At a time where he was so close to getting what he wanted, Yan Shuo seemed to realise that it was just a bamboo basket—water could seep right through it.
He quickly reached out to pull at Shen Zhifan’s arm.
Shen Zhifan stared blankly. Looking up at Yan Shuo’s gloomy expression which was about to drip water, he was helpless.
“You…”
Yan Shuo’s eyelids almost fell closed. His eyes moved somewhat vacantly, as if he himself didn’t understand his abrupt action, but he couldn’t help but look at Shen Zhifan with some anticipation.
“I—,” He paused for a long while, before finally drawing the other man back into his embrace. He moved through their motions from before, their noses almost touching as he quietly gazed at Shen Zhifan, “I don’t want to be separated from you.”
Unexpectedly, there was a rush of faint despair in his tone.
It was exactly because they had been parted before, that when they were reunited, his emotions would become more extreme.
Don’t part with me. If you come and go again, I don’t know if I can bear with the seeds of intense emotions I once planted deep in my heart.
But he didn’t know—Yan Shuo quietly gazed at him—Shen Zhifan didn’t know…how much he had longed to see him again.
“…Separated?” Shen Zhifan blanked, “Why would we need to separate?”
He suddenly paused, looking at Yan Shuo almost helplessly, “Is..is it because of auntie? Can’t you…”
Yan Shuo couldn’t keep listening to the nonsense coming out of his mouth, so he bowed his head and sealed his lips.
This time, it wasn’t the same soft breeze and drizzle as before, nor was it deep and inseparable. There was a seed growing deep inside him, slowly taking root.
He wanted to kiss him to the point of pain; his thoughts took on a hint of shadow.
Wanting to give him pleasure, and wanting to give him pain.
Shen Zhifan didn’t have the faintest idea of Yan Shuo’s thoughts, nor did he know that there was a ‘Yan-Chuuni-Shuo’ re-emerging in the other’s heart.
He could only taste the faint tang of blood in the corner of his mouth as he was kissed out of breath.
“I don’t want to be separated from you.”
Yan Shuo repeated it, stubbornly, licking at Shen Zhifan’s lips.
Shen Zhifan could only agree, bewildered, completely unaware of why the perfectly good General would suddenly act up so unreasonably and childishly.
Like he’d received a promise, the worry in his heart slowly began to retreat.
“I want you to become mine.”
Yan Shuo spoke gently by his ear.
Shen Zhifan blushed.
Yan Shuo thought for a moment, bending down to hand Shen Zhifan one of his cuff buttons, “This is a tradition from my hometown.”
Of course, Shen Zhifan knew what tradition Yan Shuo was talking about. His shapely, slender fingers slowly took the button. It was pure black, but finely made, with a faint pattern on the surface.
“My—My hometown also has a tradition,” Shen Zhifan felt that he should be courteous, “When we fall in love—ah, no…it’s just, so…we’ll find a cat and tie a strip of red cloth on one of its legs. It’s like a witness, but usually the cloth is gone the next day.”
“Right, don’t you also have a cat?”
Shen Zhifan looked at him in anticipation.
“…Cat?” Yan Shuo’s expression froze.
“Is it a bit strange?” Shen Zhifan was a little embarrassed, “We’re a little bit…there’s a lot of cats there, and there used to be a legend of a great immortal cat, so everyone would do things like that back then.”
Faced with Yan Shuo’s silence, Shen Zhifan’s heart dropped, adding on, “It is a bit stupid, isn’t it? It’s okay, I also think it’s…pretty dumb.”
“It’s not.” Yan Shuo could clearly see the disappointment in Shen Zhifan’s eyes. He was quiet for a moment, before he decided, “The cat…might be roaming. We can go find it.”
Shen Zhifan was a handsome young man on the surface, but inside, he still had the sweet heart of a sixteen-year-old boy. He couldn’t help but suddenly hug Yan Shuo.
“…Thank you.”
“En,” Yan Shuo’s heart melted, tightly holding the other, “We can go together.”
“Although,” Yan Shuo paused, “What your sister said before…”
“Oh, I was just thinking,” Shen Zhifan became serious, “Have I spoiled her too much? For her to run wild and worry her family and friends so much, without even a word of apology, plus giving attitude to a guest…she’s gone overboard.”
Yan Shuo, “…”
Shen Zhirou turned restlessly in bed, counting.
This wasn’t right ah! It had been so long…Her brother should’ve come up already to coax her!
Shen Zhirou suddenly sat up. Had she…locked the door? How about she open the door for a moment, give him a hint?
Shen Zhirou mulled it over, then slowly opened the door to look.
…He really hadn’t come yet!
Shen Zhirou’s lips flattened into a line. She was a little aggrieved.
She decided to take the initiative. Maybe she had given her brother a scare…He was definitely concerned about her.
Then, she looked blankly into the empty lounge.
…My—My brother?
No, where did her brother go?
…
Yan Jinxing sneezed. He’d been taking an afternoon nap—the past two days were a rare holiday. Since his brother was an unattainable dream, he was always extremely strict with himself.
Today seemed to be an omen. He’d woken up earlier than usual, just in time to open his phone and see the messages Yan Shuo had sent.