Chapter 84

The day Yan Mu returned, the weather was terrible. Rain poured down in torrents, and even an umbrella couldn’t keep it out. By the time he stepped inside, he was soaked from head to toe.

Jiang Zhihuo took Yan Mu’s bag and lifted his head to press a kiss against Yan Mu’s lips. It was freezing outside, and Yan Mu’s entire body felt cold, his lips icy as well. Jiang Zhihuo lightly bit his lower lip, his teeth grazing over it. “Yan-ge, go take a shower first. Don’t catch a cold.”

“Okay. Wait for me for a moment.” Yan Mu ruffled Jiang Zhihuo’s hair, then headed into the bathroom.

By the time he came out of his shower, Jiang Zhihuo was curled up on the sofa, hugging a cushion. His fingers peeked out from slightly long sleeves. Seeing Yan Mu emerge, he waved at him and smiled. “Yan-ge, how about having omelet rice tonight?”

“Alright,” Yan Mu said. “I’ll leave it to you.”

“That won’t do,” Jiang Zhihuo replied. “You have to decide. You’re the one cooking, after all.”

Yan Mu: “?”

Jiang Zhihuo: “Or should I do it instead?”

Yan Mu pressed his lips together. “I’ll do it.”

Jiang Zhihuo chuckled. No one dared to let him near the kitchen. He dumped all the tutorials he had gathered onto Yan Mu and purchased all the necessary ingredients from Pu Pu¹[Note: “朴朴” is a stand-in for an online grocery shopping platform, possibly fictional or parodying real-life apps like 叮咚 or 美团买菜...].

In Lincheng, it rarely rained during winter, but once it started, it wouldn’t stop. The weather was already cold, and after the rain, the air turned damp and clammy, seeping into the bones. No matter how thickly one dressed, it was impossible to keep the chill out.

The ingredients arrived half an hour later. Jiang Zhihuo poured a cup of warm water for the deliveryman, who downed it before rushing off to his next stop. Jiang Zhihuo carried the items inside, and the two began preparing the ingredients together in the kitchen.

The phone left on the dining table vibrated constantly, with messages popping up one after another in the class group chat.

Everyone tends to get lazy. On the first day of vacation, even the top students didn’t want to think about anything. They had brought home piles of practice papers, but now they were all stuffed in their bags, untouched. The group chat buzzed with their chatter.

Ah, the winter break in senior year is only two weeks! Only two weeks!—

I looked at the calendar. It only goes up to the third day of the Lunar New Year! Classes start on the fourth! What was I even doing on the fourth in previous years?—

Don’t say it, don’t say it. With only over ten days, can we even finish all these practice papers?—

Hold on, it’s not even ten whole days. We have to go back to school in between to collect the report cards!—

Don’t bring up practice papers. I don’t want to hear about them. I suggest muting the group.

Anyone watching Pick U? The boys are too handsome. I’ve found several gems! Please give them a like, everyone! [link]

Jiang Zhihuo happened to see the message. He clicked the link, gave likes to Yun Xiaoxu and a few other familiar faces, and replied: Liked it already—

@Jiang Zhihuo, Huo-ge, what are you up to right now?

Jiang Zhihuo snapped a photo of the ingredients he was preparing and sent it to the group.

Jiang Zhihuo: Getting dinner ready.

Tang Anmiao, who had been silently lurking, immediately burst out with a string of exclamation marks the moment she saw the photo.

Tang Anmiao: !!!!

Tang Anmiao: Huo-ge, that bit of fabric in the corner, is that God Yan?

Tang Anmiao: This is… a home! Are you at God Yan’s place?!

Jiang Zhihuo: Hehe.

That single word gave away nothing at all. After replying, Jiang Zhihuo tossed his phone aside and went to wash his hands.

The ingredients for omelet rice were simple to prepare: dice the vegetables, beat the eggs, then wait for the rice to finish steaming.

While keeping his eyes on the cutting board and chopping vegetables, Jiang Zhihuo chatted about the photo he had sent in the group earlier. “I just sent a photo to the class group. No one was in it, but Tang Anmiao immediately asked whose fabric it was in the corner, was it yours? Damn, girls really have sharp eyes. I had to zoom in several times before I finally noticed that black bit in the corner.”

He went on for a while, but Yan Mu made no sound behind him. Jiang Zhihuo paused and turned his head, only to see Yan Mu cracking two eggs into a bowl, standing motionless in a daze.

“Yan-ge?” Jiang Zhihuo called again, and only then did Yan Mu respond.

“Sorry, I spaced out,” Yan Mu said.

Jiang Zhihuo gave a faint smile, not taking it to heart, and asked, “What do you want to drink later? How about milk tea?”

Yan Mu responded absentmindedly with a soft “mhm,” his attention fixed on his task. After a brief silence, he suddenly said, “Actually, I… went to pay respects today.”

Jiang Zhihuo was slightly startled, then gave a gentle smile. With his clean hand, he reached out and embraced Yan Mu. “Mhm, I remember.”

He remembered.

He knew that Yan Mu would be a little irritable and down these past few days, so he hadn’t asked anything.

Yan Mu also raised his hand.

Jiang Zhihuo felt Yan Mu’s arms loosen slightly as he embraced him, the palm of his hand gently stroking the back of his head.

Yan Mu said, “Xiao Zhou, I might have to go back for a few days.”

A loud splash came from outside the window.

The sky grew darker. The rain fell harder. Wind-driven raindrops pelted the glass, faint thunder rumbling in the distance.

Jiang Zhihuo lowered his eyelashes, the smile on his lips unchanged. “I’ll wait for you to celebrate the New Year together, Yan-ge.”

The next day, when Yan Mu left, Jiang Zhihuo was still asleep. He quietly got out of bed, placed something beside Jiang Zhihuo’s pillow, took nothing with him, and softly closed the door.

The door lock clicked shut with a faint, barely audible sound.

Jiang Zhihuo opened his eyes.

Beside the pillow was a neatly organized mind map prepared by Yan Mu.

It was not something particularly honorable, and Yan Mu didn’t know how to bring it up to Jiang Zhihuo.

But he didn’t want to hide anything from him.

Jiang Zhihuo drew open the curtains. It was still raining outside. The sound of the torrential downpour had continued nonstop since the night before.

He flipped through the mind map. It clearly outlined Yan Mu’s family matters, the same things Li Hao had shared with him in the document the previous day, but Yan Mu’s version was more detailed.

Yan Mu told Jiang Zhihuo everything.

His father, his mother, the reason he loathed Yan Buwei to the extent that he couldn’t even bear to hear the name ‘Yan Buwei’, these past few days—everything he had been doing, and what he now intended to do.

And also, the reason that no one could touch him.

The author has something to say:

Sob sob sob… I’m sorry… I’m really stuck… please forgive me… I promise I’ll finish this tomorrow!!!

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  [Note: “朴朴” is a stand-in for an online grocery shopping platform, possibly fictional or parodying real-life apps like 叮咚 or 美团买菜...]