ACMS 28

Chapter 28: The Old House Catches Fire

After leaving the Civil Affairs Bureau, Shen Hechuan dropped Qiao Le off and returned to the office.

Before leaving, he reminded Qiao Le not to bring too many things—everything at home was newly prepared.

Once Qiao Le got home, he first put away the marriage certificate, then called the director who had helped him take a leave of absence back then to ask about the procedure and materials needed for re-enrollment.

The director was very surprised to receive Qiao Le’s call.

He had handled Qiao Le’s leave request personally, and it had been a real pity. After all, Qiao Le had been accepted into the university with the second-highest entrance exam score in the entire city. But given the special circumstances behind his leave, he hadn’t had a choice.

Hearing that Qiao Le wanted to return to school, the director was genuinely happy for him. He told Qiao Le what documents were needed and asked him to come to his office next Monday.

“Alright, thank you, Director.”

After hanging up, Qiao Le went to pick up Qiao Man and take him to work at the bar.

He also told Fang Jiaxu that he’d be moving in with Shen Hechuan. Fang Jiaxu was very supportive—he’d always felt that Qiao Le’s neighborhood wasn’t the safest, even if the rent was cheap and it was close to Qiao Man’s school.

On moving day, he packed up his things and waited for Shen Hechuan to arrive.

The lease with the landlord wouldn’t expire until December, so Qiao Le wasn’t in a rush to cancel it. In case anything changed, he’d still have a place to come back to.

When Qiao Man heard they were going to live at Shen Hechuan’s house, he didn’t find it strange. Qiao Le often dropped him off at Fang Jiaxu’s place when he was busy, so he was already used to things like this.

As soon as he saw Shen Hechuan, Qiao Man pulled a brand-new Ultraman gift box from his little backpack and handed it to him. “Uncle Shen, this is for you!”

Shen Hechuan took it. “This is…?”

“Xiao Man picked it for you,” Qiao Le said from the side. “We went out especially to get it yesterday.”

It wasn’t expensive, but Shen Hechuan understood how much value Ultraman held for a kid. Judy had prepared quite a few Ultraman figurines as part of the children’s gift collection.

He accepted it gladly and said to Qiao Man, “Thank you, Xiao Man. Uncle has a gift for you too.”

“What is it?” Qiao Man asked, full of curiosity.

Shen Hechuan smiled. “You’ll see when we get home.”

The moment he said the word home, Qiao Le paused slightly, a strange feeling rising in his heart—something difficult to put into words.

“Let’s get in the car,” Shen Hechuan reminded gently.

“Okay.”

This was Qiao Le’s third time coming to Linjiang Complex. The first two times were to deliver food—once it had been pizza for Shen Hechuan.

He never would’ve imagined that the next time he came, it would be like this.

It felt surreal.

The elevator stopped on the 28th floor, and the three of them stepped out.

The moment they exited, Qiao Le spotted four children’s vehicles parked in the hallway—two four-wheeled toy cars and two small bicycles, all suited for kids around five or six years old.

These hadn’t been there the last time he visited. Given what Shen Hechuan had said earlier, it wasn’t hard to guess—they were gifts for Qiao Man.

Sure enough, Shen Hechuan pointed at the cars and asked, “Do you like them? They’re all yours.”

“All of them are mine?” Qiao Man couldn’t believe it. “Really?”

“Of course it’s real.”

Once he had confirmation, Qiao Man eagerly reached out and touched the cars, letting out a bright “Wow!” “They’re so pretty!”

The cars were finely made and stylishly designed—not just appealing to kids, even Qiao Le found them beautiful.

He reminded Qiao Man, “Say thank you to Uncle Shen.”

Qiao Man chimed in, “Thank you, Uncle Shen!”

Seeing how attached he was already, Shen Hechuan’s lips curved slightly as well. “Let’s go inside first. I’ll take you downstairs to play later.”

“Okay!”

Shen Hechuan had Qiao Le register his fingerprint for the door, then the three of them entered the apartment together.

“Wow! Bear slippers!” Qiao Man exclaimed when he saw the slippers Shen Hechuan brought out. Tugging at Qiao Le’s hand, he said, “Brother, Uncle Shen has bear slippers too!”

Shen Hechuan placed two pairs of matching bear slippers—one large, one small—on the floor and said, “That’s right. Uncle Shen’s house has them too—for you and your brother.”

As he spoke, he crouched down to help Qiao Man take off his shoes, but Qiao Le quickly said, “I’ve got it.”

“I’ll do it myself! I’ll do it myself!” Qiao Man squatted down, changing shoes all on his own and neatly putting the old ones away.

“Good job, Xiao Man,” Shen Hechuan praised.

A little bashful from the compliment, Qiao Man let out a shy giggle. Qiao Le turned to Shen Hechuan. “Are these new?”

“Mm,” Shen Hechuan replied. “Didn’t you mention before that you wanted to get a pair for Xiao Man?”

Qiao Le had indeed thought of it, but after seeing the price—over 8,000 yuan—he had given up. Even now, with ten million in his account, he still couldn’t bring himself to spend that much on slippers.

But since Shen Hechuan had already bought them, there was no point being overly polite.

He slipped on the slippers and placed both his and Qiao Man’s shoes into the shoe cabinet.

It was Qiao Man’s first time in Shen Hechuan’s home, and he was clearly a little reserved—unlike how relaxed he was at the bar. Though his expression showed he was curious about everything, he didn’t wander around.

Seeing this, Shen Hechuan simply brought him to the room.

The moment they walked in, Qiao Man was stunned.

“So many…” he stared, dumbfounded, at the entire wall filled with LEGO sets, his expression morphing into Σ⊙▃⊙！！！

The display cabinets on the other two walls were still empty, but nearby sat several unopened LEGO boxes, along with a wide variety of figurines.

Shen Hechuan noticed Qiao Man reaching toward the cabinet but pulling his hand back halfway, then glancing up at him, a little sheepish.

Shen Hechuan gave his shoulder an encouraging pat. “Go ahead and play—they’re all for you.”

Qiao Man: “!!”

Leaning against the doorway, Qiao Le watched the two of them, and the room full of LEGO, thinking—Shen Hechuan really would spoil a child. If he ever had one of his own, who knows how spoiled that kid would be.

But… they were both men. Having children just wasn’t possible.

Besides, his marriage with Shen Hechuan was only a contract. If Shen Hechuan wanted children, he’d have to divorce him in the future and find someone else.

Find someone else…

Qiao Le’s thoughts halted. He silently cursed himself—What’s wrong with me? Whether Shen Hechuan wanted kids or who he had them with had nothing to do with him.

Once the five years were up, they’d be nothing to each other.

“What are you thinking about?”

Shen Hechuan stepped out, noticing the dazed look on his face.

Qiao Le snapped back to reality. Meeting Shen Hechuan’s concerned eyes, his heart tightened unexpectedly, and he instinctively looked away. “Nothing. Thanks for preparing so many gifts for Xiao Man—it must’ve taken a lot of effort.”

Shen Hechuan hadn’t done much at all. Judy had handled everything. He didn’t try to take the credit. “Judy did it.”

Qiao Le had a deep impression of Judy—especially the way she defended Shen Hechuan in front of others. Hearing that, he said, “She’s really nice. I’ll have to thank her later.”

“Oh?”

Shen Hechuan raised a brow and leaned in slightly. “And I’m not nice?”

He was so close that his breath brushed against Qiao Le’s cheek as he spoke. Qiao Le shivered involuntarily, suddenly looking up—and nearly bumped into his lips.

Thump—

Qiao Le’s heart was pounding uncontrollably. He quickly stepped to the side, putting a large distance between them. “Why’d you suddenly get so close? You scared me.”

“Coward,” Shen Hechuan teased.

Qiao Le shot back, “You did scare me.”

Shen Hechuan didn’t argue. “Mm, my fault.”

“…”

Something about the way he said it sounded off, but before Qiao Le could figure out what exactly, Shen Hechuan said, “Come on, I’ll show you the other rooms.”

“Okay.”

Qiao Le glanced back at Qiao Man, who was sitting on the carpet building with blocks. The little guy was completely absorbed in his new toys and hadn’t heard a word of their conversation.

Shen Hechuan led him to the guest room—a space clearly designed for a child.

Though it was a children’s room, it was spacious. There was a large loft bed with a slide, a long and wide desk, a thick carpet covering the floor, a roomy dome-shaped tent, and plenty of plush toys. The bookshelf was filled with picture books and storybooks.

It was the kind of room any kid would instantly fall in love with.

Including Qiao Le, a nineteen-year-old kid himself.

He glanced at the loft bed—it looked like it was at least 1.8 meters long. He and Qiao Man could definitely fit on it. If not, he could always sleep in the tent.

While he was surveying the room, Shen Hechuan said, “Time was tight, so I could only put together something simple. We can add anything else you need later.”

Simple?

You’re calling this a simple setup?

Qiao Le thought, I’d like to have this kind of “simple” too.

He looked back at Shen Hechuan. “Thanks. Xiao Man’s definitely going to love it. I’ll go get his luggage.”

“I’ll do it. You look around and see what else you need.”

With that, Shen Hechuan turned and left the room.

As soon as he was gone, Qiao Le darted over to the tent and flopped into it with a whoosh, rolling around twice on the soft mat.

So comfy!

He’d wanted to do this ever since he saw the tent!

He closed his eyes and rubbed his face against the fuzzy blanket inside, then quickly sat up again.

By the time Shen Hechuan returned, wheeling in Qiao Man’s suitcase, Qiao Le was standing innocently at the desk, flipping through one of the storybooks as if nothing had happened.

When Shen Hechuan came in, he set the book down, walked over, opened the suitcase, and started organizing the clothes.

Shen Hechuan wasn’t used to doing these kinds of things. Normally, housekeepers would take care of the laundry and professionals handled the walk-in closet. But now, watching Qiao Le skillfully organize Qiao Man’s clothes, his gaze became complicated—and a little pained.

The ease with which Qiao Le did this must have come from years of repetition.

Last time when Qiao Le talked about his parents, his tone had been calm and natural, a sign that he had already long accepted the impact of his family’s troubles.

His father had passed, his mother had abandoned them without a trace, and aside from himself, Qiao Le had a young brother to care for—at barely eighteen.

He was even working hard to send Qiao Man to school and giving him the kind of love a two-parent household would.

Shen Hechuan had lived a smooth, privileged life. A prominent family, loving parents, a happy home. The only hardship he’d faced was his mother nagging him to get married.

He couldn’t imagine how Qiao Le had made it through all of that. He couldn’t truly empathize with the pain.

But that was okay—he’d make up for it with double the sweetness.

While Qiao Le folded the clothes, Shen Hechuan helped. Technically, they could’ve left it all to the housekeeper, but Shen Hechuan found that doing it together with Qiao Le felt unexpectedly nice.

Once the clothes were put away, Qiao Le placed Qiao Man’s books and schoolwork on the desk.

The desk was 1.8 meters long—way too big for a five-year-old—but Qiao Le planned to add another chair and use the space himself, especially since he’d have to go back to school soon.

After he finished organizing, Shen Hechuan finally spoke up. “Right, there’s something I wanted to discuss with you—about Xiao Man’s schooling.”

Qiao Le looked up. “Hm?”

“Now that you’ve moved here, it’s not convenient for Xiao Man to go back to his old kindergarten,” Shen Hechuan said after a pause. “So, I had someone look into a few nearby kindergartens that might be a good fit. You can pick from them.”

Qiao Le had considered switching kindergartens for Qiao Man too—he just hadn’t had time to deal with it yet.

He hadn’t expected Shen Hechuan to be so thoughtful, not only anticipating what he’d been thinking, but even preparing a list of schools.

Having someone who thought of everything for you—anyone would be moved by that. Especially someone like Qiao Le, who had always carried the weight of everything on his own.

Looking at Shen Hechuan, his eyes reddened before he even realized.

Shen Hechuan hadn’t done anything he thought was extraordinary, so seeing Qiao Le tear up made him panic a little. “What’s wrong? Was I being too presumptuous?”

Qiao Le shook his head hard, and when he spoke, there was a faint nasal tone to his voice. “Shen Hechuan, why are you so good to me?”

Realizing he hadn’t overstepped, Shen Hechuan relaxed and even chuckled. “Isn’t being good to you a good thing?”

He reached out and tapped Qiao Le’s nose. “Why the teary eyes?”

“I’m not crying,” Qiao Le denied.

He just felt incredibly lucky.

When his father passed, his uncle and aunt had done everything they could to help. When he’d been at his lowest, Fang Jiaxu had come through. And now, Shen Hechuan was handling everything with such care.

He used to resent the unfairness of life—but looking back, every bit of that unfairness had been balanced out in some other way.

In the end, he was lucky.

“I’m not crying,” he repeated. A grown man—how could he cry so easily?

“Alright, alright, you’re not crying,” Shen Hechuan echoed. “So it’s settled then. Just pick the kindergarten you want. I’ll take care of the rest.”

“Okay,” Qiao Le nodded. He didn’t have the connections anyway—it’d be much easier if Shen Hechuan handled it.

“Now, let’s talk about you.”

“Me?”

“Mm.” Shen Hechuan asked, “Are you planning to keep working at the bar? I’m not trying to interfere, but the bar isn’t exactly close. If you’re going to keep working, having a car would make things easier.”

“I probably won’t be going back,” Qiao Le shook his head. “I’m going back to school.”

Hm?

Shen Hechuan asked, “What do you mean?”

“I mean I’m going to study,” Qiao Le said. “I contacted the department head today. I’m going in next Monday to complete the paperwork.”

Shen Hechuan was a little confused. “Where are you going back to school?”

“Yunjing University,” Qiao Le replied. “Didn’t I tell you before?”

Shen Hechuan: “…Wasn’t that just part of your persona?”

If he remembered correctly, Qiao Le had previously said that was just for show. Qiao Le also remembered and let out an “ah,” rubbed his nose, and said, “I didn’t know how to tell you back then, so I just didn’t.”

Now that they were married, he figured he might as well come clean about taking a leave of absence last year—and his father’s debts.

Speaking of the debts, he emphasized, “Don’t worry, I’ve got money now. No one’s going to come knocking to collect debts and bother you.”

Shen Hechuan locked onto that one part: “People actually came to collect before?”

“Once or twice,” Qiao Le admitted, completely understanding. “If you owe money, you pay it back. Everyone has their struggles—it was my dad’s fault in the first place.”

“So you took a leave from school to pay off debt?” Shen Hechuan asked.

“Half and half,” Qiao Le said. “Aside from paying the debt, Xiao Man and I still had to live. School is important, but in that kind of situation, studying alone couldn’t support both of us.”

Now Shen Hechuan understood. That was why Qiao Le had been working like a spinning top, picking up job after job.

He had already thought Qiao Le supporting himself and Qiao Man was hard enough—not realizing that on top of all that, he’d also been repaying his father’s debts.

And finally, he understood the look Qiao Le had shown when facing Wu Huilan at his house that day.

He must have been thinking of his own mother.

At that moment, Shen Hechuan couldn’t hold back. He reached out and pulled the boy in front of him into his arms, whispering softly, “It’s all over now.”

Caught off guard by the sudden embrace, Qiao Le froze for a second, then felt his warm, strong hand gently patting his back.

It was a very comforting feeling.

Qiao Le quite liked it. But…

“I know,” he said while leaning against Shen Hechuan’s chest. “I’ve got ten million now—even after paying off the debt, I still have plenty left.”

Shen Hechuan: “…”

You really know how to ruin the mood.

Just as Shen Hechuan was left speechless, his phone started ringing outside. He had no choice but to let go. “I’m going to take a call.”

“Oh, okay,” Qiao Le walked out with him. “I’ll go check on Xiao Man.”

Qiao Man was still in the other room playing with building blocks. He was at that age where everything was new and exciting—he could happily play by himself for a long time.

Qiao Le knocked on the door. When Qiao Man looked up and saw him, he waved excitedly. “Brother, come quick! This little train is so fun—I’ll teach you how to play!”

Qiao Le sat down across from him. “Sure, show brother how it works.”

“First we put the train here,” Qiao Man placed the little red train on the track, explaining as he played, “then we connect this and it’ll start moving. Choo choo—”

Watching him play so happily, Qiao Le’s expression softened.

He could tell that Qiao Man was genuinely happy today. The little guy clearly loved the gifts Shen Hechuan had prepared for him.

“Xiao Man,” Qiao Le called gently.

“Mm?” Qiao Man answered, still pushing the train along.

“Do you like Uncle Shen’s house?”

“I do!” Qiao Man answered without a second of hesitation. “Uncle Shen’s house is so big, and there are tons of toys. I really like it!”

Qiao Le followed up, “Then if we lived here for good, would you be okay with that?”

Qiao Man’s hands, which had been pushing the little train, suddenly stopped. He looked up at Qiao Le. “Live here for good?”

“Yeah,” Qiao Le nodded. “From now on, we’d be living here.”

“Is brother going to work?” Qiao Man’s expression gradually tensed. He dropped the little train, scrambled forward, and threw his arms around Qiao Le. “No! I want to be with brother! I don’t want to live here—I won’t live here!”

He clung tightly to Qiao Le, his voice catching with sobs by the end.

Qiao Le nearly toppled over from the force of the tackle and only then realized that what he’d said could be misunderstood.

The little guy must have remembered the time he was sent to live with their aunt and uncle.

That had been right after Qiao Le took a leave from school and started looking for work. Their aunt had suggested he leave Qiao Man in their care back in their hometown. But during that conversation, Qiao Man had overheard, and thinking he was being abandoned, had cried until he couldn’t breathe.

And now, clearly, it was happening again.

To Qiao Man, no matter how good the environment, nothing compared to being with his brother.

“Don’t cry, don’t cry,” Qiao Le hurried to comfort him. “Brother isn’t going off to work. Brother is staying here with you.”

Qiao Man sniffled and looked up at him, eyes brimming with tears. “You’ll live here with me?”

Qiao Le grabbed a tissue and wiped his nose. “Yup. We’ll live here together in Uncle Shen’s house. I won’t leave you behind.”

“Really?”

“Really,” Qiao Le promised.

“Then… we’re not going home anymore?” Qiao Man asked in confusion. He’d thought this visit to Shen Hechuan’s house was just like visiting Brother Jiaxu’s—stay a few days, then go home once brother finished with whatever he was doing.

By “home,” he meant the old apartment in the Baihui district that he shared with Qiao Le.

“Well…”

Qiao Le paused, then figured it was better to be honest. Since he and Shen Hechuan were now married, and Qiao Man would be living with them, keeping it a secret would just get harder—especially with Shen Hechuan’s parents in the picture.

Might as well tell him now. And if the marriage contract ended later, he could just explain to Qiao Man that he and Shen Hechuan had gotten divorced.

By then, Qiao Man would be ten. He’d understand.

So Qiao Le said, “Because brother and Uncle Shen got married. From now on, this is our new home.”

Qiao Man tilted his head, clearly puzzled. “Married?”

Qiao Le nodded. “Mm-hmm!”

“Oh.” Qiao Man nodded like he kind of got it, then glanced toward the doorway.

Meanwhile, Shen Hechuan had just finished his call and came back to find them.

The moment he stepped into the room, he was met with Qiao Man’s bright, curious gaze—like he was seeing something brand new and exciting.

Shen Hechuan was puzzled and walked over. “Why are you looking at me like that?”

“Sister-in-law?” Qiao Man suddenly blurted.

Shen Hechuan froze mid-step. “What?”

“Sister-in-law!” Qiao Man shouted clearly and proudly. He looked up at Shen Hechuan and said, “Uncle Shen, brother said you two got married. And our teacher says when brother gets a wife, we should call her Sister-in-law!”

Shen Hechuan: “…”

The air fell into an awkward silence.

“Pfft—hahahahahahaha!”

Qiao Le burst out laughing, nearly doubled over, clutching his stomach as he collapsed onto the carpet. “Hahahaha sister-in-law! Oh my god, I can’t—hahahaha!”

A muscle twitched at Shen Hechuan’s temple as he looked down at the guy laughing himself silly on the floor. “You taught him that? Stop teaching kids nonsense.”

“I didn’t!” Qiao Le gasped between laughs, waving his hand. He’d just said they got married—he hadn’t expected Qiao Man to come up with that on his own.

Qiao Man didn’t understand why his brother was laughing so hard. “But I didn’t say it wrong. That’s what teacher said.”

“Hahahahaha!” Qiao Le thumped the floor. “Did you hear that? Teacher said so!”

Shen Hechuan didn’t respond. Qiao Man, sensitive as ever, tugged on his sleeve and asked softly, “Uncle Shen… are you mad?”

“No.” Shen Hechuan bent down and picked him up. “Come on, I’ll show you your room.”

“Okay!”

With Qiao Man in his arms, Shen Hechuan walked out of the display room, while Qiao Le—still snorting with laughter—got up from the carpet and followed them.

As he’d guessed, Qiao Man loved the room Shen Hechuan had prepared for him. Especially the tent. The second he was set down, he dove into the soft cushions inside it with pure joy.

Once Qiao Le had laughed himself out, he cleared his throat and, mimicking Qiao Man, tugged lightly on Shen Hechuan’s sleeve. “Uncle Shen, where’s my room? Should I just share with Xiao Man?”

He really liked that tent.

“No need. You have your own room,” Shen Hechuan said as he turned to walk out. “It’s ready. Come with me.”

After seeing how nice Qiao Man’s room was, Qiao Le couldn’t help getting his hopes up. Maybe his room had a tent too.

With that hopeful thought, he practically skipped along, a bright smile on his face.

Until Shen Hechuan brought him to the master bedroom.

Standing in the doorway, Qiao Le was stunned. “Uh… isn’t this your room?”

“Yeah,” Shen Hechuan said.

“…Then where’s mine?”

“Isn’t it only natural for Brother and Sister-in-law to share a room?” Shen Hechuan gestured graciously toward the door. “Please.”

Qiao Le: “…”

You really aren’t gonna let yourself lose anything, are you!!