AAMIBBSBY 16

The car stopped. The mall manager in charge of VIP clients hurriedly bowed and stepped forward, opening the car door for Shen Shixiao and enthusiastically following by his side.

With the bank card stuffed in his pocket, Xia Zhi felt lightheaded.

He just gave the card to him like that? Isn’t he afraid he will abscond with the massive sum of money?

At the top of the mall, the magnificent and dazzling chandeliers flashed so brightly that Xia Zhi couldn’t find his bearings. Following closely behind Shen Shixiao step by step, he was much more silent than usual.

Shen Shixiao asked, “Are you feeling unwell?”

Xia Zhi shook his head solemnly. “No, it’s just that my pocket is bearing a weight it was never meant to bear.”

Shen Shixiao: “Then should I take it away?”

Xia Zhi clutched his pocket. “Those who achieve great things must first suffer physical hardship¹This is a famous quote from the ancient Chinese philosopher Mencius. It means “When heaven is about to confer a great responsibility on any man, it will exercise his mind with suffering, subject his sinews and bones to hard work…” Xia Zhi is dramatically using ancient philosophy to justify keeping hold of the heavy (rich) bank card.!”

This heavy weight, it’s better to just let him bear it alone!

Shen Shixiao was a major client here, a Black Diamond VIP—the mall’s new limited edition luxury brands would all be prioritized for him. Leaning against the soft sofa, Xia Zhi held a piping hot milk tea and sighed softly.

Sigh, this feels so good.

“Let’s go pick out shirts together.” Seeing that he was almost done drinking, Shen Shixiao followed the sales assistant to the seasonal menswear section.

Xia Zhi looked carefully, pointed at a few styles he liked, and asked, “What do you think of these?”

Shen Shixiao: “They’re fine. Please take them down for me, I’ll go try them on.”

The sales assistant smiled politely and, carrying the shirts, led Shen Shixiao toward the direction of the fitting rooms.

Seeing that Xia Zhi had no intention of moving, Shen Shixiao turned his head back and asked, “You’re helping me buy shirts, aren’t you going to see if they fit?”

Xia Zhi nodded and hurriedly caught up.

However, once they reached the fitting room, did Xia Zhi realize what Shen Shixiao meant by “see.”

So it turned out he wasn’t supposed to look from the outside, but look from inside the fitting room!

Facing the sales assistant’s unruffled smile, Xia Zhi buried his head in embarrassment and followed Shen Shixiao into the fitting room. 

Closing the door, he felt a bit weird.

The space inside was not small; accommodating two people didn’t feel crowded at all.

Xia Zhi muttered softly, “Can I go wait outside?”

Shen Shixiao unhurriedly unbuttoned his suit jacket. “There are five pieces in total, going in and out repeatedly to show you is too troublesome.”

Xia Zhi choked up, speechless for a moment. Then isn’t it enough if you are satisfied yourself! 

You don’t actually need me to like them, wuwu.

As the shirt buttons were undone, looking at the faintly discernible abdominal muscles inside, Xia Zhi’s gaze drifted slightly. Pretending to casually turn around, he put his back to Shen Shixiao.

What exactly is this guy trying to do! 

Is he intentionally showing off his abs to him? 

As if someone here didn’t have them!

However, when he lifted his head, grumbling under his breath, his whole body suddenly froze.

Ugh! He forgot there was a mirror right in front of him!

Shen Shixiao’s abdominal muscles were solid, and his superior V-line directly faced Xia Zhi’s eyes.

He hid the shock in his eyes and swallowed hard. 

It’s actually quite good-looking.

Shen Shixiao in the mirror was very calm. After changing into the first shirt, he asked, “How is it?”

Xia Zhi deliberately turned his head away and replied, “Very good.”

They tried on four or five pieces in a row, and there were two pieces that both of them were very satisfied with.

Shen Shixiao slowly buttoned up his clothes and asked in a low voice, “You really like the cut of this one?”

Xia Zhi: “Mm.”

Shen Shixiao: “Then you should buy one too. I’ll have the sales assistant go get it.”

Xia Zhi: Good heavens, he really did come to compare abs with me!

Lifting the hem of his clothes and gently rolling up his sweater, he muttered softly to himself, Mine aren’t bad either.

Very quickly, Shen Shixiao brought over the same style of white shirt, came in, and handed it to him. “Try it on.” He then stood to the side with no intention of leaving.

Xia Zhi dawdled as he took off his clothes, secretly staring at Shen Shixiao behind him through the glass mirror. Although his figure was slender, he hadn’t neglected his exercise. When studying abroad, he often went to the fencing hall to play with friends, so his abdominal muscles were thin and evenly shaped.

When putting on and taking off clothes, the two beautiful butterfly bones²A poetic Chinese term used to describe prominent, beautiful shoulder blades (scapulae). on his back gently spread open.

Shen Shixiao’s eyes darkened slightly, and his dry throat bobbed. Once Xia Zhi had changed his clothes, he took a step forward and stood side-by-side with Xia Zhi in front of the mirror.

Xia Zhi’s natural hair color was on the lighter side, carrying a shallow brown tint. Due to frequent static electricity reactions in winter, a few strands of hair were inadvertently lifted up slightly when taking off his sweater, making him look a bit dazed.

The two people in the mirror had superior figures, unexpectedly wearing an ordinary white shirt with a high-class feel. 

Standing together, they looked inexplicably harmonious.

Shen Shixiao’s eyes and brows softened. He reached out his palm to smooth his hair for him, his gaze landing between the two of them. “You look very good.”

Xia Zhi: Hmm, are you sure it isn’t just the clothes that look good?

Walking out of the fitting room, Xia Zhi didn’t know if it was an imagination, but he kept feeling that the sales assistant’s gaze toward him had changed.

The shirts chosen, Shen Shixiao was not in a hurry to leave, but instead continued picking out other clothes. Finally, he picked out a knit sweater and a coat for each of them—all the same style but different sizes.

When swiping the card, Xia Zhi generously pulled it out of his pocket, looking at that string of numbers with extreme heartache.

Just a few pieces of clothing for six figures, wuwuwu. He was in pain!

Walking out of the store, he returned the bank card to Shen Shixiao. “We’re done buying things, I’ll give it to you.”

Wuwuwu, I don’t want it! Take it away!

Shen Shixiao looked at him and said, “You are my legal partner, handing my salary card over to you is very normal.”

Xia Zhi secretly retorted, isn’t this an ‘agreement’? 

Forget it, anyway, he’s a pauper right now. In the future, after he gets paid his appearance fees, he will just buy more gifts for Shen Shixiao.

The car drove for another 30 minutes, stopping at a restaurant. This restaurant’s location was very good; while dining, the city’s landmark buildings could be seen in full view. 

Xia Zhi had been here a few times a long time ago.

“My classmates from France returned to the country yesterday, and they wanted to invite you to dine together.”

So that’s how it is.

Xia Zhi softly said, “I will perform well.”

Shen Shixiao: “These are all my good friends. Previously when I was studying abroad, they all had partners. They often teased me and showed off their relationships to me.”

After Xia Zhi heard this, he slightly furrowed his brows. “Then your first love at that time…?”

Shen Shixiao: “He had left me by then.”

“That’s a bit much,” Xia Zhi muttered softly, carrying some righteous indignation. “Showing off affection in front of a single dog³A very common and self-deprecating Chinese slang term for someone who is single/unmarried. who just went through a breakup is very unfriendly!”

A profound smile reached the bottom of his eyes as Shen Shixiao murmured softly, “Mm, so my mood wasn’t very good at that time.”

Xia Zhi sighed softly, earnestly stopping his footsteps to pat Shen Shixiao’s shoulder. “I understand your intention. You asked me to come—is it to purposely anger them, and show off our affection to win back face?”

Shen Shixiao raised his eyes. “I didn’t say that.”

Xia Zhi sighed: “I get it, you don’t need to say more, I will cooperate with you.”

He’s an overbearing CEO after all, how could he haggle over such childish trivial matters? That wouldn’t match Shen Shixiao’s usual style of doing things. 

However, the single dog who was tormented by PDA—how innocent he was!

In a hidden private room, several elegantly-spoken blonde mixed-race men were chatting.

“I heard Xiao’s first love has been found, and he specifically brought him to show us today.”

“The sad thing is, that boy doesn’t seem to remember Xiao; we shouldn’t scare him.”

Pushing open the door to the private room, Xia Zhi gently linked arms with Shen Shixiao and walked inside shoulder-to-shoulder with him.

After the people in the room saw them, they all stood up one after another. They excitedly shook Shen Shixiao’s hand, bumped shoulders with him, and hugged each other.

“Xiao, it’s really been a long time!”

Xia Zhi stood to the side and smiled. Foreigners sure are flamboyant in expressing their emotions as expected, but everyone’s Chinese is truly not bad.

At this time, Shen Shixiao gently held Xia Zhi’s hand and said to everyone, “This is Zhizhi, we just got married.”

The friends applauded and cheered, hurriedly stepping forward to greet Xia Zhi, enthusiastically inviting him to take a seat.

Taking advantage of everyone’s high spirits, Xia Zhi leaned close to Shen Shixiao’s ear and asked, “Which person is the one who often teased you and showed off their affection in front of you?”

Shen Shixiao’s eyes looked at the blue-eyed man opposite them. “It’s him, Louis.”

Louis, right?

Xia Zhi obediently held onto Shen Shixiao’s arm, his head leaning on his shoulder. Before coming out today, he sprayed some perfume. When he leaned close to Shen Shixiao, a faint cedar scent lingered around the two of them, very comfortable.

Facing everyone’s teasing and joking gazes, Shen Shixiao’s expression was calm, extending his left arm to wrap around Xia Zhi’s slender shoulders.

Xia Zhi gently raised his eyes. Is this a signal? 

He can start now!

Enzo tsk-tsked. First time seeing Shen Shixiao showing off affection, he was really not used to it.

Accurately locking onto Louis, Xia Zhi sweetly asked everyone, “Are you all dating?”

This question seemed to hit everyone’s funny bone. Enzo bluntly said, “Those who aren’t dating by 25 mostly have some issues.” Meeting Shen Shixiao’s warning gaze, he added a sentence, “Of course, Xiao is the exception.”

Louis really liked Chinese food. After hearing Xia Zhi’s question, he boisterously said, “I’m currently single, but I have many ex-boyfriends.”

Xia Zhi grinned, baring his teeth. He unhurriedly peeled a lobster, using a fork to feed it to Shen Shixiao’s mouth. “Then your ex-boyfriends, would they peel lobsters for you to eat?”

Louis blanked for a moment. “…Uh, no.”

Xia Zhi gave him an “I figured no one fed you lobster” look, and called out sweetly toward Shen Shixiao, “Xiao-ge, eat the shrimp. If it’s not enough, Zhizhi will continue peeling for you.”

Under everyone’s astonished and envious gazes, Shen Shixiao held back a smile, gently opening his mouth. “Thank you, Zhizhi.”

The lobster in Louis’s mouth instantly lost its flavor.

The atmosphere of today’s dinner was not bad; everyone hadn’t seen each other for years and it was quite warm and lively. 

Xia Zhi pursed his lips, sometimes listening earnestly, sometimes smiling toward Shen Shixiao, his gaze always glued to him, his eyes full of him.

Wuwuwu, he is so competent!

Not knowing who suddenly brought up buying clothes, Xia Zhi looked at Louis and gently spoke up. “Louis, have you ever received a shirt that someone carefully selected for you?”

Suddenly being cued, Louis earnestly replied, “It seems not.”

Hehehe, knew you didn’t!

Xia Zhi leaned on Shen Shixiao’s shoulder with a grin. “I buy shirts for Xiao-ge, and if I see a nice watch I’ll buy it for him too. Even when shopping with friends, my heart is completely full of him.”

The warm breath seemed to tickle Shen Shixiao’s neck. He slightly lowered his head, Xia Zhi’s eyes, full of smiles and trust, right in front of him. 

His breathing became ragged.

Louis’s dog eyes were blinded. “Then you two are very loving.”

Back then, Shen Shixiao returned to the country early so he didn’t know many of the interesting things from France. At the dining table, Enzo and the others started taking the lead in teasing Louis about his several bizarre ex-boyfriends. Xia Zhi peeled lobsters with a radiant smile, feeding Shen Shixiao from time to time.

A friend secretly sent a WeChat message to Shen Shixiao: Xiao-ge, this first love of yours is both well-behaved and pretty, no wonder you can’t forget him.

Shen Shixiao raised his hand and rubbed Xia Zhi’s head, and replied to him: Stop looking.

“Hahaha, because of a rainstorm back then, Louis asked his ex-boyfriend to bring an umbrella, and the ex-boyfriend just let him walk home drenched.”

“Hahaha, Louis is so pitiful.”

“Ah, they don’t even bring an umbrella?” Xia Zhi’s brows furrowed tightly, taking the initiative to hold Shen Shixiao’s hands. “If Xiao-ge got drenched in the rain, my heart would ache to death.”

Louis swallowed a chicken leg with difficulty, suddenly feeling a bit like crying. Does Xia Zhi not like him? Wuwu.

“If you date, you should date properly!”

“You have to be like me, who only feels heartache for Xiao geigei⁴This is a massive Chinese internet meme. Xia Zhi is intentionally pronouncing “brother” in a whiny, exaggeratedly sweet, high-pitched tone (“geigei” instead of “gege”)..”

Shen Shixiao, who had been silent all along, had eyes filled with a smile and suddenly asked, “Zhizhi, how do you plan to dote⁵Literally means “pain/hurts,” but in romantic contexts, it means to love someone so dearly that your heart aches for them, or to dote on them heavily. Shen Shixiao uses the word playfully at the end to turn Xia Zhi’s dramatic act back around on him. on me then?”

Xia Zhi was startled, blinking his eyes.

• 1
  This is a famous quote from the ancient Chinese philosopher Mencius. It means “When heaven is about to confer a great responsibility on any man, it will exercise his mind with suffering, subject his sinews and bones to hard work…” Xia Zhi is dramatically using ancient philosophy to justify keeping hold of the heavy (rich) bank card.
• 2
  A poetic Chinese term used to describe prominent, beautiful shoulder blades (scapulae).
• 3
  A very common and self-deprecating Chinese slang term for someone who is single/unmarried.
• 4
  This is a massive Chinese internet meme. Xia Zhi is intentionally pronouncing “brother” in a whiny, exaggeratedly sweet, high-pitched tone (“geigei” instead of “gege”).
• 5
  Literally means “pain/hurts,” but in romantic contexts, it means to love someone so dearly that your heart aches for them, or to dote on them heavily. Shen Shixiao uses the word playfully at the end to turn Xia Zhi’s dramatic act back around on him.