Chapter 43 – Li Jiangluo 2.1

I think this is probably the bravest and craziest thing I’ve ever done in my life.

Yes, I kissed Brother Baichuan.

A fleeting touch, a brief taste.

But it was my first.

When our lips met, I felt like I was on fire.

Brother Baichuan seemed equally shocked, frozen there, staring at me, unable to blink.

Suddenly, I realized that kissing wasn’t as unbearable as I thought. I didn’t know if it was because Yi Li’s therapy had worked over the past few days, or simply because I wasn’t as averse to kissing as I’d assumed.

I hadn’t tried with Bolin, just saying I disliked it, didn’t accept it, didn’t want it, so we never did.

The kiss was light and shallow. By the time I turned back to sit down, I felt both embarrassed and couldn’t help but savor the memory.

It was still shameful, but I found myself oddly enamored with the sensation.

My hand rested on my knee, my whole body tense.

The small house fell silent again. I was terrified that Brother Baichuan might hear my heartbeat.

He seemed to laugh, but I wasn’t sure, too afraid to look at him.

He moved closer, then grabbed my hand and pulled me into his arms.

My cheek against his shoulder, I felt like a mischievous child basking in the aftermath of a successful prank, grinning secretly.

My heart pounded too fast; I couldn’t stop it from telling Brother Baichuan how happy I was.

His embrace was comfortable, and I caught a whiff of a blissful life.

He asked, “Do you really love me?”

I nodded, then replied, “I do.”

He laughed again, softly, his warm breath tickling my ear.

I countered, “And you?”

“I really love you too.”

For a moment, I felt like we were two people having an affair. The thought made me feel ashamed, but I wanted nothing more than to be with him.

Perhaps I was influenced by Yi Li, knowing the road ahead would be tough, yet still willing to take a leap of faith.

There was Bolin’s precedent right there. If I didn’t recover, one day, Brother Baichuan and I would inevitably repeat the same mistakes.

I didn’t want that.

One failed romance was enough. I’d learned my lesson and endured enough hardship. For so many years, no matter what happened, I never complained about fate’s unfairness, instead, I was grateful every step of the way.

This time, it was my turn to be happy.

Tasting love again, my mindset was different from before.

I don’t know why, but now, just a glance at Brother Baichuan could make my cheeks burn, even though it wasn’t like that before.

We returned home without dinner, immersed in the joy and excitement of confessing our feelings to each other, but hunger was still hunger.

My stomach rumbled inappropriately, causing Brother Baichuan to laugh uncontrollably while holding me.

“There’s no food at home,” I couldn’t bear myself, how could I embarrass myself like this at such a time?

After he finished laughing, he stood up, pulling me along, “Let’s go, let’s go to the supermarket.”

I had just gotten up when he suddenly stopped, turning to look at me seriously, “Or should you consider coming home with me?”

I hurriedly shook my head, somewhat panicked, “Not yet, I don’t know how to tell Uncle and Aunt…”

He looked at me for a few seconds, seemingly disappointed.

I felt guilty, taking the initiative to squeeze his hand.

Brother Baichuan smiled, raising his other hand to pinch my nose, “Whatever you say.”

I followed him to the entrance. He changed his shoes first, then waited for me there.

Looking up, I saw him leaning against the door, smiling at me. His smile was mesmerizing, his eyebrows and eyes filled with sweetness and warmth.

Just as I opened my mouth to call him to leave, he suddenly leaned in, giving me a quick kiss on the lips, then opened the door and ran out.

I heard his laughter echoing through the hallway. A thirty-year-old man acting like a mischievous teenager who loved pranks.

I touched the spot where he had kissed me, my heart overflowing with honey.

Kissing wasn’t just tolerable, it was incredibly blissful.

We bought some groceries at the supermarket downstairs. He pushed the cart while I picked out items.

Turning around to ask for his opinion while selecting ingredients, we were like any ordinary family, a common couple seen everywhere.

I must say, meeting Brother Baichuan was truly a stroke of luck in three lifetimes.

Because of him, I not only had family but also love.

However, I really hadn’t figured out how to tell Uncle and Aunt that after their younger son died, I, someone already in an awkward position, was now together with their older son.

No matter how you said it, it was hard to accept.

Leaving the supermarket, Brother Baichuan carried the shopping bags. We didn’t hold hands, but our arms brushed together as we walked slowly forward.

Neither of us spoke, each lost in our own thoughts, yet we were smiling.

My phone suddenly rang. Pulling it out, I saw that the caller was Yi Li.

I remembered our agreement. I came to find Brother Baichuan, and he must have gone to see Xu Zhao.

“Yi Li?”

“Jiangluo! I got hit by a car!”

Brother Baichuan and I didn’t even have time to bring the groceries upstairs, rushing straight to the hospital.

According to Yi Li, after we parted ways, he went to find Xu Zhao, but the man had a sudden mission and told him to wait somewhere.

Yi Li waited for a long time without seeing anyone, feeling down, decided to go home.

As soon as he reached the entrance of his building, a car hit him.

Ironically, the driver was trying to park, repeatedly failing, accidentally bumping into Yi Li, who was standing nearby.

“Your waist… Are you alright?” Seeing Yi Li lying there with teary eyes, I felt sorry for him.

“It’s over.” Yi Li pouted, “I don’t want to live anymore.”

Brother Baichuan asked the gloomy-looking young man standing aside, “You’re the one who hit him?”

His tone wasn’t friendly, possibly scaring the other person. The guy looked like a college student, carrying a black backpack.

“I, I didn’t mean to.” The young man scratched his hair, frustrated, “I’ll take responsibility.”

“Can you even take responsibility?” Yi Li shouted at him, “I have to fly to Vancouver the day after tomorrow, great, forget the day after tomorrow, I can’t even fly next month!”

“You didn’t break his wings.” For some reason, Brother Baichuan suddenly started teasing.

I couldn’t hold back, bursting into laughter.

“What’s the meaning of this?” Yi Li sized us up, then widened his eyes, “Don’t tell me you two are together now!”

The young man on the other side of the bed was startled again, whispering, “You guys are gay?”

“None of your damn business!” Yi Li continued yelling at him, “We haven’t settled our accounts yet!”

“I know.” The young man took out a receipt, “I’ll go pay first. The doctor said you need to stay here for observation for a while and shouldn’t move around much recently.”

That young man left. I looked at Yi Li.

He pouted at me, “Look how pitiful I am, I can’t ride anymore.”

He was always like this, able to say anything without shame, interestingly, whatever he said wouldn’t make others feel crude.

“Don’t think about those things, what about work?”

“In a bit, I’ll call and explain the situation. Truly unlucky.”

The young man who hit Yi Li left his contact information and even gave Yi Li his ID card, then said he had something to do and left for a while.

As soon as he left, Yi Li held up his ID card and commented, “What an ugly photo.”

Brother Baichuan peeled a fruit for me, quietly asking if I was hungry.

I was starving, but with Yi Li in such a state, it didn’t feel right not to stay and keep him company.

“Aren’t you two here to flaunt your love in front of me?” Yi Li tossed the ID card onto the bed, “Go do what you want, I don’t want to see you two!”

I put away the ID card he had thrown aside and placed it on the table, glancing at the young man’s name and date of birth.

Indeed, he should be a student, only 22 this year. His name sounded nice, An Sinen.

This young man was quite interesting. He was quite good-looking, but his ID photo was absolutely terrible. No wonder Yi Li had said that.

“We’ll go eat first, then come back later.” Brother Baichuan came over, took my hand, and asked Yi Li, “Is there anything you want to eat?”

Yi Li’s gaze stuck to our clasped hands, narrowing his eyes, “I’m practically the best wingman in China. I want pig trotters, ten of them, you guys treat me!”

Of course, we wouldn’t buy ten pig trotters for him, even if we did, he wouldn’t finish them.

We ate a simple meal at a small restaurant outside the hospital, then packed a plate of fried rice for Yi Li.

Returning to the ward, An Sinen was peering inside through the glass window on the door.

“Why don’t you go in?” I asked him.

He was startled again, stepping back two steps, “Well, I, I’m a bit scared of him.”

Peeking through the window, Yi Li was glaring at us, clearly having caught An Sinen peeking earlier.

“What are you scared of?” I opened the door, “Come in, don’t sneak around.”

After An Sinen entered, he didn’t approach the bed, standing far away, “I called my mom, she said she’ll come over later. Um, how about hiring a nurse? You seem unable to get out of bed for a while.”

Yi Li was grinding his teeth in anger as I sat beside him, feeding him.

“It would be good to hire one.” Brother Baichuan poured a glass of water and placed it on the bedside table, “We all have to work normally, who has the time to take care of you?”

“Him!” Yi Li pointed at An Sinen, shifting his gaze from Brother Baichuan, “You hit me, didn’t you say you’d take responsibility? Perfect, no nurse needed, just you!”