“Little Shi, Jiang Yun and the others are almost here. Do you want to go change your clothes?”
There were quite a few people in the Shen family’s living room. In the kitchen, the aunts were busy preparing ingredients. Tonight, they were having a family barbecue in the backyard. Mother Shen was chatting with her elder sister when she suddenly remembered something and turned around to ask Shen Shi.
Shen Shi was lazily dressed in light-colored loungewear, water stains on his shirt. He sat on a single sofa, playing with his little niece.
The little girl had her hair in two pigtails, hugging a Barbie doll as she babbled in a milky voice:
“Brother, this is Barbie. She’s three years old, same age as Yaya. She likes meat… doesn’t like, doesn’t like carrots.”
“Call me Uncle.”
Shen Shi picked up the blanket that was about to slide off her feet and casually asked his mother, “When are they arriving?”
Jiang Yun was the kind of person who lit up in a crowd. He hadn’t gotten into any university in China, so his father, unable to stand the sight of him, shipped him off to the U.S.
Before coming back this time, he’d already been shouting in their group chat about wanting to go out, sing karaoke, drink, and play mahjong, a total good-for-nothing.
Mother Shen glanced at her phone. “About ten minutes.”
Only then did Shen Shi stand up. “I’ll go change.”
He picked up his phone, and on the way upstairs, glanced at WeChat.
Ten minutes ago, Yu Ting had suddenly sent him a picture.
The photo showed a spread of stir-fried greens, sautéed string beans, hand-shredded cabbage, smashed cucumbers, a vegetable stew and a bottle of Sprite.
A whole table covered in green.
It looked entirely unappetizing.
[Yu Ting]: Hehehe.
[Yu Ting]: Guess what I had for dinner tonight?
[Yu Ting]: Tada—stir-fried greens, sautéed string beans, hand-shredded cabbage, smashed cucumbers, vegetable stew! Looks fancy, right?
[Yu Ting]: Bet you wouldn’t want to eat it, huh?
Shen Shi raised an eyebrow and neatly set Yu Ting’s chat to Do Not Disturb.
Yu Ting had a few days every month where he went a bit crazy, Shen Shi was used to it by now.
***
Night in Beijing was pitch dark, so thick it seemed ink could drip from the sky.
Ye Ran had just picked up his childhood friend, and after some cheerful chatter, they decided to find a restaurant to eat at.
His friend had endured a year of “hard labor” in London and now only wanted to taste all eight major Chinese cuisines.
The restaurants near the airport were expensive and unappetizing, so they hailed a cab to the city center.
Beijing’s nightlife was just beginning, streets glittering with neon lights and red lanterns. They found a cozy, affordable private restaurant bustling with customers. Screens separated the tables, and the air was rich with the aroma of food. At the next table, seven or eight men were laughing, drinking, and playing guessing games.
An Yu sighed emotionally. “Now this is life.”
Ye Ran took off his jacket and started ordering on the restaurant’s iPad. “Do you want boiled fish?”
An Yu immediately forgot his earlier sentiment, leaning over eagerly. “Add boiled pork slices, spicy diced chicken, and West Lake beef soup.”
Ye Ran finished ordering, added a few milder dishes, paid, and handed the tablet to the waiting server.
An Yu, who had spent most of the flight either sleeping or zoning out, was now fully recharged. As soon as the server left, his eyes lit up and he urged Ye Ran, “Come on, come on, what’s going on with your roommate?”
A juicy piece of gossip had exploded right next to him—about Ye Ran, the person he’d thought least likely to ever fall in love. How could he not lose his mind? The fact that he hadn’t flown straight back from London the moment he heard was already an act of restraint.
Ye Ran gave him a helpless look and said quietly, “…He’s pursuing me.”
“Holy—” The restaurant’s lighting was warm and golden. Outside every small booth hung a yellow lantern, casting soft light over Ye Ran’s calm, gentle profile. An Yu admired it for a moment before asking, excitedly, “So did you say yes?”
Ye Ran: “…No.”
“No?” An Yu blinked. “Huh? You don’t like him?”
Ye Ran paused, his eyes dropping to the smooth tablecloth. After a long silence, he said slowly, “I’m not too sure.”
To him, liking someone meant adrenaline spikes, scrambled nerves, racing heartbeat, and excess hormones, the kind of feeling that made you want to be glued to that person every second.
But when it came to Shen Shi, aside from his heartbeat always going off rhythm, he didn’t feel anything particularly special.
If he couldn’t be sure he could return the same level of affection, he wouldn’t recklessly enter a relationship.
“What’s there to be conflicted about?” An Yu propped his chin on his hand. “You only know if you like someone after dating them.”
“If you like him, keep dating. If you don’t, break up. Ranran, dating just gives two people a chance to see where things can go. It’s marriage that really demands responsibility.”
“Hmm?” Ye Ran was taken aback. “Isn’t that… kind of irresponsible?”
An Yu: “What’s irresponsible about it? It’s just dating. If you find you really don’t like him, then break up. It’s not like he can stop you, what era do you think this is?”
Ye Ran pictured Shen Shi’s handsome, cool face, one that hid an almost overwhelming sense of control, and his eyelid twitched. “I feel like…”
He really might.
The waiter arrived before he could finish. With a sweet smile and gentle voice, she said, “Gentlemen, your dishes are here. Careful, they’re hot.”
The sizzling boiled fish was set in the center of the table. An Yu’s eyes lit up as he dug in, nearly moved to tears after the first bite of spicy, tender fish.
“D*mn, this is so f***ing good… Do you know what kind of h*ll I lived in over there? God, how can people eat potatoes every meal: mashed potatoes, potato chunks, baked potatoes, fries… Eat what you are, they say, and I swear that’s why they’re all going bald.”
Ye Ran was amused by him, swallowing down his words as he picked out a boneless piece of fish belly and placed it in An Yu’s bowl. “I’ll bring you here again tomorrow.”
An Yu nodded repeatedly. “Mm-hmm!”
Just then, another dish of spicy diced chicken arrived. As he was about to dig in, he suddenly caught sight of the next table, a spread of green, all-vegetable dishes.
A man bundled tightly in a jacket sat behind a bamboo curtain, his features half-hidden. He looked like someone who’d never eaten vegetarian food in his life, yet there he was, forcing down two big bites with tears in his eyes, then washing it down with Sprite.
The terrifying part was he was taking photos of the food from every possible angle: standing, crouching, leaning sideways, raising the phone high— as if this would be his last meal before execution.
“…?”
An Yu couldn’t help feeling a pang of sympathy.
Bro… you just got back from Africa or something?
By the time they finished eating, snow had started to fall again outside the window.
The world was covered in silver; the wind outside was biting cold, but the restaurant inside was noisy and warm.
An Yu lazily sipped his cold beer. After ranting about his dull student life abroad, he circled back to the topic of Ye Ran and Shen Shi. “By the way, what does that roommate of yours even look like?”
Beijing University’s campus forum had notoriously strict management, anyone without a verified student ID couldn’t access it.
He had once thought about spending good money to buy an account just to lurk for gossip, but after searching, he realized nobody was even selling any. And back then, his deranged ex-roommate had started harassing him again, so that plan was shelved.
Ye Ran had also had a bit of beer; he wasn’t drunk, just slow to react. After a long moment, he found his phone and started scrolling through the forum.
Seeing that, An Yu moved right beside him, resting his chin on Ye Ran’s shoulder like a lazy little sloth, wobbling slightly as he watched him tap open an image.
The next second, a strikingly handsome, completely unfiltered face filled the screen.
An Yu nearly sprayed out his beer. “—Pfft! Cough cough cough—!”
“Holy sh*t!” He jerked upright, staring at Ye Ran’s slightly dazed, unhurried face. “Ye Little Ran, tell me—just how high are your standards?! You can actually reject a guy like this?!”
Ye Ran, not following, spoke in a soft, slow voice, dulled by food and drink. “…I didn’t reject him.”
An Yu inhaled sharply, holding Ye Ran’s face in both hands. “Tell mama—how far have you two gone?”
“Nowhere.” Ye Ran replied calmly. “…I told him he’s still on probation.”
An Yu stared, utterly dumbfounded. His mind reeled, his mouth dropped open like when he’d first met Ye Ran. “Holy sh*t… I didn’t expect this, Ye Little Ran. In this department, I might have to start calling you older brother.”
Honestly? That was way more impressive than flirting back.
Overcome with excitement, he pinched Ye Ran’s cheek and leaned on his shoulder, urging, “Come on, what happened? You’re not the type to ‘just see how it goes.’ What did you two go through before this? Tell me everything—I need details! Details!”
D*mn, he regretted it so much!
If he’d just studied harder back in senior year… it was only Beijing University! If he’d gotten in—
An Yu suddenly sobered up.
And promptly killed that unrealistic thought.
Ye Ran hiccupped softly, then said, under An Yu’s eager and nervous stare, “I told him… I’m sexually indifferent.”
“Wow, bold move! That’s one wa—” An Yu froze. “Hm?”
“???”
He blinked blankly. “Wait… what did you say?”
Ye Ran repeated, calm as ever: “I told him I’m sexually indifferent.”
An Yu: “…”
An Yu: “…………”
“Hold up.” He suddenly straightened up, his gaze involuntarily lowering to Ye Ran’s lap. “Hey, that’s not something to joke about… When did this happen? How come mama didn’t know? Holy sh*t, can it be cured? Is it psychological?”
“D*mn— I was gone for just one year, and you turned sexually indifferent? Baby, is it… you know, not working, or…. wait, that’s fine, we’ve both already doomed our family lines anyway—no, no, no, this is serious, this is—”
His mind went blank. He almost reached out to check before catching himself, staring at Ye Ran in pure horror. “My baby… when were you diagnosed? Did the doctor prescribe anything?”
“It’s fine.” Ye Ran shook his head solemnly. “After Shen Shi kissed me, I could feel it again.”
“That’s good, that’s good…wait…”
Huh?
An Yu froze again. A few seconds later, like a wind-up doll running down, he lowered his head slowly. “Baby… say that again?”
Ye Ran: “Oh, after I told Shen Shi I might be sexually indifferent, he kissed me, and I had a reaction. He had a reaction too.”
An Yu: “…”
An Yu: “…………”
He nearly spat out blood. After a long moment, he clutched Ye Ran’s arm, trembling as he took a deep breath, forcing down the imaginary blood clot in his throat.
“Baby,” he asked in a soul-shaking voice, “…do you really think that makes sense?”
Never mind the “reaction” part— if you think you’re sick, why not go see a doctor? Why let that Shen Shi treat you?
His temple twitched violently as he gripped Ye Ran’s hand, despairing. “Baby, tell me the truth… did you search this on Baidu again?”
Ye Ran nodded obediently. “Mm.”
An Yu’s heart broke in half. “Haven’t I told you? Don’t go on Baidu! Water boils at a hundred degrees, people die at a hundred degrees; this app is dangerous!”
“I know,” Ye Ran patted his hand seriously, “I also used Tieba to assist with research.”
An Yu: “…”
An Yu: “…………pfft.”
He finally did spit out that mouthful of old blood.
You used both of the two cancers of the internet???
What am I even supposed to say to that?
An Yu suddenly felt like he’d aged several hundred years. The cabbage he’d painstakingly raised since childhood hadn’t even been officially claimed yet and the pig had already come and rooted it.
His blood rushed to his head; fury surged through him as he grabbed Ye Ran’s hand and stood up. “D*mn it… that Shen Shi… d*mn it!”
Ye Ran: “Don’t swear.”
An Yu censored himself manually: “Fine. Beep beep—that Shen Shi—beep beep!”
Ye Ran: “…”
“Baby,” he took a deep breath, bracing both hands on Ye Ran’s shoulders, grinding his teeth, “don’t worry. With me here—d*mn—beep beep—I’ll definitely protect you!”
D*mn you, Shen Shi, what the h*ll did you do to my cabbage?!
Does your conscience not hurt at all?!
Sure enough—the better-looking the man, the worse his heart!
D*mn it!!!
Ye Ran, slow as ever, nodded. “Okay.”
Still fuming, An Yu helped him into his coat, fussing like an overanxious mother. “Put on more layers. Come on, let’s go home.”
“What about your luggage?”
“It’s fine, I already told the airport to ship it to our place.”
Ye Ran let himself be pulled to his feet, eyes half-closed as he yawned sleepily.
—
At that very moment, in the private room next door—
Yu Ting was holding his phone.
On the other end, his older brother’s cold voice came through: “Yu Ting, where are you? You gone missing?”
“…No, hugged,” Yu Ting muttered weakly.
Older Brother Yu: “?”
Older Brother Yu: “What are you saying? Speak properly.”
“Held hands.”
Older Brother Yu: “…Yu Ting, are you out of your mind?”
“…Saw it.”
Older Brother Yu, barely restraining his temper: “Yu Ting, I’m at the airport right now. You’d better get here immediately.”
“Living together,” Yu Ting’s voice was now as faint as a dying ember.
Older Brother Yu: “……”
Older Brother Yu: “Yu Ting, if you don’t come right now, you’re dead.”
Yu Ting trembled as he got up, his steps unsteady. Everywhere he looked was filled with fluttering snow and in that snow, two boys stood by the roadside, holding hands as they waited for a cab.
Flashes of what he’d just seen replayed in his mind—
That stranger’s arm around Ye Ran’s shoulder, that hand holding Ye Ran’s, that gaze fixed on Ye Ran, that touch brushing Ye Ran’s cheek…
Shen Shi.
…Five hundred yuan really wasn’t enough.
Pale and weak, he hung up on his brother and slowly opened WeChat.
[Yu Ting]: [Transfer – ¥1000]
[Yu Ting]: Bro.
[Yu Ting]: I did my best.
The remaining five hundred was his last bit of brotherly goodwill.
After hesitating for a few seconds, he opened another blue app.
[Yu Ting]: [Invites you to listen together – Stefanie Sun – “Green Light”~]
[Yu Ting]: Bro.
[Yu Ting]: I really did my best.
—
Shen family mansion
In Haicheng, there was no snow.
The night sky shimmered with scattered stars.
The backyard was warm, the charcoal grill sizzled with oysters and scallops, soft yellow fairy lights hung from the grape arbor. The women chatted and laughed, the men grilled and prepped food. Despite their billion-yuan net worths, the scene was easy and close.
Late at night, the children were asleep, it was time for the Shen family adults to unwind.
Shen Shi was also grilling oysters; his mother loved them.
Jiang Yun hovered beside him, all animated gestures and excitement, trying to convince him how fun a new hot spring resort in the south of the city was and urging him to come along.
“Not going,” Shen Shi said lazily.
Jiang Yun, a handsome guy with thick brows and bright eyes, blinked. “Why not? Do you know how hard I worked to get those tickets? The place’s only been open a year and it’s already rated number one in the country! You seriously don’t want to check it out?”
Shen Shi raised an eyebrow. “Number one in the country?”
“Yeah!” Jiang Yun puffed up. “Pretty awesome, right?”
“Not interested.” Shen Shi turned the meat skewers over, sprinkling cumin on the lamb. His tone remained flat but somehow, there was a faint undertone of satisfaction in it. “I’ve been somewhere better.”
Jiang Yun: “?”
Jiang Yun: “???”
Wait, why do I suddenly feel full?
He slunk away awkwardly and went to bother someone else. The other cousins were already busy—grilling meat, answering nosy parents— and when Jiang Yun came over again, they all got annoyed and kicked him back toward Shen Shi.
Grumbling, Jiang Yun returned to stand beside him, just in time to see Shen Shi’s phone light up on the chair, message notifications popping one after another.
“Hey, your phone’s ringing,” Jiang Yun said, handing it over.
Shen Shi took it, glanced briefly at the screen and realized that, once again, Yu Ting was losing his mind in the middle of the night.
So far gone, he was probably vomiting up all the money he’d just eaten.
“Who’s that?” Jiang Yun asked curiously.
Shen Shi tossed the phone back onto the chair, voice calm. “Don’t know him.”
Jiang Yun: “?”
Jiang Yun: “Oh, scam WeChat messages, huh.”
He looked at Shen Shi with open envy. Bathed in moonlight, Shen Shi’s features were sharp and striking, his gaze deep and cool. Because of the barbecue, his sleeves were rolled up, revealing pale, lean forearms, the lines taut with strength.
Every relative who came to the Shen house would end up praising him to the skies, wishing he were their own son.
Jiang Yun pursed his lips, a bit jealous but also a little gloating. No matter how handsome he was— with that cold, proud, impossible-to-please personality of his, Shen Shi was destined to be single for life.
“Ah,” he sighed in an exaggerated way, “I wonder what my girlfriend’s doing right now? Maybe she’s still out somewhere. I’d better call and check. It’s so late, it’s dangerous for a girl to be out alone at night.”
Out of the corner of his eye, Shen Shi’s movements paused.
He lifted his eyelids lazily, glanced over at Jiang Yun, and said unhurriedly as he flipped the grill rack, “It’s already this late—”
Jiang Yun couldn’t help but focus, ears pricked.
Shen Shi’s tone was casual, indifferent, and faintly condescending, as if from a height: “You’re only thinking of your girlfriend now?”
Jiang Yun: “?”
Jiang Yun: “???”
What the h*ll.
You talk like you know what your girlfriend’s doing.
He turned to leave, his back a little unsteady, it looked like he really was going to call his girlfriend.
Shen Shi’s eyes followed him briefly, then dropped again. He picked up his phone.
On the WeChat screen was a message he’d sent to Ye Ran half an hour ago:
—Are you asleep?
There was no reply.
Given Ye Ran’s regular schedule, he was probably already asleep by now.
Shen Shi’s lashes lowered. He tapped lightly on Ye Ran’s profile picture, his gaze soft and quiet.
Good night.
Ye Ran.
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