My Nemesis Has Finally Gone Bankrupt Chapter 102

Chapter 102:

On the day the verdict was delivered, Ji Ran went to the cemetery. 

He bought a bouquet of flowers; it was the only time in years that he visited Zhao Qingtong outside of her memorial day or Qingming Festival. 

“I’m just going for a quick look.” He glanced at the person in the driver’s seat. “Why are you dressed so formally….” 

Qin Man was in a full suit, all custom-made and freshly delivered. 

“Meeting the parents, how could I not dress formally?” he smiled. 

“Meeting parents, my ass,” Ji Ran laughed. “You insisted on coming along.” 

“I already call you my husband, and you still won’t let me meet the parents? Isn’t that a bit much?” Qin Man clicked his tongue. 

Ji Ran replied, “Thousands of people call me wife on Weibo. Does she meet all of them?” 

As they hit a red light, Qin Man unbuckled his seatbelt, leaned over, and bit Ji Ran’s lip. 

“Little junior, you’re pretty heartless,” he said. “One of these days, when you’re asleep, I’m going to hack into your Weibo.” 

Ji Ran bit him back, “Didn’t you teach me to drive properly? What are you doing now? You better hope the traffic cameras catch this so you can lose three to six points on your license.” 

When they arrived at the cemetery, they saw the caretaker standing at the entrance, hands behind his back, staring solemnly inside. 

Ji Ran followed his gaze and immediately stiffened. 

Zhao Qingtong’s grave was surrounded by people, packed so tightly that he couldn’t see anything from his angle. 

Ji Ran’s first thought was that the media had come to harass her again. 

Ignoring the caretaker’s greeting, he quickened his pace, his expression cold as he approached. 

As he got closer, he realized the crowd wasn’t holding cameras or microphones. 

Qin Man quickly caught up, frowned, and stepped in front of Ji Ran, stopping one of the people. “Excuse me, what are you doing here?” 

The person he stopped had red-rimmed eyes and asked, “Who are you?” 

“Someone here to pay respects,” Qin Man replied. “You’re in our way.” 

“Ah, sorry,” the elderly woman said. “We’re here to pay our respects to Qingtong.” 

Ji Ran, standing behind Qin Man, asked in a low voice, “Who are you? Why are you paying respects to her?” 

“…We used to be part of Zhao Qingtong’s fan club.” The middle-aged woman sniffled. “Her case was resolved today, so we came to see her…” 

“Why didn’t you come earlier?” Ji Ran asked. 

The woman was taken aback. She didn’t know how he knew they hadn’t come before, but she still instinctively replied, “There were so many rumors about her before; we couldn’t be sure if they were true or not…” 

“Got it,” Qin Man interrupted the conversation. 

Any further discussion would have revealed too much. 

“Sorry to bother you, please continue.” 

Ji Ran stepped aside, catching sight of Zhao Qingtong’s tombstone, now surrounded by flower bouquets, which complemented the photo on the stone. A few people were tidying up the leaves and dust around the grave. 

Given the situation, it wasn’t convenient for Ji Ran to step forward. 

He silently walked down the steps, and as he reached the bottom, he murmured, “After all this time, what’s there to see?” 

His words were harsh, but Qin Man noticed that as Ji Ran turned to the side, his eyes were slightly red. 

In the short distance between the cemetery and the parking lot, Ji Ran managed to compose himself. With his eyes downcast, he casually remarked, “Looks like you won’t be meeting the parents today.” 

“Just for today. Life is long; there will be a day I meet them,” Qin Man said. 

Ji Ran’s expression finally softened. “Who said you’ll spend your life with me?” 

“You,” Qin Man smiled, “You’ll spend your life with me.” 

Though they had accomplished nothing during the trip, Ji Ran didn’t feel any regret. 

At the door to their home, Ji Ran tossed the flowers into the back seat and said, “Alright, you can go. I’ll drive the car into the garage myself.” 

Qin Man didn’t move. He chuckled and asked, “Junior, when will you finally let me stay? I keep finding excuses to knock on the neighbor’s door every night, but this can’t go on… Do you know how strangely the other neighbors are looking at me lately?” 

“So you still care about face,” Ji Ran sneered, “Then why don’t you stop coming over so often?” 

Qin Man thought for a moment. “Junior’s too tempting.” 

“…Pervert.” 

In the end, Qin Man was kicked out of the car, and his request for an intimate night was ruthlessly rejected. 

In reality, Qin Man hadn’t been to Ji Ran’s place for a few days. His junior had been particularly difficult to deal with recently. Their last few intimate encounters had taken place at Qin Man’s place. 

Although pretending to play office games was fun at times, he still preferred being in Ji Ran’s home, in a space filled with his scent, completely claiming him. 

A few times, Qin Man had even considered sneaking in over the wall. 

After finishing an overseas video conference, Qin Man loosened his tie a bit and sent Ji Ran a video call. 

It took a long time for the call to be answered. 

“What do you want?” Ji Ran’s tone wasn’t very friendly. 

His face filled the entire screen, leaving Qin Man unable to see the surroundings. 

“I miss you,” Qin Man said. “Junior, open the door. I’ll only stay for two hours.” 

“No, I’m going to sleep,” Ji Ran replied stiffly. 

“…One hour, no less,” Qin Man frowned. 

Ji Ran asked, “What can you do in one hour?” 

Qin Man laughed, “You know, an hour isn’t enough for me.” 

Ji Ran paused, taking a moment to realize what he meant. Blushing, he snapped, “I’m going to sleep!” 

Then he hung up the phone. 

Qin Man stared at his phone for a long time before slowly placing it back on his desk. 

The next day, the two of them went out together to attend a gathering organized by Yue Wenwen. 

Yue Wenwen had been acting strangely lately, insisting on returning to Man Highschool. He mentioned that the school had changed the cafeteria and renovated the basketball court, finally convincing Ji Ran to agree. 

After what had happened, Man Highschool had a new leadership team, and Ji Ran no longer felt as repelled by the place. 

“Ah, ah, ah!” Yue Wenwen clutched his phone, “That person is really here!!” 

Ji Ran looked at the man playing basketball not far away and said, “You didn’t drag us back here every day just for him, did you?” 

“Of course not!” Yue Wenwen’s response was far from convincing. “I just wanted to help you two relive childhood memories. Pengpeng, you and Xiao Ran haven’t played on this court in years!” 

Cheng Peng chimed in, “It’s been many years.” 

Cheng Peng knew what Yue Wenwen was thinking. Holding the ball, he called out to the man on the court, “Teacher, want to make up a team?” 

There were only three people on the court, and it was indeed getting dull. The new PE teacher nodded at them, “Sure. You’re third-year students? Which class? Why aren’t you in class?” 

Today was a holiday, and most students were on break, except for the third-year students. 

To blend in, they had all worn school uniforms. 

Yue Wenwen immediately took the opportunity to chat with him, “We’re second-year students, just here to stretch our legs.” 

They were chatting so enthusiastically that Ji Ran grew impatient, “Are we playing or not?” 

A small basketball game began. 

It was a three-on-three match. The PE teachers thought it would be unfair to play against students, so they decided to play rock-paper-scissors to choose captains and divide the players. 

Ji Ran and Qin Man ended up on different teams. 

They rarely played basketball together, especially as opponents—only once during that tournament. 

Ji Ran thought to himself, this time, he was going to crush Qin Man, make him beg for mercy, and even call him “Daddy.” 

The PE teachers originally intended to go easy on the students. 

But after Qin Man scored his third three-pointer, the two teachers on Ji Ran’s team got competitive. 

Basketball is a sport that relies heavily on physicality—the taller and stronger you are, the greater the advantage. As their team began to fall behind, the teachers stopped holding back and started using their bodies to frequently bump into Qin Man within the rules. 

Though Qin Man was in good shape, he was no match for the PE teachers who exercised daily, giving the impression that he was fragile and easily knocked around. 

Seeing this, Ji Ran frowned and panted, “I’ll guard him…” 

Before he could finish, a teacher had already stepped in front of Qin Man. 

Qin Man glanced around quickly, then attempted to drive to the right for a layup. Just as he was about to score, he was brutally bumped by the burly teacher beside him— 

However, he didn’t keep his balance, and Qin Man wasn’t light either. With that, he couldn’t hold on, and both of them ended up falling to the ground.

Qin Man was momentarily stunned, but quickly adjusted his posture and cushioned Ji Ran’s fall.

The sweat they had shed soaked through their school uniforms, clinging tightly to their skin, and the air between them was filled with the scent of sweat and hormones.

Qin Man, feeling the pain, rubbed his head and laughed as he asked, “I was pretending to fall. What were you doing?”

“…I was crashing into you. Can’t you see?” Ji Ran replied.

“I get it,” Qin Man chuckled, “Crash into me as much as you want.”

“Sorry, I didn’t control my strength,” the gym teacher quickly rushed over. “Are you hurt? I can take you to the hospital.”

“We’re fine,” Ji Ran stood up, “We won’t continue the game.”

“I’m really sorry. If you get injured, feel free to contact me anytime,” the gym teacher said, giving them his phone number.

Yue Wenwen earnestly noted it down on his phone, “Got it, teacher.”

“Your clothes are all dirty, and there’s a flag-raising ceremony tomorrow,” the gym teacher thought for a moment, “How about this? I’ll take you to the public bathhouse across the street. You can take a shower, and we’ll ask the cleaning lady to wash your clothes. I’ll cover the laundry cost.”

Yue Wenwen responded, “That’s not necessary…”

“Sure,” Qin Man smiled and took up the offer, “Can you lead the way? My clothes are soaked and dirty; it’s really uncomfortable.”

Ji Ran hadn’t expected that in this lifetime, he would end up going to a public bathhouse.

He had never been interested in bathing with a bunch of men, so he’d never used a public bathhouse before. The last time he stepped foot in one was to steal Qin Man’s clothes.

At this hour, the public bathhouse was completely empty.

Ji Ran had initially resisted the idea, but upon entering, he realized that over the years, the bathhouse had evolved—there was now a wall separating the showerheads, and a wooden door blocked the outside view.

Cheng Peng, of course, wasn’t going to bathe there; he had already gone back to handle business. Yue Wenwen had gone to fetch their clothes from the car and was having a chat with the gym teacher.

In the large bathhouse, it was just the two of them.

The water hadn’t started heating yet, and the cold water splashing on their bodies was both stimulating and refreshing. 

Ji Ran was fiddling with the shower gel bottle, trying to figure out how to squeeze it, when he heard a voice beside him: “Hey, junior, mind helping me scrub my back?” 

Ji Ran scoffed, “What, did you get gold inlaid or diamonds embedded in your back?” 

Two minutes later, Ji Ran was holding a towel, methodically scrubbing Qin Man’s back. 

There wasn’t really much to scrub; it was already quite clean. 

The water on Ji Ran’s side hadn’t been turned off, and the sound of it splashing was constant. Their bodies, freshly wet, were cold and slippery, and every touch felt like it sparked a small fire. 

“Junior,” Qin Man called him. 

“What?” 

“Didn’t you say the first time you saw me shower, you got hard?” 

“…” Damn it, he knew Qin Man was going to bring that up. “Shut up.” 

“So, are you hard now?” 

“…” 

“Hmm?” Qin Man stared at the wall tiles, smiling. “Come on, say it.” 

He was just trying to tease Ji Ran. 

Who would have thought that after a moment of silence, the person behind him suddenly said, “…A little.” 

Now it was Qin Man’s turn to be silent. 

Ji Ran regretted it as soon as he said it and quickly added, “I already told you I wasn’t coming here.” 

Qin Man suddenly stood up, turned around, and grabbed the towel from Ji Ran’s hand. “Stop scrubbing.” 

Ji Ran was startled. “Huh?” 

“Let’s do it.” 

Ji Ran’s eyes widened. “F*ck, no way! Are you crazy? Look around, where do you think we are…” 

“It’s 3:30 in the afternoon; who would come to shower at this time?” Qin Man whispered seductively in his ear, “And there’s a curtain here; once it’s closed, no one can see anything.” 

Ji Ran suddenly realized why Qin Man had agreed to come to the bathhouse. 

“You knew there were curtains and wooden doors here, didn’t you?” 

“I didn’t know, I really didn’t.” 

“….” 

They were both naked, and having had multiple deep exchanges before, it only took a look, a small touch, for their reason to burn away completely. 

Ji Ran turned around and reached for the switch on the wooden door. 

Qin Man thought he was about to leave. “Wait, dry yourself off…” 

Before he could finish his sentence, Ji Ran raised his hand and yanked the small curtain shut with force. 

The shower space was small, and with the curtain drawn, it completely separated them from the outside world. 

Qin Man didn’t say anything more. All it took was one look from Ji Ran, and he would give himself completely without hesitation. 

They met each other halfway and shared a long, lingering kiss. 

The water gradually warmed up. It was already winter, and while it was cold outside, inside the curtain, things were heating up. 

In a bathhouse, everything around could be used for makeshift purposes. 

Once everything was set, Qin Man leaned on Ji Ran’s shoulder and suddenly thought of something. He paused. “…The condoms are still in my school pants.” 

Seriously, what kind of person says something like that? 

Ji Ran thrust back hard, gritting his teeth. “Then just like this, hurry up.” 

Qin Man had never been a gentleman, and especially not in this aspect. 

He licked the back of Ji Ran’s neck. “…I’ll clean you up later.” 

Ji Ran was overwhelmed with pleasure. 

A strange feeling of a dream coming true mixed with the ecstasy, almost overwhelming him. 

They were both fully immersed when they suddenly heard footsteps. Ji Ran froze in shock. 

“It’s fine, you’re squeezing me.” Qin Man’s voice was hoarse as he reached out and gently pushed Ji Ran’s head down a bit. “Sorry, but lower yourself a little…or the curtain will cast a shadow.” 

Ji Ran felt Qin Man’s fingers gently kneading his hair, comforting him. 

It was the bathhouse attendant. 

“Your time is up!” the attendant called out. “If you don’t come out now, I’m going to shut off the water… Where’s the other guy?” 

“Got it, he went to the bathroom next door,” Qin Man replied in a deep voice. “We’re extending our time by another hour.” 

When they finally left the bathhouse, Ji Ran’s scalp was tingling. 

Luckily, Yue Wenwen got tired of waiting, left their clothes, and went off. If he knew they had spent over an hour in the bathhouse… 

He’d probably be jealous to death. 

“Are your legs sore?” Qin Man asked when they got back to the car. 

Ji Ran, sitting in the passenger seat, replied, “Why don’t you try holding your legs up for two hours?” 

“It’s my fault,” Qin Man said considerately. “Next time, you can lie down, no need to lift your legs. I’ll take care of everything.” 

“Shut up.” 

Qin Man turned on the car stereo. It was a holiday, close to dinner time, and the streets were packed with cars, barely moving. 

After a long silence, Ji Ran spoke again. “Let’s have dinner together.” 

“Sure.” Qin Man asked, “Out somewhere, or at my place?” 

“At my place.” 

Qin Man paused, turning to look at him. 

Ji Ran said, “…What are you looking at?” 

“You’re willing to let me in?” Qin Man smiled. 

“Stop with the sarcasm. Are you coming or not?” 

“I’m coming,” Qin Man replied. “If you beckon me, I’ll go anywhere.” 

They were driving Qin Man’s car today. When they arrived at Ji Ran’s place, Qin Man said, “I’ll park and be right back…” 

“Park in my garage,” Ji Ran interrupted him. 

Qin Man glanced over again, even more surprised than before.

“I’ve entered your license plate into the system,” Ji Ran said, looking out the window, trying to appear nonchalant. “…And I had someone come in to do a little renovation.”

“Renovation?” Qin Man’s heart fluttered uncontrollably. “I didn’t hear any construction noise.”

“It wasn’t much effort. They only worked during the times you were at the office. After all, you’re always dragging your employees to your place for meetings, aren’t you?” Ji Ran sneered. “It wasn’t much… just a study and a walk-in closet, and I added an extra toothbrush holder… and some other things.”

Qin Man was stunned, unable to speak for a while.

So, the reason Ji Ran didn’t let him enter the house the past few days was because of the renovations?

Emotions surged within Qin Man, and a smile he couldn’t hide tugged at his lips. “Baby, are you… proposing to me?”

Ji Ran was shocked. “When did I propose to you?!”

“I accept.”

“…I said I’m not proposing.”

“Then I’ll propose to you. Marry me.” Qin Man smiled. “Either way, I won’t let you marry anyone else in this lifetime, and it’s even less likely I’d let you marry me off.”

Ji Ran gave him a sideways glance. “And then?”

“Hmm?”

“That’s how you propose?” Ji Ran scoffed. “We take a bath in a public bathhouse, come back to the car, you casually say a few words, and expect me to marry you?”

Qin Man’s smile faded as he stared at Ji Ran for a few seconds. “Wait here for me.”

Ji Ran was puzzled. “What?”

Qin Man didn’t reply. He opened the door and quickly headed back to the house, leaving Ji Ran alone in the car.

Before Ji Ran could figure out what was going on, not even a minute had passed when Qin Man returned.

Seeing him hurriedly get back into the car, Ji Ran chuckled. “What are you up to…”

But his words trailed off when he saw Qin Man take out a ring box.

“The ring I gave you on Chen An’s birthday was a last-minute purchase,” Qin Man said. “I didn’t want you to get suspicious, so it wasn’t very expensive.”

“…”

Qin Man opened the ring box, revealing a simple and elegant silver ring with two simple grooves on the sides and a diamond in the center.

“I had this one custom-made. The inside has your initials engraved.”

“My initials?” Ji Ran was dumbfounded.

Shouldn’t it have the other person’s initials?

Noticing what he was thinking, Qin Man chuckled. “I was afraid you wouldn’t want to wear it if it had mine.”

Ji Ran was left speechless.

Qin Man paused for a moment. “If you’re not satisfied, I can think of something else and propose again next time.”

“I’ll take the ring.” Ji Ran took the ring from the box and slid it onto his finger. “But this doesn’t count as an engagement ring, and I didn’t agree to your proposal.”

“Make another one.” He continued, “…One with your name on it.”

Qin Man realized that ever since he started dating Ji Ran, his emotions—joy, anger, sorrow, and happiness—were almost entirely tied to this man.

It was a strange feeling.

He was completely immersed in it, thoroughly enjoying it.

That night, the two couldn’t resist, and they made love on Ji Ran’s bed after a long time.

The day’s physical activity had been too much, and afterward, Ji Ran lay naked on the bed, staring blankly.

He finally couldn’t hold back and turned to ask the man beside him, who was still holding his fingers and looking at them, “Haven’t you had enough of staring?”

“No,” Qin Man answered boldly.

Ji Ran was too exhausted to argue, yawning as he leaned on Qin Man’s shoulder.

Qin Man kissed his forehead. “Little junior, don’t sleep yet… Call me ‘hubby.’”

Ji Ran said, “Hubby.”

“…”

“…”

The two were silent for a while before Qin Man suddenly became alert, sitting up straight. “Wait… What did you just call me?”

Ji Ran looked at him with amusement. “Isn’t that what you wanted me to call you?”

Qin Man had only been teasing and never expected Ji Ran to actually call him that.

“I didn’t hear it clearly.” Qin Man lowered his head, brushing his nose against Ji Ran’s. “Say it again.”

Ji Ran asked, “…What kind of weird kink is this?”

Qin Man looked at him expectantly.

They stared at each other for a few seconds before Ji Ran, feeling helpless, lowered his voice and said, quite clearly, “Hubby.”

“Hubby’s here,” Qin Man responded quickly.

He couldn’t resist, leaning in to repeatedly nuzzle Ji Ran’s lips.

Ji Ran chuckled. “You’re acting like an idiot.”

“I love you,” Qin Man said.

Ji Ran was stunned, his smile frozen on his face as he turned to look at the man beside him in surprise.

They were so close that Ji Ran could even feel Qin Man’s pulse and heartbeat.

“I love you,” Qin Man repeated with a smile.

Ji Ran was speechless. His Adam’s apple bobbed up and down for a long time before he finally found his voice. “I love you too.”

“I’ve loved you… for many years.”

From the first glance, it had been hopeless, beyond saving.

The sun he had constantly looked up to in his youth had now become a light that belonged to him alone.

Huge shoutout to @_nyanmaru_ on Discord for commissioning this! The chapter will be posted regularly, show your support for Ciacia at Kofi.