Chapter 56 Starry Lights

Chapter 56 Starry Lights

Ye Man never imagined he’d end up kissing a man.

He told the system he didn’t like people, and he meant it. Being around people meant he was always on edge, deciphering their moods, figuring out how to act, and occasionally guarding against those with ill intentions, thinking of ways to escape their grasp.

When surrounded by people, he wasn’t himself anymore. He couldn’t control his laughter or tears, and it was exhausting to always be mindful of others’ moods. Forcing a smile when he was upset was even more draining. Only in solitude could he finally catch a breath.

Yet, he couldn’t completely avoid people either.

Being alone meant he didn’t have to worry about others’ reactions, but the silence was overwhelming; even the smallest sound would startle him. At times like these, he desperately wanted to be around people, or else he’d be left staring wide-eyed until dawn.

For Ye Man, the system was the perfect middle ground.

The big shot, Xu Huaiting, was different.

Though Xu Huaiting was always right there in front of him, Ye Man felt free not to smile when he didn’t want to, to cry ugly and loud when he needed to, to lose his temper, and to yell back when he was unhappy.

His arms coiled tighter around Xu Huaiting’s neck, and his trembling fingers reached up to touch Xu Huaiting’s face.

Xu Huaiting paused, then the kiss turned from gentle to demanding.

Ye Man instinctively recoiled.

The cramped car left no room; as Ye Man leaned back, Xu Huaiting closed the gap.

His body felt limp, too weak to push back, and he trembled as he clutched Xu Huaiting’s clothes, sliding down against the car door.

“Wait… mmm…”

Xu Huaiting pulled his hand and pinned it to his chest, forcing Ye Man to tilt his head back further, almost entirely supported by the hand on his waist.

The kiss was too deep, too overwhelming.

And… Xu Huaiting was watching…

“Brother Tong… ah…” Ye Man was so embarrassed he wanted to cry.

The sound of clattering filled the air.

“System: Offline.”

Ye Man seized the chance to turn his head away, gasping for air.

He panted, mouth slightly open, his swollen tongue peeking out.

It finally stopped.

Xu Huaiting’s hot breath brushed Ye Man’s ear. He stared at his red tongue, his pupils darkening, and eventually reached out to touch it.

“Ah…” His tongue darted back, startled, and the boy with wet, reddened eyes looked at him dazedly.

His knee bumped against something, making Ye Man squirm.

Amid the chaos, Xu Huaiting muttered something Ye Man couldn’t make out.

“Don’t move, just stay like this for a while,” Xu Huaiting said, his breath uneven. “Later, I’ll show you something beautiful.”

Ye Man lowered his head, gently resting it against the man’s rapidly rising and falling chest. “Mmm.”

His coat was askew, and his hair was a mess. The white sweater the system had picked out slipped off one shoulder.

Without hesitation, Xu Huaiting leaned down to kiss the mole on his collarbone.

Ye Man’s shoulders quivered, but he didn’t pull away, his face red from the warmth.

Xu Huaiting kissed him and then stopped, pressing his forehead against Ye Man's.

Even a blind person could feel the intensity of his gaze.

Ye Man licked his lips, "I... I actually got my hair done today... and had someone help me pick out an outfit."

He was hinting that he’d taken this meeting seriously—it wasn’t something he could just brush off or skip on a whim.

He’d been looking forward to it. If he hadn’t, he wouldn’t have gone to all this trouble. How could he not want to see him?

But things kept coming up, and for a moment, he thought, ‘Forget it, let it go.’

He was just cursed with bad luck.

If it wasn’t one thing, it was another. Every time he tried to do something, something always went wrong at the worst possible moment.

Maybe this was just the fate of a doomed side character, marked by the system for misfortune. He felt defeated.

He appeared calm as he decided to have Xiao Wu take Uncle Jiang and the others, coolly telling Xu Huaiting he wouldn’t be coming.

In that moment, all he wanted was to crouch down, hug his knees, and bury his face in them, on the verge of tears.

Then Xu Huaiting showed up.

"What time is it?" Ye Man asked.

"Is it too late?"

Xu Huaiting helped him tidy up his disheveled clothes, "It’s not late. In my world, there’s no such thing as ‘too late.’ If you want to do something, do it now. I’ll be with you—it’s never too late."

Ye Man gave a soft nod, and Xu Huaiting couldn’t resist leaning in to kiss him again. ‘You look amazing today.’

He meant every word—it wasn’t just to flatter Ye Man or play along.

Truthfully, he’d been wanting to say it all along.

How did his parents manage to create someone so stunning? How could someone this good-looking even exist?

Xu Huaiting thought about the other members of the Chi family. It wasn’t that they weren’t attractive—he had a decent sense of aesthetics—but...

The guy next to him was on another level.

Xu Huaiting rolled down the window to let the heat out, taking a few deep breaths of the cool air.

It was refreshing—just what he needed.

He glanced at the bag Ye Man had set aside and casually asked, ‘What’s in the bag?’

It was only then that Ye Man remembered he had a gift for him.

He grabbed the bag with the scarf and handed it to Xu Huaiting. ‘Here, this is for you.’

The scarf had been knitted by Auntie Zhou, but Ye Man had planned to take full credit for it. Even though he’d only done a little, he wanted to claim all the glory and exaggerate how much effort he’d put into it.

When it came time to actually give the gift, his words became much simpler. He stumbled over his words, "I had Auntie Zhou knit it for me, but... I also participated a little. I made sure it was extra thick and warm."

"It’s supposed to be magical—wearing it brings good luck."

He didn’t think much of it, but saying it out loud embarrassed him, so he missed the chance to dress up his gift with fancier words. Ye Man was filled with regret, wishing he’d phrased it better. He even wanted to start over.

Xu Huaiting took out the scarf and immediately noticed the slightly crooked characters "Xiao Man" on it, his eyes glistened with emotion.

He gazed at Ye Man with an unexpected softness: "Will you help me put it on?"

He took it.

Ye Man let out a relieved sigh, took the scarf, and carefully tied it around Xu Huaiting’s neck.

Xu Huaiting could see the "Xiao Man" on the scarf every time he looked down, his heart turned to mush. He took a deep breath, brought Ye Man’s fingers to his lips and kissed them.

"The drive’s going to take a while, so if you’re tired, go ahead and sleep. I’ll wake you when we arrive."

His tone was so tender it made Ye Man feel a little awkward.

As the car moved on, he felt a tug on his clothes.

The person next to him had dozed off, head tilted, one hand unknowingly clutching his clothes.

Xu Huaiting started thinking about just bundling him up and taking him away.

...

At the foot of Red Maple Mountain.

Chi Jue stretched his numb legs and rubbed his face, stiff from the cold wind.

He checked the time—10 PM already.

Beside him, crouching in the same position, the young master of the Meng family kept glancing at him.

Playing paparazzi on Christmas was definitely a unique experience.

But after four hours of crouching here, where was he?

Chi Jue was also puzzled. He had called home, and they said the person hadn’t returned, only that they would be back late tonight and not to wait.

If he’d heard right at home, Xiao Man was supposed to have a date at Red Maple Mountain today.

...So where was he?

Meng Yao: "How much longer do we have to crouch here?"

Chi Jue squinted: "They’re here."

In the distance, car lights approached.

Chi Jue stretched his numb legs and pulled Meng Yao deeper into the bushes. His gut told him it was the one!

Meng Yao was also looking at the car, and suddenly he let out a cry, excitedly tugging at Chi Jue to run: "That’s my uncle’s car! My uncle’s car, he’s here to catch us! Let’s run!"

Chi Jue pulled him back, "Stay hidden!"

Meng Yao grimaced: "If he really wants to catch us, hiding won’t help. We should just run."

Turning his head, Chi Jue noticed Meng Yao staring at the car with a dark and sickly expression, frozen in place. Meng Yao followed his gaze to the car that had stopped by the roadside, his eyes widening as he quickly ducked back into the bushes.

"I saw your brother, he got off my uncle's car..."

Chi Jue sneered, "I knew it had to be Xu."

Meng Yao's face turned pale with despair: "It's over. He’s not going to use your brother as leverage, is he? He's too ruthless. What happened to 'leave the family out of it'? Your brother... he's still blind. He’d even go after a blind guy? That’s just heartless!"

Chi Jue silently turned to look at him.

Meng Yao: "Don’t worry, I’ve got this. I’ll get your brother back."

Chi Jue: "Enough. Let’s move."

He pulled the DSLR camera he’d prepped all night from his bag.

Meng Yao breathed a sigh of relief. "Good, at least it’s not a rocket launcher."

...

Xu Huaiting didn’t take Ye Man up the mountain; the excuse to get him out here wasn’t really about hiking.

At the foot of Red Maple Mountain, there was a forest park with a sprawling stretch of towering pine trees.

Usually, by this time, Red Maple Mountain Forest Park would’ve been closed for hours, not allowing anyone in, and the park's streetlights would have been turned off.

Now, the entire forest was pitch black.

For a normal person's eyesight, entering at this time would limit their vision; the moonlight was completely blocked by the tree canopy above, leaving it as dark as if you were half-blind, let alone for someone like Ye Man.

It’s pitch black up ahead.

Ye Man hesitated at the crossroads, too scared to take a step.

"It's okay, don't be afraid, I'm here," Xu Huaiting held his hand.

He moved slowly and deliberately, guiding Ye Man step by step, making sure each step was firm.

Ye Man was on edge; he couldn't see anything and was very scared, only able to feel the gravel path under his feet.

Walking down that dark, unlit path, his heart was in his throat.

In his panic, his feet got tangled, and somehow he tripped, about to fall forward.

As he started to tilt, an arm shot out to steady him.

Xu Huaiting looked at him, seeing he wasn’t hurt, breathed a sigh of relief, and chuckled: "Tripping on flat ground?"

Ye Man kicked his foot in frustration: "My shoelace came undone and tripped me."

Looking down, it really was.

"Hold still," Xu Huaiting squatted down to tie his shoelace, "When did it come loose? Why didn’t you tell me?"

"..." Ye Man mumbled, "I don’t know."

Of course, he knew exactly when it had come undone.

Xu Huaiting glanced at him, "Next time, just let me know."

With a touch of resignation, Xu Huaiting squatted down in front of Ye Man and patted his own shoulder, "Hop on."

After a while, the familiar weight pressed against his back.

"Hold tight," Xu Huaiting said.

The head resting on his shoulder nodded.

The surroundings were still dark, but Ye Man finally felt secure.

Xu Huaiting carried him along the path, and before Ye Man dozed off on his back, he put him down.

"How’s your eyesight been lately?"

Ye Man nodded, puzzled.

Xu Huaiting let out a soft chuckle, hugged him from behind, wrapped him in his scarf, and nuzzled his chin against Ye Man's head, "Keep your eyes open, don’t blink."

In the darkness, lights suddenly twinkled into existence.

Soft, warm golden lights, shimmering.

At first, there was only a faint glimmer, but after a few seconds, the stars merged into a vast sea, as if they were adrift in a golden ocean.

Ye Man’s eyes widened in awe, his eyes straining until they hurt, gazing up at the golden wonder surrounding him.

His eyes sparkled with the same golden light.

Every tree was decked with shimmering golden lights, along with the mountain in the distance that had long passed its season, bathed in light against the night sky.

"Merry Christmas," Xu Huaiting murmured softly in his ear, "I like you, Xiao Man."

His heart raced wildly.

Ye Man’s nose tingled with emotion.

He heard Xu Huaiting ask him, "Can I be your boyfriend?"

Ye Man turned to face him, squinting to make out the man’s blurred features in the golden winter light.

Xu Huaiting held his hands together in his own, blowing warm breath into them.

The two faced each other, their heads close together, wrapped in a red scarf.

Ye Man’s cheeks flushed, whether from the chill or warmth, he nodded gently.

"Yes."

In the corner of the bushes, Chi Jue pressed down Meng Yao, who was about to jump up and rush out to catch his uncle in the act.

"Damn it, he he he! He he he! I never expected, Xu Huaiting, you finally let me catch you, he doesn’t let me date, but he sneaks around himself, just wait till I—ow!"

Chi Jue covered his mouth and put down the DSLR.

He turned over and found a place to sit down, thinking about the two people who were tightly snuggled together and smiling at each other in the lens.

"Forget it, you stay quiet too."