Chapter 27 Proposal Declaration

Chapter 27: A Proposal Declaration

Ever since meeting Fu Rangyi, Zhu Zhixi had needled him and tested his limits countless times, forcing him into reluctant situations just to see his reactions... Each time, he got a kick out of it. But this was the first time he'd gotten himself into such a tight spot.

Weirdly, he couldn’t back out now. Another voice in his mind kept answering for him: *I want it! I want it!*

He knew it was because today was special—because Fu Rangyi was strictly sticking to his promise, no take-backs. He had to fulfill every one of Zhu Zhixi’s demands. That was why this half-assed proposal was happening.

“I…” Zhu Zhixi didn’t know what to say. In the end, he only blinked. “Do your thing.”

The ring delivery guy scowled, his gaze flickering between the two of them. The more he thought about it, the weirder it seemed.

The scent in the air was *way* too heavy for… well, whatever they were supposed to be doing. Gone at it nonstop for 24 hours? So why did these two seem so unfamiliar with each other? FWB going legit? But no, wasn’t this a *make-up* proposal? Who in their right mind marries *first* and hooks up later…

He glanced again at his high-ranking Alpha client.

“Alright.” Fu Rangyi lowered his head, looking at the pair of rings placed side by side in the jewelry box, then spoke softly and slowly. “Then here goes…”

“Wait.” The stand-in witness suddenly raised his hand, but the moment he opened his mouth, the scent hit him like a punch to the throat, and he swallowed his words.

“Uh, I was just thinking… don’t people usually film this shit? Don’t you two want to record it as a keepsake?”

*We’re not exactly traditional.* Zhu Zhixi wanted to lean into the drunk act and dodge it, but his fake husband spoke first.

“Then please help us record it.”

Zhu Zhixi blinked.

*Did he figure out I’m faking drunkenness? Is he trying to get blackmail material for later?*

“Oh, sure. I’ll do it.” The stand-in witness pulled out his phone, aimed the camera, and directed, “Mr. Fu, close the box first. Yes, when I yell ‘action,’ you kneel, then open it again.”

Fu Rangyi felt something odd.

*Today, it seems like a lot of people are giving me orders.*

But he complied anyway.

The moment the stand-in witness yelled “action,” the apartment’s entryway transformed into a film set, complete with lighting and camera angles. Fu Rangyi was a godawful amateur—no lines, no clue, and a mediocre director. All he could do was butcher the usual rom-com moves.

“Zhu Zhixi…”

He lowered himself, preparing to kneel on one knee, but the next second, Zhu Zhixi hauled him up by the arm. Looking up, Fu Rangyi saw Zhu Zhixi’s flushed face.

“Don’t kneel,” he whispered. “We’re not…”

*Not actually together?*

Zhu Zhixi also stood up, swaying on his feet as he mumbled.

“…aren’t we equals?”

The sudden improvisation sent the amateur spiraling.

Stiffly, Fu Rangyi straightened up, opened the ring box, inhaled, exhaled, and was about to speak—

A phone buzzed loudly, shattering the quiet entryway. The three of them reacted differently. The stand-in witness frowned, his eyes darting around as if hunting down who killed the vibe.

*It’s me.*

"Sorry..." Zhu Zhixi lowered his head and pulled out his phone from his hoodie pocket. The moment he saw the caller ID, his vision darkened.

Damn *Dàzhù*.

Without hesitation, he hung up and muttered, "Let's continue."

Half a minute later, the inexperienced actor steeled himself again. After a deep breath, he spoke softly, "Zhu Zhixi, will you..."

He was interrupted again.

This time, by a retching sound.

Since it wasn’t his fault, Zhu Zhixi seized the opportunity to shift blame, leaning into the bit as he turned to the officiant with a slurred and teasing tone.

"Are you pregnant? Congrats!"

*It’s all* your damn husband’s pheromones! The officiant swallowed hard, coughed twice, and covered his mouth. "Sorry, please continue..."

But Fu Rangyi didn’t pick up where he left off. Instead, he glanced down at the ring. A few seconds later, with a soft click, he closed the ring box.

He stepped away from the entryway and walked deeper into the apartment, leaving the other two exchanging bewildered looks.

With interruptions piling up one after another, anyone would lose steam.

Listening to the fading footsteps, Zhu Zhixi felt conflicted, wondering if it was better to call it off now.

Had he known Fu Rangyi would take it so seriously, he wouldn’t have teased him.

Taking a deep breath, he was about to tell the delivery actor, "Thank you, but we don’t need to continue recording. You can go," when Fu Rangyi returned. In his hand was half a bottle of red wine—the same Pinot Noir Zhu Zhixi had picked from the wine rack earlier, leftover from making mulled wine.

Clearly, Fu Rangyi had taken a few sips. His bite guard was off, and his lips were still stained with wine, red and wet.

He set the bottle down on the entryway table, glanced at Zhu Zhixi’s eyes, then lowered his lashes before speaking calmly.

"This time last year, I wasn’t here. I was at a dig site. I’d already been there for five months, from summer to winter..."

The officiant held up his phone, baffled.

*Is this still a proposal?* Or have we moved on to something else? Please don’t divorce in front of me! And if you break up, don’t file a complaint, okay? This gig’s hard enough.

He glanced at the Beta who had just been acting drunk, only to find him unnervingly calm now.

"One night, there was a blizzard. The snow snapped tree branches, and the noise woke me. It was 3 a.m., and I was worried the excavation site might be damaged, so I threw on a down jacket, grabbed a flashlight, and went out alone. The ground was icy and slippery, and I fell into a deep drainage ditch... But it wasn’t too bad—just a broken shinbone, a fever for a few days, and a hospital stay. No big deal."

His tone was flat, devoid of emotion, as if recounting someone else’s story.

"So, last Christmas, I spent it in a small local hospital. There was a middle-aged couple in the same room—very loving. The Alpha’s wife visited him every day, washing him and feeding him. She was a kind Omega, and on Christmas Eve, she even gave me a beautiful apple. I was grateful."

The officiant still didn’t understand what this had to do with the proposal. But he didn’t dare interrupt.

"Watching their interactions every day, I felt... alien. Like that kind of life had nothing to do with me. I shied away from closeness, hated getting close to people. Stuck alone in that hospital bed, working *from bed* with my leg in a cast, I told myself—this wasn’t the life I wanted. If I’d known that a year later, I’d be married and drinking wine to calm my nerves, I might not have been so certain back then."

Back then, an apple was *only* an apple. But now, looking back across time, I might think—that would’ve made a perfect candied apple *that* Zhu Zhixi missed.

"Honestly, marriage has been... nothing like I pictured. Suddenly having someone else at home, my routine disrupted, everything *felt* unstable—*borderline* chaotic at times. It’s been... messy."

As he spoke, he looked at Zhu Zhixi. Zhu Zhixi sniffled, then lowered his head to rub the tip of his nose.

"Then I realized—it was all just unfamiliarity." Fu Rangyi paused and smiled faintly. "I was like... a kid who’d never been to an amusement park. Scared of heights, scared of water, timid. But then I got a day pass, forced myself inside, and tried to accept this colorful, noisy place. Once I got used to it... I started to enjoy it. Found some sweetness. Felt happiness."

Zhu Zhixi remained silent the whole time, while Fu Rangyi continued speaking on his own: "We’re... not like other couples. From the start, we were both on the same page and had our terms set. But now, I’d like to add something: No matter what’s really tying us together, or how long it lasts, I’m deeply grateful. Even if this relationship ends, you will always be my friend, my family, the most important person in my life."

He almost added one more thing: that he didn’t have many friends—currently, just Li Jiao. So this meant a lot. But after some thought, he decided it wasn’t necessary.

Without looking at Zhu Zhixi’s reaction, he lowered his gaze and opened the ring box one last time, taking out the ruby wedding ring he had chosen for him. Staring at its dazzling, fiery sparkle, he took half a step forward.

"So, Zhu Zhixi, will you take this promise and be the one who comes first for me?"

Zhu Zhixi pressed his lips together, feeling as though breathing had become difficult. His lashes fluttered, and his heart clenched with a pang, as if something were about to burst and spill from the corners of his eyes.

This was the weirdest damn proposal he’d ever heard. He had been to so many places, met countless people, and none of them were like Fu Rangyi.

Who actually takes a drunk’s rambling to heart? Who would propose without sweet words, filling every line with endings and farewells?

Fu Rangyi. All business at work. Nitpicky in life. Yet here he was, fumbling to hide what he really meant: Even if they started as a contractual marriage, the emotional bond that formed was genuine and natural.

They could be best friends with a marriage license, or family under the guise of partners—no matter what kind of relationship, it was precious to him.

Zhu Zhixi almost laughed. Never mind the totally lost "witness"—in the entire world, probably only the two of them could understand this proposal.

But he didn’t laugh. He was scared if he did, he’d start crying instead.

And he didn’t even understand why these tears had come. His heart, his emotions—everything was a tangled mess.

He grabbed the bottle from the entryway and chugged the whole thing.

Even so, even though Zhu Zhixi couldn’t sort out his thoughts at all, he knew one thing with absolute clarity—he didn’t want to make Fu Rangyi wait.

After finishing the wine, he set the bottle down, clenched his slightly trembling hand, and reached out, lifting his gaze to Fu Rangyi. "I do."

Fu Rangyi clearly froze for a second.

"Come on."

Only then did he lower his head and slide the ring onto Zhu Zhixi’s finger—for the second time. This time, his movements were noticeably slower, more careful.

And this time, Zhu Zhixi didn’t wait for Fu Rangyi to prompt him. He naturally picked up the other ring. Before putting it on, he held it up to his eyes, examining it closely. Suddenly, he took a sharp breath and shouted, "They messed up the engraving!"

"What?"

The other two people in the room jumped in shock.

But Zhu Zhixi burst into laughter. "Psych!" Then he grinned at the witness. "And you too."

Turning back, he was startled to see the witness’s face streaked with tears, glistening.

"Wait, he’s proposing to me—why are *you* crying?" Damn, you’re a mess. Zhu Zhixi was baffled. "Did you even understand any of that?"

The witness wiped his tears with his work uniform and sniffled.

Your man’s pheromones got me!

Zhu Zhixi turned back, grabbing Fu Rangyi’s hand just like he had during their first blind date, holding it between both of his. "Lemme warm you up. Your hands are freezing."

Fu Rangyi stared at his drunken face and the ring that looked all too easy to lose, softly reminding him, "Just put it on me."

"Oh, right." Zhu Zhixi grinned, messing with the ring before finally getting it on. Then he lifted Fu Rangyi’s hand and asked the witness, "How’s my hubby look with this?"

The witness nodded, still bawling. "Perfect. Absolutely perfect."

Zhu Zhixi laughed again. "I think so too, so pretty."

The next second, he collapsed into Fu Rangyi's arms like a wet noodle. This time, he wasn’t pretending—he was genuinely drunk.

"Oh dear, Mr. Zhu seems to have blacked out," the witness said. "I was going to suggest the two of you share a kiss."

A kiss?

No way.

Fu Rangyi loosely held him and glanced at the regretful onlooker still tearing up, feeling a bit sorry for him having to witness this farce.

So he thanked him, helped Zhu Zhixi to the sofa, and got him situated before returning to the study. He opened a box, took out a few wedding favors meant for coworkers, handed them to the deliveryman, walked him out, even giving him a fat tip in a red envelope.

When he returned home, he was shocked to see Zhu Zhixi upright again.

He was leaning quietly against the sofa pillow, his face flushed, his eyes still bright but spaced out, as if lost in thought.

"Do you want to go back to your room to sleep?" Fu Rangyi knelt beside him. "I’ll help you."

Zhu Zhixi lowered his gaze, and after a dazed moment, his gaze landed on something. He grinned like a kid.

At that moment, Fu Rangyi had a strange thought—Is this the real drunk Zhu Zhixi? Quiet, well-behaved, silent.

He watched quietly too, until Zhu Zhixi reached out with burning hands and squeezed his face.

Fu Rangyi caught his wrist. "What are you doing?"

Zhu Zhixi grinned again.

His phone buzzed insistently—Zhu Zhixi’s phone ringing nonstop. But he couldn’t be bothered to look.

Fu Rangyi reminded him, "Your phone’s ringing."

Only then did Zhu Zhixi speak slowly. "Zhu Zeran. Ugh. Forget him."

"You find him annoying?" Fu Rangyi asked.

"Mhm."

"Who else annoys you?"

"...Old Zhu. Nosey as hell. So annoying."

"Anyone else?"

Zhu Zhixi squished his cheeks, then suddenly leaned in close and murmured, "And you."

Their noses brushed, and Fu Rangyi froze, his breath catching.

After a while, he also murmured, "Why do I annoy you?"

Zhu Zhixi blinked slowly, his hands pausing. "You’ve messed up my heart."

My heart... messed up?

Zhu Zhixi took a long, quiet breath and added, "You’ve wrecked me too, but I don’t blame you. You’re not well. Can’t help it."

Fu Rangyi, face still in Zhu Zhixi’s palms, felt the warmth seeping into his skin—scorching.

He hesitated for a moment but still wanted to ask the same question again, even though he had just casually declared that any kind of emotional bond was worthwhile.

Even though he reminded himself that Zhu Zhixi loved everyone around him who had helped him. So of course, he would also offer his genuine love to anyone, lighting up dark rooms and soothing bruises.

A little Cupid—just born to love.

It’s just that I happened to be chosen, becoming the lucky one who got to play the half-year partner game.

Knowing this, he still couldn’t help himself.

“What if—just say, what if it were someone else?”

Zhu Zhixi tilted his head slightly. “Someone else?”

“Yeah, not Fu Rangyi.”

Zhu Zhixi’s gaze shifted away, no longer looking at him but upward. This made his eyes appear especially bright, large and round.

A few seconds later, he shook his head. “No way.”

“No way?” Fu Rangyi’s heart stirred.

“Others can’t press a muzzle against me, can’t kiss me, and definitely can’t lick me or touch my—”

Fu Rangyi promptly covered his too-blunt little mouth.

“Okay, got it.”

After a moment of silence, he said to Zhu Zhixi, “Thank you.”

He grabbed Zhu Zhixi’s wrist and lowered his hand. He noticed that Zhu Zhixi was now wearing a ring on his finger, but the beaded bracelet he always had on his wrist was missing.

Where’d it go?

Meanwhile, Zhu Zhixi looked half-asleep, slumping onto the couch, unwilling to get up.

Fu Rangyi glanced at the clock—it was past ten. No wonder he had started talking quieter earlier.

After some thought, he hesitated briefly before standing up, bending down to sweep the tipsy guy up into his arms. Walking from the living room to the guest bedroom, he was about to step inside but paused, lifting an elbow to rap on the door—knock knock—

He looked down and whispered to the person in his arms, “Can I come in?”

It was unclear whether the drunkard heard him clearly, only mumbling into his chest.

“Then I’ll take that as an invitation.” With that, Fu Rangyi walked in, placed him on the bed, took off his shoes and socks, and pulled the covers over him.

Zhu Zhixi was still muttering something, his words slightly slurred. Fu Rangyi leaned in closer to just barely catch it.

“Temporary passes… two of them. One for you, one for me.”

So he’d heard after all.

“Yeah? Then what?”

“And then…” Zhu Zhixi muttered, “Mine’s the only real one. The temporary pass.”

Fu Rangyi wasn’t following. “Why?”

Zhu Zhixi was too out of it to explain, only whispering, “I’m scared.”

This was so unlike Zhu Zhixi.

"Are there things you're afraid of too?" Fu Rangyi tucked the blanket around him.

Zhu Zhixi nodded. "I... I'm afraid of dying."

You're afraid of dying?

"But you still went skydiving, bungee jumping, and explored remote forests and indigenous tribes before?" Fu Rangyi seized the opportunity while he was drunk to bring it all up.

There were too many videos, and he had watched every single one, nearly memorizing the opening lines—because every introduction was the same, with Zhu Zhixi grinning brightly at the camera and shouting, "Look, Mom!" What a devoted son.

At this moment, Zhu Zhixi still hadn’t realized that someone had already watched all his travel videos. His mind was fixated on only one thing, so he just muttered to himself, "I'm afraid of dying. I promised Mom I’d live extra years for her, live longer, and see more of the world for her. But the world is too big—it’s impossible to see it all. Mom."

Fu Rangyi suddenly froze, understanding something.

No wonder he had never met Zhu Zhixi’s mother.

"So, your mom..."

He didn’t get to finish, because he noticed that those beautiful eyes, always brimming with mischief, were now suddenly filled with tears. Soon, tears streamed down.

When Zhu Zhixi cried, he bit his lip, holding back sobs, quieter than expected.

[What makes you cry:]

Never mind.

[I haven’t cried since adulthood, no need to write, and you don’t have to fill it in either.]

So that explained it.

Fu Rangyi carefully wiped away his tears but didn’t know how to comfort him. Just as he was struggling, his hand was grabbed.

With tears in his eyes, Zhu Zhixi looked up at him and stammered, "The countdown I told you about... it's real. I really have a serious illness. I wasn’t making it up to you."

Fu Rangyi nodded. "You also said I could help you."

"That’s true too. Yesterday, after you kissed me, the countdown not only stopped... it even reversed. After we were together, it went back a whole day."

"Fu Rangyi, in the future, can I..."

Fu Rangyi was suddenly overwhelmed with conflicting emotions, very chaotic. For a moment, it felt like he was in a vacuum, with only the sound of wings fluttering. He came over, struck by an arrow—everything had a reason.

But before Zhu Zhixi could elaborate further, he said in a low voice, "Yes." Today was special; he quickly found an excuse. It was his day to follow Zhu Zhixi’s every word, a form of compensation.

"If it can help you."

Author’s Note:

—Mini-Scene: Teacher Fu Cleaning Up—

After getting Xiao Zhu to sleep, Fu Rangyi got up, initially planning to leave the guest room directly. But before stepping out, he turned back, walked to the tent, and gathered all the clothes inside, carrying them to the washing machine to sort.

Before loading them in, he held the clothes, lowered his head to look at them for a while, buried his face in them to take a deep breath, then expressionlessly loaded them and started the wash.

At this point, Teacher Fu had already cleaned up the dining table, tidied the kitchen, put the dishes in the dishwasher, returned to the master bedroom to straighten the sheets and duvet cover, and finally entered the master bathroom.

He found the floor scattered with small ice-blue beads. Kneeling, he picked them up one by one, collecting the final memory fragments—all the previous day’s memories returned.

After a moment of stunned silence, he stood up, cradling the beads as he headed to the study. He took out a small ceramic bowl, dropped the beads in with a clinking sound, then opened a drawer and retrieved a small velvet box from the very back. Inside was a matching bracelet—brand new.

With it in hand, he went back to the guest room, knocked lightly again, entered, walked to the bedside, pulled out Xiao Zhu’s hand, and fastened it around his wrist.

Before leaving, he took Xiao Zhu’s left hand, gently unfolded his fingers one by one, and examined his empty palm.

Then he said, "Freeze."