Chapter 71

Chapter 71

"A Yan sacrificed his life for you, completely forgetting his parents waiting for him at home."

Shang Hengan drove, Su Qingrong’s words echoing in his mind: *So it was on February 9th, his birthday, that he had died.*

*So A Yan’s death in his past life was so deeply intertwined with him.*

His hands on the steering wheel trembled involuntarily. Shang Xianwang's phone kept ringing, but he didn't even notice, his thoughts a chaotic whirlwind. On instinct, he drove to the film set where Shang Xueyan was shooting.

The crew members already knew he was Shang Xueyan's brother, so no one stopped him from entering.

Shang Xueyan wasn't in the current scene. He sat on a small stool in the courtyard, intently studying his script.

As if sensing something, Shang Xueyan suddenly looked up.

His eyes met Shang Xianwang's, and his eyelids and body trembled almost imperceptibly. His gaze was filled with suppressed sorrow and a profound sense of desolation.

Shang Xueyan put down his script and quickly walked over to Shang Xianwang.

"Big brother, you—"

"Did you die in your past life protecting my body?" Shang Xianwang asked, staring at him unblinkingly.

Since their parents had been asked to keep this matter completely confidential, Shang Xueyan hadn't expected his brother to find out. For a moment, his mind went blank with panic.

He swallowed. Noticing some unoccupied crew members glancing in their direction, Shang Xueyan grabbed his brother's arm and led him away from the filming courtyard.

Holding his arm, they walked out of the small courtyard, reached the end of the alley, turned a corner, and stood under the dense shade of a sycamore tree in the height of summer. "How I died isn't important anymore," Shang Xueyan said. "What matters is that our family is reunited again."

Shang Xueyan looked into Shang Xianwang's eyes.

Shang Xianwang's eyelashes fluttered intensely.

He cradled Shang Xueyan’s chin with his palm, slowly raised his hand, and held his gaze steadily. Shang Xueyan's eyes were always clear and bright, like radiant sunlight capable of illuminating even the finest dust motes floating in the air.

Shang Xianwang's hand moved from his jaw, along his neck, and slowly slid down to the small of his back.

He tightened his arms around Shang Xueyan.

Shang Xueyan shifted his chin on Shang Xianwang's shoulder, finding the most comfortable position, buried his head in Shang Xianwang's shoulder, and wrapped his arms around his waist.

The familiar blend of sandalwood, jasmine, and laundry detergent had become Shang Xueyan's favorite scent.

Shang Xianwang deeply felt the warmth of Shang Xueyan's body. There were many fears he hadn't dared to voice to Shang Xueyan.

Actually, he had seen their parents' message a little earlier than Shang Xueyan. He also checked Shang Xueyan's Weibo occasionally, looking at his private messages, mainly to filter out any hurtful comments.

Shang Xueyan would read his private messages, but Shang Xianwang didn't want him to see vulgar or malicious messages, so he would delete them in advance from his account.

One night, a few days before their parents went to the company, he saw the private message they had sent to Shang Xueyan, which included a photo of them.

No one knew the panic that gripped Shang Xianwang at that time.

He had ways to prevent their parents from meeting Shang Xueyan, but he knew how much A Yan yearned to reunite with their parents in this world. So, aside from not immediately telling Shang Xueyan about the private message he had discovered, he did nothing and could do nothing.

Shang Xianwang could confirm that he was very important in Shang Xueyan's heart, but he wasn't sure which side would weigh more if placed on the same scale as their parents.

But in truth, there was never any need to panic.

Even before Shang Xueyan's love had reached this point, he was already the Shang Xueyan willing to give his life to protect Shang Xianwang's body.

His love for Shang Xianwang was just as deep as Shang Xianwang's love for him—not even by the slightest fraction.

All fear and panic completely vanished at this moment. Shang Xianwang had never been a person with a sense of security. Their status as brothers, the presence of their parents, and societal views on same-sex relationships were all factors that made it impossible for Shang Xianwang to feel entirely at ease.

Because what he desired was too important to him, almost like life itself. So even the slightest disturbance would stir up a storm within his outwardly calm demeanor.

But from today onward, those storms had finally subsided.

"Was it very painful?" Shang Xianwang let go of Shang Xueyan, putting a little distance between them, and asked softly.

"Not painful at all," Shang Xueyan knew what he was referring to and shook his head.

They looked at each other for a moment. Then Shang Xueyan cleared his throat and said, "I need to go back to filming. The current scene should be winding down soon."

"I'll accompany—" Before he could finish, Shang Xianwang finally noticed the phone in his pocket had been ringing continuously.

He took out his phone. On the other end, Wang Song sounded somewhat worried because Shang Xianwang hadn't answered for nearly an hour. Shang Xianwang briefly and efficiently gave him some instructions, then hung up.

"Go to the company," Shang Xueyan had overheard a little—it seemed to be a very important meeting.

"It's fine. I'll stay with you on set today," Shang Xianwang said, then gently took his arm, interlaced their fingers, and held his hand.

"Alright," Shang Xueyan also liked having Shang Xianwang accompany him.

That afternoon, Shang Xueyan finished work relatively early. They went to a health-conscious Cantonese restaurant, packed several delicious dishes, and headed to the hospital.

Knocking on the door, Shang Xueyan walked in. "Dad, Mom."

Su Qingrong was sitting in a visitor’s chair, looking down at her phone. When she saw Shang Xueyan and Shang Hengan, she acknowledged them with a sound.

"Mom, Dad, A Yan and I brought you dinner. It's Cantonese food—light and healthy. Would you like to eat now?" Shang Hengan asked gently.

Shang Mingde lay stiffly on the bed, staring blankly at the ceiling. "Both my sons are in an incestuous relationship. How could I possibly eat?"

He let out a bitter laugh, filled with a tragic sense of despair.

Shang Xueyan took in his father’s expression and thought it somewhat resembled an actor from a short drama he had watched with his dad—a monk whose wife had died. The actor playing the monk had the same look.

He opened his mouth but didn't dare say it aloud. Instead, he said, "Dad, you need to eat well. Only then will you have the energy to be angry with me and big brother, and to play the role of the evil Queen Mother separating the Cowherd and the Weaver Girl."

Shang Mingde ignored him, performing a silent act of profound heartbreak.

Shang Xueyan ate with Su Qingrong and told her, "Shen Mengkun will be back in a few days. He's the one who looks exactly like Su Yu. Mom, I'll bring him to see you then."

"Alright."

With him and his brother there, his father only wanted to act like a zombie. Shang Xueyan and Shang Hengan didn't stay long and headed home first.

After they left the hospital room and were sure they had gone far enough, Shang Mingde suddenly sat up and complained, "A Rong, why aren't you joining me in opposing their relationship?"

Su Qingrong paused while unscrewing the thermos, turned to him, and said, "Mingde, in his previous life, A Yan lost his life protecting A Heng's body."

Her tone was straightforward, but it had the effect of a bolt from the blue.

Shang Mingde's limbs stiffened—he truly became a zombie.

Su Qingrong continued, "Mingde, do you think A Heng is good to A Yan?"

Shang Mingde's face suddenly fell, and he said hoarsely, "Very good." One could even say that as parents, they couldn't achieve that level of goodness.

"Then do you think there will be anyone who treats A Yan better than A Heng does?"

His lips trembling slightly, Shang Mingde didn't speak the answer, but the answer was clear to both of them.

Su Qingrong continued, "Do you think A Yan is good to A Heng?"

"Will there be anyone who cares more about A Heng than A Yan?"

Shang Mingde fell back onto the bed, looking utterly world-weary.

"Eating?"

"Eat." Shang Mingde abruptly sat up, and said fiercely.

The next morning, during a break from filming, Shang Xueyan checked his phone and noticed that his parents had sent messages in the family group chat, saying his father planned on getting discharged today.

Shang Xueyan was filming and couldn’t pick his father up from the hospital.

Shang Xianwang also had a heavy workload that day, but as the boss, his schedule was more flexible than Shang Xueyan's, so he made time to pick up their parents from the hospital.

After finishing work in the afternoon, Shang Xueyan quickly removed his makeup, changed clothes, and drove the new Ferrari his older brother had bought him home.

Pushing open the slightly ajar security door, Dajin was the first to hear him. It trotted over enthusiastically on its silver-glinting mechanical legs to greet him at the entrance.

Shang Xueyan bent down and patted its cold, metallic head.

Looking up, he saw Shang Xianwang walking toward him, while his parents, seated on the living room sofa watching TV, looked over as well.

It was now the height of summer. The ash tree in the yard was lush with leaves, and cicadas chirped incessantly. Shang Xueyan had left the security door slightly open, and the summer heat rushed in from behind.

He greeted his parents, then turned his gaze to Shang Xianwang, who had now reached him.

Shang Xueyan smiled, his eyes crinkling. "Big brother, I’m in the mood for watermelon. Did you buy any?"

"No."

"Ah?"

"But I can order some now. Which variety would you like?"

A sudden gust of evening wind blew, pushing the partially open security door ajar a little more. The sky behind him was an endless expanse of pink and purple, with romantic evening clouds drifting. Shang Xueyan thought about which variety of watermelon he wanted to eat, while Shang Xianwang waited patiently for his answer.

Meanwhile, his parents, urged by Aunt Wang, headed toward the dining room while also calling for Shang Xueyan to wash up for dinner.

Shang Xueyan looked out at the coming height of summer and suddenly realized—this was going to be an exceptionally beautiful summer.

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Author's Note: The main story ends here. There will be a few extra chapters following the main plot, covering A Yan's career and some other content I wanted to include but didn’t make it into the main story.

Goodnight, dear readers. See you tomorrow.

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