Chapter 5: The Returned White Moonlight (5)

Chapter 5: The Returned First Love (Five)

Shang Wenyi couldn't be bothered with him; his mind was in a turmoil.

Yu Wanqiu sat beside Li Su, his face ashen. Li Su, wanting a private word with Shang Wenyi, patted Yu Wanqiu’s lower back.

"Go play, babe. I’ll wait for you here."

At this, Yu Wanqiu shot up and bolted. Though he couldn’t ski, he’d do anything to get away from Li Su.

On the ski slope, Yun Jinqiu was the first to reach the finish line. Qin Rui removed his gear and affectionately draped an arm over Yun Jinqiu’s shoulder.

"Impressive, Jinqiu! I never knew you had this skill—you’ve truly surprised me!"

Yun Jinqiu took off his helmet, his messy black hair fluttering in the breeze, highlighting his snow-white skin and lips like cinnabar clouds.

"You’re never home; there’s plenty you don’t know about me."

"That amazing, huh? Then I’ll have to witness it myself this time." Qin Rui grinned. With his helmet tucked under his arm, his sharp, imposing features softened into a surprisingly good-natured smile.

Yun Jinqiu shed his gear and changed in the locker room. When he emerged, he saw Yu Wanqiu inching slowly across the ski slope alone. Meanwhile, Li Su was chatting with Shang Wenyi in the spectator stands, though Shang Wenyi was clearly distracted.

Yun Jinqiu had initially intended to leave, as Yu Wanqiu was Li Su’s companion. But with no ski instructor present, Yun Jinqiu approached to prevent any accidents.

"You don’t know how to ski?"

Yu Wanqiu clung to the railing, shuffling along. Just as he was about to let go, Yun Jinqiu startled him. His feet slipped, and he tilted backward. Yun Jinqiu stepped forward, grabbing his arm to steady him and helping him upright.

"Are you okay?"

"I-I’m fine." Yu Wanqiu gripped the railing again, nervously fixated on his feet, too afraid to move.

Yun Jinqiu stood behind him, rubbing his chin.

"This won’t do. How about I teach you to ski?"

"Huh?" Yu Wanqiu turned, looking bewildered. He thought he’d misheard—why would one of Li Su’s friends help him? He was about to retort but found himself speechless under Yun Jinqiu’s smiling gaze.

Yu Wanqiu’s throat tightened, his cheeks flushing. He tried to reassure himself: *What good could come from Li Su’s friends? No matter how handsome, they’re still wolves in sheep’s clothing.* He pursed his lips, ignoring Yun Jinqiu.

Yun Jinqiu didn’t seem to mind. "Don’t stare at your feet—relax. Don’t lean back, or you’ll fall. Spread your legs, preferably in a V-shape. Don’t keep them too close, or you’ll pick up speed quickly."

Yu Wanqiu listened, mesmerized, unconsciously following Yun Jinqiu’s instructions.

"Like this?"

Yun Jinqiu was silent for a moment before stepping forward to personally correct Yu Wanqiu’s posture.

"It should be like this."

In the spectator stands, seeing Shang Wenyi’s indifference, Li Su delivered a harsh warning.

"I don’t believe you can keep this up forever. Just wait until he gets married and has kids—you’ll be crying then."

Shang Wenyi shot him a cold glance. "What’s it to you?"

Li Su’s expression darkened. "So ungrateful. If I didn’t consider you a brother, I wouldn’t bother with you."

Li Su snorted and glanced sideways at Yu Wanqiu, only to unexpectedly spot Yun Jinqiu. He hadn’t expected Yun Jinqiu to teach Yu Wanqiu how to ski. Squinting, Li Su chuckled cryptically. He lowered his voice and asked Shang Wenyi:

"Don’t you think Yu Wanqiu and Yun Jinqiu look somewhat alike?"

Shang Wenyi frowned, baffled. "No. They’re not similar at all."

"How can that be?" Li Su thought Shang Wenyi must be seeing things. "At the very least, there’s a slight resemblance, right? Their builds are similar—both have willowy figures. Yun Jinqiu is just a bit taller." If it weren’t for that slight resemblance, he wouldn’t have pursued Yu Wanqiu for so long. It wasn’t as if he lacked other fish in the sea.

"It’s just a shame he’s so stubborn, or I would’ve—"

Before Li Su could finish, Shang Wenyi swung a punch. He finally understood what Li Su was implying.

How dare he?!

Shang Wenyi was furious!

Li Su took the full force of the hit, stumbling to the ground. Clutching his swollen, bruised eye, he roared, "What the hell are you doing?!"

Shang Wenyi didn’t say a word, raining down punches like hail. His expression was terrifyingly dark. Only then did Li Su feel a sudden fear. For a moment, he thought Shang Wenyi was going to kill him.

"Are you fucking…" insane?

On the ski slope, Yun Jinqiu held Yu Wanqiu’s arm, coaching him down slowly.

"Good, just like that."

Yu Wanqiu held his breath, gripping Yun Jinqiu’s wrist tightly as if it were a lifeline. Sensing Yun Jinqiu was about to let go, he panicked and clung to him.

"Wait, I’m not ready yet! Don’t let go, don’t!"

The force of his lunge was strong, sending both of them tumbling into a snowdrift.

Before Yun Jinqiu could even cry out, he was buried in the snow.

Yu Wanqiu lay on top of Yun Jinqiu, a clean, refreshing scent filling his senses and making him space out for a second.

"Sorry, I didn’t mean to. Are you okay?"

Yu Wanqiu hurriedly got up and helped Yun Jinqiu to his feet.

Yun Jinqiu got to his feet, disoriented, brushing the snow off his clothes. "N-no, I’m fine. It doesn’t hurt."

Seeing Yun Jinqiu covered in snow, Yu Wanqiu felt truly bad.

"I’m sorry…"

Yun Jinqiu was about to say more when he suddenly heard the sound of chairs crashing over from the spectator stands. He glanced over in confusion and saw Shang Wenyi and Li Su fighting.

*What the hell are they doing?*

Yun Jinqiu handed his ski poles to Yu Wanqiu. "Try it on your own for now. I’ll go check."

With that, he ran toward the spectator stands.

Yu Wanqiu looked at the ski poles in his hands, then at Yun Jinqiu’s disappearing figure. Suddenly, he gave up on learning. He took off his skis and ran after Yun Jinqiu.

Shang Wenyi was going at Li Su mercilessly. Yun Jinqiu took one look at Li Su’s beaten state and was shocked.

*Oh my god…*

He immediately stepped between them.

"Shang Wenyi, get a grip! If you keep hitting him, you'll kill him!"

Qin Rui rushed over upon hearing the commotion and, together with Yu Wanqiu, dragged Li Su away from the scene.

Seeing this, Shang Wenyi still wanted to chase after them, but Yun Jinqiu grabbed his arm, stopping him.

"Shang Wenyi, what exactly happened?"

Shang Wenyi's back stiffened. He turned to look at Yun Jinqiu, then lowered his head dejectedly. "Nothing."

"If it's nothing, then why did you hit Li Su?"

Shang Wenyi: "...He was asking for it."

Yun Jinqiu was momentarily speechless. Though he didn't know what had happened, he patted Shang Wenyi on the shoulder. "Calm down, man. Fighting solves nothing. If you win, you go to jail; if you lose, you end up in the hospital. The gain isn't worth the pain."

Shang Wenyi remained silent but suddenly grabbed Yun Jinqiu's wrist and yanked him into a hug.

Yun Jinqiu froze. "What... what are you doing now?" He struggled weakly.

Yun Jinqiu: "..." *Was he some kind of comfort object?*

In the lounge, Qin Rui helped Li Su patch up his wounds and couldn't help but sigh. "Shang Wenyi really laid into him. What did you do to provoke him?"

Li Su slammed his fist on the table angrily, only to aggravate his injuries and grimace in pain.

"Who knows what's wrong with him?" He hadn't even tried to compete with Shang Wenyi for anything—was it wrong for him to find a substitute? Ridiculous. Just because he was indifferent to desires didn't mean others had to be the same.

Yu Wanqiu stood silently nearby, muttering to himself that Li Su had it coming.

After such an incident, nobody felt like going to the hot springs. They had dinner and then returned to their respective rooms to rest. Yu Wanqiu didn't want to share a room with Li Su, but he had no say in the matter. Under Li Su's threat, he had to enter Li Su's room. Still, since Li Su was injured, he likely wouldn't try anything.

Yun Jinqiu never skimped on comforts. If he couldn't soak in the hot springs, he'd take a bubble bath in the tub instead. The fragrant bubbles filled the bathtub. Yun Jinqiu soaked for nearly half an hour before finally stepping out. He put on a bathrobe, sat on the sofa, and poured himself a glass of red wine.

How should he put it? In two words: *pure bliss*.

But it was still too quiet. Yun Jinqiu turned on the TV and started a horror movie. The eerie sound effects filled the suite.

*Now we're talking!*

Yun Jinqiu took a sip of red wine.

Just then, there was a frantic knocking at the door. Yun Jinqiu's heart skipped a beat, and he nearly spit out his wine.

"Who is it?" Yun Jinqiu called out loudly.

The knocking outside grew even more urgent.

Yun Jinqiu set down his glass and went to open the door. Before he could see clearly, someone lunged at him. Hot breath brushed against his face, and sloppy kisses covered his neck. If Yun Jinqiu hadn't dodged quickly, his lips would've been sucked raw.

"Hey! Hey!" Yun Jinqiu struggled to push the person away, leaning against the wall as he stood up. He stared warily at the intruder, surprised to realize it was Yu Wanqiu.

"Why is it you? What's wrong with you?"

Yu Wanqiu lay on the floor, his face flushed, panting heavily as if in great distress.

Yun Jinqiu crouched down, looking him over thoughtfully.

"You're..."

Footsteps suddenly approached outside the door. After a moment's thought, Yun Jinqiu closed the door.

Yu Wanqiu gradually regained some clarity. Remembering what he had just done, he apologized, embarrassed, "S-sorry. I didn't mean to."

Yun Jinqiu was silent for a moment. "It's fine. We're both men—no big deal. But you... were you drugged?"

Yu Wanqiu nodded.

"Did Li Su do this to you?"

Yu Wanqiu nodded again. He never expected that Li Su, injured as he was, would still be in the mood for romantic pursuits. The moment he realized he had been drugged, his only thought was to run.

Even if he had to sleep with someone today, he would rather it be Yun Jinqiu. At least, he didn't dislike him.