Chapter 103

Chapter 103

Xie Yunshen walked closer to him, his face cold.

Pang Hairu sat slumped against a pillar, a disheveled mess. He fished a pack of cigarettes from his coat pocket and slowly lit one.

"Is it because I'll always have people to bail me out that you thought it was okay to use me as a stepping stone, to make a fool of me whenever you wanted—is that what you thought?" Xie Yunshen looked down at him.

When we were at the orphanage, we were each other's best friends.

Pang Hairu looked up at Xie Yunshen, his lips twisting into a distorted, bitter, almost crazed smile. "I was wrong."

Xie Yunshen didn't want to see that face for another second. He turned and walked away.

"After we left the orphanage, we were no longer on the same level. I guess I'm not qualified to be your friend anymore," Pang Hairu muttered to himself.

Xie Yunshen's face remained cold as he continued walking without pause.

In the empty parking garage, Pang Hairu's voice echoed behind him. "At school, you were always so popular. The girls I liked would only have crushes on you. You liked fighting, and magazines would come to photograph you. I struggled desperately to become a Golden Bodyguard, but you got it so easily. I had to rely on deceiving the elderly with dementia to live the life I wanted, while you didn't have to lift a finger—everyone just handed resources to you... Even if you brought the sky crashing down, someone would patch it up for you!"

Xie Yunshen walked away without looking back, not even taking his car.

Once out of the parking garage, the chill of early winter hit him in the face.

He ran for a while, worked up.

Strange, the winters in City D didn't seem this cold before.

Shoving his hands into his pockets, he walked all the way home. He began to notice that the buildings and skyscrapers in City D seemed different from a few days ago.

Why did that building look so much like the landmark of City A?

He even felt a momentary disorientation, as if he had returned to the City A from the book.

Was he having delusions again?

His phone rang. It was Mr. Yan. In that instant, he was pulled back to his blissful reality.

"A Shen, did you go to the company?" Yan Shiqi's voice sounded a bit unnatural.

"Mm, I'm heading back now."

"Did you see Pang Hairu?"

"Mr. Yan, let's talk about it when I get back."

Not wanting to keep him waiting, Xie Yunshen casually hailed a taxi.

Just like every night three years ago, as soon as Xie Yunshen returned to the villa, he headed straight for the study on the second floor.

Hearing the door open, Yan Shiqi turned around.

"...You saw?" Yan Shiqi asked.

"Mm." Xie Yunshen felt a surge of emotion, his voice catching slightly.

Yan Shiqi was silent for a moment, his words carefully measured. "I didn't mean to interfere in your affairs. It's just that he..."

Xie Yunshen rushed over and hugged him tightly. "Mr. Yan, what are you saying? I love it when you do this! It's so awesome!"

Yan Shiqi was taken aback. "Really? You don't think I'm acting like a bully?"

"How could I? Since when do bullies have your kind of elegance, Mr. Yan?"

"Then why did you walk back?"

Yan Shiqi had just noticed the missed call from Xie Yunshen on his phone in the car and immediately realized the other man had likely come to the company looking for him.

He pulled up the entry and exit surveillance footage from the parking garage at that time. Sure enough, after his own car had left, Xie Yunshen had walked out.

He must have seen.

Yan Shiqi's heart tightened.

"Because I was so stunned. I felt like Mr. Yan was too cool. A man like this actually likes me. I was afraid I'd pass out from excitement, so I needed to cool off in the cold wind."

"..." Yan Shiqi hadn't expected that answer.

"Since I was little, I've always been the one protecting others. Only you, Mr. Yan, are willing to protect me." Xie Yunshen lowered his head, rubbing his face vigorously against Yan Shiqi's shoulder.

Then, wrapping his arms around Yan Shiqi's waist, he squeezed his tall frame tightly into his embrace. "Mr. Yan's body is so warm too."

Yan Shiqi said, "If you squeeze any harder, the chair won't be able to take it."

"I want to squeeze." Xie Yunshen held his shoulders, mussing up his neatly combed hair.

Mr. Yan tilted his head, closed his eyes, and smiled indulgently.

Suddenly, the world spun. Xie Yunshen picked him up, placed him on the sofa by the desk, and kissed him. His lips enveloped Yan Shiqi's soft lower lip, his fingers stroking from the back of his head over his ears, his fingertips caressing the side of his neck before gently cupping his chin.

Sometimes, in the middle of kissing, he would pause to look at that beloved, impassioned face.

Mr. Yan would naturally tilt his head back slightly, wrap his arms around Xie Yunshen's shoulders, and let him continue.

Xie Yunshen's kisses trailed over his lips and the side of his neck again and again.

His tie was undone, slipping with a soft rustle past his shirt collar, then from the sofa to the floor, landing beside Mr. Yan's leather shoes.

Xie Yunshen buried his face in the crook of his neck, greedily taking deep breaths, inhaling his warmth.

Mr. Yan tilted his head slightly, his fingers threading through his lover's dark hair. The resilient texture felt incredibly pleasant.

Xie Yunshen's knee pressed between his legs as he held the backs of his knees, sliding his black trousers down to his ankles.

"Are you cold?" Xie Yunshen felt the hands gripping his own trembling slightly.

Yan Shiqi shook his head, the back of his neck resting against the top edge of the sofa back. He was intensely aware of Xie Yunshen's breathing on him, the texture of the brown sofa against his skin, the light from above dazzling his eyes, and the slight shiver of skin that had just been kissed as it met the cold air after his lips departed.

Breathless.

For the one you love, you wish you could melt them into your own body, becoming inseparable.

Above the black leather shoes and black socks were stretches of pale calves. Xie Yunshen's fingers sank into the skin of his legs, the veins on the back of his hands faintly pulsing, like the winding course of a river flowing through the land amidst clouds and mist.

When Xie Yunshen lowered his head, Yan Shiqi craned his neck to kiss him, kissing the throbbing pulse on the side of his neck—the vigorous vitality, the latent power, all of it intoxicating, letting this force carry him across a sea of smoke and wild waves.

Winter was gradually arriving. A slight chill seeped in through the slightly opened window. The warm-colored curtains in the study swayed gently. Half the night passed, the lovers whiling away the hours here.

That very night, City D welcomed its first snowfall of winter.

Xie Yunshen lay on the bed, tucking him in tightly with a cashmere blanket.

"I don't like snow," Yan Shiqi suddenly said in his arms.

Because in the winter snow, there was once a puddle of blood that soaked into his bones.

That year, kneeling in the snow seemed to have left a chronic problem. Even after coming to this new world, his knee bones would still go cold and numb every winter.

So, as winter got closer, Yan Shiqi's knees grew colder.

Even with the heating in the room, when sleeping, Yan Shiqi had to curl his knees and place them on Xie Yunshen's thighs.

Although Xie Yunshen could be a bit dense sometimes, he knew very well why Mr. Yan disliked snow.

It must be related to what happened back then.

He just didn't understand why only his knees were so affected by the cold. Sometimes, Xie Yunshen would even lift his own clothes to expose his warm stomach to warm them up.

When Yan Shiqi turned over into his arms, Xie Yunshen would cover his knees with both hands.

Yan Shiqi slept peacefully in his embrace.

————

Xie Yunshen followed Yan Shiqi to work at the company.

As soon as he entered the office, he could feel curious stares falling on him. Even someone as oblivious as he was noticed.

Xie Yunshen asked Secretary Zhao, "What's going on?"

"Haven't you been online?"

The internet again. Xie Yunshen was practically developing PTSD from it now.

He opened his phone with a mix of skepticism and hesitation.

What were all these hot searches?

"Crown Prince of Country J Sets the Record Straight on Xie Yunshen"

"Rare Post from XX Award-Winning Actor"

"Prince Blanken of Country E Clears His Young Bodyguard's Name"

...

Xie Yunshen clicked on the prince's video first.

In the video, the young Prince Blanken smiled at the camera: "I've recently heard some unfavorable remarks about my good friend. I care for my bodyguard deeply. Without his protection, I wouldn't have made it to adulthood. Please, friends in Country D, believe that he is a very, very good person."

Xie Yunshen had mixed feelings upon hearing this. According to the royal steward, the princess was still unconscious, and Prince Blanken himself was in danger, yet he still spoke up to clear things up for him.

He clicked on a few other videos, mostly clarifications from past bosses.

Wait, did these guys coordinate this? One or two posting was fine, but did they have to all pile on at once?

Although his reputation was now cleared, something still felt off.

It was just strange.

One thing was certain: Prince Blanken was the only one who was sincere. The other former employers, while also clarifying, seemed to have a bit of gleeful spite, as if saying, "So you've had your day too."

Fortunately, the previous rumors were completely disproven, and the backlash against him had reversed.

As for that video link from the creepy crown prince, Xie Yunshen didn't dare open it.

"Has Mr. Yan seen these?" Xie Yunshen asked.

Secretary Zhao pushed his glasses up. "If it involves you, the chairman will hear about it soon. But it's better not to let Mr. Yan know."

"Why?"

Wasn't this a good thing? This way, people online wouldn't misunderstand that he had approached Mr. Yan with ulterior motives.

Secretary Zhao sighed and walked away. "Never mind. I doubt we can hide it from Mr. Yan anyway."

Xie Yunshen stepped into the office and saw the big boss sitting behind the desk, working.

But why did the atmosphere feel off? The air was chilly—hadn't winter just begun?

Xie Yunshen even imagined a dark, heavy cloud of gloom looming behind the boss.

"Mr. Yan?"

Mr. Yan answered coldly.

So cold.

Xie Yunshen didn't dare disturb his work and went to the hallway outside to do a workout.

Throughout the day, Mr. Yan's aura was frighteningly low.

On the way home, Mr. Yan kept a straight face.

Just as Yan Shiqi was about to pick up his phone, Xie Yunshen grabbed his hand.

"Mr. Yan, did I do something to upset you?" He finally couldn't hold back and asked tentatively.

Yan Shiqi smiled slightly. "You don't know?"

Xie Yunshen's heart sank. Even though he was smiling, this version of Mr. Yan was a bit scary.

"I'm sorry." Xie Yunshen's few brain cells spun rapidly. No matter what, apologizing first couldn't be wrong, right?

"Why apologize all of a sudden?"

Xie Yunshen took the chance to burrow his head into his shoulder and hugged him tightly. "Does Mr. Yan hate me now?"

Yan Shiqi let out a long sigh and glanced at him sideways. "Who could hate you? You're incredibly popular."

A look of sudden realization dawned on Xie Yunshen's face. "So you really are upset about this."

"...Slowpoke." Yan Shiqi closed his eyes.

"Do you want to make me happy?" Yan Shiqi raised his hand and ruffled his hair.

"Of course. What would make Mr. Yan happy?"

The next day, a group of friends noticed that Xie Yunshen's long-dormant chat account had lit up, and he had even changed his profile picture to a photo of Yan Shiqi.

Dog food was flying everywhere.

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Author's Note: The worlds are merging, and soon, Old Five and the others will appear.

Also, promoting my upcoming story "The Boss's Secret." I've revised the synopsis—it's another sweet, healing story.