Chapter 70 Love Me Forever

Chapter 70: Love Me Forever

Summer break flew by and was packed.

Shen Siyu's rainforest project wrapped up. Because of overdevelopment around the area, acid rain hit in late July, wrecking the ecosystem. Lin Yuan and a few other investors pulled their money out. Funny thing is, after pulling out, Lin Yuan privately hit up Shen Shiyan a few times, apologizing to him in both direct and roundabout ways.

Shen Ci didn't want him to see Lin Yuan, but he couldn't stop Lin Yuan from randomly showing up near Shen Shiyan's office. So Shen Shiyan reluctantly brought Shen Ci along to eat with Lin Yuan, but they never once touched their chopsticks. In the end, they found out why he was apologizing: he'd already swapped cars three times, but bullets kept mysteriously showing up in every single one, making him super jumpy.

Shen Shiyan didn't say if he was the one behind the bullets. He just told Lin Yuan that if he came looking again, what showed up in his car might not be bullets next time.

That night, Shen Ci was on cloud nine, like a rocket blasting off into space. He spent the whole night on a video call with the guy who planted the bullets, Shen Sicheng.

Shen Shiyan's right arm was healing up nicely. The cast was off, and a check-up at the hospital said it'd still be about a year before they could take out the steel plate.

Even though he wasn't fully healed, Shen Ci was still pumped. He ordered a little cake from Tianyu to celebrate. He was a regular, and the shop assistant who first helped him was now the assistant manager, so she always hooked him up with an extra discount.

"Make a wish, make a wish!" Shen Ci lit the candle, pushing Shen Shiyan, who had a pretty deadpan look on his face.

He was in a good mood, and Shen Shiyan didn't want to ruin it. So he played along, clasped his hands together, and closed his eyes for like two seconds.

"So half-assed," Shen Ci commented honestly. "Let me do it!"

Shen Shiyan, who thought he'd made a wish just fine: "..."

The sky wasn't completely dark yet. The living room lights were off, leaving everything in a hazy twilight. Shen Shiyan watched Shen Ci, on some random evening that wasn't even a holiday, piously close his eyes before the soft flame of the candle, his pale pink lips mumbling a long list of wishes.

"I hope d-ddy's arm heals faster, I hope d-ddy stays safe, I hope d-ddy has smooth sailing, I hope d-ddy is always happy, always healthy, always lucky, always..."

A whole string of hopes and "forevers."

Shen Shiyan let out a soft laugh. "Isn't that a little too greedy?"

Shen Ci didn't answer and kept making wishes.

"Love me forever."

Shen Shiyan froze. Then he heard Shen Ci add.

"And Brother Sicheng, Song Qiuchi, Sister Xianghan, Zizhu, Sister Mengying, and even Chen Bufan!"

After hearing the second half, Shen Shiyan's racing heart calmed down. The word "love" was way too deep and broad. He knew Shen Ci was innocent; the love that came out of his mouth would never be the kind Shen Shiyan didn't even dare to hope for in his own heart.

Shen Ci secretly cracked one eye open to check how much the candle had burned, worried the wax might drip onto the cake.

"And also," seeing most of the candle was still left, he quickly shut his eyes again, "I hope the people I hate kick the bucket soon."

"..."

Shen Shiyan didn't have time to get all sentimental, because Shen Ci had already blown out the candle, mercilessly tossing the leftover stub into the trash. Then he dipped his finger in some cream and smeared it on Shen Shiyan's lips.

"I washed my hands, d-ddy, don't be grossed out." Shen Ci had planned to dab it on his nose, like Shen Shiyan did every year, but when he went to do it, he got distracted by how nice Shen Shiyan's lips looked.

There was still a bit left on his fingertip. Shen Ci casually licked it off, sweetness spreading across his tongue.

He grabbed a wet wipe, cleaned his hands again, and while eating the cake, watched Shen Shiyan, who still hadn't moved.

"I really did wash my hands."

"Mm." Shen Shiyan felt his whole body heat up after watching Shen Ci lick his finger clean, even with the AC on. "Go turn the light on."

The second Shen Ci turned around, Shen Shiyan quickly licked the cream off his lips with the tip of his tongue, then acted like nothing happened and reached for a new fork.

"Sweet?" The living room brightened. Shen Ci turned back and saw Shen Shiyan opening the box of cake forks.

"What?" Shen Shiyan took one and put the box back.

"The cake." Shen Ci sat up straight, pointing at his own lips to show that the cream on Shen Shiyan's lips was gone.

"I haven't eaten it yet." Shen Shiyan glanced at him, stuck the fork into the cake. "I wiped it off."

"d-ddy! You're grossed out by me!" Shen Ci had a little outburst, but he quickly lost steam. His eyes twinkled mischievously as he ruthlessly called out Shen Shiyan's lie. "Liar. Your lips are a little shiny. If you wiped it off, there shouldn't be any shine, right?"

"..."

After being caught, Shen Shiyan resorted to a more sophisticated tactic—silence and avoidance.

He responded to everything else Shen Ci said, but whenever the topic circled back, Shen Shiyan would clam up.

Shen Ci didn't think anything of it; he even found it a bit amusing.

School started on September 1st. Shen Ci finished all his summer homework by August 5th, because on August 15th, Shen Shiyan had to go on a ten-day business trip abroad. Shen Ci insisted on going along, and to that end, he worked tirelessly to eliminate any potential obstacles Shen Shiyan might throw at him, like homework.

The main purpose of this trip was to attend a core business summit on new energy technology. Shen Shiyan and Song Xianghan, as leading figures in the domestic energy sector, were naturally on the list of invited companies. But the main event was a cooperation bid for the Aether Energy company, requiring two companies to partner on the project. Shen Shiyan and Song Xianghan were determined to win it.

Song Qiuchi had spent the entire summer flying all over the country, wherever her idol was. She naturally wouldn't attend a boring business summit, so Song Xianghan only brought Gao Mengying.

Qi Zizhu took over handling Chonghe's affairs, so only one extra seat in first class was added for Shen Ci.

He found flying much better than taking a boat. His only complaint was that first class had single seats, so he couldn't sit with Shen Shiyan.

The in-flight meal was a super luxurious eel rice bowl. Shen Ci ate contentedly and soon felt drowsy after the meal.

Shen Shiyan, always worried about him, came to check on him twice. In a daze, Shen Ci felt a hand gently pinch his cheek and then cover him with a soft blanket.

He wasn't sure if it was a dream.

The next morning, the plane landed.

Shen Sicheng, who had come to pick them up, was greeted with a big hug from Shen Ci.

"It's rare for you guys to come over," Shen Sicheng said, arm around Shen Ci's shoulder as they walked. "Shen Shiyan, why is your face so sour again?"

Shen Shiyan shot him a glance.

The business trip happened to be in Ethas, where Shen Sicheng was based. When he hadn't brought Shen Ci, he thought his luck was pretty good. But with Shen Ci along, his luck had hit rock bottom.

"Isn't he always like that?" Song Xianghan held Gao Mengying's hand. "Can your place accommodate everyone?"

Shen Sicheng strongly disagreed with Song Xianghan's comment. He patted Shen Ci's shoulder twice and said, "Are you kidding? Now, whether in the underworld or the legitimate world, everyone calls me Master Shen. How could I not have enough space?"

His words were exaggerated but true. The chaos abroad was far worse than at home. Although firearms were legally restricted, Ethas remained the largest arms black market and exporter both domestically and internationally.

As they chatted and walked, Shen Shiyan felt a bit paranoid. He couldn't stand the sight of Shen Sicheng's hand on Shen Ci.

Letting out a sigh to adjust his mindset, he fell a couple of steps behind. Looking up, he saw on his left Shen Sicheng and Shen Ci walking closely together, and on his right, Song Xianghan and Gao Mengying holding hands with fingers intertwined.

It only highlighted how alone he was.

"..."

He should have bought Shen Ci ten more sets of high school entrance exam prep papers, with orders not to leave the house until they were finished.