Chapter 27: Are You Getting Married?

Chapter 27: Are You Getting Married?

"Why do you smile at others?"

In the alley, a tall young man stood with both hands pressed against the wall. On closer look, you could just barely make out a second person.

But that person was hidden behind the young man's body, with just a few soft strands of hair peeking out now and then.

Chu Lanting hadn't expected his next conversation with Pei Du to start off in such a weird way.

He frowned slightly as he looked up, a hint of confusion in his eyes: "What?"

Chu Lanting's easygoing nature had become obvious to the kids' parents once his classes started.

Seeing how gentle Chu Lanting was with the kids, many parents who worked alongside him gradually warmed up to him.

During breaks, parents would often come to him with questions.

And Chu Lanting wasn't the type to say no, especially when it came to kids' education.

Before long, more and more people were coming to chat with him.

So when Pei Du asked him why he smiled at other people, he didn't really know what to say.

Smiling at the students' parents was just an old habit of his.

Seeing the man in front of him get even darker after he spoke, Chu Lanting gave a small, awkward smile and, like he used to, reached up to pat his head to comfort him.

But just as he raised his arm, another hand grabbed his wrist.

His frown deepened, and Chu Lanting said quietly, "A Du, you're hurting me."

Pei Du must have just come from the warehouse—his work uniform was dusty, and his grip was anything but gentle.

Seeming surprised that he'd hurt him, Pei Du loosened his grip on Chu Lanting's wrist, and Chu Lanting's expression relaxed.

"A Du, I'm working. The kids' parents sometimes come to me to ask about school stuff. I've told you all this before, right?"

Thinking Pei Du was just throwing one of his usual little tantrums, Chu Lanting wasn't upset at all—in fact, he felt a little happy.

Lately, he and Pei Du's schedules barely overlapped, and their conversations had gone from Pei Du clinging to him nonstop to them having nothing to say to each other.

It would be a lie to say he wasn't upset. He had transmigrated into this book, while Pei Du had accidentally stumbled onto this planet from another one.

He used to think Pei Du was like a baby duck that had imprinted on him.

Only recently did he realize, kind of late, that it wasn't just Pei Du—he had it too.

So now, having Pei Du talk to him, even if it meant throwing a little fit, made him happy.

With that thought, the smile in Chu Lanting's eyes grew warmer.

If Pei Du weren't holding his hand, he would've loved to touch his short hair, which had grown a bit longer again.

But to Pei Du, his words and his expression meant something completely different.

Pei Du stared straight at the man in front of him, at the face that had gotten thinner from all the exhaustion lately.

In his mind, the joking conversation he'd overheard at the workshop entrance echoed again.

It wasn't just today—ever since Chu Lanting started teaching, those rumors had been constantly reaching his ears.

He pressed his lips into a thin line. The more he looked at that bright, smiling face, the more his heart felt like it was being squeezed by a hand, aching so badly he could barely breathe.

"Are you getting married? To her?"

It took him a while to find his voice.

Pei Du's eyelashes trembled, but he didn't dare blink.

Afraid that if he blinked, he might miss the expression on the face in front of him.

Lately, countless people had come to ask him about Chu Lanting.

Out of spite, he'd stopped calling him 'wife,' and the two of them had drifted from being 'partners' to just ordinary friends.

Time and again, he heard others say things like, 'Teacher Chu is already old enough to get married, it's time to introduce him to someone.'

Every time, he wanted to drag Chu Lanting, who was teaching his students, in front of those people and tell them, 'This is my wife.'

But he didn't dare to.

Because Chu Lanting would be mad.

If he hadn't gone to the workshop today because he couldn't stand the growing distance between them anymore, he wouldn't have known they'd already found a suitable partner for Chu Lanting.

That girl—so thin and delicate, whose eyes were full of Chu Lanting whenever she smiled...

It felt like countless fine needles were piercing his chest, the dense ache making him hold his breath without realizing it.

Chu Lanting thought he was kidding.

If he was guessing right, Pei Du was talking about Xiaoyuan.

He was already 27, and Xiaoyuan was more than ten years younger than him. Even if he were a pervert, he couldn't like a kid that much younger than him.

Not to mention, he and Xiaoyuan had only just met today—how could that lead to marriage?

The frown that had just relaxed came back.

Chu Lanting opened his mouth to explain, but before he could say anything, Pei Du's voice reached his ears again.

"No! I don't agree!"

The fierce tone carried his usual bossy attitude, but the end of it had a hint of hurt in it.

"I've been staying away from wife, just like wife asked."

"I haven't hugged wife, and I haven't kissed wife, so why does wife still want to marry someone else?"

"I've been very good, so why... wife can only marry me. Wife is mine!"

The alley was really quiet.

It was still working hours, and most people weren't home.

So even as Pei Du cried and fussed, no one came out to see what was going on.

This made Chu Lanting let out a sigh of relief, a slight smile tugging at the corners of his mouth without him realizing it: "Why are you crying again? What are you, a crybaby?"

Pei Du saw that not only did his wife not comfort him, but she also teased him for being a crybaby, and all the pent-up grievances from the past few days swelled even more.

Tears welled up in his eyes and streamed down like they were free.

Through tear-blurred eyes, seeing his wife's smile deepen only made him angrier.

No longer caring about being comforted, acting on the instinct of a wild beast, he just wanted to claim his prey, to mark it as his own.

"Mine, my wife is mine."

As he watched the young man who had him cornered against the wall bend down, Chu Lanting raised his hand to wipe the tears from his face, his lips parting to say 'stop crying,' when—in an instant—a faint woody fragrance mixed with the scent of a nutrient solution flooded his senses.

Just like before, Pei Du still had no idea what a kiss really meant.

He just wanted to mark his possession, to claim what was his.

This was tough on Chu Lanting.

The memory of his first kiss with Pei Du was still vivid.

He remembered how his lips had been bitten raw, burning with pain, and how that feeling had lingered for ages.

This time, when Pei Du opened his mouth and bit down on his lip again, he instinctively tried to push the person in front of him away.

Unfortunately, Pei Du was too strong. Not only did he fail to push him away, but his actions only provoked the other man further.

As he felt a pair of arms wrap around him, firmly cradling his head, and the man before him deepened the kiss, Chu Lanting's limbs had long gone weak, and only by relying on the strength of those hands could he barely keep from collapsing.