Chapter 79: Husband
Yes yes yes yes yes yes yes yes!!!
I do I do I do I do I do I do I do!!!
In Shen Shuyi’s heart, ten thousand screaming cats were all shouting the same thing: yes.
But his last shred of reason made him pause just as he was about to nod.
Wait.
Where’s my bag?
Where’s my car, my house, my big diamond ring? ^ ^
You think you can catch this cat empty-handed?
Dream on.
Shen Shuyi composed himself and said with fake restraint, “I’ll think about it.”
“How long will that take?”
“Hmm… maybe two or three days? HR will follow up with you on the next steps.”
Zhao Yuheng feigned distress. “Ah… then forget it, I guess.”
“?”
Shen Shuyi looked at him in disbelief, his catlike eyes wide like copper bells. “How could you give up so easily?! Where’s your persistence?”
Zhao Yuheng was going to tease him more, but Shen Shuyi was already hanging off him, shrieking, “No no no! You already confessed! You can’t take it back!!”
If Zhao Ci had seen Shen Shuyi this lively, he’d think he was seeing ghosts in the middle of the night—and would drag him to a psychic first thing in the morning.
But around Zhao Yuheng, Shen Shuyi knew he was loved openly, indulgently—so he acted as spoiled as he pleased.
“I do, I do, I really do!” he quickly amended.
Zhao Yuheng let out a muffled laugh, unable to hold it in any longer.
Only then did Shen Shuyi realize he was the easiest fish ever—one tease and he’d bite the hook. Once he realized Zhao Yuheng had done it on purpose, he was both speechless and amused.
“What are you laughing at?” he pinched Zhao Yuheng’s arm.
It felt like being brushed by a cat paw—completely painless.
“So… does that mean we’re officially dating now, my boyfriend?”
You keep calling me “boyfriend” like that—how am I supposed to deny it? Shen Shuyi thought.
“…Yeah, I guess.”
“Shen Shuyi,” Zhao Yuheng said softly, “you’re my first love.”
Shen Shuyi froze, then quickly (and guiltily) replied, “You’re my first love too.”
Zhao Yuheng raised a brow. Something didn’t sound right. “You sure about that?”
Shen Shuyi’s face didn’t change a bit—it was a contest of who had thicker skin. “What, you don’t believe me?”
“It’s not that.” Zhao Yuheng drawled. “I just remember… when your ex got dumped, I was the one who drove him to the hotel.”
…
Shen Shuyi: “….”
“What do you mean first love! That only counts if both people like each other and actually dated properly. Li Sijia? Please. That lasted one week! I refuse to waste my precious ‘first love’ title on that scumbag!”
Because he felt guilty, Shen Shuyi’s voice went up an octave—hoping volume would equal authority.
“Oh?” Zhao Yuheng immediately caught the key point. “So you didn’t like him?”
“Of course not!” Shen Shuyi declared firmly.
At most, it had been hormones talking—just a flicker of interest. If he had never met Zhao Yuheng, he might’ve mistaken that flicker for “liking.” But later he learned the truth—real love was different. It was selfish. Emotional. Jealous and possessive. It meant knowing someone’s flaws, their worst sides, and still missing them deeply anyway.
“Ah, my little sweet-talking kitten,” Zhao Yuheng murmured. “What am I gonna do with you? You dare to say it, and I dare to believe it.”
“What do you mean ‘dare to say’! I’m serious! From now on, Shen Shuyi officially announces he’s never been in love before! Li Sijia was just… a close friend I hung out with!”
“Funny, you still remember his name,” Zhao Yuheng said, voice dripping with jealousy.
“Hey, that’s not fair! We just started dating, and you’re already talking like you want to break up?”
“I’m sorry, baby.” Zhao Yuheng quickly kissed him. “Don’t turn me into your ‘close friend who played too well,’ okay?”
Oh. He was getting sarcastic now?
Shen Shuyi bit him on the cheek in protest.
His teeth were clean and white; the neat little marks he left looked like a tiny row of bunny teeth.
“Well,” Zhao Yuheng said, hugging him, “if Shen Shuyi can contact the UN to change my birthday, then changing my ‘first love’ record should be easy. Make sure to notify the Hong Kong press—I’ll buy the headline.”
“People will just think we’re insane!”
Shen Shuyi had plenty of strange ideas—like wanting to celebrate his 80th birthday when he turned 21. Just because he wanted to see a rare cold-firework show that only performed on birthdays.
When he told Shen Lu about it, he argued confidently: “Why can’t I celebrate 80 now? First, I won’t be able to eat much at 80 anyway—why waste good food on other people? Second, what if you die by then? Who’ll cut the cake for me?!”
He got a well-deserved (gentle) beating afterward. Afterward, Shen Lu still spent a fortune hiring that fireworks master—so on Shen Shuyi’s 21st birthday, he got his wish.
It was the first day after he and Zhao Yuheng broke up. And when the fireworks lit up the sky, all he could think was— “If only Zhao Yuheng were here to see this.”
That was the first time in his life he learned that missing someone could feel like a silent tsunami.
“Shen Shuyi.” Zhao Yuheng’s voice pulled him back to the present.
“What?”
“I was just thinking… normally after a confession, there’s supposed to be a kiss scene, isn’t there?”
A kiss?
A what scene?
Who wrote that script?!
A thousand questions flew through Shen Shuyi’s head—but none made it past his throat.
“You’re not saying anything—so I’ll take that as consent?”
His cheeks were burning.
Up until now, they’d only kissed on the cheek or brushed lips briefly.
Never a real kiss.
But before he could react, Zhao Yuheng turned his head and pressed their lips together.
Their mouths were cold, dry. Normally Zhao Yuheng would’ve pulled away quickly—but this time, he didn’t. He stayed close, waiting.
Shen Shuyi’s mind went blank, his knees weak; he nearly collapsed, saved only by Zhao Yuheng’s arm around his waist. And when nothing more happened, his fuzzy brain thought—That’s it?
As if hearing the thought, Zhao Yuheng whispered in his ear, voice low and thick with affection, “Baby, open your mouth.”
…
Shen Shuyi couldn’t resist. He opened his mouth.
Then warmth invaded—his lips pried apart, his tongue claimed, tasted again and again.
Everything—his breath, his rhythm—was taken over.
In that freezing snowy night, they held each other like clutching burning coal.
The kiss deepened, slow and consuming, spreading to his chin, nose, eyelids, ears… as if Zhao Yuheng wanted to kiss every inch of his face.
Shen Shuyi wished he’d just focus on kissing his lips—because it felt so good.
He used to wonder why movie couples never stopped kissing.
Now he knew—it’s addictive.
All he could hear was the soft wet sound and their heavy breathing.
When Zhao Yuheng kissed his eyes, Shen Shuyi would chase after his mouth, clumsily licking his lips like a little animal.
Then Zhao Yuheng would give in and kiss him again—deeply, fiercely—until Shen Shuyi couldn’t stand straight, whining softly until he was pulled back into his arms.
Finally, Zhao Yuheng let him go. Shen Shuyi gasped for breath and murmured, “That felt so good…”
Zhao Yuheng: “….”
When he didn’t kiss him again, Shen Shuyi pouted, rose on tiptoe, kissed him back, and whispered hoarsely, “Why’d you stop? I want more.”
Zhao Yuheng buried his face in Shen Shuyi’s neck, inhaling deeply. He always did that—like Shen Shuyi’s scent made him dizzy.
“Baby,” he murmured, “no one ever told you saying things like that is dangerous?”
“What do you mean?” Shen Shuyi asked innocently.
Zhao Yuheng’s lips brushed his ear. “It makes me want to—”
He whispered the rest against Shen Shuyi’s ear, and within seconds, Shen Shuyi’s face turned tomato red. “You—! Zhao Yuheng! Have you no shame?!”
“What? What did I say?” Zhao Yuheng asked innocently.
Shen Shuyi clenched his fists—furious red cat mode: activated.
“Oh—you mean ‘bully you,’ right?” Zhao Yuheng added smoothly.
“As if! Those weren’t the words you said—you clearly said c—” He stopped himself. Too mortified to repeat it.
He’d never heard Zhao Yuheng say anything dirty before—it was strangely shocking and thrilling.
“You just wait!” Shen Shuyi shouted. “I’ll show you what I can do!”
Then he started a snowball fight.
He was terrible at it, but he blamed his thick clothes and the oversized coat Zhao Yuheng had draped over him.
Unable to form good snowballs, he resorted to trickery—kicking a cypress tree so the snow above dumped down right on them both.
Zhao Yuheng sighed, catching him in his arms to shield him. “My little ancestor…”
A self-destructive snowball fight indeed.
Still, Shen Shuyi had found Zhao Yuheng’s weakness—himself.
He shoved Zhao Yuheng down, and the man played along, groaning dramatically, “Oh no, Shen Shuyi is too strong! Zhao Yuheng is utterly defeated!”
“Fake! Do it again—with the same acting skills you used when you pretended not to know my brother earlier, okay?”
“That’s too hard, baby,” Zhao Yuheng said helplessly. “That was an exceptional performance.”
Shen Shuyi ignored him and dumped snow all over his face.
When he’d had enough, Zhao caught his hands, pulled him down, and hugged him. “Alright, alright, are you calm now? You only have one boyfriend—don’t actually kill him.”
“Who told you to say those things?” Shen Shuyi pinched his cheek.
“Can’t even talk about it?” Zhao Yuheng smirked. “What are you going to do when we actually—”
“Zhao Yuheng! You’re incorrigible!!”
He just laughed, pulled Shen Shuyi onto him again, and when their eyes met, everything melted—naïve affection, want, warmth—and they kissed again, deep in the soft snow.
Snow began to fall once more over Beijing.
Not far away, Chen Fang was trembling as he watched his boss and his boss’s “brother-in-law” flirting and kissing. To make it worse, standing right beside him—was Shen Lu.
Dear heavens, when did he come down here?!
Why does this keep happening to me?!
This was worse than that time he and Second Young Master saw Shen Shuyi asleep in Zhao Yuheng’s hospital bed! Now he was literally witnessing his boss making out with the Third Young Master! At least they were far enough away he couldn’t see details—but that position? That wasn’t “watching their wristwatches glow in the dark”!
Boss, I beg you—next time you sneak around, can you at least go somewhere farther than directly below your brother’s suite?!
Chen Fang barely dared breathe. “M-Mr. Shen…”
Shen Lu pinched his brow. Twice.
“…What sins have I committed,” he muttered.
Then sighed deeply.
“Tell the kitchen to make two bowls of ginger soup. Send them down. Make sure Shen Shuyi drinks his, even if you have to force him. As for your boss—drink it or don’t, I don’t care. If he dies, that’s fine too.”
Chen Fang: (???)
“Yes, Mr. Shen.”
Did he… did he just hear “if he dies, that’s fine too” sound almost like “better if he dies”?
The next morning, Shen Shuyi woke up refreshed. He spent five minutes replaying last night.
Zhao Yuheng came through the balcony.
They went downstairs.
Then Zhao Yuheng confessed to him.
Then Zhao Yuheng kissed him.
He said he loved him. Which meant—he loved him a lot! Anyway, whatever. Shen Shuyi reserved all final rights of interpretation.
He sat up suddenly, grinning like an idiot.
Hehehe.
That meant—they were officially dating, right?
Hehehehehe.
After laughing to himself, he smacked both cheeks with his hands. “Get it together! It’s not like you’ve never dated before!”
Then his smile froze, his eyes widening in horror.
Oh crap!!!
“AAAAAHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHHH!!!”
In the kitchen, Shen Lu flipped an egg, unfazed by the scream from the bedroom. Business as usual.
He turned on his favorite morning talk show: “Good morning, parents! Today’s topic—what to do if your child starts dating early. How should parents guide their children to manage emotions healthily…”
What a relatable topic, Shen Lu thought.
“AAAAAAHHHHHHHHH!!!”
In the bedroom, Shen Shuyi was kneeling on the bed, crying dramatically and punching the mattress. “Damn it! How could I look that ugly during the confession?! And I didn’t even record it!!!”
“How can the Shen Shuyi Life Museum not have a record of my first love confession?! It’ll go bankrupt!!!”
(From the only visitor to that museum, Shen Lu: “It’s not open to the public. It can’t go bankrupt.”)
“And worst of all—there wasn’t even a ring!!!”
Punch. Punch. Punch.
Though to be fair, confessions didn’t really need rings. Luckily, his regret faded quickly—because he remembered he still had something: the ring Zhao Yuheng had bought for him two years ago.
He ran to the closet, rummaged through his luggage, and found it—perfectly kept.
Nice! This morning’s drama segment was ready!
He faced the mirror, composed his expression into one of fierce devotion, knelt, and recited,
“Shen Shuyi, please marry me. I’ll love you forever—even if you don’t love me.”
He’d reused Zhao Yuheng’s confession lines—perfect for a proposal.
Then he switched roles, gasping as “the bride”: “Oh my! But if you want to marry Shen Shuyi, shouldn’t you buy him a mansion, a diamond, a yacht, and a sports car first?”
He paused. “Hmm… maybe that’s too greedy? My expression was a bit too much too. Will it make me look materialistic on camera?”
He shook his head, changed tone—cool and elegant now. “Well, since you love me so much, I accept.”
“…Wait, is that too cold? This is a proposal! I should be happier!”
“Okay okay—I do! I do!”
“Nonono…”
