Chapter 35
At that moment, Jiang Mi felt even more uncomfortable. He hazily lifted his eyelids a little, as if realizing that the person in front of him was the culprit making him uncomfortable. Confused, he called out, “Jinyi.”
With something in his mouth, his voice naturally came out muffled and indistinct, damp and blurred.
Liang Jinyi looked at Jiang Mi’s innocent, bewildered expression, then at his own finger caught between Jiang Mi’s lips. His Adam’s apple rolled violently several times before he managed to restrain the urge to push deeper. Forcing himself to stop, he withdrew his finger.
Once the foreign object disappeared from his mouth, Jiang Mi felt comfortable again. His heavy eyelids closed, and he fell deeply asleep.
Liang Jinyi lifted his gaze and looked at his finger beneath the chandelier, glistening with a thin layer of moisture. Then he looked at Jiang Mi’s lips, now flushed a vivid, decadent red after being disturbed.
He drew in a sharp breath and strode back to his room.
And unsurprisingly, Liang Jinyi had another dream that night.
Only this time, the dream no longer contained merely long, straight legs or a narrow, supple waist.
The person in the dream finally had a face.
A face he knew better than anyone.
He watched that person, eyes hazy with intoxication, take a man’s finger between his lips, moving over it until saliva uncontrollably spilled from the corners of his mouth and warm sounds escaped him.
At last, the version of himself in the dream softened. He withdrew his finger and replaced it with something else between those lips that had already been tormented until swollen.
The dream kept shifting, becoming increasingly unrestrained.
Liang Jinyi opened his eyes.
Jiang Mi didn’t like closing the curtains completely when he slept. He preferred leaving a gap about the width of a finger, falling asleep alongside the countless lit windows beyond his own, then waking with the rosy dawn and birds in flight.
Because of that, Liang Jinyi had also developed the habit of not drawing his curtains all the way shut. He, too, always left a small gap.
Liang Jinyi turned his head toward the window.
Outside, the night was black and silent, with only the occasional quiet, brilliant light still glowing.
Liang Jinyi ignored the restless heat in his lower abdomen. He reached for the phone on his bedside table and checked the time.
It was only two-thirty.
With a calm expression, Liang Jinyi searched online for a while and eventually found a forum that seemed suitable. He made a post.
One minute after posting it, Liang Jinyi refreshed the page and saw a reply.
[Fish in the Sky: Did you dream about having sex with someone you know?]
Liang Jinyi’s body was burning, but his expression remained calm as he typed one word.
Yes.
[Your Ancestor replying to J: How old are you, OP? Isn’t this obvious? You’ve fallen for them. That’s why you desire them.]
Liang Jinyi stared at the answer.
He wasn’t surprised.
Instead, there was a sense of inevitability, as if something had finally settled into place.
The transparent membrane that had long covered his heart was finally pierced by his own hand.
In this ordinary, quiet night, he realized with absolute clarity—
What he felt for Jiang Mi was no longer simply the affection of a younger brother toward an older brother.
It was the way one man liked another man.
**
The next morning, Jiang Mi woke with an aching, heavy head. After washing up in the bathroom, he opened his bedroom door and walked into the living room with a yawn.
Seeing Liang Jinyi sitting at the dining table eating a sandwich, he asked in a slightly hoarse voice, “Jinyi, were you the one who helped me back last night?”
Jiang Mi’s memory only went as far as getting into the car. After that, he had fallen asleep and remembered almost nothing.
Jiang Mi had probably just showered. He was wearing a navy cotton robe, and faint traces of moisture still clung to his fair collarbones.
Liang Jinyi lowered his lashes. The room-temperature sandwich in his mouth suddenly seemed scalding hot.
He gave an “Mm.”
Then Liang Jinyi took a deep breath. Seeing Jiang Mi rubbing his temples again, he suppressed every emotion inside him and merely reminded him, “Brother, you absolutely have to drink less from now on.”
Jiang Mi picked up the cup on the coffee table, walked to the water dispenser, and poured himself some warm water.
“I know.”
Afraid that this sounded insincere, Jiang Mi added, “It’ll only be like this for another year or two. Once the firm gets properly established, things will get better.”
Zhuosi had only just been founded. Even though both he and Gu Yuan were highly capable, they lacked connections and had to expand their sources of business. And if they wanted to expand their network, they naturally had to socialize more and meet more clients.
Once Zhuosi had built a reputation in the industry in a couple of years, he wouldn’t have to work himself this hard anymore.
After saying that, Jiang Mi saw Liang Jinyi finish breakfast and return to his room to get his schoolbag.
Taking a sip of warm water, Jiang Mi reminded him, “Jinyi, the weather forecast says it’s going to snow today. Bring an umbrella.”
“Snow?” Liang Jinyi picked up his schoolbag and walked to the entryway. Hearing this, he glanced toward the floor-to-ceiling windows in the living room. The sky after seven was still a brilliant blue. “It’s going to snow today?”
The temperature in Bei City had dropped relatively late this year, and the first snow of early winter had yet to arrive.
“Mm. The forecast says it’ll snow. Take an umbrella,” Jiang Mi said.
However, the weather forecast was wrong that day.
Even after noon passed, Bei City’s first snowfall still had not arrived.
In 2019, Bei City’s first snow came two days later, on a Friday.
That morning, Jiang Mi visited a client’s company and conducted a net asset investigation for them.
When he left the client’s company, he saw one crystal-clear snowflake after another drifting down from the gray sky.
He checked the time.
It was already five in the afternoon.
Jiang Mi didn’t return to the firm. Instead, he drove directly toward Experimental High School.
Whenever school began or ended, there were always many cars around Experimental High School. Jiang Mi parked at the intersection of the road leading to the school and lowered the window.
For a while, he simply admired the scattered snowflakes outside.
More than ten minutes later, school let out, and Jiang Mi began watching the teenagers passing along the street instead.
Until he spotted a familiar figure.
Jiang Mi tapped the horn.
Liang Jinyi turned his head.
Jiang Mi said, “Jinyi, get in.”
Liang Jinyi opened the door and climbed into the car.
After Jiang Mi started the engine, Liang Jinyi asked, “Brother, why did you come pick me up today?”
Although it was snowing, the snowflakes were even smaller than goose feathers. Jiang Mi wouldn’t think he was so delicate that he needed to be picked up because of such a little snow.
And even if Jiang Mi did come to get him, he would normally make him wait in the classroom for a while. Jiang Mi got off work at six, while he finished school at five-forty.
Jiang Mi said as he drove, “I just came from a client’s company and didn’t feel like going back to the firm.”
Looking at the snowflakes drifting beyond the windshield, Jiang Mi smiled.
“Besides, isn’t this the first snow? Let’s not cook tonight. How about eating out?”
“Sure.” Although Liang Jinyi didn’t like Jiang Mi eating outside every day, once in a while, going out to eat with Brother was something he still looked forward to.
“What does Brother want to eat?” Liang Jinyi asked.
Jiang Mi didn’t answer. Instead, he smiled and asked, “What does Little Brother want to eat?”
As soon as the words fell, Jiang Mi saw the red light ahead and stepped on the brake. He turned his head slightly and looked at Jinyi with a smile.
Liang Jinyi’s heartbeat suddenly quickened.
His voice went slightly hoarse.
“Hot pot?”
“Sure.”
The light ahead turned green. Jiang Mi released the brake and stepped on the accelerator.
He drove to a nearby shopping mall and found a busy hot pot restaurant, ordering a divided pot.
The staff worked efficiently. Before long, the steaming broth and all the ingredients Jiang Mi had ordered were brought to the table.
Jiang Mi hadn’t eaten well at the client’s company at noon, so he was already starving. He started with tripe. After blanching it for a few seconds, he placed it in his dipping sauce.
But after filling his stomach a little, Jiang Mi noticed that Liang Jinyi was only holding his chopsticks without eating. Instead, his gaze was wandering around the restaurant.
“Jinyi, what are you looking at?”
Tripe naturally had to be cooked in Sichuan-style spicy red broth. Jiang Mi and Liang Jinyi had only an average tolerance for spice, so they had ordered mild spice. Even so, after a few bites, Jiang Mi’s lips had already turned slightly red.
Liang Jinyi looked at them for two more seconds before raising his gaze to Jiang Mi’s moist eyes.
“Brother, have you noticed there are a lot of couples in the restaurant tonight?”
Jiang Mi genuinely hadn’t noticed.
He had been truly hungry tonight and had only been thinking about filling his stomach. Hearing this, he glanced around and discovered that the restaurant was indeed full of affectionate young couples.
He laughed.
“Isn’t today the first snow? There’s only one first snow each year. Maybe everyone came out to celebrate.”
Then he reminded Liang Jinyi, “Hurry and eat. The beef in the pot won’t be tender anymore if you leave it too long.”
Liang Jinyi was, after all, a seventeen- or eighteen-year-old boy still growing. After an afternoon of mental work, his stomach was empty too.
Hearing this, he lowered his head and began eating seriously.
An hour later, the two put on their coats and walked out of the hot pot restaurant, thoroughly satisfied.
The moment they stepped outside, Jiang Mi laughed.
“Sure enough, no matter what day it is, people can turn it into Valentine’s Day.”
Liang Jinyi followed Jiang Mi’s gaze and saw that he was looking at a flower-selling tricycle not far away.
On this snowy night, roses glowed brilliantly beneath the snow-white canopy, while men and women crowded around the cart buying flowers.
Jiang Mi patted Liang Jinyi’s shoulder, indicating that they should keep walking.
But Liang Jinyi suddenly turned his head and said, “Brother, I want roses too. Buy me a bouquet.”
Jiang Mi: “?”
Jiang Mi froze, then asked in amusement, “Jinyi, do you know what roses symbolize? And you’re asking Brother to buy them for you?”
Liang Jinyi frowned.
“So? Does Brother think our relationship isn’t worthy of sincere love? Eternal love?”
Jiang Mi: “?”
Liang Jinyi pointed at the men and women buying flowers.
“Isn’t the bond between Brother and me deeper than theirs? If they can buy roses for each other, why can’t you buy them for me?”
Jiang Mi: “…”
Jiang Mi fell silent for a moment.
Seeing Liang Jinyi’s expression, clearly determined not to give up until he got what he wanted, Jiang Mi surrendered.
“Fine, fine. I’ll buy them for you. I’ll buy them.”
Roses seemed to symbolize familial affection too.
If Little Brother wanted some, he could just buy them.
Jiang Mi didn’t think it was a big deal.
And so, the two walked toward the flower cart.
There were quite a lot of customers. Jiang Mi and Liang Jinyi waited in line for a while before finally reaching the front.
The flowers were being sold by two young women around twenty. Seeing two exceptionally handsome men come to buy flowers, they exchanged a glance, and even their voices became a little excited.
“What kind of flowers would you two like?”
The cart mainly sold red roses, but there were also several other varieties, such as blue enchantress roses, champagne roses, and Diana roses.
Jiang Mi asked Liang Jinyi, “Which kind do you want?”
Liang Jinyi replied, “Brother, you’re the one buying flowers for me.”
Jiang Mi: “…”
Jiang Mi fell silent for a moment.
His gaze swept across the different roses. In the end, he thought that Little Brother, dressed in a blue-and-white school uniform, suited the cool, striking blue roses better.
He pointed at the blue enchantress roses.
“Those. The blue ones.”
“All right. How many would you like?” the young woman asked.
This time, Liang Jinyi answered.
“Eleven.”
Amid the noisy crowd, Jiang Mi heard Liang Jinyi’s voice and repeated, “Eleven.”
“Okay.”
The young woman swiftly selected eleven blue enchantress roses that were in perfect bloom from the flower buckets. After wrapping them skillfully, she handed the bouquet to Jiang Mi.
“Blue enchantress roses symbolize precious love. May your love remain precious forever.”
Jiang Mi: “…”
Jiang Mi fell silent again.
He took the eleven blue roses and handed them to Liang Jinyi.
“Here, Little Brother. A souvenir of our precious bond.”
Liang Jinyi accepted the bouquet.
“Of course the bond between Brother and me will always be precious.”
Now that the flowers had been bought, Jiang Mi also let out a breath of relief. He led Liang Jinyi out of the crowd, and the two continued down the commercial street.
After walking a dozen or so steps, Jiang Mi suddenly stopped.
Staring at the cat café ahead, he said, “Jinyi, it’s still early. Why don’t we go in and sit for a while?”
Liang Jinyi had never liked fluffy animals, but Jiang Mi did.
He wouldn’t refuse him.
Holding the large bouquet of roses, he said, “Okay.”
And so, the two entered the cat café.
It was Friday, and there were quite a few young people there spending their leisure time.
Jiang Mi and Liang Jinyi walked all the way to the back before finding an empty booth.
Jiang Mi bought several cans of cat food.
He opened them and placed one by his feet, one to his left, one to his right, and another on the coffee table in front of him.
Even though the location wasn’t ideal, the allure of canned food was enormous to the cats.
Before long, several cats had gathered around Jiang Mi.
After finishing the cans he opened, a Maine Coon circled around his feet, while a British Shorthair lay to his right with narrowed eyes, dozing lazily and occasionally flicking its tail against the back of Jiang Mi’s hand.
Another Ragdoll was far less polite.
She sat directly in the middle of Jiang Mi’s lap and exposed her little belly to him.
Jiang Mi had also bought a cat teaser wand earlier.
Holding the feather at the end of the wand, he teased the Ragdoll lying on his lap. He watched the cat stare intently at the swaying feather, reaching out with a paw to catch it.
But just as the cat was about to succeed, Jiang Mi silently raised the feather higher.
The Ragdoll gave him a confused meow.
Seeing this, Jiang Mi couldn’t help laughing softly.
These past two years, he had been so busy with work that he rarely had time for leisure anymore.
As he thought this, Jiang Mi noticed a gaze staring directly at him from across the table.
He looked up and said helplessly, “Jinyi, are you still not interested in animals at all?”
Liang Jinyi hadn’t liked cats or dogs much even when he was little. Jiang Mi had hoped that now that he had grown into a big kid, he might have come to like them.
Liang Jinyi’s gaze moved over the several cats gathered around Jiang Mi.
He shook his head.
“I don’t like them.”
Jiang Mi sighed.
“Then I won’t stay too long.”
He raised his wrist and checked his watch.
“We’ll leave in another half hour.”
Liang Jinyi said, “It’s okay.”
Jiang Mi: “?”
Liang Jinyi leaned slightly forward and looked into Jiang Mi’s eyes.
“Brother can stay here as long as you want.”
Jiang Mi was slightly startled.
He narrowed his eyes.
“As long as I want? You’re not angry?”
“I am a little irritated,” Liang Jinyi admitted after thinking about it, frowning.
But after saying that, his slightly furrowed brows relaxed again. Jiang Mi’s handsome face was reflected in his dark pupils.
“But since Brother likes it, I’m willing to put up with a little irritation for Brother.”
Hearing this, Jiang Mi couldn’t help feeling emotional.
Little Liang Jinyi really had grown up.
He remembered that when Liang Jinyi was little, if Jiang Mi took him to a cat café, or brought Yunduo to a dog café, the boy could endure it for at most half an hour before his face darkened and he started asking when they were leaving.
But now, they had already been here for almost an hour, and there was still no impatience on Liang Jinyi’s face.
He really had grown into a big kid who knew how to be considerate of others.
Meanwhile, seeing the satisfied look on Jiang Mi’s face, Liang Jinyi lowered his lashes, hiding the darkness in his eyes.
Of course he didn’t like the little animals lying on Jiang Mi or circling around him.
But even though he had never pursued anyone before, he still knew that accommodating the other person brought more goodwill than forcing the other person to accommodate you.
Besides, Brother genuinely liked these weak, boring little things.
Although Liang Jinyi had said that Jiang Mi could stay as long as he wanted, Jiang Mi only remained for another half hour before getting up to leave.
When they reached the entrance of the cat café, Jiang Mi caught sight of an A4 sheet of paper placed on the reception counter.
His steps paused slightly.
Seeing Jiang Mi looking at the adoption notice, the young receptionist hurriedly explained enthusiastically, “This dog is a Golden Retriever, six months old, with a very good temperament. I found him by the roadside last month. I’ve already taken him for a checkup. Other than being a little malnourished, he doesn’t have any other health problems. Would you like to adopt him?”
The adoption notice was printed in color and showed photos of the puppy playing, eating, and sleeping.
He was indeed very cute.
The receptionist continued, “I already have a Samoyed and a Husky. Both of them need a lot of exercise, and I already have to walk them for two hours every day. So even though this Golden Retriever is adorable, I really don’t have enough time to raise him. You…”
The receptionist looked at Jiang Mi with anticipation.
Judging by his clothing, Jiang Mi didn’t seem short on money. And just now, when buying canned food and toys for the cats, he had been quite generous.
The little Golden Retriever was her godson, after all.
She naturally hoped to find him a kind, wealthy, and handsome dad.
“Sorry. I’m quite busy with work. I’m afraid I don’t have the time to adopt him either,” Jiang Mi said regretfully.
He had always liked dogs.
But the reality was that he worked overtime for long periods and never knew what time he would get home. Dogs were animals that needed a great deal of companionship.
He truly wanted one, but his circumstances did not allow it.
The receptionist said disappointedly, “All right.”
Jiang Mi took out his phone.
“Do you have photos of this little Golden Retriever on your phone? I can post them on my Moments. Maybe one of my friends is looking to adopt a dog.”
After a pause, afraid the girl might worry, Jiang Mi added, “Don’t worry. I’ll definitely help choose a very kind owner for him too.”
“Of course I do!” The receptionist’s eyes lit up. She took out her phone. “I don’t just have photos, I have videos too. I’ll send them all to you.”
“Sure.”
A few minutes later, Jiang Mi and the receptionist had added each other on WeChat. The receptionist sent over photos and videos of the Golden Retriever.
Jiang Mi selected several especially cute photos and posted them on his Moments. After promising the receptionist that he would contact her if any of his friends were interested, he said goodbye and left the cat café.
He put his phone in his pocket and walked a few steps forward.
Then Jiang Mi couldn’t resist.
He took his phone out again and opened the video the receptionist had just sent him, showing the little Golden Retriever sticking his butt up in the air while searching for a fuzzy ball in the grass.
“Brother.”
Seeing the smile that appeared unconsciously on Jiang Mi’s face, Liang Jinyi suddenly felt a sense of crisis.
“Mm?” Jiang Mi lifted his head slightly.
Liang Jinyi asked in a complicated tone, “You’re not going to keep watching until you fall for him and end up bringing this Golden Retriever home yourself, are you?”
Liang Jinyi could accept Jiang Mi going to a cat café every ten days or half a month and letting those cats rub against him.
But the thought of a dog being able to follow Jiang Mi every day, lick his hands and face, and even sleep beside his bed at night filled his heart with an inexplicable restlessness.
Jiang Mi turned off his phone and flicked Liang Jinyi on the forehead.
“Jinyi, in your eyes, am I really someone with so little self-control?”
Jiang Mi sighed.
“Raising a cat or dog is different from raising a person. When you raise a person, you have to teach them to become independent. Once they grow up, you let them leave your side. But cats and dogs can’t become independent. If you choose to raise them, you have to take responsibility for them for their entire lives.”
“My life has been pretty unstable these past few years. I don’t even know whether I can be responsible for their whole lives.”
“Brother,” Liang Jinyi suddenly called.
Jiang Mi looked at him.
“Mm? What is it?”
Liang Jinyi said, “I won’t leave you. Even after I’m capable of being independent, I still won’t leave you.”
Jiang Mi didn’t take Liang Jinyi’s words seriously.
After all, people changed.
For example, when Liang Jinyi was little, he couldn’t even tolerate Jiang Mi visiting cat cafés or dog cafés.
Now he had grown considerate enough to say that Brother could stay as long as he wanted.
Jiang Mi slipped both hands into the pockets of his camel-colored wool coat and curved his lips.
“All right. Then I’ll wait and see whether you’re still by my side ten or twenty years from now.”
Author’s Note
And then Brother discovered that even fifty years later, Little Brother was still there!
