Chapter 55
After Liang Jinyi moved closer, he began eating the cookies.
As he ate, he stared unblinkingly at Jiang Mi, as though what he was devouring was not the cookie, but the man in front of him.
By now, Jiang Mi had learned to turn a blind eye to many of Jinyi’s actions—holding hands, walking pressed close against him—but every time Jinyi ate while staring at him without blinking, with a look that seemed to say Jiang Mi would sooner or later become his meal, Jiang Mi still felt a faint shiver run through him.
Partly because, as a man, he was not used to being looked at like prey.
But there was another reason.
Jinyi’s gaze was simply too scorching, too focused.
Scorching enough to seem capable of burning him.
Focused enough to make it seem as though he was the only person left in the world.
Jinyi’s feelings were far too dangerous for Jiang Mi.
They were not related by blood, but Jiang Mi had treated him as his own younger brother and cared for him for more than ten years.
So whenever the thought of being with Jinyi arose, Jiang Mi would immediately reject it himself.
It was morally wrong.
It was not allowed.
And yet forbidden things were always so thrilling.
Always so intensely tempting.
After the two finished the large bag of snacks, Jiang Mi wiped his hands clean with a wet tissue.
Liang Jinyi packed up the trash in a plastic bag and carried it to a distant garbage bin.
Jiang Mi stood up to walk off the food.
A familiar voice sounded behind him.
“Jiang Mi, can we talk for a moment?” Lin Wan asked with a smile.
Jiang Mi’s brows moved slightly.
“Sure.”
Lin Wan glanced at the back of the young man carrying the bag of trash away.
She hesitated twice before finally asking, “Are you and he dating?”
Jiang Mi inwardly let out a breath.
He answered tactfully, “Can I choose not to answer that?”
Lin Wan looked at him for a moment before nodding.
“Sure.”
After a pause, she laughed softly.
“But if I lost to him, I’d accept it willingly.”
Jiang Mi did not understand.
Jinyi’s behavior when he had gone to see Lin Wan before had been childish and impulsive.
And besides, he and Jinyi were both men.
Why would Lin Wan say she would willingly accept losing to him?
Lin Wan said, “Last February, when he came to stake his claim and told me to stay away from you, I already felt…”
“Felt what?” Jiang Mi asked.
Lin Wan answered honestly, “That he really loves you.”
Feeling that those words were not forceful enough, she thought for a moment and rephrased.
“That he would do anything to get you.”
“Do anything to get me?”
Jiang Mi froze slightly.
Was that how Jinyi’s feelings for him looked to outsiders?
Lin Wan gave a bitter smile.
“I don’t have that kind of courage.”
She looked at Jiang Mi.
“Back in university, you gently rejected me once, and I didn’t dare try a second time. It was the same when we met through the blind date. The moment you grew cold toward me, all I could do was retreat back into the position of a friend.”
Lin Wan concluded, “So now I actually think he suits you.”
“He suits me?”
This was the first time Jiang Mi had ever heard anyone say that.
He and Jinyi were both men.
He was also ten years older.
Jiang Mi was almost thirty, while Jinyi was still a high school student.
How could they possibly suit each other?
Seeing his confusion, Lin Wan smiled.
“Jiang Mi, a lot of people have pursued you, haven’t they?”
Jiang Mi did not deny it.
“I suppose.”
“But not a single one ever succeeded,” Lin Wan said.
Jiang Mi laughed awkwardly.
It was not that he had never considered relationships.
It was simply that he had never liked any of the people who pursued him.
Lin Wan was the only person he had ever felt a little attraction toward.
But that attraction had been so insignificant that when he gave her up, he felt no reluctance.
Only a little guilt for giving a young woman hope and then disappointing her.
“That’s why he suits you,” Lin Wan said. “He isn’t afraid of being rejected by you. No matter how many times you reject him, he’ll keep persisting.”
“You’re too rational, and you’re not easily driven by hormones. Honestly, your heart is kind of like a rock.”
She smiled.
“Shouldn’t it take a raging fire to properly heat you up?”
“Brother, what are you talking about?”
The trash bin was some distance from the lawn.
After throwing away the garbage, Liang Jinyi walked back and saw Jiang Mi and Lin Wan standing close together, apparently talking.
His brows lowered.
He strode back to Jiang Mi in just a few steps.
Seeing Liang Jinyi return with an unfriendly expression, Lin Wan found it amusing.
She said goodbye to Jiang Mi.
“All right. I’ve said what I wanted to say. I’m going back.”
Jiang Mi nodded and watched her leave.
“Brother, what were you talking about?” Liang Jinyi asked, crossing his arms and staring at him.
“Nothing. We just chatted for a bit.”
Jiang Mi yawned and avoided Liang Jinyi’s gaze.
“Let’s take a nap on the recliners for a while, then go fishing.”
Liang Jinyi stared at him for a few seconds before lying down on the recliner beside him.
Half an hour later, the two carried the recliners and the unfinished food back to the parking area, took the fishing equipment from the trunk, and headed to a suitable spot by the river.
Liang Jinyi did not own any fishing equipment.
Jiang Mi had bought an extra set for him the previous afternoon.
Liang Jinyi had never fished before either.
Jiang Mi explained the basics, demonstrating how to put bait on the hook, secure the hook to the line, choose a spot, and cast the bait into the water.
Liang Jinyi copied him.
He baited the hook, secured it, cast into the lake, and sat on a small plastic stool beside Jiang Mi, guarding his fishing rod.
Every now and then, he would turn his head and stare at Jiang Mi for a while.
The leisurely afternoon passed quickly.
At dusk, Jiang Mi lazily stood up and checked their catch.
He threw the smaller fish and the less tasty ones back into the lake.
Then he and Liang Jinyi carried the remaining half-bucket of fish, packed up the fishing equipment, and drove home.
In the blink of an eye, it was Monday again.
On Tuesday, Jiang Mi received a call from Liang Xuping.
He had returned to Bei City from the northwest and asked Jiang Mi to meet up.
Jiang Mi had a business engagement Tuesday night, so they arranged to meet Wednesday evening instead.
After work, Jiang Mi drove to the quiet bar Liang Xuping had chosen.
Liang Xuping was sitting in a booth and waved excitedly when he saw Jiang Mi.
Jiang Mi sat beside him.
He had attended a business dinner the previous night and drunk some alcohol, so today he did not want to touch a drop.
He ordered a nonalcoholic drink and a plate of pasta.
Liang Xuping’s new career had gone fairly smoothly over the past year.
He had entered two photography competitions, and now magazines and websites were already working with him and commissioning photographs.
His recent trip to the northwest had been for a magazine, photographing the natural scenery and street history of small cities there.
“Jiang Mi, you and Jinyi still haven’t made up?”
Compared with his career, Liang Xuping was clearly more concerned about this.
“We made up,” Jiang Mi said.
Liang Xuping looked startled.
For the past year, whenever he brought this up, Jiang Mi had only told him that he knew what he was doing.
Liang Xuping looked suspicious.
“Really?”
“We went fishing together last weekend,” Jiang Mi said.
Liang Xuping stared at him for a moment, then asked curiously, “Jiang Mi, can you finally tell me why you and Jinyi fought?”
“Come on. You’re a grown man. Can you stop being so nosy?” Jiang Mi sighed.
Liang Xuping spoke theatrically.
“Fine, fine. I know. Once children grow up and have secrets, they stop telling their parents.”
Amused, Jiang Mi kicked him.
After that, Liang Xuping began talking about interesting things that had happened during his photography trip.
He told the stories vividly, and Jiang Mi listened with interest.
Halfway through, the screen of Liang Xuping’s phone, lying on the light-brown table, lit up.
Someone had sent him a message.
“Let me check my phone.”
Liang Xuping stopped talking and picked it up.
Then Jiang Mi saw a familiar smile appear on his face.
Several minutes later, Liang Xuping put down his phone.
“So, about the Gobi Desert. In Xicheng—”
Jiang Mi nudged him with the tip of his shoe.
“Hey, forget the Gobi Desert. Tell me about the person who just messaged you.”
Liang Xuping clicked his tongue twice and looked at Jiang Mi admiringly.
“As expected of my good brother. Nothing escapes your sharp eyes.”
He chuckled twice, took out his phone, and quickly pulled up a photo for Jiang Mi.
“Pretty, right?”
The girl in the photo had striking features.
Her hair was tied in a simple ponytail, she wore a padded coat, and her smile was open and cheerful.
She could not be called stunningly beautiful, but she had a pure, natural look and a distinctive charm.
“She looks pretty young. How old is she? What does she do?”
“Twenty-one. She works at the front desk of the guesthouse where I stayed,” Liang Xuping answered.
“That young?”
Liang Xuping had started dating in university and had had three girlfriends in total, all within two years of his age.
“Has she graduated from university?” Jiang Mi asked.
“She didn’t go to university,” Liang Xuping said.
Jiang Mi gave a puzzled hum.
“The education quality where she grew up wasn’t good. She stopped studying after middle school,” Liang Xuping explained.
Jiang Mi had grown up in excellent circumstances, but he had not been raised in an ivory tower.
Naturally, he knew not everyone had been as fortunate as he was.
Of course, some people simply did not like studying either.
He looked Liang Xuping over.
“Don’t you think the gap between you is a little big?”
Liang Xuping’s previous girlfriends had included an older university student, a business associate he met after starting work, and a piano teacher.
They might not all have come from wealthy backgrounds, but they were highly educated and capable of developing their own careers.
Middle-school education.
Guesthouse receptionist.
It was not that Jiang Mi thought the woman was beneath Liang Xuping.
He simply felt that the difference in their circumstances was too great.
Liang Xuping had been Jiang Mi’s friend for more than ten years.
Jiang Mi had not concealed his thoughts at all, so Liang Xuping immediately understood what he was thinking.
He clicked his tongue.
“Lawyer Jiang, you know, you’re great in every way, except…”
“Except what?”
“You have too many rules and restrictions,” Liang Xuping said.
“If I like her, who cares what education she has or what job she does? Isn’t liking her enough?”
Jiang Mi called him childish.
Then he could not help sighing.
“But…”
“But what?”
Jiang Mi thought inwardly:
Your view of love is exactly the same as your younger brother’s.
The moment he thought of Liang Jinyi, he could not help unlocking his phone.
It was almost seven.
Liang Jinyi usually messaged him as soon as school ended.
Why was there no sign of him today?
