Chapter 27
Translator: Aafkee
Proofreader: Superclubs2
After work on Saturday, Lu Chuiqing takes a taxi and travels to the restaurant that Chen Yuan told him about. It is a high-class western restaurant situated right in the centre of the business district. It has a very good environment and, naturally, the cost is high too.
When Li Chuiqing is in the taxi, he recalls the phone call from Xiao Zhan a few hours ago.
He plans to stay over at Xiao Zhan’s today, Xiao Zhan also said that he would eat out with him after work but Lu Chuiqing already has a prior appointment with Chen Yuan so he could only tell Xiao Zhan that he is going to meet his old friend with a slight sense of guilt, telling Xiao Zhan not to wait for him for dinner.
Lu Chuiqing can eat together with Xiao Zhan for every meal after this, but today’s meal has to be with Chen Yuan. He does not want to drag it any longer.
Xiao Zhan did not ask much either. He merely asked Lu Chuiqing to send him a message when he is done and he will ask his driver to fetch him home.
After arriving at the business district, Lu Chuiqing takes the elevator and arrives at the top floor of the shopping centre. There is an open-air garden on the top floor, a small glass trail is installed on top of a small pond and there is even a small observatory near the restaurant, a perfect spot for couples on a date.
A waiter leads Lu Chuiqing across the small trail. He sees Chen Yuan at the patio seats.
Lu Chuiqing lets out a breath slowly and walks forward, “Manager Chen.”
There is a bottle of red wine and two wine glasses on the table. Chen Yuan turns his head and looks at him. Perhaps he could not suppress his emotions in time, his gaze is filled with a sense of desolation that Lu Chuiqing has rarely seen in so many years.
Lu Chuiqing’s heart tightens. He understands Chen Yuan’s feelings, he is also willing to apologise ten thousand times if he needs to. The only thing he cannot do is to accept his feelings.
“Sit.” Chen Yuan smiles as he says softly. He gazes at Lu Chuiqing’s face and pushes the wine glass towards Lu Chuiqing, his expression pensive, “I didn’t get to tell you last time but when I met you for the first time at that event, it felt like you’re most likely that right person for me. It may sound a bit unbelievable… but it is the truth.”
Lu Chuiqing listens to Chen Yuan quietly, “Thank you.”
“You don’t need to thank me, you’re worth it.” Chen Yuan smiles lightly, “Which is why I want to meet you once more, hoping that you’ll give me a chance… or rather, an explanation.”
“Manager Chen,” Lu Chuiqing’s voice is very quiet yet firm, “I already have someone I like.”
Chen Yuan’s eyes dull in an instant. At that moment, he does not know whether or not to call this person, whom he can not forget since the first time he met him, too gentle or too cruel. His straightforwardness makes him gentle, yet his straightforwardness makes him cruel too.
Honestly speaking, Chen Yuan is not too surprised to hear that reason. The moment Lu Chuiqing told him that they were incompatible, his heart already had such a premonition.
The bitterness emerges unavoidably in his chest, the pain in his heart is sharper than Chen Yuan had imagined. Chen Yuan’s voice is dimmed by a bit of hoarseness, “I envy him a lot.”
“Manager Chen, you may not want to hear it anymore, but I still want to say that I am truly grateful to you.” Lu Chuiqing’s eyes are slightly wet. His voice is low as he speaks each and every word clearly as if he is speaking his mind to a past shadow through this Chen Yuan in front of him, “I am truly grateful for your feelings towards me… grateful for everything.”
“Your gratefulness is not what I want, you know that.” Chen Yuan smiles bitterly, “Even if you reject me, thank me, I can’t forget you. Just what are you thanking me for?”
Perhaps, this may be unfair to the current Chen Yuan, but feelings are never fair. God has given him a second chance and in this life, Lu Chuiqing met Xiao Zhan first. There will not be space for anyone else in his heart.
Lu Chuiqing takes a deep breath and says, “Manager Chen, I had a very profound relationship in the past. At that time, I thought he was the best in the world, that he was the most suitable for me. I even thought that as long as I was together with him, I could face anything that comes at me… But the truth proved me wrong. I only understood that feelings alone could not solve all problems. If those small cracks in life were left alone for too long, they would only become bigger, to the point where they could no longer be fixed. I gave up too much of what I wanted for him and I regret it.”
Lu Chuiqing pauses. He gazes at the street far away, at the bright lights of the city and speaks quietly, “In the end, I left without saying goodbye… I owe him an apology. I may not have a chance to apologise anymore.”
Chen Yuan listens until the end without a sound. For some reason, at that very moment, he wants to reach out and hug him.
“If I have met you before that person in your heart,” Chen Yuan asks quietly, “Will we have a chance?”
Lu Chuiqing smiles. Instead of answering his question, he says, “I am not your best option, Manager Chen.”
At the end of it, Lu Chuiqing takes a sip of red wine from the glass placed in front of him. The rich and mellow taste scratches his throat, flowing into his heart like threads. He places the wine glass back onto the table, giving Chen Yuan and him tonight, giving his past immature relationship and desolation, a full stop, “Manager Chen, it is about time I go. Thank you for your trouble of travelling all the way here, I hope everything goes well for you for your future endeavours.”
Lu Chuiqing stands up from his seat as Chen Yuan lifts his head to look at him, his eyes look like a deep pit filled with sorrow and reluctance to let go.
Lu Chuiqing turns away and takes a stride forward as Chen Yuan stands right at that moment and grabs his wrist, walks forward and hugs him lightly.
There are no forceful intentions in the hug. There is only struggle and longing one feels when they try to cut themself away from their emotions. The hug only lasted for two seconds before Chen Yuan forces himself to let go; to let go of this somewhat meagre body, a body that he wishes to protect with everything that he has.
Lu Chuiqing is slightly stunned but did not mention anything about the hug. He glances at Chen Yuan in the end, nodding his head to say his farewell before he turns around and leaves. Chen Yuan stands on the spot, his gaze fixed on him until his shadow disappears at the other end of the corridor.
Lu Chuiqing lets out a long breath as he steps out of the shopping centre, his eyes slightly wet. From today onwards, he has no connection to the past him. He can live a life he wants and love the people he truly loves with absolutely no burden or regret.
The driver who came to fetch him is the Uncle Wang he met half a year ago when he was on a business trip at City D. Lu Chuiqing is slightly surprised when he sees Uncle Wang, “Uncle Wang?”
“Good evening, Mr Lu.” Uncle Wang greets with a gentle smile on his face, “Do come in, there is a little traffic jam on the way towards Boss’s house.”
Lu Chuiqing gets into the car and says his thanks. He can not help and asks, “Did you come from City D?”
Uncle Wang, “Yeah. I have always been driving for Boss on this side and the one who drives for Aunt Fang is supposed to be my other colleague. My colleague’s son had a big surgery in April, so he took leave to take care of his son. Boss did not feel at ease letting others pick Aunt Fang up or dropping her off, so he asked me to take over my colleague’s position. Now that my colleague is back for work on that side, I am back here to continue to drive for Boss.”
“Aunt Fang?” Lu Chuiqing pauses and ponders on that last name for a few seconds. He can almost instantly guess who the other party is, “That’s… Xiao Zhan’s mother?”
Xiao Zhan has yet to mention his family members to him. But Lu Chuiqing does not feel the rush in that either. They have only started dating, after all, such things can be taken slowly.
“Yes, Boss is an especially good son to his parents.” Uncle Wang laughs as he continues, “Perhaps you do not know of this yet, but Aunt Fang is a university professor. CEO Xiao will always put aside a few days every two months to go to City D to visit Aunt Fang. I heard from my colleague that whenever he went to fetch Aunt Fang to and from work, her surrounding colleagues were all green with envy. Which mother wouldn’t be proud to have a son as outstanding as CEO Xiao?”
So Xiao Zhan was visiting his mother in City D last time, Lu Chuiqing thinks internally.
But judging from Uncle Wang’s words, Xiao Zhan’s mother does not seem to be living together with his other family members. In the past, Xiao Zhan was a person that he would only get to know about through finance and economics news and information, nor does he have the hobby of prying into other’s family business -- but it is different now. As his boyfriend, he wants to care and be concerned with every aspect of Xiao Zhan’s life.
Due to the traffic jam, it took them almost forty minutes to arrive at Xiao Zhan’s house from the business district. Xiao Zhan’s house is in Linjiang’s new real estate that was only completed four to five years ago. It is a detached, middle-sized three-storey villa.
Every storey of the villa has large french windows, the daylighting is extremely good during the daytime. Every villa in this area also seems to have a large sunroom in its courtyard.
Lu Chuiqing likes houses that have good daylighting that can warm up the house, giving it a sense of livelihood.
Uncle Wang sends Lu Chuiqing all the way to the entrance to Xiao Zhan’s courtyard. Before Uncle Wang leaves, he smiles and tells Lu Chuiqing, “Mr Lu, feel free to contact me directly if you need anything done or if you need to go anywhere.”
Lu Chuiqing feels grateful, “Thank you so much.”
After Uncle Wang leaves, Lu Chuiqing walks up the steps at the main entrance. Just as he is about to press the doorbell, the door is already being opened by someone and Xiao Zhan is standing behind the door.
Lu Chuiqing’s hand, which was about to press the doorbell, hangs mid-air. He stares at Xiao Zhan in a daze uncontrollably.
This is the first time Lu Chuiqing sees Xiao Zhan in anything out of his usual shirt and suit. The latter is currently wearing a set of light grey comfortable clothes. The fitting long sleeves and loose trousers make Xiao Zhan look a lot less cold and strict, but more laid-back.
Lu Chuiqing is a bit distracted by Xiao Zhan’s appearance. Xiao Zhan reaches out to cover the back of his neck and pulls him into the house gently, “Come in, there’re a lot of mosquitoes outside.”
The moment he pulls Lu Chuiqing into the house, his eyebrows crease slightly as if he has just realised something.
Lu Chuiqing returns to himself immediately. He quickly looks around the house before his gaze falls back onto Xiao Zhan.
There is a pair of slippers prepared for Lu Chuiqing by the door. After changing out of his shoes, he even places his leather shoes neatly somewhat cautiously. At that moment, he can hear a series of light and quick footsteps from the stairs. Lu Chuiqing lifts his head to look in the direction of the sound, only to see a light golden shorthair cat sitting at the side of the steps, the fluffy tail coiling around its legs obediently.
Lu Chuiqing’s eyes brighten in an instant. This is the kitty that is on Xiao Zhan’s personal WeChat profile picture. He temporarily threw all cautiousness he has to the back of his mind for going to his boyfriend’s house for the first time and says, pleasantly surprised, “You really do have a cat!”
Lu Chuiqing walks forward and squats down. He is itching to reach out to pat the kitty’s head but is afraid that he will scare it away. He turns his head to look at Xiao Zhan, the question “Can I give it a pat” clearly written on his face.
“Go ahead.” Xiao Zhan looks down to gaze at Lu Chuiqing’s eyes which are twinkling with fondness, “But it’s a bit shy with strangers.”
Lu Chuiqing pats the kitty’s head, its fluffy fur and soft ears give him a sense of being healed. The kitten is, indeed, a bit shy with strangers. It only allowed Lu Chuiqing to pat it a few times before it became unwilling and went to Xiao Zhan and rubbed itself on his legs.
Xiao Zhan bends down and lifts the cat, putting it on the crook of his arm as he speaks to Lu Chuiqing, “Let’s go upstairs.”
Looking at Xiao Zhan hugging the cat as it leans comfortably on his shoulder, Lu Chuiqing isn’t sure whether to be jealous of the person or the cat.
As Lu Chuiqing follows Xiao Zhan upstairs, he asks, “What is the kitten called?”
“Lil Friend.”
“...Lil Friend?”
“My mum got it from her friend’s house and gave it to me. She named her.”
Whoa… Is this a university professor’s unique personality?
Other than the living room, the first floor has a kitchen and bathroom, there is also a room for the housekeeper, a room where all the exercise equipment is, and a storage room. On the second floor, there is a guest room, an empty room, and a room prepared especially for the kitty.
The kitty room has frames for the cat to climb, the floor is covered by pads, bags and bags of cat food and snacks are placed on the shelf, there are even small cat toys on the table.
Lu Chuiqing peeks into the empty room on the opposite side and asks, “Why is this room empty?”
“There’s not much use for it now, so it’s left empty for now.” Xiao Zhan answers, “It can be renovated into a children’s room, or other rooms.”
For some reason, hearing the words “children’s room” makes Lu Chuiqing blush a little, “Oh…”
He follows Xiao Zhan to the master bedroom on the third floor. The room is extremely spacious, the bathroom and cloakroom are connected. Lu Chuiqing steps onto the carpet inside the bedroom and looks around, “Am I… sleeping here tonight?”
“If not?” Xiao Zhan replies, “Wear the pyjamas on the bed, underwear are in the drawers inside the wardrobe.”
“Oh… Okay.”
“I still have something I have to look at. I’ll be in the study room next door, call for me if there’s anything.”
With that, Xiao Zhan walks out of the bedroom and closes the door gently. Lu Chuiqing stands on the same spot for a while longer before he falls onto the bed, face down. His arm spreads and sweeps across the chilly and comfortable bed sheet as he takes a deep breath.
Ah, this is filled with Xiao Zhan’s scent.
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