Zhou Ruo An stayed in Lin Yi’s shabby little house for three days. Honestly, aside from the things that happened in bed being irritating, everything else was fairly comfortable.
Lin Yi didn’t give him any special treatment. He cooked and occasionally helped him get dressed, though only when Zhou Ruo An was completely limp with exhaustion yet still insisted on putting clothes on.
Zhou Ruo An didn’t know what was wrong with him, but he actually liked watching Lin Yi put his socks on for him.
The man would be bare-chested, a cigarette clenched between his teeth as he crouched in front of the bed, caught Zhou Ruo An’s ankle, rested his foot on his knee, and slowly pulled the sock on inch by inch. If not for the way his hand would eventually slide upward along Zhou Ruo An’s skin, Zhou Ruo An might almost have felt as though he were genuinely being cherished.
Those ridiculous thoughts came quickly and vanished just as fast. More often than not, Zhou Ruo An would abruptly pull his foot back, turn his face away, and refuse to look at the man crouching in front of him any longer.
Aside from when they were intimate, Lin Yi generally wasn’t clingy. Sometimes Zhou Ruo An would even forget he was half-imprisoned there, sinking into memories of the old days and feeling as though Lin Yi were still that buddy who never refused him anything. Being together felt easy, even pleasant.
But those illusions were always shattered quickly. Whenever Lin Yi kissed him, refusal wasn’t allowed.
Sometimes Zhou Ruo An merely went through the motions. Sometimes he bit Lin Yi to vent his frustration. Lin Yi never grew impatient. If one kiss didn’t go well, then they would try twice; if twice didn’t work, then three times. Eventually Zhou Ruo An would be worn down until all his temper disappeared, leaving him no choice but to part his lips on his own and extend the tip of his tongue for Lin Yi to suck at.
Afterward, Zhou Ruo An wiped the dampness from his lips and said coldly, “Lin Yi, I seriously feel like you’re training a dog.”
Lin Yi laughed and pecked his lips again. “You’re not easy to train. Train you badly and you’ll turn around and bite.”
Zhou Ruo An shoved him away and sat on the sofa with his legs crossed, his eyes chillingly cold. “Why don’t you find somebody else to train? People can even get divorced after they’re married these days. You really don’t have to fixate on liking me and nobody else.”
Lin Yi rubbed the top of Zhou Ruo An’s head, pressed down slightly, and used the leverage to rise from the sofa. His reply was utterly casual. “Sure. Once I meet someone else I like, I’ll say bye-bye to you.” He walked to the refrigerator, opened the door, and asked Zhou Ruo An, “What do you want for dinner?”
No matter how Zhou Ruo An listened to it, those words sounded exactly like something out of a scumbag’s mouth. He sat expressionlessly for a while before saying, “Don’t make my portion. I’m going out later.”
Lin Yi didn’t even turn around. “You walked through that door three days ago at exactly 10:03 p.m.”
In other words, not even one minute less would count.
Zhou Ruo An sighed. “Old Master Jin invited me to play golf. If you really can’t wean yourself off me, then come along.”
Lin Yi turned around, his gaze slowly sliding from Zhou Ruo An’s face down to his chest. After looking him over for quite a while, he finally said, “Sure.”
Shit. Zhou Ruo An gritted his teeth and forcibly suppressed the urge to slap himself across the mouth.
＊
Zhou Ruo An never fought an unprepared battle. Ever since he’d set his sights on the position of General Manager of Jinggui Electronics, he had been familiarizing himself with the factory’s operations while holing up at Old Master Jin’s place to study management.
Zhou Ruo An thirsted for knowledge, but the old man himself was unreliable, teaching him wine tasting and golf every single day. Chefs from five-star hotels and Michelin restaurants were brought daily into the old, cramped, rundown apartment. Zhou Ruo An sampled one dish after another and tasted one wine after another. In barely a month, he had already acquired a few of the mannerisms of high society.
“These may all be superficial tricks.” Old Master Jin sat on the worn-out sofa, his bearing no less commanding for the shabby surroundings. “But some doors can only be opened with superficial tricks. Without them, it’s difficult to find a place for yourself in the world of capital. Even if you manage to crawl your way onto that table, the people already sitting there will still laugh at you.” And so, several membership cards to luxury clubs appeared in Zhou Ruo An’s pockets, including one for a golf course.
On the course, Zhou Ruo An swung the club and sent the ball flying. The shot itself was mediocre, but his posture was beautiful. Old Master Jin sat beneath the shade of the umbrella and enthusiastically applauded several times.
Zhou Ruo An tossed the club to the caddie beside him and turned back toward the umbrella. The sunlight of early spring wasn’t harsh, only warm and gentle, embracing the young man as he approached at an unhurried pace. When that tender light settled at the corners of his eyes and brows, he seemed to become a painting of spring itself.
Zhou Ruo An had been wearing a sour expression for several days, but now he had finally relaxed a little. Sitting beside Old Master Jin, he casually asked, “How was that?”
“You’ve only practiced for a few days and you already look the part. Xiao Zhou, you do have some talent.” The old man’s gaze lowered toward Zhou Ruo An’s waist. “But your waist seems weak today. It affected your swing.”
Zhou Ruo An was drinking water and nearly choked when he heard that. Momentarily at a loss for words, he only said, “I haven’t been feeling too well lately.”
Seeing Zhou Ruo An tilt his head toward the reception center in the distance, Old Master Jin followed his gaze. “If you needed something, you could’ve had the staff bring it over. Yet you insisted on making Xiao Lin go all the way himself.”
Lin Yi had accompanied Zhou Ruo An to the golf course. He had been sitting quietly beneath the umbrella the entire time, speaking little and showing no particular warmth toward Old Master Jin either.
Zhou Ruo An couldn’t stand seeing Lin Yi idle, so he deliberately ordered him back to the car to fetch something. The course was enormous, and even by cart, the round trip would take quite a while.
Zhou Ruo An set down the water bottle, tightened the cap, and slowly said, “I just don’t want to see him.”
Old Master Jin had long since passed the age of enjoying gossip, but he still couldn’t resist asking, “You two… what exactly is going on?” Zhou Ruo An stared at the lawn ahead of them and said somewhat helplessly, “Old man, I won’t hide it from you. Lately, he’s been pestering me.”
“Do you owe him money?”
“No.”
“Do you owe his boss money?”
Zhou Ruo An laughed softly. “Does he really look that much like a debt-collecting thug?”
The old man had sharp eyes, though he was still doubtful. “The way he looks at you seems pretty gentle. Doesn’t look malicious.”
The cap beneath Zhou Ruo An’s fingers tightened another turn. A cold smile hooked at his lips as he said lazily, “He’s into me.”
Old Master Jin remained silent for more than ten seconds. When he finally spoke again, his face was still blank with confusion. “What exactly does he like about you?”
“Me.”
Old Master Jin was already over eighty, his complexion not much different from tree bark. Yet a flush suddenly spread across his face like an old tree catching fire, looking as though he might be done for at any moment.
“He wants to…” The old man, who had never encountered homosexuality in his life, carefully considered his wording. “Establish a romantic relationship with you?”
The phrasing startled even Zhou Ruo An for a moment. The word “romance” felt unfamiliar to him. Up until now, when it came to relationships, he had only ever thought about satisfying physical needs. As for the “liking” Lin Yi spoke of, surely that just meant wanting to sleep with him.
“I guess so,” he replied vaguely.
Old Master Jin had withdrawn from worldly affairs years ago and rarely had anything left to worry about, yet now his brows were tightly furrowed, his face full of concern.
Just then, Lin Yi returned in the cart. He ducked beneath the umbrella, found an empty seat beside Zhou Ruo An, and handed something over. “Your backup phone.”
Zhou Ruo An took it and gave a thoroughly perfunctory thank-you before tossing it onto the table, clearly in no hurry to use it. Then he stood and deliberately put some distance between himself and Lin Yi. “I’m going to hit a few more balls.”
Lin Yi watched the elegant figure gradually recede into the distance, picked up the bottle Zhou Ruo An had just been drinking from, unscrewed the cap, and slowly took a sip.
After three or five swallows, Lin Yi was still staring straight ahead when he spoke loudly enough for everyone beneath the umbrella to hear. “You’ve been staring at me this whole time. Is there something you want?”
Only then did he turn toward the old man beside him. “If you have something to say, just say it.”
Old Master Jin glanced toward Zhou Ruo An in the distance as though finally making up his mind. He straightened his back slightly and assumed the imposing bearing of the man who had once maneuvered freely through the business world. With an almost oppressive air, he said, “Lin Yi, right? Tell me—what would it take for you to leave Xiao Zhou?”
The young man holding the water bottle frowned slightly. “I don’t understand what you mean.”
The old man smiled disdainfully, cold light gleaming beneath his sagging eyelids. “Twenty million. Take the money and disappear forever. Stop bothering Zhou Ruo An.”
“What?”
“Not enough?” Old Master Jin pushed the checkbook he carried with him across the table. “Write whatever number you want.”
“Holy shit.” Zhou Ruo An had just finished hitting a ball and was walking back when he heard this, and he could hardly believe his own ears. “Old man, have you been watching too many TV dramas?”