After being apart for several days, the moment they got into bed Chu Yifeng pinned Wang Cheng down and nipped and kissed at him all over, as though he meant to gnaw a layer of skin off him. Wang Cheng was teased until his whole body itched, and since he could not get away, he ground his teeth and bit down on Chu Yifeng’s shoulder, satisfied when a muffled grunt sounded beside his ear.
Wang Cheng had not been smug for even two seconds before he was attacked below. The two of them tangled themselves in the quilt and rolled into a heap, somehow working up a full-body sweat despite the subzero winter weather. He felt sticky both outside and inside, and with Chu Yifeng pressing down on him until he could barely breathe, Wang Cheng immediately shoved him away, got up, and headed for the bathroom.
Chu Yifeng did not like using condoms. He preferred zero-distance contact, while Wang Cheng thought not using one made cleanup troublesome. Chu Yifeng also refused to finish outside, so every time they were done Wang Cheng had to shower all over again. Wang Cheng had barely gotten out of bed when Chu Yifeng followed right behind him, pushing the bathroom door open as Wang Cheng tried to close it and going in after him. He pulled Wang Cheng into another round there, thrusting until Wang Cheng’s waist and back ached and both legs trembled so badly he could barely stand before finally letting him go.
Chu Yifeng shut off the shower and carried him out around the waist.
Wang Cheng opened his eyes as though he wanted to roll them, but he did not even have the energy for that and gave up. His stamina was actually quite good. He had practiced martial arts since childhood and was stronger than the average person, but being on the bottom took a tremendous amount out of him. Chu Yifeng, meanwhile, was relentless and had a particular fondness for difficult positions. Every time, Wang Cheng wanted to affectionately raise a middle finger at him.
The instant his head touched the pillow, Wang Cheng rolled over and tried to burrow under the covers for a good sleep. Chu Yifeng dragged him back out. “Don’t sleep yet. Your hair is wet.” It had originally been dry, but while they were fooling around in the bathroom, Wang Cheng had accidentally bumped the shower and sprayed water all over both of them.
Wang Cheng said lazily, “Dry it for me.” Then he flopped back down onto the pillow.
Chu Yifeng took the hair dryer from the drawer and sat at the bedside to dry his hair. Wang Cheng’s hair was not long and dried quickly, but in that short time he had already closed his eyes and fallen asleep. Chu Yifeng stroked the side of his face and murmured to himself.
“How is it that the more I look at you, the more I like you?”
Wang Cheng mumbled something and turned his head, leaving only the back of it facing him.
Chu Yifeng laughed softly.
The next morning, Wang Cheng made breakfast. David was a night owl and still had not gotten up at that hour. Worried that breakfast would go cold, Wang Cheng went to knock on his door. It took seven knocks before someone finally came to open it. David stood there with his blond hair in complete disarray, eyes bleary and half closed, clearly not awake yet.
“I made breakfast. Want some?”
David jolted fully awake and immediately nodded. “Yes, yes, yes!”
The boss’s wife cooked better food than anything outside. David was worried his boss might throw him out at any moment, so he figured he should mooch as many meals as he could while he had the chance. And once he went back, he would have bragging rights: he had eaten food personally cooked by the boss’s wife. Everyone would definitely be jealous.
Wang Cheng had made simple scallion-and-egg pancakes, something even easier than roujiamo. David had never eaten such plain fare before, but the combined fragrance of scallions and pancake immediately whetted his appetite. The aroma alone made him feel much more awake.
“So, so good.” David kept eating even though the food was hot enough to burn his mouth. His Chinese was not very good to begin with. Wang Cheng had already thought he sounded strange yesterday, and now that he was speaking around a mouthful of food, his pronunciation was so muffled Wang Cheng could barely understand him.
Watching him eat nonstop like a competitive eater, Wang Cheng was a little relieved he had made more breakfast than usual that morning. Chu Yifeng had told him last night that David was something of a homebody, but Wang Cheng had not expected him to have such a huge appetite too.
After they finished eating, David once again took over the dishwashing. Wang Cheng and Chu Yifeng went to the living room. With another person in the villa, the place felt livelier, and neither of them thought David got in the way of their intimacy because he was very good at knowing when to make himself scarce.
“My mom wants me to change my surname to Zhou. She and my maternal grandfather agreed on it before I was born, but I don’t really want to. If I really become Zhou, I… my parents would be hurt.” Wang Cheng was conflicted. Having two sets of parents made even figuring out what to call them awkward.
“You can still be Wang Cheng in Shanhai City. In the capital, you can be Wang Cheng or Zhou Cheng. Either way, you’re still the same person.” Chu Yifeng’s single remark suddenly cleared the knot in his mind. Wang Cheng had been so focused on Papa Wang and Mama Wang that he had backed himself into a corner. In truth, a surname did not matter that much. The people who had known him before would obviously continue calling him Wang Cheng.
Mother Zheng called that afternoon to ask what he had decided. Although it was a promise between the elders, she had already told him that if he was unwilling, she would not force him. For something so important, she was remarkably willing to let it go. Mother Zheng truly only wanted what was best for Wang Cheng. After so many years apart, her greatest wish now was simply for the whole family to be happy together. Material things were worth fighting for if they could be won, but if they could not, then so be it. Still, when she learned Wang Cheng had agreed, she was even happier. She no longer cared about the Zhou Group as much as she once had, but she also did not want to see it fall into Zhou Lin’s hands. She had a faint suspicion in her heart, though it had never been confirmed.
“Mom, I have one condition.” Wang Cheng leaned against the edge of the sofa, sitting barefoot on the rug.
David came over carrying a plate of cut fruit, several varieties arranged into a beautiful platter. He gestured for them to enjoy it, then tactfully withdrew.
“What condition? As long as Mom can do it,” Mother Zheng promised. At that moment, even if her son had asked for the moon in the sky, she would have tried to pluck it down for him. Ever since getting her younger son back, Mother Zheng had been able to sense that he was the one constantly accommodating them. Every time she thought about it, she wanted to cry. They were the reason he had been separated from his family since infancy, yet he had never once complained.
Wang Cheng did not sense what Mother Zheng was feeling. He speared a piece of orange with a toothpick and held it to Chu Yifeng’s mouth. Chu Yifeng frowned slightly, apparently not fond of sour fruit, but still opened his mouth and ate it. Wang Cheng grinned. “I don’t want to be only Zhou Cheng. My adoptive parents treated me very well from the time I was little. Our family was poor back then, but they never shortchanged me. Whatever my big brother and little sister had, I had a share too. So I want to keep the name Wang Cheng.”
“Whatever makes you happy. Mom doesn’t object,” Mother Zheng said gently.
“Thanks, Mom.”
Mother Zheng laughed and could not resist teasing him. “If you really want to thank Mom, hurry up and give your maternal grandfather a big, healthy grandson. Your grandfather is counting on you.”
Wang Cheng looked as though he had been struck by lightning. He did not answer for quite a while. Mother Zheng asked over the phone what was wrong, and he hurriedly said he had something to do, then hung up.
“What’s wrong?” Chu Yifeng noticed his expression.
Wang Cheng planted both hands on the coffee table and held his forehead. “It’s over, it’s over. How did I forget? My mom and Grandpa want me to take the Zhou surname because they want me to carry on the Zhou family line and produce heirs, don’t they? But the two of us are together now. How am I supposed to have descendants? If they find out about us later, the opposition won’t just come from the Chu and Zheng families. We’ll have the Zhou family too.”
“Obviously,” Chu Yifeng said, not surprised in the least.
“If you already figured that out, why did you still agree to me taking the Zhou surname?”
Chu Yifeng set down the documents in his hand and analyzed the situation. “To your maternal grandfather, whether you actually use the Zhou surname makes no difference. The Zhou family’s blood runs through you. Even if you remain Wang Cheng, any child you have in the future could still take the Zhou surname.”
If Zhou Shichang really intended to train Wang Cheng as his successor, that possibility was extremely high. Wang Cheng was intelligent. Although his formal education had ended at high school, as long as he was willing to learn, many things would not be difficult for him. Anyone who had spent time with him would know that.
Wang Cheng suddenly remembered Yuan Xia mentioning the possibility of adopting a child the last time they met. He immediately grabbed his phone and ran upstairs.
“What’s wrong with the boss’s wife?” David came over just in time to see Wang Cheng running upstairs and asked curiously.
Chu Yifeng glanced at him. David immediately shut his mouth.
Yuan Xia was a little surprised that Wang Cheng was calling him at this time. The moment he answered, Wang Cheng got straight to the point and asked what had happened with the adoption idea they had discussed last time. Yuan Xia had thought Wang Cheng was not interested in the topic and had not expected him to ask about it on his own.
“I already brought it up with Jiang Xuan…”
He sounded hesitant about what came next. Wang Cheng heard it and pressed him to continue.
It seemed Yuan Xia had also been wanting someone to confide in, because he told Wang Cheng without much hesitation. He had actually wanted to mention it the last time they met, but after thinking it over, he had decided against it. After Jiang Shuang went to prison, even though Jiang Xuan had not directly caused it, the Jiang family’s greatest talent was blaming the wrong person. Worried that Mother Jiang would be targeted if she remained in the capital, Jiang Xuan had brought her to Shanhai City some time ago, and she was now living with them.
Jiang Xuan’s mother had known about his relationship with Yuan Xia for a long time. On the surface she accepted it, but inwardly she still did not approve of the two of them being together. When she overheard Yuan Xia and Jiang Xuan discussing the possibility of adopting a child, Mother Jiang objected. In her mind, her son might be dating Yuan Xia now, but they could always break up later. She had never believed the two of them could truly walk the rest of their lives together, so she had never given up hoping Jiang Xuan would marry a woman and have children. Yuan Xia did not know whether Jiang Xuan understood what his mother was thinking, but Yuan Xia could feel that Mother Jiang did not actually like him. Their relationship might seem to have no obstacles, but their greatest problem had been there all along.