So that was how, in broad daylight and right in front of everyone, Qiao Hailou flat-out kidnapped Shen Yuan and ran off with him.
They sprinted all the way to the parking lot. Shen Yuan’s heart was pounding as he followed him into the car. Qiao Hailou started the engine and, instead of heading home, drove straight out of the city.
Shen Yuan was so flustered his face felt like it was about to explode red. “Oh no, oh no, oh no.”
“Don’t even think about running,” Qiao Hailou said. “The doors are locked.”
“Run from what?” Shen Yuan shot back. “I already ran away with you. Isn’t this eloping?”
Qiao Hailou replied with perfect logic, “Sneaking off is eloping. We’re doing this openly—call it a public elopement, okay?”
“Where are we going?” Shen Yuan asked.
“Where do you want to go?”
“I don’t know. Aren’t you the one taking me? Wherever you go, I’ll go.”
Shen Yuan hadn’t slept well these past few days. Now the drowsiness suddenly hit him, and he felt like he could fall asleep any second. Qiao Hailou told him to sleep in the back seat and even covered him with a blanket.
When Shen Yuan woke up again, the sun was already setting, the sky at the horizon washed in fading crimson.
The car had stopped. Qiao Hailou woke him gently.
Rubbing his eyes, Shen Yuan asked, “Where are we now?”
“In the mountains,” Qiao Hailou said. “I kidnapped you into the mountains to make you my wife.”
Still half asleep, Shen Yuan managed a sleepy “Pfft,” clearly not believing him. He got out of the car and realized they were at a mountain resort hotel. The surroundings were quiet, the air fresh, like a hidden paradise.
“Want to soak in the hot springs?” Qiao Hailou asked.
“Sure,” Shen Yuan said.
They really did look like they’d eloped. There was no need for it, but they kept holding hands the whole time, refusing to let go.
The hotel staff were extremely professional, eyes straight ahead, as if they hadn’t noticed a man in his thirties constantly holding hands with a young, good-looking guy.
Now that he’d calmed down a bit, Shen Yuan said, “My uncle must be furious. I should call him and let him know I’m safe.”
Qiao Hailou said smugly, “Oh, he went to my place and even to my company. Couldn’t find you anywhere. He’s grilling Bai Lu right now—but Bai Lu doesn’t know where we are either.”
“You’re proud of that?” Shen Yuan scolded him. “You ran off with me—of course my uncle’s worried. I should’ve told him earlier. It’s my fault I fell asleep.”
“What difference does it make whether you tell him or not?” Qiao Hailou said. “He wouldn’t agree anyway.”
Shen Yuan saw a string of glaring red missed calls on his phone. He dialed back while saying to Qiao Hailou, “I’m just reporting in so he knows I’m fine, that you didn’t lock me up somewhere, that I came with you willingly. What if he calls the police?”
Call them if he wants—there’s nothing the police could do about it. Qiao Hailou plopped down on the sofa, still holding Shen Yuan’s other hand, toying with it, scratching his palm.
Blushing, Shen Yuan shot him a glare just as the call connected.
On the other end, Li Chen asked anxiously, “You finally called back! Where did Qiao Hailou kidnap you to? I’ve been looking everywhere and can’t find you.”
Feeling guilty, Shen Yuan said, “Uncle, I’m fine. Don’t look for me anymore. I’m with Qiao Hailou right now. I’m okay.”
Li Chen nearly exploded. “Okay my ass! Why did you run off with him?!”
Shen Yuan hesitated and glanced at Qiao Hailou.
The room was quiet. Qiao Hailou could hear everything. He was in far too good a mood, smiled smugly, and deliberately kissed the back of Shen Yuan’s hand. Shen Yuan’s face burned as he stammered, “I—I…”
Qiao Hailou lounged back like some kind of lord, utterly arrogant, silently mouthing at him: Say you like me.
Shen Yuan stuck out his tongue at him: Gross.
Kids really do get harder to control once they grow up. With a sigh, Li Chen asked helplessly, “You really like him that much?”
Blushing, feeling both sweet and bittersweet, Shen Yuan gave a soft, quiet “Mm.”
“But didn’t you say you didn’t really trust him?” Li Chen asked.
Shen Yuan thought for a moment. “I still want to try. Uncle, the future is impossible to predict. I can’t know whether things will turn out well or badly if I try—but if I don’t try, there definitely won’t be an ending.”
He remembered what Qiao Hailou had once said to him: there is no such thing as perfect love; loving someone was never going to be all happiness.
He knew he and Qiao Hailou would argue again in the future. They couldn’t always be as happy as they were right now. Their age gap and circumstances guaranteed there would be hardships ahead. But if he gave up now, even this happiness would disappear. Maybe he was being impulsive—but he wanted to walk this road with Qiao Hailou.
Li Chen sighed and stayed silent for a long time before speaking. “Kids grow up and won’t stay. This is your life—you should decide for yourself. I shouldn’t interfere too much… But think it through. There’ll be a lot of gossip and criticism. At home, I can protect you; out in society, I can’t. I can only promise you this: if you’ve made up your mind, I won’t pressure you anymore. And if Qiao Hailou ever wrongs you, don’t be afraid—your uncle’s got your back. Got it?”
What else could he say? Shen Yuan had already run off with the man. Even if he dragged him home, he’d only be kidnapped away again sooner or later.
Shen Yuan was dead set on being with a thirty-seven-year-old man. What could he do? Who knew what kind of love potion Qiao Hailou had fed him.
They’d been arguing just yesterday, and today they’d already eloped.
Li Chen had spent the entire day searching all over the city. He had no temper left. He’d seen kids elope before, but Shen Yuan was always so well-behaved—this was hard to accept. Damn Qiao Hailou, that old bastard.
He couldn’t accept it—but what did his acceptance matter?
It felt like history repeating itself from over a decade ago: Qiao Hailou once again running off with someone else’s good kid. The difference was that this time, Qiao Hailou was no longer a penniless young nobody, and Shen Yuan stubbornly insisted on going with him, refusing to come home. All Li Chen could do was help within his means. Compared to public criticism, rejection from one’s own family hurt the most. At least this way, the kid wouldn’t be afraid to come home. Otherwise, if one day things really fell apart, Shen Yuan might not even have a place to return to.
Overwhelmed with guilt, Shen Yuan said, “Thank you, Uncle.”
“It’s fine,” Li Chen said. “Since that’s the case, don’t keep wandering around outside. Come home. I won’t scold you—really. And I won’t force you on blind dates anymore.”
Shen Yuan suddenly remembered something. “Uncle, did Xiao Lin come home today? … He accidentally found out about me and Qiao Hailou before, and he really couldn’t accept it. I promised him I wouldn’t date anyone before his college entrance exam. But now I’ve gotten back together with Qiao Hailou… I—I couldn’t help it. Don’t tell Xiao Lin, okay?”
Li Chen hadn’t expected that angle. He nodded. “All right. I’ll keep it from him. You don’t need to worry about me—I’m tight-lipped. Just don’t let Xiao Lin find out again.”
Shen Yuan answered softly.
He hung up the phone.
“So?” Qiao Hailou asked. “What did your uncle say?”
“He said he won’t stop me anymore,” Shen Yuan replied. “He said if you bully me, I can go back and he’ll back me up. He also said I can go home.”
Qiao Hailou curled his lip. “That easy? Maybe he’s tricking you—lures you back, then locks you up and bans us from seeing each other.”
Shen Yuan looked at him with disdain. “My uncle isn’t a despicable, shameless old pervert like you.”
Qiao Hailou didn’t mind at all. He went to take a shower and came out with only a towel around his waist, not bothering to dry himself.
Water beads ran down his solid, muscular body. The tattoos on his arm only made him look more seductive. Shen Yuan hadn’t admired Uncle Qiao’s body in a long time, and suddenly his mouth went dry. Qiao Hailou smiled and pretended to loosen the towel. “Miss it?”
Blushing, Shen Yuan said, “You broke your leg for months—you must’ve grown flabby. Look, your abs are almost gone. You’re so old already, and you still don’t work out. Go outside and people will think we’re father and son, or even grandpa and grandson.”
Qiao Hailou walked over, pinched his cheek, and kissed him. “That mouth of yours—why can’t I ever teach it to behave? Am I really that old?”
They soaked in the hot springs together.
They bickered, they kissed—everything else could wait. First, enjoy the moment.
By the time their skin was almost wrinkled, they wrapped themselves in towels and went back to the room, both faces flushed.
“You’ve thrown enough tantrums,” Qiao Hailou said. “So now what? Are you willing to be with me? Marry me.”
“This is way too casual,” Shen Yuan said. “Just saying it like that? There’s not even a ring.”
Without another word, Qiao Hailou pulled a small box from his pocket, took Shen Yuan’s hand, and dropped to one knee. “Now there’s a ring. Will you marry me?”
Shen Yuan was stunned. How did Qiao Hailou always manage to pull out exactly what he needed?
“Take a look,” Qiao Hailou said.
Shen Yuan examined the men’s matching rings. The material wasn’t especially expensive—just platinum. No diamonds, no gemstones. A very simple design… but it was his own design. It was from his freshman portfolio when he first joined Brilliant—his very first pair of couple’s rings. Looking at it now, he could pick out a dozen flaws himself.
He was clearly touched, but still stubbornly complained, “It’s ugly.”
Qiao Hailou laughed. “You’re calling your own design ugly?”
Shen Yuan put the ring back in the box. “Ugly is ugly!”
He turned around and plopped down on the bed, sulking.
Looking up at him, Shen Yuan said, “Qiao Hailou, don’t you think this is completely out of character for you? Aren’t you supposed to be this crafty old fox? Someone who never loses? You shouldn’t be such a hopeless romantic.”
“Exactly—I never lose,” Qiao Hailou said, sitting down and pulling him into his arms, kissing his cheek. “That’s why I’m tricking you into marrying me. I’m so much older than you—doesn’t that mean I’m the one benefiting? What are you unhappy about? You’re so much younger than me. When I die first, you’ll inherit all my assets as my spouse. Sounds pretty sweet, doesn’t it? Aren’t you always trying to climb higher? Well, here’s Uncle Qiao—step on me and rise straight to the top. What a great opportunity.”
Shen Yuan glanced at him, troubled. “It’s embarrassing.”
“How is it embarrassing?”
Shen Yuan lay flat on his back, staring at the ceiling, utterly mortified. “If my grandpa and my mom found out I married a man old enough to be my dad, they’d be furious. It’s so embarrassing.”
Qiao Hailou couldn’t stand it—too dramatic, spoiled and fussy. He hardened his expression. “So are you marrying me or not? Student Shen Yuan, you’ve already eloped with me. It’s too late to regret it now. Even if you don’t want to, you’ve got no choice.”
Shen Yuan quickly rolled over and scrambled up, his hair a mess, one little tuft sticking up, making him look especially youthful. He thrust his hand out in front of Qiao Hailou, gritted his teeth, and said, “I’ll marry you!”
Qiao Hailou slid the ring onto his finger and finally let out a breath. He’d managed to trick him after all.
Surprised, Shen Yuan said, “It fits perfectly. Did you secretly measure my finger while I was asleep?”
“Please,” Qiao Hailou said smugly. “I can tell the size just by looking.”
He placed the other ring in Shen Yuan’s palm. “Here. You put mine on.”
Shen Yuan slid the ring onto his finger. In that instant, he felt as if something inside his chest was suddenly filled, full to the brim.
His life had turned a corner at that moment. Where it would lead next—no one could say yet.
He knew he was being reckless. He didn’t know whether this decision was right or wrong, or whether he’d regret it in the future. But right now, he wanted to be with Qiao Hailou.