Half a month into summer camp, Gu Yunchi no longer wanted to stay and decided to return to the country. Lu Heyang and He Wei took two days off and came back as well.
The plane landed in the morning. Lu Chengyu and Lu Qingmo were also returning to the country that day, though they were traveling on a government aircraft.
After arriving home, Lu Heyang took a shower and slept for an hour. After waking up and having lunch, he drove out.
Lu Chengyu and Lu Qingmo had many things to deal with after returning, so they probably wouldn’t be home particularly early that evening.
It was exceptionally hot today. The roads were nearly empty, and Lu Heyang drove faster than usual.
About fifty minutes later, he parked beneath a tree by the roadside and looked through the car window at the opposite side of the street.
This was a necessary route from the western expressway entrance and the docks into the city. The area was filled mostly with auto repair shops and long-distance logistics companies.
The repair bays all faced the road. In the auto repair shop diagonally to the front left, an SUV was parked in one of the mechanic bays, with a pair of legs sticking out from underneath.
After about ten minutes, the legs bent, causing the wheeled creeper beneath the body to roll backward. The alpha lying flat on it slid out from under the vehicle, stood up, and placed the tools in his hands into a box beside him.
Xu Ze was wearing a dark-blue one-piece mechanic’s coverall. It was old, with almost not a single clean spot left on it.
He pulled off his oil-stained gloves and stuffed them into his pocket, then walked over to the small table beneath the rolling shutter door. He picked up a boxed lunch, squatted down wherever he was, and switched on the small fan sitting on the table.
With his head lowered, he began eating one bite at a time in the heat of the blazing sun.
It was already one-thirty.
The fan was practically useless in this weather. Xu Ze ate while occasionally tilting his head to one side and using his shoulder to wipe the sweat from his face.
An omega came out of the neighboring shop. He was probably the owner of the vehicle.
He took out a cigarette and offered it to Xu Ze.
Xu Ze looked up, shook his head, then lowered his head and continued eating.
After only a few bites, Xu Ze closed the lunch box. He gathered up the trash, put it into the takeout bag, tied it shut, and placed it beside the door.
The entire meal had taken less than three minutes.
Xu Ze stood up. He was more than half a head taller than the omega.
The dirty mechanic’s coverall made his face look especially clean and striking. Lu Heyang noticed that Xu Ze had gotten a little tanner.
After speaking with the vehicle owner for a few moments beside the car, Xu Ze put his gloves back on and once again pulled his toolbox under the vehicle.
It had already been obvious from the time Xu Ze helped change a tire that he was very skilled, but Lu Heyang had never expected that Xu Ze could actually repair cars.
Some people were versatile because they had the ability to pursue the higher things in life, so they became proficient in everything from musical instruments to horseback riding and fencing.
Others knew boxing, could repair cars, and could play pool blindfolded because they needed to make a living, because they needed to earn money for their loved ones’ medical expenses.
Having more skills could never hurt, but poverty could crush a person to death.
And Xu Ze had grown up silently in exactly this kind of life, covered in scars. He had grown very tall, with a straight back.
Lu Heyang withdrew his gaze.
He sat quietly for several seconds before turning the car around and leaving.
A little after six, Xu Ze returned to his apartment complex. He pushed his bicycle into the passageway and parked it against the wall.
He hadn’t been wearing his wristband while working, so the farther upstairs he went, the more something felt wrong.
Even though it was very faint, an S-rank alpha had always been extremely sensitive to pheromones.
By the time he reached the final floor, Xu Ze was practically running.
He raised his head and gradually caught sight of the person standing outside his door.
Lu Heyang was leaning against the wall. Hearing Xu Ze come upstairs, he turned off his phone and straightened.
“You’re back?”
“…”
Xu Ze gripped the handrail. His throat bobbed once before he asked, “Is summer camp over?”
It had only been half a month since they had seen each other. Xu Ze had been busy repairing cars every day and hadn’t felt that time was particularly long.
Yet when he saw Lu Heyang, he experienced a strange sense of unreality.
That feeling came from the sharp disconnect between Lu Heyang and Xu Ze’s real life.
Smelling the fragrance of flowers while standing at the bottom of a deep ravine could make a person feel that way.
“Not yet. I took some time off to come out and get some air.”
Xu Ze slowly nodded.
He took out his key and opened the door. He deliberately kept his distance from Lu Heyang because he smelled strongly of motor oil and was covered in sweat.
“Have you been waiting long?” Xu Ze asked after they entered.
“Not really.”
Seeing that Xu Ze seemed to feel guilty, Lu Heyang said, “I’m the one who came over without telling you first. Waiting a little is only fair.”
Then, half-jokingly and half-seriously, he asked Xu Ze, “How about giving me a key to your place?”
“Okay.”
Xu Ze answered without the slightest hesitation, as though if Lu Heyang asked him for his property deed right now, he would immediately hand that over too.
“Go take a shower first.” Lu Heyang smiled. “We’ll have dinner together later. He Wei and Yunchi are back too.”
Realizing that Lu Heyang had only been joking about asking for a key, Xu Ze lowered his eyes and nodded.
He went into his room to get a change of clothes. As he passed in front of Lu Heyang on his way out, Lu Heyang reached out and pulled the old T-shirt from Xu Ze’s arms.
“Don’t wear this one. Wear the clothes I gave you.”
“Okay,” Xu Ze obediently replied.
He didn’t go back to get another shirt and went straight to the bathroom.
Lu Heyang carried the clothes into the bedroom.
The instant he entered, he noticed that something had clearly changed in the room.
Lu Heyang looked up at the window.
There was now a layer of dark-gray blackout curtains behind the thin white curtains.
The curtains are too thin. It’s so bright in here that you’ll probably have a hard time sleeping.
Xu Ze had lived here for so long without ever thinking about adding blackout curtains.
But because of that offhand remark Lu Heyang had made half a month ago, he had quietly installed them.
He couldn’t know whether Lu Heyang would come again, or whether he would take another afternoon nap here.
Xu Ze didn’t think about any of that.
His logic had always been very simple—
If Lu Heyang said it, he would do it.
Soon, Xu Ze came out of the bathroom, drying his hair as he went to the wardrobe to look for a T-shirt.
Lu Heyang sat in the chair at the desk. Once Xu Ze had gotten dressed, he said, “Come here.”
The sky outside was growing dark. There were no lights on in the room, and the curtains swayed in the evening breeze, making a faint rustling sound.
Xu Ze rubbed his hair a few times with the towel and walked over.
Lu Heyang took Xu Ze’s lowered right hand and squeezed his palm.
“You feel thinner.”
“Is work very tiring?” he asked.
“No.” Xu Ze shook his head.
It was the answer Lu Heyang had expected, so he didn’t continue asking.
Xu Ze’s hands were thin and slender. They should have been a very attractive pair of hands, but there were many calluses on his fingertips and knuckles. They felt rough to the touch, though his palms were especially soft.
Lu Heyang squeezed them a few more times.
“Let’s go. He Wei and the others have arrived.”
“Mm.”
Xu Ze went to get his phone and keys. Lu Heyang stood up and headed outside.
After only a few steps, his hand was suddenly taken.
Lu Heyang turned back in some surprise. Xu Ze neither looked at him nor said anything. He had simply taken the initiative to hold hands.
It was only a short distance of a few meters from the bedroom door to the front door.
Before they went outside, Lu Heyang was wondering how he should bring it up with Xu Ze when Xu Ze very consciously released his hand.
He was actually much more cautious than Lu Heyang—careful, and very easily satisfied.
The car was parked downstairs. When He Wei saw them come out, he got out of the driver’s seat.
“Heyang, you drive. Xu Ze and I will sit in the back.”
Xu Ze glanced at Lu Heyang, then got into the back seat with He Wei.
“Chi Jiahan went to summer camp too. He asked me to ask you how your summer vacation is going~” He Wei said with a grin.
“He’s lying.” Gu Yunchi, sitting in the front passenger seat, said blandly. “Chi Jiahan hasn’t even paid attention to him.”
“Say that again!” He Wei punched the back of the passenger seat. “He definitely talked to me at Heyang’s birthday party.”
“You got drunk and went to harass him first,” Gu Yunchi corrected him.
Xu Ze, who had been silent until now, asked, “Birthday party?”
He Wei’s words had made him think that the day he gave Lu Heyang the present had not actually been Lu Heyang’s real birthday.
“Oh, it was a belated celebration.”
At the mention of this, He Wei’s expression gradually became strangely excited.
“Remember that omega I told you about last time? Our Young Master Lu’s future wife. He came to the birthday party too. I’ll show you a photo. Wait, let me find it.”
He opened his phone and swiped through his album several times before holding it out to Xu Ze.
“Look. The one standing to Heyang’s left.”
Xu Ze was not really in a state to think clearly at the moment. Before he could even focus his eyes on the screen, Lu Heyang suddenly stepped on the brake.
Xu Ze instinctively reached out and braced himself against the back of the driver’s seat.
“What are you doing?!” He Wei yelled.
Lu Heyang normally drove very steadily. The braking had not even been particularly sudden, since they had already been driving slowly, but He Wei still felt startled.
“There was a puppy crossing the road,” Lu Heyang calmly explained.
Then he asked, “Did I hit it?”
“Of course!” He Wei exclaimed. “My phone even fell down!”
But Lu Heyang said, “I wasn’t asking you.”
The air fell silent for a moment.
Xu Ze answered, “You didn’t hit it.”
He Wei found the whole thing absurd.
“Does nobody care about me?”
“No,” Gu Yunchi said. “Someone just wants to throw you out of the car.”
“Come on, what’s wrong with talking about this?”
He Wei picked up his phone and leaned forward.
“Heyang, do you really not like him?”
“I don’t like him.” Lu Heyang answered very directly.
“What if Uncle Lu gives you an order, then? Would you get engaged to him in the future?”
“No.”
Xu Ze stared blankly at Lu Heyang’s eyes in the rearview mirror.
When Lu Heyang said I don’t like him and I won’t, Xu Ze didn’t start fantasizing about whether he might have a chance.
Instead, he felt as though he had temporarily escaped danger and could finally breathe again. He felt a little more relaxed.
“Ohhh, you’ve got guts.” He Wei leaned back. “Actually, I don’t think you just don’t like him. I think you don’t like the entire human race.”
“Lu Heyang, why are you so completely free of desire? Are you impotent?”
He Wei’s tone was regretful and innocent.
“If you’re impotent, you need to go to the hospital. The earlier you discover it, the earlier you can treat it. Little Yang, you’re still so young. There’s definitely hope for a cure. Don’t give up, okay?”
Lu Heyang said nothing.
But suddenly, he raised his eyes and stared at Xu Ze’s eyes in the rearview mirror.
Their gazes collided in that tiny mirror.
Xu Ze, caught off guard, froze for a moment before hurriedly looking away.
At the Capital’s Foreign Guests Hotel, Lu Qingmo finished a diplomatic event and left the hall.
Her high heels made no sound against the deep-purple patterned carpet. As she walked, she removed her hair clip, allowing her long, curly hair to fall loose. The headache she had been suffering from eased slightly.
After walking around a marble column, she saw a young man standing about two meters away by the railing, talking on the phone.
After saying a few quiet words, he hung up.
When he looked up again, his eyes met Lu Qingmo’s.
Lu Qingmo unconsciously stopped where she stood, the hand carrying her bag slowly curling tighter.
She rarely had moments of such stunned stillness. All these years, she had always been calm and rational, like a magnificent piece of ice.
The handsome beta was stunned for a moment before walking toward Lu Qingmo.
His left leg was slightly lame when he walked. Against his tall, upright figure, it gave him a regrettable imperfection.
After looking at each other for several seconds, the beta extended his hand first, a smile on his face.
“Long time no see.”
Han Jian looked directly into Lu Qingmo’s eyes.
“Miss Lu.”
After a long moment, Lu Qingmo slowly extended her hand.
Her lips parted, but no sound came out.
The Alliance’s youngest and most accomplished diplomat could remain composed before heads of state, foreign guests, and reporters, yet at this moment, she was unable to say a single word.
Han Jian gently took Lu Qingmo’s hand and quickly released it.
“You’re even thinner than you look on television,” he said with a faint smile.
Lu Qingmo’s thumb repeatedly picked at the strap of her bag as she silently adjusted her breathing.
At last, she answered, “The camera makes people look wider.”
“Mm.” Han Jian nodded. Then he asked, “Are you heading home now?”
“Yes.”
“Then take care on the way. The meeting isn’t over yet, so I’ll head back first.”
Han Jian nodded at her and turned around, walking back toward the conference hall.
Here’s the English translation:
Lu Qingmo did not look at his back. She simply stared at the floor.
After a long while, she raised her head with an unchanged expression, confirmed the direction, and walked toward the elevators again.
“Teacher Han, Teacher Han?”
“……”
Han Jian suddenly came back to his senses, only then realizing that everyone around him was looking at him.
“It’s your turn to speak,” a colleague reminded him.
“Okay.”
Han Jian put down his pen and hurriedly stood up.
A little after ten, Lin Yumian came out of the studio and returned to his room to wash the smell of paint from his body.
When he came out of the bathroom, he heard a knock on the door.
When he opened it, the nanny was standing outside.
“Mr. Lin, the chairman is here.”
“Tell him I’m asleep,” Lin Yumian said.
But the nanny did not answer. She glanced to the side and lowered her head uneasily.
Lu Chengyu walked up to the bedroom door. His gaze fell on Lin Yumian through the lenses of his glasses.
“Asleep?”
From his tone, Lin Yumian could tell he had been drinking.
Lin Yumian silently turned around.
Only the bedside lamp was on in the bedroom. Lin Yumian sat on the edge of the bed wearing light-blue pajamas, as though he had stepped into an oil painting.
Lu Chengyu closed the door, undid his suit buttons, walked over, and sat down in the chair by the floor-to-ceiling window. He casually poured himself a glass of water.
Outside the window was a pitch-black mountain landscape. There was nothing much to see.
Lu Chengyu loosened his tie, took a sip of water, and said, “Heyang gave me a proposal.”
He rarely spoke so calmly.
Lin Yumian asked coldly, “What proposal?”
“He wants to attend military school. If the Lu family wants to establish a sphere of power within the military that belongs entirely to us, there’s no more secure way than having him enter the military system.”
Lu Chengyu spoke slowly.
“What he said is quite right. The important positions in the military have always been occupied by those same few family names. In a few years, if there’s going to be a major reshuffling, the vacancies will happen to line up with the current batch of students at the preparatory school.”
“So that’s why the military school’s enrollment quotas at the preparatory school have been increasing since last year…” Lin Yumian said quietly. “And the expansion in the western part of the city.”
“My point is that military school students aren’t allowed to establish marital relationships while they’re enrolled. They’re also prohibited from having contact with Alliance Government affairs before graduation. Those have always been absolute rules.”
He turned his head toward Lin Yumian.
“Such a clever and convenient solution. Did you teach him?”
“I’m not you. I’ve never interfered with his decisions.”
“I know.”
Lu Chengyu said, “You’re not giving them freedom. You just want to oppose me.”
“It’s still better than treating your own children as chess pieces.”
“Who in this circle isn’t a chess piece?”
Lu Chengyu tapped his fingertips idly against the side of the glass.
“You and I were too, remember, Lin Yumian.”
“Don’t call me by my name.”
Lin Yumian frowned.
“Then what should I call you?”
Lu Chengyu turned his head again. Moonlight streamed through the window, illuminating the side of the alpha’s face.
He looked at Lin Yumian with a rare, almost teasing smile.
“Sister-in-law?”
Lin Yumian abruptly raised his head, his face turning deathly pale as he stared at him.
The current state of the Lu family at a glance:
The younger brother was secretly dating someone, the older sister had run into an old flame, and the father was forcing someone into a relationship.