“So you did CPR on him for half an hour and actually brought him back to life?!”
An Nian’s big, cat-like eyes widened in awe.
“I’m a doctor—saving lives always comes first,” Xia Zhile replied casually, but his expression was full of smug satisfaction.
An Nian’s smile was sweeter than a ripe persimmon. After admiring Xia Zhile, she turned to Lin Hening and sighed, “I’m so jealous. Your boyfriend is amazing.”
Lin Hening tossed a napkin into the trash and forced a smile. “Oh, you have no idea. Everyone around me is jealous. Zhile is handsome, talented, makes great money, and has a noble medical ethic. Too bad he’s already taken.”
An Nian’s smile stiffened, her expression turning awkward.
Xia Zhile also froze for a second, subtly nudging Lin Hening with his elbow.
Lin Hening frowned, confused. What? Did I say something wrong? I was complimenting you.
He and Xia Zhile had been together for almost two years, but since they were both focused on their careers, they had been seeing less and less of each other. Lately, their work schedules had kept them apart for weeks at a time. Even their nightly video calls had dwindled—from thirty minutes to ten, then two, and eventually to a pointless fifteen-second check-in.
A coworker, a mother of two, warned Lin Hening: “Don’t get too comfortable just because you’re rich and good-looking. Xia Zhile is a catch too. If you don’t keep an eye on him, some little vixen might snatch him away.”
Lin Hening brushed it off. First, he was confident in his own charm—Xia Zhile had chased after him for three or four years with unwavering devotion. Second, he trusted Xia Zhile’s character. If their relationship ever soured, he’d at least have the decency to break up properly rather than cheat.
Still, the comment stuck with him. It had been way too long since he’d seen his boyfriend. He remembered Xia Zhile mentioning he had a night shift this week. The timing worked out, so Lin Hening decided to surprise him at the hospital.
What he didn’t expect was to find Xia Zhile crossing the street with An Nian, chatting and laughing at a breakfast stall, debating whether to get pork buns or seafood dumplings.
Lin Hening called out from across the road. Xia Zhile didn’t hear him. Instead, An Nian turned and waved cheerfully, even inviting him over. “Come sit with us! Don’t be shy.”
Shy? Why the hell would I be shy about having breakfast with my own boyfriend?
Lin Hening sat down—and instantly regretted it.
He thought it’d just be a meal. He hadn’t expected to witness a full-blown peacock display from his boyfriend.
Dr. Xia launched into an epic retelling of his journey from a lowly intern to one of Yunzhou’s most renowned medical experts—spinning his tale with so much dramatic flair that even An Nian, the little vixen—ah, no, the innocent young admirer—was left blushing and starry-eyed with admiration.
Lin Hening vaguely remembered An Nian. He was Xia Zhile’s high school junior. They lost touch after graduation—until last month when An Nian went to the hospital for a check-up and rekindled their connection.
“Come on, don’t call me Dr. Xia. We’re old classmates—no need to be so formal.”
**”Then, can I call you Zhile-ge?”**
**”Of course. Watch your right.”**
The server brought over a bowl of tofu pudding and two bowls of soy milk. “Add sugar yourself.”
Xia Zhile mixed sugar into both bowls of soy milk, handed one to An Nian across the table, and slid the other to Lin Hening beside him. Meanwhile, he ate his tofu pudding with a sesame flatbread.
The early autumn morning in the north was already a bit chilly. Steam rose in thick clouds from the freshly made soy milk, carrying a rich, warm aroma.
Lin Hening didn’t touch his soy milk, only picked a pork bun from the steamer to eat. Xia Zhile asked why he wasn’t drinking it—wasn’t he afraid of choking?
Lin Hening replied, “I don’t drink it.”
Feeling wasteful, An Nian quickly said, “Lin-ge, you don’t like soy milk? Then I’ll take it!”
“Don’t call me ‘ge.’ We’re not classmates,” Lin Hening said, chewing on the bun with relish. “Besides, aren’t you older than me?”
An Nian froze for a moment. Xia Zhile, just as he took a sip of his tofu pudding, almost choked. Laughing, he tried to smooth things over, “Don’t mind him. He’s just blunt. Want more sugar? I only added three scoops earlier.”
An Nian chuckled, “It’s sweet enough.”
With a warm breakfast settling in their stomachs, they all felt cozy inside.
Xia Zhile asked An Nian where he was headed.
“Going home,” An Nian replied.
Xia Zhile pointed to a silver-gray Ferrari parked by the roadside. “I’ll drop you off on the way.”
Lin Hening, who was fastening his seatbelt, almost burst out laughing. *Isn’t that my car?*
An Nian waved his hands, “No, no, it’s fine. The subway is really convenient.”
Xia Zhile shrugged. “Alright, take care on the way.”
“Bye-bye!”
“Hey, you sure you don’t need a ride?”
“Nope! See you, Zhile-ge!”
Lin Hening barely restrained himself from flooring the gas pedal right then and there, leaving Xia Zhile behind to drown in his melodramatic little junior’s affectionate farewell.
As soon as the passenger door opened and shut, before Lin Hening could say a word, Xia Zhile went on the offensive.
“Why did you talk to An Nian like that? He didn’t offend you. Why were you being so snarky?”
“He kindly offered to pay, and it wasn’t even that much money, but you insisted on splitting the bill. You made things so awkward. Why are you bullying him?”
*Me? Bullying him? How? Where?*
“Isn’t paying for your own meal normal? Since when does not letting him cover the bill count as bullying? I’ve only met him three times, we’re not close. I was just stating facts,” Lin Hening said, his voice calm and steady, leaving Xia Zhile unable to argue back.
Then, in a cool, detached tone, Lin Hening added, “Besides, the person An Nian actually wanted to treat was you.”
Xia Zhile froze for a few seconds before suddenly grinning. “Ohh, so that’s why you were acting all weird—you were jealous!”
Lin Hening sneered internally. *That little vixen? As if.*
The real issue was his own boyfriend’s attitude.
At the table, Xia Zhile had been showing off like a peacock in full display, fanning his feathers at An Nian. And the second An Nian left, he immediately turned to accuse *him* of bullying the guy. *Ridiculous!*
Xia Zhile’s attitude did a complete 180. He reached over from the passenger seat and hugged Lin Hening. “Babe, you look so cute when you’re jealous.”
“Get lost.”
“Not happening. We haven’t seen each other in so long. Let me kiss you!”
Lin Hening felt his heart soften for a moment but only used his elbow to gently push away the overly clingy Xia Zhile. “Quit messing around, I’m driving.”
Xia Zhile reluctantly leaned back, then saw that Lin Hening still had a sour expression. Amused, he said, “If you’re gonna get jealous, at least be jealous over something real. An Nian is like a little brother to me. Besides, he already has a boyfriend.”
Lin Hening paused for a brief second but quickly snapped back to his senses.
*So what? Having a boyfriend doesn’t mean he won’t cheat. Didn’t Pan Jinlian have a husband?*
*Nice try, but you’re not fooling me.*
Lin Hening played along and asked, “Then what exactly is ‘real jealousy’?”
Xia Zhile said seriously, “Someone who could actually be a real threat to me! Like when you’re so busy with work that you don’t even have time to pick up my calls, treating your case files better than you treat me. I’d be drowning in jealousy.”
Lin Hening finally couldn’t hold back and let out a laugh.
This was Xia Zhile’s special skill—witty, playful, and knowing exactly when to throw in a little sweetness. It was how he had won Lin Hening over in the first place.
Xia Zhile continued, all earnest, “Come on, you’re way out of An Nian’s league. Saying he’s a threat to me isn’t an insult to him—it’s an insult to *you*.”
Now, *that* was smooth talking. Whether he meant it or not, it was definitely nice to hear.
If Lin Hening had been a few years younger, he might have actually fallen for it. “Oh? And who was just standing by the roadside giving him those lingering looks? And now, all of a sudden, you’re tearing him down like he’s nothing?”
Lin Hening sneered, “Wow, two-faced much?”
Xia Zhile awkwardly cleared his throat, then grinned cheekily. “What lingering looks? He’s not familiar with this area—I was just worried he’d get lost. And even if I *was* making eyes at someone, it was *you*! We’re double cheese, baby.”
Xia Zhile had a knack for smoothing things over—just a few words, and he could dissolve all of Lin Hening’s annoyance.
Lin Hening sighed. “You and that slick tongue of yours.”
Xia Zhile chuckled. “No, no, it’s just that *my baby* is so understanding, gentle, and mature, always willing to put up with me.”
See? Another perfectly executed move. It wasn’t *him* being smooth—it was Lin Hening just being too damn nice.
Lin Hening suddenly remembered how, before they got together, Xia Zhile used to wait for him downstairs every day, just to commute to work with him. Even though Lin Hening had his own car—more than one, actually, and none of them cost less than seven figures—he still squeezed into the subway with Xia Zhile, packed in like a sandwich, and yet, somehow, loving every second of it.
Yeah… that was real love.
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