Luo Xiao looked completely baffled.
What was wrong with what he said?
Why did Luo Feng spit out his drink?
Luo Feng set the glass down, took the napkin the bartender handed him, and wiped himself off, shooting Luo Xiao a confused look.
…?
Luo Xiao was even more confused.
“What?”
After cleaning up, Luo Feng crumpled the napkin, tossed it into the empty glass, handed it back, and signaled for another drink. Then he turned to Luo Xiao. “Have you even held the boy’s hand yet? What do you mean, ‘did it’?”
Luo Xiao didn’t quite catch what Luo Feng was getting at. Following the question, he answered, “Of course I’ve held his hand.”
Luo Feng had his own logic—and in his mind, it was flawless, especially since Luo Xiao and Wen Ran had only known each other for a few days.
Even though he himself had no experience, that didn’t stop him from lecturing his younger brother.
“Didn’t I tell you to look up some guides online?”
…Huh?
Luo Xiao looked at him.
Luo Feng went on, “Though you’re getting your marriage certificate tomorrow, so procedurally, yeah, it’s faster than most people.”
With a heavy, earnest tone, he patted Luo Xiao on the shoulder. “Once the certificate’s done, it’ll all be legal. Then you can—”
Luo Xiao cut him off. “Are you misunderstanding something?”
Huh?
Now it was Luo Feng staring at Luo Xiao.
“What?”
“Me and Wen Ran—” Luo Xiao showed zero embarrassment and said it plainly, “There’s no ‘procedure’ to speak of.”
“We’re getting married. Of course we’re already together.”
He emphasized, “In every sense of the word.”
“Hand-holding, physical contact, kissing, sex.”
Luo Feng: “……”
The bartender, ears perked up behind the bar: !
Drama?!
Luo Feng reflexively looked up and met the bartender’s gaze.
After a split-second of eye contact, the bartender quickly ducked away to make drinks for other customers.
Luo Feng was left with his head full of question marks.
“Wait—didn’t you just meet a few days ago?”
He couldn’t make sense of it. “Is it because you already planned to get married?”
“So you just sped through all the intimate steps?”
Luo Xiao finally understood what Luo Feng had been thinking.
He replied calmly, “What does it matter how long we’ve known each other?”
“The first day Wen Ran asked me out, we went to his place, and he kissed me.”
“The night before I told you all I was marrying him, we confirmed our relationship and went straight to a hotel.”
After thinking for a moment, he added, “If you want to say it was fast, yeah, it was.”
“Only knew each other a few days.”
Luo Feng: “…………………………………”
Luo Feng stared at Luo Xiao, his face darkening by the second—one second, two seconds, three seconds—before blurting out, “Why don’t you write a book?”
Luo Xiao: ?
Noticing his reaction, Luo Xiao laughed. “That surprising?”
He nodded. “I admit, it’s pretty fast.”
What could he do?
“Wen Ran is very proactive. And I was kind of—no, really, really—into it.”
“I like him so much. I fell hard. I couldn’t hold back.”
Luo Feng fell silent, drinking one glass after another.
Luo Xiao looked at him. “It’s not that shocking. I’m twenty-eight.”
Meaning, at that age, sleeping with someone is perfectly normal.
…?
Thirty-one-year-old, single, virgin Luo Feng: “……”
In a flash, Luo Feng slammed his glass down and sprang to his feet. Luo Xiao, already anticipating it, jumped up and ran—just like their childhood games of chase.
He didn’t run far. After weaving past a couple of empty tables, Luo Feng stood there, face tight, pointing at him. Luo Xiao was laughing so hard he could barely stand.
Luo Feng glared: Still laughing?!
Luo Xiao surrendered. Fine. I’ll stop.
Luo Feng pointed again. You little shit.
They went back to the bar. Luo Feng drank with a blank expression. Luo Xiao took a couple of sips too, smiling as he teased, “You run such a big company and meet way more people than I do. Plenty of great ones. How come you’ve never met someone you like?”
Luo Feng didn’t answer and kept drinking.
Luo Xiao continued, “If I write a book, you’d buy it? Take it home and study it line by line?”
“No use,” he explained. “It’s not that I’m amazing. It’s Wen Ran.”
“He likes me. When I was working at the repair shop, he’d keep switching cars, coming by every day…”
“Shut up.”
Luo Feng really didn’t want to hear it.
Who wants to listen to their little brother talk about landing a gorgeous, enthusiastic guy and taking him to a hotel in just a few days?
Luo Xiao laughed so hard his shoulders shook. Now he was the one in a position to advise. “If all you do is work and work overtime, of course you won’t meet anyone. Make some time. Do something else…”
Luo Feng suddenly remembered how he’d been messaging Luo Xiao on WeChat, telling him to look up dating tips, how to hold hands.
What was he?
A clown?
Luo Feng silently downed another drink.
Luo Xiao slung an arm over his shoulder. “Just admit it—you’re jealous.”
Get lost.
Luo Feng didn’t want to respond.
He also didn’t want to deal with the ancestors back home.
He paid for the ancestral hall, yet somehow all the blessings ended up on Luo Xiao.
What—did he look like someone who didn’t need a spouse?!
“Don’t be mad.”
Luo Xiao patted him soothingly. “Maybe one day you’ll get out of being single really fast too.”
“Before I came to C City, I never thought I’d meet Wen Ran.”
“Stuff like fate—it’s hard to predict.”
Luo Feng said nothing, but thought to himself: Fate that lets you meet a beautiful guy and go to a hotel after a few days? Yeah, right.
He didn’t believe in ancestors anymore. And he definitely didn’t believe the sky would keep dropping pies on their family.
Luo Xiao kept his arm around him, drinking and chatting. “So, what type do you like?”
“We talked about it back in school, didn’t we?”
“Didn’t you say you liked long-legged, black-haired girls?”
“What about now?”
“Sexual orientation probably isn’t that fixed anymore.”
“As long as you like them, that’s enough.”
…
That night, Wen Ran happily celebrated his singles party with friends at the KTV. Luo Xiao and Luo Feng drank and chatted at the bar. Before falling asleep, Ju Yaxin happily talked with friends at the hotel about her son’s upcoming wedding. Luo Zhengting was on an international flight rushing back. Wen Pingping stayed at home, holding a photo of Wen Ran’s father and talking softly to it for a long time.
Early the next morning, Wen Ran, taking a cab back home, got a call from Wen Pingping. “Don’t wear earrings or lip rings. Pick a nice outfit. Dress sharp. Wedding photos are meaningful—take them seriously.”
Luo Xiao, who had already returned to the villa, got a call from Ju Yaxin as well. “You don’t know how to pick clothes. Let Ranran choose for you.”
“If you really don’t have anything, go to the mall at ten and buy a proper outfit.”
“Got it.”
Wen Ran replied, not daring to mention he hadn’t slept all night and had partied straight through.
“Okay.”
Luo Xiao answered too, not mentioning that he’d spent half the night drinking with Luo Feng and still smelled faintly of alcohol.
When Wen Ran got home, Luo Xiao had just finished showering, a thick towel wrapped around his waist.
So manly.
Wen Ran walked into the bedroom and immediately threw himself into Luo Xiao’s arms, burying his face in the man’s full, solid chest.
“Sleepy?” Luo Xiao asked him.
“Not really.”
Wen Ran sniffed. Beneath the clean scent of body wash, he caught a faint trace of alcohol. “Did you just get back too?”
“Mm,” Luo Xiao replied. “Haven’t really talked with Luo Feng in years. We were both free, so we ended up chatting all night.”
“Are you tired?” Wen Ran asked.
“Even if I were, I still have to take care of the important business first.”
Luo Xiao kissed Wen Ran on the cheek. “Go take a shower and change. We’re going to the civil affairs bureau.”
So Wen Ran went to shower, and Luo Xiao headed into the walk-in closet. There was no need to worry about clothes—Wen Ran had bought plenty of oversized men’s outfits that fit him perfectly, more than enough to choose from.
Forty minutes later, both of them—clean, neat, and stylish—left hand in hand, got into the car, and drove to the nearest civil affairs bureau.
When they arrived, it was either because they were early, or because it was such an ordinary day, but the marriage registration counter was nearly empty.
With the staff’s help, Wen Ran and Luo Xiao took a number. There were only two people ahead of them.
They didn’t even have time to sit down. Standing there and chatting casually for a bit, their number was already called.
They walked over together and sat down. The staff member behind the counter said something that caught both Wen Ran and Luo Xiao completely off guard.
“Marriage registration or divorce?”
Both of them: …?
Turns out marriage and divorce were handled at the same counter.
Wen Ran solemnly handed over his two ID cards with both hands. “Marriage.”
“Alright, please fill out the forms first.”
The staff member was clearly experienced and efficient.
Wen Ran and Luo Xiao took the forms and black pens, sat together at the counter, and began filling them out.
They had to fill in not only their own information, but also swap forms and fill in each other’s.
Afterward, they handed everything back. The staff member typed on the computer without even looking up. “Go inside to take photos.”
They stood up again and went to the photo area.
They followed instructions without much talking, like two well-behaved students listening to a teacher.
It wasn’t until they sat side by side on the long bench for the wedding photo that Wen Ran finally felt it hit him for real. His heart thumped wildly. He turned his head, eyes shining, to look at Luo Xiao.
Luo Xiao was looking at him too, his expression especially gentle.
“Alright, look at the camera,” the photographer said from behind the lens.
“Closer, sit closer—yes.”
“Smile.”
“Guy on the left, lower your right shoulder a bit.”
“Yep, just like that. Perfect.”
Click.
The wedding photo was done—just like that.
Ten minutes later, Wen Ran and Luo Xiao were each handed their marriage certificates—bright red booklets. On the left page were their names and the registration date; on the right page was the freshly taken photo. At the bottom of the opposite page was the steel seal of the civil affairs bureau.
The whole process was simple, ordinary, smooth—almost mundane.
But inside Wen Ran’s head:
!!!
!!!!!
!!!!!
They were married!
He and Luo Xiao were married!
They were husbands now!
Husbands recognized by the law!
This was amazing!!!
Wen Ran clutched the red booklet and lunged straight into Luo Xiao’s arms. Luo Xiao wrapped an arm under Wen Ran’s legs and lifted him high.
Many people in the hall turned to look at them, smiling as if caught up in the joy.
Meanwhile, Ju Yaxin and Wen Pingping were sitting together in a hotel café, drinking coffee, chatting, and waiting for news that Wen Ran and Luo Xiao had gotten their certificate.
Just then, both of their phones rang.
Wen Pingping picked hers up from the table; Ju Yaxin set down her coffee and lifted hers as well.
They saw the exact same photo on WeChat: Wen Ran and Luo Xiao standing close together, smiling at the camera, each holding up a bright red marriage certificate.
Wen Pingping: !!!
Ju Yaxin: !!!
Wen Pingping broke into a smile at once. Ju Yaxin did too.
And where were Wen Ran and Luo Xiao at that moment?
Driving back to the villa.
Entering through the basement-level electronic gate, the door barely closed behind them before they were already kissing, stripping off clothes, and heading up the stairs together.
Newly unleashed passion—sparks flying everywhere. Wen Ran wasn’t painting today, there was nothing else to do, and without a word, they tacitly decided to go all out and lose themselves completely.
Their first stop was the large dining table on the first floor.
When Wen Ran lay down on it, a chill ran along the tabletop and up his back. He shivered lightly—not from the cold, but because he lifted his neck and saw Luo Xiao lowering his head between his legs.
……
At the company, in his office, Luo Feng saw the photo of the marriage certificate that Luo Xiao sent. He replied simply:
【Congratulations】
But he didn’t put his phone down right away. He opened the photo, zoomed in, and examined the certificate carefully.
As he looked at it, Luo Feng thought: Ancestral hall back home, I’ll give you one more chance.
Before I turn thirty-two—no, absolutely before thirty-two—I must have one of these too.
If not…
A flash of ruthless resolve crossed his mind: don’t blame me next year when I only burn half the incense.
Just then, Luo Feng received another message from Ju Yaxin:
【Boss, don’t message Ranran or Luo Xiao today or tomorrow】
【Don’t contact them】
【Ranran texted his mom after getting the certificate. He said he and Luo Xiao went to “happy” and might need a few days】
A honeymoon?
Already flew off?
That fast?
Luo Feng was about to reply when another message from Ju Yaxin popped up:
【blushing.jpg】
【Wedding night】
【Don’t disturb them】
Luo Feng: “………………”