Chapter 188
Through this period of time together, Ye Zhi came to know that Hui, Yu, and Lele were all very kind people. Lele, especially, because of his fondness for the gift Ye Zhi bought on his first visit, had developed a close relationship with him. Yet, despite this, Ye Zhi still felt uneasy about troubling and disturbing them. At one point, he even considered renting another place to live, but Qing Qing firmly vetoed that idea.
“If you truly consider me a friend, then you’ll live in my house!”
Hui and Yu even borrowed a larger vehicle to help him move. Ye Zhi couldn’t refuse.
With not much belongings, other than essentials, he packed everything into two larger boxes. After moving back to Qing Qing’s house, Qing Qing offered him half of his bed, saying with a smile, “You’ll sleep with me from now on, so we can chat together every day.”
In truth, he proposed this because his room was the cleanest and most comfortable in the entire house.
Here could be considered “rural”, with less refined decorations compared to the city. Many families didn’t spend much on decoration, so the living environment wasn’t particularly good. Initially, all the rooms in their house were similar, but over the years, Qing Qing had sent money back, and Hui and Yu renovated his bedroom separately, buying new furniture, making it look especially clean and beautiful.
“Plus, the bathroom is nearby. If you need to go at night, it’s just a few steps away.” Qing Qing industriously brought in Ye Zhi’s luggage. “You sit and rest for a bit; I’ll tidy up. I’m really good at organizing!”
He claimed to be good, but soon he messed up Ye Zhi’s neatly arranged boxes, feeling a bit embarrassed. “Sorry, I lied…”
Ye Zhi laughed and said, “I can handle it.”
Qing Qing dared not move things around anymore and just squatted beside him to help, saying, “The baby will be born in three months, so we need to start preparing now. My mom found some of our childhood clothes the other day, washed and dried them, and my dad is making new clothes for the baby at night. He’s already made two sets.”
Ye Zhi was surprised. “Does your uncle make clothes himself?”
“Yeah, my dad is really good with his hands, he can do anything!” Qing Qing became excited, even slipping into his local dialect. “When we were young and poor, my clothes and toys were all handmade by my dad. He can even knit sweaters, very beautifully and warm. It’s just a pity that we can’t wear them here in the Hei Tu Mountains because the weather is too warm.”
Ye Zhi chuckled. Qing Qing continued happily, “Many people around here say that my dad was able to marry my mom, who’s so pretty, because he’s skillful. Otherwise, with my mom being so beautiful, she’d definitely marry someone else, not my dad. Maybe some people don’t even know about homosexuality? My mom is probably naturally gay. Without my dad, she definitely wouldn’t have married a man. I inherited that from them; I’m also naturally gay.”
Having lived in Black Soil Town for so long, Ye Zhi also noticed that same-sex marriages were very, very rare here. Most families followed ancient customs and consisted of one man and one woman.
The union of Hui and Yu was already considered unusual in this land.
“Zhi Zhi, are you naturally gay too?”
After careful consideration, Ye Zhi nodded. “I think so. I’ve never felt any attraction towards women.” He added with some complexity, “It might stem from my mother’s dominance. I’ve always been wary of women…”
“But men can be good or bad.” Qing Qing sat directly on the floor, looking a bit troubled. “They’re never satisfied, don’t know how to restrain themselves, arrogant, lie, and cheat countless times…”
Ye Zhi found it amusing. “You’re including yourself in that, too.”
“I don’t count. In fact, I can only count as half a man.” Qing Qing laughed, looking up at Ye Zhi, “Except for my mom and dad and you, I haven’t encountered any good men. Why do men always cheat?” He had been treated as a toy by Cheng Yanzhou, and he had seen more of those bottomless situations than Ye Zhi, so he sighed with emotion.
“I’m not sure either. I’ve also cheated…” Ye Zhi’s voice tightened as he spoke. The events from a few months ago were like a brand etched into his heart, leaving traces that would probably be difficult to erase for a lifetime.
“You don’t need to blame yourself. Huo Youcheng doesn’t know how many times he’s cheated; I’ve seen quite a few myself. There was even a scandal in the news once, and it was directly recorded. You’ve only done it once; it’s not even comparable. Why should you feel guilty?”
“I’m not guilty.” When it came to Huo Youcheng, he might occasionally feel guilty, but it wouldn’t linger in his heart.
“So, did you cheat… out of revenge?” Qing Qing couldn’t suppress his curiosity. He couldn’t understand under what circumstances Ye Zhi, with his personality, would cheat, who the target was, and after much thought, he couldn’t even come up with a target.
“No.” Ye Zhi denied it quickly. “It’s because of love.”
His voice was soft, filled with longing. “I love him.”
Despite feeling anxious and embarrassed about inconveniencing others by moving in, Ye Zhi eventually let go of those emotions under the warm treatment of Qing Qing’s family.
