Chapter 48: “Will you run away?”

In an instant, all of Jiang Yao’s momentum dissipated. His bloodshot eyes stared hard at Duan Zhuxian, as if he was struggling with all his might to process what he had just heard.

A few seconds later, he gave up the struggle, and his mind went blank.

“Didn’t understand?” Duan Zhuxian asked with great patience, and smiled, “Then I’ll say it again, I like…”

“Stop!”

Jiang Yao suddenly came back to life, pressing his hand over Duan Zhuxian’s mouth, terrified that those three shocking words would slip out from his indifferent lips.

The next moment, a soft, wet sensation tickled his palm, as if it had been lightly kissed. Startled, he quickly pulled his hand back, retreating to the edge of the bed as if fleeing a disaster.

Jiang Yao’s chest heaved as he looked down at Duan Zhuxian, whom he had pinned to the bed.

That face that was so perfect that it seemed almost unfeeling, was still pale, with faint dark circles under his eyes. Maybe he was just talking nonsense from being sick.

“Duan Zhuxian, you don’t have a 40-degree fever, do you?” Jiang Yao asked in a flat voice.

Duan Zhuxian replied, “When I woke up this morning, it was 37.4 degrees.”

Jiang Yao, unwilling to give up, asked again, “So, you don’t want to be my buddy anymore?”

His expression looked a bit pitiful.

Duan Zhuxian was merciless: “No.”

Jiang Yao: “…”

Great, this was the second time Duan Zhuxian had rejected his offer of friendship.

Whether it was the seventeen-year-old Duan Zhuxian or the twenty-seven-year-old Duan Zhuxian, they were both irritatingly calm and collected!

Jiang Yao’s lips trembled as his gaze moved from the flushed corners of his eyes to Duan Zhuxian, looking at him as if he were a scumbag.

He was clearly a sick person who could be easily pushed over, yet his attitude was unyieldingly strong. In this bedroom, he had cornered Jiang Yao with no escape, forcing him to leave this place of conflict.

Standing in the snow-covered courtyard, Jiang Yao tilted his face up, resolutely letting the north wind slap him with a few icy blows.

Then he took out a cigarette, trying to calm down by smoking, but his thoughts became more chaotic with each puff, just like the swirling smoke.

He really couldn’t understand how, in just a few months of interaction, Duan Zhuxian could have truly developed feelings for him?

But what does Duan Zhuxian like about him?

They had even been rivals in love before…

*

When Duan Zhuxian walked outside, he saw Jiang Yao crouched by the dirt-covered steps, trying to bury himself like a mushroom.

His tall, slender body was curled up into a small ball, looking pitiful, helpless, and confused.

Duan Zhuxian found it amusing and a bit heartbreaking, but mostly he felt a sense of relief.

When he was fifteen, Jiang Yao had been the first ray of starlight in the eternal night of his life.

He once believed in a concept—that one didn’t need to pluck the stars to be illuminated by them, and stars would never come to anyone on their own.

Stars are usually proud, hanging high in the sky, unfathomable, occasionally leaving unintended guidance that makes souls beneath the night sky strive endlessly to pursue and interpret them.

For the past ten years, he had willingly been an astronomer, observing a star named Jiang Yao night after night, capturing his mysterious trajectory, calculating his alternating cycles of brightness and darkness.

But today, he had torn up all the scratch paper filled with calculation formulas.

Perhaps there was an element of impulsiveness in it.

When he opened his eyes and saw the chaotic figure from his dream, who had been taking care of him, now sleeping by his bedside, he only wanted to fully possess this star, so that its light would shine only for him.

“Give me one.”

Duan Zhuxian walked slowly over to Jiang Yao.

“You’re not allowed to smoke when you’re sick.”

Jiang Yao stood up fiercely, extinguishing his own cigarette in the process.

In that moment when they stood face to face, even the wind seemed to stop. The branches and leaves of the evergreen trees stilled, and the surroundings fell silent except for Duan Zhuxian’s slightly heavy breathing, as if the entire world was cutting off any intention of Jiang Yao’s escape.

“Duan Zhuxian.” Jiang Yao stared into his eyes, “Tell me the truth. Did you say that just because you wanted to sleep with me?”

Jiang Yao’s voice had regained its calm, and his face had also settled into tranquility, though the tips of his ears were still red.

“No,” Duan Zhuxian replied without a change in his expression. “Being buddies or lovers doesn’t prevent us from sleeping together.”

“Shit!” Jiang Yao lost his composure again.

Someone was even more shameless and brazen than he had imagined!

Jiang Yao was truly puzzled. “What do you like about me? That I’m arrogant, that I have a bad temper, or that I can’t speak nicely?”

Duan Zhuxian chuckled. “Is that how you scold yourself?”

“So what if I do?” Jiang Yao retorted, sticking out his neck stubbornly. “Do you want me to scold you instead?”

“Haven’t you scolded me enough?” Duan Zhuxian raised an eyebrow slightly. “In the future, if you’re ever angry, just scold me.”

Listen to that—what kind of talk is that from Duan Zhuxian?

Jiang Yao kept an unreasonable expression on his face, but his heart was pounding wildly.

And then Duan Zhuxian stepped closer, surrounding Jiang Yao with his slightly higher-than-normal body temperature. “Jiang Yao, I’m serious. Liking you means liking you as a person. Even the parts of yourself that you think are bad are parts that I like.”

Those thoughts that had always stayed hidden in the dark were finally exposed to the light for the first time.

Jiang Yao’s eyes widened, his lips slightly parted, and for a moment, he couldn’t say a word, his heart racing as if he had a heart attack.

Duan Zhuxian’s voice softened. “Let’s go inside. Don’t catch a cold like me.”

The air was filled with a thin scent of snow, but the distant horizon was already showing the first light of dawn seeping through the clouds. The first snow of the new year had long since stopped, and today looked like it would be a warm day.

Following Duan Zhuxian back inside, Jiang Yao finally managed to squeeze out a sentence: “I think you’re deliberately trying to ruin my New Year.”

Duan Zhuxian chuckled helplessly at his words.

He had merely hinted at his feelings and hadn’t even pressed Jiang Yao for a response—how could that be considered “deliberate”?

If he truly wanted to keep Jiang Yao up for days and nights, he could reveal the decade-long crush he’d had on him and let Jiang Yao experience what it really means to be unsettled.

Jiang Yao was usually pretty sharp, but when it came to matters of the heart, he was indeed a bit slow. Duan Zhuxian knew he needed to be patient with Jiang Yao, regardless of whether Jiang Yao eventually accepted or rejected him after coming around.

At least, after hearing his sudden confession, Jiang Yao was still willing to talk to him and enter the house together. These were things Duan Zhuxian hadn’t expected.

The New Year’s surprise was already enough.

They say love is all-encompassing, and Duan Zhuxian always worried that the person he liked might feel suffocated by his intense feelings.

*

In the afternoon, when Chen Yiqi arrived at the club, he happened to see Jiang Yao sending Amy and her friends away. Jiang Yao sat alone, exuding an air of aloofness, with the diamond ring on his left ring finger dazzling anyone who had any intention of approaching him.

Chen Yiqi was puzzled. “Don’t you usually love hanging out with them?”

“Not a good look,” Jiang Yao said absently, turning the ring on his finger.

Chen Yiqi plopped down on the sofa and gulped down an iced drink. “Why do you look so distracted? What’s the urgent matter you called me for?”

He had recently started his own business, was short on cash, and was too embarrassed to ask his family for help. To make extra money, he was brokering deals for people. He was just about to close a 20,000-yuan deal when Jiang Yao’s phone call summoned him.

Jiang Yao said, “Someone confessed to me.”

Chen Yiqi choked on his drink and coughed for a while before lamenting, “Is someone confessing to you a big deal? If you gathered all the people who’ve confessed to you since childhood in this club, it wouldn’t fit them all. And for this, I lost out on 20,000 yuan!”

Hearing this, Jiang Yao wordlessly picked up his phone.

Half a minute later, Chen Yiqi’s phone buzzed with a notification—40,000 yuan had been transferred to his bank account.

Chen Yiqi’s eyes lit up, and he immediately adopted a sincere, big-brotherly demeanor. “Who had the guts to confess to you? Aren’t they afraid of crossing Duan Zhuxian?”

Jiang Yao’s lips twitched, and he sullenly muttered three words: “Duan Zhuxian.”

Now, it was Chen Yiqi’s turn to be dazed.

He had never really understood the situation between these two.

Chen Yiqi was dumbfounded for a while, then remembered something. “The person who sent you the roses—could it have been Duan Zhuxian?”

Jiang Yao responded with a “Hmm,” looking even more troubled.

Thinking about the roses, he couldn’t help but recall Michel’s painting. The auction had been held two months ago. Had Duan Zhuxian already “turned from an enemy to something else” back then?

And the wedding half a month ago, where Duan Zhuxian had spoken so flawlessly in front of the guests—although the words “admired for a long time” were false, perhaps there was a hint of truth mixed in, giving it that persuasive effect.

Analyzing everything, Jiang Yao pinched the bridge of his nose.

It seemed that Duan Zhuxian, who appeared destined to be a lifelong bachelor, had actually fallen in love…

Chen Yiqi asked, “Do you like him?”

Jiang Yao, as if pricked by those two words, suddenly sat up straight. He wanted to say something, but instead raised his hand to rub his face, finally giving up. “If I knew, would I be here asking you for advice?”

Chen Yiqi laughed. “If you don’t know yourself, asking me isn’t going to help…”

Jiang Yao said, “You have a lot of experience with relationships.”

Chen Yiqi pondered, “How did you feel when he confessed? Did you feel repulsed?”

“Not really,” Jiang Yao paused. “But the thought of being in a romantic relationship with him makes me uncomfortable. We just made up last night, and we’re not even solid buddies yet.”

Well, you two got married while being enemies…

But Chen Yiqi didn’t say that. He knew Jiang Yao might seem carefree on the outside, but he was actually more perceptive than anyone. The reason for his dilemma was that he couldn’t get over the barrier that had stood for ten years in his heart.

Chen Yiqi asked, “Did he give you a deadline for an answer?”

Jiang Yao replied, “No.”

Chen Yiqi was surprised. “Then he’s being considerate.”

Considerate, my ass! He’s just adding to my troubles!

If Duan Zhuxian had adopted his usual domineering attitude and forced him to respond or even agree, Jiang Yao would have refused on the spot. Instead, he’s left dangling in midair, not knowing what to do.

Chen Yiqi suggested, “I have an idea. This back-and-forth isn’t going anywhere. You two should cool off for a few days. Distance is the best analysis reagent. If you still find yourself thinking about him often when you can’t see him, then congratulations, you’ve fallen for him.”

Just as Jiang Yao was about to respond, his phone vibrated on the table, showing a call from “A Certain Duan.”

He had slipped out while Duan Zhuxian was napping, so he felt a bit guilty answering the call.

He grabbed his phone and walked quickly outside, finding a quieter corner to answer it. “What’s up?”

“I heard music. You’re at the club, aren’t you?” There was a pause on the other end.

Jiang Yao: “…”

I should have walked farther before picking up.

He rubbed his nose. “It’s where Chen Yiqi wanted to meet.”

Chen Yiqi, who had followed him out for some fresh air, looked puzzled.

On the phone, Duan Zhuxian chuckled, his voice slightly hoarse. “Have fun. Don’t worry about me.”

“Who’s worried about you…” Jiang Yao instinctively retorted, but his voice softened into a low murmur at the end.

Previously, when Duan Zhuxian set the rigid terms of their marriage arrangement, forbidding him from enjoying himself at the club, Jiang Yao wanted nothing more than to rebel against him.

But now, with Duan Zhuxian suddenly being so magnanimous, even smiling weakly at him despite being ill, Jiang Yao felt a sense of guilt instead.

During the silence, a fit of coughing came from the phone, abruptly cut off as if trying to hide it.

Jiang Yao’s brow furrowed.

He had seemed fine earlier in the day, but now he sounded worse, as if his cold had worsened.

After hanging up, Jiang Yao turned to Chen Yiqi, who was puffing on his cigarette. “I need to go home.”

Chen Yiqi wasn’t surprised at all and waved his hand. “Go ahead.”

He had already guessed this outcome when he saw the caller ID.

His good buddy, Jiang Yao, was destined to be at Duan Zhuxian’s mercy from ten years ago to now, and there was no saving him from it.

*

Jiang Yao drove back home at breakneck speed. Duan Zhuxian was sitting on the sofa, looking over some documents.

A pair of silver-framed glasses perched on his high-bridged nose, the lenses reflecting a sharp light, and his lips were pressed into a cold, straight line, showing no sign of the weakness he had on the phone.

“Has your fever gone down, and now you’re working again?” Jiang Yao strode over and snatched the documents from Duan Zhuxian’s hands.

“It’s down,” Duan Zhuxian replied, and looking up. His gaze, though under cold lenses, was unexpectedly gentle.

Jiang Yao, still not convinced, took a thermometer and personally checked his temperature. It read 36.7 degrees.

Even so, Jiang Yao didn’t return the documents, holding them in his arms and speaking sternly, “The holiday ends tomorrow. Don’t rush back to work. Hua Yan won’t collapse without you. Rest well at home.”

Duan Zhuxian nodded in agreement.

Jiang Yao thought for a moment and added, “Don’t go the day after tomorrow either. Keep yourself warm, eat three meals a day on time, and eat more vegetables to get your vitamins…”

Seeing Duan Zhuxian’s indulgent attitude, Jiang Yao felt a bit awkward but continued to give detailed instructions, as meticulously as if giving a pre-departure briefing.

Having not had a chance to drink water since entering the house, Jiang Yao tossed the documents onto the coffee table, far from Duan Zhuxian, and grabbed a bottle of mineral water from the fridge.

Suddenly, Duan Zhuxian’s voice came from behind, approaching closer, “Will you run away?”

Jiang Yao froze in the act of unscrewing the bottle cap. “Run away? Where would I go?”

Duan Zhuxian stood behind Jiang Yao, and his breath lightly brushing against Jiang Yao’s neck. “I once asked you, if I were to fall in love with you over time, what would you do? You said you’d run as far as you could.”

Hearing this, Jiang Yao’s exposed neck visibly stiffened, then he snorted. “That was just a joke. Do you think I’m such a coward?”

While saying this, he kept the tuft of red hair at the back of his head facing Duan Zhuxian.

*

The next day, Duan Zhuxian stood at the door of Jiang Yao’s bedroom, with his brow furrowing with frustration.

The person who promised not to run away was nowhere to be seen, having disappeared with his suitcase early in the morning.