Family of Three

Su Ran felt like he was going to melt under Ye Qiao’s touch, and just then, the knocking finally stopped.

Slumped on the bed, Su Ran was greeted by Ye Qiao’s somewhat surprised look. Staring at the man with damp hair and flushed cheeks, Ye Qiao licked his finger and chuckled, “That was quick.”

The bewildered Su Ran immediately blushed, his mind a mess but clearly understanding Ye Qiao’s implication, and it angered him. No man would tolerate being spoken to like that!

“I… It’s been a long time since…” Though angry, he felt rather meek, but he thought it was a good enough excuse.

Having been here for so long, Su Ran hadn’t thought about such matters at all, and what happened with Ye Qiao was sudden. He felt like Ye Qiao acted on a whim…

But looking back, what happened between them seemed ridiculous. He wasn’t like his roommates; they were heterosexual, just curious about it, and found it pretty good, so they kept helping each other out. But Ye Qiao wasn’t like that!

He likes men, right? And he wasn’t supposed to be with Jiang Yi like that, so what was that just now?

Remembering his calm demeanor, if it was just caressing an “art piece” and suddenly it turned into desire, and Ye Qiao was so casual about it, Su Ran could accept it. He and his roommate were ridiculous too, after all, they were men, understandable.

At this moment, Ye Qiao propped himself up slightly, a smile in his eyes. Thinking Ye Qiao was looking down on him, Su Ran glared and turned his head away, his male pride severely stung.

However, Ye Qiao pinched his chin, turning his face back, “Brother Ran Ran, did my brother ever do this to you?”

Su Ran choked up suddenly, blushing again. He couldn’t quite handle Ye Qiao’s straightforward manner now.

Seeing Su Ran’s reaction, Ye Qiao knew the answer, his chest heaving for a moment as he calmed himself, then leaned beside Su Ran to gently kiss his cheek, “Brother Ran Ran, you’re pretty impressive, really great.”

Su Ran, “……”

He’d rather have no consolation. Su Ran also wanted to understand what just happened, but felt too awkward to ask outright.

“So, have you had a boyfriend before?” Su Ran asked.

“No,” Ye Qiao replied.

Su Ran was a bit surprised, “You mean, no partners at all?”

Normally, for someone like him, a recluse not having a partner was expected. Someone like Ye Qiao, top-tier in looks and with an outgoing personality…

“Really no, I’m just like Brother Ran Ran, a virgin,” Ye Qiao said, his voice muffled as he hugged Su Ran, burying his face in his neck, breathing in his scent, pecking softly at the soft flesh of his neck.

Hearing this, Su Ran suddenly understood everything. It made sense why Ye Qiao had acted that way, driven by curiosity and impulse. If he got a taste of that pleasure, maybe it would end up like with his roommate.

Still, it probably should have been with Jiang Yi, or perhaps he and Jiang Yi weren’t at that stage yet; they were still careful, unlike how he was with others…

Before Su Ran could figure it all out, he felt the significant presence of Ye Qiao’s kisses; one after another on his cheek and neck, flesh pulled into lips.

Su Ran immediately pushed him, “What are you doing, don’t overdo it.”

He and his roommate hadn’t had much aftercare, in fact, his roommate quite liked it, getting his mind all messed up while doing it, and he wasn’t good at rejecting others, always getting kissed forcefully, later even excessively talking about wanting his saliva, which felt weird and disgusting.

“Brother Ran Ran…” Ye Qiao’s voice was clingy, “I’m still uncomfortable.”

Surprised, Su Ran finally reacted, rolling off the bed, suddenly thinking if Ye Qiao found pleasure in this, he might keep bothering him, and what if it affected his relationship line with Jiang Yi.

“That… you should go back first, this isn’t right,” Su Ran said tactfully, pretending not to notice Ye Qiao’s condition, “Besides, someone came looking for me just now, I need to check what it’s about…”

Ye Qiao looked at him mournfully for a long while before reluctantly saying, “Alright.”

After sending Ye Qiao away, Su Ran immediately went to the bathroom, sweating a lot earlier. He planned to take a shower, just turning on the shower, when he heard knocking again.

Su Ran quickly rinsed off and changed into pajamas. The knocking had stopped, but Su Ran still opened the door to see if the person had left.

As the door opened, he saw a dark figure at the doorway, Lu Jin, leaning against the door frame.

Su Ran felt tense, sensing Lu Jin’s gloomy aura and his displeased expression.

“Mr. Lu?” Su Ran called out to him.

Unexpectedly, this “Mr. Lu” made him look even more displeased. Lu Jin glanced at the moist Su Ran, then walked straight into the room.

The room was also a bit moist, filled with the scent of shower gel. He had heard the door opening earlier, not expecting Su Ran had started showering when he came knocking.

He glanced at the cellphone on the bedside table, then asked, “Why didn’t you answer the phone.”

“Oh…” Su Ran remembered the call, “I didn’t notice…”

“What were you doing just now.” Lu Jin asked.

Su Ran felt his scalp tingle, not understanding why he was digging so deep, and it was just a missed call, why did it seem like he was angry.

Lu Jin stared at Su Ran until he lowered his head, feeling like Lu Jin’s demeanor was like a girlfriend checking on him, as if he should immediately apologize and try to appease him.

Thinking this, Su Ran mentally shook off these thoughts, recalling that it was him who knocked earlier when he was with Ye Qiao in the room, “I went to Jiang Yi’s room earlier, looking for something…”

Su Ran vaguely lied, feeling guilty as he glanced up at Lu Jin, finding him still staring intently, and guiltily lowered his head again, not understanding his own behavior.

Perhaps at this moment, Lu Jin really resembled a high-class, cold girlfriend, just staring at him, making him, the little boyfriend, hang his head low, afraid of upsetting her.

“Why did you send the money back to me, why didn’t you accept my money?” Lu Jin asked, his face souring to an extreme.

Su Ran sneaked a glance at him, feeling that Lu Jin showing up here with such a bad expression was because of this.

This made him ponder; did he really enjoy sending money to others, or did he feel humiliated when he returned the money.

“That money was too much, I couldn’t accept it,” Su Ran honestly said, “Was that investment money? To be honest, I’ve never seen so much money, I was really shocked by the amount, if it was meant for me personally, then I couldn’t accept it.”

Hearing this, Lu Jin paused, the room light casting a nostalgic, dim yellow halo, softening his features and making him seem a bit pitiable, evoking sympathy.

“Change your clothes and come find me downstairs at the bar later, I’ll wait for you there, we need to talk,” Lu Jin said.

“Huh?” Su Ran was a bit slow to react to his sudden change, only to realize what was said when he came back to himself, the person was already gone.

What to talk about? About that money?

After changing his clothes, Su Ran went downstairs. By this time, the gathering outside had dispersed. When he reached the first floor, only the butler and a few cleaners were working.

He walked inside to a small bar, like a mini-pub, with a few dozen types of liquor displayed on the shelf behind the bar. From afar, he saw Lu Jin inside the bar, seemingly mixing drinks.

“Mr. Lu.” Su Ran greeted hesitantly.

Feeling like Lu Jin meant to have a serious talk, and now it was just the two of them, he felt nervous.

Lu Jin glanced at him, then continued focusing on his tools before saying, “Think of a nickname, from now on you can’t call me Mr. Lu anymore.”

Su Ran was stunned, “Then… what should I call you?”

Lu Jin glanced at him, seeming a bit angry, then let his eyelashes fall, shielding his eyes, “You say it.”

Hmm… not sure if it’s an illusion, but Su Ran could hear a hint of coquettishness in that “You say it.”

If they were lovers, would this be the time to say, “Then I’ll call you ‘baby’?”

Unfortunately, they weren’t. Su Ran was a bit lost about the sudden change of nickname, not understanding what he meant, was it because they felt closer now, so he suggested a change of nickname?

“Lu Jin?” Su Ran tentatively said, feeling like a timid boyfriend during an argument; he even found it strange himself, why was there this kind of atmosphere between him and Lu Jin.

This “Lu Jin” did not satisfy Lu Jin; he pursed his lips, looking up at Su Ran with a reproachful gaze, as if regretting that he would call him that, “If you’re willing to call me that, then call me that.”

His tone seemed like he would regret calling him that; Su Ran felt weird, his mind filled with odd thoughts, controlling himself not to imagine too much.

“Mm-hm.” Su Ran responded.

Unexpectedly, Lu Jin still had a stern face, his hand shaking the cocktail shaker, making a loud noise.

Su Ran watched his actions, then suddenly said, “Wow, you’re really good.”

Lu Jin looked at the sparkling-eyed Su Ran, his mouth unconsciously curving into a smile, until he poured the drink into the glass, having prepared two glasses, one of which he pushed towards Su Ran.

Su Ran looked at the beautifully decorated glass in front of him, President Lu personally mixing a drink for him, probably Jiang Yi had never been treated like this.

Su Ran carefully picked up the glass, took a sip, “It tastes really good.”

Lu Jin finally smiled, stepped out from behind the bar, and then sat down beside Su Ran.

Su Ran glanced at him, instinctively moving to the side, not understanding why he didn’t sit inside the bar but came out to sit with him, they weren’t that close, right?

The man sat beside him, making Su Ran unavoidably feel a bit constrained. He lowered his head and took a sip of the drink, the drink was sweet and sour, icy cool with a hint of alcohol, really tasty, fitting his taste, “You said you wanted to talk, what about…”

Su Ran looked to the side, then jumped in fright as Lu Jin suddenly leaned close to his neck, he immediately moved away, frowning and asking, “What are you doing?”

Lu Jin’s face showed a bit of embarrassment, now sitting sideways, perfectly able to see Su Ran’s crumpled face and puzzled eyes, Lu Jin immediately explained, “You smell nice…”

“Nice?” Su Ran’s brows were still furrowed; he grabbed his shirt and sniffed, smelling nothing, “How come I can’t smell anything.”

Lu Jin moved closer again, then said, “Everyone probably can’t smell their own scent, you’re different from others, your scent is really nice, really fragrant.”

Su Ran grabbed his shirt again and sniffed hard, indeed smelling nothing, he remembered Lu Jin’s family was in the luxury goods business, and he himself had made impressive achievements in the perfume industry, so his sense of smell must be sharper than average.

“You know,” Lu Jin looked at Su Ran, his deep eyes shimmering, “your scent fascinates me, the first time we met, I smelled it, now thinking back, I was attracted then.”

Su Ran looked at him, his mouth slightly open in shock, Lu Jin’s words making his skin prickle, if he wasn’t really proven in the perfume industry, he’d think this was a confession, and a very mushy one.

“I want to turn your scent into a perfume,” Lu Jin said.

Su Ran finally accepted what he had just said, it seemed Lu Jin truly liked his scent, and noticed it the moment they met, so now that he and Lu Jin could sit down and drink together, even he personally mixing drinks for him, all this must be because of his enchanting scent.

It all seemed to make sense, and he liked the scent enough to want to make it into a perfume, he really loved it…

In that moment, Su Ran felt a revelation, “So, the reason you could give me so much money, is that related?”

Lu Jin paused, not expecting Su Ran’s train of thought to jump there, he was thinking about money, completely ignoring the emotional content of his words, all the allure he had been employing had gone where.

But he didn’t intend to refute, originally this chat was meant to give him money, previously still wondering how to make him accept it, now well, he provided the reason himself.

He wanted Su Ran to know, spending his money was only natural, but thinking of how deeply ingrained Su Ran’s current way of thinking was, it was impossible to accept it at once, this reason was also good, he didn’t want Su Ran to be so destitute, so pitiful…

“Yes.” Lu Jin said, this time boldly approaching his neck, letting his nose touch his warm skin, letting the scent he was addicted to seep into his nose.

This time Su Ran didn’t dodge, just blankly said, “That much money isn’t necessary…”

Lu Jin looked up at him, his expression serious, “You have to know, your scent is one of a kind in the whole world, a million is nothing, to me, it’s priceless.”

Su Ran shuddered, staring steadily at Lu Jin, touched by the phrase “priceless,” even moved.

It was the first time someone described him as a priceless treasure, he had always been by Jiang Yi’s side, where everything had a certain standard, like a monthly living allowance of ten thousand, a monthly salary of twelve thousand, helping with the children would get forty thousand in reward, the cost of a trip was twenty thousand, that was the standard, as if going beyond that wasn’t worthwhile.

Because of Jiang Yi’s cold neglect, because of his occasional suppression, he always felt he didn’t deserve anything too expensive, indeed, he couldn’t afford those expensive things, nor did he dare to.

But now someone called him a “priceless treasure,” as if he deserved all good things, as if a million was not too much for him.

Su Ran’s head was a bit dizzy, under the influence of alcohol, he was successfully brainwashed, then said, “You’re right, my scent is indeed unique in the world.”

Although he couldn’t smell it, Lu Jin affirmed it!

Lu Jin’s mouth curved in a smile, continually approaching him, his hand unconsciously grasping his, the soft and delicate touch just as he imagined.

“Right, a million even feels a bit less, I’ll give you two million, how about that.” Lu Jin coaxed gently.

Su Ran looked at him, took a deep breath, his chest puffing up, feeling full of confidence, “I think that’s okay too.”

The more the better, of course, developing a perfume would also cost quite a bit of money, maybe that really wasn’t much!

Su Ran never thought that one day he’d dare to accept a million from someone, even feeling it wasn’t enough, turning it into two million!

But he soon thought, as the buyer, shouldn’t Lu Jin be driving the price down, why was he raising it…

Could it be that his scent was truly incomparable, so mesmerizing that he was helpless but to raise the price, a high price to make himself feel secure?

Watching the dazed Su Ran, Lu Jin didn’t know what he was thinking, but his appearance at this moment made his heart soften, “Okay, if there will be production costs later, I will also send them to you.”

Su Ran’s eyes brightened, looking at him, “Will you keep sending me money?”

“Yes, I’ve said it, priceless treasure,” Lu Jin said, watching Su Ran’s appearance, his smile growing deeper.

“Okay, thank you,” Su Ran said seriously, after the excitement, he calmed down, truly heartfelt.

Lu Jin quietly watched him, the bar’s light was a cool blue hue, the atmosphere carrying a bit of romance, Su Ran’s fair face also looking hazy, Lu Jin couldn’t move his gaze away.

Su Ran noticed Lu Jin staring at him, he smiled awkwardly, then picked up his drink and took a sip, smiling, “This drink is really good…”

Before he could finish, Lu Jin suddenly leaned close, Su Ran’s eyelashes trembling, the next second, feeling the warmth on his lips, he almost froze in that moment, Lu Jin was kissing him…

It was also Lu Jin’s first time kissing someone, initially just pressing on Su Ran’s lips, feeling the icy moist lip, after a while realizing to take both lips in his mouth, then trying to pry his teeth open, tasting the flavor inside.

The warm, sweet sensation almost numbed his heart, he immersed himself in the kiss, closing his eyes passionately tasting his tongue.

Su Ran was completely stunned, his eyes wide, completely not understanding Lu Jin’s intention, until the other party finished kissing him, meeting his gaze, Lu Jin’s eyes also moist, his face carrying an abnormal flush.

“So sweet.” Lu Jin said, then leaned in to kiss the corner of his mouth, “So fragrant.”

Su Ran was somewhat back to his senses by now, seeming to understand Lu Jin’s action, “Is this also a part of making perfume?”

Lu Jin was amused by him, his eyes sparkling, then seriously said, “Yes, will you keep kissing me from now on.”

Su Ran looked a bit troubled, Lu Jin’s smile made him look very youthful, he should smile more, his dazed emotions were swept away in his smile, it seems what he said was true, he was really obsessed with that scent.

But this method of obtaining the scent was too primitive, did he always have to smell him, kiss him, then adjust the proportion of the ingredients bit by bit.

Just then, Su Ran received a notification on his phone, he took it out to look, Lu Jin had transferred money.

Twenty million exactly.

Su Ran took a deep breath, feeling since he could earn so much money, that giving a bit in return was only right.

He said, “Okay.”

•

•

The next morning, Su Ran woke up and checked the time, his biological clock was off by half an hour, it seemed he was too excited about the money last night, causing some insomnia.

This morning, System 555 was particularly sweet, “Good morning, host.”

Su Ran rubbed his eyes, “Morning.”

System 555 turned into a little mechanical figure spinning in his mind, “Master Ran Ran, we’ve made a small splash in the circle of honest people overnight, other systems are envious of our overnight wealth.”

Listening, Su Ran couldn’t help but laugh, money was still very important to them, his plot wouldn’t just disappear after completion, even if he was a minor character completing his part, he wouldn’t just die, he would live out his life in this world.

So once his plot ended, he would immediately live a wealthy life, he had been saving up before for this, and besides, the money they earned in various worlds would be duplicated into the system, including some fixed assets, turned into equivalent money, even if it depreciated a hundred times, it wasn’t little!

Twenty million, depreciated a hundred times is still two hundred thousand, plus the bonus for completing the plot, in the circle of honest people, he was considered quite rich, especially since he was still a newbie, and he would also enjoy it in this world, after the plot ended, he wouldn’t live a bitter life anymore!

“You bragged in the group, didn’t you?” Su Ran guessed, System 555 definitely couldn’t resist showing off.

“Yes, I made the other systems envy a lot, they even asked me how to make money,” System 555 said, then its mechanical head tilted, “Telling them is useless, their hosts aren’t as fragrant as you.”

Su Ran laughed, then admonished, “Keep it low-key, do you know not to show off wealth.”

“Mm!” System 555 agreed, then added, “Actually, it won’t be low-key for long, it’ll be public at the end of the year, let’s strive for number one! Best Employee!”

“Let’s do it.” Su Ran said, his mood indeed pleasant with money.

Su Ran looked at his phone, seeing someone had sent him a WeChat message, he clicked to check, it was He Zhiwen.

It was sent late last night, he probably was already asleep by then, upon checking, Su Ran’s heart skipped a beat.

He Zhiwen had actually arrived! He flew in last night, currently staying at a hotel near the manor!

He said Zhao Mingzhe really missed him, so he brought him along, and wondered if it was convenient to come see the child.

Su Ran sat up abruptly, since he had come, then he and Jiang Yi had no reason not to see him, both morally and logically.

Moreover, it would be best to directly bring the person over, that would be the most proper, but this was obviously impossible, because in front of him, Jiang Yi was still a single man!

If He Zhiwen suddenly found out not only that Jiang Yi wasn’t single but also that he was his husband, Su Ran didn’t dare to imagine how strong that impact would be, He Zhiwen’s trust in Jiang Yi would definitely be gone.

Su Ran immediately got out of bed and sent a message to Jiang Yi, telling him about He Zhiwen’s arrival.

After sending the message, he went to the bathroom to wash up, just finished washing, his face not yet dried, when the door was knocked on, he quickly wiped the water droplets from his face.

Upon opening the door, he was startled, thinking it was Jiang Yi, but it turned out to be Lu Jin, just as he was about to speak, the door behind him also opened, the two looked back, seeing Ye Qiao coming out with a drawing board, “Brother Ran Ran, morning.”

Hearing that, Lu Jin’s face, which was still smiling, immediately turned cold. Ye Qiao, regardless, looked at him with a smile, then directly squeezed into the room, casually sitting on the small sofa as if entering Su Ran’s room was like coming back to his own home, very casual.

Ye Qiao looked at Su Ran, completely ignoring Lu Jin, “Brother Ran Ran, are you ready to go, aren’t we going up the mountain today?”

Su Ran slapped his forehead, right, they had already agreed yesterday, it’s just that he was stunned by the two million and forgot everything, “Sorry Qiao Qiao, I forgot, I can’t go today, I have something.”

“Qiao Qiao?”

“What’s up?”

Lu Jin and Ye Qiao spoke at the same time, Su Ran didn’t know where to look.

He didn’t know why Lu Jin’s cheeks were tight, looking really angry, why was he so easily angered…

He first responded to Ye Qiao’s question, “President He brought his kid over, I have to go see them.”

“Who is President He?”

“What is he doing?”

Su Ran, “……”

You two are quite in sync.

This time Su Ran decided to respond to Lu Jin first, because his face looked really bad, “President He is Jiang Yi’s boss, I’ve helped him look after his nephew for a while, you’ve seen the kid.”

Lu Jin’s face looked even worse, “Are you still helping look after the kid?”

Su Ran couldn’t explain it clearly right away, then responded to Ye Qiao’s question, “The kid missed me, probably couldn’t stand it, so he came over.”

Ye Qiao’s face also lost its smile, “He sure knows how to find excuses.”

Su Ran didn’t understand this cryptic comment, while Lu Jin asked, “Why does it have to be you.”

It was a long story to explain, but he didn’t like Lu Jin always digging so deep, and it also gave him a sense of oppression, it wasn’t even related to him.

But Su Ran wasn’t the type to ignore others, so he answered anyway, “Probably because kids like me a lot.”

Just as Lu Jin was about to ask something, he was interrupted by a voice, Jiang Yi walked in, seeing the other two people in the room, he paused for a moment, then jokingly said, “Quite lively, why is everyone here…”

“I came to find Brother Ran Ran to go sketching,” Ye Qiao said.

Lu Jin, seeing Jiang Yi, had no pleasant expression, his gaze cold and frightening, he was originally in a good mood, wanting to give Su Ran a good morning kiss when he saw him, but now his mood had plummeted.

It was related to this Ye Qiao, and even more to this damn Jiang Yi!

At this point, Jiang Yi began to tactfully send the guests away, “President Lu, Ye Qiao, I have something to say to Su Ran, please…”

Lu Jin was the first to leave, Jiang Yi watched his back, pondering if he had done something to offend him?

Ye Qiao walked over, patted Jiang Yi, and sneered, “Brother, don’t always let your wife take care of other people’s kids, what if that person falls for him?”

Jiang Yi slapped him back, jokingly replied, “Go.”

The room quieted down, Jiang Yi closed the door, his demeanor much warmer than yesterday.

“What did President He tell you?” Jiang Yi asked.

Su Ran told him the message He Zhiwen sent him, Jiang Yi nodded, then asked, “So you’re going to see him?”

“What else?” Su Ran looked down, saying faintly.

Jiang Yi was silent for a moment, then said, “Okay, then go.”

“Mm.” Su Ran responded.

Jiang Yi watched him, his lips parted slightly, hesitating, but eventually said, “You should go back tomorrow, you should understand…”

Su Ran looked up at him, his brows slightly furrowed, but he still agreed, “Okay.”

The atmosphere in the room was heavy, Jiang Yi’s brows deepening, he took out his phone and transferred money to Su Ran, “Mm… I transferred twenty thousand to you, buy whatever you want.”

“Okay.” Su Ran responded, “Then I should get ready to go see President He now.”

Jiang Yi’s gaze lingered on Su Ran’s face, feeling something was off, “Okay, take care.”

Jiang Yi left the room, Su Ran pouted, looking at the twenty thousand, if it were usual he would think it was a lot, but he had just received twenty million last night!

Suddenly, he didn’t feel like acting anymore.

And although his character was weak, he wasn’t really foolish, Jiang Yi’s reaction that day was clearly problematic, he was bluffed at the time, but he was a person who thought a lot, always pondering and eventually finding the issues.

Previously he didn’t dare to question, now he would just silently keep the doubts in his heart, planting the seeds of suspicion, he was determined, unless there was concrete evidence to the contrary, he would remain persistent, otherwise he couldn’t have hung on Jiang Yi for so long.

And from what Su Ran saw, he was also in control of the pace, to the point of Jiang Yi abandoning him, during this period, it was also his process of transformation, the world’s author was somewhat conscientious, he wasn’t the type of madly in love character to the point of hysteria.

So, although he was a bit delusional, not turning back until hitting the south wall, but during this period, as long as he figured it out himself, he would let go, so by the time Jiang Yi abandoned him, he had already calmed down, accepting it calmly.

At this moment, his phone rang, seeing it was a message from Lu Jin.

Hadn’t he just left his room, now sending a WeChat, what could it be?

Opening it, Lu Jin actually sent “I don’t like you staying with Jiang Yi.”

Su Ran looked puzzled, this guy doesn’t need to be so direct, you like Jiang Yi then go chase him, why keep working on him, did he look that easy to bully.

Jealous to death, he and Jiang Yi locked in a room and he couldn’t stand it, but they had been living together for half a year, what does that say.

But considering the money, Su Ran still responded politely and truthfully, hinting that he was no longer an obstacle, if he liked Jiang Yi, just boldly pursue him, “I rarely stay with him, at home we stay in our own rooms.”

The other side seemed satisfied with his response, and that topic passed, then another message came, “You actually call Ye Qiao Qiao Qiao.”

Su Ran, “?”

“Yeah, what’s up.”

The other side didn’t reply for a while, after a long time, another message came, “Not much, what does it have to do with me.”

Su Ran frowned, although he couldn’t tell any tone from the text, he felt the other side was cold, why did he ask that…

Never mind, he said it had nothing to do with it, let it be.

•

He called He Zhiwen ahead of time, arranged the meeting place, then went downstairs, the meeting time was actually set for half an hour later, it was clear Zhao Mingzhe hadn’t spared him, already impatient for him to come and subdue Zhao Mingzhe.

Su Ran took the resort’s scenic car, after reaching the gate, he walked for another ten minutes or so, then saw the two people, one big, one small, He Zhiwen dressed in light-colored clothes, very fitting with the summer here, looking very refreshing, hardly looking like he was nearly thirty, seemed about his age, the child was also dressed coolly, a vest and shorts,

The sunlight was already very dazzling, Su Ran raised his hand to shield the glaring sunlight, then smiled and walked towards the two.

A big and a small both came up to greet him, once close, Su Ran was about to speak when He Zhiwen suddenly hugged him, Su Ran was taken aback by his enthusiastic attitude, then responded openly.

He Zhiwen hugged him tightly, burying his face in his neck, taking deep breaths of the scent on him that he had missed.

He Zhiwen held him unwilling to let go, but after a while, Su Ran felt someone hug his leg, looking down, Zhao Mingzhe’s eyes were red, one hand hugging his leg, the other hitting his uncle.

“Ran Ran hug, Ran Ran hug.” Zhao Mingzhe was so anxious he seemed about to cry the next second.

Su Ran patted He Zhiwen’s shoulder, who seemed to react at this moment, releasing Su Ran, “Sorry, I was a bit excited to see you.”

He Zhiwen said openly, Su Ran took it as finally seeing a savior.

Su Ran quickly squatted down to pick up Zhao Mingzhe, the little guy wrapped his arms around his neck, mumbling, “Uncle bad.”

He Zhiwen pinched Zhao Mingzhe’s neck, “Naughty boy.”

Being a coastal city, of course, they went for seafood, they quickly arrived at a seafood restaurant, sitting down, the dishes were served not long after, He Zhiwen was a humorous and fun man, with plenty of life experiences, so there was no need to worry about an awkward silence, often making Su Ran laugh.

“Really, you see me looking like I live carefree, but only I know the bitterness inside, now every time I go home to see my parents, they don’t give me a happy face, only when I bring back a wife will they smile at me,” He Zhiwen said, his hands busy peeling shrimp and clams, putting the meat on Su Ran’s plate.

Su Ran felt a bit emotional, He Zhiwen was so successful, yet he faced common people’s troubles.

“How about you, Ran Ran, aren’t your parents anxious?” He Zhiwen asked.

“Not anxious.” Su Ran said vaguely, his parents were in his hometown, rarely in contact, basically not caring about him.

“Then you’re really relaxed.” He Zhiwen noticed he didn’t want to elaborate, so he changed the topic, “Ran Ran, what’s your ideal type?”

He Zhiwen’s voice was very gentle, especially when he called his name, Su Ran didn’t even notice when he started calling him like Zhao Mingzhe did.

Su Ran looked into his eyes, soft and serious, the brightness almost scorching, hardly daring to meet his gaze, as if being deeply loved.

“Um… I like the,” Su Ran searched in his mind how to say it, then realized, his ideal type was Jiang Yi, “I like the professional elite type, looking very capable, with a bit more refined temperament, must be nice to me, and good character.”

“Oh, you like this type.” He Zhiwen understood, then jokingly said, “Isn’t that how I work normally?”

Hearing that, Su Ran’s face heated up, right, he even hit right on He Zhiwen, now he awkwardly laughed, then added, “And a bit colder.”

“Hmm…” He Zhiwen pondered, then shook his head with a smile, “How could you be cold when you meet someone, I’m afraid a smile wouldn’t fall from your face.”

Su Ran blinked, feeling He Zhiwen was really good at talking, every time chatting with him was heartwarming.

After eating, they went to the beach, the sea breeze was very comfortable, Zhao Mingzhe played with the sand very well by himself, he and He Zhiwen walked along the beach, chatting casually, very pleasant.

Not far away, Jiang Yi and Yan Ze just happened to walk here, they needed to discuss some project matters, Lu Jin’s project prospect looked very good.

Led by Yan Ze, Jiang Yi also involved, they were the main force to build this project.

Chatting, suddenly hearing a child’s cheerful voice, “Ran Ran! Ran Ran!”

Both looked over there, Su Ran and He Zhiwen were quite noticeable among the crowd, especially with a child running around them, spotted them in a glance.

“Eh? Isn’t that Su Ran?” Yan Ze said in surprise, looking at Jiang Yi beside him, feeling like he discovered something incredible.

Jiang Yi’s gaze fixed, he had expected to see Su Ran in what kind of scene, but still surprised now, that… the atmosphere seemed very good.

At this time, Zhao Mingzhe was running around Su Ran, continuous laughter coming from over there, Zhao Mingzhe reaching out his arms towards Su Ran, “Ran Ran hug, hug.”

Su Ran then smiled and skillfully squatted down to pick up the child, He Zhiwen looking on, also opening his arms, smiling, “Big kid also wants a hug.”

Saying that, he lightly encircled Su Ran with his arms, the three of them laughing together.

Yan Ze exclaimed in surprise, “Damn, all hugged together.”

Jiang Yi didn’t say a word, although he understood all this didn’t mean anything, his face still couldn’t help but darken.

Yan Ze felt uncomfortable, but he was more willing to see Jiang Yi in trouble, now with a face full of schadenfreude, “Wow, look how harmonious they are, looks just like a family of three.”

Jiang Yi clenched his teeth, “A family of three?”