Bedside Struggle

Dinner was halfway done when Jiang Yi finally returned home. Upon entering, he was surprised to see his parents coming up to greet him. “Dad, Mom? What are you doing here?”

“Why, can’t we come visit?” Jiang’s mother chided gently. “We just wanted to see how you are doing.”

“Yeah, we thought we’d also take a stroll around the big city,” added Jiang’s father.

Although they were a bit harsh on Su Ran, they showed a lot of affection for Jiang Yi, their biological son.

Jiang Yi changed his shoes and glanced towards the kitchen before speaking, “You should have let me know in advance that you were coming.”

“It was a spur-of-the-moment decision,” his mother explained.

Jiang Yi looked puzzled. “A spur-of-the-moment decision? Is there something going on?”

“Oh, what could possibly be the matter? Can’t we come visit you without a reason, you ungrateful kid?” his mother responded playfully.

“No, that’s not what I meant…” Jiang Yi hastily corrected himself. “Of course, it’s great that you’re here. Last time you didn’t stay long enough to really enjoy yourselves, so take your time this visit.”

“That’s more like it,” his mother replied.

Jiang Yi’s gaze drifted back to the kitchen; since his return, Su Ran hadn’t even glanced in his direction. He promptly told his parents, “Just sit and relax, I’ll go help out in the kitchen.”

As he headed to the kitchen, his parents suggested, “Why don’t you let Xiao Qiao come out so you both can take a break?”

Ignoring them, Jiang Yi entered the kitchen and tapped Ye Qiao on the shoulder. “I’ll take over here; go rest.”

Ye Qiao gave him a look and said, “Brother, you should speak well of Ran Ran to uncle and auntie more often. It can’t always be like this.”

Jiang Yi immediately understood, showing a bit of embarrassment as he looked towards Su Ran, who was focused on washing vegetables. “Alright, I know,” he replied, feeling somewhat guilty.

After Ye Qiao left, Jiang Yi said to Su Ran, “My parents are just old-fashioned; don’t take it to heart. They won’t be staying for long.”

Su Ran remained silent, his expression unreadable. Jiang Yi watched him for a moment before patting his shoulder and taking over his task. “Just tell me what to do.”

As Su Ran stood by the sink about to speak, Jiang’s mother came over and said, “Son, you’ve been working all day. Just rest and let him do it. Does cooking really need your help?”

Jiang Yi quickly replied, “It’s faster if we do it together, and Su Ran is also tired from the cake shop.”

His mother’s tone grew sharp. “Isn’t the cake shop fully funded by you? If it weren’t for the job you gave him, what work could a country boy find? And if the shop isn’t busy, isn’t he just loafing around?”

Surprised by his mother’s words, Jiang Yi felt a headache coming on. Although his parents had always somewhat looked down on Su Ran, they had never confronted him so directly before. He wondered if they had come specifically to stir trouble.

Su Ran stood by, silent. Jiang Yi weakly defended him, “Su Ran manages the shop well, and we are doing fine. Mom, don’t worry. Young people have their own ways of living.”

“Auntie, Ran Ran is awesome,” Ye Qiao, sitting on the sofa but paying attention to the kitchen, chimed in. “Without him, Jiang’s cake shop wouldn’t succeed. Customers come for Ran Ran, and he’s very popular. If he weren’t at Jiang’s place, I’d poach him myself and open a cake shop just for him.”

Caught off-guard by Ye Qiao’s remarks, Jiang’s mother was momentarily speechless, her expression turning sour.

Jiang Yi hadn’t expected Ye Qiao to intervene. He reassured his mother, “Right, Mom, don’t worry about it. Su Ran is really capable.”

His mother was visibly irritated. “You didn’t say that before!”

Just as she began to speak, she seemed to realize that her tone was inappropriate. She quickly added, “I mean, your job is tough, and you deserve to rest more. Whether it’s you or your spouse who does more or less doesn’t matter, I wouldn’t fuss if it was a weekend.”

Jiang Yi reluctantly went along, “I’ve been quite relaxed at work recently…”

Before he could finish, his mother, looking disappointed, dragged him by the arm, “Come here, I need to talk to you.”

Jiang Yi felt helpless. If he didn’t comply, he didn’t know what else his mother might say. He looked back at Su Ran, who was still keeping his head down, unaware of how much distress he might be feeling.

In Jiang Yi’s bedroom, his parents sat on the bed, observing their son who seemed to be changing, his aura growing stronger. “Mom knows you were reluctant to marry him at first. We’ve come around to it now; your happiness is what matters. If you don’t want to be with Su Ran anymore, just split up.”

“Right, otherwise you’re the one who suffers,” added his father.

Previously, they were anxious about Jiang Yi not marrying, fearing he’d choose a life of bachelorhood. But then they realized, he liked men, and they weren’t relying on him for grandchildren.

More importantly, they acknowledged the harsh realities young people face in big cities. As Jiang Yi’s career progressed, they realized having a supportive partner could elevate his life. Being with Su Ran seemed only to hold him back.

Hearing his parents’ words, Jiang Yi’s frown deepened. He remembered how he had previously prepared them for a possible breakup with Su Ran, complaining about their marital woes.

Now, he regretted those moments. Trying to keep his composure, he said, “Dad, Mom, Su Ran’s family has been kind to us, you know.”

Jiang’s mother dismissed it, “Oh, whatever favor they did, we’ve repaid it by now. When your father injured his leg and couldn’t harvest, it was Su Ran’s family who helped. That debt isn’t huge but isn’t small either. Since then, our family has been helping them too, and you marrying Su Ran allowed him to live a good life in the city. We’ve done enough.”

Jiang Yi felt pressured, “I don’t want to break up with him now. I want to give it a try.”

His mother was taken aback, having noticed Jiang Yi’s defense of Su Ran earlier. “You’re being foolish. What’s there to try? While there’s still no deep attachment, why not find someone of similar status and try with them?”

Jiang Yi instinctively objected, “Who says there’s no attachment!”

His mother was stunned, then pointed around the room, “You have feelings but sleep separately? If you’re already sleeping apart, what’s the point in staying together?”

“This… it’s just temporary,” Jiang Yi replied, his instinct to not separate from Su Ran clear. “Let’s not talk about this anymore. Be nicer to Su Ran, and don’t bring this up again.”

“Hey, we’re just looking out for you,” his parents responded.

After dinner, Su Ran returned to his room, planning to rest. The presence of Jiang’s parents made the space feel suffocating.

Entering his bedroom and closing the door, he immediately felt relieved; his own room was still a safe and relaxing sanctuary.

Leaning on the bed, he took out his phone, pondering whether to video call Lu Jin, when suddenly there was a knock at the door. Initially thinking it was Ye Qiao, Su Ran prepared to dismiss him quickly, but when the door opened, he was stunned—it was Jiang Yi, holding a blanket.

Su Ran immediately understood. With his parents here, there wouldn’t be enough room.

Jiang Yi looked at him pleadingly, “What can I do? My parents took over my room. Looks like I have to stay here tonight.”

Su Ran was shocked, never imagining a day he’d share a room with Jiang Yi. “We can’t let the old folks see we’re… having issues. They might overthink it at their age,” Jiang Yi said, his expression even carrying a hint of begging, almost like a playful act.

“Alright…” Su Ran agreed, then quickly added, “But you’ll have to sleep on the floor, or maybe go to Ye Qiao’s room, or… I could sleep on the floor.”

Jiang Yi’s expression darkened. “Alright, you sleep on the bed, I’ll take the floor.”

Su Ran nodded, and Jiang Yi watched his gently drooping eyelashes, his eyes unreadable.

After setting up a mattress on the floor, Jiang Yi lay down, unable to see what was happening on the bed. He sat up to look.

Only a dim lamp lit the room, casting faint shadows. Su Ran was frowning slightly, busy tapping on his phone screen.

“Who are you chatting with?” Jiang Yi asked.

Startled by his sudden question, Su Ran had been so absorbed in his conversation that he’d forgotten there was another person in the room. He murmured, “A friend.”

“Oh…” Seeing Su Ran return his focus to the screen, Jiang Yi fell silent, feeling increasingly uneasy.

He had never thought Su Ran would resist him or ignore him like this.

After a while, Su Ran finally put down his phone. Lu Jin was persistent, and only after agreeing to a longer video call later did he relent, solving the issue for tonight.

Jiang Yi was about to speak when Su Ran turned off the light, plunging the room into darkness.

Just then, there was a knock on the door. Su Ran quickly turned on the bedside lamp.

The door opened, and Ye Qiao walked in, his gaze moving from the bed to Jiang Yi on the floor, relieved somewhat.

Seeing Ye Qiao’s reaction to him lying on the floor, Jiang Yi’s face fell, “Why are you here so late? Not sleeping?”

“Bro, why are you on the floor? Come sleep in my room,” Ye Qiao feigned surprise, making Jiang Yi’s expression even worse.

“No need, I’m staying here tonight,” Jiang Yi insisted.

Ye Qiao nodded, smiling, “If it’s really too hard, Ran Ran bro, you can sleep in my room.”

Jiang Yi, half-jokingly, threw a pillow at him, clearly displeased, “Get lost!”

“Alright, alright,” Ye Qiao waved, pretending to leave, muttering, “Looks like it’s just me and my drawing then.”

It seemed the patience was wearing thin.