Song Mianfeng couldn’t quite figure out what Song Shaochen had said to Lu Yin Zhen, so he changed the subject: “Do you enjoy watching operas?”

“Yeah,” Lu Yin Zhen replied with a smile in his eyes. “My grandfather was a fan, and I used to accompany him to watch since I was young.”

With that, the conversation flowed. Song Mianfeng continued, “From your accent, you’re not from City S?”

“I am, and I’m not,” Lu Yin Zhen replied, his gaze dropping slightly. The smile in his eyes faded a bit. “I grew up in City B.”

“That’s quite a distance.” One from the south and the other from the north. It’s no wonder he exuded the charm of both landscapes. Song Mianfeng chuckled. “Is it because of work?”

“I’m a businessman who travels around.” Lu Yin Zhen returned the question. “What about you?”

“Me?” Song Mianfeng replied casually. “I’m just a photographer.”

The night breeze was cool, dissipating the mist, and silver moonlight spilled onto the river surface, causing the water to sway. The willows on both banks swayed with the wind, as if responding to something.

As they got closer, when the wind blew, Song Mianfeng faintly smelled a hint of medicine from Lu Yin Zhen’s body.

“Not feeling well?” he asked.

“Yeah, I get sick easily,” Lu Yin Zhen replied. “I often need to take medicine to regulate my health.”

Song Mianfeng’s voice drifted with the wind. “Medicine must taste bitter.”

Although he had grown accustomed to the taste of medicine and to having a body that couldn’t endure much, the thought of those concentrated herbal concoctions made Lu Yin Zhen furrow his brow involuntarily. “Very bitter.”

Song Mianfeng suddenly smiled. “When Zhanyue was young and unwell, she always needed someone to coax her into taking her medicine.”

A fleeting sense of confusion and complexity flashed in Lu Yin Zhen’s eyes.

In his understanding, when one fell ill, they had to take medicine. Without taking medicine, they wouldn’t get better. No one ever coaxed him, not from childhood to adulthood.

No one coaxed him, and he didn’t need anyone to coax him.

Song Mianfeng glanced at him and sincerely said, “There’s a small shop called ‘Sour, Sweet, Bitter, Spicy’ on Shuangzhi Road. Their preserved fruits and handmade candies are delicious.”

“Sour, Sweet, Bitter, Spicy?” Lu Yin Zhen was curious. “What do they sell?”

“Some snacks. Sour, sweet, bitter, spicy, they have it all.”

Lu Yin Zhen asked, “Bitter? Who would specifically buy something bitter?”

“Bits of bitter gourd, bitter buckwheat, tangerine peel, lotus seeds, almonds, and coptis chinensis, among others,” Song Mianfeng explained. “It’s not excessively bitter. I bought some out of curiosity once.”

“Their preserved fruits are especially delicious. Zhanyue loves them,” Song Mianfeng said. “After taking medicine, she eats one of those preserved fruits, and the bitterness goes away.”

Lu Yin Zhen found the shop intriguing and made a mental note of it. “Thank you,” he said. “I’ll check it out next time.”

“Don’t eat too much,” Song Mianfeng, apparently experienced, cautioned. “It can lead to toothaches.”

Whether it was because he had experienced toothaches due to overindulgence or Zhanyue had, a smile appeared in Lu Yin Zhen’s eyes as he replied, “Got it.”

The two of them walked along the riverside, chatting back and forth, becoming more and more compatible as they talked.

Song Mianfeng found Lu Yin Zhen interesting and enjoyable to be around, thinking that he should consider getting to know him better.

He just didn’t know if the other party had the same idea.

Under the shade of the trees, couples in clandestine meetings sat on chairs, whispering affectionately. The riverside was dimly lit by street lamps, and only vague shadows could be seen. Song Mianfeng glanced at them and turned his head to Lu Yin Zhen with a knowing smile. “Are you single?”

In fact, this question was somewhat redundant, but Song Mianfeng needed it as a conversation starter.

Lu Yin Zhen looked at him, his gaze falling on the mole at the corner of his eye through the darkness, then into his bright eyes. “I am.”

Song Mianfeng also looked at him, earnestly meeting his gaze. “What do you think of my sister?”

“She’s very beautiful.” Lu Yin Zhen hadn’t observed Song Zhanyue closely, but he remembered her graceful movements as she brewed tea.

Song Mianfeng blinked. “And me?”

Lu Yin Zhen didn’t immediately respond.

At first, he thought that when Song Shaochen invited him to his home, it was just for a casual meal. Later, when he saw Song Zhanyue and Song Mianfeng, he didn’t think much of it. Even when Song Shaochen deliberately had Song Mianfeng take him out for a walk, he tried to convince himself that he was overthinking it. After all, Song Shaochen had never asked about his sexual orientation, so why would he entertain such thoughts?

But now, Song Mianfeng had directly asked, confirming his suspicions, and Lu Yin Zhen felt a sense of relaxation in his heart.

In the marketplace, there’s deceit and intrigue, but he had to tread carefully while carrying his burdens. Therefore, he didn’t want to tire himself out in his personal life, avoiding overthinking and enjoying simplicity and directness.

After a moment of silence, he spoke, “Very interesting.”

A beautiful appearance was common, but an interesting soul was rare.

Interesting was a high praise.

Song Mianfeng’s smile deepened. “May I exchange contact information with you?”

…

After their walk, when they returned to the Song residence, it was already late. Lu Yin Zhen bid farewell to Song Shaochen, saying he needed to head home. He promised to visit again when he had time.

When Lu Yin Zhen spoke, he always carried a certain polite and refined air, typical of older people. Young people usually couldn’t stand such formalities and found them insincere and boring. However, the older one got, the slower they lived, and the smoother their speech became.

Lu Yin Zhen was only twenty-nine, but he conversed politely with Song Shaochen for several sentences. Song Mianfeng found it somewhat amusing, thinking that the Lu Yin Zhen he had just walked with by the river was more adorable.

Song Shaochen escorted Lu Yin Zhen out and casually asked, “Yin Zhen, what do you think of my Zhanyue and Mianfeng?”

Lu Yin Zhen glanced at him with a smile that didn’t reach his eyes and didn’t respond.

Seeing his reaction, Song Shaochen felt a bit embarrassed and forced a laugh. “I didn’t mean anything else, actually.”

“I genuinely invited you to my home to be a guest, to enjoy the opera and tea,” Song Shaochen explained. “Introducing Zhanyue and Mianfeng to you was just a side note.”

Even as a side note, it’s worth taking a look.

Song Shaochen continued, “You’re new to City S, unfamiliar with the surroundings, and you don’t have many relatives or friends here. Mianfeng and Zhanyue are around your age, and I thought it would be nice for you young people to get to know each other, so you wouldn’t spend all your weekends at Mingyuelou drinking tea and listening to music.”

Mingyuelou was an old opera house, and most of the people who went there to listen to music were elderly. Young people were rare, and occasionally, someone brought their younger relatives to listen to music, but they were usually restless.

Lu Yin Zhen was not old, he enjoyed listening to operas, and he got along well with him. After knowing each other for almost half a year, he felt that this person had both virtue and talent, and there was nothing to pick on in terms of appearance and character. That’s why he thought about introducing him to his family.

But these things always need both parties’ consent. If Lu Yin Zhen didn’t fancy his children, he wouldn’t force anything.

Seeing his reaction, Song Shaochen thought this matter was probably not going to work out. He couldn’t help but sigh lightly, “If you don’t like it, don’t worry about it. Whenever you’re free, you can still invite me to listen to music and drink tea. Let’s not drift apart.”

Lu Yin Zhen considered him a friend, but he tricked him into coming out to meet his children for a blind date. This was not quite fair.

Song Shaochen was an honest person, otherwise Lu Yin Zhen wouldn’t have become friends with him. So Song Shaochen explained the situation frankly, and Lu Yin Zhen didn’t mind anymore.

He smiled and said, “I’m not worried about it.”

Song Shaochen felt relieved and laughed, “Alright, I won’t send you off any further. Next time, I’ll invite you to Mingyuelou for tea.”

Lu Yin Zhen nodded, opened the car door, and was about to get in when he felt something and glanced at the entrance of the Song family’s house.

Song Mianfeng was standing there at the door, and Lu Yin Zhen didn’t know how long he had been watching them.

From a distance, Song Mianfeng seemed to smile at him. Lu Yin Zhen couldn’t see it clearly, but a faint curve appeared at the corner of his mouth.

His feelings towards Song Mianfeng couldn’t be described as love at first sight, but he did feel a bit moved. He couldn’t say why, he just felt that it would be a pity to let this opportunity slip away.

So why not give it a try?

During his time in City S, he had to find some other pleasures to avoid feeling sad.

…

After seeing Lu Yin Zhen off, Song Shaochen was planning to talk to Song Mianfeng, but coincidentally, Song Mianfeng’s phone rang.

With the excuse of Zhanyue calling, Song Shaochen’s brows furrowed instantly.

Song Mianfeng glanced at his phone and chuckled. He showed the screen to Song Shaochen before standing up to answer the call on the balcony.

“My dear sister, your timing with this call is impeccable.”

Upon hearing this, Zhanyue laughed and teased, “Are you still at home? That’s not like you.”

“You heartless little sister.” Song Mianfeng deliberately lowered his voice. “I’m still at home all because of who?”

Zhanyue wasn’t afraid of him and laughed even more. “How did it go?”

Song Mianfeng pretended not to understand. “How did what go?”

“Lu Yin Zhen,” Zhanyue asked, “He’s quite interesting, isn’t he? How was your conversation?”

Song Mianfeng replied with a nonchalant “Hmm” and said slowly, “It was okay.”

Zhanyue paused for a moment, then burst into laughter. “My good brother, you’ve finally had a worldly thought.”

Song Mianfeng reached out and touched the leaves of the hanging plant on the balcony, casually saying, “We haven’t even started yet.”

“What does it matter?” Zhanyue said. “As long as you like him, whether it’s just the beginning or already deep, I’ll support you all the way.”

Song Mianfeng was delighted by her words, his lips curling up with happiness, and his tone carried a hint of laughter. “As for this situation, I’ll have to handle it myself.”