When the two returned to the private room, they found it dimly lit as someone had turned off the lights. Song Mianfeng reached out to find the switch on the wall, but then heard a “click,” and someone lit a lighter, followed by the illumination of candlelight.

Lu Yin Zhen stood behind Song Mianfeng and said, “Happy birthday,” then gently draped his arm around him and walked towards the table where the cake was placed. “Make a wish.”

Being a group of middle-aged men approaching their thirties, they couldn’t bring themselves to sing the birthday song, but they did play a recorded version of it. The room was only lit by the screen in the corner of the KTV, and Wang Letian urged, “Make a wish quickly.”

Song Mianfeng was momentarily stunned. He then chuckled softly, closed his eyes, made a wish, and then leaned over—blowing out the candles.

As the room lit up again, everyone took a group photo, laughed and divided the cake, with some singing and others continuing to eat hot pot.

After another round of eating and drinking, it was approaching dawn when they finally dispersed.

Song Mianfeng and Lu Yin Zhen were the last to leave.

Song Mianfeng was a bit drunk, while Lu Yin Zhen, who had managed to intoxicate the entire table, was surprisingly the most sober. He even assisted Song Mianfeng downstairs and called a driver to pick them up.

Once in the car, Lu Yin Zhen handed Song Mianfeng a bottle of yogurt. Song Mianfeng drank it; with too much alcohol, his throat and stomach felt uncomfortable, and he didn’t feel much like talking, so he leaned on Lu Yin Zhen’s shoulder and rested.

The warm breath, tainted with alcohol, fell on his neck, and the soft strands of hair brushed against his neck, causing Lu Yin Zhen to momentarily daydream about the feeling of Baisiu his cat rubbing against his shoulder.

But Baisiu was nowhere near as well-behaved as Song Mianfeng.

Amused by his own thoughts, Lu Yin Zhen rubbed his forehead, feeling like he might be a little tipsy too.

Song Mianfeng remained quiet throughout the journey and didn’t speak when they got off the car; he just seemed a bit unsteady on his feet. Lu Yin Zhen held him up, carrying the gifts he had received, and escorted him to the doorstep, preparing to bid farewell and reminding him to get a good night’s sleep.

Just as he released his hand, his index finger was hooked, and then slowly, the middle finger, ring finger, and pinky were hooked, forming a grip with all ten fingers intertwined.

Lu Yin Zhen was somewhat surprised and looked at Song Mianfeng.

Standing at the doorstep, Song Mianfeng showed a gentle yet nervous smile. The corners of his eyes were slightly raised, and the beauty mark at the corner of his eye was particularly striking.

“Today is my birthday—”

When they got off the car, Lu Yin Zhen glanced at his phone and saw that it was already past midnight, technically making it yesterday, Song Mianfeng’s birthday.

But he still responded with a soft “Mm.”

Song Mianfeng licked his lips and, his voice slightly husky from being too low, said, “Can I, ask for another gift?”

Lu Yin Zhen looked at him steadily, lightly smiling. “Sure.”

Song Mianfeng’s head was already a bit dizzy, and now it was even more so.

He had completely forgotten about the neatly wrapped box he had prepared waiting to be opened with the question “Will you be with me?” He acted purely on instinct to get closer and kissed Lu Yin Zhen lightly on the lips.

Lu Yin Zhen reached out, tapping his lips. “Just that?”

He thought Song Mianfeng might want something else.

Song Mianfeng smiled somewhat foolishly, like a child who had just received candy, and satisfied, he let go of Lu Yin Zhen’s hand. “Goodnight kiss.”

Lu Yin Zhen chuckled, released his hand, placed the gifts on the ground, pushed him towards the door, leaned against his shoulder and waist, and kissed him.

Song Mianfeng’s lips were tinged with alcohol and the taste of yogurt, sweet.

Their hot breaths intertwined, the sound-controlled lights in the corridor went out, and Song Mianfeng breathed softly, parting his lips, allowing Lu Yin Zhen to kiss him.

Lu Yin Zhen licked his lips, lightly biting his tongue, earnest and fervent, kissing away the fragmented low gasps. In the darkness, all senses were heightened, and the tingling sensation and excitement brought by alcohol surged upwards. Song Mianfeng gripped Lu Yin Zhen’s shoulders, tilted his head back, his Adam’s apple bobbing, and as he slightly lifted his eyelids, he caught a glimpse of the emotional expression on Lu Yin Zhen’s face.

His eyelashes trembled as he closed his eyes, and Song Mianfeng completely relaxed, relinquishing all control to Lu Yin Zhen.

He had begged for what he wanted most; what else mattered?

…

A dreamless night.

The next morning, Song Mianfeng’s head still felt a bit heavy. Checking his phone, he saw that it was already past eleven, and he couldn’t remember much about the previous night. He vaguely recalled that he had pestered Lu Yin Zhen for a “goodnight kiss.”

Before he could dwell on more details, Song Mianfeng felt his face burning, and it was already early in the morning, so his reaction was somewhat understandable. He quickly dismissed the thoughts in his mind and turned his gaze to the several gift boxes placed on the bedside table.

He started unwrapping them.

Looking at the various couples’ items on the bed, Song Mianfeng felt a mix of anger and amusement.

Couples’ pajamas were acceptable, and even the couples’ underwear was okay, but these damn condoms, one blue and one red, forcibly made into a couples’ set.

The most decent gift was probably the tie given by Fu Qingshan. Song Mianfeng took a casual photo, set aside the condoms and placed them in the bedside table, and stored the other gifts in two separate boxes. Then, he opened WeChat.

[Leisurely listening to the wind sleep: Image]

[Leisurely listening to the wind sleep: ???]

[Letian Knows Destiny: I didn’t give those condoms.]

[Wu Director: Claiming the pajamas.]

[Your Fourth Lord: Claiming the underwear.]

[Fu Qingshan: Case closed.]

[Letian Knows Destiny: I never expected, truly never expected, Fu Qingshan, that you would give out something like this!]

[Letian Knows Destiny: Is this the loss of morality or the extinction of humanity.]

[Leisurely listening to the wind sleep: Wang Letian.]

[Leisurely listening to the wind sleep: Smiling.jpg]

[Your Fourth Lord: Darling, are you not awake yet?]

[Your Fourth Lord: A tie worth four digits, you’ve never been so extravagant with me.]

[Letian Knows Destiny: Nonsense!]

[Letian Knows Destiny: Last year, I gave you that watch, worth five digits!!!]

“Wu Director: Chat content causing discomfort.”

Probably seeing his own deeds exposed, Wang Letian began to indulge himself.

“Letian Knows Destiny: And what’s wrong with that?”

“Letian Knows Destiny: We’re all adults, who doesn’t have normal needs?”

“Letian Knows Destiny: What I gave is practical and straightforward.”

“Letian Knows Destiny: Unlike Fu Qingshan, who actually gave a tie.”

“Leisurely listening to the wind sleep: Why, what’s wrong with a tie?”

“Your Fourth Lord: Tie play?”

“Fu Qingshan: ???”

“Fu Qingshan: As a straight man, I often feel out of place with you guys.”

“Wu Director: Is this how you gays always play?”

“Leisurely listening to the wind sleep: I’m out.”

Ignoring the idle chatter in the group, Song Mianfeng casually placed his phone on the desk and got up to wash, change clothes, and cook.

He prepared a simple dish and soup, eating while scrolling through his friends’ moments. He liked the group photo sent by Wu An in the morning and continued scrolling until he reached the picture posted by Song Zhanyue last night. He casually clicked to view it.

It was a nine-grid layout, showing screenshots of red envelopes he sent, red envelopes from his parents, photos taken during lunch, as well as a cake and dinner eaten with someone, along with a complete set of the signed deluxe edition of “Nineteenth Floor” by Bai Guiye.

Putting down his chopsticks, he typed a comment: “Who gave this?”

Song Zhanyue was probably using her phone and quickly replied: “Mu Zanglin! Brother, you don’t know! He actually has the complete deluxe edition of ‘Nineteenth Floor’! And each book is signed by Bai Guiye!!!”

Song Mianfeng narrowed his eyes, feeling a sense of alarm.

His silly sister wouldn’t have been swindled away just like that by a set of books, right?

“Did you have dinner together last night?”

“Yeah, we did. He treated me to dinner last time we watched a movie, and also yesterday for my birthday.”

Song Zhanyue seemed quite happy and added, “A dinner together with a signed deluxe edition of ‘Nineteenth Floor,’.”

Song Mianfeng rubbed his forehead, feeling a bit of a headache.

Song Zhanyue seemed completely unaware of the other party’s intentions. After thinking for a moment, he decided not to pry further and didn’t reply anymore. He just scrolled through his moments and stumbled upon Wang Letian’s post.

Wang Letian also posted a grid. In the center was not a group photo, but a picture of him cutting the cake, with Lu Yin Zhen supporting the cake box for him, captured by a sneak shot.

In the photo, he was smiling with his head down, and Lu Yin Zhen was also smiling while looking at him. No one else was in the frame, but the couple outfit, which was not very obvious originally, now stood out prominently.

Song Mianfeng saved the picture and commented, “Nicely taken.”

Returning to the WeChat interface, the pinned chat window had no messages. He didn’t know if Lu Yin Zhen was still asleep or busy. Song Mianfeng hesitated for a while, finished eating and washing the dishes before sending a message to Lu Yin Zhen: “Good afternoon.”

In June in S city, the trees were lush, the gentle breeze was weak, and people easily felt drowsy.

Song Mianfeng sat on the balcony swing for a while to sunbathe, then started yawning.

The group was chatting about a fashion show, and Wang Letian asked if he was going. Song Mianfeng replied with a simple “yes” and immediately saw a message from Lu Yin Zhen. Ignoring the group chat, he opened the chat window with Lu Yin Zhen.

[Longevity: Good afternoon.]

[Longevity: Just woke up.]

[Leisurely listening to the wind sleep: Get up and eat!]

[Leisurely listening to the wind sleep: Do you have a headache?]

[Longevity: No headache.]

[Longevity: How about you?]

[Leisurely listening to the wind sleep: No headache, just a bit sleepy.]

[Leisurely listening to the wind sleep: How come your alcohol tolerance is so good? You drank quite a bit last night, weren’t you drunk at all?]

[Longevity: It’s okay.]

[Longevity: I don’t really drink much.]

[Longevity: Have you eaten? If you’re sleepy, go back to sleep for a while.]

[Leisurely listening to the wind sleep: Yes, I’ve eaten. Sunbathing on the balcony.]

[Leisurely listening to the wind sleep: The weather is great today.]

[Longevity: Yeah.]

[Longevity: Let me take a look.]

Song Mianfeng didn’t realize that Lu Yin Zhen meant he would take a look at the weather, so he directly initiated a video call. The screen flickered, and Lu Yin Zhen’s face appeared, his handsome face, then down to his bare neck, collarbones… he wasn’t wearing clothes, which was quite impactful.

Song Mianfeng was stunned for a moment and blurted out, “You sleep naked?”

That sounded quite like a pervert.

Thinking of someone who had begged him for a kiss last night, Lu Yin Zhen smiled and said, “Hmm.”

The low, husky “Hmm” made Song Mianfeng’s hand tremble slightly. He flipped the screen and showed Lu Yin Zhen the sunlight streaming into the living room from the floor.

“Look.”

Lu Yin Zhen took a glance, intending to pull the curtains, but he laughed lightly. “Song Mianfeng.”

“You’re becoming dangerously adorable.”

Lu Yin Zhen’s seduction was even more dangerous.

Looking at Lu Yin Zhen on the screen, Song Mianfeng’s mind was filled with the thought, “The weather is so nice today, perfect for falling in love.” But his heart full of romance and joy was blocked by the screen, so in the end, he just lightly tapped Lu Yin Zhen’s lips with his fingertips, sighed softly, and said, “Let’s go eat, Mr. Lu. I’m starving.”