For a moment, the noisy waves of music and laughter in the bar receded like a tide.

An Yi’s mind was left with only one sentence echoing incessantly.

Done with you, I’ll give you away.

Indeed, it was Yan Chen, always able to say such cruel words in such a light tone.

Yan Chen treated him like a toy.

A toy that could be easily discarded, what dignity could he talk about?

An Yi’s chest felt painful, like drowning in a river about to suffocate. He needed to leave this place immediately.

He stood up with a “swoosh,” his movements so forceful that they startled everyone.

But he didn’t look at anyone, he bowed his head, stepped over the low table, and walked out.

Yan Chen impatiently grabbed him, “Where are you going?”

An Yi’s face was pale, and he used all his strength to shake off his hand, muttering, “Home.”

For the first time, Yan Chen was pushed away in public, losing face. He raised his voice and called out to An Yi, but saw An Yi running faster, stumbling.

How dare he ignore him! He’s really got some nerve!

Chasing after him was more important, Yan Chen warned with a black face, pointing at Qin Muye with a warning look, then turned around and quickly caught up with An Yi, pulling him towards the parking lot.

He used a lot of force this time, causing An Yi to feel particularly painful.

An Yi’s face was pale, and his whole body leaned back and down with all his strength, wishing he could resist with all his strength.

Onlookers cast curious glances at the entangled pair.

Yan Chen’s face was as black as the bottom of a pot. He simply lifted An Yi onto his shoulders, quickly found the car, and stuffed An Yi inside.

An Yi tried to get out of the car, but the door was locked.

Yan Chen went around to the front of the car, kicked the tire angrily, cursed lowly, “Fuck,” and then opened the driver’s door and got in.

He was exuding a chilling aura, and An Yi pushed the car door twice with all his might, but it didn’t budge.

Yan Chen turned on the car dome light, grabbed An Yi’s chin forcefully, and turned his face towards him.

Seeing a pair of moist red eyes, he couldn’t help but feel even more annoyed, “With so many people watching, you dare to push me away?! What exactly do you want to do?”

An Yi turned his head away, leaning it against the car window and looking outside.

Snow had already accumulated a thin layer on the ground.

He blinked and said softly, “I want to go home.”

“Not so fast. You’re not going anywhere until you explain yourself clearly.” Yan Chen took a deep breath but still couldn’t suppress his anger. “Lin Yuming isn’t enough, and now you’re attracting Qin Muye? An Yi, you’re quite something.”

An Yi, feeling tired, said, “Am I not even allowed to chat with someone?”

“What’s there to chat about? What’s worth chatting about?” Yan Chen asked, “Did you exchange contact information with Qin Muye?”

“…No.”

Upon hearing this, Yan Chen’s tone softened slightly, “Forget about Lin Yuming, Qin Muye is not a good person. Don’t have anything to do with him in the future.”

An Yi still looked out the window and replied faintly, “Is that so? I think he’s pretty nice.”

The anger that had just subsided in Yan Chen surged up again, “You only exchanged a few words with him, and you already think he’s nice? He’s very cunning, and he loves to compete with me for things. I…”

“Am I yours?” An Yi suddenly interrupted him.

Yan Chen was momentarily speechless.

An Yi’s emotions became noticeably agitated:”What do you take me for? A toy? You can play with me if you want, and discard me to someone else if you don’t! Yan Chen, have you ever shown me even a little bit of basic respect?!”

“…” Yan Chen frowned, “So you’re mad about that.”

An Yi’s nose tingled with sorrow, and he looked out the car window again.

The snow was getting heavier.

Yan Chen turned on the heater, dispersing the chill lingering around them in the car.

He glanced at An Yi’s profile a few times and clicked his tongue, “Why are you so sensitive? I wasn’t targeting you with that comment. Is it necessary to get so angry?”

An Yi caught the innocence in his tone, and a deep sense of powerlessness surged within him.

Yan Chen was too self-centered. As the young master who had been hated by people everywhere he went since childhood, he would never empathize with others, let alone realize that a careless remark could easily hurt another person deeply.

“Alright, that’s enough,” Yan Chen reached out and poked An Yi’s cheek, “I never realized you had such a temper before.”

An Yi avoided his hand until his back was firmly against the seat, unable to retreat any further.

Yan Chen reached over to fasten his seatbelt, but An Yi grabbed his arm and said in a deep voice, “You’ve been drinking, you can’t drive.”

Yan Chen muttered “trouble” under his breath, unlocked the car, and planned to find a designated driver at the entrance of the bar. Unexpectedly, An Yi took advantage of the opportunity to slip away, leaving a trail of crooked footprints in the snow.

“Damn it! An Yi! Stop right there, damn it!”

Yan Chen cursed as he chased after him.

An Yi ran even faster, almost stumbling.

He hailed a taxi on the roadside and got in. As he was about to close the door, Yan Chen’s long leg squeezed into the car.

“You’ve got guts, thinking you can run away?”

Yan Chen got pinched by the car door and was not happy.

An Yi’s heart was beating fast. With both hands clutching the front passenger seat, he gave the address of his old, shabby apartment.

Yan Chen was even more annoyed.

About to explode in anger, he turned his head and saw a glistening tear in An Yi’s eyes. He choked back the scolding words irritably.

The two entered the house one after the other. Before turning on the lights, Yan Chen pressed An Yi against the door and kissed him.

An Yi tightly closed his lips, refusing to respond. Yan Chen reached out to pinch his cheeks, exerting great force. An Yi couldn’t push him away, so he bit him hard.

“Fuck!”

Yan Chen backed off a bit, displeased. “You’ve acted out enough. I’ve been coaxing you the whole way, what else do you want?”

An Yi lowered his eyelids, held his hand, and said in a low voice, “It’s cold in the house, I don’t want to do it.”

“It’ll warm you up.”

Yan Chen carried him to the sofa, lowering his head to kiss him again.

An Yi’s stubbornness arose, wanting to oppose him. Once again, he dodged the kiss.

“I’ve had too much to drink, I really don’t want to.” An Yi said coldly, “If you really can’t hold it, you can go find that little star.”

At that, Yan Chen pecked his chin and chuckled, “That delicate and lovey-dovey one who loves to act, a touch and he’ll cry for half a day, I’m annoyed by him. Unlike you, clean and alluring, and moans so nicely.”

“…,” An Yi responded numbly. “Thank you for the compliment.”

“In a few days, I have to go to the port to handle some matters. It might take ten days or half a month to come back. Are you really not interested?” Yan Chen leaned against him like a cat, coaxing incessantly.

In the end, An Yi couldn’t resist the onslaught and surrendered.

Outside, the cold wind blew, the snow fell silently, and Yan Chen, rarely gentle and patient, caused An Yi to obediently close his eyes.

Only in moments like this, where they were close and entangled, could he briefly receive a hint of hasty love.

When it ended, a slightly thicker layer of snow had accumulated on the balcony railing outside.

Presumably, the road conditions were the same, so Yan Chen decided to stay overnight.

This old district had not yet completed its transformation, there was no centralized heating, and the air conditioner in the apartment was old. Yan Chen woke up in the middle of the night, feeling cold.

Reaching out to the side, he found that the bed was cold.

He lay with his eyes closed for a while, but An Yi didn’t return. Yan Chen called out a few times but got no response, so he had to get out of bed and look for him himself.

The living room was quiet, with a faint light from the snow seeping in, revealing the coldness of the room.

An Yi was sitting on the balcony, staring at the snowy scenery.

He was dressed lightly, with only a blanket draped over his shoulders.

His back looked very lonely.

Yan Chen turned on the light.

Approaching, he found an art book on An Yi’s lap, with a paintbrush resting on it. The page that was opened had only a few rough lines.

There was no discernible meaning.

Yan Chen had seen An Yi drawing before.

With a wolf hair brush in hand, he could simply outline a few strokes on the smooth glazed surface, creating vivid flowers, plants, insects, and fish.

But compared to the drawings, Yan Chen preferred An Yi when he was drawing.

His focused expression was more beautiful than his drawings, not only pleasing to the eye but also calming.

This was one of the reasons why he was willing to develop a long-term relationship with An Yi. Whenever he felt annoyed, having An Yi around would make him feel much better.

Yan Chen opened the balcony door, and the cold wind made him frown.

An Yi slowly raised his head, his face as pale as a ghost. “Why are you up?”

“Why are you sitting here in the middle of the night?”

“… To admire the snow.”

“You’re crazy.”

Yan Chen lifted the freezing cold person, holding him close and carrying him back into the house.

Frost had formed on An Yi’s eyelashes. After entering the room and being warmed by the temperature, the frost melted, making his eyes look like they were wet with tears.

Yan Chen threw him a towel. Seeing him slowly wiping his hair, he suddenly spoke, “Come with me on a business trip.”

An Yi shook his head. “No, I still need to prepare things for Xiao Ya.”

“That’s easy,” Yan Chen put him in bed. “Jiang Hai can handle that.”

An Yi still shook his head. “Xiao Ya will have to stay in the transplant ward for forty to fifty days. Before you come back, I want to spend as much time with her as possible.”

Yan Chen thought about it and didn’t mention it again.

However, before the business trip, he was still worried and instructed An Yi, “Behave yourself at home and stay away from Qin Muye.”

“…,” An Yi chuckled. “He and I are not in the same social circle.”

“If he comes looking for you, ignore him until I come back,” Yan Chen emphasized again.

An Yi felt he was exaggerating, but as it turned out, Yan Chen understood Qin Muye quite well.

On the second day of Yan Chen’s business trip to the harbor, Qin Muye found the pottery studio where An Yi worked.

At that time, An Yi was teaching a child how to color on the glazed surface. He was bending down with great patience while teaching.

When the child successfully drew the shape of a lotus, he clapped happily with An Yi, who smiled gently.

“Wow, it’s beautiful. Can someone without an art background learn?”

An Yi looked up and was visibly stunned when he saw Qin Muye.

Qin Muye was about the same height as Yan Chen, half a head taller than him. At the moment, he was leaning slightly as he spoke, bringing them to eye level. “Do you remember me? Qin Muye. We met at the bar on the weekend.”

Of course, An Yi remembered.

“Why did you come here?… What a coincidence.”

“Not a coincidence, I came to find you on purpose,” Qin Muye said with a smile, “Just call me Muye.”

An Yi forced a smile. Yan Chen’s warning was still fresh in his mind, making him feel a bit uneasy.

Qin Muye casually glanced around the studio and asked, “Can you show me around?”

An Yi apologized, “My class hasn’t finished yet…”

“Then I’ll just look around by myself,” Qin Muye’s smile was friendly, without a trace of arrogance. “I’ll talk to you when you finish your class.”