Yun Pei opened his eyes, greeted by a dim view. He blinked a few times, gradually regaining his senses, and realized he was lying on a soft bed.

He rubbed his eyes and sat up, bracing himself on the bed. In the dim light, he could make out the outlines of the objects around him, though they felt unfamiliar.

He remembered coming to see Qin Mingyuan earlier, and then… Yun Pei’s face heated up a little as he raised his hand to touch it. He recalled they had been talking, and he didn’t even know when he had lost consciousness and fallen asleep.

He hadn’t slept much the night before, and once he relaxed, it seemed like he couldn’t hold out any longer.

But, hadn’t they been in the office earlier? Where was this?

Just as he was wondering, he heard a sound from the door. The door was pushed open, letting in some light from outside. A man stood in the doorway, his figure silhouetted against the light.

“Did you sleep well?” Qin Mingyuan stepped inside, lightly closing the door behind him, cutting off the daylight from outside. He walked over and turned on the dim bedside lamp.

Sitting down at the bedside, he pinched Yun Pei’s cheek gently, as if he knew what Yun Pei was wondering, and added, “This is my lounge.”

Yun Pei suddenly understood, pulling the blanket around himself. He recalled the events before he fell asleep, feeling a bit too embarrassed to look directly at Qin Mingyuan, “How long did I sleep?”

Qin Mingyuan glanced at his watch, “Four hours.”

When he arrived at Qin Corporation, it was about ten o’clock. Four hours would mean it was already past two. Yun Pei grabbed his wrist and checked the watch; sure enough, the hour hand had stopped at two, “I can’t believe I slept this long…”

“You didn’t rest well last night. It’s normal to sleep a little longer,” Qin Mingyuan said, letting Yun Pei hold his hand and check the time. 

“Are you hungry?”

Now that he mentioned it, Yun Pei did feel a bit hungry. He hadn’t eaten breakfast. He withdrew his hand and touched his stomach.

If Qin Mingyuan hadn’t worried that Yun Pei would be starving, he wouldn’t have come in to wake him. Seeing Yun Pei’s movements, he said softly, “I asked Zhou Yang to order some food; it should arrive soon. Why don’t you freshen up a bit first?”

His lounge had its own bathroom. Sometimes, when he worked late, Qin Mingyuan would rest here, making it very convenient.

Yun Pei nodded, glancing around the room once before looking back at Qin Mingyuan, “My wheelchair…”

“It’s probably outside,” Qin Mingyuan raised an eyebrow but remained sitting steadily at the bedside, not making any move to bring it in.

By now, Yun Pei knew Qin Mingyuan well enough to understand that he was probably teasing him again. However, without a way to get off the bed on his own, he could only give in and ask for help, “Can you help me…?”

“I’d be happy to.” Qin Mingyuan stood up without hesitation, bending down to lift Yun Pei easily in his arms. His light weight made Qin Mingyuan realize once again that he needed to feed Yun Pei more.

Yun Pei, already used to being carried by him, instinctively wrapped his arms around Qin Mingyuan’s neck, his ears turning red again. 

“I meant for you to bring the wheelchair in.”

“I’ll carry you to the bathroom first and then get the wheelchair,” Qin Mingyuan said, adjusting his hold on Yun Pei before carrying him into the bathroom.

He gently set Yun Pei on the sink counter, then playfully pinched his flushed earlobe before going out to fetch the wheelchair.

Yun Pei raised his hand to his face, feeling the warmth, and glanced into the mirror behind him. Sure enough, his face was a little red.

Shaking his head, he turned on the faucet, splashing some water onto his face to cool down and wake himself up a little.

When Qin Mingyuan returned, pushing the wheelchair, he noticed the water droplets on Yun Pei’s face. He pulled a towel from the side and helped wipe his face. His fingers brushed against Yun Pei’s cool cheeks as he remarked, “Why are you using cold water?”

Feeling a little awkward under Qin Mingyuan’s careful attention, Yun Pei sat quietly, not moving. 

“I felt a little warm.”

“The weather’s cooling down; it’s better to wash with warm water.” Qin Mingyuan dried Yun Pei’s face and didn’t forget to wipe his hands as well.

Noticing how cool Yun Pei’s fingers were, after hanging the towel, he held them in his own hands and gently rubbed them, sharing his warmth.

Since they had broken through that barrier in their relationship, Qin Mingyuan seemed even more attentive. Yun Pei lowered his gaze, looking at their intertwined hands, and nodded, “Okay.”

Qin Mingyuan released his hand and paused before lifting him into the wheelchair, “Do you need to use the bathroom?”

Yun Pei did, but he hadn’t mentioned it out of embarrassment. Now, with Qin Mingyuan asking directly, he felt awkward. Instead of answering directly, he said, “Just put me down, and you can step outside.”

Qin Mingyuan was tempted to tease him a little more, but he knew that playing too much with a shy person could backfire, so he placed Yun Pei in the wheelchair and said, “If you need help, just call me.”

After hearing Yun Pei’s response, he left the bathroom, thoughtfully closing the door behind him. He walked over to the window and pulled open the curtains, letting in the daylight that instantly brightened the room.

He turned off the bedside lamp and returned to the office. At some point, Zhou Yang had already delivered the meal, neatly arranged on the coffee table in front of the sofa.

They had ordered from the same nourishing restaurant they had eaten at last time, which was conveniently located near the company. The food was tasty, and delivery was fast.

Qin Mingyuan sat down and opened the containers one by one. Before long, Yun Pei wheeled himself out of the bathroom, stopping by the coffee table as he stared at the spread of food.

“Didn’t you eat lunch?” he asked, surprised.

Could he have been waiting for Yun Pei to eat together?

Almost as if Qin Mingyuan knew what Yun Pei was thinking, he handed him a pair of chopsticks. 

“I was busy with work around lunchtime and didn’t feel very hungry.”

It was the truth. Sometimes, when Qin Mingyuan got caught up in work, he would forget to eat. Even when Zhou Yang brought food, it would often sit there, getting cold before he even noticed.

Still, it didn’t happen every day. When work wasn’t too hectic, Qin Mingyuan would eat on time, which had spared him from developing any stomach issues.

His body, at least for now, seemed quite healthy.

“You should still eat on time,” Yun Pei advised, knowing that while someone in good health could manage, skipping meals regularly would eventually cause problems.

“Shouldn’t I be saying that to you?” Qin Mingyuan served a bowl of soup and placed it in front of Yun Pei.

Yun Pei had just taken a bite of food when he heard that. He remembered the time Yun Yuexian had caught him skipping meals and felt a little guilty. He didn’t argue but instead teased, “Then we both need to eat well, so we have the strength to fight.”

He threw back the words Qin Mingyuan had once said to him.

Qin Mingyuan’s eyes sparkled with amusement as he watched Yun Pei sip the soup. 

“Next time you get into a fight, call me.”

Yun Pei put down the bowl and nodded in agreement, then quietly continued eating with him.

When Yun Pei was about halfway full, he said, “There was something I didn’t finish telling you earlier.”

Their conversation had been interrupted by an unexpected event, and he had fallen asleep before finishing what he had to say.

Qin Mingyuan glanced at him, gesturing for him to continue.

“Do you remember on Qingming Festival, when we ran into a middle-aged man with a black umbrella at the cemetery?” Yun Pei provided more details in case Qin Mingyuan didn’t recall, “We saw him as we were going in.”

Qin Mingyuan had a good memory and vaguely remembered asking the man if he knew them, “What about him?”

“I actually know him,” Yun Pei’s gaze fell as he fidgeted with his chopsticks. 

“When I got to my mom’s grave, I noticed a fresh bouquet of flowers. That’s when I remembered that man used to work as our driver.”

The family driver would usually handle tasks like picking up and dropping off the employer, as well as taking care of the vehicle’s repairs and maintenance.

This meant that if something had gone wrong with the car Yun Pei’s mother used to drive, the driver would be the most likely person to have been bribed.

“And on our way back from the crew’s celebration banquet,” Yun Pei raised his eyes to look at Qin Mingyuan, “I saw a car that looked like Huo Lijuan’s. The middle-aged man by the car—I thought about it carefully later, and I think it was him too.”

Qin Mingyuan raised an eyebrow, “If that’s the case, he could be a key figure. Perhaps the phone call you heard last night was made to him.”

Yun Pei nodded. He had been thinking the same thing. After his mother’s accident, he had spent a long time recovering in the hospital. Once Huo Lijuan moved in, she replaced all the servants.

At the time, Yun Pei had thought she didn’t want anything in the house to remind her of his mother. But now, looking back, maybe she had wanted to cover something up.

His expression darkened. It seemed that he had been too naïve in the past, drowning in grief and anger, failing to see things clearly.

His thoughts were interrupted when he felt something touch his lips. Smelling the food, he instinctively opened his mouth, and a piece of shrimp was placed inside. He looked at Qin Mingyuan in surprise.

“I’ve already had someone keeping an eye on Huo Lijuan. If she meets with him, they’ll slip up sooner or later. Don’t worry.” 

Qin Mingyuan handed Yun Pei a napkin to wipe away some soup that had dripped onto his chin, “For now, just focus on eating.”

Yun Pei snapped out of it, his expression softening. He pushed aside the dark thoughts and focused on the food in his mouth.

Watching him eat again, Qin Mingyuan casually picked up a piece of food for himself, but his mind was still processing what Yun Pei had told him.

He recalled the scene from the last time they had seen that car. If he remembered correctly, it had been parked outside one of the most well-known private hospitals in A City. Huo Lijuan and the driver had appeared there together, so there must have been a reason for it.

If everything had been settled back then, why were they meeting again now? According to what Yun Pei had said, this was the first time the driver had visited his mother’s grave in years. Why had he suddenly reappeared and brought flowers to her grave?

Considering these events, Qin Mingyuan had a hypothesis he might explore further. But he didn’t say anything more.

He glanced up, watching the young man quietly eating, and said, “Why don’t you come to my house tonight?”

“Uh, uh…” Qin Mingyuan’s sudden suggestion made Yun Pei choke on his food. 

He coughed a few times, staring at Qin Mingyuan in surprise, “What?”

Qin Mingyuan moved closer, patting his back as he spoke calmly. 

“If you go home, you’ll probably run into Huo Lijuan. Do you really want to see her right now?”

Of course not. Yun Pei shook his head. He wasn’t ready to face that woman calmly. He was afraid he might lose control and confront her.

Last night, he had been too shocked to fully process the information. Otherwise, he might have already acted out.

“That’s why I’m asking you to come home with me.” Qin Mingyuan’s gaze swept across Yun Pei’s face, his tone serious, “What else did you think I meant?”

His steady inquiry made Yun Pei doubt if he had over-thought things. 

Embarrassed, he pushed Qin Mingyuan’s hand away from his back, “I didn’t think anything; I just choked on my food.”

Qin Mingyuan gave him a knowing look, clearly not buying it.

Feeling both annoyed and shy, Yun Pei reached up and covered Qin Mingyuan’s deep, piercing eyes with his hand, blocking his gaze.

“Focus on eating, and stop staring at me.”

With his vision obscured, Qin Mingyuan couldn’t help but find it amusing. His shy mimosa was not only hiding its leaves this time but also trying to force him to hide along with it.