Jian Yang didn’t go to the parking lot, and as soon as he stepped out of the hospital gate, he sneezed and immediately began coughing. He quickly pulled his hands into his sleeves, zipping his baseball jacket all the way up to his neck, exposing a small, pale patch of skin that started to redden as the cold wind blew.

Guan Ciyan, wearing only a shirt and suit, both of which were thin, asked, “Is it really that cold?”

Jian Yang was surprised. “Aren’t you cold with the wind blowing like that?”

Guan Ciyan gained a new understanding of the effects of cold on the body. He took off his jacket and draped it over Jian Yang’s shoulders.

“You’ll catch a cold. Sir,” Jian Yang refused.

“Your clothes are ruined from you fiddling with them. Just wear it,” Guan Ciyan said.

Jian Yang knew that the more expensive clothes were less durable. He had a lot of them in his own wardrobe. Last time, his suit was ruined when it got wet, and today he was so nervous that he kept pulling at Guan Ciyan’s clothes, forgetting about it.

He thought to himself, “If you catch a cold, I’ll take care of you.”

Guan Ciyan scoffed, “Before I was fourteen, I spent all my time in the military.”

Among the Guan family children, only he had this treatment.

Jian Yang was so excited that he didn’t want to get in the car. He wandered in the hospital garden, and as the dead leaves blew around, he insisted on telling Guan Ciyan that he smelled flowers.

In the end, Guan Ciyan forcibly escorted him into the car.

Once the effects of the eye mask wore off, Jian Yang removed it, rubbed his eyes, and blinked at Guan Ciyan. “Sir, is it better?”

The area around his eyes, healed by the electromagnetic therapy, was bright red, with a trace of blood color visible under the skin. Blue veins were subtly visible beneath the reddish skin. His golden eyes were bright, fixed and glimmering like amber, his long black lashes fluttering, his starry gaze flickering.

“Is it better, sir?”

Guan Ciyan snapped back to reality for a moment, his fingers landing on Jian Yang’s head, turning his face away. “It’s not that fast.”

“Right,” Jian Yang smiled, “It needs to be done slowly.”

Guan Ciyan couldn’t help but look at Jian Yang again, seeing him grinning happily, like a flower just blooming in spring.

“Sir, I forgive you,” Jian Yang said cheerfully.

“What do you need to forgive me for?” Guan Ciyan laughed.

“You lied to me,” Jian Yang said with a hint of grievance. “You knew Teacher Wen Ye’s thoughts, but you didn’t tell me. Also, your apology yesterday was a lie.”

Jian Yang clenched his teeth. “Don’t think I don’t know. You didn’t think you were wrong. I was just mad that you hid things from me. I was worried about you being bullied by Guan Jingyu. I understand at home, my… my parents are biased toward Jian Buqing. But I’m not on Guan Jingyu’s side, and you hid it from me. I don’t like that.”

“But!” Jian Yang patted Guan Ciyan’s forearm, “You came with me to the hospital today, so I forgive you. We just met, so it’s normal for you not to trust me. Just don’t lie to me again, and we’ll forget about it. You really don’t have anything else to lie about, right?”

Jian Yang was nervously squeezing the eye mask that he had used.

Guan Ciyan quietly looked at Jian Yang, his thumb gliding over his cheek. His dark pupils were floating and sinking under the gloomy autumn light, filled with emotions Jian Yang couldn’t understand.

“Sir,” Jian Yang suddenly realized he had been a bit too proud.

The person in front of him had the power to control everyone’s life and death, been abandoned and mistreated by his family, and used and deceived by the ones he loved. How could he talk about forgiveness?

“I’m not talking about that…” Jian Yang was frustrated. He always lost control and acted irrationally when it came to matters about his eyes.

“How do you say that?” Guan Ciyan’s tone was calm, and his gaze deepened as he thought, the coldness in his eyes becoming intimidating. He wasn’t unaware of Jian Yang’s anger, but he knew that being honest with Jian Yang was different from other situations. If Jian Yang didn’t speak, this matter would always be a thorn in his heart, constantly reminding him not to trust easily. If they talked about it and expressed it, the thorn would be removed.

Jian Yang gave his utmost sincerity, trying to prove to him: I’m still willing to trust you, please don’t let me down.

“Because, sir, you’re a good person,” Jian Yang tried to make up for it, “And, I like you, sir, I don’t want to be mad at you.”

Guan Ciyan pinched his face gently, not using too much force. “I didn’t lie to you, just listen to me.”

Jian Yang felt relieved inside, glad that everything was fine. He had let his guard down too much recently. That wasn’t good; he had to protect himself better.

Guan Ciyan watched Jian Yang’s face change over a short period, knowing that when Jian Yang said he liked him, it was just a form of speech, but deep inside, he thought Jian Yang was still being honest and foolish. He didn’t want to argue about it. He took the crumpled eye mask from Jian Yang’s hand, shifting the mood and following Jian Yang’s unspoken intent. “Shall we eat out tonight?”

In the moment he had just warned himself to be cautious, hearing that they could eat out, Jian Yang quickly blurted, “Can we have hot pot?”

As soon as he said it, he wished he could bite off his tongue.

Jian Yang didn’t know how his expression was changing, thinking he was hiding his thoughts well, but to Guan Ciyan, an experienced “old fox,” it was like an open book with the answers already clear.

“Sure,” Guan Ciyan replied, his gaze fixed on Jian Yang’s face, watching his eyes sparkle with joy, while he pressed his lips together, maintaining a calm response.

Is it really that exciting? Just hearing about the possibility of a healing hot pot for his eyes made Jian Yang this happy for an hour or two.

With the added bonus of hot pot, Jian Yang’s happiness lasted much longer. They took a two-hour ride to the seaside to have a seafood hot pot because Jian Yang wanted fish slices but didn’t want the earthy taste of freshwater fish.

By the time they were seated in a traditional hot pot restaurant in the city, which didn’t accept last-minute reservations, Guan Ciyan had his assistant contact the local management office to secure a spot. But Jian Yang hesitated and couldn’t decide on two dishes. Eventually, he admitted to Guan Ciyan that he couldn’t eat freshwater creatures because they were fishy and he was prone to allergies.

They ordered seafood, but after eating a few pieces of beef and vegetables, Jian Yang told Guan Ciyan he was full and didn’t want to eat anymore.

The number of times Guan Ciyan and Jian Yang had meals together didn’t matter, but knowing how much he ate, when pressed, Jian Yang answered with two words: “I’m still eating.”

“You…” Guan Ciyan looked at the dishes on the table that had only been touched a few times, “You don’t speak honestly when you should.”

“What?” Jian Yang’s lips were flushed red from the spice, a little sweat beading on his forehead. His whole body was wrapped in Guan Ciyan’s suit jacket, the sleeves rolled up, revealing part of his wrist. He held a glass of orange-colored specially mixed drink, his eyes clear and serious.

Jian Yang’s image in Guan Ciyan’s mind wasn’t too different from summer, even a bit smarter than summer.

Guan Ciyan stated directly, “If you don’t like it, say it early.”

His calm and steady voice betrayed no emotion, but when he didn’t smile, the sharp glasses and deep-set eyes made his face appear particularly cold and stern. Jian Yang felt guilty, “I don’t want to waste food either.”

…This left Guan Ciyan stumped.

The restaurant they went to didn’t have a policy for recycling dishes, and expensive ingredients would be destroyed at the end of the day if not sold.

Guan Ciyan was thinking about how to handle it, while Jian Yang took a sip of his drink, lowered his head, and grabbed his chopsticks, planning to eat a bit more.

“What are you doing?” Guan Ciyan, at his core, had a bad temper. When he wasn’t pretending, his tone was naturally harsh.

Jian Yang looked up at him, chopsticks still raised, thinking that Guan Ciyan was upset because he had made him go through all this trouble and still didn’t finish eating. He obediently explained, “I’ll eat a little more, so there’s less waste.”

“Put it down.” Guan Ciyan threw out two words, his tone brooking no argument.

He took out his phone, “The room I just booked, we’ll repurpose the dishes, buy another batch of supplies, and send them to the animal shelter. Contact a few media outlets for a small report, linking it to last month’s charity donation event.”

After finishing the call, Guan Ciyan turned to Jian Yang, “Now it’s not wasteful, is it? Little young master.”

His tone was mocking, and Jian Yang paused, “Aren’t you going to scold me?”

It had been a long time since Guan Ciyan scolded him. He had thought that Guan Ciyan would still resent the trouble he caused.

“You didn’t force yourself to eat, so at least you used some brain,” Guan Ciyan said, as though it were obvious.

“Can I go see the animals?” Jian Yang admitted he was being a bit brazen, pushing his luck, but how could he refuse when there were cats and dogs gathered at his feet?!

In his previous life, Jian Yang often went to the stray animal rescue center. During his student days, he lived pridefully but cautiously, with few friends. His sister was busy earning money and didn’t have much time for him, so he would play with the stray cats and dogs in the park. When he grew older, he volunteered at the animal rescue center until he became famous and could no longer go out freely.

He thought he’d never have a chance to go again! When he looked up at Guan Ciyan, his eyelids slightly drooping, his eyes almost hidden behind his glasses, he looked so easy to tease. Guan Ciyan sighed inwardly, closed his eyes, “Go ahead, go.”

The assistant came in as soon as the phone rang and arranged to have the meat, seafood, and vegetables from the table turned into low-oil, low-salt meat puree to be packaged as pet treats. Jian Yang waited, sipping his drink, “Does your company still do pet business?”

Guan Ciyan’s gaze darkened.

It was a sensitive topic, and Jian Yang had asked at a particularly sensitive moment.

“Starting to inquire about the company’s business?” Guan Ciyan put on his usual, unchanging smile. “Do you think your position here is already secure?”

Jian Yang froze for a moment, lowered his face, “Just asking casually.”

He hadn’t yet cleared his suspicion in Guan Ciyan’s mind. There was still a chance he might defect to Guan Jingyu’s side.

This made him feel a little hurt, just a little.

He slowed down his drinking speed, the straw slowly being chewed on in his mouth. Guan Ciyan noticed his hair, which flared out around the crown of his head, looked like it was expressing dissatisfaction, and unnecessarily explained, “We bought an old building and are developing a new film base with a nearby park. There’s a batch of stray animals in the park, and the staff sent them to the shelter. It’s something that happens often when we acquire land, so we’ve been supporting a few fixed rescue points.”

Jian Yang remembered the recent news about Guan’s donation to Hope Primary School, and while it mentioned a lot of Guan’s ongoing charitable work, it didn’t include this.

“You… What are you telling me this for?” Jian Yang thought, is he testing me again?

Their communication was always misaligned. One side’s occasional honesty was always suspected by the other of having ulterior motives.