When Yao Zhen returned, Liang Jiming was waiting for him by the elevators in the first-floor lobby, looking down at his phone.
Yao Zhen strode over. “What’s wrong with you? So scatterbrained—I was right in the middle of eating…”
Liang Jiming ignored him and simply pressed the up button for the elevator.
The doors opened, and the two of them stepped inside; there were no other guests. The Young Master continued his incessant complaining, but Liang Jiming didn’t utter a word, keeping his eyes fixed on the rising floor numbers.
Even someone as dense as Yao Zhen could sense he was being intentionally ignored. He gave Liang Jiming a shove. “Why are you ignoring me?”
Liang Jiming snatched the room card from between Yao Zhen’s fingers and said blandly, “You should go back to your meal. There’s no need to come up.”
“…” Why didn’t you say that before we got in the elevator? Are you playing with me?
The elevator reached the top floor and opened. Liang Jiming stepped out first.
Yao Zhen thought about it and followed him. “Hey, why are you being so cynical? Did I offend you again?”
Liang Jiming shot him a look as he swiped the door open. “Are you having a good time wining and dining with the Young Lady?”
Having dropped that line, Liang Jiming said nothing else and went straight into the living room.
Yao Zhen stood in the entryway, stunned for a moment, feeling a bit baffled.
The air is practically thick with vinegar…
Liang Jiming quickly grabbed the documents and came back out, intending to return to the office to keep working.
Only after they re-entered the elevator did Yao Zhen seem to react, interrogating him: “Are you trying to make me unhappy again?”
Liang Jiming didn’t even look at him, saying in a chilly voice, “I’m not happy either. The Young Master is out playing while leaving a mountain of work for me to do. I haven’t even had dinner yet.”
Yao Zhen was instantly silenced.
He actually wanted to say that no one forced him to be so diligent and driven, but the words felt a bit cruel as they reached his lips.
“Then go eat first. Why don’t you come with me?”
“No,” Liang Jiming refused outright. “I’ll finish the work first.”
Yao Zhen was completely at a loss for words.
That afternoon, the hotel manager had been pressing him about a stack of unsigned documents, so Liang Jiming’s words were clearly a pointed reminder.
After getting out of the elevator, Yao Zhen silently followed Liang Jiming toward the office building. He sent a message to Jiang Mian, telling her to go ahead and eat and that he would find her later.
Jiang Mian: [Bros before hoes? Or in your case, boyfriends before besties? You’ve got some nerve.]
Liang Jiming asked, “Why are you following me?”
Yao Zhen locked his phone and looked up, forcing a smile onto his face. “Food isn’t as important as you. Since you are still hungry, I have to stay by your side no matter what.”
Liang Jiming looked at his smiling face. His Adam’s apple bobbed slightly as he said, “I didn’t ask you to.”
Yao Zhen picked only the sweetest words to tease him: “I’m doing it voluntarily.”
Liang Jiming fell silent, averted his eyes, and walked ahead.
Finally, I’ve managed to soothe this ‘iceberg,’ Yao Zhen thought to himself, clicking his tongue before following.
Back in the office, he first signed all the documents he had been procrastinating on for days. Then, he flopped onto the nearby sofa and put on his headphones to play games.
Liang Jiming sat back at his desk, but his gaze drifted toward Yao Zhen from time to time, making it impossible to concentrate. The contract didn’t actually need more changes; he had just used it as an excuse to call Yao Zhen back. Now that the person was right there, he suddenly felt it was a bit pointless.
Liang Jiming turned off the computer and stood up.
Seeing this, Yao Zhen took off his headphones. “You’re done already?”
Liang Jiming said, “Yeah. Let’s go eat.”
“…” Yao Zhen thought they were in such a rush, yet it took less than half an hour to finish. Why couldn’t they have just eaten first?
While Yao Zhen was grumbling under his breath, Liang Jiming picked up a chocolate from his desk and handed it over—a gift from a child whose small problem he had helped solve that afternoon.
Yao Zhen looked confused.
Liang Jiming peeled the wrapper and stuffed the chocolate into Yao Zhen’s mouth. “Eat that and stop complaining.”
The Young Master’s mouth was blocked, resulting in muffled cursing: “#@#*&%…”
Liang Jiming grabbed his wrist and dragged him away.
……
Down at the seaside restaurant, Yao Zhen’s original seat had already been taken. Jiang Mian was good at finding her own fun; she had hooked up with a few tourists from back home and was having a barbecue with them—all girls.
“Since you two took so long to come down, there’s no room for you anymore,” the Young Lady teased. In truth, she just didn’t want to be a third wheel.
Yao Zhen protested, “It’s not that I didn’t want to come down. It’s this guy—he’s a workaholic.”
Jiang Mian greeted Liang Jiming. Even though she had given up on her designs for him, a handsome guy was still easy on the eyes.
The other girls’ eyes lit up when they saw the two of them. One enthusiastically suggested, “Sit with us! We can just squeeze in.”
It was peak dining hours, and there were no empty tables nearby. Yao Zhen just wanted to fill his stomach, so he didn’t mind. Since they were invited, he accepted the offer graciously. He called the waiter to add chairs and utensils, ordered a bunch more food and drinks, and offered to pick up the tab.
After a few drinks and some chatter, Yao Zhen quickly hit it off with them and even exchanged contact info with a few of the girls. One girl wanted to add Liang Jiming on WeChat, but he simply said, “I didn’t bring my phone,” a clear rejection.
Yao Zhen said to the girl with a grin, “Ignore him. He’s always like this—annoyingly arrogant. Adding me is enough.”
Liang Jiming casually brushed off Yao Zhen’s hand, which was resting on his knee. Yao Zhen didn’t care; he was busy eating barbecue, drinking beer, and bragging to the pretty girls.
When the mood hit, the group agreed to go out to sea together the next day. Yao Zhen agreed immediately, but Liang Jiming suddenly interjected, “You know how to swim? What are you going to do at sea if you can’t swim?”
Yao Zhen was instantly displeased by this. He turned to him and snapped, “Since when can’t someone go to sea if they can’t swim? I can still drink, fish, and watch the sunset. It’s not like we haven’t gone out to sea together before!”
Liang Jiming stared at him with dark eyes but didn’t respond.
Night had fallen, and the surrounding lights were on. Liang Jiming’s gaze was submerged in the half-light. Yao Zhen felt a bit uncomfortable being stared at like that, remembering what had happened the last time they were out at sea, and looked away. Whatever, he’s being weird.
That subtle tension was likely only noticed by the two of them. Jiang Mian also teased Yao Zhen: “Going to sea with you is pretty boring. You just play games in a different location while I have to snorkel by myself. You should have told me sooner you can’t swim; I could have taught you.”
Yao Zhen scoffed, “Who needs you to teach me? Don’t think you can use it as an excuse to get close to the Young Master.”
The Young Lady couldn’t stand his narcissistic attitude. “Oh, please.”
The other girls asked, “So, are we still going tomorrow?”
“Yes, of course!” Yao Zhen was originally just talking big, but now that he had been mocked by Liang Jiming, he felt a fire in his chest. He was determined to go now.
Liang Jiming stopped participating in their conversation. He finished a bowl of noodles quickly and put down his chopsticks. “You guys have fun. I’m heading back.”
He stood up to leave, but Yao Zhen grabbed his hand and pulled him down forcefully. “Are you going to dump me and run away again?”
Liang Jiming frowned.
The girls were all stunned. Jiang Mian realized something was off and tried to mediate: “Hey, don’t you two start a fight here…”
Yao Zhen ignored her, staring fixedly at Liang Jiming, refusing to let go of his hand. This bastard. It’s one thing to be cynical, but he always pulls this ‘no face’ crap in front of outsiders!
Liang Jiming looked up. The irritation in his eyes froze when he saw the Young Master’s aggrieved, dissatisfied, and confused gaze. Suddenly, he was at a loss for words.
…Fine, whatever.
When he spoke again, his tone had softened: “Have you had enough to eat? Do you want to head back with me?”
“…” You could have just said so earlier, honestly.
Yao Zhen actually wasn’t full, but given the circumstances, he just pursed his lips and acted as if he were doing Liang Jiming a huge favor by agreeing.
Once they were back in the room, he called room service. Liang Jiming watched him eat like a starved wolf, feeling somewhat helpless. “Why didn’t you say you weren’t full just now?”
“Did you give me a chance to speak?” Yao Zhen snapped. “You just up and left with that sour face for me to look at.”
Liang Jiming was silent for a moment before saying, “Your family arranged a marriage partner for you, and she came all the way here. It shows your father is still willing to give you a chance. If you’re willing to listen to him, he should soften up and let you go back.”
“Cough—“
Yao Zhen, who was mid-gulp of noodles, nearly choked. He lifted his eyelids. “Listen to what?”
Liang Jiming looked at him, his voice calm: “Listen to your father and marry the person he arranged.”
“Are you sick?” Yao Zhen cursed immediately. “If I were willing, I wouldn’t have come here in the first place.”
Liang Jiming continued, “You seemed quite happy chatting with those girls, didn’t you? You don’t seem to reject that Young Lady either. If that’s the case, why not give it a try?”
“I…” Yao Zhen’s eyes darted around as a thought struck him. He dropped his chopsticks and leaned in close to Liang Jiming, staring straight into his eyes.
“Hey, you’ve been huffing and puffing all night… are you actually jealous?”
Liang Jiming looked at the smug face getting closer and closer but said nothing.
Jealous?
It didn’t quite reach that level, but he was indeed feeling a bit disgruntled. He had already accepted his relationship with this Young Master and naturally categorized Yao Zhen as his person, but Yao Zhen clearly lacked that self-awareness sometimes—attracting butterflies and bees everywhere without any sense of boundaries.
Yao Zhen took his silence as a confession. He was overjoyed, his mood instantly soaring. Isn’t this just one step away from hooking the fish?!
“If you’re jealous, just say it. Why be so awkward?”
Liang Jiming didn’t bother explaining. He only reminded him, “Since you don’t want to accept the family arrangement, then handle those messy affairs properly. Also, stop flirting around outside.”
Wow, this jealousy is quite strong…
Yao Zhen pulled out his phone right in front of him and messaged Jiang Mian, saying he wouldn’t be going tomorrow and telling them to have fun—the cost of the yacht trip was on him.
“Is this okay now?” After finishing, he tilted his head and peeked at him with a beaming smile. “Neither of us is interested in the other; you can’t force a twisted melon to be sweet. Besides, she already knows about our relationship.”
The two were still close, Yao Zhen’s radiant smile right before his eyes. Liang Jiming’s gaze shifted from those bright eyes to the mole on his cheek, pausing for a moment.
Yao Zhen reached out, his finger tapping Liang Jiming’s shoulder. “Baby, next time you’re jealous, just say it directly. How am I supposed to know if you’re being all coy? I haven’t been ‘flirting around,’ so stop accusing me.”
Liang Jiming pulled his hand down and said expressionlessly, “Eat your food.”
Yao Zhen laughed for a while and sat back, feeling wonderful as he went back to devouring his noodles. The day that dog of a man would kneel down, hug his legs, and beg for his love was right around the corner. He’d make sure to record it and play it on a loop for him once he got his memory back.
Oh ho!