Time flew by quickly, and before he knew it, evening had arrived. Xiao Yan had many things he needed to buy, which couldn’t all be handled in a single moment.
He had only purchased a small portion of them online for now, planning to find time to finish the rest as soon as possible. Right now, he had something far more important to do, and that was to cook dinner for his little boyfriend.
There were still prawns in the refrigerator, so Xiao Yan decided to make a simple plate of shrimp pasta.
Mu Li sat cross-legged on the sofa, watching Xiao Yan bustle about. Just the thought that this handsome and gentle man was now his boyfriend made him break into a silly, uncontrollable grin.
When Xiao Yan glanced over, Mu Li immediately lowered his head, pretending to browse through his phone. Xiao Yan did not expose him; his little boyfriend was truly adorable.
Mu Li’s attention remained entirely fixed on Xiao Yan. He opened his phone randomly without even clearly registering the contents on the screen. A moment later, he raised his head, only to find Xiao Yan looking right at him.
That handsome face was filled with gentle smiles. Mu Li was caught completely off guard as he met Xiao Yan’s eyes, which seemed to harbor a tranquil sea of stars, shining brightly for him alone.
In that very instant, Mu Li felt his breathing halt. One hand couldn’t help tightening its grip around the jade pendant at his chest as he stared foolishly at Xiao Yan.
Watching Mu Li’s infatuated expression, Xiao Yan smiled with even greater gentleness while feeling an uncontrollable surge of delight inside his heart.
He had known just how deeply Mu Li loved him even before his rebirth, which made Mu Li, who had yet to experience any of those hardships, all the more pure and innocent. He only needed to display a bit of affection, and this little fool couldn’t help staring at him in a daze.
Xiao Yan thoroughly enjoyed such a gaze filled with love and infatuation. He wished he could make Mu Li’s attention remain solely on him, never dividing even a fraction of it among anyone else ever again.
An exquisitely plated serving of pasta was brought to the dining table, and Mu Li sat back down in the exact same spot he had occupied at noon.
Dinner consisted of a plate of pasta, a vegetable salad, and finely cubed apples. It wasn’t overly extravagant, but it was simple and delicious. As long as it was cooked by Xiao Yan, it was the ultimate delicacy in Mu Li’s eyes.
To ensure a balanced nutritional intake, Xiao Yan had blanched some broccoli and placed it alongside the pasta, creating an exquisite presentation. Without changing expression, Mu Li used his fork to push the broccoli off to the side, then went straight for the shrimp.
The shrimp had been hand-peeled by Xiao Yan and were palm-sized tiger prawns. Eating one in a single bite felt truly super satisfying, and the slippery noodles were also delicious. However, he genuinely disliked broccoli, so by the end of the meal, only a few lonely florets of broccoli remained scattered across the plate.
Xiao Yan had long since noticed that Mu Li disliked broccoli and silently made a mental note of it. If he didn’t like eating it, he simply wouldn’t include it in the future. Even so, for the sake of nutrition, he would still need to coax the little fellow into eating a little bit of it occasionally.
Mu Li had initially worried that Xiao Yan might think he was a picky eater, but he truly couldn’t swallow that broccoli; forcing himself was completely useless. Fortunately, Xiao Yan didn’t seem to pay any attention to it at all, taking the used tableware directly into the kitchen. Mu Li let out a sigh of relief, lowered his gaze, and happened to catch sight of the pendant hanging at his chest.
It was a circular jade pendant, only about the size of a thumb, completely translucent and white. A soaring dragon was carved onto its surface, with the hole in the center cleverly forming the dragon’s wide-open mouth, through which a red cord was threaded to hang around Mu Li’s neck.
A single glance at this jade pendant told anyone it was no ordinary item, given its top-tier quality and exquisite carving. No matter how one looked at it, it didn’t resemble an ordinary accessory.
In truth, this jade pendant was an antique. How many generations it had been passed down through, Mu Li did not know; he only knew it was an heirloom from his maternal aunt’s family.
His maternal aunt’s maiden surname was Bai. The Bai family, much like his maternal grandfather’s family, was a wealthy and influential clan. His aunt was the sole daughter of the Bai family head and happened to be classmates with his uncle. The two of them fell in love at first sight and quickly walked down the aisle, remaining deeply devoted to each other even after marriage.
Consequently, the ties between his maternal grandfather’s family and the Bai family had always been exceptionally close. Moreover, his aunt adored him dearly, and during his early childhood, she had once taken him to stay briefly at the Bai family estate. This jade pendant had been given to him then by his aunt’s older brother, who was the current head of the Bai family.
Back then, he had looked like a little sprite—fair, tender, and utterly endearing. Whenever the elders laid eyes on him, they doted on him, showering him with countless precious gifts of all kinds.
Yet he had grown particularly fond of this jade pendant, wearing it on his person from childhood all the way into adulthood. Now, however, he wanted to give this to Xiao Yan. What could be more fitting than gifting his most personal possession to his boyfriend as a token of their love?
Once Xiao Yan finished cleaning up, he pulled Mu Li into his arms so they could continue watching a movie together. However, hardly had the film begun when Xiao Yan noticed that Mu Li seemed to have something he wanted to say. Lowering his head, he asked, “What is it?”
Glancing at Xiao Yan, Mu Li shyly lowered his head. He unclasped the jade pendant from his neck, held the tiny piece of jade strung on its red cord within his palm, and extended his open hand toward Xiao Yan: “I’m giving this to you.”
“For me? Is this a token of love?” Unmasked surprise filled Xiao Yan’s voice.
This little jade pendant had always hung around Mu Li’s neck; he had seen it in their past life as well. For something to be worn constantly, especially an item carved from jade like this, it must have been carried with him since childhood. The fact that his precious treasure was gifting his most personal belonging to him left Xiao Yan completely astonished and delighted.
“Mmh.”
Mu Li nodded, tacitly confirming that this was indeed a token of love.
Accepting the jade pendant, Xiao Yan pulled Mu Li close and pressed a kiss to his forehead: “You’re truly wonderful, baby. I don’t have anything suitable to give you right now, but tomorrow when we return to the city, I’ll go buy you a gift.”
Of course he had to accept a token of love given by his wife. Xiao Yan examined the pendant affectionately in his hand. For some reason, holding the jade pendant in his palm gave him an extremely familiar sensation, though he didn’t dwell on it and simply asked Mu Li to help put it on for him.
Mu Li was equally happy; seeing that Xiao Yan liked his gift brought him joy.
After holding each other a little longer while chatting, the two of them prepared to turn in for the night. There was only one bedroom here that could accommodate anyone, and since they had now officially established their relationship, sleeping together was a matter of course. Mu Li took a shower first, then dove straight under Xiao Yan’s blankets. Clutching the edge of the comforter with both hands, his heart thumped wildly with nervous tension.
The two of them were a couple now, and since a couple lived together, they would surely engage in some intimate, blushing activities. During the daytime, Xiao Yan was always kissing him, so tonight things would probably get even more intense. As Mu Li thought about this, he felt nervous, yet harbored a vague sense of anticipation.
Wearing his pajamas, Xiao Yan stepped out and couldn’t help chuckling softly upon seeing only a pair of eyes peeking out from the tightly wrapped bundle of blankets. Naturally, he could tell how nervous Mu Li was and guessed what was running through his mind.
However, he had no intention of doing anything just yet. To bully someone the moment they confirmed their relationship—he wasn’t that much of a beast.
Looking at the person wrapped up so tightly, Xiao Yan lifted the blanket and slid underneath it himself. “Aren’t you feeling stuffy?”
Even though Xiao Yan was dressed properly and he himself was dressed properly, Mu Li’s face remained flushed bright red.
This was his first time sleeping in the same bed with someone else since growing up, let alone with someone he held deep affection for. The nervousness was simply overwhelming.
Xiao Yan pressed a kiss to Mu Li’s cheek, reached out to click off the main lights with a click, leaving only a dim bedside lamp glowing softly in the room, and then pulled the young man into his embrace. Speaking in a gentle voice, he said, “Go to sleep. Goodnight.”
In the pitch-dark room, Mu Li stared blankly at Xiao Yan’s chest, his mind utterly dumbfounded. Just like that? Xiao Yan is just going to sleep like this? Did I overthink things? Ah! How mortifying!
A long while passed, and Mu Li still couldn’t fall asleep. Hearing no movement from beside him, he assumed Xiao Yan was fast asleep and slowly propped himself up. Since the lamp was positioned on Xiao Yan’s side, his own side was cast in complete darkness.
Yet the contours of Xiao Yan’s face remained visible from the dim glow. He saw that Xiao Yan’s eyes were closed, looking exceptionally handsome even in sleep. His lips were naturally pale, his facial features sharply chiseled, and a tiny black mole sat just beneath his lower lip, lending him an extraordinary, captivating allure.
I want to kiss him. Staring at Xiao Yan’s lips, this thought bloomed inside Mu Li’s mind. Thinking it, he acted on it…
In truth, Xiao Yan wasn’t asleep at all; he was well aware of the movements made by the person beside him.
Like a cautious little cat, Mu Li extended the tip of his tongue to give Xiao Yan’s lips a light, tentative lick, quickly shrinking back right afterward. Seeing that Xiao Yan didn’t react, he gave them another gentle lick before darting back away once more. He amused himself endlessly with this game, yet never dared to push things any further.
Internally, Xiao Yan labeled him a little fool. Opening his eyes just as Mu Li was hastily preparing to retreat, he struck swiftly with lightning speed, pressing a hand firmly against the back of Mu Li’s head before the young man could pull away…
“Mmph!” Mu Li’s eyes widened in shock, his hands instinctively flat against Xiao Yan’s chest.
Applying slight pressure with the hand holding the back of Mu Li’s head, Xiao Yan captured those soft lips of his. Unlike Mu Li’s superficial,蜻蜓点水 (蜻蜓点水 / dragonfly skimming the water) touch, he parted Mu Li’s teeth and slipped inside, executing a passionate, classic French kiss…
“Mmph…” Mu Li’s eyes widened even further, leaving him only enough presence of mind to issue a silent mental protest: Bad guy… He faked being asleep just to trick me!