He Wenqi opened his eyes to find the tip of his nose pressed against a warm chest.
Memories flooded back. Last night, after a vent of emotions and a chaotic release with Han Ji, he had finally managed to pour out the depression buried in his heart. Whether or not he had truly let it all go, he was no longer resistant to Han Ji’s gestures of goodwill.
Some things are just like that; if kept inside, they remain insurmountable, but once spoken aloud, they don’t actually require much explanation—everything unravels as it should.
He discovered that even after four years, he was still accustomed to everything about Han Ji, such as the body temperature and scent radiating from the other man at this moment.
He maintained his waking posture, not daring to move a muscle for fear of disturbing him.
He couldn’t remember how he had gotten into bed; he only remembered that they had been sitting on the sofa earlier. Once the floodgates of the past were opened, the two of them had talked a great deal.
But now, he was sleeping in Han Ji’s bed, and in this position!
He Wenqi tried to struggle gently, but the arm encircling him showed no intention of loosening. Fortunately, the other man hadn’t woken up.
After a few thoughts whirled through his mind, he simply closed his eyes again.
His nasal cavity was filled with the other’s scent. It wasn’t the woody fragrance he once craved, but a faint scent of pine resin, slightly tinged with the smell of alcohol… He nuzzled a bit more against the center of the man’s chest, feeling a peace in his heart, and unknowingly fell back asleep.
His body grew numb from being curled up, and in a daze, He Wenqi lifted his leg slightly…
He felt something. Once he realized what it was, he sprang up from the bed like he’d been electrocuted.
Han Ji was startled by his movement and immediately sat up as well: “Awake?”
He Wenqi suppressed his racing heart and, before his face could start burning, turned toward the bathroom: “I’m going to take a shower.”
It was only after he left that Han Ji gently lifted the quilt covering his lower body and peeked inside…
The two had slept in their clothes last night. Han Ji hadn’t changed; he was wearing a shirt and suit trousers, tailored specifically to his frame and quite form-fitting.
This person had been constantly nuzzling against his chest and repeatedly lifting his leg… He wasn’t some ascetic monk with no desires; how was he supposed to endure this in the early morning?
It wasn’t time yet. Han Ji took several deep breaths, exhaled heavily, and fell back onto the bed. Listening to the sound of the water from the shower, the corners of his lips quirked up again and again.
Inside the shower, the person was still engaged in a mental struggle, silently chanting that it was a natural morning reaction and that every man has it. Han Ji was straight; he would definitely not have any thoughts about him.
…
The time for their original return flight in the morning had long since passed. He Wenqi felt it was a waste of the ticket.
Han Ji had a brunch delivered by the hotel and said casually: “I’ve rebooked.”
He Wenqi: “…”
When? He hadn’t known at all.
Han Ji’s lifestyle was always disciplined; his biological clock usually woke him at six in the morning. But for the first time ever, he wanted to stay in bed.
“Since we’re in no rush to go back, want to go for a stroll this afternoon?” Han Ji pushed his portion of brownie cake toward He Wenqi.
“Where to?” He Wenqi liked these little desserts and started eating naturally with a small fork.
“South City is by the sea; let’s go to the beach,” Han Ji suggested.
Going to the beach in winter—he certainly had some ideas.
Fortunately, South City wasn’t like Jing City; the temperature was a bit higher. Moreover, the weather today wasn’t bad, with the sunlight feeling warm on the skin.
The two asked the hotel about coastal spots they could visit and took a car over.
Jin City, where He Wenqi grew up, was a city of mountains and water, with rivers and lakes but no sea.
In the summer, the river water would rise. He Wenqi liked going to the riverbank then to watch the rising tides, catching fish and shrimp in the shallows, or doing nothing at all, just watching the vast, misty river surface broaden, which brought peace and serenity to his heart.
“Three thousand miles of the Yellow River flow east into the sea; five thousand feet of the Taihua Mountains touch the sky.”
The sea receives a hundred rivers; it is not something a mere river can compare to.
The sea breeze was moist and salty, though not as cold as imagined.
The sky was a tile-blue without a single cloud, and the sunlight scattered across the sea like fragments of silver.
He Wenqi turned up his coat collar and gazed quietly at the expansive sea, feeling a sensation he’d never had before. It was as if he himself had vanished, his physical body had vanished, his thoughts had vanished—swallowed by the vastness in front of him, leaving only the heartbeat of the ocean.
“This is my first time seeing the sea.” So, this was what it felt like.
“You’ve never been to the beach before?” Han Ji was behind him, waiting a long time before speaking, not wanting to disturb him.
He Wenqi shook his head.
“Then we’ve come to the right place. Let’s walk.”
There weren’t many people around. The two stepped onto the cold, hard sand and walked along the beach.
“I’ve been to the beach with friends before; in the summer, the scenery is a bit different from now.”
“With a girlfriend?” He Wenqi blurted out.
Han Ji stopped walking. He Wenqi continued forward.
The sea breeze blew his long hair to one side; Han Ji really wanted to reach out and help him smooth it.
“What’s wrong?” Noticing the lack of movement beside him, He Wenqi stopped and turned back.
“No,” Han Ji stepped forward to catch up. “It wasn’t a girlfriend.”
There had never been a girlfriend from beginning to end. Han Ji really wanted to explain, but he had no pretext for it. Bringing it up again for no reason would be meaningless.
Not far away, a young man and woman were bickering, walking toward them.
The woman had a tense face, focused only on walking forward: “I said I didn’t want to come. Look, there’s nothing here, and it’s so cold—are you trying to freeze me to death?”
There were indeed few people on the beach, so voices could be heard even if they weren’t very loud.
The man caught up from behind to grab her; she broke free, he grabbed again, she shrugged him off.
Regardless of anything, the man rushed up and hugged the woman tightly from behind. The woman pushed and shoved, but ultimately couldn’t break free, so she had to let him hold her.
The man lowered his head and whispered in her ear, likely coaxing her.
Finally, the woman raised her arms and hugged the man back.
After a while, the man took off his coat and draped it over her, kissed the side of her face, and put his arm around her shoulder.
The woman reached out to rest her hand on his waist, leaning tightly against his side.
The little couple’s lovers’ spat was witnessed in its entirety by the two.
Han Ji brought his gaze back and suddenly asked: “Are you cold?”
He Wenqi’s heart stirred; he smiled, but then lowered his head with a sense of melancholy.
Immediately, he pulled his hands out of his trouser pockets, blew a breath on them, and rubbed them together: “How about we have a race?”
Han Ji: “…”
Regardless of whether Han Ji agreed or not, He Wenqi took the lead and started running forward.
Han Ji didn’t move at first.
The person in front got further and further away, widening the distance between them.
Finally, Han Ji shook his head with a smile and followed.
He was wearing formal attire and leather shoes; he was completely restricted and couldn’t really let loose.
He Wenqi pointed to a small wooden cabin ahead and shouted at Han Ji: “Whoever runs there first wins!”
Han Ji followed slowly at a steady pace: “What happens if you win?”
He Wenqi hadn’t thought about what winning or losing would mean. Since Han Ji brought it up, he just said whatever came to mind: “If you win… you get to make one request of the other.”
“Really? Then what about the loser? What’s the punishment?” Han Ji grew interested.
“The loser… has to tell one of their secrets.”
Han Ji’s eyes brightened: “A gentleman’s word…”
“Is worth a thousand pieces of gold.” He Wenqi turned and bolted.
“He Wenqi, you’re cheating!” Han Ji shouted from behind.
At first, He Wenqi ran with great energy, but he soon ran out of steam. Han Ji caught up and easily overtook him.
“You lack exercise way too much. When we get back, go to the gym with me; I’ll be your personal trainer.” Han Ji ran in circles on the spot ahead, waiting for him to catch up.
He Wenqi ran a few more steps. He hadn’t paced himself, and since he usually didn’t exercise much, his heart was pounding so hard he could barely suppress it.
He stopped to catch his breath: “You’re a vigorous old soul; I admit defeat.”
Han Ji ran toward him: “How are you? Are you okay?”
He Wenqi bent over, one hand over his heart, looking as if he couldn’t catch his breath.
Han Ji walked to his side, intending to pat his back to help him breathe, but He Wenqi suddenly stood up and pushed him backward with force. Taking advantage of Han Ji’s lack of reaction, he turned and ran forward again.
Han Ji was caught off guard by the push, and in an instant, He Wenqi had pulled ahead by a large margin again.
“He Wenqi—!”
The person in front didn’t care at all, just charging forward while laughing loudly.
…
The two of them had their flight moved to the evening.
After spending the entire afternoon by the sea, as night fell, the night market street near the coast became lively.
There was a row of small wooden cabins, selling all sorts of things.
There weren’t many people strolling about, likely due to the winter weather, but it was better than the afternoon.
There were small groups of young people, mostly couples.
The four seasons by the sea each have their own romance; it’s a good place for lovers to deepen their feelings.
The scent of grilled dried squid drifted in the wind; He Wenqi felt his stomach growling.
Han Ji looked around: “Wait for me a moment.” Without saying more, he turned and left.
He Wenqi didn’t know what he was going to do, so he had to stay put.
By the time Han Ji returned with two bags of warm grilled squid, He Wenqi was nowhere to be seen.
He pulled out his phone to call him, but suddenly saw the man standing by the side window of a small red wooden cabin, bent over and intently studying something.
Han Ji walked over: “What are you looking at so intently?”
“Have you seen this thing before?” He Wenqi pointed to a white object in front of him.
The object was long and tubular, larger at the top and smaller at the bottom, like a slender morning glory. It was entirely white and covered in hollowed-out small holes—very unfriendly to someone with trypophobia.
“Coral? A reef stone? Woven craft?” Han Ji looked at the intersecting patterns on it.
“Venus’ Flower Basket (Xiélǎo Tóngxué).” He Wenqi’s eyes were sparkling.
“What xué?” Han Ji hadn’t heard of it.
“This thing is a craft piece made to look like ‘Venus’ Flower Basket’ (Xiélǎo Tóngxué).”
He Wenqi repeated what he had just heard from the owner to Han Ji.
The Venus’ Flower Basket is a type of sea sponge in the ocean, and it’s also the “home” for creatures called Spongicola shrimp.
A pair of Spongicola shrimp live around it from a young age. Once they reach adulthood, the shrimp couple crawls inside to settle down and lay eggs. The sponge provides them with nutrients through its countless pores, and they no longer need to come out to forage.
But as the shrimp continue to grow in size, they can no longer fit through the tiny pores of the sponge, and the pair will live inside together until death.
“Trapped until they die of old age?” Han Ji said.
“If it’s together with the person you love, do you think it counts as being trapped?”
“Put that way, it’s quite romantic.”
“The owner said this is: ‘Childhood sweethearts, growing old together, and sharing the same grave (shēngsǐ tóngxué)’.” Several phrases came out of He Wenqi’s mouth softly, yet with immense cherish.
“You like it? Want to buy one?” Han Ji observed his expression.
He Wenqi shook his head, but…
He glanced at Han Ji’s deep pupils, and his gaze fell on the paper bag in his hand: “What did you buy?”
Han Ji handed it to him: “Grilled squid, want a taste?”
He Wenqi took it, his nose wrinkling; there was a fishy smell.
Han Ji used a bamboo skewer to pick up a strip of meat and held it to his lips: “It doesn’t taste fishy, try it.”
He Wenqi carefully opened his mouth and bit the long strip of squid meat into his mouth bit by bit.
It was salty and fishy upon entry; he tried chewing it gently, and a sweetness emerged on the tip of his tongue.
Han Ji stuffed a strip of meat into his own mouth: “Fresh squid, treated and just sprinkled with some salt, then grilled directly over the fire—it tastes different from what you’ve had before.”
“They usually have sauce, but it tastes more like the sea this way.”
He Wenqi also began chewing heartily; it indeed didn’t taste fishy despite the smell.
“How is it?” Han Ji asked.
“Yeah, it’s okay.”
“There’s more, eat some more.” Han Ji was about to feed him again.
“I’ll do it myself.” He Wenqi took the bamboo skewer from his hand, his fingers brushing against the back of Han Ji’s hand—it was warm.
He Wenqi finished an entire bag in one go. Seeing that he liked it, Han Ji stuffed the other bag into his hand as well.
The two walked side by side, one handsome and the other tall and upright, causing passersby to look back frequently, some even raising their phones.
They strolled around and eventually found a barbecue restaurant nearby, mainly focused on seafood. Living by the sea means eating from the sea; coming to the coast naturally meant eating seafood.
Han Ji ordered the dishes himself, and finally asked for a portion of seafood porridge: “It’s colder at night; have a bowl of porridge first to warm your stomach.”
The small, fresh seafood didn’t need much preparation and was placed directly onto the grill.
The waiter served the dishes, and Han Ji operated the tongs himself: “This is toward the south; actually, the seafood in the Great East Sea is even better. When the fishing season opens, let’s go to Lianfeng Prefecture; the scenery there is beautiful…”
Noticing He Wenqi staring at him motionless, his words shifted: “Uh, I won. The request I’m making is for us to go on a trip to Lianfeng Prefecture together—is that okay?”
He Wenqi had cheated twice but ultimately hadn’t outrun Han Ji.
Willing to accept the loss, there was nothing more to say.
Han Ji placed all the grilled shrimp into his own bowl, wiped his hands clean with a towel, pinched a red shrimp about half the size of his palm, twisted off the head, grabbed the tail, and gave a gentle pull. The entire shell came off, leaving a complete red-and-white shrimp meat.
He placed the shrimp meat into the bowl in front of He Wenqi and skillfully peeled another.
It had been the same in the past.
He Wenqi used his chopsticks to pick up the shrimp; it was springy, tender, and sweet.
In the past, he thought Han Ji peeling shrimp for him meant he was special; it turned out he had just misunderstood. This was merely his habit—a habit of taking care of others.
“You lost.” Han Ji dropped another shrimp into his bowl. “Have you thought about what secret you’re going to tell?”
There was still that matter; he had truly brought it upon himself.
He Wenqi looked at Han Ji’s well-defined hands; his hands were large, and his long fingers skillfully twisted the shrimp heads and pulled the tails. With his movements, the veins on the back of his hand occasionally protruded, giving a sense of power and strength.
How would it feel to be held by such hands…
A certain matter suddenly came to He Wenqi’s mind.
Neither of them had drunk today, yet the whisky seemed to still be burning in his body. In a moment of heat in his head, his Adam’s apple bobbed: “I’ve drawn a portrait of you.”
Han Ji was currently placing a grilled oyster into He Wenqi’s plate: “What kind of secret is that? You’ve shown it to me before.”
“Full-body,” He Wenqi licked his lips. “Nude.”
Clang—
The oyster fell onto the plate.