Jing Mian’s Adam’s apple bobbed involuntarily.
“It seems you’ve grown up.”
Hearing these words, he inexplicably recalled the first time he met Mr. Ren. The man had once said in front of Manager Yang that Jing Mian was still a child.
It was at that moment Jing Mian faintly realized that Mr. Ren had no intention of marrying him.
Until now.
Mr. Ren had put a ring on his finger, obtained the marriage certificate, quietly moved in together, and thoroughly fulfilled his marital obligations.
As for calling Mr. Ren “Brother”…
Jing Mian subconsciously shushed himself.
After all, last night, the term “Brother” had been like a switch, a spark. Once uttered, it would lead to his husband pinching his chin, kissing him deeply, followed by an uncontrollable storm of passion.
Jing Mian still felt a bit apprehensive.
Jing Mian swallowed the shrimp dumpling and silently changed the subject, “Are you going out today, Husband?”
Ren Xingwan replied: “I’ll be at home today.”
He asked: “What’s the matter?”
Jing Mian asked softly, “I have a project assignment due tonight and need to use the computer. Can I go to your study?”
Ren Xingwan opened his lips, “Sure.”
The man paused for a moment: “Shall I carry you there?”
Jing Mian’s face flushed instantly, saying, “No need.”
Finishing the last shrimp dumpling and the last spoonful of mung bean porridge, Jing Mian also put down his spoon and said: “Thank you. Shall I go and work on it now?”
Mr. Ren looked up, his tone calm, “Can your legs manage?”
The person about to stand up paused.
This time, the heat rose to his ears.
Jing Mian pursed his lips: “They can.”
He silently defended himself: “I fell earlier because I hadn’t eaten breakfast.”
Mr. Ren didn’t comment.
But he nodded.
The man stood up and, in Jing Mian’s peripheral vision, took his own empty bowl and plate, silently washing them.
As Jing Mian went upstairs, he inexplicably felt a strange sensation.
Even though it was his own used dishes, Mr. Ren didn’t show the slightest hint of disgust while doing these tasks, as natural as breathing. It was hard to imagine they were lovers who had only been married for a little over half a month.
Jing Mian entered Mr. Ren’s study.
This was probably the first time he had entered the study in broad daylight with clear vision. He noticed that, unlike the other rooms, the study was spacious and vintage, with a large bookshelf behind the solid wood desk, its deep color not feeling heavy. Although it was locked, and he couldn’t see what was inside, he could still glimpse its substantial size.
The desk was very tidy, with only documents, contracts, and a computer.
The old book Jing Mian had borrowed from the library contained a CD, a lecture by an old professor. Because the book was missing pages and was now out of print, the notebook was of no use.
Jing Mian inserted the CD into the drive, clicked the mouse, and started the lecture.
As the video played halfway, Jing Mian worked on his project in a small window. However, his gaze inadvertently swept over the corner of the desk, and he suddenly noticed a photo frame lying face down in a slightly open drawer.
Jing Mian: “?”
Driven by curiosity, Jing Mian reached out, opened the drawer, and lifted the photo frame.
The next second, his pupils slightly froze.
Jing Mian was surprised to find that it was… a group photo.
…It was a photo of him and Mr. Ren.
Not after their marriage, but from their respective childhoods.
At that time, Mr. Ren was still the tall and handsome brother from Jing Mian’s memories. Jing Mian, still not very tall, was half-squatting on a chair, his eyes reflecting the burning candlelight as he stared intently at the birthday cake on the table.
Brother, sitting beside him, had one hand propping up his chin while the other held a small birthday hat, which he gently placed on Jing Mian’s head.
Jing Mian couldn’t quite remember how old he was during that birthday.
But he remembered this photo.
This photo had been torn to pieces by him in tears, because the day after his birthday, Brother had completely disappeared.
And now, this very photo had appeared in the drawer of Mr. Ren’s study.
If one looked closely, they could faintly see the mottled cracks where the photo had been repaired, though it had been done so meticulously that it was hard to notice at first glance.
…So Mr. Ren still remembered.
Jing Mian had thought that the memory, which was hard for him to let go of yet had faded over time, was something only he could recall in such detail.
A wave of dense sorrow welled up, pressing against his chest.
Jing Mian held his breath, staring intently. In the video, the old professor tapped the chalkboard with a piece of chalk, producing a dull yet crisp sound, successfully snapping Jing Mian out of his reverie.
He placed the photo frame back down and closed the drawer.
The video was about two hours long.
Jing Mian wasn’t sure if Mr. Ren letting him use the study would interfere with the man’s work, but since Mr. Ren hadn’t disturbed him, Jing Mian conscientiously focused, trying to minimize the time he occupied the study.
As the video reached its final minute, Jing Mian’s phone suddenly buzzed.
He picked it up and noticed a system notification at the top of the screen:
[We’ve detected that you recently registered your marriage.]
[We recommend downloading a couples’ app tailored for same-sex marriages.]
[This app has a download rate of 95% among same-sex marriage users.]
[No fees required, and there are no pop-up ads within the app.]
Jing Mian: “…”
He silently swiped left, trying to delete the notification.
But for some reason, there was no delete button, and when Jing Mian switched to other screens, the notification remained prominently at the top, very much in the way.
Jing Mian: “…”
Probably those 95% of users downloaded it because they were annoyed by the notification…
Thus, Jing Mian was also forced to become one of them.
However, after downloading, the interface wasn’t as cluttered or ad-filled as Jing Mian had imagined. Instead, it was unexpectedly clean and refreshing.
It simply recorded the date of his and Mr. Ren’s marriage registration, and like a sticker, noted their future anniversaries, along with a brief introduction to same-sex marriage policies and benefits.
It seemed to have all the advantages and no drawbacks.
Wondering if Mr. Ren’s phone had also received this notification, Jing Mian thought for a moment and decided to keep the app on his home screen, not uninstalling it.
Early weekend morning.
At the Ren family’s main residence by the riverside.
Ren Changgong sat on the sofa, a laptop on his lap. He lowered his eyes, expressionlessly controlling his character, and in the next second, the gunshot resulted in a headshot.
Mobo, looking at the man’s impressive personal stats above, marveled silently, “You’ve only been playing for a year, and you’re already close to breaking into the top 20 on the PK leaderboard.”
Ren Changgong showed no expression, only a hint of exasperation in his eyes, “What’s the point of being in the top 20 if I haven’t surpassed the first place?”
Mobo awkwardly smiled, “Changgong, the first place is Ash, after all, his record speaks for itself. Over the years, no one has been able to surpass him, which proves his strength is indeed formidable.”
Mobo continued, “You don’t necessarily need to surpass Ash, just having a similar combat style to him would suffice.”
Ren Changgong fell into silence.
After a few seconds, he coldly spoke, “Yesterday was the wedding of Ren Xingwan and that college student brother-in-law.”
“Dad was there too.”
Mobo also showed surprise: “They got married so quickly?”
He suddenly remembered the last time at the Radiance Game headquarters, when they saw Jing Mian and noticed the ring on the young man’s ring finger.
At that time, they thought it was just an engagement, but they didn’t expect the wedding to be so close to that time.
Perhaps before that ring was put on, the two had already secretly gotten married.
Ren Changgong stared out the window at the falling snow, his eyes filled with resentment: “Dad had previously made a big fuss because Ren Xingwan wanted to marry a man. Who knew, after meeting him once and hearing that same-sex marriages could also produce children, he instantly changed his tune.”
Mobo comforted him: “Your dad is a sucker for good looks, as you well know. Plus, finding out that Jing Mian could bring a grandson to the Ren family, it’s not entirely unexpected that he’s satisfied with Jing Mian.”
Ren Changgong: “…”
“You’ve been fighting with Ren Xingwan for so many years, almost lost your life at his hands, which has proven that going head-to-head with your brother is a dead end.”
Mobo sat down beside him, whispering: “Besides, haven’t we already decided? To start with Jing Mian.”
Ren Changgong looked up, calmly saying: “Make my brother-in-law think I’m Ash.”
“Exactly.” Mobo pondered for a few seconds, then spoke, “Actually, Jing Mian already believed it last time, the fish has bitten the hook, now we just need to reel it in.”
Ren Changgong leaned back on the sofa, took out a cigarette from his pocket, and silently lit it, “Does he really like Ash that much? I can’t believe you came up with such a trick.”
“Of course he does.”
“Loves him to death.”
Mobo said, “Have you seen his game data? Nearly three years of login time, with browsing records on Ash’s homepage and videos accounting for almost three-quarters of it. In the early days, he would leave comments every time, but after Ash quit the game, everyone started competing for the title of the number one Shadow Guard in the entire server… Ah, you really should understand, wanting to get Ash’s Shadow Guard is an incredibly difficult thing.”
“That’s competing with tens of millions of people.”
“At that time, Jing Mian must have been like a madman, desperately clinging to a non-existent soul.”
“Who knows what he was thinking, or what he went through.”
…
Ren Changgong glanced sideways, lost in thought.
He asked, “So you think Jing Mian would abandon Ren Xingwan for Ash?”
Mobo confidently stated,
“Ash is the spiritual support that has kept Jing Mian going for so long, and your brother… to him, is just a flash marriage partner with no emotional foundation. Who do you think Jing Mian would choose, where would his heart lean?”
“Let Ren Xingwan taste what it’s like to be betrayed by the person he holds dear.”
Ren Changgong’s lips curled into a smile, seemingly convinced.
He asked: “When can we get Ash’s account?”
Ren Changgong stared at his game ID, silently saying, “Without the account, I feel like Jing Mian doesn’t really believe I’m Ash.”
Mobo also showed a troubled expression.
He spoke honestly, “I’ve already inquired with the upper management and internal staff of Glory, offering a considerable price.”
“But no one was willing to provide the account password.”
“Not even a hint about Ash’s true identity was disclosed.”
Mobo lowered his gaze, clearly hesitant, “Changgong, the other party’s background is quite vast and illustrious, possibly even… not inferior to yours.”
Ren Changgong slightly frowned, “Bigger than the Ren family?”
“Yes.”
Mobo had very little information in hand. He sighed and said, “Although I don’t know who Ash is, thank goodness… he has quit the game now.”
“If Ash ever logs back into the game one day, Glory might completely collapse.”
“By then, it would be hard for Jing Mian not to find out.”
***
After attending the wedding, Li Daoyang returned to the hotel.
The hotel was also arranged by the Ren family.
At that time, Li Daoyang was carrying a simple bag of luggage. When he looked up at the five-star hotel that matched the address, his eyes slowly widened.
Not being a direct relative or family member, merely a high school classmate of Jing Mian attending the wedding, and yet such a high-level accommodation was arranged?!
Li Daoyang was secretly amazed.
Jing Mian… just who did he marry?
The military school only granted three days of leave. As Li Daoyang was being led by the attendant to his room, he thought about inviting Jing Mian out for a day after he and Ren Congmian had spent their wedding night.
After all, it had been two whole years, and it was a rare opportunity to meet.
Thus, on the night of the wedding.
At around seven o’clock, Li Daoyang lay on the large bed, first sending a message to his girlfriend.
Then, he opened Jing Mian’s WeChat and typed:
【Are you coming out tomorrow?】
【Let’s go around near our high school? I’ve been craving the spicy blood tofu from the shop across from Linshui Street for a long time.】
Almost instantly, Li Daoyang received a reply:
【Okay.】
【I’ll call you in the morning then.】
Li Daoyang tilted his head back and replied: 【OK, waiting for you.】
Then, Li Daoyang played games for a few hours, took a bath, and fell asleep.
The next day.
Li Daoyang woke up early.
He went to wash up first, did dozens of push-ups in the room, and had the breakfast delivered by the hotel. When he looked at the clock, it was already 8:30 in the morning.
Li Daoyang wasn’t in a hurry.
So he picked up his clothes, dressed neatly, only missing his shoes.
He stared at his phone, finding no activity.
Not a single missed call.
Jing Mian rarely slept in, even had the habit of waking up early, which he knew, but today seemed a bit later than usual.
Thus, fully dressed, Li Daoyang sat on the edge of the bed and waited for two hours.
Li Daoyang: “?”
—Still, there were no calls, not even a WeChat message.
His several calls went unanswered.
At 10:30 in the morning.
Li Daoyang: “…”
He looked at the twelve missed calls he had made, deep in thought.
Li Daoyang slightly frowned, this time switching to a WeChat call, and dialed again.
Unexpectedly.
This time it actually connected.
However, contrary to expectations, a strange man’s voice came through the receiver, cold and deep,
“Hello, can I help you?”
Li Daoyang was stunned, took the phone to check the contact, it was indeed Jing Mian, not a wrong number.
And this voice… seemed somewhat similar to the man he had seen at the wedding.
Li Daoyang’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he couldn’t help but ask, “You’re… Mr. Ren, right? I’m looking for Jing Mian. We had plans to go out.”
There was a brief silence on the other end.
“He’s still asleep.”