road

During the Lunar New Year, Zhou Lexing was about to leave Zhoujia Village.

When this matter was brought up at Zhou Yuanxiang's dinner table, it initially caused a moment of silence, as the matter had come too suddenly. However, Zhou Yuanxiang quickly made the decision to agree.

“It’s a good thing that you’re going back to see Jian Sheng.” Zhou Yuanxiang said, and then put two more pieces of braised pig’s head on Gu Jian Sheng’s plate. “Although your dad was the one who came to pick you up before, you’ve never been far from home before. It’s not true that we old folks who watched you grow up are worried. But Le Xing wasn’t there at the time, and he didn’t even go with you to see you. I’m always uneasy about it. This time, I’m having your brother make the trip. He can tell me what he’s doing later, and then I’ll feel at ease.”

"You have no idea, all of us, your mother's old friends, are hoping you'll become rich and powerful. But we're getting old, and every meeting is one less we can see. We always want to see you as much as possible. When you have time, take your mother back to the village more often. Now that Lexing has made a name for himself, the villagers don't treat us like they did a few years ago. You don't have to worry about those ill-intentioned guys causing trouble. If any of them dare to bully you, your aunt will protect you, and your brother won't let them get away with it!"

As Zhou Yuanxiang got excited, her eyes welled up with tears, and she quickly turned her head to wipe them away, saying, "I'm getting old, and I always like to nag."

Gu Jiansheng's eyes also stung, but he shook his head and said softly, "I know you care about me."

In Zhoujia Village, the group of old friends who grew up with Zhou Lanhua have always taken good care of Gu Jiansheng's family. Gu Jiansheng knows all this, but because his mother imprisoned him as a mental patient, Gu Jiansheng has never reconciled with his mother. In addition, he is preoccupied with his own problems, and his body moves forward with fate like a puppet. Only in recent years has he had a chance to catch his breath. Even reconciling with his mother has become an intractable knot, let alone caring for these elders.

Zhou Yuanxiang forced a smile, picked up her glass, and said, "Look at me, saying such irrelevant things during the New Year. Come on, Lexing, say a few auspicious words, and let's all clink glasses!"

Zhou Lexing, who was patting Gu Jiansheng on the shoulder to comfort him, was speechless. Why was he being singled out?

However, he was not intimidated and picked up his glass to give a toast.

Zhou Shusheng was initially nervous and scared when he saw that his mother's eyes were red, so he stopped eating and grabbed his chopsticks. But now that Zhou Lexing started saying some happy things, everyone's faces lit up with smiles again. So he happily picked up his bottle of Beibingyang soda and went over to clink glasses with everyone.

At his feet, Big Black finally grinned, its tail swaying gently back and forth, anticipating the next bite of meat that would fall from the table.

The atmosphere at the dinner table became warm and pleasant again, but Zhou Lixing's brows kept furrowing unconsciously, and he absentmindedly put a few air sips into his mouth twice.

"Brother, are you drunk?" Zhou Lexing noticed that he had put another air in his mouth and couldn't help but laugh. He picked up his cup and smelled it. "You can get drunk from a beverage? Brother, you're really something!"

Zhou Lixing looked at his silly younger brother with a complicated expression, suspecting that Zhou Lexing had no idea what was wrong with him.

Gu Jiansheng looked at Zhou Lixing and vaguely sensed something, but he didn't say anything. He silently lowered his head and ate what Zhou Lexing had put in his bowl.

After finishing his meal and packing up, Zhou Lixing called out to Zhou Lexing, "Don't rush over yet, I have something to tell you."

Zhou Lexing only took two changes of clothes with him when he went out this time.

Now, with the change in policies, ordinary people are living better and better lives. They can generally buy any daily necessities they need in the city.

Zhou Lexing didn't think much of it. He casually handed the backpack to Gu Jiansheng, telling him to go back first. Then he put his arm around Zhou Lixing's shoulder, still with that cheerful look: "What's wrong, brother? You can't bear to part with me? You've finally realized how precious your little brother is?"

Zhou Lixing's brow twitched. Under the meaningful look from Gu Jiansheng, he refrained from contradicting him. Only after the man had walked away did he turn around, grab Zhou Lexing's neck, and pull him away.

Zhou Lexing: "???"

Although Zhou Lexing was confused about the situation, he did not struggle and let his brother carry him to a corner at the end of the alley. After making sure that no one was around, his brother looked at him with a serious expression.

Zhou Lexing was even more confused by this commotion and couldn't help but ask from the bottom of his heart, "Brother, did you get into trouble?"

Zhou Lixing took a deep breath, suppressing the urge to undermine his silly younger brother, and said seriously, "Do you really want to go back to the Gu family with Gu Jiansheng?"

Zhou Lexing: "Ah." A reply filled with doubt but certainty.

Zhou Lixing: "It has nothing to do with Mom's thoughts. It's your own choice to take care of the family, isn't it?"

Zhou Lexing was full of questions, but he nodded nonetheless: "Yeah, what's wrong?"

Zhou Lixing: "Then what was your purpose, and what was your status, in following Gu Jiansheng to his house?"

Zhou Lixing spoke each word clearly and deliberately.

Zhou Lexing was completely baffled, but he felt inexplicably panicked. After thinking for a moment, he asked, "I'm just going to his house to visit. He's my buddy. Is it strange that I'm going to his house as a guest?"

He often went to Lijia Village to see Zhou Bobo, Li Dagang, and their gang of underlings, but no one told him that anything was wrong.

Although Zhou Lexing thought so, he felt a sense of unease and panic at the thought that he might stumble at any moment because of Zhou Lixing's serious attitude and his attitude when he mentioned Gu Jiansheng.

It's probably because he rarely sees Zhou Lixing looking so serious.

Zhou Lexing's response drew a suspicious look from Zhou Lixing, but when Zhou Lixing recalled how the two of them had sat intimately on the threshold earlier, his brow twitched again.

The way they looked, it was as if there was an invisible barrier between them.

He wasn't this affectionate even when he was looking at his sweetheart.

The way these two looked at each other was really...

Zhou Lixing couldn't think of a suitable adjective for the time being.

But as a man who has fallen in love freely and is about to get married, if he knows what kind of look his lover has in her eyes, then there is definitely something wrong between the two of them, and it's a big problem!

"Do you usually sleep in the same room when you go to Jian Sheng's house?" Zhou Lixing's eyes were like a searchlight, as if he wanted to shine into Zhou Lexing's mind.

Zhou Lexing felt even more guilty: "Um, well, his family doesn't have any extra rooms." Nor does it have any extra beds.

He couldn't possibly sleep in Aunt Lan's room.

Zhou Lixing suddenly changed the subject: "When do you plan to meet them?"

Zhou Lexing: "...Why are we suddenly talking about this?"

Zhou Lixing: "Why do you care so much? Just answer me."

Zhou Lexing was speechless: "I don't have time to think about this right now."

Zhou Lixing: "You have time to take a car to the Gu family, but no time to go and meet potential partners?"

Zhou Lexing didn't know what was wrong with his second brother today, but he still forced himself to say, "It's different."

Zhou Lixing was determined to get to the bottom of this today: "What's the difference? At least you can see a pretty girl when you go on a date. What's so interesting about a grown man like you?"

Zhou Lexing: "..."

He was truly impressed.

Zhou Lixing, however, had no intention of letting him off the hook: "If you're planning to go to the Gu family, then you'll have to find someone for me when you come back."

Zhou Lexing: "Stop messing around, bro."

Zhou Lixing: "Do you think I'm joking around?"

Zhou Lexing: "..."

Putting everything else aside, Zhou Lixing was indeed more serious than ever before.

The disappearance of that smiling tiger's appearance put immense pressure on Zhou Lexing.

Zhou Lixing: "That's settled then. I saw that Mom was holding several girls' photos a few days ago, probably for you. I'll talk to Mom about it and ask her to schedule a time for you."

Zhou Lexing's scalp was about to explode: "Don't give me this, bro. I'm not thinking about marriage for now. Don't hold that girl back."

If Zhou Lixing had initially been 60% skeptical, now, after hearing Zhou Lexing's words, he was 80% certain.

He took several deep breaths and paced back and forth, which made Zhou Lexing inexplicably anxious.

"Brother, what exactly are you up to? Just say what you want." Zhou Lexing had barely finished speaking when, as if he had guessed something, he continued, "Actually, the Gu family isn't that far away. If there's nothing going on at the factory, I'll just go back to the village. It definitely won't delay your wedding."

Zhou Lixing and a female worker in the factory fell in love freely. They officially met before the New Year, exchanged betrothal gifts, and were just waiting to choose an auspicious day to get married after the New Year. Zhou Lixing planned to help them buy a house near the factory to settle down, as it wouldn't be right for the woman to travel such a long way through the mountains and ride a tractor into the village to live.

The more Zhou Lexing thought about it, the more he felt that Zhou Lixing's strange behavior was because he was worried that Zhou Lixing wouldn't be there for the wedding, so he didn't want him to go to the family and was trying to find other things to stop him. After figuring this out, Zhou Lexing immediately felt much more relaxed and said with a smile, "I will definitely be at your wedding. I'm even waiting to be your best man."

Zhou Lixing suddenly stopped and looked at him intently, making Zhou Lexing feel a little uncomfortable.

Zhou Lixing then squeezed out the words he had been pondering for so long, one by one: "Do you have feelings for Jian Sheng?"

Zhou Lexing was stunned. It took him a while to understand what those words meant. His heart sank, but before he could figure out what this sudden drop was, he instinctively used a smile to disguise his emotional turmoil: "Brother, are you really drunk? I don't understand what you're saying."

Zhou Lixing was still looking into his eyes: "You know what I'm talking about. I don't care about others, but you can't. This path is too difficult; you can't bear it."

Zhou Lexing suddenly realized something in that instant.

In this day and age, homosexuality does seem to be a serious problem.

In the novel, He Huaizhi and Gu Jiansheng were indeed entangled for many years, but even at the end, the author did not describe their wedding or other ceremonies to confirm their relationship.

From He Huaizhi and Gu Jiansheng's perspective, their fates are intertwined, and along the way, countless homosexuals surround them, leading to a series of melodramatic and tragic love stories. However, in the eyes of other insignificant NPCs in the novel, they are probably just good friends and brothers.

Zhou Lexing opened his mouth, but was momentarily speechless due to the shock of Zhou Lixing's words and the subsequent realization.

When he initially let his team pursue this IP, he should have met with the author first to see what kind of oddball could be so inconsiderate of factual basis in so many matters, yet so meticulous about these details in this consistent matter.

If this path is truly difficult, then is Jian Sheng destined to take this path?

In that instant, Zhou Lexing seemed to see again Gu Jiansheng's back as he walked alone into the mountain pass.

That was a resolute and unwavering determination.