Chapter 32

"Liang Xun, what if I don't want to be friends with you?"

Those words sounded like a death sentence. Liang Xun could even hear the sharp, piercing sound of the guillotine's blade falling. He was instantly deprived of the right to breathe, a suffocating feeling instantly swallowing him. He didn't dare meet Lin Shengwen's eyes, his gaze fixed on a single point in the void, allowing himself to dissociate from reality.

He thought he could accept that Lin Shengwen might change his opinion of him because of his sudden departure, but when such cold words fell on him, Liang Xun was too cowardly to accept them. The only thing he didn't want to hear was Lin Shengwen saying these words.

Silence lingered between the two for a long time, followed by a sigh.

Lin Shengwen stepped forward and squatted in front of Liang Xun. He held his hand in his own, raised his head slightly, lifted his eyelids, and looked at Liang Xun from bottom to top.

It's simply unavoidable.

The man's hair was smooth, and his bangs had grown a little longer because he hadn't taken care of them for a while. When he lowered his head, his eyebrows and eyes were mostly hidden. Lin Shengwen squatted beside his legs, his eyes fixed on his.

"Liang Xun, I have the divorce petition you signed."

He saw that Liang Xun's eyes had turned red at some point, and the skin around his eyes was thin, so even the beautiful teardrop mole on his left eye was stained with a faint crimson color.

"I didn't submit it." Lin Shengwen said softly.

He stared into Liang Xun's eyes with burning eyes and asked him: "Do you want to be friends with me, or should we continue to be legal partners? Liang Xun, you decide, okay?"

The heavy rain in Liang Xun's body finally stopped, but he needed an outlet anyway. Tears burst out, Liang Xun leaned forward and fell on Lin Shengwen's shoulder.

"I don't want to..."

Liang Xun began to sob.

The man holding him in his arms patted his back, gently stroking it as if he was stroking a long-haired cat.

"What are you thinking about?" he asked softly, guiding Liang Xun to pour out all his thoughts.

Liang Xun collapsed to the point of almost shouting: "I don't want to be friends with you... Lin Shengwen, you don't know how much I like you..."

Amidst the buzzing noise, he suddenly heard Lin Shengwen's voice.

"I know."

The noise was instantly cleared, leaving behind a clear silence. Lin Shengwen's pleasant voice, like a gentle melody, opened up this closed inner world.

Lin Shengwen repeated it again.

"Liang Xun, I know."

That night.

Liang Xun used his key to unlock the entrance door to the old residential building and whispered to Lin Shengwen to take off his shoes and leave them by the door. The shoe cabinet was filled with Liang Peiyan's various shoes, and when he returned, there was no extra space for his running shoes, so he had to place them on the cushion in the entrance hall.

When Liang Xun thought about how he had hugged Lin Shengwen and cried for nearly half an hour in the crowded hospital environment, his scalp went numb and he was at a loss.

Fortunately, Lin Shengwen later mentioned that he needed to go to the department to hold a small meeting with the doctor in charge of his aunt, so Liang Xun finally got some independent space.

He tidied himself up and suddenly remembered his mother's instructions. He went to the water room to get a bucket of hot water and put the kettle in his aunt's ward.

After much hesitation, Liang Xun still didn't tell his mother about Lin Shengwen. However, Liang Peiyan noticed the redness in the corners of his eyes and curiously asked him what was wrong.

"Nothing, by the way, Mom, you will stay here with me tonight, right?"

"Well, didn't we agree on this before? You go back and rest. I'm here. Your aunt has surgery tomorrow, so you should leave early tomorrow."

"Okay." Liang Xun nodded, took the few things he had with him and returned to the rest area. He found a seat in the corner and sat down waiting for Lin Shengwen.

After Lin Shengwen confirmed the arrangements for the operation, it took about dozens of minutes before he came out with a stack of paper documents and dragging his suitcase.

"Let's go."

He stopped in front of Liang Xun and confidently gestured for him to lead the way.

Even when Liang Xun arrived at the door of his house, his hand holding the key was still shaking.

Liang Peiyan and he were both busy going back and forth to the hospital during this period and had hardly eaten at home. Liang Xun even left the bowl of instant noodles he had eaten the night before on the dining table and forgot to clear it away.

Lin Shengwen raised his eyebrows, and Liang Xun followed his gaze and found the garbage on the table. He took a few steps forward in shame and threw the instant noodle bowl into the trash can.

"Please sit wherever you want. Our house is small, so it used to be just me and my mom living there." He omitted the part about his father and simply explained, "You've already met my mom this afternoon."

Liang Xun was speechless for a moment: "...I didn't tell her that I married you, nor did I tell her who you are. Don't worry about any risks."

Lin Shengwen put down the suitcase beside him, embraced him, and kissed Liang Xun twice on the top of his head. He was upset by Liang Xun's words and didn't know whether to laugh or cry: "I never worried about any risks..."

He could see that Liang Xun always thought too much and speculated about the worst possible outcome, especially in his relationship with him.

I had previously thought Liang Xun was holding onto a stereotype and had misunderstood him, but after discovering his years-long secret crush on me, I realized his cautiousness stemmed from his deep feelings for me. This habit had persisted for years and was difficult to break.

Lin Shengwen thought that he would give Liang Xun a lot of love.

If Liang Xun's love made him timid, then he hoped that his love would make Liang Xun bolder.

"Introduce me to Auntie and tell her we're married." Lin Shengwen pulled out a shiny object from somewhere. He took Liang Xun's hand and slipped the ring onto his left ring finger, muttering, "Didn't you say you wanted to keep the ring even after the divorce? Why didn't you take it with you when you left?"

Liang Xun was speechless. For a moment, he felt a mixture of emotions, and a bitter taste rose in the depths of his throat.

Lin Shengwen spoke for him.

"You're reluctant."

Liang Xun's voice was a little hoarse, as if it was wet again: "...How do you know..."

Lin Shengwen lowered his head and kissed his lips.

After a gentle kiss, Lin Shengwen moved away, but still very close to Liang Xun. So close that even Lin Shengwen's heartbeat could be heard clearly - faster than his own.

"I know because I'm the same way."

Lin Shengwen's voice was heavy and firm.

"Liang Xun, I like you."

Liang Xun blinked, suspecting he had misheard. It took him a long time to finally realize in Lin Shengwen's arms that this wasn't just a beautiful dream he'd had, but a reality that was honest and trustworthy.

Lin Shengwen had to get up early in the morning to prepare for the operation. He wanted to let Liang Xun sleep a little longer, but Liang Xun insisted on going out with him.

"Let me lock the door," Liang Xun said, "let's go get some breakfast on the way... There's a breakfast shop here that's been open for many years. When I was a kid, I always had a breakfast before going to school."

He told the story in detail, and Lin Shengwen actually enjoyed it very much. He sat down with him in the breakfast shop and ordered two dim sum. Liang Xun unwrapped the lotus leaves of the glutinous rice chicken, added sauce to the rice rolls, and placed them in front of Lin Shengwen.

After the two of them shared the food, they set off for the hospital.

Liang Xun got off the elevator first, while Lin Shengwen needed to take another elevator to the operating room. Having slept with their bodies pressed against each other all night, he actually felt a hint of anxiety about this brief separation.

However, Liang Xun didn't expect that Lin Shengwen was actually the same as him. When the elevator stopped at the ward floor and the elevator door was about to open, Lin Shengwen pulled Liang Xun over and kissed him hard.

When the elevator door opened and was about to close automatically because it had not sensed anyone entering or exiting, he finally let go of Liang Xun.

"See you later." He said with a smile.

Liang Xun felt as if his whole body was unbalanced, his steps seemed to be floating, and he walked out of the elevator in a daze, wanting to go to the ward area.

——A few steps ahead stood Liang Peiyan.

Liang Peiyan obviously saw what he had just done. Her face was dull and she looked at Liang Xun for a long time, unable to figure out what was going on.

The guy who was kissing Liang Xun so affectionately just now... wasn't he the handsome boy who picked up oranges for her yesterday?

Did Liang Xun already know him? But didn't her son... didn't he have a crush on someone from the beginning? Then who was this person? She had forgotten to ask this handsome boy's name yesterday. If Liang Xun already knew him, why didn't he introduce him to her yesterday?

Liang Peiyan was puzzled. Although she had long accepted her son's sexual orientation, she had never actually seen Liang Xun walking with a specific man. She felt a little shocked at the moment, but she couldn't tell whether it was more of a visual shock or curiosity.

Liang Xun was also stunned. After staring at her for a long while, he gave up and said, "...I was married to him before."

"What?! You haven't told your mother a thing about this big thing. Do you think it's fun to hide it from me? Who is he? Tell me clearly!"

He said it with gritted teeth under Liang Peiyan's sharp gaze.

"Mom, I'll formally introduce my aunt to you after she finishes the surgery."

Liang Peiyan suddenly realized something was wrong: "Wait until your aunt finishes the operation? Your aunt doesn't even know when she can be pushed into the operating room.

Liang Xun knew he couldn't hide it, so after hesitating for a while, he chose to confess.

"His name is... Lin Shengwen. He's a neurosurgeon at Tingda Hospital... He was the one who performed the surgery on my aunt this time."

Liang Peiyan took half a minute to react, then fell silent. Of course, she couldn't have been unaware that the surgeons they had hired were top-tier doctors in their fields. For various reasons, their identities were kept secret from the patients and their families, and they left immediately after the surgery.

Liang Peiyan thought for a moment and said, "I will pretend that I don't know about this, and you shouldn't tell your aunt."

"It's necessary to bring her here for us to get acquainted. We can find another opportunity next time. It's up to you to decide." Liang Peiyan closed her eyes, then opened them again and asked him, "Where's your first love? Did you give up on her to be with the one you have now?"

Liang Xun pursed his lips and smiled slightly.

"Mom, they are the same person."

"Lin Shengwen is my first love."