Chapter 64: Let's do "Did he kiss you here?" again...

Back at the apartment building, Li Baidong remained silent, looking very depressed.

This situation was almost unprecedented. Xing Lan tried to strike up a conversation with Li Baidong several times, but the other party rarely even lifted his eyelids, seemed uninterested, and his eyes were slightly red upon closer inspection.

Li Baidong went into the kitchen alone to cook dinner, and after the two of them finished eating, he washed the dishes in solitude and sadly finished all the housework.

During this time, Xing Lan frequently tried to come and help, but Li Baidong refused, making excuses to send him away, and the look in his eyes was indescribable.

Finally, at sunset, he squatted alone in the corner of the living room, his tall frame of 1.9 meters now appearing shorter than the low cabinet next to him.

Pitiful, enormous, and helpless.

Soon, Xing Lan heard a soft sobbing sound in the silent air.

He walked over to Li Baidong, who was sitting alone in the corner, wanting to speak, but he didn't know what to say. A thousand words of explanation floated through his mind, but he couldn't find a single one that was suitable.

Xing Lan pursed her lips, placed her hand on his loose blond shoulder, and softly said, "I'm sorry."

Li Baidong sniffed heavily twice. After hearing his words, he remained facing the wall and did not turn around.

Xing Lan's gaze gradually turned to worry. Li Baidong's back was injured and hadn't fully healed yet; if he squatted for too long, it would probably hurt terribly.

Having known each other for so long, Li Baidong had never been angry with Xing Lan. Even when Xing Lan was seriously injured by his father hitting him with a vase, he just laughed it off and comforted Xing Lan as if nothing had happened, jokingly advising him not to blame himself.

Xing Lan felt that she hadn't handled the matter concerning Jiang Mingyu very well.

His ex-boyfriend, whom he broke up with many years ago, suddenly reappeared. Because of work, the two of them had to run into each other from time to time. Logically speaking, he should have informed his current girlfriend, Li Baidong, in advance.

However, Xing Lan tried to hide it, thinking that as long as she worked hard and completed the cooperation with the other company as soon as possible, she could handle the matter quietly by herself. As a result, Li Baidong bumped into Jiang Mingyu downstairs at the company without any warning.

In Xing Lan's memory, Jiang Mingyu grew up in the world of fame and fortune, was cunning and difficult to deal with, while Li Baidong was raised by his grandparents in the countryside, innocent, kind and gentle. In a confrontation, Li Baidong would definitely be no match for him and would surely be bullied.

If he hadn't arrived in time to stop him, Li Baidong's fist would have almost hit Jiang Mingyu in the face.

Although Li Baidong struck first, and from a legal perspective he couldn't be considered a victim, Xing Lan knew that Li Baidong had such a good temper and wasn't the type to hit someone for no reason. He must have been very angry with Jiang Mingyu and suffered a great deal of psychological harm and blow.

Thinking of this, Xing Lan felt even more guilty and sighed softly.

Li Baidong, crouching in the corner, resembled a snail, retreating into his protective shell because he couldn't withstand external stimuli. Xing Lan would definitely have to do something to get him out of his shell.

As he was thinking, he unconsciously walked to the living room door.

Li Baidong appeared to be facing the wall, seemingly indulging in sentimental thoughts, but in reality, he had his ears perked up, intently listening to Xing Lan's movements behind him.

Gradually, he heard "click" and "bang!" sounds coming from the doorway, the sound of the door opening and closing.

After Xing Lan apologized, she didn't comfort him. Instead, she left without a word and disappeared.

Although Li Baidong rationally knew that he couldn't possibly be going to rekindle his old flame with Jiang Mingyu, he was still inexplicably overcome with a deep sadness and fear, as if Xing Lan had really cruelly and heartlessly abandoned him, and had resolutely chosen his ex over him.

The huge living room was suddenly left with only Li Baidong. His heart was shattered beyond repair.

In the silence, the little prince came running over with his tiny white feet, a small ball in his mouth, wanting Li Baidong to play fetch with him like before.

Looking at the little prince's two dark, bean-like eyes, Li Baidong realized that the little prince was actually Xing Lan and Jiang Mingyu's "biological child," the fruit of their love. His heart felt as if it had been stabbed by a blunt instrument, so painful that he wanted to jump off the building.

Even so, out of love for the little prince, the heartbroken Li Baidong still managed to force a smile, not a very nice one.

He mentally prepared himself, slowly got up, and was just about to reluctantly play ball with his stepson when the little prince seemed to get impatient and dropped the ball to play somewhere else.

Even dogs wouldn't bother with him; he wasn't a steamed bun, yet he became just as unapproachable.

Li Baidong was even more heartbroken. He closed his eyes in distress, about to bang his forehead against the wall next to him, but the next second, his head hit not the cold wall, but a soft, fragrant palm.

He paused for a moment, then slowly opened his eyes and saw Xing Lan's beautiful peach blossom eyes gazing at him calmly, her gaze gentler than the moonlight.

Xing Lan raised one hand, placing it between Li Baidong's forehead and the wall, while her other hand held a heavy plastic bag filled with snacks, all of which were Li Baidong's favorites, along with three whole dozen bottles of strawberry milk.

"I just went to buy some food." Xing Lan looked at him and said seriously, "I noticed you didn't eat much. If you get hungry later tonight, you can eat these."

Li Baidong's heart softened, and he silently raised his arm to pull Xing Lan into his embrace. He turned his head and lingered to smell the scent on Xing Lan's neck and body.

Xing Lan didn't push him away. She stood there patiently with the snacks in hand, letting him rub his head against her shoulder like a clingy big dog.

However, to everyone's surprise, Li Baidong's movements became increasingly forceful and his actions became more and more exaggerated.

He seemed unable to get enough of clinging to Xing Lan, and finally simply picked him up by the waist and placed him on the dining table next to him like a gift, then buried his face in Xing Lan's warm clothes.

Xing Lan has always been a very disciplined person. This dining table is for putting food on the table, how can it be used to put people on it?

He frowned slightly, wanting to get off the table, but Li Baidong insisted on putting him on it, stubborn as a child.

Xing Lan tried several times, but had to give up struggling.

After all, the most important thing right now is to make Li Baidong happy.

He lowered his gaze, looked at Li Baidong, and asked, "What did Jiang Mingyu say to you?"

Li Baidong remained silent for a moment, then his expression instantly turned aggrieved.

"He said he was your ex-boyfriend, and that you still can't forget him. I'm just his substitute, a cheap replacement..."

Seeing Li Baidong's increasingly dejected expression, Xing Lan quickly denied it: "Don't listen to his nonsense. I haven't liked him for a long time... You're not a substitute, he just made this up."

Li Baidong stared at Xing Lan, carefully studying the subtle changes in his eyes. After a while, he said pitifully, "He also threatened me that if I continued to be with you, he would have someone kill me."

Two tears welled up in Li Baidong's eyes, and he gently leaned into Xing Lan's arms, sobbing helplessly, "Brother, what should I do? I'm so scared..."

Xing Lan hugged him, stroked his hair, and gently comforted him, "Don't be afraid, I'm here, I won't let him bully you."

After a moment of silence, Li Baidong asked Xing Lan in a low voice, his voice still carrying a hint of displeasure: "Brother, how long did you talk to him?"

"The talks didn't last long," Xing Lan recalled for a moment, then said, "at most a month."

"So the Little Prince was also given to my brother by him?" Li Baidong lowered his eyes and said sadly, "He said he was the Little Prince's biological father, and I, I was just a..." He sobbed and couldn't continue.

Xing Lan froze, remaining silent.

It wasn't as romantic as Li Baidong had imagined. The Little Prince was indeed a gift from Jiang Mingyu to Xing Lan, but it wasn't what Xing Lan wanted at all.

Back then, Jiang Mingyu saw Xing Lan always feeding stray puppies at school and guessed that he liked dogs, so he took it upon himself to buy a purebred dog from a kennel for a lot of money and give it to him.

However, Xing Lan was busy with her studies at the time and had no time or energy to raise a dog. She also disliked his brainless behavior of giving away life as a gift.

Shortly after giving away the dog, the two broke up completely.

Jiang Mingyu didn't like animals; he only gave the dog to Xing Lan to please her. After their breakup, he went abroad to study and disappeared, completely ignoring the dog's fate. Therefore, Xing Lan had no choice but to keep the dog. Over time, she developed a bond with it and couldn't possibly return it.

Being a stepfather is tough. Li Baidong glanced at the little prince playing with a ball on the carpet next to him, looking down at Xing Lan with worry, and asked, "Brother, he bought the little prince. Do you think he'll like him more and not me anymore after he sees him?"

“How could that be?” Xing Lan quickly comforted him. “What memory could a puppy have? It’s been so long, it’s long forgotten.”

Li Baidong withdrew his gaze, his dark eyes fixed on Xing Lan with a deep and burning intensity, as if he wanted to devour him immediately.

"And what about you?" Li Baidong asked Xing Lan softly, his voice tinged with an indescribable hoarseness and awkwardness, "Have you really forgotten him too?"

"I've long forgotten." Xing Lan looked at Li Baidong, her dark eyes shining under the light like two clear glass beads. "Really."

Xing Lan's relationship with Jiang Mingyu was initially a rebellious act, and they broke up quickly afterward. Their relationship hadn't actually lasted long, and their feelings for each other weren't very deep. Over the years, if Jiang Mingyu hadn't suddenly returned to China, he would have almost forgotten what he looked like.

He was afraid that Li Baidong didn't trust him, so his tone was a little urgent. He subconsciously raised his hand and grabbed the hem of Li Baidong's clothes.

Li Baidong remained silent. The usually enthusiastic and cheerful male college student now displayed a maturity and indifference beyond his years, and his demeanor became even colder and more mysterious, making him difficult to fathom.

Xing Lan looked at him hesitantly, suddenly sensing an indescribable sense of unfamiliarity about Li Baidong.

He then realized that when Li Baidong had a cold face, he looked like a completely different person from usual.

It wasn't sunny at all; instead, it was sinister and cold, filled with a strong sense of aggression. That intense sense of oppression made him unconsciously tense up, and cold sweat broke out on the back of his neck.

Judging from Xing Lan's behavior just now, Li Baidong knew in his heart that Xing Lan had completely let go of Jiang Mingyu, but with such a good opportunity, he naturally wanted to take advantage of Xing Lan's guilt towards him and gain more benefits.

Li Baidong lowered his eyes, and his slightly cool lips suddenly touched Xing Lan's earlobe, then slowly moved down to his chin, collarbone, neck and shoulders, seemingly casually kissing every part of his body.

With each kiss, he would whisper a question in Xing Lan's ear.

Did he kiss you here?

"here?"

"here."

"...And here?"

Xing Lan felt a ticklish sensation from his kisses, her shoulders trembled slightly, and she couldn't help but want to back away, but he grabbed her wrist and pulled her back forcefully.

"Brother hasn't answered me yet." Li Baidong kissed his lips one last time, his eyes fixed on him, his voice very soft, "Have you kissed me before?"

“No…” Li Baidong was so close that Xing Lan was almost completely enveloped by his strong minty scent, and she spoke with some difficulty.

"Never kissed?" Li Baidong raised one eyebrow and asked him casually.

Xing Lan nodded, her ears already bright red without her realizing it.

His face flushed, and he avoided Li Baidong's direct gaze. His palms clenched tightly on the table, his fingertips turning white. He stammered, "There was no kiss, and no..."

"Nothing much?"

“No…” Xing Lan carefully chose her words, telling Li Baidong tactfully, “The thing that happened the night I got drunk, it didn’t happen with him.”

After he finished confessing, he seemed to belatedly feel shy, gently biting his lip and turning his face away.

When Li Baidong looked at Xing Lan's slender neck, which was revealed when she tilted her head slightly, his throat tightened and he licked his lips, feeling dry.

Spring hasn't officially arrived yet, but it feels like summer has already arrived all around, with the air filled with sweltering ions.

“Nothing happened between him.” He stared at Xing Lan and asked, “What about me?”

"What?" Xing Lan raised her head slightly, looking at him with some confusion.

Li Baidong lowered his eyes and held his wrist, quietly intertwining their fingers. Their palms were pressed together, as if they wanted to share the warmth of each other's bodies through the winding veins in their palms.

"That thing we didn't do together," Li Baidong said, his voice slightly hoarse, his dark eyes swirling with emotion, "Now, here, can we do it again?"