Haining First Street
The buildings in the old neighborhood all bore the marks of time. The outer railings were covered in ivy, though it wasn't yet blooming, and some flowers had already bloomed, swaying in the chilly wind that wasn't even springtime yet.
The car was still parked on San Street. They came back from their walk. Jinnan held the wine in one hand and held Xu Zhiyuan's hand in the other. It seemed that the road they walked was very long.
"Do you have any plans for tomorrow?" Jinnan asked.
Xu Zhiyuan shook his head.
"Chen Chen, the Lin family's biological son, invited us to his house to make a cake tomorrow," Jin Nan said. "I've asked them, and they can take you with them. Do you want to go?"
"I don't know how to bake a cake." Xu Zhiyuan said.
It was rare for him to not know something, so he admitted it frankly. This sentence did not mean rejection. Jinnan understood it very well.
"I'll do it. I cook better than you. Let's sleep in together in the morning and go over in the afternoon. I've booked a cruise restaurant in Lucerne Bay for the evening."
Dust like snow fell on Xu Zhiyuan's coat. His glances, which occasionally dropped, met Jinnan's, and they easily smiled. They didn't know why either.
"Where's your yacht?" Xu Zhiyuan asked, "Why did you book a restaurant outside?"
"I can't always use Daddy's things to offer gifts." Jinnan blinked, "Zhiyuan, I got this account myself. Don't you really want to go?"
"No suits tomorrow. All here are casual clothes." Xu Zhiyuan lowered his head slightly. "Xiao Nan, will my clothes be too big for you?"
I still will.
Although Jinnan was only three or four centimeters shorter than Xu Zhiyuan, the difference in stature was real. Xu Zhiyuan had been better nourished since childhood and had always emphasized a balance of work and rest, maintaining exercise, so naturally he outperformed Jinnan, a last-minute cramming student.
This is true for reading and exercising.
Common sense would deduce that this was the case, and Jinnan also verified it on the spot, and the result was consistent with what he expected.
You only wear clothes for one day in winter, so why not just make do? Jinnan lifted his sleeve and sniffed. The chilies were roasted red, the color of beer. If I were in Yunting, I wouldn't be able to enter the house wearing this outfit.
"It's a little bigger, so it won't be a problem." Jin Nan said, "So do you want to go? If not, I'll ask Lin Jiaze out."
Xu Zhiyuan pinched his cheeks and made his mouth into the O-shape of a fat-headed goldfish: "No."
Jinnan once again succumbed to Xu Zhiyuan's control.
Their home was in the innermost building of the complex. At night, lights illuminated the buildings. They walked into the elevator and passed by strangers. The elevator was small, and there were old advertising posters on the wall that had been forgotten to be torn off.
Going down the stairs from the twelfth floor, he turned into the innermost room on the left. Xu Zhiyuan opened the door, and Jinnan leaned on his shoulder. He could see the hospital, the school, and Anxi, like a jade belt, in the distance.
A further campus was home to the Chinese Academy of Sciences. The building had been built as a financial center, but when that didn't take off, it became a shopping mall. Jinnan found he knew the city of Lido as well as the lines on his palm.
After opening the door and turning on the light, Xu Zhiyuan took off his slippers, but did not stand up immediately. Instead, he reached out to Jinnan.
Jinnan was a little confused and wanted to move forward, but Xu Zhiyuan grabbed his ankle.
He took off his leather shoes and pressed his warm thumb on his ankle for two seconds to test the temperature, then let go before Jinnan could no longer bear it.
Without even looking up, Xu Zhiyuan brought him a pair of slippers and was about to switch to the other foot: "Why don't you wear something thicker? Your socks are so thin?"
Jinnan jumped to put on his shoes, not daring to bother him to take off the other side, so he took them off himself: "There's heating everywhere, so I won't be cold."
"Lin Jiaze doesn't have it." Xu Zhiyuan said.
"He runs a small business, please be considerate of him." Jin Nan smiled helplessly and walked in with the wine in his arms.
The layout is similar to Lin Jiaze's new home, but the orientation is slightly different. There are a few bouquets of fresh cut flowers in the glass vase in the restaurant, and it is obvious that someone comes to replace them regularly.
This is an ordinary, warm little home for city dwellers. Everything is very ordinary, so ordinary that it seems to be here, waiting for ten thousand identical owners to come back.
Yet, even this ordinary little house is precious to Jinnan and Xu Zhiyuan. It represents the warm family love that Xu Zhiyuan had lost and Jinnan never had.
"Excuse me."
Jinnan politely greeted the empty house and after putting down the wine, he didn't dare to wander around. He just looked around and his eyes were quickly attracted by the family portrait hanging on the wall.
The couple in the painting are wearing wedding attire, looking intelligent and gentle. The little flower girl in front of them is a smaller version of Xu Zhiyuan, but with a brighter smile.
Xu Zhiyuan took the bottle from his arms and went into the kitchen to get a decanter.
The two sat down at the dining table, and Jinnan was especially afraid to speak loudly.
"Zhiyuan, can I sleep with you tonight? Would it be impolite?"
"There are no other rooms. I haven't touched their things. You can only sleep with me, unless you want to sleep on the sofa." Xu Zhiyuan placed a porcelain bowl in front of Jinnan. "Sorry, there are no high-heeled glasses. But porcelain is good at insulating."
The two of them drank Romanee-Conti from their bowls. Jin Nan drank while apologizing, hoping that if Xu's parents saw everything, they would forgive him for being such a greedy guy.
"Nothing special." Xu Zhiyuan said after taking two bites.
Jin Nan laughed: "If Li Hongfang hears this, he will fight you to the death."
Thinking of Li Hongfang, he opened his phone to check the message. Master Hongfang and the driver Uncle Wang had already sent Chen Chen home.
Xu Zhiyuan also laughed: "I snatched this wine from him."
Jin Nan asked, "What do you mean?" He was lying on the table, already a little tipsy from the wine mixed with the alcohol.
His eyes were more like those of a little fox, staring straight at Xu Zhiyuan without revealing any trace of ambiguity.
"The exhibitor mentioned it at the time, and I said I wanted it, so he sold it to me first. Later I found out that Li Hongfang had ordered the wine first."
"You're not keeping your word!" Jinnan was filled with indignation. "But ignorance is not a crime."
Wine is a wonderful thing. A little bit makes your face flush and your eyes dizzy, but it doesn't make you drunk. From the bitter grape syrup, Jinnan gained some courage. Not much, just a little.
"Xu Zhiyuan."
"Um."
Xu Zhiyuan didn't pour him any more wine. Jinnan held the empty bowl in his hands, like a little fox begging for food.
"Jia Ze was so sad today," Jin Nan said. "Even though he looked fine...this is the first time I've seen him like that, hiding things from us."
"It will get better slowly."
Jin Nan narrowed his eyes, tears seemed to be flashing in his eyes: "Xu Zhiyuan, have I ever made you sad before?"
One rises while the other falls, you flourish while I perish. Flowers from the same root will wither in half, so how can two people not see blood and tears?
Xu Zhiyuan is not a living Buddha.
"Yes." Xu Zhiyuan admitted bluntly, "I've helped you so many times, and you still call me by my full name. Can't you just call me brother?"
"Is that why you're so sad?" Jin Nan laughed, "Is it too late for me to call you now, brother?"
Xu Zhiyuan didn't answer. He put the bottle of wine in his pocket, half-carried and half-lifted Jin Nan, who was as dizzy as a noodle, and brought him back to the bedroom.
A space of more than ten square meters is an independent universe for children. Everything is unfamiliar, whether it is a resting ship, a black hole for hiding things, or a lonely planet with illumination.
The two of them squeezed into a small bathroom where it was difficult to turn around and took a shower. The smell of alcohol and heat made Jin Nan unable to walk when he came out.
He also wanted to help Xu Zhiyuan dry his hair, so he snatched the hair dryer from Xu Zhiyuan's hand and dried both heads at the same time.
"Zhiyuan."
"Yeah." Xu Zhiyuan replied.
The noise was so loud that he couldn't hear anything being said. Xu Zhiyuan could only see his smile, his lips under his hair, and his exposed teeth.
I remember when I first returned to Lido, Jinnan was thin, sickly, malnourished, and his teeth had grown crooked during the period of tooth replacement when no one took care of him.
The scars from the braces were gone now, and he was transformed into a sleek, fair-skinned man, both handsome and beautiful. Eight years is enough time for a person to rebuild everything.
Xu Zhiyuan was not a saint. He was indeed terrified that his uncle had another biological son. That feeling was like a nightmare of falling from a tall building.
He had originally thought that after bringing Jinnan back to Lido, he would go abroad and focus all his efforts on the other side of the ocean. First, he would establish himself with his skills, and then repay the favor bit by bit.
Xu Zhiyuan remembered every penny his uncle had bought for him and every penny he had spent on him. He was confident he could pay it all back before he turned 30. Then he would be free.
But Jinnan broke into his lonely universe. He snatched away the things that Xu Zhiyuan had recorded as wrongdoings and was supposed to return. There was more fear and panic in his eyes than pride. Rather than showing off his status, he wanted to know whether Xu Zhiyuan cared.
Those who were robbed would return to Xu Zhiyuan after one or two days.
For Jinnan, the luxury clothes and watches were just things to attract Xu Zhiyuan's attention. Jinnan wanted Xu Zhiyuan to pay more attention to her, to have more patience from him, and to have his compassion.
These are the luxuries of modern South.
At that time, they didn't know how easy it was for that little bit of compassion to deteriorate and become attached when they depended on each other in loneliness.
His hair dried little by little. Jin Nan was a little confused by Xu Zhiyuan's behavior of twisting his jaw to check his teeth, but he still cooperated.
"You should go see a dentist," Xu Zhiyuan said. "You're prone to tooth decay if you eat too much sweet food."
"Then I'll let you eat spicy food." Jin Nan put down the hair dryer and reached out to hug him. "If you kill me with spicy food, you won't have a brother anymore."
Turn off the lights and get into bed. The space was too small to accommodate two people. They had no choice but to hug each other tightly. If it were long ago, if they were really brothers, the situation would probably be the same. The Xu family couldn't spare any more space to put a second boy's bed.
They were too close, their breaths were entangled, and if anyone tried to hide, they would either hit the wall or fall off the bed.
Jinnan was kissed, gently, without going deeper. He was reluctant to separate, but he didn't dare to get any closer.
"Zhiyuan, will mom and dad scold me in my dreams tonight?"
Xu Zhiyuan was amused by him: "Don't worry, they will thank you."
"Why?" Jinnan protested, "I led you astray and did bad things to you."
Jin Nan always thinks badly of himself because he always feels that he is not good enough, that he has not done things well enough, and most importantly, that he is not good enough to Xu Zhiyuan.
How did he tie her up? How did she fall in love with him? Xu Zhiyuan is such a fool. There are so many good people in the world, why did Xu Zhiyuan fall in love with Jinnan?
Xu Zhiyuan hugged him tightly: "You make their children very happy."
Not a promise, not an imperative, but a simple statement.
Xu Zhiyuan is very happy now.
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