You have to get married.
The moment the door opened, a cozy two-bedroom apartment stood in stark contrast to the building with its peeling exterior walls. Although the building was old and dilapidated, what did that have to do with the interior?
The agent showed him around every corner. Both bedrooms faced east, and the weather was lovely today. The bedrooms were bright and airy, with sunlight streaming in, and almost every corner was bathed in sunlight.
The previous tenant seemed to be very clean; the whole house was kept tidy and organized, and you couldn't tell that it had been rented out for five years. The agent turned on and tested all the lights in the living room and bedrooms, and none of them were broken. The heating and water heater were also in perfect working order.
Song Zicheng was very satisfied with the house, but he didn't show it on his face. After the tour, he pulled Jiang Yuebai aside and asked softly, "What do you think of this house?"
Jiang Yuebai remained expressionless, but took a step closer and said in a voice only the two of them could hear, "If the rent is right, this apartment is quite nice."
"How much is the rent each month?" Song Zicheng turned around and asked the woman.
"Two thousand," the woman answered crisply.
Song Zicheng frowned as he listened. After exchanging a glance with Jiang Yuebai, he said, "It's a bit expensive. Can you make it cheaper?"
The woman smoothed her wavy blonde hair, grabbed Song Zicheng's arm, and raised her voice again: "This isn't expensive at all. Look at this house, it's very close to the school and the nearby hospital. If it weren't for the fact that the neighborhood looks really old, it would cost much more than this. Don't be fooled by the shabby exterior, the house is great inside."
"Sister, could you give us a discount? We're all students and can't afford that much money. We're students at Beijing University. If any of our classmates need to rent a place in the future, I'll recommend you here first," Jiang Yuebai said from the side.
At first, when the woman saw Jiang Yuebai, she thought the two were a young couple who rented apartments instead of living in the dormitory so they could be together. But the woman had a sharp eye and noticed that although their interactions were closer than those of ordinary friends, they didn't quite qualify as a couple. She felt there was something between them that she couldn't quite put her finger on, but it was definitely there.
Time passed quietly in those few blank seconds. The woman pondered silently for a few seconds, then looked up and smiled: "Okay, okay, 1800, that's the lowest I can go."
Just as Jiang Yuebai was about to speak, she heard Song Zicheng say, "Okay."
After everything was agreed upon, the contract was quickly signed. Song Zicheng signed a two-year contract for the time being. This month is almost over, and the rental period will start from the first day of the new year next month.
On the way back, Jiang Yuebai had a lot of questions she wanted to ask him. After not seeing him for more than half a month, she felt that Song Zicheng looked much better than before. Although he was still not good at speaking, he exuded an unprecedented sense of relaxation. Although it was not obvious, it was still noticeable.
"Are you in such a hurry to move? Why not wait until after the New Year to look for a new place?" After thinking it over, Jiang Yuebai finally asked, changing her approach.
"Find a solution sooner rather than later; we can't keep bothering others."
When Song Zicheng said this, his tone was very calm, without any extra emotion mixed in. Jiang Yuebai looked up at Song Zicheng's profile, as if he were stating something unrelated to her. For a second, she wondered if her previous guesses were all wrong.
"When are you going home for the Chinese New Year? Let's go together?" Jiang Yuebai changed the subject.
"Maybe around the middle of next month, I'll take Zian to the hospital for another check-up before we go back."
"Okay, we'll discuss when to buy tickets later. How's Zian doing lately?"
"It's relatively stable, nothing's wrong."
“When you have time, bring Zian out for a meal. I miss him a bit since I haven’t seen him in so long.”
"good."
The two didn't speak again. When they reached the subway entrance, they said goodbye to each other. They had been taking the subway in the same direction before, but now they were going in opposite directions.
During dinner, Song Zicheng kept trying to find the right words. It was just about moving out, which was a very ordinary thing, but it seemed that he had slowly developed a habit of thinking things through before saying anything to Lu Zhiyan, even if it was a very ordinary matter.
From the moment Lu Zhiyan arrived home from get off work, she could tell that Song Zicheng was not in much interest. Now, with his chopsticks in hand and his eyes fixed straight ahead, Lu Zhiyan was even more puzzled: "What's wrong? I've noticed you've been spacing out ever since you got back."
It took Song Zicheng a couple of seconds to come to his senses. He lowered his head and said, word by word, "I found a place today and I'll be moving out in the next couple of days. Thank you for your help during this time."
After Song Zicheng finished speaking, he looked up cautiously at Lu Zhiyan. Lu Zhiyan's face was expressionless, making it impossible to discern his emotions, except for a slight downward turn of the left corner of his mouth.
Lu Zhiyan remained silent, and the atmosphere became almost tense. Song Zicheng frowned, about to speak, when Lu Zhiyan uttered a soft "hmm".
The voice was deep, and although it was a normal voice, Song Zicheng felt that there were complex emotions mixed in with this "hmm," including anger and resentment.
The two did not speak again after that. After finishing their meal, Lu Zhiyan went to his study and did not leave until Song Zicheng finished washing up and went back to his room to sleep.
The night was unusually quiet at midnight. The moonlight was bright tonight, and scattered stars dotted the sky, making it impossible to look away.
Song Zicheng leaned against the headboard, staring blankly at a certain star, lost in thought. A question lingered in his mind: why was Lu Zhiyan angry? He carefully reviewed his conversation with Lu Zhiyan that evening, confirming that he hadn't said anything he shouldn't have, nor had he uttered a single wrong word or phrase.
After repeatedly confirming that he hadn't said anything out of line, Song Zicheng stopped worrying about why Lu Zhiyan was angry.
After a long day, he was overcome with fatigue. He yawned in the darkness, blinked his eyes, lay down on the bed, slowly closed his eyes, and drifted off to sleep.
Lu Zhiyan, who was still in the study, was not sitting at his desk dealing with official business. Instead, he was standing by the window smoking one cigarette after another. The smoke was so thick that the night view outside the window was not clearly visible. No one knew how many cigarettes he had smoked or how long he had been smoking. However, the ashtray on the windowsill was piled high with cigarette butts, and a few cigarette butts had fallen around him playfully.
After finishing his last puff of cigarette, Lu Zhiyan casually tossed the cigarette butt aside, and by sheer coincidence, it landed right in the trash can next to him.
Lu Zhiyan stared blankly at the bright moon in the sky. He slowly placed his right hand on his heart and pressed it tightly against his chest. The strong, thumping heartbeat was particularly noticeable in the quiet night.
A look of disappointment and confusion crept onto Lu Zhiyan's serious face. When Song Zicheng suggested moving out, he didn't quite understand why he was angry; he felt a strange emotion stuck in his chest.
Perhaps it's because for the past two weeks, every night when I return to the apartment, someone has prepared dinner and is quietly waiting for me to come home. I thought I had long since gotten used to living alone, but this habit of many years has been broken so easily.
Lu Zhiyan frowned. He hated the feeling of being out of control. No one could escape or control him, and he would never allow such a thing to happen.
Fate played a cruel trick on him; all of Lu Zhiyan's dreams ultimately crumbled. There were unexpected events, but also his own reckless and desperate actions.
The incident occurred on Friday night, before Saturday, the day for the weekly family dinner. At 3 p.m., Lu Zhiyan, who was working on documents in his office, received a call from Lu Changhe. When he saw the name on his phone, a hint of surprise and unease flashed in his eyes.
The moment the call connected, Lu Changhe's voice came through the phone: "Come home at seven tonight, I have something to tell you."
There was no shouting or harsh rebuke; the two short sentences were delivered calmly. However, Lu Zhiyan could clearly hear the anger in Lu Changhe's voice, which trembled with rage. But he didn't care, hung up the phone, and continued reading the documents.
When the car stopped at the Lu family villa, snowflakes began to fall from the sky. Lu Zhiyan closed his eyes and rested for a few seconds in the back seat, then opened his eyes and walked towards the villa with a heavy expression.
As soon as he pushed open the door, Lu Zhize stood by the door, giving him a fake smile and saying, "Brother, Dad is waiting for you in the study."
The smile on Lu Zhize's face was particularly glaring to Lu Zhiyan, as if it were telling him to watch a good show. Without even thinking, Lu Zhiyan knew that a big battle would be started by Lu Zhize today.
To his surprise, the trigger was Song Zicheng.
Lu Zhiyan knocked on the study door, then pushed it open and went in. Lu Changhe was looking up with his back to him. He walked over and stood in front of the desk.
As Lu Changhe turned around, he placed a photo on the table: "This is your Uncle Zhang's daughter. She just graduated with a PhD from Cambridge University this year. She's two years younger than you. Find some time to meet her."
Lu Zhiyan didn't speak. He looked down at the woman in the photo. She had a strong scholarly air about her and looked like a well-mannered and knowledgeable girl.
“I’m not going,” Lu Zhiyan replied calmly.
"Not going? Why wouldn't you go? They have such great prospects, and you're not getting any younger. You're at the age where you should be getting married."
"I said it a long time ago, I don't like women."
Lu Changhe was angered by Lu Zhiyan's words, and his voice rose several decibels: "Let me tell you, playing around is fine, but you have to get married."
"What if I definitely don't get married?"
"Then I'll have to get rid of the person in your apartment."
Lu Zhiyan frowned slightly upon hearing this. Lu Changhe had never cared about his affairs, yet he could know so accurately about something he had never given himself away. The answer was obvious. He unconsciously recalled Lu Zhize's meaningful smile before he went upstairs.
"I heard that the young man in your apartment has a younger brother with leukemia, and he happens to be in the hospital you're sponsoring. I also heard that he has a childhood sweetheart. What do you think he would do if I agreed to help his brother find a doctor? Would he just walk away without looking back, very resolutely?"
Lu Changhe's words at this moment were a complete threat to Lu Zhiyan, showing absolutely no responsibility or accountability as a father. Although Lu Zhiyan was originally an unrelated and insignificant person, when Lu Changhe mentioned Song Zicheng, Lu Zhiyan ultimately couldn't control the expression on his face.
Lu Zhiyan's face darkened instantly, but he maintained his long-standing manners. His tone was calm but forceful: "I'm no longer the naive boy who blindly obeyed you. Since my mother passed away, have you tried everything to clear her name? Not only did you not, you also hastily married Aunt Rong. You've ignored me for so many years. Now, you're meddling in my affairs and interfering with my sexual orientation."
Lu Zhiyan's words were almost harsh. His dissatisfaction with Lu Changhe had been growing in his heart for many years. Although he was angry, he still considered his feelings and did not say anything too harsh. Instead, he was very amiable.
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