4 a.m.
Shen Yu watched as Qi Fang squeezed fresh lemon juice, added some sugar, and poured a full glass for each of them, bringing them out to the dining table.
Shen Yu’s gaze followed Qi Fang’s movements, occasionally glancing at his loose pajama pants.
“…” Qi Fang said, “If you keep looking at me like that, I’ll—”
Shen Yu looked up at him.
“—I’ll get a nosebleed,” Qi Fang finished.
Shen Yu silently lowered his head, casually taking a sip of lemon water.
“Shen Yu,” Qi Fang took a few deep breaths, trying to calm the heat rising in his body. He sat down at the table and said seriously, “Let’s talk.”
Shen Yu sipped his water like a small cat drinking, then glanced up through his long lashes and nodded, “Mm.”
Qi Fang said, “I was wrong to kiss you just now without your permission.”
“But you…” he paused for a moment before continuing, “You didn’t refuse either, so I took it as consent. If you regret it now, you can say so, and I won’t do it again.”
Shen Yu didn’t answer immediately. Instead, he once again cast his gaze towards Qi Fang’s lower body, as if pondering the credibility of his words.
“…” Qi Fang explained helplessly, “That’s a normal physiological response for human males. I can’t control it, don’t mind it. But I can control the mouth on my face.”
Shen Yu quietly contemplated for a moment before slowly giving his answer. “I don’t dislike the previous contact.”
Qi Fang’s hand unconsciously tightened on his glass as he probed further, “What does ‘don’t dislike’ mean? Shen Yuyu, when we got married back then, you didn’t object, so we got married. Today I wanted to kiss you, and you didn’t object, so we…”
His voice gradually trailed off as he said softly, “But Shen Yuyu, ‘not disliking’ is just an attitude. Sometimes I want to know, what are your true feelings for me?”
If not for tonight’s unexpected events, perhaps Qi Fang wouldn’t have asked this question.
Having spent so many years with Shen Yu, Qi Fang knew that inside, Shen Yu was like a little snowman – cold and frosty to outsiders, but only through daily companionship and closeness could that snow be melted and thawed.
He could have waited longer, but everything that happened today made it impossible for Qi Fang to wait any longer.
“We’ve already kissed,” he said. “I want a proper status. Is that too much to ask?”
Shen Yu pondered for a long time before asking in confusion, “Don’t you already have a proper status?”
“Not that kind of status,” Qi Fang started to get a bit anxious. “I mean… that kind of status.”
Although Shen Yu couldn’t understand the talk of status, he could answer Qi Fang’s previous question.
“I think,” Shen Yu said, “I probably like you.”
In fact, when Qi Fang kissed him in the kitchen, Shen Yu wasn’t entirely thoughtless.
On the contrary, in that instant, many “untimely” scenes from his memories suddenly flooded his mind.
From when Qi Fang was still a chubby kid who orbited around him at school every day, stubbornly declaring himself, Qin Xiaosa, and Li Congming as Shen Yu’s friends.
To when he entered middle school and, in order to lose weight, Qi Fang ran ten laps around the track daily, drenched in sweat with a flushed face, yet still remembered to wash his hands before carrying Shen Yu’s schoolbag home.
Then, after they both got into the same high school but were assigned to different classes, Qi Fang would always come by Shen Yu’s classroom during the longest breaks between morning and afternoon classes, as if needing to confirm something before he could feel at ease.
Later in university, Qi Fang almost openly pursued him, causing Shen Yu’s classmates and roommates to often tease him.
Shen Yu thought back, trying to recall what emotions he felt when he agreed to Qi Fang’s proposal back then.
Two years had passed, and retrieving those initial thoughts had become somewhat hazy.
Shen Yu only remembered having one thought at the time – that this day seemed to have come a bit later than he had imagined.
“I’ve never really understood what it means to like someone,” Shen Yu continued earnestly. “But if ‘affection’ could be quantified numerically, I can say with certainty that your value is higher than anyone else’s.”
Qi Fang was stunned for a long while before mumbling, “Shen Yuyu… where did you steal such a sophisticated pick-up line from?”
Shen Yu turned his face away, his fair complexion tinged with a hint of red.
“So, does this mean…” Qi Fang stumbled over his words, “Am I now officially Mr. Shen? The kind that can warm your bed?”
“I’m not ready yet,” Qi Fang rubbed his cup nervously. “Shen Yuyu, give me a few days. I, uh, I need to study up first…”
Shen Yu: “…”
*
There were no classes the next morning, so Shen Yu indulged in a rare sleeping-in.
After getting up, he went to wash up. Just as he came out of the bathroom, he heard a few knocks at the door.
“Good morning, Professor Shen Yu,” Qi Fang’s voice sounded cheerful. “May your legal spouse, the human with the highest affection value, the male who’s equally capable at both housework and cooking, Mr. Qi Fang, enter your bedroom?”
“…” Shen Yu walked over and opened the door directly.
Outside, Qi Fang was wearing a formal yet flashy light blue casual suit jacket with black trousers. A thin metal tie clip adorned his collar, and his hair was meticulously styled, each strand of his bangs seemingly adjusted to the perfect angle. His sleeves were loosely rolled up, his right hand holding a steaming bowl of dumplings, and his left hand carrying a cup of hot milk.
“I made these,” he said, offering the bowl to Shen Yu with eager anticipation. “Want to try?”
Shen Yu took the bowl and stepped back into the bedroom, his dark eyes quietly watching Qi Fang.
“So, can I…” Qi Fang raised an eyebrow. “Come in?”
Shen Yu gave a soft affirmative hum.
Qi Fang then stepped into this domain he hadn’t entered in their two years of marriage.
To Qi Fang’s surprise, Shen Yu’s bedroom, compared to his study, didn’t seem nearly as neat and orderly.
On the contrary, the blanket on the large bed was bunched up into a nest, still retaining the shape of Shen Yu crawling out of it. The pillow was askew, and the bedside table held a phone, several half-read books, a tissue box, and a pen that had fallen onto the carpet.
Qi Fang was amazed.
It felt like… discovering that the belly of a snowman in the yard wasn’t made of snow, but stuffed with white wool instead.
Shen Yu didn’t notice Qi Fang’s expression. He moved the room’s only chair out for Qi Fang and sat on the edge of the bed himself.
“Good morning,” Shen Yu said. “Thank you for breakfast.”
Qi Fang sat on the chair, resting his chin on his hand as he watched Shen Yu eat, thinking that not only was he a wool-stuffed snowman, but also a polite one who knew how to say thanks.
So cute.
Shen Yu had eaten half of the dumplings and was already feeling full. He looked up, asking with slight hesitation, “Have you eaten?”
“I’ve—” Qi Fang started to say, but stopped himself just in time. “No, I haven’t. I’m hungry.”
So Shen Yu asked, “Do you want to eat then?”
Qi Fang was almost off his seat, but tried to appear calm and reserved as he said, “You… Could you… feed me?”
Shen Yu: “?”
“Shen Yuyu, don’t look at me like I’m an idiot,” Qi Fang coughed and continued, “I mean, we’re… together now, right? I’ve seen couples at your university cafeteria feeding each other, so could we maybe…?”
Shen Yu: “…”
Seeing Shen Yu’s lack of response, Qi Fang gave up. “Never mind, we don’t need to copy those mushy practices. Just give me the bowl…”
“Feeding is not allowed,” Shen Yu suddenly said softly. “Only one kiss.”
“Huh?” Qi Fang stood up, barely controlling his volume. “What did you say, Shen Yuyu?”
Shen Yu pressed his lips together, ignoring him and poking at the dumplings in the bowl with his chopsticks.
“I thought I just heard you say I could kiss you a hundred times,” Qi Fang took two steps closer, bending down to almost embrace Shen Yu. He blinked twice and said, “If you don’t say anything, I’ll take it as a yes. Can I pay those hundred kisses in installments?”
Shen Yu: “No—”
He was about to explain that it wasn’t a hundred times when Qi Fang leaned in and pecked him on the lips.
“Ninety-nine more to go,” Qi Fang said shamelessly. “I’ve kept count, Professor Shen. You’re a man of your word, so no backing out now.”
After saying this, Qi Fang snatched the bowl from Shen Yu’s hands and fled.
Shen Yu: “…”
*
After lunch, Shen Yu, for the first time ever, agreed to Qi Fang’s request to drive him to work at the university.
Qi Fang carefully selected the most inconspicuous car from the garage. He diligently cleaned and freshened up the interior, waiting for two o’clock in the afternoon when he could invite Shen Yu to step into the esteemed VIP passenger seat, to be chauffeured to the university gates by the hardworking driver, Xiao Qi.
But before that, there was a more important task to complete.
Qi Fang secretly retrieved the medicine Li Congming had brought earlier from the cabinet. He racked his brains for a while but couldn’t think of a way to trick Shen Yu into taking the medicine.
This medication was to be taken after meals daily. Since MSBP primarily relied on long-term psychological therapy with minimal medication involvement, Dr. Watson and Chen Ke’s treatment plan mainly focused on boosting Shen Yu’s vitamin intake and alleviating his low blood sugar.
“Enhancing physical fitness,” Chen Ke had said, “is also beneficial for psychological treatment.”
Never mind, Qi Fang thought, staring at the medicine in his hand. There’s no harm in telling Shen Yu about these daily medications.
When Shen Yu came out of the room, he saw Qi Fang standing by the dining table, staring intently at several medicine boxes.
Shen Yu approached, glanced down, and asked, “Are these for me?”
Qi Fang jumped, reflexively blurting out, “It’s not aphrodisiacs!”
Shen Yu: “?”
Qi Fang: “…”
“Ahem,” Qi Fang cleared his throat. “This is medicine for your low blood sugar. Although you haven’t been fainting lately, your complexion was still poor this morning, so I thought we’d try treating it and see if it helps.”
Shen Yu picked up the medicine boxes, carefully read the instructions, and took the prescribed dose before asking, “Aren’t there other medicines I should take?”
Qi Fang was taken aback. “Other medicines?”
Shen Yu fiddled with the medicine box, lowering his lashes as he said, “When you took me to see Dr. Watson last time, wasn’t it because my behavior was unusual?”
Qi Fang’s mind raced.
Dr. Watson’s treatment plan mentioned that if the patient showed self-awareness of their condition, it indicated the illness was improving. They could be gently guided towards psychological adjustment but shouldn’t push too hard.
“Shen Yuyu, you…” Qi Fang probed, “Do you think I don’t need blood supplements anymore?”
Shen Yu was quiet for a moment.
“Sometimes I feel…” he said slowly, “that some thoughts show signs of compulsive behavior, forming fixed thinking patterns that are hard to control rationally.”
As he spoke, Shen Yu felt a dull ache in his temples, causing him to furrow his brow.
“There’s no rush,” Qi Fang quickly said, noticing his unusual expression. “Shen Yuyu, you’ve had some minor issues lately, but it’s not serious. We’ll take it step by step, don’t force yourself to think about it.”
Shen Yu paused, then obediently nodded.
“If you want to feed me blood-replenishing meals, that’s fine…” As it was almost time to leave, Qi Fang grabbed the car keys, adding, “But Shen Yuyu, could we maybe not have beef? We’ve had it for three meals now.”
Shen Yu said, “Okay.”
Qi Fang breathed a huge sigh of relief.
He picked up the keys and changed his shoes to leave, not noticing Shen Yu taking out his phone behind him. Using the food ordering app he had just learned to use yesterday, Shen Yu placed an order for three pounds of lamb.
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