An intimate moment

As Xiao Rong's claims grew increasingly outrageous, Shi Yuan was left speechless. This... this... He had always thought Mr. Ren was a strict father, but he had never realized the man was genuinely willing to raise his son on a shoestring.

Two knocks sounded at the door. Standing outside the open doorway was Ren Zheng, who supposedly had a meeting that evening.

He looked at his son with a faint, ambiguous smile. "If you have so many complaints about Dad, why didn't you tell me?"

Xiao Rong put on his stern little expression again and turned away without a word.

Caught awkwardly between father and son, Shi Yuan worried they might want to talk in private. "Mr. Ren, I'll head home, then."

Mr. Ren smiled. "Mr. Shi, sorry for the trouble of keeping Xiao Rong company for so long today. It's late, and we have a guest room, so why don't you stay? Xiao Rong trusts you. There's nothing you can't hear."

Reluctant to let him leave, Xiao Rong tugged at his hand too. The tears in his eyes softened Shi Yuan's heart, and he nodded in agreement.

There were two chairs in Xiao Rong's room. Shi Yuan offered up the one he had been sitting in. "Please sit down, Mr. Ren. I'll go call my family."

Mr. Ren shook his head. "I already said there's nothing you can't hear. Mr. Shi, you really are..."

Xiao Rong couldn't stand anyone criticizing Shi Yuan, not even his own father. "Mr. Shi is being considerate!"

For once, Mr. Ren didn't scold him. He merely sighed. "He is considerate. A pity he married so young." He had met Wei Zelin at the hospital. The man was someone to be reckoned with.

Mr. Ren sat in the chair opposite Xiao Rong and spoke earnestly. "You were little before, and there were a lot of things you wouldn't have understood even if I explained them. Now you've been through a brush with death. You're a young man, and Dad wants to have a proper talk with you."

"What about?" Xiao Rong asked awkwardly.

"Dad knows you've had to put up with a lot," Mr. Ren said. "You love those sneakers your classmates wear that cost tens of thousands. They have more pocket money than they can spend, while you have to think twice about buying a cup of milk tea. When they talk about what their parents do, you can't say anything."

"D-Dad... don't you like me?" One tear became two, then a steady stream. Xiao Rong was only eleven, after all. His mother was promiscuous and irresponsible, while his father was busy and strict. He had long grown used to bottling everything up. His quiet, withdrawn manner made him unpopular at school, and only after getting to know Shi Yuan had he become a little more cheerful.

Mr. Ren took a handkerchief from his shirt and wiped Xiao Rong's tears, then firmly denied it. "Of course I do! You're my son. Of course Dad likes you. But Dad works in government. Although I'm only at the department-and-bureau level, and a deputy at that, a lot of people are watching me. They're all hoping I'll make a mistake so they can take my job. Can you understand that?"

Xiao Rong only half understood. Rubbing his eyes, he said, "I get it, Dad. Is it like that guy called Li Zhuang people were talking about online? He hit someone with his car and said his dad was the director of the education bureau, and then his dad got punished."

"More or less." Ren Feng ruffled his hair. He rarely showed his son such affection.

Xiao Rong lifted his head and said firmly, "Dad, I won't embarrass you like that."

"Dad believes you. Go wash your face, then ask Mr. Shi to come upstairs and get some rest."

Shi Yuan sat in a wicker chair in the courtyard. After thinking it over, he felt calling to report his whereabouts seemed a little odd, so he sent a WeChat message instead. To his surprise, Wei Zelin immediately video-called him.

Wei Zelin wasn't at home, but his surroundings were quiet, as though he were in a private room. His voice was low and gentle. "Why are you suddenly staying overnight at Director Ren's?"

Looking at his face so close on the phone screen, Shi Yuan suddenly felt a little embarrassed. "Xiao Rong is upset. He wants me to stay with him tonight."

His eyes lowered slightly, and his voice was quiet. A tremor ran through his already soft, husky voice, like a little hook tugging at Wei Zelin's heart.

The corners of Wei Zelin's mouth lifted. He found it very pleasing and asked gently, "What happened to him?"

Shi Yuan told Wei Zelin about the conflict between the Ren Family father and son.

After listening, Wei Zelin said, "They're having a heart-to-heart. This is the perfect chance for Mr. Ren to mend his relationship with his son. All the more reason not to interrupt."

Shi Yuan paused. That did make sense.

On the other end of the call, Wei Zelin had already picked up his coat. "I happen to be nearby. I'll come get you now."

"Huh? Then I'll go upstairs and let Mr. Ren know, and wait for you at the entrance to the residential complex."

Meanwhile, on the other end.

"Brother Lin, that was Shi Yuan, right?" Huang Shiren asked.

"What do you think?" Wei Zelin put on his coat and picked up his car keys, giving him a look that said he already knew the answer.

This was Wei Zelin's private room on the top floor of Free Heaven. It was quiet to begin with, and while he had been talking to Shi Yuan, Bao Lili, Fang Yuan, and the others beside him hadn't dared make a sound. With a voice as distinctive as Shi Yuan's, how could Huang Shiren not have recognized him? He had actually dared tease Wei Zelin.

Huang Shiren rubbed his nose and fell silent.

Wei Zelin had no reason to get angry over something so trivial, but his mood was rather complicated.

With that, he left, brisk and decisive, without wasting another second. Bao Lili, Fang Yuan, and Huang Shiren were left exchanging looks.

They had originally gathered that day to discuss Wei Wanwan's contact with a senior government official. As Wei Zelin's special assistant primarily responsible for intelligence, Bao Lili was also the most curious by professional inclination. "Blondie, Brother Lin and that little thug...?"

"What little thug?" Huang Shiren said. "Shi Yuan is very well behaved. I wouldn't dare pry into Brother Lin's business."

"He gets into fights and has tattoos, but he's well behaved???" What kind of bizarre character profile was that?

She had personally investigated Shi Yuan's schooling abroad and passed the information to Wei Zelin.

She had never met him herself, though her people had tailed him for a while. She would ask them about him sometime.

Fang Yuan had never met Shi Yuan either. She had been based at the S City headquarters until Wei Zelin saw that things were progressing smoothly here and transferred her over to help.

"Damn, I forgot to give Brother Lin the grapes Old Kuang got. I'll take them to him." Huang Shiren's own office was also on the top floor. He hurried over, grabbed a small box, and ran downstairs after Wei Zelin.

So after Shi Yuan said goodbye to the Ren Family father and son and met Wei Zelin at the entrance to the complex, he found a small basket of grapes on the passenger seat.

"I washed them with mineral water. Try some."

Shi Yuan picked one up. It was purplish-black and the size of a ping-pong ball. He carefully peeled it and popped it into his mouth. It really was sweet! It also had a wonderfully fresh fragrance.

After eating two, he found it hard to stop. They were just too good!

They stopped at a traffic light along the way. Shi Yuan instinctively looked toward the driver's seat, only to find Wei Zelin looking at him too. In the car, where patches of light mingled with the darkness, Wei Zelin's eyes behind his glasses held nothing but Shi Yuan's reflection. Inexplicably shy, Shi Yuan instinctively held out the grape he had peeled. "D-Do you want some?"

Wei Zelin didn't speak. His gaze passed over the juicy fruit and settled intently on Shi Yuan's equally glistening lips as he leaned closer... slowly, slowly.

An intimate tension spread between them, bit by bit. Shi Yuan found it a little hard to breathe. Then warmth brushed his fingertips as Wei Zelin took the grape with his mouth. The warmth seemed to linger on his fingers, and Shi Yuan hastily pulled out a tissue to wipe his hand. Delicious as the grapes were, he had lost all interest in eating them.

The light turned green, and the car moved off. Catching Shi Yuan's flustered movements and scarlet ears out of the corner of his eye, Wei Zelin smiled silently.

Even after they got home, Shi Yuan still couldn't recover. He listlessly went to wash up, and when he came out and passed Wei Zelin, he didn't know where to look.

No. This can't go on!

Alarm bells rang in Shi Yuan's mind.

He admitted Wei Zelin was handsome, gentle, and good to him...

What am I thinking!!!

Shi Yuan wanted to slap himself a couple of times to snap out of it. Wei Zelin was calculating and kept his cards close to his chest. He wasn't someone Shi Yuan could handle. Getting in over his head would only hurt him.

He picked up his phone and messaged You Gui on WeChat, rambling about anything and everything in an attempt to distract himself. It actually helped a little. You Gui said her company was holding its tenth-anniversary celebration next month and had invited plenty of celebrities and influencers.

You Gui: "Want to come visit me next month?"

Shi Yuan was tempted. "I don't know yet. If I go, I'll have to ask Mr. Ren for time off in advance."

You Gui: "Then ask! S City is pretty fun too. You can stay with me when you come, and I'll take you around for a few days."

S City was known as the nation's technology park and had the country's greatest concentration of entertainment and technology development. It was home to all sorts of gaming clubs, DHF-the country's top visual effects team-and the hottest virtual girl group of the moment.

Magic Cube Technology's headquarters was in S City. The company had made its name through its forward-thinking ideas and solid technology, attracting talented people from every field. They helped one another succeed and launched wave after wave of influencers and traffic-driving celebrities to fame. Others scrambled to imitate them, encouraging a flourishing domestic market for short videos and virtual stars that even took the world by storm.

The more he thought about it, the more tempted Shi Yuan became. He simply agreed. "Yes, yes, yes, yes, yes!"

The next morning, Shi Yuan didn't leave his room immediately after waking up. He dawdled in bed until nine before quietly opening his door and slipping out.

The living room was silent. Sure enough, Wei Zelin had already left for work. Shi Yuan stretched. He was used to going to bed and getting up early, not lingering in bed, and he usually made breakfast.

After washing up, his stomach was already growling. Shi Yuan was about to get an egg from the fridge and cook some noodles when he noticed a note stuck to the fridge-there's porridge in the rice cooker.

Shi Yuan took down the note and went into the kitchen. The rice cooker was indeed plugged in. When he opened the lid, he found two boiled eggs in the little steamer tray on top.

Shi Yuan lifted out the tray, and the fragrance of rice immediately wafted from the pot. It was his favorite red bean porridge. He served himself a bowl and sat at the dining table. The red beans, soaked overnight, crumbled at the slightest pressure of his tongue. As he drank the warm porridge, a jumble of emotions filled his heart.

If this keeps up, even an immortal wouldn't stand a chance!

When Wei Zelin came home that evening, the rice cooker was plugged in, a plate of cucumber salad sat on the table, and steam rose from the lid of a clay pot. Shi Yuan had made chicken soup. He liked simmering things; all he had to do was toss the ingredients into a pot. It was easier than stir-frying.

"Xiao Yuan." No one answered.

Wei Zelin knocked twice on Shi Yuan's door. There was no response, and he pressed his lips together.

Shi Yuan normally waited for him to come home so they could have dinner together before he went to work. Clearly, he had fled early today.