An Yubei sat obediently on the little stool, raising his hands to massage Ji Shang's temples.
He felt that Ji Shang was very tired today, weariness radiating from his whole body.
Perhaps looking for him had worn him out.
Actually, An Yubei was very happy that Ji Shang had gotten angry today over not hearing from him.
Because someone truly cared about him now.
He had grown up in an orphanage, and what he had lacked most was care and affection.
What he usually experienced was indifference and insincere concern.
He longed for family, friendship, and every emotion that brought people joy.
Now he had them all.
An Yubei whispered beside Ji Shang's ear, "Big brother, does that feel good?"
The voice beside his ear was soft, and warm breath brushed against it, inexplicably making it tickle.
That tingling sensation felt a hundred times better than the massage.
Ji Shang gave a quiet hum. "It does."
Ji Shang leaned against the edge of the bathtub, enjoying himself like an emperor of old, while An Yubei was the little eunuch attending him.
An Yubei put more effort into the massage. "Then, big brother, are you still angry?"
Ji Shang caught An Yubei's wrist, stopping him. "That's enough. No more massaging. Your hands will get sore."
"Go back and rest, Xiao Bei. I'm not angry."
"Really?"
"How could I bear to be angry with you? Whatever happens from now on, tell me. I'll back you up."
"Thank you, big brother."
His heart full of emotion, An Yubei blinked, his gaze falling on Ji Shang's muscular chest.
Big brother has such a great body. Those big pecs must feel amazing.
How did he build them? I never see him working out.
I really want to touch them.
Ji Shang couldn't help laughing. This little brother of his really was adorable, and the things in his head were rather interesting too.
"I really am not angry. I'll never be angry with you, Xiao Bei," Ji Shang emphasized again.
An Yubei smiled, revealing his little canine teeth. "Thank you, big brother."
But what do I do if I still want to touch them? Will big brother think I'm a pervert?
While he was still hesitating over how to say it, Ji Shang spoke first. "Look how scrawny you are. Feel my pecs. Aren't I a bit more muscular than you?"
"Xiao Bei, you need to eat more."
It's like big brother knows what I'm thinking. He anticipated it before I could say anything.
Hearing this, Ji Shang stiffened.
If I can't figure it out, I won't think about it. Big brother's pecs really do feel nice.
The firm, taut muscles were as hard as steel plates. Though they were all flesh, all parts of the body, Ji Shang's muscles were more impressive and more appealing.
"Big brother, let me work out with you from now on. I want to get strong too, so I can protect you and Dad."
Ji Shang lifted his eyelids slightly and asked with interest, "Protect me?"
An Yubei nodded very seriously. "Yes, protect you. I want to work hard to become strong and protect everyone I care about."
"All right. I'll wait for you to get strong and protect me."
An Yubei truly envied Ji Shang's physique, so he said very earnestly, "Big brother, let's go running together tomorrow morning!"
An Yubei had always worked overtime before and had no time to exercise at all. He never got enough sleep, let alone had the energy to do anything else.
Now that he had more free time, he ought to pay attention to exercise.
He was going to get up early!
He was going to exercise!
"All right. I'll come wake you up tomorrow."
An Yubei nodded vigorously, then yawned and said, "Big brother, I'm going back to sleep."
"Good night, Xiao Bei."
"Good night, big brother."
An Yubei returned to his bedroom and fell straight into a sound sleep.
A little after six the next morning, Ji Shang got up and came to wake An Yubei, but no matter what he did, An Yubei wouldn't wake.
An Yubei had his legs wrapped around the quilt and his head resting on it too, sleeping very soundly.
Ji Shang sat beside the bed, suddenly feeling a little reluctant to wake him.
"Xiao Bei, do you still want to go running?"
Bracing a hand on the edge of the bed, Ji Shang leaned down slightly and poked An Yubei's slightly fleshy cheek.
Feeling the tickle, An Yubei gave a little grumble but still didn't open his eyes.
"Xiao Bei? Xiao Bei?"
The repeated calls brought An Yubei around. He blinked and saw Ji Shang sitting beside his bed.
"Big brother, what are you doing here?"
Dazed with sleep, he had already forgotten what he had said last night.
Ji Shang bent a little lower, leaning close to An Yubei. "Didn't you say you wanted to go running with me? I came to wake you up."
An Yubei stretched and lay flat on the bed. "What time is it?"
"It's six," Ji Shang said.
An Yubei rolled onto his side and closed his eyes again. "Six in the evening? Since it's so late, let's not go."
"It's six in the morning."
An Yubei whined, saying discontentedly, "Why is it light out? It doesn't care at all whether I'm sleepy."
"I'm filing a complaint against the sun. It gets light too early."
Why did it have to get light so early every day? No one was watching it. It was fine to slack off once in a while.
Grandpa Sun should go get some rest. He was going to rest too.
"Big brother, it's really not that I don't want to go. The bed's pull is just too strong. I can't quite get up. Wait a little longer. Give me five more minutes to work up to it."
Ji Shang smiled helplessly and stopped trying to wake An Yubei.
An Yubei's five minutes stretched all the way to nine.
By the time he had slept enough and got up, Ji Shang was nowhere beside him.
He looked around in confusion and immediately spotted the gleaming gold bars piled in the room.
The gold bars were stacked as neatly as building blocks in the room, their gleam even a little dazzling.
An Yubei got out of bed in disbelief, picked up a gold bar, and hefted it in his hand. Judging by the feel, he estimated it weighed about one kilogram.
An Yubei crouched down and patiently counted them. There were a full five hundred.
Five hundred gold bars.
Just then, the phone beside the bed rang.
An Yubei stood and walked over, finding an unfamiliar phone. His own phone had shattered, and he hadn't bought a new one yet.
The caller ID read "Dear big brother." An Yubei tentatively answered, and Ji Shang's voice came through.
"I heard from Lao Wang that you're still in bed. You can't sleep in too much, Xiao Bei. It's time to get up and eat breakfast."
A tender spot in An Yubei's heart was touched, and he said softly, "Big brother, I'm already up. I'm counting gold bars right now."
Ji Shang chuckled softly, his voice indulgent. "Having fun counting?"
"Yes!" An Yubei asked, "Big brother, are all these for me?"
"Yes. They're for you to play building blocks with, Xiao Bei."
Didn't he just give me two hundred million?
Ji Shang: "...?"
What was that about a hundred million?
Although he didn't know what that meant, he was now certain that An Yubei liked gold.
He could give him more next time.
He might as well build him a house of gold. Keeping a beauty in a golden house suited An Yubei quite well.
"Xiao Bei, hurry and have breakfast."
"I know, big brother." An Yubei added, "Thank you, big brother. I really love it."
Who didn't like gold?
An Yubei liked being an ordinary, materialistic person.