Chen Xu’s mind felt like a pot of boiling water, bubbling and churning. He had no idea how he ended up sitting on the balcony with Si Ye.
“Drink some water.” Si Ye handed Chen Xu a glass of warm water. The glass was transparent, and a faint wisp of steam rose from it.
“Thank you, Uncle Si.” Chen Xu accepted the glass cautiously, but his gaze lingered on Si Ye’s hands. Si Ye’s hands were pale and slender, with well-defined knuckles and neatly trimmed nails. They were the kind of hands that would make a perfect model for an artist.
After drinking the warm water, the heat in Chen Xu’s body didn’t subside. His thoughts began to spiral out of control, and his gaze toward Si Ye grew increasingly vacant.
“Knock, knock, knock.” A maid entered, carrying a cake. The cake was small, enough for one person to finish, and it wasn’t particularly elaborate. It couldn’t compare to the grand four-tiered cake downstairs for Si Yi Chen.
Yet, Chen Xu was both surprised and touched.
“For me?” Chen Xu pointed at the small cake in front of him, looking at Si Ye in disbelief.
Si Ye, sitting across from him, nodded calmly. “Yes.”
Chen Xu couldn’t quite describe how he felt. This was the first time someone had given him a cake—a cake that belonged solely to him. It wasn’t a share of Si Yi Chen’s cake, nor was it given out of pity.
Just as Chen Xu was immersed in this surprise and gratitude, Si Ye suddenly inserted two candles into the cake and lit them with a lighter.
After completing these actions, he gave Chen Xu a look. “Make a wish, little one.”
His movements and words were so casual that Chen Xu was momentarily stunned. In reality, Chen Xu’s birthday was on June 1st, Children’s Day, which had already passed. However, since both he and Si Yi Chen had been preparing for the college entrance exams at the time, the birthday celebration had been postponed to today.
Would a wish made now still come true?
Even wishes made on the actual birthday didn’t always come true.
Chen Xu thought sluggishly.
The candlelight reflected on Chen Xu’s fair face, which was flushed from the alcohol. His peach-blossom eyes shimmered with a watery glow.
If his birthday wish could really come true, he hoped that in this life, he would become the most beloved child of the Si family and achieve his revenge as soon as possible.
Since Si Yi Chen cared most about Si Ye, Chen Xu would steal all of Si Ye’s attention. He might not be able to become Si Ye’s heir, but he wouldn’t let Si Yi Chen smoothly take over as the next head of the Si family either.
“Whoosh—” Chen Xu blew out the candles, and the surroundings were briefly plunged into darkness.
“What did you wish for?” Si Ye turned on the balcony light and, at some point, had moved to Chen Xu’s side.
Chen Xu looked up at Si Ye, his gaze unfocused before gradually sharpening.
He stared at Si Ye without blinking. Seeing that Chen Xu wasn’t speaking but was instead gazing at him blankly, Si Ye reached out and touched his forehead. “You’re a bit warm.”
Si Ye’s palm was cool, providing a soothing contrast to Chen Xu’s burning skin. Chen Xu grabbed Si Ye’s hand before it could retreat and buried his face in it, nuzzling against it.
The faint scent of cologne filled his nose—a fragrance that suited Si Ye perfectly, like snow atop a mountain, clean and crisp.
“Uncle Si…” Chen Xu called out softly, his voice sweet and tender, like a crushed liquor-filled chocolate.
Si Ye gazed at him, his expression inscrutable. “Hmm.”
Chen Xu tilted his head in Si Ye’s palm, his watery eyes fixed on Si Ye, innocent yet alluring.
The warm, soft sensation in his palm made Si Ye’s thoughts drift. “Xiao Xu… what did you give me for my birthday this year?”
Perhaps due to the alcohol, Chen Xu’s mind was slow. He paused, thinking seriously for a few seconds before grinning. “A fountain pen.”
Si Ye’s left hand, hanging by his side, clenched into a fist involuntarily, veins bulging as his entire arm trembled.
Si Ye held his breath, quietly watching Chen Xu. His face, usually devoid of emotion, slowly broke into a smile, like ice melting and flowers blooming in spring.
Chen Xu, who had been staring at Si Ye, was stunned. Since he was sent to the Si family by his parents at the age of twelve, he had rarely seen Si Ye smile like this. Most of the time, Si Ye’s smiles were cold or mocking.
He suddenly realized that while he had always thought Si Ye was rigid, he had also always found him strikingly handsome.
Like a pine tree in an empty valley, or moonlight reflecting on a cold river.
“Uncle Si.” Chen Xu straightened up, looking at Si Ye with eyes as bright as stars.
“Hmm.” Si Ye’s expression at this moment could almost be described as tender.
“Give me a birthday gift.”
Si Ye was captivated by his focused gaze, his eyes like those of a puppy, making it impossible to refuse any request. “What do you want?”
Chen Xu leaned forward, his lips parting. “You.”
Si Ye’s smile widened. He lowered his head, his thumb brushing over Chen Xu’s lips. “Little one, do you know what you’re saying?”
Chen Xu’s slightly parted lips gently enveloped Si Ye’s finger. His eyes were clear and pure, like stars in a place untouched by humans.
“Uncle Si, spoil me, okay?”
A drop of sweat slid down Si Ye’s temple. He had never known that this child could be so dangerously alluring.
“Greedy child.”
“If you want a gift, come and take it yourself.”
Chen Xu looked at Si Ye in confusion, his face filled with frustration, as if he didn’t know what to do.
At eighteen, he was still growing, his 178 cm frame slightly thin and youthful. He stumbled into Si Ye’s arms, enveloped by Si Ye’s tall and broad figure. Because of the heat, Chen Xu was only wearing a thin shirt. The custom-made shirt perfectly outlined the beautiful lines of his shoulders and back. As the night breeze blew, it lifted the hem of his shirt, revealing a glimpse of his jade-like waist.
“This is the second time,” Si Ye said in a low voice, his hand gripping Chen Xu’s waist.
Chen Xu looked at Si Ye in confusion. Si Ye lowered his head, meeting his gaze. “This is the second time you’ve thrown yourself into my arms tonight.”
This explanation made Chen Xu’s already flushed face turn even redder.
“I… didn’t mean to.” The softness in his voice made his denial sound even weaker.
Si Ye leaned closer, his eyes capturing Chen Xu’s, which were red at the corners. “Didn’t you want a gift?”
Chen Xu instinctively gripped Si Ye’s arm, his chin lowered as he looked up at Si Ye. His long, thick eyelashes trembled slightly. After a brief pause, he suddenly closed his eyes and leaned in, brushing his lips against Si Ye’s in a fleeting kiss.
—
After the kiss, Chen Xu tilted his head and smacked his lips, as if he hadn’t tasted anything particularly special.
Si Ye suddenly wrapped his arm around Chen Xu’s waist and placed him on the swing chair. He leaned down and said, “This is what a real kiss is like.”
Before Chen Xu could even process Si Ye’s words, he was pulled into a world he had never experienced before. His body felt soft and tingly, as if his soul and body no longer belonged to him. He felt like he was floating on clouds, never wanting to come down.
He didn’t even realize when he had started clinging to Si Ye like an octopus.
By the time Si Ye let go of him, the little guy had already fallen asleep, his lips glistening from the kiss and the corners of his eyes damp.
Si Ye placed a fountain pen into the pocket of Chen Xu’s shirt and gently kissed his forehead. “Happy birthday. Welcome home, my Xiao Xu.”
After carrying Chen Xu into the house and tucking him into bed, Si Ye finally remembered his phone, which had been lighting up and going dark repeatedly for the past hour.
“Bro, you finally decided to answer the phone!” Mo Hang had thought he wouldn’t hear from Si Ye tonight.
“Hmm, what’s up?” Si Ye’s voice sounded unusually cheerful, and Mo Hang could even detect a hint of laughter.
“Did you have a romantic encounter tonight? You sound in such a good mood. Were you held up by a beauty just now?” Mo Hang speculated, but then quickly dismissed the idea. Si Ye lived like an ascetic monk. Even if he did have a romantic encounter, he wouldn’t be happy about it—he’d probably be annoyed.
Si Ye opened the bottle of wine and poured it into a glass, the ice cubes bobbing up and down as the liquid filled the cup.
He took a sip, the strong and domineering flavor overwhelming his taste buds. It reminded him of the sweet, delicious taste of the wine he had tasted from Chen Xu’s lips earlier. It must have been a sweet wine.
Si Ye chuckled and said, “I found a lost little one.”
“Holy crap! You’ve really gone off the deep end!” Mo Hang was genuinely shocked. He hadn’t expected Si Ye to actually turn into a pervert in silence.
“Why don’t you just consider my sister? She video-called me yesterday and told me to ask you if you’re going to marry her this year. She’s ready to fly back from abroad immediately.” Mo Hang had a younger sister named Mo Yao, who had had a crush on Si Ye since childhood. After being rejected by Si Ye, she would ask him every year if he wanted to marry her. She was currently studying abroad.
“No,” Si Ye replied coldly, as always.
“Well, you better be careful, man. I don’t want to hear you singing the ‘Prison Blues’ someday.” Mo Hang was deeply concerned for Si Ye’s future.
“I’m hanging up if there’s nothing else.” Si Ye’s glass was empty, and he was ready to take a shower and go to bed.
“Wait, wait! Don’t hang up! I got everything you asked for. But Si Ye, are you really going to break ties with Mrs. Tao? She is, after all, your mom…” Mo Hang had been shocked when he took those photos. His family and the Si family had been close for generations. He remembered how loving Si Ye’s parents had been when his father was still alive. He never would have thought that Mrs. Tao, now in her fifties, would do something like this.
“I’ll come see you tomorrow.” Si Ye didn’t say more and hung up the phone, heading into his study.
—
When Chen Xu woke up, he felt like his head was splitting open. He really shouldn’t have drunk so much. The hangover was killing him.
As his memories slowly returned, Chen Xu shielded his eyes from the glaring sunlight. He remembered that last night, he had been reborn at the age of eighteen. Then he had punched Si Yi Chen, and Tong Jiaxi had handed him a glass of wine. After that, he had opened a bottle of wine and chugged it down.
He had planned to return to his room but then remembered the “gift” Si Yi Chen had prepared for him, so he didn’t go back.
After that… he seemed to have run into Uncle Si?
Everything after that was a blank. His old habit of blacking out when drunk hadn’t changed, even after being reborn.
He threw off the covers and got up to wash up, only to realize that this wasn’t his room, nor was it a guest room.
Where was he?
Chen Xu pushed the door open and realized he was in Si Ye’s room.
Why had he woken up in Si Ye’s room? If he had slept in Si Ye’s room, where had Si Ye slept?
With a series of questions in his mind, Chen Xu walked downstairs, only to find a group of people looking for him. The moment he appeared, someone rushed up and threw a punch at his face. “Chen Xu, you’re so disgusting!”
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