He returned, muddleheaded, to the dormitory. On the way, his phone sounded twice with bank transfer notifications.

  Lin Jiang didn’t want to look and threw his phone onto the table. His head was filled with the assertive kiss from Gu Ming Ren earlier. It was different from the two times in high school. At that time, he was repelled by it, feeling uncomfortable and disgusted to the point that he wanted to wash out his mouth and brush his teeth.

  But this time after his mouth was pried open and the other boy’s tongue slipped in, he wasn’t opposed to it like he imagined he would be. He had made a show of resistance before yielding and allowing him to have his way and even had the impulse to kiss him back.

  Lin Jiang walked into the bathroom and patted cold water onto his face in an attempt to clear his head a little.

  He couldn’t like Gu Ming Ren. They would never work out.

  Lin Jiang understood this very clearly.

  When Hao Meng returned, he had a dozen cans of beer with him. After being lied to by ‘First-Year New Student’, he was really hurt and had not recovered after an afternoon. Beneath his tall and powerful appearance, his frail and immature mind had received a strong blow, so he decided to drink a little to numb himself.

  “Lin Jiang, are you coming?”


  Drinking alone wasn’t as good as drinking with someone, so Hao Meng sent his only roommate an invitation.

  Lin Jiang had just been worrying about how to rid himself of this damn feeling. In the end, there were a dozen cans of beer here.

  He didn’t bother with politeness and pulled up a stool to sit beside Hao Meng. With one hand, he opened the can skillfully and poured the refreshing beer into his throat. Very quickly, it was empty.

  Hao Meng was stunned. “Bro, are you the heart-broken one or am I?” Why was he drinking more vigorously than him?!

  Lin Jiang was about to open the second can when Hao Meng held his wrist down. “Wait a minute, I haven’t brought out the snacks yet!” He was a refined and masculine uke who paid a lot of attention to rituals!

  Hao Meng took out a box of stewed pig ears, two bags of fried peanuts and his hometown’s fried twisted dough. Then, he turned on his laptop and played some high energy comedic dialogue. After Hao Meng had done all this, he turned to Lin Jiang and said, “Let’s start!”


  Lin Jiang: “.……”


  Alright…… the fastidiousness of Tianjin people.

  He went along with Hao Meng and picked up two peanuts with his chopsticks to throw them into his mouth. Then he drank beer while watching the dialogue.

  As he watched, he saw the graceful figure of the handsome lead comedian twisted at the waist, moaning and groaning. Beside him, the supporting comedian couldn’t continue watching and stopped him, saying, “Did someone do something to your behind?”


  Lin Jiang almost spat out a mouthful of cold beer. Even this fucking world of comedic dialogue had started to tell rotten jokes?

  Pleased with himself, Hao Meng laughed and said to him, “How is it? Interesting?” Lin Jiang let out a “hur hur” sound in response.

  Among the dozen cans of beer, Lin Jiang drank eight cans while Hao Meng drank four. In the end, the heart-broken one didn’t sleep while the one who wasn’t heart-broken had a good sleep.

  Lin Jiang even had a dream.

  In the dream, he was making a fuss and insisted on propping himself on Gu Ming Ren’s neck, with his legs framing his face. Instead of being angry, Gu Ming Ren looked at him with smiling eyes. After that, he sweet-talked him into a good mood and made him laugh.

  At the end of the wonderful dream, Lin Jiang woke up drenched in sweat.

  He sat up abruptly, his heart still beating as fast as it was in the dream, thumping rhythmically.

  Hao Meng looked at him with dark circles under his eyes. “Did you have another nightmare?”


  Lin Jiang swallowed and wanted to say that it was a wonderful dream but it was even more frightening than a nightmare!

  He rushed to take a shower and fled to the milk tea shop to work.

  Although he was financially comfortable now, it was difficult to be sure what would happen in the future. Lin Jiang felt that it was time to plan his life.

  The same two girls as the last time were there and they ordered the same two cups of milk tea. Even their topic of conversation was a continuation of their last.

  “Little sis, Gu Ming Ren is gay, do you know?”


  “
…… I know, last evening at University A’s school gate, he announced to the whole world that he was gay.”


  “It’s a pity you don’t have a little chicken or you’ll have a chance.”


  “
…… if I go to Thailand now, would I still be in time?”


  Lin Jiang’s face was filled with black lines. Looking at the two pretty girls, he never expected that their conversation to go beyond the normal scope of things.

  “Then who was the girl I saw that time at Moon Lake?”


  “Cannon fodder!”


  “No, it could be that class grass Gu Ming Ren is into both men and women. Two-timing.”


  “You can insult me but you cannot insult my male god!”


  The two girls started arguing and in the end, they knocked over their milk teas. Lin Jiang had no choice but to go over and clean it up.

  He wore the milk tea shop’s black cap which obscured part of his face and hid his perplexed eyes. He had almost forgotten about this. Who was the girl at Moon Lake?

  Lin Jiang was restless and brought that feeling with him to his afternoon class. He didn’t even know that Gu Ming Ren had sat next to him.

  It was another lesson in a large classroom which was filled with people. When Lin Jiang realised and wanted to change his seat, Gu Ming Ren held onto his wrist. “Where are you going?”


  Lin Jiang didn’t dare to look at him and stammered, “I’m going to the toilet.”


  Gu Ming Ren released him and let him go. His eyes were fixed on the hastily fleeing back and his heart sank slowly.

  As expected, he didn’t come back.

  Since Lin Jiang skipped the class, he had time to spare but didn’t know where to go.

  He sat behind a secluded teaching block, pondering what was going on and what he was so afraid of.

  For two weeks, he hid from Gu Ming Ren. Neither did the other boy didn’t show up in front of him. His life suddenly calmed down but only Lin Jiang himself knew whose face he was thinking of and whose hurt expression he was worrying over in his dreams every night.

  During the seven-day National Day holidays, Hao Meng returned to his hometown, leaving Lin Jiang alone in the dormitory.

  Lin Jiang had nowhere to go. His eyes were fixed on his phone while he browsed, but Gu Ming Ren’s call never came.

  When he was busy, he could restrain himself from thinking about him. But now that he was free, he could only feel that the other boy had already taken root in his heart.

  Lin Jiang got out of bed and took a taxi.

  In front of the apartment door, he ran into Gu Ming Ren who was about to leave and they startled each other.

  Gu Ming Ren had promised Li Yan he would go back, so he locked the door and didn’t invite Lin Jiang in.

  Lin Jiang looked at him, his gaze shifting slightly and said in a low voice, “I want to do it.” Gu Ming Ren’s hand, which held his keys, shook and he sneered, “Ran out of money?”


  After avoiding him for over half a month then suddenly appearing, saying he wanted to do it, Gu Ming Ren couldn’t think of any other reason to explain the boy’s behaviour.

  Like a basin of cold water had just been poured over his head, Lin Jiang was drenched and his heart trembled. With a hoarse voice, he said, “Yeah, spent it all.” Gu Ming Ren felt that he was really depraved. Of all the people to like, he had to like such an immature and ungrateful person.

  He gritted his teeth and controlled his expression while he kept his keys in his pocket, then said in a detached manner, “I’m not free today. Another time.”


  Lin Jiang watched with an empty heart as he turned to leave.

  Covering his face with his hands, he leaned against the closed door of the apartment, squatting down slowly.

  He felt like he had done something stupid.

  With a wooden expression, Gu Ming Ren entered the elevator but couldn’t press the button. His chest seemed to be filling with water, making him feel so congested that it hurt.

  Seeing that the elevator door was about to close, he scolded himself for being shameless while he ran out earnestly.

  Seeing the boy squatting at his door, Gu Ming Ren’s heart softened into a pool of mud……

  He reached out a hand to pull Lin Jiang up, then opened the door and pushed him inside. Lin Jiang staggered for a moment, surprised that the other boy had come back.

  “What are you doing? Take it off.” Gu Ming Ren stared at him with obvious anger in his eyes. He was angry at himself for not being resolute. The other boy crooked a finger and he surrendered without a backbone.

  Lin Jiang undid his pants and looked unfeelingly at his naked self. He was carried into the room by the other boy with reddened eyes.

  When he got worked up, Lin Jiang panted and asked him, “Have you done it with anyone else?” Gu Ming Ren left a lingering kiss on his neck, then replied in a low voice, “No.”


  Lin Jiang took the initiative to kiss him on the mouth. After half a month of repressed feelings, Gu Ming Ren was so excited that he could not extricate himself, wishing that he could consume him whole.

  “Do you……do you like women?”


  He was especially talkative today and wasn’t normally like this.

  Gu Ming Ren took note of this but didn’t answer the question and just kept doing him desperately, tormenting Lin Jiang within an inch of his life.

  After that, Lin Jiang lay on the bed, his eyes despondent and his heart still empty.

  Gu Ming Ren looked at the time. He had to go.

  Before he left, he transferred money to Lin Jiang.

  Looking at the transfer on his phone, Lin Jiang thought back to his original plan to only regard the relationship between the two of them as a transaction. Now, the other boy had clearly handled the matter like a transaction but instead, he felt cold.

  He was probably reaping what he sowed.

  Lin Jiang got up and asked Gu Ming Ren, “Can I stay here for these few days? There’s nobody in the dormitory.”


  Gu Ming Ren was stunned for a moment. “Up to you.”


  He couldn’t figure out what Lin Jiang was up to, but he had to go back today.

  After Gu Ming Ren left, Lin Jiang remained in the bed. The bed was dirty, caused by their descendants.

  He had no choice but to change the sheets, then continue sleeping.

  Gu Ming Ren was distracted at home. Li Yan peeled an apple for him and tried to tease him, “Has baby gotten a girlfriend? The person is back but his heart does not seem to have returned.”


  Gu Ming Ren suddenly came back to the present. His eyes dulled and he said, “No, the person doesn’t like me.”


  Li Yan was a protector. There was actually someone who didn’t like her son?! She was so angry that she ate the apple herself and said indignantly, “Which family’s girl has her sights set so high that she doesn’t even like you?”


  Looking at the children of the same age group in City A, she felt that her family’s baby was the best. Although everyone said that the second son of the He family outshone her baby, in Li Yan’s eyes, purely based on obedience, He Cheng Ming couldn’t compare to Gu Ming Ren.

  “I’m kidding.”


  Gu Ming Ren placated his mother and didn’t continue the topic.

  The Gu family was the typical blissful family. Father Gu was responsible for making money to support his family, while Mother Gu’s responsibility was to be as beautiful as a flower. The two of them had been married for twenty years, loved each other throughout and loved Gu Ming Ren even more.

  They taught Gu Ming Ren well — not to be excessive or hot-tempered and to always put responsibility first since childhood.

  Gu Ming Ren also constantly kept his status in mind. When his parents showed their trust in him, he returned their filial love.

  The Gu family was harmonious, unlike the He family which was riddled with problems. Adding He Cheng Ming’s coming out to it didn’t affect a whole lot.

  Gu Ming Ren had always been under great pressure. Outside, he couldn’t get the love of Lin Jiang while at home, he was swept away by warmth everywhere. He had decided to give Lin Jiang up countless times but after that, he would feel an endless abyss, more painful than he could imagine.

  His phone vibrated and he received a message:

  The sender: Lin Jiang