TYRPSM Chapter20

Nie Yunshen felt like he was listening to a fairy tale—the dark, convoluted kind.

He listened with a furrowed brow for a while, feeling an unusual tightness in his chest. Finally, he spoke up, interrupting Shu An’s detached narration. “When I was working on the Lans Project, I looked into Mr. Huo Qizheng’s marital status. Although I never met Mrs. Huo, the records showed the marriage was still active, she just didn’t hold shares or participate in the business operations. If you don’t mind me asking… is your mother doing okay now?”

Shu An thought for a moment and gave a small smile. “Probably well enough. I haven’t seen her in many years—she’s in New Zealand now. She has permanent residency, and once declared she would never return to China, cutting all ties with everyone here, both her own family and her husband’s.”

“…By herself?”

“Of course not.”

Rich family drama, through and through… Nie Yunshen looked at Shu An with a conflicted expression, unsure if he should press further. On one hand, this was clearly a very private family matter of the Huo family; on the other, he couldn’t stand Shu An’s seemingly nonchalant attitude about it.

What kind of experiences must that child, who once tumbled down the stairs crying for his mother, have gone through to be able to recount such heart-wrenching memories so calmly?

Shu An’s expression remained composed and peaceful as a gentle breeze blew by. After locking eyes for a moment, Nie Yunshen abruptly rubbed his face hard and suddenly spoke, “That photo on your desk, you placed it there on purpose for me to see, didn’t you?”

Shu An’s pupils contracted slightly, though his expression didn’t change. A second or two later, he nodded.

The corner of Nie Yunshen’s mouth pulled back. Resting one hand on the small rattan table between them, he tapped his fingers idly against the surface and continued, “The people in the photo are you and your mother, right?”

Shu An nodded again.

“Regardless of whether I asked, ‘who would hate you,’ you were going to tell me your mother’s story and your unhappy childhood. That photo was just a ready-made catalyst sitting there. Maybe I would have picked it up in front of you, or maybe I would have asked if your elders were home, and so on…”

Shu An curled his lips into a faint smile and refilled Nie Yunshen’s tea.

Nie Yunshen, whose throat was feeling dry, picked up the cup and drained it in one gulp. “I want more.” He said.

After drinking another cup, Nie Yunshen continued his questioning: “But I’m curious, given how meticulously you do things, you shouldn’t have put a newly printed photo in an old frame. If the contrast in age between those two things hadn’t been so distinct, I almost wouldn’t have suspected you did it on purpose.”

He looked at Shu An with total sincerity, settling into a posture that demanded an answer.

“That is the only photo of me and my mother together. It was taken when I was a year and a half old because my grandfather was critically ill at the time; word came out from the ICU that he desperately wanted to see his children. So, my mother had to suppress her disgust and loath to hold me for a single photo.”

Shu An’s choice of words made Nie Yunshen’s chest feel even tighter. He instinctively reached out and patted the back of Shu An’s hand, it was a clear gesture of comfort. Shu An accepted it before turning his hand over to catch Nie Yunshen’s wrist with his thumb brushing against the inner skin in a slow stroke.

A numb sensation shot through Nie Yunshen’s entire body. Regretfully, he tried to pull back, but after one movement, he found himself being held even tighter.

His expression darkened as he watched the guy across from him play out a tragic melodrama while shamelessly acting like a rogue without batting an eye, but Shu An simply smiled and continued.

“My parents had an arranged business marriage. In those kinds of unions, some manage to treat each other with mutual respect, some play their own games, and some simply break apart, it’s all common. It’s just that my mother’s temperament was particularly unyielding. She had someone she loved, but the Shu family hit a crisis back then, and the Huo family stepped in to help. She viewed herself as a womb sold to the Huo family, and after giving birth to me, she demanded a divorce.”

“My father loved her deeply. To make her stay, he was even willing to let me take her surname, but it was no use… so they became a resentful couple, and I was merely a stain on her life.”

“Eventually, they grew tired of the fighting and had enough of the drama. Mrs. Huo gave up everything; she didn’t even insist on the divorce certificate anymore and left without looking back. She abandoned everything, wanting only her freedom.”

“I was one of the pieces of trash she threw away.”

“I was only four when she left. Later, I gradually forgot what she looked like; my only memory was that photo. When I was little, I cried every time I saw it. Later, when I was older, I hated it every time I saw it. During my most painful moment, I tore it to shreds.”

“The fragments were kept hidden in a drawer for many years. Recently, I finally felt able to face them; I tried to piece them together myself, scanned and restore the image, and then printed a new copy.”

“Yes, I put it out specifically for you to see.”

“I am not as perfect as you think, nor am I that formidable or strong. I have been abandoned; the person who brought me into this world hated me, so I am sensitive to and intimidated by the dislike of others. Because of a single sentence from you, I gave up the chance to remain your classmate and applied to go to the UK instead.”

“What I thought in my heart was that we would never see each other again.”

This time, Nie Yunshen remained silent for a long while. The information was overwhelming, and he felt the need for a moment to absorb it and gather his thoughts. Consequently, Shu An stayed quiet as well before letting go of his hand and shifting into a more comfortable position across from him.

After a good long while, Nie Yunshen cleared his throat and started a different topic: “We didn’t finish earlier; the clothes, what happened to it?”

Shu An looked up at him and said, “I took you home. Your parents weren’t there but your elder brother was, and he thanked me. Seeing the mess I was in, he made a polite gesture and asked if I wanted to take a shower and change. I knew it might have just been courtesy, but that was my last chance to be close to you.”

The teenage Shu An stood in the warm yellow light of the Nie family foyer. After Nie Yunqi offered that polite invitation, he hesitated for a moment, then nodded and stepped inside.

Propping up his dead-drunk younger brother, Nie Yunqi pointed toward Nie Yunshen’s bedroom and said, “There’s a bathroom in Er-bao’s room. You’re about the same size; just open the wardrobe and take your pick.”

Shu An said “thank you” and pushed open the door to that bedroom. Behind him, Nie Yunqi dragged his younger brother to his own room to give him a thorough scrubbing and then sent him back to his bedroom. By the time Shu An finished his shower and came out, what he saw was Nie Yunshen sleeping with a pure, harmless expression. His hair was damp, carrying a light, pleasant scent of body wash, and his lips were slightly parted, the philtrum soft and moist.

Nie Yunshen had been staring at Shu An throughout the story. Hearing this, he suddenly raised a hand to signal a pause. He knitted his brows and looked down in thought; Shu An watched him calmly, his expression not wavering in the slightest.

It wasn’t until Nie Yunshen abruptly looked up, causing a tiny tremor in Shu An’s brow, that a sharp gaze pierced through. He looked straight at Shu An and began to speak deliberately.

“The photo was something you purposely put there for me to see, and the admission letter was too—there’s no reason for a ten-year-old document to be mixed in with the official business you’re handling. Don’t tell me you were just feeling nostalgic; given how tidy your room is, you aren’t the type of person to cling to old objects at all.”

“That set of old clothes was also waiting for me to find them. That’s why you intentionally hung the clothes I wore yesterday right at the entrance of the walk-in closet and placed the mirror right by the window. You knew I would go to get clothes to wear and once I was dressed, I’d definitely walk in to check the mirror—making it very easy to spot. Even bringing me back to your house was intentional.”

“Boss Shu, am I right?”

Shu An stared fixedly at Nie Yunshen. In this standoff, Nie Yunshen’s eyes were narrowed, brimming with confidence, while Shu An’s gaze remained focused, calm, and soft. Finally, the corners of Shu An’s lips curled into a smile. He lowered his eyelids, appearing self-deprecated.

“Director Nie is truly discerning; not a single minor oversight can escape you. Yes, everything you saw upon waking was specially prepared by me. Drawing the curtains was so you could sleep well; the photo is my only memory of my mother; that admission letter was something I couldn’t voice ten years ago, but even though times have changed, I still wanted you to know how much I once looked forward to being near you. As for that set of clothes…”

Shu An looked up with a faint smile playing on his face.

“That night, I stood by your bed and watched you for a long time. At first, I couldn’t stop wanting to kiss you, but later, even the courage to reach out and touch you vanished. I could only repeat in my heart over and over, ‘Nie Yunshen, I admire you, I like you. Could you give me a chance? I’ve never been in a relationship, but I’m willing to do anything to make you happy’.”

That voice was gentle and magnetic, and those final few sentences were spoken with such sincere softness that Nie Yunshen’s aggressive gaze unconsciously softened. Amidst the lingering echo of those words, he nearly lost his train of thought only to snap back to alertness with a sudden jolt a few seconds later.

The man across from him was truly terrifying; a few sentences spoken like a hypnotic spell had almost led his mind astray. He ground his teeth slightly and glared at Shu An with little goodwill.

“In other words, you didn’t do a damn thing? You just stood there watching me sleep and played out an entire drama in your own head, right?”

A faint ripple of a smile appeared in the depths of Shu An’s eyes as he looked at Nie Yunshen. After a moment, he gave a quiet “mm” in affirmation. “I thought then that since you liked girls… well, I wished you a smooth life. Leaving you alone was the most I could offer you.”

Nie Yunshen let out a sharp “heh.” He began to tap the tabletop involuntarily in a disorganized rhythm with his fingertips—faster and faster, mirroring his chaotic heartbeat and thoughts, until they came to an abrupt halt and his fingers frozen in mid-air.

He looked straight at Shu An: “You like me, right?”

“Mhm.”

“And because you thought I was straight, you ran off on your own, right?”

“Mhm.”

“Then you came back and found out I actually made a move on you, so you’d rather use schemes and mind games just to get into bed with me, right?”

“Mhm.”

“It’s also no problem if I’m on top and I screw you until you can’t get back up, right?”

“Mhm.”

“You’re willing to do anything to make me happy, right?”

“Mhm.”

Nie Yunshen just stared at Shu An. His string of questions had been logically sharp and fired off with rapid speed, but after that final “Mhm” landed, he stopped. He narrowed his eyes and stared at the man across from him with a look that was bordering on dangerous.

This man’s appearance: perfect. His physique: perfect. His IQ: perfect. His EQ: perfect… no, his EQ went far beyond perfect; he was so cunning and layered that he was practically a fox spirit in human form.

But setting aside the childish prejudices and competitiveness of his “immature” phase, he had to admit, this person was actually very, very remarkable.

The old rival from ten years ago had circled halfway around the world only to sit here now, quiet and gentle, laying out his regrettable childhood, his awkward youth, and his calculating present, offering them all up on a silver platter.

Nie Yunshen felt a complex swirl of emotions. For a moment, he wanted to hug the little “baby” who had fallen down the stairs; then, he wanted to mock the coward who had stood at his bedside, helpless and unsure of what to do. Finally, a smile gradually spread across his face, and while laughing, he called out to the man sitting opposite him.

“Shu An, CEO Shu, Boss Shu, An Ge—”

Nie Yunshen smiled with keen interest and leaned in slightly, his eyes reflecting the face opposite him that seemed as steady as a rock. Even though there was no change in expression, Nie Yunshen pierced right through it and saw that Shu An was actually nervous.

This man appeared practically invincible, yet Nie Yunshen only wanted to kiss his lips.

So, in the next moment, he leaned forward.

He kissed him, soft and moist lips, breath warm and lingering, as if time itself had fermented into wine, spilling like a fragrant cup across the floor.

“Don’t use your mind games on me from now on. You can insult my physical stamina, but you cannot look down on my profession or my intelligence.”

“As you command.”

—The End of the Main Story—