SGSHE104

Just before the Lunar New Year.

The teachers’ residential building.

Residents along the hallway had already put up Spring Festival couplets and hung small, festive red lanterns, awaiting the arrival of the holiday.

A car pulled up directly in front of the building.

Two people stepped out, bundled up in down jackets and hats that completely obscured their faces.

Walking around to the back, Jing Heguang began unloading bag after bag of items.

Realizing he couldn’t carry it all with just two hands, Jing Heguang asked in surprise, “Xingbao, didn’t you say you were only packing two bags? How did we end up with so much stuff?”

It was like a hamster hoarding food for the winter.

Luan Xing’an lifted down the remaining two boxes, one of ginseng and one of milk, feeling a bit sheepish. “I just felt like I wanted to bring everything, so…” I brought it all.

Jing Heguang said with a resigned smile, “Fair enough. But even if you hadn’t brought all this, my parents would still like you just the same, don’t worry about it.”

Luan Xing’an didn’t believe that for a second, he was nervous.

Brother Jing was an only child, what if his parents tried to tear the couple apart? Luan Xing’an had been worrying about that for quite some time.

He was determined to make a great impression today! He had to win them over.

***

They didn’t linger. After closing the trunk, they picked up their things and headed upstairs.

A neighbor happened to be stepping out his door and was startled to run into two young men whose faces were completely hidden.

Jing Heguang took a step back, and once he recognized the person, he removed his hat and greeted him with a smile. “Oh, uncle Guan! Happy New Year.”

The man laughed. “Heguang! I was wondering who it was, covering your faces in broad daylight like that really gave me a scare.” As he spoke, the man glanced curiously behind Jing Heguang.

Luan Xing’an pulled down his hat and smiled at the man. “Hello, Uncle.”

Jing Heguang said, “This is my partner. I’m bringing him home to meet my parents.”

The man clearly recognized Luan Xing’an. He nodded blankly, then smiled and said, “That’s a handsome young man, and he looks like a good person too. Your parents are home, they’re in for a good life now!”

Jing Heguang thanked him cheerfully and stepped past him toward his own home.

This was the first time Jing Heguang had been to this house.

The original owner had rarely returned after starting university, so he felt somewhat unfamiliar.

***

On the other side of the door.

Inside, a woman was mixing filling while a man rolled out dough.

Father Jing said, “That brat just wanted to latch onto someone powerful and live the high life. Well, he’s finally latched on and he actually remembered to come back…”

Father Jing was somewhat dissatisfied, feeling his son was still the same good-for-nothing sort, lacking a backbone.

He thought about the things he’d seen online.

Jing Heguang flying in a private jet one day, taking out a yacht the next, traveling abroad the day after that…

Father Jing sighed. “That young man and his family seem like decent people; I hope he knows how to cherish his good fortune.”

“Why are you worrying? Heguang has been much more filial these past six months. That complete set of books, thousands of volumes, didn’t your son buy them for you?”

Mother Jing glared at him. “He knows what he’s doing. There haven’t been any scandals in the last six months. He looks like he’s ready to settle down and live a proper life. Starting a family and establishing a career, he’s growing up, he’ll understand things in time.”

Deep down, a mother believes her child isn’t truly bad. Even if he has his flaws, she hopes he’ll change for the better.

Father Jing pursed his lips, thinking his wife’s standards were too low, as if a man not messing around was all that mattered.

He didn’t know about the ‘knowing what he’s doing part’, but he did believe one thing: that young man, Luan Xing’an, was clearly completely wrapped around his son’s little finger.

With a son as shrewd as his, there was no way he wouldn’t have it all calculated out.

Just then, Jing Heguang knocked on the door.

Mother Jing set aside what she was holding, wiped her hands on her apron, and hurriedly called out, “Coming, coming!”

She opened the door to see her son’s arms laden with bags, followed by a fair-skinned young man who was smiling right at her.

Jing Heguang greeted her somewhat awkwardly: “Mom.”

Luan Xing’an said, “Hello, auntie. I’m Xing’an.”

Pleased by his good manners, mother Jing said, “It’s wonderful to have you back. You’ve finally brought Xing’an home! I’ve been looking forward to this for so long. Heguang’s dad is inside rolling out dumpling wrappers right now. Are you hungry? I’ll cook up some dumplings for you.”

Jing Heguang said, “I’m alright.” He turned to ask Luan Xing’an, “Are you hungry?”

Luan Xing’an found the question tricky, so he decided to follow suit: “I’m alright too.”

Mother Jing made the call: “Then we’ll cook a batch for everyone.”

Jing Heguang carried the bags inside, while his mother stepped in to help Luan Xing’an with some of the load.

Once the things were put down, mother Jing smiled and remarked, “Why did you bring so much stuff? There’s hardly any room left for it all!”

Jing Heguang laughed. “Xing’an insisted on bringing it all for you. He kept thinking, ‘we should bring this, and that too’. Even when I told him not to pack so much, he snuck extra items anyway.” Some of the things were redundant and likely wouldn’t even get used.

Luan Xing’an blushed slightly. “I thought they might come in handy, so I brought them along. Auntie, just see what you like. Next time, I’ll bring more of whatever appeals to you.”

Mother Jing was accustomed to seeing young men at school dating, so this didn’t surprise her at all.

Besides, her son had become noticeably more filial since getting a boyfriend, and she attributed this largely to Luan Xing’an’s influence, naturally, she was fond of the polite young man. Mother Jing smiled and said, “That goes without saying, just have Heguang take you along!”

Luan Xing’an thought to himself: I suspect having a sweet tongue is hereditary.

Mother Jing quickly cooked up a bowl of dumplings for the two young men: “Have a bite and some hot soup first. Let me know if you need more.”

Jing Heguang mused, Do all moms, as they get older, love stuffing their kids with food?

It wasn’t just mother Qu, even mother Jing was the same way.

After finishing the dumplings, the two of them went over to help wrap more.

Mother Jing wouldn’t let them lift a finger, refusing with a wave of her hand: “You two just sit. The Wi-Fi password hasn’t changed, have Heguang connected you. Play some games, it’ll be ready soon.”

Luan Xing’an said, “Auntie, let us help. We cook at home too, we both know how to wrap dumplings.”

Mother Jing’s eyes widened in surprise.

Father Jing glanced at Jing Heguang with a look that saw right through everything and laughed: “It makes sense for you to know how, but Heguang definitely doesn’t.”

Mother and father Jing were hardworking, so the original owner had enjoyed a life of leisure. Growing up, he had only ever swept the floor and washed dishes, he had never done any other kitchen work.

It wasn’t that they hadn’t let him try, rather, the original owner, wanting to slack off, would deliberately burn the rice or dump heaps of salt into the dishes, leaving his parents sighing in exasperation.

What they didn’t realize was that, in order to win Luan Xing’an’s favor, the original owner had taught himself to cook.

By the time the current Jing Heguang took over, Luan Xing’an loved his cooking so much that he had even sought out a mentor to learn more during his free time, making his skills even better!

Likewise, in Luan Xing’an’s eyes, Jing Heguang was the best cook around.

Luan Xing’an said earnestly, “Uncle, you’re being too modest! Brother Jing’s cooking is so good, I have to work out every day just to keep from gaining weight.”

Seeing the sincerity on Luan Xing’an’s face, father Jing was dumbfounded. He glanced at Jing Heguang, silently asking a question with his eyes.

Jing Heguang took the rolling pin from his hand, dusted his fingers with a bit of flour, picked up a small ball of dough, and in just a few quick motions, rolled out a perfectly thin, round dumpling wrapper.

Father Jing: !!!

There were plenty more surprises in store for father Jing. He realized that whenever his son was home, he lost his status as the undisputed ruler of the kitchen.

— His son’s cooking was actually better than his own!

***

After spending half a month at the Jing family home and meeting a host of relatives and friends, Jing Heguang finally took Luan Xing’an back.

The first thing on the agenda upon their return was a get-together.

The director organized a group dinner for everyone, and quite a few people said they’d attend, naturally, that included Jing Heguang and Luan Xing’an.

With one being a head mentor and the other the top-ranked trainee, and the two having become a couple during the show, it would be unthinkable for them not to show up.

They gathered in a large private room at a hotel.

With forty or fifty people together, the atmosphere was lively and boisterous.

The trainees hadn’t seen each other in over six months, thus close friends sat together catching up, and the energy was electric.

Right in the middle of the chatter, the director ushered Jing Heguang and Luan Xing’an inside.

The group immediately started teasing them: “Teacher Jing has brought his partner along!”

“Nonsense, it’s little brother Xing’an bringing his boyfriend along~”

Buzz-cut bro just smiled silently. He wasn’t about to spout nonsense about his boss and his boss’s other half, what if his pay or bonus got docked? Just last month, Manager Chen had been wailing about the boss cutting his bonus.

In the end, buzz-cut bro had signed with Jing Heguang. Working for Jing offered the most freedom and a guaranteed base salary, exactly the kind of life he’d dreamed of.

Jing Heguang smiled too. He had a good rapport with these young guys, or else they wouldn’t be teasing him so freely.

Most of the trainees had arrived, along with a few key staff members. Of the four mentors, only Chu Chu was missing. She was stuck in the grind of promotional events, running around so much her legs were practically getting thinner.

As the drinks flowed, someone pulled two packs of spicy gluten snacks, latiao, out of their pocket.

“The spicy strips teacher Jing recommended are seriously good. The only thing is, they don’t turn my lips red when I eat them. Hehe, I guess I can handle the heat!”

Jing Heguang glanced over, the snacks looked familiar.

Luan Xing’an took one look and blushed.

It wasn’t the spicy strips that turned lips red, it was clearly from brother Jing’s kisses.

Maybe…this guy would understand once he finally got a partner of his own?

Of course, there were people who did know, like our friend buzz-cut bro.

After the meal, there was naturally a group photo. Once everyone posted it online, it sparked another wave of nostalgic memories.

May youth remain beautiful year after year, and may no one be missing from the group.

***

Among that cohort of trainees, quite a few went on to become famous later.

But the biggest star of them all was, of course, Luan Xing’an.

He possessed top-tier songwriting talent, maintained a positive and passionate mindset, and enjoyed a ceaseless flow of creative inspiration.

The only thing that gave Luan Xing’an a headache was the constant urging from the ‘Light Clusters’ (Jing Heguang’s fanbase), Jing Heguang simply refused to release any more original songs.

In the end, Luan Xing’an had to agree to Jing Heguang’s terms: he would write the music and have it credited to his own name, while Jing Heguang would handle only the vocals.

At first, Jing Heguang’s fans were naturally reluctant to accept his decision to stop releasing original material, he even lost a number of followers over it.

However, as time passed, the Light Clusters eventually came to terms with it.

Since he was still singing and sounding just as wonderful as ever, the fans were content to keep listening.

It wasn’t until another five or six years had gone by that Jing Heguang finally stepped forward with a song he had written himself, marking his return to releasing original music.

This time, it was a truly original work. Jing Heguang had penned both the lyrics and the melody.

The quality was impressive, particularly the lyrics, which captured a concise, classical charm.

After uploading the song, Jing Heguang embraced Luan Xing’an. “Xingbao, I can write songs for you now, too.”

Luan Xing’an was deeply moved and hugged him tight. “You’re the only one I want.” You are more important than any song.

Only Luan Xing’an knew just how hard Jing Heguang had studied over those five or six years.

To sum up Jing Heguang’s efforts in a single phrase: he had even earned his doctorate!

Just as Luan Xing’an was feeling deeply touched, a pair of hands began to wander.

Luan Xing’an: ???

Luan Xing’an asked, “Brother Jing, what are you doing?”

Jing Heguang: “…You?”

Luan Xing’an: “Didn’t you say you were going to write a song for me?”

Jing Heguang: “Didn’t you say you wanted me?”

Luan Xing’an thought about it, it seemed…well, it seemed brother Jing wasn’t wrong.

Afterwards.

Luan Xing’an touched Jing Heguang’s abs, looking envious: “Brother Jing, you don’t even specifically work out your abs, so how do you have them? And a full eight-pack, too! Eight of them!”

Jing Heguang smiled and planted a kiss on him: “Then let’s do more ‘exercising’ in the future.”

Luan Xing’an: “…” He had a feeling there was a hidden meaning behind those words.

He had changed. He was no longer that little dummy who didn’t know where to add the zero to ‘520,000’.

Thinking of this, Luan Xing’an transferred 5.2 million to Jing Heguang as he lay back in bed.

Jing Heguang: ???

Xingbao was definitely dropping a hint!

And so, the water that had just been ‘conserved’ was soon put to use all over again.

Author’s Note: Posted early today.

The next story will be about a general and an opera singer.

My ideas for the shadow guard story were a bit jumbled—I couldn’t quite sort them out—so I decided to let the general’s story cut in line instead.

T/N: This world is over! (つ≧▽≦)つ