SGSHE57

Three days later.

At the dinner table,

Jing Yongyan looked at his family, all gathered together safe and sound, and a gratified smile spread across his weary face.

Jing Yongyan had been away on an unexpected business trip for the past few days and hadn’t been home.

He glanced at the newest member of the family and said with a smile, “Xinghe, just eat your own food. You don’t need to keep fussing over Heguang.”

As he spoke, Jing Yongyan used the serving chopsticks to pick up some stir-fried meat, a dish Jing Heguang loved, and placed it into Jing Heguang’s bowl.

Looking at his now-full bowl, Jing Heguang thought to himself: Xi Xinghe is truly dedicated to playing the role of the ‘country bumpkin’, half of all professional actors aren’t even this committed!

Yet, there was something rather cute about the way Xi Xinghe acted so meek and attentive, like a shy young bride. It often made Jing Heguang want to laugh, but he couldn’t. Laughing would give the game away.

Xi Xinghe smiled and said, “Dad, you should eat too. Heguang’s bowl is full, that’s definitely enough for him.”

Jing Yongyan nodded, then used the serving chopsticks to put some of Xi Xinghe’s favorite food into his bowl as well.

As a self-made businessman, Jing Yongyan possessed keen observational skills whenever he chose to use them. For instance, he had taken note of exactly which dishes each family member preferred.

After serving Xi Xinghe, Jing Yongyan served Jing Jie, and finally, with a smile, he served a portion to Jiang Shi.

Jiang Shi liked green vegetables. Amidst the other richer dishes, that serving of greens looked rather plain and simple.

Jiang Shi accepted it with a smile, though she was displeased deep down.

The order in which Jing Yongyan served the food struck a nerve with her sensitive and overthinking nature.

It was one thing to serve Jing Heguang first, but even that ‘country bumpkin’ had been prioritized over her own son.

Was it simply because Jing Heguang was the child of his ex-wife that even the stray ‘cats and dog’ brought into the family were treated as more precious than her son, Jing Jie? As Jiang Shi chewed on a piece of all-natural green vegetable, she suddenly felt it had lost its fresh sweet taste.

Xi Xinghe sat beside Jing Heguang, glancing at the serious way Jing Heguang was eating. He decided it was the perfect moment to put their plan into action.

The two had agreed on a scenario: tonight, prompted by Xi Xinghe, Jing Heguang would undergo a shift in behavior, offering the others a glimmer of hope that he might be willing to seek treatment for his psychological issues.

The specific plan went like this: before dinner, Xi Xinghe would order a shrimp dish. Then during the meal, he would pick up a shrimp and mention wanting to eat it, prompting an impatient Jing Heguang to peel it for him.

The nuances of this interaction would demonstrate that Jing Heguang was capable of changing for Xi Xinghe’s sake.

Xi Xinghe picked up a shrimp, placed it into the spot in Jing Heguang’s bowl that had just been cleared, and smiled, saying, “Husband, have some shrimp!”

As soon as the words left his lips, Xi Xinghe thought: Oh no! He had gotten too carried away with his acting and forgot the rule about not calling Jing Heguang ‘busband’ directly.

Jing Heguang was so taken aback by that ‘husband’ that he couldn’t hold back a smile; the corners of his mouth curled upward.

He tried hard to suppress it, but the whole family still saw him smiling.

It was the first time he had smiled at anyone other than Xi Xinghe!

Watching this, Jing Yongyan also smiled.

Jiang Shi, however, was a bit puzzled — had Jing Heguang really fallen for this country bumpkin?

Jing Jie was also a bit bewildered. After a moment of surprise, he put on a happy expression and said, “Big Brother! You smiled!”

Jing Heguang had already regained his composure and nodded with a calm, neutral expression.

Then, he put on gloves, peeled a shrimp, and placed it in Xi Xinghe’s bowl. “Eat it yourself.”

Watching Jing Heguang stubbornly maintain his composure throughout the meal, Xi Xinghe felt a twinge of guilt and said, “Heguang, you’re so kind,” before lowering his head to eat the shrimp.

Jing Yongyan looked at the shrimp in his daughter-in-law’s bowl with great envy.

He wanted to eat shrimp peeled by his eldest son, too!

However, he couldn’t exactly snatch away the shrimp his son had peeled for his daughter-in-law.

Jing Heguang noticed his father’s envious gaze.

His heart softened. Thinking that he had already broken his usual reserve by smiling, peeling one for Jing Yongyan wouldn’t hurt. Therefore, he peeled one for his father as well.

When Jing Yongyan snapped out of his reverie, he realized Jing Heguang had given him a shrimp too!

“Thanks, Heguang. I was just thinking I’d like to have some.”

As he spoke, Jing Yongyan picked up the small shrimp meat and popped it into his mouth. He felt as though he had never tasted a better shrimp in his entire life!

All those shrimp costing thousands or tens of thousands a piece were nothing but gimmicks. His son’s filial piety is the ultimate delicacy.

Thus, as Jiang Shi ate her vegetables, she found them even more tasteless than before.

She put down her chopsticks and said to Jing Yongyan: “Xinghe is a cheerful and good child. He has helped Heguang become more cheerful too. Heguang’s smile just now almost made me tear up!”

Jing Yongyan ate the shrimp and said with emotion: “Actually, I feel the same.”

As he spoke, he peeled a shrimp for Jiang Shi as well. “It’s been hard on you these past few days while I was away.”

Jiang Shi had previously called Jing Yongyan to tell him about her conversations with Xi Xinghe. Seeing the warm rapport between Jiang Shi and his daughter-in-law at the dinner table confirmed exactly what she had told him.

Looking at the shrimp in her bowl, Jiang Shi found it difficult to bring up the subject of getting Jing Heguang medical help.

Although the man played favorites, that was his only real flaw.

Seeing that his mother didn’t say anything, Jing Jie also ate obediently.

***

After dinner, Jing Jie pulled Jing Yongyan aside to ask about business matters, using the opportunity to bond with his father. He had recently started working in the family business, using the alias Jiang Jie to learn the ropes from the ground up.

After chatting with his younger son for about an hour, Jing Yongyan noticed his eldest son emerging from the guest room again.

He mentally counted the days on his fingers.

How long had it been? Why was he still sleeping in the guest room?

Recalling the moment with the shrimp at dinner gave Jing Yongyan the courage to go have a talk with his eldest son.

Seeing Jing Heguang smile that evening had deeply moved him.

That emotion made him greedy for more, he wanted to see his son smile even more often.

Letting his mind wander for a moment, he left his younger son with two questions to ponder and headed upstairs.

***

Jing Yongyan stood outside the guest room where his son was staying, took a deep breath, and knocked on the door.

Dongdong—

Hearing the knock, Jing Heguang walked over and opened the door.

Jing Yongyan looked into the room and asked, “Heguang, dad has something to tell you. May I come in?”

“Yes.” Jing Heguang stepped aside to let Jing Yongyan enter, then closed the door.

The doors in the Jing household were soundproof. Once closed, no noise from outside could be heard.

The guest room is of course not as big as the wedding room where Jing Heguang lives. It is just an ordinary room with a bathroom, it doesn’t even have a table in the room.

Jing Heguang glanced around and seeing nowhere else to sit, said, “Let’s sit on the bed.”

The father and son sat down on the bed, separated by just a shoulder’s width.

Jing Yongyan looked at his son and said, “Dad heard aunt Jiang mention on the phone that you went to the art studio to paint?”

“Mm.”

“It must have been Xinghe who helped you resolve what was weighing on your mind. Dad is so grateful to him!” Jing Yongyan felt a lump in his throat as he spoke. His son, who had been unable to let go of the past, had finally found peace and was willing to step out of the emotional prison that had trapped him.

Jing Heguang felt a similar ache in his heart; his parents had passed away early, and it had been a long time since he had experienced the feeling of being truly cared for by an elder.

Jing Yongyan continued, “Dad has already started investing in relevant medical research. Who knows? Maybe in the future, as technology advances, your eyes could be cured.”

“But it doesn’t matter if they can’t be cured. Although I didn’t come from a privileged background, I’ve built up a family fortune, so you will never have to worry about the future. You can do whatever you want. Dad just wants you to be happy.”

Jing Heguang watched Jing Yongyan as he spoke.

Jing Heguang was a head taller than Jing Yongyan, so while seated, he towered over him. Therefore, he could see the crown of his father’s head, where the newly grown hair was a mix of gray and white.

Yet, in the original owner’s memories, Jing Yongyan’s hair had always been a neat, solid black.

Has this change happened in just the last six months?

As Jing Yongyan spoke, he noticed his son staring at his head. Jing Yongyan touched his hair first, then remembered that he had been so busy that he forgot to dye it!

He smiled awkwardly and said, “Gray hair grows with age. I’ve been so busy lately I forgot to dye it.”

Jing Heguang remarked, “I don’t recall seeing any before.”

Jing Yongyan denied it: “You just didn’t notice it earlier; it’s been there for a long time.”

Jing Yongyan tilted his head back slightly, as if doing so would hide the signs of aging from Jing Heguang’s view.

Jing Heguang thought: He’s probably a liar too.

However, a certain unspoken understanding between men led Jing Heguang to give Jing Yongyan a moment to compose himself.

Jing Heguang picked up the carafe from the nightstand and poured water into two glasses, one for himself and one to hand to Jing Yongyan.

However, Jing Yongyan kept his head tilted back and didn’t look at him.

Jing Heguang called out, “Dad.”

“Ah?” Jing Yongyan responded. Having steadied his emotions, he turned around, though the movement caused his hand to shift as well.

Jing Heguang watched the approaching hand. He could have easily moved the cup out of the way, but, as if by some strange impulse, he didn’t budge.

And thus, the water splashed onto the quilt!

Jing Yongyan watched the water spill. He reached out, but managed only to grab the quilt itself.

He lamented, “My water!”

Seeing his father look as heartbroken as if he’d lost money, Jing Heguang found it amusing and handed over the other cup he was holding: “It’s fine. Here’s another cup.”

Jing Yongyan held the empty cup in one hand and took the new one with the other, saying sadly, “Sigh, dad really is getting old. Back in the day, I definitely would have caught it. I’m really getting old…”

Jing Heguang felt a twinge of guilt toward Jing Yongyan. After all, he was the one who could have dodged it.

He had felt awkward staying in the wedding room before, now the wet quilt seemed like a convenient excuse to leave.

Unexpectedly, this had stirred up melancholy in Jing Yongyan. Jing Heguang took the blame upon himself, saying, “It was my fault for not dodging.”

“How could it be your fault? It was dad who was careless,” Jing Yongyan said, cradling the water and blaming himself. “I went and got your quilt all wet!”

Just as he was thinking about having the housekeeper ready a room, a thought struck him — the same one he’d had earlier when he saw his son heading to the guest room.

If the quilt was wet, wouldn’t his son be able to sleep in the wedding room?

Looking at the way his son and daughter-in-law were acting, it was obvious they were getting along well. They were practically inseparable, just one step away from the final intimacy.

As a father, he really ought to help his son take that final step!

Jing Yongyan picked up the glass of water, took a sip, and said, “I see your quilt is all wet, you’d better go back to your own room to sleep.”

“When Xinghe urges you to see a doctor, it’s because he genuinely wants to build a life with you. He just wants to be with you forever, isn’t that right?”

Knowing his son cared deeply about his partner, Jing Yongyan used his daughter-in-law as a talking point.

“If you go back to being the gentlemanly, considerate, and generous man you used to be, he’ll never want to leave your side! For the sake of your little family, you shouldn’t be afraid of Xinghe bringing up the medical treatment, right?”

As he spoke, Jing Yongyan downed the rest of the water his son had poured and tugged him toward the door. “Come on, don’t feel awkward about going back. Dad will wheel you in. I won’t let you lose face!”

Jing Heguang: ???

Did he actually spill the water on purpose?

The way things looked, it seemed more like Jing Yongyan was the one who had done it on purpose!

***

The wedding room.

Xi Xinghe lay sprawled on the bed, feeling a bit annoyed.

“He ran off again. Do I really have absolutely no sex appeal?”

They’d shared plenty of kisses over the past few days, but when it came to anything else, Jing Heguang behaved with the strict propriety of a monk.

It made Xi Xinghe wonder if Jing Heguang, that heartless man, liked him back anywhere near as much as he liked Jing Heguang.

Xi Xinghe opened Weibo, there was finally an update after a three-or-four-day hiatus.

@LittleHuaChiFromPlanetFlower: A romance from a wealthy family — turns out there’s more to the story than meets the eye.

As soon as this rhyming post appeared, the eager followers, starved for updates, went into a frenzy.

@Kumquat: Ahhh! What kind of turn is this? Little Huachi, you disappeared for so long, only to show us this???

@CatGrass: *Sob*, I’m crying~

@GoldenShadedCat: ??? What is going on? That guy from the wealthy family definitely likes you. Little Huachi, say a bit more — make it clear! My Grass is about to cry!

@Carrot: !! Shocked. Did I accidentally ship a #BadEnding#? I can’t believe it. Things were so sweet before!

@MoneyTree: Little Huachi, hurry up and explain yourself!

@LittleHuaChiFromFlowerPlanet replies: It makes me so mad. He’s so heartless! I’m going to post another Weibo update.

……

@LittleHuaChiFromFlowerPlanet: He is heartless, so I’m going to be a heartless hottie too. Within the next two weeks, I’m going to ruthlessly enjoy this man’s body. Hah.

Xi Xinghe indulged in a bit of ‘edgy-teenager-style’ fake-going-dark on Weibo before finally getting up to take a shower.

He hadn’t even reached the walk-in closet when a knock sounded at the door.

Xi Xinghe’s heart skipped a beat.

The author has something to say: Xi Xinghe: I’m just angry and cowardly.