Chapter 38

Chu Yunhan said a lot of love words. In the past they were all directed at girls and used to sway their hearts and make their faces blush with spring. Then he would kiss them. If the kiss grew passionate, he would let nature take its course and engage in joyful affairs. It was an easy drive on a familiar path he had plenty of experience in. 

    

But now the other party was a man, and with regard to the distribution of roles, the other party was the one on top. That confession had used up all of his courage, and the kiss made his whole body go soft. His mind was in a mess and he didn’t know what to do next. When he felt the fingertips of the other party gently stroke the corners of his eyes, he slowly opened them, only to find out that Chu Yichen was looking at him. He blushed in embarrassment and said dryly, “I’m hungry. Let’s have breakfast, okay?”

    

“Okay,” replied the man.

    

Chu Yunhan waited for a long time, but the other party didn’t move. He couldn’t help blinking blankly. 

    

“The door is too narrow, you have to let me go before we can get out.” Chu Yichen’s lips stretched into a smile, his eyes full of tenderness.

    

The tips of Chu Yunhan’s ears turned red, and he quickly withdrew the hands wrapped around the other party’s waist. He stepped back, intending to flee, but paused, and said, “I… I don’t want to go to work today…”

“Okay.”

“Then I’ll…accompany you today, okay?” he anxiously reached out for a yard after taking an inch.

    

“Good.” The man’s attitude was almost pampering.

    

At the round table, two people were sitting on the left and on the right with a little girl in between. While nibbling on a steamed dumpling, Chu Yunhan couldn’t help but secretly look at Chu Yichen. When he met his eyes, his face turned red like a traffic light.

Yuanyuan looked at him worriedly and asked,  “Uncle Han, did you catch a cold? Do you have fever? Why is your face so red?” Because she was living with two “Uncle Chu”s, to make it easier to distinguish, she conveniently changed to calling Chu Yunhan “Uncle Han” and the other uncle – “Uncle Chen”.

    

Seeing the corners of Chu Yichen’s lips curl up in amusement, he replied embarrassed, “No, I’m just a little hot.”

    

Yuanyuan uttered an “oh” and continued eating obediently. When she had eaten her fill, Chu Yunhan, who wanted to send her to kindergarten, walked to the door only to find the driver, Zhao, already waiting by the car. He said, “Young Master said you didn’t rest well last night. Let me drive.”

 

That person was always very attentive to him. Moved, Chu Yunhan nodded and got into the car. When he returned, he discovered that Chu Yichen hadn’t gone to the company either, but had temporarily decided to handle official matters in the study. Hei Yu, Bai Xiao, Lan Xue, Qing Feng and many other high-ranking cadres of the Black Hawk Club were also there, sitting in a circle on the sofa in the study, discussing something.

    

As soon as he walked in, the study instantly fell silent. Several pairs of eyes swept over at the same time, many of them glaring with hostility. Chu Yunhan realized that it was because he had put the young master they loyally defended in danger several times and was even responsible for his scars. If it hadn’t been for Chu Yichen to stop them, these people would have torn him into pieces and fed them to the dogs. Not speaking up to chase him away at this moment was already considered giving him face. Feeling somewhat awkward, he said, “You talk, I’ll first…”

    

“Didn’t you say you’ll accompany me today?” The man looked up from the file, patted the place next to him naturally, and said, “Come here.”

    

At this moment, all eyes filled with surprise, and even Hei Yu, who had always been expressionless, slightly opened his mouth in astonishment and exchanged glances with Bai Xiao. Bai Xiao curled up his lips, looked at Chu Yunhan with a smile, and remained silent.

    

He stiffened his neck, walked over, and hesitated. The sofa was for three people and Chu Yichen was sitting in the middle, with no intention to move. This meant that no matter which side he chose, he would have to sit next to him. Chu Yunhan’s face grew hot again and he sat down to the left. His heart was jumping like a rabbit, but he still pretended to be nonchalant, and said, “You guys are discussing classified information, it’s not right for me to hear it.”

    

“I have nothing to hide from you,” Chu Yichen said lightly and turned to Hei Yu, “Go on.”

    

Hei Yu paused, before continuing talking about the matter of taking over the Sheng family’s site in J City. Chu Yunhan didn’t hear a single word. Stirred up by that sentence, his heart was jumping in confusion like a steamed shrimp.

He had thought he was good at sweet talk and coaxing. 

    

He never expected that when it came to sweet talk, this man could be the death of him… His own puny skills were really not worth mentioning.

    

He was so excited to be by his side that he flipped through the information Chu Yichen gave him, but couldn’t read a single word. Just sitting side by side, the rubbing of their clothes, the bumping of their elbows, the accidental meeting of their eyes distracted him.

    

Chu Yichen had to deal with a lot of things, and he hardly took a break from morning to noon. He hadn’t slept well the night before, so he ordered Du Chuan to bring a cup of hot coffee. Chu Yunhan furrowed his brows and intercepted, “Don’t drink that!”

    

This remark was a bit abrupt. Seeing everyone looking at him, he blushed slightly, and added softly, “It’s not good for your body.”

    

The man smiled, his thin lips stretched into a beautiful curve, and he said, “Okay, change it to tea.”

    

He smiled with so much pampering connotation, it made Chu Yunhan feel as if he was in the steamer basket of a heated  stove and his whole body was about to catch fire, and he hurriedly found a reason to flee, “I’ll go out to make a phone call…” Throwing his helmet and armor, he ran away from the study.

    

Seeing both of them acting like this, the subordinates already grasped the situation and couldn’t help sighing in their hearts, “The sago palm is really blooming.” After tactfully reporting the important matters, they hurriedly withdrew, leaving the afternoon time to their young master, who had a hard time in love.

    

After having lunch, the two took a short walk in the yard. When passing by the pond, afraid that Sao’er would come out again, Chu Yunhan coughed dryly, “Let’s go back.” Chu Yichen didn’t say a word, but grabbed his hand.

    

The slender fingers and dry palm warmed his hand and even seemed to calm his heart.

    

Then he walked ahead pulling him along.

    

Just like in their childhood.

    

At this moment, Chu Yunhan could almost see two children walking by the small pond, holding hands and laughing. He was deeply moved. He held the other party’s hand, their fingers intertwined, like a lock that couldn’t be opened. When they returned to the door, neither of them let go of the other’s hand and they walked inside holding hands under the gazes of the staff. Chu Yunhan felt that after today, his face had become thicker, and, simply going all out, said blushing, “I’m a little sleepy, would you…would you like to lie down with me for a while?”

    

“Okay.” Chu Yichen was like a doting parent pampering his child – the word “okay” was the one he used most today.

    

Both of them were afraid that the other one was tired, so they were very harmonious.

    

There was a faint smell of sandalwood in the master bedroom, which had a calming effect. But now that the two of them were lying side by side, Chu Yunhan’s heart was pounding wild. How could he possibly calm down? He was afraid of disturbing the other party, so he forced himself to lie still like a corpse.

    

“If you are like this, I won’t be able to sleep either.” Chu Yichen smiled helplessly, turned to one side, and said, “Turn around.”

    

Under the blanket, Chu Yunhan turned around, facing the man. He caught a glimpse of a layer of skin exposed under the neckline, and was overcome with regret when he thought of the whip he had lashed. He touched the place lightly with a probing hand that was caught right away.

    

“Do you want it?” Chu Yichen asked.

    

Chu Yunhan was stunned for a moment, before realizing what the other party meant. A burning blush spread across his face, and he replied in a muffled voice, “No.” Then he said softly, “Let me see… Okay?”

    

He wanted to see those scars.

    

The man was silent for a while, then pulled the blanket up, completely covering their heads. Then he grabbed his outstretched hand and pressed it gently on the top button of his pajamas.

    

The entire world was reduced to the two people under the blanket. 

    

It was pitch black before his eyes, and all Chu Yunhan could feel was the light regular breathing of the other person and the warmth of his body through the clothes. He fumbled, undoing the buttons one by one, and then touched–

   

A naked, scorching hot, scarred chest.

    

His movements halted for a moment, his hands trembled, and in the dark, he caressed Chu Yichen’s chest inch by inch, carefully touching every uneven scar. His fingertips repeatedly traced the deep scars, as if he could feel the bone-piercing pain pass to his own body. When touching it with his hands, every scar became a sin mark engraved on his heart, an indelible reminder of the mistakes he had made.

Chu Yunhan lay his palm on the gunshot wound on his chest, just like Zhang Jun had done it previously. Beneath the skin, muscles, and bones, there was a heart beating.

    

Again and again. 

    

Fortunately, this person was still alive.

    

Fortunately, this person was still by his side.

    

Moisture filled Chu Yunhan’s eyes. He pressed his lips together and leaned over to embrace him. He hugged him tightly, like an animal that was about to be washed away by the flood, clinging tightly to the only driftwood, afraid to let go. He asked, choked with emotions, “Does it still hurt…”

    

“It doesn’t hurt anymore.” As soon as Chu Yichen spoke, he felt something wet on his chest. He reached out to touch Chu Yunhan’s head and said, “It’s all in the past.”

    

The fluffy head in his embrace trembled, accompanied by the sound of sniffling.

“Sleep.” The man wanted to pull down the blanket and uncover their heads, but Chu Yunhan grabbed it, refusing to let go. Aware that he was ashamed of his tears, Chu Yichen asked amused, “Aren’t you afraid you’ll suffocate?” 

    

“No.” His voice was muffled because of his stuffy nose.

    

“You want to sleep like this?”

    

“Yeah.” He once again nestled in Chu Yichen’s embrace, changing into a more comfortable position.

The man smiled and hugged him.

    

Under the blanket, the two clung to each other, their heartbeats no longer distinguishable from each other.

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T/N: 5 more chapters to go until the ending of the main story plus 2 extra chapters. 

       

Translator: Taalia