Chapter 78: You Really Do Laugh When You’re Speechless

It turns out that when a person is speechless to the extreme, they really do laugh.

Jiang Shi flipped the pages of the book in his hand with a rustle. “Fine, wear whatever you want. It’s not me who’ll be called shabby anyway.”

Cheng Ye looked at him for a few seconds and leaned in. “Are you angry?”

He couldn’t quite understand. “Why are you angry?”

He asked with sincerity, but Jiang Shi felt a nameless fire ignite within him upon hearing it.

He didn’t know why he was angry either. It was just that every time he saw Cheng Ye not treating himself well, he felt upset inside.

He knew Cheng Ye had a hard life since childhood, often not having enough to eat or warm clothes to wear. It was only after he grew up a bit that he managed to live a barely decent life with his own two hands.

Jiang Shi had never seen what Cheng Ye was like as a child, but the image pieced together from the few words he had mentioned was enough to make him feel very uncomfortable.

Perhaps because he wasn’t loved as a child, now that he was older, he wished Cheng Ye would treat himself a little better.

And the result? Cheng Ye spent all his money on him.

His own closet was almost overflowing with clothes. In contrast, Cheng Ye wore the same few outfits over and over. If Jiang Shi didn’t buy him clothes, he could wear those old ones until the end of time.

He didn’t skimp on the hardships of earning money at all, but he let Jiang Shi experience all the joy of spending it.

Jiang Shi had a bit of a headache.

Cheng Ye, sitting next to him, thought for a moment and felt he had found the reason for his anger. “Do you think my clothes are cheap and shabby, and that it’s embarrassing to be seen with me?”

He looked down at his own faded, washed-out pants, then at the bright and glamorous Jiang Shi.

He didn’t understand fashion, so every time he bought clothes for Jiang Shi, he picked out the expensive ones.

Jiang Shi was handsome and looked good in anything. Standing next to him in his shabby clothes, he didn’t look like a boyfriend or a friend, but more like a young master and his follower.

Instantly, alarm bells rang in Cheng Ye’s mind.

What was all this about? Jiang Shi frowned. “I didn’t mean to say I find you embarrassing…”

Cheng Ye said, “I get it. I’ll start buying clothes when I get back.”

Jiang Shi: “…”

What do you think you get now?

Cheng Ye genuinely didn’t care. To him, as long as he wasn’t naked, what he wore didn’t matter. He lived a rough life anyway; if he wore silk, the thick calluses on his hands could snag and ruin it.

But Jiang Shi was different. To him, the young man was like a piece of precious, fragile porcelain that he had to provide for, nurture, and hold carefully.

He knew he had suffered a lot, but Jiang Shi was with him, not to suffer with him.

Cheng Ye truly didn’t care what he wore, but if someone thought he wasn’t good enough for Jiang Shi, then it mattered a great deal.

The professor on the podium got tired of reading the PowerPoint and simply found a video for everyone to watch.

Cheng Ye picked up Jiang Shi’s phone, which was on the desk, and used it as a mirror. He had been working overtime every day recently, sleeping only three or four hours a night. No matter how energetic he was, he inevitably looked a bit haggard. Coupled with the fact that he already looked more mature than his peers, sitting next to Jiang Shi, they didn’t even look like they were from the same age group.

He put down the phone and scanned his surroundings with a vigilant gaze.

He had noticed it right when he sat down; many people in the classroom were secretly checking out Jiang Shi, both girls and guys.

The university was full of vibrant male students who spoke pleasantly and dressed stylishly. What if Jiang Shi got tired of looking at him, and one of these guys came along and lured him away?

Cheng Ye thought, he really needed to spruce himself up.

The look in his eyes kept changing, and Jiang Shi just assumed he was being neurotic.

He propped his elbow on his book and rested his face on it. “Keep an eye out for me, I’m going to sleep.”

Perhaps because Cheng Ye was by his side, Jiang Shi slept soundly even in the noisy environment.

When he woke up, class was over. The next two periods were major-specific courses, and it would be too conspicuous for Cheng Ye to follow him, so he told him to wait outside.

Jiang Shi, holding his book, walked with the crowd towards another academic building. After walking a short distance, he heard someone calling his name from behind.

He turned around. The class president waved the book in her hand at him. “Wait for me, let’s go together.”

The class president’s name was Jiang Fei. She was tall and dressed in a very androgynous style.

With one hand in her pocket, she strode over to Jiang Shi’s side in a few steps. “I saw during the big lecture just now, your friend came to see you again.”

Cheng Ye’s height and looks were very conspicuous; it was hard to forget him after seeing him just once.

“Yeah, but the next class is a major course, so I told him to wait for me outside.”

“Oh…” Jiang Fei dragged out the sound, asking casually, “Are you two very close?”

Jiang Shi remained cautious. “It’s alright, just a normal classmate relationship.”

Jiang Fei didn’t say anything, just gave a meaningful smile.

Her smile made Jiang Shi’s hair stand on end.

“Actually, a question has been bothering me for a long time…” Jiang Shi hesitated. “I don’t know if it’s my imagination, but I always feel like the people in our class look at me and Cheng Ye strangely.”

“Ah, this…” Jiang Fei was stunned for a few seconds. “Is everyone being that obvious?”

“…”

If he still couldn’t figure it out after all this, Jiang Shi would have to wonder if there was something wrong with his eyes.

He said to Jiang Fei, “Then can you tell me why?”

“I can, but I don’t think you’ll want to know that much.”

“?? “

The two walked to the classroom door, and Jiang Fei leaned in to his ear. “It all started with a famous forum story from a few years ago. I’ll send you the title later. If you’re interested, you can search for it.”

Jiang Shi was completely bewildered. Before he could react, Zuo Hui elbowed him from behind. “Seriously, you left without waiting for me. What were you whispering to the class president about? There’s something fishy going on between you two.”

Jiang Shi elbowed him back. “Fishy my ass. Class is starting.”

Jiang Fei was true to her word and sent the book title during class.

Jiang Shi sneakily opened his phone and looked down—
《Granting You a Wild Time》

??

What kind of nonsensical, illogical, artsy book title was this?

Before he could grasp the meaning of the title, Jiang Fei sent two more messages in a row.

[I advise you to be mentally prepared before you read it. But fiction is fiction, and reality is reality. Classmate Jiang Shi, please don’t overthink it after you finish.]

[We all know that you and Cheng Ye are innocent and have absolutely no other kind of relationship.]

[By the way, search for it when you’re back and alone.]

“…”

Very strange.

What Jiang Fei said was strange, and the book title looked strange too.

But Jiang Shi stared at it for a long time and couldn’t figure out what was so strange about it.

Remembering she said to look it up when he got back, he had to temporarily give up the idea of searching for it and pay attention to class.

Today was the last class on a Friday. As soon as it ended, before Jiang Shi could even drop his books off at the dorm, Cheng Ye took him home.

The weather was getting colder, and the leaves had gradually fallen from the trees, leaving only bare branches. It was already dark at just six o’clock. The streetlights came on, and the branches spread out against the black night sky.

But the bleak late autumn outside couldn’t affect the temperature inside.

Jiang Shi had been craving hot pot for a long time, and today Cheng Ye finally arranged it for him.

The cold weather and hot pot were indeed a perfect match. Before he knew it, Jiang Shi had eaten until he was stuffed.

He lay on the sofa to digest, watching Cheng Ye clean up the pots and bowls, and then diligently mop the entire floor.

After finishing, Cheng Ye took off his apron and told Jiang Shi, “I have an online meeting in a bit, it will last about half an hour.”

Jiang Shi waved at him like a lord, gesturing for him to be dismissed.

Cheng Ye didn’t retreat. He watched him with narrowed eyes for a few seconds, then suddenly squatted down and reached out to rub his stomach. “Looks like you ate a little too much.”

Jiang Shi grunted like a little pig, pushed his hand away, and firmly denied that he had overeaten. “No, no, I think it was just right.”

Cheng Ye pulled him up from the sofa. “Stop lying down, walk a few laps to digest.”

“I don’t wan—”

The next second, his butt was pinched.

“Then how about some post-dinner digestive exercise?”

“…”

Jiang Shi, in his slippers, padded around the coffee table in the living room, watching Cheng Ye as he walked.

Cheng Ye was a little amused by his stare, but after laughing, he also felt a bit annoyed.

His phone wouldn’t stop vibrating; the people on the other end were rushing him.

He had to let Jiang Shi off the hook for now and go to the secondary bedroom, which had been converted into a study, for his meeting.

Jiang Shi strolled around the living room for over ten minutes, felt that he had digested enough, and then grabbed his clothes, took a shower, and went to bed.

He leaned against the pillow, bundling up the quilt, and as if suddenly remembering something, he took out his phone and found his chat history with Jiang Fei.

He copied the text, found the search bar, and pasted it.

Jiang Shi turned over, feeling inexplicably nervous. He swallowed before pressing the search button.

Cheng Ye’s meeting, which was supposed to be half an hour, dragged on for more than forty minutes.

He ended the video call, rubbed the bridge of his nose, leaned back in his chair, and slowly exhaled.

Thinking about many things was one matter, but actually putting them into practice was another entirely.

In the eyes of Wang Zhuo and the others, he had always been mature, steady, and strategic, but only Cheng Ye himself understood his own situation.

At this moment, he was walking a tightrope. Every step seemed steady, but in reality, there was no room for deviation.

He was different from others; he couldn’t afford to fail.

Cheng Ye sat for two minutes, his thoughts gradually being replaced by something else.

He stood up, turned off the light, went out, took a quick shower, and when he pushed the door open, Jiang Shi was still awake, with his back to him, looking at his phone.

He was so engrossed that he didn’t react at all even though Cheng Ye stood at the door for two minutes.

The phone screen illuminated Jiang Shi’s face. His delicate eyebrows were tightly furrowed, but an unnatural blush floated on his cheeks.

Cheng Ye raised an eyebrow, silently closed the door, walked to the bedside, bent over, and looked down.

…

“Wang Ye pinned Zhang Shi against the wall, his thin lips held a look that was three parts mockery and seven parts nonchalance, his cold eyes gleaming with a domineering light. ‘Man, I know you’re doing this to get my attention. You’ve succeeded. Right now, my heart beats only for you.'”

“Zhang Shi’s beautiful face was full of stubbornness. ‘Wang Ye, let me go! You have no idea what I want!'”

“Wang Ye’s hand slid down his clothes, caressing and teasing skillfully. ‘Isn’t this what you want?'”

Jiang Shi was startled. He turned his head to find that Cheng Ye had leaned in behind him at some point, reciting such embarrassing lines with a perfectly straight face.

He subconsciously tried to hide his phone, but the moment he moved, his hand was caught by Cheng Ye.

“What are you panicking for? We haven’t finished reading.”

He slid his finger down the screen along with Jiang Shi’s, his gaze gradually becoming meaningful.

Cheng Ye’s voice was very magnetic. When he spoke, his chest vibrated along with it, sounding exceptionally sexy in the night.

He opened his mouth.

“Zhang Shi, don’t you just want me to fuck you?”

“Fuck you more, fuck both your upper and lower mouths until they’re loose and soft, then you’ll be obedient.”