#lao's expression has me vibrating in my seat

[d3rpydoods]

Been wanting to draw these two ever since i saw these masterpieces by @lulila-safu! Go check em out they're amazing 😩👌

Also i have no idea what to even call this ship but let's stick with kungmas until someone comes up with something better (it ain't gonna be me🤡)

Also thanks to @junkanimate for glazing it up for me💕💕

[shijiujun]

[ENG] History3: Trapped Novel - Chapter Ten

~7,000 words 

Translation Masterpost can be found here

Disclaimer: Translations are entirely mine and Wei’s - these are not official translations and some phrases have been changed for better English interpretation so you’ll definitely see better/different translations elsewhere. Also keeping in mind when we translated this we aren’t exactly thinking about the style of writing and this translation is as close to the novel as we can make it XD So yes, some parts may be a little awkward to read. And yes some teeny weeny details and words may not turn up in the translation because the Chi to Eng mind acrobatics didn’t work out. If you see asterisks, scroll all the way to the bottom for notes!

Full chapter below the cut

*Note: I didn’t translate about 4 pages of the smut scene, it was taking me a little too long and I decided to drop it, so you’ll have to find alternative sources for that, but it doesn’t really impact the story much XD

Chapter Ten

Hospital

Jiang Jin Tang walks towards Tang Yi who is seated on the bench, and sighs, “You look like you’re in worse shape than the one currently inside.”

“Is… Is he okay?”

“He’s not going to die anytime soon, but I severely suspect that Meng Shao Fei has issues elsewhere.”

“Where?”

Jin Tang, who usually speaks ill of others with ease, says, “His brain!”

Tang Yi glares at the man clad in a white doctor’s robe, and cannot be bothered to respond.

“That guy keeps getting hurt because of you, and he’s the one who actually got shot, but the first thing he does after waking up is to worry about you, if this isn’t brain damage, what else can it be?”

“...”

“Tang Yi, just because Meng Shao Fei didn’t die the first two times doesn’t mean he’ll be so fortunate the third time. I don’t want you to regret this for the rest of your life, so as your brother, there are still some things I have to say. Love is just like life itself. Sure it’s beautiful, but it can also disappear at any time, so if you treasure this relationship, you have to let go of that burden in your heart. You can’t keep putting him in a spot and making things difficult for him,” Jin Tang says, somber and patting Tang Yi firmly on the shoulder.

“Okay, hurry in and go see him! If anything else happens, just look for me.”

“Thank you.”

Jin Tang shakes his head and smiles, then picks his vibrating phone out from his pocket.

“Be good, Tang Tang! I’m now in Mali and once everyone in the team and the equipment arrive, we’ll set off. The first treasure I dig up I’ll show to you first, you can’t tell anyone, okay?”

As he watches the message Jiang Zhao Peng sent over, Jin Tang’s lips curve into an indulgent smile.

Inside the ward, Shao Fei, who has already woken up and heard the conversation outside, immediately rips off tubes linked to the machine monitoring his vital signs. He closes his eyes and pretends that he’s in a coma.

Beep-------

Tang Yi barely steps into the ward before the distress signal sounds, and the curved lines on the monitor screen visibly flatlines. Going white immediately, he rushes to the bed and just as he’s about to press the button to ask for help, the person lying in bed hugs him around his waist.

“You’re this worried about me?”

Tang Yi freezes in shock, and the hand reaching out for the button retracts. With a stern, angry look, he glares at Shao Fei, who is grinning and happy, “Aren’t you a little too happy for an injured person?”

“Aren’t you a little too angry for someone who’s my boyfriend?”

“Hmph!”

Still chuckling, Shao Fei pulls at Tang Yi’s sleeve, gesturing for him to sit at the side of his bed. Afraid that Shao Fei would tear out his stitches, Tang Yi does not dare resist and can only sit down, his bad mood apparent on his face. Shao Fei touches lightly at Tang Yi’s wrists where the metal handcuffs sit.

“Don’t be angry, it's a reflex for me to try and snatch a gun, or put myself in the way of a bullet. I’m a police officer, after all.”

“I’m angry at myself,” Tang Yi frowns, holding onto Shao Fei’s icy hands.

“Then it’s better for you to be angry at me! Even if we had to do this again, I would still do the same thing.”

“I know you’ve been trying to stop me from killing others.”

“That’s right. Li Zhen Jie said it before, revenge can only bring you temporary satisfaction, but the consequences you will face for your actions will haunt you for life, and it’ll cause pain to the people who love you.”

“That includes you?”

“Of course!” Shao Fei shoots Tang Yi a look out of the corner of his eye, and continues, “Let me ask you, why did you think Tang Guo Dong tasked you with reforming the gang?”

After a moment of silence, Tang Yi replies, “Lao Tang said he didn’t want the brothers to continue a life like this, where they wouldn’t know if they were going to live or die tomorrow. He wanted everyone to live normal lives.”

“And if you, as their leader, did something illegal, would your men still try to turn over a new leaf?”

“....”

Tang Yi stares at Shao Fei. He did not actually think this far.

“Tang Yi, revealing the truth to everyone, letting the culprit be punished under the law, that’s justice. That’s answering to the victims, but if you handle this on your own, all people will see is a gangster killing a cop, then what Zhou Guan Zhi did will be hidden forever. Is that what you want to see? Is this the Xing Tian Meng that Tang Guo Dong would have wanted to see?”

Tang Yi sighs, and says, “... I’ll hand He Hang over to the police.”

Shao Fei smiles as he looks at the man he’s so deeply in love with, waiting for him to continue.

“And Zhou Guan Zhi too.”

“Thank you, and…” Shao Fei reaches for Tang Yi’s face on his uninjured side, pressing close and kissing his lips.

Tang Yi’s eyes close as he accepts the kiss. It’s a kiss filled with gratitude, love and happiness.

Half a minute later, Shao Fei pulls back and gazes into Tang Yi’s open eyes. 

He says, “I love you!”

Knock knock.

Zhao Zi, who has been waiting for quite some time outside the hospital ward walks in. He looks at the man currently staring at Shao Fei, and reminds him, “Time’s up, Tang Yi, let’s go!”

He then takes out a jacket he prepared for this, covering Tang Yi’s hands to keep anyone from gossiping about his handcuffs if they see it while the both of them are walking out. However, Tang Yi simply shakes his head, standing up straight, and leaves the ward without turning back.

A room in a house

In an old, dilapidated room. Captain Shi sits in a corner looking at photos of his daughter in the wedding dress boutique on his phone. Two police officers in casual dress are guarding him nearby. One of them is scrolling through his phone, and the other one is resting with his eyes closed, seated on a chair with his arms crossed. 

A little while later, the doorbell rings. The man on his phone walks to the door, and lets the person on the other side of the door in after verifying his identity.

“Boss!” Shao Fei calls, wearing the $60,000 NTD suit he bought at Tang Yi’s store, in his hands a traditional wedding cake.

Captain Shi looks at the person who’s just come from a wedding eagerly, and asks, “How did it go?”

“You can see for yourself,” Shao Fei takes out his phone and plays the video he recorded of the wedding.

Slowly opening the banquet hall’s doors, the bride stands there alone without her father, a bouquet of flowers in her hands. Her makeup done up so beautifully, the woman glances down at the red carpet with red-rimmed eyes, pausing for a bit before looking up and smiling widely. She picks up her courage and takes the first step forward.

On both sides of the red carpet, her close friends scatter flower petals and pop party poppers, representing their well-wishes for the new couple. Under the eyes of the marriage officiant, the bridge and groom exchange rings, completing the wedding’s most important ritual.

Captain Shi looks at his daughter’s wedding video, and nods profusely with his eyes wet.

Shao Fei pulls a chair over so he’s sitting opposite Captain Shi, and places the wedding biscuits on the table. “Xiao Ya asked me to bring these to you, there’re biscuits, and also the tea you like to drink, and wedding photos.”

“Ah Fei… thank you…”

However, the man does not accept the gifts, as if afraid of dirtying the beauty and goodness of the moment with his hands that are awash with sin and guilt. Shao Fei looks at his Captain, who’s almost a shell of his usual self. 

The back of his nose burns as he says, “You and Li Zhen Jie have always been my role models and I have always believed in every single thing the both of you taught me. I remember the first day I joined the team, you told me that justice is just like lighting a lamp against the wind and police officers are the protectors of the lamp, so we have to be alert at all times. Because only when the lamp consistently lights up the path in front of us, can we then help others to walk down the correct path too. But you destroyed the person who was supposed to protect the lamp, tried to cover up the truth from four years ago and even allowed everyone to suspect Li Zhen Jie, and to point fingers at her.”

Captain Shi listens to the words he used to say, and lowers his gaze in remorse, “I know I don’t deserve your forgiveness. After all, having to choose between being a father and being a police officer, I selfishly chose to be a father.”

“Boss, do you regret it?”

The man shakes his head and replies bitterly, “When Ah Zhi told me four years ago that he killed Li Zhen and Tang Guo Dong, and destroyed the evidence after, I was relieved. If I didn’t have that sum of money that year, I wouldn’t have been able to see Xiao Ya on her wedding day.”

“Boss…”

Captain Shi looks at Shao Fei and with a complicated expression, he says, “Ah Fei, I actually resented you.”

Shao Fei returns the man’s gaze, stunned at the revelation.

“When everyone was no longer interested in the case at all, you were the only one persisting in bothering Tang Yi, insistent on finding out the truth, as if you weren’t afraid of standing on your own against the rest of the world.”

“But you never once truly stopped me.”

“Because I wanted to see just how long you would last. I even hoped that when you had to choose between justice and obstruction to that, you would choose to give up. Then at least I could comfort myself in the knowledge that you and I, we aren’t so different after all,” Captain Shi says in a self-deprecating manner, raising his head to look at the impulsive young man who really has caused him quite a lot of trouble up until now.

“Aren’t I really bad? I’d fallen, and wished that the people around me would be just like me. I’m sorry, the Captain you admired is actually such a despicable man.”

“No! Boss, you’re not,” Shao Fei stares at Captain Shi resolutely, finally saying the words he wanted to, hidden away under the guilt he felt, because he blamed himself too. “You didn’t stop me because you were waiting too, no, even anticipating the moment I would find the truth and expose you and Zhou Guan Zhi. It’s true that between being a father and being a police officer, you chose to be a good father, but you didn’t give up on the other part of you, the part that’s a police officer.”

Faced with Shao Fei’s understanding, Captain Shi, who has been suppressing all his emotions, finally lets his tears run free as he sobs, covering his face.

“If Li Zhen Jie was still alive, I don’t think she would have hated you. Though she might have kicked your ass,” Shao Fei jokes deliberately, trying to lighten the melancholic atmosphere between them and rubbing at his nose, his face full of tears too.

Captain Shi looks at the man sitting in front of him and recalls his colleague, the woman who worked harder than any other man he knew. 

His shoulders shake slightly as he says, “She wouldn’t have just beat me up, but scolded me too. She would have scolded me for living like a coward…”

Outside the room, the rays of the setting sun eventually shine over the both of them, but in the corners where the sunlight could not reach, darkness still remains. 

Before their meeting ends and just as Shao Fei is about to leave, Captain Shi suddenly moves in front of him.

“Shao Fei, I’m leaving Team Three in your hands,” he says knowingly, patting at Shao Fei’s shoulder.

Cemetery

Tang Yi stands before a gravestone and stares at the music box on the ground, before pulling out his lighter and lighting a cigarette at the side. From afar, Chen Wen Hao walks over with a bouquet of flowers, and after seeing Tang Yi, he hesitates. Then he walks over to the grave and places the bouquet on the flat surface.

“Li Zhen, I’m sorry… All these years, I vented my anger and hate on Tang Guo Dong, hating him for causing me to end up in jail, hating him for not stopping you from aborting the baby and even suspecting that he liked you. That day was the first day of my release from prison, but I saw the both of you together. That was the first time in 24 years we were meeting, but I didn’t expect it to be the last…”

“When I was younger, I didn’t have much money and when I gave you flowers I could give you only one stalk. How sad was that? But you always smiled so happily, so I thought, if I could earn more money I would be able to buy more flowers to make you happy. I ended up walking the wrong path, and didn’t dare to let you know, so I lied to you instead.”

“If that year, I chose differently, would you not have left me then? The three of us, a family, would we have been able to live like normal families, having meals at the dining table? Maybe we wouldn’t have had much money, but we would have led a normal, stable life… we would have also been… happy…”

He finishes his sentence and falls silent, his face filled with tears as he cries.

It is said that every person has to face the consequences of the decisions they make. Then, the price he paid in his lifetime was really just too much, too much…

Tang Yi walks over to Chen Wen Hao’s side, and places the lighter before the gravestone. To the photo on the stone, he says, “After you gave me up for adoption, I ran away from home because of my relationship with my adoptive father, and then I was given a home by Tang-ye. He loved and doted on me as if I was his biological son. Don’t worry, I’ll continue reforming Xing Tian Meng. I believe that this is what you would have wanted to see, the you who spent your life fighting drug dealers.”

Chen Wen Hao supports himself on his knees as he gets up, and now that he knows the truth, he feels as if he’s aged in a flash. He is no longer the fearful, big drug lord, and no longer the vicious Chen-ye he was known for. He is merely an old man in his sixties, a man who’s finally seeing his own son - a father.

He takes out the thumb drive saved with the list of Xing Tian Meng members and business deals, handing it over to Tang Yi.

“This is something I bribed Jack to gather for me as I was plotting revenge against Tang Guo Dong. Every step I’ve taken in my life has turned out to be wrong, and even as I stand before my son, I don’t have the right to ask for his forgiveness.”

Tang Yi’s grip on the thumb drive tightens. He nods at the man before him respectfully, and with a complex expression he leaves the cemetery. At the stairs, however, his footsteps pause and Tang Yi covers his face as he sobs.

At Zhao Zi’s house

“What are you doing?” Zhao Zi asks in confusion, looking at Jack in surprise, who’s standing at his door with his small luggage.

“From today onwards, I’m moving in with you.”

Jack beams, picking up his bags and ready to walk in, but the owner of the house stops him with both arms spread wide open.

“Who said you could move in?”

“You did!” the red-haired man cocks his head to the side, and grins, “Didn’t you cry and ask me to stay?”

“Yes I did, but when I asked you to stay then, and this kind of staying… it’s different!”

After realizing all the things that Zhou Guan Zhi did, Zhao Zi was so depressed that he sat in the middle of a square with a bottle of beer and started sobbing. After hearing that Jack too, was going to leave and go somewhere else, he hugged him and began to sob even louder, shouting that he wanted Jack to stay at his side.

Jack sets his bags down and stalks towards Zhao Zi until he cages the man against the wall. Staring into his eyes, he says, “Do you know how much I gave up, just because you said that?”

The ambush in Cambodia, the deal he had with Yan Zheng Qiang*, the status and position he had in Xing Tian Meng, and so many opportunities from where he could have earned a lot of money. All of it, he abandoned without a second thought.

“Huh?”

“So I’m now a pitiful bug who has no income and no home to return to, you have to be responsible and feed me well.”

“Huh?” Zhao Zi looks at the man who’s given up on everything, dumbfounded. “Wait, no, where’s your family?”

Jack’s expression goes still, and then speaking a half-truth of sorts, he answers, “How would someone like me, who lives in danger every single day, have any family left? No matter where I go, I’m alone, and it gets pretty lonely…”

Zhao Zi looks at this person, who also longs for someone to be at his side just like himself, and his resolve wavers.

“So just let me stay~ Not only will you have another person to share the bills with, but I can take over things like housework and the most important thing is…”

Jack, an ex-mercenary who has never let an opportunity to get the best deal in any situation go, takes the chance to persuade Zhao Zi, “My cooking is pretty delicious, no? As long as you let me stay, I promise you that I’ll take care of your three meals daily. How about that? Isn’t this a really good deal?”

Zhao Zi, a known glutton, swallows. He has to admit that the last point Jack made is the most tempting one. However, if Jack does everything, then what is he going to do?

“You don’t have to do everything in the house. Since it’s housework, everyone in the house has to contribute, that’s why it’s called housework.

“So…” Jack’s heart warms, and he immediately snatches a kiss from Zhao Zi. “Shorty, can I move in, and become a part of your family?”

“Hnn!” Zhao Zi nods seriously, biting at his bottom lip.

“Then let’s have our meals together, do housework together, you’ll take care of the odd days, and I’ll take the even days including Sunday.”

“Okay!”

Just as Jack is preparing to swoop in for a kiss, his hands holding Zhao Zi’s face, they suddenly hear Zhao Zi’s stomach rumbling, and the romantic atmosphere dissipates immediately.

“Pfft, is it 6pm already?”

“Hnn….” Zhao Zi laughs sheepishly, rubbing at his stomach that is even more precise than a clock.

Jack pats him on the head, then moves towards the kitchen, “I’ll make you dinner right away. First, I’ll feed you, and then after… it’s your turn to feed me.”

“Wait! What do you mean, it’s my turn to feed you? Jack you better explain! Jack!”

The Tang manor

“Have you stared enough?” Tang Yi picks up his teacup and glares at a certain doctor, who’s staring at him incessantly.

“Not yet, I specially came over to see what it would look like, for an ice mountain to be melted by the power of love. Pfft, it’s practically like an antique that’s just been unearthed, of course I have to look at it a few times. But Meng Shao Fei is really something, because only he can fall in love with a boring hard shell like you, who doesn’t like to talk?”

However, Jin Tang, who is gleefully ribbing at the Xing Tian Meng leader in an unusual turn of events, is quickly defeated in the next second with Tang Yi’s words.

“I didn’t think you would have the time to talk rubbish here with me.”

“What do you mean?”

“Andy didn’t tell you?”

Jin Tang frowns, sensing some conspiracy in the air, “He didn’t tell me what?”

“Andy got some news today and told me that there’s a British man in the archaeological group who’s clinging onto your Xiao Shu Gong, and he even insists on squeezing in the same tent as him every night to sleep.”

Jin Tang snaps to his feet in shock and the usually gentle and composed man turns to Tang Yi with ferocity in his eyes. He glares at Tang Yi, “Fuck, why did you only just tell me this?!”

“I thought you already knew.”

“Damn it!” the man cursed, taking out his phone and calling his secretary. He says anxiously, “Book a flight for me to Mali right now… Of course I know there’s no direct flight there, why would I have called you otherwise? Settle this in the next hour, I want to get to my destination in the shortest time possible.”

After delegating the task to his secretary, Jin Tang hangs up and glares at Tang Yi again, huffing in anger, “What are you looking at! Have you never seen me angry?”

“I see you angry rather often, but I’ve never seen you jealous. It’s just like an antique that’s just been unearthed and it really does deserve a few more looks from me.”

The words he used to tease Tang Yi earlier are now being used back on him, word for word, and Jin Tang doesn’t know whether to laugh or cry. In the end he puts up his middle finger and says, “Fine, you’re ruthless, teasing me like this.”

“It’s true that you have to wait in relationships, but if you always bury what you are truly thinking deep in your heart, the other person will never know how you feel. I don’t want to see you end up like that.”

Jin Tang looks at Tang Yi, stunned. His lips then curve in a smile, “I really didn’t expect to hear such deep thoughts from you.”

“I didn’t expect to think this way either.”

“But it’s good that you’re like this, you’re finally looking more like a human.”

“If you need any help from me, just let me know, don’t be shy.”

“Don’t worry! I definitely won’t stand on ceremony with you.”

Both men raised their teacups and smiled at each other. In the other’s eyes, they could see the vibrance of happiness shining through.

Outside the police station

Tang Yi has just parked his car in front of the station, and suddenly a huge motorbike zooms past the side of his car, then emergency brakes.

“Ah, what a coincidence, hi ex-boss,” Jack greets with a harmless, innocent smile as he takes off his helmet and reveals a mop of eye-catching red hair.

Tang Yi alights his car and looks at Jack coldly, “You resigned for another reason, didn’t you?”

“I didn’t,” Jack hangs his helmet on the handles and shrugs, “I just happened to find the life I want to live, there’s no other reason for it.”

At the same time, Shao Fei walks out from the station building, and looking at the guy seated on the bike, he says, “What are you doing here?”

“Please, even you guys are lovingly fetching each other from work, isn’t it normal for me to wait for someone to get off work too?”

Looking at Jack’s face, Tang Yi quickly changes the subject and says, “Chen Wen Hao told me that you used me to get access to Xing Tian Meng’s confidential documents, so previously, when you tried to assassinate me and failed, and was subsequently bribed by me, that was fake too?”

Jack’s expression stills, and knowing that he cannot continue to deceive him, the man regains his composure. He admits, “It was planned. Following you at your side was also so I could get information, but you still managed to get the thumb drive back, didn’t you?”

“Did you think I would let it go like that?”

Tang Yi will show no mercy to the people who have used him.

Jack forces a smile and says, “Let bygones be bygones. I had my own difficulties too. And to protect the happiness I managed to get after so much hardship, I’m afraid I would have to do something to you.”

“What do you mean?”

Shao Fei can feel the murderous intent coming off Jack as he speaks, and immediately moves to stand between both men, pushing Tang Yi behind him protectively.

“Nothing, I just want to remind my ex-boss that there is only interest between people and no real feelings or relationships. I have to lie in order to attain my goal, so we shouldn’t concern ourselves with these small things, don’t you think?” Jack shrugs again and bats his eyelids at Tang Yi.

Just as he does that, he hears another voice sounding from behind him, “So between you and me, we’re just using each other as well, there aren’t any real feelings?”

He sees Zhao Zi’s upset expression the second he turns his head around, and immediately shakes his head, denying, “No. I didn’t, shorty, listen to me!”

“Ah Fei, I’m staying at your place today,” Zhao Zi glares at Jack and walks over to Shao Fei to put some distance between him and the red-haired asshole.

“I object!”

“Overruled! Ah Fei I’m going with you.”

“You’re not allowed! We’re going home.”

“I don’t want to!”

Jack knows that it’s inconvenient to have this conversation right outside the police station, and so he decides to simply carry Zhao Zi and put him on the bike instead.

“Wah- Ah Fei, save me!”

“Zhao-”

“If you don’t want to die, then don’t interfere!” Jack glares at Shao Fei who’s intending to stop him.

With one hand around Zhao Zi’s waist and the other securing a knot around Zhao Zi’s waist with the jacket around Jack’s middle, he ties Zhao Zi to him. Then he slams his foot down on the accelerator and leaves the precinct quickly.

“Ah Fei! Ah Fei save me, Ah Fei!”

And the cries for help fade away as the bike goes further, and further.

Shao Fei stares at his good friend being kidnapped right outside of the station and it takes him a long while to break out of his trance. Pointing in the direction that Jack and Zhao Zi left in, he asks the Xing Tian Meng leader next to him who’s smiling mysteriously, “When did the both of them get together?”

“Who knows?”

“Hey! You were finding trouble with Jack deliberately earlier, right?”

“He’s a talent, but unfortunately there’s no leash that can hold him, so I obviously had to teach him a lesson. Only then can we use him in the future.”

“Don’t tell me you still want him to work for you”?

Tang Yi laughs and lets the silence speak for itself. Shao Fei gapes at Tang Yi, looking at this handsome but incredibly scheming man.

At Zhao Zi’s house

“Let me go!”

Jack takes advantage of his height to secure Zhao Zi over his shoulders in a fireman’s lift, and only after they’ve entered through the gates and the door does he put Zhao Zi back on the ground.

“Don’t be angry, listen to me-”

“I don’t want to! I don’t want to be used by you!” Zhao Zi presses his hands over his ears, even lifting his leg to kick at the other’s calf bone.

Despite being so skilled at fighting, Jack does not move or retaliate, only tolerating the pain and pulling the angry person before him into his embrace. At the same time, he pinches at Zhao Zi’s chin and angles his head up, forcing a kiss on Zhao Zi.

“Mmm…. mmm…. Go away!” Zhao Zi pushes Jack away for forcing the kiss on him, his eyes red as he glares at him.

“Zhao Li An! Listen to me!”

It’s Jack’s first time seeing the shorty this furious, and even though Zhao Zi’s eyes hold no plausible threat to him, Jack is still properly startled and all he can do is carry Zhao Zi to the counter, trapping him against it.

“...”

Zhao Zi stares at Jack in shock. This is the first time Jack has been so fierce to him.

“I won’t explain myself for what I did in the past. I admit that in this time, there were both truths and lies in the things I said to you, but I’ve never used you! Never!”

“How do I know what you’re saying are truths, and which are lies? Even the Chief I really trusted, even the senior who was so important to me, these people I can’t even trust. Why should I trust you?”

What happened with Captain Shi and Zhou Guan Zhi dealt Zhao Zi a heavy blow, and he even doubted himself, was it him who was naive and had too much faith in human nature? Does he have the right to be a police officer, even? Why is it that the Captain and colleague he had meals with every day, both had other sides to them that he missed?

Jack looks at his shorty who has lost control over his emotions, and emphasizes, “You don’t have to believe in everything else, but there are two things that you have to believe in.”

“What two things?”

“The first is, I like you.”

“And?”

“Second, I stayed because of you. These two things, you better remember them clearly in your heart!”

Zhao Zi looks at Jack with wide eyes and listens as Jack continues to confess to him.

“In the beginning, I was just curious about you, wondering how you could be both so naive and lustful.”

“I’m not!”

“You are, and you even touched me.”

“You’re the one who wanted me to touch!”

“Whatever, anyway, I was totally attracted to you. This is the first time I’ve cared so much about someone else, worried that if I’m not around, are you having your meals properly, worrying if you are lonely by yourself at home, worrying if you are crying in a place I don’t know… So I decided to stay, because I didn’t want to leave you!”

Zhao Zi, seated on the counter, blinks and rubs at his nose. Somehow, everything that Jack is saying strikes all his pain points and he feels like crying.

“If you still don’t believe me, and if you still want me to go, I’ll go. But you have to be prepared, because the moment I leave, you’ll never see me again.”

“You’re lying to me again, right?”

“No, I’m serious. So you have to make the decision. Do you want me to go? Or do you want me to stay?”

“I…”

Jack waits for Zhao Zi’s answer anxiously. This is the first time he is so uncertain about what he’s doing. However, Zhao Zi continues to look downwards, biting at his lips and refusing to speak. Taking Zhao Zi’s silence for rejection, Jack’s shoulders drop in disappointment.

“Forget it, I’ll go…”

The moment he says that, Jack hears the reply he’s been waiting for.

“Stay!”

“Really? You want me to stay? Why?”

“Because…” Zhao Zi’s ears go hot, and he says in a small voice, “I like you.”

The ends of Jack’s mouth curve, and then he’s kissing Zhao Zi’s lips hard.

“Mmmff, Jack... “

Zhao Zi, who was teased by Shao Fei for being single all his life, now realizes that kisses aren’t just like bland honey water, but a really, really sweet chocolate pie that is enough to make his legs go weak. Through the hands cupping the sides of his face, Zhao Zi can feel Jack’s body warmth, and also the way Jack’s fingertips are trembling, just that little bit.

It seems that even for Jack, who always seems to have everything under control and doesn’t understand the meaning of fear, there are also times where he feels insecure. It’s not only just Zhao Zi who is afraid of being rejected.

“What is it?”

As Zhao Zi is trying to hold his laughter in, his shoulders shake so much that Jack notices, and so Jack pulls Zhao Zi over to look at the giggling shorty.

“So you were actually so afraid of me rejecting you?” Zhao Zi stares at Jack, exposing the thoughts the other man was trying to conceal.

The red-haired man pretends to be angry and glares at Zhao Zi, but his eyes are full of adoration as he looks at the source of happiness that the heavens has finally put into his grasp. And only before this person, Jack has no need to lie or hide.

“I was very afraid.”

“Why?”

“Because I didn’t know how I could go back to being the person I was before.”

Jack was once obsessed with the thrill that uncertainty could bring, because he was very confident of his own abilities. As long as he worked hard, he could always obtain the things he wanted. However, with love, he could not be sure of how much Zhao Zi liked him, and there was no guarantee that even with his best efforts, that Zhao Zi would return his affections.

Moreover, once he experienced not having to pretend in front of someone else and letting go of all his defenses, much less having to lie to them, he no longer wants to put his armour back on and go back to the battlefield, where he can trust no one else but himself.

Zhao Zi nods, and then angles his head upwards to look at the man who’s much taller than he is. He says, “I understand, because since you came into my life, I feel like being alone at home is so lonely! It’s not as if I didn’t stay alone before, but now even when I eat, it doesn’t taste as good as when I eat with you, it’s not like…”

“It’s not like the food isn’t exactly the same,” Jack continues for him with a smile.

“Hnn! It really, really is like that.”

“Hold on! Shorty, don’t tell me you realized you like me because you found that the food you were eating tasted bad?”

If that really is the case, then he will be jealous of every food item that ranks before him in the shorty’s heart.

“Of course! What about you? When did you start liking me?”

“I’m not going to tell you.”

“Hey! How can you be like this, it’s not fair, I told you my answer!”

“You really want to know?”

“I do.”

“Then…”

“Ah!”

Jack suddenly picks Zhao Zi up in his arms and walks over to the dining table next to them, putting the shorty on the surface of the table. Then he begins to unbutton Zhao Zi’s shirt.

“Let me eat first, and then I’ll tell you the answer.”

Zhao Zi’s face turns hot, and he looks down, shy, “If you’re hungry… then… then go have supper…”

His smile oozing charm, Jack turns to the side and steals a kiss from the corner of Zhao Zi’s lips, “My supper is you - Zhao. Li. An!”

“But I’m not tasty.”

“Tasty or not, I’ll let you know what I think after I’ve eaten, so… let me first take off the packaging.”

“But…”

“Shhh!” Jack smirks, then presses his face against the side of Zhao Zi’s ear and says softly, “Didn’t your grandma teach you, when someone is eating you, you’re not supposed to talk?”

“No,” the honest and innocent Zhao Zi answers after actually considering the question. He shakes his head and clarifies, “Why can’t I talk?”

“Because…”

Fingers unbutton the last of the buttons on the shirt and Jack’s hands guide Zhao Zi’s arms out of the shirt’s sleeves. When Zhao Zi is finally half naked seated on the dining table, Jack continues, “Because when other people are busy ‘eating’ you, all you need to do is to moan nicely.”

Suddenly, Jack crouches down and moves towards the soft bumps on Zhao Zi’s chest, then bites down on one.

“Ah-”

Startled, Zhao Zi glares at Jack. No one has ever done this to his nipples. Jack is lightly biting on them. It stings a little, but more than that, whatever he is feeling right now he feels it strongly, but is unable to put into words.

“Jack…”

“Hmm?” Jack responds to Zhao Zi who is experiencing this for the first time, in a deep, nasal tone.

“It’s… It’s so weird…” 

Not only is Zhao Zi’s face hot now, both of his ears are scalding hot too.

“It’s tasty,” the person with his head bent low mumbles, and then Jack begins to tease at the hard nipple he was lightly biting at with the tip of his tongue.

“Mmm...hmmm”

It feels really weird. Not only does the area where Jack is attacking feels weird, even a more embarrassing part of him is beginning to rise, and he’s feeling both uncomfortable and good at the same time.

Jack grins and enjoys the way Zhao Zi is reacting to him. He releases the pressure on Zhao Zi’s chest and the moment Zhao Zi relaxes, Jack immediately goes after the other nipple, continuing to use his teeth and tongue to bully the pitiful and soft little thing.

“Ah-hah… Jack!”

Angling his eyes downwards Zhao Zi can now clearly see the bumps shining with spit, and the usually soft area is now both red and hard from Jack’s ministrations. Even the soft tip has swollen into a little ball.**

“So delicious,” Jack finally looks up to appreciate his work.

“Look! It’s so red now!”

Zhao Zi looks down at his chest, and both his left and right sides have been bitten until they’re both red and swollen, and it feels itchy too. He cannot resist but scratch at the bumps, but then he hears Jack swallow and make a ‘sssss’ sound.

“What’s wrong?”

“Shorty, it seems that I’ve underestimated you, after all.”

“Huh?”

Jack then grabs onto the bewildered man’s hand, dragging it to the lower half of his body. That’s when Zhao Zi realizes, where the denim is hugging taut around something, Jack’s member is obviously hard.

“You-”

Zhao Zi is too embarrassed to continue speaking, and the skin from his face all the way to his neck flushes entirely red.

“It’s all your fault, so you better take responsibility.”

“Huh?”

“This is the first time I’ve gotten so hard so quickly, and…”Jack smirks and moves to Zhao Zi’s ear, and with a warm exhale, he continues, “And wet.”

[I’m skipping the rest of the smut scene! Sorry guys think you’ll have to find alternative sources for the translation of this part.]

“So tired…” Zhao Zi pants as he lies on the wooden dining table. Looking at Jack who’s pressing down on him, he grins, silly.

“What is it?”

“Am I… tasty?”

“You are. You are very tasty,” Jack grins and gives Zhao Zi his highest compliments.

Jack then carries his lover to the second floor and helps Zhao Zi to wash away the remnants of their lovemaking, before putting him on their bed.

“Hey… Will you still leave next time?”

“Since you’ve asked me to stay with so much passion, I wouldn’t be a man if I left you,” Jack’s hands move over Zhao Zi’s body under the blankets covering the both of them.

“Don’t… I’m so tired…”

Zhao Zi dives into Jack’s embrace, closing his eyes. Staring at Zhao Zi’s face, Jack looks as if he’s about to confess to him again.

“I’ve never thought so much about anything, until I met you. In the past, I always thought that settling down was such a boring thing as that kind of life would be stagnant without change, and only thrill and excitement could fulfill me, could make me feel alive. You made me realize that a normal life is happiness, so… shorty, be prepared! Don’t you ever think of leaving me.”

Jack presses a kiss to Zhao Zi’s forehead, and softly says, “Goodnight.”

He doesn’t realize that Zhao Zi hasn’t fallen asleep. The shorty smiles happily and sinks into his dreams.

Outside the courthouse

Shao Fei holds onto Tang Yi’s hand before the courthouse, and ignoring the looks of everyone around them, gazes at Tang Yi.

“After you go in, don’t refuse to talk to people.”

“Why are you saying this for no reason?”

“If people talk to you, don’t just keep quiet, and don’t ignore them.”

It was a different society in prison with its own laws and rules, and Shao Fei didn’t want Tang Yi to have any accidents inside.

“Hnn,” Tang Yi agrees, nodding.

“You’re no longer the boss when you go in, and I know you will find it hard to get used to, but tolerate it. If you don’t cause any trouble, you’ll be out in no time.”

“Hnn.”

“I’ll come see you every week, if you’ve got anything you need, let me know.”

“Hnn.”

“And one last thing…”

“What?”

Shao Fei chuckles, and says, “Don’t miss me too much.”

“Sorry, this is the only thing I cannot do.”

Hugging the lover he’s about to separate from tightly, Tang Yi suddenly feels anxious.

“Don’t worry, I’ll wait for you on the outside, no matter how long you’re in there for,” Shao Fei promises, tearing through Tang Yi’s facade of calm as he pushes himself away from Tang Yi’s chest, looking into the eyes of the man who’s about to serve his sentence.

“I’m not worried about this.”

“Please, you are obviously so concerned about this.”

“You’re the only person in the world who thinks so.”

“That’s right! Because I’m the only one who understands you, so…” Shao Fei smiles, and using the words he said to Tang Yi in that dilapidated house in the mountains, he continues, “I’ll keep watching you.”

“You’ll keep watching me?” Tang Yi finally smiles, recalling the night they were hiding on the mountains as he stares at Shao Fei.

“Yes! I’ll keep my eyes on you always, both of them!”

“Okay.”

Still smiling, Tang Yi kisses Shao Fei one last time, before turning and walking towards the courthouse.

“Tang Yi!”

Tang Yi pauses in his footsteps, but doesn’t dare to turn back.

“I’ll miss you.”

Again, Tang Yi moves forward and walks into the courthouse with determination, prepared to face the sentence that is waiting for him.

Facing a future where he is no longer alone!

---

Notes:

*Yan Zheng Qiang is the name of the Interpol chief, you know the one that scolded Shao Fei and then colluded with Jack by the riverside?