CH 72

Jiang Heng’s unabashed actions caused a bit of a stir, but fortunately, most of the people at Disneyland were young people, so nobody paid much attention to them, just a few glances here and there..

There were even some young people cheering on the side, shouting, “Wishing you a hundred years of happiness!”

Ji Yao blushed to the roots of his ears, feeling like he had never been so bold in his life – here in his home country, in front of everyone, kissing a man was something Ji Yao had never dared to think about before.

He used to be afraid of his sexuality being exposed, afraid of being discovered by his parents, and even more afraid of losing everything because of it.

He used to be weak and evasive, but at this moment, in Jiang Heng’s eyes, he was braver than anyone else in the world.

“I love you,” Ji Yao said.

Jiang Heng smiled and replied, “I love you too.”

Fireworks lit up the sky, bringing a warm afterglow. The lights carried the falling fireworks, continuing the dazzling scenery.

After the fireworks display, Jiang Heng took Ji Yao back to the hotel. XiaoTong had returned a bit earlier and was packing up to get ready for bed. Jiang Heng sent her a message on WeChat to let her know they were back but didn’t go to their room to say goodnight. Instead, he took Ji Yao directly to his room.

“Aren’t we going to their room first before going back to ours?” Ji Yao asked.

“No,” Jiang Heng replied, turning to him and smiling. “I need to reward you immediately, or have you forgotten?.”

Perhaps Jiang Heng had been influenced by the atmosphere of the theme park, or maybe it was Ji Yao’s boldness with the keys, but he seemed to be in a much better mood and more lively than usual.

Jiang Heng pulled Ji Yao into the room, and then he let go of his hand and went straight to the inner room. First, he placed the lollipop he had been holding all the way into a cup, and then, mysteriously, he pulled back the curtains like a magician and took out a cake box.

It occurred to Ji Yao that this should be their “shared birthday.”

Jiang Heng seemed to have an unusual obsession with cakes. Whether he was in a good mood or not, he always wanted to buy one. But if someone was there to share it with him, his mood would noticeably improve.

Ji Yao couldn’t help but smile and look around instinctively. He walked over to the window and closed the curtains before sitting down at the table.

Jiang Heng opened the cake box, revealing a not very large cream cake, just enough for two grown men.

“A fresh start,” Jiang Heng joked. “This time it’s pineapple-flavored.”

Three years ago, that Christmas was not a good memory for both of them. Until today, Ji Yao could still vividly recall the force with which he had thrown that piece of cake onto the floor.

The cream that was fragile and delicate, turned into an indistinct white mixture on the hard floor, just like their chaotic and fragile love at the beginning.

Jiang Heng wasn’t someone who liked to play dumb. He didn’t want to simply cover up past mistakes, but he wanted to give both of them a new beginning.

Jiang Heng stood up, turned off the lights, placed candles on the table, and handed Ji Yao a fork.

“Make a wish,” Jiang Heng said.

The warm and flickering candlelight outlined vague contours on their faces, and Ji Yao looked at Jiang Heng through the candlelight, meeting his gentle gaze with a smile.

It had been a long time since they celebrated their birthdays together, so long that it felt like a different lifetime, yet also as if it were just yesterday.

Ji Yao gripped the fork tightly and suddenly felt an inexplicable emotion welling up from deep within. He felt like he should be happy, his chest filled to the brim, and he couldn’t help but want to smile. But his eyes were hot, and he felt a shallow, subtle acidity seeping into his heart.

His eyes almost immediately turned red, but fortunately, the halo of candlelight concealed it all, not revealing any trace to Jiang Heng.

“I wish…” Ji Yao choked up as soon as he started to speak. He paused for a moment before continuing, “I wish that on my sixtieth birthday, we can upgrade the cake to white truffle.”

Jiang Heng chuckled.

After holding back for a while, Ji Yao couldn’t help but laugh too.

“Okay,” Jiang Heng said seriously. “This is a long-term plan. When we get back, we’ll write it down and keep it with our partnership documents.”

Behind this absurd “birthday wish” was a delicate and wonderful hope, which Jiang Heng understood, but he didn’t expose Ji Yao’s thoughts. Instead, he lowered his head and, together with Ji Yao, blew out the birthday candles.

After blowing out the candles, Jiang Heng didn’t turn on the main light, just the small night light next to it.

Ji Yao was about to take a bite when Jiang Heng stopped him.

“Is there something you haven’t said?” Jiang Heng asked.

Jiang Heng was quite particular about ceremonial things like this, and Ji Yao raised an eyebrow when he heard that. He looked at Jiang Heng and then said at the same time, “Happy birthday.”

“Alright,” Jiang Heng smiled and said, “Let’s eat.”

The cake was only slightly larger than a palm, and they hadn’t had dinner that night, so they were a bit hungry now. They didn’t bother to cut it and simply shared the cake plate.

Halfway through eating, Jiang Heng’s room door was suddenly knocked, and Ji Yao instinctively asked who it was. He then heard Amber’s childish voice responding from outside.

Jiang Heng: “…”

Ji Yao: “…”

Eating alone while hiding from a child was obviously not the behavior of adults. Jiang Heng hurriedly destroyed the evidence and signaled Ji Yao to hide everything while he went to open the door.

“Big brother,” Amber stood at the door with a plush toy in her arms, raised her face solemnly, and called him, “I suddenly remembered that I haven’t given you a goodnight kiss.”

“Really?” Jiang Heng smiled and bent down, gently touching her cheek. “Then, goodnight?”

Amber came closer and gave him a kiss, but then, as if sensing something, she sniffed his collar.

“Big brother,” Amber suddenly asked, “why do you smell like cream?”

Jiang Heng: “…”

“Maybe it’s because you really wanted ice cream,” Jiang Heng’s mind raced and he awkwardly replied, “Go to bed early, and you can have another one tomorrow.”

“Why don’t you have the lights on in your room?” Amber tilted her head, looked into the room, and wondered, “It’s really dark in there.”

“Because we’re getting ready to sleep,” Jiang Heng cleared his throat and said, “Staying up late will make you shorter.”

“Oh,” Amber was convinced by his explanation, nodded like a little adult, and then extended her hand to hug Jiang Heng’s neck. “Then, goodnight, big brother.”

She seemed like a little robot here to check off a task. After saying that, she waved at Jiang Heng and hopped back to her neighboring room.

Jiang Heng heaved a sigh of relief and turned around, only to realize that Ji Yao had somehow hidden behind the curtains with the cake. He had only half of his head sticking out, looking like a guilty husband caught in the act.

“She’s gone,” Jiang Heng said.

Ji Yao also heaved a sigh of relief, walked out with the cake plate, and halfway through, he realized something was amiss.

“Why do I feel like I’m sneaking around like a thief?” Ji Yao puzzled, “I’m just eating cake, not stealing it.”

Jiang Heng thought for a moment and couldn’t figure out the answer either. In the end, he could only attribute it to the fact that when the two of them got together, their intelligence seemed to decrease.

“And you,” Ji Yao said softly, “Why do you have to do this behind Amber’s back? It makes us seem childish.”

Jiang Heng didn’t say anything, he simply kicked Ji Yao’s ankle under the table, looking dissatisfied with the “accomplice” comment.

The two of them silently fell into a synchronized laughter for a moment.

“This is embarrassing,” Ji Yao said, trying to hold back his laughter.