CH 38.1

Originally, Xiao Zhenyun was still pondering how to rack his brains to find a way to meddle in the relationship between the two, but in the end, he fell asleep without doing anything. When he woke up, Si Chu and Ye Feiran had argued for some unknown reason, and they hadn’t made up even after arriving at the hotel and had dinner.

Ye Feiran hadn’t even come downstairs to eat, and Si Chu, in a bad mood, only ate a little. The dog’s ears drooped noticeably, and its tail stopped wagging.

The unscrupulous uncle Xiao Zhenyun couldn’t contain his delight. He immediately decided to seize the opportunity and invited Si Chu to visit the night market in the nearby town. Si Chu, who didn’t want to return to the room to face his boyfriend for the time being and was curious to test if his little uncle was really having relationship issues as Ye Feiran suspected, readily accepted Xiao Zhenyun’s invitation.

The so-called market was just a simple short street with vendors selling snacks, fruits, and miscellaneous trinkets on both sides. At the end of the alley was a convenience store.

The sentinel had a bland palate and kept his distance from the heavy food on the street, and he especially disliked the noise, keeping his ears down throughout. On the other hand, Xiao Zhenyun took a leisurely stroll with great interest, bought some skewers for himself, and the enthusiastic vendor aunt even added two extra skewers of potatoes for him and rounded down the change. Xiao Zhenyun instructed Si Chu to help carry them and ordered a plate of fried clams from the neighboring stall. He also bought a box of sticky rice cakes and a box of rice cakes for Si Chu.

Finally, he led the little dog into the convenience store and came out with a case of beer, ready to enjoy a little.

Si Chu’s eyelids twitched when he saw Xiao Zhenyun buying beer, and he couldn’t help but recall the terrifying sight of his little uncle drunk at their engagement banquet. Normally, he looked gentle and frail, but when he was drunk, he had incredible strength, nearly pulling his ears and tail bald.

He had never learned how to discreetly gather information, and several times along the way, he wanted to ask Xiao Zhenyun about his relationship, but he didn’t know how to start. Now, his attention was drawn to the beer, and he couldn’t help feeling more and more uneasy, unsure of what to say.

The clock silently pointed to eight o’clock, and the outside world had become completely dark. It didn’t feel too bad wandering through the crowded market with its strong aroma of food, but when they left the crowd and continued down a small path, a cold wind with a salty sea scent silently bared its fangs and slipped into Xiao Zhenyun’s collar, devouring his last bit of warmth, leaving his fingers ice-cold.

Why did ‘Xiao Zhenyun’ in the novel insist on having a heart-to-heart with Si Chu on the grass? Wasn’t the warm hotel room good enough? Couldn’t they just use the small tables and chairs set up conveniently by the vendors? If that didn’t work, sitting on the roadside curb was acceptable, wasn’t it?

Was it to create a carefree and pleasant camping atmosphere? Was it to create an atmosphere of youthful romance for the pure-hearted young men dating? But where was the grass? He felt like Si Chu had pushed him three kilometers away, and he hadn’t even seen a playground with grass.

Facing the increasingly biting cold wind, Xiao Zhenyun rubbed his hands, carefully buttoned every button on his coat, put on his hood, and took out a prepared blanket to wrap himself tightly from head to toe.

Si Chu, with youthful energy and being a sentinel, didn’t feel the cold, but unconsciously, the little uncle sitting in the wheelchair ahead of him transformed from a long-haired, elegant beauty into a round ball of fluff. It finally dawned on Si Chu, “Little uncle, it’s so cold. Let’s not wander around; let’s hurry back to the hotel.”

“No.” Xiao Zhenyun also tucked his hands inside the blanket. “Find a grassy area. Let’s sit down and have a drink and chat, nephew.”

“Little uncle… you seem to be shivering when you speak.”

Xiao Zhenyun remained expressionless, his determination unwavering. “It’s an illusion.”

Five minutes later.

“Little uncle, do we really have to be out in the grass? That little tavern with the soft yellow lights looks so warm…”

“Don’t ramble; that place is definitely a front for pyramid schemes, luring innocent puppies in and turning them into hotpot.”

“??”

Ten minutes later.

“Little uncle…”

“Shut up.”

Fifteen minutes later, under the brilliant leadership of Xiao Zhenyun, who possessed both wisdom and martial prowess, the two of them roamed until daybreak without finding a single blade of grass. Finally, Si Chu relied on his sense of smell to discover a gentle grassy slope. With an expansive view and the wind encircling them, they sat atop it, overlooking the coastal town. Neon lights adorned towering skyscrapers as far as the eye could see. Further in the distance, the night sky merged seamlessly into the thick darkness of the deep sea.

Si Chu pushed Xiao Zhenyun and sprinted towards it, spreading out a picnic blanket they had bought from a convenience store and settling down on the grass.

Faint laughter carried by the wind echoed in the distance, disappearing before their ears could pinpoint its source. Si Chu stood up dazed, facing the wind and gazing into the distance. His disheveled hair fluttered, his clothes flared, and a sense of joy in this vast world, contrasted with his own small self, welled up within him. The troubles that had been weighing on his emotions seemed to drift away with the refreshing sea breeze.

Si Chu was somewhat happy, as if he had grasped the heartfelt intentions behind Xiao Zhenyun’s insistence on bringing him here. His tail, hanging behind him, began to wag gently, and it wagged faster as his excitement grew. He turned around in excitement, only to see his little uncle fumbling with the pull tab of a beer can, his hands already frozen and powerless.

“…”

Silently, Si Chu stepped forward and opened the can for Xiao Zhenyun.

“Thank you…” Xiao Zhenyun raised the can in pain, took a small sip, and the icy alcohol chilled his throat. He struggled to swallow it, and then, looking down at the cold skewers in the fast-food box, white fat and cold, tough red meat, covered in sesame and chili flakes, he lost his appetite. The once fragrant clams were now covered in a layer of crimson chili oil. Xiao Zhenyun closed the box again.

Yi Feiran, the protagonist of ‘Loneliness and Sadness,’ had probably already enjoyed his dinner in a warm and comfortable hotel room. Maybe the food wasn’t as delicious, but it was certainly steaming hot and nutritionally balanced. At this hour, he might have already taken a hot shower, changed into clean pajamas, and was lying comfortably on a soft bed, ‘gazing at the pitch-black sea outside, waiting in loneliness.’

Meanwhile, Xiao Zhenyun, the villain who ‘succeeded in his conspiracy,’ braved the biting cold wind, enduring the pain of grass seeds getting in his eyes, while looking at Si Chu’s handsome profile… Well, maybe handsome, it was just too dark here, and there were no streetlights, so Xiao Zhenyun couldn’t see anything clearly.

To make the effort in the night worthwhile, he forcefully activated the terminal’s lighting system, shining it directly on Si Chu’s chin, hinting with a sly ‘smirk’ that he was determined to win this man over.

“Little uncle! Let’s go back!” Si Chu also felt the wind was too strong; his clothes and pants rustled in the wind.

“Drink first, and then we’ll go back. Finish it!” Xiao Zhenyun forcefully placed a can of beer in Si Chu’s hand, then casually pointed to the pitch-black sky, “Look, the Big Dipper!”

Si Chu raised his head and gazed at the sky, saying, “Little uncle, there are no stars in the sky. It’s so overcast; there’s probably going to be rain tomorrow.”

“…” You’re right; there will indeed be heavy rain tomorrow afternoon, causing huge waves in the sea, flipping your little boat, and leaving you stranded on a small island. Xiao Zhenyun lifted his head, wondering how the character ‘Xiao Zhenyun’ in the novel could see the North Star at this moment.

However, in the original plot Si Chu was completely immersed in his own negative emotions at this moment. When ‘Xiao Zhenyun’ made him look up at the starry sky and claimed to see the Big Dipper, Si Chu simply nodded absentmindedly. Perhaps ‘Xiao Zhenyun’ didn’t really see stars in the night sky, but the boy he loved was sitting next to him, so it unintentionally brought a twinkle to his eyes…

Wow, the original storyline is so sad.

Xiao Zhenyun mourned as he took a sip of the beer and got half-frozen again.

Si Chu sat on the side, sipping his drink, and as his mood brightened, his appetite grew. He finished a box of rice cakes and then moved on to bowl cakes. “Little uncle, these are delicious. Do you want some?”

“No,” Xiao Zhenyun handed him another beer can.

“I won’t drink anymore; my tolerance is low, and there’s important business with the union tomorrow.” Si Chu politely declined, but Xiao Zhenyun didn’t care if the little pup wanted to drink or not; he resorted to the cunning tactics of adults at the dining table and insisted on offering the drink, saying, “I’m just giving you a sip of alcohol; if you refuse, are you not giving me face?”

Fresh out of the tower and having little world experience, the innocent and pure-hearted pup exclaimed, “No way, little uncle! You can’t be serious!”

“Then let’s drink! All emotions are all in alcohol.”

“Little uncle…”

“Don’t listen to little uncle’s words?”

“QAQ!” 

Si Chu pitifully took another can and then another. His claim of having a weak tolerance for alcohol was no exaggeration; after four cans of beer, he turned as red as a tomato. Without needing any more persuasion from Xiao Zhenyun, he mechanically continued pouring himself more drinks. Xiao Zhenyun counted the remaining bottles and was about to hand him another can to make sure he got completely drunk before returning home. Suddenly, a green wolf head popped up from the wrist terminal on his wrist, jumping and drawing attention.

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