CH 115

Chapter 115 – Finding a Home in the Heart

On this day, as the sky brightened, Wei Chen was prepared.

Chen Li woke up early today and stuck close to Wei Chen. Wherever Wei Chen went, Chen Li followed, looking at Wei Chen with a longing expression in his eyes. Wei Chen, seeing Chen Li’s expression, had the urge to say: “Come with me.”

But in the end, he held back those words. After all, he didn’t want Chen Li to know about what he was going to do today.

It was another beautiful day, with warm winter sun casting a gentle glow over the world.

Wei Chen first drove Chen Li to Q University. Zhuge Yu was already waiting in the studio to take Chen Li. Reluctantly turning around, Wei Chen was about to leave when a pair of hands grabbed his coat.

“Li Li,” Wei Chen looked at Chen Li with a reluctant gaze and whispered softly.

Chen Li remained silent but stood on tiptoes and kissed Wei Chen on the lips.

Wei Chen shifted from being passive to taking the initiative, deepening the farewell kiss.

Their lips intertwined, and if Wei Chen didn’t have a flight to catch, this kiss would probably have continued indefinitely.

“I’ll be back soon,” Wei Chen said, his gaze filled with infinite tenderness.

“Okay, I’ll wait for you,” Chen Li’s large eyes looked at Wei Chen, glistening with reluctance.

Zhuge Yu stood by the side, feeling a bit overwhelmed by this display of affection. They would only part for a day, so why were they acting so reluctant?

People in love, he truly couldn’t understand.

Chen Li only withdrew his gaze when Wei Chen’s figure disappeared into the distance.

“You’re so reluctant, huh?” Zhuge Yu couldn’t help but tease when Chen Li finally turned around.

“Yeah, I am,” Chen Li admitted straightforwardly, a serious expression on his face. Zhuge Yu didn’t know how to respond. He thought Chen Li would be shy, but he wasn’t, and he was so straightforward.

Wei Chen returned to the capital city that day. By the time he arrived home, it was late at night, and the whole residential area was quiet. Only the streetlights cast a faint yellow glow, illuminating Wei Chen’s way home.

When he reached the bottom of the building, Wei Chen couldn’t help but look up at his own apartment. There was a light on, the only window in the entire building where light was shining through.

Someone was waiting for him to come home.

This thought surfaced in Wei Chen’s mind, and he felt that the deep winter chill couldn’t invade him any longer. A warm feeling emanated from his heart, spreading throughout his body. He had found his home, his home with Chen Li. In his previous life, he had ignored and resisted this home, but in this life, it was his safe harbor. Just seeing the light, Wei Chen felt all exhaustion dissipate.

Wei Chen’s gaze carried warmth as he walked into the building and pressed the button for his floor.

He pushed the door open gently, worried about waking Chen Li with his movements. Quietly and carefully, he walked in. When he reached the living room, he saw Chen Li sitting on the couch, reading a book.

Chen Li was feeling drowsy at the moment. He read for a while, and then his eyelids drooped, but he quickly forced himself to open his eyes wider, repeating this cycle, unwilling to fall asleep.

Upon hearing the sound at the door, Chen Li suddenly became alert. He looked up towards the entrance, his eyes filled with surprise. Wei Chen, with a gentle gaze, watched him, his expression tender.

“Li Li, I’m back,” Wei Chen said.

“Mm, I see,” Chen Li got up and walked to Wei Chen’s side, suddenly throwing himself into Wei Chen’s arms.

Although they had only been apart for a day, Chen Li felt like it had been an eternity. If Wei Chen didn’t come back, Chen Li felt like he would have difficulty breathing.

Wei Chen held Chen Li tightly, his heart settled.

Wei Chen had never imagined that he could be so sentimental. Even though it had only been about twenty hours since they were separated, it felt like they had been worlds apart. Everyone thought that Chen Li depended on Wei Chen and couldn’t live without him, but Wei Chen knew that he also depended on Chen Li wholeheartedly.

With someone to care for in his heart, that’s where home truly was.

Wei Chen kissed Chen Li on the top of his head, and then he heard the sound of deep breathing. It turned out that after knowing Wei Chen had returned, Chen Li couldn’t resist his drowsiness and fell asleep. Wei Chen felt somewhat helpless and a bit distressed, but more than anything, he was filled with a sense of gratitude.

He carefully lifted Chen Li and carried him back to the bedroom, gently placing him on the bed. When Wei Chen tried to get up, Chen Li instinctively clung tightly to his hand, not letting him leave.

Wei Chen had no choice but to lie down beside him. As soon as his body touched the bed, the exhaustion from the day overwhelmed him. Before long, Wei Chen and Chen Li both fell into a deep sleep.

*

The Dream Cup competition was proceeding intensively. To facilitate the viewing of artworks by collectors, the exhibition times in each region were staggered, with the capital city region being the earliest.

This time, there were more than thirty selected artworks in the capital city region, including Lu Xiuran’s work. However, it was displayed in a rather inconspicuous place, indicating that Lu Xiuran’s work didn’t perform very well. It was possible that it would be eliminated in the national finals.

Lu Xiuran wasn’t surprised by this result. After all, he was just a freshman student, and the Dream Cup gathered the art elites from all over the country. Being able to make it into the top thirty in the capital city region was already an outstanding achievement for someone his age.

On the day of the exhibition in the capital city region, many collectors and artists came to the exhibition area, some traveling from faraway places.

Of course, compared to the grandeur of the Dream Cup final exhibition, the exhibition in the capital city region was less extravagant, but there was still a constant flow of people.

Lu Xiuran was both a participant and a volunteer. He had been busy at the exhibition area these past few days, seemingly devoting his whole being to the Dream Cup. Last night, the artworks that made it to the national finals were all hung in their designated spots. Lu Xiuran looked at each one but didn’t see Chen Li’s work.

This result disappointed Lu Xiuran. He had hoped that Chen Li’s work would appear in this exhibition area and even cause a huge sensation. That way, when the plagiarism incident was exposed, the blow to Chen Li would be even greater.

Although Lu Xiuran felt somewhat disappointed, he had achieved his goal in the end—Chen Li had lost the qualification to participate in the competition.

“Lu Xiuran, I saw many people standing in front of your painting, and they seemed to appreciate it,” said the fellow volunteer, with a hint of envy. Coming from a prominent family, their upbringing had been different. They had been nurtured in this direction from a young age, and now, at a young age, they had entered the top thirty in the capital city region and obtained an exhibition area. It was a tremendous honor for them.

Lu Xiuran smiled and said, “I was just lucky.” There was no trace of arrogance on his face; he remained calm, giving off an air of being unmoved by praise or humiliation.

“It’s not just luck. Even if someone like us had good luck, so what? We wouldn’t even dare to sign up. You’re amazing,” the person flattered. They knew about Lu Xiuran’s background, and establishing a good relationship with him would benefit them in the future.

Lu Xiuran didn’t say anything further. Although he appeared calm and unaffected, his mouth curled slightly upwards when he looked at his classmate, exuding a sense of superiority.

The classmate didn’t notice these small details. They continued to flatter Lu Xiuran. However, their conversation was interrupted by a series of phone ringing. Lu Xiuran took out his phone, making an apologetic gesture, and said, “I need to take this call.”

The caller ID showed a city in the southeast, and Lu Xiuran had a general idea of what the call was about. When he answered the phone, a smile of triumph involuntarily appeared on his face. “Hello,” Lu Xiuran couldn’t contain his joy, and his voice was filled with an unshakable sense of satisfaction.

“You are so good at predicting things!” A slightly surprised voice came from the phone, “Sure enough, someone came to threaten me yesterday. That person may look handsome, but he’s serious and imposing. I couldn’t catch my breath under his pressure. If it weren’t for my firm determination, he would have coerced information out of me,” saying this, the person still felt lingering fear.

Lu Xiuran had already guessed that the person was Wei Chen. He asked, “Do you have a recording?”

“I do, definitely,” the person replied immediately. “Let me tell you, with this recording, you’ll surely be able to bring down the person you want to destroy. It’s ironclad evidence!”

“Send it to me,” Lu Xiuran said excitedly.

The person hesitated, “Should I send it to you just like that? Aren’t you going to compensate me?”

Having interacted with this person for a long time, Lu Xiuran knew his temperament well. He was only after some money, and compared to ruining Chen Li, this sum of money was insignificant. So Lu Xiuran readily agreed, “Sure, I’ll transfer the money to your account right away.”

“I like how straightforward you are,” the person laughed and said, “Then send me the money, and I’ll send you the recording.”

Lu Xiuran saw someone approaching him, so he quickly added, “Please send me the recording,” and then hung up the phone.

“Lu Xiuran, the professor is looking for you,” said the person who came over patted Lu Xiuran’s shoulder.

“I’ll go there right away,” Lu Xiuran replied as he left with the person.

On the other side, the man who had been bought off by Lu Xiuran took a deep breath after ending the call. When he thought of the person from yesterday, he still felt a lingering fear. The man’s gaze became somewhat gloomy, and when he thought of Lu Xiuran, he even felt like gnashing his teeth.

‘Since you, Lu Xiuran, didn’t trust me and secretly recorded our conversation, then don’t blame me for being ruthless and exposing you!’