Chapter 26: I Miss You Too

Chapter 26: I Miss You Too

"Doesn't hurt at all."

Lu Hechi walked around from behind him to the front, showing off his biceps.

"Bro, look, I've been hitting the gym lately."

Shen Lanxue's eyes swept over his muscles.

"Mm."

Lu Hechi felt that answer was pretty half-assed.

He bent down, slid his hands under Shen Lanxue's thighs, and scooped him off the couch in one smooth motion.

Shen Lanxue was startled by the sudden move and instinctively wrapped his arms around Lu Hechi's neck.

"What are you doing?"

Lu Hechi looked up, grinning. "I'm just hugging you."

"Bro, why are you so light?"

Shen Lanxue frowned. "Put me down."

"Nope."

Shen Lanxue: "..."

Lu Hechi blinked. "Kiss me, and I'll put you down."

"You..."

Shen Lanxue barely got one word out before his mouth was covered.

Lu Hechi's muffled voice came through. "I'll just kiss you myself."

Ten minutes later.

Shen Lanxue was laid on the big bed in rumpled pajamas, a hickey on his collarbone.

Lu Hechi looked thoroughly satisfied, planted another kiss on his cheek, then headed to the bathroom.

"..."

Shen Lanxue took the matter of helping Chu Baobei's mom find a lawyer to heart.

The next day at the office, he told Li Wenrui to find a suitable lawyer.

After the morning meeting, the front desk called to say a man named Liu Dawei was downstairs asking to see President Shen.

Li Wenrui knocked, asked Shen Lanxue, then had security toss the guy out.

When Shen Lanxue went downstairs for lunch, a man suddenly jumped out and dropped to his knees in front of him, crying his eyes out.

"President Shen, yesterday's offense against your son was my failure to discipline my kid. Please have mercy and give me a way out."

"Don't worry, I already got rid of that woman."

He crawled forward on his knees, reaching for Shen Lanxue's clothes.

Shen Lanxue stepped back, dodging him.

His voice was cold. "Mr. Liu, a father is responsible for his son's mistakes."

With that, Shen Lanxue didn't even look at him and walked off.

It was lunchtime, so plenty of people saw what happened—some passersby even whipped out their phones to record.

Liu Dawei slumped to the ground, never imagining things would come to this.

＊＊

Lu Hechi went to work today and was researching that variety show at the office.

*My Good Friends*.

The show had three seasons total, and he started from season one.

The show's selling point was the everyday interactions between celebrity friends and their regular-person friends.

The content revolved around traveling to different countries.

The production team claimed there was no script at all.

After finishing season one, Lu Hechi noticed that two pairs of good friends ended up having a falling out.

He worried a little, but then figured his relationship with Chen Jiadong couldn't get any worse anyway.

Someone knocked on the door.

Lu Hechi straightened up a bit and cleared his throat.

"Come in."

The man who pushed the door open was Ji Ziyang, walking in looking delighted.

"President Lu, you agreed to come film the variety show with me."

Lu Hechi: "..."

Why can't this guy take a hint?

"It's got nothing to do with you..." Lu Hechi started to say, but paused, too lazy to argue.

"Fine, since you already know, get out."

"President Lu, this is a friendship-themed variety show," Ji Ziyang stressed.

Lu Hechi: "?"

Ji Ziyang continued, "You at least need to act like my friend, or we won't pass the production team's review."

Lu Hechi hadn't thought about that.

He was genuinely stunned speechless by that.

"Then tell me, what does acting like a friend even look like?"

"First," Ji Ziyang stared straight at him, "you can't be this cold to me."

Lu Hechi thought for a moment and said honestly, "...That might be kinda hard."

Ji Ziyang: "..."

"At least fake it on the surface."

Ji Ziyang said this through gritted teeth.

What the hell was wrong with Lu Hechi? He used to treat him pretty well. Why, after getting hurt, was he so openly showing his dislike for him?

Lu Hechi figured he didn't know how to act anyway.

But this was a rare chance to get closer to Chen Jiadong.

After all, his number was blocked, and with Chen Jiadong constantly busy with filming and events, he couldn't track him down.

Lu Hechi didn't want to let this opportunity slip away.

"Fine, I get it," Lu Hechi said. "I'll try."

Ji Ziyang let out a sigh of relief.

At least Lu Hechi didn't really hate him, or he wouldn't have agreed to his request.

He could finally break into a smile.

Ji Ziyang went on, "Second, you—"

Lu Hechi cut him off: "Why do you have so many damn demands? Fine, fine, just get out."

Ji Ziyang choked on his words.

"Mr. Lu..."

"Get out!"

Ji Ziyang had no choice but to turn around and leave. He slowed his pace, hoping Lu Hechi would call him back.

By the time he reached the door, his hand had just touched the handle.

Lu Hechi spoke up, and Ji Ziyang's eyes lit up, only to hear him say: "Oh, and shut the door on your way out."

Ji Ziyang was furious, slammed the door, and stormed off.

After he left, Lu Hechi's mood perked up again.

He poured a cup of tea, unlocked his phone, and opened WeChat. He leaned back in his chair, spun around with his feet on the floor, thought about what to send, then cheerfully messaged Shen Lanxue.

"What's bro up to?"

"You miss me? OvO"

He'd just sent the message when his phone rang.

Lu Hechi figured it was Shen Lanxue, so he swiped to answer without looking, spun half a turn and gazed out the floor-to-ceiling window.

He was about to happily greet his bro.

But then Lu Xiuran's voice came through the phone.

"Bro, it's been months. Aren't you coming home to see Mom and Dad?"

Lu Hechi: "..."

He quickly brought the phone up to his face and stared wide-eyed at the caller ID.

A number he didn't recognize.

Lu Hechi ran a hand through his hair. Damn it, he shouldn't have picked up so fast.

Lately, he'd been avoiding contact with his biological parents.

Subconsciously wanting to avoid this relationship.

But the sudden call hit him like a brick, leaving him reeling and forcing him to face the issue head-on.

"I know, I'll be back this week."

After hanging up, Lu Hechi clutched his phone and slumped in his chair, feeling lost.

He didn't know how to deal with it.

Back then, eighteen-year-old Lu Hechi must have been just as lost—unfamiliar parents, an unfamiliar family, a distance like an unbridgeable chasm.

His phone vibrated.

Lu Hechi unlocked it and opened the message.

It was from Shen Lanxue.

Just one word.

"Mm."

He glanced back at his earlier messages, and that vague sense of confusion suddenly vanished, replaced by a fuller, swelling feeling.

It flowed like a small stream, steadily feeding into his heart.

Bringing him unparalleled courage.

Yeah, he wasn't alone anymore.

His bro would be with him. No matter how his biological parents treated him—whether they loved him or not—it didn't matter, because he hadn't been alone for a long time.

Lu Hechi typed out a message.

"Me too. I miss you so much."