Additional Inheritance - Chap 44
Chapter 44.1
Li Shuo invited Wen Xiaohui to dinner a few days later. Li Shuo’s lively manner was probably due to his good fortune and he looked really cheerful. He was even more handsome and dazzling than before.
Wen Xiaohui teased, “Oh, Director Li, did something good happen recently? I can tell from your facial features1.”
Li Shuo laughed, “I’ve just wrapped up a project and I feel much more relaxed. Your career’s taking off, Wen laoshi2.”
Wen Xiaohui started to giggle. He felt excited as he updated Li Shuo about the activities he took part in recently and his latest opportunities. Li Shuo was really happy for him.
They chatted while they were eating. The ambience was both romantic and harmonious.
When dinner was over, they went for a stroll around the business district. Li Shuo went with Wen Xiaohui to browse the makeup counters as he patiently watched him experimenting with different colours and providing a second opinion. The store assistant’s eyes sparkled as she watched the two of them.
As they walked through an urban park, they stopped and sat down on a bench. Wen Xiaohui looked at the bag that he was carrying and he smiled as he said, “I feel very rich.” In reality, he was very rich even though it was only temporary.
Li Shuo smiled. “How come?”
“I got a pay rise recently. I’ve never seen so much money before, so my arms feel like jelly all of a sudden.”
Li Shuo laughed.
“Hey, are you laughing at me? When I first started as a trainee, my salary was 1,500 and it went up to 2,800 when I became qualified. Afterwards, I went abroad to train and came back to a salary of over 10,000. I feel like an upstart.”
“I wasn’t laughing at you – I think you’re really cute. You’ve achieved what you have today through hard work, so you should be proud of yourself.”
Wen Xiaohui was pleased with himself and he replied, “The main point is that I’m cute.”
A smile broke out on Li Shuo’s face as he teased, “Let me see.”
Wen Xiaohui felt a little scared to look into Li Shuo’s profound eyes, but he didn’t want to chicken out and avoid his gaze.
Li Shuo grasped Wen Xiaohui’s chin and kissed him gently on the forehead. “You’re really cute.”
Wen Xiaohui smiled. It suddenly dawned on him that Li Shuo’s kiss no longer stirred his heart.
Li Shuo used his finger to coil Wen Xiaohui’s soft hair around his finger. “Do you know that I regretted it after I got back from the US?
“Why?”
Li Shuo moved closer to his ear and he said with a slight smile, “That night… I should have really continued.”
Wen Xiaohui recalled the night of passion that had been disrupted with mixed emotions – he felt somewhat regretful, but he was also glad. It was like he had schizophrenia. He couldn’t stop his cheeks from burning after hearing Li Shuo’s suggestive flirting.
Li Shuo looked at him with eyes that were filled with gentleness and cheer. “Xiaohui, since you’re back in the country and not much has changed between us, there’s something I need to say.”
Wen Xiaohui suddenly felt so nervous that his back was ramrod straight.
Li Shuo asked in a serious voice, “Will you be my boyfriend?”
Wen Xiaohui took a deep breath as his thoughts immediately became chaotic. If Li Shuo had said these words to him that night – the night when Li Shuo first kissed him – he would have agreed without any hesitation.
However, he hesitated now. He used to wish that he could hear these words from Li Shuo, but now it felt like an invisible band of pressure. At this juncture, he thought of Luo Yi.
He found he couldn’t agree to it when he thought of Luo Yi.
Li Shuo observed Wen Xiaohui’s vacant expression and he knit his eyebrows. “Xiaohui?”
Wen Xiaohui’s jaw dropped as he felt extremely embarrassed. “Li-dage, I…”
“Is it wishful thinking?” said Li Shuo faintly.
Wen Xiaohui shook his head, then wiped his face. “To be honest, Li-dage, I would have been so happy if you said those words to me a year ago.”
“So now…”
“At the time, you were my dream boyfriend, the type no one would be able to find fault with. That’s still the case. You’re still so perfect, but I’m…” Suddenly, he felt like he couldn’t express himself. How could he say, ‘Wouldn’t Luo Yi be distraught if I accepted you?’ He couldn’t begin to imagine what would happen if Luo Yi found out he got together with Li Shuo, since Luo Yi was so dependent on him and loved him so much.
Li Shu stared at him in silence. “Is there someone you like?”
Biting his lip, Wen Xiaohui thought this question was the hardest one to answer.
Did he love Luo Yi? He asked himself that question countless times and at first, the answer was ‘no’, then it turned into ‘can’t’ and ‘don’t want to.’ At this moment in time, it would be impossible to convince even himself if he said he didn’t love Luo Yi.
Sometimes he found himself unable to articulate what loving someone meant. For example, his first boyfriend – he thought the guy who was pursuing him was really handsome and he really wanted to start dating – so he agreed. He knew it wasn’t love. When he was being two-timed, he only felt anger and wanted to murder the bastard. Take another example – Li Shuo. Wen Xiaohui thought he was so perfect and chic that you couldn’t ask for more when dating someone like that. Li Shuo was a fantasy from his idealistic vision of love, but if Li Shuo didn’t like him, he would most likely feel down for a bit before getting over it. When it came to Luo Yi, there were countless occasions when Luo Yi made his heart stir. There was also his meticulous care and kind-heartedness which accompanied Wen Xiaohui over a long period of time and the firm and decisive love confession. He was terrified of losing Luo Yi. He couldn’t imagine life without him and it was like how Luo Yi couldn’t live without him either. Perhaps this was the true meaning of love.
Li Shuo saw Wen Xiaohui’s look of indecision and he already knew the answer. He sighed and hung his head.
Wen Xiaohui whispered, “Li-dage, I’m sorry.”
Li Shuo smiled gently. “There’s no need for you to apologise, but I’m full of regret.”
Regret. Wen Xiaohui felt like he could finally breathe. In the face of his rejection, Li Shuo used the term ‘regret’ – a conservative and gentlemanly ‘regret.’ If it were Luo Yi…
Li Shuo was like a flawless piece of fine jade. Everyone wanted to own it, but you couldn’t penetrate the warm but sturdy material even if you grasped it in the palm of your hand. It was impossible to touch his heart. Maybe he was overthinking it, but Li Shuo’s love for him was too shallow and the one who could break through Li Shuo’s perfect surface was not himself.
Wen Xiaohui said sincerely, “Li-dage, I might never meet a man better than you in my lifetime, but there’s a lack of fate between us.”
Li Shuo nodded as he smiled. “Thank you. I still like you a lot. I find your confidence and your liveliness attractive. I hope that we can still be friends.”
“Of course. Having a friend like you raises the class of my social circle.”
Li Shuo laughed.
When they got back into the car, Li Shuo wanted to take Wen Xiaohui home.
Wen Xiaohui phoned Luo Yi. “Hi Luo Yi, do you want supper? I’m coming over now.”
The other end of the line became momentarily silent. “Xiaohui-ge, don’t come over today. I’m still out doing a few things and it might be late before I get back.” Luo Yi sounded a bit annoyed from the tone of his voice.
“Oh, okay then.” Wen Xiaohui felt a little disappointed. He hadn’t seen Luo Yi since he signed the contract last time, which was nearly two weeks ago. Luo Yi said he was really busy the few times that he wanted to go over. He felt upset, but he was unable to say anything when he thought about how the inheritance tax and the company probably took up all of Luo Yi’s energy.
Li Shuo took him home.
————————————-
After his shower, Wen Xiaohui lay on his bed, staring blankly at his phone. Luo Yi’s phone calls and messages used to be frequent, but recently the number plummeted like a waterfall. Sometimes, Luo Yi went a full day without sending a message. Although he didn’t want to admit it, Luo Yi’s attitude changed ever since signing the contract. But maybe he was overthinking…
He took a photo of himself making a funny face whilst he was lying on his back and sent it to Luo Yi.
After waiting ages, Luo Yi finally replied with the sentence: ‘Go to sleep soon.’
Wen Xiaohui felt depressed and he dialled Luo Rui’s number.
“Hi Baby, I’m having a bath.”
“Are you showing off your jacuzzi?”
“Tsk tsk. I’ve discovered that you hate the rich.”
“You’re showing off because you didn’t invite me to try your jacuzzi.”
“You can come stay over at mine next time. What’s up? Do you want to chat?”
“Yeah, I’d like to chat.”
“About what? Are we going to talk about your relationship problems with the mature, top-class, handsome CEO and the mellow and cute boy genius?”
“Yeah.”
“You are the one showing off, you scoundrel!”
Wen Xiaohui sighed. “Li Shuo said those words to me today.”
“Did he confess his love?”
“Not really. It was just one sentence asking me to be his boyfriend.”
“Wow.” The splish-splashing of water could be heard from the other end of the line. “What was it like? What was it like? Did you agree to it?”
“Guess.”
“If you agreed, you wouldn’t be calling me from your lonesome boudoir3.”
“Fuck, you’re right…”
“Why did you turn him down? Don’t you like him?
Wen Xiaohui replied as he was spacing out, “Do I like him?”
Luo Rui paused. “Oh, I know.”
“You know this as well?”
“I know. You’re my man, why wouldn’t I know?”
“What do you know?”
“Li Shuo is the epitome of perfection, so you thought that he would fulfil all your fantasies. You should, no, you have to fall in love with him as expected. However, you never really fell in love with him.”
“Xiao Ma, you might as well start your own agony aunt column on a blog, you could earn more than you do selling cakes.”
“Piss off. Can you be more serious?”
Wen Xiaohui sighed again. “I was stunned when he said these words to me today. The first thing that occurred to me was that I couldn’t agree, otherwise Luo Yi wouldn’t be able to bear it.”
Luo Rui screamed.
Wen Xiaohui moved the mobile phone away from his ear. He cursed, “Fuck! Did you want to scare me to death?”
“You’re screwed. You’re so screwed, Wen Xiaohui. You fell in love with Luo Yi!”
Wen Xiaohui bashed his head against his pillow several times. He asked resentfully, “Really?”
“I actually discovered ages ago that your relationship is pretty much the same as that of a couple. I felt that you liked him, but you didn’t dare address or admit it for various reasons. You must feel less apprehensive since he’s already confessed to you and the contract between you will come to an end shortly. That’s why the feelings you suppressed are about to explode. Am I right? Am I right? Tell me quickly if my analysis is right. Give me a five-star review, dear!”
“Piss off!”
Luo Rui giggled and he replied, “Why the heck did you tell me4 to piss off? I’m not wearing any clothes, I’m so ashamed.”
“Fuck, I’m so confused. Don’t act so clingy with me.”
“Baby, if you love someone, you should be brave and admit it. You’re not breaking the law by falling in love with someone – that’s what you taught me. Didn’t you used to be like this? You weren’t afraid to say anything or do anything. You’ve always been my idol. How come you’ve grown more timid as you age?”
“It’s called maturity. Do you understand? Being mature means that you’re more apprehensive.”
“You can live your whole life being too scared to admit that you like someone. Why the heck do you need this sort of maturity?”
“Did you get possessed by a life coach?”
“These are all things that you said to me in the past!”
Wen Xiaohui scratched his head. “You’re right. No, I’m right.” He didn’t dare to admit that he was in love with Luo Yi – he was even lying to himself until Li Shuo said those words today and he found that he couldn’t continue lying to himself. He couldn’t keep hiding from it either. He had to face up to this problem. The relationship between him and Luo Yi was too out of the ordinary. Maybe he would be able to stop restraining himself after the contract becomes invalidated and his guardianship dissolved. Otherwise he would always feel as though his heart was bound by chains, suppressing him and making him feel uncomfortable.
Luo Rui smiled and said, “That’s more like it. I understand your concerns, but these concerns will soon disappear. Baby, you’re going to start dating soon!”
Wen Xiaohui thought of Luo Yi and his heart immediately warmed. This time, he really did find someone he liked. He was finally going to start dating and he felt full of anticipation as soon as Luo Yi’s face appeared in his mind.
“Baby, we need to have a proper celebration when you finally lose your virginity!”
Yeah, definitely!”
Footnotes:
Refers to Chinese physiognomy where someone can tell your fortune from your facial features.
The term laoshi means teacher, but it is used in this context as a term of respect for someone who is accomplished in their field of expertise.
独守空闺, literally refers to a woman who is guarding her chambers alone. It can refer to someone who is not yet married or a married woman whose husband is not present in the family home.
Luo Rui uses third person term 人家 twice to refer to himself in this sentence, which denotes a coy/flirty/cute way of referring to oneself.
Chapter 44.2
Wen Xiaohui felt much more relaxed after confronting the problems facing him and Luo Yi. However, he hadn’t seen him in close to a month and he couldn’t stand it anymore. His tone of voice was resentful during his call to Luo Yi. “Are you busy again? I haven’t seen you in a month – do you not even have time for us to have dinner together?”
Luo Yi sounded exhausted. “Has it been a month?”
“Yeah, it has been a full month since the signing of the contract. The new autumn clothing collections are out already.”
“Really? I’ll put a few things off today. Come over and we’ll have dinner together.”
Wen Xiaohui replied cheerfully, “Okay, I’ll come around after I finish work.”
After work, Wen Xiaohui brought over some mitten crabs he’d bought. It was just the right season for plump mitten crabs and he and Luo Yi used to eat them as a snack whilst watching films.
———————————————-
When he arrived at Luo Yi’s house, he saw Luo Yi cooking dinner in the kitchen as soon as he stepped through the door. Although it had only been a month since he last saw him, Luo Yi seemed to give off an air of maturity, adding depth to his character. Luo Yi was no longer the youthful teen from before – instead he’d become a fully grown man.
“Luo Yi.” Wen Xiaohui smiled as he said, “I bought some mitten crabs and they’re all female1.”
Luo Yi turned to glance at him, then he immediately turned back around to cut the vegetables. “Okay, put them over there. I’ll sort it out.”
“I’ll help you.” Wen Xiaohui went to the bedroom and changed into a set of casual clothes. He took the crabs into the kitchen. “I can just about manage steamed crabs – it’s just placing them above some water to steam.”
“Okay.” Luo Yi cut up all of the vegetables in his hand. His lips were slightly pursed and his jaw tensed.
“What have you been doing lately? I’ve never seen you so busy before. Is it related to your company?”
“Yeah, it’s at the most crucial stage.”
“Has the inheritance tax been settled?”
“It’s been settled.”
“So has the money been transferred to your account?”
“It has been transferred.”
Wen Xiaohui replied with a smile. “I’m not sure when I changed from a millionaire back to a pauper. Can you resolve your company’s issues with this sum of money?”
“Yeah, it’s in the process of being resolved. It’ll happen soon.”
“That’s great – you’ll be able to take a break for a while.” Wen Xiaohui went over and looked at Luo Yi’s face. “Look at you, you seem really tired. You need to have a good rest once this is over.”
Luo Yi smiled slightly. “Don’t worry.”
After dinner was cooked, they sat facing each other at the dining table and gorged themselves. Wen Xiaohui’s hands were covered in grease from the crabs. “These crabs are so delicious – they’re really worth the money.”
“They’re in season now.” Luo Yi glanced over at Wen Xiaohui occasionally, as he appeared preoccupied2.
“I’m been spending so much money recently that I don’t even recognise myself. I need to rein in my spending. Oh, it must be because I used to be so poor that I get cocky when I have a bit of money. Let’s say you had three million, how would you spend it?”
Luo Yi smiled and said, “I’d spend it as I see fit, but it’s not sufficient for my needs.”
Wen Xiaohui giggled, “What you said sounds good.”
After dinner, Luo Yi went to wash the dishes and Wen Xiaohui connected the games console to the TV in Luo Yi’s bedroom. He set out the drinks and fruit, getting ready for the long gaming session.
Luo Yi went upstairs after he finished cleaning. He saw Wen Xiaohui, who already had a face brimming with anticipation, leaning against his bed. “The game was released recently and has good reviews.”
Luo Yi smiled with a hint of reluctance. “My eyes feel a bit uncomfortable today. I’ll play with you another day.”
Wen Xiaohui couldn’t help saying ‘oh’ in disappointment. “Come here, I’ll give you a massage. I used to wash customers’ hair when I first joined Juxing, so I’m pretty skilled at head massages.”
Luo Yi hesitated briefly, then he laid down on the bed. Wen Xiaohui placed Luo Yi’s head on his lap. He used medium pressure to massage the acupuncture points around Luo Yi’s eyes. “How’s the pressure?”
With his eyes closed, Luo Yi replied quietly, “It’s really good.”
Wen Xiaohui’s voice was gentle and pleasant. “I’m feeling bad too, seeing you so exhausted. Once this incident is over, don’t go looking for trouble again like we agreed. At least wait until you’ve graduated.”
“Yeah, I promise.”
“Oh yeah, let’s go to Japan at Christmas. You wanted to go with me last time, but I didn’t dare to go in case my mum found out. I’m supporting myself now, so my mum won’t suspect a thing.”
“Sure. I still want to go there, so let’s go together.”
“There’s so many places you want to visit, so just take your time.” Wen Xiaohui couldn’t stop himself from daydreaming about a trip around the world with Luo Yi. It felt wonderful because there was such a person in this world that you could picture in any possible timeline or scenario. Or another way of putting it, you hoped this person could appear in every scene in your life – both in the present and in the future.
Luo Yi replied gently, “Mn.”
Wen Xiaohui’s hands felt numb after massaging for a long time. “I’m done. Do you feel more comfortable?”
Luo Yi nodded. “That’s much better.”
“You’re so tired, you should rest soon.”
Luo Yi grabbed his hand. “Sleep with me tonight.”
Wen Xiaohui’s face immediately felt as though it was burning as he looked anxiously at Luo Yi.
Luo Yi smiled. “It’ll be like old times – let’s have a chat.”
Wen Xiaohui let out a sigh of relief. “Okay.”
Each of them went to take a shower separately. Wen Xiaohui threw his freshly-scented body onto Luo Yi’s giant bed. He’d slept on this bed so many times, but this time was different, with a sense of nervousness and ambiguity. He kind of regretted saying yes to Luo Yi – what if Luo Yi couldn’t hold back, what would happen? What would happen if he couldn’t hold back?
Wen Xiaohui continued to ponder as he amused even himself.
When Luo Yi got back to his room, he saw Wen Xiaohui all curled up on the bed, smiling like an idiot. Luo Yi was stunned and he was unable to describe how he was feeling.
“You’ve finished showering.” Wen Xiaohui rolled over onto his side of the bed. “Sleep soon, I have to head to the studio early tomorrow.”
Luo Yi lay on the bed.
The faint scent of shower gel permeated the air. Although they showered in separate bathrooms, they still managed to choose the same shower gel. Their mutual fragrance merged together in the air, giving the impression that the two of them were entangled with each other and making thoughts run wild.
This was the first time Wen Xiaohui slept in Luo Yi’s bed since he returned from the US. He’d been reunited with this bed after a year’s absence, but why was it like this? How come he felt hot and sweaty as he was trying to sleep? In his memory, this bed was really big and sometimes, he could even spread his arms and still not manage to reach Luo Yi. But now he felt that the bed was too small – it was so small that he could easily breathe in the scent from Luo Yi’s body and the sound of Luo Yi’s breathing felt like it was coming from beside his ear.
Was it because he was too desperate? What rotten luck! It must have been because he was too desperate – he was a 22 nearly 23 year old virgin, so it was no surprise.
“Xiaohui-ge.”
“Oh!” Wen Xiaohui was startled and he anxiously said, “What’s up?”
“Are you feeling really hot? It seems like you’re panting?”
“Maybe the duvet is too thick? It’s not very cold even though it’s already autumn.”
“I’ll change the duvet for you.”
“Don’t bother, there’s no need.” Wen Xiaohui kicked one of his legs outside of the covers. “It’ll be cold later at night.”
“Oh yeah,” Luo Yi said, “I’ll be able to graduate by the end of the year.”
“Wow, that’s so soon.”
“My credits are nearly complete and I’ve almost finished writing my thesis. There’s not much left to do on my course.”
“You’re so awesome. Are you really not planning to study abroad?”
“I’m not interested.”
Of course, Wen Xiaohui didn’t want him to go either, so he breathed a sigh of relief. “Actually, going abroad isn’t that great anyway. I ate hamburgers for a whole year when I was in the US – I was close to vomiting. I can’t believe I used to complain about my mum’s cooking.”
Luo Yi smiled. “Yeah, that’s why I’m not going. I have a lot of unfinished business here.”
“Let’s wait until after you graduate and we’ll go to Japan. A few days won’t make a difference.”
“Okay.” Luo Yi suddenly asked, “Have you been in contact with Li Shuo lately?”
“Yeah…” Wen Xiaohui recalled their last meeting, feeling hesitant about telling Luo Yi.
“Is he still pursuing you? Like the proper sort?”
“Hmm, I guess so. He asked me to be his boyfriend.”
Luo Yi wasn’t surprised at all. “Oh, have you agreed to it?”
“No.” Wen Xiaohui thought that Luo Yi’s tone of voice seemed odd, but he couldn’t quite tell what was wrong about it.
“Why?” Luo Yi lay on his side, quietly observing Wen Xiaohui in the dark. “Why didn’t you agree?”
Luo Yi suddenly sat up, making Wen Xiaohui feel a bit anxious. He simply replied, “I discovered I didn’t like him as much as I thought. Like Luo Rui said, Li Shuo is the epitome of perfection, so I felt like I ought to like him. But there shouldn’t be any obligations for this sort of thing.”
“Is it only because of this?” Luo Yi inched closer. “Are there no other reasons?”
Wen Xiaohui also sat up, feeling even more nervous. “W-what?”
Luo Yi grabbed him by the shoulders and pressed him down on the bed. “Is there another reason? Does it have anything to do with me?”
Footnotes:
Wen Xiaohui’s comment refers to the fact that female crabs have crab roe, which is considered a delicacy.
The original raws said “Was Wen Xiaohui looking at Wen Xiaohui” which I believe contains a few typos i.e. the first name should be Luo Yi and secondly 是不是 (yes or no) would make much more sense if it were 时不时 (from time to time) in the context of the sentence that follows.
