Sissy (Niang Niang Qiang) - Chap 18
Chapter 18
This was the same neighborhood where Shao Qun brought him a few days ago.
He had a bad premonition in his heart, and sure enough, Manager Zhang led him into the same building and took him to the same floor.
Li Chengxiu was panicking. He pulled Manager Zhang’s sleeve to prevent him from opening the door of the apartment.
“Manager… Manager Zhang.”
“What’s up?”
“Here……”
“Oh, it’s not a bad place, right? This apartment even has a sea view.” Manager Zhang’s tone was obviously envious when he said it. Taking advantage of the dimness of the corridor, he couldn’t help but glance at Li Chengxiu. He wondered what was so special about him. Was it just because he was Shao’s former classmate that he would get such preferential treatment? The rent for this house was 81,000 RMB[14] a month. Why did Li Chengxiu get something like that? President Chen had also specifically requested that he had to bring Li Chengxiu here on his rest day.
“Manager Zhang, is this Mr. Chen’s arrangement?”
“Yeah, Mr. Chen takes special care of you.” Manager Zhang opened the door and held his breath in amazement.
Li Chengxiu looked inside and was also very surprised.
A few days ago, it was still empty, but now it was a well-decorated house. It had an elegant and warm design, and it seemed ready for the new owner to move in at any time.
Manager Zhang couldn’t help but glance at Li Chengxiu again. His expression was full of doubt. He opened his mouth, but didn’t ask any questions.
He greeted the people from the moving company: “Come, you can bring everything up.”
“No, no.” Li Chengxiu hurriedly blocked the door. He anxiously asked Manager Zhang again, “This… is really Mr. Chen’s… arrangement?”
“Tsk, Mr. Li, you’re so annoying. I’ve told you everything clearly enough already. You see that everything is here, and your stuff is ready to be moved. What else is there to talk about?”
Li Chengxiu didn’t want to say anything anymore. This was obviously a good thing done by Shao Qun. But he was not sure whether Manager Zhang knew about it. If it was President Chen who asked him to arrange everything, there was no use to even start this discussion with Manager Zhang?
“Manager Zhang, I…I’ll make a call, okay?”
Manager Zhang waved his hand impatiently: “Hurry up.”
Li Chengxiu quickly hid in the stairwell and started to dial Shao Qun’s number, but even after several rings no one answered.
When he went back to the apartment, he saw that the moving company had put all his luggage in the living room.
Manager Zhang left the key on the shoe cabinet: “Well, everything has been moved. This key here is for you.”
“Manager Zhang, how can I… I can’t… live here.”
“Can’t live here? What’s the matter with you? You don’t want to live in such a nice house for free?”
Li Chengxiu was anxiously sweating, but didn’t know how to explain what he meant: “I… I can’t. Manager Zhang, tell President Chen that… I can’t live here.”
“Go and tell it to President Chen yourself.” Manager Zhang gave him a strange look, “Boss Chen takes such good care of you, yet you don’t appreciate it. Aren’t you being disrespectful towards him? I already told you that our boss values his reputation the most. To tell you the truth, if you weren’t such good friends with Mr. Shao, Mr. Chen would not treat you this way. Our boss is trying to curry favor with Mr. Shao right now. If things go well, then President Chen can get his hands on a profitable piece of land through him. Once that happens, he’ll have no problem paying your rent.”
“I’m not… friends with Mr.Shao.”
Manager Zhang frowned and glared at him: “I don’t care about any of that. I just care about what Mr. Chen tells me. Xiao Li, I don’t get you. Mr. Chen treats you so well, he gives you a big apartment, gives you an opportunity to earn extra money, pays for your five insurances and even finances your housing costs. And all of this for free. Completely free! Why would you turn this down? To negate all his hard work for you?”
Li Chengxiu was speechless.
When Manager Zhang left, he was overwhelmed by all his stuff on the ground. He just stood there motionless for several minutes.
What was he going to do now? Move all his luggage back? Or actually stay and live here?
If he stayed, his relationship with Shao Qun would be weird. If he didn’t stay, he would offend his boss. Li Chengxiu couldn’t make up his mind for a while, so he just sat there on the floor and stared at his luggage in a daze.
The sun went down, and the room was getting darker and darker. Then, with a sudden “snap” the huge living room was instantly illuminated by all the overhead lights.
Li Chengxiu was startled. When he turned around, he saw that Shao Qun was standing behind him and smiling.
“Chengxiu, why didn’t you close the door? Aren’t you afraid of bad people?”
Li Chengxiu got up from the ground and glared at him: “Shao Qun, you…”
“I know what you’re going to say. Don’t be angry. Come on, it’s been a long day, and you’re tired of moving. It’s getting dark, and you’re still sitting here in a daze. Have you even eaten yet? I brought you your favorite rice noodles.” Shao Qun raised his hand and put the lunch box he was holding on the table, inviting Li Chengxiu for a meal.
“Shao Qun, what are you doing?”
Shao Qun calmly shrugged: “What do you mean?”
“Here… I said before… I don’t want to stay.”
“This is a long story. When I had breakfast with your boss one day, I mentioned that your living environment is not very good. Your boss felt very sorry about that. If it weren’t for his lack of funds, he would have arranged dormitories for you a long time ago. Now that he has more income, he decided to solve this housing problem at least for some of the employees who have contributed to the hotel the most. He thinks that you have worked for the chain for a long time now and you have done a good job, so he wanted to arrange a nice single apartment for you. But he couldn’t find a good place for a while. So I recommended this place that I had just bought. This apartment is standing empty anyway, and I have to pay the property fee every month. It’s just not worth it. It’s better for me to rent it out. And it’s even better to rent it out to an acquaintance.” Shao Qun spread his hands innocently, “Come on, Chengxiu, let’s eat.”
Li Chengxiu was speechless for a long time, and his eyes were about to fall out from shock.
Shao Qun came up to hold his hand and led him to the dining table: “What are you doing standing there? Just eat.”
Li Chengxiu waved his hand away, blushing with anger: “You… On purpose…”
“Yes, I did it on purpose. But it also makes sense. I didn’t just give you this house, it is being rented by your boss and used as a staff dormitory for you.”
“You!”
“Chengxiu.” Shao Qun held his hand again and looked into his eyes with a smile, “Chengxiu, don’t be angry. I know I didn’t tell you beforehand, and it wasn’t so good from my side. But you reacted so badly to this before, that I was afraid you’d refuse to move, if you knew about the arrangement. After all, I just feel sorry for your living conditions.”
Li Chengxiu really couldn’t deal with this soft approach, and his harsh expression was a little shaken.
“I want to be nice to you, but you always reject my kindness. Thinking of you living in that place makes me sad. It’s so hot in the summer, and the traffic is not convenient. The security is also not good. Chengxiu, I care about you and I worry about you. Don’t you understand that?”
“I… I understand, but I can’t live in your house.”
“Chengxiu.” Shao Qun touched his face lightly and emphasized: “I rented this house to your boss. And then your boss made this your dormitory. You don’t owe me anything, because you got it by working at the hotel.”
Li Chengxiu opened his mouth to say something, but didn’t know how to refute Shao Qun’s words.
“Chengxiu, do you remember the time when we were young?” Shao Qun pulled Li Chengxiu to the dining table and sat him down, pushing the lunch box in front of him, “I used to bring you delicious food back then. And later, I rented a house just for you. We went there during lunch break, do you remember?
Li Chengxiu thought about these moments in the past and felt a little touched. His shoulders finally relaxed, and he nodded.
“At that time, you also didn’t want to eat my food or live in my house. But when I was a child, I always used my fists to scare people. You were afraid of me, so you had to accept it.” Shao Qun laughed out loud, “I just wanted to treat you nicely at that time. And if you refused, I got angry. Same now, I just want to be nice to you. But I’m not going to threaten you anymore, if you refuse. I’ll just be very sad.”
Li Chengxiu’s eyelashes trembled slightly, and his heart softened when he heard those words.
Shao Qun continued: “Isn’t this house designed to feel like home? When I saw it, I thought of the small place we rented outside the school at that time. It made me recall all of our good memories. Don’t you miss it at all?”
Li Chengxiu hesitated: “I…”
Shao Qun took advantage of the situation to slowly approach him and gently kiss his cheek.
Li Chengxiu’s eyes were as bright as stars – clear and innocent. Still a little nervous, he looked at Shao Qun hesitantly.
How could Shao Qun let him hesitate? He bit his lower lip and slowly sucked at it, while tightly holding Li Chengxiu’s arms with both of his hands.
Li Chengxiu’s upper body kept shaking. He rigidly accepted Shao Qun’s kiss, but he was still struggling a lot in his heart.
Shao Qun kissed him for a while, and before Li Chengxiu tried to push him away, he moved away and looked at him with a smile.
Li Chengxiu felt guilty and hurriedly lowered her head.
How could Shao Qun miss such a great opportunity? He held Li Chengxiu’s face and said, “Xiao Chengxiu, you didn’t refuse this time. So have I succeeded?”
“What…what?”
“Do you like me?”
“I… no…I don’t know…”
Shao Qun raised the corners of his mouth, showing a complacent smile, then kissed his forehead and laughed loudly: “Okay, I won’t force you. Sooner or later you will have to admit it yourself. Come on, eat now, I can’t let my darling[15] starve.”
“Why did you bring these things here? All the kitchen utensils are provided, so you can throw your stuff away.” After the two of them finished eating, Shao Qun insisted on staying to help Li Chengxiu with unpacking. But he didn’t even lift a finger – just stood there and gave commands.
Li Chengxiu ignored him and moved all the pots and pans he brought with him to the kitchen.
Even if he decided to stay here for the time being, he didn’t dare to mess with the things in the apartment. Everything around looked very expensive. What if he breaks something and needs to pay for it?
“This pot has loose screws. If it falls apart while you’re cooking in it, won’t you get burnt?”
Li Chengxiu took the pot from him: “It’s still fine.”
Shao Qun frowned as he watched Li Chengxiu rush in and out of the room. After a while, the pile of stuff on the floor disappeared, and the house was spotless and orderly again.
When Li Chengxiu was done, Shao Qun made a pot of tea and invited him to rest on the balcony.
There was a set of cream white rattan coffee table and rattan chairs on the balcony. When one looked outside, one could see a seascape in the distance – the silvery moonlight was reflecting from the water, while the moist sea breeze blew gently, creating small waves. This night was dazzling, quiet, and cool. In this noisy and busy city, it was undoubtedly a rare treat to experience such serenity.
Li Chengxiu held a small tea bowl, as he faced the sea and enjoyed the sea breeze, while squinting comfortably.
Shao Qun also squinted, but he was looking at Li Chengxiu’s slightly raised pointed chin, delicate upturned nose, and long slightly trembling eyelashes.
This moment was very quiet. Li Chengxiu’s beautiful profile seemed like a still painting, which made Shao Qun feel calm when he looked at him.
Li Chengxiu noticed his glance and shyly turned his face away: “This… natural wind. Be… better than air conditioning.”
Shao Qun smiled: “The ventilation here is good. Even during the day, it won’t get too hot. If you live here in the future, I wouldn’t have to worry about you getting a heat stroke.”
Li Chengxiu nodded slightly and continued to squint at the dark sea.
Shao Qun’s heart skipped a beat, and he moved his rattan chair towards Li Chengxiu.
Li Chengxiu looked at him nervously.
Shao Qun’s hand wrapped around the back of his head and gently touched his soft hair: “The day after tomorrow you will have to work a lot, and you will be busy all day long. Are you prepared?”
Li Chengxiu smiled and said, “That’s what I usually do.”
“That’s good. But when it’s all over, we won’t be able to meet every day. That makes me really reluctant.”
Li Chengxiu lowered his eyes in embarrassment.
“Chengxiu.” Shao Qun gently touched his eyes with his fingertips: “Be mine.”
Li Chengxiu narrowed his eyes and looked at the buttons on Shao Qun’s shirt.
Shao Qun raised his chin: “I’ll treat you well. Just be mine, okay?”
“I……”
“Do you still want to say that you don’t know? Chengxiu, you’re an adult. Don’t you even know what you want? Since you don’t know, don’t you want to find out? Look at me and ask yourself – do you hate me?”
Li Chengxiu shook his head in a daze.
“Then are you happy when you’re with me?”
Li Chengxiu paused for a while, then nodded.
“In that case, why can’t you be with me? I can give you an astonishing life.”
“We…we…are not suitable.”
“Why do you think so? How are we not suitable?”
Li Chengxiu was silent. Where should he even begin? He felt that they were unsuitable in all aspects.
Shao Qun was so outstanding, so dazzling, and he has always been like this, ever since he was a child. While Li Chengxiu hasn’t made any progress in life at all. He was suddenly almost 30, yet he still felt at a loss about his future. He couldn’t figure out why Shao Qun even liked him. And because he couldn’t figure it out, he was afraid that everything was just a dream. If he took a step forward, he might accidentally walk out of this dream.
It was unclear when Shao Qun got so close to him that he was almost holding him in his arms: “Chengxiu, I like you. I don’t care about being suitable. You just need to let it go and be with me. No need to think about all these useless things.”
Li Chengxiu hesitated: “Let me…think… think about it more.”
Shao Qun looked at his weak expression and let out a long sigh: “Okay, I’ll give you some more time, but…”
A phone call suddenly interrupted them. Shao Qun lowered his head and took out his mobile phone. He looked at the caller ID and said: “I have to take this.” He got up and went into the bedroom, closing the door behind him.
Li Chengxiu was still dazed, as he hadn’t recovered from the warm atmosphere that surrounded him just now.
“Hey, A-wen.”
“Right. I haven’t been around recently. I’m all right.”
“What? You’re all coming? Okay, let me tell you, Shenzhen’s service industry is very developed! Let’s have a good time with all the bros reunited again.”
“Fuck! So you’re not rushing here for me? Once Li Chengxiu is mentioned, you’re all running over, but when I invited you, you were all sooo busy!”
“Well, I’m chasing him. Actually I’m with him right now.”
“I don’t fucking want to do it now. Not to that extent.”
“Tonight? Forget it, I’m a civilized person. Why would I go so far as rape? If I touch him now, he’ll bite me.”
“Nonsense, of course there’s no problem. Is my name even Shao Qun, if I can’t deal with that little sissy?”
“Forget it. In front of him I have to be a perfect gentleman. I’m warning you, you can come, but don’t you dare ruin my little play.”
“Okay, okay, just act polite with him. If you fucking cause me any trouble, I’ll beat the shit out of all of you.”
“Okay, I’m hanging up. See you the day after tomorrow.”
When Shao Qun returned, he saw that Li Chengxiu was still sitting crookedly in the chair. His head was leaned against the iron railing of the balcony.
He walked over and saw that his eyes were closed, and he was breathing evenly, as if in a deep sleep.
Li Chengxiu’s face looked a bit tired. In his sleep he looked innocent and defenseless. Seeing that, Shao Qun involuntarily smiled, stepped forward and picked him up.
Li Chengxiu woke up as soon as he felt some movement. When he opened his eyes, he was startled to see himself hanging in the air.
“Shao Qun, I dozed off for a while. Put me down.”
Shao Qun pretended to take his hands away in order to frighten him. “Don’t move, or I’ll throw you off the balcony, hehe.” He laughed.
Li Chengxiu also giggled: “You dare… kill me!”
Shao Qun lowered his head and kissed Li Chengxiu on the hair: “I’m carrying my wife into the bridal chamber.”
Li Chengxiu blushed: “I’ll go by myself.”
“What’s the matter? Are you so impatient? Are you afraid it’ll take too long for me to carry you?”
“No……”
Shao Qun hugged him closer and suddenly ran a few steps, frightening Li Chengxiu so much that he quickly grabbed his arm.
Shao Qun rushed into the bedroom and threw Li Chengxiu onto the double bed. He then pressed his whole body onto him.
Li Chengxiu let out a low cry, as he panicked and struggled with the weight of another person on top of him.
The relationship between him and Shao Qun was that Shao Qun kept approaching while Li Chengxiu kept retreating. Shao Qun’s initiative made him scared, yet also tempted. As he couldn’t make up his mind about the situation, he could only keep retreating, but Shao Qun slowly pushed him into a dead end. And now there was nowhere to retreat. There were only two paths in front of him – either push Shao Qun away and leave, or he could…
Shao Qun hushed him and chuckled: “Are you nervous that I’ll force you?”
“Then… what do you… want to do?”
“I want to hug you.” Shao Qun took Li Chengxiu into his arms, buried his head in his neck and said in a muffled voice, “I want to hug you just like I did when I was a child.”
Li Chengxiu’s rapid breathing gradually calmed down, and his heart was beating softly.
Shao Qun’s soft kisses lingered on his neck and cheeks and finally stopped on his lips. Shao Qun pecked and kissed them carefully.
The alluring moonlight was peaking through the window into the pitch dark room, and the surroundings were so quiet that one would be able to hear a needle falling on the ground.
Li Chengxiu heard Shao Qun’s heartbeat.
Heartbeat can’t be faked, he thought.
They say that when you like someone your heart beats faster. He felt that his heart was about to jump out of his throat. He could feel that Shao Qun’s heart was also beating really fast. Does this mean that…
His body slowly relaxed, and he tremblingly accepted Shao Qun’s kiss.
