Chapter 11: Is There Such a Relationship?
Chi Qui Lin’s reaction was excessive. Liu Ming Zhou immediately noticed something was wrong. “Brother, what’s wrong?”
“This exercise is a bit difficult. I lost my balance.” Chi Qui Lin said, but his reddened eyes betrayed him.
Liu Ming Zhou wouldn’t let this slip by. “You’re crying.”
Yes, yes, you’re a damn smart-aleck! Chi Qui Lin cursed inwardly, but seeing Liu Ming Zhou’s grim expression, he caved and played along.
“Yes, I’m sad!” Chi Qui Lin let the tears flow. “When I pursued Chi Qui Lin, I visited his mother. She was a kind, gentle old woman, so gentle. Such a good person…”
The scrutiny on Liu Ming Zhou’s face turned to shock. “You met Chi Qui Lin’s mother?”
Chi Qui Lin confidently replied, “Of course, I did. Is it illegal to meet his mother?”
“No, no it’s not illegal.” Liu Ming Zhou replied, then laughed, showing his pointed canines. “Brother, can you sing?”
“…” The abrupt change of subject caught Chi Qui Lin off guard.
Liu Ming Zhou continued, “I remember you used to love singing English songs because you majored in English.”
Oh dear, Jing Qiu Chi has a surprisingly high level of education. But Chi Qui Lin didn’t really listen to English songs. The only English song he could sing was an obscure new folk song. How obscure? The total comments on all platforms were less than ten – five of which were written by Chi Qui Lin himself.
If Chi Qui Lin didn’t sing an English song, it would expose his deception. But if he sang this song, his obscure taste might raise Liu Ming Zhou’s suspicions.
After careful consideration, Chi Qui Lin came up with a solution.
“We drink from our cup the sweet poison burns,
One dies for longing and one dies to learn…”
Jing Qiu Chi’s voice was warm, his singing gentle and pleasant. With Chi Qui Lin’s perfect pronunciation, the song went smoothly.
Under Liu Ming Zhou’s scrutinizing gaze, Chi Qui Lin calmly finished the song, casually adding, “I remember Qulin really liked this song. Sigh, I miss him.”
Mentioning Chi Qui Lin’s death, Liu Ming Zhou’s face paled slightly, but he didn’t say anything else, simply helping Chi Qui Lin with his difficult rehabilitation exercises.
Although physical contact was unavoidable during rehabilitation, Chi Qui Lin felt Liu Ming Zhou was deliberately creating more opportunities for it.
As their physical contact increased, Chi Qui Lin finally couldn’t take it anymore, lecturing Liu Ming Zhou in Jing Qiu Chi’s persona, “Xiaozhou, I’m your brother, but some of your actions are too forward.”
Liu Ming Zhou looked at him with innocent eyes. “Brother, although I call you brother, have you forgotten?”
A bad feeling arose. Chi Qui Lin instinctively asked, “What?”
Liu Ming Zhou lightly kissed the corner of Chi Qui Lin’s mouth, whispering, “Brother, we’re lovers. On the day of your car accident, you accepted my confession.”
“…” Chi Qui Lin inwardly sighed. Was there really such a thing? No wonder Liu Ming Zhou’s attitude was ambiguous, but…did this mean he had to pretend to be his lover to conceal his identity?!
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Chapter 12: Starlight
While Chi Qui Lin hesitated, Liu Ming Zhou leaned closer. “Brother, can I kiss you?”
“No,” Chi Qui Lin quickly replied, “I haven’t fully recovered my memories, so we can’t be lovers yet.”
Watching Liu Ming Zhou’s disappointed expression, Chi Qui Lin inwardly reveled in his rival’s misfortune, while simultaneously thinking his brilliant logic would have made him a great philosopher.
As they bickered, Chi Qui Lin thought of Yao Xin Yu. After careful consideration, he feigned jealousy, “If you like me, why are you still entangled with Yao Xin Yu?”
Liu Ming Zhou laughed, “It’s not what you think, brother. Are you jealous?”
“I’m not…” Chi Qui Lin hadn’t finished before Liu Ming Zhou covered his lips.
Perhaps he was becoming accustomed to it; Chi Qui Lin felt his bottom line lowering, deciding a kiss wasn’t a big deal.
Seeing Chi Qui Lin’s lack of resistance, Liu Ming Zhou laughed even harder. “Brother, do you like me?”
Heh? Like his rival? Like the indirect cause of his death? Chi Qui Lin shifted slightly backward, clearly unwilling to answer. It was too much.
Seeing Chi Qui Lin’s silence, Liu Ming Zhou’s fingertips traced from Chi Qui Lin’s lips to his neck. “Brother, I like you. Ninety-nine stars to witness it. We’ll never be apart.”
Where were the stars in broad daylight? Chi Qui Lin was about to laugh at his naiveté when something else came to mind, and the laughter died.
Chi Qui Lin remembered someone, his first crush in middle school.
They had once lain under the night sky, each counting ninety-nine stars, making sincere wishes for each other.
The stars were exceptionally bright that night. The boy was still young.
The boy also called him “brother.”
“Brother, what did you wish for me?”
“It won’t come true if I tell you.” Chi Qui Lin vaguely answered, his heart pounding – his wish was that the boy would like him back, because he had a crush on him.
“Brother, brother… what are you thinking about?” Liu Ming Zhou gently shook Chi Qui Lin’s arm. “Brother, you’ve been spacing out a lot lately.”
Chi Qui Lin snapped back to reality, staring at Liu Ming Zhou – dark eyes, gentle eyebrows, completely unlike the boy in his memory.
Chi Qui Lin thought he was crazy, connecting Liu Ming Zhou with the boy in his memory. They didn’t even share the same name, let alone the fact that the boy was…
Chi Qui Lin suddenly didn’t want to think anymore, simply staring at Liu Ming Zhou. “Probably didn’t get enough rest. Let’s continue training.”
Liu Ming Zhou nodded, tirelessly accompanying Chi Qui Lin in his rehabilitation.
Coincidentally, there were stars in the sky that night. As the car drove into the sparsely lit outskirts of the city, Chi Qui Lin stared at the distant stars.
Catching sight of the starlight reflected in Chi Qui Lin’s eyes, Liu Ming Zhou subtly changed direction, driving to a small village far from the city. He opened the car door and carried Chi Qui Lin.
Chi Qui Lin was clearly surprised. “What are you doing?”
“Taking you to see the stars.” Liu Ming Zhou said, carrying Chi Qui Lin to a clean patch of land, wrapping his arm around Chi Qui Lin’s shoulders, pulling him into his warm embrace.
“Brother, are you cold?”
Chi Qui Lin shook his head, his heart increasingly troubled, but Liu Ming Zhou removed his scarf and wrapped it around Chi Qui Lin’s neck.
Chi Qui Lin looked up and inadvertently met Liu Ming Zhou’s eyes, filled with starlight.
The surroundings were incredibly quiet; only their breaths filled the space.
“Brother.” Liu Ming Zhou softly called.
The cold wind seeped into his clothes, but Chi Qui Lin felt warmth in his heart.
He didn’t know who initiated it this time. When he came to his senses, Liu Ming Zhou’s long eyelashes were brushing against his cheek, his warm tongue exploring his mouth, gentle and irresistible.
Chi Qui Lin felt his heart flutter, instinctively calling, “Xiaozhou.”
Liu Ming Zhou immediately replied, “I’m here. What is it, brother?”
Chi Qui Lin didn’t know what to say, but since Liu Ming Zhou asked, he had to answer, “A little cold.”
“Brother, are you inviting me?” Liu Ming Zhou licked his canine teeth, laughing happily. “Then let’s go back to the car.”