Chapter 130: IF—Lin Mu + Zhou Geng (Extra Conclusion)
“Tangtang, the principal told me that someone is coming to show us some love today.”
Shen Tangqing’s gaze fell on the three- or four-year-old chubby kid in front of him. He had already forgotten the kid’s name, only remembering that everyone called him “Xiao Pang” [Little Fatty] and that he was adopted by a childless couple at the end of the year.
He had woken up to find that he had actually returned to when he was five years old in the orphanage. Although it was bizarre, having experienced being taken to small worlds by the system, his level of acceptance was somewhat higher.
“Then why don’t you go to the front yard?” Shen Tangqing sat on a bench by the corridor.
“Let’s go together. Xiao Ya and the others have already gone over.” Xiao Pang sniffled after speaking. He had a bit of a cold these past two days, and his nose was red.
“I don’t want to go. You go.”
“Why not? There should be candy and new toys.” Xiao Pang didn’t quite understand, but that didn’t stop him from liking Shen Tangqing. He felt that Shen Tangqing was the most beautiful person in the orphanage.
“Because I don’t want candy, and I don’t want toys,” Shen Tangqing explained patiently.
Xiao Pang fidgeted with his fingers for a few seconds before giving an “Oh.” “Then I’ll go first.”
“Go ahead.”
———
After Xiao Pang left, Shen Tangqing leaned back against the bench. He hadn’t slept well last night, and now, being warmed by the sun, he felt somewhat drowsy. Hearing footsteps, he thought Xiao Pang had come back.
“Why are you back again?” He didn’t open his eyes, speaking lazily.
“Are you also a child from this orphanage?”
A youthful voice sounded in his ear. It wasn’t Xiao Pang’s voice. He snapped his eyes open and saw two little boys standing before him, curiously sizing him up. Their features were very familiar.
The more Shen Tangqing looked, the more he felt they looked like—Lin Mu and Zhou Geng?
Why were they here?
“You look so beautiful. Can I take you home?” Lin Mu’s eyes were practically glued to Shen Tangqing.
Shen Tangqing: “…”
Still the same old virtue—
On the side, Zhou Geng’s gaze also fell on Shen Tangqing.
“Little brother, are you willing to come home with me? I can have my father adopt you.”
Lin Mu glared at Zhou Geng. ” I said it first! I’ll have my father adopt him.”
Zhou Geng glanced at him. “You can’t take care of him. You could even manage to kill a cactus.”
Lin Mu’s face turned red with anger. “That cactus was poisoned; I didn’t kill it!”
Zhou Geng gave an “Oh” and stopped talking. The damage wasn’t high, but the insult was extremely potent.
Shen Tangqing was completely bewildered. Did I even say I wanted to go home with them? These two guys are already fighting over it?
“Two young masters, why have you come here?”
Shen Tangqing froze again when he saw the person who arrived. It was Butler Wang, looking much younger than in his memory—about twenty-one or twenty-two. He was still wearing glasses, looking refined and elegant.
Zhou Geng looked at him. “Butler Wang, go tell the principal. I want to take this little brother home to keep me company.”
“Zhou Geng, you’re shameless! I saw him first. I’m taking him to my house.”
Butler Wang’s gaze landed on Shen Tangqing, and a flash of surprise crossed his eyes. What a beautiful child. No wonder the two young masters were fighting to take him home.
He had a smile on his face. “Young masters, don’t fight. If you want to adopt this little friend, you have to see if he’s willing first.”
The two froze at the same time and looked at Shen Tangqing in unison, as if waiting for his choice.
Since he could live a good life, Shen Tangqing naturally wouldn’t choose a hard one. He decisively chose his good brother, Zhou Geng.
Lin Mu stood there, his eyes turning red. Shen Tangqing screamed in his heart: Oh no, the crybaby is going to cry again!
Sure enough, the next second, Lin Mu burst into tears. Shen Tangqing was quick and stepped forward to cover his mouth, saying fiercely, “No crying allowed.”
The tears in Lin Mu’s eyes were slowly forced back. His large eyes stared straight at him.
“Then can you come home with me?”
Shen Tangqing withdrew his hand and replied coldly, “No.”
Go home with this kid and turn him gay?
Shen Tangqing still couldn’t forget how this kid cried and said he had turned him gay—it was both pitiful and a bit funny. But he had solved the case; Shen Tangqing realized that this kid had been a crybaby since he was little.
Back when they first met, that arrogant and cold demeanor was quite a bluff. Shen Tangqing truly hadn’t expected Lin Mu to be such a crybaby and a spoiled brat.
———
Lin Mu stood there aggrieved, feeling incredibly angry in his heart. He didn’t believe that if he cried a river, Shen Tangqing wouldn’t go with him.
Thus, to Shen Tangqing’s shock, Lin Mu lunged forward and grabbed his arm, crying miserably.
“I don’t care! I want you to come home with me!”
Butler Wang: “…”
Shen Tangqing: “…”
Zhou Geng: “…” How can a person be as shameless as Lin Mu?
But as it turned out, being shameless was effective. Shen Tangqing was nearly annoyed to death by Lin Mu’s crying. But this kid really looked good, like he was carved from pink jade, and he looked even better when he cried.
Finally, Shen Tangqing reluctantly agreed to Lin Mu. One second he agreed, and the next, Lin Mu was smiling. Yes, that’s right—the kid still had two tears hanging on his eyelashes, yet he was smiling.
Shen Tangqing was stunned by this slick move. So he was just gaming me for sympathy? It would be a waste of talent not to award him a Best Actor trophy.
Zhou Geng stood there dumbfounded. Was it too late to start crying now? But he couldn’t force the tears out. After a moment of silence, he looked at Butler Wang.
“Butler Wang, how about you give me a slap?”
Butler Wang: “…” The young master has gone mad—
———
Shen Tangqing lived very comfortably in the Lin family. Father and Mother Lin were very good to him. The only issue was that Lin Mu was a bit annoying, always wanting to crawl into his bed in the middle of the night. Every time he woke up, there was an extra fuzzy little head next to him.
Shen Tangqing went from being startled at the beginning to being able to kick Lin Mu out of bed with an expressionless face later on. Of course, he only kicked because there was a thick cashmere rug by the bed.
Lin Mu was incredibly aggrieved. He just wanted to be close to Shen Tangqing, but every time Shen Tangqing gave him a casual glance, he would lose his nerve and not dare to speak. Forget it, kick away; I’ll dare to do it again next time.
———
Shen Tangqing was the same age as Zhou Geng and Lin Mu, and the three had been classmates since primary school. There was a room in Lin Mu’s house that belonged to Zhou Geng.
There was no helping it; Shen Tangqing had been “stolen” from Zhou Geng by Lin Mu’s crying, so Lin Mu felt a bit guilty. Zhou Geng often stayed the night at Lin Mu’s house, and both of them called themselves Shen Tangqing’s best friend.
But there was one thing that made Lin Mu very unhappy. Because Shen Tangqing called Zhou Geng “Geng-ge,” yet he always called him “Lin Mu” or just “Hey!”
He wasn’t “Hey!”
…
When Lin Mu entered the room, Zhou Geng and Shen Tangqing were sitting together playing games. They were very close, their shoulders almost touching.
Seeing this scene, Lin Mu felt it was incredibly eyesore, as if he had become an outsider. He stepped forward quickly and stood before them. “Make some room.”
Shen Tangqing didn’t even look up. “The space is so wide; why are you squeezing between me and Geng-ge? Isn’t there a sofa nearby?”
Lin Mu was furious. “Shen Tangqing, why do you always call A-Geng ‘Geng-ge’ but never call me ‘Brother’? Why are you so biased?”
Lin Mu’s tone carried a sharp interrogation. Shen Tangqing felt it was inexplicable; he didn’t know what this person was making a fuss about again. They were already adults; how could he still be so childish?
“Lin Mu, did you take the wrong medicine? What are you making a fuss for?”
Zhou Geng was also bewildered, even wondering if this kid was having his “male period.”
“How am I making a fuss? You’re just biased. I’m really angry now.” Lin Mu truly felt aggrieved.
The game character suddenly died. Shen Tangqing lost his mood to play and looked coldly at Lin Mu’s outburst.
“You’re angry? So? You’re going to cry again? Lin Mu, how old are you?”
Lin Mu was rendered speechless. His mind was a mess. So? His anger, crying, and madness had no effect on Shen Tangqing; instead, it made him annoyed. He pursed his lips, glanced at Shen Tangqing, and turned to leave the room.
Zhou Geng stood up. “Holy crap, is this kid really angry?”
Shen Tangqing sighed. “Let him be.” He threw a tantrum every time to make him go coax him; it was too childish.
———
After this incident, Lin Mu and Shen Tangqing entered a cold war. Or rather, it was Lin Mu unilaterally giving Shen Tangqing the cold shoulder. It lasted until Bai Mu’s birthday, when they were invited to a bar.
Bai Mu was a high school classmate of the three, and they were on good terms. The private booth was crowded with both men and women. Lin Mu saw Shen Tangqing chatting and laughing with a very flashy woman wearing heavy makeup.
His teeth were almost crushed from grinding. He wanted to rush up and pull Shen Tangqing away, but he had no right. Zhou Geng, on the side, was also in a bad mood. He and Lin Mu suddenly shared a look. The two seemed to realize something and quickly shifted their gazes away.
All three of them were a bit wasted.
…
Butler Wang picked the three of them up and brought them back to the Zhou residence. In the middle of the night, Shen Tangqing dreamed he had become Sun Wukong, thrown into the Supreme Lord Laozi’s furnace to be roasted.
He was so hot he couldn’t stand it.
[Omitted]
———
The next day at 9:30 AM…
Shen Tangqing had a splitting headache. He suspected he had drunk fake alcohol last night.
“Sss—”
His eyelashes fluttered as he opened his eyes.
“F*ck!”
[Omitted]
———
Lin Mu and Zhou Geng both had their heads bowed like dejected quails. Shen Tangqing sat before them with a dark face. Finally, it was he who first broke the silent and stiff atmosphere.
“Last night was an accident. This matter stays buried in your hearts, understood?”
Zhou Geng and Lin Mu shared a tacit look. Shen Tangqing planned to not take responsibility! That wouldn’t do.
“Shen Tangqing, I’ll tell my father tonight that I want to marry you,” Lin Mu spoke first.
Zhou Geng spat. “Lin Mu, you’re shameless! If anyone’s marrying him, it’s me. You move aside.”
“Marry your mother! You get lost; Shen Tangqing is mine.”
“Do you believe your dad will break your third leg…”
“I don’t give a damn; I, Lin Mu, dare to act and take responsibility.”
“I beg you, don’t take it. Let me do it. My parents and my brother already like Tangtang very much…”
Shen Tangqing watched the two of them going back and forth, and his head felt like it was about to explode!
“Shut up! Stop f*cking arguing! I don’t want either of you!”
…
The door was suddenly opened from the outside. Zhou Shuli, who was supposed to be away on a business trip, stood at the door wearing a crisp suit and gloves. His gaze swept over Zhou Geng and Lin Mu, and a cold sneer curled his lips.
“The conversation seems so lively. How about I join in as well?”
Shen Tangqing: “…”
Lin Mu: “…”
Zhou Geng: “…”
When Zhou Shuli’s gaze fell on the red mark on Shen Tangqing’s neck, his expression darkened completely. He slowly removed his gloves, walked to Shen Tangqing, and reached out to gently rub the skin at the back of his neck.
Shen Tangqing’s pupils contracted sharply. This movement…
It was over—Zhou Shuli seemed to have remembered!
——— (End)
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