Ruan Qiuping woke up in the middle of the night, blearily opening his eyes to find someone sitting in a chair by his bed, watching him.
Ruan Qiuping was startled, thinking at first that Qi Yue had come to capture him for exposing his identity.
When he finally made out the person's face, he let out a sigh of relief.
"Yu Huan, you scared me to death. Why aren't you sleeping?" Ruan Qiuping said, glancing at the digital clock on the wall. "It's already 2 AM! Aren't you tired?"
The night was dim, with only the soft glow of the bedside lamp casting a gentle light on Yu Huan's face, illuminating a tender affection.
"I'm afraid that if I fall asleep, you'll disappear."
"How is that possible?" Ruan Qiuping looked down at his wristband and said, "I still have 20 hours before I have to leave."
"But I'm so happy, happy to the point where it feels a bit unreal... I feel like everything that happened today was like a dream. What if this really is a dream?"
Ruan Qiuping: "..."
Ruan Qiuping wanted to reach out and pinch him, but thought it best not to touch Yu Huan. Instead, he picked up a magazine from the nightstand and lightly hit Yu Huan's arm with it. "Does that hurt? It's not a dream, right?"
"It doesn't hurt," Yu Huan said seriously. "Qiuping hit too gently."
Ruan Qiuping: "..."
Ruan Qiuping: "...Then pinch yourself."
Yu Huan actually did pinch himself, then looked up at Ruan Qiuping with a smile and said, "Qiuping, it hurts. It's real."
Ruan Qiuping: "..."
Was this grown man smiling so innocently and brightly really the same cunning little Yu Huan who had tricked him so thoroughly when he was just five years old?
Surely something must have gone wrong somewhere?
Ruan Qiuping let out a long sigh.
He got out of bed, opened the door to the room, and made a gesture inviting Yu Huan out. "Now, immediately, go to sleep."
Yu Huan walked to the door but didn't leave. He just looked at Ruan Qiuping and said, "Qiuping, why won't you let me sleep with you anymore? We used to always sleep together."
"To reduce unnecessary contact," Ruan Qiuping said.
Ruan Qiuping actually said this without much conviction.
Reducing unnecessary contact was one aspect, but another was... he was afraid Yu Huan might do something to him in bed.
It wasn't that he was overthinking things, but ever since he had inexplicably agreed to let Yu Huan kiss him, Yu Huan had become quite unrestrained. In just this one afternoon, Yu Huan had pounced on him to kiss him five times. He wanted to kiss him while eating, while washing up, and even when Ruan Qiuping was just sitting on the sofa watching TV, Yu Huan would pounce on him and kiss him non-stop... The key issue was that each time, Ruan Qiuping couldn't refuse, couldn't fend him off, and had no power to resist.
If he let Yu Huan sleep with him again, he truly couldn't imagine what else might happen.
Yu Huan lowered his eyes and tugged at the sleeve of Ruan Qiuping's pajamas, saying softly, "But I feel anxious when I can't see you, let alone sleep."
"Qiuping..." Yu Huan called out to him again in a small voice.
Ruan Qiuping bit his lip, wanting to be hard-hearted and send him away, but as soon as Yu Huan called his name, he couldn't help but give in.
For a moment, he even thought about explicitly forbidding Yu Huan from calling him "Qiuping" anymore, because he simply had no way to refuse Yu Huan - it was practically cheating for Yu Huan to use it.
He sighed, ultimately saying nothing, just turning to close the door again and walking towards the bed, saying, "Hurry up and sleep."
At home, Yu Huan didn't use a crutch, so his walk was slightly uneven, but he quickly made it to the bed and lay down on his side.
Ruan Qiuping glanced at the outline of his metal leg under his pajama pants but said nothing.
He raised his gaze to find Yu Huan still staring at him, eyes unblinking.
Ruan Qiuping initially wanted to pretend he hadn't noticed, close his eyes, and just go to sleep, but Yu Huan's gaze felt like it was burning a hole in him, making it impossible to ignore.
"Close your eyes and go to sleep," Ruan Qiuping said, reaching out his hand to block Yu Huan's view.
Yu Huan took Ruan Qiuping's hand and held it tightly in his own.
Ruan Qiuping tried to pull his hand away, but Yu Huan gripped it firmly.
Yu Huan placed Ruan Qiuping's hand on his own chest, letting him feel his heartbeat. "How am I supposed to sleep, Qiuping?"
Under Ruan Qiuping's palm, the heart was beating vigorously.
Thump, thump, thump.
Passionate and alive.
"Can you hear it, Qiuping? It's saying it likes you so much."
Ruan Qiuping suddenly felt Yu Huan's chest grow hot, so hot that he hurriedly withdrew his hand.
"Qiuping." Yu Huan gently nuzzled his forehead with the tip of his nose. "What are you running from?"
Ruan Qiuping lowered his eyes and said softly, "...I don't know."
After a while, he explained very seriously to Yu Huan: "Yu Huan, no one... no one has ever said they liked me before. Not my mother, not my father, not my sister... let alone anyone else saying these things to me. So... so I don't know what to do."
"Then does Qiuping like me?"
Ruan Qiuping was silent for a moment, then shook his head slightly. "...I don't know. I've never liked anyone before either."
Yu Huan slowly lowered his eyes.
He had always known that if he hadn't constantly crossed boundaries with Qiuping, then in Qiuping's heart, he would probably be about the same as Qiuping's sister, Ruan Dongdong. Qiuping had friendship for him, even familial love, but absolutely no romantic feelings.
He had been too despicable, seducing the pure and naive celestial from the heavens, and daring to want to drag him into the mortal realm.
But what did it matter if he was despicable?
He only wanted Ruan Qiuping.
He was just a mortal, with a lifespan as brief as a mayfly's.
Not to mention he could only see Qiuping once a year.
He didn't ask for much. He only hoped that Qiuping, in his long lifespan, would use a few short decades to weave a beautiful dream for him, to accompany him through the next few decades of his life.
"Although," Ruan Qiuping suddenly spoke up at that moment, interrupting Yu Huan's thoughts, "I still don't know if I like you or not."
Ruan Qiuping closed his eyes and leaned in, giving Yu Huan a very light kiss on the lips.
His face slightly flushed, he said in a small voice:
"But I hope you can be happy and joyful."
Yu Huan was stunned by this sudden kiss.
The jumbled thoughts in his mind dissipated like smoke.
...It was enough.
A voice in his heart softly said.
Qiuping would take the initiative to kiss him. Qiuping hoped for his happiness and joy.
This was already close enough to love.
Yu Huan's eyes suddenly sparkled like scattered gold, and he leaned in, almost unable to control himself, to kiss Ruan Qiuping's lips.
This time he didn't hold back, but allowed himself to be immersed in it, their lips and tongues intertwining, even exchanging breaths. The air became ambiguous and entangled, an indescribable heat beginning to rise, until Ruan Qiuping's breathing became difficult and he couldn't help but reach out to gently push against Yu Huan's chest. Only then did Yu Huan release his lips, continuing to kiss his chin, his neck, and his fragile, slightly trembling throat.
The buttons of the silk pajamas obediently came undone, and Ruan Qiuping's fair neck was dyed a flush of red.
The kisses continued downward until they approached his heart, and Ruan Qiuping suddenly came to his senses, pushing Yu Huan away.
His face was flushed, his gaze misty, his fingers trembling slightly, unable even to button up his pajamas properly.
Yu Huan reached out and gently helped him fasten the buttons of his nightwear.
The night was dark, with only Yu Huan's eyes gleaming: "Qiuping, I'm very happy now."
The joy in Yu Huan's eyes was so full, it seemed about to overflow.
Ruan Qiuping was still breathing lightly, somewhat embarrassed by Yu Huan's bold actions, but looking at Yu Huan's smiling eyes, he couldn't help but feel happy in his heart, as if an entire mountain of flowers was blooming wildly in his heart.
Suddenly, there was a noise from outside the room.
Ruan Qiuping immediately sat up alertly, turning his head to ask in a low voice, "Is it a thief?"
"It's nothing," Yu Huan reassured him softly. "Don't worry, it's probably your two classmates."
Ruan Qiuping: "???"
Then he saw Yu Huan take out a tablet from the bedside table and open a surveillance app on it.
The entire villa was displayed in high definition on the monitors, except for the bedroom and bathroom areas.
Yu Huan opened the kitchen surveillance feed and saw the refrigerator door eerily wide open.
A bottle of milk floated in mid-air, quickly becoming empty.
"They won't really do anything," Yu Huan explained in a low voice. "They seem to be very poor, unable to afford food or a place to sleep. So every year they come here to steal some food and then lie down to sleep in the upstairs guest room."
Ruan Qiuping was so shocked he could barely control his volume: "...You know? How long have you known?"
"Since I was 19. I knew when I first saw invisible people stealing food on the surveillance cameras. At first, I thought it was you and was really happy. Later I realized it was two invisible people, and neither of them was you." Yu Huan paused, then continued, "But I guessed they were celestial beings like you, and must have some connection to you, so I've been quietly keeping an eye on them ever since."
"How did you keep track of them? Did you discover them every time they came?" If so, Ruan Qiuping thought Chen Hai and the others were really stupid.
"Not exactly," said Yu Huan. "I just placed some adhesive microchip trackers around the refrigerator. One of the trackers was lucky enough to stick to the bottom of one of their shoes, so when they appear nearby, I get an alert on my phone."
"So this time when you found me..."
"It was also because of them. I noticed they had appeared nearby when I was at the airport, so I abandoned my business trip and closely monitored their movements. Fortunately, I finally saw you this time." Yu Huan smiled softly. "Actually, I'm quite grateful to them. If it weren't for their appearances giving me a glimmer of hope, I don't know if I could have persevered."
Yu Huan lowered his eyes and continued: "Once when I wasn't home, they deactivated their invisibility. That day, I almost couldn't control myself and wanted to confront them face-to-face to ask about your whereabouts. But then I heard them say on the surveillance system that mortals who discover their identities would have their memories forcibly erased. I didn't want to forget you, so I had to pretend I hadn't discovered anything."
Ruan Qiuping was stunned for a moment.
Not knowing what to say, he simply grasped Yu Huan's hand, interlacing their fingers tightly just as Yu Huan had once done to him.
.
Chen Hai and the others had gone down a few minutes earlier than Ruan Qiuping, so they also returned earlier.
When Ruan Qiuping came out of the Gate of Dust Observation, Chen Hai was sitting on the curb eating a sausage stolen from Yu Huan's house. Seeing Ruan Qiuping approach, he stood up, dusted off his bottom, and called out: "Hurry up, Ruan Qiuping! You're such a slowpoke! The leader is inspecting today, everyone else has already gone back to the classroom, you're the only one who hasn't come out yet."
With that, he walked off on his own.
"You were waiting for me?" Ruan Qiuping was somewhat surprised.
"We're in the same group, it's only right that we wait for you," said Jing Yang.
"I didn't want to wait for you at all, it was Jing Yang who insisted on waiting!" Chen Hai turned his head to say.
Chen Hai, who used to be a Four-legged Glutton, walked very quickly, leaving Ruan Qiuping and the others behind in no time.
Ruan Qiuping used magic to change out of the suit he was wearing and handed it to Jing Yang: "This is for you..."
He suddenly paused and said: "...I'm sorry, um, I've worn this outfit, there's bad luck on it... can you still take it?"
"It's fine," Jing Yang smiled and accepted the suit. "After all, I have a talisman to dispel bad luck."
Looking at Jing Yang's delicate and clean profile, Ruan Qiuping suddenly felt that he might have a second friend, besides Yu Huan.
But... was Yu Huan still considered a friend?
Originally, Yu Huan was almost his brother-in-law, but now Yu Huan certainly couldn't be his brother-in-law... so what kind of relationship did he and Yu Huan have now?
Ruan Qiuping's footsteps faltered.
Jing Yang looked at Ruan Qiuping and suddenly asked: "That night in the mortal world... you were with Yu Huan, weren't you?"
Ruan Qiuping was taken aback: "...How did you know?"
"I saw this outfit on the sofa," Jing Yang lowered his head and stuffed the suit into his Universe Bag. "I'm sorry, Chen Hai always goes to Yu Huan's house to steal food. He seems to think the food in the God of Fortune's house tastes better than elsewhere."
"Why are you apologizing to me? It's not like you're stealing from my house."
"But aren't you and Yu Huan in that kind of relationship?" Jing Yang tilted his head, his ears turning a bit red, seemingly a little embarrassed as he said, "Actually, I saw the news and the photos too."
Ruan Qiuping: !!
If this world were a manga, Ruan Qiuping felt his head would definitely have turned into a steaming kettle.
"Actually, I should have realized something was off from the beginning... You know Yu Huan, you haven't been to the mortal world for a long time, but he recognized you at a glance and wasn't surprised by your unchanged appearance... Does he already know your identity?"
Ruan Qiuping immediately panicked: "You haven't told anyone else, have you?"
"No. Don't worry, I won't tell anyone."
"Thank you," Ruan Qiuping said softly.
"Actually, I think it's quite good," said Jing Yang. "Times are changing. Although our Celestial Court used to always talk about the balance of yin and yang and the harmony of all things, open-minded deities don't care about these things anymore. Besides, you and the God of Fortune were originally in a relationship meant for marriage, so now that feelings have developed between you, it's even more appropriate, like icing on the cake."
Ruan Qiuping almost tripped over his tongue: "...What? What do you mean by a relationship meant for marriage?"
Jing Yang was taken aback: "You don't know? The news about the Celestial Marriage Stone has already spread, everyone is discussing your marriage to the God of Fortune."
Ruan Qiuping was shocked: "How is it my marriage to the God of Fortune? Shouldn't it be my sister's marriage to the God of Fortune?!"
Jing Yang: "Ah... but I just heard that the Yu family has already gone to your family to propose marriage, proposing for you and the God of Fortune."
Ruan Qiuping: "What?!!"