Chapter 55.2
Editor: Jodi
In the end, only Lu Xiao and Min Shoubei insisted on staying behind.
So that evening, Shen Ci found himself stuck between the two of them at the dinner table, the atmosphere awkward and tense the whole time.
One had a polite, gentle smile, while the other wore a frosty, aloof expression, seemingly miles apart on the surface, when actually…..
Their eyes were locked in countless silent battles throughout the dinner, making Shen Ci feel enormous pressure. He barely managed to finish eating before escaping back to his room to rest.
Lu Xiao went off to work, while Min Shoubei went to make a call to the screenwriter, and Shen Ci, enjoying the break happily, lay in bed watching anime.
*
“Knock knock.”
Shen Ci ran to open the door barefoot, and when he saw who it was, his eyes widened in surprise, “Little Uncle? Why are you….?
Lu Xiao, dressed casually in a suit, was standing at the door, looking down at him with a gentle smile, his handsome features refined and poised, full of charm.
“Want to go for a ride? My car just got delivered.”
Shen Ci had to admit he was a little dazzled. He stammered, “You-you, aren’t you supposed to be working?”
Lu Xiao put a finger to his lips, a smile tugging at the corner of his mouth. “It’s just an excuse for your father.”
“Baby, are we going or not?”
The thought of sneaking out behind his father’s back made Shen Ci feel a rebellious thrill.
He couldn’t help but smile, his eyes gleaming with excitement. “Let’s go!”
The “car” Lu Xiao was talking about turned out to be a sleek, understated yet super cool motorcycle—his go-to for taking Shen Ci out on nighttime rides.
Its black, cold metallic exterior gleamed in the dark, each sharp line designed for speed and thrills. Lu Xiao put his helmet on, then swung one long leg over the bike. And dressed all in black, he matched with the motorcycle perfectly.
He beckoned to Shen Ci with his fingers, looking like a cool, sharp knight, or maybe a beast lurking in the night, with only his eyes revealing a touch of warmth.
The cool wind brushed past, and Shen Ci’s face heated up. He fumbled to put his helmet on then climbed onto the back seat of the motorcycle.
The engine roared to life suavely and Shen Ci leaned forward, wrapping his arms around Lu Xiao’s strong waist, pressing his flushed face against his back.
“Baby, hold on tight.”
The motorcycle sped off with a thunderous roar, slicing through the thick night air as the cold wind hit their faces.
The speed and the engine’s rumble made Shen Ci’s heart race, and as the cool wind brushed across his heated face, he couldn’t help but tighten his grip and laugh out loud.
“So! Cool!”
Then he burst into a fit of giggles after shouting, leaning contentedly against Lu Xiao’s back. However he couldn’t resist sliding his hand over Lu Xiao’s firm abs through the thin fabric of his shirt.
Lu Xiao’s body was just too perfect. A little bit of drool slipped from his lips.
He had been indulging a little too much lately, so his belly had gone soft. If only Lu Xiao could share half of his abs—so each of them would have four. It would look so even and nice!
Lu Xiao slowed to a stop at a red light.
Then he suddenly grabbed Shen Ci’s wandering hand by the wrist and turned back slightly, amusement in his eyes. “Baby, are you teasing me on purpose? Hmm?”
His mature, husky voice carried a hint of heat, as though a fire was burning in his throat.
“No, no….” Shen Ci was so startled that he immediately held on properly, not daring to move anymore.
Lu Xiao chuckled softly. And when he restarted the bike, he drove slowly, then eventually stopped in front of a small roadside shop.
“Want some milk tea?”
Shen Ci turned his head and was surprised to see that even this small town had his favorite brand, Happy Tea!
Excited, he hopped off the bike to place an order. There weren’t many people inside, but Shen Ci still chose a quieter spot upstairs with Lu Xiao, since both of them were public figures and had to be careful.
The second floor was empty, so they sat in the far corner. Shen Ci hummed a tune as they waited for the drinks.
Standing up, Lu Xiao ruffled Shen Ci’s hair. “Baby, I’m going to the restroom.”
Shen Ci nodded with a smile, watching him head downstairs.
**
The shop owner and the staff were busy making the milk tea downstairs when Lu Xiao tapped on the counter.
“I’m buying out the place for the night, so please clear out the other customers, and no one’s allowed upstairs.”
The shop owner was bewildered, thinking in his heart that this guy had to be some crazy rich person.
So even though he was really handsome, the owner still rolled his eyes. “Sorry, we’re a chain-shop, so we can’t just let people buy us out.”
Lu Xiao pulled a black card out calmly, swiped it at the cashier, then entered a string of zeroes. Transaction successful.
The shop owner: !!!
Staring at the number that could easily buy the entire shop, the owner eventually gave in…
By the time Shen Ci pulled his phone out to snap a picture, Lu Xiao was already coming back up with the milk tea.
“I’ve missed this. It’s been a while since I last had it.”
Before Lu Xiao could even set the drinks on the table, he grabbed his impatiently and tried to poke the straw in.
One poke—he missed. The straw bent slightly.
Two pokes—the sharp edge of the straw folded.
Three pokes—the straw crumpled completely.
Frustrated, he grabbed a new straw and gave it a hard jab—splat! Milk tea splattered all over his face.
Shen Ci: “….” Absolutely infuriating.
He reached for a napkin helplessly to wipe his face, only for Lu Xiao’s hand to grab the back of his head suddenly, forcing his face to turn towards him.
And caught off guard, a warm kiss landed on the spot where the milk tea had spilled slowly, and Lu Xiao sucked the cool sweetness away gently.
“Don’t waste it.”
A deafening roar echoed in Shen Ci’s ears, and the electric current rushing to his head went from a pleasant buzz to a numbing sensation.
Lu Xiao brushed his soft lips, the faint taste of sweet and sour strawberries lingering in the air.
And seeing that Shen Ci was once again dumbstruck, he smiled and pulled him onto his lap, biting his lips boldly, their breaths mingling together.
Lu Xiao kissed him deeply, his fingers slipping under Shen Ci’s shirt.
The cool fingertips sent a shiver through Shen Ci’s body, snapping him back to reality. “No no no, we can’t! This is a milk tea shop, people might see…”
Lu Xiao’s hand slid lightly along his slender spine, teasingly reaching the front to give a light squeeze, and as expected, Shen Ci threw his head back and moaned in shock, then he covered his mouth, his face flushed red.
“Baby doesn’t want to be seen by others?”
“Of course not! That’d be so embarrassing…”
“So you only want me to see, then.”
“Kind of…. wait, no! That’s not it!”
A smile on his face, Lu Xiao pulled a small, flashy pink box from his pocket out and said with a playful tone, “Strawberry flavor, ultra-thin, with soft spikes….. Baby, you stuffed a whole pack into the hotel bag, weren’t you looking forward to it?”
Shen Ci froze for a moment, then covered his mouth in horror to stop himself from screaming.
Ah ah ah! His big brother had harmed him! But, didn’t he hide those under the bed already?
Lu Xiao’s hand rested on the back of his neck, his fingertips sliding in a teasing motion slowly. “Baby, you’ve loved hiding things under the bed since you were little. How could you hide it from me?”
Shen Ci’s face turned bright red as he said anxiously. “No, no! It wasn’t me! My big brother forced it all on me!”
Lu Xiao looked at him leisurely, his smile clearly showing he didn’t believe a word.
Shen Ci was on the verge of tears, then in the end could only bury his face in Lu Xiao’s neck, refusing to look up no matter how much Lu Xiao kissed or touched him.
He looked just like a silly little deer trying to hide itself from the world.
Lu Xiao couldn’t help but laugh, stroking his hair gently, kissing the top of his head. “Since Baby’s shy, we won’t rush it.”
If they really did anything in a milk tea shop, Shen Ci would probably throw a fit and ignore him for three whole days.
Shen Ci clung tightly to Lu Xiao’s waist, refusing to let go. So, Lu Xiao simply scooped him up in his arms and carried him downstairs, placing him on the back seat of the motorcycle. Where he nuzzled Shen Ci’s forehead intimately. “Baby, let’s go home.”
Shen Ci covered his face tightly, his voice muffled as he let out an “mmh”, already planning a hundred ways to get revenge on his big brother.
**
The next day, Shen Ci had planned to get up early and take the bus back to the village, but was stopped by a call from the director.
“Xiao Shen, everyone’s going to the county today. Since our last livestream promoting the village products was such a success, the county chief invited us personally to help promote the whole county’s goods tonight!”
By noon, sure enough, all the cast members had arrived at the hotel. Everyone was busy preparing the whole day, memorizing product details, practicing ad-libs, and discussing the sequence, while the start of the livestream drew closer.
Qinggua Live had reinforced their tipping system in every possible way, setting tipping limits per user and scheduling extra programmers on duty to prevent the platform from crashing.
At 6 p.m., the livestream started on time.
And in just a few minutes, the stream’s popularity skyrocketed, crushing the real-time rankings on the Qinggua platform.
The previous number one was a gaming streamer who had recently retired from professional tournaments. He was happily receiving gifts and compliments when he suddenly noticed his viewership plummet.
Streamer: ?
A “ding-dong” sound chimed, and a message popped up from a friend.
Report: “Zhao Ge, Wei Shuo is in the stream next door! He just knocked you off the top spot again!”
Wei Shuo again…..
The streamer ground his teeth fiercely, his eyes burning with anger.
This rival of his always seemed to clash with him, causing him to be unable to help but wonder when Wei Shuo would finally stop making his life miserable!