Wanpu Part 1

Since Shi Jin's boyfriend came to pick him up, Liu Yong's plan to continue playing in the afternoon naturally fell through.

Shi Jin apologized, but Liu Yong and Luo Donghao reassured him that it was no big deal. They all didn't sleep well last night, so they wouldn't have the energy to play in the afternoon anyway. It would be better to reschedule for another time.

Lian Jun felt sorry for interrupting their gathering and took the initiative to invite the two of them to a club that his friend owned next week. He mentioned that there was a great shooting range with simulation battles that they could all play in.

Liu Yong immediately perked up and accepted the invitation. Luo Donghao also relaxed a bit and felt a little happy - he thought that during the summer vacation, Shi Jin would probably only come out to play once, but he didn't expect that they would make plans for the next time so quickly. This was a good result.

After discussing the specific meeting time for the next gathering, everyone said goodbye to each other. Shi Jin got on the car with Lian Jun.

Liu Yong and Luo Donghao watched them leave, then looked at each other and raised the business card that Lian Jun had given them during his self-introduction, in unison.

"Chairman of Wanpu Company... Wait, why does the name Wanpu sound familiar to me?" Liu Yong frowned and muttered, while taking out his phone to save Lian Jun's phone number.

Luo Donghao also felt that the name sounded familiar. He furrowed his brows and thought for a moment. Something flashed through his mind, and he stared in shock towards the direction the car had left. He confirmed the name on the business card and suddenly understood.

He let out a shallow breath and put down the card, saying, "Of course you would find it familiar... Wasn't there a big collaboration case in the first half of the year? Ruihang Group suddenly entered the new energy industry. Our teacher even mentioned the foreign company that collaborated with Ruihang, called Wanpu."

As soon as he was reminded, Liu Yong also remembered and said, "It's that super nova company with a super strong resource background, only established for two years but with a huge scale...wait, no way, Lian Jun is so young, he shouldn't be the chairman of such a big company, it should just have the same name."

Luo Donghao silently glanced at him and said, "The big brother of Shi Jin, his name is Shi Weichong."

"What?" Liu Yong looked confused, unable to keep up with his train of thought. Luo Donghao knew that Liu Yong didn't pay much attention to economic news, so he had to be more direct: "The owner of Ruihang Group is Shi Weichong. When he received a birthday gift, did you see this name on one of the gifts? Now Ruihang has suddenly entered the energy industry and is partnering with such a new company. What do you think is the reason?"

"At the time, I did see it..." Liu Yong frowned, then suddenly realized what he meant and exclaimed in shock, "You mean, Shi Jin is the one from Rui-uh-uh-uh."

Luo Donghao quickly covered his mouth and looked around before lowering his voice and saying, "Keep your voice down. It seems like Shi Jin doesn't want others to know about his relationship with Ruihang. Don't shout."

Liu Yong nodded eagerly and pulled his hand away, turning to face him. He lowered his voice and exclaimed, "So Shi Jin is really the young master of Ruihang? That's why those two companies are collaborating? Hahaha, all those analyses of economic policies and environmental factors in the media seem so irrelevant now... Oh my god, I remember reading on gossip news that the young master of Ruihang was a chubby guy, but Shi Jin is definitely not chubby at all!"

So the focus was on his weight all along.

Luo Donghao looked at him speechlessly, then glanced at the business card in his hand and furrowed his brow slightly. He couldn't tell if it was just his imagination, but he felt that this Lian Jun was not just an ordinary businessman. His demeanor was too unique.

......

After the car door closed, Shi Jin immediately sat up straight like a primary school student and apologized sincerely, "I'm sorry, I stayed up late last night."

Lian Jun prepared to hug him, but then withdrew his hand and looked at his lowered head, asking, "What time did you stay up until?"

"Three o'clock... and then I chatted with Donghao and Liu Yong until after four before sleeping." Shi Jin lifted his eyes cautiously to look at him and explained, "We were all too excited about winning first place in the activity, so we didn't intentionally stay up late."

Lian Jun's brows furrowed. "You all slept in the same room last night?"

Shi Jin's eyebrows twitched, cursing himself inwardly for being stupid. He nodded his head reluctantly and emphasized, "We didn't sleep in the same bed! We booked a suite with three beds inside!"

Lian Jun's expression improved slightly as he looked at Shi Jin's slightly haggard face due to lack of sleep. He reached out and touched him, asking, "Did you have fun yesterday?"

Shi Jin wasn't sure if it was just a casual question or if Lian Jun was really angry, so he decided to ask, "Lian Jun, are you angry?"

Lian Jun's eyes flickered as he asked, "Why do you ask?"

"I came out to play and stayed up late. I didn't call you last night and didn't send many messages..." Shi Jin trailed off, feeling like he was being a bit unreasonable.

He looked at Lian Jun's expression and intentionally didn't mention his own purchase of adult items. Testing the waters, he asked, "Did you come to pick me up because you're mad at me?"

As he watched the way he was being so careful, the frustration that had been building up inside of Lian Jun dissipated in an instant. He reached out and embraced him, his voice softening as he spoke, "No, I came because I missed you... I'm sorry for interrupting your gathering with friends."

He didn't like how impatient he could be, but when it came to Shi Jin, he just couldn't keep his cool.

Shi Jin's eyes widened in surprise.

Is he really being this gentle?

"Are you not angry?" he asked cautiously.

Lian Jun shook his head and gently stroked the back of his head, holding him close - he had wanted to hold Shi Jin like this since last night.

The cautious expression on Shi Jin's face slowly disappeared, replaced by a smile as he asked, "So you came to pick me up because you really missed me?" It had nothing to do with staying up late or buying adult items?

Lian Jun simply stepped back, cupped his face, and kissed him. As soon as Shi Jin's tense heartstrings relaxed, he hugged and kissed back, feeling like he was in a honey-filled dream.

It turned out that Lian Jun missed him. He had only been gone for one night, and Lian Jun wanted to personally come and pick him up... How adorable! Lian Jun was so cute like this!

After cuddling and kissing for a while, Shi Jin gained some courage and boldly looked Lian Jun up and down, happily commenting, "Why did you dress up like this? You look so handsome!"

Lian Jun smiled and touched his face, saying, "Appearing in front of your friends like this, they should be more accepting... Shi Jin." Suddenly, he called out Shi Jin's name with a serious tone.

Shi Jin's heart skipped a beat. Seeing the serious expression on the other's face, his heart that had just calmed down suddenly raced again. He awkwardly asked, "W-what's wrong?" Is it time for punishment?

"I'm sorry," Lian Jun apologized sincerely.

Shi Jin: "...Huh?"

"I'm sorry. Because of me, you have sacrificed too much," Lian Jun held his hand and rubbed the ring on his finger. "Yesterday, when you weren't here, I thought a lot. Since we started our relationship, it's always been you accommodating to my pace. You sacrificed your studies, gave up a stable life, and reduced your time with friends just to take care of me... I'm sorry for selfishly trapping you in my world."

Shi Jin looked at Lian Jun's gentle yet guilty expression, feeling confused. "What are you talking about? I never thought of those as sacrifices. You've always taken care of me, and you're not selfish at all."

"Having only me in your eyes is a form of selfishness," Lian Jun held his hand tightly, feeling a dull ache in his heart for the words he was about to say, but spoke them out one by one, "It's not right. You're willing to give up so much to accommodate me, that's your thoughtfulness, but I can't take it for granted. You should have your own life too...

"Shi Jin, just wait a little longer. When everything settles down, I'll give back to you the ordinary life that belongs to you. The chance to be with your family, close friends, and a free and easy life that you've lost because of me, I will try my best to return them all."

"Lian Jun!" Shi Jin couldn't bear it anymore. He frowned and held onto Lian Jun's hand, feeling more and more confused. "I don't understand what kind of life I lost because of you. Aren't we supporting each other to get to where we are today? It was clearly me who didn't follow your arrangements and insisted on sticking by your side. How come now, when you say it, it sounds like you're forcing me to stay with you?

"I never felt like you were trapping me in your world. I've always been in contact with my family and friends, and you even helped take care of my family. Just now, you even entertained my friends and invited them to the club. There's no lover in this world who is more considerate and thoughtful than you. Why do you have to deny yourself like this?"

Supporting each other, the considerate and thoughtful... These two words from Shi Jin hit Lian Jun like a ton of bricks, shattering all the wild thoughts that had been brewing in his mind all night. He looked at Shi Jin's puzzled and disapproving expression, his heart trembling, and couldn't help but reach out and embrace Shi Jin again, burying his face in his neck.

So this was how Shi Jin felt about their relationship? It was always like this, every time Lian Jun felt uneasy, Shi Jin would pile on heaps and heaps of security, not giving him a chance to feel pain or sadness.

"Lian Jun." Shi Jin became even more worried and reached out to hug him, asking with concern, "Did I do something wrong to make you misunderstand, or did someone say something confusing to you? Why are you suddenly thinking like this... Is it Second Brother? Is he blaming you for keeping me by your side? Don't listen to him, sometimes what he says and what he thinks are completely different. Even if he says something hurtful, his intention is definitely not like that. I will go talk to him and clear things up-"

"It's not what he said," Lian Jun composed himself, raising his hand to hold him in his arms. He satisfiedly rubbed his forehead against his lover's hair, his voice softening, "I'm sorry, I was just overthinking. You suddenly asked to go out yesterday, and we've only been reunited for a short while. You've never done this before, so I thought too much... I'm sorry, even though I'm older than you, I'm still so immature."

Shi Jin was stunned again, then slowly frowned and asked, "Did my sudden request to go out make you upset?"

"No, I just overthought it myself," Lian Jun let go of him, leaned in to kiss his lips, and gently said, "Shi Jin, I love you."

As Shi Jin looked at the gentle eyes and eyebrows so close to him, he noticed the faint dark circles underneath them. He couldn't help but imagine the scene of him being alone and upset after he left last night, and his heart felt a pang of guilt.

Then, in a moment of impulsiveness, he pushed him away and grabbed his backpack, saying, "It's my fault. I shouldn't have suddenly asked to go out without giving you advance notice or easing into it, especially since we've been apart for half a month."

Lian Jun was taken aback by the sudden push, but shook his head and said, "It's not your fault. It's normal for you to want to go out with friends. My body is already better, so you don't have to worry about me all the time."

"No, that's not it!" Shi Jin raised his voice to interrupt him, pulling the zipper of his backpack and saying, "I didn't leave because I thought you were better and therefore unimportant! Actually, I came out to buy these things. I'm sorry I didn't say it directly... Although I really wanted to hang out with Liu Yong and the others, if it wasn't for the urgency of buying these things, I wouldn't have rushed out like this!"