TuxedoTranslations

Chapter 50

This question had actually troubled Zhuang Yanyu for quite a while.

Ever since the last time he thought Wen Chenxi would kiss his lips — and he didn’t — Zhuang Yanyu had been analyzing it.

According to Wen Chenxi’s usual behavior;

according to what he knew about him;

according to what Wen Chenxi had personally said—

Putting it all together, he should have kissed him.

But he didn’t.

That made Zhuang Yanyu feel as if his calculations were wrong.

And… he felt disappointed.

But he also clearly knew — the disappointment didn’t come from the calculation being off.

It was something else entirely.

A feeling he had never experienced before.

How did humans define this word — “disappointment”?

Disappointment: when hope falls through; the unpleasant feeling that comes when a hope isn’t fulfilled.

The data clearly stated right there, telling everyone that the reason you feel disappointed — is because your hopes fell flat.

And then Zhuang Yanyu suddenly understood.

Oh. So what he had been hoping for… was that A-Xi would kiss him.

Not just a kiss on the forehead, and not just on the eyes — what he really wanted was for the other person to kiss his lips.

In other words: a kiss.

Because of the habits he carried over from his previous life as a system, Zhuang Yanyu liked to rely on data no matter what he did.

And now, all kinds of data showed that he wanted to kiss A-Xi — but the other party just wouldn’t kiss him!

What was he supposed to do about that?

But this wasn’t something that could stump Zhuang Yanyu, who had once been an excellent system worker.

In his previous life, when he wanted points, he worked hard and cooperated with his host.

And now, if there’s something he wants — then he’ll just try to get it himself.

But he really didn’t have much experience in this area, so he wanted to know: before kissing, was there some kind of procedure?

For example, what kind of process did you have to go through before you could get to the “kissing” step?

But very clearly, as soon as he asked this question, his friend seemed genuinely shocked.

Wen Chenxi needed quite a while before he finally found his voice again.

“Xiao Yu, you… why are you suddenly asking about that?”

Zhuang Yanyu stared at the other person’s mouth opening and closing, his meaning practically written on his face.

Fortunately, there was no light in the room. He thought, A-Xi probably couldn’t see that he kept staring at his lips.

Maybe it was because he still hadn’t fully learned how to be human — he wasn’t very good at speaking tactfully. Especially in front of a good friend. Aside from matters related to his origins, which he would gloss over, he had no desire to lie about anything else.

So Zhuang Yanyu said honestly:

“Because I don’t know what the process is supposed to be.”

Wen Chenxi opened his mouth, as if he wanted to say something.

That made him think even more.

Was this Yu… hoping to kiss him?

A faint sliver of moonlight slipped through the blackout curtains. Wen Chenxi had to lean very close to barely make out Zhuang Yanyu’s face.

Even through the darkness, he could still clearly see his silhouette, and see that his gaze was fixed on his face.

They were already close; if either of them leaned down just a little, their breaths would mingle.

At such a close distance, Wen Chenxi couldn’t help but slow his breathing, bit by bit.

He was afraid that if he made even the slightest sudden move, he’d scare away the little spirit hiding in the dark.

After a long while, Wen Chenxi finally held his breath and whispered:

“…Maybe — maybe you have to confess first.”

Zhuang Yanyu: “Oh.”

His voice didn’t sound much different from usual, just with a faint hint of puzzlement.

“I remember you already confessed to me…”

When he said that, Zhuang Yanyu seemed to think of something, his face heating up slightly.

“That time — did it count as a confession?”

Most of the data he had collected described very formal confessions.

He didn’t understand whether A-Xi’s earlier confession counted as official or not.

Wen Chenxi answered immediately:

“Of course it counts. But if you feel like it didn’t, I can confess again.”

“That’s not necessary.”

Since it counted, Zhuang Yanyu didn’t want to waste time — his time was precious.

He said, “When I saw you at the airport today, I actually wanted to tell you something.”

Wen Chenxi didn’t quite understand how the topic shifted here all of a sudden.

But he still followed along and nodded:

“Yeah — you said once we got in the car, you had something to tell me. What is it?”

Zhuang Yanyu lifted the hand he was holding to his chest, and his voice lowered along with Wen Chenxi’s tone:

“It’s nothing particularly special — I just wanted to say… I can date you.”

Wen Chenxi: “…”

How is that not something special?!

He immediately sat up, the blanket sliding off his body. His figure stretched out in the darkness, hard to see clearly —

But his voice was filled with shock and joy he couldn’t hide.

“Xiao Yu, just now you said you—”

He was worried he might be dreaming.

It was so dark, not a hint of light — maybe this really was a dream.

He wanted to reach out and turn on the lamp, but halfway there, he stopped.

If this really was a dream, then he wanted the dream to last a little longer.

But Zhuang Yanyu didn’t have such worries. He directly reached over and turned on the light by his bed.

His lamp wasn’t just a bedside lamp — it lit the whole room.

Click.

The room instantly became bright as day. Warm white light poured down over both of them, like halos resting over their heads.

Wen Chenxi instinctively shut his eyes, then slowly opened them once he’d adjusted.

Zhuang Yanyu was sitting in front of him, long legs crossed, pale skin glowing gently under the light — looking even more delicate.

His expression was serious — solemn.

Word by word, clearly enunciating, he said:

“I’m serious. I want to date you. I’ve been thinking about it for days.”

He began to lay bare everything in his heart.

“I think about you all the time.”

Zhuang Yanyu lowered his eyes. He didn’t really know why, but saying these words felt embarrassing.

“The moment you left that day, I started thinking about you. Zhou Quan said we were like a couple and that it was sweet — and only then did I realize: in other people’s eyes, we already look like we’re dating.

If that’s what dating is… then I think I really want to date you.”

Zhuang Yanyu had no idea that what he’d just said, in other people’s eyes, basically counted as a confession.

He thought he was only discussing the matter itself — honestly saying what was on his mind.

But precisely because of that, when Wen Chenxi heard him, he felt even more —

why was it that even when this person talked about wanting to date someone, every word stabbed straight into his heart?

Wen Chenxi felt as if a flower had bloomed inside his chest.

And on that flower, the name “Zhuang Yanyu” was engraved.

He had actually thought that it would take a very long time before Zhuang Yanyu would finally agree to be with him.

He had prepared himself for that long wait.

As long as the other person didn’t reject him, didn’t push him away, then even if it took time — it wouldn’t matter.

He never imagined the surprise would come so soon — to the point that right now, Wen Chenxi didn’t even know what to do.

After Zhuang Yanyu finished speaking and saw that Wen Chenxi hadn’t said anything for a long time, he started to feel uneasy.

Did A-Xi… not want to date him?

He pressed his lips together and said slowly, “Of course, maybe you still need to think about it. That’s fine — these kinds of things…”

Before he could finish, a pair of big hands suddenly wrapped around him, pulling him up and into a tight embrace.

His body lifted off the bed, making him instinctively wrap his arms around Wen Chenxi’s neck. By the time he reacted, he was already sitting on Wen Chenxi’s lap.

With his head leaning out from the man’s shoulder, all he could see was Wen Chenxi’s back.

But he could clearly feel Wen Chenxi’s arms around his back — holding him tightly, almost like he was cradling a doll.

Both of his hands were trapped against Wen Chenxi’s chest and he couldn’t pull them out. He could only poke Wen Chenxi’s shoulder with his chin.

“A-Xi?”

Wen Chenxi hummed softly, hugged him even tighter, and then said in a low voice, “I’m not thinking about anything. I was just worried that I might be dreaming — because I’m so happy.”

Zhuang Yanyu quietly let out a breath of relief.

He didn’t want to “think it over,” and he said he was happy — so that meant… he was agreeing?

Zhuang Yanyu’s eyes curved slightly as he pressed his lips together and smiled.

“Dreams don’t feel like this. They don’t have this kind of touch.”

Wen Chenxi still sounded unsure.

“Xiao Yu… are you really sure? You really like me — and want to be with me?”

“I thought it through before I said it. But—” Zhuang Yanyu answered honestly.

“You said that the kind of ‘like’ between us is different. I don’t really understand what you mean by your kind… but…”

When he got to that part, his face turned red. He wanted to continue, but felt too embarrassed.

So Wen Chenxi finished it for him.

“But you think about me. And… you want to kiss me?”

Zhuang Yanyu’s already-red face instantly turned burning hot.

He rubbed his face against Wen Chenxi’s shoulder, as if trying to get rid of the heat — only to realize that the man holding him was even hotter than he was.

So not only did the heat not fade, it felt like it spread through his whole body.

“I do.”

After a long pause, those two quiet words finally came from the arms in Wen Chenxi’s embrace.

Wen Chenxi laughed softly.

He had to admit — those two words made him even happier than when Xiao Yu had just said he wanted to date him.

Wen Chenxi gently released him. The “doll” he had been holding so tightly shook his numb hands a little and muttered, “A-Xi, my hands went kind of numb.”

“Sorry.” Wen Chenxi took his hands and massaged his arms.

Zhuang Yanyu’s hands were slender, though his arms showed a faint trace of muscle.

It was hard to imagine that these very hands were capable of knocking down a two-hundred-pound man.

After a bit of massaging, the numbness eased.

“Okay.” He shook his hands again. “Not really numb anymore.”

He wanted to climb off Wen Chenxi’s lap — worried he’d make his friend’s legs go numb.

And this face-to-face position made him feel embarrassed.

But just as he lifted himself slightly, Wen Chenxi’s hand pressed gently on his waist, stopping him.

Zhuang Yanyu looked up in confusion — and immediately met Wen Chenxi’s eyes.

Wen Chenxi was staring at him — seriously, carefully — as if memorizing every detail of his face.

Whatever it was he thought of, Zhuang Yanyu froze.

When he finally stopped moving, Wen Chenxi’s hand slowly moved upward — until it reached his lips.

His fingertip pressed gently there. He looked into Zhuang Yanyu’s eyes and said softly:

“Xiao Yu.”

“Mm?”

“Can I switch identities now? From ‘best friend’… to ‘boyfriend mode’?”

Zhuang Yanyu thought for a moment.

He had already invited Wen Chenxi to date him. And kissing — that really was something only boyfriends could do. Not best friends.

No brothers would kiss.

“…Oh.”

Wen Chenxi immediately switched into “boyfriend mode,” and lightly brushed a kiss across Zhuang Yanyu’s lips.

Just the faintest touch — then he pulled back, quietly watching his expression.

He was still worried — afraid of crossing a line.

He was prepared: if he crossed it, he would immediately retreat. He didn’t want Zhuang Yanyu to feel uncomfortable.

But Zhuang Yanyu showed no displeasure. Instead, he kept staring at Wen Chenxi’s lips.

He thought: his friend — oh, no. Not “friend” anymore.

Now… he was his boyfriend.

He thought his boyfriend was really handsome — even the shape of his lips was one of the “best-looking lip shapes” among all the data he’d collected.

And they were soft.

A bit like cotton — but with more texture than cotton.

His staring and the way he focused on Wen Chenxi’s lips looked even more like an invitation.

An invitation to go further — to explore deeper.

Wen Chenxi’s breathing grew a little heavier. He leaned in again and kissed him.

This time, he didn’t pull away. He stayed there, gentle and lingering — as if slowly testing Zhuang Yanyu’s patience, and also tempering his own self-control.

If the previous kiss had made Zhuang Yanyu feel confused, dazed, and full of questions about why his “brother” was kissing him like that…

Then this kiss felt like a sudden leap — like it had transformed into something completely different.

He no longer felt lost. Instead, he felt as if some empty hope inside him — had finally been filled.

So he really had been disappointed before.

He truly had been hoping for this kiss all along.

And, honestly, he quite liked this feeling.

Zhuang Yanyu wasn’t very sure whether this kind of “liking” was the same as A-Xi’s. He wanted to ask, but he didn’t want to ruin the mood.

His head went blank. For the first time, he realized he seemed to have forgotten time — forgotten to calculate it. The timer in his brain felt like it had vanished.

He no longer knew what time it was, nor how long they had been kissing.

He felt like a rag doll, letting the other person hold and kiss him gently. As if, so long as the other didn’t get tired, he would obediently stay like that forever.

Only when his lips began to feel numb did he finally come back to himself a little.

A-Xi had kissed him for such a long, long time.

He had no idea how long it had been.

But his lips really were numb now.

Zhuang Yanyu pushed lightly and made a muffled sound, trying to remind him.

And just as he made that sound, he suddenly felt himself lifted into the air.

“Mm?”

The next moment, he was laid back onto the soft bed, his head sinking into the pillow.

Wen Chenxi braced his arms on either side of him, staring down.

Without his glasses on, Wen Chenxi always seemed a little more aggressive — and it wasn’t just his imagination.

The look in his eyes right now really did feel like he wanted to devour him whole.

Instinctively, Zhuang Yanyu covered his mouth and whispered, “No more kissing. Save some for tomorrow.”

Wen Chenxi smiled. “Will there even be any left for tomorrow?”

“It will,” Zhuang Yanyu insisted.

Wen Chenxi looked reluctant, clearly unwilling to agree.

Zhuang Yanyu felt a little scared. Once A-Xi started kissing, he just didn’t stop.

His lips were still numb.

Not wanting to be kissed anymore, Zhuang Yanyu immediately said, “Switch.”

Wen Chenxi blinked. “Switch?”

“Switch to best-friend mode.”

He hadn’t forgotten — Wen Chenxi had said before he didn’t treat him like a “brother.”

He’d also said he would never want to kiss or hug his “brother.”

So… if he switched to brother mode — then they wouldn’t have to kiss, right?

Pfft.

Wen Chenxi couldn’t help it — he burst out laughing completely.

His arms gave way and, as he fell, he simply wrapped Zhuang Yanyu into his arms, burying his face in his neck, laughing so hard the bed shook.

Zhuang Yanyu looked utterly baffled. “What are you laughing at?”

Wen Chenxi tried to suppress his laughter, but the smile still shone in his eyes.

“Nothing. I just think… you’re so cute. I really like you.”

“…Oh,” Zhuang Yanyu replied.

After laughing enough, Wen Chenxi still wanted to kiss him again — but seeing how obediently Zhuang Yanyu waited for him to “switch modes,” he finally resisted the urge.

He smiled. “Okay — we can switch. But before we switch… does Xiao Yu need me to help first?”

Zhuang Yanyu blinked. “Help with what?”

Wen Chenxi’s hand shifted slightly downward, hinting.

“Xiao Yu is… up.”

“…”

Zhuang Yanyu pressed his lips together, his face burning scarlet.

Seeing the delayed embarrassment finally show up, Wen Chenxi hurriedly kissed his cheek and reassured him softly:

“It’s normal. I know.”

“It’s just normal,” Zhuang Yanyu muttered.

Wen Chenxi smiled faintly. “Mm. Me too.”

“…Oh.”

Then… did A-Xi also need his help?

Slowly, Zhuang Yanyu reached his hand over. After all, it wasn’t the first time — and in “best-friend mode,” this was apparently okay.

Right.

—

The next morning.

Zhou Qingcheng woke up quite early — not even 7:30 yet.

When he went downstairs, he saw Zhuang Yanyu, dressed in workout clothes, coming out of the gym.

He immediately greeted him. “Morning, Xiao Yu.”

Then he noticed his outfit. “You went to exercise?”

Zhuang Yanyu quietly kept some distance from him. “Yeah.”

Zhou Qingcheng looked around. “Huh? My brother isn’t up yet?”

“When I woke up, he was still asleep,” Zhuang Yanyu replied.

“??”

Zhou Qingcheng’s eyes practically turned yellow with curiosity.

What was going on?

Why was his future sister-in-law up early enough to go running…

…but his big brother was still in bed?!

I heard that this time my sister-in-law and my big brother are going on business trips to different places, and supposedly they haven’t seen each other for a whole week.

They’re a couple — a short separation makes it feel like a new honeymoon. Yesterday he even specially wore headphones to sleep, just so he wouldn’t hear any embarrassing noises…

So how come the one who can’t get out of bed is my big brother?

Zhou Qingcheng couldn’t help glancing again at Zhuang Yanyu, feeling a bit dazed. “I really couldn’t tell. I didn’t expect you, Xiao Yu, to…”

What he said sounded way too strange, making Zhuang Yanyu — who was always especially worried that his identity might be exposed in front of Zhou Qingcheng — feel uneasy. “Didn’t expect… what about me?”

Zhou Qingcheng’s heart was deeply shaken.

He hadn’t expected that this person actually wasn’t his sister-in-law… but was his…

Wait — what do you call that again?

Brother-in-law?

Or something else?

Crap, what kind of weird title is that — why did it suddenly pop into his head?

Zhou Qingcheng shuddered, goosebumps rising all over him. He quickly shook his head and said, “Nothing, nothing.”

Seeing him like that, Zhuang Yanyu felt even more uncertain.

Did he actually figure something out?

In the end, Zhou Qingcheng still couldn’t hold back. He said, “Xiao Yu, my brother… he still hasn’t gotten up this late. Last night, did you guys… go to bed really late?”

That question even made the system blush.

Zhuang Yanyu responded vaguely, “Mm-hmm.”

Zhou Qingcheng thought, As expected.

No wonder his brother couldn’t get up this morning.

He was still a bit worried about his brother and asked, “He didn’t get a fever… or get hurt, did he?”

Zhuang Yanyu: “No.”

Zhou Qingcheng: “Good, that’s good.”

After that, Zhou Qingcheng just felt really awkward and didn’t know what else to say.

Zhuang Yanyu also felt the atmosphere was strange and decided it was better to stay farther away from him, so he hurried upstairs to change.

Wen Chenxi wasn’t sleeping — he was in the study working.

A rather important document had come up that needed to be handled immediately.

When Zhuang Yanyu returned to the master bedroom and didn’t see Wen Chenxi, he went around to the study, and sure enough, heard voices inside.

Standing by the door for a while, he realized Wen Chenxi was speaking English to someone. When Wen Chenxi noticed him, he paused, then smiled at him.

Zhuang Yanyu’s face warmed slightly. He quickly backed away from the study and returned to the bedroom.

He first changed out of his workout clothes in the bathroom, then took a shower, rinsing away the sweat from exercising.

Just when he was about to take the clothes downstairs to the laundry room, his movements stalled.

It wasn’t just him and Ah Xi at home today — Zhou Qingcheng was here too.

If it were only the two of them, it’d be fine. But with another person here… carrying the clothes down felt awkward.

Thinking of the underwear he had changed out of in the middle of the night, and the… traces left on them, Zhuang Yanyu pressed his lips together and gave up on going to the laundry room. Instead, he simply washed everything right there in the bathroom.

Fortunately, the master bathroom was big, with plenty of space and a place to wash.

When Wen Chenxi came back to the bedroom, Zhuang Yanyu had just finished washing everything. There were balconies both upstairs and downstairs, so he hung the clothes on the balcony off the master bedroom.

Wen Chenxi walked over to help him hang them and asked, “Why not put them in the laundry room?”

Zhuang Yanyu pressed his lips together. “Don’t want to.”

Wen Chenxi seemed to think of something and smiled. “Acheng will be going back today.”

Zhuang Yanyu: “Oh.”

Wen Chenxi’s gaze fell on a certain close-fitting garment that had just been hung up.

Zhuang Yanyu: “…”

Wen Chenxi laughed again. When Zhuang Yanyu glared at him, he immediately turned around. “I’ll go get dressed.”

Zhuang Yanyu’s face was expressionless.

How had he never realized before — Ah Xi could actually be this bad!

Wen Chenxi quickly finished washing up and went downstairs with Zhuang Yanyu.

By this time, Zhou Qingcheng had very conscientiously finished making breakfast.

Seeing them come down, he brought the food over. “Big brother, Xiao Yu, try the noodles I cooked — deluxe version, with fried eggs.”

Zhuang Yanyu sat down. “Thanks.”

When it was Wen Chenxi’s turn, he was just about to sit.

Zhou Qingcheng: “Bro! Wait!”

Wen Chenxi looked at his younger brother in confusion.

Zhou Qingcheng hurried over to the couch, grabbed a throw pillow, and placed it on the dining chair. “Bro, sit on this. See if it’s more comfortable like that.”

Wen Chenxi: “?”

At that moment, Zhou Qingcheng felt like a thoughtful little cotton-padded jacket — terrified that his brother had suffered in any way.

He brought over the bowl of noodles specifically cooked for Wen Chenxi. “This one’s pretty light. Don’t worry — I barely used any oil, just enough for flavor.”

Wen Chenxi felt even more confused.

Sitting on the chair with the cushion, eating light, low-oil noodles, and looking at his brother’s “family-side” expression, Wen Chenxi finally reacted…

Wen Chenxi: “Zhou Qingcheng.”

Zhou Qingcheng first glanced at his brother’s backside. “Too hard? I’ll see if I can find something softer.”

Then he muttered, “Didn’t expect big brother to be so delicate… No wonder you’re the…” — the one on the bottom.

Before he could finish, he saw Wen Chenxi expressionlessly put down his chopsticks and roll up his sleeves.

Zhou Qingcheng: “??”

Why do you look like you’re about to hit me?

Not understanding what was going on either, Zhuang Yanyu suddenly got a little excited. He immediately took out his phone and quietly switched to video mode.

—

Author’s note: —

Sure — here’s the translation:

PS—

Yuyu: Fight! Fight!

Feel free to buy me a coffee/show your support on ko-fi! Thank you ❤