SABA Chapter 36

Jiang Tiao: “My mouth is sweet because my heart is sweet…”

Huo Shen’s expression did not change significantly, but the subtle disgust in his eyes surprised Jiang Tiao.

Although Huo Shen was polite and considerate in his dealings with others, he was actually a very distant and indifferent person. Except for the people and things he valued and cared about, most people and things in this world would not cause him any real emotional fluctuations—even when encountering the most despicable and vile people in business.

The last time Jiang Tiao saw Huo Shen display such obvious disgust was when he faced the uncles who had caused his parents’ death.

Jiang Tiao: “Who is this person?”

The neon lights outside the car window receded like a receding tide, colorful and dazzling. Huo Shen closed his eyes, managing to conceal the emotion within them. After a moment of silence, he finally mentioned the name he strongly wished not to, “Chu Xu’s agent.”

Jiang Tiao clicked his tongue in disgust, “As expected, birds of a feather flock together. I thought Chu Xu was annoying enough, but I didn’t expect his agent to be even worse.”

Even without today’s incident, Jiang Tiao would have unconditionally sided with Huo Shen on this matter. How could someone that Huo Shen disliked be a good person? But even if he were a good person, if Huo Shen didn’t like him, Jiang Tiao wouldn’t like him either.

Huo Shen paused slightly, “You think Chu Xu is very annoying?”

“Of course,” Jiang Tiao had plenty to say about Chu Xu’s flaws: arrogant, rude, inconsiderate, mentally unstable… “You have no idea what I’ve been through in just one day! Compared to him, Chu Yanyao seems like an incredibly sweet person.”

The more Huo Shen listened, the more confused he became, “Why are you comparing him to Chu Yanyao?”

Jiang Tiao had a lot to say about this as well, so he shared the gossip about the love pentagon he had heard over the past two days with Huo Shen.

After Jiang Tiao finished speaking enthusiastically, he noticed Huo Shen looking at him with a complicated expression.

“What?” Jiang Tiao asked, puzzled, “Aren’t you surprised at all?”

Huo Shen’s thin lips moved a few times, as if he wanted to speak but hesitated, then spoke again. “I am indeed quite surprised.”

Hearing Huo Shen agree with him, Jiang Tiao became happy again, “See? My brother always says I’m slow when it comes to these things. I think I have a sharp eye now!”

Huo Shen didn’t know how to describe his current feelings. Looking at the excitedly chattering Jiang Tiao, he couldn’t hold back.

“Mmm—”

Jiang Tiao covered his cheeks, which were being pinched by Huo Shen, his eyes wide, like a hamster that had been suddenly grabbed by the scruff of its neck while frolicking, curious, well-behaved, and completely unguarded.

This look was too overwhelming, and Huo Shen surrendered under such a gaze. He felt as if the knots in his heart had been smoothed out a bit by a not-too-hot iron, leaving only a warm afterglow.

For some inexplicable reason, Jiang Tiao felt that the gloom surrounding Huo Shen had dissipated quite a bit, and he was a little happy. He let Huo Shen’s hand rest on his face, thinking, I really spoil you. It’s only you, and you can still pinch my face. Jiang Tiao deliberately put on a serious expression, “Do you know I make a living with my face now? My face is very precious!”

Huo Shen was amused and smiled. Before withdrawing his hand, he gently stroked the place he had pinched, as if smoothing silk, “It’s okay, it’s flattened, not a wrinkle.”

Jiang Tiao didn’t notice what Huo Shen had teased. He had never realized that the nerves on his cheeks were so sensitive. Although Huo Shen had only lightly brushed past, he could clearly trace the texture of Huo Shen’s fingertips.

Huo Shen’s fingers were long and well-boned, his fingertips dry and even slightly cool. Yet, for some reason, the place Huo Shen had touched felt itchy and numb, as if a small flame had quietly spread, making half of his face feel a little hot.

He leaned back against the seat, puzzled, and scratched his cheek where Huo Shen had touched him.

The night coast was vast and boundless, its end swallowed by the darkness that consumed all light. Jiang Tiao, seeing the increasingly deserted seaside boulevard ahead, finally reacted, “Hey, aren’t we going back to Yun Jing City?”

Huo Shen: “Do you have any work arrangements tomorrow?”

Jiang Tiao: “No.”

He had originally planned to go to California.

“Then let’s go back tomorrow,” Huo Shen leaned back against the seat, looking uncharacteristically relaxed. “There’s a resort hotel here where you can see the sunrise over the sea from your bed.”

Huo Shen’s appearance inexplicably reminded Jiang Tiao of when they were very young. Huo Shen’s personality was much more vibrant back then. Whenever he dragged Jiang Tiao out to sneak away from boring and long banquets and social events, he would show this expression.

The happy memories of their youth rushed in one after another, making Jiang Tiao happy.

It had been a long time since he had gone out alone with Huo Shen.

“Have you finished your business over there? How long will you be staying this time?”

Huo Shen looked at Jiang Tiao, a smile in his eyes, “More or less. I plan to adjust things. If there’s no particularly urgent matter, I probably won’t be going out for a while.”

“Really?” Jiang Tiao was surprised and delighted. As soon as his brother returned, Huo Shen went to California and stayed for half a month. During that time, he tried to visit Huo Shen several times but was always tied up by Huo Shen with various reasons. If Huo Shen’s attitude towards him hadn’t remained the same, he would have even suspected that Huo Shen was intentionally avoiding him.

Jiang Tiao tilted his head and examined Huo Shen for a while, “Why do I feel like you’re a bit different since returning from California this time?”

He seemed more relaxed than before, less preoccupied? And didn’t have that feeling of being so close yet so far away.

The warm yellow streetlights sprinkled sparsely through the car window into Jiang Tiao’s bright and curious eyes. Huo Shen watched him quietly for a while, feeling the ripples in his heart spread from deep to shallow, circle after circle, extending into the distance until they disappeared.

“Perhaps I’ve figured some things out.”

Huo Shen’s gaze was gentle and profound, like a deep lake in the moonlight of a forest, with unspoken words hidden beneath its calm surface.

Jiang Tiao saw his reflection in Huo Shen’s eyes.

He suppressed his thumping heart, turned his face away, and suddenly remembered Nie Jin’s mention of the dating reality show. As expected of a golden agent, if Huo Shen wanted to pursue a girl, he wouldn’t need to do much; just sitting in front of you and looking at you earnestly would be enough to make someone’s heart flutter.

For some reason, Jiang Tiao felt a little uneasy.

In return, Jiang Tiao reached out and touched Huo Shen’s face—he wanted to pinch it, but Huo Shen’s features were sharp and his profile as if carved by a knife, with hardly any flesh.

It felt quite nice to touch.

The skin was smooth, carrying Huo Shen’s unique body temperature, cool and refreshing, like jade.

Jiang Tiao touched it again.

Huo Shen chuckled and grabbed Jiang Tiao’s wrist.

Jiang Tiao looked at Huo Shen, who was squeezed between the car window and the seat, and realized that this posture was indeed like a prodigal son teasing a girl.

Jiang Tiao was inexplicably amused by his own thought, his eyes curving into crescents. He provocatively lifted Huo Shen’s chin, seeing the helplessness and indulgence in Huo Shen’s eyes, then returned to his seat, happily lost in his thoughts for a long time.

At the end of the quiet and vast asphalt road sat a high-end resort hotel on the coast. The hotel’s overall structural design incorporated a large amount of streamlined metal and transparent glass materials, making it look like a pearl glowing with faint luminescence, fallen onto the rocky beach from a distance. Between the hotel and the coastline was a large private silver beach, developed by the hotel itself, clean and white, like fallen snow.

Huo Shen had booked a room on the top floor of the hotel. The two-hundred-square-meter curved floor-to-ceiling windows offered a clear view of the endless sea and the starry night sky.

Jiang Tiao pushed open the French windows. The waves rolled up and fell, crashing onto the beach, erasing all traces. The salty and cool sea breeze dispersed the heat in the air, making one feel refreshed and exhilarated.

“This is nice,” Jiang Tiao’s face lit up with a bright and surprised smile, “Was it built in the last two years?”

Jiang Tiao’s smile was lively and infectious. Huo Shen’s mood always improved whenever he saw it.

“Yes, I stumbled upon it and thought you might like it.”

These words were as flattering as could be. Jiang Tiao quietly looked at Huo Shen against the backdrop of the stars for a moment, “Actually, as long as I’m out with you, any place will feel great to me.”

Huo Shen’s eyes held a smile, “Your mouth is so sweet.”

Jiang Tiao: “My mouth is sweet because my heart is sweet, and my heart is sweet because you are in my heart.”

Huo Shen laughed heartily when he saw Jiang Tiao making a heart shape with his hands.

“Do you want to go down and walk around?”

Jiang Tiao actually wanted to, but after more than twenty hours of travel, anyone would be tired. He could see the fatigue hidden in Huo Shen’s brows. “Never mind, we have to watch the sunrise tomorrow. Let’s go for a walk tomorrow morning during sunrise.”

Huo Shen raised an eyebrow, full of disbelief, “Sunrise at five in the morning, are you sure you can wake up?”

Jiang Tiao was a typical night owl. He could stay up very late, but no matter how early he slept, waking up early felt like it would kill him.

Jiang Tiao expressed strong condemnation for Huo Shen’s distrust, “When it comes to watching the sunrise with you, when have I ever not woken up?!”

“Okay,” Huo Shen showed a hint of regret, “Then you should sleep early. I’ll go back to my room, and I’ll call you in the morning.”

Wait, wait, this is not the right direction. Jiang Tiao strode to the door and used his foot to hold it open as Huo Shen was about to close it.

“Where are you going? Aren’t we staying together?”

Huo Shen: “We are staying together, I’m next door.”

This is hardly called staying together!

Jiang Tiao was very displeased, “What’s the difference between this and you being in California and me being in the country? If I want to talk to you, I have to call!”

Huo Shen chuckled and pointed to the balcony Jiang Tiao had just been on, “The balcony isn’t enclosed, there’s only a half-height partition in between. If you want to find me, you can go to the balcony.”

Jiang Tiao: “Then we’ll each cover ourselves with a small blanket, sit in our own balcony rocking chairs, and have a long-distance chat loudly at night?”

Huo Shen was amused by the scene Jiang Tiao described.

“Let me tell you, I’m also a public figure now. If this is overheard and photographed, it’ll easily make tomorrow’s gossip headlines.”

As Jiang Tiao spoke, he grabbed Huo Shen’s arm and forcefully pulled him back into the room.

This hotel was positioned for couples and honeymooners, with a total of six rooms, all of which had large beds.

Huo Shen was speechless with amusement, “Didn’t you say last time that as a mature cool guy, you had to learn to sleep by yourself so your brother wouldn’t laugh at you?”

Ever since recording the escape room and sleeping over at his place for one night, Jiang Tiao no longer constantly clamored to sleep with him. He even bought a Snoopy single lazy sofa bed for Huo Shen’s house the next day, making it convenient for him to sleep there when he visited.

Jiang Tiao: “Don’t bring that up. I was worried about you, afraid you wouldn’t sleep well! Not today. Either we sleep together, or you have the hotel set up a tent for us, and we’ll go to the beach to count stars all night until dawn!”

Seeing that Huo Shen didn’t object, Jiang Tiao closed the door and locked it in one smooth motion. He was still a bit indignant upon returning, “As expected, a man’s mouth is a deceptive ghost! You said you missed me, and the result of missing me is that less than half an hour after meeting, you’re throwing me alone in a room to sleep by yourself?”

There was nowhere to reason about this. His plan was clearly to go for a walk on the beach. This area was a protected base for migratory birds, and he might even see terns this season.

“Sit down, I have something to ask you.”

Huo Shen was taller than Jiang Tiao, and standing always gave him a slight disadvantage in terms of presence.

Jiang Tiao pushed Huo Shen to sit by the bed, then leaned against the floor-to-ceiling window himself—this angle gave him a strong sense of presence.

“When Luo Xingwen broke up with Chu Yanyao back then, wasn’t that your doing?”