ALCSRB Chapter 56

Before leaving the airport, Shen Xingyan made a call to Su Wanxin to let her know they were safe.

Jiang Mingyi listened to him obediently take the scolding and couldn’t help but want to laugh—though he also felt a little bad.

He took the phone, and in a soft, spoiled voice, said to Su Wanxin, “Mom, it’s all my fault. Don’t scold Ge anymore. If he hadn’t found me first, I wouldn’t even know what to do at the airport.”

Back then, when he was feeling lonely and helpless, Jiang Mingyi had indeed been heartbroken—but he’d buried it deep inside and never let it show.

The moment Shen Xingyan appeared, it truly felt like a hero had come to rescue him from his confusion and anxiety.

Jiang Mingyi sweet-talked Su Wanxin for quite a while before finally coaxing a smile out of her.

An Shi nodded at the boy who was intently talking on the phone, then shot Shen Xingyan a look—Your little brother’s pretty interesting.

Shen Xingyan returned the look—You’d better keep those inappropriate thoughts to yourself.

An Shi clicked his tongue. What thoughts could he possibly have? He just came to see the treasure Shen Xingyan had been going on about for years.

He used to only hear Shen Xingyan mention his little brother from time to time. The guy guarded him so closely, he never even let them see what the kid looked like.

If it weren’t for his persistence, he’d have been kept in the dark like everyone else.

Now that he’d finally met the real thing, An Shi’s curiosity was in full bloom.

Especially when he saw that little beauty sneak glances at Shen Xingyan with those eyes full of unsaid affection—clearly head over heels and totally unaware of it himself.

An Shi pondered for a moment. Maybe he could play matchmaker here.

After calming Su Wanxin down, Jiang Mingyi handed the phone back to Shen Xingyan. “Ge, I don’t even know how I left my phone at home. I made Mom worry…”

As Shen Xingyan took the phone, his fingers brushed against the back of Jiang Mingyi’s hand, but Jiang Mingyi was too caught up in guilt to notice.

Shen Xingyan reassured him, “It’s okay. If this ever happens again, just stay where you are and wait for me to come find you.”

It was the simplest solution, but instead of being comforted, Jiang Mingyi pouted and glared at him. “Ge, could you not jinx it like that?”

“And I’m an adult—how can I keep getting lost like a little kid? What about my pride?”

Jiang Mingyi was grumbling when he heard An Shi laugh behind him and paused mid-rant.

An Shi tried to hold in his laughter and added, “A-Yan, wouldn’t it have been so much easier if you just held his hand the whole way out of the terminal? Why let little beauty go through all that? As an older brother, you should be thinking of your little brother first—not making him adjust to you.”

“You’re so rigid sometimes. I’m honestly heartbroken for little beauty.”

Jiang Mingyi hadn’t expected An Shi to speak up for him. Instantly, his confidence grew, and he nodded along with every word.

“Exactly! You can’t walk so fast all the time—I won’t be able to keep up.” And it’d be even better if you always held my hand while we walked.

That last part, Jiang Mingyi only said to himself, but his face wore a pouty, aggrieved expression as he looked at Shen Xingyan.

Listening to the two of them go back and forth like a tag-team, Shen Xingyan was completely speechless.

---

“Seems like you two don’t need me to make introductions—you’re already getting along like kindred spirits.”

An Shi instantly picked up on the chill in his tone, especially the glance that came his way—laced with displeasure and a subtle warning.

Tch, what a petty man who can’t even play along.

—

The car exited the airport expressway and merged onto the highway.

Jiang Mingyi turned to glance at the man focused on driving. That handsome profile, even shrouded in the flickering light and shadow, still revealed perfectly sculpted features at a glance.

Those hands on the steering wheel gripped it with ease—long fingers, well-defined knuckles—hands that were undeniably beautiful yet full of masculine strength.

Something suddenly flashed through his mind, and the tips of his ears flushed red.

He gave a light cough, shifting his gaze in slight discomfort—only to catch sight of the time.

Jiang Mingyi was instantly startled. “It’s this late already?!”

An Shi, who had been napping with his eyes closed, immediately opened them at the sound of his voice. “What, don’t tell me you’re heading to bed this early?”

Jiang Mingyi hurried to explain, “It’s not that. It’s just that my brother didn’t have time to eat before picking you up.”

They hadn’t thought about it earlier on the way here. Now it hit him—Shen Xingyan had probably gone over two hours without food.

The thought made his heart ache.

An Shi was suddenly on the receiving end of a glare from Jiang Mingyi, and he blinked, a little confused. But when he noticed the boy’s expression, he immediately caught on.

“He didn’t have dinner, huh? Well, perfect timing—we’ll count this as dinner and late-night snack,” An Shi said as he whipped out his phone and started searching for nearby food spots. “Ooh, this place looks great—they’ve got grilled fish! I haven’t had grilled fish in ages.”

He licked his lips dramatically, looking absolutely ravenous.

Jiang Mingyi leaned halfway into the backseat to take a look, eyes lighting up. “Which place?”

Grilled fish? Yes, please.

Shen Xingyan took a turn at the intersection, his eyes flicking to the rearview mirror—where the two heads were almost leaning against each other. His gaze darkened slightly.

“You really think a grown man like me can fill up on grilled fish?” he asked, not even pretending to hide his disinterest.

The two heads turned toward him in perfect unison and said with one voice, “It’s fine! The place has stir-fry too—you can just eat that with plain rice.”

Shen Xingyan: “…”

Following the GPS, they soon arrived at the restaurant Jiang Mingyi and An Shi had been obsessing over.

It was on a busy food street.

Nearly 9 p.m. now, and the place was packed—crowds everywhere, practically shoulder to shoulder. Groups of young people in light summer clothes were out in full force, all here for late-night snacks.

After a struggle, they finally found a parking spot. Once out of the car, An Shi looked at the bustling scene ahead and grew even more excited.

“Now this is what modern youth should be doing at night,” he said, then dashed off enthusiastically.

Jiang Mingyi walked beside Shen Xingyan and, hearing that, couldn’t help but ask, “Ge, does your friend really get this hyped over just a midnight snack?”

Shen Xingyan lowered his gaze slightly, his eyes pausing for a second on the boy’s dark hair before calmly looking away.

“He usually has someone keeping him in check. So naturally, late-night snacks are off-limits,” he replied.

“What? Even snacks are restricted?” Jiang Mingyi, who had been quietly mocking An Shi in his mind moments ago, now felt a sudden wave of sympathy.

Shen Xingyan nodded. “He… his family is a bit old-fashioned. They don’t like him eating things they think are unhealthy.”

“Late-night snacks aren’t unhealthy,” Jiang Mingyi pouted. “But I guess it’s understandable. Family can be like that.”

Just like how Su Wanxin never let him drink—out of care for him too.

As they were walking, someone brushed past them and accidentally bumped into Jiang Mingyi, sending him stumbling sideways—right into Shen Xingyan.

Without hesitation, Shen Xingyan raised his arm and caught him, pulling him into his chest. His gaze turned cold as he looked at the passerby.

The person, intimidated by that look, quickly apologized and hurried off.

Jiang Mingyi, still held by him, caught a whiff of the subtle cool fragrance on Shen Xingyan—so different from the sweat and bustle of the crowd. It was a clean, masculine scent.

His heart skipped a beat.

His hands were still resting on Shen Xingyan’s chest, and his lowered lashes barely hid the shyness flickering in his eyes.

From above came Shen Xingyan’s gentle voice. “Did it hurt?”

Jiang Mingyi blinked and shook his head. “I’m fine.”

No sooner had he said that than the arm around him loosened and let go. A strange sense of loss welled up in his chest.

But just as quickly, a larger, warmer hand clasped his own.

“Forget it. I’ll just hold your hand so you don’t get lost again.”

There was a teasing lilt in his voice, but Jiang Mingyi could barely focus on the tone—his entire attention was locked on their interlaced fingers.

Back at the airport, when Shen Xingyan had held his hand, he’d only felt pride and joy—hadn’t thought much of it.

But now, there was something more. A soft, shy thrill he couldn’t quite name.

It felt like that hand was burning, its warmth spreading up his arm, beating straight into his wildly thumping heart. It left his whole chest feeling warm and full.

He could feel the subtle stares of people around them, and for a moment he tensed up—but he couldn’t bring himself to pull away.

So hand in hand, the two of them walked slowly toward the restaurant.

It was just a short walk, but somehow, Jiang Mingyi found himself wishing it would never end. That they could just keep walking like this—until the end of time.

He really liked walking like this beside Shen Xingyan, their hands clasped. It made him feel calm, safe, like he could finally relax and melt into the peace of the moment.

Shen Xingyan glanced at the quiet boy beside him, his dark eyes softening. His grip on Jiang Mingyi’s hand tightened ever so slightly—like he wasn’t just holding a hand, but something infinitely precious.

Outside the restaurant, they saw it was packed. People sat on stools, chatting over food, their laughter and voices blending into the summer night, easing the lingering heat.

Jiang Mingyi’s eyes landed on An Shi, who was already sitting with a group of young people, chatting away like he’d known them forever.

When An Shi saw the two of them, he waved. “You guys are so slow.”

But what caught Jiang Mingyi off guard was the fact that An Shi had used a female voice when speaking.

The young people around him were clearly dazzled by his radiant smile, visibly captivated.

Jiang Mingyi tugged Shen Xingyan’s sleeve and muttered, “He’s not seriously using his looks to charm them, is he?”

Sure enough, by the time they reached the table, the young people had finished eating and were reluctantly getting up, all asking An Shi for his contact info.

An Shi gave them an apologetic smile. “Sorry, I’m already taken.”

Those young men immediately turned their attention to the two walking over—but their gazes all landed on the taller, more handsome and mature-looking Shen Xingyan.

“……”

Jiang Mingyi instantly fumed. What the hell was wrong with their eyes? Couldn’t they see the two of them were still holding hands?

Just as he was about to raise their clasped hands to make it clear they were a couple, one of the guys spoke up, “As expected, beauties always end up with handsome guys.”

His tone was so sincere that the rest of his friends nodded in solemn agreement.

“We may be average-looking nobodies, but just chatting with a beauty made tonight totally worth it.”

“Gorgeous, may fate let us meet again.”

The group joked and teased a little more, then finally stood up and left.

Soon, a server came over to clean the table.

Jiang Mingyi picked a clean stool and sat down. Across from him, An Shi suddenly leaned in close and whispered by his ear, “You heard it, right?”

Jiang Mingyi looked up in confusion. “Heard what?”

“Obviously what those guys said just now—‘beauties always end up with handsome guys.’” An Shi raised his eyebrows meaningfully, then flicked a glance at Shen Xingyan, who was quietly placing the order. He gave Jiang Mingyi a teasing smirk. “Little beauty, naturally you’ve got a big handsome man to match.”

“You two holding hands? Honestly, you look just like a pair of young lovers.”

Jiang Mingyi had just taken a sip of water, and the moment he heard that line, he choked and spit it out.