Chapter 80

Mi Zhao opened a photo editing app and carefully retouched the picture.

It was nearing dusk, and the floor-to-ceiling windows revealed a sky ablaze with sunset hues, as if even the air had been dyed orange. But the two of them had just woken up and were lying naked in bed, each playing on their phones.

Mi Zhao waved his phone in front of Li Sipei. “What do you think?”

Li Sipei had just finished handling his work. He took the phone and studied the image for a long time before furrowing his brows—just as Mi Zhao had expected.

“What is this?”

“It’s the edited photo.” Mi Zhao flipped over and rolled into Li Sipei’s arms, the corners of his lips curling up smugly. “Looks good, right?”

Li Sipei glanced at him and pursed his lips without replying.

“Ugh!” Mi Zhao propped himself up halfway, wrapped an arm around Li Sipei’s neck, and said, “I’m posting it on Weibo to show off our love. Otherwise, my fans will think I’m single and keep leaving those kinds of comments in my replies.”

Ever since reconciling with Li Sipei, Mi Zhao had been too busy being in love to use Weibo much. Occasionally, he would post some half-finished assignments but never responded to comments.

He rarely shared personal details online, and the only two things he had ever revealed were that he was male and single.

So, naturally, people speculated about whether he was in a relationship.

However, every time this topic came up, other fans would immediately refute it, saying he was just busy. This was inevitably followed by a wave of flirtatious comments—some fans even called him “husband” in a restrained manner, while others made more suggestive remarks.

Mi Zhao was long used to this and didn’t care much, but Li Sipei, who always kept an eye on his Weibo, had been angered by those comments more than once.

Of course.

Showing off their relationship didn’t necessarily require posting a picture of his tattoo. He just thought his waist looked great with the tattoo and wanted to flaunt it a little.

It was such a nice tattoo—how had he never taken a proper look at it before?

A total waste.

And keeping it all to himself? That felt like an even greater waste.

But he definitely couldn’t say this out loud. If Li Sipei found out, it would be a disaster. Mi Zhao quickly sat up and snatched his phone back from Li Sipei’s hands. “If you don’t say anything, I’m posting it now!”

“Just this one?”

“What else?”

“Post another one.” Li Sipei took Mi Zhao’s hand, interlaced their fingers, and placed them on the bedspread. He stated simply, “Take a picture.”

“…” Mi Zhao burst out laughing and dramatically threw his head back. “Ah! Li Sipei, you’re so old-fashioned! Who even posts cheesy hand-holding pictures these days?”

Unfazed, Li Sipei pressed, “Hurry up and take it.”

Expressionless, Mi Zhao opened the camera and snapped a rapid series of photos.

In the end, two carefully edited yet faceless photos appeared on Mi Zhao’s Weibo account, under the username “Ri Mi Zhao.”

[Ri Mi Zhao: Haven’t been online much lately because I’ve been busy with love. My partner keeps an eye on my Weibo, so y’all better keep it clean in the comments.]

After posting, he pulled up the images for another look.

“Sigh…” Setting his phone down, he gazed at Li Sipei with a look of longing. “I’m so jealous of you. You actually get to touch my waist when we do it.”

Li Sipei: “…”

A sudden idea flashed through Mi Zhao’s mind. He narrowed his eyes and scrutinized Li Sipei from head to toe. As Li Sipei instinctively leaned back, sensing trouble, Mi Zhao lunged at him.

“Why don’t you get one too?” He poked at Li Sipei’s waist. “Same spot as mine.”

Li Sipei had never been poked in the waist before and immediately stiffened, though he managed to keep his voice steady. “Even if I did, you wouldn’t be able to see it.”

“Huh?”

Li Sipei adjusted his posture and explained matter-of-factly, “When we’re doing it, we’re either face-to-face or you’re in front of me. In those positions, you wouldn’t be able to see my tattoo.”

They say you become like the company you keep. By now, Li Sipei could say “doing it” without flinching—but even before he finished speaking, the tips of his ears had turned completely red.

“Oh, that’s true.” Mi Zhao scratched his head, disappointed. “Is there any position where I’d be behind you?”

“…” Li Sipei’s composure cracked slightly. How would he know these things?!

And even if such a position existed, could it possibly be a good one?

Lying on the bed, Mi Zhao pondered for a while. Then, as if struck by inspiration, his gaze slowly drifted from the ceiling down to Li Sipei.

“I have an idea—”

Li Sipei had reached his limit. He leaned in and covered Mi Zhao’s eyes with his hand, then vented his frustration by biting the tip of his upturned nose.

“A tattoo is fine. Anything else—forget it.”

Mi Zhao smirked. “Hmph.”

—

Back in A City, their summer shorts and T-shirts were replaced with sweaters and down jackets. Even a breath into the air produced a visible cloud of white mist.

Ruan Xin drove over to pick them up and helped load their suitcases into the trunk.

Once inside the car, Mi Zhao slumped bonelessly against Li Sipei. “The seaside was better. A City is too cold.”

Hearing this, Ruan Xin silently turned up the heater.

Li Sipei reached out and ran his fingers through the soft hair resting against his shoulder. “When you graduate, we can go to the beach every winter.”

“That sounds amazing!”

“Are we heading home to rest today? Do you want to visit your parents?”

“No.” Mi Zhao grabbed Li Sipei’s arm and draped it over his neck, sliding down a little until he found a comfortable position to curl up in. Pulling out his phone from his pocket, he said, “I’ll call them once we get home. We’ll visit on the weekend—I even bought gifts for them.”

Seaside specialties were always the same few things, but Mi Zhao still bought a lot—some for his parents, some for Yan Qinting, some for his teachers and classmates, some for the Publicity Club members, some for former students he still kept in touch with…

And one for Old Madam Li.

Once they got home, he would need to sort through everything. Some gifts would be handed over in person, while others had to be mailed. Another physical task on his to-do list.

Just thinking about it made him tired.

Li Sipei responded with a quiet “Mm,” kneading Mi Zhao’s shoulder gently without saying more.

If they were alone in the car, Mi Zhao would have immediately sprawled out and let Li Sipei give him a proper massage. Unfortunately, Ruan Xin was in the front seat. Even if Mi Zhao didn’t mind, he didn’t want Ruan Xin to witness this side of Li Sipei.

After all, in the eyes of Ruan Xin and Li Zhixuan, Li Sipei was a cold and distant immortal.

Mi Zhao turned to look at his supposedly aloof immortal, who was currently holding him. Said immortal looked exhausted, resting with his eyes closed. But as soon as he sensed Mi Zhao’s gaze, he didn’t open his eyes—just let out a questioning hum.

“Go to sleep.” As he spoke, Mi Zhao raised his phone and rapidly snapped a few photos of Li Sipei’s face.

Still keeping his eyes shut, Li Sipei asked, “It’s so dark—can you even take clear pictures?”

“Of course.” Mi Zhao grinned as he checked the photos. “That’s the effect I was going for. If it were too clear, it wouldn’t have the same mood.”

Li Sipei’s lips quirked into a helpless smile.

Snuggling back into his arms, Mi Zhao stared at the photos, flipping through them again and again. He still felt they were too bright—the streetlights outside the car window outlined Li Sipei’s sharp nose and elegant jawline.

Luckily, his face wasn’t fully visible.

Mi Zhao selected one and blurred it even more before saving it. Then, he opened Weibo.

The post he made two days ago had unexpectedly gone viral. Its likes and shares were several times higher than usual, and aside from his fans lamenting in the comments, there were also some curious passersby.

【Kun Kun Malatang：Wait… The OP is a guy, right? Why do I feel like his partner is also a man?】

【Winter snowfall：As an outsider, I can confirm—the second picture shows two guys’ hands.】

【Si lian：WTF, the artist I admire is actually gay?!】

【Not Full：Can some of you focus on the main point? Calling yourself a “passerby” but ignoring the caption to focus only on the photos? He posted this to remind people to be mindful in the comments, not to let you speculate about his sexuality.】

【Not Full：Also, the two hands in the picture clearly belong to a man and a woman. The one on top is the teacher’s hand, and the one below is his partner’s. Stop using the term ‘gay’ so casually—no straight guy likes being labeled that way.】

“Not full” had posted seven or eight comments in a row. She was an old fan of Mi Zhao’s, holding a “Super Fan Level 4” badge. She had commissioned him twice before, frequently helped moderate the comment section, and held some influence in the fan community. Mi Zhao often interacted with her.

However, most of the top comments were from outsiders who didn’t care about “Not full’s” words.

Mi Zhao opened the second picture to take another look.

He fell silent.

Reality was cruel—because the hand on top was, in fact, his partner’s. The one below—the one “Not full” confidently claimed was a woman’s—was actually his own.

He scrolled through the reposts and found that the surge in popularity came from several major influencers. The terms “gay” and “fag” naturally attracted attention and controversy. After rounds of heated debate, his post had been pushed onto the trending list.

Seeing the argument in the comments getting more and more intense, Mi Zhao swiftly deleted the post and rewrote a new one.

【Ri Mi Zhao: Him.】

The post contained only one image—the edited photo he had just processed.

He no longer cared about the discussions in the comments. With decisive ease, he logged out of Weibo, tucked his phone back into his pocket, and wrapped both arms around Li Sipei’s waist.

Li Sipei had already fallen asleep, his breathing steady and deep. But as soon as he felt Mi Zhao’s movement, he instinctively held him a little tighter, resting his chin against his head and nuzzling him gently.

Unable to help himself, Mi Zhao tilted his head up and planted a kiss on Li Sipei’s chin.

—

The next day, back at school, Mi Zhao lugged two large bags of local specialties with him. Yan Qinting helped him distribute them, but even after handing out a bunch, there was still a considerable amount left—all of which ended up with Yan Qinting.

Though the gifts weren’t particularly expensive, Yan Qinting, who had received the most, was grinning ear to ear. After class, he dragged Mi Zhao back to the dormitory with him.

Since the semester hadn’t ended yet, Mi Zhao’s bed was still unoccupied. By next semester, someone would probably be assigned to it, but for now, Yan Qinting could still enjoy his solo-living experience. His belongings were scattered messily around the room.

Setting the bags on the desk, Yan Qinting washed a cup, poured some warm water, and handed it to Mi Zhao. “Was the trip fun?”

Sitting down, Mi Zhao took the cup and sipped his water. “Yeah, it was fun.”

“What did you do there?” Yan Qinting poured himself a cup as well and leaned against the table, curious. “I heard a lot of people go diving there. Did you try it?”

Mi Zhao shook his head. “Didn’t have time.”

“Figures. You were only there for three or four days, so it must’ve been a bit rushed.” Yan Qinting asked again, “Did you visit the seafood market? Didn’t you say you wanted to check it out?”

Mi Zhao shook his head again. “Didn’t have time for that either.”

Yan Qinting chuckled. “So you didn’t have time for this, and you didn’t have time for that. Then what did you even do?”

Holding his cup with both hands, Mi Zhao let out a deep sigh, his face full of melancholy. “We didn’t go anywhere… Spent the whole time in the hotel ***.”

“Pfft—” Yan Qinting spewed out a mouthful of water and immediately went into a coughing fit.

This is what you call fun?!

Having not seen each other for a few days, Yan Qinting had gathered quite a bit of gossip. The two agreed to go to a roadside food stall off-campus for a proper chat.

They chose a spot they frequented—good ingredients, reasonable prices, and a friendly owner. The only downside was the chaotic environment. Business was booming, but with only the owner and his family managing the place, they were often too busy to keep up.

Familiar with the routine, the two quickly ordered food. Mi Zhao wiped the table clean with a napkin and asked the staff for a pot to rinse the utensils.

Yan Qinting asked, “What about your guy? Did you tell him you wouldn’t be going home?”

“Yeah.” Mi Zhao finished rinsing the utensils in no time.

“He agreed that easily?” Yan Qinting reached for a set of chopsticks, clicking his tongue. “I thought he kept a pretty close eye on you. Didn’t think he was so easygoing.”

Just as Yan Qinting’s hand was about to touch the chopsticks, Mi Zhao smacked it with the other end of his own.

“Hiss—” Yan Qinting winced, eyes widening. “Why’d you hit me?”

“You rinse your own.” Mi Zhao glared at him, unapologetic.

With his big, round eyes and an imposing air, Mi Zhao easily won the staredown. Yan Qinting quickly admitted defeat, pouting. “But you already rinsed them! What’s the point?”

“I wasn’t rinsing them for you.” Under Yan Qinting’s incredulous gaze, Mi Zhao said coolly, “Didn’t you ask me to treat you? Gotta make sure someone’s paying for it.”

Yan Qinting froze.

A second later, he burst out cursing, “Damn it, no wonder he let you off so easily.”

Saying that, he abruptly stood up.

Startled, Mi Zhao asked, “Where are you going?”

Ignoring him, Yan Qinting shouted across the stall, “Boss! Where’s the seafood? Let me take a look!”

He ended up ordering several seafood dishes in one go. Only then did he feel his wounded pride somewhat soothed. As he sat back down, he suddenly remembered something. “By the way, why did you post a picture of your guy on Weibo? Didn’t you say you didn’t want to expose your personal life there?”

Mi Zhao had already considered this. He replied, “It’s fine. As long as I don’t switch careers, my identity will get exposed sooner or later.”

“Why do you say that?”

“My ID.” Mi Zhao shrugged. “Isn’t it obvious?”

Thinking it over, Yan Qinting had to agree. When Mi Zhao first registered on Weibo, he never expected to gain followers—he just wanted a place to document his art. But as his popularity grew, it was too late to change his ID.

Many of his fans had already figured out his real name from his username. Combined with location tags and the schoolwork he occasionally posted, tracking him down wasn’t difficult.

“Mainly—” Mi Zhao hesitated for a moment. To save Li Sipei some face, he decided not to mention how often he got jealous. Instead, he simply smiled. “You know I don’t care about that stuff.”

Yan Qinting looked at his smiling face and dropped the topic.

True.

No matter how Weibo’s comment section blew up, it had no impact on Mi Zhao’s real life. That was all that mattered.

“Oh, right.” Yan Qinting suddenly remembered something. “Lin Qiuzu’s in trouble again. Did you hear about it?”