PTBC chapter 53

The wedding celebration lasted until midnight. Only when everyone was utterly exhausted did they finally disperse. Fu Hui clung to Li Song’an, tugged at his collar, and amid the surrounding whistles, planted another loud kiss on him.

Xia Yan shook his head with a smile—he could hardly bear to watch.

Once the ceremonies ended, he and Xu Cong strolled leisurely toward the guest quarters with the crowd. Their rest area was in a small villa on the far west side of the estate.

Xia Yan had chosen it because there was a vast lake outside, where pairs of swans swam in the warm winter air, making the scene look like an oil painting.

As guests were scattered across different accommodations, the further west they walked, the fewer people accompanied them.

By the time they reached the swan lake, only the two of them remained.

The estate was illuminated in celebration of the wedding, with soft yellow lanterns hanging from the trees, creating a warm and romantic atmosphere.

The lake shimmered under the lights, as if the moon had been shattered and scattered across the water.

Xia Yan had drunk too much champagne at the wedding. His cheeks were flushed, his head fuzzy, and even though they had reached the guesthouse entrance, he stubbornly refused to go in. He insisted on feeding the swans by the lake.

“I won’t! I want to feed them!”

He plopped down on the ground with a childish pout, his intelligence reduced to zero by the alcohol—no, even lower than a kindergartener’s.

“Leave me alone!”

He formed a finger gun with his hand, pretended to blow away imaginary smoke, and struck a playful pose.

But after rummaging through his pockets for a long time, he couldn’t find any bread.

His custom-made suit fit snugly against his body, leaving no extra space for him to sneak in snacks.

This greatly upset him. But when he turned his head, he saw Xu Cong standing nearby.

Immediately, he stretched out his hand toward him, making a wish as if Xu Cong were his personal Doraemon. “I don’t have bread. Give me bread.”

Xu Cong almost laughed.

How could Xia Yan be so innocent and so straightforward at the same time?

Looking at him like this—so sure that he could fulfill all of his whims—was utterly unfair.

Xu Cong thought, he really should refuse. Let this drunk fool experience a bit of life’s harsh realities. After rejecting his confession, Xia Yan shouldn’t expect him to keep indulging him.

But Xia Yan looked up at him with bright, expectant eyes, like a child waiting for a Christmas present.

Who could possibly refuse a request like that?

Because that would be an unforgivable crime.

So, after a moment of silence, Xu Cong placed a small, beautifully wrapped sponge cake into Xia Yan’s palm.

“No bread, only a little sponge cake,” Xu Cong crouched down to his level. “I knew you’d go crazy after drinking. The moment you saw the swans, you’d probably insist on feeding them. So I kept one for you after the banquet.”

He had known Xia Yan for too long. Loved him for too long. So long that he understood him inside out. One glance at this drunk mess, and he could predict what would happen next.

Xia Yan stared at the cake in his hand, instantly delighted.

He ignored Xu Cong and gleefully went to feed the swans. The lake had both black and white swans. Normally lazy, they now lazily swam over, granting Xia Yan the honor of accepting his offerings—and even letting him pet them.

Xu Cong watched from a short distance.

It was such a cliché thought, but sitting there by the lake, reaching out toward the swans in the winter night, under the soft, dreamy lights—Xia Yan looked like a fairytale prince.

Or maybe… Peter Pan, carefree and untamed.

Especially when he turned back and smiled at him.

Xu Cong hadn’t seen him smile so freely in a long time.

For a moment, he wished time could stop.

No need for tomorrow.

Just freeze this night—where everyone was happy, where the estate was filled with warmth and laughter, where Xia Yan wouldn’t have to struggle with his confession, and he himself wouldn’t have to figure out what to do with his feelings.

Everything should be preserved at its most beautiful moment, like a butterfly trapped in amber, unchanged for eternity.

Xu Cong walked over and sat beside Xia Yan. He reached out and pinched a piece of the cake from Xia Yan’s hand, attempting to feed the swans himself.

But whether they were already full or simply disliked him, none of them paid him any attention. They turned their heads away, refusing to eat.

Xu Cong chuckled, unconcerned, and simply scattered the crumbs into the lake.

He turned to look at Xia Yan, who had stopped feeding the swans and was now resting his head on his arms. He didn’t know if he was sleepy or just dazed, but his eyelids kept drooping.

His sharp, flamboyant features—those peach blossom eyes that could make crowds swoon when he performed—looked so different now.

He was just sitting there, staring off into space, his lashes half-lowered, looking unexpectedly innocent.

Xia Yan sensed Xu Cong’s gaze and looked back at him.

Because of the alcohol, his cheeks weren’t the only thing red—his eyes were also glazed over, as if covered with a thin layer of mist.

He looked at Xu Cong without saying a word.

And just like that, Xu Cong’s heart ached.

He raised his hand and touched Xia Yan’s head. This time, Xia Yan didn’t instinctively dodge.

He asked, “Are you happy tonight?”

Xia Yan was stunned for a few seconds before nodding.

Xu Cong continued, “Is it because you’re drunk and have forgotten a lot of things, so you’re happy? Lately, whenever I get close to you, you seem tense. Even if you were just chatting and laughing with Ye Zhaoyang a moment ago, the second you see me, you would freeze up, not sure whether to talk to me. Am I making things difficult for you?”

Xia Yan looked at him blankly.

He really was quite drunk, and the cold wind by the lake had made him even dizzier. He couldn’t quite process Xu Cong’s long string of words.

So he could only look at Xu Cong with an even more innocent expression. His eyes, praised endlessly by fans, were indeed capable of making anyone’s heart soften. No matter who he looked at, he always seemed affectionate and full of emotion.

Xu Cong let out a small laugh.

He thought, with Xia Yan’s eyes looking at people like that, anyone would feel like they had committed some unforgivable crime.

So, he covered Xia Yan’s eyes with his hand, trying to harden his own resolve a little.

He asked, “If I weren’t by your side, would you be a little happier?”

There was no answer.

Only the sound of the night wind howling by.

When Xu Cong moved his hand away, he found that Xia Yan had already dozed off, eyes tightly closed.

Xia Yan hadn’t heard his question at all.

…..

By the end of the night, Xu Cong had to practically drag Xia Yan back. A drunk person had no sense of logic; even when Xu Cong woke him up, he refused to go rest, insisting instead on running laps by the lake, claiming it was for exercise.

Xu Cong didn’t indulge him in the slightest—he simply threw him over his shoulder and carried him back.

Once they got back, Xia Yan barely managed a quick wash under Xu Cong’s supervision before collapsing onto the bed, falling into a deep, oblivious sleep.

He had a very long, sweet dream.

In the dream, there was a familiar person holding his hand, feeding the swans with him.

When he woke up, he couldn’t remember the dream clearly, but he had a vague sense that it was something good.

But that good mood didn’t even last a week.

Fu Hui’s wedding didn’t bring him any luck at all.

After the wedding, Xia Yan and Xu Cong returned to work. In the following days, although Xu Cong wasn’t exactly the same as before, he was still kind and gentle, almost as if nothing had changed.

Xia Yan was both surprised and delighted. He thought Xu Cong had finally come to terms with things and was so overjoyed that he nearly considered going to a temple to offer incense and thank the gods.

But his excitement lasted only a few days before he heard the news—Xu Cong had submitted a leave request to Bai Yu, planning to go abroad for at least six months.