PTCQT Chapter 11

Shen Chun had no intention of hiding his sexual orientation. Even if he didn’t have a lover, this was something that would eventually need to be revealed. After all, as children grow up, parents are inevitably going to urge marriage. Instead of waiting for that time to come and then having to find daughters from other families, it’s better to put an end to their thoughts now. Sexual orientation is his own matter, after all.

Moreover, in the current situation where he’s interested in someone, any potential trouble that may arise must be addressed properly, or else there will be endless trouble later on.

Shen Chun pulled out a photo to show to his mother. Initially excited, Mother Shen’s expression changed in an instant as she widened her eyes, her expression losing all control. “This, you like this?!”

The man in the photo had fine facial features, but his hair was dyed in various colors, his face adorned with heavy makeup, and his lips not only coated in gray lipstick but also adorned with various sparkling particles. His clothes belonged to a punk style, adorned with jingling accessories, and his nails were dyed black, a complete surprise.

Mother Shen not only looked astonished but seemed on the verge of fainting.

Father Shen, unable to contain his curiosity, got up and approached to take a look. Upon seeing the man in the photo, he subconsciously touched the belt around his waist. However, considering that his son was already an adult, he thought it would be better to handle things with moderation before he withdrew his hand. When he spoke, his tone was trembling slightly. “What do you like about him?”

“He looks good,” Shen Chun replied. “He has good grades and abilities.”

[Host, you looked at the wrong photo.] 521 reminded.

[I did it on purpose.] Shen Chun chuckled.

521’s mechanical face showed confusion: [Huh, why?]

[Having seen the most soul-shaking ones, seeing someone slightly better makes you less picky,] Shen Chun chuckled.

521: […]

The system is superficial, make a note first.

“Is… he good-looking?” Mother Shen wore a face like an old man in the subway trying to use a smartphone. Although his appearance didn’t seem bad, can you really tell what he originally looked like under all that heavy makeup?

Just the thought of marrying someone like that, and Mother Shen felt like she needed oxygen at the hospital.

“What abilities does he have?” Father Shen asked, taking a deep breath.

“Well, he’s the president of the student council,” Shen Chun chuckled.

“Someone like him can be the president of the student council?!” Father Shen expressed his astonishment.

While heavy makeup is common in the entertainment industry, it’s a professional requirement. But as the president of University A’s student council, that person represents University A. Is it really okay to choose someone like that?

“Dad, why do you still look down on people?” Shen Chun innocently and angrily took back his phone. “I kindly showed you, and you still discriminate against people based on their appearance.”

Father Shen felt wronged. If it were a stranger, he wouldn’t care about their appearance or attire; even if they wore fish scales, it wouldn’t bother him. But that was his son’s future partner… No, that was a man.

“Do you like men?” Father Shen furrowed his brow and asked.

Without hesitation, Shen Chun nodded. “Yes.”

Mother Shen also realized: “Son, you really like men?”

“Yeah,” Shen Chun responded again.

“Then my son is the legendary handsome ‘gong’ huh? Tsk tsk tsk, son, can’t you find a slightly better-looking ‘shou’?” Mother Shen said, holding his arm and speaking earnestly.

She was clearly a face-conscious fujoshi, keeping up with the trends of the times.

“What ‘gong’ and ‘shou’?” Father Shen didn’t understand, furrowing his brow. “Liking men is not a serious matter. It’s proper to find a woman and live a proper life, instead of imitating those people and getting involved in all that mess.”

Shen Chun remained silent, and his mother spoke first. “What mess? It’s natural for our son to like the same sex. Whether it’s liking men or women, doing dirty things is what’s messy. Having a proper relationship is what matters. You’re just talking nonsense without knowing anything.”

“Do you not want grandchildren in the future then?” Father Shen really didn’t understand. There was a significant generation gap between his upbringing and Shen Chun’s, as he had been too busy with business and had clearly fallen behind the times.

“If our son likes women, of course, I’d want grandchildren. But if he likes men and marries someone else’s daughter, wouldn’t that harm her? Even if I don’t have grandchildren, my son can’t be that kind of scum,” Mother Shen spoke resolutely, comforting Shen Chun, “Don’t worry, I’ll support you, and your father wouldn’t dare to harm you.”

Father Shen was somewhat speechless. While he might seem old-fashioned compared to younger people, he wasn’t unreasonable. His mind just couldn’t wrap around the situation for a moment. “But look at who he’s chosen. Can that be considered a decent person? Even if he’s dating a man, he could find someone more decent.”

“What’s wrong with Xie Baiyuan…” Shen Chun lowered his head, glancing at his phone with a subtle expression, then swiped the screen. “Dad, Mom, I showed you the wrong picture earlier. This one is the right one.”

Handing the phone over again, the screen displayed a picture of Xie Baiyuan giving a speech on stage in a suit. His broad shoulders and narrow waist were outlined perfectly, and his long legs looked pleasing to the eye. Though his expression seemed cold, his facial features were excellent, devoid of any makeup. His lips were lightly colored, which captivated Mother Shen’s attention.

“This one, this one is good,” Mother Shen looked at it with joy, eagerly showing it to Father Shen. “Look at this child, he’s really well-built, not much better than our son.”

Having just experienced the jingling accessories, Father Shen found this refreshing look quite pleasing. However, having been in the business world for so long, seeing his son’s innocent smile, he couldn’t shake the feeling that he had been played.

How coincidental that he just mentioned finding a decent person, and then his son realizes he showed the wrong picture.

But he couldn’t argue with his son about it again, especially since it was something he had said himself.

“Is there really no changing this orientation? Shouldn’t we consider seeing a psychologist or something?” Father Shen still hesitated.

“Are you treating your son like he’s mentally ill? This isn’t a mental disorder, it’s an orientation,” Mother Shen corrected him.

“It really can’t be changed. I have no interest in girls. If I were forced to like a woman, it would probably be as difficult as asking you, Dad, to like a man. It would be a lifetime of misery,” Shen Chun softened his tone.

Father Shen, who tended to be swayed by reason, truly put himself in his son’s shoes. Feeling uncomfortable all over, he could only sigh and say, “Fine, let me think about it.”

“Okay,” Shen Chun smiled.

“Don’t mess around,” Father Shen reminded.

“I won’t,” Shen Chun assured, raising his hand.

The Shen family was harmonious, and on the afternoon of the Mid-Autumn Festival, they began preparing the dishes for the evening. Even Shen Chun’s grandparents on both sides were joining them.

Compared to the parents, the older generations were clearly more affectionate, enjoying chatting about family matters. Shen Chun accompanied them, not just during the holidays, but also during regular days. However, within a short time, he ended up receiving four black cards.

“Mom, we already give him quite a lot normally, so don’t spend too much,” Mother Shen said.

“What we give is what we give, how can it be the same?” Shen Chun’s grandmother looked at him and said, “I heard from your mom that you want to move out. Grandma will buy you a flat outside of University A, it will be convenient for you then.”

“No need, living in the dormitory is fine, thank you, Grandma,” Shen Chun smiled.

“Really?”

“Yeah, it’s more comfortable to live with classmates.”

“Okay then.”

While the Shen family was lively, the campus of University A seemed somewhat deserted. The school placed great importance on traditional holidays like the Mid-Autumn Festival, distributing mooncakes and decorating the campus. However, with the holidays being somewhat long, many students chose to return home for a visit. Moreover, since any holiday could be turned into Valentine’s Day for couples, when night fell, the lanterns hanging up only accentuated the campus’s emptiness.

Xie Baiyuan sat by the window, watching the string of lanterns outside. At the beginning of the holiday, he went to the self-study room and encountered Xu Ze. Xu Ze seemed to understand his rejection and didn’t deliberately get closer. Xie Baiyuan didn’t pay much attention to it either.

Even during the Mid-Autumn Festival, there were girls who sent mooncakes. In the past, they were usually meant for him, but he declined them. Sometimes, people would bring them directly to him as gifts, and he didn’t even know their names, but he had to accept them in the end.

However, this year was a bit different. Xie Baiyuan looked at the full moon gradually becoming clearer outside, then glanced at the plethora of mooncake gift boxes on Shen Chun’s desk, delivered by others. Suddenly, he felt a bit lonely being alone.

He remembered a girl who stopped him on the way today, holding a gift box. He was about to refuse when she said, “S-Senior, I heard you and Shen Chun share a dorm room. Can you help me give these to him?”

Xie Baiyuan couldn’t refuse such a request on behalf of others, so he took the gift back and placed it on top of the pile of boxes.

He still remembered that the girl was very beautiful, wearing an apricot-colored dress with delicate makeup. She exuded a sweet fragrance of perfume, seemingly the goddess in many boys’ hearts. Shen Chun should like such a girl.

Xie Baiyuan opened a bottle of liquor and poured it into a glass. The taste of the white liquor was slightly bitter but had a sweet aftertaste, making it easy to get drunk. However, he deliberately chose to get drunk, so it didn’t matter.

If he didn’t get drunk, on this day of family reunions, he would be consumed by loneliness.

When he was young, his parents divorced, and he was raised by his grandparents. They used to be very agile, but as he grew up, they aged slowly. His grandfather passed away when he was in the first year of high school due to illness. After that, his grandmother seemed to age even faster.

Since then, she always talked about him finding a beautiful girl to settle down with, start a family, and have good-looking grandchildren.

At that time, Xie Baiyuan couldn’t promise her anything and just brushed it off vaguely. However, his grandmother realized the truth.

She didn’t get angry or feel ashamed. She was always gentle. She simply asked him if it was because of his parents that he liked the same sex.

Xie Baiyuan still remembered saying no at that time.

At that moment, his grandmother smiled and told him it was okay as long as he wasn’t. She suggested that he find a handsome young man to be his companion in the future.

But the person he liked didn’t like men.

Feeling a bit drunk, Xie Baiyuan wouldn’t have heard Shen Chun knocking on the door otherwise. He called out, “President, open the door.”

 

 

 

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