TYNRHBDES Chapter 102

Chapter 102: The Cold, Crazy School Hunk x The Spoiled, Delicate Little Brat 10

The hallway lights were dim, casting a faint yellow glow on the dark, winding staircase. Trash that hadn’t been thrown out yet lay scattered along the sides, along with several electric scooters parked haphazardly.

As Mu Jianian reached the second floor, he heard voices from the fifth floor.

It was the familiar sound of his parents arguing again.

Mu Jianian climbed the stairs with a blank expression and pushed open the door to his apartment.

In the living room, his mother was screaming hysterically, while his drunken father slumped on the peeling sofa, his head bobbing as he drifted in and out of sleep.

When they saw him enter, his mother’s expression shifted several times. “Where were you after school? Why are you only coming home now?”

Her voice startled his father awake—or perhaps he hadn’t been asleep at all, but merely pretending to avoid her scolding.

Seeing him, his father poked his head up. “Back already, son?” he slurred, belching loudly.

Mu Jianian’s face remained impassive. He turned and walked toward his room.

“Wait!” his mother called out, her expression unusually gentle. “Niannian, you must be working hard lately, right?”

The man chimed in, “It must be tough! The exams are just around the corner, and everyone says this is a turning point in life. You can’t afford to slack off!”

The two of them played their parts perfectly, feigning genuine concern for him.

Mu Jianian turned his head, a mocking smile playing on his lips as he stared at them. His eyes held no warmth.

“If you have something to say, just say it directly.”

The two exchanged glances. The woman cleared her throat and nudged the man.

Drunk, the man continued, “Son, your mother and I have been discussing making an investment.”

“You’re all grown up now, and you’ll need to start your own family and career someday. Your parents want to help you out.”

A sneer curled Mu Jianian’s lips. “Oh?”

The man pressed on:

“There’s a great project right now. If we seize this opportunity, our family could turn things around overnight. We could move into a big house in the new district and finally escape this cramped old place…”

“But you know, your mother and I don’t have much money or expertise.”

“But you’re such a good student. You must have won a lot of scholarships at school, right…?”

The man shamelessly pleaded, “You’re just a student, you won’t spend it anyway. Why not let Mom and Dad invest it for you?”

“You’re our only son. Everything we earn will be yours someday!”

The woman chimed in, her eyes gleaming with greed, “That’s right! Mom’s been on a lucky streak lately. Let me try a few more rounds, maybe I can win back all the money I’ve lost over the years!”

Mu Jianian’s gaze swept over them, growing colder with each passing moment.

When he was in middle school, his Grandma passed away, and he was brought from the countryside to live with them.

These two had deceived him, a young boy, half-tricking, half-stealing the savings his Grandma had left for him.

Over the years, one had become addicted to gambling, the other to alcohol. They had never once fulfilled their parental duties.

Now, they had the audacity to ask him, barely an adult and still a student, for money?

It was utterly ridiculous.

Mu Jianian’s features, still retaining a hint of youthful softness, sharpened further. His jawline, smooth and defined, tightened, and his thin lips curled into a mocking sneer.

“Dream on.”

The couple across from him stiffened, their faces paling.

The man chuckled awkwardly. “This child, if you have money, who should you give it to if not your parents? We’re your closest relatives!”

The woman pouted. “At such a young age, you’re already wary of your own parents. What use is it to raise you if you’re like this? Even a dog knows to wag its tail for a bone. All you do is cause us trouble. If we’d known you’d turn out like this, we’d have been better off—”

“—severing ties.”

Mu Jianian finished her sentence, his voice cold and sharp as it echoed through the living room.

“Since we’re all here, this works out perfectly.”

“Saves us the trouble.”

The boy’s obsidian eyes were sharp and icy. He tossed out these few words lightly, then turned to pack his belongings.

The man and woman in the living room froze, exchanging a look of mutual disgust.

The man forced a laugh. “He’s just saying that! If he severs ties, he won’t even have a place to live! He wouldn’t dare!”

The woman rolled her eyes. “How did I end up marrying such a useless man and giving birth to such an ungrateful child? It’s all your fault for dragging me down. Otherwise…”

The tall, slender boy pushed open the door and stepped out.

He carried the backpack he’d arrived with, along with his laptop bag.

This was all he owned.

Without even glancing at the two stunned figures in the living room, he walked straight out.

Only after the door slammed shut did the people in the living room react. Amidst a flurry of curses and accusations, they futilely vented their frustration.

“Now what? The brat’s really gone! It’s all your fault for playing cards every day and never cooking him a decent meal!”

“And what about you? You’re drunk all the time! What have you ever done for this family?”

“Let me tell you, if it weren’t for our son, I’d have divorced you long ago, you drunkard!”

“Divorce then! Who’s afraid? If it weren’t for me, the drunkard, earning money, where would you get the money for your gambling? Pretending it’s all for our son! Hypocrite!!”

The sound of pots and pans crashing to the floor.

The house descended into chaos once more.

Mu Jianian opened the rental app.

He’d already looked at a few apartments over the past two weeks.

Partly, he wanted a quieter environment, and partly, he wanted to be able to focus on his projects during Summer Vacation.

The Network Skills Competition had entered its preliminary round, and he’d receive the results before the exams. There was also a team competition on the Hacker Forum, and his teammates were waiting for him to finish his exams so he could join them.

But since there was no rush, he’d been putting off making a decision.

Mu Jianian scrolled down and tapped on the last apartment he’d favorited.

In his opinion, last month, it hadn’t been the best choice.

The environment wasn’t the quietest, yet it was the most expensive.

Fortunately, it came fully furnished and ready to move into.

And it would be convenient for him to pick up his boyfriend and drop him off at school.

He quickly signed the lease. His phone buzzed, and a deduction notification arrived.

The text message showed the payment deducted, leaving a five-digit balance. [footnote] 😲 [/footnote]

Mu Jianian was about to lock his screen when another deposit notification arrived.

Simultaneously, his WeChat window vibrated twice, and a message popped up:

[The software’s been sold. 55 points. The money’s been transferred.]

Mu Jianian raised an eyebrow, his refined features reflected in the screen. He tapped twice and sent back:

[That fast?]

The other person replied with a cool emoji:

[Mu, a man can’t be called fast.]

Mu Jianian locked his screen.

This software was their first attempt at making one, and they had set a relatively high price. Logically, it shouldn’t have sold so easily.

Who knew it would go so smoothly?

But if he had known it would sell so quickly, he wouldn’t have taken on tutoring jobs, which meant he would have missed out on many opportunities to spend time with his little boyfriend.

Through a series of coincidences, the outcome wasn’t bad at all.

The next day at noon, after school let out, Mu Jianian took Jiang Luoluo to their new apartment.

Mu Jianian had rented a two-bedroom apartment with a living room. The rooms were spacious, bathed in sunlight from three sides, and spotlessly clean and bright.

“Go wash your hands. We’ll eat soon.”

Jiang Luoluo nodded and went to the bathroom.

As he washed his hands, he called out to Mu Jianian in the kitchen, “Why did you suddenly rent an apartment outside, Jianian?”

Mu Jianian brought out the takeout dishes and arranged them on plates. “It wasn’t sudden. I’d been planning this for a while.”

Jiang Luoluo obediently said, “Oh,” and emerged from the bathroom to see the table set with spicy diced chicken, stir-fried yam with green peppers, and a pork knuckle soup with soybeans.

All his favorites.

He picked up an empty bowl and clumsily used a spoon to ladle soup into it. Then, with a small spoon, he carefully picked out the soybeans one by one.

When Mu Jianian emerged from the kitchen with the rice, he saw Jiang Luoluo meticulously picking out the soybeans.

Before Mu Jianian could react, Jiang Luoluo placed the bowl of pork knuckle soup in front of him, cradling it with both hands.

“All done! Time to eat!”

Jiang Luoluo’s voice was cheerful as he served himself another bowl of soup.

Mu Jianian was taken aback.

The bowl of soup before him contained only a few pieces of pig trotters, its surface completely clear of even a single soybean.

He disliked all kinds of beans.

When he was a child, his Grandma used to do the same.

Back then, times were tough. He would accompany her to the market to sell vegetables and earn money. At lunchtime, she would buy him a plate of mixed fried rice from a nearby stall.

She suffered from presbyopia and always wore glasses. With meticulous care, she would pick out all the green peas from his fried rice and place them before him with a warm smile.

Her face radiated maternal love.

But since Grandma passed away, no one had known about his aversion to beans.

The two people who called themselves his parents didn’t even care whether he ate or not, let alone pay attention to his dietary habits.

For years, he had practically raised himself.

Busy studying, earning money, and providing for himself.

Sometimes, when he was in a hurry and his food contained beans, he would pretend not to notice and force himself to eat them.

If Jiang Luoluo hadn’t picked out the soybeans, he might have completely forgotten how much he hated them.

A sourness welled up in his nose. Mu Jianian looked at the boy sitting obediently in his chair. “How did you know I don’t like them?”

The boy under the chair looked up, his smile as sweet as honey. “I just knew you wouldn’t like them~”

Earlier that day at lunch, he had insisted on giving Mu Jianian his fried rice, which was loaded with green peas. Mu Jianian had left most of them on his plate.

Mu Jianian wasn’t a picky eater. If he didn’t eat something, it was because he really disliked it.

The boy tilted his head, his delicate face radiant with a smile like a warm little sun. “Mu Jianian, from now on, I’ll pick out all the peas for you at every meal~”

His sincerity made Mu Jianian’s heart ache.

So, even these small, insignificant things that no one else cared about, someone would care about for him…

So, he could be cherished like this, loved like this…

After dinner, Jiang Luoluo lay on Mu Jianian’s bed, seizing a moment to reply to Li Chuan’s message.

He felt a little hot and pulled up his T-shirt to fan himself.

The shirt rolled up, revealing a slender, white, and soft waist, as lustrous and white as jade.

The waist sunk in the quilt extended downwards and was gathered in the trousers wrapped around the legs.

The sound of footsteps came from behind, followed by a tingling coldness on the lower back.

It was also a little itchy.

Jiang Luoluo trembled and turned his head to look. ?

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