NANSO Chapter 31

TL: Hua

Chapter 31: Kiss

Xie Yu’s headache was gone. He thought blankly, “Go ahead?”

His fingers fumbled in the drawer, and he took out the leather box. At first he was wondering what gift was inside, but the moment he opened the buckle, his fingertips stopped where they were.

Xie Yu: “?”

He could hardly believe his eyes.

The box was lined with velvet cloth, and on top of it lay a jet-black whip.

The leather head was soft and exquisitely made, comfortable to hold. Certain enthusiasts would probably love it.

Xie Yu: “…”

Connecting it to previous events, he seemed to know what had happened.

Shen Ci heard the sound of the box opening. His back tensed, and tiny goosebumps appeared on his skin due to the cold and tension. As Xie Yu approached, he suddenly spoke softly, “Porcelain.”

The footsteps behind him stopped.

Shen Ci exhaled, his tensed back relaxing and smoothly unfurling again.

They hadn’t done anything yet, so it certainly wasn’t a situation requiring a safe word. More than stopping the game, it felt like a small test. Shen Ci wanted to confirm if the safe word was still effective after five years and to test if Xie Yu would stop when he couldn’t bear it anymore.

The result was verified. Shen Ci turned back around and said, “It’s alright, you can continue.”

Instead of the whip cutting through the air, he only heard a soft sigh. Then, there was the sound of a heavy object hitting the ground. Shen Ci looked back to see Xie Yu throwing the leather box, along with its contents, away. It traced an arc through the air and landed with a clang in the corner. The box, unable to withstand the impact, had two of its corners dented. It rolled a few times along the ground before lying there miserably.

…Why did he throw it away?

He was slightly surprised and was about to ask when he saw Xie Yu, looking displeased, stride over. Then, a sudden sense of weightlessness came over him, and he was lifted into the air.

“Xie Yu!”

Xie Yu chuckled, “Now you know to call out?”

He held Shen Ci’s bent knees, lifting him directly. Shen Ci felt the world spin, and after a dizzy spell, he was carried into the bedroom and dropped directly onto the bed.

Xie Yu prioritized sleep quality and had specifically changed the mattress. This one in the bedroom was very soft, so falling onto it didn’t hurt. Shen Ci sank into the soft bedding. Before he could speak, a handsome face suddenly magnified—Xie Yu was pressing down on him, his hands pinning Shen Ci’s wrists above his head, trapping him firmly within the small space created by his arms and the bed.

This was a truly dangerous position. Their distance was less than two inches. Xie Yu was very strong, and Shen Ci was like a prey animal targeted by a predator, completely suppressed and unable to retaliate. He could only lie exposed, at the other’s mercy. He anxiously gazed at Xie Yu, nervously wiggling his wrists.

Then the predator extended a finger and poked his head.

It wasn’t a light poke; it hurt a little.

Xie Yu had a bit of a headache. “Honestly, Shen Ci, what in the world is going on in your little head?”

He probably understood what Shen Ci was thinking. Most likely, Xie Yu’s hangover-induced headache looked a bit like a psychiatric episode, and since the previous finger-breaking incident also happened after drinking, it had given Shen Ci a psychological trauma, making him believe that Xie Yu would have a psychiatric episode and self-harm after drinking. Moreover, Xu Qingshan had analyzed the condition and said that the original owner’s condition was severe and had previously been alleviated by hitting people. Shen Ci considered it and thought that being hit a couple of times was acceptable compared to letting him be insane and self-harming.

… Fortunately, Shen Ci wasn’t that stupid. Xie Yu weighed the whip and realized it was light, probably used as a pleasure tool. Shen Ci also remembered to say the safe word.

Pressed onto the bed, Shen Ci looked at him blankly and innocently.

Xie Yu sighed silently, feeling unsatisfied. He poked Shen Ci’s forehead again, making his head wobble, then reprimanded him, “Assistant Shen, are you stupid?”

When he had first hugged Shen Ci, the body in his arms was still slightly trembling. Now, wrapped in the quilt, he had calmed down. Shen Ci clearly had no special fetishes and didn’t enjoy pain; he was even afraid when Xie Yu got the whip.

Yet, despite this, he had still placed the tool in the living room cabinet.

Shen Ci turned his tilted head back, quietly looking at Xie Yu, and cautiously observing his expression: although still pale, it was within the normal range. His expression was a bit unpleasant, though. He frowned deeply, his lips tightly pursed, seemingly at the end of his rope, and with a hint of self-abandoned despondency.

Shen Ci softly asked, “Are you okay now?”

He struggled slightly, “Let me take you to Qingshan Hospital. Please move, I’ll call Dr. Xu…”

—He still thought Xie Yu had a mental illness.

Xie Yu thought they couldn’t continue like this. Before, their relationship was task-based, and Shen Ci thought he had a mental illness, which was fine; after all, once the task was complete, they’d go their separate ways. But now they’d met parents, and this person in his arms was about to become his wife, and he still thought he had a mental illness. If they played some kinky stuff, or he occasionally got a headache after drinking, Shen Ci would send him to Qingshan Hospital. How is this okay?

Xie Yu already had a bit of a headache, and now it was throbbing even more. He pressed down on Shen Ci, not budging an inch. “I need to make this clear: I don’t have a mental illness.”

Facing Shen Ci’s confused gaze, he despaired, “—Alright, I did once, but it was very mild, and I’ve recovered. And I don’t like hitting people; I don’t have those perverted fetishes. I’ve never hit anyone…”

“Alright.” He took a deep breath, continuing his self-abandonment, “I did hit some thugs outside the school, but that was because he was robbing a girl’s purse, and I saw the girl was about to cry, so I acted.”

Shen Ci still looked at him hesitantly, slightly pursing his lips. “But…”

Xie Yu didn’t want to hear “but.” He couldn’t explain this now, and he wouldn’t be able to explain it clearly; otherwise, the blame for a mental breakdown would be dumped on him. So he cupped the back of Shen Ci’s neck, forcing him to look up, then leaned down and kissed him directly.

“!”

Xie Yu had never kissed anyone, and neither had Shen Ci. At first, they were like two shy elementary school students, lips touching, teeth clashing. But perhaps compared to Shen Ci, who had been a good child all his life, Xie Yu, who had been rebellious, had a natural advantage. Before long, he mastered the art of kissing.

He pried open Shen Ci’s teeth, forcing that bewildered tongue to accept him, to respond to him. Then he licked and sucked, making wet smacking sounds, while the hand behind Shen Ci’s head gripped tightly, cutting off all routes of retreat, forcing Shen Ci to look up.

He plundered the air from the other’s mouth. The person in his arms had completely gone limp at some point, looking at him blankly, as if kissed into a stupor.

Xie Yu sighed again, “Assistant Shen, breathe.”

He roughly teased him for a bit. Seeing the person in his arms looking utterly foolish, he felt a sense of disappointment and sternly lectured him, “Do you know what that thing is for? And you dared to let me use it? Do you know the consequences if you can’t stop once you start playing with it?”

If it had fallen into the hands of someone like the original owner, an accident would surely have happened.

Shen Ci was a little unconvinced. His competitive, straight-A student genes popped up inappropriately. “I know.”

“Oh? So you do know?” Xie Yu raised an eyebrow. “Alright, conveniently, I don’t. Assistant Shen, why don’t you explain to me exactly how to play?”

“…”

Shen Ci turned his head away, curling his fingers, humiliation practically written all over his face.

Knowing was one thing; saying it out loud was another. Moreover, he was the toy in question; teaching someone how to play with himself was too much.

Xie Yu was determined to teach him a lesson. “Tell me, what’s the play style? What are the consequences? How many days will it hurt? How much pain will it be? How many hits can you endure? Tell me?”

“…”

He relentlessly pressed him, questioning him word by word. Shen Ci was pushed so hard that he blurted out, “I did my homework!”

Xie Yu laughed in exasperation.

He twirled Shen Ci’s hair, letting out an ambiguous “Oh,” and then said, “So you even did your homework. Truly worthy of being a top student. You can even do homework for this kind of thing. Come on, tell your young master, what homework did you do?”

Xie Yu was gentle by nature now, but he had once been a rebellious character, with a mischievous streak buried deep within him. The more reluctant Shen Ci was, the more he wanted to tease him.

Shen Ci’s face was turning as red as a shrimp; even his toes were curling up in the quilt. He struggled slightly but was held firmly. It seemed Xie Yu wouldn’t let him go without an answer.

Shen Ci calmed down slightly, lowering his gaze. “It’s like this: I researched relevant papers, read research literature from foreign websites, compared images of injuries, and have a general understanding of pain levels. The tool was also repeatedly compared, and a less harmful one was chosen. At the same time, I purchased medical alcohol, hydrogen peroxide, antibacterial and anti-inflammatory antibiotics, and drugs like chitosan antimicrobial film to promote wound healing…”

Xie Yu: “…”

Shen Ci started speaking in a barely audible voice but grew more and more confident as he went on, finally speaking eloquently, treating it as a science requiring careful argumentation.

He really had researched it.

Xie Yu’s face was full of black lines.

Shen Ci: “At the same time, I compared the mechanisms of action of various drugs and chose those with fewer side effects… Mmmph!”

Xie Yu couldn’t bear it anymore and kissed him again.

This time, he kissed the man until he was breathless before letting go. Shen Ci gasped for air, looking at him incredulously, his eyes veiled with a thin layer of moisture.

Xie Yu looked at him calmly: “I don’t want to hear about this, Assistant Shen. First, tell me, how exactly do you play with this thing?”

Shen Ci: “…”

He remained silent.

“Speechless now? Speak up.” Xie Yu pinched his chin. “Didn’t you want to make me happy? Tell me, what can you do to make me happy?”

Shen Ci continued to remain silent.

This time, he was silent for so long that Xie Yu wondered if he had gone too far with the teasing, hesitating whether to release him and coax him. After all, Shen Ci was doing it for his sake, and now he was pinned to the bed and lectured, which was bound to make him feel wronged.

However, before he could release his hands, Shen Ci suddenly raised his arms, wrapped them around Xie Yu’s neck, and hugged him.

Xie Yu’s hands were originally propped on both sides. Caught off guard by the hug, he fell onto the bed, pressing tightly against Shen Ci.

Shen Ci wrapped his arms around Xie Yu’s back, leaning his cheek against his shoulder, and asked, “…Like this?”

He was like an earnest, straight-A student, cautiously probing for the correct answer to a question.

Xie Yu turned onto his side, incidentally ruffled Shen Ci’s hair, and sighed, “Although it’s hard to explain clearly right now, but, Shen Ci, I swear, I have never thought about hurting you with a whip or anything else.”

Just like the ear clip he wore for the plot back then. Xie Yu didn’t even let Shen Ci get his ears pierced for it.

From the first time Xie Yu saw Shen Ci, he had never thought of harming the young man in front of him. He couldn’t bear to leave any marks on that porcelain-like skin. Beautiful porcelain should be kept well in a glass case, wrapped in velvet for protection, not shattered into pieces.

Xie Yu gave Shen Ci a fleeting kiss on the forehead. “Really, seeing you hurt won’t make me happy. Quite the opposite, I would be very sad. So please, protect yourself, and please don’t play such jokes with me.”

“…Okay.”

This was indeed an attitude of care and respect, with no hint of disdain.

In a trance, Shen Ci remembered that, apart from the initial contract filled with insulting terms, Xie Yu had actually always been like this—peaceful and gentle. It was he himself who had overthought things, almost missing out.

The vulgar, domineering Xie Yu who offered the contract and the carefree, unrestrained Xie Yu embracing him now seemed like two different people.

The matter was now half-explained, and Xie Yu breathed a sigh of relief. Maintaining the persona of a mentally retarded playboy every day was quite tiring for him. In good spirits, he faced Shen Ci and began to delve into another question.

He softly asked, “Assistant Shen, could you tell me why you like me?”

Regarding this, Xie Yu was utterly confused. He followed the script step by step with the mentality of playing a game and passed with 60% smoothly. But he didn’t know when the plot, like an epileptic fit, began to wildly deviate in strange directions, impossible to rein in with ten horses. Several times, Xie Yu felt the system was about to have a brain hemorrhage, while the protagonist, who should have hated him to death, was now staying by his side, shedding tears, and was almost becoming his wife.

Xie Yu had never been in a relationship. Although a male spouse was unexpected, Shen Ci was so good-looking; what more could he ask for?

Shen Ci paused.

If he had to say, he had actually liked Xie Yu five years ago.

Shen Ci’s first half of life had been very busy, like a precise screw, allowing no room for error. His family was too poor, and he had a sick grandmother. Every step was like walking a tightrope on a cliff; one slight misstep, and it would be eternal damnation.

In elementary school, while other children played and attended enrichment classes, Shen Ci did Olympiad math. Only by ranking among the top few in the entire school could he enter junior high with a scholarship. That money, to his classmates, was just enough for a vacation, but to him, it was several months’ living expenses.

In junior high, he also studied desperately, because only by passing the independent enrollment exam and entering the best class could he be exempt from tuition and miscellaneous fees. If he couldn’t get the exemption, he wouldn’t be able to attend high school.

University was the same. With only one percent of the scholarship slots for the entire grade, other classmates had piano competitions and comprehensive quality points. Shen Ci had nothing. To compete, he had to work himself to death for grades.

No child is born loving exams or the rat race. Shen Ci was no exception; he, too, sometimes felt sick looking at experimental data, but he had no choice but to keep going.

He was a string pulled too tightly; if he hadn’t been tough enough, he would have broken long ago.

But Xie Yu was different. He naturally possessed a sense of relaxed composure. Being held in his arms felt like being protected, bringing a strange sense of security, as if all pressure had lifted from his shoulders.

Xie Yu took Shen Ci on a motorcycle ride and a cruise ship, accompanied him along the ginkgo-lined avenue of the school and the commercial street to see sights Shen Ci had never noticed in seven years, and drank milk tea he had seen countless times but never tried… It was like forcefully introducing other colors into a black-and-white world. For the first time in his twenty-plus years of life, Shen Ci felt that he was vibrantly alive.

Actually, before meeting Xie Yu and after they separated, Shen Ci had always suffered from mild insomnia. Before, it was family pressure; afterward, it was complicated company affairs. He was accustomed to winding himself up, remaining tense even at night, and finding it hard to sleep.

But by Xie Yu’s side, perhaps infected by that relaxation, perhaps feeling secure, he always slept so peacefully.

The day Xie Yu returned to Jiangcheng, he had his first good dream in five years.

Shen Ci was silent for a long time. Xie Yu had no idea he was thinking so much. He patted Shen Ci’s shoulder. “Speak up, what’s there to hide? I’m genuinely curious.”

“…”

It was just too strange to say such things out loud. Shen Ci felt a bit embarrassed and annoyed. “I just like you; do I need a reason?”

“Alright.” Xie Yu shrugged. He knew Shen Ci was thin-skinned. “Tell me when you’re willing to say it.”

The two cuddled affectionately for a while. Both were at a vigorous age and had never been intimate, so they couldn’t possibly restrain themselves. And although they hadn’t fully opened up today, they had at least half-opened up, so as they cuddled, they ended up kissing again.

Xie Yu ran his fingers through Shen Ci’s hair, starting with kisses on his forehead, tracing down his temples and cheeks, and finally kissing his earlobe.

The earlobe wasn’t completely round and smooth. Near the edge of the ear, there was a hard protrusion, cold to the touch, like some metal object.

Shen Ci’s hair was oddly styled; the hair around his ear was intentionally left longer, barely covering the earlobe. He was initially lost in the passion of the kisses, but when the kiss reached his ear, his movements paused. He wanted to turn his head away, but he closed his eyes, then, as if with a do-or-die resolve, offered his ear back, letting Xie Yu continue kissing it.

Xie Yu stopped and fiddled with his hair: “What are you wearing?”

He pulled the round, beautiful earlobe out from under the hair, raising an eyebrow slightly. On it was a tiny accessory, precisely the “X” he had given him.

When Xie Yu chose this one, he was just going through the motions of the plot and didn’t want anyone to see it, so he deliberately picked the smallest one. This silver-shining trinket was only the size of a grain of rice and completely hidden in the hair.

“You’ve been wearing it all this time?”

Xie Yu fiddled with it and found it quite secure. He turned Shen Ci’s earlobe over. What he had originally given was an ear clip, but what was there now was an ear stud. The item was still the original one, but the style had been changed.

Shen Ci had gotten his ear pierced.

Xie Yu muttered, “I didn’t even want you to get your ear pierced, afraid you’d feel pain, but you went ahead and did it.”

The tiny stud dangling from his ear looked quite nice. Xie Yu kissed his earlobe, then gently bit the little thing. “Why didn’t you use the ear clip? Was it not good?”

Shen Ci didn’t know why, but his ear felt incredibly hot. There weren’t many nerves there, but it was incredibly sensitive, swelling slightly with a gentle touch. He pushed Xie Yu. “The original clip broke.”

Xie Yu kissed him clingily. “Couldn’t you just get another clip?”

Shen Ci: “It fell on the ground and was too small to find. I was afraid it would fall again and I’d lose it completely, so I just had it changed into an ear stud. It’s less likely to fall off.”

Xie Yu: “It’s nothing if it gets lost; it’s just a small trinket.”

He hadn’t bought it seriously, but Shen Ci had worn it seriously.

Xie Yu noticed this small detail and was quite pleased. He asked vaguely, “Why do you wear it all the time? Do you like this style?” Wearing this thing had nothing to do with the style. Shen Ci opened his mouth. It’s unknown what Xie Yu’s question made him think of, but he suddenly blushed and turned his head away.

Xie Yu: “Speak up, why have you been wearing it? If you like it, we can go pick out two more.”

He still had a few million in his card; he should buy some matching rings or something.

“…”

This was a very ordinary question. Shen Ci just needed to answer routinely, “Yes, I like it,” or “No, I don’t.” But he deliberated for a long time, then suddenly reached out and hugged Xie Yu.

In the past, Shen Ci would never have said what he was about to say, but the two of them had just confessed their feelings to each other, and Shen Ci knew that Xie Yu had only respect and love for him, never the slightest contempt. So, those slightly shameful, absolutely unspeakable words he had seen on websites now became a perfectly timed flirtation.

He turned his head and lowered his eyes, his voice barely a whisper: “It was a gift from the Young Master. I wouldn’t dare take it off.”