TUMZ Chapter 10

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"Falling for a straight man ninety-nine percent of the time doesn’t end well."

"As long as a woman so much as crooks her finger, he’ll suddenly claim he’s reformed, that he actually likes women. Then he’ll just walk away without a second thought. I’ve seen it happen too many times."

—Qiu Zheyan recalled his friend’s warning.

Jiang Ruoyun was a woman—a beautiful woman. And not just that, she was a rich and beautiful woman.

For Zhuang Hanxue, she was practically the perfect sugar mommy, right?

Qiu Zheyan felt like Zhuang Hanxue was his nemesis.

One moment, he could make him feel like he was floating in a sea of honey; the next, he’d be teetering on the edge of madness.

Zhuang Hanxue casually muttered, “Then I told her no, and she changed her tune, saying she was just joking.”

“But based on what I know about her, I don’t think she was joking at all… I suspect she still has some ulterior motives.”

Qiu Zheyan tightened his grip on Zhuang Hanxue’s hand. “Based on what you know about her? Didn’t you break up eight years ago? After eight years apart, you still think you understand her that well? Do you still like her that much?”

Zhuang Hanxue winced from the pain, his hand flopping around like seaweed. “Ow, you’re crushing my hand. Damn, how strong are you?”

Qiu Zheyan let go in exasperation. “Hah, just because she threw you a few compliments, you’re already gasping for breath?”

“Come on, she’s a rising star in the entertainment industry, in the prime of her career, with a bright future ahead. She’d have to be crazy to get into a relationship right now—especially with you. Do you really think she’s still hung up on you after all these years?”

“She’s been around all sorts of successful men in the industry. Why would she still be thinking about you? For all you know, she just wants revenge for how you left her all those years ago. And when she’s done, she’ll turn around and marry someone else without a second thought. Look at yourself—what do you even have left? And you’re still thinking about her?”

"Do you really regret breaking up with her back then?"

Zhuang Hanxue stood frozen in place, no longer complaining about the pain. His wide eyes stared at Qiu Zheyan in panic, as if he didn’t even dare to breathe. Even his shadow beside him looked lonely.

The moment the words left his mouth, Qiu Zheyan regretted them. He realized he had gone too far in belittling Zhuang Hanxue. No matter how carefree and indifferent he seemed, that didn’t mean he had no self-respect.

Time felt as if it had been paused.

Snowflakes drifted down.

Qiu Zheyan took Zhuang Hanxue’s hand. Zhuang Hanxue flinched, trying to pull away, but he couldn’t. Qiu Zheyan held on firmly and kissed the back of his hand. “I’m sorry. I went too far.”

Zhuang Hanxue grinned, exhaling a puff of warm breath into the cold air like a little speech bubble, as if trying to dispel the awkwardness. “You really are jealous, huh?”

He scratched his face with a finger. “I know I’m not good enough for her now.”

“Well, I wasn’t good enough for her back then either.”

“I’ve always been pretty useless.”

Qiu Zheyan looked like a guilty puppy. If he had ears and a tail, they’d be drooping right now. “I didn’t mean you’re useless… and I don’t think you’re too old, either. I was just too angry. I like you too much.”

“The thought that you used to like her makes me mad.”

“Just… don’t bring her up in front of me anymore.”

Zhuang Hanxue looked innocent. “You’re really getting mad over an ex from eight years ago? I’ve even seen pictures of you and your ex-boyfriend, and I didn’t get upset. You’re a grown man—why are you so petty?”

That only made Qiu Zheyan angrier. “Most people, when they see their current boyfriend with an ex in an old photo, even if they don’t throw a fit, they’d at least feel a little sour, right? Who the hell just acts like nothing happened?”

Zhuang Hanxue sighed in frustration. “You’re really hard to please.”

From his past experience, whenever he was a sugar daddy for women, the thing he hated most was when they got jealous over his exes. Wasn’t it the same for men? He had never pried into Qiu Zheyan’s past relationships, never got jealous. Shouldn’t Qiu Zheyan appreciate how obedient and understanding he was?

Qiu Zheyan stomped off in a huff.

Zhuang Hanxue was stunned for a moment before hurrying after him, sighing as he coaxed, “You’re twenty-seven, Xiao Qiu. Why are you still acting like an impulsive teenager? What’s with the childish tantrum?”

Qiu Zheyan’s voice was cold. “Oh? So I should just quietly accept the fact that my boyfriend doesn’t love me as much as I love him? You’ve been hurting me over and over again lately.”

“Zhuang Hanxue, I know. The reason we got together in the first place was mostly because I coaxed you into it.”

“I also know that you’ve only ever dated women before. I was selfish, I was immoral. I fell for a straight man and even turned him. I brought this upon myself.”

“I know… I know you don’t love me as much as I love you.”

Zhuang Hanxue reached out and ruffled his hair. They were about the same height, so he leaned in and kissed him.

“Of course I like you,” he said. “That night on my birthday, I wasn’t actually that drunk. If I were completely out of it, how could I have responded to you like that, huh, Xiao Qiu?”

“I can’t promise anything about the future, but right now, in this entire world, you’re the person I love most. The only one I love.”

“So stop sulking.”

“I didn’t expect you to be this jealous. I won’t bring up my ex again.”

Qiu Zheyan changed his mind again. “Actually, you should still tell me. If you run into your ex-girlfriend and don’t tell me, I’ll go crazy.”

Zhuang Hanxue: “???”

Younger men were so troublesome! He was already twenty-seven, wasn’t he? Normally, he acted more mature and steady than Zhuang Hanxue. Why was their little Qiu like this?

Qiu Zheyan asked, “Do you want to know about me and my ex? Don’t you feel even a little bit jealous?”

Zhuang Hanxue touched his nose and thought about the handsome young man in the photo with Qiu Zheyan. He shared his thoughts. “If you want to talk about it, go ahead. I’ll try to listen carefully. He looks well-educated and refined, like an elite. I bet he doesn’t live as messily as I do.”

Qiu Zheyan stared at his face, hoping to see a change in expression. Holding back his frustration, he deliberately said, “He was a university professor. My dad’s junior. I enrolled in his university just to be near him, chose the major he taught, and lived with him during college.”

“Whoa, damn!” Zhuang Hanxue’s eyes lit up with admiration. “That’s impressive!”

Qiu Zheyan: “…”

He let out a long, helpless sigh.

Zhuang Hanxue quickly covered his mouth. “Oh, no, wait… I mean… uh… Since he was a professor, he must’ve been older than you, right? How much older?”

Qiu Zheyan answered, “Ten years.”

Zhuang Hanxue clicked his tongue in his mind but didn’t show it. “So you’ve always liked older men, huh?”

Qiu Zheyan: “Mm, I just like men who are older than me.”

Zhuang Hanxue asked curiously, “Sounds like you really liked him. Why did you break up?”

Qiu Zheyan looked at him. “A lot of reasons. He thought I was too young, too immature, too clingy. Then his ex-boyfriend came back. That guy was outstanding, and I was just a university student—I couldn’t compare. I got anxious and tried to propose to him, but he rejected me. So we broke up, and he got back together with his ex.”

Talking about it still tugged at Qiu Zheyan’s heart a little. After all, that was his first love—the person he had once loved with his whole heart, leaving behind a scar that would never completely fade. He had truly loved him, but there was no going back.

Zhuang Hanxue hadn’t felt anything at first, but when he saw the faint melancholy on Qiu Zheyan’s face, he suddenly felt a bit uncomfortable.

And Qiu Zheyan had the nerve to say he was hung up on his ex? Look who was acting all sentimental now!

Zhuang Hanxue muttered under his breath, “First loves really are different, huh…”

Qiu Zheyan had sharp ears and caught that remark. Feeling like he’d finally won a round, he suddenly grabbed Zhuang Hanxue from behind in a bear hug and lifted him off the ground. “What? You’re jealous now?”

Zhuang Hanxue grumbled, “You’re twenty-seven, and you’re still that skilled in bed. Even if I were an idiot, I’d know you had experience. What’s there to be jealous about?”

Qiu Zheyan wouldn’t let it go. “You’re totally jealous.”

Zhuang Hanxue: “I’m not.”

Qiu Zheyan: “You are.”

Zhuang Hanxue: “…I don’t even know if I am or not.”

Qiu Zheyan kissed the cold side of his wind-blown face from behind. “I think you’re starting to like me, even just a little bit.”

At this age, who didn’t have a failed love story that left a lasting mark?

That might be true, but Zhuang Hanxue really couldn’t remember if he had one. He had been giving little girls flower hairpins since preschool. But if he had ever truly loved someone to the point of heartbreak… well, he couldn’t recall.

Did people really love like that?

For some reason, his thoughts drifted back to something from over a decade ago.

Back when he had just started working, he had a subordinate named Chu Xun, who was incredibly sharp and capable. At the time, Zhuang Hanxue relied on this vice president to do all the work while he lazed around. Then Chu Xun resigned after a misdiagnosed cancer scare and later, by some twist of fate, met Lin Yancheng from the Lin family’s corporation. They fell in love.

Lin Yancheng had come looking for Chu Xun through him. When Zhuang Hanxue heard their love story, he was so moved he nearly cried.

He had always admired the kind of love they had—one that transcended heaven and earth.

Come to think of it, he was actually closer to Chu Xun’s son than he was to Qiu Zheyan.

He had met him much earlier.

Chu Xun’s son was named Chu Yu, nicknamed Jiujiu. He was a sixth-grade elementary school student. Online, people usually referred to him respectfully as “Little Master” or “Little Master Jiujiu.”

The reason he had gotten together with Qiu Zheyan was because Jiujiu had been too busy with school to play games with him. Feeling lonely and bored, he found a new online buddy to game with—and that buddy ended up being Qiu Zheyan.

At the time, when he told Jiujiu that he had quit his job to be Qiu Zheyan’s live-in companion, Jiujiu had been worried and asked if he had been scammed. To this day, Zhuang Hanxue still hadn’t told him that he and Qiu Zheyan were now dating. If Jiujiu found out, he’d definitely say, “I told you not to get scammed! But you never listen!”

There were two weeks left until Lunar New Year.

Elementary schools were already on break.

One day, while playing online, Zhuang Hanxue saw Jiujiu log in and went to find him.

Jiujiu: [Didn’t you say you could only play with your little boss? Are you sneaking around behind his back to play with me?]

Zhuang Hanxue (shyly): [We’re dating now. We’re no longer employer and employee. He lets me play with others, as long as I don’t flirt.]

The chat window froze.

It was unclear if Jiujiu had disconnected or was just stunned.

Ten minutes later.

Jiujiu finally replied.

Jiujiu: [I told you not to get scammed! But nooo, you wouldn’t listen! Now look at you—you don’t even have a job anymore… and you didn’t even discuss this with me first! 😡]

Zhuang Hanxue: [Master, you’re still in elementary school. You don’t understand.]

Jiujiu: [Oh, now you remember I’m an elementary schooler? But when you were borrowing money from me, did you think of that? I may be a kid, but I’m smarter than you! You adults are the worst. You all play games just to fall in love. I’m not like you—I play to actually play the game!]

Zhuang Hanxue laughed at the screen.

At the end of the year, Qiu Zheyan was so busy he barely had time to go home. Lately, he had been coming back very late.

Zhuang Hanxue, on the other hand, rarely went out and just stayed home playing games. Jiujiu, being on break, was free, but he still had to do three hours of homework and practice Go for another three hours daily. He couldn’t play all day.

These past few days, Zhuang Hanxue had been having a blast with Jiujiu, almost like when they first met.

That night.

Qiu Zheyan came home past midnight after an exhausting day at work.

When he arrived, he saw Zhuang Hanxue asleep on the couch. He carried him back to the bedroom.

Zhuang Hanxue’s phone slipped from his hand and fell to the floor.

Qiu Zheyan picked it up. Just then, a notification popped up, lighting up the screen.

There were over a dozen unread messages.

All from someone with the nickname [Little Master Jiujiu].

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