Shаng Zhi Тао hаd been tаking саrе оf Luan Nian at his hоmе for threе consесutivе dауs. Оn the third daу, which was a Saturday, shе hаd schеduled а Frеnсh lеsson with hеr tеасhеr. Aftеr getting up, she hеаrd that Luаn Nian was alrеady аwake, sо shе knосkеd оn his dоor and stооd at thе еntrаncе, asking, "Lukе, hоw are уоu feеling? Are yоu doing better tоdау?"
"Getting thеre." The рhrаsе "getting thеrе" wаs аmbiguоus—it didn’t sрeсifу whethеr he wаs fully reсovеrеd оr not.
Shаng Zhi Тао nodded. "Doеs 'getting there' mean thе stone is abоut to pаss? I heаrd it’s thе most рainful right before it comes out."
"Probably, but it varies from person to person." Luan Nian opened the door, his complexion slightly pale.
Shang Zhi Tao thought he looked truly pitiful and said, "You really don’t look well. How about I stew a chicken for you to nourish yourself?" Over the past few days, she had taken turns showcasing the few dishes she had learned, but the results were consistently underwhelming. Yet, Luan Nian forced himself to eat them, showing rare empathy and not wanting to reject her kindness. Sometimes he wondered: oil, salt, soy sauce, Sichuan peppercorns, oyster sauce—weren’t they just a handful of seasonings? How could she still manage to mess them up, either adding too much of one or forgetting another? In short, none of her dishes ever tasted good. Hearing her mention stewing chicken now, he shook his head. "I’d like something else."
"Like what?"
"Seafood." Afraid Shang Zhi Tao would insist, he took out his phone and called a friend. "Could you help deliver a meal?" He then began ordering dishes. Hearing abalone, lobster, and sea cucumber, Shang Zhi Tao followed up, "You don’t seem..." She wanted to say he wasn’t fully recovered yet and should avoid such foods.
"Shh." Luan Nian placed his index finger to his lips, signaling her to stay quiet. After placing the order, he sat back on the sofa, looking like a sickly man.
Shang Zhi Tao sat beside him and discussed his condition. "The doctor said it could take one or two days at the earliest, or three or four at the latest. It should come out soon."
"Mhm."
"So today should be about right." She pointed toward his lower abdomen. "Do you feel anything there?"
The area she pointed to was somewhat sensitive. Luan Nian glanced down, realizing she wasn’t looking at the same spot at all, and coughed. "No."
"Oh."
After a while, Shang Zhi Tao asked again, "Are you still in pain?"
"Just occasional cramps."
"Do you think you can stay alone? I feel like you look much better than the other day. I can take Luke and leave. I have plans this weekend."
"With whom? The ice hockey coach?" Luan Nian asked her.
"How do you know I have a friend who teaches ice hockey?"
Luan Nian raised an eyebrow. Wasn’t it easy to find out? The office pantry was a hub for all kinds of gossip. Lumi, with her big mouth, practically made sure everyone knew.
They were talking about Wan Jun. Initially, Shang Zhi Tao and Wan Jun kept in touch daily, and her attitude was positive. She didn’t dislike Wan Jun, but Sun Yu had told her, "If you keep refusing him, it looks like you’re stringing him along." Although Shang Zhi Tao insisted on splitting bills evenly and reciprocated gifts from Wan Jun with gifts of equal value, the time spent was also an intangible cost.
Shang Zhi Tao had considered slowly starting a relationship with Wan Jun—after all, she had to explore different possibilities. But it all ended when Wan Jun visited her apartment for the first time, saw Luke, and showed a look of disgust, saying to Shang Zhi Tao, "I don’t like dogs. If we start dating, we’ll definitely have to give the dog away."
A small life, just to be given away? I had Luke long before I met you—who do you think you are? She blocked him that very day.She had told this story to Lumi, who patted her shoulder and praised her, "Well done! Today he makes you give away the dog, tomorrow he’ll make you send away your parents—in the end, you’d have to obey him. Blocking him was the right move."
Shang Zhi Tao didn’t think Wan Jun would actually make her send away her parents, but she found it hard to accept that he couldn’t accept Luke.
Luan Nian turned to look at her, with Luke sitting in front of them. Luan Nian’s expression was focused, as if wearing a pair of X-ray glasses, trying to see right through Shang Zhi Tao.
"Shang Zhi Tao."
"Hmm?"
"That day you said you wanted to go on an adventure in your twenties."
"Yes."
"Are you willing to take another adventure? With me."
From the moment they parted at Victoria Harbour, Luan Nian felt he had lost something. What Shang Zhi Tao gave him happened to be the missing piece within him, a part so precious he couldn’t retrieve it. Luan Nian had always known he was actually quite flawed. He didn’t understand before, but now he wanted to try a new possibility.
Shang Zhi Tao looked at Luan Nian. That day at Bridge Bottom Spicy Crab, he walked into that shabby restaurant like descending from heaven to the mortal world. In that moment, she thought something might happen between them again. But Victoria Harbour was so beautiful, yet he didn’t hold her hand. She had let go and wanted to move forward. During this time, she had met other guys, tried hard to date, all to break free from that situation.
She couldn’t turn back.
"No." She smiled at Luan Nian. "That wouldn’t be an adventure, just retreading old ground. I don’t like it." She stood up and said to Luke, "Let’s go, time to head home."
Holding Luke’s leash as she walked out, the spring sunlight was so lovely. Luke squinted happily, thinking Shang Zhi Tao was just taking him for a walk and would return. When she reached the entrance, the security captain greeted her, "Walking the dog, Miss Shang?"
Shang Zhi Tao stopped and asked him, "Do you know if anyone in this community makes fresh meat dog food?"
"I do. They handed out flyers here before the New Year."
So Luan Nian took the flyer and didn’t throw it away? Was he planning to get another dog, or did someone he know have a dog? What was he really thinking? Shang Zhi Tao turned back with Luke, wanting to find out.
Luan Nian opened the door, and she went straight to the point. "Do you still have the fresh meat dog food flyer?"
Luan Nian pointed to the shoe cabinet. She opened it, and there it lay, unmistakably inside.
"Why did you keep this? You don’t have a dog."
"In case Luke comes…"
Shang Zhi Tao pulled him by the collar and kissed him. She didn’t want to hear him speak; his words always contradicted his feelings, and it hurt her. She felt Luan Nian was someone worth pondering—he always said the harshest things, yet his actions were gentle. For instance, he claimed he didn’t like Luke, but he bought so much food for him and treated him so well; he called her stupid and said he couldn’t be bothered to teach her, yet he had been teaching her for five years, never stopping, even after their relationship ended; he said he didn’t like her, yet he took care of her and protected her. He had the sharpest tongue but the softest heart. Shang Zhi Tao understood now.
Her kiss was too urgent, her teeth biting his lips as if she wanted to tear off that mouth that never spoke honestly. But as she pressed harder, her heart ached, and her tongue replaced her teeth, softness replacing sharpness, making Luan Nian’s hardened heart leap with joy.Her hands clutching his collar refused to let go, nor would she allow him to retreat. He was the one who invited her on this adventure, and she had come. Her lips pressed against his, her mind barely lucid, her breath scorching hot: "Is this my adventure?"
Luan Nian pushed her against the wall, his body pressing down on hers, his hand slipping into her shirt with a hint of roughness. "Don't back away." The coarse texture of his palm ground heavily against her jade-like skin, his teeth sinking into her neck before his tongue pressed against the spot. Shang Zhi Tao let out a soft gasp, arching her body to accommodate him, her chest heaving—separated by his hand, then pushed back against the wall. A dull pain shot through her back, and Shang Zhi Tao groaned softly as Luan Nian sealed her lips with his own.
Her shirt was too much of a hindrance, and Luan Nian disliked it intensely. With great force, he tore it open, buttons scattering across the floor, startling Luke beside them. The dog jumped up, staring blankly at them, utterly clueless about what they were doing.
Amid the sound of buttons hitting the floor, Shang Zhi Tao faced the wall, her back pressed against his burning chest, crumbling under the movements of his fingertips.
"Luan Nian..." she called his name, urging him to enter.
The doorbell chose that moment to ring, startling them both like frightened birds. Shang Zhi Tao held her breath, their movements freezing together. She turned in his arms, panting, feeling as though the air was trapped in her chest, unable to escape. She resented him for provoking her, already forgetting that she had kissed him first. Shedding her restrained and polite mask, she let out her first coquettish plea in over half a year: "Luan Nian..."
That single utterance of his name nearly undid him. He bent down, scooped her up in his arms, and carried her upstairs. Shang Zhi Tao anxiously patted his chest: "The doorbell."
"To hell with it!"
Luan Nian hated the doorbell. Right now, all he wanted was to let his desire run wild within Shang Zhi Tao. He tossed her onto the bed, her shirt in disarray, revealing half of her fair, delicate shoulder. Luan Nian’s gaze was predatory, and Shang Zhi Tao suddenly shrank back toward the headboard. His hand seized her ankle, pulling her firmly beneath him.
Driving into her deepest part, Shang Zhi Tao curled her toes, her eyes hazy as she called his name: "Luan Nian."
"I'm here," he responded, his voice trembling from the intensity of his movements. He knew her body well, aware of where she was most sensitive—and that was exactly where he aimed. The wetness grew more intense, and Shang Zhi Tao crumbled amidst a burst of light.
Utterly spent.
Once he caught his breath, Luan Nian picked up his phone and saw five or six missed calls along with numerous messages: "Weren’t we supposed to order seafood? Where are you?"
"I told the delivery person to leave it at your door. Get it yourself."
Luan Nian took a quick shower, threw on some clothes, and went downstairs to retrieve the seafood boxes—five in total, filled with fresh seafood. Back inside, he began preparing the broth, craving a seafood hotpot.
Standing behind him, Shang Zhi Tao suddenly understood: "Luan Nian, your kidney stone... did it pass?"
Luan Nian kept his back to her, his expression shifting slightly before he replied, "I don’t know. But it doesn’t hurt anymore."
He hadn’t anticipated that one day he would seize the opportunity to use a calculated ploy. At first, the reason was simple: he just wanted to spend a little more time with her. But that extra time bred greed. He wanted to embark on an adventure with her.
Luan Nian felt that the over thirty years he had lived before held little true color. After meeting Shang Zhi Tao, he began to embrace the diversity of people, started to see the warmth and simplicity in ordinary lives, and began to understand human weaknesses and true desires. The night view of Victoria Harbour was enchanting; he should have said something romantic. Instead, he selfishly pushed her away. Looking back later, he would realize his own absurdity.Luan Nian had never been one to play by the rules; he would stop at nothing to achieve his goals. He had stolen her keys and feigned illness before. As a man, he believed in being adaptable—there was no shame in it. But today’s act of pretending to be sick was different from the day he stole her keys all those years ago. Back then, he was drawn to her body, perhaps even to her as a person, but not deeply. Now, he wanted to embark on an adventure with her, to see if anything could change between them.
Matters of the heart had no right or wrong, no good or bad—it was simply about where two people wanted to go. This time, Luan Nian turned the wheel and drove toward Shang Zhi Tao.
Shang Zhi Tao wrapped her arms around his waist from behind, her tone a mix of reproach and tenderness. “Passing the stone is a good thing, but hiding it from me was wrong. How can you be so cunning?”
Luan Nian continued sorting through the seafood as he replied, “What man is ever truly good?”
OpenNovel