“… So what?”
Lin Wei waited for nearly half a minute without hearing a response, completely bewildered by why Huo Qijun was in such a hurry to call him to explain, especially with a tone that suggested it was difficult to discuss.
“Don’t you mind?” Huo Qijun’s heart sank. Now that the matter was out in the open, he didn’t mind being a bit more straightforward.
“Why should I mind?” Lin Wei finally realized, piecing together the text message from Yu Yu with Huo Qijun’s reaction, and the entire logic chain clicked into place.
Yu Yu had actually tested Huo Qijun for him, and Huo Qijun had indeed stepped on a sore spot, which was why he hurriedly wanted to explain. Yet, he hadn’t even fully figured out why he was anxious or why he needed to explain in the first place.
Lin Wei couldn’t help but complain to the system in his mind. Huo Qijun’s self-centered nature was both annoying and oddly charming in a pitiable way. It was truly a unique talent.
The system kept silent.
It seemed that its master had selectively forgotten how, when they first arrived, Fu Xiaoqing could hardly bear to approach Huo Qijun and would rather take a ten-kilometer detour to avoid him.
Where’s the charming part in that, Fu Xiaoqing might ask?
As for being pitiably cute, the system thought that description was too niche for its processor to analyze; the only thing it could conclude was that the master’s filter had grown thicker since he realized Huo Qijun might be his love interest.
The system didn’t know what to say. Lin Wei didn’t expect a response either. After pondering for a few seconds, he sighed into his phone and said helplessly, “Ah Qi, don’t overthink it, okay?”
Given Huo Qijun’s pridefulness, Lin Wei felt that if he was too firm in clarifying that he had no ulterior motives, it might only make Huo Qijun feel embarrassed and awkward.
So he could only offer vague reassurances.
However, it was clear that this would have little effect, as Huo Qijun felt a sour pang in his heart. Fu Xiaoqing’s scathing remarks seemed to echo more loudly in this moment.
If it were him, seeing Lin Wei bending over backward to love someone else would make him feel it wasn’t worthwhile… But as soon as that thought appeared in his mind, he was overwhelmed by a wave of rejection.
“Lin Wei.” Huo Qijun called his name softly, “Can you not pursue Yu Yu for now?”
He was shocked that he had said it out loud, but once he opened that door, the next words didn’t feel so scorching. He spoke slowly yet very seriously: “Give me a little more time to think this through.”
“… What do you need to think about?”
Now it was Lin Wei’s turn to be blank-minded, urgently calling out to the system: [What does he mean by that?]
The system, knowing its master’s question stemmed from a desire to avoid reality, dutifully responded: [Master, based on my analysis, your cat might have transformed into a human to repay a debt.
When Lin Wei found Ice Cream, he was seriously injured and looked as though he might die. Now, for some reason, he was back in this world and had morphed into the male lead. With such a subtle implication, it wouldn’t be surprising if this turned out to be a classic Bai She (White Snake) repayment story.]
Lin Wei took a deep breath.
“Hey! What does your silence mean?!” Huo Qijun felt that even after lowering himself, Lin Wei should at least respond with surprise, yet all he got was this?
Silence!
Lin Wei wiped his face and pondered for a bit before finally deciding to say, “Let’s talk about this issue later. Ah Qi, you really need to think carefully. Don’t make choices that go against what you truly feel just because of a moment of stubbornness.”
Whereas he initially didn’t want to clarify to avoid making Huo Qijun feel uncomfortable, now it felt impossible to backtrack.
He felt that explaining would truly bring forth Huo Qijun’s wrath, and it wasn’t clear against whom it might be directed.
Lin Wei planned to try to clarify things at their next meeting. Right now, Huo Qijun was not in front of him, and he couldn’t control the situation.
“I know what I’m doing!” Huo Qijun was a bit annoyed that Lin Wei’s reaction was too calm, but he also understood Lin Wei was genuinely concerned for him without any selfishness, so he suppressed his discomfort and focused on confirming: “I’m asking you not to pursue Yu Yu for now. Will you agree?”
“…” Lin Wei fell silent again; his deal with Yu Yu was not yet over, and meeting was unavoidable.
“You don’t want to agree?!” Huo Qijun’s eyes gradually widened during the period of waiting for Lin Wei’s response, as he seemed to have never considered this possibility.
He thought that as long as he relented, Lin Wei would surely agree to this reasonable request, so…
“You’ve already… developed feelings for him?” He pressed his lips tightly together, his tone suddenly turning icy.
All that responded to him was another sigh from Lin Wei.
“No.” Lin Wei patiently reassured him: “Let’s discuss this issue when you come back, okay? I won’t contact him again until you return. Is that acceptable?”
Huo Qijun reluctantly responded with an “Mm.”
After what felt like ten years of stress-filled conversation, Lin Wei finally sighed in relief. He was thinking about how to clear up this stubborn misunderstanding with Huo Qijun moving forward.
Huo Qijun’s attempt to bend himself for Lin Wei’s sake was utterly shocking; while Lin Wei found it somewhat moving, he felt it was unnecessary for Huo Qijun to go that far.
Lin Wei spent a long time contemplating how to control the social awkwardness while keeping it within Huo Qijun’s acceptable limits, only to fall asleep in bed without reaching any conclusion.
Meanwhile, Huo Qijun also fell asleep grumpily, having spent the afternoon studying ‘data’ and then having broken the ice with Lin Wei that evening. Unsurprisingly, he began to dream that night.
Yes, that kind of dream.
Due to his lack of imagination regarding romance between men, Huo Qijun’s dreams were not excessively outrageous. Mostly, they consisted of Lin Wei treating him like he used to treat Ice Cream—not able to resist and thoroughly exploring him.
When he woke from his dream, he was covered in a sweat and felt thoroughly embarrassed, but at the same time, he was even more eager to return.
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