Epiphanies of Rebirth Chapter 61 (Part 1)
Translated by Pure (ko-fi)
Edited by tingting
Chapter 61.1 Lin Jingzhe felt as if he had fallen into a maze.
Lin Jingzhe asked Xiao Chi at night, "So what did you do after getting off work today?"
Xiao Chi pulled out a volume of handwritten sutras in his bag and placed them in front of the statue within the Buddhist Hall. While inside, he also wiped off the dust on Lin Jingzhe's grandfather’s picture, and lit him three sticks of incense.
"I went home and had a chat with my dad for a while." His tone was very calm, "Afterwards I went to copy scriptures with my grandma. I haven't peacefully written like that for a long time."
Lin Jingzhe opened the scripture book, and discovered the gold ink words. Each character and stroke were powerful and smooth, resembling brilliant waves. Although he didn’t understand any of the sentences, Lin Jingzhe just felt that those little letters were really neat, and Xiao Chi's calligraphy was truly dazzling.
Lacking any doubt, he didn’t bother to probe Xiao Chi any more. After offering incense to his grandfather, the two went back to their rooms to wash up. Xiao Chi had turned his back towards Lin Jingzhe when he was changing into his pajamas. Whilst doing so, Lin Jingzhe unconsciously glanced at the reflection on the window glass and frowned.
"What happened there?" Lin Jingzhe stepped forward and grabbed Xiao Chi's arm, turning his body around. There was a fist-size bruise on the left half of Xiao Chi’s pectoral muscle.
It looked as if a blunt instrument had severely struck his chest, and the surrounding skin was completely red. Lin Jingzhe frowned and reached his hand up, wanting to touch it tentatively with his fingertips. However, before he touched it, his wrist was grabbed by a fiery big hand.
Xiao Chi unbuttoned his pajamas, while his damp hair still retained its natural fluffiness. He looked down at Lin Jingzhe's serious expression, with a smile in his eyes. He used his other arm to wrap around Lin Jingzhe's waist and pulled him closer.
When Lin Jingzhe slammed into his embrace, he raised his arms to wrap around Xiao Chi’s neck.
"When I was copying the scriptures, I lost my footing and bumped into the corner of the table." Xiao Chi touched Lin Jingzhe’s face with his thumb, the strength of his fingertip was tender and doting, "It still hurts."
"Why are you so careless?" Lin Jingzhe reprimanded him angrily while applying medicated oil for him. Unlike his harsh tone, his handiwork was gentle, as if he was afraid that too much force would hurt him. Xiao Chi squinted his eyes and enjoyed this tender treatment. He no longer played pitifully and just reminded him calmly, "Don't forget that you are coming to my family’s house on the 5th. I have already discussed it with my family today."
"What?" As soon as this matter was mentioned, Lin Jingzhe became a little nervous again, "Am I really going?"
Xiao Chi didn't understand his question. "If not?"
After some reconsideration, Lin Jingzhe felt that his previous concerns were ridiculous, moreover he didn’t want to make it difficult for Xiao Chi. After thinking about it, he decided not to explain and only agreed in a low voice, "Oh."
He wondered what gift he should bring when he arrived. He was already familiar with the family structure of Xiao Chi's family, but Lin Jingzhe really didn't have any experience in visiting friends' houses. Xiao Chi's house must be different from Gao Sheng's or Zhou Haitang's house. Furthermore, inwardly they both knew that they weren’t just friends, so Lin Jingzhe was still a bit jittery about dealing with this particular situation. Even if he was visiting under the guise of just an ordinary friend, he still wanted to be courteous.
Xiao Chi hugged him and laid down on the bed. His fiery body and breath engulfed him tightly, "Don't worry, they won't make things difficult for you."
What nonsense, Lin Jingzhe thought, it would be abnormal if one’s parents were to make things difficult for their son’s friends, okay?
Unfortunately, Xiao Chi couldn't understand his anxiety, and didn't seem to take this matter as seriously. After a few words of comfort, he changed the topic, "How was the matter you were called for in the afternoon? Did you run into any trouble?"
Lin Jingzhe sighed and then readjusted his position in Xiao Chi's arms, allowing the latter to hold him tighter.
His eyes remained blank for a few seconds, feeling as if his current anxious self was as unfamiliar as a stranger.
Why was he so nervous? He didn't quite understand either. Maybe he understood, but just refused to delve any deeper into this problem. It seemed that after Xiao Chi professed his love in Hawaii, their relationship had begun to change. They crossed the boundaries he had set for himself at the beginning of their relationship. This foreign thing had invaded his everyday life, he had involuntarily immersed himself in its intensity, but at the same time he also felt a bit terrified.
Exactly what type of relationship was between him and Xiao Chi?
They lived together, shared the same bed, and ate breakfast and dinner together. When there were no social gatherings, they’d stick together. On the unexpected occasion that there were any events, they would report their whereabouts to one another. Xiao Chi mopped the floor, washed clothes, and cooked when he got up early. When Lin Jingzhe came home, he put away both their clothes that were hanging in the dryer after ironing them. They would alternate the responsibility of changing the bed sheets, exchange their experiences of the different flavors of lube and cond*ms...
This kind of life was no different from that of ordinary spouses.
But Lin Jingzhe was aware that this society was not very tolerant or accepting.
He himself didn't bother with outsider’s opinions. In fact, no one's opinion in this world could influence his decisions, even his ‘parents.’ For Jiang Qiaqia's side, he wished that he would never see her again in this life. As for Lin Runsheng... Although Ling Jingzhe felt guilty, it was indeed difficult to treat him as a father.
He was all alone in this world, without any remarkable attachments, but Xiao Chi was different.
Xiao Chi had a family, a blissful family. According to Hu Shaofeng's previous description, the Xiao Family was a traditional family who adhered to strict rules. This was not a secret, Lin Jingzhe overheard clues relating to this fact from other people.
In his previous life, Lin Jingzhe's circle of friends was a mix of good people and scumbags, some of which had special sexual orientations. Most of these people had loose morals, but occasionally, there were rare outliers. However, neither of which type was able to resist family pressure.
The treatment was as such in the later generations, where most information was open, then what about the current era?
After being discovered by Qi Kai, Lin Jingzhe often wondered if one day he would return to find an empty house, without any trace or presence of another person.
Would the Xiao Family throw a fit if they found out about their relationship? The most probable outcome would be that they would have to end this relationship in a tacit and hushed manner.
Lin Jingzhe leaned on Xiao Chi's chest, listening to the familiar heartbeat. He took in the not-so-pleasant smell of medicated oil, and slid his palm on the other's hot skin.
Various possible outcomes flashed through his mind, but it was all soon tightly bound by a slender rope and quietly stored deep inside.
"It's okay, it wasn’t not as troublesome as I predicted." Lin Jingzhe laughed, his tone was calm and without any fluctuations. In a tranquil voice, he spoke about the troubles encountered at the factory today.
Xiao Chi frowned. "That’s very problematic. Our country has a strong preconceived notion. Your product has not been officially launched on the market, so this will definitely greatly affect your sales in the early stages. Was your formula leaked?"
Lin Jingzhe recalled the sample of bean paste he tasted and shook his head: "It shouldn't be."
Thinking of the aftermath of their situations today, Lin Jingzhe’s depressed mood lightened up quite a bit. He even propped himself up on the bed and looked at Xiao Chi with a smile, "I discovered a very unexpected thing today. "
Xiao Chi looked at him with a smile in his eyes, his sharp gaze turned into a pool of thick jam under the dim light, "Hmm?"
"It's about one of my childhood friends, Gao Sheng." Lin Jingzhe avoided the bruise and lay on Xiao Chi's shoulder. His eyes narrowed comfortably, the squished cheek on Xiao Chi’s shoulder made Lin Jingzhe look like a cute otter begging for food. "I discovered that I had been underestimating him. Do you know what advice he gave about the factory today?"
Xiao Chi was no longer listening to him, all of his concentration was absorbed in the sparkle in Lin Jingzhe’s eyes. He hummed as a response, but his head was inching closer and closer.
Their passionate kiss lasted for several minutes. When they separated, Lin Jingzhe’s eyes were a little blurred, but he still stubbornly finished his narration, "...He said that we should urgently prepare funds for advertising..."
Xiao Chi bit his high nose, and groped on the bedside table. "Is strawberry flavor okay?"
Lin Jingzhe squinted his eyes and laughed because of his clumsy movements.
Translated by pure, hosted on puretl.com / do not repost!