Yu Shiqing glanced at him and said, “I think you’ve been single for too long. That’s why you’re always overthinking.”
Jiang Yu was silent for half a second, then asked again, “So, are you going to take responsibility for me?”
Yu Shiqing: “…”
Jiang Yu argued, “You always wear me out like this. Shouldn’t you take responsibility?”
“No one has to take responsibility for anyone.”
Just as those words fell and Jiang Yu was about to say something, Yu Shiqing picked up a piece of potato and stuffed it into his mouth. “Eat.”
Jiang Yu looked at him, chewed the potato expressionlessly, and swallowed it.
Out of the corner of his eye, Yu Shiqing noticed and suddenly smiled. “What else do you want to eat?”
Jiang Yu replied, “…bamboo shoots.”
He was about to put down his chopsticks and wait for it to be brought over, but Yu Shiqing simply picked up a plate of bamboo shoots and placed it in front of him. “Eat.”
Jiang Yu: “…………”
Yu Shiqing didn’t notice his expression. He raised his wrist to check the time. It had already been five minutes the latest time the suppressant should’ve taken effect. With that thought, Yu Shiqing stood up and walked to Lin Shuang’s door, gently knocking. “It’s me.”
Lin Shuang’s voice came back right away. “Shiqing? I thought I heard Jiang Yu’s voice. Is he back? How is he?”
Yu Shiqing replied, “He’s fine.”
Lin Shuang sighed in relief. “That’s good. My pheromones have stabilized too, so they won’t affect others anymore.”
Yu Shiqing asked, “Dinner’s ready. Do you want to eat in your room or outside?”
Lin Shuang had just reached the door. Hearing this, she opened it and said, “No need to eat in the room. Let’s go.”
She had already opened the windows to air out the space. The sweet scent in the bedroom and the alpha pheromones in the living room had faded, leaving only a light trace nothing worth mentioning.
Yu Shiqing walked with her to the dining table. Seeing her, Jiang Yu placed his hand on the table, about to force himself up, but Yu Shiqing pressed down on his shoulder and made him sit back.
Yu Shiqing turned to Lin Shuang and said, “Jiang Yu’s not feeling well today.”
“Then he needs to rest well!” Lin Shuang said and walked to the opposite side of the table. But as she reached the corner and stood diagonally across from Yu Shiqing, she suddenly froze. “Shiqing, your neck…”
Yu Shiqing didn’t care. “It’s fine. The wound isn’t deep.”
All of Lin Shuang’s curiosity and the awkward feeling of having glimpsed something private about her son were pushed down by his overly calm tone.
Maybe young people are just more passionate, right?
Lin Shuang glanced at Jiang Yu again. Both of them were alphas. It was easy to forget they couldn’t mark each other. A bite by mistake could be understandable.
And…
“Is Jiang Yu not feeling well today because of that?” she asked hesitantly.
Yu Shiqing replied, “Something like that.”
Lin Shuang’s expression grew complicated. But she didn’t feel she had much right to interfere in Yu Shiqing’s personal life. In the end, she only said, “You two should take care of yourselves.”
She couldn’t say anything more.
Yu Shiqing could tell her tone was unusual, but since her words were ordinary, he only replied, “Okay.”
Jiang Yu listened to their conversation, holding a bowl in front of his face to hide his smile, silently keeping quiet.
After dinner, Lin Shuang sent them back to rest and stayed behind to clean up. Yu Shiqing wanted to help, but she pushed him out of the kitchen.
“You’re still hurt. You have work tomorrow. Go to bed early.”
Yu Shiqing had no choice but to return to the dining room and walk over to Jiang Yu. After eating, Jiang Yu had regained some strength but still couldn’t walk on his own.
Yu Shiqing leaned over, wrapped his arm around Jiang Yu’s waist and back, and looked at him. “Do you want me to carry you or walk?”
“Carry?” Jiang Yu glanced toward the kitchen. “Wouldn’t that be awkward if Auntie sees us?”
Yu Shiqing made the call: “Then walk.”
Jiang Yu: “…”
Yu Shiqing was absurdly quick to decide. Jiang Yu tried to change his answer. “Carrying is fine too. There’s a wall between us. She probably won’t see.”
“No need to force yourself,” Yu Shiqing said. “I know you’re not used to it.”
Jiang Yu gritted his teeth. Back then, when he wasn’t used to it, he was forced. But now, when he’s willing, Yu Shiqing hesitates?
Yu Shiqing helped him up from the chair and walked him to the bedroom. Just like during the previous heat period, Jiang Yu recovered most of his strength quickly and didn’t need help for long.
After washing up, the two went to bed to rest.
The next day, Jiang Yu happened to have no work. After breakfast with Yu Shiqing, he accompanied Lin Shuang to the hospital.
It was lightly drizzling when they left, but by the time they returned, the sun was out and a gentle breeze was blowing. After lunch, the two sat on the balcony together.
Yu Shiqing always had scripts to read. Jiang Yu sat across from him, reviewing his studio’s reports. But halfway through, his gaze drifted and landed on Yu Shiqing’s focused side profile as he read.
Bathed in warm sunlight, a few strands of hair fell over Yu Shiqing’s forehead, occasionally brushing his brow with the breeze. His usual sharp features were softened with a golden glow, making him look gentle so different from the first time they met.
After a while, Jiang Yu suddenly got up and fetched a guitar from his room. He strummed a chord and asked, “Mind if I play?”
Yu Shiqing didn’t look up. “Go ahead.”
Only then did Jiang Yu start strumming slowly. After a bit, he paused, picked up a pen, and scribbled on the notebook in front of him for a while. Then, the melody flowed smoothly, no more interruptions.
Yu Shiqing looked up and saw him smile unintentionally, then lower his head to hum a short tune.
Yu Shiqing listened and turned to look at him. Jiang Yu also looked up at the same time, their eyes meeting.
Yu Shiqing noticed a full page of notes beside him. “A new song?”
Jiang Yu casually strummed and said, “Mm.”
“What’s it called?”
“Haven’t decided.” Jiang Yu looked away, staring at the bright, clear sky after the rain. Lost in thought, he softly murmured, “Clear Skies After Rain.”
Yu Shiqing didn’t catch it. “What?”
“Clear Skies After Rain,” Jiang Yu repeated with a soft smile. “That’ll be the name of this song.”
Hearing that, Yu Shiqing also looked out at the sky. “Inspired?”
Jiang Yu chuckled. “You could say that.”
He flipped the notebook to a new page and wrote the title 《Clear Skies After Rain》 at the top, then adjusted the guitar and continued composing.
Yu Shiqing didn’t disturb him, just quietly returned to his script while Jiang Yu found inspiration.
That afternoon, Ren Bai called. By then, Jiang Yu had almost finished the song.
After Yu Shiqing hung up, Jiang Yu put down the guitar and stood up. “Time to go?”
“Yeah,” Yu Shiqing replied. “Ren Bai and Meng Chen are downstairs.”
As Jiang Yu turned to leave, Yu Shiqing suddenly called out, “Wait.”
Jiang Yu looked back, which pulled at the side of his neck, making him wince.
Yu Shiqing reached over to the back of his neck, lifted the collar slightly, and checked the wound with his eyes.
Jiang Yu felt his fingers graze the skin lightly and instinctively straightened his back. “What are you doing?”
“For the next couple of days, that mark has to stay hidden,” Yu Shiqing said. “Do you have a first-aid kit?”
“In the living room,” Jiang Yu replied.
Yu Shiqing let go and walked with him to get it. Luckily, there were enough medical patches inside. They used two and packed the rest into Yu Shiqing’s suitcase just in case.
Downstairs, Ren Bai was waiting by the car. As soon as he saw them, he noticed the strange patches on their necks. “What happened to you two?”
“An accident,” Yu Shiqing said, signaling Jiang Yu to get in the car.
Ren Bai waited for more details but got nothing. He asked again, “What kind of accident?”
“We fell,” Yu Shiqing replied.
Ren Bai: “…Do I look like an idiot?”
They both had wounds on their necks from falling? Not even trying to lie properly.
Ren Bai got in the car. “If you’d said a cat scratched you, I might believe it more.”
Yu Shiqing nodded. “Good point.”
Ren Bai: ?
Yu Shiqing turned to Jiang Yu. “Let’s go with Ren Bai’s version.”
Jiang Yu: “Okay.”
Ren Bai: ???
But Yu Shiqing clearly had no intention of explaining further. Ren Bai gave up and got in the back seat.
On the way to the airport, Meng Chen saw a trending post for the edited preview of Spontaneous Trip.
The show had already announced that a full edited version would be released two weeks after the live broadcast. Each episode would be around two hours and air every Saturday night on both TV and online platforms.
Because the first two weeks had gone viral, the preview sparked even more excitement. Many viewers didn’t have time to watch the live broadcasts, so the edited version served as a great highlight reel for rewatching.
Even though the full version wouldn’t air until tomorrow, the preview alone drove traffic to the livestream official accounts and viewership numbers skyrocketed.
Yu Shiqing’s recent drama was still ongoing. Huaze still hadn’t reopened comments on their accounts, but the hype was high. Now that a show featuring both Yu Shiqing and the rarely-seen-on-variety-shows Jiang Yu was airing, fans were more than eager.
And with Doomsday Rescue postponed, seeing Yu Shiqing and Jiang Yu together again was something netizens loved.
So, by the time Meng Chen saw the trending post, the topic had already gone viral.
“Jiang-ge, Yu-ge, look!” He opened the video and showed them.
Ren Bai helped tap play. The clip started with a black screen, and their voices came in:
“I’ll help you.”
“No need.”
“Don’t move.”
“Okay, I won’t.”
“You can move now.”
“Okay. Is the mic off?”
Ren Bai kept scratching his head, watching Yu Shiqing’s face, which remained unreadable.
After the black screen, the video cut to highlights of Yu Shiqing and Jiang Yu’s first episode from feeding each other to the moment Jiang Yu almost fell from a ladder. Their interactions took up more screen time than others.
When this part played, Yu Shiqing’s brow finally twitched.
Two full days of footage were edited into two minutes, and the intimacy between them was clearer than ever.
Meng Chen couldn’t help but sigh. “Yu-ge and Jiang-ge have such a good relationship.”
He opened the comments section.
The comments were full of excited reactions.
“Ahhh I’m dead!! Official sugar drop! This isn’t fan service it’s criminally sweet!”
“If they’re not dating after this, I’ll consider all paparazzi useless.”
“Auntie smile activated! Can’t believe it’s already Friday remember to watch the livestream!”
Yu Shiqing hadn’t finished watching when the driver called from the front, “We’ve arrived at the airport.”
Meng Chen put his phone away and moved aside.
Yu Shiqing carried a small suitcase, Jiang Yu held his guitar, and they got off once the car stopped.
Ren Bai saw them off and headed back.
The flight was on time. After landing, they transferred to another vehicle and headed to the filming location with the rest of the crew.
At exactly 5 PM, the livestream began.
The main camera focused right on Yu Shiqing and Jiang Yu.
Viewership numbers soared instantly.
The live chat flooded the screen.
“Ahhh finally! Been waiting all week! Pisces CP, let’s go!!”
