Following the system’s directions, Shen Yuqing found the original owner’s apartment. He scanned his iris to enter the elevator, which automatically brought him to the correct floor. As he walked into the unit, he sighed at how much technology had changed daily life.
He unlocked the door with his fingerprint. It was already close to 10 p.m., so Pei Yiyan should be asleep by now.
Good—less awkwardness tonight.
But just as he opened the door, he heard the sound of a variety show coming from the TV. On the sofa sat Pei Yiyan, already changed into pajamas.
Shen Yuqing paused and instinctively asked,
【There’s no storyline now, right?】
He was exhausted from everything at the bar.
The system replied,
【There won’t be any story events with Pei Yiyan for now.】
Although there were many plot points in the early stages, they were scattered among the male leads. Pei Yiyan moving in was unexpected, so it wasn’t likely that every encounter would trigger a story.
Hearing this, Shen Yuqing felt relieved. He changed into slippers and walked into the living room. A housekeeper came over and asked, “Young Master Shen, would you like some hangover soup?”
Shen Yuqing had only drunk two glasses at the start. The strong alcohol smell on him came from the splash game. He replied, “No need, you can rest.”
Then he added, “I didn’t drink much. Don’t tell my brother.”
This housekeeper had been brought over from the villa—partly to take care of Pei Yiyan, and partly to keep an eye on Shen Yuqing in case he caused trouble.
The original Shen Yuqing did need supervision. The current one did not.
The housekeeper nodded and went to her room to rest.
Pei Yiyan turned off the TV when he heard their conversation. Leaning on his white cane, he slowly walked toward the bedroom.
Shen Yuqing hesitated, then followed and said, “Why are you waiting for me? Just go sleep.”
Pei Yiyan frowned slightly. He had already smelled the alcohol on Shen Yuqing from the sofa. Now that he was closer, the scent was even stronger—mixed with several different pheromones. It was unpleasant.
Shen Yuqing noticed the brief frown and couldn’t help but lower his head and take a deep sniff of his own shirt.
Was it really that bad? It didn’t smell that awful…
He said, “I’m going to take a shower. You go sleep.”
He headed toward the master bedroom since all his clothes were in the walk-in closet there. But when he opened the door, he noticed there were many of Pei Yiyan’s belongings inside.
No way…
He turned his head, and sure enough, Pei Yiyan was slowly making his way over with his cane. This was his first time in this apartment, so he wasn’t familiar with it. He was extremely cautious with every step.
Soon, he reached Shen Yuqing’s side.
He was clearly planning to stay in the master bedroom.
Shen Yuqing took a deep breath. On second thought, it made sense. At the Shen villa, they had shared a room. Even in a new house, the staff would naturally set them up in the same master bedroom.
And now the other bedroom was occupied by the housekeeper.
So much for splitting rooms.
Shen Yuqing sighed and stopped thinking about it.
Fine. The bed is big. Two guys can share it.
He found a clean set of pajamas and headed to the bathroom. After a nice, relaxing shower, he came out to see Pei Yiyan sitting on the sofa chair in the bedroom. His eyes were closed—Shen Yuqing didn’t know if he was asleep or just thinking.
Shen Yuqing dried his hair with a towel and walked over. Just as he reached Pei Yiyan, the other opened his eyes—calm, emotionless eyes that seemed to look at him.
Shen Yuqing asked, “Why are you sitting here instead of sleeping?”
Pei Yiyan sat upright and replied, “I can rest now?”
Shen Yuqing blinked, confused. “Didn’t I tell you to go to sleep earlier?”
Then he realized Pei Yiyan was referring to the original Shen Yuqing’s usual bedtime games.
He said, “You don’t have to wait for me anymore. If there’s something I want, I’ll call you.”
He wiped his damp hair again and added, “Go to sleep. I’m going to dry my hair.”
Then he turned and walked out. He hadn’t found the hairdryer in the bathroom—the system said there was a spare one outside.
He didn’t close the master bedroom door when he left. The soft hum of the hairdryer drifted into Pei Yiyan’s ears.
Shen Yuqing had been acting strange these past two days, but surprisingly easy to talk to. Their earlier conversation had even been fairly polite.
Yet, Pei Yiyan felt uneasy. His instincts screamed that something was wrong, that trouble was coming.
When Shen Yuqing returned with dry hair, Pei Yiyan was already lying on one side of the bed, resting quietly. He took up very little space, lying stiff and straight.
Shen Yuqing scratched his ear and muttered, “Aren’t you worried you’ll roll off the bed?”
He walked over and said, “Pei Yiyan, move in a bit.”
Pei Yiyan opened his eyes. He didn’t respond immediately—he thought for a moment, then slowly shifted toward the inside of the bed.
Seeing that the space was enough, Shen Yuqing yawned and said sleepily, “That’s good, stop.”
He walked around to the other side, lay down quickly, and turned off the main light, leaving only a small lamp on.
It was still early. He could still play around a bit and get to know this world better.
This world not only had phones but also smart terminals (lightbrains), which looked like watches but functioned like advanced smartphones.
Shen Yuqing had studied it a bit over the past couple of days and realized it was more advanced and convenient than regular phones. Once bound, it could only be opened by the owner—or a spouse with a marriage certificate.
He flipped around on the device for a while, then picked up his actual phone.
As good as the lightbrain was, mobile games were still best on a phone.
He felt like it had been a long time since he truly relaxed.
The game was really fun, and the more he played, the more into it he got. It wasn’t until the system reminded him it was already midnight that he reluctantly put the phone aside.
Before turning off the lamp, he glanced back at the sleeping Pei Yiyan on the other side of the bed.
He seemed to be sound asleep, breathing lightly.
Shen Yuqing yawned again, turned off the light, and drifted off to dreamland.
He had always been a good sleeper—within five minutes, he was completely out.
But Pei Yiyan, on the other hand, opened his eyes again.
He could hear Shen Yuqing’s steady breathing. He hadn’t fallen asleep at all.
He had wanted to find out what Shen Yuqing was up to—
But surprisingly, the other really hadn’t done anything.
Pei Yiyan closed his eyes again.
Maybe I’m just overthinking things…
Or maybe the Shen family noticed something and gave Shen Yuqing a warning behind the scenes…
He had no way of knowing.
Well, as long as he doesn’t stir up trouble, that’s a good thing for me.
Pei Yiyan tugged the blanket up, covering himself more tightly—
But unexpectedly, Shen Yuqing seemed to notice and shifted closer to him.
The once-flat blanket now had a dip in it. Shen Yuqing had turned from lying on his back to his side, facing Pei Yiyan. Even his breathing had gotten a little closer.
They were sleeping under the same blanket tonight.
Pei Yiyan frowned and subtly inched away.
