I can still salvage it chapter 41

Showing off

Yu Lian’s return made the already lively days at the Shen family even more vibrant. Her home was close to Shen Mian’s, so she would visit almost every day.

She also had a meal with Pei Zhiyi and Pei An. Their divorce had been purely due to incompatible personalities, with no property disputes or infidelity involved. The arguments from that time had long been smoothed over by time, allowing them to sit down calmly and have a meal and chat.

 Pei An had remained single, and Yu Lian couldn’t help but feel a bit sorry for him. After all, she had achieved success both in her family and career, while Pei An was still the same, with work being his only focus in life.

Out of respect for his mother, Pei Zhiyi didn’t argue with his father. The three of them finished the meal peacefully. If an outsider were to look at them, they might think they were a happy family of three.

After the meal, Pei Zhiyi accompanied Yu Lian for a walk. Walking on a bridge, Yu Lian looked at her son, who was much taller than her now, and her eyes carried a hint of sadness.

She looked at Pei Zhiyi and asked a question that had been buried in her heart for a long time, as if it was just casual conversation during their walk. But both she and Pei Zhiyi knew that it was a matter she was reluctant to touch upon.

Back then, she and Pei An were both too young. They both prioritized themselves and their careers. Neither of them wanted to sacrifice for the sake of the family. After the divorce, she went abroad, while Pei An was busy making a living. Neither of them stayed with Pei Zhiyi. It wasn’t until she stopped and reflected on the first half of her life that she realized how much time she had missed with Pei Zhiyi.

Yu Lian laughed self-deprecatingly, “To be honest, sometimes I wonder if you would have been happier if you hadn’t been born as the child of me and Pei An.”

If Pei Zhiyi had parents like Shen Changhe and Su Ying, would he have grown up surrounded by love and been happier than he was now?

Pei Zhiyi didn’t immediately answer her question.

His mother rarely asked him such questions. They all had sharp and strong personalities in their family. They believed that regretting things that had already happened was pointless if there was no way to remedy them. Guilt was meaningless.

If Yu Lian had asked him when he was younger, he might have firmly said “yes,” because he truly resented them at that time.

But now, after more than a decade had passed, he could somewhat objectively look at the situation.

“It’s alright,” Pei Zhiyi said casually, “I did resent you when I was younger, but as I grew up, I realized that being a parent is not the only identity a person has. You both just prioritized your own pursuits. There’s nothing right or wrong about that.”

“And…” Pei Zhiyi paused and his gaze softened, “I’ve been doing fine these years. Even though you’re not here, Aunt Su and Uncle Shen, as well as Shen Yu, have always been good to me. Not to mention Shen Mian—he accepts all my flaws, thinks about me in everything, and will never give up on me.”

“So I didn’t lack anything. I’m already luckier than many people.”

He said it seriously.

Not everyone had his luck, meeting Shen Mian and encountering the kind and generous Shen family.

Yu Lian didn’t say anything more. The moonlight on the river was clear and pristine, just like the day many years ago when she chose to leave Pei Zhiyi.

After a while, she softly said, “…that’s good.”

Although their short-term travel plan fell through, Shen Mian and Pei Zhiyi still went skiing in the outskirts.

That newly opened ski resort in the countryside had a good environment and services, with a unique hot spring hotel nearby.

Shen Mian and Pei Zhiyi chose that place because it was far from the city and not easy to bump into people they knew. However, when they finished skiing in the afternoon and went to a nearby restaurant for dinner, they unexpectedly saw familiar faces.

They went to a barbecue restaurant. Shen Mian, who was hungry after skiing all afternoon, ordered several large plates of meat as soon as they entered. They didn’t ask the waiters to grill the meat; Pei Zhiyi did it himself. Shen Mian lowered his head and ate heartily.

When his stomach was half full, he finally sat back in his chair, satisfied. “I feel alive again.”

Then he took a pair of tongs and started grilling the meat for Pei Zhiyi.

He looked around the restaurant absentmindedly, finding the collage on the wall quite interesting. As he was looking, he saw two familiar figures —Gu Weizhou and Lin Jia.

Gu Weizhou and Lin Jia stayed at the neighboring dormitory, sharing a room with Han Chao and Xu Jing. They had a good relationship with each other and occasionally played basketball or ate together.

However, Gu Weizhou and Lin Jia moved out together last month and seemed to have found a place to live off-campus.

But Shen Mian’s special impression of Gu Weizhou and Lin Jia mainly came from 007, who had mentioned that their compatibility score with each other was also very high. If it weren’t for Shen Mian and Pei Zhiyi having an even higher score, maybe 007 would have paired them together.

Shen Mian suddenly saw the two of them and got a little excited. He was about to wave and get their attention when he saw Gu Weizhou wipe the corner of Lin Jia’s mouth with a smile.

That action seemed familiar, just like what Pei Zhiyi had done to him not long ago.

Shen Mian: “?” Something didn’t seem right.

He instinctively held back his hand that wanted to wave randomly but still kept glancing in their direction.

After a minute, he saw Lin Jia say something to Gu Weizhou, and Gu Weizhou kissed his hand and said something in return.

Shen Mian gasped.

As a former straight guy who got involved with his best friend, he could swear to the heavens that those two were definitely not displaying brotherly affection!

What brothers would wipe each other’s mouth corners!

Maybe his gaze was too intense.

Gu Weizhou and Lin Jia seemed to sense it and glanced over, freezing when they saw him.

Since it wasn’t late yet, there weren’t many customers in the barbecue restaurant, so there wasn’t much obstruction between their two tables.

Shen Mian clearly noticed that the two of them froze.

And he awkwardly smiled and waved at them, “Hey?”

Lin Jia: “…”

Gu Weizhou: “…”

The two of them were certain that Shen Mian had definitely seen them.

?

After a while, the original table for two turned into a table for four.

The atmosphere became a bit awkward.

Shen Mian didn’t expect that even in such a distant place with Pei Zhiyi, they would still encounter acquaintances.

He glanced at Lin Jia, then at Gu Weizhou, making sure he wouldn’t blurt out anything.

Unexpectedly, Lin Jia smiled at him and said, “Are you two here on a date?”

Shen Mian’s face was filled with shock, “How did you know?!”

Can top students read minds?!

Lin Jia smiled again, but before he could explain anything, Pei Zhiyi coldly interjected, “He’s tricking you.”

As a result, Shen Mian fell for the trick right away.

Shen Mian: “…”

He silently covered his mouth, looked at Lin Jia with a condemning gaze, and muttered, “You’re so evil.”

Lin Jia felt a bit guilty. Indeed, among the entire table, Shen Mian was the only naive one, and he had deceived him. To show his friendliness, he took a chicken wing and picked it up for Shen Mian.

But since everyone at the table was gay, there was no need to hide anything anymore.

After finishing the chicken wing, Shen Mian started chatting with Lin Jia, asking him questions like a curious child. After all, he had limited knowledge about gay people, and besides Xu Yuanfan, he only knew those two in front of him.

Gu Weizhou and Pei Zhiyi ended up becoming background characters. They weren’t too familiar with each other and both had a cold personality, lacking the desire to engage in conversation. They simply helped with grilling the meat and occasionally exchanged information about the competitions and matches they had after the start of the semester.

…

“You two have been together for over a month?!” Shen Mian was shocked once again. That was almost the same as him and Pei Zhiyi. “The progress is too fast!”

He had been dragging things out with Pei Zhiyi for over ten years, while Gu Weizhou and Lin Jia got together within a few months of Gu Weizhou transferring to their school. 

Shen Mian inexplicably felt like he had lost.

He glanced at Pei Zhiyi with a sense of resentment but soon realized that the main issue was with himself; after all, he had the late realization.

He took a sip of tea and said to Lin Jia, “You two are amazing.”

Lin Jia didn’t see anything amazing about it, but Shen Mian’s sparkling eyes made him a little embarrassed.

He scratched his face and said, “Actually, it’s nothing special. We just spent a lot of time together, and unconsciously, we developed feelings for each other.”

Shen Mian sighed, “That’s so much better than me. It took me several years to figure it out, wasting so many years.”

If he had realized it earlier, he might have already celebrated several anniversaries.

Pei Zhiyi also overheard their conversation and couldn’t help but glance at Gu Weizhou across the table. Although he maintained a calm and aloof demeanor, Pei Zhiyi subtly sensed a hint of pride in him.

Pei Zhiyi calmly took a sip of tea and gently said to Shen Mian, “It’s okay. I’m happy to have been there for you as you grew up.”

Shen Mian chuckled and thought to himself that his brother was truly the best in the world.

Meanwhile, Gu Weizhou flipped a piece of grilled meat in frustration. That was flaunting, right? It was definitely flaunting! He had no idea what Lin Jia looked like when he was younger!