Blazing fire is hard to extinguish chapter 74

Extra If Line: Personal Nurturing 14

Listen to that.

Lin Chi was almost furious enough to die from Li Tingyan’s words.

This pretentious attitude.

“Do as you wish?” Fine, fine, he would go buy rat poison right now and see if Li Tingyan would let him take one step out of this apartment.

He gave Li Tingyan a vicious glare, itching to throw the plate at his head.

But considering that he wasn’t full yet, he had no choice but to give up regretfully.

Lin Chi buried his head and finished the bowl of sparerib shrimp porridge, along with a side plate of soup dumplings.

After finishing, he finally felt alive again.

He hadn’t eaten dinner last night, had been dragged to bed by Li Tingyan, and tormented all night. It was a miracle he was even awake now, thanks to his strong constitution.

Thinking of this only made him angrier. Without a second thought, he tossed the plate to Li Tingyan, letting this young master clean up the mess.

He himself stood up from the bed, opened the window, and let the fresh air from outside flow in.

The orange sunset cast its glow on his face. He rummaged through his little storage box, pulled out a pack of cigarettes, and shamelessly lit one right in front of Li Tingyan.

Li Tingyan had just come back inside when he saw Lin Chi holding a lighter, cigarette in his mouth, leaning in to light it.

The flickering flame lit up Lin Chi’s face in the dim room, highlighting his sharp features and deep-set eyes. His eyes were naturally beautiful, as if always holding a pool of water.

He was still very young, even a bit immature.

But standing there lazily like that, with his loose robe hanging off him and his strong arms showing, no one could deny his allure.

“When did you learn to smoke?” Li Tingyan asked.

“I’ve known for a while.”

Lin Chi flicked the ash into a cactus pot. The poor little cactus hadn’t died from all the abuse yet—truly resilient.

His words were a bit provocative, and he even smiled at Li Tingyan.

See? I live under your nose every day, and yet there are still things you don’t know about me.

Li Tingyan understood what he was implying.

Normally, he would’ve scolded Lin Chi for this, but today, it felt too hypocritical.

So he said nothing.

Out of sight, Lin Chi quickly turned his face away, exhaling smoke that hadn’t even passed through his lungs.

Damn it.

He was overacting.

In truth, he didn’t smoke much. He had bought this pack just for fun.

Xi Zhiwen was the one who secretly smoked. Lin Chi had only tried it once or twice out of curiosity.

He just wanted to irritate Li Tingyan.

“Don’t you have anything to explain to me?” Lin Chi asked Li Tingyan, tugging at his robe to show the marks on his body.

He pointed at the hickey on his collarbone, smiling coldly. “Had fun yesterday?”

His words were like an arrow.

Li Tingyan stood there as if he couldn’t bear the accusation, his body even swaying slightly.

Fun?

The Lin Chi he had personally raised under his watch, who had grown into such a brilliant and dazzling person.

He had finally obtained him.

In the worst possible way.

“I have nothing to explain,” Li Tingyan’s voice was still cold, showing no hint of the turmoil inside. “You’re so smart, haven’t you figured it all out already?”

He turned to look at Lin Chi, his black eyes stained brown by the sunset’s afterglow, but showing no trace of warmth.

“I won’t let you go.”

“You can hate me all you want, never forgive me, but unless one day you really kill me, you can only stay by my side.”

His gaze swept toward Lin Chi’s wrist, where the woven bracelet had disappeared, replaced by red marks that hadn’t yet faded.

He blinked, then calmly added, “Don’t even think about being with anyone else. As long as I’m alive, it won’t be possible.”

Damn…

Lin Chi almost laughed out of anger.

With a cigarette in hand, he felt it was a miracle he hadn’t stubbed it out on Li Tingyan’s face, thinking it showed he had a good temper.

He looked out the window in frustration, then glanced at the small cactus on the table.

Such a long speech!

Such a long confession!

Yet Li Tingyan didn’t say a single word about liking him!

Lin Chi stared at Li Tingyan in utter confusion.

He seriously doubted whether this person was some secret robot developed by the Li family.

How else could someone be so utterly unfeeling!

Furious, he stubbed his cigarette out in the cactus pot, folded his arms, and glared at Li Tingyan.

“Why should I listen to you? Do you think you can just control me like that? Do you believe I won’t go publish a notice tomorrow accusing you of illegal detention?”

Li Tingyan looked back at him calmly, even with a hint of pity.

Lin Chi finally understood the meaning behind that look.

…Li Tingyan truly could.

He, with his skinny arms, stood no chance against this powerhouse.

Pouting, Lin Chi crossed his arms and leaned against the desk.

“But why are you doing this to me?” he asked Li Tingyan. “Does this amuse you? Even if you keep me by your side, I’ll never show you a friendly face. Like you said, I might hate you, I might even want to stab you. Is it really worth keeping a ticking time bomb like me around?”

Lin Chi was genuinely curious.

He asked, “You don’t need to tell me; I know. You’ve had plenty of people who would love to warm your bed. With just a beckon, you could have anyone you want. I know I’m pretty good-looking, but there are definitely people out there who are even better looking. Why are you so hung up on me?”

By the time he finished his sentence, his tone had turned almost persuasive.

Xi Zhiwen had said it when he was heartbroken.

Nobody believes in true love anymore these days.

The world is full of temptations, especially for someone like Li Tingyan. He’d never lack admirers.

Li Tingyan might be all obsessed with him now, but who knows how things would turn out later.

What if, just like Xi Zhiwen’s ex, he played with him and then discarded him?

Li Tingyan cast Lin Chi a glance, one that was almost ridiculous.

He admitted that Lin Chi was indeed beautiful.

His every feature, as if crafted by the gods, made him hard to resist.

But just like Lin Chi had said, if he only cared about appearances, there were countless beauties he could have.

“Because they’re not you,” Li Tingyan said softly.

As he said this, he looked at Lin Chi, but after finishing, he awkwardly looked out the window.

In his twenty-something years, he had never confessed love to anyone.

And in this situation, of all times.

But he had already done far worse things, so what was there left to hold back?

Maybe this was the only moment for the rest of his life when Lin Chi would actually listen to his true feelings.

“I’ve thought about giving up on you too. You are my… my savior. That night I was kidnapped, if it weren’t for you, I wouldn’t have survived.”

“You were the little child I personally carried back. When I brought you into the Li family, I never thought this day would come. I believed I would take good care of you. I raised you, and you were always close to my heart, warming each other.”

“Even when I took you to the U.S. for a vacation, skiing, hiking, I was still thinking about planning a future for you.”

“From any perspective, I shouldn’t have had such delusional thoughts about you.”

Li Tingyan looked at Lin Chi.

“But I can’t turn back,” he said softly, “I can’t transfer my feelings for you to someone else.”

It wasn’t like people hadn’t tried to introduce him to someone.

Whether it was for a one-night stand or something long-term, there were plenty of options if he wanted.

But he couldn’t bring himself to get close to anyone.

Among those people were some outstanding, dazzling boys, as charming as Lin Chi.

But it didn’t matter.

There was only one Lin Chi in the world—unique and irreplaceable.

He looked at Lin Chi earnestly.

“I’m sorry. I didn’t want to give you such a terrible experience. I wanted to be a graceful, mature adult, your dependable yet fake older brother. But I failed.”

He hesitated for a moment, turning his face away, avoiding Lin Chi’s gaze.

Even he couldn’t bear the sight of the person he loved looking at him with hatred.

In a low voice, he said, “Maybe these words will disgust you, but I really…”

A trace of struggle appeared on his face, but he still said it.

“I like you.”

In truth, he wanted to say he loved him.

But for the eighteen-year-old Lin Chi, that word might be too heavy.

It would be more like a plague, causing Lin Chi to resist.

.

The oppressive heat of summer gradually faded as the last rays of the sun dipped below the horizon, and a gentle evening breeze blew in.

The room fell back into dimness.

Lin Chi couldn’t help but feel relieved.

Luckily, the room was dark now, or Li Tingyan would surely notice how hot his face was, even flushed.

He coughed, wanting to put on a show and scold Li Tingyan a little, but he couldn’t help but smile at the corners of his mouth.

He couldn’t hold it back anymore.

He was afraid that if he spoke, he’d burst into laughter, so in the end, he could only put on a serious face, lower his voice, and say, “You go out first.”

After thinking for a moment, he added, “I… I need to think for a while.”

Li Tingyan was a bit confused. He didn’t understand what Lin Chi needed to think about.

Was he thinking about poisoning him?

Or planning how to escape?

But obviously, he wouldn’t go against Lin Chi at this moment.

“Alright.”

Without much hesitation, he turned and left, but as he closed the door, he glanced back.

Lin Chi’s tall, slender figure stood by the window, and with a click, Lin Chi lit that lighter again.

But instead of lighting a cigarette, he played with the fire like a child.

Yet, in that flickering light, he glanced at Li Tingyan.

In the darkness, he really looked like a shining star, or perhaps like a curious elf hidden deep in the forest, peeking at humans.

Li Tingyan’s heart trembled. He stood there for two seconds before slowly closing the door.

He leaned against the door, the usually calm and composed man now seeming exhausted as he gently closed his eyes.

.

Inside the room.

“Yes!”

Lin Chi couldn’t hold it in anymore. He pumped his fist and jumped on the floor, more excited than when he’d scored an amazing three-pointer.

“Shit, shit, shit…”

He really couldn’t stay calm. If it weren’t for Xi Zhiwen being perpetually heartbroken and emo right now, showing off his love would have been too much, and he wouldn’t be able to resist calling him.

This was too hard to hold back!

Who could’ve thought Li Tingyan actually liked him!

Lin Chi flopped onto the bed. The heat on his face still hadn’t subsided.

It was on this very bed that he and Li Tingyan had tangled together, doing things that were even more extreme than his wildest springtime dreams.

But when he woke up, he was still a bit confused, unsure if this was a momentary impulse from Li Tingyan or if Li Tingyan truly liked him.

But now, he knew.

It was love.

Li Tingyan liked him.

“Yes…”

Lin Chi muttered softly, but he couldn’t keep the smile off his face.

“He’s such a good actor,” he muttered, unfairly putting all the blame on Li Tingyan.

He thought, feeling aggrieved—how could anyone tell that Li Tingyan liked him with that calm and composed demeanor?

If Li Tingyan had shown even the slightest hint, wouldn’t they have been together long ago, instead of dragging it out until now?

Blaming Li Tingyan in his heart, Lin Chi rolled around in bed, no longer feeling any pain in his body.

If the conditions allowed, he would have loved to get up and go for a run right now.

Hehe.

He wanted to tell everyone he met.

Even the dogs on the street wouldn’t be spared.

---

Li Tingyan sat on the sofa.

He had no idea what Lin Chi was thinking.

He sat there like a devout believer awaiting judgment, sitting under an invisible cross, waiting for the sentence of his sins.

He fiddled with the ring on his hand.

It was a simple black, narrow ring, one Lin Chi had suddenly bought for him last year without any reason, just saying that it seemed to suit him.

He thought it was just a whim from Lin Chi, but ever since, despite not liking any accessories, he often wore this ring on his hand.

He had it on yesterday too, when he kissed Lin Chi. Lin Chi’s eyelashes were wet with tears, as delicate as a dying butterfly, and that ring felt scorching hot, like branding iron.

…

He didn’t know how long had passed.

Finally, he heard the sound of the bedroom door clicking open.

Lin Chi came out of the room and casually turned on the living room light.

With a snap, the snow-white light exposed everything, leaving nowhere to hide.

Including Lin Chi, standing in front of him.

Strangely, Lin Chi’s face was a little red, enough that Li Tingyan was concerned if he might be running a fever.

But before he could react, he heard Lin Chi cough and say very seriously, “Don’t move.”

Li Tingyan frowned, his gaze lingering on Lin Chi’s robe, but he still obeyed.

Lin Chi glanced awkwardly out the window.

Now it was his turn to feel embarrassed.

He coughed twice more, trying to act natural, sneaking a glance at Li Tingyan, then another, but still couldn’t meet his eyes.

He stared at the floor.

“I’ve thought about it—it’s a different era now. Isn’t forcing love a bit outdated?” He pursed his lips, looking disgusted. “I won’t accept you trying to lock me up, bind me.”

“But I’ve made up my mind… we can try something else.”

He couldn’t help himself; he looked up again and met Li Tingyan’s eyes.

He smiled at him.

Somehow, in that moment, Li Tingyan was reminded of when they first met years ago, in that shabby temple in Changyu County.

That day, it was pouring rain.

Lin Chi seemed like a star sent to save him, falling beside him.

And soon, he heard that same star, the one who had come for him, save him a second time.

Lin Chi said, “Why don’t we start dating, Li Tingyan?”