Blinded by Lust chapter 1

The sea, after the rain had cleared, was as calm as an oil painting. In the distance, where the sky met the water, the horizon seemed endless. A cargo ship was docked at the port of Lezwei, with a lonely barbecue grill placed in the middle of the deck.

A nimble figure leaped off the gangway and plunged into the sea. As crystal-clear water splashed everywhere, a few sailors floating on the water held their breath, staring at the ripples on the surface.

Suddenly, Wu Bie burst out of the water. He shook his head, sending salty water droplets flying everywhere.

“Wow!” The teasing cheers instantly shattered the tranquility of the sea.

The scorching sunlight was refracted into a dazzling array of colors by the rippling sea. Wu Bie wiped the seawater off his face, beaming with a bright smile. He shouted at someone on the cargo ship, “Chen Xian! Did you record it?”

Chen Xian wasn’t as loud as Wu Bie. Too far to shout back, he simply made an “OK” gesture.

Wu Bie had to see for himself. Under the blazing sun, he swam back to the ship and dashed up the gangway to the deck. “Let me see.”

In that short distance, the seawater on Wu Bie had already dried up under the sun’s heat. He stood there, letting the sun bake his back, thoroughly enjoying his dive video.

“Cool, but I think it’s missing something. How about this: you change your position, and I’ll jump again.”

Don’t be fooled by Wu Bie’s carefree attitude—he was quite the narcissist. Especially with the rise of short videos, he could shoot ten videos of himself daily, indulging in extreme self-admiration.

Chen Xian, being patient, didn’t mind Wu Bie’s fussiness. Just as he was about to speak, his phone vibrated in his pocket. He pulled it out to see a voice call request from Shen Jixue. “Hold on, Ah Xue is calling me.” He answered the call and walked to the other side of the deck.

Watching Chen Xian walk away, Wu Bie made exaggerated faces behind him, mimicking, “Hold on, Ah Xue is calling me.”

Even after imitating Chen Xian, Wu Bie wasn’t satisfied. He muttered under his breath, “On the phone all day long, what’s there to talk about? A few more months and we’ll be back home. You two are gonna drive each other crazy.”

He couldn’t stand how Chen Xian was so easily swayed. A true man should aspire to see the world. Life is about freedom and dreams, not about being entangled in romance all day—there’s no masculinity in that!

He despised Shen Jixue even more, a typical little manipulator who’d cry, fuss, and threaten suicide to get his way. And Chen Xian, spineless as he was, fell for it every time.

“Ugh.” Wu Bie made a dismissive gesture at Chen Xian’s back, then turned away, planning to continue watching his diving video.

If he had taken training seriously back then, he could have easily made it to the national team with his talent.

“Sigh.” Wu Bie watched his video repeatedly, sighing. “I’m so handsome, how…”

Before he could finish his lament, Chen Xian’s ecstatic voice interrupted him.

“Wu Bie! Guess who’s here!”

Wu Bie, infected by Chen Xian’s excitement, wondered who it could be. Some gorgeous woman? Grinning, he turned around, and his smile froze instantly. There, in front of him, was Shen Jixue, dragging his suitcase.

“Ah Xue is here!” Chen Xian was over the moon, his eyes gleaming with excitement, his pupils dilating slightly. “Why didn’t you tell me you were coming? I could’ve picked you up.”

Shen Jixue pouted, feigning displeasure. “If I had told you, you’d have told me not to come. What’s wrong? You’re not happy I’m here?”

Chen Xian, grinning like a fool, took the suitcase from Shen Jixue, so excited he was almost incoherent. “Wh-why would I not be… hey, have you eaten?”

Shen Jixue didn’t answer directly, “I just got off the plane.”

Chen Xian, of course, assumed he hadn’t eaten yet. He glanced around; the food on the grill was already burnt to a crisp. He turned to Wu Bie and said, “I’ll take Ah Xue to eat in town. Can you bring his suitcase to my room?”

Wu Bie suddenly found himself holding a suitcase, watching Shen Jixue’s smug face. In his mind, he made a not-so-friendly gesture.

Why didn’t Shen Jixue just starve on the plane? And Chen Xian, he’s just a big fool led around by the nose. It’s the 21st century—Shen Jixue was in his twenties, he wouldn’t starve himself!

Wu Bie wanted nothing more than to toss Shen Jixue’s suitcase into the sea, but knowing Shen Jixue, he’d use it as an opportunity to play the victim in front of Chen Xian. The jerk. Frustrated, Wu Bie uploaded his video to his short video account without even bothering to choose one carefully, then dutifully dragged Shen Jixue’s suitcase into Chen Xian’s room.

It was boring. After delivering the suitcase, Wu Bie went straight back to his room to sleep. When he woke up again, the sun was setting, painting the distant sky a deep red.

Wu Bie habitually looked for Chen Xian but remembered that Shen Jixue had arrived, so Chen Xian was probably too busy to care.

But! Damn it, what could they be eating that’s taken all afternoon?

He was about to message Chen Xian when two figures, stuck together like glue, appeared at the port entrance. Upon seeing Wu Bie, Chen Xian, with a glowing face, greeted him.

“Wu Bie.”

Wu Bie snorted coldly, “You’re finally back? Came back just in time for dinner, huh?”

“We’ve already eaten out,” Chen Xian said with a smile.

Eating alone, aren’t you afraid your mouth will rot!

Wu Bie cast a disdainful glance at the two of them and sneered, “You came back this early after eating?”

Chen Xian didn’t bother arguing with him and replied with a smile, “I’m just accompanying Ah Xue to get his luggage.”

Hearing this, Wu Bie felt something was off. What did this mean? They weren’t going to stay on the ship? With Shen Jixue’s clingy nature, like a persistent bandage, he’d followed them overseas—how could he not be glued to Chen Xian 24/7?

Seeing Wu Bie’s confusion, Chen Xian kindly explained, “Ah Xue took special leave. I want to take him around for a bit.”

“What do you mean? You’re getting off the ship?” Wu Bie widened his eyes in shock.

“Yes, we only have a few months left anyway. Everyone’s familiar with the routine now, so my leaving the ship midway shouldn’t cause any problems.”

Wu Bie was so shocked he almost stuttered, “What… what do you mean ‘no problems’? This is a big deal! How can you set an example like this?”

Chen Xian chuckled, “It’s not that serious. Ah Xue took special leave to come here, and it’s a rare opportunity. I want to take him around a bit, and then we’ll fly back together. Besides, it’s not convenient on the ship—you know how small our single beds are.”

Before Wu Bie could respond, Shen Jixue spoke leisurely, “You wouldn’t still be like a child, needing Chen Xian to accompany you, would you? If that’s the case, we won’t leave. After all, it’s true that it’s pretty boring for you to be alone, and if Chen Xian leaves, there’ll be no one to keep you company.”

Wasn’t that hitting Wu Bie where it hurt? How could he be talked down to like this by a kid so much younger than him?

He forced a dry laugh, gritting his teeth, “Heh, just kidding. How could I intrude on your little romantic world? Go ahead, enjoy yourselves. It’s a rare chance to go abroad, make the most of it.”

Chen Xian knew Wu Bie was unhappy, so he stepped forward to pat his shoulder, comforting him, “How about this? I’ll bring you back a gift. What do you want? Just tell me.”

Heh, here we go again, using the same tricks to placate him as he did with Shen Jixue. Wu Bie wasn’t falling for it.

He brushed off Chen Xian’s hand, “Just hurry up and go. You two being together on the ship really isn’t a good look.”

“You’re something else.” Chen Xian sighed, not getting angry at Wu Bie. He calmly collected Shen Jixue’s luggage, said goodbye to his colleagues, and then left the port in style.

Watching them walk off together, Wu Bie couldn’t even finish his dinner. He ended up helping some sailors with rust removal and painting until nightfall before returning to his room.

The rooms on the ship were cramped, just as Chen Xian had said. Their small bed was barely enough for one man to sleep on, and fitting two was out of the question.

After taking a shower, Wu Bie listlessly lay down on the bed. Lately, there hadn’t been much to do other than unloading cargo. He wasn’t tired and didn’t feel sleepy.

The soundproofing in the cabin was pretty good; once the door was closed, the engine noise was barely audible, and the sound of the waves was completely absent.

This quietness only accentuated his loneliness. He’d been used to being single for so many years, so it wasn’t really a big deal. But the fact that Shen Jixue had come looking for Chen Xian today—well, even he was surprised by it. Although he said he didn’t care, he was actually envious of Chen Xian. The key was that Shen Jixue was utterly devoted, much more clingy than that Jiang Ying, Chen Xian’s ex-wife.

Even though he was a guy, what man wouldn’t want someone who cared about him like that?

Feeling frustrated, Wu Bie turned over and habitually reached for his phone under the pillow. He didn’t want to dwell on such sad thoughts. So what if he was single? Everyone’s been single at some point. This feeling of loneliness was just temporary, and he’d forget about it soon.

Wu Bie comforted himself this way as he casually opened a short video app. With a “ding,” his phone notified him that his data was running low.

“Damn!” Wu Bie cursed under his breath. As if things weren’t bad enough, now his data was nearly used up, and it was only halfway through the month. This was his only source of entertainment, and now it was almost gone.

He decided to save the last bit of data, so he quickly closed the video app. However, the message notification bar still had a small red dot, which he thought was just another like. But when he clicked on it, it was a notification about a “new friend.”

“Who is it?” Wu Bie casually clicked in. A stranger with a seagull as a profile picture and a garbled username had followed him and sent him a private message.

“Hello.”

Wu Bie checked the person’s profile; they hadn’t posted anything and were obviously a new account. He couldn’t even tell if they were male or female.

With his limited data, he didn’t dare to send any emojis, so he dryly replied, “Hello.”

TN:

To get the context of Chen Xian’s (Wu Bie’s best friend) relationship with his boyfriend Shen Jixue, you can first read their story (The Withered Tree Always Welcomes Spring). I fully translated it on this site and Wu Bie was a side character there.