Don’t Ignite It chapter 35

After returning to Chuan City, Xia Yu immersed himself in work for several consecutive days. Being away for four or five days had left him with a pile of tasks to catch up on. He needed to contact clients, discuss the next exhibition with his colleagues, and was extremely busy.

Some of his colleagues believed he had gone on vacation, jokingly assuming he was on a honeymoon with Xu Zhan.

Xia Yu also resorted to such deception with his family, knowing that Xu Zhan had also gone out with his lover, which conveniently covered for their respective activities.

His assistant, in particular, envied their relationship. “Your relationship is really wonderful,” she remarked with shining eyes, her smile filled with adoration. “If only I could find a husband as great as Professor Xu, I’d love him deeply too.”

Xia Yu smiled and playfully asked her, “So, in your opinion, is Professor Xu better than me?”

The assistant pondered for a moment. “Well, boss, you’re the most handsome man I’ve ever seen,” she recalled her initial shock at Xia Yu’s beauty during her job interview, “but you’re almost too handsome, which can be a bit intimidating. Professor Xu, on the other hand, is different. He’s gentle and dependable; you can tell he’s a reliable good man.”

Xia Yu raised an eyebrow and lightly tapped her head with a document. “Careful about criticizing your boss; I might have to deduct your salary.”

The assistant wasn’t worried and giggled before running off.

Xia Yu chuckled and continued to read the documents in his hand.

In fact, this wasn’t the first time he had received such comments.

Several years ago, when he was with Lu Zhao, Lu Zhao had also commented that he was so strikingly handsome it felt intimidating.

Hearing such comments actually made him quite pleased.

He knew that his looks had their uses, and they often bothered Lu Zhao.

Thinking about Lu Zhao, Xia Yu’s hand, which had been flipping through the documents, paused for a moment.

Since returning from Cloud City, he hadn’t seen Lu Zhao in these past few days.

The day they arrived from their trip, Lu Zhao had driven him home but parked the car far away to avoid being seen by Xu Zhan or the neighbors in the bright daylight.

Lu Zhao hadn’t said a word; he simply watched Xia Yu in silence.

However, that gaze had made Xia Yu feel oddly uncomfortable.

For a brief moment, he even felt a bit sorry for Lu Zhao, even though there was no connection between Lu Zhao and that sentiment.

But he didn’t say anything, just closed the car door and carried his luggage back to the villa he shared with Xu Zhan.

But lately, he had been so occupied with work that he would often unintentionally daydream about those days in Cloud City.

He had brought back some souvenirs from Cloud City, including a small capsule toy that contained a shark figurine, which Lu Zhao had helped him open.

Now, that little shark figurine was sitting on his desk.

As he stared at it, he remembered how Lu Zhao had placed the capsule toy in his hand, subtly smiled, and said it looked like him.

He had been puzzled and had asked why.

Lu Zhao had gently tapped his lower lip. “You both have little sharp teeth.”

Xia Yu had sharp canine teeth, not very visible from the outside, but Lu Zhao knew better than anyone because Xia Yu often bit his lips.

When Lu Zhao had said those words, his voice had been tender and filled with a hidden indulgence. In the dimly lit aquarium, it had almost sounded like a term of endearment.

Xia Yu fell into a daze.

Of course, he could call Lu Zhao right now and arrange a meeting.

At this point, he had complete control over this relationship, as Lu Zhao had agreed to cooperate with him and not take any independent actions.

So far, apart from unavoidable meetings and business trips, Lu Zhao had been almost entirely responsive to his requests.

However, he didn’t feel like making that call. He was conflicted.

Since returning from Cloud City, he had realized that he had grown accustomed to having Lu Zhao around.

During dinner with Xu Zhan at night, he would sometimes absentmindedly think of the scenes of having dinner with Lu Zhao.

He might even recall the rather inaccurate divination from Qingyun Palace, suggesting a change in his marriage this year.

Lu Zhao’s influence on him was greater than he had imagined.

Xia Yu’s fingers glided across the screen a few times, hovering over Lu Zhao’s name, but in the end, he didn’t press it.

Ever since Lu Yuan had discovered them at the bar, he had changed Lu Zhao’s contact name in his phone to “L.”

It was meaningless, devoid of any intimacy.

Just a inconsequential code name, concealing a hidden relationship that couldn’t see the light of day.

That evening, after work, Xia Yu didn’t drive home but turned the car onto a road he didn’t usually take.

While on the road, Xu Zhan called, asking where he was.

“I’m about fifteen minutes away; I’ll be there soon,” Xia Yu said. “I’ve brought two sets of skincare products for your mom and sister; I didn’t bring anything else.”

“You don’t have to be so polite,” Xu Zhan chuckled on the other end of the phone. “It’s not like you’re really a guest.”

“It’s a habit.”

Xia Yu exchanged a few more words with Xu Zhan before hanging up the phone. As he saw the destination getting closer, he sighed silently in the car.

That day, they had agreed to have dinner at Xu Zhan’s family’s house.

In any marriage, whether it was a genuine one or a fake partnership, dealing with both sets of parents was inevitable.

Between the two of them, Xu Zhan usually accompanied him to his family’s home more often, and he rarely went to the Xu’s house.

The reason was simple: Xu Zhan got along very well with his parents, his older brother, and his sister-in-law. But every time he went to Xu’s house, he felt uncomfortable.

He felt that Xu Zhan’s parents weren’t entirely satisfied with him, but they were polite due to social decorum.

Xu Zhan’s parents also doted on their youngest son, Xu Zhan. He had never faced high expectations and pressure from his family. Xu Zhan had been free to pursue his interests in literature and philosophy from a young age. Initially, their marriage was arranged based on their families’ compatibility, but Xu Zhan had willingly agreed.

However, at the wedding, Xu Zhan’s parents had forced smiles, and their gaze toward him carried a hint of scrutiny.

Once, he overheard Xu Zhan’s mother complaining to relatives, saying that he had been entangled with Lu Zhao for years, and how could he marry her son so quickly after breaking up? It was impossible for him to genuinely care about Xu Zhan.

He couldn’t refute that statement.

He had never complained to Xu Zhan about it.

Xu Zhan understood everything about him, but outsiders didn’t. Parents always thought about their son’s partner. If they considered the fact that his previous lover had been involved with him for years and had only broken up a few months before marrying their son, he thought it was a miracle that he hadn’t been treated with suspicion.

Lost in thought, Xia Yu had already arrived at the Xu family house.

He parked the car in the garage, carried his belongings inside, and as soon as he entered the living room, he saw Xu Zhan chatting with his parents.

Facing Xu Zhan, who rarely came home, the smiles on Mr. and Mrs. Xu’s faces were particularly genuine.

However, when Xia Yu approached and politely greeted them as “Uncle and Auntie,” Mrs. Xu’s smile froze for a moment. Nevertheless, she quickly concealed it and nodded to Xia Yu, saying, “You’re here, Yu Yu. We were just talking about you. Please have a seat.”

Xia Yu reluctantly sat down next to Xu Zhan.

Mrs. Xu looked quite similar to Xu Zhan, but she had a much more serious demeanor. She had been a university professor before retiring.

“Xiao Zhan said you’ve been very busy with work lately, your curations have been very successful, and you’ve been working late every day,” Mrs. Xu smiled at Xia Yu. “It’s normal for young people to be dedicated to their work, but please take care of your health. Especially when you and Xiao Zhan are together, you’re both so busy, it must be hard to find time to nurture your relationship.”

Xia Yu exchanged a glance with Xu Zhan, knowing that Xu Zhan was covering for him.

However, Mrs. Xu’s words, while caring, seemed a bit too polite, more like those reserved for a distant relative.

He nodded and obediently replied, “I understand.”

Xu Zhan patted Xia Yu’s hand and said, “Xia Yu’s career is on the rise. Sometimes I even pick him up from the gallery after work, and we have dinner and watch movies together. It doesn’t affect anything.”

Mrs. Xu also noticed that her son was defending Xia Yu and didn’t say anything further. She picked up an orange slice from the fruit platter and resumed talking about the painting she had recently bought at an auction.

“Later, let Xiao Yu give me his opinion on it, to see if I made a good purchase and if it has any collectible value.”

She offered the peeled orange slice to Xia Yu.

Xia Yu immediately accepted it and said, “Auntie definitely has good taste. I’ve only studied for a few years, so don’t make fun of me.”

Mrs. Xu chuckled, “I’m just letting you take a look; it’s not an exam.”

The group chatted for a while, and then Mrs. Xu got up to check on the progress in the kitchen.

Mr. Xu was still engrossed in his book and didn’t pay much attention to the conversation.

Xia Yu leaned back on the sofa, finally able to relax a bit, and playfully made a face at Xu Zhan.

Xu Zhan smiled and silently mouthed to Xia Yu, “Thank you for your hard work.”

He wasn’t a fool; even if he hadn’t noticed it at first, after three years, he had realized that his parents weren’t close enough to Xia Yu.

So he tried to avoid bringing Xia Yu home as much as possible, sparing him from this ordeal.

However, every year, they still had to have a few meals together; otherwise, it wouldn’t look right.

After eating the orange slice peeled by Mrs. Xu, Xia Yu thought of Xu Zhan’s sister. “Is your sister not coming home today?”

“She’s working late,” Xu Zhan said, “she mentioned that she’ll come later.”

“I see.”

Xia Yu quite liked Xu Ping. She had a strong and decisive personality, a bit icy to everyone except her younger brother, whom she treated with warmth. With others, she rarely showed a friendly face and was even less likely to linger. However, she was quite affable towards him, probably because of a bit of “love for the house and its crow” [an affection for everything related to a person you love].

Xu Zhan peeled an orange himself and asked Xia Yu, “Our university is holding an open day in a few days. Will you come?”

“Is it fun?”

“It’s alright. Some students perform, and there’s a food court set up on the campus square. The musical theater might have something decent too.”

“In that case, I won’t go. Doesn’t sound very interesting,” Xia Yu chuckled and teased Xu Zhan. “Let Ruan Sen go with you ; at his age, no one can tell if he’s from the campus or not.” Xia Yu looked around and leaned in closer to Xu Zhan. “The two of you can still play the teacher-student role.”

Mischievous.

Xu Zhan seized the opportunity when his parents weren’t paying attention and playfully nudged Xia Yu.

Xia Yu burst into laughter and bent over.

But he noticed that Xu Zhan seemed a little uneasy, like he wanted to say something.

Sure enough, a little while later, Xu Zhan spoke softly, “Ruan Sen might actually come.”

Xia Yu stopped laughing, widened his eyes, and asked, “Are you really taking him with you? What will you say if someone recognizes you?”

Courageous.

Xu Zhan was also somewhat hesitant.

It was Ruan Sen who had suggested coming, but there were many people on campus, and many knew that he was married. However, Ruan Sen had kissed him and said he wanted to walk around the university with him. It was hard for him to refuse.

“I won’t take him around everywhere. I’ll try not to bring him to our department. If someone does see us, I’ll just say he’s a friend,” Xu Zhan said hesitantly.

“In that case, just be careful,” Xia Yu said, grinning mischievously. “In case you run into any trouble, you can call me to rescue you.”

“No need for that.”

Xia Yu leaned closer and whispered some absurd ideas into Xu Zhan’s ear, getting more and more off track. “Does your school have any abandoned storage rooms or sports equipment rooms? Why not take the opportunity to play a teacher-student role? There are ready-made venues…”

Xu Zhan couldn’t take it anymore and pushed Xia Yu aside.

Mrs. Xu hadn’t come over yet but had heard the laughter of the two men.

She didn’t know what Xu Zhan and Xia Yu were talking about, but she saw her usually gentle and serious son playfully holding Xia Yu’s hand and appearing livelier than usual. She might have scolded these younger generations for being too reckless, especially in front of their elders, when she was younger. But now that she was older, she had lost some of her strictness from her youth.

Watching Xia Yu’s excessively beautiful face, she couldn’t help but feel a bit annoyed for some reason.

She also had her own social circle, and not everyone had learned to mind their business as they grew older. There were still people who enjoyed gossip.

Someone had deliberately mentioned the relocation of the Lu headquarters to Chuan City at the card table, and made a veiled reference to Lu Zhao. They talked about Xia Yu’s past relationship with Lu Zhao, nearly hinting that Xia Yu was cheating. Mrs. Xu promptly retorted and put an end to it.

But she couldn’t help but feel somewhat uneasy today.

Now, seeing Xu Zhan and Xia Yu leaning against each other, chatting as if they were the only ones present, she could only sigh and suppress her feelings.