Don’t Ignite It chapter 7

Unbelief

Xia Yu poured a glass of red wine for Xu Zhan.

He had been holed up in the bedroom for a few hours, drinking, and he had actually calmed down quite a bit.

He briefly recounted what had happened in the car just now, his expression calm, and asked Xu Zhan, “Do you think he’s serious? He told me to leave three years ago, and now he says he loves me. If I believe him, I must be a fool, right?”

Xu Zhan furrowed his brow with concern but remained silent.

He did have some belief in it.

In fact, after he married Xia Yu, he had once accidentally run into Lu Zhao. At that time, the way Lu Zhao looked at him made him feel that if Lu Zhao had a gun in his hand, he would have shot him.

He whispered, “Lu Zhao might really have some genuine feelings for you…” He didn’t know how to describe it. “A bit sincere, maybe?”

Xia Yu burst into laughter.

He looked at Xu Zhan with amusement. “How is that possible? Have you forgotten what Lu Zhao said back then? He said he would marry anyone but me. He said I was too forward and too greedy, and he couldn’t give me love. Yet I clung to him without any promises. He said if we were to get married, he would never get rid of me for the rest of his life.”

When he and Lu Zhao separated back then, there wasn’t much drama. It was just that Lu Zhao, after taking over the family business, felt that he should get married to someone else for a business alliance and proposed a breakup.

Lu Zhao was born into a family of business alliances, and his parents each had their own lovers outside but were steadfast allies to each other. They didn’t have love, but they were rational and calculated, maximizing their business interests.

Influenced by this environment, Lu Zhao also had the same standards for marriage.

And Xia Yu clearly didn’t meet those standards. He was anything but rational, full of childlike innocence, clingy like a pampered house cat in need of constant care.

Xia Yu remembered how Lu Zhao had calmly analyzed their incompatibilities back then, listing all the reasons they were wrong for each other, and he felt like the wine he had just sipped was burning in his throat.

In that sense, they really didn’t match.

Xia Yu chuckled lightly and said to Xu Zhan, “Maybe in these few years, he couldn’t find a suitable marriage partner and, upon reflection, realized that there aren’t many fools like me in the world who love him so much. He might have a tinge of regret.”

People always had a bit of that in them.

When he couldn’t have Lu Zhao, just the thought of him made Xia Yu’s heart ache.

And now that he had become someone else’s husband, when Lu Zhao saw him, he probably felt a twinge of regret when thinking about their past shared bed. But that wasn’t love.

Xu Zhan didn’t look too pleased when Xia Yu said that. “Don’t talk about yourself like that.”

Xia Yu smiled indifferently.

He knew Xu Zhan was biased in his favor and was taking his side..

Xu Zhan also took a sip of wine and asked, troubled, “So, what are you planning to do?”

Xia Yu didn’t understand. “What do you mean?”

“Lu Zhao,” Xu Zhan furrowed his brow, “if he’s here to reconcile with you, will you agree?”

Xia Yu burst into laughter.

“How can we reconcile? Am I that naive?” He laughed and shook his head. “I made a mistake once, and I’m not going to make the same mistake again. I’m already married to you, and we’re doing just fine. Why should I get tangled up with an old flame?”

Xia Yu touched the ring on his ring finger.

Between him and Xu Zhan, he had always been the one wearing the ring. It had become a habit, and it didn’t mean anything. But that ring did seem like a lock, locking away all his past indiscretions before marriage.

He told Xu Zhan, “By the way, Lu Zhao promised not to reveal your affairs. He should be able to keep his word on this.”

Xu Zhan still looked worried.

Compared to what had happened between Xia Yu and him, his own “flings” were not worth mentioning at all. He didn’t like others gossiping about his private life, but it wasn’t enough to make him cautious.

But for Lu Zhao, it was different.

Lu Zhao was still nostalgic for Xia Yu, and now that Xu Zhan had “cheated,” Lu Zhao had every reason to pursue Xia Yu again.

He told this to Xia Yu.

But Xia Yu shrugged, clearly not taking it to heart.

“He won’t.”

He never believed that Lu Zhao’s declaration of love was genuine.

Lu Zhao simply couldn’t love anyone. At most, he hadn’t found a suitable partner, and that’s why he remembered Xia Yu’s advantages.

At least he was submissive and good in bed.

After getting his thoughts off his chest, Xia Yu felt a bit more relaxed.

He didn’t want to talk about Lu Zhao anymore and poured a drink for Xu Zhan. “Alright, let’s not talk about Lu Zhao anymore; it just adds to the annoyance,” he forced himself to sit up and then glanced at Xu Zhan with a smile. “What about you? Did you just come back from a date?”

Xu Zhan knew Xia Yu was changing the subject.

He nodded, “Sort of. He asked me to go fishing today.”

His lover was named Ruan Sen. The two of them had initially gone fishing in the wilderness, but in the end, they hadn’t caught any fish. Instead, they had spent the whole afternoon fooling around in a cabin.

Thinking about it, Xu Zhan’s face showed a hint of embarrassment, but his gaze remained soft.

Xia Yu propped up his chin with one hand.

In the past few years, he had been disheartened and had no desire to get into any romantic entanglements.

But now, seeing Xu Zhan immersed in his love life, he had some other thoughts.

He pondered, “Should I find a lover like that too? A few months of a contract, clear boundaries for money and intimacy. It wouldn’t be troublesome, and it would be fun.”

As he said this, he seriously considered it.

“What nonsense,” Xu Zhan said with a helpless smile, “if you’re willing, you can have anyone.”

Xia Yu pursed his lips, not entirely agreeing.

He used to think he was naturally lucky, and everyone should like him. However, since meeting Lu Zhao, he no longer thought that way.

The two of them drank for a while in the living room and chatted about various topics.

Xia Yu glanced at the time; it was already midnight. He said to Xu Zhan, “Let’s go to bed; let’s not stay up too late.”

Xu Zhan was worried about Xia Yu’s stomach after drinking so much, so he made him a cup of honey water.

Xia Yu obediently drank it, bid Xu Zhan good night, but when he brushed his teeth and lay in bed, he couldn’t fall asleep and kept tossing and turning.

The rain outside the window hadn’t stopped, and the autumn rain was chilly. Even inside the house, it felt invaded by the cold.

Xia Yu turned over and glanced at his phone screen for a while. He thought about blocking Lu Zhao but then decided it wasn’t necessary.

What he had said to Xu Zhan earlier had all come from the heart.

He truly didn’t believe that Lu Zhao was serious about pursuing him, nor did he believe that Lu Zhao loved him. He didn’t believe a single word of it.

Since he had rejected him, knowing Lu Zhao’s pride, he wouldn’t pester him anymore.

In the end, Xia Yu turned off his phone and placed it aside.

He closed his eyes, pulled the blanket up, and forced his consciousness to gradually sink.

But before him, it always seemed like there was a pool of water, and he was sinking deeper and deeper, until he lay at the bottom of the pool under a starry sky, as if he would never resurface again.