Don’t Ignite It chapter 99

Difficult to Escape Blame: Xu Zhan × Ruan Sen(28)

On this day, Xu Zhan happened to have a day off, and neither of them had gone out. After having lunch, Xu Zhan took a short nap but woke up soon after, lying on the bed and chatting with Qin Sheng.

Xu Zhan leaned on the edge of the bed, a thin blanket covering him up to his waist, wearing a silky soft robe that revealed his beautiful neck and slender shoulders with every movement.

Qin Sheng held Xu Zhan and spoke to him in a calm tone, sharing stories about his family. He talked about his grandfather, his womanizing and hypocritical father, his mentally ill but gentle mother, and his bickering but inseparable siblings.

In reality, he didn’t want to talk about it. Just like everyone wishes to appear flawless in the eyes of their loved ones, he wanted Xu Zhan to see him as shining and not as an empty satin fabric, which, when uncovered, revealed rot inside.

But Xu Zhan asked, and it brought up his past deceptions, so he chose to be honest.

He said, “At first, my name was Qin Ruansen, a name my mother gave me. But when my father’s affair was discovered, my mother couldn’t handle the shock, so she entrusted me to my grandfather for upbringing. She didn’t want me to keep that name, so my grandfather changed it to Qin Sheng.”

Qin Sheng said all this calmly. “But it’s not a big deal. The only one who was hurt in the whole ordeal was my mother. She always felt indebted to me. But I’ve been doing fine. There are plenty of miserable people in the world, and only those homeless people on the streets can claim to be truly miserable. I don’t qualify. However, it did affect me in a way that I didn’t want to get married. I didn’t want to be tied to anyone. I lacked confidence in myself, fearing that I would fall in love with someone and let them down. So, it’s better not to start at all.”

Until he met Xu Zhan.

Xu Zhan was like a saint who came to rescue him from distress, his lips gentle and devout as they kissed him, endlessly accepting him. Eventually, Qin Sheng found himself trapped in a web of pure white, unable to escape.

But in the end, he still let Xu Zhan down.

He held Xu Zhan’s hand and covered his own eyes. “I have nothing to defend myself with. It was all a deception from the beginning—my identity, my experiences—all fake. Only my name was real. I just wanted to deceive you for a ridiculous three months and then leave. That was my initial plan. I even thought about giving you a sports car when I left, as compensation for a few months of your loss, thinking it would settle things. But in the end, the one who couldn’t escape was me.”

He peered at Xu Zhan through the gaps in his fingers. “I was pretty awful at the beginning, wasn’t I?”

Xu Zhan’s hand touched Qin Sheng’s forehead.

“Kind of,” he said. “But it’s okay. You didn’t deceive me that much because I fell for you first.”

It was he who had broken the rules.

In truth, he felt a sense of pity.

Even though Xu Zhan knew that Qin Sheng had a level of privilege that many people could never attain in their entire lives, he couldn’t help but wonder about the innocent child from twenty years ago who had borne the weight of his father’s mistakes and his mother’s disappointment, confined to his grandfather’s care. How helpless must he have been?

And he did find some comfort in this conversation, at least the beginning of their encounter wasn’t entirely deceitful. The name Ruansen was real—a gift from a mother’s love, even if it was later taken away.

Qin Sheng couldn’t help but let out a laugh from deep within his chest. 

Xu Zhan was just too kind, and he had allowed Qin Sheng to take advantage of him. But Qin Sheng had to admit that he cherished the privileges he had in Xu Zhan’s eyes. This tenderness was enough to make even the most stoic warrior surrender.

“You should be a little harsher on me,” he said with a smile in his eyes. “Professor Xu, when a student makes a mistake, they should be punished.”

Xu Zhan also smiled and asked him, “What about the sports car? Why haven’t I seen it?”

Qin Sheng turned over, pressing Xu Zhan down beneath him. Their eyes met, and the traces of yesterday’s passion and entanglement were still evident on their faces.

“The sports car isn’t enough. Can I pay off my debt with something greater?” Qin Sheng’s voice was husky as he lowered his head to kiss Xu Zhan’s lips. “Take me in, and I’ll give you all my assets. It’s a better deal than a sports car.”

When will they start sharing assets together? Of course, it would be after they registered their marriage. Xu Zhan knew it all too well. However, as he looked into Qin Sheng’s handsome face up close, he lightly curved his lips and said, “I’ll have to consider that.”

Only in this matter, he had to be cautious. He couldn’t be lenient.

Qin Sheng seemed a bit disappointed and had the look of someone who had lost a bone, but he had expected it long ago, though he couldn’t help but hold on to a glimmer of hope.

He gazed at Xu Zhan and, like a wild leopard before an attack, he bit onto Xu Zhan’s throat.

They messed around again until evening, and then Qin Sheng got up to cook. He wasn’t much of a chef, maybe he could make some spaghetti at most. Xu Zhan was still lying in bed and he felt a pang of self-blame for being too indulgent and lazy.

Qin Sheng was in the kitchen preparing the ingredients when he heard the doorbell ring in the living room. He thought it might be a delivery, but when he approached the door, he heard the sound of someone entering the access code.

He involuntarily stopped in his tracks, furrowing his brow. Who would have the access code to Xu Zhan’s place?

But soon, he had his answer as the door opened, revealing a figure in a royal blue coat. The person was fair-skinned, exquisitely beautiful, and seemed somewhat delicate. In their arms, they held a pile of things, and in Qin Sheng’s eyes, they looked like a fluttering butterfly, crashing into the room.

Xia Yu.

Qin Sheng had seen his face hundreds of times in videos, and even though he knew there were no feelings between Xia Yu and Xu Zhan, he couldn’t help but feel instinctive aversion toward the person.

“Xu Zhan, I’ve come to see you!” Xia Yu’s view was obstructed by the things in his arms, and he didn’t see who was in the living room. He stood on tiptoe to change into slippers.

However, when he raised his head, he froze. His snacks and medicines fell to the floor with a clatter, but he managed to catch a few takeout boxes just in time.

The spacious living room fell silent, and the clock ticked away quietly. Qin Sheng and Xia Yu stood in the middle of the room, facing each other.

“You!” Xia Yu couldn’t help but curse, tossing the things onto the nearby cabinet. He took a few quick strides forward, even though he was shorter than Qin Sheng by a head, he still grabbed Qin Sheng’s collar aggressively. “What are you doing here?”

Qin Sheng looked at Xia Yu disdainfully and gave him a condescending glance. “I should be asking you the same question. It’s not a good idea to intrude into someone else’s residence, especially when it’s your ex-husband’s home. In theory, I should call the police.”

He raised his hand and pushed away Xia Yu’s grip. He wore an expression of annoyance and walked past Xia Yu, heading for the kitchen to prepare food. He thought for a moment and added, “Don’t disturb Xu Zhan; he’s not feeling well today.”

Huh?

Xia Yu was dumbfounded for several seconds, slowly catching on to something. He glanced at the living room, which, although not particularly messy, seemed to have a faint aura belonging to someone else.

He realized he couldn’t be bothered with Qin Sheng for now and dashed into the bedroom.

Xu Zhan was looking at Xia Yu’s message. In the afternoon, he had told Xia Yu that he wasn’t feeling well, and Xia Yu had sent a WeChat message, saying he wanted to come and see him. At that time, Xu Zhan was chatting with Qin Sheng and hadn’t looked at his phone.

But now, before he could reply, Xia Yu had barged into his bedroom.

Xu Zhan sat on the bed, leaning against the soft cushion. His hair was slightly disheveled, and he looked better than he did in the morning, but the kiss marks on his neck and collarbone, as well as the scratches on his wrists, were still clearly visible, all serving as evidence of yesterday’s passion.

Xia Yu: “…”

He sat down at the edge of the bed after a moment of silence.

Xu Zhan gazed around the room, looking out of the window as if he was more interested in the outside light.

Xia Yu couldn’t bear it anymore and pinched Xu Zhan’s cheek, gritting his teeth as he asked, “Have you two gotten back together?”

Xu Zhan felt somewhat embarrassed. He knew that his face had been thoroughly tarnished over the past few months.

But he nodded gently.

“Ah, really…” Xia Yu groaned in pain, clutching his head. “How are you so forgiving? It’s only been a few months!”

He looked at Xu Zhan with a headache. Xu Zhan, feeling somewhat guilty and a little shy, lowered his head.

He picked up an orange from the bedside table, peeled it, removed the white pith, and handed it to Xia Yu.

“Let me explain it to you slowly later. In fact, Qin Sheng and I only got together last night. It’s a long story, and even I haven’t fully sorted it out,” Xu Zhan smiled. “But Qin Sheng is not as bad as you might think, just like Luo Zhao, not as bad as I thought.”

Xia Yu’s face twitched. At this moment, he couldn’t help but irrationally blame Luo Zhao.

It was this guy who made him feel unable to offer any advice, even though he had a lot to say.

He looked at the orange that Xu Zhan handed to him, feeling as if it were a bribe, something to make him shut up and accept Qin Sheng. But he wrinkled his nose and eventually took it, stuffing it haphazardly into his mouth.