Chapter 1202: Millennium Year Love Diary 07

Zhao Weifang unfortunately had a loud voice; he shouted outward, the street opposite was their shop front, and soon a crowd rushed in, surrounding the cake shop tightly.

The townspeople were usually amiable, but they had a strong sense of sticking together, especially toward outsiders, let alone the fact that several of the people who rushed in were Zhao Weifang's relatives.

They blocked Jin Chen, while Chen Zhu protected him and tried to avoid directly touching others; the scene became chaotic in an instant.

Until a sharp, shrill female voice shouted, "You bastard born of a mother but not raised by one! Quickly let go of Weifang!"

Jin Chen froze, his arm-raising motion stiffening, then he snapped his head back and said, "Who said that?"

His expression was icy to the extreme, the fierce look in his eyes frightening, the sharpness between his brows and eyes making people feel dread.

Even if one had seen the most intimidating thugs, none had such eyes; the crowd's insults suddenly dropped to whispers, and Zhao Weifang seized the chance, rushing over while straining his neck to curse Jin Chen.

"Old… old lady, what's wrong with my scolding! You're just… eh eh eh!! You still want to hit a woman!"

The speaker was Zhao Weifang's paternal aunt, a notorious tigress in the town, with a sharp, thin voice; seeing Jin Chen rush over, she was still frightened and kept stepping back into the crowd.

The scene grew even more chaotic; three middle-aged men barely managed to stop Jin Chen's brute force, that aunt truly panicked, shouting to call the police and have Jin Chen arrested, while Zhao Weifang had already slipped away.

"Xiao Chen! Xiao Chen!"

Chen Zhu grabbed Jin Chen's waist from behind, "Stop fighting, Jin Chen!"

Jin Chen was pulled into his embrace, his breathing deep and heavy, his anger at its peak, yet he did not reach out to push Chen Zhu away.

"Let's go inside, don't argue with them."

Chen Zhu brushed Jin Chen's forehead hair, took him back to the rear room, then came out to face the onlookers still gawking, and finally showed anger.

"We're closed today, everyone out."

"Hey Xiao Chen, why are you also…"

"Everyone out! You didn't come here to cause trouble for Zhao Weifang, did you."

They understood Chen Zhu's meaning, and in their words they said that back when Zhao Weifang threw his weight around in the cake shop, they had ignored everything.

The townsfolk felt embarrassed, never having seen Chen Zhu lose his temper before, so they hurriedly left the cake shop.

Chen Zhu closed the door, hurried back to the rear room, and saw Jin Chen sitting on the sofa, head lowered, unknown what he was thinking, with bangs covering his eyes so Chen Zhu couldn't see his expression.

But the loneliness emanating from his whole being, Chen Zhu could empathize.

He sat beside Jin Chen, clenched his fist and hesitated for two seconds, then turned and gently pulled Jin Chen into an embrace.

Chen Zhu still smelled of baking, which was pleasant.

Jin Chen remained still, only tilting his head slightly to rest against his chest.

"I'm not angry." Chen Zhu lightly patted Jin Chen's back, his voice soft as a whisper near the ear, "Don't listen to their nonsense; you're not a child without a mother."

"I am."

Jin Chen finally spoke, his voice low and muffled.

Chen Zhu remained silent for two seconds, his soothing motion on the back unceasing, and compassion arose in his heart.

"No, no."

Chen Zhu comforted him like this, soothing Jin Chen while also, as if across time and space, comforting his own self that was collapsing, repressed, and in pain.

His voice remained gentle and soft: "Now Xiao Chen has family, and I do too."

Jin Chen sensed something but said nothing, burying himself in the embrace to ease his emotions, finally responding to the hug by wrapping his arms around Chen Zhu's narrow waist.

The new standing fan was set to low, it was afternoon, and the cicadas' chirping inexplicably made one feel hotter; the two men embraced, inevitably feeling warm, and soon a thin layer of damp sweat appeared.

Chen Zhu's eyes held complex, obscure emotions, yet he continued to stroke Jin Chen's back.

Again and again.

But Jin Chen felt quite hot, and having just finished a fight, he sat up straight.

His forehead was already beaded with sweat; Chen Zhu raised his hand to wipe it, but Jin Chen remembered Chen Zhu's slight cleanliness obsession and dared not let him, instinctively tilting his head back to dodge, yet he didn't escape—Chen Zhu's palm already rested on his forehead.

The warm, moist palm, along with the scent of cream, gave a strong sense of security.

Jin Chen suddenly realized Chen Zhu smelled fragrant; upon sniffing closely, he noticed the scent was different.

He simply stayed still, slightly tilting his head to let Chen Zhu wipe, feeling much more at ease, his worries dispelled.

Chen Zhu brought a cold-water towel and carefully wiped Jin Chen's neck and shoulders as well.

"All right, all right."

Jin Chen took the towel, folded it a few times and hung it around his neck for coolness, "It's not a bath, why wipe so thoroughly?"

He looked up and saw, "Well, it seems he's spacing out again."

Jin Chen had a sudden idea, extended his index finger and poked Chen Zhu's waist, teasing, "Your figure is quite good."

In his speech, there was no longer even a hint of the previous heaviness.

Chen Zhu grabbed Jin Chen's hand, his handsome face actually showing a faint blush, and softly stopped him, "Xiao Chen listen…"

The two words 'listen' rolled on his tongue, and Chen Zhu promptly corrected himself, "Xiao Chen, behave, don't touch randomly."

Jin Chen withdrew his hand, "Oh."

I don't.

Chen Zhu seemed to like having him behave a bit, though it couldn't really be called behaving; it was more like obedience.

Eh, what a strange quirk.

Really treating him like a child being raised.

Jin Chen's mischievous thoughts rose again, and he was unwilling to be an obedient person.

"Brother, can I have another hug?"

He shifted a bit, sitting closer.

Meeting Chen Zhu's doubtful gaze, Jin Chen spoke low, looking extremely aggrieved, "…still a bit unhappy."

Chen Zhu hesitated a little, due to his lack of confidence in his own willpower.

Recently, the time spent hugging Xiao Chen has increased; although each time it was intentional on his part, the duration remained short.

On one hand, he fears that Xiao Chen will discover something and find him disgusting.

On the other hand, he fears that indulging too much in embraces and contact will make it increasingly hard to satisfy himself.

But at this moment, his silence is clearly enough to hurt Xiao Chen.

"Okay."

Chen Zhu replied softly, opened his arms, and Jin Chen fiercely hugged him, almost with enough force to push him onto the sofa.