Chapter 2664: Southern City Tonight Has Rain 26

Xie Linzhou felt his neck slightly heating up, a fine sweat seeping out.

The intense, almost burning possessive desire scorched his chest, while impulse and selfishness gained the upper hand.

Under the scrutinizing gazes of everyone, Xie Linzhou lifted his eyes, maintaining his smile, and said, "Yes."

Xie Linzhou lit up his phone screen, and the wallpaper photo happened to be seen by the few people nearby.

It was a photo of Xie Linzhou and Jin Chen together.

In the photo, Jin Chen tilted his head slightly to look at him, his eyes showing the gentle smile Xie Linzhou hadn't seen in a long time.

Xie Linzhou's gaze also fell on the screen; looking at the person in the photo who had once unreservedly shown him tenderness, he quickly closed his eyes, forcibly suppressing the surge of vulnerability and sourness, and when he opened them again, a hint of calm returned to the depths of his eyes.

Yuan Qiu stood frozen like a wooden chicken, his whole body seeming to turn to stone; after a few seconds he regained his voice and spoke stammeringly.

"I… confessed to your partner… right in front of you?"

He closed his eyes, raised a hand to his forehead, looking as if he might faint from anguish, and said, "Good heavens, I always thought the boss was single!"

Xie Linzhou pursed his lips guiltily and whispered, "... Sorry."

He silently added in his mind: Jin Chen is indeed single now.

"No no no… no need to apologize!" Yuan Qiu waved his hands frantically, shaking his head even more vigorously.

He'll still have to rely on Xie Linzhou in the industry later on!

Yuan Qiu quickly weighed his career against the handsome guy, his eyes shifting as he thought of a way to make amends, pulling out his phone and typing rapidly while speaking.

"Brother Zhou, don't worry, I'll send a message in our old customers' group right now, telling everyone that Boss Jin is taken! The grass has found its master!"

"... What?" Xie Linzhou looked at him in surprise, "You guys still have a group?"

Before he could finish his question, Yuan Qiu's flying fingers had already edited the message and tapped send with a pat.

Yuan Qiu looked satisfied at the group chat exploding with shocked and questioning messages, then lifted his head and smiled at Xie Linzhou.

"Exactly, we set it up not long after opening, and the news spreads fast!"

Xie Linzhou pressed his lips together, "..."

Well, he now feels guilty not only for hiding the breakup fact, but also embarrassed by the inexplicable public announcement.

What would Jin Chen think if he found out…?

Would he find him ridiculous, or… would he dislike him.

—

In the second-floor lounge.

Huo Feng lounged lazily on the sofa armrest, scrolling his phone screen, when he suddenly seemed to discover something interesting, let out an "eh," and handed the phone to Jin Chen.

"The group chat's been flooded," Huo Feng said with an amused interest in watching the drama, "It's what that little handsome guy who just confessed to you said; I remember they're together, right?"

Jin Chen took the phone, lowered his eyes to glance at the screen, and finally a smile appeared on his face.

Huo Feng clicked his tongue twice, "Not bad for me sneaking out tonight to watch the excitement; I didn't come for nothing."

He reached into his pocket for a cigarette pack, but as soon as he pulled it out, Jin Chen's gaze stopped him.

"If you dare smoke here, I'll throw you out of the second floor."

Huo Feng's motion stalled, he resentfully shoved the cigarette pack back into his pocket, then picked up the tea table's wine cup and took a sip, still not forgetting to tease.

"Oh my, I never saw you have this finicky bad habit before; how about it, can you sleep with that person tonight without getting smoke on you?"

Jin Chen: "..."

【Little Huo's words really hit home.】

"So what are you planning to do next?" Huo Feng asked, swirling his wine cup with a hint of curiosity, "Surely you're not really just relying on this little misunderstanding in the group chat and waiting for them to come back on their own, right?"

Before Jin Chen could answer, the lounge door was knocked on.

Huo Feng obviously didn't expect this old gentleman to get up and open the door himself; he consciously walked over with his wine cup and opened the door.

Outside the door stood two people: one was a kind-faced elderly man whose left leg was inconvenient, needing to lean on a cane.

The other was Ren Xian.

Huo Feng saw who had come, surprise flashing across his face, and hurried forward a step to support the old man.

"... Uncle Jin? How did you come here?"

He supported the old man as they walked in, then glanced back at Jin Chen.

Jin Chen had already stood up, his brows slightly furrowed, his gaze first falling on the old man, "Uncle."

Then his gaze shifted to Ren Xian, his expression turning cold, "What are you here for? Do you have business?"

Uncle Jin gently rebuked, "Hey, you kid, why are you speaking like that? Boss Ren is our family's benefactor; watch your attitude."

Ren Xian smiled, "It's fine, Uncle Jin, Jin Chen just has this temperament."

Uncle Jin also laughed, patted Ren Xian's arm, then looked at Jin Chen, "Yeah, your relationship should be pretty good now, right?"

Jin Chen caught the subtext in his uncle's words, "Uncle, I have a boyfriend."

"I know," Uncle Jin said righteously, "I haven't just heard that you two broke up, have I?"

Jin Chen: "..."

His uncle isn't even clear whether he's been together with Xie Linzhou, so how could the news of their recent breakup spread so quickly?

He sharply glanced at the smiling Ren Xian on his face.

Huo Feng watched the drama from the side for a while, felt the atmosphere was off, and tactfully found an excuse to slip away.

Jin Chen helped Uncle Jin sit on the sofa, gestured for Ren Xian to stay outside, and casually closed the door.

"I originally just wanted to come here to have a look," Ren Xian said as the door was closing, his tone somewhat helpless, "On the way driving here, I happened to see Uncle waiting by the roadside for a ride, so I gave him a lift along the way; it really wasn't intentional."

Jin Chen glanced at him, "Thanks, the bar welcomes customers, but the activity area is limited to the downstairs public area; no customer would intrude into the private lounge without permission."

Ren Xian softly sighed at his overly clear-cut, even aloof attitude, "I and Uncle really haven't seen each other in a long time; I'd like to catch up, may I?"

"Sure, sure!" Before Jin Chen could answer, Uncle Jin had already sneakily opened the door a crack, peeking out half his head, "I also want to catch up with Boss Ren."

This little old man.

Jin Chen felt helpless, loosening his grip on the door handle, "Then you guys chat, I'll go downstairs."

Before leaving, he didn't forget to give Ren Xian a warning glance, lowering his voice, "Don't do anything unnecessary."

Jin Chen went downstairs, passing through the somewhat noisy dance area, heading toward the corridor where the private rooms were.

Just as he reached the corner, he happened to see Xie Linzhou walking out of the private room, looking somewhat puzzled.

Jin Chen raised his eyebrows, the hostility between his brows quietly fading, he slowed his steps and walked over.

Xie Linzhou looked up and saw him, speaking softly, "Huo Feng said… you're looking for me?"

Huo Feng, who came out right behind him, gave Jin Chen a quick wink, Grinning as he went off to drink.

Jin Chen withdrew his gaze, resting it on Xie Linzhou, "Hmm."

He stepped a few steps closer to Xie Linzhou, the distance between them shrinking to an ambiguous range.

Jin Chen lowered his eyes, his gaze tracing Xie Linzhou's face, his voice low, "It's been half a month since we last met, and you've gotten even thinner."

That's not a lie; the moment Jin Chen saw Xie Linzhou tonight, he noticed he had slimmed down a bit compared to before.

His sweet tooth aside, his habit of skipping meals when he's upset—no matter how many worlds he's been through, he's never fully kicked it.

Xie Linzhou pinched his own wrist bone, not feeling much, "I've been busy preparing the materials for the re-exam, and…"

I miss you a lot.

Those words rolled on his tongue, but he swallowed them back, revealing a hint of helplessness and self-reproach beneath his dark lashes.

"Why aren't you looking at me?" Jin Chen asked, his voice close, "Don't you want to see me?"

"No." Xie Linzhou immediately lifted his eyes, his gaze locking into Jin Chen's deep pupils, unable to help but stare blankly.

The corridor's lighting was adjusted to be somewhat dim and hazy to create an atmosphere.

They were standing too close; the longing suppressed for half a month quietly burst forth, Xie Linzhou's eye sockets grew warm, he could barely control his emotions.

Fortunately, Xie Linzhou felt relieved in his heart; the lighting here was dark enough that his current lapse shouldn't be too noticeable.

Little did he know, Jin Chen, with his excellent eyesight, took it all in, his fingertips tingling, he really wanted to reach up and ruffle his soft hair.

Xie Linzhou felt a faint pain in his chest, not just a little, mixed with guilt and an emotion he couldn't even name himself.

More importantly, he wasn't sure whether Jin Chen had seen the group message, and he didn't know how to bring it up.

Jin Chen looked at his hesitant, uneasy appearance, roughly guessing what he was torn about, he curled the corner of his mouth and volunteered, "I saw it."

Xie Linzhou: '……'

His ears uncontrollably heated up, he awkwardly averted his gaze, his voice dropping, "Did… I cause you any trouble?"

Before Xie Linzhou could finish speaking, his gaze suddenly swept past Jin Chen's shoulder, fixing firmly on the stairwell behind him, his eyes turning icy.

Jin Chen followed his gaze and turned his head to look.

Ren Xian and Jin Uncle were standing on the stairs, about to come down.