Chapter 2673: South City Tonight Has Rain 35

Xie Linzhou took a satisfied sip of the wine in his cup and raised his eyebrows pleasantly.

He set down his cup, leaned his body forward again, and spoke up.

"The wine is great, I'll treat you to lunch, let's go on a date, how about that?"

The customers not far away heard this, their gazes all turning over, yet they saw the boss, who never showed any courtesy to confessors, actually nod his head.

"Okay, we'll listen to Brother Xie."

Customers: "???"

Isn't the boss supposed to be faithful to his boyfriend!

Isn't he the so-called iceberg who's the hardest to hit on in South City!

Isn't it that anyone who confesses only ever gets rejected!

Turns out these harsh conditions are just about looks!

But they couldn't ask, because that mysterious man had already lured the boss out the door.

Leaving the dazed staff inside the bar.

"Did the boss just agree to go on a date with that person?" someone muttered in disbelief.

"You employees, who has the boss's boyfriend's contact? Call quick, why not get someone over to catch them in the act?" a customer who loved drama suggested.

Staff: "Laughable, I've never even seen the boss's boyfriend, let alone have his contact."

Xiao Chen, sharp-eyed, caught sight of Huo Feng leisurely slipping in through the back door, apparently intending to mooch drinks again, and rushed forward to grab him.

"Brother Huo! Perfect timing! Did you just see the boss? He actually…"

"He actually went on a date with his partner himself, dragging me, the laborer, to watch the shop—is there any justice left!"

Huo Feng didn't let him finish, roughly ruffling his already messy hair, his face full of resentment.

After he finished complaining, he then looked at Xiao Chen and asked, somewhat belatedly, "Huh? What did you want to say just now?"

Xiao Chen and the staff seized the point: "That guy just now is the boss's boyfriend!"

"Oh, otherwise what?" Huo Feng let out a big yawn and lazily slumped onto the high stool in front of the bar.

"Men in love are terrifying; they can dig out old college clothes and wear them to look young. I saw his outfit at the door earlier and thought I'd seen a ghost in broad daylight."

——

Fine rain drifted down the street, not heavy, moistening the chilly air into a clean dampness; such rain, one could go without an umbrella.

Xie Linzhou exhaled a puff of white vapor, deliberately lagging a few steps behind to watch Jin Chen's back as he held up his umbrella.

The crisp blue shirt and white trousers stood out strikingly against the gloomy, rain‑gray street.

The more Xie Linzhou looked, the more he liked what he saw.

Jin Chen tilted his umbrella, turned sideways to wait for him, gave a slight head tilt, and said teasingly, "Brother Xie, still satisfied?"

Xie Linzhou finally couldn't hold back his laughter, strode a few steps forward, and flung himself into his arms, not caring that they were in the middle of the street.

He affectionately rubbed Jin Chen's ears, then placed a cool kiss on his nose tip, saying, "Satisfied, especially satisfied."

Xie Linzhou's tone softened altogether: "Were you really like that in college? It's too heart‑melting."

Jin Chen's free hand wrapped around Xie Linzhou's waist, pulling him farther under the umbrella, "Probably only you would think that."

"That's fine too." Xie Linzhou brought his face close, lightly nibbling his ear, filled with longing and possessiveness.

"You belong only to me."

After a while of affection, Xie Linzhou lifted his head and asked, "Really, we have a date?"

"Really." Jin Chen let him continue kissing, replying softly, "The Japanese restaurant you saw on your phone the night before—I've booked a table for noon."

Xie Linzhou recalled it, his eyes and brows curving with smiles, warmth welling up from within.

"What to do," he sighed, "each day I feel I love you more."

Jin Chen lowered his head, imprinting a brief, gentle kiss on the corner of his lips, as light as a winter drizzle.

"Keep it up."

"The restaurant isn't far from here," Jin Chen said. "Shall we walk?"

"Okay." Xie Linzhou agreed, and they walked side by side into the misty rain.

——

South City is a city with a long history, where time has settled, leaving behind many ancient buildings.

To get from the street where Rain Island Bar is located to the Japanese restaurant, one must cross the stone bridge that spans the river inside the city.

This bridge, Xie Linzhou had passed many times in his youth, on countless sunny or rainy days.

He followed Jin Chen onto the slightly damp bridge surface, slowed his steps, and stopped in the middle of the bridge.

Xie Linzhou turned slightly sideways, leaned his elbows on the cold rail, and narrowed his eyes to gaze into the distance.

Far off, the lake water and sky blended into one, a hazy blue‑gray, as if a filter had been applied.

As he breathed, he could still smell the damp vapor—a scent hard to describe, which Xie Linzhou often encountered as a youth and called the taste of South City's rain.

He used to hate it; each whiff meant the rain‑soaked city was once again shrouded in a long wet season, turning damp and sticky, even his mood growing moldy.

But now?

Now he doesn't hate it.

Xie Linzhou suddenly realized he really no longer disliked rainy days.

And the only variable now stands beside him.

He turned his gaze to Jin Chen beside him; a breeze on the bridge drove fine rain sideways, dampening the tips of his forehead hair, while Jin Chen also looked at him, his fingers threading through Xie Linzhou's wind‑tousled strands.

Their eyes met and mingled, as if sharing another furtive kiss.

"From my former home to the Leadwood Office, I have to pass this bridge."

Xie Linzhou turned his gaze back to that hazy lake‑sky, "Before, when Xie Qiu Dong scolded and rebuked me, my chest felt choked with distress; I wanted to go to a nearby park to clear my head, catch my breath, and I also had to pass this spot."

He said, a curve rising at the corner of his lips, the outer corners of his eyes gently curving, he pulled Jin Chen's unprotected hand, planting a kiss on the warm inner side of his wrist, then turned his face to press against his palm, sticky and unwilling to move away.

"This bridge seems to have witnessed all my bad emotions from my youth; every time I pass by, I can't help but recall them."

Jin Chen tilted the umbrella, blocking the direction the cold wind was blowing from, lowered his head and kissed Xie Linzhou's closed eyes.

Mist lingered over the falling kiss, so tender; after being kissed, Xie Linzhou opened his eyes, gazing into Jin Chen's depths, while behind him the damp bridge and lake became a blurred backdrop at that moment.

A strand of Jin Chen's forehead hair fell, languid and carefree, turning into the familiar aura Xie Linzhou knew; he said, "From now on, whenever you pass here, remember me."

Xie Linzhou felt a dense, scorching warmth rise in his heart; he untied the scarf around his neck, wrapped it outside Jin Chen's shirt collar, then grabbed both ends of the scarf, gently exerted force to tilt his head up, and kissed Jin Chen's lips.

At this moment, even the cold seasonal wind detoured around the stone bridge, unwilling to disturb.

【Detected Villain Blackening Value -20, total 20!】

【Detected Villain Heartthrob Value +10, total 100!】