Chapter 2773: The Online Game Master's

The sky grew dark without anyone noticing, and scattered lights lit up outside the window.

The sound of a key turning came from the doorway, and a figure wrapped in biting cold pushed the door open.

Jin Chen set down his backpack, changed shoes at the entryway, his nose and cheeks flushed from the winter night wind, a hint of unmelted frost clinging to his eyelashes.

Cheng Lang approached, seeing Jin Chen's reddened nose from the cold, feeling heartbroken and a bit puzzled, "You didn't have evening class today, so why are you back so late?"

His warm palm covered Jin Chen's cheek, "Look how frozen you are."

Jin Chen wrapped his arms around his waist, burying his cold face in the warm, soft crook of his neck.

Cheng Lang shivered from the icy touch but didn't push him away, rubbing the back of Jin Chen's neck, "You're so cold."

"There's a group project," Jin Chen murmured against his neck, "the teammates are unreliable, we talked forever and lost time."

Jin Chen lifted his head, his face grim, brows slightly furrowed, "It's really annoying."

He wished there were no group projects in the world. Jin Chen thought to himself.

【Even the gods would be troubled by group work.】 Ling Gun Gun also shook his head.

Cheng Lang looked at him—cold, tired, and sullen—and couldn't help feeling heartbroken; as someone who'd been there, he fully understood the despair of being ruled by group work, smiling as he soothed, "All right, all right, don't be angry."

"Let me make you some baked milk to drink—you said yesterday you wanted some, didn't you?"

Jin Chen lowered his eyes, thought for a moment, then nodded.

The baked milk is good, you can drink it, and you can……drink it.

Jin Chen's gloomy mood vanished in an instant.

Jin Chen leaned into Cheng Lang's embrace again, a fresh soapberry scent lingering at his nose, but his hands weren't quite still—one slipped under the hem of Cheng Lang's sweater, cool palm pressing against his abs, the other arm wrapped around his firm waist, fingertips stroking.

"Senior's body is so warm," Jin Chen enjoyed it naturally.

Cheng Lang's abs tensed from the stimulation, he rubbed Jin Chen's earlobe, which was also icy, "I haven't even gone out today—how could I not be hot?"

He laughed, explaining, and indulged the faint itch at his waist.

On a winter evening, the wind howled outside the window, while the indoor heating was ample.

Besides the steaming hot pot, it's naturally perfect for gathering around the stove to boil tea.

Cheng Lang specially prepared the ingredient packet for baked milk, grabbed a blanket from the sofa and wrapped it around Jin Chen without hesitation, turning him into a lazy big cat, then pulled him to sit on the carpet by the sofa, laying out the cassette stove and the clay pot for simmering.

Black tea and rock sugar went into the pot first, slowly stir‑fried over low heat.

Soon, caramel sweetness and tea fragrance filled the air, warm and rich.

Jin Chen leaned sideways, his chin lazily resting on Cheng Lang's shoulder, eyes downcast as he watched his movements.

The heating suffused the air, the tea scent drifted lazily, and a languid feeling spread through every limb.

He turned his head, bringing his nose close to Cheng Lang's neck to sniff lightly; Cheng Lang's body heat mingled with the caramel‑tea aroma, warm and comforting.

"Brother." Jin Chen suddenly called out, almost a whisper.

"Huh?" Cheng Lang responded instinctively, his stirring hand never stopping, he asked slowly, "What's up?"

Jin Chen fixed his gaze on the skin at Cheng Lang's neck, rising and falling slightly with his stirring motions.

"I want to bite you."

Cheng Lang startled for a moment, the syrup in the pot bottom hissed, and he glanced up to meet Jin Chen's peach‑blossom eyes.

He chuckled, his hand never ceasing its stirring, and said offhand, "Didn't you eat enough dinner out? Brother, I'll finish the baked milk, then we can order some dumplings later?"

"……"

Jin Chen didn't pick up that thread.

His eyes darkened, he leaned in, and his thin, soft lips took hold of Cheng Lang's neck.

"!"

Cheng Lang's hand jerked, nearly knocking over the pot.

A tingling, numbing sensation, a slight sting, made his scalp go numb for an instant.

"You really, really bit me…?" he fumbled to steady the pot, worried the sugar would burn, quickly added a splash of water, watched the tea return to a boil, then sighed helplessly yet indulgingly, his voice softening, "All right… …be gentle."

He thought, today Jin Chen's group project went poorly, he came back frozen, he was in a bad mood, a little temper was understandable.

Let him bite, it doesn't hurt anyway.

Cheng Lang let Jin Chen lean in more comfortably, fully yielding to his whims.

Having received tacit permission, Jin Chen stopped holding back.

The arm he had around Cheng Lang's waist tightened further, his whole face buried in it.

Cheng Lang kept an eye on the bubbling tea, regulating the heat, while part of his mind sensed the continuous tingling on his neck, his heartbeat inexplicably falling out of rhythm.

The phone resting beside the tea table rang at an inopportune moment.

The bell signal shattered the intimate atmosphere in the cramped space.

Jin Chen paused his motion, slowly loosened his bite, lifted his eyes to glance at the incessantly ringing phone, then looked at Cheng Lang's neck, reddened from being messed with.

"Brother, I'll go get you some goji berries." Jin Chen stood up, grabbed the phone on the way, and headed to the kitchen to answer the call.

Cheng Lang raised a hand to touch his neck, shook his head with a laugh, and turned his attention back to the baked milk.

Jin Chen's notebook lay open on the carpet; Cheng Lang glanced at it casually, but caught sight of a few documents on the desktop.

Cheng Lang's gaze suddenly locked, his pupils constricting.

Just moments ago, having his neck bitten by Jin Chen hadn't provoked such a reaction, but now a chill shot straight to the top of his head.

Documents for studying abroad.

Jin Chen……was going to study abroad.

When had this happened? He had no idea at all—Jin Chen had never mentioned it.

In an instant, Cheng Lang actually felt panic, as if something extremely important, already silently woven into the flesh and blood of his life, was about to be forcibly torn away.

Isn't it fine the way they are now?

Every day we go to class and eat together, go out and play together, look after each other, and occasionally we fool around like tonight…… Isn't that great?

Why would Jin Chen want to leave?

Could it be because, at this school, Jin Chen still lacks a sense of belonging, or… because he hasn't done well enough, hasn't managed to make Jin Chen regard him as a trustworthy brother?

In the kitchen, Jin Chen's voice on the phone could be faintly heard.

In this corner of the living room, the milk in the jar was gently boiling.

After finishing his father's routine questions about his studies and his temporary post at the family conglomerate, Jin Chen casually picked up the forgotten goji berries from the counter and returned to the living room.

In the living room, the milk tea in the clay pot gurgled, but Cheng Lang, lost in thought, kept a stern face, not even noticing the milk tea about to boil over.

"Senior, what are you thinking about? You're going to burn it."

Cheng Lang snapped back to attention, quickly turned down the heat, and watched the foam slowly subside.

He turned his head, looked at Jin Chen, and softened his voice, "Xiao Chen, you… you want to study abroad?"

Jin Chen was about to pour the goji berries into the jar; hearing that, he paused, letting out a doubtful hum.

"Study abroad? Oh, that was just an idea I had before transferring to University A."

He tilted his head, "Back then I had a big fight with my dad, felt like the emperor was far away, and running off seemed the easiest option, so I just casually looked up some information."

Jin Chen glanced at the laptop screen, then realized, "Senior, did you see these files?"

Cheng Lang's tense heartstrings suddenly loosened, the weightless panic fading, "Yeah, I happened to catch a glimpse."

Jin Chen leaned over, in Cheng Lang's presence, deleted those files, and emptied the recycle bin.

After doing all that, he sat back up, leaned his body into Cheng Lang's embrace, wrapped an arm around his waist, and pressed his face against his chest.

"Senior, don't worry, that was just me being immature, trying to rebel against my family, coming up with a random escape plan."

He tightened his grip a little, "Things are different now."

Cheng Lang unconsciously held his breath, lowered his gaze to him, waiting for what he would say next.

He didn't even realize that, at this moment, his gaze fixed on Jin Chen concealed a concern so intense it was almost breathless.

Jin Chen looked up into his eyes, "Senior, you mean a lot to me, so I can't bear to go abroad."

Those words settled Cheng Lang's tumultuous heart; in an instant, the heart that had been hanging in midair fell back into place.

He didn't even have time to distinguish what, amidst these complex emotions, the quiet gratitude he felt for Jin Chen actually signified.

He simply felt that this was enough.

Xiao Chen was willing to stay, to remain by his side.