Chapter 3197: Plane Tree Alley Bitter Summer 40

The teahouse in the small alley near the gallery.

Xiang Yingfan sat by the window, occasionally glancing outside with an anxious expression. Out of the corner of his eye, he suddenly saw a young man walking toward them from the street corner. He first averted his gaze as if nothing were wrong, not recognizing the young man. A few seconds later, he realized what was happening, sprang to his feet, and tried to leave.

Before he could take a step, Jin Chen stepped in front of him.

After a few months of recuperation, Jin Chen was no longer as frail as he had been in Lingcheng; he had grown a little taller, and his overcoat gave off a heavy presence that made Xiang Yingfan involuntarily retreat half a step.

Jin Chen placed his hand on Xiang Yingfan's shoulder, his tone cold, and said, "Hello, I am Chenshu's boyfriend."

Xiang Yingfan: "……"

Jin Chen pulled a stack of false evidence from his pocket and pressed it against Xiang Yingfan's chest, saying, "You must have heard by now—I am mentally ill."

Seeing the situation exposed, Xiang Yingfan raised his voice, blustering but inwardly frightened: "I am his brother! What do you dare do to me?! He's an illegitimate child, actually daring to join forces with outsiders to ruin his father and brother—he'll pay the price… uh!"

Xiang Yingfan's pupils widened suddenly, and his throat was seized by fingers with distinct knuckles.

Jin Chen lowered his head slightly, the hand on Xiang Yingfan's shoulder pressing back, his messy hair falling to half-cover his brows and eyes; the visible eye was black and cold as he said, "You should have heard that the mentally ill are not punished for killing."

Xiang Yingfan: "!!!"

A buzzing filled Xiang Yingfan's head, a chill spreading from his scalp to the soles of his feet.

He never thought that merely trying to ruin Chenshu's reputation would cost him his life!

This madman… Xiang Yingfan tried to pry Jin Chen's fingers apart with both hands, but that hand was like cast iron, unmoving; a hoarse sound came from his throat, and his vision began to darken.

Xiang Yingfan's chosen seat was already remote, and he had deliberately picked a corner table to avoid attention.

It was afternoon now, the teahouse was sparsely populated, and no one noticed what was happening in the corner.

Fortunately, Jin Chen had no real intention of strangling him to death.

After a while—perhaps only a few dozen seconds, but to Xiang Yingfan it felt like hours—Jin Chen finally released his grip.

Xiang Yingfan staggered back a few steps, braced himself on the table edge, and gasped heavily; a red mark on his throat burned with pain, and he had never before felt the breath of death so close.

Jin Chen disdainfully picked up a napkin from the table, wiped his fingers clean one by one, and told the still-panting Xiang Yingfan, "You may leave now."

Xiang Yingfan: "……"

Psychopath!!!

He would never again provoke this madman—he could actually bring himself to strike! Unwilling to lose face, he wanted to retort harshly, but upon meeting Jin Chen's gloomy eyes, he swallowed his saliva and couldn't utter a word.

After holding back for a long time, he managed only: "……Aren't you afraid I'll tell Chenshu?"

Jin Chen pondered for a moment, lifted his hand, as if to choke him again.

Xiang Yingfan turned and ran.

Jin Chen lowered his hand, stood where he was, and remained silent for a few seconds.

He patted his chest with that clean hand, exhaled a long breath, and was scared stiff.

How could this person have no strength to resist at all? He almost lost control of the timing.

Jin Chen pressed his lips together solemnly, hurried to the restroom, washed his hands thoroughly, tidied the collar and hair messed up by the wind, then picked up the opening gift and headed toward the gallery.

In the office, Chenshu, who favored sweet foods, had finished all the tangyuan, leaving the dumplings for Jin Chen's return.

He leaned on the sofa, eyes closed, resting; these past few days had indeed exhausted him, and every aspect of the pre-opening preparations and receptions was draining his energy.

Hearing the door open, Chenshu opened his eyes to see Jin Chen walking in, holding a wrapped gift box.

Chenshu lounged sideways on the sofa, lazily stretching out a hand, and said, "Give me a hug."

Jin Chen walked over and sat down; Chenshu naturally leaned into his embrace, found a comfortable spot, and said with a hint of fatigue, "Getting an opening gift took far too long."

Jin Chen lowered his head to kiss his cheek, his breath carrying the coolness of the outside wind, and said, "I'm not too familiar with this place, I wandered around a bit; today there are so many people, brother, you're amazing."

Chenshu smiled, eyes crinkling, poked his cheek, sat up slightly, opened the dumpling box, picked up a piece with chopsticks and brought it to Jin Chen's lips, saying, "I'm full from the tangyuan, but you should eat more. I've finally managed to put on some flesh."

Jin Chen obediently finished the dumplings, rinsed his mouth with water from Chenshu's hand, licked his lips, and asked, trying to hide his motive, "Brother, do you still have to go out and work later?"

It really made it impossible to hide any ulterior motives.

Chenshu, finding him adorable, put down his chopsticks, made a move to kiss him—Jin Chen had already tilted his head slightly in readiness—but Chenshu stopped a few centimeters from his lips, a blatant smile on his face, and said, "Ah, I actually seem to have to meet an old friend… or should we wait until we get home to kiss?"

Jin Chen: "?"

Jin Chen's brow twitched slightly; before he could react, Chenshu had already risen to get his coat.

The next second, Jin Chen grabbed his wrist, pulled him toward his chest, pressed him onto the sofa, and leaned down to kiss him.

Jin Chen's kiss was a mix of resentment and fierceness as he said, "Not allowed. What old friend?"

Chenshu had been rather tired, but being held against the sofa back and kissed while he tilted his head back, he actually felt much more comfortable all over.

Chenshu, feeling a bit limp from the kiss, his voice thick and sticky, hooked his hand around Jin Chen's neck, pulling him down a little so they were closer, and murmured, "Hmm… actually it doesn't matter, I was just teasing you."

But it was quite obvious that he had spoken too soon.

Just a few minutes after the kiss, a knocking sounded at the door; the studio's assistant, a young girl, called through the panel, "Chenshu-ge, a visitor has come, saying he's your friend from abroad."

Chenshu: "……" Oh dear.

He wanted to push Jin Chen's shoulder to signal him to let go, but Jin Chen pressed even harder, rolling his tongue tip so he couldn't escape, and bit more fiercely.

"……Hmm," Chenshu frowned, also afraid the assistant outside might hear; he could only somewhat dazedly crumple the fabric on Jin Chen's shoulder, barely turning his head, and whispered into Jin Chen's ear, "Xiao Chen…"

Jin Chen let out a soft hum; when the assistant outside hesitated and spoke again, he finally released Chenshu, smoothed the rumpled collar with his hand, and licked his own reddened lips, saying, "All right, brother, go see your friend."

Chenshu rose from the sofa, his waist and legs feeling a bit weak, cleared his throat, and told the outside, "I'll be there shortly."

The assistant acknowledged, and her footsteps faded away.

Chenshu stood up, straightened his attire, then leaned forward to kiss Jin Chen's forehead.

"If you want to see the exhibition, you can go play, but wait for me to go home together… well, you might as well come with me." He laughed, flicked Jin Chen's forehead, and added, "So no one can say I'm hiding you away."

Jin Chen touched the spot that had been flicked, the corners of his mouth twitching up slightly, his eyes bright as if they held the whole winter's sunlight.