Edited by Yummers
The dream was very realistic. In the dream, he was still Ah-Jiang and Shi Tou was still his Little Rock. But the exception was that in there, Shi Tou was truly like a rock. Aside from his five senses, it seemed like he was just an empty vessel without a care for anything else.
He was like a patient crafter who happened to obtain a piece of unyielding rock. He struck him with hundreds and thousands of methods, polished him, wanting to crack open the rock. It was as if it hid the most valuable treasure in the world within it.
Slowly, he started treating him better and better. Gradually, wherever he was, his shadow would also be by his side. There was no reason, there didn’t need to be a reason. Even though he knew clearly that this piece of rock wouldn’t show any reaction, he still kept him by his side securely.
Although he was followed by numbers of flowers, who all flourished elegantly, he only had room in his eyes for his Little Rock.
The dream was remarkably beautiful. Ah-Jiang kept chuckling to himself after he woke up, no one knew why he was so happy.
Those good dreams didn’t occur every day, but Ah-Jiang wasn’t concerned, he still had Little Rock in reality.
Springs and autumns passed as time slipped by. Two years passed in the blink of an eye.
Little Rock wasn’t in school anymore. His family had signed him up for a job in the neighboring town’s restaurant as a chef in training. Even though Little Rock seemed slow and idiotic, his hands were swift and he was a hardworking and honest individual. His grandpa and his boss knew each other, so Little Rock wasn’t taunted too badly there. Even though his job involved quite an amount of laborious work, he completed them all with joy. Sometimes he would peek at the other chefs, learning their techniques and test them out for Ah-Jiang to taste.
There was only one bus that drove to the neighboring town each week, the traveling time was six hours. Shi Tou couldn’t come back every day, he would only come home once during the three-day breaks he had every three months.
There were only a few months left until Ah-Jiang had to take his college exam. His household registration was still in the city so he would have to go back to the city for the exam soon. Though speaking honestly, the exam was merely an act. Rich kids like him already had their whole future planned out by the higher-ups. The reason why he was so busy these days was that he had to make preparations to enter his family’s work field officially.
One month before Ah-Jiang had to leave, he rode the bus and went to the neighboring town. He looked at the path of the river. During the past year, every month, he would always make a trip to and back down this road. Even the driver recognized him.
The neighboring town was much more modernized than the village. At least their roads were all fixed, and they also had market areas. Little Rock’s working place was at a Sichuan cuisine restaurant around that area.
Ah-Jiang came here in secret today because he wanted to give Little Rock a surprise.
He went in through the back door and stood outside the kitchen. It was still early so the kitchen wasn’t in operation yet, but he knew that Little Rock always arrived the earliest. Ah-Jiang stood in a blind spot when the door near him was pushed open, as expected, he saw a young male carrying a basket of potatoes in from the outside.
Shi Tou didn’t see Ah-Jiang as he set the basket on the table. When he was going to pull his sleeve up to wipe his sweat away, a young girl walked in. She was a waitress at the restaurant, she had a naturally delicate face and a good heart. Towards Shi Tou, she treated him like he was her younger brother. She walked over before pulling out a tissue, then helped Shi Tou wipe away the sweat on his forehead. The young male had his neck lifted, his eyes were squinted as he smiled shyly, and he averted his eyes to the corner of his clothing with a flustered face.
Ah-Jiang didn’t go over. He observed for a bit, then walked away quietly.
Shi Tou busied himself until night time, he waited until the restaurant closed and all the chefs had left. Then he was able to clean up and leave. The young male held onto two large black trash bags while carrying an aged backpack on his back, he walked with them to the trash pile.
“Little Rock.”
The young male was stunned, then he lifted his head.
A tall and slender figure walked out of the darkness in silence. The person wore a long fitting, black overcoat, with a white scarf wrapped around his neck. He was remarkably handsome with the slight smile that harbored warmth, ridding the coldness off from him in an instant.
“Ah-Jiang?”
The young male’s voice went higher in pitch. If this was a drawing, then the artists would’ve added two fluffy ears on top of the young male’s head, plus a tail poking up from behind, swinging left and right.
Shi Tou’s voice was a bit rough, he didn’t have enough nutrients as a kid, so he developed later than other kids. His voice only started to have a sign of change in the past two years. He jogged over while dragging the two large bags, with a pair of flushed cheeks──Shi Tou had gotten taller during the past two years, his complexion also became more and more handsome. But Ah-Jiang was also growing, leaving half a head of height difference between the two.
Ah-Jiang also seemed more mature compared to how he was two years ago. His distant character was more noticeable. Especially the times where he took care of business matters for his grandpa this year. Even Representative Jiang* didn’t dare to mention anything to his son. He was always in control, once he made a decision, others could only follow suit.
It was hard to tell that someone as frigid as him was actually extremely possessive.
“Isn’t it heavy? Let me help you.”
“You can’t, you can’t──” Shi Tou’s head shook like a pellet drum. “If it dirties Ah-Jiang’s hand, that won’t be good……”
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
“Stupid child, what are you being modest with me for?”
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“What are you dazing around for? Come on.”
Ah-Jiang turned his head to urge him, smiling kindly.
Shi Tou chuckled out loud, then quickly ran after him. He wanted to help Ah-Jiang carry one, but Ah-Jiang didn’t allow him. The two’s hands battled for a while, in the end, he carried one of the trash bags while Ah-Jiang held onto his free hand. Ah-Jiang’s hand was very large, just enough to wrap up his whole palm in his, it was very warm.
Whenever Ah-Jiang came over, he would stay for the night. But this time, he said that he’d be staying for two extra days. Shi Tou was overjoyed, he thought about whether or not he should use his break days. He hadn’t gone home for half a year. His aunt was pregnant with a second child and his younger step-brother was already old enough to sleep by himself. His room was occupied, but even though he missed his grandpa very much, he didn’t want to go back and be the reason for his grandpa and aunt’s fight.
He knew there would be a loss on both ends, his grandpa wasn’t his grandpa alone. But……
The young male peeked over at the individual signing in at the register. Ah-Jiang looked like an adult now. He couldn’t be labeled as a youngster anymore, he was in the stage of maturing into a young man. He finished the documents and felt a stare on his back. When he turned his head around, Shi Tou had already averted his eyes to elsewhere, face reddening sillily.
Shi Tou helped Ah-Jiang carry his luggage which was just a little suitcase. He always stayed at this hotel whenever he came here. It was kept pretty clean and was the best place in this area.
Shi Tou would always spend the night out with Ah-Jiang whenever he came here. No one from the restaurant knew of Ah-Jiang’s background, they simply thought he was Little Rock’s Gege, who came from his hometown. Shi Tou used Ah-Jiang’s phone to make a call to the Jiejie who managed the dorms. That young Jiejie always liked to tease him, they weren’t able to speak for long on the phone as Ah-Jiang came out of the shower after hearing the giggles.
He snatched the phone out of the young male’s hand from behind. Shi Tou let out an “ah” sound and saw Ah-Jiang hanging up the phone, he took out the battery before tossing the phone onto the table.
Ah-Jiang’s chest was bare, he only had a towel wrapped around his waist as one of his hands pressed against the wall to trap Shi Tou in his entire world.
“Ah-Jiang……?”
Shi Tou called out cautiously, he could feel that Ah-Jiang was acting a bit strange tonight. It seemed like he was angry, yet also not. His pupils were pitch black, they seemed so deep there looked to be no visible end to them.
Ah-Jiang lowered his head, his face inched closer and closer. Shi Tou tried to back away. However, his back was against the wall, he had nowhere to escape to.
Ah-Jiang’s lips were just as cold as his personality, chilly enough to make one shiver during winter. And it was only Spring now, yet it was still very chilly.
Shi Tou was stunned for a moment, then closed his eyes. Ah-Jiang told him before that when kissing, he needed to close his eyes.
This wasn’t the first time they had kissed. It seemed like the first time they kissed was during a rainy day after school, but it also seemed like it was so long ago. Shi Tou didn’t think that this was weird at all, he was just a little idiot who didn’t know anything. Nevertheless, he knew the meaning of kisses. On tv, when the male kisses the female, it’s because they liked each other. That was why they kissed.
The young male’s lips were very soft, carrying the same taste those in his dreams did. Both of his hands cupped the puerile, delicate cheeks as he nibbled on the soft lips gently. As his tongue reached in, Shi Tou backed away significantly, letting out a “wu” sound in rejection. Still, Ah-Jiang didn’t stop, he locked the young male’s wrists, pressing the pair of disobedient hands against the wall before taking a step further to deepen the kiss.
Once they parted, Shi Tou immediately took in a big breath. He spoke with two red eyes in a wronged manner, “Ah-Jiang, I almost died……”
Ah-Jiang let out a pft, his shoulders shook uncontrollably from laughter.
Shi Tou furrowed his brows. He wiped his nose with a bit of attitude. “Then it’s my turn to wash now.”
A dark light seemed to flash in Ah-Jiang’s eyes for a moment. From behind, he hugged Shi Tou before he could hide in the bathroom. The young male in his embrace struggled a bit, speaking with his head tilted, “I’m super dirty right now.”
“Stupid child, how could you be dirty.” Ah-Jiang bent over, taking in a deep snuff at his neck.
Shi Tou turned red as the color climbed all the way from the back of his neck up to the tip of his ears. Ah-Jiang saw and couldn’t hold back any longer. His hand sneaked into Shi Tou’s slightly open shirt, touching the body that was still quite thin.
The young male tried to dodge in distress, but he couldn’t. Ah-Jiang understood his body more than anyone else. In the infinite dreams of his, he’s already embraced him countless times. Those enchanting scenes had on him the edge of insanity, the dreams that were pleasant in the beginning had turned into a type of torture. For the past two years, the dreams never stopped. Ah-Jiang even suspected that his fantasies towards the young male were simply out of his control entirely.
In the first dream, he was a tyrant who killed the previous ruler. The other was his slave, who seemed like a mere shell with no life, allowing him to toy with him however he wanted.
In the second dream, they were disciples under the same master. One was the Heaven's Child, and the other was dazed and stupid, to where he couldn’t even recognize anyone. He could only survive under his protection.
In the third dream, he and he had no relations at all. Yet due to fate, he bought him from the government.
In the fourth…
The countless dreams intertwined with each other. Nevertheless, every time, it was the same person. Every time, it was so lifelike. Ah-Jiang couldn’t help but wonder, could those be the so-called past lives, or was it just all his one-sided feelings?
He bit the young male’s neck softly, feeling his whole body trembling in his embrace.
“Little Rock, have you touched yourself at all recently?” It was like Ah-Jiang had turned into a different person. His voice was deep and low, while his hands were not very well-tamed. He held onto Shi Tou’s weakness as the item woke up gradually from the friction, almost like a bamboo shoot sprouting after a rain.
Shi Tou shook his head, he kept pushing Ah-Jiang’s hand away while biting onto his own lips. He knew what Ah-Jiang was going to do. Ah-Jiang had said before that such a thing could only be done by him. But the little idiot didn’t know that it was all just Ah-Jiang being selfish with the desire to have every matter related to Shi Tou under his control. The young male’s body was very sensitive, resembling a white piece of paper as he allowed Ah-Jiang to dye him with all sorts of different colors.
Ah-Jiang got rid of his pants and raised his pair of reddened legs, burying his head between the delicate cheeks. Shi Tou exclaimed out loud, then covered his mouth with his hands. Only the sounds of sucking could be heard throughout the room, swarming around their ears ambiguously. After a while, Shi Tou’s legs jolted, he took in a deep breath, then let it out slowly.
Ah-Jiang took him to the bathroom to wash off. This was different from the last few times they did it. He kept touching him over and over again, although Shi Tou was a bit afraid, he didn’t resist. He didn’t know that he could have an even deeper connection than that with Ah-Jiang.
The room had two single beds, however, they would always squeeze onto one bed.
Ah-Jiang kissed Shi Tou’s eye gently and spoke in a soft voice, “I’m going back to the city.”
Shi Tou was taken back for a moment, then he raised his head in the darkness.
He knew the ‘city’ that Ah-Jiang spoke of was very far away, you needed to ride a train and even get on a plane. That far.
“Are you going for a long time?” The young male kept a prolonged silence before asking in a quiet voice.
“Mn.” Ah-Jiang nodded his head, answering confidently.
Shi Tou felt dismal. He thought about how he could at least see Ah-Jiang once every month before, but now there was probably going to be a long period of time where he can’t see him. His feelings showed on his face as his usual smile disappeared, one could clearly see he was upset. .
He knew he should ask Ah-Jiang, “Are you still going to come back?”, but what came out was──
“Ah-Jiang, do you not want me anymore?”
Ah-Jiang was stunned for a moment, Shi Tou felt like he said the wrong words. After all, idiots were sensitive too. He curled his body up in Ah-Jiang’s embrace, as if he wanted to hide.
“Idiot.”
Shi Tou shuddered, the frames of his eyes were warm. He promised his grandpa when he was little that he wouldn’t cry anymore, but Ah-Jiang just insulted him as an idiot, he wanted to simply cry hysterically for once.
Shi Tou quivered as a pair of hands hugged him from under the blanket, they were so wide with such a firm grip. He wanted to hide from the strong embrace, after all, he was a bit angry.
But Ah-Jiang was stronger than him and Shi Tou couldn’t move. He felt himself sticking tightly against Ah-Jiang, there was not a crack of space. Then, he heard Ah-Jiang speak, “Right after I’m finished, I’ll come back to find you.”
Shi Tou blinked, his head poked out little by little. He had an excellent memory, he remembered that a long long time ago, the woman who he called mom had also said similar words. She stated, “Right after I’m finished, I’ll come back to find you.”
“Really…?”
In the darkness, Ah-Jiang pressed against his forehead and nodded.
Shi Tou was not new to the fact that most people who left the village never come back. But if Ah-Jiang was the one who said it…then he would believe it.
“Let’s sleep.”
“Oh……”
On the second day, Ah-Jiang received a call and he said he couldn’t stay any longer, he had to leave early. Shi Tou still took half a day off from work and he saw Ah-Jiang off at the station. He woke up very early to prepare a pot of roasted pork trotters, he had learned that dish from being taught only once. His seniors in the restaurant gave great compliments on his dish and even said that he was born with the natural talent of a chef. He didn’t make it in time for Ah-Jiang to eat so he could only have him bring it with him.
After watching Ah-Jiang board the bus, Shi Tou waited until the vehicle was gone. He chased after it for a few steps, his hands waving in the air with all his might.
Ah-Jiang also waited until he wasn’t able to see the young male in his view anymore before turning around, holding onto a container of food as his head leaned against the bus window. He received a call from Representative Jiang*, his grandpa had collapsed onto the floor during a meeting all of a sudden. He recalled his father’s angry tone, blaming him for not being seen anywhere during this situation, it irritated him.
He thought about how nice it would be if he could just simply stay together with Little Rock.
Ah-Jiang unknowingly fell into a dream on the bumpy road.
When he opened his eyes, his view was that of a bloody scene.
He knew he was in the first dream. But now, everything was an absolute disaster in front of him. He wore armor and had a heavy sword in his grip, everyone within the palace was already gone.
There were no traces of musical performances, no signs of any officials or generals.
His most-trusted underling came in, kneeling.
“My lord, the enemy’s already at the gate, should we surrender?”
He replied, “No.”
Once his most-trusted underling left, a woman in an elegant robe came over with poisonous wine. Her make-up was notably gorgeous, enough to seduce a country and be titled as a peerless couple with the Lord. Ah-Jiang remembered she was originally a princess from another country, she persistently wanted to marry him out of admiration, becoming the hot topic of that year.
Ah-Jiang looked at her, but only said, “Take the crown prince away, you do not need to die with me.”
The princess heard his words as she pressed her lips together and smiled sorrowfully, “Does the Lord wish to not be with me even in death?”
Ah-Jiang asked, “Where is he.”
Who was he? Everyone in the city knew of his existence. The Lord had wiped out the previous generation of gentries years ago. Yet, he allowed an orphan of the gentries to survive. That male’s soul had been incomplete since birth so he didn’t have any emotion. Originally, the people only thought that the Lord wanted a new plaything, yet, unexpectedly, it’d gone too far. The Lord was willing to be the most infatuated man in the world for him, to show his true feelings, he got rid of all those beautiful women of his harem. Later on, he also tried to give the other everything in the world. He requested Shushi Masters from everywhere, just to repair the male’s missing soul pieces. He sunk deep into the legends of Gods and Ghosts, he believed in slanders, which resulted in today’s consequences.
The princess laughed abruptly. She wobbled as she stood up, with an appearance that’d gone mad.“Is not like the Lord does not know it was that evildoer who caused the nation’s downfall. I have already ordered for people to Lingchi him, it has been long since his corpse had been burnt to ashes. For the Lord to be asking now, it is already too late!”
Ah-Jiang was in immense shock, he didn’t even waste time to kill her as he ran to the back palace, looking like he’d gone insane. In the elegant and beautiful palace that he built for him, the man had vanished without a trace left behind. On the Lingchi Field, there was only a puddle of blood leftover, undried still. Ah-Jiang screamed sorrowfully with his head on the ground, thunder striking from everywhere. This matched right up with the timing of the enemy charging into the royal city as a sharp arrow flew over and pierced through his throat.
Ah-Jiang sat up in shock. Inside the hospital, a crowd of people hovered outside of the VIP ward.
Mrs. Jiang* was wiping her tears away nonstop with a few other women on the side as Representative Jiang* paced back and forth with a gloomy face.
The emergency light suddenly extinguished, a doctor in a white coat walked out and the crowd all swarmed around him. Only Ah-Jiang got up dizzily, having to support himself against the wall. His palm was slightly cold as a sense of anguish bubbled in his heart……
The doctor shook his head, cries struck one after another at that moment.
Ah-Jiang closed his eyes in profound pain before taking in a deep breath.
Thousands of miles away, Shi Tou who was kept busy in the back kitchen snuck out to have a little break. He walked to the hall and sat shoulder to shoulder with the waitress girl. The girl held a cigarette between her two fingers as the frames of her eyes appeared red, she looked at Shi Tou and curved her lips into a smile, she rubbed his head, “You’re so stupid, be careful that your lover might run away with someone else.”
Shi Tou laughed sillily. He knew that a lover was someone you liked, and the person of his affection just so happened to be Ah-Jiang. He said, “Ah-Jiang wouldn’t run away. He’s going to come back really soon.”
“You’re such a pure little idiot, he lied to you.”
“Nuh-uh, Ah-Jiang wouldn’t lie to me.”
The girl smiled as she watched Little Rock count with his fingers again. Just like every other time she spoke to him, she would listen to him countdown the days when he would see Ah-Jiang again.
One day, two days, three days……
Days passed after days.
Years passed after years.
Poor little rock, have faith in ah-jiang!! Though.. Teach him a lesson when he comes back like a little boss bis! ✨
Damm it!!!! 😱
What happened?!!!!
Why did years passed?!!!!!
I’m crying here!!!
(இдஇ; ) (இдஇ; ) (இдஇ; )
Please don’t leave us hanging
゜・．（ｉДｉ）｡：ﾟ
i love our bby and i really am crying blood here daym this author will make me die slowly i see
oh well ^_^ i was dragged into this soul pit by someone hope they r in anguish too hehe
ty for the chapter and anyone wants more angst read dont pick up boyfriend from the trashbin
💫
+1 Im sure tat someone is in a pit too 🤣
ooohhh thanks for the warning,I dislike angst and almost read dont pickup bf
Ok I cried… When he asked “do you not want me anymore?” I cried so hard..
days turned into years?????? why not months instead???? QAQ thank u for the chapter~
the last lines 😭😭
Awww that ending….. noooo….
Thanks for the chapter, ♥️