GDRG CH19

Shi Xueqing furtively returned to his seat, feeling a sense of guilt he couldn’t quite place.

As soon as he sat down, Lu Yimeng asked him, “Xiao Shi, didn’t you go to get milk?”

A few people looked over, and Shi Xueqing’s hands were empty.

Shi Xueqing: …He didn’t know what he was thinking just now, but he had handed his glass to Xing Jun.

In the early morning, the sun shone brightly in the luxurious Hawaiian hotel. A summer breeze drifted in from the window, and the sea surface shimmered with golden light. Amidst the laughter of a diverse crowd of Caucasians, Asians, and African Americans, Shi Xueqing, for some reason, felt like he had been scared into a panicked retreat.

Before his brain could process the root of this thought, Xing Jun had already walked over with two glasses of milk.

He naturally placed one glass in front of Shi Xueqing. There was no empty seat next to Shi Xueqing, so he sat down next to Jason.

“They’re selling limited edition Hello Kitty in the hotel!” Lu Yimeng, looking at her Little Red Book, suddenly exclaimed excitedly.

Everyone’s attention was drawn to Lu Yimeng, only the glasses-wearing bestie, Tao Shu, was still looking strangely at the two of them. Shi Xueqing met her gaze and wondered why Tao Shu was looking at him so strangely.

To alleviate the inexplicable awkwardness, he took a sip of cold milk and then remembered Xing Jun.

“Thank you, Brother Xing,” he said, looking at Xing Jun.

Xing Jun remained silent, his head down as he cut his ham, acting as if he hadn’t seen Shi Xueqing.

Shi Xueqing: …What’s with the mood swings?

He lowered his head and continued to drink his milk, but he felt Xing Jun glance at him again. Shi Xueqing looked up, but Xing Jun was looking out the window again, eating his ham.

What does he mean… Amidst his unease, Shi Xueqing suddenly felt a bit annoyed.

Xing Jun couldn’t possibly have seen him happy this morning and changed his mind, now wanting him to transfer the room fee, could he?

The thought suddenly occurred to Shi Xueqing.

Faced with a $300 omakase, Shi Xueqing would be very uneasy because he could afford it. Faced with a 7 x $700 luxury hotel, Shi Xueqing was very calm because he really couldn’t afford it.

Anyway, even if Xing Jun asked him for the money, he couldn’t pay it, so he might as well let it go.

The others were enthusiastically discussing the beach, surfing, and shopping. Only Shi Xueqing and Xing Jun were eating their breakfast in silence.

Xing Jun finished the last sip of his milk.

The cold liquid ultimately couldn’t suppress the burning irritation in his heart.

Like a black flame.

His deep, dark eyes looked coldly and sharply at Shi Xueqing.

Shi Xueqing was looking out the window. His fair hand supported his cheek, the bones of his forearm clearly defined. His wrist looked as if it could be snapped with a single grip.

That silver collarbone chain was still dangling on his collarbone.

Exactly the same as the chain in his dream last night.

“Xiao Shi, is there anything you want to buy?”

Lu Yimeng suddenly said.

Shi Xueqing seemed to react, putting his hand down. At this moment, Xing Jun also moved his gaze away.

The sunlight outside was dazzlingly bright, a swath of white, just like Shi Xueqing’s waist.

Irritating.

“…No.” Looking at the palm trees, he heard Shi Xueqing say poetically, “There’s nothing I particularly want to buy.”

“Huh? Xiao Shi, don’t you like Stussy? They’re selling a Honolulu limited edition T-shirt here.”

He could clearly feel Shi Xueqing pause for a moment. Soon, Shi Xueqing said, “You have to queue for three or four hours… Compared to wasting three or four hours there, I’d rather spend the time in the more limited summer sun.”

“Oh… that’s true.”

What limited sun. Lu Yimeng actually believed him. Xing Jun thought coldly.

Shi Xueqing was clearly just afraid of spending money.

He pretended to get up casually to get a bottle of yogurt. As he passed by Shi Xueqing, he indeed saw that although the other was pretending to listen to Xing Wei and the others, his phone was under the table, searching for the price of the Stussy T-shirt.

A few dozen dollars.

“Xiao Shi, what are you looking at?” Xing Wei, however, had sharp eyes and looked over.

Shi Xueqing very naturally flipped his phone over and smiled at Xing Wei.

“I heard this hotel has a private white sand beach. It’s very beautiful.”

He said.

The yogurt in his hand beaded with condensation. Xing Jun stood in front of the fridge for a moment, then put it back.

It seemed Shi Xueqing put on the same facade for everyone.

Even in front of Xing Wei, Shi Xueqing could lie without changing his expression.

As long as he could hide his vanity.

…

If “limited edition” was capitalism’s consumption trap, then Shi Xueqing was a person who would fall into the trap time and time again.

After discovering that the limited edition T-shirt was not as expensive as he had imagined, Shi Xueqing appeared calm on the surface, but his heart was in turmoil. This T-shirt could not only show that he was trendy but also that he had been to Hawaii.

But soon, Shi Xueqing convinced himself. Going to Hawaii for fun wasn’t that uncommon in the overseas student circle. Buying a T-shirt for a few dozen dollars was not as good as reposting the story from the restaurant last night.

But soon, Shi Xueqing was no longer calm.

“This Tiffany blue Hello Kitty is exclusive to this hotel. Are you sure you don’t want to buy it?” Lu Yimeng said. “If you miss it this time, you’ll have to wait until the next time you stay at this hotel to buy it.”

Even Zheng Songtao had bought one.

Shi Xueqing secretly checked the price tag.

Over a hundred dollars, almost two hundred with tax.

Even though it’s limited edition… two hundred dollars could buy 50 matcha lattes!

“It’s fine, I’m not interested in these little toys,” Shi Xueqing said placidly. As the others went to pay, he took out his copy of Difference and Repetition again.

He leaned against the wall pretending to read, trying to calm himself, but out of the corner of his eye, he saw the group, having finished paying, each holding a black-skinned Hello Kitty and taking a group photo. The five Hello Kittys with Tiffany blue accessories were in various poses, some wearing blue dresses, some sitting on blue dolphins, some holding surfboards…

He kind of hated that his English was so good. With his sharp ears, he heard the shop assistants chatting, saying how much the Asian tourists who came here could buy. The ones left on the shelves were the last few, and they would probably be sold out today.

The next shipment probably wouldn’t arrive until next month.

They were selling very well, many people liked them, and Little Red Book was full of posts showing them off.

His heart suddenly felt as if it had been plunged into ice water, even on the hottest day of July.

It wasn’t until the five of them finished their group photo and Xing Wei was excitedly posting an Instagram story that Shi Xueqing realized his dejection wasn’t because he couldn’t buy this limited edition Hello Kitty.

It was because in their respective stories, they had all tagged four people. In the union of the five sets of four people, he was not included.

His heart felt like a salt-water-soaked paper ball, slowly sinking into the depths of the sea. Even the bright Hawaiian sun could no longer make him happy.

“The weather is splendid, the money is almost gone.”*

Looking at the obscure philosophical sentences, Shi Xueqing could only think of this caption. Of course, he would never post it on his Moments or Instagram.

“Is the book good?”

Xing Jun said beside him.

Shi Xueqing was startled. Xing Jun had, at some point, walked over to him. The tall man squinted, blocking the sunlight that was shining on him, looking at him with a scrutinizing, yet almost judgmental gaze.

But it was slightly different from the kind of scrutiny before.

“…It’s good,” Shi Xueqing only said one thing, then felt annoyed under the shadow cast by the man’s body.

Xing Jun must have come to laugh at him.

Sure enough, he saw Xing Jun pick up the doll he had just picked up. “Over a hundred dollars… it’s quite expensive. Can’t afford it?”

“…”

Shi Xueqing simply lowered his head and continued to read his book, although not a single word registered in his mind. But Xing Jun was still talking, “Thinking of how to excerpt some lines from it to post on Instagram or Moments?”

Thinking of that untagged Instagram post, Shi Xueqing suddenly became furious.

“What’s it to you,” he said coldly, as if his tail had been stepped on. “I didn’t ask you to look! And I didn’t ask you to buy it!”

“…Xiao Shi?” Lu Yimeng, holding her bag, stood in front of him and Xing Jun, stunned. “Are you two fighting?”

Shi Xueqing: …

It’s over. Why did he suddenly lose his temper? He couldn’t control his emotions at all.

He awkwardly fiddled with the ends of his hair, trying to find an excuse to act nonchalant. But surprisingly, Xing Jun spoke first.

“It’s nothing, we were just joking,” he said. “Right, Xiao Shi?”

“…”

Shi Xueqing looked at Xing Jun again. Xing Jun was half a head taller than him, requiring him to look up.

And then he saw Xing Jun’s T-shirt. It was LV.

The logo, on Xing Jun’s body, became annoying. He quickly moved his gaze away and said casually, “Mhm.”

Xing Wei and Jason had also looked over. Facing their gazes, Shi Xueqing pursed his lips again.

Finally, he reluctantly added another sentence, “…Brother Xing is right.”

In the afternoon, they didn’t go anywhere else, just played on a private white sand beach.

A few of them played in the water and went to see the dolphins. Shi Xueqing was really not in the mood. After playing for a bit, he lay on a blanket under a parasol, pretending to be sunning his shadow. When no one was around, he pulled a long face, his expression listless.

Jason, on the other hand, became excited. He learned about the scale of Xing Jun’s current business and was surprised that his goddess’s brother had such abilities. He became even more enthusiastic towards Xing Jun, busily trying to curry favor.

Xing Jun looked at him and only felt annoyed. Trying to chase his sister and also trying to get benefits from him. What a nice little plan Jason had.

He had seen many people with such ulterior motives, each one more disgusting than the last.

Jason also sensed that Xing Jun’s attitude towards him was very cold, with no intention of responding. But after thinking it over, he felt that Xing Jun’s attitude towards Shi Xueqing was also not good, and he was temporarily relieved.

He thought that in the next few days, he would surely have a chance to latch onto this big shot.

Xing Wei wanted to see the dolphins and called her sisters to go with her. Jason and Zheng Songtao followed soon after.

On the beach, only Xing Jun and Shi Xueqing were left.

Shi Xueqing lay there, looking at the sea. He was only wearing swim trunks, his skin snow-white, the lines of his back very beautiful, and his butt very perky.

Just as soft and delicate as he had seen in his dream.

But Xing Jun only saw him listlessly looking at the sea, as if he were very melancholic.

A feeling of displeasure, or perhaps agitation, gradually welled up in his heart.

Xing Jun finally couldn’t stand it anymore and stood up. He walked towards the hotel, thinking to himself that he must be thinking, Xing Wei has already left, who is Shi Xueqing putting on this melancholic act for?

Like a pitiful, ostracized little thing.

He swiped his card in the souvenir shop and bought up all the remaining Hello Kitty dolls, shocking a Chinese couple who had just entered the shop. They complained about why he was buying so many, asking if he was a personal shopper for someone.

Xing Jun couldn’t be bothered to argue with the snarky couple. Money could do anything. He strode back to the beach. Shi Xueqing was still lying there alone.

He threw the huge bag next to Shi Xueqing.

Hit by the sand kicked up by the bag, Shi Xueqing looked up, dazed. His body trembled as if startled. The light and shadow crawled down the lines of his spine, disappearing into the waistband of his shorts, his snow-white skin glistening like waves.

Like a fragrant, beautiful merman.

Xing Jun lowered his eyes and looked coldly at Shi Xueqing.

He admitted it.

He did indeed have an irrepressible, strong desire for Shi Xueqing.

After being single for 24 years.

For the first time, for a person. But it was for Shi Xueqing, whom he knew from first sight had ulterior motives and was a green tea.

“What are you doing?” Shi Xueqing said in shock, forgetting to put on his elegant act.

Support me on Ko-fi