LABMY CH33

After Wei Zhenge’s arm healed, he and Jian Yuanbai went to the place the vendor had mentioned. With his X-ray vision, Wei Zhenge could easily tell that this was a small-scale mining area.

In the original plot, due to various reasons such as mining licenses and approval conditions, Wei Zhenge was unable to secure the rights to this place on his own. Instead, he sold the information through a partnership with a mid-sized jewelry company and took a share of the profits.

But now, with Jian Yuanbai by his side, the powerful Zhenge Group easily obtained the mining rights. What was originally supposed to be the start of Wei Zhenge’s career during his university years had unknowingly begun to take shape.

Because of his identity as a high school senior, Wei Zhenge didn’t personally handle much of the work. Most of it was entrusted to professionals, while he simply watched the money roll in.

After dealing with these matters, Wei Zhenge finally found an opportunity to talk to Jian Yuanbai.

Lately, Jian Yuanbai had been acting strange—there was something off about him in every way. Wei Zhenge carefully thought back and could only recall one incident he hadn’t taken to heart.

Jian Yuanbai had once asked him a question: “Do you want to be on top?”

Wei Zhenge answered without hesitation: “Yes.”

After all, who wouldn’t want to be the one in a higher position? His experience over the past decade had taught him that those at the bottom would only be oppressed.

Those at the top could choose not to bully others, but those at the bottom had no choice but to be bullied.

However, after he answered “yes,” Jian Yuanbai’s expression turned strange—shocked, a little disappointed, and even somewhat absent-minded.

At the time, Wei Zhenge found it odd and asked Jian Yuanbai about it, but Jian Yuanbai brushed it off with a random excuse.

From that day on…

Wei Zhenge wiped his damp hair as he walked into the bedroom. The room was warm with the heater on, so it wasn’t strange for his bathrobe to be loosely open.

Since Wei Zhenge had been paying attention, he naturally noticed Jian Yuanbai’s gaze lingering on him. His eyes wandered around his chest before finally resting on his face.

Wei Zhenge walked up to him and called out naturally, “Jian-ge, help me dry my hair?”

“Okay.”

Jian Yuanbai immediately tossed aside the book he had been pretending to read and pulled out a hairdryer from the cabinet.

The room was quiet and cozy, with only the hum of the hairdryer filling the space.

Wei Zhenge sat there, feeling Jian Yuanbai’s hands gently running through his hair, treating him with such care, as if afraid of hurting him.

“All done.”

Jian Yuanbai looked at the now dry and soft hair in his hands with satisfaction.

Wei Zhenge pressed his lips together, a trace of hesitation flashing across his face. But when he turned to face Jian Yuanbai, he looked completely natural.

He leaned closer to Jian Yuanbai and softly said, “Thank you, Jian-ge.”

Just as he was about to kiss him, Jian Yuanbai suddenly stepped back unnaturally. He moved so quickly that he bumped into the edge of the bed and lost his balance, falling straight onto the mattress.

Wei Zhenge looked at Jian Yuanbai, who was sitting on the bed in embarrassment, and his expression completely turned cold.

As expected, ever since that question, Jian Yuanbai had never kissed him again. He avoided physical contact, and even when they slept, they were as distant as if there was an invisible boundary between them.

Was he already tired of him this quickly?

Or was it because he found that small jade mine that made Jian Yuanbai unhappy? Did he not want Wei Zhenge to have his own career and rise to the top?

Countless thoughts swirled in his mind, but he said nothing more. Instead, he calmly said, “Give me the hairdryer. I’ll put it back in the cabinet. It’s time to sleep.”

Jian Yuanbai avoided his hand. “I’ll put it away.” With that, he stood up and went to return the hairdryer.

The bedroom lights were turned off. As darkness filled the room, their eyes gradually adjusted to the environment. The curtains weren’t fully closed, allowing a sliver of moonlight to seep through and cast a pale, shimmering glow on the floor, resembling the hem of a flowing white dress.

Wei Zhenge lay with his back facing Jian Yuanbai, staring at the patch of moonlight on the floor, while his heart sank deeper and deeper, as if falling into a pitch-black sea.

Tonight, Jian Yuanbai still slept far away from him.

There was enough space between them to fit another person.

Wei Zhenge could feel that Jian Yuanbai was also tossing and turning, unable to sleep. But he didn’t ask. He remained silent, pretending to be asleep.

Jian Yuanbai gazed helplessly at Wei Zhenge’s back.

Lying on his side like this created a large gap between them, exposing Wei Zhenge’s back to the cold air. On a winter night, it would be easy for him to catch a cold.

There were only two solutions:

One, Jian Yuanbai could move closer and hug him from behind, their bodies pressed tightly together as if they were one.

Two, Wei Zhenge could turn around and either sleep on his back or face Jian Yuanbai.

Jian Yuanbai didn’t dare to get too close, afraid that his lower half would betray him.

So, he softly called out, “Little Pillow.”

“Wife?”

No response.

Jian Yuanbai whispered a few more times, but Wei Zhenge remained completely still, not reacting at all.

Jian Yuanbai mumbled to himself, “Did he fall asleep so quickly?”

Helpless, he leaned closer and tried to gently turn Wei Zhenge onto his back.

However, with his first attempt, he couldn’t move him at all.

Jian Yuanbai: ?

He applied a little more force, but Wei Zhenge still didn’t budge.

At this point, even an idiot would realize that Wei Zhenge wasn’t asleep.

Jian Yuanbai sat up in confusion and said, “You’re not asleep—”

His words were cut off the moment he saw Wei Zhenge’s face.

In the dim bedroom, under the faint moonlight, Jian Yuanbai saw a pair of reddened eyes.

Wei Zhenge turned his head away, not wanting Jian Yuanbai to see his vulnerability.

Jian Yuanbai forcefully pulled him out from the pillow he was burying himself in.

His actions were rough, but his voice was unbelievably gentle, “Wife, why are you crying?”

At first, his eyes were only slightly red, blurred with unshed tears. But the moment Jian Yuanbai asked that question, Wei Zhenge’s long eyelashes trembled, and a single tear slipped down the side of his face.

Wei Zhenge let out a bitter laugh, “You don’t actually like me, do you?”

“What you like is the feeling of being relied on, of being needed. You like weakness, innocence, and those who worship you.”

Jian Yuanbai was utterly stunned by the latter part of the sentence, but he quickly caught onto the key point.

Ignoring the pain in his waist from being pressed against the edge of the bed, he immediately refuted, “You’re my wife. How could I not like you?”

Compared to Jian Yuanbai, Wei Zhenge had a more reserved personality, but he liked how Jian Yuanbai openly and passionately expressed his love for him. However, that was during normal times.

This direct confession didn’t soothe his unsettled heart much. He wanted to calmly and gracefully talk things through with Jian Yuanbai, but when he opened his mouth, his voice carried a sob.

“You haven’t kissed me in a long time.”

Wei Zhenge wasn’t good at expressing these things. The moment he spoke, he wanted to hide himself again, but Jian Yuanbai trapped him, leaving him nowhere to hide.

Under Jian Yuanbai’s slightly furrowed brows, Wei Zhenge turned his head awkwardly and, unwillingly but pretending to be magnanimous, said, “If you don’t want to continue, we can break up peacefully.”

“I won’t cling to you.”

After a pause, Wei Zhenge added, “Really.”

He spoke with such detachment and without hesitation, yet tears fell in large drops, streaming down continuously. His eyes were red, and even the tip of his nose turned red, making him look pitiful and adorable.

Jian Yuanbai couldn’t help but laugh through his tears as he wiped away Wei Zhenge’s tears. He wanted to lean in and kiss the corners of his reddened eyes, but he stopped when he got close and silently pulled away.

Seeing this, Wei Zhenge felt even more heartbroken.

Then he heard Jian Yuanbai explain, “How could I not like you?”

“It’s not that I have a thing for weak and fragile people. What are you thinking, silly Little Pillow? There are so many weak and pitiful people in the world. Do I have to like every single one of them?”

“I’ve helped countless people, more than I can count, but you’re the only one I want as my wife.”

Wei Zhenge, stared at by Jian Yuanbai’s helpless yet affectionate gaze, stopped crying. Although his eyes and nose were still red, and his face flushed, he still had doubts in his heart. He lowered his gaze, avoiding Jian Yuanbai’s eyes, and mumbled shyly, “Then why… why don’t you kiss me anymore?”

“And… why do you avoid me?”

After saying this, his ears turned red as well. Despite his embarrassment, he forced himself to lift his head and stare at Jian Yuanbai, hoping for an answer.

Jian Yuanbai gazed at him with deep emotion and replied with a bitter and helpless tone, “I just thought… we could have a platonic relationship.”

Last time, when he found an opportunity to test the waters, the answer he got left him restless. His wife only wanted to be on top, and there was nothing he could do about it. He couldn’t exactly force his Little Pillow, could he?

If he didn’t restrain himself and keep his distance, Jian Yuanbai feared that one day he’d go from being a decent person to a beast and force himself on his wife.

Having such a beautiful and perfect wife walking around him every day, yet having to practice abstinence and recite the Tao Te Ching dozens of times, made Jian Yuanbai feel like he was about to become a monk.

Platonic love?

Wei Zhenge blinked, his damp eyelashes still carrying tiny droplets. With his red eyes and nose, he looked like a small, helpless animal that triggered a protective instinct in others.

His expression was a bit blank, but also a bit cute.

“Haven’t we used our hands before? I remember there was no problem back then.”

Jian Yuanbai felt utterly devastated. “It was fine back then, but not anymore.”

Back then, they hadn’t officially established their relationship. But now that he knew this was his wife, if he used his hands again, he was afraid he’d fall into the abyss.

In terms of physical strength, Wei Zhenge stood no chance of pushing him away.

Wei Zhenge’s heart sank. His gaze subtly drifted toward a certain spot between Jian Yuanbai’s legs, where “Little Jian” lay quietly dormant in his pants.

Out of respect for a man’s dignity, Wei Zhenge somewhat understood Jian Yuanbai now. Although the words weren’t spoken clearly, this kind of thing was indeed hard to put into words.

He patted Jian Yuanbai on the shoulder. “Between two men, I can also—”

Before he could finish, Jian Yuanbai interrupted him, shouting, “No! Let’s stick to platonic love, my wife!”

His wife really wanted to be on top.

Jian Yuanbai’s eyes welled up with tears, and he choked out, “I love Plato.”

Who would have thought that his only chance to lose his virginity in this lifetime would be in a dream?

He hated himself for thinking that once he got a wife, he wouldn’t need to rely on dreams anymore. But now, he could barely even remember the details of that dream.

He was filled with regret!

Late at night, Wei Zhenge quietly took his phone to the bathroom and opened a search engine.

“Is sudden ED treatable?”

“What causes sudden ED?”