RBNR Ch33: Toughen his heart

The families continued their lively discussion, and Qin Bao excused himself to try on his suit but actually went to the balcony to smoke.

Looking out at the courtyard at night, he felt as if the days of running around in the flower paths during his childhood were just yesterday. He used to catch butterflies here and played water gun fights and real-life CS games with Tu Yisen and Shan Yiming. The first time he smoked was also here, accidentally dropping ash onto the birdcage below, causing Mr. Qin to be scolded by the old man.

After this, he probably wouldn’t have many more opportunities to stay here freely at this time of year.

The menthol flavor hit his throat. He had just taken two puffs when Feng Chengyu arrived.

“Do you have another cigarette?”

Qin Bao skillfully shook a cigarette out of the pack, “It’s just cheap stuff with a bead in it. Do you want it?”

Many people couldn’t stand the taste.

“Sure,” Feng Chengyu took the cigarette and put it in his mouth. “Got a light?”

Alright.

A nicotine craving makes you forget everything.

Qin Bao muttered inwardly and lit the cigarette with one hand while holding his own cigarette with the other.

The flame flickered warmly, and Feng Chengyu lowered his head to light his cigarette.

In an instant, the seductive scene of Feng Chengyu lighting a cigarette in a restaurant years ago reappeared in his mind.

However, unlike the casualness he only showed around friends, Feng Chengyu seemed even more unconstrained in front of Qin Bao. The actions were still elegant but appeared more carefree, making Qin Bao slightly annoyed.

Putting the lighter away, Qin Bao looked down at the balcony below, took a puff, and slowly exhaled.

Feng Chengyu took out a box, “Uncle Qin asked me to give this to you.”

Qin Bao knew what it was and opened it.

Inside, the blue velvet lined the delicate and elegant daffodil brooch, perfectly restored.

He stared at it for a few seconds before closing the box and casually stuffing it into his pocket without saying whether he would wear it or not.

Feng Chengyu shifted his gaze, staring at the night sky alongside Qin Bao, “Still thinking about Xu Tangzhou?”

He hadn’t even met the best man but remembered the name.

“Yes,” Qin Bao replied. Remembering what had happened at the door, he directly asked Feng Chengyu, “Did you eavesdrop on my conversation with Shan Yiming just now?”

Feng Chengyu said, “I didn’t eavesdrop.”

Then he added through the smoke, “I only heard the part about someone secretly liking you, does that count?”

So that’s why he acted so affectionate in front of the elders?

This didn’t fall under any form of infidelity, and Qin Bao had no obligation to report it, nor did Feng Chengyu need to maintain any stable relationship image.

Qin Bao leaned on the railing, “That was my childhood friend. We were joking around.”

Feng Chengyu didn’t respond to that, only said, “Next time you want to go somewhere, don’t ask anyone else, ask me.”

He didn’t use a negotiating tone.

With everything mixed together, plus the daffodil brooch, Qin Bao felt particularly upset after hearing this.

He didn’t know what came over him, but he turned around and, recalling Xu Tangzhou’s joking remark, provocatively asked Feng Chengyu, “Are you jealous, Feng Chengyu? Do you secretly like me too? If you admit it, I might consider wearing your brooch.”

Feng Chengyu looked down at him and said, “Yes.”

What did that mean?

Was he jealous? Surely, it wasn’t an admission of a secret crush.

Whichever it was, it made Qin Bao’s heart skip a beat.

Rolling his eyes at Feng Chengyu, Qin Bao turned away, “Hmph, you’re really casual. You’ll say anything to have a good marriage. As if anyone cares.”

Before he finished his cigarette, the mosquitoes came for him.

Qin Bao put out the cigarette, “I’m going inside. You can stay here and feed the mosquitoes.”

Feng Chengyu, with his back to him, replied, “Okay.”

After walking a few steps, Qin Bao looked back at the proud and solitary figure in the night.

In truth, he was fleeing. It wasn’t because of the mosquitoes; it was because of Feng Chengyu’s ambiguous “yes” that had stirred his emotions.

Perhaps it was due to the dissatisfaction with this expectation, or maybe the impending wedding that pressed on him, but all his previous resentment, grievances, and awkwardness seemed to lose their meaning at this moment.

Suddenly, he no longer wanted to carry those feelings forward.

“Feng Chengyu,” Qin Bao called his name without any warning, “Did you know that I actually liked you a little?”

Feng Chengyu turned around.

The tip of his cigarette glowed red in the night.

Qin Bao’s confession was sudden, and there was no taking it back.

He paused, then said it all in one breath: “You must have known, right? Feng Chu, that big mouth, must have already told you. Otherwise, how could you have been so confident, daring to sleep with me after only a few meetings.”

He wasn’t a fool; it was easy to figure out what had happened.

It wasn’t any one person’s fault. He had given signals, which led Feng Chengyu to misunderstand.

He had said it all.

Saying it wasn’t necessarily easy, but once he did it, it didn’t seem that hard either. After speaking, the resentment and frustration in his heart dissipated considerably, and he became the fearless Qin Bao once again.

No matter how Feng Chengyu would react, Qin Bao continued to head back to his room to change, but just as he reached the corner of the corridor, Feng Chengyu came up from behind.

Feng Chengyu grabbed him and pushed him into the corner.

The chandelier above cast shadows on Feng Chengyu’s face, obscuring his expression. He gripped Qin Bao’s wrist tightly: “What do you mean by ‘a little’?”

Qin Bao replied, “It means just a little, and now it’s gone.”

Feng Chengyu’s grip was strong, causing Qin Bao pain and making it impossible for him to break free: “If there was once a little, then give me a little more.”

Qin Bao was annoyed but looked at him calmly: “I don’t like things that are priced or forced on me.”

Young people’s likes and dislikes are equally vexing.

Equally hard to grasp.

“Let me make this clear. After we get married, everything follows the contract. I have the freedom to go out with anyone,” Qin Bao asserted his rights clearly. “In short, I don’t care about your business, and you don’t meddle in mine. Mind your own affairs.”

The atmosphere grew heavier.

Their lips were so close, almost touching with each breath Qin Bao took.

But neither of them moved closer.

At this rate, their erratic heartbeats would be exposed. Just as Qin Bao was about to leave, Feng Chengyu pulled him back, and suddenly, Qin Bao felt a sharp pain in his lower lip—Feng Chengyu had bitten him.

“But I don’t mind if you meddle in my business.”

Feng Chengyu’s tone didn’t reveal any anger; instead, it was like teasing a child, which was unpleasant to hear.

“Why don’t you meddle in my affairs? Please?”

His lips felt electrified.

Qin Bao’s heart pounded. He knew very well the strong attraction between them due to their high compatibility. He couldn’t withstand another forced kiss in this situation.

He could only reply gruffly, “No, I’m not interested.”

Feng Chengyu said two low words.

Qin Bao’s face instantly turned red. He pushed Feng Chengyu away and hurried off.

He walked quickly, his footsteps loud on the stairs. When he regained his composure, he realized he had returned to the main hall instead of going to his room.

There was a pot of cool tea on the table. Without a second thought, he rushed over and drank a large cup to cool down.

Ms. Rong saw him drinking in such a hurry and asked, “Bao’er, what’s wrong? Why are you drinking so much cold water?”

Qin Bao didn’t know if his lip was bleeding and could only cover his mouth and make up an excuse: “…I accidentally swallowed a mosquito.”

“A mosquito? Then you should rinse your mouth.”

Mr. Qin, who was nearby, showed a disgusted expression. Forgetting his conversation with Professor Feng, he immediately arranged for someone to deal with the mosquitoes on the balcony.

Qin Bao couldn’t stay there any longer. As he was about to leave, he saw Feng Chengyu returning with a calm expression. They brushed past each other.

Those two words Feng Chengyu had said were still burning in Qin Bao’s ears.

— “It’s legal.”

Meddle in my affairs. Please.

It’s legal.

Using a cool tone to say seductive words with a hint of coercion. It was hard to tell if it was intentional.

What exactly did Feng Chengyu want?

At that moment, Qin Bao felt a strange sense of crisis.

He realized that if the public only knew the tip of the iceberg about Feng Chengyu, then the entire iceberg in front of him seemed to be slowly emerging from the water.

*

Wedding preparations and rehearsals took a week.

Oddly enough, the two main characters of the wedding rarely saw each other during this time. An Qingyan agreed to be Qin Bao’s best man. The first thing he said upon seeing him was, “No wonder you’re the groom. You look like a little prince today, very proper.”

The not fully awake Qin Bao replied with a blank expression, “I’m always proper.”

An Qingyan bluntly said, “You usually look like a rebellious teenager. Although you still look quite aristocratic, your occasional tantrums scare even passing dogs, who have to be cautious lest you suddenly go berserk.”

“…”

Qin Bao’s expression instantly became lively.

An Qingyan noticed the daffodil brooch on Qin Bao’s white suit and complimented it: “Nice accessory, so many diamonds. Bao, are you marrying into a wealthy family or are you the one from a wealthy family?”

Qin Bao had always kept a low profile and hid his background well. If not for this emergency, An Qingyan wouldn’t have known about his family background. Now that he did, it seemed reasonable. Qin Bao’s demeanor of calm in the face of honor and disgrace wasn’t something just anyone could have. Moreover, if they weren’t well-matched in social standing, how would he have ended up with Feng Chengyu in the first place?

An Qingyan, unaware of any contract, thought they were simply a couple who had broken up and then gotten back together, so he made fun of them.

Qin Bao pretended to take off the brooch: “Like it? I’ll give it to you.”

An Qingyan slapped his hand: “I just praised you for being proper. Can’t you maintain that for more than two seconds? Is this something you can casually give away?”

As an Omega, An Qingyan had taken inhibitors, but after staying around for a while, he inevitably caught a whiff of Feng Chengyu’s pheromones. The renowned Alpha’s scent was a cool, proud daffodil, perfectly matching his personality.

Everyone understood what it meant for Qin Bao to wear the daffodil brooch.

With the wedding hustle and bustle, Qin Bao didn’t have much time to banter with An Qingyan and was led through the processes like a puppet.

During the photo session, he unexpectedly saw Feng Chengyu.

Standing beside Feng Chengyu was also a best man named Shu Helan. As Feng Chengyu’s childhood friend, Shu Helan was indeed a fine-looking gentleman with graceful manners. The two seemed to be kindred spirits.

They stood in the center of the crowd. Even with such an eye-catching best man beside him, Feng Chengyu still stood out like a crane among chickens.

Through the crowd, their eyes met, and recalling the words from that night, Qin Bao walked over awkwardly.

“The other groom is here!”

“So handsome, they really match well!”

“Absolutely perfect…”

Amidst the crowd’s praises and teasing, Feng Chengyu gracefully took Qin Bao’s hand: “You look beautiful today.”

Qin Bao: “…”

He should have politely responded, at least to keep up appearances in front of so many people. Even though any compliment he gave would be true, his throat felt locked, and the key seemed to be thrown into the Pacific Ocean.

Balloons, ribbons, flowers—a series of photos were captured by the cameras.

Finally, they were pushed into the chapel.

This wedding didn’t invite any media and was kept confidential from the public, making it both low-key and grand. Besides close friends and family, there were also many people from the political world present. A glance at the seats revealed many familiar faces.

The wedding march played.

Qin Bao, wearing the daffodil brooch, took Mr. Qin’s arm and walked step by step to Feng Chengyu.

Amid the officiant’s congratulations, they exchanged rings.

…

“I do.”

“I do.”

Mechanically reciting their vows, they leaned in close and embraced, sharing a sweet and gentle kiss for the crowd.

Ms. Rong and Grandma were in tears, and sitting next to Grandpa Qin, Mr. Qin was also moved to tears. Feng Chu and Professor Lin held their phones the whole time, probably taking countless photos.

Everything went as expected.

After the ceremony came the party.

Thanks to the earlier wedding rehearsals, the two smoothly performed the opening dance.

“Are you tired?”

As if nothing had happened, Feng Chengyu held his waist, looking as composed as ever.

“…Of course.”

Now that the ice was broken, Qin Bao couldn’t keep up his facade and softened his tone, “Aren’t you tired?”

The feeling of completing a ceremony was completely different from just registering their marriage. Registration was just a piece of paper, but with the witness and blessings of family and friends, they felt like a real couple. Just being together like this, they seemed inexplicably fitting and complementary in everyone’s eyes.

Qin Bao didn’t quite like this feeling of being bound to another person. To some extent, it felt like losing himself, making him anxious and uneasy.

“I’m not tired.” Feng Chengyu indeed looked energetic and asked softly, “Do you want me to find someone to check on Qinan?”

Qin Bao looked over in surprise.

He didn’t realize Feng Chengyu could see through his thoughts.

Yes, even today, Qin Bao was still hoping Xu Tangzhou would show up. He had even told An Qingyan that if Xu Tangzhou suddenly appeared, the best man’s position would unconditionally belong to him.

However, even though he had left messages on all of Xu Tangzhou’s social media, even sent multiple messages to Xu Tangzhou’s gaming account, Xu Tangzhou still didn’t come by the time the ceremony started.

Qin Bao felt disappointed and sad, unable to help but blame Xu Tangzhou for missing his wedding as his best friend. Failing the college entrance exam could be retaken, breaking up with a boyfriend could be recovered, but he was supposed to be the best person to accompany Xu Tangzhou through difficult times. Why would Xu Tangzhou abandon him and go abroad?

But he also knew that his resentment was unreasonable.

If he were the one facing those difficulties, he might have handled them even worse than Xu Tangzhou.

People around the dance floor were watching them.

Their seemingly intimate posture made Director Feng smile and say something to the big shot beside him, who nodded repeatedly.

Qin Bao slightly moved his face away, maintaining some distance from Feng Chengyu.

No matter what, he was grateful that Feng Chengyu cared about him.

His eyes were a bit red: “No need. It’s not that important. If he misses it, he misses it. I’ll invite him next time I get married.”

With the changing dance steps, Feng Chengyu’s lips briefly brushed against Qin Bao’s earlobe.

His breath lightly swept over, and surprisingly, he didn’t get angry: “Mm, we’ll invite him next time.”

Qin Bao: “…”

It was like hitting a punch into cotton.

Forget it.

He was already on this pirate ship; he might as well close his eyes, toughen his heart, and believe that five years would pass quickly!!!