T/N: Before I get busy After ZhouXiang delivered the bill to Ah Liu, he got a call from YanMingXiu.

Once he answered the phone, he could hear YanMingXiu’s intoxicated voice. It sounded as though he hadn’t yet awakened from last night but it was already four to five in the late afternoon. Could it be that he was drinking until now?

“ZhouXiang, come... come over.”

"President Yan? Have you been drinking this entire time?"

“Not your business, come over ... right now.”

ZhouXiang sighed, “Okay, coming now."

He hailed a taxi and quickly went back. As soon as he entered the condo, he was almost pushed out by the strong stench of alcohol.

YanMingXiu was sitting on the sofa. There were a few bottles of red and white wine on the coffee table in front of him. His face is red, leaning against the sofa.

Hearing the sound of the door, he turned his head and glanced at ZhouXiang, “You’re here. Cook me some food."

ZhouXiang saw that he was still conscious and heaved a sigh of relief. He didn’t want to deal with a drunkard at all, “What do you want to eat?”

“Make whatever there is in the refrigerator," YanMingXiu stood up unsteadily and looked at him deeply, "Make your best dishes."

ZhouXiang nodded and went into the kitchen to start cooking.

YanMingXiu leaned against the door frame and stared at ZhouXiang’s back with his eyes narrowed, "Did CaiWei told you? About ZhouXiang’s home being burglarized?"

ZhouXiang paused, then mumbled, “He mentioned it.”

“I don’t think it’s a thief.”

ZhouXiang uttered an “Oh” sound and voiced, “If not a thief, then who?"

YanMingXiu’s eyes emanated a warm glow, “I think it is ZhouXiang himself.”

ZhouXiang is shocked. If he turned back to look at YanMingXiu at this moment, he would have noticed the abnormal feverish glow in YanMingXiu’s eyes. But he didn’t dare to turn his head at this time. He could only hide his fluctuating emotions by continuing to chop vegetables.

ZhouXiang responded, “What are you talking about? Isn’t that ZhouXiang already...”

“Team Leader Wang mentioned that there was no trace of the door lock being tampered with. It was opened with a key and the only people who knew of the key’s location are myself, that surname Lan and ZhouXiang himself."

ZhouXiang couldn’t help but sneered, “Nonsense. How could a dead person come back to open the door?”

YanMingXiu shouted angrily, “He is not dead!!”

ZhouXiang got so frightened that he jolted. He turned around and saw YanMingXiu looking at him fiercely. ZhouXiang wanted to say something but it was stuck in his throat so he couldn’t say anything.

For what reason is YanMingXiu so sure that he is not dead? Whether he was dead or not, the actual party involved has the most say in it. He really wanted to slap YanMingXiu. LaoZi has been fucking dead for almost three years. He’s been dead for this long already, how is he still fucking not dead? It would have been great if he wasn’t dead! His body was given by his parents. He didn’t know whether he could find his parents with this face when he goes to Diyu(T/N).

T/N: As previously explained, according to ideas from Taoism, Buddhism, and traditional Chinese folk religion, after death, the soul will enter Diyu, which is a purgatory that serves to punish and renew spirits in preparation for reincarnation. All will go to Dijyu after death, but the period of time spends there is indefinite, depending on serverity of the sins one committed.

Not dead, such words "not dead," It was YanMingXiu who pushed him to the edge of the cliff, what right does he have to say that he’s not dead?

The two men glared at each other, both unwilling to concede. All kinds of emotions raged and surged between their eyes.

Finally, ZhouXiang smiled forcefully at YanMingXiu, “President Yan, whatever you say then. After all, I don’t know." After saying that, he turned around and continued to cook.

YanMingXiu also stopped talking and just stood by the door, silently assessing ZhouXiang, trying to figure out what is brewing in his heart.

After YanMingXiu finished eating, they made love.

In the beginning, it was just like usual, a silent, unilateral venting sex act. ZhouXiang was still like an ostrich, concealing his face and emotions. YanMingXiu still didn’t utter a word as he forcefully thrust into him. YanMingXiu slammed his body with such powerful force that ZhouXiang’s head almost hit the headboard.

He had experienced YanMingXiu’s abilities and strength in bed a long time ago. But at that time, both of them enjoyed it. They often did it throughout the night, satiating themselves. But now, this was for YanMingXiu to vent his desires and emotions. ZhouXiang merely took it as a job, never complaining. It’s good that this deal is settled to each of their satisfaction.

However, something is oddly going on with YanMingXiu today. Whether it is intentional or unintentional, he’d touch his body a few times. These touches were like... like he is feeling him out. The areas that YanMingXiu touched were all his (older ZhouXiang’s) sensitive spots. Although he’s in a different body, he’s come to realize that he is still not immune to these touches. Very soon, he started to feel a different kind of sensation. He instinctively felt that YanMingXiu is trying to test him; that he is doubting him. This hasn’t just been once or twice; he just didn’t expect YanMingXiu to choose this method...

ZhouXiang tried hard to control himself from making any sounds but YanMingXiu seemed to be doing it deliberately by prolonging his thrusts, very slowly entering and then very slowly pulling out, completely shattering his willpower.

For the first time, ZhouXiang felt pleasure, making him endlessly terrified. He suppressed his body’s reaction but could not resist the increasing turbulent waves of intense pleasure.

YanMingXiu also became unusual, his breathing becoming particularly heavy, as if he is trying to repress something.

ZhouXiang voiced hoarsely, “Enough... you’ve had too much to drink.”

YanMingXiu turned a deaf ear and continued to change the angle of his thrusts. It is the first time he has the desire to penetrate this body and the feeling is actually this good. It is as if the person beneath him is the one who had been constantly on his mind.

At this time, how could he stop?

He didn’t care whether it is his drunken delusion or what it may be, he just wanted to grasp firmly onto this current feeling. For the longest time, he had not felt this kind of satisfaction.

Both of them are caught in an unprecedented state of ecstasy. Besides desires, there was nothing on their minds. In fact, who they are actually having sex with became insignificant.

ZhouXiang felt like he is on the verge of drowning to death. He clutched onto the bed sheets tightly, withstanding the thrills of passion that seemed to have separated from his body a long time ago. In this moment, he couldn’t tell which body he is in, whether it is his past life or this present life. This kind of familiar feeling invaded all his memories, causing him to forget where he’s at.

Or it could be said that whichever body he was in, at this moment is no longer important.

—–

Having consumed liquor, YanMingXiu slept very deeply. YanMingXiu didn’t even notice when ZhouXiang got up and quietly left.

ZhouXiang wrapped himself in his coat and walked home. The apartment he rented is close-by, taking merely 20 minutes of walking to get home. But because of the sexual indulgence all night, his legs trembled constantly. Every step he took reminded him of what happened last night.

It was too crazy... If he didn’t yet still have a trace of reason, he would’ve thought that he had returned to the past.

He didn’t know if YanMingXiu noticed any differences. He hoped that he (YanMingXiu) had so much to drink that he’d completely forgotten everything when he woke up. Otherwise, he really didn’t know how to explain the flawless compatibility of their bodies.

This may be too ironic. Thinking about it now, maybe YanMingXiu was delaying on having an actual confrontation with him because their sex was quite pleasurable. At the time (referring to the past life), he only had YanMingXiu on his mind, so perhaps he (YanMingXiu) couldn’t let go because of this. Men are just like this.

ZhouXiang is too lazy to think about the future. Every day, he is troubled by a lot of problems. So much that he doesn’t even have time to relax. Sometimes there are so many pressing issues on his mind that he just wanted to fucking let it go so he can get some peace, even if it was temporary.

ZhouXiang got home, took a shower, and fell asleep. When he woke up, it was already noon. He went with ChenYing to the hospital for her dialysis treatment. Then, they spent a peaceful day grocery shopping, cooking and watching TV together.

The next morning, ZhouXiang went out wearing all black.

He bought a bouquet of flowers, liquor and cigarettes and then hailed a taxi to the cemetery in the suburbs.

When his parents died, the state was not strict in managing the cemeteries, even paying for the burial fees. Unlike now, he can’t afford to be buried here.

Walking through the rows of serene tombstones along the cemetery, he came to the spot where his parents were buried. This spot, he will never forget.

Looking at the familiar yet distant faces on the tombstone, ZhouXiang sat down on the ground.

He had thought that after so many years, he would have long been at peace. But having experience so many things these days, he had nowhere to vent out his grievances. Sitting in front of his parents’ tombstones, his heart felt especially uncomfortable.

"Dad, Mom, I’m here to see you. You can’t recognize me looking like this but I’m ZhouXiang. I am really ZhouXiang. I am your son. No matter how I look like...” Toward the end, ZhouXiang is chocked up with emotions. He suddenly had the urge to cry.

End of the Chapter