Chapter 108.1 - Performance
Ch108.1 – Performance
Yu Hao threw him a glance to indicate that it doesn’t matter, Zhou Laichun continued, “Who are you going with? How many classmates are you going with?”
“Just me and Yu Hao.” Zhou Sheng restrained himself and said, “What do you want to say? Just say it.”
Yu Hao’s heart suddenly flew to his throat; Zhou Sheng was ready to lay all his cards on the table.
Zhou Laichun said, “I don’t care what you reserved, you must spend the Spring Festival with family. Your mother and I both have something to announce. You can go wherever you want after the first day of New Year, I’ll reimburse your tickets and hotel, I won’t even care if you want to go to Antarctica afterwards.”
“Bullshit!” Zhou Sheng said angrily, “We’ve never spent the New Year together even once in the past 10 years, and now you talk about a family reunion to celebrate the New Year?!”
Yu Hao repeatedly motioned to Zhou Sheng to stop fighting and almost just went up to him to cover his mouth. Zhou Laichun said, “Some plans are going to be rearranged for you.” Then he hung up.
Zhou Sheng was extremely vexed. He sat at the dining table looking absolutely annoyed. As soon as Zhou Laichun hung up, Yu Hao said, “Are they thinking about getting married to each other again? Family reunion dinners are really important……”
“How is it any of my damn business?!” Zhou Sheng roared angrily.
Yu Hao got a start. Zhou Sheng immediately realised that he had scared Yu Hao, so he quickly said, “I’m sorry darling, Hubby couldn’t control his emotions just now.”
Yu Hao hurriedly said that it was okay, though he really was frightened by Zhou Sheng, who had lost control of himself. Zhou Sheng immediately moved over to Yu Hao’s side, all vexed and restless, “I really do have……a tendency to be violent; sometimes I could be talking to someone properly, and the next I wouldn’t be able to control myself……”
Yu Hao leaned forward, sat opposite Zhou Sheng, and reached out to touch the back of his head. He answered, “You only blow up once in awhile towards your family. It’s not a tendency, it’s only because you’re too concerned about them.”
Zhou Sheng looked at Yu Hao a little guiltily. Yu Hao continued, “Go ba. Cancel the plane tickets first, go listen to what your parents have to say. In any case, Gege and sis-in-law aren’t going this time, so we can go together after they reconcile?”
Zhou Sheng couldn’t leave Yu Hao at home by himself, of course, and Yu Hao didn’t say something like ‘you should go back by yourself’. With that temper of his, Zhou Sheng would just become even more stubborn if he did say that, and he would insist on taking Yu Hao along. By then, the two of them might even start quarrelling in private.
Dreamscape, Colosseum Arena.
Zhou Sheng looked all sloppy as he carried his jingubang on his shoulder, one foot stepping on a cloud as he sat down. He faced the Satan in his dream world.
“Sometimes I feel,” Zhou Sheng said, “That there’s no need to be too sunny or kind.”
Satan transformed into another Zhou Sheng, who was clad in black armour from head to toe. His light and dark selves looked at each other, and Dark Zhou Sheng smiled insidiously.
Dark Zhou Sheng said, “Finally figured it out? I thought you were here today to challenge Tao Tie.”
Zhou Sheng cast a sidelong glance at the massive Tao Tie in the arena; light reflected off its sharp horns.
“Let it stay for the time being.” Zhou Sheng said coldly, then he touched the little fox doll on his shoulder.
Zhou Sheng woke up at daybreak. He glanced sideways at Yu Hao, who was resting on his shoulder. Both of them were naked, their bare skin in close contact with one another. Yu Hao always liked to sleep while hugging Zhou Sheng and rest his head on Zhou Sheng’s arm as he snuggled up to his chest — just like in the dream world, with the fox doll that always sat on his shoulder. Zhou Sheng often woke up in the morning with a numb arm, but he still couldn’t help himself from holding Yu Hao tight.
Zhou Sheng bowed his head and kissed Yu Hao. Yu Hao was sweating a little and adjusted his posture out of discomfort. Their final exams were already over, and it was Valentine’s Day today; it would only be the Lunar Year in five days. For the sake of its appraisals, the college wasn’t willing to have an early holiday and had insisted on putting off the college’s anniversary performance until today before they were willing to let them go. Almost all of the students openly voiced their discontent. However, it didn’t matter to Yu Hao at all. After all, it would be the same no matter where he spent it.
Zhou Sheng stroked the Yu Hao in his arms and didn’t dare touch his bare shoulders, so as not to wake him up.
His father’s words still lingered in his ears. Zhou Sheng had to admit that if Zhou Laichun wanted to break them up, he had a lot of ways to do it. He could just order him to go abroad for a one-year preparatory course plus a two-year business course, and he would have no way of dealing with it. He couldn’t discuss it with Yu Hao either, because Yu Hao would just tell him, “That’s really good, you have to go.” He understood that Yu Hao didn’t want him to abandon his future just so that they could be together.
Accepting Zhou Laichun’s arrangements, making new plans for his life, getting a degree in business management, and returning to take over the company is the life he should have. In front of this perfectly logical chain of reasoning, Zhou Sheng had no room for rebuttal at all.
Looking at it from another perspective though, what if he took Yu Hao abroad too?
Zhou Sheng could fully anticipate what Zhou Laichun would say in response: I’m only willing to fork out the money for you to study abroad. As for who you want to take, don’t even think about spending your Laozi’s money. If you have the capability, then think of a way yourself. I’m obliged to support you, but I’m in no way obliged to support your wife.
Saying this all outright would be enough to completely stifle Zhou Sheng to death.
Sometimes, Zhou Sheng’s anger wasn’t directed to his father, but rather towards himself. He couldn’t ask Yu Hao to wait for him for three years either. Zhou Sheng has no doubt at all that once he insists on taking Yu Hao along to study abroad, Zhou Laichun would not hesitate to take back all the money he gave him.
Within this hazy confusion, Zhou Sheng could empathise with Cen Shan a lot. Sometimes when he looks at Fu Liqun, he himself couldn’t bear it either. He didn’t want Yu Hao to feel as conflicted as Fu Liqun, so most of the time he could only choose not to say anything. But there are many things that, even if you don’t try to think about them, would always hang around anyway. Momentary happiness had concealed reality’s troubles, just like now. Yu Hao had turned over to sleep for a while, then unconsciously moved back again and instinctively hugged Zhou Sheng, his whole body leaning on Zhou Sheng’s body.
Zhou Sheng raised his hand and stroked his head gently. For him, this was almost his whole world. Aside from this, he would leave that bit of space for his career, but it definitely wouldn’t be much.
Yu Hao nudged again a few times.
Zhou Sheng finally couldn’t hold back anymore and thought, I can’t anymore I really have to kiss you……his movements at first were relatively gentle, but because they didn’t do it last night, Zhou Sheng was like a hungry wolf now.
Yu Hao’s brows furrowed, “Un……”
“Woke up?” Zhou Sheng was just entering and felt a little nervous. He was afraid of hurting Yu Hao.
Yu Hao was only half awake, and his reaction was completely unconscious. Zhou Sheng liked it the most when Yu Hao put up zero resistance and was under his complete control; his wolf blood started boiling all of a sudden, until Yu Hao completely woke up, then the two of them began entangling with each other as they delved into a mad storm of passionate kisses.
“I……” Yu Hao said, “You’re too savage! How could you do this to me!”
Afterwards, Zhou Sheng smiled as he went to take a bath and wanted to pull him in. Yu Hao was afraid that they would do it again, so he hugged his blanket like a child and sat on the bed as he indignantly blamed Zhou Sheng.
“I love you so much.” Zhou Sheng said to Yu Hao earnestly, “I’ll love you all my life, nothing will be able to separate us.”
Yu Hao scratched his head and glanced at him with eyes full of doubt, but Zhou Sheng just whistled as he went to take his bath.
On the afternoon of Valentine’s Day, Yu Hao, Zhou Sheng, Huang Ting, Chen Yekai, Ou Qihang, and Fu Liqun stood back stage as they prepared for their first song. When he recalled how he was shivering from the cold here last year, compared to today, he had practically lived through a different phase of his life.
“Don’t be nervous.” Yu Hao said to Zhou Sheng.
“I’m not nervous at all.” Zhou Sheng said, “You’re the one who’s nervous.”
Yu Hao tidied up Zhou Sheng’s collar for him. Fu Liqun said helplessly, “Only the two of you are a couple this Valentine’s Day, the rest are all single dogs. Please take pity on us.”
Chen Yekai smiled and motioned a “shh” gesture as a signal to not let him be heard by the student union backstage.
Today, Huang Ting coordinated his attire with the rest. Everyone was wearing a white shirt. Huang Ting had a masculine appearance, while Ou Qihang possessed a fresh and juvenile air. Fu Liqun and Zhou Sheng, plus Chen Yekai……Yu Hao thought that this should be the strongest line-up for a Super Male Idol group in their college, and wondered what kind of reactions the audience would later have.
After everyone gathered, the student union immediately closed the door and asked for a group photo backstage. Zhou Sheng said, “Standing like this looks too dumb, split up a bit.”
Several people were behind the sofa and were either sitting or standing. Zhou Sheng openly sat right in the middle like a CEO, with one leg thrown over the other. Fu Liqun said, “Young Master you actually snatched the C position! That’s too terrible!”
Fu Liqun jumped onto the sofa and sat on the back of the sofa. Chen Yekai stood next to Yu Hao with one arm draped around his shoulder; Ou Qihang sat cross-legged on the ground in front of the sofa, while Huang Ting held a microphone as he stood beside Zhou Sheng. Zhou Sheng pulled Yu Hao over and made him lie down horizontally with his leg as a pillow.
“One, two, three——”
The photographer took a picture of the six of them, and Yu Hao suddenly felt sad. With Huang Ting’s transfer and Ou Qihang’s graduation, this kind of moment may never happen again.
Just one second before the shutter was pressed however, Zhou Sheng moved one hand over and held Yu Hao’s finger, tightening his grip slightly. Yu Hao knew that right now, his feelings must be aligned with his own, and what he wanted to say was: we will still be together.