Lin Sitao was too sleepy, and he took some sleep in the cinema and in the car, so he was not sleepy at all this time.
The house was smaller than He Xian's original one, but much more spacious than Lin Sitao's current one. He Xian handed over the moving of appliances and furniture to the logistics and moving companies. The housekeeping came to do the cleaning twice, and he only came to see it once to bring some clothes. Now he felt the same freshness as Lin Sitao when looking at the house.
"I forgot the tableware..." He Xian opened the empty cupboard and couldn't find a cup for drinking water. Fortunately, there was mineral water and beer in the refrigerator.
He smiled and said to Lin Sitao, "I was in such a hurry to bring you here that there are still a lot of small things missing. But it's okay for you to stay for one night. If you need anything, make a list tomorrow and I'll add it."
Lin Sitao was not sleepy at this moment. Everything in the room was new and bright. The unique sense of spaciousness of a new house made him feel like he was in a dream. It seemed as if He Xian was really going to start living with him.
He was at a loss.
"I'll go get something from my place now."
He Xian held him back and hugged him: "No hurry, let's talk about it tomorrow. Take a shower first..."
The bed was new, too, a large walnut bed covered with dark blue bedding, not perfunctory, but not exaggeratedly large. There was also a massage chair next to it, covered with a thick cream cashmere blanket.
After the two of them had sex once, Lin Sitao finally passed away from the excitement and fell asleep immediately after they finished. He Xian was still not satisfied, so he could only kiss his lips and hug his waist and take advantage of him a little.
At night, there was only a small bedside lamp in the room. Under the orange light, He Xian looked at Lin Sitao and felt that he looked younger. He brushed Lin Sitao's hair to reveal his forehead.
It is said that the older a man gets, the more he likes younger women. He had never experienced this before. He had always dated people of the same age, but when it came to Lin Sitao, he was suddenly ten years younger than him. Only then did he feel that the ten-year difference was a bit scary. Lin Sitao was too young. The longer his future was, the greater the responsibility He Xian should bear - although it was a bit conceited to say this. This unknown burden made him feel a little sweet.
He Xian was very happy that he no longer felt pain when he thought of Zhao Shuqing.
Lin Sitao had a long and good sleep. After all, he was young, and a good sleep relieved the fatigue of the past two days. It was not easy to make breakfast here, and both of them had to rush to work. Lin Sitao went to catch the subway, and He Xian drove him a short distance and dropped him off near the subway station.
"Come to my place for dinner tonight. I'll cook to attract more people," He Xian said. "You don't need to bring anything."
In the evening, He Xian steamed a sea bass and a few hairy crabs and stir-fried vegetables. When Lin Sitao came, he was almost done, so he made him a crab roe tofu soup.
The two stood side by side in the kitchen, and Lin Sitao asked him what time he came back. He Xian was wearing a half-worn black sweater, an apron, and glasses, and he looked like a good husband as he was busy in the kitchen.
He Xian said he got home around seven o'clock. Lin Sitao looked at the time. He Xian had only been home for more than forty minutes. There were a lot more things in the house than in the morning—the tea sets and tableware in the dining room were all complete, and tea and wine were placed in the cabinets. The kitchen was fully equipped with utensils, and there was an oven.
"Did you go shopping for groceries?" Lin Sitao asked him.
He Xian said: "If you go to the supermarket at this time, I'm afraid you won't even have the vegetables to buy. No, I ordered door-to-door delivery, and the hourly worker took care of it."
Only then did Lin Sitao realize that he just came back to cook, no wonder he was so skillful.
It was almost eight o'clock when the two of them finished their meal.
He Xian poured himself a small glass of white wine. Lin Sitao, who didn't like white wine, also poured a small glass. He wanted to drink with He Xian. It wasn't the first time that Lin Sitao had eaten the dishes He Xian made, but this time he felt they were especially delicious. He also liked eating crabs, the kind that made him unable to walk when he saw them.
Lin Sitao was very happy that he could eat as much as he wanted today. While peeling crabs, he asked He Xian, "How did you know that I like to eat crabs?"
He Xian smiled and asked, "Is there anyone who doesn't like eating crabs?"
Lin Sitao said silly, "I really like to eat it. I really like it. I still remember the first time I ate crab soup dumplings, I was completely shocked. It was definitely the most delicious thing in the world. My grandmother told me that crabs were not worth much in the past. People could eat as much as they wanted back then. They were so lucky."
Lin Sitao ate very carefully and cleanly. He Xian felt very happy when he saw that he had cleaned out the crab shell.
In the past, Song You's eating always made He Xian speechless. Song You looked so clean and pretty, and her behavior was nice at other times, but she couldn't eat things with bones and shells cleanly, and she loved to leave rice. When there was a lot of food or rice left in the bowl, He Xian would have obsessive-compulsive disorder just by looking at it.
Zhao Shuqing has good table manners and is very elegant when eating. But he is very picky about eating out. It is difficult to find a restaurant that he rates highly, and he doesn't even think about junk food. If he cooks at home, he must cook healthy, healthy, healthy, and he would rather not use a drop of oil. He Xian laughed and said that he would definitely live a hundred years.
Lin Sitao was just right, he ate so deliciously that He Xian felt it was a pleasure to watch him eat. He didn't understand whether Lin Sitao was cute so he felt cute watching him eat, or he felt cute even when he ate so he was cute as a whole.
Lin Sitao asked He Xian again: "What kind of crab do you think tastes best?"
He Xian really hadn't thought about this serious question of life. He loved steaming crabs, and of course drunken crabs were also very refreshing. He liked to eat crabs alone with ginger and vinegar, but cooking with crab roe was also very good.
He Xian did not answer directly, but took Lin Sitao's hand. There was still some crab roe on his fingertips. He Xian put Lin Sitao's finger to his mouth and licked it: "Eat it like this."
Lin Sitao blushed and opened his mouth, as if he wanted to silently condemn He Xian for being immoral. But He Xian had already stuffed his finger into his mouth again: "Try it, it's really delicious."
Lin Sitao really wrapped his fingers and stared at He Xian, looking like he didn't want to admit defeat. He Xian finally laughed.
The two of them finished several dishes, leaving only two crabs. Lin Sitao disassembled them, took out the crab roe and crab meat, and kept them for cooking.
He Xian simply cleaned up the kitchen and asked Lin Sitao to bring some review books over. He also set up a study room here, next to the bedroom, with a door leading to it, and there were no books in it yet.
Lin Sitao brought a set of books with him, took a shower, read and reviewed for a while. It was almost twelve o'clock when He Xian dragged him to bed. The more they did it, the more tacit they understood each other. Although Lin Sitao was thin, he was stronger than He Xian had imagined after taking off his clothes, especially his legs. He liked Lin Sitao's slender and straight legs the most, and he couldn't stop touching them.
After they finished, they chatted for a while. Lin Sitao talked to him about the current project. Although it was the same project, they rarely had the opportunity to meet at work.
They talked for a while before He Xian asked him about the private work he had taken.
"You don't seem to be getting enough sleep these past two days. Have you been staying up late to review?"
Lin Sitao closed his eyes and hummed. He was not good at lying and could be easily seen through.
"Or are you taking private jobs?" He Xian turned his face, asked him to face him, and asked gently.
Lin Sitao was silent for a while before he whispered, "It's the end of the year, and I want to save some money. Don't laugh at me."
He Xian tried to hold back his laughter for a while, but then he felt that Lin Sitao was really lovable. He stroked Lin Sitao's hair and said, "I won't laugh at you. Why should I laugh at you? It's fine for you to take private jobs when you have time, but it's not worth it if you ruin your health. Besides, aren't we going to take exams now? Focus on reviewing first and talk about it after you're done, okay?"
Lin Sitao nodded. He thought that the money for the previous private work had already been transferred, so he really didn't need to take any private work during this period until the exam.
Seeing how obedient he was, He Xian almost blurted out, "I have a card here, you can use it." He had to take care of Lin Sitao's self-esteem, and things had to be done step by step. In fact, he had placed two cards with Zhao Shuqing in the past. When the family needed to buy something, such as clothes for the two of them, Zhao Shuqing could just swipe his card. Zhao Shuqing took care of a lot of things at home, so it was natural for him to have two cards in his hands.
But we have to take it slow with Lin Sitao.
He Xian emphasized it again to make sure Lin Sitao heard it.
He knew that Lin Sitao's parents had left him a long time ago. His mother died of illness and his father ran away from home. Such a family situation would not be very good.
He was afraid that Lin Sitao would have to carry it all by himself. Although before he met him, Lin Sitao had carried it all by himself.
"Be sure to tell me if there is anything." He Xian reminded him again and again.
Lin Sitao agreed to him.
He Xian hugged him and whispered, "I used to be alone, it was too hard."
He stroked Lin Sitao's back and kissed his forehead.
Lin Sitao gradually came to understand He Xian and realized that He Xian's kiss was more of a comfort than an act of intimacy.
He stuck close to He Xian. Whether it was windy or snowy outside had nothing to do with him. He felt sorry for the pedestrians who had not yet returned home, the stray cats and dogs who were shivering with cold, and the college entrance examination candidates who were still staying up late to review. He Xian also felt sorry for him.
Lin Sitao asked quietly in his heart: Are you feeling sorry for me
He said: "… The strange thing is, I was actually quite happy when I was a child, and my grandparents were very good to me. As for losing my parents, I felt more regretful the older I got. But it seemed that everyone felt more sorry for me when I was a child. When I grew up, there were almost no people who said to me, 'How pitiful, your mother is gone, and your father is gone too.' In fact, for me, it's always the same no matter how long it takes."
He Xian hugged him tightly and said, "I know."
He knows it perfectly.