Chu Cheng still frowned and smoked, his eyes stopping on the faint kiss marks on Su Lanqiao's neck, not hearing what she was mumbling.
Su Lanqiao saw that he was not speaking and glanced at him, puzzled, "Do you really want to get married? Don't you want to ask about the property?"
"Are you going to cheat me?" Chu Cheng finally got up, extinguished the cigarette in the ashtray, rubbed his eyebrows. He hadn't slept all night, and now he was a bit drowsy.
Su Lanqiao shook her head and said softly, "Of course I won't cheat you. I'll give you all the money."
Their family could be considered prestigious, and they wouldn't let Chu Cheng lose out financially.
Chu Cheng was speechless. Was this woman a fool?
It was fortunate that Su Lanqiao's contractual marriage partner was him. If it were someone with ulterior motives, they might have swindled all the money. The consequences would have been lamentable.
"Get the contract ready for me to sign. Do you have anything this afternoon? I want to take a nap," Chu Cheng unbuttoned two buttons of his shirt, got up and walked towards the bed, "Can I borrow the bed?"
Su Lanqiao quickly went over and straightened the messy pillows, smoothed out the wrinkles in the bedsheet, "I have nothing to do this afternoon. You sleep."
Chu Cheng was genuinely tired. After settling the matter, he took off his clothes and fell asleep as soon as his head touched the pillow.
Su Lanqiao stared at him for a while, then cautiously lay down on the other side of the bed, slowly moving closer to him. The familiar aura slowly enveloped her, making her feel at ease.
Her heart rate, which had been racing, had not completely calmed down. Were she and Chu Cheng really going to get married?
She hadn't expected the two of them to come this far. Although it was fake, legally, it was considered valid.
Thinking of this, Su Lanqiao's mood improved, never mind, there was plenty of time.
- The next morning, thinking about the burial ceremony at 9 o'clock, Su Lanqiao got up early and rummaged through the suitcase, then remembered he didn't have a black suit.
He nudged Chu Cheng, who was still asleep, "Chu Cheng, can I borrow your suit?"
"Yeah, go ahead and take it yourself." Chu Cheng had slept all afternoon and night, and only now did he start to feel better. His voice was still hoarse, "Do you want me to go with you?"
"If you're willing, come with me." Su Lanqiao squatted down, rummaged through his suitcase, and took out a neatly folded suit to put on.
Chu Cheng sat up and looked him up and down, his eyes involuntarily showing affection. Although Su Lanqiao was thinner, he had a good bone structure, presenting a different kind of gentlemanly demeanor in the suit, "You look good in my clothes."
"It's not that, it's the first time I put them on." Su Lanqiao blushed a bit, he used to wear others' clothes, not knowing where he got the audacity from.
Their previous relationship was too intimate, and now, with the contractual marriage, they hadn't yet adapted to this new relationship and felt a bit constrained.
Chu Cheng put on his own clothes and then walked over to Su Lanqiao, naturally tidied up his collar, and asked, "Where's the tie?"
"I don't know how to tie it." Su Lanqiao picked up the tie and wound it around his hand, making a mess of his pretty fingers, "I rarely wear formal attire."
Chu Cheng showed a rare smile, "Well, you were often naked when you were a model."
"Oh, can you please not bring that up..." Su Lanqiao watched Chu Cheng's nimble hands wrap the tie around his neck and neatly tie it, then his hands slipped the tie under his jacket, but he could still feel the lingering warmth of his palm.
Su Lanqiao looked up at Chu Cheng, hesitated, feeling low the past couple of days, seeking some comfort, but couldn't speak up.
Seemingly sensing his thoughts, Chu Cheng suddenly hugged him and comforted him, "I know you're sad about your father's passing, but don't you think you need to grow up and face these things?"
He was indeed attentive, seeing through his low spirits.
The warmth in Su Lanqiao's heart suddenly burst out, and he couldn't help but reach out to hug him back.
The two of them maintained this posture for a while, and Chu Cheng couldn't help teasing, "Are you falling asleep?"
Su Lanqiao lowered his head and nuzzled his neck like a cat, "No, I just feel that hugging is quite comfortable."
This person was playing with him again, disgustingly affectionate.
Chu Cheng let go of him, loosely wrapped his waist with his hand, and looked down, "Okay, it's time to go."
The two of them left the hotel, stopped by a flower shop to buy a bouquet of white flowers, and then took a taxi to the address given by Ryan.
The cemetery was located in a vast cemetery with rows of graves neatly interspersed among the tall cedar trees.
Su Lanqiao had always thought he would be buried with his mother, but with his stepmother's interference, it probably wouldn't be allowed.
He sighed lightly, lowered his head and walked in, bumping into Ryan just after greeting someone.
Ryan was still thinking about the inheritance, so he quickly pulled Su Lanqiao aside and asked in a low voice, "Who's the person with you?"
Su Lanqiao pulled Chu Cheng's sleeve and led him over, "He's a good friend of mine. He heard about my father's passing and came to offer condolences."
"Oh, did you look at the information I gave you? Have you chosen the candidate?" Ryan, hearing it was a good friend, didn't beat around the bush, probably knowing the inside story.
Su Lanqiao was being more cautious and replied vaguely, "I'm still looking, nothing has been decided yet."
"Make sure to let me know as soon as you've decided." Ryan looked behind him, "Alan's come over, I won't say more for now."
Su Lanqiao turned around to see Alan with a mocking expression, and thinking about the truth about his mother's death, he didn't have a good expression on his face.
"Who did you bring with you? Isn't he your boyfriend?" Alan sneered, "Brother, you're too slow in getting into a relationship."
Su Lanqiao forced a smile, his voice cold, "It's none of your business."
Chu Cheng felt that this wasn't a good person and instinctively protected Su Lanqiao behind him.
Alan sneered and swaggered toward the direction of the cemetery.
Su Lanqiao waited until the people walked away before grumbling, "The butler is really strange. Why does he keep pushing me to marry one of his chosen candidates?"
"It's simple, isn't it?" Chu Cheng maintained a calm expression as he followed the crowd inside. "The candidates he chose are obviously people he knows. When the property is distributed, he can take a portion of the commission."
Suddenly things became clear to Su Lanqiao. "No wonder. Alan is stingy with money. He can't get much from there, so he'd rather target me."
Looking around, he continued softly, "But I am grateful to him for telling me the truth about my mother's death. Otherwise, I might have remained in the dark for the rest of my life."
Also, the suggestion of a contract marriage unwittingly tied him to Chu Cheng, but he chose to swallow those words.
Chu Cheng caught onto the main point and asked, "When did your mother pass away?"
"Eight years ago, a long time ago," Su Lanqiao vaguely replied.
Chu Cheng frowned, recalling some memories. He had saved a child and the mother passed away on the spot, which must have been about seven or eight years ago. It couldn't be just a coincidence, could it?
He didn't pursue the matter further as it was not appropriate to discuss such things here.
Many people had come to offer their condolences, forming rows around the gravestone. Chu Cheng stood at the very edge of the first row with Su Lanqiao.
The weather was good that day, a rare clear day amidst a week of rain. A nearby band played soothing music, and the priest began reciting prayers.
Chu Cheng glanced at Su Lanqiao. His fair skin almost looked transparent in the sunlight, like porcelain. Although his face was expressionless, the slight redness around his eyes indicated that he was trying hard to hold back tears.
He was such a stubborn kid.
Chu Cheng felt a pang of heartache for the young man who had just turned twenty-one, lost both parents, and now had to deal with a family inheritance dispute. Especially after realizing that his attraction to him was beyond physical, he couldn't help but want to cherish him more.
Thinking this, he didn't care if anyone else was paying attention, reaching out to hold Su Lanqiao's hand in his, which felt cold.
Caught off guard by the touch of a warm, dry hand, Su Lanqiao involuntarily shrank back. He anxiously glanced at Chu Cheng, bewildered by his sudden boldness.
Perhaps it was meant to be a comforting gesture, as he didn't let go and allowed Su Lanqiao to hold his hand.
It was good being abroad, where one could do anything without anyone taking notice. There were no reporters, no gossip, and not so much idle talk.
The two of them maintained this hand-holding gesture until the priest finished the ceremony, with Su Lanqiao feeling a slight sweat in his palm.
"I... should go lay the flowers," Su Lanqiao said awkwardly as he retracted his hand, tightly grasping the white flowers, almost snapping the stems.
Chu Cheng put his hand in his pocket as if nothing had happened, silently following him and said, "Go ahead, tell him everything you want to say."
Su Lanqiao murmured in agreement and slowly walked to the grave. The beautiful flower arrangement carved with Father's name and the photo on the gravestone, carefully selected when he was young, brought back many memories.
The first time he fell off a horse, he sat on the ground crying, but his father didn't offer a hand. Instead, he stood there, looking down at him, and said, "Stand up like a man."
In primary school, when he skipped class to play with a group of classmates, his father caught him and gave him a severe beating right on the sofa. This man had always been strict with him since he was a child.
On his ninth birthday, his father unexpectedly came home early, bringing a birthday cake and a one-meter-tall Lego toy. That was probably his happiest birthday, back when his mother was still around.
After that, he didn't want to recall anything.
Looking at the man in the photo, he felt both love and hatred. The man had given him a joyful childhood and then destroyed his happiness for a long time afterward.
With a person's passing, everything became a past.
Su Lanqiao bent over to place the white flowers at the grave, tidying up the scattered petals, and bowed deeply three times as a final farewell.
In his heart, he silently prayed, "No matter what, I hope you are happy over there."
"Oh, and the person standing beside me, Chu Cheng, is the person I love most in my life. I brought him here to see you."