After the Young Master’s Death, He was Kissed by His Mortal Enemy! (BL) - Chapter 12

Hugging the thick photo albums to his chest, Shen Ran turned around with a bright smile on his face, as if nothing at all was wrong.

“Cheng Yi, come sit with me—let’s look at these albums together.”

Cheng Yi clearly had no idea what Shen Ran was up to, but didn’t ask.
He casually pulled up a chair and sat beside him.

“Make sure you look like you’re enjoying yourself,” Shen Ran reminded softly.
“Pretend I’m just showing you some pictures.”

Then he opened the album.

In Shen Ran’s memories, his childhood had always been perfect.
A peaceful, loving home. Parents who never fought. He was smart and independent—never needed much from them.

The Shen family business thrived, money was never an issue, and as the little heir, Shen Ran grew up in luxury.
He’d always believed he was raised with love—after all, there were so many photo albums filled with captured moments.

His father, Shen Xianming, had loved photography and was always taking pictures.

As he flipped through the pages now, his heart lightened.
Memories poured in, and with them, a sense of warmth.

He couldn’t help but smile as he pointed to the photos, his tone growing cheerful and playful.

“This was taken when I opened my gallery after graduation. My dad took this picture at the ribbon-cutting ceremony,” Shen Ran said, pointing at the photo.
“My mom brought me two fortune trees for luck, but I have zero green thumb—they both died.”

Cheng Yi followed along.
In the photo, Shen Ran grinned confidently at the camera—bright-eyed and full of ambition.

But in reality, his gallery was just scraping by—breaking even with a modest profit. Small, but stable.

“This one’s from my freshman year in college. My uni was in K City, but my parents insisted I live on campus. Wouldn’t let me come home. But it turned out fine—my dorm mates were great, and I actually had a lot of fun.”

“This one… this is me in high school. Fell asleep while sketching, face mashed right into the canvas. When I woke up, the paint had dried onto my cheek…”

Page by page, Shen Ran narrated the photos—each one a piece of happiness.

It was like time was rewinding, flowing backwards with every flip.

College. High school. Middle school. Elementary school.

When Shen Ran finished the elementary school album, he reached to the left for the next one—
Only to find nothing there.

His hand hovered over empty space.

This…
This was the first album.

The earliest one.

And the last photo in it was dated when he was five years old.

Nothing before that.

Not a single photo.

Cheng Yi, unaware of the significance, said lightly, “There’s gotta be another one, right? Like baby photos—your first birthday, that sort of thing.”

Shen Ran shook his head.

“No more. This is the last one.”

“…It’s not a big deal if you’re missing some early pictures,” Cheng Yi said gently, trying to comfort him.
“Look at all these albums—you’ve got tons. I don’t even have one. That’s gotta make you feel better, right?”

Shen Ran shook his head fiercely.
It didn’t help at all.

Compared to his own fake family, he suddenly realized—
He didn’t know anything about Cheng Yi’s past.
And if Cheng Yi spoke about it so casually… maybe his childhood hadn’t been so easy, either.

Shen Ran lowered his head, trying to avoid the ever-watchful surveillance cameras.
He moved his lips in a voice barely above a whisper, tinged with helplessness.

“…Cheng Yi, I think I’m an orphan.”

“What?” Cheng Yi blinked. “You’re saying that just because you don’t have baby photos? Come on, your parents are downstairs, alive and well.”

“No, listen to me.”
Shen Ran shoved aside the photo albums, hands trembling as he grabbed Cheng Yi’s hand, like it was the only thing keeping him afloat.

His words tumbled out, frantic and jumbled—

“I think I’m not their biological child. I was adopted! Don’t say I’m overthinking it—if I really was theirs, then why is there nothing before I turned five? Why can’t I remember anything from before that? I… I…”

His breath was ragged.
His heart thundered in his ears, drowning everything else out.

Shen Ran’s voice broke into a sob.

Cold fingers were suddenly wrapped in warmth,
His cheek pressed against a solid, familiar chest.

Cheng Yi had pulled him into a hug, one hand stroking the back of his head gently.

“…Okay,” Cheng Yi murmured. “I get it now.”

Shen Ran’s claim might sound sudden and absurd—
But Cheng Yi didn’t doubt him.

Shen Ran was right.
A family this loving—always taking pictures—
Would never have skipped baby photos.
No infant shots, no toddler pictures? It didn’t make sense.

If that were all, maybe it was just lost over time.

But from the moment Cheng Yi walked into this house, he’d felt it—
Something was wrong.

Fu Sijie’s strange behavior.
The overwhelming surveillance.
The probing, the constant tests…

This might have been Cheng Yi’s first visit, but he could already tell—This home wasn’t normal.

Shen Ran’s fear might have seemed irrational…
But now? It wasn’t impossible.

Cheng Yi had always been someone who respected boundaries.
Even if he liked someone, he’d never snoop into their past.

But this time?
This was different.

The situation was far worse than he imagined.
When they got out of here— Cheng Yi had to find the truth.
Even if it meant uncovering everything.

His actions and tone weren’t exactly gentle, but perhaps this was already the best Cheng Yi could manage.

Cheng Yi likely had never comforted anyone like this before, so his clumsiness was understandable.

Gripping tightly onto Cheng Yi’s clothes, Shen Ran spoke with a heavy nasal tone, “…Cheng Yi, I’m sorry.”

“What’s wrong? Why are you suddenly apologizing?”

“This is already the second time today I’ve wiped my tears… on your shirt.”

“Tch.” Cheng Yi chuckled. “You’re using my shirt as a tissue, and all you say is ‘sorry’? Do you think I’m that petty?”

Shen Ran nodded seriously. “Mm.”

“That’s how you see me?” Cheng Yi didn’t hold back and gave Shen Ran a firm flick to the forehead.

It was quite forceful—Shen Ran felt a sudden sharp pain on his forehead and couldn’t help but cry out softly. He clutched his head with both hands and stared at Cheng Yi in grievance. “What was that for?!”

“For nothing.” Cheng Yi’s eyes crinkled with laughter. “Just a little payback from someone petty, that’s all.”

With that, Cheng Yi stood up, patted Shen Ran’s head, and returned all the photo albums to the bookshelf.

He didn’t forget to hand Shen Ran two tissues.

“Wipe your tears. Don’t let your parents notice.” Cheng Yi raised a brow slightly. “Your eyes are so red, like a rabbit’s… or like I punched you twice. They might think I was bullying you.”