Bone-Attached Disaster - Chapter 49:

Chapter 49: The Misstep

Wan Ze looked at the person in front of him, wearing a black cap pulled low, revealing only a sliver of his eyes. A black mask was pulled down to his chin. Just by seeing the lower half of his face, it was clear he possessed a rare kind of beauty—very fair skin and a small mole on the bridge of his nose that was simply stunning.

As for his lips… it was those lips he had just brazenly used to kiss Lu Jie’s face.

The person held a large jar of lollipops, an unopened, factory-sealed jar, enough to last for months. While he looked harmless, the chilling coldness in his eyes was quite startling.

Lu Jie, who had been kissed, didn’t seem embarrassed or annoyed by the person’s capriciousness. He looked at him with a mix of surprise and delight. Although his demeanor was composed, the affection flowing from his eyes was completely unconcealed.

Well, Wan Ze thought, I’ve run into the real boyfriend, and the kind who’s utterly spoiled.

Wan Ze’s mind worked quickly. He immediately apologized for the interruption, turned around, and slipped away.

On the drive back, Lu Jie didn’t say much, seemingly preoccupied with his thoughts. Fu Jia’an held the large jar of lollipops, also deep in thought.

“Did I do something wrong just now?”

Lu Jie snapped out of his thoughts. “What?”

“I’ve been reminding myself not to cause trouble for you outside. After all…”

After all, they had only confessed their feelings a few days ago. Even if their relationship was stable, it wasn’t convenient to openly be affectionate, especially since Lu Jie had always been concerned about external opinions.

Lu Jie said, “Is that why you were keeping your distance from me today?”

Fu Jia’an realized Lu Jie wasn’t angry; he was even in a good mood.

“Don’t overthink it,” Lu Jie stopped at a traffic light and reached out his right hand to gently stroke the top of Fu Jia’an’s head. “Just do whatever you want to do. I’ll handle things on my end. Besides, I like this about you.”

Claiming his territory in front of Wan Ze, like a kitten hissing at a stranger, and now holding the lollipops in the car like a cat hugging a dried fish—he was adorable every second.

Lu Jie then considered that the person they encountered was Wan Ze, who was accepting of same-s3x relationships, so Fu Jia’an kissing him wasn’t a shocking coming-out. But what if it had been someone else? A subordinate from his company? A relative? Or… Dai Mengshu?

If Fu Jia’an were to be so impulsive in front of them, how would he react?

Lu Jie’s distraction had been all about these “what ifs.” In the end, he was surprised to realize that no matter who showed up today, he would be able to openly and confidently hold Fu Jia’an’s hand in front of them, as long as Fu Jia’an was willing. (Of course, Jiang Yan and Shen Rufēi were the exceptions; he simply disliked the idea of those two watching the show.)

As soon as he reached this conclusion, Lu Jie realized he was truly losing it.

But then, Lu Jie felt that he had finally found the right way to live. For the past thirty years, he had been searching for the source of suffocation in his life. Perhaps it was Dai Mengshu initially, but later it evolved into his own self-imposed oppression.

His family, colleagues, and friends formed layers upon layers of constraints, pushing inward from far and near, creating a dilemma for Lu Jie. He was accustomed to satisfying everyone, never disappointing anyone, and hiding the things he genuinely liked. In the end, his life was just being pushed along, nearing a descent into chaos.

However, after taking this step today, he suddenly felt a wall had been broken down, and the path ahead was clear. He realized that Fu Jia’an had constantly served this purpose in his life; Fu Jia’an was there at every crucial point of realization. He was like a guiding light, bestowed by destiny, telling Lu Jie to just follow his heart and disregard everything else.

“I can just do what I want?”

Fu Jia’an subtly licked his lips, a smile in his eyes. “Then pull over downstairs.”

Lu Jie was glad he had tinted his car windows darkly, so even if someone passed by, they wouldn’t notice the abnormality inside the car. He slumped into the driver’s seat, forcing himself to breathe deeply, suppressing the pleasure that surged into his cerebral cortex.

His Adam’s apple slowly bobbed. He looked down at Fu Jia’an, only seeing the back of his head and the rise and fall of his body during the vigorous motion. An impulse rose in Lu Jie to grab the hair behind Fu Jia’an’s ear and press down hard, but he couldn’t bring himself to do it. Instead, he gripped the sides of the leather seat cushion, clenching hard.

Five minutes earlier, their conversation had been: Lu Jie said, “Does it have to be here?”

“Should we go upstairs and let my brother and Jiang Yan ruin things again like last night?” Fu Jia’an looked at Lu Jie, gently resting his hand on the suddenly engorged area.

Lu Jie sucked in a breath. “That’s true.”

Fu Jia’an had already lowered his head. “We’ll go up in 20 minutes. It shouldn’t arouse suspicion regarding the time.”

“Okay.”

Lu Jie agreed verbally.

Almost an hour later, with one leg draped over the driver’s seat backrest and the other held in Lu Jie’s hand, Fu Jia’an trembled uncontrollably in a quite disheveled state. After a while, he laboriously propped himself up. Lu Jie wiped the corner of his mouth with the back of his hand, finally regaining some composure. Only then did he lean over, wrapping his arm around Fu Jia’an’s waist to pull him up.

In comparison, Lu Jie’s predicament was only internal; his clothes were mostly intact. Fu Jia’an, however, could no longer be described as just disheveled, as there wasn’t much fabric left on him…

Fu Jia’an’s ears were red, and he was red everywhere else, with teeth marks, scratches, and even bruises from the night before. Lu Jie had expected him to be furious, but he wasn’t. Lu Jie had also been curious: Fu Jia’an didn’t seem to vocalize much when being serviced. Could it be that he wasn’t enjoying it?

…Lu Jie felt a little frustrated, but fortunately, he had plenty of time to practice later.

The two eventually stumbled out of the car and arrived at the apartment door, having spent the entire morning. Lu Jie still looked relatively normal, much the same as when he left, but Fu Jia’an had a bite mark on his jawline and swollen lips, making any explanation that they hadn’t been fooling around seem suspicious.

Furthermore, Lu Jie dared to take so long because he was clearly intent on treating Shen Rufēi and Jiang Yan like fools.

Sorry, we were out fooling around. But if you ask, we’ll say we weren’t dating. Doesn’t that just tick you off?

When ringing the doorbell, Lu Jie at least played along, handing one of the grocery bags he’d carried the whole way to Fu Jia’an—the one with no weight.

The door opened, and Lu Jie came face-to-face with Dai Yaoxi.

Cousin and cousin exchanged glances. Fu Jia’an, next to him, was friendly. “You are?”

“Senior!” Dai Yaoxi’s eyes sparkled. “I can’t believe I actually get to see you! Brother Jiang Yan didn’t lie to me!”

Lu Jie felt as if he’d seen a ghost. Although he knew about Dai Yaoxi’s fan complex, he was unaccustomed to his usually expressionless cousin being so lively and excited.

“This is my cousin, Dai Yaoxi,” Lu Jie introduced him to Fu Jia’an, bristling with goosebumps. “Why are you here?”

Dai Yaoxi completely ignored Lu Jie, fawned over Fu Jia’an, and took the shopping bag and the jar of lollipops from him, staring at his idol without blinking. “I saw the news about you, Senior, in the dorms and was worried, so I messaged my brother, but he didn’t reply, so I called Brother Jiang Yan directly. Brother Jiang Yan told me to wait at home. When I arrived, he said you and my cousin went grocery shopping. My cousin, honestly, how could he let you carry things? They’re so heavy.”

Lu Jie: “……” Someone please take this chatterbox away.

“Wait, Senior, why is there a red mark here?”

Lu Jie: “…….”

Fu Jia’an’s voice was tinged with a smile. “Here? A mosquito bite. It’s summer, lots of mosquitoes.”

Dai Yaoxi happened to have no classes today, so he stayed for lunch.

The coconut chicken hotpot eaten with the air conditioning running was comforting. At the table, Fu Jia’an practically held a private press conference for Dai Yaoxi, sharing everything he could tell a young man.

Of course, he didn’t elaborate on the details of the murder case or the danger he had faced recently, only saying that the online public opinion would soon reverse, so Dai Yaoxi didn’t need to worry.

Dai Yaoxi was smart. While listening, he proactively raised three fingers and swore he would never tell anyone the secrets.

Perhaps Fu Jia’an was being kind due to his affection for Lu Jie, but he was incredibly patient with Dai Yaoxi, answering every question. Unknowingly, the topic shifted from news to academic discussion. Dai Yaoxi, talking about serious matters, reverted to his lifelong expressionless, old-school scholar demeanor.

Lu Jie didn’t interject much, but while clearing the table, he overheard Dai Yaoxi mention a paper on aneurysms. He wasn’t sure if he misheard, but the paper’s title matched one that Fu Jia’an had on his computer that hadn’t been published yet.

Maybe it was a coincidence?

Otherwise, it would mean Dai Yaoxi and Fu Jia’an had already known each other in private, which seemed impossible.

Lu Jie felt he had been a bit too carefree these past two days and seemed to have forgotten something important. But if it was something that could be overshadowed by ordinary life, it probably wasn’t a major issue.

Finally sending off Dai Yaoxi, Lu Jie went back to the study for a meeting. When he came out, it was already evening. The living room was empty. Shen Rufēi and Fu Jia’an had gone out for a walk together. Jiang Yan was in the kitchen washing pots and dishes.

Lu Jie grabbed a bottle of water from the fridge and complained, “You really are slow. You’re washing the lunch dishes close to dinner time. Why bother at all…”

Suddenly, a phone vibrated on the living room sofa. Lu Jie shouted towards the kitchen, “Jiang Yan, you have a call.”

Jiang Yan was by the sink, and the water was running loudly, making it hard to hear Lu Jie. The young master rarely did chores, and his hands, wearing rubber gloves, were already sweating profusely after scrubbing just one pot. He was too lazy to take off the gloves and just wanted to finish this pile quickly.

“Is it Shen Rufēi?”

“No, it’s an unfamiliar number.”

“It’s probably a spam call. Can you take it for me…”

Lu Jie answered the phone. The voice on the other end was a woman’s, with a somewhat official tone that indeed sounded like a spam call. “May I speak to Mr. Jiang?”

“What is it?” Lu Jie asked, already on the verge of hanging up.

“Huh?” Unexpectedly, the person was even more cautious than he was, sounding startled. “Then I’ll call back in ten minutes…”

Lu Jie thought, he won’t be done in ten minutes either, and what kind of spam call is this persistent, refusing to give up? He was starting to sound impatient. “Just say what you need to say. I’m his friend.”

“Oh, oh, a friend, not the boyfriend, right?”

“…” Lu Jie was speechless. “Are you going to talk or not? I’m just his friend. His boyfriend isn’t here.”

“I apologize. I really need to confirm this matter urgently, which is why I called unexpectedly…” the woman’s voice said.

If you’re so urgent, why are you asking so many irrelevant questions instead of getting to the point?

Lu Jie was feeling drowsy, just waiting to hang up and go back to his room for a nap.

“I’ve sent Mr. Jiang the quote for the proposal setup with his boyfriend. Because the amount of flowers needed is substantial, I need to pre-order. I just found a supplier with a suitable price and am waiting for Mr. Jiang’s advance payment to sign the contract. Also, for the tenth-anniversary custom logo, we’ve developed three versions, and he needs to choose one as soon as possible so we can send it to the factory…”

“Tenth anniversary?” Lu Jie woke up abruptly. “Tenth anniversary of what?”

“Why, Mr. Jiang and Mr. Shen’s tenth anniversary of dating.”

Lu Jie instinctively looked toward the kitchen, where Jiang Yan was rushing out as if he had suddenly remembered something, but the moment he saw Lu Jie’s expression, he realized he was too late.

He froze in place, his face turning pale.