The Daughter-In-Law Is So Pitiful? Just Take Her Home and Pamper Her! - Chapter 18

Chapter 18: The Sun

At 5 p.m., the last customer left. As soon as Xu Yao flipped the sign to “Temporarily Closed,” he was pushed down into the barber chair by Chen Mi.

“Close your eyes,” Chen Mi said, holding a shaving brush that was shaking foam everywhere.

Xu Yao raised an eyebrow. “Planning to murder your husband?”

“Say one more word and I will give you a scarred face.” Chen Mi jabbed the brush against his nose, but when Xu Yao suddenly opened his eyes, he fumbled in surprise. Foam landed on Xu Yao’s eyelashes and clung to his lower lids—like a dusting of snow.

When the blade glided over Xu Yao’s Adam’s apple, Chen Mi’s hand was steady. He stared at the tattoo on Xu Yao’s left chest—the cliffline that rose and fell with his breath, silently inviting something to fill it.

“Have you decided what to tattoo?” Xu Yao asked suddenly.

Chen Mi wiped the foam from his face with a towel, his fingers pausing over the tattoo. “A sun.”

“Huh?”

“That way…” Chen Mi’s voice was as soft as a cat walking on rooftops, “there’ll be light on the cliff.”

Xu Yao suddenly grabbed his wrist. The razor clattered to the floor.

The sound startled the three kittens napping on the counter. They lazily looked up just in time to see Xu Yao pulling Chen Mi into his arms—their shadows blending together in the warm tones of the setting sun.

“The sun’s too far,” Xu Yao murmured, brushing his lips past Chen Mi’s ear, sending shivers through him. “Tattoo a cat instead—the kind that crawls into my arms on its own.”

Chen Mi’s ears flushed, his fingers unconsciously clutching Xu Yao’s collar.

The tobacco-scented kiss from earlier still burned in his memory, and now Xu Yao’s scent—hair dye and cool shaving foam—wrapped around him again. It reminded him of the night he first came here, and the warmth of Xu Yao’s embrace.

Meanwhile, Ahei, still on duty and cleaning up: …

After dark, the barbershop was unusually quiet. Chen Mi stood at the door to Xu Yao’s bedroom, his toes scuffing the floor. They had been sharing a bed for days, yet he now felt like a guest spending the night for the first time.

“Standing there to guard the door?” Xu Yao was leaning against the headboard, flipping through the accounting ledger. The warm yellow lamp cast light over the scar on his brow ridge, making it look like it had been stitched with golden thread.

Chen Mi slowly shuffled to the bed, only to be pulled into a steamy embrace—Xu Yao had just showered, and droplets of water still clung to the ends of his hair, darkening patches of his gray tank top.

“What are you hiding for?” Xu Yao pinched the back of his neck, the same way he handled a kitten. “Weren’t you bold enough earlier?”

Chen Mi buried his face into the pillow. “That was because you suddenly…” Before he could finish, Xu Yao’s hand slipped under his shirt, callused palm sliding over the small of his back, raising goosebumps.

“Suddenly what?” Xu Yao asked, nibbling at his pajama buttons.

Some kitten outside meowed, pawing at the door.

Chen Mi took the chance to roll to the other side of the bed—only to knock over a metal box on the nightstand. Out spilled several rusty barber scissors, a school badge, and… half a burnt photograph.

In the photo, a boy in a school uniform stood under sunlight. He had no tear mole by his eye, but his stubborn smile mirrored Chen Mi’s perfectly.

On the back, it read: “Stay alive and wait for me.”

The air turned heavy. Xu Yao’s hand froze in midair, his Adam’s apple bobbing.

“He…”

“I know,” Chen Mi cut him off, placing the photo back in the tin. “I’m not him.” He gently brushed his fingers over the tattoo on Xu Yao’s chest. “But your cliff… now has a cat.”

The accounting ledger lay quietly beside the pillow. On the newest page:

“Tattoo deposit -500”

“Sun from a dumb cat ∞”

“…the one it lights up is me”

Chen Mi woke up first, bathed in morning light filtering through the curtains.

He realized he was curled up completely in Xu Yao’s arms, his forehead resting against the man’s collarbone.

Xu Yao was still breathing evenly, his right arm wrapped protectively around Chen Mi. The cliff tattoo on his chest gleamed faintly blue in the light.

At some point, the three kittens had crept into the room and sprawled across the bed, sleeping all over the place.

Chen Mi tried to quietly wiggle free—but the arm around him suddenly tightened.

“Move again,” Xu Yao mumbled sleepily, eyes still closed, “and I’ll tattoo you as a bald cat.”

Chen Mi froze, his ears turning red fast enough to see. Memories from the night before came flooding back—he had kissed the tattoo on Xu Yao’s chest, only to get flipped over and kissed breathless.

“I—I’ll go make breakfast!”

Xu Yao finally opened his eyes, watching as Chen Mi stumbled toward the kitchen, limbs flailing, his pajama collar still flipped inside out. The little calico kitten woke up with an irritated “meow” and rubbed against Xu Yao’s chin.

The eggs sizzled in the pan when Chen Mi was suddenly hugged from behind. Xu Yao rested his chin on his shoulder, stubble scratching the side of Chen Mi’s neck.

“You put too much salt,” Xu Yao commented, though his hands honestly took the spatula from him. “Go feed the cats.”

The calico had already been sitting at its bowl, tapping the floor with its tail in impatience. As Chen Mi poured the cat food, he noticed a note under the dish—in Xu Yao’s handwriting:

“Today’s special: Shaky-fried eggs by Dumb Cat”

Sunlight filled the kitchen. Xu Yao’s razor still lay on the floor, its handle reflecting tiny flecks of light. As Chen Mi bent down to pick it up, he was suddenly pulled into a hug smelling of oil and smoke.

“We’re not open today,” Xu Yao murmured against his ear. “I’m taking you somewhere.”

The accounting ledger flipped in the morning breeze to a new page:

“Closed for the day -200”

“…because someone is more important than money ∞”

Ahei, who had already shown up only to be told the shop was closed: …

Little Hei jumped onto the windowsill, tail sweeping across the glass where the business hours sign sparkled in the sunlight:

“Closed Today”

Xu Yao took Chen Mi to a tattoo parlor.

The place was tucked away at the end of the alley, its sign half-covered by climbing ivy. A bell jingled when they pushed open the door. Inside, the walls were covered with sketches—flowers, skulls, letters.

“Got it figured out?” the old limping tattoo artist asked as Xu Yao pushed Chen Mi into the leather chair and then took off his own shirt. The cliff tattoo on his chest gleamed blue under the daylight lamp, its crack resting exactly over his heart.

“Adding something to the cliff?” the old man squinted.

“Yeah,” Xu Yao said, rubbing the back of Chen Mi’s neck with his thumb. “A cat sunbathing.”

The smell of disinfectant filled the room as Chen Mi gripped Xu Yao’s hand tightly. As the buzzing of the tattoo machine began, he saw the old man sketch a furry little ball at the base of the cliff—a curled-up cat, its tail wrapped around its paws.

“Does it hurt?” Chen Mi asked softly.

Xu Yao squeezed his fingers. “Not as much as when someone bites.”

When the needle reached the middle of the cliff, the old man suddenly paused. “How about a star here?” he asked, pointing to a blank spot on the sketch. “Like it’s gazing at the sky.”

Xu Yao looked at Chen Mi.

Morning light streamed in through the glass window, casting shadows beneath Chen Mi’s lashes. He reached out and touched the cat-shaped outline on Xu Yao’s chest. “No star.”

“Then what?”

“Another cat,” Chen Mi said, pointing to the top of the cliff. “Climbing up the cracks.”

The old man grinned, his gold tooth flashing. “That’ll cost extra”