This year’s winter break was only fifteen days, falling precisely two weeks before and after the Lunar New Year.

Ruan Qingmu wore boxing gloves in the gym at Qin Yuan’s house and threw punch after punch at the heavy sandbag in front of him.

The huge sandbag bounced from side to side and each time it swung back, it was punched higher and further.

Ruan Qingmu was dressed in a thin sparring suit, the snow-white cotton fabric comfortable and soft. His forehead and neck were covered in sweat, which gathered in thin lines and flowed into his wide-open collar, sliding down to his delicate collarbone.

After a beautiful hook*, the sandbag rose high again. Ruan Qingmu jumped up and kicked the sandbag high in the air with incredible precision…

*T/N: Hook: a punch in boxing.

As he was panting heavily, someone behind him gently grabbed his waist and rested his chin on his sweaty shoulder.

A glass of freshly squeezed juice was handed over from behind him, emitting a mixture of orange and apple. Qin Yuan whispered behind him, “Drink a little to rehydrate and so that you get some vitamin C in you.”

Ruan Qingmu looked down and sniffed, looking at him suspiciously. “What did you mix inside?”

Qin Yuan’s voice was gentle and innocent. “Anyway, I didn’t put in any ecstasy.”

Ruan Qingmu glared daggers at him. “I mean, you mixed carrots in it, right? Do you think I can’t smell it?”

“Only a little bit.” Qin Yuan coaxed softly, “Carrots are good for the eyes. You look at many books daily and if you don’t protect it well, you’ll become a little spectacles brother.”

Ruan Qingmu grunted and didn’t take it but lowered his head and took a few big sips from his hand.

Then, his face scrunched up like a small wrinkled bun.

“Qin Yuan, you’re dead. You even added celeries in it!” He was furious. “You’re a cunning guy!”

As far as he was concerned, he was a rather fussy eater, but he was coaxed and tricked into eating this and that as if his boyfriend feared he would become malnourished.

“It’s not unpleasant to drink. I’ve tasted it.” Qin Yuan’s voice was faintly tinged with laughter.

The taste of apple and orange was excellent, and the addition of carrot was just fine, but the taste of celery was a bit odd. Ruan Qingmu’s sense of taste was extraordinarily sensitive, so he felt a strange taste in his mouth.

When he turned his head and saw Qin Yuan’s smiling eyes, he suddenly pounced on him and pinned him down on the mat on the floor, breathing hard into his face. “Try to smell it. What a weird smell!”

Qin Yuan’s nostrils were full of sweet and fresh scents, and his eyes were smiling. “So pleasant to smell. Why?”

Ruan Qingmu was determined, lowered his head, and kissed him messily. “You can’t smell it, can you? You should try it!”

Qin Yuan’s face quickly flushed red and his breathing became slightly ragged. He let himself be pressed without moving as he kissed the corners of his lips, planted kisseds= his lips, and then pecked around haphazardly. Only after a long time did Ruan Qingmu stop flaunting his strength and look at Qin Yuan’s flushed face beneath him. “I’ll ask you whether it’s unpleasant to drink!”

Qin Yuan slowly raised his sword eyebrows and stared at him, who was so close to him, his voice incredibly soft. “With you like this, I can’t try it.”

He reached out and wrapped his hand around Ruan Qingmu’s neck, bringing it down with force. Covering him with his warm lips, then gently pried open his teeth.

The tip of his tongue probed in and swept gently around before retreating.

“Only like this can I taste it.” His voice was low and hoarse and there was a fine sweat on his forehead. “Besides, you’re lying… Except sweet, there are no other flavors.”

Ruan Qingmu stared at him dumbfounded. He had initially pressed against him, but his arms suddenly lost their strength and could no longer hold up his limp body.

His face was red and he rolled off of Qin Yuan woefully.

Fuck, fuck, fuck… He thought his technique had improved considerably, enough to be proactive and destroying. Why had this man’s skill also increased?

To be full of tricks and achieve much with little effort. He lived up to the reputation of the young and amazingly talented Qin shaoxia in his previous life.

He was in a daze when Qin Yuan’s face came closer. “There’s mineral water here. Rinse your mouth with it.”

Ruan Qingmu’s eyes suddenly widened. He had just let out a “wuu” when his mouth was covered and the refreshing water was carried and sent over…

The two people lay shoulder to shoulder and it took half a day for their breathing to calm down slowly.

Ruan Qingmu suddenly asked, “How will you spend the New Year this year?”

Qin Yuan’s voice was calm as he spoke. “I won’t go there. That house is under her name. If I insist on putting my mom’s memorial tablet there, she will feel uncomfortable. I don’t think there’s a need for any of that.”

Ruan Qingmu was stunned. “Then… Don’t tell me you’ll be here alone here? Your dad won’t be willing to let that happen, right?”

After his dad talked to Qin Yuan last time, the father and son’s relationship could not be as intimate as that of an ordinary family, but the dispute had finally disappeared.

He didn’t believe Qin Yuan’s dad would really do that, leaving his son alone in a different city for Lunar New Year.

Sure enough, Qin Yuan shook his head. “I said I wouldn’t go and he didn’t force me, only saying he’ll discuss it again with me later.”

Ruan Qingmu gently exhaled. “Anyway, you have a place to spend the New Year. My mom keeps bringing you up. A few days ago, she even secretly inquired from me, asking if you, the little pity, are going to your stepmother’s house again this year.”

Qin Yuan’s eyes were closed, but the corners of his mouth lifted slightly. “Who’s the little pity?”

“You!” Ruan Qingmu pounced on him again and carefully kissed him on the forehead. “I’m soft-hearted. I like to pity the pitiful little child.”