LWDC Chapter 130

Chapter 130 – New Year’s Eve

Chapter 130 – New Year’s Eve

Chapter 130 – New Year’s Eve

Ning Fei entered his home, turning back to look at the man closing the door, a sudden thought popped into his head.

–Am I never going to hear this guy say “I’m sorry” in my entire life?

As soon as this thought flashed through his mind, Ning Fei couldn’t help but curse himself for being neurotic, thinking about things like “entire life,” it was simply insane.

“What?” Duan Yunhong, having closed the door and turned around, saw Ning Fei staring at him in a daze, “You want to get those things you left in the car back?”

Yes, the cigarettes, red wine, food… that Duan Yunhong had just stuffed into Ning Fei’s hands were all thrown back into the car.

Ning Fei hadn’t even thought about those things, but since Duan Yunhong brought it up, he deliberately teased, “What if I do want them? Are you going to lower yourself to bring them up for me?”

Duan Yunhong raised an eyebrow, “Are you regretting letting me in again, trying to find an excuse to lock me outside?”

Ning Fei’s reaction to this was a cold laugh, a turn of his body, and not even bothering to answer a single word.

Duan Yunhong watched his retreating back, and after two seconds of silence, he picked up Ning Fei’s car keys from the shoe cabinet, turned around, opened the door, and left.

Ning Fei heard the noise, turned his head, and blinked in surprise as the door slammed shut with a “bang.”

“No way, is he really that obedient…?”

*

When Duan Yunhong came back with the things, Ning Fei was holding the door open with one hand and holding his mobile phone to make a call with the other.

“…I’m home, I just didn’t have time to text you.” Ning Fei walked back into the living room after opening the door, “Even if you didn’t call me, I would have texted you later, I’m not that forgetful.”

“I really am home, I’m not so drunk that I fell asleep in the car!”

“Damn, who’s taking pictures to prove it to you? Take care of those two lying flat in your house, stop being so long-winded.”

“I’m not listening, bye.”

With that, Ning Fei really ended the phone call. Duan Yunhong came in, walked to the dining table, and casually asked as he put things down, “Yu Zhou doing a check-up?”

“Him? He probably can’t think of anyone else right now.” Ning Fei also came over to look at the things, putting what needed to be in the refrigerator and storing what needed to be on the shelf.

Duan Yunhong said, “Then it’s the person you had dinner with today doing a check-up.”

“Spare me the interrogation tactics.” Ning Fei glanced at him, “I don’t want to be forcibly interrogated and then interrogated by you.”

Duan Yunhong said, “Is there anyone who can force you?”

“Ha, isn’t there one right in front of me?” Ning Fei said teasingly, “I said ‘no visitors,’ but you still insisted on following me. And you’re just squatting downstairs without saying a word during the New Year, and even sending birthday gifts without permission, what’s the difference between you and a stalker… Wait, what is this?”

“Pastries from an old brand in the Huichuan base, made with animal cream.”

“I know it’s pastries, no, to be precise, it should be a small cake?” Ning Fei held up a palm-sized transparent box, observing the white cream cake inside, topped with a bright red strawberry, “Director Duan, this wouldn’t be my birthday cake, would it?”

“If it’s not your birthday, then it’s not a birthday cake.” Duan Yunhong replied, “It’s just a pastry.”

“Tch, you weren’t originally planning to sing me a birthday song and have me blow out the candles, were you?” Ning Fei turned around, leaned against the table, and tilted his head to look at Duan Yunhong, “What other gifts do you have? You might as well give them all at once, let me see your sincerity.”

Duan Yunhong met his gaze, “Wang Haiyang’s research is going to be shared, isn’t that sincere enough?”

Ning Fei raised an eyebrow, “If you put it that way, then shall we start discussing the technology sharing agreement now?”

“…” Even Duan Yunhong probably didn’t want to talk about work on New Year’s Eve, so he pointed towards the direction of the sofa, “That down jacket is also for you.”

“I guessed it, it’s not your size.” Ning Fei chuckled, “When you were the model director, you always made up excuses to give me clothes, saying the size just happened to not be yours and just happened to be mine.”

Duan Yunhong said, “This time there’s no need to make up excuses, it was originally for you.”

The sudden confession made Ning Fei pause for a moment.

However, he thought about it and figured it was probably because the “gift-giving” aspect perfectly matched Duan Yunhong’s “domineering CEO” persona, so this level of honesty was still achievable.

So Ning Fei composed himself and replied, “Oh, okay. Anything else?”

“There’s also… something I can’t take out right now.” Duan Yunhong glanced at Ning Fei’s guest bedroom, “At least the bed and wardrobe in that room need to be moved away.”

Ning Fei had a feeling about what it was, but he still subconsciously asked, “What exactly is it?”

“You like it, but it’s the bed I couldn’t find last time.” Duan Yunhong replied, “The one that’s already filled with water.”

Ning Fei: “…”

A water bed, huh? You have to use so many complicated modifiers.

“Letting you in was already exchanged for sharing technical achievements, and you still want me to give you pillow service? Keep dreaming.” Ning Fei scoffed, “Besides, don’t make it sound like only I was enjoying the water bed before, haven’t you slept on it?”

“Is there any need to be so nitpicky?” Duan Yunhong raised an eyebrow, “I didn’t say I had to do anything with it once I took it out, it was originally for you, didn’t you like it before?”

Ning Fei wasn’t really uninterested in waterbeds yet, but hearing his matter-of-fact tone, the displeasure in his heart arose spontaneously, and he blurted out, “Oh, I don’t like it anymore.”

Duan Yunhong said, “No need to force yourself to say you don’t like it, didn’t you ask about it before?”

“I liked it then, I don’t like it now.” Ning Fei looked at him, “Is it so strange that I’m tired of it now?”

“Really tired, or just pretending?”

“Is it up to you to question me?” Ning Fei narrowed his eyes slightly, “Duan Yunhong, do you think you’ve already grasped my preferences?”

Duan Yunhong wouldn’t say he had completely grasped his preferences, but he knew that what he said probably wasn’t his true feelings.

But from their eye contact, Duan Yunhong saw some of the other’s emotions. He realized that if this topic had to be insisted on, Ning Fei really would never look at a water bed again. This was not necessary for Ning Fei, it was just an entertainment project. When his temper came up, he could give up waterbeds, he could give up cigarettes and alcohol, and even… he could give up certain people.

Yes, Ning Fei also had his stubborn moments when his temper came up. But Ning Fei’s stubbornness was the kind of “I said I’ll do it, and I’ll do it.” So Ning Fei never admitted that he was stubborn, and even if he argued to the end, he would only say “What I said is the truth.”

But right now, Duan Yunhong had already “ceded territory and paid reparations” to enter the door, and he thought he had lowered his stance enough. If he annoyed Ning Fei now and was driven out again, then the previous “sunk cost” would really be too much of a loss.

“Okay, you don’t like it anymore, so I won’t send it, okay?” Duan Yunhong had to “give in” again, “I won’t take it out and take up your space, okay?”

Ning Fei: “…”

–Weird, too weird.

A strange premonition arose spontaneously. Ning Fei had prepared himself to continue arguing with Duan Yunhong, but he didn’t expect this guy to back down again. It made the temper that had just flared up suddenly fizzle out. It wouldn’t be good to continue making things difficult.

In this uncertain state of mind, Ning Fei still couldn’t help but sarcastically say, “Why are you so weird today? What exactly do you want to do?”

“Isn’t it good to follow your wishes?” Duan Yunhong said, “If you want to ask questions, just ask them directly, let’s sit down and talk. But excluding how to share research results, we’ll talk about that after work.”

The questions he was referring to were why he wanted to come, why he decided to share Wang Haiyang’s research results, and why he wanted to prepare birthday gifts. He thought he would be asked as soon as he stepped into Ning Fei’s house, but the truth was, Ning Fei didn’t ask any of them.

Ning Fei had obviously questioned him when they were downstairs, but Duan Yunhong didn’t answer directly at the time. Now that Duan Yunhong was ready to talk, Ning Fei seemed to have lost interest.

Just like he said just now–“Is it so strange that I’m tired of it now?”

“…Ask questions? There’s nothing to ask.” Ning Fei really didn’t want to talk, straightened up and said, “You didn’t want to answer just now, and I don’t want to ask now. I drank a lot tonight, and I’m also sleepy, so let’s leave it at that.”

“It won’t hurt to chat for a bit.” Duan Yunhong used a relatively euphemistic way of speaking for once, “Besides, there’s still ten minutes until the New Year, it’s not like we have anything else to do.”

“Ha, why would I stare at you wide-eyed waiting for the New Year? Did I let you in because I’m missing someone to spend the New Year with me?” Ning Fei chuckled softly, turned around and walked towards his bedroom, waving his hand and said, “I’m going to wash up and go to sleep, sorry I can’t keep you company. Make yourself at home, but don’t enter my room… Oh, right.”

At the door of his room, he stopped and turned his head to look at Duan Yunhong: “If you want to replace your own gorgeous king-size bed, you can, and if you really want to sleep on a water bed in the middle of winter, you can, but when you leave, put the room back to its original state for me, thank you.”

With that, Ning Fei went into the room. After a while, he came out with his things and went straight into the bathroom to take a shower.

Duan Yunhong was already sitting on the sofa at this time, sliding through a tablet. Ning Fei only glanced at him casually, as if he had resigned himself to Ning Fei’s arrangements.

Ning Fei went silently into the bathroom, closing the door. He hesitated for a second whether to lock it or not, but the sound of locking it would be loud, and Ning Fei didn’t want Duan Yunhong to think he cared too much, so he gave up locking it.

Then, he put his phone on the shelf.

It wasn’t to wait for someone’s message, or to play music or watch videos while taking a shower, Ning Fei simply wanted to be able to see the time at any time. He could actually finish taking a shower very quickly, but tonight, he didn’t want to do that. He just wanted to get through the zero hour of the new year in the bathroom.

It was quite humorous, really. It was obviously Ning Fei’s home, but he had to run to the bathroom to avoid an “outsider,” simply because he didn’t want to spend New Year’s Eve in the same space as him.

Ning Fei himself felt that he was inexplicable. He inexplicably agreed to let the person in, and inexplicably wanted to avoid him, and even inexplicably had emotions. He knew that he had behaved inconsistently, inconsistently, fickle, but he couldn’t help but do so. He also knew that his repetitive emotions seemed to be directed at the uninvited Duan Yunhong, but in fact, the deeper reason was still that he was feeling a little regretful about his decision.

Perhaps, the last time he was cheated by Duan Yunhong made Ning Fei unable to not think about what Duan Yunhong was trying to do, unable to not recall whether he had made the wrong decision. He said verbally that he let Duan Yunhong into his house because the other party had loosened his mouth to give him Wang Haiyang’s research results. But as soon as he turned around, he wondered why he had loosened his mouth when he heard this? Without this result, it wasn’t certain that he couldn’t win, and there was no need to loosen his mouth for this. As soon as he heard about this result, he let Duan Yunhong go, and the feeling was that Duan Yunhong would forgive him as soon as he apologized. As soon as he thought of this, Ning Fei felt that he really hadn’t eaten enough losses, and then became annoyed because of the decision he made.

Or perhaps, tonight’s Duan Yunhong, in some ways, exceeded Ning Fei’s expectations; Ning Fei was unwilling to think about the reasons for these abnormalities, and… didn’t dare to think about them.

In the sound of rushing water, Ning Fei vaguely realized that things seemed a little “dangerous” if they went on like this.

–I have to…

Just then, the phone vibrated. After two seconds, it vibrated a few more times. Ning Fei subconsciously wiped his hands, picked up his phone to unlock it, and opened the unread messages.

Duan Yunhong (0:00): [Happy New Year.]