Is This The Right Way To Repay A Favor? Chapter 81
byI Love You
The morning breeze blew, carrying the unique scent of grass from the prairie.
It was Jiang Zhou’s first time riding a horse, and he was a little nervous, his body slightly stiff. His hand instinctively gripped Shen Zhiyu’s arm, which was wrapped around his waist.
“Flame’s” steps were steady and smooth. It seemed to be under Shen Zhiyu’s control, deliberately waiting for Jiang Zhou to adapt.
“Relax, lean back into my arms, and feel its rhythm.”
Jiang Zhou listened to Shen Zhiyu, trying to slowly relax and lean into the reassuring embrace behind him.
Shen Zhiyu gently squeezed the horse’s belly and gave a low command, “Hup!”
“Flame’s” powerful hind hooves suddenly pushed off the ground, and like an arrow leaving a bowstring, it accelerated sharply.
The wind instantly became fierce, whistling past their ears. The green landscape rapidly retreated before their eyes, blurring into streaks of flowing light.
The thrill of the speed made Jiang Zhou’s heart pound. He couldn’t help but recall the time Shen Zhiyu participated in that motorcycle racing program.
He had been sitting behind Shen Zhiyu then, clearly feeling the other man’s scorching body temperature.
In the midst of the rapid flight, his body temperature was warm and comforting.
Thinking of this, Jiang Zhou subconsciously leaned back, moving closer to the source of warmth behind him.
Shen Zhiyu let out a short, pleased chuckle near his ear. “Scared?”
“No!” Jiang Zhou answered loudly. The extreme speed and the fleeting light and shadow dispersed his nervousness. A familiar sense of freedom surged in his chest.
Jiang Zhou tried to slightly spread his arms, feeling the wind pass through his fingers.
Shen Zhiyu held the reins, riding further and further, crossing low hills and bushes, galloping toward the distance.
Jiang Zhou looked back and saw Shen Zhiyu’s smooth jawline close by, feeling his rising and falling breath. A strong emotion swelled and fermented in his chest.
In this boundless world, Jiang Zhou felt an unprecedented sense of freedom and absolute security from being cherished and protected.
“I love you,” Jiang Zhou said.
His words were scattered by the wind, but Shen Zhiyu still heard them clearly.
He lowered his head and kissed Jiang Zhou’s eyes, his voice sounding right next to his ear, “I love you too, Jiang Zhou.”
—
They crossed rivers and hills, running a full large circle before returning to the prairie.
Shen Zhiyu dismounted cleanly. Then he turned around and reached out his hand to Jiang Zhou, who was still sitting on the horse’s back. He tilted his head slightly, his gaze fixed on Jiang Zhou, the warm morning light reflected in his smiling eyes.
It was the first time Jiang Zhou had looked down at Shen Zhiyu from such a height. He felt a little greedy and reluctant, not wanting to dismount so quickly.
“Aren’t you tired?” Shen Zhiyu asked.
Jiang Zhou shook his head. His mind was still in a state of excited euphoria.
“Alright. Then I’ll help you sit for a bit.” Shen Zhiyu didn’t force him to dismount. He simply supported Jiang Zhou’s waist with one hand and braced himself on the horse’s back with the other.
After sitting for a while, Jiang Zhou belatedly realized that his tense thighs were starting to ache.
He looked at Shen Zhiyu with a troubled expression.
Shen Zhiyu seemed to have anticipated this. He chuckled softly, wrapped his large hands around Jiang Zhou’s waist, and lifted him directly off the horse’s back.
When Jiang Zhou landed, his legs went soft, and he stumbled straight into Shen Zhiyu’s arms.
Jiang Zhou’s face felt warm, and he used Shen Zhiyu’s support to steady himself.
Shen Zhiyu blew a whistle, and the staff, who appeared out of nowhere, quickly came forward and led “Flame” away.
“I’ll take you for a walk,” Shen Zhiyu said, releasing his arm from around Jiang Zhou’s waist and naturally taking his hand instead.
Jiang Zhou let him lead the way.
The sun was perfect, the breeze was refreshing, and the grass rippled like waves.
They walked hand in hand, aimlessly wandering through the vast, boundless prairie.
—
They had sweated a lot from riding, so they went back to wash up and then lazed in bed for a while.
During lunch, Jiang Zhou learned that this prairie and the hotel belonged to Gu Na’s family. They hadn’t hosted any other tourists for the past two days; it was just their group.
The hotel offered daily ethnic minority handicraft experiences. This afternoon’s activity was making felted wool crafts.
Gu Na hadn’t intended to go, but Cai Zhiyang provoked her competitive spirit with a few words, so she joined them.
The crafting took place in a yurt on the prairie. The floor was covered with carpets, and bags of wool were scattered around. The air was filled with a mixed scent of dry grass and wool.
“First, take a tuft of wool and gently twist it clockwise to form the core,” the elderly artisan demonstrated the basic steps to everyone.
Cai Zhiyang egged Gu Na on, “You’re a local, why don’t you demonstrate first?”
“Watch me,” Gu Na took some wool and rubbed it according to the artisan’s method. Just as she finished twisting it and before she could show off, the wool quickly came undone.
Seeing this, Cai Zhiyang teased, “What happened to the demonstration?”
Gu Na rushed over to hit him, and the two continued to playfully try again.
Shen Zhiyu twisted a tuft of wool for Jiang Zhou. “Let’s try too.”
The elderly artisan demonstrated once more, and Jiang Zhou followed him, rubbing the wool. Soon, the fluffy fibers obediently took shape between his fingers.
The artisan noticed Jiang Zhou’s technique and nodded, “Mr. Jiang, have you learned this before?”
Jiang Zhou shook his head. “No, this is my first time.”
Shen Zhiyu beside him seemed much less skilled. He twisted the wool with his fingertips, but it loosened before it could form a coil.
Cai Zhiyang seemed to have discovered something new and finally found a chance to criticize Shen Zhiyu. “Brother Yu! You can’t do it either!”
Jiang Zhou immediately looked over and saw scattered wool on Shen Zhiyu’s table.
“Mm, I can’t,” Shen Zhiyu said softly, his gaze subtly shifting to Jiang Zhou, his eyes sparkling. “Teacher Jiang, why don’t you teach me?”
Jiang Zhou’s earlobes turned slightly red, and he nudged Shen Zhiyu’s elbow with an embarrassed look.
Shen Zhiyu leaned closer, his tone slightly raised, “Teacher Jiang?”
Jiang Zhou paused for a moment, then slightly turned his semi-finished product toward Shen Zhiyu.
“You need to turn your wrist like this, and the pressure must be even,” Jiang Zhou said while demonstrating. His fingers were long and steady, and every movement was precise and neat.
Shen Zhiyu tried again. It was slightly better this time, but the wool was still not tight enough.
“Why isn’t mine working?” Shen Zhiyu looked at Jiang Zhou.
Jiang Zhou hesitated for a moment, then reached out and hovered his hand above Shen Zhiyu’s. “Your pressure needs to be a little lighter.”
Shen Zhiyu watched him with a smile in his eyes, his hand remaining still.
The faint smile in his eyes clearly indicated he was waiting for Jiang Zhou to guide him.
He could stay frozen like this indefinitely, uncaring of what others thought. Jiang Zhou had witnessed Shen Zhiyu’s shamelessness before.
But Jiang Zhou couldn’t. He sighed softly, placed his hand directly over Shen Zhiyu’s, and gently rotated his fingers, forming the wool into shape.
“This is the right amount of pressure,” Jiang Zhou said, releasing his hand.
As his hand pulled away, Shen Zhiyu flipped his palm, his fingertip lightly brushing Jiang Zhou’s soft palm. He chuckled lightly, “Thank you, Teacher Jiang.”
Jiang Zhou lowered his head, his earlobes growing even redder.
The elderly artisan taught them a few more steps, showing them how to use special needles to poke out shapes and how to blend colors to create gradients.
The process became increasingly difficult later on. Cai Zhiyang and Gu Na, fooling around, completely gave up on learning and started inserting wool into each other’s hair playfully.
In contrast to their antics, Jiang Zhou and Shen Zhiyu were quiet and serious. The little lamb in Jiang Zhou’s hands gradually took shape, the details exquisite and lifelike.
Shen Zhiyu’s work was comparatively crude, but one could vaguely tell it was an animal.
Jiang Zhou wanted to offer a compliment but didn’t know how to start, so he finally asked quietly, “What is this?”
Shen Zhiyu replied calmly, “It should be a dog.”
Jiang Zhou: ……
It was genuinely hard to tell.
Jiang Zhou was silent for a moment, then forced himself to offer a compliment. “It’s quite cute.”
Shen Zhiyu attached the ugly, unrecognizable felted wool dog to a keychain and handed it to Jiang Zhou. “For you.”
Jiang Zhou accepted it, feeling a little warmth in his heart, yet finding it inexplicably amusing. “Thank you.”
Shen Zhiyu turned his palm up, asking for Jiang Zhou’s creation. “I want yours.”
Jiang Zhou then attached his little lamb to a keychain and gave it to Shen Zhiyu.
Cai Zhiyang, watching nearby, exclaimed, “Brother Yu, that’s not fair! How can you have the nerve to swap something so ugly with CEO Jiang!”
“CEO Jiang, don’t spoil him too much!”
The words “spoil him” made Jiang Zhou’s cheeks flush.
Shen Zhiyu carefully put away the felted wool dog Jiang Zhou gave him, his smile unrestrained. “Zhiyang is right! CEO Jiang spoils me too much. In return, how about I take you to watch the sunset, gege?”
Jiang Zhou’s ear tips turned red. Before he could react, Shen Zhiyu naturally took his wrist and led him out of the yurt.
The prairie sunset was slowly sinking toward the horizon. The clouds in the sky were stained golden-red, and the grass rippled in the evening breeze. The air was full of the scent of grass and earth.
Shen Zhiyu held Jiang Zhou’s hand and led him to a gentle slope.
“Right here,” Shen Zhiyu said, releasing his hand and sitting down first. Jiang Zhou sat down beside him.
The wind blew from afar, carrying the coolness and the scent of green grass of the prairie evening. The sun sank lower and lower, and the clouds were dyed in varying shades of orange-red.
“Jiang Zhou,” Shen Zhiyu called softly, his voice wavering in the evening wind.
Jiang Zhou turned his face, but before he could speak, Shen Zhiyu leaned in close.
“It’s so good to have you here,” his voice fell against Jiang Zhou’s lips.
His kiss was soft, without any aggression, only the warmth of their contact and a gentle touch. The action was tender and intimate.
In the distance, the long, desolate singing of local herdsmen could be heard.
The sun completely sank, taking the last ray of light with it. The colors in the sky gradually turned pink, then were slowly swallowed by the indigo night.
Shen Zhiyu released him.
Jiang Zhou looked up at him, his eyes misty and shimmering with a moist sheen. His lips were slightly red, and the sensation of the kiss, soft and warm, seemed to linger there.
“The sunset is over,” Shen Zhiyu said softly. “Jiang Zhou.”
Jiang Zhou responded quietly, “I’m here.”
“Do you know what we’ll face when we go back?”
Jiang Zhou nodded.
“It’s still not too late to regret it now.”
“If you don’t leave this time, you won’t have another chance.”
“No matter what you decide, I won’t let you go.”
“I’m not leaving. I will try my best,” Jiang Zhou looked straight at him.
Shen Zhiyu had painstakingly guided him to face his inner self, helped him find his own strengths, and taught him how to slowly stand beside him as an equal.
It was difficult to overturn more than a decade of ingrained beliefs. It was difficult to face his inner self. It was also difficult to suppress the restless punishment that followed the upheaval of their status…
But facing such a gentle and wonderful Shen Zhiyu, he had no reason to retreat anymore.
He wanted to be brave for himself this time, to step out of the cage of belief that had confined him for years.
He no longer wanted to be a humble, worshipful believer. This time, he wanted to stand in the light with Shen Zhiyu.
Jiang Zhou reached out and wrapped his arms around Shen Zhiyu’s waist. They embraced tightly.
In the distance, the first star of the night had quietly appeared in the indigo sky.