Wilderness Vegetation Chapter 62

Chapter 62

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Shen Zhi woke up with the small stuffed crocodile in his arms. He instinctively reached out to the side, but it was empty. The curtains were tightly closed. He sat up and glanced at the clock; it was past nine. Shen Zhi got out of bed and hesitated for a moment, a habitual doubt creeping in. However, he didn't hesitate for long. He opened the door and walked to the railing.

The clinking of dishes and the aroma of food wafted up from downstairs. Shen Zhi felt a sense of relief, remembering how Xu Yan had taken him back to his room last night. Unlike before, he hadn't stayed awake until dawn, instead, he had fallen asleep again quickly because Xu Yan held his arm, saying it would ensure he wouldn't have nightmares.

As a result, Shen Zhi really hadn't dreamt and slept until morning.

Shen Zhi turned back into the room, changed clothes, and washed up.

When he went downstairs, Xu Yan had just finished making breakfast and was holding a fried egg in his mouth. He turned around and, seeing Shen Zhi standing there, was startled. He quickly placed the egg back on the plate with his chopsticks and said, "You're up?"

Shen Zhi enjoyed hearing these everyday remarks, such as "You're up," "You're back," "All done." Xu Yan always said them so naturally.

"Mhmm."

Xu Yan poured him some soy milk and said, "I added too much sugar, so it's quite sweet, have an extra fried egg to balance it out."

Shen Zhi nodded. After falling ill, he had lost his appetite and all other desires. It was as if his dopamine production had ceased, and nothing could spark his interest. He could go an entire day without eating a bite, chewing felt like a tedious chore, exhausting him.

Things had improved somewhat, but only slightly – Eating was just a way to maintain bodily functions, taste was unimportant.

Shen Zhi took a bite of the fried egg and a sip of soy milk.

Salty and sweet, very common flavours, but Shen Zhi felt as if he had finally regained his long-lost sense of taste. He looked at Xu Yan and said, "Delicious."

"Then have some more." Xu Yan smiled. "I have a meeting at the company later and will be back in the afternoon."

"Let's go together, I have lunch with a client near your office," Shen Zhi said. "We can sleep at your place tonight."

"The bed at my place isn't as big as yours, it's uncomfortable for two people," Xu Yan said, pretending to think seriously for a second. "If you don't mind, Lawyer Shen can sleep on the sofa."

"I mind," Shen Zhi replied.

After breakfast, they rested for about an hour before heading out. Xu Yan didn't like to talk while driving, focusing intently on the road ahead. Shen Zhi sat in the passenger seat, looking at documents. However, it made him dizzy, so he looked up at Xu Yan and out the window occasionally to adjust.

After getting off the highway, Xu Yan dropped Shen Zhi off in front of the client's office building. He reached over to straighten Shen Zhi's tie and said, "Let me know when you're done, and I'll pick you up."

"Mhmm." Shen Zhi squeezed Xu Yan's hand in his palm before letting go.

He got out of the car, closed the door, and walked a few steps before turning back. He saw Xu Yan leaning on the steering wheel, tilting his head, and waving like a parent sending a child to kindergarten.

After the meeting, Xu Yan received a call from Xu Nian on his way home, asking if he had eaten their mother's dumplings. Xu Yan replied, "I didn't have time. I stayed at Shen Zhi's place last night, I just finished a meeting at the office and I am heading home now."

There was a brief silence on the other end before Xu Nian said, "Oh."

After a few seconds, he added, "When will you be home? I'm off this afternoon, I'll come over and then pick Jie up after work."

"Come on over, I'll be home in ten minutes."

In the elevator, Xu Yan received a WeChat message from Shen Zhi: No need to pick me up. I'll come to your place when I'm done.

Xu Yan replied: Okay, I'm home.

When Xu Yan entered the flat, Xu Nian was already sitting in the living room, looking at his phone. As Xu Yan changed his shoes, he asked, "Young Master Xu, would you like tea or coffee?"

"Dumplings," Xu Nian said.

"Alright."

Once the dumplings were cooked, Xu Yan served them at the table. He had just eaten half a dumpling when Xu Nian asked, "Ge, what do you like about Shen Zhi?"

"Good looks, good figure, rich, doesn't mess around," Xu Yan replied casually.

Knowing he was being brushed off, Xu Nian still couldn't refute it. He choked a little before saying, "He didn't treat you well in the past."

"We're both different now, so we're giving each other a chance. That's what I think."

"What if it doesn't work out?"

"Then we won't force it, and at least there won't be any regrets," Xu Yan said, taking a sip of water and extending his hand towards Xu Nian. "Hand me my house key."

Xu Nian was puzzled. "Why? Did you lose yours? Didn't you just use a key to open the door?"

"I'm giving it to Shen Zhi."

"Xu Yan!" Xu Nian suddenly flared up, slamming the table, "You're giving him the key and not me?!"

"Why are you getting so worked up? If you don't want to give it, that's fine," Xu Yan said with a smile. "Just kidding, I have another key, I'll give it to him then."

Realising he'd been tricked, Xu Nian trembled with anger, barely able to hold his chopsticks steady. He started attacking from a different angle: "Shen Zhi has been seeing a psychologist for so long, he must have taken a lot of medication, did you know taking too much of it can cause impotence?"

Xu Yan, concerned about male dignity, slapped the table even harder than Xu Nian. "Get lost! You're the impotent one!"

"You're reacting so strongly, did you try last night and find out he really can't do it?" Xu Nian sneered, "Ge, accept reality!"

As they argued fiercely over a baseless male health issue, Xu Yan's phone rang. He glanced at it and saw it was Shen Zhi: I'm in the elevator, be there soon.

"I don't know if Shen Zhi is impotent, but if you dare mention this in front of him, I'll cut you off," Xu Yan warned in a low voice as he walked around the table to open the door. He looked down the corridor and saw Shen Zhi stepping out of the elevator at the far end.

Xu Nian stood in the living room with a sour expression, holding a bowl. When Shen Zhi entered and changed into slippers – God damn it, those Berluti shoes he'd seen at Xu Yan's place a few days ago were actually Shen Zhi's. This means that Shen Zhi had been there when he brought the dumplings!

When he'd been blabbering to Xu Yan about his delicate sister-in-law, that delicate person with the surname Shen must have been hiding in Xu Yan's room!

"Mr. Xu," Shen Zhi greeted Xu Nian after changing his shoes and standing up.

Xu Nian's expression fluctuated before he stiffly replied, "Morning, Lawyer Shen."

It was seven after four in the afternoon.

"There are still a few dumplings left, my mom made them, should I cook some for you?" Xu Yan asked.

"Mhmm." Shen Zhi followed him into the kitchen.

Xu Nian kept quiet in front of Shen Zhi, focusing on eating his dumplings. After a few minutes, he started to question why he was acting so timid, what was there to be afraid of?

He puffed up his cheeks and felt a surge of reckless energy – he picked up a piece of dumpling skin and held it up to attract Xu Yan and Shen Zhi's attention.

"Ge, look, is it soft?" He shook his wrist, making the limp dumpling skin wobble.

Shen Zhi didn't react, looking at him as if he were a child playing with mud. Xu Yan, however, was irritated, his patience wearing thin. He picked up a tissue box and lightly smacked Xu Nian on the head. "If you're not eating, get lost, stop being an eyesore!"

"Fine, I'll go!" Xu Nian shouted, throwing down his chopsticks and grabbing his suit jacket from the back of the chair. He left without looking back, closing the door with a resounding thud behind him.

Five seconds later, he sheepishly returned to switch back into his own shoes, muttering curses under his breath, and left again, slamming the door once more.

"What's up with him?" Shen Zhi turned to Xu Yan.

Xu Yan: "He's an idiot."

They took a nap before driving back to Shen Zhi's place. As they got off the highway and passed a shopping mall, Xu Yan suddenly said he wanted to buy milk tea, asking Shen Zhi to wait in the car.

"Pomelo mango sago!" Xu Yan exclaimed as he got into the passenger seat, already sipping through a straw. "There were so many people, I had to wait a long time."

"Thirty minutes," Shen Zhi said, glancing at his watch and then at Xu Yan.

They locked eyes for a few seconds before Xu Yan asked, "Did you get impatient waiting?"

"No," Shen Zhi paused, "I just want a sip of your milk tea."

"I asked you earlier if you wanted any, and you said no."

"I want it now."

"......"

Xu Yan handed the milk tea over, and Shen Zhi took a sip. As he raised his head, he licked a bit of milk foam off his lips and swallowed the tea. Xu Yan turned away, taking back the slightly damp straw. He sipped, the cold liquid mixed with fruit and milk filling his mouth.

For some reason, Xu Yan couldn't shake the image of that soft dumpling skin from his mind.

Ten minutes later, they arrived at the garage. Shen Zhi turned off the engine but didn't move. Xu Yan also remained still, finishing his milk tea, which was almost empty, the straw making slurping noises as it sucked air.

The sensor lights in the garage turned off, leaving them in darkness. Remembering Shen Zhi's fear of the dark, Xu Yan reached out, found Shen Zhi's hand, and held it. His hand was cold from holding the milk tea, and his palm was damp. As they held hands, the water droplets warmed between their palms.

The darkness wasn't all bad, it could hide certain things but also magnify them. As Xu Yan finished the last sip of his milk tea, it wasn't his stomach that felt full but his courage – He suddenly asked, "You, these past few years, how... how did you deal with that?"

If Shen Zhi had indeed lost that worldly desire due to taking antidepressants, Xu Yan was willing to accept it. The priority was to treat the depression, the rest could be dealt with later.

Shen Zhi answered frankly, "I haven't had much need."

Indeed, after getting sick, his various desires had sharply diminished. Coupled with being busy with work, he rarely had thoughts in that area. Lan Qiuchen had explicitly discussed with him the effects of the medication on libido. However, having few thoughts didn't mean he had none – Shen Zhi knew his reactions when the thoughts did arise.

"So, you still have some need?" Xu Yan carefully considered Shen Zhi's wording. Since they couldn't see each other clearly, he decided to throw caution to the wind and continued, "When you do have needs, what do you do?"

"Want to know?"

Shen Zhi asked seriously, and Xu Yan nodded before realising Shen Zhi couldn't see him. He then said, "I'm quite curious."

After a brief silence, Shen Zhi picked up his phone, unlocked it, and tapped on the screen a few times. Xu Yan looked over and saw the notes app open, with several voice recordings stored.

Shen Zhi glanced at him before casually tapping one of the recordings.

A faint rustling sound came from the phone. Xu Yan couldn't make out anything at first and reached for the volume button, pressing it twice to increase the sound. The sudden surge of human voices almost made him spit out his milk tea.

"Mm... wait, wait... hiss–" There was a sharp intake of breath.

"Slow down... don't... uh..." The sound of impacts, starting slow and then quickening.

"Gentler, gentler, please... not so fast..." The staggered gasps of the two men, low and heavy.

"Shen Zhi... Shen Zhi... can you slow down..." A pleading tone, almost tearful.

......

The moans were scorching, heating the air in the car. Halfway through the recording, Xu Yan finally snapped out of his stunned state and fumbled to pause it, snatching the phone and pressing it against his leg. He felt like his head was about to explode, overwhelmed by the shock and blushing furiously.

"What is this?" he asked, his voice cracking. Even though it was obvious, Xu Yan kept repeating, "What is this, what is this!"

"You don't recognise your own voice?" Shen Zhi calmly countered.

It was because he recognised it that he was panicking!

Xu Yan had no idea when Shen Zhi had recorded it, nor what other potentially more explicit content was contained in the other recordings. He didn't mind being recorded, knowing Shen Zhi's character, there was no chance of it leaking. What shocked him was that Shen Zhi had recorded such things at all.

"Do you, do you use this..." Xu Yan struggled to speak, "to jerk off"? 

"Yes," Shen Zhi answered, still composed.

There was a long silence. Finally, after calming down, Xu Yan took a deep breath and asked, "Do you know why I wanted to sleep at your place?"

"Because my bed is bigger," Shen Zhi replied after a second's thought.

"No, because my apartment's soundproofing isn't as good as your big detached house." Despite having just finished the milk tea, Xu Yan felt thirsty again. He licked his lips and asked, "Do you know why it took me thirty minutes to buy the milk tea?"

"Because there were a lot of people." Shen Zhi's response was more hesitant this time, clearly considering something.

"No." Xu Yan turned to look at him, their eyes meeting in the dark. He said, "Because I also went to the supermarket to buy lube."

———

The author has something to say:

An announcement:

Readers who have been spreading rumours in the comments about Shen Zhi's lack of libido and impotence have all been recorded. They will soon receive a lawyer's letter.

The internet is not beyond the law, so please be careful with your words.

– From a certain lawyer who wishes to remain anonymous+

[It's just a novel. Please don't link the plot of the recording to reality. Just be aware that you should pay attention to privacy.]

‿︵‿︵ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ・❉・ ʚ˚̣̣̣͙ɞ‿︵‿︵

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Translator Notes

Please feel free to comment any mistakes I made so I can improve and do better as I go through the book.

Translated: October 9, 2024 by Angel

Edited: October 27, 2024 by Angel