The phrase “honeymoon” must have seemed like a distant dream to the Lin Yan of the past, but now that seven days had passed, he suddenly realized that a honeymoon was truly a pleasure.
“Dear husband, you’re spacing out again.” The handsome man wearing floral board shorts and a floral T-shirt with a straw hat perched on his head held a camera in his hand and turned his head in exasperation to look at the young man standing two meters behind him.
“I’m just mesmerized by the beautiful scenery,” Lin Yan said, shaking his head and smiling. “Could the handsome guy up ahead buy me a drink?”
“Of course, it would be my pleasure.” Huo Jinglin placed one hand over his heart and bowed slightly, exuding the utmost gentlemanly charm.
“Are you hot?” After two days of diving and surfing, Lin Yan’s face had taken on a delicate flush, making him look as tempting as a freshly ripened apple.
Huo Jinglin leaned in, planted a kiss on his cheek, and wrapped an arm around his shoulder as they walked toward the hotel. “Yeah, I’m hot. I can’t believe you’re just a little sunburned. Look at me, I’ve got a panda tan on my hands.” He rolled up his sleeve to show him; the marks on his arm were quite obvious.
“You’re the one who refused to put on sunscreen, so who’s to blame?” Lin Yan said this out loud, but in his heart he was thinking that no matter what, he had to carry sunscreen with him tomorrow, always ready to apply it for the man.
“Where should we go next? Since you’re complaining about the heat, let’s find somewhere cooler.” Huo Jinglin squinted ahead, let go of his arm, and ran to a nearby shop selling cold drinks, returning with two cups of iced juice. “Watermelon or starfruit? Which one do you want?”
“Watermelon juice.”
“I don’t want to keep running back and forth. I’m already sick of all the flying around during shoots. How about we just stay here and hang out for a few more days?” Lin Yan took a sip of the ice-cold watermelon juice, his tone tinged with a hint of petulance.
Huo Jinglin clearly loved the way he acted around him. He reached up and ruffled his hair, chuckling, “I’m afraid you’ll get all tanned up if you stay here for a month.”
“Fine, you’re right. So where should we go?” Lin Yan slumped his shoulders, forced to admit the truth. If he were just an ordinary person, it wouldn’t matter, but he was, after all, a public figure who still had to film. Was he supposed to apply concealer over two different-colored arms?!
“How about the snowy mountains?” Huo Jinglin suggested on a whim.
“It doesn’t have to be that extreme, does it?” Lin Yan kicked him in the shin and frowned in annoyance. “Why don’t we go back to my hometown instead? Let you get a taste of ordinary life.”
Ever since he found out the guy in front of him was loaded, Lin Yan would occasionally throw in a comment about “ordinary life” just to tease him.
Huo Jinglin readily agreed. They knew far too little about each other, and this lack of understanding would surely create problems in their future life together, something he definitely didn’t want.
Both men were men of action. The very next day after deciding to return to China and visit Lin Yan’s hometown, they boarded a flight straight to City B, then transferred to City D.
City D was a third-tier city with a modest population and a leisurely pace of life. Most of its residents weren’t particularly wealthy, nor were they particularly poor. With no natural disasters in the area, life in the surrounding towns and villages was also quite comfortable.
“Come with me to pay our respects to my parents and grandparents.” Carrying a black backpack, wearing a baseball cap and casual clothes, Lin Yan looked as full of vitality as a college student on a spring outing.
“The air is pretty fresh here.” Lin Yan’s family was buried on a mountain in their hometown. There was no public cemetery there, just individual mounds of earth. Generally, families with a bit of means would use bricks and stones to enclose a larger plot of land to bury their relatives together, creating what amounted to a modest family grave.
The first thing Lin Yan did after making money was to move his parents’ and grandparents’ graves together and give them a makeover; looking at them now, they were quite impressive.
After the two of them kowtowed, offered incense, and listened to Lin Yan say a few words, Lin Yan turned to look at Huo Jinglin, raised an eyebrow, and said, “Hurry up, call someone.”
“Grandpa, Grandma, Mom, and Dad, rest assured. Lin Yan and I will live a good life together.” Huo Jinglin didn’t beat around the bush; he just blurted it out. After speaking, he turned to look at Lin Yan, whose cheeks were flushed, and reached out to pinch his chin. “Shy?”
Lin Yan raised his hand and swatted him. “Be serious!” Was this really the time for jokes? Why did he feel that the longer they spent together, the more this man defied his initial impression of him?
Although he hadn’t gotten a clear look at the person he’d proposed to, Lin Yan had assumed back then that whoever it was must be exceptionally manly and cool.
But what about now?
It’s nothing like that at all!
“Jinglin, do you have a split personality?” On their way back down the mountain, Lin Yan couldn’t hold back any longer and blurted out the question.
“A split personality?”
“Yeah, your attitude toward others is completely different from how you treat me.” Lin Yan scratched his cheek; the wind up on the mountain was strong and made him feel uncomfortable.
“How could anyone else be the same as you? We’re legally married, after all. Other people have nothing to do with me, so I’ll just keep up appearances with them. But what’s the point of keeping a straight face with you?” This man never missed an opportunity to flaunt their relationship; if Lin Yan hadn’t stopped him, he probably would’ve already put an announcement in the newspaper to tell the whole world.
Hearing him say that, Lin Yan felt over the moon. If he had a tail, it would be wagging so hard it could’ve flown straight to the sky.
“You’re such a good boy. I’ll buy you some fish to eat later.” He gave the man’s large hand a little shake, grinning happily.
Since Lin Yan had rented out the old house after his grandparents passed away, the two of them found a guesthouse to stay in town. The conditions weren’t great, but it was clean and the room was tidy.
When they checked in, the owner took a special look at their marriage certificate, which puzzled Lin Yan.
“School’s out lately, and there’s a lot of people coming and going. Better safe than sorry.” After finishing the registration, the owner returned their IDs and marriage certificate. He looked at Lin Yan several times, then asked hesitantly, “Um, you’re that TV star, aren’t you?”
Lin Yan was taken aback for a moment, then laughed. “You’ve got the wrong person, boss. I just share the same name as that star. I’m not actually him.”
The owner nodded without saying anything, but muttered to himself under his breath that not only did they share the same name, but they also looked quite alike.
“Doesn’t it feel like a hassle not being able to live like a regular person?” After showering and changing clothes, the two headed to a small restaurant nearby for dinner. On the way, Huo Jinglin tilted his head to look at Lin Yan beside him.
“I’m not famous right now, so it’s not really a hassle. Look, even if we walked down the street holding hands, the worst that would happen is people would stare at us like we’re some kind of curiosity. No one would even run up to ask for an autograph. So it’s not a hassle.” Lin Yan tilted his head back slightly to look at him, a smile in his eyes.
“Do you like acting?” Unable to resist, he reached up and ruffled the top of his head. Lin Yan’s hair was fine, soft, and smooth. It felt especially nice to the touch.
“Mm.” Lin Yan nodded, then reached up to pull down the large hand resting on his head and clasped it. “At first, I just treated it as a job, but now I find acting pretty interesting.”
“Once we get back, I’ll have Fan Hongyun take you under his wing.” Seeing his eyes widen in surprise, Huo Jinglin chuckled. “Surprised?”
“Fan Hongyun is a top-tier agent in the industry. He’s launched three Best Actor winners and one Best Actress in just five years. I… I’m just a small-time artist. I shouldn’t be bothering him, right?”
“How can you call yourself a small-time artist? You’re the husband of the chairman of Tianyi Media.” Huo Jinglin particularly loved the way Lin Yan glared at him with narrowed eyes. “I’ll have Old Fan meet with you. If he thinks you have potential, he’ll take the initiative to offer to manage you.”
Lin Yan nodded in agreement, though he didn’t hold out much hope for it. After all, Fan Hongyun was practically out of his league.
“You shouldn’t be so picky.” During dinner, Lin Yan ordered a steamed fish, a serving of spare ribs, two stir-fried vegetable dishes, and an egg drop soup. To his surprise, he discovered that Huo Jinglin didn’t eat eggs.
“I’m allergic to eggs.” With a small piece of spare ribs in his mouth, Huo Jinglin’s left cheek puffed out.
“Those fried potato balls last night were made with eggs and potato starch. You ate so many of them one after another, and I didn’t see you have an allergic reaction.” Lin Yan ladled a bowl of egg drop soup and handed it to him, glaring fiercely. “Drink it.”
Huo Jinglin shot Lin Yan a reluctant glance before reaching out to take the small bowl, stirring it with a little porcelain spoon.
“Just one bowl.” Lin Yan placed a piece of spare rib in his bowl to coax him.
“Then you have to promise me we’ll do it tonight.”
“…Can we just have a pleasant meal!” Lin Yan’s face flushed bright red. How could this guy say anything like that!
After slurping down the small bowl of soup and wiping his mouth with a napkin, Huo Jinglin held up the empty bowl to Lin Yan, who was glaring at him. “We’re doing it tonight.”
Lin Yan really wanted to smack him on the head and yell at him. That kind of sleazy vibe really doesn’t suit your looks, honey!
Author’s Note: Many readers have complained that they can’t stand the way the top and bottom call each other “husband.” I just want to say: Are two grown men supposed to call each other “husband” and “wife”? Why call him “wife”? Why can’t he be called “husband”? Does the bottom have to be treated like a woman just because he can have children?
I don’t see it that way. This is the setting of this story, and I believe addressing each other this way is a sign of respect.
