IROAWTMTFL Chapter 41

In the hot spring pool, Yan Yan’s skin softened under the water’s warmth. Then he was pressed against the pool’s edge for a massage. Yan Yan didn’t expect this to be Zhuang Yiyun’s other advantage. It was his fault for being curious earlier.

“You’ll know once you experience it.”

Soon, he did, and he regretted it. He was being pressed so hard that he almost howled in pain.

“Be gentler!”

“Don’t you know? Pain clears the channels, only through pain can you truly heal.”

Zhuang Yiyun’s fingers pressed firmly against his cervical spine, moving upward to the base of his skull. The sensation was a mix of pain and pleasure, leaving him tingling all over and he was he couldn’t help but let out a short, involuntary moan.

In an instant, Zhuang Yiyun had a reaction. His wild rose was under his palm, and his body’s sensations were entirely controlled by him. The pressure he applied even left fingerprints on Yan Yan’s fair back.

He wasn’t intentionally “teasing” him; it was a legitimate massage technique. But Yan Yan, although wild in demeanor, had a tender skin that bore marks from a simple press. He didn’t even deliberately do anything extra but he was already releasing a shameful sound involuntarily.

“Ah, let go…”

Yan Yan’s face flushed. He wasn’t sure if it was because of the hot spring or the sound he had just made. It was a bit shameful, a simple massage turned him into a whimpering mess!

Zhuang Yiyun released his grip, asking, “Are you sure?” His voice was low and husky, deeper than the winter night around them, blending with the mist in the hot spring pool, making it hard to distinguish.

Yan Yan didn’t want to comply, but after that last press, his neck, back, and even his spine were quivering. To eliminate this sensation, he turned his head away.

“Are you feeling uncomfortable, Yan Yan.” Zhuang Yiyun’s tone was questioning, but he was confident in his technique.

Although the professor he studied with as an undergraduate majored in Western medicine, he was obsessed with studying massage in his spare time and he had caught him experimenting with many techniques. The skills he learned from him were no worse than those of professional masseurs, but he had no practice subjects over the years.

When Yan Yan turned his head, he felt the effects of that last press even more. The tingling sensation shot from his cervical spine to his tail vertebrae, making his scalp numb. His body felt like a balloon that had just been inflated, ready to expand, but the air was cut off, so it hang in the air, creating a hunger that couldn’t be sated.

“Comfortable…” He almost couldn’t resist this stimulating and refreshing sensation. He was hesitating whether to let go and ask Zhuang Yiyun to do it again when Zhuang Yiyun’s hands controlled his head and neck.

This time, it was both hands. Both thumbs pushed from the back of his neck to the top of his cervical spine. Unprepared, Yan Yan was stimulated and he made a sudden short, sound. It almost sounded like a climax.

Zhuang Yiyun’s hands stopped, and he started applying continuous pressure to the acupoints. Yan Yan tilted his head back, as if trying to push his hands away but also seeming catering to him.

Being pressed like this made him go weak all over. Zhuang Yiyun got up, turned his back to him and moved to the adjacent cold spring. Otherwise, the way this person was lying there without any defense would make him completely lose control. A qualified hunter must have enough patience. Yan Yan’s attitude toward him was evidently different from his toward Yan Yan.

He hadn’t forgotten Yan Yan’s ”bold words”: “I just want to sleep with you.”

But he wanted more than that.

There was only one bed in the room. Yan Yan had initially thought about getting another room, but he was feeling so comfortable from Zhuang Yiyun’s massage that he completely forgot about it. After soaking in the hot spring, he fell asleep on the bed without drying his hair. Zhuang Yiyun took care of that, holding his head with one hand and blow-drying his hair with the other.

Yan Yan wasn’t a heavy sleeper; even the noise of a hairdryer could wake him up. But being pampered by Zhuang Yiyun felt too good, so he pretended to be asleep, allowing him to do as he pleased. Zhuang Yiyun was also happy to do it himself. His long fingers weaved through Yan Yan’s hair, rhythmically massaging his scalp while blow-drying and Yan Yan soon fell asleep.

Seeing that Yan Yan was indeed asleep, he put away the hair dryer and lay down, holding him in his arms to sleep.

When Yan Yan woke up the next day, he wasn’t in the position of leaning on Zhuang Yiyun’s arm anymore. His head was on Zhuang Yiyun’s chest, legs tangled with his, and arms wrapped around his waist. As Zhuang Yiyun was still asleep, he quickly moved away. After a moment’s thought, his mischief kicked in again.

He gently lifted the blanket, piling it on Zhuang Yiyun’s body to retain heat. Then he turned his back to Zhuang Yiyun and lay on his side. After a while, the uncomfortably warm Zhuang Yiyun turned around, faced him and pulled him into his arms.

He had sensed it on New Year’s Eve, but only in this moment of clarity did he realize how well their bodies fit together. When Zhuang Yiyun held him, it felt like he was completely enveloped by the other. Despite his tall stature approaching 1.8 meters, when Zhuang Yiyun held him, he was fully encompassed and embraced.

After waiting for a minute, his heartbeat still hadn’t settled down. Zhuang Yiyun’s body against his was burning, and he couldn’t ignore the sensation at the base of his thighs. He felt a bit regretful, like he had *stolen the chicken but lost the rice.

*It is a metaphor for someone wanting to take advantage but suffering a loss instead.

“Hey, is it appropriate to sneakily hug me while sleeping?” Yan Yan said with displeasure, poking him with his elbow. “Zhuang Yiyun, you’re sneaky and touchy. Have some decency.”

Zhuang Yiyun woke up but didn’t respond as he had expected. Instead, the man stretched out his long arm and pulled him closer, lifting one leg to press down on Yan Yan’s leg as he tried to get up. The gesture seemed to say, “If you think it’s indecent for me to touch you sneakily, then let’s do it openly.”

With this move, Yan Yan was pressed even deeper into Zhuang Yiyun’s arms and his member bounced between Yan Yan’s legs. If not for the restraint, Yan Yan suspected the movements would have been even more lively.

“Fuck…” It was too much, and he was finding it hard to resist. He regretted it a bit; maybe he shouldn’t have been so reckless. This man was ready to make a move with just a few flirtatious words, but he hadn’t shown his sincerity and remorse yet. Yan Yan couldn’t lose face like this.

Fortunately, Zhuang Yiyun didn’t make any more intrusive moves. He buried his face in Yan Yan’s hair, fully awake now. The two got up, each preparing for the day. For now, all was calm between them.

Yesterday, Yan Yan had suggested they leave the group and go alone. So today, they contacted the tour guide and obtained information about hotel reservations. If they matched the itinerary, they could join; otherwise, the tour guide didn’t need to take care of them outside of that. After a brief conversation, the tour guide was disappointed. These two handsome members directly impacted the group’s dynamics. But if the customers wanted to leave, they couldn’t stop them. According to the contract, they would settle everything separately after returning.

The group watched the two drive away from the resort.

“Where do you want to go?” Zhuang Yiyun asked, temporarily switching to him driving. Yan Yan said he wanted to check the travel guide.

“Give me your phone.”

Zhuang Yiyun handed his phone to him. “Password is 234567.”

Yan Yan looked up at him. “Why is your password always the same?”

“123456 is too easy to crack, so I push it one digit ahead.”

“Have you ever heard of a saying?”

“What?”

“No 1, no 0.” Yan Yan said playfully.

*No 1, no 0 describes a situation where there are many number 0s and it is difficult to find number 1s.

Zhuang Yiyun’s lips curved slightly, and he said calmly: “It doesn’t suit me, then what do you suggest? Six 1’s?”

“Get lost. That’s all you can think of.”

One-versus-six? He could handle it anyway. The level of this man’s self restraint is truly eye-opening.

Yan Yan opened his phone’s map, set the destination, and said, “Let’s go here.”

Chizi Bay in Changjiang. They could see the sunset on the west coast.

After confirming the destination, they didn’t drive for long before Zhuang Yiyun took an exit from the highway. They switched to Yan Yan driving, and the two of them decided to take the scenic mountain road.

The mountains and sea felt like a scene from a road trip movie. The closer they got to Changjiang, the nearer they were to the sea. Zhuang Yiyun took out his camera, and whenever he saw a good spot, he would ask Yan Yan to stop the car. Yan Yan followed his lens for a few shots with his phone but soon grew impatient with the fussiness of a photography enthusiast. He took a picture of Zhuang Yiyun holding the camera and sent it to the group chat to complain to his mother.

Yan Yan: [Your Xiao Yun is really troublesome.]

Qian Ruqing: [Is it troublesome? Is he taking good pictures?]

Yan Yan: [They’re okay.]

Qian Ruqing: [Are you jealous that he didn’t take a photo of you? How can you get jealous of nature?]

Yan Yan: […]

Yan Yan: [Nonsense, he made me look so handsome.]

Qian Ruqing: [Oh~ Is it the kind of handsome that only love can capture?]

Yan Yan stopped replying and Qian Ruqing continued to chat alone.

Qian Ruqing: [Xiao Yun is amazing, he can even take good photos. When you come back, the photos can be developed and posted in a new album @ Zhuang Yiyun]

Qian Ruqing: [I heard that Xiao Yun can also play the violin. How about playing a song for us during the New Year next year.]

It turned out his mother approved of violin as a hobby, a hobby that had been forced upon Zhuang Yiyun.

Zhuang Yiyun probably hates it.

Yan Yan: [Play the violin? It’s not like it’s the Golden Hall in Vienna.]

Yan Yan sneaked a glance at Zhuang Yiyun, and then sent a few emojis to brush up the group chat history. Annoying. What if he sees it? He shouldn’t have sent it to the group chat just now.

If he had known, he would not have posted in the group earlier.

Zhuang Yiyun finished taking pictures and took out his phone. Yan Yan didn’t know if he saw it, but he didn’t reply anyway.

The two continued on the road, found a small restaurant for lunch, and arrived at the second destination in the afternoon.

The hotel they stayed at was located on the beach, above a rocky coastline. The hotel lobby and bar had a spacious observation platform and the front desk said it was an excellent place to watch the sunset. Yan Yan and Zhuang Yiyun went over to check it out, with Yan Yan holding his phone to take pictures.

His angle included Zhuang Yiyun in the shot. He waved at him, indicating he should move aside, but Zhuang Yiyun didn’t budge.

“Move.”

“Can’t I be in the picture?”

“I’m going to post it on my Moments. Why would I want you in the picture?”

“I can’t be in your Moments?” Zhuang Yiyun joked.

“And then you want me to say I secretly took a picture of a handsome guy?”

Zhuang Yiyun nodded.

“Dream on! So annoying, move.” Yan Yan was annoyed.

Zhuang Yiyun had no choice but to step aside. Yan Yan took several shots, completing the nine-grid layout along with the ones he took on the plane and in Danzhou. He quickly posted it on his Moments with the caption – “They’re all called the south, but this is the true south. It seems some places are worth visiting more than once.”

Soon, people started liking and commenting.

Jiang Li: [When did you go? Buy something from the duty-free shop for me.]

Roommate: [How carefree. Yan Yan, which handsome guy did you go with?]

Yan Yan replied to him: [What handsome guy? Can’t I go alone?]

Roommate: [It’s not like that. If you were alone, you’d definitely take a couple of shots if you ran into a handsome guy. But you didn’t take any pictures of handsome men, so there must be someone with you.]

Yan Yan: […]

Miscalculated. It seemed that this interpretation was correct; he would definitely have taken a couple of pics.

Even the big CEO, Ke Mingcheng, was checking his Moments and replying.

Ke Mingcheng: [Where’s Old Zhuang? You didn’t eat him, did you?]

Yan Yan: [What’s, Vice President Ke wants to come and rescue him?]

Ke Mingcheng: [There’s no need, it’s hard to say if it’s rescue or meddling.]

Yan Yan: [True, I find his meat a bit tough.]

Ke Mingcheng replied with a meaningful tone: [Tsk tsk…]

Just as Yan Yan was about to respond, a new comment appeared.

Orange: [Brother Yan, you promised to meet me after the New Year. Did you stand me up?]

Yan Yan was stunned, wondering how to reply. Orange sounded so aggrieved. Did he need to coax him?