Leng Jin Yu was in the kitchen, preparing dinner when Jinde’s laughter sounded from the living room. He stepped back and glanced around the doorframe, raising his brows at him. "One of your fans?"
Jinde looked up from where he was sitting on the couch, his lips curved up in an especially attractive smile that made it hard to look away. "Something like that." He lowered his gaze and clicked on the phone, his eyes sparkling with mischief.
Leng Jin Yu continued to gaze at him for a moment but then retracted his gaze and got back to peeling potatoes. Even if he found out what it was about, there was no way to stop Jinde after he had decided on something so he might as well save his breath and just wait for the surprise to hit.
As it turned out, he didn’t have to wait for long.
The next evening, someone rang the doorbell. Leng Jin Yu glanced at Jinde who gave him the usual 'How could I go and open the door? I’m very famous!' glance complete with seductively blinking his eyes in response. He sighed and then got the door.
On the other side stood a middle-aged man in a work-uniform, wearing a hat with a logistics company’s logo. He was balancing a package that had Jinde’s name on it. It seemed that his husband had ordered something again.
Leng Jin Yu signed for the package and already wanted to go back inside when the deliverer spoke up with an embarrassed expression.
"I’m sorry but … I couldn’t help but notice the name. Is this really where Jinde lives? That famous model?"
Leng Jin Yu looked at him with a subtle expression. Was there anybody other than his husband who would still choose his own name in a world only inhabited by humans and even boldly write it as the delivery address for something he ordered? "Yes."
"Oh." The delivery man couldn’t help but show some excitement. "So … You’re his … assistant?"
Leng Jin Yu looked at the package that he was holding and smiled. "Something like that." Sometimes, he sure felt that he was treated like one. Then again, assisting each other was what a couple should do, right?
The delivery man nodded even more excitedly. "I see, I see. Tell him I’m a huge fan of his!"
"I’ll do that. Thank you for your support." He bowed and then bid farewell, closing the door behind him. Shaking his head, he went back upstairs and put the package down next to Jinde. "Today, I was asked by the delivery man whether I was my husband’s assistant. Didn’t we talk about putting my name down for deliveries? The agency told you to be careful. If people find out where you live …"
"Relax. It’s just a delivery guy." Jinde didn’t care at all. He extended a claw and opened the package. "Ah, I pity humans. They actually have to use tools to do something like this." He looked at his claw and couldn’t help but smile to himself.
Leng Jin Yu — the human who might need to use a tool — sat down on the other side and pointedly looked at the package. "So, what did you get?"
"Oh. You’ll love it!"
Jinde started to unpack and pile everything onto the table. As it turned out … they were all books.
Leng Jin Yu raised his brows at that. While Jinde could get very serious when he was interested in a subject, he normally wasn’t the studious type. Especially now that they were on an extended vacation in this lower realm. He was normally about the good life of selling his smiles, being worshiped by his fans, and being served by the people from the agency. Leng Jin Yu had a hard time believing that this could be him turning serious.
He reached out and picked up one of the books. Looking at it more closely, it turned out to be a novel. Well, that was already much more in line with Jinde’s way of living right now.
Before he could have a look at what the story was about, Jinde took it out of his hands and picked up another one. "Let me give you a treat, my dear husband." He flipped through the book and finally stopped at one of the pages with a bright smile. He cleared his throat and started to read. "At the same time, Leng Jin Yu returned into his house. He went to the study and sat down at the desk, habitually taking out a scroll of paper and grinding the ink. His mind conjured up an image and Leng Jin Yu coughed. He peeked at the door but nobody could be seen.
Leng Jin Yu coughed again. 'I’ve always painted what I remembered. I’m doing this just to sort my memories and see if I can call out some more. There’s nothing more to it.'
With another look to the door, Leng Jin Yu concentrated on the paper scroll and started to paint. The black lines soon combined to show the silhouette of a person or rather part of a person.
Leng Jin Yu put the brush aside when he had finished, picked up the painting, and examined it. Mn, Jinde really was …
He grimaced when he noticed just where his thoughts had gone. This wasn’t right! He was supposed to think about the memory, not relish in Jinde’s appearance! Although it really was difficult. Jinde was a first-class beauty. Don’t mention the mortal realm, even in the Nine Heavens he had never seen someone like him. And it wasn’t just his outer appearance. The way he smiled and how his eyes twinkled as if trying to tell him of the thoughts going through his mind …"
Leng Jin Yu’s lips twitched when Jinde looked up with his eyes sparkling precisely in the way it was described in that book. "Don’t tell me you picked up the occupation of being an author as well?"
Jinde shook his head. "Oh, no, I wouldn’t have the time for that. I was pretty astounded when I found it though. There are actually several volumes of this."
Leng Jin Yu looked at the table pointedly. Yes. That much was obvious. He was wondering how their story could fill this many books though. And, well, how their story happened to appear in a lower realm. "Who do you think wrote this?" He picked up the book but the name written at the top didn’t tell him anything.
"Probably some bored scribe in the Palace of Fate. Don’t worry about that. I actually think it’s fun." He slipped closer to Leng Jin Yu and put the book back down, embracing him instead and putting his chin on his shoulder. "You know, I feel like it would be nice to read it together. There are quite a few … precious memories written down there."
Leng Jin Yu glanced at him with his brows raised. "The way you said that makes me worried just what kind of memory you’re talking about."
"Oh. Nothing much. Just … do you remember what kind of robe I wore on our wedding night?"
Leng Jin Yu turned his head away. Why had he expected that it would be something like that?
Jinde just laughed and leaned closer, kissing his cheek. "Ah, you know, when I saw it online, I couldn’t help but feel happy. So much has happened but, in the end, we’ve made it through and are together now. Isn’t it nice to remember that every once in a while?"
"Mn, I guess it is. Although I don’t think that’s a reason to dwell on the past too much. Isn’t it better to enjoy the present?"
"It is. But I already enjoy that very much." Jinde’s hands started to become naughty, making Leng Jin Yu give him an indulging smile.
"Well, if it’s important to you, then I don’t mind reading it together either."
"Oh, but we’ll skip the chapters we don’t appear in, alright?"
"Oh? It’s not all about us?"
Jinde scoffed. "Hmph. You’re also surprised by that, right? I am as well! I thought this should for sure be our beautiful love story. But actually, there are way more chapters about that son of yours and the reincarnation of the Son of Heaven."
Leng Jin Yu raised his brows at that. "Really?"
"Yes! Unbelievable, isn’t it? Whoever wrote it has bad taste. They should have put in more chapters with us. Obviously, we’re all around better than them."
"Mn." Leng Jin Yu didn’t argue. When it came to working out their relationship, they really had a head start on those two.
"Which reminds me …" Jinde turned back to the package and took out several more books.
Leng Jin Yu raised his brows. "There are even more?"
"No. Those are all. But … since we’ve already discovered them, I would feel bad if I didn’t share our happiness." He grinned and then took out some cloths from his spatial ring, packing the books into several small stacks. "So, I guess it’s time to deliver those to our realm now."
Leng Jin Yu’s lips twitched. So in other words … his husband wanted to show off? Well, he couldn’t say that he was surprised by that.
