DASFAM_113 END

Ever since Old Master Bai passed away, the Bai family had long since fallen from its former standing.

They had originally hoped to use their connection through their adopted son Bai Xu to maintain some kind of relationship with the Shang family, but Bai Xu, carrying the memory of all the grievances the original host had suffered from childhood, treated them with a cold face as though they were strangers.

On top of that, having thoroughly embarrassed themselves at the Shang elders' memorial banquet and walked away with nothing, the Bai family had spent the better part of the past year keeping their heads down.

So when Bai Xu came to the door requesting the dissolution of the adoption relationship, Bai Rendao didn't dare utter a single word of objection.

In contrast to the Bai family's stifled misery, the Zhang family was like they had stumbled into the greatest fortune imaginable. The moment they heard that Bai Xu was willing to be entered back into their household registration, Zhang Du and Shen Mian couldn't stop smiling.

The couple, overjoyed, made sure to take Bai Xu to the household registration division of the public security bureau before the weekend and got everything sorted out.

Zhang Du looked at the freshly printed page of the household register, and the sorrow that had weighed on his heart for over twenty years finally dissolved completely. Already nearing sixty, he couldn't help but feel the rims of his eyes grow red.

His wife Shen Mian was the first to notice the shift in his mood, and quickly patted him on the shoulder, "What are you crying for on a good day like this? Don't let your son see you like this."

"I'm happy, these are tears of happiness," Zhang Du took a deep breath and composed himself once more.

Seeing this, Bai Xu stepped forward and embraced the couple.

He pressed his lips together almost imperceptibly, and spoke softly, "Mom, Dad, thank you."

Those words were said on behalf of the original host, and on behalf of himself as well.

Zhang Du and Shen Mian heard that long-yearned-for form of address, and delight immediately surfaced on both their faces as they responded warmly.

Bai Xu glanced at the household register in Zhang Du's hands, a trace of apology hidden in his expression, "I won't be changing my surname, will that bother you?"

His willingness to have his registration transferred back to the Zhang family was out of a desire to fulfill the original host's wish of returning to his birth family; and keeping his surname unchanged came from a longing for the family he had left behind in the real world.

Zhang Du was far more open-minded than Bai Xu had anticipated, "As long as you're willing to come back, everything else is fine."

To him, as long as the child's heart was with the family, that was already enough.

Bai Xu met the eyes of the Zhang couple, and the warmth in his heart lingered still.

Then suddenly, he remembered something important, "Right, there's one more thing I'd like to discuss with you. I may need to borrow this household register for a bit."

"Oh? What for?"

Zhang Du asked casually, and with complete trust, held it out.

Bai Xu didn't reach out to take it right away, instead, he came clean about the purpose first, "Well, Yanxiao and I are planning to go get our marriage certificate next week."

As he said the words, a rare shyness touched the corners of his eyes and brows.

Zhang Du and Shen Mian were both momentarily taken aback. Zhang Du was the first to speak, "You two children, the household register has barely had time to warm in my hands, and you've already gone ahead and decided something this significant on your own?"

The tone carried not the slightest hint of severity, if anything, it came with a smile.

Bai Xu let out a muffled cough, "Mm."

Shen Mian broke into a smile, "Alright, you two can decide for yourselves. Yanxiao is someone I watched grow up, I trust his character."

After all, they had fallen short for Bai Xu for far too many years.

If he could have a good person by his side in the future, they, as his parents, could rest considerably easier.

Zhang Du pressed the household register directly into Bai Xu's hands, "Here, take it. Dad trusts you both."

Only then did Bai Xu close his fingers around the booklet, and thanked them from the heart, "Thank you, Mom, Dad."

The words had barely settled when a brand-new black SUV pulled up in front of the three of them. Shang Yanxiao rolled down the driver's side window, "A' Xu."

He called out to his lover first, then turned to greet the Zhang couple politely, "Uncle Zhang, Aunt Shen."

Bai Xu met Shang Yanxiao's eyes, and the smile at the corner of his mouth widened without him even noticing.

Shen Mian, ever attentive, asked, "Where are you two heading?"

Bai Xu answered simply, "We thought we'd take a stroll by the seaside while it's the weekend."

They had already booked a beachside resort hotel, setting off now, they should be able to reach their destination before ten in the evening.

Shang Yanxiao, out of courtesy, offered, "Aunt Shen, shall A' Xu and I drop you home first?"

Zhang Du waved a hand, "No need, the driver is waiting in the nearby car park. You can't stop for long in front of the public security bureau. Don't worry about us, just go enjoy your drive."

Shen Mian nodded, "Stay safe."

Bai Xu didn't stand on false courtesy over it, and simply gave Shen Mian another hug, "Then once Yanxiao and I are back in a couple of days, let's all get together properly as a family and have a meal?"

"Alright, off you go."

…

The car door closed.

Shang Yanxiao gave the Zhang couple one more acknowledging nod before pressing down on the accelerator.

Bai Xu fastened his seatbelt and set the freshly obtained household register in the storage basket inside the car, "Another big matter finally taken care of."

Shang Yanxiao asked him, "Did you tell Aunt Shen and the others that we're going to get our marriage certificate next week?"

Bai Xu nodded, "Mm, no objections. Then again, who told you to lay such a good foundation with them since you were small?"

Shang Yanxiao gave a quiet laugh, then opened the car navigation, "It'll be about three and a half hours. I bought coffee and some light food and put it in the back, I was thinking we'd take the expressway straight there without stopping along the way. Sound good?"

Bai Xu nodded, "Sure."

Shang Yanxiao's driving was excellent, and following the prompts of the car navigation, the two of them arrived precisely on time at the seaside vacation villa—

White standalone houses lined up one after another along the tranquil coastline, each separated by a distance of over a hundred meters, with privately sectioned beaches that afforded a sense of seclusion from one another.

Because Bai Xu had arranged things in advance, the villa's butler had already set up a bonfire and string lights on the private beach, the dim glow dotting the quiet nightscape by the sea.

The moment Bai Xu opened the car window, his mind went back to a year ago.

He breathed in the distinctively damp, salty air and, moved by the feeling, turned to share the thought with Shang Yanxiao, "Yanxiao, this reminds me a little of that stretch of sea in Singapore."

Back then, the two of them were still in the company of 'allies'.

That night, Bai Xu had suddenly taken it into his head to go to the seaside, and Shang Yanxiao had let impulse carry him along too.

Thinking back on it now, it was thanks to that night that their relationship had seemed to have an accelerator pressed down on it, carrying them all the way to where they were today.

Bai Xu and Shang Yanxiao held each other's gaze for two or three seconds, each having already guessed what the other was thinking.

Bai Xu couldn't help but smile, "What a shame, it would have been perfect with a bottle of champagne. I should have thought to buy one in advance."

Shang Yanxiao suddenly turned the question back on him, "How do you know I didn't?"

Bai Xu was startled, "Hm?"

And then he watched as his lover reached into the car refrigerator in the back and produced a bottle of the same champagne, along with two chilled champagne flutes.

Bai Xu broke into a laugh, "So that's why you switched cars?"

"More or less."

Shang Yanxiao handed him a glass, then opened the champagne with practiced ease.

The smooth, icy liquid slid down his throat, and Bai Xu's spirits lifted in an instant. Without another word, he slipped off his shoes and socks, pushed the car door open, and slid out.

"Yanxiao, come down!"

"A' Xu, slow down."

Shang Yanxiao laughed despite himself and followed after him out of the car, indulgent as ever.

Bai Xu, glass in hand, strolled unhurriedly across the fine, soft sand. Before him stretched the vast and boundless sea; behind him walked the lover who had come alongside him.

The bonfire crackled and popped without pause, occasional sparks drifting and scattering on the breeze, lending the evening yet another layer of its own singular charm.

Bai Xu passed his empty glass back into Shang Yanxiao's hands, and on a whim, opened his phone.

In the moment Shang Yanxiao was refilling his glass, a lilting ballroom melody floated out from the phone.

Shang Yanxiao was mildly startled. He looked up to find Bai Xu deliberately extending a gesture of invitation toward him, "Come on then, Third Young Master, I don't think we've ever danced together?"

People of their background and upbringing had, more or less, all learned some ballroom steps at some point.

Shang Yanxiao set the champagne bottle and glass down on the ground, caught his lover's hand, and stepped forward with easy grace, "What shall we do? Is Young Master Bai planning for both of us to lead?"

Bai Xu laughed and stepped his bare feet onto the tops of Shang Yanxiao's dress shoes, leaning in with his request, "You lead and take me along, is that not allowed?"

"It is."

Shang Yanxiao kissed him on the lips, "Can't have my Young Master Bai disappointed."

And so the two of them drifted slowly along the beach, with no rules or formalities to observe, nothing but freedom and love for company.

One ballroom piece followed another from the phone, and the champagne in the bottle gradually dwindled toward nothing, yet the love that wound between the two of them only grew deeper.

It was impossible to say how much time had passed before Bai Xu finally called a stop, "Third Young Master, not bad at all. I'm very satisfied."

Shang Yanxiao followed up naturally, "Then is there a reward?"

A hint of tipsiness lingered in the depths of Bai Xu's eyes, yet his words came out clearly, "There is, hold out your hand."

Shang Yanxiao did as told. His palm was gathered into Bai Xu's hands, and in the next moment, his ring finger carried a custom-made men's ring.

Five diamonds, modest rather than ostentatious, were set into a silver twisted band, casting a subtle and lively brilliance.

"……"

"……"

For an instant, both of them fell silent.

Shang Yanxiao stared at the ring, so unmistakably laden with meaning, and his breath trembled slightly. When he finally spoke, it was only a single name, "A' Xu?"

Bai Xu masked the flutter of nerves inside him, "This reward, do you like it?"

Shang Yanxiao of course liked it, "When did you prepare this?"

Bai Xu produced the other ring and slipped it onto his own finger, then laced his fingers back through his lover's, "The day after you gave me the little golden lock, I quietly went to find a private luxury designer."

Rushing to get it done in time, he had finally received them just yesterday.

Bai Xu had never done anything like this in his life, and was even less suited to planning any grand, sweeping proposal ceremony. All he could do was express what was in his heart in the simplest, most straightforward way he knew.

He lowered his gaze and explained, "Don't let these two rings fool you with their plain appearance, the grooves on them can interlock with each other."

Just like the two of them.

Even having begun in different times and dimensions, souls in harmony would always find their way to meeting one day.

Bai Xu looked at his lover, close enough to reach, "Yanxiao, I know there's much between us that no longer needs to be proven over and over again. But I still want to tell you—"

"I love you."

"I once thought I would never be bound by what people call ordinary love. But now, I embrace it willingly."

"I want to be with you. I want to spend every minute and every second of the rest of my life with you. Will you?"

Shang Yanxiao's heart was flooded with an overwhelming rush of joy. Every last trace of coldness vanished from his eyes and brows, replaced entirely by tenderness and love.

"A' Xu, of course I will. I love you. I love you too."

Faced with the answer he had always known would come, Bai Xu tilted his head and nuzzled the tip of his nose against Shang Yanxiao's, "Mm. I know."

Shang Yanxiao exchanged warm breaths with him, following suit, "Mm. I know too."

They had long since expressed their love through action, time and time again in the course of their everyday lives together, a love that could be understood without a single word needing to be spoken.

The lingering nervousness from Bai Xu's 'proposal' finally melted away.

He gazed up at Shang Yanxiao's handsome face, the face that had appealed to him from the very beginning, and a phrase suddenly surfaced in his mind, "Shang Yanxiao, I want to…"

The thought came, and so did the words.

Shang Yanxiao heard that strangely familiar opening, "Hm?"

Bai Xu held back a smile and echoed the words from a year ago, "I want to kiss you, may I?"

Shang Yanxiao dipped his head and brushed his lips against his, barely there, "Will you 'forget' again this time?"

"No."

Bai Xu leaned in to meet him, his words unwavering, "This one I'll remember for a lifetime."

A cool breeze and moonlit sky, shadows of trees and the sound of waves, everything around them bore witness—

They heard each other's heartbeats, felt each other's breath, and fell deeper still into a future that would hold them both.

——END——

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