Chapter 32
Despite his brother’s emotional breakthrough, it didn’t interrupt the ongoing affection between the younger Song and his husband. Song Jingmo was practically melting in Xie Zhang’s hands, becoming a puddle of shadow yolk.
Oh, he wasn’t completely ignoring his brother.
He extinguished Song Chengyan’s cigarette with a shadow tendril.
Song Chengyan, to his credit, remained relatively calm.
As he’d said before, whether or not Momo was his biological brother didn’t change the fact that he was his brother, the one he wanted to protect. This revelation, while significant for his parents and Momo, didn’t particularly affect him.
He was more concerned about the car accident.
Staring at the extinguished cigarette, Song Chengyan sighed, rubbing his temples, then resumed the conversation: “So, this photo… is of our mothers.”
“Based on my investigation, they were childhood friends, very close. There’s no record of any falling out. They were present at each other’s weddings, and they seemed to stay in touch afterwards.”
“Until, thirty years ago, my uncle, Momo’s father, disappeared. He’s still missing. My aunt was pregnant at the time.”
“Then, two years later, my aunt died in a car accident. Momo, who was just over a year old, was brought to the Song family estate and raised with me.”
“But I don’t understand why my parents hid his true parentage, raising him as my brother. My mother even claimed she had health complications after childbirth, withdrawing from social circles for years.”
Thanks to their mother’s reclusiveness and the Song family’s relatively low profile, no one had questioned the slight discrepancy in Momo’s age, and over time, people forgot.
“If it were just that, it wouldn’t be a big deal, but…”
He looked at Xie Zhang.
Xie Zhang stared at the photo.
“After the two incidents in the Song family, the Xie corporation went bankrupt, and my parents died in a car accident.”
Two of the three women in the photo had died in car accidents, leaving only Song Jingmo’s mother.
And Momo’s accident had also been a car accident.
This couldn’t be a coincidence.
“After my parents’ deaths, my mother became very ill. She spent over two years recuperating abroad.”
Song Jingmo, remembering this, nodded emphatically.
Not only had his mother gone abroad, but he’d been taken with her, leaving only his father and his older brother, who was still in school, in the country.
He frowned, thinking hard.
And after that trip abroad, many of the Song family’s staff had been dismissed, even long-term employees.
“And Momo’s accident… the family’s reaction was… too fast.”
Song Chengyan still found it strange.
“From the accident to the hospital, to the evidence being cleared, to the announcement of his death… everything happened so quickly. By the time I realized what was going on, it was already over.”
Song Jingmo, clinging to Xie Zhang’s hand, his cheek resting against his fingers, tilted his head, looking at his brother.
Giving up on the investigation just because they couldn’t find anything?
That wasn’t like his brother.
Song Chengyan, although unable to see Song Jingmo’s face, knew what he was thinking.
He gestured towards the photo in Xie Zhang’s hand.
“Isn’t the evidence right there in your hand?”
A smug smile touched his lips.
“If it weren’t for that charlatan staying at our house, giving me an excuse to snoop around, I wouldn’t have been able to get this from the housekeeper.”
Song Jingmo: “:O”
He knew it! Such a personal photo, so carefully preserved, couldn’t have been easy to obtain.
It had to be an inside job!
“Take a picture; I have to return this. Otherwise…”
He didn’t finish the sentence.
But Song Jingmo understood, burying himself deeper into Xie Zhang’s hand.
His mother wasn’t strict or harsh. Apart from that one emotional outburst, she was always gentle and kind.
But a gentle elder, saying nothing, her eyes filled with tears and disappointment…
That was far worse than any scolding.
“I haven’t found much. My father is being evasive. But these car accidents… they seem like a warning, a threat.”
There were many ways to kill someone. A car accident was the most… messy… and difficult to cover up.
Unless it was a deliberate message, there was no reason for so many car accidents.
“It probably started with my uncle’s disappearance.”
But despite his brother being missing for thirty years, his parents had never declared him legally dead.
“I’ve tried, but my parents genuinely seem to be in the dark. If you’re interested, perhaps you could investigate the Xie family’s side.”
Song Chengyan, unaware of their planned honeymoon, took back the photo after Xie Zhang had taken a picture.
The chibi shadow gave him a thumbs-up.
Xie Zhang nodded silently.
Song Chengyan, unfazed by his silence, cleared his throat and asked tentatively: “Just curious…”
“Can Momo… transfer to my shadow?”
“I mean, he could visit home, maybe even help me with work, right?”
“Shadows don’t need to sleep—”
He was suddenly engulfed by a cold, inky black shadow, pinning him to the sofa.
Song Jingmo, furious, searched for a lemon to shove into his brother’s mouth, to make him reconsider his words.
What was wrong with being a shadow?!
Even if shadows didn’t sleep, he wasn’t going to be his brother’s slave!
No way!
Xie Zhang didn’t intervene.
As Song Chengyan struggled and groaned, Xie Zhang calmly explained the situation with the red strings.
He spoke slowly, even finding a slightly shriveled lemon and offering it to Song Jingmo, who promptly shoved it into his brother’s mouth.
By the time he finished explaining, Song Chengyan’s hair was a mess.
He finally managed to break free, checked his reflection on his phone screen, and said in exasperation: “Look at me…”
“If I go out like this, the news will be filled with stories about me and Xie Zhang fighting over you.”
Song Jingmo, slightly contrite, smoothed his brother’s hair with a shadow tendril.
Xie Zhang, watching their interaction, his mind filled with questions, smiled: “You’re quite different in private, Mr. Song, from the image you project.”
Song Chengyan wasn’t actually as serious and traditional as he seemed. If he were, he wouldn’t be constantly trying to escape the family business.
But the Song corporation was a family legacy, the board of directors filled with stubborn old men he couldn’t offend.
“You, on the other hand, are exactly as I imagined.”
Song Chengyan, enjoying his brother’s ministrations, stroked his chin thoughtfully.
“Momo, despite his seemingly innocent demeanor, has rather… unique… tastes. Let me see, how to describe it—”
Song Jingmo tugged on his hair, warning him to be careful with his words.
Song Chengyan, no longer afraid of the shadow, swatted his hand away, checking his hair on his phone screen.
Xie Zhang suddenly asked: “What did you think I was like, Mr. Song?”
“The aloof, unattainable type, secretly a… deviant? Or something equally… exciting? Otherwise, why would Momo be so smitten with you?”
“Oh, but perhaps Momo just likes your type.”
Song Chengyan, fixing his appearance, ignoring the agitated shadow, dodged a shadow tendril attempting to cover his mouth.
“Such a dark little face, and such a temper. Stop it, I have a date later, you’re wrinkling my clothes…”
How could Song Jingmo not be upset?!
His brother had practically exposed his deepest, darkest secrets to Xie Zhang!
He hadn’t even had a chance to… educate… Xie Zhang about his preferences, and his brother had already spilled the beans!
Was there anything more mortifying?
If he were physically present, he’d probably combust from embarrassment.
Song Chengyan, dropping that bombshell, leaving his brother a blushing mess, casually left, taking the shriveled lemon with him, a memento from his not-so-materialistic brother.
Alone with Xie Zhang, Song Jingmo retreated to a corner of the sofa, his back to him, silent.
Xie Zhang was deep in thought.
He was, admittedly, a rather boring person.
He wasn’t particularly expressive, especially in relationships.
He felt… ordinary.
His personality, his life, his work, everything about him was… bland.
His lips tightened into a thin line, his expression darkening.
He tried to recall moments when Momo had reacted… differently… to him.
There had been moments.
During their intimate moments, Momo had seemed…
Xie Zhang retrieved a small mirror from his drawer, studying his reflection.
Song-shadow, his ears perked, hadn’t heard anything from Xie Zhang for a while.
He crept closer, hidden by the larger shadow.
He saw Xie Zhang staring at himself in the mirror.
Song Jingmo was surprised.
Xie Zhang, the man he’d initially thought was completely unattainable, so aloof and reserved, was looking at himself in the mirror.
A dark shape crept into the reflection.
The chibi shadow peeked out from behind the mirror frame, looking up at Xie Zhang.
What are you looking at?
So intently?
Xie Zhang, who had been watching him from the corner of his eye, asked calmly: “Momo?”
Hm?
What is it?
A black question mark appeared above the chibi shadow’s head.
Xie Zhang smiled.
“You used to…”
In the mirror, his finger traced his Adam’s apple, lingering on the small, red mole.
He tilted his head back, his Adam’s apple bobbing, the mole moving slightly.
“Always look at this?”
Song Jingmo stared, mesmerized.
Gulp.
The entire shadow was captivated.
Hearing the soft gulp, Xie Zhang, his eyes widening slightly, was surprised.
So it really was… the mole?
He looked at himself in the mirror again, his gaze lingering on the inconspicuous mole.
He frowned, slightly bewildered by his lover’s preference.
Song Jingmo, initially captivated, noticed Xie Zhang’s confusion. Having heard Song Chengyan’s earlier words, he realized what Xie Zhang had been thinking.
The chibi shadow sat on Xie Zhang’s hand, holding the mirror, then, abandoning all pretense, two shadow tendrils wrapped around Xie Zhang’s neck, one pulling his hand down onto the sofa, the other gently rubbing the mole on his Adam’s apple.
What are you pondering?
Ask if you don’t understand!
And—
Don’t touch! You wouldn’t understand the allure of a mature man!
Let me handle this!
…
Half an hour later.
Song Jingmo, sated, lay sprawled across Xie Zhang’s lap, a satisfied puddle of shadow.
Xie Zhang, his clothes straightened, his shirt buttoned to the top, his face carefully composed, his ears and neck still flushed, said:
“…Momo, this is the office.”
Song Jingmo, not even bothering to form a chibi shadow, simply waved a tendril dismissively.
I know, I know!
He’d locked the door.
He was starting to enjoy this shadow form.
It was like an 18+ dating sim!
Hee hee.
The triumphant Song-shadow, lost in his afterglow, didn’t notice Xie Zhang’s seemingly flustered demeanor, the thoughtful glint in his eyes.
