No One Else Will Do But You - Chapter 7

“Mom, Mom, Jiang Mu is here!”

Before he even entered the door, Shu Luo’s loud voice could be heard from the stairwell.

Shu’s mom opened the door, a helpless look on her face. “Luo Luo, can you not shout? You’re acting like you want everyone to know you’re home.”

Shu’s dad, wearing a pair of cool wire-rimmed glasses, was reading the newspaper. He slightly raised his head and glanced at Shu Luo. “Mischievous.”

Then he looked at Jiang Mu, who was following behind. The eyes behind the glasses narrowed, and he wore a pensive expression.

Jiang Mu politely bowed slightly to Shu’s dad. “Hello, Uncle. My name is Jiang Mu.”

“Hmm, you’re a very good-looking mixed-heritage kid!”

Shu Luo and Shu’s mom: “…” Is that how he compliments people?

Jiang Mu smiled calmly. “Thank you for the compliment, Uncle.”

Shu’s dad put down his newspaper, invited them to sit at the coffee table, and made some tea.

The two hit it off, and they almost ended up as father and son.

Soon it was almost dinnertime.

“Mom, Jiang Mu is staying for dinner tonight.”

“Alright, go set up the guest room for Jiang Mu.”

Shu Luo looked bothered. “He can just sleep with me. There’s no need to make up a bed. My bed is big enough.”

Jiang Mu also said, “Yeah, it’s fine. We’re both boys, so it doesn’t matter.”

Shu’s mom looked at Jiang Mu with a strange expression. “Are you sure?”

Jiang Mu was puzzled by Shu’s mom’s expression. Was there some unspoken problem?

“Is there an issue? Is Shu Luo actually a girl?”

Shu Luo’s hair stood on end!

“No, not that, but Shu Luo’s sleeping habits might… not be the best. I’m afraid it’ll affect your sleep.”

Hehe, Jiang Mu couldn’t imagine how bad it could be, so he couldn’t grasp Shu’s mom’s “it’s for your own good, don’t sleep with Shu Luo” concern.

Shu Luo patted Jiang Mu’s chest. “Trust me, my sleeping habits are actually pretty good.”

Really?

Jiang Mu looked at Shu’s mom’s expression and suddenly had a bad feeling.

Dinner tonight was very lavish. After all, it was the first day of 2008, the first day of the new year.

Shu’s dad raised his glass first.

“Alright, today is New Year’s Day, and we can celebrate properly. I hope this year we will all be safe and sound. Shu Luo, I hope your studies improve, you’ll be more filial to your parents, and become well-behaved. Mom, you have to take good care of yourself and your health.” Then he looked at Jiang Mu and smiled. “Xiao Mu, I really like you. You’re much smarter than Luo Luo, so I really hope to adopt you as my godson. What do you say?”

Shu’s dad’s words surprised Jiang Mu, but he was also very happy. “That would be wonderful. Thank you, Godfather.”

Shu’s mom got anxious. “What about me! I want such an excellent godson too!”

“Hello, Godmother!”

It really is a world that values looks. For a handsome person, they’ll even ignore their own son. Shu Luo’s heart ached.

Shu Luo furiously stuffed food into his mouth, turning his grief into strength.

“Luo Luo, from now on, Xiao Mu is your big brother. Aren’t you happy?”

Shu Luo’s mouth was full of food, and he mumbled, “Happy…”

After dinner, Shu Luo obediently went to wash the dishes. In the living room, Shu’s mom held Jiang Mu’s hand with sympathy.

“Xiao Mu, Auntie knows everything. Don’t worry, okay? Have faith in your mom.”

Jiang Mu felt a warmth in his heart. “I know.”

“From now on, this is your home, too, okay? You can come when you’re unhappy, and of course, you can come when you’re happy, too.”

Shu’s mom’s warmth and love were very infectious. It seemed Shu Luo’s personality was inherited from his mom.

“Okay.”

Shu Luo’s bed was huge. Actually, Shu’s mom had purposely bought a big one, and it wasn’t without reason.

Jiang Mu looked around the room. There was a poster of Jay Chou on one wall, and the bookshelf… was full of little robots and game consoles.

The desk was a mess, but one area was impeccably clean, a stark contrast to the rest of the room. Several uncompleted model blueprints were laid out neatly, with pencils and erasers all perfectly arranged.

Shu Luo saw his gaze fall on that area and said with a smile, “I just drew those randomly.”

Jiang Mu looked at the lines of the blueprints and asked, “Gundam?”

“You can tell? Oh, I was just imitating it.”

Jiang Mu could see that the model drawing was very detailed. “You like to draw?”

Shu Luo shook his head. “I don’t. I just like robots. I can’t draw anything else.”

He walked to the bookshelf, opened a cupboard, and took out a rolled-up drawing. He carefully untied the ribbon and spread it out.

It was a large piece of paper, and the robot drawn on it was lifelike and three-dimensional. The pair of crimson eyes hidden under the helmet looked as if they had human emotions, drawing people in to look at them.

Jiang Mu himself didn’t like these things, as he’d never had the chance to be exposed to them in France. Although he didn’t understand it, he really liked it.

“I really love it. I even gave it a name, Luo Shi. I want to find someone to build it for me when I grow up and have money.”

Jiang Mu looked at Shu Luo’s serious expression, a kind of seriousness he had almost never seen before.

“Why do you like it so much?”

“I just like it; there’s no need for a reason. And once I like something, I’ll never give up on it. If I don’t have the money to make this robot when I’m older, but someone helps me, I’ll agree to one of their requests, no questions asked.”

Jiang Mu said thoughtfully, “Is your one request worth a lot of money?”

“Of course it is. I’ll just give myself to them.”

“Is that so?”

The smile in Jiang Mu’s eyes seemed to be calculating something, his mind working at high speed.

Then, after the lights were out, the tragedy began.

The bed could have been three meters wide, but it wouldn’t have mattered. Shu Luo’s range of motion was too extensive, and he even managed to roll over onto Jiang Mu.

His feet could end up on Jiang Mu’s neck, and his hands liked to slip under his shirt and misbehave…

Jiang Mu gritted his teeth, pulled him into his arms, and held him tightly with his arms and legs, watching to see if he would still move.

Sure enough, the second half of the night was much better.

No wonder Shu’s mom had that strange, unsettling expression. So that was it. His destructive power was so great. It seemed that the person who would share a bed with him in the future wouldn’t have it easy. It was hard to believe that even with his “wings clipped,” his destructive power was still so great.

Sigh.

January 1, 2008 Mood: Happy

Haha, I finally said my wish out loud today! Actually, I had a purpose… Jiang Mu is a rich guy. If I’m nice to him, maybe he’ll help me fulfill this wish? When that happens, I’ll just work for him for free. Anyway, I’m sticking with him no matter what. Hmph! There’s a price to pay for hearing my wish. There’s no such thing as a free lunch. Hmm… Jiang Mu is sleeping with me tonight. I hope he sleeps well.