No One Else Will Do But You - Chapter 88

The sun had dipped below the horizon, leaving only a faint, lingering glow of twilight. Inside the apartment, Shu Luo was locked in a life-or-death struggle with his thesis, biting his fingers until they were red without even realizing it.

He was so absorbed that he didn’t hear the door open.

Jiang Mu let himself in. The living room was dim, lit only by a single amber lamp. He dropped his luggage, tossed his coat on the sofa, and followed the light toward the bedroom. There, he saw a slender silhouette sitting at the desk, the back of a pale neck exposed by a loose-fitting collar.

Jiang Mu’s eyes softened at the sight of Shu Luo biting his finger in frustration. He stepped up quietly behind him.

“This is such a headache… Ah!” Shu Luo jumped as arms suddenly wrapped around him.

Jiang Mu rested his chin on Shu Luo’s head, chuckling low. “You didn’t even notice me come in?”

Shu Luo rolled his eyes. “Brother, you scared the life out of me! I thought it was a burglar!”

“Would a burglar hold you like this?” Jiang Mu murmured, pressing a kiss behind his ear.

The air in the room shifted instantly. Perhaps it was because they had been apart, but that single kiss ignited a spark that neither could—or wanted to—extinguish. Under the hazy yellow light, their reflections in each other’s eyes were clear, filled with a raw, unmistakable desire.

The next morning, Shu Luo was effectively a permanent fixture of the bed. He was “paralyzed.”

They had been awake until the early hours of the morning. While Jiang Mu looked refreshed and radiant, Shu Luo felt like he had been disassembled and put back together incorrectly.

“Jiang Mu! I’ve treated you well, and this is how you repay me?!” Shu Luo yanked his collar down in front of the mirror, revealing a constellation of marks across his neck and collarbone. “If my parents see this, I’m dead! Thank god it’s winter and I can wear a scarf.”

Jiang Mu walked up behind him, wrapping his arms around Shu Luo’s waist so they both faced the mirror. “I think it looks good.” He had a persistent habit of wanting to leave his “stamp” on Shu Luo.

“You are so thirsty!” Shu Luo glared at his reflection, though the look lacked any real venom.

“I missed you,” Jiang Mu said, his voice dropping an octave. “You’re going back to school after the New Year. Last summer, you only came home for a month.”

Shu Luo was surprised to hear a hint of a complaint in Jiang Mu’s tone. “Wow, Brother, I guess my status is quite secure. One day apart feels like three years, huh?”

Jiang Mu didn’t deny it. He leaned in and whispered into Shu Luo’s ear: “Next year, let’s go to the Netherlands.”

“The Netherlands? What for?”

“To get married.”

Shu Luo’s eyes nearly popped out of his head. “M-married?! Two guys?! That’s not even the point—the point is my parents will launch me into space if they find out!”

“Don’t worry,” Jiang Mu said calmly. “I have a plan. I’ll make sure they hand you over to me willingly.”

“Why am I being handed over? You should be the one ‘marrying’ into my family!”

Jiang Mu shrugged. “Fine by me.” As long as their “positions” in bed didn’t change, he didn’t care about the labels.

As the Spring Festival approached, Mrs. Shu was busy running errands and taking Grandma out for walks. To her surprise, Jiang Mu was always there—acting as their chauffeur, carrying heavy bags, and even piggybacking Grandma when she got tired.

“Oh, A-Qin,” Grandma (Li Songping) said, patting Jiang Mu’s hand. “Look at how patient this young man is. Luo Luo is so lucky to have a friend like him. If people didn’t know better, they’d think A-Mu was your son!”

Mrs. Shu couldn’t exactly kick him out. Furthermore, Jiang Mu was playing a very clever game with her vanity. Whenever she went shopping with her friends, Jiang Mu would be waiting outside the mall early, often holding a bouquet of lilies—her favorite flower (something even Mr. Shu often forgot).

Being tall and handsome, Jiang Mu turned heads wherever they went. Mrs. Shu’s friends were green with envy. “Who is this?” they would ask.

“My godson,” she would reply, soaking in the admiration. Their own sons rarely had the patience to go shopping with them, let alone offer fashion advice.

Inside a boutique, Mrs. Shu tried on a royal blue dress Jiang Mu had recommended. She looked in the mirror and nodded; the color made her skin look fair and youthful.

“A-Mu, come look. What necklace goes with this?”

Jiang Mu noted her good mood. His days of “skipping work” were paying off. “A pearl necklace would look elegant and dignified.”

Mrs. Shu nodded, then asked with feigned nonchalance, “How are things with you and Luo Luo?”

Jiang Mu’s eyes flickered with surprise, but he remained steady. “Very good.”

“That’s good. Come, let’s buy a few things for Luo Luo. That boy has no fashion sense. You pick them out—after all, you know him best.”

Jiang Mu’s lips curved into a triumphant smile. Hard work truly never goes to waste.