150: Declaring sovereignty

When he came up with the medicine and water, he heard the sound of opera singing coming from the room.

"What opera is this?" Yan Qinghe handed him the medicine and watched him drink it before asking casually.

"The Injustice to Dou E," Yan Zhuohua said calmly, uttering words that were quite shocking. "I'm learning it so I can sing it for Mom when I go home tomorrow."

"..."

"You admitted your mistake very sincerely in front of Big Brother just now."

"I know!" Yan Zhuohua didn't quite catch a line of the opera and dragged the progress bar back a bit. "But knowing I was wrong doesn't stop me from tripping up Big Brother. We're brothers; how can we bond without framing each other a little? Besides, I'm younger than him. Isn't it normal to have a bit of a temper?"

...Sometimes you really deserve to be beaten and punished; I've never seen anyone as asking-for-it as you.

Yan Qinghe tactfully changed the subject, fearing he might be included in the schemes. "Come on, move your pants so I can apply a compress to your knees."

Yan Zhuohua's knees hurt too much to move easily, so he could only free up his hands to help Yan Qinghe roll up his pant legs.

As more skin was revealed, his pair of knees, bruised purple from kneeling, were finally exposed to the air. Looking at the bruises on the fair skin, Yan Qinghe frowned in distress, momentarily afraid to touch them.

Then, he suddenly heard the "click" of a photo being taken from above.

Yan Qinghe: "?"

Yan Zhuohua saved the photo with satisfaction, then met Yan Qinghe's surprised and confused gaze.

"If I don't save some evidence, how can I play the victim to Mom?"

"Then wait until after the compress is done to take a picture; the effect will be better." Heartbroken for his wife, Yan Qinghe unhesitatingly began to aid and abet.

Yan Zhuohua's eyes lit up. "That makes sense! I can even add a filter after taking the photo!"

Even Qin Hui would have to admit defeat before the two of you.

Yan Qinghe took the ice pack from the side and gently applied it. Yan Zhuohua instantly hissed from the cold.

Seeing him frown, Yan Qinghe immediately brought up a topic to distract him.

"The anniversary gift you mentioned this morning?"

Yan Zhuohua was indeed distracted. He sighed. "I originally planned to give you a surprise, but thanks to that unlucky kid Sheng Xufeng, the 'joy' is gone, and only the 'shock' is left."

"I can pretend I don't know."

"That won't be necessary." Yan Zhuohua's face lit up again. "You don't know exactly what I'm preparing, so it can still be a surprise if you look at it that way."

"Okay," Yan Qinghe couldn't help but curl his lips. "I'm looking forward to it."

*

Having untied this knot that had been hidden in the Yan Family's hearts for a long time regarding Yan Zhuohua being "too disobedient," everyone's lives and mindsets seemed much smoother.

Except for Yan Zhuoyang.

The younger brother he doted on returned home early the next morning after being punished by him to kneel. He performed a soul-stirring rendition of "The Injustice to Dou E" for Jiang Fuyue and presented a photo with heaven knows how many filters added, reporting him to their mother with a vengeance. It made Jiang Fuyue so distressed that she was completely dazed and disoriented.

That same day, he was called back and criticized in front of everyone. Then, under Yan Zhuohua's blatant looks of gloating, triumph, petty arrogance, and acting with borrowed authority, he was sent out of the house and driven back to the military district.

He regretted it. He shouldn't have spared him that blow with the rod yesterday.

He really was asking for it!

*

Time moved forward unhurriedly, and in the blink of an eye, it was June, and the summer heat was rising. As the representative of the Yan Family and the military, Yan Zhuoyang went to Country MR for negotiations. Before leaving, he specifically reminded Yan Qinghe to keep a close eye on his wife, preferably never leaving his side.

So, during the youthful and passionate graduation season of June, Yan Qinghe accompanied his dear wife to the graduation ceremony at B University.

"Why aren't you wearing a hat? I told you it's hotter here in B City than in A City. What if you get sunburned?" Yan Zhuohua, who had just finished taking graduation photos, was still wearing his pink-collared academic gown. With his face flushed pink and white from the sun, at first glance, he looked even more delicate and pretty than the girls in his class.

Yan Qinghe took the flowers from his hand and handed him a bottle of water.

"Are there any more activities later?"

After gulping down two mouthfuls of water, Yan Zhuohua answered slowly, "Nothing major. Just the students taking photos on their own for memories, and then we'll go for a group meal at noon."

"Then should I book a private room for you? What do you want to eat? How many people?"

Yan Zhuohua thought for a moment. "There's a restaurant near the school with a seafood theme, but the prices are too expensive for students. Since we're about to part ways, I'll treat everyone to a good meal. Book a large private room. There are 25 of us in the class plus the counselor, but many will probably bring their families."

"Okay." Yan Qinghe had already taken out his phone to make arrangements. "Not inviting the teachers?"

"No, everyone has different supervisors, so it's better to eat separately."

"What about your supervisor?"

"I've already planned for my supervisor. We'll go buy some groceries and supplements tomorrow, and I'll show off my cooking at his house in the evening."

Yan Qinghe was about to tease him when someone suddenly called Yan Zhuohua from not far away.

Yan Zhuohua waved at them, quickly took two more gulps of water, and stuffed the bottle into Yan Qinghe's hands. "My classmates are calling me for photos. Go wait for me in the shade over there so you don't get sunburnt!"

With that, he ran off like a gust of wind. Yan Qinghe smiled as he watched him dash toward his classmates before slowly walking toward the shade.

*

Near noon, Yan Zhuohua, who had been caught by a group of people for photos, returned to Yan Qinghe's side looking wilted from the sun.

"I just bought you an ice cream; eat it to cool down." Yan Qinghe reached out to help him take off the academic gown. "Student Yan is quite popular, with so many people looking for you to take photos."

"Jealous?"

"Can't I be?"

"You can," Yan Zhuohua stuffed the half-eaten ice cream into Yan Qinghe's mouth. "Don't you just want to declare your sovereignty? I'll give you the chance."

"Half an hour ago, my former esports teammates called and said they have time tonight. Perfect. I'll take you to meet my classmates at noon, my teammates in the evening, and my supervisor tomorrow. I'll let you meet everyone I'm close with over these two days. Happy?"

Yan Qinghe's voice was muffled as he ate the ice cream. "...Happy."

*

Near noon, Yan Zhuohua and his classmates walked into the private room Yan Qinghe had booked in advance.

"Zhuohua, a meal for two in this place costs almost a month's living expenses for us students. Isn't it too expensive?" The class monitor leaned in and poked Yan Zhuohua. "Some people might not want to eat somewhere so pricey."

Yan Zhuohua patted the class monitor's shoulder to signal him not to worry, then stood up holding his drink.

"Friends, because of my esports career, I've received a lot of help from everyone in my studies and other tasks over the past few years. Thank you so much. I'll be treating everyone to this farewell gathering as a way of saying thanks."

The private room immediately became rowdy as everyone tried to decline. "These are all small things; there's no need to thank us. It's not worth such a grand gesture, is it?"

"Don't worry." Yan Zhuohua gestured for everyone to listen. "There's another reason."

With that, Yan Zhuohua pulled up Yan Qinghe, who was beside him. "Let me introduce everyone: my husband, Yan Qinghe. We had our wedding last year, but for various reasons, I couldn't invite you all. So this meal can also be considered a makeup wedding banquet for you."

Before everyone could react, Yan Qinghe spoke up, "Hello everyone, I'm Zhuohua's husband, Yan Qinghe. Thank you very much for taking care of my Zhuohua over the past few years. I've also prepared a souvenir for each of you as a memento and a token of thanks. I hope you all enjoy your meal today."