Chapter Text
The morning before their departure, a thought occurred to Shen Yuan. “You should probably pick an English name to go by, if you haven’t already.”
“Oh?” Luo Binghe turned from the stove to look at him, eyebrows raised.
Shen Yuan explained that Westerners struggle to pronounce Chinese names. How, even when they could get the sounds right, they usually messed up the tones. This approach avoided any awkwardness.
“I see,” Luo Binghe said, stroking his chin thoughtfully. “Then, why doesn’t Laoshi pick one out for me?”
Shen Yuan accepted the mission, though he started to regret it as the day progressed. Picking out a name for somebody was a lot of pressure, it turned out. And there were so many names to choose from!
In the end, he decided to narrow it down. He would base the English name on “Luo Binghe”, rather than “Long Zhangwei”, since that was Luo Binghe’s true name. And “Luo Binghe” had been named for the Luochuan river and the icy season he’d been born in. Following this theme, Shen Yuan searched up English-language names relating to rivers.
One in particular caught his eye.
“How do you feel about the name ‘Hudson’?” Shen Yuan asked. “It’s what they call the river which runs through New York, but it’s also a name used for boys. It gets very cold in winter, like the Luochuan.” Shen Yuan looked over at Luo Binghe, sitting at the adjacent desk. “Said the Western way, your name would be ‘Hudson Long’.”
Luo Binghe stroked his chin. “I like it,” he announced with a smile. “Laoshi has good taste.” A thoughtful look passed over his face. “What’s Laoshi’s English name?”
“It’s ‘John’.” Shen Yuan rubbed the back of his neck. “It’s about as standard as English names go, but it sounds pretty similar to my real name.” He’d only spent about ten minutes deciding on it, so you couldn’t blame him for not being super creative!
“And what is the meaning of ‘John’?”
Shen Yuan had no clue. After doing a quick internet search, he shared, “It actually comes from a language called Hebrew originally. And in that language, it means ‘graced by God’.”
Luo Binghe looked genuinely fascinated by this information. “Which god?” he asked.
“The God of the Christians, I think. So…” Shen Yuan did another quick search. “Jesus?” The description of the Christians’ beliefs was quite confusing, and Shen Yuan wasn’t completely certain that he’d gotten it right. But he supposed it didn’t matter.
Luo Binghe hummed. “My mother in this world was a Christian. She’d pray to this god Jesus very often.” His expression darkened just a bit. “Since her prayers went unanswered, I can only conclude that he is either useless, or doesn’t exist.”
Oh. Shit. “Do you think I should change it?”
Luo Binghe’s face brightened again. “Not at all. Laoshi has certainly been graced by some god or another, so it’s appropriate.”
Shen Yuan grimaced. “Now that really was a pickup line.”
“Laoshi just has trouble receiving praise,” Luo Binghe said, unapologetic.
Shen Yuan, intrigued by his brief glimpse of Christian lore, tried to get sucked into the endless attention-sucking whirlpool that was Baidu’s Encyclopedia—but the mention of Luo Binghe’s mother had reminded him of something.
Eventually he gave up and bit the bullet, knowing he’d just keep feeling worse if he didn’t. “I’m sorry,” he said, glancing back at Luo Binghe.
“Laoshi has nothing to apologize for.”
“That’s not true,” Shen Yuan said, hand tightening around the mouse. “When I first figured out who you are, I said some really nasty things.”
“You already apologized for that,” Luo Binghe pointed out. “And you only apologized because you were afraid that I’d harm you. We both know you weren’t in the wrong.”
“For the most part, that’s true. But there was one thing I said which was genuinely…really fucking shitty.” Shen Yuan let go of the mouse and put his hands in his lap. Looking Luo Binghe directly in the eye, he finally said, “I’m sorry that I rubbed what happened to your mother in your face.”
Luo Binghe’s expression fell immediately. “You didn’t know,” he said softly.
“I didn’t know it was her, but I figured it was somebody. And I—” ‘knew’? No, that wasn’t the right word “—I was hoping that it was a painful memory for you.” He could practically see Luo Binghe’s response stirring in that big, melodramatic brain of his. “And don’t say that it was only fair, after what you did to me. There’s no excuse, okay? It was a fucked up thing for me to say, and I was wrong.”
Luo Binghe stared at him for several moments. Then, he slid out of his office chair and onto his hands and knees, crawling towards Shen Yuan. The last time Luo Binghe had done something like this, it had ended with a blowjob. Heat stirred between Shen Yuan’s legs in a pavlovian response, but Luo Binghe didn’t reach for his fly. Instead, he laid his head chastely on Shen Yuan’s lap.
“This student wishes he was the invincible protagonist that Laoshi once thought he was,” Luo Binghe murmured. “Laoshi must have been…extremely disappointed.”
Shen Yuan frowned. It was true that he’d once thought of Luo Binghe as ludicrously OP with a protagonist halo, but he didn’t think he’d ever expressed those opinions to Luo Binghe himself. “What makes Binghe think that this teacher saw him that way?”
That form of self-address had just slipped out naturally. But before Shen Yuan could worry about it too much, Luo Binghe replied, “This student has seen many of Laoshi’s comments on the internet.”
Frown deepening, Shen Yuan asked, “You mean on the Zhongdian forums?”
“Mmn.”
“But how did Binghe know they were mine?”
A small, fond smile curled Luo Binghe’s lips. “The way Laoshi writes on the internet reminds me of how Laoshi speaks in his dreams.” The smile turned sly. “Not to mention, Laoshi has a fondness for jokes about a certain body part.”
Shen Yuan ignored the way his cheeks went warm. In Luo Binghe’s position, he would have definitely been curious about the comments on his shitty unauthorized biography, so it’s not like he didn’t understand. And looking up his public forum posts was definitely superior to messing with his dreams!
Luo Binghe’s smile fell away. “Despite his many, many complaints, Laoshi always admired this student. This student understands why Laoshi got so angry, back then.” Luo Binghe curled his hands into the fabric of Shen Yuan’s shorts. “This student is also very angry with himself, for being so useless.”
“Don’t be silly,” Shen Yuan said, stroking his hair. “Expecting you to have a cure for cancer was just childish. Binghe is a very powerful person, but you’re still just one guy. Everybody has limits.” Plus, Luo Binghe clearly wasn’t the protagonist of this world. Even his golden finger had been taken away!
Luo Binghe’s eyes fluttered closed in response to Shen Yuan’s ministrations. “I suppose that, by now, Laoshi has no admiration left for this student.”
Shen Yuan’s lips twitched in amusement. When it came to fishing for compliments, all of Luo Binghe’s famous subtlety went completely out the window. “Of course there are still things I admire about you. They’re just different.” He traced the shell of Luo Binghe’s ear. “I was amazed by how attentive and diligent you are as a student. You picked up a new language faster than I ever thought possible.”
It was fascinating to watch how the ear reddened in real time. “It’s easy to be diligent, when one has the right teacher.”
Shen Yuan snorted. “Don’t even start with that, Binghe. The fact is, you’re not just intelligent, but know how to apply yourself. When it comes to attaining your goals, you’ve always been both persistent and tenacious.” Shen Yuan smiled wryly. “As you’ve deduced for yourself, the same can’t be said for me. So of course I admire that about you.”
Luo Binghe’s eyes opened to half-mast. “Laoshi’s diligent too, under the right circumstances. When it comes to helping the ones Laoshi cares for, Laoshi will persist. Even when it’s difficult, painful, or humiliating.”
Shen Yuan scoffed. “Aren’t you overstating things a bit?”
“No,” Luo Binghe breathed. “It’s simply the reality. Laoshi is unreasonably loyal.” He sighed. “It’s something I admire about you very much, though…it also frightens me.”
Knowing it was pointless to try and dispel these yandere delusions, Shen Yuan let the topic drop.
After a few more minutes of playing with various parts of Luo Binghe’s head, Luo Binghe said, “Laoshi also has an admirable talent for picking names.”
Shen Yuan was immediately suspicious, but also curious. He remained silent.
“For example,” Luo Binghe continued, “the pseudonym that Laoshi gave himself on the internet. I think it was especially apt.”
Shen Yuan snorted a second time. “There’s only one person in this room with a peerless cucumber, and it isn’t me.”
“Laoshi is mistaken. Size is only one dimension by which such matters may be judged, but far from the most important one. In other respects, such as shape, texture, smell, and taste, Laoshi’s is peerless beyond measure.”
Why are you making dicks sound like they’re a meal you’re reviewing on the internet, Luo Binghe???
Dryly, She Yuan said, “I don’t think you have enough experience with ‘cucumbers’ to make an accurate assessment on any of those metrics.”
“Some things can be intuited without such experience,” Luo Binghe countered stubbornly. “On this score, I’m definitely correct.”
“Well…” This was obviously intended as a compliment, so Shen Yuan should probably take it in that spirit. Even if it was awkward and embarrassing. “Thanks.”
Luo Binghe began to lightly massage Shen Yuan’s thighs. “Laoshi, do you know? You’ve been hard this entire time.”
He had??
Pulling back from Shen Yuan’s lap, Luo Binghe looked up at him. “You didn’t,” he said softly. He looked surprised, for some reason.
“What’s the big deal?” Shen Yuan asked him. Was it a crime not to know that you had a boner?? It’s not like they were in public!!
The surprise fell away, replaced by...understanding? “It’s nothing,” Luo Binghe said, reaching forward to stroke the ‘cucumber’ that was somehow, against all odds, still hard. “I’m going to make Shen Yuan feel good now, but only on two conditions.”
Bemused, Shen Yuan said, “Okay…”
“Condition one: you have to tell me how you want to finish.” Luo Binghe licked his lips. “Condition two: I’m going to get very excited, but Shen Yuan can’t do anything to me in return. Once you’ve finished, I’ll go to the bedroom and take care of myself.”
Shen Yuan had no idea what game Luo Binghe was playing. With the way Luo Binghe’s hand was making him feel, he lacked the motivation to figure it out.
“Tell me if you agree, Shen Yuan.”
Shen Yuan swallowed.
Luo Binghe cocked his head to the side, gaze unblinking.
Fuck it. “I agree, alright?”
Luo Binghe grinned like a wolf.
Shen Yuan hadn’t expected Luo Binghe to actually honor his “conditions”. He’d expected it to go like it always did, with Luo Binghe becoming too caught up in the proceedings to remember that there were any “conditions” at all.
But maybe Luo Binghe’s “obedience training” was having an impact on his self-restraint in general, because he pulled his mouth back just before Shen Yuan finished with an expectant look on his otherwise flushed face.
Shen Yuan looked back at him, chest heaving, and didn’t say a word.
“Laoshi needs to tell me how he wants to finish,” Luo Binghe prompted helpfully.
Huffing out a breath, Shen Yuan forced himself to say, “In your mouth.” That was how it always ended when Luo Binghe sucked him off, after all.
Luo Binghe studied Shen Yuan’s face with an unnerving level of intensity. Eventually, Luo Binghe said, “I don’t believe you.”
Outrage surged through Shen Yuan, temporarily overtaking his arousal. “You said I need to tell you how I’m going to finish, not that you have to believe me!”
“No, I said you need to tell me how you want to finish. But you don’t seem to be very certain of your choice.”
Shen Yuan gaped down at him for a moment, then said, “It doesn’t make a difference to me. Whatever is fine.”
Luo Binghe hummed thoughtfully. “In other words, Shen Yuan doesn’t know.” He smiled gently. “That’s alright. I’ll take you in my mouth again, and you can think about whether you’d like to finish in my throat, on my tongue, or on my face. Even inside me again. But whatever it is, you have to want it.”
In spite of himself, Shen Yuan did indeed think about the various options that Luo Binghe had presented to him. Thrusting in deep to finish down Luo Binghe’s throat; pulling out to cover his face in hot, sticky come. They weren’t unappealing, but they also didn’t get him any more excited than the simple reality of being enveloped by Luo Binghe’s wet, eager mouth.
Shen Yuan opened his eyes to look down at Luo Binghe’s face. Luo Binghe’s eyes were closed, his face flushed and enraptured—as though sucking Shen Yuan’s cock was the most wonderful activity in the world.
That was all as expected, based on past experience.
But unlike in the past, neither of Luo Binghe’s hands were anywhere near his own cock. It couldn’t have been easy for him; doubtlessly, Luo Binghe was hard as a rock and leaking like crazy. Ready to be put to use.
Shen Yuan’s pleasure spiked suddenly. Luo Binghe pulled away just in time, panting, looking up at Shen Yuan with feverish eyes. “What were you thinking about just then?”
Shen Yuan averted his gaze.
“Won’t Laoshi tell me?” Luo Binghe pleaded.
“...I was…thinking about your cock.”
“Thinking about it, how?”
Swallowing, Shen Yuan answered, “Inside me.”
In a blink, Luo Binghe had shot to his feet and swept Shen Yuan into his arms, dashing to the bedroom.
Then, in a blur of motion that Shen Yuan was much too horny to follow along with, Luo Binghe had Shen Yuan pressed down to the bed, shorts tossed aside, the slick head of his cock pressed up against Shen Yuan’s hole.
“Laoshi wants to finish like this? Stuffed full of this student’s manhood?”
Dazedly, Shen Yuan nodded, hoping it would speed things along.
But Luo Binghe wasn’t done yet. “Is that why Laoshi was staring at it while he fucked me? Back then, was Laoshi imagining me inside?” Luo Binghe teased the rim of Shen Yuan’s hole with the tip of his cock. “Is that what made Laoshi finish?”
“As if you don’t already know,” Shen Yuan groused, half-heartedly.
“This student only made an educated guess,” Luo Binghe crooned. “Won’t Laoshi lay my doubts to rest, and convince me that this is what he really wants?”
Running out of patience, Shen Yuan wrapped his legs around Luo Binghe, trying with all his might to push the head inside. But Luo Binghe didn't budge.
“For fuck’s sake, Binghe,” Shen Yuan all but yelled. “Just fuck me already!”
At last, Luo Binghe took pity on him, shoving inside in one swift thrust. Between the blowjob and the teasing, it was a miracle that Shen Yuan didn’t go over the edge right away.
He managed to last for about a minute of exquisite, blissful fullness before he was swept away by his orgasm, rolling sweetly through him in wave after wave of tingling pleasure. His fingertips and toes were still buzzing when it finally receded.
But as those aftershocks began to fade, and Luo Binghe pulled out of him, a hollow feeling started spreading in Shen Yuan’s chest. A familiar feeling, somehow, even though he didn’t think he’d ever noticed it before.
A scenario flashed into his mind: Luo Binghe, making some smug, callous remark about what a sentimental moron he was, and how all of this had just been another phase in his revenge. Mocking Shen Yuan for falling for it. Leaving him here to pass out alone, just to make sure he got the message.
Shen Yuan’s eyes started to burn.
Luo Binghe rolled onto his back, pulling Shen Yuan flush against his body in a tight embrace. “I’m sorry, Shen Yuan,” Luo Binghe said, shakily. “I should’ve known that you were avoiding that position for a reason.”
Shen Yuan didn’t want to talk about this, not even to deny anything.
“We don’t ever have to do it like that again, if you don’t want to. I just got too excited and…I wasn’t thinking.”
Determined to change the subject, Shen Yuan pushed past the lump in his throat to say, “Too excited is right. What happened to that second condition of yours?” Given the sloppy mess that Luo Binghe had left behind, there was no doubt that he’d finished as well.
Thankfully, Luo Binghe got the hint. “It couldn’t be helped.” Luo Binghe tenderly kissed Shen Yuan’s forehead. “But we’ll give it another try some time.”
Shen Yuan still didn’t know what had gotten Luo Binghe stuck on whatever yandere bullshit this was about, but he couldn’t find it himself to care.
As they waited in front of the apartment building for Luo Binghe’s driver to come pick them up for the airport, Luo Binghe said, “Long Zhangwei was a cutsleeve, and his entire inner circle is well aware of it. Therefore, Shen Yuan needn’t be overly concerned about sullying Long Zhangwei’s reputation on this journey.”
Well, at least one of the rumors about Long Zhangwei had turned out to be true. “I guess that means that some members of this ‘inner circle’ are coming along?”
“Just one. A lawyer named Hua Meiling.” Luo Binghe glanced sidelong at him. “She’s taking a separate flight, and will only join us for the meeting.”
A lawyer, huh. “Is she nice?”
“No. But she should be on her best behavior.”
Shen Yuan sighed internally, imagining Luo Binghe instructing one of his fuerdai lackeys to make accommodations for Shen Yuan’s oh-so-delicate constitution.
What Luo Binghe had meant by “separate flight” became apparent once the driver bypassed dropping them off at the terminal and went straight to one the airport’s aprons instead.
“You rented a private jet?” Shen Yuan asked incredulously, after stepping out of the car. Even for a fuerdai, this was an insane extravagance.
“I wanted privacy,” Luo Binghe said, without a hint of shame..
In other words, he wanted to do things that would cause a scandal on a commercial flight. Because of course he did. And the kicker was: it didn’t make a difference if they actually messed around or not. Unless the pilots were complete morons, they’d assume it was happening anyway!
Sighing out loud this time, Shen Yuan climbed the ramp to enter the jet.