A Hint of Cool in Midsummer

Mischievous, sunny bottom x sharp-tongued, indulgent, lovesick top

In the height of summer during their senior year of high school, the chirping of cicadas and a watermelon-scented breeze heralded the beginning of youth.

As he settled into his new class, Song Weiliang thought he would spend the year grinding through practice problems and exams, then part ways with everyone after the college entrance exams, never to meet again.

But the summer barged into his heart and became the hottest memory of his youth.

Sheng Xia's first impression of Song Weiliang: A cool guy.

Song Weiliang: Heh. A mischievous kid.

In a secluded corner...

Feeling the tiny wound on his lips, Sheng Xia reprimanded him sternly: "Don't bite me next time!"

Song Weiliang took a sip of "1982 Coke" and teased him: "Then how are we supposed to kiss? Should I lick you like Xiao Sheng Xia?"

Sheng Xia, red with embarrassment and anger: "Deduct points! A ton of points!"

New novel preview: The Fake Young Master Awakens, and the Real Young Master Panics

Jiang Qi'an had an incredibly vivid dream. In it, he learned the truth about the world.

It turned out that the world he lived in wasn't real, but a danmei novel about a fake and a real young master.

His ex-boyfriend of many years, Shen Xun, was the real young master and the protagonist gong. Shen Xun's childhood friend, Xiao Mi, was the protagonist shou.

And Jiang Qi'an was the fake young master, a cannon-fodder villain.

In the dream, he turned love into hatred. He secretly sabotaged Shen Xun, the real young master, and twistedly broke up Shen Xun and Xiao Mi, the perfect couple. Like a rat in a gutter, he couldn't stand to see the protagonists happy.

After committing every evil deed imaginable, everyone turned against him. Shen Xun pushed him into the sea to feed the sharks.

In the final moments of his life, he still shamelessly clung to Shen Xun's hand and asked if Shen Xun had ever loved him.

Of course, Shen Xun's answer was: Never.

At the end of the dream, Jiang Qi'an vaguely saw Shen Xun spitting blood on the deck. A hoarse, anguished cry reached his ears: "Qiqi!"

Jiang Qi'an narrowed his eyes in confusion, trying to see more clearly.

"Qiqi, Qiqi..."

"Why are you sleeping on the sofa?"

Jiang Qi'an opened his eyes and saw his mother with one arm around Shen Xun. She said gently, "This is Qi'an, nicknamed Qiqi. He's a few minutes younger than you, so you'll be brothers from now on."

"Qiqi, say hello to your big brother."

After so many years, Shen Xun had appeared before Jiang Qi'an again. The abnormal rhythm of Jiang Qi'an's heartbeat betrayed his lingering feelings.

But the pain he'd endured in the dream had felt too real, and reality was unfolding just like the dream. The bloody ending that awaited them made Jiang Qi'an afraid to love again.

He thought he would do as Shen Xun had demanded in the dream and stay far away from him. He would also marry someone for the sake of his family's company...

Everything was going according to the future Shen Xun had wanted in the dream.

But the real Shen Xun went mad. He locked Jiang Qi'an in a dark room, pinned him down, and asked with bloodshot eyes, "Qiqi, who are you going to marry?"

"You're mine. You can only be mine."

[Bonus scene: Their past will be told in the extras]

Jiang Qi'an's middle-school years were simple: every line and stroke of his life sketched only Shen Xun. He fell in love with Shen Xun at first sight and pursued him with reckless devotion, throwing away all his dignity. But Shen Xun hated him and never gave him a kind word.

Unable to bear it any longer, Shen Xun agreed to Jiang Qi'an's advances just to get some peace and quiet.

Shen Xun never said he liked or loved him. On the day they got together, all he said was, "You need to behave."

Shen Xun put a tightening spell on the thoroughly unruly Jiang Qi'an. After that, Jiang Qi'an never dared make unreasonable demands, afraid Shen Xun would decide he was misbehaving and "return" him.

Jiang Qi'an was well-behaved and considerate. He didn't sit next to Shen Xun in class or share a dorm room with him. Even when he had a question he couldn't solve, he never wasted Shen Xun's time...

Yet despite all that, when they graduated, Shen Xun still broke up with him. He even changed his college application at the last moment to get away from him.

After they broke up, Jiang Qi'an followed Shen Xun to his new school. Later, he fell seriously ill and never mentioned again the ex-boyfriend who had hurt him so deeply.

It wasn't until many years after they got back together that Jiang Qi'an learned the truth.

The breakup hadn't been an attempt to get rid of him. It was because Shen Xun had loved him too much...

Theme: Study hard.