Applaud for Happiness

Unlike what Shen Qi had originally thought, An Ze did not expose himself early.
In the two months after that, everything was peaceful.
Whether it was Lu Jun or Lu Zhuo, they did not mention these two words in front of him.

 

In August, Shen Qi had his twenty-third birthday.
They did not hold a large birthday banquet but instead invited a few close friends to celebrate.
With Elder Lu’s birthday banquet and Lu Zhuo’s help, he was able to choose a few friends, and with the other cousins, they happily set up the party.

 

Since everyone was from a younger generation, Elder Lu did not make an appearance.
Instead, he had Uncle Shen send him a large present to give him face. 

 

But with the presence of Lu Zhuo and Lu Jun, it made outsiders not underestimate him.

 

After the lively banquet was over and all of the guests were sent home, Lu Jun and several cousins were very sensible to leave space for the two to spend time alone, laughing and going to the guest house to play.

 

Without outsiders, Lu Zhuo stood up from his wheelchair and took Shen Qi’s hand, saying, “Follow me.”

 

“Where are we going?” Shen Qi was puzzled. Was it to give him a gift? Just now, everyone sent something, but only Lu Zhuo did not.
He thought he had forgotten.

 

Lu Zhuo led him all the way from the banquet hall back to the main floor, through the living room, straight to the kitchen: “Here it is.”

 

“This is ……” Shen Qi was still confused.

 

“Sit here.” Lu Zhuang pressed his shoulders to make him sit down in front of the marble counter, then slowly rolled up his sleeves and walked to the kitchen stove, “Wait a moment, it will be ready soon.”

 

The chicken soup in the pot was ready.
He only had to turn on the fire.
He then opened the cupboard above, and sure enough, all of the needed ingredients were there: a bowl of prepared noodles and vegetables.

 

Shen Qi was at a loss.
After seeing his actions, his eyes widened: “You’re going to cook for me? You’re making Longevity noodles? “

 

Lu Zhuo heard him get up and immediately turned his head back: “Sit still! I’ll do it.
You only need to sit and wait.
“

 

Shen Qi looked at him in a daze, not knowing how to react for a moment.
He felt inexplicable, finally smiled and sat down again: “Okay, I’ll wait for you.”

 

Because he only made enough for one person, the soup boiled very quickly.
He then placed the noodles in there, and carefully used his chopsticks to stir around, making sure that the noodles didn’t stick to the pot.
When the noodles were almost done, he dumped the vegetables in and cracked an egg inside.
He decided to use the pot as the bowl and added some seasoning.

 

Lu Zhu turned off the fire, and directly placed the pot in front of Shen Qi, saying, “You can eat it now.
Let me know how it tastes.
“

 

Shen Qi lowered his head.
The faint aroma of the soup reached his nose.
It was a simple dish to make.
The appearance of the noodles was impressive.
In the middle, there was a poached egg with various vegetables surrounding it.
For example, the orange carrots, green cabbage, black seaweed, and jelly ear.
There was also a little bit of scallion and cilantro floating in the soup, making the simple dish look really delicious.

 

Lu Zhuo sat down beside him.
He was rarely this nervous: “This is my first time cooking.
Don’t judge the taste.
It’s longevity noodles 1“You can just eat it for the sake of tradition.”

 

“Then you are very talented.” Shen Qi picked up the chopsticks and laughed, “The noodles smell good.
How come you thought of making longevity noodles for me as a birthday present?“

 

Lu Zhou replied with an honest face, “It has always been you cooking for me, so I wanted to try making something for you.” He was becoming less cold, vaguely reminding Shen Qi of that bright and enthusiastic teenager on the basketball court, “I can’t do anything else.
This dish is simple, and it happens to be your birthday.
So I wanted to make it for you to try.“

 

Shen Qi picked up a piece of vegetable and tasted it.
His eyes lit up: “Not bad.”

 

It was indeed good.
It wasn’t the best; however, at least it was edible.
For his first time, it was already an accomplishment.

 

“For this noodle strand, you must eat from beginning to end, and the strand must not break.” 2 Lu Zhuo took the chopsticks from his hand, helped him pick out one and fed it to his mouth.

 

Shen Qi took a bite and reached for the chopsticks, but was blocked by Lu Zhuo with a serious expression, “I’ll hold it for you, so that it won’t break.”

“”

 

Shen Qi lost his smile.
With food in his mouth, he could not speak.
Instead, he could only use his hand.
Little by little, he finished the noodle strand.

 

Lu Zhuo looked at his bulging face, patted his head, and praised, “You did well.”

 

This tone and attitude.
He was not a three-year-old child!

 

Shen Qi glared at him, struggling to swallow the noodles.
He then finished the rest of the vegetables and drank the soup until nothing was left.

 

Fortunately, he did not eat much at the banquet, and the bowl of noodles was not too much on his stomach; otherwise, he would definitely have been nauseous. 

 

“I finished eating.
Look! ” He showed it to Lu Zhuo.

 

Lu Zhuo drew a tissue.
With a smile in his eyes, he helped him wipe his mouth.
After wiping, he took out something from his pocket and put it in Shen Qi’s hand: “Longevity noodles are just a blessing.
This is the actual gift.
“

 

It was a small box.
This wrapping…

 

Shen Qi’s heart suddenly thumped twice.
He opened the box to take a look.
Indeed, it was a ring, or rather a pair of rings.
They were silver rings.
The design was simple, with the top of the ring inlaid with a small diamond.

 

Wait a minute…

 

Was he trying to… propose?

 

Under his shocked expression, Lu Zhuo removed the ring with a smaller diameter and unhesitatingly placed the ring on Shen Qi’s ring finger.

 

Then he placed the other ring on Shen Qi’s palm.
He gazed at him.
His expression was solemn and firm: “I may not be able to give you a grand wedding, but I hope you can accompany me for the rest of my life.
I promise in the name of the ancestors of the Lu family that I will love and respect you for the rest of my life and accompany you to old age.
Will you?“

 

Shen Qi was confused by this sudden formal proposal.
It was his first time being proposed to so solemnly.
The last time was when he proposed to Jiang Changshen.
But because it was at the award ceremony, everyone was very lively and cheerful.
However, he was suddenly being proposed to.
Not to mention, it was also in the kitchen. Very very…

 

Burp!

 

He couldn’t hold it back and accidentally burped.

 

Their eyes met each other, and in the next second, they all laughed together.
The tense and serious atmosphere was gone.

 

Lu Zhuo felt helpless and caressed his forehead.
He knew that he couldn’t be serious around A’Qi.

 

“Okay, okay, I was wrong.” Shen Qi confessed.
He picked up the ring and briskly put it on Lu Zhuo.
“Okay, I promise you!”

 

The two hands were placed together, two identical rings.
Shen Qi smiled.

 

“Can you say those words again?” Shen Qi beamed with joy.
This was the first time he heard Lu Zhuo say these kinds of love words.
It was rarer than the ring he bought.

 

Lu Zhuo coughed lightly: “I like you.”

 

“Not that! Those words just now.
“

 

Lu Zhuo returned to his face: “Everything I said was to express this meaning.”

“”

 

How can this be the same? Shen Qu was speechless.
However, as much as he begged, Lu Zhuo would not say those words ever again in this lifetime.
These words were only for today, at the proposal.
It was a lifetime regret of Shen Qi’s not to record them that day.

 

He was satisfied with the noodles and the proposal.
Shen Qi licked his lips: “Let’s do it.”

 

Lu Zhuo:…

 

How did they suddenly get to this step?

 

Shen Qi justified: “You proposed, and I accepted.
Tonight is the wedding night. 5 had such a laugh, and many eyes fell on them, both explicitly and implicitly.

 

Fourth young master Zhuo happened to bring An Ze to their table and laughed aloud, “What makes Brother Lu so happy?”

 

Lu Zhuo collected his smile and glanced at him lightly.
Without the intention of talking, he only nodded his chin and introduced Shen Qi to him: “This is Zhuo Si 7, while Lu Zhuo worried about his kidney’s health every day.

 

Six years after they were together, Elder Lu fell in the courtyard, and although he was resuscitated, he eventually passed away.

 

He left behind an inheritance, most of which went to Lu Zhuo and a small half to Lu Jun.
Shen Qi was also surprised that he also had a share, along with Uncle Shen.

 

Once the old man went, Uncle Shen seemed to have no one to take care of and rapidly aged.
Five years later, he also passed away.

 

Then there was Lu’s father, who silently lost his breath one day.

 

Lu Jun got married three years after Shen Qi and Lu Zhuo got together and moved out of the Lu residence, leaving Shen Qi and Lu Zhuo in the large Lu residence.

 

Shen Qi and Lu Zhou didn’t have children.
Lu Jun gave birth to four children, two boys and two girls, and sent the youngest son to the Lu residence for them to raise.

 

This was Shen Qi’s first time raising a child.
His previous tasks were always focused on counter-attack and plotting schemes, so he never had time to marry and raise children.

 

In the last world, his nieces and nephews were all obedient and mature before they went to Jiang Changshen and him.
So they never needed to worry about those children.

 

The two were new fathers, and were always confused about how to raise the child.
Shen Qi had to retire from the restaurant and become a housewife with the baby.
He watched as the infant grew up little by little, learning to crawl and talk, then called for his dad to play with him.
He learned how to be naughty and cause a scene. And went to school to learn.
In the end, he will get married and have children.

 

All the while, Shen Qi and Lu Zhuo become old, until they lose their breath.

 

The first to go was Lu Zhuo.
He had sequelae after the car accident, and because of his old age, he was in pain every time it rained.
He then really had to rely on the wheelchair to move.

 

He did not live as long as Elder Lu, only seventy-three before collapsing.

 

At the last moment, he removed the respirator and placed Shen Qi’s hand on his lips.
He then gently kissed the ring on Shen Qi’s hand and gazed at him, as if he had put all of his emotions and love into this kiss and then apologetically closed his eyes.

 

I’m sorry to leave you alone.
I have to leave first.

 

“Happiness value +1.”

 

“Happiness bar complete.”

 

Shen Qi collapsed, and did not wake up again.

Footnotes

Just like the name, longevity noodles are usually cooked during the new year or on birthdays and symbolize a happy and prosperous life.  It is said that if it can be eaten without biting through the strands, it’s considered even more auspicious.      Couples have to consummate during the wedding night.
[/efn_note]Do you want me to be alone?”

 

 

Lu Zhuo suddenly felt pain in his kidneys.

 

Not mentioning the torment during the consummation night, it was already the end of August.
The plot had finally reached its destination when An Ze finally showed up.

 

At that time, Shen Qi and Lu Zhuo were attending a banquet.
The Zhuo family, who were almost at an equivalent status to the Lu family, held an engagement party.
Shen Qi and Lu Zhuo attended on behalf of the Lu family, yet no one expected that An Ze would actually appear at the party.

 

The relationship between the Zhuo family and the Lu family was not good and was more of a competitive relationship.
However, they still had to act friendly towards each other for the media.

 

Shen Qi and Lu Zhuo agreed in advance to leave after sending the gift and exchanging pleasantries.
However, they both didn’t expect An Ze to attend.

 

The number of heirs in the Zhuo family was much greater and more prosperous than that of the Lu family.
In just Lu Zhuo’s generation, there were six males.
However, they had different mothers.
The one holding the engagement party was the third young master, born by the madam of the house.
The other five were all born by the mistress.
However, Father Zhuo was very strange and recognized all of his sons.
It was said that he brought them home for the madam to take care of.
Yet, because she denied it, the mistress of the house was allowed to take care of them herself.

 

Lu Jun mocked this Chairman Zhuo privately, calling him arrogant and ridiculing how he treated himself like an emperor.

 

An Ze was followed by the fourth young master.
Shen Qi recognized him at a glance.
Except for him and Lu Zhuo, the next most handsome guy would be An Ze.

 

Compared to the teenage An Ze Lu Jun showed him, the current Anze was more beautiful.
Yet he did not look feminine.
His type of beauty gives someone a sense of immodesty.
If one were to say that he looked young and pure in his teenage years, the current him would appear like an enchanting witch.
His eyes always gave an indescribable, oppressive feeling to everyone he saw.

 

When Shen Qi saw him, two words came to mind: flirtatious slut.

 

On second thought, wasn’t An Ze the pure and unpretentious protagonist? Now that he looked at it, it was quite similar.
His return this time changed his aura.
Although his face shape remained the same, compared to the handsome Shen Xiaoqi 3 Shen Qi’s nick name.
[/efn_note], he indeed looked more innocent.

 

So it was confirmed that Lu Zhuo did not like those flirtatious sluts but instead liked the pure and modest protagonist?, Shen Qi burst out laughing.

 

“What made you this happy?” Lu Zhuo asked.
As if he didn’t see An Ze, he removed the peanut shell and fed it to Shen Qi.

 

Shen Qi came up to his ear and whispered to him what he had just thought.
The more he said, the happier he became.

 

Shen Qi laughed after hearing this and rubbed Shen Qi’s head: “Naughty.”

 

This laugh caused the people next to him to be surprised. They had no idea the famous King Yama 4 God of Death in Buddhism 

  He called him 卓四, which means fourth in the family.
I’m keeping it as Zhuo Si.
[/efn_note].
This is my little brother, Shen Qi.
“

 

 

Zhuo Si did not care about Lu Zhuo’s coldness.
He surveyed Shen Qi at a glance and suddenly said: “I know.
Elder Lu adopted a grandchild a few months ago.
I’m assuming he is this one.
Hello, my name is Zhuo An.
You can just call me Zhuo Si.”

 

“Hello.” Shen Qi followed Lu Zhuo’s example and nodded lightly.

 

He and Lu Zhuo were both not curious about An Ze following Zhuo Si.
From the beginning of the conversation, not a glance was given to him.

 

It was Zhuo Si who took the initiative to introduce: “This is my friend, An Ze.
Although he is young, he is also a brilliant student who graduated from a prestigious abroad program.
It took me a long time to invite him back to the country to help me.“

 

Shen Qi was enlightened.
No wonder Zhuo Si was sitting from table to table to introduce An Ze.
This was to familiarize himself with these people, so they could help each other in the future.

 

It was interesting that An Ze was working for the Zhuo family.
There was no way that he didn’t know that the Lu and Zhuo families were rivals.
This meant that he had not given up yet and had the confidence to continue his revenge.

 

So the Zhuo family was involved in Lu Zhuo’s car accident?

 

Shen Qi narrowed his eyes.

 

It was difficult to understand An Ze’s logic.
With this backing, why not find the real culprit, his mother? Why did he stubbornly go find Lu Zhuo for revenge?

 

An Ze took a step forward.
His eyes clinged onto Lu Zhuo’s, and he hooked his lips: “It has been a long time. I’m back.
“

 

Lu Zhuo’s expression was calm and cold, as if he was looking at a stranger again, with the most basic politeness: “Hello.”

 

The smile on An Ze’s face stiffened.

 

Shen Qi curled his lips and did not take notice of An Ze.
In any case, the other did not introduce himself to him, so there was no reason for him to introduce himself and suffer an embarrassing consequence.

 

Zhuo Si was surprised and looked at An Zeand Lu Zhuo: “You two know each other?”

 

“Yeah.” Anze’s eyes wavered, and the smile he showed had a story. “I was classmates with Ah’Zhuo, from high school to college. We only separated after I left the country.
” He glanced at Lu Zhou’s wheelchair.
His eyes revealed some pain.
“I’m sorry, A’Zhou. I left hurriedly, and didn’t know you had become like this.
“

 

He looked compassionate and sympathetic, but Shen Qi felt that there was an indescribable malice in his eyes.
A fire sprang up in his heart.

 

Lu Zhuo raised his eyes, as if he had only just looked at him clearly.
His expression was light, his tone brought a trace of surprise: “Sorry, I don’t remember you among the students I know.
I am afraid you are mistaken.
“

 

An Ze’s face instantly darkened, his voice lowered: “I know you blame me for leaving without saying goodbye, but I had no choice, I-“

 

Lu Zhuo interrupted him, “This gentleman, I don’t really know you.” He also did not talk nonsense with An Ze, and looked directly at Zhuo Si, “Please take this friend of yours to the hospital.
It’s best to appoint a neurologist.
If you don’t mind, I have a doctor that I can introduce.”

 

“Poof—” Shen Qi laughed.
He really had a toxic mouth.

 

The people around them did not expect to see such a good show.
Although they were very polite and did not say anything out loud, they all laughed silently.

 

Zhuo Si and An Ze’s expressions were ugly.

 

“Sorry.” Zhuo Si glared at An Ze.
Because of Lu Zhuo’s identity, he can only put up a stiff smile and say, “He probably misidentified you.”

 

After saying that, he turned around and did not even look at An Ze, and walked away directly.

 

An Ze quickly sorted out his expression, as if he had instantly become indifferent, sighing: “Nevermind.
If you think I mistook you for someone else, then let’s just leave it at that.
I originally thought… ” He stopped, as if there were a thousand words he wanted to say, but was hurt by Lu Zhuo’s attitude and did not want to say more.

 

“He does not know you.
But I know you.
” Shen Qi smiled and said, “Your name is An Ze, right? Come, I have something to show you.
“

 

Lu Zhuo wanted to stop him, but Shen Qi glared, and smoothly grabbed a handful of peanuts and placed them in front of him: “Peel them for me to eat.”

 

Lu Zhuo lost his smile and obediently peeled up the peanuts.

 

As if he had only just seen the person, An Ze’s eyes were finally placed on Shen Qi.
He walked up two steps.
Although he was supposed to stand next to Shen Qi, he walked up to Lu Zhuo’s side instead.

 

“Look!” Shen Qi placed his hand up on the table next to Lu Zhuo’s hand that was peeling peanuts.
Lu Zhuo immediately understood what he meant and cooperated by holding his hand and placing it up.

 

The two bright and shiny rings were presented in front of An Ze.

 

An Ze’s face froze.
A trace of panic emerged from the bottom of his heart.
No, it’s impossible.
He hates the Lu family, including Lu Zhuo.
The entire Lu family is his enemy.
If it wasn’t for the Lu family, he wouldn’t have broken his family!

 

He suppressed his tumbling emotions and looked at Lu Zhuo again with a hint of obvious pleasure and contempt.
Then he whispered softly, his tone was not slow, even with a smile: “It seems you are really crippled to find such a person as a companion.
It seems that you will also show your self-respect in front of such people.
“

 

After saying this with a light laugh, he turned around and walked away.

 

Shen Qi looked at his back, turned his head to look at Lu Zhuo, and pointed to his head, “Is there really no problem with him here?”

 

He felt like An Ze really had a problem with his head.
With that expression, was there really nothing wrong with his mental health?

 

Lu Zhuo sent the peeled peanuts one by one to his mouth, “No need to take care of irrelevant people.”

 

Shen Qi said vaguely, “Be careful. I always feel that he is not quite right.
In case he still wants to retaliate, who knows if he will stake it all on one shot or what not.”

 

Lu Zhuo stuffed the last peanut into his mouth and stirred his fingers in his mouth without moving: “Don’t worry, I’ll figure it out.”

 

Shen Qi immediately used his tongue to hook his finger and licked it, waiting for the fingertips to be stained with saliva before releasing it.
Then he licked his lips with impatience: “Let’s go back.”

 

He winked: Go back and do it.

 

Lu Zhuo: ……

 

Who told him to touch Shen Qi?

 

Facts proved that Shen Qi was correct.
An Ze had not given up yet, and he used the Zhuo family to get revenge on the Lu family.
Or more specifically, Lu Zhuo.

 

In order to establish his presence in front of Lu Zhuo, he kept appearing on multiple projects.

 

There were no car accidents nor other accidents to get Lu Zhuo, He only focused on any opportunity to appear in front of Lu Zhuo.
For anyone who looked at An Ze’s performance, they could come up with an 80,000 word essay on love and hate.
Like how their love turned into hatred, and how their hatred and love intertwined.

 

Fortunately, the attitude of Lu Zhuo is resolute.
Other than business, his expression was as if he never knew who An Ze was.

 

Shen Qi was constantly cautious.
Every other day, he would cling on to Lu Zhuo and follow him wherever he went.

 

“Can’t you just settle him once and for all?” He was dissatisfied.

 

“Soon.
Just a little longer.
“

 

Shen Qi wanted to say more, but was picked up by him and pressed against the desk.
An Ze or something was immediately thrown aside.

 

After doing it, Shen Qi lay on the sofa while earnestly writing his review.
Lu Zhuo was working while eating more supplements.
He had an indescribable worry that if he did not try hard enough, he would lose favor.

 

When Lu Zhuo said soon, he really meant soon.
Not knowing when, all of An Ze’s projects were taken on by him.
In addition, he also dug a pit for him, which led to the Zhuo family constantly being in a deficit.
Zhuo Si was grounded by the chairman Zhuo, and An Ze was directly fired from the company.

 

The last time Shen Qi saw An Ze was at the bottom of the hill at the Lu residence.
It was pouring outside, so he and Lu Zhuo took the car.
An Ze rushed out and stopped in front of the car.

 

He did not have an umbrella.
His body was soaked, his lips were turning purple, making him look pitiful.

 

He was determined not to let them leave.
The driver was forced to roll down the window.
In three or two steps, he rushed to the car window: “A’Zhuo, I was wrong.
I was wrong.
It was I who was blinded by hatred.
I love you.
I really love you… “

 

“Drive.” Lu Zhuo did not even look at him, and directly instructed the driver to go.

 

Shen Qi tensed his face.
He was upset.

 

Lu Zhuo kept coaxing him until he had to summon his ultimate.
Without speaking, he pushed the other man onto the bed.
At this point, he became aware of Shen Qi’s personality.
There was nothing that couldn’t be solved by doing it.
If once wasn’t enough, then they could do it twice.

 

Shen Qi was finally comfortable, but was still a little uncomfortable: “If, I mean, if An Ze knows he is wrong, and really does love you, will you still be with him?”

 

“No.” Lu Zhuo shook his head, “He does not really know his wrongdoings.
Or he simply does not know where he was wrong.
Let’s just say today’s incident.
In fact, he could completely choose a windy and beautiful day, but he chose to choose a heavy rain, drenched in rain, to make him look pathetic.
Such a time to play mind games. Such a person.
How can I possibly be with him? “

 

“That’s true.” Shen Qi nodded.
But he suddenly turned around and said, “Wait a minute.
You sound as if you know him very well.
“

 

Lu Zhuo touched his forehead.
He did not expect to dig a hole for himself.
He decisively lifted the quilt and pressed Shen Qi down.

 

“Wait.” This was the first time Shen Qi had evidence of Lu Zhuo’s wrongdoings.
Such a great opportunity could not be missed.
Shen Qi crawled out of bed and grabbed the notebook from the drawers.
He flipped through the pages until he reached a particular page, “What about this one?”, then flipped to another page, “And this one.
Oh, and this one.
“

 

Lu Zhuo felt a vague pain in his kidney again.

 

Time passes day by day as Shen Qi dives into his research, vowing to write a Long Yang novel 6 Lord Long Yang was a lover of an unknown king of Wei.
There was a story about how the king once had to leave for court in the morning, but because Long Yang was sleeping on top of his sleeve, and the king did not want to disturb him, he instead cut off his sleeve.
This is where the term “cut sleeve” came from, which refers to men who are gay.