Blank Charge

Yang Shiyu’s alcohol tolerance was much better than Jin Zhou had imagined.

Many people came to him separately for drinks, and he never refused, accepting everything that was offered.

However, when Jin Zhou returned from Luo Xueqing’s private room and came back to the alumni gathering, he noticed that Yang Shiyu’s cheeks were visibly flushed, with a hint of drunkenness. Even the cold, golden-framed glasses seemed to take on a touch of allure.

“You shouldn’t just drink beer; it’s so childish,” said Yang’s friend’s partner, pouring him a small cup of white liquor. “If you really respect me as your senior, let’s drink together, shall we?”

“Of course we should,” Jin Zhou said without waiting for Yang Shiyu to reach out. He had already picked up a small cup and downed it in one gulp.

“Hey, don’t try to stop him from drinking,” the partner saw through Jin Zhou’s intention at a glance, but misunderstood his motives. “If you want to please our little Judge Yang, you’ll need at least three cups.”

“Alright, let’s do it your way,” Jin Zhou said as he took over Yang Shiyu’s half-empty beer glass and poured white liquor into it, making a “glug glug” sound.

“Jin Zhou,” Yang Shiyu frowned, grabbing Jin Zhou’s wrist. “Don’t mess around.”

In reality, Jin Zhou knew what he was doing. One cup wouldn’t make him drunk, but he still said, “Judge Yang, you better remember this.”

“Jin Zhou!” Perhaps due to the alcohol, Yang Shiyu didn’t bother hiding his anger. He disregarded the presence of his seniors.

However, the senior’s attention was focused on Jin Zhou’s hand. Jin Zhou didn’t listen to Yang Shiyu’s words, and after drinking the contents of the cup, he forcefully placed Yang Shiyu’s cup upside down on the table, indicating clearly that no one should come and pour drinks for Yang Shiyu.

“What a tough guy,” the senior gave Jin Zhou a thumbs up. “Where did this younger brother come from? Any interest in…”

Jin Zhou wasn’t interested. After all, he wasn’t there to socialize.

He was about to say something to brush it off when laughter suddenly came from the opposite table. One alumnus pushed his glasses up to the bridge of his nose, pretended to have a book in his hand, and flipped through it slowly, saying, “Let me see, which article was it…”

“It’s professor Wang, right?” Jin Zhou immediately recognized who the person was imitating. “And also, watch me.”

He stood up, with one hand behind his back and the other pretending to hold a chalk, shaking his head as he said, “According to Montesquieu’s viewpoint…”

“That’s right, too similar! Old Wang loves to bring up Montesquieu.”

“Not just Montesquieu, but Socrates as well, doesn’t he mention him often?”

“Stop arguing, old Wang’s favorite is still Rousseau!”

“…”

After enjoying themselves, the group finally decided to disperse.

Putting on their coats and taking out their phones, Jin Zhou saw Yang Shiyu standing up, so he stood up as well. However, suddenly feeling the effects of the alcohol, his body involuntarily leaned to the side.

Yang Shiyu immediately caught Jin Zhou’s waist, helping him regain his balance. Frowning, he said, “I told you not to drink so much.”

“It’s fine,” Jin Zhou leaned against Yang Shiyu’s shoulder, slurring his words. “I’ll go over there for a moment, wait for me here, and we’ll go back together.”

After saying that, Jin Zhou tried to leave, but Yang Shiyu suddenly grabbed his wrist and said firmly, “You’re coming with me right now.”

“Hey,” Jin Zhou smiled happily. “They’re all good friends over there; they won’t force me to drink.”

Only then did Yang Shiyu let go of Jin Zhou.

Staggering out of the private room, Jin Zhou looked back and saw that no one was paying attention to him. He abandoned his fake drunkenness, adjusted himself, and walked steadily back to Luo Xueqing’s private room.

“Jin Zhou, what are you doing?” Xiao Wu said dissatisfied. “We’re having a meal, and you’re not here for half the time.”

“Your sister-in-law is next door,” Jin Zhou sat down and punished himself with three cups.

“Sister-in-law?” Luo Xueqing asked curiously. “Is she Jin Lawyer’s girlfriend?”

“Sort of,” Jin Zhou replied vaguely.

The dinner on that side quickly came to an end. Originally, Jin Zhou and a few others could have shared a car, but with Yang Shiyu joining them, Jin Zhou had to let them go first.

-Of course, those were all excuses. He just didn’t want a third wheel around.

After flushing the toilet and coming out of the restaurant, Jin Zhou immediately saw a tall figure standing by the roadside. He adjusted his state and pounced on Yang Shiyu from behind, drunkenly saying, “Darling, who are we waiting for?”

Yang Shiyu’s face indeed turned sour, but perhaps he was too lazy to argue with a drunkard. He didn’t object to the term of endearment and helped Jin Zhou into a taxi by the roadside.

Both of them sat in the backseat, and Jin Zhou’s head leaned on Yang Shiyu’s shoulder.

The warmth came through his shirt, making Jin Zhou feel incredibly at ease and relaxed. Suddenly feeling a bit drunk, he softly called out, “Yang Shiyu.”

Yang Shiyu, who had been looking out the window the whole time, turned his head and lightly touched Jin Zhou’s forehead with his chin.

“Aren’t you curious about how I knew about Professor Wang?” Jin Zhou asked.

After high school, the two of them had lost contact. In Yang Shiyu’s understanding, Jin Zhou had missed two exams in the college entrance examination, so he shouldn’t have been admitted to university.

“Not curious.” Yang Shiyu said, casually looking out the window. “You obtained your bachelor’s degree in just two years.”

Jin Zhou did go through a period of self-abandonment, but it didn’t last long, probably less than a year.

The change happened after the incident involving Hu Zi.

That year, Hu Zi and a second-generation rich kid had a dispute at a nightclub. They pushed and shoved each other a few times, but it didn’t escalate into a serious fight.

However, the rich kid immediately took Hu Zi to court, claiming that his eyelid was scratched and it met the criteria for minor injury.

In reality, the injury was very minor, and a band-aid would have been sufficient. However, Hu Zi ended up spending a year and a half in jail.

That incident had a significant impact on Jin Zhou. He suddenly felt that he couldn’t give up the path of law and that he should help his brothers around him.

But the problem at the time was that he couldn’t take the judicial examination with only a high school education. He needed a bachelor’s degree.

Jin Zhou could have re-enrolled for the college entrance examination, but after careful consideration, he felt that spending four years to obtain a degree wasn’t worth it, especially since he didn’t need to find a job. A full-time bachelor’s degree was just a piece of paper to him.

Therefore, he chose to pursue a diploma program, self-studying for a bachelor’s degree. He obtained his bachelor’s degree in just two years, and not long after receiving the diploma, he passed the extremely difficult judicial examination.

Naturally, the self-study school was the local political and law university, so when he mentioned it at the alumni gathering earlier, he wasn’t lying. He truly was a junior to those people.

“Hey,” Jin Zhou smiled. “So, you’ve been secretly keeping an eye on me.”

“No,” Yang Shiyu said. “I’ve heard the professors mention it while having dinner with them.”

Even for a diploma program, two years is very fast. Some people may not be able to pass the final exams of self-study programs even after four or five years.

“What did they say about me?” Jin Zhou raised his chin and looked at the side of Yang Shiyu’s face.

“They said you’re very smart,” Yang Shiyu turned his head, gazing at Jin Zhou, who was obediently leaning on his shoulder. “You’ve always been very smart.”

Both sentences praised Jin Zhou for his intelligence, but when he heard the latter sentence, Jin Zhou couldn’t help but feel even happier because the first sentence was from others’ praise, while the second sentence was from Yang Shiyu.

He felt like a little child, proudly asking, “Do you think it’s a loss for the country if I don’t become a judge?”

Yang Shiyu paused for a moment and replied with a counter-question, “What do you think?”

“Definitely,” Jin Zhou said cheerfully. “But being a judge’s job is too boring. I definitely couldn’t do it.”

“You’re too picky,” Yang Shiyu sighed helplessly.

“Just picky,” Jin Zhou said. “I’m doing great now, free and easy.”

“Mmm,” Yang Shiyu murmured softly. “That’s good.”

Jin Zhou gradually fell asleep. When he opened his eyes again, the two of them had already gotten out of the taxi, and Yang Shiyu was supporting him as they walked towards their residential area.

He yawned and, bonelessly, hung on Yang Shiyu’s body, asking, “Is it daylight?”

“It’s still early,” Yang Shiyu stopped and looked at Jin Zhou. “Are you sober? If you are, go back on your own.”

Jin Zhou immediately closed his eyes.

When they arrived at Yang Shiyu’s home, Jin Zhou collapsed on the sofa like a pile of wood.

Yang Shiyu quickly went to the bathroom to freshen up, and Jin Zhou opened one eye and took a look. Feeling safe, he sat up and stretched lazily.

Pretending to be drunk was really difficult.

He took a bottle of mineral water from the refrigerator, drank it all in one go, and then threw the bottle into the trash can.

At that moment, the sound of the shower abruptly stopped in the bathroom. Jin Zhou quickly collapsed back onto the sofa.

“Jin Zhou,” Yang Shiyu approached the sofa, shaking his shoulder. “Get up and freshen up.”

With a freshly showered Yang Shiyu, exuding warmth and steam from his body, Jin Zhou couldn’t help but have some wandering thoughts. In his mind, he imagined Yang Shiyu lying in bed, lifting the blanket, patting the empty space beside him, and saying, “Darling, come quickly.”

“Wash your face and go back to sleep,” Yang Shiyu naturally had no idea about the random thoughts going through Jin Zhou’s mind. He held Jin Zhou’s arm and tried to pull him up.

But at that moment, Jin Zhou suddenly exerted force, grabbing Yang Shiyu’s wrist and forcefully pulling him into his embrace, firmly encircling his waist.

“You smell so good,” Jin Zhou looked at Yang Shiyu with narrowed eyes, a mischievous look in his eyes. “Let me smell you. My wife”

As he spoke, Jin Zhou brought his nose closer to Yang Shiyu’s neck, but Yang Shiyu raised his hand and used his open palm to push Jin Zhou’s face away.

“Why do you always think you’re the husband?” Yang Shiyu put both hands on Jin Zhou’s ears and looked down at him from above.

Jin Zhou didn’t catch the implications behind Yang Shiyu’s words and said without enthusiasm, “I know you will never be in a relationship with me. Can’t I just talk nonsense?”

Yang Shiyu’s lips moved, but he didn’t say anything.

“I’m asking you, Yang Shiyu,” Jin Zhou rarely became serious. ” give me a definite answer? Are you really gay?”

Jin Zhou thought that since he asked so sincerely, Yang Shiyu would give him an answer.

Unexpectedly, Yang Shiyu suddenly glanced downward, looking at a certain area, and with an expressionless face, he looked at Jin Zhou and asked, “Aren’t you drunk? Then, what is your crotch pressing against my thigh?”

If a person was extremely drunk, there was no way they could get it up.

Jin Zhou also didn’t expect that he would be exposed in that way.

Oops, I forgot about that.

Jin Zhou immediately blanked his eyes and slurred, “I’m drunk, drunk in your tenderness.”

“You’ve been pretending to be drunk this whole time?” Yang Shiyu’s voice became heavy, containing a hint of anger.

“No.” Jin Zhou gave up the tactic of fooling around and decided to reason with emotions, “You saw it too. I mixed the beer and the liquor. How could I not be drunk?”

“Are you sure?” Yang Shiyu narrowed his eyes, “If you were really drunk, then what was pressing against my thigh?”

Jin Zhou couldn’t come up with a reasonable excuse.

But the crucial point was that he can’t control it either. When he saw his freshly showered ‘wife,’ which man wouldn’t have a reaction?

Jin Zhou withdrew his hands from Yang Shiyu’s waist, made a gesture with clasped fists, and joked, “Judge Yang, you’re so wise.”

Yang Shiyu immediately stood up, grabbed Jin Zhou’s face, and said, “Get up!”

“Ouch, it hurts!” Jin Zhou patted Yang Shiyu’s hand on his face, still not taking it seriously, and pleaded, “Wife, have mercy!”