“Hubby-bro, your way of caring for people is truly unique. It sounds both dog-like and terrible.”
“…”
After changing his shoes, Bai Shuijin followed Wang Huanxiu out the door. It was a bright, beautiful day; the sunlight made the accumulated snow on the ground sparkle as if gems were hidden beneath the surface.
Bai Shuijin carried his backpack, trailing behind Wang Huanxiu. There was a qualitative difference in their appearance and dressing styles. Wang Huanxiu stood around 188cm tall Bai Shuijin had long ago noticed that people with broad shoulders and height looked good in anything.
Over a three-piece suit, Wang Huanxiu wore a black overcoat. Leather gloves tightly encased his hands. From behind, he looked like a remarkably elegant, incredibly proud, and handsome man. In fact, that was exactly the case straightforwardly handsome, just the way Bai Shuijin liked it.
Bai Shuijin gave a silly giggle. Wearing his plush hat and down jacket, he looked like a little round missile.
“Hubby-bro.”
The two walked past the garden.
When the other ignored him, Bai Shuijin called out again, “Hubby-bro.”
The man ahead remained silent for a few seconds before answering as if he had no choice, “I’m listening.”
Bai Shuijin quickened his pace to walk side-by-side with him. “Hubby-bro, are you coming to pick me up after school today?”
Without a second thought, Wang Huanxiu replied, “No time.”
A CEO occupied with a myriad of daily affairs truly didn’t have time to pick him up. Bai Shuijin buried his face in his scarf but felt a bit unwilling to give up.
“Then, Hubby-bro, I’ll give you a video call after school.”
“For what?”
“So you can pick me up via the ‘cloud’.”
“…”
As if picking him up from school was some sort of extraordinary obsession, Bai Shuijin eventually hopped into a taxi. Usually, the butler would arrange a driver for him wherever he went, but those things needed to be requested in advance. Having forgotten, Bai Shuijin just hailed a cab.
With class time approaching, Bai Shuijin’s journey to school was a frantic one.
He arrived at the lecture hall just before 9:00 AM. The moment his heavily bundled figure appeared, Pei Zhiheng noticed him.
They shared the same major, and their schedules were largely identical. Whenever he was in the classroom, Bai Shuijin would invariably sit right next to him. Recalling how cold Bai Shuijin had been at the coffee shop last time, Pei Zhiheng reluctantly saved a seat for him this time.
He could already imagine Bai Shuijin’s shocked expression upon learning the seat was for him the guy would probably let out a loud shout and jump for joy right there in the classroom.
Thinking of such clownish behavior, Pei Zhiheng briefly felt a pang of regret. However, when he saw Bai Shuijin looking over, his emotions settled.
It was just as Li Jie had said: the reason Bai Shuijin had been uncharacteristically cold was that Pei Zhiheng hadn’t expressed a clear stance regarding Bai Shuijin’s marriage. That was why Bai Shuijin had refused to help them with the game proposal.
As long as he showed a little concern, Bai Shuijin’s heart would immediately fly back to him. There was no harm in being a bit nice; who knew if he might need Bai Shuijin to get some documents or information from Wang Huanxiu in the future?
Pei Zhiheng felt a mix of smugness and annoyance. After all, he didn’t exactly enjoy being pursued by Bai Shuijin, but ever since Bai Shuijin had started ignoring him, he found himself somewhat unaccustomed to it.
He remembered the way those eyes had looked at him last time filled with grievance. It had actually been quite refreshing. If Bai Shuijin didn’t speak and didn’t wear that heavy makeup, he was actually quite good-looking. Last time, he truly had felt a flicker of attraction.
For a moment, he was caught in a whirlpool of wanting Bai Shuijin to cling to him while also wanting him not to be too flamboyant. He propped his head on his hand and smiled bitterly.
What am I going to do with him?
As Bai Shuijin walked past him, he glanced over in surprise.
What’s he smiling about? He’s practically drooling.
Bai Shuijin quickened his pace.
Seeing the empty seat beside him and Bai Shuijin walking toward him with his backpack, Pei Zhiheng cleared his throat. “Just this once.”
Instead, Bai Shuijin walked straight past him and headed for the back row.
Pei Zhiheng: “…”
Why isn’t he sitting next to me?!
Stunned, Pei Zhiheng turned his head to look. Bai Shuijin had already sat down in the seat next to his roommate, Ji Cao.
Seeing the “mummy” suddenly appear beside him, Ji Cao asked, “Did you just get back from Egypt?”
Bai Shuijin waved him off and took off his backpack. The temperature inside the classroom was high; he was feeling hot from being wrapped in so many layers. He removed his hat and scarf. Since his hair had been flattened, he gave his head a vigorous shake to fluff it up.
Ji Cao was about to show him a message from their counselor. When he turned around, the words “Holy crap” (小草) nearly jumped out of his mouth.
Bai Shuijin, feeling as though he had just been insulted, looked at Ji Cao and whispered, “You really live up to your name.”
“…”
Looking at his face, Ji Cao didn’t even recognize him for a moment. He thought someone else had taken the seat. “What happened to you? Did you get plastic surgery?!”
“No, I just didn’t put on makeup,” Bai Shuijin said, rubbing his nose.
Ji Cao stared at him for a few seconds. Without makeup, Bai Shuijin felt like a completely different, much “fresher” person. Realizing it was rude to stare, Ji Cao looked away and handed him the message from the counselor. The gist of it was that they needed to go to the office after class.
Ji Cao had to go too. Though he didn’t know what it was about, being summoned by the counselor was usually bad news. After class, the two walked together.
Bai Shuijin noticed that Ji Cao seemed to be about the same height as him. “Cao-er, how tall are you?”
For some reason, when the other called his name, it sounded like a curse. Ji Cao replied, “1.75 meters.”
“Oh~”
Ji Cao was puzzled. “Why are you asking?”
“Nothing, I just feel like your height is very… heart-warming.”
At the counselor’s office, the counselor sat at the desk flipping through their academic records. The main issue was insufficient credits. They were only sophomores and already owed credits; graduating would be difficult at this rate.
Ji Cao looked like life had lost its meaning he’d have to bite the bullet and participate in school activities again.
Bai Shuijin raised his hand. “Doesn’t getting married add credits? If I add those, will I have enough?”
If he hadn’t mentioned it, Ji Cao would have forgotten that Bai Shuijin was married.
The counselor pushed up his glasses. “You don’t have a single credit for social practice or a company seal.”
“…”
Emerging from the office, Bai Shuijin held a social practice certification form. The counselor told him to complete it as soon as possible.
After confirming he had no classes in the afternoon, Bai Shuijin bundled himself up again, put on his backpack, and headed toward the school gate. It was noon, and Mother Li had said she was making his favorite BBQ pork buns (Char Siu Bao). He had to get back quickly.
Slipping a gloved hand into his jacket pocket, Bai Shuijin swiped the screen and started a video call.
It was time for the “cloud” school pickup.
The video connected quickly. Wang Huanxiu’s handsome features and perfect profile appeared on the screen. Because he wasn’t holding the phone up but looking down at it, the background was the blue sky.
Bai Shuijin’s hatted head bobbed in the frame. “Hubby-bro, I’m out of school.”
Feeling the camera was a bit shaky and fearing Wang Huanxiu’s “cloud pickup” experience would be poor, Bai Shuijin simply found a tree and crouched down beneath it. He needed a rest anyway; walking in so many clothes was tiring, and he could barely move his legs.
Bai Shuijin began to chat idly. “Hubby-bro, the weather is great today, don’t you think?”
“I was planning to eat at the cafeteria, but Mother Li said she’s making BBQ pork buns today.”
Just like that, with Bai Shuijin’s non-stop talking, the two chatted across the screen for over ten minutes everything from the school cafeteria to their ages.
“Hubby-bro, you don’t look twenty-six at all.”
“…”
Bai Shuijin’s little mouth was tireless, but Wang Huanxiu had already lost his patience.
“Bai Shuijin.”
Bai Shuijin: “Mm-hm?”
“How much longer are you going to crouch under that tree?”
Bai Shuijin, who had been crouching, suddenly looked up and spun around like a top. He wasn’t far from the school gate now. He scrambled up and ran a few steps, and sure enough, he saw Wang Huanxiu’s figure standing by the entrance.
His eyes lit up instantly. Bai Shuijin was over the moon. Holding the social practice form in one hand and his phone in the other, he dashed to Wang Huanxiu’s side as if flying over walls.
“Hubby-bro!!”
“Hubby-bro, you actually came to pick me up!”
He really hadn’t expected Wang Huanxiu to come, especially since the man had explicitly refused that morning, saying he had no time.
The man’s appearance felt like it filled a void from the past decades of his life. From childhood to now, no one had ever picked him up from school.
He had been so envious and longing for it, which is why he had asked tentatively that morning.
In his excitement, Bai Shuijin gave Wang Huanxiu a heavy “clink”—the “ball” in the down jacket bumped into the tall, black overcoat.
“Hubby-bro, I like you so much.”
Wang Huanxiu ignored him and took a step back to create distance. “I just happened to have some time.”
He had forgotten some documents when he left that morning and needed to head home.
Pei Zhiheng saw this scene as he came out of the school. Looking at Bai Shuijin and Wang Huanxiu standing not far away, the heavy stone in his heart finally dropped. He knew it there was no way Bai Shuijin actually liked Wang Huanxiu.
Look at that: he just slammed into Wang Huanxiu like a bull, making him stumble back two steps.
What a massive amount of “bull-strength.”
Clearly, he had overthought things before. If it weren’t for the urgent matter Li Jie called him to the company for, he would have definitely stepped forward to mock Wang Huanxiu.
Pei Zhiheng glanced at Bai Shuijin. He felt a bit unsettled, but he looked away and left.
Now that he had picked him up, Bai Shuijin followed Wang Huanxiu toward where the car was parked. Since picking someone up didn’t take long, they hadn’t used the school parking lot but found a spot on the roadside.
Although the weather was good, the temperature was still below freezing. Noticing Wang Huanxiu’s ears were red from the cold, Bai Shuijin took off his plush hat and handed it to him.
“Hubby-bro, you wear it.”
Wang Huanxiu looked at the incredibly childish hat, his expression full of disdain.
“No need. We’ll be at the car soon,” he strictly refused.
However, just then, a commotion broke out nearby.
“Bullsh*t! I’m her boyfriend!”
“You’re her boyfriend? Then what am I?”
“What else could you be? Dog sh*t on the side of the road!”
“You’re the dog sh*t!”
Bai Shuijin turned to see two men and a woman arguing at the school gate. Smelling the scent of “drama” (melon), his feet instantly refused to move, as if nailed to the spot.
Seeing he wasn’t following, Wang Huanxiu asked, “Why aren’t you moving?”
Bai Shuijin gazed into the distance. “Hubby-bro, my shoelace came undone.”
The man looked down. Bai Shuijin’s shoelaces were tied perfectly fine. Looking in the direction he was staring, Wang Huanxiu frowned; he didn’t have the habit of watching scenes or listening to gossip.
“Is being with Sister as comfortable as being with me?! You b*tch!”
“You’re the b*tch! Sister wanted to be with me a long time ago, now get lost!”
A massive amount of information flooded into his brain.
The more Bai Shuijin heard, the more explosive it became. He grabbed Wang Huanxiu. “Hubby-bro, this is huge! They’re a 4i (four-person entanglement)!”
Wang Huanxiu: “…”
The driver, who had been waiting a long time for the boss to return, was getting anxious. Had the boss forgotten where the car was? Impossible; their boss was always sharp and wouldn’t make such a basic mistake.
Just in case, the driver decided to get out and check.
He walked toward the university. Before he had gone two hundred meters, he saw Bai Shuijin and Wang Huanxiu standing not far from the gate.
Bai Shuijin had wrapped his head in a scarf, and Wang Huanxiu because it was truly too cold had put on Bai Shuijin’s plush hat. One gaze was curious, the other icy cold, as they both stared at the two male students tearing at each other’s hair while a female student tried desperately to stop them.
“I’m going to stuff cement in your XX today so Sister can never f*ck you again!”
“Sister, listen to this! Is this the kind of malicious man you like?!”
“Stop fighting! Stop fighting!”
Bai Shuijin and Wang Huanxiu watched, mesmerized.
Bai Shuijin’s little mouth kept going: “Hubby-bro, the one who mentioned the cement is going to win.”
“…”
The driver nearby: “…”
This couple really loves gossip.