Xu Nanxin watched with wide eyes as Ji Li actually kicked his own friend out of the car just like that. Completely dumbfounded, he subconsciously made a move to follow him out.
The last thing he wanted was to cross paths with Ji Li when he was in a foul mood!
To his surprise, He Feng wasn’t angry at all. After stepping out, he closed the car door and even waved at Xu Nanxin, looking entirely unlike someone who had just been kicked out.
Standing by the roadside with one hand in his pocket, He Feng raised an eyebrow and said to Ji Li, “I was the one who pulled Xu Nanxin into the car, and the kid is innocent. It’s late at night, so you should at least drop him off back home, right?”
“No… No need, I can just hail a cab myself!” Xu Nanxin was terrified. Ji Li had even kicked his own friend out; how could he dare to stay in this car?
“Let’s go,” Ji Li said flatly to the driver, paying practically no attention to Xu Nanxin.
Fine. Xu Nanxin felt a bit disheartened. In Ji Li’s eyes, he was probably as good as invisible anyway, so his words didn’t carry any weight either.
Just as the car started moving, Ji Li’s phone pinged with a notification. He picked it up and glanced at it; it was a text from He Feng.
He Feng: Now that you’ve kicked me out, enjoy your time alone together! Trust me, your buddy is doing this for your own good. You’ll thank me later!
Ji Li: “…”
If it weren’t for the fact that they had been friends for over a decade, given the things He Feng was pulling, kicking him out of the car would have been a light punishment.
Ji Li tossed his phone directly to the side. Watching his movements, Xu Nanxin subconsciously shut his mouth, not daring to utter a single word. Every single second spent inside the car felt like pure torture.
“Don’t take what He Feng said seriously,” Ji Li reminded him out of nowhere.
Xu Nanxin snapped out of it immediately and nodded frantically. “Yes, I know, I understand! You made it very clear last time. Don’t worry, I absolutely wouldn’t dare to have any inappropriate thoughts about you!”
Terrified that Ji Li wouldn’t believe him, Xu Nanxin even emphasized it repeatedly, anxious to prevent the man from saying anything humiliating again.
“Mm.” Ji Li didn’t bother to address Xu Nanxin’s cautiousness. He put his Bluetooth earpiece back on and didn’t say another word.
Not daring to look at him, Xu Nanxin could only keep his head turned toward the window, praying that they would reach his place quickly.
Unfortunately, fate had other plans. Traffic was backed up at this hour, and the car was crawling at a snail’s pace.
Listening to the endless honking outside, he couldn’t help but steal another glance at Ji Li’s expression in the passenger seat. Only when he saw no obvious signs of impatience on the man’s face did he relax a little.
He really hadn’t wanted to hitch this ride. Perhaps because too much time had passed, his tightly wound nerves gradually relaxed, and his mind began to drift toward the phone call he received from Mr. Z today.
The meeting was inevitable now. If Ji Li discovered it was him, how would he react? Disappointment, disgust, or something else entirely…?
Xu Nanxin wasn’t afraid of Ji Li disliking him. But he was terrified of seeing disappointment and disgust in Mr. Z’s eyes. They were the same person, yet they felt so completely different.
Amidst a whirlwind of thoughts, Xu Nanxin gathered his courage, looked up, and asked Ji Li, “Mr. Ji, your friend mentioned that your partner is someone you met online. What is your take… on online dating?”
Wearing his Bluetooth earpiece, Ji Li didn’t answer him. Xu Nanxin couldn’t tell if the man had heard him or not, but he didn’t have the guts to ask a second time.
Just when Xu Nanxin thought he wouldn’t get an answer, Ji Li’s cold, detached voice rang out: “That is none of your business.”
“I’m sorry, I just found it a bit surprising. I didn’t expect someone like you would date someone you’ve never even met in real life.” Xu Nanxin probed subtly, trying every possible way to extract more information from Ji Li.
It felt as if this was the only way he could make himself feel less terrified about their upcoming meeting.
“What kind of person am I?” Ji Li took off his earpiece, turned his head, and gave him a flat look, his eyes carrying a hint of coldness and intimidation.
Xu Nanxin instantly lost his voice. Realizing that these questions might have crossed a line with Ji Li, it took him quite a while before he muttered meekly, “I’m sorry…”
Ji Li originally hadn’t intended to say more. However, seeing that Xu Nanxin was young and had just entered society, he figured that asking such questions meant He Feng’s words had likely triggered a sense of longing and romantic idealism in the kid.
With so many scammers online, even heterosexual online dating scams were incredibly common, let alone among the same sex. Harboring too many unrealistic expectations and romantic fantasies made one an easy target for scammers.
Looking at this boy who was around the same age as his Little Rabbit, Ji Li showed a rare bit of patience and said indifferently, “Don’t take He Feng’s words too seriously. If you can’t find true love in real life, do you really think you can find it through online dating? It’s nothing more than strangers who have never met face-to-face.”
Xu Nanxin froze, staring blankly at Ji Li. So, this is Ji Li’s actual perspective?
The real-life Ji Li and the online Mr. Z felt completely different, but people ultimately had to return to reality, didn’t they?
Compared to Mr. Z, who was considerate and gentle in every aspect, the real-life Ji Li was his truest form. Once you stripped away that online tenderness, all that was left was his exceptionally calm, rational coldness.
But who could say that was wrong?
Xu Nanxin lowered his eyes, his heart feeling completely hollow. It was as if everything he had been holding onto was easily dismissed by Ji Li.
If this was how Ji Li viewed online dating, then what exactly did the two of them count as?
Even though he constantly tried to avoid equating Ji Li with Mr. Z, no matter how much he hid from it, they were still the exact same person.
Neither of them spoke for the rest of the ride. The car drove in silence all the way to the entrance of Xu Nanxin’s apartment building. As the driver brought the vehicle to a halt, Ji Li tilted his head slightly, not even looking at Xu Nanxin, and said in an utterly detached tone, “Get out.”
“Thank you, Mr. Ji.” Xu Nanxin unbuckled his seatbelt, hurriedly opened the door, and got out of the car.
The moment Xu Nanxin stepped out, the car immediately pulled a U-turn and drove off without wasting even half a minute, perfectly matching Ji Li’s ruthless nature.
Xu Nanxin stood in place for a long time, watching the car disappear from sight. It wasn’t until the chilly wind made him shiver that he turned around and went upstairs.
Back in his tiny studio apartment, he switched on the lights and sat on the bed, staring blankly into space. A moment later, his phone rang.
He looked down and saw a call from Sheng Lu, his former college roommate. Sheng Lu also worked in Jiangning City, and they used to meet up once or twice a month.
Ever since Ji Li arrived, Xu Nanxin had been completely slammed with work, busy revising proposals every day. The two of them hadn’t seen each other in nearly three months.
The moment he picked up the call, before he could even speak, an excited voice boomed from the other end: “Nanxin, I’ve got great news, I got a raise!”
The voice was bursting with youthful energy. Hearing this, Xu Nanxin’s mood lifted a little. “That’s awesome, congratulations!”
“I get paid this Friday. Let’s head out for dinner after work to celebrate. My treat!”
“Then I’ll have to think carefully about how to make you splurge!” Xu Nanxin said with a laugh.
“Wow, you’ve turned wicked. You weren’t like this back in college!” Sheng Lu teased casually. After a moment, he added, “What about you? How have things been? I heard you mention earlier that your company got a new boss and you’ve been super busy.”
Sheng Lu’s question immediately brought Ji Li back to Xu Nanxin’s mind. His high spirits instantly plummeted, and after a long silence, he said, “Don’t even get me started. I think I’m suffering from a major planetary retrograde this year.”
Sheng Lu paused on the other end. “What’s wrong? Did something happen?”
Xu Nanxin thought about it and figured it would be nice to vent to someone. Sheng Lu knew about his online relationship. However, Xu Nanxin had only opened up about his sexual orientation to his roommates after he and Mr. Z had officially locked down their relationship.
His roommates had been very supportive and hadn’t distanced themselves because of it; instead, they had just worried about whether online dating was safe and if the guy might be a scammer. That had brought a lot of warmth to Xu Nanxin.
“Sheng Lu, I want to break up with Mr. Z,” Xu Nanxin said.