That evening, Chen Zhou received his earned points as expected.
[Ding-dong, fifteen points have been credited. Please check your account.]
Chen Zhou had just finished showering and was drying his hair when he heard the notification, looking somewhat surprised. [Why are so many points awarded this time?]
[Because the host’s completion rate was exceptionally high, these are the points you deserve.]
Feeling quite satisfied, Chen Zhou replied, [Well, that’s more like it.]
This at least compensated for the trauma of playing the third wheel.
Summer rain always comes and goes quickly, and the next morning dawned bright and clear once more. A hint of coolness finally lingered in the air; imperceptibly, summer was drawing to a close.
Chen Zhou had been helping out at the shop recently, keeping busy yet fulfilled. Everything seemed entirely normal, and life without active missions felt quite pleasant.
Yet Chen Zhou noticed that Xu Nian had been acting rather strange lately. He had a lingering suspicion that Xu Nian was avoiding him.
Whether it was just his imagination or not, it felt as though Xu Nian was either constantly busy with shop matters, tinkering away inside his room, or completely missing because he had gone out. Even when their paths crossed occasionally, Xu Nian quickly averted his gaze.
“Brother Wang Qi, where is your boss?” Chen Zhou asked for the n-th time when he failed to locate Xu Nian. “Is he busy with something?”
Over the past few days, Xu Nian’s mother had also been admitted to the hospital in preparation for her surgery. Fearing it might be a sensitive topic, Chen Zhou hadn’t asked directly, though he checked on Aunt Wang’s condition through 126, who assured him that everything was going quite well. He wondered how things were shaping up right now.
Could it really be about Aunt Wang? Or was Xu Nian avoiding him for some other reason? Chen Zhou remained completely baffled, wondering if it had anything to do with that last incident.
“You didn’t know? I thought the boss told you,” Wang Qi said, adjusting a chair in the shop. “He went to help out at the fields over by the town. The people there are friends of his.”
Chen Zhou fell silent. He had no idea whatsoever, nor did he know that Xu Nian had other odd jobs to attend to around here.
Letting out an “oh,” Chen Zhou hesitated, lingering for a moment before finally speaking up, “Where is that place?”
“Just head straight east out the door and you’ll see it, right next to those abandoned railroad tracks,” Wang Qi began chattering away once he got started. “It’s good that you’re going to check on the boss anyway, he’s probably been in a pretty bad mood these past few days.”
Chen Zhou blurted out, “Why?”
“Well, it’s probably because of family matters,” Wang Qi said, glancing out the door with a slightly melancholy expression. “It looks like Aunt Wang’s surgery is coming up soon.”
“Don’t let the boss’s usual cold and quiet demeanor fool you, he’s actually a really good person. Things weren’t easy for him when he first arrived here either; his dad had just passed away, and his mom was sick at the time. But even so, the boss never complained and always treated us exceptionally well.”
Wang Qi chuckled self-deprecatingly, “Even with someone as useless as me around, the boss still keeps me on.”
“Hey, you say—” Wang Qi turned his head to continue, only to find that the person was already gone.
“…?”
Chen Zhou had simply walked out.
Following Wang Qi’s directions, he soon spotted a set of abandoned railroad tracks near the edge of the town, with a stretch of farmland lying just beyond the other side. This must have been a neighboring village, yet it possessed a rustic beauty surpassing even the original host’s hometown. The fields were currently blanketed in a golden hue, almost dazzling Chen Zhou’s eyes.
Scanning the area for Xu Nian’s figure, he soon spotted him down by the edge of the ridge.
Walking over, Chen Zhou watched as Xu Nian worked busily down in the dirt, his back soaked through with sweat and thick veins bulging along his arms.
“Ge,” Chen Zhou called out.
Xu Nian’s busy movements paused abruptly, his hands clenching tightly. When he turned around, Chen Zhou was making his way down the slope, his pant cuffs rolled up to his calves where stray stalks might scratch him, completely unaware of the risk.
“Why are you here?” Xu Nian’s voice sounded somewhat hoarse, the oppressive heat making him feel slightly dizzy.
“I came looking for you,” Chen Zhou smiled. “Let me help you, Ge.”
Looking at the other person’s exposed legs and sweat-streaked cheeks, Xu Nian felt a tightness in his throat as his mind tumbled into chaos. He had foolishly thought that avoiding the young man for a few days would help him regain his clarity, only to realize that a single glimpse completely shattered all his resolve.
“Ge, I think I scraped my leg, it hurts a little.” Lowering his gaze to his calf, Chen Zhou figured he must have bumped against something carelessly.
Frowning slightly, he wiped the sweat from his face with the back of his hand. Because it rarely saw the sun, his calf was fair, making the fresh red streaks stand out sharply.
Watching him, Xu Nian noticed how the young man’s expression softened uncontrollably whenever he faced him, reminding him of the stubborn resilience and unyielding sharpness the kid had displayed during that harassment incident, stirring a subtle ripple within his chest.
He couldn’t help wondering what it would take to make someone like this cry.
Deciding he must have truly lost his mind, Xu Nian figured Li Jia probably just treated him like an older brother, leaving him clueless as to why such thoughts kept invading his brain.
He must have been single for far too long and developed some sort of mental malfunction, Xu Nian concluded firmly.
“Ge? Are you alright?”
Chen Zhou waved a hand in front of Xu Nian’s face, “Is it too hot?”
With that, Chen Zhou stood on tiptoe, trying to use his hand to cast a patch of shade over Xu Nian’s face, “Why don’t we head back? Aren’t you tired?”
As that face closed the distance unawares, Xu Nian caught the faint scent of jasmine once more, instantly causing his heartbeat to spiral out of control.
“Yeah,” Xu Nian averted his gaze, “Let’s go up.”
Just like that, Chen Zhou found himself pulled back up. Without having contributed any actual help, he somehow ended up sitting back on the edge of the ridge.
Chen Zhou sat directly on the ground beside Xu Nian, who drank water in complete silence, leaving Chen Zhou feeling somewhat hesitant to speak.
He had a nagging feeling that he had somehow offended Xu Nian and earned his dislike; though he still couldn’t pinpoint where he went wrong, Chen Zhou decided to at least project a friendly and agreeable attitude.
Striving to make conversation, Chen Zhou began, “Ge, try not to worry too much about Aunt Wang, it’s going to be fine. When the time comes for the hospital visit, I’ll go with you so you won’t have to be alone. Don’t work yourself to death lately either, crashing your health won’t do any good. Don’t mind me nagging, I’ve just noticed you haven’t been around the shop much, running back and forth everywhere.”
Sitting nearby in a state of inner turmoil, Xu Nian had intended to distance himself from distractions, yet seeing those moving lips and flushed cheeks with a bead of sweat threatening to slip down pulled him right back in.
Unable to hold back any longer as his brain short-circuited once more, Xu Nian reached out and wiped away the stray droplet.
With his calloused fingertips brushing across Chen Zhou’s cheek, Chen Zhou reacted by turning his head, causing Xu Nian’s finger to lightly sweep across his eyes.
The rough sensation sent a jolt through Chen Zhou, causing him to instinctively close his eyes, though the touch vanished just as quickly. A sudden curiosity bloomed within him, wondering what it would feel like to be properly caressed by those hands.
Averting his gaze entirely, Xu Nian clenched his hand into a fist.
“Ge, um…” Chen Zhou didn’t dare look at Xu Nian anymore, “Is Aunt Wang having her surgery soon?”
Xu Nian gave a soft murmur of agreement.
Chen Zhou slowly recited the mental script he had prepared earlier, “Don’t worry too much, everything will be fine. I’ll… I’ll be right there keeping you company.”
While not particularly gifted at comforting others, Chen Zhou delivered his words with earnest sincerity, gazing pleadingly at Xu Nian.
Hearing those words caused Xu Nian to freeze for a moment before offering a delayed response, sounding notably more relaxed than before.
“Let’s go.” Once they had rested sufficiently, Xu Nian stood up to head back.
Remaining firmly rooted to the spot on the ground, Chen Zhou muttered, “”
Frowning, Xu Nian asked, “What’s wrong?”
“My foot… has gone numb.”
“” Glancing down at the pitiful figure on the ground, Xu Nian couldn’t help a quiet chuckle before extending a hand, “I’ll pull you up.”
“Thanks, Ge.”
Applying a gentle tug, Xu Nian helped Chen Zhou up, but an excess of momentum caused Chen Zhou to stumble directly into Xu Nian’s chest, his forehead brushing past Xu Nian’s lips by a hair’s breadth.
A dark shadow flashed across Xu Nian’s eyes for a fleeting second before he immediately released his grip, leaving the unsteady Chen Zhou on the verge of tumbling right back down.
Chen Zhou: “”
By that point, Xu Nian was already striding ahead.
[126, is he teasing me?]
Having witnessed the entire sequence, 126 maintained a brief silence before offering, [Maybe, probably, perhaps… yes.]
Wrinkling his nose, Chen Zhou decided to drop the matter and hurried to catch up.
The two returned together, but owing to a heavy backlog of tasks, Xu Nian headed out again shortly after. Left behind, Chen Zhou busied himself managing the shop single-handedly.
With one of the restaurant’s chefs forced to take time off due to an emergency, the back kitchen descended into utter chaos. Taking it all in with growing anxiety, Chen Zhou resolved to talk to Xu Nian about stepping in to help out in the kitchen whenever possible.
Having grown up taking care of himself from a young age, Chen Zhou was quite adept at cooking.
Having quietly formulated his plan, Chen Zhou went back to running errands around the shop. As luck would have it, since that ugly encounter with the local hoodlum, no further incidents or unsavory characters had surfaced, and the obnoxious customer who previously harassed him never showed his face again.
“Xiao Li! Go take this over to Uncle Chen!”
“Coming!” Wrapping up his current chore, Chen Zhou grabbed the delivery items and headed out the door.
Xu Nian consistently looked after their neighbor, Uncle Chen, frequently sending over small provisions. Whenever Xu Nian was away, the errand fell to Chen Zhou.
Carrying the package down the street, Chen Zhou suddenly remembered something, quickened his pace, handed the items to Uncle Chen, and immediately departed. Instead of returning straight to the restaurant, he turned his steps toward the marketplace.
Stopping before a flower and bird market stall, Chen Zhou squatted down to inspect a row of potted plants on display.
Jasmine flowers were currently in full bloom, a small cluster radiating a vibrant fragrance. These happened to be Chen Zhou’s absolute favorite flowers; back in his own world, he always kept a potted plant right beside him.
Having stayed here for quite a while now, he had never given Xu Nian any token of appreciation, and decided a potted flower would make a fitting gift.
[Host, are you certain about this?]
Clearly dubious about the decision, 126’s tone radiated a distinct lack of confidence.
Feeling somewhat slighted, Chen Zhou retorted, [What’s wrong? Isn’t this nice? These are my favorite flowers right now, it’s the thought that counts.]
[Fine.] 126 chose to shut its system equivalent of a mouth, [Whatever makes you happy.]
Poring over the selection with bubbling enthusiasm, Chen Zhou finally picked out the healthiest-looking potted plant, paid for it using his accumulated savings, and scooped it up.
Since he was already out, Chen Zhou decided to wander around a bit longer before heading back. Strolling aimlessly with the flowerpot cradled in his arms, his feet eventually carried him back to the handicrafts boutique, reminding him of that little wooden bird from before.
Never mind, Chen Zhou consoled himself, it wasn’t anything precious anyway.
Shrugging his shoulders to leave, he suddenly turned around with an inexplicable sense of intuition.
Right at that moment, a figure walked into the shop, instantly recognizable by silhouette alone.
It was none other than Xu Nian.