Inside a private tea house, the room was decorated with extreme elegance. Soft, graceful music filled the air a live performance by a zither player positioned behind a silk curtain. The music was kept at a low volume, ensuring it wouldn’t disturb the conversation while preventing the musician from over-hearing the guests. If the occupants desired total privacy or silence, a single press of a button would signal the player to withdraw.
Amidst these refined sounds, two men concluded an important project through a conversation that seemed as light as drifting clouds. They raised their tea cups in place of wine, celebrating their successful partnership in advance.
One of the men, in his late forties, finished the negotiations with the younger man beside him and called for his assistant. He asked if the task he had assigned earlier was complete. The assistant handed him a paper bag containing a shoe box. Inside was a pair of men’s sneakers. Seeing them, President Shen looked visibly relieved.
Judging by the style and color, the sneakers were clearly meant for a young man.
“I apologize for the display, President Fu,” President Shen explained with a smile to Fu Hangnian. “I upset my son a couple of days ago; this is an apology gift for him.”
President Shen and his wife had been happily married for over twenty years and had a twenty-year-old only son whom he doted on. A misunderstanding had led to a heated argument, and his son had been ignoring him for days. Desperate, Shen’s wife told him that to truly appease the boy, he had to give him the gift he wanted most—a pair of limited-edition global sneakers. It had not been easy for President Shen to track them down.
An apology gift. Fu Hangnian became thoughtful. Song Zhiyuan was also only nineteen.
In the car, Fu Hangnian asked Chu Wei, “What do young people like these days?”
Chu Wei thought for a moment. Young people liked many things. He had been by Fu Hangnian’s side in the tea room and had heard President Shen’s words, so he understood why the question was being asked. However, to be honest, he wasn’t sure what Song Zhiyuan would specifically like.
Whenever they gave Song Zhiyuan anything, he always appeared genuinely happy and appreciative. It was as if he had no strong preferences or dislikes.
Chu Wei opened his mouth but admitted, “President Fu, I’m not entirely sure either.”
Since he and Fu Hangnian were similar in age, he didn’t really know what was trendy among the youth, let alone Song Zhiyuan’s personal tastes. If it were anyone else who had been with Fu Hangnian previously, Chu Wei would have had an immediate answer: luxury goods or industry resources.
Because of the events of the past few days, Fu Hangnian felt a sense of guilt toward Song Zhiyuan. President Shen’s actions reminded him that he should also give Song Zhiyuan a gift to express his apology. However, Fu Hangnian had already given him limited-edition sneakers before; doing so again would lack originality.
What exactly did Song Zhiyuan like?
Fu Can felt that he was far too timid. After all this time, his relationship with Song Zhiyuan was still just a friendship with no progress at all. He had asked Song Zhiyuan out twice, but every time they were together, they acted more like close brothers than anything else. He was struggling with how to bridge that gap.
Finally, an opportunity arrived.
Next week, the JJ Cup Global Finals were to be held in Country M. The JJ Cup is the ultimate championship trophy for the game PUBG (PlayerUnknown’s Battlegrounds), an event that excites gaming fans worldwide. Since one of the teams competing for the championship was from China, countless domestic fans were buzzing with anticipation. At this stage, tickets for the finals were notoriously difficult to obtain.
Having known Song Zhiyuan for so many years, Fu Can knew he was a die-hard fan of the game. In high school, they had often gone to internet cafes together to play; they were nearly caught by the dean several times but never lost their passion for sneaking out to play.
Fu Can believed that if he could get tickets to the Global Finals, Song Zhiyuan would be ecstatic. Watching a match live in person is a completely different experience from watching a stream on a computer. Furthermore, since it was in Country M, he could spend several days alone with Song Zhiyuan—the mere thought of it made Fu Can vibrate with excitement.
He was determined to get those tickets. But they were truly hard to come by. Fu Can asked everyone he knew to no avail. He even tried buying them at a high price on second-hand sites, only to encounter scammers. Every scammer swore up and down that the tickets were real, using phrases like “Chinese people don’t cheat Chinese people” or wishing wealth upon their entire families if they were lying.
The moment Fu Can paid, the scammers blocked him. He ran into more than one. Fu Can didn’t care about the money it was a pittance to him but the fact that he couldn’t get a genuine ticket made him anxious. Seeing his son’s distress over the last two days, Fu Can’s mother suggested to her husband that he ask Fu Hangnian for help. Fu Hangnian was resourceful and powerful; surely getting a ticket would be no trouble for him. Besides, Fu Hangnian was usually quite good to Fu Can.
The JJ Cup Global Finals were the focus of world attention. Song Zhiyuan and his roommates had already agreed to pull an all-nighter to watch the broadcast on the day of the match. Because of the time difference between Country M and China, the match would start in the middle of the night for them.
To prepare, they had already stocked up on snacks and a crate of beer to celebrate. They all firmly believed the Chinese team would take the championship. While setting out the snacks, Sui Tang sighed, “I really, really want to see the match in person!! I want to be there! I want to cheer for the pro players up close!”
He was speaking for everyone. Song Zhiyuan naturally wanted to go as well, but tickets were nearly impossible to find, with some being resold online for hundreds of thousands of yuan. Sui Tang looked at the prices and clicked his tongue, saying no one would be silly enough to actually pay that much for a ticket. Song Zhiyuan nodded in agreement.
Just as he and Sui Tang finished arranging the snacks, Song Zhiyuan received a message from Fu Hangnian; he was waiting for him at the school gate.
In the past few days, the relationship between Song Zhiyuan and Fu Hangnian had undergone a subtle shift. Song Zhiyuan didn’t quite realize it, but he felt that Fu Hangnian had become much gentler and easier to talk to lately. Sometimes, Song Zhiyuan had the fleeting sensation that he was actually “dating” Fu Hangnian.
However, he knew very well that this was just an illusion. Fu Hangnian didn’t develop feelings for the people around him, and the emotionally guarded Song Zhiyuan wouldn’t fall for Fu Hangnian either. They were simply fulfilling each other’s needs.
After getting into the car, Song Zhiyuan asked impatiently, “What’s the good news you wanted to tell me?”
Fu Hangnian had mentioned good news in his message. Song Zhiyuan assumed it was something happy for Fu Hangnian—like a successful acquisition or a spike in the company’s stock. From the moment he entered the car, he could tell Fu Hangnian was in a great mood.
Then, he saw Fu Hangnian hand him two pieces of high-quality paper.
Song Zhiyuan blinked, freezing for nearly half a minute. He looked closer; he recognized every English word, and he recognized them when put together. His eyes slowly began to shine.
It was confirmed. The tickets in Fu Hangnian’s hand were for the finals he had dreamed of! And they were front-row seats!! The absolute best position to watch the match!
Fu Hangnian said casually, “A friend happened to give me two tickets. I wasn’t sure if you’d want to go see it. I happen to be free those few days and can take you. If you don’t want to go…”
“I’ll go, I’ll go! I want to go!” Song Zhiyuan interrupted.
“Fu Hangnian, you’re amazing.” Overcome with excitement, Song Zhiyuan threw himself forward to hug Fu Hangnian, his words tumbling out incoherently. “You’re truly incredible!!”
Tickets to the live finals! Fu Hangnian was taking him to the scene!! He could cheer for the pro players in person and maybe even get a photo with his favorite players. This was indeed incredible news!
Song Zhiyuan happily nuzzled against Fu Hangnian. In that moment, he forgot the man before him was the unattainable head of the Fu family; Fu Hangnian seemed more like a gentle older brother.
Fu Hangnian enjoyed Song Zhiyuan’s praise and took pleasure in his happiness. He could tell the boy’s joy and compliments were genuine. Even Chu Wei could see how much Song Zhiyuan loved this gift.
Song Zhiyuan was as happy as a child. “Fu Hangnian, did you know? I really, really wanted to see it in person. I can’t believe it’s coming true. You’re especially handsome today.”
Fu Hangnian held his waist and rubbed his head like a lover would, looking at him tenderly. Song Zhiyuan’s eyes held a bright light; they were exceptionally beautiful.
“The flights are already booked,” Fu Hangnian added. “We leave the day after tomorrow.”
Song Zhiyuan nodded repeatedly. “Mhm, mhm!”
“The weather there is quite cold, so make sure to pack warm clothes.”
Song Zhiyuan nodded obediently. “Mhm, mhm!”
Fu Hangnian laughed. “Is all you can say now ‘mhm’?”
“Mhm, mhm!”
Fu Hangnian said, “Come have dinner with me.”
“Okay.”
Song Zhiyuan was beyond excited. On the way to dinner, he couldn’t help but take the tickets out to look at them again and again, like a child with a long-awaited toy who couldn’t see enough of it.
Fu Hangnian said, “You should keep the tickets.”
Song Zhiyuan shook his head. “Better you keep them.”
He was afraid he might accidentally lose them and regret it for the rest of his life, but there would be no problem if Fu Hangnian held onto them. However, that didn’t stop him from looking at them whenever he wanted, because he had already taken a photo.
Song Zhiyuan, who usually didn’t post on social media, desperately wanted to brag about the tickets on his WeChat Moments, but fortunately, his reason triumphed over his excitement.