Xu Qiushi, currently being hugged by Abu, sensed the radiating aura of irritability coming from Jiang Yichi. He patted Abu’s shoulder and pushed him back slightly.
Sure enough, in the next second, Jiang Yichi spoke with a cold face: “I’m terribly sorry, then. I happen to be one of those ‘evil rich people’ you mentioned.”
Abu: “…”
“Abu wasn’t talking about you,” Xu Qiushi said somewhat helplessly. He turned to Abu to introduce him: “This is my boss.”
“Brother Xu, your boss is so young!” Abu laughed awkwardly.
“Because I’m a second-generation rich kid. Does that make me seem even more loathsome?” Jiang Yichi said nonchalantly.
Xu Qiushi frowned at Jiang Yichi and continued: “He’s still in university, at Luo University.”
“Wow, a top student just like A-Ze! No wonder you know so much. Thank you so much for today, Little Boss.” Abu seized the opportunity to flatter him, offering Jiang Yichi a sincere thanks.
“You’re welcome,” Jiang Yichi replied expressionlessly.
Xu Qiushi glanced at the hallway cluttered with junk. The tenants in the building had been busy moving lately, so he asked Abu: “Have you found a new place yet?”
“I found one! I’m sharing a three-bedroom apartment with A-Heng and Xiao Zhao. The environment is much better than here, and the rent is a lot cheaper when split between us.” Speaking of the new house, Abu grinned broadly, feeling like he’d truly struck gold.
“That’s good.” Hearing that Xiao Zhao and the others were settled, Xu Qiushi nodded with relief. “Is everything packed? Do you need help?”
“No, no, I’m almost done. Actually wait, I have to take the fridge! I can’t leave it for that deadbeat landlord!” At the mention of the landlord, Abu’s fist tightened again. He had bought a second-hand fridge when he moved in and originally hadn’t planned on taking it, but now he was determined to bring it along no matter what.
“I’ll help you,” Xu Qiushi said.
“It’s okay, Brother Xu. You go about your business. I called a car; I’ll have the driver help me move it down in a bit.” Abu stole a glance at Jiang Yichi, who was waiting impatiently nearby, and waved his hands repeatedly in refusal.
Xu Qiushi asked Jiang Yichi: “Can you wait a little longer?”
Jiang Yichi knew that if he said “no,” Xu Qiushi would definitely tell him to go on ahead. He could only grunt an unwilling “Fine.”
“Then wait for me here, don’t wander off,” Xu Qiushi instructed before following Abu to move the fridge.
Abu’s fridge had already been emptied. It wasn’t large, but when Xu Qiushi gripped the sides to test its weight, it felt like it was around a hundred pounds. While not heavy, it was bulky and had a smooth surface, making it hard to grip.
He had Abu find some cloth strips and skillfully fashioned a “carrying harness” for the fridge.
The man-sized fridge was easily hoisted onto his back. He bent over to exit the room and walked steadily toward the stairs. Abu, having little else to do, followed closely behind, offering a largely symbolic hand to steady the bottom of the fridge.
Xu Qiushi’s figure soon disappeared down the stairwell. Jiang Yichi turned and leaned over the railing to look down.
Before long, the familiar figure appeared downstairs. The car Abu called had just arrived, and the two men worked together to lift the fridge onto the truck bed.
Besides the fridge, Xu Qiushi helped Abu carry his other belongings down until he saw him off.
With this delay, by the time Xu Qiushi picked up his own belongings and got into the car, they were already half an hour later than the scheduled arrival at Xun Wenyao’s house.
“Thank you for today.” Not only had Jiang Yichi helped Abu get his deposit back, but he had also helped him claim a breach-of-contract penalty—something Xu Qiushi hadn’t even considered possible.
“Whatever.” Jiang Yichi sat with his arms crossed, leaning against the car seat. If Xu Qiushi hadn’t intervened first, he wouldn’t have bothered. “More importantly, do you have some kind of KPI for helping everyone you meet?”
“What… AI?” Xu Qiushi was confused.
“I mean a quota. Do you have a daily quota of ‘good deeds’ you have to complete?” Jiang Yichi recalled the incident at the bar with Gu Chengfei; Xu Qiushi didn’t even know the guy, yet he had blocked a bottle for him.
“No, I just help when I see someone in need,” Xu Qiushi said honestly.
Help when you see a need? Jiang Yichi thought. If something goes wrong while helping, who knows if anyone would help him in return. He huffed coldly and couldn’t resist speaking up: “You help move a fridge if everything goes fine, they say ‘thanks.’ But if you scratch it or drop it, or if you fall, they’ll only blame you for breaking the fridge. They won’t care if you’re hurt; they might even call you a busybody.”
Jiang Yichi’s analysis left Xu Qiushi speechless. The words were harsh and realistic, yet logical. It was just that Xu Qiushi never thought that much when he acted.
“Is your own life so perfect? You’re always thinking of helping others, but they won’t necessarily remember your kindness.”
“I didn’t do it so people would remember my kindness.”
Jiang Yichi knew Xu Qiushi wasn’t just being polite; he really was just that kind of “good old soul.”
“But you were impressive. I didn’t understand half of what you said today,” Xu Qiushi smiled, tactfully changing the subject.
“I looked it up online. The internet is very convenient these days. You really should replace that junk phone that can’t even get online.”
“Mm,” Xu Qiushi agreed. Replacing the phone was indeed something that needed to be put on the agenda.
…
This wasn’t Xu Qiushi’s first time at Xun Wenyao’s house, but Xun Wenyao still insisted on meeting him at the community entrance.
Seeing Jiang Yichi following behind Xu Qiushi with a face full of disdain, Xun Wenyao smiled at Xu Qiushi: “Yo, did you bring your family’s Little Master to inspect how the commoners live?”
Xun Wenyao didn’t lower his voice, so Jiang Yichi heard him clearly. He found the phrase “your family’s Little Master” quite pleasing to the ear.
Xu Qiushi said: “He was bored at home alone, so he came along to take a look.”
“Hello, Little Master. I’m Qiushi’s friend, Xun Wenyao,” Xun Wenyao introduced himself.
“Hello, Jiang Yichi.” Jiang Yichi nodded, his expression unreadable behind his sunglasses.
“Follow me.” Overriding Xu Qiushi’s protests, Xun Wenyao firmly took the table from his hands and led the way.
His apartment was on the 8th floor. The conditions were much better than Xu Qiushi’s old place, though in Jiang Yichi’s eyes, it was still just a slightly better “dump.”
“Little Master, don’t look down on our humble abode. Just come on in, no need to change shoes.” There weren’t many slippers in the house, and they were never enough when people visited. When the bar staff came over, they could just go barefoot, but Jiang Yichi was a different story.
Xu Qiushi noticed the wooden floor was very clean, as if it had just been mopped. He wanted to suggest changing into indoor slippers, but before he could speak, Jiang Yichi had already walked past him and stepped onto the living room floor without a hint of hesitation.
Forget it, I’ll just clean up after he leaves, Xu Qiushi reasoned with himself and followed them in.
“Make yourselves at home. There’s not much to drink here, should I order some milk tea for you guys?” Xun Wenyao pulled out his phone to order delivery.
Xu Qiushi was about to say it wasn’t necessary, but seeing that the Little Master didn’t seem to mind, he replied: “I’ll order it.”
“How are you going to order? You don’t even have a delivery app on your phone,” Xun Wenyao teased.
Xu Qiushi: “Can’t I call in an order?”
“Everyone uses apps now.”
“Then I’ll give you the money.”
“Any more politeness and I’m kicking you out,” Xun Wenyao threatened, waving his phone.
Xu Qiushi: “…”
Sitting alone on the sofa, Jiang Yichi watched the two of them chatting and laughing. He suddenly spoke up: “Xu Qiushi, I’m hungry.”
“So soon?” Xu Qiushi checked the time. He remembered Jiang Yichi had eaten quite a large breakfast. Since they left, aside from climbing the stairs, he hadn’t exerted much energy. How could he be hungry?
“What? You got a problem with that?” Jiang Yichi arched an eyebrow.
“No. Brother Wanyao, do you have any noodles? I’ll cook some,” Xu Qiushi asked.
“We’re going to prepare lunch soon anyway. Eating noodles now is a bit awkward. I have snacks here, the Little Master can have some to tide him over.” Xun Wenyao pulled out a bag of snacks. “Want some bread? I ordered milk tea, too.”
Jiang Yichi didn’t respond. He rummaged through the snack bag himself and pulled out a packet of pistachios.
Xu Qiushi naturally sat down beside him and began shelling them for him.
Xun Wenyao: “…”
Jiang Yichi wasn’t actually that hungry. He only ate several because Xu Qiushi was shelling them, which eventually left him thirsty, requiring Xu Qiushi to pour him water.
Seeing that the Little Master had no further needs for the moment, Xu Qiushi told him to wait for the delivery while he went to settle his belongings.
At noon, Xu Qiuze rushed over immediately after finishing his part-time job, with Gu Chengfei in tow. The last time Xun Wenyao’s house was this lively was during the Mid-Autumn Festival.
Lunch was, of course, prepared by Xu Qiushi. Since Xu Qiuze hadn’t been able to help with the move, he was actively helping his brother in the kitchen alongside Xun Wenyao. Meanwhile, the two young masters sat in the living room playing mobile games.
After lunch, Jiang Yichi and Gu Chengfei showed no intention of leaving. Xun Wenyao simply turned on the TV and put on a movie for them.
The small sofa couldn’t fit everyone, so Xu Qiushi moved a stool to sit by the side of the sofa.
It was an old foreign film.
Before long, Gu Chengfei dragged Xu Qiuze into looking at things on his phone. Xun Wenyao leaned lazily against the sofa and yawned, clearly not very interested in the movie either.
Jiang Yichi turned his head slightly and saw Xu Qiushi’s focused profile. His nose was tall, his jawline sharp. Because he was so concentrated, his blinking slowed down; every flutter of his thick lashes felt like a gentle tickle against Jiang Yichi’s heart, stirring a faint itch.
Xu Qiushi rarely watched TV. He used to lack the time, and now he lacked the means—neither his old rental nor the current maid’s room had a TV. So, he was currently completely absorbed, failing to notice that Jiang Yichi’s gaze had been fixed on him the entire time.
When the movie ended and the credits rolled, there was a touch of lingering melancholy in Xu Qiushi’s eyes from the story. Jiang Yichi snapped out of his daze and looked away, his ears turning red.
“Was it good?” Xun Wenyao asked Xu Qiushi with a smile.
“Yes, it was good,” Xu Qiushi nodded seriously.
Jiang Yichi thought to himself that the movie wasn’t nearly as good-looking as Xu Qiushi.
In the evening, Xun Wenyao had to go to the bar. Xu Qiushi finished making dinner early, and they all headed downstairs after eating.
Gu Chengfei and Xu Qiuze hitched a ride back to campus in Jiang Yichi’s car. Xu Qiushi stood by the side, watching them get in.
Only then did Jiang Yichi remember that Xu Qiushi was staying over at Xun Wenyao’s; today was his day off.
“Drive carefully,” Xu Qiushi instructed Xiao Zhang in the driver’s seat, raising a hand to wave goodbye to the others.
Jiang Yichi ignored him, apparently upset about something again.
Back at Xun Wenyao’s house, Xu Qiushi tidied up the living room and took a shower. Remembering Xun Wenyao’s suggestion to watch TV if he was bored, he watched the afternoon movie again, feeling quite satisfied as he went to bed.
The screen of his phone on the nightstand lit up with a text notification. It was from Jiang Yichi, asking what he was doing.
This time, the phone’s delay treated Jiang Yichi’s message with the same indifference as any other; it arrived exactly two hours late. Xu Qiushi typed out a reply: [Getting ready for bed.]
Jiang Yichi didn’t reply again, likely having fallen asleep. Xu Qiushi thought this as he turned off the light and lay down, falling into a peaceful sleep.