“So what happened next? After Teacher Bai caught you in the middle of… entertaining yourself, what did he say?”
“I already told you, I wasn’t. That toy was brand new, still unopened. It was Nuomi who bit the packaging apart.”
Su Yi’an rolled his eyes at his friend’s obviously gleeful expression on the other side of the screen. “He said he wanted to treat me to a meal, as thanks for taking care of the dog.”
Yang Jiayang slapped his thigh. “That’s a good thing! Didn’t I say you’ve been having peach blossom luck lately?”
“What’s so good about it? He even said excessive masturbation isn’t good for the body and told me to pay more attention to resting.” Su Yi’an tugged at the tassels of the throw pillow, his face full of despair. “Something this embarrassing actually happened to me twice. I might as well move. Forget the deposit.”
Seeing how hard his friend was holding back laughter, his gaze turned razor sharp.
Yang Jiayang immediately switched attitudes, frowning deeply as he launched into righteous indignation. “That’s way too much! How can he do that? Once the door’s closed, you can do whatever you want in your own home. Is it any of his business? What, does the sea belong to him or something, that he manages so much? So what if he’s good looking, does that mean he can casually invade someone’s privacy? He got to listen to a live performance for free and he didn’t even have to pay for a ticket. That’s already generous enough. Taking advantage and then acting righteous, bah!”
At first, Su Yi’an felt there was some logic to it but the more he listened, the more off it sounded. Ticket money? The way he put it made it sound like he was doing that kind of work.
“Stop. The more you talk, the more outrageous it gets.”
He buried his chin into the pillow, his voice muffled.
“I called you to help me think, not to rant. Bai Yunchi is treating me to a meal tomorrow. Do you think I should go or not?”
Yang Jiayang spat sunflower seed shells as he spoke. “Of course go. Anyone who doesn’t take advantage of a free meal is an idiot. Besides, you really did help him get his beloved dog back. What’s wrong with eating one meal for him?”
“It’s not like I can’t afford a meal myself and it’s pretty awkward.”
“Su Little Bookworm, you didn’t used to be like this. Bring out your sunshine and confidence. Remember, if you’re not awkward, then it’s other people who are.”
For once, Jiayang said something sensible. Feeling encouraged, Su Yi’an immediately sent Bai Yunchi a message and agreed to meet the next day at noon.
“What are you planning to wear when you go out tomorrow?” Yang Jiayang asked.
Su Yi’an answered casually, “Short sleeves. Why is it going to rain tomorrow?”
Yang Jiayang looked like he wanted to beat some sense into him. “No wonder you don’t have a partner.”
Su Yi’an looked completely baffled. “What does that have to do with whether I have a partner or not?”
Seeing his friend’s expression of frustration, he suddenly understood.
“I admit Bai Yunchi is pretty handsome but it’s not like I’m going to pounce on any good looking guy I see. It’s just a simple meal. Don’t overthink it.”
Yang Jiayang wagged a finger. “No, no, no. I have a feeling you’ve got a romantic tribulation coming. You know my intuition is always accurate.”
Just then, Su Yi’an received a message from Xiao Ke. After reading it, he spoke in a low, gloomy tone. “Then did your intuition tell you the shop is being maliciously reported by multiple people and if we don’t deal with it right away, our deposit is going to be deducted?”
“What?!” Yang Jiayang’s knuckles cracked loudly as he clenched his fist. “I want to see which blind bastard dares to block the young master’s road to wealth.”
As the other co-owner of the online shop, Su Yi’an also hurried to contact Xiao Ke to understand the situation.
The malicious complaint incident wasn’t resolved until two in the morning. Su Yi’an was so exhausted he didn’t even want to move a step. He curled up on the sofa and slept there for the night.
When he woke up the next day, his back was sore, his shoulders ached and dark circles had emerged under his eyes.
“Woof!”
He was in the middle of washing his face when he suddenly heard a dog bark. At first, Su Yi’an thought he was hearing things, until he heard the sound of a door opening outside the entryway. Only then did he dare to be sure.
He poked his head toward the door. “Is that Nuomi?”
What answered him was dog’s soft, clingy whining.
Su Yi’an’s lips curved up instinctively. He spat out the foam in his mouth, rinsed quickly, then ran to the entryway and pulled open the door, only to be knocked into by a fluffy, big white bundle.
Bai Yunchi wasn’t there, though the door to the neighboring apartment was open.
He withdrew his gaze and rubbed dog’s soft, plump pink triangular ears, delighted. “Nuomi, why did you sneak out again? You like big brother that much?”
“Then come live with my big brother. Big brother will buy you meat every day.”
“Eating only meat can easily lead to nutritional imbalance. He likes broccoli and okra, you can pair them together.”
A man’s voice, warm and faintly amused, sounded from behind him.
Su Yi’an froze for a moment. Seeing him stop, dog wagged its tail and stamped its paws, pushing eagerly into his arms.
He quickly and discreetly rubbed the dog’s head twice, then stood up and greeted him with slight awkwardness. “Good morning, Teacher Bai.”
Bai Yunchi smiled and nodded. “Good morning.”
The man’s expression was natural and composed, as though he hadn’t taken what happened before to heart at all. Seeing this, Su Yi’an gradually relaxed as well.
The dog kept throwing itself at him. Even though it held back its strength, its size alone was enough. Su Yi’an was pushed back again and again. Unable to withstand dog’s affectionate onslaught any longer, he bent down, caught the little guy and vigorously rubs its fluffy face right in front of its owner.
The dog was so comfortable it let out happy little sounds, its tail wagging so hard it looked like it might fly off.
The little one was far too enthusiastic. Su Yi’an was struggling to cope, dodging dog’s slobbery attacks as he called for help, “Teacher Bai, save- ”
It was rare to see a dog like this, so Bai Yunchi deliberately didn’t stop it at first. Only when he heard the young man calling for help did he curl his lips slightly and say, “Nuomi, calm down.”
The little one was very obedient and immediately stopped pouncing on Su Yi’an. Just when Su Yi’an thought he had been saved, dog suddenly stood up on its hind legs and licked him right on the chin. Then, wearing a triumphant Samoyed smile, it wagged its tail and trotted back to its owner.
Caught completely off guard, Su Yi’an wiped away the saliva and commented, “What a crafty dog.”
The young man’s expression was far too entertaining. Bai Yunchi couldn’t help letting out a soft laugh.
“Nuomi is rarely this clingy. It seems it really likes you.” He said this while rubbing dog’s head.
Su Yi’an said happily, “I like it quite a lot too.”
“Woof~”
As if it understood, the little one wagged its tail again and rushed forward.
Bai Yunchi didn’t stop. After letting one person and one dog interact for a bit longer, he said, “It’s getting late. Shall we get ready and go have lunch?”
“Okay.”
Su Yi’an went back inside to change clothes. Before heading out, he noticed the blazing sun outside the window with no hint of clouds, so he pulled a baseball cap down onto his head.
Bai Yunchi, on the other hand, didn’t seem bothered by the heat at all. He was still wearing a fitted suit, looking like a model about to head out for a street photoshoot. When Su Yi’an stood next to him, he felt like a little assistant holding someone’s bag.
Seeing how neatly dressed the man was, Su Yi’an thought he might have something else to attend to and said, “Teacher Bai, if you’re busy, we can reschedule for another day.”
“I’m not busy. There’s nothing particularly important today.”
Su Yi’an nodded. He glanced quietly at his own washed denim jeans and pressed his lips together.
If he’d known, he would’ve dressed a bit more formally too.
Bai Yunchi pressed the elevator button and smiled as he said, “This is just right. Clean, refreshing, full of youthful energy.”
His little thoughts having been noticed, Su Yi’an awkwardly brushed the tip of his nose.
When they reached the underground parking garage, Su Yi’an was surprised to discover that the BMW 5 Series he had seen a few days ago actually belonged to Bai Yunchi.
He sat down in the passenger seat, eyes sparkling as he stared at the steering wheel.
The seats were very comfortable and the view was wide and open. When he had money in the future, he’d buy this one!
Catching sight of the young man out of the corner of his eye, Bai Yunchi asked, “Do you like cars?”
Seeing him shake his head and then nod, Bai Yunchi laughed. “What does that mean?”
Su Yi’an explained, “You could say it’s a childhood obsession. When I was little, I always hoped I’d have a car of my own. Now I’m working hard toward that dream.”
“Keep it up. I believe that dream will come true before long,” Bai Yunchi said sincerely.
“I think so too,” Su Yi’an replied.
The car fell quiet. Afraid of disturbing the man while he was driving, Su Yi’an took out his phone from his pocket and played around on it for a while. When he looked up again, the car had already driven beyond the Third Ring Road.
“…?”
“Teacher Bai, where exactly are we going?”
They were almost at the outskirts now. The surroundings were desolate and it didn’t look like there would be any restaurant around here at all…
Keeping his expression neutral, Su Yi’an quietly opened WeChat and sent his real time location to a friend.
Bai Yunchi was ten years older than Su Yi’an and a university lecturer. He didn’t need to guess to understand these little cautious thoughts.
He didn’t point it out. After turning the car into an even more remote side road, he finally explained, “A friend opened a farmhouse restaurant out here. The food tastes pretty good. After eating too much fast food in the city, it’s nice to change flavors once in a while with rustic dishes cooked in big pots.”
So that was it.
Su Yi’an secretly let out a sigh of relief. Then, thinking about it again, Bai Yunchi was a teacher at Liao’an University, he really shouldn’t have doubted him like that just now.
At that moment, a message from Yang Jiayang came through.
Yang Jiayang: [What do you mean by this? Were you kidnapped?]
Yang Jiayang: [An’an?]
Yang Jiayang: [Su Yi’an, Su Xiaoqi! Answer me!]
Yang Jiayang: [An’an, don’t scare me like this. I’m coming to save you right now, wait for me!]
He didn’t know what he had accidentally touched but voice messages started popping out one after another. Listening to them made Su Yi’an’s toes curl in embarrassment; he wished he could jump out of the car and flee the scene on the spot.
Suddenly, he heard the man beside him chuckle softly, his laughter deliberately lowered, followed by Bai Yunchi’s voice. “Your friend is quite interesting.”
“We grew up together in the same orphanage,” Su Yi’an explained hurriedly. “We’re closer than real brothers. I just sent him my location to ask if he’d ever been to this farmhouse before. He thought I’d been kidnapped and wanted to come rescue me, haha.”
An orphanage?
Bai Yunchi’s hands tightened slightly around the steering wheel.
Su Yi’an was mortified. He hadn’t even realized what he had blurted out.
“Xiao Su, there’s a black card holder on the back seat. Help me grab it.”
“Oh, okay.”
Su Yi’an reached back and picked up the card holder. “This one, Teacher Bai?”
“Yes. Open it.”
Su Yi’an did as told.
Inside was the man’s ID card. Even the photo looked like something straight out of a modeling shoot, handsome to an unreasonable degree.
He glanced at the birthdate and discovered that Bai Yunchi was actually ten years older than him. That meant when Su Yi’an was still in elementary school, Bai Yunchi had already been in university.
Then he heard Bai Yunchi say, “Take a photo and send it to your friend.”
Su Yi’an looked confused. “Take a photo of what? The ID?”
Bai Yunchi nodded, teasing lightly. “Use my ID as collateral for your friend. That way, he won’t think I’m a bad person, right?”
Su Yi’an froze for a moment. When he came back to his senses, his ears turned red. “No need. Teacher Bai isn’t a bad person.”
As he spoke, he snapped the card holder shut and stiffly placed it back on the rear seat.
Seeing his reaction, Bai Yunchi smiled and said, “Relax. I’m not going to sell you off.”
After hearing that, Su Yi’an had no idea where to put his hands or feet.
Thankfully, the destination wasn’t too far away. After passing a stretch of wheat fields, they arrived.
Su Yi’an got out of the car and subtly moved his stiff limbs before following beside Bai Yunchi toward the farmhouse restaurant.
“Yunchi, you’re here!”
The one greeting them was the chef of the farmhouse, his tone familiar and friendly, clearly well acquainted with Bai Yunchi.
When the two of them drew closer, the old master added, “From far away, I thought you’d brought a girl along. Only when you got close did I realize it’s a young lad but look at you, so good looking, even prettier than a girl.”
The old man was speaking in some local dialect, his accent thick and heavy. Even so, Su Yi’an understood him perfectly.
He was being mistaken for a girl.
Su Yi’an immediately took off his baseball cap, revealing his short hair and smooth, uncovered forehead.
The old master said again, “You look even more like a girl with that hat off.”
Su Yi’an: “……”
“Uncle Lin, do you still have soy braised duck? I’ve been craving the one you make and adding a few of your signature stir fried dishes as well,” Bai Yunchi said smoothly, stepping in to ease the situation.
“Yes, I do. I’ll go get it for you right now.”
After the old man left, Su Yi’an heard the man beside him explain in a low voice, “The old gentleman is getting on in years, his eyesight isn’t what it used to be. As long as someone’s young, he ends up seeing everyone as a girl.”
Su Yi’an nodded. Then he looked at the man with curiosity and asked, “Teacher Bai, have you ever been mistaken for a girl too?”
Bai Yunchi smiled as he looked at the young man. “When I first met Old Master Lin, his eyesight hadn’t gone bad yet.”
“Oh.” Su Yi’an pretended to admire the scenery around them.
He felt that his little thoughts had been seen through and out of guilt, he didn’t dare meet Bai Yunchi’s gaze.
✦ ✧ ✦
Fleurveil
[Translator]
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← PreviousNext →
ChaptersChapter 1 · New neighborsChapter 2 · Let’s just wash it.Chapter 3 · Pretty little girlChapter 4 · It’s impossible for us.Chapter 5 · Not as handsome as Teacher BaiChapter 6 · Happy cooperationChapter 7 · Making breakfastChapter 8 · LostChapter 9 · He’s hopelessly in love.Chapter 10 · Three CloudChapter 11 · Am I Old?Chapter 12 · Victory celebration banquetChapter 13 · Power outrageChapter 14 · Online dating meetupChapter 15 · Am I really that bad?Chapter 16 · Boyfriend?Chapter 17 · ConcertChapter 18 · Use Privileges.Chapter 19 · A night AloneChapter 20 · Do You Like me?Chapter 21 · The End