An indescribable expression flickered across Yan Congyu’s face. “…Your brother at home?”
“What else?” Gu Ji chuckled. “Did you think I picked up a little brother from the streets?”
Yan Congyu suddenly felt awkward. So he had misunderstood after all, but he couldn’t explain the assumption he’d just made.
“…Your brother doesn’t look much like you,” Yan Congyu attempted to smooth things over. “I couldn’t tell.”
“We have different parents,” Gu Ji explained briefly before introducing, “This is my brother, Lu Chi.”
Once he learned the boy was Gu Ji’s brother, the gloom in Yan Congyu’s heart instantly lifted. He smiled warmly. “Your brother is adorable.”
“Right?” Gu Ji grinned, turning to introduce Lu Chi, only to find the boy staring intently at Yan Congyu, looking as if he had something to say but was holding back.
Gu Ji glanced between the two, puzzled. “Have you met before?”
Lu Chi spoke up, “I know Senior Yan. The teachers always talk about you. You’re amazing. There are even photos of you at school.”
Yan Congyu paused briefly. “Thank you.”
Gu Ji blinked, turning to Yan Congyu curiously. “Aren’t you an art student?”
Yan Congyu turned to explain, “I participated in a few academic competitions before.”
“No wonder he knows you,” Gu Ji remarked.
Yan Congyu excused himself after a few more words, saying he had other matters to attend to. Only after he left did Lu Chi hesitantly ask, “Brother, are you close with Senior Yan?”
Gu Ji looked puzzled. “We’re fairly familiar. Why?”
Lu Chi spoke cautiously, “Could you ask him to recommend a couple of competition study guides? I want to know which books he used before.”
Gu Ji: “…”
As someone who wasn’t particularly studious, Gu Ji truly couldn’t understand Lu Chi’s mindset.
“He was right here just now. Why didn’t you ask him yourself?” Gu Ji wondered aloud.
Lu Chi mumbled softly, “I was nervous.”
“…Alright then,” Gu Ji relented. “I’ll ask him for you later.”
After the meal, Gu Ji drove Lu Chi home. When they arrived downstairs, Lu Chi lingered in the car, hesitating before finally asking, “Brother, aren’t you coming in?”
“Next time,” Gu Ji tapped the steering wheel, urging him. “We’re here. Hurry up and go inside.”
“Okay,” Lu Chi replied reluctantly. “When will you come back, brother?”
“You sound like a left-behind child,” Gu Ji teased affectionately. “I’ll be back during the holidays. Go on upstairs now. Call me if you need anything.”
“Okay.”
Hearing that he could call Gu Ji anytime, Lu Chi nodded and finally got out of the car.
Lu Chi stood at the foot of the building, watching until the car disappeared around the corner before silently heading upstairs.
Inside the apartment, a woman in the kitchen heard the door open and came out, drying her hands. “Xiao Chi, did you see your brother?”
The woman appeared to be in her forties, her face bearing the marks of time despite careful upkeep.
“Mm,” Lu Chi placed the thermal container on the table. “Brother said the soup was delicious.”
“And then?” You Lanshu’s face lit up with a smile as she took the container to the kitchen. “…Is Xiao Ji still upset about what happened during the New Year? Did he say anything to you?”
Lu Chi shook his head. “No. He said they broke up.”
You Lanshu was taken aback, pausing what she was doing. “What?”
Lu Chi explained, “Brother and his ex-boyfriend broke up. He said what’s past is past and there’s no need to bring it up again.”
“This is so much better. I’ve been worried for so long, and now I can finally breathe a sigh of relief.” You Lanshu spoke with heartfelt sincerity, “Don’t mind my nagging. It’s perfectly normal for Xiao Ji to like boys. But that boyfriend of his, just from his appearance, doesn’t seem easy to get along with. At a glance, you can tell he’s not sincere.”
“By the way, did Xiao Ji say when he’s coming home?”
Lu Chi replied, “Brother just dropped me off, but he didn’t come up.”
You Lanshu quickly put down what she was holding and walked over to the window to look. “Where? Where?”
“He’s already left. He said he wouldn’t come up today.” Lu Chi took a sip of water, also feeling happy. “He’ll come back during the next break. I’ll go air out the blankets in his room later.”
A hint of disappointment crossed You Lanshu’s face. “Next time, ask Xiao Ji in advance when he’s coming back. I’ll make a few more of his favorite dishes.”
While playing games with his dormmates that evening, Gu Ji’s phone buzzed twice. He picked it up and saw that Yan Congyu had sent him a photo.
[Yan Congyu: Finished the painting. Is there anything you’d like me to change?]
The scene was set at night, under a deep blue sky. A boy sat on the grass, one hand propping him up, his eyes lowered as if calmly gazing at the lake. Even through the screen, Gu Ji suddenly felt a sense of daze, as if he were there in person.
After their painting session at the back lake, Gu Ji had only seen the unfinished work and hadn’t paid much attention to it at the time. He never expected the final piece to be so stunning.
“Brother Gu—come on, come on! Why aren’t you moving?” Cheng Zhou hammered his keyboard frantically, only to turn and see Gu Ji on his phone. He nearly cried, “We’re in the final circle! What are you doing?! My god!”
Snapped back to reality by Cheng Zhou’s yelling, Gu Ji refocused on the game. Fortunately, they were already in the final circle, and the match ended in just a couple of minutes.
After exiting the game, Gu Ji picked up his phone again and replied sincerely, [The painting is really good.]
He couldn’t think of any fancy adjectives, but even as a layman, his first impression of the painting was that it was beautiful.
[Yan Congyu: Thank you.]
[Yan Congyu: It’s because the model is good-looking.]
[Gu Ji: You painted it much better than I look in real life.]
“Brother Gu, why aren’t you playing anymore?” Cheng Zhou leaned over. “What are you looking at?”
Gu Ji turned his phone around to show him.
The figure in the painting was easily recognizable as Gu Ji, with almost identical features, but the unique play of light and shadow created a captivating atmosphere. Even though it was just a painting, it was hard to look away. Cheng Zhou found himself staring at the boy in the painting, momentarily entranced.
Cheng Zhou snapped out of it slowly, wiping away imaginary drool. “Who painted this?”
Gu Ji teased, “Guess?”
“Can’t guess.” Cheng Zhou leaned in closer. “Send me this photo, will you? It’s too good.”
He propped his head up and studied Gu Ji, then suddenly blurted out, “If only you were a girl.”
Gu Ji laughed in exasperation and kicked him. “What are you talking about?”
“Ah, if you were a girl, I’d definitely chase after you.” Cheng Zhou didn’t dodge but sighed wistfully. “But never mind, it’s pretty great being bros too.”
Xu Jingyin grew curious. “What could make Orange say something like that? Let me see.”
Song Jinzhen also turned around. “Me too.”
Gu Ji handed them his phone.
A moment later.
Xu Jingyin fell silent for a few seconds before praising, “Xiao Gu really is beautiful.”
Song Jinzhen sighed, “Thankfully my sexual orientation doesn’t align, otherwise I’d spend a fortune trying to win over someone like you.”
Gu Ji took a step back, resisting, “Don’t use that tone, it’s weird.”
Cheng Zhou wrapped an arm around Gu Ji’s neck from behind and suggested, “Brother Gu, are you interested in cosplaying?” He gestured, “The mature female type.”
Gu Ji pushed Cheng Zhou away without mercy, “No, not at all.”
As they spoke, the screen showed a new message notification.
[Yan Congyu: Do you mind if I use this painting for a competition?]
[Gu Ji: Not at all. It’s your painting, so you decide.]
Gu Ji took back his phone and glanced at the photo again. Perhaps because it was hard to judge oneself objectively, he still felt Cheng Zhou and the others were overreacting.
Just then, his phone buzzed again. Gu Ji initially thought it was another message from Yan Congyu, but upon opening it, he found it was from the basketball team captain.
[Xie Chu: You there, bro? About the friendly match against another school next week. Do you have time to play?]
Gu Ji paused. His basketball skills were decent among amateurs, but far from professional level. He’d always treated it as a hobby. Besides, it had been so long since he last played that his skills had grown rusty.
Playing casually with friends was one thing, but competing in a match felt risky.
Gu Ji replied honestly, [Better not. I’m not up to it, and I don’t want to cause a loss.]
[Xie Chu: It’s just a friendly match; winning or losing doesn’t matter. The main point is to showcase our team’s spirit.]
[Gu Ji: …Showcase our spirit?]
Since when did Xie Chu, who was usually obsessed with winning, say things like that?
On the other end, Xie Chu realized Gu Ji wasn’t easily fooled. After a moment’s thought, he came clean: [Lately, you’ve been so popular at school. Lots of people have been asking me when you’ll play in a match.]
[Xie Chu: I thought I’d arrange one for you, and it’d help promote our basketball team. Maybe we could even get more funding from the student council.]
[Gu Ji: …]
[Xie Chu: Begging on my knees.jpg]
[Xie Chu: Winning is important, but so is reputation. Whether our basketball team can become the top club this year depends on you. I’m begging you, just one match—only one!]
Gu Ji had joined the basketball team voluntarily and was genuinely interested in playing. With the captain pleading like this, he couldn’t bring himself to refuse.
After checking his schedule for the following week, he asked, [Which day?]
[Xie Chu: Saturday or Sunday, whichever works for you. Just come if you can.]