The weather was very hot. Xia Shuo bought a bottle of water, stood in the shade by the roadside to drink a few sips, and replied to Shen Yu’s message on his phone.
【Xia Bu Xia: I feel like milk tea has a bit too much caffeine. Why am I still so energetic after drinking it in the afternoon?】
【Yu Yu Yu: Because I saw you drinking it happily.】
【Xia Bu Xia: Brother, are you at the library too?】
【Yu Yu Yu: Mm.】
Shen Yu unlocked his phone to check it every three seconds, until he completely confirmed that Xia Shuo was indeed not replying to this message, nor was he coming to the library to find him.
His roommate next to him whispered, “Who is Brother Yu waiting for a message from?”
The person across shook their head. “Who knows?”
“Does Brother Yu have a girlfriend?”
“Why is he acting just like me waiting for my girlfriend’s message?”
Shen Yu tapped his fingers on the table, and the few of them quieted down.
Xia Shuo was indeed busy on his end because there really was good news, except that he could only convey half of it for now.
[Get Rich Quick by Going Outside 503]
Xia Bu Xia: Family members, you can start getting ready. Muna has a pretty good impression of Hao.
Hao Hao Dang Dang: Wuwuwuwu, Shuo, I love you.
Xia Shuo replied: Save it for the confession.
Luo Xiao Yang: Reliable, bro.
Bu Zhi Qiu: Congratulations, congratulations!
Xia Shuo replied: Save it for when the confession succeeds.
Hao Hao Dang Dang: Is the probability high, Shuo? Wuwuwu, I’m so nervous.
Xia Shuo replied: If the probability wasn’t high, would you not do it?
Hao Hao Dang Dang: Of course not.
Xia Shuo: Then that’s that.
Luo Xiao Yang: Brothers, get ready.
Bu Zhi Qiu: [Fireworks] [Fireworks]
Xia Shuo walked into the dorm. Nobody had classes in the afternoon. Luo Qiu was wearing headphones playing a video game, whether from getting too worked up or something else, his ears were bright red.
Luo Yang was watching an anime.
Gao Hao was writing some kind of document.
Xia Shuo leaned in to look. The title was: A Confession Must Begin with a Bouquet of Flowers.
Gao Hao saw Xia Shuo leaning over and pointed at the flowers on the PPT. “Do these look good?”
Xia Shuo looked at the flowers on the screen, thinking of what Gao Yiqing had said today about Muna liking purple. “You know she likes purple.”
Gao Hao grew embarrassed. “The hairclip on her head and her phone case are purple, so I guessed she must like it.”
“Hao, I didn’t expect you to look so imposing, but your attention to detail is quite delicate.”
“That’s because you haven’t liked someone yet. Once you do, you’ll understand. You’ll notice every little detail about them.”
Xia Shuo returned to his spot, washed his hands, wiped his phone with a wet wipe, and opened his computer to play a game.
In a daze, he wondered if he had gotten too used to being with Shen Yu, thus picking up his cleanliness habits.
Barely two games in, the dorm door was knocked on. Everyone said with tacit agreement, “Shuo, your brother is here.”
As soon as the words fell, the door opened, and Shen Yu walked in carrying a bag of fruit.
May in Qingcheng was already very hot. Shen Yu was wearing a thin white shirt made of some unknown fabric that looked very flowy.
Shen Yu placed the fruit on the desks of the other three one by one, and sounds of thanks immediately erupted in the dorm.
“Thank you, Brother Yu! Brother Yu, you are my god!!” Hao looked at the mixed bag of apples, pears, bananas, and oranges on his desk and wished he could recognize Brother Yu as his biological brother on the spot.
Luo Yang stopped watching his anime, his eyes sparkling. “Brother Yu, you’re my own brother. From now on, if you tell me to go east, I’ll never go west. If you tell me to play video games, I’ll never cyber-romance.”
Luo Qiu was a bit more reserved. He took off his headphones and said in a tiny voice, “Thank you, Brother Yu.”
Looking at his respawning hero on the computer screen, Xia Shuo asserted his dominance, “Brother Yu only has me as a younger brother. Thank you.”
“Tsk tsk tsk.”
“Ew.”
In Xia Shuo’s blind spot, Shen Yu hooked the corners of his lips in a smile.
But remembering something, those hooked corners quickly dropped back down. “I happened to run into you and a girl by the library drinking milk tea today.”
Xia Shuo was playing his game intensely, but still felt soft-hearted toward his brother. “Sit down, Brother. Why are you standing?”
Their dorm specifically bought a folding stool for Shen Yu, normally, it was folded up when he wasn’t around.
Shen Yu placed a box of cut fruit on the desk, pulled out the stool, opened it, and sat right next to Xia Shuo, almost knee-to-knee.
Game character over. Xia Shuo turned his head back to look at Shen Yu, who was right within arm’s reach. “This afternoon, I had something to deal with regarding Gao Yiqing. Brother, don’t you know her too? She’s in our class, used to be the vice monitor.”
Xia Shuo was only one grade below Shen Yu. The two went to the same high school, and everyone in their class had known about their relationship back then.
Shen Yu also knew many of their classmates.
Shen Yu didn’t speak, nor did he wait for his little junior to take the initiative to tell him what business he had with Gao Yiqing this afternoon.
His game character revived. Out of the corner of his eye, Xia Shuo caught sight of the fruit box, filled to the brim with all his favorites.
“Brother, did you go buy fruit cutlets?”
“Fruit cutlets? What fruit cutlets?”
“Isn’t this a whole box?”
Hao ran over to take a look and walked away sobbing, “Shuo, I’m so envious. We only get whole fruits.”
Xia Shuo’s character returned to base, and his brain finally recovered a bit. Shen Yu had mysophobia and certainly wouldn’t buy pre-cut fruit from outside, so he asked, “Brother, did you cut these yourself?”
“Mm.”
“Brother, you’re too good.” Xia Shuo played while talking, but washing his hands before eating fruit was a habit he had kept ever since following Shen Yu.
Yet he felt this round had a very high chance of winning, and he was eager to taste the fruit.
Hefitating for a moment, he said, “Brother, can you feed me?”
Shen Yu’s gaze darkened as he stared at Xia Shuo.
Xia Shuo clacked away frantically on the keyboard, waiting for half a day without noticing any reaction from the person beside him. So, he emphasized again, “I need to carry the whole team this wave, my hands can’t leave. Brother, hurry up and feed me, recharge and power me up.”
Worried that Shen Yu hadn’t heard him this time, he even nudged Shen Yu’s thigh with his own, parting his lips slightly to signal him.
In the dorm, Luo Qiu had just finished a match and was preparing to wash some fruit when his gaze inadvertently swept across Xia Shuo’s desk.
Startled by the aggressive possessiveness in Shen Yu’s eyes, he immediately looked away, pretending nothing had happened.
In their circle, situations like this were relatively common, just one look was enough to know what was going on.
It was just that looking at Xia Shuo’s completely clueless demeanor, he silently lit a symbolic candle for Shen Yu.
Shen Yu didn’t spare any attention for anyone else in the dorm.
His entire focus was captured by the boy in front of him.
Xia Shuo’s mouth was parted slightly, just like a little cat waiting for its master to feed it.
Shen Yu was more than willing to be this cat’s master, even if the cat was wildly popular, needed to be watched extremely closely, and didn’t like going home.
He picked up a fork, skewered a piece of Chinese pear, and brought it to Xia Shuo’s lips. Xia Shuo instinctively carried it away into his mouth.
Chewing twice and swallowing, Xia Shuo praised, “So sweet, Brother.”
Shen Yu’s Adam’s apple bobbed as he murmured, “Very sweet.”
Shen Yu skewered another piece and passed it over.
“Be a good boy. Open up.”
On Friday evening, Xia Shuo had dinner with Shen Yu at Qingtang, a place he had been longing for.
This time, Xia Shuo finally got to enjoy his long-awaited black truffle braised pork belly and hawthorn sweet-and-sour spare ribs.
Shen Yu didn’t eat much himself, constantly picking food and placing it in Xia Shuo’s bowl.
Xia Shuo ate happily, without forgetting tonight’s important matter.
With the confession preparations weighing on his mind, he remembered something crucial halfway through the meal and quickly sent a voice message to the group chat.
[Get Rich Quick by Going Outside 503]
Xia Shuo: “Were the flowers delivered?”
The moment the voice message finished playing, right as notifications buzzed continuously, Shen Yu’s chopsticks dropped against the table across from him.
Utterly oblivious, Xia Shuo looked at the replies in the group chat and sent another voice message.
Xia Shuo: “As long as the flowers were delivered, I’ll be right there.”
The group chat started buzzing with lively chatter again. Xia Shuo was still busy wolfing down his food, completely unaware of the change in expression on the face across from him.
After a couple more bites, his phone buzzed continuously. Xia Shuo picked it up to take a look and replied with yet another voice message.
Xia Shuo: “For something as important as a confession, of course you have to pay attention to all the little details.”
Just as his words trailed off, Shen Yu’s water glass suddenly tipped over, spilling water all over him.
Xia Shuo quickly put down his phone and grabbed a tissue from the table to wipe it up.
“Brother Yu, are you alright? Did you get burned?”
Shen Yu’s voice sounded less than pleasant as he muttered darkly, “Not hot.”
Looking at the large wet patch on Shen Yu’s pants, Xia Shuo offered, “Brother, I’m done eating. Let’s head back.”
Hearing this, Shen Yu curved the corners of his lips.
He didn’t get to stay happy for long, though. After getting into the car, Xia Shuo suddenly said, “Brother, can you drop me off at Chenghu Grand Hotel first?”
Shen Yu suddenly accelerated. Xia Shuo lost his balance, lurched forward, and hurriedly reminded him, “You’re speeding, Brother.”
As if he hadn’t heard a thing, Shen Yu didn’t budge at all, showing no signs of slowing down.
Scared out of his wits, Xia Shuo kept reminding him from the side, “Brother, you’re speeding!”
Knowing that you should never touch someone else’s arm while they are driving, Xia Shuo could only repeatedly call out Shen Yu’s name.
Fortunately, it worked a little. As if snapping out of a trance, Shen Yu slowly began to drop the car’s speed.
Luckily, this area was quite remote with very few cars around. Xia Shuo patted his chest to calm his lingering fear and asked cautiously, “What’s wrong, Brother?”
Shen Yu masked the dark look in his eyes, replacing it with his usual gentle expression. “It’s nothing. I haven’t been sleeping well lately, I’m a bit tired.”
The sensation of the out-of-control speed still lingered. Gazing over, Xia Shuo noticed Shen Yu seemed to be trembling slightly. “Brother, let me drive. You can’t drive if you’re not well-rested. Let me drive you around if you need to go anywhere these next few days.”
Shen Yu found a spot to park and let Xia Shuo take the wheel. Xia Shuo had obtained his driver’s license at 18 and was long past his probationary period, with several cars at home, he practically counted as a seasoned driver.
Watching the vehicle move forward steadily while the scenery slowly receded, remembering the two people he saw at the library a few days ago, and thinking of the voice message Xia Shuo sent at the restaurant, Shen Yu looked at the profile of the person beside him illuminated by the streetlights, and finally opened his mouth to say what was on his mind.
“Xia Shuo.”
“Hmm?” Xia Shuo asked, puzzled. Shen Yu rarely addressed him by his full name, usually, he only did so when Xia Shuo was in trouble.
“What’s wrong, Brother?”
“Where are you going today?”
“Chenghu Grand Hotel.”
“Don’t worry, Brother, I’ll definitely drop you off at home before I go.”
“Why do you have to go?”
Hearing this, a smile danced in Xia Shuo’s eyes.
Shen Yu always loved watching Xia Shuo smile. Today’s Xia Shuo still smiled as brilliantly as the stars, but Shen Yu felt like his chest was tightly blocked.
“Brother, I really have to go. Tonight’s matter is very important.”
“I’ll tell you the good news when I get back.”
The car entered a tunnel, plunging the interior into pitch black. Shen Yu immersed himself entirely in the darkness.
He hated it. He hated Xia Shuo placing his gaze on anyone else, and he hated himself for playing the role of the gentle older brother.
His fingers clenched tightly together, his knuckles letting out a crack.
Xia Shuo’s favorite music played inside the car, drowning out the sound of his joints.
Xia Shuo was still in a good mood, humming along to a couple of lines.
After exiting the tunnel, the light inside the car grew brighter, and Shen Yu’s expression slowly returned to normal.
His tone and voice resumed their usual gentleness. “Drive slower. There’s no rush.”
Xia Shuo acknowledged the instruction and steered into the slow lane.