While conducting experiments in the evening, Jiang Chicheng couldn't help but frequently glance at the empty sofa in the break area. Shiye hadn't come today.
He suppressed his thoughts and, after half an hour of work, kept checking his phone, then looked at the backup phone.
There were no messages.
Jiang Chicheng felt a bit unhappy.
What’s wrong with him? Why is he so unresponsive after getting my wechat? Where did last night’s enthusiasm go? Is he just trying to play it cool? If we only chat a few sentences a day, how long will it take before we actually kiss?
Damn.
After finishing the experiment, he sent Shiye a message, asking how his conversation with the girl was going. An hour passed without a reply, and he couldn't get through when he tried calling.
—
Jiang Chicheng left the lab early and went home. As soon as he walked in, he shivered from the cold air conditioning. Turning around, he noticed the faint blue light flickering from the TV screen and sighed in relief.
In the living room, Shiye sat cross-legged on the sofa, holding a cat in his arms, wrapped in a blanket, looking like a meditating monk, staring expressionlessly at the screen.
Shiye always said that watching TV in the dark was bad for the eyes. He never used to turn off the lights and wouldn’t let Jiang Chicheng do so either. So, it was strange he was like this now.
Jiang Chicheng first reached for the air conditioning remote. Seeing the current temperature was set to 15 degrees, he immediately turned it off and opened the window for ventilation.
Shiye didn’t stop him. When Jiang Chicheng sat down, Shiye shifted slightly in his seat. It was an entirely unnecessary movement; the sofa was long enough that they wouldn't feel cramped even if he sat in the middle.
Jiang Chicheng guessed he must have upset Shiye and stroked his chin. “Why didn’t you answer when I called?”
“My phone was dead.”
“Why didn’t you charge it?”
“I didn’t want to answer the call.”
Jiang Chicheng was sure he had offended this ancestor. He didn’t say anything more, opened a bag of shrimp chips, and drank a can of AD calcium milk. He looked at Shiye again. “What did I do to upset you?”
Shiye continued to stroke the cat, ignoring him.
“Say something. You didn’t reply to my messages or answer my calls. You need to give me a reason. Are you three years old? Pulling this silent treatment nonsense?”
Shiye slammed the table. “What are you yelling about? You think only you can do it?”
The cat in his arms was startled by the noise and jumped off the sofa, running away.
“…”
Jiang Chicheng took a deep breath, his hands searching his pockets for cigarettes, but finding none, he settled for another sip of AD calcium milk. “How did your conversation go?”
Shiye fell silent again, knees together, curling into the corner of the sofa, fiddling with his fingers. After a while, he said softly, “Didn’t you already guess?”
Jiang Chicheng watched him lost in thought, nearly choking on his words. “Guess what?”
Shiye took a deep breath. “She rejected me.”
Jiang Chicheng nodded, but midway through, he froze. “She rejected you…?”
Jiang Chicheng struggled to recall their brief chat and couldn’t remember saying anything that sounded like a rejection. To encourage him, he even added an exclamation mark after “OK!”
Shiye became emo again. “I told you that asking someone out in such a rush wouldn’t work. You insisted I say it. She wanted my WeChat before, but you didn’t give it. Did you really not hope for my success at all…”
Jiang Chicheng couldn’t listen anymore. He reached for Shiye’s phone on the sofa. “Let me see what you two talked about.”
Shiye grabbed his phone and tucked it into his chest. “That’s my privacy.”
Jiang Chicheng nodded and crossed his arms, lying back on the other end of the sofa. “Just tell me how she rejected you.”
“She said, ‘OK.’”
“Isn’t that an agreement?”
“But she immediately said she had something to do and would talk later.”
Jiang Chicheng was confused. “How is that a rejection?”
“It’s like when you call a friend and say you’ll treat them to a meal next time. It’s just a polite response—saying yes on the surface and forgetting it afterward.”
Jiang Chicheng pondered for a moment and frowned. “Isn’t it possible that she was actually busy or working overtime at that time? She did say she’d talk later.”
“But isn’t she also not working overtime?”
Jiang Chicheng suddenly understood the core issue. It wasn't that Shiye wasn't enthusiastic; it was that he was worried his enthusiasm might scare the girl away.
The Shiye he knew was usually carefree and rarely had such delicate thoughts. He cared too much about “Jiang Chizao,” which was a good thing, but this care wasn’t based on the “Jiang Chizao” role he played.
Feeling a bit irritated, Jiang Chicheng said, “I suggest you stop overthinking. If you're unsure, just ask her directly.”
Shiye hesitated. “What if she ignores me?”
Jiang Chicheng stood up and said coldly, “It’s her honor to be like by you.”
He left that sentence hanging and turned to head back to his room, leaving Shiye staring in surprise, shaking his head for a long time. “This is such a terrible ideology of male superiority.”
He took Jiang Chicheng’s words to heart and lay in bed that night, figuring Jiang Chizao must have finished her work. He hid under the covers and sent her a message.
ShiyeBBQ: [Peeking].jpg
ShiyeBBQ: What do you want to eat? Any dislikes?
Jiang Chizao replied quickly, almost immediately as he sent the message, the chat box changed to “The other party is typing…”
Zao: I have no dislikes.
Zao: Since you’re treating, you decide the place. I’m not very familiar with the area.
Zao: How about tomorrow night?
Shiye sat up abruptly from bed, trembling with excitement.
ShiyeBBQ: Okay, what time tomorrow night?
Zao: Let’s meet at seven.
Zao: Just send me the address after you book it.
ShiyeBBQ: [OK].jpg
After sending the message, Shiye jumped out of bed without putting on his shoes and rushed out, pounding on Jiang Chicheng's door. “Jiang Chicheng! Open the door! Hurry, I have something! It's a big deal!”
Jiang Chicheng was probably angry with him. No matter how hard Shiye knocked, he wouldn’t respond, and he didn’t answer the phone either. It was only ten o'clock at night, and Shiye knew he wasn’t asleep.
After Jiang Chicheng had ignored him for nearly half an hour, Shiye was so anxious he felt like he was about to catch fire: "It's written in the agreement; you can’t just ignore me!"
As soon as he finished speaking, the door opened from the inside.
Jiang Chicheng stood at the door, wearing a dark blue silk pajama set, a faint smell of smoke lingering on him. His amber eyes looked at Shiye with a particularly cold gaze.
He didn’t say anything, and a sense of guilt surged in Shiye’s heart: "I’m sorry; it’s my own overthinking that led to this misunderstanding."
Jiang Chicheng nodded, "As long as you two clarify things, that’s enough."
His tone was flat, sounding just like usual, but Shiye knew he was still angry.
Since childhood, Jiang Chicheng had been like this. When he was angry, he didn’t need to be coaxed. If asked, he would say it was nothing and act as usual, but he was actually secretly holding in his anger, waiting to bring it up the next time they argued.
After each fight, Shiye felt like a sinner, causing Jiang Chicheng so much grievance. So, every time they had a spat, he would try to accommodate him for a while afterward.
When they were young, Jiang Chicheng lived with his adoptive mother, who was blind. Little Jiang Chicheng couldn’t even dress himself until he started primary school, and he was malnourished and small for his age. In contrast, Shiye was tall and well-proportioned, and his family was in good condition. Taking care of Jiang Chicheng was like caring for a stray kitten—combing his hair, bathing him, dressing him, and feeding him were all basic necessities. Sometimes, when Jiang Chicheng was bullied at school, Shiye would even help him fight back; saying he was like a full-time nanny wouldn’t be an exaggeration.
Shiye took a step forward: "It’s my fault; no matter how angry I am, I shouldn’t lash out at you. I’m apologizing to you. If you’re still upset, feel free to yell at me; I won’t retort at all."
Jiang Chicheng shook his head: "Aren’t you here because you needed something from me?"
Shiye stared into his eyes, speaking with certainty: "You’re still mad at me."
Jiang Chicheng moved his jaw slightly and turned his gaze away: "No."
"Then let’s hug."
Shiye opened his arms, looking at him with his obsidian-like eyes, showing no hint of defense but filled with a mix of probing and placation. Jiang Chicheng’s eyelashes fluttered, and after a moment, he awkwardly and perfunctorily returned the embrace.
Shiye tightened his arms: "Just one hug, and you can't be angry anymore."
Jiang Chiqing tilted his head, a bit reluctant: "Okay."
After releasing him, Jiang Chicheng slightly turned to let him enter. Shiye knew this meant he was truly no longer angry, and he let out a long sigh of relief without even realizing it.
—
Jiang Zao loved spicy food just like Jiang Chicheng, and Shiye happened to know a great Sichuan restaurant. During their time off from school, they often went there to eat.
The restaurant was extremely popular. When Shiye called the next morning to make a reservation, only one table was left for seven o'clock that evening.
After making the reservation, he forwarded the address to Jiang Zao.
Zao: How did you know I like spicy food!
Zao: See you tonight! [Happy]
ShiyeBBQ: See you tonight!
Shiye stared at those three words, his smile stretching from ear to ear.
Jiang Chicheng had just gotten out of bed and was washing up. Shiye got up to pick out his outfit for the evening, wearing black pants with two reflective stripes on the sides, a white T-shirt, and a black windbreaker.
He remembered that Miss Jiang was quite tall, about the same height as him, so he specifically chose a pair of platform sneakers.
After getting dressed, he ran in front of Jiang Chicheng: "How do I look in this outfit?"
Jiang Chicheng with his hair tied back, turned around and looked him up and down before nodding: "Not bad, but you’d better wear something thicker underneath; it will get cooler at night, and she might be wearing something thinner."
Shiye slapped his forehead and returned to his room. A moment later, Jiang Chicheng’s phone vibrated twice. He pulled it out and saw the message Shiye had just sent to Jiang Zao.
ShiyeBBQ: It’s going to get cooler tonight; remember to dress warmly.
Jiang Chicheng rolled his eyes, silently complaining, "Straight man."
Just after he finished complaining, he turned and pulled out another phone, clicking on a cool selfie profile picture, his fingers quickly typing.
0.o: It should be gentle yet sweet, generous but playful, luxurious without being overly expensive, obedient but not too compliant. On the surface, it should be warm and gentle, while in reality, it feels wild and free. Do you understand? I like red, blue, and green, but don’t consider pink or yellow; they’re too feminine. It should be a bit sexy but not revealing, making people think I have a great upbringing. And it has to highlight my personality, be unique, but not too avant-garde. The main thing is to showcase my beauty from all angles without any dead spots.
0.o: That’s all I can think of for now.
Zhou Zhou: …………
Zhou Zhou: Get lost.
0.o: I’m bearing all the burden for you, and this is how you treat me?
0.o: Your grandpa is still lying in the hospital, don’t you have any conscience?
Zhou Zhou: None.
0.o: This world is so cold, with no sunshine and no love.
Zhou Zhou: Brother, your clothes and skirts add up to less than ten pieces. I can mix and match them for you!
0.o: Is that my fault?
0.o: You could buy them for me.
Zhou Zhou: Stop whining; I’m going shopping with friends soon.
0.o: [sends address]
0.o: Deliver it to me by five o'clock.
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