Chapter 67
In the weather nearly thirty degrees below zero, Chi Aibei didn’t wear a scarf. He tucked his chin into the collar of his coat, and cold mist puffed out whenever he spoke. “Gege, who was that girl just now?”
Lin Xiu didn’t tell him about the match-making his parents wanted to arrange; it sounded quite repulsive. “A guest invited by your family.”
Chi Aibei: “Oh. Then why was she looking at me like that? Her gaze was so strange.”
Lin Xiu really wanted to ask Chi Aibei why he didn’t come downstairs earlier, but on second thought, he didn’t ask. The answer was obvious; why bother asking? “She said she was from the Second High School. She was also there the day we went to play ball during the summer break. She probably recognized you. After all, you play ball well.”
Chi Aibei tilted his head and glanced at Lin Xiu. “Why do I feel like you’re making fun of me?”
Lin Xiu rubbed his head through his hat. “I wouldn’t dare.”
Chi Aibei wanted to set off fireworks, but at this time, there were no more places selling them. Coming out of the Chi house, they encountered a few children. Chi Aibei thick-headedly asked the kids for a sparkler.
In the time it took to set off a single firework, Chi Aibei’s hands were freezing. He quickly shoved his hands into his pockets.
Lin Xiu asked, “Cold?”
Chi Aibei nodded. “My hands are frozen stiff.”
Lin Xiu reached out his hand. “I’ll warm them for you.”
Without thinking, Chi Aibei reached out. Lin Xiuâs hands were very warm. He gripped Chi Aibei’s icy hand and tucked it into his own pocket.
Chi Aibei: “Gege, does your down jacket have an automatic heating function? It’s so warm.”
Lin Xiu: “Is it possible that the one with the automatic heating is me?”
When frozen hands encounter a warm place, they want to dig deeper. Chi Aibei’s hand in Lin Xiu’s pocket pressed hard against his palm. “Grip tighter. Tighter is warmer.”
It was truly too cold. The two hadn’t walked for long before they hailed a taxi back to West Alley.
They ultimately didn’t get to eat dinner. Fortunately, Lin Xiu had bought dumplings in advance. Lin Xiu boiled the dumplings and stir-fried a plate of shrimp. The two sat around the table, eating while watching the Spring Festival Gala.
Lin Xiuâs phone chimed. Chi Wendong sent a message asking if they had arrived home.
After a while, Chi Wendong sent another one: [You said you like men just now. Was that true?]
Lin Xiu knew Chi Wendong would surely ask. He replied: [Itâs true.]
At the Chi residence, Chi Wendong frowned: [Is it also true that you have a partner?]
Lin Xiu glanced at Chi Aibei, who was giggling at a skit. [Not exactly true.]
Chi Wendong thought he had made a typoâthat “not exactly” was meant to be “is not.” He didn’t mind it much: [How would President Wangâs daughter know Xiao Bei?]
Wang Yunmiao hadn’t said she knew Chi Aibei, but Chi Wendong didn’t believe her. Her reaction upon seeing Chi Aibei was clearly one of recognition.
“Hahahaha.” Chi Aibei saw a funny part. Seeing Lin Xiu playing with his phone, he shook Lin Xiuâs arm. “Gege, look quickly.”
Lin Xiu looked up and smiled at Chi Aibei. “Your sense of humor is a bit low.”
Chi Aibei: “Gege, don’t be so demanding. This is already very funny.”
Lin Xiu continued to reply to Chi Wendongâs message: [We went to the Second High School to play ball during the summer break.]
These words indeed seemed to explain why the girl would recognize Chi Aibei, but Chi Wendong felt something was off. Yet, for a moment, he couldn’t find any flaws.
The Chi family didn’t have the tradition of staying up for the New Year. After the guests left, Mother Chi was so angry she couldn’t even eat and went straight to her room. Chi Wendong finished the New Year’s Eve dinner alone. Just as he was about to go upstairs, his footsteps suddenly faltered.
He picked up his phone and clicked on the chat box with Lin Xiu again, looking at that last message…
Previously, whenever Lin Xiu mentioned Chi Aibei in messages, he always used Chi Aibei’s full name. Today, the message he sent used “Xiao Bei”!
Why did he suddenly change the way he addressed him?
Xiao Bei is what I call him. This guy Lin Xiuâcould it be that he wants to steal my brother!
â
On the third day of the New Year, Shen Yicheng invited them out for dinner. Chi Aibei thought it would be with the people from the boxing gym, but when they arrived, he found that the person with Shen Yicheng was a man he had never seen before.
Shen Yicheng only said his name was Ge Feng and that the two had met in a bar; he didn’t say much else.
Compared to Shen Yicheng, who was always smiling, this man looked a bit serious. He didn’t talk much and looked a bit rebellious. Chi Aibei was curious about what kind of relationship he had with Shen Yicheng. During the meal, he peeked a few times and was even laughed at by Shen Yicheng.
Midway through, Chi Aibei went to the restroom, and Ge Feng followed.
When he and Lin Xiu arrived, Shen Yicheng and Ge Feng were already there. They had been sitting, so Chi Aibei didn’t know how tall Ge Feng was. Seeing him walk in from outside the restroom now, Chi Aibei was startled… Thisâhe must be even taller than Shen Yicheng, right?
While washing his hands, Chi Aibei observed Ge Feng through the mirror. Ge Feng suddenly asked, “Is Lin Xiu your boyfriend?”
Chi Aibei was stunned. “Ah?”
Ge Feng pulled out a paper towel to wipe his hands. “Are you two a couple?”
“Ah?” Chi Aibei snapped out of it. “No.”
Ge Feng glanced at him. “Why?”
Chi Aibei: “Ah?”
Ge Feng narrowed his eyes. Was his hearing not working?
Chi Aibei was bewildered by Ge Fengâs sudden question. If they weren’t, they weren’t; why did there have to be a why? His brain didn’t process it for a moment, and he picked a random reason. “Iâm not an adult yet.”
Ge Feng: “I can see that. So youâre planning to be together after you become an adult?”
Chi Aibei couldn’t keep up with his train of thought. “…Ah?”
Ge Feng couldn’t take it anymore. “Youâd better go to the hospital to check your ears. Being hard of hearing at such a young age isn’t good.”
Chi Aibei: “…” Whoâs hard of hearing?
For the rest of the meal, Chi Aibei barely ate anything, staring at Ge Feng the whole time. It wasn’t until they finished eating and left the restaurant, and Lin Xiu asked him what was wrong, that he began to complain.
“That person is so strange. He asked if you and I were a couple. I said no, and he asked me why.”
Lin Xiu also felt it was strange that Shen Yicheng had brought a stranger to dinner. So while Chi Aibei and Ge Feng were in the restroom, he had asked. Only then did he find out that Shen Yicheng was pursuing someone. This person seemingly also had feelings for Shen Yicheng; otherwise, he wouldn’t have come out to meet friends on the third day of the New Year. But he hadn’t expected him to ask Chi Aibei that.
Lin Xiu asked, “What did you say?”
Chi Aibei: “I said I wasn’t an adult yet.”
Lin Xiu looked at him for a moment and nodded. “It is proper to wait until adulthood.”
Chi Aibei frowned. “He also said I was hard of hearing and told me to go to the hospital. Heâs so rude!”
Lin Xiu: “…” You two were in the restroom for less than ten minutes in total, yet you jumped from being a couple to being hard of hearing. Isn’t this topic leap a bit too far?
…
On the other side, Ge Feng sat in the passenger seat. Shen Yicheng asked him, “Did you two fight in the restroom?”
Ge Feng looked blank. “No.”
Shen Yicheng smiled. “Then why has that kid been staring at you since you got back from the restroom?”
Ge Feng didn’t know either. He had just chatted with him for a bit. He said, “Didn’t you say those two were a couple? I asked him, and he said no.”
Shen Yicheng: “You asked him directly?”
Ge Feng: “Is there a problem?”
Shen Yicheng opened his mouth, hesitated for a moment, and then smiled helplessly. “No.”
Ge Feng said, “That kid is like youâsomethingâs wrong with his ears. He seemingly can’t hear me clearly; heâs always saying ‘ah, ah, ah’.”
Shen Yicheng was so amused he laughed. He could roughly imagine why Chi Aibei couldn’t hear clearly. With this guyâs startling way of chatting, no one would be able to hear clearly!
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