Chapter 44: The Heartthrob Protagonist’s Suitors
At night, Zhou Yuejun went to the KTV again.
The KTV had been quite busy lately. Xie Mengās leader had many social engagements; word was he was about to be promoted, so there were gatherings basically every night.
Xie Meng instructed his subordinates to be on high alert. They absolutely could not have anything go wrong during this period.
There was a lot of social interaction at the drinking parties. Some people gave tips, while others insisted on people drinking.
Zhou Yuejun didn’t want to offend anyone and cause trouble, so if they told him to drink, he drank, without saying much.
At 1:30 AM, Xie Meng finished seeing everyone off with great attentiveness. He had received praise from his leader, and his face was practically splitting from smiling so hard.
Only after the cars drove away did Xie Meng breathe a sigh of relief. Carrying the scent of alcohol, he returned to the dance hall with Zhou Yuejun and Ceng Hui.
The last of the customers had left, and the staff were about to get off work. They greeted Xie Meng in small groups before leaving.
Zhou Yuejun went to the locker room to take off his uniform black shirt, then went to the bathroom to scrub it clean with laundry detergent.
The temperature was high; after washing it, hanging it up for one night would be enough to dry it.
As Zhou Yuejun was hanging the shirt on a rack, Ceng Hui pushed the door open and walked in, carrying two gift boxes.
“The leader didn’t take much of the stuff away. Meng-ge told us to divide it up. I saw you have a brother at home, so I took these two for youācanned food and pastries.”
These were both high-end brands; they would sell for at least dozens of yuan outside.
The leftovers at Xie Mengās place were all cigarettes, alcohol, and tea leavesāthings Zhou Yuejun definitely wouldn’t like.
Ceng Hui had good intentions, but the moment Zhou Yuejun looked up, he felt as if he had been sliced by the sinister coldness in the manās eyes.
Violent and tyrannical, like an evil beast revealing its fangs to drink blood.
Ceng Hui wasn’t stupid. After a moment of reflection, he knew Zhou Yuejun was warning him because he had “targeted” Zhou Yuejunās brother.
Fine, if he couldn’t see him, so be it, but why couldn’t he even mention him?
This possessiveness was truly extreme.
“Thanks.”
Zhou Yuejun thanked him indifferently and took the items from Ceng Huiās hands. He also saw a red envelope inside.
He was still wondering whose gift had been left behind. Ceng Hui explained, “Meng-ge gave it. Those guys received tips, but we didn’t, so Meng-ge made it up to us. Itās not much, fifty for each person.”
Fifty wasn’t a small amount either.
Since it was given by Xie Meng, Zhou Yuejun accepted it with a clear conscience. “Iām off.”
Zhou Yuejun had bought a lot of food for the house, but none of it was very expensive. He didn’t think about selling these two boxes for money.
He still had the money to provide food for Yu Deng.
Early in the morning, Yu Deng got up to use the bathroom and saw the items on the floor at a glance.
“Itās food!”
He got excited seeing the boxes and ran over like a fluttering moth, squatting on the floor.
He was a small ball, indeed thin and weak. Squatting beneath Zhou Yuejun, he looked like a little beanāhe really should eat more good food.
Yu Deng tilted his head, sticking out his small tongue to lick his lips. His moist, tender lips looked flushed and seductive. His happy face was powdered pink, and his dimples and canine teeth were both visible. His smile was as bright as a blooming flower.
“Can I eat this?”
So well-behaved, he even knew to ask.
If only Yu Deng were this greedy at other times too.
Zhou Yuejun was wearing a tank top, his eyes shimmering with a smile and hidden heat.
“You can. You can eat it all. I put a can of fruit in the fridge.”
Canned fruit!
Fruit was already expensive, and this was even canned. Yu Deng couldn’t imagine how delicious it would be after being chilled.
He licked his lips.
He was craving it.
Besides the canned fruit, there were also three cans of meat in that box.
The canned fruit was in a transparent glass bottle, while the meat cans were sealed with labels indicating what kind of meat they were.
Yu Deng held them to look: braised pork, braised beef, and luncheon meat.
The portions were quite generous.
As for the other box, it contained snacks and cookiesāpastries and flower cakes. Judging by the packaging, they were all delicious.
Zhou Yuejun had bought meat buns for breakfast, and there was corn congee cooking in the pot. Walking into the kitchen, he asked Yu Deng again, “Do you want to sleep a bit more before eating?”
It was still earlyānot yet time for Yu Deng to wake up.
The old doctor had also said that Yu Dengās body was overworked and he needed to get enough sleep.
As for why he was overworked, only Zhou Yuejun knew.
Yu Deng was still squatting on the floor looking, seemingly picking out his favorite to taste first.
“Iāll eat in a bit then.”
Zhou Yuejun only served one bowl of rice for himself and took a small bowl of salted vegetables.
The salted vegetables were made of pickled radishes. They were refreshing and convenient after being soaked in saltāthis was a typical breakfast for a normal family.
Yu Deng ate a milk candy, went to the bathroom, and headed straight back to the room when he returned.
Zhou Yuejun called out to him, “When you go down to get the milk later, take a few cookies to the shop lady.”
The shop lady downstairs was warm-hearted. It was clear she truly liked Yu Deng. Every time Yu Deng passed by, she would call out to him.
Others saw Zhou Yuejun as a “monster” or a “ghost” and avoided him like the plague, but everyone always wanted to tease Yu Deng or hear him speak.
“Alright~”
Yu Dengās second sleep lasted until eight o’clock.
He was going to the library today. After finishing breakfast, he packed the books he had borrowed before, tucked in the iced sour plum soup from the fridge, and headed out with his bag and the cookies.
Since he went to the bookstore every other day now, he basically stopped buying books and just borrowed them, which saved much more money than before.
When he reached the bus stop, Yu Deng ran into a familiar face.
It was the girl who had come to his house before to bring soup to Zhou Yuejun.
He recognized the girl, but she didn’t recognize him.
Lin Yiyi was with two other girls. The three were wearing beautiful short skirts and only had light makeup on, which added a bit of a healthy glow to their faces.
Seeing Yu Deng, Lin Yiyiās gaze lingered for a moment.
Not for any other reason, but simply because Yu Dengās face was beautifulālike a finely carved porcelain doll, exquisite in every way.
He was wearing a hand-woven sun hat that covered half of his small face. With his white skin and red lips, he looked clean and refreshing all over, like a young master from a wealthy family who knew nothing of the world.
He was so well-behaved it made one want to pinch his cheek.
“What exactly is going on between you and Zhou Yuejun? I haven’t seen you say more than a few words to him lately.”
One of the girls asked. Lin Yiyi looked troubled as well.
Before she could speak, the other girl said anxiously, “You should be more attentive. I see many people in the shop have their eyes on him.”
“Meng-ge values him; his status is almost catching up to Ceng Hui.”
“You should be more proactive. Don’t be afraid to lose face. Send some things and show some concern. After a while, won’t you become familiar?”
Lin Yiyiās expression was shy yet gloomy. “I sent things, but he wouldn’t accept them.”
She had sent soup, water, medicine, and even new gloves, but Zhou Yuejun had accepted none of them.
Finally, she added another sentence: “Heās different from others.”
Zhou Yuejun was indeed different from others.
Management at the dance hall was strict, but it wasn’t without the kind of people who made vulgar jokes and liked to take advantage of others.
There were customers like that, and there were also staff like that.
But Zhou Yuejun wouldn’t.
If he encountered such a thing, he would help, but besides that, he was cold and distant. It seemed he wasn’t familiar with anyone and didn’t want to deal with anyone.
“I heard heās only working these few months and will leave once heās done.”
“Seize the opportunity. Don’t regret it when heās gone.”
Yu Deng stood right beside them, listening as they talked about Zhou Yuejun, falling into thought.
It seemed Lin Yiyi hadn’t expressed her feelings to Zhou Yuejun yet.
Would Zhou Yuejun reject her in advance, or would he wait until she confessed to reject her?
Aiya, forget it. Those were all things for the “heartthrob protagonist” to worry about. He was just a “wicked little villain” who clung to the protagonist for free food and drink.
Just as he thought this, Yu Deng felt a strange, sour feeling in his heart.
The bus arrived. There was only one intercity bus here, and one could transfer once they reached a more bustling area.
However, Lin Yiyi and the others were also going to the city mall, which was not far from the library, so they all got off at the same place.
Yu Deng tightened the strap of his bag. Thinking about enjoying the air conditioning soon, he started trotting.
Vibrant, energetic, and vividāsuch a person was always lovable.
Qiao Fangyu brought a box of chocolates for Yu Deng today.
“Dengdeng, hurry and try a piece. Is it delicious?”
Even though Zhou Yuejun had said he couldn’t take Qiao Fangyuās things, Yu Deng felt that if Zhou Yuejun didn’t know, he wasn’t “taking” them.
Besides, if he didn’t take Qiao Fangyuās things, how could he be insatiable? How could he be vain?
Moreover, he had also brought something for Qiao Fangyuāa bag of pastries.
Even though he had brought them for himself, it wasn’t impossible to give them to Qiao Fangyu.
Qiao Fangyu tore open the wrapper and fed a piece to Yu Dengās mouth. Yu Deng took a small bite and held it in his mouth.
The moment it entered his mouth, there was a smooth, thick, and rich sweet fragrance.
Yu Deng nodded, his eyes shining. “Itās deliciousābetter than regular fruit candies!”
“Then theyāre all yours!”
After speaking, he put the entire box of chocolates into Yu Dengās bag.
“Take them home and put them in the fridge, otherwise theyāll melt.”
“Dengdeng, did you like the coffee from before? Should I bring some more for you next time?”
Qiao Fangyu always gave things by coaxing; he was afraid Yu Deng wouldn’t accept them.
On the other hand, the young boy was incredibly arrogant, holding his thermos with both hands as he took a sip of sour plum soup.
Qiao Fangyu had never seen someone as good-looking as Yu Dengālike a piece of art created by NĆ¼wa.
“Dengdeng, actually…”
Before they parted in the afternoon, Qiao Fangyu acted clingy and hesitated to speak. One could see at a glance that he had something difficult to say.
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