Chapter 5: Bickering
After the breakfast incident, the relationship between the two noticeably grew much closer.
This was mainly evident in Lin Zhile ditching the address “Gu-xiansheng” in favor of an affectionate “Ge”, while Gu Jingxiu answered every time he was called, adapting without the slightest hurdle.
When the clock pointed to nine-thirty, the property management came and rang the doorbell.
Four men in suits carrying very long tongs and burlap sacks put on shoe covers at the door. They respectfully asked Best Actor Gu where they needed to go to catch the snake.
The landscaping in this villa complex was done too well. There was a large bamboo forest, and it was highly likely these snakes were slithering out from there; they had already been complained about by homeowners numerous times.
Gu Jingxiu pointed toward the location of the guest room.
Soon, several burly men appeared at the door of the guest bedroom. Although there was safety in numbers, Lin Zhile was still very scared.
He hid behind Gu Jingxiu, not daring to get close directly.
Gu Jingxiu glanced at the pale-faced Lin Zhile and mocked him mercilessly, “You’re this scared before the door is even opened?”
Lin Zhile’s whole body was soft, but his mouth was stubborn: “I’m not. I’m just borrowing the space behind your back to stand for a bit.”
Gu Jingxiu raised an eyebrow, showing absolutely zero spirit of helping others: “One hundred per second, billing starts now.”
Lin Zhile: …
“Taking advantage of someone’s misfortune is highly unacceptable behavior. I’m going to tattle on you to Fangfang-ayi.”
Lin-laoshi had said that Fangfang-ayi was the one in charge of the Gu family, so Lin Zhile attempted to bring out this great deity to suppress Gu Jingxiu.
“Fine.” Unexpectedly, it was quite effective. Gu Jingxiu immediately changed his tune: “Lin Zhile gets it for free.”
Lin Zhile: “~”
The property management foreman prided himself on his high professional standards, so he didn’t show it on his face, but his heart had already exploded like a boiling pot.
So even Best Actor Gu would bicker with people.
In the few years he had lived here, the foreman had never seen this great Best Actor bring an outsider over. Today was certainly a novelty.
This new occupant was incredibly eye-catching and didn’t look very old either.
The foreman secretly made a mental note to update their information once he got back. If some embarrassing incident occurred where this guest was blocked outside, he might as well quit his job.
Before entering the door, the property management foreman turned around and asked, “Gu-xiansheng, the snake you mentioned yesterday, did you see the pattern on its body?”
If it was a highly venomous snake or some protected animal, they would have to call the fire department to handle it.
Lin Zhile had only seen a slender snake tail yesterday, especially when it was draped over the desk lamp; he couldn’t see the details at all.
He shook his head.
“Understood.” The foreman also felt a bit anxious as he pressed the handle and pushed the door open.
Looking in from the outside, the guest bedroom was a scene of tranquility. Only the quilt half-fallen on the floor hinted at the sorry state Lin Zhile had been in when he fled yesterday.
Lin Zhile pointed at the lamp on the nightstand: “Yesterday its tail appeared on top of this, and then it slipped into the wall crevice behind the cabinet and disappeared.”
The foreman beckoned a tall, burly colleague over: “Let’s lift this up and take a look.”
Watching them lift the nightstand, Lin Zhile was terrified that some unidentified object would suddenly dart out, so he pressed himself even closer to Gu Jingxiu.
The latter calmly looked down but stood firmly in place without moving.
As the nightstand was lifted off the ground, that burly colleague let out a startled exclaim.
Lin Zhile’s face turned pale, and he raised his hand to grab Gu Jingxiu’s lapels.
Gu Jingxiu furrowed his brows slightly: “What is it.”
The foreman could see that the youth had been frightened, which made the homeowner somewhat displeased, so he hurriedly said, “It’s not a snake, just a very small piece of shed snakeskin.”
Lin Zhile’s whole body shuddered: “Ge, is your house the Animal Planet?”
Gu Jingxiu flicked his forehead: “Yes, and a timid little rabbit just moved in yesterday.”
Lin Zhile: “…”
The snake indeed existed, but it couldn’t be caught immediately, and there was a high possibility it had already slithered outside.
The property management had no other choice but to seal off this room and scatter snake and insect repellent powder everywhere. However, this meant the room couldn’t be occupied for at least a week.
Lin Zhile didn’t really care where he slept. He asked the property management to help him bring out his luggage, as well as his phone.
Upon getting his phone, Lin Zhile saw that messages from several people had already piled up on WeChat.
His mentor asked if he had arrived yet, and the pink-haired girl from yesterday had already joined her crew and was showing off her work photos to him.
The rest were messages from the executive director of the Lingering Resonance production team.
[Xiao Lin, have you arrived in Jinghua yet?]
[The production team begins registration and preliminary interviews tomorrow. Don’t forget!]
The third message was a location pin.
What had to come, finally came.
After all that tossing about, it was already noon by the time the property management left.
Gu Jingxiu fulfilled his promise and took Lin Zhile out for lunch.
“Actually, we don’t need to go to a three-star Michelin. Let’s just find a place nearby to eat,” Lin Zhile said, taking the passenger seat this time.
Gu Jingxiu remarked, “A once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to fleece your Ge was placed right in front of you. Why the sudden change of heart?”
Lin Zhile hemmed and hawed, unable to spit out a proper reason.
He knew exactly why in his heart—because he couldn’t afford to pay back a meal that cost tens of thousands of yuan.
“Because I’m really hungry, so just casually finding a nearby place to eat is fine.” Lin Zhile answered under Gu Jingxiu’s suspicious gaze.
“Alright.” Gu Jingxiu turned his face back to look at the road, not saying anything more.
The Mercedes G-Wagon took a turn on the road, heading toward another destination.
The great Best Actor drove his little cousin to a nearby shopping mall.
Entering through the underground parking lot, the security guard saw the license plate and stepped out to greet him: “Hello, Xiao Gu-zong!”
Hearing this address, Lin Zhile found it a bit strange.
After pulling into a parking space, Gu Jingxiu took a very new white baseball cap from the car and popped it onto his head: “In order for us to eat lunch in peace today, your hair will just have to suffer a bit.”
Lin Zhile expressed his understanding and nodded obediently. With Gu Jingxiu’s massive fan base, it would be a disaster if he were recognized.
His head circumference was small, so he even had to tighten the strap a bit.
After the car was parked, the mall manager walked over from a distance: “Xiao Gu-zong, I haven’t seen you in a long time.”
“Are you bringing a friend over for a meal?”
The manager’s attitude was highly respectful as he inconspicuously cast a glance at Lin Zhile.
However, Lin Zhile’s gaze was entirely fixated on Gu Jingxiu, because the other man had also put on a baseball cap, though his was black.
Best Actor Gu stepped down from the Mercedes G-Wagon. Lin Zhile stared at him for a moment before silently turning his head away.
No wonder so many directors liked to film him.
In the eyes of outsiders, Gu Jingxiu was arrogant, noble, and unapproachable, but Lin Zhile hadn’t perceived that at all.
Gu Jingxiu said, “I brought my di over to eat.”
Upon hearing this, the look in the manager’s eyes as he gazed at Lin Zhile instantly turned passionate.
“Oh, then would you like to try the roast duck? There’s a restaurant here with very good ratings.”
Hearing roast duck, Lin Zhile’s eyes lit up completely. He had never eaten that before.
“Ge, let’s eat roast duck?!”
Seeing how excited he got just hearing about food, Gu Jingxiu ruffled the back of Lin Zhile’s head: “Mm.”
The manager led them up through the employee passageway. There were quite a few people in the restaurant, but the establishment still managed to clear out a quiet private booth for them, and their food was served with top priority.
Aside from the roast duck, the manager was very perceptive and went to the Southern cuisine restaurant across the way to pack up some river seafood and lotus root soup.
Even though Lin Zhile spoke without an accent, his tone was soft and glutinous; it was hard not to guess that he was a Southerner.
After finishing a fragrant and delicious meal of roast duck, Lin Zhile was already half-full. He put down his chopsticks and finally asked the question he had been wondering about for a long time: “Ge, why do they call you Xiao Gu-zong?”
Gu Jingxiu lifted his eyelids to look at him. This little rabbit really was innocent.
If Lin Zhile paid even a little bit of attention to business news, he would know the answer to this question.
“Because this shopping mall is a property owned by your Fangfang-ayi,” Gu Jingxiu said languidly.
Lin Zhile was dumbfounded.
“That’s so impressive.”
Gu Jingxiu stated, “Isn’t it a little late to start sucking up now?”
He certainly hadn’t forgotten the comment about his bad temper from yesterday.
Feeling guilty, Lin Zhile changed the subject: “Ge, this lotus root soup is delicious, you should try some.”
The lunch concluded with both host and guest thoroughly pleased. Just as the two were about to leave, they heard a burst of exclamations erupt from outside; it sounded very lively.
Lin Zhile went to the glass partition and looked out. It turned out the mall was hosting an event, and there was a mascot in the lobby looking for people to interact with to give away gifts.
The mascot was the image of the red panda Xinlebi, the protagonist from the classic childhood animation, Xinlebi’s Journey Home.
That mascot suit was extremely exquisite. The reddish-brown fur looked highly realistic, and its thick tail was incredibly fluffy.
The performer beneath the suit possessed quite high professional standards, exuding a full sense of adorkable charm with every movement.
Lin Zhile stood to the side, admiring it for a long time.
He was sickly as a child, so no one played with him. He would just watch cartoons alone, and Xinlebi was the one he watched the most.
A red panda was poached and taken to a foreign country, given the unfamiliar name Xinlebi. After escaping its cage, the solitary panda yearned to return to its homeland.
Lin Zhile very much hoped that he could be like Xinlebi, possessing boundless courage and the bravery to step onto the perilous path leading to his ideals.
Seeing him so entranced, Gu Jingxiu suggested from the side, “Like it a lot? Then go out and interact with it.”
The Xinlebi mascot was clapping hands and forming heart shapes with customers. Customers who cooperated in perfect sync could win a small Xinlebi plushie.
“I think I’ll pass. These games look very childish.” Lin Zhile shook his head in refusal, seemingly a bit disdainful.
“We better leave early. If we get discovered, it won’t be good.”
Gu Jingxiu’s expression, however, turned slightly poor.
Lin Zhile had only just started interacting with him, so he didn’t know that the man’s personality was actually very tough and he rarely accommodated anyone.
He pressed down on Lin Zhile’s shoulder. His large hand was warm and powerful, but his tone was a bit cold: “Lin Zhile, don’t always say one thing and mean another.”
His acting skills in front of the great Best Actor were truly clumsy.
Lin Zhile’s family conditions weren’t good. He was frequently praised for being obedient and sensible, but the price behind that was that he never opened his mouth to ask for anything he saw. In the end, it evolved into a habit where no matter how much he liked something, even if it was readily attainable, he would suppress his desires time and time again.
It was as if he had lost the ability to possess the things he loved.
This bad habit had accompanied him as he grew up. Now, being exposed by Gu Jingxiu, the face beneath the white baseball cap was instantly flooded with a crimson flush.
Gu Jingxiu leaned against the wall with one hand shoved in his pocket, yet his gaze suddenly softened: “Go on, I’ll wait for you.”
Lin Zhile pursed his lips, turned around, and walked out of the booth.
His mouth might have claimed it was childish, but in reality, Lin Zhile had the highest level of synchronicity among everyone present.
At the end of the game, they had to imitate Xinlebi’s classic moves, and he didn’t get a single one wrong. While others only got one plushie, Lin Zhile received two.
After leaving the mall and returning to the car, Lin Zhile took out the two palm-sized plushies and flipped them over and over, examining them.
Seeing how he couldn’t bear to put them down, Gu Jingxiu’s wicked intentions flared up again: “Lin Zhile, you’re not thinking of hogging them all to yourself, are you.”
He originally thought Lin Zhile definitely wouldn’t be able to part with them and would talk back to him. However, the youth happily took one and hung it on the rearview mirror.
“From now on, when you drive, just let it keep you company~”
Recommended Reads
