Chapter 12

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Jing Chen neither confirmed nor declined in the end; he simply said he would see if he was free that day.

The two spent the entire day together at Jing Chen’s place. By the time Xi Shi returned to school, his legs were trembling.

The older man’s skills had improved remarkably, and his stamina was impressive. Xi Shi enjoyed it immensely but his body was struggling; he truly experienced the bittersweet feeling of pain intertwined with pleasure.

Just as he got back to the dormitory, Xi Shi caught a waft of an intoxicating barbecue aroma.

His roommates were there. Guo Hao was gnawing on a grilled chicken wing and hurriedly called out when he saw Xi Shi.

“Brother Xi is back! Come try this viral barbecue—it's unbelievably delicious!”

Xi Shi had already eaten a hearty, sumptuous dinner at Jing Chen’s place before returning, so he had no appetite at all.

Still, out of curiosity, he asked, “What viral barbecue?”

“It’s that place that’s been blowing up in Jiangcheng lately, ‘Abandoning Color, Aroma, and Taste.’ Yang Yang and his boyfriend brought it back from Jiangcheng. He even tagged you in the dorm chat to come eat it. Didn’t you check your phone again?”

‘Abandoning Color, Aroma, and Taste?’

Xi Shi vaguely remembered seeing the name on short video apps. The name was so peculiar that it stuck with him, and yes, it had recently become very popular.

Already lacking appetite, hearing the mention of Yang Yang’s boyfriend made him feel even queasier.

Wasn’t that Shao Xun, that idiot?

“You guys eat then; I’m full,” Xi Shi said.

Another roommate, Xiao Nan, urged, “Come on, Brother Xi, try it. Thanks to Yang Yang, we got to taste such amazing barbecue. Look at their signature grilled chicken wings—crispy on the outside, tender inside, bursting with juice in every bite. So fragrant!”

He took a bite himself; the skin was perfectly charred and crispy, but the inside was juicy and delicious. It did look tempting.

“Thanks, really, I’m full.”

Not only did he not want to eat, but the oily food now made him feel a little nauseous.

Switching genders, he was basically pregnant from Jing Chen.

Seeing Xi Shi’s genuine lack of appetite, his roommates didn’t press him.

Guo Hao, munching away, sighed, “By the way, the packaging is incredible. Jiangcheng is about an hour away by plane, plus travel delays—at least two hours. How did they keep it so crispy and tender?”

Wang Yang pretended to be modest, “It’s not the packaging, we took a private jet, so no delays. Though it was a bit cold when we landed, I just reheated it a bit in the microwave on the plane, as per the barbecue shop owner’s instructions. That’s how we got this texture.”

Guo Hao and Xiao Nan were stunned.

“A private jet? Did I understand that right?”

Wang Yang nodded, “Yeah. I saw a video about ‘Abandoning Color, Aroma, and Taste’ last night and craved it so badly. My boyfriend arranged the private jet to fly us straight there.”

Guo Hao and Xiao Nan were speechless.

The joys of the rich—they really couldn’t imagine it.

After a while, Guo Hao stammered, “Your boyfriend is really rich.”

“And handsome too. No wonder Yang Yang found such a great partner.”

Neither Guo Hao nor Xiao Nan knew about Xi Shi’s past with Shao Xun, so they had no idea how sensitive their topic was and enthusiastically showered praise.

At that moment, Wang Yang’s vanity peaked. He couldn’t help but glance at Xi Shi, who was already lying on the bed.

He wanted to catch even a trace of regret, resentment, or bitterness in his expression.

To his disappointment, there was none. Xi Shi was staring at his phone, occasionally chuckling to himself, seemingly oblivious to their conversation.

Indeed, Xi Shi hadn’t been paying attention.

Considering Jing Chen’s prowess and how well he was being treated by his sugar daddy, Xi Shi planned to buy him a more luxurious gift.

He was generous to his lover.

He was browsing the official website of a renowned luxury watch brand. They had recently released a new mechanical watch with a design and craftsmanship he liked. The price was also reasonable, just over 100,000 yuan.

From what he observed, Jing Chen was probably an engineer or a designer at a construction site, so wearing a watch in that price range wouldn’t be too flashy.

Besides, the watch was stylish. Xi Shi could already imagine Jing Chen wearing a suit he bought and this watch—such a look.

Heh heh.

Heh heh heh.

Oh, and he should get him two more suits! He couldn’t wear the same one every time.

Xi Shi excitedly opened the website of a formalwear brand again.

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He used to wonder why some girls in class were obsessed with raising kids, spending like there was no tomorrow, with expenses even exceeding their own living costs. He never understood what was so fun about it.

Now, imagining raising Jing Chen, that was truly delightful, haha.

——

As the school anniversary approached, Xi Shi spent every evening after class practicing in the school’s music room.

His performance was a piano accompaniment with singing. He played the piano, while the class’s cultural committee member was responsible for singing.

One evening, Shao Xun came to pick up Wang Yang for dinner.

Since going public with Wang Yang, Shao Xun didn’t quite know what to make of his feelings. He used the excuse of taking Wang Yang out to eat to come to Yanda every day but never ran into the person he wanted to see.

Wang Yang also had a performance at the opening ceremony, singing an English section of a song. He wasn’t very confident with the lyrics and practiced daily in the music room. Shao Xun came to pick him up there as well.

“Are we going the wrong way? This doesn’t seem like the way out,” Shao Xun said, noticing Wang Yang leading him in another direction.

A sly glint appeared in Wang Yang’s eyes. “We’re leaving through the north gate. I want to get some double-skin milk (a dessert) from that side.”

“Alright then,” Shao Xun agreed.

Walking toward the north gate, they passed a classroom where they heard beautiful piano playing—Jay Chou’s “Confession Balloon.”

The skill was evident; every note was perfectly placed, full of emotion. The cheerful melody seemed to fill the air with pink bubbles.

Wang Yang was slightly stunned and quickened his pace to look inside the classroom. When he saw who was playing, he widened his eyes in disbelief.

How could this be? Just yesterday, when he passed by, Xi Shi was stumbling and playing terribly. Today, it seemed like a different person.

“What’s wrong?”

Shao Xun came over and was about to peek inside but was pushed back by Wang Yang.

“Nothing, let’s go.”

Still, Shao Xun had seen the person playing piano inside and his eyes widened slightly.

“Xi Shi.”

Unfortunately, the doors and windows were tightly shut, and the piano was loud, so Xi Shi didn’t hear the name.

Hearing Shao Xun’s unmistakable tone of surprise and delight, Wang Yang pursed his lips.

He had purposely brought Shao Xun this way, hoping to let him hear how terrible Xi Shi’s piano playing was, hoping to shatter Shao Xun’s idealized image of Xi Shi and make his own singing stand out by contrast.

Who would have thought? Just yesterday, Xi Shi played like a mess, but today he was smooth and flawless.

Wang Yang even suspected Xi Shi was mocking him on purpose.

Of course, what he didn’t know was that Xi Shi played badly yesterday because he was unfamiliar with the piece and hadn’t touched the piano in a long time. After the vocalist left, he stayed behind to practice and finally mastered the piece, naturally playing much better today.

And not only that, after practice, he stayed even longer, determined to deliver a perfect performance for the opening ceremony.

“Let’s go, there’s nothing good to hear here. I’m hungry,” Shao Xun said reluctantly.

At that moment, a young man appeared, now that it was completely dark outside. He wore sunglasses, looking like quite the cool guy.

He walked to the window and glanced inside, seemingly confirming the person he was looking for. Just as he raised his hand to knock, Wang Yang urged Shao Xun to hurry away, but Shao Xun cautiously called out a name.

“Third Young Master Huo?”

Huo Siyuan pushed up his sunglasses and looked at Shao Xun.

Squinting slightly, he said, “Second Young Master Shao?”

Though the Shao family was prestigious, they paled in comparison to the Huo family, the city’s richest.

Thus, Shao Xun was deferential, “It’s me. Didn’t expect to run into you here. Are you looking for someone?”

Huo Siyuan recalled the gossip he heard at the concert a few days ago: Xi Shi was dumped by the Shao family’s second son and then ostracized and mocked. If it weren’t for his uncle calling in Ye Si to save face, Xi Shi would have been laughed at endlessly.

Alright, so it’s you, kid.

Huo Siyuan snorted roughly and said, “My big brother’s feet hurt after a whole day of classes. I’m here to massage him.”

Shao Xun: “...?”

Huo Siyuan assumed the imposing air of the Third Young Master, glowering at Shao Xun coldly. “Since you guys broke up, stay away from him. If you keep pestering him, I’ll break you!”

Shao Xun was stunned.

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Huo Siyuan had already twisted open the classroom door. Just before entering, he added, “Don’t come to my events anymore. You annoy me just by being here.”

With that, he pushed the door open and went inside without giving Shao Xun another word.

Shao Xun’s face turned pale.

Huo Siyuan was a master of socializing; his events gathered almost all of Yanshi City’s elite. Shao Xun was already struggling against his brother socially. If he lost this network, he would have no chance at all...

And how exactly did Xi Shi get involved with the Third Young Master?

Shao Xun couldn’t figure it out no matter how hard he tried. He left the place dazed and confused.

——

Huo Siyuan didn’t disturb Xi Shi’s piano playing. He waited until he finished, then clapped and said, “You play wonderfully—on par with world-class piano masters.”

Xi Shi: “...”

Why not say I’m on par with the best pianists in the universe?

“Is there anyone outside?” Xi Shi asked, having vaguely heard voices.

“No, probably just a dog barking,” Huo Siyuan said casually, then handed something to Xi Shi.

“The shoes you wanted.”

Xi Shi immediately grabbed the package, carefully opening the bag and box to reveal a pair of sneakers, eyes wide with amazement.

He gently took out the shoes, which looked exactly like those he had seen posted on social media—super cool.

Huo Siyuan had sent him the commemorative BL47 sneakers from a certain brand—a limited edition. Xi Shi had missed out on the online release and didn’t think they were that great.

But when the first batch arrived, the unboxing videos and photos looked incredibly stylish, and Xi Shi was swept off his feet. He even posted on social media hoping to buy a pair at a high price.

Huo Siyuan claimed he had bought two pairs in the same size and was willing to sell one to Xi Shi at the original price, no markup.

Xi Shi had no objections.

He just didn’t understand why Huo Siyuan was so free and insisted on delivering them personally.

Could it be he still hadn’t given up on Jing Chen?

Xi Shi examined the shoes repeatedly, sensing something was off.

“Wait, these are the 47th edition collectible ones... you managed to get them?”

Huo Siyuan thought to himself: there are only 10 pairs worldwide. If I could get one, why would I give it to you?

They were actually procured by his uncle after seeing Xi Shi’s social media post and sent through him.

Huo Siyuan had never seen his uncle care so much about anyone before.

It made him almost jealous.

His uncle even told him to find a way to casually add Xi Shi on WeChat, pretending not to care while selling the shoes.

Little did they know he had already added Xi Shi as a friend.

This cleared the way for his relationship with Xi Shi at his uncle’s place, so he wouldn’t have to sneak around anymore.

Suppressing jealousy, Huo Siyuan said lightly, “It’s nothing, given my status, this is a small thing.”

Xi Shi didn’t suspect anything and grew more fond of the shoes, almost reluctant to put them down. “I’ll transfer you an extra ten thousand yuan. I feel bad buying them at the original price.”

Just because Huo Siyuan was rich didn’t mean Xi Shi could shamelessly take advantage of him.

“No need. I said original price means original price.”

His uncle would kill him if he overcharged by even a penny.

After speaking, Huo Siyuan suddenly remembered something.

“If you feel bad, just give me a ticket to your school’s opening ceremony.”

He had already heard his uncle cancel his Friday night social engagements, probably to attend.

His cousin, a freshman, would surely be there too.

Though his uncle likely wouldn’t let his cousin see him, what if they had a face-to-face encounter?

He could only imagine how thrilling that would be, hahaha.