Chapter 21

“Want to go to the bathroom together…” Jiang Chu couldn’t help but laugh when he heard that. He got up from the bed and opened the door for Du Miaomiao.

“Uncle Jiang.” Du Miaomiao said, sounding awkward.

And it wasn’t just him feeling awkward; even Jiang Chu felt weird hearing it, like he’d instantly aged at least ten years.

“Go on, you kids, go pee together,” he said to Qin Zui, turning his head.

Qin Zui looked at him like he was a crazy person. He frowned very slightly at Du Miaomiao and said, “No.”

“Come on! Why not?” Du Miaomiao shouted, then simply stepped right into the room and pulled Qin Zui out.

He looked like a beanpole, but he was still a big boy. When he yanked, he had quite a bit of strength.

Qin Zui pressed his lips together in annoyance. At the doorway, he shook off Du Miaomiao’s hand and said, “Don’t touch me.”

This time, Du Miaomiao was surprisingly cooperative. He immediately let go and made a surrendering gesture.

“What do you want?” Qin Zui stared at Du Miaomiao, asking.

“What do you mean, what do I want? Didn’t I say? The bathroom,” Du Miaomiao said, acting even more confused than Qin Zui. “We’re the only two people our age here, and we go to the same school. We’ve already said hello. What’s the big deal about going to the bathroom together?”

“You don’t want to hang around your uncle, do you? Don’t you find it boring?” Du Miaomiao lowered his voice and elbowed Qin Zui.

Qin Zui thought this guy wasn’t quite right in the head. Or rather, Du Miaomiao thought he was perfectly normal, but he was actually anything but.

The two stared at each other for a moment, eyes wide. Du Miaomiao rolled his eyes, waved his hand in exasperation, and said, “Come on! I’ve been holding it in the whole ride.”

Listening to the two kids bickering as they walked away, Jiang Chu stretched on the bed, still finding it hilarious.

Like a couple of little girls, going to the bathroom together.

So it turned out Old Du’s nephew wasn’t just a quiet guy; he just found them boring.

It made sense, too. The generation gap was real. Every time Jiang Chu saw Du Miaomiao with Old Du, they never exchanged more than a few words, and it usually ended with the kid getting all prickly and mad. This time, coming out with them, he’d finally run into a classmate like Qin Zui, and he immediately perked up.

This was a good thing, actually. Jiang Chu had been worried that Qin Zui would get bored just hanging around him all the time. It wasn’t like being at home, where they could each do their own thing. Jiang Chu couldn’t be thinking about Qin Zui every second. When Benzi and the others really got going, they could forget all about their wives.

He rested for a bit and charged his phone. Then Fang Zi came by to call him for lunch.

They were eating in a large courtyard set up like a farmhouse building, with a big, long table that was kept very clean.

Behind the main courtyard was a small warehouse. They had every kind of ingredient you could want. If you wanted free-range chicken or live duck, you could just go catch it yourself. You could either do your own stir-frying in the wok or have the restaurant cook it for you.

Hua Zi owned a restaurant, so he was the expert here. He took Fang Zi, Benzi, and the others with him to order the dishes, handing out cigarettes to the boss and the kitchen staff in a wide circle. When they came back, they each found a place to sit, shooting the breeze while they waited for the food to come out.

Jiang Chu turned his head to look for Qin Zui, only to find Du Miaomiao dragging him over to a small table in a patch of shade. He was holding his phone, chattering excitedly about some game.

Whether Qin Zui was interested or not was hard to tell. His expression was definitely a bit helpless, but he didn’t refuse. He just sat down with Du Miaomiao for now.

Old Du sat down next to Jiang Chu. He’d grabbed a plate of sunflower seeds from somewhere and pushed it to the center of the table.

“Your nephew’s not shy anymore, huh?” Jiang Chu said, tilting his chin towards the small table.

Old Du glanced at Du Miaomiao, then smiled. “Kids warm up fast.”

When the food started coming out, Jiang Chu called out, and Qin Zui came over to sit beside him.

Du Miaomiao looked at Jiang Chu on Qin Zui’s left, then at Benzi on his right, but refused to look anywhere near his uncle. He dragged his stool over and squeezed in between Qin Zui and Benzi, even telling “Uncle Benzi” to move over a bit.

Old Du had a look of being used to it. He just ignored him.

Bao Li was on Benzi’s other side, trying to signal to Old Du to free up the seat next to Jiang Chu so Chen Linguo could sit there.

Old Du was just about to move when Chen Linguo quickly smiled and waved her hand. “No, no, Brother Du. You guys need to drink, you need to sit together to talk. I can’t drink, so I won’t come over and be a bother.”

Old Du had the boss bring Chen Linguo a bottle of juice. He said quietly to Jiang Chu, “This girl’s got her head on straight. You might want to think about it.”

“It’s nothing definite.” Jiang Chu didn’t know why, but he just wasn’t feeling it with Chen Linguo.

His last relationship had ended almost two years ago. Maybe when you’re single for a while, you just get too lazy to really put effort into thinking about feelings.

“Don’t talk about me. What about you?” he tossed the topic back to Old Du.

Old Du smiled with half-closed eyes, glanced at Du Miaomiao, and said, “It’s like raising a son. And he’s got a temper. Every girl who comes around, he pisses off until she runs away.”

Jiang Chu suddenly laughed and patted Old Du on the shoulder. He was about to say it felt like he was seeing a vision of his own future, but then he thought about it. Qin Zui wouldn’t be living with him for that many years, and he was such a stable, steady kid. There was no way he’d be driving people away.

When this group got together, there was nothing else to do. The main activities were chatting and drinking.

It wasn’t easy getting this many people together, and they were all going to be busy with their own stuff later. There was no need to worry about the time of day. A couple of rounds of toasts got things started, and then it was just clinking glasses and drinking.

Still, everyone showed some restraint during this lunch. Especially Jiang Chu.

He knew what was up. This meal was just the warm-up. Once the evening came and the right atmosphere set in, that was when the real party would start. They wouldn’t be done until a few people were completely plastered.

Qin Zui didn’t drink at lunch. When you’re new to a place with a group of people you don’t know, he made it a habit to keep a completely clear head.

Jiang Chu didn’t want him to drink either. He knew Qin Zui could hold his liquor, but Benzi and the others didn’t.

This group had no sense of moderation when they were on a drinking binge. Jiang Chu just grabbed a Sprite for Qin Zui and told him to nurse it with Du Miaomiao.

Du Miaomiao didn’t like hanging around this group of adults. Once he’d eaten enough, he wanted to leave, and he asked Qin Zui if he wanted to go play games in his room.

Jiang Chu was munching on a small fried fish and couldn’t help but perk his ears up. Qin Zui said, “No.”

“Then I’ll find you after you’re done eating.” Du Miaomiao didn’t insist. He grabbed a plate of watermelon and slipped away.

The meal stretched on until 1:30 in the afternoon. Fang Zi stood up first, shaking his head. “Alright, I gotta go rest for a bit. I’m gonna go fishing later. We’ll pick it back up tonight.”

“Fishing, my ass,” Benzi laughed at him. “You handle a fishing rod like a damn two-knife hack (amateur).”

“What does ‘two-knife hack’ mean?” Chen Linguo laughed, confused.

“Who knows where he picked up that word. Tonight’s gonna be even crazier. We’ll just play mahjong. Don’t mind them,” Bao Li said, eating a slice of watermelon and smiling.

Jiang Chu’s head was feeling a bit fuzzy, too. He was full, he’d had a good drink, and it was a little warm. Right now, all he wanted was to go back to his room, turn on the AC, and take a nap. He felt like he could sleep solidly through the whole afternoon without opening his eyes once.

It was a pretty nice feeling. He stood up to retreat with Fang Zi, then pinched the back of Qin Zui’s neck and scratched his ear. “I’m gonna go sleep. You gonna eat some more?”

The spot behind Qin Zui’s ear tingled, and his back snapped ramrod straight. He stood up to walk Jiang Chu back.

Jiang Chu had his arm around Qin Zui’s shoulder, humming some happy but unrecognizable tune. It took Qin Zui a while to realize it was “Let’s Go Rowing on the Lake.” He figured that even though Jiang Chu had controlled himself, it was still too much for his lightweight tolerance.

Back in the room, Qin Zui was just thinking about opening a bottle of water for Jiang Chu when he turned his head and saw Jiang Chu had already flopped face-down on the bed, drifting off into a daze.

Qin Zui took a drink himself and decided to roll him over, at least so his head could land on the pillow and he could sleep more comfortably.

Jiang Chu squinted as he was being moved around. When he was rolled onto his back, he let out a questioning “Huh?” and his eyes met Qin Zui’s gaze. Looking relaxed, he tossed his hand up over his head, gave him a small smile, and let Qin Zui support his neck. He tilted his head back, lifting his chin slightly, closed his eyes, and went to sleep.

That hazy little smile—Qin Zui didn’t know why, but seeing it sent a sudden shiver of numbness creeping from the back of his head down his spine.

He jerked his hand back, and Jiang Chu’s head dropped onto the pillow. Jiang Chu frowned and let out an “Ow,” then, eyes still closed, scratched his own back.

At some point in the middle of the nap, Jiang Chu was half-awakened by some murmuring. It was Du Miaomiao again, sticking his head through the gap in the door to ask Qin Zui if he wanted to go do something.

Jiang Chu didn’t catch what it was. He rolled over in a daze, thinking to himself. He still hadn’t figured out that Liang Xiaojia kid back home, with his “Little Brother Qin Zui this” and “Little Brother Qin Zui that,” and now here comes Du Miaomiao. He seemed like the type who, once you got to know him, would just stick to you like glue and never let go…

Qin Zui was way too popular with “kids.”

And they were all “boy kids.”

Once the two of them quieted down, Jiang Chu drifted back off to sleep.

He even had a jumbled, mixed-up dream.

Tangled up with Du Miaomiao’s voice from earlier, he dreamed of Qin Zui answering another call from Liang Xiaojia. Then he dreamed that Liang Xiaojia was actually Du Miaomiao. Then he dreamed that Qin Zui was hugging someone, either Du Miaomiao or Liang Xiaojia, all lovey-dovey and intimate.

When he opened his eyes again, the room was dark as a tomb.

Jiang Chu thought he’d slept until seven or eight at night. His head felt thick as he fumbled for his phone to check the time. 00:37.

“Fuck.” He frowned and sat up, feeling for the light switch by the bed but not finding it. He was the only one in the room. Besides the faint chirping of insects from the gentle slope outside, there wasn’t a sound.

Where was Qin Zui? Still with Du Miaomiao?

Why hadn’t anyone come to get him for dinner?

There was a half-empty bottle of water on the nightstand. Jiang Chu grabbed it and chugged the rest in one go.

Benzi and the others were probably still partying. He was about to go out and find them when he heard voices on the hallway outside. It was Qin Zui. He was on the phone again, but he didn’t come straight in. He stopped at the door, saying something quietly.

Jiang Chu was about to just stand up and yank the door open. He’d already lifted his butt off the edge of the bed when he heard Qin Zui say, “Xiaojia.” He paused, then quietly sat back down.

“If you’re going to say stuff like this, then don’t contact me again after this.”

Qin Zui’s tone was flat, without a hint of emotion.

“It doesn’t matter whether I am or not. It has nothing to do with you, and it’s impossible for it to ever have anything to do with you. Understand?”

As the last syllable left his mouth, the door clicked open. Qin Zui, wearing a pair of basketball shorts and slippers, pushed the door open and came in, carrying the dampness of a recent shower.

Seeing someone sitting on the bed in the pitch-black room, Qin Zui jumped, startled. He reached up and flicked on the light.

Jiang Chu shielded his eyes from the sudden glare, looking at Qin Zui.

“Are you?” he asked, his eyes narrowed.