The next day was the weekend.
From the moment he got up, the sky was somewhat gloomy and dark.
After lunch, seeing the little wolfdog busy at his perfumer’s workstation again, Pei Zhen looked up at the wall clock. It was nearly one o’clock.
“Didn’t you say earlier that Grasse would be holding its Sixth Phase Class advancement exam at the amphitheater this afternoon and you wanted to watch?”
The content of the advancement exam happened to be precisely the three steps of “Identification,” “Replication,” and “Creation”—exactly the same as the recommendation qualification competition at the end of June.
And of the “three opponents” Han Fu needed to worry about, two were also participating in this exam.
“Hurry and get changed,” Pei Zhen grabbed his jacket, not forgetting to urge him. “I’ll go with you.”
But then he saw the little wolfdog looking troubled, hesitant to speak.
What, you don’t want me to go? Pei Zhen narrowed his eyes.
As he thought this, his mind had already darkly cycled through a list of reasons—was it because of that black mark of being expelled from the industry? Or was bringing his old-fashioned sugar daddy out embarrassing? Or had Han Fu recently been targeted at school and didn’t want to give his enemies more ammunition?
But… no way.
Hadn’t that little wolfdog, after Lister publicly revealed the Bamboo Millet incident, just clung to him entirely, openly introducing him as “This is my boyfriend” in front of everyone?
…
Once they entered the campus and walked into Grasse’s circular tiered lecture hall, Pei Zhen suddenly understood.
Oh, so that’s it! Now he knew why the silly dog didn’t want him tagging along!
“Han Fu, over here! I saved a seat!”
Yu Wenzhe. Yu Wenzhe.
Pei Zhen had always heard Han Fu mention this person and was finally meeting him.
Truth be told, Pei Zhen couldn’t recall what that little judge looked like back then. But since his defining feature was a “bun-like face,” logic dictated he couldn’t possibly be handsome, at most bordering on “cute” or “adorable.”
And based on his careful observation over the past month, Han Fu liked mature men. When watching TV or whatever, if he saw the cute, moe type, he’d switch channels immediately, utterly uninterested.
However, the bun-faced youth named Yu Wenzhe was nothing like the moe face he’d imagined!
Not only was he handsome, but his smile was also superbly affable. Full of lively, sunny energy, he was the perfect example of a devastatingly cute-yet-cool, sunny young man.
New knowledge acquired—bun-faces can indeed be handsome!
Today, he seemed to also be serving as the exam venue’s mascot. Wearing a chubby, oversized bunny suit and hugging a giant fluffy rabbit head, the whole person had exploded into maximum moe.
“Heh, I really didn’t expect him to be so… adorable.”
So the little wolfdog was spending his days “studying diligently” with such an adorable, cool, and young guy. Heh. Heh heh!
“Zhenzhen?!”
Han Fu hadn’t wanted to go out at all today.
The weather hadn’t turned yet, but the forecast said a 70% chance of rain. He was very worried Pei Zhen’s leg would start hurting unbearably again.
But his Pei Zhen, with that difficult personality… If he advised him not to come because of his leg, there was an 80% chance he’d get irritable. So he just had to hold it in and not dare to mention it.
Who the hell could have predicted that once they got to school, Zhenzhen would be staring, utterly captivated, at the rabbit version of Yu Wenzhe!
And he even called him cute! What did that mean? From what he recalled, Pei Zhen had never called anyone cute before. Was Yu Wenzhe really that cute?
Cuter than him?!
…
Grasse Academy’s Fragrance Study Class, if one really wanted to complete it fully, actually had a total of nine periods.
But as the campus forum put it: “Phase One relies on diligence to memorize texts, Phase Two relies on effort to understand, Phase Three depends on talent to advance, Phase Four is a heavenly book you nibble at as fate allows.” Without talent and sufficient passion, most people found it very difficult to continue progressing beyond Phase Three or Four.
And those who gritted their teeth and fought their way up often ended up stuck like Yu Wenzhe in the bottleneck of the Fifth Phase Class, year after year.
As for those rare individuals in Phase Seven and above, many were already interning or working at major designer perfume companies. With their busy work schedules, those willing to come back and compete for the PA recommendation spot were few and far between.
Therefore, Han Fu’s competitors were almost entirely concentrated among the Sixth Phase Class students taking today’s advancement exam.
“Old Yu, those two are the TOP 2 you mentioned? One being ‘your good friend,’ the other the ‘Background Emperor’?”
The match they had come to observe was precisely the advancement exam showdown between the two strongest, universally acknowledged students in the Sixth Phase Class.
In the amphitheater, surrounding the two perfumer’s workstations below, on one side stood a delicate, handsome young man; on the other, a roughly 190cm, 200-jin, whiskered fat guy.
According to the theory that “handsome people’s good friends are usually handsome” and that the “Background Emperor”… well, his meals must be pretty good, it was basically obvious at a glance.
The bell struck at two o’clock sharp.
The judge walked to the central round platform. A roar of boiling, chaotic cheers erupted. Yu Wenzhe stood up as well, waving in his giant bunny mascot suit towards the platform, shouting: “Jing Xing! Jing Xing, do your best!”
Yu Wenzhe’s good friend was named “Gu Jingxing.”
Such an antique-sounding name. Even Pei Zhen remarked: “Sounds like the male lead of a novel.”
Right then, that 1.9-meter-plus, whiskered fat uncle turned his head, his smile adorable: “Yup! Zhezhe! I’ll do my best! Finger heart, mwah mwah!
(づ￣ 3￣)づ”
Han Fu: “…”
Pei Zhen: “…”
The legendary colossal mismatch?!
…
After the crowd quieted down, the advancement exam officially began.
Both sides bowed, exchanging a “Please guide me kindly,” and officially started the best-of-three contest.
The first round, “Identification,” was more or less identical to the format of Han Fu’s previous match against Lister. The two opponents went from ten, fifteen… all the way up to thirty essential oils before barely determining a winner.
Uncle Fatty, Yu Wenzhe’s good friend, won narrowly with a correct rate of 28/30 against 27/30.
In the second round, the “Replication” that Han Fu had been waiting to see finally began.
The judge placed a black box on the round table, removed the cover, and revealed a minimalist, almost austerely designed conical bottle containing a cold, gold-tinged-green liquid.
“…” What a bizarre color. Han Fu frowned.
The golden liquids his Zhenzhen concocted were always a clear, brilliant, lovely gold. But what the hell was this stuff on stage? It almost looked like crushed caterpillar puree!
“Fig?”
Suddenly, inspiration struck. Han Fu quietly leaned in by Pei Zhen’s ear: “Look at that on stage, doesn’t it look like Cranberry’s ‘Fig’?”
Pei Zhen nodded.
That perfume was exactly the yellow-green color of an unripe fig.
Han Fu had just happened to read about this fragrance while cramming yesterday. The ingredients were particularly dissonant, so it left a deep impression—fig leaf, leather, sandalwood, water hyacinth… sounded terrible just hearing it. But supposedly, these seemingly incompatible scents were ultimately paired with unexpected success.
Though a bit niche, it was considered one of Lister’s grandfather’s classic works.
…
On stage, the two contestants each began testing the scent with scent strips.
According to the rules of “Replication,” what they had to do next was, within the allotted time, identify the raw materials based on the scent they smelled and attempt to 100% replicate that fragrance.
“But,” Han Fu whispered again, “what if someone like me just happened to read the fragrance blueprint for ‘Fig’ yesterday? Wouldn’t that basically be a successful cheat?”
Pei Zhen: “By that logic, if you happen to see the exact same problem before any exam, isn’t that also cheating?”
“…” Good point.
Pei Zhen continued: “It’s true that some fragrance apprentices, in order to win, will desperately cram and memorize all sorts of blueprints. But there are countless fragrances in the world. It’s impossible to memorize them all, and not every match will be so coincidental that you run into one you’ve memorized.”
“So in the end, it still relies on your scent level, on analysis, on experience, and your own inherent strength to successfully replicate fragrances time and time again.”
On stage, both contestants had already taken the boxes of materials they fancied and began arranging beakers and test tubes, lighting their lamps.
Fat Uncle’s chubby hand ripped open a pack of chilled fresh plant leaves and began pressing and grinding them on the chopping board.
Holy shit—
Han Fu was instantly stunned.
Hand speed! What kind of hand speed was that!
Clearly a fat guy, how could his finger movements be so incredibly nimble? The entire operation was a seamless flow of spinning and leaping, his eyes practically closed.
How could he slice things while simultaneously controlling the alcohol lamp temperature? How could he control the temperature while also acting as a bare-handed blender? How could he play blender while also playing professional chef, taking fresh roses and slicing, shredding, dicing, and mincing them at lightning speed?
Han Fu now finally understood why he always ended up with sediment.
One comparison told the tale. What was his usual tortoise-speed, panicky scramble compared to this person’s professional level of watching everything around them?
When this Uncle Fat picked up a test tube, he directly replicated his Zhenzhen’s move from that day, executing a suspended 360° spin and catching it steadily back in his hand.
Proof positive that even if you weren’t a handsome guy, this move could clearly win fans.
The surrounding spectators cheered and whistled wildly: “Wow, senior is super awesome!” “Go, Uncle Fatty!”
“Jing Xing is just like that, he loves showing off his skills,” Yu Wenzhe nudged Han Fu. “Don’t just focus on him, look at the opponent too.”
“…”
The delicate youth across the stage—his movements and hand speed weren’t fast, but his expression was extremely serious and focused.
The cheers from the crowd for Uncle Fatty seemed entirely unheard by him, not affecting him in the slightest.
His eyes were fixed on the liquid in the test tube. Lately, Pei Zhen had repeatedly drilled into Han Fu the importance of “carefully observing the container walls” and “paying attention to temperature changes.” The delicate youth executed these lessons admirably—
Closing his eyes, sensing the aroma, just at the critical second before a color change, he lifted the distillation flask off the alcohol lamp. The liquid poured into the beaker, sliding smoothly down its walls.
Not fast, but incredibly steady. The entire process was smooth and fluid, without a single extraneous movement.
Han Fu’s eyes couldn’t leave those fingers.
…He himself didn’t have that technique.
Not fast, even less steady, clumsy as hell. There were just over two weeks until the competition. The gap between him and his opponents was truly more than just a little.
Could he do it…
A sudden panic hit him, a dry thirst in his throat. Can I really do this… competing against these people for the sole qualification?
“Han Xiaohua?”
“Zhenzhen,” he tried hard to look normal. “I’m going out to buy water. What do you want?”
Conveniently, the match on stage had entered the intermission phase. Pei Zhen: “I’ll go with you.”
In truth, Han Fu absolutely didn’t want him to follow. He wanted to be alone for a bit, but he didn’t dare say so.
He bought water nonchalantly from a vending machine in a corner of the building. The cold drink clattered down. He picked it up absently and was suddenly grabbed by the wrist by Pei Zhen, who pulled him into the shade of a tree by the wall corner.
“Ah…”
Han Fu never expected that Pei Zhen would actually initiate a hug.
This had absolutely never happened before.
But at this moment, he just hugged him, simply pulling him over, wrapping him in a full embrace without a word. Today’s Zhenzhen… was different from usual. Today’s Zhenzhen was being super gentle!
He even rubbed the back of his head, like petting a small animal.
“What’s with the worried frown,” Pei Zhen pinched the space between his brows. “Don’t put so much pressure on yourself.”
“That recommendation spot or whatever, just do your best. There’s still the open auditions afterward anyway. And seriously, I never actually expected you to smoothly make it into the elimination rounds in your very first Perfumer Awards competition, let alone win awards and qualify internationally.”
Han Fu: “…”
Pei Zhen: “Because it’s only your first time, isn’t it?”
“If it doesn’t work this time, no big deal, just come back next year. You have the talent. As long as you work hard, what’s meant to be yours will eventually be yours.”
“I’ve never told you, have I?” He smiled lightly. “Actually, my first time competing in the PA wasn’t when I was 19 either, but when I was 18. But that time I didn’t even make the elimination round; I was ruled out directly in the open auditions. The next year, unwilling to give up, I tried again and ended up qualifying internationally. So…”
In that instant, Han Fu received immense comfort.
He nuzzled against Pei Zhen’s shoulder, yet still felt somewhat reluctant, muttering sullenly: “But Zhenzhen, I… already promised that guy Yi.”
“Ignore him, what can he do to you anyway?”
“But…”
“Han Xiaohua.” Pei Zhen patted his back gently again. “Didn’t we make a deal before, to create the best work and enter the Hall of Fame? To start a company together, do our own independent perfume brand in the future?”
“If that’s the case, then don’t forget your original intention. Don’t let some random mess along the road blind your eyes. You need to look forward, see the more distant places, see that thing you ultimately want to achieve.”
“When one day you reach the industry’s peak, when you look back on that day, you’ll realize that every hardship, every panic, every failure before reaching the destination, all your current worries and confusion—they were all just exercises pushing you to that final step. Not a single minute or second was wasted.”
“Right now, all you have to do is do your best within your capacity. Don’t be afraid. No one is going to be hard on you.”
As he spoke, he pinched the little wolfdog’s cheek again.
He didn’t notice that in those dark pupils, his own reflection was utterly mirrored.
Zhenzhen… he was so, so gentle.
Although his usual cold, hard, and fierce self had a different kind of charm, when he was gentle, it was even more…
Han Fu enjoyed it while also nervously scanning the surroundings from the corner of his eye. Him in this state—no one else could ever, ever be allowed to see it!
If anyone else saw it, anyone would definitely fight him for him! Absolutely!
Like him, he really, really liked him…
Ah, his brain was about to short-circuit!
“!” Pei Zhen now genuinely felt… wolfdog, wolfdog. Sure enough, the wolf nature wasn’t entirely absent.
How did the sky spin and his back suddenly hit the rough brick wall? Han Fu’s gaze boring into him right now was clearly roiling with desire—wanting to kiss him, bite him.
Just then, a rumble sounded. The sky behind them suddenly darkened, the large tree rustling loudly as a fierce wind suddenly whipped up.
