Chapter 40

“You just put your mom’s name as a contact?” Jiang Chu chuckled. “Answer it.”

Qin Zui didn’t seem very eager to pick up. He held the phone for a moment, making sure Qin Shuman hadn’t accidentally pocket-dialed him, and that she wouldn’t hang up after two rings. Only then did he swipe to answer and press the phone to his ear.

The call was very brief. Jiang Chu could barely hear Qin Zui say anything; it felt like he just grunted a few times. Finally, he said “We’ll see,” and hung up.

“What did she say?” he asked Qin Zui again.

Qin Zui’s mood had clearly dropped a notch because of the call. He put his phone away with a blank expression and thought for a moment before answering. “She asked about my leg. Told me not to be too much trouble for you.”

Jiang Chu instantly empathized with Qin Zui’s feeling of not knowing what to say.

There was nothing to say.

The last time Qin Shuman had called was the day Qin Zui had first gotten his cast put on. Jiang Chu had suggested she make the call herself. Now she’d finally called again, and the cast was already off.

And she still had the nerve to tell Qin Zui not to trouble him.

“You’re not a trouble.” He could only free one hand to flick Qin Zui’s ear.

“Just drive,” Qin Zui said, the corner of his mouth lifting slightly.

Actually, Qin Shuman had one more question at the end of the call. She asked if Qin Zui wanted to come home for a meal.

Qin Zui said they’d see, and then she called Jiang Chu instead.

Jiang Chu was just calculating the days off for New Year’s at the time.

From Christmas Eve to New Year’s Day, he didn’t want to schedule the company too tightly for that week. Everyone was getting into the holiday spirit. After all, his small, struggling company was full of young people, and on days like this, they all wanted to be with their boyfriends or girlfriends.

The ones without partners didn’t want to work either.

Fang Zi had been rallying the group chat for days, insisting they all go to Hua Zi’s place for a meal once the break started.

Hua Zi was pretty willing. His old buddy in the neighboring city had opened a hot springs hotel last year that was turning out to be quite a success. He’d been telling Hua Zi to bring friends to check it out. It’d be perfect for them to go soak for a bit, and Hua Zi could pick up some pointers at the same time.

Jiang Chu thought it was a good idea. He’d caught a bit of a cold after eating that hotpot the other day. It wasn’t bad enough to need medicine, but the nonstop sneezing was getting annoying. A couple of days soaking in hot springs would be the best cure.

More importantly, he wanted to take Qin Zui out for some fun.

It had gone from summer to winter. What with the allergies and the broken leg, he hadn’t had a chance to take him out for a proper good time. They’d only been to that farm stay, slept there, and then had to rush back without doing anything.

“What do you think? Got any ideas?” Jiang Chu said, leaning against the doorway of Qin Zui’s room, phone in hand, after finishing the call with Qin Shuman. “We go to my dad’s and your mom’s for a meal this weekend, then over New Year’s, I’ll go see my mom for a bit. After that, it’s hot springs with the guys?”

“You want to go eat with her?” Qin Zui leaned back in his chair. He was doing his homework, legs crossed at the ankle and propped up on the desk, a workbook open on his lap, twirling a pen in his right hand.

“It’s not a matter of wanting to. It’s something I should do. She is your mom, after all.” Jiang Chu went and sat on the edge of his bed. “Besides, I’m still getting sixteen thousand a month from them. If she wants to see her son, it’s not like I can hold him hostage, is it?”

Qin Zui laughed at that.

“What were you thinking back then?” he asked Jiang Chu.

“When?” Jiang Chu didn’t catch his drift.

“When they said I’d be coming to stay with you,” Qin Zui said. “Why did you agree to it?”

“Didn’t I tell you? Sixteen grand a month.” Jiang Chu’s eyes crinkled. “They’d have found a way to shove me into it whether I wanted it or not, so I figured I’d just take the money and run.”

Qin Zui looked at him, twirling the pen a couple more times.

“And besides, you’d already latched onto me by then,” Jiang Chu said. “It would’ve been wrong to reject you.”

“I latched onto you?” Qin Zui didn’t remember that.

“Yeah, when we walked into the private room.” Jiang Chu recalled how cautious Qin Zui had been that day, and then looked at the Qin Zui now, who could actually talk and laugh with him. It was a little bittersweet. “My dad tried to lead you over to sit next to your mom, but you directly sat down right next to me.”

Qin Zui thought about it. “I’d forgotten.”

“Must have been a reflex,” Jiang Chu said. “You didn’t want to sit with them. I was the one who came to get you, so you instinctively grouped yourself with me.”

Qin Zui twirled the pen a couple more times.

“Actually, it was because of that one move.” Jiang Chu was a little fascinated by the way he twirled the pen, so he took it from him and spun it a few times himself. “At your most lost moment, you sat down right next to me. If I’d still rejected you, that really would have been pitiful.”

“You’re the one who’s soft-hearted. Don’t try to pin it on me.” Qin Zui said in a low voice, watching his hand.

Jiang Chu just smiled.

“If it hadn’t been me, would you have agreed to someone else?” Qin Zui looked up at him again.

“Who else?” A thought of Liang Xiaojia, wearing that travel agency hat, popped into Jiang Chu’s head. “Liang Xiaojia?”

“Would you have?” Qin Zui didn’t really care who specifically, he just wanted to ask.

“No.” Jiang Chu didn’t hesitate for a second this time. “Him? Definitely not.”

“Why?” Qin Zui pressed, clearly interested.

Why?

Jiang Chu couldn’t immediately articulate a reason.

His first reaction was that Liang Xiaojia was a kid with too much on his mind, not really his type.

But then he thought about Qin Zui’s sensitivity level, which was already beyond the norm, so that reason didn’t quite hold up.

Even if it did, he couldn’t say it. Liang Xiaojia was, after all, Qin Zui’s close childhood friend. Describing him like that would be like putting him down to prop Qin Zui up.

“What, do you think picking up people to take home is some addictive good time?” Jiang Chu could only spin the pen and tap it on the back of Qin Zui’s hand. “It’s not like picking up a stray cat or dog. You gotta see if you click, right?”

“So I clicked with you,” Qin Zui said.

“Why have you been so desperate for reassurance lately?” Jiang Chu looked at him, amused.

“Did I click or not?” Qin Zui stared at him.

“Yeah, yeah, you’re the best click.” Jiang Chu clicked his tongue, stood up, and tossed the pen back into Qin Zui’s lap. “I’m done with you. So it’s settled. We’ll go to your mom’s place the day after tomorrow for dinner.”

He grabbed his phone and was at the door when Qin Zui suddenly called out from behind him. “Brother.”

“Huh?” Jiang Chu turned around. This was the first time Qin Zui had called him brother voluntarily without being under duress.

“Nothing. Just wanted to say it.” Qin Zui didn’t look back, just went back to his homework.

“Say it a couple more times,” Jiang Chu immediately teased. “I love hearing it.”

“Get out,” Qin Zui said mercilessly.

That weekend happened to be Christmas Day. In order to save up days for New Year’s, they had classes and work on the weekend.

Jiang Chu could see everyone was too fidgety and distracted to sit still, so he just gave them the afternoon off.

“You got plans this afternoon?” Da Ben asked, still sitting in his swivel chair.

“Nope. I’m picking up Qin Zui tonight to go eat at his place.” Jiang Chu checked the time. “You got something?”

“I’m free too. Bao Li’s work doesn’t have the day off today anyway.” Da Ben stretched with a grunt, revealing the bottom of his long underwear. “It’s a couples’ world out there. What should we two do?”

“Count yourself out.” Jiang Chu smiled and turned his head to sneeze.

“Let’s go buy some clothes,” Da Ben said, sitting up with a “hey.” “I’m still rocking last year’s gear. I need to get myself a new outfit this year.”

“Alright,” Jiang Chu nodded. “I’ll buy a down jacket for Qin Zui.”

“You,” Da Ben pointed at him, pointing for a long time without saying anything else. He shook his head and sighed with great exaggeration. “I give up.”

Buying clothes for Qin Zui was super easy. Jiang Chu just picked things based on his own frame. After all, Qin Zui’s figure looked good in anything, regardless of style.

He grabbed a few outfits and tried them on, comparing a short, camouflage one with a long, black one. He felt the camouflage was a bit more youthful.

Da Ben glanced over and told him to go with the long one.

“For a down jacket, it’s not about looks. A long one is warmer, and it’ll protect your brother’s leg.” Da Ben said, grabbing the camouflage one. “Let me try this… what’s the biggest size for this, little sis?”

“You’re such a loser.” Jiang Chu laughed, cursed him, and tried on the long one in front of the mirror. It did look good, quite impressive.

He gave the down jacket to the sales assistant to wrap up, and asked for another one of the same style to keep for himself.

Qin Zui didn’t have evening self-study that night either. Jiang Chu dropped Da Ben off at home and went to the 27th High School to pick someone up.

As expected, Gao Xia and Lu Yao came out with Qin Zui. Lu Yao started jumping up and down when she was still ten meters away from the car, waving at Jiang Chu. She rummaged through her backpack until she reached the car.

“Merry Christmas, Brother!” She grinned, pulling a delicate paper bag out of her bag. No idea where she got it from, but there was a greeting card stuck in it. She took the card out and put it away safely, then shoved the bag directly at Jiang Chu. “Christmas present for you!”

“What is it?” Jiang Chu looked with a smile. It was a bag full of candy, all sorts of fancy foreign brands. Looked pretty high-end.

“No idea who gave it to her. Just grabbed a bag and is making an offering to Buddha with borrowed flowers.” Gao Xia curled his lip in disdain, pulled an apple from who-knows-where, and tossed it to Jiang Chu. “Now this, Brother, I bought with my own hands. It has actual meaning.”

“You’re psycho, aren’t you? It’s all the same once you eat it.” Lu Yao lifted her leg and kicked a clump of snow at Gao Xia.

Jiang Chu didn’t stand on ceremony. He accepted both the candy and the apple, then pulled a paper bag from the passenger seat.

“I just passed the mall and figured I’d see you two. Bought these on a whim.” Jiang Chu opened the bag and handed them a cup each. “Christmas milk tea. Drink up.”

“Whoa, I was literally just about to go buy one,” Lu Yao said, taking a paper cup printed with reindeer patterns and pulling out her phone for a selfie. “I’ve been seeing posts about it on Moments all day.”

“I’m so jealous of Qin Zui,” Gao Xia said, bumping Qin Zui’s shoulder. “It’s a shame the country doesn’t owe me a big brother.”

“What about mine?” Qin Zui had been waiting off to the side, looking at Jiang Chu in confusion.

“I drank it.” Jiang Chu couldn’t help but laugh. He reached back into the car and pulled out a half-drunk cup of milk tea, shaking it at Qin Zui. “Da Ben stole mine.”

Qin Zui stared at him for two seconds. Jiang Chu shook the cup again. “There’s really only half left. Listen.”

“…You’re sick.” Qin Zui let out a soft laugh, took the half-cup of milk tea, and took a big gulp straight from the drinking spout.