Chapter 4

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When We Reunited, I Looked at Him With Narrowed Eyes.\n

From the narrow kitchen came the sound of rice sizzling in oil. He Yu and Xie Xue sat at the small, slightly greasy dining table.\n

 Xie Xue, who‘d swept away the solemn haze, smiled easily as she waited for her big brother to finish cooking. \n

 He Yu smiled perfunctorily, but rolled his eyes inside.\n

 The postered kitchen door slid open. The first thing that came out was the familiar fragrance of rice; then, Xie Qingcheng came out and took off the apron. His shirt was still tucked in his waist and his pants were still well-ironed. Although he was cold in nature, he was a good elder brother. Due to his parents’ early death, he was the head of his family, and he grew up taking care of the younger ones, so he was a pretty good cook.\n

 Seeing her brother with sleeves half-rolled up and placing a tray on the humble table, Xie Xue squealed and jumped up with joy before helping her brother set the plates and cutlery.\n

 “It smells so good. Brother, you’re so handsome, you’re so handsome!! I love you so much, I love you so much!! Quick! I’m starving!”\n

 Xie Qingcheng’s expression darkened. “Ladies shouldn’t say such things. It’s inappropriate. Go wash your hands first.”\n

 Then he said to He Yu, “You too.”\n

 He Yu hadn’t eaten fried rice like this for a very long time.\n

 Xie Qingcheng’s fried rice was fluffy and golden, each grain distinct from one another – as a child, He Yu once observed Xie Qingcheng making his sister’s favorite staple at the stove. He knew that good fried rice needed to be made with overnight rice, not too moist nor too dry. Before the rice was put in the pan, it had to be stirred in a large bowl of beaten eggs first. This would let each grain of rice become evenly coated with golden-yellow. \n

 When the hot oil had begun boiling, two fresh eggs were to be quickly stirred in the pan before swiftly taken out. Add lard and the egg-covered rice into the pan and stir-fry at high heat. \n

 But this actually wasn’t authentic Yangzhou fried rice. Xie Qingcheng had adjusted it according to Xie Xue’s taste and never put in green beans, though this didn’t prevent it from tasting delicious. Three plates of steaming fried rice, each grain golden and shining with dripping oil under the light. Cut inside were small pieces of ham and silky-smooth shrimp with delicate green onions garnished on top – both the color and fragrance were very enticing.\n

 As he ate, He Yu schemed. \n

He truly ate without tasting the food. At the table, Xie Xue chattered and laughed, but due to Xie Qingcheng’s arrival, most of it was directed at her brother. The brother-sister pair chatted easefully with each other, yet he was unable to join because he’d spent too long away from them. He became a mere backdrop for their conversation, one with no sense of existence. \n

 Said backdrop was very upset; he had to think of a way to get rid of Xie Qingcheng.\n

 “Do you want more?”\n

While his mind wandered, the delicious rice had been silently eaten until the bottom of his bowl had appeared. He Yu came back to his senses. To Xie Qingcheng, who was looking at him, he politely said, “It’s fine.”\n

 “Brother, I do! Give me some more!”\n

 Xie Qingcheng left with Xie Xue’s dinner plate. Xie Xue bit her chopsticks and said to He Yu, “My brother’s cooking is much better than yours and is very delicious. You don’t want another bowl?”\n

 He Yu forced out a smile. “Having yourself break the weighing scale is enough. I won’t add myself to the mess.”\n

 “Hey! Who acts like this?! Do you hate me?!”\n

 “You’re the one saying my cooking isn’t as good as his…”\n

As they bickered, Xie Qingcheng’s voice came from the kitchen, “Xie Xue, why did you put a bucket of water here?”\n

 “Oh.” Xie Xue immediately stopped fooling around with He Yu, as if she wasn’t the one laughing with He Yu just now. She sat still and upright. “The school said the water will be stopped tomorrow, so I’m storing a bucket of water. The kitchen’s too small, but putting it elsewhere is troublesome, so I could only place it on the pantry shelf.”\n

 “Why did you put it so high? What if you didn’t pay attention pushing the door and it fell?”\n

 The idiot said, “Aiya, ge, don’t worry about it – it’s okay.” \n

 The speaker had no intentions, but the listener took it to heart. As He Yu was the type to pull on the braids of the girl he liked, when he listened to the two’s conversations, his pair of innocent almond eyes swept a glance to the kitchen. Suddenly, a very mean trick came to mind… \n

 The three of them ate dinner. Xie Qingcheng didn’t like to clean, so He Yu, as a seemingly gentle, reliable and talented boy, naturally took the initiative to wash the dishes and pot.\n

 “Do you want help?” Xie Xue asked.\n

 “I’ll call you later if I need you.” He Yu smiled vaguely before turning around into the kitchen and closing the door.\n

As soon as the door closed, his smile disappeared.\n

 He Yu began to carefully observe the angle. First, he pulled the bucket of water ever-so-slightly outwards on the pantry shelf, so the door would just knock it over when opened. \n

 Then, he calmly found the hair dryer Xie Xue placed on the shelf’s second level. Without a second thought, he placed it in the sink and opened the faucet.\n

 “Fwaa–“\n

 Just like this, the Young Master He she trusted turned the high-end hairdryer Xie Xue spent half a month of her salary on into an impressive-looking but useless piece of junk.\n

 Very good.\n

 He Yu composedly dried the hairdryer before stuffing it back onto the shelf.\n

 The prep work was over.\n

 From the crack of the door, he silently glanced at the girl joking with Xie Qingcheng. He turned around, rolled up the sleeves of his white top, quietly turned on the faucet, and began to pour detergent and wash the dishes.\n

 This attitude – he was simply a great person! A youth with all (1) five virtues!\n

 However, performing too many evil deeds would always lead to retribution. \n

 Just as He Yu finished preparing for his meticulously-planned strategy and shook off the water droplets from his hands, ready to have the heroine come in for the “coincidental” encounter he’d planned, he suddenly heard footsteps coming from outside the kitchen. He Yu immediately turned around and saw a straight and tall masculine figure projected against the frosted glass.\n

 He Yu’s almond eyes widened. Before he could prevent it, he heard Xie Qingcheng say from outside, “He Yu, I’m coming in to wash my hands.”\n

 “Wai-“\n

Before the word could completely exit his mouth, he heard an earth-shattering noise. The bucket He Yu deliberately rested on the edge of the pantry shelf swayed in rotation and then-\n

 Crash!\n

 The bucket full of water, which should’ve fallen on Xie Xue in accordance with He Yu’s plan,  smashed directly against Xie Qingcheng’s handsome face!\n

 Fuck!\n

 Not even a single fucking drop was wasted!\n

 He Yu: “…”\n

 Xie Qingcheng: “…”\n

 With water splashed, the room was in complete disorder. The meritorious bucket rolled back and forth around Xie Qingcheng, who was wet from head to toes. Finally, like an old man taking a stroll, he slowly pissed off to the living room and stopped contentedly before Xie Xue, who, hearing the noise, rushed over with alarm. \n

 Xie Xue had witnessed the whole thing from outside and was trembling with fear.\n

 It’s over… \n

 It’s fucking over over over over!\n

 Xie Xue looked at her drenched older brother who, facing He Yu, turned his head. Under the rinsing of a bucket that’d unexpectedly fallen from the sky, his fair skin appeared even more jade-white, his brows more jet-black. Wet strands of hair hung over his forehead, water beads dripping. The droplets passed through his brows and flowed into his eyes, which were widened from disbelief. He subconsciously squinted a little before coming back to his senses.\n

 “Xie Xue!!”\n

 Xie Xue’s body quivered and shrunk in fear.\n

 Xie Qingcheng shook the dripping strands from his forehead with towering rage. “I already said not to put the water bucket on the pantry shelf!!”\n

 “I’m sorry, I’m sorry!” Xie Xue ran in, trembling, and took a mop and some paper towels. While she handed the paper towels to her brother, she rummaged through the pantry shelf for the hair dryer. “Ge, I never expected it to fall…  It was obviously fine just then… Blow-dry your hair first, don’t catch a cold.”\n

 From behind, He Yu blinked his gentle almond eyes guiltily.\n

 Xie Xue pulled Xie Qingcheng to the living room and found the hair dryer He Yu had drenched to junk behind her back. She plugged it in and pressed the ‘on’ switch.\n

Nothing.\n

 “Huh?”\n

 She pressed it again.\n

 Still nothing.\n

 “…” \n

 She pressed it repeatedly.\n

 “…Ge.” Xie Xue looked at her brother’s darkened expression and felt as if she was about to die. She continued with a trembling voice, “I- I think the hairdryer broke…”\n

 Xie Qingcheng looked over with his chilly peach blossom eyes. “This was the four thousand yuan hair dryer you said you bought?”\n

 Xie Xue almost fell to her knees.\n

 How could she be so unlucky?!?!\n

 Xie Qingcheng had already been confused by why she’d buy a hair dryer more expensive than an ordinary TV. At first, he berated her, but eventually gave in thanks to her repeated explanation on how good it was at conserving her hair. Most importantly was its excellent quality – twenty years no break!\n

 “I swear, I’ll only use this one hair dryer for the next twenty years! Otherwise, you might as well decapitate me to make up for my IQ tax!”\n

Those words rang in her ears. Under Xie Qingcheng’s terrifying gaze, Xie Xue felt a chill on her neck. She couldn’t help but take a step back and raise her hand to cover her neck.\n

Just as she lost hope, Xie Xu looked over to see He Yu wiping his hands and coming out, pretending to be what he wasn’t. She was suddenly struck by a bright idea. As if seeing her Lord and Saviour, she rushed towards He Yu in tears and blurted out, “He Yu! Could you do me a favor? My hairdryer broke! Who knew I could be so unlucky! Do you have a spare set of clothing in your dorm? A hair dryer? Could you take my brother over for a change of clothes? Thank you so much!” \n

 “…” \n

She was pretending to be polite in front of her brother again.\n

 He Yu smiled and cooperated, “Teacher Xie, you’re really too polite.”\n

 His eyes turned to Xie Qingcheng.\n

Xie Qingcheng was leaning back against the couch, water still dripping down his sharp jawline. His casual grey shirt was completely wet and the fabric clung to his skin, indistinctly revealing the outline of his chest and his small waist. He tilted his head and narrowed his eyes, his thin lips slightly pursed and his complexion gloomy as he stared at Xie Xue. It looked as if he was prepared to place righteousness before family by eliminating this wastrel sister of his. \n

 He Yu looked at him with a slight headache.\n

 In his original plan, the person who should’ve ended up soaking-wet and desperate to accompany him back to his dorm to blow-dry their hair was Xie Xue.\n

 After a freak combination of factors, how did it become Xie Qingcheng?\n

 He was a steel-straight man and hated doctors. The elderly Xie Qingcheng was not welcome in his dormitory. \n

 But there was no other choice – what was done cannot be undone. Xie Qingcheng became such a sorry figure because of him and Xie Xue had already asked him for help. He could only sigh softly, walk up to Xie Qingcheng, and say to the doctor sitting with a sinister expression:\n

 “You’re soaking wet – stop glaring already. Dr. Xie, would you like to go back with me for a change of clothes? My dormitory is not far from here; it’s only ten minutes away. Let’s go.”\n

————\n

 Four people stayed per room in the men’s dormitory at Huzhou Univeristy’s School of Art. It was currently dinnertime, so by the time He Yu took Xie Qingcheng back, his roommates had all gone out for food. There was nobody else in the room.\n

 “Wear this.” He Yu took a clean set of clothes from the closet and handed them to Xie Qingcheng.\n

 Xie Qingcheng was disgusted. “A sports T-shirt?”\n

 “What’s the matter?”\n

 What’s the matter? These kinds of clothes were only worn by boys during their studies. The last time he wore a shirt like this was more than a decade or two ago. He couldn’t even remember what he used to look like in these kinds of clothes. Now, they were completely unsuitable. \n

 “Give me a shirt.”\n

 “Tch, I’m really sorry Dr. Xie, but you don’t have a choice.” He Yu smiled a little, but Xie Xue wasn’t here anymore, so he no longer pretended.\n

 His smile was suddenly as perfunctory and frivolous as a sheet of tissue paper. His eyes were dark with no sense of sincerity and his attitude towards Xie Qingcheng was no longer so polite. “Over here, only this is the right size for you. My shirts are too big for you.”\n

 Xie Qingcheng raised his eyes and his gaze pierced through the wet strands of hair over his forehead before landing on He Yu. \n

 After wiping away the guise of politeness, the mockery by the corners of his lips became obvious. He met Xie Qingcheng’s gaze and slightly raised his eyebrows: “You’re not going to wear it? If you don’t wear it, you’ll have to go out naked.”\n

 “…” \n

 Xie Qingcheng violently yanked the change of clothes from his hand and walked into the bathroom with a stern expression.\n

 He Yu stood outside the bathroom, waiting for him to finish changing. Then, he suddenly felt this scene was somewhat familiar… \n

 Separated by the frosted glass door, he conversed with the man inside. “By the way, Dr. Xie, I suddenly remembered something from the past.\n

 Do you remember that year when I went to your college dormitory-“\n

 “I don’t remember. Piss off.”\n

 He Yu laughed. Xie Qingcheng denied it before he could finish his sentence. What’s the difference between this and unhesitatingly admitting to it? \n

 Xie Qingcheng, like him, clearly remembered that old grudge.\n

 A debt had its creditor and hate had its cause. Even a piece of clothing was a retaliation against Xie Qingcheng after so many years. \n

Thinking like this, he felt a little happy. Turning the tables after such a long time was probably this kind of feeling, right? \n

 “Then hurry up.” Without Xie Xue here, He Yu almost couldn’t hide his tail from Xie Qingcheng. He smiled as he leaned against the bathroom door, his arms folded, and an almost uncontrollable scorn in his voice. He bent his index finger and knocked against the frosted glass. “We have to return to your sister’s after you change.”\n

 A few minutes later, Xie Qingcheng aggressively pushed open the door, hitting He Yu with a bang and almost knocking him to the ground.\n

 He Yu was caught off guard. Letting out a stifled groan, he bent down, covering his nose.\n

 Xie Qingcheng raised his eyes coldly: “Why were you so close?”\n

 He Yu was in so much pain he completely stopped pretending: “…Xie Qingcheng, can you speak more reasonably? It was you who hit me.”\n

 Whenever his temper flared, he’d still privately call Xie Qingcheng by his full name.\n

Xie Qingcheng paused: “Go compress it with some ice.”\n

 “Where am I gonna find ice?” He Yu uncovered his reddened nose and massaged it. He managed to suppress his anger, but still couldn’t help wanting to contradict him, “You look like ice to me – I should just use your hand to compress it.”\n

Xie Qingcheng pictured that image and coldly provided his brief opinion. “That’s too gay. I’m homophobic.”\n

As he spoke, he pushed his chest away and detoured into the dormitory, trying to find something. \n

 He Yu was rendered speechless: “What are you talking about? I didn’t mean it that way. I’m more homophobic than you are…”\n

 “Where is the hairdryer?” Xie Qingcheng didn’t have to graciously accept the boy’s explanation. He didn’t bother listening either.\n

 “…On the chair.”\n

 Xie Qingcheng plugged in the hair dryer and went to dry his hair, so He Yu stood on the balcony, still a little upset. He stared at Xie Qingcheng – who was drying his hair from afar – unable to understand how such a person was Xie Xue’s brother by blood.\n

 Xie Xue saw her brother as the Savior and worshipped him exceedingly. \n

Nor could he understand how Xue Qingcheng was worth worshipping. \n

Anyways, he was just an old man.\n

 But as he stared, He Yu lost a little bit of his senses. \n

He remembered Xie Qingcheng was a childhood nightmare in his eyes. He was always very afraid of him, yet he still had to see him; had to disgrace himself and throw away all etiquette before him. Xie Qingcheng had seen him when he’d gone crazy once. Back then, he’d struggled frenetically against a restraining band and howled at him like a crazy trapped beast. At that time, Xie Qingcheng had looked at him with a calm expression as he approached him under the surgical lighthead. He could smell the ice-cold disinfectant before a needle pierced his skin… \n

 At that time, he felt Xie Qingcheng was so tall.\n

 And so very cold.\n

He was powerful beyond dispute, shrouding him like a dark cloud; it felt as if he could never break free from this nightmare. \n

 Who would’ve thought after a few years of not meeting, the one looking up and the one looking down had switched. \n

 He Yu slightly lowered his eyes to look at him.\n

 What’s happening?\n

 Looking at him again now, he didn’t seem as scary as before.\n

 Perhaps it’s because some people held illusory impressions of things from their childhood, left behind by many years of precipitation their minds experienced; however, those impressions were never the truth. For example, when watching a TV series as a child, it always felt incredibly long, but looking back at it now it was only twenty episodes. Another example was when he felt the herding dog he’d feared appeared burlier than a fine boss mare, but when looking through old photos, he discovered that creature was no higher than an adult’s kneecaps. \n

 Perhaps this was the psychological correspondence he had towards Xie Qingcheng.\n

 His gaze stayed on him so long even Xie Qingcheng perceived it. \n

 Xie Qingcheng turned his head with chilly eyes. “What are you looking at?”\n

 He Yu paused. “Whether my clothes fit you or not.”\n

 “…’\n

 “It’s too big,” He Yu said, “Xie Qingcheng, I remember you used to be very tall.”\n

 Xie Qingcheng coldly said, “I didn’t think I needed to use my height and body to flaunt myself.”\n

 Then he turned around and continued to blow-dry his hair; only, his complexion looked a little ugly before his head turned. \n

 At this moment, He Yu suddenly realized his childhood nightmare was nothing more than an ordinary man who was even a little meagre. His white t-shirt appeared too large on his body. Pale skin could be seen in the depression of his jugular notch, like water streaming down a snow-capped mountain, immersing into the shadows under his clothing.\n

 Strange. How was he so afraid of him back then?\n

In a blink of an eye, Xie Qingcheng had finished drying his hair. Straight men wouldn’t quite know how to dress themselves up; he looked into the mirror and casually fixed it a bit before placing down the hairdryer and turning his head at He Yu. “I’m leaving first. I’ll return your clothes tomorrow.”\n

 “There’s no need to return it; I’m not used to wearing clothes worn by others. You can throw them away after you wear them. They’re old too.”\n

At this point, Xie Qingcheng no longer insisted. He ruffled the ends of his hair, which was still a bit wet, and said, “Alright, then I’ll leave first.”\n

 “You’re not going back to Xie Xue’s with me?”\n

 “No,” Xie Qingcheng said, “I have something else to do tonight.”\n

 “Writing a paper?”\n

 Xie Qingcheng had no social habit of hiding his personal affairs, or perhaps he didn’t care, so he put on his watch, fastened its buckle, and glanced at He Yu. “Blind date.”\n

 He Yu, who was only casually chatting with him, didn’t react at first as he was still absent-minded, and was even secretly happy that Xie Qingcheng finally had the sense to leave. But, after a few seconds, these two words finally finished running an entire lap around the Earth and reached his brain. \n

 He Yu was slightly surprised. He turned his head quickly with widened almond eyes.\n

 Wasn’t Xie Qingcheng married?\n

 Then why was he participating in a blind date? \n

 How come Xie Xue didn’t mention this to him?\n

 Countless thoughts flashed through his mind. He Yu blinked and found a clue from the jumbled chaos in his brain. \n

 He looked at Xie Qingcheng, whose face was half-submerged in the light’s shadow. He hesitated for a moment before tentatively asking, “Are you…Divorced?”\n

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The author has something to say.\n

Mini theatre: \n

Xie Xue: He Yu, let’s play a game. Each of us will tell a lie. I’ll go first. I don’t like fried rice. \n

He Yu: I like men. \n

At this time, Dr. Xie indifferently walked past and heard He Yu.  He revealed a look of extreme disgust before walking away.\n

He felt that He Yu’s beauty was quite gay. Unsurprisingly, he was…\n

Shit, this straight male cancer can’t accept homosexuality. \n

[This theater is pure nonsense and can not be taken seriously. In the text, Xie Qingcheng and He Yu both know the other’s a straight man and homophobic] \n

(1)Five Virtues – refers to the Confucianist virtues:  benevolence, righteousness, propriety, wisdom, and fidelity.\n

<hr class="wp-block-separator has-text-color has-background has-black-background-color has-black-color is-style-wide">\nﾍ(•◡•)ﾉ Please note that this is a translation that stemmed from interest and is a hobby. There are other ones out there made by more experienced translators so if you find mistakes do let us know. Note that this chapter still needs a polish – it will be finished tonight. UPDATE: Chapter edited!\n

Find the translators: Mushi @mushixx_ and .sienz @znies_ and the editor: Argenti @ziliujinvitae\n

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