Apart from in front of Quan Quan, Qiao Guangyu usually could maintain his composure well. Or to be precise, except when he had to act in front of Huo Zhou, the rest of the time, Qiao Guangyu remained quite genuine.

In his own words, he was always afraid of holding things in, fearing that it would lead to problems. So, outside of "working" hours, Qiao Guangyu never held back.

He was a diligent and obedient person. Tell him to do something, and he'll do it. If you asked him to treat his role as a stand-in as work, he won't invest a bit of emotion into it; if you wanted him to display signs of falling for Huo Zhou, he could perform flawlessly, leaving no room for suspicion.

But he was still quite young and not from a formal academic background. Being in and out of love all the time, over time, it could wear a person down. If it weren't for Quan Quan's frequent psychological support and guidance, he might have long succumbed to Huo Zhou's gentle embrace.

Yet even so, Qiao Guangyu knew that his mind was still being affected.

Back in college, he wasn't the person he was now. At that time, Qiao Guangyu was somewhat mature beyond his years because his mother was in poor health, and he didn't have a father since he was young. So, starting from high school, he became quite independent, working during breaks to earn tuition fees, which made him realize the cruelty of society at an early age.

For the past three years of being financially supported, he had to pretend to be a melancholic and pure alpine flower, and everything he did had to be "elegant." Yet Qiao Guangyu adhered to professional ethics and never engaged in romantic relationships with his financial backer. Therefore, in private, he tended to move in the opposite direction — the more elegant he was in front of Huo Zhou, the rougher he was in front of Quan Quan.

Time is a double-edged sword; many who cried "I won't change" ultimately did change in the end. The oath of eternal love in the first two installments of "My Fair Princess" became a joke by the third. (NT: popular period drama set in 18th-century Qing dynasty)

Quan Quan parked the car downstairs of the apartment, and Qiao Guangyu looked at the already darkening sky. "Quan Quan, how about having dinner at my place before you go?"

Quan Quan rolled up the sleeves of his suit jacket and glanced at his meticulously crafted wristwatch. "No, the boss might have to work overtime tonight, so I need to pack dinner and send it back."

Qiao Guangyu felt a bit disappointed. "Oh."

Quan Quan glanced at him.

"Is he working overtime tonight because he saw Wu Yu during the day and couldn't calm his emotions, so he's trying to numb himself with work?" Qiao Guangyu speculated.

Quan Quan nodded slightly. "It's probably more than that..."

He looked at Qiao Guangyu again but didn't continue.

When Huo Zhou first sought a stand-in, it was out of his lingering thoughts for Wu Yu. Now, two or three years had passed, and upon seeing Wu Yu again, coupled with the presence of Qiao Guangyu, who had some resemblance with Wu Yu and had been with him for a few years, it was inevitable that he would become confused, unable to determine if his love was for Wu Yu or for the stand-in.

In fact, Quan Quan noticed this when they first met, but he had no intention of exposing it and certainly wouldn't remind Huo Zhou. From this perspective, he couldn't even be considered a good secretary. Quan Quan thought to himself with self-deprecation.

Quan Quan said, "I intentionally placed that magazine there."

"Uh? Which one?" Qiao Guangyu just asked and then realized, "The interview with Wu Yu, you deliberately let Huo Zhou see it?"

Quan Quan nodded.

"Why didn't you tell me?!" Qiao Guangyu almost went crazy, "He abandoned music for finance! He gave up playing the piano, and I've been foolishly continuing to learn it?"

Quan Quan pretended to ponder, "Hmm... Your current character setting is 'knowing that you are a stand-in, feeling sad and upset,' so throwing a tantrum and skipping classes is understandable."

Qiao Guangyu breathed a sigh of relief, then heard Quan Quan say, "However, which character setting do you think will make Huo Zhou care for you more: 'throwing tantrums and skipping classes after knowing you are a stand-in' or 'although a stand-in, still professionally attending classes'? "

"The... second one?" Qiao Guangyu cautiously glanced at Quan Quan and voiced his opinion, "If I were Huo Zhou and saw the little stand-in trying to please me, knowing he's a stand-in but still trying to imitate the White Moonlight, I'd be deeply moved! But Quan Quan, our goal isn't to make Huo Zhou abandon the White Moonlight and fall in love with a knockoff, we want Huo Zhou and the White Moonlight to reunite!"

So, it's better not to attend that annoying class?

However, Quan Quan shook his head, "You're wrong about that. If you throw tantrums and skip classes in front of the boss, it shows that you no longer want to be someone else's stand-in and want to be with him openly. Based on today's boss's behaviour, he still cares about you to some extent. If you play this card, he might start taking you seriously and see you separately from the White Moonlight."

These words successfully dumbfounded Qiao Guangyu, and he couldn't say a word for a long time until Quan Quan impatiently urged him to get out of the car. Qiao Guangyu murmured, "Don't... then I'll continue studying tomorrow."

It's just playing the piano, right?

*

The next day during piano class, Qiao Guangyu felt much more relaxed. He pushed all the anxiety from the previous night back into his stomach—because this time, Huo Zhou didn't show up.

Indeed, White Moonlight’s charm was greater, Qiao Guangyu thought happily. He didn't bother with the flawed piano piece he had practiced before; he just played as he pleased, letting his hands dance gracefully on the keys. With an open heart, he immersed himself in the smooth melody, laughing openly.

Qin Li also didn't have that casual attitude anymore. When she was teaching piano seriously, she was actually very strict. If there was something played poorly, she would tirelessly interrupt Qiao Guangyu and make him repeat it over and over again.

But she didn't stop him often. Although she never told Qiao Guangyu, he was indeed the most talented student she had.

It was a pity that with Huo Zhou around, this good seedling could only be wasted.

Today, Qiao Guangyu was picked up by an assistant named Qian Tong. Since Huo Zhou didn't give instructions, he wouldn't take Qiao Guangyu to the company but would send him directly home.

Finally free from the need to pretend in front of Huo Zhou, Qiao Guangyu definitely didn't want to waste time at home. He sent the assistant named Qian Tong away early, indicating that he could go back by himself, and considerately returned the assistant to Huo Zhou, fearing that Huo Zhou might be too busy.

After class, Qiao Guangyu called Quan Quan.

Quan Quan was never polite to him, but this time his tone sounded even worse, "Go straight home after class, don't wander around outside."

"What's up?" Qiao Guangyu detected a hint of nervousness.

"You'll find out soon," Quan Quan didn't spoil anything, seeming quite busy, and hastily ended the call after just a few words.

Qiao Guangyu always listened to him, so he had to suppress his curiosity and obediently went home to wait.

He didn't have to wait long. Shortly after dinner, Huo Zhou came to his apartment, accompanied by the ever-dutiful Quan Quan.

Qiao Guangyu quickly asked Huo Zhou to sit down and went to the kitchen to prepare the expensive siphon coffee pot. Just as he boiled the water, Quan Quan entered, "Leave this to me, get a suitcase ready and pack some plain clothes."

"Do I even have any flashy clothes?" Qiao Guangyu whispered. In order to cater to Huo Zhou's taste and strive to resemble the White Moonlight, Qiao Guangyu naturally dressed in a sophisticated and elegant style.

Quan Quan nudged him towards the door, "Alright, as long as you know. I'm just reminding you."

"What's going on exactly? You better explain," in order to prevent Huo Zhou outside from hearing, both of them intentionally lowered their voices. Qiao Guangyu even spoke in a hushed tone, getting very close, his breath brushing against Quan Quan's body, "Is the boss planning a business trip for me? Within the province or out of the province?"

Quan Quan paused for a moment before saying, "He canceled the trip to Changfeng Island."

"Ah," Qiao Guangyu remembered that Huo Zhou had scheduled a trip to Changfeng Island this weekend to meet Wu Yu, why was it canceled now?

Quan Quan gave him a deep look, "The boss canceled all his work arrangements and intends to accompany you back to your hometown."

 

Translator : DarNan