“What?” Cheng Boyan was slightly stunned. He hadn’t hidden that folder—after all, he lived alone, and no one usually checked his computer. But the fact that Xiang Xi found it so quickly, even though it was all the way at the bottom, still surprised him.

As expected of an illiterate—he probably hadn’t even looked at the movie titles carefully, since he couldn’t recognize all the characters…

“‘Refreshing and Mind-Awakening’… I didn’t read it wrong, right?” Xiang Xi said. “It shouldn’t be wrong. There’s a herbal tea shop at the Zhao Jiayao intersection, and there’s a kettle underneath with those exact words written on it…”

“You didn’t read it wrong.” Cheng Boyan chuckled. “Just watch something else. You won’t understand what’s in that folder.”

“If you say I can’t read properly, I’ll admit it. But what’s there to not understand about a movie…? And you even gave it such a cute name… ‘Short Clips’… Is it an animated movie?” Xiang Xi muttered as he clicked open the folder.

After two seconds of silence, he clicked his tongue. “What the hell is all this? It’s all in English and Japanese… something…Nundled…Wide?”

“I told you, you wouldn’t understand,” Cheng Boyan said, holding Xiaoxi in one arm and the phone in the other, feeling it was too much effort to explain. He wasn’t even in the mood to bother with Xiang Xi anymore. “Just watch the other movies. They’re all pretty good. I’m hanging up now.”

“Oh.” Xiang Xi replied.

Cheng Boyan was about to put his phone away when Xiaoxi reached out and grabbed it. “Phone-phone.”

“It’s just ‘phone,’” Cheng Boyan corrected, handing it to her. “Not ‘phone-phone.’”

“Phone-phone,” Xiaoxi repeated.

“Phone-phone, that’s right.” Cheng Boyan’s cousin, Li Yan, laughed as she reached out to pat Xiaoxi’s head. “Brother’s phone-phone.”

“…You’re such a great mom.” Cheng Boyan sighed helplessly. “Didn’t we say to stop teaching her baby talk? She needs to learn how to speak properly.”

“It’s fun,” Li Yan clapped her hands. “Xiaoxi, do you want to walk on your own? Don’t always let your uncle carry you.”

“Walk on my own.” Xiaoxi nodded while hugging the phone.

“Xiaoxi is so capable.” Cheng Boyan put her down. He watched as Li Yan pulled a leash out from Xiaoxi’s coat collar, and immediately took it from her hands. “Let me hold it for a bit—I’ve never used it before.”

This toddler leash was something Cheng Boyan had bought for fun. Li Yan had said it was actually useful—it had helped when Xiaoxi was first learning to walk, and later, when they were out on the streets, it kept her from getting lost.

(NT: In Asiatic countries, leashes for young children are rather commonly used in urban areas for security reasons)

Cheng Boyan thought it felt just like walking a puppy, which was amusing. He tugged the leash gently. “Xiaoxi, Uncle doesn’t know the way. Can you lead Uncle to the restaurant?”

“Okay.” Xiaoxi turned her head to look at him, then slowly started walking ahead to lead him.

“Hey,” Li Yan elbowed him. “You have someone staying at your place?”

“Yeah, a friend,” Cheng Boyan smiled. “He’s eating on his own tonight. Don’t worry, it won’t affect our dinner plans.”

“I’m not worried—I’m just curious.” Li Yan clicked her tongue. “What kind of friend?”

“A patient. He has some issues at home and doesn’t have anywhere to go, so he’s temporarily staying at my place for a couple of days.” Cheng Boyan explained simply.

“I thought it was something else… but it’s still pretty suspicious. A patient?” Li Yan chuckled. But her best trait was that she wasn’t as nosy as their aunt—after laughing for a bit, she quickly moved on to a different topic. “Having an outsider staying at your place—aren’t you uncomfortable? Do you have enough disinfectant? Should I send you two boxes?”

Before Cheng Boyan could reply, she clapped her hands. “Wait, no—you’re not the one who’s suffering the most. It’s the person staying at your place. I can’t even imagine how miserable they must be…”

“Do you still want to eat?” Cheng Boyan stopped walking.

“Eat! Of course, I want to eat.” Li Yan patted his shoulder, bent down, and picked Xiaoxi up. Then she took off running. “Hurry up, we have to run over there! Otherwise, Uncle won’t treat us to dinner anymore—”

Dinner didn’t take too long. Xiaoxi got restless and, after finishing her food, insisted on going home to find Tiaotiao. (NT: tiào (跳) means "to jump”)

Tiaotiao was her dog, a stray that Li Yan had picked up. At first, it was so ugly and skinny that it looked like a rat. Now, after a year, it was still ugly—but it had become the fourth most dominant member of the household.

“Brother, come see Tiaotiao.” Xiaoxi tugged on Cheng Boyan’s hand.

“Call me Uncle.” Cheng Boyan corrected.

“Uncle, come see Tiaotiao.” Xiaoxi changed her words.

“No, Tiaotiao is too ugly.” Cheng Boyan said.

“Uncle is the ugly one.” Xiaoxi shot back immediately.

Cheng Boyan laughed. “Really? Uncle is ugly? But Uncle is obviously very handsome.”

Xiaoxi tilted her head and stared at him seriously for a moment. Then she nodded. “Uncle is handsome.”

“Right, Uncle is handsome.” Cheng Boyan gave her a thumbs-up. “Tiaotiao is ugly.”

Xiaoxi hesitated, then suddenly turned around and clung to Li Yan’s leg, her voice quivering with a hint of grievance. “Mommy—”

“Tiaotiao isn’t ugly! Tiaotiao is the cutest! Your uncle is the ugliest—he’s the crazy one, always comparing himself to a dog.” Li Yan picked up Xiaoxi, kicked Cheng Boyan, and tossed him the car keys. “Hurry up and scram. Go get my car. It’s parked at your hospital.”

The restaurant was very close to the hospital, so Cheng Boyan went to retrieve Li Yan’s car. After strapping Xiaoxi securely into her car seat, Li Yan patted his chest. “I’m heading back. Remember to update me if anything new comes up. You’re already thirty…”

“Good night.” Cheng Boyan smiled, opened the car door for her, and gave her a gentle push inside. Then he waved at Xiaoxi. “Good night, Xiaoxi.”

“Good night, Brother.” Xiaoxi waved back from her seat. “Good night, Uncle.”

Dinner hadn’t taken long. By the time Cheng Boyan returned home, it was just past nine. He looked up at his window from downstairs—only the living room light was on.

As he stepped into the elevator, he wondered whether Xiang Xi had ended up watching those films. Hopefully not.

His sexuality wasn’t a secret among his relatives and close friends, and he had never made an effort to hide it. But ever since Tan Xiaokang, Xiang Xi had developed a strong aversion to the topic. Cheng Boyan had no intention of letting him find out—besides, he and Xiang Xi wouldn’t have much interaction in the future anyway, so there was no need for him to know.

But given Xiang Xi’s personality, he had definitely watched them.

Cheng Boyan took out his keys and opened the door—then paused in surprise.

The television was on, the computer was on, and there were two meal boxes on the table—one was empty with rice grains sticking to it, while the other still had some leftover dishes inside. A stray green pepper and four drops of sauce had fallen beside them.

Xiang Xi was lying on the couch, already fast asleep, with his feet—still in slippers—propped up on the sofa’s backrest.

It was a wonder he could sleep in such a contorted position without waking up, even when someone opened and closed the door.

Cheng Boyan changed his shoes, walked over, grabbed a cushion from beside him, and threw it at his face. “Wake up!”

“Ah!” Xiang Xi shot up instantly, his eyes still closed. His leg jerked, sending his slipper flying straight toward Cheng Boyan. Caught off guard, Cheng Boyan barely dodged in time—it nearly hit his face.

“Oh, you’re back, bro?” Xiang Xi, now awake, rubbed the corner of his mouth and then wiped his hand on the sofa armrest. He muttered under his breath, “Did I drool…”

“Do you not take your shoes off when you sleep?” Cheng Boyan watched his actions, utterly speechless. He walked to the shoe cabinet, squeezed out some disinfectant, rubbed it into his hands, and went to change his clothes.

“I was just lying on the couch for a bit, not on the bed. Why would I take my shoes off?” Xiang Xi kicked his slippers back on. “Besides, look at the soles of your slippers—they’re cleaner than my face. I could lick them without a problem, so what’s there to be afraid of?”

“Then go ahead and lick.” Cheng Boyan, now changed, pointed at the slippers. “Go on, let me see.”

“I’m not licking.” Xiang Xi shook his head. “You think I’m putting on a free show? Not happening.”

“Clean up your mess.” Cheng Boyan frowned and walked over to open the living room window. “The whole place reeks of grease.”

“Oh.” Xiang Xi went to clear the meal boxes, tossing them into the kitchen trash bin. Then he grabbed a rag and wiped down the table. “That fast-food place near your complex isn’t bad. Their stir-fried pork with green peppers is pretty good.”

“That’s a dishcloth.” Cheng Boyan glanced at the rag in his hands. After a moment, he waved dismissively. “Forget it. Just replace it later—you’ve probably used that to wipe the floor, haven’t you?”

“The floor? Did I?” Xiang Xi shook the rag. “I don’t remember.”

Cheng Boyan said nothing, gave him a look, and turned into the kitchen.

Xiang Xi followed him and watched as Cheng Boyan pulled three brand-new rags from a drawer, replacing the old ones.

“Damn, what a waste. Those were still new,” Xiang Xi muttered.

Cheng Boyan still didn’t say anything. He walked back to the living room, grabbed a marker and a small sticky note pad, and returned to the kitchen.

He tore off three sticky notes and stuck them on the wall above the new rags. Then, he wrote the character “碗”on the first one. Turning to Xiang Xi, he asked, “Do you recognize this character?”

“Bowl.” Xiang Xi replied.

“Mm.” Cheng Boyan nodded and wrote “案” (NT: counter) on the second one. “How about this one?”

“…This one is… um…” Xiang Xi scratched his head, unsure.

Cheng Boyan pulled the sticky note off, replaced it with another, and wrote “板”. “Do you recognize this one?”

“Board.” Xiang Xi answered immediately. “That one’s easy.”

“Do you recognize the character ‘刀’(knife)?” Cheng Boyan asked again.

“I recognize it.” Xiang Xi traced the character with his finger.

“Alright then.” Cheng Boyan finished labeling the three sticky notes and tapped them with his pen. “One for washing dishes, one for wiping the cutting board, and one for wiping knives—don’t mix them up again.”

“Ayy—” Xiang Xi dragged out the sound as he leaned against the wall. “Brother, aren’t you tired?”

“I am. If you weren’t so forgetful, I’d feel a lot better.” Cheng Boyan said as he walked out of the kitchen.

“Then what do you use to wipe the floor?” Xiang Xi followed behind him. “Or to wipe tables and glass and stuff?”

Cheng Boyan sighed, turned around, grabbed Xiang Xi by the arm, and dragged him back into the kitchen. He opened the cabinet next to the fridge and pointed. “Use these—disposable cleaning wipes.”

“What a waste.” Xiang Xi took out a pack and examined it. “Why can’t you just use a rag?”

“If you wipe surfaces with a rag, it picks up dust and turns black, and it doesn’t wash out. It looks disgusting,” Cheng Boyan explained. “Why, are you planning to clean my floors for me?”

“If I were going to clean, I wouldn’t use those—too much trouble. I’d rather just roll around on the floor to wipe it clean for you.” Xiang Xi clicked his tongue.

“Go ahead.” Cheng Boyan gave him a look and headed to his bedroom. “I’m taking a shower. Watch some TV for now—I’ll get you some bedding later.”

“Bro.” Xiang Xi stood outside the bedroom door, hesitating. “There’s something I wanted to ask—”

“XIANG XI!” Cheng Boyan suddenly roared from inside. “GET IN HERE RIGHT NOW!”

“Wh-what…?” Xiang Xi was so startled he nearly tripped. He grabbed the doorframe and peeked into the room.

“I told you—if you dare sleep in my bed, you’re dead meat!” Cheng Boyan pointed at him.

“I didn’t—” Xiang Xi instinctively glanced at the bed. The neatly made blanket had a noticeable dent in it. He froze for a second—then immediately bolted for the door.

“Running, are you?” Cheng Boyan chased after him.

Xiang Xi had just reached the front door and was about to unlock it when Cheng Boyan grabbed him by the collar and half-lifted him before tossing him onto the couch.

“Go ahead, hit me, hit me, hit me…” Xiang Xi curled into a ball, then suddenly remembered something. He quickly kicked off his slippers and buried his face against the couch’s backrest. His muffled voice came through, “Just don’t dislocate my shoulder!”

Cheng Boyan stood beside the couch, motionless and silent.

After a while, Xiang Xi peeked out and mumbled, “I didn’t do it on purpose.”

“Of course, you didn’t.” Cheng Boyan snorted. “If you had, I would’ve thrown you out already.”

“I just… thought that bed looked so damn… uh, I mean, really comfy. It’s so big… so soft. I’ve never slept on such a luxurious bed before. I just lay down for a second to feel it—just one second, I swear! Whoosh—then I got up immediately…”

Cheng Boyan ignored him, grabbed a change of clothes, and went into the bathroom to take a shower.

When he came out, towel draped over his head, he saw that Xiang Xi was still curled up on the couch, completely motionless. He leaned in for a closer look—Xiang Xi had fallen asleep again.

“Hey.” Cheng Boyan poked his arm. “Get up and take your stuff.”

“Hm?” Xiang Xi rubbed his eyes and sat up. “You’re not mad anymore?”

“I don’t have the energy to be mad anymore.” Cheng Boyan walked into the bedroom, opened the closet, and pulled out a mattress. “Come get this.”

Xiang Xi peeked through the doorway. Seeing Cheng Boyan’s expression, he cautiously stepped in and took the mattress. Cheng Boyan then handed him a blanket. “Take it to the other room.”

The sofa bed, once unfolded, was actually quite spacious. After laying down the mattress, it felt even thicker. Xiang Xi pressed his palm against it—it was really comfortable.

“This is about as thick as my bed,” Cheng Boyan remarked as he placed the blanket on the sofa bed. Then he grabbed a pillow and tossed it over. “If you want to have fun, jump on this. If you jump on my bed again, I’m kicking you out.”

“Got it.” Xiang Xi leapt onto the sofa bed and flopped down with a dramatic sigh. “Ahh—so comfy!”

“Go shower first.” Cheng Boyan frowned. “Do you have a towel and everything?”

“Yeah, I went out and bought some this afternoon.” Xiang Xi sat up and pulled out his bag from the floor, taking out the toiletries he had bought. “Too bad I didn’t get to grab the stuff I left at Tan Xiaokang’s place.”

“Apart from your toothpaste, towel, and cup, you can use mine if you don’t have anything else,” Cheng Boyan said.

“Oh.” Xiang Xi nodded, then suddenly grinned. “What about soap? If I lather up with it first and then you use it afterward, would you be okay with that?”

“I don’t use soap.” Cheng Boyan shot him a look. “And right now, you’d better not push my buttons.”

Xiang Xi grabbed his change of clothes and dashed into the bathroom.

Cheng Boyan, meanwhile, stripped his own bed and replaced the duvet cover. It took him ages to wrestle the new cover on. The whole time, he fought the urge to drag Xiang Xi out of the shower and beat him up.

He absolutely hated putting on duvet covers. Every time, it felt like doing a full-body workout—shaking, stretching—it was just downright exhausting.

After all that effort, he felt like his shower had been wasted. He plucked a few mint leaves from the windowsill, washed them, and made himself a cup of mint tea before sitting down in front of his computer.

There were no new icons on the desktop. Xiang Xi hadn’t downloaded any games—probably because… he didn’t know how.

Cheng Boyan opened his media player and saw that the most recently played files were two movies. But before those… it really was the “Refreshing Short Clips” from his collection.

There were several of them in a row. Cheng Boyan clicked "continue watching" and found that each had only been played for a short time. The first one had been watched for about a minute, but the ones after that were all shut off within ten seconds.

Cheng Boyan suddenly felt like laughing—he could almost picture Xiang Xi’s expression when he saw those videos.

The bathroom door made a sound—then another. Cheng Boyan stood up, about to say that the door was a bit stuck and not to twist it too hard, when the door suddenly started shaking violently, as if caught in a storm. Xiang Xi was clearly struggling inside, making a racket with loud banging noises.

“Hey!” Cheng Boyan sighed in exasperation and smacked the door. “What the hell are you doing?”

“What the hell is up with this door!” Xiang Xi shouted back, twisting and shaking the handle from inside.

“Don’t force it too much—be gentle!” Cheng Boyan was at a loss for words.

Xiang Xi finally got the door open. He stood there, shirtless, dripping wet, and as soon as he stepped out, he yelled, “Holy shit! I thought you locked me in here to suffocate me just because I laid on your bed for one second!”

“Look over there.” Cheng Boyan patted his shoulder and pointed to the bathroom window. “That can be opened. If you still manage to suffocate with that, then honestly, you might as well just die.”

“How was I supposed to know what was going on? Scared the hell out of me! Everything here is so high-end, so clean and organized—who would’ve thought the bathroom door was busted?” Xiang Xi shook his head, flinging water everywhere.

Cheng Boyan was standing right in front of him and ended up getting splashed in the face. He opened his mouth as if to say something but gave up. Instead, he simply pushed Xiang Xi aside and went into the bathroom, turning on the sink to wash his face.

Then he turned around and looked at Xiang Xi. “New rule.”

“No splashing water?” Xiang Xi looked at him in surprise.

“No swearing,” Cheng Boyan corrected.

“Fine, fine, I won’t swear. I’ll be careful.” Xiang Xi patted his chest, then suddenly tensed up. “Oh damn—wait, I mean—phew, I thought splashing water wasn’t allowed either.”

“It’s not,” Cheng Boyan added as he turned back to the living room and sat down in front of his computer.

“Doctor Cheng,” Xiang Xi followed him out while toweling his hair. “I’ve realized something about you…”

“Hmm?” Cheng Boyan responded absently as he opened a news website.

Xiang Xi didn’t say anything. Cheng Boyan turned to look at him. “What?”

“Brother,” Xiang Xi pointed at the computer. “Uh… so… that… um, I…”

“You watched the videos, didn’t you?” Cheng Boyan chuckled. “Anything you want to say?”

Xiang Xi hesitated for a moment. “You and Tan Xiaokang… are the same?”

“No.” Cheng Boyan narrowed his eyes slightly. “Did I ever make a move on you?”

“…No. Hey! That’s not what I meant. I meant… he said he liked me…” Xiang Xi scratched his head.

“I never said I liked you.” Cheng Boyan said flatly.

“Brother, you’re doing this on purpose! You know exactly what I mean!” Xiang Xi flopped onto the couch. “Forget it, not saying anything.”

“Mm.” Cheng Boyan propped his legs up on the table. “I’m exactly the kind of pervert you’re talking about.”

 

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Note from the translator: their interaction in this chapter is just gold !

 

 

Translator : DarNan