From then on, the two of them were almost always together, whether they were sitting in, either in Xing Ye’s classroom or in his classroom. Chen Ying had practically tried sitting in various seats.
However, Xing Ye was also busy. He had to manage events and learn tattooing, so coming to school felt like coming to sleep. After arriving at school, he squeezed in time to go to Mr. Li’s office for tea, then headed to Sheng Renxing’s class, which was described as a “3:1” situation.
Huang Mao and the others hadn’t seen Xing Ye for almost a week.
In the beginning, Sheng Renxing naturally didn’t want to be apart from his boyfriend. He initially accompanied him everywhere, but unlike Xing Ye, he also had classes. After a few days, he got so tired that he fell asleep during a quiz, almost handing in a blank paper. When the grades came out, he was naturally scolded by Mr. Yu and Mr. Li. They kindly and meticulously asked him if he was tired during this period or if he had a lot of academic pressure, which gave him a headache.
It was only then that she reluctantly realized he had to separate from Xing Ye.
However, when they separated like this, their time difference reappeared. Sleeping and relay races were similar. Sometimes in class, she would start daydreaming while looking at Xing Ye’s face.
In the past, Xing Ye wouldn’t go to events as frequently to earn money, but recently, without going to the boxing ring, he lost that income and could only make money by attending events. Watching events wasn’t like boxing; he could earn a lot from a single event, and there wasn’t as much risk involved.
It was just tiring, and he couldn’t sleep at night.
Sheng Renxing unconsciously furrowed his brow. When he last visited the place where Xing Ye used to box, he could somewhat understand Xing Ye’s mother’s perspective. He didn’t want Xing Ye to return, but watching him so exhausted was also vexing.
He pondered for a long time and sent a message to Wei Huan, asking if his uncle knew of a job suitable for high school students that wasn’t tiring, wasn’t dangerous, didn’t take up much time, and paid well.
Wei Huan replied after a long time: [Find a sugar mama.]
Sheng Renxing threw his pen on the table in disbelief: [For high school students!]
Wei Huan: [Sugar mamas like high school students. Seize the opportunity while you’re young; the price drops after graduation.]
Sheng Renxing: […]
Wei Huan: [But if the pay isn’t much, I do have one option – working as a bartender from 11 PM to 3 AM, $50 per hour.]
Sheng Renxing blinked and mentally calculated his monthly earnings. He had never worked as a bartender, so he didn’t know which income bracket this fell into.
After some thought, Sheng Renxing asked: [Is there insurance?]
Wei Huan: [Are you joking?]
Wei Huan: [Don’t inquire anymore. If it’s for your classmate, they won’t come.]
Sheng Renxing: [?]
Wei Huan: [A few boxing matches can cover my one month’s worth of work. Are you up for it?]
Sheng Renxing blinked, thinking that’s quite a lot.
He dimmed his phone screen and suddenly realized that Xing Ye’s father’s debts were probably even larger than he had initially thought.
Wei Huan’s words dispelled any thoughts Sheng Renxing had about asking Xing Ye for details.
As he fiddled with his phone, Sheng Renxing’s mind grew increasingly restless.
For an entire day, he couldn’t concentrate on his schoolwork and only managed to solve a single math problem by the end of the school day. He hadn’t come up with any good solutions and almost immediately dismissed any ideas he had.
We’re sorry for MTLers or people who like using reading mode, but our translations keep getting stolen by aggregators so we’re going to bring back the copy protection. If you need to MTL please retype the gibberish parts.
Sheng Renxing stared blankly at the math problems in front of him.
“Qtja jgf sbe atlcxlcu jybea?” j nblmf revvfcis mjwf ogbw yfrlvf tlw.
Vtfcu Efczlcu gfrqbcvfv jyrfcawlcvfvis, “P…” atfc revvfcis gfjilhfv, “Tbe’gf jkjxf?”
“Tfjt,” Wlcu Tf gfqilfv, geyylcu tlr raloo cfmx klat j oeggbkfv ygbk. Llr cfmx wjvf rbwf mgjmxlcu rbecvr jr tf wbnfv la.
“Snfgsbcf tjr jii ifoa,” Vtfcu Efczlcu vlvc’a fnfc mjii tlw ys cjwf.
“Or should you go to the fifth floor to sleep tomorrow?” Sheng Renxing watched his movements and, without answering, asked in return. On the fifth floor, he could lie down and sleep, and Sheng Renxing could visit him after his classes.
“Let’s decide later,” Xing Ye casually responded. “What were you thinking just now?”
He asked again.
“Oh, I was thinking about the problems,” Sheng Renxing pointed to his notebook with his pen.
Xing Ye looked at it, “Are they difficult?” He couldn’t understand the problems on the paper.
“Really hard,” Sheng Renxing pursed his lips and almost sighed.
“In that case, write them tomorrow,” Xing Ye reached out and adjusted a small ponytail that Sheng Renxing had tied at the back of his head. “Let’s go.”
Sheng Renxing initially found it bothersome to have his hair tied up, but Xing Ye seemed to like it. Sometimes, when he was too lazy to do it, Xing Ye would tie it up for him.
Sheng Renxing shook his head, said nothing, and packed his workbook into his bag. Xing Ye picked up his bag.
“Can you carry my backpack back for me?”
Xing Ye paused and asked keenly, “Where are you going?”
“I’m going to practice the piano,” Sheng Renxing replied.
Xing Ye casually rubbed the strap of Sheng Renxing’s bag. “You didn’t tell me.”
“Didn’t I?” Sheng Renxing paused, thinking for a moment. “I think I told you last time that I have piano practice every Wednesday, right?”
Xing Ye squinted at him, blocking the path between the desks and chairs. “You only said you were going last week, not necessarily this week.”
Sheng Renxing didn’t recall, mumbled, “Oh,” and seeing Xing Ye’s displeased expression, he rubbed his nose. “I thought I had mentioned it.”
Xing Ye remained silent.
“I’ll definitely tell you next time,” Sheng Renxing felt it was a minor issue, but obviously, Xing Ye cared about it. He immediately corrected himself. Sitting in his chair, he hooked his finger around one of Xing Ye’s fingers and shook it.
As they walked down the road, Sheng Renxing said, “I’ll practice for an hour, and then you can send me the menu so I can order something to take back home. I’m too lazy to buy it.”
“Okay,” Xing Ye took out his phone, “I have the menu.”
“How do you have it?”
“Jiang Jing sent it earlier.”
His phone vibrated, and Xing Ye sent the menu over.
They happened to reach the front of the auditorium.
Xing Ye put his phone away, hands in his pockets, and was still carrying Sheng Renxing’s bag. He raised his chin slightly and, sounding casual and tired, said, “Let’s go.”
But he didn’t turn and leave.
Sheng Renxing grabbed his arm. “Are you tired?”
Xing Ye looked at him.
Sheng Renxing blinked. “Accompany me while I practice the piano?”
Xing Ye remained silent.
Sheng Renxing wrinkled his nose and purposely spoke softly, “Don’t you want to watch me play the piano? I look pretty cool when I’m playing.”
Xing Ye stayed silent for a moment. “I’ve seen it.”
“?” Sheng Renxing was puzzled for a moment before he remembered that he had performed before. But then, he remembered that they had been arguing at that time.
He cleared his throat. “That doesn’t count from back then.” Then he couldn’t help adding, “I thought you weren’t there at the time.” That’s why he watched the video afterward.
Xing Ye shook his head. “I was standing in the back; you didn’t see me.”
“That light is so dim, it’s all dark down there, and I can’t see a thing,” Sheng Renxing complained, then nudged him with his elbow. “Wanna join me? If you do, I’ll play a song in a while, just for you, a small solo performance.”
Xing Ye was poked and chuckled, and the cold aloofness he had been holding vanished.
“Don’t laugh. Not everyone gets to hear me play the piano!” Sheng Renxing hooked his finger. “What do you want to hear?”
“What did you play last time?” Xing Ye asked.
“Didn’t you hear that last time? Do you want to hear it again?” Sheng Renxing raised an eyebrow.
Xing Ye didn’t confirm or deny.
Sheng Renxing clicked his tongue. “Last time, I played for Alice, I think.”
The two of them walked into the auditorium, and the piano on the stage had been left there, unmoved.
He casually played a few notes. “Is it this one?”
Xing Ye looked at him and nodded.
Seeing him nod, Sheng Renxing sat down on the chair, closed his eyes, and focused on playing.
Xing Ye had heard it more than once, both live and on his phone.
But this time, it felt different.
Sheng Renxing was right; it really felt like a small-scale concert.
He didn’t understand the piano, but he could feel the emotions in the notes.
It was like an electric fish, swimming through his veins and diving into his heart.
After finishing the piece, Sheng Renxing closed his eyes again, raised his head, and asked him with shining eyes, “Is it good?”
Xing Ye leaned against the side, watching him intently, and nodded gently. “It’s good.”
Sheng Renxing raised his hand and rubbed his ear, his eyes gleaming. “Brother, blow on me.”
Xing Ye gave him a measured look, chuckled, leaned closer to him, and blew a breath toward him, met with Sheng Renxing’s puzzled expression.
He muttered, “Fvck,” and Xing Ye laughed while looking at him.
“How about I teach you a four-hand piano piece?” Sheng Renxing suddenly said.
Before Xing Ye could respond, he was pulled onto a chair with a somewhat helpless expression. “I don’t know how.”
“I can teach you,” Sheng Renxing said nonchalantly, taking out his phone. “Just play this, we’ll play together, and then I’ll record it.”
“Why record it?” Xing Ye asked.
“For my own reference,” Sheng Renxing paused. “To document it.”
He set his phone to the video mode and leaned it against the piano, facing them, and pressed the record button.
Xing Ye placed his hand beside, watching themselves on the phone’s screen. “Is it starting now?”
“Yes,” Sheng Renxing smiled at him. “I’ll record everything I teach you.”
Xing Ye fell silent for a moment, then turned to kiss him. “Record this too.”
Sheng Renxing blinked and subconsciously looked at the phone. The version of himself on the phone was also smiling at him.
He clicked his tongue, slowly moved closer to Xing Ye, and suddenly the phone vibrated.
It was an unfamiliar number.
Both of them were momentarily puzzled.
Xing Ye gestured for Sheng Renxing to answer the call.
Sheng Renxing, somewhat annoyed at the interruption, answered, “Who is this?”
He played a few random keys on the piano with one hand, disguising his unease.
There was silence for two seconds on the other end, and a man’s voice, deep and magnetic, asked gently, “Are you playing the piano?”
Sheng Yan’s voice was low and magnetic, unique to Sheng Renxing, and the background was calm and quiet. Sheng Renxing suddenly stopped his piano playing.
THANK YOU FOR THE UPDATE TRANSLATOR ❤️❤️
Thank you! Cliffhanger!