On both sides of the street, restaurants and clothing stores that had yet to close cast bright lights. Even at this hour, there were still many people strolling by, chatting as they passed.
“Are you alone today too?” Yi Yan suddenly asked, “Would you like to join me for dinner?”
“Ah!?” Bai Yu, who was immersed in his own thoughts, was startled. He felt he had reacted too nervously and hastily glanced at Yi Yan’s expression. Yi Yan always smiled, but at this moment, his smile seemed even more accommodating and gentle than usual, soothing Bai Yu’s awkwardness.
He was wearing a mandarin jacket, with a braid behind his head. His hair, white streaked with black, made him look like someone from the Republic of China era, attracting many curious glances from passersby. However, he paid no attention to others; his gentle gaze was focused on Bai Yu.
At that moment, Bai Yu felt like he was being valued, as if someone cared deeply about him.
“…Alright.”
Bai Yu nodded hesitantly, unsure of what to do with his hands and feet, his mind filled with chaotic thoughts.
Teacher… Does he care too much about me? Why is he so good to me, accepting me as his disciple and taking care of me so meticulously…
Since Wang Xiaomie and Boss Wen left, he had become Yi Yan’s student, calling Yi Yan “teacher”.
Ten days had passed since then, and during these ten days, Yi Yan had been exceptionally kind to him. Kind enough to prepare warm milk for him every morning, kind enough to clear out a space in the fridge, filled only with materials and strange bones, specifically for him to store lots of fruit candies, drinks, and snacks.
In the evening, he would say goodnight on WeChat, and in the morning, he would wish him good morning while also sending him the daily weather forecast, reminding him if it might rain and whether he needed an umbrella, advising him to dress warmly.
He was so kind that he even invited him to watch a movie. The thought of Yi Yan dressed like that, wearing 3D glasses and holding cola and popcorn while watching The Avengers, made Bai Yu can’t help but want to laugh.
After watching the movie, they went to the amusement park. After experiencing all the rides, when they were going home, Yi Yan specifically used the ticket voucher to exchange for the souvenir amusement park keychain and gave it to him.
At that time, he was eating a cotton candy bigger than his head. When he saw the keychain in Yi Yan’s palm, he almost cried.
That was the second time he had eaten cotton candy in his life. His grandfather disappeared when he was young, his father was busy searching for him, then his father also disappeared, and his mother, who had been looking for them for several years, fell ill and passed away shortly after.
With the continuous misfortune at home, everyone was too busy and stressed to care about a child, especially since Bai Yu was a boy, so he was easily overlooked. Therefore, from childhood to adulthood, he had rarely tasted this kind of sweetness.
In some ways, Yi Yan had fulfilled all his wishes since childhood in these ten days…
Afterwards, Yi Yan bought him clothes and shoes, and for various reasons, he would send him red packets on WeChat; as if he guessed that he would refuse, so the amount was never large. He gave him money to buy various snacks in name, telling him that the remaining money was for running errands, and eventually, those snacks also ended up in his stomach…
If a man is so good to someone and invades their life for various reasons, what does that mean?
That day, Bai Yu secretly went online seeking advice from the ocean of netizens.
Netizen A: “Of course he likes you!”
Netizen B: “Tsk, another dog food spreader!”
Bai Yu: “…”
Does Teacher really like me?
He followed Yi Yan stupidly to KFC. The customers and waiters in the store looked at this odd pair with surprise. Bai Yu really didn’t expect Yi Yan to bring him to eat fast food, after all, Yi Yan’s appearance didn’t seem to match this kind of food at all.
And Yi Yan even ordered a children’s meal for him.
“Uh…”
Bai Yu stared blankly at the hamburger on the table with a small flag stuck in it, and the soft lion toy, “Teacher… I… I’m already in my twenties!”
Never mind the children’s meal, you even asked the waitress for a toy! She was laughing when she saw me!
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.
“What’s wrong, don’t you like it?” Yi Yan furrowed his brows, even more surprised than him.
“Pa’r cba atja…” Djl Te megifv tlr olcufgr jcv rmgjamtfv tlr ojmf, “Ktfrf jgf jii obg xlvr, P vbc’a cffv atfw…”
Tl Tjc’r ygbkr gfijzfv, jcv tf gfjmtfv bea, erlcu tlr kjgw qjiw ab ufcais gey Djl Te’r raloo rtbga tjlg.
“Pc ws fsfr, sbe’gf jirb j mtliv ktb cffvr ab yf mtfglrtfv.”
The ice cubes in the cola melted with a ‘clink.’
Bai Yu snapped out of it, his face flushing red, his eyes even more prominent under his dark skin, moist. He suddenly buried his head and started eating in embarrassment.
And Yi Yan indeed had no real interest in the food, just smiling and accompanying him.
Most boys eat relatively quickly, and Bai Yu was the type to wolf down his food. As he took the last bite of the hamburger, Yi Yan nonchalantly said:
“Stay at my place temporarily until they come back.”
“Cough, cough, cough!”
“Slow down, are you choking? Drink this quickly.”
Yi Yan pushed the iced cola towards Bai Yu and continued, “You said they were going to be away for a month, are you going to cook for yourself or order takeout?”
Bai Yu: “…Order takeout.”
Yi Yan sighed, “It’s okay to have fast food occasionally, but try to cook for yourself as much as possible. You’re my disciple, and I cook every day. Why not come over for a while?”
Bai Yu opened his mouth to refuse: “But…”
Yi Yan interrupted, squinting, “No need to say anything. It’s settled.”
Bai Yu: “…”
… … …
Bai Yu went home with Yi Yan.
When facing someone we dislike, we have a hundred reasons to refuse or ignore, even if it’s just eating a meal or chatting on WeChat.
But when facing someone we like and trust, even if they say, “Come home with me,” we wouldn’t feel uneasy. Instead, our faces would flush, our hearts would race, and we would shyly and secretly anticipate it.
Bai Yu walked behind Yi Yan, holding the unfinished cola, his head hanging low. Looking at Yi Yan’s tall, straight back, his face flushed like a monkey’s bottom, he felt like a girl bringing her boyfriend home for the first time.
He really liked Yi Yan…
…and he harbored certain fantasies about Yi Yan. Perhaps, as someone who lacked family warmth in childhood, he tended to like mature, gentle, and understanding individuals who were older than himself.
After all, he longed to be loved.
Bai Yu used to think he would find a mature older sister figure, but over the years, he discovered that such girls were really like gold bars in a vault — scarce and hard to obtain…
And Yi Yan seemed to have that kind of intention towards him. It was truly a dilemma for Bai Yu in his twenties, torn between conflicting emotions, yet also hopeful.
The straw sucked the last drops, making a loud ‘slurp’ sound.
Ambiguity and unclear communication would only lead to sadness in the end.
After hesitating for a long time, Bai Yu decided to be straightforward and see if Yi Yan meant what he thought.
But first, he would drop some hints, just in case he misunderstood and made things awkward for both of them.
So Bai Yu prepared himself mentally and asked, “…Teacher, why are you so good to me?”
The man walking ahead paused his steps.
Yi Yan didn’t turn back, only his gentle voice accompanied his footsteps as he replied, “Because you’re my disciple.”
“But even if I’m your disciple, you’re still too good to me… I feel like I’m being spoiled like a child by you.” Bai Yu even had a lion plush toy in his backpack.
“Well… about that.” Yi Yan tilted his head slightly, a soft light gleaming in the corners of his slender eyes, whether joking or serious, “Maybe it’s because you’re too obedient. When I see you, I can’t help but want to take care of you. I could spoil you for a lifetime.”
Bai Yu: …Is this a sign of liking me?! It must be, right?!
Don’t panic, Bai Yu, you must stay calm! Watch me serve a straight ball!
Blushing, Bai Yu stammered, “Then, Teacher, do you like any girl?”
He was too busy blushing and didn’t notice the slight stiffness in Yi Yan’s expression after he asked. Yi Yan’s fingers curled and then relaxed, and after putting on a smile again, his eyes held a bitter reminiscence as he said, “Yes.”
Yes…
Yes…
The Coke cup was crumpled, the plastic lid popped off along with the straw, a few drops of brown liquid splashed onto his hand. Bai Yu lethargically threw it into a nearby trash can.
Fuck, heartbreak.
Bai Yu felt bitter in his heart.
“Hehe, so you already like someone. Why haven’t I seen her around? Is she not local?” Bai Yu said a few words casually, not wanting to embarrass himself too much.
They continued walking, but this time, Bai Yu felt like his feet were made of lead, incredibly heavy.
Yi Yan shook his head ahead, “No, it’s not like that. She passed away, many years ago.”
Bai Yu: “!!!”
For the first time in his life, he felt a secret joy at someone’s passing, silently berating himself while a little red flower blossomed over his head.
“You two are very alike, same big eyes, same skin that tans easily, and the same cute and silly personality,” Yi Yan said with a smile.
Huh?!
What does that mean? Am I just a replacement for her?!
It was only now Bai Yu truly understood why those guys who were chasing after someone always kept heart medication handy. Damn! It was like riding a rollercoaster— who could handle the ups and downs?
“So, do you see me as her replacement?” Bai Yu asked.
“No, of course not.”
Yi Yan turned around in surprise, “Why would you think that? You are you, and she is she. I won’t mix them up. She passed away many years ago, and now, whenever I think of her, it’s mostly nostalgia.”
Excitedly stuttering, Bai Yu asked, “Then, then, then…”
Yi Yan chuckled and asked, “Then what?”
“Then do you like me?!” he shouted out loud, regretting it immediately, wishing he could drop everything and run away when he saw Yi Yan look at him.
If Yi Yan showed any sign of disgust, Bai Yu felt like he would rather jump into a river and die.
But there was none of that.
Yi Yan didn’t show any dislike, disgust, or excessive surprise.
He just stared blankly for a moment, then smiled gently, reaching out to lightly tap Bai Yu’s forehead…
“It’s my honor,” he said.
“……”
At that moment, the world seemed to bloom with warmth and joy.
Bai Yu immediately buried himself in Yi Yan’s embrace.
… … …
“It’s over.”
“Hmm.”
“It’s all over!”
“Hmm.”
“……”
“Can you please stop hmm-ing! Shouldn’t we hurry back? Who knows what Yi Yan’s intention is in accepting Bai Yu as a disciple! What if it’s all to deal with us?!”
Wang Xiaomie was super anxious. An Xie had already left, but he left many clues about Yi Yan, saying that Yi Yan’s obsession with killing ‘monsters’ had become insane, and for twenty years, he had frequently gone to Qishan intending to kill An Xie.
Wouldn’t Yi Yan only be more eager to get rid of them, these monsters who proactively approached him?
With this in mind, even the reasons for the other party accepting Bai Yu as a disciple needed to be considered.
Wang Xiaomie was nervously pacing, while Wen Fengjin was patting Mu Yi’s large lizard head, still in the mood to pet monsters.
“Wen. Feng. Jin!!!”
Wang Xiaomie roared, making Mu Yi turn tail. Wen Fengjin’s hand was half-raised in the air, and his only reaction to Wang Xiaomie’s anxiety was merely withdrawing his hand and tilting his head, lightly responding with a “Hmm.”
Headshot, bang bang bang!
That’s it, so perfunctory.
Wang Xiaomie: …You’re dead meat! I’m going to beat you up now!
Seeing Wang Xiaomie really angry, Wen Fengjin lazily waved to the little monsters in the distance. When Mu Shi came over, Wen Fengjin continued to pet it while saying, “Dealing with us is true, not harming Bai Yu is also true.”
Wang Xiaomie frowned, “Why?”
Wen Fengjin sneered.
“Because he~…”
