Chapter 25: The Dinner Party

Yu Xi didn’t hear him clearly at first and asked him to repeat it.

Zhang Xingkuo scratched his hair. “I said, since you don’t mind, I want to kiss… no, a cheek-kiss greeting, too.”

“Ah.” Yu Xi froze for a moment. Is this kind of thing something you can actually speak up and ask for yourself?

That moment of hesitation reignited the sense of injustice in Zhang Xingkuo’s heart. His brow filled with grievance, and his voice grew more confident and righteous as he spoke: “He did it, so I want to do it too! You can’t be partial to him, Xiao Xi.”

This situation made Yu Xi feel as if he had returned to his childhood. Zhang Xingkuo had always been like this—if he saw Yu Xi holding hands or hugging another child, he insisted on making up for it afterward, often demanding double or more.

“I’m your best friend, so you should give me more.” Back then, Zhang Xingkuo always had this phrase on his lips; he was determined to be the most special person.

As a child, Yu Xi couldn’t figure out if there was anything wrong with that sentence. Growing up, he felt it was both helpless and amusing, yet he still chose to indulge him.

“Alright, but we’re not in a hurry. You’re driving right now.”

Zhang Xingkuo’s eyes lit up instantly. All his unhappy emotions were swept away, replaced by an incredibly obvious cheerfulness. “Then it’s a deal.”

However, he never found another opportunity after that. Zhang Xingkuo wanted to avoid the others and do it secretly, so he kept waiting—waiting from the drive to the meal, and from the meal back to the drive.

By the time he dropped Yu Xi back at school and saw that they were about to separate, he planned to seize the final moment to collect. But before he could even open his mouth, the figures of others appeared by the car window.

“I’m going now. Bye-bye, Xingxing.” Yu Xi unbuckled his seatbelt, got out of the car, and waved to him.

“…Bye-bye,” Zhang Xingkuo muttered, his eyes gloomily following Yu Xi’s departure.

That night, Yu Xi checked his phone and saw a message Zhang Xingkuo had sent after leaving.

[Xiao Xi, you can’t forget what you promised me.] [You still owe me a cheek-kiss greeting!!!!!]

There were several red exclamation mark emojis, as if he were afraid it wasn’t prominent enough.

Yu Xi let out a small sigh: [I know, I’ll give it to you.]

However, that “debt” remained unpaid for several more days. On the fourteenth day of military training, PKU held a final review and performance in the afternoon. After the hard-earned results of their training were inspected, the freshmen finally gained liberation from the “purgatory” of military training.

Yu Xi changed out of his uniform, showered, put on clean, refreshing clothes, and slung on his small crossbody bag.

“Planning on going out?” Zhou Anhe asked.

Yu Xi nodded, the corners of his mouth curving upward. His dark eyes sparkled with starlight, and his whole being seemed several shades brighter, carrying the hidden anticipation of a child about to go on a spring outing. “My friends are coming to pick me up for dinner.”

Liu Yuan, who was washing clothes, poked his head out from the sink. “Huh? I was just thinking that since training is finally over, we could all go out for a big meal together.”

Hearing this, a look of conflict appeared on Yu Xi’s face. After a moment of weighing his options, he still chose his friends. “How about next time? I can treat you as compensation.”

“As if you need to treat us,” Xiao Yang said, taking off his headphones and turning around. “When the time comes, we’ll go to the French restaurant my family owns. It’s on the house.”

“Really!” Liu Yuan jumped up from the sink in excitement.

Xiao Yang rolled his eyes. “Why would I lie? It’s just a meal. Is there any need to lie?”

Liu Yuan shouted, “Brother Xiao!!”

Zhou Anhe said, “Yu Xi, go ahead. Don’t keep your friends waiting too long.”

Yu Xi acknowledged him. “Thank you, Xiao Yang. I’m heading out now. Goodbye!”

He waved and left the dorm impatiently.

Xiao Yang, huddled on the sofa, knit his brows and let out a “tch.” “It’s just a free meal. Is it worth smiling that beautifully at me?”

Yu Xi only found out about the dinner party when he received a call from Sheng Yunshu at noon, saying everyone wanted to get together.

He thought it would be her or Zhang Xingkuo picking him up again, but he saw an unexpected person at the main gate.

In front of a familiar car, a tall, slender figure stood waiting. He wore a deep blue pinstriped shirt with the top two buttons undone, sunglasses hanging from the collar, and sleeves casually rolled up. His superior physique and posture alone, even just standing there, highlighted a temperament completely different from those around him.

His originally cold eyes instantly overflowed with a shallow smile the moment they landed on Yu Xi, gaining warmth in a flash.

“Xi Xi—”

Gu Chuanzhou walked forward to greet him. The first thing he did was carefully examine Yu Xi’s face, his brow furrowing. “You’ve lost a little weight. Was military training very hard?”

“It was alright. Actually, I didn’t lose weight, I’ve just become sturdier. Look!” Yu Xi pulled up his sleeve to show Gu Chuanzhou his arm.

It was still a snow-white, well-proportioned limb; no obvious muscle could be seen.

The corners of Gu Chuanzhou’s mouth curved slightly. He reached out and gently squeezed that piece of soft flesh, yet he chose to cater to Yu Xi’s expectations with a serious nod. “Mhm, you’ve definitely become sturdier.”

“Hehe.” Yu Xi bent his eyes with pride, then turned to ask Gu Chuanzhou, “Is your business trip over? Is work tiring?”

“Just finished. I came straight here to find you after the plane landed.” Gu Chuanzhou led him to the car, but as he was opening the door, his gaze paused. He reached out, his expression turning solemn as he observed the side of Yu Xi’s neck.

Yu Xi stayed still, confused. “What’s wrong?”

“There’s a sunburn here.”

Gu Chuanzhou lightly touched the area that looked like a smudge of cherry blossom pink, the sensation making Yu Xi’s shoulder shrink slightly from the tickle.

“Doesn’t it hurt?” The smile vanished from Gu Chuanzhou’s brow, making him look rather serious.

Yu Xi thought for a moment, his voice unconsciously becoming smaller. “It seemed a bit stinging when I showered… I applied sunscreen properly, I don’t know why. It’s okay, it’ll be better in a couple of days.”

He didn’t care much about such a minor sunburn; several girls in the camp with delicate skin were the same. In such hot weather, sunburn during military training was inevitable, but Gu Chuanzhou didn’t think so.

He quickly ushered Yu Xi into the car and found the nearest pharmacy to buy ointment.

“Come, I’ll help you apply the medicine.”

Gu Chuanzhou returned to the car, opened the box, and quickly but carefully read through the instructions. He wiped his fingers clean with a wet wipe and unscrewed the cap.

Yu Xi obediently tilted his left shoulder toward him. He felt his back collar being pulled down a little, exposing half his shoulder, followed by the sensation of the ointment being applied.

The ointment was a transparent gel with a texture like aloe vera. It felt icy cold when applied, making him take a small breath, though it soon felt comfortable. However, the finger applying it was warm.

“Does it hurt?” Gu Chuanzhou was still worried and blew gently on his shoulder.

The coldness became more pronounced under the breath. Yu Xi squinted and said, “It doesn’t hurt.”

Inadvertently, he noticed in the rearview mirror that he and Gu Chuanzhou were very close. From a certain angle, it looked as if Gu Chuanzhou had pressed his face into the hollow of Yu Xi’s neck, but the small portion of the man’s face visible was exceptionally solemn and focused, as if he were performing a precision experiment that allowed for no error.

Gu Chuanzhou said in a low voice, “Xi Xi, you must cherish yourself more, otherwise I’ll be worried.”

Yu Xi subconsciously wanted to apologize but caught himself in time. Knowing that Gu Chuanzhou wouldn’t want to hear that kind of answer, he changed his wording and simply replied, “Okay, I will.”

Sure enough, the man in the rearview mirror applying the medicine looked a bit more relaxed.

“Alright.” Gu Chuanzhou put the ointment away, placed it in Yu Xi’s bag, and zipped it up. “Remember to apply it before bed tonight as well. I’ll remind you then.”

“I know—” Yu Xi replied, drawing out the last word.

Halfway through the drive, Sheng Yunjuan called.

“Gu. Chuan. Zhou. Have you picked up Xiao Xi yet? Why are you so slow? We’re all waiting for you.”

Gu Chuanzhou replied, “On the way.”

“Truly dawdling. If I’d known, I wouldn’t have let you pick him up; it would have been better if I did it myself.” Sheng Yunjuan grumbled quite a lot, saying Gu Chuanzhou was slow, and that he had been away on a business trip for half a month—timing it perfectly to be busy during military training and then finishing just in time to come back and pick him up.

“Your heart has more holes and is more poisonous than a hornet’s nest.”

All of this was played through the car’s speakers, heard clearly by Yu Xi.

Gu Chuanzhou didn’t say a word, allowing himself to be “scolded,” though midway through he cast a helpless and aggrieved look at Yu Xi.

“Fine, hurry up… no, actually, just drive slowly. If you make Xiao Xi carsick, you’re finished.” With that, Sheng Yunjuan abruptly hung up.

“She seems to have always disliked me. If I hadn’t asked Yunshu, I wouldn’t even have known you all were having dinner tonight… Don’t you think she’s a bit much?” Gu Chuanzhou began to complain. Seeing Yu Xi turned the other way and giggling from the corner of his eye, he let out a sigh. “Xi Xi, why don’t you have any pity for me?”

Yu Xi quickly suppressed his smile. “Then what do you want me to do?”

“You have to sit with me tonight and take care of me more,” Gu Chuanzhou immediately made his demand. “After all, I’m the one being excluded. If you don’t pay more attention to me, I’ll be very lonely.”

Suppressing a laugh, Yu Xi agreed.

Ten minutes later, the car stopped at a Japanese restaurant.

The interior was decorated in a cool, elegant wabi-sabi style. Servers dressed in traditional Japanese clothing led them into a wood-colored private room. Having never eaten Japanese food before, Yu Xi looked around with curiosity.

Gu Chuanzhou warned him beforehand: “Lin Shuhuai chose this place. If you’re not used to the food, tell me.”

Yu Xi: “I’m not a picky eater.” Of course, green peppers and ginger were exceptions.

Rounding a ukiyo-e screen, they saw that everyone was already seated, with only two spots left vacant.

“Xiao Xi, come here!” Sheng Yunjuan quickly pressed down on Zhang Xingkuo, who was about to stand up, and waved frantically at Yu Xi.

Yu Xi didn’t forget what he had promised Gu Chuanzhou. He naturally pulled Gu Chuanzhou to sit in the two empty seats. “I’ll sit here, I can be face-to-face with you.”

Hearing this, Sheng Yunjuan—who was originally a bit unhappy—thought it wasn’t a bad idea and stopped making a fuss. However, Zhang Xingkuo, sitting diagonally across, clicked his tongue quite loudly with a look of displeasure.

“Since everyone is here, let’s serve the food. Xiao Xi must be hungry.” Lin Shuhuai called the waiter.

One by one, exquisite and delicate Japanese dishes were brought to the table, along with several pitchers of fresh-colored drinks.

Yu Xi picked up a pitcher and sniffed it; it had a sweet floral and fruity fragrance with a very faint, unnoticeable scent of alcohol.

Lin Shuhuai had already poured him half a glass, pushing it to his hand with a coaxing smile: “It’s a rare occasion for us to be together. Does Xiao Xi want to give it a try?”