ã€ŠAssistant Architectã€‹


 Chapter 1: Coffee

    <h4>Chapter 1: Coffee</h4>

    ___________________

    Zhang Siyi lifted his hand and swiped his phone screen. To his surprised, the current disyed time was 11:35.

    When he first sat down, it was 10:40. The beautiful girl with expertly applied makeup and delicate curly hair in front of him had been scolding him for at least one hour. The other party didn¡¯t seem like they were going to stop anytime soon. The cup oftte in front of her waspletely cool now. Zhang Siyi wondered how she can talk for so long without having a drink. Is she not thirsty?

    Although he is listening, Zhang Siyi is really bored, and his focus is elsewhere. Scanning the area with his eyes, he notices a mix of traditional elements with contemporary European styles giving the caf¨¦ a sleek yetfortable atmosphere. In particr, the decorative, dark green star lights around the room are quite interesting. The table and chair positions are arranged perfectly to maximize the space inside the cafe. None of the tables were empty....

    ¡°Hey, are you listening?¡± The girl¡¯s high voice abruptly pulled back Zhang Siyi¡¯s attention.

    ¡°Yeh, I heard.¡± Zhang Siyi adjusted his body and quickly refocused his eyes back to the girl.

    While talking, the girl¡¯s long delicate fingers with painted nails flew in front of him like a colorful butterfly, as if to conduct a passionate ¡°sonata¡±, but unfortunately, this sonata is entering a boring repetitive major.

    She continues toin: ¡°How many times have you taken the initiative to ask me out since returning to China? I can count them on one hand.... three. Only three times!! One time, you overslept, and the other two times added together are not even a day. I really don¡¯t understand why you are so busy all the time! Before while abroad, I know you were very busy studying architecture. I have endured the time spent at home while we spent apart, but now you have graduated and returned to China. You haven¡¯t found a job yet. What are you doing at home all day?¡±

    ¡°Looking for a job ...¡±

    ¡°Looking for a job, 24 hours a day? Don¡¯t you have time to go out and eat with me? I called you the day before yesterday to ask you out to a movie. You promised me, but we ended up not going. Why? You said your portfolio wasn¡¯t finished, but then I saw you chatting with your friends online. You have time for friends but not me?¡±

    Zhang Siyi argued. He took a break from doing his homework and checked his social media page for updates. It wasn¡¯t for more than five minutes.

    ... well, maybe it was more like fifteen minutes.

    ¡°You have time to chat with your friends online, but you don¡¯t have time to watch a movie with me?¡±

    Zhang Siyi wanted to say ¡°yes¡±, but he was afraid such a remark would evoke the girl¡¯s fury and tear him to pieces, so he endured and did not answer.

    Even so, it did not stop his innermost feelings:apanying you to watch a movie means I must take a shower, wash my hair and clean up otherwise you criticize me. If I¡¯m not wearing the right cloths, you scold me. If I say anything other than ¡°like¡± towards the film, you get angry at me. Then, when the movie is over, I must apany you home which is 45min each direction let alone my ownmute so with all time spent..... Of course, it¡¯s easier to chat online with friends!

    Frowning again, the girl suddenly thought, ¡°Didn¡¯t you already graduate? What else do you have to do?¡±

    ¡°As I exined already, the designs I made while studying weren¡¯t enough, so I need to take this time to make more drawings.

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you do it while you were studying? Did you not have time?¡±

    ¡°At that time, there were other things to worry about. The architecture department was not only about designing, but also about architectural structure and environment as well as architectural history. There were also various software programs I has to learn!¡±

    ¡°Busy ying games? Or busy chatting online?

    ¡°.....¡±

    ¡°Zhang Siyi, why don¡¯t you take care of yourself when you go out? Your hair is so messy, and you have dark circles under your eyes. What time did you get to sleepst night?¡± You used to never have e on your face! But look at you. You have two spots on your forehead!¡±

    ¡°I thought everyone who studies architecture is very clean-cut. When I first met you, you were so well dressed and fashionable...¡±

    ¡°...¡± (I wanted to impress you at that time!)

    ¡°But look at what you have be. No one believes that the slob in front of me is learning architecture!¡±

    Zhang Siyi can¡¯t help but say: ¡°You have not seen the state of the department members right before our projects are due. It¡¯s not umon for people to stop washing their hair or bathe for a month!¡±

    ¡°The girl showed a shocked and disgusted expression, but in less than two seconds, sheined: ¡°But you have graduated now, and aren¡¯t working so why are you still acting like that. Ah!¡±

    ¡°I said I was doing my ...¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t keep talking about your portfolio. What about the days when you first returned to China? I invited you out, but you are always with that guy named Fu Xinhui. You are now renting a house and living together. You go out with him and he even cooks¡¯ meals for you!¡±

    When his girlfriend mentioned this, Zhang Siyi was anxious: ¡°Can you not think about it, I am really just friends with him.¡±

    ¡°Ha?¡± The girl sneered. ¡°I haven¡¯t said anything and yet you are so anxious to argue! Do you know that there is a word called ¡®to cover the glory¡¯? I have long heard that there are many gay people learning design.¡±

    Zhang Siyi is a little annoyed: ¡°You think your boyfriend is gay?¡±

    ¡°I just want you to keep your distance from him!¡±

    ¡°Please, I¡¯ve been with him for four years, and if he¡¯s gay I¡¯d have noticed it by now. Besides he used to have a girlfriend!¡± As far as his rtionship with Fu Xinhui goes, Zhang Siyi does not know how many times he has had to exin this her. She is doubtful and always feels like he is lying to her.

    ¡°What are you so angry about? I just mention Fu Xinhui. Do you have something to hide?¡±

    He was a straight man who was repeatedly suspected by his girlfriend to be gay. How could it still be so difficult for her to understand. Zhang Siyi was depressed: ¡°If you wanted to take me out today just to go through these old ounts, I really do not have time for you. I did not sleep until four in the morning today, and you woke me up at nine, so now I¡¯m tired to death!¡±

    Instead of being calm, the girl grew more agitated. She raised her voice and said, ¡°Do you think I want to rehash the same grievances? Every time I see you, you look dead. I have been waiting for you at home for two years, but when you came back, you only took the initiative to contact me a few times!¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s was so angry that his face was turning blue. Before returning to China every year, he would buy many gifts for his girlfriend. He could see the delight in her eyes when she happily received them, but he didn¡¯t know what has happened in the past two months. As time passed, her temper was getting worse and worse. She has be a different person.

    The girl did not wait for Zhang Siyi to answer. Her barrage of words didn¡¯t seem like they were going to end anytime soon, until her statement, ¡°If you are going to act like this then don¡¯t bother relying on me. Do you know how disappointed I am with you now!

    Before Zhang Siyi even knew what was happening, he impulsively said, ¡°Since you are so disappointed with me, then let¡¯s break up!¡± This is his first time he took the initiative to break up. After the angry words from both parties subsided, they instantly fell into a strange silence.

    Zhang Siyi regrets it a little, but he really can¡¯t stand it anymore. At least today, he doesn¡¯t want to be the ¡°good guy¡± anymore.

    Looking at each other in silence, the girl¡¯s face turned blue and white. She was startled. With the beginning of tears forming in her red eyes, she suddenly stood up. She grabbed the cup in a hurry with a shaking hand then aimed for Zhang Siyi. Ssh!

    Just as he was thankful for his agility, in the next second a noise came from behind. Zhang Siyi turned his head to see the young man behind him.

    Long legs.... well-proportioned face.... perfect build.... One word describes his features: handsome

    Dressed in in white T-shirt and simple cks with arge album under his arm, he looked like an approachable person somece between a strict white-cor worker and aid-back schr...... Of course, if you ignore therge coffee stain from his waist to his hem.

    His other hand was in the process of pushing back his seat. Apparently, he was preparing to leave, but because of Zhang Siyi¡¯s dodging, he was covered in coffee instead. Now, the unabsorbed coffee is continuing down his pant leg, trickling onto his clean vintage shoes and looking miserable.

    ¡°S, sorry...¡± Zhang Siyi hurriedly apologized.

    The man held up an arm halfway and stared at him, furrowing his brows with dislike. With such a simple facial action, a cold shiver ran down Zhang Siyi¡¯s back.

    Under the impulsiveness of the girl, her wrath hase on to others. It is extremely embarrassing, but she is still mad, and does not want to apologize to the third person. Hearing Zhang Siyi¡¯s excuses, she had a very legitimate reason for throwing the coffee, so she picked up her bag and stomped away angrily. She left the mess for her former boyfriend to clean up.

    Zhang Siyi looked at the handsome guy with wide eyes. What should I do with this situation? Apologize? Offer money? Help him wash his clothes? Or do I offer a business card and leave it to a phone call to settle the problemter?

    Zhang Siri doesn¡¯t want to get more involved then he already is. He would rather spend more money right now to solve the issue immediately. Based on how the man is dressed, it shouldn¡¯t cost too much as he isn¡¯t wearing designer clothes.

    ¡°Ah.... this thing...¡± Zhang Siyi took a minute to look around for a paper towel to offer and wipe up the mess.

    However, before he finished, in a low tone that revealed a hint of indifference and alienation, the man interrupted: ¡°Forget it.¡±

    ¡°...¡± Forget it? He was sshed with a cup of coffee instead of a ss of mineral water!

    But the other party did not give Zhang Siyi much time to think. After finishing the two words, he turned and left. Just as he approached the door, he turned his head and looked back at Zhang Siyi¡¯s deted figure.

    Zhang Siyi stunned in ce, suddenly remembered the verbalshing he received. His girlfriend was talking for over an hour with him. How long was the man sitting behind him for and how much did he overhear?

    With Zhang Siyi sloppy appearance and his girlfriend thinking he is gay...... no wonder he turned tail and left in a hurry. Oh, this is fucking embarrassing! Upset at himself he sighed. I¡¯m so stupid.

    Taking a deep breath, he reassured himself repeatedly¨Cthe city is so big, he can¡¯t possibly bump into the handsome man again. In a few days the incident will be forgotten. Just let it go! After returning home, Zhang Si Yi turned on the air conditioning and flopped on his bed giving him a moment respite from the mental and physical exhaustion the break up caused.

    Upon Zhang Siyi return to China, he and his 2 friends decided to share a three-bedroom apartment located in the Haicheng part of town which is one of the most prosperous locations in the city. The rent is naturally not low, but with the three of them living together the rent is 4000 each due monthly.

    When Zhang Siyi boasted in front of his friends, they really didn¡¯t give him a penny. He said that he would make money himself after graduating. He didn¡¯t want to burden his family. But even so, the rent for the first three months was payed due to the left-over money from studying that his family gave him. The currency that wasn¡¯t spent was all converted into RMB for his expenses. Now almost two months have passed, and he didn¡¯t have a job. Since another month¡¯s rent is due soon, he will likely only be able to eat dirt!

    After a long sigh, Zhang Si Yi got up from the bed to turn on hisputer. He wanted to see if anyone responded to the resumes he sent to various architectural firms, but his mailbox was empty.

 Chapter 2: Job Hunting

    <h4>Chapter 2: Job Hunting</h4>

    Almost all of the cover letters he sent came to naught. Only one German foreign firm had returned with an e-mail gently exining to Zhang Siyi that all the positions at their firm for interns and assistants were already full for the year.

    Yes, it is already August. The betterpanies have long been full. He was so stupid for giving into Fu Xinhui encouragement to travel and have fun in Europe for one month after graduation knowing that the domestic construction market is experiencing a low period. Three to Four percent of people in the business are suffering fromid-offs and pay cuts. Somepanies can¡¯t afford to pay their existing staff, let alone to hire new people.

    Although not as prestigious as Cambridge or Oxford, Zhang Siyi graduated from a university with a famous architectural program in the United Kingdom. However, these names add little value to a student with an undergraduate degree which can only be used as a small stepping stone for Zhang Siyi¡¯s job search. Since most developed countries construction market peak has passed, Zhang Siyi thought returning home was the only way forward with his career.

    However, because of the current saturated domestic environment, the door that he thought was once open has now been mmed in his face.

    He ispeting for a position amongst all the graduates of architecture from the old eight schools in the country as well as graduates from other famous universities. Then there were people like Zhang Siyi who are forced to find the leftover scraps.

    In fact, if Zhang Siyi chose something else, it would be quite simple to get a job, especially in a big city like Haicheng. Many travel agents or leather productpanies will wee him because you can go directly to the job with little training.

    He didn¡¯t know getting an Architectural degree would cost so much and be such a burden. While he was studying, he didn¡¯t think so all the time. It was just that there were a lot of misceneous expenses such as various specialized pens for drawing, artist markers, materials to make models, printing fees, etc... used in the learning process. Even with his amounting debt, he can¡¯t abandon his hard work!

    Why did he want to study architecture in the first ce? Zhang Siyi may have forgotten. Perhaps, just because it sounded cool.

    Because of theck of academic qualifications and professional ability, Zhang Siyi only wants to update his portfolio. After all, looking back at his lower grades with the eyes of a graduate, almost all of them can only use the word ¡°shit¡± to describe them. So, during this time, he was working hard retouching his designs to see if he could make his work more appealing.

    This is hisst bet. If he still can¡¯t make things work at his current level, he can only rush back home and ask his family to let him go study abroad for a master¡¯s degree...

    Grasping his head in worry, Zhang Siyi was about to start work when he felt his stomach protest.

    One great thing about returning to China is it¡¯s so convenient and cheap to eat. Zhang Siyi stayed in the UK for four years and ate enough hamburgers and fries for a lifetime. When he came back, he fell in love with Haicheng and never wanted to go back.

    He ordered takeout and returned to his room to wait for the food. When he finished eating, he started feeling sleepy... Since it was early in the morning a little nap first, then workter. Zhang Siyiforted himself and slept, but when he woke up, the sun was already starting to set below the horizon.

    He nced at the time and secretly swore then quickly climbed out of bed to wash.

    In the living room, one of Zhang Siyi¡¯s roommates is glued to the couch ying games with the mobile phone. Yes, he is Fu Xinhui. The one who was suspected of being gay in the dispute between Zhang Siyi and his girlfriend this morning. His other roommate is Jiang Hai. The three of them were ssmates in the UK while they were studying. There were more than ten students from maind China in his architectural program who have returned to the country and n to find their jobs in Haicheng.

    ¡°Are you awake?¡± Fu Xinhui looked up at Zhang Siyi and askedzily. ¡°What do you want to eat for dinner?¡±

    ¡°...I feel like I just ate so I¡¯m not hungry.¡± Zhang Siyi went into the washroom with a heavy heart. His thoughts seemed to echo his girlfriend this morning. Repeatedly questioning the phrase ¡°What are you doing all day?¡± Yes, what is he busy with? How do you feel not doing a single thing all day long?

    ¡°Just eaten?¡± Fu Xinhui asked.

    ¡°Well, I went out in the morning. Did you think I never got up?¡± Zhang Siyi snapped. ¡°Although I woke up at 2 in the afternoon, I just wanted to say that I started earlier than you. What about the pizza fromst night.¡±?

    ¡°......¡± Is this guy proud to sleep until sote? ¡°No, I am so hungry. What about the seafood ce downstairs? I just looked at the reviews and found positivements about the lobster dinner. Can you go?¡±

    When Zhang Siyi heard the ¡°lobster¡±, his stomach seemed to be a bit hungry. Once again, he thought about this morning¡¯s breakup event. The depression and regrets in his heart gradually came back, so he wanted to eat something to eliminate it.

    ¡°Well, is Jiang Hai back?¡± Zhang Siyi asked.

    Among the three, Jiang Hai was the only one who transitioned smoothly to a job after graduation. However, his achievement wasn¡¯t due to his own effort. Someone in the family had arranged it early so he now worked in a real estatepany.

    ¡°I just sent a him message, he is working overtime.¡± Fu Xinhui said.

    ¡°No? More overtime work! How many days has he added this week? I thought that Jiang Hai never worked overtime.¡± Zhang Siyi finished getting ready and casually wore a pair of slippers to go downstairs with Fu Xinhui.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know why a graduate is so anxious to work long hours. Cherish your youth and take it easy!¡±

    When Zhang Siyi heard this, he became angry: ¡°Don¡¯t say that! I went to Europe to y with you instead of looking for a job, and nowpared with Jiang Hai, my fortune has reversed.

    Fu Xinhui shook his head and said: ¡°You aren¡¯t thinking straight.¡±

    Frustrated, Zhang Si Yi shouted back: ¡°Young masters don¡¯t have to worry about food and shelter so don¡¯t talk to me about what my mental state is!¡±

    Fu Xinhui is a naive, typical rich second generation with several bigpanies, owned and operated by his family. It is obvious that such a young master who has enjoyed the blessing of money can rent a house with them and enjoy his time.

    Fu Xinhui sings enchantingly: ¡°Come on~ Happy~ ... Anyway, there is a lot of time....¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    When they arrived at the restaurant, they ordered food then Fu Xinhui suddenly asked, ¡°Where have you been all morning?¡±

    Zhang Siyi poured a beer and said: ¡°I broke up with my girlfriend.¡±

    Fu Xinhui was surprised: ¡°You ran out early in the morning to break up?¡±

    ¡°I didn¡¯t go intending to breakup,¡± Zhang Siyi sighed. As he retold the events one by one from the morning, Fu Xinhui became more irritated. Filled with indignation Zhang Siyi asked, ¡°I really don¡¯t understand why she suspects something between us. Do we act gay? Not! Do you think there is something wrong with her?¡±

    ¡°Hmmm...¡± Fu Xinhui intently stripped the lobster and put it on Zhang Siyi¡¯s te. ¡°You aren¡¯t thinking about her now, right?¡±

    Zhang Siyi naturally ate the lobster and was silent.

    Fu Xinhui looked up and said: ¡°Are you regretting it?¡±

    Zhang Siyi bowed his head: ¡°It¡¯s been two years after all. If it wasn¡¯t for me during this period, her temper wouldn¡¯t have be so bad.¡±

    Fu Xinhui enlightened him: ¡°Girls, they all want to spend time with you. You are used to acting differently when abroad, but she is looking forward to seeing you return to the country and be gentle with her. Now she sees the difference between her ideal and reality. The gap is definitely not eptable for her.¡±

    As a result of Fu Xinhui¡¯s analysis, Zhang Siyi became more and more guilty: ¡°What should I do......? Exin it better...? Try to save our rtionship?

    Fu Xinhui asked: ¡°Do you think you have time to manage her needs?¡±

    Zhang Siyi frowned: ¡°Hmm... it would be better to wait for me to find a job first.¡±

    Fu Xinhui smiled: ¡°You are too naive. Look at Jiang Hai. Do you think there will still be time after work? Your girlfriend was originally a character that liked to apany people. This profession is destined to cause her emotional stress. She won¡¯t ever feel satisfied.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°But it is not good for me to make this decision for you. Think about it yourself.¡±

    ¡±You¡¯re right, I¡¯m in the mood to find a job now,¡± Zhang sighed, with emotion,¡± and I feel very tired when I¡¯m with her recently. It¡¯s not so easy being together with her. Zhang Si Yi thought about his girlfriend¡¯s spections, joking, ¡± I want to really be gay, it¡¯s so much easier being with you.¡±

    Fu Xinhui:¡°......¡±

    When he returned to his room, he thought about sending a text message to his girlfriend detailing his thoughts that were discussed with Fu Xinhui as well as further exining his current exhausted state. He thought if both sides can step back for a little, they can continue to be together and not officially break up.

    He took a long time editing his txt message. He finally sent it out after modifying it several times back and forth for 30min. He still held onto some hope that his rtionship with his girlfriend would work out.

    Not one minute passed when Zhang Siyi felt the phone buzz. He didn¡¯t expect the other party to write back so soon....

    ¡°There is no need to exin more. I thought about it in the morning.¡±

    ¡°Your profession is just too abnormal. I really have had enough, Zhang Siyi, maybe we really don¡¯t fit together.¡±

    Let¡¯s end it.¡±

    Three text messages connected to three phone vibrations. These threebos let Zhang Siyi once again realize the rhythm of the first ¡°sonata¡± in the morning.

    After reading the messages he copsed on his bed like a dead dog. At this moment, the phone vibrated again. Zhang Siyi thought that it was a girlfriend ¨C wait a moment ¨C noooo.... Now an ex-girlfriend who sent something else toin about, but to his surprised, it was a push notification on his mobile phone for new E-mail!

    Zhang Siyi bounced from the bed and rushed to theputer to open his Email...

    Re: job hunting Zhang Siyi

    With shaking hands, Zhang Siyi opened the mail.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    ¡°Hello, Mr. Zhang,

    Thank you for your letter, our architects have browsed your resume and portfolio, and are interested in furthermunication with you. If you are still looking for a job, please bring a paper version of the collection on August x-x. The interview at thepany will be before 10 am.

    Tel: ***

    Address: ***

    If you have any questions, please call Miss Whang in the Human Resource department.

    Borderless Architectural Design Firm. Co ¡°

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    Ah, oh oh oh oh oh yeah...!

    Zhang Siyi jumped up from the chair excitedly, holding his head and screaming madly ¨C he finally received an interview email!!!

    But, wait a minute... Whichpany is Borderless?

    Zhang Siyi sent out too many resumes to keep track of them all in this period, so he doesn¡¯t remember the details. Because of his background studying abroad, the only known example of the job is based mostly on foreign designers¡¯ private firms where the general welfare is good. The working atmosphere is rtively rxed and there is no need to work overtime.

    The biggest avenue forward is in the carrier building group and Design Institute. Working for them in key branches would be a big addition to his resume. If they don¡¯t give him an opportunity, Zhang Siyi thought to apply to the small constructionpanies that are Chinese-foreign joint ventures. Tinypany ventures aren¡¯t popr and are too risky to apply.

    Borderless is thepany on the first batch of resumes that Zhang Siyi¡¯s sent. At that time, his goal was ambitious, so he picked the best. Zhang Siyi excitedly checked the Inte and quickly recalled that Borderless was a subsidiary of arge-scale design institute in China a few years ago. It was mainly an elite team of young designers, both domestic and foreign.

    Compared with foreign firms, Borderless is more grounded and has a strong background. Even if it is a domesticpany, the designs of its projects aren¡¯t rigid or dull at all. In recent years it has be the first choice for many architecture graduates.

    ¡°Hmm... I see that the threshold of thispany is extremely high, and it is rarely publicly recruited so how can I suddenly receive an email from them?¡±

    Zhang Siyi is both nervous and excited. When he originally looked at the relevant website data for an application, he thought he would take a chance and apply even though he wasn¡¯t expecting anything. He didn¡¯t know it could be so long before he would receive a reply ... Is this the legendary darkest hour?

 Chapter 3: Interview

    <h4>Chapter 3: Interview</h4>

    ¡°What are you doing in the room alone?¡± Fu Xinhui, who heard the noises from the other room, shouted from the hallway.

    ¡°Ah, ah...¡± Zhang Siyi opened the door, pounced for him while waving his arms around and yelling to express his excitement for the moment.

    Fu Xinhui turned to avoid him as his hands were full.

    Just at this moment, a voice came from the front door. ¡°What are you doing?¡± Jiang Hai held the key in his left hand while holding a convenience store lunch box in his right hand and looked at them with a strange expression.

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi excitedly rushed to Jiang Hai cheering: ¡°I received a response from a job inquiry! I am going to an interview!¡±

    ¡°Really?¡± Jiang Hai followed with a happy smile, ¡°Whichpany?¡±

    ¡°Borderless Architecture Design!¡±

    The three people gathered together around the coffee table and talked. Jiang Hai had an arranged job, so he wasn¡¯t familiar with other architecturalpanies other than the severalrge design institutes. He asked: ¡°Is that ce good or not?¡±

    Fu Xinhui, thinking, hmm... ¡°I haven¡¯t heard of it and you didn¡¯t hear back for so long. Doesn¡¯t that mean it¡¯s a badpany that nobody goes to?¡±

    Zhang Siyi was so angry at his friends. He quickly set them straight and showed them the background information of Borderless and its evaluation from critics online.

    Jiang Hai said: ¡°It sounds very good. When are you going to the interview?¡±

    With this reminder, Zhang Siyi immediately became anxious. He pped his forehead and said: ¡°What should I do for three days starting tomorrow? I am so nervous. What questions do you usually ask during an interview?¡±

    Fu Xinhui chuckled and joked: ¡°You look so handsome, it shouldn¡¯t be a problem!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Seriously?... that¡¯s not funny.¡±

    Jiang Hai scratched his head and said: ¡°I haven¡¯t interviewed yet so maybe ask Su Yuan for help?¡±

    Su Yuan is one of the girls who returned home during the same period as them. Her professional achievements were considered the best among several people and her career path was nicely nned. While Zhang Siyi was still traveling around with Fu Xinhui after graduating, she had been offered a starting position with a British design firm in the Haicheng branch. They were not Chinese, but they were very friendly with each other.

    Zhang Siyi pped his thigh and hurried back to the room to get his iPad and make a video call to Su Yuan.

    ¡°Hello!¡± Once connected, Su Yuan¡¯s passionate voice came from the other side. ¡°Little Yi, what¡¯s up?¡±

    In the video, the girl wore a short ck dress. She talked to them with a mobile phone in one hand and moved the strap of the chain bag in her other hand out of the way, revealing a mature intellectual beauty.

    Before they became ssmates, Su Yuan studied English for two years at a domestic university and then transferred to an architecture program abroad. Thus, she was two years older and usually called them ¡°little¡±.

    At this time, another smiling face with beautiful eye makeup and a lip gloss, squeezed into the small window of the video making her shine.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on? ¡°This is the other female ssmate, Ren Mengyu, who stayed in Haicheng,¡± Where are you going?¡±

    ¡°Just after work, ssmate Xuan Xuan called out to go clubbing. ¡°Su Yuanughed.

    ¡°Sounds like fun!¡± Fu Xinhui and Jiang Hai also came over to the iPad to say hello.

    ¡°Oh, of course, do you want toe out and have a drink?¡± Ren Mengyu warmly invited.

    Thinking of his interview, Zhang Siyi quickly refused, indicating that he had a purpose to his phone call to her. He told her about the interview appointment with Borderless. Su Yuan was shocked: ¡°Wow, I also applied for Borderless before, and they didn¡¯t respond to me!¡±

    Zhang Siyi nced at the two ignorant buddies. See, I told you! Thispany is amazing. I wasn¡¯t bragging.

    After a fewughs, Su Yuan returned to the topic at hand: ¡°In general, by scheduling an appointment, it means they already recognize your work. If the interview goes well, and your portfolio presentation is good, there won¡¯t be a problem. Some overseas studios let foreigners interview you in order to gauge how good your professional Englishmunication skills are. This is already an advantage in China.¡± Su Yuan shrugged. ¡°In my opinion, going to the interview is just procedure. They will talk about your sry and work expectations, nothing else.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was still very nervous. He is not asposed as Su Yuan so naturally he can¡¯t emte her calm aura.

    With encouragement, Su Yuan said: ¡°Rx, we are a few undergraduates fresh out of school. Do you think you were recruited to be the backbone of the firm?¡± No! What they want is cheapbor and the willingness to work hard so the most important thing is attitude! You¡¯ve already knocked on that door, so just act like you can do anything, no matter what the interviewer asks you to do. You have to say ¡®yes¡¯, even if it¡¯s something you rather not do. It¡¯s important to express your willingness to learn. They are also taking a gamble on a new graduate. It will be up to your own power whether you will be a rock or diamond.

    Zhang Siyi was inspired by her words: ¡°Yes, thanks for guiding me!¡±

    Su Yuan waved her hand and smiled. ¡°You¡¯ll be fine. Don¡¯t worry so much!¡±

    Being filled with such a good feeling, Zhang Siyi was so excited that he had a hard time falling asleep. Even though he fell asleep in the early hours of the morning, he quickly woke up. He was sleepy, but thinking of the interview, he was determined to make a good impression. He quickly got out of bed and jumped into the bathroom to wash thoroughly... soap, shampoo, shave. For the better part of an hour, Zhang Siyi fussed with his hair and clothing choices. He wanted to make the best impression possible during the interview. Thest time he spent so much energy on his appearance was two years ago when he went to meet a girl.

    Finally, looking at the radiant and handsome young man in the mirror, Zhang Siyi whistled. His long-lost confidence bloomed from the bottom of his heart.Let¡¯s do this!

    The office is in the center of Haicheng City which was only 20 minutes by subway from the apartment he rents. In the future, if he can work there, then it is extremely convenient to go to and from the office every day. This advantage makes Zhang Siyi happy and makes him look forward to it.

    There were many people nearby all rushing to their destinations. Arriving at the building, Zhang Siyi looked up at the 100 meters tall facade. He can see the Borderless logo on the first floor. Looking at the white-cor elite who rushed to the entrance, Zhang Siyi opened his arms, closed his eyes, and took a deep breath of the city¡¯s dirty morning air. Soon he will be a member of these office workers and work every day from 9 to 5. Thinking this, Zhang Siyi is filled with happiness.

    Because it is the morning rush hour, there are a lot of peopleing and going. The elevator seems to stop at every floor in the building. Finally, at the floor where the Borderless offices are located, the elevator door opened to reveal arge ss wall with a nt disy.

    Zhang Siyi is startled to see that it is a whole surface is built from ss creating attice frame and on almost every shelf,ys a nt. There are nts seemingly of every variety. Herbal nts, conifers, sulents, small sparse nts, fat fleshy ones... There isn¡¯t any pattern to them, but the nt disy creates a visually pleasing, modern art piece.

    Through the ss and gaps between the pots, you can faintly see the internal office space. The neatly arranged beige tables are full ofputers each with an employee in twos and threes, working intensively.

    ... ah ah, it¡¯s so cool!

    After turning left, Zhang Siyi saw the awe inspiring, red logo ¡°Borderless¡± on the pure white wall at the end of the green corridor. Along the wide wall, straight to the end, Zhang Si Yi sees small ck words below the characters in a row: ¡°The Pursuit Is Endless¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart instantly soars and looks so happy and excited that one would think he was in love.

    Further inside is the entrance to the office, Zhang Siyi regained his senses and approached the front desk asking about his appointment. The other party enthusiastically took him into a small reception room and poured him a ss of water and courteously said, ¡°Please wait a moment, I will inform the personnel department.¡± Half a minuteter, Miss Wang from the personnel department came over and greeted him, telling him that the director who will interview him would arrive soon.

    Zhang Siyi nodded and expressed his gratitude. While waiting for the appointment time, he thought about all that has transpiredtely. He imagined that the director would ask his own array of questions so once again he thought about Su Yuan¡¯s words and desperately tried to encourage himself.

    ¡°Knock Knock. The sound of fingers tapping the ss door pulled back Zhang Siyi thoughts. He turned his head and saw a tall, thin young man standing at the door.

    Leather casual shoes, gray casual pants, white t-shirts, open cotton sweater.... Wait a minute, this person looks familiar!

    Ah... yesterday morning... in the cafe.... coffee ... He seems to be -that- handsome guy!

    ...Oo Oao! Why is this person here?!!

    He nced at Zhang Siyi to the side with a nk expression and slightly pointing his head to him to show his greetings. Then he gestured gracefully, as if they were only meeting for the first time.

    ... Has he forgotten?

    ¡°Hello, my name is Gu Yu.¡± The opposite youth took out a business card and offered it to Zhang Siyi. Then he officially took out a pen and said: ¡°Introduce yourself.¡±

    Zhang Siyi nced at the words on the business card ¨C

    Gu Yu

    National First-ss Certified Architect

    Creative Design Director

    Compared with Zhang Siyi¡¯s inner turmoil, the other party looks very calm. He slowly opened the file in his hand and asked, ¡°You are Zhang Siyi, right?¡±

    ¡°Uh, uh, hello....... Director Gu? Zhang Si Yi cannot believe that this person is an architect? The fucking director? He looks a little older than himself! Why is the director so young??

    At each title Zhang Siyi eyes bulged.

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s mind is suddenly full of his conversation with his ex-girlfriend from yesterday morning. Because of thements she said, he assumes that he left a very bad impression on the director in front of him. Plus, the coffee......

    For a moment, he can see his original dream job coalesce into arge bubble and float away only to ¡°pop¡± right in front of him.

    If,st night, the Lord let him experience the joys of heaven, then now, Zhang Si Yi deeply tasted something bitter, that is ¡°the ultimate sorrow¡±. It takes only a moment to fall from the clouds to the bottom of the valley. He suddenly feels that this job is not going to happen.

    Gu looked at him, Zhang Siyi immediately sat up straighter, and stiffly said: ¡°I, my name is Zhang Siyi. I graduated from the British Department of Architecture.¡±

    Gu Yu used the end of the pen to point at the printed material on the table, that is Zhang Siyi¡¯s resume: ¡°I know, say something else.¡±

    ¡°...¡± something else? Say what? The situation is aplete mess.

    Gu Yu put down the pen, picked up his arm and leaned back on the chair, and looked at Zhang Siyi up and down. He said, ¡°You cleaned up.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± he really remembers!!!

    Director Gu raised his eyebrows: ¡°Why don¡¯t you say something about your girlfriend?¡±

    Zhang Siyi now despondent, wonders: ¡°is this man joking?¡± But why doesn¡¯t his eyes and tone look like a joke at all?

    Gu Yu waited for a moment, looked at Zhang Siyi helpless face and sighed. He asked, ¡°Then, why did you study architecture? Why did you send a resume to Borderless without a clear goal?¡±

 Chapter 4: Hiring

    <h4>Chapter 4: Hiring</h4>

    This string of questions made Zhang Siyi even more on edge. Before seeing Gu Yu, when he thought he would be hired, he was thinking about his sry but now, he didn¡¯t have any answers in mind for Gu Yu questions.

    But since Gu Yu asked the question, Zhang Siyi also had to answer. Anyway, the situation has be so embarrassing that it can¡¯t get any worse than it already is. He might as well just say his honest opinion and let the opposite party decide its worth. With a deep breath, he said: ¡°Actually, it is influenced by one of my high school graduates.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Oh?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°When I was in high school, there was an alumnus who had studied architecture at the University of T. He went back to my alma mater and give us an inspirational speech. He was ranked number 1 in the ss of our local college entrance examination and was admitted to the Department of Architecture with the second highest score in the province. He said something at the time and left a deep impression on me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi has always liked architecture. As a child he dreamed of having the title ¡°Architect¡±. He once thought that it was his life¡¯s goal. That his destiny was given to him by god to help build his mothend. Hearing this alumnus speech greatly reinforced his feelings so naturally, he sought a course of architectural study at a university.

    Indeed, at home, construction is one of the most desired courses of study at any university, especially a school as prestigious school as T University. This is inevitable. During that period, development ofnd andrge-scale construction projects were at its peak in the country. All localities are engaged in construction. Because of the media¡¯s exaggerated reports on the employment prospects and sry of the construction industry, many students rushed to this field of study. The high demand for architecture in society forced Colleges and Universities to open architecture departments. Even many literary and film works have shaped ¡°architects¡± into life-winning heroes.

    However, once he got involved in this field, Zhang Siyi discovered that the reality is one fucking huge pit!

    Gu Yu was silent for a moment in thought then smiled suddenly: ¡°This is the reason why you pursued a career in architecture?¡±

    Zhang Siyi did not expect him smile. Twice now he thought Gu Yu had a cold attitude and thought very little of him, however in this moment his faint smile let Zhang Siyi feel warmth, like the warm spring breeze melting winter¡¯s ice and snow.

    The other person¡¯s expression is softer, and Zhang Siyi feels a little easier... Maybe this is a good start?

    Gu Yu looked directly into Zhang Siyi eyes and asked: ¡°Do you still remember what he said?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Ah, that... I don¡¯t remember...¡±

    Because of all the many hours staying upte studying, drawing and building architectural models endlessly in university, Zhang Siyi also feels confused about his original intention. Especially when the construction segment of the economy has changed so drastically in a couple years. Looking for a job has be very difficult. He doubts whether his career choice is correct or not. As for the words that the alumnus said a few years ago, they are but a floating feeling without any effect on Zhang Si Yi¡¯s heart. While thinking deeply about his changing sentiments he said, ¡°But I felt that the senior was very cool at that time, so I always used him as an example.¡±

    Gu Xiao looked at the resume on hand and said: ¡°But you did not enter T University.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    T university is the highest institution in the country. It is not a ce for the casual person to apply. More than that, all the old eight schools that are famous in the country, have impossibly high admission score standards. Even if Zhang Siyi high school grades are eptable, the score needed to apply is beyond his ability. Zhang Siyi isn¡¯t willing to go to an ordinary school, so he asked his family to study abroad.

    Zhang Siyi inhales, exhales, inhales, exhales... ok, calm!

    ¡°Um, I thought I would go abroad to study architecture because it will make my horizon broader and give me more opportunities for the future,¡± Zhang Siyi said cautiously. ¡°I heard that China¡¯s current architecture education system ispletely borrowed from the West, so it is better to study from the original source. ¡°

    Gu Yu seems to be endorsing this answer, nodding slightly.

    This little action let Zhang Siyi¡¯s confidence grow and continued to answer Gu Yu¡¯s questions and exined why he would choose to send his resume to Borderless. He used nothing more than the summaries written byizens on the forums.

    Finally, when ites to career nning, for everyone who pursues the career of ¡°architect¡±, the primary goal is undoubtedly to obtain a personal license. Only then can the ¡°architect¡± be truly counted. The title ¡°National Level Registered Architect¡± is almost the highest proof of identity for domestic architects.

    But the title is not something that casual cats and dogs can earn, and strictly speaking, any unlicensed building practitioner is called a designer.

    Beginning graduates of architecture, such as Zhang Siyi, are only Junior ¡°Assistant architects¡± who can apply for the job, by definition, can be apprentices. By diligent hard work alongside licensed architects can they improve and be architects themselves.

    Different countries also have different criteria for judging the qualifications of ¡°architects¡±. In China, obtaining an architect license requires a professional academic background, and a designated field of work. Once that is obtained then they are eligible to participate in the national unified qualification examination, but this test is divided into nine grades. It is not simple to pass. It is said that many practitioners spend years, even decades working on the test. Therefore, seeing that Gu Yu with the title of architect can only mean he is an especially gifted genius.

    Zhang Siyi is an undergraduate of the epted architectural education standard in the UK. His qualifications are recognized by the Royal Institute of British Architects (RIBA). If you want to apply for a RIBA license in the future, you need to supplement your relevant design work with rted experience plus thepleted architectural works. It is only the British professional judgment requirements that are more stringent than domestic ones. Some people get a license when they are in their 40s and 50s, and they can only be regarded as a ¡°young¡± architect in the RIBA circle.

    Architecture is a long road. Therefore, many people have turned around in the middle. Fu Xinhui and Jiang Hai are such examples who originally went abroad to get a ¡°foreign education¡± and now will pursue other career paths. Influenced by them, Zhang Siyi is now also confused and hesitant. I¡¯m afraid the only one of them who is most likely to be an architect is Su Yuan.

    ¡°I don¡¯t have any particrly long-term career ns,¡± Zhang Siyi said frankly, ¡°and now, I¡¯m just looking for a way to help me continue to grow and learn as well as to umte a bit of experience, and n for the future.¡±

    Just now, a ¡°buzzing¡± sound can be heard. Startled by the phone vibration noise, Zhang Siyi, jerked his hand and touched his pocket thinking he has a call; however, the call isn¡¯t for himself. It is for Gu Yu.

    Gu looked at the phone, frowned and said to Zhang Siyi, ¡°Sorry, wait a moment,¡± and picked up the phone from the table to take the call outside.

    Zhang Siyi breathed a sigh of relief and rxed his tightly wound nerves. He also took out his mobile phone to look at his messages and saw dozens of unread notes in the WeChat discussion group of college friends:

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Su Yuan: ¡°Is little Yi going to the interview?¡±

    Jiang Hai: ¡°He left early in the morning. He was in the bathroom for so long, I didn¡¯t get the chance to wash up. [Hides]¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Why note to my room? I have a separate bathroom.¡±

    Jiang Hai: ¡°Oh, I forget. Are you awake?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°I can¡¯t sleep. Him going to the interview made me nervous.¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°Why do I feel that you are getting more and more gay.¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°...¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°When you are going to get a job? You are still unemployed even though you have returned to Haicheng. Fu Xinhui¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Ah, I¡¯m not in a rush. What¡¯s the hurry?¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°Don¡¯t say that! I graduated with you. It¡¯s disgraceful.¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°...¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°I don¡¯t know if Little Yi got the job.¡±

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    Zhang Siyi quickly scanned over the messages and he couldn¡¯t help but type a brief word to the discussion group: ¡°Nothing.¡±

    The group soon exploded and asked him what happened. Zhang Siyi saw that Gu Yu was back, and he had no time to exin. He only sent two crying expressions and quickly put the phone away.

    After sitting down again, Zhang Siyi noticed Gu Xiao is still slightly frowning. He is a little unsure of himself and can¡¯t tell what the other side of this expression is thinking. Insecurity is starting to develop inside him. Is his interview going well thus far? Did he say something wrong? even though his performance seems to be going well, he is starting to lose hope. Also... that cup of coffee.

    Gu Yu opened the portfolio collection brought by Zhang Siyi with one hand and squeezed the bridge of his nose with the other. After a long period of time without talking, he sat there and looked carefully. He did not ask Zhang Siyi any questions.

    Keeping silent, Zhang Siyi dare not speak, but his eyes involuntarily followed Gu Yu¡¯s movements, watching him very intently.

    His hands are very beautiful, not too big or small. His wrist bones are distinct, and his fingers are slender. They look unyielding yet soft. His eyshes are also very long. When he looks at the book, they hover over his eyes like two small fans. And his skin.... so smooth.... Zhang Siyi is extremely puzzled. How can someone so young be a director.

    While looking at him intently, Gu Yu suddenly looked up at Zhang Siyi. Zhang Siyi immediately sat up straighter. Feeling distraught he started sweating. The anticipation building up inside his heart overwhelmed him. He couldn¡¯t take it any longer. What is the verdict?

    Gu Yu took a pen and gently pointed at the book and asked, ¡°Can you work overtime?¡±

    ¡°Ah?¡± Zhang Siyi said, stunned. His mind couldn¡¯t help but rey the words that Su Yuan saidst night ¨C even if the interviewer asks you something you rather not do, you have to say ¡®yes¡¯. The attitude: You are willing to learn... Is this the turning point? There is a chance?

    Zhang Siyi hurriedly said: ¡°yes!¡±

    Gu Yu looked at him and smiled: ¡°There are still a few basic concerns. You can¡¯t bete...¡±

    Zhang Siyi was happy in his heart and nodded again and again: ¡°I will not bete!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°The things you agree to must be done without exception. If you don¡¯t understand something, please ask. Don¡¯t make your own assumptions.¡±

    Zhang Si Yi¡¯s head nodding vigorously: ¡°yes, yes!¡±

    Gu Yu said thest point: ¡°You can¡¯t chat with friends online when you are work.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± So he heard it yesterday!

    Gu Yu raised his eyebrows: ¡°Can you do that?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°yes, not a problem.¡± Although, there is the feeling of signing a treaty of shame.

    Gu Yu closed his portfolio and said directly: ¡°The wages of the new graduates are 8000, the probation period is one month. The sry is 5000, before the tax. The bonus is dependent on the project. A pay raise is possible after your six-month performance evaluation....¡±

    Ah ah, Zhang Si Yi¡¯s heart has been crackling fireworks, no matter how much money!

    ¡°If you can ept it, start working today.¡± Gu Yu pushed the book back to him and stood up.

    ¡°Ah? ¡°Zhang Siyi stayed,¡± today?¡±

    Gu Yu took a moment: ¡°Do you have something today?¡±

    Zhang Siyi quickly shook his head: ¡°No, nothing!¡±

    He was thrilled. To think that Gu Yu didn¡¯t discriminate against him from yesterday¡¯s catastrophe is amazing. He doesn¡¯t know how to thank him for being so kind and generous in his employment.

    ¡°That....¡± Zhang Siyi called Gu Yu, who was about to leave, blushing. ¡°Yesterday, I am really sorry.¡±

    Gu Yu paused for two seconds and said, ¡°If you care so much, you can get a deduction in wages.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

 Chapter 5: Colleague

    <h4>Chapter 5: Colleague</h4>

    After Gu Yu left, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t help but wipe the sweat off his brow. He felt like this morning was one long roller coaster ride. The personnel of the Human Resources department came over to give him a tour of thepany¡¯s internal environment. There was a ss-separated discussion room, a reading area for the mini-library, a rxed dining and refreshment area, and even a few beds. I have to say that Borderless has a fantastic environment!

    Zhang Siyi grinned all throughout the tour. Thinking about how much he will be able to enjoy these resources unconditionally now that he is a member of the firm, the sense of belonging and happiness welled up inside him.

    ¡°The coffee machine in the refreshment area provides unlimited coffee, free cookies, bread and milk. Thepany provides ordering service at noon. The meal is free of charge within 30 yuan. You can also choose to bring your own lunch. The dining area has a refrigerator and microwave and other equipment...¡±

    ¡°In ordance with thepany¡¯s Basic Rules and regtions, we asked our staff to go to work from 9am until 6pm. Lunch breaks are between 12:30pm and 1:30pm.¡±

    Zhang Siyi nodded. It turned out the work day nine to six, but there was an hour of lunch break in the middle, so It was also an eight-hour work day, perfect. ¡°However,¡± Miss Wang turned to him and shrugged. ¡°The design department is a special case. Thepany supplies electricity and water for 24 hours a day. There is a fingerprint lock, so employees can gain ess and work overtime without problems.¡±

    Zhang Siyi listened to Miss Wang¡¯s exnation and followed her to a door with the fingerprint lock. Opening it, he was taken into the design department which he briefly saw while exiting the elevators previously.

    There was arge table at the side of the walkway where three people were seated together discussing a n there. A leading female designer saw Miss Wang approaching with Zhang Siyi. Qi Liu Hai called out, ¡°Hey the new guy¡±. She was wearing a pair of ck-rimmed sses with a ck and white business wear. She looked older, but her temperament seems good. They are curious about Zhang Siyi. He smiles at them.

    ¡°This is Zhang Siyi, who graduated from the British Department of Architecture. Director Gu just recruited him as an assistant architect.¡± Miss Wang also pointed to the woman, ¡°This is Child Labor, another master architect in the design department.¡±

    ......childbor? How can someone be called this? Zhang Siyi thought that he heard it wrong.

    ¡°Child Labor¡± shook hands with him and enthusiastically said: ¡°Wee to Borderless.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Thank you.¡±

    The two young people sitting on the side also smiled at Zhang Siyi: ¡°Wee.¡±

    Child Labor signaled to the other two employees: ¡°Time to get working. Let¡¯s make sure we don¡¯t pad other people¡¯s pockets with our quarterly bonuses.¡±

    Two young people: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Arriving at an empty table near the corner, Miss Wang arranged a work position for him. On the left, there was a small, fat young man. On the right was a walkway. Behind it was a row of sspartments. Zhang Siyi had no time to look at it. Miss Wang said: ¡°Zhu Hongzhen, this is Zhang Siyi, a new employee. He will sit next to you, please take care of him.¡±

    The young man was pretending to fiddle with the building model of theputer, and immediately turned around smiling: ¡°Hello.¡±

    Miss Wang looked at the watch: ¡°It¡¯s almost time for lunch. After eating lunch,e to me.¡± Zhang Siyi said thank you and Miss Wang left.

    ¡°Hey, my name is Zhu Hongzhen, nicknamed Piggy.¡± His desk-mate re-introduced himself.

    Zhang Siyi shook hands with him. A girl who was facing him also slid over on the swivel chair: ¡°Hello!¡±

    ¡°This is Bi Lele.¡± Pig took the initiative to introduce her then pointed at the young man next to Bi Lele who had his head down engrossed with painting. ¡°That is Yuan Zhicheng.¡± The named person looked up. Zhang Siyi smiled, and said hello.

    Bi Lele grinned at Zhang Siyi. She teased him: ¡°The front desk staff told me about a really handsome young man scheduled for an interview. We were curious, and they were right!¡± Several of the people there were of simr age so, after introductions, they soon became familiar with each other.

    From the two people, Zhang Siyi also learned about the structure of the different departments of Borderless. It totaled less than 50 people. 10 of which were specialized in structural and HVAC-rted engineers, and less than ten were professionalndscapes and Interior designers. The remaining 30 people are doing architectural design. Among the 30 people, there are three groups. Each group has its own head. Zhang Siyi¡¯s circle is Gu Yu¡¯s men.

    Zhu Hongzhenmented: ¡°Our boss never recruit useless people, so you must have some talent.¡±

    Zhang Siyi has some guilty conscience. ¡°I only just graduated.¡±

    ¡°You are the only person who has graduated from a foreign university in our group.¡± Bi Lele said.

    ¡°You all graduated from a domestic University?¡± Asked Zhang Siyi. Bi Lele and the others said where they graduated from. To Zhang Siyi surprised, they were all from elite educational institutions. Is he now working with a group of school tyrants?

    ¡°Which school did Gu Yu graduate from?¡± Zhang Siyi was very curious and whispered, ¡°He is only a few years older and looks so young.¡±

    ¡°T University,¡± Bi Lele gave the answer from across the aisle. ¡°He is a master of continuous reading. After graduation, he first worked at X Design Institute. I have a ssmate who worked together with GU Yu during his internship. He learned fast on the job while also studying. During his time at university, he won many awards at variouspetitions for architectural design. It was the first time someone so young received the awards. He didn¡¯t go abroad after graduating and went straight to work a X Design Institute. Two yearster, he passed the nine-time examination directly, then applied at Borderless and was given the position of creative director. ¡°I think he¡¯s at least twenty-seven or twenty-eight.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was shocked and stunned. This person is too damn good. How can life be so smooth!

    Zhu Hongzhen nods and says: ¡°Our boss is really a God!¡±

    Bi Lele looked around and whispered: ¡°I heard Gu Yu¡¯s real reason for leaving X Design is a because of an older female architect¡¯s pursuit of him. He couldn¡¯t help but hide here.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I thought that there are many foreign students in Borderless. How is it just me?¡±

    ¡°Our sister department is led by Child Labor.¡± Zhu Hongzhen pointed to the direction,¡± She has a doctorate of architecture and leads a group of people who are all from international universities. Two of them are foreigners, one from Spain and one from Bulgaria. When ites to the childbor group, Zhang Siyi wants tough a little. He asks: ¡°Why would someone call her such a strange name?¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen¡¯s mouth smacked: ¡°Hey, you may have made a mistake. It¡¯s not her name.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Ah?¡±

    She is called Tong Heyi, and the ¡®work¡¯ is the abbreviation of the construction engineer. It is the mostmonly used name in our industry, so you don¡¯t feel strange when someone calls you ¡®Zhanggong¡¯.¡±

    Zhang, Zhang Gong, hehe...

    Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°in fact, our boss does not like the formal title of director. Just follow us and call him Boss. OK.¡±

    ¡°I see,¡± asked Zhang Siyi, looking around: ¡°Where is his office?¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen pointed to him behind: ¡°It¡¯s right behind you.¡±

    ¡°...¡± Zhang Siyi turned back and saw the name card of Gu Yu hanging on the back of the sspartment door! He shrank his neck and turned back, summing up, ¡°It seems that my position is a bit dangerous.¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen nodded solemnly: ¡°Yes, at work if you get discovered ying around by the boss, you will see the end sooner rather thanter.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°No? I can¡¯t do anything on the inte? Not even a little bit?¡±

    ¡°That depends on what you are doing online. Checking information is ok of course, but anything else....¡± Zhu Hongzhen did not say exactly but his cold tone made the implication even clearer. Zhang Siyi swallowed nervously.

    ¡°I didn¡¯t think the boss was so strict. It seemed to me, he had much warmer rtionship with everyone in the department.¡± Because of the mishap and reconciliation at the caf¨¦, Zhang Siyi felt that the animosity towards Gu Yu was unfounded.

    Zhu Hongzhen looked at him oddly: ¡°where did you get that idea?¡±

    ¡°It isn¡¯t?¡±

    ¡°Because he himself has strict principles he expects everyone else to follow them as well. Its not easy following a talented genius,¡± Zhu Hongzhen said bitterly. ¡°You have been warned. It isn¡¯t a wonderful experience working under his hands. You will understand after a while. ¡°

    Yuan Zhicheng, who has never spoken, heard this and suddenly looked up at Zhang Siyi, his eyes were blue, and his smile was bleak: ¡°Wee to the group of hard work.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Bi Lele, who had a look of ignorance, had quietly shut her mouth when her colleaguesined, and sighed with a look of ¡°pain and happiness.¡±

    At lunch time, Zhu Hongzhen had booked thepany¡¯s lunch. Others had brought their own and thus, Zhang Siyi could only go downstairs and find a restaurant.

    Because the office building is in themercial center, there are many very good restaurants nearby, however they are a bit pricey. Except for the convenience stores such as 7-11 and Rosen, most of them are eptable.

    In celebration of his new job, Zhang Siyi wanted to treat himself to a nice meal instead of the convenience store¡¯s lunch. He chose a Japanese restaurant that looked like it had many patrons. Zhang Siyi lined up in queue and waited to be seated. At this time, he took his phone out to check his messages. He wanted to let his friends know about the good news.

    Two hours have passed since Zhang Siyi sent the two crying emojis in chat. There were hundreds of messages in the discussion group.

    At first, his friends were anxious and didn¡¯t know if they should ask him for details about the situation. Fu Xinhui even gloated about it, but since Zhang Siyi stopped responding he stopped chatting. Everyone began tofort Zhang Siyi. Others wondered if he couldn¡¯t read the messages. Eventually the topic moved onto something else. When Zhang Siyi opened the phone, his friends were eager to discuss the future development of the Chinese construction industry in the group.

    He clicked Fu Xinhui icon to look at some private messages. There were several unread messages on the top.

    Fu Xinhui: ¡± What¡¯s the matter? Are you feeling alright?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°We were just joking around don¡¯t get caught up in that.......¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Sorry, I shouldn¡¯t haveughed at you, don¡¯t be sad,e back I¡¯ll invite you to dinner!¡±¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Don¡¯t worry about money. I¡¯ll raise you.¡±

    ......

    Zhang Siyi sent a message to Fu Xinhui, ¡°Fuck you, Crow mouth! I got in!¡±

    He then went to the chat group and sent an update, ¡°I got the job¡±

 Chapter 6: Senior

    <h4>Chapter 6: Senior</h4>

    ____________________

    The previously quite group chat was boiling again after Zhang Siyi sent his message.

    Su Yuan: ¡°I nearly fainted. Were you just scaring us? Ah!¡±

    Jiang Hai: ¡°Congrattions!¡±

    Ningmong: ¡°What the hell is going on?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I didn¡¯t scare you. I just thought it wasn¡¯t going to go my way. I didn¡¯t expect the oue to be so great.¡± ~\(¨R¨Œ¨Q)/~

    Su Yuan: ¡°I did say that the interview is just a formality. How is the sry?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°The beginning sry probation period is 5,000, then after 6 months it will increase to 8,000. That is not counting any bonuses.¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°Not bad.¡±

    Jiang Hai: ¡°Wow, you are paid more than me even after these 2 years. I am at 7,000!¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°More than half is to pay rent? That¡¯s not even as good as migrant workers.¡±

    See this reply, Zhang Siyi suddenly has the impulse to go back to the convenience store for a 15 Yuan Bento!

    Su Yuan: ¡°Don¡¯t ssh cold water on him. The first year of an undergraduate sry in the construction industry in Haicheng is six thousand or seven thousand. 8,000 is very good. With bonuses I also earn that amount.¡±

    Jiang Hai: ¡°No way! Our profession has such a low price/performance ratio. It is harder to learn than a dog. It is harder than a cow and earns less than a chicken. ¨r(¨s_¨t)¨q¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Do not insult chickens, chickens make a lot of good money!¡±

    Jiang Hai: ¡± In brief: It¡¯s better to be a chicken.¡±

    Ningmong: ¡°My cousin does finance and after graduation he went to a private financial management firm and, now in the second year of work, his annual sry is 200,000.¡± [Crying]

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°My friend is an Inte game host with a monthly ie of 200,000.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Big brother and sister! This is my first job! If you can¡¯t say anything positive, then don¡¯t say anything at all!¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Treat me!¡±

    Ningmong: ¡°Treat me!¡±

    Jiang Hai: ¡°Treat me!¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°Treat me!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    While tapping his message on his phone, Zhang Siyi was caught off guard and was shocked. When he turned his head, he saw Gu Yu, who had just interviewed himself, stand behind him and looked at him with a wide smile: ¡°Are you chatting with friends again?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Why does this man always remember his ex-girlfriend counting his stalks! He did not expect to meet Gu Yu here: ¡°What a coincidence. You alsoe here to eat?¡±

    ¡°I just saw you talking to your new colleague upstairs. Howe you didn¡¯t eat with them?¡± Gu Yu asked.

    Zhang Siyi only felt cold behind him, and quickly exined: ¡°Not knowing there would be a new person at the office, they had already reservedpany lunches. It¡¯s to be expected. It is my first day after all.¡±

    Just then, the waiter saw the two of them chatting, so by default he treated them as one party and directly said: ¡°Two follow me please.¡±

    Zhang Siyi is a bit uncertain. Even though Gu Yu didn¡¯t express his intention to eat with him, he saw that all the tables were full of customers. The seats at the bar were also full of people.

    The waiter arranged a double table for them. After sitting down, Zhang Siyi¡¯s mind started to panic. He didn¡¯t want his colleagues to think he nned this lunch for advantageous reasons. Although, his situation is a bit special considering the coffee debacle. He doesn¡¯t want to feel like he still owes Gu Yu.

    The two men ordered a set meal. Zhang Siyi was nning on giving the money when Gu Yu already handed the card to the waiter: ¡°Together.¡±

    Zhang Siyi stunned: ¡°You, you are inviting me to eat?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°You can think of it as you are inviting me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi is a little confused but did not think too much about it. Moreover, he has been moved by the behavior of the handsome guy sitting across from him and is increasingly convinced that the other party is a good and generous person.

    ¡°What were you guys talking about upstairs?¡± Gu Yu picked up the disposable chopsticks on the table with an environmentally-friendly paper bag and slowly unwrapped it.

    Zhang Siyi recalled the gossip his colleagues had justmented on about Gu Yu. What is it like to be chased by a woman who is eight years older than him? Zhang Siyi wiped the cold sweat from his brow. Although he also loves gossip, he is not a person who sells out his colleagues to please the leader, so he can onlyment: ¡°They said that you are demanding, um, very strict.¡±

    Gu Yu smiled, opened the chopsticks with a ¡°SNAP¡± and said: ¡°The beginning is always difficult. If you work hard and try, you will do well. ¡°

    Zhang Siyi is inwardly shaking, but outwardly gives a little nod instead: ¡°Yes, strict teacher.¡±

    The delicious looking food has arrived: a set of teriyaki chicken, hot beef rolls, miso soup, tempura, other side dishes. The aroma is mouthwatering. Zhang Siyi sighed and picked up his chopsticks. He ate for a while, then remembered the school his colleagues mentioned. He was curious: ¡°Oh yeh, they said that you graduated from T University?¡±

    Seeing Gu Yu nod, Zhang Siyi said with excitement: ¡°Then you may know the senior of my high school. He graduated from Ningcheng Foreign Language Middle School maybe in 2004 or 2005.¡±

    Gu Yu looked up and looked at him for a while, then said: ¡°I am also a graduate of Ningcheng Foreign Language Middle School.¡±

    Zhang Siyi did not respond: ¡°...ah?¡±

    Gu Yu appreciated Zhang Siyi¡¯s expression: ¡°It is unfortunate though, I enrolled at T Uni in 2004.¡±

    Zhang Siyi stopped feeding himself. Jaw hanging open he asked, ¡°What did you say?¡±

    Gu Yu nced at him, and there was a hint of unspeakable interest in his eyes: ¡°I still remember that in 2008 I was really invited by my alma mater to go back and give a speech.¡±

    Zhang Siyi red at his two eyes, and his mind was full of ¡°No Way!¡±

    Gu Yu raised his mouth: ¡°Probably October, the day after the National Day holiday, in therge auditorium outside Ning.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was shocked: ¡°What! Do you mean.... that is, you. You are my senior?¡±

    Gu said: ¡°If you don¡¯t use other people¡¯s experiences as stories for yourself, then this morning, you were talking about me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was both surprised and happy, but also a little angry and ruined. I don¡¯t know if it¡¯s a shame. Gu Yu deliberately concealed the truth: ¡°Why don¡¯t you say it in the morning?¡±

    Gu Yu drank the soup and said: ¡°You don¡¯t remember me.¡±

    The slightest upward tone of the other party made Zhang Siyi have the illusion that he was angry¡±, but Gu Yu quickly said: ¡°I didn¡¯t want you to think that I am recruiting you because of the rtionship between our high school alumni.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Obviously, it is quite a selfless sentence, but let Zhang Siyi listen to the heart, because the other meaning of this sentence is that Gu Yu admitted him because he believed in his own ability!

    Zhang Si Yi felt more excited than when he was chasing his ex-girlfriend.

    The person sitting in front of him now, is not only a graduate of T university, but also the legend of their high school alma mater!

    Since Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu were close in age, they inevitably had the same teachers during their time in High School. The teachers often talked about one special smart and good student during ss full of appreciation. A profound memoryes to mind. He remembered on one day, in the third year of the city¡¯s unified examination, the exam was very difficult to pass. The highest score was a 71. The cry from the ss was load and clear. Thankfully, Zhang Siyi just made the passing line and in fact, only 10 people did that day, but while those people were absorbed in their self-satisfaction, believing their achievement was something to be proud about, the physics teacher informed them of a student who received a perfect score. Unbelievable!

    Zhang Siyi thinks in retrospect this most certainly is Gu Yu!

    After that, the two naturally talked about some things from high school. The headmaster of Ningwai, the pancake stall at the school gate.... The atmosphere is happy. Zhang Siyi feels like the distance between them was getting closer. I think that with such a good teacher, my future will be bright!

    After eating the meal and returning to thepany, Zhang Siyi felt like his whole person was floating. Taking advantage of the bathroom, he couldn¡¯t help but pull out his mobile phone and want to show off with his friends. Unexpectedly, when he opened WeChat, he saw a bunch of messages.

    Jiang hai: ¡°people?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°by! When ites to party, dive, bump!¡±

    Ren mengxuan: ¡°[despise]¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°I still waiting to hear the details of the interview! ¡°Little Yi,e back!¡±

    Zhang Siyi:¡°......¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I just had lunch with the director. I just learned that he and I were both graduates of the same high school!¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°I said, he will not ept you because you are his school brother?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Get out of Here! It was my own strength!!

    Ningmong: ¡°Treat me!¡±

    Jiang Hai: ¡°Treat me!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Ah? Tonight?

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°yeh! ¡±

    Ningmong: ¡°yes yes yes!

    Su Yuan: ¡°Count me in!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Jiang Hai are you working overtime?

    Jiang Hai: ¡°For this meal, I¡¯ll slip out too!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°you are idle and help me pick a ce, I have to go to work in the afternoon, no time to find a ce.¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°so soon to work?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I can¡¯t talk to you. People with jobs are going to work!¡± ~(¨R¨Œ¨Q)/~

    Fu Xinhui:¡°...... I¡¯ll leave you alone.¡±

    Jiang Hai: ¡°I really envy his good mentality. I¡¯ve been working overtime for one month now so just want to whine.¡±

    Zhang Siyi put away the mobile phone and stood up. Looking at the time, hurriedly left to go to the personnel department to fill out paperwork and the other necessary formalities.

    Miss Wang has already prepared the contract. Zhang Siyi turned it over to look at it and was confused.

    ¡°Oh, yes,¡± Miss Wang said suddenly. ¡°Did Director Gu in the morning told you that your first month¡¯s probationary sry is deducted five hundred on the normal basis?¡±

    ¡°Ah? What?¡± Zhang Siyi stunned and remembered the sentence that Gu Yu said, ¡°If you care, wages will be deducted.¡± Wasn¡¯t that a joke?

    Miss Wang: ¡°Hey, he didn¡¯t he tell you? He also said to deducted 500 yuan for catering activities.¡±

    Zhang Siyi ears smoked: ¡°What!?¡± He finally understood what Gu Yu said in the restaurant, ¡°Think of it as you invited me...¡±

    He had been so stupid to be moved by him that he felt silly. Good, kind and generous? HA! This man is too unkind, isn¡¯t he?

    For a moment, Gu Yu¡¯s glorious image in Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart was greatly reduced.

    After signing the contract, Zhang Siyi sat back down, slumped at his desk and felt wronged by the bad bully. Even his ex-girlfriend¡¯s crazy ount had not made him feel as ufortable as it was now.

 Chapter 7: Task

    <h4>Chapter 7: Task</h4>

    __________________

    Zhang Siyi thought to himself and repeated a mantra, patience and perseverance.... 500 isn¡¯t really that much. It¡¯s not even enough to buy a pair of jeans. He doesn¡¯t want to be so stingy, but he can¡¯t help but feel wronged by the deductions in his sry. He must keep in mind at this stage, it is about learning and getting experience. Zhang Siyi continues to convince himself: When the trial sry is only 4,500, the sry is not the key point... the sry is not the focus...not the focus...

    Zhu Hongzhen saw Zhang Siyi and wanted to ask him where he went and what he had for lunch, but hesitated for a moment then called out: ¡°Are you called Zhang Wei? I forgot.¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°Your name is not very easy to remember. Do you have a nickname?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°English name? I used Daniel while I was in the UK.¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen read it over and said: ¡°That¡¯s worse than your Chinese name.¡±

    Sitting across from them, Bi Lele said: ¡°Since your name is a homophone, Yisi how about Aunt Four?¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°poof!¡±

    Zhang Siyi broke down and said, ¡± Why should I be called and aunt. I¡¯m a man?¡±

    Bi Lele turned a white-eye: ¡°we have a man nicknamed¡± Joe sister.¡±¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°Childbor group also has a woman, nicknamed Cool Brother. Ah, don¡¯t worry about these details, I think the Aunt Four suits you just fine.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    ¡°And as you can see in this circle, you happen to be the fourth toe, it is appropriate to call you ¡®fourth aunt¡¯.¡±

    Yuan Zhicheng, who was diagonally opposite, looked up and said quietly: ¡°Fourth Aunt is good.¡±

    Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t stop it. Several people on the side chanted ¡°fourth aunt, fourth aunt¡±. He was a little annoyed. He didn¡¯t want the nickname Aunt Four. He just came to thepany and, just like that, his name was changed. Once they set up hisputer station, the chance to protest was mercilessly stripped from him.

    The officeputer has an internal LAN. In order to prevent the outflow of resources,munication and file transfer between colleagues need to be through internalmunication software. The form is somewhat simr to QQ, and all employees¡¯ address books are visible, making it clear at a nce.

    Zhang Siyi curiously studied for a while and found that the architectural design division had indeed been subdivided into three groups, namely, the Gu Yu group (a), the Child Labor Group (b) and the Choi Group (c). His name was in Group A.

    ¡°Piggy, who is this Cui Gong?¡± The first two Zhang Siyi knew, but thest one he hadn¡¯t heard of.

    Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°Oh, you mean Mr. Choi in Group C?¡± He is a teacher at the J University School of Architecture on the other side of school. His specialty is ancient Chinese architecture design and Borderless department C is equivalent to his personal studio.

    Zhang Siyi understands that there are indeed well-known building teachers in China who have their own personal studios, and many teachers will choose to cooperate with design institutes and designpanies.

    Zhang Siyi carefully looked at the names listed in hispany email. When he saw the words ¡°Gu Yu¡±, he was reminded of his 500-sry deduction, and felt depressed. Unconsciously, he double clicked to open the dialog box. Almost at the same second, a sentence popped up in the dialog box ¨C ¡°Come to my office.¡±

    Zhang Si Yi practically jumped out of his seat. He froze for several seconds and double checked that this was a coincidence and not something he neglected to see.

    He did not dare dy replied with ¡°ok¡±. With apprehension, he stood up and went to Gu Yu¡¯s office.

    He lightly knocked on the frosted ss door, and after hearing ¡°please enter¡± inside, Zhang Siyi pushed the door open and walked inside.

    Even though the room is less than ten square feet there is arge design table in the middle with an iMac,ptop, printer, and stack of materials neatly stacked in the corner of the table. Next to it, is a pen holder filled with all kinds of markers, color lead, architectural pens and a measurement scale.

    Director Gu sat facing him while behind him was a full bookshelf. The shelves were not only full of professional books, but there also wererge and small models in the empty spaces.

    Zhang Siyi did not know how to describe it. He was thinking that maybe he would voice hisints about his sry deductions so, his mood was a little anxious, before he came in. The stress of university and job hunting previously made him doubt himself, however, all the negative feeling dissipated when facing the director in his work space. His inner anxiety transformed into excitement. When looking at everything in the office rted to architecture, his past heartfelt yearning has awakened and be like an instinct, rekindling his obsession making it hard to let go.

    Gu Yu pointed to the chair opposite his desk and let him sit down.

    Zhang Siyi took a deep breath. At first nce, there was a block of calligraphy works on the nk wall to the left. After seeing the words ¡°Zhuge Liang¡± on the book, he involuntarily calmed down.

    ¡°How is it going? Are you getting more familiar with the environment yet?¡± Gu Yu asked.

    ¡°Almost.¡± Well, don¡¯t think about sry anymore. The most urgent task is to stay through the trial period! Zhang Siyi made up his mind.

    Gu Yu handed a piece of printing paper to him: ¡°This is an office building in the city of s. You look at it first. There are three people in the group who are doing this project. The styling and external details have been decided on. Pointing to another n illustration, this is the functional partition and outline of the building.¡±

    Zhang Siyi took a nce at the n, dumbfounded...... it¡¯s huge!

    ¡°What kind of drawing software do you usually use? Is theputer set up? Is the software installed for you?¡± Gu Yu asked.

    The atmosphere suddenly became tense with the rhythm of Gu Yu¡¯s dialogue. Zhang Siyi quickly said: ¡°I use ArchiCAD.¡±

    Gu Yu nodded: ¡°ArchiCAD plug-in causes problems sometimes when transferring files. Lu Qiao was having issues when he was working on portions of the n. You will have to learn the other software we use in the office.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Oh...¡±

    Zhang Siyi isn¡¯t familiar with the other software, so he is unsure how long it will take to render a picture.

    Gu Yu: ¡°You will draw a draft of this section here, then show me before the work day is over.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Holding the reference materials, he returned to his seat. Zhang Siyi has been living in such a rxed state that he hasn¡¯t wrapped his mind around his work yet. Not only does he need to learn new software in the afternoon, but also, he has to a make a draft of such a big building. Mom! Who will kill him!

    ¡°Did Boss give you a task?¡± Zhu Hongzhen asked with a smirk.

    ¡°Well...¡± The task was huge. Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t dare to dy. He quickly opened the address book and looked for Lu Qiao. ¡°Little pig, who is Lu Qiao?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s him,¡± Zhu Hongzhen pointed to the thin and small figure not far away. ¡°The one in blue clothes, don¡¯t you see?¡±

    As he was saying, he was already paged on the inte: ¡°Is this fourth aunt?¡±¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°How do you know the nickname they just gave me?¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°You are the neer, right? Someone in the group inquired about you, Lele has already publicized it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°There are three big rotten girls in the group. Handsome boys won¡¯t escape their ws.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°[Cry]¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°Brother, let¡¯s ept it, I understand your pain ~~ ¡°

    ... But why did he read the smell of schadenfreude from the other side¡¯s big wavy line? !

    After a few words, Lu Qiao quickly brought the topic back to the task on hand: ¡°The boss asked me to send you the information of the D City office building. Did you receive it?¡±

    Zhang Siyi received arge package of project materials, and by the way asked: ¡°What about the software? Is it true I have to use this?¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°Hey, don¡¯t you know? This is a domestic building software developed based on the ad tform. Most of the domestic construction projects use this.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°OK. Is it hard to learn?¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°It¡¯s easy to learn! Super simple! You will learn in ten minutes!¡±

    Zhang Siyi was relieved. Thanks, I cut theputer to the Indos system. With the help of Zhu Hongzhen, I found this legendary ¡°super simple¡± software. Little did he know, ¡°super-simple¡± was not super simple. He struggled for two hours and repeatedly harassed Lu Qiao several times before figuring it out.

    When he introduced the electronic map into the design, at five o¡¯clock, it was already close to the days out. ¨C super simple my ass!

    The cell phone in his trouser pocket buzzed. Zhang Siyi reached for it and saw that Fu Xinhui sent him a message.

    Zhang Siyi quickly replied with ¡°good¡±, thinking that the draft of the toilet and staircase will be finished soon.

    But not long after, Zhang Siyi found that he overestimated himself.

    During his undergraduate studies, he was exposed to small buildings of several hundred square meters. Thergest one was the student activity center that was designed when he graduated. The total area was no more than 3,000. Now that Gu Yu gave him a ten-story office building, he was so stupid that he didn¡¯t know where to start.

    Seeing that it was almost time to get off work, he had a sinking feeling in his stomach. His hadn¡¯t made much progress on the assigned task.

    ¡°Little pig, I was handed a drafting assignment and needed to hand it in before I go, but what if it¡¯s not finished by the end of the work hours?¡±

    Zhu Hong Zhen said of course: ¡°Overtime.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Just then, a familiar voice suddenly sounded from behind: ¡°How is the drawing going?¡±

    Zhang Siyi stunned, turned around to see Gu Yu, who was quietly standing there. Gu Yu looked at Zhang Siyi¡¯sputer screen, only to see a few toilets arranged in a mess, and a few irregr stairs, and said: ¡°What is this?¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s cold sweat ran down, and he said: ¡°I, I¡¯m getting used to the software.¡±

    Gu Yu in thought did not speak for 5 seconds then spoke. ¡°Continue¡±, he said, then left.

    Zhang Siyi saw Gu¡¯s back disappear through the doors at the entrance of the firm, and dared to ask, ¡°Did he just leave for the day?¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°Ah? No way. Didn¡¯t he tell you to show him the picture?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I just watched him go out. He¡¯s not leaving work?¡±

    He also thought he was fortunate if Gu Yu left work already. He wanted to slip away for a while to have dinner with his friends. He could finish the work at home and bring thepleted task back.

    But Zhu Hongzhen gave him a fatal blow: ¡°Maybe he went to the restroom. The boss will definitely be back.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Why?¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen looked happy: ¡°He is the only boss I have ever seen to apany his subordinates to work overtime. If you have tasks in your hands, he will stay with you until you finish.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡± Help!

 Chapter 8: Overtime

    <h4>Chapter 8: Overtime</h4>

    ______________________

    In fact, Gu Yu came back after about forty minutes and it was already more than half an hour passed the official work day.

    A small group of colleagues who didn¡¯t need to work overtime already left. There were still quite a group of people in the office working overtime, however many spontaneously have begun to pack up, including Zhu Hongzhen and Bi Lele. In the end, there are only a few people who have projects on hand to get overtime. For example, the participating members of the D city office project team.

    Of course, Zhang Siyi did not need to work overtime, provided that he had finished his drafting assignment. The mobile phone in his pocket kept vibrating. His friends were going together to the appointed ce and shared the real-time location information in the WeChat discussion group. As the protagonist of the party, Zhang Siyi can¡¯t go, he doesn¡¯t dare go.

    Since he agreed to overtime work in the morning interview, he wasn¡¯t going to leave on the first night. He didn¡¯t want to die.!

    Before, when Gu Yu did not return, Zhang Siyi thought maybe he had been yed, and maybe the other party had already left.

    While walking to the restroom, he checked his messages and sent a message to his group of friends to say that he was going to work for a while and will bete. Zhang Siyi sent the messageforting his friends, but maybe he sent it tofort himself because he has no idea how long it will be. He just wanted to rush out to dinner.

    Until Gu Yu appeared again, Zhang Siyi¡¯s uneasiness dissipated. He elerated the speed of drawing. When Gu Yu passed him, he stopped to look at his screen with special care.

    Zhang Siyi is very nervous. He doesn¡¯t know if he is drawing correctly or not, but at least he stayed. Isn¡¯t that worthy of recognition?

    Gu Yan saw him draw for half a minute, there was noment, and finally only said: ¡°If you are hungry, you can go downstairs and buy something to eat. After a while, draw a 1:50 ratio and print it out ande to the office to find me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Hey, he doesn¡¯t want to eat, he wants to finish the draft and leave!

    It took another half an hour, and Zhang Siyi finally got the picture done before 7:00.

    He printed the picture ording to his words, and went to Gu Yu with joy, thinking that it is not toote to get a taxi to meet up with his friends.

    But he soon discovered that he was too naive.

    At that time, Gu Yu was sitting in front of theputer and browsing ArchDaily. He put a cup of steaming tea on hand and saw Zhang Siyiing in. He whispered ¡°sit¡± and took out the scale and pencil from the pen holder.

    Gu Yan nced at the drawings, like a teacher who was looking over an assignment.

    ¡°Did Lu Qiao not send you the information? Have you not seen how many people use this building?¡± Gu Yu asked.

    Zhang Siyi stupidly opened his mouth: ¡°ah¡±, he only wanted to hurry and draw, so he didn¡¯t think about how many people are in this building to better understand how to n the toilets.

    Gu Yu used a pencil to lightly draw the drawings and exined: ¡°ording to the provisions of the ¡°Architectural Design Code¡±, the number of men¡¯s toilets is less than 100, and one is set for 25 people. If there are more than 100 people, one additional for each additional 50 people. The number of urinals is the same as that of the toilet; the female toilet...¡±

    Listening to Gu Xiao slowly exin these terms like it was normal, he was blindsided. He didn¡¯t know! ah!

    ¡°The details of the project clearly stated that the total flow of the building is 2000, and the average to each floor is about 120 people, so the total number of positions on each floor will not exceed six. Let¡¯s see what you drew. There are 8 male restrooms and 10 female restrooms, which add up to 18,¡± Gu Yu looked up at him and said with a serious expression. ¡°Youid out the floor n with so many. I think the designer must be suffering from frequent urination and other digestion problems.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    ¡°And,¡± Gu Yu paused, ced the scale in hand on the illustration, and raised his eyebrows. ¡°The interiorpartment door of the bathroom is 500 wide? Are all the seats for kindergarten children?¡±

    Zhang Qi: ¡°......¡±

    Gu Yu nced at the stairs he drew and asked: ¡°When you went to school, did you learn how much higher the normal stairs were?¡±

    Zhang Siyi asked with apprehension: ¡°150?¡±¡±

    ¡°The height of the step-in staircase in homes is between 180-200, and in public ces, it is between 130-160,¡± Gu Yu precisely said the specific range. While using a pencil to circle the stairs on the map, he asks, ¡°3.2 meters... You have drawn 28 steps, how high is each step?¡±

    He also did not wait for Zhang Si Yi to answer, and directly took 3 books from the bookshelf and stacked them to show him. Pointing to the height of the stack he said: ¡°so shallow, you want people to constantly fall while trying to climb stairs?¡±

    Zhang Siyi wants to refute because he used the automatic stair plugin in the software.

    ¡°So, you didn¡¯t even read the outline document that Lu Qiao sent to you?¡± Gu Yu sharply said.

    Zhang Siyi was speechless for a moment¡ªyes, Gu Yu was right. He was confused and eager to finish the draft, so he rushed through it and made many mistakes.

    Gu Yu also pointed out several problems. His tone did not have much ups and downs. He calmly said that ¡°how much money is today¡¯s cabbage¡± and ¡°how much pork is¡±, but the lethality of these words isparable to that of Zhang Siyi. The flying knife, hit the hit, the knife saw the blood!

    Moreover, Gu Yu is not like Zhang Siyi¡¯s ex-girlfriend. When she is down, she expresses her feelings strongly, which can make people feel ufortable. Gu Yu¡¯s criticism is so logical and justified. It is simply impable.

    At the bottom of his heart, Zhang Siyi is slightly annoyed. Why did Gu Yu clearly see so many problems? When he came back half an hour ago, he must have noticed some issues, but he didn¡¯t mention it. Was he purposely making Zhang Siyi suffer?

    At this moment, on the table, Gu Yu¡¯s cell phone suddenly rang. He nced at the screen. This time, he did not leave the room and directly answered in front of Zhang Siyi¡¯s face.

    Zhang Siyi finally can take a moment to rx. He thought for a moment how to make amends to his friends, while silently listen to Gu Yu talk on the phone.

    ¡°...... Sorry, I¡¯m still in thepany. ¡°Gu Yu whispered, his tone was no different from the one he had just criticized Zhang Siyi with, but somehow one could inexplicitly hear the hint of tenderness.¡±

    Zhang Siyi secretly spected, who is the call from? The Director¡¯s girlfriend?

    ¡°You can eat dinner yourself. I¡¯ve already eaten.¡± said Gu Xiao.

    Zhang Siyi, thinking: ¡°When did you go to eat? The 40 minutes to get out before work?¡±

    ¡°.... at the fast food ce downstairs in thepany....¡± Gu Yu lowered his head, and his long eyshes covered his dark eyes and continued with the phone conversation. ¡°Yes... next time I¡¯ll eat better... I know......¡±

    As Gu Yu listened while on the phone, he continued to look at Zhang Siyi¡¯s drawings, and made a list of the questions he had just mentioned in the nk spaces in the illustration.

    ¡°No, there is nothing urgent,¡± Gu Yu nced at Zhang Siyi and said, ¡± There is a new employee today and I¡¯m helping him with some beginning work.¡±

    Zhang Siyi suddenly felt good. Gu Yu had to put his girlfriend (if it was) on hold in order to stay with him at the office for overtime work. On the other hand, Zhang Siyi still wanted to meet up with friends and have fun.

    ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll contact youter.¡±

    Gu Yu hung up the phone and looked at Zhang Siyi. He quickly put his phone away and pointed at the draft to continue with his criticism: ¡°The smallest size of a toilet door, and the ergonomic scale of things are issues you should already know as a designer. Basicmon sense that must be met. I understand you don¡¯t know the rules of the country yet, but you must at least have the awareness of the specification before design.¡±

    At this point, Zhang Siyi has been ashamed and wants to dig a hole to bury himself. At this rate, he wonders how he ever was able to graduate.

    Looking at Zhang Siyi despondent figure, Gu Yu is cautious of saying too much. Sighing, then pushing the already annotated drawings back to him, and said: ¡°Go and change these problems.¡±

    ....... Aah ...but I still have to finish drawing before I can leave can get?...

    Zhang Siyi took the drawings and returned to his seat. He saw Lu Qiao message: ¡°Are you still alive? I am ready to get off work.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I am drawing the first draft.¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°The floor n is simple, are you still drawing?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°It is very difficult for me!¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°Well, the initial draft isplicated for the first few times, but it gets easier. Then you will know how to do it fast, but also, then the Boss gets stricter.

    Lu Qiao: ¡°Oh by the way, there are free biscuits in the dining area. If you are hungry, you can get some to eat. Not much more and you can go home soon. You can do it!¡±

    Zhang Siyi was moved: ¡°Thank you!¡±

    He wasn¡¯t hungry at all at first. He really wanted to celebrate with friends, so he didn¡¯t n to stay for so long, but now he is over-hungry.

    After Lu Qiao left, there were only a few people left in the office. Zhang Siyi took out his mobile phone and did not dare read the news records in WeChat. He was afraid that his friends would be disappointed, and even more afraid of being discovered by Gu Yu, he only quickly sent a letter to Fu Xinhui. SMS: ¡°I am still working overtime, you should eat first, don¡¯t wait for me!¡±

    After sending the text message, he simply shut down the machine and concentrated on the picture.

    On the first day of work, between the boss¡¯s criticism, the care of colleagues, friends waiting for him, and the now lonely office, Zhang Siyi emotions are a mess.

    As he worked at hisputer fixing the drawing, he began to reflect on his past studies. Would it be a different situation today if all those hours were used for learning instead of ying around?

    He is feeling very ufortable. This kind of difort ispletely different from the emptiness of the former girlfriend when he broke up. It is an annoyance of digging the heart and digging the lungs.

    After that, he reworked the ns twice and continued to draw until nine o¡¯clock. He showed the drawings, then Gu Yu nodded and let him go.

    When he walked out of the office building, it was already dark out, and there weren¡¯t many people around which was a sharp contrast to the vigorous flow of people in the morning hours.

    Zhang Siyi took a deep breath and was tempted by his dying brain cells to feel the call of freedom.

    He reopened the phone and saw a red dot on the screen ¨C missed calls, unread text messages, and hundreds of WeChat messages not seen...

    Zhang Siyi braced himself and gave Fu Xinhui a call. When he first connected, he heard a roar: ¡°Zhang Siyi! Where the fuck are you?¡±

    He pulled the phone away from his ear briefly as Fu Xinhui spoke, then replied ¡°Oh, well, I just got off work,¡± Zhang Siyi shrank his shoulders and cautiously said, ¡°I aming to you now?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°No point now. We¡¯re almost out of here! Do you know how many phone calls I just made? How dare you turn off your phone!¡±

    Zhang Si Yi wants to cry without tears: ¡°No, I really it was just work, I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    He faintly heard the voice of Su Yuan and Ren Mengyu from the phone, and both seemed to be a bit upset.

    ¡°Don¡¯t go. Let me at least see you quickly. After all, I was the one doing the inviting.¡± Zhang Siyi looked for a taxi, eager to get to the restaurant quickly and appease his friends.

    Fu Xinfei but mercilessly said: ¡°Don¡¯t bother. Su Yuan already left to take thest train to her apartment in the new East side.¡±

 Chapter 9: Plants

    <h4>Chapter 9: nts</h4>

    ___________________

    Su Yuan¡¯s parents are all university teachers. Her ordinary family is from the working ss, and not nuevo rich. When she was studying abroad, she was very self-reliant. When she was free, she would go out to work. Now when she returns to work in Haicheng, she will not rely on her family.

    The New East District is a short distance from the ce where they meet, and the taxi fare is high at night. It is indeed a more economical choice to catch thest subway.

    Although Zhang Siyi was very keen to say, ¡°Hold on, she can taxi home instead,¡± but he couldn¡¯t. Because at the moment, he is nothing but a new trial sry worker with 4,500, and no capital.

    When Su Yuan left, Ren Mengyu could not wait either. Since they lived together, there was no need to gather there with Fu Xinhui and Jiang Hai.

    Zhang Si Yi hung up the phone, feeling empty.

    Frustrated, he let the driver turn around and go home. A littleter, he checked the messages from the beginning to see the chat record. He witnessed his friends having fun from the start until the end. He felt anxious and then when his friends scattered, a deep sense of loss welled up in inside of him.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I¡¯m so sorry.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I didn¡¯t think I was going to work overtime on the first day ...¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Next time I¡¯ll treat you!¡±

    There were two minutes of silence in the group. Zhang Siyi looked like a prisoner waiting for a judgment, and pitifully sent a few crying expressions in the group.

    Finally, Fu Xinhui first replied: ¡°Kneel down to forgive your crimes.¡±

    And then the ss responded.¡ª¡ª

    Jiang Hai: ¡°kneel!¡±

    Ren Mengxi: ¡°kneel!¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°kneel!¡±

    Zhang Siyi broke intoughter and quickly sent a look of ¡°cry and cry.¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°it¡¯s hard to find the time when people are working sote. Maybe next time.¡±

    Jiang Hai suddenly said with a deep emotion: ¡°I am afraid that everyone will be busier in the future and gather less.¡±

    This realization poked at Zhang Siyi sensitive point and felt The Hurt of Spring and Autumn.

    Fu Xinhui casually asked him if he had dinner. Zhang Siyi returned the sentence ¡°I was too hungry¡±.

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°Today Fu Xinhui treated, but don¡¯t forget that you already owe us two meals! Zhang Siyi¡±

    Zhang Siyi was thankful. Fu Xinhui helped him recover a little face. His buddy didn¡¯t care about it. He quickly promised to make it up to them next time in the group, and then he took the initiative to tell them about the morning interview.

    Su Yuan said after listening to it: ¡°The averagepany now asks about your relevant skills, and what courses have you studied in college, and any real work you have done. They don¡¯t normally ask ¡®why you studied architecture¡¯. Looking for a job is not a college entrance exam.¡±

    Zhang Siyi felt the same feeling: ¡°I was also confused about it at the time. I was anxious to say that it was influenced by the high school alumni. I didn¡¯t expect that the person who interviewed me was the senior! I didn¡¯t recognize him!¡±

    Ren Mengxi: ¡°This is too good!¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°It must be the back door!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Get out of the way! He specially told me when he was eating at noon that he didn¡¯t want me to think that he hired me because of the rtionship of ¡®high school alumni¡¯!¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°[white eyes]¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°But since it is high school seniors, then you the work in the future will be easier.¡±¡±

    ¡°No! !¡±Zhang Si Yi hysterically replied in the group of friends about how Gu Yu is shameless, including the previous day¡¯s coffee event triggered the deduction of wages.

    Ren Mengxi: ¡°Hey, you broke up?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°The breakup is not the point!¡±

    Ren Mengxi: ¡°Hey, the girlfriend who just broke up is not as good as the one who has deducted you for 500 yuan. I suddenly want to give your ex-girlfriend a candle.¡±

    Jiang Hai: ¡°But 500 bucks is nothing for you. It¡¯s just the money for the next restaurant in the UK.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I thought he was joking at the time.¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°I see, 500 dors is not the point, the point is that you are not happy that he is a senior but still treats you so ruthlessly¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°yes, you understand!¡±

    Zhang Siyi subconsciously med Gu Yu¡¯s fastidiousness for making him miss his appointed time tonight to meet with his friends. If Gu Yu were moreid-back, he would let him leave early. Besides, how can someone make them do overtime on he the first day of work!

    Fu Xinhui joked: ¡°You know... did he deliberately recruit you to give you a hard time for spilling coffee on him?¡±

    Zhang Si Yi was frightened by Fu Xinfei¡¯s spection that he was right. It did make some sense since his name and profession and the fact he was looking for a job had been exposed that morning when his ex-girlfriend vented her frustrations on him, but if Gu Yu had read his resume in advance, he would leave an impression on his mind.

    But he soon felt it was impossible. No one would be so vengeful for a cup of coffee. He would have said something at that time, notter. So frustrating, looking for a job is not a trifling matter!

    Everyone chatted and went to their homes. Zhang Siyi was closer to the residence from thepany, so he was a step earlier than Fu Xinhui.

    He was so tired he didn¡¯t even feel hungry. He didn¡¯t eat supper, but he felt he needed to eat something to replenish his strength. He was just about to order take-out when Fu Xinhui and Jiang Hai came back. Fu Xinhui had brought him a package of fried rice.

    Zhang Siyi rushed to the ground and asked: ¡°How do you know that I have not eaten yet??¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Didn¡¯t you just say it in the group?¡±

    Zhang Siyi was moved to tears. His brother was so good too him, why does he need a girlfriend.

    Thinking of Fu Xinhui kindness for paying for tonight¡¯s meal, Zhang Siyi again said thanks again. Fu Xinhui It¡¯s not a big deal: ¡± I just wanted to celebrate your new job, although you did not eat with us, hahaha.¡±

    Zhang Siyi sat in satisfaction with the fried rice: ¡°This is the same.¡±

    Fu Xinhui smiled at him for a while, and his face was thoughtful.

    After eating for a while, Zhang Si Yi began to feel sleepy. He had not slept enoughst night and had been nervous all day. Normally, he seldom got into bed before midnight. He also wanted to send a message to his parents about the good news, but once his head hit the pillow, his two eyelids became heavy, and quickly went to sleep.

    After sleeping through the night and waking at dawn, Zhang Siyi was refreshed. Yesterday¡¯s depression was left behind.

    ¡°I love work!¡± Zhang Siyi shouted in the mirror after getting out of the shower. Then he ran out to the crowded subway and headed to work.

    Watching him head out the door so full of enthusiasm, Jiang Hai with his own ck line of emotion thought: ¡°simple-minded people are really happy.¡±

    Ten minutes before the working hours, he arrived at thepany. Zhang Siyi first went to the personnel department to submit his own degree certificate. He was surrounded by the newly arrived front desk girl: ¡°Wait a minute! Are you the new person from yesterday? Pleasee over.¡±

    Zhang Siyi wondered: ¡°What, you mean me?¡±

    The receptionist at the front desk exined: ¡°Ourpany every quarter award a ¡°love my job¡± bonus for the amount of 1000 yuan.

    Zhang Siyi was interested: ¡°Aha? Is there such a thing?¡±

    The young girl at the front desk smiled and said: ¡°Yes, let me exin the details of this award. As long as certain conditions are met, all employees will be awarded.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What are the conditions?

    ¡°It¡¯s very simple,¡± the front desk girl pointed at thendscape ss frame at thepany¡¯s main entrance that was next to the elevator. ¡°Pick a nt and take care of it. It now is in your care during your employment. The conditions for awarding bonuses are twofold: one, your attendance records, and secondly is the health of your nt. It has to be growing well.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was stunned. He didn¡¯t think the nts on the shelves were taken care of by the employees. He thought that the maintenance staff took care of them.

    However, Zhang Siyi has never raised any nts, so he has questions: ¡°How is the growth status judged?¡±

    The young girl smiled and said, ¡°If it doesn¡¯t die, you can do it.¡±

    Oh? isn¡¯t that easy? Zhang Siyi relieved went to go find a nt to raise.

    Most of the shelves are herbs such as green radish, evergreen, and copper grass. There is a wide variety. Although Zhang Siyi does not raise nts, he does know that the seemingly small and sturdy bear boy and moon rabbit nts are not as easy as they seem with the amount of water they need to thrive. The most reliable is the cactus. Even if it is not watered for half a year, it will not die.

    After carefully watching it, Zhang Siyi found two pots of cactus on the shelf, one big and one small, and they were ced in two ssttices next to each other.

    He pointed to the big cactus: ¡°How about this one?¡±

    Front desk sister: ¡°This is director Gu¡¯s.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± What¡¯s the catch? Does Gu Yu have the same thoughts as his own? (=_=)

    Zhang Siyi reluctantly pointed to the small pot on the side: ¡°What about the smaller one?¡±

    Little girl at the front desk: ¡°That is also the directors.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    At 8:58, Gu Yu just got out of the elevator and saw Zhang Siyi, frazzled standing with the receptionist talking to her: ¡°Why can he upy two pots of cactus? Isn¡¯t everyone only able to adopt one pot?¡±

    The young girl at the front desk is trying to exin, Gu Yu went over and asked Zhang Siyi: ¡°Do you like the cactus?¡±

    Zhang Siyi did not expect that Gu Yu would suddenly appear, and he was so stiff that he turned his head. He actually just wants to bezy, but of course he can¡¯t say that, so he nodded hard: ¡°yes!¡±

    Gu Yu looked at the young girl at the front desk and said, ¡°Give him the small pot.¡±

    The blushing young girl looks surprised: ¡°Oh, okay.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    After registering the nt, Zhang Siyi returned to his seat and asked his colleagues. He also handed out some Lindor choctes that he had bought as gifts from the UK after graduation. The colleagues thanked him.

    Zhu Hongzhen asked him what time he went backst night. Zhang Siyi wrinkled his face: ¡°More than nine o¡¯clock.¡±

    ¡°Working hard, working overtime on the first day, the boss is really ¡®loving¡¯ you.¡± Zhu Hongzhenughed.

    Zhang Siyi speechless, rememberedst night Gu Yu that phone call, whispering gossip: ¡°Does Boss have a girlfriend?¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen said: ¡°I don¡¯t know, let¡¯s ask Lele.¡±

    I didn¡¯t hear anything about that. The Boss doesn¡¯t like others to inquire about his private life.¡± Bi Lele shrugged while eating chocte. ¡°But I don¡¯t think so since there is always work to do: a project today, a project tomorrow. All year around he works overtime and rarely goes home before nine. Where is the time to fall in love?¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen nodded: ¡°I also think that if I am a woman, I wouldn¡¯t be able to handle it. Hey, it¡¯s the life of a perpetual bachelor.¡±

    Bi Lele sighed with a sigh: ¡°If you want love you can only find a peer since they can understand one another¡¯s schedules.¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen nced to Zhang Siyi: ¡°but why do you ask?¡±

    Zhang Siyi chuckled: ¡°just curious.¡±

    He also spoke about his nt adoption choice, Bi Lele was shocked: ¡°The boss gave you that cactus ball!?¡±

    Zhang Siyi a little stupid: ¡°Ah? What¡¯s wrong? Is there anything strange about it?¡±

 Chapter 10: Efficiency

    <h4>Chapter 10: Efficiency</h4>

    ________________________

    Bi Lele exined: ¡°The little cactus ball grew from the root of big one. It waster transnted into a new pot, so the boss raised two nts since it was a product of the original one.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    ¡°And that¡¯s not only it.¡± Bi Lele craned her neck looking at the direction of the director¡¯s office and then lowered her head, looked at Zhang Siyi, then lowered her voice, ¡°There was an intern working with our group from T University about two months ago at the end of May.¡±

    ¡°Oh?¡± Zhang Siyi leaned in closer, eager to listen to the gossip with rapt attention.

    Bi Lele pointed to Zhang Siyi¡¯s desk, saying: ¡°You were assigned to the same desk as the girl was, and she also asked the boss for the cactus.¡±

    ¡°Wait a minute,¡± interrupted Zhang Siyi, ¡°Let me make it clear. I didn¡¯t ask for the cactus on my own initiative, Guo gave it to me it.¡±

    Bi Lele.: ¡°......¡±

    Zhang Siyi repeated the dialogue at that time, Bi Lele turned a white eye: ¡°When you admitted to liking the cactus, isn¡¯t that just a roundabout way of asking him for it.¡±

    Zhang Si Yi mouth twitched. The nts were in different pots so naturally he didn¡¯t know that the small one came from the bigger one. So, why is asking about it so weird....

    Bi Lele continued: ¡°In any case, the girl was nice and had a cheerful personality. Although she didn¡¯t say, it was obviously she liked the boss. When she was picking her nt, she directly asked Gu Yu for the small cactus. He didn¡¯t directly refuse her, but instead he smiled and asked, If I casually give my small cactus to a girl, then what does our rtionship mean.?¡±

    Zhang Siyi did not react: ¡°eh?¡±¡±

    ¡°You are stupid. The small cactus is the child of the big one. Gu Yu was the father to the little cactus, so if he gives some girl his child to take care of, then what does it make her... of course, his Wife!¡± Talking about the director made Bi Lele look around anxiously.

    Figuring out a piece of truth, Zhang Siyi was flush with embarrassment.

    ¡°At that time, the girl was stunned and couldn¡¯t speak. She didn¡¯t stay for a long and after two months of internship, she left. But after that incident, everyone thought Gu Yu would not give away his cactus to anyone.¡± Bi Lele said, looking at Zhang Siyi with a sly look. ¡°I didn¡¯t expect him to give it away now.¡±

    Heart beating faster, Zhang Siyi felt worried. In a sh he had a million thoughts about all that had happened the other day. Would he not think he was Gay? Gu Yu overheard all his ex-girlfriend grievances so if he gave him the cactus ball, is he treating Zhang Siyi differently? Is he trying to say something?

    Until Zhu Hongzhen snorted: ¡°Don¡¯t listen to her nonsense. The girls love to make up stories. I feel that the boss told that to the girl as a euphemism to express his uninterested feelings towards her. Besides, the ball grows out from the big one. It¡¯s not the offspring, it¡¯s a brother!¡±

    Bi Lele said: ¡°The cactuses from the same root. If you don¡¯t cut it away, then it will stick together!¡± The seedse from the blossoms and that the offspring, you have no culture!¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°I don¡¯t know the details, but that¡¯s one crazy theory.¡±

    Although Bi Lelements made a bit of sense, Zhang Siyi is more inclined believe Zhu Hongzhen¡¯s rhetoric. He took a deep breath, consoling himself: It¡¯s an office nt, not a gay thing. (=_=)

    However, this story also makes Zhang Siyi realize that he may not be special to Gu Yu. Although they are from the same area and high school, does that really mean anything? Gu Yu is not only a student of Ningwai, but also a student of T University with countless schoolmates, not to mention all his colleagues from his profession.

    Thinking about this, Zhang Siyi could not help but feel a little disappointed, but he didn¡¯t dwell on the subject, so he quickly adjusted his mood.

    Because there is no new task early in the morning, Zhang Siyi took the opportunity to take pictures of his work desk and post them to the circle of friends, Note: ¡°new job!¡±

    All Zhang Siyi wanted to do was send one photo and put away the mobile phone, but quickly someonemented. The praises Zhang Siyi received made him feel great.

    One of his friends, Xue Wenhan, who is still in the UK studying for a master¡¯s degree in a rted architectural field wrote a note. Calcting the time difference, the time was two o¡¯clock in the middle of the night. It seems that his friend is still staying upte, but whether it is because he is studying or ying, Zhang Siyi does not know.

    Many ¡°Congrattions!¡° messages appear as well as inquiries about the new job and how he is doing... Zhang Si Yi had no time to reply one by one. He was seeking approval and wanted to quickly reply with two sentences, but a familiar voice sounded behind him: ¡°You seem to have a lot of time on your hands.¡±

    Zhang Siyi froze and almost dropped his phone.

    Standing at the end of the desk, unbeknown to Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu appeared behind him. With a cup in his hand, was looking at him with prating, sharp eyes, smiling. Without giving Zhang Siyi the chance to talk, he said, e.¡±

    Zhang Siyi hurriedly shoved his phone into his trousers pocket, was with a perturbed mood followed him.

    Gu Yu put two chairs in front of the desk. When Zhang Siyi sat in one, a girl with long straight hair came, and asked softly: ¡°Looking for me?¡±

    Gu Yu said ¡°hmm¡± and indicated with his hand the vacancy to the side of Zhang Siyi, so she can sit down.

    Two people looked at each other and Zhang Siyi was first introduced himself: ¡°Hello, I am Zhang Siyi. I was just hired yesterday.¡±

    The girl smiled shyly, shook hands with him, softly said: ¡°I heard, I am Du Rui, Hello.¡±

    When Gu Yu saw that they had finished introductions, he pushed two stacks of information in front of them. ¡°This is a design summary of a single youth apartment in S City. It requires three sets of ns. Rui Xuan will do two sets and Zhang Siyi will do one set. We will meet again in the conference room at 1:30 this afternoon to discuss the preliminary design ns. The ns need to be refined before the end of the work day.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was still digesting what Gu Yu said, when he heard Du Rui very simple reply ¡°understood¡± and then stood up.

    ¡°Hey, wait.¡± Out of the door, Zhang Siyi hurriedly asked her, ¡°He is only giving us one morning to work on our designs? With lunch break, that only leaves three hours....?¡±

    Du Rui calmly said: ¡°Yes.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was shocked. When they were studying, they were given a week for each assignment. Now he must do it in three hours? This time he can¡¯t ignore the project data.

    Du Rui, who has more experience than him, is calmer. Can he do it?

    Zhang Si Yi stiffly returned to his seat and frantically opened the information about the project to read it. The pressure of Gu Yu assignment is making him distressed. Never mind what earlier praise he received, Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t have time to think about anything! With such constraints, Zhang Siyi¡¯s motivation elerates and is determined to make a good n on time.

    Since the project is a ¡°single youth apartment¡±, Zhang Siyi is more familiar with the work than he did with bathrooms in therge office building. After all, he lived in a student apartment in the UK, and he also experienced many beautiful ces when traveling abroad. He tried to draw from memory but changed it and used models instead. He will just have to wait until the meeting to exin it. Although it was a bit rough, Zhang Siyi was surprised at his efficiency. If he could have done this while studying, it would have been so easy!¡±

    At lunch time, Zhang Siyi ordered a meal at thepany and went to the dining area with his colleagues.

    Du Rui Xuan sat two rows away from Zhang Si Yi while Lu Qiao was between them. When she passed by, Zhang Siyi wanted to call out to her and ask her about the n during lunch time, but Du Rui said: ¡°You eat first. I haven¡¯t finished drawing. I¡¯ll eatter.¡±

    Zhang Siyi thinks about it too. She needed to draw two sets, and her workload is much greater than his.

    Curious, Zhang Siyi looked over at Du Rui to see what she was drawing. He was surprised as there were several already finished, beautifully drawn designs on the table.

    ¡°Oh my God! Are you drawing designs by hand?¡± Zhang Siyi said shocked.

    Du Rui smiled and shook her head: ¡°No, the drawings have been drawn with aputer. I am making a few touches now, so I can add some exnations.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was stammered: ¡°You, you are so good.¡±

    Although the foreign architecture department also has rted sketch drawing courses, there wasn¡¯t a requirement for students to have a high level of hand-drawing. Add that fact to the poprity ofputer design software, Zhang Siyi rarely drew by hand. Without the years of practice at university, he absolutely cannot draw to the same professional level as Du Rui.

    Du Rui humbly said: ¡°Thanks, but I¡¯m just ok. Look over there at Yuan Zhicheng drawings. He graduated from the Academy of Fine Arts, and his hand drawing really great.¡±

    Zhang Si Yi did not want to say anything. He wanted to bury his own head in a basin of sand!

    His rxed state of mind from earlier quickly dissolved. He only had a half an hour left so once he got back to his desk, his mind was focused on the task. He used toze around and check his social media ounts, but now, it isn¡¯t something he is even considering.

    He was looking over his design again when a message appeared at half passed one. Gu Yi had summoned him and Du Rui to meet.

    In the discussion room, both he and Du Rui ced the designs out on the table for review. It felt like he was back in University having a weekly project critique and waiting for his professor¡¯s approval. Even he knows he was assigned only one apartment while she had 2 but seeing the volume of work Du Rui brought to the discussion roompared to his own, made him feel wholly inadequate. On top of that, her renderings where so beautiful to look at! He broke out in a cold sweat.

    Gu Yu quickly reviewed the work. He first acknowledged the volume of Du Rui work and then let Zhang Siyi look at the two designs. ¡°What do you think?¡±

    ¡°Ah, uh, very good.¡± The quality of those hand drawn pictures has already shaken Zhang Siyi that he is blinded.

    After a careful examination, without any hesitation, Gu Yu was quick to point out several flow problems in Du Rui¡¯s scheme, one of which wasrgely useless. She felt like crying.

    On the side, Zhang Siyi was feeling apprehensive, only to find out that what he sufferedst night was nothing. It was shocking. Gu Yu is a terrible person. He is terrible! Even though Du Rui has worked so hard, he doesn¡¯t feel any pity!

    When it was Zhang Siyi¡¯s turn, he was prepared to hear the worst. Maybe there was a reason for Du Rui criticism, but he thinks that if Gu Yu also finds faults to his own work, Du Rui might feel a little better.

    However, after looking over his design, Gu Yu just nodded and said two words: ¡°It¡¯s good.¡±

    ...... Good. that¡¯s it?

    Yes, there is nothing more to say.

    For the next phase of the draft, the Director had Du Rui modify one of her ns, thenbine them with Zhang Siyi efforts and finally said. ¡°All the toilets are to be managed by Zhang Siyi.¡± He nodded at them, and then left.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi watched him nonchntly leave the room, then turned around to see Du Rui staring at his own drawings. He wanted to ease the directors¡¯ words in a small way but didn¡¯t know what to say. Du Rui has worked at the office for a long time. He only just started, so how is he qualified to offer this senior aforting word.

    Embarrassed, he saw Du Rui wipe the corner of her eye and look up: ¡°Zhang Siyi, can you talk to me about the thoughts behind your design?¡±

    Zhang Siyi saw her firm tears and red eyes, but then the girl expression changed, and a hint of stubbornness and determination was seen.

 Chapter 11: Homework

    <h4>Chapter 11: Homework</h4>

    _________________________

    When asked, Zhang Siyi was also a little overwhelmed. What are his thoughts and ideas? His mind was a mess from the meeting with Gu Yu just now.

    But he knows Du Rui is feeling distraught, so he takes this opportunity to ease the tension in the air. Even though he is also confused, he gave a generic response. ¡°I first made a list, categorizing the functions of the space, like eating, sleeping, and bath... then, I imagined myself living in the apartment and asked myself how I would want the flow of space to be like. For example, I want to see the entrance of the living area, but don¡¯t want to see the small bedroom right away so I put it to the right side and attached it to the balcony.¡±

    He nced at the Du Rui drawings. Because she draws them in color with such precision, he didn¡¯t look at the details. They were so beautifying to look at, it was easy to overlook its faults.

    Until Gu Yu pointed them out, Zhang Siyi discovered that the ns did have a lot of problems.

    He continued: ¡°Although the internal nning of the district has been done, the environment can¡¯t be ignored, so we have to investigate the site map before making a design decision. See here, thend to the southwest will be green space so If we put the living room or balcony in this direction, there will be a very good view of thendscape. But in your design, you ignored the potential view, and ced the balcony where there is a low building. Even though the building will be demolished to solve the problem of low light, wouldn¡¯t the nice view be better overall?¡±

    Zhang Si Yi said, while watching Du Rui¡¯s expressions. He could see her in rapt attention and listening closely to his words. Her features slowly softened, and she rxed. He went on to voice his thoughts and teach her without reservation.

    Unconsciously, the two of them spent half an hour discussing such things. Du Rui listened for a long time and said with sincerity: ¡°It¡¯s no wonder Director Gu recruited you. You are really amazing.¡±

    After listening to this praise, Zhang Siyi was a bit ttered. He scratched his head and said: ¡°I don¡¯t know if my thoughts are right, but it is the method my design teacher taught.¡±

    The two inquired about their respective universities, and Du Rui graduated from the architecture department of a general key university in China.

    She smiled bitterly: ¡°I too have learned design theory, but we rarely put it to practice. Mostly, the drawing itself was only analyzed without much input about its function. At the time, our design school had a strange ethos. The one with the most praise was the design with the most visual appeal. The beautiful, dazzling picture got the highest remarks so when I entered the work at Borderless, I am very confused and distraught. I make the ns like I have been taught, but the director would always criticism me, and I don¡¯t know what I did wrong. After listening to you today, I feel a little bit... Hey, the design process is reallyplicated.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was startled at Du Rui words. In fact, he doesn¡¯t find it hard at all.

    When Zhang Siyi was studying, each student would work on their projects for a long time from the initial site analysis, to environmental analysis and to the core functionality. After looking at all the details little by little the n would evolve. It seemed so useless at the time. Students often repeated the research until thest week the project was due to suddenly reimagine the design and start over.

    Perhaps Zhang Siyi himself did not realize, he was being nurtured from the beginning to form a way of thinking and not just to learn the task of drawing for the sake of drawing.

    Even with Du Rui praise, Zhang Siyi is not proud. After all, he has heard the same thing many times at school. There was this one professor who was very good at encouraging students. Zhang Siyi often heard him say, ¡°You are great¡±, ¡°You are very talented¡±. At first, Zhang Siyi heart really swelled, untilter he learned that the design teacher said the same thing to every student. (=_=)

    With his diminishing job opportunities when he returned home, Zhang Siyi could only hear the echo of his professors¡¯ words, making him feel foolish. What talent? Zhang Siyi is not afraid of talented people. He is afraid of hardworking people.

    He recalls as a freshman, there was a Lithuanian ssmate who was not very good. The first homework assignment was to measure a telephone booth. At that time, the other party could not even draw a straight line. When the project critique came, many peopleughed at it. Zhang Siyi saw him working really hard, always reading and practicing every time he went to ss. In his second year, the teacher publicly praised his design skill as it reached the middle level of, he whole department. In the eyes of the top students, he was still a talentless nobody. They weren¡¯t afraid of thepetition until the end, when the student graduated with the top grade in the department and went to a famous London firm for an internship. The firm¡¯s recruitment conditions were extremely demanding, so the results of the admission made all the students stunned.

    Thinking about it after the fact, everyone can agree that he worked really hard. By the time you acknowledge his skills, the difference will be too great, and you won¡¯t be able to catch up.

    Now, Zhang Siyi also saw a simr determination in Du Rui¡¯s eyes. Even with her setbacks, she hasn¡¯t given up. She can only have the courage to meet the difficulties, persevere and move forward.

    Her attitude made Zhang Si Yi really respect her. He tried tofort Du Rui and said: ¡°Everyone has their own strengths and weaknesses. You see your ability to n iscking, but your hand drawing is superb. Although the functionality of my design is moreplete, its more blurred. Your drawing is so detailed you can see each room on your drawings!¡± Zhang Siyi squinted, Unbelievable, ¡°How did you do this in such a short time?¡±

    Du Rui smiled and said: ¡°There is also a method I use. I have collected a set of room temtes. There are bathrooms, bedrooms and living rooms of various sizes. When I want to use them, I can copy them from inside, oh.¡±

    Zhang Si Yi mouth twitched. Is this not simr to the puzzle?

    Du Rui squeezed her eyebrows and said: ¡°Since you have taught so many ideas with me, I will share it with you. Do you want to use it?¡±

    Zhang Siyi was overjoyed: ¡°yes I want the bathroom!¡± His loud, boisterous remarks could be heard by everyone. He feels a burden has been lifted.

    Du Rui: ¡°...¡±

    With the help of Du Rui¡¯s private ¡°divine map¡±, Zhang Siyi¡¯s toilet drawing is much faster. It took less than the time it did to refine the two sets of ns.

    She wanted to go to the director now, so she sent a message to him. Zhang Siyi: ¡°Ah?¡± You want to go and hand it in now? But Gu Yu hasn¡¯t asked for us yet.¡± He wants a moment to rx.

    Du Rui said: ¡°Of course! There might be ces we have to reconsider. If you don¡¯t find out now, then you have to work overtime in order to make all the corrections.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...ah, ok.¡±

    The two of them went to print the drawings and find Gu Yu. Since this time Du Rui was with him, Zhang Siyi had more confidence in his heart.

    However, after examining the drawings, Gu Yu only looked at Zhang Siyi in the eyes, making Zhang Siyi feel nervous again ¨C did he do something wrong?

    ¡°You drew this? ¡°Asked Gu Xiao, looking at him with a sharp look.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Yes.¡± Applying temtes is also considered drawing his own, right?

    Gu Yu also looked at Du Rui and Zhang Siyi clearly felt that Du Rui was also a bit nervous.

    ¡°You didn¡¯t help him?¡± Gu Yu asked Du Rui.

    Du Rui was silent for a moment, red faced: ¡°I gave him a little reference.¡±

    Gu Yu nodded and said: ¡°Okay, go back first, and send me thepleted electronic mapter.¡±

    Du Rui hesitantly asked: ¡°Anything else?¡±¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°No, go back and finish up yourself and you can leave work on time.¡±

    Du Rui left first, leaving Zhang Siyi to wait for the next order.

    Gu Yu turned over a stack of nk ns in a folder and handed them to him, ¡°Go back and refine the internal n of these figures.¡±

    Zhang Siyi saw that these pictures wereprised of very small offices like tea rooms and apartment types. The key point is that the shapes of these ns are irregr, which means that he can¡¯t apply any temtes!

    Sweating, he asked nervously, ¡°What kind of project is this?¡± He gets the feeling that his use of a short-cut has totally been seen through.

    Gu Yu: ¡°Not a project, it is homework. Give it to me before I leave work tomorrow night.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± What is this? Gu Yu found him this morning talking with his friends, so he arranged an assignment to keep him upied all day and night? He¡¯s not giving him a chance to breathe at all!

    Gu Xiao added: ¡°By the way, these diagrams do not have an electronic version, remember to do them by hand.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Seeing that Zhang Siyi came back deted, Zhu Hongzhen was curious: ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡±

    Zhang Siyi dumped the drawings on the table, angry and said: ¡°Ah, I¡¯m so annoyed. Not only do I have to redo these, but I have to do them by hand!¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen took a look at his desk: ¡°eh, what is it? Oh, the small floor n.......¡± Somehow, the entire group of colleagues suddenly turn and gaze at Zhang Siyi with sympathy.

    Bi Lele called out: ¡°Fourth Aunt, go see the notice in the group.¡±

    Zhang Siyi looked at the shing icon in the lower right corner and saw that Gu Yu had just sent a new message ten seconds ago ¨C ¡°Zhang Siyi is currently in the floor n training period, please don¡¯t tell him any drawing shortcuts.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen initially wanted to give Zhang Siyi some advice but refrained. This the first time the boss made such a remark in the group. ¡°He really is ¡®¡±attached¡± to you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart copsed. I¡¯m not a masochist, I don¡¯t want this ¡°attention¡± Ah!

    Du Rui Xuan sent a message of guilt: ¡°I¡¯m sorry, it feels like it¡¯s my fault.¡±>_>;¡±

    As much as it would be nice to put me on something else, Zhang Siyi knew it wasn¡¯t her fault. ¡°No, don¡¯t worry about it.¡±

    On the bright side, Gu Yu assignment ignited Zhang Siyi¡¯s ambition. For the remaining forty minutes, Zhang Siyi took a lot of effort to draw on the parchment paper and did not lift his head.

    Being focused on his work, Zhang Siyi did not hear Gu Yu¡¯s approach. His voice rang behind him: ¡°Do you want to work overtime?¡±

    Zhang Siyi turned his head and saw Gu Yu seemingly in a good mood, look straight at him with a smile.

    He was so angry that he wanted to strangle him. He gathered his stack of drawings up in an abrupt manner, saying, ¡± no.¡± It¡¯s not due till tomorrow after work.

    ¡°Oh, very confident. Then I¡¯ll wait for your results tomorrow night.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Shit, I feel like I¡¯m being bullied again!

    Seeing Zhang Siyi frazzled appearance, Zhu Hongzhen pulled out a shabby pocket ¡°architect¡¯s Handbook¡± from his desk and handed it to him: ¡°Here, there are some basic parameters that may be useful to you. Bring it home with you and take a look.¡±

    Zhang Siyi grateful: ¡°Piggy!¡± Thank you!¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen shrugged: ¡°I can only help you a little in this way.¡±

 Chapter 12: Help

    <h4>Chapter 12: Help</h4>

    __________________

    When Zhang Siyi arrived at home, he heard the rhythmic music in the living room before entering the door. Upon entering, the delicious aroma of tomato beef sauce assaulted his senses.

    Zhang Siyi stepped on the back of his shoes to quickly take them off. His looked around for the source of the fragrance: ¡°Aha! You are cooking!¡±

    ¡°Why are you back so early?¡± When he heard the door, Fu Xinhui turned his head to see who I was. He was standing in the kitchen wearing an old, worn blue id apron that looked like it was from a different era, with chopsticks in hand, dipping them into the sauce and tasting it. At first nce, his tall figure looked particrly funny, but the whole scene in general seemed sofortable, he wanted to shout, ¡°I¡¯m home!¡±.

    Zhang Siyi put on his slippers and went over to look what Fu Xinhui was cooking: ¡± Wow, homemade pasta? Did you make me some?¡±

    Fu Xinhui took the te and turned to hide: ¡°No touching¡± I thought you were workingte!¡±

    Zhang Siyi followed and turned, ¡°Don¡¯t be so mean, let me eat too. You haven¡¯t put the pasta in yet. Just add some more to the pot.¡±

    With the pot in hand, Fu Xinhui moved around to try to avoid Zhang Siyi following like a master teasing a dog, only to give up and make more. At this moment, Jiang Hai also came back. Seeing Fu Xinhui¡¯s cooking, he reacted the same as Zhang Siyi and asked for his share.

    ¡°Fuck you. It¡¯s my food! Even if I¡¯m at home, I¡¯m not your babysitter,¡± Fu Xinhui, muttered.

    Zhang Siyi slurped up a mouthful of red sauce.: ¡°So good! You don¡¯t have to look for work, just stay home to cook for us.¡±

    Jiang Hai is also chiming in: ¡°You cook so well that you can stay at home to cook for us while we bring home the money to support you!¡±

    Fu Xinhuiughed: ¡°Fuck off, both of your sries is not even more than my pocket money!¡±

    They allughed together then sat down to eat. Lately, the trio rarely had time for amon meal. Jiang Hai went downstairs to the restaurant to pick up some additional seafood for them to eat.

    Fu Xinhui had gone to the supermarket in the afternoon to buy ingredients for his dinner. Besides the Pasta and sauce, he also bought a few side dishes and drinks. He ced them all on the coffee table, so they could gather around to chat and eat together.

    ¡°Why do you suddenly want to cook? ¡°Asked Jiang Hai.

    Fu Xinhui replied, ¡°I¡¯m tired of takeout and It¡¯s nice to have a change¡±

    While studying abroad they were exposed to many different cuisine vors. Thinking they would have to cook when they returned in order experience those vors, they were surprised upon their return to find the domestic restaurant industry so developed and thus took thezy way out and ordered takeout on a regr business.

    Zhang Siyi copsed on the sofa and burped, touching his belly, said: ¡°I used to think convenience store food was pretty good, but now, this dinner has reminded me how inadequate they are. I won¡¯t be able to use the microwave anymore.¡±

    Fu Xinhui changed the subject and asked Zhang Siyi: ¡°how was work today?¡±

    ¡°Exhausted. I was so busy all day.¡± Although busy and tired, Zhang Siyi felt very fulfilled. When he thought about all the work he sorted through today, he was full of aplishment.

    Zhang Siyi spoke of his three hours of work in the morning. Jiang Hai listened andmented: ¡°It seems that your boss is quite good. The head of the design department I work for is unreliable. There is no practical experience at all.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was curious: ¡°What do you real estatepanies usually do?¡±

    In the industry, the real estatepany ismonly known as ¡°Party A¡± where Jiang Hai is located: ¡°The real estatepany buysnd everywhere. For example, if the government has amercial property, thepany buys it and then asks different design departments to bid for the contract ording to the rules. To put it bluntly, we are the ones who choose which departments can develop the property. The people calling the shots also have a professional background. Then whoever has the highest score will be chosen to use the design but if the people in the design department of Party A are not reliable, even with superb designs, they won¡¯t win the contract and will lose money.¡±

    Fu Xinhui, who was listening on the side,ughed ha-ha, and said to Jiang Hai: ¡°Doesn¡¯t that mean Zhang Siyi is there for you to abuse?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Jiang Hai: ¡°You can say this as a joke, but under normal circumstances, we are also very reliable.

    After all, no one wants to lose out repeatedly. Its verybor intensive and costly. When smallpanies can¡¯t figure out the problem, then the big designspanies are contacted. At that time, I can¡¯t say who abused who.¡±

    After talking with his roommates for an hour, Zhang Siyi return to his room and its almost nine o¡¯clock.

    He reached for the drawings he brought back with him from work, along with the ¡°Architect¡¯s Handbook¡± given to him by Zhu Hongzhen. Just after two pages his mind is not with the task.

    It¡¯s so hard. It¡¯s so boring. I don¡¯t want to draw.......

    Stomach full of food and drink, Zhang Siyi iszy at the moment. Although he is thinking about the homework, he can¡¯t muster up the strength to do it.

    He suddenly thought about the message he sent to his friends this morning. Wanting to check thements his friends wrote, he got his phone out. There are more than 30 postings and one private message from his mother asking about the job details.

    Mom: ¡°Son, did you find a job?¡±

    Zhang Siyi smiled and typed back: ¡°Yes, mom, I am going to work now!¡±

    He returned the news of other people one by one, and then carefully scanned through all the messages again. He didn¡¯t see anything from his ex-girlfriend. Zhang Siyi was hoping she would respond when hearing about his new job.

    After thinking about it, he couldn¡¯t resist telling her, so he sent a note to the other party, but instead, a screen popped up. ¡°XXX. You are not his (her) friend. Please send a friend verification request first...¡±

    Fuck! She already deleted me? Not even a chance to be a friend?

    Zhang Siyi was so angry that he immediately deleted her information and decided not to have any contacts with his ex-girlfriend. Not long ago, when he returned to China, he saved his living expenses to buy a Fendi bag for her. This is too embarrassing.

    Shortly after dealing with his ex-girlfriend, his mother returned his message: ¡°My son is awesome! How much is the sry? What department do you work in?¡±

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t like dealing with his father, but his rtionship with his mother was very good. He told his mother the details of thepany and the current situation.

    He is excited to report to his mom about his job but felt wronged by the initial sry. He mentioned it to his mom: ¡°The probationary sry is only four thousand and five. [Cry]¡±

    His mother offered some additional funds as congrattions on finding a job. If it¡¯s not enough Mom will go to the bank tomorrow.¡±

    Zhang Siyi received the red envelope, but righteously refused: ¡°I told Dad that I would work and make money on my own. If you give me money without dad knowing, he will get mad at me.¡±

    Mom: ¡°My son grew up and I¡¯m very happy, but mom is also distressed that you don¡¯t have enough money to spend. Rest assured, I secretly called, so your father won¡¯t know. I¡¯ll send you some and you can pay me backter.¡±

    Having the support of his mom made Zhang Siyi feel really happy. He sent a few hugs and kisses to his mother and smiled. He continued looking at his phone to read the messages about his friends and ssmates. In the blink of an eye, it was already eleven o¡¯clock.

    Zhang Siyi yawned and looked at the drawings, but he could not see it. Because of his mother¡¯s support, he didn¡¯t feel as pressured to work on the assignment. It was easy to make excuses. It¡¯s not due until tomorrow night, so go to sleep today.......

    However, he did not expect that this incident was discovered the next morning. But I didn¡¯t think it would be the same the next morning. But I didn¡¯t expect it to happen early the next morning.

    However, he didn¡¯t expect his house of cards to fall so suddenly. The next day Zhang Siyi woke up and saw the three messages his mother had sent him early in the morning-

    Mom: ¡°Dad is very happy about your new job.¡±

    Mom: ¡°But your father saw the money I sent you. He seriously warned me. I can¡¯t give you any money, otherwise he will confiscate my silver|bank|card.¡±

    Mom: ¡°I¡¯m sorry, but you have to take care of yourself. Although, Mom is free toe to Haicheng to see you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    These three messages once again ignited Zhang Siyi¡¯s determination. ¡°I will make a lot of money, just wait and see. Then my family will have nothing toin about.¡± Zhang Siyiforted his mother with a few words then bounced up from the bed to quickly brush he teeth.

    Thinking about work, he took out the drawings and began to concentrate on the assignment. Zhu Hongzhen¡¯s reference book is very good. Zhang Siyi found a lot of useful data inside to help him with the size of the ns.

    However, Gu Yu¡¯s set of pictures is also very abnormal. The strange sized spaces on the ns are giving Zhang Siyi a hard time to have the appropriate functionality of the n. Some spaces are so narrow, you can¡¯t even put sinks and toilets. People are crazy.

    Without any constraints, at the office, Zhang Siyi patience is thinning. The inability to use software is adding to his agitation. Previously, he eagerly wanted to address the assignment, but now, in the early morning, he feels like his whole being is hollowed out.

    After lunch, Gu Yu also came over to check on him. He turned over the two pathetic drawings on his desk and said nothing, just gave a long sigh: ¡°hmm...¡±

    Zhang Siyi saw Gu Yu¡¯s reaction and can¡¯t help but feel suffocated. What to do.

    At four o¡¯clock in the afternoon, Zhang Siyi onlypleted three pictures. He realized it will be almost impossible to get all the drawing done before leaving work this evening. Gu Yu fucking dug a huge pit for him!

    Zhang Siyi let his negative feelings from yesterday overwhelmed him. He regrets taking so much time chatting online and ignoring his responsibilities. What¡¯s done is done. His deadline is fast approaching. He can only admit defeat and seek care from the director. Yes, Zhang Siyi remembers the sentence that Gu Yu said on the day of the interview ¡ª if you don¡¯t understand, ask, don¡¯t make your own assumptions.

    He took a deep breath and messaged the director. ¡°Do you have a minute, there is a picture I can¡¯t draw¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°There is only one?¡±

    Zhang Si Yi looked at the words. Why did it seem like Gu Yu wasughing at him? Shameless!

    Gu Yu: ¡°Bring it all over.¡±

    Zhang Siyi stuffed the picture and design manual under his arm and pushed the door open to Gu Yu¡¯s office. When he sat down, he rushed to exin himself: ¡°you can see on this picture there is only this ce for the bathroom, but I checked the data in the manual and the minimum size door for a bathroom without a bath is 900*2100, or 1100*1800. It can¡¯t be ced here. Not 100 in the horizontal direction, or 200 in the vertical direction; there is a door in the way...¡±

    The more Zhang Si Yi said, the angrier he got. It made him feel like his design talents werepletely worthless. Clearly, Gu Yu gave him this assignment knowing he would have problems!

    Gu Yu smiled andughed at him and flipped through the manual in a pretentious manner. He gently spoke: ¡°This is indeed the smallest size drawn in this booklet, but have you ever thought about a more extreme possibility?¡±

    As he exined, Gu Yu took a pencil from the pen holder: ¡°The reason why the ¡®standard chart¡¯ drawn in the book is called ¡®standard¡¯ is because it¡¯s based on normal conditions, but what happens when the conditions are abnormal?¡±

    Dumbfounded, Zhang Siyi said ¡°oh.¡±

    Under normal circumstances, only one toilet is ced the long way. Then the most suitable width is 900.¡± Gu Yu took a pencil and steadily drew a few lines on the drawing. He drew a one-way door, and marked the size then looked at Zhang Siyi and asked, ¡°Can¡¯t that 800 be used?¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s stared nkly and thought ¡°you¡¯re fucking with me.¡±

    Gu Yu said: ¡°The set of pictures that Du Rui gave you Included bathroom doors¡¯ under normal circumstances. They are all 700 only because that standard, but on this drawing, is 650 and 600 not ok?¡±

    Zhang Siyi waspletely stupid.

    Gu Yu looked at him and said seriously: ¡°Do you know the biggest difference between the drafter and the designer? The draftsman is only rigidly making ns ording to the norms and the standardized drawings summarized by others. Designers think and fix. Don¡¯t forget, you are a designer: you have to question the rules andmon sense.¡±

    Last time he sat here, Gu Yu wanted him to use the standards to design bathrooms. Not less than forty-eight hourster, Gu Yu reversed the theory to make Zhang Siyi question the rules.

    At the moment, Zhang Siyi just want to loudly yell. Fuck! why does it have to be soplicated?

 Chapter 13: Aura

    <h4>Chapter 13: Aura</h4>

    ____________________

    Gu Yu put down the pencil, turned hisputer screen towards Zhang Siyi, and then opened a picture folder and showed him some examples ofyouts with special specifications.

    For example, the long-shaped water feature in the corridor wall of the ramen noodle shop, the bathroom in the triangr area below the small residential staircase, and the dining table that can be folded and hidden on the wall. Almost every design is so ingenious, but also so logical, like it was meant to be there.

    Looking at the screen, Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t really know what to make of this new information. After all, his education is rtively conservative and nearly all his professors disapproved of students being too crazy with their designs. On one hand, as an architect, he feels he must adhere to the rules and regtions when nning a project. On the other hand, as a designer, he is meant to challenge the rules and think of things in a different way.

    Just as Zhang Siyi was looking confused, Gu Yu pointed to the screen: ¡°The designs you just saw are mostly mature architects. They know what the rules are, know where the bottom line is, and can guarantee basic use. They know what limits to challenge to still maintainfort.¡± He used a pencil to click on Zhang Siyi¡¯s drawings and said, ¡°But obviously, you don¡¯t have that kind of know-how right now, even if you take on the problem, you won¡¯t be able to execute it properly.

    Clenching his teeth, Zhang Siyi feels his anger rising and thinks: Since you know that I don¡¯t have the skills set yet to finish the assignment, why give it to me? To deliberately fail?

    Gu Yu took a cup of tea and took a sip, and then he said: ¡°You musty down a good foundation in order to understand the details of architecture. Don¡¯t think about what shortcuts to take and temtes to use. You will gradually lose the most important thing for architects. A sense of scale.¡±

    Zhang Siyi is speechless. It turns out that Gu Yu just wants me to realize that applying a temte is wrong? But why is he going in such a big circle to just say no?

    This form of persuasion is undeniably more effective and will make asting impression on Zhang Siyi. After all, it is only human nature to spend the least amount of energy to aplish goals. Who doesn¡¯t want to bezy and take shortcuts?

    However, Du Rui also uses temtes and Gu Yu is obviously aware so why is he only targeting himself? This is too unfair!

    Knowing what Zhang Siyi is thinking, Gu Yu smiled and said: ¡°Don¡¯t think aboutparing this situation with Du Rui. She can hand draw pictures, and it doesn¡¯t matter if it is a temte or not.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu set aside the stack of unfished floor ns on his desk for another time. ¡°When you think you canplete them,e back to me. Now, I have something else for you to do.¡±

    As if he had been ready for a long time, Gu Yu picked up another stack of information, handed it to Zhang Siyi and like a generalmanding his troops said, ¡°draw the core functions of this n and give it to me this evening.¡±

    Zhang Siyi hurriedly said: ¡°but the work day is nearly over.¡±

    Gu Yu raised his eyebrow and looked at Zhang Siyi intently. It was impossible to ignore the ¡®so-what¡¯ expression the opposite party was giving him. ¡°Hmm? You wasted a whole day not drawing, but still want to leave work? Companies don¡¯t pay employees for nothing.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Disgraced, Zhang Siyi returned to his desk with a new task. He now feels that the ¡®good, kind, and generous¡¯ Boss is simply not good at all!

    With the time nearly five o¡¯clock, it will be impossible to get dinner out before 8 in the evening, so Zhang Siyi prepared himself to work overtime. He went downstairs to buy something to eat instead.

    It just so happened that Du Rui also worked overtime today. They bumped into each other at the elevator and happily chatted together. Having experienced the director¡¯s criticism together, he had a good impression of her and developed a rapport with her.

    He bought a meal and went upstairs. The two walked along thendscape frame to the main entrance. As the words ¡°Borderless¡± gradually became clear in his view, for the first time, Zhang Siyi was not excited. What of ¡°The Pursuit is Endless¡±? It is clearly ¡°Hardship is Never Going to End¡±!

    Du Rui suddenly asked: ¡°I heard that Gu Yu gave you his little cactus?¡±

    Zhang Siyi felt embarrassed.

    Du Rui smiled and inexplicably said: ¡°It¡¯s good.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Walking through the dining area, Zhang Siyi was reminded of his question. He asked Du Rui, ¡°We only have an hour for lunch so why are there lounges all around. Is there time to take a nap?¡±

    Du Rui: ¡°Rarely, maybe fifteen minutes or so...¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Then what are theserge couches for?¡±

    Du Rui: ¡°Oh, That. They are used when you must stay up all night in thepany. When a project has a short deadline, people will have to stay over until the job ispleted. They will use them to sleep a few hours.¡±

    L...live in thepany!? Zhang Siyi¡¯s mouth was twitching. He finally understood the meaning behind the information about thepany¡¯s 24-hour power supply and water supply.

    Du Rui said again: ¡°But this situation is very rare in our group. The directors¡¯ preference is for us to go home. So even when we are very busy, they let us go back home on thest subway, especially girls.¡±

    After sitting down, Zhang Siyi continued to ask: ¡°You have been employed for a few years... Have you ever spent the night?¡±

    ¡°I have been here for less than a year, and I have stayed over twice. The two time were urgent, and the entire group was mobilized for a week. When Du Rui said this sentence, she had a happy expression on her face.

    Zhang Siyi felt that staying over one or two times a year wouldn¡¯t be so horrible. At school, it wasmon to spend all night and day in a ssroom finishing projects.

    Du Rui was two years older than Zhang Siyi. Beforeing to Borderless, she drew construction ns for over a year with a medium sized designpany. Every day she stayedte. It was a miracle to be home by 9 at night. With the constant requirement for overtime andte nights, she became exhausted and her body couldn¡¯t stand it anymore. As ast resort she chooses to quit and find something with better working hours.

    With De Rui diligence and introverted personality, the situation must have been dire for her to decide to quit. Thest job left her with a deep psychological shadow.

    ¡°I went to severalpanies when I changed jobs. When I sent in a resume to Borderless, I didn¡¯t think I would get a position because thispany is based mainly on design and that isn¡¯t one of my strong points.¡± Du Rui smiled modestly. ¡°But I am d I had the courage to challenge myself and make a change otherwise I would still be in a ck abyss.¡±

    Zhang Siyi persuaded Du Rui to realize her value: ¡°No matter what happened, the previous work did help you improve.¡±

    ¡°Well, with twelve hours of work every day, it¡¯s hard not to improve.¡± Du Rui shrugged. ¡°At that time, I never saw the outside and I thought that it was the same for everyone else. But now I feel like I wasted my life during that time because all I was doing was repetitive assembly work, drawing the same thing repeatedly in a daze. I was modifying values that I felt werepletely meaningless. It made me feel like I wasn¡¯t a graduate student of architecture, but a fragile CAD drawing migrant worker.

    Zhang Siyi thought: ¡°No wonder Gu Yu said his painting details are far worse than Du Rui. It turns out that Du Rui has suffered so much.¡±

    Du Rui sighed and said: ¡°I also broke up with my ex-boyfriend that year. It was a difficult time¡±

    Zhang Siyi was more sensitive to the word ¡°breakup¡± recently. The gossip cells in his mind immediately became active and could not help but ask: ¡°Why? Because you are too busy?¡±

    Du Rui frankly said: ¡°Well, there was a lot of work pressure at that time. Even if I had time outside of work, I just wanted to stay at home and have a good night¡¯s sleep. Going out for a date was too troublesome. It would take too long to get ready so, without much time together its natural to break up.¡±

    ¡°I understand!¡± Zhang Siyi nodded desperately, although he is not a girl, this experiencepletely feels the same!

    ¡°Do you?¡± Du Rui looked wide-eyed at Zhang Siyi with a funny smile. She thought his temperament was more like a kind little brother. Harmless. There were many in the office that wanted to know more about Zhang Siyi. Du Rui can¡¯t help but say, ¡°Do you especially like girls to like it? Let¡¯s talk about your girlfriends!¡±

    Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t help butugh out loud. ¡°I¡¯ve only had one, and I just broke up with her a few days ago for the same reasons. Like you, it was because of the pressure to find a job and I couldn¡¯t spend time with her for two months, so we split.¡±

    Du Rui ¡°ha-ha¡± and smiled: ¡°the same situation, coincidentally¡±

    ¡°I exined it to her several times, but she couldn¡¯t understand it. She wanted to go out every day but when I did, she didn¡¯t have anything pleasant to say. It was thest straw.¡± Zhang Siyi sighed.

    Du Rui spread her hand: ¡°Mutual understanding is really important. If the other person can¡¯t understand your needs, then you aren¡¯t suited for each other.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Yes! I don¡¯t know if you already have heard this joke. If a person disappears from your world, there are only two possibilities. The first one: the person is dead. The second one: they are Building.¡±

    Du Rui: ¡°Ha-ha. When we say we are working, we are buy doing work. When we have overtime, we are busy doing work. When there is a business trip, we are busy doing work. Saying that we don¡¯t have time to message literally means there is no time to reply to messages!¡±

    Zhang Siyi went on to say: ¡°Even if the person is dazed, they don¡¯t want to talk to anyone. Being dazed, is like a state of rest and they don¡¯t want to interrupt their power recoupment.¡±

    Du Rui: ¡°Ha-ha too funny.¡± ......

    The two sat together conversing happily with each other. The more they talked, the more they wanted to share and the more familiar they became. It really was like love and affection!

    Looking at Du Rui¡¯sughter, Zhang Siyi, who was single for less than a week, was a little bit eager to move on. He didn¡¯t know if it was just loneliness or if he felt moved by the girl in front of him. Anyway, he now feels that the mature and motivated Du Rui is much friendlier than the former ex-girlfriend.

    He couldn¡¯t help but say: ¡°Don¡¯t regret your ex-boyfriend. You are so good, you will definitely meet a better person.¡±

    Du Rui startled, and blushed. This reaction let Zhang Siyi¡¯s imagination run away. He wondered if Du Rui was interested in him. After all, theirbined skills make for a good working rtionship. They would be able to help each other out. How can he think otherwise, when Du Rui just asked him if he had a girlfriend?

    ¡°Since I came to Borderless, there is such a perfect person in the world.¡± Du Rui says with a blushing face full of a little girl¡¯s unique vision and obsession.

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart started pounding: ¡°Oh, who?¡±

    Du Rui Xuan smiled and looked at Zhang Siyi, she said: ¡°I hope that I can find a boyfriend like Director Gu.¡±¡±

    ¡°Pfft¨C!¡±Zhang Siyi¡¯s coffee all sprayed out. His hopes for a second spring, which had not yet sprouted, were brutally smothered by Gu Yu aura.

    ____________________________________

 Chapter 14: Member

    <h4>Chapter 14: Member</h4>

    _______________________

    ¡°Why?¡± Zhang Siyi wiped his mouth and said, ¡°Yesterday he criticized you so severely. He is not gentle so how does that make him perfect?¡±

    Not only that, he also is always giving Zhang Siyi a hard time. Istion by way of no help from his colleagues, ridicule, can¡¯t chat to friends.... Maybe the guy has no friends at all!

    Despite getting along well in a short period of time, Zhang Siyi can list a bunch of grievances. The illusion of ¡°good and generous¡± has long since disappeared. With such a hard and unforgiving boss, Zhang Si Yi doesn¡¯t understand why Gi Yu is so popr with girls. Well, aside from his looks and professional ability.

    Du Rui immediately retorted: ¡°I did not do well so he is indeed qualified to criticize me.¡± There is the public Boss Gu Yu and the private Gu Yu. Even though young people spend time out at night, he can¡¯t live that way. Being a director has many responsibilities. He is very polite to his subordinates. but privately he is very gentle and considerate person.

    ...... Mild? Considerate? pppftt! Is she talking about the same person?

    Originally, Zhang Siyi used such adjectives to describe Gu Yu, but now it will never be. He also thinks that Du Rui is confused by Gu Yu¡¯s performances as he was at the beginning.

    Zhang Siyi t mouth: ¡°Anyway, I think he is sometimes overbearing.¡±

    Du Rui became unhappy after hearing Zhang Siyi harsh words. The atmosphere between them became strained and in defense Du Rui suddenly said. ¡°I didn¡¯t have such a good predecessor to work under at my old job, you can¡¯t even see the blessing before you...¡± She paused. A look of envy shed in her eyes, ¡°He even gave you his cactus!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Can the cactus tell us anything? It¡¯s not made of gold!

    This topic let the atmosphere take a sharp turn and the chatting stopped. Du Rui stood up holding her cup of coffee: ¡°Well, let¡¯s hurry back and finish drawing otherwise so we can report to Gu Yu.¡±

    Shit! Reminding him of his responsibilities, Zhang Siyi also stood up and was anxious and go back to work.

    When Zhang Siyi worked overtime at 10 o¡¯clock that night, hepleted the task assigned by Gu Yu before he got off work, but this is not the end of his hardship.

    After one months, almost every day, he painted the building¡¯s core functions and various other details. He had to create so many bathroom designs that he couldn¡¯t think anything else but toilet measurements. It¡¯s like an upational hazard.

    There was this one time, at a restaurant with Fu Xinhui, where Zhang Siyi went to use the bathroom. The internal separation was very unique, so he feltpelled to measure all the toilet proportions in the room for a long time. The people who went in and out of the bathroom looked at him as strangely. After returning, Fu Xinhui alsoughed at him. The dishes were already cold.

    Just when Zhang Siyi had enough of drawing toilets, the human resource department informed him that Gu Yu passed his probationary period. When Zhang Si Yi learned the ¡°good news¡±, he felt so excited. Earlier that day, when Zhang Siyi first arrived at thepany, he received a message from Gu Yu: ¡°Don¡¯t leave after work. We will have a meal together.¡±

    ustomed to Gu Yu¡¯s orders every time there is a task, Zhang Si Yi instinctively rose from his desk. He did not expect to see such an invitation.

    He returned an ¡°Oh¡± word, and he felt happy after a long while.

    Gu Yu told him to eat together. Is it to celebrate his new staff member status? The days of painting toilets and stairs are over? Ah ha-ha! Grappling with his past treatment, Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t know if he wants to forgive Gu Yu. Although, being invited to dinner.... Zhang Siyi¡¯s attitude softens.

    Zhu Hongzhen suddenly said, ¡°Auntie Four, you know about tonight¡¯s dinner?¡±¡±

    ¡°AHA? Zhang Si Yi¡¯s mood suddenly fell from the clouds!

    Had his intention been made clear from the start, Zhang Siyi wouldn¡¯t have been hurting all day! Feeling depressed, he turned around to see Gu Yu came out from the office and greeted everyone to eat. The people in the group were noisy and excited to go downstairs to gather.

    Autumnes at the end of September and with it, cooler temperatures. Outside the group gathers to hail a taxi. Zhang Siyi was mixed in the crowd, and his eyes swept to Gu Yu, and suddenly he could not move his eyes. He is wearing an indigo blue sweater and ck slim jeans. With hands in his pockets, and long legs, he looks like purple bamboo... A rare specimen.

    The man was standing slightly to the side and did not interrupt his subordinates while they chattered andughed. With eyes smiling, Gu Xiao radiated a unique quietness that would not make people feel pressured, but also, would not make people feel ignored.

    The dinner venue was set at a Cantonese restaurant three kilometers away from thepany. The group of people called three cars to bring them to the restaurant. Zhang Siyi got in first followed by Zhu Hongzhen, Bi Lele andst was Yuan Zhicheng. Gu Yu leaned in and carefully told Yuan Zhicheng the location of the restaurant then let them leave.

    When the car started, Zhang Siyi saw two other carsing. Another group of people took the second taxi, and some girls including Du Rui got into the third car along with Gu Yu.

    Zhang Siyi turned around and there was a feeling of sorrow in his heart, and he did not know where it came from. He asked Zhu Hongzhen, ¡°Why are you having dinner today?¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°At the end of every month we have apany dinner.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was shocked: ¡°Every month Guo takes the department out for dinner!? For arge group of people, Isn¡¯t that just too much?¡±

    Zhu Hongzhenughed: ¡°It¡¯s not a treat. It¡¯s the ss fee.¡±

    Zhang Si Yi is a bit blindfold: ¡°What ss meeting fee?¡±¡±

    Bi Leleughed and said: ¡°It is the funds for the activities in the group. We all call them ¡°ss membership fees.¡±

    Zhang Siyi suddenly remembered the 500-dor sry deduction. He asked, ¡°Does thepany give us the ss membership fee?¡±

    ¡°No, it¡¯s what we earned ourselves,¡± Bi Lele exined. ¡°After thepany¡¯s quarterly benefits are met, one percent of the extra design fee is spent on activities. For example, thepany requires the annual performance to be 10 million. The average is 2.5 million per quarter, and we have done 3 million jobs, of which 500,000 percent are counted as activities for this quarter, including employee travel and out-of-school study benefits.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°The trough, 10 million a year! Can ourpany earn so much?¡±

    Bi Lele looked at Zhang Siyi as if he was looking at Xiaobai: ¡°One million is less than in the past. When the industry situation was better, 20 million was easy to earn. Don¡¯t forget there isn¡¯t much support and our projects are on the smaller side.¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°To make a contract you need pretty good connections and ourpany design fees are higher.¡±

    Yuan Zhicheng, who is sitting in the vice-passenger seat, also turned around tofort Zhang Siyi: ¡°Although it is not very good now, but we can still eat at dinner, rest assured.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    However, since there are so many ss fees, why should Gu Yu also deduct his poor five hundred wages? Zhang Siyi feels slighted again!

    Zhang Siyi could not help but be curious: ¡°Hey, do you know how much Boss is paid?¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°I¡¯m not sure, but my ssmate¡¯s father is a chief architect. His annual ie is about 5 to 600,000. Some other higher-ranking people make more than one million.

    Zhang Siyi is excited ¨C Who says that building can¡¯t make money! A lot of money! (£¤£¤)

    Bi Lele turned back and whispered: ¡°I have listened to the group B people to discuss the annual sry of childbor, it seems to be 350,000, I think the work is almost the same.¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen nodded: ¡°It is high for someone as young as Gu Yu.¡±

    Zhang Siyi red at his fingers and thought that Jiang Hai and Fu Xinhui would not work for so little wages. So little money, it hurts: ¡°Then our sry is bad?¡±

    Bi Lele turned a blind eye: ¡°What do we have toin? We are new. A senior told me that one needs more than 8 years to even think about it. Maybe years ago, it was not like it is now.¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°That is, nowadays, the graduates of the architecture department have a lot of graduates, and they are mostly cheapborers. But the elite talents of the industry are hard to find. After all, the transfer rate is too high and there are too few who can persist.¡±

    Bi Lele: ¡°I heard that when the boss just became the Director, there was a real estatepany in Shenzhen who offered a million yuan to recruit him as a design consultant, but he refused.¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°How do you hear about so much?

    Listening to colleagues talk about those high-ie architects, Zhang Siyi has been speechless, why is the gap between people so much!

    With the distraction of conversation, time passed quickly. In what felt like an instant, all 11 people arrived at the Cantonese restaurant. After the group of people were seated, several male colleagues were moring for a drink. Beer and wine were passed around and the atmosphere quickly became lively.

    Everyone should respect the director as usual, but it is not a coincidence that Gu Yu¡¯s cell phone suddenly rang. He smiled and pointed to Zhang Siyi¡¯s direction: ¡°Be good. I will go out and take my call.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    When Gu Yu left, Zhang Siyi became the target of his colleagues and could not hide. Now that he has been with thepany for a months¡¯ time, he isn¡¯t treated like and outsider. Plus, he is the only international student in Group A¡±.

    Everyoneughed andughed. When Gu Yu came back from his phone call, Zhang Siyi already drank several rounds. Hot faced, he had been teased mercilessly. He felt Gu Yu was intentionally making him angry. Head full of wine, Zhang Siyi stood up and pretended to be respectful: ¡°Gu, thank you for this past month, teaching me so many things, here is a toast.¡±

    Gu Yu felt touched. He happily picked up the ss and smiled: ¡°Thank you, as long as you are obedient and eager to learn, I will be able to teach you more in the future.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    The two men dried up the wine. When Zhang Siyi was seated, he listened to Gu Yu say to everyone: ¡°Oh yes, I almost forgot, Zhang Siyi just became a full staff member, so everyone can make another toast.¡±

    Zhang Siyi:¡°......¡±

    The crowd immediately and enthusiastically raised a ss: ¡°Congrattions! Wee to Group A!¡±

    Zhang Siyi is starting to feel overwhelmed so it¡¯s getting harder to drink each round. He just wants to take a break, but Gu Yu raised his ss for another toast, smiled at him and said, ¡°In fact, Zhang Siyi especially took five hundred dors from his probation period sry to let everyone eat, so half of this meal is his invitation. So, everyone can have another drink.¡±

    The crowd was shocked and happy, and they raised their sses: ¡°Come here, thank you Zhang Siyi! Thank you, Boss! Thank you, four!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°............¡± Oh, my God! You have a grudge against me, don¡¯t you?

 Chapter 15: Business Cards

    <h4>Chapter 15: Business Cards</h4>

    _____________________________

    Gu Yu is the boss. Colleagues naturally will follow his lead. With the initial momentum started by Gu Yu, the other ten party members found all kinds of reasons to raise a toast to Zhang Siyi. The amount of alcohol is good. Ten enemies are not an opponent at all!

    However, after a few more rounds, he waspletely drunk, and his mind could not afford to retaliate against the idea of Gu Yu.

    Before he waspletely unconsciousness, Zhang Siyi braced himself and stumbled to the bathroom. He knew that he will pass-out this night, so he went to call Fu Xinhui. He had to take care of himself in advance, or else he would have no idea where he would end up.

    The figure in the Mirror had be several. At every step towards the sink, the room spun. Zhang Siyi urgently tried to make a phone call, but his fingers don¡¯t work properly. Finally, it connects: ¡°Heartless Han.... Help....¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Drunk.... Can you pick me up...?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Stupid, report the address.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°The Cantonese Restaurant at xxx Road...¡±

    Hanging up the phone, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t take it anymore suddenly, holding his stomach and retching.

    At this moment, Gu Yu came. ¡°Are you okay?¡± It¡¯s been ten minutes since Zhang Siyi left for the bathroom. He was worried and came over to check on him. Zhang Siyi turned his head and saw the instigator to his misfortune standing not far from him, crossed arms and looking at himself with a yful face.

    Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t know if it¡¯s easier to see peoples¡¯ true intentions after being drunk or not, but at the moment, in his eyes, he sees Gu Yu ¡®s smirk, like a mischievous old fox. He looked at Gu Yu with wide open eyes. Trying to see through him, he wanted to express his indignation more clearly, but instead Gu Yu grew more handsome.

    Gu Yu smiled and stepped closer, still not forgetting the sarcasm he said, ¡°so little wine.¡±

    Zhang Siyi anger keeps rising. What do you mean, ¡°light drinker¡±? I am being toasted by nine people. Damn it!¡±

    Gu Xiao was one step closer, mocking: ¡°Can you still walk?¡± He stretched out two fingers and waved them in front of Zhang Siyi,ughing and asking,¡± How many are there?¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s felt his ire rising steadily and the liquor in his stomach was churning. He couldn¡¯t help but twist his head and hold onto the toilet to vomit.¡± Gu Yan stood on the side and looked at him with disdain. He said, ¡°Oh, fortunately, you didn¡¯t get anything on me this time.¡± Zhang Siyi vomited seven or eight times in a one breath feeling suffocated. His legs finally felt too weak to stand so he slowly copsed.

    Gu Yu¡¯s face changed, and he stepped forward to help him.

    Zhang Siyi still has thest trace of his mind, and no matter how upset he feels, he instinctively grasps the helping hand. At this moment, the esophagus twitches, and thest bit of food residue in the throat is sprayed on Gu Yu¡¯s arm!

    Gu Yu¡¯s body was stiff, and his face was dark. Stunned Zhang Siyi wanted to die in embarrassment. Red faced, Zhang Siyi desperately held onto Gu Yu, he unconsciously mumbled, ¡°You must really hate...¡± After a glimpse of the end, he passed out.

    Gu Yu: ¡°......¡±

    He rushed out to get a colleague to help him pick up Zhang Siyi then Gu Yu washed him arm with cold water. Since the meal was finished and Zhang Siyi was drunk, he went to assess the situation. Two other colleagues with poor alcohol tolerance were also a little drunk, but they weren¡¯t so bad. He asked several people to make sure the two got home safely before dealing with the most drunk person, Zhang Siyi. ¡°Who knows where he lives?¡± Although they are all colleagues, no one spoke up. The only clue Zhu Hongzhen had was that he lived near a subway station, but the specific address ... he didn¡¯t know either. The restaurant was at the busiest section of Haicheng.

    Gu Yu hung his coat on his arm and said, ¡°I¡¯ll take him back to thepany and throw him in the lounge for a night.¡± He didn¡¯t expect Zhang Siyi to drink so much, let alone faint right after vomiting. He¡¯s not sure if he should apany Zhang Siyi to stay in thepany for a night, or not. Maybe he will wake up then tell him his address, so he could go home.

    As a few girls walked ahead, Zhu Hongzhen and Yuan Zhicheng offered to help get a taxi.

    Exiting the restaurant holding onto Zhang Siyi, the people carrying him saw a strange young man. He had just got out of the taxi and asked, ¡°Excuse me, are you Zhang Siyi colleagues?¡±

    With a face of dignity and an impressive appearance, the girls looked at him with appreciation. For a while no one spoke.

    Bi Lele slowed down and asked: ¡°Oh, yes, who are you?¡±

    ¡°I am Zhang Siyi¡¯s roommate. He just called me to pick him up here.¡± Fu Xinhui nced at Zhang Siyi, who was unconscious, and frowned.

    Just as Gu Yu settled the ount to leave, he saw everyone blocking the door. ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡±

    Du Rui pointed to Fu Xinhui and exined what he said. Gu Yu looked at him intently nodding. He cautiously said: ¡°Give Zhang Siyi a call, and we will see if it¡¯s the truth or not.¡±

    Fu Xinhui dialed the number, soon Zhang Siyi¡¯s phone in his pocket was buzzing. Gu Yu pulled it out to see at a nce what ID the caller is, ¡°Heartless Han¡±, he calmly confirmed that they did know each other, then put the phone back and let everyone go.

    With a horrible hangover, Zhang Siyi woke up the next day with the feeling that his entire being was hollow. Recallingst night¡¯s events, he sighed, despondent. In particr, the phrase, ¡°fortunately you didn¡¯t get anything on me this¡±, really made his head hurt. In Zhang Siyi eyes, it reinforced the notion that Gu Yu hated him. Pinching the bridge of the nose, Zhang Si Yi suddenly remembered, he seems to have thrown up on Director Gu¡¯s body!

    Struggling to get up and out of bed, Zhang Siyi slowly put his morning tasks in order, then went to the subway. Face haggard, he arrived at the building, and entered with hesitation. Although the travel to work helped Zhang Siyi clear his head fromst night¡¯s fiasco, he was afraid Gu Yu would continue to harass him, especially because it was the second time, he dirtied him. It¡¯s going to be a hard day!

    Before he could sit down, Bi Lele caught his attention. She looked at him with two eyes glowing and asked, ¡°Who is the man who came to pick you up yesterday?¡±

    ¡°Ah? ¡°Zhang Siyi confused said,¡± I don¡¯t really remember how I got home, but it should be my roommate. He also studied abroad in the UK. What¡¯s wrong?¡±

    Bi Lele held his face and said: ¡°He is so handsome and fashionable. I have a good feeling!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Bi Lele anxiously asked: ¡°Do you live together? Sleep in the same room?¡±

    Zhang Siyi eyes smoked, he was too familiar with the ambiguous tone of Bi Lele, immediately denied: ¡°Not in the same room!¡± Don¡¯t take this the wrong way! He¡¯s straight!

    Bi Lele smirked: ¡°I haven¡¯t asked you anything, and yet Auntie Four, you seem to know full well!¡±

    Zhang Siyi is going blow up, why does she suspect he and Fu Xinhui have an affair? It¡¯s been more than once. Is he so gay? Or is Fu Xinhui special?

    Just then, Gu Yu sent a message and asked him to go to the office.

    With the Directors request, Zhang Siyi knew he must go to his office. Even though he doesn¡¯t want to face Gu Yu, it is better than being with a daydreaming rotten girl.

    When he entered the office, Gu Yu scanned him up and down as if to make sure, then asked: ¡°How are you feeling? Did everything go okst night?¡± Then he looked straight into Zhang Siyi¡¯s eyes. His brain froze: Is he concerned or is this a y? Although suspicious, Zhang Siyi answered him frankly, ¡°Fortunately I slept like the dead until this morning.¡±

    Gu Yu nodded, handed him a rectangr stic box with argebel, and said, ¡°Here you are.¡±

    ¡°What?¡± Zhang Siyi reached out to take it over and he faintly saw the name through the matte surface inside. His heart jumped! This is a whole box of business card with his name and position clearly printed on them.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª

    Zhang Siyi

    Assistant Architect

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª-

    Holding the business card to and for, Zhang Siyi was on cloud 9. To have his own card with thepany logo, his name, email, and phone, with the same format as Gu Yu¡¯s business card, including the same paper, is like a deration. Zhang Siyi has persevered. Architecture was indeed the correct path, and this proves it.

    He can have a business card, no... He has his OWN business card ! ! !

    Gu Yu saw Zhang Siyi¡¯s undisguised joy on his face, and he also smiled. ¡°Go, go back and work hard,¡± Gu Yu sent him out, not forgetting to inform him. ¡°Remember to submit a picture before work at night.¡±

    ¡°Enn!¡± Zhang Siyi squinted and held his business card to get up, like holding a box of relics, the whole person was shining from head to toe, slowly drifting out. Zhang Siyi spent some time working on drawing but became distracted. He opened the box to look at his business card and imagined that he handed out a business card like a sessful person. Zhang Siyi sat in his seat so happy, smiling and feeling light as a feather. Like a burst of holy light, his palpable excitement and joy was felt by the others in the room.

    Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°...¡± Where did the demonse from ....

    Bi Lele: ¡°...¡± light, someone is glowing ......

    Yuan Zhicheng: ¡°...¡± It¡¯s so ring ....

    At noon, Zhang Siyi had eaten lunch and returned to his desk. He took out a few business cards and carefully stuffed them into his wallet. He was eager to use them, so he turned to Bi Lele and said: ¡°I¡¯m going to the convenience store to buy some chewing gum. Do you want anything?¡±

    Bi Lele: ¡°Great! Get me a bottle of c. I am so sleepy.¡±

    ¡°Leave it to me.¡± Zhang Siyi with excitement went to the ground floor and bought his items in the convenience store. When he opened his wallet at the checkout counter and saw the brand new business cards in the transparent pocket of his wallet, he grinned from ear to ear.

    On the way back to thepany, an intermediary wearing a ck suit jumped in front of him with arms stuffed with advertising and said: ¡°handsome, how about a house? ¡°Are you looking for one?¡± Zhang Siyi was a little annoyed, suddenly remembered the business card in the wallet, the brain shes!

    He put his daydreaming to practice and gracefully stood, pulled out his wallet and quickly selected a business card and offered it to him in one elegant motion.

    ¡°I am a little busy now, you can call meter.¡±

    The other party took his business card eyeing him, then respectfully, and eagerly said: ¡°Wow, no wonder I can spot talent. The handsome guy is an architect!¡± That person has specifically neglected the word ¡°assistant¡± to his title, holding up the self-satisfied Zhang Siyi.

    Then, the other party also pulled out a rumpled business card from his trouser pocket and greeted Zhang Siyi with a smile: ¡°If you need a guy, remember to look for me!¡±

    Feeling high, Zhang Si Yi smartly waved his hand and turned around to head back to the office. After walking a few meters away, he once again grinned from ear to ear and practically skipped back to his work desk. ¨C ah! So cool!

    Just finishing his lunch, Gu Yu spotted Zhang Siyi when he exited the restaurant. Trailing behind, he was witness to the whole exchange. (£þ_£þ| | |)

 Chapter 16: Gathering

    <h4>Chapter 16: Gathering</h4>

    ________________________

    That night, Zhang Siyi was curious about housing prices, so he took out the business card of the intermediary and called.

    ¡°Mister, where do you want to buy a house. What size are you looking for? There are different prices in different locations for simrly sized homes. I¡¯m mainly responsible for the area around yourpany. The market is pretty saturated so there aren¡¯t new houses, but there are good second-hand homes....¡± The person also carefully askes, ¡°Do you live alone, or are you nning on buying a wedding room?¡±

    Zhang Siyi did not understand the market, and thought about his own situation, then responded: ¡°Of course, I live alone, and the marriage is still far away. I want something near CBD with an area of about 100 square meters.¡±

    The agent enthusiastically said: ¡°Oh! Then I have two sets of houses that meet your conditions. One set is a subway house in amunity. The total price is less than 8 million. The location is...¡±

    ¡°What! What do you say?¡± Zhang Siyi thought he had heard it wrong and interrupted him. ¡°Eight million?¡±

    Intermediary: ¡°Yes, this is the second-hand housing prices, the average price of each unit is seventy thousand, an area of one hundred......¡±

    ¡°Sorry, I am not interested, we will talk again in another day!¡± Zhang Siyi was so scared that he hung up the phone and shouted ¡°Shit¡±!

    Fu Xinhui raised his eyes and said, ¡°What happened?¡±

    ¡°A set of 100 t houses for 8 million! Oh, my God!!¡± With his current sry, Zhang Siyi would have to stop eating and drinking for a hundred years before he could afford a ce like that. It is simply too crazy!

    Fu Xinhui looked at him strangely: ¡°You want to buy a house?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°No way, but you may be able to afford it! At noon, I came across a sales agent. We exchanged business card. I was curious, so I asked.¡±

    Fu Xin-Hui peered at the card in Zhang Siyi¡¯s hand and scolded: ¡°Idiot! Don¡¯t casually give your business card to others! An intermediary no less? Are you not afraid? You will be harassed with phone calls in the future!¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s impossible ...¡± that¡¯s when Zhang Siyi¡¯s phone rang again.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°...¡±

    Even though Zhang Siyi hung up the phone on him, the intermediary was not discouraged, and steadily called for the second time. Once connected, he continued to say warmly: ¡°Mr. Zhang I found a house that is perfect for you. The area is small, but the price is less than six million. Think about it! This house is very close to the supermarket and you can buy it directly...¡±

    ¡°I have no money!¡± I¡¯m not thinking about it! Sorry! Don¡¯t call me again! ¡°Zhang Siyi hurriedly finished and hung up the phone. He ced the phone number on his cklist with a sigh of relief. It will be ok.¡±

    Without saying anything Fu Xinhui looked at him with pity.

    Since Zhang Siyi probationary period was over and he was promoted to a full staff member, he found a reason to ask his friends out for dinner again. This time he dares not make a mistake and he confirmed ahead of time that he would not be working overtime.

    A total of 5 ssmates returned to China and lived in Haicheng. In the past three months, surprisingly, there has not been a single member who has gathered together. Thus, when Zhang Siyi called everyone to initiate a proposal, they all eagerly agreed and decided in advance.

    At this moment, Zhang Siyi and Fu Xinhui discussed the best way to meet.

    The five of them have their own ideals so it¡¯s hard to pick the right restaurant. The Cantonese restaurant selected by Fu Xinhuist time was said to be excellent, but in their eyes, it was nothing new. Most Chinese restaurants in the UK are Cantonese cuisine so they are sick of eating it.

    Fu Xinhui thought of a 5-star restaurant he has been to in Haicheng. There are a lot of people on the waiting list to get in. Knowing the expense, Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t think he can enjoy it.

    Zhang Siyi was annoyed: ¡°I haven¡¯t received my paycheck yet. I am very poor now. I can¡¯t afford high-end luxury.¡±

    When the words were finished, his cell phone rang again.

    Zhang Siyi nced at it and saw that it was a strange call. He thought he already put the intermediary on the cklist. He pressed the answer button with a watchful face and heard a gentle and sweet female voice: ¡°Hello, is this Mr. Zhang Siyi, from Borderless architectural design firm?¡±

    Zhang Siyi cautiously: ¡°Yes, it¡¯s me, who are you?¡±

    Female voice: ¡°We are xx credit servicepany. Do you need to apply for a loan soon? Once the bank issues your money, we guarantee that there are no fees and no charge......¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Fuck!

    He hung up the phone again and put the number on the cklist. A little afraid Zhang Siyi said: ¡°That intermediary actually gave my phone to the creditpany!¡±

    Fu Xinhui smirked: ¡°Idiot, do you think your business card was just sent to an intermediary?¡± This is the era of big data. Your phone number has now been exposed to the full Haicheng service tform: insurancepany, medicalpany, used carpany and so on. Tele-marketers will call you all the time. Take my advice and quickly change the number.¡±

    Feeling forlorn, Zhang Siyi said: ¡°I just got a whole box of new business cards printed. how can I change it now? Ahh!¡±

    Fu Xinhuiughed at him again, then he switched to their initial discussion. ¡°What if they came over. We can go to the supermarket and buy something to make ourselves. We used to do this a lot in the UK.¡±

    Zhang Siyi pped his thigh and quickly asked in the group. The two girls had seen the photos of their homes and had never had the chance to visit them. This idea immediately won their approval.

    The house they rented was on the 20th floor in a prosperous ce, and the transportation was convenient. From the balcony, Jingnan Road can be seen. There is amercial building and an old house with the unique taste of Haicheng. The scenery is excellent.

    However, asking someone toe over to a ce lived in by three boys is a bit of a problem.

    The ces where the boys live are definitely not as clean and careful as the girls, especially Zhang Siyi. Since he started working, he didn¡¯t have much time to take care of his private life.

    In his room is a single sofa he bought from IKEA. Initially, he thought that he would have a ce to sit and read and think about life, but the results in less than two weeks, is not what he thought. The sofa has be the ce where he piles his clothes. It has never reflected its value as a ¡°seat.¡±

    Zhang Siyi regarded this as an opportunity to clean up. Friday after work, he came straight home and started a different kind of ¡®overtime¡¯ work. He was busy for the night cleaning up, doingundry, putting and his clothes away. The process was tedious, but the sense of aplishment after thepletion of it is also fulfilling. The clean and refreshing environment will make Zhang Siyi¡¯s sleep better.

    Since he was ustomed to it, saturday morning Zhang Siyi got up early. He went to get Fu Xinhui up even though he normally sleeps in. He also called Jiang Hai and the three went to the grocery store together. They also went to a flower shop to select a few decorations and flowers.

    In the living room, there is a melodious and exotic jazz tune. The coffee table is covered with a tablecloth of the same color as the sofa. There is plum colored, Australian decoration in the middle of the table. Surrounded by a beautiful circle of color, slender vials with scented candles on top stand tall. There are fresh cherries too.

    This is an arrangement from boys who studied architectural design. There is nothing bad to say about the disy. Even if they can hold off bathing for a month, when the situationes, they too can be very romantic.

    At eleven o¡¯clock he girls arrived. When they came inside, they marveled at the room., ¡°Oh my god, you boys are living the high life, aren¡¯t you?¡± Su Yuan and Ren Mengyu looked around the bourgeoisie room and took out their mobile phones to take pictures. Posting the pictures to their respective social media ounts, they received all kinds of envy.

    Su Yuan: ¡°I don¡¯t think I want to know how much the rent of this ce is! Ten thousand?¡±

    Fu Xinhui shrugged: ¡°We each pay 4,000 for the apartment.¡±

    Su Yuan said: ¡°I only earned seven thousand after tax. If four thousand goes to my living expenses, then how will I be able to afford clothes and cosmetics?¡±

    This sentence also struck Zhang Siyi¡¯s nerve. Although he has been employed for one month, his paycheck isn¡¯t issued until the 5th. He hasn¡¯t received a penny.

    Depressed, Zhang Siyi inexplicably remembered the phone number of the loanpany. Could it be that he had to borrow some money to spend money?

    No, no, no! Zhang Siyi! That¡¯s all lies! I Can¡¯t Believe it! Just as he is thinking his ridiculous thoughts, the cell phone rang again. Stunned, Zhang Siyi instinctively went on alert.

    He tentatively answered the phone call. There was an unfamiliar voice on the other side: ¡°Hello Mr. Zhang, we are xx international English training institutions. Do you want to improve your foreignnguage skills? It will make you morepetitive in the workce.¡±

    It may be that this past week he received too many harassing calls, so he was fed up with the harassment. Zhang Siyi yelled into the phone in English: ¡°I¡¯m the one that graduated from a University in the UK and have not spoken English ten times in a month since returning to China!¡±

    ¡°Oh? Really? Is Mr. Zhang interested ining to our training school as a part-time teacher? If you don¡¯t speak English for a long time, you will start to forget!¡±

    ¡°...forget English, my ass!¡± Zhang Siyi mmed the phone and put another number on the cklist.

    Su Yuan looked at him in amazement: ¡°What¡¯s the matter with you, eating dynamite?¡±

    Fu Xinfeiughed on the edge of his seat: ¡°Ignore this fool. He gave his business card to an intermediary, so he has been receiving harassing phone calls all week. He¡¯s on the verge of copse.¡±

    Su Yuan. ¡°......¡±

    ¡°Oh hey, my business card!¡± Zhang Siyi rushed back to his bedroom and grabbed two new business cards then proudly gave it them. With Zhang Siyi¡¯s business card in view people are naturally going to start talking about their work.

    Su Yuan¡¯s job is at a foreign office and the work is very simr to what they have learned before. She must check design materials, create various analysis charts, draw diagrams, and asionally trante foreign texts. She had been going home on time every day as there is no overtime.

    Zhang Siyi admired: ¡°Hey, this is what normal internationally educated students should do. Why do I have to spend my days drawing toilets!¡±

    Su Yuanughed: ¡°No, this is not the area we are good at.¡±

    ¡°Yes¡± Zhang Siyi nodded vigorously. He was frustrated over his work assignments. He thought once he became a full staff member, his tasks would change. Ever since the issue of using temtes was brought to Gu Yu attention, he was doing the same thing for the past two days. He is starting to think that his job will only consist of these types of tasks.

    Su Yuan wondered: ¡°Is it because your boss graduated from a domestic university and treats you with the requirements of a domestic graduate?¡±

    When hearing from Su Yu, Zhang Siyi is stunned. Is it really the right choice for him at Borderless?

 Chapter 17: Threats

    <h4>Chapter 17: Threats</h4>

    _____________________

    However, Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t have time to think about it too deeply. He has only one choice now.

    In the current economical downturn, if he left Borderless, without experience and better education, he might not find another job.

    Su Yuan saw Zhang Siyi frowning, and did not say any more. She is just a neer to the workforce and don¡¯t know the ins-and-outs of the domestic construction market. There is always a reason for the boss to bring in subordinates. The good reputation of Borderless doesn¡¯te from thin air.

    She shifted the subject: ¡°But you are so busy that you have very little time now and you aren¡¯t even active online.¡±

    Originally, Zhang Siyi had the nickname ¡°second praises Little prince¡± in his social media circle of friends. Like clockwork, Zhang Siyi was the first to respond to friend¡¯s posts and offer praise or encouragement. His friends often wondered if he isn¡¯t holding the mobile and constantly refreshing the news feed all the time. But since he has been at work, his attitude towards his social media ount has changed. His nickname went from ¡°Second Praises Little Prince¡± to ¡°Centralized Review¡±. Once Su Yuan opened her social media and received a ¡®week in review¡¯ from Zhang Siyi.

    ¡°I don¡¯t have time to look at the phone!¡± Zhang Siyi said bitterly. When his Boss gives him a job, there is often a deadline assigned as well. He is very strict. When I¡¯m very busy I feel like going to the bathroom is a waste of time. Besides, the Directors office is right behind me. He oftenes over to my desk silently and looks at my work. If he found out that I still had time to y with my mobile phone, I would die!¡±

    Everyone: ¡°...¡± Poor fellow.

    Su Yuan asked: ¡°Is your boss the one that graduated from high school with you?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Yes, but he is six years my senior. He already had graduated for several years while I was there.

    Remembering the adoption of the nt in thepany, he said to everyone, ¡°He gave me one of his cactus nts. Colleagues think I am special to him, but I think he just wants to give me a hard time. He messaged everyone in his department telling them not to help me.¡±

    His friends silently gave Zhang Siyi a sympathy tear.

    Ren Mengyu asked: ¡°Was he the one who got sshed by coffee by your girlfriend before?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s him! At thepany dinner, he got everyone to give me a toast. I couldn¡¯t stand up that day. Now, Zhang feels like a bully who got in trouble for bullying a kid. ¡°The coffee was spilled on him, but I really doubt he is retaliating against me. He is a good person.¡±

    Fu Xinhui touched his chin and said: ¡°The person who made me call you that day is him.¡±

    Ren Mengyu curiously asks: ¡°Heartless Han has seen him? What does he look like?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°I am almost as tall, looks very young and handsome, and a kind of cool.¡±¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°...What is the strange description of ¡®sexual coldness¡¯?¡±

    ¡°He just looks like a very clean-cut, straightced person.¡± Fu Xinhui said. Then to illustrate his point, he rxed his facial muscles, like a facial paralysis, causing everyone tough.

    Jiang Hai joked: ¡°You could look for an opportunity to retaliate back.¡±

    Zhang Siyi said: ¡°How am I going to get revenge?¡±

    Fu Xinhui squinted His eyes and came to a somber sentence: ¡°Kill his cactus.¡± (¨t_¨s)

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Hey!!¡±

    Conspiring together, his friends excitedly plotted revenge. One idea was to kill the cactus slowly by watering it a little bit every day. Some thought that way would be too gentle, and a direct approach is better. Then they thought up a scheme to take advantage of thete hours to directly pull up the root and leave it at his office door. Zhang Siyi listened to the discussion of his friends, clutching his stomach and almostughing. Of course, these are all jokes. ... Anyway, as soon as his ball dies, he won¡¯t be able to get the ¡®I love my job¡¯ bonus.

    Life is like this. Everyone gathers together andins about their woes. It is nothing more than trying to ease the pressure of work. When tiered after the work week, just have a drink with friends andugh the week away and all the troubles will be gone.

    Last dinner gathering, Jiang Hai didn¡¯t have the best things to say about his boss. This time, there were several designpanies to talk about: ¡°Ourpany gave clear design requirements on the project, but the other party didn¡¯t adhere to the guidelines. I changed some areas and indicators and handed it in without changing the name of the project. There are just too many people working the project all injecting their own ideas like the business center¡¯s n and the designpany. As a result, they have created a post-modern Zha style, twisted and twisted. They convince themselves there are benefits to the ns. The project keeps growing, but there is a limited budget. No matter how good things are, if there isn¡¯t money, you can¡¯t build something out of air. My boss loves the talk big on paper, but now I know there are even more unprofessional designpanies out there. The boss will be finished sooner orter!¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°So the most important thing ismunication!¡±

    Jiang Hai: ¡°Yes, our Head boss alsopared the rtionship to love. He said side A and side B needed to understand each other in order to have a good ¡® love ¡®.¡±

    Zhang Siyiughed and listened, but also secretly recorded this in his heart.

    As for Fu Xinhui, his family hasn¡¯t pressured him to either return home or find a job. Although he doesn¡¯t have much direction, his family is big, and his parents are exposed to investment, real estate, all kinds of officials, and wealthy people. His intuition is good, so he can contribute to the conversation from time to time and express his views.

    In addition to working life, everyone also talked about the development and status quo of other students who are still studying abroad. Who is in love, who broke up, and who is ying the demon.

    There is a good rtionship between their ssmates except for one. One of their ssmates, Yu Rui, is somewhat alienated by the other ssmates. She looks pretty and continues to study in the UK for a master¡¯s degree but has unattractive personality and a ck history.

    For example, she is very vain and only will go out with young rich men, she got between friends and caused them to be estranged, and she gave gifts and bribes to the professor. Also, she had no fewer than five boyfriends during university. She used up each one of them for a specific reason, like helping with a design or a written paper. After their value was used up, she would mercilessly shake them off.

    Once Ren Mengyu was very generous to say that her father taught her ¡°smart woman should step on a man to climb up¡± ... Moreover, who are they to remark about her methods because the good results prove themselves; a good degree, a graduate school offer, and a good job in the future. Except for one missing point: Good rtionships.

    With ill feelings towards Yu Rui, they will naturally not be very connected after graduation, but they were all still very curious what kind of development and oue will happen in the end.

    Ren Mengyu is the most energetic. She currently works in a design consultingpany, mainly to trante some architectural nning tenders andpetitions at home and abroad to hang them on theirpany¡¯s tform, so that the global architectural design firms can share project resources. In the end, they are a little of building design. It is more like an intermediary work. This kind ofpany has a good environment, work is easy, with good wages, but there is almost no room for improvement.

    Fortunately for Ren Mengyu she also has little to worry about money. Her family has helped her rent a small bungalow in the city and with resources to purchase brand-name bags and clothes. It¡¯s a life without economical pressure, but she works in a high-end environment with girls in a simr situation so there is a lot of petty drama. Like watching a talk show, the others watch her motions and listen to her lively stories.

    ¡°I told you, ourpany has a woman that acts like a little girl. A few days ago, I asked which country is going to start discounting since I never bought discounted good, she came to help, and I ended up with good results. Another colleague is buying from eBay and she insists that she help make the purchase for designer boots from five years ago in order to save shipping costs.¡±

    Su Yuan has always been thrifty and can¡¯t express any opinions. Jiang Hai and Zhang Siyi are people who have no psychological needs for famous brands. Therefore, Fu Xinhui can also make a few words with her in the presence: ¡°Five years ago? Is it free to purchase?¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°Yes, that colleague is not happy! She is about the same size as me. The boots from five years ago are very old and worn. They are not in style anymore.¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°You need a good rtionship to make purchases after all. Especially for the named-brand bags and shoes. I only brought items home from Ennd for my sister. It was too troublesome to buy things for other ssmate¡¯s friends.¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°Yes, the knee-high boots must be deducted from customs duties. I don¡¯t know how much to ship from Canada.¡±

    Su Yuan nodded: ¡°Thousands of luxury goods and famous brands, it is really necessary to do what you can.¡±

    Ren Mengyu continued: ¡°¡±She didn¡¯t say she didn¡¯t buy a discount before, I don¡¯t like this kind of money! Ren Meng scoffed, and then said to Su Yuan sitting with crossed arms looking irritated,¡± look at our Su Yuan, although in general, she doesn¡¯t have lot of money, she is so charming! ¡°

    Su Yuan smiled and pushed away Ren Mengyu: ¡°Are youplimenting me or insulting me!?¡±

    A burst ofughter, indeed, Su Yuan is very good with people.

    After that, Su Yuan also gave a few examples of the arrogance that economic and social gaps bring at her firm.

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°Ourpany has a pretty girl that only smiles to male colleagues. ¡°I heard that she was not familiar with some of the work, so she went to find the boss to ask him. The boss was calling his family. Unbeknown to him, she stood on the side of the room smiling, listening to the boss on the phone for one hour. Later, when the boss turned to see her in the room, he was angry.¡±

    Everyone heard a sly look, and Zhang Siyi stupidly helped the girl: ¡°Maybe the sister¡¯s emotional intelligence is lower?¡±

    With cold, vertical eyebrows, Ren Meng addressed Zhang Siyi and said: ¡°Don¡¯t be silly! What low EQ! Over the years, witnessing such events, now I can see that the other party is ying. You are so stupid and deceived, maybe you have been targeted!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    After the weekend, Zhang Siyi returned to thepany to go to work. When he went in, he saw the size of the cactus on thendscape frame and couldn¡¯t help but think of the topic that everyone talked about this past weekend.

    He looked around, quietly approached, staring at the big cactus, let his eyes slowly released murderous intent and whispered: ¡°abuse me again I will use the eyes to kill you!¡±¡±

    Cactus: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi threatened, grinned, and happily began a new week¡¯s work.

 Chapter 18: Meal Supplement

    <h4>Chapter 18: Meal Supplement</h4>

    _________________________________

    The weather turned cold. Zhang Siyi got a head cold and was afraid of transmitting it to everyone. On Monday, he brought arge box of medicinal teas to the office and paid attention to keeping warm.

    Thinking about the past weekend¡¯s conversation with his friends, he couldn¡¯t help butpare his work environment to that of his friends. Overall, he found the atmosphere of Borderless to be particrly harmonious. Everyone was very hard-working and helpful. There was no such thing as a person who loved to chew on the back of the tongue.

    Although Gu Yu did not let his colleagues help Zhang Siyi on the drawing, Zhu Hongzhen gave him a reference book. Bi Lele also quietly taught him how to use the as in thepany¡¯s data room. In reality, he wasn¡¯t actually isted.

    The day he had a hangover, Du Rui gave him a bottle of honey flower tea, saying that it can alleviate the symptoms after drunkenness. In addition, colleagues who have brought delicious food will also share with each other. Not only in their group A, but also next door in Group B. Last week they brought 2 watermelons at their own expense and gave one away. Everyone is exceptionally friendly.

    Unlike his friends work environment, Zhang Siyi feels that Borderless is mostly like a warm family.

    Zhu Hongzhen gnawed at his breakfast buns on the side while browsing through Archidaily¡¯s newly released design and greeted Zhang Siyi. He was discussing the new works by a Danish firm.

    Zhang Siyi, holding the hot tea, could not help but sigh: ¡°The atmosphere of ourpany is very good.¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen chuckled: ¡°Yes, I agree.¡±

    However, Zhang Siyi is also feeling the environment is too good. It¡¯s a bit strange. Even when he is studying abroad, there are people like Qi Rui. There are one or two unstable factors in any environment. How can they be so harmonious here?

    On the opposite side, Bi Lele seemingly knowing Zhang Siyi¡¯s thoughts, added: ¡°recently its very good, but it hasn¡¯t always been so.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Really?¡±

    Bi Lele looked around the room in a conspiratorial manner and said, ¡°When there isn¡¯t harmony, our Boss is quick to remedy it.¡± She put her hand up to her neck and made a cutting motion.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen was shocked: ¡°Is there such a thing?¡±

    Bi Lele nced at Zhu Hongzhen and replied, ¡°Other than work, you don¡¯t have a mind to pay attention to your surroundings.¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°¡­¡­¡±

    Yuan Zhicheng, who kept mainly to himself, looked up at Bi Lele suspiciously: ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±

    Bi Lele: ¡°Do you still remember fromst year, Little Li who came to thepany?¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°I do. He was a very good designer. But he was only here three months. What¡¯s wrong with him?¡±

    Bi Lele nodded: ¡°He was quite bullish and proud. He thought he was too good for small work. After a few projects, a few people privatelyined. Then Boss talked to him directly and said he isn¡¯t suitable to work at Borderless.¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen shocked: ¡°Crouching groove!¡± He was kicked out, wasn¡¯t he? I thought he was so bullish that he couldn¡¯t see ourpany and walked on its own.¡±

    ¡°I said that you are stupid and sweet,¡± Bi Lele snorted. ¡°There aren¡¯t a lot of firms in Haicheng that have as good of treatment as we do here. My ssmates who graduated at the same time don¡¯t have as high of sry as I do. Little Li came to Borderless based on ourpany¡¯s excellent reputation, but his own arrogance got in the way. He wasn¡¯t participating fully with the group. Our projects are mostly teamwork, so naturally he couldn¡¯t fit in.¡±

    Bi Lele said again: ¡°There is another one called Xiao Qi. She left at the end ofst year. Remember?¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°Yes, a little beauty, and worked very hard¡­ Don¡¯t you tell me she was fired, too?¡±

    Bi Lele: ¡°Yes, she secretly had a crush on our boss.¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°There¡¯s something wrong with having secret love here? Isn¡¯t there a lot of secret love for the Boss?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± Yes! Du Rui also secretly loves Gu Yu!!! (#¡ã§¥¡ã)

    Bi Lele rolled her eyes: ¡°You don¡¯t understand! You also know that our boss will usually work with employees. She deliberately stayed sote every day just to let Gu Yu apany her. She was fired on the grounds that her work efficiency is too low.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡­¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°the boss is too hard¡­¡­¡±

    Bi Lele gave a few more examples. Someone provoked a colleague behind his back. After being discovered by Gu Yu, he forced him to work straight for two months. Later, he was overwhelmed by his work assignments, so he resigned. There was another who was excused because they were careless and shirked their duties. Those who came and went in a hurry and disappeared inexplicably could all be said by Bi Lele.

    Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°You love gossip so much. Why didn¡¯t the Boss do something to you?¡±

    Bi Lele shrugged: ¡°Because I have not vited the principle of the problem. It doesn¡¯t affect both the work and rtionships between colleagues.¡±

    She can draw pictures while joking with them gossip, but also a capable person!

    Yuan Zhicheng sighed weakly and summed up the routine of work: ¡°Anyway, following a rule is always right ¨C do more things, less bitching.¡± Then he buried his head and began to draw.

    Zhu Hongzhen shrunk his neck and quickly began to work.

    Zhang Siyi suddenly became fearful. Even seemingly good, well-educated and hardworking persons could be eliminated.

    What should he do? He said bad things about Gu Yu in front of Du Rui and he quietly threatened Gu Yu¡¯s cactus. Could he live well if Boss found out? Life is so hard!

    Zhang Siyi finished his work on Friday and had not receives a new assignment yet. He was flipping through the as in the gallery, waiting to be summoned.

    However, the call from the finance department came first. ¡°It¡¯s time to recover your meal expenses. Please send each group to the finance room.¡±

    All around the room, there is a rustling sound. One after another, his colleagues are opening their desk drawers and pulling out a pile of receipts. With a jubnt expression they head to the finance room to collect their money.

    Stunned and surprised, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know the routine. ¡°What receipt? I thought it was a sry card?¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°No, it¡¯s duringpany hours.¡±

    Zhang Siyi puzzled: ¡°But we aren¡¯t ordering thepany¡¯s package.¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen scratched his head and said: ¡°It¡¯s not the same thing. The receipts are used to avoid taxes. It has nothing to do with the actual food and beverage consumption. Anyway, you should contribute to thepany.¡±

    However, Zhang Siyi did not get a single receipt!

    The phone shook a bit and received a spam message. Zhang Siyi looked ¨C

    ¡°Free software development tickets/receipts please call xxxx¡­¡±

    These harassing phone calls and small ads are ubiquitous. Ah!

    Zhang Siyi put another number in his cklist. Seeing everyoneing back with their credits, he felt envious and worried. It was then that the call of Gu Xiao came along.

    Zhang Siyi went to Gu Yu office with uncertainty. He gave him a task of painting core functions again! He was a little anxious, and could not help but whisper a word: ¡°How can I paint this again?¡±

    But as soon as the words expressed, Zhang Siyi regretted it. The pile of examples that Bi Lele had just reported made him feel scared!

    I didn¡¯t expect Gu Yu to be calm: ¡°Don¡¯t want draw that? Then I¡¯ll change it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi is happy, so simple?

    Gu Yu flipped through the information on the edge of his desk and took a piece of paper and handed it to him. He smiled and asked, ¡°How about the parking lot?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± What is the difference?! He wants to make his own design n.

    Regardless of whether he objected or not, Gu Yu directly told him: ¡°Arrange the parking spaces under the most economic conditions for this underground parking lot of arge shopping mall in City X. Also draw a section of the ramp to the entrance and exit of the parking lot at night.¡±

    With mixed emotions, Zhang Siyi nodded. Although the parking lot isn¡¯t what he wanted, it is better than drawing more toilets.

    As he was about to get up and go out, Gu Yu said: ¡°Go directly to the financial office. I have helped you hand in this month¡¯s receipts.¡±

    Wondering about the rare warmth of Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi¡¯s emotions welled up: ¡°Thank you.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t thank me,¡± Gu Yu moved away from his sight to look at the work content on his screen. ¡°I got receipts forst weeks dinner. 500 of them are yours. Next month, remember to prepare them.¡±

    ¡­¡­ It¡¯s so ruthless that it makes people clench their teeth!

    Going to the finance room and receiving his first ¡°subsidy¡± in life, Zhang Siyi¡¯s feeling of depression was quickly relieved.

    In the afternoon of the same day, he also got a message from the bank that his paycheck was deposited. Although it was only four thousand and five, Zhang Siyi felt a full sense of happiness.

    Ah~~ It feels so good to have a job!

    He happily drew the parking lot for the day, but before leaving work, Zhang Siyi went to Gu Yu. He had an unpredictable expression and made Zhang Siyi uneasy.

    ¡°Can you drive?¡± Gu Yu looked for a long time, suddenly asked.

    ¡°I have a license.¡± Zhang Siyi graduated from high school and got his driver¡¯s license to go abroad, but he never had the chance to use it.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s still being done like this?¡± Gu Yu frowned and with a pencil he circled several figures and positions. One by onemented on them. ¡°Is this enough? There isn¡¯t enough space on the end. Are you having parallel parking here? This space is too small. And this section, since the car cane from another direction, why add an extra road?¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­,¡± too much was said for Zhang Siyi to life his head.

    Gu Xiao quickly counted a few parking spaces and said: ¡°This underground garage in theory can have 510-520 parking spaces in a row, but you only lined up 450.¡± He shook his head and sighed, tore arge piece of parchment paper and covered Zhang Siyi drawing. He personally demonstrated and drew a section with appropriate traffic flow and parking positions.¡±

    Zhang Siyi stared at his hand holding the marker moving steadily drawing straight lines perfectly. Gu Yu did not use a ruler. Finally, the main position of the parking was framed.

    When finished, Gu Yu looked up at Zhang Siyi, gave him the papers, and didn¡¯t say anything. He only shoo-ed him away to let him work on theyout on his own.

    Zhang Siyi returned to his seat with a gray face and nced at the drawings. With just a few simple lines, there is an inexplicable attraction. This is from the hands of an expert.

    Zhang Siyi frantically stretched out his arms in the air for a while. He was angry but needed the resolve to finish.

    If life only had the expense of eating, drinking, and ying, then Zhang Siyi thinks that he can be very happy, and he can bear more in his work. The biggest burden is always rent. If you want to enjoy the city¡¯s most prosperous location, you must pay the price. Even more problematic, Zhang Siyi has only been paid for one month on a probationary sry. In the fourth month of returning to China, Zhang Siyi is about to face a major economic crisis: rent overdraw!

 Chapter 19: Rent

    <h4>Chapter 19: Rent</h4>

    __________________

    Four thousand a month, twelve thousand a quarter. ¡ª Shit. Why is the rent so expensive? !

    Only 9300 was deposited into Zhang Siyi ount. Looking at his bank statement, he experienced an unprecedented state of anxiety. Even if he thought about it previously, the reality in front of him made him panic.

    Wanting to prove his independence to his parents and not be a burden, Zhang Siyi months ago told them he won¡¯t spend his father¡¯s money. Even worried, Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t want to ask his parents for money now and he is embarrassed to speak with his ssmates who also pay rent.

    It¡¯s just so hard. Jiang Hai and Fu Xinhui still rely on their parents. He doesn¡¯t feelfortable asking for Fu Xinhui¡¯s help because Zhang Siyi has a job. He thinks it¡¯s weird for a working person to borrow money from someone that doesn¡¯t have a job.

    Under the pressure of bing a responsible adult, Zhang Siyi could not help but reflect on his carefree days while he was studying abroad. Even with the high cost of tuition, books, apartment rent, and living expenses, in those years, the silver credit card was just numbers. Home was like an inexhaustible cash machine. While spending a lot of money, he never thought about what this number meant for his parents. He doesn¡¯t know what it is like to be honest. As long as he graduated from college and if he had a foreign degree then making money was a matter of course. It was only now that he has learned that money isn¡¯t easy toe by and that life is hard.

    Going home from work, Zhang Siyi melded into the crowd on the subway. There is no excitement today. Thinking about his rent plus expenses and future cash flow issues, he sighed and felt exhausted. Life must go on. If he can¡¯t move forward, then he only has his own ipetence to me.

    shing through the window, Zhang Siyi sees a series of advertisements as the subway zooms down the track. One catches his attention: Sea Merchants Silver Card ¨C No annual fees, no handling fees, apply now! Having experienced the use of credit cards while abroad, he immediately sent a letter to MSC Bank when he got home. He used the card service center to make a consultation call and discovered he could apply for a silver card if he provided a formal work contract and proof of ie. His short-lived relief was crushed. When he went to the bank with the relevant information, the representatives told him it takes three weeks to process. Zhang Siyi is going to go crazy. After two days, his rent is due! Biting the bullet, Zhang Siyi can only go back to Fu Xinhui and ask for help.

    He decided to give Fu Xinihui six thousand first and keep 3000 for himself for living expenses. He specially invited him downstairs to eat at the small restaurant to eat and discuss things. Fu Xinhui calmly listened, tilted his head and said: ¡°I have already payed the rent for you.¡±

    The rental contract was signed by Fu Xinhui and thendlord. Therefore, Zhang Siyi and Jiang Hai were subletting the room and didn¡¯t need to directly negotiate with thendlord. Instead, they gave the rent to the Fu Xinhui.

    ¡°Ah? ¡°Zhang Siyi stayed,¡± Why did you hand it in so early?¡±

    Fu Xinhui said: ¡°Generally, payment is due one week in advance.¡±

    Zhang Siyi said: ¡°So why don¡¯t you say so earlier!¡±

    Fu Xinhui looked at Zhang Siyi seemingly saying, ¡®do you take me for an idiot?¡¯ ¡°I already knew from your previous payment history that you wouldn¡¯t have money early this time. I don¡¯t like to collect debts. Anyway, don¡¯t worry.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± The feeling of being thoroughly seen through by his friend¡­.

    He hastened to make sure that he would pay off the rest of his rent when he was paid next month, and stressed that he applied for a credit card, so he will be able to pay it back as early as three weekster.

    ¡°Well, whatever.¡± Fu Xinhui waved his hand.

    Zhang Si Yi wiped the sweat from his brow. His nouveau rich ssmate didn¡¯t know the joys of the worry.

    Because of the rent, Zhang Siyi began to subconsciously spend money conservatively. He wouldn¡¯t blink at buying seven or eight specialty drinks at the convenience store. Previously he would buy what he felt like, but now he must make careful calctions and consider what to spend his money on. In order to save money, he decided he needed to start cooking his own meals.

    As they say, from poverty to wealth is easy and from wealth to poverty is hard. Zhang Siyi is no exception. Such days made him feel like his current situation was a far cry from the image of an urban white-cor architect that he daydreamed about. But this is real life; cruel; helpless.

    Zhang Siyi thought to find respite from his financial woes by looking for some variation at work. If he continued to paint more tedious core functions and parking lots, he will go crazy.

    As Su Yuan mentioned, painting these types of details is not his specialty. He wants to do something that was more in line with his educational background.

    Zhang Siyi decided, today, when he goes to hand in his assignment to the Director, he was going to muster up the courage to talk to him about his dissatisfaction with the status quo. Maybe Gu Yu will give him something else to do after listening to Zhang Siyi ideas.

    ¡°I¡¯ve mentioned this ce once before, howe you haven¡¯t changed it yet?¡± ¡°Gu Yu marked his drawings, eyebrow slightly frowned,¡± What are you thinking? I can tell you have been distracted today. Don¡¯t you want to go home at night?¡±

    ¡°¡­¡± Zhang Siyi had just gathered a little courage to be taken away by Gu Yu¡¯s remark.

    ¡°Take it and fix it.¡± ¡°Gu Yu returned the picture to him with no expression on his face

    Silently retreating, Zhang Siyi took the picture, and wanted to cry without tears.

    After returning to his desk, Zhang Siyi mulled his thoughts over and decided to bring up the topic with Gu Yu again. One needs to fight for their beliefs! Half an hourter, Zhang Siyi with a modified drawing, a deep breath and soft knock on the ss door, he went to see Gu Yu.

    ¡°Come in.¡± The indifferent and cold voice came from inside. Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart went into his throat, pushed the door open.

    ¡°Finished?¡± Gu Xiao lifted his head from his work with a serious expression on his face. He has already changed the work twice. If there is still something wrong, then he is a failure. Zhang Siyi obediently gave him the drawings. Gu Yu nced at them and finally nodded his head: ¡°yes.¡±

    Gu Yu rubbed the bridge of the nose and his expression rxed slightly: ¡°OK, go back and take a good look on your own. It is such a simple thing, and the next time¡­. I have no patience to teach you repeatedly.¡±

    Zhang Siyi ¡°¡­¡­¡±

    Gu Yu sees that Zhang Siyi is still sitting and not walking. He looks up again: ¡°What else?¡±

    Zhang Siyi face flushed: ¡°Gu Yu, I have something I want to talk about¡­.¡±

    Gu Yu put down his pen and crossed his arms: ¡°and?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I ¡­¡±

    The internal phone on Gu¡¯s desk suddenly rang. He made a slight gesture and picked up the phone: ¡°Now? Well. Ok, I¡¯ming,¡± and hung up the phone. ¡°I have to go to the Chief¡¯s office. We will talk about itter.¡± Gu Yu stood up to leave.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    Zhang Siyi returned to his seat, hanging his head, looking exhausted. If one looked closely, one could see his inner soul gently rise out of his body.

    Just then, from across, Bi Lele suddenly said: ¡°There is big projecting!¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen is curious: ¡°What big project?¡±

    With antennae on her forehead detecting, Bi Lele is like a bee that smells flowers. She is excited: ¡°The heads of the departments. Both Boss and Child Labor of thendscape group are headed in the same direction! She turned back to him. ¡°I just saw you return from Gu Yu office. Did you hear anything inside?¡±

    Zhang Siyi held up his heavy head and confused: ¡°Ah, Gu Yu said that the Chief is looking for him.¡±

    Anyways, what does it matter to him. He is a small fry and will spend the rest of his life drawing parking lots, stairs, toilets¡­. Just as Bi Lele suspected, a few minutester, they came to summon the staff for a meeting.

    Gu Yu ordered nearly half of the group toe to the conference room, including Bi Lele, Zhu Hongzhen and Yuan Zhicheng. Finally, with ast nce around the room his eyes fell onto Zhang Siyi and paused, then said, ¡°Zhang Siyi, you areing too.¡± He froze for three seconds. As if the concubine, who had been snubbed for a long time, had been turned over by the emperor, Zhang Siyi hurriedly stood up, both excited and frightened. With a thumping heart, he grabbed a pen and paper then went to the conference room with everyone.

    After sitting down, in addition to their Group A, half of the meeting room was full of faces he was less familiar with. With the arrival of Tong Heyi, he confirmed that the other half were members were from Group B.

    What kind of project is it, that you need more than 10 representatives from each group for a meeting? Neer Zhang who has been in the job for less than two months, is witnessing a huge event for the first time.

    Both Gu Yu and Tong Heyi stood in front of everyone holding a stack of papers in their hands. They simply made an opening statement.

    Gu Yu said: ¡°We have just been invited to a bid for arge-scale nning and construction project, located in the economic area of the eastern new district of Z City, F province, with a nned area of about 250 hectares.¡± The participatingpetitive bidding units of this project are all well-knownrge design institutes in the country, because the X house for some reasons cannot participate, theck of ess as a substitute for the invitation, today was notified, so our time is very tight, the bidding date in the middle of next month, from the understanding of the project to the bid review, only 2 weeks ¡­ ¡°

    There was an uproar under the seat, and there were a few seconds of talk, and there was tension and excitement.

    Only Zhang Siyi has a nk expression on his face. Wait, 250 hectares? 1 hectare seems to be 10000 square meters, that 250 hectares is 250 ¡­ 0000 square meters? What!?

    This is the area of more than 300 football fields! Borderless is an architecture firm not a construction business. Why take on such a huge construction project? What the hell is going on?

 Chapter 20: Patch

    <h4>Chapter 20: Patch</h4>

    ____________________

    The biggest project Zhang Siyi has ever been connected to was a ten-thousand square metermercial office building. All he has done on these projects is draw core functions and now suddenly, in front of him appears a hectare unit nning project. He was scared silly.

    Tong Heyi said: ¡°From tonight onwards for a total of two and a half days, the two groups need topete to develop early plot analysis, and nning function positions. After seven days, the Board of Directors will evaluate the work and select a n to move forward with.

    Zhang Siyi was hit by a lightning. Time was already so tight. Why did they have toe out with two sets of ns? Can¡¯t everyone work together to make one set? Everyone did not hear his inner roar and Instead were all eager to try. Thus, for the next 20 days Zhang Siyi witnessed twisted faces that were happy.

    Gu Yu said: ¡°The uing days will be very hard. Prepare yourself mentally for many hours of overtime.¡±

    After exining the basic situation of the project, Gu Yu and Tong Heyi respectively designated their respective project team leaders.

    Gu Yu points to Ji Feiyu. He is only one year younger than Gu Yu. Although he is not a ¡°one note¡±, he has rtively rich work experience.

    Tong Heyi also chose a young man who looks more mature, called Peng Shuang.

    The two groups are waiting for their respective division ofbor. Tong Heyi suddenly looked at Zhang Siyi: ¡°Hey, wait, the little guy, he is the British C graduate?¡±

    Zhang Siyi stunned and hurriedly bowed. Tong Heyi extended her index finger and pointed for Zhang Siyi to join his team. He smiled and asked: ¡°Since the analysis of the previous period is two groups of cooperation, do you want to work with Tom in our group? I think you will get along great.¡±

    She was referring to a short foreigner with golden brown hair and grey blue eyes named Tom. Although he is a foreigner, he doesn¡¯t stand out when mixed with a group of Chinese people.

    Just listening to Tong Heyi and Gu Yu¡¯s whole project Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t scared. Tom was just as arrogant as Zhang Siyi, but he did not understand Chinese, so he was sitting there silly and waiting for someone to trante. Zhang Siyi looked to Tom, forced on the enemy, and felt empathy......

    Zhang Siyi was ttered and was trying to take up the olive branch that Tong Heyi had thrown, but he heard a voice saying, ¡°No,¡± Gu Yu held his arm and refused for him without expression. ¡°He is in my department, if he goes to group B, he will bezy.¡±

    Tong Heyi chuckled with a smile: ¡°Hey, ok. Since it won¡¯t work out.¡±

    Zhang Siyi had a moment to fly freely but was brutally swatted to the group by Gu Yu.

    Then, Gu Yu and Tong Heyi discussed some details about the project background with the two than immediately began to distribute the work.

    Zhang Siyi is a neer. Ji Feiyu does not know what work Gu Yu¡¯s has in mind for him. After all this matter is urgent and everyone needs to use the time more efficiently. For this reason, he specially asked Gu Yu: ¡°Boss Gu, what will Zhang Siyi be doing?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Patch.¡±

    Ji Feiyu: ¡°uh...¡±

    Zhang Siyi A little confused, patch? What the hell is that?

    Gu Yu did not exin it and told everyone to get to work immediately. They will meet again at 9 o¡¯clock that night.

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t think he was going to work overtime this evening! Out of the conference room, he whispered to Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°What is the patch?¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen looked at him sympathetically, whispered: ¡°Misceneous work. You help where it is needed.¡±¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± status is so low, it¡¯s better to do an analysis with Tom brother!

    The task assignment soon came down, and Zhang Siyi was asked to find a map of the location of the project, from a wide range to a small range of progression, and to do basic gray processing, and then collect local historical and cultural information, summed up into the main points ... Sure enough, it was all the chores that some junior high school students were capable of.

    Once this information is collected, Zhang Siyi only needs to upload the information to the project team within thepany. With the sharedwork, people who need information can ess it for their own reference.

    Since the job of the ¡®Patch¡¯ person is so fragmented, there isn¡¯t much connection with each assigned task. Seeing everyone so busy, Zhang Siyi is curious about what the others are doing.

    Taking advantage of a break, Zhang Siyi slid the chair over and looked at Zhu Hongzhen¡¯s screen. He saw the other party building a base model. Drawing the model isn¡¯t anything special but he only looked at the work for a minute and Zhang Siyi felt stupid.

    Because the rate at which Zhu Hongzhen is building the model is so fast, Zhang Siyi is surprised. His fat hands move the mouse on the right and his left on the keyboard to create the model. In a blink of an eye, the blocks have risen as if growing on their own and establishing a forest. Zhang Siyi secretly admires the ability of his honest, fat desk-mate.

    He watched for a while, then went around to see what Bi Lele and Yuan Zhicheng were doing. Bi Lele was quickly browsing a set of color matching tables. In the background her program was opened, and she was mumbling to herself ¡°waterfront, riverside, coastal, water, water, water... light blue... ...grey blue...¡±

    ¡°#...¡± She reported a set of color codes, repeatedly stressed, ¡°blue, gray blue...¡±

    On the side, Yuan Zhicheng, who was picking up an aqua, green color, looked up and nced at the color chart on Bi Lele¡¯s screen then scoffed, ¡°tell me earlier¡±, threw the pen to his pencil case in order to find a few gradient blues, then continued to draw.

    The project nned is for the ¡°Riverside Special Economic Zone¡±. Zhang Siyi understands the main theme of this project is water and Bi Lele is currently working on color concepts.

    The architectural design is the building itself. The finished product should represent the harmonious shape and function for the area. Just like a natural beautiful woman who has no need for makeup and costume to capture the eye. Therefore, its considered taboo for professionals to use fancy disys, and high-force text design. Its main color tone will never be more than a few. This kind of monochromatic aesthetic of ck, white and grey is what many architects use. Also, presetting the main base color can significantly unify the pre-analysis charts and sketch tones to reduce duplication.

    The simultaneous cooperation with Bi Lele and Yuan Zhicheng has been quite amazing. Zhang Siyi was mesmerized by Yuan Zhicheng ability to draw.

    By only looking at the scenic photos Zhang Siyi found for reference, Yuan Zhicheng is quickly able to capture the essence of the images and incorporate it into the design ns. With a few pens¡¯ lines and sweeping motions, a scene unfolds like magic. Light blue clouds floating in the sky with architectural perspective, shadows and highlights all give rise to a life-like interpretation of the project. There is no question the talent of the colleague who graduated from a fine arts school.

    It is no wonder that Du Rui said his drawings were beautiful. Yuan Zhicheng¡¯s picture were works of art to enjoy in a museum. Looking at them motivated Zhang Siyi to practice drawing.

    Zhang Siyi asked, ¡°You are drawing so many pictures at once. Are you going to use them all?¡±

    Yuan Zhicheng didn¡¯t have time to lift head, and he quickly said: ¡°The more you draw the more you will have to pick.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Isn¡¯t that wasteful?¡±

    Yuan Zhicheng: ¡°Which drawing is a waste? The process of drawing itself is the creative aspect that stimtes us. Maybe the next picture will lead to more inspiration, right?¡±

    Like the sun shining through dark clouds on a rainy day, Zhang Siyi is reminded of his college professors teaching. The soul of creativity is to just do. Design, work, draw, write, think... inspiration will follow.

    As he spoke, Tom in Group B came over, and he smiled at Zhang Siyi, then said to Bi Lele in broken Chinese: ¡°This, the picture, diagram.¡±

    Zhang Siyi helped trante and Tom was very grateful. He immediately exined in English the drawing hepleted was the green analysis map and the main street analysis map of the plot.

    ¡°Oh! I understand! Aunt Four, you are free? Can you help me scan Tom¡¯s drawings?¡± Bi Lele handed the drawings to Zhang Siyi.

    Zhang Siyi took the papers to the copier. Standing there while waiting, he flipped through the analysis chart of Tom¡¯s drawing. After reading it, the only capital he was proud of was burned and beaten. Zhang Siyi felt woefully inadequate.

    At 6: 30 p.m., the team leaders called the members of the project to the dining area to have dinner. Zhang Siyi put down the work at hand and went over to eat. Since most everyone felt pressured and rushed, they took their meals back to their desks to work while eating dinner.

    Feeling like a small fry, Zhang Siyi¡¯s isn¡¯t in a hurry. Ji Feiyu passed him, nodded, then let him continue eating slowly.

    After Zhang Siyi sat down, he saw Gu Yu and Tong Heyi together not far away. They were discussing the project while eating. The words nd and resources administration¡± and ¡°government nning instructions¡± were all words that Zhang Siyi had never heard of.

    Zhang Siyi was very upset. He felt like a small boat floating in the sea and the breeze takes him wherever it goes without purpose and meaning of existence.

    Feeling dispirited, Zhang Siyi with his head down walked up to the bin to throw his trash away. When he looked up, he saw Gu Yu looking at him thoughtfully as if he had been observing him for a long time. His eyes were straightforward, examining. When the two men¡¯s eyes met, Zhang Siyi was a little embarrassed, but Gu Yu calmly turned away.

    Zhang Siyi felt like he had to sneak back to work. He knew that Gu Yu kept track of all his subordinates, but this was the first time he discovered that he was being watched. It made him feel very nervous.

    ... Is there something that I have not done yet? Is Gu Yu dissatisfied with his performance? Should he have taken his meal to his desk too? Zhang Siyi shook his head, and immediately took the initiative to find Ji Feiyu for more patch work.

    At 9 o¡¯clock in the evening, everyone gathered in the conference room for the meeting. Ji Feiyu and Peng Shuang led the discussion and reported to the group.

    Zhang Siyi looked at the analysis of both the background and current situation of the project, as well as the city development of the current plot in just a few hours. Not only has ten people almostpleted half of the preliminary analysis work, but also made a power-point presentation thanks to Bi Lele. Zhang Siyi is so stunned!

    At this moment, Zhang Siyi discovered that he was not on a small boat but a huge battleship lead by Gu Yu and Tong Heyi. All the talented people here were together for amon goal and ready to set sail.

    Gu Yu continued somements: ¡°There is another problem. The city of Z is currently in a state of high construction. The photos that can be found online aren¡¯t necessarily urate. Since there are likely changes to the area, we need to go to the scene as soon as possible to conduct site inspections and document the area.¡± The crowd looked at each other, and everyone¡¯s workload was so much currently, that they couldn¡¯t spare any time at all.

    Gu Yu frowned, looked at everyone in the group, then looked at the most idle person, Zhang Siyi and asked: ¡°Do you have a camera?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°uhm yes...¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°What brand?

    Zhang Siyi thought that Gu Yu wanted to borrow a camera and immediately reported the model and lens: ¡°Canon 5d2, ef24-105, ef70-200.¡±

    A boy who understands photography eximed: ¡°nouveau riche!¡±

    Gu Yu nodded and said: ¡°Go back home and prepare your camera and bag. You wille with me tomorrow morning and fly to the city. I¡¯ll make a reservation for the ticket at night and tell you the timeter.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

 : 21 Business Trip

    <h4>Chapter: 21 Business Trip</h4>

    __________________________

    When Zhang Siyi returned home that night, it was almost ten o¡¯clock.

    As he was traveling on the subway, he received the booking information about his flight from the personnel department. The flight is at 7:05 tomorrow morning.

    He threw himself on the bed feeling like the day was a dream. This morning, he was still struggling with his work content and how to address Gu Yu about it. Instead, he is going to travel with him tomorrow morning!

    The phone buzzed. Zhang Si Yi saw a stranger¡¯s ID and was about to delete it thinking it was more spam messages. Luckily, he caught a glimpse of the message ¨C ¡± remember to arrive at the airport 45 minutes in advance, do not bete.¡±

    Zhang Siyi nced, quickly sat up, got out the business card that Gu Yu gave him during the interview andpared. It really is the number of Gu Yu!

    He immediately returned the text. ¡°Yes¡± then put the other party into his address book.

    Arriving at the airport 45 minutes in advance means that he must arrive before 6:20. Thinking backwards that means with time for the subway, he must get up at 5:10 at thetest! Zhang Siyi dares not dawdle. He got up swiftly to rummage through his belongings to find his camera, then plugged it into the outlet to charge the battery. After, he went to the bath for a quick shower.

    In the shower, he thought of another question: how long does it take to visit the area on this business trip? The project time is so urgent, can theye back that day?

    After returning to the bedroom, Zhang Siyi grabbed the phone and sent a message to Gu Yu: ¡°Will we spend the night there?¡±

    After five or six minutes, the other party replied: ¡°At least one night.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    He would have to bring a change of clothes!

    Zhang Si Yi grabbed some underwear and t-shirts and stuffed them into a bag. He then realized if he ended up sharing a room with Gu Yu he didn¡¯t want to be sleeping in just underwear. He also packed extra pants to sleep in. Zhang Siyi was so busy all day his body feel fatigued, but his mind is still racing. He felt really excited about the uing trip and couldn¡¯t get himself to fall asleep. Already past midnight, Zhang Siyi habitually opened the phone and checked his chat groups online. He felt bored doing so. With swift thumb movements he entered in Gu Yu mobile phone number into the search page. There is an avatar of a calligraphy brush ¡°Gu¡± and the ¡°Quiet Zhiyuan¡± that he has in his office. That must be Gu Yu!

    Zhang Siyi hesitated for a moment, then boldly clicked ¡°add¡±. After a bit, the information page showed they were friends and could start chatting. Gu Yu passed the verification but there was no other reaction.

    Zhang Si Yi¡¯s heart jumped. Looked at the confirmation, then thought the polite thing to do is say hello to his superiors so he asked: ¡°you are not asleep?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°I double checked the flight information, why don¡¯t you sleep? Still online chatting with friends?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...no, I am going to sleep.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Oh, It¡¯s going to be a busy day tomorrow so get to sleep. Don¡¯teining to me about how tired you are.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± he shouldn¡¯t have added him to WeChat! ¡±

    Good night! Zhang Siyiy down with his eyes closed for a while but could not fall asleep. The gossip factor in his mind was moving around excitedly ¨C he just added Gu Yu¡¯s WeChat and wanted to find out more about him.

    He picked up the phone again, then shrunk back into his covers and opened Gu Yu avatar.

    With a quick scan, Zhang Siyi¡¯s hopes fell through. Gu Yu has made very few posts mostly rted to architectural design or forwarding articles.

    Only twice had he made a more private remark. Once was 1.5 ago, Gu Yu patted a roadside wildcat, described as ¡°cute kitten¡±. Zhang Siyi can¡¯t see his mood and state. The second time is a half year ago. He posted a picture of the cactus when small ball was still attached to it. Gu Yu¡¯s description of them is ¡°new life.¡±

    Zhang Si Yi made a frown at the phone. It wasn¡¯t very interesting, so he turned off the phone to sleep.

    At 5 o¡¯clock the next morning, the rm woke up Zhang Siyi. He got up quickly, washed, grabbed his stuff, and hurriedly left. He didn¡¯t have time to talk to Fu Xinhui.

    At 6:10 in the morning, Gu Yu called Zhang Siyi and asked him where he was.

    ¡°I am out of the subway! I will be there soon!¡± Zhang Siyi grabbed the mobile phone and walked out of the subway station, but his luck wasn¡¯t so great. The station near the airport was under construction. It looked like a disaster zone.

    Gu Xiao seems to hear Zhang Siyi stumbling, indicating: ¡°Go along the ground deformation seam, then turn right and turn again.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡±???¡±

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t understand Gu Yu directions at all. He noticed the temporary detour sign and walked faster. Finally, he saw the airport entrance and rushed over. Still holding onto the phone, he said ¡°I¡¯m here! Where are you?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°I am at the ¡®departure level¡¯, the junction of area c and d.¡±

    Fortunately, Zhang Siyi was familiar with the airport and quickly went to the location with the fastest speed. He saw Gu Yu standing there.

    Gu Yu was wearing a windproof jacket today with a ck shirt inside, crocheted autumn scarf around his neck, retro ck casual shoes, backpack in one hand and a mobile phone in the other talking. He doesn¡¯t look like an architect, but like a college student instead.

    Zhang Siyi waved his hand and rushed over. With a slight frown, Gu Yu hung up the mobile phone. The two of them hurriedly got in line to check in.

    After a morning of anxiously, rushing around, Zhang Siyi sat down with sweat all down his back. He couldn¡¯t move, and his calf leg started to cramp. It was only after the flight attendant pushed the cart for breakfast and a cup of instant hot coffee, that he could start to rx.

    Gu Yu folded his scarf and asked slowly: ¡°What did you want to tell me yesterday afternoon?¡±

    Zhang Siyi stunned and reacted. Gu Yu was asking about the conversation they had not been able to continue yesterday.

    He felt a little guilty. He was being cocky. After he saw all the talented colleagues working hard yesterday, he no longer felt so self-important. Everyone is better than him. Everyone is more capable than him, and more diligent and hardworking. What other qualifications does he have to be picky?

    Zhang Siyi shook his head and found an excuse to put off the past indiscriminately.

    Gu Xiao also did not continue to press, after a while, suddenly said: ¡°I saw your circle of friends on the subway today.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was shocked. Gu Yu looked through his postings? He tried desperately to remember if he sent anything strange and wondered if the work n photos sent a few days ago be a little silly.

    Unexpectedly Gu Yu said: ¡°You have been to many ces.¡±

    ¡°Oh...¡± Indeed, before he returned to China, he went to several countries in Europe and took photos and posted them to his social media ount frequently. However, there isn¡¯t much currently. Zhang Siyi smiled twice and said, ¡°It¡¯s just a matter of walking.¡±

    ¡°Is there really a tortoise under the porch column of the Holy Family Cathedral? ¡°asked Gu Xiao.

    ¡°Yes, a turtle or a tortoise.¡± Zhang Siyi, he replied. He remembers the surprise when he first saw the cathedral in Spain. The cathedral facades were so detailed andplex. The interior columns so magnificent and the whole space was spectacr. Gu Yu¡¯s questions spurred Zhang Siyi on. He excitedly talked about his travels.

    Gu Yu listened to him carefully, smiled: ¡°You seems to remember quite a lot.¡±

    Zhang Si Yi suddenly a little speechless?

    Gu Yu said again: ¡°Although most of the posts have very boring content, but the photos you take are pretty good;position ratio is good.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu turned towards him and said: ¡°But, to tell you the truth, you aren¡¯t very photogenic. In the future, don¡¯t take a selfie.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu continued: ¡°Besides, the frequency with which you have recently made posts have decreased. Overtime is good for you.

    Zhang Siyi mad Chatting with friends is too much? Why does Gu Yu keep bringing this up? Zhang Siyi isn¡¯t at the office, why does he have to endure his endless poison tongue ah!

    He couldn¡¯t help but fight back: ¡°I also looked at your circle of friends.¡±

    Gu Xiao provoked eyebrows: ¡°Oh?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Don¡¯t you have a personal life other than work?¡±

    He summed up the content of Gu Yu¡¯s circle of friends. Is he just focused, or a boring person?

    Gu Yu nced at him and smiled and asked: ¡°Do you want to know more about my private life?¡±

    Zhang Siyi originally wanted to vomit, but I couldn¡¯t think of it, ¡°I just thought you would send something that was not rted to work.¡±

    Gu Yu nodded: ¡°Yes, it¡¯s just that you can¡¯t see it.¡± He sighed slightly.

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s nced at him. Oh? Is it a group of friends who have set up a separate group?

    Sure enough, Gu Yu exined: ¡°Private life is inherently private, and of course it can only be shown to intimate people. You are not my intimate person, why should I let you know what I look like in private?¡±

    Zhang Siyi was dumbfounded. Gu Yu¡¯spletely concise statement erected a clear boundary between them. A boss and his subordinate. Whatever misconceptions he had about being from the same high school were eliminated. He felt isted.

    Zhang Siyi had nothing to say, and sat there in a daze, with a strange sense of loss in his heart.

    Gu Yu saw him silent, after a minute, only a euphemism: ¡°I also advise you to send less meaningless posts about food, clothing and shelter. Other than your mother, I think probably no one will remember what you ate a week ago. Life is not for others to see. The frequency of news-posts can only indicate a seriousck of self-identity.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Is thisforting? Why did he not feelfortable, but more depressed?

    The conversation was terminated. Gu Yu leaned against the seat and closed his eyes for the three hours flight. Both got up very early in the morning and the drone of the ne spurred people to sleep.

    Until the announcer used the PA system to remind people to get ready fornding, Zhang Siyi was asleep. He didn¡¯t know when he started leaning on Gu Yu and then to his horror, he saw that he drooled.

    At that time, Gu Yu was already awake and was calmly turning pages of the magazine on the ne.

    Zhang Siyi sat up straight, embarrassed. Gu Yu looked at him and said: ¡°You are very keen to soil my clothes. Coffee, vomit and now saliva. Is there anything else in the future?¡± Gu Yu¡¯s low voice has an inexplicable attraction. There is a smile in his tone, but he doesn¡¯t know whether it¡¯s ridicule or a joke. No matter what, Gu Yu¡¯s harsh tongue always exists. The difference is, sometimes it makes Zhang Siyi irritated and other times, it lets him blush.

    Zhang Siyi whispered a few ¡°sorry¡±, scrambled to take paper towels for him to wipe. If Bi Lele knew drooled and slept on the Boss¡¯s shoulder, he would never hear the end of it.

    Getting off the ne, they got a taxi and went straight to the area of development.

    On the road, Gu Yu casually talked with the driver and asked him if he knew that the government was nning to build in the eastern New Town area. The driver nodded and spoke with a Minnan ent: ¡°It was on the TV news.¡±

    Gu Xiao: ¡°Do you know what they will build on thisnd?¡±

    Drivers: ¡°Others carry out the development. Ourmon people don¡¯t understand. We just make ends meet with a house to live in.¡±

    Gu Yu joked and asked: ¡°If they build houses to live for you, do you think it is good?¡±

    The driver smiled and shook his head: ¡°It¡¯s not good, there is a leading port. There is frequent flooding under heavy rain and it is not safe to live there.¡±

    Gu Yu glimpsed it as they drove by. He and took out a ck pocket recorder from his coat and continued asking him questions. Zhang Siyi took out the camera and hung it around his neck, adjusted the shutter and sensitivity, and took a picture of the road that the car passed. Sure enough, the site was very different from the photos he found. Many houses around the site had been demolished, and some areas had new buildings.

    The taxi took a while to drive all the way around the 250 Hechter lot, then the two got out of the car. Zhang Siyi isn¡¯t sure if it¡¯s just the day or regr local climate, but it¡¯s wet and gloomy out. Gu Yu opened the mobile phone map and starting walking into the property site with Zhang Siyi following.

    There are many houses waiting for demolition at the scene. The internal roads are muddy and wet. The route is chaotic, and the living environment and life style are very poor.

    Although Z City is a second-tier city, the degree of development here is not up to standard. It is no wonder that a lot of nning and development are needed.

    Zhang Siyi has been taking pictures for more than two hours. Gu Yu asionally would stop to talk to nearby citizens to find out more about the situation. Most of the questions asked were simr questions as what he asked the taxi driver.

    It was hard to get from the southern border to the north border. Zhang Siyi has been tired and thirsty. His two legs felt fatigued. It¡¯s not that he¡¯s physically weak. When he and Fu Xinhui were traveling outside, they didn¡¯t feel tired when they walked away for a day, but now it¡¯s a matter of difference.

    Gu Yu saw him looking tired. He checked the time and asked: ¡°Hungry?¡±

    ¡°Hungry! Hungry!¡± Zhang Siyi¡¯s eyes were beaming, and his stomach was hungry and waiting for Gu Yu to pay for food. Can I finally rest? Can I eat and have good business trip?

    Gu Yu looked around and saw a biscuit stand not far away, so he bought two and handed one to Zhang Siyi: ¡°Eat and continue taking pictures.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    He now understands why yesterday, Gu Yu said that the phrase ¡°Don¡¯t cry¡±. He is fucking wanting to cry now!

    It¡¯s no wonder no one volunteered to go with Gu Yu on a business trip. The rest of the group was relieved. He was too stupid for getting excited all night and thinking that this trip was going to be great. Is this what the designer can do? It¡¯s more tiering than an ox plow!

    The two men squatted on the side of the road like migrant workers, eating the snacks and drinking mineral water that they got from the ne ride.

    Zhang Siyi nced at Gu Yu who is deep in thought and wondered why he can be so calm in this environment. After they finish eating, they continue their way.

    The two arrived at the leading port that the driver described. Sure enough, due to frequent flooding, the surface water system was bad. Although there was no rain, there were many potholes in the spot. Moreover, the leading port is the most important water system in the region, but the water quality is terrible. The oil and the phytonkton are scattered all over.

    Zhang Siyi took a photo and a heavy feeling came up.

    Zhang Siyi can¡¯t quite put his finger on the feeling. Yesterday while looking for photos online he was just a bystander looking into a field separated by time and space. He only regarded it as his work obligations. Perhaps it was the hopes of those residents who they spoke with or Perhaps it was the flood of dirty water, but now after a day of being in the space for real, he feels that he was not just an outsider. A sense of purpose wells up from the bottom of his heart.

    Gu Yan stood on the side of the dpidated river bank and called the people in thepany. It seems that the boss of thendscape nning department also came to the scene to see. Hanging up the phone, the two went on. From the time of the flight to 5 or 6 in the evening, the two had not rested except for the ten-minute meal. After a day of non-stop, Zhang Siyi finally finished shooting the photos of the property before dark. At thest minute his camera battery waspletely exhausted.

    Gu Yu searched on his mobile phone to pick out a budget hotel in the liveliest ce in the city center then let the driver know. By the time they got out of the taxi to arrive at the hotel, Zhang Siyi felt his two legs were not his own.

    Zhang Siyi has someints in his heart. If they are tired for a day, can they not live better? There is no shortage of money. Because the hotel has both a good location and price, there are no vacant rooms.

    Originally, Gu Yu wanted to book two single rooms, but was told that they were all gone. Only standard rooms where left. At least the room was clean andfortable.

    Going into the room and putting his things down Zhang Siyi, feeling dizzy, instinctively went to the nearest bed. He miscalcted the distance and Instead ofnding on the bed, he missed the edge by half his body length and slid down onto the floor with his hand grasping the sheets.

    Gu Yu couldn¡¯t stopughing at Zhang Siyi.

 Chapter 22: Fight

    <h4>Chapter 22: Fight</h4>

    ___________________

    Gu Yu was also afraid of falling asleep, so he chose to keep himself busy before dinner. He washed up briefly in the restroom then went downstairs, leaving the copsed Zhang Siyi on the floor. Not long after, he called Zhang Siyi. He was so tired he had lost his appetite. If Gu Yu hadn¡¯t called him, he probably would have been able to sleep all night. On tired wobbly legs, Zhang Siyi got up and met Gu Yu downstairs.

    Because of his disappointment during lunch, he was mentally preparing himself for more cheap snacks while walking down the stairs. He still felt bitter about his biscuit and cheap hotel.

    They left the hotel and Zhang Siyi followed Gu Yu from behind. Gu Yu was holding his phone and looking at it periodically, following a map. Once they got to their destination, Zhang Siyi was shocked. It really was a rinky-dinky shack! The cheapskate!

    However, despite its outward appearance it was a sand tea noodle restaurant. The ce was full of customers ¨C a good sign. Rich aroma and freshness perforated the air revitalizing his spirit.

    After waiting for less than a minute, the they sat at the vacant table. Gu Yu ordered a lot of things; cuttlefish, pork belly, fish tofu, fresh shrimp, and beef tenderloin to name a few and the price is not expensive. He can hardly believe how good it tastes! He used to go to a Xiamen specialty restaurant for sand tea noodles in Haicheng but the bowl of noodles there can¡¯tpare with the bowl in front of him!

    As Zhang Siyi eats the bowl of noodles, he can only think of the vor permeating his senses. The vor of peanut butter and spicy taste are melded together. So good! Fireworks are exploding in his brain.

    ¡°Is it delicious?¡± Gu Yu asked.

    ¡°uhm¡±, he mumbles with noodles in his mouth.¡± He doesn¡¯t know if it¡¯s because he is so tired and hungry or not, but the food is the best thing he has ever tasted. He can¡¯t stop himself from shoveling the food into his mouth nonstop. He has little time to talk or even breath. At the moment he is tasting the definition of the word ¡°delicious¡± and will be able to go to heaven!

    ¡°Ha ha¡­¡­¡±

    Hearing theughter of Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi looked up with a few pieces of noodle handing out of his mouth and saw Gu Yu looking at him with a smile. Under the dim light of the old shop, A pair of beautiful eyes like ck ss, were shining and full of warmth.

    Zhang Si Yi stared at Gu Yu stunned. Gu Yu lowered his eyes exposing his longshes and looked at his bowl of noodles. While stirring the contents with his chopsticks he spoke: ¡°This store is very famous in the city of Z.¡±

    He swallowed the twice chewed, squid eggs and coughed then asked, ¡°Have you been here?¡±

    Gu Yu said: ¡°No, I checked itst night.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    So, the information that Gu Yu asked when he sleptst night was a ce where he could take Zhang Siyi to dinner. Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know what to say. For a moment, he felt that the tiredness of suffering during the day turned to dust and scattered in the breeze. Is it over? Zhang Siyi isn¡¯t going to have Stockholm syndrome, anymore is he? Gu Yu was so mean to him this morning on the ne. He said one thing, but his actions are totally different now.

    Because of Gu Yu frequent teasing, in his mind Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t want to acknowledge Gu Yu at all. But the care he experienceding to this restaurant with Gu Yu tested his resolve. The taste of soup has dispelled any negative feelings. He felt so peaceful and rxed that he couldn¡¯t help letting his heart grow in warmth.

    Gu Yu ate for a while and asked him: ¡°Do you have any thoughts on the venue today?¡±

    If Gu Yu had asked him this question earlier before eating, Zhang Siyi would have probably had one word to describe his thoughts; tired. Feeling invigorated by the sugar-coated sand tea noodles, Zhang Siyi finally turned on his tired brain: ¡°I feel the environment is very bad.¡±

    Even though it¡¯s the same city, the old Town of Z City is so prosperous, but the new district is so deste and defeated. The economical difference was very apparent between the parts of the city. Here in the city center, wealthy people can sojourn on safe roads, eat great food like the tea noodles and stroll around at the night market. Across the way, the people on the other side of town are wrapped in quilts, dark and muddy hoping tomorrow brings a sunny day.

    The government turned thend into a new area. For those who live there, it may be redemption. However, the method of saving them now requires a considerable amount of thought. Zhang Siyi suddenly understood the feeling of heaviness of the afternoon was. It was a sense of responsibility. He didn¡¯t know what to do. He couldn¡¯t help but stir the noodle soup and sighed in his heart.

    Gu Yu just asked casually. He didn¡¯t expect him to have a thoughtful answer, and then asked: ¡°When you came, did you find that the road is blocked?¡± Zhang Siyi shook his head. When he came, he wasn¡¯t really paying attention to the flow of traffic.

    Gu Xiao Road: ¡°Z City¡¯s current poption is 5 million people. There are 250,000 private cars, per capita.¡± He put a little tea on his finger and drew two circles on the table. ¡°Here we are now, the old town and that circle is the railway station, the city¡¯s transportation hub. ¡°He used more tea to make another line in the middle. ¡°This is the new riverside nning area, but the status of the middle route is very bad. ¡°

    Zhang Siyi startled, is that a problem they need to solve? Gu Yu did not say more and continued to eat noodles. Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t have the energy anymore to think about it deeply.

    After dinner, they did not rush back to the hotel. Instead, Gu Yu took Zhang Siyi out to stroll around the night market. At the side of the road, they continued to taste some of the local favorites such as four-fruit soup and friend kueh. After walking for a little, Zhang Siyi started to understand the purpose of this night. Gu Yu didn¡¯t just want him to eat, but to experience the people in the vicinity and the life they live in order to understand them better.

    Gu Yu asked a stall vendor, ¡°Where can I buy an old map?¡± The vendor refers them to an old bookstore, but it is currently closed and will reopen tomorrow morning at 8.

    The two did not have a long time to go shopping and returned to the hotel by 8pm. Gu Yu took theptop and asked Zhang Siyi to copy the photos from the camera. The night was organized and sent to thepany. Poor Zhang Siyi got up at five in the morning and was enved by Gu Yu in the hotel at 8 o¡¯clock in the evening!

    He handled hundreds of photos and was fighting to stay awake. He selected the images one by one and wrote a document describing the location of the photos in the ssified folder. When everything is done, Gu Yu was finished with his shower. Coming out of the bathroom he had changed into a white T-shirt, like the one coffee spilled on, and grey cotton pants. He was wiping his still wet hair when he approached Zhang Siyi to look at his results.

    When he bent down and leaned over to look at theputer screen, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t help but feel his presence and smelled a touch of shower gel fragrance emanating from Gu Yu body. His memories of his youthful admiration of the person standing before him were stimted. At the same time, he is somewhat embarrassed to learn the person he admired is now his Boss.

    If they hadn¡¯t seen each other then he may have forgotten about it entirely. But, seeing each other every day, Zhang Siyi has an inexplicable emotion that is buried deep within his soul. Once opened, the force, unstoppable willpletely surround him and make him feel drunk with joy.

    When Zhang Siyi turned his head, he saw Gu Yu¡¯s neck and corbone close at hand. The other person¡¯s skin is very smooth. Observing more closely he sees the cut of muscles on his arms. Since he is usually dressed in thin clothes, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t notice it before. Zhang Siyi inexplicably remembered the ¡°sexual coolness. Handsome¡± that Fu Xinhui described.

    Gu Yu suddenly sighed: ¡°Yes, I will take over uploading the information to the servers for now. It¡¯s your turn for a shower.¡± Zhang Siyi took back his thoughts and quickly stood up and walked away. After taking a shower, Gu Yu said to him: ¡°Your cell phone has been ringing several times.¡±

    Zhang Siyi saw Fu Xinfei¡¯s many missed calls. Even if they live together, he has been so busy that their lives hadn¡¯t intersected at all. Since he didn¡¯t say hello to him after working overtimest night and since he left so early this morning, he never exined his absence and his friend is probably worried.

    Zhang Siyi went to the corner and gave Fu Xinhui a call: ¡°It is me, I am now in Z City, F Province.¡±

    Fu Xinfei growled, ¡°Damn it, why are you running so far?!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I¡¯m on a temporary business trip ¡­¡±

    Fu Xinfei: ¡°You don¡¯t say anything about a business trip! Jiang Hai and I thought you were abducted and sold!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I was so busy, I don¡¯t have time to tell you. I¡¯m too tired to exin right now. I may be back tomorrow.¡±

    Fu Xinfei: ¡°Eh ah ¡­¡±

    In the presence of Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi did not have the nerve to continue talking. He hung up the phone, slowly climbed onto the bed and wrote Fu Xinfei a short message: ¡°I¡¯m here with my boss so I can¡¯t talk now.¡±

    Just after finishing this sentence, Gu Yu turned off theputer and turned his head. Seeing Zhang Siyi¡¯s sneaky look, he raised his eyebrows and asked: ¡°Boyfriend?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡­¡­..¡±

    Zhang Siyi was very defensive: ¡°No!!! ¡°

    After hanging the wet towel on the back of a chair, Gu Yu got into bed toy down. He took a pillow and put it behind his back and said, ¡°Is he the one you call Heartless Han? The one that picked you up when drunk?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°It¡¯s him, but he¡¯s just my roommate!¡±

    With an indeterminate expression Gu Xiao slowly formed ¡°oh¡± then said: ¡°I noticed a lot of pictures with him on your social media page, especially when traveling.¡±

    Zhang Siyi suddenly remembered that on the day of the cafe, his ex-girlfriend also used him of this problem! Oh, my gosh, if Gu Xiao had always thought it was true ¡­ Oh, my God! So what kind of lens is he looking at Zhang Siyi with? Think of him as a gay guy? Zhang Siyi does not know how to prove his innocence!

    ¡°We are just roommates! His name is Fu Xinhui, and ¡® Heartless Han ¡® is his nickname! ¡°Zhang Siyi grabbed the sheets and turned his back to Gu Yu. Gu Yu didn¡¯t think Zhang Siyi was going to get so defensive and freak out.¡±

    Gu Yu gave him a meaningful look and smiled: ¡°You¡¯re so serious. I am just teasing you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Ten minutester, Gu Yu was busy on his iPad researching some of the construction information. He nced over and saw Zhang Siyipletely encased in the nkets and bedding with only his head sticking out. So as not to set off Zhang Siyi again, Gu Yu used his hand to hide hisughing and smiling face. Displeased with himself, in the bed Zhang Si Yi silently shed tears.

    The next day when Zhang Siyi woke up, the bed next door was empty. When he saw the time, he was surprised to find the time illuminated on the bedside clock was 9am. Gu Yu didn¡¯t wake him up and let him sleep in! He quickly got up and washed, then sent a message to Gu Yu on WeChat. ¡°Where are you?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Oh, you are up now? I am in the old bookstore. I¡¯ll be back in a while. Wait for me in the room.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Is there anything I need to be doing?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°No, go eat first.¡±

    When Gu Yu came back, he had a big bag of books. He emptied he bag and showed them to Zhang Siyi. There were some old maps, local customs, and city magazines.

    He did not understand: ¡°Why buy old maps?¡±

    ¡°Introducing thew of urban development and expansion in Z province for past few years,¡± Gu Yu simply exined, pulling out the room card, ¡°Still hungry? Let¡¯s go eat another local specialty: cat porridge.¡±

    ¡°Aren¡¯t we in a hurry today ¡± Zhang Siyi is a little flustered. Is it his imagination? It seems like Gu Yu is in a particrly good mood today.

    ¡°We aren¡¯t in a rush. We need to wait until Chen Gong arrives before we can go to the scene again. Then we will return to Haicheng at night.¡± Zhang Siyi thinks Chen Gong is the head of thendscape nning department. Zhang Siyi breathed a sigh of relief. He followed Gu Yu out the door then asked him what cat porridge was.

    Gu Yu said that cat porridge is simr to seafood porridge from home. There are fish fillets, meat, shrimps, oysters, etc. ording to the locals, the story says a cook made it for his cats, so it¡¯s called cat porridge. Ning Cheng, the hometown of the two, is also close to the sea so there are some simrities in food preferences. Like with the noodles, Zhang Siyi earnestly ate the bowl of cat porridge really enjoying the vor. He is starting to like this business trip. Just a little.

    At 10:30 in the morning, Chen Gong¡¯s ne arrived in Z City. The two men packed up and went to the scene to meet with him. Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t help much. He listened to Gu Yu and him talk. Gu Yu said that it is necessary to devote more than half of the plot for a flood control system. Then the two talked about some water treatment methods, types of water diversion, dredging, microbial purification and so on.

    Zhang Siyi heard the fog in the clouds and looked at it. Aren¡¯t they just architects? Why should we consider this ecological environment? And the most important thing is, why does Gu Yu know even these things? Is he omnipotent?

    Although he is yearning for something in his heart, he is also very confused. The strength and maturity of Gu Yu is like a high mountain standing in front of him. Zhang Siyi cannot match him and cannot overtake him.

    Especially after these two days of contact, the adoration of this person from middle school seems to slowly awaken from the bottom of his heart. How can Zhang Siyi escape? He can¡¯t hide the influence Gu Yu has on him. Although Zhang Siyi was very unhappy while being trained, as Du Rui said, Gu Xiao has the means and methods to educate him.

    Gu Yu and Chen Gong exchanged a few more ideas and took more photos. Then returned to Haicheng in the evening with a sessful business trippleted.

    When Zhang Siyi returned to thepany on the third day of the morning. The colleagues of the team project had alreadypleted the corresponding changes with the new photos they sent the night before and did some relevant case analysis of sewage purification content at home and abroad. After the Gu Yu¡¯s approval, they began working on the next phase of the project.

    Three dayster, the project team was divided into two. From the initial analysis, each of them summed up their ideas and thus began thepetition for the design bid.

    Again, Zhang Siyi was assigned to patch duties, but this time he no longerined and didn¡¯t feel resentful. With rapt attention, he saw his colleagues joined forces; analyze, report, n, argue, draw and create a wonderful n. His excitement rose.

    Sometimes, they are not just designers, but also salesmen and speakers. Before a design is selected, they must convince not only themselves, but also satisfy the other peoples¡¯ needs.

    Demanding perfection, Gu Yu is like a generalmanding his troops. As long he points the way with his eyes and pen, the team can¡¯t lose. After 7 days of making corrections and revisions to n, it is finally time to reveal the designs.

    At ten o¡¯clock in the morning, thepany¡¯srgest conference room opened. The importance of the project was evident by thepany¡¯s rare appearance of several chief architects as well as consultants from the X Institute of nning.

    Quietly sitting in a far corner of the room, full of excitement, Zhang Siyi seized the opportunity to watch such arge asion. The first report was given by Group A representative, Ji Feiyu. Although Zhang Siyi was already familiar with his group¡¯s n, he still listened very attentively.

    Afterprehensively considering the conclusions from the previous analysis, they determined the nning orientation of the new district. That is, to solve the problems of residence, flood discharge,ndscape and traffic, and based on the rtionships between them, divided the sections from the leading port, then further divided the 250-hectare plots ording to the area requirements of each function. Each block is again divided into small blocks, each of which performs its own functions. Some build houses, some domercial use, and some buildndscapes. In this way, more than 300 can be built. Thend of the football field waspletely digested.

    Their n has no special ¡°concepts¡± and so-called ¡°symbolic meanings¡±. Everything is logically nned ording to actual analysis and needs. At first nce, there aren¡¯t shy areas, but every step is methodical, and every detail of the n is impably thought of.

    After Ji Feiyu¡¯s report was over, all the members of Group A were apuded with confidence then Peng Shuang, the representative of the Child Labor Group, stood up and gave his presentation.

    Since the beginning of the design phase of therge project, the two groups of people consciously bannedmunication so they wouldn¡¯t affect each other¡¯s design ns. Therefore, this is the first time that the group A partners have seen B group design in the seven days.

    The light in the room was dimmed down. Peng Shuang stood on the side of the projection screen and pressed the slide show button. Zhang Siyi was shocked at the image he saw. The first print n of the lot that Group B designed was actually made into a huge lily!

 Chapter 23: Light

    <h4>Chapter 23: Light</h4>

    ___________________

    Most of the people in the conference room reacted like Zhang Siyi. They were shocked by the image of the flower.

    As Peng¡¯s presentation continued people were immersed in theyout highlights and it seemed like everyone had some preconceived notions about the design. Many people weren¡¯t paying attention to the details of Peng¡¯s speech.

    Anyway, it sounds almost the same as his teams¡¯ n with logical cement of buildings and utilities within the designyout. However, the simrities ended there. While Group A design was based on being cost effective within the guidelines of the rules and regtions. Group B design is solely based on dividing the whole plot through various roadways into a flower with each section bing a petal.

    The flower theme was derived from the Chinese Daffodil meaning rebirth and wealth. It is the flower of Z City. Peng Shuang introduced the flower theme because Group B wanted to capitalize on the flower¡¯s meaning and infuse these essences into the city to create a new soul.

    After Peng Shuang finished speaking, everyone expressed excitement. This kind of scheme is very eye-catching and innovative.

    However, Zhang Siyi thought this scheme has problems. While many parts to the n were like a mirror to his own group¡¯s n, there were parts that seemed impractical. He can¡¯t tell if he feels this way because he is in thepeting group or not.

    At this moment, Gu Yu held his arm and calmly asked Peng Shuang: ¡°What solutions do you have in the actual implementation and construction of the project?¡± Although this is only an internal meeting, not a real bid, it is good practice to debate the details in the n in preparation for a live bid. Except for the people representing a design n, normally everyone else are government officials or developers and they can ask as many questions as they want. The representing Group is required to give them reasonable exnations and answers.

    Peng Shuangyi said, ¡°This is not yet¡­¡±

    He wanted to say, ¡°we haven¡¯t considered it yet¡±, but this is absolutely taboo when reporting, so Child Labor with rtively rich experience immediately interrupted him: ¡°We are still considering it, and there are already some preliminary stages, but there isn¡¯t an in-depth analysis yet.¡±

    Gu Yu scrutinized the n: ¡°That can also be said about your preliminary ideas.¡±

    Everyone was silent. Zhu Hongzhen touched Zhang Siyi¡¯s arm with his elbow and used his eyes to indicate that ¡°a good show ising¡±.

    Child Labor paused and said: ¡°As a government-led first-phase n, we envisioned starting the rectification process from the Longshui Port as the center and then proceeding east from the first petal andter develop in a clockwise order.¡±

    Because of the dangers from the flood discharged at the current port, Group B changed it. The n involved digging deep into the harbor,ndfilling some of the surrounding geography and creating a circr concaveke. New inds would be built in the middle of ¡°Longshui Lake¡± to house sewage treatment facilities and new environmentally protected areas.

    Gu Yu asked Peng Shuang to switch the slide to the master n map and with a redser pointer pointing to the leading port road he asked: ¡°Finishing theke requires a lot of excavation earthwork andndfill earthwork. This first phase will inevitably affect the existing situation of the two divisions of Zhengbei and Zhengnan especially in the area to ??the south of theke. If problems are caused during the repair period, the consequences will be disastrous.¡±

    Child Labor: ¡°You can let the residents first demolish the Yi house, move to the west, wait for the south to reorganize and then move back to the original ce¡­¡±

    Gu Yu also pointed to the route from the old city to the new area of ??the railway station and said: ¡°ording to the urban transportation demand, the first road to be developed is from northwest to southeast. The outline of these two petals, if you develop in the original n, it seems a bit backwards.¡±

    Child Labor was anxious to defend her position, but Gu Yu didn¡¯t give her time to think about it. He continued: ¡°The east, the south, and the west are all top issues. Doesn¡¯t that mean simultaneous development?¡±

    Child Labor: ¡°Then develop synchronously!¡±

    Gu Yu raised an eyebrow: ¡°What is the overall cycle? Five years? Ten years? Can the government afford it?¡±

    Child Labor has turned red: ¡°The follow-up can be discussed again.¡±

    Gu Yu took his city development map from his own folder and gently passed it to the other side. He also stood up and said: ¡°The development of each city has its own rules, just like nt growth, any construction project needs a step by step implementation n. The economic source and heart of Z City are now here,¡± he pointed to the core location of the old city and pointed to the new nned area. ¡°The new area is poor in resources and backward in development, let alone change the overallndscape of the leading port. There will be more serious impacts. It is very difficult to ensure that the nning structure of this flower is not destroyed during the simultaneous development. If the flower has not yet been opened, it will have dragged down the development of the city and consumes it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi secretly clenched his fists, yes, that¡¯s it. Gu Yupletely said what he wanted to say!

    Only when he went to the location personally did he feel the environment deeply and reflect on the expectations of the local people for life. He realized that the vision of the Child Labor Group is too far-fetched for the people of Z City now. For them, a beautiful garden city is not as good as a party. The important thing is not to build something beautiful, but to improve their quality of life.

    Child Labor was silent for a moment, and she replied: ¡°We don¡¯t need to consider these for the time being. The government¡¯s bidding is nothing more than nning creativity, and they have their own considerations for development and construction steps.¡±

    Gu Yu solemnly said: ¡°We don¡¯t think about who to consider? Unless the local government has funds for a decade or more, the project can stagnate or even end sincerge-scale construction and development of various parts of the country is numerous. How likely will the project be built if it took years of determination to implement. Indeed, we are not decision makers, but I think that government tendering is more than just a beautiful design. If we have the corresponding expertise and capabilities, why can¡¯t we contribute rationally and n at the very beginning? It¡¯s more feasible that way, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    His tone is not heavy, but every word is concise and logical. Sitting in the corner of the room, Zhang Siyi is staring at Gu Yu. It is like Gu Yu is the center sun and his body just issued a burst of light, enlightening all those around him.

    He heard the roar of his heartbeat, and the time seemed to fall back to the past. The autumn of six years ago in the auditorium, a group of young teenagers sitting down and looked up at the arrogant son of Tiancheng. The champion of Ningcheng, standing on the high podium, calmly talking about his ideals and ambitions¡­ Zhang Siyi sees Gu Yu in the same way as he did then: dazzling. Some people are born to wander, some people are born to shine and be followed.

    Child Labor was dumbfounded by Gu Yu, and one of the chief architects¡¯ present said, ¡°The idea of a flower is good, but it is a bit idealistic.¡±

    However, there are others who agree with the flower n: ¡°Child Labor is right, we don¡¯t need to have an entirend staging n for the initial proposal. As for the specific implementation, it is not something we need to consider. From my experience, the superiors also like beautiful ns. The scheme of the A Group is rtively conservative.

    The conference room was caught in a debate with many opposing views. Both A Group and B Group project teams went back to the office. The Directors said that they would wait until after careful discussion before deciding which option to choose. Zhang Siyi and everyone returned to their seats and discussed it privately.

    Bi Lele said: ¡°Hey, I think Tong Heyi¡¯s team n is really pretty, and it is too shocking at first nce.¡±

    Yuan Zhicheng: ¡°If I didn¡¯t listen to the boss and say those questions, I am the party I also choose the childbor group.¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen said with emotion: ¡°Yes, in this society that looks at the face, most people have be superficial.¡±

    Bi Lele: ¡°The problem is that it¡¯s not easy to implement. Child Labor group n is logical and professional.¡±

    While waiting for thepany¡¯s upper level Directors to decide, Zhang Siyi was starting to feel a bit apprehensive. Although his contributions were as a ¡°patch¡± and the n didn¡¯t have a huge visual impact, he hopes that this warship will sail in the direction chosen by Gu Yu. However, expectations always deviate from reality.

    Before leaving work in the evening, the conclusion came out. The upper level of thepany decided to move forwards with the n from B Group and let Gu Yu help them do a reasonable construction and implementation n. Everyone seems to have expected this ending and although the heart is frustrated, the surface is not very revealing. Only Zhang Siyi, like a huge blow, was devastated.

    He remembered the hard work of walking all day, breaking his legs. He thought of Gu Yu¡¯s patience when he asked the locals about the prospects of the new district¡¯s nning. He thought of Gu Yu¡¯s expression when eating biscuits and thought of him standing on the bank of the river¡­ But now, it¡¯s all gone. By a few words, the executives in thepany easily negate what they¡¯ve aplished.

    Afterwards, Gu Yu came over tofort them. He let them rx and he joked. As long as they give some assistance in the follow-up process since its B Group n to refine, most of them do not need to work overtime. Zhang Siyi was also notified, and he went back to drawing the parking lot. In the evening, Zhang Siyi returned home with a low mood, and his heart mixed.

    Because Zhang Siyi rarely came home before 8pm, Fu Xinhui was really surprised to see him: ¡°Hey! Get out! You are here.¡±

    Zhang Siyi went to the side of the sofa than copsed like a dead fish and did not want to say a word.

    Barefooted, Fu Xinhui let him sit a little, then asked: ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡±

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t move. He was staring into space. After two minutes, he said: ¡°Oh, reality is too difficult¡­¡±

    In a serious tone Fu Xinhui said: ¡°Are you being fired?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°My ass, no!¡±

    Zhang Siyi turned over with his back to Fu Xinhui and continued sulking. Not only is the reality cruel, but the road of architecture is far more difficult than Zhang Siyi imagined.

    The real architect, neither a foolish scheme on the TV nor a lucky one-hit break, has a goal. In the biography of the master architects, those who are sitting in a mansion with a daily ie of 10 million are the winners of life¡­

    Most architects are ordinary people, they may be like Gu Yu and stay in a small office. Although they may have infinite knowledge about modern and ancient architecture and engineering issues like dealing with sewage problems, they aren¡¯t invincible. Even a well-thought-out n is deemed wasteful.

    Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t help wonder, if he is standing in the position of Gu Yu now with the same result, would he be as calm as he is? ¡­¡­ No, he will be very depressed, very unwilling!

    Zhang Si Yi copsed on the sofa. He isn¡¯t clear about his future. Is this what is means to be in architect? To ept defeat? This is the first time since entering the workce that he feels so confused about his future in architecture. He Isn¡¯t even at the level of his superiors, let alone the architectural maters he aspired to when he was studying. It was all a bunch of dreamy bubbles floating away. If this is what it means, then can he still proceed down this road? How far will he be able to take it?

    Seeing Zhang Siyi¡¯s mode of self-pity, Fu Xinfei kicked his ass fiercely: ¡°Stupid! Get up! Let¡¯s eat!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    Fu Xinfei put on socks, swearing: ¡°Shit. All 3 of us were originally going to live together because it was supposed to be fun. But now, every day with overtime, business trips, and a woman, I am like a widow!¡±

    Zhang Si Yi rubbed his bruised butt, asked: ¡°who found a woman? Jiang Hai?¡±

    Fu Xinhui stood up and shouted: ¡°Yes! While you¡¯ve be a workaholic, two months ago, Jiang Hai met someone at hispany. They have been out every night to eat!¡±

    Zhang Siyi shocked: ¡°Really? So Fast!¡± Didn¡¯t he work overtime every day before? Why does he have time for a date suddenly?¡±

    Fu Xinhui snorted: ¡°He started working overtime because he was a neer. He was like how you are now, working all the time for your ruthless Boss. He has paid his dues already.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was originally tortured by the cruelty of reality. Work is work. He cannot go to work unhappy. After work he is not happy. Ah!

    Zhang Siyi bounced off the sofa: ¡°I want to eat soy pork liver rice!¡±

    Fu Xinhui saw that he was full of blood and resurrection. He smiled and whispered: ¡°Idiot.¡±

    The two of them went downstairs to get a quick bite to eat. Zhang Siyi was utterly disappointed with his food. Last time he went out was with Gu Yu eating sand tea noodles. Zhang Siyimented: ¡°Hey I told you! That sand tea soup was the best ever. I will forever miss the taste.¡±

    Fu Xinhui casually said: ¡°Eh? Just go buy a ne ticket.¡±

    Zhang Siyi feeling a bit depressed, thought about B Group flower n, then convinced himself that if it is built, then he will be able to eat sand tea noodles again.

    He looked at Fu Xinhui and asked: ¡°Are you looking for a job? Doesn¡¯t your family remind you?¡±

    Fu Xinhui smiled and said: ¡°They urged me to go to thepany at home and work, but thepany at home is also paid by my parents. It¡¯s better to stay here.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    Although Zhang Siyi isn¡¯t convinced by Fu Xinhui words, he knows he has his own reasons and doesn¡¯t say anything further. He heard Fu Xinhui say before that he has a sister that is eight years older then him. She went to the United States for a degree there and now works as the vice president of the family business.

    However, Fu Xinhui¡¯s rtionship with his sister is not very good. His birth was unexpected in the family. After he was born, because he was a boy, he was always favored by some parents. His sister felt his existence was an insult to her status. As a result, Fu Xinhui gradually developed a lesspetitive temperament in order to give way to her.

    Zhang Siyi is the only child. He can¡¯t understand Fu Xinhui¡¯s rtionship with his sister. He doesn¡¯t know what to say: ¡°Would you not be bored when you stay at home every day? It¡¯s good to get a job and do it ¡°

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°well, even if I want to find a job, I look at you. You are working so hard¡­¡±

 Chapter 24: Transfer

    <h4>Chapter 24: Transfer</h4>

    ______________________

    The autumn rain fell in the night and the morning was cool again. Out of the door, Zhang Siyi was chilled by the oing cold wind. Shivering, he shrunk his neck down for warmth.

    When he arrived at thepany, he bought two hot buns at the convenience store downstairs. He couldn¡¯t wait to go upstairs, so he started eating it. While taking a bite, Zhang Siyi looked up and saw a familiar figure and followed him with his eyes.

    Surrounded by the same scarf as the day of the business trip, Gu Yu was sitting alone by the side of the flower bed not far away, holding a cup of coffee in his hand, looking at the ground motionless. He looks like a statue in its environment. Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t see his expression, but the gesture made him feel that Gu Yu was lonely.

    He can¡¯t help but think of what happened yesterday. Yes, Gu Yu, as their boss, leads a team of ten people. Naturally, they can¡¯t show real emotions in front of them, but if they encounter such a result, anyone will feel depressed, right? With his calmness and maturity, it¡¯s easy to forget how young Gu Yu is. He is only twenty-eight years old which is two years younger than Child Labor. In the group of architects, he is very young.

    For an outsider, perhaps he didn¡¯t seem so stoic and instead would see his dazed, fragile state.

    ¡ª¡ªJust like now.

    This kind of Gu Yu is even more heartwarming and exciting.

    To change his inexplicable mood, Zhang Siyi shook his head and took a bite of his hot bun then went to go upstairs to his desk.

    After about five or six minutes, Gu Yu also came up. His face is still so calm, how can he pack away his emotions? Near his desk, he saw him encountered Child Laborer who was going to pour hot water. The two alsoughed and said hello, as if nothing happened. Thinking of this morning¡¯s scene, Zhang Siyi had mixed feelings. When he was finished with his parking lot, he went to get it approved.

    In Gu Yu¡¯s office, Zhang Siyi saw him looking over the Daffodil n with a furrowed brow. He was probably thinking about ways to implement B Group¡¯s n.

    ¡°Boss, do you really think Child Labor group¡¯s n is okay?¡± Zhang Siyi could not help but speak.

    Gu Yu looked up at him, set down the design ns and said indifferently: ¡°Some things can¡¯t be judged by good or bad. They can only say that their group¡¯s n to bid for the project is more likely to win and thus will more likely bring benefits to thepany.¡±

    Zhang Siyi muttered: ¡°But I do not think the project can be built after winning.¡±¡±

    Gu Yu nced at his first draft of the n, said: ¡°Then wait for the time to find a way, and strive to make the impossible possible.¡±

    ¡± Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu smiled and said: ¡°This is the first time you have participated in such arge project. Its natural to have some mixed feelings in your heart but remember that the members of B Group aren¡¯t our enemies. Even though our n wasn¡¯t chosen, B Group is representing Borderless and their design can win the honor.¡±

    When Gu Yu says something so concise, Zhang Siyi cannot refute his manner. However, who was that guy downstairs in a daze? He can¡¯t believe Gu Yu is acting like nothing is wrong.

    Gu Yu saw the picture he had drawn. This time he didn¡¯t have much to say about it. He made a fewments then arranged for Zhang Siyi to draw something else.

    Before sending him out, Gu Yu suddenly smiled and said to Zhang Siyi: ¡± I am quite happy that you are thinking about the actual construction of the project in the city of Z. It seems the business trip was a sess.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Is this apliment? Was he praised by Gu Yu? Seeing him smile dispelled the gloom in Zhang Siyi¡¯s mood. Oh, well, he will admit that the Daffodil is also pretty good.

    It happened to be thest day of October. At three o¡¯clock in the afternoon, thepany¡¯s security guard came in suddenly carrying arge box shouting: ¡°Everyonee and get one!¡± The office is buzzing, and everyone is asking what kind of festival it is today and what activities are there to engage in. Zhang Siyi reacts: ¡°Isn¡¯t it Halloween?¡±

    Sure enough, after a while, Gu Yu sent a message to everyone: ¡°Halloween activities for two hours. Everyone in the design department can take a break and make a jack-ontern. The best three pumpkins will receive a 1000 cash bonus each¡±.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I am going! Is there such a good thing as free money?¡±

    Eager to get started, people got up to grab a good pumpkin to carve. Zhu Hongzhen joyfully took a big pumpkin and brought it back to the seat. Zhang Siyi quickly grabbed a well-proportioned, small, round pumpkin.

    Even though B Group has a lot of work to do on their flower n, they couldn¡¯t resist in the activities and grabbed pumpkins. While A group missed out on yesterdays¡¯ design n, they don¡¯t want to lose to B Group pumpkin carving skills. They are eager to redeem themselves.

    Zhang Siyi nced around at hispetition. To his left, Zhu Hongzhen was wasting so much time digging out such arge pumpkin he had to spend time walking back and forth to the trash bin to throw out pumpkin guts. Looking across, Bi Lele¡¯s pumpkin with a fatter top then the bottom, is going to be hard to carve. Diagonally, Yuan Zhicheng is carving out a boring face on the pumpkin. Spending time abroad, Zhang Siyi celebrated Halloween with friends thus making him a veteran of pumpkin carving!

    He opened the top of the pumpkin first then carefully emptied the pumpkin guts. After. He used a pencil to draw the outline of the face on the pumpkin skin. To stand out from among everyone else, Zhang Siyi did not do a traditional jack-ontern. Instead, he created a face that looked crazy and violent. Then cut out your eyes and mouth in detail ... Finally put in the candle, finish!

    In less than an hour, Zhang Siyi¡¯s breathed a sign of satisfaction, then got up to see what the others are doing. Zhu Hongzhen¡¯s pumpkin was so big, his arm was tired from pulling out the pumpkin insides. A lot of time had passed, so he wasn¡¯t sure he would be able to finish in the 2-hour time limit. Yuan Zhicheng looked pissed. He identally cut off a fang on the pumpkin, leaving the mouth looking like it was leaking. It was rather funny. It seems his talent to draw didn¡¯t extend beyond paper. He pinched the broken tooth, and even nned to use double-sided tape to stick it. Zhang Siyi called out: ¡°Look for a toothpick!¡±

    Yuan Zhicheng: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi went around again and saw some people still searching for tutorials on the Inte. Some people did not know how to carve it properly so the whole pumpkin had been broken. Zhang Siyi secretlyughed andughed. Hahaha what!? It seems he will get a thousand dors in prize money tonight!

    Walking back to his seat, Zhang Siyi caught a glimpse of Gu Yu standing at his desk, holding the pumpkinntern he has already done, and inspecting it with great interest.

    Seeing himing back, Gu Yu also smiled and praised: ¡°It is very cute. It¡¯s well crafted.¡±

    For the second time today, Gu Yu praised him. Zhang Siyi felt ted: ¡°You aren¡¯t making one?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°I don¡¯t want to take the 1000 bonus away from everyone else. Besides by the looks of it, I may have not won it anyway.¡±

    Oh, my God, did Zhang Siyi just hear Gu Yu admission that he isn¡¯t all powerful!? ...... Although, it is just making a jack-o-ntern. Zhang Siyi feels that this is more than a thousand dors in prize money!

    There is still time, Zhang Siyi also carved a few words on the bottom of the pumpkin ¨C

    Zsy

    2014.10.31

    Soon two hours passed, everyone took their pumpkins to the conference room where they were assigned a number for the content then lit the candle.

    When the lights were turned off, thirty pumpkin faces reveal strange expressions. Some of the jack-onterns had angry faces, some were smiling, some were crazy. There were pumpkin faces whose expression were so funny, peopleughed out loud.

    Out of all the pumpkins, Zhang Si Yi was most conspicuous. His carving really had a genuine life-like expression. Bi Lele pointed at Zhang Siyi¡¯s pumpkin andughed wildly: ¡°Ah Bahahaha! Is this your inner feelings?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...... Hey!¡±

    Bi Lele pointed to Zhu Hongzhen and asked: ¡°pig, why did you only dig two eyes? ¡°At first nce, I thought a pig¡¯s nose!¡± (oo)

    Zhu Hongzhen wants to cry without tears: ¡°My pumpkin was too big! I didn¡¯t have enough time to finish!¡±

    Seeing Yuan Zhicheng¡¯s pumpkin, Bi Leleughed again: ¡°Ha ha, leaking teeth! Good!¡±

    Yuan Zhicheng replied faintly: ¡°You are not what you are, a face of zombies.¡±

    Bi Lele: ¡°.........¡±

    In the final vote, Zhang Siyi undoubtedly was one of the top three. Gu Yu held three red envelopes with the prize money in his hand and gave them to the three winners.

    In Group A, two people won the prize and the crowd around them noisily asked for a treat: ¡°How about Oden! At least KFC! KFC is too cheap! Pizza Hut Pizza Hut! Want Seafood Supreme Pizza! Why don¡¯t you go out and eat? I want to eat Chongqing hotpot!¡±

    Unexpected wealth has not been in the palm of Zhang Siyi¡¯s hand for long. After the awards were given out, people started to deal with their pumpkins. Some jack-onterns were trashed, while others were brought back to their respective desks.

    Zhang Siyi had done this before, and he didn¡¯t put it in his heart. He wanted to deal with it. He saw Gu Yu standing there, bending his waist and taking a cell phone photo of the pumpkinntern he made.

    ¡°... Do you like it?¡± Zhang Siyi walked over and blurted out: ¡°Do you want it? I¡¯ll give it to you!¡±

    Gu Yu froze stunned, raised his head to look at him. For a moment Zhang Siyi felt silly for offering it to him. A pumpkin isn¡¯t rare and won¡¯tst more then another week. Maybe he just wanted a picture since a jack-ontern isn¡¯t really something to collect. He felt embarrassed.

    But Gu Xiao looked at him for a moment, unexpectedly smiled: ¡°Hmmm.¡± for a while, and then said: ¡°Okay.¡± He reached out for it and held the pumpkin in his hand. He said, ¡°I will ept it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡±

    Just when everyone was preparing to go to the restaurant, the Chief suddenly appeared and signaled to Gu Yu and Child Labor with a serious expression. The Chief is a man who looks like he is fifty years old. His hair ispletely white. He seems to be a person who is not angry and self-defeating. Usually, the dragon is not seen at the end. Everyone was quiet, and they dared not make a restaurant trip in front of their leader. They went back to their seats.

    Zhang Siyi asked Bi Lele: ¡°Is there another big project?¡±

    Bi Lele shrugged: ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±

    After a while Gu Yu and Child Labor returned and called everyone in their groups for a project meeting about the Z City new district n.

    Zhang Siyi thought nervously, did something happen again?

    Everyone gathered in the conference room. Childbor got up to speak but instead suddenly sighed looking helpless and turned to Gu Yu: ¡°You address them. I need to go out for a while.¡±

    Gu Xiao nodded, when she left the conference room, he calmly said ¡°The Board of Directors received some information pertaining to the project and learned that the Design Institute and one other firm are also doing a flower themed design so now an urgent decision is being made to reelect the representative of Borderless for further refinement.¡± It was all rather unbelievable. Everyone started talking at once.

    If the proposals are too simr, the unique factor for creative ns cease to exist then it weakens the initial design n and therefore will less likely be chosen to build. If the collision of ideas is an ident then it isn¡¯t an issue, but if it wasn¡¯t then they could pull out giarism and disqualify another¡¯s proposal. They have to wonder if the information was leaked somehow. After all, they weren¡¯t working in a closed environment. In this age ofwork information and with such arge project team, its not hard to wonder.

    In any case, with the concept of a flower as the dominant creative design works, once there is a simr appearance, the two in the bidding andpetition must kill both, not to mention that there are now three of them are using the ¡°City Flower¡± element. In this way, the reelection of Group A¡¯s proposal will highlight the advantages of value and implementation instead of a fancy solution.

    However, before the general bidding, the ns of the design institutes or designpanies are supposed to be in a confidential state. Zhang Siyi whispered to Bi Lele: ¡°How do the higher-ups know what otherpanies have done?¡±

    Bi Lele: ¡°It may be that our means of learning is deeper. It¡¯s mysterious...¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s eyes twitched and asked: ¡°Which design institute holds the most weight?¡±

    Bi Lele: ¡°The biggest design institute in Beijing. The firm¡¯s strength is crushing. Borderless has encountered them three times and failed all three.¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen sighed: ¡°No wonder they have to scrap B group¡¯s n. It¡¯s a pity.¡±

    Zhang Siyi pinched the fat on Zhu Hongzhen¡¯s arm: ¡°Are you not one of our Group A!

    Zhu Hongzhen:¡°...... Auntie, don¡¯t be so fierce. ¡°

    Although it is a pity, in Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart he is very excited. After all, he has always recognized the n of Group A.

    Gu Xiao waited for them to discuss and quite down before continuing: ¡°We were all caught off guard buy this news. Tong Heyi needs a few minutes, so I am here to announce this matter. Let¡¯s acknowledge the efforts of B Group staff. You have done a great job with the n. I hope you can cheer up as soon as possible and give the new n your time and effort. With some adjustments and refinement, we can move forward. Gu Yu¡¯s tone also carries a hint of pity, and the people in group b are also silent, and Zhang Siyi is embarrassed to be happy.

    Gu Yu looked at the members of group a and said seriously: ¡°The next step is your mission. Although this opportunity hase, I don¡¯t want you to have doubts about the n. If you do, you must believe that It¡¯s the best of our own. Of course, no matter what kind of results we produce, we couldn¡¯t have done it without the efforts of thepetitive stimulus with B Group. No matter who¡¯s the n it is, we are all representing Borderless together. Since there is not much time, everyone must work overtime starting this evening.¡±

    Just after being temporarily called away by the director, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t have time to give Gu Yu the pumpkin, but now the pumpkinntern is ced in Gu Yu¡¯s hand. To some extent the fierce mood that they both exude seem simr.

    Peng nodded: ¡°Boss Gu rest assured, we understand. Let¡¯s take a moment to let the members readjust. The job will be handed over and new arrangements will be made.¡± After the meeting, Zhang Siyi clenched his fist. He had never looked forward to overtime work as he did today! Ji Feiyu used the fastest speed possible to transfer the n and assign the various tasks among the members. He was given 100,000 square meters of residential blocks to design.

    How the fuck does one do that? (#¡ã§¥¡ã) Stunned, he heard a voice calling: ¡°Zhang Siyi, youe over.¡±

    Zhang Siyi took the drawing and went into the office of Gu Yu and sat down.

 Chapter 25: Overnight

    <h4>Chapter 25: Overnight</h4>

    _______________________

    Zhang Siyi was so ecstatic that his hair was on end. After his self-confidence and self-esteem have been consistently challenged thesest few months doing tasks under the extremely demanding supervision of Gu Yu, has he now gained some sympathy?

    Therefore, Zhang Siyi was so ttered at this moment, he jumped out of his seat and quickly grabbed a pen and notepad, headed over to his office and prepared to listen to Gu Yu¡¯s teachings. At the same time, he feels that he is no longer a draftsman, but a real designer! He leaned in to listen intently.

    Gu Yu said: ¡°Before you do residential nning, you must first forget that you are a designer.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°???¡±

    Gu Yu exins: ¡°Currently in China, it is not the design ideas, but the regtions, market demand and development profits that determine the appearance of the house. The nning of the house is based on theprehensive consideration of regtions, fire codes, traffic flow, floor area ratio, thebination of cash flow, turnover, marketing and other issues, in short, this is a logical mathematical problem.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s face is nk. This seems to be a little different from his imagination!

    Gu Xiao paused and asked, ¡°Are you okay with math?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°It¡¯s very good¡­¡±.

    ¡°Okay, let¡¯s continue,¡± Gu Yu nodded and nced at the section of the n that they had already done. Then, ¡°The directors of the nning board of Z City only provided an outline for the n, scope, and purpose. Since it isn¡¯t a final plot construction n, it does not specifically address various functions with detailed indicators, so we muste up with answers based on the local statistics bureau on the new district¡¯s demographics such as poption growth rate, local residential style, nning height control, etc. A reasonable indicator will make the subsequent arrangement look more reliable.¡±

    sping a pen and wide eyed, Zhang Siyi has been knocked unconscious by this string of nouns. He wants to take notes, but he doesn¡¯t know what variables to write.

    In advanced, Gu Yu gathered the data necessary for calctions. He calmly brought out a calctor, a nk sheet of paper, and pen and in front of Zhang Siyi, quickly began to list a string of values. He handed the paper to Zhang Siyi and said: ¡°These figures set up the rules of the game. You make arrangements andbinations to y the game.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°Simr to the parking lot nning from before, residential nning is not about starting with the building alone. One must start from the flow of traffic on the roadways and determine the main entrance, internal axis, road traffic, etc.¡­¡­ Gu Yu took one of the plots as an example. He picked up a pen and draw on the side of the map. ¡°The difference between them are that the parking spaces are mostly fixed 3 meters by 6 meters whereas the houses have more variables like height requirements. There are lighting requirements as well, but the principle is exactly the same no matter if the content changes.¡±

    After drawing the roadwork, he pulled open the drawer and grabbed a small homemade stic building block from inside. He said: ¡°We assume that this is the size of a single-family house.¡±

    It is like a special n for the same scale. The building blocks are just the size of the house. Gu Yu put them one by one on the map and quickly draw a decent picture of the house.

    Zhang Siyi is simply stupid. In a project that he sounds soplicated, it seems like ytime for Gu Yu. At the rate he was drawing, it looked like he could finish the whole area in twenty minutes!

    ¡°Do you understand?¡± Gu Yu looked at him. ¡°If you don¡¯t have any more questions, go try and draw.¡±

    Zhang Siyi seems to understand and nod his head and go out. It is not that he has no problem, but he does not know what questions he can ask. Outside the office, the pizzas that were ordered have been delivered and the entire office is filled with a rich cheesy scent.

    ¡°Four! Come and eat! Supreme seafood is being robbed!¡± Bi Lele screamed at him with a pizza. Zhang Siyi put down his notebook with no words and the sheet of statistics that Gu Yu wrote to rush and grab the pizza.

    Already seven o¡¯clock, more than half of the group is still there. Due to the refinement n, even the original non-project team Du Rui and Lu Qiao were temporarily transferred. Although it is overtime, the office staff are full of enthusiasm. Withoutints, the transfer has invigorated the group and the good mood is very infectious.

    Everyone is talking about the simrities between B Group and H Design Institute ns. People are guessing whether there is a spy in thepany. It¡¯s a conspiracy.

    ¡°Impossible! H Design Institute is arge-scale business. With such capabilities, they don¡¯t need to engage in low means to prevent the small firms like Borderless topete on a bid.¡±

    ¡°The element of a city flower is inherently easy to think of¡­.¡±

    ¡°¡­but the elements have different usages. Does it include a flower pattern?¡±

    ¡°This is not clear¡­¡±

    After listening to a few people, Zhang Siyi was worried: ¡°If the n of the Design Institute is really simr to B Group, will we have a chance of winning? A group n has already been smashed once by B Group¡¯s n. If the Design Institute¡¯s n is even better then our Group B, then when ites time to put it on the table, would it even be a contender?¡±

    Everyone is somewhat silent. Ji Feiyu promptly encourages everyone: ¡°Gu Yu said, since it is done, we must believe that our n is the best, although the total effect is not dazzling, but our content is very rich!¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen also said: ¡°Yes, those who are not allowed to be the city government are real-handed, we still have a good chance.¡±

    A few simple words have suddenly stimted everyone¡¯s confidence. Zhang Siyi shoved thest bites of pizza in his mouth and with a purposeful p of his hands, he psyched himself up to tackle his house nning problems.

    Everyone was about to start work. Du Rui suddenly looked at Gu¡¯s office and asked: ¡°Has the boss had any food?¡±

    Zhang Siyi stunned, indeed, it was almost eight o¡¯clock, and Gu Yu had note out of his office since the time he was inside.

    Bi Lele saw a few pieces of pizza on the table and didn¡¯t finish eating. She blinked at Du Rui and said, ¡°Go give a few pizzas to the boss!¡±

    Blushing Du Rui had a thin face and shouted: ¡°You do it.¡± Then she hurried back to her seat.

    The task of delivering the pizza to Boss was handed to the position of Zhang Siyi, who was closest to Gu Yu¡¯s office.

    Zhang Siyi walked to the door of Gu Yu¡¯s office with a box and heard the faint voices from inside. He was a bit unsure of whether or not to knock on the door, hesitating for two seconds, there was a voice from Gu Yu: ¡°Who? Come in.¡±

    Zhang Siyi almost forgot, this door is frosted ss, even if he does not knock on the door, Gu Yu can also see someone outside. He pushed in and saw Gu Wei standing by the window with his mobile phone, still talking on the phone ¨C

    ¡°In short, this time I¡¯ll be very busy and won¡¯t be back at night¡­.¡± Gu Yu turned to look at Zhang Siyi and immediately said to the human on the phone. ¡°Well, I know, I am going to eat now, you should rest early. Good night.¡±

    Zhang Siyi listened to the intimate tone of Gu Yu¡¯s speech, and the gossip cells in his mind started to brew again ¨C but not going home at night? Take some rest first? Gu Yu lives with someone? girlfriend? Intimate people? Wife?

    Zhang Siyi specially nced at Gu Yu¡¯s right hand and saw that there was no ring on his ring finger. Could he be in a rtionship?

    Zhang Siyi don¡¯t know what to think. Seeing Gu Yu hang up the phone, he instinctively blurted out: ¡°Is that your girlfriend?¡± Perhaps it was because Gu Yu jokingly asked him if Fu Xinhui was his boyfriend, so he returned the question. But Gu Xiao took the phone, just looked at him and smiled thenughed.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡­¡±

    Gu Xiao looked directly at the pizza box in Zhang Siyi¡¯s hand and said, ¡°Is this for me?¡±

    Zhang Siyi felt perturbed, but he still replied honestly: ¡°Well, since the group couldn¡¯t go out to eat, we used today¡¯s bonus for pizza instead. Here are a few slices for you.¡±

    Gu Xiao asked him to put it on the table and let him out. Zhang Si resolutely returned to his seat and clearly felt the difference in the number of paragraphs between himself and Gu Yu. ¡­. ah! Why did heugh? Is it by default? Why didn¡¯t he answer me?!

    At 9:30 in the evening, the office is still brightly lit.

    A few hourster, Zhang Siyi only slightly digested the data and rules that Gu Yu said, and finally began to draw the roadwork. He noticed the difference between the smooth roadwork that Gu Yu drew inparison to his own wavy work and sighed. Zhang Siyi was concentrating on his drawing that he didn¡¯t notice the top of his head was dark.

    Looking at Zhang Siyi so absorbed in what he was going, Gu Yu wasn¡¯t sure when to interrupt him. He ced one hand at his table and leaned over. With a slender finger he pointed towards the edge of the screen. ¡°This side¡±.

    Zhang Siyi wore headphones, intently drawing and suddenly caught by the person next to him. A hand appeared in front of him, pointing. Zhang Siyi practically jumped out of his seat, startled. He quickly took off the headset and looked at Gu Yu who was observing him.

    Gu Yu whispered in his ear, ¡°Have you considered the road retreat?¡±

    Zhang Siyi looked back at the drawing with a red face and pointed to the Blue line he had drawn: ¡°Well, this one.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Very good but remember to draw red after the retreat.¡±

    Zhang Siyi can only hear the loud thumping of his heart. Every time he is praised by Gu Yu, he is never calm. ¡°I¡­, I painted a bit slow.¡± Zhang Siyi said.

    Gu Yu: ¡°Slow is irrelevant. As long as the ideas are right, all the conditions are considered clearly, and the feelings are slowly conveyed. As they say, practice makes perfect.¡±

    Slow doesn¡¯t matter? Isn¡¯t time already very scarce? Seeing that others are doing things so fast, Zhang Siyi is afraid that he will drag everyone down!

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°There are still nine days left. What do I do if I can¡¯t finish drawing?¡±

    Gu Yu calmly said: ¡°You won¡¯t have a problem finishing. You have me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi ¡°¡­¡­¡± Crap. That sentence is so domineering! Zhang Siyi feels electrocuted. What to do! What to do! Ah, ~~!

    Gu Yu left Zhang Siyi to his task and went to walk around the room to evaluate the progress of everyone else. He was very satisfied with the work everyone haspleted thus far so he let everyone go back home for tonight. Work can continue tomorrow.

    For the next few days, the project team stayed at Borderless until 10 in the evening every night. The refinement of the project is not only to refine the detailed level of the major functional sections, but also to provide guidance on street space and architectural style as well as to arrange finendscape nning and ecological nning. The night lighting design of the whole district is even more detailed as the design is derived from the shape of the iconic building in themercial center of the area. Finally, it will take a few days to make a full set of 3D renderings for thepany.

    Because of the huge number of tasks, more people are starting to work eventer overtime hours. Gu Yu¡¯s principle of doing things is ¡°today¡¯s today¡±. Generally, tasks assigned that day are expected to bepleted that day. If its not done, then it will cause a dy for the next step which in turn would cause more umted dys.

    Under the control of Gu Xiao, the overtime work of the crowd has been to the utmost minimum. The light of hope remains in people¡¯s eyes. Even when everyone stayed up for a few nights, they are still motivated to continue as if the extra time working was nothing.

    However, the four lounges in thepany aren¡¯t enough to house everyone. Many people bring their own folding beds and put them next to the desk. They can work until two or three in the morning then sleep for three to four hours, then get up at six or seven in the morning.

    Under such a tight situation, Zhang Siyi finally ushered in his first day and night in his career.

    In fact, two days earlier, he was already working until midnight then going home and then arriving back at the office by 8am the next day. Since Zhang Siyi lived close, he always went home to sleep better. Anyway, the taxi fare was also reimbursed by thepany.

    It was only in thest two days that it was very urgent. Everyone counted the second hand. Even eating and going to the bathroom felt like a waste of time.

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s housing n has beenpleted with the help of Gu Yu. He continued to act as a patch in theter stages. He was so embarrassed to be idle that he made himself avable if needed, so he simply followed around everyone in the office thesest two nights.

    Since the text was to be presented in both Chinese and English, Zhang Siyi concentrated his efforts into trantion. Originally, there was no international student in Group A. The only professional level English-speaking girl in the group felt overwhelmed every time she was asked to trante because she had to juggle her design tasks with the pressure of also tranting. Now with the help of Zhang Siyi, she is so happy that she is sobbing: ¡°Four aunts Ah!¡± You¡¯re the mascot of our group!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Aha?¡± When did he be a mascot?

    The girl said: ¡°You are a good person, willing to help, and can build stuff!¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s hands-on ability is not only manifested in the pumpkinntern. Half a month ago, the girl bought a bookshelf to assemble which Zhang Siyi helped with.

    When studying abroad, Zhang Siyi¡¯s design sses often require them to do manual models. The architecture department is equipped with an oversized model studio with various sawmills,ser engraving machines, 3D printers and other model instruments¡­ Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t like drawing pictures, but he likes to build them.

    Fu Xinhui also said he would have been a great carpenter in ancient times, but this skill did not seem to be particrly useful to Zhang Siyi now.

    First of all, from a professional point of view,puter software is now so developed, most constructionpanies do not have the conditions and time to let the designer build physical models. Secondly, from the point of view of wooing a girl, this is not something to brag about.

    When Zhang Siyi learned to use the engraving machine, he also used a cork to engrave a ¡°ghost¡± in the studio and gave it to his ex-girlfriend. However, because the symbolic meaning wasn¡¯t good, she didn¡¯t want it. Indeed, a piece of broken wood is better than a bag and a ne? Even if you are looking for a blind date, the meaning of doing a manual model is not as great as the significance of repairing a water pipe.

    Therefore, his advantage may only be slightly downgraded to medial tasks. His ability is highlighted when buying assembled furniture and making pumpkin lights.

    The girl stood on the side and watched the English on the keyboard without stopping. While continuing to talk about him: ¡°Good character, soft and cute, canugh, take pictures beautifully, and trante!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡­¡± Seems to have mixed in some weird adjectives.¡­¡­

    She said with emotion: ¡± It¡¯s no wonder that the Boss is so fond of you!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡­¡± Wait, where did she see that Gu Yu, uh, liked him? Don¡¯t say it¡¯s about the cactus again?

    ¡°Hehe,¡± Zhang Siyi,ughing, ¡°You must have got it wrong, he¡¯s pretty much treats me like everyone else.¡±

    The girl said: ¡°No way! He gave you a cactus!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± Sure enough!

    The girl said with a smile: ¡°You also gave him your pumpkinntern. It is still in the most prominent position on his desk. Every time one goes to Gu Yu¡¯s office, they can see it. Give and gave¡­ you two are so ambiguous!¡±

    Zhang Siyi listened with a face of constraint: ¡°I think you are sure¡­¡­ There¡¯s something¡­¡­ Got It¡­¡­. Wrong¡­¡­.¡±

    The girl continued: ¡°I haven¡¯t made a mistake! We all think that the work is very special for you. Let¡¯s go to the office to think about the girl who gave the gift. Is there any gift for his birthday? Yours! The pumpkinntern is the first one to be put on disy!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°But it¡¯s just a pumpkinntern, it¡¯s not worth it.¡±

    The girl looked at him with a ¡°you won¡¯t understand it anyway¡± expression on her face.

    Zhang Siyi paused and asked: ¡°When is Gu Yu¡¯s birthday?¡±

    The girl blurted out and said: ¡°On January 8, the Capricorn man symbolizes absolute consciousness, ideals and ambitions¡­¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    It seems that this girl also feels the same as Du Rui.

    This trantion was tranted to five in the morning, and for several days of high-intensity work, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t open his eyes until the end.

    Colleagues are still encouraging each other: ¡°Hang in there¡­ today and another night, to tomorrow night and will be free!¡± Yes, by thest two days, most people¡¯s work is done. The reporting day is the day after tomorrow and generally most are finished. Thest task is putting all the text onto the n drawings and that responsibility is Bi Lele.

    Bi Lele stared at theputer screen with utmost attention and was already immersed in the work. Also, reluctant to go to sleep since others are still working, Zhang Siyi saw several girls giving Bi Lele help. He turned his head to see Gu Yu¡¯s office lights are still on. He whispered to Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°Boss hasn¡¯t slept?¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen A haggard face: ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry about him, he has a roway bed in his office. When he is tired, he will sleep.¡±

    Zhang Siyi nodded and looked at the results of the concerted efforts of everyone. All the work that everyone has contributed and theradery between them gave Zhang Siyi and overwhelmingly good feeling. He felt hopeful ¨C yes, they will win the bid!

    Ji Feiyu saw a few people around the room on the verge of copse, and quickly said: ¡°You guys go to sleep first, don¡¯t stay upte!¡±

    Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t stay awake anymore and walked to the lounge swaying. The whole person fell on the little single bed and lost consciousness.

    Since it¡¯s not be his own bed, he is a little ufortable when he falls asleep. As he is slowly waking up, he feels something itchy on his face. It seems that something is touching him.

    Zhang Siyi opened his eyes in an ufortable way. The lounge was a dark room with no windows, and the front was dim. The doorway was open with a bright light.

    In the mist, he saw a familiar face.

 Chapter 26: The Standard

    <h4>Chapter 26: The Standard</h4>

    ____________________________

    Before Zhang Siyi had time to react, Gu Yu first spoke: ¡°Are you awake?¡±

    With a muddled head, Zhang Siyi responded with a sleepy ¡°Hmmmm¡±. With facial contours cast in shadow from the bright lights behind, he saw the figure of Gu Yu standing above him.

    ¡°Did you sleep all right? ¡°Gu Yu¡¯s voice is a little hoarse.

    Zhang Siyi sat up, his brain was still dull, and he couldn¡¯t figure out the situation: ¡°Okay, what time...¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s almost nine o¡¯clock,¡± Gu Yu stood up and said, ¡°I bought you breakfast and woke you up. Go wash your face ande and have something to eat.¡± He then left the room.

    Shit! It¡¯s almost 9: 00? Doesn¡¯t that mean it¡¯s almost time to work? Zhang Siyi quickly put on his socks and shoes and went to the bathroom.

    When the cold water sshed his face, Zhang Siyi felt invigorated and excited, but something wasn¡¯t quite right. Now that he was awake, his mind was processing the events that just transpired.

    Gu Yu was going to ask him to get up for breakfast. He was not awake, but then he woke up. Then, thinking about what woke him up, the sensation he felt was of something soft touching his face. And when he opened his eyes, he and saw Gu Yu face cloaked in shadow right above him. Gu Yu was very close, and it was not like the type of distance that a boss would call for his subordinate to get up...

    If he didn¡¯t wake up at the time? What was he doing? Zhang Siyi¡¯s head is in a cloud, and the whole person has a very strange feeling. Thinking that Gu Yu may have touched him, he neither feels sick or weird, but instead he felt nervous, shy and a kind of anticipation.

    Feeling confused he further thought about the situation. How could Gu Yu touch him? Maybe he was trying to wake him up vigorously! It must be that Zhang Siyi has confused his dreams with reality.

    After washing his face, he went back to his desk. On therge discussion table Zhang Siyi saw a series of small breakfast bags. He grabbed one with soy milk and buns, then went to his seat. He noticed Zhu Hongzhen next to him with dull eyes staring off into space and slowly biting a roast chicken rice ball and chewing it mechanically. ¡°You stayed up all night?¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen gave a simple ¡°hmm¡± sound. In thesest three days, his normally round and shiny fat face is like a white bone sucking away the essence, dry and dull.

    Bi Lele wore a nket on her back and was sleeping on her desk. Yuan Zhicheng was also sleeping on his desk with his chin poking out of his nket. Many non-project team colleagues havee to work in the morning and saw the clear evidence for their overnight stay. Sympathetic staff members have expressed their condolences.

    Trying to stay quiet, Zhang Siyi tipped-toed over to see the text on Bi Lele¡¯s screen. This move woke her up. Zhang Siyi quickly raised his hands and made a surrender: ¡°Sorry, I woke you.¡±

    Bi Lele rubbed her eyes and said Feebly, ¡°It¡¯s all right, I didn¡¯t fall asleep much, and I didn¡¯t finish it at all.¡± With that, she grabbed the mouse and continued working.

    Zhang Siyi looked at this girl who usually jokes around and loves gossip and sees a very tired, unkempt, quiet girl instead. The whole person exudes an indestructible energy from the inside and out just like being criticized and still refusing to ept it. Zhang Siyi exhausted spirit also feels the sway of Bi Lele determination.

    ¡°Do you want to see it?¡± Bi Lele smiled and showed Zhang Siyi the results that have beenpleted.

    Okay!¡± Zhang Siyi pulled over an office chair.

    Bi Lele started from the beginning. The first one shows the urban texture map of Z City which is adjusted to blue gray scale. There are ck graphics to enhance the text. There is a small white line and a row of English in bright colors. It has a very dignified, clean-cut look. Then there is poetic quote, a guideline rted to ¡°water¡±, apanied by the artistdscape of Bi Lele ¨C

    Water is the source of life,

    Water is a symbol of wealth.

    A field of water protection will be green around£¬

    Two mountain Pai send the youth toe.

    City, born of water.

    Zhang Siyi saw that when he tranted yesterday, there was no such thing as ¡°a water-protecting field will be green, and two mountains will be sent to Qinghai.¡± He asked: ¡°Did you add these?¡±

    Bi Lele: ¡°No, after you went to sleep, the boss came over and looked at it. He asked me to add it and said it is Wang Anshi¡¯s poem, expressing the rtionship between water and homnd.¡±

    Indeed, Z City has a major water way effecting the surroundingnd. Because of serious water pollution, there arerge areas of farnd surrounded by sewage. The leading port divides the plot and fragments thend. It makes people want to sigh.

    The two poems Gu Yu included added a finishing touch, not only making the scrolls more poetic, but also directly presenting their vision of the new district to the audience. Sure enough, after the introduction, the next big picture is the aerial view of the n they made.

    A total of 250 hectares ofnd has beenyout in an orderly manner. Under the renderings of the renderingpany, the whole area is surrounded by clouds and the atmosphere is magnificent. The leading port is surrounded by blue waves.

    Zhang Siyi shocked: ¡°it¡¯s amazing...

    Bi Lele perked up at thement and her tiredness seem to fade: ¡°Although there are no flowers, we are not bad, right?¡±

    Zhang Siyi nodded desperately: ¡°I think it looks better than the daffodil!¡±

    Bi Leleughed and said: ¡°Ha ha ha, I like your honesty!¡± She went on, and there were quite a few colleagues around who came closer to watch.

    From the initial nning background

    After the bird¡¯s eye view, the formal nning content is next and highlights the history of urban development starting from the initial nning background. It also includes the prospect of regional nning and the analysis of the regional state of affairs. Zhang Siyi saw that the photos he took were also put in and the color was sketched by Yuan Zhicheng. His heat jumped at the parallel disy.

    Then there is the nning function strategy, which mainly locates the plot attributes and major systems of the area. Followed by the specific urban design with spatial structure,ndscape design, ecological design etc... Also included is the development timing, which is very logical in its implementation. Last, is the detailed block design and architectural style control which is where Zhang Siyi¡¯s residentialnd n is included.

    At the end of the text, thepany¡¯s background and all the members involved in the project were introduced

    Chief Designer: Gu Yu (national first-ss registered architect)

    Tong Heyi (Dr. Architecture)

    nning consultant: xxx (registered town nner£©

    Landscape nning: Chen xx

    Designers: Ji Feiyu, Bi LeLe, Zhicheng, Zhu Hongzhen, Zhang Siyi......

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    Aah! aah! aah! aah!......!

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s eye locked onto his name in the group of people and felt such happiness. Zhang Siyi has a sense of satisfaction and aplishment, he is not nothing and is also helpful to the team!

    Although Bi Lele quickly turned the page over, it still couldn¡¯t dispel Zhang Siyi¡¯s feelings ¨C his name appeared in such a big project! Zhang Siyi imagines himself holding the Pulitzer Prize trophy to the peak of life that day, flowers! Apuse! sh! Head held high!!!

    Wait, Zhang Siyi noticed Child Labor¡¯s name is also there.

    He asked Bi Lele: ¡°Is this not the n of our group? Why is Tong Heyi also named as a chief designer?¡±

    Bi Lele turned back and nced at it. ¡°Yeah, we¡¯ve been involved together. It is reasonable to say that people in B Group should also be written after our names. Hey, this is not the point, the text is more powerful. It¡¯s also a gimmick. I used to be asked to write a bunch of names of people who didn¡¯t participate in the project.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Bi Lele: ¡°The important thing is that after winning the bid, the bonuses are all in our group, hehe!¡±

    Zhang Siyi was also excited. He asked Lele: ¡°If there is, how many bonuses will there be?¡±

    Bi Lele: ¡°I don¡¯t know. It is said that there are 800,000 bonuses for this bid. If the bid is 20%, it will be sent to the project team separately. There will be at least one or two thousand for each person.¡±

    ¡°Ah! One or two thousand! A lot!¡± Zhang Siyi excitedly rubbed his fingers. With the sry that he earned the rent for half a year is not used!

    Bi Leleughed at him: ¡°Wait, there is more! The winning bid is only the beginning. It does not include the subsequent design fees.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What is the design fee?¡±

    Bi Lele: ¡°This is a big piece ofnd and there are many phases of development. Now is only the nning phase. The subsequent phases will also need architectural designs. Even though it¡¯s not a guarantee, because you already won the bid, the chances to win for other phases of the project increase. There are many things you can doter. It¡¯s the tip of the iceberg!¡±

    After Zhang Siyi heard Bi Lele exnation, he was on cloud nine. Anyway, he was a small salted fish. As Su Yuan said before, thepany recruited him to start work. They didn¡¯t expect him to hold up the fort alone.

    As she spoke, thest page was disyed. With the same color palette as the cover, there were three English letters: End

    Colleagues who watched behind them burst into apuse. Everyone was full of confidence when they saw such a perfect bidding n.

    Bi Lele was both moved and emotional: ¡°Tomorrow the bid starts and there are many details that haven¡¯t been finished.¡±

    Zhang Siyi asked, ¡°Like what?¡±

    Bi Lele flipped through the pages and rattled off a bunch of issues: ¡°Ji Feiyu found a renderingpany to do the night scenes, but they haven¡¯te out yet. The boss just finished the development capacity controlst night. I have to P-Map, ah right also the ecology of thendscape. The water treatment n needs to be put in....¡±

    Bi Lele in a hurry she pulled up her sleeves and said: ¡°No more talking! I must do it! Or it will be toote!¡± She had not slept all night, and in the morning, she had squinted on the table for a little while, but now she waspletely invigorated.

    Zhang Siyi was anxious to ask: ¡°Is there anything I can help?¡±

    Bi Lele: ¡°ah? Then you trante the two poems that the boss added. Also, there was a map of the road system before. There are several ces where the colors are not right. You help me change it. Lu Qiao helped before, but he went to sleep and hasn¡¯t returned yet.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was infected by Bi Lele¡¯s attitude of excellence, and he was full of fighting spirit: ¡°Give it to me!¡± Maybe Lu Qiao did not follow the color of Bi Lele¡¯s color palette yesterday. Although it is simr, it looks a bit strange, like the difference between genuine and pirated. When Zhang Siyi used software to adjust it, he also found out that Bi Lele¡¯s color and matching techniques are very good. Her talents, such as nes and advertising design, may have a promising future.

    After breakfast, Zhang Siyi helped with various tasks all morning that he felt out of breath. He never worked so hard. If he went to college with the same mindset as today.... No, no, no, don¡¯t think about it. Stupid, the past can no longereback, and even if it was back again, the environment was so stress-less it was hard to find such great motivation. It¡¯s really right toe here, Zhang Siyi thought happily.

    With his intense focus, Zhang Siyi finally finished, only to realize that he had been holding back the Queen of the morning. After sending the picture to Bi Lele, he rushed to the toilet, pulled down his trousers and sat down on the toilet relieving his dder. Suddenly sitting, he was feeling sofortable... Now that he was there, he was feeling a littlezy and didn¡¯t want to get up. Zhang Siyi suddenly heard a voice from far and near ¨C

    ¡°Gu Yu, have you worked overtime in the whole group yesterday?¡± Is this voice a Chief?

    ¡°... Hmmm.¡± This is Gu Yu.

    The director sighed and said: ¡°I have told you that the selection is already fixed. The design institute does not want a conservative standard design, so I advise you not to fight too hard. The power of seventy or eighty is enough.¡±

    Gu Yu seems to be silent for a while, then said: ¡°I know.¡±

    Chief: ¡°Well, I can see your ability and hard work, but sometimes don¡¯t be so stubborn...¡±

    The two talked a few more words, Zhang Siyi sat in the cubicle. With the current atmosphere he dares note out.

    Default? The standard? What does this mean? Who has chosen this bid?

    So, all of them were kept in the dark, toiling for this big half month just to be a cannon fodder for people? Are you sure you will lose? And Gu Yu knew all this but didn¡¯t say anything!?

    Zhang Siyi instantly fell from the brilliance of glory in the clouds to the bottom of a cold pit. He was shocked. When he didn¡¯t hear any sounds outside, he stood up on numb feeling legs and opened the door. He saw Gu Yu standing in front of the sink facing his direction, surprised. ¡°You have heard it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± It was very unexpected to see Gu Yu still standing there. Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t know why he didn¡¯t leave before or say anything. Watching Zhang Siyi appear from the stall gave Gu Yu a surprise.

    Zhang Siyi wanted to pretend he didn¡¯t hear anything but could not. Blood drained from his face and he used Gu Yu: ¡°Why hide from us?¡±

    As soon as the remark came out, the anger in Zhang Siyi¡¯s belly poured up, and the thought that a group of them were still scrambling to do their best, foolishly looking forward to the final victory, he suddenly felt that Gu Yu was too much.

    Gu Yu looked at him and exined, ¡°What matters is the process, not the result.¡±

    Zhang Siyi hurriedly said: ¡°Even if you know the result, if you let us do it, we will do it well!¡±

    Gu Yu said: ¡°That is not the same, letting and wanting are two different things.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was choked by the remark, and suddenly roused his voice with anger: ¡°So you¡¯re not keeping it from us? Look at us work hard, full of hope, and then pped in the face again. How many times will be able to return after feeling so disappointed?¡±

    Gu Yu opened his mouth to refute, but was speechless for a moment.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Then I would rather fail in the initial grouppetition!¡±

    Speaking of this, he suddenly remembered the back of Tong Heyi sad departure at the meeting that day, he asked: ¡°She already knew?¡± What the director told you on Halloween was not a conflict in creative design, but news of an internal bid, right? She didn¡¯t just leave because of the mood, you didn¡¯t want to give up directly and took over the project!¡±

    Gu Yu is silent. His face is very white with shades of blue under his eyes.

    Zhang Siyi don¡¯t know where he got the guts to confront Gu Yu. He dares question his boss so loudly.

    Maybe it was because of all the hard work he and his coworkers have put into the project and maybe he wasn¡¯t afraid, but he just wanted to release his emotions. He did not expect to hear a satisfactory answer from Gu Yu¡¯s mouth.

    Unexpectedly, Gu Yu was silent for a long while, and suddenly asked him: ¡°Why are you doing architecture?¡±

    Zhang Siyi was asked, what does this matter have to do with building?

    Gu Yu also asked: ¡°If you don¡¯t win the bid, do you think that this half-month has no meaning?¡±

    Zhang Siyi raised his voice, anxious: ¡°Of course, but I don¡¯t want to work hard for a false goal!¡±

    Gu Yu staying calm responded: ¡°Building this road, is not what you do this moment. The results can be seen in the next moment. This bid is not our end. If you are rushing to win the bid, it is not called hard work, but called utilitarian heart.¡±

    Zhang Siyi is so angry-damn it. He wants to refute, but, damn it, Gu Yu is too eloquent!

    At this moment, someone came, and the two did not stand in the toilet to continue the confrontation. Angry, Zhang Siyi¡¯s legs carried him out one step at a time. He imagined that on each and every step he was stepping on Gu Yu.

    Returning to the office, seeing everyone still immersed in work, like a group of fanatics who have been brainwashed by the sales organization, Zhang Siyi has another painful feeling. Everyone is drunk, and I am alone. Mourning his misfortune, he sighed.

    Momentster, Gu Yu sent a message: ¡°Don¡¯t talk about this matter with the others. It will affect the morale of everyone.¡±

    Zhang Siyi gnashed his teeth and knocked on the keyboard: ¡°I didn¡¯t intend to say it.¡± ¨C He didn¡¯t understand at all, since the results were all fixed, what¡¯s the point!? How is everyone going to stay calm afterwards?!

    Gu Yu said again: ¡°Tomorrow, I will bring Ji Feiyu and Bi Lele to Z City. If you have nothing to do, you can go home this afternoon. You have worked many hours of overtime. You should have umted enough time for a holiday. Go think about things.¡±

 Chapter 27: Project Bid

    <h4>Chapter 27: Project Bid</h4>

    ________________________

    Although there wasn¡¯t specific work for him to do, he was happy helping his colleagues, but now he was denied the opportunity. He didn¡¯t like feeling unneeded. He understood the consequences if the knowledge he spreads has, so it makes sense to go back home, but being directly told by Gu Yu to leave made him feel abandoned.

    Zhang Siyi is already exhausted from hisck of sleep. Being bombarded by this emotional onught makes him feel even more ufortable. He can¡¯t think anymore! Zhang Siyi angrily shut theputer and left!

    On his way home, he was feeling so desperate that when he got to his room, he simply copsed on his bed and slept for the afternoon. After waking up, he felt empty.

    The feeling was like winning a big prize in a dream. He cheered and screamed, jumped up and down, exuberant in his feelings. It consumed all his energy and physical strength. Then waking up, there was nothing.

    Zhang Siyi, who has calmed down, recalls the heated questions he asked Gu Yu while in the bathroom and his nothingness turned to fear. Fuck! He dares confront his Boss! Did he have his head down? Is he the one to me? He felt that Gu Yu could be so stingy he would find faults. Maybe he would find a reason to fire him? His churning thoughts became worrisome. Did Gu Yu tell him to go rest because it¡¯s a disguised repatriation? Will he be unemployed? Zhang Siyi was so scared that he quickly called thepany¡¯s front desk and asked if he had vacation days.

    The younger girl at the front desk told him that he has vacation time avable. Overtime work is not paid for, however, if you work overtime for more than five hours a day, you can change for a half-day holiday. For more than eight hours, one can exchange the time for one day. Also, time can be umted up to six months and be used on ater date.

    This half-month was busier than usual, so his overtime hours added up to a full five-and-a-half-day holiday. In order to go on vacation leave, one needs to fill out paperwork in advance and get the leadership to sign them.

    Zhang Siyi came back without doing any formalities. He could not help but rush: ¡°So I have to go back to thepany to make a vacation leave now?¡±

    Front desk girl replied: ¡°No, Director Gu has spoken with the personnel department already. The paperwork has been signed to allow anyone on your project team that wants to, to be able to take a vacation starting this afternoon.¡±

    Zhang Siyi breathed a sigh of relief. Anyway, potentially seeing Gu Yu again in the short term will certainly be very embarrassing, and he has not been able to rest well since he started working. Enough!

    However, hanging up the phone and lying on the bed, Zhang Siyi thought of Gu Yu¡¯s pale face and felt a little guilty. He knows now what Gu Yu knows about the project and yet, he left. Gu Yu doesn¡¯t have that option. He still must push to the veryst minute, bid, fail, then face everyone else knowing the loss was inevitable. What kind of mentality and willpower is that?

    In the evening he got up and went to find something to eat. Being so busy at the office with overtime, Fu Xinhui was a bit surprised to see his sluggish figure. ¡°You were like a small energy robot moving around like clockwork for the past few days, what happened today?¡±

    Zhang Siyi nced over at him: ¡°Oh... our bidding project is done.¡±

    Fu Xinhui red at him: ¡°Isn¡¯t that a good thing? Are you hurting because you don¡¯t have work? Why does it look like you got dumped?¡±

    ¡°...¡± Zhang Siyi felt helpless. The subject matter of his office wasn¡¯t something Fu Xinhui was part of, so it wasn¡¯t something for him to know. If he started speaking his thoughts, he was afraid he would suffer internal injuries.

    Fu Xinhui did not express sympathy, but instead advised him: ¡°I have told you long ago. Don¡¯t invest so much emotion into your job. It¡¯s just a job. Look at how you are now ¨C lost three souls! There are so many variables in the world, so you can¡¯t predict everything. You are going to burn out with these extreme ups and downs that you won¡¯t be able to live past thirty!¡±

    Zhang Siyi was said to be poor, and Fu Xinhui¡¯s persuasion was not unreasonable. In fact, to some extent, what he said was very simr to Gu¡¯s phrase ¡°Importance is not the result, it is the process¡±.

    That¡¯s right. He is a genuine ordinary man, but he¡¯s not fine. How can he go to work in a sullen way and be happy in the blink of an eye? He did not care for the quiet and steady manner that is typical of Fu Xinhui¡¯s red-blooded indifference. Interrupting Zhang Siyi¡¯s cranky thoughts, Jiang Hai came over with his girlfriend. Not having a good meal together for half a month, Fu Xinhui called Jiang Hai in advance while Zhang Siyi was resting earlier.

    Currently, Jiang Hai is in a period of love. Every day, he and his girlfriend are together, so Fu Xinhui told him to bring his girlfriend too. His friend suggested going out to eat. Since Fu Xinhui and Zhang Siyi had no reason to refuse, they booked a restaurant and ordered a table of good food. Jiang Hai¡¯s girlfriend looks different from Su Yuan and Ren Mengyu and is different from Zhang Siyi¡¯s ex-girlfriend.

    Su Yuan is the mature intellectual type while Ren Mengyu is a white rich beauty and delicate female. Zhang Siyi¡¯s ex-girlfriend is beautiful, but a hot-tempered miss. Jiang Hai¡¯s girlfriend looks gentle and petite. Although not particrly beautiful, her looks make one feelfortable and weing.

    ¡°What is your name?¡± Zhang Siyi asked with a bright smile.

    Jiang Hai gave Zhang Siyi a p at back of the head: ¡°don¡¯t mess with my girlfriend!¡±

    Zhang Siyi ¡°......¡±

    Fu Xinhui burst outughing then said: ¡°It¡¯s the first time I saw Jiang Hai so jealous!¡± He nced at Zhang Siyi innocently on the floor and felt a little distressed.

    His girlfriend alsoughed with a smile and replied: ¡°Call me Tian Jing. Pleased to meet you. Jiang Hai has mentioned you several times. I am in your care.¡±

    Courteous and cheerful, points! Listen and speak, add points! Sweet voice, extra points!

    As they were waiting for their food, their conversation was naturally about the recent events in their lives. They learned that Tian Jing graduated from the architecture department of a normal university in China and entered thepany where Jiang Hai worked. Since Jiang Hai was a good friend and his family is in good condition, it didn¡¯t take long for them to hook up.

    Jiang Hai introduced his girlfriend to Zhang Siyi and Fu Xinhui. Tian Jing was a little envious: ¡°you three have a good friendship. After graduation, I separated from my college ssmates. They went back home, and I am the only one in Haicheng. I rented a house with my ex-boyfriend, but now I¡¯m left alone.¡±

    Jiang Hai immediately took hold of her hand and said, ¡°But you have me now.¡±

    Tian Yu Jing turned to Jiang Hai and sweetly said: ¡°I mean before I met you.¡±

    Over dinner there were many other times the couple sweetly expressed their feelings; kisses, being close, holding hands... Once when Tian Jing got up to use the restroom, Jian Hair frequently turned his head to look her way. For Zhang Siyi and Fu Xinhui, the look of obsessive love was simply unbearable, however for the young couple, their words and deeds weren¡¯t excessive at all. It is quite normal to express love when you are in love!

    Under such disy of affection, Zhang Siyi felt lonely and he wants to fall in love too. Maybe he should find a girlfriend to enrich his private life so that he can relieve some pressure from work.

    However, Zhang Siyi soon remembered hisst break-up. The rtionship seemed to be going well, although it was hard to truly tell because of the distance between the two. It wasn¡¯t until he moved back to China that they argued about all kinds of things. Especially in recent months when he was looking for a job. He was so stressed about his life that it effected his rtionship. After a period of separation, he felt so much better and more rxed. Hey, it¡¯s not easy to talk about a love, after all, the right girlfriend is not easy to find.

    After dinner, Jiang Hai graciously bought movie tickets, so the group could go see something together. It was a chance to show some goodwill in front of his girlfriend, and besides, Fu Xinhui and Zhang Siyi certainly don¡¯t mind watching a free movie. They took a taxi over to the theater. Fu Xinhui offered to buy coffee and called Zhang Siyi to help him.

    Zhang Siyi followed him and said: ¡°Ha-ha, free movies and coffee. I¡¯m taking advantage of it today!¡±

    Fu Xinhui smiled: ¡°Sooner orter you will owe me!¡±

    In fact, Zhang Siyi remembered. He still owed Fu Xinhui rent. Ah, the life of eating dirt. He felt a little embarrassed.

    At the cafe, Zhang Siyi ordered a cup of Mocha. Fu Xinhui said: ¡°Why are you ordering that. You alwaysin it¡¯s too sweet.¡±

    Zhang Siyi replied: ¡°I¡¯m tired of regr coffee. It¡¯s all I¡¯ve had at thepany thesest few days, so I want a change of taste.¡± In fact, Zhang Siyi wants to drink something sweet, to fill up on his own high blood sugar and drown his inner bitterness.

    With their coffee in hand, Fu Xinhui and Zhang Siyi walked back to meet Jiang Hai who got the movie tickets ready. Zhang Siyi took two sips of his mocha and couldn¡¯t stand it. He stared at Fu Xinhui¡¯stte. ¡°Hey, I told you so...¡± Fu Xinhui snorted, but he still changed drinks with Zhang Siyi. ¡°Jerk¡±

    Tian Jing watched the two bickers like a married couple and then exchange drinks. Holding onto Jiang Hai¡¯s arm, she sniffled augh.

    Jiang Hai asked her what she wasughing about. She whispered something in Jiang Hai¡¯s ear. Jiang Hai also followed Fu Xinhui and Zhang Siyi and couldn¡¯t help but smile.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Hey, why are you so smiling at us?¡±

    ¡°Nothing. Nothing....¡± Jiang Hai shook his shoulders and turned his back.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°...¡±

    Due to Zhang Siyi umted overtime and generalck of rest, he fell asleep in the cinema with a crooked neck and mouth slightly open. Fu Xin-Hui looked at him several times but could not bear to wake him up. Seeing him sleep in such an awkward position, he tried to help correct his posture several times.

    Tian Jing happened to sit between him and Jiang Hai and quietly asked him: ¡°Hey, do you like him?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°...¡±

    At the end of the movie, Zhang Siyi woke up for thest few minutes at the end. He had to guess what the movie was about. Out of the cinema, Zhang Siyi was about to ask Jiang Hai how her girlfriend nned to go back, when he smiled and said: ¡°I will send her back, you should take a taxi home.¡±

    Zhang Siyi smirked with a ¡°I understand¡± expression. Be leisurely at night, huh? Unexpectedly, Tian Jing on the side also smiled at him in an ¡°I understand¡± way and said: ¡°You too¡±

    Zhang Siyi thought that this girl was simply not understanding. When he got on the bus, he asked Fu Xinhui afterwards: ¡°Uh, is Jiang Hai¡¯s girlfriend misunderstanding something?¡±

    Fu Xinhui spread his hand: ¡°God knows what these women are thinking right now.¡±

    ¡± Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi was silent for a while and said: ¡°Well, ording to this pattern, what if Jiang Hai goes to live with his girlfriend next year?¡±

    Fu Xinhui doesn¡¯t care: ¡°Then it will just be the two of us.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°That 10,002, rent. I can¡¯t carry it evenly!¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Don¡¯t worry. You still pay four thousand. If Jiang Hai intends to move out, I will raise a dog. I¡¯ve always liked Golden Retrievers. When I let the big dog live in the Jiang Hai room, I will pay the rent for two people.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡±

    There are so many things wrong with this statement, Zhang Siyi brain hurts. One-third of the rent is for a dog? What would Jiang Hai think after he moved out that a dog moved into his room? Also, it won¡¯t be three ssmates living together, but two guys and a dog. He is always getting misunderstood. Why are things moving in an even more ambiguous direction?

    Irritated, Zhang Siyi squinted at Fu Xinhui: ¡°Why don¡¯t you find a girlfriend?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Why? Are you looking for a girlfriend?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Don¡¯t you envy Jiang Hai? With a girlfriend you can live together and have sweet honey every day. It¡¯s like winning life!¡±

    Fu Xinhui as if to see through everything, said: ¡°That they did not fight? It¡¯s not always so. Arguing is tiring. I think it¡¯s nice of us to be like this right now.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± us? Why are you taking me with you?

    Fu Xinhui felt his chin and nned for the future: ¡°After I get a dog it will be better, I tell you. That kind of big dog is particrly loyal. When its raised around you, it will wait daily for you to get home. Then it will eat with you, sleep with you, and will be happy to apany you everywhere.... And I¡¯m not going to lose my temper with you ... What else do you want a girlfriend for?¡±

    Zhang Siyi powerless spit out. Damn it, you and the dog after a lifetime to forget it!

    Fu Xinhui said, suddenly said: ¡°Eh, your birthday ising, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    Zhang Siyi almost forgot. His birthday is next Sunday, November 23: ¡°Well, it¡¯sing soon.¡±

    He was too busy to forget, I did not expect Fu Xinhui to remember.

    Fu Xinhui said: ¡°When the timees, everyone will gather again.¡±

    Zhang Siyi sorry: ¡°Well, it¡¯s been a month since thest get together. I think everyone is busy. I¡¯ve been working overtime, so I don¡¯t know when I¡¯ll have the opportunity to ask and even if I ask, will they even have time to make ns? I don¡¯t even like cake.¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°anyway, I am free. If they can¡¯te, I¡¯ll apany you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi felt a touch of emotion in his heart. He was absolutely lucky to have a friend like him.

    The next day Zhang Siyi woke up and remembered that this day is the bidding day.

    Has Gu Yu taken the team members to Z City already? Has the bid started? If the bid fails, will theye back that night? He hesitated for a long time but could not resist knowing the news. He asked Zhu Hongzhen for Bi Lele WeChat then added each other as a friend and sent a message: ¡°Lele, I am Zhang Si Yi....¡±

    Bi Lele: ¡°Aunt Four Ah, what?¡±

    Bi Lele: ¡°We arrivedst night. Presentation started at eight in the morning and they are now in the city hall. One by one they present their designs. It¡¯s not our turn yet, but soon.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Ah? It¡¯s almost the turn! Then why are you still free to return my news?¡±

    Bi Lele: ¡°The bidding is the speech of the boss. We don¡¯t do that much other than answer any questions asked. I could take a nap.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Oh...¡± Thinking of Gu Yu getting up to make his presentation speech, Zhang Siyi thinks about how overbearing he could be. Normally, one might feel insignificant and irritated, but instead he simply feels the eloquence with which Gu Yu debates is maic and handsome. He suddenly wishes he was there to watch Gu Yu make his presentation in person.

    Zhang Siyi also asked: ¡°How many are there with you?¡±

    Bi Lele: ¡°There are not many people just 5 totals; 2 from thendscape group, Ji Feiyu, Yuan Zhicheng, and me. Tong Heyi didn¡¯te. It¡¯s strange. Normally on big bidding projects there are more people to increase the firm¡¯s image and momentum.¡± Zhang Si Yi kept his mouth shut.

    He is both anxious and annoyed. If that bathroom event didn¡¯t happen at noon yesterday, would Gu Yu have taken him to Z-City? Even if he is just patch worker, can¡¯t he also add momentum to the team? But instead of supporting him behind his back, he confronted him hard....... Is Gu Yu going to feel disappointed? Is he going to be frustrated? How much has it affected him?

    Bi Lele: ¡°Are you worried about the result? Ha-ha, Piggy and Xuan Xuan also sent a me message. Rest assured, you will be the first to know!¡±

    Zhang Siyi is very sorrowful, he is not worried about the results, he is worried about their emotions!

    After that Bi Lele had no further news, Zhang Si Yi still feeling a bit mad at Gu Yu, he sent him a text. ¡°status?¡± Gu Yu did not reply, and he also knew that he would not reply. He is under pressure now. The other possibility is that he does not want to care about Zhang Siyi at all.

    Zhang Siyi passed the afternoon leisurely and at 7 pm, the phone vibrated again, and his heart followed.

    Knowing what the result would be, he didn¡¯t want to face it. He was trying to figure out what words offorting he needed to say for Bi Lele sake.

 Chapter 28: Visiting Relatives

    <h4>Chapter 28: Visiting Rtives</h4>

    _______________________________

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s first reaction was wrong, but he received several repetitive good news.

    Bi Lele: ¡°Fourth Aunt!! We won the BID!!!

    Zhang Siyi shocked: ¡°What!? No Way!!¡±

    To make sure he didn¡¯t read wrong, Zhang Siyi almost put his eyes on his phone¡¯s screen. But how is that possible? Wasn¡¯t thest spot decided internally? Is Bi Lele just joking?

    Bi Lele made an angry expression: ¡°What is with your reaction!?¡±

    Sweating with cramping fingers, Zhang Siyi nervously exined himself: ¡°I heard the bidding was decided internally for the Design Institute and we were there only to apany them.¡±

    Bi Lele: ¡°What!? I didn¡¯t know!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Well, while using the restroom, I inadvertently heard the Chief and Boss chat. Only I knew about it at the time, but since the bidding is finished, it should be fine.¡±

    Being thepany¡¯s gossip monger, Bi Lele was upset at not being in-the-know. Hearing that the least likely person with insider information knew more than she did, she felt insulted. However, she quickly disregarded these feelings: ¡°Shit, I¡¯ll get to the bottom of this!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Hey, wait, so is it true? You must answer me first!¡± Bi Lele did not respond for a long time. Zhang Siyi was anxious, and he held the mobile phone up and stared at it. Is this reality? Did they drop all the internal propositions? This is a shock reversal Ah!

    If this is true, Zhang Siyi simply can¡¯t imagine the mood of Gu YU now! Does he also feel ted? Or does he think this oue was expected? Is he worried it is a short scam?

    It was not until more than an hourter that Bi Lele replied to Zhang Siyi: ¡°I just asked the boss. Gu Yu also said that it wasn¡¯t clear what happened. It¡¯s very confusing, but they made us ept the bid. It appears that the decision makers and the people from the Design Institute were in a dispute from the beginning. We were thest firm to present our proposal. Including questions and answers, the group took forty-five minutes and the panel voted 5-2 in our favor to move forward with a n. All thepanies present have waited for an oue with a unanimous vote, but it¡¯s not going to change now. The otherpanies areing to congratte us so it¡¯s toote for the government to make aeback.¡±

    Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°Was the other n also a flower design?¡±

    Bi Lele: ¡°The bidding presentations are rtively confidential. We don¡¯t know what each have presented. I only know that the boss is very handsome today. You didn¡¯t see how persuasive he was when he reported it. He quoted all kinds of things. He didn¡¯t hesitate to answer any questions asked. Every time I go out with the boss, I learn something new and fall in love with architecture all over again.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was surprised by Bi Lele¡¯s words. He really wished he could be there.

    Being on the receiving end, Zhang Siyi has long since known how well Gu Yu speaks. He could have killed a man in one sentence. On the other hand, if that skill had been used in a persuasive speech, even Zhang Si Yi can imagine how attractive he must be.

    Bi Lele: ¡°He is so imposing when he is determined. I think he¡¯s getting more handsome! Ah, I decided! I¡¯m going follow the boss for the rest of my life!!!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Bi Lele continued to report: ¡°When we waited for the results, we talked with a firm from Hangzhou. We saw each other¡¯s ns. They were full of praise and thought our n was very strong. At that time, we guessed that we might have a chance to win the bid. We didn¡¯t see it as luck, but real skill. Maybe the Design Institute has a prestigious name, but we aren¡¯t fools at Borderless. Its sure clear who is good and who is bad. Ha-ha-ha-ha!¡±

    Zhang Siyi was also infected by the other party¡¯s optimism. He was excited: ¡°What are you doing now? When are you going back to Haicheng?¡± He couldn¡¯t wait to see this group of friends and wanted to hug them together to celebrate the result!

    Bi Lele: ¡°We are at the hotel now. It was so tense for thest few days, now everyone is so tired. Boss said that there is no hurry, so we are taking a few days off.¡±

    Alright! Alright! Zhang Siyi happily withdrew from the conversation. Lying on his bed he suddenly hugged his quilt and rolled around in his bed for a while happily. So cool! The sense of aplishment he feels right now from working so hard is greater than all his 23 years of life. So Happy!

    When it was veryte that day, Zhang Siyi received a reply from Gu Yu: ¡°Thank you, I haven¡¯t watched my mobile phone. Bi Lele has already told you about the result?¡±

    The tone in Gu Yu message is very polite and Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart sank. He feels an indescribable amount of guilt and immediately returned the message: ¡°I am sorry about before. I didn¡¯t think this oue was possible. I was too narrowminded. I was wrong.¡±

    If Gu Yu, as the Chief said, only let them do 70-80% of their best, or tell them the result of the decision very early, maybe there will be no result today.

    After a few minutes, Gu Yu replied: ¡°You are not wrong. I also thought about what you said and reflected on some issues. Everyone works with different values and intensity. I should not sacrifice you to satisfy my own determination. Today¡¯s result is also beyond my expectation, and probably the next time we will not be so lucky.¡±

    Seeing Gu Yu¡¯s exnation, Zhang Siyi was not relieved and felt even more ufortable. He would rather have Gu Yu give him a hard scolding or use him as harshly as before. He didn¡¯t want Gu Yu to turn him away coldly with indifference.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I was wrong.¡± Zhang Siyi did not know what to do, and he was anxious to send a cartoon crying emoji.

    Gu Yu: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Forgive me! [Cry]]

    Gu Yu was silent for a while then a new message appeared: ¡°You¡¯ll get less bonus.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°... Don¡¯t!!! ¡°...You can¡¯t y cards like this! It¡¯s no fair!

    Gu Yu: ¡°Oh? You don¡¯t seem to be afraid of me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°...bing so insolent and dare to say anything in front of me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Indeed, Gu Yu is the boss and he is a subordinate. Zhang Siyi has a cheerful disposition and is usually a very easy person to get along with. In the beginning there was distance between them but now they have spent two months working overtime together as well as time spent on the business trip together. There is so much between them that when he was being serious it was like a test of his jubnt character.

    Zhang Siyi narrowed his eyes and sent a little crying fox emoji that hadrge puppy-dog-eyes to Gu Yu. He doesn¡¯t know how he will react to such cute expressions. Since its through WeChat, there is less sense of distance, so he is pushing Gu Yu¡¯s bottom line.

    Unexpectedly Gu Yu wrote: ¡°Do you talk to other people like this? ... send a bunch of expressions for little girls?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°What are you, a shemale?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡± Damn it!

    Gu Yu¡¯s poisonous tongue strikes again. Normally one would get mad being insulted, but Zhang Siyi felt better and then thought, is he a masochist?

    The next day, Zhang Siyi asked Bi Lele if they should create a WeChat group for office friends. Bi Lele liked this idea: ¡°Yesterday, I sent the good news to everyone and after saying it seven or eight times, I was exhausted!¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s eyes twitched: ¡°You never thought about building a WeChat group?¡±

    Bi Lele: ¡°I really didn¡¯t think about it. I usually have a lot of work. Everyone has no time to chat. If there is anything in private, for example, if you have to work overtime, it is more convenient to make a phone call.¡±

    Zhang Siyi suddenly realized: no wonder this bunch of zero-social workaholics will follow Gu Yu.

    After a while, Bi Lele ask Zhang Siyi for help: ¡°Shit! it¡¯s tooplicated, I don¡¯t know how to do it. I¡¯ll send you all the info, so you can set it up.¡±

    Zhang Siyi is speechless: So... a designer able to use picture editing software can¡¯t master a WeChat group?

    He first put his colleagues¡¯ mobile phones into the address book one by one, and then searched them in WeChat. The number was added, and everyone was registered. In less than half an hour he organized the group ¡°Borderless Forbidden City Team¡±.

    Ji Feiyu was the first to open his mouth in the group. His nickname was very ipatible with his age and his temperament as a group leader.

    Chicken wings: ¡°Eh?! Who did this?! Hell, yeah!¡±

    Lele: ¡°Fourth Aunt created it!¡±

    Honesty: ¡°So cool......¡±

    Tai Cheng: ¡°Awesome ...¡±

    Is it awesome to have a WeChat group? Zhang Siyi scratches his head. Have these people lived in the 1980s before?

    Pig: ¡°Have we organized this in private? ~o(n_n)o~¡±

    Lele: ¡°How do you make such good faces. Mine looks dead.¡±

    Pig: ¡°I just wanted to experiment with the text input functions. (>__lt;)¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Hey, you add him, the mobile phone number on his business card.¡±

    Du Rui: ¡°I have added it before and I have been ignored.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Du Rui: ¡°I thought his WeChat didn¡¯t work for people. Hey, he really is different for you!¡±

    Zhang Siyi is a little embarrassed, quickly said: ¡°I don¡¯t think so. Maybe he didn¡¯t see. I¡¯ll send him your WeChat card and ask him to add you?¡±

    Du Rui: ¡°well, I¡¯m afraid if he refused that would be even more embarrassing, thank you.¡± Zhang Siyi did not know how to say it. He always felt that Du Rui¡¯s secret love was a bit pitiful.

    Just when Zhang Siyi started believing there might be something special between himself and Gu Yu, the rug was pulled out from underneath. That night Bi Lele posted a few photos in the new group: ¡°The boss asked us out to eat sand tea noodles! It¡¯s so good!¡±

    He was scrolling through the photos Bi Lele posted in the group. They were inside the sand tea noodle restaurant that Gu Yu took him to earlier. Ji Feiyu and Yuan Zhicheng were both there and the two were immersed in eating. In one photo, Gu Yu looked at Yuan Zhicheng with a smile like he had when Zhang Siyi was there. In another photo Gu Yu looked amused. Even in the dim light of the restaurant you could not mistake Gu Yu bright eyes and handsome face. Everyone in the chat group said they were so envious. Zhang Siyi scrolled through the photos several times. He didn¡¯t feel envious so much as he just felt empty. He didn¡¯t know why he felt so ufortable.

    There are still three or four days of vacation left. Since Zhang Siyi is idle, he nned to go home and visit family.

    His hometown of Ningcheng is very close to Haicheng. Its only three hours away on the high-speed train. Recently, with so many hours of overtime, he has rarely called his family. The day before yesterday his mother sent him a messageining of his absence. It has been half a year sinceing back to China. Even though Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t want to see his father, he knows it is an appropriate time to go home and visit rtives.

    With his credit card approval and the bonus from hispany¡¯s bid, Zhang Siyi spent a lot of money buying a bunch of Haicheng specialties and brought them home for his parents.

    When his mother learned of Zhang Siyi return home, his mother personally came to pick him up at the station. When she saw him at the station with his bags of things, she teared up feeling both happy and heartache.

    ¡°Your cranky father wouldn¡¯te pick you up. He said to let you exercise.... He has be so bitter.¡± Zhang Mother rubbed his head: ¡°Mom was really busy recently, so I didn¡¯t have time to visit. Take advantage of the supplements at home these days.¡±

    Looking him over she said: ¡°How can you be so thin?¡± Zhang Si Yi can¡¯t stand his mother fussing over him. He reluctantly waved her away while also enjoying the maternal love.

    In fact, the station is not far from home, and it took twenty minutes to drive. Mama Zhang also bought a box of KFC¡¯s colonel chicken on the road, letting him pad the stomach.

    Zhang Siyi said: ¡°When you are having dinner, how can you still buy this for me?

    Mother Zhang smiled: ¡°This is your favorite food before. I am against you to eat junk food, but one or two times is nothing.¡±

    Zhang Siyi sighed inwardly. How long ago did he like this thing; fried chicken and fries. Besides having lived in Ennd for a several years, he tired of eating it. His mother saw him only eat one chicken piece and hurriedly said, ¡°Why don¡¯t you finish eating it! Hurry and eat it, your father will know!¡± They each took two pieces and gobbled them down.

    At home, Zhang Siyi saw the nanny setting the table early with a variety of seafood. It looked sumptuous. His father was sitting on the mahogany sofa in the living room, reading the newspaper. When he heard the door ring, his eyes looked up then closed the newspaper and said without affection: ¡°Back? Let¡¯s eat.¡±

 Chapter 29: Family

    <h4>Chapter 29: Family</h4>

    ______________________

    When his father appeared, the initial happy and rxed atmosphere disappeared.

    Although it was a beautiful reunion dinner, his father¡¯s attitude made Zhang Siyi unable to rx at all. In addition, his mother helped him serve his soup: ¡°Eat quickly while it¡¯s still hot. It has fresh fish from this morning.¡±

    When his father saw his mother serving him, he frowned. He took the chopsticks and pointed them in the direction of his mother: ¡°Does he have no hands? How old is he? He can get his own bowl of soup! He is spoiled by you!¡±

    ¡°...¡± Sure enough, Zhang Siyi had a long face and was most disgusted to hear his father say this. Has he been spoiled? His mother loves him. Is this not a mutual thing? Why is he always a ruin in his dad¡¯s eyes! At a very young age, Zhang Siyi quickly learned his father¡¯s rules. When his father spoke, he couldn¡¯t talk back otherwise there would be dire consequences. His father was extremely overbearing!

    Feeling resentful, his mother murmured: ¡°It¡¯s rare for him toe home and you can¡¯t even say a few words!¡± Can it be his father is simply upset at not being served first? ¡°Good Comrade Zhang, I will also give you a bowl.¡± His mother also took a bowl of soup over to her husband smiling. She thought to herself: ¡°You big people are so small, drink more soup, talk less!¡±

    While his mother went to cate his father, he and his father started peeling crabs. She continued: ¡°He sessfully graduated from Ennd and found a job in Haicheng. Where is it that I have spoiled him? Isn¡¯t that pretty good? Your mouth is like a tofu knife, always cutting him down. One of these days when you get old, he won¡¯t bothering back.¡± She gave Zhang Siyi a look suggesting that he pour wine for his father.

    Even though Zhang Siyi was so unenthusiastic, when he saw his mother trying so hard to reconcile with his father on his behalf, he pretended to be good and respectful son to his father and poured a ss of wine for him.

    With a condescending tone and a self-important expression, Zhang Father asked Zhang Siyi about his work in Haicheng.

    He wanted his father to recognize his own efforts, so he briefly said a few things about Borderless and his sry. He continued to describe the big Z-City project in detail from inception to winning and the whole wave of ups and down in between. He deliberately talked about his team and colleagues more than himself and focused on Gu Yu¡¯s determination to see the n through. Finally, he told them that Gu Yu was the person who interviewed him.

    His Father ignored Zhang Siyi bragging side, listen very seriously, asionally nodded and ask a few questions. For example, when Zhang Siyi mentioned Gu Yu, his Father asked him carefully about his age, his college, his work history, and so on...

    When he heard about Gu Yu being a high school alumnus and Ningcheng¡¯s college entrance examination champion, his Father put down his ss and gently said: ¡°Oh? It¡¯s him.¡±

    Zhang Siyi said excitedly and asked: ¡°Do you know him?¡±

    Father Zhang nodded and said: ¡°I have seen him once.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was excited: ¡°When was that?¡±

    Father Zhang said it was a few years ago at a designpetition. At that time, it was the project of Ningcheng. When Gu was awarded the prize, the award was typically handed out by an official; Zhang Siyi¡¯s Father.

    He drank some wine and praised him: ¡°A very good, calm young man.¡±

    Zhang Siyi listened to his father¡¯spliment of Gu Yu, as if he was more than happy to be praised. He couldn¡¯t help but talk more about him: ¡°Look, he actually won the bid against the Design Institute. Isn¡¯t it amazing?¡±

    While Zhang Siyi was talking about Gu Yu, he didn¡¯t know that his expression was the same as that of Bi Lele when she daydreams of the Boss.

    His Father grunted and said: ¡°Generally this kind of internal situation is not usually so easy to subvert. It must be that there are differences at the top and the people who can make decisions are temporarily changed ahead of time. You must have a leak.¡±

    What do you mean, leak!? Zhang Siyi suddenly was angry and wanted to refute.

    His father turned to say: ¡°But even if you didn¡¯t win the bid this time, the style and attitude of the surname Gu will definitely have a future. If the eye can see his intention, he will remember him. The effort is not in vain. Just look at the opportunity toe.¡±

    Zhang Siyi listened to his father¡¯s words, and remembered the sentence that Gu Yu responded to himself in the toilet that day ¨C the road of architecture, not what you did now, you can see the results in the next moment. Zhang Siyi had a faraway look in his eyes for a moment.

    His father¡¯s voice pulled him back: ¡°I remember that you were moring to learn architecture, it seems it was because of him?¡±

    Zhang Si Yi was startled, there is such a thing? He told his father about it?

    His Father recalled: ¡°You went to high school that year and said there is a T University construction director to give a lecture in the school, called Gu Yu. That day you were very excited and said you wanted to learn architecture.¡±

    Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t remember at all. When did his father remember so much? How can he remember this kind of thing?

    Father Zhang seems to have expected Zhang Siyi¡¯s forgetfulness and said: ¡°You have been a three-minute person since you were a child. You have learned Taekwondo, learned violin, and learned fencing. Which one has persisted? Originally, your grandfather gave you this name. I expect perseverance. This time after graduation and looking for a job. I didn¡¯t think you would sessfully get on track. Maybe the young man named Gu is really the person who can take you down the right road.¡±

    Zhang Siyi felt ted. He only heard the most important words ¡°Sessfully get on track¡±. Did his father just recognized his hard work?

    When he learned that Zhang Siyi was working with Gu Yu, Father Zhang seemed to be relieved. He nced at Zhang Siyi again and said:¡± Learn from others and be receptive of good advice.¡±

    Zhang Siyi nodded again and again: ¡°Hmm!¡±

    His father wasn¡¯t used to seeing Zhang Siyi have such a positive look. His could not help but sigh again: ¡°And, remember to be low-key, don¡¯t talk about your family in front of outsiders.¡±

    Zhang Siyi waved his hand and said, ¡± I know, I know!¡±

    The atmosphere of this meal today is the best it has been in a few years. After dinner, Zhang Siyi felt relieved to go upstairs to his room. Zhang Siyi pounced on the bed and rolled on it happily.

    Zhang Siyi hasn¡¯te back for a long time and suddenly felt homesick. The English text book he used to study with during the summer, the architectural extracurricr books that he bought before, the basketball in the corner of the room... Everything seems to remind him of his time growing up.

    He coulde home every day to his room with clothes neatly tucked away in his closet, bed made, and clean room. It¡¯s like a babysitter. In contrast, now Zhang Siyies home to his apartment to a messy room, a mountain of clothes and rent to pay. Although he is feeling somewhat nostalgic, he only sees the expression on his father to know that he doesn¡¯t want Zhang Siyi to be home. He sighed.

    He found his old violin that had yed for many years. In his youth, he performed at the school art conference in junior high school, but he was not professional enough. After going to high school, he said that if he was busy with school, he wouldn¡¯t y the violin anymore. Thinking back to his youth Zhang Siyi admits that the real reason is because he waszy. He didn¡¯t want to take the time to practice every day. Once he let go of an activity, he didn¡¯t want to pick it up again. His father is right. He really is a three-minute character.

    Zhang Siyi took out the violin and ced it in position on his shoulder. Because it was not used for a long time, the peg was a little damp and difficult to turn to tune the strings. He warmed up a little and his muscles started remembering how to y then he tried to y Cannon. With a bunch of broken notes and poor bowing, he stopped in frustration. He liked the idea of maybe practicing after work to rx. Zhang Siyi sat down and immediately put the violin in the doorway and nned to take it back with him when he returned to Haicheng.

    Looking at his closet, Zhang Siyi suddenly saw something and pulled out a bunch of strange books... Wait, what are these?

    ¡°Mom-! Mom¨C! Come up!¡± After a few minutes, Zhang Siyi screamed a few times outside the door.

    Mama Zhang heard her son¡¯s summoned money upstairs: ¡°What? did you call me?¡±

    When the mother arrived at the door of the room, Zhang Siyi pointed to the books: ¡°This!?¡± Awkward!

    His mother reacted quickly. Panicking, she pushed her son into the room and closed the door and grabbed the book: ¡°You can¡¯t see this kind of thing!¡±

    ¡°Are these your books?¡± Zhang Siyi had thought that his mother would say it was her cousin¡¯s, but he did not expect it to be hers!

    She whispered: ¡°I watched it online, it was very interesting, so I bought a book to read!¡±

    ¡°This is all messy!¡± ¡°The sweet male secretary of the president¡±? ¡°What should I do if I am seen by a straight man next door?¡± Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t want to know anymore. ¡°You don¡¯t want to watch those messy things online!¡±

    His Mother covered her son¡¯s mouth: ¡°Keep it down, keep it down! I put it in your room because I don¡¯t what your father to know!¡±

    Nearly hysterical, Zhang Siyi tried to stay calm: ¡°Then how can you put this kind of book in my Room? What if Dad sees?¡±

    Mother Zhang shoved the pile of books into the deepest part of the closet and said: ¡°He won¡¯te into your room casually.¡±

    Unexpectedly, his mother is an old rotten girl and secretly hid the evidence in his room.

 Chapter 30: Small Hair

    <h4>Chapter 30: Small Hair</h4>

    _________________________

    In order to keep the Revolutionary United Front, Zhang Si Yi can only help keep her secret.

    He just happened to see part of a page of an opened book. There was a man pushing another to the wall to bite his neck, blushing with a quickening heartbeat... Zhang Siyi hurriedly closed the book and felt goosebumps all over. He couldn¡¯t look at his mom. He especially does not want her to visit. What will she think when she sees him living with Heartless Han and his dog? Is his mother going to think he¡¯s gay!

    Since he returned to his hometown, Zhang Siyi took pictures of the high-speed railway station and Ningcheng on the road. A local friend contacted him that night and politely asked him to go out and have a few drinks.

    When he visited between his semesters in Ennd, he mainly stayed at home with his parents and didn¡¯t have much time for socializing. Most invitations were made by excuses and only wanted to see how Zhang Siyi, the small hair, grew up. He had one childhood friend, Shen Hao, whose family also knew Zhang Siyi¡¯s family.

    Shen Hao family and Zhang Siyi¡¯s family have a little friendship. Shen Hao¡¯s father worked with Zhang Siyi¡¯s father in the early days. Although he is now in a different department, he has always had contact.

    The boys were in the same kindergarten and elementary school. His father insisted that Zhang Siyi only go to public schools, so after he graduated from junior high school, Shen Wei was sent to a private school. Under pressure, Zhang Siyi was admitted to Ningwai.

    To put it bluntly, Shen Hao is ¡°defective¡±. When he was in college, he didn¡¯t even have an undergraduate course of study. After that, his father paid for him to enter a pheasant university in a nearby city. It sounds like a college graduate, but in fact, it is just a specialist qualification.

    However, apart from the academic qualifications, Shen Dao is a very worthy friend. He just doesn¡¯t like to read books, but he has a lot of ideas. He is very clever and humorous. Zhang Siyi especially loved to y with him as kids. In the past few years, Zhang Siyi has also been in contact with Shen Hao intermittently.

    The next afternoon, the two met at the small bar. When Shen Yan met Zhang Siyi, he eagerly came up to him with a light punch and then grabbed the brother¡¯s shoulder. He was excited: ¡°Zhang Dagongzi!¡±

    Zhang Siyi turned around and elbowed his friend: ¡°I haven¡¯t seen you in over a year, you are so different!¡±

    Last summer, when Zhang Siyi was still a student, he came back and saw each other. His friend has changed since then with his tanned and rough skin. He still has a hippie smile, but he now feels like a young person in society.

    Shen Hao: ¡°I am different from your white-faced, schr background. I have mixed up in society for almost two years. I¡¯m full of wind and sun, old!¡±

    After they sat down, they ordered some beer and skewers. Zhang Siyi saw him ce a BMW car key on the table. He was surprised: ¡°BMW, wear Zegna. Shit! How are you so rich now?¡±

    Shen Yu proudly said: ¡°I am working in architecture.¡±

    ¡°Hey!¡± Zhang Siyi squirted a beer and wiped his mouth. ¡°You didn¡¯t go for a financial major at the Patriotic Economic and Trade University? When did you switch to architecture?¡±

    Shen Hao smiled: ¡°Isn¡¯t this to because of you. When I was studying for a few years, my dad was getting on my ass everyday telling me how great and diligent you were, that I needed to learn from you. So, when you went abroad to study architecture, he thought there had to be a future in the field.¡±

    Zhang Siyi inwardly groaned. He asked: ¡°You tell me clearly; what building are you doing?¡±

    Shen Hao drank a big swig of beer and said: ¡°Do construction contracting projects.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What is that? Say it simply!

    Shen Hao: ¡°It¡¯s the contractor.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Shen Hao put his beer to the side and said: ¡°Don¡¯t underestimate me in this line. I¡¯ll tell you. I make a lot of money. Thesest two years I¡¯ve worked on three projects and earned this amount.¡± He stretched out his palm with five fingers open,¡± this number!¡±

    Zhang Siyi an eyebrow: ¡°50,000?¡±

    Shen Hao stared with eyes and forced the five fingers toward Zhang Si Yi to join.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Your lying! It¡¯s not half a million, is it?¡±

    Shen Hao pped the table: ¡°Eh? It¡¯s five million! Five million!¡±

    Zhang Siyi is shocked speechless: ¡°Really, it¡¯s that much? Don¡¯t bullshit me!¡±

    Shen Hao hurriedly said: ¡°I¡¯m not bluffing. I¡¯m your friend! I got my car and my house!¡±

    Zhang Siyi is both envious and instinctively unwilling to believe it. He is curious: ¡°What do you do? What foundation is needed?¡±

    Shen Hao waved his hand: ¡°The contractor recruits¡¯ people to work and manages them.¡±

    Zhang Siyi raised his eyebrows: ¡°That sounds to simple. Why Isn¡¯t everyone able to make a fortune?¡±

    Shen Xiao smiled: ¡°Of course it¡¯s not simple! It¡¯s about opportunity and to be honest, the first project is based on my father¡¯s rtionship...¡±

    Zhang Siyi found the real reason. He nodded ¡°uh huh¡±.

    Shen Hao continued: ¡°My father has a friend named, Uncle Cao, who is in the construction business. He saw me idle after graduation and asked me to help him with a favor. After a while I started learning from him about the overall process; where to find people to work, where to buy materials etc... It¡¯s getting more difficult because of the expense. Migrant workers are paid 2000 now.¡±

    Zhang Siyi interrupted: ¡°The three projects earned 5 million and paying workers 2000 is still expensive?¡±

    Shen Hoa said: ¡°The whole market situation is like this. Others only give one thousand or fifteen thousand. I pay two thousand. It¡¯s good!¡±

    Zhang Siyi is speechless.

    Shen Hoa also pointed his finger to him: ¡°A project might have fifty people, with 12 hours a day working shifts. Sometimes the project must go through two shifts day and night which is equivalent to double thebor. Monthly expenditure will be a dozen or two hundred thousand. This doesn¡¯t guarantee that the workers won¡¯t try to drag out the time!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Wait, twelve hours a day? Isn¡¯t the legal working time eight hours?¡±

    Shen Hao looked at him like an idiot: ¡°Which line of work is only eight hours? Don¡¯t tell me that you don¡¯t work overtime, huh, huh.¡±

    Thest ¡°huh huh¡± was a great irony to Zhang Siyi, and Zhang Siyi was so angry that he couldn¡¯t refute anything. He did work overtime often and he even spent the night!

    Shen Hao ignored his scowl and continued: ¡°In any case, artificially, you can¡¯t make any money. The main profits are from materials. You must understand the building materials market. The construction unit will give you a total amount of money for each project. If you save money, the rest of the profits are yours.¡±

    Zhang Siyi and squinted at him: ¡°Don¡¯t use cheap, ck market stuff!¡±

    Shen Hao said: ¡°I am not the kind of person who has no conscience!¡±

    Zhang Siyi slowly nodded his head and asked: ¡°You have no foundation in construction. How can you be a supervisor? What if there is a problem?¡±

    Shen Hao doesn¡¯t care: ¡°Pay the Supervisor consultant to help look at it!¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s your solution? ¡°Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t sure he heard right. What if the Supervisor consultant is a liar? What if Shen Hao was fooled by someone else and didn¡¯t know? What if something went wrong in the construction process? Who¡¯s in charge? Is it a Shen Hao or a construction consultant or an engineeringpany? Even though Zhang Siyi had a thousand question, he didn¡¯t ask. He didn¡¯t want to crush Shen Hao¡¯s enthusiasm.

    Shen Hao: ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I have learned a lot in these past two years. I¡¯ve worked in the industry with Uncle Coa as well as others. My dad is always promoting me, and I get contacted often. Hey! It¡¯s so much more interesting working in society. Studying was suffocating!¡±

    Shen Hao grabbed the car key and shook his hand, proud: ¡°You see the results! My BMW andke view apartment are paid for and I didn¡¯t even spend a penny from my family.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi feels like he has a stomach ache. For more than a decade, one type of belief has been instilled into Zhang Siyi mind. In order to seed in the future, you must study hard and do well. However, the reality is different. Right in front of him is a person who never studied and yet, he has already surpassed Zhang Siyi financially! It is too difficult to admit that the other person is better than himself. In particr, his friend has easily done what Zhang Siyi has always wanted to do. He does not spend a penny from home, starts from scratch, is rich and wealthy, and proves his strength in front of his father.

    Just then, Shen Hao smiled and asked, ¡°What about you? Well, how are you doing in the big city?¡±

    He knows his friend doesn¡¯t mean anything by his questions, but to Zhang Siyi, it feels like he is pouring lemon juice over paper cuts. Depressed, he responded: ¡°I don¡¯t earn as much money as you. I¡¯m a hard-working drawing dog. I work at an office with a monthly sry less then then six thousand most of which goes to rent so I can only eat dirt.¡±

    He also wants to brag in front of Shen like a bulging, fat man, but in the face of a local tyrant who has reached 2.5 million a year, the gap is too big. He feels like a salted fish; lifeless and dried.

    Shen Shen¡¯s heart was dark, and the surface was surprised: ¡°Really? Haicheng¡¯s sry is so low?¡±

    Is he really not poking fun at Zhang Siyi¡¯s expense? He inwardly sighs. In fact, it is not low. He is a thousand dors more than Jiang Hai!

    Shen Hao¡¯s family was convinced he would always follow in Zhang Siyi¡¯s shadow. In Shen Hao father¡¯s mouth, Zhang Father¡¯s son was ¡°a child of other people¡¯s family¡±. Somewhere in his heart he wanted the serf to turn over and be the master. Feeling giddy with happiness, he¡¯s got his wish!

    They have been friends for a long time. Shen Hao wants to earnestly help his friend out and says: ¡°You are in the big city now but can return in Ningcheng and work with me! I¡¯m picking up rtively small projects now, but with more experience I will be able to pick up bigger projects that pay even more. I have the money to connect with people and you are an architect with professional knowledge. When I hire you, I will give you a share of the profits and make sure you can also earn a golden pot in a few years.¡±

    After hearing his friend¡¯s proposal, Zhang Siyi felt moved. How could he not? One hundred fifty thousand a year! He doesn¡¯t think even Gu Yu¡¯s annual sry is a fraction of it!

    He is thankful for his friend¡¯s olive branch, but Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t feelfortable. If he doesn¡¯t use the skills, he graduated university with, what were all those years studying architecture for?

    Zhang Siyi bit his teeth: ¡°Thanks, but I¡¯m learning design and I don¡¯t know what to do with construction, so I don¡¯t think I can help you right now. Maybeter when I learn more, we will be able to work together on a project. I¡¯ll will immediatelye to you!¡±

    Shen Hao: ¡°Good deal!¡±

    After that, the two of them talked about the friends of the past few years. Many of them were peers with simr family backgrounds who grew up in the district.

    Shen Hao: ¡°Remember that Song Xiao? She is getting married at the end of the year.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°The one who always has a runny nose in elementary school? So fast!¡±

    Laughing, Shen Hao said: ¡°Well, when I was a child, I teased her and pulled her braids. I didn¡¯t expect her to get married so soon. At 18, she has changed a lot. She is quite beautiful now. If I had earned my 5 million earlier, she would be my wife!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Ha-ha-ha!¡±

    Shen Hao: ¡°She may not know that you have returned to China. Are youing back for the New Year? I will let her know, and we can go out for drinks!¡±

    Zhang Siyi excited way: ¡°Good!¡±

    Shen Hao: ¡°By the way, if you go to the wedding don¡¯t forget a gift.¡±

    Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t know the current trend and asks: ¡°Usually how much do people give?¡±

    Shen Hao: ¡± I estimate about one thousand six-eight hundred.¡±

    There are so many sleeper grooves! Zhang Siyi expenditures greatly exceed his current ie and he is still expected to pay 1600-1800 for a wedding gift? But before he could express his inner shock, he listened to Shen Hao: ¡°I earn a lot, so I gave 10,000.¡± ¡°Poof ...¡± Zhang Siyi felt like he had a huge hole in his chest.

 Chapter 31: See Them Off

    <h4>Chapter 31: See Them Off</h4>

    _________________________

    After saying goodbye to Shen Hao, Zhang Siyi wandered home. Learning about his friend¡¯s current lifestyle, he felt apprehensive about going out and socializing with other old ssmates. He didn¡¯t want to get mocked and suffer 10,000 points of damage.

    Zhang Siyi has been resting at home thest two days. Since his vacation time is running out, he decided to head back one day earlier. This weekend is his birthday so his mother was expecting him to stay home: ¡°Why don¡¯t you have a birthday at home and then go?¡±

    Zhang Siyi said: ¡°No. It¡¯s too hectic to leave on Sunday. Besides, I made ns with my friends to have a birthday dinner.¡± Also, he didn¡¯t dare stay at home for his birthday because he didn¡¯t want to deal with his father. His mother would inevitably throw him a grand birthday and then his father wouldin and make a scene about it.

    His mom asked about his friends: ¡°Are you having dinner with your friend that returned to China with you and now rent an apartment together?¡±

    ¡°Right. We three male students rent a house together,¡± replied Zhang Siyi, feeling stressed now that he knows what kind of books his mother reads in her spare time.

    Mama Zhang: ¡°Oh......¡±

    His mother asked the housekeeper to prepare Zhang Siyi¡¯s birthday longan egg flower soup in advance and after lunch he went upstairs to gather his things and came downstairs with his hands full. He saw a pile of things at the entrance of the house. He was shocked: ¡°What is all of this?¡±

    Zhang mother said: ¡°This is your Father¡¯s unit citrus. We have eaten too much so you can take the rest. There is also fresh shrimp and crab paste. You bring it with you to Haicheng, so you can eat well for the next several days.¡±

    Zhang Siyi put his pack and violin case down next to the pile of ¡®sweet-burden¡¯ and eximed: ¡°But it¡¯s so much, I can¡¯t bring all of that!¡±

    ¡°Oh, aren¡¯t you driving to the station? I¡¯ll get Mr. Wang to help. ¡±Zhang Mama screamed and was looking for Wang Hao to help bring these things to the car. His father came out of the study and frowned at everything in front of him.

    His mother immediately greeted him with a smile and took the cup away from his father¡¯s hands. She said softly: ¡°Our son has to go. Let¡¯s send him off together!¡±

    His father pointed at the pile of big bags and said seriously: ¡°You have given him so many things to go to Haicheng! If I am going to see him off, what will others think?¡±

    Mother Zhang exined: ¡°It¡¯s just some fruit and food, what is the problem?¡± Besides, this is what I bought with my own money from your Welfare Unit. Its not robbery, how can I not share it? The daughter of the old Le family also works in Haicheng. They let their driver personallye to pick her up every week. You are too careful all the time, you act like we are doing something wrong!¡± Feeling sad, Zhang mother choked up a little. This time she made nopromises. While cing the tea cup down she turned her head to wipe the corners of her eyes.

    When Zhang Father Saw his wife¡¯s appearance, he instantly raised his hand in surrender. He wasn¡¯t enthusiastic, but he relented and said, ¡°Just this once.¡± Then he went to go change his clothes.

    Zhang Si Yi didn¡¯t think it was a big deal. He didn¡¯t realize it would cause such amotion between his parents. Zhang Siyi was going tofort his mother, but his mother turned to him quickly, and gave him a victory pose.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    His mother is not only a rotten woman, but also a top-notch actingdy... o(¨s¡õ¨t)o

    After changing into a dark colored, casual outfit, Father Zhang, helped bring the packages to the care. Zhang Siyi also took a bag, and he did not dare to say anything behind his father. His father personally drove them to the station. Sitting in the back, he and his mother talked quietly. They parked the car in the lot and had to walk to the station entrance. His father personally helped him carry the bags of items to the ticket counter.

    There were a lot of peopleing and going on Saturday. Zhang Siyi¡¯s eyes were sharp, and suddenly he saw a familiar figure in the crowd. Surrounded by a scarf and carrying a ck backpack.... Gu Yu!!

    Zhang Siyi blurted out and called to him. Gu Yu looked back and saw Zhang Siyi¡¯s family of three, and he also stopped.

    His sight rested on Zhang Siyi for two seconds then turned to the middle-aged man with the most domineering posture to his side. Gu Yu walked quickly over.

    ¡°Zhang ... Secretary?¡± Gu Yu said with uncertainty. He was surprised to see Zhang Siyi. Zhang Siyi felt embarrassed as he did not expect Gu Yu to directly called out his father¡¯s title!¡± Even though it¡¯s been so long since he saw Secretary Zhang, Gu Yu still remembered. His memory really is impable.

    His father remained calm. Hearing Zhang Siyi call out to Gu Yu, his father immediately guessed who this person is. He reached out to Gu Yu: ¡°What a coincidence, you were also home to visit your family?¡±

    ¡°Yes¡±, Gu Yu answered then humbly said: ¡°Zhang Siyi is your son.¡±

    Father Zhang said: ¡°Zhang Siyi has been working in Haicheng and hase home to visit the past couple days. He has talked about you in admiration.¡±

    Gu Yu took out his wallet and took a business card from inside and handed it to Zhang, respectfully. ¡°If you have any questions, please feel free to contact me.¡±

    While watching the exchange, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t help but think about how handsome Gu Yu demeanor looked.

    His Father nced at the business card and put into a safe pocket then responded in a polite way: ¡°When we speak on the phone you can call me Uncle Zhang.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother was patiently waiting on the side then stepped forward when she saw them finish and gave a box of citrus to Gu Yu. With a gentle voice she said, ¡°I wish we had more time for proper introductions. Here take Siyi¡¯s box of Citrus.¡±

    Gu Yu refused: ¡°No, thank you Aunt, but I will help him carry it home. I¡¯m going the same direction anyway, so it¡¯s not a problem.¡±

    Holding Gu Yu¡¯s hand, Mother Zhang patted it: ¡°Don¡¯t be so polite. We are from Ningcheng and thus, are like family when you are out of the station. I see that you are more mature than Siyi, so I will also ask you to take care of him in the future. I might have given this gift in the moment, but if you don¡¯t ept it, I will have to give you an even bigger present next time.¡±

    His Mother leaves no room for argument, so Gu Yu reluctantly epts and thanks her. Zhang Siyi inwardly sighs. Even though his Mother is an old rot, he hopes the light in her eyes is from the enjoyment of making a personal contact and not because of something else. (=_=)

    The train is getting ready to leave so they don¡¯t have more time to talk. Gu Yu helped Zhang Siyi with half of the packages and then said goodbye to Zhang Siyi¡¯s parents. Before leaving, Mother Zhang reached Zhang Siyi and whispered: ¡°The fresh grapes in the red bag and the box of crab paste and shrimp are also gifts.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I know......¡± Gu Yu is a big bargain!

    After watching the two of them leave and move towards the train tform, both of Zhang Siyi¡¯s parents left. Gu Yu looked at the time and found the ticket gate smoothly. The conductor that checked the tickets was already moving forward through the crowd.

    Zhang Siyi followed behind Gu Yu and asked, ¡°What a coincidence! You bought a ticket for G750X¡¯s train too?¡±

    Now that Gu Yu has met his family, Zhang Siyi felt both afraid and excited. He feels apprehensive because he doesn¡¯t want to be treated any differently now that Gu Yu knows his family background. But he is also getting excited because it is just the two of them together and meeting so coincidentally is like magic.

    Gu Yu: ¡°This train is the fastest.¡±

    Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°But the weekend isn¡¯t over, why did you decide to go back today?¡±

    The two of them lined up and slowly moved forward to get onto the train. Gu Yu turned his head and looked at him: ¡°Why are you asking so many questions?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    ¡°If I want to go back, then I will. What other reason do I need?¡± Gu Yu simply exined. He pulled his ticket out and nced at it. ¡°What is your seat number?¡±

    Zhang Siyi looked at his ticket: ¡°Mine is 5-12a.¡±

    Gu Yu then asked: ¡°Do you want to change seats or should I?¡±

    Zhang Siyi was startled. Gu Yu is asking him to sit together? ¡°Well, I¡¯ll change it.¡± How can Zhang Siyi feel good about making his boss change his ticket! He took the initiative to follow Gu Yu to his seat.

    Gu Yu put the packages neatly on the shelf and let Zhang Siyi sit next to the window while Gu Yu sat in the aisle. Soon, a middle-aged woman was standing in the aisle looking at them. Gu Yu took Zhang Siyi¡¯s ticket and politely asked her to switch seats to 5-12a. Du Rui was right, Zhang Siyi thinks. Privately, Gu Yu is very gentle. With his demeanor and looks, no one can refuse him.

    After the train got moving, Zhang Siyi wanted to find a topic to talk about with Gu Yu, but his mobile phone suddenly rang. Gu Yu looked at it and said to Zhang Siyi: ¡°Your fathers sent a text message and asked us if we got on the train ok.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Ah?¡±

    Gu Yu handed the phone to Zhang Siyi¡¯s direction and raised an eyebrow and asked: ¡°Are you ok?¡±

    Zhang Siyi touched the nose, a little awkward: ¡°He is sent it to you. You reply.¡±

    Gu Yu typed out a string of words on his mobile phone. Zhang Siyi was staring at his slender fingers to see, thinking, why is his father sending messages to Gu Yu and not to himself?

    Who the hell is old Comrade Zhang¡¯s son? Why does it seem like Gu Yu is his babysitter?¡±

    After a while, Gu Xiao¡¯s mobile phone shook again. He looked and suddenly smiled. He leaned over and tilted his phone to let Zhang Siyi read the contents.

    Father Zhang had made a speech and in it, he said that Zhang Siyi was usually yful and didn¡¯t do things seriously. He has no perseverance, and his determination is low. If it wasn¡¯t too much of a bother, he asked Gu Yu to discipline him and guide him. He also said that he didn¡¯t need to be too polite and to tell Zhang Siyi honestly if has not done something well.

    Looking, Zhang Siyi jaw-dropped, then he closed it and clenched his teeth. How could he talk about Zhang Siyi like that behind his back! It¡¯s too much! He doesn¡¯t know what Gu Yu is typing.

    Laughing, Gu Yu replied to his father then put his phone away then he sighed: ¡±A long way to go hmm.¡±

 Chapter 32: Invitation

    <h4>Chapter 32: Invitation</h4>

    After Gu Yu returned the text message, he counted all the packages that belonged to Zhang Siyi. One, two, three, four, five.... He looked at Zhang Siyi and said: ¡°You need aborer to return from home.¡±

    Zhang Siyi reluctantly said: ¡°I didn¡¯t want to bring so much, my mother insisted that I bring them.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°It seems that your mother is very fond of you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Fortunately...¡± Aren¡¯t all mothers like this?

    Gu Yu also teased: ¡°You are all grown up but are still being breastfed!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu looked at the violin case that Zhang Siyi had ced at his feet. He had no chance to ask previously, but now he was curious: ¡°Do you y the violin?¡±

    Zhang Siyi guilty: ¡°Well, I have been studying for a few years.¡± He wanted to make an impression on Gu Yu, so he didn¡¯t tell him he hadn¡¯t practiced for a long time and forgot how to y it well.

    Gu Yu appears to be very interested: ¡°Oh? When will you y it? Let me hear a song.¡±

    Zhang Siyi coughed. In order to avoid his white lie being exposed, he pretended to be serious: ¡°I have a rule. I only y violin for people that I like.¡±

    Gu Yan looked at Zhang Siyi and expressively said ¡°Oh¡±.

    Could Gu Yu see through his act? Zhang Siyi felt embarrassed and he subconsciously drummed his fingers.

    Gu Yu: ¡°I was going to tell you that if you took the stage to y a song during thepany¡¯s annual meeting then there would be a reason to give you another bonus.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± You didn¡¯t say it earlier!

    Originally, Zhang Siyi felt that it was a wonderful experience to meet a fellow in Haicheng at the station. He wouldn¡¯t be lonely and could chat, but now finds that he is wrong! Between his Father and Gu Yu, he felt belittled. Not wanting to feel insulted again, he was afraid to talk to him. An Awkward silence broke out, so Zhang Siyi turned his attention to his mobile phone. Gu Yu also seemed disinterested in conversation, so he turned away and closed his eyes.

    Seeing Gu Yu resting on the side, Zhang Siyi discretely turned sideways and opened WeChat: ¡°I met the Boss on the train! I¡¯m so depressed!¡±

    Lele: ¡°What train? Where have you been?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I went back to my hometown and now I am on the high-speed train back to Haicheng. I happened to be on the same train as the Boss. He is sitting next to me!¡±

    Chicken wings: ¡°You have some nerveining here.¡±

    Joe Sister: ¡°Serious warning: Please don¡¯t expose the secret base of the revolutionary organization.¡±

    Aunt Four: ¡°...¡± Damn it, this secret base is still formed by me!

    Xuan Xuan: ¡°I don¡¯t understand. Why is the Boss traveling from your hometown to Haicheng?¡±

    Lele: ¡°Oh! After the bid, we continued to stay in the city for two more days. The boss said he wanted to go home so he went to the airport and flew. Do you have a ce with the boss?¡±

    Zhang Siyi thought for a moment. At first, he thought it wasn¡¯t a good idea to expose the past connection between himself and Gu Yu, but now they have worked together for a few months. He is very familiar with his colleagues, so he didn¡¯t feel that it was necessary to hide it anymore. In the chat group he said: ¡°Well, Director Gu and I graduated from the same high school.¡±

    The crowd didn¡¯t doubt his words, but also recognized Zhang Siyi own work strength.

    Only Du Rui said with emotion: ¡°No wonder you are so special to him.¡±

    Xu Jia: ¡°No. Ourpany also had an intern from the same school as Gu Yu. I didn¡¯t see any special treatment.¡±

    Zhang Siyi is Speechless: ¡°Do you really think it¡¯s good to be on the Boss¡¯s radar?¡± I feel like I¡¯m being stared at all the time. I¡¯m not free at all!¡±

    Xu Jia: ¡°That is the gaze of love. Aunt Four, you must change your attitude. The more attention he shows you, the greater his expectations are!¡±

    Lele: ¡°The boss pays attention to you only means you still need to grow. Don¡¯t struggle teenager.¡±

    Chicken wings: ¡°Yes, as long as the work is done well, Gu Yu won¡¯t control you.¡±

    Tai Cheng: ¡°Agree ...¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Why didn¡¯t anyone help him say a word!

    Just when Zhang Siyi was concentrating on replying to the group chat news, Gu Yu next to him suddenly said: ¡°What are you doing?¡±

    Zhang Siyi was so scared that he quickly quit the interface and turned around. Gu Yu looked at him with his arms crossed and raised his eyebrows and asked: ¡°Are you on social media again?¡±

    ¡±No¡± Zhang Siyi spat. ¡°I¡¯m talking to a friend,¡± He was afraid Gu Yu was going to use him again. To defend himself, he vehemently responded, ¡°What¡¯s the problem? I¡¯m not at work and yet you still criticize me. Am I at work now??? Then there is no problem!!!¡±

    After watching Zhang Siyi eagerly argue with him, Gu Yu was unexpectedly amused. He covered hisugh: ¡°Of course.¡±

    Zhang Siyi nkly looked at Gu Yu¡¯s smiling and felt stupid. While this person normally has a very stern face, if he smiled so handsomely and cheerfully all the time, it is estimated that it wouldn¡¯t be long before Zhang Siyi stopped being afraid of him.

    Gu Yu: ¡°You don¡¯t have to shrink into the corner to chat.¡±

    Feeling embarrassed, Zhang Siyi sat up straighter and stopped ying with his mobile phone.

    Gu Yu coughed and suddenly asked: ¡°Are you free tomorrow?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Hmm? What¡¯s up?¡±

    Although tomorrow is his birthday, he didn¡¯t make specific ns with either his circle of friends or confirming ns with Fu Xinhui, so nothing is certain.

    Gu Yu paused and said: ¡°I want to take you to a ce.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± What ¨C is ¨C happening??

    Since Gu Yu didn¡¯t hear Zhang Siyi refuse, he assumed it meant he was free. He directly asked: ¡°Do you know the Center Union Square?¡±

    ...... Hey, huh? What do you mean? Is Gu Yu asking him out?

    Because Zhang Siyi was entangled with his thoughts, he didn¡¯t say anything about his birthday. He heard him say: ¡°Beside the No. 3 line xx Road Station, tomorrow at 9 am, see you there.¡± There was no room for refusal.

    ¡°What are we going to do there?¡± Zhang Siyi can only continue to ask questions along the subject.

    Gu Xiao: ¡°Tomorrow you will know.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± It¡¯s a mystery!

    Gu Yu sessfully piqued his interest, so he slowly nodded. ¡°Okay.¡±

    When the train arrived in Haicheng, the two men took the big bags and left the station. They decided it was too cumbersome to travel by subway with all the packages, so they went to look for a taxi. Gu Yu helped Zhang Siyi bring his things back to his apartment. Feeling a little upset, Zhang Siyi, asked: ¡°Where do you live?¡±

    Gu Yu reported a general location not far from thepany which was in the same neighborhood of the cafe that Zhang Siyi and his ex-girlfriend had metst time. The very affluent area was mostly upied with old-fashioned houses. Whether it was buying a house or renting a house, the price is not cheap.

    Zhang Siyi curiously asked: ¡°Are you living in your own house?¡± This is a rather impolite question for an employee to ask his Boss. He guessed that Gu Yu wouldn¡¯t reply, however he answered calmly. ¡°I am borrowing a friend¡¯s house.¡±

    Being influenced by gossip, Zhang Siyi¡¯s can¡¯t help wondering about what friend Gu Yu has. What type of friend is so close that you borrow a house? Is it the person who has called before? Although curious, Zhang Siyi did not dare ask Gu Yu.

    During the taxi ride home, he called Fu Xinhui and asked him toe to the door and meet him. Then he had to take the crab paste and crab out ording to his mother¡¯s instructions and give it to Gu Yu.

    Gu Yu refused: ¡°Don¡¯t give it to me, you can eat it yourself.¡±

    ¡°No, no, my mom said to give you half.¡± Zhang Siyi said.

    While Gu Yu couldn¡¯t directly deal with his mother before, he can now deal with Zhang Siyi: ¡°So eager to give me something. Soliciting favors? Am I collecting bribes?¡±

    Zhang Siyi choked and nearly spit blood. He wanted to say a few more words, but Gu Yu quickly exined: ¡°Your mother has already given me oranges. These things are her heart for you. Keep it for yourself. It is better to work hard to make me happier.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Fu Xinhui has stood at the door of the neighborhood waiting. Gu Yu helped Zhang Siyi get out of the car with his bags and made another face-to-face with Fu Xinhui. Fu Xinhui also politely asked if Gu would go up for a drink, but he refused unceremoniously.

    Zhang Siyi carried his things upstairs with Fu Xinhui help. He felt irritated and couldn¡¯t stop himself fromining to his friend about Gu Yu¡¯s indifference: ¡°That guy is so unreasonable!¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Why are you so pissed?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°My mom asked me to give these things to him, but he refused saying I was trying to bribe him!¡±

    Fu Xinhui smiled and reassured him: ¡°Why are you so angry? It just means he doesn¡¯t have a close enough rtionship with you that he feltfortable epting the gifts. That¡¯s all.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    After entering the house, Fu Xinhui looked at the bag again: ¡°Hey, red cream, crab, good things!¡±

    Zhang Siyi said with a sigh of relief: ¡°Yes, this from the housekeeper. She picked the fattest crab meat to make it. It¡¯s the best, super delicious crab paste that money can¡¯t buy!¡±

    Zhang Siyi appeared better. The two cooked some rice and made a fried green side dish. They set the table then decided to call Jiang Hai. For fear of noting, they invited his girlfriend to join them.

    After the meal, Fu Xinhui mentioned Zhang Siyi¡¯s birthday. Jiang Hai and Tian Yujing were quite excited as they were free on the weekend and was avable to do something together.

    Zhang Siyi remembered Gu¡¯s invitation and said: ¡°I can¡¯t go out tomorrow. My Boss told me to meet him.¡±

    Fu Xinhui said: ¡°Where is goSquare?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°It¡¯s at the union center. I have never been, so I¡¯ll check the map.¡±

    Jiang Hai: ¡°I¡¯ve been there before. It¡¯s a business center with shopping and dining. Why are you meeting him there?¡±

    With a timely response Tian Yujing said: ¡°A date?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡±

 Chapter 33: Dating

    <h4>Chapter 33: Dating</h4>

    ____________________

    Hearing Tian¡¯s excited guess, Zhang Siyi¡¯s eyes nearly popped out of his dead. A date with Gu Yu? Shit! No way!

    Fu Xinhui seemed a little unhappy with the disruption of the n, frowning: ¡°Can¡¯t you push it off? You have been working so much and took time off, but now your holiday has ended because of your Boss. Is he taking you to inspect the building?¡±

    ¡°No!¡± Zhang Siyi said frantically. Since Gu Yu allowed him to use his mobile to y games and chat during the high-speed rail journey back, he felt that it is still a rest period and he isn¡¯t going to make him do work on hisst vacation day. On the other hand, Gu Yu is now in collusion with his father and knowing how intense Gu Yu can be, he reconsidered his thoughts.

    Zhang Siyi turned his head down: ¡°Forget it? No way. I promised him that I would meet at 9 o¡¯clock in the morning. I think it will be for the morning only, so when I get back in the afternoon early enough, we can call Su Yuan and have a meal together.¡±

    Remembering the prospect of a bonus since he was involved with the winning project bid, Zhang Siyi excitedly said, ¡°My colleagues told me that I will get a bonus from the project bid. If we eat together tomorrow, I¡¯ll treat!¡±

    Feeling concerned for his friend, Fu Xinhui looked at Zhang Siyi. One minute he was down in the dumps and the next he was soaring high. Watching Zhang Siyi emotional transformation speed, he felt reassured.

    In the evening, Jiang Hai still went back to his girlfriend¡¯s ce. After they left, Zhang Siyi was alone in the room and yed the violin for a while. His hands were not good enough. Bing frustrated, he put the instrument aside.

    Before going to sleep, he thought of the leisure meeting with Gu Yu the next day. His heart was like a cat w. What the hell is he going to do? Will they really look at the buildings? Zhang Siyi was afraid, and quickly checked the construction of the Union Square on the Inte. He nned to do his homework in advance, so as not to be ridiculed by Gu Yu tomorrow.

    But that square is a very ordinary modern architecturalplex. Neither the period of construction or the style of the building is anything special. It is just as Jian Hai said, a big mallplex with shops and food.

    The issue kept percting in Zhang Siyi mind. He turned to think: Does Gu Yu know tomorrow is his birthday? Is this a birthday celebration? After all, Gu Yu now knows his background and promised his parents he would take care of him. Because of his Father¡¯s status, such a thing, Zhang Si Yi has seen a lot since childhood.

    Although he did not dare show the banner of ¡°My dad is Secretary Zhang¡±, Zhang Siyi always felt the influence that his Father¡¯s background brought. By knowing his Grandfather and his Father, others will always know Zhang Siyi¡¯s identity through various channels. Then inevitably, they will try to get close and tter him.

    The reason why Zhang Siyi can still be so upright now is because of his parent¡¯s many warnings. Don¡¯t tell people about his Father¡¯s job. Don¡¯t listen to other people¡¯s sweet talk. His Father has given him many face-to-face warnings as well as his Mother¡¯s repeated sentiments. People will try to sway your opinion and trap you. Any miss deeds will have a corresponding price. Ordinary is better. Ordinary is happiness. Zhang Siyi is not stupid and knows the truth. Although his way of doing things is unlike his Father, he has navigated through enough conversations growing up that he has developed the perfect temperament.

    Zhang Siyi touched his chin. The more he thought, the more he felt that there was such a possibility. When signing a contract, he had to fill in the certificate number. Gu Yu had to know that his birthday was tomorrow. Maybe it was ¡°special care.¡± Thinking thus, Zhang Siyi felt like a viin who was about to have an auspicious day. Well, Dad, you talked to him and let him spy on me! Anyways, Zhang Siyi also has a bottom line and he thinks this is within an eptable range of preferential treatment.

    Early the next morning, Zhang Siyi jumped out of bed, put on stylish clothes that made him look handsome, then went out. Taking the subway to the station near the square, Zhang Siyi was five minuteste. He sent a message to Gu Yu and asked him where to meet him.

    Gu Yu: ¡°At the 2nd exit opposite where the shopping mall entrance is¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I aming, where are you?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°There should be a safe staircase nearby. Youe down to the parking lot. I am near the second shutter door of the fire zone.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    What¡¯s he doing in the parking lot? What the hell is a fire zone? Shit, can¡¯t he just stand in a position that¡¯s rtively easy to find?

    Gu Yu had been waiting and his patience was wearing thin, so he called over and asked, ¡°Are you down yet?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I am down. I can¡¯t find you.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Where are you now?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Parking Area A. There is a pir on the left and a red Jaguar in front...¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Stand still.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Oh.¡±

    After a few seconds, Gu Yu asked: ¡°See me? I am under the deformation seam.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡± Can you speak English?!

    Just as Zhang Siyi was about pull out his hair in frustration, he saw Gu Yu walking from a distance. Today, the temperature is a little cooler then yesterday, so he is wearing a coat and a high cored sweater with his hands in his pockets.

    Zhang Siyi also looked up to see what the deformation seam is.

    It was a dark, concave canal, wide, dividing almost the left and right roofs directly into two parts ... Damn it, he knows what it is!

    Gu Yu saw him standing there foolishly empty-handed, frowning: ¡°Why didn¡¯t you bring anything?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What am I going to bring?¡±

    Gu Yu raised eyebrows and said indifferently: ¡°I sacrificed the weekend to give you extra tutoring. Do you have at least a notebook?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Crap, you didn¡¯t say what I was doing!

    Gu Yu red at Zhang Siyi with a pair of ¡°If I do not say, you should also guess¡± expression. He looked at the time: ¡°If your father hadn¡¯t specifically told me to teach you more, I didn¡¯t have to get up so early today and you actually arrivedte.¡±

    Zhang Siyi is going to copse. How can Gu Yu really be so mad! Today is his birthday!

    Gu Yu covered his mouth with his hand and yawned. He said: ¡°Forget it. Come with me. I hope you have a good enough memory.¡±

    Following behind, Zhang Siyi was so pissed, he wanted to explode.

    Along the way, Gu Yu pointed to the parking lot and exined to him: ¡°The traffic inside the parking lot is designed very well. Previously, I have wanted to show you, but it was sidetracked because of the Z City project.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°I told you before, the idea of ??doing residential nning and designing a parking lot is the same. If you are skilled in parking lotyouts, it will be very easy to do anything in the future. Come and see this structural column. How big is the axis spacing?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Damn it, his eyes are not meters! How can he measure how big it is! He took a few steps around and gave a guess: ¡°About nine meters and ten meters.¡±

    Shaking his head, Gu Yu sighed. He took arge tape measure from his trouser pocket saying: ¡°Come and help me measure.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Damn, you brought a tape measure. Why bother asking me!?

    The two measured the distance of the axis and some of the surroundings. Gu Yu said: ¡°The axis distance is only eight meters five and the parking position is less than eight meters. With three parking spaces are arranged, it is quite crowded.¡±

    Even though Zhang Siyi thought about it, when he came to see the actual situation, he found the original drawings to be very different.

    Gu Yu took him to the axis of the other load-bearing column of the deformation joint, this time is 12 meters, but there are three parking spaces in the middle.

    Zhang Siyi was a little surprised. The other one was too narrow and now this is too big. Is there a mistake in the design? Is Gu Yuing to take him to see a counter-example?

    Gu Yu looked around for a while: ¡°You see, this parking lot is well designed, reflected here in the different types of parking spaces. Cars now often are the extended version or SUV. Those parking spaces are too small because the door can¡¯t open. The standard data is no longer applicable. The center was built more the seven years but even so, the designers anticipated the future automobile trends, so they designed the car parking in zones. In the entrance, there is a guide for small andrge cars. It fully maximizes the use of space.

    Zhang Siyi was speechless. Indeed, so many times in and out of the parking lot, he never carefully observed the design inside. He was only thinking in terms of the normative data.

    It took more than an hour for them to walk a circle while observing the details of theyout of the underground parking lot. This isn¡¯t a shopping trip. It¡¯s totally impossible to enjoy!

    Committed to the task, Gu Yu leads him around the lot to point out and exin the details: ¡°Don¡¯t think that the architect just needs to consider the construction professional problem. You can see the location of the venttion duct here. Go back and you need to know how much the height needs. And here, when designing, you must make a position for the fire hydrant box in advance, so it¡¯s not in the parking space... Remember?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Remember...¡±

    Having spent the whole morning walking and observing the inner workings of the parking lot, Zhang Siyi started feeling irritated. It was time for lunch, but Gu Yu did not say that they would eat. He led them out to observe the entrance and surrounding roads. It was overcast and drizzling out. Zhang Siyi was cold and hungry. Heined that there was nowhere to sit. He felt like his treatment was the same as that day when he stepped on the scene in the Z City nning area.

    After a full five hours, it was two o¡¯clock in the afternoon. Finally, the work in the parking lot was finished. It started raining more steadily. Gu Yu looked at his watch: ¡°Are you not hungry?¡±

    When he heard the word ¡®hungry¡¯ Zhang Siyi perked up. His whole demeanor came back to life. He was already starved, ok?

    Gu Yu looked at the surroundings and saw a KFC nearby.

 Chapter 34: Gifts

    <h4>Chapter 34: Gifts</h4>

    _________________

    At that moment when Gu Yu mentioned taking him to KFC, Zhang Siyi was about to blow his top. Zhang Siyi clenched his fist and mustered his cheeks. His patience has been pushed to the limit. He must resist! He must refuse! He¡¯s going to say what¡¯s on his mind or he will go crazy!

    But before Zhang Siyi burst out, he heard Gu Yuughing: ¡°Ok, ok. I¡¯ll stop teasing. What do you want to eat? You can pick it yourself.¡± As if he had encountered something particrly interesting, Gu Yu¡¯s smile grew. From a slight upturn of the corners of his mouth to a smile from ear to ear, he expressed pure enjoyment.

    Even though Zhang Siyi tension was to the max and he wanted toin, when he saw Gu Yu heartfelt joy and smiling face, he was like a fast-exploding balloon. The air suddenly being released, twitching in the air, snoring and deting and finally ttened on the ground spent, and dying.

    Gu Yu seemspletely aware of Zhang Siyi emotional stress and at this moment, Zhang Siyi really-really -hates-him.

    Zhang Siyi angrily took out his phone and looked at a review app. He looked up the mall and he chose a rtively expensive restaurant with the highest rating. It was a mixed Spanish Chinese restaurant with a very good evaluation. It¡¯s not extravagantly priced, but still quite high. No matter, even if Gu Xiao doesn¡¯t invite him to eat, Zhang Siyi will pay to eat something good otherwise he is going to die!

    Gu Yu was silent. When Zhang Siyi reported, they immediately went upstairs. Into the restaurant, the host lead the two men to a double sofa position by the floor-to-ceiling window.

    There were very minimal decorations in the ce. From the window, one can view the entire center of Union Square. The environment is very good, but it¡¯s already passed peak hours, so there are fewer people around and it seems a bit deserted.

    Gu Yu ordered a piece of char-grilled steak and Zhang Siyi asked for one of his favorites; a cuttlefish noodle dish prepared Western style.

    The dishes were served very fast and Zhang Siyi was famished. He tended to turn his emotional grief and stress into appetite. Digging in, it didn¡¯t take long for him to finish his meal. When Zhang Siyi finished his portion of squid, Gu Yu¡¯s steak was only one-third eaten. He touched his stomach, but he felt like eating more. He ordered crispy squid rings and sweet and spicy chicken wings. The waiter asked them if they wanted dessert or after-dinner drinks. Gu Yu ordered a cup of coffee. Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t like to eat sweet, so he said no.

    Gu Yu excused himself to use the restroom. Zhang Siyi ignored him, turned to the window and pouted. Now, the rain was pouring down. In the early winter it wasmon to have heavy rain storms apanied by a cold front. It felt like the coldness was prating the ss.

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s mood is also badly affected by this bad weather. Even if he rushed home, it is estimated that no one will want to go out in such a storm. ¡°I was ravaged by day, and I couldn¡¯t see friends at night.¡± Zhang Siyi thought.

    This day was probably the worst birthday of his 23 years! If he had known the day would be like this, he would have sleep at home all day! Maybe Gu, the bastard, didn¡¯t even know that today was his birthday... Since he picked the restaurant this time, there aren¡¯t any surprises. There wouldn¡¯t be an opportunity for him to forgive Gu Yu.

    Feeling petnt, Zhang Siyi wants there to be a reason to feel even more wronged. He doesn¡¯t know what kind of expectation he has in his heart. After a while, Gu Yu came back. He took the hot coffee that the waiter had just sent and held it in his hand. He took a sip and looked at Zhang Siyi¡¯s profile and said slowly: ¡°You aren¡¯t happy?¡±

    Zhang Siyi turned back, and answered with a rhetorical denial: ¡°No.¡±

    Of course, he is not happy! But he can¡¯t say why. Can you tell your Boss that ¡°It¡¯s my birthday today and I¡¯m very unhappy with you?¡±

    Gu Xiao tilted his head in thought. Zhang Siyi lowered his head and stabbed a squid ring to eat with his fork and noticed the steak that Gu Yu had not finished eating. He asked, ¡°Why don¡¯t you eat it?¡±

    Gu Yu said: ¡°I¡¯m full.¡±

    Zhang Siyi thought, does Gu Yu not like Western food? Many people in the country are not used to eating western style foods. When they were in the UK, they didn¡¯t like it at first, but after eating it more, they slowly liked the taste of fresh beef. He selfishly chose this ce to eat without asking Gu Yu what types of food he likes.

    Gu Yu asked: ¡°Do you have any ns for a while? Do you want to go back?¡±

    Zhang Siyi iszy and can¡¯t afford anything so there is no point in shopping: ¡°Well, I want to wait until the rain lets up some. What about you?¡±

    Gu Yu looked out the window and whispered: ¡°Then I will sit with you for a while.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡± Damn, why does it sound like I¡¯m asking you to stay with me? Even with a car, isn¡¯t it still difficult to leave with such a heavy rain?

    Just as Zhang Siyi was arrogantly going to shout, ¡°If you want to go, then go!¡±, the waiter came over and interrupted him by cing a small dish of cheesecake in the middle of their table.

    Zhang Siyi startled, said: ¡°We didn¡¯t order cake.¡±

    The waiter smiled and pointed to Gu Yu: ¡°It was this gentleman who ordered it.¡±

    It was a verymon post-dinner dessert cake in the shop, and Gu Yu nodded to the waiter to thank him.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡±

    The waiter put another candle and a packet of matches on the edge, then looked at Zhang Siyi and said: ¡°Happy Birthday¡± and left.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°???¡±

    Gu Yu used his slender fingers to insert a candle in the center of the cake. Then, he slowly pulled out a match, and with a match-strike on the ignition strip, the fire jumped up and the candle was lit.

    Revealing a rare gentleness, Gu Yu looked at Zhang Siyi: ¡°Make a wish.¡±

    Zhang Siyi is stupid. Gu Yu knew his Birthday is today? Is this really a birthday dinner?

    In the face of such a sudden change, because he has been emotionally abused so much recently, Zhang Siyi has a particrly unreal feeling.

    Zhang Siyi blew out the candle and said ¡°thank you¡± awkwardly. Although he felt a little irritated for thete blessing, he couldn¡¯t help but show some gratitude towards Gu Yu.

    Yes, Gu Yu¡¯s actions today made him feel that his birthday was just extra, incidental and dispensable thing. Then, Gu Yu took out the tape measure that they had been using in the parking lot from his pocket and put it in front of Zhang Siyi. He smiled and said: ¡°There is no special preparation. This is for you. A birthday gift.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± What!? This is what shit gift! Why don¡¯t you write a happy birthday on a napkin?

    It is the kind of ordinary tape measure that you would find in any small shop. It can¡¯t be more than 10 bucks and its very old, but it is the gift from the Boss. Zhang Si Yi can¡¯t find a reason to refuse. Feeling slighted, Zhang Siyi collected the present. He resentfully thanked him then took a bite of the cake.

    All the while, Gu Yu kept quiet. He was watching and evaluating Zhang Siyi mood. His meticulous observations gave Zhang Siyi goosebumps.

    Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t particrly happy, so he didn¡¯t pretend to be. After all, his mood wouldn¡¯t be resolved with a simple meal. At this point, it wouldn¡¯t even be resolved by his favorite bowl of sand-tea-noodles.

    After the meal, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t rush to pay the bill. Gu Yu took the initiative to check out. The rain had let up a little bit, so they headed downstairs. Zhang Siyi was toozy to wait for the subway, so he went home directly by taxi. Gu Yu saw him leaving and took the subway himself.

    When he got home, he felt exhausted. Seeing Fu Xinhui sitting on the sofa in the living room, he copsed on the couch beside him: ¡°I¡¯m too tired to do anything tonight. I can¡¯t move.¡±

    Fu Xinhui expected this to happen: ¡°Well, the weather is not good, so I bought some food at the supermarket yesterday. Let¡¯s make something.¡±

    In a feeble voice, Zhang Siyi replied: ¡°All right, I¡¯ll listen to you.¡±

    Fu Xinhui nced at him and asked: ¡°Why do you go out with your boss every time? More than once, when youe home, you are sucked dry and hollow. Is he a Lich-Lord stealing your life-force?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    He also wants to rx and be energetic every day, but when he is with Gu Yu, he must constantly ward himself mentally from Gu Yu¡¯s attacks. The constant state of defense gives him a feeling of exhaustion. Zhang Siyi, with a long sigh,mented: ¡°He is not a Lich-Lord, he is the Great Devil.¡±

    Fu Xinhuiughed right away: ¡°You take him too seriously. What did he bring you there for? To inspect the building?¡±

    ¡°Almost, but not quite. Do you know what he took me to see?¡± Zhang Siyi thought of his day and got very angry. ¡°The fucking parking lot! We¡¯ve been watching the lot for five fucking hours! Up and down, measure this, measure that.... My legs burn, and my feet hurt. I can¡¯t move anymore!¡±

    ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell him it was your birthday today, so he could be gentler with you?¡± Fu Xinhui asked.

    ¡°He knew!¡± Talking about it made Zhang Si Yi even angrier: ¡°When we ate at 2 o¡¯clock in the restaurant, he gave me the cheapest kind of cheesecake to eat!¡±

    ¡°Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!¡± Fu Xinhui burst intoughter. He almost fell off the sofa.

    Zhang Siyi kicked him barefoot, annoyed.

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Your birthday isn¡¯t over yet. Don¡¯t worry, you will be content.¡±

    Zhang Siyi took out the tape measure from his pocket and threw it into the air. Heughed bitterly and said: ¡°Yep. A broken tape measure as a gift and he didn¡¯t even tell me Happy Birthday. Don¡¯t worry at all!¡±

    Fu Xinhui nced at him and said: ¡°I also bought you a gift. It¡¯s in your room. Go and see if you like it or not.¡±

    Zhang Siyi jumped up in excitement. Fu Xinhui, a nuevo rich young master would never be soft! After he rushed into his room, a loud excited scream came from inside: ¡°Aaaaaaahhh! You actually bought me a fixed focus lens of Zeiss 50!!!¡±

    Fu Xinhui smiled, got up and went to the kitchen to bake pizza. Zhang Siyi was alone in his room jumping around in euphoria. He went to his phone, and suddenly stopped. Looking at his social media feeds, he saw a post that Gu Yu had made half an hour ago:

    ¡°The first tape measure I bought for the first architectural ss at University.¡±

 Chapter 35: Tape Measure

    <h4>Chapter 35: Tape Measure</h4>

    __________________________

    Seeing Gu Yu¡¯s message, Zhang Siyi felt as if he had been struck by a blow, and the whole person was overwhelmed by an indescribable feeling of emotion and guilt. He didn¡¯t think the tape measure was Gu Yu¡¯s decade old personal object!

    His French handmade violin has been with him for only five to six years. Even after leaving it at home for a long time, he would not give away his violin because he has developed an attachment with it. Zhang Siyi can recall the love of ying. The music brought a sense of aplishment he felt from his hard work practicing and the enjoyment he felt hearing the music.

    What¡¯s more, an open tape measure for an architect is like a gamer¡¯s used keyboard, a writer¡¯s smooth pen, a billiard yer¡¯s cue-stick...... It¡¯s already priceless. Gu Yu actually gave him such a meaningful thing to express his Birthday and professional blessing.

    He thought about his recentments in his WeChat and wanted to quickly delete them. When he picked up his phone, it rang suddenly. It was his Mother¡¯s call! Zhang Siyi casually pressed the answer button. The phone connected, and he heard his mother¡¯s gentle voice: ¡°I thought you were busy during the day, so I didn¡¯t call until now. Happy Birthday!¡±

    Panicked, Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t want to listen to his mother¡¯s blessing right now. He wants to delete his news feed post! Thinking of Gu Yu¡¯sments from the day, he asked: ¡°Mom, did you call Gu Yu Yesterday?¡±

    Mama Zhang: ¡°Yes. You told me yesterday that he wouldn¡¯t take the crab paste. Even so, he has helped you with so many things so I had to call and thank him.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What else did you say to him? He took me out today to inspect the underground parking lot and said you told him I liked to eat KFC chicken nuggets!

    His Mother sniffled augh: ¡°Gee, he took you out to eat today!¡±

    Zhang Siyi the corner of the eye twitched: ¡°We didn¡¯t eat chicken nuggets!¡±

    ¡°I was just trying to thank him,¡± said Zhang¡¯s mother. ¡°I didn¡¯t expect to have a long conversation.¡±

    Zhang Siyi freaked out and anxiously said: ¡°Wha, what did you talk about?¡±

    Mama Zhang: ¡°What do you think we talked about? Of course, you! When you learned to y the violin. When you wanted to cut wood. When you wanted to be a carpenter and your father made fun of you. You wouldn¡¯t talk to him, so I bought you some chicken nuggets and you forgave him. I also told him about how you worshiped Gu Yu in high school. How you pinned-up a poster of T University architecture admission. Although you didn¡¯t get in.... then you cried for several days. That¡¯s when I talked with your father about sending you out of the country. When we asked what you thought you were so excited you practically jumped three feet high.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°............¡± Ah, ah, ah! Why does his mother want to tell Gu Yu about these embarrassing things from his past! How will he be able to face Gu Yu in the future!

    Mama Zhang: ¡°I inadvertently told him about your birthday. Since you worshipped him and liked architecture, he said that he would give you a small gift. Did he give you something? What was it?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...........¡± So that¡¯s how the tape measure came about?

    God! Zhang Siyi was irritated: ¡°If you don¡¯t know, I¡¯m not telling you!¡±

    When his mother listened, she didn¡¯t get angry. Instead, she smiled andughed. Zhang Siyi heard theughter through the phone line and thought about the books hidden in his closet at home. He got goosebumps and wanted to quickly change the topic: ¡°Gu Yu is so stern and taciturn; how can you talk to him for so long? Did you really talk that much, Mom?¡±

    If that¡¯s the case, it¡¯s embarrassing! Zhang Siyi is starting to feel like having a rotten Mom is more of a headache then a Boss that torments him.

    Mama Zhang said strangely: ¡°What are you talking about? Taciturn? Stern? He was very talkative and friendly to me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± talkative? Gu Yu? He couldn¡¯t connect the two together.

    His Mother said with emotion: ¡°It¡¯s also very funny, hey, such a good boy is rare now.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Hey! You already have Dad and me!¡±

    Mama Zhang: ¡°Ha-ha. Ok. Mom knows. I won¡¯t be calling your boss everyday so don¡¯t worry about it. Remember to have a good Birthday today and get to sleep early. You have to rest for work in the morning.¡±

    Zhang Si Yi hung up the phone and felt like a potato strip surrounded by frying oil. After five seconds he realized he forgot to ask his mother if Gu Yu had ever expressed his opinions on the phone......

    Forget about calling back. He still wanted to delete the lens photo he put up on his social media ount. Zhang Siyi quickly cut back to his WeChat circle of friends and searched for it but found that Fu Xinhui has already praised it!

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°@%£¤......¡± Balls!

    If Gu Yu sees the news, will he feel like Zhang Siyi mocked him for giving him the tape measure? He started to feel uneasy, so he simply took a photo of the tape measure and thought of a message to post to his WeChat friends: ¡°The Boss gave me a tape measure. I will work hard!¡±

    Then he replied to Gu Yu¡¯s message with two words: ¡°Thank you.¡±

    When he went back to check the photo of the tape measure, there was already a row of responses below ¨C

    Jiang Hai: ¡°Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!

    [candles]

    [candles]¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°Sure enough, I should work hard and sympathize with you. [Smirking]¡±

    Tian Yujing: ¡°Hey, are you sending two photos together to highlight your friends?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°[smile]¡±

    ...... Finished. It seemed a bit self-defeating! (=_=)

    In a short while, his colleagues from thepany also sent him messages. They were discussing it in the Borderless chat group.¡±

    Lele: ¡°Wow! Four! That tape measure was given to you by Gu Yu?¡±

    Aunt Four: ¡°... um.¡±

    Xu Jia: ¡°Ah, ah, I am envious! Why is the boss always giving you something!¡±

    Xuan: ¡°I am also jealous.¡±

    Piggy: ¡°Although I am not short on tape measures, look how loved Aunt Four is! I also want a taste.¡±

    Chicken Wings: ¡°I¡¯ve followed the boss from X-Yard to the No-Go for three years working with the Boss. I¡¯ve seen the tape measure many times. He seemed to cherish it, so why did he give it to you?¡±

    Qiao Mei: ¡°Too much hate!¡±

    ...... Zhang Siyi silently turned off the WeChat and dare not post more messages.

    Once again, he took out the tape measure that Gu Yu gave him and put it in the palm of his hand to inspect it carefully. He saw that both the lock buckle and the color of the tape shell has been worn out a lot, but it still emits a crisp tter when used.

    Zhang Siyi started ying around with the tape measure. For a while, he pulled it out and retracted it, hearing the crisp clink sound when the end piece zipped into ce. Surprisingly, it was super smooth andfortable. Because of the long-term use, the printing on the tape measure was faded. He got up to measure his desk; length 1200mm, depth 720mm, height 780mm....

    In his hand again, his fingers fiddled with every inch of the tape measure. He imagined this tool apanying Gu Yu through his ups and downs and traveling to many ces. With repeated use, does the tape measure begin to have a memory of all the data collected with it? Realizing the significance, the ordinary tape measure transforms into a soul with vitality. With an elerating heartbeat, Zhang Siyi cherishes the object in his hands.

    If he went back to high school six or seven years and Gu Yu gave him such a tape measure, would he have followed him so passionately with excitement, eximing he will work hard?

    What the hell is wrong with him now? Not only was he unexpectedly being so picky and ungrateful, heined about the gift in front of Fu Xinhui. Zhang Siyi felt so inspired, but also so guilty. His heart was warm and sour then tears welled up.

    At this time, Fu Xinhui suddenly pushed the door in: ¡°Hurrye eat. How¡¯s the lens?¡±

    Zhang Siyi blinked his tears away: ¡°I haven¡¯t looked at it yet.¡±

    Fu Xinhui frowned: ¡°So what have you been doing in the room for so long?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Pa.., ying with my tape measure...¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°...¡±

    After the meal, Zhang Siyi went back to his room and checked his WeChat. He didn¡¯t see any response from Gu Yu about either the photo sent in his circle of friends or from his ¡®thank you¡¯ message.

    After a day of mood swings, Zhang Si Yi didn¡¯t have the nerve to message further. Anyway, he thought that Gu Yu would be very happy if he worked at his own pace and showed an improvement in his work performance over time.

    The next day at thepany Zhang Siyi received the employee¡¯s birthday benefits from the Ministry of Personnel. It was a 500-yuan supermarket gift certificate and a cake card. Colleagues learned that he had a birthday and expressed their blessings. Du Rui and Xu Jia also came to visit Gu Yu¡¯s tape measure and expressed their envy.

    Zhang Siyi originally wanted to get a task from Gu Yu when he came to the office in the morning, but he was called away by the Chief. Since Gu Yu group won the bid of the Z-City project, there will be awards for each member of the team. After waiting for an hour, Zhang Siyi saw Gu Yu head back to his office. He immediately got up, went into Gu Yu¡¯s office and looked at him eagerly for a new task.

    As usual, Gu Yu¡¯s emotions are hidden under the indifferent expression. He did not mention yesterday visit in the parking garage. Naturally, Zhang Siyi was assigned the task of designing more parking lots.

    Zhang Siyi also did not dare toin so he obediently nodded. On his way out, he noticed his pumpkinntern that was ced on the table has disappeared. Yeah. It¡¯s been half a month.

 Chapter 36: Christmas

    <h4>Chapter 36: Christmas</h4>

    ________________________

    Not long after winning the bid, thepany had a public tribute for the architectural design Group A and highlighted other members who contributed to the overall Z-City project n. However, the legendary prize money was slow toe.

    When Zhang Siyi moved back home, he left many belongings in Ennd. Now that it is getting colder out, he is short of winter clothing. At every corner, there are advertisements for winter clothing at various shops for two to three thousand. Even a budget brand, Uniqlo, advertises cloths for seven to eight hundred. It¡¯s the first time Zhang Siyi feels the pressure of living. His credit cards are maxed out and he still needs to by a set of winter clothes, winter essories and shoes.

    Thus far, his November sry was used to pay back the rent owed to Fu Xinhui. Since it¡¯s now the end of the month, he must save his wages for the next quarter¡¯s rent. Being well-off wasn¡¯t something Zhang Siyi actively thought about in the past. It was simply his natural state of living. Realizing the reality of his financial situation, Zhang Siyi starts to worry.

    Zhang Siyi was anxious and quietly asked Bi Lele on the Inte: ¡°When do we receive the bonus for the project we won?¡±

    Bi Lele: ¡°it doesn¡¯te so fast because there is a lot of paperwork involved. In general, its counted quarterly. You were on the job at the end of August, right? and September you didn¡¯t participate in any big projects so there wasn¡¯t bonus for you that quarter. You will have to wait until the next quarter so that means December... well really, you have to wait until New Year¡¯s Day is over.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Shit! It¡¯s going to take too long! (#¡ã§¥¡ã)

    Thinking he was going to receive the bonus payment sooner rather thanter, he thought he could loosen his belt a bit. He will have to tighten it even more now that he needs to buy some clothes. Thinking about the next month¡¯s credit card bill, Zhang Siyi heart was bleeding. The money is going down the drain and isn¡¯ting back. He can only endure and look forward to his paycheck.

    Christmas ising and with it, the foreign students return home. Somee home specifically to go on holiday to Shanghai but, where ever their destination maybe, most fly through Haicheng airport. On WeChat, friends got in touch with one another and made ns for dinner. Among them is the ill talked about girl, Yu Rui. Since she has always expressed indifference, it¡¯s not clear whether Yu Rui knows people talk about her behind her back or not. She is always consistently strong willed, doing whatever she wants.

    In their close group of 5 friends private chat, on this day, Ren Mengyu and Su Yuan argued.

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°What!? You¡¯re going to let Yu Rui live in your ce?¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°She contacted me and asked about staying in my ce for a few days. I have the space and it doesn¡¯t bother me right now, so I didn¡¯t have a reason to refuse.¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°Su Yuan, you are too soft! You need to keep a distance from her or you will get hurt. Don¡¯t me me if something happens!¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°I know. When we all meet don¡¯t make a fuss. I¡¯m a ssmate and I don¡¯t like arguing. Let¡¯s talk more about it privately next time.¡±

    Since it¡¯s the Girls ¡® business, the boys stay silent in the background. Anyway, it¡¯s not possible for Yu Rui to harm them in the same way as the girls so they don¡¯t have much toment. On Christmas Eve, Fu Xinhui organized a party for the college ssmates currently in Haicheng, including Yu Rui and Xue Wenhan who have returned home for the holiday.

    Luckily Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t have overtime, so he was able to meet up with his friends on Saturday for dinner. Jiang Hai also brought his girlfriend which attracted the groups attention and teasing. Zhang Siyi joked around: ¡°Jiang Hai broke up with me!¡± Everyoneughed. Peach Blossom Fortune (love) has returned to Jian Hai.

    Jian Hai: ¡°Ha-ha-ha. Do you even have time right now for love? Your work load is too much!¡±

    Surprised, Yu Rui looked to Zhang Siyi: ¡°Really?¡±

    Xue Wenhan also said: ¡°I noticed the project you are working on is in the middle of nowhere.¡±

    Jiang Hai: ¡°Yeah, he had just participated in a big project not long ago. I heard that he got a lot of bonuses.¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°Wow! Zhang Siyi, why didn¡¯t you tell us you were doing so well? Aren¡¯t we close enough friends?¡±

    Su Yuan also said: ¡°The industry is bing more depressedtely. Thepany I work for has let go some full-time staff and recruited a couple new interns instead. It makes me worried.¡±

    When Yu Rui listened to Su Yuan, she also turned to Zhang Siyi to appraise him again. She said softly: ¡°British work is also not easy to find now. I heard that a job isn¡¯t secure even if you get a master¡¯s degree. As a result, many have returned to China.¡±

    The difference in job situations between Zhang Siyi and his friends felt very wide. He felt very fortunate in Borderless and didn¡¯t have much to say tofort his friends. In the past few days he also heard from Bi Lele about the current industry trends. While somepanies are paying lower wagespared to Borderless, others areying off workers.

    Everyone raised their sses and congratted Zhang Siyi and asked him to treat them for the meal. Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart is dark. Although he has a good job, he doesn¡¯t have money to spend freely. In the face of his friends, he begrudgingly paid for the meal.

    Talking amongst themselves, they were having such a good time that they discussed what else they were going to do for the rest of the night. When Zhang Siyi heard they wanted to go to KTV then y pool at a billiard club all night, he started to panic. What if his credit card was rejected at check-out? Fortunately, Fu Xinhui saved him the headache when they entered KTV. He swiped his credit card right away to pay for the big package.

    Relieved, Zhang Siyi was finally able to enjoy the rest of the party. After singing a few songs, he sat down to rest a moment and have a drink. Yu Rui suddenly came over and asked: ¡°How did you break up with your girlfriend?¡±

    Zhang Siyi was still immersed in a happy atmosphere and didn¡¯t assume any deep meaning from Yu Rui¡¯s question. Su Yuan and Ren Mengyu replied unpreparedly: ¡°Her character is not right.¡±

    Yu Rui was surprised: ¡°There is someone who can¡¯t get along with you? You are the best boy I have ever seen. If they can¡¯t get along with you, then there must be something wrong with them!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Ha-ha. Is that it?¡±

    Yu Rui smiled and raised her cup to him: ¡°Yeah, I have never seen you argue with anyone. It must be nice being with you; smiling andughing all day long.¡±

    Even though he feels hot and dizzy after a few mouthfuls of wine, Zhang Siyi is feeling rather content at the moment. Listening to Yu Rui words makes him feel even more blissful.

    However, think carefully. Yu Rui is obviously trying to butter him up. Most adults don¡¯t put their emotions to the forefront. Yu Rui casually asked: ¡°I have never heard you talk about your family. I guess your parents are intellectuals. Are they university teachers like Su Yuan?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°My Dad is a super stereotyped person in the system and my mother is not an intellectual. She is a gynecologist.¡±

    Yu Rui is not moving: ¡°In the system? ...A government department?¡±

    Yu Rui smiled and asked him how he had been admitted to Borderless in the first ce. She wanted to look at his collection of work. Zhang Siyi mind is slowly working. Yu Rui seems to be targeting him. He doesn¡¯t really know what type of person she is, but because he has heard a lot of gossip, he is on alert now.

    At ten o¡¯clock he and everyone else started gathering their things and get ready to leave for the next activity. When they left the room, a few girls went to the restroom and the boys waited in the hall for the elevator. Many people wereing and going, and he wondered if he will make thest subway home. Chatting with Xue Wenhan he thought he saw a familiar personing out of the elevator at the corner of his eye. He had to do a double-take and turn back to take a closer look. Is that Gu Yu? He is here at KTV to sing? Zhang Siyi has a hard time believing his eyes.

    Smiling with the crowd, Gu Yu was wearing a short, ck woolen coat surrounded by a group of women and men. The average age is significantlyrger than Zhang Siyi and his friends.

    Preparing to pay the bill, Gu Yu took out his wallet from his coat, but he was interrupted by a tall and strong young man behind him: ¡°Old Four! Let me pay!¡± The young man stepped to the counter. Zhang Siyi faintly heard the person say: ¡°.... rare to meet ....¡±

    Zhang Siyi was watching the excitement of the lively group of people when suddenly someone squeezed out through the crowd. A beautiful petite girl jumped over to Gu Yu¡¯s side and held his arm,ughing and leaning against one another. Gu Yu turned his head to look at her and did not break away.

    In that moment, Zhang Siyi mind switched off, like the static on the TV, there was nothing but ¡°buzzing¡±. An unprecedented horrible feeling emerged from the bottom of his heart.

    The group of people finished checking out then moved to the direction of the elevator. They were taking photos when Gu Yu saw Zhang Siyi. He was surprised to see him.

    Less than two meters away, Zhang Siyi can see the girl who is holding onto Gu Yu more clearly. She is extremely pretty and delicate. Wearing a rabbit fur hat, she hasrge eyes and isn¡¯t wearing makeup. She looks exquisite, like an angelic spirit walking among mortals.

    Before either one of them could say something, one of Gu Yu¡¯s friends interrupted their awkward confrontation and asked: ¡°Who is this? Do you know him?¡±

    Gu Yu introduced him to the group: ¡°This is my little friend in thepany.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Why are you always calling me a kid!?

    Gu Yu smiled and looked Zhang Siyi¡¯s group of friends: ¡°You also came out to have fun with friends?¡±

    In answer, Zhang Siyi only nodded then the elevator arrived, and Gu Yu left with his friends. The girls bted arrival witnessed this brief interaction and asked together: ¡°Who was that? He was so handsome!¡±

    Fu Xinhui pointed to Zhang Siyi and exined for him: ¡°His boss.¡±

 Chapter 37: Small Ball

    <h4>Chapter 37: Small Ball</h4>

    _______________________

    The girls in the group are astonished by Gu Yu good looks. How can Zhang Siyi¡¯s boss be so handsome!? Among them, Su Yuan and Ren Mengyu have listened to Zhang Siyiints in their chat group, but now that they have seen the real person, they are shocked.

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°Why didn¡¯t you say that your boss is like this? If I knew that, his character is totally eptable!¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°If my boss is so handsome, I would be willing to work overtime every day!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Is it so important to be handsome?

    Jiang Hai also knows afterwards: ¡°Oh, is that the person who gave you the tape measure?¡±

    Tian Yujing¡¯s eyes perked up; looked at Zhang Siyi, looked at Fu Xinhui, and turned towards the direction of Gu Yu¡¯s departure.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    In the past, Zhang Siyi was eager to praise Gu Yu¡¯s aplishments such as him being the college entrance examination champion and the fact he is twenty-eight and has a national level registered architect license, but the image of the girl he saw before him is fresh in his mind. Now, he has no thoughts to joke with his ssmates. Instead he wished he could hide Gu Yu and not let so many people know of his existence. His good mood from earlier was spoiled. He couldn¡¯t stop thinking about it.

    It¡¯s been a month since Gu Yu gave him the tape measure for his birthday. During this time, the two haven¡¯t interacted in private at all. Zhang Siyi wanted to work hard to earn Gu Yu¡¯s recognition and attention, but Gu Yu acts like a public official and treats everyone with the same praises and same criticism. No one is more special than anyone else.

    Even though it¡¯s been a month, he still felt that he was wronged on his birthday. Whenever he sees the tape measure, he remembers his awkward birthday dinner with Gu Yu, the cheap cheesecake he ordered for him, and his message to him on WeChat. Over and over he is reminded of his childish and temperamental behavior making him feel ashamed and stupid.

    Seeing the girl holding Gu Yu¡¯s arm, Zhang Siyi was shocked. He was so greedy for his ¡°special treatment¡±. Although he spent the day with Gu Yu at the parking lot and a meal, he wasn¡¯t being treated in the same way as he saw him treat that girl.

    That girl was probably Gu Yu¡¯s girlfriend. Does he really like the kind of ornamental and petnt girl?

    Ah, well so what? What can Zhang Siyi do about it? His cheeks were hot, and he felt irritated. He tried to ignore the spections that made him upset and continued to y with his friends.

    y for a while...

    Can the girl see the private content in Gu Yu¡¯s circle of friends? What is written there? Ah! Don¡¯t think about it! Don¡¯t think about him! o////o

    After a while...

    How does Gu Yu talk with his girlfriend? Is he only cold to others, and all his tenderness given to his girlfriend?

    Zhang Siyi picked the ball and roared: ¡°Heartless Han! y a game with me!¡±

    Fu Xinhui rubbed the cue-stick with chuck powder and smiled with an evil grin: ¡°Well, who will break?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I¡¯ll do it!¡±

    Zhang Siyi set the white ball down and lined up for his shot. With a fierce motion he struck the cue ball at the bottom. Unexpectedly, it flew up directly from the table and arched over towards the table next to them andnded with a loud ¡°boom¡±.

    Opposite table crowd: ¡°...¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°...¡±

    Fu Xinhui turned his head and spoke: ¡°Eh, Xue Wenhan, do you want to y a game with Zhang Siyi?¡±

    Xue Wenhan: ¡°...¡± (£þ_£þ| | |)

    After two days of madness, the weekend soon ended. On Monday morning, Zhang Siyi returned to thepany and saw thendscape wall as soon as he got out of the elevator. Realizing he hadn¡¯t paid attention to his nt for a long time, he went over to see how it was doing.

    Zhang Siyi went to the shelf and looked at it and found that the ball was still growing well... Wait, no. The color is a little yellowish? Is it ack of water? Cactus shouldn¡¯t have to be watered, should it?

    Zhang Siyi moved the pot and took a closer look. The color of the ball seemed to be a bit unhealthy. Not only was the ball yellow, but there was also a bit of ck at the bottom. Also, the thorn on its body is soft. Zhang Siyi carefully touched it with his finger. Break. It looks like it was cut straight through from the base.

    Shocked, Zhang Siyi was so horrified that he couldn¡¯t move for a minute. The whole ball was soft and lifeless and seemed to have died. How could this happen!!!

    He hasn¡¯t watered or done anything to the cactus since he adopted it. Yes, who killed his cactus!!!

    Since Zhang Siyi stood where many colleaguese and go, he quickly became rmed. He was afraid of being seen by others, so he quickly corrected the head of the ball and pretended nothing happened then pushed the flower pot back.

    When he got back to his seat, Zhang Siyi was panicking. With shaking hands, he searched the inte. ¡°Why do cactus die?¡±, ¡°Can you water a cactus?¡±, ¡°Do cactus die without water¡±, ¡°What do you do when a cactus is yellow?¡± .... How to die is dead!? It¡¯s not scientific!

    While Zhang Siyi checked, he also had to be on high alert to the situation around him. Gu Yu could appear at any moment. The discovery would be a great tragedy!

    Now, any thoughts about Gu Yu¡¯s girlfriend are left in the wind. His current number one problem is the mystery of the death of his cactus!

    Soon, the ¡°I Love My Job¡± awards will be posted to everyone. With his current financial state losing the 1000-yuan bonus would be devastating. Not only that, but his rtionship with his Boss has been rather stiff. If he found out about the cactus, would that be the end of Zhang Siyi?

    Being so preupied with his cactus issue, Zhang Siyi slowly worked on the parking lot assignment in the morning. His mood was bad enough and he didn¡¯t want any more surprises, however at noon another thing happened. The front desk sent a message to him telling him that there is a girl outside looking for him.

    Zhang Siyi was going to have lunch with Zhu Hongzhen, so he went downstairs to look. Unexpectedly, it was Yu Rui! With her hair styled in big beautiful curls, she was dressed up, carrying a small Fendi bag. She stood near thendscape frame waiting. The other party saw Zhang Siyi, smiled and said: ¡°I have been waiting for you for a long time.¡±

    Zhang Siyi, a nk question mark face: ¡°What are you doing here?¡±

    With gossiping eyes probing the situation, his colleagues saw such a beautiful girl standing there waiting for Zhang Siyi. Piggy also smirked and said: ¡°Hey, take your time. I¡¯ll go to lunch first.¡±

    Zhang Siyi really wanted to exin, but he couldn¡¯t open his mouth. Even though he felt ufortable in his heart, he still politely asked Yu Rui: ¡°Why are you here? Is there something wrong?¡±

    Yu Rui looked around,ughing: ¡°I heard yourpany environment is particrly good, so I wanted toe visit. I sent you a message, but you didn¡¯t reply so came early to wait for you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I can¡¯t y with my phone at work so I didn¡¯t see it. Also, I don¡¯t know if ourpany can let outsiders inside to visit.¡± In fact, as long as there is supervision, thepany allows visitors, however Zhang Siyi does not want to bring Yu Rui inside. The purpose of her visit is too obvious. She wants to work here too!

    Taking a step closer to him and reaching out, she asked in a petnt, soft voice: ¡°Can you please ask? I¡¯ve been waiting for hours.¡±

    By all ounts, this trick of having a beautiful girl would appeal to the ego of 99% of straight men, however Zhang Siyi is in the 1%. He recently heard so much about her that he has been on guard. He doesn¡¯t want to lead a wolf into the room!

    A voice sounded behind them: ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Gu Yu was just going downstairs to eat, and when he passed by, he couldn¡¯t help but ask.

    Zhang Siyi suddenly became nervous because they were in the vicinity of the cactus. Ah! Will Gu Yu discover the dead ball?

    ¡°Who is this, your new girlfriend?¡± Gu Yan asked raising his eyebrows.

    Yu Rui: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi quickly waved his hand and exined: ¡°No! She is my ssmate!¡±

    Gu Yu nodded and was about to leave, but she suddenly reached out to him and said: ¡°Hello, I am Zhang Siyi¡¯s undergraduate ssmate, and currently, I am studying architecture master in B.¡±

    Upon hearing thus, Zhang Siyi choked. She was not a Master of Architecture, but a master¡¯s degree in architectural research!

    Gu Yu shook her hand in a lukewarm manner: ¡°Oh, are you here for Siyi?¡±

    Zhang Si Yi was terrified. This is the first time Gu Yu has called him without his surname.

    Yu Rui smoothed her hair andughed, ¡°Well, I will graduate with my master¡¯s degree next year, and I¡¯m very interested in Borderless. I heard that Siyi works here, so I wanted to visit it early during the holidays.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± I am going, this girl is just too much! Listening to Yu Rui gave him goosebumps. I am not so familiar with you. How can you call me Siyi? However, if she really wanted to apply to Borderless, Zhang Siyi can¡¯t block her. After all, if her portfolio isn¡¯t bad and with a master¡¯s degree....

    Gu Yu¡¯s iron-d face and unwavering voice interrupted his thoughts: ¡°Sorry, Borderless doesn¡¯t ept visitors unless it¡¯s for official business.¡±

    Yu Rui: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu added: ¡°If you are interested in our firm, you are wee to post your resume after graduation and remember to attach the Folio. Thepany personnel inspections will be transferred to my hands.¡±

    Yu Rui did not expect Gu Yu to reject her so coldly. Her smile stiffened.

    Zhang Siyi has already been crazy in his heart. It¡¯s not a good experience when Gu Yu is cold and mean, but it is so cool to see him indifferent to others. Ha-ha-ha! But before he could bask in delight, he saw Gu Yu nce at the ss shelf where the cactus is and walk away.

 Chapter 38: Saved

    <h4>Chapter 38: Saved</h4>

    ___________________

    Fortunately, Gu Yu¡¯s line of sight didn¡¯t linger. It was two-three seconds at most, but these three seconds were enough for Zhang Siyi with a guilty conscience, to break out in a cold sweat.

    Until the other party turned and left, Zhang Siyi hadn¡¯t recovered from his frightened state. He didn¡¯t know if Gu Yu had found any problems.

    Due to the ssmates¡¯ feelings, Zhang Siyi was polite and invited her to eat with him, but because of the blow given to her by Gu Yu she didn¡¯t stay, and Zhang Siyi saw her out. She even forgot to ask Zhang Siyi about his portfolio. Witnessing Gu Yu¡¯s attitude and knowing how much Gu Yu could teach him, Zhang Siyi felt relieved when she left.

    Now, his top priority is to solve the problem of his cactus. He can¡¯t concentrate on his drawing and never mind the energy it would take to console Yu Rui. Zhang Siyi passed the day with anxiety.

    When he got off work at night, he secretly took a picture of the cactus and took a taxi to a specialized flower market at the fastest speed. Regardless of whether Gu Yu discovered it or not, the best way to cope with the problem now is to buy a simr ball as soon as possible and swap them, then wait for the I Love My Job awards.

    It took almost 20 minutes to drive from thepany to the nearest flower shop. He double checked the closing time and felt thankful that it was open until 7:30 in the evening. He had enough time. After arriving, Zhang Siyi quickly entered the shop and explored the stalls that disyed cactus. In order to close the shop, the shopkeeper was already putting away the various stalls for the evening. Zhang Siyi gasped and said: ¡°I want to buy a cactus!¡±

    The shopkeeper stopped what he was doing and asked: ¡°What are you buying?¡±

    Zhang Siyi turned his phone towards him to show the manager a photo: ¡°What is this cactus? Can you help me?¡±

    The manager squinted and looked at it: ¡°It should be Jin Sheng Wan,¡± he pointed to an area behind Zhang Siyi.

    Zhang Siyi turned around to look the various cactus, thanpared them to the photo and said: ¡°Yes, yes, that¡¯s it!¡±

    Seeing so many healthy cactus nts, Zhang Siyi remembered his dead one and felt bitter. He didn¡¯t want to give up just yet! He didn¡¯t want to get his hopes up, but he asked the owner for advice anyway: ¡°Mister, I have a cactus that turned yellow and the roots are ck. Can it be cured?¡±

    The shopkeeper was a businessman, waving his hand directly: ¡°Did you water it too much?¡± Did you bask it in the sun? Too much water or insufficient light will make the root rot. You can¡¯t cure it. Buy a new one, Jin Sheng Wan is not a rare variety so it¡¯s very cheap.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Squatting on the ground for a while, Zhang Siyi took his time to examine every cactus nt. The owner is a little anxious to pack up his shop: ¡°Just pick a pot. They are all very healthy!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°This is too tall.¡± The cactus is a long pile of balls.

    The shopkeeper pointed at another pot with single cactus: ¡°What about this one?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°It¡¯s too big and it has a tumor.¡±

    Shopkeeper.: ¡°......¡±

    Zhang Siyi pointed to the ¡°tumor¡± and asked: ¡°Can I have the small part?¡±

    Shopkeeper.: ¡°............¡±

    The owner went into the back of the store and after a while, he dragged a snakeskin bag out with him and threw it in front of Zhang Siyi. It was full of small cactus balls that were almost the same size as Zhang Siyi cactus. The owner said: ¡°You just want the seed ball. The wholesale price is one for one, and thirty for sale!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°... can I just have one?¡±

    The shopkeeper angrily said: ¡°One is five dors!¡±

    Five dors!? Zhang Si Yi thought to himself, mouth wide open. Highway robbery!

    He took the time to choose a ball carefully. He wanted it to match the other dead one. When preparing to pay the bill, Zhang Siyi found that the colorful cactus on the shelf was also very good-looking. He felt guilty for spending thirty minutes to pick one small seed-cactus, so he bought a few other ornamental nts.

    When Zhang Siyi bought a bunch of nts, he could see the shopkeeper¡¯s face rx. The shopkeeper was in better spirits now and smiled. Zhang Siyi payed for his nts and the shopkeeper helped him pack a bag. He said: ¡°You go back and look at your ball. If it is not too soft, cut off the rotten roots and let it shine in the sun for a day. Then, put it in a ventted ce for three to five days. Afterwards, put it in a pot with slightly wet soil and maybe it will take root again.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡± Fuck! Being riddled!

    However, knowing that the ball could be saved, Zhang Siyi was ted. He rushed back to thepany that night and touched the body of the ball. It was not soft! Like discovering a person lying on the ground, seemingly dead, with a weak breath, alive. Zhang Siyi was so happy he could cry. In the dark, he took out a healthy seed ball with a simr shape to his original cactus and swapped it with the original. He carefully put the dyeing cactus into a stic bag and snuck away.

    After returning home, Zhang Siyi put the colorful cactus that he purchased on the coffee table. Fu Xinhui saw him and asked: ¡°Since when do you like to raise nts?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Hey, they say this stuff is radiation-proof! Take one to your room.¡±

    Fu Xinhui smiled and took an ornamental, beautifully shaped one to his room. He also picked out another: ¡°Let¡¯s put this one in the living room.¡±

    He saw Zhang Siyi squatting on the ground inspecting the rotten parts of his original cactus. Fu Xinhui wondered: ¡°What are you doing?¡±

    Listening to Zhang Siyi¡¯s ins and outs, Fu Xinhui¡¯s mouth twitched: ¡°It¡¯s just a cactus. Why are you making such a fuss? Is your Boss that terrible?¡±

    Zhang Siyi thought with his heart. Hey, you don¡¯t understand! That¡¯s the little cactus that Gu Yu refused to give to anyone else! Not only is he afraid of being found out by Gu Yu, but also afraid of the girls at thepany. What will happen to him if they found out he killed Gu Yu¡¯s child!?

    After carefully separating the rotten parts with the healthy parts, he tenderly ced the sickly cactus onto a big piece of newsprint and moved it to the living room next to the floor-to-ceiling windows. He seriously told Fu Xinhui not to throw it away as garbage.

    Fu Xinhui was speechless. Ever since he started working, Zhang Siyi had gone to another world. He waspletely dominated by another man. (=_=)

    During the next few days, Zhang Siyi payed particr attention to thendscape wall housing all the staff members nts. Also, he kept an eye on the passersby to see if anyone noticed something different.

    Fortunately, no one has said anything about it. Near the end of the year thepany is very busy finishing out year-end projects. Gu Yu is constantly in meetings and the staff is rushing around trying to finish their respective design assignments. No one has time to pay attention to him. Zhang Siyi realized that he might have made a huge fuss over nothing. He wants to me the pressure put on him from the female staff who raised the value of Gu Yu¡¯s ¡®child¡¯.

    At the end of December, it is the end of the quarter and they announced the awards for the I My Love Job. Since Zhang Siyi saw his name on the employee-list to get a bonus, he was convinced that he had sessfully hid the mishap. He gave aplete sigh of relief.

    At home, the cactus had been basking in the sun and now it was time to ce it in a pot with new soil. It is said that cactus ball like a warm and dry environment, so he isn¡¯t sure if it will survive this winter. However, since no issues came up with his transnt ball, Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t worrying over it, so he directly ced it on the window sill in the bedroom.

    On New Year¡¯s Day, several friends in the group are moring to gather together.

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s bonus has not yet been issued. His bonus won¡¯t be issued until after the New Year¡¯s Day with his December sry. Since his credit card have already been overdrawn, he is so poor now that he does not want to go out at all.

    Jiang Hai took a few days off and nned to take his girlfriend to the new Matai five-day tour. Fu Xinhui also decided to go back to his home and ask Zhang Siyi if he wants to go with him.

    In the past, Zhang Siyi has gone with Fu Xinhui home, but this year he refused. His family was having arge family reunion dinner, and Zhang Siyi was embarrassed to mix with such a rich crowd.

    Lazy at home for a day, Zhang Siyi slept in the sun. He browsed his social media pages and saw Ren Mengyu fierce messages.

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°Didn¡¯t she say she was only going to stay for a few days? It¡¯s been ten days. Why haven¡¯t you done anything about it yet?¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°I don¡¯t know, but I am embarrassed to chase her away.¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°Find an excuse to go back to your hometown!¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°If I go back to my hometown, then she will be at my house by herself. I don¡¯t trust her enough!¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°She is so thick-skinned! So, when the hell is, she going to leave?¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°Probably when she goes back to school for the new semester....¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°......Uh, huh.¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°Hey, I regret it now. All right, all right, let¡¯s not talk about it. What are we gonna eat?¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°Ding Tai Fung. I want to eat dumplings! Is she going toe too?¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°Yeah. She is still doing her make-up. We will head out soon.¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°Ah! Then you¡¯re going to lose your appetite!

    Su Yuan: ¡°By the way, I know of Ding Tai Feng because of Yu Rui.¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°Why is that?¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°Rememberst year when she went back to Ennd after the summer vacation? She told me that her domestic boyfriend invited her to eat at Ding Tai Feng. She said it was a ce where celebrities eat, and it was so expensive and super delicious. She probably told me about it because, at that time for a month, I was only eating pizza and sandwiches.

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°Ha-ha-ha! Ding Tai Feng expensive! Now that¡¯s a good one. Masquerade beginner!¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°Well, when she told me about it, she was acting like she was a socialite with a group ofdies. In reality, Ding Tai Feng is just an expensive fast food ce. ¡°

    Although Zhang Siyi did not say anything, he also chuckled. Thinking about her sudden visit and her embarrassment, he felt that this girl was a little sad. In fact, Yu Rui is a very motivated girl, but her energy is being channeled in the wrong way. Hey, what kind of family environment and education will raise such a person?

    Zhang Siyi turned off the chat group and went to WeChat to check his circle of friends. He saw a loving photo with Jiang Hai and Tian Jing¡¯s in it.

    He screamed in his heart while he praised it... ah ah, too much love! Scrolling through his news feed, he suddenly saw a beautiful travel picture.

    His heart jumped in to his throat in an instant. After one month and eight days, Gu Yu sent a message to his circle of friends. Next to a little cactus ball there are four words: ¡°Waiting for your exnation.¡±

 Chapter 39: Requirements

    <h4>Chapter 39: Requirements</h4>

    ____________________________

    Reading Gu Yu¡¯s message, Zhang Siyi heart stopped. He felt like his spine has been ripped from his body and is now his whole body feels weak. It¡¯s over!

    When did Gu Yu finally find out? He thought he did it seamlessly! Although he is on the ¡®I Love My Job¡¯ award list, does this mean Gu Yu will go to the personnel department and report him?

    Nooooooooo.........! His bonus!

    Zhang Siyi quickly got up from the bed and went to see the cactus on the window sill to see if its better, but it¡¯s only been ten days since he rented it in a new pot. The root waspletely cut off and the whole sphere was yellow. It clearly looked sick.

    What to do? Gu Yu is waiting for his exnation, but how can he exin that he almost killed his son?

    ... Gu Yu will definitely be angry!

    Experiencing Gu Yu¡¯s anger is far worse than getting 1000 bonus. Zhang Siyi felt even more afraid, like when he was a child. The feeling of horror and despair he felt in his heart when his Father discovered he did something bad at home. Zhang Siyi climbed back to the bed and clicked on the WeChat dialog box...

    What to do.... be honest? Or lie again? Maybe I brought it home because I liked it? If that¡¯s the case, why not bring the ball back? Instead, I reced the original. Gu Yu is not an idiot. He won¡¯t be fooled by this reason!

    Zhang Siyi thought: ¡°On that day when Yu Rui visited, he must have seen it and he has known all this time. God! I¡¯m so stupid! I¡¯ve been a fool!¡±

    While in bed, holding his head tossing and turning, Zhang Siyi cried: ¡°Aaaaaaaahhhhhhhhh!¡± He struggled for a long time before he picked up his mobile phone and decided he must be honest and confess. It¡¯s a simr experience to his childhood when he made a mistake and stood in front of his dad for a review, awaiting his punishment in the face of death.

    ¡°Gu ... The ball¡¯s root looked rotten. I don¡¯t know why.¡± If Zhang Siyi can give him a reasonable reason, then maybe he will be forgiven. ¡°I was afraid I wouldn¡¯t get a ¡®I love My Job¡¯ bonus so I bought a simr cactus and reced it.¡±

    Gu Yu did not reply, and Zhang Siyi continued to exin: ¡°But the cactus is not dead. I took it home to deal with it.¡± Zhang Siyi quickly took a picture of the true cactus and sent it to Gu Yu.

    The receptionist at the front desk said that as long as the nts are not dead, they will meet the conditions for winning the prize. Now that the ball is dying, but it is notpletely dead, will it be fine?

    Is Gu Yu dissatisfied with his exnation? Zhang Siyi waited for the other party¡¯s reply with a heavy heart. He turned back to look at post in Gu Yu¡¯s circle of friends and only now noticed the time-stamp. It was posted before the holidays! He used to check his social media so often that not having noticed now, really doesn¡¯t fit his personality. Will Gu Yu think he is deliberately evading responsibility for all this time?

    Zhang Siyi hastened to rify this point: ¡°Sorry, I only just saw your news post now.¡±

    After waiting for more than 20 minutes, the phone vibrated with Gu Yu¡¯s reply!

    He asked: ¡°You have been in thepany for four months. Have you poured water on the cactus?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°No! I didn¡¯t even pour water on it, and it became like this!

    Gu Yu: ¡°Normal cactus take water once a month. You can¡¯t pour the water down in the center. Too much water and the root will rot.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...I didn¡¯t water it, really!¡±

    He felt embarrassed. Even if he doesn¡¯t take care of nts regrly, he understands enough about a cactus to know it needs to be watered less, but it¡¯s now rotten!

    Gu Yu also said: ¡°A bigger cactus might be ok not watering it for a few months, but for such a small one, the cactus will certainly dry to death if you don¡¯t water it for that long. Regardless of what is wrong with it, because you have not been paying attention to it for four months, it must mean, you do not care.

    Zhang Siyi was terrified. Gu Yu is digging him a huge pit......!

    Gu Yu also said: ¡°When you adopted the nt, I asked you if you liked the ball. How do you answer me?¡±

    ¨C Fuck! Waiting for him here!

    Gu Yu: ¡°For four months you didn¡¯t water it, didn¡¯t pay attention to it, and you don¡¯t even know what¡¯s wrong with it, but in order to take the bonus, you switched it. Is this stunt your so-called ¡®Love¡¯?

    Zhang Siyi was knocked down by Gu Yu, and it was only at this moment that he found out what he had done wrong.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry! I was wrong...... I did not do well. I did not pay attention. I will take care of the cactus and strive to revive it.¡± At this time, Zhang Siyi is full of shame and guilt from the heart. The simple text is insufficient to express his inner sorrow. Even though Gu Yu previously questioned the use of an emoji as something little girls do, Zhang Siyi sent him several ¡®crying-down-on-his-knees¡¯ emojis. ¡°If it doesn¡¯t live, I will take the initiative to find thepany personnel and return the bonus.¡±

    However, at the same time, he also thought this issue was being taken too seriously and felt he was being treated unfairly. If he wasn¡¯t doing well at work, then he understood Gu Yu attitude, but it¡¯s just a cactus! Gu Yu is so fierce and serious. Holding the phone, Zhang Si Yi felt like crying. Indeed, if he was standing in front of Gu Yu, rather than holding a mobile phone tomunicate with each other, Zhang Siyi would have cried tears.

    Just as he was feeling sorry for himself, Gu Yu returned a message. He couldn¡¯t believe his eyes. Gu Yu sent him an animated emoji! It was in the same picture-series as his underarm crying he sent before. Gu Yu was a little fox holding a tearful kitten and gently touching his head.

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know how to describe his feelings. Gu Yan, the man who didn¡¯t use the exmation mark, would even send him a ¡°touching head¡± emoji-expression. What is this?

    Since their conversation was bing tenser, the emoji was clearly used as a buffer. As if they both perceived the sour mood, they used the emojis to y and lighten the atmosphere.

    Soon, Gu Yu followed up: ¡°I am not thinking about the bonus. I want attitude.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Since thepany has already issued a list of bonuses, it won¡¯t be withdrawn. If you don¡¯t want to be punished afterwards, it is better to start raising your cactus now.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I know......¡±

    Hey, I said that the cactus is the best nt. Why does he feel like a Buddha now? With the consequences, you can¡¯t take care of anything else!

    Looking through the animated emoji¡¯s Gu Yu sent, Zhang Siyi started to feel relieved. He boldly asked: ¡°If I may ask, how did you find out that I changed the nt?¡±

    Gu Yu was silent for a long while. He sent a group of seven to eight photos to him at once. All of which were photos of the cactus!

    From its appearance on the big ball, through a growth period, to when it was cut off and transnted, andstly an independent green, furry, sphere growing with vitality. There was a huge contrast between these images and the ball sitting on Zhang Siyi¡¯s window sill. However, he still can¡¯t see the difference between the two balls. They are almost the same. How did Gu Yu recognize it?

    Gu Yu quickly sent another exnation: ¡°All the cactus will gradually increase in number during the process of growing up. From the top one edge is divided into two edges to meet the needs of the sphere¡¯s continuous expansion. I went to see the ball a few months ago. Its ribs are already very clear. There are six in total, but the counterfeit goods you brought have only five.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡±

    Gu Yu said again: ¡°Also, the node on the outer surface of the sphere is milky yellow, and the fake one is only yellow-green.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡± He felt even more ashamed.

    He was wrong. He shouldn¡¯t question Gu Yu¡¯s observation skills ever. He won¡¯t dare to be smart again! But in this way, Zhang Siyi has learning something about Gu Yu. He really seems to like the cactus. Will a normal person remember such small details?

    Zhang Siyi asked weakly: ¡°Are you just angry?¡±

    Gu Yu usually does not feel like the kind of personality that will be discussed in people on WeChat, but just the momentum, the speed of sending messages, gives Zhang Siyi an aggressive feeling.

    Gu Yu admitted: ¡°Yes.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°I have long found that you have changed, but the end of the month was too busy and there wasn¡¯t time to ask you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I really know it¡¯s wrong and I¡¯m not going to do it again ...¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Okay. You admitted your faults and your attitude is still good, so I will close my eyes for now. You are saved this time, but as for forgiveness, I don¡¯t forgive you. I¡¯ll see your performance afterwards.¡±

    So, Gu Yu is not going to forgive him now? Also, the cactus¡¯s future is still uncertain...

    With a bad feeling in the pit of his stomach, Zhang Siyi felt troubled. ¡°Is there anything else so you will forgive me quickly?¡± If this matter isn¡¯t quickly rectified, he is afraid of going to work and facing Gu Yu. He has always had a hard time dealing with mental stress and he doesn¡¯t want to work with guilt all the time.

    Gu Yu: ¡°Are you so desperate to ask for my forgiveness?¡±

    Zhang Siyi said in truth: ¡°Yes. If you don¡¯t forgive me, I feel bad in my heart.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°...¡±

    For two to three minutes, Gu Yu was silent. Then he sent another message: ¡°Then, y the violin for me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi saw the sentence and froze. As his mind was processing the information, his cheeks burned like a fire! He had used a lie on the train to cover up his deficiencies. With someone with a superb memory as Gu Yu, is it possible he forgot? Then.... Then, what is Gu Yu asking......? What does he mean?

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart leaped wildly, and he calmly asked: ¡°Oh, what do you want to listen to?¡± If there is only one song, it should be possible to practice it for a while.

    Gu Yu: ¡°Oh, really? Is this a promise?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Damn it, are you just kidding me?

    Gu Yu took a moment to think then replied: ¡°I want to listen to the song R.¡±

    Zhang Siyi has not heard this song, so he hastened to search for it on the inte and listened to the song¡¯s beginning...

    ¡°..................¡± Go to hell!

 Chapter 40: Pull Yourself Together

    <h4>Chapter 40: Pull Yourself Together</h4>

    ______________________________

    After listening to this whole piece of music, Zhang Siyi¡¯s guilty mood has changed. He is now freaking out: ¡°Are you kidding me? This song is too difficult!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°You can be a little ¡ª¡ª¡ª¡ª Practice in parts. I¡¯m not in a hurry anyway. I¡¯ll forgive when you y it for me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Why does he feel like he dug himself a hole this time? !

    Distraught Zhang Siyi is perplexed. Every time when he thinks Gu Yu is very serious, the other party will suddenly make a joke. When he thinks that Gu Yu is joking, the other party isn¡¯t. It¡¯s just like that time he deducted his wages. On one hand Gu Yu is a super guy with a great personality, on the other hand he has a ck stuffed belly!

    With a solid ying foundation, even if song R is difficult, it¡¯s not impossible to learn the song. The problem is just a matter of practice.

    As Gu Yu mentioned, if there is a score, Zhang Siyi can separate the whole into smaller sections and practice each part starting slowly. Practice it one two hundred more times, then increase the speed and make the music sound dynamic. But, less than half a year to practice ............ You are going to die!

    What Zhang Siyi originally wanted was a shortcut for Gu Yu¡¯s forgiveness, but instead he gave him half a year to solve the problem. Feeling frustrated, he gave up and threw his mobile phone on the floor. What, even if he didn¡¯t y the violin for Gu Yu, is he not going to forgive him in his lifetime? Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t believe it! When the cactus recovers, he won¡¯t owe him anything!

    In order to save money, Zhang Siyi stayed at home for three days and ate convenience store food. On the third night, Fu Xinhui came back home. Feeling starved, he threw himself on the floor in front of him and said: ¡°Local tyrant, please let me have a meal!¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°...¡±

    The two went out to a fish ce to eat hot pot. Talking to Fu Xinhui, Zhang Siyi was stillining over Gu Yu¡¯s treatment of him about his cactus. ¡°It¡¯s such a small cactus! He remembered how many edges of the nt there were and the node colors. Isn¡¯t that terrible?¡±

    Fu Xinhui listened and asionally nodded ¡°hmm¡±, but his expression was a little absent-minded. Until he sat down to finish the meal, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t realize that Fu Xinhui¡¯s mood today wasn¡¯t right.

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter with you?¡± Zhang Siyi remembered theplicated situation of Fu Xinhui¡¯s family and asked, ¡°Is it a problem with your sister?¡±

    Fu Xinhui sighed a long sigh: ¡°Not only her, but a bunch of broken things at home. I am upset.¡±

    At first, they ordered only a cup of golden orange Lemonade, but seeing Fu Xinhui disheartened, Zhang Siyi got the waiter and ordered two bottles of beer. He said: ¡°Come, drink some, talk to me.¡±

    Fu Xinhui gently rubbed the ss wall with his fingers, frowning: ¡°Well, my sister is going to get married and the man is going to change his name to Fu.¡±

    Surprised, Zhang Siyi¡¯s eyes and mouth are wide open: ¡°What!?!?¡±

    Is it possible for a man in society to change his surname? If they are a good man with talents, why do you want to change your family name?

    With bitterness, Fu Xinhui responded: ¡°How do I know what she is thinking? This time when I went home, they asked me for advice. Can I even have an opinion?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Wait, wait! Your brother-inw, oh no, they are not married yet. The man who wants to marry your sister; did he agreed to change his family name?¡± Can an average man agree to this condition? When Zhang Siyi thinks about it, he thinks it¡¯s is absolutely impossible for him to follow his wife¡¯s surname in the future.

    Fu Xinhui said: ¡°It¡¯s just a formality of calling him brother-inw. He is four years younger than my sister and is from an average family. He has an older brother, so he is ranked second and changing the family name is eptable to the man¡¯s family.¡±

    Zhang Siyi questioned: ¡°Huh?¡± I imagine that most rich people like you are looking for a marriage of the right rich, and I thought your sister would marry a richer one.

    Fu Xinhui turned to him with a nk look: ¡°You watch too many TV shows!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Err......¡±

    He never really took the initiative to see the drama series on TV. Mainly, his mother loved to watch and before going to college, every night after dinner, his mother would watch a TV romance drama. From time to time he would also watch so he could try to understand it. (=_=)

    The bottom of the fresh chicken soup in the duck shaped pot has begun to boil. Fu Xinhui picked up some beef cuts and slowly put them into the hot-pot. He continues to say: ¡°It¡¯s not a hard rule and my sister is a strong woman. She is never likely to find a stronger person than herself.¡±

    Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°Is your future brother-inw very weak? What¡¯s he like?

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°I have been in contact with him once and felt he is very good. Anyway, my sister has a hot temper, and he knows how to deal with it. The person I saw by my sister will not go bad. At first, I was against it and told my mother. It may be an ideological problem of principles, but I can¡¯t help my sister, so I listened to my mother.¡±

    Zhang Siyi nervously said: ¡°I feel very bad. Your sister is now married to the equivalent of a man entering the door. Then, is she going to find a marriage partner to marry you?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°......¡± Startled, he replied: ¡°I¡¯m in the middle of it.¡± With furrowed brows, he used the long chopsticks to move the soup around: ¡°This time, when I went back, they arranged a blind date for me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°............¡±

    Shit! A rich family inner political fight! It seems that kind of drama his mother often watches is not so foolish after all. The artes from life!

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Remember the uncle I mentioned?¡±

    Zhang Siyi nodded: ¡°Yeah?¡±

    He heard Fu Xinhui mention him once. It¡¯s his father¡¯s only brother. He oversaw a part of the family business, but he never took it seriously and caused trouble.

    Fu Xinhui exined: ¡°My father¡¯s indulgence to my uncle has reached the limit and the family is very angry. He spent one-third of the family assets on prostitution, gambling, food, drinks and the like. My mother quietly told me he went to Australia six months ago and lost 20 million on a bet. He came back begging and my father never said a word. He just took the family¡¯s assets to pay off his uncle¡¯s debt.

    Zhang Siyi shocked: ¡°Fuck! He gambled 20 million?¡±

    This is the first time Fu Xinhui has disclosed any information about his family assets to Zhang Siyi. He sighed: ¡°Well, thepany intended to go public this year, but because of my uncle, it has been dyed. The financials of thepany are now being investigated.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Is it bad for your father to indulge your uncle so much again? Not only will it hurt him, but he will probably hurt you, too.

    Fu Xinhui handed him the spoon and said: ¡°Yes, I know this truth, but my father can¡¯t hear it.¡±

    After listening to Fu Xinhui¡¯s remarks, Zhang Siyi suddenly understood why his father was so strict with himself.

    Fu Xinhui seems to be at a loss. Holding his ss, he said: ¡°When I went home this time, I overheard something.¡±

    Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°Hmm... What¡¯s that?¡±

    Fu Xinhui looked at the boiling soup pot and said: ¡°My uncle never married and never had any children. Last night, I heard my sister talking to my dad in the study. She said to let my uncle adopt me and gain my inheritance.¡±

    ¡°Pfft.......!¡± Zhang Siyi directly spit out a mouthful of soup: ¡°Fuck her mom! Your sister is insane!¡±

    Smiling faintly, Fu Xinhui had a mind to joke with Zhang Siyi: ¡°You are so funny. Her mother is my mother.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was choked to the heart. He lost his appetite, so he just sipped his drink.

    Fu Xinhui continued: ¡°The reason she gave my father, was to prevent my uncle¡¯s carelessness so it wouldn¡¯t be so chaotic every day. The idea was to let me help take care of my uncle¡¯s industries andter when he dies, those would be mine. In addition, since I¡¯m still my father¡¯s son, I would be given more property at that time. It wouldn¡¯t be a disservice to me.¡±

    In anger, Zhang Siyi raised his voice: ¡°You are her younger brother, how can she do this to you?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not surprised she has done this because she has hated me since we were children. Now she has the chance to draw a line with me and if my dad does what she suggested, I wouldn¡¯t fight with her.¡± Fu Xinhui eyes are already red. He raised his ss and drank some more: ¡°I¡¯ve never wanted to argue with her about what she wanted so I got out of her way.¡±

    Zhang Siyi put down the cup and for the first time began to seriously persuade Fu Xinhui: ¡°You can¡¯t go on like this, you have to pull yourself together!¡±

    Fu Xinhui lowered his head and sipped his drink. He did not answer.

    Enlightening others isn¡¯t something Zhang Siyi is consciously good at, but looking at Fu Xinhui¡¯s despondent look, he felt bad for him so he spoke up: ¡°You shouldn¡¯t stay at home and do nothing. What about pursuing your own dreams? It¡¯s your own life so you need to fight for yourself! You can¡¯t be affected by your sister for the rest of your life.¡±

    Fu Xinhui raised his head and looked at Zhang Siyi: ¡°But I don¡¯t know what I want!¡± I don¡¯t know what it means for people to live in this world!

    ¡°He had a desperate face, and slipping along his cheeks, the tears in his eyes could no longer be contained.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Fu Xinhui hastened to cover his face with his hand and leaned on the back of the chair. His soft sobs shook his shoulders: ¡°I just want to hide far away from them...¡±

    Feeling for his friend, Zhang Siyi¡¯s five hearts are mixed with emotions.

 Chapter 41: Golden Retriever

    <h4>Chapter 41: Golden Retriever</h4>

    ______________________________

    Feeling afraid, Fu Xinhui frowned and sat there motionless.

    When Zhang Siyi saw signs of movement, he seized the opportunity to continue talking to him about his own experience: ¡°I¡¯ve also felt the same. In fact, after graduation I could have gone back home to live. My parents would have continued to raise me and feed me, but what does it mean? If I did that, I wouldn¡¯t feel alive. My dad will always look down on me. He would think that I was never able to achieve sess. I want to prove to him that I am not a waste. I must stand on my own and push forward so I work hard and work overtime. I want to make a fortune by myself. This is my pursuit!¡±

    With still red eyes, Fu Xinhui slowly put down his hand, and watched the water vapor rise from the hot pot with a gloomy look.

    Zhang Siyi knows that he is listening, so he continued: ¡°I know my current pursuit may not mean much to you. My family economic conditions are far away from yours. It might be that the cost of living is like pennies in a bucket for your parents. They can afford a few more sons like you so you can continue to be so capricious and do nothing.¡±

    Originally Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t sure what words to say to his friend, but as he spoke, he felt more and more certain: ¡°I didn¡¯t advise you before because no matter how you live, you have your own reasons for nning and considering where your life will go. But, now it¡¯s different. Heartless Han, you are my good friend and I can¡¯t see you being so depressed. No matter what they say your family is not a reason for your self-destruction. Don¡¯t forget that you are already a grown man. You are free so pull yourself together and live! You are smart and in good health both emotionally and physically and you have many friends. What can¡¯t you do? Anyway, I will always be with you. If we have money, we can enjoy hot-pot and if we don¡¯t, we will eat instant noodles. Either way, we will be happy to live our lives!¡±

    Fu Xinhui¡¯s gaze slowly moved to Zhang Siyi face. He did not expect his usually silly, stupid and cute friend to say such a thing. Fu Xinhui was really touched: ¡°Thank you.¡±

    Fu Xinhui picked up the ss and touched Zhang Siyi¡¯s ss. Drinking both sses empty, Zhang Siyi clenched his fist in the air waving and said with excitement: ¡°You can do it!¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡± Fu Xinhui finally smiled. The fragility in his eyes slowly dissipated, and he re-emerged with a hint of hope. He learned Zhang Siyi¡¯s tone: ¡°Just do it!¡±

    Chuckling, Zhang Siyi smiled and looked at the boiling hot pot: ¡°Come on, the beef is boiled. Live to eat another day!¡±

    The two men ate the hot pot to the bottom and with another bottle of beer finished, they were red faced and full. The coldness of winter struck their faces as they left the hot-pot restaurant. Walking slowly, the two swayed home with content stomachs.

    After walking for a while, Fu Xinhui suddenly asked Zhang Siyi: ¡°You say you want to make money, then what if you had money?¡±

    After eating and drinking, Zhang Siyi¡¯s brain wasn¡¯t working quite right. ¡°Eh?¡±

    Fu Xinhui asked again: ¡°If one day you have a lot of money, so your pursuit ispleted, then what will you do?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I haven¡¯t thought so far ahead. I guess I hope that I will be famous at that time like a big architect who is respected by thousands of people. Then I would have another starting point. Anyway, as long as there is a reason to pursue something, then I can get up every day happy to live.¡±

    Fu Xinhui was silent and looked thoughtful.

    Zhang Siyi paused for a few seconds then continued: ¡°Unfortunately, I am still a poor man and I can¡¯t even afford the rent of a square meter house in Haicheng. Even though I haven¡¯t asked for a penny from my family, if I didn¡¯t have help then I would have eaten dirt. Sometimes I think life is really difficult. It¡¯s so hard to make money!¡±

    Zhang Siyi opened his arms and embraced the cold blue sky and said with emotion, ¡°Hurry and rain down coin. Let me experience the feeling of drowning in lots of money!¡±

    Fu Xinhui smiled and rubbed his hands in his trouser pockets. He also looked up at the sky and said: ¡°I just said that I don¡¯t know what I want because I really have the feeling of drowning in money.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Fu Xinhui lost his voice: ¡°I can¡¯t understand why so many people are frantically pursuing the life of the rich. In my opinion, life is good andplete now. I am able to be with the people I like every day and talk about things; don¡¯t quarrel, can eat food, can buy gifts on special days, buy a house or rent a house, why does it matter? Why do you need so much money?¡±

    Zhang Siyi choked on his words. While he knows Fu Xinhui is saying this from the bottom of his heart, he can¡¯t help but feel a bit irritated. ¡°Only the rich can say such words. All my hard work and still, I have a few bucks a week left to eat instant fish vored pork rice. I only had a good meal with you. I¡¯ll take ¡®too much money¡¯ any day!¡±

    Fu Xinhui smiled and said: ¡°It doesn¡¯t cost much to eat. If you want to eat well, I¡¯ll invite you to eat every day.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was just joking. He didn¡¯t expect Fu Xinhui to take it seriously. He wrinkled his face again: ¡°No, I am not a little white face that you have to support. I will continue to eat my fish vored pork rice.¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°To tell you the truth, I think the position you are in is a blessing. Even though you have a hateful sister, they don¡¯t prevent you from pursing your own life. With your family background and financial ability, you are standing at the end of many people¡¯s goals. You have to grasp these resources and be strong as soon as possible.¡±

    ¡°I know ...¡± Fu Xinhui, lowering his eyes and pondering: ¡°I¡¯ll think about it. You can rest assured.¡±

    Since Zhang Siyi has been home for a three-day holiday, he has been sleeping in too much in the mornings and thus can¡¯t seem to sleep at night. He was on the for while thinking about Fu Xinhui¡¯s suffering at home and the conversation hest had with Gu Yu. He was feeling annoyed and before he realized what he was doing, he unconsciously found the score to song-r and downloaded it.

    ¡°......¡± (=_=) Forget it, just be free to practice.

    Zhang Siyi took out the violin and began to y the music on the screen: ¡± Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack, Quack......¡±

    A few minutester, Fu Xinhui¡¯s roar sounded at the door: ¡°Zhang Siyi!!! You have some nerve ying in the middle of the night!!!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡±

    Returning to thepany the next day, out of the elevator and towards his desk, Zhang Siyi met Gu Yu while he was attending thendscape wall. Zhang Siyi was going to say hello, but Gu Yu gave him a faint look and walked right passed Zhang Siyi. Shit! He really is mad!

    In the morning, the Ministry of Finance informed the staff to pick up their New Year¡¯s Day holiday card as well as handing in their meal refund tickets. Jubnt, Zhang Siyi prepared his receipts in advance and headed to the finance room early in the day. After receiving subsidies, he whispered to the cashier: ¡°Miss, when will our sry and quarterly bonuses be issued?¡±

    Finance attendant replied: ¡°I will send it in the afternoon! I will send it in the afternoon! Go back and wait.¡±

    With a wide smile on his face, Zhang Siyi waited from ten in the morning until three in the afternoon for his paycheck. When he saw his sry card text message ¡°On January 4th your ount number XXX received transfer of 26,890.00.¡± he practically jumped out of his seat and danced.

    Ah-ah-ah-ah! Twenty-six thousand! A lot of money!!

    In his mind Zhang Siyi quickly calcted; tax deduction is seven thousand, ¡®Love My Job¡¯ is one thousand, so the bonus from City-Z project is around eighteen thousand!

    Ah, ah, ah, ah, for giving me so much work, Gu Yu, I love you.!!!

    Excitedly holding his phone and hopping around, Zhang Siyi has never seen so much money. He decided! Determined, he was going to go back home and continue to practice the violin!

    On his way home at night, Zhang Siyi, full of enthusiasm, went to the deli to buy a roast goose and nned to celebrate his first achievement in his life with Fu Xinhui.

    Arriving at home, Zhang Siyi took out the key to open the door. He heard a hair dryering from the room and was about to call FU Xinhui name when he felt something on his feet. He looked down: ¡°Eh? What is this dog doing here?¡±

    A golden-haired retriever puppy was sitting in front of Zhang Siyi with his tongue out panting, ¡°ha Chee ha Chee¡±, drooling and, looking at the goose in his hand.

    Fu Xinhui came out with a hair dryer and shouted: ¡°Cheer-Up! Come back!¡± Seeing Zhang Siyi standing in the doorway, he turned off the hair dryer: ¡°You are home early today.¡±

    Zhang Siyi turned his face and pointed at the hairball on his feet: ¡°You said, think about it, and the result is to buy a dog!¡±

    Fu Xinhui came over, crouched down and picked up the little golden hair puppy in his arms. Smiling he asked: ¡°Isn¡¯t the dog cute?¡± I went to several pet stores before I choose one. It took me all day.

    Speechless, Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°I asked you to talk! Why didn¡¯t you discuss it with me if you want a dog?¡±

    Fu Xinhui patted the dog on the head and stood up strangely: ¡°Didn¡¯t I tell you I was going to raise a dog?¡±

    Zhang Siyi is a bit frazzled: ¡°I thought you were just joking! Well, even if you wanted one, I thought you said you would consider a dog when Jiang Hai moved. Does he know you have a dog now? Is he ok with that?¡±

    Fu Xinhui shrugged: ¡°Jiang Hai called me today about it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was surprised: ¡°Wha-? Why is it so sudden?

    Fu Xinhui exined: ¡°Since he and Tian Jing have been together, he has rarelye back. It¡¯s difficult for me to ask for his rent when he isn¡¯t living here so I told him if he doesn¡¯t want to stay then to tell me directly. Well, he called me to today and said he wasn¡¯t going to pay rent for the next quarter. I haven¡¯t had time to tell you. He wille back in two days to pack up his things.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

 Chapter 42: To Please

    <h4>Chapter 42: To Please</h4>

    ______________________

    Learning about his new living conditions, Zhang Siyi was caught off guard. His emotions are one huge roller coaster ride and doesn¡¯t know what to do. He has his own reservations about his current situation; two men and a dog. If not for Fu Xinhui¡¯s conflict with his family, maybe Zhang Siyi would have said something, but now witnessing Fu Xinhui affectionate interactions with the puppy, he can¡¯t say anything. Fu Xinhui looks like a father holding his newborn baby!

    As one of the important members of this family of three, Zhang Siyi feels like now, there is no way he couldpletely integrate into this warm and intimate atmosphere; there is something not quite right. (=////=)

    Despite wanting tough at Fu Xinhui for doing something so foolish, Zhang Siyi was happy for him. He asked: ¡°The dog¡¯s name is Cheer-Up?¡±

    Zhang Siyi put down the roast goose and kept the proper distance from him. He doesn¡¯t hate small animals, but he can¡¯t say he likes them very much. On the contrary, he is a little afraid. A dog is like a loyal magical creature, but adorable isn¡¯t a word he would use to describe them.

    One winter when he was a child, Zhang Siyi went to his grandfather¡¯s house over school vacation to y. There, his Grandpa had a German Shepperd that was a retired police dog. Once, Grandma shaved the meat from a pig¡¯s leg bone and let the house staff take the bones to the dog. Seeing Zhang Siyi curious attitude, the staff took him with them to feed the dog. Zhang Siyi really liked the looks of the dog, especially when the dog would sit down in front of him in attention. Like a bronze dog statue, he felt the dog looked majestic. The staff member gave the bone to Zhang Siyi and motioned to him with his arm how to throw it to the dog. The dog suddenly sprang up, opened his jaws wide and snatched the bone as it was tossed. At that moment, all Zhang Siyi could think of was how easy it would be for the dog to swallow his own life! Since then, Zhang Siyi has respected and feared dogs. He can imagine even a small puppy will have a fierce appearance when grown.

    Fu Xinhui smiled and hugged the little puppy: ¡°I think the name is very meaningful. The dog will remind me to look at the brighter side of things every time I see him. I just came back from the pet shop and he peed, so I gave him a bath.¡±

    After using the hair dryer, Fu Xinhui saw Zhang Siyi on the side, so he stuffed the dog into his arms and said: ¡°You y with him for a while. I will pack up things.¡±

    Holding the dog out, Zhang Siyi stared at it with his eyes while the dog stared at Zhang Siyi. Maybe because he was at the deli selecting a goose that the dog suddenly lowered its head and stuck out his long tongue to lick the back of Zhang Siyi hand.

    ¡°Fuck! It licked me!¡± In response Zhang Siyi retracted his hand quickly as if the dog was doing something hostile.

    Fu Xinhui looked at him andughed: ¡°Hey, hey, the dog is showing you that he likes you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Fu Xinhui took the hair dryer and turned to the kitchen. ¡°You bought a roast goose? Perfect! I¡¯ll cook some green vegetables and rice to go with it.¡±

    Such a life really has a subtle sense of living in a fantasy. (=_=)

    Well, the only thing that is not right is that he and Fu Xinhui will be more and more gay in the eyes of outsiders. Even Zhang Siyi can¡¯t help but think that if they live together and have no girlfriends, will they really get together?

    However, once this thought appeared in Zhang Siyi¡¯s mind, he immediately dismissed it without question. Idiot! Don¡¯t be influenced by the vision of outsiders. Although the world is simr, straight men are straight men, and brothers can never be lovers.

    To cultivate a moment of affection, Zhang Siyi held the puppy gently for a few minutes, then carefully put it on the ground. He stared at it for a while to confirm that the dog is not threatening than slowly walked away to the bathroom to wash his hands.

    Unsurprisingly, as he walked the dog also followed. Zhang Siyi turned around: ¡°Don¡¯te to the bathroom to y!¡±

    Cheer-Up crooked his head to the side then squat down.

    Zhang Siyi thought it understood. Maybe this kind of dog isn¡¯t so bad. After washing his hands, he felt something under his foot when he turned around to leave the room. Even though he just stepped on the dog paw, the dog was still at his feet. With a surprised ¡°yelp¡± the dog looked up at Zhang Siyi with tearful eyes, seemingly using him of being careless.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Zhang Siyi said without words: ¡°You are not my dog! Why are you following me!¡± He then pointed to Fu Xinhui in the kitchen: ¡±The person you need to cheer up is that person! Stop following me, ok?¡±

    Cheer-Up seems to understand him for two seconds then abruptly copsed on the feet of Zhang Siyi. He looked up with his puppy dog eyes as if to say: ¡°Hey, I fell. I want you to pet me before I get up. ¡°

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°............¡±

    After cooking the food Fu Xinhui came over to see Zhang Siyi sitting cross-legged on the carpet in the living room with the puppy between his legs. As he greeted Zhang Siyi for dinner, he said, ¡°Well, this little thing is pretty cute, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    Zhang Siyi thought: ¡°Cute my ass. It¡¯s so clingy!¡±

    When the two were eating, the puppy looked at them from the side of the table with anguid look of ¡°please give me something to eat¡±. From time to time, the puppy vocalized a ¡®whining¡¯ hum.

    Zhang Siyi said softly: ¡°Has it eaten something?¡±

    Fu Xinhui looked at the dog and ignored him: ¡°I have already fed it when I came back. Don¡¯t worry about it. The dog is like this. Even if he is full, it will look at you while you are eating. They are a creature dominated by food.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± is not used to it!

    Fu Xinhui added: ¡°Arge dog grows very fast just like a newborn child. Today it¡¯s very small, but in three months it will be very big. He will eat arge pot of dog food every day and this is a male dog. He may hold your leg in his male estrus time and rub....¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s mouth twitched and felt that Fu Xinhui would continue in an increasingly entric direction of conversation, so Zhang Siyi interrupted: ¡°What about your own affairs?¡±

    Fu Xinhui replied unenthusiastically: ¡°The situation in my family is a bitplicated. Since my sister is getting married next march, I can¡¯t break with them now. They have no time to take care of me, so I am still free.¡±

    Fu Xinhui paused and continued: ¡°I thought about what you said. I have such a good resource, I need to make use of it. I need to be as strong as possible and look for opportunities to propel me forward towards self-reliance. Once that is achieved, they will be irrelevant.¡±

    ¡°Well,e on!¡± Seeing Fu Xinhui like this, Zhang Siyi is more assured.

    That night, Zhang Siyi gave the next quarter¡¯s rent to Fu Xinhui. Also, he paid more than 14,000 towards his credit cards. In a blink of an eye, the bonuses and wages were spent. Looking at the pathetic bnce in his ount, Zhang Siyi stared nkly. WTF! Why is he out of money so fast?! (#¡ã§Õ¡ã)

    After one day of having money, Zhang Siyi woke up and became poor. Feeling the pressures of life, he got up early to go to work.

    After calcting his own expenses on the subway, Zhang Siyi felt that it wouldn¡¯t be possible to continue in this way. It is absolutely impossible for his character to save money. If he expects the basic sry to live, he will one day be killed by himself.

    For a fleeting moment, Zhang Siyi felt the power of the bonus. He tuned his eyes inward and thought. Yes, I must be more involved in big projects. Big projects will earn more bonuses. This is the only way to move forward!

    However, it has been almost two months since the end of the Z-City project. Gu Yu has never let him participate in other things. He is still drawing parking lots and other misceneous things.

    After the Z-City project bid, Bi Lele and Zhu Hongzhen went with Gu Yu to Qingdao for a hotel project. Zhang Siyi was so envious. He sighed. In order to eat well, is it necessary to please Gu Yu? Feeling like Gu Yu was still angry at him for the incident with his cactus, he felt that his future was grim.

    When he arrived at thepany, Zhang Siyi heard several female colleagues talking excitedly together about Gu¡¯s birthday.

    He remembered that Gu Yu¡¯s birthday was in January, but he doesn¡¯t recall the day. Looking around the room, he spotted Bi Lele and went over to ask. She told him it was in two days.

    The female colleagues are all discussing what gift to give Gu Yu, but Zhang Siyi remembers Xu Jia saying that Gu Yu never epts other people¡¯s birthday gifts. The girls joked with one another:

    ¡°Oh, let¡¯s get together and buy somethign, so he won¡¯t refuse it?¡± Someone suggested.

    ¡°Like flowers.¡± Said another.

    ¡°Is it okay to buy a bunch of flowers?¡±

    ¡°If you want to buy a bunch of flowers, you can do it.¡±

    ¡°Hey, it doesn¡¯t seem to be a good idea to buy flowers for a male boss? What type of flowers to send? Carnations? Roses? Oh, it¡¯s better to send choctes!¡±

    Listening to his colleagues chatting around the room, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t realize how popr Gu Yu was even though he had such a bad character. He didn¡¯t know why he started feeling irritated and his mood turned sour.

    Just then, someone suddenly said: ¡°Would you like to ask Four? Maybe he knows what Director Gu likes!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Why ask me!? How would I know!?

    The group of female colleagues surrounded him and whispered: ¡°Eh, you and Boss are more familiar with each other. Does he have any hobbies?¡±

    Zhang Siyi tried to think about it and wasn¡¯t sure: ¡°Uh, cactus?¡±

    Female colleagues: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi put up his index finger and said: ¡°The variety that he raised in thepany is called Jin Sheng Wan.¡±

    Xu Jia: ¡°But he already has a potted cactus. There wouldn¡¯t be anything special about it.¡±

    ¡°There are many varieties of cactus. Jin Sheng Wan is one of the cheapest kinds. You can give special ornamental varieties. I went to a special flower market a few days ago and there were so many kinds of shapes and colors.¡± Zhang Siyi thought about the scientific details Gu Yu discussed in his WeChat earlier about his own cactus. He became more certain. ¡°He likes cactus nts. It will be alright.¡±

    The female colleagues looked at each other and seemed to believe him a little. They soon went to discuss what time to go to the flower market.

    Zhang Siyi touched his chin and thought that he gave him a tape measure on his birthday, and now Gu Yu¡¯s birthday is here.

 Chapter 43: Handmade

    <h4>Chapter 43: Handmade</h4>

    ________________________

    What¡¯s better to give? As a subordinate giving a gift to his boss, if he gives something expensive then he probably can¡¯t afford it. However, if it¡¯s something less expensive then there is no value. If its too ordinary, then its not enough to repay the favor of his tape measure, but then if its too special, he is afraid he won¡¯t ept it. The others are already giving cactus nts and he doesn¡¯t have anything of sentimental value like the tape measure to give. Now that Zhang Siyi is mulling this issue around his head, he realized the best gift to give would be a non-physical gift, like ying the violin. Gu Yu also indicated he wanted Zhang Siyi to y it for him, so there is no possibility of rejection.

    But he only practiced once, and he couldn¡¯t y it!

    Zhang Siyi grabbed his head and was dying. He never had as many problems as he does now thinking about a gift for Gu Yu as he had when he was buying gifts for his ex-girlfriend.

    At noon thepany ordered a bento with salty egg yolk fried pumpkin, Zhang Siyi suddenly remembered the pumpkinntern he made on Halloween day. The appearance of Gu Yu looking at thentern with delight is still fresh in Zhang Siyi memory. He was inspired ¨C a pumpkinmp? But it looks a little strange to give a pumpkinmp for a birthday present, so he could switch up the subject.... A cactus light?

    As its been only half a year, forgive him for knowing so little about Gu Yu. Apart from the pumpkinntern, Zhang Siyi could only think of the cactus. In fact, the cactus idea is quite good because it can mix in with a bunch cactus pots that the female colleagues give. Being handmade, its unique, but he doesn¡¯t think it would be too conspicuous.

    Excited, Zhang Siyi quickly created a few design ns of a cactus. Unlike his pumpkin from Halloween, this time it won¡¯t rot, so of course it can¡¯t be done with a fresh nt.

    After he nned out his ideas, Zhang Siyi immediately ced an order online and bought a bunch of hand tools and materials. The online supplier delivered the goods the next day, and during the night, Zhang Siyi began to build Gu Yu¡¯s gift!

    He first made a spherical frame with wire, and then made a shell from the wrinkled green matte copy paper and covered the frame. He drew a cute smile, and regrly glued a small handful of small balls around the sphere. He added life-like fluff to act as a thorn for the cactus.

    Zhang Siyi yed around with it in his hand for a while and felt happy. He made another carton base and before he attached the ball to the base, he took the opportunity to write a small note and buried it within the base. It read ¡°Gu Yu, you big devil! I wish you a happy 29th birthday. One day I will be even more powerful than you! (¨t_¨s)¡ª¡ªZSY¡±

    Zhang Siyi snickered and ced the note on the bottom. He cut a card with the same shape and glued it around the edges,pletely covering it with a seal. Hey, how can Gu Yu see this? Let your heart be buried with birthday wishes and be an evesting secret!

    Finally, Zhang Siyi put a small led light device in the base with a battery and spread dry sand stone around the base. He exposed themp head, put themp cover on then turned on the switch ¨C bright!

    Ah-ha-ha-ha! This young master is really a handmade genius! ! !

    Even though themp was simple, it took Zhang Siyi six hours to make it and it was two o¡¯clock in the morning. In his excitement to let other see his creation, he isn¡¯t sleepy.

    Knowing that the night owl, Fu Xinhui, was definitely not sleeping, Zhang Siyi went straight to his door and knocked: ¡°Heartless Han! Come and see!¡±

    While wearing headphones, Fu Xinhui is watching a movie and Cheer-Up is sitting quietly on hisp. One person and one dog hear the sound and look back. In the darkness, a green thing is shining.

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°...¡±

    Cheer up: ¡°...¡±

    It wasn¡¯t until Zhang Siyi came in with a plush green light that Fu Xinhui saw what the bizarre spot of light was. ¡°Why are you still up sote?¡±

    Zhang Siyi held hismp and said: ¡°Look what I did!¡±

    Fu Xinhui took Zhang Siyi¡¯smp and carefully observed it for a bit then asked: ¡°What is this? A tennis ball?¡±

    Zhang Siyi said: ¡°Do tennis balls have thorns!? This is a cactusmp!¡±

    Is there such a thing as a cactusmp? (=_=)

    ¡±It¡¯s pretty good,¡± replied Fu Xinhui with all sincerity. ¡°Did you stay up until now to make this?¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s zealous excitement was written all over his face: ¡°The day after tomorrow is Gu Yu¡¯s birthday. This is his present.¡±

    In Fu Xinhui¡¯s room with a sea of warm colors, themp emanates a gloomy green, like a curse. Fu Xinhui¡¯s eyes opened wider in concern: ¡°Are you sure you want to give this?¡±

    Zhang Siyi confidently said: ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Isn¡¯t it nice to look at?¡±

    That¡¯s an understatement, Fu Xinhui thought. He asked: ¡°This kind of smallmp is somon. Why not buy one online?¡±

    Zhang Siyi vehemently expressed his opinion: ¡°That¡¯s not sincere!¡±

    ¡°Well, what intentions ...... to your boss.¡± Fu Xinhui took a deep breath and suppressed his desire to criticize him. ¡°Why do you care?¡±

    Zhang Siyi made a fist: ¡°everything for the bonus!¡±

    At work the next day is the Group study meeting. This is a special project of the architectural design department. In order to promote join learning and growth, every two months, there will be one day where the members of the two groups sit together and select excellent design solutions worth sharing for internal reporting and discussion. When there are no projects, Gu Yu and Tong Heyi will either find some ssic programs for everyone to discuss or organize everyone to watch a film rted to architecture.

    In recent months, there have been manypany projects. Zhang Siyi has participated in two study sessions, all of which are discussion projects. This time is no exception. Only on this day, Gu Yu and Tong Heyi were taken by the Chief. The regr meeting was hosted by Ji Feiyu and another older designer of A Group.

    Since the two bosses are absent the atmosphere in the discussion room is rtively rxed. There are twenty young people in five or six rows, holding things like a notepad, a teacup, and some are with snacks. It is much like a college ss. What is being discussed was a factory design made by A Groupst week, which is quite unique. In order to train a poor colleague in the group, Ji Feiyu specifically asked him to report.

    Zhang Siyi was very involved in drawing many floor ns. The design of the factory was originally framed, so without intricate elements, it was very boring. He was listening to his colleague read the PPT presentation ording to the text. Since he didn¡¯t get enough sleepst night, the monotone drone of the colleague¡¯s made him feel so sleepy. Yawning a few times, it wasn¡¯t long before his head fell to the side on his neck, asleep.

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s luck was not good. Gu Yu and Tong Heyi came back five minutester.

    Before entering the door, Child Labor realize she had something else important, so she left beforehand. Gu Yu walked in and looked around. He saw everyone at attention facing front except for Zhang Siyi who was fast asleep. His mouth was half open, and drool was dribbling down the side.

    Zhu Hongzhen was about to nudge Zhang Siyi, but when he saw Gu Yu walk right towards his direction, he did nothing. The crowd also held their breath and quieted down to watch. Gu Yu walked softly to Zhang Siyi side and pulled out his mobile phone from his pocket. He took a few photos of Zhang Siyi sleeping.

    Everyone: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu whispered to the group of people around Zhang Siyi. Seeing that Gu Yu was pulling a prank on Zhang Siyi, they stifled their quietughs and cooperated with Gu Yu. He had them strike-a-pose all around Zhang Siyi.

    Gu Yu retreated a little and took a few shots from different angles.

    After taking a full ten minutes, he just smiled and put away his mobile phone. He made an ¡°x¡± gesture to everyone to keep it a secret and then went out.

    Several female colleagues whispered amongst themselves:

    ¡°Why did Director Gu take pictures of Fourth Aunt sleeping?¡±

    ¡°Surprisingly, it¡¯s the first time I¡¯ve seen him actively engaged in a prank and It seemed... cute?¡±

    ¡°Yes, yes... did you see that look on Director Gu¡¯s face? He usually is so distant, but that was just too cute!¡±

    ¡°Am I the only one who thinks that Gu Yu is beyond reach even when he does a prank? He¡¯s only making fun of Auntie Four. We¡¯re just his set props.......¡±

    ¡°Shh¨C! Auntie four is waking up! Secrecy, secrecy!¡±

    Zhang Siyi leisurely woke up and opened his eyes. Half of the people in the discussion room looked at him with sympathetic eyes. He was a little frightened and quickly wiped the saliva from the corners of his mouth, thinking it was a cause of concern, slightly blushing. But then there were people who looked at him from time to time, including Zhu Hongzhen.

    Flustered, Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°Hey, what¡¯s the matter? Was Boss just here?¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°... No.¡±

    The seminarsted until four o¡¯clock in the afternoon. Due to his nap Zhang Siyi felt rejuvenated.

    The crowd returned to the office area and noticed a new memo pinned on the bulletin board. People crowded around to read the notice of the event. It read:

    ¡ª¡ª Borderless photographypetition ¡ª¡ª

    In order to wee the arrival of the New Year, ourpany will hold an internal staff photographypetition at the end of the year. All employees are encouraged to participate voluntarily.

    Subject: Any photos rted to thepany, employees, and work. Thepetition is divided into two groups for submission:

    serious group (serious and normal photos)

    funny group (spoof, joy, funny photos, etc.)

    Requirements: A maximum of three works can be submitted per person. The work must be taken within one year and submitted as a single photo or photo clip.

    Deadline: January 20, 2015

    The preferred method: All works will be shown as a slide show at thepany¡¯s annual meeting at the end of January. Afterwards, thepany will vote online for their favorites on thepany¡¯s official website. Finally, each group will receive a prize of 3,000 yuan each, and 10 photos will be selected at the same time. After the magnified works are erged, they will be disyed at the entrance of thepany in theing year.

    The ¡°Photo Contest¡± in the title attracted Zhang Siyi¡¯s attention. He saw the bonus amount of the ¡°three thousand yuan¡± in the end, and his eyes werepletely bright! Wow! Photography is what he is best at! Excited, Zhang Siyi has raised his fist and this bonus must be won!

    From time to time, Zhang Siyi has noticed colleagues giving him both curious looks and sympathetic ones.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Why do you look at me like this!

    On January 8, Gu Yu¡¯s birthday arrived.

    Early in the morning, before 9:00, several female colleagues arrived at thepany and quietly ced their gifts at the door of Gu Yu¡¯s office. Since they were worried about being rejected, they are all tactfully unsigned.

    Zhang Siyi is also careful. He took his cactusmp to the office, but he was different.

 Chapter 44: Rejection

    <h4>Chapter 44: Rejection</h4>

    _______________________

    At 8:58, Gu Yu appeared at his office, in thepany on time.

    Although it is his birthday, he isn¡¯t wearing anything different then he usually does. With his smoky grey coat and Levi ck jeans, he looks slender and refined.

    He usually carries pencils and a pocket sketchbook in his jacket year-round and today is no exception. The left pocket of his jeans is bulging with pieces of paper sticking out. If he doesn¡¯t have his backpack with him, he always carries arge book or album under his arm like the one he had on the day they met in the coffee shop. Also, Zhang Siyi knows that he reads a lot of books. He has seen Gu Yu carrying a variety of books with a Haicheng Librarybel on the binding, like the book of poetry by Gu Cheng

    Since Gu Yu is a typical engineering student, it¡¯s hard to imagine an architect going to see the collection of literary poems. Whether it is speaking or thinking, he is logical and clear, and never confusing or subtle. The only time Gu Yu revealed a certain literacy, was when he used the poem of Wang Anshi in the text of the Z-City project.

    Today, he walked quickly with arge book wrapped in an old cloth under his arm, from the elevator to his office without trouble. At the door he stopped moving and looked at the dense pile of cactus in front of it with a questioning look. With doubts and spection in his eyes, he looked around the office area until his sightnded on the closest person, Zhang Siyi.

    Watching theputer screen nervously and pretending to be drawing carefully, Zhang Siyi had his back to Gu Yu. Gu Yu slightly raised his mouth and opened the door of his office and spoke: ¡°Zhang Siyi,e over.¡±

    ¡°......¡± Fuck! I¡¯m not ready!!

    Zhang Siyi hurriedly stuffed the small green light that was originally hidden in his clothes into the drawer and got up to walk over.

    Gu Yu has bent down to take two pots of cactus and said: ¡°Help me get these to the front desk together.¡±

    Zhang Siyi stunned: ¡°Why?¡±

    Amused, Gu Yu addressed him: ¡°Actually, I want to ask you why you put so many cactus here?¡±

    Zhang Siyi tly replied: ¡°I didn¡¯t put them there.¡±

    The smile on Gu Yu¡¯s face was gone. Zhang Siyi felt a little guilty. Although they weren¡¯t his gifts, he was the one who proposed the idea. If he does not ept them, how will his next n be carried out?

    Zhang Siyi wrinkled his eyebrows and whispered: ¡°Don¡¯t you like cactus? Today is your birthday so everyone is happy that you will ept it.¡±

    Holding two pots of cactus, with a faceless expression, Gu Yu did not seem to acknowledge him.

    Zhang Siyi was very helpless and had to help him move the potted nts to thendscape frame at the entrance of the office. It was a donation to thepany¡¯s nts. On the way back, he made an apologetic expression to the female colleagues who had been looking forward to Gu Yu eptance.

    The female colleagues seemed to be used to Gu Yu demeanor so while frustrated, they didn¡¯t take it to heart. A few minutester, Gu Yu sent a message inside Group A: ¡°Thank you for the gift. I appreciate it. Keep up the good work. [Smile] ¡±

    The employees received the news and immediately replied with a ¡°Happy Birthday¡±. The female colleagues also had a smile on their faces and the atmosphere was harmonious. Except for Zhang Siyi. Instead his heart ached. What about his own gift? Gu Yu is so cold and indifferent, he doesn¡¯t know what to do.

    Internally, Zhang Siyi struggled: ¡°It took six hours to make and it looks great! How can I not give it to him?¡± All morning, Zhang Siyi anxiously mulled over the issue and finally, after lunch learned why Gu Yu acted the way he did.

    Not only are thepany¡¯s rewards and punishments clearly defined, but also employees¡¯ birthdays have standard benefits, including Gu Yu. Therefore, he can¡¯t engage in special gifts from his subordinates. Whether it is a cheap cactus or something else, if the first is epted, then there will be a second time and more and thus, mutual fairness will be broken.

    But Zhang Siyi is not quite the same. Not long ago, Gu Yu gave him a tape measure so he can use this reason to return a gift to him. Also, he made this gift himself, therefore it is in a difference category then small gifts purchased at a store.

    After figuring out thisyer of rtionship, Zhang Siyi gave sigh of relief. He admitted to having an ulterior motive by giving him themp with Birthday wishes. However, people die for money, birds die for food, under great economic pressure, integrity is the moral clouds, dark society by me to stir the muddy water ¡ª all for the bonus, go! Cactus!

    After seeing Gu Yu return to his office from his meal, Zhang Siyi pumped his fist, got up and knocked on the door of his office.

    ¡°Come in.¡± Gu Yu was pouring a cup of tea. Once done, he pulled the back of his chair out and sat down. The book wrapped in cloth was on his desk half open and the title was now revealed; ¡°Ice¡±. Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know what the book was. Gu Yu interrupted his momentary thought: ¡°What are you looking for?¡± Gu Yu picked up the book with one hand and drank tea with the other.

    Zhang Siyi carefully took out his cactusmp from behind his back and ced it on Gu Yu¡¯s desk. Now, sitting opposite Gu Yu, he thought of his pride and ambition and is feeling a bit shy. He pushed themp forward, saying nothing. His heart was up and down.

    ¡°What is this?¡± Gu Yan nced at him curiously and lifted it up to look at it more closely. ¡°A cactus?¡±

    ¡°Yeh!¡± Zhang Siyi eyes brightened, feeling relieved. Of course, Gu Yu would know what it is, unlike Heartless Han, that idiot. He thought it was a tennis ball. Afraid to be rejected, Zhang Siyi eagerly exined: ¡°This is what I did myself. It is a small night light that will light up.¡±

    Gu Yu turned it around in a circle and saw the switch on the base. He pressed it with a ¡®click¡¯ and the sphere immediately lit up from the inside and emanated a green glowing light. Because it is daytime, it doesn¡¯t seem so gloomy and in fact, themp looked small and cute.

    Gu Yu smiled and asked, ¡°Are you giving this to me?¡±

    Zhang Siyi nervously rubbing his thighs under the table: ¡°Well, I wanted to give you a present in thanks for your tape measure gift.¡±

    Gu Yu smiled and put the littlemp in his hand and looked at it for a long while. He said: ¡°It¡¯s lovely, thank you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi looked at him with uncertainty. He epted the gift just like that? It feels quite easy!

    ¡°But I¡¯m surprised.¡± Gu Yu put themp aside. ¡°I thought you would y the violin for me today.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Shit! If you are going to be so cold, then don¡¯t ept it.¡±

    Gu Yu bowed his head to drink his tea. He changed the topic: ¡°Will you participate in the photo contest?¡±

    Still feeling frazzled, Zhang Siyi reaction is a little slow: ¡°Ah? .... Yes, I will.¡±

    When Gu Yu looked at Zhang Siyi, his long eyshes lifted up and revealed deep, mesmerizing eyes: ¡°I specifically proposed this photography event. With your good level of photographic ability, you should grasp this opportunity.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Coming out of Gu Yu¡¯s office, Zhang Siyi continued to be in a trance. Things didn¡¯t go ording to his n. He was looking forward to seeing a grateful expression on Gi Yu¡¯s face. Originally, he thought Gu Yu would ept his gift earnestly and that would be that. Instead, Zhang Siyi feels like he was being yed by Gu Yu.

    However, Zhang Siyi was really touched. He did not think that the effect of giving gifts would hit him so fast. Or it should be said, that even if he does not give this gift, the idea that Gu Yu in private is thinking of him makes his whole body heat up from head to toe. Zhang Siyi feels like he is fluttering on cloud-nine and thought that Gu Yu is just too good. Whoo-hoo ~ (>_<)

    Thinking of the book on Gu¡¯s desk, Zhang Siyi curiously searched the Inte ¨C ¡°Ice¡± by the author Zeng Guofan. It is a ssic document about rtionships between people. It is Zeng Guofan¡¯s insight into the mind and heart. It presents a unique strategy for hiring and employing people as well as a good practical reference for readers making it easy, yet interesting to read.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± You y with the heart and the mind boy!

    At night Zhang Siyi left the office and arrived back home punctually. He bumped into Fu Xinhui who was just leaving to walk the dog. Cheer-Up was wearing a beautiful silver colored cor and was obediently following Fu Xinhui.

    Although still small, one could see how handsome and valiant the dog will grow up to be from its solid gold hair and stature. ¡°Do you want to go with me? You didn¡¯t eat dinner, did you? Come, let¡¯s have a meal together.¡± Fu Xinhui gave an unsolicited invitation.

    Zhang Siyi certainly would not refuse an invitation to dinner. On the way, he told his friend about Gu Yu¡¯s rejection of the female colleagues¡¯ gifts and eptance of the cactusmp he gave him. Smiling, Zhang Siyi felt proud. Fu Xinhui felt uneasy: ¡°Are you sure people won¡¯t think you are gay?¡±

    Zhang Siyi said: ¡°Why would people think that over a littlemp?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Well, that¡¯s not the point. The point is that he only received your gift ...¡±

    Zhang Siyi waved his hand: ¡°Oh, it¡¯s impossible. Before, there were female colleagues who thought he was special to me, but I feel that they are just joking. There is no reason to think there is anything more to it.¡±

    Fu Xinhui irritated: ¡°Then why do we always get mistaken for being gay?¡±

    As they spoke, there was a sudden screaming around them: ¡°Ah! So cute!¡±

    Two beautiful, college student girls saw the golden puppy that Fu Xinhui was holding, and they came over to them with excitement.

    ¡°Good cute puppy! What kind of breed? Labrador? Can we pet him?¡±

    Fu Xinhui generously let theme close and answered their questions with a gentleman¡¯s face. The two girls were smashed, and they affectionately pet Cheer-Up for a few minutes before they looked up and saw Zhang Siyi standing on the side.

    ¡°Hey, are you raising this dog together?¡±

    ¡°Hey, are you guys gay?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°...¡± (=_=)

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    It was hard to get rid of those two girls. This reurring topic makes Zhang Siyi feel frustrated. ¡°Why do people always think we are a couple? Ah! Not just my ex-girlfriend, but my boss yed this joke too! Are we trying to be gay? Do you have a gay temperament, or do I?¡±

    Continuing their walk with Cheer-Up Fu Xinhui dered: ¡°Definitely not me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

 Chapter 45: Photography

    <h4>Chapter 45: Photography</h4>

    _________________________

    With enthusiasm, Zhang Siyi specifically carried his camera and tripod to thepany in order to take photos during lunch break. He was determined to win the prize money. He walked around thepany, fiddled with the aperture and exposure, and took pictures of people all around. There are many that came to Zhang Siyi and posed for the camera. Happyughter can constantly be heard.

    Zhang Siyi took a few photos of several female colleagues. After they took them, they looked and said: ¡°Wow, the SLR is not the same as a point-and-shoot-camera!¡±

    Bi Lele also said: ¡°Hey, with this level, I don¡¯t even need to use photo editing software afterwards!¡±

    Du Rui said with emotion: ¡°I feel that the bonus of this photo contest is already in the bag of Four.¡±

    Even a married male colleague said that Zhang Siyi¡¯s level is better than the professional photographer he invited when he got married.

    Praised by everyone, Zhang Siyi was feeling embarrassed. Scratching his head, hemented: ¡°You are too kind. I¡¯m still far away from a professional.¡±

    Ji Feiyu said: ¡°Now, many amateur photographers act as professional photographers in the wedding industry to make money on the side!¡±

    Everyone was listening. With the way the wages of the construction industry were declining, Zhu Honghzhen looked at Zhang Siyi enviously: ¡°If you lose your job one day you don¡¯t have to worry about food. You can open a studio and take wedding photos!¡±

    Zhang Siyiughed: ¡°Don¡¯t curse me, I have a true love for architecture!¡±

    The Chief who happened to be passing by heard Zhang Siyi say this sentence. He looked at him more and looked around and asked Gu: ¡°This young man is very energetic. Is he the new recruit this year?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Well, it¡¯s only been half a year.¡±

    Chief: ¡°Howe I didn¡¯t see what project he was involved in?¡±

    Generally,rge scale projects are handled by the main designers and reporting director. Zhang Siyi is just a small patch and his name doesn¡¯t appear on the top of the projects. Gu Yu replied: ¡°He doesn¡¯t have a solid foundation yet. I¡¯ve been assigning him exercises and bit and pieces of projects.¡±

    Chief: ¡°I remember you always have a clear purpose for recruiting employees. What¡¯s so special about him?¡±

    Gu Yu smiled and said: ¡°Would you believe he has a gift for design?¡±

    The Chief sighed and shook his head: ¡°What is the use of design talents in this line of work? I have seen a lot of people who are unique when they are young, but the young are vulnerable to giving up. The ones that are uncertain in the beginning will continue to grow and in ten-twenty years they finally stand out. It¡¯s not a gift to design, but an experience that has umted over a long period of time. It¡¯s perseverance.¡±

    Gu Yu looked at Zhang Siyi¡¯s back and said: ¡°Yes, he is uncertain and has more to learn.¡±

    The Chief looked at Gu Xiao with a face, and said, ¡°It should be a greatfort for an old man to have a son like you.¡±

    After chatting with Gu Yu, with a coffee cup in hand, he walked over to see Zhang Siyi: ¡°Come, let me see the photographs you have taken.¡±

    When the crowd saw that the Chief hade, they stepped aside and dared notugh again.

    ttered, Zhang Siyi quickly scrolled to the beginning of the photo index to show the Chief. He nodded with satisfaction: ¡°Good shots. But also take photos of people at work to reflect the working atmosphere of Borderless.¡± Now that he got permission from the chief to walk around, Zhang Siyi felt ted. He roamed around thepany not just during lunch, but afterwards as well.

    There were several people sitting around arge table to discuss a n and one older designer was assisting a younger designer.... He took a photo through the ss.

    In another area, there was a petite girl from thendscape department. She upied a huge square table. The table was covered with markers. She was concentrating deeply on her drawing. Even when Zhang Siyi was near her to take a photo, she didn¡¯t hear him.

    Looking at the scenes that was captured by oneself in a square camera screen, everyone was so engaged in work, that Zhang Siyi was touched in his heart.

    Later, he went around the data reading area and nned to take a few bookshelf photos. When he was abroad, he found that it was easy to take pictures in the library, and it made people feel the urge to actively forge ahead.

    Thiste in the day, most people are in the office area working at their desks. As a result, the reading room is extraordinarily quiet.

    The light was diffuse and very good for pictures. Zhang Siyi put the tripod aside and walked over the camera to find the angle, but suddenly bumped into Gu Yu who stood in front of the bookshelf looking for information.

    Shining through the window, the diffuse winter light illuminated half of his shoulder and along his face creating a golden outline of Gu Yu. He held a few 16-size ¡°structure¡± in his hands. He was engrossed in his reading that he too did not find Zhang Siyi¡¯s approach.

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart jumped excitedly. He quickly lifted the camera and pointed it at his silhouette and with a soft ¡°click¡±, he took a picture.

    Gu Yu heard a sound and suddenly turned his head. In panic, Zhang Siyi put his camera down out of view very fast. ¡°You are here.¡±

    ¡°Still taking pictures?¡± Gu Yu closed the book. It seems he has found what he wanted and put all the rest of the books back on the bookshelf. He walked over: ¡°Is the office building design finished? Don¡¯t dy your regr assignments.¡±

    Given that Zhang Siyi got permission to photograph for the day from the Chief he would normally want to refute Gu Yu request, but now he was obedient. He quietly answered: ¡°Well, I¡¯m almost finished taking photos. I¡¯ll be able to finish the drawing today.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Let me know when you are finish drawing as soon as possible. I will give you a new job.¡±

    Zhang Siyi nodded: ¡°Well, I know.¡±

    Gu Yu stared at him for a few seconds then left.

    Zhang Siyi meandered slowly back to his desk while looking through his photos that had just been taken. He must have been bewildered by Gu Xiao¡¯s beauty to have behaved so obediently. Sitting at his desk, Zhang Siyi finished theyout with the fastest speed. Now that he has practiced many times, he can draw them effortlessly and Gu Yu rarely finds faults.

    After finishing, he went to Gu Yu¡¯s office. He was working on detailed design picture for the ¡°structure¡± that he was researching back in the library area. Zhang Siyi nced at it and only felt dazzled and amazed. He was curious and asked: ¡°What is this?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°A group of business centers that I have been working on recently. They asked me to help them design the dome structure for it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi said strangely: ¡°Isn¡¯t this supposed to be considered by structural professionals?¡±

    Gu Yu put down the pencil and took over the taskpleted by Zhang Siyi. He casually said: ¡°The architects are not contradictory when considering the structural problems. If you can have a structural concept when designing, the overall controbility will be stronger, and it will prevent problems. After construction, if there was a disjointed problem, the architect who did not consider the structural problem was the big problem.¡± After he finished, he bowed his head and helped him look at the picture.

    Zhang Siyi suddenly, deep in his heart, he felt a kind of inexplicable pressure. Proper stimtion and stress can make people progress, but once the stimtion is toorge, fear takes over and impedes forward progress. For now, in the face of Gu Yu¡¯s power and omnipotence, Zhang Siyi had a sense of frustration for the first time. He felt that no matter how hard he tried, he could not be better than this person. It¡¯s hard to be an architect.

    In the evening, Zhang Siyi returned home and sorted out the photos taken that day and made a video clip. He has three submissions to fill, so he has two extra shots to pick out. Between the girl in thendscape department and Gu Yu in the library.... He was hesitant. His mouse slipped and Gu Yu imaged appeared full screen. Motionless, Zhang Siyi stared at it for a long time.

    To be honest, if you ignore the other person¡¯s not so good personality, Gu Yu is perfect.

    A gleaming resume, strong professionalism, handsome appearance, the means to the top.... No wonder so many people like him.

    He also remembered the scene from Christmas outside of KTV. He discretely guessed that she could grasp the heart of the god Gu Yu. The sweet and petite girl should be very capable.

    Zhang Siyi gently clicked the mouse, and finally chose Gu Yu.

    Hey, perfect people and perfect people together to form a perfect life, imperfect people can only be with unhappy people and keep dogs.

    Outside the door came the sound of Fu Xinhui reprimanded Cheer-up. It seemed the dog had peed everywhere. ¡°Zhang Siyi! Come out and give me a hand!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Time hurriedly passed by and the end of January was near. It¡¯s time for New Years and thepany¡¯s employees have no intention of focusing on their work. Although the annual meeting will be celebratedte, on February 18th, reservations for transportation for the office staff have long been arranged. The location for the meeting was set at arge hotel in the city center.

    In addition to the photographypetition, there are other small events in the conference, which is like a school literary festival held at a school, where students are required to organize their own events. Of course, the prizes are quite rich here, ranging from one or two hundred supermarket shopping cards, and more than five hundred thousand cash red packets, and ultimately the final raffle. The crowd has been asked in advance about the raffle prizes, which are said to include mobile phones, iPad, andputers.

    Colleagues were excited and eager to try, but Zhang Siyi was a little depressed, and felt that thepany¡¯s lottery prizes were not very creative as he already owned everything.

    If he participated in some activities, he could get a few small red packets and it could add up to a lot of extra ie. However, there are a hundred individuals from all over thepany so he may not be able to get it. Thinking about it, Zhang Siyi felt energized again. He wore sweatpants and sneakers suitable for a variety of events.

    At 11 o¡¯clock in the morning, he arrived at the hotel. Zhang Siyi saw the signboard of the ¡°Borderless Company Annual Meeting¡± in the hotel lobby. Looking up to the side, there were other architectural designpanies holding the annual meeting here on the same day!

    Borderless conference was held in the Baihua Hall on the second floor, and another designpany headed by English letters was in the Yellow Crane Hall on the side. The scene was very lively.

 Chapter 46: Annual Meeting

    <h4>Chapter 46: Annual Meeting</h4>

    ______________________________

    All around, there were many people milling about socializing. Even though many don¡¯t know each other, seeing peers in the same industry with kind faces is reassuring. They have the same sympathetic views and the extroverts in the groups are already chatting together.

    Zhang Siyi noticed Gu Yu was already at the meeting, chatting with a strange young man. The young man was about 30 or so. He was taller than Gu Yu, wearing a three-piece suit and dressed very formally. Gu Yu is also dressed formally in a ck suit and ck leather shoes. He looks quite elegant.

    Looking at the two men, Zhang Siyi suddenly felt that his dress seemed a little out of ce. He nced down at his clothes; sweat pants and sneakers...... Damn it, who told me I could wear anything!?

    Depressed, Zhang Siyi looked around in a circle, and saw that other colleagues were also dressed casually. He sighed in relief and walk towards them. There were a few of the girls in A Group togetherughing back and forth. He didn¡¯t know what they were talking about.

    Zhang Siyi waved his hand to several people and called the name of one of his acquaintances. Everyone was startled and they turned toward Zhang Siyi to look over at him. One by one he sees mixed expressions both of sympathy and of funny ones.

    By the looks of everyone¡¯s expression, they do not appear to be teasing him, but in his heart, Zhang Siyi¡¯s feels an ominous premonition. The feeling of being kept in the dark makes him particrly unhappy: ¡°What are you doing?¡±

    Following the people¡¯s line of sight, he turned his face in the direction that everyone else was looking at. In front of the banquet the hall he saw a projection screen that was looping through the works submitted by the staff for the photo contest and the picture was just cut to a very serious nt photo. There was nothing suspicious.

    Zhang Siyi became more agitated: ¡°Is there something you are not telling me?¡±

    Many in the crowd smirked and they didn¡¯t deny it. Covering thier mouths¡¯ to stifle thierughs, one of the girls couldn¡¯t bear it any longer and said: ¡°You will know when you see it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi turned to the screen without a word and waited for more than a minute. A picture suddenly shed on the screen and Zhang Siyi waspletely bbergasted. A group of people around them followed with a burst ofughter: ¡°HA-HA-HA-HA-HA!¡±

    Zhang Siyi stared at the slide with a stunned look. He felt like he was struck by lightning. There on the big screen he saw it: Himself.

    ¡ª Fucking mouth open! Drooling! Kinked neck! Looks like a zombie!

    ¡ª What a fool! So stupid! In the photo, there is a group of people who are looking at him in deep sleep!

    Zhang Siyi quickly remembered dozing off at the seminar a few weeks ago, and it was no wonder that when he woke up everyone looked at him with a sympathetic eye!

    No wonder a photographypetition was made into a public event and everyone looked at him withpassion! ¡°Who took this!!¡± Infuriated, Zhang Siyi is going to explode!

    Bending over inughter many can¡¯t contain themselves. The girl giggled and said: ¡°G, Director Gu took it. Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha....¡±

    With a killing intent, Zhang wanted to strangle Gu Yu. He scanned to room and saw him standing with the young man from before. Covering their mouths inughter, Gu Yu and the man were also watching the screen. The young man seems to have asked Gu Yu who the person was in the photo. Gu Yu looked quickly around the room and his gazended on Zhang Siyi. He pointed at him then winked.

    Aah! aah! aah! aah! aah!...... It¡¯s too much!!!

    More than that, almost everyone who has yet to be seated in the hall is watching the slides, including thepany next door. Peering into the hall to see the fun, they also saw many serious photos in a row and then Zhang Siyi¡¯s funny one.... Everyoneughed like crazy.

    Being bullied and teased, Zhang Siyi felt humiliated. What¡¯s more, now he realizes the reason for Gu Yu promoting and encouraging participation in the photo content. Uneptable!

    With the appearance of the next photo, the room quieted down dramatically. In stark contrast, the image of Gu Yu, basked in soft sunlight, reading a book, is projected on the big screen. The charming portrait of him in the library clearly shows both his exquisite handsome face and his serious temperament. The visual impact is palpable.

    Many gasps of breath from female audience members could be heard throughout the banquet hall; then quiet murmurs. After seeing the picture of a perfect specimen, many girls can¡¯t help but excitedly ask about the man in the photo. They want to be embraced by him. Who is he? What does he do? Is he married? Does he have a girlfriend? This just makes Zhang Siyi more irritated.

    Since Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t show the photograph to anyone before handing it in, many were curious to know who took the photo. From across the room, only Gu Yu looked at Zhang Siyi with a thoughtful smile on his face.

    The rest of the people are not stupid and can deduce the answer for themselves. Based on Gu Yu dress, and the fact Zhang Siyi had a SLR at work taking pictures, it wasn¡¯t hard to guess.

    Hey, these two people took photographs of one another without each of them knowing! Zhang Siyi has handed in the perfect homework; a picture-perfect portrait of Gu Yu. In contrast, Gu Yu unexpectedly entered a ridiculous and funny photo of Zhang Siyi. In such a happy and festive asion, even though Zhang Siyi was so unlucky, no one was going to gofort him.

    On the same day, at the same ce, in almost the same moment, Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu became famous together. It¡¯s just that the two of them are so famous that they don¡¯t get it!

    At the time of the meal, everyone wasughing and looking for a ce to sit down. The banquet hall was set up with more than a dozen tables with open seating. Only the head table at the front was reserved for the top leaders of the firm.

    Instinctually, everyone segregated themselves into their usual work departments and groups. The architectural design department of about 30 peopleprising of both Group A and B upied three tables.

    Gu Yu waved goodbye to the young man and walked over and headed straight towards Zhang Siyi. Staring at the two of them with curious looks, the people at the table are silenced.

    Seeing Gu Yu walking over, Zhang Siyi is so angry he could kill him. How dare hee over!

    Gu Yu not only dared toe, but he also smiled at Zhu Hongzhen signaling him to move a position to the side and then sat directly next to Zhang Siyi.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Why are you sitting next to me!? What on Earth do you want!?

    But he did not say anything. With the state of his emotions being yed with, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t have the temper at the moment to face Gu Yu. He gritted his teeth, and swallowed blood, then turned his back to Gu Yu and checked his social media pages instead.

    Tenderly, Gu Yu smiled and nced at him hesitantly with a little bit of helplessness, like watching an awkward child.

    Zhang Siyi is sideways and didn¡¯t see, but everyone else at the table saw. Especially the female colleagues whose eyes turned dark.

    The start of the annual meetings signaled the start of thepany¡¯s performance review. To host the event, two select employees arrived on the stage and started with a routine introductory speech. On the side, the projector is still cycling through the photographs. Every time Zhang Siyi¡¯s photo pops-up,ughs can be heard in the banquet hall. The leader couldn¡¯t let it go and pointed to the photo and said: ¡°Young people are very energetic. I hope that everyone will work together to progress and create a brilliant future in theing year.¡±

    After the apuse, the Directors of each team came up on stage to award this year¡¯s outstanding staff awards. Gu Yu and Tong Heyi got up and walked to the stage. Zhang Siyi realized why Gu Yu was dressed so formally today and even Child Labor wore a beautiful dress. Both looked very professional.

    There are five awards to be given out in the architectural design group. Three of them were awarded to Ji Feiyu, Yuan Zhicheng and Du Rui and the bonus for being an outstanding employee was 5,000 yuan. Zhang Siyi felt envious, however, although he has been working hard, he knows that he is still far worse than these people. When Gu Yu got up and presented them with awards, the photo of him taken by Zhang Siyi was disyed on the side. As if to confirm that the handsome person in the photograph was real, everyone in the audience stared at Gu Yu.

    The luncheon officially began when the awards were over.

    When Gu Yu came back to the table, everyone raised their sses and gave him a toast. He saw Zhang Siyi sitting on the side despondent. He reached out to his waist and gently patted it. He leaned in and whispered: ¡°You¡¯ve only been in thepany for half a year, so you were ineligible to receive an award. Continue to work hard next year.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Why exin this to me?

    I don¡¯t care so much....

    Ok, actually....

    I care a little bit....

    Gu Yu seemed to have read his inner thoughts. Zhang Siyi wasforted by his intimate exnation. But the photo thing hasn¡¯t been ounted for and he doesn¡¯t want to forgive Gu Yu so easily. He wants revenge!

    Throughout the luncheon, every ten minutes, the host on stage announced a new event and called on everyone toe up to the stage. Not caring about his public image anymore now that the stupid photo of him was seen by everyone, Zhang Siyi wearing sportswear participated in several events. He earned himself a bunch of red bonus envelopes and his mood started to improve.

    In the second half of the banquet, the host announced an event to get a balloon from your opponents. The game was yed in pairs and the object was to keep your balloon intact. ¡°Thest person with a balloon is the winner and can get a bonus of 500 yuan! Wee everyone to participate... There are already three boys on the stage!¡± The host spoke through the mic on the stage enthusiastically.

    Zhang Siyi thought, this is a disguised melee game ¨C he nced at Gu Yu, who was drinking and eating, and squinted his eyes. ¡°Gu, everyone is so happy today, how can you just sit and eat?¡± Come on, let¡¯s go y together!¡± Zhang Siyi stood up and took the initiative to pull Gu Yu¡¯s arm.

    Gu Yu was stunned by Zhang Siyi¡¯s initiative and unpredictable behavior. The crowd pped and cheered, ¡°All right, all right! Boss,e on!¡±

    Gu Yu smiled and shook his head, and he was very helpless, but he did not refuse. He reached out to the stage and gestured to Zhang Siyi to lead the way. The two went to the stage, and the audience was in a state of utter shock. It seems that they did not expect Gu Yu to get up. Even the host was surprised: ¡°Gu is also on the stage. As one of Borderless Directors, everyone shouldn¡¯t be so lenient, right?¡±

    Zhang Siyi smiled and said: ¡°Show no mercy!¡±

 Chapter 47: Games

    <h4>Chapter 47: Games</h4>

    _____________________

    Wearing a suit, Gu Yu¡¯s clothes weren¡¯t very convenient for activities. When he approached the stage, he simply took his jacket off and gave it to the host, revealing a white shirt underneath. The edge of the shirt was loosely tucked in the waistband of his pants emphsizing his well proportioned physique and exuding sex appeal.

    Eight pairs of people, standing opposite one another line up on stage and help tie each other¡¯s balloons. Although Zhang Siyi is younger than Gu Yu, he is only two or three centimeters shorter than Gu Yu. The two are simr in size and seem to be evenly matched.

    The hostess gave the order and the game started!

    Standing up straight, Gu Yu had his hand behind protecting his own balloon stiffly. He wasn¡¯t sure if there was a certain etiquett to maintain. His clothing was restricting his movements a little. In contrast, Zhang Siyi waspletely rxed and focused on beating Gu Yu. With shuffleing feet, slightly bent knees, and hands out he was ready to y the game. Staring at Gu Yu he smirked and pounced!

    In panic, Gu Yu defensively took a step back to avoid him.

    Zhang Siyi extended his left arm out and made a grab for Gu Yu¡¯s balloon. Gu Yu side stepped to the right ¨C a miss! Zhang Siyi immediately took a swipe with his right arm, but Gu Yu avoids it to the left ¨C missed again !

    Circling around, Zhang Siyi took a bunch of swipes at Gu Yu and fails. Shit! Don¡¯t hide if you have the skills!

    Gradually, Gu Yu adapts to the rhythm of the game. He is paying close attention to every action Zhang Siyi takes in a defensive manner, never attacking. After the initial panic passed, Gu Yu is more rxed and finally has his arms out in a yful manner.

    Although there are many groups of people on the stage, almost everyone¡¯s eyes are focused on Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi. Like running around after a chicken, the two of their interactions make the audienceugh like crazy.

    Staring at Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi is gasping for breath. Since his current chaseing method of attack isn¡¯t working, he decided a quick explosive power move might be better. Like a cat getting ready to pounce on a mouse, Zhang Siyi paused for a moment and gathered his momentum in order to strike at Gu Yu.

    Watching Zhang Siyi carefully, this time Gu Yu didn¡¯t evade him. He let Zhang Siyi rush at him and throw his weight onto himself. Gu Yu takes this opportunity to reach around Zhang Siyi waist. All the women stared at the stage not able to express their surging mood.

    In the game on stage, Zhang Siyi has no idea what his movements look like to the audience. Gu Yu was embracing Zhang Siyi. Wanting to make his next move, Zhang Siyi is only focused on the game and reaches out. He sees Gu Yu stepping forward to meet him and suddenly feels his waist being touched.

    Zhang Siyi was so frightened that he quickly backed away from Gu Yu¡¯s grasp looking alert. This game looks simple, but in fact, it is not easy! Ah!

    Since the balloon is tied to backside of the waist, the game yer wouldn¡¯t be stupid enough to turn around. Zhang Siyi has tried both reaching around and moving around to catch the balloon, but neither have worked!

    As Zhang Siyi originally thought, if you want to break the opponent¡¯s balloon, it is necessary to get very close in melee range, but once you are that close, the balloon behind you is also at risk. Ah! What to do!? When Zhang Siyi hesitated, Gu Yu grinned micheviously and motioned his finger at him, as if to say,e here again.

    In the face of such obvious provocative actions, Zhang Siyi was excited all over, from the tips of his toes to the ends of his hair. Gu Yu gestures riled up Zhang Siyipetitive spirit even more. He was in sweatpants and Gu Yu was in a suit. He had to win!

    In the next minute, everyone in the audience watched the most passionate interactive scene of the year!

    With renewed vigor, Zhang Siyi pounced on Gu Yu over and over again. Each time they met, Gu Yu embraced him and reached around Zhang Siyi¡¯s waist for his balloon. Every time, Zhang Siyi would flee Gu Yu¡¯s arms by taking a step back to order to protect his own balloon.

    Everyone is watching the two of them on stage. Feeling flushed, some thin-skinned girls cannot look any longer and some male colleagues are holding their stomachsughing. There were others who were quietly watching and chatting...

    ¡°...... Oh My God! Why does it look like those two should be ashamed!¡±

    ¡°You are not alone! It feels like Gu Yu is deliberately flirting with Auntie Four!¡±

    ¡°Gu Yu is too much!. If I go on stage and be hugged like that, then I¡¯ll be stupid!¡±

    ¡°Yeah, it¡¯s hard to imagine how much heart load is needed to be a girlfriend of Gu Yu!¡±

    ¡°Oh! They embraced again!¡±

    ¡°Whoo-hoo! They hugged in the same ce!¡±

    Pressing onto Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi scrambled to protect his balloon. This time the crowd gasped, and saw them falling to the stage.

    On this asion in this critical moment, Gu Yu reached out with one hand to catch Zhang Siyi¡¯s waist and hold him tightly in his arm while bracing himself for impact with the other. In the confusion, Zhang Siyi held his breath. ¡°Pop¡± The balloon burst from the pressure of their weight.

    Zhang Siyi nervously closed his eyes and fell, expecting pain. Instead, he heavily hit something soft and warm. When he slowly opened his eyes, another set of eyes were staring back. On top, he was tightly affixed together with Gu Yu.

    Boom, Boom, Boom....... I don¡¯t know whose heartbeat it is.......

    Gu Yu gasped, his hand was still on Zhang Siyi waist, but did not catch the balloon on him. With a gentle smile he quietly asked: ¡°Are you hurt?¡±

    In an instant, Zhang Siyi brain is swept away by the frenzy. Bang, bang, bang, his heart is about to jump out of his chest!

    ... Wha... why?...

    He felt hot, dizzy, and feverish. His feelings and emotions of more than 20 years werepletely subverted by Gu Yu¡¯s smile, Gu Yu¡¯s eyes, and Gu Yu¡¯s voice.

    ...Why didn¡¯t you just let me fall? Why didn¡¯t you grab my balloon?...

    Until the host announced that Zhang Siyi won this game, Zhang Siyi was motionless. When hearing the status of the game, Zhang Siyi hurriedly got up from Gu Yu and instinctively reached out to help pull him up. Somewhat in a daze, Zhang Siyi hasn¡¯t recovered from this strange and intense mood.

    A few rotten girls in the audience have just witnessed the scene and wiped the nosebleed quietly back. They feel that the amount of blood stored for a year has been emptied. ¡°Too, too foul ...¡±

    Although defeated, under the stage, apuse and screams issued forth while Gu Yu took his suit jacket that was hanging on the arm of the hostess. He freely waving to the crowd then gently brushed the ash and dust from his body while stepping down to walk back to the table.

    Zhang Siyi went on to participate in the next round but he couldn¡¯t focus. He was a little out of shape and soon failed. Fusterated, he stepped of the stage.

    Gu Yu was eating a bowl of chicken soup that had just been served on the table. Drinking the broth in his mouth, he saw Zhang Siyiing back. Looking up, he followed his movements with fervid eyes.

    When Zhang Siyi saw Gu Yu looking at him, his heart jumped fiercely. He turned away, afraid to look at him... When it¡¯s over, what spell did the great devil really put on him?

    (o////o)

    After that, four or five small activities were carried out in session. It continued until 2 pm, but Zhang Siyi did not participate in any more events. He was exhausted after the balloon catch event. He could only sit still at the table and follow the group. Eat and drink.

    In the final lottery, he also failed to win the prize. Only Lu Qiao was lucky enough to win a tablet from their department. However, at the conclusion of the sessful meeting, all members regardless if they participated in activities or not, were given a 200 yuan New Year¡¯s red bonus envelope. With a chorus of cheers, the banquet came to a close.

    The time is still fairly early. Since its unusual for all of them to have free time to spend together, they intend to find a lively ce to socialize. A few hours of slides were disyed and Zhang Siyi became the mascot of the entire architectural design department. Of course, everyone did not forget to call him. Zhang Si Yi is a y-loving character, so naturally he would follow.

    When a group of people just left the hotel, Zhang Siyi saw the young man who was chatting with Gu Yu before the annual meeting. He was also with his colleagues, standing on the side of the road waiting for the bus, two groups of people met, and the young man took the initiative to wave at them.

    Before, Zhang Siyi was far away so he did not see the other man¡¯s looks. Closer now, he could see the handsome manughing a little evilugh. Ji Feiyu recognized him and headed over to greet him: ¡°Hey!¡±

    Smiling, Ji Feiyu introduced him to his group from Borderless: ¡°This is Liang Xuiying. He originally worked together with Gu Yu at the Design Institute. I knew him for two months. He works at the GA firm now and is an excellent architect. They were also having their annual meeting next door to ours.¡±

    Liang Xuiying came over and asked: ¡°What about Gu Yu?¡±

    Ji Feiyu: ¡°I don¡¯t know, maybe something. He hasn¡¯te down yet.¡±

    Liang Xuiying: ¡°You aren¡¯t going to call him?¡±

    Ji Feiyu scratched his head: ¡°He has never been involved in this kind of activity...¡±

    Liang Xuiying crossed his arms and said: ¡°You should call him. He is only cold hearted on the surface. If you invite him more, he will mingle with you.¡± Looking around at the group of people he spotted Zhang Siyi: ¡°Hey, you are the one like a silly-little-child asleep in the photo.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Liang Xuiying: ¡°Who made you look like that?¡±

    When everyone saw Liang Xuiying, there was no restraint. They allughed: ¡°Director Gu took it!¡±

    Liang Xuiying opened his eyes wide andughed out loud: ¡°I should have known!¡±

    What do you mean, ¡°How could you have known?¡± The crowd was curious.

    Liang Xuiying covered his mouth: ¡°I know him as an undergraduate ssmate. He liked to y pranks on his roomates. A real ck belly. I didn¡¯t know him so much at work. At that time he wasn¡¯t so childish and only asionally yed a trick.

    Crowd: ¡°...¡± What!? Boss is that kind of person!?

    Several female colleagues looked at each other and read simr excitement in each other¡¯s eyes ¨C why is the bad Gu Yu more attractive?

    As Liang Xuiying was talking about Gu Yu history, he and Tong Heyi and several leaders of thendscape nning team came out of the hotel.

    Liang Xuiying hurried: ¡°Hey, he ising. Go invite him. He is very fun.¡±

    Everyone: ¡°...¡± Is it fun to y in the end? Everyone¡¯s appetite was hoisted by Liang Xuiying.

    With a hand Bi Lele pushed Zhang Siyi: ¡°Four! Fast, call him!¡±

    Deliberately hiding behind the fat Zhu Hongzhen to weaken his sense of existence, Zhang Siyi did not dare see Gu Yu. He didn¡¯t expect to be picked out by Bi Lele. He hurriedly replied: ¡°Why me!?¡±

    Everyone nkly looked at Zhang Siyi. Just who was holding onto who on the stage and you aren¡¯t ashamed? Now, looking at the wholepany, you obviously have the best rtionship with Gu Yu so you do it! Zhang Siyi was pushed by the group and he reluctantly walked in the direction of Gu Yu.

    Gu Yu sensed Zhang Siyi¡¯s approach and looked straight at him. The two men¡¯s sight touched in the air. Again, Zhang Siyi felt that he was hit by a faint current sending electricity flowing from the tips to his toes to the ends of his hair. He felt himself getting hot.

    ...... Shit! The evil spell has manifested again!

 Chapter 48: Singing

    <h4>Chapter 48: Singing</h4>

    ____________________

    ¡°Gu Yu, we¡¯re going to KTV to sing, do you want toe?¡±

    Reticent, Zhang Siyi walked up to Gu Yu, the heart fluttering.¡± Watching Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu had no expression on his face. His voice is very soft: ¡°I still have something else to do today. Next time.¡±

    Breathing a sigh of relief, Zhang Siyi¡¯s mind rxed. However, he felt an emptiness in his heart, like when an expectation hasn¡¯t been met. Turning back, he waved to the crowd: ¡°He¡¯s noting.¡±

    Everyone had a look of ¡°I thought so¡±. Even Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t motivate Gu Yu to move, let alone the regr staff. Today¡¯s balloon game was probably a one-time urrence for the Boss to mingle with the staff; a special case.

    ¡°Well, then ording to the old n, let¡¯s go y by ourselves!¡± Ji Feiyu said, and he waved down a taxi.

    ¡°Ji Feiyu, wait a minute,¡± Liang Xuiying said on the side, suddenly interrupting him. He gestured to the group of people who was with him, ¡°Everyone here is about the same age. We are all in the same industry and are mostly single. This is a good opportunity to meet people.¡±

    Everyone chuckled at the words of Liang Xuiying. indeed, as he said, the construction industry is usually very busy and the timemitment isn¡¯t understood byymen, so most young people are single. Although young people have a heart for courtship, they are helpless because they have no social time. With such a good opportunity for ¡°friendship¡± everyone readily answered with a resounding yes! Cheerful, the two groups of people, now more than twenty, go together to the subway, ready to go sing raucous songs at KTV.

    On the spur of the moment, Zhang Siyi also sang. He grabbed the microphone and belted out ¡°One Love¡± by the English group Blue Band. Even while wearing sweatpants and sneakers, he was quite charming. He was well able to keep up with the fast pace when he sang in fluent English.

    When Zhang Siyi finished singing the song, there were many girls that came over to chat and asked him where he studied English and how to best practice it. Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart is so sorrowful. He finally felt that he saved face which he had just lost, at the annual meeting. This is the image he wants. Although this is also somewhat contrived. Zhang Siyi spoken English isn¡¯t as good as when he sang because this English song were specifically practiced by him in order to impress others.

    After singing a round, Zhang Siyi received a call from Fu Xinhui and asked him when the annual meeting would end so they could go out to dinner. Zhang Siyi: ¡°The annual meeting is over, my colleagues and I are singing in KTV, not sure when I¡¯ll be back to eat.¡±

    Fu Xinhui gave a deste ¡°Oh¡±. Comparing his lively atmosphere to Fu Xinhui alone and pitiful one, Zhang Siyi felt a little guilty and ufortable.

    He thought: This is not a seriouspany party, could Fu Xinhui join them? But Zhang Siyi did not tell his friend and replied on the telephone: ¡°I will call youter¡± then he went to ask Ji Feiyu.

    Bi Lele happened to be on the side and curiously said: ¡°Is that your friend who picked you up that time you were drunk?¡±

    Zhang Siyi nodded: ¡°It¡¯s him.¡±

    Bi Lele and Xu Jia were surprised: ¡°Wow, handsome brother Ah! Invite him toe over!¡± Several female colleagues who haven¡¯t seen Fu Xinhui have inquired a few words and are also excited.

    Zhang Siyi hurried out to give Fu Xinhui a call back and asked him toe over.

    Fu Xinhui said: ¡°But it¡¯s all your colleagues.¡±

    Zhang Siyi hurriedly said: ¡°Its not just ourpany. It¡¯s very casual and there are several girls in thepany who have seen you and they have expressed a warm wee. Come on don¡¯t be a baby.¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°... Fuck, wait.¡±

    ¡°Ha-ha! Sing first, dinnerter!¡± Zhang Siyi hung up the phone. Settling his friend, he feels relieved. Just then, the phone vibrated again. Zhang Si Yi looked at his phone and unexpectedly it is Gu Yu calling!

    ¡°...... Hello?¡± Zhang Si Yi tentatively answered his phone. Why is Gu Yu calling him now?

    ¡°I have finished the matter, where are you? I aming.¡± Gu Yu replied.

    Zhang Siyi ¡°......¡±

    Suddenly he starts to worry. Gu Yu doesn¡¯t know they are together with GA people, and he will meet with Fu Xinhui for a while. What will he think? Zhang Siyi scolded himself: ¡°Stupid, you think too much! What is there to misunderstand?¡± He simply reported the address, pocketed his phone, rubbed his hot face and returned to the room. Fortunately, the light in the room was dark, and everyone couldn¡¯t see any abnormalities. Zhang Siyi announced to everyone: ¡°Boss Gu ising.¡±

    Some of Zhang Siyi¡¯s co-workers who are drinking, lost their chins: ¡°What! How?¡±

    Zhang Si Yi scratching his head: ¡°I don¡¯t know, he said things are done.¡±

    Bi Lele stared at Zhang Siyi and asked, ¡°He called you?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Yes...¡±

    Only Liang Xuiying smiled: ¡°We are having so much fun, how can he note? Maybe he is worried that I will take his people away from Borderless, so he ising over to monitor us.¡±

    Ji Feiyu said strangely: ¡°How does he know that we are together?¡±

    Liang Xuiying shook his mobile phone: ¡°I took a small video and posted it to a certain circle of friends on WeChat.¡± He pointed to Zhang Siyi. ¡°There is someone here who sings so nicely. It is such a pity not toe to the scene.¡±

    Everyone: ¡°...¡± Suddenly feeling something is very insidious, what is going on?

    Gu Yu has not arrived yet. Zhang Siyi fidgeted for a while. When he thought of Gu Yu his heart pounded in his chest and the hot feeling washed over him again. He never had this problem when he was with his girlfriend!

    Fu Xinhui was first to arrive. Zhang Siyi went to the hall to pick him up. Normally, on the weekdays he is home wearing loose casual clothes, but today Fu Xinhui is wearing stylish cloths worn to impress. Zhang Siyi looked again at his sweatpants he was wearing and shouted: ¡°I am going. You are too handsome.¡±

    Fu Xinhuiughed: ¡°You have so many colleagues here. I can¡¯t alwayse out sloppy.¡±

    He led Fu Xinhui into the room and introduced: ¡°My buddy, Fu Xinhui. He also studied architecture. Everyone say hello.¡±

    Bi Lele smiled and patted the empty space next to her: ¡°Hey, handsome guye here to sit!¡±

    Fu Xinhui was used to this kind of social scene. He was not nervous at all and sat down in a manner-of-fact and talked freely with several people. On one hand, Zhang Siyi feels happy, but one the other, he is feeling unsettled. When Gu Yues, is the atmosphere going to change for the worse?

    The door of the room was pushed open and the figure of Gu Yu appeared. Liang Xuiying stood up and signaled to him. Smiling he said: ¡°Come on!¡±

    The crowd also enthusiastically chanted ¡°Gu, Gu¡±. Now it¡¯s not the office and people¡¯s nerves have calmed down. With the help of alcohol, people are no longer feeling retrained. The warm atmosphere of the scene suddenly reached its climax.

    Gu Yu smiled and waved at everyone, and like the seat at noon during the annual meeting, he walked straight towards Zhang Siyi to sit down. His colleagues are expecting this and take the initiative to make a space for Gu Yu to sit next to Zhang Siyi.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu nced on the other side of Zhang Siyi and saw Fu Xinhui: ¡°Gee, is you?¡±

    Fu Xinhui nodded to Gu Yu: ¡°Gu always good.¡±

    He did not know the position of Gu Yu. He only has heard Zhang Siyi say ¡± Boss ¡°, so he thinks ¡°Gu¡± is alright.

    Gu Yu smiled and extended his arm across Zhang Si Yi to Fu Xinhui to shake hands. ¡°We have seen two or three times so called me Gu Yu on the line. I remember, Siyi mentioned you are not only roommates but also ssmates?¡±

    Fu Xinhui heard him say ¡°Siyi¡± and looked at Zhang Siyi strangely.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Don¡¯t look at me, I didn¡¯t hear anything!

    (=////=) Fu Xinhui looked back at Gu Yu: ¡°Yes, we studied in the UK together at university.¡±

    Gu Yu asked: ¡°Where are you working now?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Well, I¡¯m not looking for a job yet.¡±

    Gu Yu looked at him and said: ¡°Why not?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°I am not sure if I want to do architecture...¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°If you aren¡¯t sure then why did you study it?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°I just choose something.¡±

    Gu Yu nodded then said: ¡°Ah, your life is very casual it seems.¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°......¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°............¡± Hmm.... are you going to include me in your conversation or what? Also, why did that sound like awyer cross examining a witness?

    In fact, Gu Yu¡¯s tone was neither appreciated nor criticized, but only an objective conclusion.

    Fu Xinhui is not annoyed. He asks: ¡°Why are you doing architecture? I think Zhang Siyi often works overtime. It¡¯s not easy.¡±

    He thought Gu Yu would say something simr to Zhang Siyi ¡®money¡¯ reason. He did not expect the other person to smile and answer honestly: ¡°Son of the father.¡±

    Zhang Siyi erected his ears ¨C the son of the father? His father is also an architect?

    Gu Xiao paused, and added: ¡°Of course, there is a reason why you may not be able to understand, personal feelings.¡±

    Fu Xinhui frowned and waspletely silent.

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s thoughts are also floating in the clouds. What ¡°personal feelings¡±?

    But he didn¡¯t have time to ponder. After a few seconds, he was pulled back by Gu Yu¡¯s next move. Zhang Siyi felt his waist being patted followed by the side of his arm being pressed. Gu Yu leaned closer and his unique voice sounded in Zhang Siyi ear: ¡°Sing a song for me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi really thinks it¡¯s ¡®unique¡¯ because when he spoke to Fu Xinhui he spoke in a much different voice.

    But what do you mean by ¡°sing a song for me?¡± Angry, Zhang Siyi clenched his fists irritably. I¡¯m not singing to you!

    In the end, he got up to sing another English song. Probably because of nervousness, he didn¡¯t sing as well as before, but Gu Yu seemed to be very happy listening.

    After Zhang Siyi sang, the more he thought about it, the more he was depressed. He put the microphone in the hands of Gu Yu and said: ¡°I haven¡¯t heard you sing a song. Now it¡¯s your turn to sing!¡±

 Chapter 49: Reminder

    <h4>Chapter 49: Reminder</h4>

    ______________________

    Unlike the time when the annual meeting was in full swing, the lights in the KTV room are dim and the sound is loud. Around him, no one heard Zhang Siyi ask Gu Yu to sing a song, and thus he didn¡¯t get anybody¡¯s support and encouragement.

    In fact, KTV just provides a ce for everyone to gather and not necessarily to sing here. Even though there are twenty people from both architectural firms, there are only seven or eight people who actually sing songs. Most people just chat and listen on the side with their drinks. No one thought about having Gu Yu sing. It just so happened that Zhang Siyi was the first to ask.

    Gu Yu held the microphone in his slender fingers while fiddling with the switch on the top. Heughed: ¡°I will sing like you y the violin; just for the person you like...¡± He turned his head and looked directly at Zhang Siyi and teased: ¡°Are you sure you want to hear me sing?¡±

    ¡°......¡± go to hell!

    Forgetting his own words said to Gu Yu on the high-speed rail, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t think Gu Yu would remember and throw them back on him. Face red to the root of his neck, provoked, Zhang Siyi snatched the microphone from Gu Yu¡¯s hand, and he had an absurd feeling like he was just molested.

    Zhang Siyi thought: ¡°......Why can Gu Yu say this so seriously without jumping in his heart? His expressions don¡¯t change at all! Is he teasing me? But it¡¯s weird to tease a guy like that, doesn¡¯t he feel very embarrassed!?¡±

    Next to him, Gu Yu was leaning back on the soft cushions, trying to cover up hisughter, but it was quite obvious to Zhang Siyi that he wasughing at him because Gu Yu couldn¡¯t stop trembling.

    With a bang-ching-bang-ching, Zhang Siyi ground his teeth in anger. Although he felt Gu Yu¡¯s character is bad before, he at least was serious. Now, Zhang Siyipletely does not think so!

    Liang Xueying is right, Gu Yu, this person is a belly of bad water, wilting, bad!

    Forty minutes passed and everyone was chatting and rxing in a good atmosphere. A girl shyly asked if Boss was going to sing, but Gu Yu refused.

    With so many people, it was hard to organize a dinner so many people are gathering their things to leave. Although the party time wasn¡¯t long, the purpose of making new friends and contacts has been achieved. Many people have added social ounts and emails so if there is further interest, they can contact them privately.

    After the fun, Zhang Siyi took the initiative to ask Fu Xinhui if he had a good time in the afternoon and if he wanted to go out to eat. Fu Xinhui put his hands in his trouser pockets with a casual smile on his face: ¡°It was very good. Yourpany¡¯s sisters are very cheerful.¡±

    After hearing Fu Xinhui, Zhang Siyi felt relieved. Fu Xinhui had a good personality. He was modest and generous, and he was able to get along with everyone. He would be popr everywhere.

    It was a bit embarrassing to talk to Gu Yu at the beginning. Zhang Siyi said: ¡°Ignore what Gu Yu said. This person is ustomed to being the boss.¡±

    Fu Xinhui nced and smiled: ¡°I didn¡¯t think he preached.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°well, he didn¡¯t mean to say that your life is easy!¡±

    Fu Xinhui looked down at the road and sighed. He said: ¡°He is quite right. I am really ¡®very casual¡¯, born casually, grow up casually, study casually, and live casually...¡±

    Zhang Siyi thought that Fu Xinhui had to fall into the ruined state before, and he was anxious tofort him. Unexpectedly, Fu Xinhui suddenly raised his head and sighed. ¡°I can¡¯t do this anymore, I have to hurry and find what I want to do.¡± .¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Fu Xinhui said again: ¡°I didn¡¯t quite understand why you were so invested in your job before, but after today, I know why.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Why?¡±

    Fu Xinhui squinted for a moment and gestured and said: ¡°Your colleagues are very cohesive and together you form a team. The feeling of having someone always watching your back prevails and at the lead of this organization is Gu Yu. I found that his eyes were particrly firm and confident. He is the kind of person that knows what he wants.¡±

    Zhang Siyiughed and said: ¡°Is that how you see it?¡±

    Fu Xinhui gently frowned: ¡°You don¡¯t think so? When he talks to people, his voice is not heavy, he is still very calm, but what he says makes people feel very weighty and can easily give people a sense of oppression.¡±

    Zhang Siyi put away his smile and remembered the debate between Gu Yu and Tong Heyi two months ago. Indeed, as Fu Xinhui said, Gu Yu¡¯s tone is always calm, but so powerful.

    Because he was repeatedly being bullied, teased and manipted by Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi momentarily forgot how radiant the other person is. Now reminded, the advantages that Fu Xinhui reiterated about Gu Yu, magnified.

    ...... Well, if you think about the goodness of Gu Yu, the other person¡¯s bad character seems to be forgiven.

    Is this ¡°In the eye of the beholder¡±? (=_=)

    But Gu Yu is not a ¡°lover¡± ... (=////=)

    It¡¯s rare for Zhang Siyi to treat Fu Xinhui. Although he said he wanted to eat at Xiao Yang Sheng Jian, Zhang Siyi isn¡¯t sure if he really wants to or he is just saving himself some money.

    The two of them ordered saut¨¦ed pork and two bowls of curry beef vermicelli soup. Sitting at a table to eat, they continued to chat. After chatting for a while, Fu Xinhui¡¯s cell phone on the table vibrated. He nced at it, smiled and swiped the phone to answer. He spoke a few words then hung-up.

    Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°Who?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°One of the girls from yourpany from KTV this afternoon asked us to eat at night.¡±

    Zhang Siyi smiled: ¡°So soon someone will hook up with you?¡±

    With that, his phone shook again, and Fu Xinhui raised his eyebrows and said, ¡°There¡¯s more than one.¡±

    Zhang Siyi nced at his quiet mobile phone, envious: ¡°Why isn¡¯t anyone calling me? I sang so well!¡±

    Fu Xinhui smiled a little bit: ¡°It seems that my type of boy is liked by yourpany colleagues.¡±

    Zhang Siyi ttened his mouth and gave himself an excuse: ¡°It must be because I¡¯m not new.¡±

    However, if you think about it carefully, Fu Xinhui, in addition to his good looks, will cook and do housework. He is considerate and habitually caters to others. He pays attention to details like paying rent in advance. When a group of people eat, regardless of whether it is a barbecue or a hot pot, Fu Xinhui is always on the side of ¡°serving the people¡±. He is true to his friends. Any girl that can be Fu Xinhui¡¯s girlfriend will be very happy.

    Zhang Siyi saw Fu Xinhui still replying to the text message, curiously sneaked over and peeked: ¡°Who is it? Tell me soon! Maybe I know, I can tell you some gossip.¡±

    Fu Xinhui turned the phone to him. Zhang Siyi looked at it and was shocked: ¡°Bi Lele! She is a big rot woman, you must be careful. Last time she asked if we were a couple!¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi looked at another number ID and said: ¡°I don¡¯t know this person. She is probably from the otherpany.¡±

    Fu Xinhui received the mobile phone and said: ¡°Say, there is one thing, I don¡¯t know if I am too sensitive...¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What¡¯s that?¡±

    Fu Xinhui nced at Zhang Siyi and said, ¡°I feel like the way your boss looks at you is weird.¡±

    ...... What? Zhang Siyi looked up and stared at Fu Xinhui, waiting for him to exin.

    Fu Xinhui took the chopsticks and stirred his soup. He took a bite and continued: ¡°While we were at KTV, I caught him looking at you most of the time. He didn¡¯t pay much attention to anyone else.¡±

    Zhang Siyi felt his face start to get hot again: ¡°Are you sure about that?¡±

    Instead of answering, Fu Xinhui stopped moving his chopsticks and looked at Zhang Siyi and asked: ¡°And, I remember when we walked the dog together some time ago, you said that your boss had also joked about us being a pair, right?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Well...¡±

    Fu Xinhui said seriously: ¡°Do you really think that if you were straight man, you would make a joke about another being in a gay rtionship?¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart jumped, it seems that it is not. He remembers that he once went to the office of Gu Yu. At that time, Gu Yu was on the phone, and he was curious and asked if Gu Yu¡¯s caller was his girlfriend. Right! The normal straight male mentality would ask about a girlfriend

    ¡°It¡¯s not just that, ¡°said Fu Xinhui. ¡°His eyes are very firm. I think he is the kind of person who knows exactly what he wants. The way he looked at you....... Well, the rest, you will know it yourself.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°............(o////o).............¡±

    Everything that Fu Xinhui has mentioned to this point, Zhang Siyi ispletely clueless and can¡¯t understand.

    His face was distorted, and he made a war between the heavens in his mind. He retorted: ¡°No, no, no, no! He has a girlfriend! I have seen her!¡± At such an eager speed, it is not known whether Zhang Siyi is trying to persuade Fu Xinhui or convince himself. But that¡¯s nothing for Fu Xinhui, Fu Xinhui shrugged: ¡°You don¡¯t have to be so paranoid. Maybe I was wrong.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s face contorted in a myriad of expressions trying to say something. Finally, he said: ¡°Certainly you were the one making a mistake!¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi wants to desperately expel Fu Xinhui¡¯s words from his brain. Even after returning home and taking a bath, he continued to be full of problems. When he thought that Gu Yu might ¡°like him¡± and ¡°want him¡±, Zhang Siyi shuddered for fear of something strange, but also because he felt excitement from the bottom of his heart.

    There seems to be a clear boundary between the two feelings, like a high wall bisecting it. Inside, he is clinging to himself and outside, there is a poppy that is tempting him all the time....... Oh, my God! Why are you torturing me like this! (#¡ã§Õ¡ã)

    At ten o¡¯clock in the evening, while Fu Xinhui was in the living room brushing the hair on Cheer-Up, he heard Zhang Siyi in his room again. First, he heard ¡®that noise¡¯: ¡°Quack Quack Quack Quack Quack Quack Quack Quack Quack Quack......¡±

    When Fu Xinhui could not endure, he was about to get up when the sound of the house suddenly transformed into a melodious melody. Fu Xinhui listened to the ear and felt that the tone was a bit familiar. Then he listened carefully. Hey, isn¡¯t this ¡°Liang Zhu¡±! ...... Finally, a good song.**

    Under the beautiful music, the restless Cheer-Up calmed down. Also, Fu Xinhui followed along with the music humming. Not two minutes have passed when he heard a crazy cry: ¡°Aaaahhhhhh¡± and Immediately thereafter: ¡± Quack Quack Quack Quack Quack Quack Quack Quack Quack.......¡±

    Fu Xinhui jumped straight up roaring: ¡± Zhang Siyi !!! ¡°

 Chapter 50: Puzzle

    <h4>Chapter 50: Puzzle</h4>

    ___________________

    After being cut off by Fu Xinhui, Zhang Siyi thought about the many details rted to Gu Yu in the past five months from the depths of his memory.

    At the beginning, from when he first saw Gu Yu¡¯s entric eyes at the coffee shop, to his unqualified interview notice, to getting a cactus, to the strange feeling of being touchedte at night, and also the tape measure gift on my Birthday....

    The more Zhang Siyi thinks, the more chaotic his heart is. However, all these peculiar thoughts percting in his head were smashed into a knot that could not be understood after seeing his girlfriend on Christmas Day.

    Zhang Siyi thought: ¡°If Gu Yu has inexpressible intentions like Fu Xinhui said, then why does he have a girlfriend? Maybe I¡¯m thinking too much? It¡¯s just the fate of being a high school alumnus so that makes me a little special to him.... yes. That¡¯s what it is!¡±

    However, once he adjusted his thoughts and denied there was anything more, Zhang Siyi noticed a sense of loss that he didn¡¯t want to admit.

    Ah, ah, ah ...!

    Tormented by self-entanglement for two nights and two days, Zhang Siyi woke up Monday morning dead as a corpse. Looking at the mirror with two panda eyes, Zhang Siyi decided that he had to stop thinking about it. He hung his head and convinced himself: ¡°Zhang Siyi you big idiot. Listen, Gu Yu is just your boss. He does not have special feelings for you. Do not make up stuff otherwise you will beughed at!¡±

    After brainwashing himself, Zhang Siyi finally settled down. When he arrived at thepany, he went straight to the dining area and gave himself a shot of super-bitter espresso. His mind recovered from the fog and he felt resurrected.

    On the way to his desk, he happened to run into the oing Gu Yu. Zhang Siyi nodded to the other side and subconsciously kept the normal distance between the straight man and the straight man

    Back at his seat, Zhang Siyi took a deep breath with a mad heart, and was about to start drawing. Opposite of him Bi Lele suddenly spoke out: ¡°Hey! Did you notice two people missing from B Group from the previous day¡¯s annual meeting? I heard they were leaving.¡±

    Zhang Siyi curiously raised his ears: ¡°Hmm? Who left the job?¡±

    Bi Lele reported two names. One is Canadian with an architecture masters that had been working more than half a year earlier than Zhang Siyi, and the other was the foreigner Tom!

    Yuan Zhicheng said: ¡°When someone is persuaded to leave at the end of the year, it is in fact, being fired.¡±

    ¡°Why would they be fired?¡± Zhang Siyi was shocked. He had not been in contact with the Canadian so he didn¡¯t know the persons¡¯ level, however he knew Tom from the Z-City project. His designs were great!

    Bi Lele said: ¡°It is not clear. There are many reasons like the talent is repeated or thepany doesn¡¯t think you are suitable. The people in B Group should make the final choice. Here, for example, Tom, he can¡¯t understand Chinese. Even if the design is done well, it is a big problem tomunicate with colleagues. Every time there is a project group meeting or our study meeting, he has to trante it to understand. It¡¯s okay once or twice, but all the time makes it difficult. In the end, he can only sit there silly. Since he can¡¯t integrate, he can only be eliminated.¡±

    Hearing thus, Zhang Siyi was upset. Although he did not havemunication problems, Tom¡¯s ability to draw analysis pictures was much better than him. Yes, the two people who were persuaded by thepany to leave have simrities with Zhang Siyi, and both of them are better than him to some extent. Can he not panic? To tell you the truth, these days near the new year, he went to work a little absent-minded unlike the first two months where he was so focused and serious. Will one day Gu Yu call him into his office and tell him: Zhang Siyi, you are not suitable to work here....

    No! Zhang Siyi hugged his head. He once again realized his inferiority. Compared to thinking about whether Gu Yu had any special thoughts on him, it is better to think about how to work hard!

    Zhu Hongzhen raised his hand and wiped his sweat. It seems to be a little scared: ¡°But at the end of the year, isn¡¯t that too unkind? Don¡¯t they ever let anyone have a good year?¡±

    Bi Lele said: ¡°It¡¯s all like this. The surname Li who leftst year, do you remember? I asked him about the specific situation. He said that thepany also sent him a year-end award and a notice. They gave him one-month sry. Also, it is convenient for him because he can start preparing for a new job in advance. Manypanies open their doors at the end of the year to deduct the year-end awards, and don¡¯t talk much more morally. Nothing is good. Besides, the annual meeting isn¡¯t mandatory to participate. If you know that you will be fired, what kind of annual meeting will you attend, is it not grief?¡±

    Yuan Zhicheng spoke for the hearts of the people: ¡°Well, let¡¯s get to work, too.¡±

    Also feeling the pressure, Zhang Siyi started CAD, and began drawing more toilets, and more parking lots. In the afternoon, he suddenly received a message from Gu Yu telling him toe to his office.

    After being nervous all morning, suddenly seeing such a sentence, Zhang Siyi could only feel terrified. ¡°Boss, are you looking for me?¡± Under the stress, Zhang Siyi no longer thought about his confused feelings.

    He sat down ufortably and quietlyforted himself. At the annual meeting, Gu Yu also encouraged him to have fun and get recharged to be an excellent working hard employee next year. Would he get fired now? Except for the small cactus, he did not make too many mistakes, right? Amitabha, the Buddha bless, all goes well!

    ¡°What are you thinking about? Your expression is so dignified.¡± Gu Yu looked at him with a funny look.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...no, nothing.¡±

    Gu Yu put away his smile and gave him a piece of information. He was straightforward and said: ¡°Thepany has just received a government office building design project in the city of C. There is a week and a half from the Chinese New Year for you and Lu Qiao toe up with preliminary ns. When they are finished, we will go to C-Ciity to report and they will select one of your ns for development.

    Zhang Siyi was a little unprepared for this unexpected task. He was still worried that he would be fired. As a result, Gu Yu directly gave him a project. This is the first time he has been working on a project alone in six months! He previously worked on a small project with Du Rui to make a single apartment n. At most, he was only there to provide support.

    Even under the pressure of this new task, Zhang Siyi is both excited and flustered.

    Only ten days away from the New Year ¨C what pressure! Even though he is feeling worried about doing the job well, Zhang Siyi is very excited about this opportunity: ¡°When is the time to discuss the preliminary n?¡±

    As if he had some doubts about whether he had given this task to him, Gu Yu dismissed Zhang Siyi with a nce: ¡°With only limited project work for half a year, I will arrange it myself, then let you know.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Back to the seat, Zhang Siyi double-clicked on the icon for Lu Qiao and messaged him: ¡°Qiao Mei, Boss let us do the office building n. Do you know of it?¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°Yes! Auntie! I just received the information! The time for battle is here!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°Although you are a few months younger than me, I will not show mercy!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Come on! Who is afraid of who!¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°Don¡¯t die!¡±

    Zhang Siyi was encouraged by the other side and quickly began to view the project materials.

    C-City is a county-level city. It has only developed to the city-level scale in the past year. Therefore, the economy is rtively backward. The office building base is located between the government road of the new development zone and the main road of another city, which is just the corner position.

    The job specifics include a row of buildings withmercial space, post office and a distinguished government building with three entrances. In addition to an above ground parking lot with fifty spaces, the officials want the new building to be the tallest in order for it to stand out as andmark building.

    Zhang Siyi estimated the volume of the office building and found that the total building area demand was only over 3,000 square feet. How can this be built? Three hundred squares and one floor to build ten floors? Zhang Siyi¡¯s eyes twitched, and he could already imagine a thin and long matchstick standing on the ground.

    He wanted to study the surrounding environment. As a result, when he opened the base drawing, he was a bit worried. The CAD-based map provided by the local government has only the main road. Apart from the sporadic buildings, there is nothing. The designated building site and the surrounding plots are nk.

    Is this a wastnd? They want to build banks, a post office, andmercial offices on barrennd? Are they are going to open up a wastnd? This is too damn ridiculous!

    Not only empty, but the designated area is still veryrge. Zhang Siyi has calcted that even if the office building of more than 3,000 square meters is fully paved ording to the first-floor area, it only takes up a small corner of the base area.

    Zhang Siyi does not believe this! He rushed to hisputer to open a satellite map on the Inte and nned to look at the specific situation on the real elevation map. However, even more horrible things happened ¨C Zhang Siyi entered the name of the ce and the road name, but found nothing! Shit, does thisnd even exist?

    He was scared to find the location of the C-city. With a little bit ofparison to the CAD-based map and the satellite one, he finally found it. Due to the rapid development of the city in the past year, it turned out that the road system on the map has not been updated, so the search function cannot be found at all!

    After sessfully positioning the map, Zhang Siyi loosened a small breath, but soon found the next problem ¨C the map is too vague. He can¡¯t tell the topography of thend. He can¡¯t see what was already built. There is only vague farnd and houses near the beach at the water. Anything that can be seen faintly on the satellite map aren¡¯t shown on the map from the local government.

    The first independent project in his career and Zhang Siyi experienced sessive forces to derail him.

 Chapter 51: Struggle

    <h4>Chapter 51: Struggle</h4>

    _____________________

    Zhang Siyi swiftly sent a message to Lu Qiao: ¡°Hey, have you seen the base-map? There is nothing! Not even the surrounding environment. How should this be designed?¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°¡ú_¡ú¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°This time I owe you!¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°Oh, actually, it also caught my eye.¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°Hey, in fact, I have two eyes!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°Design an office building wherever you want. Just follow the requirements in the task book.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...... Is that it?¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°I¡¯ve done it like this before. First design and when more detailed conditionse out, modifyter.¡±

    Even though Lu Qiao said it can be done like this, Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t feel it is the right approach to solving the problem. He doesn¡¯t agree with a doing-first-changeter attitude because he feels his efforts and time would be in vain.

    Moreover, without any analysis, ¡°just doing it¡± would disrupt his normal logical thought process. It would be like opting to write a thesis paper first which is inherently more difficult instead of choosing a simpler path like creating multiple-choice questions for a quiz.

    Having so much nothingness to work with, Zhang Siyi yed around with the shape of the office building ording to the volume requested by the project n. By the evening he thought it was useless and felt frustrated.

    Feeling unproductive he sent a message to Lu Qiao: ¡°Qiao Mei, I think we have to go visit the area.¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°Hey, is that necessary? The weather is so cold, the business trip is so tiring, the design cycle is still so short, and it¡¯s almost New Year, I don¡¯t want to go!¡±

    ¡°...¡± This means that I can go but he doesn¡¯t want to go?

    Zhang Siyi said: ¡°If you don¡¯t want to go, I will go alone. I checked it. C-City is not too far away and we can take a high-speed train back and forth. Wait until I collect the information and share it with you then you can adjust your work and work overtime if needed to catch up.¡±

    Lu Qiao seems to have been touched by Zhang Siyi¡¯s work attitude and selfless dedication. He said: ¡°If you say this, I am embarrassed not to go. We have to inform the Boss before going so he can go throughpany approval which is a paid business trip. Also, there is a higher travel subsidy than usual.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°So good!¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°No way! Going on a business trip is more tiring then sitting in the office drawing.¡±

    Getting irritated Zhang Siyi replied: ¡°I can just go alone.¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°Together, together. If you go and I don¡¯t know what the Boss will think? I¡¯m the elder here!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    After reaching an agreement with Lu Qiao, Zhang Siyi quickly messaged Gu Yu before leaving work: ¡°Boss, I and Lu Qiao want to go to C-City to evaluate thend for the project.¡±

    Gu Yu immediately replied: ¡°Yes, someone from the personal department will help you make reservations.¡±

    Surprised, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t expect Gu Yu to agree so easily. He was worried that he would say, ¡°no need.¡±

    Gu Yu sent another message: ¡°A few days?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°No. I will be back tomorrow night.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Well, pay attention to your safety.¡±

    Based on his previous business trip experience with Gu Yu and because the trip will be done in one day, it is necessary to get up very early. He let the personal reserve tickets for the high-speed rail at 7 o¡¯clock in the morning.

    Not liking the predicament, Lu Qiaoined: ¡°That¡¯s too early, right!? It won¡¯t take two hours to see a field! I live far away and can¡¯t catch the high-speed train that early. Can we change the time and startter?¡±

    In order to get back home at a reasonable time to work on the n, he wanted to travel to the sight very early and take notes. This was the first independent project that he was given and he wanted to make every effort to do it well. However, Zhang Siyi was a bit embarrassed. He made arrangements in a hurry without talking to Lu Qiao first.

    Contemting the issue for a moment, Zhang Siyi suddenly was inspired: ¡°Lu Qiao, the ce where I live is 20 minutes from the high-speed rail station. If you don¡¯t mind, you can stay over. One of my roommates is not here and his room in empty. We can go together early in the morning.¡±

    Lu Qiao listened and replied excitedly: ¡°Oh, OK! Of course, I don¡¯t mind. Staying over in one ce versus another won¡¯t¡¯ matter to me.¡±

    When the workday was over, Zhang Siyi printed an itinerary for the next day¡¯s business trip. Also, he called Fu Xinhui to let him know of his ns and the guest that would be staying over for one night. Fu Xinhui didn¡¯t have any qualms over the matter and he suggested they all go out for dinner.

    Lu Qiao asked: ¡°Is your buddy is the handsome guy who came to KTVst time? He looks nouveau riche! Before, I heard that you lived in a nice district near xxx station where the rent is very expensive, right?¡±

    Reminded of his financial state, Zhang Siyi replied: ¡°Yes! Super expensive! I barely have enough to eat! If I had known the rent was such a big expense each month, I wouldn¡¯t have lived there.¡±

    Lu Qiao doesn¡¯t know how much the rent for Zhang Siyi apartment costs. He listened and nodded: ¡°Yes. Same here. The rent has always been a huge expense. They have been rising faster than wages in recent years.¡± He sighed then continued: ¡°I think I¡¯ll have to move even farther away next year to survive.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was curious and asked: ¡°Where do you live now?¡±¡±

    When Lu Qiao reported the ce, Zhang Siyi was surprised. ¡°Isn¡¯t that thest station of the subway line? How do you live so far? How much time do you take toe to work every day?¡±

    Lu Qiao scratched his head: ¡°It¡¯s okay, forty or fifty minutes. I can take a nap for the duration of the trip on the train.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°How much farther would you move? What about yourmute?¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°I¡¯ll have to go by bus to get to the subway station. Hahahaha!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    In contrast to Lu Qiao, Zhang Siyi suddenly realized his living conditions were in fact excellent, and most likely would pull hatred, so he started to feel a little ufortable.

    Sure enough, when Lu Qiao visited their residence, he gnashed his teeth and said: ¡°Four you are the evil second generation!¡±

    In defense, Zhang Siyi pleaded: ¡°I am not rich! Rent is four thousand dors a month and our wages should be about the same. If I deduct the rent clearly you have more money than me!¡±

    Lu Qiao was a little surprised: ¡°Do you pay your own rent?¡±

    Zhang Siyi nodded again and again: ¡°Yes!¡±

    Lu Qiao shut his mouth and adjusted his initial thoughts about Zhang Siyi, but he wasn¡¯t entirely convinced. ¡°You pay so much for your rent!¡±

    Zhang Siyi squinted at Fu Xinhui and Fu Xinhui cleverly chose to remain silent.

    Lu Qiao is from Mianyang, Sichuan. In the evening, Fu Xinhui invited them to eat at a Sichuan restaurant.

    At the start of the meal, Lu Qiao was still feeling displeased. Picking up on the emotions of Lu Qiao, Fu Xinhui was very generous and ordered a set of dishes for the table; spicy shrimp, boiled pork and various vegetables. After two sses of wine, a belly full, and Fu Xinhui said that he was a friend, Lu Qiao seemed to rx and enjoy himself.

    Lu Qiao: ¡°Thhheees meeeet iith ferrry soooft.... iizz guuud.¡± Dipping his meat in spicy red oil, in drunken words and face flushed, he told Fu Xinhui to visit him in his hometown so he could take them out to eat.

    Fu Xinhuiughed and said: ¡°Okay.¡±

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t like to eat such spicy foods. With only a few bites, he already had red eyes and a red nose. He didn¡¯t look well. He quickly poured some cold beer to drink. Lu Qiao gave Zhang Siyi a hard time about hisck of ability to tolerate very spicy dishes.

    Lu Qiao said: ¡°Don¡¯t be a baby! You alsoe and eat my hometown Sichuan dishes!¡±

    Zhang Siyi was going to say something, but the spicy taste burned his throat as he swallowed his beer. ¡°cough-cough-gasp-cough-gasp-cough.¡± Lu Qiaoughed.

    As the mood became more rxed, Zhang Siyi learned more about Lu Qiao family. His parents aren¡¯t well and he has a younger brother. He is now the family¡¯s biggest financial source. In order to support his family, he lives far away so he is able to send half of his wages home.

    Zhang Siyi, with sympathy, asked, ¡°Will things be better when your brother is working?¡±

    Lu Qiao:¡± Compared to how things were before, it is really great now. Life is so much better! When I was studying, I was miserable. Learning the profession is too expensive. In addition to tuition, every year I had to spend money on materials and fees. I was too busy to work and if my parents did not borrow money to strongly support me after college, I would have dropped out of school. Hey, when I got my first month¡¯s sry and when my parents called, we all cried!¡±

    Lu Qiao said again: ¡°As for my brother, whether he works or not, he will always by my younger brother. I have to take care of him to eat and grow up so there is a lot of pressure on me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi listened to this remark and turned his sympathy to Lu Qiao into admiration. Even if he was short and even if he was jokingly called ¡°Joe Sister¡± by his colleagues, he could not cover up the soul of the man standing upright in his body.

    Feeling a sense of shame, Fu Xinhui lowered his head and ate quietly.

    Zhang Siyi noticed that Fu Xinhui only had a heavy expression when Lu Qiao mentioned ¡°brother¡±. He wondered if Fu Xinhui was thinking of his sister. Fortunately, he steered the conversation away from such heavy thoughts. After eating for more than an hour, they finished up and went back home.

    Early the next morning, Zhang Siyi was woken up by the rm clock. He had to wake-up Lu Qiao in order to catch the high-speed train. At the station, Zhang Siyi bought two cups of coffee and gave one to the yawning Lu Qiao.

    Lu Qiao held his cup out and up, like an offering and spoke excitedly: ¡°Ah nouveau riche, I never go out to buy this luxury stuff!¡±

    After listening to Lu Qiao yesterday, Zhang Siyi subconsciously wanted to be nicer to him. Both feeling cheerful on the train, Zhang Siyi casually asked Lu Qiao why he studied architecture. Simr to Zhang Siyi, Lu Qiao also thought being in the construction industry would make money. It was onlyter that he discovered architecture was just a huge money pit.

    The people who make the money are the ones who catch the wave. In the early years, the whole country was under development and if you graduated at that time, you were sure to get a good job and make a lot of money. But now, the market is very different. Construction in big cities is nearing saturation and the development in small cities can¡¯t keep up with domestic demand. In addition, second and third-rate schools have broadly opened construction departments in the name of architecture and thus, diluting the value of an architect. Ayman wouldn¡¯t know the difference between a correctly trained architect from someone with just a construction certificate.

    Despite this fact, Lu Qiao¡¯s outlook is very positive. He said: ¡°I have already learned this line of work and I wouldn¡¯t know what to do now if I changed. My hometown is small and people there don¡¯t talk about design and the sry is lower, only three to four thousand. Even if I go back, the rent is still the same so there won¡¯t be much left over. I save five to six thousand each month renting a cheaper house in Haicheng so it¡¯s much better.¡±

    Zhang Siyi nodded and was quite touched.

    Throughout the ride they chatted and go to know each other better. Unexpectedly they learned they both like Sci-Fi and liked movies rted to space adventures like ¡°Apollo¡± and ¡°Star Wars¡±.

    Since the city of C was originally a county town, there was no high-speed railway station. They first arrived at the nearby city and then took the bus and a taxi to their destination. When they arrived at the designated location it was almost 12 noon.

    Although it was a clear and sunny day, it was cold. The wind was quite strong. Zhang Siyi and Lu Qiao felt chilled to the bone. The two walked around the outer road section. As Zhang Siyi saw on the map, there were some irregr areas of farnd and water areas with beaches. There were a few small buildings here and there as though the farmers spontaneously built a structure, then abandoned it. The designated area needed as muchnd development as was needed when Z-City was nned. Zhang Siyi really can¡¯t imagine an office building being built on such an enormous t deste piece ofnd. The local government¡¯s request seems like nonsense. The cold wind blowing on their shivering bodies increased their deste mood.

    Just then, Lu Qiao suddenly raised his voice: ¡°NASA America to Houston! Repeat!¡±

    Zhang Siyi then blurted out: ¡°We are out of the orbit! Flying into dark space!¡±

    Lu Qiao looked up at the sky: ¡°The hydraulic pressure has leaked, the control system haspletely failed, the fuel is going to run out, there is no need to send rescue, no hope!¡±

    Zhang Siyi raised his arms: ¡°Please take care of our family!

    Lu Qiao followed his hands and clenched his fists: ¡°For the future of mankind, for the cause of construction!¡±

    The two of them shook their arms together: ¡°Struggle!¡±

 Chapter 52: Chief

    <h4>Chapter 52: Chief</h4>

    ___________________

    The two standing in the middle of nowhere werepletely motivated by the ssic lines of the film ¡°Apollo¡±. With adrenaline surging up, there was an endless stream of energying from deep within. They weren¡¯t afraid of the cold wind. They weren¡¯t afraid of nothingness. They can do it!

    While Zhang Siyi took off his gloves and lifted his camera to start taking pictures, Lu Qiao took out a notebook to record the details of the surrounding roads and environment.

    Although Zhang Siyi is still confused about the overall project, he thinks that as long as one starts the task in front of oneself, a clearer direction will emerge so one will know what to do next.

    After more than an hour of busy work, Zhang Siyi had some clues...

    Thisnd is really vast, but it doesn¡¯t necessarily develop all at once! Just like the nning project in the new district of Z City, they can make a rough n for thisnd, divide it into small pieces, and then design the office building in the most conspicuous position. Isn¡¯t that enough?

    Thinking about the task further, Zhang Siyi realized the reason why the local government wanted to erect andmark office building. First build the office building and smaller office buildings will follow in the surrounding plots to drive the economic growth in the area. He looked around and imagined the established office building location. In the next five or ten years, more buildings will rise around it, like spring bamboo shoots, budding from the ground, rising, growing, and thriving...

    Zhang Siyi was excited: ¡°I know! I know what to do!¡±

    Lu Qiao still doesn¡¯t know what to do: ¡°You do?¡±

    Zhang Siyi points to the corner location of the block at the junction of Government Avenue and City Main road: ¡°Over there! The office building should be in that position! Yes, because it is not a simple office building, it must be high! It is a marker, simr Mo, as a symbolic existence, so the total construction area is small!¡±

    Although Lu Qiao didn¡¯t know that ¡°mo¡± was, he understood Zhang Siyi¡¯s meaning and quickly responded. He walked under the foot of thend: ¡°This can be amercial orndscape avenue, reserved in advance.¡±

    Zhang Siyi nodded and stretched his arm out to point to another area: ¡°This section can be used to build new homes to relocate existing residents.¡±

    Lu Qiao ran around in the open space: ¡°Here, the main road of the section that is separated from the center with a circr space in the middle.¡±

    Zhang Siyi followed and ran over. The roadwork of the whole plot seemed to emerge in the mind with Lu Qiao¡¯s words. He shouted: ¡°Landscape and a fountain! It is better to have a fountain! There will definitely be a bigdy dancing at night!¡±

    Moving around the area feeling excited, they felt like a lord of thend. The impulse to yell into the sky and beat their chests like Tarzan, Lord of the Jungle, was great however, with their subsiding adrenaline, the two slowly calmed down and came to a standstill then squatted.

    On the side of the road, a ckmercial car with a license te number 00 pulled up then stopped slowly. The door opened and there was two middle-aged persons, one fat and one thin man. The fat middle-aged man looked at the two young people moving around the base frowning: ¡°Are those two over there the designers of Borderless architectural firm?¡±

    The thin one had an idea and said: ¡°Hey, let me call to confirm.¡±

    Not far away, Zhang Siyi suddenly felt the phone in his trouser pocket vibrate.

    He quickly stood up and took out his mobile phone. At a nce, he saw a strange number and thought that it was another messy intermediary call. He wanted to hang up, but he saw the call address disyed under the phone number. Luckily, he noticed as it was an address from C-City!

    Lying groove, now the agency can track their location!?(#¡ã§¥¡ã)

    Zhang Siyi swiped the answer key on the phone and with attitude he answered the call: ¡°Hello? Who is this!?¡±

    There was a moment of silence and then he heard someone ask: ¡± Is this Mr. Zhang from Borderless?¡±

    Zhang Siyi frowned. ¡°I am. Who are you?¡±

    The person on the phone said: ¡°I am Mr. Jiang with the city nning bureau.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Lu Qiao on the side: ¡°???¡±

    Panicking on the side, waving, Zhang Siyi signaled to Lu Qiao to quiet down: ¡°Jiang, Jiang Secretary!¡±

    There was a pause on the phone then the man spoke: ¡°I am not the director. I am a subordinate. In the morning, Director Gu from yourpany called Secretary Wang saying that you were going to evaluate thend. In order to make arrangements, he gave us your phone number. Chief Wang and I are on the edge of the designatednd development area right now. Is that you in a gray-blue down jacket?¡±

    Zhang Siyi quickly turned around and found the business car on the side of the road. He raised his hand in that direction: ¡°Yes. I am here!¡±

    Hanging up the phone, Zhang Siyi went to the business car with Lu Qiao and made a frantic expression: ¡°Come on! The people of the nning Bureau areing!¡±

    Lu Qiao followed up nervously and asked Zhang Siyi: ¡°The person who just called you is the Chief?¡±

    Since Zhang Siyi¡¯s father is part of the government agency, he is well familiar with etiquette on dealing with officials. He isn¡¯t afraid to talk to them. Zhang Siyi responded: ¡°No. He is in a lower office. We will call Director Jiangter. I¡¯m guessing that he is the personal aid to the fat man who is secretary called Secretary Wang.¡±

    Lu Qiao nodded his head again and again, and seemed a little more restrained.

    Walking to the side of the road, Zhang Siyi changed his confounded expression to one of serenity and respectfully said: ¡°Secretary Wang, director Jiang.¡±

    The two smiled and nodded, and sure enough, he wasn¡¯t wrong.

    First, director Wang shook hands with Zhang Siyi and Lu Qiao, and greeted him politely. then he frowned, ¡°How old are you?¡± The design of this office building is yours to do?¡±

    Secretary Wang first shook hands with Zhang Siyi then Lu Qiao, and greeted them politely. He frowned: ¡°How old are you? Are you in charge of designing the office building?¡±

    As Lu Qiao was about to answer ¡°yes¡±, Zhang Siyi waved him off and interrupted him. He took a step forward and presented his business card to Secretary Wang. ¡°No, no. I am just a small assistant. Director Gu was busy with work so he sent us here to evaluate the designated area to be developed. The design is mainly for him to do.¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°...¡±

    Secretary Wang looked a little bit sullen, and then he nodded with a smile. ¡°This is also true. Director Gu is young and promising. He must be a busy man.¡±

    Wondering why Gu Yu knows Secretary Wang, Zhang Siyi listened to Secretary Wang¡¯s exnation: ¡°Two years ago I attended the selection of a new district nning bid. At the time the bid for L-City project was between the Design Institute and TJ Firm. Many people were in favor of the Design Institute ns, butter found out it was done by a recent Master¡¯s graduate, not the design director. Yes, I am referring to your Director Gu. At that time, he was a fresh graduate and worked at the Design Institute. The people at the top felt that the n was too big to be handed to someone so young, so they felt the project would not get the attention it needed to seed. As a result, they choose the n by the TJ Firm. However, young Gu left asting impression on me and I¡¯ve always wanted to have an opportunity to work with him and now I do.¡±

    Lu Qiao was shocked. If he had just blurted out that the design was done by them, then Secretary Wang would certainly feel that he was not paying enough attention to him... It was too close! Witnessing Zhang Siyi ability to read the situation properly and act ordingly, Lu Qiao looked at Zhang Siyi in admiration.

    Zhang Siyi listened to Wang¡¯s remarks and was dumbfounded. In his mind he went over the events not long ago that transpired during the Z-City nning bid. Even though Director Gu knew the final decision was prearranged, he still poured all of his efforts into the work. After overhearing the Chief and him talk in the bathroom, Zhang Siyi could not understand his attitude. He thought their efforts were in vain and that Gu Yu was deceiving them.

    He recalled sitting with his father at home talking about the project bid and hearing him judge Gu Yu. He said that the discerning eye will remember Gu. Hard work is never going to be in vain and opportunities wille. Isn¡¯t Secretary Wang the best proof?

    Although the City nning Bureau did not choose Gu Yu¡¯s n, Wang, the director of the C City nning Bureau, remembered him and gave him a chance. However, Gu Yu passed on the opportunity he earned himself to Zhang Siyi and Lu Qiao.

    In determination, Zhang Siyi squeezed his fists. He also wants to work as hard as Gu Yu would have done on this project to confirm Gu Yu¡¯s decision was the correct one on letting him design the building. He went straight to the topic: ¡°Secretary Wang, we have carefully looked at the area and there are a few questions we don¡¯t understand. I would like to consult with you.¡±

    ¡°If you have any questions, go ahead and ask.¡± Secretary Wang folded his arms.

    Although Zhang Siyi has some ideas, he isn¡¯t one hundred percent certain they are within the scope of the Officials¡¯ needs. Now that the number one party is present, of course he should ask questions to rify: ¡°Can the office building be built anywhere on the designated development area?¡±

    With a big arm motion Secretary Wang presented thendscape to them and nodded: ¡°Yes, all of thisnd is owned by the government. It can be used casually.¡±

    Zhang Siyi, Lu Qiao: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi pointed to the houses and asked: ¡°What about the residents and farnd on the base?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯ll be demolished to make way for the government office and cultural center in the future.¡± Secretary Wang responded. He touched his chin in thought and said: ¡°It¡¯s best to build both a youth cultural center and a cultural za.¡±

    Hearing Secretary idea for thend development made Zhang Siyi heart grow brighter because the n envisioned by Secretary Wang coincided with the ideas that they just had!

    He also asked a few more questions about the types of buildings and purpose of the plots surrounding the new office building. Secretary Wang answered truthfully.

    After some questions and answers, Secretary Wang took a look at Zhang Siyi and smiled: ¡°The questions asked by the young man in front of me are quite professional. This is almost the new year and you also rushed over to inspect thend. Is it not easy?¡±

    Zhang Siyi humbly said: ¡°Where there is work, that¡¯s where we should be.¡±

    ¡°Hey, it¡¯s gettingte. Have you had lunch yet?¡± Secretary Wang did not wait for Zhang Siyi to answer. He turned to Director Jiang on the side and said: ¡°Director Jiang, take Mr. Zhang and this......? ¡°

    Lu Qiao nervously said: ¡°I, I am Lu Qiao.¡±

    Secretary Wang smiled and went on: ¡°Take them out to have a meal and then drive them around the city for the afternoon.¡± Like most officials with limited time, he lifted his wrist to look at his own watch concerned with the current hour.

    Zhang Siyi hurriedly said: ¡°Secretary Wang, you must be very busy. We will go eat on our own.¡±

    Secretary Wang waved his hand. His words have already been spoken and thus, his subordinates would naturally follow suit.

    Director Jiang immediately greeted Zhang Siyi and Lu Qiao and motioned them into the business car: ¡°Mr. Zhang and Mr. Lu are the first time toe to our city. With cabbage stems, simmered duck, fried bean curd, old vegetables and potatoes, our local cuisine is a must! Hey, I will take you to the best local restaurant here.¡±

    Pretending to be polite, Zhang Siyi and Lu Qiao were hungry all morning. While listening to the names of all he dishes their stomachs rumbled. Salivating, they blinked at the Director and swallowed.

 Chapter 53: Empty City

    <h4>Chapter 53: Empty City</h4>

    ________________________

    Director Jiang first asked the driver to take Secretary Wang back to the nearby government office before driving them to dinner.

    Normally, Zhang Siyi eats at the chain restaurants in Haicheng. The kind of farm-to-table homemade meals Director Jiang spoke of makes his appetite grow. He is reminded of the time Gu Yu took him out to eat sand tea noodles. In addition to the dishes mentioned, Director Jiang ordered other selections, including a famous casserole dish and white head shrimp.

    With a bowl of steaming fish soup, the fatigue that Zhang Siyi and Lu Qiao felt, was swept away. The feeling of warmth was worth it.

    During the meal, Director Jiang chatted with them for a while. Unlike Secretary Wang¡¯s official speech, this director was more casual. He asked them about their education, the industry, when their annual holiday is and more.

    Since they had a very good impression of the Director, Zhang Siyi and Lu Qiao had been chatting with him for a long time.

    After dinner, the Director drove them around the city and introduced them to some local customs and culture along the way. He pointed out which plots are new development, what the uses are and how the current situation is. Zhang Siyi took out a pen and notebook to write down the information Director Jiang reported.

    C-City is not big. It takes less than an hour to drive all around. Director Jiang turned to them and asked them what ns they have next and whether they should go to the station or not. Sitting in the car watching the rtively busy business district, Zhang Siyi suddenly remembered when Gu Yu took him out to the night market to the experience the old town of Z-City. ¡°Director Jiang, it is still early and you are busy. We can go shopping on our own and then take a taxi to the station.¡±

    Director Jiang nodded at the two young people and said: ¡°Alright. Mr. Zhang has my phone number. Should there be any problems, you can contact me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi and Lu Qiao thanked him for his hospitality, said goodbye and got out of the car.

    Observing Zhang Siyi mature ability to deal with others, Lu Qiao didn¡¯t question his decision in the car, but now he asked: ¡°Isn¡¯t the evaluation done, what else is there?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Since we are here, we might as well look around and go shopping while keeping in mind the design of thendmark government office building. We might feel inspired by our surroundings. Let¡¯s do a good job!¡±

    Lu Qiao understood, nodded with approval, and said: ¡°Ah, you are really work hard. With New Year¡¯s approaching, I still wanted to do a casual job, but now you have raised the bar. Ha-ha, let¡¯s go.¡±

    Laughing a bit, Zhang Siyi thought of the words his Father used to describe himself: ¡°I¡¯m Mr. three-minutes. The first project will inevitable be taken very seriously.¡±

    Lu Qiao bowed his head and followed him for a while silently, then suddenly asked: ¡°Auntie Four, what do your parents do?¡±

    Zhang Siyi stunned, remembering his promise and his father¡¯s cautious warning: ¡°Why are you suddenly asking me this? My parents are ordinary office workers.¡±

    With a skeptical look, Lu Qiao tly replied: ¡°Can ordinary office workers afford an education abroad in the UK? Can they rent a 12,000 high-ss apartment in the first year of work? Can they buy a cup of coffee for thirty or forty dors? Well, these days you can say that many ordinary people can do it, but after listening to Secretary Wang and Director Jiang, to be honest, if you weren¡¯t here today, I am sure I would die. I don¡¯t know how to speak when facing big officials.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was a little confused at Lu Qiao reaction. ¡°What big official? He is just the Director of the nning bureau in the city. Even if they don¡¯t normally go out to meet with people like us, don¡¯t be afraid, they are just office workers.¡± He hadforted Lu Qiao casually, but when he finished speaking, he saw Lu Qiao¡¯s eyes widened.

    When Zhang Siyi thought about it, he realized that he ¡°understood¡± a bit more. He closed mouth and quickly replied: ¡°Hey, anyway, the officials are serving the people. You treat him as an ordinary person. Of course, you are a junior, and should respect him a little bit more.¡±

    Lu Qiao red at Zhang Siyi for two seconds, suddenly approached him, grabbed the other¡¯s shoulder and covered his mouth with his palm then mysteriously said: ¡°Tell me. I promise not to tell.¡±

    ¡°...¡± Zhang Siyi shrank his neck. ¡°My Father isn¡¯t an official. He is a civil servant, um, civil servant!¡±

    Seeing Zhang Siyi¡¯s evasive reluctance, Lu Qiao tried harder. He was short so it was difficult to keep him still. He squinted and said: ¡°Are you not a prince that was made to be withmon folk as a learning experience?¡±

    Sweating on his forehead, Zhang Siyi is indeed having an experience, but Lu Qiao¡¯s description seems to be a bit too much!

    When Lu Qiao saw that he did not answer, he guessed it for himself: ¡°Is your father a mayor? Or a governor? Is he even more powerful?¡±

    Zhang Siyi was afraid that the more he said the more outrageous, and quickly grabbed his mouth: ¡°No. No. No!¡±

    Lu Qiao is a very curious person and his thirst for information has been whetted. I don¡¯t know if the answer is worse than killing him. In anticipation is asked: ¡°I¡¯m begging you!! Tell me soon. Please!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi sighed in resignation. He whispered: ¡°Then you swear not to tell anyone?¡±

    Lu Qiao lifted the hand: ¡°I swear by our revolutionary friendship, I won¡¯t tell a soul. I will be out of orbit in my life journey,pletely disconnected from Headquarters, lost in dark space, straight to energy exhaustion ... ¡±

    ¡°All right, all right,¡± Zhang Siyi grunted and said quickly: ¡°My dad is the director of the construction department in Z province.¡±

    ¡°Oh!!!¡± Lu Qiao said with a ¡®I-know-so¡¯ expression. He gave Zhang Siyi a look over then curiously asked: ¡°What does the director of the construction department do?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡±

    He exined a little bit about the official positions at various levels then returned to the topic: ¡°My Father said to treat people like them with the utmost respect. The more you are not humble and generous, the more they will think negatively about you. That would give them ammunition to use against you in the future.¡±

    Lu Qiao seems to understand, but this ¡°not humble and generous¡± is easier said than done. It is really difficult to do

    Although China has a willingness to promote equality for all, the vishness engraved in the national bones after the reincarnation of the millennial feudal dynasty is difficult to be cleaned up in a short period of time. The current social status is in the process of change to reach the state of officials and people like there is in some countries in Western Europe.

    Moreover, people love to listen to good words and leadership is no exception, but how to say good things is also a skill. It is just like Zhang Siyi had said about being assistants. It not only reflects his modesty, but also pays respect to Secretary Wang¡¯s thoughts. At the same time, he also raised the status of Gu Yu. Also, maybe Secretary Wang will call back Gu Yu with a report making him happy.

    Lu Qiao sighed and looked at Zhang Siyi, envious of the family education brought by the other family. Fortunately, Zhang Siyi is a good person. If this person is a bit high-spirited, his envy will have to give birth to hate!

    Lu Qiao remembered one thing and humbly asked for advice: ¡°Why when you talked to Director Jiang first, did you give Secretary Wang your business card?¡±

    Zhang Siyi is a glimpse, this little detail Lu Qiao does not mention that he forgot.

    After thinking about it, he scratched his head and exined: ¡°I didn¡¯t tell him that we are just little assistants? Although it was Boss who called Wang to make arrangement for us to look at the area, the first to contact was Director Jiang. It can be seen that Director Wang does not look at us, but only our Boss. In his opinion, only Director Gu was qualified to talk to him directly. Secretary Wang came in person today and answered our questions which was more than enough on his part. Therefore, even if I give him a business card, he will return to the director Jiang, then I am not as self-aware, directly to Director Jiang...¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°...¡±

    Shit, the original business card has so many bends around? (#¡ã§¥¡ã)

    ¡°But Director Jiang already knows your phone number. Isn¡¯t giving them a business card excessive?¡± Lu Qiao asked again.

    Zhang Siyi waved his hand: ¡°Two boxes of business cards is two hundred. I have more than enough to give away. Anyway, it will let Director Jiang deepen his impression of me. He is Secretary Wang¡¯s aid. It¡¯s definitely not a bad thing to give him a good impression!¡±

    Lu Qiao waspletely convinced, silently in the heart of the cow ¨C hey, the city is deep, he wants to go back to the countryside!

    The two walked for an hour and saw a lot of newmercial malls. Although they were not as big as the ones in the big cities, they were also very good.

    However, Zhang Siyi found a strange phenomenon. They are already in the center of the city, but there aren¡¯t many people around. Most of the malls were empty. Themercial spaces were void of businesses. Store clerks weren¡¯ting forward with greetings.

    ¡°It¡¯s so.... empty.¡± Zhang Siyi said with feeling.

    ¡°Is it because of the workday?¡± Lu Qiao guessed.

    Zhang Siyi frowned. ¡°It shouldn¡¯t be. It¡¯s going to be a New Year soon. Of course, there are some people going to their jobs, but there should be many young and old alike toe buy things and prepare for the holiday.¡±

    Lu Qiao quickly thought of the reason for this: ¡°Ah, this is product of over-development.¡±

    Yes, a few years ago, stimted by risingmodity prices and rapid credit growth, many small and medium sized cities builtmercial buildings, shopping centers and office buildings, which led to an oversupply in the market.

    They realized now, Director Jiang only symbolically introduced them to the area. He was very proud of the development and local construction. However, they actually saw it in the first ce and found that the name was not true. Although themercial building was built, it was both unnecessary and stagnate. It seems that C-City is a typical example of over-development.

    Regardless of whether the local government is doing this in order to pursue political achievements or unrealistic GDP growth, this isn¡¯t good. Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart has been very upset about Director Wang views. He whispered: ¡°What new developments? Whatndmark office building? Is he not afraid that when it is built, the town will be poorer?¡±

    Thoughtful, Lu Qiao asked: ¡°How can the Secretary just ask for an office building on such arge piece ofnd and not make a n first? Does his misunderstand the process?¡±

    Zhang Siyi paused and said: ¡°Since he knows the workmanship of Borderless, I don¡¯t think he doesn¡¯t understand the problem. Although he wants an office building, he knows there will be some plot nning beforehand. He used the design fee of an office building to get ideas for plot nning. He is buying one to get the other for free.¡±

    Lu Qiao touched his chin and suddenly came over. He hit his thigh and said indignantly: ¡°I knew it! Just let him do something! Look at what base! Ha!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Silence for a while, both of them sighed.

    Even if they know the truth of the matter, like a doctor treating a patient regardless if they were good or evil, they have to the work as best as they can. This is basic professional curtesy.

    The two quickly took a taxi to the bus station, but taxi driver had an ident at arge pothole. Lu Qiao was so angry at the driver he quarreled with him. They had to get out to take another driver and pay an additional twelve dors. It was just a small matter to Zhang Siyi and he pulled Lu Qiao along. He was anxious to get to the station on time because he was the one that ordered the tickets back to Haicheng on the same day! However, tragedy still struck.

    In the car, they also looked at the time worried. They wanted to encourage the driver to go faster. The long-distance shuttle travel time is a controlled forty-five-minute journey; not too fast and not too slow. The two of them sprint thest one-hundred meters to the train tform, only to see the train pull away, gone. With only a few minutes of dispute, they just missed the train!

    Gasping for breath, Zhang Siyi held his knees.

    Lu Qiao began to thrash about scolding the driver: ¡°The shithead, bully us outsiders and let us miss the car!¡± When he was tired of scolding, he was dismayed: ¡°It¡¯s all my fault, I shouldn¡¯t have quarreled with him.¡± He lowered his head and felt guilty.

    ¡°It¡¯s not your fault, we wouldn¡¯t be toote if I didn¡¯t propose to shop......¡± Zhang Siyiforted him and waited for him to get up. ¡°Stop staring at the ticket. We really aren¡¯t going back.¡±

    Lu Qiao immediately remembered the line they said together in front of the development area andughed out loud: ¡°Ok now what?¡±

    Zhang Siyi is also a bit lost: ¡°Don¡¯t know......¡±

    Just then, his cell phone rang. Looking at the disy, Zhang Siyi was scared to answer, but he quickly picked up. He listened to the voice on the opposite end: ¡°Are you on your way home?¡±

    ¡°We, we ... we aren¡¯ting back.¡± (=_=)

    ¡°...... Hmm?¡±

    Listening to the rhetorical ¡°Um,¡± Zhang Siyi instinctively softened his voice, andined pitifully: ¡°Boss..... we just..... missed the train.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°.....¡±

 Chapter 54: Touched

    <h4>Chapter 54: Touched</h4>

    ____________________

    The high-speed railway station of C-City is a fairly cool mid-point station. Although it is less than six o¡¯clock, the train they missed is thest train that stops at this tform. This means that they have to stay overnight near here to wait until the next day to get back to Haicheng.

    Things like missing a high-speed rail seem small, but if a boss really wanted to be picky, one can be used for not having a sense of time. The time dy and economic loss caused by the change are linked to thepany¡¯s benefits. After all, Zhang Siyi is not an important person in thepany. He is just a neer who has been employed for less than a year. The tolerance for this kind of mistake will not be too high.

    Zhang Siyi grabbed the phone and was so nervous that he did not know the right words to say. This is the first experience Gu Yu gave him. Will his unreliable performance make Gu Yu think less of him? After a few moments, he heard Gu Yu¡¯s calming voice: ¡°Is there a hotel nearby?¡±

    Feeling anxious Zhang Siyi started to panic: ¡°I don¡¯t know. This station is quite remote. We rushed in after we got here and I didn¡¯t look around. I will go see it now.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Well, if there is a hotel nearby, stay there with Lu Qiao for one night. I will help you reserve the tickets for tomorrow¡¯s trip back home. If there is no hotel, ask someone if there is a car returning to the city. It¡¯s early enough that there should be cars avable. If not, don¡¯t panic. I will arrange a car to pick you up.¡±

    Listening to the calming voice of Gu Yu analysis of the situation, Zhang Siyi gradually felt relieved. Even though the other party¡¯s existence was just a phone call, a voice, Zhang Siyi felt greatly reassured that everything will be ok.

    Even though a situation like this isn¡¯t really a big deal, Zhang Siyi and Lu Qiao are stunned by the guilt of missing the train. Any clear-headed person would have picked themselves up and looked for an alternative answer to their problem.

    They quickly left the station to look around and sure enough, there is a guest house nearby. It looks rtively simple with a normal price. There is a vacancy, but Zhang Siyi is a little unhappy with the environment in the guest house. Nevertheless, he can¡¯t be picky in this situation. Lu Qiao is very happy to have a ce to sleep. Being boys, they aren¡¯t too worried about security.

    The two booked a standard room. After checking in, Zhang Siyi sent a message to Gu Yu, saying: ¡°I found a room in a nearby guest house.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Take a photo.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± A picture? (=////=)

    Zhang Siyi nced at Lu Qiao who had just taken off his shoes and climbed onto the bed. He walked over and sat side beside him.

    ¡°What are you doing? ¡°Lu Qiao saw Zhang Siyi raise his mobile phone. With his arm around Lu Qiao, grinning, and with a ¡°V¡± gesture he took a photo and sent it first to the Borderless Forbidden City group and then sent the photo to Gu Yu.

    Momentster, the phone was pinging with messages. Friends in the group reacted faster.

    LeLe: ¡°Wow! Sisters selfie, so loving!¡±

    Auntie Four: ¡°......¡±

    Xuan Xuan: ¡°Where are you?¡±

    Qiao Mei: ¡°On a business trip in C-City. We missed thest train back so I have to spend one night with Four.¡±

    Piggy: ¡°Four you went to open a room with Qiao Mei! You betrayed me! You don¡¯t love me anymore!¡±

    Auntie Four: ¡°Wait, What? When were we together?¡±

    Lu Qiao wasughing on the bed: ¡°Ha-ha-ha! Rest assured, Auntie Four I will be responsible for you!¡±

    Zhang Siyiughed and said: ¡°fuck off!¡±

    Zhang Si Yi saw 2 unread messages in the upper left corner of the Phone. He thought Gu Yu also replied so he quit the chat and checked the messages.

    Gu Yu: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°I am talking about the hotel photo.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Smiling so stupidly. I told you not to take selfies.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°It seems you are very happy and not at all regretful for missing the high-speed train.¡± [Smiles]

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡±

    Zhang Siyi gulped and held back for two seconds but eventually he couldn¡¯t hold back anymore and sent a kneeling cry emoji expression: ¡°We already know that we were wrong......¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Ok. Report what happened today from start to finish.¡±

    Zhang Siyi began to borate and told him what happened with the taxi causing a chain reaction to miss the high-speed train. He was really angry. If it wasn¡¯t for driver and bad luck, they wouldn¡¯t have missed the train!

    After listening to him, Gu Yu told him: ¡°This is a small matter, but it is a good lesson not to make ns in an idealized way. Next time, what if you returned to Haicheng and was expected to give a report or have a meeting? If you miss the ne, Party-A will not care. On the contrary, they will think that an architect without good time management skills isn¡¯t trustworthy.

    Zhang Siyi listened and did not dare to refute it. However, there were some grievances in his heart. This time, he and Lu Qiao came together. Why did Gu Yu only lecture himself?

    He remembered is the past, he hadined in his circle of friends and his colleagues that Gu Yu was always lecturing him all the time. He felt that he was not free. His colleagues advised him that Gu Yu¡¯s attention only indicated that he still needs to grow. If the work is done well, Gu Yu won¡¯t be too much trouble for him.

    Zhang Siyi looked across at Lu Qiao and saw him holding his mobile phoneughing. He didn¡¯t know what he was looking at... Lu Qiao¡¯s work is better than his? Gu Yu has nothing toment about?

    Looking down at the conversation interface with Gu Yu, Zhang Siyiforts himself. He regards this as Gu Yu¡¯s special care and replies: ¡°I will remember.¡±

    A few secondster, Gu Yu once again sent a ¡°small fox touches his head¡± expression, and Zhang Siyi was stunned. The little bit of feeling that had just been twitching in his heart seemed to bepletely dispelled by this expression.

    Gu Yu said again: ¡°Remember to have dinner, go to bed early, see you tomorrow.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...well, see you tomorrow.¡±

    Zhang Siyi did not know how big of a silly smile was on his face at the moment.

    The next day, Zhang Siyi and Lu Qiao returned to Haicheng with the earliest high-speed train. When they arrived at thepany, it was almost noon.

    Zhang Siyi returned to his desk and put down his backpack and camera. Bi Lele smirked at him and also Zhu Hongzhen also turn aside andughed. Zhang Siyi wondered: ¡°What?¡±

    Bi Lele: ¡°Hey, you will know when you see it!¡±

    Zhang Siyi was tired by a day and night business trip. The brain was a bit sluggish. He turned-on hisputer and opened thepany¡¯s website. This is a faint reminder. Wouldn¡¯t it be his own photo?

    The hunch is correct. After the webpage is disyed smoothly, at the top of the page, Zhang Siyi sees his stupid photo taken during the annual meeting and the beautiful photo of Gu Yu.

    ¡°Damn it!¡± Zhang Siyi cried: ¡°Why is my photo at the top!¡±

    Bi Leleughed and said: ¡°Ha-ha-ha, have you forgotten that the final winner of the photo contest is determined by online voting? The votes of the two photos of you and Gu Yu are the highest in the funny group and the serious group, so they appear at the top!¡±

    Zhang Siyi grabbed the mouse: ¡°Isn¡¯t the voting time starting after the new year? How can you vote when I am on a business trip!¡±

    Bi Lele shrugged: ¡°After the annual meeting. Anyway, it won¡¯t matter when you vote. The result will definitely be the same.¡±

    Zhang Siyi said at the table: ¡°Not if I can help it! If I¡¯m here I can at least prevent you from voting for me!¡±

    Bi Lele, Zhu Hongzhen, Yuan Zhicheng and other people around heard him and turned their heads with a scornful expression.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Is he too confident in his own appeal?

    After another nce at the total votes tallied thus far, Zhang Siyi discovered that they were far more than the following series of photos. It was simply ¡°leading ahead.¡±

    Just as Zhang Siyi was in the midst of the chaos, a familiar voice came suddenly behind him: ¡°Oh, it seems that we can win the first prize in the photographypetition together.¡±

    Zhang Siyi got goosebumps and his hair all over stood on end.

    At the annual meeting he did not dare say anything to his boss, but now he can¡¯t help it. Angry he raised his voice: ¡°Boss! How can you steal my picture!¡±

    Looking at the screen, Gu Yu raised his eyebrows in question and responded with an indifferent tone: ¡°Oh? Did you not also steal my picture?¡±

    Suddenly, everyone around quieted down. A few people turned to look at Zhang Siyi with an expression as if to say: Ah-Ha! It was you who also stole Gu Yu picture! It turns out that more than girls are obsessed with Gu Yu appearance.

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s cheeks were hot, and he opened his mouth and wanted to argue something, but his mind was nk and had nothing to say. Indeed, at that time Gu Yu didn¡¯t notice that he took his photo.

    Gu Yu looked at Zhang Siyi¡¯s flushed face, shy and embarrassed. His gentle eyes looked more intently and his smile widened. An irresistible charmed flowed from him.

    Looking at the real personpared to the picture is more radiant that it makes one want to surrender their soul. Suddenly, Gu Yuughed out, gently at first, but then it grew louder, overflowing, from the nasal cavity.

    He immediately raised his hand to cover his face and smiled. He stretched out another hand and stroked Zhang Siyi¡¯s head as if to pet him: ¡°Oh, don¡¯t mind the photo, work hard.¡±

    Watching the excitement from the sidelines, the group did not expect Gu Yu to reach out and do such a thing to Zhang Siyi. They all froze, bbergasted. A few girls had covered their mouths, muffled their voices ... Electrified, the air full of sweet current pumped out pink bubbles that went into everyone¡¯s heart.

    Stunned, Zhang Siyi mind is nk for a moment. His face is getting red, then dark red, then purple, and then poof, spontaneousbustion. His hair waspletely sted up. That kind of touched-head expression from WeChat isn¡¯t a problem, but in reality........(o////o) .........

 Chapter 55: Praise

    <h4>Chapter 55: Praise</h4>

    __________________

    After Gu Yu left, no one dare joke around with Zhang Siyi. That intimate ¡®touch-head¡¯ was like a deration, proiming Gu Yu¡¯s special teasing power over Zhang Siyi.

    Although he only said the phrase ¡°work hard¡± to Zhang Siyi, it caused everyone in the room to turn away. Later, if his colleagues talk to him, it would inevitably cause a failure to work hard and thus would be equivalent to viting the Boss¡¯s order. So, the crowd could only close their mouths and look at Aunt Four¡¯s red face with a strange look.

    After a long period of time, everyone was tacitly maintaining this strange silence. Even when Zhang Siyi got up to go to the toilet, the expressions of the crowd surrounding him, seemed to say ¡°Look! Gu Yu touched his head!¡±

    Zhang Siyi went to find Lu Qiao for information and walked around half of the office....

    Look left (¡û_¡û) ... Someone is peaking at him.

    Look right (¡ú_¡ú) ... Someone is peaking at him.

    A couple of girls followed him with their eyes, waiting for Zhang Siyi toe near.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Enough of you!

    It¡¯s not just touching his head. It was like he was touched by the Holy Grail. What¡¯s so weird about it!

    He walked to Lu Qiao and tapped the other¡¯s shoulder: ¡°Hey, show me the n before you...¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°hmm?¡± (¡Ñv¡Ñ)

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.....¡± You are all going to die!

    Sitting heavily onto his chair, Zhang Siyi sat back at his desk red faced. Ah! Work hard! Only work can make himpletely forget the feeling that his head was petted.

    In the afternoon, Zhang Siyipiled the information collected during his business trip to C-City. Recalling the learned experience from the design project of Z-City, he roughly divided the base plot.

    When concentrating on one thing, time always goes by very fast. Although it¡¯s the end of the work day, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t realize it. He was at his desk, intently looking down at the floor area ratio and various values ??to determine the specific area needed for the office building.

    Zhu Hongzhen smiled and said: ¡°Four, I¡¯m leaving for the night first!¡±

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t lift his head. He didn¡¯t want to look at the expression on his face. He casually put his hand up at random and waved: ¡°Goodnight!¡±

    This year, male colleagues seeing male colleagues being teased by their male bosses can reveal such a miserable smile.

    There are fewer and fewer people in the office. Zhang Siyi finally finished the indicator and started to draw his n. Just as he was focused on work, he heard Gu Yu¡¯s calm voice next to him: ¡°You haven¡¯t left yet?¡±

    Zhang Siyi instinctively became defensive: ¡°Well, I will be a little longer.¡±

    As he had always done in the past, Gu Yu leaned in close, one hand on his desk and the other at the back of Zhang Siyi chair then softly asked: ¡°How is it going?¡±

    Zhang Siyi was tense and even the lines drawn under the pen became stiff. He simply put down the pen and pushed the drawing to the side, and looked at Gu Yu. He silently hoped that Gu Yu would move a little to the side.

    Gu Yu did not move a muscle. He nced at the picture he drew and with a gentle ¡°Hmmm¡± he said: ¡°Today I spoke to Secretary Wang on the phone. He had a good opinion of you.¡±

    Hearing Gu Yu¡¯s whispering sensually in his ear, he felt happy in his heart for the praise, but also a little shy. Well, Lu Qiao was also working overtime. It was probably said low in order to avoid Lu Qiao from hearing it.

    Gu Yu also flipped through his notebook, looked at his records andpared the drawings he had drawn then asked again: ¡°Is the base height considered?¡±

    Zhang Siyi sighed and admitted his omission: ¡°No.¡±

    He vaguely remembers that the location of the base is lower than the ne of the main road which is not quite normal, but he felt that the matter is not something he needs to consider by himself. He hastened to check the original diagram of the base in CAD, which was good. All theyers had been opened and there was no base elevation on the top. Zhang Siyi was somewhat emboldened and said: ¡°It¡¯s not on the map.¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t you have to think about it? What about the drainage after that? The base is filled in as a whole?¡± Gu Yu pointed out a few issues and sighed: ¡°Don¡¯t you know Director Jiang contact information? Give him a call and let him survey the area as soon as possible otherwise the n can¡¯t be finished.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Fuck! Can you still do that?

    Gu Yu paused for a moment, then suddenly asked again: ¡°When are you going to return to Ningcheng?¡± Have you booked your ticket yet?

    This unprepared topic transfer startled Zhang Siyi. He paused and didn¡¯t react. Staring into space he still didn¡¯t answer and instead heard Gu Yu ask: ¡°Do you want to go back with me?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.....¡±

    This is like going home with Gu Yu for the New Year! o////o

    Moreover, Zhang Siyi found that not only the first few words, but also the words that Gu Yu said afterwards were very light... so soothing.

    So close, such a soft voice, a steady breath, and warm.... Zhang Siyi felt his insides start to burn up again. The thing that Fu Xinhui mentioned sprung to mind, and his heart immediately pounded in his chest with a violent ¡®dong-dong-dong¡¯ as if it was going to break through his skin.

    He wanted to escape but Gu Yu made him unable to resist: ¡°I, I have already bought a good ticket...¡± In a panic, Zhang Siyi subconsciously lied.

    Gu Yu calmly replied ¡°Oh¡± then asked: ¡°For what day and time?¡±

    Zhang Siyi spoke mechanically: ¡°New Year¡¯s Eve, ten o¡¯clock, ten and a half.¡±

    Gu Yu did not speak. After two seconds, he nodded and said, ¡°Okay.¡± Then he straightened up and took away the palm of his hand and went to Lu Qiao.

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart suddenly felt a sense of loss, and he was a little worried that Gu Yu would be angry for lying to him.

    But fortunately, a few minutester, after looking at Lu Qiao progress, Gu Yu turned and called his name: ¡°Zhang Siyi, stop first,e over so we can go to dinner together.¡±

    This is the meaning of Gu Yu to take the initiative to invite them to dinner! Like the first meal he had with Gu Yu, he took them downstairs to eat Japanese food. Lu Qiao was so excited that Zhang Siyi smacked his head and regretted the lie.

    In fact, they are from the same area so there really is no reason not to go back together. Gu Yu will not eat him. Why should he lie?

    Since there aren¡¯t lunch specials in the evening, Gu Yu let them look at the menu to order. As was before, Zhang Siyi wanted his favorite sizzling chicken rice and Gu Yu also requested the same hot spring egg beef rice. Never eating here before, Lu Qiao hesitated for a long time and finally ordered ramen under the rmendation of Zhang Siyi. Face up, Lu Qiao is at the side eating: ¡°Delicious! It is very delicious, but 48 yuan for a bowl of noodles is really expensive ah!¡±

    Zhang Siyi chuckled: ¡°Anyway it is Boss¡¯s treat so you do not need to spend your money.¡±

    Sucking the noodles greedily, Lu Qiao said: ¡°I feel like I¡¯m eating money. A mouthful of two dors...... Sluuurp!...... Well, that¡¯s another mouthful, five bucks.

    Zhang Siyi.: ¡°......¡±

    Gu Yu grinned at him and said: ¡°Work hard and eat well.¡±

    Lu Qiao pped his head and said: ¡°That¡¯s right! Eat enough to work! Yeah!¡±

    Zhang Siyi was also said to have worked hard. After the meal, the two returned to the office and added two hours of overtime. Gu Yu had been apanying them until 9:30 before they left work for the night.

    When Zhang Siyi finally came home and saw Fu Xinhui he said: ¡°Brother, I hardly ever see you. It¡¯s like every three autumns!¡±

    Fu Xinhui.: ¡°......¡±

    Since he is up early for work andes homete, he really has this feeling. Although they live under one roof,tely it¡¯s as though they are strangers passing through, unaware of each other. In the two days he hasn¡¯t seen the dog, he can tell that Cheer-Up has grown bigger.

    Fu Xinhui¡¯s mood today is quite good. After contemting for a few minutes, he told Zhang Siyi: ¡°I found a job.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was pleasantly surprised: ¡°Ah? Really! What job?¡±

    Fu Xinhui smiled and exined: ¡°I went to walk the dog a few days ago, and I met a girl who came back from France to study in the cosmetics industry.¡±

    Zhang Siyi squinted at him: ¡°Is she asking you to sell cosmetics?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Stupid, listen to me first.¡±

    Zhang Siyi poured himself a ss of juice in the kitchen: ¡°I¡¯m listening.¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Selling cosmetics is one of her jobs. She also manages a side job at a private club in Haicheng for quality single men and women to provide social activities.¡±

    The club now has more than 1000 fixed-event members. She hosts one to two events a week at random upscale locations from the Trade Center, Museums, famous vis and so on...¡±

    Zhang Siyi went to the sofa and sat down, urging: ¡°Quickly get to the point!¡±

    Fu Xinhui continued: ¡°She asked me to go in as part of the activities as one of the fixed male guests. The appearance fee is one thousand eight hundred yuan once every month as long as I go three or four times a month.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was first surprised by the appearance fee, but then he reacted and asked: ¡°Wait, this is like a blind date service!¡±

    Fu Xinhui lightly coughed: ¡°In fact, it is a disguised blind date club.¡±

    Zhang Siyi asked Fu Xinhui: ¡°What will you do?¡±

    Fu Xinhui said frankly: ¡°Yes. She said that the club needed some handsome men with strong backgrounds to attract people to participate in the events. After each event, they will post photos to WeChat and some social media.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What are their profits? Entrance Fees? Is there a catch?¡±

    Fu Xinhui shook his head and said: ¡°No, it is the activity fee. All the people who attend the party need to provide formal identification. They must pay the money, from three to five hundred, and more than one thousand. When the number of attendees is high, the fee will be lower. However, they asionally hold some elite social gatherings, and the staff will be limited to 50 or less. In this case, the fees will be higher.¡±

    Fu Xinhui gave him an ount, saying that every time this girl does an activity, her ie is tens of thousands. At present, her monthly ie has reached 200,000.

    Zhang Si Yi is shocked. Why are other people¡¯s money so fucking good! (#¡ã§¥¡ã)

    ¡°Now that you know the details of the events, are you still willing to go?¡± Worried Zhang Siyi frowned: ¡°And, don¡¯t be angry but I feel that the nature of this work is a bit like a Rent-Boy?¡±

 Chapter 56: Networking

    <h4>Chapter 56: Networking</h4>

    _______________________

    Fu Xinhui tried to kick Zhang Siyi. He retreated back to the corner of the sofa while shouting: ¡°She let you be a regr guest to attract female students to participate in special activities, but those female students don¡¯t know you. They areing to you based on your appearance and then you must apany them to drink while at the party. What about sleeping? If this isn¡¯t what a Rent-Boy is, then what is it!? Hey! Don¡¯t touch me! You said you weren¡¯t angry!¡±

    Fu Xinhui knocked Zhang Siyi over and got on top of him. In order to prevent him from getting away, he straddled him with one foot on the edge of the sofa and a knee on his thigh. Fu Xinhui pressed down on Zhang Siyi shoulders with his hands. Gnashing his teeth, Fu Xinhui yelled: ¡°You said I¡¯m a Rent-Boy? Let¡¯s see how good I am! I will take you first for practice!¡±

    Struggling, Zhang Siyi yelled at him: ¡°Fuck You! I¡¯m being honest!¡±

    While the two of them are yelling at each other making a scene, the door suddenly opened, both Jiang Hai and Tian stepped forward into the apartment calling for Fu Xinhui. They did not expect to see the scene on the sofa.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± (¡Ñ¡Ñ)

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°...¡± (=_=)

    Jiang Hai stepped back a small step and said with a smile: ¡°Oh, you, you... continue...¡±

    Tian Yujing also shyly squinted: ¡°That... we didn¡¯t know.... you are doing... that...¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    With such provocative evidence, it will be hard toe clean.

    Zhang Siyi rushed to exin: ¡°No, it¡¯s not what you think!¡±

    Fu Xinhui also nodded in a dignified position, then the two separated at the fastest speed, sitting at the two ends of the sofa, separated by a gap of up to one meter long, there is a sense of ambiguity.

    All red, Zhang Siyi¡¯s tried to exin: ¡°We were just ying casually!¡±

    Jiang Hai is quiet: ¡°....¡±

    Fu Xinhui nodded again, and then thought half of the point seemed to feel wrong. What is ¡°just ying¡±? He looked at Zhang Siyi with surprise: ¡°Is that fun?¡± After asking this sentence, Fu Xinhui realized that his question was also ambiguous.

    Jiang Hai has been thoroughly petrified. At this moment, his mind is like a field of thriving grass and a huge horse is running through it. ¨C I am stunned by my two former roommates!

    Tian Yujing face is red. Although a little shy, Zhang Siyi sees the same green light in her eyes that he has seen in Bi Lele¡¯s....

    ¡°No, no! We were just fooling around....¡± Zhang Siyi hung his head on the sofa and hit the back with his head.

    Fu Xinhui coughed a little and calmly said: ¡°Don¡¯t get me wrong. I just told him that I found a job and then I got upset over a little problem.¡±

    Jiang Hai nodded stiffly. It turned out that you got a job, so you are so excited that you wanted toe up to him on the sofa!

    Fu Xinhui inhaled and exhaled a few times. They seem to be digging a deeper grave.

    The atmosphere in the room is unprecedentedly different. As if there was a clear bubble safe-zone enchantment, Jiang Hai and Tian Yujian quietly stood at the entrance. If they go one step further, the gay light exuding from Fu Xinhui and Zhang Siyi will st them to smithereens.

    Tian Yujing saw that Jiang Hai was irritated and could not speak. She said: ¡°I am sorry, we did not intentionally bother you. Since we hadn¡¯t seen you for so long, and New Year¡¯s is approaching we thought to stop by....¡± Feeling guilty she continued: ¡°Hey, we should have called ahead of time.¡±

    Fu Xinhui didn¡¯t know how to exin it. At this moment, Tian Yujing suddenly screamed: ¡°It¡¯s so cute!¡± It turned out to be a Cheer-Up. All their attention was given to the two men, so they never noticed the dog. As if on cue, Cheer-Up walked over and sat near Tian Yujing.

    Tian Yujing was really stunned and bent down to pet him. Jiang Hai also regained some sense and asked, ¡°Hey? Do you have a dog?¡± As the atmosphere eased, Fu Xinhui and Zhang Siyi breathed a sigh of relief. It seems that this dog is not useless.

    ¡°Well, I have been raising it for more than a month,¡± Fu Xinhui got up and walked over to Jiang Hai. ¡°On the day you decided not to continue with rent, I got the dog.¡±

    ¡°You are handsome,¡± Jiang Hai smiled at the dog. Handing Fu Xinhui the fruit he had bought to them, he crouched down to pet the dog: ¡°This is a golden retriever, isn¡¯t it? It looks tame. What¡¯s his name?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°I named him Cheer-Up.¡±

    Jiang Hai: ¡°Cheer-Up? Ha-ha, good name, suitable for you.

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°....¡±

    Zhang Siyi also came over, scolding Cheer-Up: ¡°You might think he is cute but this stupid dog, he just pees everywhere! I have a score to settle with him!¡±

    Zhang Siyi has a pair of beautiful ck leather shoes he bought while in the UK. They fit perfectly and are superfortable. They are casual yet formal enough to be worn in almost any asion. Since he mainly wears them during the week, he doesn¡¯t regrly put them in the shoe closet. One morning, he hurried to work and put his shoes on and felt his foot get wet. Examining the shoe more closely, Zhang Siyi found it soaked with urine. One night of urination and the shoe was ruined by the dog which is equal to a pair of shoes scrapped. Zhang Siyi was so angry that day. He turned towards the dog and red at Cheer-Up with murderous intent.

    Listening to the reprimand, Cheer-Up leaned against Tian Yujing and leaned his butt against Zhang Siyi. Tian Yujing¡¯s heart has been won over: ¡°Zhang Siyi, don¡¯t be mean to it! It¡¯s just a small puppy.¡±

    Jiang Hai also helped: ¡°That is, you have to be patient and teach the puppy so he will be quiet and not disturb people....¡± Hey,e here boy, give uncle a hug!¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s mouth twitched, why did he suddenly feel that his friends came to visit Cheer-Up and not him? (=_=)

    Jiang Hai asked: ¡°Where does he sleep and eat?¡±

    Fu Xinhui pointed to the basin at the entrance of the bathroom: ¡°He will eat dog food and sleep in the living room on the sofa with a dog nket.¡±

    Jiang Hai nodded: ¡°It¡¯s just fine.¡±

    Zhang Siyi thought: If Fu Xinhui first told you that he is raising the dog in your room, let¡¯s see if you will say it is just fine!

    ying with Cheer-Up, Jiang Hai brought the conversation back to the beginning: ¡°You mentioned a job.... What is going on?¡± He went to sit on the sofa and listened to Fu Xinhui retell the story.

    Tian Yujian carried fruit to the kitchen with Zhang Siyi¡¯s help. After the fruit was sliced, they brought out a fruit tray and hot tea and joined the discussion. Rxing on the sofa Zhang Siyi put his feet up: ¡°As soon as I said he was like a Rent-Boy, he was furious and jumped at me. That¡¯s when you came inside and saw.¡±

    In his mind, Jiang Hai wanted to block the scene he just saw, but for his friend he continued: ¡°I don¡¯t think you are so short of money, right? So, what is it then? ¡°

    As this was his idea, he needed to exin it better. Fu Xinhui gently sighed: ¡°Yes, I do not care about the money. 1800 is not enough for me to buy a T-shirt. I only care about the long-term benefits this job could bring me. My family situation is also more or less what you mentioned, maybe Zhang Siyi knows a little more, but before that, my attitude to life is particrly negative.¡±

    Jiang Hai was nodding to express his considerable approval.

    Fu Xinhui raised his hands to wipe his face. Staring down at the coffee table he continued: ¡°Some days ago Zhang Siyi advised me to pull myself together. I thought he was right so the first thing I wanted to do was try and find a job, but to tell you the truth, there aren¡¯t many suitable jobs for me to do.¡±

    Jiang Hai nodded again: ¡°Yes, your profession has been vacant for half a year, and now it is the industry downturn, and at the end of the year, it is difficult to find a good job.¡±

    In the case of other industries, Fu Xinhui in addition to a slightly more fluent spoken English, can only rely on his looks, temperament and family background, but these things in the big city like Haicheng, with a fair amount ofpetition, are meaningless. A regrpany is looking at the definitive power of the applicant. Besides, because of his background, Fu Xinhui¡¯s starting point is so high, that his character won¡¯t be able to adapt to working at the bottom of a smallpany nine to five.

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°If I want a better starting point, I can only rely on my family or my parent¡¯s friends. I don¡¯t want to rely on them. Aside from my family background, I only know you. While you support me in the spirit, you are just starting out and can¡¯t help me elevate my starting point.¡±

    For his own weakness, Zhang Siyi suddenly felt a little ufortable. Like his friend, Shen Hao, from back home, he wanted to be able to extend an olive branch and give Fu Xinhui a leg up with an offer for definitive work and wages, but he doesn¡¯t have the power right now.

    Fu Xinhui paused, and then said: ¡°When I spoke with the girl, she told me there were only a few dozen people when she founded the Turtle club. In the beginning, she gathered the people around her regrly for parties. Later those people invited other friends, and those other friends brought more and soon enough, it led to couples. She recognized the business opportunity for this sort of thing.

    He looked at Zhang Siyi and said: ¡°Remember the two firms that were involved a few days ago after yourpany¡¯s annual meeting? You called me to go to KTV to sing and afterwards, several girls sent me WeChat messages....¡±

    Hearing the seriousness in Fu Xinhui tone, Zhang Siyi nodded. He only remembered his friend saying he wanted to get a dog to help himself cheer up. Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know Fu Xinhui would continue to think about the issue so earnestly.

    Fu Xinhui said: ¡°Well, even before that, I had doubts about the girls¡¯ offer, but after meeting people at KTV for your annual meeting, I understood what the Turtle Club is about. It is essentially the same thing.¡±

    Fu Xinhui slightly raised his eyes and looked at everyone: ¡°The girl has a monthly ie of several hundred thousand. What do you think depends on it? Does she have a high IQ or a strong background? It is nothing but awork of contacts built from scratch. Today, what are people? They are amodity, a business opportunity, they are money.¡±

    Everyone: ¡°...¡±

    Fu Xinhui firmly said: ¡°This is the reason why I promised her to do the job. If I want to stand on my own feet, I will have to establish my ownwork. In that club, most of the people who participate in the event are people with the same background as me. She is using me, and I am using her. This is the first step I took to change the status quo.¡±

 Chapter 57: Presentation

    <h4>Chapter 57: Presentation</h4>

    _________________________

    Listening to Fu Xinhui¡¯s exnation was awe-inspiring. At first, Zhang Siyi¡¯s worries were scattered. Knowing Fu Xinhui decadent upbringing, he didn¡¯t realize how much Fu Xinhui had to fight growing up. It¡¯s not really a brainless environment.

    Jiang Hai also agrees: ¡°You thought about it thoroughly. Indeed, the more contact you make with other people, the greater the chance a good opportunity will present themselves. Maybe you will make good friends there and you can get together and do something. Don¡¯t worry, take it step-by-step. When you have any need, don¡¯t be embarrassed ande talk to us. We won¡¯t stop the spirit to support this ability. Right, Zhang Siyi?¡±

    Feigning death, Zhang Siyi copsed on the couch like a dead fish: ¡°It¡¯s terrible to ask for money when there is none.¡±

    Jiang Hai: ¡°Hey!¡±

    For a while they continued to socialize and catch up with each other¡¯s lives. It wasn¡¯t toote when Jiang Hai and Tian Yujing left.

    Brushing his teeth before bed, Zhang Siyi suddenly remembered the lie that he said in front of Gu Yu. He quickly spit the foam, shut his mouth, pulled down his pants and sat on the toilet, took out his mobile phone and opened the high-speed rail booking app.

    New Year¡¯s Eve... and 10:30.... 10:30?

    ... Shit! There isn¡¯t a train at 10:30?! (#¡ã§¥¡ã)

    There was a ten o¡¯clock and there was an eleven o¡¯clock, but no half-passed train!

    Heart racing, Zhang Siyi started panicking. If Gu Yu also saw the train schedule on New Year¡¯s Eve, his poor lie would definitely be seen! Moreover, almost all the tickets on New Year¡¯s Eve have been sold out. Only the car at 10 o¡¯clock in the evening is empty... But there¡¯s no use crying over spilled milk!

    ¡°Oh ah...¡± Zhang Siyi was so anxious that everything was bound up. This isn¡¯t a good time to be feeling constipated!

    Squatting and pushing for a long time, Zhang Si Yi face is red. His ideas are as bottled up as his bowels. Finally, when things moved a long, he also got an idea.

    He thought of a wonderful way ¨C Zhang Siyi quickly opened WeChat and sent a message to Gu Yu: ¡°Boss, I told you that I have booked a ticket this evening. In fact, I was looking for a friend to help me book. I thought he booked it for me, but this evening when I asked, he said he forgot about it! So, I want to go back with you...¡±

    Feeling smug for his excuse, Zhang Siyi wiped his butt and put on his trousers. Wait a minute, the tickets for New Year¡¯s Eve are running low. What if he has already bought a ticket? Right, he rejected Gu Yu offer a few hours ago. The tickets were limited so normally he wouldn¡¯t dy getting one.... He uneasily waited for Gu¡¯s reply and began to worry again!

    Fortunately, Gu Yu quickly replied: ¡°Oh, hehe.¡±

    ...... Oh, hehe, what do you mean? Why does this ¡°hehe¡± feel like a taunt? (=_=)

    Gu Yu: ¡°I didn¡¯t buy a ticket.¡±

    Seeing his reply, Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart quieted down. He typed another message: ¡°I just looked at the schedule and the only avable time back to Ningcheng is at night. What should we do? Take a bus?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°No, I¡¯ll drive back.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.....¡± You got a car?

    Gu Xiao: ¡°Hmm.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.....¡± Shit! Gu Xiao owns a car! Then why doesn¡¯t he drive to work? Why didn¡¯t he drive when they went to visit the parking lot at the Union Center?

    Gu Yu didn¡¯t give him time to think: ¡°The traffic on the freeway is the worst during New Year¡¯s and in order to avoid it, we will leave very early.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What time?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Half passed Three. Can you get up?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± I¡¯m still sleeping at 3: 30! Just stay up all night!

    Gu Yu: ¡°In order to save time, I won¡¯te to get you in the morning. You can either travel to my apartment at three-thirty or stay over at my ce for the night.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart is pounding again. What to do.... At three-thirty, there is no subway, no bus, and it¡¯s even more impossible to get a taxi on New Year¡¯s Eve. Of course, thetter proposal is more convenient, but it¡¯s going to Gu¡¯s home.... stay with him for one night.... o////o

    Gu Yu: ¡°Well?¡± Have you decided?

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I¡¯ll go to your ce early.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Good.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Just the two of us?

    Gu Xiao: ¡°Who else do you wish to have?

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°No one. I was just asking....¡± &////&

    He originally thought that Gu Yu would bring his girlfriend back together, but if there were only two of them, wouldn¡¯t it mean that Gu Yu had to drive the trip twice? Although Zhang Siyi has a driver¡¯s license, he hasn¡¯t used it for a long time and isn¡¯t allowed to drive on the freeway at night.

    After their discussion, full of thoughts, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t sleep anymore.... The ce where Gu Yu lives. What is it like? Does his girlfriend live with him? What kind of car does he have? He doesn¡¯t normally wear designer clothing so probably like a Volkswagen or Toyota. (=_=)

    Zhang Siyi remembered the time at work at night when Gu Yu stood by his side and whispered in his ear. The distance was so close that he thought Gu Yu would kiss him. Ahhhhh! What to do? Alone together in Gu Yu¡¯s apartment. Alone together in Gu Yu¡¯s car... Ahhhhh! He couldn¡¯t bear to think about it any longer.

    Feeling like he is no longer like a normal straight man, Zhang Siyi hugged his pillow and rolled around on his bed, tangled and screaming. Zhang Siyi forced himself not to think about it. In the next few days, he concentrated on his work and finally finished the initial design of the C-City office building before the end of the year.

    Located on the most street-like location of the site, his design is an A-shaped tower with the stairs on the left and right sides stacked in a steppedyer. In order to ensure the height of the office building, several underground floors must be hollowed and used as parking lots. Lu Qiao¡¯s n also uses steps, but his design has steps that make a z-shaped on the n and the highest point reaches 15 floors.

    In order to avoid possible travel dys from holiday travelers, they took thepany¡¯s car instead of booking tickets on public transportation. On the twenty-eighth, two days before New Year¡¯s Eve, at seven in the morning, they left the mostly empty Borderless office and headed on their three-hour drive to C-City. They can report to the city government before ten-thirty, present their ns, have lunch, then drive back.

    Shortly after leaving, Zhang Siyi fell asleep. As the car pulled into the outskirts of C-City, he woke up. It was less than ten o¡¯clock. Surprised he eximed: ¡°Wow! The driver is master is at driving! So good!¡±

    The driver is a foreigner in his thirties who is also thepany¡¯s security guard. Heughed and said: ¡°You are myst passengers for the year. I¡¯m going home tomorrow for the holiday. Can you drive me? I¡¯m thinking about my home; my heart is like an arrow!¡± A few people in the carughed.

    Technically, they still have one more day of work tomorrow before the holiday officially starts. However, since many employees are already on vacation there is less need for all services to operate and thus, unrted personnel can go home early.

    Gu Yu sat in the front passenger seat and nced at Zhang Siyi through the rearview mirror smiling. He said: ¡°Zhang Siyi, we will arrive at the city government in a little bit. How about you give the presentation?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°... What?¡±

    Gu Yu reiterated once: ¡°You and Lu Qiao¡¯s n. You will go report itter.¡±

    Zhang Siyi felt blindsided. Isn¡¯t the reporting normally done by Gu Yu? He was still waited to appreciate Gu Yu¡¯s presentation demeanor, so he slept for the morning without thinking. Why did he suddenly ask him to go up and talk!

    Gloating, Lu Qiao quickly passed the responsibility onto Zhang Siyi: ¡°Great!¡±

    Feeling uneasy, Zhang Siyi hurriedly replied: ¡°Lu Qiao¡¯s n is not my doing. How can I speak for him?¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°No, no, no! You speak better than me. I think you speak for me very well!¡±

    Gu Yu exined: ¡°Although these two designs are made by you two alone, Borderless is a group. Remember, a report is not about you, but to represent all of us.¡±

    Lu Qiao echoed him: ¡°Yes, the Boss is giving you a good opportunity to practice presentations!¡±

    Ignoring Zhang Siyi¡¯s awful expression, Gu Yu looked at the time and said: ¡°We have about twenty minutes until we have to present our designs. While you are familiar with your own design, take this time to go over Lu Qiao ¡®s and ask him any questions while you still can.¡±

    The pressure Zhang Siyi feels increased. He secretly cursed Gu Yu for abusing himself. He heard him say: ¡°Speak well and the project will be decided upon. Tomorrow, you can take off early, ahead of the holiday.¡±

    Lu Qiao grabbed Zhang Siyi¡¯s arm and looked at him urgently: ¡°Auntie Four you have to fight! Ah! Quick! Look at my design! I will tell you about my ideas again! I¡¯m counting on you to have an early holiday!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    At the municipal government building, Director Jiang received a call in advance and was waiting for them. He enthusiastically led them upstairs into the conference room: ¡°I¡¯m really so sorry this is so close to the holiday. Sit first, I asked someone to bring tea and I¡¯ll call Secretary Wang.

    Gu Yu politely replied: ¡°Do not worry. We will get ready.¡±

    After a while, tea was brought to the room and Lu Qiao helped them connect theputer and projection equipment for the presentation.

    When Gu Yu came back from bathroom, he saw Zhang Siyi looking down at the designs. He went over and asked: ¡°Are you nervous?¡±

    How can Zhang Siyi not be nervous!? Although he has made reports before, they were only at his university to present his projects. This is his first time giving a presentation professionally and for the city government no less! What if it doesn¡¯t go well? He doesn¡¯t want to disgrace Gu Yu!

    Gu Yu smiled and patted him on the shoulder. He encouraged: ¡°Don¡¯t be afraid, I won¡¯t be idle.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°....¡±

    Soon, Secretary Wang came, along with another middle-aged man, who is said to be the deputy director of the local construction bureau. Several people introduced each other with a few words of greeting and then the report started.

    Director Wang saw that Zhang Siyi stood up and looked at him. Gu Yu immediately said: ¡°This is a young designer recently employee at Borderless. He graduated from the British Architecture program C, called Zhang Siyi and met with Wang Shist time. Because of the good meeting and positive feedback, he offered to report to you in my ce. I thought that I should give him a chance to practice. I humbly ask the officials to bear with me. You can rest assured that the office building design was in my full control. If you have any questions for Mr. Zhang that he doesn¡¯t know, I will answer.¡±

    Secretary Wang listened to Gu Yu¡¯s words andughed happily: ¡°So Mr. Zhang is a Western educated graduate ah? The times have changed! Director Gu is so good, The Assistant is certainly not so simple.¡± He looked at Zhang Siyi and encouraged him: ¡°Come Mr. Zhang, speak slowly. Don¡¯t be nervous.¡±

    In his mind Zhang Siyi spoke: ¡°What initiative did I take? Clearly, you forced me!¡±. When he turned to re at Gu Yu, he only saw Gu Yu¡¯s confident eyes. He gained strength from them and miraculously calmed down. Since he personally visited the designated renovation area and devoted himself wholeheartedly, now, the whole design n is like a picture on an HD TV; clearly disyed in Zhang Siyi¡¯s mind.

    He cleared his throat and said spoke firmly: ¡°Leaders, I am honored to represent Borderless Architectural Firm today to make a preliminary n report for the government office building in the city...¡±

 Chapter 58: Assistant

    <h4>Chapter 58: Assistant</h4>

    ____________________

    Having only discussed Lu Qiao¡¯s n while they were in the car before arriving, Zhang Siyi was very worried he wouldn¡¯t be able to present the n to its full potential. His impression of the experience today was rtively profound.

    Reporting on actual work is very different from presenting projects in University. While studying, the professor will pay great attention to the design ideas and process in order to guide the student¡¯s thought process in the right direction. However, officials are more concerned with the product and the costs associated with it. It¡¯s apparent that many times a decision is solely based on personal preferences and not based on its appearance or something that is practical and efficient. But no matter what, Zhang Siyi keeps in mind the words that the teacher said during his study; if your speech can¡¯t attract your audience, then your design is equal to failure.

    Zhang Siyi was very attentive to his audience while making the presentation. While each image was being projected, he made proper eye contact with the officials and looked for any reactions from them. If they seemed slightly distracted, Zhang Siyi could guess it wasn¡¯t as interesting, so he would quickly move onto the next image. With this method, the audience was in rapt attention and he sessfully introduced both design ns without interruptions.

    Just after speaking, the directors did not directly express their views. First, they asked Zhang Siyi questions. The first two questions were raised by the Secretary for the Construction Bureau. They were directed at Lu Qiao and Zhang Siyi¡¯s n. The problems were simple, so Zhang Siyi answered them one by one without problem, but then Secretary Wang asked a difficult question that stumped him.

    Director Wang took the a-shaped office building designed by Zhang Siyi and frowned. ¡°I feel that this is not high enough. Can you make it higher?¡±

    Hearing Secretary Wang¡¯s amateur question, Zhang Siyi wanted to vomit blood. He feels extremely irritated, but Zhang Siyi knows that the Secretary isn¡¯t trying to purposely antagonize him. He had the greatest urge to drop the whole notebook of ns on the man¡¯s fat, bald head. Thinking to himself: ¡°Your fucking building area is so big! I already gave you several additionalyers and it¡¯s not enough! How high do you want it to be!?¡±

    Zhang Siyi took a deep breath to center his thoughts. Just as he was about to say, ¡°can¡¯t¡±, Gu Yu interrupted him unexpectedly: ¡°Yes¡±.

    ¡°¡­..¡± Are you fucking kidding me!? (¨s#¡ã§¥¡ã)¨s

    They have already discussed this point during the design phase at work. Can you increase the height? Impossible! Director Wang immediately turned to Gu Yu and looked forward to his answer.

    Zhang Siyi noticed Gu Yu¡¯s pretending to turn over the task book deeply, and then looked up at them and asked seriously: ¡°Is the three thousand square meter maximum size of the building necessary? Since the building requirements are created by yourselves, can we increase the size? If you can, then it can definitely be taller!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­.¡±

    Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha! He didn¡¯t expect Gu Yu to put the ball into Secretary Wang¡¯s court by changing the conditions. Originally, he thought Gu Yu had a different resolution. Ha-ha-ha! He wants to pat Gu Yu on the back for being so witty.

    Secretary Wang thought for a moment: ¡°No. The area of the building is alreadyrge enough. Not counting the post office and bank, there are roughly one-hundred people using this office building.

    Zhang Siyi heard and was shocked!

    Before making this n, Gu Yu asked Zhang Siyi to check the per capita construction area index of the relevant spaces and government offices at all levels. Since the state has regtions, the office area at the bureau level must not exceed 24 square meters per capita and on the smaller end, the use area is 18 square meters. It is impossible for all the 100 people mentioned by Secretary Wang to be directors. Most ordinary employees can only enjoy an office area of ??5 square meters per person. Well, even if it is calcted ording to the director¡¯s standard, 100 people multiplied by 24 squares is 2,400 square meters which is still less than 3,000.

    Mahler Gobi, is this chief Wang the mother of Satan? For an exorbitantrge area to make evenrger is preposterous. It¡¯s too difficult to live and work in that environment. No wonder C-City is an empty city. The source is here!

    Gu Yu appears so calm, Zhang Siyi wonders if he is also mentally calcting and assessing the situation. After listening to Secretary Wang, Gu Yu asked puzzled: ¡°It¡¯s unreasonable with less than one-hundred users upying more than three-thousand meters. ording to your staff configuration and our current office floor nning, at least seven or eight floors are empty.¡±

    Secretary Wang chuckled out loud: ¡°So, after it is built, let¡¯s advertise and rent it! When the first fewyers are rented, we can upy the top!¡±

    He pointed to the a-shaped scheme, and finally gave the first opinion today: ¡°I think this program is quite good. I like it very much. A is the first letter in the English alphabet and it means good. The top of the A is small. When there are many independent offices, there is less room for each.

    Gu Yu nodded and said: ¡°Does the government have enough of a budget to cover the cost of this office building? The height of our design has reached the limit of the secondary fire rating of the civil office building. ording to the regtions, this should be the most economical way. If Secretary Wang wants it to be a little higher, then the whole building will have to be built ording to the first-ss fire resistance requirements of a type of high-rise building. It is necessary to increase the cost. If you feel that this is eptable, the design is very flexible. We can add steel columns directly to the floor and give you an intermediate overhead¡­.¡±

    ¡°No, no, no,¡± Secretary Wang wiped his sweat and interrupted Gu Yu. He strained a smile: ¡°This is already the most economical way. Why didn¡¯t you say so earlier!¡±

    Gu Yu smiled and continued: ¡°You did not ask. Secretary Wang, we must design it to be the most suitable for your standards.¡± He said, pointing to the slide. Zhang 3d¡¯s overview map and exined, ¡°In fact, when this fifteen-story building is built, it will look much higher.¡±

    Secretary Wang: ¡°Eh, why?¡±

    With his excellent salesman skills, Gu Yu continued to exin: ¡°I will give you an example. When you stand on the ground and look up at a skyscraper, do you think it is tall? The higher the building is, the more the top appears smaller as if it pierces the sky, right?¡± While talking, Gu Yu raised his hands a little part with his palms facing each other. He slowly tilted his fingertip inwards to touch and be an A-shape.

    Director Wang nodded again and again: ¡°Yes, yes, this is the truth!¡±

    Maintaining his hand position, Gu Yu smiled: ¡°The bottom of our design is much bigger than the top. When you look up at the building, the natural A-shape effect will superimpose itself onto the engineered A-shape effect making it appear even taller.

    At this moment, Director Wang has beenpletely taken away by Gu Yu¡¯s thoughts. He suddenly realized: ¡°It turned out to be the case!¡±

    Listening on the side, Zhang Siyi admired Gu Yu¡¯s art of speech.

    From the very beginning, Gu Yu repeatedly proposed conditions that they couldn¡¯t change. Then when the officials felt hopeless, he suddenly gave them an alternative solution which made the atmosphere turn around. Secretary Wang also followed suit.

    Zhang Siyi thought carefully. If you change the order of the propositions, the officials probably wouldn¡¯t have been able to ept it. If the visual effect was proposed first, the officials might not want something perceived as false. However, when they were backed into a corner by Gu Yu questions, they naturally would feel upset and thus, an alternate resolution is achieved.

    Gu Yu said to Wang, ¡°When it ispleted, if Secretary Wang feels that the height is still not enough, we can add a little extra height to the top of the building with a LED advertising screen or something like arge steel frame cap. These aren¡¯t counted in the structural height¡±

    Secretary Wang put a smile on his face and picked a n on the spot: ¡°OK, do it ording to this n!¡±

    Zhang Siyi was staring intently at Gu Yu and felt his admiration grow.

    ¡°And who¡¯s is it¡­ Mr. Zhang!¡±,ughing, Secretary Wang¡¯s voice pulled back Zhang Siyi¡¯s thoughts: ¡°And to think Mr. Zhang was so nervous. You have a promising future!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­.¡±

    The atmosphere in the conference room was rxed at once. Everyone stood up and shook hands and thanked each other.

    Secretary Wang touched his stomach: ¡°Gu Yu, you have made a long and hard report to us without a break for two hours. Bring your assistants and let¡¯s go have a meal together.¡±

    Several leaders went downstairs first. Lu Qiao picked up the notebook brought by thepany with the help of the secretary. Seeing that Zhang Siyi was still sitting on the side, he walked over and touched his elbow: ¡°So?¡±

    ¡°I¡­¡± Zhang Siyi pointed to his nose, andter he said, ¡°They chose my n?¡± (¡Ñ_¡Ñ)

    Lu Qiao nodded: ¡°yes!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡± % £¤#@¡­¡­¡±

    (#¡ã§¥¡ã) ¡­¡­ (¡Ñ_¡Ñ) ¡­¡­ (¨Rw¨Q)

    No, no, he needs to calm down! (&_&)

    Ah, ah¡­ I can¡¯t calm downpletely!!! ~\(¨R¨Œ¨Q)/~

    Although Secretary Wang was an idiot, his n was chosen!!!

    Wait, if Zhang Siyi own n is selected, does it mean that Lu Qiao¡¯s n fell short? Will he be upset?

    Zhang Siyi quickly put away his proud smile, pretending to ask Lu Qiao modestly: ¡°Well, I was super nervous, do you think I spoke well?¡±¡±

    Lu Qiao gave a thumbs up and seriously praised him: ¡°It was really great! I really admired you. Fortunately, the boss let you go up for me. You won the battle and this olddy was willing to go down!¡±

    Seeing Lu Qiao positive spirit and eptance, Zhang Siyi smiled again. He excitedly grabbed Lu Qiao¡¯s shoulder: ¡°Then we can work on the details of my project together!¡±

    Lu Qiao¡¯s small body was shaken by Zhang Siyi, and he wrinkled his face in pain: ¡°The king is defeated and willing to serve you!¡±

    The two talked andughed in the underground parking area. Gu Yu stood by the car waiting for them. He held his arm and smiled at Zhang Siyi¡¯s direction, urging: ¡°The little assistant, how slow! Hurry it up. Let¡¯s eat.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­.¡±

 Chapter 59: Assistant

    <h4>Chapter 59: Assistant</h4>

    _______________________

    Feeling ecstatic, Zhang Siyi¡¯s face was hot and his heart was sweet. He rushed over to get into the car with Lu Qiao following. Gu Yu gently patted Lu Qiao shoulder and encouraged him: ¡°You have done very well.¡±

    Lu Qiao sped his hands into one fist and with a praying motion he looked brightly at Gu Yu: ¡°Then we have a holiday tomorrow?¡±

    Nodding, Gu Yu said: ¡°Let¡¯s go! When we get back to thepany will be able to pack up things in the afternoon.¡± Lowering his voice, he said: ¡°In fact, every employee who stays until thest day can get a red envelope of 500 yuan with approval. I¡¯ll let them give it to you in advance.¡±

    ¡°Yeah!¡± Lu Qiao excitedly jumped into the car and punched Zhang Siyi in the shoulder.¡±

    ¡°Ow! ow!¡±¡­¡­ You¡¯re crazy!¡±

    As usual, the Chinese meal destination was arranged by the City officials and unlike previously, they went to the local hotel located in the center of the city. Perhaps for the Secretary, the feast in the hotel is more formal and ssier, ??but Zhang Siyi, who is used to eating at hotels, feels that the meal isn¡¯t as good as a homemade one.

    After the meal, they rushed back to Haicheng and arrived at thepany in the evening. Lu Qiao was first to pack up his things and receive the red envelope for New Year¡¯s then he said goodbye to Zhang Siyi. The added holiday days are counted after the year and the next meeting won¡¯t be until after the Lantern festival.

    While packing up his desk, Zhang Siyi was thinking about Gu Yu proposition and payed attention to the movement behind him. Does he discuss his stay over with Gu Yu? When does he go to his house? Do they eat dinner together? Where will he sleep? Does he need to bring anything? And so on. He has been waiting for Gu Yu toe out first so he can ask in a more roundabout way.

    When Gu Yu left his office, he saw Zhang Siyi motionless at his desk: ¡°Why haven¡¯t you gone back?¡± Zhang Siyi hurriedly got up, opened his mouth to say something. Gu Yu didn¡¯t give him the chance to respond. He raised his eyebrows in question: ¡±Or do you want toe home with me today?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­ I didn¡¯t!¡±

    Why can this guy say such flirtatious things without batting an eyelid!?

    Gu Yan smiled and walked with Zhang Siyi together out of the office. He said: ¡°Go back home and rest in the evening. Tomorrow get up and pack your luggage then clean the house. Since the holiday time is long and the weather in Haicheng is humid, make sure to wash and pack up the linens so they will be ready to use when you return.¡±

    Zhang Siyi listened in silence, inexplicably feeling that Gu Yu¡¯s words were beyond the scope of a boss¡¯s concern, but more like a close brother, or a master¡­ cough. ¡°I know.¡± Hemented, interrupting him.

    Gu Li immediately stopped. He didn¡¯t realize he was talking to Zhang Siyi. He smiled and said: ¡°I have forgotten that you have lived here for so many years and your self-care ability should still be there.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    As the two entered the elevator, Gu Yu continued: ¡°I have a younger ssmate, who is very smart, but an idiot. Last year, he graduated and went to Haicheng to rent a small house. The winter months aren¡¯t like the capital. He doesn¡¯t pay much attention to personal hygiene. Last year, he returned to his hometown of Shandong. When he came back, he called me and said that his family¡¯s quilt pillows were all hairy and green.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Hey!¡±

    Thinking of the scene, convulsing, Gu Yuughed out loud.

    Zhang Siyi was alsoughing at the same time. Seeing Gu Yu like this, Zhang Siyi knew that his concerns are not only directed at himself. Zhang Siyi thinks he probably is like this with everyone.

    Exiting the building, Gu Yu said: ¡°OK, when you are finished tomorrow, give me a call,¡± and waved his hand goodbye to him.

    Zhang Siyi returned home and went downstairs with Fu Xinhui to eat and talk about the New Year¡¯s n.

    ¡°When are you going back to your own house? You¡¯re supposed to be there for the new year, aren¡¯t you?¡± Asked Zhang Siyi.

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Of course. I went back yesterday, but we haven¡¯t had our meal yet, so I waited for you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi smiled and said: ¡°What are you, my mother? You didn¡¯t need to wait for me. What about Cheer-Up?¡±

    Fu Xinhui nced at him and addressed him without reproach: ¡°I¡¯ll bring him with me by car.¡± Although his sister hates dogs and his mother has some allergies he is uncertain. However, since Cheer-Up is still small, and he isn¡¯t shedding much, Fu Xinhui thinks it¡¯ll work out fine, especially if dog stays in his room.

    After he finished his thoughts, he asked about Zhang Siyi¡¯s ns. When hearing Zhang Siyi was going back with Gu Yu to Ningcheng, he didn¡¯t say anything about it. He only nodded and offered a toast: ¡°Happy New Year in advance!¡±

    Zhang Siyi raised his Cup: ¡°Well, Happy New Year! Wishing us all the best in theing year!

    Early the next morning, while Zhang Siyi was still asleep, Fu Xinhui took Cheer-Up and left first. Like Gu Yu said, he cleaned up everything. After hanging up his washed clothes and bedding to dry on a rack in the living room, it was three o¡¯clock in the afternoon. At this point, he felt is was still too early to call Gu Yu. Instead he checked over the apartment once more then rummaged through his closet to take out his most handsome and expensive down jacket. Thinking about New Years, he went to take a hot bath. When he was finished it was close to five o¡¯clock, almost time for dinner and a good time to call Gu Yu.

    When the phone rang twice, it was connected, and Zhang Siyi said he was all packed and ready to leave.

    Gu Yu asked: ¡°Do you have a lot of luggage? Do you want me to pick you up?¡±

    Surprised Zhang Siyi replied: ¡°No I have a roller-suitcase. I¡¯ll take a taxi over.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°OK, I send the address to you over WeChat.¡±

    Zhang Siyi opened the phone and looked at the message he sent: ¡°xxx road xx get far Mountain Garden 28.¡±

    Zhang Siyi opened the phone and looked at the message that Gu Yu sent him: ¡°Zhong Road xx, 28 Yuanshan Garden¡±

    Shit! Yuanshan Garden? Isn¡¯t that the famous vi area of ??Haicheng?

    Last time, when Gu Yu mentioned the area where he lived, Zhang Siyi vaguely associated it with Yuanshan Garden. I didn¡¯t expect it to be there!

    The section of the garden was built in the 1920s and 1930s. It belonged to the border crossing area and there were many foreign nationals and celebrities living there. The vis of Yuanshan Gardenbine Chinese style with national architectural styles. There are some unique features. Some of the celebrities¡¯ former residences have been developed and reorganized into local cultural and tourist attractions. They are also open to the public. This street is often used as a backdrop in photography shoots and films.

    However, most of the houses there belong to the government. They are leased to merchants ormercial businesses by the government. Even if they have money, they may not be able to live there. Remembering Gu Yu mentioning it¡¯s his friend¡¯s house, Zhang Siyi is surprised. Does Gu Yu¡¯s friend have such a background?

    Soon the taxi came, and he was on his way. Gu Yu sent him a message. The house isn¡¯t easy to find, so he will wait outside on the street for him.

    All the way from his ce to Gu Yu¡¯s, Zhang Siyi follows the navigation. His curiosity is piqued. After thest turn, he sees Gu Yu wearing a blue-grey coat standing on the side of the road in the distance. Behind him is a is a Chinese-style mansion with French neossical style. The pure white walls, exquisite wall columns and engraved line corners make the perfect scenery for a perfect picture of the most handsome person.

    Seeing Zhang Siyi getting out of the care, Gu Yu waved at him. Following Gu Yu, they finally arrived at building 28. The Shikumen style entrance is very small and crowded in the middle by the two adjacent buildings so it¡¯s difficult to find.

    After entering the gate, there was a small yard with moss climbing up the stone walls and a stone road. At 5 o¡¯clock in the evening, it was a little dark. Zhang Siyi looked around in a circle and vaguely saw a big water tank in the corner of the yard. Nothing else was clear. Gu Yu has already opened the door to greet him. Entering the door to change shoes, Gu Yu put on a pair of elegant cotton ones and passed another to him. He took his suitcase and ced it on the wall.

    Zhang Siyi is like a cat who tentatively enters new territory. He is in deep thought and curiously asks: ¡°What about your friend?¡±

    Gu Yu said: ¡°What friend?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I thought you told me you were living in a friend¡¯s House.¡±

    Gu Yu crossed his arms and replied: ¡°The house is his, but he doesn¡¯t live here. I live alone.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡­¡±

    Gu Yu took off his coat and hung it on the hanger. He turned to go inside: ¡°OK,e in, don¡¯t be like a thief standing in the door.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡­¡±

    Unlike Zhang Siyi¡¯s imagination, this old vi is not a stepping stone that will squeak with muddy gray walls that have not been painted for a few years. It looks like it has been renovated recently.

    The floor is covered with carpets, and the in fabric sofa in the living room has no TV. Instead, it is a row of bookshelves. Standing on the side of the warm-colored floormp, the coloryout of the space is veryfortable, and ites from the designer¡¯s hand.

    There are a few reeds and cattails in the ck long bottle in the corner, which is quite beautiful.

    Zhang Siyi turned his head and found a calligraphy word hanging on the wall. It was the first part of the sentence that was hung in Gu Yu¡¯s office. Seeing these words, his tension suddenly increased. It remined him of standing in Gu Yu office waiting for his evaluation and criticism of his own work. It didn¡¯t make Zhang Siyi particrly feel rxed. He hasn¡¯t quite digested the fact that, Zhang Siyi ispletely inside Gu Yu¡¯s territory. Thinking he is surrounded by all things Gu Yu; his heart is racing again! o////o

    He doesn¡¯t know what temperature the room is, but he is feeling hot. He put his schoolbag down and unzipped his jacket while silently scolding himself: ¡°Stupid, this isn¡¯t the office. Gu Yu is not your boss. Think of him as an ordinary friend. Stop being so nervous!¡±

    Gu Yu washed his hands and slowly rolled up his high sleeves while watching Zhang Siyi and asked: ¡°What do you want to eat? Can I cook for you?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡±

    So good, so gentle, the tenderness, such care¡­¡­ Zhang Siyi feels the full force of Gu Yu¡¯s charm.

    ¡°I, I¡­ will it be too much trouble for you? We can eat outside instead.¡± Zhang Siyi stammered.

    Gu Yu replied: ¡°These two days, the restaurants outside have been closed. Anyway, I have some ingredients in the refrigerator. If you don¡¯t mind¡­¡±

    ¡°I-I, of course I don¡¯t mind!

    Zhang Siyi was anxious to take a stand. Gu Xiao nodded, smiled and asked: ¡°Then you sit on your own for a while?¡±

    Zhang Siyi politely: ¡°Do you want to help?¡±

    Under normal circumstances, Zhang Siyi felt that the host would refuse the help of the guests. I didn¡¯t expect Gu Yu to simply bow down and said, ¡°Well, thene over and help me wash the dishes.¡±

    ¡­. What!? I¡¯m just saying it to be polite! Motherfucker!¡± ¡­¡­ Damn it!

    Zhang Siyi took off his hat and jacket and walked over to the kitchen. Since the kitchen was not equipped with warm water equipment, his hands were frozen after washing the dishes for ten minutes.

    When his hands started to warm up again after finishing the wash, Zhang Siyi felt like it was almost OK. However, Gu Yu did not give him a break and handed him three eggs: ¡°Break the eggs.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± (¨s#¡ã§¥¡ã) How can you do this! Aren¡¯t you supposed to cook for me?

 Chapter 60: Brother

    <h4>Chapter 60: Brother</h4>

    _____________________

    Since he was directed to work in session, Zhang Siyi was too embarrassed to leave the kitchen so he stood by fearing that Gu Yu would ask him for more help.

    There isn¡¯t a lot of food; a few green vegetables, a potato, three eggs, some pork, a tomato and some herbs. Zhang Siyi can¡¯t imagine what you can make with so few ingredients.

    Gu Yu took the potatoes in his hands, contemting his next move and said, ¡°Cooking and designing are simr. It¡¯s just a game ofbinations and permutations.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°???¡±

    Gu Yu picked up the kitchen knife and started cutting the potatoes into pieces. He spoke: ¡°There are so different ways to use the ingredients one needs to decide what is the best use of the resource, so none is wasted. Zhang Siyi, if you are the chef with these ingredients, what would you do?¡±

    Mind void of any answers, Zhang Siyi looked nkly at him. There is a rtionship between food and design? Is this a test? As the past has proven, Zhang Siyi suspected this is some sort of test. In order to avoid digging himself a huge pit, he wants to say: ¡°You are so good, then you do it!¡± ...Yes! He can say that!

    However, Gu Yu asked, and Zhang Siyi could only obediently answer. He contemted the question for a few moments and thought of simple dishes then reluctantly said: ¡°Tomato scrambled eggs, fried potatoes, fried vegetables, braised pork.¡± It seems that the ingredients can only do this.

    ¡°That¡¯s all you can do with these little ingredients.¡± Gu Yu smiled andmented: ¡°Is it really good to make tomato scrambled eggs with only one tomato and threerge eggs?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°....¡± It doesn¡¯t matter how suitable it is, you can still eat it!

    Gu Yu cut the potatoes, took the pork belly and put it in his hand and measured it. He said: ¡°If the meat is thoroughly cooked, it will shrink. If it was a different cut of meat it would be the same size.¡± Gu Yu circled a rice bowl.

    Zhang Siyi saw Gu Yu looking at himself grinning as if Gu Yu was ridiculing him. Zhang Siyi wanted to scream. You said that you are doing it for me!

    Gu Yu put the meat on the cutting board. With a kitchen knife he cut four quarters, and then cut the remaining three-quarters into pieces, and the potatoes seemed to be exactly one to one. Then he sliced the quarter of the meat he measured and ced it next to the evenly beaten eggs. Finally, he cut the tomato into small pieces and put it in a small bowl then ced it next to the egg. Watching Gu Yu Zhang Siyi still doesn¡¯t understandpletely.

    While he was prepping the ingredients, Gu Yu put a pot of water on the stove to boil. From the top of the cab, he took out a box of starch and gave it to Zhang Siyi.

    ¡°Hey, do you want this to thicken or use it to coat the meat?¡± Zhang Siyi asked.

    Gu Yu gawked at him: ¡°You know all this?¡± Looks like you can cook, too.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Shit! Exposed!

    Gu Yu was very happy and handed him the boiled meat piece directly to him: ¡°I¡¯ll leave the coating to you.¡±

    Starch has the effect of tenderizing meat. If the raw meat is coated in starch and then fried, the taste will be smoother and more tender. However, too much on the meat will cause the starch to be a paste wrapped around the meat and thus ruining the taste.

    At Gu Yu¡¯smand, Zhang Siyi clenched his jaw and felt that he was way toofortable at telling him what to do.

    With a ¡®sizzle¡¯, Gu Yu began making the first dish; fried eggs with minced meat.

    The strips of meat that was coated in starch was ced on the bottom of the pot to be fried crispy. Then, green onion, cooking wine and soy sauce was added to the pan. Lastly, half the egg liquid was dropped into the pan and the kitchen was overflowing with a pleasant aroma.

    When Zhang Siyi turned around, he saw Gu Yu turning the pot to tten the eggs, and the expression of concentration was the same as when he was designing. Even though it was hot, and the kitchen became smoky, the scene before Zhang Siyi made him think that Gu Yu looked gentler and more amiable.

    The golden minced omelet was ced on the side of the pot, but Gu Yu didn¡¯t stop there. He grabbed the meat prepared by Zhang Siyi to make the next dish and started braising the potato slices.

    Watching him for a little while, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t help but ask: ¡°When did you learn to cook?¡±

    The roar from the range hood was loud and Gu Yu did not hear clearly. Zhang Siyi got closer and asked again.

    Gu Yu smiled and said: ¡°From an early age.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°How young were you?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°In Junior high school. My parents were very busy at that time, so I did my own cooking.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was shocked. At such a young age he was already self-reliant. Not only was Gu Yu cooking for himself every day, but he also took the number 1 position in high school and entered Big T University. Compared to himself, as a child with nothing to worry about, there was never anything for him to do!

    Gu Yu said again: ¡°I have a younger sister that is one year younger than you. When I was in junior high school, she was only in elementary school. She had to rely on me to cook for her.¡±

    Zhang Siyi gawked: ¡°You have a sister!? What about your family?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Yes. My parents were fined a lot of money, so I always joked that she was buying food to deliver.¡±

    That being said, Zhang Siyi found that when Gu Yu mentioned his sister, both his tone and expression were gentle.

    None of these dishes added vinegar, but Zhang Siyi smelled something sour... Why didn¡¯t he have a big brother like Gu Yu?

    Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°So, what is she doing now?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°My sister? She is still in college.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Where is she studying? What program?¡±

    This time, Gu Yu did not answer right away. He put in some garlic and stirred the green vegetables before turning his head to look at Zhang Siyi. He asked, ¡°I am so curious. Do you want to be my brother-inw?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°............¡± Fuck off!

    Finally, with the rest of the egg and tomato, Gu Yu made a small bowl of tomato soup for two.

    In less than an hour, three dishes and one soup were brought to the table by Zhang Siyi. The seemingly too few ingredients were transformed into a hearty meal prepared by Gu Yu.

    Zhang Siyi looked at the table covered in fragrant food. Mouth salivating, stomach rumbling; can¡¯t wait to eat: ¡°Boss! Come eat¡±

    Gu Yu washed his hands, suddenly remembered what, and from the cupboard under the bucket he removed an old wine jar.

    Outside the kitchen, Zhang Siyi did not wait for his response and instead ran back over and asked: ¡°What are you doing?¡±

    He saw Gu Yu put a small pot on the gas stove and ignite it. There was a slight smell of distiller¡¯s grains in the air, and it gradually became thicker and thicker.

    ¡°What did you just call me?¡± Gu Yu asked.

    ¡°Ah?¡± Zhang Siyi was curious about what he was doing so he wasn¡¯t really thinking about it deeply. With a half-hearted reply he said ¡°Boss?¡±

    While holding the handle of the pot, he wasn¡¯t is a hurry to adjust the stove temperature. He raised is brow: ¡°In private you are also calling me Boss?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Ah? Isn¡¯t that your name? Than what do I call you?¡±

    Watching Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu grinned with a faint smile and stated: ¡°Call me Gege**.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± .....o////o.....

    When Gu Yu says such things to him in all seriousness Zhang Siyi is confused. Does he really want to be called brother? Is he flirting? Or is he joking? What does he really want? Zhang Siyi felt ufortable and blushed than changed the topic: ¡°What are you cooking?¡±

    Trying to change the subject in this way is too obvious. Gu Yu saw him turn bright red, but luckily for Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu didn¡¯t continue to tease him and answered truthfully:¡± Since its cold, I¡¯m preparing a hot drink for us to warm up.¡±

    Zhang Siyi inhaled deeply through his nose and smelled the wine. His eyes were getting brighter and brighter: ¡°What kind of wine is this? It smells good! What supermarket is it from?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°It¡¯s homemade rice wine made by me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi looked at Gu Yu like a rare animal and was surprised: ¡°You can still make wine?¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s so hard about making rice wine? It can be brewed with glutinous rice and koji.¡± Gu Yu briefly told him about the process of brewing rice wine, what type of rice, cooking, cooling, mixing..... A process for people who have not been exposed to brewing at all is extremelyplex. However, in Gu Yu¡¯s view it¡¯s as easy to do as making rice with a rice cooker. So simple!

    Zhang Siyi is really curious: ¡°You are usually very busy with work stayingte in thepany. Where is there so much time?¡±

    Gu Yu took the stained chopsticks and dipped them into the wine to test the temperature again. He turned off the fire and answered Zhang Siyi: ¡°I¡¯m not chatting with friends online.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    This man really does not forget to point out his faults all the time! Since he got to work, he rarely chatted with his friends on social media anymore!

    Finally, it¡¯s time to eat dinner. Gu Yu took two small sses out and poured the wine. He put the hot pan on a wood block on the table and a handmade cotton pad was used to keep the wine warm.

    After gently tapping the sses for a toast, Zhang Siyi was going to say a few words of thanks, but he didn¡¯t expect Gu Yu to immediately drink the whole ss.

    ¡°Hey, the temperature is just right.¡± Gu Yu whispered.

    Well, Zhang Siyi is not convinced. He put the wine ss to his lips to test it. The temperature of the wine is slightly higher than that of his tongue. Swallowing the wine, it tastes sweet and intoxicating. When the cup goes down, only the limbs are warm. After a few more words, it seemed like Gu Yu didn¡¯t want to talk while eating, so Zhang Siyi quietly ate his meal.

    Initially, Zhang Siyi thought he would be very nervous eating with Gu Yu. He didn¡¯t expect the atmosphere to be so rxed.

    This is quite different from the ease of eating with Fu Xinhui. When together with Fu Xinhui, they will talk a lot about things. It is better to say that they are eating through the process of talking.

    However, eating with Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi feels that he is enjoying the meal itself. With every sip of wine, he drinks and every dish he tastes he is over filled with happiness.

    Regardless of whether the instion in the old house is very good or not, Zhang Siyi can hear the howling wind outside. When the north wind gusts, it whistles through the gaps between the houses. But their environment in which they were located was so warm that even the expression on Gu Yu face was warm and beautiful. When he met the other person eyes, it was like he could see through time.

    This is his first time in half a year to experience this feeling. He didn¡¯t when Fu Xinhui and Jiang Hai rented a house together. He didn¡¯t when he got payed the first time. He didn¡¯t when he received his first bonus. Although he is optimistic, in his heart, he always felt restless and uneasy.

    For the first time, he felt calm and stability and it was because of the simple meal that Gu Yu cooked for him. At this moment, it seems that no matter how windy and rainy outside, as long as he is with Gu Yu, he will not be afraid of anything.

    Immersed in the sense of security, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t want this moment to end.

 Chapter 61: Stray Cats

    <h4>Chapter 61: Stray Cats</h4>

    ________________________

    While sipping his wine, for three quarters of an hour Zhang Siyi was enjoying his moment. Sitting at the table, he couldn¡¯t stop himself from catching glimpses of Gu Yu¡¯s handsome profile. Now, feeling hazy from the wine, squinting his eyes, he was trying to focus on Gu Yu who was also looking at him.

    Gu Yu couldn¡¯t help himself fromughing at Zhang Siyi puzzled expression while squinting at him. He got his ss, stood up and signaled to Zhang Siyi: ¡°Time for the dishes.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°???¡± What is this!? Telling a guest to wash the dishes?

    Gu Yu saw Zhang Siyi¡¯s resistant face andzily raised his eyebrows in question. With a unique criticism to the tone of his voice he said: ¡°Why after I cooked for you, do you not want to wash the dishes?¡±

    Conditioned as a child, Zhang Siyi stood up and tidies up the chopsticks and tableware, but his face was still reluctant. The atmosphere of the meal was so good, he didn¡¯t want it to end. Since he momentarily forgot Gu Yu¡¯s status, like a child he petntlyined: ¡°Who is the one asking a guest to wash the dishes!¡±

    Casting a sidelong nce, Gu Yu questioned him in disbelief: ¡°Do you really think of yourself as a guest?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± If I¡¯m not a guest, then what am I?

    Gu Yu took the bowls to the kitchen together with Zhang Siyi: ¡°When you are the master of the family, does everything have to be served by others? I have a rule here. After you eat, you help wash the dishes.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I just helped you when you were cooking!¡±

    Gu Yu hands on the empty bowl: ¡°Am I not also helping you?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡±

    Zhang Siyi opened the faucet and was frozen by the cold water. His previousforting and warm feelings were instantly dispelled. He angrily said: ¡°The water is too cold!¡±

    Gu Yu wiped the table down and brought over the remaining dishes to wash. He heard Zhang Siyi¡¯sint and snorted then he took the previously boiled water and dumped it into the sink, warming the temperature and in a low voice said: ¡°So spoiled.¡±

    With his hand in the water and the kitchen being cramped, Gu Yu was standing right next time him. Clearly Gu Yu criticized him, however Zhang Siyi is oblivious to the words and only listened to his soft, gentle tone causing his body to tingle with numbness. Now with hot water, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t feel so tormented.

    ¡°Completely wash the dishes clean. Then, carefully ce them directly on the drying rack. Don¡¯t be haphazard about it.¡± Instructed Gu Yu.

    ¡°....¡± Ask so much, why not wash it yourself!

    ¡°Hey, don¡¯t bang the bowls. What kind of washing is this? The tes will all be chipped.¡±

    ¡°........¡± One time!

    ¡°Hey, don¡¯t forget to wash the rag!¡±

    ¡°..............¡± Annoying! (¨s¨FÃó¡¯)¨s

    Once the washing was done, without hesitation, Zhang Siyi walked to the sofa and sat down. Since he did the work, he made himselffortable. Gu Yu boiled some water on the side of the coffee table. He took a tea jar made of bamboo wood from the bookshelf behind him and put a few small pieces of tea in the teapot.

    ¡°What kind of tea is it?¡± Zhang Siyi said curiously.

    ¡°Pu¡¯er. Drink a little of it. It helps with digestion.¡± Gu Yu said.

    Zhang Siyi watched Gu Yu¡¯s skillfully prepare the tea and couldn¡¯t help but sigh with emotion: ¡°A day to nourish the soul.¡±

    Gu Yu faintly smiled and whispered: ¡°If you live, you must always pursue it...¡± Then he slowly poured a cup of tea for Zhang Siyi.

    Listening to his words, Zhang Siyi thought about Borderless in a new light then thought about Gu Yu¡¯s simple, but exquisite day. Gu Yu not only pursues his work, but he obviously pursues his life. Inparison, every day after work, in addition to chatting with Fu Xinhui, Zhang Siyi spends a few hours on the inte watching social media. With some introspection, he felt confused.

    Awake now after two cups of tea, while reflecting on his usual time wasting behavior, he suddenly heard a rustling sound. ¡°What is that?¡± He craned his neck to figure out where the sound wasing from.

    ustomed to the noise, Gu Yu poured himself a cup a tea and tly replied: ¡°It is a cat.¡±

    Zhang Siyi widened his eyes: ¡°Cat? Do you have a cat?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not mine. It¡¯s a stray cat,¡± Gu Yu replied. Seeing Zhang Siyi looking around, he asked: ¡°Do you want to see it?¡±

    Zhang Siyi stood up: ¡°Where is it?¡±

    With his arm, Gu Yu pushed aside the floor curtains in the living room and revealed a row of sliding ss doors. There was a small yard outside with an elevated patio space covered with grey-red tiles!

    Gu Yu pointed to the corner of the yard and said: ¡°There, see it?¡±

    By the dim light of the floormp on the sofa, Zhang Siyi vaguely saw a wooden house in the corner of the yard. There were food bowls on the ground. Two stray cats, alerted to the change in environment, twisted their bodies towards the light. He couldn¡¯t tell one of the cat¡¯s coloring, but the other was ck with green eyes reflected in the twilight.

    For a while, they looked at Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu with tension, feeling threatened. Then, they went back to their business knowing there was no danger.

    Zhang Siyi was both surprised and curious: ¡°How did the catse in?¡±

    Gu Yu pointed to the canopy hole at the top of the outside wall: ¡°From that hole there.¡±

    Zhang Siyi nodded. He saw a small wooden house and the food bowl: ¡°Have you been feeding them?¡±

    Gu Yu folded his arms across his chest and said slowly: ¡°Last year in July, during a typhoon, the awning top blew off. I was very busy for a while with projects, so I put off finding someone to fix it. While reading a book in the living room, one rainy night, I heard a scratching noise. I thought it was a thief trying to break in and waited patiently in the living room. I finally moved the curtains and saw a cat pressed up against the ss grooming itself.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°It didn¡¯t run?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°I just watched. I didn¡¯t make any effort to go near him and didn¡¯t scare it. Why would he run? The cat looked at me for a while then continued to lick himself and ignore me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi thought that the scene of a stray cat ignoring Gu Yu was a bit funny. ¡°And after?¡±

    Gu Yu shrugged: ¡°I went back to my book and ignored the cat.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    If this is the end of the story, he will give the storyteller a zero!

    Zhang Siyi said: ¡°That¡¯s it? It was all wet. Why didn¡¯t you help it!¡±

    Feeling like he was being used, Gu Yu logically replied: ¡°It will groom itself. What is there for me to help? Besides, cats are very alert and it¡¯s not familiar with me. If I try to give the cat something, he might run away. At least there is safe shelter here.¡±

    ¡± ......Well, that makes sense. And then what?¡± Zhang Siyi asked.

    ¡°Afterwards, the cat started to be a regr visitor and in ten days I bought some cat food and put it outside. Then it came over to eat regrly.¡± It seemed to be a rather heartfelt story, however when Gu Yu squinted his eyes and grinned, the illusion ended. With a higher animal sense of dominance and control towards a lower one, he said: ¡°These little things... Once they feel the environment is safe, they be defenseless and stupid. The cat doesn¡¯t even know when the invisible rope has been tied around its neck.¡±

    When Zhang Siyi heard this, he instinctively shivered and instantly remembered Liang Xuiying¡¯s ¡°ck belly, bad water¡±ments he said about Gu Yu.

    He quickly looked at the corner of the patio with the small wooden house and cat food and persuaded himself to think that no matter how many bad waters are in Gu¡¯s stomach, the nature of a person who is willing to provide food and shelter to stray cats is always kind. (=_=)

    ¡°Is that a wooden house for them to sleep in?¡± Zhang Siyi asked.

    ¡°Well, at first it only asionally came over for the night and ate some cat food. About two months ago, I found the cat bringing in a partner.¡± Gu Yu pointed to the cats: ¡°That ck cat was the first and the other is itspanion. I began to think this little guy found a wife and seemed happy. Since the weather was turning colder, I thought I would make a special wedding room for the both.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was surprised: ¡°Oh! You made this house!¡¯

    Gu Yu nodded, but he quickly scoffed: ¡°But these two little cats have never gone inside to sleep! It¡¯s confusing since they rather sleep together on the cold tiles.¡±

    Although Zhang Siyi wanted tough, he doesn¡¯t make a peep. He finds the situation ironic. The grand architect who personally built a small house is unappreciated and ignored.

    Reminding himself, Gu Yu mumbled: ¡°While I¡¯m gone over the holiday period, I¡¯ll make sure to leave them with more food.¡±

    Zhang Siyi heart warmed up and confirmed his judgment. Gu Yu rarely shows people what he is like underneath his ¡°Boss¡± fa?ade. Today Zhang Siyi ate a meal made by Gu Yu. Drank homemade wine with Gu Yu. Drank tea served to him by Gu Yu. He heard the story of his stray cats... through these details today, Zhang Siyi felt the life that was Gu Yu. This unreachable person has suddenly be the neighbor¡¯s elder brother.

    The people around Gu Yu see him with the highest regard and at work, he pays close attention to everything and takes care of his subordinates. At present, Zhang Siyi feels Gu Yu is very near to his heart. Which he realizes isn¡¯t beating at the normal speed......

    The two men looked again for a moment then Gu Yu let the curtains fall and returned to the coffee table to take the cups away into the kitchen. He poured the cold tea down the drain. Zhang Siyi asked, ¡°You aren¡¯t going to finish it?¡±

    ¡°When the tea is cold, it hurts the stomach. We must get up early tomorrow. If you drink too much, you won¡¯t be able to sleep.¡± Gu Yu looked at the time and asked: ¡°It¡¯s nine o¡¯clock, are you going to sleep?¡±

    Since they nned on an early start in the morning, going to bed early sounds good. Zhang Siyi nodded: ¡°Where am I going to sleep?¡±

    ¡°There are two rooms upstairs, one is my bedroom, the other is a guest room, but the room has been unupied for a long time, and there are a lot of storage boxes. Expressionless Gu Yu tly said: ¡°So, either sleep on the sofa, or sleep with me. Choose one yourself.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡±

 Chapter 62: Pretend

    <h4>Chapter 62: Pretend</h4>

    ______________________

    ¡°Sleep, sleep on the couch!¡± Zhang Siyi blurted out without hesitation.

    ¡°OK¡± Gu Yu nodded and went upstairs to get a nket for him. Zhang Siyi felt that he had made the right choice. He isn¡¯t so familiar with Gu Yu. As a guest, who would sleep in the same bed as the owner on the first visit? That would be too embarrassing!

    When he brought out a summer quilt, Zhang Siyi balked: ¡°That nket!?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°One is not enough?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Do you have more?¡±... Shit! It¡¯s such a cold day. Gu Yu wants to freeze him!

    Gu Yan raised his eyebrows: ¡°I live alone so I don¡¯t have extras.¡±

    Zhang Siyi hurriedly followed up: ¡°But you invited me to stay over knowing you only had this!?¡±

    With conviction, Gu Xiao answered him: ¡°I didn¡¯t think you would mind staying with me. How would I know your skin is so thin?¡± And then, full of ridicule, Gu Yu expelled a ¡°heh¡±.

    Riled up, Zhang Siyi is about to freak out, but suddenly a thought popped into his head. He and Gu Yu are straight men so why can¡¯t they sleep on a bed? He used to sleep in a bed together with Fu Xinhui when they traveled so why is this any different? That¡¯s right! Zhang Siyi, you have a rock for a brain!

    Narrowing his eyes and puffing his cheeks to make a¡± who is afraid of who ¡± expression, Zhang Siyi clenched his fists and eximed: ¡°I¡¯ll sleep with you!¡± Once his mind epted his own logic, he was a little enthusiastic. He finally came to Gu Yu¡¯s home. Of course, he is curious about Gu Yu¡¯s house and bedroom. His female colleagues will all be so jealous!

    Gu Yu hadn¡¯t yet put the quilt down before hearing Zhang Siyi change his mind. He turned and said: ¡°Come with me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi picked up his backpack and followed him. Gu Yu asked: ¡°Do you want to take a shower?¡±

    Zhang Siyi defensively replied: ¡°No, I washed at home.¡±

    Gu Yu chuckled, and although he said nothing, theughter made Zhang Siyi nervous. His emotions are getting all mixed up again. ¡°But I have to wash my face and brush my teeth. Is there a bathroom?¡±

    Pointing, Gu Yu replied: ¡°Yes, there.¡±

    The first thing Zhang Siyi saw when he got to the top of the stairs was the treadmill at the end of the corridor facing a small window iyed with a woodenttice. Behind him, he saw an open floor n simr to the one downstairs, however, the simrities ended there. The floor was raised on a tform with tatami style mats covering it. Through ss doors next to it, there was a small open-air garden. Resting on the mats was a long, wooden antique table and on the table was a chessboard. With only a glimpse, Zhang Siyi recognized how elegant Gu Yu lifestyle must be.

    Indeed, there were only two rooms upstairs. The door to one of the rooms was shut, while the other was ajar. Between the rooms was a bathroom. Still holding the quilt, Gu Yu walked into one of the rooms and Zhang Siyi slowly followed. With eyes forward scanning the area left and right, like a snail that stretched its tentacles to probe the space in front, collecting information, Zhang Siyi tentatively passed through the threshold into Gu Yu¡¯s bedroom.

    The bedroom is quite big, at least thirty or forty square meters, with a double bed about one meter wide centered against a wall. On one of the side walls, there is arge white desk covered in felt with neatly ced calligraphy brushes and pens in a rack on the desktop.

    Just as Zhang Siyi was turning his head, he caught sight of something familiar. The stark contrast of the pumpkinntern was quite eye-catching in his room. Not only the bright color, but also the crazy face carved into it was vastly different from the quiet elegance of his surroundings.

    Gu Yu put down the quilt and turned around to notice that Zhang Siyi was staring at the pumpkin. He smiled and said: ¡°That is the one you carved.¡±

    Of course, he knew that this is what he did, but it has been more than three months, and even the best of pumpkins would be rotten by now! Looking at the brightly colored pumpkinntern, Zhang Siyi was as shocked as if he saw a dead body that was buried in the ground for three months unchanged!

    ¡°How? Why it not rotten!?¡± He dropped his bag to look closer and found that the jack-ontern was locked in a transparent acrylic sealed box.

    ......but even so, it¡¯s just a pumpkin! It¡¯s not supposed to be like that!

    Gu Yu exined: ¡°I applied an anti-corrosive paint on the surface of the pumpkin and asked a friend who studied chemistry to seal it in a box with nitrogen in theboratory.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was surprised: ¡°This box is filled with nitrogen?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Hmm.¡±

    Zhang Siyi mood is in turmoil: ¡°Is this necessary? It¡¯s just a pumpkin!¡±

    Gu Yu asked: ¡°I want to cherish the things I like. Why is it unnecessary?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Although Gu Yu¡¯s ¡°like¡± is with regards to the jack-ontern, he gets the feeling that he is also ¡°cherished¡±. This illusion makes his heart surge madly, both happy and afraid.

    Gu Yu looked at Zhang Siyi in the eyes and smiled. ¡°You gave it to me so it¡¯s mine now. I want to know how to do it, ok?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± What do you mean, ¡°how do you want to do it?¡± You make it clear to me!

    ¡°All right, never mind that. Come wash your face.¡± Gu Yu said and went out.

    Zhang Siyi had no time to think about it longer. He hurriedly followed and pulled out his own toiletries from his bag. Gu Yu showed him how to turn on the hot water. He saw Zhang Siyi pull out several bottles from his bag and questioned ¡°What are those?¡±

    Startled by his question, Zhang Siyi tly responded: ¡°Face cleanser, toner, face cream...¡±

    Gu Yu frowned: ¡°You need all that to wash your face?¡±

    Zhang Siyi lifted an eyebrow and thought hisment was strange: ¡°You don¡¯t need them?¡±

    When he was in college, most of the guys with money were using skin care products. Unless it was someone who didn¡¯t care at all about his personal care and image, they used facial cleanser as much as shaving. He learned a lot from Fu Xinhui.

    Gu Yu pointed to a single tube of ¡°Dabao¡± on the shelf and said, ¡°My sister bought it for me. I don¡¯t use it very much.¡±

    Zhang Siyi shocked: ¡°You don¡¯t regrly use facial products...... Why is your skin so good!?¡±

    That¡¯s not scientific! These days you can¡¯tpare yourself to a male TV star because they are applying facial masks more diligently then women are. Even if Zhang Siyi has a great foundation, he has never stopped using skin care products since going to college, especially in the city areas, where ayer of dirty film gets on his skin. Can you wash oil clean with water?

    He turned to inspect Gu Yu¡¯s smooth skin and couldn¡¯t find anything wrong. Zhang Siyi was suspicious. He absolutely did not believe Gu Yu did nothing!

    Gu Yu¡¯s thin lips slightly opened to give him two words: ¡°Natural beauty.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Taking a tube of facial cream from Zhang Siyi¡¯s hand, Gu Yu looked at it then looked at Zhang Siyi and taunted: ¡°Washing your face is soplicated. No wonder you look like a pretty boy.¡±

    Now provoked, Zhang Siyi grabbed his things from Gu Yu¡¯s hands and forcefully pushed him out of the room: ¡°Get out! I want to wash!¡±

    Laughing, Gu Yu walked away.

    Feeling irritated, Zhang Siyi rubbed his cheeks and told himself in the mirror, you are a man!

    While waiting for Zhang Siyi to finish washing in the bathroom, heid the quilt on the bed. He opened the air conditioner and said to Zhang Siyi: ¡°Since I have to go downstairs to finish cleaning up and then take a shower, go to sleep first. I¡¯ll be awhile.¡±

    With a ¡°mmmmm¡±, Zhang Siyi bowed slightly as Gu Yu leisurely exited the room. He went over to the bed in a trance and inspected it. The whole bed is covered with a thick nket on the top and underneath there are two lighter weight quilts with a division in the middle. Ah! Great!

    Zhang Siyi took off his sweater and pants and put it on the bedside table. He picked a side of the bed and trying not to mess up the bedding on both sides, he gently got under the covers.

    After he hadid down and packed the covers around him like a cocoon, he was afraid to move.

    Since Gu Yu is absent, Zhang Siyi curiously looked around the room for a while. He saw the cactusmp that he gave to Gu Yu on the bedside table on the opposite side of the bed. Also, there were two moleskin ck sketchbooks that hemonly saw Gu Yu use.

    With great determination, Zhang Siyi suppressed his urge to peek at the books. Trying to convince himself to sleep, he shrank deeper into the quilt. It¡¯s already nine and a half and only five and a half hours left to sleep...

    Go to sleep, go to sleep... aaaaahhhhhhh... I can¡¯t sleep at all! o////o

    He can¡¯t stop his thoughts: Gu Yu¡¯s room. Gu Yu¡¯s bed. Gu Yu¡¯s quilt. Ohohoh.... All parts of Zhang Siyi are getting excited. Why would that happen!? Am I subconsciously adoring Gu Yu? Yes, that¡¯s right! It must be like this! Gu Yu is the idol figure in high school! That¡¯s why he¡¯s so excited! The age of youthful worship has passed. Think of Gu Yu like an ordinary person, a neighbor, a big brother.... Bro, what are you excited about? Get down there!

    ............

    ......

    About half an hourter, Gu Yu returned to the room after bathing. On one side of the bed, half of a fluffy head was revealed. It seems like Zhang Siyi was already asleep. He softly walked to the bed with a light foot and looked at the sketchbook on the bedside table. He paused for a minute and sighed iprehensibly. Sitting on the bed, Gu Yu was preparing to fold back the quilt to get under the covers when he suddenly found the half-revealed head shrinking inside the quilt further.

    Gu Yu: ¡°...¡± Heid down on the bed under the covers and asked in a low voice: ¡°Are you still awake?¡±

    Zhang Siyi, who is pretending to sleep ¡°......¡± Why is the sheep he counted for a long time still so excited!

    Gu Yu asked again: ¡°... Asleep?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± What to do! Pretend not to hear him? Continue counting sheep? After a few seconds, there was a gentle, regr snoring on the side.

    Gu Yu: ¡°.........¡±

    Except for Zhang Siyi¡¯s ¡°snoring¡±, the room was quiet for a long-time.

    When he thought there was no more movement next to him, he gently stopped his ¡°snoring¡± and slowly stuck his head out from under the quilt and sucked in two deep breaths. Shit! It was so suffocating under there.

    With a sensuous voice suddenly sounding low in Zhang Siyi ear, Gu Yu said: ¡°I knew you were pretending to sleep.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

 Chapter 63: Night Talk

    <h4>Chapter 63: Night Talk</h4>

    ____________________________

    Gu Yu asked softly: ¡°What¡¯s the matter, can¡¯t sleep?¡±

    In order to ease the sweet yet awkward situation, Zhang Siyi wanted to continue to y dumb, but after listening to the gentle voice of Gu Yu, he suddenly decided to give up.

    ¡°Hmm ...¡± In his mind, Zhang Siyi was frantic to find an excuse to save himself from embarrassment. Luckily, Gu Yu solved the problem for him.

    Gu Yu smiled and softly said: ¡°Since I can¡¯t sleep, let¡¯s talk for a while.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What do you want to talk about?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Whatever you want to ask.¡±

    ¡°Really?¡± Zhang Siyi¡¯s clenched his hands repeatedly along the sides of his body, both excited and nervous.

    Gu Yu did not affirm or deny Zhang Siyi¡¯s question, but instead he smiled and said: ¡°I know that you are very curious about me.¡±

    Although he wants to deny Gu Yu¡¯s assertion, Zhang Siyi is so curious about him, he is dyeing to ask him questions. He has been feeling emotionally tangled for a while now and he can¡¯t resist forging ahead. ¡°Whose house is this?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°A real estate businessman who my father knew in my early years.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I thought you said he was your friend.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°He is my friend now.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Well... Does he charge you rent?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Nope.¡±

    Zhang Siyi eximed: ¡°Wow! So good!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Nothing is free. Even though he doesn¡¯t charge me rent, I owe him in favors. If he needs me to design something for him in the future, I must help, and I will not charge him architectural fees.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Oh...... So, when did you start living here?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°After getting my master¡¯s degree, I came to Haicheng.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°So, two years ago?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Exactly, it has been two years and eight months in this house, but 11 years total in Haicheng. Since this house is located in Yuanshan Garden area, it is difficult to rent formercial use. My friends took me to see the ce and asked me to help him renovate it for rental. It hadn¡¯t been renovated for ten years, but I liked it, so I spent a half year working on while living here.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°No wonder the look is quite new... Did you design the interior yourself?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Hmm.¡±

    Zhang Siyi paused and suddenly wanted to ask Gu Yu about what his father does, but he was worried it wasn¡¯t appropriate to ask. However, Gu Yu himself said that he could ask anything and since he was in his own home, it should be fine!

    ¡°I heard you say you are an architect because of your father. Is your father an architect?¡± Zhang Siyi asked.

    Gu Yu: ¡°Oh, yes, but he is different from the architects of our time. His work is more like engineering.¡±

    Listening to Gu Yu¡¯s answer without hesitation, Zhang Siyi was not satisfied, but his inner gossip was getting stronger and stronger.

    He also wants to ask about his mother, and his sister, and the girl who he saw holding Gu Yu at that time in KTV.... Just when Zhang Siyi was so eager to use this momentum to continue drilling him, Gu Yu suddenly said: ¡°Isn¡¯t it a little unfair if you are the one only asking?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Wait, Wait, Wait! I only asked you a few questions!

    Gu Yu: ¡°Why don¡¯t you let me ask some?¡±

    Zhang Siyi clenched his fists on his chest: ¡°Wha..., what do you want to know?¡±

    Contemting the issue, Gu Yu was silence for a long while then sighed and said: ¡°But there isn¡¯t much to be curious about. You are too simple. I basically know everything about you when I look through your circle of friends on social media.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± How can this be!

    Giving himself some leeway, Gu Yu asked: ¡°How about a game?¡±

    Zhang Siyi saw the hope of continuing to gossip and immediately said: ¡°What game?¡±

    Gu Yu suggested: ¡°Truth or Dare?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Yes! Gu Yu, will actually y this type of game too?

    ¡°If you keep asking me mundane questions, if you don¡¯t fall asleep, I will.¡± Gu Yu said and then yawned in a timely manner before he continued. ¡°It¡¯s simple. Ask a difficult question and who can¡¯t answer will have to do what the other requested.¡±

    Hearing the word ¡°difficult¡±, Zhang Siyi was ashamed to be excited! Although he had a faint sense of crisis in his heart and his mind seems to have forgotten Gu Yu¡¯s ck-belly nature, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t pass up this temptation to find answers. He wanted to continue gossiping. Especially those specific questions rted to Zhang Siyi difficult problems.... oh... (¡î _¡î)

    ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll y!¡± Zhang Siyi readily agreed, but he still made some precautionary measures.¡± If you choose a dare, it can¡¯t be too risky.¡±

    Before, while at University in the UK, Zhang Siyi and several Chinese students often yed this game. Some of the people¡¯s risk-taking requirements were simple like eating wrapping paper or uploading a stupid dance on social media, but some were quite severe. Zhang Siyi remembered one time when a boy was asked to drink toilet water and another time a boy was asked to go to the dorm lobby naked. He genuinely did not care for this type of tricky trick.

    Fortunately, Gu Yu clearly stated: ¡°No, we limit the conditions. The scope of the Dare must not leave this bed. It is only between you and me. It must be something that the other party can do.¡±

    Zhang Siyi breathed a sigh of relief and felt at ease. What can possibly be done in this bed with just the two of them? Together, they will be able to prevent idents from being exposed. Very good!

    Gu Yu continued to exin: ¡°I have two requirements. One, you must dere in advance. Two, you can¡¯t lie on a Truth and you can¡¯t cheat on a Dare.¡±

    Zhang Siyi agreed to the conditions: ¡°Hmm, ok!¡±

    Gu Yu followed up with: ¡°Otherwise, the bonus will be deducted.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.....¡± I already promised and you still threaten me with your identity of a boss!

    Gu Yu: ¡°Well, let¡¯s get started ... Do you want to ask first?¡±

    After so many conditions wereid out, like a tantalizing, desert locked in a ss case, finally, it was opened for him. However, there are so many questions to ask and he felt so tangled he doesn¡¯t know where to start! Forget it, first ask the one you just thought of ¡ª

    ¡°Last Christmas when we met at KTV, was the girl holding your arm your girlfriend?¡±

    Seeing Gu Yu burst outughing, Zhang Siyi was a bit confounded. How is this question funny?

    ¡°No.¡± Gu Yu quickly answered.

    Zhang Siyi realized after the fact that he asked a stupid question. He should have asked directly who the girl was.

    ¡°It¡¯s my turn?¡± Gu Yu indulged him for a moment and asked: ¡°Just now, the same thing. How many objects have you had?¡±

    ¡°Just one.¡± Zhang Siyi also answered very quickly, although it was a bit strange. The wording in Gu Yu¡¯s question is ¡°object¡± rather than ¡°girlfriend¡±. The word ¡°object¡± sounds like the old market of thest century.

    ¡°Who was that girl?¡± Zhang Siyi then asked what he wanted to know.

    Gu Yu: ¡°My sister.¡±

    Zhang Siyi suddenly realized, ah, she is the sister of Gu Yu! It¡¯s no wonder she is so beautiful. Gu¡¯s family¡¯s genes are so good!

    Gu Yu appraised Zhang Siyi with a smile: ¡°Why do you care about her?¡±

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know at which point he seemingly offended Gu Yu. Anxious to make amends, he quickly replied: ¡°I don¡¯t. I just wanted to know who she was.¡±

    In jealousy, Gu Yu scoffed: ¡°Do you want to be my brother-inw? You are nowhere near it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    ¡°Is it my turn again?¡± Gu Yu¡¯s tone was gloomy, as if he was making a move for the next question. Sure enough, he asked a question that Zhang Siyi was unable to parry: ¡°What were you thinking just now when I wasn¡¯t in the room?¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s cheeks warmed up all at once, and he was thinking, thinking ...

    ¡°Well??¡± Gu Yu urged him. ¡°Come on, you were up because you were thinking of something all this time, right? Say it. Don¡¯t lie. I can hear a lie.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I, I... I choose a dare.....¡± (t////t)

    Gu Yan grinned and asked: ¡°How many clothes do you have on your body now?¡±

    Zhang Siyi froze. He counted then confessed: ¡°Three.¡±

    ¡°Then pick something to take off,¡± Gu Yu extended his hand out from under the covers: ¡°Then hand it to me.¡±

    ¡°......¡± Why does this request make him feel a little ashamed? But the night is dark and staying under the covers, no one can see.

    A minuteter, Zhang Siyi took off an article of clothing and handed it to Gu Yu. Extending his arm, he touched Gu Yu¡¯s already cold fingers, sending an electric current through him. Zhang Siyi quickly retracted his hand.

    Feeling the heat of the fabric from Zhang Siyi body, Gu Yu rubbed the pure cotton cloth between his fingers and began to look at it in the darkness. ¡°What is this? Long Johns?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Eh? Why do you want to see it!

    In fact, at bed time, Zhang Siyi normally wears a t-shirt and underwear to sleep in. Being at Gu Yu¡¯s house, he is a bit shy and after taking his trousers off, he left his long johns on.

    After Gu Yu finished looking at them, he threw the long johns under the bed: ¡°Let¡¯s continue. It¡¯s your turn?¡±

    Grinding his teeth, Zhang Siyi wants to retaliate and asked a very personal question: ¡°Do you jerk off?¡± ........ Hey, in the eyes of others, the perfect Gu Yu will definitely feel embarrassed when faced with this kind of shameless question!! But to Zhang Siyi surprise, he didn¡¯t have to wait more than two seconds before Gu Yu calmly answered him.

    With a tone used to answer an idiot¡¯s question Gu Yu replied: ¡°Of course. I¡¯m a normal man.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°....¡± How can you talk about it as a matter of fact like it¡¯s nothing!?

    Gu Yu quickly threw the question right back at him: ¡°What about you? How many times do jerk off in a week? You don¡¯t have a girlfriend now.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Oh, two or three times.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Tut, there¡¯s a lot of demand.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°....¡± How is this a lot? This demand is normal, okay? Who¡¯s so abstinent like you? ¡°Well, how about you? How many times a week do you do it?¡± Zhang Siyi asked back.

    ¡°Before it was less. Maybe a few times a month, but more recently....¡± Gu Yu sighed in distress: ¡°I want to do it every day.¡±

 Chapter 64: Heart-Warming

    <h4>Chapter 64: Heart-Warming</h4>

    __________________________

    Reality is so different from the imagination. Feeling like he got pped in the face Zhang Siyi responded in a distorted expression: ¡°You criticize my frequency and yet you want that every day! Are you not embarrassed?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°My situation is different from yours. If you don¡¯t have a girlfriend now, then what do you think about while jerking off two-three times a week?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.....¡± What does a girlfriend have to do with it? Isn¡¯t it a natural thing to masturbate in the shower? Wait, it seems he has almost missed an important message: ¡°... You have a girlfriend?¡±

    Gu Yu interrupted: ¡°Don¡¯t jump the queue. You haven¡¯t answered that question yet.¡±

    ¡°Which question?¡± Zhang Siyi¡¯s train of thought retreated for a moment... Shit! That is also a question!

    Gu Yu: ¡°What are you thinking when you are doing.... Mmmm, Ahhh, NNnnn....¡± The sensuous, soft tones overflow gently from his nasal cavity, horse and seductive. ¡°Come on, well, what is it?¡±

    Zhang Siyi insides are screaming ¡°fuck¡± and his skin is burning hot. Such a thing, how to say it. It¡¯s what men know! ......! ......! ¡°I choose a Dare!¡±

    Gu Yu chuckled and leisurely reached out from the bed and used his finger to motion to Zhang Siyi.

    Zhang Siyi squirmed in the bed and took off his shirt. He suddenly regretted opening this topic without a lower limit. Who would have thought that such a serious and stoic person at work, in secret became a person without integrity?

    Taking the T-shirt and throwing it under the bed, Gu Yu teased: ¡°So soon the second piece, three minus two, then you only have one pair of underwear left, hmm?¡±

    Zhang Siyi shrank into the quilt and said, ¡°Yeh. So?¡± Even if he was stripped, he still had a quilt.

    Gu Yumented: ¡°Gee, really no challenge huh.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu calmly said: ¡°First to answer your question just now, no.¡±

    Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°No girlfriend? Really? Then what is so different about your situation from mine?

    Gu Yu interrupted: ¡°You cut the line again. I answered the question so now it is time for me to ask.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± What?

    Gu Yu smiled: ¡°But for your poor sake, I¡¯ll let you off the hook this time.¡±

    Zhang Siyi thoughts can¡¯t keep up with Gu Yu¡¯s rhythm.

    Gu Yu: ¡°Because there is someone that I like.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± He has someone he likes? Since it is not a girlfriend, is it just an acquaintance? Based on his previous answers, maybe it¡¯s someone more recent that he likes? Who?

    ...aah, aah, aah, fuck! Too many questions to ask!

    ¡°Okay, it¡¯s my turn.¡± While smiling, Gu Yu particrly slowed down the speed of his speech, as if in a tense atmosphere and reminded Zhang Siyi: ¡°If you can¡¯t answer this question, you won¡¯t be wearing clothes.¡±

    Feeling an undisclosed threat, Zhang Siyi wiggled into the quilt deeper and pressed it around his body to tightly wrap himself up like a shield that would protect him from external forces.

    Gu Yu slowly said: ¡°Talk about thetest person who made you feel your heart move.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡±

    Gu Yu also exined kindly: ¡°This heart-warming experience is not necessarily to like. It can just be a good feeling. Maybe it either was a feeling of rapid heartbeat or just a moment of attraction, like a beautiful stranger that smiles at you. It¡¯s verymon and I believe everyone has had this experience... Tell me what type of person that is and what the person was doing at the time when you felt your heart move.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...........¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s brain rumbled like a tsunami andndslide.

    Each of his memories, like a movie clip in his mind, shed by; today when Gu Yu wasughing in the kitchen; Gu Yu leaning against the car on the business trip and being called ¡°Little Apprentice¡±; Gu Yu whispering in his ear when he ask to go home together; Gu Yu touching his head in the office; Gu Yu asking is he was alright during the game at the annual meeting...

    ... too much... too much... too much....

    We will meet so many people in our lifetime and we may not love anyone in this life, but there are always many heart-warming moments. As Gu Yu said, it is not necessarily like, but it must be verymon. Recently... Zhang Siyi desperately tried to find all the types of examples from his memory. Not just thest time, or two times, or even thest five times or ten times...... every heart-warming experience is due to Gu Yu! What is he going to say? He can¡¯t say anything!

    No matter which clip he picks, which scene, Gu Yu will know that he is talking about him. Feeling his anxiety rise, Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t want to answer! rmed, his subconscious mind can no longer cover up his thumping heart therebypletely exposing his previously denied feelings.

    Oh. Shit. Did he like him? o////o

    ¡°Why aren¡¯t you saying anything? Still don¡¯t understand?¡± Gu Yu¡¯s low voice came from the side, once again causing Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart to beat erratically, and pulled his thoughts back to the immediate problem.

    ¡°Okay, if you think that the word ¡®heart¡¯ is too literary, it can be extended to ¡®physiological impulses¡¯. Anyway, most men who use the lower half of their body can never tell the difference between the two. Come on, tell me about thest time you....¡±

    ¡°Stop, Stop! I understand ¡® heart-warming¡¯! ¡± Zhang Siyi interrupted him. Blushing deeply, remembering exactly the reasons, he dares not say anything.

    ¡°Oh? It seems like you have experienced it!¡± Gu Yu said, eager to know.

    His stomach hurt: ¡°I, I, I...¡± Zhang Siyi stuttered for a long time. ¡°Dare... I choose a Dare.¡± (=_=)

    ¡°.....¡± Gu Yu was a little surprised. ¡°You can¡¯t say it? Now I¡¯m curious. Is this an impulse towards something weird!?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± You fuck off!!¡±

    Gu Yu teased with a smile: ¡°Oh, you know what to do. Take it off yourself.¡±

    Zhang Siyi is willing to concede. After all, he is inside the quilt. However, while taking hisst piece of clothing off, he wonders, like the other pieces, if he has to hand his underwear to Gu Yu.

    Fortunately, Gu Yu was not so perverted. He smiled and said: ¡°You don¡¯t have to give me your underwear. Just throw them on the bed over there.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Shit! All gone! Good humiliation! (t_t) Shrinking down into the bedding, he angrily stated:¡± ¡°It¡¯s my turn to ask!¡±

    Gu Yu said with a sigh: ¡°You ask.¡±

    Surging with jealousy, Zhang Siyi put his hand on his chest, pressed his crazy heart and urgently asked: ¡°The person you like ... Who is it?

    Since the game has started, this is the first time Gu Yu is silent. The sudden change caused Zhang Siyi to turn his head to look at Gu Yu. Lying next to him in the dark, he saw Gu Yu¡¯s profile and watched his eyshes slowly open and close. In the next second, Gu Yu also turned his head to the side and looked deeply into Zhang Siyi eyes. Like an electric circuit finally being fixed, iprehensible emotions flowed.

    Feeling worried, Zhang Siyi started to fret over his question. Is Gu Yu unhappy about being asked this private issue? Was that too much? Hurriedly, he swore: ¡°I promise I won¡¯t tell.¡±

    Gu Yu smiled and said: ¡°I take a Dare.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°!!!¡±

    What!? Why can¡¯t you say whom you like? Our lives only intersect through work, so even if I know, there is no ce to gossip... wait, wait, wait... But, if I did know, then it¡¯s someone from thepany...... Or, do you mean.... A faint memory tickled Zhang Siyi conscious. That day in KTV, after the annual meeting, when Fu Xinhui pointed out certain things..... What he mentioned.... The person Gu Yu likes is ..... o////o

    No, no, no! You are only thinking like thus because your emotions are a mess. Zhang Siyi don¡¯t be so pretentious!

    Gu Yu raised his eyebrows and asked: ¡°What do you want me to do? Also take off my clothes?¡±

    ¡°Uh... ah, ok.¡± Even though Zhang Siyi was the one who asked the question, his mind was preupied so he wasn¡¯t paying attention at all.

    Gu Yu easily took off his shirt and threw it on the floor. In a mischievous, naughty tone he said: ¡°Let¡¯s continue. It¡¯s my turn.¡±

    Expecting something troublesome, Zhang Siyi instinctively curled up into a protective ball, shivering under the covers, praying for Gu Yu to stop asking such private questions.

    Gu Yu: ¡°Are you still on your first night?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Poof¨C!¡± First night? Shit, what a strange description of this! He¡¯s not a woman!

    Since there were no problems with answering, Zhang Siyi pretended to be calm and said: ¡°If you are talking about the first type of intimacy, I have little experience.¡±

    Gu Yu smirked andmented: ¡°I can¡¯t believe you are so innocent. I thought you liked to y at puppy-love. ¡°

    Zhang Siyi retorted: ¡°Ah, what puppy-love? Being in love in college is normal. Besides, I feel that my rtionship with my ex wasn¡¯t very formal. At that time, I was abroad, and she was in China, so at most, it was dating. We wouldn¡¯t see each other for long periods of time; very to.... I want to be responsible for that kind of thing. At least, I want to confirm that I will be togetherter. Ok?¡±

    Gu Yu chuckled: ¡°tonic? There are no philosophy books that have been ¡®to¡¯. Children these days seems to y at being a family, but your attitude towards that kind of thing is serious and responsible. You didn¡¯t develop bad habits from foreigners.¡±

    Now, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t appreciate being educated by Gu Yu. He asked the same: ¡°Well, I just said so what about you? Do you have a lot of experience? How many people have you been with?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°I have not been with anyone.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was shocked: ¡°What!?¡± ¨C Gu Yu, this grass-roots level male god did not even talk about love?

    Gu Yu sees the doubts in his eyes and straightforwardly said: ¡°I don¡¯t know what to do with love.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Hey, didn¡¯t you just say you had someone you liked?

    Sighing softly, Gu Yu said: ¡°It¡¯s not hard to have one.¡± In a distressed tone which hinted at bitterness he continued: ¡°But I have no experience and don¡¯t know how to chase.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

 Chapter 65: Underwear

    <h4>Chapter 65: Underwear</h4>

    ________________________

    Gu Yu coyly smiled: ¡°Since you have experience, will you teach me?¡±

    ¡°What!?¡± Zhang Siyi can¡¯t believe what he just heard. There are a bunch of girls fighting over you and you still want to know how to charm them?

    Gu Yu: ¡± Then tell me how you got your ex-girlfriend.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Oh, that.......¡± This question is not difficult to answer.

    Gu Yu interjected: ¡°Your ex is the one who identally spilled coffee on me?¡±

    ¡°Yes, that¡¯s her, ¡± answered Zhang Siyi then continued to exin: ¡°We met at a social party through a ssmate. When I came back from my first summer vacation abroad, my friend asked me toe, and she was there.......¡±

    Gu Yu interrupted him: ¡°How can you tell that she was interested in you?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°She was always staring at me and talking to me.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°So if you stare at someone it means they are interested? I often see you staring at me.¡±

    Guilty, Zhang Siyi defensively said: ¡°...... That must be your delusion!¡±

    Smiling, Gu Yu replied: ¡°Oh...¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Just ¡®oh¡¯ huh? Why does it seem like you areughing at me!?

    Gu Yu: ¡°You continue.¡±

    Clenching and releasing the edge of the nket, Zhang Siyi took a few deeps breaths to calm his nerves. ¡°After that initial meeting, we exchanged contact information. I asked her out to see a few movies and eat dinner. On one beautiful night, at the end of a date when I brought her home, I sang her a song and asked her to be my girlfriend. She epted.¡±

    Gu Yu raised an eyebrow: ¡°That¡¯s it?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°That¡¯s it. What else is there?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°You didn¡¯t y the violin for her?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Uh, no.¡± Why does Gu Yu remember his nonsense? (=_=)

    Gu Yu: ¡°Didn¡¯t you say that you will only y the violin for the person you like?¡±

    Zhang Siyi quibbled: ¡°Just because I said I y it for the person I like, it doesn¡¯t mean I have y it for them. At that time, she was already interested in me without having yed it, so I didn¡¯t feel the need to.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°So... it was easy to win her.¡±

    Discontent, Zhang Siyi screamed in his mind then inly stated: ¡°It¡¯s not difficult to win a girl! Take them out for dinner, give them a few gifts, and make a little romance. As long as the person you like is single, and they aren¡¯t a Fool, they will surelye.¡±

    Gu Yu was silent and did not speak.

    Realizing Gu Yu might use these means to pursue the person he likes, he felt jealous. As an afterthought he muttered: ¡°You are such a great person and look so handsome, there is no way people don¡¯t like you.¡±

    ¡°Is that right?¡± Gu Yu smiled softly: ¡°It¡¯s a pity. The person I like may be a Fool. ¡°

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Is Gu Yu in unrequited love?

    Gu Yumented: ¡°But this situation isn¡¯t bad either. I like, they like... the boring process is too simple and maybe it¡¯s taken for granted. With a little difficulty, the feelings are more deeply affirmed, and the result will be sweeter.¡±

    Left to his own fantasies for a moment, holding his own shoulders, Zhang Siyi heart is ready to explode. ¡°Is it time for me to ask?¡±

    Gu Yu yawned: ¡°More questions? You don¡¯t want to go to sleep?¡±

    Kicking his feet inside the quilt, Zhang Siyi was impatient: ¡°No, you asked me a lot, but I haven¡¯t asked back yet!¡± Zhang Siyi stripped his clothes. There is no way he wants to end the game now! ¨t(¨tÃó¨s)¨s

    Gu Yu heard the tone in Zhang Siyi¡¯s voice change and said: ¡°Ahem, really? Then you aren¡¯t allowed to quit. Tonight, I will y with you until you beg for mercy.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Ask me three questions first, then it¡¯s my turn.¡±

    Given three sugars, suddenly Zhang Siyi is happy to fly again! Zhang Siyi wanted to ask him about who he likes again, but he is afraid that Gu Yu will be suspicious of him, so he decided to avoid the topic. He stayed away from emotional questions and instead asked him about his financial resources. ¡°Can I ask you about your sry?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Just my sry from Borderless?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Do you have any other sry?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Is this the second question?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...... No!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Oh, if you are asking about my sry from Borderless, the monthly ie is 20,004 before the tax, not counting bonuses.¡±

    ......So much! The basic sry is almost two or three hundred thousand a year! And Zhang Siyi knows that for architects at the top, the sry is nothing. The big money is earned from project bonuses. He is so curious. What to do....

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°So how much is your total ie?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°There are ups and downs. Do you want to know this year,st year or the year before?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°This year ...¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°More than 800,000.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°!!!¡± Although, it¡¯s not like his friend, Shen Hao, from home, it is still a lot; ten times his own! 800,000 is also nouveau rich! (¨s¡ã§¥¡ã)¨s

    Gu Yu reminded him: ¡°This is thest question. Don¡¯t let this opportunity pass by.¡±

    Why does he feel like he already wasted his other questions? Zhang Siyi thought about it for a few moments. His emotions were a mess and he felt extremely tangled. Finally, he choked out a question: ¡°What do you think of me?¡±

    Zhang Siyi wanted to hear something positive. After all, he has been working hard, however now, lying in bed next to him with the quilts separating them, why does it feel like he is suggesting something else?

    Gu Yu was silent for a moment andughed: ¡°You?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± o////o

    Gu Yu shrank deeper under the covers in bed and whispered: ¡°I¡¯ll choose a Dare.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡± Fuck! You want a Dare for this kind of question!? Is it so difficult to give me an evaluation?

    Gu Yu naturally took off his pajama pants threw out of the bed and then said: ¡°Tell me how high the floors are of these houses: low-rise residential, multi-story residential, middle and high-rise residential, high-rise residential, super-high-rise residential.¡±

    Zhang Siyi did not react: ¡°What?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°This is my question.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Shit! You can¡¯t ask this? You¡¯re breaking the rules!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°How am I breaking the rules? I didn¡¯t ask questions you don¡¯t know. I remember I told you to write these things downst month.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was speechless and thought about it with great concentration. He said: ¡°Lower 1-3 floors, multi-story houses 4-7... Oh no, it seems to be 4-6 floors, middle and high-rise houses 7 to...11 Still 12?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°You didn¡¯t write it down?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± is over, he forgot!

    Gu Yu yawned again and urged: ¡°Come on, say it.¡±

    Hands covering his own face, Zhang Siyi said: ¡°I forgot. I choose a Dare.¡± He has no clothes on, what else can Gu Yu do? Can¡¯t be something as insane as sleeping without a quilt for one night?

    Gu Yu whispered: ¡°Is sleeping naked in someone else¡¯s home good?¡±

    Zhang Siyi suddenly reacted, and he was caught in a hole! No wonder Gu Yu had no problems with taking off clothes. Because this is his house! But he is a guest and like Gu Yu said, is it normal for people to be naked in someone else¡¯s home and lying in the same bed? How is it not shameful? He was so stupid to follow Gu Yu¡¯s example! It¡¯s too much!

    Gu Yu turned his head and smiled at him and asked: ¡°Would you like to wear a piece of clothing?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What?¡±

    Gu Yu exined: ¡°For your Dare.... I will give you something to wear.¡±

    Zhang Siyi is alert. Is Gu Yu so kind? ¡°Ok......¡±

    Gu Yu ¡°heh¡± smiled and said, ¡°hold on¡± and reached outside the covers to the neighboring table, exposing half his body.

    Just as Zhang Siyi thought that Gu Yu was reaching down to get his clothes, he heard a drawer being pulled. After a few seconds, a small piece of clothing was stuffed into Zhang Siyi¡¯s quilt along with the cool air.

    Zhang Siyi reached around until he found something. A pair of underwear, but this is not his underwear......

    He stammered: ¡°Whose are these?¡±

    ¡°Whose can they be? Of course, it is mine, rest assured, washed, and cleaned,¡± Gu Yu gently and softly said. Then, in amanding yet soft voice he said: ¡°Put it on.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Wearing someone else¡¯s underwear?

    Fuck ! .... Fuck !! ........ Fuck !!! ........

    Why does it feel more shameful than wearing nothing??? Zhang Siyi felt his whole body burning up. He struggled for a while, desperately trying to resist, but this was a game and they both agreed to the rules. With great shame and disgrace, he mechanically and obediently put on Gu Yu¡¯s underwear. His body reacted unexpectedly.

    No, ¡°bro,¡± you don¡¯t have to go along for the ride! t////t

    Come on, think of Aunt Chang! There are Amida Buddha Buddha Buddha Buddha Buddha Buddha Buddha Buddha Buddha Buddha Buddha statue ......

    Hoo, hoo, finally calmed down.......

    ¡°Are you dressed?¡± Gu Yu confirmed with a smile. ¡°You just asked whose underwear it is, no now it¡¯s my turn to ask again.¡±

    ¡°......¡± What the hell, that was a question? Flinching, Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t want to y anymore. He doesn¡¯t know why Gu Yu is deliberately letting him feel so terrible. But Gu Yu did not stop. Zhang Siyi almost copsed when he heard what was asked: ¡°What do you feel as a straight man wearing another man¡¯s underwear?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Putting his elbow on his pillow, Gu Yu curiously propped up his head with his hand to see Zhang Siyi¡¯s expression. Scared, Zhang Siyi shrank further into the bedding and shouted: ¡°I surrender! I concede defeat! I¡¯m not ying anymore! I want to sleep!¡±

    He was too naive to think that the scope of a Dare in this bed can¡¯t do him harm, but he was very wrong. Zhang Siyi forgot that his opponent was Gu Yu. A ck-belly bones of a man! It¡¯s just one bed, but Gu Yu has made him suffer extreme distress!

    ¡°Don¡¯t you want to y? ¡°Gu Yu grinned at the two eyes peaking back from under the quilt. Although, it¡¯s dark and Zhang Siyi¡¯s expression is hidden, the vision of tear stained cheeks is too stimting, too enticing that it only makes Gu Yu want to tease him further. ¡°What did I just say?¡±

    What did he say? Zhang Siyi thought back and recalled their conversation: ¡± .... you will apany me to y unless I beg....?¡± Gu Yu, what kind of bad fun is this?

    Gu Yu looked at him tenderly and said: ¡°Beg for mercy,e, cry Gege to me, and I will let you go.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

 Chapter 66: Going Home

    <h4>Chapter 66: Going Home</h4>

    _________________________

    Ignoring the gentle voice of Gu Yu, the sullen temperament that he exudes from his body is more terrifying then when he is serious. The unspoken meaning expressed is: if you don¡¯t beg, I will make you pay.

    From the tip of his toes to the top of his head, Zhang Siyi trembled with excitement. Burning up, there was a current traveling all over his body. While his physical body reacted one way, Zhang Siyi mind is sour.

    Although Gu Yu is indeed older than him, ¡°gege¡± is nothing, but in this case, the threat to call makes Zhang Siyi feel humiliated. His male self-esteem has beenpletely defeated.

    Feeling like he was in a precarious position, Zhang Siyi had topromise. On one hand, he didn¡¯t want to beg. On the other, if he didn¡¯t, he was afraid that Gu Yu would deal with him in an even more cruel way.

    Clutching the bed, in a bizarre sense of sweetness and shame, Zhang Siyi squeezed out two words from his throat: ¡°gege...¡±

    Gu Yu teased again: ¡°Hmm? What did you say? Like a dove¡¯s soft coo, I didn¡¯t catch it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi broke down and said, ¡°You¡¯ve gone too far!!!¡± Because he was so angry, his voice cracked.

    As if Zhang Siyi reaction was the greatest pleasure, Gu Yu suddenly flopped back down on the bed and earnestlyughed with joy. Afterughing for half a minute, Gu Yu gasped for breath and said: ¡°I have done it, heh-heh-heh. Alright, go to sleep.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    As an after-thought, Gu Yu said: ¡°Oh yeh. You surrendered, so keep my underwear on for the night. Don¡¯t secretly take it off.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡± Too deceitful! (t////t)

    If Zhang Siyi had known that the game would be so unbearable, he would have insisted on sleeping on the sofa, frozen.

    Very soon, the room once again fell into peaceful silence. Feeling like he had been beaten, Zhang Siyi¡¯s brain is numb. Although Gu Yu did not touch him, it felt like Gu Yu spirit overwhelmed and dominated him. Since he is still wearing his underwear, this feeling is especially strong. It is as though he was marked with hormones by another male animal, making him feel both upset and excited. Exhausted physically and mentally, thest traces of energy slip away into dreand.

    However, this is not the end of his nightmare.

    Early the next morning, Zhang Siyi opened his eyes to find him tightly wrapped around Gu Yu. The two quilts that were originally separated, were scattered. Skin on skin, toes entwined with toes; their posture is as intimate as an enamored couple. This close, Zhang Siyi can count the number of eyshes Gu Yu has.

    Not knowing when Zhang Siyi woke up, Gu Yu looked at him with eyes half open, not saying a word.

    In horror, Zhang Siyi loosened his hands, retreated a little and stammered: ¡°I, we...¡± He originally wanted to say, ¡°how could we sleep like this¡± But since Zhang Siyi realized he was the one holding onto Gu Yu, he dared not ask the question. ¡°What time is it?¡± It was bright outside so is was more then three o¡¯clock in the morning.

    Moving his arms, Gu Yu started to sit up and in a low and hoarse voice he said: ¡°More than seven.¡±

    Zhang Siyi hurriedly said, ¡°Why didn¡¯t you wake me up?¡± Gu Yu¡¯s reaction is much calmer than his own. While bending over to pick up Zhang Siyi¡¯s clothes on the floor and throwing them to him, he exined: ¡°I woke up at three o¡¯clock and saw you were deeply a sleep. When Iid back down, I also fell asleep then woke up at six o¡¯clock.¡±

    Zhang Siyi hurriedly put clothes on and said: ¡°Six? But isn¡¯t it after seven o¡¯clock now?¡±

    Gu Yu smiled: ¡°At the time you were holding me like your life depended on it, talking in your sleep. You seem to be having an argument with someone in a dream. How can I wake you up? I¡¯m afraid you would be upset with me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Damn you! What kind of reason is that! Am I the kind of person who can go crazy? He did seem to have some weird dreamsst night. A fleeting feeling touched his memory when he woke up, but he forgot what it was.

    Gu Yu sighed: ¡°Forget it. There is no difference between six and seven o¡¯clock. We will be stuck in traffic regardless.

    ¡°Okay.......¡± Zhang Siyi put on his shirt and put on his trousers....... Why is there a wet sensation down there....? ¡°Big Uncle....¡± he seems to have cum. Oh, my God....... He is still wearing Gu Yu¡¯s underwear....! In another man¡¯s bed and wearing another man¡¯s underwear!

    ¡°%£¤#@......¡± tfu`ck! ! ! !

    Last night¡¯s discovery was thest straw to break Zhang Siyi back. His whole outlook on lifepletely copsed. For a moment, Zhang Siyi felt like he could no longer face Gu Yu in the future. He wanted to resign. He wanted to end allmunication between them!

    Seeing Zhang Siyi worrisome and despondent expression, Gu Yu asked:¡± What¡¯s wrong?¡±

    ¡°No, nothing...¡± Zhang Siyi quickly put on his trousers, pretending to forget that he was still wearing Gu Yu¡¯s underwear, and went to the bathroom in a panic with a sense of shame. Ah, ah, ah... he¡¯s going to explode. ck history! The ck history of a lifetime!!!

    In the morning rush, Gu Yu didn¡¯t have any mind to pay attention to Zhang Siyi and which underwear he was wearing, until the two took their luggage to the door. He saw Zhang Siyi¡¯s dropping head, a lost spirit in despair.

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter, haven¡¯t you woken up yet?¡± Gu Yu asked him.

    Zhang Siyi blinked his eyes and acted the part in order to cover up his inner turmoil: ¡°It seems so.¡±

    Gu Yu wanted to press him, but seeing theck of reaction from Zhang Siyi, he didn¡¯t tease him. He calmly said: ¡°Sleep in the car for a while.¡±

    The vi where Gu Yu lived did not have a parking space, so he parked his car in the underground garage of a shopping mall across the road. For more than ten minutes, the two of them walked to Gu Yu¡¯s silver-gray Lexus, which is a brand of car that Zhang Siyi likes. His mind was preupied with this morning¡¯s events, so he remained silent.

    When he got into the car, Gu Yu handed him a bottle of water and said: ¡°First drink. The breakfast shop isn¡¯t open today. It will take a least two hours to get to the highway rest stop to eat.¡±

    Zhang Siyi gently responded with a ¡°mm, hmm¡± then fastened his seatbelt, sunk himself back into the seat and closed his eyes. Gu Yu looked at him suspiciously then started the car. The two didn¡¯t talk at all.

    When they left the city, they stopped in traffic for a while. Fortunately, the time was not too long, and Gu Yu steadily drove on the highway towards Ningcheng. The drone of the ride put Zhang Siyi to sleep. Later, he was awakened by the vibrations of his mobile phone. It was his mother¡¯s call. In a feeble voice he answered it: ¡°Mom.¡±

    Mama Zhang quickly talked to him on the phone: ¡°Sisi, didn¡¯t you say you would arrive between seven and eight in the morning? It¡¯s already nine o¡¯clock. Why haven¡¯t you arrived yet?¡±

    A few days ago, Zhang Siyi told his mother that he will leave early with Gu Yu and drive back home, but now the situation has changed. He exined: ¡°We overslept. We left after seven in the morning and we are driving on the highway now.¡±

    Gu Yu interjected: ¡°Tell her there aren¡¯t traffic jams so we should arrive between eleven and twelve.¡±

    Concise, Zhang Siyi said: ¡°I¡¯ll be home at lunch time.¡±

    Mama Zhang: ¡°Overslept? Did you stay at his housest night?¡±

    Unknown to his mother, she struck a nerve. Frazzled, Zhang Siyi irritably replied: ¡°Yes! I thought we were leaving at three in the morning, so I went to his ce to sleep!¡±

    Seemingly full of regret, his tone was not warm, almost aint. If he had known weren¡¯t going to leave at three in the morning, then he wouldn¡¯t have had to experience such humiliationst night. He wanted to burry himself.

    Gu Yu nced at him and Zhang Siyi awkwardly turned away. The two obviously did not quarrel, but the air between them was thick with resentment.

    Mama Zhang: ¡°I see.¡±

    ¡°What else do you want?¡± Zhang Siyi was a little annoyed and snapped at her.

    Almost all the mothers in the world will not care about their son¡¯s bad temper and Zhang Siyi¡¯s Mom is no exception. She thought he was feeling restless and agitated because he overslept. She sighed and said: ¡°Originally you told me you were leaving at three in the morning. Since it¡¯s not safe driving at that hour, I was worried. What if something happened to you on the road? I wanted to call and see if you were alright. I sent messages in WeChat, but you never responded.¡±

    Listening to his mother¡¯s soft tone, Zhang Siyi was greatly reassured. His mood calmed down: ¡°We¡¯ll be safe. I¡¯ve just fallen asleep and I probably missed the text message chime.¡±

    When Ms. Zhang heard it, it was her turn to be annoyed: ¡°How can you fall asleep? It¡¯s hard enough driving alone. How can you not chat with him during the trip?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    His mother scolded him: ¡°You can¡¯t always be thinking of your ownfort and not think about others. It was nice enough for Gu Yu to bring you back. He isn¡¯t free to be your personal driver. Don¡¯t sleep anymore, ok?¡±

    Although he didn¡¯t want to admit it, Zhang Siyi realized his mistake. ¡°Yes, I know.¡± He hung up the phone and sat up straighter and spoke to Gu Yu in a pragmatic way: ¡°When are we going to get to the rest area? ¡°

    Gu Yu: ¡°Pretty soon. Maybe another half an hour....... Hungry?¡±

    ¡°Yes.¡± Zhang Siyi carefully looked at the instrument panel and dashboard in the car, enviously, ¡°When did you buy this car, it looks new.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°It has been almost a year since I bought it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Howe I don¡¯t usually see you drive?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°With so little travel distance to get to thepany building, I can simply take the subway and besides, it¡¯s not environmentally friendly either.

    ...... He didn¡¯t think Gu Yu was an environmentalist!

    Zhang Siyi followed up with another question: ¡°Did you buy a car in order to travel to and from Ningcheng?¡±

    Gu Yu exined: ¡°When I have to go to a project site and answer questions, sometimes its more convenient.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Oh ... This car isn¡¯t cheap, is it? I remember the Lexus GS was at least 500,000.

    Gu Yu: ¡°Almost, I got it for 740,000.¡±

    Seeing Gu Yu answer so straightforwardly and truthfully after asking a few questions, Zhang Siyi felt depressed. If its like this, then what happenedst night? He felt like he was being scammed....... (t_t)

 Chapter 67: Intimate

    <h4>Chapter 67: Intimate</h4>

    _________________

    After some time, they stopped at a service area along the highway for a bathroom break and food. Although Gu Yu asked: ¡°Do you want to go in and eat or stay in the car?¡±, he did not wait for Zhang Siyi to answer. Instead, he fastened his seat belt then quickly followed up with: ¡°Well, you¡¯d better stay in the car. I¡¯ll buy some food.¡± When he got out of the car, the cold wind blew and the stark contrast to the heated interior was unexpected.

    Gu Yu¡¯s sudden deration surprised Zhang Siyi. He just assumed he would¡¯ve had to go with him to buy his own food, but as it so happened, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t have to get out which was all the better for him. He didn¡¯t want to move as the wet feeling between his legs was still there.

    Gu Yu¡¯s concern over the outside temperature was unanticipated. Even though he isn¡¯t as delicate as a girl and can stand a little cold weather, the thoughtfulness Gu Yu showed him made Zhang Siyi feel like he was being cared for. He felt a little better.

    Two minutester Gu Yu called him on the phone and asked which foods he would like: ¡°There are sausages, sesame cakes, dumplings... what do you want to eat?¡±

    Since Jiacheng local specialty are dumplings, Zhang Siyi thought the best choice would probably be the meat dumpling: ¡°I¡¯ll have a meat dumpling.¡±

    Gu Yu replied on the phone: ¡°There are many different ones: egg, plum, dried...... which kind do you want?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Egg yolk, meat dumplings!¡±¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Ok. It will be a few minutes. I need to go wait in line.¡±

    After hanging up the phone, Zhang Siyi had been watching the multitude of people exit the service area. When Gu Yu appeared, he unconsciously stared at him and followed his figure. Even though he is so far away among the crowd and can¡¯t see his face, he can spot Gu Yu figure easily. The figure walking with the flow of all the people is brighter and more distinct than anyone else. His increasing pounding in his chest has reminded him ofst night¡¯s game and Gu Yu¡¯s question about heart-warming moments.

    To be moved this much with just a vague sense of Gu Yu figure in the distance, he doesn¡¯t understand what kind of feeling he is holding onto Gu Yu. It¡¯s neither about Gu Yu professional demeanor, work ethics and charm nor is this about youthful idol-worship. In the past, he could have used excuses to exin or delude himself, but no longer. He didn¡¯t want to think about it anymore.

    His reluctance to think about it in more detail is perhaps because he has lived his life as a straight man for twenty years and liking the same sex is a subversive view, so he doesn¡¯t want to face the facts.

    The door opened and Gu Yu came inside with a chill. With a long sigh of relief, he sat in the car. With care he peeled away the wrapper and handed the dumpling to Zhang Siyi. Gu Yu wasn¡¯t in a hurry. As he turned to Zhang Siyi to give him his dumpling, Zhang Siyi immediately withdrew his sight. ¡°Hey, you want the egg yolk meat, right?¡± He also reached to the side into another bag and took out a cup of hot soy milk. He leaned over and gave them to Zhang Siyi. ¡°Eat while it¡¯s still hot.¡±

    Holding the hot food, his hands warmed up. Gu Yu¡¯s intimate words and actions caused a warm feeling deep within Zhang Siyi to grow, but when he thought of the gamest night, with the evidence between his legs, being repeatedly teased and bullied by Gu Yu, his heart took a dive.... Ah-ah! Really annoying!

    The rest of the drive was uneventful. They made good time and arrived at the outskirts of the city of Ningcheng before 11 o¡¯clock. Zhang Siyi mother was waiting at the park-and-ride. When she saw her son, she was delighted and got out of her car with gifts. She took the gift box to Gu Yu. ¡°Mr. Gu, thank you for bringing Sisi back. Driving the car for so long must be really hard!¡±

    With some embarrassment, Gu Yu waved his hand in refusal: ¡°Mrs. Zhang, you are too kind. It¡¯s on the way so it¡¯s not a problem. Without him, I would have to drive alone.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s Mother nudged Gu Yu with the packages and insisted: ¡°Don¡¯t be so polite. I will agree to nothing less than your eptance. Here, this is for you.¡± While Gu Yu smiled and received the packages reluctantly, he nced over at the car from which she came: ¡°Today is so cold. Next time, I will drive him directly to your house. You won¡¯t have toe pick him up again.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Next time?

    Mrs. Zhang chuckled and said: ¡°But it¡¯s already so far. How can you bring him to the house? In addition, it¡¯s already lunch time and I think your family is probably waiting for you. My short trip from home is not more than fifteen minutes, so you don¡¯t have to worry about me. Because of the holidays, everyone is so busy. This is a special time to spend with your own family, but next time you must personallye to my house and visit and have a meal.

    Nodding, Gu Yu smiled and said: ¡°Yes I will.¡± With such a reasonable, generous, and enthusiastic mother, it was difficult to refuse.

    After chatting for a little while, Zhang Siyi¡¯s Mother noticed her son standing to the side, carrying a bag in silence. She eyed him: ¡°You silly boy! Standing there doing nothing...... Say something!¡±

    ¡°Ah¡± Zhang Siyi reacted suddenly to his mother¡¯s words. Red faced he said: ¡°Thank you for today. You are wee to visit my house anytime.¡±

    Gu Yu looked at him with a smile and said, ¡°Well, I wish you a happy new year in advance.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...... You too.¡±

    When Zhang Siyi arrived back home, he quickly ran upstairs.

    ¡°Hey! What are you doing in a hurry? Let¡¯s put away the things first and have lunch!¡± Zhang Siyi¡¯s Mother yelled up the stairs.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I, I, I¡¯ll take a quick fifteen minutes shower first! I¡¯ll be quick.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s Father was warming his hands holding a hot cup of tea. He was about to get up and call the housekeeper to start the meal, but he heard them yelling so he sat back down with a frown: ¡°What happened? Did he get carsick? Why is he taking a shower now?¡±

    Mother Zhang rubbed her hands together for warmth: ¡°No. Sisi looked fine. We took longer because I had a short talk with Gu Yu. He dropped Sisi off in a Lexus. He said Gu Yu bought the car with his own money! He is so young but can afford a car like that. He is really good!¡±

    Zhang father lowered his eyes and turned the newspaper away from his face and said: ¡°Making money is not a good measure of whether someone is good or not. The key is a persons¡¯ intelligence and stability. Since he can be as rash as you are, he is definitely your son, but I know with guidance and patience he will be well-grounded.

    Mother Zhang smiled: ¡°If I am so hot tempered, then weren¡¯t you rash for marrying me? As soon as we look at our good fortune in life, we are free from worry and can look forward to our next life.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s Father coughed once and went back to reading his newspaper. Even though he didn¡¯t say anything, his expression was full of pride.

    Even though Zhang Siyi showered in record time, the nerves that had been tense all day rxed. He dried himself off and got dressed. Picking up the dirty cloths, he looked at the garment that caused so much shame and felt irritated. He was trying to deal with it when he heard his Mother shouting: ¡°Sisi! Are you ready? The food is getting cold!¡± Blushing, Zhang Siyi hurriedly shoved the soiled underwear under his pillow then went downstairs.

    Since it was early enough in the day, the meal for lunch was rtively simple. When his Father asked him about work, Zhang Siyi finally had something to brag about. He told him about the various tasks and project rted work he haspleted. He especially went into detail about the C-City project, however they ended up in a debate.

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s Father was quite dissatisfied with Chief¡¯s style of city nning. He feels that there is nothing to be proud of by the decisions made by the candidates to over-development the area. Since it is the first independent project Zhang Siyi has done since joining thepany, it means a lot to him. Not only is it his first project, but Zhang Siyi¡¯s result was also due to thepetition with his peer. In private, they debated about the situation in C-City, but he is only an architect and not a politician. He can only make the best design under the existing conditions and can¡¯t interfere with the political and upper decision-making. His Father¡¯s disdain made Zhang Siyi feel very depressed. Internally he thought: ¡°Can¡¯t he just affirm my efforts and achievements?¡±

    After the meal, his father asked him to watch the political news with him. Even though Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t want to, he couldn¡¯t refuse his Father¡¯s request. However, because he was angry with his father, he didn¡¯t have anything positive to say and they ended up bickering more. Since Zhang Siyi so rarely argued with his Father, he stared at him in wonder. Originally, his Father wanted to establish a connection with Zhang Siyi, but his fatherly image crumbled: ¡°You¡¯re stupid. You think politics are so simple!¡± With that, the conversation abruptly ended. It¡¯s no use talking to a wall.

    Not caring how his father felt, Zhang Siyi snorted and left the living room. His freedom was won, and he went upstairs to his bedroom happily, eager to check-up on his friends and colleagues on social media. They are all at home and there is an endless supply of news to read from the various chat groups he is in.

    Lu Qiao posted pictures of his hometown and Bi Lele took photos of herself at a shopping center with her girlfriends. Zhu Hongzhen¡¯s hometown was in the north so there were pictures of the snow fortress he built as well as photos of him outside wrapped up in snow. Zhang Siyi made sure to send positivements to his colleagues. He also checked up on his other friends. They were exchanging information about their year-end awards, wages, and the current industry situation.

    Su Yuan: ¡°Oh, my God! We only received a half-month¡¯s sry for the end-of-the-year bonus! So little! I want to change job!¡±

    Ren Meng: ¡°In my smallpany, you don¡¯t get anything!¡±

    Jiang Hai: ¡°We also made less this year. I heard from a senior that in the past his year-end bonus was equal to a year worth of sry! When will the industry¡¯s low tide pass? Otherwise there won¡¯t be enough money to marry a wife!¡± Because of his steady rtionship with Tian Jiang, she was also in the chat group.

    Tian Jiang sent aughing expression into the chat: ¡°It¡¯s simple! Youe to our house. Son-inw.¡±

    Jiang Hai: ¡°...¡±

    When seeing their cute banter, Zhang Siyi is reminded of Fu Xinhui¡¯s situation at home with his own brother-inw. Seeing no messages from Fu Xinhui in the chat group, he started to feel a little worried and sent him a private message. ¡°Hey! Are you at home? How¡¯s it going? How¡¯s Cheer-Up?¡± After a long time, Zhang Siyi received a voice message from Fu Xinhui. The background was very noisy: ¡°Not so good. I can¡¯t chat now. I will call youter to borate.¡±

 Chapter 68: Honoring Ancestors

    <h4>Chapter 68: Honoring Ancestors</h4>

    _________________________________

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart stopped: ¡°What do you mean: not-so-good?¡± He heard Fu Xinhui breathing heavily with exertion as if he was busy with something so he couldn¡¯t talk right now. ¡°Then you remember to call me back as soon as possible!¡± Zhang Siyi rushed to say, but Fu Xinhui never replied.

    At first, Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t very attached to Cheer-up, but every day when he came home from work, Cheer-Up woulde greet him and beg to be petted and thus changed Zhang Siyi¡¯s attitude bit by bit. Even though Fu Xinhui is technically Cheer-Up¡¯s owner, the dog didn¡¯t treat Zhang Siyi any differently. Since it¡¯s been two months since Fu Xinhui got the dog, the two men felt a little bit like parents, so naturally, when Zhang Siyi heard ¡®not so good¡¯ he began to worry.

    ¡°Sisi, what are you doing alone upstairs? Come down and honor your grandparents!¡± Zhang Siyi¡¯s Mother yelled from downstairs.

    ¡°Coming!¡± Zhang Siyi yelled down in response. He sighed and put aside his thoughts of Fu Xinhui and the dog for the time being.

    ording to local customs, during New Year¡¯s, the whole family would meet for a celebratory meal and honor their elders. In the past, Zhang Siyi would drive to his Grandfather¡¯s home to celebrate, but because of cancer, it has been seven years since his passing. Due to grief, his Grandmother also passed away six months after his Grandfather. Now, they stay at home to celebrate and pay tribute to their ancestors.

    Zhang Siyi saw his Father kneeling at the small shrine at home with incense sticks in his hand whispering in a low voice: ¡°Father, thank you for your good fortune and the merits of our ancestors. The Zhang family is very good in both body and mind. You can rest assured. Also, Siyi graduated from abroad this year and found a job in Haicheng. He is working very diligently, and his career is taking off. If you and Mother know from beyond, then please bless his safety and protect him from bad people so his life can be sessful and peaceful......¡±

    Zhang Siyi seldom had the opportunity to hear his father prayers. He didn¡¯t expect his scrupulous and demanding father to say such boastful words in front of Grandpa. Having argued with him just before, Zhang Siyi felt guilty. Looking at his back, he watched his Father insert the incense into the small shrine on the table then turn around. Suddenly, he felt a little awkward, like he was eavesdropping on his father. His Father¡¯s stern face urged: ¡°Hurry, down on your knees!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.....¡±

    After receiving the incense stick from his Mother, Zhang Siyi also kneeled and said: ¡°Grandpa, thanks to you I am all right in body and mind, you can rest assured....¡±

    Exasperated, Father Zhang abruptly gave Zhang Siyi a whack on the back of his head: ¡°What are you saying? Speak properly!¡±

    Zhang Siyi felt extremely depressed and thought: ¡°How am I not saying it good enough? It¡¯s the same as you!¡± Solemnly, he ttened his mouth and continued: ¡°Anyway, I¡¯m very good but I don¡¯t have enough money to spend. Grandpa please bless me next year so my wages will increase, and I get more bonuses. Oh, and also, I hope I don¡¯t get fired....¡±

    Listening to Zhang Siyi¡¯s bewildering prayer, the corner of his Father¡¯s eye twitched. He wanted to reach out a p Zhang Siyi into the ashes of the incense sticks, but with great restraint, his Father did nothing.

    After worship, Zhang Siyi sprang up, patted his knees andunched himself upstairs like a monkey in the trees. In less than an hour, the hot dishes Mother and housekeeper have prepared will be ready for News Years dinner.

    After sending a few messages to Fu Xinhui without receiving a response, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t wait for his call any longer, so he called instead, but to his surprise, the other party¡¯s phone was turned off! Zhang Siyi was so anxious that he was constantly looking down at his phone while hurrying to eat his dinner. His Father was getting angrier and angrier and red at Zhang Siyi.

    Zhang Siyi ignored his Father¡¯s unstated criticism. He felt the phone suddenly vibrate in his hand. He looked down and confirmed it was Fu Xinhui calling. He quickly left his seat, walked to the side and answered the phone eagerly: ¡°Hello? What¡¯s the matter with you? Why did you turn the phone off? I¡¯m worried sick. Do you know that?¡±

    Watching Zhang Siyi nervous expressions and anxious movements, his parents turned to look at one another. An unspokenmunication passed between them: His girlfriend?

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Something has happened to my family.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What happened?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Before my uncle went gambling in Macau, he owed more than 20 million. He hid the truth from my father and borrowed money from a loan shark. Not long ago, the police came over to the house and arrested my uncle for fraudulent practices.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°But today is New Year¡¯s Eve!¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°The police don¡¯t care if it is New Year¡¯s Eve or not.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°So what¡¯s going to happen now?

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°After, the debt collectors came to the house and smashed the door down looking for my uncle. We are hiding in a hotel for now.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What? It¡¯s your Uncle¡¯s business, not yours. Why did theye to your house?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°I can¡¯t tell you the specifics right now, but in short my Uncle used my father¡¯s name. I heard those people have long been threatening to sue him, but he ignored it and continued doing things his own way. My Uncle provoked them, and they retaliated against our family......¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Oh My God! He¡¯spletely screwing up your whole family!¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Yes...... Regardless, my Dad is urgently trying to get him out of jail.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What!? To get out and keep hurting the family? That¡¯s not helpful! Your dad¡¯s making the situation worse!¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Hey, I don¡¯t know what he is thinking.¡±

    Suddenly remembering about the dog Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°You said Cheer-Up wasn¡¯t so good. Is he alright?¡±

    ¡°He is fine now.¡± Feeling down, Fu Xinhui¡¯s responded in a hoarse voice. ¡°Cheer-Up is confused and scared. Previously, my sister didn¡¯t bother with him, but now, she is telling me to get rid of the dog. Even though his name is Cheer-Up, I haven¡¯t actually cheered up.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What? Is your sister that much of a cold-blooded animal that she demands you get rid of such a cute dog?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Well... it¡¯s not really like that. We were out in town and Cheer-Up ran off. I was worried and went after him and told my sister to go. But my sister was worried more about the entire situation, so she called for the bodyguard to follow. We saw one of the debt collectors grabbing Cheer-Up maliciously. Then the bodyguard went after the debt collector and beat him. Shockingly, my sister also ran over with a brick in hand.... That was the first time I saw her protect the family. She was speechless afterwards.¡±

    After listening, Zhang Siyi was surprised: ¡°That¡¯s very different then what you told me about her. She said one thing, but in fact her actions were the opposite.¡± His attitude towards Fu Xinhui¡¯s sister changed.

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Yeah.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.....¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°I¡¯ve been thinking if I have always misunderstood my sister. Maybe I thought her harsh words from the past sounded mean, but in fact were said in concern. Hey, I am pretty confused now. Have you eaten? You¡¯re supposed to be eating now, aren¡¯t you? Sorry to bother you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Don¡¯t¡¯ be so polite. Since you and Cheer-Up are well, then I am at ease.¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Well, you go and eat, we¡¯ll talkter.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Yes, you remember to eat yourself.¡±

    Hanging up the phone, Zhang Siyi sighed. What a mess!

    When his Mother saw that he had finally finished his call, she inquired: ¡°Sisi, who¡¯s on the phone? What have you been talking about for so long?¡±

    Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t help but tell his parents everything about Fu Xinhui¡¯s family situation.

    Deep in thought, Zhang Siyi¡¯s Father listened to what Zhang Siyi said and furrowed his brows. His Mother was also listening and sighed: ¡°The rich family situation isn¡¯t good for them. What are they doing now?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°They are staying at a hotel now and will have New Year¡¯s dinner there.¡±

    Mother Zhang shook her head: ¡°With what has happened to them, its hard to think of eating.¡±

    For a long time, his Father didn¡¯t express his opinion on this matter. Suddenly he asked: ¡°Is this the ssmate you are renting a house with in Haicheng now?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Well, yeah.¡±

    With contempt, Zhang Siyi¡¯s Father spoke: ¡°Just pay attention to your own needs and don¡¯t have anything to do with his family. Maintaining a minimal rtionship with your ssmate is alright, but his family is more trouble than its worth.¡±

    After hearing what his father had to say, Zhang Siyi was livid. He rarely talked back to his father, but he couldn¡¯t contain his emotions: ¡°What is this ¡®minimal friendship¡¯? He is my BEST friend! When I had no money to pay for rent, he helped me willingly. Now that he is in trouble, it¡¯s my turn to help. I can¡¯t stand by idle and do nothing!¡±

    His Father put his chopsticks down and fired back: ¡°What did I say? I told you not to get in touch with his family. Did I tell you to ignore him? You said he needs help, but with what ability do you have currently that can help him?¡±

    The self-esteem of any person who ¡®does not have the ability¡¯ will feel hurt. Zhang Siyi is no exception, especially because his father¡¯s words were so true. Zhang Siyi face was ck and blue with anger.

    In a forceful voice, his father snapped again: ¡°I¡¯ll tell you, this kind of rich second generation doesn¡¯t know what a setback is. He doesn¡¯t know what true work ethic is. He doesn¡¯t know how to move forward and rely on himself. You have been with him for so long, it is a miracle that you haven¡¯t been corrupted too. His life is a waste!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Noticing the atmosphere bing tenser and gloomier, Zhang Siyi¡¯s Mother spoke up in a timely manner: ¡°It is the New Year¡¯s. Can you two stop quarreling? Sisi, you are being too sensitive. Your father did not say that you had to end your friendship. He is worried about you being implicated in the incident because you rent an apartment together. Now that his family is having problems, what are you going to do about your ce? And you, Old Comrade Zhang, you see his rich friend be able to build rtionships with others regardless of wealth or poverty is also a person worthy of respect. It would do well to speak more tactfully and not put on airs of an lieutenant master.¡±

    Mother Zhang served them wine and a bowl of soup. Not uttering a word, father and son lowered their heads and ate their sweet soup.

 Chapter 69: Lunar New Year

    <h4>Chapter 69: Lunar New Year</h4>

    ______________________________

    Although the atmosphere at the dinner table eased a lot, Zhang Siyi can¡¯t stand the evaluation of his friend by his Father. He is still upset with him, but he doesn¡¯t want to make things difficult for his mother. After dinner, it is customary to eat melon and watch the Festival G and the Zhang family is no exception.

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s Father prepared a cup of tea early so he would be ready to watch the TV on time. He watched the news broadcast every night to see the president¡¯s speech. Sitting at the table, Zhang Siyi is a little stiff and feels reluctant to go watch TV with his father. He finds the program ostentatious and would rather go to his room to watch American TV or anime.

    Zhang Siyi was nning to sneak upstairs, but he was caught by his mother. She spoke to him in a low voice: ¡°What are you doing going to your room alone? Why don¡¯t you spend more time with your dad watching TV?¡±

    Zhang Siyi muttered: ¡°I have already spent time with him this afternoon.¡±

    His mother didn¡¯t know whether tough or to cry: ¡°When was that? You are now living in another city so there is rarely an opportunity for a family reunion. You could make more of an effort on New Year¡¯s. He has a sharp tongue but is soft hearted. You didn¡¯t know, but earlier, the moment you left, he was lost.¡±

    Remembering what his father said to his Grandfather while honoring his ancestors, he awkwardly went to the sofa and sat down. He took his phone out to check his social groups. He noticed an update on Gu Yu¡¯s social page.

    Gu Yu posted two new photographs. One was his New Year¡¯s dinner.

    Zhang Siyi used his fingers to expand the view for a closer look. The dishes looked particrly hearty: seafood hot pot, steamed pickles, fish braised with radish, fried rice, dumplings...... Looking at the images, he was reminded of the home-cooked meal Gu Yu prepared for him at his housest night.

    Even though he was full of his own dinner, he swallowed a mouthful of saliva. The seafood hotpot looks extraordinarily delicious. Knowing deep down how content he would feel being there, he wished he was at Gu Yu house eating the seafood hotpot with him.

    Swiping the screen to show the next photo, the image disyed was one with four hands put together.

    Zhang Siyi recognized Gu Yu¡¯s hand at a nce. His bones were distinct, and his fingers were slender. Even though they looked soft he knew they were, in fact, very powerful as he had felt them holding him while ying the balloon game during the annual meeting. (=_=)

    Next to his hand is an equally beautiful hand that is smaller. He assumed that the hand belonged to Gu Yu¡¯s sister. The other two are also recognizable. Mother Gu¡¯s hand has traces of age and Father Gu¡¯s hand is bigger and rougher looking.

    He was about to move his thumb to get to the next picture when he saw a message at the bottom of the photo. ¡°My father said he is missing two hands and will strive to add them before the following New Year¡¯s.¡±

    Looking at this message, Zhang Siyi unconsciously starting staring at his own hand holding the phone......

    ¡°......¡± What are you thinking Zhang Siyi!

    Next to him, his father coughed lightly and suddenly asked: ¡°Where is Gu Yu¡¯s family home located?¡±

    Feeling like his father discovered something dirty, Zhang Siyi quickly turned off the screen and nervously responded: ¡°Hmmm? I don¡¯t know! What¡¯s wrong?¡±

    Because of their recent argument and tension between them, Zhang Siyi¡¯s Father cautiously and slowly said: ¡°You need to thank Mr. Gu properly and give him a gift.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Go to Gu Yu¡¯s and visit for the New Year? Why? Isn¡¯t a phone call enough?¡±

    His Father sipped his tea and said: ¡°Aren¡¯t your colleagues mostly outsiders? They don¡¯t have the same circumstance as you do. Ningcheng is not a big city and since you and he are from the same area, you are connected. In addition to Gu Yu¡¯s teaching and guidance, you have taken advantage of the convenience of being from the same town. No matter where he lives, now it¡¯s time to show your gratitude.¡±

    ¡°This, is this appropriate?¡± Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t understand this old custom. In foreign countries, they do not have the habit of giving gifts and greetings to teachers on New Year¡¯s holidays. He always felt like this was just an excuse to give gifts without meaning. Now, it is a new era and Zhang Siyi felt that these old customs should be obsolete. However, knowing his Father¡¯s strict character he dares not voice these thoughts out loud.¡±

    Listening from the other room, Mother Zhang also agreed and interjected: ¡°Your father is right! Gu junior is young, and I may have forgotten, but he is still your teacher at work! The industry you are in isn¡¯t the same as your father¡¯s because you are learning technology. A little apprentice should give thanks to their master and now is the time to celebrate. There is nothing strange about it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Little, little apprentice o////o

    His Mother went to look for a suitable gift then turned around to say: ¡°Call him and wish him a happy New Year then ask him where he lives.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart was in chaos. He managed to voice a simple reply: ¡°Ok.¡±

    Since he had wanted to go to the Gu home, he did not resist any of his parents¡¯ proposals. He was rather excited about the prospect of going to his home because, in fact, it¡¯s not that he wanted to visit the house, but he wanted to see Gu Yu.

    Although they have not been separated for long, Zhang Siyi has no idea how many times he has thought about Gu Yu. In his mind he acknowledged a thought: ¡°When I get along, I want to run all the time, but once I separate, I miss you all the time.¡± ..... This sweet, elusive mood.

    Knowing there is another chance to see Gu Yu during the rest of the holiday, Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart skipped a beat, but directly calling Gu Yu for his address put him in a bit of a dilemma. His emotions were and mess and he couldn¡¯t think of what to say. After some time struggling, he decided to send a message in WeChat.

    Gu Yu, I wish you a Happy new year, by the way, where do you live?

    ... Hey, is it strange to directly ask for someone¡¯s address? (=_=)

    Director Gu, theing of the Year of the Sheep, I hope that your career will fly and dance, the spirit of the dragon will fly, the mood will be great, the dream is flying in the sky, the luck of the dragon is blessing, the wealth is good, the dragon is hooding, I hope your sheep year is more warm, career More smoothly...what ce do you live in?

    ......(=_=)...... No, no, that¡¯s too weird! Just ask!

    ¡°Boss Gu, can I ask where your address is? I want to spend two days celebrating New Year¡¯s.¡± Zhang Siyi repeatedly looked at the message and thought it wasn¡¯t bad. Click and sent. After it was sent, he thought about the possibility of rejection and started to panic.

    But fortunately, Gu Yu quickly replied, he asked: ¡°My family has two Boss Gu. Which one are you visiting?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°You.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Oh. You are still calling me ¡®Boss Gu¡¯ even when it¡¯s not necessary.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Whaa... how can I be asking about your father? I don¡¯t know your dad!

    Gu Yu: ¡°I won¡¯t ept Boss. However, I will ept ¡®Gege¡¯ ¡° [smile]

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡± Go to hell!

    In just a couple of sentences, Zhang Siyi, blushing, was again bullied by Gu Yu.

    After a while the mood rxed. He thought it was useless to deal with Gu Yu in a polite manner. Since the other party wasn¡¯t formal, then he didn¡¯t have to be so polite. ¡°Gege, I want to go to your home for the New Year. Give me your address!¡±

    Just after sending this text, Zhang Siyi blushed and felt bashful. Why does it feel like he is flirting when using WeChat?

    About four or five minutester, Gu Yu texted back with the address and a serious message. ¡°We won¡¯t be home on the first of the month, but there is time on the third. Beforeing, remember to say hello in advance.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Huh? So easily answered! Gu Yu reversal in tone surprised Zhang Siyi a little and realized: ¡°I gave in too quickly!¡±

    After a minute, Gu Yu sent another message: ¡°Remember to give me my underwear back when youe. It was only supposed to be for the night and not more.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± (¨s#¡ã§¥¡ã) Gu Yu knew that he wore his underwear in the morning!? Why does it seem like I being reprimanded for taking his underwear? It has cum on it! Of course, I didn¡¯t want to wear it for more than a second! Also, does he really want them back so badly? While dirty? During New Year¡¯s? Ah, ah...

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s CPU waspletely burnt out by this big string of problems. Paralyzed on the couch, two nk eyes staring at the ceiling, with a trace of smoke rising from his head. He didn¡¯t have much time to think it over because he realized he had put the underwear under his pillow after his bath at noon. He bounded up the stairs and after a minute, shouting could be heard from Zhang Siyi room: ¡°mom, Mom! MOM!!¡±

    ¡°Ah? ¨C what? ¨C What is it?¡± Zhang Siyi¡¯s Mother walked upstairs to his room and saw him standing next to his bed, red faced and pointing to his pillow.

    Zhang Siyi asked his mom: ¡°Have you seen my underwear that were here?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve washed them for you!¡± His mother looked at him silently, then said: ¡°How can you put your dirty underwear under your pillow? This is a very bad habit.¡±

    She paused, hesitating, but finally asked him: ¡°Is this the reason why you were so anxious to take a bath at home? It¡¯s no wonder you had that strange expression when you were with Gu Yu. I¡¯ve been worried that it happens by just driving in broad daylight.... are you having a problem with your body?¡±

    In worry, she hastens to say: ¡°Don¡¯t be embarrassed. You need to pay attention to this kind of problem while you are young, or it will affect your sex lifeter. Mom will take you to a male doctor.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    He is wrong. He is really wrong. The real scary person is not Gu Yu, it is his mother! (t////t)

    On February 18, 2015, Zhang Siyi, a sensitive young man, had spent his first unforgettable New Year¡¯s Eve in his working life under the double torment of a young man named Gu Yu and an old rotten woman named Zhang Ruqin.

 Chapter 70: Door

    <h4>Chapter 70: Door</h4>

    _________________

    At the beginning of the month, Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t idle. Early in the morning, he went to worship Buddha at the temple. Afterwards, he went to his uncle¡¯s house to celebrate the New Year and visit with his rtives and Grandmother who also lived there. Since she is very old, hard of hearing, and in poor health, she used a wheelchair all the time.

    Since Grandma was thest living grandparent that Zhang Siyi had, he took the initiative to give her a hefty one thousand, six-hundred-dor red envelope. His uncle and aunt praised him for his filial duty. He rtives always said since childhood that Zhang Siyi will have good prospects in his future. They believe he has been making a lot of money in Haicheng.

    So touted, Zhang Siyi pulled out a five hundred red envelope and gave it to his cousin who was still in high school. His auntughed.

    Zhang Siyi family responsibilities for New Years of ¡°going to visit rtives and friends¡± waspleted. Zhang Siyi Father was the eldest son on his side of the family. Also, out of many cousins, Zhang Siyi was the eldest grandson. All the extended family on his father¡¯s side came to his uncle¡¯s house to visit and thus, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t have to travel anywhere. Under his Mother¡¯s instructions, he prepared a five-hundred-dor red envelope for each of his cousins.

    His Mother was only partly aware of Zhang Siyi¡¯s ie, so she didn¡¯t realize how generous it was of Zhang Siyi to give away his bonus. He has long felt like he was being squeezed dry. Looking at his credit card statement, it already showed a negative bnce. Zhang Siyi simply wanted to cry. Where does all the money go so fast?!

    At the end of the evening, with many hugs and well wishes, Zhang Siyi left his uncles house. His phone vibrated and was surprised to see his childhood friend, Shen Hao, calling. He wanted to tell Zhang Siyi about Song Mia wedding day and that they needed to go out for food and drinks.

    Remembering the one thousand eight hundred ¡®red-bomb¡¯ from her engagement party, Zhang Siyi felt pressured. The three of them are childhood friends so he can¡¯t make an excuse not to give a red envelope. If he doesn¡¯t figure something out how will he be able to show his face?

    Although the card is overdrawn, Zhang Siyi decided to use his credit card to pay for it. Calcting in his mind, he realized he only has 200 left and he still needed to buy a train ticket. He won¡¯t be able to make a payment towards his credit card until next month. At least he didn¡¯t have to spend money while he was staying at home.

    While worrying over his finances, his Mother interrupted his thoughts: ¡°Weren¡¯t you going to visit the Gu residence? When were you nning on going?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I am not busy these two days...¡±

    His Mother urged: ¡°Didn¡¯t Gu Yu mention the third? It¡¯s already the fifth. Hurry up before the New Year is over!¡±

    Zhang Siyi impatiently waved his hand and said: ¡°Yes, I know!¡±

    Indeed, despite these past two days being busy, the days weren¡¯t so busy that he didn¡¯t have time to contact Gu Yu. It¡¯s just that Zhang Siyi was being evasive due to his previous conversation about Gu Yu¡¯s underwear. With his mother¡¯s push, he stopped dilly-dallying and sent Gu Yu a message asking him if he was home tomorrow.

    Gu Yu replied quickly: ¡°For New Years?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Hmm.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡± I thought you were reluctant to give me back my underwear that¡¯s why you hadn¡¯t made contact. It¡¯s already the fourth.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...... That¡¯s not it!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Ha-ha. What time tomorrow? I spoke with my family and they said you shoulde for lunch. Does that work?¡±

    ...... Huh? And lunch? o////o

    Feeling the importance of visiting Gu Yu¡¯s home, Zhang Siyi felt pressured. Knowing that Gu Yu is paying close attention to his visit, his nerves started to rise. After taking the package his mother prepared, at nine o¡¯clock in the morning, he left his house.

    Gu Yu¡¯s family home is located in the old city section and was built in the 1990s. The neighborhood is close to Zhang Siyi¡¯s high school alma mater where many faculty members reside. Zhang Siyi took a taxi directly to the address that Gu Yu provided.

    Standing in front of the door, Zhang Siyi saw the old iron gate and electronic doorbell in disrepair. He pressed it a few times, but there wasn¡¯t a response. Helpless, he sent a message to Gu Yu on his phone. Gu Yu texted him back: ¡°The doorbell is broken. I¡¯ll be right down.¡±

    Since Gu Yu¡¯s family lived on the third floor, soon Zhang Siyi could hear someoneing down the stairs. Knowing that Gu Yu is personallying down the stairs to open the door for him, Zhang Siyi heart pounded in synchronize rhythm to the ¡®stomp-stomp-stomp¡¯ from the steps on the staircase.

    It¡¯s been a few days since Zhang Siyi saw Gu Yu and he noticed how much better Gu Yu looked. Maybe the difference inplexion was because he was well-rested after the busy, stressful work days before the holiday. Now, at home, Gu Yu face looked peaceful and happy.

    He was wearing loose casual lounge wear and his feet were covered with a pair of round-headed cotton slippers. His attire was rather sloppy and not elegant, but Zhang Siyi felt it was another type of handsome; warm,fortable, home.

    ¡°Here we are.¡± Gu Yu opened the door and smiled at him: ¡°Come up.¡±

    As Gu Yu was turning around to head back upstairs, Zhang Siyi reached out and stopped him: ¡°Wait!¡± He nced left and right and bowed his head. From out of his pocket, he pulled out Gu Yu underwear and quickly handed them over. ¡°This is for you.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°......¡±

    Fortunately for Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu was the one who came downstairs to open the door otherwise he didn¡¯t know when he would get the chance to return the garment.

    Gu Yu wasn¡¯t anxious to hide the underwear. Holding the fabric in his hand, he slowly kneaded it a bit and asked: ¡°Why are you so careful? It was just for one night.¡± In a low voice he added: ¡°Or, did you do something else....?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± (o//a//o) I... I... I...

    When Gu Yu noticed Zhang Siyi instantly turn red and stop talking, he used his free hand to cover his smile. Choking back augh he said: ¡°You are so funny. Every time I tease you, you take it so seriously!¡±

    Zhang Siyi nearly exploded. ¨C Why am I serious? It¡¯s not clear when you are joking!

    ¡°Brother! What took you so long?¡± A lovely female voice came from upstairs.

    ¡°Come on!¡± Gu Yu gave Zhang Siyi a look indicating to follow then turned around himself to walk back upstairs.

    Upstairs, Zhang Siyi really saw the girl who he met previously at the entrance of KTV. She stuck herself half-way out of the door, staring with big eyes curiously at Zhang Siyi.

    ¡°Hey¡± Zhang Siyi stiffly raised his hand and said hello to her.

    The sister smiled and said, ¡°Are you the little apprentice at my brother¡¯s work?¡± I remember you fromst time at KTV. He also called you little friend. Hey, little friend ... ¡°

    Gu Yu: ¡°What¡¯s with you calling him little friend? No matter how big or small he is, he is a year older than you. You should call him Brother.¡±

    His Sister stuck her tongue out at Gu Yu and blew a raspberry at him then turned around and left.

    Zhang Siyi was a little surprised. It turned out, Gu Yu bullied his sister too. He didn¡¯t know why, but he suddenly felt more bnced.

    With a hundred square meters, Gu Yu¡¯s family home is very ordinary. The living area is small, but open to the kitchen and hallway. Not only on tables, but also alongside furniture, there are piles of old and new books everywhere. Although it is crowded, it doesn¡¯t look messy. It is clear; a schr resides here.

    ¡°Come in. Your name is Zhang Siyi?¡± Gu Yu¡¯s Father stood up from the sofa and warmly greeted Zhang Siyi.

    Wearing a pair of square sses, Father Gu looked older than his own. He had a full voice and hisplexion was very good. Perhaps because his eyebrows looked like Gu Yu¡¯s, Zhang Siyi instinctively felt close to Gu Yu¡¯s father.

    Zhang Siyi changed his shoes and gave the gift bag to Gu Senior. He respectfully called him ¡°Uncle Gu¡±, wished him a Happy New Year and said a few words.

    Then Gu Yu¡¯s Mother came out. Zhang Siyi only nced at her and was stunned. With eyes that exude hope, and a soft calming demeanor, she embodies beauty. Quietly standing on the side, she made people feel veryfortable.

    Zhang Siyi used to think that his mother was the most beautiful woman in the world. When she saw Gu Yu¡¯s mother, he discovered what it meant to be innately beautiful. It is a kind of natural beauty that does not require emotional attachment. With such superb gics, no wonder Gu Yu and his sister are so good looking.

    Zhang Siyi spoke a little shyly: ¡°Auntie.¡± She slightly nodded and indicated to the sofa in signnguage, presumable for him to sit. Zhang Siyi was very surprised, but his thoughts were pulled back when Gu Yu also greeted her by voice.

    Father Gu smiled and said: ¡°Yu has talked about you. You two are very attached to each other. It must be fate.¡±

    ¡°Oh? Is it?¡± Zhang Siyi chuckled and nced at Gu Yu who remained silent. Why does the word ¡®fate¡¯ sound strange? He exined: ¡°I don¡¯t know that it is so much about fate, but he and I were from the same high school. Although we weren¡¯t studying during the same time, I have heard about his past deeds for three years since he was the top student for the college entrance examination.¡± Zhang Siyi scratched his head: ¡°I decided to study architecture because of his influence back at school so it¡¯s difficult to think about fate.¡±

    Gu Dadughed and said: ¡°I am not talking about this. You have met when you were children.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°???¡± We met when I was a kid?

    ¡°You didn¡¯t tell him?¡± Father Gu looked at his son in a meaningful way.

    Gu Yu¡¯s sister took this moment to pass a cup of tea to each of the three men sitting on the sofa then sat herself down on a cushion on the ground to listen to their conversation.

    Zhang Siyi thanked her and elbowed Gu Yu¡¯s side and asked: ¡°Have we really met when we were kids?¡±

    Gu Yu lowered his head and quietly peeled a grapefruit then said two words: ¡°It¡¯s stupid.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Witnessing her brother¡¯s reaction, Gu Yu¡¯s sister ¡®pfffft¡¯ lost her tea, and looked at Zhang Siyi with interest. She also wanted to listen to gossip and urged her Father: ¡°You tell us Dad!¡±

    Smiling, Father Gu looked at Zhang Siyi and said: ¡°You were quite small at the time...... Yu was only ten and you were about...... this high.¡± He raised his hand above the coffee table...¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± He and Gu Yu are six years apart, so he was only four years old!

    Father Gu continued: ¡°I was doing a municipal project and on my way to the construction Bureau to do a report.... Oh yes. Secretary Zhang was just a small director then......¡±

 Chapter 71: Childhood

    <h4>Chapter 71: Childhood</h4>

    ______________________

    Zhang Siyi wondered how he could have met Gu Yu when he was a child. However, the city isn¡¯t so big, so Zhang Siyi shouldn¡¯t be so surprised. Gu Yu¡¯s father is a construction engineer and since Zhang Siyi father is in the government of the construction management department, their lives would inevitably intersect. He didn¡¯t expect Father Gu to exin.

    ¡°Uncle Gu, do you know my father? ¡°Zhang Siyi asked.

    ¡°I don¡¯t know him well, but I remember him clearly. Even though I have only met him a few times, I know your father is honest, fair and a good official, so I was very impressed by him.¡± Father Gu replied with a simple evaluation then continued: ¡°It was about twenty-two years ago when I was a young engineer. I had to go to the government building for a report and my son was with me.¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s sister suddenly interrupted: ¡°Hey, if you had to go report why did you take brother? Where was I?¡±

    Father Gu exined: ¡°At the time your grandmother fell ill so your mother took you to Grandma¡¯s house to care for her. Your brother had school so he couldn¡¯t go. On Saturday when I went to hand in the report, he went with me on the train to the government buildings.¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s sister nodded: ¡°Oh, I see. That¡¯s why.¡±

    Father Gu: ¡°I let him wait for me outside while I went inside. I don¡¯t know what happened while I was gone, but when I returned, I saw him ying on a bench in the corridor with a child.¡±

    Zhang Siyi pointed to his nose: ¡°The ¡®child¡¯ is me?¡±

    Father Gu smiled and looked at him: ¡°Yes. My son was teaching you to count. You already counted to three hundred. He said three-hundred-one and you repeated three-hundred-one then he said three-hundred-two and you followed with three-hundred-two. The two of you drinking milk, one with self-approbation and the other in a baby voice with clear enunciation...... Ha-Ha-Ha.... that scene was so cute.¡±

    Zhang Siyi felt embarrassed and asked: ¡°Why were we counting there?¡±

    Gu Yu turned to look at him and said: ¡°Since you couldn¡¯t find your dad, you were crying and wouldn¡¯t stop. The staff member in your dad¡¯s office didn¡¯t know what to do. He saw me outside and since we were both children, he thought we could y together. The staffer entrusted you to me, but also made you call me brother.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Gu Yu went on to say: ¡°You were pulling on my pant leg asking me if I knew where your dad was. I didn¡¯t know who your father was, but I guessed he was probably inside in one of the conference rooms. I made up a story telling you that my father and your dad were together looking for delicious food for us. You were drooling all over my pant leg, asking me when they will be back so I told you that if we count to five-hundred together, they will be back. You just stupidly followed me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± o(¨s¡õ¨t)o

    Through their description, Zhang Siyi can imagine the scene clearly. It¡¯s no wonder Gu Yu called him ¡®stupid¡¯. Zhang Siyi suddenly felt irritated. Very stupid! It¡¯s unfair that Gu Yu has seen his embarrassing past, but Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know anything about Gu Yu¡¯s ck history. Next to them, Gu Yu sister was listening with rapt attention. She nced at Zhang Siyi with empathy and smiled. She said: ¡°Elder brother, you also used that ploy with others. Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!¡±

    Zhang Siyi looked at her curiously and wanted to know what she meant by that remark.

    Gu Yu¡¯s sister was filled with indignation: ¡°He has been lying to me since childhood! Every time I asked about when mom and dad would be back, he said by the time you counted to five-hundred, they woulde back. From a young age, I don¡¯t know how many times I¡¯ve been cheated by him!¡±

    Gu Yu gave two peeled grapefruit slices to Zhang Siyi and lost two to his sister and said: ¡°When did I lie to you? Didn¡¯t theye back before five-hundred every time?¡±

    Exasperated, his sister exined: ¡°Obviously, you weren¡¯t honest when you counted! You said five-hundred but you would never reach 500. You would count 111 ¨C 119, but then start counting backwards, 118, 117, 116... Every ten digits or so you would go back and forth. I was fooled by you for several years. It wasn¡¯t until I was old enough in elementary school that I found something wrong!¡±

    Gu Yu slowly peeled the grapefruit meat off the rinds and put it into his mouth. He ate and said: ¡°Who promised to follow the number linearly? I certainly did not.¡±

    Sister: ¡°......¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Why does this scene look so familiar?¡±

    Gu Yu didn¡¯t let her go and continued his verbal onught: ¡°Okay, your mathematics performance is so good since childhood. Half of the credit belongs to me so instead of thanking me you me me. Really, you have no conscience.¡±

    His Sister¡¯s face was ck and blue with anger. She pointed at her brother and retorted in a shrill voice: ¡±Nonsense! My good math skills are clearly due to father¡¯s gics. If I relied on your method of counting, I would have failed math!¡±

    Father Guughed and interrupted them in a timely manner: ¡°Well, well, don¡¯t argue, now it¡¯s all right.¡±

    Father Gu continued to exin about the past: ¡°When we all came out of the building, you were still counting insisting that you weren¡¯t finished yet. Weughed and teased you knowing that you were the son of Director Zhang. When it was time to leave you cried miserably and held onto him yelling ¡®Brother¡¯. You wouldn¡¯t listen to anyone.

    Father Gu paused. Thinking of the scene from the past, he tried not tough.

    Looking down at the floor, Zhang Siyi¡¯s cheeks were hot. Is this really him? He does not believe it!

    With empathy that turned to sympathy, Gu Yu¡¯s younger sister looked at Zhang Siyi, also suppressingughter. She didn¡¯t understand why Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t look at the bright side of things.

    Father Gu said again: ¡°You were crying so loud at the time. All the adults were troubled and at a loss what to do. Then Yu picked you up and said ¡®Don¡¯t cry. It¡¯s ok.¡¯ and like magic, you stopped crying. All the adults were in a daze.¡±

    Zhang Siyi desperately tried to brainwash himself, it must not be him, not him, not him ...

    Father Gu then described: ¡°Even though you stopped crying, your eyes were still full of tears. You looked at Yu yelled a heart-wrenching ¡®Brother!¡¯. The group of adults were distressed feeling that the situation was both funny and difficult. Since you were so reluctant to give up, Director Zhang also joked and said to bring you home and raise you as a son.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Fuck! That¡¯s what his father said!

    Father Gu: ¡°Unfortunately, we were in a rush and needed to leave otherwise we would have let you y. Your Father knew we needed to leave, so when he went to take you away, you started hysterically crying again. Yu gave you a Kong-Ming lock telling you......¡±

    Gu Yu suddenly interrupted coughing: ¡°Dad... no need to say.¡± His was a little red, blinking rapidly and trembling: ¡°It was so long ago. He would have forgotten.¡±

    Zhang Siyi really wanted to know what was said: ¡°Well, what did you say?¡±

    Father Gu sat on the sofa, drank his tea and smiled: ¡°You can ask him yourself, ha-ha-ha......¡±

    With curiosity, Zhang Siyi looked at Gu Yu intently. As a result, Gu Yu put the grapefruit skin in a stack and stood up and said: ¡°I¡¯m going to help Mom cook.¡±

    Father Gu waved his hand at the back of Gu Yu and quietly said: ¡°This kid is still embarrassed.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Gu Yu cold demeanor, unrelenting tone and iprehensible expression means he is embarrassed? How does his Dad see that? (=_=)

    Engrossed in the story, Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu¡¯s sister are still present wanting to hear more.

    Without Gu Yu, Father Gu went on whispering: ¡°The Kong-Ming-Lock is a double cross tension lock made with eight blocks interlocking through a tenon structure. I personally crafted it and gave it to him on his sixth birthday. He loved to y with it for several years.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart started pounding in his chest. Hearing the story of the lock made him think of the tape measure that Gu Yu gave him.

    Father Gu looked at Zhang Siyi and smiled: ¡°I didn¡¯t expect him to give away his favorite toy. Remember, even as a child he always acted serious and like a small adult he told you: ¡°If you want to see me again, be an architect because I¡¯m going to be an architect.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± He felt like he was struck by lightning.

    Is this what Gu Yu said? But there is an inexplicable feeling that makes people feel warm in the heart!

    Gu Yu¡¯s younger sister said in disbelief: ¡°Brother was ten years old? Did he really say that to a four-year-old?¡±

    Suppressing hisughter, Father Gu smiled and said: ¡°Yes he did. Afterwards, I asked him if he was going to regret giving away the Kong-Ming-Lock to a child he may never see again. Can you guess what your brother said?¡±

    Sister: ¡°What did he say?¡±

    Father Gu changed his voice to match his son¡¯s. He rxed his facial muscles, ttened his expressions and said in a serious tone: ¡°Dad, you said some things need to be passed on.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Poof¨C!¡±

    Bursting out withughter, Gu Yu¡¯s Sister leaned forward and pped her thigh. No longer caring about herdy like image she said: ¡°God, my brother is too funny!¡± Then she pointed at Zhang Siyiughing. ¡°Ha-ha-ha-ha! You are now doing architecture. It really was passed down!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    ¡°Dad!¡± Gu Yu called from the kitchen in an irritated tone. ¡°Mom wants you to help scrape the scales and clean the fish!¡±

    Father Gu put his hand up and signaled a hold-on then put his cup down and went to the kitchen, leaving Zhang Si Yi and Gu Yu sister. Even though she is one year younger than Zhang Siyi, he doesn¡¯t feel any real distance between them, especially after this morning¡¯s small talk and Gu family stories. They looked at one another and then she took the initiative to stand up and sit next to him on the sofa. She smiled at him and asked: ¡°Do you still have the Kong-Ming-Lock?¡±

    Zhang Siyi speechless: ¡°I have long forgotten about it. Four years old is not like when I was fourteen in high school.¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s sister: ¡°That¡¯s right, ha-ha-ha....¡±

    Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t help himself fromughing as well. He looked at her and realized he still didn¡¯t know her name: ¡°What is your name?¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s sister quickly reached out a hand and said: ¡°My name is Gu Yao.¡±

    The two of them shook hands and both felt a kind of revolutionaryrade-in-arms since they both have been bullied by Gu Yu.

    Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°I heard from your brother that you¡¯re still in college?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Well, I go to F-University. This year I¡¯ll be a senior.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was shocked: ¡°Wow. You must be so smart and talented!¡±

    F-University is also one of the best universities in the country. It is the most famous university in Haicheng, and the admission requirements aren¡¯t much lower than T-University.

    By marrying such a beautiful wife and having a pair of talented children, Zhang Siyi can¡¯t help but feel that Gu Dad was the proper winner of life!

 Chapter 72: Sister

    <h4>Chapter 72: Sister</h4>

    __________________

    Gu Yao listened and pursed her lips together and unexpectedlyined: ¡°What intelligence and talent? With a genius brother, you do not know what it was like as a child growing up! When you score high on a test, maybe in another family, there will be a reward, but in ours, with my brother scoring first on everything, my scores meant nothing! No matter what my grades were, there will always be someone better. Even when I got into F University, my Dad just said ¡°good¡± .... My college entrance examination score was a lot worse than my brother¡¯s. Anyway, don¡¯t praise me, it makes me feel ufortable.¡±

    Thinking in Gu Yao¡¯s point of view, Zhang Siyi thought it was pitiful, but he was also curious: ¡°Gu Yu is your older brother so didn¡¯t he encourage you and help you with your studies like homework?¡±

    ¡°Ha! What encouragement!? He was only helpful when he wasn¡¯t ridiculing me!¡± Gu Yao remembered: ¡°When I was in high school and he was in college, one year I tried my best to make it to the top at the school. He was home for holiday break and saw my paper, scoffed and asked me, ¡®you only needed this level to score first?¡¯. It was so exasperating.¡±

    Nodding energetically, Zhang Siyi fully understood the suffering Gu Yu causes. He used his own experience tofort her: ¡°Gu Yu is also very strict in thepany. On the first day of work he had me stay and work overtime fixing every drawing mistake. When he finally approved, I wanted to dig a hole for myself. Well, it¡¯s not just me. He¡¯s totally unapologetic towards the female colleagues in thepany.

    Gu Yao was surprised: ¡°Really!? I thought he only did this to me!¡±

    Zhang Siyiughed: ¡°Ha-ha-ha. I also thought his behavior would be different towards his family, but it appears like he acts this way to everyone!¡±

    Gu Yao snorted: ¡°Yes, his seemingly arbitrary contempt towards others is really hateful!¡±

    Zhang Siyi clenched his fist and in depressed way said: ¡°I know. Every time I am in front of him feeling insecure, he makes me feel like aplete idiot.¡±

    Gu Yao said: ¡°This kind of high-IQ animal that destroys social harmony and stability should be pulled out and chopped to death!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°That¡¯s right! Hack it to death!¡±

    ...... Wait, that¡¯s too ruthless!

    Thinking he said something very pervasive, he covered his mouth then looked timidly at Gu Yao and found that she also had covered her mouth.

    Realizing they have found a special confidant, the two looked at each other and suddenlyughed. Their revolutionary friendship became more and more profound, and together they continued to gossip in whispers. Originally, Zhang Siyi thought Gu Yu would be gentler towards his sister. He did not expect the source of Gu Yu¡¯s persecution to be his sister. Everything she has ryed, she was distraught and gnashed her teeth. Zhang Siyi estimated the area of the shadow of her brother looming over her exceeds the whole Pacific Ocean....

    Zhang Siyi felt sympathetic and tried to encourage her: ¡°You were so much better than I. My college entrance exam was verypetitive and missed the mark by 20 points. But how did you do in high school? Did you also go to Ning? Maybe you are my school sister!¡±

    Gu Yao wrinkled her nose and said: ¡°To escape my brother¡¯s shadow, I didn¡¯t test for Ning. I went to the same elementary and middle school as my brother and what teacher does not know of my brothers¡¯ achievements? If I continued to Ning, every teacher willpare me with him, and I¡¯ll end up at Blue Xiang Technical School. I¡¯d go crazy!¡±

    Zhang Siyiughed out loud. This girl is too humorous: ¡°Is it better for you now?¡±

    Gu Yao said with joy: ¡°Of course it is much better! At least, most people don¡¯t know that I have a brother.¡± ...... It seems that Gu Yao did spend a rtively easy three years in a school without Gu Yu¡¯s influence.

    She continued: ¡°Since my brother¡¯s reputation is far reaching, there has been some trouble. Not only did he score the highest school entrance examination, but he also ced first in many city activities that he participated in like the badmintonpetition andputerpetition. Thus, many people outside of Ningcheng also know him. From time to time, girls at schoole to find me and ask me about my brother. They want me to give him a love letter.¡± Gu Yao stuck out her tongue and blew a raspberry in Gu Yu¡¯s direction.

    Zhang Siyi sighed. Gu Yu really is a stalwart character. A heavenly son.... ¡°The letters... Did you give them to him?¡± Zhang Siyi asked without thinking.

    ¡°How could I? My brother has never epted a girl¡¯s love letter since he was a child. If I stamped and posted the letter, he would call, and I tell me I didn¡¯t have a brain. Hey, I¡¯ll tell you something more embarrassing! When I was in junior high school, I had few very good girlfriends. At that time, girls were a little obsessive about love, you know!¡± Gu Yao squinted her eyes at him.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°???¡± Why would I understand?

    ¡°At one point, I brought them home, and as soon as they saw my brother, they made a fool of themselves ...,¡± Gu Yao continued without stopping. ¡°A ssmate of mine stood there motionless staring at him. When he smiled at her she literally got a nosebleed! Super awkward! After that, she was like a zombie wondering around in a daze with her soul sucked out. She was always pestering me about my brother and even though I told her about my brother¡¯s ck belly, she never listened and only replied with liking his type. Can you imagine the situation when your best friend has sexual fantasies about your brother? She was delusional and thought she was going to be my sister-inw. Then she turned jealous and thought my brother might be in love with me.¡±

    ¡°Ha-ha-ha...¡± Zhang Siyi was caught off guard. Thinking she was a simple yful girl, he was really impressed at her frank and open discussion. Even talking to a boy about forbidden love, is surprising. He really liked her unpretentious nature.

    Zhang Siyi isn¡¯t a girl and doesn¡¯t really understand how to rte to Gu Yao¡¯s experience. However, Zhang Siyi imagined what it would be like in her shoes and thought about Gu Yu¡¯s potential rtionships with girls. The more he thought about it, the more ufortable he felt. He really didn¡¯t want anybody to pursue Gu Yu and he didn¡¯t want Gu Yu to like anyone. As the feeling grew, Zhang Siyi felt even more ufortable as the strong desire to monopolize Gu Yu scared him. He shook his head and made himself push away whatever special feelings he had for Gu Yu.

    Fortunately, Gu Yao went on to say: ¡°I thought maybe she was joking, but then she told me that if my brother didn¡¯t except her lover letter, she was going to stop being friends with me. I asked her why, and she told me that, I would remind her of her failed first love and she didn¡¯t want to feel heartbroken all the time, so she had to sever our connection.¡± Slumping, Gu Yao held her head and sighed.

    Hearing her story, Zhang Siyi felt goosebumps all over. He tried tofort her: ¡°Hey, people who can so easily dismiss a friend may not be suitable for being friends...¡±

    In distress, Gu Yao continued: ¡°I had a really close rtionship with her for some time. We would help each other with homework or study, walk together to school, we shared many meals...... But just because she met my brother, she ended it! He is a curse!¡±

    Zhang Siyi hesitated for a moment then lifted his hand to pat her on the shoulder, showingfort.

    Gu Yao thought of something else and continued venting her past frustrations: ¡°Oh, and another thing... My brother is so selfish. For his convenience, every time I go out with him, he takes my hand and pretends I am his girlfriend. He never considers my feelings or how it will affect my experience. How am I supposed to find a boyfriend!?!¡±

    Vexed, Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°Why does he want you to be his girlfriend?¡±

    Gu Yao exined: ¡°He said he didn¡¯t want to be harassed. When I don¡¯t cooperate with him, there are usually a lot of girls that approach him. I don¡¯t understand it. How can a nearly thirty-year-old man not want to find a girlfriend? Does he want to die alone?!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Thinking thus, Gu Yao nced at the kitchen and saw her brother still busy in the kitchen then leaned in close to Zhang Siyi and whispered in his ear: ¡°Hey, do you know if my brother has someone he likes in thepany?¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart nearly jumped out of his chest: ¡°Ah? I-I don¡¯t know. Why?¡±

    Gu Yao touched her chin in thought and said: ¡°Recently, he has been acting strange. I think he has a secret rtionship with someone.¡±

    Feeling nervous, Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°How did you find out?¡±

    Gu Yao whispered: ¡°He often checks his mobile phone and smiles. His baffling behavior is obviously because he is in love!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Is that how it is?¡±

    Gu Yao pouted: ¡°When I asked him, he didn¡¯t say anything about it and I never see him call anyone. It¡¯s mysterious.¡±

    Herments prompted Zhang Siyi memory to recall the night of Truth or Dare and Gu Yu¡¯s admission to having someone he likes. Recalling the moment,ying in bed with his maic voice close to his ear.... That sweet feeling rising... No. No. No. Don¡¯t freak out! It¡¯s nothing to do with me! (&////&)

    Gu Yao voice stopped Zhang Siyi train of thought: ¡°Whether it is a man or a woman, I have to meet the person who has the ability to make my brother act like that!¡±

    Starting to feel rmed, Zhang Siyi timidly asked: ¡°A man can cause that too?¡±

    Gu Yao was silent for a moment. She turned to look directly at Zhang Siyi and said:¡± To tell you the truth, I think my brother is gay.¡±

    Zhang Siyi stifled his breath and nearly choked on his saliva. To hear Gu Yao, talk about her brother like that was more shocking then hearing Gu Yu saying he liked someone.

    ¡°...... Why do you think that?¡±

    Just when Zhang Siyi asked her to exin herself, Gu Yu came out of the kitchen, grabbed two paper towels from the table, and walked over to them: ¡°You two are very talkative.¡±

    Zhang Siyi and Gu Yao were silenced at the same time; a pair of frightened chickens.

    ¡°I can hear you two chatty-kathys from the kitchen.¡± Gu Yu smiled and stood in between them. They consciously separated and scooted over to make room for Gu Yu to sit down. ¡°What are you guys talking so happily about? Make me happy too.¡±

    Zhang Siyi Gu Yao: ¡°......¡±

    Even though Gu Yu didn¡¯t use a particrly serious tone, a heavy invisible pressure exuded from his body. Obviously, there is no way they could repeat a word! Zhang Siyi nced over at Gu Yao and noticed her demeanor instantly changed when her brother arrived. Her previous upright, buoyant and chatty figure is shrinking back into the sofa diminutively. The contrast in personalities between the two siblings is striking. He thinks it¡¯s both funny and sad.

    With a sullen tone Gu Yu asked: ¡°Why aren¡¯t you saying anything? Did you just say something bad about me?¡± He narrowed his eyes and looked at the two of them coldly as if a cold wind blew threw them, chilling to the bone. They both trembled.

    With great courage Zhang Siyi said: ¡°No, no, we were talking about things in high school.¡±

    Gu Yao begged her brother for more grapefruit. Gu Yu snorted and handed over a few pieces: ¡°After lunch do you want to go to the movies together?¡±

    With big eyes, Gu Yao stared at him: ¡°Are you treating?¡±

    Gu Yu gave her a patronizing look: ¡°Are you going to treat?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Without a job, I have no money to treat!¡±

    Gu Yao looked at Zhang Siyi and smiled and asked: ¡°What about asking your new acquaintance? Zhang Siyi is working.¡±

    Startled, Zhang Siyi put his hands up and confessed: ¡°I don¡¯t have money!¡±

    Gu Yu looked at Zhang Siyi with ridicule as if to say: you can¡¯t even afford a movie and yet you are trying to pick up my younger sister.

 Chapter 73: Red Envelope

    <h4>Chapter 73: Red Envelope</h4>

    __________________________

    The disdain in Gu Yu¡¯s eyes surprised Zhang Siyi. He felt irritated and wished he could grow cat ws and scratch Gu Yu¡¯s face! Gu Yu also raised his chin and gave his sister attitude: ¡°How can you sit here idle when we have a guest? Go help set the table.¡±

    Gu Yao mumbled: ¡°How am I idle? I¡¯m with your ¡®little apprentice¡¯ chatting!¡± She felt upset because their conversation was interrupted. She quickly gave Zhang Siyi ¡®a-look¡¯ and he, looking at Gu Yao, immediately grasped the situation; yes... talk moreter.

    From the kitchen, a very appetizing aroma wafted into the living room. Through a frosted ss door, he saw the busy backs of Gu Yu¡¯s parents in the kitchen. Like a rabbit, Gu Yao quickly jumped in, chatted lively with them and energetically started working.

    This is a very happy and affectionate family full ofughter.

    Although their house isn¡¯t luxurious, they choose to stay in this old apartment despite the fact that they have the money to move to a better living environment.

    Zhang Siyi remembered, at his Grandfather¡¯s house as a child, there was a wooden TV cab, bookshelf and storage tform in the living room. He knew that it was hand-built by carpenters who painstakingly sawed, nailed, sanded, and varnished the wood. In order to maintain the wood, the furniture needed to be wiped down with wood oil once a year. Over time, the furnishing acquired a soft, glossy finish, as if it absorbed the spirit of the family living in the environment and then, itself bing a living thing with a soul. As the years pass, it too will grow old and be obsolete.

    Gu Yu¡¯s home is like a piece of lustrous old furniture properly ced in its true environment. There are architectural rted objects visible all around the room in a seemingly haphazard manor; triangles, T-square, as, piles of books, models... all arepletely integrated into the room and integrated into the family.

    Zhang Siyi looked at all this and couldn¡¯t help but sigh. It turned out that this is the type of house Gu Yu grew up in. As he imagined, these older architects never touted themselves with fashion and modernity but were mostly stereotype-nostalgic.

    Just like the ¡°inheritance¡± that Gu senior mentioned, it needs to be passed down, not just objects, furniture, and the like, but also family, and spirit.

    Growing up in such an environment, it isn¡¯t surprising that Gu Yu will want to be an architect. Even in Gu Yu¡¯s vi, Zhang Siyi could feel the warmth and tranquility of the environment. It turns out that the origin of this feeling came from here.

    Not more than a minute passed when Gu Yu¡¯s words broke Zhang Siyi reverie: ¡°Your sry isn¡¯t low and I remember sending you a quarter bonus in January, so why don¡¯t you have money?¡±

    In front of his family, Zhang Siyi kept up the illusion of being self-reliant, but when Gu Yu asked him about it, he had an excuse to vent some bitter feelings: ¡°Half of my ie goes towards rent and the other half I originally saved, but with the New Year, the remaining half went to family members¡¯ red envelopes. Now it¡¯spletely gone!¡±

    In order to try an elicit sympathy, Zhang Siyi deliberately sounded pathetic in hopes that Gu Yu would give him a pay raise. Instead, Gu Yu only asked calmly: ¡°How many total red envelopes did you give to your extended family?¡±

    Calcting in his mind, Zhang Siyi added them up: Grandmother was 1600 and six cousins at 500 each so 4600. He rounded up and told Gu Yu 5000. Even though he felt all the red envelopes for his cousins was coerced, Zhang Siyi felt a sense of pride at being able to show his family his sessful career.

    Gu Yu listened then asked: ¡°How much is your rent?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°4,100 per month.¡±

    After listening to him, Gu Yu quickly assessed his current financial situation: ¡°After taxes, your monthly sry is 7,000. With meal rebates, the Halloween and love-my-job bonuses you have an additional ie. Plus 3000 for the annual event award, but ok that hasn¡¯t been issued yet, so we can disregard it. However, I saw you earn no less than six other red envelops at the annual meeting. Figuring in the project bonus, your sry for thest six months would be about 66000. If we deduct rent at 24000 and 5000 worth of red envelops there is still about 30000 left.¡±

    Gu Yu looked at him incredulously: ¡°On average, you spend six thousand per month on pure living expenses?¡±

    Zhang Siyi was surprised: ¡°What!? How can there be so much!?¡±

    ¡°Then you count it yourself and see if I have miscalcted.¡± Gu Yu said, then kindly took out a calctor from under the coffee table and threw it to him.¡±

    Zhang Siyi took the calctor and worked through the numbers again. As he verified Gu Yu¡¯s ount, cold swear formed on his head. It really was six-thousand a month! Then why does he never have enough money? Where does it all go?

    Remembering, Zhang Siyi suddenly said: ¡°I spent over 10000 on winter clothes in December.¡±

    Gu Yu looked him up and down and said, ¡°I figured this is where you have spent your money. More than 10000 for some clothes, ok, but what about the rest?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    For the life of him, Zhang Siyi could not remember having any additional special expenses. Maybe a dinner party? But going a few times wouldn¡¯t add up to all of it, does it? Jesus Christ, where the hell did his money go?

    Gu Yu smiled and mocked him: ¡°I am confused. With such a strong sense of self-reliance, it turned out you are a financial idiot. At the rate you are going you will earn more and die poor.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± How can you say that about me!

    Gu Yu nced at him and asked seriously: ¡°If you don¡¯t have money, why don¡¯t you let your parents help?¡±

    Zhang Siyi mourned his loss: ¡°I had an agreement with my Father. When I started working, I wouldn¡¯t spend family money.¡±

    Gu Yu nodded and expressed approval, but he wondered: ¡°Since you are almost out of money, why do you continue to give so many red envelopes to your cousins?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I only nned to give one to my cousin, but my Mother said I had to treat all my younger cousins fairly, so I gave it to them all.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Your mother doesn¡¯t know that you are running out of money?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Hmm ...¡±

    Gu Yu smirked: ¡°To save your pride you have to suffer.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Gu Yu, this big bastard! Not only did he not praise him orfort him or sympathize with him, he took out a dagger and stabbed him over and over again!

    After a moment of silence, Gu Yu sighed softly than took out a red envelope from his pocket......

    Wide eyed, Zhang Siyi stared at the actions of Gu Yu and knowingly asked: ¡°What is that?¡±

    Gu Yu did not answer and did not immediately give him the red envelope. Instead, he pulled out his wallet from his pocket and opened it. Zhang Siyi saw the bulging wallet, thick with cash inside. Zhang Siyi eyes nearly popped out of his head. Gu Yu counted 10 bills from the inside and stuffed them into the red envelope. He slowly moistened the envelope with his mouth than folded it. Watching Gu Yu¡¯s actions, Zhang Siyi heart is in his throat. Is Gu Yu giving him a red envelope? What should he do? Should he ept it? He should probably refuse... but he really wants it!

    Instead of passing along the envelope, Gu Yu extended his hand to Zhang Siyi: ¡°Give me your phone.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± What do you need my phone for?

    Although puzzled, Zhang Siyi¡¯s vision is now full of the red envelope so he quietly unlocked the phone and handed it over.

    Gu Yu downloaded a bookkeeping app for him saying: ¡°Every time you spend money, remember to make a record here. After three months, you will know where your money is going.¡±

    Schooled, Zhang Siyi nodded again and again: ¡°Mmm-Hmm.¡±

    Gu Yu ced the red envelope together with his mobile phone: ¡°Here, take it.¡±

    Blushing, Zhang Siyi is slightly embarrassed. He wants to refuse but also weed it: ¡°How can you give me a red envelope?¡±

    Gu Yu smiled and looked at him: ¡°You havee to visit and celebrate New Year¡¯s with me. How can I not give you a red envelope?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Why does he make it sound like I deliberately came over for a red envelope?

    Gu Yu patted his back gently and said, ¡°All right, take it. Don¡¯t say that Boss doesn¡¯t love you in the future.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡± (=////=)

    Zhang Siyi pinched the red envelope to feel its thickness and he thought it¡¯s not less than two thousand dors inside. Knowing hecks funds, Gu Yu put in an additional thousand.

    Even though Gu Yu actions and words made Zhang Siyi feel like he was being molested, he gave up his integrity and epted the envelope. After all, he was facing his own economic crisis.

    Then, Gu Yu showed him how to use the bookkeeping app. On the side, he watched Zhang Siyi enter the data. Zhang Siyi turned over the phone and entered: ¡°-15871.00¡±

    Gu Yu was surprised: ¡°What is this? You still owe someone else money?¡±

    Ashamed, Zhang Siyi shyly said: ¡°I, I.... I use a credit card.¡±

    Speechless, Gu Yu stared at him in disbelief. It seemed to Zhang Siyi that Gu Yu wanted at this moment, to beat him to death.

    The meal was almost ready. Gu Yao set the table and took the cooked food from the kitchen and ced it on the table. She was going to call to eat, but she stopped herself from saying anything. She saw her brother and Zhang Siyi sitting close on the sofa with their heads together. She saw them whispering from time to time and heard her brother¡¯sughter from time to time. She is trying to understand what she is watching.

    ¨C My brother¡¯s hand is on his knee and the other hand is loosely looped behind Zhang Siyi waist. It was a very intimate gesture that was neither appropriate for a Boss to a subordinate, nor something one would do to a friend. Her brother looked at Zhang Siyi with a kind of indescribable tenderness, but Gu Yao has seen it! Before, when her brother was watching his mobile phone, his face would reveal the same expression.

    Her heart-rate sped up and Gu Yao felt like there was something wrong, but couldn¡¯t tell what it was......... Not wanting to bother them, she put down the cup lightly and returned to the kitchen silently.

    The kitchen is also very quiet. With cooperation, her father and mother have a tactical understanding on how to prepare thest bowl of orange sweet soup for lunch.

    They never talk because Mom does not speak, but as long as they are together, a warm, loving atmosphere will appear around them.

    Yes. Although slightly different from her parents, Gu Yao feels the same sweetness emanating from the pair sitting in the living room.

 Chapter 74: Philosophy

    <h4>Chapter 74: Philosophy</h4>

    ________________________

    Upon her return, Father Gu asked: ¡°Why didn¡¯t you call your Brother to eat?¡±

    Gu Yao lowered her head maneuvering in the kitchen: ¡°I¡¯ll call him in a little bit.¡±

    Washing his hands, Father Gu was about to call out, when he heard an ¡®eh¡¯ from Gu Yao. He looked at her strangely for a moment, then shouted out loudly: ¡°Food is ready. Come eat.¡± While he saw Gu Yao standing at the kitchen door, he saw Gu Yu and Zhang Siyiing over to the table. He didn¡¯t know what it was that Gu Yao was trying to dissuade.

    While waiting for Mother Gu to finish ting the sweet soup, the remaining four persons have sat down. Since all can have a little, Gu senior opened a bottle of red wine. When Mother Gu saw that they had not started eating, she looked at them with surprise, and in signnguage asked them why they hadn¡¯t started.

    Gu senior replied: ¡°We are waiting for you to eat together.¡±

    Mother Gu lowered her eyes and smiled apologetically, and quickly sat down.

    Together, the five of them raised their ss to make a toast. In addition to Mother Gu, they weed Zhang Siyi and said in unison ¡°Happy New Year¡±. Even though this is the first time at the Gu household, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t feel particrly like a guest. The Gu family made him feel like a returning rtive.

    The atmosphere while eating the meal was very good. Although Mother Gu did not speak, she often looked at Zhang Siyi with a loving smile like she would with her own children.

    Zhang Siyi has never been affectionately watched by someone so beautiful before. Although Mother Gu is more than 50 years old, perhaps even older than his mother, Zhang Siyi still blushed. Feeling so captivated by her motherhood charm, he wished he could give her a hug. Sorry, Mrs. Zhang. I still love you the most, but the charm of this woman is too strong, I can¡¯t hold it!

    After eating lunch, they sat in the living room for tea. Unsurprising, the Gu family had the habit of drinking Pu¡¯er tea after dinner. Father Gu made tea more skillfully then Gu Yu. Thinking how nice this feeling is, Zhang Siyi thought about buying a tea set when he went back home. In addition to tea, Gu Yu¡¯s mother also prepared a fruit tter for them to eat.

    Sitting together chatting while drinking tea, Father Gu asked a few things about Zhang Siyi. Zhang Siyi told him about his time in the UK studying. Since Gu senior has never been out of the country, he asked Zhang Siyi many questions about the food, housing, clothing and other cultural differences. He listened with relish and yearning.

    Afterwards, Father Gu talked with them about the industry situation. Although the industry is at a low point, he thinks the domestic construction sector is improving in some ways. Now that the industry has started to mature, with current standards, real architects will stand out and people will pay more attention to good design and won¡¯t settle for mediocrity.

    Father Gu further ruminated. Even though it¡¯s not entirely bad right now, it may worsen during the next few years. He poured a cup of tea for Zhang Siyi and smiled: ¡°Since Zhang Siyi just started working, he is probably feeling a bit fickle, right?¡±

    Thinking about the two that were let go from thepany this past year, Zhang Siyi hands trembled, and the tea cup he was holding slightly chattered.

    Father Gu continued: ¡°The world is so big now and there are many temptations outside. Young people indulge in their impulses and construction is a difficult line of work to pursue. Not everyone has the stamina to seed in this line of work and sometimes a person is at the mercy of their impulsive choice made in their youth.

    Gently nodding, Zhang Siyi has more than once regretted the choice he made to go to college for architecture. Even now, he walks a small step in order to walk a bigger step.

    Father Gu smiled and said: ¡°But even if a person does something spur of the moment, they can¡¯t be impulsive for a lifetime. Living this life, we have only the energy to be aplished for one good job and that isn¡¯t easy to do. Therefore, a person may never have another opportunity to choose again.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Father Gu bowed his head, drank tea, and said: ¡°In the face of the industry¡¯s low tide, neers like you who are just entering the workce will be impetuous and uneasy, which is inevitable.¡±

    Zhang Siyi timidly looked at Gu Yu. In fact, the power of his life and death is in his hands. If Gu Yu covers for him all his problems will be gone!

    ¡°If you are confused, listen to this uncle¡¯s philosophy,¡± Gu senior looked up and fixedly looked at Zhang Siyi¡¯s eyes. ¡°I have said this since childhood, I hope you can listen to it. Good men are fighters and not quitters. Most of the people¡¯s impetuousnesses from being unconfident. The root of the cause is that they don¡¯t have enough determination. Although my son is now your boss, it is not him, but yourself to decide whether you can walk the path of this business or not.

    Staring with admiration at Father Gu, Zhang Si Yi was speechless. A good man fights, not quits.

    Yes, every time he wants to back down, it¡¯s because he saw great difficulties. There are so many things to learn from architecture. From the research of geography, learning local culture and historical environment to learning theputer software and art aesthetics, his knowledge is only the tip of the iceberg. It is quite intimidating.

    Even now, Zhang Siyi was pushed forward by the pressure of the industry and Gu Yu¡¯s whip. He didn¡¯t have the full ambition to say that I, Zhang Siyi, would do this for a lifetime.

    When he thinks of the annual sry of his friend Shen Hao andpare that to his ssmates and friends, the pay wages aren¡¯t proportional. Has can Zhang Siyi not waver?

    At this moment, Gu Dad raised his finger and clicked on the table. He continued: ¡°If you want to be an architect, don¡¯t just look at the immediate interests. Your value does not depend on how much money someone else gave you today. It is the wealth that your future can create for the world. You are the value itself. You must constantly arm yourself with knowledge and skills, grow up at the fastest speed, and be an irreceable member of this industry. If you don¡¯t then I am afraid you would be eliminated.¡±

    Having said that, Father Gu took back his serious expression and smiled broadly: ¡°When you get there, you will know the fun of doing architecture.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was a little brainwashed by Gu Yu¡¯s father. The understanding he gleaned from his teaching was immense. His eyes were full of worship. Zhang Siyi saw another luminous body more dazzling then the light of Gu Yu.

    If you say that the light of Gu Yu can only be seen from afar then everything in his body is eclipsed by the light of his father. Father Gu is the source of light that can be spread.

    The ancients said, listening to the King¡¯s words, read the book for ten years.

    Listening to Father Gu talk is like being basked in his light. Although Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t digest all his philosophy in such a short period of time, at least the fog in his head was dispelled and his heart was fortified. Sipping his cup of Pu¡¯er tea, his spirit rose.

    Zhang Siyi nodded: ¡°I know. Thank you, Uncle Gu.¡±

    After the family discussion during tea time, Gu Yu put on his coat and reminded Zhang Siyi and his Sister about the movies.

    Father and Mother Gu did not join them for a movie. Standing at the door, they said goodbye to Zhang Siyi and warmly invited him toe again next time.

    After going downstairs, while Zhang Siyi and Gu Yao waited at the door, Gu Yu walked over to the garage to pick up the car.

    Thinking about the conversation just now, Zhang Siyi felt excited. Pumping his fist, he eximed: ¡°Your father is really awesome!¡±

    Gu Yao doesn¡¯t understand: ¡°What¡¯s so great about him?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What he said was so exciting!¡±

    Gu Yaoughed out loud then said: ¡°He is like this; giving advice to whomever will listen. I don¡¯t know how much I listened to when I was young. If I was afraid that an exam would not go well, he would encourage me. Don¡¯t be afraid! Don¡¯t think about it! Go study! Don¡¯t be afraid of the result. Be strong for the exam!¡± Gu Yao raised her fists in the air like an athlete¡¯s victory pose.

    She continued: ¡°It¡¯s really useful. I don¡¯t know when it started, but I rarely fear anything. My dad said that people¡¯s troubles are often over exaggerated. Don¡¯t think, just do it.¡±

    Boisterous, Zhang Siyi expressed himself: ¡°Right! You have heard this throughout your life, so you are probably immune, but this is the first time I¡¯ve listened to something so inspiring!¡± Changing his tone, Zhang Siyi grievously said: ¡°My father would never say something like that. He would only criticize me.¡± Turning to look at Gu Yao, Zhang Siyi tly added: ¡°Your brother too.¡±

    Gu Yao agreed: ¡°Yes! Since childhood he would say I¡¯m stupid. He is at the top of his own universe!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°When I checked my friends on social media, he would criticize me countless times! When I washed my face with cleanser, he called me a pretty boy!¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Huh? You use a facial cleanser? What brand do you use?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Kys, I also use its home toner.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Oh? I heard Kys¡¯s honeysuckle water is very good to use. Is it true?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Since it¡¯s soothing, hypoallergenic and cheap, both men and women can use it! More than 200 ML is only three-hundred Yuan!¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Wow! Hello Professional, what else do you use? Give me some rmendations!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°And the face cream of LC, the essence of YS ...¡±

    When Gu Yu¡¯s car came around, the two of them were chatting happily. They stopped talking together and moved to the door. Zhang Siyi wanted to give Gu Yao the front passenger seat. Gu Yao thought the same, so they reached out to the same backdoor and opened it.

    Gu Yao | Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Gu Yao quickly said: ¡°You sit in front!¡±

    Incredulous, Zhang Siyi looked at her with questioning eyes. What? Why me?

    She already took the first step into the backseat, so he was left to walk to the front. While he was internallyining about her betrayal of their revolutionary friendship, he sat down in the front seat. When he was fastening his seat belt, he noticed Gu Yu looking at him with daggers.

    Without affection or warmth, Gu Yu tly said: ¡°You two have a really good rtionship.¡±

 Chapter 75: Movie

    <h4>Chapter 75: Movie</h4>

    ___________________

    The temperature inside the car plummeted with Gu Yu¡¯s words. Recalling the phrase ¡°Do you want to be my brother-inw? You are nowhere near it,¡± Zhang Siyi thought Gu Yu misunderstood his rtionship with Gu Yu¡¯s sister. He thinks she is very pretty, and her character is very good, but there is nothing else but friendship between them.

    At the same time, sitting in the back seat, Gu Yao was also keenly aware of the sudden change in her brother¡¯s mood. The signal antennae on her forehead collected the vinegar and cockroaches that permeated the air for deeper analysis......

    On the way, Gu Yu asked them what movie they wanted to see. They checked the movie app on their phones and browsed through the movie selections. Since they aren¡¯t young kids, they certainly didn¡¯t want to see ¡°Where¡¯s Daddy¡± or ¡°Bear Haunt¡± or any other brainless film. They decided on the one that seemed to have the most depth called ¡°Wolf Totem.¡±

    The theater was very crowded due to the New Year¡¯s holiday. Gu Yu lined up in queue, waited, then discovered that there weren¡¯t three seats together for the next showing of the movie. At the urging of the ticket attendant, he picked three tickets. Two were together in the back and the single was in the front.

    After buying the tickets, Gu Yu turned around to walk back and saw Zhang Siyi and Gu Yao standing close together chatting happily like two hyper rabbits.

    Gu Yu had a headache, sighed and walked over to tell them that the movie tickets were not seated together. Gu Yao and Zhang Siyi looked at each other. This time, Zhang Siyi spoke up first: ¡°You sit with your brother. I can sit in the front by myself.¡±

    Gu Yao offered another suggestion: ¡°I think we should draw a ticket and sit in whichever seat we got.¡±

    Zhang Siyi looked at Gu Yu and Gu Yu extended his hand: ¡°Pick one.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°......¡± Such ¡®casual¡¯ eptance of her proposal. The duplicity of the older brother!

    Zhang Siyi first took one and said: ¡°Row 12, Seat 7.¡±

    Followed by Gu Yao who took a ticket and nced at it without speaking.

    Holding thest ticket, Gu Yu looked at it and smiled: ¡°Row 12, Seat 9.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Gu Yao looked down at Row 11, Seat 11 on her ticket and felt hurt by ten thousand points. She didn¡¯t want to stand out from the crowd alone. Why must the movie tickets also ridicule her!?

    Since Gu Yu¡¯s mood took a one-eighty turn, he bought drinks and a bucket of popcorn. Because she sat separately and Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t like sweets, he gave his sister a popcorn and drink.

    Into the cinema, Gu Yu held her milk tea and exclusive popcorn close. She walked to Row 11 and went along the row to Seat 11 alone. She watched her brother and Zhang Siyi both sit diagonally behind her.

    After Gu Yu sat down, he smiled to her then mouthed a question: ¡°Will you be alright?¡±

    Gu Yao turned back around and grabbed a lot of popcorn and stuffed it into her mouth. Feeling like a ghost, she was irritated. Before in this type of situation, her brother would have taken the initiative to ask her to sit next to him in order to continue pretending to be his girlfriend.

    Fortunately, the film soon began, and the story was still wonderful, so Gu Yao quickly became immersed in the movie.

    Watching the scene in the film where the backside of a human was ughtering wolves, Gu Yao felt ufortable. She was desperately shoving more popcorn into her mouth to ease the sadness. When the plot was a little less dramatic, she subconsciously turned her head to the back row and nced at the two behind her. She meant to catch a glimpse, but instead she paused and stared dumbfounded.

    She didn¡¯t know if Zhang Siyi was also affected by the story. He was watching the big screen with moist, red eyes and her brother was looking intently at Zhang Siyi¡¯s profile sitting next to him. There was a hint of emotion flowing in her brother¡¯s eyes. Tenderness.

    After a few seconds, Zhang Siyi realized that Gu Yu was watching him. He turned to look at Gu Yu and immediately after, Gu Yu leaned in close to his ear and whispered something. Knowing her brother, she thought he was probably teasing him about his puffy, red eyes. Zhang Siyi hurriedly wiped his eyes with his hand and red at her brother both shy and angry.

    Gu Yao quickly turned back around, and her heart was racing. Shepletely forgot the plot of the film. Instead of feeling sad, her mind was full of the scene of her brother flirting with Zhang Siyi. Is that flirting? Probably! Anyway, she has never seen such a mischievous smile on his face.

    However, she unexpectedly felt that her brother¡¯s flirting looked very gentle and charming and Zhang Siyi¡¯s reaction was also very cute! o////o

    Gu Yao¡¯s heart jumped faster, she desperately repressed the desire to turn back and peep again. She could only console herself with popcorn...... and ate it wildly.

    Turning back to the screen, Zhang Siyi was really going to cry out. The human persecution of nature was too much. The wolf in the film reminded him of Cheer-Up.

    By the end of the film, everyone¡¯s mood was glum. Zhang Siyi closed his eyes to choke back his tears and muffled a sniffle: ¡°I should have gone to see one of the silly kids¡¯ movies instead. This was too heart wrenching.¡±

    Gu Yu patted his shoulder tofort him: ¡°It is not a bad thing to feel hopelessness sometimes. At least it will remind us of what is good.¡±

    Thinking about being ridiculed by Gu Yu in the theater just now, Zhang Siyi awkwardly tried to shrug off Gu Yu¡¯sfort.

    After two steps, Zhang Siyi suddenly remembered Gu Yao, and looked back. Gu Yao was following behind, staring at them with green light in her eyes like she was the possessed wolf from the movie.

    Since it was getting close to dinner time, Zhang Siyi needed to get going so he bid Gu Yu and his sister farewell.

    Sitting in the car, Gu Yao asked: ¡°Brother. Since we have a car, why didn¡¯t you drive Zhang Siyi back home?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°I am not a personal driver. He didn¡¯t take the initiative to ask me, so why should I bother?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°......¡± It¡¯s no wonder why her brother has been single for so many years! The reason is well-founded! (=_=)

    Gu Yu was silent for a moment and asked: ¡°What do you think of that guy?¡±

    Thinking about the scene in the cinema, Gu Yu blushed: ¡°Very, very cute.¡±

    Gu Yu raised his eyebrows, cute? What is this adjective? What kind of adjective is this?

    ¡°Then do you want him to be your boyfriend?¡± Gu Yu isughing, but his smile makes people feel somber.

    Gu Yao repeatedly waved her hand and hurriedly said: ¡°No, no, he is not my type!¡±

    Gu Yu looked a little surprised, smiled and asked: ¡°Oh? Then what is his type?¡±

    Gu Yao is speechless. Normally, you should not ask what type I like... (=_=)

    She thought about it and summed it up: ¡°He is a very fun and interesting person that is easy to get along with. He is no more mature then I, so I feel he is a great person to be friends with but nothing more.¡±

    ¡°Yes...¡± Gu Yu listened straight and smiled, and there was a kind of ease and pleasure that could not be stopped.

    As Gu Yao was talking about Zhang Siyi she was watching for her brother¡¯s reaction. Although her IQ was less Gu Yu¡¯s, it was by no means, low and with the addition of ¡®women¡¯s-intuition¡¯ it was not hard to infer the conclusion.

    Although the world is not the same, with rotten culture everywhere, Gu Yao felt worried for her brother. More than once, she has doubted whether her perfect brother might be gay. After all these years, her brother never had a deep rtionship with any women, which is a very unusual thing for a person who is popr with the opposite sex.

    But even so, she never truly thought about what would happen to her brother if he was gay and she felt that their Mother and Father would find it uneptable. Gu Yao sneaked a peek at her brother. Having put away his smile, she saw him focused on driving the car. She felt distressed. It would be very hard for her brother to bear such a big secret alone. She has to think of something.......

    That night, when Zhang Siyi came home, he asked his mother: ¡°Mom! Where did my childhood toys go?¡±

    Mother Zhang was startled: ¡°Toys? You gave them to your cousins after you finished elementary school.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°All of them? I thought we only gave them a bunch of cars and nes.¡±

    Mother Zhang: ¡°Yes. You cried all day when I gave them away.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was not in the mood to listen to his mother retell his ck history. He was anxious to ask: ¡°What about the other toys from before those? I want to find a Kong Ming Lock. Do you remember it?¡±

    Mother Zhang was puzzled: ¡°Kong Ming Lock? What is that thing? Did you ever have that kind of toy?

    Zhang Siyi hurriedly found a picture from the inte on his phone and showed it to his mother: ¡°This is it.¡±

    She looked at the picture for a while and said, ¡± Hmm......, Ah... I know. It has a couple of blocks?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Yes right! It should be detachable! Where is it?¡±

    His Mother frowned and took out the key to the storage shed. Before going outside, she put on a pair of slippers while muttering: ¡°Something from so long ago, who knows if we still have it. It might have been sold at a yard sale.¡±

    Zhang Siyi jumped up and said: ¡°No ah!¡± Come on, help me find it!

    Mother Zhang took him around to the back and opened the storage shed door. Curious, she asked: ¡°Why are you looking for this thing?¡±

    Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°Do you still remember where I got it?¡±

    To protect herself from dust and pollen, his mother covered her nose and rummaged through the storage shed. ¡°I don¡¯t remember, but your Father talked about it. He was very impressed with the toy. He said he took you to work and the son of an engineer gave it to you.¡±

    Delighted, Zhang Siyi eagerly said: ¡°Yes! That¡¯s it!

    Mother Zhang found a few boxes and told Zhang Siyi toe over to help. These boxes held items from when he was a toddler; old bottles, pacifier, small dinosaur model...... Zhang Siyi was looking at his own small time-capsule. His thoughts about his childhood were interrupted when his Mother pulled out a piece of wood from the box: ¡°Is this it?¡±

 Chapter 76: Aquaintance

    <h4>Chapter 76: Aquaintance</h4>

    ___________________________

    ¡°Ah! That should be it!¡± Zhang Siyi hurriedly looked at it and saw tooth marks all over the wood. Even one of the corners of a piece was bitten off.

    Mother Zhang replied with a smile: ¡°I couldn¡¯t think of what the toy was when I saw the image on your phone, but I remembered you liked to chew on these wood pieces as a child.¡±

    ¡°......I liked the wood?¡± Zhang Siyi mouth twitched.

    Mother Zhang answered him: ¡°Yeah. I only recognized these pieces of wood and nothing else. Unless someone was paying attention to you, you always had them in your mouth.¡± She continued to rummage through the boxes and found more wood pieces. Sure enough, the remaining six pieces all had teeth marks on them.

    cing the pieces already found next to him, Zhang Siyi squatting next to his mother and helped look through the boxes: ¡°Mom, why have you kept these wood block and old bottles for twenty years? Are they a family heirloom?¡±

    ¡°When I see these things, I think of you as a child and I didn¡¯t want to lose them when we moved.¡± Mother Zhang exined then looked at her son with motherly affection. ¡°With tender skin and big round eyes, you were so cute as a child. You were born to be loved!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    His Mother pinched her son¡¯s cheeks and continued: ¡°When you cried it was the cutest thing. Your cry wasn¡¯t loud and annoying like other children. Like a faucet, tears would run down steadily from your big eyes and you would purse your lips t. Compared to other kids, you looked the most distressed, so who wouldn¡¯t want to pick you up and give you a kiss!¡±

    Feeling embarrassed by his mother¡¯s affection, Zhang Siyi replied: ¡°I am your son, of course you would only see and feel good.¡±

    She snorted: ¡°Now you aren¡¯t as cute as you were when you were a child. With big ears and weight gain, you¡¯re the ugliest you¡¯ve ever been!¡±

    ...... Who could have said that to her own son!

    His Mother squinted at him and said with pride: ¡°But well, the early model is still in there. Shed a few pounds andpared to others, you aren¡¯t far away.¡±

    Zhang Siyi asked without thinking: ¡°Compared to Gu Yu?¡±

    Mother Zhang paused and said: ¡°Listen to Mom¡¯s advice, don¡¯tpare yourself with those who are born to be blessed by the Gods.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± This is the pro-mother! The proper mother!

    Toplete the puzzle, the Kong Ming Lock needed eight wooden blocks to fit together. Even though they searched through the many storage containers, they could only find seven. ¡°When you were a kid, you used to lose everything. If the piece isn¡¯t here, then it was probably lost. ¡°His mother said.

    Zhang Siyi sighed. After so many years, he originally didn¡¯t have any hope of finding it. He felt lucky to have found the amount of Kong Ming Lock pieces that they had.

    After the two got up, Mother Zhang sighed and questioned him curiously. She softened her voice: ¡°Why were you looking for this?¡±

    Zhang Siyi lowered his head and said, ¡°Guess who gave it to me?¡±

    Mama Zhang: ¡°Who?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Gu Yu!¡±

    Mother Zhang was shocked: ¡°Really?¡±

    ¡°While I was at the Gu residence to celebrate New Year¡¯s, Gu senior told me that we had met when we were children.¡± Zhang Siyi exined.

    Mother Zhang reacted: ¡°Oh, so that engineer was Gu Yu¡¯s father?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s right!¡± Zhang Siyi nodded happily holding the wooden sticks and walked to the exit.

    Zhang mother locked the warehouse, looking at her son¡¯s back. She held her cheek and thought how sentimental the story was and like a fairy-tale, the two are destined by fate. (*/¦Ø\*)

    When Zhang Siyi returned to him room, he carefully cleaned the wooden pieces and took a photo of them to send to Gu Yu.

    Gu Yu: ¡°......¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Hey.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°You still have it?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I just found it with my mom in the warehouse. She didn¡¯t throw away all of my old things.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°It seems like Auntie is very nostalgic.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°But why did you look for it?¡±

    Suddenly, Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart became a little chaotic and he didn¡¯t know how to respond. He didn¡¯t know why he went in search for the toy. Since it was the first gift Gu Yu gave him, he instinctively wanted to search for it and after finding it, he wanted to share his feelings with him.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°No reason. I just wanted to look.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Without thest piece, it can¡¯t be assembled.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°You could tell what was missing?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°I yed with it for two years. Of course, I remember how to assemble the Kong Ming Lock. If you don¡¯t ce the pieces in the correct order, it won¡¯t work.¡±

    Since Gu Yu remembered the exact pieces, Zhang Siyi has a sh of inspiration. He could search online for wood and carve the missing piece!

    Before he was able to ry his idea to Gu Yu, Gu Yu asked: ¡°Why are there dents on the wood? It looks like a dog gnawed on them.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Damn! Even with such a small photo, he can see the tooth marks. Just how big did Gu Yu expand the photo on his screen to inspect it?

    Gu Yu: ¡°Aren¡¯t those your teeth marks?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°I¡¯m guessing those are your marks. I remember when you were a child you loved to drool, and your face was always so wet and dirty. Once, you pounced on me and I tried to help clean you off, but instead, you stuck my hand in your mouth and licked me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡± Don¡¯t say it anymore!

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart couldn¡¯t take this new information. He quickly pushed the wooden blocks to the side andy his head on his desk to bury his face. He didn¡¯t want to ept his past actions.

    Next to him, his mobile phone was buzzing, but he ignored it.

    Gu Yu sent him a message: ¡°What¡¯s wrong, still embarrassed?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Are you there?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°[Little Fox squinting]¡±

    Zhang Siyi felt the heat rise and sent Gu Yu an ¡®angry kitten¡¯ emoji.

    Gu Yu immediately replied with a ¡®little fox touch head¡¯ expression.

    ¡°.....¡± What to do. This back and forth of sending expressions like this is...... like he is falling in love!

    While holding the phone giggling, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t stop himself from sending emojis like he was addicted. His mind was full of Gu Yu.

    ¡°Sisi! Dinner!¡± His mother called from downstairs.

    Zhang Siyi thoughts were interrupted by his mother¡¯s shouting. Feeling like he was doing something wrong, he turned off the phone in panic. ¡°Ahhhhhhhh¡± He isn¡¯t gay! Why does his think about that man every day!? He must be sick!

    After dinner, Zhang Siyi wondered what Fu Xinhui was up to as he had not made contact for a couple of days. Thinking about the film he watched with wolves that reminded him of Cheer-Up, he wanted to give his friend a call and learn more about his situation.

    Fu Xinhui¡¯s voice was a little haggard: ¡°Cheer-Up is alright, but my family isn¡¯t very good.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°what?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Do you remember when my sister helped me find the dog, and the bodyguard hit someone?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I remember, what¡¯s going on?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Well, that person is in intensive care now with a head injury. The family deliberately provoked a fight to use as a basis to sue us. The police investigated for two days and the bodyguard that beat that person has been taken away. Because of the brick, if the bodyguard was arrested, then isn¡¯t it to be expected that my sister would also be arrested?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Did your sister say anything?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Since there are video cameras outside the house, there is evidence that the bodyguard beat the man, but my mother deleted those videos. If they press the matter, then it is also a crime for covering it up.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Shit! Then why don¡¯t you say those people broke into the house first?¡±

    Fu Xinhui paused and said: ¡°I¡¯ll tell you the truth. My uncle got into a big mess and now there are people watching the house. I don¡¯t know what my dad is going to do......¡±

    The only knowledge of those types of scenes that Zhang Siyi has, is from TV and the movies and he never thought that it would happen in real-life. The family is not good. He couldn¡¯t help but think of his father¡¯s New Year¡¯s Eve prophecy. Worried for his friend he asked: ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me the other day?¡±

    Fu Xinhui sighed and said: ¡°You have enough things to worry about that I don¡¯t want to cause you more stress. Rest assured, I am safe. My dad has invited more than a dozen bodyguards so now everyone has someone protecting them. I¡¯m afraid they will target you, so for the time being, I won¡¯t being back to the apartment we rented.

    Zhang Siyi is very ufortable: ¡°Nonsense. I am your friend. Tell me how I can help you!¡±

    Fu Xinhui smiled and said: ¡°I¡¯m not dissing you as a friend. This is a family matter and something ordinary people can¡¯t get involved in. However, I do have something to trouble you with.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What trouble is not troublesome. If there is something, just say it!¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°It¡¯s too chaotic here and I don¡¯t have the energy to take care of Cheer-Up. I want you to take care of the dog for a while.

    Having a sense of responsibility, Zhang Siyi readily agreed: ¡°Of course it¡¯s no problem! Cheer up is our dog!¡±

    Fu Xinhui felt relieved: ¡°That¡¯s good. When will you get back? I¡¯ll bring Cheer-Up to the apartment ahead of time.¡±

    Since he hasn¡¯t decided yet, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t have a time nned. He told Fu Xinhui to check WeChat as he will confirm a timeter. After Zhang Siyi repeatedly reminded his friend to pay attention to his safety, he reluctantly hung up the phone.

    In contrast to Fu Xinhui difficult times, the wedding of Zhang Siyi childhood friend, Qu Xiao, was the next day. He temporarily put down his troubled thoughts of Fu Xinhui and raised his spirit for his friend¡¯s joyous asion.

    In the evening, Shen Hao came to pick Zhang Siyi up in his BMW. As a sessful person, he is wearing a stylish suit, whereas Zhang Siyi wore a down jacket and jeans. The contrast made Zhang Siyi feel like an idiot.

    The most critical thing that Zhang Siyi brought with him is the one thousand-eight-hundred red envelope in his pocket. It is half of his life!

    Since Qu Xiao married a very rich man, the wedding in Ningcheng is being held at the best hotel in the area. When there are thousands of dishes to feed eighty tables full of guests, that is what¡¯s called, deep pockets. The hotel was very clean, and the staff was very friendly and helpful. When he arrived, he saw a row of luxury cars lined up outside. Zhang Siyi has not seen such an asion and when he thinks about the gap between himself and Shen Hao, he can¡¯t lift his head.

    Shen Hao pulled him to the door of the banquet hall and went to congratte the new couple. Zhang Siyi saw Qu Xiao in her white wedding dress looking delicate and beautiful standing radiantly with her new husband.

    ¡°Qu Xiao, congrattions!¡± Shen Yan pulled Zhang Siyi over and patted his shoulder. ¡°Who is this, do you remember?¡±

    Wide eyed, Qu Miao stared at Zhang Siyi puzzled. In his jacket in jeans, he still looks like a student. ¡°This, this is not ...¡±

    Shen Hao: ¡°It¡¯s Zhang Siyi!¡±

    Qu Xiao suddenly realized: ¡°Ah, Zhang Siyi! I¡¯ve met too many people today that I can¡¯t remember any more names.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Fuck, sure enough, I should have found an excuse not toe. We haven¡¯t seen each other in ten years. Who recognizes who!

    Qu Xiao received the red envelopes of the two people and her attitude towards Zhang Siyi was even more perfunctory. Only the bridesmaids who greeted the guests were eager to them in and sit down. Zhang Siyi became Shen Hao¡¯s little valet.

    Compared with Zhang Siyi, Shen Hao has behaved quite spirited. To make contacts, he gave every person a business card that he purchased from a card shop. Printed on the card was a high-sounding title of a Boss of a certain familypany.

    Zhang Siyi looked around the room and didn¡¯t see anyone he knew. More and more, he is regretting his decision toe.

    Much to his surprise, from behind, he felt someone pat his shoulder. When he turned around, he saw a young handsome man in formal attire smiling at him.

 Chapter 77: Childhood Friends

    <h4>Chapter 77: Childhood Friends</h4>

    ________________________________

    ¡°Sisi! What are you doing here?¡± The young man was pleasantly surprised.

    Zhang Siyi was startled for a minute and was silent. He was searching through his memories for the name of the person standing before him. ¡°Brother Tian?¡± The youth eagerly grabbed him and rubbed his head and patted his shoulder. Since the other person grew so tall, he felt like a baby chick, lost in the other person¡¯s arms. However, Zhang Siyi is also excited to see an old neighbor who he hasn¡¯t seen for more than ten years.

    This young man¡¯s full name is He Chengtian and like Shen Yu and Qu Xiao, they are all childhood friends who grew up with Zhang Siyi.

    His sister, He Xueying, is also Zhang Siyi¡¯s age. Even though He Chengtian is six years older and didn¡¯t directly y with the younger children, growing up, the families often yed with one another, so the younger kids also called He Chengtian ¡®Brother.¡¯

    In Zhang Siyi¡¯s memory, He Chengtian was tall and bold. As if he was the master of the area, he always had a group of boys following him around. Zhang Siyi had the privilege of ying a few role-ying games with the older boys. The good-looking boys yed the Red-Army and everyone else yed the Army-of-the-Rising-Sun. He Chengtian was always the leader of the Red-Army.

    As for Zhang Siyi, Shen Hao, and He Xueying, they were naturally unable to participate in the war so they would y the part of helpless civilians. Their role was to get captured by the Army-of-the-Rising-Sun and then wait for the Red-Army to rescue them.

    After being locked up, they would have to wait until rescue. Sometimes they had to wait less than thirty minutes, but other times it was over an hour. Being immersed in the game, they huddled together with their hands and feet tied up feeling tense. Once they heard the Red-Army yell for rescue, the mood quickly changed from restlessness into excitement. Often the young kids would y the part and would kick and struggle while calling out ¡°Brother Tian, help us!¡±, ¡°Save us!¡±

    Naturally, if the Hero rescued them right away, the game would end, so the boys often devised different scenarios to extend the game time and make it more fun. In order to make the rescue by the Red-Army more dramatic and heroic, it was necessary to vilify the Army-of-the-Rising-Sun. Thus, they would pick one or two innocent civilians and threaten their lives. Zhang Siyi remembers at this part of the game, almost always, the Army-of-the-Rising-Sun would pick He Chengtian¡¯s sister, He Xueying to y the victim.

    Once, Zhang Siyi and He Xueying were selected to be the victims and together. They had to kneel in front of the Red-Army with a stic gun to their heads and listened to threats: ¡°If you step any closer your people will perish!¡±

    As the Hero, He Chengtian would rush in and shout: ¡°For the victory of the revolution!¡± and the boys would all start to shout: ¡°Brothers rush¡±, ¡°Go! Go! Go!¡±. Of course, at this time the boys in the Army-of-the-Rising-Sun would do everything in their power to prevent the Hero¡¯s. Even though the kneeling victims would always die, Zhang Siyi thought the anticipation of being rescued was very exciting. In the end, He Chengtian would always triumph over the Army-of-the-Rising-Sun and thest remaining survivor would get rescued.

    Thinking about it, Zhang Siyi is a little bit surprised at how vividly he can recall his y-time memories. Those types of games seem rather stupid to him now. Since He Chengtian was also a very good student, he was the first role-model Zhang Siyi looked up to as child and it left a deep impression on him.

    Unfortunately, in the year of Zhang Siyi¡¯s elementary school graduation, the He family moved away to start a business. In the following years, Zhang Siyi¡¯s father was promoted and the Zhang family moved twice. Therefore, in addition to Shen Hao, Zhang Siyi almost lost contact with all of his childhood friends.

    Giving Zhang Siyi a noogie, He Chengtianughed and asked: ¡°How can you still be the same after so many years?¡±

    Zhang Siyi broke free from He Chengtian¡¯s arm and tried to fix his ruffled hair. He smiled and said: ¡°Which hasn¡¯t changed? My mom said yesterday that I am now fat with big bags and getting uglier.¡±

    He Chengtianughed and asked: ¡°How are your Mother and Father? What are you doing now?¡±

    Since they have known each other since childhood, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t hide his family background from him: ¡°Well, my father is still the same and to a certain extent, can¡¯t be promoted further. Anyways, he continues to negotiate with the other officials and every night he drinks his tea. Last year my Mother was promoted to chief doctor. She doesn¡¯t have the night shift anymore so that¡¯s positive, however, the hospital is always so busy, so it¡¯s not like she has less work.¡±

    He nodded and smiled and said, ¡°Your family is still so low-key. Don¡¯t say that I don¡¯t understand.¡±

    Zhang Siyi looked around and asked: ¡°What about your sister? Why haven¡¯t I seen her?¡±

    He Chengtian shook his head: ¡°Since they yed together all the time as children, I was surprised to hear that my sister didn¡¯t want toe when Qu Xiao called about the wedding. When I came back to the city to visit rtives, my mother thought I shoulde to the wedding at least since we grew up in the same neighborhood.¡±

    Going back to Ningcheng to visit rtives? They don¡¯t live here anymore? Zhang Siyi wanted to ask him about it and was about to ask, but before he could, He Chengtian said: ¡±My sister asked about you a few days ago. I didn¡¯t know if you would be here since its been so many years.¡±

    Having just experienced Qu Xiao forgetting about him, how can his heart not be moved when he heard that He Xueying, a young woman, remembered him? He is a young man after all! If he had known Qu Xiao was going to forget about him, Zhang Siyi, like He Xueying, wouldn¡¯t havee to the reception.

    He Chengtian asked: ¡°What about you? I saw Mousest year. He said that you went abroad to study. Have you graduated and returned now? Where are you working?¡±

    ¡°I recently graduated and I¡¯m now back in China.¡± A little embarrassed, Zhang Siyi smiled and quickly took this opportunity to give a business card to He Chengtian. While taking is from his pocket and handing it to him, Zhang Siyi said: ¡°I¡¯m working in Haicheng now.¡±

    Not reading the card, He Chengtian was surprised when he heard the location of Zhang Siyi¡¯s workce: ¡°You are also in Haicheng? After my sister went to high school, our family moved. Now I live in the central district. Where is your office building located?¡±

    Upon hearing where he lived, Zhang Siyi¡¯s jaw dropped. Considering the houses in the central district are worth tens of millions, it seems his family is doing astronomically well!

    ¡°Thepany I work for is also in the downtown area!¡± Zhang Siyi replied.

    When He Chengtian looked at the business card he seemed puzzled then asked: ¡°Are you also engaged in construction? Is this not the same as Mouse.?

    Mouse is the nickname for their friend Shen Hao. Zhang Siyi felt depressed. He studied architectural design. Its not the same as a contractor in construction! And he was clearly studying architecture earlier.

    When Zhang Siyi hurriedly exined the difference between the work that he does and Shen Hao¡¯s type of work, He Chengtian nodded. ¡°Now that you exined, I understand! In fact, one of my ssmates is now a professional in Haicheng working in architectural design.¡±

    Zhang Siyi curiously asked: ¡°Who?¡±

    ¡°You probably don¡¯t know him, but...¡± He Chengtian paused to think, ¡°But not necessarily. This ssmate is very legendary. He was the top student for the school entrance exam.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s mouth twitched: ¡°... You¡¯re not talking about Gu Yu, are you?

    Stunned, He Chengtian asked: ¡°How do you know him?¡±

    Zhang Siyi pointed to his business card: ¡°Gu Yu is a design director of Borderless. I work directly under him.¡±

    Again shocked, He Chengtian nced at Zhang Siyi¡¯s business card and said: ¡°This world is too small!¡±

    Zhang Siyi nodded vigorously. The circumstances felt so mysterious: ¡°Were you his ssmate?¡±

    He Chengtian exined: ¡°Yes. Three years in high school¡±. He squinted his eyes. He casually mentioned his past and didn¡¯t expect old feelings to swell up. Since he learned that Gu Yu is Zhang Siyi boss, he couldn¡¯t help vent some bitterness: ¡°Those three years with Gu Yu was my nightmare!¡±

    Hearing He Chengtian talk about Gu Yu, he piqued Zhang Siyi interest: ¡°Oh? Why¡¯s that?¡±

    He Chengtian sneered and said: ¡°Why¡¯s that? His grades were too good. He was always number one. Even on very difficult exams, his score would throw off the rest of the ss¡¯s grades. While he would continue to get a perfect score, the second ce was behind by twenty to thirty points! Sometimes, I think he isn¡¯t a person at all!¡±

    Zhang Siyi remembered when he was in high school the teacher also repeatedly boasted about the top exam student from the school. In fact, he slowly got used to being far from the top model student. He tried tofort He Chengtian.

    In a very hateful tone, He Chengtian said: ¡°That¡¯s because you haven¡¯t had topete with him directly. You only listened to stories and have no idea how terrible the feeling of being second all the time is. Fuck! I was that second-ce student no matter how hard I tried. He was always so calm and rxed and never seemed to try. God damn it! ¡°

    ¡°......¡± The words of Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother echoed in his head ¡ª don¡¯tpare yourself to those that are blessed by God. (=_=)

    Breathing slowly and methodically, He Chengtian tried to calm his grumpy mood: ¡°At that time, I was being very na?ve to be so obsessed over my scores. Everyone knows the results of the rankings don¡¯t represent everything. But every time I think about it, I still feel...... Well, you may not know much about that feeling. After all, before I ran into Gu Yu, I could say I was the number one student and never had anypetition. Because of him, after finishing my senior exam, I went abroad.

    Hearing He Chengtian exin, Zhang Siyi instinctively shuddered. In fact, he knows quite well his friend¡¯s feelings of being overpowered. He also experienced the kind of pressure Gu Yu exudes from his knowledge base. It makes Zhang Siyi feel inadequate.

    He Chengtian looked to Zhang Siyi and inquired: ¡°My former ssmate is now part of the construction industry. How is he getting along?¡±

    Zhang Siyi is not sure if there is some meaning behind ¡®how¡¯......

    He Chengtian bluntly asked: ¡°Do you know how much he gets paid?¡±

    ¡°Oh...¡± Zhang Siyi promised Gu Yu he would not reveal his ie, but the person in front of him was the most admired role model of his childhood. They probably won¡¯t have contact with one another in the future, so Zhang Siyi thought if he reports a high ie, then Gu Yu won¡¯t be so disgraced. Zhang Siyi took a moment in thought then said: ¡°I heard his annual ie was more than eight-hundred-thousand.¡± Zhang Siyipletely did not expect He Chengtian¡¯s reaction.

    Laughing He Chengtian said: ¡°Only eight-hundred-thousand! It seems he isn¡¯t that great after all!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Fuck! More than eight-hundred-thousand is not good? What the hell!? What is wrong with this society? Is money really that easy!?

 Chapter 78: Temptation

    <h4>Chapter 78: Temptation</h4>

    _______________________

    ¡°Eight-hundred-thousand isn¡¯t that great? I don¡¯t even have a hundred thousand after taxes!¡± Zhang Siyiined.

    Smiling at Zhang Siyi, He Chengtian gave him a look that one gives to an unknowing child: ¡°I thought someone with such a high IQ would have to be making a lot of money, otherwise Gu Yu¡¯s genius is wasted. But you see now, even Mouse earns more than he does.¡±

    Can people who have just entered the working force really earn a couple million in a year? Shen Hao is still an uneducated person and although he has paid for his lifestyle by himself, Zhang Siyi can¡¯t admit that Shen Hao¡¯s sess was entirely due to his own determination and work.

    Although Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t believe him, he didn¡¯t let it show on his face: ¡°Where did you get so much money?¡±

    He Chengtian smiled and said: ¡°I mainly handle investments now. To be honest, we caught the trend at a good time. Eight years ago, in Haicheng when the housing market was extraordinarily good, my parents sold a few properties and made a lot of money. The family opened an investmentpany mainly to invest in banking and the stock market.¡± He Chengtian put his fingers to his lips mysteriously and confidently said: ¡°I can tell you, my family ie is in the range of twenty million a year.¡±

    Zhang Siyi chin hung open. His family assets aren¡¯t any worse than Fu Xinhui¡¯s family. Thus, eight-hundred-thousand really is pennies in a bucket. In Zhang Siyi point of view, since He Chengtian used his family achievements to further himself, he didn¡¯t understand why he could be so arrogant. Being under the influence of Gu Yu for so long, he can understand why He Chengtian wanted to boast now. However, having met someone who doesn¡¯t look favorably at Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi felt a little despondent. He quietly sighed. Zhang Siyi could onlyfort himself with his father¡¯s words ¡ª money is not a measurement of a persons¡¯ worth.

    He Chengtian squinted at Zhang Siyi in thought: ¡°I really didn¡¯t expect your sry to be so low. If you don¡¯t earn a hundred-thousand per-year, how do you survive in Haicheng?¡±

    Hearing He Chengtian ask, Zhang Siyi is reminded of his own financial crisis. It feels as though an arrow has pierced his back, spraying blood!

    He Chengtian quickly asked again: ¡±Do your parents give you any money?¡±

    Zhang Siyi replied seriously: ¡°I don¡¯t spend my family¡¯s money. I rented a house with my ssmates. Well, it¡¯s only the first year of working so the money isn¡¯t enough, but I didn¡¯t really expect it to be.¡±

    Face full of sympathy, He Chengtian asks: ¡°With so little sry, why are you still willing to work for Gu Yu?¡±

    In his mind, Zhang Siyi isn¡¯t working for Gu Yu and he wanted to argue with him, but He Chengtian also said: ¡°You graduated University from the UK so your English must be very good. Recently, Ick an assistant who can speak bothnguages. Maybe you think working for me is no different than working for Gu Yu, but I¡¯ll start you off with a two-hundred-thousand annual sry. Surely, you will be free to live the life you want then.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was shocked by the amount He Chengtian offered: ¡°Two-hundred-thousand? That¡¯s too good!¡±

    He Chengtian chuckled and said: ¡°Yeah, I remember you were smart as a kid. Talkative too and you are also my High School alma mater. You certainly won¡¯t let me down.¡±

    Even though Zhang Siyi got apliment, he felt skeptical. He couldn¡¯t help thinking about the attitude of Gu Yu on his first day meeting him at the interview a half year ago. Both men were Directors in their respective businesses, but the difference between them was remarkable. Inparison to Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi thought He Chengtian was unsophisticated.

    He Chengtian continued: ¡°Also, with your kind face and simple look, it¡¯s very suitable for going out to negotiate with people. After two years of experience working with me and you mature, your sry will increase to be more than two-hundred-thousand a year.¡±

    Although Zhang Siyi is very keen to stick to the rules, he is very stressed about his financial situation that this temptation is just too big! He couldn¡¯t help but feel his heart waver.

    Moreover, the olive branch thrown out by He Chengtian is different from the previous proposal of Shen Hao. Since He Chengtian came from a distinguished background, his promise made Zhang Siyi feel like it was sincere. Unlike Shen Hao, who wasn¡¯t serious growing up and whose educational background was less than exemry, Zhang Siyi doubted his proposition.

    However, since they hadn¡¯t seen each other for several years, Zhang Siyi did not understand why did He Chengtian offer such a good job opportunity?

    Zhang Siyi questioned: ¡°Can¡¯t you find an assistant in Haicheng? The city shouldn¡¯tck any talented prospects.¡±

    He Chengtian exined: ¡°For a personal assistant, I need to find someone trustworthy. A suitable person is hard time find. Any talent is also shrewd, and you never know if they will really work in your best interests. The honest ones are all nerds that have no art for diplomacy andck cultural experience. But you are different. You have both negotiation skills as well as international skills. We grew up together, and have a childhood friendship and as such, will have each other¡¯s backs. Oh and....¡± He Chengtian suddenly came closer to Zhang Siyi ear and told him quietly: ¡°My sister liked you when she was young, you know? She wrote about her secret love for you in her diary.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± He had no idea!

    He Chengtian backed away from him and said with a smile: ¡°She is still single and there¡¯s quite a lot of men lining up to chase her.¡±

    Zhang Siyi thought his sister was quite beautiful. Coupled with her current family background, it would be strange if there weren¡¯t men chasing her.

    He Chengtian snorted and said: ¡°The problem is the background of the guys chasing her are unreliable. Its hard to find people you can trust, but you Sisi, we have known each other¡¯s roots since childhood. Although you haven¡¯t seen my sister for several years, I think its fate that brought us together. I¡¯ll let youe work with me, not just to higher you, but to also consider the possibility of being with my sister; to train you as a future Brother-inw.

    ¡°Brother Tian ...¡± Zhang Siyi said feeling awkward and looking down. Why is he feeling shy at the prospect of a blind date?

    Although he hasn¡¯t thought at all about, He Xueying, He Chengtian attitude greatly satisfied Zhang Siyi vanity. Hepared the two again and wondered why Gu Yu attitude about his younger sister was so different? One was being supportive and the other rebuffed; ¡®you are still far away.¡¯ Even so, he can¡¯t stop himself from thinking about Gu Yu.

    He Chengtian patted his shoulder and said: ¡°Think about my offer.¡±

    Shen Hao finished his rounds among the crowd passing out business cards. When he saw Zhang Siyi with, He Chengtian, he approached with exorbitant amount of enthusiasm: ¡°Brother!¡± Since Their tables weren¡¯t originally together, He Chengtian asked to switch with someone so he could sit with them during the wedding

    Shen Hao and He Chengtian talked business for a while. They discussed their different connections and resources in the industry such as building materials merchants, acquaintances who are in the field and also to ask about investments to make money.

    Knowing each other since childhood, He Chengtian can talk freely and promised to help Shen Hao. It seems to Zhang Siyi that Shen Hao isn¡¯t here for the wedding, but to establish connections. Like Fu Xinhui said previously, now in society people need to expand theirworks for new opportunities to make money. Hearing his two old friends, Zhang Siyi realized how important establishing a connection really is.

    After the wedding began, the newlywed couple entered the venue to start the celebration. Shen Hao wasn¡¯t idle. He had two mobile phone and answered them every few minutes. Zhang Siyi only heard parts of the conversations Shen Hao had: ¡°By tonight? I¡¯lle overter¡±, ¡°Do not fill the mud!¡±, ¡°It¡¯s still not enough paint? But you told me you had enough!¡± .......

    Even at a wedding, Shen Hao has many business matters to think about. Watching him manage multiple conversations pertaining to different projects at the same time makes Zhang Siyi think Shen Hao doesn¡¯t have it easy. He used to think Shen Hao was too arrogant andzy. Compared with the former Shen Hao who was not serious and had no love to learn, the current Shen Hao has really changed a lot. He is mature, steady and bold. The impression Shen Hao left on Zhang Siyi previously made it seem like the millions he made came easy, but it is not the case. At least at the moment, Zhang Siyi saw how much effort and determination he had for his work.

    He Chengtian turned to address Zhang Siyi: ¡°Although you are in different sectors, you are both part of the construction industry. Sisi, you see Mouse has done very well so why not work on a project together?¡± He Chengtian nced at Shen Hao and said: ¡°Mouse, did you forget about your Brother even though you are in the same industry? You are here with silver and gold, but Zhang Siyi has nothing to eat in Haicheng¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± What the hell! Is he so miserable?

    Feeling used Shen Hao defensively said: ¡°Did I forget him? I asked him when he returned to Ningcheng. He grew up learning and thinking better then me. I have long thought of us working together, but he said he wants to be in Haicheng. I don¡¯t think he heard me at all!¡±

    Shen Hao alsoined about him......

    Zhang Siyi retorted: ¡°How have I not heard? The specialty that I am in isn¡¯t really the same as yours. Even if I followed you, I would have to start from scratch.¡±

    He Chengtian drank a mouthful of wine and sincerely advised: ¡°Your sry is too low. I sincerely advise you not to continue in that field. You are smart. Since you haven¡¯t been working for a long time in your career, it won¡¯t be a problem for you to change. Some people work a thousand years and still can¡¯t get ahead in life. Most people beg to have the opportunity you have. The most precious time for your career is in your youth, so you don¡¯t have time to waste.¡±

    Zhang Siyi struggled for a moment and said: ¡°But I still like to do architectural design.¡±

    ¡°Like?¡± He Chengtian thought little of Zhang Siyiment and sneered: ¡°I like to eat. What is the cost of living in Haicheng? Are you going to rent an apartment for the rest of your life? Or are you going back to your parent¡¯s house in two years?¡±

    Speechless, Zhang Siyi was at a loss. There was a certain logic to He Chengtian thoughts and his heart wavered, he suddenly remembered what Gu Yu¡¯s Father told him ¨C your value does not depend on how much money others give you today. Thinking thus, Zhang Siyi calmed down a lot. Indeed, the low ie is still a big problem and the conditions set by He Chengtian make Zhang Siyi feel excited. But Zhang Siyi must ask himself; is it just money that he wants to pursue?

    Even his friend, Fu Xinhui, asked him the same type of question; if one day you have endless money, what would you do?

    After the hardships of his studies at university and experiencing the stress of finding a job, more than once, Zhang Siyi has doubted his career choice. However, under the guidance of Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi enthusiasm for architecture has slowing been recovering. Recently, his love for architecture has been rekindled. Especially by the strong pivotal words of Gu Yu¡¯s father.

    What he wants is a sense of aplishment that rises from deep within his core after drawing.

    What he wants is a sense of camaraderie by working hard with like-minded people.

    What he wants is a sense of joy thates from the eptance of a design into practice.

    He still wants to get stronger.

    He wants to work together, stand side by side with Gu Yu.

 Chapter 79: Voice

    <h4>Chapter 79: Voice</h4>

    _________________

    Money can¡¯t buy him the spiritual satisfaction and security brought about by the things he wants.

    Yes, money is important, but Zhang Siyi is not so poor as to give up his dream in order to survive. Compared to He Chengtian and Shen Hao, his ie is indeed insignificant. When he thinks of his coworker, Lu Qiao who continues to support his family with his wages andpares his other friends in the industry, he sry isn¡¯t bad.

    Therefore, the answer is very clear. Zhang Siyi won¡¯t leave Borderless to ept He Chengtian¡¯s job invitation. However, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t want to step on the good intentions of his friend by refusing him on the spot, so he told He Chengtian he would think about it.

    After the wedding banquet, He Chengtian gave Zhang Si Yi his mobile phone number. He warmly invited him out when they got back to Haicheng. Soon after he left, Shen Hao drove Zhang Siyi home then rushed to meet with the construction site supervisor. Seeing him so busy, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t have the nerve to ask him out for drinks.

    When he arrived at home, his Mother was sitting on the couch watching TV. Tiered, Zhang Siyi feebly walked across the living room to slump down onto the sofa next to her and asked: ¡°Where¡¯s Dad?¡±

    Mother Zhang pointed upstairs and scoffed: ¡°He has been obsessed recently with watching the news on the inte. He spends over two hours on theputer!¡±

    His Mother is a woman who is advancing-with-the-times. Five years ago, when Zhang Siyi taught her how to use theputer, a door was opened into the new world. From then on, she changed from a traditional Chinese woman into a mysteriousdy.

    In the early years, while other people were worried about the mindless time children spent on the inte, Zhang Siyi was worried about his Mother not being able to extricate themselves from thework.

    During that time, Mother Zhang spent every night until two to three in the morning on thework. His Father endured it for a while until he finally couldn¡¯t take it anymore and exploded. Combined with the time she spent on duty at the hospital and with her addictive behavior on the, it was like living without a Mother. At that time, his forty-year old Father felt alone and if they didn¡¯t have a housekeeper to cook meals, they surely would have starved to death under his Mother¡¯sck of supervision.

    After the intervention, Father Zhang sent Mother Zhang to an etiquette school for one month. Zhang Siyi¡¯s Mother also tried to drag his Father into the water and wanted to share her experience with him but thanks to his Father¡¯s stubbornness and old-fashion ideals, any progress was halted. Since then Mother Zhang sought her own knowledge groups and outlets on the inte. In contrast, Father Zhang acted like he was bitten by a snake. For a long time, he regarded theputer as a savage beast that needed to be kept away to prevent contamination. Without the ability to change, his inflexible Father would soon be out of the times.

    Only his Mother had the capacity to slowly coax his Father out of his own anti-information-age sentiments. The proof of her sess upstairs is reflected on Mother Zhang¡¯s proud face. Zhang Siyi smiled: ¡°Why don¡¯t you teach him to go on Weibo?¡± He can look at the headlines. The hot search is more fun.¡±

    His Mother took an orange and started peeling it: ¡°I have been on Weibo and the information isn¡¯t conscience. There are too many people arguing every day. He won¡¯t necessarily like it. It¡¯s better to let him figure it out for himself for a little while.¡± She split the orange in half and gave it to Zhang Siyi: ¡°How was the wedding?¡±

    Zhang Siyi sighed and remembered the excitement of the day. He told her about He Chengtian and Shen Hao. ¡°Mom, do you think I¡¯m super useless?¡± Although he knows what the clear choice is in his heart, he can¡¯t help worrying about his choice. Will he regret his decision to refuse the potential of all that money?

    His Mother paused and said, ¡°Sisi, I¡¯ll tell you something.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What is it?¡±

    Mother Zhang patiently said: ¡°After more than a decade ago, your father just became a director. At that time, in order to go ahead with construction, many projects had to be signed by your Dad. Every day, whether someone wanted approval faster or because they wanted to overlook mistakes, persons came to his door to give him gifts like money, real estate,pany bonuses...... All to ¡®help¡¯ him make decisions. Do you know how much will power a person has to have in order to resist so many temptations?¡±

    Zhang Siyi was surprised at the new information that his Mother spoke of.

    Mother Zhang: ¡°Because he stuck to his morals so diligently, he offended more than one person and was denied promotion. Until your Grandfather who was at the top acted, he stayed in a position where there was no real power for many years. I also thought that his disposition would limit his career in his life because it was difficult in this Chinese society to move up again. But he stayed m. He told me that a person has to love the life they live in order to be at peace in both spirit and mind.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was astonished! He did not expect his archaic and overbearing father to say something so cool!

    Looking down at the oranges, Mother Zhang bowed her head. She slowly said: ¡°I was touched by his words and I was dead-set on following him. Even if his ideals inhibited his career, I know we can solve anything together. I will be a person to support this home.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Ohh, so romantic!

    His Mother peeled off the remaining half of the orange and handed it to Zhang Siyi. She looked at him and said: ¡°Sisi, you are alone in Haicheng and Mom is very worried about you. I can understand your father¡¯s intentions. We have never looked forward to your wealth and never expected you to be a rich tycoon. He and I hope that you will be able to stand on your own two feet as an independent man. As long as you are both earning an honest wage, and are healthy and happy every day, in both spirit and mind, that is enough.¡±

    Hearing his Mother¡¯s words, his emotional stress over thest few days found an outlet and tears fell from Zhang Siyi eyes: ¡°Mom......¡±

    His mother reached out to softly pat his head: ¡°If you are trying and can¡¯t seem to make any headway, you cane to us for help. There is nothing you can¡¯t tell us about. We are forever on your side.¡±

    With his head leaning on his mother¡¯s shoulder, Zhang Siyi sniffed back his tears and softly said: ¡°I didn¡¯t mean to cause trouble. That is, this year... I sent too many red envelopes to my cousins and now I don¡¯t have any money.¡±

    Mouth open, his Mother stared wide-eyed at him. She didn¡¯t know whether she shouldugh at him or cry. With criticism she said: ¡°What? Why were you acting so vain that you sacrificed your wellbeing? Look at yourself, you are a mess!¡±

    Zhang Siyi grumbled about his mother. In the first ce, he didn¡¯t want to give red envelopes to all of his cousins.

    Mother Zhang asked: ¡°So how much money do you have now?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Two-hundred remained, but yesterday at Gu Yu¡¯s house, he gave me a two-thousand red envelope for New Year¡¯s.¡±

    Mother Zhang was surprised: ¡°What!? How can you take his red envelope!¡±

    Zhang Siyi looked feebly at his Mom: ¡°I didn¡¯t want to take it, but I don¡¯t have money.¡±

    Pursing her lips closed, his Mother was silent. She got up off the sofa and went to her purse to take money out of her wallet and wrapped it. She gave it to him as an impromptu red envelope: ¡°Don¡¯t let your father know.¡±

    ¡°Mmm-hmm!¡± With a smile Zhang Siyi squeezed the red envelope.

    Listening upstairs for a long time, Father Zhang sighed, shook his head and with a broad smile on his face, snuck back to the study.

    In his bedroom, Zhang Siyi counted the money in the red envelope he just received from his Mother ¨C wow, another two thousand! The gift money sent out today is back! He quickly opened the book-keeping app, entered the proceeds, and giggling, he admired the rising numbers. ~\(¨R¨Œ¨Q)/~

    Thinking about Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi took out his phone and opened WeChat. It¡¯s been a day since theymunicated so he took a few minutes to think of what to write: ¡°Boss, I went to a friend¡¯s wedding today and met with one of your high school ssmates.¡±

    Not a second has passed and Gu Yu reply appeared: ¡°Hmm...?¡±

    Surprised at the speed at which the message was returned, Zhang Siyi wondered if Gu Yu was simply watching the phone: ¡°His name is He Chengtian. Do you remember him?¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s next reply was rtively slowpared to the previous one: ¡°Who is that? I don¡¯t remember.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Are you fucking kidding me!? You remember the Kong Ming Lock that you gave me neen years ago, but you don¡¯t even remember your high school ssmate who, for three years, was at your heels on the exams?

    Gu Yu asked again: ¡°What does he look like?¡±

    It seems like he really doesn¡¯t remember....... Zhang Siyi described him a bit and told Gu Yu about some of He Chengtian¡¯s second ce history.

    Stimting his memory, Gu Yu replied: ¡°Oh, it¡¯s him.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Do you remember?

    Gu Yu: ¡°Well, he was like an anti-Japanese gangster you see on a TV drama that acted like a boss picking on the weak with a group of boys following him around.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡± This... this summary. He feels like he should say something in He Chengtian¡¯s defense.

    Gu Yu asked: ¡°Howe you met him?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°He was the eldest brother of my childhood ymate who lived next door. We were at a wedding of a girl we knew when we were kids.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Oh, then you are not one of his little brothers?¡±

    Through the screen, Zhang Siyi can feel the contemptible tone of Gu Yu and defensively rebuked: ¡°I am not!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Did you mention me? What did you say?¡±

    Clearly, it is a simple question without ulterior motives, however, Zhang Siyi has the feeling of being tortured. Cold sweat broke out on his forehead. While he hesitated on what to respond with, the phone suddenly rang with Gu Yu¡¯s call.

    ¡°......¡±

    Zhang Siyi hurriedly pressed the answer button, holding the phone he stammered: ¡°You, why are you calling?¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s low voice came from the phone: ¡°With all the necessary typing to exin, I figured it would be easier to talk, so I called you instead.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± (o////o)

    Gu Yu¡¯s tone is yful: ¡°You didn¡¯t say bad things about me again, did you?¡±

    Zhang Siyi was shaking: ¡°No, no. He told me about your very good grades and that he always ced second in the exams. So, he¡¯s kind of....¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Bitter?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Well, pretty much.¡±

    Gu Yu chuckled and casually said: ¡°There isn¡¯t really any difference between those at the top rankings, whether it was second, third, fourth ce.... How can he still be bothered by something that happened so long ago?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± What to do... As a good childhood friend, he supposed feel bothered by Gu Yu¡¯s attitude, but he doesn¡¯t. Ah!

    Now serious, Gu Yu asked: ¡°What else is going on? If you deliberately mention this person to me, then there must be something to tell me about.¡±

    Getting straight to the point, the pressure on Zhang Siyi builds. Especially because he heard Gu Yu hoarse voice ask him so directly.

 Chapter 80: Brooch

    <h4>Chapter 80: Brooch</h4>

    ____________________

    The one thing he didn¡¯t mention to Gu Yu was He Xueying¡¯s childhood crush. After so many years, she couldn¡¯t possibly feel the same, so Zhang Siyi took the information as a joke.

    Gu Yu listened silently and softly asked: ¡°Do you want to go?¡±

    Although Zhang Siyi already knew the answer in his heart, he impulsively asked: ¡±Do you want me to go?¡±

    Realizing the ambiguity of the question, like deliberately testing Gu Yu¡¯s feelings for him, he regretted asking it. There are a many people that work for Gu Yu and he is only a little assistant that can easily be reced. However, the words couldn¡¯t be taken back. Zhang Siyi felt nervous and sorry. He tightly sped the mobile phone in anticipation, but of what, he didn¡¯t know.

    After pausing for a seemingly long time, Gu Yu responded to him. With a voice that was as casual as ever, he asked in reverse: ¡°If I told you not to go, then you wouldn¡¯t go?¡±

    Zhang Siyi choked. He didn¡¯t expect Gu Yu to throw his own question and thus, the underlying problem, back at him! How could he answer him? Even though Zhang Siyi admired the art of Gu Yu¡¯s speech, he was feeling crazy inside. Damn it, if he said, ¡®I won¡¯t go if you say so¡¯, he would die!

    After a minute Gu Yu did not wait for Zhang Siyi to answer. He said: ¡°This kind of thing.... I can¡¯t help you make a decision. The answer is in your own heart.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Why is there a feeling of beingpletely seen through!

    Depressed and feeling muddled, Zhang Siyi paused for a minute. In a self-defeating tone he confessed: ¡°I won¡¯t go.¡±

    Gu Yu chuckled, and his yful tone returned: ¡°Oh. Ok.¡±

    Zhang Siyi ¡°......¡± That¡¯s it? After everything I¡¯ve said, and you only reply with two words!!!

    Gu Yu paused and said: ¡°By the way, have you already booked a ticket to Haicheng?¡±

    ¡°No, Why?¡± At the prospect of going back with Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi mood changed instantly.

    Sure enough, Gu Yu took the initiative to invite him: ¡°I intend to drive back to Haicheng after the Lantern Festival on March 6. Your holiday should be over by then. Do you want to go with us?¡±

    ¡± ...... Us? Is Gu Yaoing back with you?¡± Zhang Siyi asked.

    Gu Yu: ¡°She starts school inte March, but it is rare for me to drive so she wanted to drive back in advance. I can help her with some luggage at this time too. What about you?¡±

    In a hurry to reply, Zhang Siyi excitedly spoke: ¡°Yes. I would like to go together!¡±

    Gu Yu happily replied: ¡°Well that settles that. I will tell you the details as the time approaches.¡±

    Hanging up the phone, Zhang Siyi excitedly rolled around on his bed. Any depressed and tumultuous feelings evaporated into thin air

    Too embarrassed to ask directly, he was slow to purchase a ticket in hopes that Gu Yu would talk to him about it. He wasn¡¯t sure if Gu Yu¡¯s holiday was longer than his. Now, his waiting was over and, he saved two-hundred dors!

    Feeling the phone vibrate, Zhang Siyi quickly grabbed it to see.

    Gu Yu: ¡°I¡¯m relieved by the decision you made ?? ¡°

    Gu Yu: ¡°[Little Fox Kiss]¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°..................¡±

    Ah...ah...ah...! ! ! ! !

    Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t take his eyes away from the emoji, ¡®Little Fox Holding a Cat Kissing.¡¯ Once again, Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart nearly burst out of his chest. The heat from within welled up. He had the feeling like he spontaneouslybusted and his fried hair smoked.

    After rolling around on his bed, Zhang Siyi took another look at his phone. Staring at the little fox kissing the little kitten, he couldn¡¯t help wonder why Gu Yu used this exact emoji. The ¡®touching head¡¯ expression already had a high level of special treatment value, so why use the kissing emoji. Is this an expression that a normal boss sends to his subordinates? The only thing he can think about is a special kind of love.

    Even though Zhang Siyi felt exhausted, he couldn¡¯t sleep. His emotions were a mess and he couldn¡¯t rx his mind at all. In the middle of the night, he got out of bed to grab a book from the depths of his closest. He quickly got back into bed and covered himselfpletely with his quilt. With the light from his cell-phone illuminating the book in his hands, he opened it feeling ashamed.

    After an hour, from time to time, rmed muffled exmations and recited sounds can be heard from inside the quilt. As a straight man, Zhang Siyi values and outlook on life in this world were put to the test. At half past five in the morning Zhang Siyi finally put the book away. He had stayed up all night reading. Laying on his bed, he buried his head with a pillow and no longer felt like he could face the world as a straight man. It¡¯s over! Can he really be gay? No, he doesn¡¯t want to admit it!

    For the rest of his vacation time, he distracted himself with countless hours of American dramas and Anime. He even watched the government news online and the newswork broadcast with his Father for several days. Thus, he set aside the newly acquired information in order to put his mind at ease and as a result, he was able to camouge his inner turmoil and outwardly felt normal.

    During this time, learning the information from her brother, He Xueying added herself to Zhang Siyi WeChat. Although they haven¡¯t seen each other for many years, she remembered many childhood incidents both funny and sad. Bringing a sense of intimacy between them, the two talked for a long time. Although a crush isn¡¯t the same as a love between a man and women, she politely admitted her childhood love on him. This frankness also made Zhang Siyi feel very rxed talking with her.

    For two days, by talking about his childhood with He Xueying, Zhang Siyi¡¯s attention was further distracted away from Gu Yu. In retrospect, Zhang Siyi wonders if the time he took to find a new girlfriend was too long and as a result, it gave birth to the usible love between men. Thinking along these lines, Zhang Siyi convinced himself that by talking and thinking about girls and love, he will be able to forget about Gu Yu.

    The time passed by and soon Gu Yu contacted him about the return trip to Haicheng. Knowing Zhang Siyi was going to be driven back, his Mother prepared more specialties and food for Gu Yu thenst time. Zhang Siyi had a growing headache. Since ¡®little-fox-kissing-small-kitten¡¯ stirred up Zhang Siyi¡¯s emotions that he so desperately tried to bring under control thesest couple of days, he couldn¡¯t bring himself to look at thest exchange he had on WeChat with Gu Yu. As a result, he hadn¡¯t contacted Gu Yu for almost a week and thus, he never told Gu Yu how much luggage he had.

    As he was getting ready, he noticed a new group chat was formed on his phone by Gu Yu.

    Gu Yao: ¡°Zhang Siyi, my brother and I are ready to go out for lunch thene pick you up. What is your home address?¡±

    As Zhang Siyi sent his address to the group chat, he added Gu Yu¡¯s sister to his friend¡¯s list. When it came to private messages, Gu Yao¡¯s style changed.

    Gu Yao: ¡°Siyi Brother ~o (¡É _ ¡É) o¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Trying to act cute, when it¡¯s not cute! ¡° (#¨F¡ä)Í¹

    Gu Yao followed up with a heart-broken expression. Zhang Siyi returned with a sorrowful emoji. Their conversation quickly devolved into an emoji war.

    Remembering his luggage, their yful banter was suddenly disrupted when Zhang Siyi took a photo and sent the image to Gu Yao.

    Gu Yao: ¡°What¡¯s this?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°My mom prepared some things to bring back to Haicheng. Half of which is for your brother. Is there room in the car for all of it?¡±

    After half a minute, Gu Yao also sent a picture of a dense pile of packages and bagsying on the living room floor to Zhang Siyi.

    Gu Yao: ¡± Ha-ha-ha-ha! My parents also prepared some things to bring back. I showed your photo to my brother and he said it was fine.¡±

    Zhang Siyi breathed a sigh of relief then asked: ¡°Why do you call your brother an elder and not just brother?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Because he is old. He acts like an old man in the sky! If I don¡¯t call him elder brother, then what do I call him?¡±

    Initially, Zhang Siyi was speechless. But, thinking about it further, it does make sense since there is a seven-year age gap between the two siblings.

    Gu Yao added: ¡°I called him old brother, and do you know what he called me? Stupid, little idiot! Is that what a brother is supposed to call his sister?¡± [Angry]

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Why are youughing?! You are not much better than me. He called you a child, a little apprentice in front of me. Once I heard him call you a ¡®little confused egg¡¯, ha-ha-ha!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Hearing from Gu Yao piqued his interest. He suddenly wanted to know exactly what Gu Yu says about himself in front of his sister. However, he didn¡¯t get the chance to continue their conversation. As promised, they arrived at Zhang Siyi¡¯s home after lunch.

    When Mrs. Zhang saw her guests, she warmly and enthusiastically invited them inside the house to drink tea. Having experienced the force of Zhang Siyi mother¡¯s hospitality before, Gu Yu knows not to refuse and politely epts her invitation. Without ceremony, they silently followed her inside.

    Today, Father Zhang was at work and the housekeeper was cleaning. Even though the house wasrge and bright with everything tidy, it wasn¡¯t convenient to go upstairs and tour the house, so they took a seat in the living room.

    Mother Zhang didn¡¯t raise a daughter. She really liked seeing Gu Yao in her home and it sparked her memory of the red envelope that Gu Yu gave to Zhang Siyi for New Year¡¯s. Wanting to reciprocate the gesture an idea popped into her mind from her heart. She quickly wrapped a delicate gift and gave it to Gu Yao. It was a floral crystal brooch with silver as the stem and pink, purple and white crystals on the top. It was quite exquisite and beautiful.

    The piece of jewelry was a gift to Mother Zhang in her early years. The bright pink and shy style of the brooch wasn¡¯t suitable for her anymore. Even so, she has treasured it over the years and had joked with Zhang Siyi in the past about keeping it for his future wife.

    Now seeing his mother take out the brooch, not only was Zhang Siyi shocked speechless, Gu Yao was very surprised as well. Compared with Zhang Siyi¡¯s two thousand dors red envelope, the value of this brooch is at most half. When Gu Yao first saw this precious gift, she repeatedly waved her hand in refusal.

    However, even Gu Yu¡¯s way with words is no match for Mother Zhang¡¯s silver tongue, let alone this small girl still studying. With her insistence, Gu Yao red face is actually full of joy.

    Feeling embarrassed, only Zhang Siyi did not want his Mother to give away her brooch, for he knew what it truly represented. Taking advantage of the moment while drinking tea, Zhang Siyi pulled his mother into the kitchen urgently: ¡°What are you doing? How could you give that to her?¡±

 Chapter 81: Anecdote

    <h4>Chapter 81: Anecdote</h4>

    ______________________

    His Mother turned to look at him unsmiling. With the appearance of Gu Yao, a beautiful girl with a pedigree, of course she will think of her son¡¯s future. Zhang Siyi sighed inwardly. The world isn¡¯t like the novels he just read. Its only natural for his mother to curry favor towards a girl. It would never cross her mind to think of the other Gu family member present.

    His Mother believes that making an impression on the girl is as good as if Zhang Siyi did it himself. She wants to promote Zhang Siyi value in Gu Yao eyes. When his Mother looks back at the siblings in her living room, she views her gift as a bargain investmentpared to the value of the prize when the two families be one.

    After looking at the expression on his Mother¡¯s face, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t have to ask his Mother directly for an answer. He knew right away what she was thinking. Feeling anxious, he was articte: ¡°Don¡¯t think about it for one second. I have nothing to do with his sister!¡±

    His Mother nced at him and frowned: ¡°Maybe there is nothing now, but don¡¯t you want to have something in the future?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Sure enough. It¡¯s just as he thought.

    Leaning close to Zhang Siyi ear, his Mother whispered: ¡°Since Gu Yu is so outstanding, his sister must not be far behind. I look at you two together and see a perfect match......¡±

    Exasperated, Zhang Siyi scolded his Mother: ¡°Mom ......!¡±

    ¡°Okay, okay. I know.¡± His Mother sighed and patted her son¡¯s head. ¡°It¡¯s just a joke. I understand you can¡¯t force these things so don¡¯t feel pressured. I think the girl is cute and this brooch fits her style. Can¡¯t I give it away if I want?¡±

    Zhang Siyi had nothing to say to his mom. She shook her head helplessly and sighed bitterly. She gave Zhang Siyi a forced smile before heading over to entertain the guests.

    Hanging his head, Zhang Siyi felt a little guilty. He wants his mother to be happy and if by giving away her own belongings makes her feel good, then why should he care? His strong reaction towards his mom surprised him. He doesn¡¯t understand why it bothered him so much.

    Looking at Gu Yao sitting on the sofa, she really is beautiful. With delicate facial features, and a calm outward appearance, she is absolutely the type to be liked by everyone. If Zhang Siyi had met her six months ago, he would have tried to pursue her. However, now with the thought of her being Gu Yu¡¯s sister...... only one wordes to mind: impossible!

    He didn¡¯t want to be a brother-inw... Isn¡¯t his mother a rotten woman? Why doesn¡¯t she indulge in fantasy at this time instead? No, no, no, no. Crazy thoughts! (=////=)

    Wanting to go back and have time to clean his apartment, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t want to stay for too long. After chatting for about twenty minutes, Gu Yu suggested they head out.

    Mother Zhang helped moved the luggage into the car. She pointed out which items were specially prepared for Zhang Siyi and which packages were for Gu Yu. epting the packages, Gu Yu unceremoniously expressed his gratitude and simply signaled to the two passengers, then drove away in silence. This time, Gu Yao had already taken the front seat so naturally Zhang Siyi went to the back seat.

    Not having seen Gu Yu for a while, his defenses were down. Now that he has appeared in front of him, he can¡¯t help but think about the expression ¡®little-fox-kissing-small-kitten¡¯. Imaging Gu Yu kissing the top of his head, he once again could feel the heat in his body rise. While staring at his mobile phone, Zhang Siyi tried to make himself shrink into the corner of the backseat of the car. Quietly, he listened to Gu Yao talk with her brother.

    Gu Yao: ¡°When do you think we will arrive?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Probably around four or five.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Did you leave enough cat food for little ck and floret?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Unless the two stupid cats brought the whole neighborhood with them to eat, the two big bags of food I left is more than enough to feed them.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Ha-ha-ha! A New year¡¯s dinner for the cats! It¡¯s so funny! Hey, do you know if they had a baby yet?¡±

    Gu Yu raised his eyebrows: ¡°They are both male.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°What? Didn¡¯t you say it was a couplest time?¡±

    Gu Yu rhetorically replied: ¡°Because two males cannot be one, right?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°......¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Gu Yao changed the topic: ¡°Are you going to cook at night?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Well, now with so many dishes to bring back, you can just cook rice to go with them to eat.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Yes. Brother Siyi¡¯s Mother is very polite and gave us a lot of food stuffs. It¡¯s probably enough to feed us for a week.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Mmm, Hmm...¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Brother Siyi, do you want to eat with us tonight?¡±

    Zhang Si Yi weakly rebuffed them: ¡°No, thank you. I made arrangements with friends forter.¡±

    Gu Yao took out the brooch his mother gave her and said: ¡°You know, I¡¯m so embarrassed. Even though I met your mother for the first time, she gave me such a beautiful thing. It really is special. I have a wool shawl I bought two years ago in Taobao that will match perfectly. Make sure you thank her again for me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was very polite: ¡°It¡¯s all right, don¡¯t worry about it.¡±

    Driving steadily on the road, they arrived at the entrance ramp onto the thruway without any issues. Shining brightly through the ss windows, the sun made the interior of the car feel warm and cozy. Gu Yao yawned and put the brooch on the palm of her hand to watch and y with the light that was reflecting and refracting from the crystals. She asked: ¡°Brother, this is rather heavy. Do you think this is pure silver?¡±

    Gu Yu only nced at her and coldly replied: ¡°What is it that you have to whine about? Shut your mouth and get some sleep.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°......¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Thesting silence and lull of the car made Zhang Siyi feel rather drowsy. Just as he started drifting off to sleep, the mobile phone vibrations in his pocket, startled him. He nced at it and was surprised to see that Gu Yao sent him a text message.

    Gu Yao: ¡°Do you think my brother is angry?¡± [grievance]

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......Hmm?¡±

    Well, he did feel like the barometric pressure in the car was low, but Zhang Siyi thought it was due to his personal emotional conflict and not because of the brother and sister duo sitting in the front.

    Gu Yao: ¡°When we get to the service area soon, change positions with me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Why!? I don¡¯t want to!¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°¡ú_¡ú¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I sat next to himst time so now it¡¯s your turn to sit next to him. One person at a time is fair.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Do you want to hear about my brother¡¯s childhood stories?¡± [Evil Grin]

    ..... Stories? There are anecdotes revolving around Gu Yu?

    Zhang Siyi remembered the time months ago when his Mother initially talked with Gu Yu on the phone. She divulged many of Zhang Siyi childhood deeds and he always felt, by doing so, she inadvertently gave Gu Yu a bad impression of Zhang Siyi. Now, faced with prospect of hearing Gu Yu¡¯s ck history, his spirit rose. Maybe the stories would alleviate the pressure he feels when thinking about the perfect and unobtainable Gu Yu in his heart.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Yes! Pray tell! [Cackle with Glee]

    Gu Yao: ¡°If you want to hear it, you have to switch ces with me!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Ok, Ok. Deal.¡± This should be worth it.

    Gu Yao: ¡°Most of my brother¡¯s anecdotes happened before I was born. Since he is so much older than me, I¡¯ve only heard them from my father. The only early memories I have of him are of his attempts at bullying me, you know......¡± [Dripping sweat]

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I understand......¡± [Dripping sweat]

    Gu Yao: ¡°Listen to my Dad¡¯s story: When my brother was six, he went to my Grandma¡¯s house and an old man in the vige gave him a pumpkin.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Where is your grandmother¡¯s house?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°In the countryside of Ningcheng. My grandfather was a carpenter and my grandmother was originally from the big city. For family reasons she fled her home to marry my Grandfather in the countryside. That is a long story for another time....¡±

    ¡°Hmm, ok. As you were saying about the pumpkin......¡± Zhang Siyi thought about his own pumpkin that Gu Yu preserved with nitrogen in the sealed box. Is this a coincidence? However, he thought about it further and he couldn¡¯t believe a six-year-old would even understand what nitrogen is, let alone the idea of preserving a pumpkin at that age. He was very curious now: ¡°What about it?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Since the pumpkin grew to a more cylindrical shape with a hue more yellow gold then orange, it was unlike regr pumpkins. Also, when the sun shone on it, it reflected the light in an unusual way that made it seem like the skin glowed. As a result, the elder told the six-year-old Gu Yu that the pumpkin was special.¡±

    Zhang Siyi can image the scene of Gu Yu spotting a unique pumpkin growing in the garden and asking about it, thinking it was treasure. It is like finding a piece of sea ss on the beach as a child. With its smooth edges and mysterious appearance, Zhang Siyi always thought of them as treasure sent by the gods. If Zhang Siyi saw such a distinctive pumpkin, he too would think it was treasure from the gods.

    Gu Yao continued: ¡°Moreover, the old man that gave it to him was a special resident of the town who had no wife nor children. Although he was in his forties, his hair both on his head and on his face waspletely white. Because he was tall and thin with a long white beard and very white skin, he looked like a legendary elf character out of a story book.¡±

    Being immersed in the story, Zhang Siyi imagined Gu Yu as the protagonist receiving the sacred pumpkin by the old master and thus his cultivation adventure begins.

    Gu Yao: ¡°When my brother brought it home, my father said he wouldn¡¯t let anyone touch it. Every night he would sleep with it and every day he would carry it around with him.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Heh.¡± The development in his imagination waspletely different! (¨R¨Œ¨Q)

    Gu Yao: ¡°One day, my aunt came to our house and saw the pumpkin unattended. She didn¡¯t know it was my brother¡¯s baby, so she cooked it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi stifled augh: ¡°Ha-ha-ha-ha! And then what happened?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°When my Father learned of what happened, he discussed the issue with mom, and decided not to tell my brother. When he came home from Kindergarten, he looked everywhere for it, but could not find it so he sat on the couch forlorn. Mumbling out load about his worries, my father heard him say that the pumpkin must be out to y and will be backter.¡±

    Zhang Siyi covered his mouth: ¡°Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha ......¡± OMG even Gu Yu did something so stupid!

    Gu Yao: ¡°Even though he ate pumpkin that day, he didn¡¯t react until a dayter!¡±

    Following the story Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°And then what did he do?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°He asked Dad why they ate his son. My Father couldn¡¯t help but make up a story so he told my brother that the pumpkin was now in his stomach and after a long time he will give birth. Then it will call him Father!¡±

    Continuing his muffledughter Zhang Siyi asked between breaths: ¡°Ha-ha-ha-ha...... What did he say? Ha-ha-ha-ha......¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°My brother really believed it! For a long time, he would rub his belly and ask Dad every day when his son woulde out!¡±

    In the backseat, with tears streaming down his cheeks and shoulders shaking, Zhang Siyi is desperately trying to prevent himself fromughing out loud.

 Chapter 82: Lonely

    <h4>Chapter 82: Lonely</h4>

    __________________

    Zhang Siyi was eager to learn more. With dexterous fingers he quickly typed: ¡°Did he ever discover your Father¡¯s trick?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°In order to keep the ruse going, my dad always made-up some type of excuse to stall him. He even told my brother that to encourage the growth of a healthy child, he had to follow certain rules like eating more vegetables, getting more exercise, sleeping and rising early...... If he didn¡¯t do these things, then the child could die.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha! Did he really believe it?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°He did! But, as children often loose interest quickly, he too forgot about it after a while. At some pointter when he was a little older, he understood that Dad was deceiving to him. He never asked about it. My Father said that after the pumpkin incident, he developed a calm personality and always thought carefully of what others were saying. When he was young, he was rather hyperactive, and his curious nature always got him into trouble. My dad was worried about my brother for a long time because he thought maybe his teasing caused asting mental trauma, so he paid close attention to his habits and ytime for many years. Since he saw no changes, over time, he stopped feeling guilty about it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was trying hard to rx his facial muscles so he wouldn¡¯t startughing. As a result, he had a stiff expression on his face. He couldn¡¯t help but think that the pumpkin incident during Gu Yu¡¯s childhood was the origin of his ck belly.

    Just then, Gu Yu suddenly nced at Gu Yao suspiciously: ¡°I can hear the phone vibrations. Why are you still sending texts in the car? Do you think I don¡¯t know you both are talking about me?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Theughter caused by talking about Gu Yu¡¯s ck history, alleviated Zhang Siyi¡¯s recent emotional woes and stress. Gu Yu¡¯s statement interrupted the joyful atmosphere between Zhang Siyi and Gu Yao. Even though Zhang Siyi tried to control hisughter, he shook his head with conditioned reflexes. He struggled between the physical pain he felt from over exerting himself withughter and by the fear of being caught.

    Coughing lightly, Gu Yao denied it: ¡°No. I¡¯m sending messages to my ssmates.¡± Covering for the both, she pocketed her phone with a guilty conscience.

    Obviously not believing a word, Gu Xiao snorted from his nose and didn¡¯t say anything else. Silently, they drove onwards.

    Sitting behind Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t see his expression. He yed the part and sat quietly in the backseat. Approximately thirty minutester, they arrived at the service area. The three of them got out to use the restroom and when Gu Yu was out of sight, Zhang Siyi and Gu Yao immediately started to gossip once again.

    Gu Yao: ¡°Geesh! That scared the shit out of me!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Yes! I thought he was focused on driving. I didn¡¯t think he knew we were talking about him.......¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Admitting it won¡¯t do us any good. Anyway, he can¡¯te over and look at our mobile phones!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Hmm-mmm! Let¡¯s turn off the vibration for a while and make itpletely muted so he doesn¡¯t know we are chatting!¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Good idea! Oh, right, don¡¯t forget to change positionter!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What will you say to your brother?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°I¡¯ll tell him I¡¯m tired and will take a nap in the back seat for a while.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Okay...¡±

    After finishing up in the bathroom, Zhang Siyi made his way through the rest-stop and back to the car. From the distance, he saw Gu Yu with his arms crossed, leaningzily against the car. He wasn¡¯t wearing a coat. Instead, he was wearing an ultra-thin green, down vest over a smoky gray, cotton shirt. With his slim trousers exposing his straight and long, slender legs, he looked refined and clean-cut. Zhang Siyi noticed Gu Yu¡¯s looking off into the distance with slightly wrinkled brows and squinting eyes. At a nce, Gu Yu looked like a model, but when Zhang Siyi watched him for a few minutes he felt Gu Yu looked distraught and lonely. Gu Yu temperament created an illusion that he was untouchable, but Zhang Siyi saw a vulnerable side not normally visible.

    As Zhang Siyi approached, Gu Yu noticed, and his line of sight fell onto Zhang Siyi. Even though he noticed Gu Yu¡¯s expression was in ¡®professional¡¯ mode, he couldn¡¯t stop himself from thinking about the childhood pumpkin story and thus, he couldn¡¯t stop himself from giggling.

    Gu Yu instantly narrowed his eyes and waved at him: ¡°Come here.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Walking slowly to the car, Zhang Siyi subconsciously maintained a distance of one-meter between them: ¡°What?¡±

    Gu Yu asked: ¡°What¡¯s so funny?¡±

    Zhang Siyi squinted his eyes and said: ¡°Nothing.¡±

    Gu Yu stared at him for a while, and Zhang Siyi stared back. Just when Zhang Siyi was about to raise a white g in surrender, from behind Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu saw his sister approaching from the distance and said: ¡°Either you tell me now or I will ask herter.¡±

    Although Gu Yu was calm and his face was non-threatening, Zhang Siyi felt like he was on trial for something serious.

    Worrying, Zhang Siyi felt embarrassed to have to repeat such an embarrassing anecdote. Since he was just a listener, what does he have to feel guilty about? However, exposing the origin of the story would be a great betrayal between friends which is a serious vition of Zhang Siyi¡¯s principles. He stuck is neck out in denial: ¡°Really! It¡¯s nothing!¡±

    Tranquil, Gu Yu nodded and smiled. He looked straight at Zhang Siyi and said: ¡°I gave you the chance first,¡± then walked around to the driver¡¯s side.

    Zhang Siyi could read-between-the-lines: Since you didn¡¯t seize the opportunity handed to you, don¡¯t cry next time. Zhang Siyi was surprised by his attitude, however. Now that Zhang Siyi had some ck history ammo, he didn¡¯t feel threatened by Gu Yu¡¯s words.

    Gu Yu opened the driver¡¯s side door and saw Zhang Siyi sitting on the passenger side then asked: ¡°Why are you sitting there?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Your Sister said she wanted to take a nap in the back.¡±

    The backdoor opened and Gu Yao got into the backseat: ¡°Ready.¡± Gu Yu reminded them to fasten their seat belts and they headed out of the service area.

    Back on the highway, after a short while, Zhang Siyi checked his phone, and sure enough Gu Yao had sent him a message: ¡°Good Job! ~o(¡É_¡É)o~ ¡°

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t want to tell Gu Yao about her brother¡¯s behavior just now. He sent her a cartoon facial expression and in silence, they chatted again: ¡°Were there anything more stories?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Yes! There was another incident at my grandparent¡¯s house. The day my Grandfather gave my brother a wooden toy gun to y with, he was working with his tractor. Upon receiving it, he took aim and ¡®pew-pew¡¯ using the tractor as target practice. It just so happened that the break-lever released on the old tractor and started moving on its own. After about twenty meters, the tire blew out with a loud boom. The whole vige could probably hear it. My brother thought it was the power of his gun. Since he feared someoneing after him, he hid in Grandma¡¯s closet for the rest of the day. It wasn¡¯t until the evening at dinner that the whole family became worried over his absence. When my brother climbed out of the closet, trembling and crying, exining the situation and saying he was wrong and won¡¯t ever use the gun again, the whole familyughed like crazy.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Ha-ha-ha-ha! How old was your brother then?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Five or six years old, it happened before I was born. ¡° [Dripping sweat]

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I haven¡¯t been born yet either...... ¡° [Dripping sweat]

    Gu Yao continued with the gossip: ¡°Another thing happened when I was in sixth grade. At that time, my brother was already in high school. Do you remember the ¡®PHS¡¯ portable phones?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Yes. My mom also gave me one when I was in middle school.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°At that time all of our family was on the PHS familywork. My father gave me the nickname ¡®Little Cotton Jacket¡¯. Do you know what my brother did? One day, he changed my nickname to ¡®Buy Food¡¯!

    ¡°Heh ...¡± This matter.... Zhang Siyi heard it from Gu Yu while he was at his cest year cooking and staying with Gu Yu.

    Gu Yu: ¡°Even though my brother used to call me that in private, my father never would have. When I saw the nickname changed, I thought it was my father¡¯s doing. Because of me being the second child, I thought my father really held negative feelings. I was so angry and hurt, I tried to run away from home. My brother stillughs at me about this!¡± [angry]

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Pitiful, but is this really a story about your brother?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Well, I¡¯m just talking about stupid things in general about him.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Like I said before, my brother has been very clever since I can remember. Normally, he didn¡¯t do silly things so every time I heard a story from my father, I was always so excited and listened carefully. Since he has thin skin when he was younger, my brother would get worked up after my father teased him every time. Sometimes, he even secluded himself in his room. When he came home from college after the first year, my Father joked about his pumpkin again, but my brother responded to him by saying: ¡°Wait one day. The child¡¯s mother wille back to me with my pumpkin son.¡± My father was speechless.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Hold on. What do you mean? ¡®The kid¡¯s mother wille back with his pumpkin boy?¡¯ B, But Zhang Siyi gave him a pumpkinntern....... ! (o////o)

    Not giving Zhang Siyi a lot of time to ponder this thought, Gu Yu suddenly asked him: ¡°By the way, Brother Siyi, do you remember when I asked you if my brother liked anyone in thepany?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Ah...... Yes, Why?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Last December, when I went to my brother¡¯s house, I found a mysterious pumpkinntern in his room. I asked him where he got it, but he didn¡¯t tell me. I think it was given to him by the person he likes. Do you know who gave it to him?¡±

    ¡°Err ......¡± Feeling nervous, Zhang Siyi paused for a bit, then slowly confessed: ¡°If you¡¯re talking about the pumpkinmp in a transparent box in his room...... I gave that to him.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°.........¡±

    To exin, Zhang Siyi quickly followed up: ¡°It was created during thepany¡¯s Halloween event. It wasn¡¯t anything special. It would have been thrown away, but he asked about it, so I gave it to him.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Oh...¡±

    Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t suppress his thundering heart. Feeling less doubtful, the questions and answers that were expressed during the True or Dare game at Gu Yu¡¯s house emerged once again in Zhang Siyi¡¯s mind. Gu Yu, could you possibly like him too?

 Chapter 83: Two Bedrooms

    <h4>Chapter 83: Two Bedrooms</h4>

    ____________________________

    In a sh, all of Zhang Siyi¡¯s memories are on hyperdrive. There are so many subtle coincidences between Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu that he is starting to believe what used to be thought of as random inextricable phenomenon are as if by fate, linked.

    There was the cactus ball and the overtime work day when he woke up to a sensation where he found Gu Yu looking at him. Also, Gu Yu¡¯s tape measure gift. Even though Zhang Siyi started with a white-lie of only ying the violin for a person he likes, Gu Yu unexpectedly asked Zhang Siyi to y the violin for him. There was Zhang Siyi¡¯s properly preserved pumpkin in Gu Yu¡¯s bedroom, and the generous New Year¡¯s red envelope, and of course the increasingly suggestive ambiguous WeChat interactions......

    As these thoughts percted in Zhang Siyi heart and mind, he had to face the facts. When Fu Xinhui asked him that time after KTV, Zhang Siyi immediately rejected the idea because ¡®Gu Yu had a girlfriend¡¯. However, this problem was no longer an issue as the girl wasn¡¯t a girlfriend, but his sister.

    Even Gu Yao admitted to Zhang Siyi that she suspected her brother was gay more then once. Although he doesn¡¯t know the specifics of why she felt that way, if Zhang Siyibined this fact with Gu Yu¡¯s actions during the True or Dare game, then it makes sense that Gu Yu would choose dare when Zhang Siyi asked him who he liked.

    ...... The answer is on the horizon.

    Zhang Si Yi stole a nce at Gu Yu while he was driving. His face was soft and yielding, yet focused and taut. It is a handsome face that very few girls can resist.

    If Gu Yu really likes himself......

    Then he can try too.......

    With a man.......

    A rtionship.......

    Right? (o////o)

    Things are growing...... Oh, Zhang Siyi, what are you thinking about! (&////&)

    With his heart feeling like it was going to explode from his chest, Zhang Si Yi quickly withdraw his gaze. Where does he get the confidence to presume there is interest in Zhang Siyi? Gu Yu¡¯s abilities are superior and he makes more money and he is better looking..... Liking him? Not possible!

    It is said that when you like a person, people often over think the actions of the other person in order to convince themselves, the feeling are mutual. This is typical attention bias.

    Zhang Siyi is a very self-aware person who knows exactly the type of girl he can attract and pursue for a serious rtionship. If he approached a girl and was rejected, it¡¯s just a moment of slight embarrassment that can be harmlesslyughed away. However, Gu Yu is a man. If there is a misunderstanding, then how will he put his face forward in the future?

    Slumping in the seat in distress, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t want to think about it further. Since he wasn¡¯t in the mood to chat, he also used the excuse of being sleepy to end their conversation.

    At the same time in the backseat, Gu Yao was continuing her analysis of her brother¡¯s love mystery. Through their conversations, Gu Yao confirmed that Zhang Siyi is very curious about her brother. Curiosity is precisely the beginning of all love; a good sign!

    The most recent new info: Zhang Siyi gave her brother the pumpkin!

    Is this a coincidence? No!

    Judging from her brother¡¯s cherished memories of pumpkinnterns, Gu Yao had long suspected that this was a gift from his sweetheart. Together with these observations over the past few days, she has already made a conclusion. All the signs where there, but she still wanted to further test her hypothesis to confirm whether or not her brother was in love with Zhang Siyi and if Zhang Siyi reciprocated his feelings. Mainly because, Zhang Siyi¡¯sst reaction made her doubt herself. _ (: §©¡±¡Ï) _

    Although it is true that Zhang Siyi is very curious about her brother, his probing only stays at a normal level. He also was quick to point out that the jack-ontern was just a happenstance, and not a specific gift.

    It is hard to believe, but is this rtionship her brother¡¯s unrequited love?

    ..... No way! Her brother is lovesick?

    When Gu Yao was younger, she thought her brother was such a perfect person. He was like an emperor picking out his concubine; a flock of fancy girls to patiently wait to be chosen as a girlfriend. In her eyes, his standards were so high and mighty that he could never take the initiative to talk about rtionships and love in this life.

    In this lifetime, Gu Yao would never have guessed her brother would have a period of unrequited love. Poor brother; never meeting someone to like and single for almost thirty years. It¡¯s so rare to fall in love with someone, and that someone can¡¯t feel it! But think about it. There are thousands upon thousands of different people in the world. So-what if a man meets a man. Can that not be a romantic story too?

    Zhang Siyi seems to be a very normal boy. Its probably very difficult to emotionally disengage from the standard inherit upbringing.

    Gu Yao sighed and began to worry about life..... For her brother¡¯s sake, she must think of something and keep trying.

    At five in the evening, they arrived in Haicheng. Since Zhang Siyi previously said he had something to do with his friends at night, Gu Yu didn¡¯t say anything else. With only a slight wave of his hand, he silently dropped Zhang Siyi off at his apartment and left with Gu Yao.

    Standing in the cold wind feeling abandoned, Zhang Siyi watched the dust get kicked-up as the Lexus drove away on the road. He felt numb as his brain couldn¡¯tpute the emotional rollercoaster he experienced throughout the day. He turned his head and looked at therge pile of packages and bags sitting in front of his apartment building and sighed. As if today¡¯s emotional ride wasn¡¯t enough already, he started to feel angry at theck of curtesy. Gu Yu couldn¡¯t spare an extra few minutes to help him with the luggage?

    Since his friend wasn¡¯t home, there was no one to help him move his belongings upstairs. Zhang Siyi took multiple trips and half an hourter, he was able to move everything into his apartment. As previously mentioned, Fu Xinhui came by the ce earlier to drop off Cheer-Up. When Zhang Siyi saw the dog, he was surprised at how much Cheer-Up grew over the past couple of weeks.

    When the dog saw Zhang Siyiing back, Cheer-Up excitedly rushed at him and enthusiastically circled around him. Zhang Siyi affectionately petted the dog¡¯s head: ¡°Well, well, be good and don¡¯t slobber all over me..... Fuck! What did you do to my sheets!¡±

    Before he left for the New Year¡¯s break, he hung his sheets up in the living room to dry. He saw them on the floor in a messy pile. As he approached them to pick the sheets off the floor, he noticed a clear odor of urine on them.

    ¡°Cheer up ...%£¤#......!!¡±

    Zhang Siyi is not amused. Gnashing his teeth, he gathered the soiled sheets into a ball and threw them away in the trash. He looked at the little devil sitting before him. Cheer-Up was giving Zhang Siyi the most innocent, adorable, cute look as possible.

    Thinking about the ill-fated Fu Xinhui, Zhang Siyi gave up his urge to pull the dog¡¯s hair out. Instead he patted his head and patiently said: ¡°How many times have we told you not to pee at home? Do you think I¡¯m your good-natured father? I don¡¯t know when he will be back. Be careful so I don¡¯t throw you out!¡±

    Cheer-Up moved his body closer to Zhang Siyi, tilted his head and lifted a hind leg than sprinkled two drops of urine on Zhang Siyi¡¯s foot.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    With the dog downstairs waiting, it took Zhang Siyi another two hours to wash the apartment and unpack his luggage. During this time, Fu Xinhui called to let him know he was unable to go out to dinner with him at night.

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t find it surprising as he never received a reply to his text to Fu Xinhui earlier while driving back. He didn¡¯t say anything about his past text and instead, he calmly asked Fu Xinhui about his family. Fu Xinhui said they were still dealing with the situation and there was nothing new to report.

    Zhang Siyi spoke to his friend on the phone: ¡°You are busy with your family issues. Don¡¯t worry about me.¡±

    He thought he could wait until Fu Xinhui gets back to talk to him about his problems regarding Gu Yu and his own sexual orientation. He wanted someone to help him analyze the situation ande to a conclusion so he could make a n about what to do. But now that Fu Xinhui is riddled with family problems, he doesn¡¯t want to bother him with his own entangled feelings.

    Zhang Siyi concern isn¡¯t something he can easily talk about with others. After all, it is about his own sexual orientation. If he talks to someone who isn¡¯t trust worthy, once the matter is voiced, his image will bepletely destroyed. Hanging up the phone, Zhang Siyi copsed on the sofaying down. Looking at the empty house, he felt even more deste.

    First, Jiang Hai found a girlfriend and moved out and now Fu Xinhui is away because of his family. In the future, in thisrge three-bedroom apartment, will he always be alone?

    Well...... There is a dog.

    Zhang Siyi sighed and turned on his side to see Cheer-Upyingzily on the floor and notying in his cozy dog-bed. He couldn¡¯t help himself say: ¡°Stupid dog.¡±

    Cheer-Up: ¡°?¡±

    Zhang Siyi paused for a minute and whispered: ¡°Do you think he likes me or not?¡±

    Cheer up: ¡°??¡±

    Rolling onto his back on the couch he ced his forearm on top of his brow and muttered to himself: ¡°Actually, I kind of like him......¡±

    Cheer up: ¡°....¡±

    Zhang Siyi sighed, sat up and looked at the dog. He firmly admitted: ¡°Well, it¡¯s not kind-of-like. I like him more than my ex-girlfriend or anyone else. This is the first time for me to feel in love...... But he is a man.¡±

    Cheer-Up stood and leaned over.

    Feeling despondent, Zhang Siyi looked up at the ceiling: ¡°Do you think I¡¯m gay?¡±

    Seemingly like he wanted tofort Zhang Siyi, Cheer-Up arched towards his leg.

    Zhang Siyi touched his head and said: ¡°Forget it. How can you know when your little guy isn¡¯t yet developed?¡±

    Suddenly, Cheer-up lifted his front paws onto Zhang Siyi leg and thrusted his hips.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°..................¡±

    Go to hell, you stupid dog! (¨s¡¯¡õ¡¯)¨s¦à©ß©¥©ß

    After dinner and a bath, Zhang Siyi returned to his room to arrange his bed to sleep without sheets. He will have to buy some new onester. Looking at the cactus on the window sill, Zhang Siyi thought with its bright green color, it looked much better. He stuck his finger out to poke it. The chassis was stable. It¡¯s alive! (¡Ño¡Ñ)

    Since Zhang Siyi was so excited, he wanted to show Gu Yu right away. Holding the flowerpot carefully, he snapped a few photos. Eagerly waiting for Gu Yu¡¯s reaction, he sent the best looking two in WeChat.

    Ha-ha-ha! Now, you can¡¯t me me anymore, can you?

    After waiting for 10 minutes, there wasn¡¯t any response from Gu Yu. Zhang Siyi thought he missed the text, so he sent another one: ¡°Boss, the cactus is doing well!¡± He followed up with a ¡®kitten-selling-cuteness¡¯ expression. After sending the text Zhang Siyi face-nted into his pillow and rolled around on his bed.

    Calming down after a minute, Zhang Siyi checked his phone again, but there was still no reply. He looked at the time; after 10pm. Is he taking a shower? Or is he talking with his sister?

    Fretting about it for another few minutes, Zhang Siyi gave up any pretense and sent a message to Gu Yao: ¡°What are you doing?¡±

    Gu Yao quickly replied: ¡°ying the game, Radish Defense. What¡¯s the matter?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°How do you still y that? I finished it in one day, even the custom map.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°If you have something to say, then say it!¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Don¡¯t get in my way of clearing the map! ¡° (#¨F¡ä)Í¹

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Cough, where¡¯s your brother?

    Gu Yao: ¡°He is in his own room.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Don¡¯t you sleep in his room?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°What!? I am also an adult, a pure flower. How can I sleep with my brother!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°... So where do you sleep? The couch? ¡°

    Gu Yao: ¡°What do you mean the sofa? Of course, I sleep in my bed. My brother has two bedrooms at home!¡±

 Chapter 84: Calm Down

    <h4>Chapter 84: Calm Down</h4>

    ________________________

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s mind went nk for a moment. There are two bedrooms? Could she mean the guest room with all the stuff? To confirm his guess, he asked: ¡°You mean the storage room on the second floor?¡±

    When Gu Yao saw his question, she was taken back: ¡°How do you know there are two rooms on the second floor? Have you been to my brother¡¯s house?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I spent the night at your brother¡¯s house before we drove back to Ningcheng.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Oh, so where did you sleep at that time? The guest Room?¡±

    While chatting with Zhang Siyi, she sat up and looked around her room. Every time she came to her brother¡¯s house, she stayed in this room. The bedding was specially picked out for her and there was nothing moved on her desk. Everything was as she left it. It didn¡¯t look like anyone had been in her room.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°No. Since it was a long time since someone lived in the room, your brother said that the space was piled up with clutter. It was too cold to stay on the sofa, so I stayed with him.¡±

    Jaw wide open, Gu Yao has never felt so shocked. OMG! They slept together!? Her neat-freak of a brother who would never share a bed, in fact spent the night with Zhang Siyi! (=¿Ú=)

    Bing more excited, Gu Yao¡¯s small heart burst with joy. And to think that all this time, her brother has been acting so nonchnt. She has the evidence now!

    Zhang Siyi asked again: ¡°Where you able to clean up that room so quickly?¡±

    Chuckling to herself, she understood immediately what happened. Seeing Zhang Siyi continued questioning, she didn¡¯t want to expose her brother¡¯s ploy, so she went along with it.

    ¡°Well...... I spent the night packing up.¡± She finished looking around the room and snorted. Except for a few boxes of old books piled on the ground and the two nkets that were vacuum packed for storage, there was nothing else out of order.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Oh ...¡±

    Changing the subject, Gu Yao returned the topic to Zhang Siyi original inquiry: ¡°You were asking about my brother; is there something wrong? Don¡¯t you know his WeChat?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°It¡¯s nothing important. I sent him a message, but he didn¡¯t return it. I was curious to know what he was doing so I asked you.¡±

    What? Gu Yao felt confused. Isn¡¯t it normal for her brother to ignore WeChat? Her workaholic brother usually took several days before he noticed text messages. Once even, it took a week to return one of Gu Yao texts. Anyway, since the information wasn¡¯t important, she didn¡¯t want to disturb her brother so normally, she didn¡¯t pester him about the dy. She understands his preferences, and thus, if it¡¯s an urgent matter she knows to make a phone call directly. Recently however, when she has sent him a text message, he has responded in a short period of time. She found it very surprising. Thinking back to New Year¡¯s at home, she witnessed her brother looking at his phone frequently and smiling. This change, is it not because of Zhang Siyi?

    Gu Yao asked: ¡°When did you send it to him?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Fifteen minutes ago?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°......¡± If she were sitting on a chair, she would have fallen off! It was fifteen-minutes and not fifteen-hours! Running to Gu Yao to ask... Doesn¡¯t he have something better to do? Go take a cold shower and calm down! (#¨F¡ä) Í¹

    In order to settle herself, Gu Yu took a deep breath and squashed her impulse to tease him: ¡°What is the issue? I can see what my brother is doing...¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Well, it¡¯s not urgent. I wanted to show him my photos of my cactus.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°%#@......¡±

    Hold back... you are ady! Endure! ©ß©¥©ß¦à¨t(¨FÃó¡ä)¨s¦à©ß©¥©ß

    Half a minuteter, Gu Yao got out of bed and knocked on her brother¡¯s door. After hearing e in¡± from inside, she pushed the door in and entered. Gu Yu was bent at his waist slightly, standing intently at his desk with a brush in hand, practicing calligraphy.

    The desk surface was covered with felt and on it, was a sheet of rice paper. The word cold (Àä) was already half printed on the top and with a few more strokes he was finished. With the brush still in his hand, he paused and looked up at her ¡°Do you need something?¡±

    Seeing the pile of used rice paper with his phone on the top like a paper weight, she shook her head and retreated instead: ¡°It¡¯s nothing. I wanted to know when you will be going to sleep.¡±

    Gu Yu nced briefly at her, then continued writing: ¡°You can go to sleep first. I¡¯m going to write for a while.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Oh...¡±

    Horizontal, horizontal, vertical hooks... Gu Yu wrote another word: quiet (¾²). Noticing Gu Yao standing by the door he paused again, raised his brow and looked up at her: ¡°What?¡±

    Fiddling with the edge of her shirt, Gu Yao quietly asked: ¡±Brother, are you upset?¡±

    Gu Yu stopped his hand: ¡°Why do you say that?¡±

    Feeling deted, Gu Yao weakly confessed: ¡°Today during our car ride, I chatted with brother Siyi and told him some of your childhood stories.¡±

    Gu Yu smoothly dipped his brush into the ink jar and continued writing: ¡°I know you two were chatting behind my back. You didn¡¯t say anything so what could I say? It¡¯s nothing more than a few embarrassing stories from Dad.¡±

    With a slight smile, Gu Yu voice is very serene. He didn¡¯t appear upset at all, however, by instinct, Gu Yao felt that her brother is quite perturbed. Casually walking over to him, she said: ¡°I think brother Siyi is very curious about you.¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s wrist trembled, and the brush stroke was shaken. Not lifting his head, he calmly continued writing. Theyman couldn¡¯t see his word being poorly written.

    She sifted through the pile a used sheets of rice paper and picked out the best written words. He finally put down his brush and said: ¡°Am I so easy to get angry? I don¡¯t know who I learned it from....¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°......¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Go to sleep. I¡¯ll only write for a little longer then I¡¯ll sleep.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Ok. What shall we eat in the morning?¡±

    Unlike his slow practice, Gu Yu flicked his wrist and quickly wrote a string of words: Fried rice fritters, bean curd brain?

    Gu Yaoughed, put down the ink and went back to her room.

    Gu Yu put down his brush and dragged over a stool to sit. He quietly examined his work for a while then gently picked up his phone to look at thetest WeChat message for the second time.

    Thest record entry that Zhang Siyi sent to Gu Yu was a kitten selling cuteness expression. The corners of Gu Yu mouth silently rose. With a sh in his eyes, he opened the dialog box and entered one word and.... sent.

    Zhang Siyi waited for what felt like the longest forty-five minutes of his life for a return message. When the phone vibrated, he ecstatically opened his phone to view the new message, but he only saw ¡ª¡ª- Gu Yu: ¡°Hmm.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°???¡±

    In anticipation of receiving praise from Gu Yu or something that would make him happy, Zhang Siyi was picking up his phone every two minutes to check his messages. As they say, A Watch Pot Never Boils. Forty-five minutes took infinitely longer. Compared to a note on a message marked ¡®unread¡¯, seeing only ¡°Hmm¡± from Gu Yu was more devastating.

    Zhang Siyi mind was racing: Don¡¯t you care about this cactus? What was the long talk about it in the past for? Now that it¡¯s alive and well, all I get is ¡°Hmm¡±? What do you mean, you!

    Feeling utterly depressed, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t want to reply. He turned off WeChat and threw his phone to the floor. His mood to sleep was ruined. Instead, he wrapped himself up in nkets and sat up to watch a movie in bed. Initially, his mind was so full of Gu Yu that he couldn¡¯t concentrate on the film. Feeling irritated, he opened up a game instead. Ready to blow off some steam he yed a few rounds of a game he hadn¡¯t yed for a while. Each time he lost! Being defeated in both virtual and real-life left Zhang Siyi feeling even more aggravated and empty.

    ¡°Aaaaaaaaah!¡± mming the cover of hisptop closed, he held onto his head and fell back onto his pillow. For three hours, he continued to feel restless and was unable to sleep. His mood: Like shit! And it was all Gu Yu fault! His attitude on WeChat was too indifferent and cold.

    Blinking back his tears, his emotions felt like a tightly wound coil ready to snap. All of his previous spections were crushedpletely. Gu Yu likes him? No fucking way!

    Alone, Zhang Siyi spent thest couple of days of vacation at his apartment. Finally, it was time to head back to work. Although he still felt confused over Gu Yu¡¯s actions, he felt excited to go to work to get the chance to see him. Also, it¡¯s been a while, so he was looking forward to catching up with his colleagues. Returning from their hometowns, his colleagues all seem revitalized with springs in their steps.

    Bi Lele wore a new coat and had a new hair style. She smiled at Zhang Siyi and said: ¡°Auntie Four, you came back! I heard the office building n you did was selected. Congrattions!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Thank you. How was your break? Why do you look heavier?¡±

    Bi Lele: ¡°...... Go to hell!¡±

    Dodging, Zhang Siyi ducked to escape the trajectory of the marker that Bi Lele had thrown at him. Laughing, he adjusted his desk chair then addressed his neighbor, Zhu Hongzhen. When he saw him closer, he didn¡¯t think it was possible for him to gain even more weight. Not wanting to stare he returned his attention to his desk: ¡°Piggy, you ate a few meals over News Year¡¯s, huh.¡±

    In self-condemnation, Zhu Hongzhen rubbed his forehead with his hand: ¡°Don¡¯t remind me. At home every day, all I did was eat and sleep. I feel like I really did be a pig.¡±

    Grabbing his own wrist and reaching over his head, Zhang Siyi stretched out like a cat and yawned: ¡°Me too. When I stayed at home beingzy and not doing anything, it made me feel like I was wasting away.¡±

    Yuan Zhicheng looked up with two dark circles under his eyes: ¡°You really are a good boy. You won¡¯t hear meining of doing nothing over break.¡±

    Surprised at Yuan Zhicheng outward appearance, Zhang Siyi whispered to Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°The holiday just ended. How is it possible he can he look like that?¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen exined with amusement: ¡°Oh. He is like that three hundred and sixty-five days a year. Even if you gave him three days and three nights to sleep, he will still look like that.¡± He moved in closer and spoke quietly: ¡°He must have only absorbed the Yin energies in his mother¡¯s womb.¡±

    Yuan Zhicheng¡¯s faint voice can be heard from across the room: ¡°Pig. Don¡¯t think I didn¡¯t hear you.¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°......¡±

    Powering on theputer, Zhang Siyi booted up his machine and sorted out his unfinished drawings of the office building. Because he was in a rush at the end of the year, he didn¡¯t document his progress adequately and thus, he spent half of the day getting reacquainted with the ns. At this point, he urgently needed the guidance of Gu Yu to proceed with the project.

    Since Gu Yu office was locked and dark, more the once, Zhang Siyi looked up in the direction of thepany¡¯s entrance, waiting for Gu Yu to appear. His anxiety was growing and after lunch he asked Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°Pig, why hasn¡¯t Bosse to work yet?¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen stopped his work for a minute and replied: ¡°The higher-ups have longer annual leave than ours. I think he will be back after another week.¡±

    Even though they drove back together, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t say anything: ¡°......¡±

 Chapter 85: Lovesick

    <h4>Chapter 85: Lovesick</h4>

    _____________________

    Not paying attention to anything, Zhang Siyi spent the week in a daze. In order to get his project back on track, he sought the help from Ji Feiyu and his other colleagues. Lu Qiao also returned from his holiday. Even though he had a goal and was working towards it, he continued to feel listless and unfocused.

    Without motivation, every day he functioned like clockwork; wake up, go to work, draw,e home, sleep: rinse and repeat. Zhang Siyi has experienced Gu Yu¡¯s absence before without issues. Often, Gu Yu was away for long periods for business. So why in only a couple days, does Zhang Siyi feel like his soul is lost? There was nothing different about him now from the past except for one thing and that was easy to answer. Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t have to ruminate much. I like my Boss who is a man. Zhang Siyi slumped at his desk.

    Even thepletely average Zhu Hongzhen found Zhang Siyi behavior out of the ordinary. Eating lunch together, he saw Zhang Siyi slouching in his seat, aimlessly poking the rice with his chopsticks in his lunch box. Ten minutester, Zhu Hongzhen finally asked: ¡°What is the matter with you!? You have been in a daze for two days!¡±

    Like a terminally ill patient, Zhang Siyi softly made a sound: ¡°Mmm...¡±

    Reaching out his hand, Zhu Hongzhen waved it in front of him. He guessed: ¡°Are you lovesick?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Nodding vigorously, Zhu Hongzhen had no doubts: ¡±You have the same lovelorn symptoms of a friend of mine from my previous workce.¡±

    ¡°Auntie Four is lovesick!?¡± Hearing part of their conversation, a passerby sat themselves at the table for lunch: ¡°Four, when you talk about love, howe we didn¡¯t even know!?¡±

    Since many colleagues have already heard about Zhang Siyi love out loud and knowing how fast gossip spreads, it was toote to refute. The lunch room broke out in discussion over Zhang Siyi state of being:

    ¡°Is it the beautiful woman who came to the office after Christmasst year?¡±

    ¡°Wow, that¡¯s a good job of secrecy, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m so jealous!¡±

    ¡°But how many months has it been? It¡¯s a little too soon for that!¡±

    ¡°When love is short, it¡¯s not so deep.¡±

    ¡°I prefer the longsting type, like water eternally flowing......¡±

    ¡°Early acknowledgment, early relief. Don¡¯t be sad!¡±

    ¡°Aunt Four hasn¡¯t looked quite right thesest couple of says. He is our A-Group mascot!¡±

    ¡°Quickly, Aunt Four, go cheer up!¡±

    ¡°Well, we haven¡¯t seen Boss in a few days. Who else feels sad?¡±

    ¡°When will Bosse back?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Since lunch is over, by now, everyone in thepany thinks Zhang Siyi is lovesick. After the photography contest, Zhang Siyi became famous within thepany. When people hear his name, they can imagine the photo of him sleeping like a child. In fact, imagination wasn¡¯t necessary. Representing the style of Borderless, along with the other outstanding photographs from the contest, there was a huge poster of him hanging up at thepany entrance!

    Everyone is looking at him at a distance with sympathetic eyes. Zhang Siyi really wants to argue and exin himself, but no one has taken the initiative to ask him directly about it.

    In the afternoon, feeling depressed, Zhang Siyi went downstairs to the convenience store to buy something to drink. Also, he wanted some fresh air. Being with everyone staring at him in thepany was suffocating. As he walked towards thendscape frame, he saw someone deeply in thought.

    Carrying a briefcase, Gu Yu was standing at the entrance, looking up at the new poster hanging in the foyer.

    Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t paying attention to what he was looking at. It only took a glimpse of Gu Yu¡¯s figure to make his heart start to race in panic. Having been upset previously by Gu Yu¡¯s ¡°Hmm¡±, he never replied to the text message and not having a definitive reason to contact Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi¡¯s texting remained dormant. He felt so awkward in the absence ofmunication between them that he wanted to rush past Gu Yu.

    Zhang Siyi even harassed Gu Yao. In retrospect, he felt he had made a big deal out of nothing. He was afraid that his curiosity about Gu Yu would alert his sister. As a fault for his feeling for Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t want any problems to ur.

    Neither Zhang Siyi texted, nor did Gu Yu and thus a whole week passed by in technological silence. Although there was a longer period, seven or eight days, during the New Year¡¯s, after he received ¡®little-fox-kiss¡¯ by Gu Yu, without contact, he didn¡¯t feel any psychological pressure because Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t aware of his own feelings at that time.

    But now it¡¯s different. Was he in so deep that he couldn¡¯t live without Gu Yu? For how long could he endure? Steadfast, he stubbornly held onto his principles, however at the moment Gu Yu appeared, all his patience was just self-torture and meaningless!

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s dead soul suddenly flowed with life. Every cell in his body trembled excitedly. His mood couldn¡¯t be described by words, for at this moment, from the depths of his spirit, a singr thought enveloped his mind and soul, echoing.

    I like him. I like him. I like him. I like him.......

    In his peripheral vision, Gu Yu noticed someone, so he turned to look and was startled at seeing Zhang Siyi in front of him. He watched Zhang Siyi slowly approach him smiling at him and nodding in greeting, and then slowly walk right passed him.

    In the eyes of Zhang Siyi, time also seemed to slow down. What felt like forever, he walked foolishly down the hallway until he could no longer heard Gu Yu and mechanically moved into the elevator.

    After the elevator door closed, Zhang Siyi crouched down in the narrow space and covered his throbbing chest, gasping for breath.

    Fuck, Gu Yu is back!

    Isn¡¯t it a couple days before hees back to work? Zhang Siyi specially went to the personnel department to inquire about his return. Why did hee back to the office two days early?

    With his drink in hand, Zhang Siyi rushed back to his desk and saw the lights on in Gu Yu¡¯s office. I should have known. I didn¡¯t want to be angry with Gu Yu. Ah, what should I do, so nervous......

    When Gu Yu returned, he began to call in everyone one at a time to his office to assess the current work situation. First, Ji Feiyu was called, followed by Gu Rui, and then Be Lele...... After an hour, Zhang Siyi saw a message pop up on hisputer.

    Gu Yu: ¡°Come to my office and bring me thetest work you have done.¡±

    Holding his drawings, Zhang Siyi quickly stood up and went towards Gu Yu office while brainwashing himself. Now in thepany, Gu Yu is just your Boss. He did not cook dinner for you. You didn¡¯t spend time with him over New Years. He has nothing to do with people who are called Gege and you didn¡¯t spend a night ying Truth or Dare! Ok! Calm!

    Taking a deep breath to adjust his frame of mind, Zhang Siyi knocked on Gu Yu¡¯s office door. When he went in, he began to look down at the floor, but when he sat down, he couldn¡¯t stop himself from staring at Gu Yu¡¯s face.

    Gu Yu reached gently for the drawings and looked down. While reviewing them he asked: ¡±Are there any problems with the office building?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Well, I asked Ji Feiyu for help. He suggested further development of the design since the preliminary scheme has been determined. Lu Qiao is working on the fa?ade and I am working on the floorn.¡±

    In this ¡®early-expansion¡¯ stage of development, it ismon to further evolve theyers and details in the overall n, but not to the extent of a construction blueprint.

    Like always, Gu Yu circled areas on the drawings and made notations. Continuing his evaluation calmly for several minutes, he didn¡¯t seem like he was in any rush to talk about the n¡¯s problems. Instead he suddenly said: ¡°I heard that you are lovesick.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Turning bright red, Zhang Siyi quickly replied in defense: ¡°I¡¯m not! They are just joking!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Oh. Is that so? But you don¡¯t look so good.¡±

    ¡°......¡±

    Zhang Siyi felt angry again, but being in close proximity of Gu Yu, his feelings were short lived. Looking at Gu Yu¡¯s smile was like a breath of fresh air, filling up the energy necessary for his soul. Ah, I really want to stay in the room with Gu Yu... (o////o)

    After reviewing the problems on the drawings, he returned to the topic at hand: ¡°You have never drawn blueprints, right? How about you try to draw them yourself this time?¡±

    Zhang Siyi was stunned: ¡°Ah?¡±

    Borderless is biased towards design, so unless there is a very special need to follow-up the initial design, there is rarely an opportunity to draw blueprints. It isn¡¯t cost effective. Almost always, the degree to which the ns are finalized are only in the ¡®early-expansion¡¯ phase of drawing. Normally, there is a constructionpany that Borderless partners with toplete the blueprints.

    Gu Yu lowered his eyes and began to list all the problems in the nk space at the edge of the drawing. He continued: ¡±This is your first project after all. Don¡¯t you want to do it yourself from start to finish?¡±

    With each of his hands on his knees, Zhang Siyi rubbed them under the desk and eximed: ¡±But, I have never drawn blueprints!¡±

    Gu Yu looked up directly into Zhang Siyi¡¯s eyes with a smile: ¡°There is a first time for everything.¡±

    Paying attention to the details on Gu Yu¡¯s face like his beautiful eyshes and the light reflected on his head, in a daze, Zhang Siyi stupidly replied with: ¡°Ok.¡±

    Gu Yu finished with his notes and handed the papers back to him. Looking over the work schedules of the groups members, he said: ¡°After Lu Qiao finishes the fa?ade, I want to transfer him to another project. You can learn a lot from Du Rui. I¡¯ll have her help you with the blueprints. I¡¯ll let her know in advance.¡±

    Again, Zhang Siyi nkly replied with: ¡°Ok.¡±

    Gu Yu drummed his fingers on his desk and asked: ¡°Is there anything else?¡±

    Zhang Siyi was motionless for a few minutes, before shaking his head and said: ¡°Uh, no.¡±

    Gu Yu smiled at him and softly said: ¡°Ok. Go out and get to work.¡±

    Face hot, Zhang Siyi fled his office with his drawing. Was he staring at Gu Yu like a lovesick idiot? Aaaah! So embarrassing!

    Being so influenced by Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi copsed on his desk like a dead fish, feeling hopeless.

 Chapter 86: Dinner

    <h4>Chapter 86: Dinner</h4>

    _____________________

    The emotional lows and highs left Zhang Siyi feeling drained. He shouldn¡¯t be entertaining thoughts about a rtionship with Gu Yu when there is office work that needs to be done.

    A few minutester, Zhang Siyi received a message from Du Rui: ¡°Aunt Four, Boss asked me to teach you about blueprints.¡±

    Zhang Siyi quickly sat up straight and replied: ¡°Please!¡±

    Du Rui: ¡°I have other jobs I need to work on right now, so I won¡¯t be able to help you directly for a while. I¡¯ll teach you some of the finer points and the process of drawing the construction drawings. When youe across a problem you cane to me for help. How does that sound?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°OK! Thank you!

    Du Rui: ¡°Why does it feel like your lovesick problem is already over?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Du Rui: ¡°So energetic!¡±

    ...... Is he that obvious???

    However, Zhang Siyi realized, it must be true. Now that there is only a wall of ss between him and Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi feels super motivated to work. When the door is left open, his heart and mind are at peace as he can see Gu Yu in his office.

    Whoo-Hoo, he¡¯s terminally ill !

    Since it is the first time he is drawing a blueprint for a n that he designed, Zhang Siyi is especially determined. Additionally, listening to Gu Yu¡¯s Father¡¯s pep-talk over New Year¡¯s has really made him want to be a better architect. Of course, the previous six days of doing practically nothing doesn¡¯t count in Zhang Siyi¡¯s book. After all, everyone has a few off days. (=_=)

    Near the end of the day, with the help of Du Rui, Zhang Siyi made significant progress on his blueprints. He was eager to show them to Gu Yu for feedback as well as show him the schedule of the development n he and Du Rui agreed upon.

    There were fifteen floornyers, four facades, two sections, about seven or eightrge sample maps, and an elevation view. For the earlier stages, Zhang Siyi scheduled his time to work independently andter on he would check with Du Rui. She will have a better grasp of her own timemitmentster and consider whether to join him to finish the blueprints. They nned out their time over a one-month period which is a generous amount of time for a new project.

    Fortunately, the City development bureau has not made any scheduling requests. Perhaps the department officers are making up for it because of frantic design schedule they demanded right before New Year¡¯s on the 28th.

    Except for one suggestion, Gu Yu did not have any objections of the time-table that Zhang Siyi and Du Rui came up with. Gu Yu wanted them to consult the plumbing, electric, heating, and structural engineers at each stage of the n¡¯s development.

    ¡°Plumbing? Heating? Electric? Structural engineering?¡± Previously, Zhang Siyi neither cooperated with other professionals, nor considered these issues when designing. He is a little confused.

    Du Rui: ¡°Since you are making the ns, line up theyers to determine the height and let the structural engineers help you calcte the size of the load-bearing column. It needs to be urate from the beginning otherwise arge amount of money will be wasted withter changes.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Seeing Zhang Siyi¡¯s confused look, Du Rui continued to exin: ¡°As for HVAC, water, and electric, reserve the location for the pipeline in advance and the engineers will arrange the details. Once Boss gives go ahead to move forward with the development, there won¡¯t be anymon-sense problems. Even if there is some apprehension, the engineers will coordinate with your ns and won¡¯t make changes.¡±

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t realize how much nning and consideration is truly needed for constructing a building. Learning all the variations in the design norms as well as applying the rules is like learning a whole new field of work! ......such a long road ahead. Ah!

    The work day ended in the blink of an eye and Zhang Siyi was looking miserably at his drawings. He put his arms and head down on his desk then sighed. He hadn¡¯t made any progress. Turning towards Gu Yu¡¯s office, he saw the lights still on.

    Zhang Siyi thought to himself, since Fu Xinhui wasn¡¯t home anymore, he didn¡¯t want to go back home to an empty house. He took the initiative to stay and work. But the real reason, Zhang Siyi admitted to himself, was because he wanted to spend more time with Gu Yu, even if it was through a ss door.

    In a joyous mood, Zhang Siyi made up his mind to stay and went to the dining area to pour a cup of coffee.

    Unexpectedly, as soon as he was walking back to his desk, Gu Yu wasing out of the office holding his scarf with the coat on, nning on leaving.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Seeing Zhang Siyi returning to his desk with coffee in hand, Gu Yu asked: ¡°Why are you still there?¡± Looking over, Gu Yu can see the project designs disyed on Zhang Siyi¡¯sputer monitor as well as a few reference books open on his desk. Gu Yu is a bit puzzled as Zhang Siyi has a month toplete the n, there is no need to work overtime.

    With furrowed brows, Gu Yu asked: ¡°What problems have you encountered?¡± Carrying his bag, he stopped walking and came to a standstill, looking hesitant.

    Feeling very embarrassed, Zhang Siyi hurriedly waved his hand: ¡±No, no.... I will read for a little bit longer. You should go on ahead.¡±

    Gu Yu studied him for a moment in thought, then calmly smiled: ¡°Work hard.¡± Gu Yu finished tying his scarf and picked up his bag then walked right out. Zhang Siyi only faintly heard the ¡®ding¡¯ from the elevator.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Looking at the back of Gu Yu¡¯s departure, the bright and warm office suddenly seemed cold and deste. His motivation waspletely drained. He couldn¡¯t read. He couldn¡¯t draw. Zhang Siyi sighed and copsed on his desk; a half-dead salted fish ......(£¯£ß£Ü)......

    Having spent an extra hour in the office, the subway wasn¡¯t as crowdeding home at night. Zhang Siyi wrapped himself up in his coat and bought a hot spicy rice bowl at a street vendor. When he turned on the light inside his apartment, he was greeted with a huge mess.

    Since no one was at home during the day, Cheer-Up had free reign inside the house. There was a roll of toilet paper unraveled and stretched out all over the floor. There were crumbs scattered all over the ce and the fruit that was originally in a bowl, was now squashed on the kitchen floor.

    When the dog saw Zhang Siyi, he jumped up and down excitedly, rushing at him. But when he heard ¡°What Have You Done!!!!¡± Cheer-Up quickly hid behind the couch like a mischievous child hiding from their parents. He tentatively poked half of his head out from behind.

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s anger left the moment he yelled. Having one ill-fated father and one unreliable father, this poor little fellow is home alone all day long. He sighed.

    As if understanding Zhang Siyi, Cheer-Up walked up to him, leaned on Zhang Siyi and gently licked his hand.

    ¡°Stupid dog ...¡± Zhang Siyi rubbed its big ears. Zhang Siyi hung up his coat, put down his things and then he cleaned up the house. He served Cheer-Up his dinner of canned dog food and a bowl of water, and then sat down to eat his own dinner. At least thirty minutes have passed and by now his Hot Spicy Rice Bowl has be a Cold Spicy Rice Bowl.

    Zhang Siyi opened the lid, took a picture and posted it to his social media. Feeling sorry for himself he wrote a note: ¡± The miserable man.¡±

    After, he got up from the sofa and took his dinner to the microwave to reheat it a little. Thinking of the crab paste his mother made, he grabbed it as well. While he ate his meal, he checked over his social media status.

    In just ten minutes, his group of friends already gave him twenty likes. Scrolling through the replies, they are vastly varied.

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°What is that? Pig food?¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°Isn¡¯t your sry high enough to eat better? That¡¯s all you can afford?¡±

    Jiang Hai: ¡°In recent days, my girlfriend cooks for me every day! Don¡¯t be jealous!¡±

    Tian Yujing: ¡°You are wee to eat!¡± [smile]

    Jiang Hai: ¡°These aren¡¯t my exclusive meals!?¡± [Crying]

    Xue Wenhan: ¡°Come back to the UK. Fish-and-chips are waiting for you!¡± [Smile]

    It took Zhang Siyi some time to read through hisments. Normally, Fu Xinhui was on his social media frequently so naturally, his responses were fast. Although he knew Fu Xinhui is very busy, Zhang Siyi was surprised at theck of response from him. He took a few photos of the dog and sent a message to Fu Xinhui: ¡°Your son is doing very well. Make sure you are also paying attention to your health and safety.¡±

    When he returned to his home-page he saw a message from his mom. ¡°Just a friendly reminder to eat less food from the vendors. Those hot-spicy bowls are too greasy and unsanitary. They are bad for your body so please take the time to cook for yourself. If you don¡¯t have time, then go spend money to eat better. You have that-body-problem at a young age, so you need to take better care of yourself or it will affect your life in the future. (T/N: end of ch69 if you forgot)

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡±

    Reading what his mother wrote, Zhang Siyi felt his hit-points go down to zero. Mrs. Zhang, You are too cruel! Out of anger and defiance, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t stop and instead, eagerly stuffed his mouth with his dinner. Who says there is a problem? My little brother is alive and well!

    He refreshed his home page again and was surprised to see a post from Gu Yu. On it, there was Gu Yu¡¯s dinner: a te with braised pork, two crisp fried saury fish, a small dish of radish sauce, a bowl of green onion and steamed egg.... Whether it is the food itself, or just the presentation of the photographs, it looks so delicious that Zhang Siyi can feel his mouth salivate.

    If Zhang Siyi hadn¡¯t recognized the tableware and tware, he would have thought Gu Yu took a photograph out of a food magazine. Although the imagery was fantastic to look at, it wasn¡¯t not the most thought-provoking issue of his post. Zhang Siyi attention was focused on the message that was written with the picture. In the photograph, across from the te filled with food was an empty bowl with chopsticks. The message read: ¡°empty.¡±

    When looking at the images and note together, even idiots can understand what Gu Yu wants to express. ¨C Look at my wonderful dinner, but I am missing apanion. Will youe share my meal with me?

    Staring stupidly at his mobile phone, Zhang Siyi stopped eating. He longer had an appetite to eat his ¡°pig food.¡± Comparing himself to Gu Yu, he doesn¡¯t understand why there is such arge difference between the two¡¯s quality of life. Pondering this issue, Zhang Siyi was reminded of his night that he spent at Gu Yu house. Like a family living together for a long time, they cooked the food then washed the dishes together. They cleaned up and drank wine and tea and just talked about normal things. He missed the wonderful sense of security and happiness he experienced that night.

    The longer Zhang Siyi stared at the photo, the more sour he felt. It was like Zhang Siyi¡¯s essence at the moment, was filling the air up with negative energy so thick that one could slice threw it with a butter knife. He wanted to pick up those chopsticks. He wanted to pick up that empty bowl. He wanted to sit in that spot across from Gu Yu.

    However, this was Gu Yu¡¯s social media post. And not a message sent directly to him.

 Chapter 86 Extra: [Small Theater] 001: First Love Article â€“ Gu Yu

    <h4>Chapter 86 Extra: [Small Theater] 001: First Love Article ¨C Gu Yu</h4>

    ____________________

    Listening to Zhang Siyi voice on the phone honestly admitting he had no intention of leaving Borderless made Gu Yu very happy. Even though his holiday was longer then Zhang Siyi¡¯s, he wanted to cut it short so he could drive back with Zhang Siyi. At the same time, he would be able to bring his sister back to Haicheng for the beginning of her semester at school. Not having any confidence that Zhang Siyi would agree, he impulsively asked him to drive together. He was afraid the fool would refuse him and find a silly excuse likest time. Fortunately, this time, the little fellow eagerly replied with: ¡°Yes. I would like to go together!¡±

    Feeling blissful, Gu Yu hung up the phone with a big smile on his face. He searched through the expressions avable and found ¡°Little Fox Kiss¡±. He stared at it for a long time, hesitating, but ultimately, he sent it to Zhang Siyi.

    But after that, Zhang Siyi had not responded for eight days.

    Unsettled, Gu Yu felt worried and thought deeply about his action: Was the expression too straightforward and suggestive? Did it scare Zhang Siyi? He has said that he is straight so maybe he thinks an expression like that between boys is strange? But is that possible when Zhang Siyi was the one that started sending such expressive emojis? (T/N ch28)

    ......... Still not responding to thest text, Gu Yu grumbled. ¨C If that¡¯s the case, then I will also ignore him.

    A few dayster..............

    Does he hate me?

    ......

    .................

    He hates me! (¨t_¨s)

    ..................

    .................................

    Why haven¡¯t you posted to your social media page? Don¡¯t you like to update your status to your circle of friends? Did you go out? Now I regret scolding him about his social media use.... I want to see what you are doing every day!

    ...................................... Still, there¡¯s no news, sigh ..............

    If not for the fact that Gu Yu is Zhang Siyi Boss, they have little reason to talk with one another. Over time without contact, would they simply forget about one another?

    Finally, the date of the agreed time to return to Haicheng has arrived. Gu Yu¡¯s mood is a little better because he has a reason to see the person he likes. Pulling Zhang Siyi and his sister into another WeChat group, he was able to ease the awkwardness he felt from hisst text.

    Gu Yu told his sister: ¡°Ask Zhang Siyi for his home address so we can pick him up.¡±

    Not a momentter, Gu Yu can hear his sisterughing. She came over to him and showed Gu Yu her phone: ¡°Look at the photo Brother Siyi sent. He said his mother prepared all of it! Ha-ha. Aunt Zhang is like our mother!¡±

    Gu Yu looked at his mobile phone and didn¡¯t see any message. He asked: ¡°He sent the photo to you?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Yes. He wanted to know if there was enough room in the car. He asked me to ask you.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°... Tell him its fine.¡± ¨C Why didn¡¯t you ask me directly? Are you trying to put distance between us?

    Gu Yu is in a bad mood ...... ¡°001 End¡±

 Chapter 87: Date

    <h4>Chapter 87: Date</h4>

    _________________

    With mixed emotions, Zhang Siyi gave Gu Yu apliment on his social media post. Lamenting about his own situation, he slumped on the sofa in self-pity. His phone sounded; He Xueying sent him a message.

    Unlike his other friends, He Xueying didn¡¯t write a publicment on his social media page. Instead, she messaged him privately and asked: ¡°Sisi, are you off work? Was that a picture of your dinner just now on your social media page? Is that what you normally eat?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I left work a while ago. I¡¯m home now eating a Hot Spicy Rice Bowl for dinner......¡±

    He Xueying: ¡°You like spicy food? Did you buy it at a street vendor? It doesn¡¯t look too good.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Well, it¡¯s not very tasty.¡± (t_t)

    When he saw it at the roadside, he thought it would be pretty good, but after seeing Gu Yu¡¯s meal on his social media page, his remaining dinner was difficult to swallow.

    He Xueying: ¡°Seeing your pathetic dinner, I have to invite you out and treat you to a meal. We haven¡¯t seen each other for a long time!¡± [Snicker]

    This simple invitation warmed Zhang Siyi depressed heart. He replied: ¡°How can a girl invite and treat a boy? Do you even have the time?¡±

    He Xueying: ¡°Since I work from my office at home, I can set my own schedule and free time. Living in the central city area, we are all fairly close to one another. If you aren¡¯t too busy, let¡¯s go out for dinner. I can pick you up after work because I have a car.¡± ^_^

    Whoa, a car! Sure enough, she is the daughter of a multi-millionaire!

    Fortunately, their chatting in WeChat over the past few days let them regain the casual familiarity that they once had as childhood friends. Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t feel he has to be so formal with her, and as a gentleman, he certainly will not ask to meet her at night. However, it has been many years since they have seen each other so it is almost like meeting for the first time. Therefore, their meeting can¡¯t be too casual.

    Zhang Siyi knows that his material and economic conditions aren¡¯t as good as He Xueying. Never the less, he can¡¯t present himself in a sloppy manner. Zhang Siyi replied: ¡°I have no urgent projects at work right now, so I should be free during the weekend.¡±

    He Xueying: ¡°This weekend sounds perfect. We can go out early together. Since my friends recently saw ¡°Cindere¡± and liked it, I¡¯ve been wanting to go with someone to see it. How does lunch and a movie sound?¡±

    This girl is so sweet, but......¡±Ha-ha. Going out for the couple¡¯s standard... It¡¯s like we are going out on a date!¡± Zhang Siyi casually joked. From the bottom of his heart, he didn¡¯t want to imply anything by going with her.

    He Xueying casually replied: ¡°You don¡¯t have a girlfriend and I don¡¯t have a boyfriend. Being both single are you still embarrassed to go with me unless it¡¯s an official date?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Ha-ha-ha, of course not. It is better to eat and watch a movie together than it is to be alone.¡± Previously, He Xueying clearly told him that her childhood ¡°love¡± couldn¡¯t be taken seriously, so Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t feel like there were any ulterior motives. He rather liked the idea of hanging out with an old friend. Moreover, he wanted to do something to distract his attention from Gu Yu.

    Zhang Siyi has thought about the issue of love before. Perhaps, having spent his energy on his career so earnestly these past months, he hasn¡¯t had any time to think about normal love and thus, has left himself vulnerable to alternate ideas of love.

    He Xueying appearance was like a timely rain after a drought. Since Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t think she was expecting anything more serious with him, he felt at ease going out with her. Through a ¡®normal dating¡¯ experience, he thought he could take this opportunity to self-reflect on his own sexual orientation and unburden his current emotional deadlock. With such a good opportunity presented before him, he would be stupid not to take advantage of it.

    He Xueying: ¡°So how about it?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°No problem. See you on Saturday?¡±

    He Xueying: ¡°Great! I will pick a ce to eat and let you know the reservation time.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Deal!¡±

    After chatting with He Xueying, Zhang Siyi¡¯s mood was much better. He refreshed his social media page and saw more likes added to his post. Even Gu Yaomented. Gu Yao¡¯s WeChat avatar is quite different from her brother¡¯s serious one. She used a little rabbit that was petite, white, and round. Even though it looked like a dumpling at a nce, it was very cute.

    Scrolling through his social media page he saw that he was the only one toment about Gu Yu¡¯s dinner post. Before, they had nomon friends, but now there is Gu Yao. If shemented on Zhang Siyi¡¯s social media page, why didn¡¯t she make ament on her brother¡¯s? Although Zhang Siyi is a bit puzzled, he didn¡¯t think about it further. He looked at Gu Yu¡¯s social media page again and stared at the image. He noticed theck ofments and the word ¡°empty¡± seemed to stare back at him. Who is he waiting for......?

    Zhang Siyi swallowed a mouthful of saliva and quickly quit WeChat before his eyes could turn into envy.

    Since WeChat was no longer active, he saw an unread message waiting for him and out of habit, he opened it without thought. It was a text from Gu Yao.

    Gu Yao: ¡°Brother Siyi, are you there?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Yes.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Hey, do you have time this weekend?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Why? What is it?¡±

    Gu Yao said: ¡°My School gave me some coupons for move tickets. My friends already saw ¡°Cindere¡±st weekend. I want to go see it with you and my brother this weekend on Saturday afternoon!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Shit! This coincidence is too funny!

    Watching a movie with Gu Yu? No, no, no.... this is too exciting. He can¡¯t handle it! (&////&)

    But, but, but... to be able to see Gu Yu not at work on the weekend.... He really wants to go. (o////o)

    Since it would be like the time the three of them went to the movies together and saw Wolf Totem, Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t feel embarrassed to go out with Gu Yu.

    Zhang Siyi tried to formte a n in his mind: But, when? Contact He Xueying and change the date to Sunday? But they have already settled on a time...... What about seeing the movie twice? Eat again and then see the movie for a second time?

    While contemting the issue, He Xueying unexpectedly sent him a message about their ns: ¡°I¡¯ve reserved a table at the Thai restaurant in Sung Le Square at 11:30 Saturday. It¡¯s a very popr ce to eat so it¡¯s difficult to make reservations. Since it was early in the day, luckily, we got a table. Remember to arrive on time! ¡° ^_ ^

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± What speed is this!!!

    Now, it was impossible to change the time of his date, so Zhang Siyi had no choice but turn down Gu Yao¡¯s offer: ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I won¡¯t be able to go with you. I¡¯ve already arranged to see it with someone else on Saturday.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°You can¡¯te Saturday? Who are you going to the movie with?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°A friend.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Male or female?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...... Female.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°A date!?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°No. She is just a friend.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°What kind of friend?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°A childhood friend. We were neighbors as kids, and I haven¡¯t seen her in a long time.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Just the two of you?¡±

    Zhang Siyi said frankly: ¡°Well, the n was to eat together at noon then watch ¡°Cindere¡± after.¡±

    Gu Yao was silent for a bit and sent a cartoon expression of ¡®grievance¡¯. It was a little rabbit with red eyes and drooping ears withrge tears streaming out, crying.

    Feeling ufortable, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t like seeing her message. He also thought it was strange; Why is he starting to feel nervous about Gu Yao after questioning him about his date? He got a bad premonition...... Gu Yao... Is she interested in him? (=_=)

    ................

    ......

    Fuck! Zhang Siyi, can you stop tooting your own horn? Gu Yao is so smart and pretty that the people who can chase her are out of your league. Why would she have a crush on you!? However, he must admit that as soon as they met, like close siblings, they got along extremely well. His mother even gave her a present so now, is Gu Yao using her brother¡¯s name to ask him out to a movie?

    Well, it¡¯s very suspicious ....... (£þ_£þ)

    Just as Zhang Siyi was fretting about this issue, he saw another text from Gu Yao: ¡°Why don¡¯t you ask your friend, and we can all go together?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± What the fuck type of development is this! ¨q(¡ãa¡ã`)¨r

    Gu Yao: ¡°Anyway, the two of you are also going to see ¡°Cindere¡± and I have three tickets.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°This...¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Oh, sorry. Am I being too forward? Since you said the person grew up in Ningcheng, she is also a Ningcheng sister, right? Because you aren¡¯t going on a date, I thought we could all go and make this an opportunity for new friends.¡±

    Zhang Siyi thought Gu Yao was indeed, being presumptuous, but she also was very logical and so he didn¡¯t really have a reason to refute her. ¡°Just a moment. I¡¯ll ask her.¡±

    Sending the message to Gu Yao, Zhang Siyi sighed. Then, he texted He Xueying: ¡°Sorry, I want to ask your opinion about something that hase up.¡±

    He Xueying: ¡°Hmm? What¡¯s up?

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Another friend of mine asked me to also see Cindere Saturday. She has three tickets. Do you mind if we all go see it?¡±

    He Xueying: ¡°Is she not at ease with youing to a movie with me? If you have such a pursuer, tell me earlier. It¡¯s good to avoid suspicion!¡± [Smirk]

    Zhang Siyi rushed to exin: ¡°No, no. You misunderstand. She is my boss¡¯s sister and is also from Ningcheng. She is still in F-University to study. Even though she is a lovely girl, I have nothing to do with her.¡±

    He Xueying: ¡°Oh, I see. Fortunately, I booked the restaurant for four people, so it¡¯s alright.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°She was only interested in watching the movie with us.¡±

    He Xueying: ¡°How can I not take her to eat when we will be watching a movie together? Since she is a Ningcheng fellow, let us all eat. Anyway, you treat us for lunch, and she will treat us to the movie. It¡¯s a win-win situation for me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Both are so enthusiastic, what is he still struggling with here? Zhang Siyi immediately informed Gu Yao of He Xueying consent and Gu Yao appeared to be very happy. Imaging his weekend ¡°dating¡± two girls at the same time, he didn¡¯t know if he should feel happy or feel worried. Inexplicably, Zhang Siyi felt like he was getting a headache.

 Chapter 88: Lunch

    <h4>Chapter 88: Lunch</h4>

    _________________

    Although ¡°this weekend¡± seemed far away, Saturday was in fact, the day after tomorrow. On Friday, Zhang Siyi no longer stayed in the office foolishly for overtime. He remembered what Be Lele had mentioned before about a previous employee that was let-go forck of work efficiency because she would stay after work all the time as an excuse to stay with Gu Yu.

    It¡¯s enough of a problem for him that he has a secret crush on his male boss. The gossip circle in his work-ce is rather intense. He felt their impact when for two days, his colleagues teased him about being lovesick. If he acted obvious now, then the truth of his love would be known. Since the architectural circle is rather small, if he had to leave Borderless, he wouldn¡¯t have any ce to go.

    On Saturday morning, Zhang Siyi woke up early to take a shower and wash his hair. For his date with two girls, he styled his hair with gel and picked out a handsome set of clothes to wear. One girl he hasn¡¯t seen in a very long time and the other is the sister of his boss. This was no easy task!

    Before leaving his apartment, he walked Cheer-Up outside. When he got back, he filled his dog food in case he ended up staying outter than expected. He patted the dog: ¡°Stupid Dog, this brother is going to head out now. Wish me luck!¡±

    Cheer-Up pounced on him and loudly spoke: ¡°Woof!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Fuck! He almost knocked me over!

    Even though Cheer-Up was adopted three months ago, it is the first time Zhang Siyi has heard his loud bark. When he was home with Fu Xinhui, the dog was still a puppy and as young dogs do, he had a high pitched yap.

    Feeling like the dog¡¯s happy barking was a sign of good luck, Zhang Siyi left the house in a very good mood. He also sent a text to Fu Xinhui: ¡°Your son this morning barked at me when I called him!¡±

    Putting his mobile phone away, he wasn¡¯t expecting Fu Xinhui to return his message. Recently, he is hardly ever online during the day. At most, his friend logged into WeChat in the middle of the night to reply with a couple of short sentences. Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know why he was so busy and rarely online.

    Zhang Siyi arrived at the za Square fifteen minutes early. On his way out of the subway station, he contacted Gu Yao and rendezvous with her. Wearing the faux rabbit fur hat that Zhang Siyi has seen before, she was quite punctual and full of energy.

    ¡°Brother Siyi!¡± Just like a small rabbit, she jumped up and trotted over to him. She approached him with a strange look on her face. ¡°Wow! Why are you dressed so handsomely today? I thought this wasn¡¯t a date!¡± She grumbled: ¡°If I knew I was going to be the third-wheel again, I wouldn¡¯t havee.¡±

    Smiling, Zhang Siyi said: ¡°It¡¯s not. I already told you on WeChat. How else would you be able to get involved? Anyways, what do you mean about being a third-wheel again?¡±

    Gu Yao ignored his question and instead asked: ¡°When is your ¡®date¡¯ going toe?¡±

    Zhang Siyi nced at his phone for any new messages and reported his findings: ¡°Soon. She said she is parking her car in the underground garage now. We can go to the restaurant first and wait for her there.¡±

    Gu Yao nodded and obediently followed. After walking for a while, Zhang Siyi coughed lightly and asked: ¡°Where¡¯s your brother?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°That homebody. He is probably reading or writing.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Ha ha...¡±

    Gu Yao quietly snuck a look at Zhang Siyi and seeing his interest in her brother she followed up her statement: ¡°When my brother first came to Haicheng to work, he didn¡¯t leave the house very much, even on the weekends. But, when he did leave his house, do you know what he would do?¡±

    Zhang Siyi squinted in thought: ¡°No. What did he do? It wasn¡¯t....... to look at buildings?¡±

    Gu Yao sped her hands together: ¡°Yes! You really understand him! When I decided to study in Haicheng, I thought I would be blessed by having a brother nearby. The first weekend at school, he invited me out for dinner, but thereafter he was always busy with work. At first, I thought he was going on dates behind my back every weekend these past six months, so I pressured him to take me out for dinner and as a result, he took me out for a whole day.¡±

    Zhang Siyi wondered: ¡°Out for a day?¡±

    Gu Yao grinded her teeth: ¡°Yes, for a whole day, from sunup to sundown. At noon, we stopped at a noodle ce he came across on the side of the road for lunch. That day, like a servant, I helped him carry water and equipment. All he did was walk around with his camera and take photos of the buildings. I thought he could take a few cute photos of me, so I posed for him, but can you guess how he reacted? He just sneered at me at told me to move out of the way, that I was blocking the view.¡±

    ¡°Ha-ha-ha-ha-!¡± Zhang Si Yi can fully understand her feelings. He told Gu Yao about the time her brother took him out to visit the parking lot on his birthday. When their eyes met, they could onlyugh together with the same bitterness.

    As they approached the restaurant, Zhang Siyi messaged He Xueying to let her know they arrived. Since they weren¡¯t in a rush to go inside, they waited outside and continued chatting. Gu Yao said: ¡°Because of that time, I¡¯ve been afraid to invite my brother out. I wouldn¡¯t be surprised if he has visited every building in the entire city! Well, you have mentioned how much of a workaholic he can be...... Isn¡¯t¡¯ he lonely? He will end up growing old and dyeing alone.¡±

    ¡°Lonely?¡± Zhang Siyi smiled with bitterness: ¡°I don¡¯t think so. Two days ago, he posted a picture about his dinner and with an open invitation ¡°Empty¡± for his partner to join him. He clearly has someone close to his heart.¡±

    Zhang Siyi is quite certain of this point. When he yed Truth or Darest year, Gu Yu revealed he did have someone dear to him. When thinking about what Gu Yao said about her brother not being avable on the weekends. maybe it was because he was with the person he liked. Maybe even, he had dinner with that person two days ago.

    Feeling a sense of yearning, Zhang Siyi sighed with emotion: ¡°I guess your brother has someone close to his heart, but he can¡¯t show his emotion to just anyone. He probably only talks about it to the person he likes.¡±

    Gu Yao is listening to Zhang Siyi, but his voice is like a background murmur as her conscience isn¡¯t fully paying attention to what he is talking about. She is still trying to process his early statement about her brother¡¯s social media post from two days ago. Why didn¡¯t she see it?

    As she was about to ask Zhang Siyi to exin it further, two people suddenly appeared in the distance. One was a tall, handsome man and the other was a slim, beautiful women. ¡°Sisi!¡± The young man called out.

    ¡°Brother Tian! Why are you here, too?¡± Zhang Siyi said in surprise. Walking towards one another, they stretched out their arms and gave each other a fist-bump.

    Zhang Siyi turned to greet He Xueying. She has changed a lot over the past eighteen years. She was wearing a tight shirt and leather pencil skirt with a pair of Doc-Martin boots and carrying a Chanel bag with no other essories. Due to her modern clothing choice, she had a very fresh and simple look, but it did nothing to lessen her beauty and charm.

    The two of them hugged loosely and He Xueying repeated what her brother said at the wedding: ¡°Howe you haven¡¯t changed at all?¡±

    Zhang Siyi chuckled: ¡°Compared with you, I really haven¡¯t changed much.¡±

    He Xueying raised her hand and pinched his face. She smiled and said: ¡°Even though your body has grown bigger, your facial features are the same as when you were young! Look at my brother. Now he is only half handsome and half a middle-aged uncle.¡±

    Her face-pinching action was both intimate and natural and not even Zhang Siyi felt embarrassed, but Gu Yao stood next to him feeling rmed. It was clear to her that He Xueying was making an attempt at Zhang Siyi¡¯s attention.

    While He Xueying didn¡¯t pay any attention to Gu Yao, her brother standing next to her, couldn¡¯t stop himself from staring at Gu Yao. She extended her hand and asked: ¡°Hey, are you a friend of Sisi¡¯s?¡±

    Gu Yao shook hands with him and didn¡¯t bother exining her rtionship with Zhang Siyi. She politely said: ¡°I¡¯m Gu Yao, the sister of a friend of Brother Siyi.¡±

    He Xueying also exchanged polite greetings and shook her hand.

    Seeing at how lively and friendly Gu Yao was, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t feel the need to make further introductions. He wanted to tell He Chengtian about her rtion to Gu Yu, but considering his past hostile attitude, Zhang Siyi was afraid of making the atmosphere awkward, so he didn¡¯t mention it.

    After they were seated at the table, He Xueying took the opportunity to exin why she brought her brother with her: ¡°When my brother heard about our date, he initially didn¡¯t want to disturb us, but when I told him you were bringing a friend, he was eager toe too.¡±

    He Chengtian immediately retorted: ¡°Hey, don¡¯t make me out to be an old yboy. I wasn¡¯t busy and I wanted to talk to Zhang Siyi. Thest time we talked was at Qu Miao¡¯s wedding and he never replied to my proposal. I came here to hear what Zhang Siyi¡¯s intentions are.¡± Even though his voice wasing out of his mouth, he wasn¡¯t looking at Zhang Siyi. With his face turning a deeper shade of red, He Chengtian eye¡¯s kept following Gu Yao.

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t notice He Chengtian intentions. He only felt embarrassed and worried about his own response to reject He Chengtian without trouble.

    He Xueying turned a blind eye and didn¡¯t make fun of her brother¡¯s poor acting skills. She opened the menu and said, ¡°Well, let¡¯s order the food first, then chat.¡±

    He Chengtian opened a menu and passed it to Gu Yao and said: ¡°We are old acquaintances with Sisi. Be at ease and make yourselffortable. What would you like to eat?¡±

    In front of strangers, Gu Yao camouged her outspoken personality by being quiet and meek. She took her time to look at the menu then, maneuvering the conversation, suddenly asked: ¡°Um, I thought there were only three people. I only have three tickers and didn¡¯t expect more people so what are we going to do?¡±

    He Chengtian looked at her dismayed expression and smiled tofort her: ¡°There is nothing to worry about. We can buy another ticket at the box-office.¡±

    Gu Yao put the menu down on the table and quietly spoke: ¡°If that is the case, then can I also call my brother to join us?¡±

    He Chengtian: ¡°Your brother?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Yes. He is also living in Haicheng. Originally, I wanted to watch a movie with my brother and brother Siyi, but I only had three tickets. Since I gave one to, He Xueying, there wasn¡¯t one left for him.¡±

    He Chengtian chuckled and smiled generously: ¡°It isn¡¯t a problem. Call your brother and ask him toe out. We can buy an additional ticket for him too.¡±

    Sipping on water, Zhang Siyi nearly choked on the liquid. He wanted to stop the direction this conversation was heading, but Gu Yao spoke first: ¡±Really?¡±

    He Chengtian leaned on the back of his chair and gestured with his arms while he talked: ¡°Why would I lie? It¡¯s a rare opportunity this weekend to meet people. The more the merrier!¡±

    Gu Yao graciously thanked him then immediately got up and went to the side to call her brother.

    At the same time Gu Yao went to call her brother, Zhang Siyi felt a short signal from his phone in his pocket. He took it out and read the message from Fu Xinhui: ¡°Before the thugs came to my house, Cheer-Up already barked when called, but after, I thought his barking would put him in danger.¡±

    With the sudden potential appearance of Gu Yubined with the unexpected news from his friend, Zhang Siyi¡¯s anxiety grew. The original n for the day was so simple, but now it was giving him a headache.

 Chapter 88 Extra: [Small Theater] 002: First Love article â€“ Gu Yu

    <h4>Chapter 88 Extra: [Small Theater] 002: First Love article ¨C Gu Yu</h4>

    __________________________

    Gu Yu drove to Zhang Siyi¡¯s house to pick him up. Even though he experienced the family¡¯s hospitality previously, when Mother Zhang saw Gu Yao, her changed attitude wasn¡¯t a surprise. To himself, Mother Zhang is polite and regarded him as an excellent young man or her son¡¯s Boss. But for his sister, she treated Gu Yao with obvious affection. After all, Mother Zhang give her a piece of jewelry as one might do when treating a girl as a potential daughter.

    This is the reality of society. Any elders expect their children to be married as soon as possible. Men with women and women with men, but no parent expects their child to appear with a same-sex partner.

    Even if his pursuit of Zhang Siyi was sessful, he didn¡¯t know how much pressure it would bring to his family and how much pressure Zhang Siyi could endure. Thinking of the future, Gu Yu felt very sorry for himself. Since Zhang Siyi was able to have a normal rtionship with women, he thought, should he just let Zhang Siyi go?

    And go your own way by yourself......

    Anyway, after so many years, he was used to being alone.......

    Driving the car from the garage to pick them up, he saw Zhang Siyi and Gu Yao chatting very happily. As much as he didn¡¯t want to admit it, they got along very well. He increasingly felt more tormented and jealous.

    In his anger, he thought if they really did like each other then he should let them be together. A proper brother would wish them a lifetime of happiness.......

    At the rest stop, while the other two people were still inside, Gu Yu was leaning on the side of the car and viewing the mountains deep in thought. He felt that everything in this world was obscured and revolving without a purpose. He felt deste and lonely.

    When Gu Yu looked over at the service building, he immediately noticed Zhang Siyi figure walking calmly back to the car. He stared at the man approaching him. His handsome facial features, the wave in his hair... every action and every expression are so vivid.

    With each step that Zhang Siyi took, Gu Yu felt his world became brighter. Zhang Siyi presence eliminated the fog that Gu Yu saw and gave him purpose.

    He was just an ordinary boy with few advantages and many shorings. He was careless, could easily be confused, andcked perseverance....... But...... he likes him.

    Admit it, Gu Yu. You are just a mortal.

    You have your desires.

    Even if there is an abyss in front of you, you can¡¯t let go!

    [End of 002]

 Chapter 89: Scolding

    <h4>Chapter 89: Scolding</h4>

    ______________________

    Moving off to the side, Gu Yao reached for her phone, but instead of calling her brother she opened WeChat to look at the social media circle of friends. She was looking for the post that Zhang Siyi mentioned and as she thought, there weren¡¯t any new posts this week from her brother. She turned off her phone, adjusted her demeanor and returned to the table looking distressed. She asked: ¡°Brother Siyi, I forgot to charge my phonest night and It just shut down when I tried to make a call. Can I borrow your phone?¡±

    Her question pulled Zhang Siyi out of his reverie. Only half paying attention he said: ¡°Uh, yeh sure.¡± He unlocked his phone and handed it to her withoutplication. On second thought, he realized that Gu Yao would be calling her brother on his own phone. Wouldn¡¯t Gu Yu think it was Zhang Siyi taking the initiative to call him? Acting coy, Zhang Siyi could feel his face bing flushed. (q//a//q)

    ......

    Receiving his phone, Gu Yao smiled and moved over to the side. Her curiosity got the better of her and like before, she opened Zhang Siyi¡¯s WeChat to forcibly peeked at the chat records between Zhang Siyi and her brother. She selected her brother¡¯s avatar, opened the page and scrolled through the posts. Looking at the news through Zhang Siyi¡¯s perspective, she saw:

    Empty?

    Cactus?

    Tape measure?

    ......(¡Ñ¿Ú¡Ñ)......

    What¡¯s all this? Why has she never seen this information before!

    Quickly realizing the truth of the matter, Gu Yao¡¯s understanding of her brotherpletely changed. She didn¡¯t expect her perfect, ck-belly, and invincible brother, to be so lovesick! Oh My God! He sent all this WeChat information to Zhang Siyi privately!

    Gu Yao covered her chest and took a deep breath to settle her heart. If a boy did such a romantic gesture for her, she wouldn¡¯t be able to resist. But to drag it out... It¡¯s stupid! Shit. Why can¡¯t he just be blunt? Previously, Ga Yao only spected that her brother might like Zhang Siyi and now she is 100% certain.

    She sighed. Although sheined about her brother¡¯s approach, on second thought, she understands that the situation isn¡¯t so easy. After all, Zhang Siyi was raised as a normal boy. How would he respond with the knowledge of being the object of love from another man? In order to gauge Zhang Siyi¡¯s limits, Gu Yu can only endure it himself and carefully test Zhang Siyi time and time again. Also, a rash confession isn¡¯t in her brother¡¯s character. He would never risk exposing himself unless he was absolutely positive.

    Gu Yao was happy for her brother because he was able to fall in love, but she also felt sad for the immediate situation; her brother¡¯s one-sided love. It was hard enough to find ¡®normal¡¯ love, let alone the love from the same gender.

    It¡¯smon for little girls to fantasize about perfect love just like in a fairy tale. The prince and princess will be happy together forever. Gu Yao is no different. Although she isn¡¯t a little girl anymore, she believes true love is the greatest blessing one could achieve in their lifetime. Is it so wrong for her brother to love Zhang Siyi? If her brother could be with him then she will cheer for them on the side. Feeling good about her decision, she felt joyous tears on her cheeks. Sheughed and pulled herself together. Closing the app, she dares not dy anymore and called her brother.

    The phone rang three times before her brother picked it up: ¡°Hello?¡±

    Hearing her brother answer the phone, she doesn¡¯t know if her recent thoughts have changed her perception, but this greeting her brother gave was unlike anything she heard when she normally called her brother. The gentle and joyous tone was overpowering.

    Gu Yao: ¡°Brother, it is me!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°...... Oh, what¡¯s going on? Are you with Zhang Siyi?¡±

    The two degree drop in tone just now.... It wasn¡¯t just Gu Yao¡¯s illusion! She hastened to exin the current situation. She told him about the date, utilizing her three tickets that has expanded to four, and now his invitation. They talked for more than a few minutes.

    After Gu Yu listened to his sister¡¯s synopsis, he replied: ¡°You mean to tell me that Zhang Siyi had a date with friends which you invited yourself to join and even included me into this scenario?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°...¡± Why does it seem like her brother is a little angry?

    Sure enough, in the next second Gu Yu addressed her more formally: ¡°Gu Yao, first I have to criticize your behavior as it was rather rude.¡± Taken by surprise, Gu Yao shrunk her neck down and lowered her head. She listened to Gu Yu¡¯s continued scolding: ¡°Since Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t take the initiative to invite you, how can you just butt into his affairs like that? Not only do you not know his friends, but you also have not known him for very long. Are you saying that in such a short period of time your rtionship with Zhang Siyi is better than mine?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°...¡± She heard the tone of thest part.... So thick with contempt and resentment.

    Gu Yu: ¡°You are supposed to be an adult that will soon enter society. Why are you still acting so brash? It¡¯s not sensible.¡±

    This time Gu Yao really wasn¡¯t pretending. To receive her brother¡¯s scolding for working hard on his behalf for what her heart believed in, she felt wronged. Feeling sorrowful, tears fell: ¡°Brother......¡± Having grown up with her brother¡¯s criticism since childhood, like a conditioned reflex, she didn¡¯t argue with him.

    Gu Yu paused and then spoke to her gently: ¡°Okay, then. There is no need to dy lunch so I wille overter for the movie. I hope you can adjust your behavior and learn something from this incident.¡±

    The change in her brother¡¯s tone made Gu Yao feel relieved: ¡°Yes. I know.¡±

    Having been scolded severely by her brother, she had a hard time adjusting her mood. Returning to the dinner table, Gu Yao handed he phone back to Zhang Siyi and sat down with her head down and an unhappy face.

    He Chengtian saw her and was concerned: ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡±

    Gu Yao wanted to pretend that she was calm and said ¡°Nothing¡± but with the pitiful face and teary eyes she is unknowingly showing, no one believed her.

    Zhang Siyi watched her as she sat down and gently asked: ¡°What did your brother do?¡±

    Gu Yao looked at Zhang Siyi at a nce. Ah! He really understands! Now with Zhang Siyi¡¯s question, she really couldn¡¯t help herself and unloaded some of her grievances: ¡°Well, he said I don¡¯t know you well enough and shouldn¡¯t have interjected......¡± Blinking, Gu Yao realized her behavior was out of line and not something righteous. With guilt she apologized: ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    The three of them were stunned. He Chengtian spoke first: ¡°Why is your brother so strict? What do you have to be sorry about? Since you are here, we can get to know each other and be friends.¡± Saying thus, He Chengtian said it tofort the girl. Gu Yao¡¯s ability to apologize for her own mistakes made He Chengtian like her more.

    From the beginning, He Xueying only politely greeted Gu Yao and payed no attention to her. After hearing her exnation, the traces of jealousy hidden in her heart also vanished. He Xueying smiled at Gu Yao: ¡°We are all from the same city. If not for Zhang Siyi, we would have never met. It must have been what fate wanted so don¡¯t think about it so much!¡±

    Since the two siblings offeredfort to a near stranger, he felt relieved that there wouldn¡¯t be any animosity between them. Now, he only cared about one thing: ¡°Is your brothering?¡±

    Gu Yao¡¯s mood improved a lot: ¡°Well, he will join uster for the movie.¡±

    He Xueying nodded: ¡°Then there is no need to change tables.¡±

    Although he had butterflies in his stomach, Zhang Siyi breathed a sigh of relief. He is both afraid and excited to see Gu Yu

    Thinking of the battery problem Gu Yao had with her phone, He Chengtian was attentive to her need so he took out a charging cable from his bag and asked her: ¡°Your phone is an Apple model, right? You can use this if you need to.¡±

    Feeling a bit embarrassed, Gu Yao epted the offer and used it to charge her nearly full battery in her phone. (=_=)

    Zhang Siyi was still struggling over the issue of whether or not he needs to tell He Chengtian who Gu Yao brother is. However, he can¡¯t bear to break the harmonious atmosphere, so he set aside his thoughts. -Ah forget it.... Eat first, then worry about crossing that bridgeter.

    Abundant and loudughter could be heard from their table during their lunch. They reminisced about their childhood adventures including the role-ying games they had yed. Who was it that broke their leg? Who was the one who fell and chipped a tooth? Listening quietly, Gu Yao alsoughed at the stories alongside them.

    Remembering Qu Miao¡¯s wedding, Zhang Siyi was curious: ¡±He Xueying, why weren¡¯t you at Qu Miao¡¯s wedding?¡±

    He Xueying smirked: ¡°Qu Miao¡¯s wedding? She has hated me since we were kids. Other than showing off her new husband, there was no reason to invite me.¡±

    Not only was Zhang Siyi a little surprised, but so was He Chengtian who seemed to have heard this for the first time.

    Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°Weren¡¯t you guys always ying together as kids?¡±

    He Xueying scoffed and looked at Zhang Siyi and said: ¡°That was only for appearance sake. I grew up better-off then her family and with my brother as y-mates, I was always sounded by a group of boys. I remember she used to be so angry with me all the time. She was just pretending to be a good friend. I think she...... Well, the world of young girls is hard to understand. It¡¯s all in the past now so it¡¯s not worth talking about any longer.¡±

    Listening to gossip piqued Zhang Siyi interest and although he wanted to hear more, his phone¡¯s vibration tuned his attention elsewhere. Gu Yu sent him a new text message: ¡°Gu Yao said her phone¡¯s battery was dead and she forgot to tell me the theater address. Where are you?¡±

    After Zhang Siyi texted the address, Gu Yu returned with ¡°Great.¡± Looking at both his current response and his previous ¡°hmmm¡± text, Zhang Siyi felt excited and anxious.

    Changing the subject, He Chengtian asked Zhang Siyi about his proposal: ¡°Sisi, have you thought about my offer?¡±

 Chapter 90: Inquiry

    <h4>Chapter 90: Inquiry</h4>

    ___________________

    By his reluctance to agree, andck ofmunication, Zhang Siyi thought his hints were enough for He Chengtian to understand his intentions. Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t expect him to continue asking about the job proposal. On one hand, he liked the sincerity that He Chengtian offered, but on the other hand, it made Zhang Siyi feel more embarrassed. He really had to say it straight to his face!

    ¡°Brother Tian,¡± Zhang Siyi put down his chopsticks, ¡°Thank you for your invitation, but I¡¯ve decided to continue to do architectural design.¡±

    ¡±Why?¡± He Chengtian was very puzzled. The workload is a huge gap. The sry is so poor. Zhang Siyi choose the harder path. Is he stupid?

    It¡¯s rare for Zhang Siyi to thoroughly exin his views so seriously. He looked at He Chengtian in the eye: ¡°For the same reasons I told youst time. I like to do architecture. I know my ie would be lower than if I epted your offer, but I am fulfilled everyday by working in a field that I like. To be honest, I spent many years in University studying architecture and I don¡¯t want that time to go to waste. Although five years is not longpared to my life time, it¡¯s a very important beginning for me. From when I was a child until now, my Father always said I was a three-minute person. It¡¯s only from my current situation that I understand what he was referring to and now I think he was quite right. An elder once told me, there is limited time in one¡¯s life and there isn¡¯t much time to select a different path for oneself. I¡¯m already twenty-four. I can¡¯t act like a child and stop just because there is a hill in front of me. This isn¡¯t a small trifle. It is the first time I feel serious about something and want to pursue it. I want to grow in the field and make a difference and be a valuable person.¡±

    After speaking for a long time, Zhang Siyi sincere words transformed the atmosphere at the table from a cheerful one into a solemn one.

    He Xueying had her chin leaning on her ten interlocked fingers while listening to Zhang Siyi. Recognizing his passion, she had a newfound appreciation for him.

    Now that she heard Zhang Siyi exnation, Gu Yao confusion with He Chengtian previous remarks were cleared. He wanted Zhang Siyi to change jobs. Looking at the earnest expression Zhang Siyi had, she understood why her brother liked him. He and her brother and her father are in a separate ss of people.

    Only He Chengtian was still frowning by the end of the speech. He was also moved by Zhang Siyi words however he had his own beliefs: ¡°Maybe you are still too young to know that society can be very cruel. Many ssmates of mine expressed their dreams just like you, but in the face of hardships, they crumbled. Few people can persist in their ideal career. In the end, everyone chose to get rich.¡± He Chentian sighed. Waving his hand, he said: ¡°Since you have told me so, I understand you have made up your mind. I encouraged you to change jobs but I see that it won¡¯t happen.¡±

    Zhang Siyi is afraid his rejection will leave some friction between them. He hurriedly added: ¡°I know that you have my best interest at heart. For so many years, you have not forgotten me. You think that I don¡¯t know what this opportunity means, but I¡¯m very honored for that offer. Perhaps after struggling for another two years, I will regret my decision. When Ie crawling back to your door, please remember to give me a bite to eat.¡±

    Being somewhat subdued, He Chengtian smiled at him.

    An hour before the movie starts, they left the restaurant and the four of them decided to stop at the caf¨¦ near the cinema. Not ten minutester, Gu Yu arrived. He was wearing an unbuttoned beige trench coat that Zhang Siyi has never seen before and a ck cashmere sweater as well as snug fitting dark jeans with shiny, ck wingtip shoes. He looked like a runway model; stylish and handsome.

    Gu Yu looked around the caf¨¦ and saw them at a table then slowly walked over. Gu Yao spotted him, stood up and beckoned: ¡°Brother, over here!¡±

    His calm, cool, and collected approach attracted the attention of others near him. Zhang Siyi was watching him intently. Feeling dumbfounded, he never knew a man could be so attractive and sexy. His brain went nk. His heart, he didn¡¯t know he had a heart! Since breaking through the psychological barrier of two men being together, the feelings Zhang Siyi had for Gu Yu intensified.

    He Chengtian also recognized Gu Yu the moment he entered the caf¨¦. He doesn¡¯t need a good memory to remember the person who crushed him for three years in high school not only in academics but also as the high school idol. He felt the plethora of mixed emotions wash through him with a multitude of expressions to show for it; from horror to disbelief toposure and at the end to choke out the words: ¡°This is....... Your brother!?¡±

    Gu Yao smiled and said: ¡°Yes. Let me introduce you to him. My brother¡¯s name is Gu Yu.¡±

    In the heart of He Chengtian existed a luxurious grass field, swaying in the gentle breeze, illuminated by the glow of a warm sun; both perfect and peaceful. However, now the ground was muddy, pitted and ruined as there was a stampede of horses galloping through his majestic field. He could only hold onto a lone tree still standing with all his might. Shit! Why does Gu Yao¡¯s brother have to be Gu Yu!!! (¨s¨FÃó¡¯)¨s(©ß©¥©ß

    Gu Yu¡¯s eyes swept over everyone and paused at Zhang Siyi¡¯s dazed expression for a moment then turned towards He Chengtian¡¯s body. He generously reached out and smiled: ¡°No need to introduce, I know him. He Chengtian, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    Puzzled, Gu Yao didn¡¯t move: ¡°What? How do you know him?¡±

    Not wanting to look any longer, Zhang Siyi quietly raised his hand to cover his eyes.

    Rxing his furrowed brows and maintaining his own dignity, He Chengtian stood up to shake hands with Gu Yu: ¡°Yes is it. I didn¡¯t expect to meet you here.¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s appearance has captivated He Xueying attention. She asked: ¡°Brother, who is this? How do you know him?¡±

    He Chengtian couldn¡¯t control his twitching facial muscles. He forced a smile: ¡°High School ssmates.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°...¡±¦²( ¡ã ¡÷¡ã|||)_

    Gu Yu pulled a chair from the neighboring table over and sat down. He looked straight at Zhang Siyi and asked: ¡°Help buy a cup of coffee and atte for me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...ok.¡±

    Zhang Siyi got up and walked toward the bar to order the two requested drinks. He pulled out his wallet before he reacted. His sister was present, so why didn¡¯t he ask her? Zhang Siyi went to get the drinks without question like a hypnotized person!

    Although he doesn¡¯t know why he reacted without thought, he felt extremely happy. This type of intimate request and response can only be freely asked by someone with a special rtionship. (&////&)

    With a happy face, Zhang Siyi leaned on the bar waiting for Gu Yu¡¯s coffee. When the coffee was ready, he took it back carefully and put it in front of Gu Yu.

    Gu Yu seemed anxious to hold the cup: ¡°Thank You.¡± As he reached out to take it, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t have the opportunity to retract his hand. As their skin touched, a cold, hot feeling burst through Zhang Siyi like electricity. His fingers unconsciously flinched.... How.... what happened.... with one single touch, Zhang Siyi felt like he was going to burn up.

    Oh my God! This is a terrible predicament. He wanted to escape from Gu Yu presence....... (o////o)

    During the time it took Zhang Siyi to buy coffee, Gu Yu and He Chengtian made introductions and exined their history. Neither of them expected to have a sister and neither of the sisters would have guessed their brother were high school ssmates. The world really is small!

    When the only person that connected everyone together came back, he was very nervous, but seeing everyone getting along, he felt somewhat relieved. During their discussion, He Xueying learned that Gu Yu is Zhang Siyi¡¯s boss.

    Gu Yu¡¯s ability to direct the flow of conversation is excellent. The stable and harmonious atmosphere is opposite of Zhang Siyi¡¯s imagination. The only tension he could detect was the unconscious shaking movement that He Chengtian¡¯s heel was doing that highlighted his anxiety and depression as he was looking back and forth between Gu Yu and Gu Yao. He Chengtian rubbed his forehead. Why must her brother be Gu Yu!

    Since the movie is starting soon, the issue of tickets and seating came up again. Far apart from one another, there was a set of three tickets in the front and two tickets in the left rear. Who¡¯s sitting with whom?

    As the day initially was He Xueying¡¯s invitation with Zhang Siyi, normally it would seem he and his childhood friends would sit together and a brother and sister pair should sit together. However, Gu Yao created this opportunity for her brother and He Chentian was watching Gu Yao with obvious intentions. Coincidentally, the two of them came up with the same idea.... Draw Tickets!

    Gu Yu casually said: ¡°I¡¯ll hold them.¡± He held the five tickets out, and in a circle, everyone picked. Gu Yu took thest ticket. At the end of the draw, everyone showed their tickets at the same time. He Xueying and Gu Yao took the rear seat pairing and Zhang Siyi and He Chengtian draw seats in the front.

    He Chengtian: ¡°...¡± (=Ãó=)

    He Xueying: ¡°...¡± (=_=)

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± (=///=)

    Gu Yao: ¡°...¡± (=w=)

    Knowing his ticket was one of the groups located in front, Gu Yu nced at the middle position of the three and calmly said: ¡°Let¡¯s go in.¡±

    When they were entering the theater, He Chengtian followed his sister inside and reached for her arm then whispered to her: ¡°Here, change your ticket with mine.¡±

    He Xueying turned a blind eye: ¡± Are you still afraid that your purpose is not obvious enough? Such resolute actions will scare the little girl away. Be patient!¡±

    This person was certainly not his own sister! He Chengtian grumbled about her unwillingness to help him.

    Inside the theater the girls sat down in the back row while the three men walked forward to find their seats. Almost everyone in the theater were either couples or chaperones apanying little girls. The three men together walking through the theater and sitting down in a row attracted a bunch of curious eyes.

    He Chengtian: ¡°......¡± Why did I go out today? How did he get into this mess? Why is he sitting with two other guys watching ¡°Cindere¡±? And one of them was his most hated nemesis in high school? (O..o)

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± What happened to dating two girls? Why has it be a date with two men? (o..o)

    After Gu Yu sat down, he took off his coat and put it on his hand. Before the movie started, there was a ten-minute preview with manymercials. The three men stared at the screen with no expressions, until thest half-minute of the previews. Gu Yu tactically said: ¡°He Chengtian, I heard from Siyi that you wanted him to be your assistant.¡±

    He Chengtian: ¡°...¡±

    After 10 seconds, Gu Yu looked at Zhang Siyi and smiled: ¡°You won¡¯t go, right?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± The advertisement ended and the lights in the house were dimmed to ck. The permit for the release license appeared in the middle of the screen followed by the opening of Disney¡¯s title. Looking intently at the screen in anticipation for the start of the film, the audience calmed down. Even if He Chengtian and Zhang Siyi wanted to say something, they couldn¡¯t.

 Chapter 91: Holding Hands

    <h4>Chapter 91: Holding Hands</h4>

    __________________________

    Zhang Siyi felt like he was caught between the two besides him. He clearly exined his reasoning for refusing He Chengtian offer, but the way Gu Yu brought up the issue again, made him feel like he was being abducted. He didn¡¯t want Gu Yu¡¯s provoking statement to instigate any hard feelings between himself and He Chengtian.

    After hearing what Gu Yu said, He Chengtian felt frustrated. He also began to doubt and question everything Zhang Siyi just told him. Didn¡¯t he just say he didn¡¯t ept because he likes architecture? Then why does it seem like the reason is because of Gu Yu? Also, this kid knew from the beginning that Gu Yu was Gu Yao sister, right? And he knew that Gu Yu wasing, even though he didn¡¯t say anything himself, right?

    Thinking of Zhang Siyi attitude, He Chengtian pped his thigh in sudden revtion and came to a conclusion. That betraying brother! He must be aiming for Gu Yao himself!

    Gu Yu¡¯s abrupt statement easily unsettled Zhang Siyi¡¯s and He Chengtian¡¯s mood. Not paying attention to the film, both Zhang Siyi and He Chengtian were immersed in their own thoughts. In contrast, the culprit next to them sat on the soft theater seat and reclinedfortably with a happy face.

    Unlike He Chengtian¡¯s feeling of agitation, Gu Yu words caused a warm feeling to grow inside Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart because his statement invoked the feeling of being wanted. Both Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart and mind was full of Gu Yu and all he wanted to do was watch Gu Yu. Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t concentrate on the movie at all!

    Sitting in close proximity of Gu Yu made Zhang feel drunk on his essence. The closeness of his breath.... The light fragrance...... He leaned in closer, and like a puppy, took a couple of deep breath to confirm Gu Yu was wearing cologne...... Even he wears cologne......

    Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t mind the use of men¡¯s fragrance. In the past he was prejudiced, butter, after living abroad, his attitude changed. He noticed many of the foreigners around him used men¡¯s body spray. In particr, he remembered one of his architectural professors that came to ss neatly dressed, with a hat and cane. His use of cologne made it veryfortable to be near him during the long days of ss.

    Since then, Zhang Siyi¡¯s attitude towards men¡¯s use of fragrance changed. The use of cologne was a symbol of someone with both financial means and social status, as well as personal care and charm. Even so, Asian body odor isn¡¯t normally very strong. As long as one pays attention to personal hygiene, it is not necessary to put on men¡¯s fragrance. This is the first time Zhang Siyi noticed Gu Yu wearing cologne.

    An outdoor woody scent mixed with a hint of citrus wafted towards Zhang Siyi. Since he really liked the smell, he sniffed deeper. Because he had slept over at his house, he could identify Gu Yu¡¯s natural body odor mixed with the fragrance. For this reason, Zhang Siyi greedily breathed in the surrounding air, trying to feel his essence for a long time and unbeknown to Zhang Siyi, he was getting closer and closer to Gu Yu in the process.

    When he realized what was happening, he was already so close to Gu Yu that Zhang Siyi could simply ce his head onto Gu Yu¡¯s shoulder and rest. He nced at his shoulder and the light reflected from the screen illuminated it enough to see the fuzzy sweater he was wearing; soft, warm andfortable. With the rising heat in Zhang Siyi¡¯s body, he had a sudden urge to lean on Gu Yu and rest his head. Fortunately, no one could see Zhang Siyi¡¯s deep red cheeks in the dark theater.

    In the past, not only has Zhang Siyi relied on Fu Xinhui shoulder to rest during a movie, but he also fell asleep leaning against Gu Yu during their first business trip as well as when they flew together on the ne. Once even, Zhang Siyi drooled on Gu Yu. Its very natural when the behavior is unconscious. However, why is it so difficult when one wants to do it deliberately?

    Thinking of what to do, Zhang Siyi closed his eyes. Can he pretend to be asleep and then ¡°identally¡± lean on Gu Xiao¡¯s shoulder? ......No! It¡¯s really hard to muster the courage. What if Gu Yu realized he was faking? Would he shun Zhang Siyi attempt?

    As the yearning he had to be close to Gu Yu grew, the panic and stress of being rejected increased. This contradiction caused him to feel stressed. This is the first time Zhang Siyi experienced the suffering one felt when they liked someone. He realized his rtionship with his ex-girlfriend wasn¡¯t anything deep and that his first love belonged to Gu Yu.

    Just as Zhang Siyi was hesitant, Gu Yu suddenly turned towards his ear and softly spoke to Zhang Siyi: ¡°Sleepy? Then Rest here for a while.¡± He lifted his arm, reached around Zhang Siyi¡¯s back and gently pushed Zhang Siyi¡¯s head onto his shoulder.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Like a mammal¡¯s pheromones, the unique fragrance that belonged to Gu Yu overwhelmed Zhang Siyi. Shocked by Gu Yu¡¯s action, Zhang Siyi sat still and lost his chance to refuse and escape. The loud thumping in his chest overshadowed the sound of the film.

    Zhang Siyi was barely aware he whispered back ¡°Hmm¡± as his thoughts were still focused on the sensations that he felt while Gu Yu¡¯s hand was touching half of his face and wondered if Gu Yu¡¯s palm was cool, or was his face too hot.

    It felt so easy and natural to lean on Gu Yu. When Zhang Siyi thought of the thing he wanted and then for Gu Yu to react, like he had read Zhang Siyi mind, made him feel extraordinarily happy.

    Because Gu Yu inexplicable ¡°understanding¡±, Zhang Siyi once again fell into thebyrinth of thoughts......

    Does Gu Yu really like him? ......

    No, no, no. How could that be? Otherwise, why would hisst text message be so cold? ......

    But if Gu Yu didn¡¯t like him, why is he so considerate? ......

    Is he used to taking care of others as a Boss? Because he is a subordinate? .....

    Shit! What Boss would let a same-sex subordinate lean on themselves while watching a movie!?

    Even with his racing thoughts, Zhang Siyi could not extricate himself from Gu Yu shoulder. He wanted the wonderful feeling of being close to never end.

    ......

    In addition to the three men sitting up front, there was a girl in the rear of the theater who wasn¡¯t paying attention to the film. One girl probably didn¡¯t notice anything. After all, the position of the two groups were far apart and when the lights went out and the movie started, all focus was turned to the screen and not to the three men ahead.

    But Gu Yao, who had been keeping an eye on her brother and Zhang Siyi since they sat down, watched them take their seats and remember their position. During the film, every now and then, she took a peek in that direction.

    There were two not so short men sitting in front of her with more than half of their heads showing above the seats from the back. Gu Yao watched Zhang Siyi¡¯s head slowly get closer and closer to her brother. Suddenly, her brother reached around Zhang Siyi and directly pressed his head onto his own shoulder.

    Oh my God! Gu Yao¡¯s heart was about to jump out of her throat!

    Still, she was somewhat uncertain if they were aware of the feelings they had for each other. If Zhang Siyi was a normal person, how was he so willing to ept a man¡¯s shoulder to lean on? What was he thinking about?

    After half an hour, Gu Yao witnessed her brother turning his head to look at Zhang Siyi more than once. Sometimes it was a quick glimpse, but at other times her brother stared at him for much longer.

    Only being restricted to view the back of Zhang Siyi head, Gu Yao felt impatient. She wanted to see his movements and expressions. Her brother was watching him intently so why was there no reaction at all??

    Huh? ...... Wait a minute!

    Did Zhang Siyi fall asleep? (¡Ño¡Ñ)

    Having his head rest on thefort of Gu Yu and feeling mentally exhausted, Zhang Siyi really did fall asleep. (=_=)

    Unlike thest time he fell asleep during a movie, he woke up at the part of the film where everyone was looking forward to Cindere turning into a princess for the ball.

    Feeling groggy from his nap, Zhang Siyi woke up from a nightmare.

    He dreamt that he had be Cindere in the film and Gu Yu was the prince. While wearing a ragged dress, he met the hunter Gu Yu in the woods while dressed handsomely, wearing a crown, and riding a white horse. It was love at first sight. Zhang Siyi wanted to kiss and hold him and hoped they could be together. Even though Gu Yu was kind he was also indifferent and left without ceremony. Zhang Siyi was torn apart. One day, with the help of a fairy, he changed from a in figure into a shining beauty. He did not want to endure his torment any longer so he confronted Gu Yu and asked him: ¡°Do you like me?¡± Gu Yu smiled at him but did not answer. His smile encouraged Zhang Siyi so he stepped forward and grabbed Gu Yu¡¯s hand and asked: ¡°Why not?¡± Gu Yu instinctively shrank back, but Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t want to let him escape. He tightly held onto Gu Yu¡¯s palm and said: ¡°If you like me, do not let go of my hand!¡± Gu Yu peered into Zhang Siyi eyes and purposefully held his hand.

    Feeling exhrated, with his head bowed, he saw that his skirt had be a pair of trousers.... I am a man. No wonder Gu Yu does not answer him!

    Ah, ah, ah ... Zhang Siyi suddenly woke up by his bizarre dream. The story on the screen pulled him back to reality. Liking his wet mouth, he became aware of his drool. He hurriedly straightened up his back and stiff neck. When he went to wipe his mouth with his hand, he found something else that was thrilling. His hand was tightly sped with Gu Yu¡¯s hand!

 Chapter 92: Treat

    <h4>Chapter 92: Treat</h4>

    _________________

    Sitting the dark theater surrounded by Gu Yu essence, thest vestige of his dream melded into reality. In a trance, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know whether or not he was still dreaming. The prince was chasing after the princess as she ran away, and the touch he felt with his hand seemed so real.

    With the grogginess of sleep dissipating, his awareness became clearer and he stared at Gu Yu¡¯s jacket on top of his hand. As he twitched his hand slightly, not only could he feel heat, but he also felt the clear contours of fingers and dry, soft skin of another hand entwined with his. Along the peripheral nerves of his fingertips, through his arm, up to his shoulder and onto his brain, all of the details became more pronounced by the sensations that his nervous system were detecting and transmitting.

    Zhang Siyi froze as though he was paralyzed. Is this not what he was just dreaming? Did he unconsciously grab Gu Yu hand? As he sat up straighter, Gu Yu was watching him.

    Ah, ah, ah, ah¡­

    When he came to his sensespletely, Zhang Siyi reacted strongly, and jerked his hand back quickly feeling embarrassed and ashamed. He couldn¡¯t look Gu Yu in the eye.

    ¡°I, I¡­¡­.¡± Zhang Siyi fumbled with his sleeves and wiped his mouth and apologized quietly, ¡± I¡¯m sorry, I fell asleep¡­¡­¡± Zhang Siyi wanted to p himself silly. How can he react like that to a dream about the person he likes!?

    In just that moment, Gu Yu¡¯s normally controlled expressions went through a myriad of changes, from a joyous, yet frustrated smile to a disapproving and regretful smile.

    The light in the theater was too dark and Zhang Siyi was still a bit confused. He didn¡¯t know what he had missed. ¡°I, I didn¡¯t mean to.¡± Looking away, Zhang Siyi clenched his fist, and dared not look at Gu Yu again. It was really embarrassing, for God¡¯s sake, let him die ¡­

    Gu Yu whispered a lowly ¡°hmm¡± and turned to look at the screen, no longer paying attention to him.

    As the clock struck twelve, the magic started to unravel and the princess, in a hurry to flee from the ball, dropped her shoe. In a panic, the prince ran after princess hoping to catch her, but instead he found her crystal slipper. With the disappearance of his sweetheart, he looked dazed and lost.

    ¡­¡­

    Since the crystal slipper represented hope, the prince had a chance to find his love. Under themon direction inherent to a fairy tale, the movie ended happily ever after.

    After the movie was over, He Chengtian couldn¡¯t prevent himself from yawning: ¡°Shit. Why did I watch such a bad film!? It was so boring, it would have been better to sleep.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    Since He Chengtian was sitting on the left side of Gu Yu while Zhang Siyi was sitting on the right side, He Chengtian didn¡¯t detect anything out of the ordinary. Even if he wasn¡¯t watching the screen, there was only Gu Yu¡¯s jacketying across his leg to look at. However, Zhang Siyi felt like his biggest secret was discovered. With guilty feelings and his head down, he frantically left his seat towards the aisle to exit the theater first.

    He Chengtian also stood up and noticed the back of Zhang Siyi quickly and sneakily leaving. Suddenly thinking of the events before the film, he gritted his teeth. Don¡¯te begging for helpter!

    The five of them met at the entrance of the theater. Since Zhang Siyi drank coffee and slept, he had an urgent need to use the restroom. Looking at himself in the mirror he saw that his face was still hot and red. In order to ssh some water on his face, he reached out to the faucet, but he suddenly stopped and stared at his left hand instead. (o////o)

    Aaah. This is the hand that held Gu Yu¡¯s hand¡­¡­ I don¡¯t want to wash it.

    Secretly scolding himself ¡®stupid¡¯, he used his other hand instead and washed up.

    Leaving the restroom and walking towards everyone else, he saw Gu Yu wearing his jacket, talking to the group with his hands in his pockets. He was asking He Xueying about her next n.

    He Xueying and Zhang Siyi only made ns for the early afternoon. Now that the group wasrger than anticipated, she was worried about the next arrangements. Since it¡¯s notte and knowing that her brother and Gu Yu were old ssmates, she guessed her brother would propose a treat. She didn¡¯t expect Gu Yu to invite them out.

    Unexpectedly, Gu Yu spoke up: ¡°If you don¡¯t have anything urgent, then let me invite you to dinner.¡±

    Catching her off guard, He Xueying was polite: ¡°You? There is no need.¡±

    Gu Yao was also quite surprised: ¡°Brother, are you going to treat us?¡±

    After giving his sister a meaningful look, Gu Yu looked at He Xueying again: ¡°My sister has caused you so much trouble. It is the least I can do to make up for it.¡±

    With an inscrutable expression, Gu Yao grabbed her brother¡¯s arm like a petnt child.

    Since Gu Yu offered first, He Chengtian was unhappy. Being one-upped, he was reminded of his incessant second ce ranking in high school. He Chengtian purposely made things difficult and suggested: ¡°How about Jade 36 or Li¡¯s Court?¡±

    He Chengtian knows exactly what kind of ce Haicheng is. This is a city where material and money are supreme; money, power, and background easily divide people into the three, the six, and the nine. With the price per person in the thousands, he named two of the most famous high-end restaurants in Haicheng. He Chengtian wanted to use these two restaurants to test Gu Yu knowledge and uncover his financial status.

    If Gu Yu knows these ces, whether to dismiss orpliment, then he can calmly respond which means his financial ability isn¡¯t low. Gu Yu would be able to walk in front of the city and enjoy life, however, if he does not know, He Chengtian thought he would be exposing Gu Yu¡¯s shoring. He Chengtian wanted to make Gu Yu feel embarrassed. After all, even 800,000 annual sry isn¡¯t enough to live a high-level luxury life. It is only a little higher then a normal migrant worker. Gambling on thetter, He Chengtian smiled and waited to hear Gu Yu¡¯s response.

    Instead of He Chengtian¡¯s imagination, unexpectedly, Gu Yu scoffed and looked at He Chengtian mockingly: ¡°Are you like a nouveau rich, blindly following over inted trends? I heard from Siyi that you have lived in Haicheng for several years. Is there no better rmendation?¡±

    He Chengtian: ¡°¡­¡±

    Gu Yao also asked with an inquisitive look: ¡°Brother, what do you mean by inted trends?¡±

    Earnestly looking at his sister, Gu Yu schooled her: ¡°On the inte, they are listed among the top ten most expensive restaurants in Haicheng. All the nouveau rich go to these restaurants for the sake of going to the most expensive ces to eat. If you haven¡¯t visited each of those restaurants, then you can¡¯t im to be nouveau rich.¡±

    Gu Yao nodded and said: ¡°What¡¯s so special about being called nouveau rich? Who cares about them¡­¡­ Let¡¯s go to an affordable restaurant.

    He Chengtian balked at Gu Yao statement and felt like arrows, ¡®thunk, thunk¡¯, stabbed him in the back.

    Listening to Gu Yao¡¯s statement, Gu Yu rebuked ¡°That¡¯s not right. Nouveau rich are people too. This issue doesn¡¯t affect you, so don¡¯t make improperments. Also, when someone offers to treat you to dinner, don¡¯t value their integrity based on the price of the food. In addition, a restaurant shouldn¡¯t be considered good solely based on the price of the menu. As long as the food is delicious and guests eatfortably, then the price shouldn¡¯t matter.

    Gu Yao thoughtfully nodded then said: ¡°You are right Brother; delicious doesn¡¯t have a price.¡±

    Even though Gu Yu was talking to his sister, why did He Chengtian feel like he was the one getting schooled instead?

    Sensing the mood, He Xueying promptly spoke to Gu Yu. Smiling she said: ¡°Since you were kind enough to invite us, you should pick the ce to eat. Let us experience the delicious tastes of Haicheng.¡±

    [T/N: There are some interactions here that I could not trante at all. Basically, Gu Yu and He Xueying bully/tease He Chengtian and since Gu Yao already expressed her indifference for rich people, He Chengtian feltpletely defeated.]

    He Chengtian¡¯s shriveled soul wasying on the ground thinking: This must be my sister¡¯s payback from all those times we yed as kids.

    Gu Yu moved a small distance away from them to make a phone call. After confirming the reservations, he returned and said: ¡°Ok. The restaurant is in the southern part of the city. Shall we take a taxi?¡±

    He Xueying spoke up: ¡°I drove my car. The five of us can squeeze in.¡±

    ¡°Sounds good.¡± Gu Yu nodded and letting her navigate there, he told her the address.

    Walking to the underground garage, the He family really is nouveau rich. Seeing the Porsche Panorama, Zhang Siyi was excited: ¡°Wow! Whose car is this!?¡±

    He Chengtian pointed to He Xueying: ¡°It¡¯s Hers.¡±

    He Xueying boldly winked at Zhang Siyi and offered an invitation: ¡°Do you have a driver¡¯s license? Do you want to drive it?¡±

    Feeling embarrassed by his outburst, Zhang Siyi hurriedly waved his hand in refusal: ¡°It¡¯s been years since I drove a car. I¡¯ve nearly forgotten.¡±

    Since Zhang Siyi did not take the initiative to sit in the front seat, He Chengtian opened the door and sat next to his sister. The remaining three sat in the back.

    Logically, the most petite person should sit in the middle but thinking of her match-making n, Gu Yao let Zhang Siyi get into the backseat first, then walked around to the other side and let herself in. As a result, Zhang Siyi was squeezed in the middle.

    The events that happened in the theater are fresh on his mind, now sitting next to Gu Yu again, Zhang Siyi felt awkward. To ease his tension and to keep his mind upied with something other than touching him, he mustered up the courage to talk to Gu Yu: ¡°Have you eaten at Jade 36 and Li Court?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Well, I have been there before when I did a special study on restaurant design.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± That is something Gu Yu would do¡­

    Hearing about the most expensive restaurants in Haicheng, Zhang Siyi¡¯s curiosity was stimted and asked: ¡°How expensive are they? Is the food any good?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s all right,¡± Gu Xiao smiled at him warmly and said, ¡°Do you want to go? I¡¯ll take you next time.¡±

    He Chengtian: ¡°¡­¡± Why is the treatment so different? ( =Ãó= )

    He Xueying: ¡°¡­¡± Zhang Siyi, are you sure your decision is not because of your Boss? (=_=)

    Gu Yao: ¡°¡­¡­¡± Hey, Brother! You¡¯re breaking the rules! (*/¦Ø\*)

 Chapter 93: Guests

    <h4>Chapter 93: Guests</h4>

    __________________

    ¡°Really?¡± Zhang Siyi said. This isn¡¯t some sort of ploy to get me to do on-site research, is it? (¡ú_¡ú)

    Gu Yu looked at him and smiled. He didn¡¯t answer this time.

    Whether he nned to take him out for work or simply to eat, it didn¡¯t matter to Zhang Siyi as long as it was time spent with the person he liked. He didn¡¯t bother asking Gu Yu if he was teasing him or not. Rubbing and holding his unwashed hand, Zhang Siyi liked feeling wanted. He breathed a sigh of relief.

    After a minute, He Xueying broke the silence: ¡°Sisi, you learned how to drive and earned a license, but you don¡¯t use it?¡±

    Zhang Siyi replied: ¡°All my friends were getting their license during the summer after high school graduation so I figured I would get one too. I didn¡¯t know if I would have the opportunityter since I was going abroad.¡±

    He Xueying questioned: ¡°Why didn¡¯t you drive in Ennd? How did you manage when you needed to shop or go out for fun or when you went traveling?¡±

    Zhang Siyi exined: ¡°I lived near the school so I could walk. There were many local supermarkets as well. If the ce we wanted to visit wasn¡¯t within walking distance, there were many buses and trains to use and if we needed to travel further, a ssmate would rent a car. Since the Chinese license isn¡¯t valid in the UK, I couldn¡¯t drive anyway. I could have retaken the driving exam, but if needed, there were always ssmates that could rent a car so I never felt pressured to get a UK license.¡±

    ¡°Oh.¡± He Xueying replied and continued: ¡°When I lived in Australia, I couldn¡¯t do anything without a car so I thought Britain was the same. When I returned home, I was already used to driving myself everywhere. What about you? Even though you couldn¡¯t drive while you were away, now that you are back in China, didn¡¯t you want to drive?¡±

    Zhang Siyi sullenly answered: ¡°I wouldn¡¯t mind, but I don¡¯t have a car.¡±

    Tapping on the steering wheel with her finger, He Xueying enthusiastically said: ¡°I have it! If you want to drive again, I will practice with you!¡±

    Zhang Siyi was shocked: ¡°In this car!? A Porsche! I can¡¯t drive this car with my beginner ability! If something happened, even just a scratch, I couldn¡¯t pay you back even if I sold my soul!

    He Xueyingughed: ¡°Don¡¯t be silly. It¡¯s just a few million!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi felt that He Xueying was too good for himself. In other words, the economic strength of the two of them was vastly different. In He Xueying eyes, it is trivial, but for Zhang Siyi, it is difficult to bear. Especially as a man, he feels it is his duty to be supportive and as a result, she simply made Zhang Siyi feel stressed.

    Zhang Siyi tactfully refused: ¡°Actually, the subway system in Haicheng is very convenient so I don¡¯t really feel the need to drive.¡±

    Leaning on his elbow, Gu Yu had his chin propped up on his hand gently, looking out the window. Zhang Siyi sneaked a peek at Gu Yu and while Gu Yu wasn¡¯t doing anything different, somehow, Zhang Siyi felt that he looked lonely.

    Repeating something Gu Yu said to him, he paused then followed up his statement with: ¡°Besides, driving is not very environmentally friendly.¡±

    Startled, Gu Yu quickly turned to look at Zhang Siyi in the eye. Zhang smiled at him then feeling a little embarrassed turned away after a few seconds.

    Listening to Zhang Siyi speak, He Xueying was very clear about his intentions, so she didn¡¯t ask about it further.

    Unexpectedly, Gu Yumented: ¡°It is a good idea to be proficient at driving not only for trips home to Ningcheng, but also when I take you to other ces. I can¡¯t be the only one driving all the time. Since you have a license, I¡¯ll take you to practiceter.¡±

    ...... Not just back to Ningcheng? And take me somewhere else? (o////o)

    Rejoicing at the prospects, Zhang Siyi ears turned red. As if he was hypnotized by Gu Yu, he obediently replied: ¡°Okay¡±

    He Xueying: ¡°...¡± (=_=) .... It is because of your Boss.

    A few minutester, the car stopped at the location that the GPS brought them too. As it was quite remote, neither were there dining areas nearby normercial shops. The ce was like an extremely ordinary residential area with farm stands and vendors on the roadside.

    ¡°Is this it? I didn¡¯t drive to the wrong spot, did I?¡± He Xueying was suspicious of Gu Yu.

    Gu Yu: ¡°Yes this is it. Up ahead is a school and beyond that is a vacant lot. The ce is near there. We can park over here then walk.¡±

    After listening to Gu Yu¡¯s instructions, He Xueying slowly came to a stop and parked her car. Now that they were getting out of the car, everyone was skeptical. The vicinity they drove through wasn¡¯t the cleanliest and the many dpidated store fronts didn¡¯t do anything to whet their appetites.

    Was Gu Yu really trying to teach them something out of a literary movie? What can they say about a roadside stall? ¡®It¡¯s true! Cheap really is delicious.¡¯ They would rather be caught dead then to admit it.

    He Chengtian and He Xueying aren¡¯t as simple as Zhang Siyi. While Zhang Siyi can easily be content with eating a spicy rice bowl from a vendor, the brother and sister on the other hand, have experienced gourmet delicacies, and have refined their preferences. It¡¯s not possible for them to think about satisfying their tastes from a roadside stall. In particr, He Chengtian, after being debased, wanted to know what surprise Gu Yu had install for them. Looking at the run-down area, He Chengtian could only felt like Gu Yu was mocking them.

    ¡°Lead the way!¡± He Chengtian wrapped his scarf and carefully bypassed a few vendors selling vegetables. He couldn¡¯t help butin: ¡°This ce is really dirty.¡±

    Continuing to walk, Gu Yu didn¡¯t say anything else. He led the group through a residential area without markings and pulled out his phone to dial a number: ¡°Old Chiang, we are almost there.... Well, Yes. A total of five people...... It¡¯s ok, take your time....We will sit down....¡±

    Wondering if they were going to someone¡¯s house to eat, Gu Yu continued to guide the group through the residential area until they came to the back of a partially demolished broken factory. ...... What the hell! There are restaurants open in the vicinity of a condemned building? How can this be the best ce in Haicheng to eat?

    Grabbing her brother¡¯s wrist, Gu Yao asked in disbelief: ¡°Brother, is it really here?¡±

    Gu Yu acknowledged her with a ¡°hmm¡± then patted her back and naturally held her hand protectively as a caring older brother would do.

    Walking behind them, Zhang Siyi saw their interaction and suddenly became very envious. He looked at his own left hand and wished he could hold his hand with Gu Yu¡¯s again.

    Zhang Siyi thoughts were interrupted when He Chengtian put his arm around Zhang Siyi shoulders and pulled him closer. He whispered to Zhang Siyi: ¡°Hey. You seem to have a very good rtionship with Gu Yu.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Squeezing Zhang Siyi even tighter in an ufortable way and gnashing his teeth, He Chengtian said: ¡±You didn¡¯t want to change jobs because of him, right? Did he threaten you? Or do you like his sister? Are you hoping to ger her by being close to her brother?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°............¡± This is nothing!? (=_=)

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡± ? (=_=)

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± What¡¯s all this about!? (=_=)

    Although Gu Yu was one important part of his decision, it¡¯s not something he can say. Zhang Siyi took a deep breath and intively said: ¡°Honestly, what I told you previously is the truth. I have nothing to do with his sister!¡±

    He Chengtian squinted at him: ¡°You really aren¡¯t interested?¡±

    Zhang Siyi raised his hands in surrender: ¡°I¡¯m not! I swear!¡±

    He Chengtian raised his eyebrows: ¡°His sister is so cute how can you not like her?¡±

    Maybe a normal straight man would think so, but no one could guess that the person he likes is not the sister, but Gu Yu himself. The irony of the situation amused Zhang Siyi. Without hesitation, he replied with a wry smile: ¡°She is pretty cute, but she¡¯s isn¡¯t my type.¡±

    Hearing Zhang Siyi straightforward remarks, He Chengtian suddenly released him and thought Zhang Siyi was once again his childhood friend he always had. He reached out a ruffled up his hair like one would do to a younger brother. Heughed out loud: ¡°Okay...¡±

    As it so happened, at that moment, Gu Yu had turned to look at Zhang Siyi. Witnessing the interactions between the two, Gu Yu wasn¡¯t expecting to see He Chengtian in such a good mood. Gu Yu furrowed his brow. If looks could kill, two cold, sharp daggers would have stabbed He Chengtian in the chest.

    He Chengtian instinctively felt a coldness around him like someone was watching him with malicious intent. With a stiff smile, he slowly released Zhang Siyi.... What¡¯s going on? Why did I feel so threatened? (O..O)

    After walking for another ten minutes, they finally arrived at the ce. Inspecting the scene before them, they were very surprised at the idyllic Chinese courtyard located in the middle of nowhere.

    Along a six-meter-long fenced wall, there was a thatched rustic door in the middle with two orangenterns hanging on either side. A poetic phrase was written on a que beside the door weing guests.

    Surveying the surroundings, Zhang Siyi noticed the courtyard was built between the gaps of he broken factory buildings. The simple exterior wall was about three-stories high and was crafted to look like the natural surrounding environment.

    Like a rare flower blooming at the site of an ancient castle in ruins, the courtyard was a stark contrast to the dirty areas with dpidated buildings and broken windows that they walked through.

    Gu Yao carefully stared at the words then turned her head to asked her brother: ¡°Did you write this?¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s go inside.¡± Gu Yu didn¡¯t answer his sister question and instead, pulled on the rope for the bell that was hanging beside the door. With a ¡°jingle¡± that gently sounded, Gu Yu pushed open the door and led everyone down a cobblestone path.

    Under the illumination of thenterns, everyone saw many withered vines, both long and short, growing from the top of the wall downwards, in clumps. There were additional nters inside the courtyard. When spring timees, sprouts will give life to the seemingly dead looking garden.

    As they approached the main entrance, the door automatically opened from the inside. A stoutly built, bald-headed young man greeted them and smiled: ¡°You made it!¡±

    Gu Yu smiled: ¡°Old Chiang, I¡¯vee again to disturb you.¡±

    The young man known as ¡°Old Chiang¡± said: ¡°I¡¯m d you brought guests with you. Pleasee in.¡±

 Chapter 94: Feeling

    <h4>Chapter 94: Feeling</h4>

    __________________

    Unlike the idyllic Chinese farmhouse exterior, the interior is carefully renovated.

    Since Zhang Siyi is more in touch with design trends, he can easily tell that the inside was designed by a professional that specialized in interior spaces. The specific style of the interior was hard to describe as there were both traditional Chinese details, Japanese-style ces and modern designed areas. Even though there were modern elements in contrast to the traditionally designed ones, the interior space was very harmonious.

    For example, in the kitchen area, there was arge ss panel that was hanging from the ceiling to help iste kitchen fumes. Even though the implementation of the wall was high-tech and modern, the panel itself has a matte finish with an ancient Chinesendscape sandsted onto the ss.

    Except for the visible kitchen behind the ss, theyout of the house is sparse with only two areas to amodate guests. One area is fashioned traditionally with a Chinese square table and other traditional elements. The other area has an elevated tform with a passage that surrounds arge rectangr table. In this way, guests can feel like they are sitting on a Japanese-style tatami mat without having to remove their shoes.

    Although the ce setting weed them, no one sat down. Old Chiang intended for them to sit at therge rectangr table as there were five ce settings consisting of bowls and chopsticks there. Since they weren¡¯t it a hurry to sit down, they wanted to continue exploring the interior.

    Dressed in rough clothes, Old Chiang came out from behind the ss to greet everyone: ¡°You are free to look around. Upstairs is the tea house. I¡¯m still preparing the food and it will take another twenty minutes. Old Four can bring you upstairs in the meantime.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Old Four? Who? Gu Yu?

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry, take your time. I¡¯ll take them up for a cup of tea.¡± Gu Yu took off his jacket, hung it on the rack near the entrance, then flipped a switch. The question of ¡®up-stairs¡¯ was answered as the glow of themps hanging down from above, showed the way up.

    The edge of the staircase was surrounded by thin, vertical wooden ts. In the dark, at first it looked like a partitioned wall, however when the lights were turned on, the lighting through the gaps in the ts made the wall glow making the wall look like a glowing harp.

    They marveled at the staircase sculpture as they followed Gu Yu up. On the second floor, there were three tea tables separated by wooden frames and curtains. A wide variety of small handmade sculptures decorated the room. In addition, one wall was whollyprised of bookshelves from top to bottom. There was a poetic quote in beautiful script written on another one of the walls.

    Gu Yu led the group to sit at one of the tables then went to pick out a tea. Zhang Siyi went over to the round window and looked outside. From this point of view, he could see, like a glittering pearl in mud, the moon reflected in therge water tank that was in the backyard. By looking at the picturesque scene, Zhang Siyi momentarily forgot about his troubles of the outside world.

    Rummaging through the shelves, Gu Yu picked out leaves and a tea set on the shelf. He put the water on to boil and asked them to sit.

    Gu Yao was the first to inquire: ¡°Brother, who was that? Your ssmate?

    Gu Yu: ¡°Well, we lived in the same dormitory.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Howe I haven¡¯t met him?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°He wasn¡¯t in Haicheng for the reunionst Christmas.¡±

    Zhang Siyi sat down and asked: ¡°So he also studied architecture?¡±

    Gu Yu nodded and smiled at him: ¡°This ce is his own handi-work; from design to construction to decoration.¡±

    He Xueying was surprised: ¡°He built it himself?¡±

    Aside from Gu Yu, everyone else was shocked. Indeed, in a modern city with a clear division ofbor, it seems like an incredible feat to be able to build a house by yourself from the ground up.

    Gu Yu said: ¡°Since he is a licensed architect, this small building isn¡¯t difficult. You just need a few carpenters to help build it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi closed his wide-open mouth: ¡°With this talent, how can he not do architecture?¡±

    Gu Yao nodded: ¡°Yeh. Why did he open a restaurant if he is so good at architecture?¡±

    Gu Yu proposed a question: ¡°An architect can¡¯t open a restaurant? Everyone has their own pursuit. He didn¡¯t want to design buildings seriously. Instead, he wanted to open a restaurant. He is free to choose what he wants.¡±

    As Gu Yu finished his statement, Old Chiang came up with a te of fruit and handed it to Gu Yu. He smiled at them: ¡°Drink tea first. I¡¯ll call you when ready.¡±

    Everyone thanked him and watched Old Chiang hurriedly go down the stairs. He Chengtian frowned and asked: ¡°Since this ce is so remote, does anyone evere?¡±

    Gu Yu raised an eyebrow: ¡°Are we not people?¡±

    He Chengtian: ¡°I don¡¯t mean that! I mean your ssmate; how can he make money?¡±

    Since entering this eatery, everyone can¡¯t help but worry about whether or not the restaurant is profitable and whether it will be open for a long time, but only He Chengtian voiced his opinions outright. The restaurant was like a lost treasure and with its joyous discovery, it makes one want to share with others in hopes that they will also appreciate it.

    Sipping the tea slowly, Gu Yu sighed with relief, then looked up at He Chengtian. He said: ¡°If I told you, Old Chiang did not open this restaurant for profit, would you believe me?¡±

    Obviously, He Chengtian does not believe it: ¡°Not for profit? How can he live?¡±

    Gu Yu selected a piece of fruit from the dish and started peeling it. He said: ¡°Is it not easy to live? Since he is an architect, he has his own means of earning a living. We are all grown-ups here. Why are you worried about how he lives his life?¡± Gu Yu put a few slices in his mouth and chewed. Swallowing, he continued: ¡°Opening a restaurant is something he has longed to do from a young age. Making money wasn¡¯t the point. He likes to entertain guests and treat them as friends, not as customers. ¡°

    Even though He Chengtian listened to the words spoken by Gu Yu, hepletely did not understand the meaning of doing such a thing.

    Gu Yu thought He Chengtian wouldn¡¯t be able to understand so he didn¡¯t bother exining it further. He poured a cup of tea: ¡°Less nonsense, drink tea. I think you, who has only thought about money will never understand the ¡®feeling¡¯ for things.

    He Chengtian was angry: ¡°What ¡®feeling¡¯? I think it¡¯s just being pretentious.¡±

    Gu Yu patiently exined: ¡°Its something you want to do for your own sake even if it seems useless to others. It is a satisfaction of heart and mind and not mary gains and losses.¡± Gu Yu paused suddenly then turned to He Chengtian and smirked: ¡°Maybe for you, the value of money itself is probably your ¡®feeling¡¯. In the eyes of Old Chiang, money is not what he pursues.¡±

    He Chengtian: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t sure if He Chengtian understood what Gu Yu was saying, but he did. Gu Yu chose this ce to eat in direct opposition to the values He Chengtian so rudely expressed earlier at noon. Gu Yu wanted to directly show He Chengtian a different kind of value and lifestyle. Also, Zhang Siyi finally understood the meaning of ¡®personal feelings¡¯ that Gu Yu once answered to Fu Xinhui about architecture months ago in KTV.

    If someone asked him why he was doing architecture in the future, Zhang Siyi would also say it was because of ¡®personal feelings¡¯.

    The five of them freely chatting and by the time they were drinking the fifth cup of tea, from downstairs, Old Chiang called for them toe to dinner.

    Now feeling hungry, even after drinking probiotic ck tea, they couldn¡¯t wait to eat. Gathering around the table, they sat down and were surprised to find the area was hot. Several asked if there was a heating nket. While serving vegetables, Old Chiangughed and told them that it was the work of the northeast style Kang heating system. As he exined, Zhang Siyi also realized they weren¡¯t sitting on Japanese-style tatami mats, but the Kang heater. Not expecting it in a ce where many facilities in Haicheng didn¡¯t have heat at all, they were able to enjoy this special treat.

    As Old Chiang ced the food on the table, he introduced every dish in detail; where the fish came from, about the chickens caught back home, from which mountains harvested what vegetable and, even the pork chops that were directly ordered and shipped from a friend¡¯s farm.

    Even though the food wasmon, steamed squid, sweet and sour pork ribs, spring bamboo shoots, stewed chicken soup...., the tes were carefully and artfully ted. Each dish conveyed Old Chiang¡¯s values and aesthetics in life. He also poured them a ss of wine that Old Chiang personally made. It stands to reason, since Gu Yu brought them there, the taste will not disappoint.

    It¡¯s no wonder that birds of a feather flock together. Although the decoration andyout of this house is quite different from Gu Yu¡¯s vi in Yuanshan garden, it gives Zhang Siyi a pleasant cozy feeling simr to that of Gu Yu¡¯s home.

    After drinking, Zhang Siyi and He Chengtian couldn¡¯t help themselves from eating multiple bowls of food. The girls also put aside their restraint and ate to their hearts content.

 Chapter 94 Extra: [Small Theater] 003: First Love article â€“ Gu Yu

    <h4>Chapter 94 Extra: [Small Theater] 003: First Love article ¨C Gu Yu</h4>

    _________________________

    The permit for the release license appeared in the middle of the screen followed by the opening of Disney¡¯s title......

    Seemingly absorbed in watching the film, Gu Yu looked straight ahead with no expression on his face. In fact, his thoughts were not at all on the film. He doesn¡¯t know when it started, but as long as Zhang Siyi is around him, he isn¡¯t able to concentrate on other things.

    Aware of Zhang Siyi slow body movements, Gu Yu is motionless. Maybe this guy is sleepy. Just like the first time they traveled together, he was looking forward to Zhang Siyi using his shoulder to lean on.

    At that time, he thought Zhang Siyi was trouble. Since the moment Zhang Siyi fell asleep on him, Gu Yu never pushed him away. Afterwards, he never could understand how he endured the trip with Zhang Siyi drooling on him.

    However, since that time in only a couple of months, Gu Yu mood changed so much so, that he never would have guessed that one day, he would crave another opportunity for Zhang Siyi to lean and drool on him again.

    Gu Yu thought: I like this person and it may be the only problem in my life I can¡¯t solve!

    Unfortunately, this time, the fool was leaning half way, but never put his head on his shoulder.

    After some time, Gu Yu couldn¡¯t take it any longer so he reached up and gently pressed Zhang Siyi¡¯s head to his shoulder and whispered: ¡°Sleepy? Then Rest here for a while.¡±

    He was worried that the fool would refuse, but thankfully, Zhang Siyi really was sleepy and he submitted easily. Like a puppy, he felt Zhang Siyi move his head up to the crook of his neck and snuggled there to sleep.

    Gu Yu frequently turned his head and watched Zhang Siyi in his defenseless sleep. The tenderness in his heart was almost full.

    Having the person, you like be dependent on you is the most wonderful feeling in the whole world. Gu Yu thought this feeling was even greater than when a building he designed was built.

    Seeing Zhang Siyi¡¯s hand on his knee, with so much desire, Gu Yu couldn¡¯t control himself and lightly touched his hand. He didn¡¯t expect, upon contact that Zhang Siyi would take the initiative and hold him.

    The movement startled Gu Yu and instinctively, he tried to retract his hand. However, Zhang Siyi only held on tighter and wouldn¡¯t let him go.

    Thinking Zhang Siyi woke up, Gu Yu turned and stared at him. His heart nearly burst from his chest. Moving his jacket, Gu Yu regained his breath, and slowly maneuvered his fingers to interlock with Zhang Siyi¡¯s.

    God knows, at that moment, how much he wanted to kiss him...

    [End of 003]

 Chapter 95: Old Chiang

    <h4>Chapter 95: Old Chiang</h4>

    _______________________

    Feeling rather giddy from the wine, the five of them were rxing haphazardly on therge couch after the meal. Sitting next to each other close andughing, He Xueying and Gu Yao were watching a variety show on the phone. Although there was friction between them in the beginning, now they acted like best friends. No one would have guessed that they met for the first time earlier that day.

    He Chengtian spoke with Old Chiang. He was curious about his experiences and reasoning for opening the restaurant.

    Since hearing that Gu Yu and Old Chiang were dorm-mates, Zhang Siyi also wanted to hear more from Old Chiang. When Zhang Siyi learned that Old Chiang and Gu Yu were the same in that they both were the provincial college entrance examination champions, his eyes bulged and his jaw dropped in shock. Having the construction industry loose such a valuable talent made Zhang Siyi feel regretful and felt disappointed that he was hiding in the corner of this uninviting city and was no longer in the construction industry.

    Exining the history of the restaurant, Old Chiang spoke: ¡°It may be from those days as a child growing up with martial art movies and novels. Like being part of a secret society, what child didn¡¯t want to open a tea house for the masters and heroes?¡±

    Laughing, He Chengtian nodded and agreed. The struggling hero was always the most fascinating. But, as he grew up and matured, those ridiculous ideas slowly disappeared and instead pursued fame and fortune.

    He Chengtian believed that without money, one could not achieve their dream. He would always ridicule those people with dreams by saying one could not achieve anything without money. With money, a person can be the top dog and could handle any matter and do what they wanted.

    One may think that they have reached the desired status that money can bring, however there will always be people with more money. Moving forward in perpetual motion, He Chengtian didn¡¯t know where the end was.

    By the reinforced ideals of Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu and Old Chiang, at this time, He Chengtian finally became confused. He couldn¡¯t help asking Old Chiang: ¡°If you don¡¯t make money by opening this restaurant, where does your main iee from?¡±

    Unlike Gu Yu, Old Chiang was more modest and leisurely exined. He and Gu Yu graduated with an architectural license the same year. After the exam, Gu Yu went further in the industry to be a director at Borderless while Old Chiang wanted to step back from the industry and opened this restaurant.

    In the earlier years of the domestic construction industry, in order to get the qualifications for a project, an unlicensed person could borrow a license from an architect for a fee. Even if an architect does not have active building projects, one could earn tens of millions from just the fees alone. However, in recent years, there were two forces that have led to the decline of borrowed licenses. One, because of the increased number of graduates and licensed architects active in the field. Two, because industry standards have changed and many have banned the use of barrowed licenses.

    Zhang Siyi had heard of borrowing licenses before and immediately asked: ¡°How much can you earn from the fees now?¡±

    Old Chiang looked at Zhang Siyi with interest. He heard Gu Yu¡¯s intimate tone when introducing Zhang Siyi as his ¡°little apprentice¡± in thepany. During dinner, he saw Gu Yu watching Zhang Siyi from time to time and as the evening progressed, he felt Gu Yu¡¯s behavior was unusual. When has the arrogant Old Four ever been so concerned about a person?

    Old Chiang thought to himself: Since Zhang Siyi is Gu Yu¡¯s apprentice and because I was his ssmate, then doesn¡¯t that make me Zhang Siyi¡¯s uncle? Ha-ha!

    Amused by his own thoughts, Old Chiang said to Zhang Siyi: ¡°It¡¯s not as good as it used to be. The average is between seventy to eighty thousand a year. For the time being, I rely on this ie only.¡± Old Chiang waved his hand to dissuade him and said: ¡°But don¡¯t use myzy methods as your role model. Everyday, I just sleep and eat and as time passes day after day there is no future. Make sure you follow your director. He is more promising then I.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Nearby, Gu Yu was listening while sipping his wine and said: ¡°So you admit to yourzy business. I wish the restaurant had closed earlier so you coulde out and get down to business.¡± Angry, Old Chiang picked up a peanut and threw it at Gu Yu. As he put up his hand to catch it, Gu Yu smiled and said: ¡°But with your cooking skills, to be an architect is also a real pity.¡±

    Listening to Gu Yu speak, Zhang Siyi picked up on some of the nuances in his speech and secretly thought: He admires Old Chiang¡¯s freedom, but regrets his talents are wasted.

    Since he wasn¡¯t on the same wave-length as them, He Chengtian remained confused and asked: ¡°Is seventy to eighty thousand a year enough ie to run the restaurant?¡±¡±

    While eating peanuts, Old Chiang continued to peel them and toss the shells at Gu Yu: ¡°Not always.¡±

    He Chengtian was surprised: ¡°Did Gu Yu invest in this restaurant?¡±

    Old Chiang grumbled: ¡°Even with good interest, how can this cheapskate invest in me?¡±

    Hearing Old Chiang harsh words towards Gu Yu put He Chengtian in a good mood. In spite of Gu Yu, He Chengtian took out his business card and offered an olive branch: ¡°Your restaurant is so good it would be a shame for it to close. If you have difficulties in the future, you can find me and I will make an investment.¡±

    Old Chiang put down his peanuts and hurriedly epted the business card: ¡°Wow, Old Four. You are a high school ssmate of this big boss!?¡±

    Maintaining his original posture holding a ss of wine, Gu Yu scoffed: ¡°Yes. He is the local tyrant. Quickly, hold his thigh.¡±

    He Chengtian: ¡°......¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s cheeks were red from the wine and curiously asked: ¡°Why is Gu Yu called ¡®Old Four¡¯?¡± Zhang Siyi always felt that his own nickname ¡®Auntie Four¡¯ strangely matched. Moreover, since Gu Yu also knows the nickname that his colleagues gave him, will if feel weird to hear the reason? Zhang Siyi discretely turned to look at Gu Yu and found that Gu Yu was already watching him. Scared, he quickly turned away to avoid eye contact.

    Chuckling, Old Chiang smiled at him: ¡°There were four people in our dormitory room. Since he was one year younger, all of us called him Old Four.¡±

    Zhang Siyi wondered: ¡°He is a younger than you?¡±¡±

    ¡°Well, ording to the Gregorian calendar it is a small year.¡± This time He Chengtian answered. He looked at Gu Yu and said: ¡°But I remember your birthday is in January, right? ording to the lunar calendar, it is the same.¡±

    Gu Yu raised his eyebrows in surprise and looked at him: ¡°You must have been paying close attention to me all those years ago if you remembered my birthday.¡±

    He Chengtian: ¡°......¡± Shit! Every year you got more birthday love letters and gifts than me. How can I not know?

    He Chengtian didn¡¯t want to talk to Gu Yu, so he continued to talk with Old Chiang about life. Under the influence of the very rxed atmosphere, He Chengtian asked about his emotional life: ¡°If you are here alone every day without making money, aren¡¯t you worried about marriage?¡±

    Taking his time to respond, Old Chiang replied: ¡°People who like my way of life will naturally be attracted to my values and even if my three meals a day are light, they will choose to be with me. What would it mean to be together if we only married for financial reasons and didn¡¯t hold the same views? Yes, there are exceptions in the world, but I think feelings are more important.¡±

    As a ¡°secr¡± person, He Chengtian listened to this speech and silently burst into tears in his heart.

    Rxing until nine in the evening, Gu Yu proposed to leave. Since the atmosphere was asfortable and cozy as one¡¯s own home, everyone was reluctant to get up to leave.

    Gu Yu pulled out a stack of money to pay, but even though Old Chiang called Gu Yu a cheapskate, he unexpectedly refused: ¡°Forget about it.¡±

    Gu Yu hesitated for a few minutes but finally relented: ¡°Sooner orter, you will have to close.¡±

    Old Chiang: ¡°.....¡±

    Getting ready to depart, they put on their coats, scarves and hats and said goodbye. Staggering together out the door, the unanticipated chilly wind was an obvious contrast to the warm and weed interior.

    A hundred meters away, Zhang Siyi turned his head to nced back at the entrance. As if the time spent in the restaurant was only a dream, the sign and twonterns that weed them previously, werepletely hidden in darkness. The satiated feeling in his stomach and the warmth he felt from the wine reminded Zhang Siyi that the evening wasn¡¯t just a mirage.

    Walking back passed the old buildings and residential area, the five of them returned to the world. Afterwards, He Chengtian also had some thoughts. Shit, it was supposed to be Gu Yu treat, but in the end, Gu Yu spent nothing and he dug himself a huge investment pit! How is it possible!?

    In the evening, Zhang Siyi took a shower andy in bed and reflected on what happened during the day. Feeling a little ufortable about the day¡¯s ¡®date¡¯, he privately sent He Xueying a message of apology on WeChat. He also thanked her and promised to take her out for dinner alone.

    He Xueying quickly replied: ¡°You are wee. It had been so long since we saw each other and I had fun meeting new friends. I am very happy.¡±

    Seemingly like an afterthought, she added: ¡°I exchanged information with Gu Yao and invited her over next week. Do you want toe too?¡±

    Thinking of her enthusiastic attitude when inviting him to practice driving, Zhang Siyi was hesitant: ¡°I¡¯m busy next week. Maybe some other time.¡± After chatting with her for a few more minutes he hung up and threw his phone to opposite side of his bed then raised his hands to cover his face.

    After today, Zhang Siyi discovered a terrible fact. His attempt to divert his attention away from same sex pairings by looking for a girlfriend by normal means,pletely failed! He Xueying could never be in his heart. The instant he saw Gu Yu dressed in his jacket, Zhang Siyi was only focused on him. His eyes feasted on GU Yu¡¯s handsome appearance. He indulged in the essence of Gu Yu¡¯s. The yearning he felt from the warmth of Gu Yu¡¯s touch......

    He never thought he would get in so deep that he would feel like he could nevere back.

    Sighing, Zhang Siyi heard the buzzing of the phone¡¯s vibration and sat up to reach for his phone. He saw the new message ¡ª-

    Gu Yu: ¡°Are you free tomorrow? Let¡¯s go practice driving.¡±

 Chapter 96: Practice

    <h4>Chapter 96: Practice</h4>

    ____________________

    ...... Eeehh? So fast !!!

    Holding the phone staring intently at the screen, Zhang Siyi could not believe he was so quick to bring up the matter of driving.

    Zhang Siyi replied quickly: ¡°I have time, but do you really have nothing else to do?¡± As much as Zhang Siyi wants to see Gu Yu, he is afraid of taking over his private time.

    Gu Yu: ¡°I already told you, I¡¯ll take you out to practice driving. Its better to seize the moment now and not procrastinate.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Well, thank you, then I will see you tomorrow!¡±

    The two agreed to meet at 8:30 the next morning and Gu Yu woulde over to his house and pick him up.

    Even though the appointment was early, Zhang Siyi was so excited to meet with Gu Yu that he would have agreed to almost anything.

    When the person he likes payed attention to him..... Zhang Siyi put his phone aside and hugged his pillow then excitedly rolled a couple of times on his bed feeling ecstatic.

    At the thought of Gu Yu waiting to eat with the mysterious person, Zhang Siyi felt heartbroken.

    ...... Is it really not me that he likes?

    ...... If Gu Yu didn¡¯t like me, why is he treating me so well?

    ...... Why did he have me lean on his shoulder in the cinema?

    ...... And now, he invited me out to practice driving......

    ...... Are these really just out of the boss¡¯s love for his subordinates?

    With his heart feeling high and feeling low, Zhang Siyi buried his head into his pillow.

    After a few minutes of thought, he remembered something and quickly grabbed his phone. He began to look through his message history on WeChat.

    A week ago, Gu Yu¡¯s ¡°Hmm¡± made him feel like Gu Yu didn¡¯t care for him at all and thus, led to his withdrawal. But, that ¡°Hmm,¡± was it just be because of ......

    Scrolling though the posting history...... Keep going, keep going, keep going.......

    Ah! That¡¯s it. ¡ª¡ª

    [January 1, 2015 11:38]

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Are you kidding me? This song is too difficult!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°You can practice it slowly in small sections. I am not in a hurry anyways. I¡¯ll forgive you when you y it for me.¡±

    ....................

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Is this the reason? (£þ_£þ| | |)

    Even though the cactus has recovered, Gu Yu won¡¯t forgive him until he ys ¡°Summer¡± on the violin? But when he asked, he wanted to know what he could do for Gu Yu to quickly forgive him. Its been three months, so isn¡¯t the time no longer relevant? Or, is it just simply: ¡°I¡¯ll forgive you when I hear you y the violin¡± ???

    Zhang Siyi once again smothered his face on his pillow and groaned.

    Although he wanted to talk with Gu Yu about it, it was veryte already. Besides, he already said goodnight to him and not to mention, the embarrassment he would have if Gu Yu knew how much he fretted over his previous ¡®Hmm¡¯ remark.

    However reminiscent of Gu Yu¡¯s straightforward character, Zhang Siyi is inclined to think about his own spections. ¨C Why does it always feel like I¡¯m digging a hole for myself!?

    Early the next morning, Zhang Siyi stood in front of the mirror with two huge dark circles under his eyes. He wanted to hit a wall!

    After struggling with sleepst night, he got out of bed and started practicing the violin until three in the morning. Due to the disuse of muscles in his arms, his whole left shoulder, neck and both arms and wrists were sore. When he brushed his teeth, his arm trembled. ¨C Shit! If his hands are going to shake like that, how will I be able to hold the wheel and drive?

    At 8:25, Zhang Siyi went downstairs five minutes earlier than nned and was surprised to see Gu Yu already waiting for him. He quickly trotted over and asked: ¡°You are here already. When did you get here?¡±

    Gu Yu wasn¡¯t wearing the beige trench coat like yesterday. Instead he wore a warm-yellow jacket which gave him a much more youthful style. No one looking at Gu Yu would believe he was twenty-nine years old.

    ¡°Not long.¡± Gu Yu smiled: ¡°Get in the car first.¡±

    Fearing the circles under his eyes made him look older then Gu Yu, he rubbed his cheeks to try and put some life back into his tired face.

    Getting into the front passenger seat, he asked: ¡°What about Gu Yao?¡±

    Gu Yu handed him a breakfast sandwich and said: ¡°She is at home. She is getting ready to go back to school.¡±

    Not expecting Gu Yu to bring him breakfast, Zhang Siyi was touched by the gesture. He gave him a warm thanks then asked: ¡°Why didn¡¯t shee?¡±

    Gu Yu gave him a sideways nce: ¡°Do you really want her toe?¡±

    Zhang Siyi vigorously shook his head: ¡°No, just curious.¡±

    As Gu Yu was starting the car, Zhang Siyi had his mouth full of food and asked: ¡°Where are we going to practice?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°In the suburbs where there are fewer people. The city area is very congested with traffic so it¡¯s not a good ce to start learning how to drive. By the way, did you bring your license?¡±

    Zhang Siyi stopped chewing. Driver¡¯s license?

    Gu Yu: ¡°???¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Fuck! How can he forget such an important thing!

    Gu Yu stopped the car on the side of the road and raised his eyebrows: ¡°No?¡±

    Zhang Siyi mechanically swallowed, lowered his head, then called his mother: ¡°Hello, Mom? Are you at home?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°...¡± You forgot it to bring it from Ningcheng?

    (=_=)

    Yes, Zhang Siyi¡¯s driver¡¯s license that he got six years ago was stored at home in Ningcheng while he was away. Yesterday, when he saw Gu Yu¡¯s invitation to practice, he was so excited to ept that hepletely forgot the most basic thing.

    Fortunately, Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother was at home and ording to his instructions, she found his license in the drawer upstairs in his room. She asked worried: ¡°Why do you want your driver¡¯s license? It¡¯s been a long time since you drove a car.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I know. I¡¯m going to go practice driving with Gu Yu. Help me with my license and mail it to thepany!¡±

    Hanging up the phone, feeling sorrowful Zhang Siyi said: ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I guess I will get it in a couple of days.¡±

    Without a driver¡¯s license, he can¡¯t drive and if he can¡¯t drive now, then does he have to go back home? But it¡¯s only been ten minutes together with Gu Yu!

    Zhang Siyi slumped in his seat with his head down, despondently holding his half-eaten breakfast sandwich, waiting for Gu Yu¡¯s verdict.

    Wanting to scold him, Gu Yu turned to look at him, but seeing Zhang Siyi¡¯s helpless expression, he couldn¡¯t bear to be harsh towards him. With a lengthy sigh, Gu Yu then said: ¡°It¡¯s Ok. We are out already so let¡¯s practice in a parking lot.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Eh?¡± He didn¡¯t think things would turn out well. Today¡¯s ns weren¡¯t ruined!

    Once again, driving on the road, Gu Yu sighed while shaking his head he tly said: ¡°I really don¡¯t understand what goes on in that head of yours. It¡¯s such an important thing and yet, you forgot.¡± The corners of his mouth twitched as though Gu Yu wasughing at Zhang Siyi¡¯s stupidity.

    Zhang Siyi stole a nce at Gu Yu then continued to eat the rest of his sandwich silently.

    Since Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t have his driver¡¯s license, there was no need to drive farther away to the suburbs. Gu Yu found a parking lot nearby then let Zhang Siyi change seats with him.

    Pointing out the controls, Gu Yu simply exined how to operate the car. Since the transmission is fully automatic, it is much easier to drive then the manual transmission car he learned from in the past. All he needs to keep track of is the elerator and break peddle.

    Slowly pushing on the gas, Zhang Siyi drove around the parking lot to get a feel for it. Next, he practiced parking in a space. During this period, Gu Yu kept his hand on the emergency break incase there was a problem with the elerator. He spoke up: ¡°Go ahead and park. Stop and take a look in the mirror.¡±

    ¡°Oh, good.¡±

    ¡°The steering wheel turned too early, back, again...... One turn, that¡¯s it. back, back, yeah, that¡¯s good.......¡±

    ¡°.....¡±

    ¡°Back out and we can move to another space. Do it again from a different angle.¡±

    ¡°...........¡±

    ¡°Okay, very good. Next, try it in reverse. Remember to look at the rearview mirror... Slow down, don¡¯t be too fast... That¡¯s it. Ok, go back to the steering wheel, ok...¡±

    ¡°...................¡±

    ¡°Ok, shift it to reverse and try it again.... Ok, yeah that¡¯s good, stop!¡±

    ¡°................................¡±

    ¡°Let¡¯s find another space......¡± Gu Yu pointed: ¡°Over there, the one between the two cars.¡±

    ¡°Those two cars? Don¡¯t I need to practice parking without a car next to me?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ve had enough practice now, what are you afraid of?¡±

    ¡°What if I hit the car?¡±

    ¡°Then you¡¯ll die.¡±

    ¡°......! ¡±

    ¡°Oh, you pulled in smoothly. It¡¯s good. Go out and look for a smaller spot.¡±

    ¡°.............!!! ¡±

    Since he hasn¡¯t driven for so many years, it was very stressful. With a racing heart, Zhang Siyi could feel sweat sliding down his forehead. He just finished parallel parking and feltpletely exhausted. Shit! The pressure is too great!

    Under Gu Yu militant guidance, he had Zhang Siyi practice almost all the different ways to park. Even so, Gu Yu still felt like it wasn¡¯t enough. He asked Zhang Siyi to return to previous spaces and try again from start to finish at a faster pace. He spoke: ¡°With continued practice, you will be proficient in no time and with determination, you will be able to do this will your eyes closed...... Hey, why are you shaking every time you turn the steering wheel?¡±

    ¡°I, I ...¡± Blushing, Zhang Siyi felt embarrassed. He faltered and looked at his sore arms and didn¡¯t know how to exin: ¡°Yesterday, I did a lot of back and forth arm movements... they are a little tired.¡±

    Gu Yu looked at him strangely for a minute in thought, raised an eyebrow then asked: ¡°How many times?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± (¨s¨FÃó¡¯)¨s(©ß©¥©ß

    It was noon when Gu Yu decided Zhang Siyi had enough practice and thus, they returned to their original positions. Exhausted, Zhang Siyi sunk back into the seat and felt like his entire arm was useless.

    Gu Yu: ¡°I didn¡¯t think you would be able to drive so well so quickly.¡±

    Feeling like Gu Yu was always criticizing him and rarely ever gettingplements, Zhang Siyi was ttered to hear his praise. Zhang Siyi replied modestly: ¡°Well, it¡¯s just parking. I haven¡¯t driven on the roads yet.¡± With his humble words, his heart was floating and Zhang Siyi was feeling very happy.

 Chapter 97: The Photo

    <h4>Chapter 97: The Photo</h4>

    ______________________

    ¡°Now that you can park the car, driving on the road will be the easy part.¡± Gu Yu said, then he turned to address him: ¡°What do you want to do for lunch?¡±

    In order to express his gratitude, Zhang Siyi offered: ¡°I¡¯ll treat you to lunch.¡±

    Eyeing him once over, Gu Yu was skeptical: ¡°You are going to treat? Do you have enough money?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    His March paycheck was already used to pay his credit cards and Zhang Siyi was still overdrawn. Although he really has no money, does Gu Yu have to be so blunt!? At most, he could make up the cost by not going to restaurants and eating cheaply for the next few weeks.

    Seeing Zhang Siyi sullen expression, Gu Yu knew he hit a soar spot. He smiled and said: ¡±I remember you mentioning you can cook, right? Why don¡¯t we buy something to make for lunch?¡±

    Since Fu Xinhui isn¡¯t at the apartment, Zhang Siyi thought Gu Yu¡¯s idea was feasible: ¡°Yes, I can cook, but all I know how to prepare are ordinary meals. Don¡¯t expect it to taste like Old Chiang¡¯s.¡±

    Gu Yu smiled: ¡°Your ce or mine?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°My ce.¡± He was the one who invited Gu Yu so naturally it has to be prepared in his own home. Luckily it isn¡¯t too messy yet as it has only been a week since he came back home.

    Gu Yu asked: ¡°Is your roommate home? Should you let him know in advance?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°It¡¯s okay, he¡¯s not home.¡±

    It did not take long to drive back to Zhang Siyi¡¯s residence. After parking, they walked to a nearby supermarket to buy groceries. Walking through the aisles together, Gu Yu was quiet and let Zhang Siyi pick out the ingredients for the dishes he had in mind.

    Even though Gu Yu has been to his apartment building a bunch of times, this is the first time Gu Yu has stepped through the door.

    The two of them brought the bags of groceries upstairs. As they opened the door, a yellow haired medium-sized dog, rushed over, panting ¡®ha-chee-ha-chee¡¯. Wagging its tail, the dog was not afraid of strangers.

    ¡°You still have a dog?¡± Gu Yu was surprised.

    Feeling self-conscience Zhang Siyi exined: ¡°My roommate got the dog, but since he isn¡¯t here, I am taking care of him.¡±

    Gu Yu readily rubbed Cheer-Up¡¯s head. The dog excitedly raised his head and licked Gu Yu¡¯s hand. His jerk reaction was to pull his hand away, however, the dog¡¯s action reminded Gu Yu of Zhang Siyi¡¯s habit of drooling on him. (=_=)

    After bringing the bags into the kitchen, Zhang Siyi started to unpack them. He said: ¡°You can sit down.¡±

    Gu Yu poured himself a cup of fresh juice and went to look at the apartment: ¡°Does this apartment have three bedrooms?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Originally, I rented the ce with two other ssmates. One of whom got a girlfriend and moved out to live with her at the end ofst year.¡±

    Gu Yu nodded and asked: ¡°Now that it is two people, do you split the rent?¡±

    ¡°No. He pays more and I still pay my original agreement.... I still feel bad about it. I¡¯ve wanted to talk to him about living somece else, but recently, something has happened to him at home and I am unsure what his future ns are.¡± Zhang Siyi sighed.

    Gu Yu took a sip of juice and asked: ¡°What happened to his family?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡±It¡¯s a long story and I¡¯m not quite sure of the details.¡± Zhang Siyi told Gu Yu some of the history that he knew. He continued: ¡°Fu Xinhui was afraid his situation would affect me, so he stopped living here for the time being.¡±

    Gu Yu did not make anyments about Fu Xinhui and instead, he turned around to the living room and asked: ¡°If he doesn¡¯te back, what are you going to do?¡±

    It was obvious how distressed Zhang Siyi was by looking at his face. Zhang Siyi replied: ¡°I don¡¯t know. Maybe I can find somewhere to live on my own. I¡¯m waiting for him to contact me about his situation.¡±

    Zhang Siyi turned around and headed to the kitchen to prepare lunch. Remembering the time he was at Gu Yu¡¯s house, he also wanted to make Gu Yue help him, but Gu Yu is his boss and he is a subordinate...... Well, he doesn¡¯t have the guts!

    Coming over to Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu asked: ¡°Which room is yours?¡± Gu Yu did not offer to help and asked: ¡°Mind if I look around?¡±

    Out of shyness, he was a little resistant to let Gu Yu into his private space. However, when he was at Gu Yu¡¯s house, Gu Yu graciously let Zhang Siyi into his own bedroom, and thus he couldn¡¯t say no. ¡°Alright. It¡¯s the one across from the living room.¡± Zhang Siyi was chopping vegetables on the chopping board wondering what type of mess was in his room. ¨C I don¡¯t think I made my bed this morning.... Was there anything I needed to hide? (&_&)

    Entering the threshold of Zhang Siyi¡¯s private space, Gu Yu looked around. His bed was unmade and there was a single sofa with a pile of clothes on it. Shaking his head Gu Yu voiced a quiet: ¡°Tsk.¡± Seeing the violin case leaning against his bed, Gu Yu eyes lit up and walked over to look at it carefully.... He is still practicing?

    Across the room was a desk next to a window and on the windowsill was a cactus. In order to inspect the nt further, Gu Yu approached the desk and as he leaned in closer, he bumped Zhang Siyi¡¯sptop that was on the desktop. Since theputer was in sleep mode, the movement caused the notebook screen to lite up.

    Gu Yu nced at it and froze.

    His expression went from astonishment to puzzlement and then, the corners of his mouth lifted in a wide grin. ¡°Fool ...¡±

    Looking at something, Gu Yu felt a sense of indescribably joy.

    In the middle of theputer screen, there was a small window opened with a music score that wasbeled ¡°Summer.¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s attention is not on this score but instead, on the picture behind it.

    Gently clicking on the window to minimize it to the bottom, the screen background was in clear view.

    Last year.... The image Zhang Siyi stole.... The photo of Gu Yu.

    ¡°ch!......¡± The steam rose as Zhang Siyi poured the water in the pan to deze it then frantically picked out the meat. He grumbled to himself: What is Gu Yu doing in my room.... ? Why didn¡¯t hee help me!

    Just as Zhang Siyi was grumbling, Gu Yu appeared in the kitchen. He had his arms folded and was leaning on the doorframe with his weight on one leg. ¡°Would you like me to help?¡±

    Zhang Siyi immediately responded: ¡°Yes, thanks!¡±

    When Gu Yu came over, he took a bowl and helped him deal with the meat in the water: ¡°Tsk. Are these meat slices or chunks?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Meat slices!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°The meat is so thick? Are you going to fry or stew?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Fry ... Its twice cooked.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Ah, it turns out that, not only can you really cook, but you can also do the dishes!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Don¡¯t fucking help!

    With the help of Gu Yu frying two dishes, after ny minutes, Zhang Siyi finished three courses and one soup. When the meal was finished, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t want to move at all, but Gu Yu conscientiously got up and went to wash the dishes. Zhang Siyi was watching Gu Yu slowly rinse a te and it seemed like he was deep in thought and was about to say something serious to him.

    Gu Yu¡¯s phone suddenly rang. He stepped aside to answer it and Zhang Siyi wanted to listen:

    ¡°Now? Where are you? ......¡±

    ¡°No, I¡¯m resting, at a friend¡¯s house ... ¡± Gu Yu turned his head and looked at Zhang Siyi.

    Only hearing parts of the conversation Zhang Siyi said: ¡°Do you have work? It¡¯s alright. You should go.¡±

    Gu Yu frowned. He replied to the person on the phone: ¡°Well, wait a minute, I¡¯lle over now.¡±

    Hanging up the phone, Gu Yu turned to look at Zhang Siyi in the eye and then exined: ¡°A friend of mine wanted to talk privately about a project.¡±

    ¡°Oh.¡± Zhang Siyi nodded. Unlike the past, when Gu Yu directly dropped what he was doing for business, Zhang Siyi isn¡¯t sure why now, Gu Yu was exining his private affairs to him.

    Gu Yu put on his coat and shoes and said: ¡°Well, I¡¯ll head out.¡±

    Zhang Siyi lowered his head and said: ¡°I¡¯ll walk you out.¡±

    Even though Gu Yu replied ¡°No need,¡± he was still standing at the door.

    Noticing Gu Yu¡¯s motionless, Zhang Siyi was a little puzzled and looked up at him to see Gu Yu watching him closely.

    ¡°You...¡± Gu Yu originally wanted to ask Zhang Siyi, ¡®Is there something you want to tell me?¡¯ However, only a simple word was spoken and instead he rubbed Zhang Siyi¡¯s head like it was the most natural thing to do.

    Frozen in ce, his face quickly turned red. He felt hot.

    Watching Zhang Siyi with affection in his eyes, Gu Yu spoke three words with the most gentle and intimate tone: ¡°See you tomorrow.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s mind was nk and only robotically replied: ¡°Ok, see you tomorrow.¡± Thirty minutester, he returned to earth. (o////o)

    ...........

    The weekend came to a close and Zhang Siyi went to work on Monday. Due to continued fatigue, his hand still trembled while working on his drawing. After Gu Yu left his home, he went crazy and practiced violin all afternoon.

    Even though he didn¡¯t know why Gu Yu was not at the office on Monday, he guessed it was rted to the phone call he received yesterday concerning a friend. Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t feel bad. All he had to do was thinking about yesterday¡¯s ¡®touch head¡¯.

    Sure enough, in the afternoon when he went to use the restroom, he quickly checked his social media and saw Gu Yu¡¯s post. There was a photo of a foreign market and it wasbeled ¡°business trip.¡±

    Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t stop himself and replied: ¡°Where have you been?¡±

    Based on past examples, he wasn¡¯t expecting a quick reply. However, by the time he was done using the restroom, he saw another message from Gu Yu.

    Gu Yu: ¡°Don¡¯t use social media during office hours.¡± [Smile]

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Don¡¯t you brush your circle of friends when you¡¯re on a fucking business trip!

    Even after three days, Gu Yu did note to work. His construction n encountered a few snags and with Du Rui help he thought he fixed them. Although Zhang Siyi already knew his whereabouts, he was tortured by the sudden desire to see him. What, ¡°See you tomorrow?¡± Ha! Liar! (t_t)

    It wasn¡¯t until Friday morning that Gu Yu came back to thepany. He was carrying a suitcase, wearing a coat, and with dark circles under his eyes. It was clearly evident that he had returned to the office straight from the airport.

    While Gu Yu was walking to his office, Zhang Siyi looked at him with excitement and adoration. He wanted Gu Yu to acknowledge him, but unexpectedly, Miss Wang of the personnel department came over: ¡°Director Gu, there is a young man named Tao Fei in the reception room saying he has an appointment with you for an interview today.¡±

    ¡°Yes. Tell him to wait another five minutes for me.¡± Gu Yu replied and rushed into his office without a nce towards Zhang Siyi.

 Chapter 98: Tao Fei

    <h4>Chapter 98: Tao Fei</h4>

    __________________

    Rushing to drop off his things, Gu Yu entered and left his office briefly, then walked to the elevator, presumably, to meet the new person downstairs. Hearing the news, the office staff whispered amongst themselves.

    ¡°Yeah, spring time in the new year is the peak period of job recruiting.¡±

    ¡°But, isn¡¯t the current industry not doing very well? How can thepany higher new people?¡±

    ¡°My ssmates have mentioned manyyoffs in their ownpanies.¡±

    ¡°Yes, even at thispany, there were two that left at the end ofst year.¡±

    ¡°Why is there a new person being interviewed? Is one of us going to get cut?¡±

    ¡°There isn¡¯t a rush with the recent projects so why do we need another group member?¡±

    ¡°In order to ensure the continuation of work flow and talent, thepany will higher a new recruit to providepetitive pressure to help motivate the staff otherwise, under the stable environment, people may becent and lose their drive to work diligently.¡±

    ......

    That¡¯s right, the new prospective employee hasn¡¯t even been hired yet and Zhang Siyi already feels the pressure! Since working at Borderless for more than a half hear, he hasn¡¯t seen Gu Yu interview anyone. In Zhang Siyi¡¯s mind, because the working conditions were very harmonious, he assumed the personnel will remain fixed and did not expect a new face to join the team.

    With the threat to his territory, instinctively Zhang Siyi cursed the surname Tao. ¨C Be unqualified.... Don¡¯t get hired....... (&_&)

    Continuing to gossip, the room was full of whispers and conjectures. Bi Lele suddenly asked: ¡°Wait a minute. Usually, when someone is looking for a job, the personnel departmentes to ask Boss when he has time in his schedule, right? But just now, the personnel department said the person already had an appointment. Did I hear that wrong?¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°Well, I heard it too. Maybe it is someone the Director already knows.¡±

    Since Zhang Siyi was thest person to get hired, he was on high alert. If there is a new recruit, does that mean thepany is unsatisfied with his work? Thinking about it further, Zhang Siyi is remined of something Gu Senior said to him during New Year¡¯s: It is not Gu Yu, but you who decides whether or not you can walk on this path.

    If he is the weakest link in the group, even if Gu Yu wants him to continue to work, Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t have the right to stay. Along this line of thinking, Zhang Siyi pressure is even greater and as a result, he broke out into a cold sweat, put his head down and focused on his drawing. Ten minutester, from the elevator, Gu Yu appeared with a tall, handsome young man.

    When one of the female colleagues loudly eximed ¡®so handsome¡¯ the people around her looked up to see what the ruckus was about. Not surprisingly, it was the new recruit the personnel mentioned earlier with the surname Tao.

    He hadrge eyes with deep sockets, a high nose, and long shoulder-length hair. Although he was a man, his facial features were unique with an attractiveness that was neither masculine nor feminine, both striking and sexy.

    Like Zhang Siyi¡¯s first day at thepany, the young man was given the tour of the area. However, unlike Zhang Siyi, the young man¡¯s tour guide was Gu Yu making Zhang Siyi feel that this other person was more valued them himself. Noticing the difference in treatment, Zhang Siyi started to feel irritated.

    As they slowly approached, Zhang Siyi could hear Gu Yu talking: ¡°This is the work area of our group. There are currently eleven and with you, that makes twelve.¡± Gu Yu stopped and announced to everyone: ¡°This is Tao Fei. He is an undergraduate of T University and a Master¡¯s degree graduate from the UK. He will start today and join Group A.¡±

    ¡°Wow, another international student!¡±

    ¡°Like Auntie Four, he is also from Ennd......¡±

    ¡°Undergraduate is big T. So, he is Gu Yu¡¯s ssmate?¡±

    ¡°No wonder the interview time was so fast. It turns out that it¡¯s someone the Boss knows.¡±

    With a broad smile that entuated his good looks, Tao Fei raised his arm and in a wide gesture greeted everyone: ¡°Hi¡±

    With his outgoing personality and gorgeous looks, several female staff members were openly staring at him. Winking at them, Tao Fei made the women burst intoughter, lightening up the mood. His disposition easily made people feelfortable and as a result, everyone was very friendly towards Tao Fei. Only Zhang Siyi frowned and felt threatened.

    Gu Yu was in the process of showing Tao Fei to his desk, when he suddenly asked: ¡°Brother, where is your office?¡±

    Using his finger Gu Yu pointed in Zhang Siyi direction: ¡°Over there.¡±

    Tao Fei asked Gu Yu: ¡°Can I sit closer to you?¡±

    Upon hearing this, Zhang Siyi nearly exploded. Fuck! The person close to Gu Yu is him! What does he want? A fight the first day!? (`¦¤¡¯)

    Finally, after so many days apart Gu Yu noticed Zhang Siyi sitting at his desk for the first time today and did not expect to see him looking so angry.

    Fortunately, Gu Yu easily exined: ¡°The seat closest to my office is filled.¡±

    Tao Fei looked a little sad. Gu Yu continued: ¡°Even though other employees don¡¯t want to sit under my eyes, you want to get closer to my office. Oh, I will warn you in advance, I won¡¯t talk to you about private matters.¡±

    These words were spoken in front of everyone in a manner that is made clear. Gu Yu won¡¯t be treating Tao Fei differently even though they knew each other in University.

    Tao Fei did not care, but also joked: ¡°Oh, I¡¯m so afraid.¡±

    Laughing out loud, Gu Yu said: ¡°Fear is good. Someone has already given me the nickname Big Devil, so you better watch out.¡± As he was talking, he nced at Zhang Siyi quickly.

    Tao Fei: ¡°Hey! Who said that?¡±

    Group A: ¡°...¡± They also want to know!

    Zhang Siyi froze in his seat and shrunk down to make himself seem smaller. Months ago, he felt he was being unfairly treated and called Gu Yu a ¡®Big Devil¡¯ in private, but he never told anyone. He wrote it on a small piece of paper that was buried in the cactusmp he gave him. Did Gu Yu possibly find it?

    Making arrangements to sit near Ji Feiyu, Gu Yumanded Tao Fei: ¡°Get organized. When you familiarize yourself with the office,e to me. I have received a project recently that is very suitable for you to do.¡±

    Tao Fei exaggerated the pretense: ¡°Wow, a project on the first day? The pressure is great.¡±

    Gu Yu picked up his eyebrows: ¡°Don¡¯t be stupid. I didn¡¯t invite you here to be a wall-flower.¡±

    That said, everyone has already witnessed the importance of this person in Group A by Tao Fei¡¯s attitude. Although the age gap between Gu Yu and his subordinates isn¡¯trge, as his position as a director, he has always maintained a certain level of distance between himself and his group members. Even though Tao Fei said ¡®fearful¡¯ and ¡®pressure is so great¡¯, with his yful attitude, it is clear he doesn¡¯tpletely treat Gu Yu as the boss.

    The more he listened, the more Zhang Siyi felt ufortable.

    After an hour, Gu Yu returned to the office. Looking like he was deeply in thought, Gu Yu came out of his office for a ss of water and when he finished, he turned and stepped forward towards Zhang Siyi. He whispered, ¡°How is your design going?¡±

    Feeling irritated and depressed, Zhang Siyi nearly jumped out of his seat in surprised when he suddenly heard Gu Yu¡¯s voice close to his ear. He quickly let him see the results of his work these past few days.

    Seeing Gu Yu hold the mouse directly, Zhang Siyi started to move out of the way, but Gu Yu reached out and held his shoulder: ¡°You sit.¡± Gu Yu leaned in close and used his other hand to tilt the monitor. As he reviewed Zhang Siyi work, Gu Yu¡¯s hand never left his shoulder. Zhang Siyi sat motionless, neither pushing him away, nor shrinking from his touch. Only his heart was pounding nervously.

    Since he spent several months learning by working on bathrooms and parking lots, there were very few problems in his current design. As Gu Yu quickly flipped through the drawings, he marked where the few issues were and he also had a few questions.

    As Zhang Siyi twisted his body to reach over and grab a pen and paper to write notes, by this action, he expected Gu Yu to let go of his shoulder, but he did not and Zhang Siyi felt a bit ufortable.

    While Gu Yu was reviewing his work, Tao Fei came over. ¡°What are you doing? Oh, you evene personally to review work progress.¡± Tao Fei stood behind Zhang Siyi and said coldly: ¡°The Director must be tired.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu removed his hands and stood up: ¡°Do you have experience drawing blueprints?¡±

    Tao Fei crossed his arms and said: ¡°Have you forgotten our five internships? It¡¯s all I drew for three months that I wanted to vomit... I¡¯m so happy to be a graduate now.¡±

    Gu Yu smirked and did not respond to Tao Fei¡¯s evaluation: ¡±I know you have the foundation, but in the interview I did not ask. I am worried that you will be unable to meet the domestic needs after returning from University.¡±

    Tao Fei smiled and said: ¡± What interview? We are acquaintances. Stop being so serious.¡±

    Gu Yu said: ¡°I always have to go through the formalities,¡± then suddenly, he reached out and squeezed the back of Zhang Siyi¡¯s neck. Gu Yu whispered to him: ¡°Continue drawing,¡± then turned and signaled Tao Fei to follow him to his office.

    With his neck stretched out like a goose, Zhang Siyi sat in his seat frozen. Even though the uneasiness caused by Tao Fei presence slightly decreased by Gu Yu¡¯s intimate gesture, Zhang Siyi heart surged in another direction. Shit! Why did he have to pinch his neck! (q////q)

    Getting ready to work on his design again, he refocused his attention. However, he suddenly heard a burst of happyughter in the office behind him. He didn¡¯t know what Tao Fei and Gu Yu were talking about.

    ......Was that rted to work? Zhang Siyi has never heard such a happy sounding from Gu¡¯s office before. The brief taste of sweetness that quickly turned sour ignited Zhang Siyi¡¯spetitive spirit.

    Opening thepany¡¯s message system on hisputer, Zhang Siyi clicked on Du Rui icon and wrote: ¡°Du Rui, will you help me? I want to finish the blueprints in two weeks!¡± (¨tÃó¨s)

 Chapter 99: Effort

    <h4>Chapter 99: Effort</h4>

    __________________

    Du Rui sent back a series of exmation marks and asked: ¡°What are you so excited about?¡±

    The appearance of Tao Fei stimted Zhang Siyi to the extreme. Not only did Tao Fei study in the UK and earn a Master¡¯s degree, he is also a good-looking man from the same University as Gu Yu. Since the foothold he felt he had in Gu Yu¡¯s heart waspletely shaken, Zhang Siyi felt insecure. Even if he can¡¯t obtain Gu Yu¡¯s love, he didn¡¯t want to be let go forck of work diligence and talent.

    Zhang Siyi was anxious: ¡°Teach me the quickest way! Let¡¯s workte! I¡¯ll take you to dinner!¡±

    With the repeated requests, Zhang Siyi was practically begging and as a result Du Rui relented: ¡°Ok, Ok. Let¡¯s finish the office building. When drafting the blueprints, you need to pay attention to the details of the project as it is very easy to make mistakes. As you gain experience, you will gain a few tricks and make things easier in the future.¡±

    Under the guidance Du Rui, Zhang Siyi felt appeased. No matter how determined one is, a person must take one small step at a time. Now that he felt calmer, he focused his attention on his drawings and revised them as Gu Yu suggested.

    While working to finish up what he was doing before eating lunch at noon, movement in the corner of his eye caught his attention. When he looked up and saw Gu Yu together with Tao Fei going downstairs, his stomach got caught in his throat. For his own lunch, he went to the dining area, grabbed a bento in a hurry and went back to his desk to continue drawing.

    Zhu Hongzhen noticed Zhang Siyi acting strangely: ¡°What happened to Zhang Siyi? Why is he so angry suddenly?¡±

    Specting, Bi Lele shrugged and whispered: ¡°Maybe he feels pressured because of the new guy.¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen rubbed his chin in thought: ¡°It could be. Now he isn¡¯t the only international student in our group!¡±

    Zhang Siyi was trying to ignore their whispering, but when he heard his colleagues say they also thought there waspetition, Zhang Siyi looked up at them desperately.

    Choking back water, Zhu Hongzhen almost spit out his mouthful of liquid. They were casually talking, but is it really true?

    Bi Lele was also caught off-guard by Zhang Siyi pitiful expression: ¡°Don¡¯t worry Auntie Four! You are our groups¡¯ mascot. The new guy is too high-profile and definitely not as popr as you are!¡±

    Zhang Siyi murmured: ¡°Uh huh,¡± and went on to draw.

    Zhu Hongzhen wiped his mouth and said: ¡°You are working so hard, it¡¯s going to make me embarrassed.¡± Zhu Hongzhen psyched himself up: ¡°Draw more!¡±

    Bi Lele: ¡°Hey! It¡¯s still a lunch break!¡±

    Zhang Siyi knows that poprity doesn¡¯t mean everything and the best people also have real talent and work ethic. He recognized his colleagues¡¯ contributions by the hard-working attitudes that everyone has in the group. If he doesn¡¯t put forth his greatest effort, then what value does he have?

    Thinking about the past two days, Zhang Siyi realized how much his mental state suffered while missing Gu Yu. Zhang Siyi gave himself a p in the face and opened he social media page: ¡°Working: I¡¯m closed¡±

    When he finished updating his social media status, he felt like he was able to temporarily shelf his feelings for Gu Yu and finally devote himself to his work without distractions. -If I can¡¯t even manage drawing the blueprints well, what qualifications do I have to like him?

    At 6:15 in the evening, the office staff in twos and threes, were packing up and getting ready to leave work.

    When Gu Yu came out of the office, he saw Zhang Siyi¡¯ empty desk. Even though his seat was vacant, hisputer was still on: ¡°What about Zhang Siyi?¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°Well, he went to dinner with Du Rui. I think he is nning to work overtime.¡±

    Gu Yu went to Zhang Siyi¡¯s desk and looked at the progress he was making on in hisputer. By two in the afternoon, the two nes were already finished and the previous problems have also been changed. He has been very focused.

    Zhu Hongzhen peeked at Gu Yu while he was looking at Zhang Siyi work. Seeing the broad smile on Gu Yu¡¯s face, he couldn¡¯t help but think to himself: Hey, the Boss really has so much ¡°love¡± for Aunt Four and the blessed fool has no idea!¡±

    ¡°Brother!¡± At this time, Tao Fei walked over to Gu Yu and warmly said: ¡°Are you getting off work? Let¡¯s go eat together. You covered lunch so I¡¯ll get us dinner.¡±

    Gu Yu straightened up and hesitated for a moment: ¡°I¡¯m going to stay at the office for a little while.¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°Hmm? Didn¡¯t you say you were on a business trip for four days, so why do you have overtime? It¡¯s Saturday tomorrow. Why don¡¯t you go home early tonight?¡±

    Gu Yu exined: ¡°Under normal circumstances, when there are group members that stay for overtime, I also stay for a while and make myself avable so there won¡¯t be problems.

    Tao Fei was astonished: ¡°Oh my God! What are you? A Director? You¡¯re a babysitter!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°¡­¡­¡±

    Witnessing the interaction between the stern Gu Yu and the high-profile Tao Fei, Zhu Hongzhenughed out loud. It was the first time he saw someone dare address the boss in such an informal manner.

    When Gu Yu had nothing to say, Tao Fei realized he stepped out of line and quickly followed-up: ¡°Ok, OK. You still need to eat. Let¡¯s go downstairs. I want to know what¡¯s been going on with you thesest few years!¡±

    Gu Yu shook his head helplessly: ¡°Wait a minute and I¡¯ll grab my coat.¡±

    As the two of them headed to the elevator, there was no end to Tao Fei¡¯s happy chatter. Unexpectedly, when the elevator door opened, he saw Zhang Siyi and Du Rui inside with their meals. Gu Yu eyes brightened immediately.

    As the doors opened, Zhang Siyi caught sight of Tao Fei with Gu Yu and he quickly averted his eyes. Gu Yu was about to greet him but was cut off by a respective bow and a duet of ¡®Boss¡¯ as Zhang Siyi and Du Rui quickly exited the elevator.

    Watching Zhang Siyi¡¯s back, Gu Yu frowned. Under the urging of Tao Fei, he hurried into the elevator and as a result, he did not have a moment to contemte Zhang Siyi¡¯s behavior.

    When Zhang Siyi returned to his desk, he saw several red circles on his work in CAD on theputer. Concerned, he asked Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°Piggy, who made these marks on my draft?¡±

    Putting his arms above his head, Zhu Hongzhen yawned and stretched out: ¡°Who else could it be? The Boss.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡­¡± Since Gu Yu and Tao Fei were inseparable today, Zhang Siyi was feeling depressed. Even so, knowing Gu Yu spent time to look at his work, Zhang Siyi feltforted.

    Since he was working overtime by his own choice, Zhang Si Yi did not have the nerve to stay in thepany for too long. Du Rui was also just a guide and would not stay toote. Cheer-up was waiting for him at home so at eight in the evening, Zhang Siyi gathered his belongings and went home.

    When he got home, he walked the dog, imported a copy of his work from the office onto hisputer and drew another two hours. After, he practiced the violin for another hour and at one o¡¯clock in the morning, he went to bed. On a normal day, he would spend some time looking through his social media before sleeping, but because of his oath today, he resisted the urge to get his phone. Since the day was so busy, when his head hit the pillow and he closed his eyes, he fell asleep right away.

    During the weekend, Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t idle. He woke up early like a work day to continue his progress on his ns. When an issue came up, he got in contact with Du Rui online to resolve it.

    As it turns out, human potential is infinite. Working throughout Saturday and Sunday, Zhang Siyi finished the t section and fa?ade that was originally scheduled to take two weeks.

    On Monday, when he returned to the office, he showed some of the other professionals the existing n and humbly asked them for a review. Heading their advice, he modified the areas ordingly. Seeing how studious and savvy Zhang Siyi was, one of the older structural engineers was patient with his questions and offered his opinions. Afterwards, he patted Zhang Siyi on the shoulder and boasted: ¡°This young fellow is so good and hard-working!¡±

    The praise he heard from the gentleman was a small constion, but he felt better none the less. With the appearance of Tao Fei, Zhang Siyi sense of crisis was at its peak. He felt irritated and depressed. All he could do was focus on work and forget about where Gu Yu was and who he ate with.

    However, the days were not going as smoothly as he had imagined.

    The end of March is fast approaching and its time to pay rent for the next quarter. Since he has not heard from Fu Xinhui, Zhang Siyi was very distressed. What were Fu Xinhui¡¯s intentions? Was heing back? What is the status of his rent? Is it a waste of money to live alone? As his anxiety grew, he decided to call Fu Xinhui directly.

    Reminding Fu Xinhui of the issue of rent, he said: ¡°Let¡¯s meet tomorrow at night.¡±

    Zhang Siyi had a bad feeling, but he couldn¡¯t ask on the phone. He could only wait until he spoke with him face to face. Leaving work early, Zhang Siyi went to the hot-pot shop the two used to eat at to meet. Wearing a ck hoodie and scarf, Fu Xinhui was thirty minuteste. Like a character in a spy movie, he looked all around the area to see if he was being followed.

    A few minutes after entering the restaurant, Fu Xinhui rxed a little. He removed his sunsses and looked at Zhang Siyi: ¡°I miss you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Poof!¡±

    That¡¯s a pretty good line.¡­¡­

    Fortunately, Fu Xinhui next questioned pulled the not-so-straight-man, Zhang Siyi, back from his misunderstanding: ¡°Is Cheer-Up alright?¡±

    Wiping the sweat from his forehead, Zhang Siyi said: ¡°Do you want to hear about me or the dog?¡±

    ¡°Do you want to hear the truth?¡± Fu Xinhui poured a cup of tea and said: ¡°I want to hear what you have ben doing, but I want to hear about Cheer-Up more.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡­ You go to hell! I¡¯m babysitting your dog!¡± (¨s¨FÃó¡¯)¨s(©ß©¥©ß

    Pouting, Fu Xinhui dismissed Zhang Siyi: ¡°You may not know my feelings very well. Like my own child, I nned to raise the dog for the rest of my life. He came into my life at my most vulnerable time and apanied me every day. He gave me strength and warmth and now, I have to give him to another take care of. It¡¯s really painful¡­.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was so angry that he said: ¡°Fuck! I¡¯m still at your side when you are the most difficult!¡±

    Fu Xinhui sighed and said: ¡°Dogs and people are not the same. People have more than one thing to devote their lives to. Dogs, on the other hand, are only at ease by their master¡¯s side. Well, it is hard to exin the feeling of unconditional loyalty¡­.¡±

    Steam was practically bellowing from Zhang Siyi ears. He mocked: ¡°You think that stupid dog is loyal? Forget it. Thest time Gu Yu came to our house, the dog acted like Gu Yu was his master and best friend.¡±

    Fu Xinhui said: ¡°You took Gu Yu to our house?¡±

 Chapter 100: Metamorphosis

    <h4>Chapter 100: Metamorphosis</h4>

    _________________________

    The tone in which Fu Xinhui spoke, made Zhang Siyi feel guilty like he was on trial for ¡®taking another man to our home¡¯ and ¡®letting the other man touch the head of the ex-husband¡¯s son.¡¯

    Ah, what a mess! (=_=)

    Zhang Siyi coughed and said: ¡°He helped me with driving practice, so I made him something to eat at home as thanks. You aren¡¯t here. It is just me and the dog and brace yourself, it¡¯s actually kind of lonely.¡±

    These two sentences are separate, but that is not the case in others¡¯ ears. At the side of the table, the waitress collected the used dishes before the next course was served and brought them back to the kitchen: ¡°There is a couple on the table over there.... the ex-boyfriend isining about the new lover going to their house. What is wrong with this world when the most handsome men are actually gay!?¡±

    ......

    Squinting at him, Fu Xinhui was speechless: ¡°Say... Why are you exining so much?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    While habitually putting the vegetables and meat into the pot first, Fu Xinhui apologized: ¡°Recently a lot of things have happened and for a long time, I did not contact you. I¡¯m very sorry about that. Let me exin little by little.¡±

    Zhang Siyi nodded repeatedly, waiting for him to talk!

    As a result, the first thing Fu Xinhui blurted out was a bombshell: ¡°Our family is bankrupt.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...... What!? How can the family be bankrupt? Why don¡¯t you pay off the money your uncle owes?¡±

    Fu Xinhui took another sip of tea and said: ¡°It¡¯s not as simple as you think. My uncle offended too many people so they went after us. The bankruptcy isn¡¯t rted to those people. I remember telling you before that my dad gave my uncle part of thepany in the past. The problem is a result of my uncle¡¯s debts which put financial pressure on thepany and caused a credit crisis.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Well, you also said that yourpany¡¯s listing has encountered problems.¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°The credit crisis caused thepany to stall operations. We owed the bank arge sum of money as well as the loan-sharks. Now, all the family¡¯s funds have been frozen, including the vi we live in. Since its mortgaged, it will be liquidated by the bank to pay off the debt.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi did not expect the things that happen to people on TV, to happen one day to his best friend.

    People can get rich overnight, but also, they can lose everything overnight. Since birth, Fu Xinhui lived in a worry-free, luxurious environment. Now that his family has suffered such a big turn of events, Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t know if he will be able to bear it.

    Zhang Siyi asked again: ¡°What about your sister?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Remember I told you about the bodyguard that beat the man, right? The police questioned my sister and investigated for a couple of weeks while she was in detention. Since the surveince was cut, there was no evidence and no matter how many times they asked, there was no answer. My father used his connections and got my sister out. But you know... that kind of ce isn¡¯t a ce for a woman.¡±

    Fu Xinhui covered his face: ¡°All because I am like this. I feel so guilty¡±

    Zhang Siyi hesitated: ¡°Did you reconcile with her?¡±

    Fu Xinhui nodded and said: ¡°She used to hate me, but I never took the time to try and improve my rtionship with her. All I ever did was avoid her. After some time, she started resenting me and also, I misunderstood her. She has a strong, overbearing character, but no matter what, we are brother and sister.¡±

    Fu Xinhui smiled and said with emotion: ¡°It¡¯s true. In the face of adversity, people grow stronger. Although our family has no money now, I feel that together, we are better then what we were before.¡±

    Contrary to Zhang Siyi¡¯s worries, Fu Xinhui seems to be taking his family problems in stride. His attitude has be more positive than it was previously.

    Zhang Siyi was somewhat relieved. He curiously asked: ¡°If the bank took your house away, where is your family living now?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Living in my brother-inw¡¯s house.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Your brother-inw?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Yes when my sister fell in love, she bought my brother-inw a house as a Valentine¡¯s Day gift. Since the three-bedroom house was in his name, the bank could not take it away. Although it is smallpared to our original house, the crisis is over. My parents, sister and brother-inw and I live under one roof. Although crowded, it¡¯s good and is a different kind of feeling. Hehe.¡±

    Zhang Siyi alsoughed and said: ¡°When your family encountered this situation and your brother-inw did not leave, it seems that your sister¡¯s eyes are quite good.¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Yes, although their wedding ceremony could not formally bepleted, in my parent¡¯s heart, he is already their son-inw.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Ha-ha! ...... What about your uncle?

    Fu Xinhui sighed: ¡°Under the pressure of our family, my Father finally gave up the idea of using connections to get him out. My sister also insisted that my uncle ept the consequences. He would only end up harming others again.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was relived: ¡°I was worried that you really had nothing left!¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Even if there isn¡¯t money and we don¡¯t have a house, my father has friends and connections. They recognize my father¡¯s true character and they also know my Uncle was the problem.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s true.¡± Zhang Siyi nodded in recognition then asked: ¡°So what are you going to do next?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°My father said there are people still watching us so we can¡¯t rush things. Since the bank is liquidating the family¡¯s estate, my parents are busy with paperwork and procedures.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°After everything that has happened, why didn¡¯t you contact me?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Well, everything that has happened so far has been beyond my expectations. I never told you because I didn¡¯t know what to say. There isn¡¯t much you can help with other then to simply listen.¡±

    Zhang Siyi quickly replied: ¡°That¡¯s how you treat your best friend? Even if it¡¯s just talking, then talk to me!¡±

    Chuckling, Fu Xinhui poured a ss of wine for him: ¡°Forget it. I know you are busy with work and don¡¯t want you to worry about me. Over this past month, I have worried about our money problems, my sister, and my parents. Althoughpared to the safety of my family and loves ones, I am not very concerned about money. For this reason, I did not want to bother you in fear of your life also being threatened. Since it would greatly add more stress on me, I couldn¡¯t bear it. I also have taken this time to contemte life and other things. It¡¯s not easy to say it, but I don¡¯t know how to live. Everyday feels like I am in a movie without a director telling me what to do next.¡±

    Taking a moment to inspect Fu Xinhui more thoroughly, Zhang Siyi saw how gaunt and haggard he looked. At the same time, he has matured and now, hope is written on his face and light shines from his eyes. It is as if Fu Xinhui has experienced a rebirth.

    Suddenly, he remembered his father¡¯s New Year¡¯s evaluation of Fu Xinhui about the need to take care of himself. Only he will be able to stand up on his feet and move forward in life.¡±

    After three months, at the same restaurant in the same seat, Zhang Siyi is very happy. Here he witnessed Fu Xinhui metamorphosis.

    Gently tapping the ss together, they gave a toast, then gulped down the wine.

    Fu Xinhui said: ¡°I can¡¯t continue renting a house with you.¡±

    After listening to so much, Zhang Siyi expected this result. Fu Xinhui may not be able to spend as much money as before. ¡°It¡¯s all right, you don¡¯t need to rent it. Since I can¡¯t afford to live there alone, I¡¯ll move out and find something suitable.¡± Zhang Siyi calmly epted the reality.

    Fu Xinhui nodded: ¡°There isn¡¯t a rush to move out right now. I spoke with thendlord about my intentions to withdraw from the rental contract. It was a year lease and it ends in June so there is one more quarter left however, I negotiated a deal with thendlord to let you stay until the end of the month and terminate the contract early without penalties. Thendlord was easy to talk to since the property is in a good location and easy to rent.¡±

    Zhang Siyi breathed a sigh of relief: ¡°Twenty days gives me time to find an alternative solution. If you had told me I had to move right away and since I¡¯m not prepared at all, I don¡¯t know what I would have done.... Oh, yeh. I still owe you rent for the next month.

    ¡°No, forget it. I have caused you a lot of trouble and you have helped me a lot already.¡± Fu Xinhui gave Zhang Siyi a brief smile and said: ¡°There is onest thing you can help me with.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Ok.¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°The reason I won¡¯t rent a house with you is not only because of my financial problems. It is because I am going abroad soon.

    Zhang Siyi was caught off guard: ¡°WHAT?¡±

    Fu Xinhui exined: ¡°My father is afraid that the nefarious people will go after me so he raised some money to send me abroad. One reason is to avoid the mob, but also to learn new skills. Recently, I went with my sister to learn about her work as an investment manager. I felt like finance was much more interesting than architecture. I applied to a University in Australia and once the visa is issued, I can leave at any time.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was shocked: ¡°This is too fast!¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°So, Cheer-Up ... Please continue taking care of him.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Holy shit, he¡¯s going to be a dog babysitter for the rest of his life!

    With his hands sped together, Fu Xinhui looked at Zhang Siyi with a pleading face and said: ¡°I¡¯ll be back in three years at thetest. Cheer-Up is a lucky dog and will bring you happiness and good luck!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡± Lucky? Are you out of your fucking mind!

 Chapter 100 Extra: [Small Theater] 004: First Love article â€“ Gu Yu

    <h4>Chapter 100 Extra: [Small Theater] 004: First Love article ¨C Gu Yu</h4>

    ________________________________

    Ever since Gu Yu saw Zhang Siyi¡¯sputer screen, the haze of the whole world was fading.

    For more than six months, he has been trying to figure out whether Zhang Siyi is interested in him or not. Every time Gu Yu thought Zhang Siyi¡¯s mannerisms suggested he did, Zhang Siyi actions would indicate the opposite direction and thus confusing Gu Yu to no end. He has orchestrated multiple situations to allow Zhang Siyi to confess his thoughts, like the truth or dare gamest year, but nothing has happened. Although, perhaps at that time Zhang Siyi really did not know......

    In short, during that period, Gu Yu felt that the time wasn¡¯t right.

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s intimate actions and then immediate change in attitude has made Gu Yu suffer greatly; unhappiness, loss, loneliness, to name a few feelings. But, the most troubling feeling Gu Yu had, was his inability to use his own judgment.

    It wasn¡¯t until the moment he saw his own image on Zhang Siyiputer screen that Gu Yu had the evidence he needed with sufficient certainty that Zhang Siyi liked him.

    What straight man would use another man¡¯s picture as a desktop background?

    Oh, and besides, that little fool is really practicing ¡°Summer¡± ......

    In every way that Gu Yu noticed Zhang Siyi looking at him; from the look of adoration and infatuation to the innocent need to gain Gu Yu¡¯s attention as well as Zhang Siyi¡¯s sneaky nces, he liked him.

    In every reaction Zhang Siyi expressed after being teased, whether he was angry, depressed, shy or na?ve, he liked him.

    ......

    After his four-day business trip, Gu Yu wanted to sit down with Zhang Siyi for a serious talk, but with Zhang Siyi¡¯s recent attitude, Gu Yu doubted his own judgment.

    Zhang Siyi suddenly began to adamantly focus on his work. So much so, that he changed his online social media status to ¡®closed.¡¯

    Because Tao Fei is a new staff member, he wasn¡¯t able to spare the time to find Zhang Siyi and talk to him. Even though he has made himself avable for work, Zhang Siyi has not asked him about project rted issues.

    ¡ª Are you avoiding me? Do you suspect something after seeing yourputer screen? Are you still thinking about your feelings?

    Well, as long as the issue is about his own feelings, Gu Yu is willing to wait. As long as Zhang Siyi continues to go to work at the office, he will be at ease.

    Gu Yu is always looking forward to the day when Zhang Siyi can honestly admit his feelings and take the first step towards him.

    Then, he will not hesitate to pull him into his arms, hold him tight, and not let go.

    Gu Yu doesn¡¯t know when summeres, but he feels that spring is already in sight.

    [End of 004]

 Chapter 101: Entrust

    <h4>Chapter 101: Entrust</h4>

    _____________________

    Since Fu Xinhui personally came to ask Zhang for help, it shows him how much faith and trust Fu Xinhui had for Zhang Siyi. No matter what personal feelings Zhang Siyi had for the dog, his only choice was to help his friend and say yes.

    When the realization of being alone settled in his mind, Zhang Siyi went through a series ofplex emotions. Three years doesn¡¯t sound like a lot, but who know what will happen in the future. He could be tied to the stupid dog for the next fifteen years! ¡­¡­ Aaaaaahhhhh!

    Zhang Siyi suggested: ¡°Do you want to get together with Jian Hai before you go and tell him about going abroad? ¡°

    Fu Xinhui shook his head no: ¡°If I tell him, he will inevitable ask about my family affairs, and although we are ssmates, his rtionship with me isn¡¯t the same as mine is towards you. ¡°

    Zhang Siyi can understand. Fu Xinhui doesn¡¯t want to air out his dirtyundry and he probably doesn¡¯t want any sympathy from others.

    Fu Xinhui continued: ¡°And besides, everyone is very busy. We have not gathered for a long time. If here is anything to talk about, we can use WeChat. It¡¯s not necessary to talk in person.¡±

    Zhang Siyi wanted to refute, but when he thought about it, what Fu Xinhui said was true.

    The small group of friends became acquainted with one another through their time at University studying architecture abroad. Even though they were very close in the past, when they returned to China, the number of times they all met together was less than three. It¡¯s not like they aren¡¯t friends anymore, but everyone had their own life to live so naturally people have drifted apart. What Jiang Hai said months ago about gathering less in the future because of everyone¡¯s busy schedule, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know how prophetic the words would be.

    Zhang Siyi mentioned the Turtle Club and joked with Fu Xinhui: ¡°How did your rent-boy duties turn out? Did you find the experience worth it?¡±

    Fu Xinhuiughed out loud: ¡°I went a few times before my family¡¯s financial problems. I met a friend who studied abroad in Australia. I also contacted her and asked her questions about the University situation there.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Oh? Well, that is something at least. I was worried you were being cheated!¡±

    Fu Xinhui smiled and poured more wine. He said: ¡°I didn¡¯t spend a lot of time there. My conversations at the club were all superficial. Even if I wanted more, I wasn¡¯t able to give more.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What do you mean?

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°I went twice and both times, every person I met asked me what I did. I had nothing to respond with so I told people I was learning architecture. Even though that is what I said, I still didn¡¯t feel connected to the industry. It¡¯s like architecture was only part of my imagination.¡±

    Zhang Siyi nodded and remembered the time Gu Yu asked Fu Xinhui the same question and asked why he didn¡¯t work and Fu Xinhui didn¡¯t have much of a reason to respond with.

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Before, I thoughtworking with people was most important, but now I don¡¯t feel that way. What is most important is my own strength because strength is the capital to make friends. If you don¡¯t prove your worth, people aren¡¯t going to care about you.¡±

    While sipping his wine, Zhang Si Yi listened attentively and he was quite touched.

    After a long time, Fu Xinhui casually asked Zhang Siyi how he had been doing recently.

    Thinking about the emotional turmoil he feels because of Gu Yu, he had a sudden impulse to tell his secret to his best friend.

    He opened he mouth to say something then hesitated¡­¡­¡­.

    His mind sh through his recent thoughts about Gu Yu¡¯s current attitude and Tao Fei¡¯s appearance at work. He wasn¡¯t sure if Gu Yu liked men, let alone whether or not he could be with him. Unlike talking about a man¡¯s romantic feelings for a woman, it isn¡¯t an easy topic to confide in with a friend. It could very well be only Zhang Siyi¡¯s secret love and with the time, the rising and falling tide in his heart could subside and be calm. At that time, he could just pretend like it never happened. But once he said it, no matter whom he said it to, it meant that he was out of the closet and he could never go back.

    ¡­..¡­.. As he was about to say something, Zhang Siyi furrowed his brows slightly. He smiled and said: ¡°I am doing good. Everything is basically the same.¡±

    Fu Xinhui nodded, and the conversation of the two men turned to other topics.

    The two friends chatted for the whole night filling their stomachs with wine and food. When the meat was finished and the side dishes were empty, as if they could sense each other¡¯s sad feelings, they stopped using their chopsticks at the same time. This is thest opportunity they could eat together for a long time.

    At eleven o¡¯clock, they scrambled to get up and pay. Out of habit, Fu Xinhui stopped Zhang Siyi: ¡°I¡¯ll pay!¡±

    Zhang Siyi also stopped him and said: ¡± Will you stop trying to be a hero in front of me? I can handle a hot pot!¡±

    The two of them wrestled over who will get to pay, but eventually Zhang Siyi swiped his card through the machine first, robbing Fu Xinhui of his opportunity to pay.

    After settling the ount, they stumbled out of the restaurant and knowing it was thest few minutes together, they had each other arms around their shoulders, huddling close together in front of the shop to wait for a taxi.

    Through the ss window, the waitress could see them help each other with their coats and supported one another while waiting for a taxi. She could no longer bear the sight and turned grumbling to herself: ¨C Why can¡¯t I find a good man!?

    Fu Xinhui said: ¡°I¡¯ll entrust Cheer-Up to you¡­¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    With his hand, Zhang Siyi gave his shoulder a squeeze: ¡°Don¡¯t worry. When youe back you will be able to see your dog alive and well!¡±

    Fu Xinhui¡¯s voice is a little hoarse: ¡°Brother, you take care!¡±

    With red eyes, Zhang Siyi also said: ¡°Brother, you take care!¡±

    When the both taxis arrived, Zhang Siyi quickly took out his mobile phone and snapped a selfie with Fu Xinhui under the dim streetlight. Then he watched Fu Xinhui get in a car and leave.

    When Zhang Siyi arrived at home, he was feeling lost. Zhang Siyi looked at the carefree dog then picked up his phone and took a picture.

    Although he set his self-prescribed status to ¡®closed¡¯ for, for the sake of his best friend, he opened WeChat and posted to his social media.

    ¡°Heartless Han, don¡¯t worry! I will take good care of your son! I I¡¯ll be waiting for your return!¡± [Heart]

    There are two photos below the text, one is the selfie with Fu Xinhui, and the other is the stupid dog.

    After hitting the post button, he turned to his history since it had been five days since he looked at his social media page. There were countless people praising his ¡®closed¡¯ state. Out of the many, he noticed Gu Yu¡¯s icon. Wow, for the first time, even Gu Yu posted apliment in his circle of friends! His Mother also sent a thumbs up.

    Looking over his history, he is noticing the ¡®new¡¯ button being continually highlighted as new information is being added to the top of the page. It rose to more then 30 posts in just two minutes!

    Zhang Siyi thought angrily: ¨C Do these people have nothing better to do then look at their mobile phones every minute? What the fuck!

    What Zhang Siyi failed to realized was, the location he uploaded his recent post to and the fact that he also, was a member of the group.

    Ren Meng: ¡°If you are going to say you aren¡¯t gay, I will be first to say that I don¡¯t believe it! [Mocking]

    Jiang Hai: ¡°I don¡¯t believe it either!¡± [Wiping perspiration]

    Tian Yujing: ¡°+10086! [Heart] [smirking]¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°Oh My God. You have a son! You didn¡¯t really develop feelings?¡± [Wiping perspiration]¡±

    Xue Wenhan: ¡°Hey you two. It¡¯s really easy to make people think you are gay.¡±

    ¡­¡­

    Zhang Siyi was so pissed off that he wanted to pick up his phone and smash it. They are only there to tease andment on his photo. Why is no one asking where Fu Xinhui is going? Does anyone care?

    Aside from his closer friends, there was a mass ofments below, all of which wanted to express their opinions whether they were good or bad.

    UK University student: ¡°I suspected that you were a pair, but I didn¡¯t know it was true. In short, bless you.¡±

    High school ssmate: ¡°This is ¡­ Zhang Siyi, are you gay?¡± [Terrified]

    Junior-high school ssmate: ¡°ording to the picture, I can now visualize the characters in my romance sh novel. [Smile]¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­¡± Fuck you! (¨s¨F¿Ú¡¯)¨s(©ß©¥©ß

    Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t help but reply in the public screen: ¡°We are just pure friends! Brotherly love! Don¡¯t misunderstand!!!¡±

    Even after his message, there were a few more jokes and replies expressing doubts below his own. Zhang Siyi copsed on the sofa and decided he wasn¡¯t going to care. He sighed and grabbed his phone to turn it off, but instead, he was shocked to find Gu Yu¡¯s message. The tone was very different then what Gu Yu normally posts to his social media page.

    Gu Yu: ¡°If you don¡¯t want others to misunderstand then you should only send the information for him to see.¡±

    Seeing Gu Yu¡¯s message, Zhang Siyi sprung up out of the sofa and stiffly sat up straight. Deep in thought, intently concentrating, Zhang Siyi contemted the message he was going to respond with. Another message notification popped up¡­¡­

    Gu Yu: ¡°In addition, I thought you were closed. It¡¯s only been five days. Did you finished drawing the blueprints?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡­¡±

    Gu Yu really is Gu Yu. No matter what. Gu Yu doesn¡¯t forget to stab him with a needle!

    Feeling depressed, Zhang Siyi pretended he didn¡¯t see Gu Yu¡¯s message so he didn¡¯t reply.

    Checking the chat history again, many people sent private messages. Now, there wasn¡¯t a shortage of inquiries looking for information about Fu Xinhui. Zhang Siyi replied to their closer acquaintances about Fu Xinhui ns to go abroad.

    Another dialog box popped up. This time, it was He Xueying. Zhang Siyi opened the window and read her message. He would never have imagines what she asked: ¡°Is the person in your circle of friends named Fu Xinhui?¡±

    Zhang Siyi was surprised: ¡°How do you know him?¡±

    He Xueying: ¡°I met him at a party and exchanged contact information.¡±

    Knowing what type of financial background, she had, in addition to the information that Fu Xinhui said earlier about meeting someone who had been to Australia¡­¡­Is she the friend that he met? When Zhang Siyi asked, He Xueying confirmed his guess.

    Once again, the world was so small. From her brother, He Chengtian meeting his ssmate, Gu Yu, and then with He Xueying meeting Fu Xinhui, coincidences are everywhere.

    Now that He Xueying knew Zhang Siyi was friends with Fu Xinhui, she asked him about Fu Xinhui¡¯s current travel status. Additionally, since she had been in Australia before, Zhang Siyi entrusted He Xueying with helping Fu Xinhui understand Australian customs and introduce him to friends.

    After dealing with the entire list of social media postings, Zhang Siyi thought about the two sentences that Gu Yu wrote to him. He was his boss speaking to his subordinate, nothing more.

    With mixed emotions, Zhang Siyi reluctantly sent a private reply to Gu Yu: ¡°I overlooked my closed status because my best friend is leaving.¡±

    Looking at therge living room, Zhang Siyi felt the weight of all his worries on his shoulders. In addition to his unrequited love, he now has twenty days to pack and move with a dog. Thinking about therge task in front of him, Zhang Siyi felt even more depressed.

 Chapter 102: House Hunting

    <h4>Chapter 102: House Hunting</h4>

    _____________________

    However, packing and moving isn¡¯t the biggest headache right now, it is his finances.

    Zhang Siyi only recently learned how to keep good records of his ounts and manage his money. He doesn¡¯t have any savings and his credit cards were overdrawn. Previously, Fu Xinhui would help pay rent in advance and then Zhang Siyi would pay him back when he could. As a result, Zhang Siyi formed a habit of paying rentte and thus, since his rent is due now, he doesn¡¯t have it. Since Fu Xinhui family went bankrupt and he is going abroad, the spoiled Zhang Siyi must clean up the mess alone.

    When you start living in a new apartment, the lease normally requires a deposit and one months rent in advance when you sign a contract. In the current location, it is absolutely impossible to rent a ce for 4000 monthly.

    Zhang Siyi looked at the ceiling and sighed. First, he needed to go out and see what was avable and then determine if he could afford it. Like Lu Qiao, he might have to find a ce farther from the city center.

    While thinking about his rent issues, Gu Yu replied: ¡°Where is he going?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°He¡¯s going abroad.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°So, what are your ns? Are you ready to move?¡±

    Ten days ago, Zhang Siyi mentioned the issue of moving so he didn¡¯t hesitant to reply: ¡°I have until the end of the month.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Are you going to find a roommate?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Since I have the dog, I am not sure if I will be able to find a roommate so I¡¯ll probably just find an apartment for myself.¡±

    After he sent the message, he was expecting a fast reply. Zhang Siyi held his phone staring at the screen waiting for the text from Gu Yu for a long time. When he couldn¡¯t wait any longer, he went to put the phone down, however the phone sounded. Gu Yu messaged: ¡°If there are any difficulties, you can tell me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi emotions were a wreck. Usually he isn¡¯t so vulnerable, but today, he was immersed with sad feelings from Fu Xinhui¡¯s departure. He especially wanted to beforted by Gu Yu.

    Although Zhang Siyi thought Gu Yu¡¯s message was probably just his concern for a friend and subordinate, and even with the sour feeling Zhang Siyi has since Tao Fei appearance, his heart warmed up a little.

    Zhang Siyi replied: ¡°Well, thank you.¡±

    Regardless of Gu Yu¡¯s feelings, with his best friend gone, Zhang Siyi can only findfort in Gu Yu¡¯s support. In theter part of the month, Zhang Siyi was met with another disaster. Being faced with the truth of the cost of renting a new home has left Zhang Siyi feeling drained. This experience has been the most difficult since returning to China!

    The next day, Zhang Siyi went to work early and made a few phone calls to an agency and ask about apartment rentals. As he expected, there are simr sized apartments and rental costs in the vicinity he now lives in. Since there aren¡¯t cheaper ces, he will have to move further from the city center.

    When he got out of the elevator, Zhang Siyi saw the receptionist with Tao Fei. He heard Tao Fei ask: ¡°Why are there so many cacti?¡±

    ¡°Because Director Gu likes cactus. When it was his birthday, the female employees in the design department bought him cactus as gifts, but instead of keeping them, he donated the nts to thepany so now, there are a lot that haven¡¯t been imed. ¡±Flirting with Tao Fei, the young girl at the front desk quietly revealed this secret to him.¡±

    Tao Feiughed: ¡°Gu Yu likes cactus? Why didn¡¯t I know!? Which one is his?¡±

    Hearing the change in attitude from Tao Fei at the mention of Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi felt irritated. He couldn¡¯t help himself from slowing his pace in order to continue listening in on their conversation.

    ¡°The Director raised this one.¡± The young receptionist pointed to the big cactus on the shelf.

    Tao Fei only nced at the big cactus and moved his line of sight to the small ball next to it: ¡°This small cactus next to it looks like it came from the big one. I¡¯ll take care of that one.¡±

    Although the cactus is actually an imposter and the real cactus is at his house, when he heard Tao Fei make im to the cactus, he felt angry and frazzled. Even if it was counterfeit, the cactus was his exclusive nt that Gu Yu gave him!¡±

    The receptionist replied: ¡°That cactus is being raised by someone already, Aunt Four.¡±

    Tao Fei wondered and questioned: ¡°Who is Aunt-sister? Are there rtives in thispany?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Auntie, your sister!

    The young women covered her mouth hiding herugh: ¡°No, no. Aunt Four is a boy. It¡¯s his nickname.¡± She then turned to the huge picture on the wall.........

    ..... Zhang Siyi wanted to reach out and stop her. Nnnnoooooo!! (QAQ)

    But it was toote. Zhang Siyi saw the young girl at the front desk reach out and point at Zhang Siyi¡¯s silly sleepy photo, saying, ¡°It¡¯s him!¡±

    With hisrge eye getting even bigger, Tao Fei shed a face of surprise: ¡°Oh, it is him!¡± But his surprise turned into a funny smile: ¡°Who took this photo of him? It¡¯s stupid.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°............¡± It¡¯s too much!

    Spotting Zhang Siyiing in, the young women called out to him: ¡°Hey Mr. Zhang!¡±

    Hearing his name being called, Zhang Siyi was even more annoyed. Tao Fei was really surprised to see him, but his silence onlysted a few seconds. He watched Zhang Siyi andughed out loud crazily: ¡°Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!¡±

    Clenching his jaw, Zhang Siyi red at him angrily, and stepped through them with heavy footsteps to get into the office.

    ..... He hates Tao Fei! (¨tÃó¨s)

    During the lunch break at noon, Zhang Siyi nned to take some time to look at housing options. It suddenly urred to him; the real estate agent who he exchanged business cards with when he first joined Borderless.

    He opened his desk drawer and searched through the documents. Finding it among the office stuff in his draw, he pulled it out a looked on the backside for the phone number. Zhang Siyi removed the man¡¯s number from the cklist and made a phone call.

    After the call was connected, he did not hear the usual introductory voice of ¡®hello I¡¯m so-n-so, can I help you¡¯ and instead there was a pause and an angry voice: ¡°Who is this?¡±

    ¡°Uh, is this Mr. x from the real estate agency?¡±

    ¡°The real estate market hasn¡¯t been good. I¡¯ve quit!¡± Then Zhang Siyi heard the sound of the phone hanging up. Leaving Zhang Siyi hanging out to dry, he looked at his phone in surprise and thought: -Shit! I didn¡¯t think there would be a day when the intermediary would hang up on me!

    The agent who had previously harassed him endlesslyst fall, quit. He went downstairs to look around for an agency near hispany. Looking at the listings through the window for information, he was shocked to find that the rent at eight thousand a month for a 1 room studio was even more outrageous. Shit! Just kill me!

    Mulling over this new information, he strolled back to hispany. Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t think his mood could get any worse than it already was, but when he arrived back to thepany, he saw Tao Fei and Gu Yu justing back together from lunch. Fuck! Just kill me again!

    ¡°Hey! Mr. Zhang!¡± Tao Fei smiled and waved at him.

    Gu Yu also looked at him, and opened his mouth to say something......

    Feeling like he couldn¡¯t take it any longer, Zhang Siyi spoke in a monotone voice and interrupted: ¡°I¡¯m going to the convenience store.¡± As he turned and headed to the nearby store, he heard Tao Fei say: ¡°He¡¯s a strange guy.¡±

    After a full day at work, Zhang Siyi returned home in the evening. He went to walk the dog and continue to pack and clean up the apartment.

    When he Fu Xinhui returned briefly after the New Year¡¯s, he packed the important items and the clothes he wanted and took them away with him. At that time, it wasn¡¯t clear whether or not he was going to continue liveing in the apartment. Zhang Siyi asked about his room once, and Fu Xinhui said he couldn¡¯t bring the stuff abroad, so he left the remaining things in his room for Zhang Siyi to dispose of.

    Fortunately, the boys did not have a lot of possessions. Other than extra cloths and bedding, there were assorted decorations and kitchen supplies to deal with.

    Zhang Siyi was surprised to find the set of the Bose surround speakers that Fu Xinhui bought for more then ten thousand in his old room. Even in the face of his family¡¯s bankruptcy, it seems like he hasn¡¯t been able to let go of his nouveau riche spending habits. (=_=)

    Already having experienced the hardships of life, Zhang Siyi chose to pack up the used speakers and post them to a secondhand website at a discount. It only took ten minutes until someone from the website contacted him. Solving one small problem for Zhang Siyi, they made arrangements to make the sale the same night. Zhang Siyi was happy to make some easy money. Pocketing his eight thousand, he looked at Cheer-Up and said: ¡°Lucky dog, hmmm?¡±

    With his tongue hanging out, the dog just panted: ¡°Ha~Ha~Ha~.¡±

    Putting his arms on waist, Zhang Siyi viewed his handiwork. With only a few more things to pack, the room was nearly empty and clean. When he was done, he noticed a bunch of new messages about the Bose speakers. ¡°Bose speakers for only 8000. Are those fakes?¡±

    Looking at the phrase ¡®only eight thousand¡¯ Zhang Siyi wonders: Eight thousand is cheap? It¡¯s a month¡¯s sry!

    Another message appeared: ¡°The original price of the speakers is 17,000. If they are less then a year old and 90% new, the second-hand market price is 13000. At 8000, are they really not fakes?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Fuck!

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart is bleeding! He thought he made a quick buck, but the truth of the matter, is that in a blink of an eye, he lost potentially five-thousand. ¨C Why didn¡¯t I investigate the pricing a little beforehand! No wonder the buyer came here so quickly to inspect the speakers. Ah! Fucking idiot!

    Cheer-Up: ¡°Ha ~ Ha ~ Ha ~¡±

    Zhang Siyi grabbed a pillow from the sofa and threw it at the dog: ¡°Shut up!¡±

    Wasting energy over his stupidity isn¡¯t going to get Zhang Siyi anywhere. Resigned, he finished packing and cleaning for the day. On the bright side, he found a solution to his immediate financial needs. The eight-thousand will be used to pay rent for a new apartment. Before going to sleep, Zhang Siyi got into the habit of practicing music.

    Lately, ying the violin has allowed him to let go of the day¡¯s pressure and feel more rxed. It is strange. Zhang Siyi used to think that practicing the violin every day was a huge chore. He thought the repetition, ying the same thing over and over and over, that one needed to do in order to learn new music was a boring, impossible task. This is especially true for learning difficult music and learning Summer is no exception. But now that Zhang Siyi set a goal, he is determined to y the song Gu Yu requested and the next development is far easier then he imagined.

    After two weeks of practice, Zhang Siyi has been able to y the song through without music. Although there are a few problematic areas and he needs to speed up the tempo overall, his existing progress and achievements gave Zhang Siyi a huge sense of aplishment that lifted up his spirit out of the abyss.

    Moreover, David Garret¡¯s Summer interpretation is very exciting like a sultry summer afternoon when the cloudse, the rain pours, the wind blows, the thunder rumbles, the lightning strikes, like this ever-changing force, like his oppressive love, the contradiction is fierce.

    Through the sound of the violin, to find relief, to seek hope, he desperately wanted a breakthrough. With his vigorous arm movements and quick fingers, he vented his love and jealousy that had nowhere else to go. He vented the backlog of stress and fatigue from the long work day that had nowhere to go. All of his negative feelings were like the notes from the page resonating then floating into the air.

    After ying, all of his troubles retreated and his heart was soothed once again.

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know ying the violin could be so therapeutic. Now, like an itchy mosquito bite that can¡¯t be ignored, he wanted to y violin every day. Feeling the energy in the music every night, brings him strength and confidence to face a new day.

    Blocking out all extraneous feelings, he focused his attention to his immediate needs. Methodically, he went to work for the day, he took a break a noon to look for an apartment and then at home every day in the evening, he cleaned and packed up his apartment. After ten intensely focused days, Zhang Siyi finished the blueprints of the entire office building six days ahead of schedule. He didn¡¯t even need to ask for Du Rui help. Even Zhang Siyi was surprised at his own aplishments under such a vigorous schedule.

    Was this the breakthrough Zhang Siyi wanted?

 Chapter 103: Canceled

    <h4>Chapter 103: Canceled</h4>

    ______________________

    After submitting the drawings to the HVAC department for final air conditioning and lighting configuration, Zhang Siyi waspletely relieved. Once the evaluation waspleted, Zhang Siyi only needed to make minor adjustments to the ns.

    Feeling smug, Zhang Siyi was gloating in his aplishment and with excessive energy, he was swiveling his seat back and forth. When he set his mind to it, just like that, the work wasn¡¯t difficult and it was finished. ¨C Ha! Top that Tao Fei! Let¡¯s see who is his favorite now!

    Zhang Siyi nearly jumped out of his seat when he heard the loud cry from Tao Fei. Separated by three rows ofrge desks, the distance was not close. Not knowing what happened, everyone raised their heads up from their work to look around.

    Wanting to know more, Bi Lele slid her chair across the room to find out what happened then quickly rolled her chair back to her desk to report: ¡°Wow! The new designer, Tao Fei, created a high-risemercial center. It¡¯s super cool!¡±

    Hearing Bi Lele¡¯s excitement, Zhang Siyi felt irritated. Cool is not the standard for judging the quality of a design. Since Borderless Group A has always been the more conservative group between Group A and B, anything could be ¡®cool¡¯ whenparing them to the normally conservative Group A.

    However, Zhang Siyi can only specte on the design style of Tao Fei by virtue of his education and not from personal experience looking at an example of Tao Fei work.

    The prestigious University in the UK that he graduated from was known for design styles that were radical and not mainstream. Due to the University¡¯s fame, Zhang Siyi and his ssmates visited the graduation design exhibition. Marveling at the artistry in the exhibition, the designs were extraordinary, like buildings out of fairy tales or from another.

    However, these types of buildings were rarely built. It wasn¡¯t because they were bad, but because they were so controversial. The research and material exploration needed to solve construction problems were greater than constructing the building itself, resulting in those works to be too difficult to achieve. In Zhang Siyi¡¯s eyes, this issue is contrary to Gu Yu¡¯s rtively pragmatic philosophy.

    Therefore, as soon as he heard Bi Lele¡¯s ¡®cool¡¯, instinctively he was not optimistic. Of course, he could not absolve himself of his preconceived hostility towards Tao Fei.

    Zhang Siyi was conflicted. Including Zhu Hongzhen and Yuan Zhicheng, his colleagues around the room were very excited. Wanting to know more, they all craned their necks over for a peek and asked: ¡°How cool is it?¡±

    Bi Lele exined with a gesture: ¡°Rounded edges, curved lines, and long shapes, like a glutinous rice cake. Eachyer of the ne is cut out and forms natural shaped bubbles.¡±

    Everyone¡± Crowd: ¡°...¡±

    After hearing BI Lele¡¯s description, everyone was even more curious. While Zhang Siyi sat at his desk, holding his ground, everyone else got up and went to look at the Tao Fei¡¯s design. After a brief time, one by one, everyone went back to their own desks looking thoughtful.

    Zhu Hongzhen said thoughtfully: ¡°It is very good. A bit of Zaha style**.¡±

    Yuan Zhicheng said: ¡°I think it is Ma Yansong¡¯s style**. Isn¡¯t it like the Monroe Building**?¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen shrugged: ¡°Isn¡¯t it the same thing?¡±

    With excitement, Bi Lele replied: ¡°Our group finally has a dynamic designer.¡±

    Yuan Zhicheng: ¡°Are you saying Group A designs are ugly?¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen said: ¡°Economically constructed buildings that are environmentally friendly have a tendency to be simple. There isn¡¯t much you can do to get around it.¡±

    Be Lele nodded: ¡°Now that we have Peach Brother on our side, Child Labor team will be surprised!¡±

    Yuan Zhicheng raised his eyes and asked: ¡°When did you give him a nickname?¡±

    Bi Lele: ¡°It¡¯s not me. The people next to Tao Fei are calling him Peach Brother. He seems to be as big as Ji Feiyu.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± ¨C Even if it¡¯s a ng term, why does Tao Fei get to be named sexy brother when I get named Auntie Four! Ah! Fuck, it¡¯s not fair!

    Noticing how quiet Zhang Siyi is, Zhu Hongzhen wondered if he wasn¡¯t feeling well. Normally, Zhang Siyi was very outgoing and liked listening to office gossip, but now, he has been acting so gloomy and dazed that he is robotically drawing at his desk without interest in his surroundings.

    Zhu Hongzhen thought Zhang Siyi was more nervous about his project because of its difficulty then initially anticipated so Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t have time to speak with others. In contrast to his thoughts, at dinner the other Day, Zhu Hongzhen asked Du Rui about Zhang Siyi¡¯s project and learned that it wasn¡¯t the case at all.

    Only recently has Zhang Siyi plunged himself into his work as if he was avoiding something. Was it something difficult outside of work? He couldn¡¯t talk to coworkers? Was it the stress of Tao Fei¡¯s presence? But, isn¡¯t this reaction just too much?

    Looking at Zhang Siyi in this way, Zhu Hongzhen is a little worried for his colleague. He still prefers the foolish, usually curious and asionallyzy Aunt Four. Zhu Hongzhen couldn¡¯t help but ask: ¡°Four, why don¡¯t you go see Tao Fei¡¯s design?¡±

    While looking at theputer with a serious face, pretended to be working hard, Zhang Siyi perfunctory replied: ¡°I am a little busy right now. I¡¯ll go see itter.¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°Oh......¡±

    Listening to the description of Tao Fei¡¯s design, he knew it was strange and won¡¯t be built, so he never nned on looking at it. Furthermore, he was the man who finished a set of construction ns ahead of schedule. Last year at the meeting, Secretary Wang mentioned they were nning on breaking ground in April this year. Soon, he will be an architect with actual works!

    With this self-inting sense of satisfaction and recognition, Zhang Siyi opened a web browser. He looked around him and saw everyone busy with their own work so he cautiously typed in the search...... Monroe Building...... What does it look like again? Hmm.......

    Beingpletely absorbed in what he was doing, he jerked with fright when he suddenly heard his name being called by Gu Yu from behind: ¡°Zhang Siyi......¡±

    Gu Yu tone was very serious causing Zhang Siyi to think his inte usage was discovered. He quickly cancelled the web browser window then turned around to face him. Seeing his solemn expression, Zhang Siyi was taken back for a brief moment, then thought to himself: What is there to be afraid of? I have finished my project.

    ¡°...... Come to my office.¡± Gu Yu tlymanded, then turned and went back.

    The more Zhang Siyi thought about his Bossing out of his office to personally ask for him instead of using the internal private messaging system, the more his anxiety rose. He took hispleted stack of blueprints that were just printed this morning and walked into Gu Yu¡¯s office.

    As Zhang Siyi entered Gu Yu¡¯s office, he saw Gu Yu sitting at his desk with a slight frown which made Zhang Siyi a little nervous. He handed over the thick stack of drawings and said: ¡°I have finished the ns for the office building this morning. I didn¡¯t get the chance to tell you earlier but, these are thetest drawings.¡±

    With Du Rui guidance, Zhang Siyi was very confident in his own ns. The righteous and solemn expression he carried seemed to say ¡®I havepleted the work! See how great and diligent I am?¡¯

    However, when Gu Yu listened to Zhang Siyi speak, his brows furrowed deeper.

    Gu Yu slightly moved his lips, but remained silent. As Zhang Siyi handed the drawings to him, Gu Yu looked down at the stack of papers in his hands.

    One by one, from the ne sections to the details, Gu Yu looked very carefully at each paper. Every so often he would take his pencil and hesitate, as if to make corrections, but ultimately, he wrote nothing.

    Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t know if there are either problems with the drawings, or if Gu Yu has a problem but doesn¡¯t want to make a mark on his drawings.

    After not seeing Gu Yu for nearly half the month, Zhang Siyi greedily soaked in Gu Yu¡¯s being. He inspected Gu Yu intently, from his fingers holding the pencil, to his pronounced wrist bones, the clean cuffs of his shirt, though his powerful arms hidden under his sleeve, into his shoulder revealing his cor, and his sexy throat. He could feel himself heating up and waiting in anticipation for approval......

    ¡°You......¡± Gu Yu suddenly raised his head and asked: ¡°......have drawn to this point? Why didn¡¯t you show it to me before?¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s loud and firm voice brought Zhang Siyi out of his reverie. Even though Zhang Siyi was surprised, he calmly exined: ¡°Since Du Rui helped supervise, I let her look over my work. You were always too busy, so I was going to show you after the HVAC department configured the air conditioner.¡±

    The more Zhang Siyi spoke, the more his confidence grew, and the more correct his logic seemed to be. Gu Yu was busy with a business trip for four days. Then he was busy all the time with the Tao Fei. He is also busy atpany meetings and other tasks. What spare time does Gu Yu have to meet with him for feedback?

    Gu Yu looked straight at him and asked bluntly, ¡°Have you been avoiding metely?

    ¡°.....¡± Zhang Siyi panicked and instinctively denied him: ¡°I didn¡¯t.... Why should I hide from you?¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s eyes locked onto Zhang Siyi preventing Zhang Siyi from avoiding Gu Yu line of sight. With his fingers tightly sping the stack of papers, Gu Yu replied firmly: ¡°I let Du Rui teach you some basicmon knowledge because she has a lot of experience drawing construction ns and is able to oversee your progress, not so she can make the final decision for you. In the meantime, I sent a message almost every day asking for your progress report and every day, you said you were still working on the ns, but now, you suddenly say you are finished?¡±

    Defensively, Zhang Siyi retorted: ¡°It¡¯s not the same......¡±

    Gu Yu suddenly interrupted him: ¡°Zhang Siyi, with work,munication is most important. What is the matter with you recently?¡±

    Zhang Siyi started turning red with anger. -How can you say I am avoiding you when you and Tao Fei are inseparable!? I fixed it myself and saved you the trouble!

    Admitting it to himself, he was being somewhat unreasonable, however unless he hid his inner turmoil from Gu Yu, he is afraid his feelings would be revealed and Gu Yu woulde to resent him.

    Gu Yu exhaled wearily and put down his pen. He set aside the stack of drawing and said quietly: ¡°The office building will not be built.¡±

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t react: ¡°What? Why?¡± He thought Gu Yu¡¯s blunt verdict was because he was angry with him.

    Then Gu Yu exined the reason: ¡°I got a call from Secretary Wang this morning. They received notification from the State to suspend any construction being done in the name of the government and thus, this set of drawings are no longer needed.¡±

    The shock to Zhang Siyi was like having a bucket of ice water thrown on him. Now pale, the blood drained from his face and he sat still. Because of his recent emotion turmoil, for thest two weeks, Zhang Siyi ignored his feelings and focused his energy into both work and finding an apartment. Even though he was exhausted, he thought as long as he worked hard, the achievement at the end was worth the struggle.

    With his improved drawing skills and steady progress, Zhang Siyi had be stronger and self-confident. As long as he continued progressing, he doesn¡¯t feel like he needed anyone. But at thest minute, in the moment he was about to see a staged victory, his goal suddenly disappeared.

    Without making a sound and sitting motionless, Zhang Siyi felt the world copse right underneath him and a ck abyss swallowed him whole. What is the meaning of his employment? What status does he have in thepany? He didn¡¯t know what to do. He didn¡¯t know anything.

 Chapter 104: Breakdown

    <h4>Chapter 104: Breakdown</h4>

    __________________________

    Watching Zhang Siyi reaction closely, and knowing how he reacted during the Z City bid in the past, Gu Yu could guess the state of shock Zhang Siyi was in right now.

    Zhang Siyi worked very hard for his first project that he earned by his own efforts untilpletion and for it to be taken away was a huge blow to his psyche.

    Maybe if half of the work was done, the damage would be less.... But there is no use in saying that now. It doesn¡¯t matter if the ns were finished or not, the end is already here.

    Gu Yu was afraid he couldn¡¯t bear the blow, so he didn¡¯t pursue the issue of munication.¡¯ Instead, he tried tofort him with a calm voice: ¡°Like the Z City nning project, this kind of thing often happens in the industry. If there weren¡¯t special circumstances, we wouldn¡¯t have won the bid at the beginning. It ismon in the construction industry because there is uncertainty in every step of the process and as a result, there are countless projects that die.¡±

    Zhang Siyi lowered his eyes and did not speak.

    Looking down at the blueprints on his desk again Gu Yu said: ¡±The ns were draw very well. Think of this as a learning experience. Now, I think you have a better understanding of the details needed in designing and drafting as well domestic regtion which is very beneficial towards your future work.¡±

    Below the desktop, Zhang Siyi put his hands on his shaking knees and clenched his fist and thought: ¨C no wonder he didn¡¯t circle any problems. There was no point in doing so.

    Thinking about the recent days, Gu Yu knew Zhang Siyi was looking for a new ce to live during his lunch break every day. He knew Zhang Siyi was the first to leave every night and arrive punctually every morning. Even when Gu Yu went looking for Zhang Siyi to talk to him, he couldn¡¯t find him in the office. He must have been extremely busy. Just as he was going to ask Zhang Siyi about his apartment status, Zhang Siyi interrupted Gu Yu¡¯s thoughts and said: ¡°Boss, I want to be alone.¡±

    Continuing to monitor his reactions, Gu Yu was concerned and looked at Zhang Siyi thoughtfully then said: ¡°Well, I won¡¯t arrange a new job for you right now. Take this moment to reorganize your thoughts and go home early today to rest.¡±

    Zhang Siyi mechanically got up, walked away and hurriedly went to his desk to shut down theputer. Ignoring Zhu Hongzhen¡¯s strange look and the stares of others, without a word, he was the first to leave work for the day.

    Like a wandering soul, before he was even conscience of it, he rode the subway home lost in a daze. When he opened the door to his apartment, he went inside then fell onto the sofa feeling like nothing was left of himself but a husk.

    When Cheer-Up saw him, he excitedly jumped up and down on him, waiting to be petted. Zhang Siyi, like a dead man, waspletely unresponsive. His dull mind slowly recalled what had happened to him in recent days.

    He felt that he had never been so unlucky in all of his twenty years. His best friend left. He had no money to move with the dog. He sold speakers and lost five thousand dors. He unfathomably likes the same-sex and is emotionally frustrated. His career field is even more frustrating. He didn¡¯t know if he was the only one that felt particrly miserable when they first enter society, or if this feeling wasmon.

    After a long time, with the little strength that he had left, Zhang Siyi slowly turned his head to look at the dog. With a self-deprecating, sad smile, he sulked: ¡°What Lucky Dog? You are the dog of doom!¡±

    Cheer up: ¡°Woof!¡±

    Zhang Siyi reluctantly petted his head. With the dog of doom being called ¡®Cheer-Up¡¯, life is full of irony.

    The next morning, when Gu Yu arrived at thepany, he saw Zhang Siyi¡¯s empty seat. Even though he was busy all morning, from time to time, Gu Yu peeked through the frosted ss window to look for Zhang Siyi at his desk. Even by midday, Zhang Siyi did note to work.

    He only allowed him to go home early and recuperatest night and didn¡¯t approve of a second days absence. Gu Yu called the front deskndline and asked for Zhang Siyi whereabouts. They also reported ack of notification by Zhang Siyi. Gu Yu frowned and put his work on hold. He canceled Tao Fei dinner arrangements, put on his coat and left thepany.

    With urgency, Gu Yu used the subway system to get to Zhang Siyi¡¯s house. Likest night, on the way to his house, he tried to call him many times, but whether it was by phone call or by text, or social media, there was no response.

    Half an hourter, hoping he hadn¡¯t move away yet, Gu Yu was at Zhang Siyi apartment, ringing the doorbell. There was no answer.

    After three minutes of pressing the button, someone finally answered: ¡°Who is it!?¡±

    Hearing the voice of Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu¡¯s spirit rose for a moment before it fell again: ¡°Gu Yu. Open the door.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡±

    Gu Yu entered the building and went upstairs to his apartment and saw Zhang Siyi standing in the door dressed in his pajamas looking depressed. Gu Yu frowned and directly asked: ¡°What is the matter with you? Why didn¡¯t youe to work? Why is your phone off?¡±

    Since Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t expect Gu Yu toe find him, he felt a little happy to hear his voice. However being bombarded with questions, Zhang Siyi felt like he was under attack.

    Feelingpletely pissed off, Zhang Siyi shouted at Gu Yu: ¡°I can¡¯t take it anymore. I QUIT!¡±

    He thought about it all night, and the more he thought about it, the more he was willing to ept quitting. Following Gu Yu like a puppy... He was so stupid!

    He Chengtian was right. Zhang Siyi was too na?ve and too idealistic. Thinking he could rely on those ridiculous notions and bullshit feelings, like floating bubbles, quickly bursting and disappearing at any second, they won¡¯t ever make his dreamse true.

    ......

    In shock, Gu Yu looked at him with an incredulous expression on his face. After a dozen seconds he spoke with a tremble in his voice: ¡°Are you serious?¡± Right after, Gu Yu adjusted his tone and spoke with a fierceness that Zhang Siyi never heard before: ¡°Just because of something so small, you quit!?¡±

    Afraid of Gu Yu¡¯s demeanor, Zhang Siyi took a step back in fright. He wanted to retort: ¨C This small matter might be a trifle for you but not for me!

    However, Gu Yu didn¡¯t give him time to answer. Quickening his pace, Gu Yu aggressively stepped towards Zhang Siyi and spoke firmly: ¡°You are going to give up? This is your attitude towards architecture and work?¡±

    Zhang Siyi was forced backwards until he hit a wall. No longer able to suppress his feelings anymore, he clenched his fist and shouted: ¡°But I have had enough! I work so hard but I don¡¯t see any results! This job is too difficult! He Chengtian promised me a 200,000 year sry. Could my job pay like that? No! Four and a half years of study and I am so poor I can¡¯t even afford a single apartment in the city. I work, but for what purpose? I build buildings, but I can¡¯t even find a building to live! There is no point!¡±

    He is going to find He Chengtian. He wants to make a lot of money. He wants to rent whatever kind of apartment he wants in the future without hassle. Love my job award? Outstanding staff award? All garbage! He doesn¡¯t care anymore!

    Gu Yu replied: ¡°You have only worked on this project for two months total. Do you think that is a lot of work? Everyone starts from a humble position, from a small role to bing a vital member of thepany. Zhu Hongzhen spent one and a half years doing basic models in his previous workce beforeing to borderless. To learn how to draw and pain well, Yuan Zhicheng spent more than ten hours a day in the Academy of Fine Arts. Even now, he practices sketching every day outside of work! In college, Be Lele read the entire school¡¯s collection of design magazines to gain knowledge and develop her own design aesthetic. When she came to Borderless, she didn¡¯t know some PSputer skills so she stayed in thepany every night until 9:30 to self-study. It is unnecessary to exin Du Rui¡¯s experience at her oldpany. Her excellent ability to draft perfect works speaks for themselves. Do you think everyone¡¯s grades are so easy to obtain? Do you think you are suffering? They¡¯ve been through a lot more setbacks than you! Have you ever heard anyone of them say they want to give up? You have only worked for six months, and you want to ask for the moon?¡±

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t think it was easy for them to obtain their working status. Zhang Siyi knew that his colleagues were better than him, but hearing the details from Gu Yu shocked him speechless. Gu Yu¡¯s words deeply touched his soul. He also wanted to continue working hard with his colleagues and he wanted to work alongside Gu Yu.

    But now, he is too tired and his mind couldn¡¯tprehend the situation anymore. Did he build the building for himself or because of Gu Yu? He never thought he would fall so deeply in love. The unknown reason for Tao Fei being hired at thepany is driving Zhang Siyi crazy. Compared to his hate for Tao Fei, he can¡¯t stand the idea of Gu Yu discovering his love and then shunning him so in desperation, Zhang Siyi did the only thing he could think of; leave this terrible feeling behind!

    ...... But how could he possibly say that? Instead, Zhang Siyi used his frustration of the job as an excuse!

    ¡°It is true that people have high and low backgrounds. The distinction is different and in most people¡¯s eyes, the amount of money someone makes is used as the criterion for judging a persons¡¯ sess. If you really want to give up, use your shortcut. Maybe you will be happy then and think life is better. With more money, you may be able to brag, but you can¡¯t hinder the pursuit in someone¡¯s heart. With strong values, self-worth and determination, a person can achieve what their soul desires. These are things money cannot buy.¡± Gu Yu looked at him and the disappointment in his eyes was particrly evident.

    ¡°It¡¯s not......¡± Zhang Siyi shook his head unconsciously, choked back the words and wanted to refute because it wasn¡¯t like that. He understood the truth.

    ¡°Isn¡¯t what....? You said you liked architecture. You said you¡¯re on this road because of me. If that¡¯s what you call ¡¯like¡¯ ...... ¡°With a pained expression on his face, Gu Yu paused and lowered his voice: ¡°You are very disappointing.¡±

    All of the psychological barriers that Zhang Siyi put up to keep his mind moving forward werepletely shattered by Gu Yu¡¯s statement. The tears that had been lingering for a long time were finally released, flowing steadily down his cheeks. Choking back his tears, he sniffled and angrily said in a hoarse voice: ¡°Since I am such a disappointment, why did you hire me in the first ce? Why don¡¯t you find a few more people like Zhu Hongzhen, Bi Lele, or Yuan Zhicheng!? Even better, hire a few more Tao Fei!!¡±

    Wide-eyed, Gu Yu was stunned. The expression on his face quickly changed and became very strange. .... ¨C Tao Fei? Did he just didn¡¯t mention Tao Fei? Why did Zhang Siyi mention him? What does Tao Fei have to do with it?

    ¡°With Tao Fei¡¯s help, you are so happy with him every day. I don¡¯t know what is right. I don¡¯t want to give you trouble and be hated. I don¡¯t want to be worthless. I don¡¯t want to be abandoned......¡±

    In a loud cry, Zhang Siyi poured out his heart. He wanted to say he likes Gu Yu and he still likes architecture. He doesn¡¯t want to give up at all! However, that isn¡¯t what he said. Instead, it all turned into angry, bitter words: ¡°If I¡¯m such a disappointment, then why are you here!?¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s heart fell into the sea, and sunk down deep before it turned around and started to float upwards. ..... Is he feeling inferior? ...... or is it jealousy?

    The more he said, the more wronged Zhang Siyi felt and the more his tears fell. Lifting his hand to wipe his face, he wanted to take back what he said. He felt ashamed and embarrassed at wanting to beforted by Gu Yu. It is just his daydream. That hateful man only knows how to hurt!

    But as soon as he tried to move, Gu Yu suddenly stepped forward and aggressively grabbed his wrist.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Like looking through his body and into his soul, Gu Yu watched Zhang Siyi intensely. Gu Yu facial muscles went through a myriad of changes; curiosity, puzzlement, thoughtfulness and when his doubts subsided a few momentster, he said: ¡°Do you want to know why I hired you?¡±

    Zhang Siyi tried to move his hand, but he was trapped. Instead, Gu Yu pulled him closer: ¡°Wh..., Why?¡±

    Pondering, Gu Yu furrowed his brow slightly, pursed his lips, and deeply thought of what to say. He slowly spoke: ¡°Indeed, I heard your ex-girlfriend scold you for an hour from the beginning at the coffee shop. I also felt......¡± Gu Yu let his head hang and sighed deeply then looked at Zhang Siyi: ¡°......I thought you were a person with no sense of responsibility. Probably your only merit was your ability to endure her verbal onught for so long. You were like a steamed soft bun being poked and prodded. You had no reasonable basis for rebutting her. Although in the end when you finally stood up for yourself, wet with coffee, a wrongly used passerby suffered for you in vain.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Releasing the tension in his grasp, Gu Yu slowly changed the angle of his hand in order to intertwine his fingers with Zhang Siyi. He gradually calmed down and softly spoke: ¡°I heard you say you were looking for a job and reworking your portfolio. I thought your attitude at least, proves you are a motivated person that is willing to learn and thus, perhaps I can give you a chance. Of course, if there was no resume, then I wouldn¡¯t be able to help you.¡±

    At such a close distance, Zhang Siyi could not move. He could feel Gu Yu breath on his neck and his hand holding his own tightly.

    Gu Yu continued softly: ¡°I epted your request for an interview and through the exchange, I found that you were very different from the coward at the coffee shop. You had personal ideas and your thoughts were very logical which are exceptional qualities for an architectural designer. Finally, when I looked at your portfolio, I carefully examined each work and although they were rtively rough and immature, the design ideas were excellent. All of these qualities made me conclude you have great potential. Maybe I can help cultivate your ability so that you could grow into a unique and outstanding designer.¡±

    Feeling hot, Zhang Siyi¡¯s tears subsided. It probably wasn¡¯t easy for Gu Yu to say such lengthly praise.

    ¡°If you hadn¡¯t mentioned it, I really didn¡¯t remember you being my high school alumnus so I didn¡¯t hire you for that sentiment...¡± Gu Yu raised his hand and tenderly caressed his cheek. With his thumb, he wiped the tears away from the corner of his eye. He softly asked: ¡°Do these reasons make you a little more confident?¡±

    Although Gu Yu¡¯s words eased his worries, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know what to make of his other intimate actions. He felt embarrassed and wanted to hide. However, Gu Yu did not let him break free and again came closer. The two of them were nearly holding onto one another.

    Looking at Zhang Siyi inquisitively, with some hesitation, Gu Yu softly said: ¡°Don¡¯t cry. Don¡¯t feel bad. I will be with you at every step along the way, okay?¡±

    Hearing Gu Yu¡¯s soothing words, Zhang Siyi wanted to cry more. His heart was both sour and sweet. When he is angry or depressed, with just a little encouragement and a simple gesture from his love, Gu Yu can make him feel instantly cured of any problems. What kind of magic is this? What Peach Brother? All he could think about was loving Gu Yu.

    Standing with Gu Yu awkwardly for a while, Zhang Siyi sniffed once then gently nodded his head.

    Seemingly satisfied, Gu Yu let him go. He took a moment to look at the apartment and saw the mess. Gu Yu frowned and asked: ¡°When do you move?¡±

    The hand Gu Yu was holding felt hot and as if to grasp the sensation again, Zhang Siyi curled up his fingers and held his fist to his chest. He replied as a matter of fact: ¡°I haven¡¯t found a ce to live yet.¡±

    Zhang Siyi has searched for an eptable ce everyday over thest two weeks. The apartments are either cheap and unlivable, or good but too expensive. Additionally, many ces do not allow pets. The process of finding an apartment has been very frustrating!

    Gu Yu look at Zhang Siyi in the eye and tilted his head slightly then asked: ¡°Do you want to...... live with me?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Eh?¡±

    ¡°If you don¡¯t mind, move in and live with me.¡± Gu Yu looked to the side at Cheer-Up and said: ¡°Take someone else¡¯s son.... It doesn¡¯t matter.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

 Chapter 105: Enlightenment

    <h4>Chapter 105: Enlightenment</h4>

    ______________________

    Living with Gu Yu is not an illusion.

    The experience of that night he spent at Gu Yu¡¯s housest year left a very deep impression on Zhang Siyi. Especially now, that he acknowledged his love for Gu Yu, he wanted to spend his days, cooking, cleaning, chatting, drinking tea, and sleeping together. He did not want the time he spent with Gu Yu to stop.

    But fantasy is ultimately an illusion. Zhang Siyi never expected Gu Yu to invite him to live together. He felt that anyone who lived with Gu Yu had to be a special, talented individual with a very close rtionship with him and that person could never be himself.

    There was a time when Zhang Siyi toyed with the idea that Gu Yu liked him and as such, he could understand Gu Yu¡¯s offer. But now, seeing Tao Fei close rtionship with Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi felt inadequate and insecure.

    Therefore, in the face of the big pie falling from the sky, Zhang Siyi instead felt overwhelmed with bewilderment.

    ¡­¡­. Is it true what Gu Yu said?

    ¡­¡­. Why me?

    ¡­¡­. If I say yes, what about the other person Gu Yu is waiting for?

    ¡­¡­. Aren¡¯t I just taking advantage of his kindness?

    All kinds of doubts filled Zhang Siyi¡¯s mind. He even epted the dog. Such an enticing proposal is simply impossible to refuse. Gu Yu is waiting for his reply. Zhang Siyi tentatively asked: ¡°Do you only have one bedroom in your home?¡±

    Although he has already learned the truth from Gu Yao, Zhang Siyi subconsciously asked him the question because he wanted to hear Gu Yu¡¯s attitude clearly rather then it being a moment of impulse.

    Gu Yu: ¡°The guest room can be packed up and you can live there.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was surprised. Gu Yu¡¯s statement was contrary to the information that Gu Yao previously revealed. He remembered she told him the room was packed up early. But this is only a small doubt and Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t think too much about it. He asked: ¡°Where does Gu Yao sleep?¡±

    ¡°Gu Yao usually lives at school and rarely stays over.¡± Gu Yu looked up at him: ¡°If shees, you will stay with me in my room.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡­¡± Ah, his heart couldn¡¯t stop pounding wildly!

    ¡°What¡¯s the problem?¡± Gu Yu paused then asked: ¡°or do you not want to live with me?¡±

    Zhang Siyi repeatedly shook he head: ¡°No, no! I think¡­. I¡¯m just wondering if it¡¯s too much trouble for you.¡±

    Gu Yu sighed and counter-questioned him: ¡°I drove you home for the New Year, and I drove you back afterwards, and I practiced driving with you¡­. I haven¡¯t heard you say anything about troubling me before. Why are you being so polite now?¡±

    Zhang Siyi remained motionless and silent.

    No longer talking to him, Gu Yu turned to look at the messy living space and asked: ¡°If there is nothing else, I¡¯ll help you pack up your things.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Don¡¯t you have to go to work?¡±

    This time, Gu Yu didn¡¯t have the patience to answer Zhang Siyi properly and Gu Yu eyed him instead. Zhang Siyi immediately was silenced. He pointed to the pile of clutter in the corner of the room to deal with. Gu Yu took off his coat and put it on the sofa to help him organize it together.

    Since his unnned absence caused his boss to also be absent and as a result, his Boss is now helping him pack his house instead of being at thepany, Zhang Siyi felt unceasingly guilty. It is a crime!

    ¡­¡­ But in fact, Zhang Siyi felt very warm and even a bit joyful.

    As they were packing and cleaning, Gu Yu asked Zhang Siyi about his experience looking for an apartment.

    Under the warmth andfort of Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi finally opened his heart and poured out most of the bitterness that he was harboring. Many agencies demanded a finder fee upfront and as a result, Zhang Siyi was cheated out of a few hundred dors. Thinking about it made Zhang Siyi depressed.

    Gu Yu listened attentively then suddenly asked: ¡°Didn¡¯t I message you in WeChat that if there were any difficulties, to tell me? You couldn¡¯t find any suitable ce for so long, so why didn¡¯t youe find me for help?¡±

    Zhang Siyi lowered his eyes and quietly said: ¡°You were too busy.¡± He did not dare mention Tao Fei appearance and the real reason why he closed his heart. As a result, he tried to ovee everything by himself and by doing so, he closed himself off from everyone¡¯s help, especially from Gu Yu.

    Gu Yu couldn¡¯t help but give a lengthy sigh: ¡°Yesterday¡¯s matter, I have told you, when you have a work problem,e to me for help. Life is the same¡­¡­ I won¡¯t give up on you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi thought it strange. There is no way under normal circumstance that a boss would tell his subordinate that they ¡®won¡¯t give up on them in life¡¯. Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart was warming in his chest, but he was unsure if there was any meaning to his statement or not. He quietly questioned: ¡°Because you promised my father that you would take care of me?¡±

    Gu Yu raised his head and gazed at Zhang Siyi in the eyes. With overflowing, unspeakable tenderness he softly said: ¡°Just because of you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Blushing a crimson red, Zhang Si Yi suddenly looked down and his heart was pounding. In such a short period of time, from the lows of yesterday to this afternoon¡¯s crash, and now with Gu Yu¡¯s new revtions, his mood soared. With the numerous bits of indigestible information received suddenly, Zhang Siyi¡¯s brain waspletely stirred into paste!

    Once again, the answer came, but the sensible aspect of himself desperately tried to prevent him from thinking about it.¡­¡­

    Gu Yu lowered his head and continued packing a box with the pile books in front of him. He exined: ¡°Tao Fei and I are just friends. When I was a graduate student at T University, we joined a team that participated in an architectural designpetition. He is a very good designer. Although he is loud and has a temper, his design ideas are very divergent. Moreover, he has received a master¡¯s degree in the UK andbined with his undergraduate domestic education, he has a unique set of designs insights. What he can teach you is probably better suited to your current needs than I am. For two days, I wanted to arrange a meeting with Toa Fei and have a meal together for a good chat, but you¡­¡­¡± Gu Yu sighed, and looked at Zhang Siyi oddly. ¡°Well, I¡¯ll arrange for you to do several projects with him and then you will understand when you see it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi did not ask for an exnation. Gu Yu seemed to have guessed his heart and answered his doubts and uneasiness. Zhang Siyi is both ashamed and embarrassed. Did Gu Yu recruit Tao Fei just to help him improve?

    It is true that he was the only international student in Group A and there are no elders of the same background to help him. Sometimes, Zhang Siyi questioned whether his working environment was suitable for his own long-term development or not.

    Zhang Siyi very much recognizes Gu Yu¡¯s many viewpoints and the principle of doing things, but design is multifaceted. Each person has thier own concept and styles. While Gu Yu is very strong, he isn¡¯t aprehensive teacher.

    After this understanding, Zhang Siyi felt guilty once again. All along, Gu Yu was thinking about his needs and instead ofmunicating with him, he treated Gu Yu poorly out of jealousy¡­. God, he feels like aplete idiot!

    Until this moment, Zhang Siyi feltpletely relieved. Although he still has some lingering issues with Tao Fei, with Gu Yu¡¯s exnation, Zhang Siyi no longer was stupid enough to be jealous over him.

    Apart from Zhang Siyi own room, they cleaned up the rest of the apartment that afternoon. Although it is decided for Zhang Siyi to live with Gu Yu, it was toote to move tonight. The two agreed to make the final move on the weekend.

    As they ced thest few bags in the garbage downstairs, Gu Yu received a phone call from thepany. Standing fearful next to him, Zhang Siyi dare not make a sound, but at the same time, he listened to Gu Yu speak on the phone. He was surprised to hear Gu Yu lie about his whereabouts.

    Hanging up the phone, Gu Yu exined the situation to Zhang Siyi: ¡°It is a temporary project meeting, I have to go back.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I¡­¡­¡±

    He was going to say that he also would change his clothes and go back to work, but Gu Yu interrupted him: ¡°Don¡¯t go. Rest well tonight then tomorrow, go to the personnel department to fill out an absentee note.¡±

    Dropping his line of site, Zhang Siyi nodded.

    Gu Yu raised his arm and checked his watch: ¡°I wanted to take you out to eat, but there isn¡¯t time now. Remember to eat dinner.¡±

    Zhang Siyi obediently nodded again: ¡°Hmm¡±

    Gu Yu smiled and raised his hand to rub his head: ¡°See you tomorrow¡­¡± He said and added: ¡°This time, I¡¯ll really see you tomorrow.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡­¡±

    Zhang Siyi watched Gu Yu¡¯s backside as he walked away from Zhang Siyi¡¯s apartment building. Recalling the problem that has gued him for a long time, his brain turned into paste again. The person Gu Yu likes, isn¡¯t it him?

    Zhang Siyi nodded again: ¡°Hmm.¡±

    ¡­¡­ ¡°Just because of you¡­¡­¡±

    ¡­¡­ It¡¯s like telling him, ¡± because I like you.¡±

    ¡­¡­ (o////o) ¡­¡­

    ¡­¡­ Is it true? Gu Yu really likes him?

    ¡­¡­ But if so, why doesn¡¯t Gu Yu tell him directly?

    ¡­¡­ Wait¡­¡­. Could it be, like himself, Gu Yu is afraid of saying it?

    That¡¯s it! In Gu Yu opinion, he is a straight man who has talked about his girlfriend. He also made it clear that he wasn¡¯t gay and Fu Xinhui was just a friend.

    Oh, my God!

    With his sudden enlightenment, Zhang Siyi was excited and pumped his fist. His stomach growled angrily¡­¡­¡­.. He¡¯s hungry (=_=)

    From yesterday evening until now, he did not eat. Zhang Siyi did not know how he had any energy to support himself. At this moment, he felt like he desperately needed the power of food!!!

    After changing clothes, Zhang Siyi ran downstairs and first bought rice balls and sausages from the a nearby grocery store. Then he rushed to the Soup shop: ¡°Boss, arge bowl of five, no give me ten wontons, please!¡±

    Half an hourter, Zhang Siyi touched his bulging belly which was stretched out by the wonton soup. Heboriously returned home to lie down in bed. Now that his hunger was satiated, he continued to ruminate over the recent events excitedly. If Gu Yu likes him, what is he going to do?

    When Gu Yu expresses his feelings, then they will be together as a couple?

    ¡­¡­ Shit! Shit!

    Zhang Siyi never thought about what it would be like to have a rtionship with a guy.¡­¡­

    With only a thought about being in love with Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi felt his heart pound and his body heated up from head to toe.

    Not to mention, hugging and kissing, but also ¡­¡­

    Ah-ah-ah¡­ Zhang Siyi buried his head in his pillow and didn¡¯t dare think about it further!

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t want to exhaust his energy on something that wasn¡¯t possible in the future and thus, he had to confirm his suspicions in order to make his next move.

 Chapter 105 extra: [Small Theater] 005: First Love Article â€“ Gu Yu

    <h4>Chapter 105 extra: [Small Theater] 005: First Love Article ¨C Gu Yu</h4>

    __________________________

    Gu Yu doesn¡¯t know when it happened, but now, he habitually checked up on Zhang Siyi social media page every night at bed time. Since Zhang Siyi posted a ¡¯closed¡¯ status, he was not expecting any news on Zhang Siyi¡¯s home page. Gu Yu was very surprised to see the new post:

    ¡°Heartless Han, don¡¯t worry! I will take good care of your son! I I¡¯ll be waiting for your return!¡± [Heart]

    Seeing such a note, Gu Yu suddenly sat stiff. With the two photos and the caption, does it really not lead to misunderstandings?

    Although Zhang Siyi has personally denied any type of intimate rtionship with Fu Xinhui, Gu Yu couldn¡¯t help but feel jealous.

    In Zhang Siyi mind, will Gu Yu only have a professional rtionship as his Boss?

    Maybe Zhang Siyi used his photo simply because of the artistry of the photograph and not his image?

    ...... Am I being too full of it?

    It was only when Zhang Siyi posted another message, ¡°We are just pure friends! Brotherly love! Don¡¯t misunderstand!!!¡± did Gu Yu feel relieved. At the same time, he also felt annoyed because of how much his mood could be swayed by Zhang Siyi words. He impulsively texted Zhang Siyi back.

    Gu Yu: ¡°If you don¡¯t want others to misunderstand then you should only send the information for him to see.¡±

    Afterwards, he felt that his message revealed too much of his inner turmoil so he quickly followed up with another message to deflect Zhang Siyi attention.

    It wasn¡¯t until thirty minutester that Zhang Siyi messaged back.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I overlooked my closed status because my best friend is leaving.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Where is he going?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°He¡¯s going abroad.¡±

    With his heart pounding in his chest, Gu Yu¡¯s replied: ¡°So, what are your ns? Are you ready to move?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I have until the end of the month.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Are you going to find a roommate?¡±

    Unlike his usual self, Gu Yu impulsively offered: ¡°If you don¡¯t mind, mo......¡±

    As he was typing his message, Zhang Siyi sent another message, interrupting him: ¡°Since I have the dog, I am not sure if I will be able to find a roommate so I¡¯ll probably just find an apartment for myself.¡±

    Looking at Zhang Siyi¡¯s text, feeling embarrassed, Gu Yu deleted his half-typed message.

    After a long time, he sighed. Although he was in a bad mood, he held onto a glimmer of hope: ¡°If there are any difficulties, you can tell me.¡±

    If Zhang Siyi really likes him, he shouldn¡¯t be able to refuse his help, right?

    However, in the next few days, Zhang Siyi did not ask for him at all. Not only that, Zhang Siyi was working hard everyday independently. Not only was he drawing diligently without the need of outside help, he was also looking for a ce to live.

    Gu Yu was always paying attention to him. Witnessing his behavior, thest few days made him feel like perhaps, being liked was all just in his head.

    ¨C Even at times like this, Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t need me.

    ......

    Gu Yu wanted to invite Zhang Siyi out to lunch so he could ask him about his current situation, but he was never at his desk. At one point, he used the internalmunication software to send him a message. He was trying to arrange a time when he and Tao Fei could get together to chat, but Zhang Siyi said: ¡°I will be out looking for an apartment.¡±

    Once, twice, three times. Gu Yu tried, but then gave up.

    When he asked Zhang Siyi about his work progress, he would always give a perfunctorily curt response: ¡°Still drawing.¡± He understood that Zhang Siyi was very busy looking for a house, so perhaps there wasn¡¯t much progress with his work and since there wasn¡¯t a rush, he didn¡¯t press Zhang Siyi further.

    After hearing from Secretary Wang in the morning about the project¡¯s canction, Gu Yu called Zhang Siyi into his office with a heavy heart.

    To his surprise, Zhang Siyi actually finished all of the blueprints with the help of Du Rui.

    Gu Yu was very angry: ¡°You have drawn to this point? Why didn¡¯t you show it to me before?¡±

    He cannot understand why Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t ask for his help.

    ...... Why does he want to do everything alone?

    ...... Do I mean nothing?

    Although he doesn¡¯t like to mix his personal business with work, Gu Yu couldn¡¯t help but directly ask: ¡°Have you been avoiding metely?¡±

    Gu Yu doesn¡¯t understand what has made Zhang Siyi act like this.

    Could it be that Zhang Siyi reacted to his liking for the same sex and felt repulsed, so he deliberately kept his distance?

    When people lose hope, they are prone to desperate thoughts and Gu Yu is no exception.

    He took a deep breath to help calm himself down. First, he announced the suspension of the project to Zhang Siyi. Although he was just as ufortable at the moment as Zhang Siyi was, Gu Yu choose tofort him first. When he heard Zhang Siyi say he wanted to be alone, Gu Yu let him go home to rest.

    ...... I was worried about him. At night I called Zhang Siyi, but I couldn¡¯t get through.

    ...... I sent chat messages and not one reply.

    Gu Yu felt shocked when he learned Zhang Siyi hadn¡¯t shown up all morning. Gu Yu felt like he went into a darkbyrinth, meandering aimlessly without an exit in sight.

    Spring didn¡¯te.

    Winter came first.

    Gu Yu had to go find Zhang Siyi. Showing up at his door, he wouldn¡¯t leave until he had the chance to talk to Zhang Siyi openly. No matter what the answer was, Gu Yu couldn¡¯t continue to be patient.

    However, he didn¡¯t expect Zhang Siyi to actually say he would quit.

    At that moment, Gu Yupletely lost all hisposure and wit. Negative feelings of frustration, disappointment, and anger welled up inside, but the most frightening feeling, was the panic he felt at the idea he was going to lose him.

    ... ¡°Are you serious?¡± When he heard his trembling voice, he didn¡¯t want to reveal how fragile he really was. His world was about to copse. Instead, Gu Yu used all of the negative energy he had inside to prop himself up then heshed out.

    It turns out that Zhang Siyi¡¯s so-called love is so vulnerable.

    Yes. As Gu Yu likes Zhang Siyi, he wants Zhang Siyi¡¯s attention, but in a sh, Gu Yu has be nothing to Zhang Siyi but a passer-by.

    Gu Yu paused and lowered his voice: ¡°You are very disappointing.¡±

    [End of 005]

 Chapter 106: Confirmation

    <h4>Chapter 106: Confirmation</h4>

    _______________________

    Even though Zhang Siyi suspects Gu Yu likes him, he still wanted to confirm whether Gu Yu is gay or not. If there is no evidence that he has this tendency, then love does make one blind. The first point of contact to gather evidence is from his sister, Gu Yao. During New Year¡¯s, he remembered her talking about her brother and her suspicion that her brother was gay.

    He quickly grabbed his phone and was going to send a message to her, but he forgot momentarily, that he bought a new phone card specifically to use while he was searching for a new apartment. For the past two days, more than being ¡®closed¡¯, like a snail in its shell, he had withdrawn himself further from the outside world.

    After he swapped the phone card back to his originally one, Zhang Siyi powered up his phone and waited until it connected to his service provider. When he swiped the screen and opened the phone, he saw a long list of missed calls and messages waiting for him; many of which were from Gu Yu.

    There was one call from the day before yesterday, two callsst night, and three call from this morning at noon. When he opened his WeChat text messages, there were many that Gu Yu sent:

    Saturday, March 14th, 15:34

    Gu Yu: ¡°Do you have time tomorrow?¡±

    Sunday, March 15th, 21:42

    Gu Yu: ¡°Are you busy today?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°[sighs]¡±

    Monday, March 16th, 20:12

    Gu Yu: ¡°Are you alright?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Don¡¯t think too much about the C-City project. I hope you can organize your thoughts as soon as possible.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°[Little fox touches the head]¡±

    ¡°Ahh!¡± Zhang Siyi hugged his mobile phone, feeling guilty. He quickly gave Gu Yu a ¡®Crying Kitten Selling Cuteness¡¯ emoji and sent a message: ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I only just saw your messages now.¡±

    Even though he hasn¡¯t fully confirmed Gu Yu likes him yet, Zhang Siyi wanted talk to Gu Yu more.

    Gu Yu immediately replied and didn¡¯t mention the previous incident. He only asked: ¡°Did you eat yet?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I already ate.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°What did you have?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Baked sausage, simmered chicken rice balls, wonton soup.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Oh. An appetite is very good. [Little fox touches the head]¡±

    ......

    Lying on his pillow, holding his mobile phone, chit-chatting with Gu Yu made Zhang Siyi flushed and feel happy. Like a man walking in a desert for a long time, hungry and thirsty, exhausted and desperate, feeling dead, and then being resurrected upon drinking the first cup of water from an oasis.

    Noticing the time on the clock is past office hours, Zhang Siyi asked Gu Yu: ¡°Are you off work?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Not yet. Since this afternoon¡¯s work hasn¡¯t beenpleted, I¡¯m workingte.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I¡¯m sorry...¡±

    Knowing Gu Yu¡¯s overtime is all Zhang Siyi¡¯s fault, he would punch himself if he could.

    Gu Yu: ¡°It¡¯s all right, are you feeling better?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I¡¯m much better now.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°That¡¯s good. Remember toe to work on time tomorrow as there are new assignments for you. [Smile]¡±

    Still so business like, Zhang Siyi thought to himself feeling unsatisfied. He went to his contact list and searched for Gu Yao avatar.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Calling the Revolutionary Comrades.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Copy that! Over!¡±

    Seeing her fast reply, Zhang Siyiughed and smiled happily. After a few pleasantries, he cut to the chase and asked: ¡°I wanted to ask you about something you told me previously.... What basis do you have to think your brother is gay?¡±

    Since her brother seriously criticized her behavior thest time she saw Zhang Siyi, Gu Yao has not contacted him at all. After her interference with his date, she also has reflected deely on her actions and realized it was wrong to intervene in other people¡¯s feelings. Sometimes, all good intentions might back fire and as a consequence could cause more problems. Even though she learned that her brother likes Zhang Siyi, she never took the initiative to reveal it to him.

    Once Zhang Siyi raised the question himself, Gu Yao¡¯s eyes lit up instantly. ¨C Zhang Siyi wouldn¡¯t normally ask about this...... Does that mean he found out for himself?

    Aaaaaaah! Finally! It¡¯s time to make a difference! She has to seize this opportunity!

    Pondering the best course of action, Gu Yao paused for a few moments. She didn¡¯t answer his question and instead asked her own: ¡°Do you hate the love between two people of the same sex?¡±

    ¡°Well, I don¡¯t hate it.¡± Feeling nervous, Zhang Siyi wiped his sweat from his brow and didn¡¯t dare tell Gu Yao that he is now gay to some extent.

    Gu Yao: ¡°Why did you suddenly ask me this question?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Oh, Um... I¡¯m just a little curious.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Why is that?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Shit! Obviously, he wants to talk to Gu Yao and find out more information, but now the roles are reversed and she is interrogating him!

    Gu Yao asked again: ¡°If my brother is gay, will it affect your opinion of him?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°No, and there may be a feeling of overwhelming joy!¡±

    After confirming Zhang Siyi¡¯s attitude, Gu Yao sighed in relief then exined: ¡°Well, first of all, my brother has never talked about girls or had a girlfriend. Although many of the people who have pursued him aren¡¯t as perfect as he is, there is no shortage of excellent beauties to choose from. A normal boy would at least want to try and experience women, but my brother did not ept any woman¡¯s intentions at all. Instead, hepletely shut them out which makes me suspicious of the most fundamental reason.¡±

    Yes. Zhang Siyi also felt that there were quite a few women at work who like Gu Yu. Even if they have not explicitly said, it is clear by their attitudes and actions. Even so, Gu Yu is as strict as ever and does not show one ounce of gentleness or affection towards them.

    He eagerly asked: ¡°What else?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Secondly, my brother does not dislike homosexuality. Sometimes unconsciously, he reveals his inclination and epting attitude. Like, when we went back to Haicheng together in the car. I mentioned the two male wild cats in his house and he replied something about why they couldn¡¯t they be a pair.... Do you remember that?

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Yes.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°This is only one example. There have been several others before. The most unforgettable memory I have is the day he came home from the first year of college and we watched TV together. I have forgotten what the specific show was, but the story had a vague homosexual love story. I remember him being very engaged with watching it and at the end he said, ¡°In fact, real feelings can be felt regardless of gender.¡± I didn¡¯t quite understand it at the time and causally joked with him. I asked him, ¡°if he liked a boy, would he follow him¡± and he didn¡¯t hesitate to answer me, ¡°yes¡±.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.....¡± That¡¯s it. His heart is going to explode.

    Gu Yao continued: ¡°There was another time when my brother was in college and I used hisptop to watch movies and y games during the winter vacation. He downloaded some movies for me to watch and I inadvertently found several homosexual videos on his hard drive. The names ¡°Farewell my Concubine¡±, ¡°Spring Breeze¡± and ¡°Lan Yu¡± stuck out in my mind and it wasn¡¯t untilter when I went to college that I learned what they were. I thought it was odd he would have them on hisputer.¡±

    Not only did Gu Yao feel it was odd, but Zhang Siyi as well. He has seen ¡°Farewell My Concubine¡± for the movie and not for the love story. ¡°Lan Yu¡± was a well-known gay film that he has no interest in watching. Zhang Siyi thought normal straight men wouldn¡¯t go see that type of movie unless it was someone who had an appreciation of the art and was studying film. What is ¡°Spring Fever¡±? It does sound curious....

    Thinking about how much Gu Yao reviled, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t help asking: ¡°What if your brother really loved a man? Aren¡¯t you going to object?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Of course not!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Why? Isn¡¯t very abnormal in the eyes of ordinary people?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Even so, he is my brother. I want him to be happy and be with the person he loves, no matter who it is. I will support and bless him. I am more worried about my parents. Although my family is more democratic, the older generation may not be able to ept this kind of thing.¡±

    With Gu Yao¡¯s reminder, Zhang Siyi¡¯s enthusiasm was reined in. If his parents knew he was with Gu Yu, uh, there might be a chance that his mother would understand, but his father...... He would probably break his legs. However, at least his mother is a rotten woman. As long as his mother epted it, then she can help convince his father. ¨C Huh? Eh? Why am I thinking of such a long-term problem? Do I already want to spend my lifetime with Gu Yu? Oh, my God. Ah... ¦²( ¡ã ¡÷¡ã|||)_

    Zhang Siyi lowered his head and saw another message from Gu Yao: ¡°When my brother makes a decision about something, even if others object, it is useless. Ultimately, he always uses his own persistence and determination to get what he wants. He has been like that since childhood.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Oh...¡±

    Now that Zhang Siyi has confirmed Gu Yu can ept same sex partners, his heart is unsteady. Who is Gu Yu¡¯s favorite person? Was it Tao Fei? After all, it was not long after Gu Yu posted his ¡®Empty¡¯ dinner invitation on WeChat that Tao Fei appeared and his rtionship is still very good! (o////o)

    As Zhang Siyi was contemting these issues, a singr most insightful thought came to mind.

    He recalled a detail that Gu Yu recently said to him about only sending information to Fu Xinhui so there wouldn¡¯t be any misunderstandings.

    ......From before, that WeChat message ¡®Empty¡¯....

    ...... Was it sent only to me?

    Zhang Siyi quickly went to the settings in his WeChat circle of friends. He never really studied the inner functions of chat groups and never thought about which groups are visible to whom. The newly discovered feature is like the discovery of the new world. A whole new bright world!

    Like puzzle piecesing together, Zhang Siyi¡¯s inner conjecture is bing clear. All of the details point to the fact that Gu Yu likes Zhang Siyi.

    With his heart loudly pounding in his chest he asked Gu Yao: ¡°Can you see the post your brother made a few weeks ago with a picture of a dinner table with the notation ¡®empty¡¯?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°......¡±

    ¨C Yes !

    ¨C Finally !!

    ¨C Ah ah ah ah ah !!!

    ¨C Zhang Siyi, this idiot figured it out !!!!

    Ever since her brother¡¯s harsh words, Gu Yao has felt like her own requited love was her brother¡¯s unrequited love for Zhang Siyi. Now that the object of her unrequited love realized the truth, she was very excited to respond to him. She wholeheartedly and enthusiastically messaged Zhang Siyi: ¡°No¡±.

    Gu Yao: ¡°What is that?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡±

    With the intense beating of his chest, Zhang Siyi discovered that hepletely fell in love.

 Chapter 107: Like

    <h4>Chapter 107: Like</h4>

    __________________

    Even though Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t realize it until now, Gu Yu was posting social media posts with specific privacy settings so that only Zhang Siyi could read them. In all of this time, Gu Yu¡¯s note, ¡®empty¡¯ was an invitation for Zhang Siyi to live with him and not because of sympathy or pity.

    In a daze, Zhang Siyi felt like he was floating on fluffy pale clouds, surrounded by golden sunshine with countless love bubbles rising up into the air.

    Looking back, Zhang Siyi finally understand Gu Yu¡¯s reactionsst year during Truth or Dare. He chose Dare both times when Zhang Siyi asked him who he liked and when he asked Gu Yu to evaluate himself.

    ¨C Heh, Heh, Heh, Heh.... Oh my. Gu Yu you¡¯re so shy! (&////&)

    ¨C Ah, I am really a fool! I¡¯ve had my doubts for so long. Why wasn¡¯t I more confident at the beginning? But then again, why does Gu Yu like me?

    Thinking about the pros and cons, Zhang Siyi made a mental list. His educational background is worse, his work ability is worse, his economic conditions are worse...... Everything is worse! Other then a slightly better family background, there is nothing that Zhang Siyi can boast about. Even so, Gu Yu is not the type of person that would try to curry favor with powerful people.

    Zhang Siyi reached up and pinched his silly happy face. Recalling yesterday, flustered, he quickly bounced off the bed and rushed into the bathroom to look in the mirror. Looking gaunt, with circles under his puffy eyes, because of his emotional turmoil, he hadn¡¯t washed or shaved in two days. He looked like a total bum.

    ¡°Aaaaaaaaaaah!¡± The thought of Gu Yu seeing him looking like a mess made Zhang Siyi copse and hold his head feeling regret. Not only did he see Zhang Siyi¡¯s disheveled appearance, Gu Yu also witnessed Zhang Siyi crying, snot nose and all; it¡¯s too embarrassing!

    Not being able to endure his own scruffy appearance any longer, Zhang Siyi turned on the hot water and quickly washed. After drying off, he smacked his cheeks and used facial cleanser and toner. Unlike Gu Yu, that ¡°natural beauty¡±, he worked very hard to maintain his skin condition, but so what! Gu Yu likes him! ~\(¨R¨Œ¨Q)/~

    Feeling giddy, Zhang Siyi swirled back to his room and flung himself on his bed. He had forgotten. Gu Yao was still on WeChat.

    Gu Yao: ¡°What about it?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Hello?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Why aren¡¯t you answering me !?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Why did you ask me all of that!?!?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Hey! What about my brother!?!?!?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Hello?¡±

    Gu Yao: [Bunny fried hair]

    ......

    Zhang Siyi hastened to reply: ¡°Ah! I just took a shower.¡±

    After talking about her brother and then having silence, Gu Yao was afraid something was wrong. She thought, maybe the reality was too much for Zhang Siyi toprehend and now he doesn¡¯t want anything to do with them?

    Gu Yao: ¡°You can¡¯t just leave me hanging! ¡° (#¨F¡ä)Í¹

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I¡¯m sorry! I¡¯m sorry!¡±

    To appease his future sister-inw, Zhang Siyi sent her a red envelope to express his gratitude. Still, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t intend to tell her about his feelings for her brother just yet.

    Even though the red envelope was stingy in Gu Yao opinion, she couldn¡¯t help herself from smiling happily at the turn of events.

    After they exchanged a ¡®good night¡¯, Zhang Siyi put his phone away and leaned back into his pillow thinking about Gu Yu.

    ¨CWhen was the moment Gu Yu started liking me?

    ¨C From the start by giving him the cactus?

    ¨C Certainly not. At that time, I had just started working and Gu Yu was always so harsh towards me!

    ¨C Maybe at Halloween when I gave him the pumpkin?

    ¨C Is it possible that he thinks I was the mother of his pumpkin son? (=_=)

    ¨C No, no. That¡¯s too crazy! Gu Yu can¡¯t be so childish!

    ......

    However, Zhang Siyi was sure of one thing. When he stayed over at his housest year, Gu Yu liked him. This bastard fabricated a lie about a dirty room and no nkets, just so he could sleep with him!

    ..... Hey now, Zhang Siyi wants to sleep with Gu Yu too! (&////&)

    Bursting with excitement, like a maniac, Zhang Siyi was rolling around on his bed thinking about all the potential activities he and Gu Yu could do together in the future.

    People who experience being able to express their adoration and admiration towards the person they love is the happiest feeling in the whole world! Zhang Siyi wanted to let Gu Yu know as soon as possible so he can also feel the same bliss. If he doesn¡¯t, he is afraid Gu Yu will start to resent him and his feelings will turn to hate.

    ...... How can I tell him?

    ...... To say straightforwardly, ¡°I like you too¡± ?

    ...... But that seems too boring....

    ...... Hmm... a better way to tell him....

    ...... Ah, he has a way!

    Zhang Siyi again got up from the bed and fetched his violin.

    A realization hit Zhang Siyi. Gu Yu had already liked him when he asked Zhang Siyi to y the violin for him.

    ¡°Bastard...¡± Zhang Siyi muttered with a flush face and a racing heart.

    He lifted his violin up onto his shoulder and gently put presser on the chinrest with his jaw. Holding his bow loosely, he started warming up with long legato strokes. Thinking about Gu Yu, he poured all of his feelings into ying music for the first time. No longer mechanically ying, the notes took on a new brilliance; pure and flowing. ¨C If it¡¯s Summer you want, I will y it for you.

    Early the next morning, Zhang Siyi woke up full of energy. With the fastest speed possible, he brushed his teeth, washed his face, and dressed. With a bounce in his step, he walked to the subway station and rode it to work. During the morning, rush hour, Zhang Siyi did not mind the packed train cars due to his euphoric feelings. What jam packed cars of smelly people? They are all warm and cute!

    Breathing deeply, thinking about being outside in fresh air, Zhang Siyi, practically skipped along cheerfully on the sidewalk to thepany building. When he got off the elevator, a passing female colleague waved briefly and yawed. On the other hand, Zhang Siyi energetically greeted the staff on the floor. With much theatrics, Zhang Siyi boisterously told everyone: ¡°Gooooooooood Morning!!!¡±

    Upon hearing Zhang Siyi greeting, one of the staff members spilled their coffee and another left their mouth wide open in shock.

    Arriving before him, Zhu Hongzhen watched Zhang Siyi morning greeting. His attitude of ¡®I Love Work!¡¯ was a stark contrast to the condition Zhang Siyi was in when he left. Zhu Hongzhen was surprised: ¡°You... What happened yesterday?¡±

    While giving him a casual excuse, Zhang Siyi line of sight was frequently looking at thepany¡¯s entrance. It¡¯s 8:55. Why isn¡¯t Gu Yu here yet?! He did say, ¡°See you tomorrow,¡± so why didn¡¯t hee early?!

    Zhu Hongzheng shook his head in wonder. What problem is so simple that one can swing from the look of death to recover in one day and be so joyful the next?

    At the appearance of Gu Yu at 8:58, Zhang Siyi¡¯s eyes shined brightly and honed in on Gu Yu¡¯s figure. Their eyes met and as Gu Yu walked calmly to his office, Zhang Siyi bowed his head. However, Zhang Siyi kept peeking at him out of the corner of his eyes.

    Gu Yu¡¯s gaze went straight to Zhang Siyi when he entered and he easily saw his antics. Every time he took a peek, their eyes met causing a feeling of an electric current running through him from head to toe.

    Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t take it any longer so he bravely looked up and openly stared at Gu Yu walking to his office. As Zhang Siyi watched, his eyes sparkled, and he could feel the heat within him rise. The current connecting them became stronger and stronger. It made Zhang Siyi feel like his feelings where floating up and out of him, like love bubbles escaping at the top of his head and expressing his love as they burst.

    POP! Love~

    POP! Love~~

    POP! Love~~~

    Gu Yu: ¡°......¡±

    This time, Gu Yu looked away first. He raised his fist to cover his mouth and coughed lightly. With a twinkle in Gu Yu¡¯s eyes, he walked slowly passed Zhang Siyi and into his office.

    Feeling like he just won a boxing round, Zhang Siyi held up his arms in victory and spun around in his chair smiling from ear to ear. He only saw him briefly and already, Zhang Siyi just wanted to pounce on Gu Yu.

    After a little while, Gu Yu sent Zhang Siyi a message toe to his office.

    Like a Pok¨¦mon summoned beast, it took only three seconds to appear in front of Gu Yu: ¡°Boss, you summoned me!¡± (¡Ñv¡Ñ)

    Gu Yu: ¡°......¡±

    Sitting at attention in front of Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi blinked his eyes repeatedly, eagerly waiting for his mission.

    Again, Gu Yu brought his fist up and coughed lightly then handed him a paper: ¡°This is a tourist development zone in X City, Yunnan province. It is a hotel design project with both designs needed for the buildings as well as a separatendscapendmark. First familiarize yourself with the project background and situation then begin basic preliminary work. After two days, when Tao Fei submits hismercial high-rise building project, I¡¯ll assign the both of you on the project.¡±

    Even though Gu Yu exined his rtionship with Tao Fei, when Zhang Siyi heard his name, he couldn¡¯t help but feel a little upset. Since Tao Fei was recruited to help him, Zhang Siyi felts he needed to set aside his negative feelings and try to work together.

    Even though Zhang Siyi had all of the nessicary information in hand, Gu Yu saw him continuing to sit at attention staring at him greedily: ¡°Well, was there anything else?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°No. Boss.¡± ¨C Aren¡¯t I obvious? Can¡¯t you see that I like you!

    Walking out of Gu Yu¡¯s office, Zhang Siyi was feeling a little down, but he was keen on starting the new assignment.

    The location of the new project is close to the Dai Autonomous Prefecture. Preliminary research into the area suggests it¡¯s near a car manufacturer. As he was looking online for more information, Zhang Siyi saw Tao Fei go confidently into Gu Yu office with arge stack of color printed papers.

    Zhang Siyi was subconsciously trying to listen to them in the office. After a few minutes, the loud dispute could be heard by anyone that was nearby.

    Tao Fei: ¡°Ordinary beam and column structures are not enough on such stacking floors.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Don¡¯t expect too much out of the domestic construction technology. Your n is theoretically feasible, but the actual construction of it is more difficult.¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°You are too conservative! All new things need to be tried!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°But your n has exceeded the scope of Party A¡¯s willingness to take risks.¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°You didn¡¯t let Party A see it, so how do you know?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Experience. Also, the outer material for thettice structure here will be too heavy causing stress on the joints on this side ....¡±

    After hearing a bang, like the sound of the tabletop being hit, Tao Fei angrily clutched his drawings and pushed the door of Gu Yu¡¯s office open.

    All the nearby staff have looked up to see what all the fuss is about. Seeing Tao Fei looking so furious for the first time, they were shocked. He angrily crumpled and tore his stack of drawings and trashed them then walked over to his desk to sat down. Not a minuteter, he stood up suddenly, and in a hurry as if to avoid being stared at, he walked in the direction of the dining area.

    Everyone was a little frightened of Tao Fei¡¯s explosive behavior. Zhang Siyi was as well however, unlike the rest of his colleagues, he has to learn how to get along with him.

 Chapter 108: Fried Hair

    <h4>Chapter 108: Fried Hair</h4>

    When everyone turned back to their desks and were no longer paying attention, Zhang Siyi quietly got up and went to pick up the torn pieces from the trash can. Since Tao Fei only tore it two times, the drawings were easily taped back together.

    ...... Ah, likeyers of rice cakes... It¡¯s really beautiful!

    Zhang Siyi looked over the ns in detail. Not only was the outside shape of the building unique, the inside structure was well developed and intricate as well.

    Now that Zhang Siyi has been working at Borderless for over six months, from the early stages of parking lots and core drafting, to medium andrge office buildings, to hispletion of a set of blueprints, he is no longer a rookie who can¡¯t understand anything.

    If Tao Fei design use a person as an analogy, then the shape of the building is like the overall appearance of someone. The structure is like the building¡¯s skeleton and the outeryers are its clothing.

    No matter which part is designed first, the first problem to ovee is engineering the support structure that houses the columnwork and core functions. In traditional buildings, the core function tube, like a person¡¯s backbone, is most important part of the support structure. However, in Tao Fei design, the structural columns are on an incline and thereby giving less structural importance to the core function tube.

    It was clear that Tao Fei spent a lot of thought on the design of his very unique building. Although Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t evaluate the drawings in detail, just by looking at them, he can tell how knowledgeable and capable Tao Fei really was. His confidence isn¡¯t unwarranted.

    On one hand, sometimes when people of simr abilities work in the same group, the unfounded differences in treatment between them may trigger hatred and jealousy. On the other hand, when one of the persons is clearly ahead of the other, then the innatepetition between the two will disappear.

    The same is true for Zhang Siyi. When he saw Tao Fei¡¯s design, he knew he was leagues ahead of his own ability. He had fought an imaginary enemy and regretted how hostile and foolish he was. It was as Gu Yu said, even if Tao Fei is arrogant, he is a very good designer.

    Not anticipating any issues, the proud Tao Fei encountered the Big Devil named Gu Yu and the most vital part of the building was already rejected. As always, Gu Yu was direct in his evaluation and definitely did not in any way pamper Tao Fei even if they were ssmates.

    Shit! If Zhang Siyi was in Tao Fei shoes, he probably would have exploded too. (=_=)

    As the design director, so far, no one at Borderless has argued with Gu Yu. Even if the people in Child Labor Group B have design differences, both are respectful and polite. While sounding harsh, Gu Yu criticisms were always valid and spoken with good reason. If a subordinate banged your desk and then mmed your office door, then it definitely will be awkward and ufortable between the two.

    Although feels Zhang Siyi is a little sympathetic for Tao Fei, at the moment, he was more worried about Gu Yu. It¡¯s only natural because he likes Gu Yu! ~\(¨R¨Œ¨Q) /~

    He opened thepany internal message system and selecting Gu Yu¡¯s name then Zhang Siyi sent him a short note: ¡°I just heard your quarrel with Tao Fei. Are you all right?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°I¡¯m fine. Leave him be. Tao Fei wille back when he cools down.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    After Tao Fei¡¯s blow up, whispers could be heard in the office. People were specting on Tao Fei¡¯s job security in thepany. Some people even made bets as to whether or not he willst through the day.

    Zhang Siyi had mixed feelings towards the incident. At first, he really didn¡¯t want Tao Fei in thepany. Now that he heard his colleagues say the same, he felt bad. If their team lost Tao Fei, they would be losing a talented designer.

    Not intending to think about it further, Zhang Siyi slowly shook his head and sighed. He was about to get up for lunch, when suddenly, Gu Yu called out to him: ¡°Zhang Siyi,e here.¡±

    Zhang Siyi got up quickly and went over to him: ¡°Yes? Is there a problem?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Let¡¯s go out together at noon for lunch. I have something to tell you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Uh, but he already has ordered thepany¡¯s Bento!

    Gu Yu silently watched him for a few seconds. Zhang Siyi lifted the white g and surrendered: ¡°OK.¡±

    ...... Totally unable to refuse AH! (*/¦Ø\*)

    Since Zhang Siyi ordered a boxed lunch, he gave it his neighbor, Piggy.

    He took the elevator downstairs with Gu Yu and this time they went to a Cantonese restaurant and ordered the business lunch package. While Gu Yu ordered chestnut chicken and rice, Zhang Siyi ordered beef in oyster sauce with rice. Since it was the peak time to eat, the restaurant was crowded. Like the first day of work when they bumped into each other at lunch at the Japanese restaurant, Gu Yu took out his credit card and paid.

    Now that they ordered their meals, Zhang Siyi looked up and cherished the handsome view in front of him. ¨C Aaah! Eating with the person I like.... It¡¯s awesome!

    The two didn¡¯t have to wait long until the food was brought to the table. With soup, a sd, and side dishes, there were four additional small tes each of which were a little different.

    Gu Yu moved his dish towards Zhang Siyi and whispered: ¡°Lets share.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Ordinary colleagues would never share food when eating together. When Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi ate together at his house for the first time, they did not share the food. Since sharing food was an intimate act that only trusted people with a close rtionship would do, Zhang Siyi was a little confused with Gu Yu¡¯s actions. Regardless of his intentions, Zhang Siyi was excited. He also pushed his own dishes towards Gu Yu: ¡°You eat mine too.¡±

    Gu Yu smiled and drank some soup before moving his chopsticks. Although Gu Yu said to share, and Zhang Siyi also offered his meal, they bowed their heads as if to say, you eat mine and I will eat yours.

    Just as Zhang Siyi went for a piece of tomato, Gu Yu also reached with his chopsticks. They almost had a chopsticks fight. At the same time, they looked up at one another. When their eyes met, like earlier in the morning, the current between them grew stronger and Zhang Siyi could feel the heat rise within him. The atmosphere is both strange and ambiguous. With just one look, did he find out? Does Gu Yu know he likes him?

    Not able to endure it any longer, Zhang Siyi quickly wanted to talk about something: ¡°Tao Fei seems to be pretty angry.¡±

    Gu Yu casually replied: ¡°Well, he has fried hair.¡±

    Choking back his food, Zhang Siyi ¡°Pfft¡±. He didn¡¯t expect Gu Yu to use the adjective ¡°fried hair¡± to describe Tao Fei.

    Unexpectedly Gu Yu went on to say: ¡°Just like you were when you first came to the office.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What? When?...... I never have.¡±

    Without moving his head, Gu Yu looked up at him: ¡°You haven¡¯t?¡± He finished chewing then looked uppletely: ¡°When I asked you to draw toilets, stairs, parking lots, and when I¡¯ve pointed out the problems, you have never blown up?¡±

    Zhang Siyi replied: ¡°I was just unhappy. It¡¯s not like Tao Fei.¡±

    Gu Yuughed loudly: ¡°The essence is the same.¡±

    After eating two mouthfuls of rice, Zhang Siyi curiously asked: ¡°What did I look like to you?¡±

    Gu Yu looked up at him and smiled broadly: ¡°With bulging cheeks, and t brows, you just stared. It was obvious how ufortable you were.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Gu Yu sighed: ¡°But unlike Tao Fei, you are much more docile than he is. At most, you would stare in a silent tantrum. Tao Fei is like a sawed off shot gun. His temper makes it difficult and he always ends up shooting his own foot.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Thinking of the office whisperings, Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°Is Tao Fei going to quit?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Over something like that?¡± Gu Yu chuckled then continued: ¡°I already knew what his personality was like beforehand. Although very good, his designs are too idealistic. His ideas and creativity are his own regardless of what the domestic construction industry requires. However, if he wants his designs to be realized, he needs to learn how topromise. When he matures, there will be an opportunity for his designs to be built.

    Zhang Siyi nodded. He knew that Gu Yu must have his own reasons. He asked: ¡°But why be so direct? If you put it mildly, he may not be so angry.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Since Tao Fei has strong personal opinions, he will argue and forcefully persuade his point every time. For stubborn people like him, the most effective way to deal with them is to be blunt and straightforward. Today, the same issues were brought up. Even if I tell him many examples of designs that were rejected for the same reason, he will continue to argue about it. He decided to leave angrily because he knows I won¡¯t lie to him.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu frowned and said: ¡°You don¡¯t have to worry about him. He will calm down ande back.¡±

    ¡°Oh ...¡± Zhang Siyi lowered his head to drank his soup. He suddenly remembered and sat up: ¡°Oh yeh. What was it that you wanted to tell me?¡±

    Gu Yu also finish his soup and put down his chopsticks: ¡°In order to avoid onerge pile to move on the weekend, I want to take the opportunity to move part of your belongings every night.¡±

    Zhang Siyi nodded: ¡°Sounds good!¡±

    ...... Was that it? Isn¡¯t that something Gu Yu could have just messaged me about? Did he have to tell it to me in person? Was it because he just wanted to spend time with me? & (£þ¦á£þ) &

    After lunch, Gu Yu said he had an errand to run so Zhang Siyi went back to thepany alone. When he arrived, he unexpectedly saw Tao Fei examining the ¡°Borderless Style¡± wall-hanging-posters. Aware of someone approaching, Tao Fei abruptly turned and stared at Zhang Siyi: ¡°Yo,e over here.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...?¡±

 Chapter 109: Three Days

    <h4>Chapter 109: Three Days</h4>

    Tao Fei¡¯s tone made Zhang Siyi a bit angry. ¨C How can he be so shameless!? Shit, he asked and I¡¯m just supposed to obey?

    Thinking of his earlier outburst, Zhang Siyi was reminded of an unruly teenager. He hesitated a moment, then walked a few steps in Tao Fei¡¯s direction: ¡°What?¡±

    For the first time, Zhang Siyi was face to face in close proximity with Tao Fei. Up close, his facial features were more beautiful and his skin wasn¡¯t worse than Gu Yu¡¯s. If not for his sharp stare and fiery temper, Zhang Siyi would definitely be deceived by his appearance. A beautiful kitten? More like a ferocious tiger!

    Tao Fei looked at him for a few seconds, raised his brow and asked: ¡°Do you hate me?¡±

    Zhang Siyi was surprised. At the potential of being seen through, he started to sweat. Under normal circumstances, would a person that you don¡¯t know ask so directly? Was he going to take his frustrations out on him instead?

    Shit! Zhang Siyi wracked his brain, thinking of what to say. ¨C I did hate you, but I don¡¯t anymore! I do sympathize... Hey being so honest is too embarrassing!

    For peaceful coexistence in the office, trying to look harmless, Zhang Siyi shrank his shoulders and said: ¡°No I don¡¯t.¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi continued: ¡°Why would I hate you? When have you ever seen me do something that says I hate you?¡± Looking at Tao Fei, Zhang Siyi noticed a slight smile on his face.

    Tao Fei snorted and said: ¡°It¡¯s all right if you don¡¯t.¡±

    With that, he turned away, leaving Zhang Siyi in the wind feeling confused.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± What was that? (=_=)

    After going to a bathroom, Zhang Siyi returned to his desk and heard Zhu Hongzhen ask: ¡°Where did you eat at noon?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Boss needed me for something so I ate with him. What did you do with my boxed lunch?¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°I wanted to tell you about this. I gave it to Tao Fei.¡±

    Surprised, Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°Oh? Why did you give it to him?¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°When I went to lunch, I saw him sitting alone in the dining area drinking coffee. He seemed to be in a better mood. Ji Feiyu went over to talk to him for a while and seeing that he didn¡¯t have a lunch and I had an extra one, I gave yours to him.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Oh...¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen was silent for a second then turned to ask him: ¡°Do you have a problem with Tao Fei?¡±

    Even though he felt a little guilty, Zhang Siyi replied steadily: ¡°What? Of course not.¡±

    ¡°When he learned the Bento was yours, he joked....¡± Zhu Hongzhen used a tone and voice like Tao Fei to say: ¡°Mr. Zhang? That guy doesn¡¯t seem to like me very much. Are you sure he didn¡¯t poison it?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°I told him you have a very good character. You don¡¯t mind that I gave the Bento away, right?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Of course I don¡¯t mind!¡± Even if he hated Tao Fei, it is impossible to do such a thing!

    Zhu Hongzhen also pointed to the stack of books and materials on Zhang Siyi desk: ¡°By the way, he just came over to repay you for the Bento.¡±

    Zhang Siyi turned over and saw a twenty yuan, but at the same time, he was amazed that the crumpled drawing that he picked up from the trash in the morning was gone! ¨q (¡ãa¡ã ¡®) ¨r

    Is it possible when Tao Fei came over to give him money, he saw it and took it away?

    Zhang Siyi quietly craned his neck toward Tao Fei¡¯s seat to take a peek. Tao Fei also happened to look up at his direction. Their eyes met and Tao Fei winked at him. Feeling a current in the air, Zhang Siyi felt like he got zapped. Scared, Zhang Siyi instantly turned away.

    Although Zhang Siyi was looking at the designs out of curiosity, the drawings were indeed Tao Fei¡¯s. Even though Zhang Siyi retrieved them, they should be returned to him, but damn.......

    Zhang Siyi pped his forehead feeling fucking embarrassed! As a straight man who has beenpletely bent, it¡¯s not hard to open his mind in this regard. He just hopes Tao Fei isn¡¯t thinking about it!

    Fortunately, everything was peaceful in the afternoon. When Gu Yu returned to thepany, he met with Tao Fei in his office. They continued to make modifications to his design and by the evening, they adopted a hybrid structure. Gu Yu let Tao Fei make the necessary changes to his outeryers, but also retained the original scheme as a backup. With such an agreement, harmony and peace ensued and the office staff were relieved.

    Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi made arrangements earlier that day to move some of his belongings by car after work. Since Zhang Siyi wanted to spend every second of his day with Gu Yu, he waited for him to finish for the evening. There was another incident when they left thepany. Thirty minutes after the workday ended, Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi walked together to the elevator and met Tao Fei.

    Having recovered from his outburst, Tao Fei looked rxed. He smiled at Gu Yu and called him ¡°brother¡± but when he saw Zhang Siyi in the corner of his eye, he just said ¡°Yo.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Yo-Yo-Yo yourself! I have a name you know?!

    Tao Fei asked Gu Yu: ¡°Brother, is he the little student who came back from the UK undergraduate program that you mentioned to mest time?¡±

    Gu Yu nodded: ¡°Yeah.¡±

    Since Tao Fei didn¡¯t know they were about to leave work together, he asked Zhang Siyi: ¡°Where do you live?¡±

    Thinking of his temper and his actions at noon time, he got goose bumps. Zhang Siyi was feeling overwhelmed by the sudden question so he paused and didn¡¯t know how to answer him. Luckily, Gu Yu answered for him: ¡°He ising with me today.¡±

    Tao Fei raised his eyebrow and questioned: ¡°To your house? Why?¡±

    Gu Yu exined without hesitation: ¡°He is moving in.¡±

    Tao Fei was surprised: ¡°Thest time I asked if I could live there, didn¡¯t you say that your sister was living there?¡±

    Looking away, Gu Yu lightly coughed: ¡°My sister recently found an internship, far away from where I live. She is moving into a house with her ssmates. Zhang Siyi was looking for a new ce to live, so I offered the room to him.¡±

    Zhang Siyi gave Gu Yu a side-long nce. Gu Yao and her ssmate rented a house? Really? Howe I don¡¯t know about it? You clearly said something else yesterday. You¡¯re lying to Tao Fei, aren¡¯t you? (^ W ^)

    Gu Yu: ¡°...¡±

    Tao Fei looked at them suspiciously as if there was something was wrong, but he couldn¡¯t say it. In the end, he only touched his chin with interest: ¡°Siyi, Auntie Four. Really appropriate. Hehe.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Fuck off!

    When the elevator returned to the ground floor, they exited the building and Tao Fei headed in the opposite direction towards the subway. Since there was no timeter to cook, Gu Yu took Zhang Siyi out for dinner

    The climate in early spring is still rtively humid and cold and frequently rains. As they left the office, it started to drizzle.

    Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t in the habit of bringing an umbre with him. Since both hispany and his apartment were rather close to the subway stop, he never felt it necessary to carry one and instead used the hood on his coat. But not today. Since Gu Yu was taking him out for dinner at a ramen restaurant, with the rain and wind, a thousand meters was too far without an umbre.

    From Gu Yu¡¯s briefcase, he took out a folded ck umbre and snapped it open. He called him: ¡°Come here.¡±

    Zhang Siyi nervously went over. With two men under a single umbre, Zhang Siyi was subconsciously pulling away to give Gu Yu more room under the canopy so he wouldn¡¯t get wet. Gu Yu noticed his behavior and reached out to his shoulder and pulled him closer. He held him close and in a low-murmur said: ¡°What are you doing? Come closer so you don¡¯t get caught in the rain. We wouldn¡¯t want you to catch a cold.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    In a short while, Zhang Siyi felt Gu Yu¡¯s hand slowly slipped from his shoulder and then it would be ced on Zhang Siyi¡¯s shoulder once again. After it urred a couple of times, Gu Yu moved his arm morefortably around Zhang Siyi¡¯s lower back instead. Zhang Siyi was nervous and could feel his heart pounding like crazy.

    As they walked down the street, Gu Yu lowered the umbre against the wind. Like themselves, the people around them were also leaving work and hurrying to get out of the rain. No one payed any attention to who were the ones so closely huddled together under the umbre. In this way, the two men went all the way to the Ramen ce. When they arrived, Gu Yu let him go.

    Zhang Siyi turned his back and hid while clutching his chest and panting... (o////o)

    After dinner, the rain was getting heavier so they decided to take a taxi to Gu Yu¡¯s home instead of using the subway. It took an hour for the two of them to drive to Zhang Siyi¡¯s apartment and then pack the car full of boxes and then drive back to Gu Yu¡¯s ce.

    Working together, it didn¡¯t take long to unpack Gu Yu¡¯s car. Zhang Siyi ced most of the boxes near the front entrance in the foyer. Wiping his hands, Gu Yu was getting ready to make one more trip back and forth. While he went to drop Zhang Siyi off at home, he was going to bring back a bunch of misceneous items. As they sat in the car waiting for the traffic light to change, Gu Yu suddenly asked: ¡°I have enough nkets. Do you want to pick up your toiletries and the dog and move in earlier than nned?¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s proposal made Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart move. He couldn¡¯t wait to move in, but he still needed to practice ying the violin. He wanted to utilize the time he had left to practice rigorously because he wanted to y Summer for Gu Yu perfectly. If he moved in early, then Gu Yu would hear him practice and thereby ruining the surprise.

    ¡°Not right now.¡± Zhang Siyi said with great difficulty. ¡°It¡¯s just a few more days until I¡¯ll officially move on Saturday.¡±

    Gu Yu seemed a little surprised by Zhang Si Yi¡¯s answer and nced at him thoughtfully.

    Zhang Siyi was afraid of disappointing him so he hurriedly exined: ¡°I still have a few things I need to do at home.¡±

    Gu Yu nodded and said: ¡°Okay. If you say so.¡±

    Reluctantly, Zhang Siyi watched Gu Yu drive away then he went back inside his apartment and quickly washed up. Counting down the next three days, he was determined to make us of his time and poured everything he had into practicing the violin.

 Chapter 110: Townhouse

    <h4>Chapter 110: Townhouse</h4>

    At work on Thursday, Zhang Siyi shook out his cramped arm then continued to collect background information on the X-City hotel project in Yunnan province. Its just two more days left until he moves!

    In the evening, Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu went out to dinner together. After thinking about his living situation, he wanted to discuss it with Gu Yu: ¡°Boss, I¡¯ve thought about it. I¡¯m going to move in with you but I still have to pay you rent.¡±

    Even before Zhang Siyi realized the truth about who Gu Yu liked, he thought about paying rent. Due to the emotional rollercoaster he experienced from thest few days events, his mind was mush. When Gu Yu asked him to live together, he felt so happy that he forgot all else, including asking him about rent.

    Knowing that Gu Yu liked him, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t want to take advantage of his feelings to deliberately ignore paying rent. In some ways, after studying in the UK for many years, Zhang Siyi adopted some westernized concepts. In particr, the sentiment is true towards the importance of the mutual economic independence of a couple.

    Although Gu Yu lived in a friend¡¯s house without the need to pay rent in exchange for architectural favors, the two decided to live together and thus, they should bear the expenses together.

    Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t think of anything else to offer other than paying rent. He scratched his head in embarrassment: ¡°I don¡¯t have much money now so I can only afford the same as I¡¯ve been paying. Four-thousand a month. What do you think?¡±

    Now that Zhang Siyi has been looking at housing options for thest two weeks, he is well versed in the various areas of the city and its current prices. Inferring the rent of Yuanshan Garden from experience, he can guess that the vi is at least twenty-thousand a month. What¡¯s more, the significance of Zhang Siyi¡¯s improved quality of life is greater than the value of the house itself. For these reasons, Zhang Siyi is embarrassed to mention ¡°4,000 bucks.¡±

    Gu Yu listened to Zhang Siyi¡¯s words and carefully examined his expression. Knowing Zhang Siyi¡¯s personality and upbringing, he didn¡¯t want to dismiss Zhang Siyi¡¯s thoughtful proposal.

    ¡°Alright, but I didn¡¯t intend to collect your money. Since this is what you insist on, I will ept it.¡± In order for them to livefortably together, Gu Yu respected Zhang Siyi¡¯s wishes. Gu Yu continued: ¡°However, neither will I take this money for myself, nor will my friend who provides this house agree to it.¡± After a moment of deliberation, Gu Yu looked up and said: ¡°How about we use the money towards ourmon expenses and if there isn¡¯t enough, I will pay for the remainder and if you do other chores to improve our living arrangements, I can award you a bonus based on my own judgment.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Zhang Siyi understood the first part, but the second part sounded strange. That is to say, when they buy food or go out to eat or watch a movie, Gu Yu does not need to pay. As a result, it is more like Zhang Siyi is ¡°supporting¡± Gu Yu. Not only does Gu Yu¡¯s proposal take care of Zhang Siyi¡¯s self-respect, but it also gives him the chance to feel like he is contributing!

    Zhang Siyi nodded enthusiastically and felt it was very reasonable than asked: ¡°What are the other things I can do to improve the quality of living together?¡±

    ¡°For example, if you took the initiative to do various chores, or something like buying fresh flowers to decorate...¡± Gu Yu lifted his eyebrows and paused. Than continued: ¡°Well, if it is something that makes me feel happy, I feel its only appropriate to return the rest of the money to you.¡±

    Is there such a good thing as earning money back through housework? ¡°All right!¡± Zhang Siyi said full of gratitude and joy. After the consensus, Zhang Siyi could finally look forward to living together without any burden.

    That night, the pair moved more of luggage over to Gu Yu¡¯s house. The only stuff left in the apartment, was Zhang Siyi bedding, his violin and the dog.

    Gu Yu looked at the bare apartment and the restless Golden Retriever. He asked: ¡°What is the dog¡¯s name?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Cheer-Up¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Cheer-Up? Why does he have an odd name? Is there any special meaning?¡±

    Zhang Siyi eye¡¯s twitched and with some resentment exined the origin on the dog¡¯s name thenined: ¡°This is the dog of doom. Nothing but bad things have happened since getting this dog. First, Fu Xinhui¡¯s family was attacked by the mob, then his sister was imprisoned for a few weeks and then his family went bankrupt. Since the dog was entrusted to me, I lost 5000 on the sale of used speakers, my project fell through, and I couldn¡¯t find an apartment even though I looked for a month. If it wasn¡¯t for you, I wouldn¡¯t have a ce to live!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°......¡±

    There were other instances of bad luck like his fight with Gu Yu, but Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t want toin about his list grievances anymore. Now, Zhang Siyi is a little fearful of the dog: ¡°I usually call him Stupid-Dog. There is no way I am calling the dog Cheer-Up. He¡¯s just going to bring us bad luck.¡±

    Hearing Zhang Siyi talk about ¡°us¡±, Gu Yu smiled. He went over to the dog, crouched down and pet his head. Wagging his tail and responding to Gu Yu¡¯s touch, Cheer-Up moved closer and stuck his tongue out panting.

    Gu Yu: ¡°When I get back home, I¡¯ll research the dog¡¯s aura and calcte the best name.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s: ¡°Oh? What are you going to do?¡±

    Gu Yu exined: ¡°Since some architectural design requests want to utilize Feng Shui, I have read a few books rting to the subject. Inevitably, there are things thate up every now and then that are very difficult to exin withmon sense. Since you said the dog incurs bad luck, then you will always have negative feelings. Whether luck has anything to do with it or not, it is best to dispel any doubts. Then you will feel morefortable and at ease.¡±

    With stars glittering in his eye, Zhang Siyi looked at Gu Yu full of worship: ¡°Well, hurry up and calcte it!¡±

    Ah, for the sake of the future! Gu Yu is so powerful! (¡î_¡î)

    Gu Yu: ¡°......¡±

    After Gu Yu went home, Zhang Siyi took time to practice ying the violin. Later, while getting ready for bed, he noticed some messages from Gu Yu on WeChat.

    Gu Yu: ¡°Ipleted my research and discovered that the original name was hastily made. Is it alright if we change it?¡±

    While thinking whether or not he needs to get Fu Xinhui¡¯s consent to rename he dog, Zhang Siyi turned and looked at Cheer-Up. Since he was abroad, Fu Xinhui won¡¯t be seeing him for at least three years. The son and the mother are going to remarry.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°All right! Chang it!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Ok. Hold on, I¡¯m going to figure out a new name.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Hmm.¡±

    In less than half an hour, Gu Yu replied: ¡± In order to ward away the evil spirits, how about we change the dog¡¯s name to Townhouse?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Eh? Townhouse? (=_=)

    Zhang Siyi thought the new name was as stupid as ¡®Cheer-Up¡¯. They might as well name the dog ¡®Prosperous-Wealth¡¯ however, he was eager to agree with Gu Yu¡¯s suggestion.

    Zhang Siyi said: ¡°It¡¯s a good name!¡± As he said the new name out loud, he realized the name was also a homonym for ¡®Secure Residence¡¯. Ah! Very smooth!¡± ~\(¨R¨Œ¨Q)/~

    Gu Yu: ¡°OK, tomorrow we will hold a formal ceremony to change his name.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°[Little Fox Drinks Tea]¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± There is such a thing?

    Since Zhang Siyi assumed the dog¡¯s presence would cause problems, he was surprised at how much consideration Gu Yu had for the dog. Zhang Siyi was both moved and felt warm at heart. He really wished he could leave his apartment with the dog and move into the stepfather¡¯s house now!

    The next evening on Friday, Gu Yu drove with Zhang Siyi to pick up the dog. When they arrived at the vi, Gu Yu gently coaxed the dog inside. In a very serious tone, he spoke to the dog: ¡°Townhouse, this is your new home and I am your new master.¡±

    Townhouse: ¡°......¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± You¡¯re the new owner? So, what am I?

    Ignoring Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu lite three incense sticks and then with Townhouse, he walked the dog in a circle tapping his head three times chanting ¡°Townhouse¡±.

    Incredibly like magic, when the ceremony waspleted, the dog barked in response to Gu Yu as if he understood. Indicating that he was very satisfied, Gu Yu narrowed his eyes and nodded at Townhouse. Witnessing the scene in front of him, Zhang Siyi stared wide-eyed and open mouthed. He felt so useless!

    Even on thest night, Zhang Siyi insisted on going back to his old apartment. Although he wanted to practice onest time, he didn¡¯t stress it too much in fear of causing fatigue. In his anticipation for ying Summer for Gu Yu tomorrow, he couldn¡¯t settle his mind.

    Lying in bed feeling restless, Zhang Siyi searched for one of the films Gu Yao had mentioned previously, ¡°Spring Fever¡±.

    Since the movie had a love scene between two men at the beginning of the film, Zhang Siyi felt ufortable. Having been brought up with straight values, it wasn¡¯t easy to change his thinking right away.

    He took a deep breath and imagined himself and Gu Yu as the couple in the movie doing the things, he saw on screen.... pressed together, kissing, moaning, thrusting,..... Wait, wait!

    The nosebleed is going to flow out ... Zhang Siyi was crimson and looked at the sudden excitement of the little brother between his legs... You¡¯re not! (t////t)

    After the little bit of thunder, the story began with a flow of consciousness and the plot confused Zhang Siyi. Even so, he became engrossed in the characters especially the feelings of loss and loneliness of the male lead. Zhang Siyi imagined himself as the male lead losing Gu Yu and it made him feel very upset.

    After watching the film, Zhang Siyi looked up film reviews on the inte to gain a better grasp of the themes that the film wanted to express. Confirming his guess, the film was about the feelings between people. Whether those two people were two men or a man and a woman, all couples flirt, love, and fight with one another. It is as Gu Yu said; true feelings are gender-neutral.

    Zhang Siyi was suddenly very d that he saw such a film at this time because he never considered that two men could have real emotional feelings. Previously, with a straight man mentality, he would never have taken any step towards another man.

    However, when he saw the pain and loneliness of male couple in the film, Zhang Siyi suddenly felt that his previous thoughts were too irresponsible. He was absolutely reluctant to let Gu Yu suffer the same emotional pain, so once they are together, they will never separate. Now that Zhang Siyi was resolute in his decision, he clenched his fist. Like his lifetimemitment to architecture, Zhang Siyi would spend the rest of his life with Gu Yu!

    Feeling moved by the tone of the film, Zhang Siyi reached out and grabbed his phone. Even though it was past midnight, he sent a message to Gu Yu: ¡°Are you asleep?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Why aren¡¯t you asleep?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Did you have any problems with Cheer ... Oh, I mean Townhouse?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°He is very well behaved and sleeping in the living room.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Oh ...¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°What else is the matter? Why are you still awake?¡±

    Zhang Siyi stared at the screen for a long time and on impulse, he wrote three words: ¡°I miss you.¡±

 Chapter 111: Kiss

    <h4>Chapter 111: Kiss</h4>

    Staring at his phone, Zhang Siyi felt shocked that he actually sent the message. Instinctively, he wanted to say something to withdraw. At the same time, he wanted to know what Gu Yu would say.

    Gu Yu must have seen it......

    If Zhang Siyi said something contradictory now, how would Gu Yu feel? Thinking about even considering the possibility, Zhang Siyi got angry at himself. Forget it. Don¡¯t overthink it.... I just want him.

    ¡°......¡±

    ...... Oh, so shy! q////q

    Zhang Siyi threw away the phone then clutched his hot face and groaned in remorse. ¨C You idiot! These words should be said for tomorrow¡¯s confession to Gu Yu. Otherwise, what kind of surprise would it be?! Ah!

    What to do! Gu Yu must have guessed what he thought of him. Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know what to say next. With a pounding in his chest, he was afraid and excited. He was both nervous and looking forward to what Gu Yu would say.

    When the mobile phone vibrated, he jumped up excitedly and grabbed it. He couldn¡¯t wait to see what Gu Yu had sent.

    Gu Yu: ¡°[Little Fox touched head]¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± That¡¯s it?

    Seeing the emoji-sticker, Zhang Siyi felt lost. He waited a long time, but Gu Yu didn¡¯t send any more messages. ¨C Shit, I said, ¡°I miss you¡±, and you just send me a ¡®touch head¡¯ expression? Don¡¯t you like me? Aren¡¯t you supposed to tell me, ¡°I miss you too¡± or at least send a ¡®little fox kiss¡¯ emoji?

    The greater the expectations, the greater the disappointment!

    He shoved his phone under the pillow, and never wanted to look at it again!

    Feeling wronged, Zhang Siyi held his pillow to try andfort himself. Maybe Gu Yu was too tired and wasn¡¯t paying attention so he simply sent a ¡®touch head¡¯ emoji.

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t ask him any more questions, and Gu Yu hasn¡¯t said anything else so maybe it¡¯s true that he feel asleep. Well, it¡¯s definitely like that, Zhang Siyi convinced himself. ¨C Ah, Ah! Son of a bitch! I¡¯m not pulling the violin for you tomorrow!

    Feeling irritated, Zhang Siyiid back down and tried to sleep. After some time, he finally rxed his mind. Once he felt groggy, he could feel himself falling asleep. At this time the phone under his pillow vibrated.

    He took out his mobile phone and looked at it. It turned out to be Gu Yu!

    It¡¯s been awhile already and Gu Yu hasn¡¯t slept yet? Why is he calling now?

    Confused, he answered the phone. Zhang Siyi was only able to say one syble before he heard Gu Yu gasping and said: ¡°Open the door.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Eh? (¡Ñ _ ¡Ñ)

    Gu Yu: ¡°I am downstairs.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.............¡± Eh ?? ( ¡ã ¡÷¡ã|||)

    Gu Yu repeated it again: ¡°Open the door.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........................¡± Eh !?!? (¨s#¡ã§¥¡ã)¨s

    Zhang Siyi woke uppletely! Gu Yu is here? Is the reason why he didn¡¯t return any more messages was because he came straight over to see him?

    ¨C Oh, my God! That¡¯s the point!!

    ¨C Gu Yu is here! What do I want?

    ¨C What to do? What to do? What to do?!?!

    ¨C So nervous, so nervous, so nervous !!!

    Zhang Siyi flew out of bed and went to the wall panel to push the button that opened the electronic door and then he rushed back to his room to put on a pair of pants. After, he returned to the entrance and quietly waited for Gu Yu to arrive. He cracked the door open for him to enter.

    He heard the sound of the elevator door opening and the sound of a person walking down the hallway. Step by step, Zhang Siyi could hear the footsteps of Gu Yu. As he walked closer, Gu Yu¡¯s steps became slightly quicker, allowing Zhang Siyi to hear the urgency in them.

    As Gu Yu rounded the corner in the hallway, Zhang Siyi looked at him intently. Gu Yu¡¯s hair was messed up seemingly by the wind and holding his car keys. Even though they were only apart for four hours, Gu Yu also looked back at Zhang Siyi intently with obvious yearning.

    In an instant, Zhang Siyi is reminded of the movie soundtrack from ¡°Spring Fever¡±. The unique ensemble music is beautiful and sad. Love is unclear however, with the appearance of Gu Yu the music bes warm, cheerful and sweet. The male characters in the film didn¡¯t wait for one another, but Zhang Siyi waited for Gu Yu. From now on, he will never be lonely.

    Just when Zhang Siyi tried to say something, Gu Yu suddenly stepped forward into the apartment and grabbed Zhang Siyi¡¯s arm. Gu Yu pulled Zhang Siyiy into his arms and clung tightly.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    As Gu Yu¡¯s breath tickled Zhang Siyi neck, he could feel the outside chill from Gu Yu being eliminated by his own rising heat. Their hearts pounded in synchrony.

    Gu Yu wrapped his arm around Zhang Siyi¡¯s waist in one hand and held the back of his head in his other hand. A strong premonition floated across Zhang Siyi¡¯s mind. Gu Yu peered into Zhang Siyi¡¯s eyes for a moment then lowered his lips and kissed him. Zhang Siyipletely lost his ability to speak.

    Timidly at first, their breath mingled and Gu Yu parted his lips to probe gently with his tongue. With more enthusiasm, Gu Yu impatiently sucked his lips and forced his tongue inside Zhang Siyi mouth awkwardly.

    In response, Zhang Siyi eagerly kissed Gu Yu. As the tip of Zhang Siyi tongue touched Gu Yu¡¯s, a pulse of energy swept through him like a wave causing Zhang Siyi to be powerless and making him unable to think.

    With only enthusiasm and desire to guide him, Gu Yu kissing technique wasn¡¯t very good. Even so, the kiss had already made Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart jump and scalp tingle. Zhang Siyi never thought that one day he would be throbbing with desire for another man. It¡¯s over. Zhang Siyi will be in this man¡¯s care for the rest of his life!

    Zhang Siyi slowly reacted to Gu Yu kiss. From being a passive receiver to engaging Gu Yu with force and returning his kisses. Zhang Siyi put his arms around Gu Yu and with more pressure, their kissing became quicker and desperate.

    ......

    After what seemed like a long time, they separated their lips to catch their breath. Panting, they put their foreheads together and looked at each other with affection. Not one word was spoken, but through their kiss, the love they felt for one another was understood.

    ¨C I like you.

    ¨C Me too.

    ¨C Let¡¯s be together.

    ¨C All right.

    ¨C Good.

    Lifting his hand to gently caress Zhang Siyi¡¯s face and lips, Gu Yu finally spoke. Slightly out of breath, husky, and with sensuality he said: ¡°Let¡¯s go home.¡±

    Holding onto Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi subconsciously shuddered in excitement and offered a meager ¡°hmm¡±.

    With the remaining things from Zhang Siyi apartment, they drove back to the vi in Yuanshan Garden. When they opened the door to the vi, like a statue of a stone lion, Townhouse was sitting in the foyer solemnly in wait for the two masters to return.

    The few remaining things that Zhang Siyi brought with him were haphazardly thrown on the sofa.

    Lost in Zhang Siyi¡¯s own embellished thoughts, he was taken upstairs, undressed, and pushed onto the bed. For a moment, he felt like he was going to give himself to Gu Yu. At the time of watching the film, Zhang Siyi felt a little ufortable, but now, he knew he would have done that kind of thing with Gu Yu naturally. He even looked forward to it.

    Gu Yu leaned over and gave Zhang Siyi another deep kiss then stared at him with devotion.

    Zhang Siyi felt captivated and yearned for more and instinctively pressed himself closer to Gu Yu.

    Gu Yu held on to Zhang Siyi tighter, like he had recovered his most precious treasure.

    The love and affection Zhang Siyi felt from Gu Yu made him burn with desire. With an elerating heartbeat, Zhang Siyi anticipated with enthusiasm what was going to happen next......

    Unexpectedly, Gu Yu stood up and pulled up the nket around Zhang Siyi and gently said: ¡°Sleep.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡±

    ¨C What?

    ¨C That¡¯s it??

    ¨C Go to sleep, huh???

    ¨C My pants are off and you actually told me to go to sleep!!!!!!

    ......

    Well, hold on, Zhang Siyi. Gu Yu is an innocent boy who has never talked about love. He doesn¡¯t understand what to do at this time.

    ...... Do you want to take the initiative?

    ...... Tell him in a man¡¯s way that he wants it now?

    ...... But Gu Yu is a man. How can he? (=////=)

    Zhang Siyi sighed in dissatisfaction and was annoyed at himself for expecting too much. In the end, he had to endure the difort.

    Lying down in Gu Yu¡¯s bed, Zhang Siyi deeply breathed in Gu Yu essence. Feeling like he was being embraced by the man himself, his mind felt at peace and he gradually rxed. After several days of packing and moving, as well as staying upte at night to practice music, he didn¡¯t have much strength left. Feeling at ease and closing his eyes, it didn¡¯t take long for sleep to overtake him. Thest remaining thought floated in Zhang Siyi mind. If he knows everything already, what was the point of all the practice and the waiting?

    The next morning, when Zhang Siyi opened his eyes, he found himself entwined with Gu Yu like he had that morning after his first stay at Gu Yu¡¯s home. Gu Yu was already awake gazeing at Zhang Siyi tenderly.

    Even though it was eight in the morning, Zhang Siyi woke up like clockwork. As he blinked his sleepy eyes a few times, the grogginess disappeared and his memories ofst night became clear. He felt somewhat sheepish. Waking up in Gu Yu arms felt like a dream and it was a dream that Zhang Siyi never wanted to end.

    Gu Yu hugged him then leaned over and gave Zhang Siyi a light peck on his lips: ¡°Good Morning.¡±

    Since everything was initiated by Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi felt very self-conscience. With an impulse, he aggressively pushed Gu Yu back and rolled his weight onto him to hold him down and kiss him forcefully.

    Enjoying Zhang Siyi¡¯s treatment, Gu Yu indulged his mischief. Feeling like Zhang Siyi impudent behavior was even more out of style then his usual self, Gu Yuughed yfully. He gave Zhang Siyi¡¯s ass a light p in a timely manner to stop him and said: ¡°Ok. Don¡¯t y with fire.¡±

    Not expecting a p, Zhang Siyi was surprised then quickly retracted himself. As the moment past, he soon came to his senses and wondered what Gu Yu was talking about. What fire? What is he afraid of?

    Gu Yu touched his head and whispered a constion: ¡°Take your time.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    ¨C What!?

    ¨C I¡¯m in a hurry?

    ¨C I don¡¯t believe you don¡¯t want it!

    ¨C It¡¯s all breaking down there!

    While sitting in bed stupidly, Gu Yu has already extricated himself from Zhang Siyi¡¯s grasp:¡± You sleep longer. I¡¯ll go make breakfast. We still have a lot of things to do today.¡±

    Zhang Siyi lost in bed. He suddenly realized that even in Gu Yu¡¯s daily life, he seems to be a rational, methodical, patient, and distinguished...... Workaholic!

    Without Gu Yu¡¯s body temperature to keep himfortable, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t sleep anymore. Zhang Siyi had to admit that Gu Yu was correct. There really was a lot of errands to run and things to sort out from his move, but most of all, he wanted to find the chance to y the violin for Gu Yu.

    Shit! Without the personal admission of love and the eptance of it, there is a feeling that something is missing!

    Zhang Siyi hurriedly got out of bed, sighed at his little brother, then put on his clothes, washed his face and went downstairs.

 Chapter 112: Dog Food

    <h4>Chapter 112: Dog Food</h4>

    __________________________

    As Gu Yu was frying two eggs, Zhang Siyi crept closer smelling the delicious aromas in the kitchen. Since the porridge was ced in the slow cookerst night, it was already done. Gu Yu grabbed a bowl from the cab and spooned porridge into it. He ced the egg and drizzled some sesame oil over it and handed the dish to Zhang Siyi. ¨C Get up early and breakfast is already made. It¡¯s so nice living with Gu Yu!

    Like a puppy waiting for his master, Zhang Siyi looked at him affectionately. Gu Yu said: ¡°Go get the chopsticks.¡±

    ¡°Oh.¡± Zhang Siyi smiled at him. He walked over to the drawer, took out the remaining tableware, then grabbed thest set of dishes from the cab in order to set the table.

    Feeling ravenous, Zhang Siyi swallowed a mouthful of saliva. He opened his WeChat and created a new chat group and pulled Gu Yu into it. Then he took a photo of his breakfast and uploaded the image to the new group....¡¯I¡¯m sorry for the wait.¡¯ Click send.

    A half minuteter, Gu Yu came out of the kitchen and saw that Zhang Siyi hadn¡¯t eaten yet: ¡°Why haven¡¯t you eaten?¡±

    Zhang Siyi looked at him: ¡°I¡¯m waiting for you to eat together.¡±

    Gu Yu smiled warmly and ced thest small dish of homemade radish sauce between the two and whispered: ¡°Eat before its cold.¡±

    Between mouthfuls of food, Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°What are your ns for today?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll help you clean the room and then I need to go to the supermarket to buy something.¡± Gu Yu looked up at saw Zhang Siyiughing. ¡°Today you officially moved in. I¡¯ll make dinner for you in celebration as a house-warming gift. What do you think?¡±

    What could Zhang Siyi do? Of course, it¡¯s all right! Thinking carefully, when Gu Yu arrived at his old apartment, it was already past midnight. He really did move into Gu Yu¡¯s ce on the official day!

    While eating his porridge, Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°Will the celebration be at night?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Yes, but not toote at night. Do you have any special dishes you would like to eat?

    Zhang Siyi wanted to say ¡®as long as you have made the food, I will eat it¡¯, but he felt too embarrassed to say it. Instead he replied: ¡°Anything is fine. I¡¯m not picky.¡±

    Nodding, Gu Yu was about to say something else but he saw Zhang Siyi lowered his head and quietly stammer: ¡°At night, I also have a gift for you.¡±

    Gu Yu curiously asked: ¡°What?¡±

    Blushing crimson, Zhang Siyi replied: ¡°I¡¯m not telling. Be patient and you will know this evening.¡±

    Gu Yu raised his eyebrows and guessed: ¡°y the violin for me?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡± Ah! (¨s¨FÃó¡¯)¨s(©ß©¥©ß

    Seeing Zhang Siyi puff up his red face, Gu Yu knew he had guessed correctly. He brought his hand up to mouth to cover his muffledughter.

    After eating, Zhang Si Yi got up without a word and brought the dishes to the sink and washed them.

    Watching Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu is very satisfied. It seems his teaching is very effective!

    Zhang Siyi took out his anger on the dishes by scrubbing them furiously. Shit! Why did he have to guess!? Now there¡¯s no mystery at all!

    By just sending a ¡®I miss you¡¯ message, Gu Yu drove to his apartment after midnight to see him. Zhang Siyi thought this type of behavior only happened to people on TV. He never would have expected it to happen to him. Aaahh! So romantic! But the mood was stopped because Gu Yu didn¡¯t follow through with the n Zhang Siyi hand in his mind. He really wanted to create a romantic atmosphere for Gu Yu.

    With his own thoughts and ns in ce in his mind, Zhang Siyi realized that he was washing the dishes with hot water. Huh? He clearly remembered there wasn¡¯t hot water thest time he was in the kitchen. Did Gu Yu install a water heater? Zhang Siyi thought it was strange.

    Gu Yu suddenly came up to him from behind and kissed him on the cheek: ¡°I¡¯m waiting for your gift.¡±

    ¡°............¡±

    Aah! Aah! Aah! Aah!......

    Plunging his hands in the hot water, Zhang Siyi blushed a deeper shade of red, feeling both his heart ache and feeling sweet.

    During the morning hours, Zhang Siyi moved his luggage into the upstairs room that was previously ¡®a storage area stuffed with boxes.¡¯ The room was very clean that was furnished with a double bed and arge writing desk with a bookshelf. Also, there was a new wardrobe against the wall.

    While Gu Yu helped him with his stuff, Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°Is this wardrobe brand new?¡±

    Gu Yu exined: ¡°Well, since the upants have only stayed for a short period, I¡¯ve only had a small hanging rack for guests. When I was at your house, I saw that you own a lot of clothes, so I went to IKEA to buy one for you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi felt a little embarrassed over his habit of piling everything on the chair in his bedroom instead of hanging the cloths up. He didn¡¯t expect Gu Yu to remember it.

    While Gu Yu helped Zhang Siyi with his bedding, Gu Yu suddenly asked: ¡°When was thest time you washed your sheets?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Well, I don¡¯t remember ...¡± ¨C Not since they were bought! (=_=)

    Gu Yu frowned and took the sheets out of the room.

    Chasing him, Zhang asked: ¡°Hey! What are you doing?¡±

    Gu Yu looked at them in disgust: ¡°Slimy and dirty. I¡¯m putting them in the wash for you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°How am I supposed to make the bed without sheets?¡±

    Gu Yu nced at him without regard for Zhang Siyi¡¯s plight: ¡°Sleep with me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Gu Yu inspected him up and down then asked: ¡°How often do you take a shower?¡±

    ¡°One or two days.... Maybe two or three days....¡± Under the gaze of scrutiny, Zhang Siyi shrank his neck and quietly said: ¡°Uh, sometimes four or five days....¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°......¡±

    Quickly wanting to exin, Zhang Siyi said: ¡°Well, that only happens when I¡¯m very busy. Normally, I wash every two and maybe three days.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°When was thest time you took a shower?¡±

    Wanting to please Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi excitedly sprung up and happily said: ¡°Last night! I wash everyday now!¡±

    Stopping suddenly, Gu Yu turned to stare at him oddly then smiled at him in a mischievous grin. After, he continued to walk with the dirty sheets down the stairs.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± (o////o) ¨C Shit, I feel like I identally leaked something.......

    Indeed, ever since he learned that Gu Yu liked him, Zhang Siyi changed from his previouszy habits into diligent, hardworking ones. As they say, people will do anything when they are in love. If washing makes Gu Yu happy, Zhang Siyi will take a bath three times a day!

    All day, from nine in the morning until three in the afternoon, it took Zhang Siyi a full six hours to unpack and sort out everything.

    Gu Yu brought the newly washed bedding to the room and removed the quilt that was temporarilyid on the bed: ¡°You can sleep here, but put on the bedding properly first.¡±

    Having learned the truth from Gu Yao previously, Zhang Siyi took the opportunity to tease Gu Yu: ¡°Howe thest time I came you said there was only one nket? What is this?¡±

    Maintaining hisposure, Gu Yu calmly replied: ¡°This is Gu Yao quilt. How can I let a smelly man use my sister¡¯s nket?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Then what¡¯s the difference now?¡±

    Gaining the upper hand, Gu Yu looked at Zhang Siyi and grinned: ¡°Didn¡¯t you just say that you shower every day now? For that personal matter...... I¡¯ll leave you to it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Son of a bitch! Son of a bitch! ......Ah, you bastard!

    As they drove to the supermarket for groceries, Zhang Siyi transferred the months rent to Gu Yu. After going inside, Gu Yu pointed to the rows of shelves: ¡°I don¡¯t have time to shop every day after work, so we need to purchase a week worth of food.¡±

    Now that Zhang Siyi has paid his ¡°rent¡±, he could shop without reservations. He picked out he most expensive milk, yogurt, imported fruits, and arge variety of snacks.

    Gu Yu looked at the overflowing pile of food in the shopping cart, clenched his jaw and mumbled: ¡°ck sheep of the family.¡±

    Feeling a sigh of relief, Zhang Siyi happily walked in front of Gu Yu humming. ¨C Who was the one who said to pick out whatever I want to eat? Poor You!

    Gu Yu looked at the back of Zhang Siyi sullenly then gently shook his own head.

    It was more than five o¡¯clock in thete afternoon when they returned home with fullyden grocery bags. As Zhang Siyi unloaded the groceries, Gu Yu immediately started prepping the ingredients. Next to him, Zhang Siyi was watching his sweetheart¡¯s slow but orderly movements with adoration. Ah, Gu Yu is such a good man! ¨C And this good man is mine! Hehe! (¨R¨Œ¨Q)

    In one hour, Gu Yu made four dishes and one soup. They were tomato stewed brisket, green onion and prawns, pickled lotus root slices, vegetable stir fry, and big bone soup. After the soup was prepared, Gu Yu carefully took out the bone and dried it. When it was cool enough, he gave it to Townhouse.

    For five months, from birth until now, Townhouse has been eating dog food. He has never seen a real bone before. Gu Yu held the bone in his hand and said: ¡°Townhouse sit.¡± The dog sat down and patiently waited for Gu Yu to give him the bone. When he set the bone in the dog dish, Townhouse barked three times as if to say ¡®thank you master¡¯.

    Watching the interaction on the side, Zhang Siyi foolishly asked: ¡°Can Townhouse eat bones? Fu Xinhui told me the dog only eats dog food.¡±

    Gu Yu wiped his hands and said as a matter of course: ¡°If dogs don¡¯t eat bones, than what do they eat? Dog food is simple food that people invented forziness. It¡¯s like apressed biscuit. If you eatpressed biscuits every day, can you stand it?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...... true....¡±

    Watching the dog enjoy his bone, Gu Yu looked down at Townhouse and smiled: ¡°I don¡¯t have time to prepare bones every day. Since today is a celebration and we are eating a special dinner, we should all have a blessing to enjoy, right?¡±

    Zhang Siyi looked at Gu Yu¡¯s profile intently and felt that he was really gentle.

    ...... I like him so much! (¨R¨Œ¨Q)

    Opening a bottle of wine at dinner, Gu Yu poured each of them a ss. When the two sses were raised and joined a ¡®ching¡¯ sound permeated the room. Toasting, Zhang Siyi blushed and Gu Yu officially weed Zhang Siyi in his home.

    Even though they chatted during the meal, Zhang Siyi had been thinking about ying the violin so he was absent-minded. Noticing Zhang Siyi¡¯sck of focus, Gu Yu put down his chopsticks, motioned with his affectionate eyes and gestured with a broad smile.

    Even though they hadn¡¯t finished eating, Zhang Siyi understood; Gu Yu couldn¡¯t wait any longer. Before Gu Yu could say anything, Zhang Siyi said: ¡°I¡¯ll go get my violin now.¡±

    Smiling, Gu Yu raised his wine ss and an affirmative tone issued from his throat: ¡°Hmmm¡±.

 Chapter 113: Confession

    <h4>Chapter 113: Confession</h4>

    __________________________

    Slightly annoyed, Zhang Siyi went upstairs into his room to change. He specially prepared a white tuxedo and silver-grey shirt to y the violin in. He looked super handsome in it, but now some of the excitement was gone. All of his efforts have been seen through by Gu Yu. ¨C Obviously, I wanted it to be a surprise for him, but he made it like this...... Why does that guy always give people the feeling that ¡®everything is under control¡¯? ...Damn it!

    Zhang Siyi tied his bow tie and used a little bit of cologne around his neck. Looking at himself in the mirror, he pped his cheeks once and gave himself a pep-talk: ¡°You¡¯re going to confess! Be happy and don¡¯t make it look like Gu Yu owes you 500 bucks!¡±

    Now ready, Zhang Siyi held his violin under his arm and slowly walked downstairs. The closer he got to Gu Yu, the faster his heart beat. ¨C Ah, I still feel so nervous!

    Originally, Gu Yu wasn¡¯t taking the situation very seriously, but when he saw how handsome Zhang Siyi was in formal attire walking down the stairs he froze, dumbfounded.

    Timidly, Zhang Siyi set up near Gu Yu with his violin and turned to look at him shyly, ready to y.

    Unexpectedly, Gu Yu suddenly raised his hand and motioned to the right and said: ¡°Can you stand a little more to the right?¡±

    Grumbling, Zhang Siyi moved two steps to the side. ¨C ....so controlling. Does it matter where I stand!

    Zhang Siyi whispered: ¡°I¡¯m going to start ying now.¡±

    Gu Yan looked at him intently: ¡°Hmm.¡±

    Zhang Siyi took a deep breath and began-

    ¡°The chatter, the quack, the quack ...¡± Bad! Bad!

    ying the first section of the music, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t have a sure grasp of the beat!

    However, as ayman, does Gu Yu hear it? Continue? ¡°Quack, chatter, Quack...¡±

    Carefully looking up, Zhang Siyi wanted to see the expression Gu Yu had on his face. What he saw didn¡¯t look good and as a result, Zhang Siyi started to panic; heart racing, shortness of breath, hands shaking. Finally, the sound stopped: ¡°Hey!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°......¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± (o////o)

    Turning red, Zhang Siyi felt embarrassed. After being silent for a moment, he said: ¡°That doesn¡¯t count! It was just a warm-up!¡±

    Trying to hold in hisughter, Gu Yu snorted and smiled twice.

    Now angry, Zhang Siyi said: ¡°Don¡¯tugh! Don¡¯t look at me!¡±

    Gu Yu raised a fist to cover his mouth for a moment then forced a smile and encouraged him: ¡°Just rx and don¡¯t be nervous.¡± He paused and then continued: ¡°Since you are ying for me, how can I not watch you?¡±

    Zhang Siyi knew he was making an unreasonable demand, but he couldn¡¯t help blurting it out when he saw how much Gu Yu wasughing at him!

    Zhang Siyi snorted and rxed his face. He took a deep breath and adjusted his mindset. Then, he focused on his goal. He began to y again. ¡°Summer¡± is not a very lyrical song. On the contrary, it is a very anxious sounding piece with intense rhythms and very few slow smooth tones.

    Zhang Siyi tried to find the samefortable feeling he had while practiceing at home. He yed this song for a month every day for two hours and must have practiced the song four to five hundred times already. As a result, his muscles would remember the series of movements necessary to make the music sing.

    Gradually he rxed and immersed himself into the music. Ignoring external factors, he plunged himself deeper into the sound. Like a trance, his mind was able to let go and only focus on his purpose.

    His long-prepared gift for Gu Yu. He poured all of his feelings for the man into the music. From innocent worship, to an ignorant heart, and finally to feverish love....

    In order to show his true feelings, more than once, Zhang Siyi has fantasized about standing in front of Gu Yu ying this song for him. ¡ª Gu Yu, do you hear that? I like you! I like you the most! Super like you!

    Getting swept away by the emotional atmosphere, Zhang Siyi involuntarily raised his eyes to look at Gu Yu. When their eyes met, there was an instantaneous burst of energy, like a maic force pulling them tightly together.

    Gu Yu was intently watching Zhang Siyi, hot with affection and a desperate desire. It was a look that Zhang Siyi has never seen before.

    ¡°.............Ur ¨C Ur ¨C Urla!¡±

    With thest ringing note, Zhang Siyi made a handsome finishing action with his bow. He finally managed to y the whole piece for Gu Yu. He gasped for breath and lowered his instrument and bow. Unable to move, Zhang Siyi¡¯s line of sight was fixated on Gu Yu.

    Gu Yu set his ss down and stood up. While gazing into the depths of Zhang Siyi eyes, he slowly walked towards Zhang Siyi and stopped in front of him with an only single step between them.

    Until Zhang Siyi breathing subsided, the two of them stared at each other for a long time. Gradually, Zhang Siyi ¡®woke-up¡¯ from ying the music and returned to reality.

    Gu Yu¡¯s eyes were like two fires burning with emotion. Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t sure if Gu Yu felt the same desire as he did.

    Feeling shy, Zhang Siyi timidly proimed: ¡°I ...¡±

    As he said the first word, Gu Yu suddenly reached out and grabbed Zhang Siyi chin and lowered his lips onto Zhang Siyi¡¯s and kissed him then urged him in a low sensual tone: ¡°What is it?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I... I really like you...¡± (o////o)

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t intend to confess just yet. He wanted to ask Gu Yu how his performance was to reconcile the tense atmosphere. However, with Gu Yu kiss, his brain short-circuited and thus, blurted it out.¡± (&////&) ¨CAaah! Not cool! The confession felt too early!

    After hearing Zhang Siyi¡¯s confession, Gu Yu gently took his violin and set it aside. Like yesterday, he wrapped his arms around Zhang Siyi and embraced him tightly then kissed him. First on the forehead, then a peck on his nose, and finally a soft kiss on his lips. Zhang Siyi¡¯s fried hair was appeased by Gu Yu¡¯s series of kisses. Even so, Zhang Siyi still felt wronged. ¨C Why did Gu Yu ask me ¡®what is it¡¯ instead of telling me how good I am!

    Just as Zhang Siyi was going to say something, Gu Yu suddenly kissed him deeper with vigor and faster with more urgency; parting his mouth, feeling his tongue, sucking his lips, kissing without restraint and leaving Zhang Siyi powerless. By the time Gu Yu released him, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t remember what he was so upset about.

    Sweeping Zhang Siyi hair off his forehead with his fingertips Gu Yu¡¯s looked right into his eyes and softly said: ¡°Listen, Zhang Siyi, I like you very much. Maybe I like you more than you think.¡±

    As he heard Gu Yu admit his feelings, a booming ¡¯gong¡¯ sound went off in Zhang Siyi¡¯s head. Finally, he heard what he wanted to hear!

    However, Gu Yu suddenly turned and took a step away from him with worry: ¡°But I am also very scared. I am afraid that you aren¡¯t serious like the way you treated your ex-girlfriend or when you impulsively said you would quit architecture. I don¡¯t know how you define ¡®like¡¯ and I don¡¯t know how you measure your feelings. I am afraid that the ¡®like¡¯ in our hearts isn¡¯t the same.¡±

    For the first time in front of Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu has revealed an unconfident side. Surprised at the revtion, Zhang Siyi was anxious to appease Gu Yu and tell him how serious he really was.

    But Gu Yu held his lips and stopped him: ¡°Hear me out.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    ¡°Zhang Siyi, I¡¯ll tell you what my ¡®like¡¯ means. The feelings I want aren¡¯t children¡¯s feelings, but the emotions of an adult man. I hope you and I have the same direction in life and professional pursuit. This feeling isn¡¯t like a simple tonic one or spiritual love, but a physical and sexual one.¡± With his hand, Gu Yu reached out and caressed Zhang Siyi¡¯s cheek. Gu Yu moved his hand down the side of Zhang Siyi face, onto his shoulder, along his arm, and into his hand. Gu Yu grasped Zhang Siyi¡¯s hand and entwined his fingers together into a tight fist. ¡°Your spirit, your heart, and your body. I want them all.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°I know that you have talked about your girlfriend before and lived your life as a straight man. If you are simply curious and wanting to try something different with me, then I will advise you to give up now. Not only do I want to be together now, but in the future as well. I want to be with you and work with you for a lifetime.¡±

    Not expecting such an earnest andmitted confession from Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi felt like he was struck by lightning.

    If he hadn¡¯t watched the movest night, he might feel panicked right now. Life is long so how is it possible to make an important life altering decision in an instant? Fortunately, Zhang Siyi has already thought about this issue and thankfully, Gu Yu¡¯s thoughts matched his own.

    Trying tofort and pass on his determination, Zhang Siyi held on to Gu Yu hand and tightened his grip.

    Smiling at Zhang Siyi gesture, Gu Yu raised his other hand to touch Zhang Siyi cheek: ¡°Fool, this road is not easy to walk; pressure from society, pressure of family, pressure of the future.... Many things aren¡¯t as simple as you expect. If you have any doubts in your heart, I won¡¯t start a rtionship with you now. I don¡¯t want you to have regrets.¡±

    Zhang Siyi freed his hand quickly and wrapped both of his arms around Gu Yu¡¯s waist and vigorously shook his head: ¡°I have no doubts! I won¡¯t regret being with you!¡±

    Widening his eyes in surprise at the speed with which Zhang Siyi answered, Gu Yu was worried he answered too rashly and hadn¡¯t carefully thought about it. Watching the devotion and determination in Zhang Siyi eyes, Gu Yu felt moved.

    After all, in the face of such a straightforward, passionate and devoted lover, no one can refuse. If Zhang Siyi really hesitated, even for a second, he may regret it.

    Like a gentleman saying his wedding vows, Gu Yu held both of Zhang Siyi hands and seriously asked: ¡°If you¡¯re ¡®like¡¯ is the same as mine and you are willing to believe in me, then no matter what obstacles we face in the future, I won¡¯t let go of your hand. I will try to make you happy for a lifetime... Will you be with me?¡±

    Zhang Siyi clung to Gu Yu and looked at him eagerly and replied three times: ¡°I will! I will! I will!¡±

    Breathing a sigh of relief, Gu Yu tenderly pulled Zhang Siyi into his arms and embraced him tightly.

    They hadn¡¯t spoken for a long time, then Zhang Siyi anxiously asked: ¡°We.... Are... together now?¡±

    Gu Yu smiled at him and kissed him on the cheek then softly said: ¡±The music was very good. I liked it a lot. Will you y another piece for me?¡±

    ¡°Hmm ...¡± Zhang Siyi buried his face in Gu Yu¡¯s shoulder and groaned. He was feeling shy about his own ardent ¡®I will¡¯ admission for fear that Gu Yu won¡¯t want him.

    Gu Yu: ¡°The way you look today was very handsome. I was captivated, especially ying the violin.

    Zhang Siyi felt that his heart suffered a million-volt electric shock. ¨C Shit, I thought Gu Yu was a boring man who didn¡¯t understand the ceremony. I didn¡¯t expect him to say such sweet words!

    Zhang Siyi thought Gu Yu¡¯spliments were at his limit, but he heard something else that almost gave Zhang Siyi a heart attack!

    In a low provocative tone Gu Yu leaned in close a softly said: ¡°You know...... From the moment I saw you walk down the stairs.... I wanted you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Since Zhang Siyi thought the atmosphere is very good right now, he thought that kind of thing was possible. Although he was nervous, he was looking forward to being passionate with Gu Yu.

    However, Gu Yu suddenly let go of him and said: ¡°But first, you should wash the dishes.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡± Go to hell !!! (¨s¨FÃó¡¯)¨s(©ß©¥©ß

 Chapter 114: Gaze

    <h4>Chapter 114: Gaze</h4>

    ____________________

    Zhang Siyi was wrong. He wants his heart back. Gu Yu doesn¡¯t seem to understand the atmosphere at all! Bastard! Damn it! Having been blown-off for the second time, Zhang Siyi was very angry. As he went to the table, he resisted the urge to smash the dishes. Gu Yu returned to the table a step ahead of him and picked up his mobile phone that was propped up against a soup bowl.

    Huh? Zhang Siyi thought something strange was going on. Why would Gu Yu have his phone like...... Suddenly, Zhang Siyi realized the reason Gu Yu asked him to stand in a specific spot when he yed. With intensity, he quickly reacted: ¡°You just recorded it!?¡±

    Smiling broadly and without a word, Gu Yu quickly handled his phone. His decisive movements and expression clearly proved Zhang Siyi¡¯s spection.

    Thinking about his do-over at the start, Zhang Siyi felt embarrassed. Recalling his rushed confession ¡®I like you¡¯, Zhang Siyi could feel his ire grow. Finally, when he thought about the scene of his eager and excited ¡®I will¡¯ reply, feeling ashamed, Zhang Siyi instantly exploded!

    ¡°How can you secretly videotape me?!¡± Zhang Siyi reached out to grab the mobile phone.

    ¡°This is the gift you gave me. Why can¡¯t I record it?¡± With the phone held tightly, Gu Yu raised his arm up high. Since Zhang Siyi was nearly the same height, Gu Yu didn¡¯t have any height advantage when Zhang Siyi jumped. Gu Yu put his phone in his back pocket and like the annual balloon game, Zhang Siyi repeatedly tried to rush at him, but couldn¡¯t maneuver himself to get the phone. Enjoying the physical attention, Gu Yu asked: ¡°I just want to be able to watch it in the future. What¡¯s the problem?¡±

    Zhang Siyi hurriedly said: ¡°It¡¯s not only ying the violin, but also afterwards....¡±

    Gu Yu caught Zhang Siyi by the wrists and pulled him close then kissed him gently on the lips. He smiled at him: ¡°What happened afterwards? There is only a dog here who can¡¯t say anything to witness the wedding and still, you aren¡¯t going to allow me to make a video to remember it by?

    Townhouse: ¡°......¡±

    Not waiting for Zhang Siyi to respond, Gu Yu spoke: ¡°The video can not only be used as a memento, but also to leave proof. You personally said the words, so I will hold you to them.¡±

    Feeling hot, Zhang Siyi¡¯s face was red as a tomato. Squirming, he tried to break free of Gu Yu¡¯s grasp and proimed: ¡°I wouldn¡¯t cheat!¡±

    Gu Yu also mped down more firmly and didn¡¯t let Zhang Siyi go. Fully taking advantage of his lover and enjoying it, Gu Yu continued: ¡°Since you say so, why is your reaction so extreme? Why does it bother you? You are already mine.¡± Pulling him close, Gu Yu caught Zhang Siyi in his embrace and kissed him affectionately.

    Zhang Siyi lost all reasoning when he heard Gu Yu proim ¡®you are already mine.¡¯ Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t even know what the problem was and why he was fighting with Gu Yu. With the help of his kissing, soon, Zhang Siyi stopped struggling.

    When Zhang Siyi calmed down, Gu Yu let go of him. He smiled and said: ¡°Go wash the dishes. I have some other issues we need to discuss.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Carrying the dishes to the kitchen to wash, Zhang Siyi slowly regained his senses. Fuck! What he is irritated with, is not the reason why Gu Yu is recording the video, but Gu Yu¡¯s act of secretly recording a video without his consent!

    ...... Aaaaaaaahhh!

    Even though Zhang Siyiined about being secretly recorded, he couldn¡¯t help but feel genuinely happy. With a ¡®crash¡¯, a te slipped and broke on the floor. Gu Yu voice could be heard from the living area: ¡°Hey, take it easy. A broken te will be taken out of our daily expenses. The penalty is five-hundred!¡±

    Feeling exuberant, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t stay angry for long. With Gu Yu¡¯s reminder, he carefully washed the remaining dishes. However, a thought urred to him. If Gu Yu needed to cover the expenses when they exceed four-thousand, then at worst, Zhang Siyi wouldn¡¯t get a bonus. What is there to be afraid of?

    ...... Hehehehe! The benefits are too good!!

    While Zhang Siyi was in the kitchen washing the dishes, Gu Yu was on the sofa looking at his phone again smiling brilliantly. He copied and edited a section of the video of Zhang Siyi saying ¡°I will¡±. Gu Yu opened his WeChat app and was surprised to see Zhang Siyi¡¯stest post he made during breakfast: ¡°I¡¯m sorry for the wait.¡±

    Laughing out loud, Gu Yu thought Zhang Siyi¡¯s post was really cute. In response, Gu Yu uploaded his short video and added a statement: ¡°I will hold your hand now and for a lifetime.¡± At the end of the sentence, Gu Yu added a love sticker then clicked to post it. Of course, this message is only visible to Zhang Siyi.

    Wiping his hand dry, Zhang Siyi nced over at Gu Yu sitting of the sofa and saw him smiling at his phone intently with warmth and charm. Observing his gentle expressions, Zhang Siyi felt like Gu Yu was acting.... sheepish? Can Gu Yu even be shy and embarrassed? Maybe, it¡¯s just imaginary.

    Sure enough, when Gu Yu looked up, the expression he had disappeared. He stood up and looked over at Zhang Siyi and said, ¡°Go, take the dog, walk a little.¡± Gu Yu paused and spoke again: ¡°Let¡¯s take the dog out for a walk.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Yes. It has been a busy day and the dog hasn¡¯t had any exercise yet. In his excitement and anticipation, Zhang Siyi¡¯s mind has only been thinking about being together with Gu Yu sexually and ignoring other responsibilities.

    Thankfully, Gu Yu is rather strict when ites to responsibilities, and thus he can continue to do the sensible thing without impulses to disrupt his pace of life. Although Zhang Siyi feels that Gu Yu¡¯s stringent behavior angers him sometimes, he also knows that if Gu Yu acted on impulse all the time, his personal life wouldn¡¯t be so well organized andfortable.

    In this way, his behavior yesterday morning when he rushed to Zhang Siyi¡¯s apartment at night was an anomaly as if he was possessed by aliens. (=_=)

    With lingering resentment for being treated unfairly, Zhang Siyi went upstairs to change out of his formal attire into something morefortable. Since it was raining lightly outside, Gu Yu held arge umbre for both of them while Zhang Siyi held onto the dog leash.

    While watching Townhouse walking in the rain in front of him, Zhang Siyi was reminded of the past when he walked the dog with Fu Xinhui. Ironically, he never wanted to go with Fu Xinhui in fear of looking more gay to outsiders and now, he actually became gay! The only difference now is that he is living with Gu Yu and not his friend. Jesus Christ, if time had returned to six months ago, he would never have believed in this development ....

    Not only walking the dog, Zhang Siyi is out strolling in the rain. Normally, Zhang Siyi dislikes going out in the rain because he doesn¡¯t like getting his clothes wet especially how the water sshes on the back of his legs. He always thought it was too troublesome.

    However, now that Gu Yu is by his side, he feels differently. The nasty spring rain and leisurely walk has be romantic in Zhang Siyi¡¯s eyes. asionally, Townhouse picked a tree to mark, and then carry on. After pausing momentarily, the two continued on their rxing stroll without a care in the world. Zhang Siyi¡¯s only regret is that they can¡¯t hold hands.

    Sighing, he looked around and saw many pedestrians out and about near the tavern close by. Unlike the times he was with his friend, why has no onee to ask them if they are a pair? ¨q (¨s_¨t) ¨r

    Finally, as they turned around to walk back to the vi, Gu Yu brought up the topic he wanted to discuss: ¡°Siyi, we are together now, but there are few things you have to know and I want to tell you about them in advance.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Hmm?

    Gu Yu: ¡°First of all, on the outside, especially in thepany, we still have to keep a distance and maintain a normal look.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was shocked....... Their rtionship can only be a secret love?

    Office romance is not encouraged and, in manypanies, it is prohibited even among heterosexual couples. While there might be leeway between a man and women coworker, there certainly would not be between a Director and a subordinate in a rtionship, let alone that they are both men. No matter what, they would incur huge criticism which could influence the public heart and team morale.

    Feeling a little despondent, Zhang Siyi said: ¡°Hmm.¡± He paused and then asked: ¡°What about the fact that we live together? Is that a secret too?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°It is best not to take the initiative to talk about it with colleagues.¡±

    Zhang Siyi frowned: ¡°But that day in the elevator, you have already told Tao Fei.¡±

    Gu Yu exined: ¡°Tao Fei is not an ordinary employee. He is my ssmate and friend. In the future he maye to our house to visit. If we are secretive about it now,ter if hees to the house, it will seem suspicious. It is better to say something upfront so he won¡¯t think much about itter.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Oh......¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°If you are asked by others, don¡¯t deliberately conceal it and just try to stay calm.¡±

    When he and Fu Xinhui rented the apartment together, even when the two had no intimate rtionship with one another, they were always being misunderstood. Now that he lives with Gu Yu, he can¡¯t show his true colors. In short, the time hase to test his acting skills!

    O (£þ¥Ø£þo)

    Gu Yu smiled at him affectionately then he changed the hand he was using to hold the umbre. With his newly freed hand, he reached behind Zhang Siyi and rubbed the back of his head as a token offort. He continued: ¡°Second point. You can¡¯t gaze at me seductively.¡±

    It was a little difficult for Gu Yu to tell him this. Zhang Siyi felt embarrassed when he heard Gu Yu: ¡°When have I ever done that?¡±

    Incredulous, Gu Yu looked at him both funny and helpless: ¡°If you rememberst Wednesday when I came to the office in the morning, you were gazing at me with such intense yearning that it was too much!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    ¡°Don¡¯t ever do that again.¡± Gu Yu coughed lightly then added: ¡°Only in private.¡±

    Zhang Siyi quietly looked at Gu Yu and saw his ears turn red. Oh My God! Gu Yu is shy? He really blushed! Zhang Siyi felt like he discovered the New World and his heart was very excited. He boldly asked: ¡°How do you feel when I gaze at you?¡±

    Gu Yu pretend to be calm: ¡°Nothing.¡±

    Feeling vexed, Zhang Siyi snorted: ¡°Since it is nothing, then I¡¯ll gaze at you in the office at any time I feel like it.¡±

    Gu Yu red at him: ¡°I won¡¯t be able to get any work done!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Ah-ha-ha-ha-ha! Zhang Siyi smirked and felt full of aplishment at causing the normally calm and rational Gu Yu to be so flustered.

    Grinding his jaw, Gu Yu pinched the back of Zhang Siyi¡¯s neck hard and firmly threatened: ¡°If you dare do that, I will make you work until there is no time to eat.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Shit! It¡¯s personal!

    Gu Yu pped the back of his head lightly and said: ¡°Don¡¯t be naughty, ok?¡±

    Zhang Siyi blushed: ¡°Ok¡±

    Gu Yu added: ¡°Third issue, although I have feelings for you, at the office I have to guarantee fairness. If you don¡¯t do well, I will still criticize you. I have even stricter requirements for you now thenpared to the past so you must be mentally prepared.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was very surprised. There are no benefits? Why are the requirement even more stringent? What kind of vendetta is this?!¡±

    Gu Yu quickly answered the doubts in Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart: ¡°I know you have worked very hard, but there are times I wish I could just directly upload my knowledge into your head. More than anything I want to be able to work shoulder to shoulder with you.¡±

    Now feeling his heart warming, all of the anger and anxiety Zhang Siyi felt waspletely washed away by Gu Yu¡¯s statement. Zhang Siyi quietly nodded: ¡°Hmm.¡±

    Since Gu Yu finished exining the three main points of contention, Gu Yu was able to rx.

    Returning to the vi after walking the dog, Gu Yu took out arge towel from the coat closet and used it to wipe off the water and dirt from Townhouse¡¯s feet and hair.

    Watching Gu Yu¡¯s tender and meticulous care of Townhouse, Zhang Siyi felt that this stepfather is giving better care to the dog than his own righteous father. If Fu Xinhui found out how good of care the dog is receiving, he would probably be moved to cry.

    However, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t imagine what kind of expression Fu Xinhui would reveal if he knew that Zhang Siyi was in a rtionship with Gu Yu.

 Chapter 115: Diary

    <h4>Chapter 115: Diary</h4>

    __________________

    By the time they finished wiping off Townhouse and hung up their wet coats, it was nearly nine o¡¯clock. While Gu Yu went out to the yard to feed the cats, Zhang Siyi went upstairs to bathe.

    For the past two days, every time Zhang Siyi felt very aroused, Gu Yu would abruptly stop and as a result, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t bear it any longer. Although he felt a little guilty, he used the time in the shower to find relief. While the warm water flowed around his skin, he closed his eyes and imagined Gu Yu was there with him. He recalled his sensual kisses and loving touches and soon his body responded.

    Sighing, Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t understand what Gu Yu is thinking. When he was at his housest time ying Truth or Dare, Gu Yu said that he needed to masturbate every day. Now that Zhang Siyi was in front of Gu Yu, why doesn¡¯t Gu Yu react? It was as if Zhang Siyi was the only one acting like a wild animal in heat.

    Blow-drying his hair, Zhang Siyi was full of doubts and started feeling annoyed. Since Gu Yu is so unresponsive, let him sleep alone tonight! Zhang Siyi has plenty of nkets in his room anyways. Just after leaving the bathroom, Zhang Siyi bumped into Gu Yu as he was heading into his own room.

    ¡°Did you finish bathing? ¡°Gu Yu walked up to him and kissed him on the neck and ear and whispered: ¡°Go to my room and wait for me. I¡¯ll take a shower first.¡±

    Zhang Siyi instantly set aside all his arrogance and restraint and obediently went to Gu Yu¡¯s room. The bed was already made and this time, there weren¡¯t two quilts, but onerge one that was spread out for both of them. Zhang Siyi got into the bed and snuggled up with the nkets and quietly reprimanded himself: ¡°No backbone.¡±

    Lying on the pillow, Zhang Siyi could smell the essence of Gu Yu. Having him all around made Zhang Siyi heart to begin to stir and his body start to respond. Trying to keep his mind upied with something else, he took out his phone and checked his friend¡¯s social media news. The first entry he saw was the short video clip of him that Gu Yu¡¯s posted with a love emoji. With his mind full of Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi face became even more red. Sighing, he put the phone away and examined Gu Yu¡¯s room once more.

    Zhang Siyi saw the jack-ontern was ced on his desk and cactus light was on his bedside table which was enough to prove their importance to Gu Yu. Remembering his message ¡®Big Devil¡¯, he rushed over to the cactus light, thinking he could retrieve it.

    It was a bit of a hassle to undo a portion of his creation. He picked it up and looked straight at the bottom and saw traces of ware at the location where Zhang Siyi hid his note. Fuck! How can he find such a secret location?

    Groaning, Zhang Siyi had nothing to say and pretending that he didn¡¯t find anything, he put themp back just as he found it. The two ck sketchbooks on the table he saw previously during his sleep overst year attracted his attention.

    Under the pressure of curiosity, Zhang Siyi wanted to take a peek. Since it¡¯s hical to casually look through other people¡¯s private things in case there are secrets, he felt reluctant.

    However, when Zhang Siyi thought about ¡®having a secret¡¯, the more he couldn¡¯t stop his impulse. Gu Yu isn¡¯t an outsider. He is Zhang Siyi¡¯s boyfriend. If he quietly looked at one page only, there shouldn¡¯t be a problem, right? Besides, with Gu Yu¡¯s workaholic nature, it is probably simply work rted!

    Convincing himself, he guiltily looked towards the direction of the door. Since he didn¡¯t hear anything, he leaned back with a sketchbook in hand and slowly opened a corner to take a peek.... What he saw, froze him in his tracks!

    It was Zhang Siyi. He saw a drawing of himself, to be exact.... by Gu Yu?

    Not holding back, Zhang Siyi opened the book wide and looked at the image clearly. It was a sketch of Zhang Siyiying on the table from Gu Yu¡¯s perspective standing at the doorway of the conference room at thepany. There was a line of writing on the side: ¡°looks a bit cute sleeping¡± and the time and initials were noted: ¡°2014.10.16 GY.¡±

    Zhang Siyi thought carefully back. ¨C What was I doingst year in mid-October? Was it before the provincial z city project? I was still drafting bathrooms and stairwells and parking lots all day long?

    He turned the page of the book and saw that the contents were arranged in chronological order. Also, each page was apanied by a sketch and a one or two-sentences to describe it.

    ¡ª- It turns out to be a drawing diary of Gu Xiao!

    Zhang Siyipletely forgot about ¡®peeking¡¯ and wholeheartedly turned to the beginning of the book and looked through it without reservations.

    Besides the images of Zhang Siyi, there were architectural sketches and reading notes. He flipped through the pages and only read the entries depicting himself.

    The first notation appeared on September 11, 2014 when he hadn¡¯t been at the job for long. There was an image of him looking at his phone with the description: ¡°The foundation is poor, the work is not bad, the drawing is not focused, takes shortcuts. Shorings everywhere.¡± There is red circle around it, as if Gu Yu gave him a bad review.

    Feeling ashamed, Zhang Siyi quickly turned to the next entry. It was the time he went on the first business trip with Gu Yu. The description said: ¡°With him on a business trip to evaluate the site. On the ne ride over, my shoulder got wet.¡± The picture is from Gu Yu¡¯s point of view with him sleeping on his shoulder drooling.... What a fool!

    The next drawing is of the sand tea noodles: ¡°After a long day walking around, I invited him to eat dinner. He tried to bite me! He-he. A happy single-celled fool. In the evening a friend called, Boyfriend? I teased him. He reacted decisively. Hey straight guy.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°....¡±

    The next time Zhang Siyi appeared in the journal was the day the Child Labor group won thepetition in thepany.

    ¡°Group A lost the internal bid. He feels lost and his mind isn¡¯t strong enough. ¡± The picture is a Chibi version with a drooping head ... Gu Yu can also drawics? It¡¯s a very good portrayal!

    Another two pages forward and the jack-onterns appeared! ¡°A pumpkinntern given to me by him. Thought of a funny childhood. Hehe.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Pumpkin son? (=_=)

    Continuing onto more pages, the next entry is November 13, 2014, when there was a period of intense overtime. The image is Zhang Siyi with big ck eyes, as well as the text: ¡°I think this guy kind of likes me ...¡±

    ...... What? Like Gu Yu? At that time? No way! How can Gu Yu think that?!

    When Zhang Siyi turned over the page, the page was almost nk. There was only one English word written in the middle: ¡°Upset.¡± There wasn¡¯t a time noted on the page. Was it the time of the dispute in the bathroom? Sure enough, on the next page the note said: ¡°unexpected winning bid.¡± Except for the disagreement in the toilet, there doesn¡¯t appear to be other notes about feeling depressed at that time.

    I didn¡¯t think my words would make Gu Yu feel so bad....... Zhang Siyi was a little guilty.

    When the book was at the end, Zhang Siyi opened another sketchbook and looked at the first page. It was about they day they met at the train station in Ningcheng by chance. ¡°It turned out that he was the little crying bag that loved to drool when he was a child. Fate is really wonderful.¡±

    ..... A little crying bag that loves drooling? What kind of adjective is this!

    ¡°It was an impulse to give him the tape measure as a birthday present, but he didn¡¯t seem to like it.¡±

    ...... It was just an impulse? ...... Who says I don¡¯t like it? I was really moved!

    There were two pages in Decemberst year, both rted to the Cactus:

    ¡°Three months at work and hasn¡¯te to take care of the cactus I gave him. He really doesn¡¯t care about work.¡±

    ¡°The cactus is going to die. In order to win the prize, he switched it out. He isn¡¯t being honest.¡±

    The images on the pages are also of cactus. In addition, there are analysis charts and diagrams showing the differences between the old and new cactus. All of the reasons were exined to Zhang Siyi on WeChat.

    ¡°I want to hear him y the violin for me...¡±

    ......

    Turning over the page, suddenly a slip of a dirty piece of paper fell from the book. Zhang Siyi gently reached over to grab it and opened his eyes in surprised: ¡°Ah¡± ¨C this is the note I left hidden in the base of themp.

    ¡°Gu Yu, you Big Devil! I wish you a happy 29th birthday. One day I will be even more powerful than you! (¨t_¨s)¡ª¡ªZSY¡±

    Feeling a bit foolish, Zhang Siyi went to see what was on the page of the sketch book.

    Gu Yu has drawn the cactusmp carefully in detail. The words below the image say: ¡°He just thinks of you at a goal, but you like him.¡±

    While Zhang Siyi¡¯s hands trembled and his heart jumped, he stared at the words on the page, no longer able to turn them.

    It turns out that Gu Yu isn¡¯t as calm and stoic as he imagined. He experienced the same days of emotional doubts and sufferings that Zhang Siyi had. Only, Gu Yu encountered them earlier than Zhang Siyi did. It always seemed like Gu Yu had everything under his control, but in fact, he had his own insecurities and sorrows. He was an ordinary, affectionate man who was deeply in love that was able to pretend otherwise.

    Zhang Siyi regretted not looking at these sketchbooks the time he stayed overst year. If he saw them earlier, would they have been able to get together sooner?

    ...... No, I didn¡¯t realize that I liked Gu Yu at that time and maybe the information would have scared me.

    Like a messy spilled bottle of five-spice, Zhang Siyi felt a myriad of contradictory emotions; love and heartache, happiness and regret.

    Hearing movement at the door, Zhang Siyi quickly put the sketchbook back in ce and leaned back in bed. He watched Gu Yu enter the room and close the door and locked it behind him.

    A sudden feeling overwhelmed Zhang Siyi. The person he loves is in front of him and he is a man. Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t believe the normally stoic Gu Yu is unaffected by his emotions.

    ¡°Are you still awake?¡± Gu Yu smiled and lifted the covers to get into the bed next to Zhang Siyi. He teased: ¡°You aren¡¯t pretending to sleep today, hmm?¡±

    When Gu Yuid down, Zhang Siyi gathered up his courage to turn over on top of Gu Yu and grasp both hands.

    Gu Yu: ¡°......¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± (o////o)

    Despite his crazy heart, Zhang Siyi bowed his head and kissed Gu Yu gently on the lips then admitted: ¡± I just...... I read your sketchbook.¡±

    Gu Yu was a little startled: ¡°Hmm?¡±

    Zhang Siyi kissed him again, whispering: ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I peeked at your diary without your consent.¡±

    Gu Yu rxed and looked at him affectionately and asked: ¡°So?¡±

    ¡°......¡± ¨C Strange, why is Gu Yu¡¯s reaction not the same as my imagination. How is he so calm?

    Zhang Siyi said: ¡°I don¡¯t think of you as a goal. I also like you very much.¡±

    Gu Yu smiled and raised his arm to grab him by the waist and pull him close: ¡°I know.¡±

    Zhang Siyi trembled involuntarily...... No, no, obviously he is the one on top.

 Chapter 116: Interaction

    <h4>Chapter 116: Interaction</h4>

    _________________________

    While caressing him, Gu Yuughed and smiled at him: ¡°I don¡¯t dislike it. You can call me Big Devil every day.¡±

    Zhang Siyi snapped at Gu Yu and said: ¡°Can you not interrupt me!¡±

    Waiting for him to continue, Gu Yu looked at him in the eyes and didn¡¯t speak.

    Taking a deep breath to regain his train of thought, Zhang Siyi calmed himself from his momentary outburst. He continued: ¡°Before, when you came to me and I said ¡® I quit¡¯ it was only because I was mad. Seeing Tao Fei with you all the time.... Well, I admit, I was a little jealous.¡±

    Because of Zhang Siyi¡¯s misunderstanding and therefore his avoidance of Gu Yu, it was the first time Gu Yu felt his surroundings were out of his control which made him very unsettled and anxious. Thinking about the events earlier in the month, Gu Yu sighed. This fool....

    Now that they acknowledged each other¡¯s love, Zhang Siyi heart softened and it was the first time he talked about his thoughts and feelings openly in front of Gu Yu. Like an animal showing its belly, because of trust, he was willing to show the most vulnerable parts in front of his loved one.

    ¡°Since it seemed Tao Fei was pursuing you and I thought you didn¡¯t have any special feelings towards me, I said those things to you, but in fact, I still like architecture and I like you very much. My love isn¡¯t so vulnerable.¡± Wanting to make sure there were no doubts, Zhang Siyi was very eager to exin his past behavior to Gu Yu. Now that he was able to reaffirm his honest feelings, Zhang Siyi felt relieved.

    While listening, Gu Yu caressed Zhang Siyi back. When Zhang Siyi finished speaking, Gu Yu raised one of his hands to the back of Zhang Siyi head and pulled him down into a tight embrace. With their bodies pressed together, feeling gratified, Gu Yu sighed in satisfaction.

    Zhang Siyi probably didn¡¯t realize it, but the most fascinating physical feature about him was his waist. Gu Yu didn¡¯t remember when it was exactly, but he saw Zhang Siyi dozing off on his desk radiating sex appeal. As he wasying on the desk top, his shirt was caught on the edge and as a result of the material being scrunched up, his narrow torso and smooth back were reviled. In addition, he was sitting in a way that one could see the bulge in his pants.

    When Gu Yu saw him lying there, he had an impulse to go and touch him. He wanted to take hold of him and hug him. Since then, not only has Gu Yu subconsciously been watching Zhang Siyi, he has also been giving him preferential treatment. He wanted Zhang Siyi¡¯s eyes to only focus on him and thus, his ck belly nature was provoked. To elicit a reaction, he teased Zhang Siyi as much as it was possible.

    The first time Gu Yu was able to hold Zhang Siyi more intimately was during the game at the annual meeting. As the game intensified, Gu Yu sessfully was able to touch his waist several times. The more Gu Yu hands could feel him, the more he wanted to grab him and embrace him. More than once, Gu Yu fantasized about being honest with his feelings and wished he could directly undress him, caress him and hold him. Now, finally, Gu Yu¡¯s got what he wanted.

    Feeling Gu Yu¡¯s hands gently stroke his back, Zhang Siyi wriggled a bit as he spoke softly: ¡°After hearing about your worries today, I want to make sure you understand that this isn¡¯t just a simple experience for me. I have thought about it very carefully and I want to be with you forever.¡± Zhang Siyi lowered his forehead and pressed it up against Gu Yu¡¯s.

    Gu Yu slightly raised his chin and easily kissed him lightly at first, then deeper and enthusiastically. With even more intensity, the kisses became wet and sloppy until they could no longer maintain their breath.

    Feeling the eagerness of Gu Yu¡¯s kisses, Zhang Siyi thought it was Gu Yu¡¯s signal to move forward physically. As a man, Zhang Siyi felt like he needed to take the initiative and create the momentum necessary to progress further then they have, so he licked his lips and whispered seductively in Gu Yu¡¯s ear: ¡°I want to do it.¡±

    A little surprised and quietlyughing Gu Yu asked a rhetorical question: ¡°Haven¡¯t we already started?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Eh? We¡¯ve already started? Gu Yu is about to have sex with him?

    ¡°......¡± Zhang Siyi looked at him with a suspicious face: ¡°You¡¯re not going to tell me to sleep half way, are you?

    With mirth, Gu Yuughed out loud at Zhang Siyi¡¯s simplicity. Not answering Zhang Siyi question, Gu Yu asked his own: ¡°I would like to ask you, are you ready?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Of course!

    Gu Yu raised an eyebrow: ¡°Is it possible to ept a rtionship with a man so quickly?¡±

    With a flushed face, Zhang Siyi proimed: ¡°Because I like you!¡±

    As Gu Yu grinned at him silently, a thought popped into Zhang Siyi mind and Gu Yu suddenly grabbed him. The two exchanged positions instantly. Now, with Gu Yu pressing him down, Zhang Siyi was lying down under his hot body.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± ¨C Shit! It wasn¡¯t supposed to be like this.

    Pushing back, Zhang Si Yi raised his hands against Gu Yu¡¯s chest as he lowered himself: ¡±Wa, Wait, aren¡¯t you gay?¡±¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Yes, what?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°How can you be on-top?¡±

    Gu Yu was silent for a moment then lifted Zhang Siyi¡¯s leg slightly and looked at him condescendingly. Laughing he asked: ¡°Do you have any misunderstandings about being gay?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Gu Yu asked: ¡°Do you know what will happen next?¡±

    With his face turning red, Zhang Siyi answered: ¡°Rubbing?¡±

    Pffft. Gu Yuughed out loud: ¡°Rubbing? Are you a child?¡±

    With Zhang Siyi¡¯s leg slightly lifted, Gu Yu traced his fingertips along his leg to his thigh and exined: ¡°There are two roles in gay rtionships that differentiate your preferences; top and bottom. I am the former. That is, if we really have a rtionship, I¡¯m going to enter you here and fuck you...¡± As Gu Yu exined, to illustrate the point, he thrusted his hips once and pressed his bulge on Zhang Siyi¡¯s bottom.

    As if he felt the malice of the world, Zhang Siyi jaw dropped.

    Not a momentter, Gu Yu suddenly plunged his hand into his underwear and grabbed his lower body. Zhang Siyi was so scared that he called out: ¡°ah.¡± Since he thought he was going to be prated, he immediately mped his legs tightly together. As his most private ce was captured, he waspletely unable to escape and felt utterly powerless.

    In response to Gu Yu sudden attack, Zhang Siyi¡¯s body hardened immediately. Gu Yu stifled augh and smirked at him: ¡±Ready? Hmm? Can¡¯t wait to be on me?¡±

    Zhang Siyi scrambled to refuse: ¡°No, no, this does not count!¡±

    Ignoring Zhang Siyi¡¯s refusal, Gu Yu leaned in and blocked Zhang Siyi¡¯s mouth. While his tongue was gently probing Zhang Siyi mouth, his hand movements were getting faster and more intense.

    Feeling the pleasurable sensations in his body, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t stop himself from calling out: ¡°ah, mn, ah, ah, mn, mn, ah....¡±

    The moaning that sounded from deep within Zhang Siyi awakened Gu Yu¡¯s sense of dominion. His gentle kisses escted and migrated to his neck and transformed into euphoric gnawing. Desperately, Gu Yu wanted to bully him and hear his cries of passion.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Aaahhh......¡± Unfortunately, now spent, Zhang Siyi, this little virgin couldn¡¯tst long.

    Even though he already took care of himself in the bathroom, there was no way he could resist his beloved¡¯s treatment. When he found release, his whole body trembled and Zhang Siyi uncontrobly moaned out, sweet and excited.

    The body fluid shot out into Gu Yu¡¯s hand, underwear, and everywhere. While Gu Yu took a paper towel to help wipe it up, he was still smirking at him and joked: ¡°and you wanted to do it when the forey was too much... ¡°

    Turning red, Zhang Siyi covered his face: ¡°This doesn¡¯t count!¡± ¡°

    While handing Zhang Siyi a paper towel, Gu Yu was stillughing at him and said: ¡°Oh, you really are a child.¡±

    Zhang Siyi squinted and said: ¡°I have said this doesn¡¯t count!¡±

    Seeing Zhang Siyi¡¯s angry yet funny expression, Gu Yu flicked his forehead and fell on him: ¡°Who was the one who just said they can ept anything?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± From the beginning, Zhang Siyi has regretted his confession and seduction of Gu Yu. Shit! Why is this happening?! In his imagination, there was pure shy love. Why was itpletely different?! He wanted to be the one to take action!

    Looking at Zhang Siyi¡¯s frightened expression, Gu Yu sighed, both with desire and helplessness.

    After waiting for a long time, Zhang Siyi recovered from the aftermath of the climax and slowly opened his fingers. He shyly looked at him.

    Gu Yu lowered his head and tenderly kissed him on the forehead and asked: ¡°Is that enough?¡±

    It was only now that Zhang Siyi discovered a hard part pressed against him.

    Since he hadn¡¯t done anything to Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi suddenly felt guilty again. Why was his reaction so fierce?

    Perhaps, it was because of the slightly insulting words Gu Yu used that struck a chord with Zhang Siyi. Although it ismon sense to know that a couple¡¯s love between the sheets is like that, Zhang Siyi is a man. This wasn¡¯t just the foulnguage of joking boys. Gu Yu really wanted to fuck him.

    Zhang Siyi felt like he was pped in the face with this newfound realization. His male pride waspletely overturned. He was so ashamed that he felt like he could die.

    However, that wasn¡¯t the most difficult thing for him to ept. After the initial shock, what he could not ept, was his own impulse to deviatepletely from his mind. His body instinctively wanted Gu Yu to take him.

    During his initial shock, Gu Yu didn¡¯t let him take a breath and directly pressed him under a barrage of kisses and strong stimtion. Zhang Siyi felt like he was taken advantage of. In addition, with his premature ejaction, he felt humiliated!

    However, shame, humiliation, and excitement, are also part of the moment. Now that Zhang Siyi has calmed down, he started feeling sorry. Gu Yu is Zhang Siyi¡¯s favorite person and he hasn¡¯t felt his release yet.

    With the principle of reciprocity, Zhang Siyi whispered to Gu Yu: ¡°I, I will also help you....¡±

    He no longer dares to say something like, ¡®lets do it¡¯ for if he did, he felt that Gu Yu would not hesitate to take him.

    Gu Yu seems to have been waiting a long time to hear about Zhang Siyi¡¯s willingness to touch him. With his stiff need bing ufortable, he directly grabbed Zhang Siyi hand and pressed it against him.

    Once again, Zhang Siyi¡¯s face burned up. While manipting his hand on Gu Yu, he lowered his eyes and didn¡¯t want to look at him.

    After a while, Zhang Siyi heard Gu Yu¡¯s emotional moan. Inspired, Zhang Siyi raised his site to nced at him. Narrowing his eyes in concentration, Gu Yu was staring at Zhang Siyi intently with lust and desire. It made Zhang Siyi feel like he was being fucked. Shit, shit, shit! He quickly retracted his sight and continued to work hard stroking him.

    However, more than ten minutes had passed and Gu Yu hadn¡¯t found his release. Loosing strength, Zhang Siyi hand is dying: ¡°Why are you so slow....¡±

    ¡°...... Am I slow? ¡± Gu Yu replied panting. A husky and fervent chuckle issued forth from his chest and he asked with a deep sensuous tone: ¡°... Or are you slow? ¡°

    He reached out and wrapped Zhang Siyi¡¯s hand in his own and moved it with his in order to teach Zhang Siyi what he liked....¡±Yes. ah, ah, that¡¯s it ... harder, ha, ha ... a little faster.... Don¡¯t you y the violin? Why aren¡¯t you moving fast?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Shit! A violin piece is only a few minutes long! You¡¯ve been fucking for more than that!

    When Gu Yu finally found his release, Zhang Siyi felt like a husk of a person; totally exhausted. Zhang Siyi breathed a sigh of relief and went back to his room.

    The sex that Zhang Siyi initiated came in strong, but since the reality of male intercourse came crashing down, it ended weak. Zhang Siyi copsed on his bed, unmoving. Since he could feel the remnants of heat from Gu Yu on his hand, he felt so ashamed that he was spasmodically trembling. Compared to the night he slept in Gu Yu¡¯s underpants; this was no better.

    For his unconscious flinch, what happened that night, caused a shadow on Zhang Siyi mind and he urgently wanted something to sooth his anxiety. He was in a dilemma because he was afraid that he had hurt Gu Yu.

    For the next few days, Gu Yu had to travel with Tao Fei on official business to report themercial super-high-rise project.

    Before Gu Yu left, he gave Zhang Siyi a new key and gave him instructions about the various electronic devices and features of the vi. He also permitted Zhang Siyi to move around the house freely and read whatever books he wanted.

    Like the first time a parent gave special permission to a child, Zhang Siyi felt excited and alive. As soon as he got off work, he couldn¡¯t wait to get home and use Gu Yu¡¯s kitchen. He wanted to walk the dog and take care of the cleaning. He even went to Gu Yu¡¯s room to write calligraphy as he would have done.

    Gu Yu is his boyfriend, his family, and everything rted to Gu Yu is also rted to Zhang Siyi. The sense of belonging made Zhang Siyi feel jubnt like he has never felt before!

    Only, his meals didn¡¯t taste as good as Gu Yu¡¯s; most of Gu Yu¡¯s books, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t understand; and his calligraphy looked like shit.

    The gaps and contrast in their abilities make Zhang Siyi feel particrly discouraged.

    Gu Yu was like a brightly shining sun and he felt like a pale afterimage.

    After the initial excitement of being in the vi subsided, Zhang Siyi felt alone and empty. He began to look forward to Gu Yu¡¯s return as soon as possible. From time to time, Zhang Siyi worried about Gu Yu feelings. When Zhang Siyi was feeling insecure, he would run to look through Gu Yu diaries on his bedside table. Since Gu Yu didn¡¯t seem to mind, Zhang Siyi had no reservations about looking through thempletely.

    The more Zhang Siyi looked through them, the more he thought Gu Yu drawings were beautiful. Not only was his handwriting elegant, his philosophical ideas expressed were thoughtful and deep. Sighing, Zhang Siyi felt even more inferior.

    Finally, in the dead of night and lying in bed, Zhang Siyi suddenly woke up with a thought.

    Gu Yu is not only a mature and older boyfriend, but also a walking architecture encyclopedia and a good mentor on the road of life. Since Zhang Siyi has ess to a good resource, he needs to make good use of it! That¡¯s right! Is he an idiot? What has he been thinking about these two days?!

    Temporarily setting aside his vulgar sentiments and juvenile love, he wanted to emanate Gu Yu¡¯s way of living. Diligence is the correct path. ¨t(¨t¡÷¨s)¨s

    That evening, Zhang Siyi bought a sketchbook like Gu Yu¡¯s online. Learning by example, Zhang Siyi decided he too would sketch and write his thoughts down every day.

 Chapter 117: Handsome and Beautiful

    <h4>Chapter 117: Handsome and Beautiful</h4>

    _______________________________

    Gaining inspiration from Gu Yu, not only did he n to sketch, he also wanted to read at least one hour every day. In order to read through all the books in Gu Yu¡¯s library, Zhang Siyi created a schedule and organized the information on his phone. Even though his sketching and writing ability isn¡¯t as beautiful as Gu Yu¡¯s, Zhang Siyi firmly believed in the sentiment ¡®practice makes perfect¡¯. As long as Zhang Siyi set his mind to the task, he can grow to be as good as Gu Yu.

    The next day, both Zhang Siyi¡¯s sketchbook arrived and Gu Yu returned from his business trip. Since they agreed to keep their distance in thepany, when Zhang Siyi saw him upon his return, he only quietly nced at Gu Yu. In the second they made eye contact, all of their thoughts were conveyed and Zhang Siyi felt greatly relieved.

    During his lunch break, Zhang Siyi opened his sketchbook, eager to start the first entry, but while tapping his fingertips, he stared at the nk page. With a furrowed brow, he contemted what to write.

    ..... What is better to draw?

    ..... The morning¡¯s breakfast?

    ..... Lunch at noon?

    ..... Eh, too in.

    With a sudden ¡®eureka¡¯ moment, an idea popped into Zhang Siyi¡¯s mind and he snapped his fingers. He immediately picked up his pencil and leaned over the table top to draw in earnest.... Ok! It¡¯s finished!

    Sitting up straight, Zhang Siyi admired his newly sketched masterpiece. Looking all over the page, he thought something wasn¡¯t quite right. Did he make Gu Yu look a bit ugly?

    Wait, that¡¯s not the point!

    Since a sketchbook doesn¡¯t have a lock feature like a mobile phone, Zhang Siyi suddenly regretted drawing Gu Yu on the first page. What if it was identally seen by others? What is he going to do?

    As he started panicking about the situation that he got himself into, he heard Zhu Hongzhen¡¯s voice next to him: ¡°What are you drawing?¡±

    Quickly covering the page with his arm and hand, Zhang Siyi turned to the side and answered him: ¡°Nothing.¡±

    Chuckling, Zhu Hongzhen smiled and said: ¡°I have seen it!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± It¡¯s over! How will he be able to exin the contents and his behavior? (*/¦Ø\*)

    Zhu Hongzhen took drink of water from his cup then said: ¡°Don¡¯t cover it up. I am not the first genius to know that you don¡¯t draw well. Who is this, your self-portrait?

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen continued to stab at him: ¡°Looking at it closer, it really is bad. No one would believe you are an architect. When you went abroad, didn¡¯t you practice the fundamentals?¡±

    On one hand, listening to Zhu Hongzhen¡¯s bluntness, Zhang Siyi wanted to cry. On the other hand, as no one could recognize the drawing, all of his anxiety was for nothing and Zhang Siyi wanted tough. He was definitely thinking about it too much. He rxed and removed his hands from the sketchbook and said: ¡°There were some sses, but we mostly usedputer software. I didn¡¯t practice much.¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°Did you buy a sketch book to practice drawing?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Hmm ...¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°Practice is good. As an architect, drawing is very important. You can let Yuan Zhicheng teach you! His drawings are excellent.¡±

    After Zhu Hongzhen went on his way, Zhang Siyi examined his own picture again. Is it really that bad? He thought he drew Gu Yu¡¯s handsome face, his expressive eyes and tender lips very well!

    Sighing in dismay, Zhang Siyi consoled himself. Since no one could see what he saw in the drawing, no one would be able to guess the true rtionship between him and Gu Yu.

    In order keep Gu Yu¡¯s identity hidden, Zhang Siyi wanted to use a nickname or something else to represent him. Brainstorming, he pulled out his phone, he loaded WeChat and decided to use ¡®Little Fox.¡¯

    Below the drawing, he carefully wrote his first sentence: ¡°From today onwards, to be as good of a person as Little Fox. -2015.4.23 ZSY.

    Since they are together already, writing something like ¡®to be worthy of you¡¯ is a moot point. Also, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t want to write something like he had done with the cactusmp previously because ¡®someday in the future¡¯ is something you can¡¯t predict and may never happen.

    Zhang Siyi already is aware of the gap between himself and Gu Yu. From this day onwards, Zhang Siyi simply wants to work hard along side the person he loves. After he finished writing, feeling content, Zhang Siyi closed his sketchbook and began the rest of the work day refreshed and full of confidence.

    Naturally, since Gu Yu is back from his business trip, Tao Fei is also back. When Zhang Siyi got back to his desk, he received a message from Tao Fei: ¡°Hey, are you there?¡±

    Now that Zhang Siyi was able to express his feelings, his awkwardness towards Tao Fei had subsided. Zhang Siyi was serious in his reply: ¡°Yes. What is it?¡±

    Tao Fei asked: ¡°Are you doing the tourism development design project in Yunnan now? If you have the preliminary preparation information, send it to me.¡±

    Seeing the message, Zhang Siyi was remined of the project Gu Yu said he was going to assign him in order to work together with Tao Fei.... However, what is with Tao Fei¡¯s attitude! He ispletely treating me like a minion!

    Sulking, Zhang Siyipressed the background data into a file and forwarded it to Tao Fei. He neither received a reply nor thanks.

    Thirty-minutester, Zhang Siyi received another message from Tao Fei: ¡°That¡¯s it? Weren¡¯t you supposed to do a case analysis?¡±

    Zhang Siyi was so angry at Tao Fei¡¯s attitude he snapped: ¡°I was only given this assignment recently!¡± There was no response. Turning to the inte, Zhang Siyi searched for the case analysis data. After another thirty-minutes, Tao Fei messaged him: ¡°Hey, do you want to go visit Yunnan to y?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± this guy.... calling people ¡®yo¡¯ or ¡®hey¡¯? Does he not know my name? What does he mean, y in Yunnan?

    Since there isn¡¯t a rush on the design of the project in Yunnan, Zhang Siyi is a little confused about what Tao Fei means. His confusion quickly turned into anger and annoyance when he read Tao Fei¡¯s next message: ¡°If you want to go, I¡¯ll ask my brother for permission and I¡¯ll take you with me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± What? I¡¯m much more familiar with him then you are! I¡¯ve touched your brother¡¯s ji-ji! Do you think I need your help to ask for permission!?

    As much as Zhang Siyi wanted to say something, he knows he had to keep silent. Typing out his message, he pounded the keys to vent his anger: ¡°The design is due next month, we don¡¯t have time to y.¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°Please! We have more than 20 days and this trip will only be a few days. What is the hurry?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Since you are not in a hurry why don¡¯t you find your own case analysis Ah!

    Zhang Siyi ignored Tao Fei, but after a while, Gu Yu sent a message: ¡°Do you want to go to Yunnan?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Ah? Tao Fei really told you! What did he say?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°He said that you want to go to Yunnan to do research.¡±

    Knowing that Tao Fei was the one that wanted to go, Zhang Siyi was even more irritated: ¡°I did not ask him to go to Yunnan! Tao Fei was the one who asked me first!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Oh. Well, if you want to go, I can make arrangements for a business trip.¡±

    Thinking of another business trip with Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi felt warm and excited, but then he realized Gu Yu¡¯s message said ¡°you¡±. Zhang Siyi replied: ¡°Will you go?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°I have other projects on my te right now. This project is mainly under Tao Fei¡¯s responsibility. I won¡¯t participate in it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Is Tao Fei really the right person to be left in charge of a project?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°This project in Yunnan is quiterge and on-site research is also necessary. You should consider it.¡±

    Now that Zhang Siyi was determined to work hard and learn, he hemmed and hawed over what Tao Fei suggested. Since he mentioned ¡®y¡¯ and not ¡®on-site research,¡¯ Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t know what to think. Well, in fact, Zhang Siyi was simply making excuses. Since Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu just established their rtionship, they are like newlyweds and want to spend as much time together as possible. Since Gu Yu had been away on a business trip, Zhang Siyi hasn¡¯t spent time with him and now, Tao Fei is telling him to go on a business trip, and thus, spending less time with Gu Yu so of course he is reluctant to go.

    Setting aside his personal dislike for Tao Fei, if he thought of Tao Fei idea of ¡®y¡¯ as ¡®research¡¯ he wouldn¡¯t have made any objections. After a few minutes of consideration, Zhang Siyi felt he shouldn¡¯t bring his personal feelings into his work and therefore, sent Gu Yu a positive confirmation.

    Gu Yu: ¡°Starting from this Saturday, I¡¯ll give you one week.¡±

    Zhang Siyi thought about the days of the week. Today is Thursday and I¡¯m leaving Saturday, so one day to spend with Gu Yu. At least it is better than nothing.

    Since Gu Yu also informed Tao Fei, Tao Fei informed Zhang Siyi of the status of their business trip: ¡°We depart Saturday!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Yes. I know!¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°What is your mobile phone number? I will add you.¡±

    After exchanging telephone numbers, Zhang Siyi saw that Tao Fei used a self-portrait as his icon.

    Looking at the photo, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t help but admire Tao Fei exquisite facial features. With his medium length hair, he has both female and male charm. In the photo, he is smiling with his raised hand covering half of his face. If one ignores the hand, his face looks like a heroic girl.

    It urred to Zhang Siyi that he hasn¡¯t invited Tao Fei into the Borderless Forbidden City Team WeChat group that he set up for his colleagues. Although Zhang Siyi is not the leader of the team, as the person who created the group, he should have the ability to ¡®add new members into the group.¡¯

    It has been one month since Tao Fei has been working at Borderless. Even though he has had a dispute with Gu Yu, his rtionship with everyone else in the department is very good. Also, he is very popr among the female employees. However, because of Tao Fei¡¯s temper and overly straightforward character, Zhang Siyi has some reservations. He doesn¡¯t want Tao Fei to identally offend a colleague and disrupt the current harmonious state of the chat group. .....Maybe I should wait until someone in the group mentions it?

    Wanting to make sure Tao Fei wouldn¡¯t disrupt anything, Zhang Siyi looked into Tao Fei¡¯s social media page to get to know him better. Zhang Siyi thought that there was no way Tao Fei would be able to integrate smoothly into the group as the first thing Zhang Siyi saw made him even more irritated.

    There were a bunch of photos posted from the business trip he had with Gu Yu. In them, both were wearing suits and posing for the camera, Tao Fei had his arm intimately around Gu Yu shoulders in an ambiguous way. They were both so handsome that they looked like a couple. Although what is bothering Zhang Siyi isn¡¯t the image itself, it is Tao Fei¡¯s blunt message: ¡°Here are the photos that you want to see! Big-T Department of Architecture most handsome and beautiful ¨C Aren¡¯t we a worthy match! Ha-ha-ha-ha!¡±

    _____________________________

 Chapter 118: Missed

    <h4>Chapter 118: Missed</h4>

    ____________________

    Although Zhang Siyi knows there isn¡¯t anything going on, he can¡¯t help but feel upset!! Scrolling down, Zhang Siyi found another photo with Gu Yu fromst month when Tao Fei first started with thepany. It looks like they were at lunch and Gu Yu was bowing down studying the menu, gently smiling. The note read: ¡°Even after so many years after graduation, your male god looks as handsome as ever.¡±

    ..... your male god? Who is the ¡®you¡¯ he is speaking to? Big T alumni? A mutual friend of Tao Fei and Gu Yu?

    Below the photo is a note: ¡°Ok, if I get the chance, I¡¯ll take one and show you!¡±

    By reading the messages, it wasn¡¯t hard for Zhang Siyi to infer what happened. Their ssmates probably asked Tao Fei to take pictures of Gu Yu and post them for all to see.

    Aah! I want to tell the world that Gu Yu is already taken! Let those who covet his beauty go away!

    Looking through Tao Fei posts, Zhang Siyi was surprised at how many selfies and messages he posts. It appears that he updated his status every day.

    Closing the WeChat app, Zhang Siyi put away his phone and forced himself to calm down and focus on his work. At the end of the workday, Zhang Siyi went to the subway station and sat down on a bench at the tform to wait for Gu Yu. He received a message from him telling Zhang Siyi that he was going to be fifteen minutes longer.

    In order to avoid the potential spection from colleagues, Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu agreed to leave thepany separately but wait at the station. If by chance they were spotted on the train together, they could easily pass it off as happenstance.

    While waiting for Gu Yu to arrive, Zhang Siyi was getting a little bored of the mobile game he was ying. Staring at the screen, Zhang Siyi felt a hot thing suddenly touch his cheek. Thinking it was Gu Yu, he joyously smiled, looked up and said: ¡°What are you doing?¡±

    However, when Zhang Siyi looked up, his face froze because it wasn¡¯t Gu Yu. Instead, it was Tao Fei and he was holding a hot cup of coffee; the things he used to touch his face.

    Tao Fei joked: ¡°Who are you waiting for?¡±

    Zhang Siyi turned to anger: ¡°No one.¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°No one? Two trains already went by but you didn¡¯t get on.¡±

    Since Haicheng is arge urban center, the pace of life is fast. During the peak period, subway cars arrive at the tform approximately every 5 minutes. As it is rush-hour, there are throngs of peopleing and going and there really isn¡¯t a reason for someone like Zhang Siyi to be sitting around and waiting.

    However, since Tao Fei brought up this point, it means he must have been watching Zhang Siyi secretly and he himself wasn¡¯t getting on a train. Otherwise, how would Tao Fei know how many trains Zhang Siyi missed?

    Since he was caught off-guard, Zhang Siyi was nervous and was acting a bit odd: ¡°Why didn¡¯t you get on the train?¡±

    Surprisingly, Tao Fei bluntly stated: ¡°I¡¯m watching you.¡±

    On high alert, Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°Why are you looking at me?¡±

    Tao Feiughed and said: ¡°To see when you leave.¡±

    ¡°...... You must be bored.¡± Standing up silently, Zhang Siyi took a step back and kept a distance from him.

    Tao Fei took a sip of coffee and squinted at him: ¡°Oh, now you move?¡±

    ¡°Hmm.¡± Zhang Siyi is dying and Gu Yu still hasn¡¯te! If he doesn¡¯t leave first, then it will be too awkward if Gu Yu shows up now.

    Just as Zhang Siyi was going to say goodbye, Tao Fei interrupted him: ¡°Since you are living with my Brother, why don¡¯t you leave work together?¡±

    Dumbfounded, Zhang Siyi was internally panicking. He was not good a lying! He already tried to dodge Tao Fei question the first time and now he was asked something else. Racking his brain, he replied: ¡°He still has work to do.¡±

    With a deep and overly dramatic way, Tao Fei said: ¡°Oh¡± and continued to stare at Zhang Siyi with a grin.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± .....Fuck, how is there nothing wrong with this guy!? Why do you keep staring at me?

    A thought suddenly came to Zhang Siyi¡¯s mind. ¨C Tao Fei, is it possible that he secretly loves Gu Yu?

    Even though he and Gu Yu are already together, Tao Fei doesn¡¯t know. With his curiosity and close attention, is it possible that Tao Fei is trying to guess what type of rtionship Zhang Siyi has with Gu Yu? Now, as a result, Tao Fei is considering him as a potential ¡®love-rival¡¯?

    ..... Well, good fucking logic! It makes sense!!!

    Also, when Tao Fei, with his entric neither male or female beauty stands with Gu Yu, they look like a gay couple. When Tao Fei posts such tender looking photos of himself with Gu Yu on his social media pages, is it not to dere his sovereignty to the outside world?

    The more Zhang Siyi thought about it, the more hostile he became towards Tao Fei. He needs to back off! As much as Zhang Siyi wanted to blurt out the truth, he also knows Tao Fei is loud and mboyant character. Tao Fei doesn¡¯t seem to understand other people¡¯s limits. Zhang Siyi believes if Tao Fei learned the truth it would spur him to be more aggressive in his pursuit of Gu Yu. ...... Oh shit! Absolutely-cannot-stimte-him! Besides, what if I guessed wrong?

    ......

    For a few weeks, Zhang Siyi¡¯s brain was like a washing machine on the spin cycle; spinning frantically then finallying to a stop with exhaustion.

    Lost in his thoughts, Zhang Siyi noticed the subway car approaching the tform. He quickly spoke to Tao Fei: ¡°I¡¯ll take my leave¡± and hurriedly got into the train car.

    Tao Fei: ¡°.....¡±

    After the door was closed, Zhang Siyi was relieved. He turned to look out the window to see if Tao Fei was still there. Unexpectedly, he saw Gu Yuing down on the esctor. As the train doors closed, he caught a glimpse of Gu Yu looking at him, seemingly in deep thought. ¡ªI thought you said you¡¯d wait for me? Why did you get in the car?

    Zhang Siyi wanted to cry without tears ¨C help! let me out! As the train sped away, Zhang Siyi also saw Gu Yu turn his attention to Tao Fei.

    With the blood drained from his face, Zhang Siyi was so angry that he wanted to break out of the train and kick Tao Fei!

    Raising his hand in greeting, Tao Fei said: ¡°Ah Brother, are you finished with work? I just met Zhang Siyi at the station and talked with him for a few minutes.¡± Tao Fei pointed at the train leaving andughed: ¡°Unfortunately, he just left.¡±

    ¡°What did you talk to him about?¡± Gu Yu frowned.

    ¡°Ah nothing really. I asked him what he was waiting for.¡± Tao Fei said and then asked with a puzzled expression: ¡°Aren¡¯t you living together now? Why don¡¯t you go home together?¡±

    Calming down, Gu Yu paused for a second then exined: ¡°Even if we live together, our work hours might not coincide.¡±

    When the train on the other side of the tform pulled in from the opposite direction, Tao Fei waved and left: ¡°Then I will go first. See you tomorrow.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°...well, goodbye.¡±

    Watching Tao Fei leave, Gu Yu pulled out his mobile phone that had been vibrating non-stop from of his trouser pocket. Zhang Siyi sent Gu Yu a number of WeChat messages.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°[Kitten Crashes]¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I am already on the train!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I just saw youe down!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°[Kitten crying]¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I¡¯ll wait for you at the next stop!

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°[Cry] [Cry] [Cry]

    ......

    Amused by Zhang Siyi¡¯s flirty cries, Gu Yuughed joyously and retuned a ¡®Little Fox Kiss¡¯ expression ¡°I aming. Wait for me.¡±

    Five minutester, the second subway train slowly pulled into the next station tform. Looking through the window of the door, Gu Yu saw Zhang Siyi across the ss looking sad and resentful. Having been forced apart, he felt like the stars Altair and Vega.

    For three and half days, they have been separated and now they finally stand side by side. However, because they were in public and therefore, constrained by societal norms, they can¡¯t express their love like a regr couple; no holding hands, no hugging. The inability to express their love makes it very difficult for Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu.

    When Zhang Siyi got back into the train car, he was crammed together with Gu Yu. For once, they were thankful for the crowd during the rush-hour as it created the opportunity to be pressed together.

    With eyes full of both joy and sorrow, Zhang Siyi gazed at Gu Yu. Gu Yu was also watching Zhang Siyi with affection. As Gu Yu quietly took Zhang Siyi hand, he maneuvered his body to block peoples¡¯ view of their entwined fingers.

    Even with this simple action, Zhang Siyi¡¯s eyes lit up and he smiled broadly. Squeezing Gu Yu¡¯s hand, he could feel the warmth. Like a drowning man being offered a piece of driftwood to grab onto, all of Zhang Siyi¡¯s grievances and depression disappeared in an instant!

    With both heartache and relief, Gu Yu sighed.

    Zhang Siyi whispered: ¡± It¡¯s just Tao Fei....¡±

    Gu Yu interrupted him in a low voice: ¡°Tell me when we leave the station.¡±

    Zhang Si Yi nodded and obediently shut his mouth.

    With only four short stops on the route, Yuanshan Garden is fortunately close to thepany. As they walked up the staircase to the sidewalk, Zhang Siyi eagerlyined: ¡°I met Tao Fei at the subway station! He guessed that I was waiting for someone. I was afraid he would figure out that I was waiting for you so I jumped onto the iing train car. Damn it!¡±

    Gu Yu smiled at him and said: ¡°The next time he asks again, just admit that you are waiting for me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi hurriedly replied: ¡°But what if he figures out that we are together?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Even if he figured it out, let him guess. Although he is a high-profile person, he won¡¯t gossip about it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Oh ...¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s attitude made Zhang Siyi feel relieved. He asked: ¡°How are the bids going this time?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°It¡¯s going well. The n Tao Fei previously made was rejected, but luckily, there was time to make changes. Tao Fei drafted a design with changes, but the results are still uncertain. It will depend on board of directors¡¯ support and some luck.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Do we have support?¡±

    Gu Yu smiled and nced at him: ¡°There is support. He is the one who suddenly called me out after eating at homest month.¡±

    ¡°Is he one of your friends?¡± Seeing Gu Yu nod, Zhang Siyi wondered: ¡°Since it¡¯s a friend, why are you still uncertain?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°The board has more than one member. There are shareholders, investors, government representatives.... Everyone has their own position and vision and that friend only represents one of them.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Soplicated!¡±

    Gu Yu smiled and patted his back: ¡°Take it one step at a time. First, let¡¯s start with the design andter, worry about the board of directors.¡±

 Chapter 119: Shadow

    <h4>Chapter 119: Shadow</h4>

    _______________________

    When they finally arrived inside their home, Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t given a moment to remove his shoes, as he was pushed hard against the door. Gu Yu grabbed his wrist in one hand and stroked Zhang Siyi¡¯s cheek in the other. Gu Yu¡¯s advancements took Zhang Siyi breath away.

    While caressing the side of Zhang Siyi¡¯s head, as if to make up for the time apart, Gu Yu forcefully kissed Zhang Siyi. After a moment of surprise, like a starved man at a buffet dinner, Zhang Siyi quickly responded to Gu Yu kissing with an even deeper more sensuous kiss. Desperate for each other¡¯s attention, their lips parted momentarily for a gasp of air before tightly pressing them together again. He broke free from Gu Yu grasp and held onto him tightly. As Zhang Siyi continued to kiss Gu Yu deeper and more aggressively, Zhang Siyi felt like a different persona had taken control of him. Kissing wasn¡¯t enough.

    The two remained locked together until they heard a ¡®woof¡¯ and could feel Townhouse next to them. Returning to his senses, Zhang Siyi looked down at the dog andughed. Gu Yu alsoughed.

    With watery eyes, he smiled and looked at Zhang Siyi and huskily whispered: ¡°I missed you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart beat violently. He never knew that such a simple admission of love would have such a strong effect on him. ¡°I missed you too¡± Zhang Siyi said from the bottom of his heart. Everyday and every night he has thought of Gu Yu.

    Zhang Siyi wanted to repent for all his wrongdoings towards his ex-girlfriend because he never really thought about her. For twenty-three years, until now, he didn¡¯t understand what a real rtionship was and realized how irresponsible he had been towards her.

    Holding Zhang Siyi¡¯s face Gu Yu kissed him on the forehead then released him. He said softly: ¡°Let¡¯s eat first.¡±

    Zhang Siyi followed him into the kitchen like a small puppy.

    Gu Yu opened the refrigerator to evaluate their food options. Now that it had been almost a week since theirst grocery run, the food was almost all gone. He rummaged through the sparse items and found a pack of frozen dumplings. He asked Zhang Siyi casually: ¡°Are you ok with dumplings?¡±

    Even though Zhang Siyi attention wasn¡¯t on eating at the moment, he answered: ¡°Yes.¡±

    Gu Yu also found a couple of eggs and some shrimp. Together with a few vegetables, he set up a pot to boil in order to make soup. Like a married couple wanting to know what their loved one was up to while they were away, Gu Yu asked Zhang Siyi about how things have been and what he had been eating thest few days. As the water heated to boil, Zhang Siyi took a few minutes to answer Gu Yu.

    Smelling the vinegar that Gu Yu used to dress the dumplings, Zhang Siyi was reminded of Tao Fei posting on his social media and asked: ¡°Why did you and Tao Fei wear a suit when you reported the project?¡±

    Gu Yu handed one of the bowls of dumplings to him: ¡°It¡¯s necessary on formal asions.¡±

    Zhang Siyi grabbed two sets of chopsticks from the drawer and walked to the table with his bowl: ¡°Howe I didn¡¯t see your suit when you got back?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t like the extra luggage so I used a courier service.¡± Gu Yu sat down and picked up his chopsticks ready to eat then asked: ¡°How did you know I wore a suit?¡±

    ¡°I added Tao Fei¡¯s to my WeChat contacts today and saw photos of you on his social media page.¡± Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t want to sound jealous, but he couldn¡¯t helpin a little!

    Listening to Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu took out his phone from his pocket to see what he was referring to. Looking down at the phone, Gu Yu frowned.

    Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°You haven¡¯t seen it?¡±

    Gu Yu put the phone on the table and as calm as ever, he said: ¡°I¡¯ve blocked him.¡±

    Although Zhang Siyi initially felt irritated by Tao Fei WeChat posts, when Gu Yu mentioned Tao Fei being blocked, Zhang Siyi felt reassured. Laughing and smiling he asked: ¡°Why did you block him?¡±

    ¡°He posts stupid things every day. It¡¯s annoying.¡± Gu Yu frankly said.

    ¡°......¡± Tao Fei¡¯s self-portraits were described as ¡°stupid stuff¡± ha-ha-ha-ha-ha! Zhang Siyi¡¯s dark feelings were overthrown by Gu Yu words. What beautiful peach? He was tossed aside.

    After eating, Zhang Siyi cleared the table and went to the kitchen to wash the dishes. He saw Gu Yu pick up his phone again and noticed his thumb move continuously over the screen. Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know who he was chatting with. When he was finished washing the dishes, Gu Yu pocketed his phone and they grabbed Townhouse¡¯s leash.

    While walking the dog, the two caught up on office rted issues and stopped here and there to let Townhouse mark a tree. Suddenly while standing, Gu Yu grabbed Zhang Siyi and pulled him close face to face. Gu Yu continued to position himself and stepped slightly to his left then leaned forward.

    Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t sure what was happening then he watched Gu Yu pull out his phone from his trousers and take a photo of the shadow on the ground. Zhang Siyi nced down and realized with pleasure what Gu Yu was doing. It looked like the shadow of the two people together under the streetlight were kissing! Feeling hot all over, Zhang Siyi never would have thought Gu Yu was capable of doing such a romantic thing.

    Catching a glimpse of Gu Yu continued concentration on his phone, Zhang Siyi guessed he was uploading the image to his social media page. Thinking he would send it to Zhang Siyi alone because of Gu Yu conservative nature, he didn¡¯t react much. He smiled and said: ¡°I saw you take the picture so it won¡¯t be a surprise to receive it.¡± As they say, love makes people do stupid things. Has Gu Yu also be silly?

    Gu Yu grinned at him and said: ¡°I have made it public.¡±

    ¡°What!?¡± Zhang Siyi was shocked. He quickly pulled out his mobile phone and opened WeChat. He really saw the photo taken by Gu Yu at the top of the circle of friends.

    In addition to the photo, Gu Yu also wrote something sentimental: ¡°Love has arrived.¡±

    Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t believe it. He grabbed Gu Yu phone to look at it for himself and confirm it. He really did make the image public.!

    In just a few seconds, there are already a row of ¡®likes¡¯ below the photo. They are all from people Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t know. The number of new messages at the top is still increasing at a rate visible to the naked eye. Knowing Gu Yu¡¯s personality, this type of news is exceedingly exciting for people that are friends with him.

    ¡°You¡¯re crazy!¡± Zhang Siyi flushed bright red and his heart couldn¡¯t stop pounding in his chest: ¡°You said we had to keep our rtionship a secret.¡±

    Gu Yu recovered his phone from Zhang Siyi¡¯s grasp and said: ¡°It¡¯s just a shadow. No one can recognize who the people are.¡±

    Zhang Siyi looked at his own phone and inspected the image again. Since the image was taken at an angle with the streetlight, their shadow was stretched out very long. The top of the shadow was a little blurry and aside from the height of the people being slightly different, it was really difficult to tell who was who. The one thing for certain, is that Tao Fei is definitely not among the two people in the image as the two people in the photo have short hair.

    Gu Yu rubbed Zhang Siyi¡¯s head and smiled: ¡°Are you still jealous?¡±

    ¡°......¡± Zhang Siyi puffed up his face: ¡°Who is jealous.¡±

    Gu Yuughed and said nothing. With Townhouse in tow, they walked back home.

    After Zhang Siyi¡¯s initial surprise, he slowly calmed down. His heart floated with a sigh of relief: ¡°Aren¡¯t your parents going to see it?¡±

    Gu Yu took a deep breath of cool air and looked up at the sky slightly. He said calmly: ¡°They will see it sooner orter. They may not know that you are a boy for a while. My dad is a smart person and he will be able to figure it out eventually. With time, a family can ovee anything. Don¡¯t be afraid. We will take it one step at a time together.¡±

    ¡°Hmm¡± Zhang Siyi said and looked down at the road: ¡°Actually, your sister has already guessed that you are gay.¡±

    Gu Yu froze momentarily: ¡°Hmm?¡±

    Zhang Siyi slowly recounted what Gu Yao had said to him when he chatted with her about Gu Yu. At the end, Zhang Siyi was embarrassed to admit: ¡°It was from her that I found out you might like me......¡±

    Now, Gu Yu understood what had happened that day and why Zhang Siyi was like a changed person.

    Zhang Siyi paused and said: ¡°She also said that no matter how you choose, she will support you and bless you.¡±

    Gu Yu was silent for a long time. With a content sigh he mumbled: ¡°Silly girl....¡±

    Zhang Siyi raised his hands and proimed: ¡°So, you can tell your sister about us!¡±

    Gu Yu turned to look at him and smiled. ¡°Stupid, she already knows.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...... Huh?¡± ¦²( ¡ã ¡÷¡ã)

    After returning home, Zhang Siyi took out his mobile phone to view the shadow picture once again. Unsurprisingly, Gu Yao sent a message to the trio chat group that was created by her brother months ago.

    Gu Yu: ¡°Congrattions!¡± [Snickering]

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Shit! It turns out, he was the only one who¡¯s been kept in the dark!?

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°You always knew?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Sincest month.¡±

    Gu Yu honestly confessed to Zhang Siyi about peeking at his mobile phone.

    Zhang Siyi said: ¡°When I asked you before, why were you still ying dumb?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Who was the one that was dumb?¡± ¨r (¨s_¨t) ¨q

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Seeing the 100-yuan red envelope dangling in front of them, the two immediately forgot why they were quarreling. Zhang Siyi snatched 93% of the amount and Gu Yao only was able to get 7%.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Muahahaha!¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Hey! The administrator is ying favorites!¡±

    Gu Yu looked at the two of them in the group, smiled and shook his head. Aspensation, he privately gave Gu Yao a 100-yuan red envelope. She wanted to tease Zhang Siyi and was about to take a screenshot and send it to him but her brother¡¯s message stopped her: ¡°Don¡¯t bully your brother-inw.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°......¡± A 100 yuan a bribe? Ah! What is this sweet and sour feeling?! My heart hurts! My Brother is no longer her own brother!

    Gu Yao whined: ¡°But brother, don¡¯t you think making the photo public was being too risky? I broke out in a cold sweat for you!¡±

    Gu Yu gave her a red envelope and said: ¡°You might have to provide some cover in the future.¡±

    Any annoyance she felt was easily brushed aside not by Gu Yu¡¯s sugar-coated words, but because she genuinely wanted to help her brother: ¡°Don¡¯t worry! This younger sister will spare no effort to pave the way for you and Brother Siyi¡¯s future!¡±

    .......

    Since Tao Fei had been in thepany for a month, he was officially weed to join thepany. The night before Zhang Siyi¡¯s business trip to Yunnan, Gu Yu organized another group dinner. Zhang Siyi remembered what happened during his wee party and was eager to see how Tao Fei would fare during his.

 Chapter 120: Merits

    <h4>Chapter 120: Merits</h4>

    _____________________

    In the evening, all the staff members arrived at the Sichuan restaurant. Like the previous inauguration dinner for Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu reserved a private room for them to dine and celebrate together. The raucous crowd happily raised a ss and congratted Tao Fei. He beamed with joy and said: ¡°Thank you! I¡¯m very happy to join Borderless. My future is in your hands!¡±

    After everyone made another toast, Gu Yuughed and said: ¡°Ok. Enough of being respectful. Let¡¯s eat.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± What? Don¡¯t be respectful and just eat?

    Now that Boss Gu has set the bar for toasts, everyone was happy to be disrespectful and respect his instructions. With bouts ofughter emanating from the private room, they eagerly ate the food in a harmonious atmosphere. There was one exception. Feeling depressed, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t understand why the treatment was so different from his own. He was waiting to watch the show!

    Since Tao Fei was the only person to join Borderless after him, tonight was the only reference Zhang Siyi had to use topare the difference in treatment between them. Why were his colleagues in the past so eager to toast Zhang Siyi, but not Tao Fei? Was it because of hisck of professional experience at the time? Maybe it was because he was the only ¡®Western¡¯ member of the group? Their behavior is too abnormal!

    Zhang Siyi decided to step forward and add some fuel to the low burning fire.

    He poured himself a little wine, got up and said: ¡°Tao Fei, it must be fate that we are working together now since we both graduated from a university in the United Kingdom and came home to China to work. Although I have been in thepany longer then you, I only have a bachelor¡¯s degree. In the future, I seek your guidance and hope to learn from you.¡± Zhang Siyi raised his ss towards Tao Fei.

    Tao Fei listened and quickly stood up. He smiled at Zhang Siyi and said: ¡°I heard that you also studied in the UK. I¡¯ve always wanted to talk to you, but I didn¡¯t find the chance. Is this the longest sentence you¡¯ve ever said to me since I got into thepany? Hahaha! I originally thought that you didn¡¯t like me very much but it seems to be a misunderstanding.... This ss of wine must be drunk, and afterwards, we will be buddies!¡± Having said so, Tao Fei immediately downed his ss of wine.

    Surprised, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t expect Tao Fei to be so forthright! He suddenly felt stupid for stressing over whether or not he had a secret love of Gu Yu. As Gu Yu said, sometimes Tao Fei¡¯s temperament asionally made people feel ufortable, but he is a good guy underneath his facade.

    Since Tao Fei and Gu Yu are friends, Zhang Siyi should recognize their rtionship for what it is. In addition,st night Gu Yu made it clear on his social media page that he has a lover and Tao Fei had nothing to do with it. Zhang Siyi breathed a sigh of relief. Now feeling better, hepletely put down his guard and decided to get along with Tao Fei.

    However, Zhang Siyi was still trying to provoke Tao Fei to drink. When one gives a toast, one has to pay respect to the toast itself and drink, otherwise it would be disrespectful. He thought his remarks would motivate the others to start a round of routinements and ttery. After all, Tao Fei superior design ability is obvious and further requests for guidance from his colleagues should ensue.

    As Zhang Siyi sat down, someone else had already started to pour the wine. Unexpectedly, looking at everyone, Tao Fei immediately interrupted the flow and asked: ¡°I have heard that Zhang Siyi is thepany¡¯s mascot. Which one of you can tell me why?¡±

    Distraction sessful, the momentum to toast Tao Fei was lost. Bi Lele eagerly answered Tao Fei: ¡°Ha-ha-ha, didn¡¯t you see the huge poster at thepany¡¯s entrance?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Damn! Can you not mention that ck history!

    Tao Fei nced at Gu Yu: ¡°I¡¯ve seen it. I heard my brother took that photo of Zhang Siyi?¡±

    Xu Jia exined the circumstance: ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right. The photo was taken during a project meeting. Zhang Siyi feel asleep and was caught by Boss Gu. He directed everyone to pose and he took the photo. Later, Gu Yu used it for the photopetition in the annual meeting and Zhang Siyi became famous in hepany.¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°That¡¯s why?¡±

    Du Ruiughed: ¡°In fact, Auntie Four was popr in our group before the picture.¡±

    Shifting his weight, Tao Fei raised his eyebrows and asked: ¡°How popr?¡±

    Being used to the title ¡®King of poprity¡¯, Tao Fei was overshadowed by a young man who¡¯s looks and ability were less then his. Tao Fei was quite curious about the reason.

    Like a chorus in unison, everyone said: ¡°He is the first international student in our group!¡±

    ¡°He is a quick study!¡±

    ¡°He is really helpful!¡±

    ¡°He is very good at hand crafting things!¡±

    ¡°Right, he also has the nickname ¡®Youthful Energy.¡¯¡±

    ¡°Every day, he works hard with a special spirit!¡±

    ¡°His photographic skills are very good. He captured most of the beautiful pictures in thepetition!¡±

    Lu Qiao touched his chin: ¡°You may not, but I have seen Zhang Siyi give a presentation. He was really good and super handsome!¡±

    ¡°He can sing well, especially English songs!¡±

    ......

    Zhang Siyi did not think that he had so many advantages in the eyes of his colleagues. It was very surprising: ¡°The praise is too great. I don¡¯t know what to say!¡± Zhang Siyi blushed.

    Unknown to Zhang Siyi, his tendency to wear his emotions on his shoulder was one of his charms. It was especially true when you talked with him. Having a naturally expressive demeanor is like a character from aic book; both vivid and endearing.

    In fact, there is still a point that everyone can¡¯t express. The reason why Zhang Siyi is so popr is the freshness and vitality he has injected into the quiet working atmosphere of Group A since he joined thepany. The most obvious difference is Boss Gu as Zhang Siyi presence has caused him to act differently than Gu Yu had in the past.

    For example, Gu Yu gave Zhang Siyi the cactus. He messaged everyone prohibiting them from helping Zhang Siyi in the beginning. When they went out to dinner, he had everyone toast Zhang Siyi and got him drunk. He set up the photo when Zhang Siyi was sleeping. Gu Yu went on stage to participate in the annual meeting activities and he also went with them to KTV.

    Zhang Siyi did not know, since his employment started, how irregr Gu Yu¡¯s behavior really was. In everyone¡¯s perception, the past Gu Yu had always been cold, rigid, and unapproachable. Although he is less than 30 years old, he never acted in ordance to his age.

    Since Zhang Siyi appearance, Gu Yu has changed invisibly. He not only maintained his prestige, but Zhang Siyi¡¯s presence made Gu Yu even more human and as a result, Gu Yu was loved more by everyone. This is the real reason Zhang Siyi is liked by everyone.

    It is unclear who said: ¡°Here. Here. Respect our Mascot Aunt Four!¡± Everyone was in high spirits and raised their sses to toast Zhang Siyi. Feeling embarrassed, it was more difficult to refuse and as a result, Zhang Siyi became dizzy drinking cup after cup. Clearly, he wanted to drive everyone to toast Tao Fei. How do it turn out to be like this!?!?

    ¡°Noooooo! I¡¯ll get drunk again!¡± Zhang Si Yi quickly showed his weakness and begged for mercy.

    Gu Yu smiled at the turn of events. Not letting things get out of hand, he interjected in a timely manner: ¡±Zhang Siyi has to travel tomorrow on a business trip. Take it easy. You don¡¯t want him to miss his ne, do you?¡±

    As soon as Boss Gu spoke, everyone could onlyugh and give up.

    Spectating the good show, Tao Fei was a bit upset when the excitement was broken by Gu Yu.

    He poured a ss of wine and raised a ss to Gu Yu: ¡°Boss, you can cause the team to be so harmonious and friendly. In fact, the most powerful person is you! In the past, we were ssmates and now suddenly I have be your subordinate. For a while, I did not grasp the reality of the situation. I¡¯m using this asion to pay my respects Please take care of me in the future!¡±

    With a glint in Gu Yu eyes, he raised his ss but did not drink. Instead he grinned and said: ¡°Knowing our history, one must pay attention to professionalism. Thest time you lost your temper, I did not have the chance to rectify the issue.¡± He raised his ss signaling Tao Fei to drink.

    Tao Fei: ¡°......¡± Fuck!

    When Gu Yu saw Tao Fei drinking the wine, he narrowed his brow and said: ¡°Tomorrow, My Little Apprentice will be in your care.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Not everyone in this room has heard Gu Yu jokingly call Zhang Siyi ¡®Little Apprentice¡¯. Tao Fei didn¡¯t know who he was talking about, but as he considered the facts, the Little Apprentice must be Zhang Siyi. Since when did Zhang Siyi be Gu Yu¡¯s Little Apprentice?

    Watching Tao Fei, Gu Yu slowly picked up his ss and said: ¡°I¡¯ll finish first.¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°....¡± Whoa! Why does it feel like I¡¯m being threatened! (`_¡¯)

 Chapter 121: Selfie

    <h4>Chapter 121: Selfie</h4>

    ___________________

    Even though Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t witness Tao Fei being drunk, watching him drink two more sses of wine on Gu Yu¡¯s behest, Zhang Siyi felt appeased. Gu Yu¡¯s sharp tongue and witty nature can easily make people speechless. Ah-hah-hah!

    The group dinner ended happily. As they left the restaurant to go home, everyone scattered. As Zhang Siyi was getting ready to leave with Gu Yu, Tao Fei suddenly stopped him: ¡°Zhang Siyi, we will be on this trip together for one week. Make sure you pack properly and I¡¯ll see you tomorrow at the airport ahead of schedule at nine in the morning!¡±

    While Tao Fei was talking to Zhang Siyi, he was watching Gu Yu at the corner of his eye.

    In the eyes of Tao Fei, Gu Yu has always been a super mature person, like an unbreakable rock, nothing seems to bother him. Including thest two disputes Tao Fei had with Gu Yu. mming the desk, Tao Fei felt so angry he could have exploded while Gu Yu remained indifferent and as calm as ever.

    Tao Fei¡¯s impulsiveness and temper are described as his personality, but most of the time it is a fatal w. He has offended people and even lost friends.

    From the first time they cooperated in the designpetition to working together now, over the years, Tao Fei has exposed his character defects more the once in front of Gu Yu. Even though he has had his fair share of outbursts, it never seemed to bother Gu Yu and as a result, getting along together made Tao Fei feel more rxed.

    If Tao Fei wanted to blow up, Gu Yu let him blow up. After the explosion and cool-down, the two would talk about the issue and continue to work. Gu Yu would never be rude or refuse tomunicate with him because of a previous dispute.

    Tao Fei knows Gu Yu¡¯s ck belly nature is no less than his own, but Gu Yu has an advantage that he does not have. Gu Yu can control his temper.

    The person who can perfectly control his emotions is invincible. No one is a match for Gu Yu¡¯s quick thinking and as a result his articte nature renders Gu Yu impervious to other¡¯s offensive. What better person is there to shield Tao Fei?

    Although it bothers Tao Fei asionally, he has to admit that most of the time, this absolute reason makes him want to worship Gu Yu on his knees. He has wondered if Gu Yu will ever be angry in his lifetime.

    ¡ª¡ªUntil now.

    Yes, this time after returning home, Tao Fei was surprised at how much Gu Yu had changed. His sane and calm brother seems to have a weakness and a soft spot. Tao Fei has seen the corner of Gu Yu¡¯s mouth rise in a smile for seemingly no reason. Gu Yu¡¯s eyes have be gentle and sometimes he has caught Gu Yu gazing out into space. Why has he changed? Because of who?

    Now, Tao Fei finally found his answer. Tao Fei moved his line of sight to Zhang Siyi and grinned. ¨C Ah, brother, you asked mest night to delete my social media photos and suddenly you post a love photo. Today you requested the transfer of care for your ¡®Little Apprentice¡¯...... You let the cat out of the bag!

    Regarding Tao Fei¡¯s thoughts, Zhang Siyi was unaware of them. Now that they have said their well-wishes and drank the wine, he put down his defenses. He is even happy about Tao Fei finally calling him by his name correctly. With a gesture and a perky smile he said: ¡°OK! See you tomorrow!¡±

    When he returned home, Zhang Siyi quickly packed his things and brought enough underwear tost for a week. He has never been away on a business trip for so long and doesn¡¯t know why Tao Fei requested a week. Is Tao Fei really going to just y and not research the project?

    After Zhang Siyi gathered his things into a pile, he went to get his luggage, when he was packing his belongings one by one, he knocked off his sketchbook from the pile and it fell onto the floor.

    Gu Yu was close by and came over to pick it up for him: ¡°Would you like some help?¡±

    ¡°No. I¡¯ll do it myself.¡± Zhang Siyi said while he was busy cing his cloths into the luggage. He looked up and saw what it was that Gu Yu picked up and suddenly reacted. He jumped up and cried: ¡°Ah! Don¡¯t look at that!¡±

    It¡¯s toote. Gu Yu has already opened he book and saw the picture on the first page of the sketchbook. His eyes opened wide in surprise. After a moment, he shrugged his shoulders andughed: ¡°Why are you drawing me?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± (o////o)

    ¡°Want to be as good as I am?¡± Gu Yu mockingly said.

    When he turned to the second page, Gu Yu smiled happily. He read Zhang Siyi notes and ns. On the third page, Zhang Siyi noted the things he needed to do for his trip to Yunnan and made a list. Although his words aren¡¯t poetic or neatly written, his work attitude is very serious.

    Recognizing his effort, Gu Yu said: ¡°Not bad,¡± then handed the book back to Zhang Siyi. ¡°Keep at it.¡±

    Blushing, Zhang Siyi snatched the book from Gu Yu and stuffed it into his bag: ¡°I know!¡±

    Momentster, Gu Yu went downstairs to the library and pulled out two books for him to read. When he handed them to Zhang Siyi, he asked: ¡°Have you read these two books?¡±

    Zhang Siyi looked them over. One book was ¡°The Architect¡¯s Twenty Years¡± and the other book was ¡°The Eternal Way of Architecture¡±. He shook his head: ¡°I haven¡¯t read them.¡±

    Gu Yu said: ¡°These two books aren¡¯t difficult to understand. Pick one to read while you travel.¡±

    Since both of the books aren¡¯t very thick, Zhang Siyi happily chose the former title and put it into his bag.

    Gu Yu put away the other book and said: ¡°Lets discuss the book after you finished reading it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± (=Ãó=) Once reading bes homework, it feels less wonderful.

    When Zhang Siyi finished packing, he charged his camera and took care of thest few things he needed for his trip. Thinking about being separated from Gu Yu for a week, he went to Gu Yu¡¯s room to sleep.

    Originally, Zhang Siyi simply wanted to hold Gu Yu and go to sleep, but because of the alcohol, both were feeling emotional. Their simple kisses became greedier and eventually led them to help each other find release. Knowing Zhang Siyi had to wake up early to catch his flight, being considerate Gu Yu did not torment him much and both were fairly quick. After, Zhang Siyi leaned heavily on Gu Yu and fell asleep in his embrace.

    Early the next day, they woke up in good spirits. Gu Yu was going to get up and help Zhang Siyi make breakfast and then drive him to the airport, but his offer was rejected. Zhang Siyi insisted: ¡°I¡¯ll take the subway myself!¡± Even though he is happy that Gu Yu was thinking of his needs, Zhang Siyi was also thinking of Gu Yu needs and knew that it was a rare opportunity for Gu Yu to be able to sleep in and rest.

    About an hour before the airport check in, Zhang Siyi arrived. After twenty minutes, he still hadn¡¯t seen Tao Fei!

    Zhang Siyi called him and no one answered. He texted him:

    ¡°I¡¯m at the airport. Are you here yet?¡±

    ......

    ¡°There is only five minutes left for check-in!¡±

    ......

    ¡°Where are you?¡±

    ......

    [Crash]

    ......

    ..... Shit! He didn¡¯t oversleep, did he?

    Last night he was adamant about the time. Now who is the one that forgot the time?

    Standing near the check-in window, ready to handle the formalities, Zhang Siyi was anxious and pacing.

    Zhang Siyi was reminded of the time he went on his first business trip with Gu Yu where Gu Yu was standing at the check-in area waiting for him. Zhang Siyi at least spoke to Gu Yu while he was walking from the subway stop. Unlike now, Tao Fei that bastard, did not answer his phone!

    Seeing the check-in time is approaching the end, Zhang Siyi felt panicked and thought he should call Gu Yu for help. However, he quickly dismissed the idea. Since he couldn¡¯t rely on Gu Yu for everything, he needed to figure it out by himself.

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s patience was nearing his limit. He decided that if Tao Fei didn¡¯te, he would go through the registration procedure alone. Even if Tao Fei missed the ne, Zhang Siyi wouldn¡¯t waste his ticket.

    A minute before the airline staff closed check-in, Tao Fei appeared in Zhang Siyi line of site with a bag in tow.

    With a sigh of relief, Zhang Siyi beckoned him and cried: ¡°Hey! Hurry up!¡±

    Tao Fei¡¯s leisurely pace drove Zhang Siyi crazy: ¡°I called you. Why didn¡¯t you answer?¡±

    Without emotion, Tao Fei pulled out the phone from his trouser pocket and quietly said: ¡°Oh. Now I see. Why did you call me?¡±

    On the verge of an emotional outbreak, Zhang Siyi ced his ID card heavily on the counter and could barely stop himself from yelling at Tao Fei: ¡°Didn¡¯t you say nine? You arete. One minute more, and you would have missed check-in!¡±

    Tao Fei smiled and said: ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter if youe in forty-five minutes early. I am here now. Let¡¯s go.¡±

    With his ire provoked, Zhang Siyi hoped that this disaster wasn¡¯t an indication of things toe!

    Before boarding, Zhang Siyi saw Tao Fei take out his mobile phone ...This narcissist, presumably he is taking a selfie again.

    Tao Fei cloths today were exceedingly trendy with his essories, short cropped jean jacket, ck tight pants and doc martin boots.

    While they went through security, people have been looking at them. Thinking Tao Fei was some kind of pop-star, one young girl took Tao Fei¡¯s photo.

    However, Zhang Siyi does not think Tao Fei looks like a star, but rather, he looks like a Male-Host!

    Inparison, in order to facilitate the ease of movement while they travel for research, he specially prepared a pair of sneakers and easy to wear grey sweater and jeans. Well, Zhang Siyi silentlyforted himself, at least he looked more like an architect. (=_=)

    Without problems, they got on the ne and sat in their seat next to each other. Tao Fei fastened his seat belt and turned his head toward Zhang Siyi: ¡°Hey, help me see. Is my face a little distorted in the lens?¡±

    ¡°Hmm?¡± Zhang Siyi foolishly leaned closer to Tao Fei in order to help him.

    Tao Fei suddenly reached for Zhang Siyi as he got closer and put his arm around his shoulder. With their head together, he held up his phone and smiled. With the sound of a ¡®click¡¯, the two of them were photographed.

    ¡°Ah, great expression!¡± Tao Fei said and he showed the image on his screen to Zhang Siyi.

    It took a moment for Zhang Siyi to register what just happened. Tao Fei was taking a selfie with him!

    ¡°Hey! What are you doing?¡± Zhang Siyi had a bad feeling......

    Sure enough, Tao Fei quickly opened his social media page and uploaded two photographs. One image was the airport and the other was the photo with Zhang Siyi. Tao Fei wrote a note: ¡°With my young coworker ready to y in Yunnan! [Sunss Wearing Man]

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Hearing the flight attendant¡¯s friendly reminder, Tao Fei immediately shutdown his phone and put it away.

 Chapter 122: Riches

    <h4>Chapter 122: Riches</h4>

    ____________________

    Zhang Siyi broke down and said: ¡°You posted it online!¡±

    Tao Fei shrugged: ¡°Why can¡¯t I? Is there a problem?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°At least you could have told me ahead of time!¡±

    Tao Fei¡¯s behavior made him instantly think of the selfies he posted on his business trip with Gu Yu. Did Tao Fei also catch Gu Yu by surprise?

    In contrast, when Gu Yu was ¡°spoofed¡±, his expression was still so handsome while Zhang Siyi looked stupid in the photo. What¡¯s more, Tao Fei wasughing when the photo was taken. At least, let himugh too!?

    ...... Wait, that¡¯s not the point! The point is, why did you post my picture online without my permission!

    Tao Fei smirked and put his arm around Zhang Siyi¡¯s neck: ¡°What¡¯s the point of the surprise if you know ahead of time!¡±

    Zhang Siyi twisted his shoulder and tried to shrug off Tao Fei¡¯s arm ¨C is this a surprise? Clearly, it¡¯s to make me angry!

    Squeezing his arm, Tao Fei held Zhang Siyi¡¯s neck tighter and asked: ¡±Why are you so angry? Don¡¯t be so stingy! My brother took your silly photo and disyed it at the main entrance of thepany and you weren¡¯t angry. I only posted it to my circle of friends......¡±

    Zhang Siyi never said he wasn¡¯t angry. Why do you think I was never angry? In fact, I was livid! If not for respecting and being together with Gu Yu, I think I would be nning my vengeance now!

    Tao Fei smiled and continued to exin: ¡°And my friends don¡¯t know you. Why do you care so much about what other people think? Oh, I almost forgot. Does it bother you if my brother sees them?¡±

    Zhang Siyi could feel his ears turning red. He refuted: ¡°Of course not!¡±

    In fact, he does mind a little. He is afraid if Gu Yu sees, he will misunderstand. But on second thought, Gu Yu blocked Tao Fei¡¯s social media page so he might not necessarily see them.

    Moreover, even if he did see it, Gu Yu knew what kind of person Tao Fei was. Unlike Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu is so rational and calm, would he even get jealous?

    With such a thought, Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart breathed a sigh of relief.

    Even so, Zhang Siyi was still angry with Tao Fei¡¯s antics. He doesn¡¯t really mind photos being put online, but he wishes Tao Fei was less spammy and more sincere.

    Watching Zhang Siyi reaction, Tao Fei continued: ¡°We are traveling together for a week on our business trip. How are we going to get along if you make a fuss all the time? I¡¯m nning on taking a lot of photographs¡±

    Clearly, the topic about the photographs is something Tao Fei wanted to discuss with Zhang Siyi. He wanted to smack Tao Fei, but upon seeing his positive attitude and smile, Zhang Siyi sighed helpless. In a serious manner, heid out some ground rules for Tao Fei: ¡°You can take photographs, but don¡¯t lie to me, don¡¯t take candid ones and make sure I look good in them or else I will think you are messing with me!¡±

    Tao Fei chuckled: ¡°Ha-ha-ha! That¡¯s what bothers you?¡± He patted Zhang Si Yi¡¯s shoulder: ¡°OK, I understand. Next time I¡¯ll make sure you are super handsome!¡±¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Since Zhang Siyi slept really well throughout the previous night, he wasn¡¯t feeling sleepy at all and thus, he thought he should utilize his time to read. He grabbed the book that Gu Yu gave him from his bag.

    Tao Fei nced at the book and asked: ¡°Hey, howe you are reading that book?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°... What¡¯s wrong with this book?¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°I read it during my sophomore year at university.¡±

    Although he shouldn¡¯t feel surprised, Zhang Siyi was caught off guard. He never asked Gu Yu about his time at university and since Tao Fei was also a graduate of big T, he was curious: ¡°What was the course work like at big T?¡±

    Tao Fei wrinkled his face as if he had thought of something painful: ¡°Undergraduate.... Ah, those five years were simply hell.¡±

    Now given the opportunity to talk about himself, Tao Fei had no qualms gushing about his years in University. He continually spoke to Zhang Siyi about the difficult learning process of the early stages of the course work. For two years, day and night, they had to practice fundamental fine art skills like sketching and watercolor painting which were skills that science and engineering students rarely had prior exposure to. In addition, the text books were difficult to understand. Even if the material discussed was a struggle to grasp, one had to keep going forward, otherwise a person would fall too far behind. By the third year, in addition to written history, the course work was focused on learningputer software and how to transform your ideas intoputer models. Finally, during the fifth year, an internship was an avable option to gain office experience, but the most tragic aspect to it all was that the ie earned was totally out of proportion to the investment!

    ¡°Anyway, in those years at T-Big University Architectural department I basically did not have a weekend to myself at all. I even had to work and study during the winter and summer vacations. Everyone else was doing the same, so there wasn¡¯t really anything toin about.¡± Tao Fei summed it up and shrugged.

    Zhang Siyi was shocked and remembered his experience of studying abroad. Although he thought he was very busy, it was a far cry from Tao Fei. At least he still had time to watch movies and even go out during the holidays. The contrast between student expectations and course work from their respective universities was so different that it was no wonder that Zhang Siyi felt like he had never learned anything at school when he first joined thepany.

    ¡°Was it the same for Gu Yu?¡± Zhang Siyi asked.

    Tao Fei nced at Zhang Siyi: ¡°Almost, but he isn¡¯t the same as ordinary people.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°He isn¡¯t the same? What do you mean?¡±

    Tao Fei crossed his arms and said: ¡°Although designing is very fun, most of the architecture students are very poor. In short, there is no time and ce to make money.¡±

    Understanding the situation, Zhang Siyi nodded in recognition. Tao Fei also wanted to make money, but didn¡¯t know how costly an architectural education was.

    Tao Fei followed up and said: ¡°But my brother is an exception. He is particrly rich!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...... Did he earn it himself?¡±

    ¡°Yeah!¡± Tao Fei said with envy and jealousy. ¡°His professional achievements are very good. Sophomore year he joined a team with his seniors who entered a design for thepetition and won the grand prize. His teammates also came from families with construction and architectural backgrounds, but unlike Gu Yu, they went abroad to further their studies leaving Gu Yu alone to reap the benefits of winning the award. When I was at school, he was already a junior. At that time, even the teachers would mention him and joke; if you need good architect cheaply, find the junior in the third year for the job.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Why does he sound more like a contractor?¡±

    Tao Fei cried: ¡°He wasn¡¯t a contractor! In addition to being a top student, he was very connected in college and relied on those rtionships to open doors that normal students wouldn¡¯t have ess to. He participated in manypetitions during university and most of the time he got first ce. In fact, many architectural designpetitions were organized by design institutes in order to think of cheap creative design and mine new talent. Through those events, Gu Yu went to many rich parties and made further connections. I don¡¯t know how he had the time, but he did private work while taking care of his studies.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°How much can one earn by picking up private work?¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°It depends. During my senior year at University, I worked with my mentor for the first time and earned eight thousand a month. I thought that the money was good. Later, I had an opportunity to work with my brother for one month and we made a residential n together. I got paid fifty-thousand at that time!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°!!!¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°There were rumors that he could afford a house in the capital city center after graduation. Since I thought people were just bragging and making up stuff, I didn¡¯t believe it at first. It is said that when he was a senior at school, a nouveau riche gave him a one-hundred-thousand-yuan design fee for a vi in cash. At that time, tuition was only five thousand a year and monthly expenses were only one thousand. The concept of having one-hundred-thousand was unbelievable. Like winning the lottery, one day in the courtyard, some people saw him screaming. With his handsome face, it was like a scene out of a movie.¡±

    Imagining it, Zhang Siyi unconsciously smiled.

    Tao Fei: ¡°It wasn¡¯t just him. Even his roommates from the dorm benefited. I heard they were ordinary people in the beginning, but after thepetition, they began to wear designer merchandise and ate at first ss restaurants.¡±

    Zhang Siyi gave a hallowugh: ¡°Is it possible that when one person gains enlightenment, his followers also profit? Ha-ha-ha.......¡±

    Tao Fei sighed: ¡°Anyways, I feel that some people are lucky and born to be rich.¡±

    Being remined of his conversation with He Chengtian, Zhang Siyi¡¯s mouth twitched. He still remembered thement Bi Lele made some time ago about Gu Yu rejecting a job offer with a million sry. Now, Zhang Siyi finally understood why Gu Yu did so; because he isn¡¯t short of money! Ah!

    Hey, Zhang Siyi is looking forward to following Gu Yu to the heavens! He wants a lot of money too!

    Tao Fei looked at Zhang Siyi and asked: ¡°What did you study abroad?¡±

    Thinking for a moment, Zhang Siyi felt ashamed of the difference and said: ¡°The basic courses are simr, but I wasn¡¯t required to practice fine art skills and we didn¡¯t read so many books. I didn¡¯t have an internship during the summer or winter vacations, let alone private work experience.¡± (=_=)

    Not only that, but because he went abroad after graduating from high school, he couldn¡¯t adapt to the pure English teaching environment at the beginning of his studies. Thenguage problem alone made him fall behind the local students.

    Since Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t understand the professional terms, he was in a fog everyday during his architectural history ss during the first semester. He had to record the professor¡¯s lesson and y back the recording slowly to understand what was being said. It wasn¡¯t until his second year in University that his English became fluent enough for his sses.

    Rting to Zhang Siyi point, Tao Fei excitedly said: ¡°Ah! Me too! Even though I scored a 7.5 on the IELTS, I didn¡¯t understand half of my sses at first. Would it kill the professor to speak a little slower!¡±

    Tao Fei¡¯s exaggerated description almost made Zhang Siyi spit his drink out inughter: ¡°It took time to adjust to the speed of spokennguage. In my second year when I finally couldprehend everything, I switched to a German professor who spoke English with a thick ent. Even the local students had a hard time understanding him, let alone a Chinese one!¡±

    Tao Fei boisterouslyughed: ¡°Yes! Yes! I had a simr experience but the professor was Spanish! I became stupid once again. Ha-ha-ha-ha!¡±

 Chapter 123: Masterâ€™s Degree

    <h4>Chapter 123: Master¡¯s Degree</h4>

    __________________

    Unlike the stoic Gu Yu, it was easy to talk to Tao Fei. Having simr experiences abroad, the two became close very fast. Tao Fei asked: ¡°Is your degree recognized by RIBA? Are you qualified to study for Part 2?¡±

    Zhang Siyi nodded: ¡°Yeah.¡±

    RIBA is the Royal Institute of British Architects. To be a certified RIBA architect, one must receive an undergrad degree from a RIBA-certified University which is three or more years of study for Part 1. Part 2 is a two-year program for a Master of Architecture and a specific Part 2 RIBA exam.

    Domestic universities are not able to provide such certification. In other words, this road is only open to students who are undergraduate students in a certified university in the UK.

    Tao Fei said with emotion: ¡°The license is really good. I also want to take the exam for Part 2.¡±

    Although Tao Fei has a master¡¯s degree in the United Kingdom, it is not a pure Master of Architecture and thus, he is not eligible for a RIBA license. His degree is a hybrid architectural degree that incorporates sustainable development and research.

    Zhang Siyi said: ¡°Don¡¯t you have a Master¡¯s degree?¡±¡±

    ¡°Yes, but I don¡¯t have the prerequisites for a RIBA license.¡± Tao Fei looked at Zhang Siyi and asked: ¡°When will you go back to Ennd to study for Part 2? I remember you can apply to a Master¡¯s program after 1 year of work experience.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Yes, but I haven¡¯t thought about whether or not to continue to study for a master¡¯s degree.¡±

    Tao Fei was surprised: ¡°Why? Don¡¯t you want to continue designing in the future?¡±

    Zhang Siyi scratched his head and said: ¡°Yes, but I think I can learn a lot from my work now.¡±

    Especially under Gu Yu who was like an inexhaustible treasure trove of knowledge, Zhang Siyi felt like he has learned more under his guidance then he had in school and thus hasn¡¯t felt pressured to continue his studies.

    Tao Fei said: ¡°If you want to continue in this field, you must get a Master¡¯s degree. In order to get an Architecture license, you have to take the test one day sooner orter.¡±

    Zhang Siyi thought for a moment and said: ¡°Can¡¯t I take the test in China?¡±

    Widening his eyes in surprise, Tao Fei scolded him: ¡°Are you stupid!? Taking the domestic test after getting a degree from the UK is a waste of your RIBA Part 1 education!¡±

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t fully understand: ¡°Isn¡¯t a foreign certificate in China useless?¡±

    Tao Fei was quick to set Zhang Siyi straight: ¡°How can it be useless! Although China has its own architect certification, the difference between the two is enormous. Chinese certificate isn¡¯t recognized by foreigners, but a RIBA license is different. It is the gold standard and is recognized globally with international influence. The status of an architect with a RIBA license is very high.

    Tao Fei continued to earnestly advise Zhang Siyi: ¡°Now is not the era of self-taught geniuses like the prize-winning architect Tadao Ando or the famous Italian architect Renzo Piano! You think you can get ahead in this industry without further study? Even Gu Yu went to graduate school right after his undergraduate work. The market has a threshold. With no license and education, even if you are so fucking awesome, people will not look at you!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    ¡°A lot of domestic architects want to earn a RIBA license, but aren¡¯t qualified. You are fortunate to have that qualification so you should cherish it!¡± Tao Fei shook his head and looked at Zhang Siyi like he was an idiot.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Tao Fei reiterated: ¡°After graduation, there were many of my ssmates that went to the United States or Japan to continue with a Master¡¯s program. Even though the construction market in the two respective countries isn¡¯t as good as it is in China, the Master¡¯s degree with a foreign license is better than getting a domestic one. Even Professor Zhang Yonghe of Peking University is a registered architect in the United States!¡±

    After listening more, Zhang Siyi¡¯s interest with stimted: ¡°Really?¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°Of course it is! I¡¯m telling you, relying only on your work in the field will limit your promotion prospects. If you want to get ahead or make a name for yourself, it is better to n ahead as soon as possible.¡±

    To help illustrate his point, Tao Fei handed Zhang Siyi his business card. Comparing the two, one title is assistant while the other is Master of Architecture. Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t help but ask: ¡°It¡¯s only the first year of work and your title so advanced while I¡¯m just an assistant architect!¡±

    Tao Fei said: ¡°Ha-ha! Now you see! Even though it is the first year of work, my qualifications are higher than yours!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Thinking about it, who would write the number of years of work experience on a business card?! It¡¯s just the way things work in real life! Damn it!

    This fact and Tao Fei remarks left Zhang Siyi deep in thought. For the first time he began to question his future path and think about returning to the UK for a Master¡¯s degree.

    If he had the title of ¡°Royal British registered architect¡± on his business card, wouldn¡¯t he be more powerful than Gu Yu? Shit! Just imaging it, Zhang Siyi was getting a little excited!

    Having discussed some of the finer points of a British architectural education, Zhang Siyi and Tao Fei acted like they were old friends. As they were approaching their destination at the Kunming Changshui Airport, they finished their discussion about the domestic industry situation and got ready tond.

    Now that they were in the southwest part of China, the weather waspletely different. While Zhang Siyi took off his jacket and stuffed it into his carry-on bag, Tao Fei took off his denim jacket and tied it around his waist. Together they headed through the airport to the luggage carousel and picked up their baggage.

    Zhang Siyi suddenly remembered and asked Tao Fei: ¡°Where are we going next?¡±

    Tao Fei nced at Zhang Siyi: ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±

    Shocked, Zhang Siyi¡¯s jaw nearly fell off: ¡°What? I¡¯m confused. What do you mean you don¡¯t know?

    Tao Fei stared at him and smirked: ¡°Aren¡¯t you the ¡®Assistant¡¯? Shouldn¡¯t you have made ns beforehand?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± ¨C Assistant? Fuck you! Who took whom on the business trip!? This guy is really not dependable!

    As they pushed the luggage towards the exit, they quarreled.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Wasn¡¯t it your idea to go on this business trip first?¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°I told you, I brought you here to y!¡±

    With a dubious expression, Zhang Siyi questioned his motives: ¡°Eh? Are you fucking kidding with me!?

    Tao Fei squeezed the bridge of his nose and squinted his eyes at him: ¡°Since there wasn¡¯t a specific ce to go, I just let the personnel book tickets to Kunming.¡±

    Freaking out, Zhang Siyi shouted at him: ¡°I thought you came to Kunming for other purposes Ah!¡±

    Tao Fei said with a sigh: ¡°Ok, Ok. Stop arguing. Let¡¯s find a hotel first.¡±

    Taking out his phone to open a travel app, Tao Fei was momentarily distracted by WeChat and instead checked his messages: ¡°Wow! More than 30 new messages ha-ha-ha!¡±

    Zhang Siyi also got his phone out to see what Tao Fei¡¯s friends posted.

    A: ¡°Whatpany are you in? Are all your coworkers so cute?¡±

    B: ¡°Going out to y again! So envious and jealous! Feel my hateful vibes!¡±

    C: ¡°Didn¡¯t Brother Gu go with you?¡±

    D: ¡°The young guy is so handsome!¡±

    E: ¡°Fat peach, are you bullying him? Look at his surprised face.¡±

    ......

    Out of so many responses and ignoring thetter part of the sentence, Zhang Siyi focused on the keywords ¡®fat peach.¡¯ Your nickname is Fat Peach? Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha ...... ¡°

    With veins bulging from his forehead in anger, Tao Fei said: ¡°Take a hike! Call me the peach elder brother!¡±

    Zhang Siyi grimaced and remained silent.

    Tao Fei: ¡°...¡±

    Continuing to look at his phone frantically, Tao Fei seems a little strange. Why didn¡¯t Gu Yu reply?

    Not wanting to wait until Tao Fei stopped obsessing over his phone, Zhang Siyi interrupted him: ¡°Stop looking at your phone! Let¡¯s go downtown to get something to eat. I¡¯m starving to death!¡± After making the decision for both of them, Zhang Siyi stepped to the sidewalk to hail a taxi.

    When they got into the taxi, Tao Fei asked the driver: ¡°Mister, what is the best hotel in Kunming?¡±

    Surprised at Tao Fei question, Zhang Siyi started to fret. ¨C Tao Fei wants to stay at the best hotel?

    Thinking about the cheap motel that Gu Yu took him to on Zhang Siyi first business trip, he suddenly felt that Tao Fei was out of his league.

    The driver enthusiastically answered Tao Fei. He quickly checked out the hotel online then finally told the driver: ¡°Ok. Drive us to The Intercontinental.¡±

    Zhang Siyi nced at Tao Fei and checked the price. The standard room was more than a thousand a night. He couldn¡¯t help but worry: ¡°Won¡¯t it exceed the reimbursement cost?¡±

    Employees have a reimbursement limit for travel on business rted trips. Although Tao Fei is responsible for the project, he isn¡¯t the design director and has no control over this aspect of the business trip.

    Tao Fei patted him on the shoulder: ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I asked my Brother and he said that when we work on this project we can stay at any hotel, no matter the expense.

    Eyes twitching, Zhang Siyi replied: ¡°But we haven¡¯t started the project yet! How can you be so sure? What if it¡¯s not the case?¡±

    Tao Fei shrugged: ¡°Then we can share the cost.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Who the hell is going to share with you! (¨s¨FÃó¡¯)¨s(©ß©¥©ß

    Tao Fei added: ¡°Your sry shouldn¡¯t be any higher then mine, right? I ept installment payments with an interest rate of 3.5%.¡±

    At a loss for words, Zhang Siyi copsed in the back seat...

    After a while, Zhang Siyi wondered: ¡°How much is your sry?¡±

    Tao Fei¡¯s replied as matter of fact: ¡°It¡¯s only ten-thousand per month. It¡¯s very pitiful, but my Brother said there are also project bonuses.¡±

    What!? Zhang Siyi was totally shocked. Tao Fei¡¯s sry is twice that of his. He is still a small fry! No way! He must have a Master¡¯s degree! He¡¯s going back to the UK for a Master¡¯s!!!

 Chapter 124: Appear

    <h4>Chapter 124: Appear</h4>

    _____________________

    Located next to Dianchi Lake, it didn¡¯t take long for the taxi driver to bring them to the hotel. Looking out the window along the way, there were green mountains and clear waters making them feel happy and rxed. The picturesquendscape waspleted by the day¡¯s bright blue sky and fluffy clouds drifting in the light breeze. Getting out of the car, Zhang Siyi took a deep breath filling up his chest and then releasing it. He said: ¡°Ah, fresh air! Ah, fresh air! So good!¡±

    Squinting his eyes in the bright sun, Tao Fei said with emotion: ¡°If the environment everywhere else was as good as it is here, then people would stop going abroad.¡±

    After the luggage was removed from the trunk, the taxi left. Leaving the surrounding forest andkes, the two walked inside the hotel to check-in. Inside the lobby, there was a fountain and many decorative motifs that perfectly integrated the exteriorndscape into the interior space giving the hotel a romantic feeling. The elegance was enhanced by the butterfly motifs tastefully incorporated into the scenery of the interior.

    Along the way to their room, Zhang Siyi make sure to take a few photos with his camera. The room was veryrge with all the luxurious amenities including a balcony that overlooked theke.

    Putting down his bag, Zhang Siyi walked out onto the balcony to take a few beautiful pictures of theke. He secretly sent Gu Yu a message: ¡°We are at the hotel!¡±

    Immediately, Gu Yu replied: ¡°Which hotel?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Intercontinental Hotel in Kunming.¡± Afraid of any bacsh form Gu Yu, he hurriedly added: ¡°Tao Fei picked it out.¡± (&_&)

    Gu Yu: ¡°It¡¯s very good.¡±

    Seeing that Gu Yu didn¡¯t have any negative remarks about it, Zhang Siyi breathed a sigh of relief and asked: ¡°What are you doing? Did you eat yet?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Well, I¡¯ve already eaten. I¡¯m reading a book now.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°I miss you by the way.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Suddenly, Tao Fei appeared from behind Zhang Siyi: ¡°What are you doing?¡±

    Quickly putting his phone down, Zhang Siyi¡¯s face was flushed and replied: ¡°Nothing.¡±

    Tao Fei put his arm around Zhang Siyi shoulder and turned him around. While leaning on the balcony with a view of theke behind them and standing side by side, Tao Fei reached out with his phone: ¡°Let¡¯s take a picture. Smile!¡±

    Being caught of guard by Tao Fei, Zhang Siyi heart was in his throat. Before his brain understood what was going on, he was still in the midst of panic when he heard Tao Fei say smile and heard a ¡®click¡¯. Because of what Gu Yu said, he had slightly downcast eyes and looked like he was blushing under thefort of Tao Fei.

    When Tao Fei looked at the image, he couldn¡¯t stop fromughing: ¡°What¡¯s this? You are so shy and It looks like I¡¯m ready to pounce ha-ha-ha!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± You fuck off!

    After unpacking their belongings, they went to the concierge to get a taxi. First, they had the taxi drop them off at the city center to eat famous Yunnan Cross-The-Bridge noodle soup.** Then they went to visit the Golden Horse and Jade Rooster Archway. ** While out and about, they were leisurely strolling along the sidewalk talking and taking pictures just as if they were really like tourists out to y.

    Coming upon a tea shop, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t help himself and went inside to look. As soon as they entered, the enthusiastic man and women approached them and asked them if they wanted to sit and have tea and talk for a while. They also guaranteed that even if they didn¡¯t buy tea, it wouldn¡¯t matter.

    Tao Fei wasn¡¯t interested in the tea, but seeing that these two were locals, he wanted to chat with them about local customs so he grabbed Zhang Siyi and sat down.

    ¡°Is this your first timeing to Yunnan? Yunnan Pu¡¯er tea is the most famous......¡±

    As the older man introduced one of teas, Zhang Siyi made a polite bow and slightly nodded. He used his mobile phone to search this shop on the inte andpare prices. Seeing that the price of the tea is not outrageous, it is safe for him to enjoy the tea.

    Noticing Zhang Siyi¡¯s interest, the older man continued to tell him about the different kinds of tea avable. Along with the cooked style of Pu¡¯er tea he was tasting, the older man also prepared a sample of moonlight white, and red tea. Sipping his tea and nibbling on added snacks, Zhang Siyi was feeling really content. He had the urge to buy some tea.

    Tao Fei was surprised: ¡°Are you really going to buy some?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I think it¡¯s good to drink it.¡± In fact, he knows how to drink it because of Gu Yu influence. Knowing that Gu Yu and his father love to drink tea, he wanted to buy the tea for them.

    Tao Fei bluntly said: ¡°It is too inconvenient right now and this kind of tea is avable online.¡±

    The older man immediately responded to Tao Fei¡¯sment: ¡°Hey, you can¡¯t know for sure the Pu¡¯er tea you buy online is really Pu¡¯er tea. A lot of it is really just saliva tea that they only soak one side of the leaf then press them together making it very bitter. There is none of the mellow vor of real Pu¡¯er tea.¡±

    As the older man took out a stack of papers, he continued: ¡°Since many visitors to my shop are tourists, it ismon to mail home the items purchased. If you don¡¯t want to carry the tea with you, I can help ship it to your final destination. If it¡¯s a gift, I can wrap and package it with a card and send it out for free.¡±

    Since the purchase was without any worry, Zhang Siyi was excited to buy a variety of tea.

    Tao Fei was speechless, but since Zhang Siyi was willing to do it, he didn¡¯t stop him.

    In the past, Zhang Siyi wouldn¡¯t normally spend a lot of money on unnecessary things, especially a bunch of unknown teas, but now it wasn¡¯t the same. Since he likes Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi was always thinking about ways to make him happy and was willing to spend extra money. Picking out gifts for the person you love made Zhang Siyi feel very happy.

    While sipping and eating a snack, Tao Fei talked with the older couple about the areas culture and fun things to do. After spending two hours in the shop, they decided on where they needed to go next: Dali!**

    The following day, as suggested, they visited the Expo Park and Haigeng Park. Zhang Siyi made sure to take a lot of photographs. In the evening, they returned to the hotel to check out and went to the train station to travel to Dali by the overnight train. For the first time in Zhang Siyi life, he was traveling by an overnight sleeper-car. In his excitement, he wasn¡¯t able to sleep for most of the night.

    Listening to the drone of the wheels on the tracks, ¡®chuchk-chuchk-chuchk¡¯, he wrapped himself up in the thin quilt and posted an image of his train ticket for only Gu Yu to see and wrote a note: ¡°I miss you very much. I wish the person besides me was you.¡±

    After arriving in Dali, they took the bus to the ancient part of the city. As suggested by the owner of the tea shop from the previous day, Tao Fei rented an electric car with Zhang Siyi and drove around on a self-drive-tour around Erhai Lake.

    Since it was a weekday and people were at work, there was very little traffic on the roads and Tao Fei and Zhang Siyi were able to drive along theke without worries. Along the way they stopped at Xizhou old town and Zhoucheng vige** as well as various points on the roads to take pictures. Deciding to stay at a private inn, they enjoyed he sunset and sunrise of the Erhai Lake. The next day, with a fully charged car, they left the inn and drove back to the southern end of theke to the bus station.

    Previously, Zhang Siyi was apprehensive about going on the business trip with Tao Fei, but now with Tao Fei influence, he shed his reservations and really enjoyed touring the countryside. For the next part of their tour, they took a bus from Dali to Lijing** and stayed at the famous high-end hotel chain called Banyan Tree** which had vis with private pools. At three-thousand per night, the prices were even more outrageous.

    With Tao Fei insistence to stay at the best hotels, Zhang Siyi has be numb to such prices. Twice he has proposed other hotels, but Tao Fei always insisted on the best location. In order to feel less anxious about the cost, Zhang Siyi changed his mind set from needing to pay for a room to thinking they were Tao Fei¡¯s pre-paid rooms.

    Being influenced by Tao Fei¡¯s spending habits, Zhang Siyi also started to buy things without restraint. Looking around, there were many kinds of novelty products. He originally thought only Kunming sold Pu¡¯er tea and didn¡¯t expect other ces to also sell the tea.

    When Zhang Siyi received a ¡®little fox kiss¡¯ message from Gu Yu that he really liked the tea that he sent, Zhang Siyi felt so happy and excited. As a result, nearly every day when he tasted something good, he bought a small gift and sent the package to Gu Yu.

    Noticing Zhang Siyi address the package to Yuanshan Garden yet again, Tao Fei ridiculed him: ¡°How many presents are you going to get Gu Yu?¡±

    Turning red, Zhang Siyi faltered and said: ¡°They aren¡¯t all for him. I¡¯m going to give them away when I get back home.¡±

    Tao Fei looked at him with a broad smile and didn¡¯t press him any further.

    For four days, the two traveled to the surrounding heritage sites and tourist attractions like Wuhu, the old town of Shuhe**, and Shangri-La**. Returning to Lijiang, it was already the end of April and near the May holiday and thus, there was a surge of tourists to the area. As a result, when they returned to the Banyan Tree hotel, there were no vacancies. They booked a room at the second most expensive private inn for one night. Tomorrow, they were nning on flying to Xishuangbanna.**

    Having visited so many different tourist sites thest few days, the initial excitement of traveling has faded and Zhang Siyi began to feel fatigued and worried: ¡°Our trip is more than half over and we haven¡¯t even started working yet.¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s the hurry? It¡¯s the May holiday.¡± Tao Fei said whileing out of the bathroom in a towel. Contrary to his image online, Tao Fei went to his bed and picked his toenails.

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s eyes twitched. If he didn¡¯t know any better, being in Tao Fei¡¯s shadow these past days traveling would make anyone think they were a couple. All of his photos posted to his social media were beautiful pictures of the both of them!

    Lying in bed waiting for Gu Yu¡¯s text message, Zhang Siyi frowned. During the week, Zhang Siyi had beenmunicating with Gu Yu everyday by sending photos and updating him on the status of the business trip. Normally, he checks for Gu Yu¡¯s messages in the morning and in the evening, but today Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t know what is going on. Gu Yu hasn¡¯t responded all day.

    Quietly, Zhang Siyi moved outside the room to call Gu Yu, but he wasn¡¯t able to connect as the phone went directly to voicemail. He didn¡¯t know what to think. It wasn¡¯t until midnight that Zhang Siyi heard the phone vibrate on the bedside table and received a message from Gu Yu.

    Gu Yu: ¡°I am in Lijiang. Where are you? I came to see you.¡±

    Looking at his message, Zhang Siyi cried out: ¡°Eh!¡±

    Since Tao Fei was ying games on his mobile phone, he wasn¡¯t paying attention and thought Zhang Siyi called him: ¡°Yeh?¡±

    As Zhang Siyi typed to Gu Yu, he spoke to Tao Fei: ¡°Gu Yu... Boss Gu is here in Lijiang!¡±

    Tao Fei jumped out of bed instantly: ¡°What?¡±

    Zhang Siyi was also shocked: ¡°I didn¡¯t know if what he was said was true or not. He asked me where we are staying and then he said he ising to us now.

    With a twisted expression of both excitement and fear Tao Fei swore ¡°Fuck!¡± He quickly opened his social media and scrolled through all the posts and photos of ¡®showing love¡¯ he made during the business trip. -Ha-ha-ha, brother! You finally can¡¯t sit still?! Even though tomorrow is the holiday, you couldn¡¯t wait to get here tonight!

    Both surprised and happy, Zhang Siyi got out of bed quickly and proimed: ¡±I¡¯m going to go get him.¡±

    Tao Fei waved his hand and looked at him in fascination: ¡°Go ahead.¡± -Hey-hey-hey! the next few days will be more fun!

    Wearing only a pair of hotel slippers, Zhang Siyi impatiently rushed out feeling ecstatic ¨C Why does Gu Yu have to surprise him every time!

    Rushing out of the hotel, Zhang Siyi abruptly stopped his momentum and quickly looked for Gu Yu. Seeing him standing on the quiet stone road, an emotional wave of excitement and yearning washed all over him. Any anxiety and sadness from being separated dissolved in an instant. When their eyes met, there was only a moment before they both rushed towards each other to embrace.

 Chapter 125: Experience

    <h4>Chapter 125: Experience</h4>

    ________________________

    ¡°What are you doing here?¡± Embracing Gu Yu¡¯s body and smelling his essence, Zhang Siyi heart was frantically pounding in his chest. Any ideas he had of going to the UK for a Master¡¯s degree instantly vanished. Since Zhang Siyi felt being apart for a week was unbearable, he wasn¡¯t able to wrap his mind around the idea of leaving China and having a long-distance rtionship!

    Although he did not answer, all of Gu Yu feelings were self-evident. Gu Yu fiercely hugged him and pressed Zhang Siyi head to his chest, kissing him on the head, ear, his jawline......

    Afraid of being seen, Zhang Siyi loosened his arms, stepped back and asked: ¡°Did you get the packages I sent?¡±

    ¡°Well...¡± Gu Yu gave him a funny look. ¡°Why did you send so many?¡±

    Feeling embarrassed, Zhang Siyi looked at his feet and quietly said: ¡°I wanted to buy them for you.¡±

    ¡°Pu¡¯er, Xizhou white tea, rose sugar, peach wine, flower cake...¡± Raising his eyebrows, Gu Yu recounted everything that was sent then asked: ¡°Those are all well and good but what do you mean by buying Maca Root tea?¡±

    ¡°Uh....?¡± Zhang Siyi was in Shuhe the other day and saw someone selling Maca Root tea saying it was good for a man¡¯s body because it increased stamina and resistance. Having purchased so many gifts during the trip thus far, Zhang Siyi lost track of each package. As long as it was something beneficial to Gu Yu, he bought it and sent it home without much thought.

    Watching Zhang Siyi questioning expression, Gu Yu exined what the tea was used for; an aphrodisiac that help maintain a man¡¯s erection.

    Feeling embarrassed, Zhang Siyi repeatedly waved his hand to exin.¡± ¡°I, I, I, I....... I didn¡¯t mean that!

    However, looking at Gu Yan¡¯s narrow eyes, Zhang Siyi felt that he could not wash himself when he jumped into the Yellow River!

    Reaching for Zhang Siyi head, Gu Yuughed and snorted, and messed up his hair: ¡°All right. Go ahead first.¡±

    As he went upstairs, Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°Did youe here after work this evening?¡±

    Gu Xiao: ¡°There was only one four-hour flight in the afternoon from Haicheng to Lijiang.¡±

    ..... Ah! It is no wonder that I couldn¡¯t contact Gu Yu for a long time! Having worked all morning and then traveled the rest of the day, Gu Yu must be feeling exhausted.

    When they arrived back to the room, Tao Fei was reclining on the bed with his legs crossed. He winked: ¡°Brother you came!¡±

    Not saying anything, Gu Yu nodded to Tao Fei and put down his luggage. He surveyed the room and saw two beds. One of them was upied by Tao Fei, and the other bed with half of the nkets drooping over the side of the bed and onto the floor was Zhang Siyi¡¯s.

    Tao Fei asked: ¡°Are you here for business or vacation?¡±

    Since Gu Yu chose this time to travel, of course it is impossible for him to be part of the business trip and therefore, he must havee at his own expense.

    Sitting up and putting his legs off the side of the bed Tao Fei smiled: ¡°Now that it is the May holiday, there aren¡¯t extra rooms left in he hotel. What should we do for tonight? Myself or Zhang Siyi......¡±

    Before he had finished speaking, Gu Yu took off his coat and tossed it directly onto Zhang Siyi¡¯s bed. He interrupted him in an overly dramatic manner: ¡°Sleeping isn¡¯t the issue. I came to see your work situation since it has been a week already. Did you forget the time?¡±

    When Zhang Siyi heard Gu Yu, he was reminded of the ¡®Big Devil¡¯ and broke out in a cold sweat.

    Gu Yu did not bother to listen to their answers and let Zhang Siyi get his slippers for him then said: ¡°Tell meter. I¡¯ll shower first.¡±

    Taking advantage of his momentary absence, Zhang Siyi faced the culprit, Tao Fei, and whispered: ¡°We are finished! All we did was see tourist traps and we haven¡¯t made any progress on the project yet!¡± He knew with Gu Yu¡¯s arrival that he was going to get into trouble!

    As Zhang Siyi was in a panic, Tao Fei smirked indifferently. Hezily leaned back in his bed and said: ¡°What are you afraid of? Haven¡¯t we been working all this time?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What?¡±

    Tao Fei calmly exined: ¡°Have you forgotten what we¡¯re doing with this project? It is a luxury hotel design project for tourist attractions! The ss of hotels are nothing less then Hotel intercontinental and Banyan Tree hotel. In order to develop a five-star hotel with the same standards, we have to stay in the high-end Hotels and visit the famous locations throughout Yunnan. We want to make sure our design is unique with its own characteristics and innovations and not a repeat of the same thing that the other hotels have.

    Now that Zhang Siyi was enlightened, he suddenly understood why Tao Fei wanted to stay at all the best hotels! He realized the essence of the matter was the same as when Gu Yu took him to the old town on their C-City business trip. The difference was that he nned an area for ordinary people and not wealthy people and thus, had to see things from themon man¡¯s perspective and stay at a budget hotel.

    If they never experienced staying at a luxury hotel, they wouldn¡¯t know what amenities and facilities are needed to incorporate into the design for the enjoyment of the hotel¡¯s guests. It wasn¡¯t that Tao Fei needs were different then Gu Yu¡¯s, it was that the starting point of the project was vastly different from the previous one.

    However, Zhang Siyi remains a bit confused: ¡°But there is so much information and photos online about the ces we have been to.¡±

    Not all designers have the ability to put themselves in the ce they are designing. Ironically, many people who design upscale ces and wealthy mansions have not actually lived in upscale ces and mansions themselves. Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t feel wrong about his thoughts because with some research and spection, the photos and information avable online would provide a direction to start in designing a project n.

    Tao Fei scoffed: ¡°It¡¯s not the same. I saw a domestic real estate agent sell a house, iming it to be a luxury apartment style of Europe and US because each apartment unit had its own firece. I looked at the firece and ha! The designers didn¡¯t know what to think because the firece was just a mural!¡±

    Zhang Siyiughed out loud. Tao Fei¡¯s example perfectly illustrated the issue at hand. The irony is really amazing.

    Grinning, Tao Fei said: ¡°Once you let go of your rigid thoughts and experience an environment with your heart, the sense of scale and space is intuitively gained. This type of knowledge leads to inspiration and is only achieved by living in the environment and not something that can be produced from thin air.

    As if it were truth, Zhang Siyi nodded and touched his chin.

    Stretching out on the bed, Tao Fei said: ¡°Now this feeling of indulgence is the best! The more a person is spoiled, the better the experience feels and the more memorable it will be. In order for others to want to spend time at your resort, you have to first want to spend time being pampered at a resort. Let those rich people willingly pay for your design in order to enjoy thefort of a drunken dream and forget reality. You are creating that paradise for guests to experience.¡±

    Zhang Siyi nodded throughout Tao Fei exnation. How strange! He originally thought Tao Fei was so unreliable, but under his cynical surface, Tao Fei has a right-minded heart!

    ¡°Hey, by the way...¡± Tao Fei suddenly turned over, yawning: ¡°Since I exined everything and you took most of the photographs, when Gu Yues out demanding an exnation, you talk to him. I¡¯m going to sleep.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± You ck heart fat peach!

    Gu Yu quickly finished showering. With his hair still wet, he came out of the bathroom wearing a robe.

    Holding his camera, Zhang Siyi was sitting down on the bed waiting for him.

    Rubbing his hair with a towel, Gu Yu walked to Zhang Siyi¡¯s bedside and sat down. He looked at Tao Fei in the next bed over and asked: ¡°He went to sleep?¡±

    Zhang Siyi lowered his head and said: ¡°Well, look at this. These photos are what we have taken in the past few days.... ¡°

    Gu Yu got on the bed and sat close to Zhang Siyi. Since his robe was loosely tied together, he could see most of Gu Yu¡¯s abdomen.

    With a pounding chest and feeling hot Zhang Siyi pretended to be calm and talked to Gu Yu about their trip these past days. All the while, he internally thought to himself -ah don¡¯t look, hold back, Tao Fei is right next to us.

    While talking about their experiences when staying over in the luxury hotels, Zhang Siyi intuitively felt like Gu Yu was getting closer. As Zhang Siyi turned his head to peek, he saw Gu Yu staring at him and not looking one bit at the images disyed on the camera.

    Opening his mouth to speak, Gu Yu suddenly came over and pecked his lips, interrupting Zhang Siyi. Scared, he raised his hand to cover his mouth, stunned. Wide eyed, he quickly nced in Tao Fei¡¯s direction to signal silently: ¨C Tao Fei is here!

    Turning, Gu Yu also nced at Tao Fei. Since he saw no movement, he boldly pressed Zhang Siyi shoulder down to the pillow.

    Zhang Siyi was forced toy down half way. Gu Yu also followed suit and put his arm down so Zhang Siyi could rest his head on it. His other hand grabbed the bedding and pulled nkets over the body of the two of them then quietly said: ¡°Continue.¡±

    Blushing, Zhang Siyi quickly turned away from Gu Yu and continued to show him the photographs.

    While looking at the camera¡¯s disy screen, his earlobe suddenly felt itchy and then hot. Frozen in ce, Zhang Siyi sucked in a breath of cold air. He wanted to hide, but since Gu Yu arm was wrapped around him, he couldn¡¯t move.

    Shit! Gu Yu is actually...... licking his ears...... (Q////Q)

    Gu Yu¡¯s kiss shifted from his ear, to his cheek and then he held Zhang Siyi¡¯s head and kissed him on the lips.

    Since Tao Fei was next to them on the other bed, all he needed to do was open his eyes to witness them kissing each other. How dare Gu Yu......

    Zhang Siyi opened his eyes and felt Gu Yu¡¯s tongue sneak into his mouth, probing inside. His pounding heart was about to jump out of his throat.

    As much as Gu Yu surprised him, Zhang Siyi had to admit to himself that the more they progressed, the more worried he was about being discovered, but contrary to his logical thought, the greater the thrill Gu Yu¡¯s actions brought.

    Not daring to respond to Gu Yu¡¯s advances, he grasped the camera in one hand and clenched his other hand into a fist. From the tips of his toes, to the top of head, all of the cells in his body trembled. The gentle kisses made him so excited that Zhang Siyi thought he was going to explode.

 Chapter 126: Listening

    <h4>Chapter 126: Listening</h4>

    ______________________

    Laying sidewise on the bed, Tao Fei pretended to sleep. Trying to confirm his suspicion, he closed his eyes and listened intently because he wanted to hear what Gu Yu would say to Zhang Siyi after he came out of the shower.

    At first, he also heard Zhang Siyi exin in a low voice about the ces in their photos; Intercontinental Hotel, Dali, the private Inn.... but halfway through, Zhang Siyi suddenly stopped.

    Tao Fei strained to hear more details. Huh? Why did he stop?

    After hearing a rustling sound, he assumed they went to bed. ¨C Eh? Even if one of them wants to sleep, doesn¡¯t someone normally announce it? What about, ¡®let¡¯s go to sleep first¡¯, or ¡®it¡¯s toote now¡¯? There is no rhyme or reason!

    Tao Fei was just pondering the issue, when he heard Gu Yu softly say ¡°continue.¡±

    Then Zhang Siyi began to talk again with a voice even softer than before.

    ...... Eh? Tao Fei is even more confused! ¨C If they wanted to continue their conversation in bed, they should have said ¡®let¡¯s lie down.¡¯ Maybe through eye contact or signals that they were able to lie down together? ....... or something like that. (=_=)

    Listening to Zhang Siyi voice, Tao Fei began to imagine the position of the two men together leaning against the bed. When two people lie in a bed together, Tao Fei thought¡¯s drifted from work rted activities to perverted ones.

    There, again! The sound stopped!

    When Zhang Siyi¡¯s voice stopped, Tao Fei listened carefully. There was a soft hhmm.

    That hum...... What is it? Like being tickled? But it came to an abrupt end.

    Tao Fei¡¯s heart was like a cat w. He is eager to know what Gu Yu did to Zhang Siyi. Did he kiss him?

    He guessed it right. In a short while, there were a few soft sounds emanating from the two on the bed next to Tao Fei. Quiet sounds like a cat slowly licking milk, apanied by an asional swallow were amplified countless times inside the silent room, making the noises particrly clear in Tao Fei¡¯s ear.

    How could a 27 years old man not know what that sound is? Damn it! They¡¯re kissing!

    Fuck! Even in front of Tao Fei, they dare. It¡¯s too presumptuous!

    Originally, Tao Fei thought that kissing was the extent of the two people¡¯s unrestrained actions. However, he didn¡¯t expect further more exaggerated actions afterwards!

    The sound of their breath grew heavier as they kissed followed by the sound of friction from the sheets and apanied by Zhang Siyi¡¯s increasingly louder and overflowing ¡®hhmm.¡¯ It was once again suddenly muffled and followed by Gu Yu¡¯s lowughter, affectionate and gentle.

    Listening to the magic sound, Tao Fei almost had a nosebleed!

    Shit! Obviously the two are men, but Tao Fei did not care about that. Instead, he felt rather aroused! It turns out that he¡¯s a pervert who likes to eavesdrop on people making out.

    The friction sound was getting more frequent and louder. Tao Fei didn¡¯t know exactly what they were doing, but he could clearly hear Zhang Siyi¡¯s breath getting faster and the ¡®hm¡¯ bing more distinct. Every sound made it very difficult for Tao Fei to endure.

    Tao Fei gnashed his teeth and thought, endure? ¨C Fuck no! I¡¯ve heard everything!

    ¡°Ahh, mm....¡±

    ..... Fuck! Don¡¯t you think, you would wake up someone who just fell asleep?

    ..... Too presumptuous! Too presumptuous! Do I even exist? (¨tÃó¨s)

    The more Tao Fei listened, the more irritable he became and the more he wanted to scare them by jumping out of the bed.

    ..... But if that¡¯s the case, wouldn¡¯t it be a problem to have pretended to be asleep for so long? No, no, you must be calm! Gu Yu is definitely doing it deliberately. If I reveal myself now, then I¡¯m only ying into Gu Yu¡¯s hand. Maybe he was waiting for this exact moment to look him in the eye and frankly dere ¡®yes we are lovers.¡¯ After, they would be able to show their love in front of him at any time!

    At the thought of it, Tao Fei felt a hundred ws scratching his heart! After all he had prepared to make Gu Yu feel out of control, how could Tao Fei let Gu Yu gain the upper hand in the end?

    Hold back, Tao Fei, the test of patience is reserved for future victory!!! If he doesn¡¯t jump up, he can always do something else, right?

    Slowly, Tao Fei turned over and for a moment, the whole room was quiet. Not even a breath could be heard. Gloating, Tao Fei smirked. ¨C Hey! Hey! Hey! You are scared, right?

    That¡¯s right, Zhang Siyi was scared. Scared out of his wits! Jesus Christ, what the hell are they doing? They actually did something like that in front of another man!

    Still ontop of Zhang Siyi body, Gu Yu¡¯s deep eyes were full of desires for him. Although the two were only kissing and rubbing, Zhang Siyi felt more excited than ever before! Since there is a third party involved in this kind of situation, Zhang Siyi really felt like it was both too inappropriate and shameful. Zhang Siyi quickly acted and gently pushed Gu Yu away, thinking that it would end.

    However, Gu Yu stared at Zhang Siyi and remained motionless. Hearing no further sounds from Tao Fei, Gu Yu lowered his head and kissed Zhang Siyi gently at first, then quickly deepened them and kissed him passionately.

    The immediate rebound of emotions after being disrupted were more intense then they initially were and thus, made it even more difficult to suppress!

    In the loving hands of Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi never had any resistance and self-control. Under Gu Yu¡¯s active offensive, Zhang Siyi was swept away by thenguor of sweet torment and another wave of soft erotic sounds issued forth.

    Clutching his heart, Tao Fei vomited a pile of Old Blood.

    Waking up the next morning feeling gloomy with dark circles under his eyes, Tao Fei looked over at the two men who were rather busy for more than half the night.

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s head was leaning against Gu Yu¡¯s neck. ording to the contour of the bodies under the quilt, it was clearly evident that the two men were embracing each other. Even asleep, they had an expression of satisfaction and love.

    This damn dog food. Go to hell !!!

    Not long after Tao Fei got up, Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu woke up to the sounds of the water running in the bathroom.

    Waking up in each other arms, Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi looked at each with affection. When Tao Fei did note out, Gu Yu kissed Zhang Siyi¡¯s forehead before hoping out of bed and getting dressed. Zhang Siyi blushed, grabbed his soiled underwear hidden below the mattress and put them into the trash.

    After eating the hotel¡¯s hearty breakfast, there was no time for Gu Yu to tour Lijiang. The three went to the airport to catch their flight to Xishuangbanna.

    Tao Fei was in a bad mood. Irritably, he spat: ¡°Why did you arrive herest night if we were going to leave the next morning? You could have just flown directly to Xishuangbanna to meet us and saved a trip.¡±

    Gu Yu nced at Zhang Siyi and calmly said: ¡°Getting a good night sleep was well worth the extra trip.¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°...¡± Gu Yu is not nning to hide anything from him at all?

    With a guilty conscience, Zhang Siyi coughed and looked away to the side.

    Arriving in Xishuangbanna in the afternoon, the local temperature is higher and wasparable to the heat of Haicheng. The airport was very busy with many tour groups flooding the area. They traveled more than a few hours north to reach their destination in a tea growing region of China at the Jingshan Boutique hotel. ** which was built into the surrounding tea gardens and hills. The Jingmai Mountain Range ** boasts the oldest tea-leaf producing tree in the world.

    Tao Fei¡¯s original n was to take a charter to Lancang, but because of the many tourists, there was high demand and the price was too extreme. Instead, Gu Yu rented a car and they drove themselves to Lancang county.

    Since Tao Fei did not have a driver¡¯s license and Zhang Siyi had little experience driving on tight mountain roads, Gu Yu had to drive the entire time. The journey took more then three hours along a very narrow road which contained many elbow bends and turns. Even though the driving was rather arduous, they arrived sessfully before dinner.

    At a steep price of 4000 yuan a night, Tao Fei was reluctant to reserve two rooms and therefore, the three of them stayed in one room with two double beds again. Like the Intercontinental Hotel, each of the rooms hadrge floor-to-ceiling windows and balconies. The difference ends there as the view from the balcony is not Dianchike, but tea fields and mountains instead.

    While looking at the rich green colors, Zhang Siyi listened to the wildlife outside and soaked himself in the fresh air of the rainforest. As he took a deep breath, the fragrant sweet-smelling tea enveloped and rxed his soul making him not want to work.

    Gu Yu viewed and inspected the decorations of the hotel and said: ¡°The simple style and nt colors are really vibrant.¡±

    Looking at the thatched vis with banana leaves, Tao Fei asked: ¡± Is this roof the Dai style?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Yes. The main materials of the Dai-style buildings are bamboo and wood, but in recent years there are some reinforced concrete structures. Did you see those strange houses on the way in?¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°You mean the blue roof?¡±

    Dai-style houses are based on nature with mainly bamboo used at its construction material and thus, the structures easy blend in with the natural surroundings. Contradictory to tradition, on the way inside the hotel, the they spotted a few constructed homes with blue and white roofs.

    Gu Yu: ¡°My guess is that the local farmers built them using modern materials to improve the quality of the houses. Although the house maintained the traditional shape with wide eaves and a steep roof, the color was rather incongruous.

    Tao Fei: ¡°I also think the original colors of bamboo and grass are more beautiful.¡±

    ......

    As they were discussing Dai-style differences, next to them Zhang Siyi was covering his face. For so many days with Tai Fei, neither of them spoke about architecture. Only now when Gu Yu appeared, was he conscious of being an architect.

    That night, while discussing the ways of preserving the characteristics of national building culture, the trio ate gourmet Dai dishes in the hotel¡¯s restaurant that was situated inside a ss pavilion overlooking the tea fields.

 Chapter 127: Shenanigans

    <h4>Chapter 127: Shenanigans</h4>

    ___________________________

    Maintaining the bnce between natural and modern, the Dai-style was used as a basis for the construction of the hotel. In addition to the many modernforts, like the floor to ceiling windows, the facility was also constructed with many natural materials and motifs. Together, they seamlessly incorporated the outside rainforest into part of the interior space and choosing which parts of the structure to be modern and which parts to retain the natural elements is the job of an architectural designer.

    Benefiting from the resort spa facilities, Zhang Siyi felt less tense and much better. When he returned to his room, he grabbed his sketchbook and sat on the bed to write and sketch out his thoughts. Since it was the first time since the business trip that he felt motivated to do so, he felt a little guilty. Sure enough, he was a better person when Gu Yu was near. As long as Gu Yu is close, all Zhang Siyi wants to do was improve and work hard alongside him.

    Gu Yu went to boil some water in a teapot in the room and noticed Zhang Siyi reclining on the bed working with his sketchbook. He went over to him to looked at what Zhang Siyi was drawing.

    Zhang Siyi instinctively covered up the image a little, but when he saw Gu Yu, he rxed his hand and let Gu Yu look at the drawing.

    Pleased by his reaction, Gu Yu smiled andid down next to him. Looking at Zhang Siyi¡¯s amateur attempt at drawing the huts where the spa facilities were, he reached out to take Zhang Siyi sketchbook and personally drew a perspective view for him. With the herringbone ridge, thatched grass and wooden pirs, Gu Yu urately depicted the hut with a few seemly simple pencil strokes. He also made a few notations that included the frame structure and sizes of the pirs with the roofing material.

    Marveling at the illustration, Zhang Siyi eximed: ¡°Wow! How did you remember all of this?¡±

    Gu Yu said: ¡°Of course I remember a simple hut. If I didn¡¯t remember the details then what would be the point of drawing it?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I just thought the hut looked nice.¡±

    ¡±Idiot.¡± ring at Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu reached out and pulled his nose. Not wanting to scold him further, he patiently exined: ¡°Only ordinary people have the luxury to look at a building casually and simply think how nice it looks. Remember you are an architect, so you must look at a building with a critical eye and understand why a building looks good. Just saying a building looks nice, isn¡¯t good enough.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu picked up the pen again and wrote on the sides of his sketchbook and said. ¡°Take for example the hut just now, pay attention to the spatial scale of the environment. Notice the measurement of this opening here and whether or not it wasfortable to use. Would it be better if it was smaller? Or, would it be better if it was bigger? ..... Second, look at the truss structure and column arrangement. If you aren¡¯t sure of the sizes, then use a tape measure to get the details. Isn¡¯t that why I gave you mine? ..... Third, pay attention to the building materials and color. Touch the materials and think about the color tones. What feelings do they invoke and why? ..... Fourth, note which decorative elements are most attractive to you.... It doesn¡¯t matter if the drawing is very good or not because you have a camera and can record it perfectly. The issue bes apparent in the future when you go back to look at the photos. In retrospect, you won¡¯t remember why the building was good and what was so special about it without making notations.¡±

    When Gu Yu was finished with his lecture, he turned to look at Zhang Siyi. Seeing his eyes sparkle with extreme adoration and worship, Gu Yu couldn¡¯t help but want to kiss him. -Damn him, does he even know how good he is at seducing me!?

    Tossing the pen aside, Gu Yu looked Zhang Siyi in the eyes and tenderly held his chin up then leaned in to press his lips against ...... The door suddenly opened.

    ¡°There aren¡¯t any cots avable. I just met the room service outside and they gave us a fruit basket.... Come taste a fresh mangosteen from Xishuangbanna!¡±

    Since the number of people did not match the original reservation, Tao Fei went downstairs to the lobby toplete the formalities and also asked them if there were any roll-away beds avable. Unfortunately, even the high-priced luxury hotels are filled to capacity during the May Holiday and any additional beds must be reserved in advance.

    As soon as he came in, Tao Fei saw Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu both lying on the bed. The two men were in a rather suggestive position. In the moment they heard Tao Fei talking, the two separated in lightning speed.

    Gu Yu: ¡°...¡± (=_=)

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± (&_&)

    Tao Fei: ¡°...¡± (= Ãó =) Are you so hungry and thirsty that in the span of ten minutes while I was away, that¡¯s all you thought about!?

    Setting the fruit on the table, Tao Fei stared at them angrily. ¡ª I am watching you two. Now, how will you be able to show affection!

    Zhang Siyi picked out one of the mangosteen in his hand and broke the skin to reveal the white flesh. He put a piece in his mouth and eximed: ¡°Hey, it¡¯s so sweet!¡±

    Wanting to let Gu Yu have some, Zhang Siyi broke off another piece and extended his hand: ¡°Do you want to try a piece?¡±

    Unexpectedly, Gu Yu lowered his head and enveloped Zhang Siyi fingers with his mouth and ate the fruit. As Zhang Siyi tried to remove his fingers, Gu Yu sucked and licked up the remaining pulp from his fingers.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    This time, clutching his trembling hand, even Zhang Siyi wanted to shout ¡®fuck.¡¯ In front of others, can you not do such an erotic action!? (&////&)

    Witnessing it all, Tao Fei was forced to chew gay dog food! He really wanted toe straight to the point and say: ¡°No questions asked! You two are so gay!¡±

    By the effect of Gu Yu¡¯s actions, Tao Fei figured that he doesn¡¯t seem to care whether or not Tao Fei knows of his true rtionship with Zhang Siyi. What¡¯s more, Tao Fei felt that if he said something, Gu Yu would just directly admit it.

    Fuck! Theck of any opportunity to poke fun made Tao Fei unhappy about his circumstance. Even being gay, do you have no shame? You can¡¯t even be honest with me!

    With his back against a wall, Tao Fei was in a dilemma. As he nced at Zhang Siyi an idea popped into his mind. Ha-ha-ha! Gu Yu might be an SSS-ss level, but Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t

    ¡°Hey, Zhang Siyi,¡± Tao Fei looked at Zhang Siyi with a keen face and said, ¡°Stay with me tonight.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...... Huh?¡±

    Ignoring the knives shooting from Gu Yu¡¯s eyes, Tao Fei patted the bed and encouraged Zhang Siyi: ¡±Brother is our Boss. It isn¡¯t easy to be on vacation and have to squeeze into bed with a subordinate. Let us coworkers stay together and the Boss can rx and sleep alone tonight.¡±

    Initially he was reluctant, but after Zhang Siyi listened to Tai Fei statement, he was unable to refute him. Indeed, in the other person¡¯s view, it really wasn¡¯t justified for him to let his boss squeeze in a bed with him. In addition, he wouldn¡¯t dare do the kinds of things he did with Gu Yust night. Since that was the case, he convinced himself that it didn¡¯t matter where he slept.

    ¡°Okay.¡± Zhang Siyi nodded his eptance to Tao Fei¡¯s request and slowly moved over to the other bed. He carefully watched Gu Yu face for any reaction. In fact, he hoped that Gu Yu would invalidate Tao Fei¡¯s request, but Gu Yu just looked at him with a serious look and said nothing.

    Zhang Siyi is also a little upset. ¨C What are you staring at me for? What Tao Fei said isn¡¯t wrong! You are the Boss and have the ability to make things right!

    With this in mind, Zhang Siyi turned and left Gu Yu and went to Tao Fei¡¯s bed.

    Gu Yu: ¡°...¡±

    Having his ploy seed, Tao Fei was ecstatic. He was fervidly considerate and asked: ¡°Zhang Siyi, is this pillow ok? Is it too high for you? I¡¯ll get you a tter one if you need.¡±

    Zhang Siyi replied: ¡°No, it¡¯s alright. I don¡¯t move around much once I fall asleep so It¡¯ll be good. What about you? You aren¡¯t going to pull the nkets off me, are you?¡± Unlike the tension he felt when he stayed with Gu Yu for the first time, he felt rather rxed and had no problems sleeping next to other men.

    Tao Fei: ¡°Of course not! It¡¯s ok if you are close.... Hey, I can feel the heat from your body. It¡¯s so hot.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Aha-ha-ha. Pervert, stop touching me. Ah-ha-ha! Don¡¯t tickle me!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°.........¡± (-_-#)

    After the two men were under the nket for a while, Tao Fei suddenly asked: ¡°Hey, Zhang Siyi, do you have a girlfriend?¡±

    Zhang Siyi suddenly froze. How does he answer this question? It¡¯s hard to say ¡®he doesn¡¯t have a girlfriend, but a boyfriend and he is right next to us¡¯ ...... Although Gu Yu said it isn¡¯t a problem if Tao Fei found out about them, ¡®finding out¡¯ and ¡®activelying out of the closet¡¯ arepletely different.

    ¡°To be found¡± is ast resort for Zhang Siyi. He hopes he could continue to conceal his rtionship with Gu Yu. After all, their rtionship isn¡¯t something he can show off.

    Moreover, Gu Yu is right next to him. Since Gu Yu and Tao Fei are more familiar with each other, it is clearly more appropriate for Gu Yu to tell the truth to Tao Fei.

    Zhang Siyi paused and said: ¡°Yes.¡± Although he doesn¡¯t have a girlfriend, he doesn¡¯t want to lie and say ¡®no¡¯ because by doing so, it is tantamount to denying his rtionship with Gu Yu. In any case, whether it is a man or women, Zhang Siyi believes the object of the rtionship will be clear enough for Gu Yu to understand.

    As Tao Fei listened to Zhang Siyi answer he quickly replied: ¡°Oh? What¡¯s your girlfriend like? Is she pretty?¡±

    Touching his face, Zhang Siyi felt embarrassed: ¡°Well, really beautiful.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°...¡±

    Eyebrows raised, Tao Fei said: ¡°Hey, you are turning red! You must like her very much!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Tao Fei asked again: ¡°Do I look beautiful to you?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...... No!¡± (=_=) Why is this question so weird?

    Tao Fei continued to gossip: ¡°Then tell me what you are attracted to.¡±

    Bashful, Zhang Siyi sunk deeper in to the nkets and quietly replied: ¡°There are many things. They are very smart and their career is outstanding. Also, their cooking is super delicious.¡±

    Surprised, Tao Fei pressed him further: ¡°With so many advantages, isn¡¯t she the perfect person!? How can a fine girl like that be with you?¡± Tao Fei touched his chin in apparent thought then elbowed Zhang Siyi and smirked. In a tone that ¡®all-men-understand¡¯ he stated: ¡°It must be your skills in bed!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°poof¨C!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°...¡±

 Chapter 128: Breaking Point

    <h4>Chapter 128: Breaking Point</h4>

    ____________________________

    Zhang Siyi blushed and said: ¡°Don¡¯t talk nonsense. We haven¡¯t done it yet!¡±

    This question is absolutely off-limits. Normally, if he was with a friend to talk dirty, it wasn¡¯t an issue, but the object of their discussion is sitting right next to them. How can Zhang Siyi talk about it!?

    Still curious, Tao Fei continued: ¡°What? You haven¡¯t done it? How long have you been together?¡±

    Zhang Siyi coughed: ¡°Only half a month.¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°How long have you known each other?

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Half a year¡­¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°Shit no! You have been acquainted with one another for such a long time and now that you are together, you still aren¡¯t motivated to do it yet? You must have a problem!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    Tao Fei shook his head and in an overly dramatic exaggerated way he said: ¡°I must say, it certainly doesn¡¯t seem like you really are together.¡±

    Zhang Siyi vehemently responded: ¡°We are!¡±

    From beside him, Tao Fei nced at Zhang Siyi and squinted. He questioned: ¡°If you liked each other so much, then why were you strangers for more than six months before suddenly falling in love?¡±

    Since Tao Fei was right on the money, Zhang Siyi was powerless to rebuke. Indeed, Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi experienced a long period self-torment due to their secret love of each other.

    Tao Fei added: ¡°Generally speaking, in the initial stages of a rtionship, otherwise known as the ckout period of sanity, couples have a love period for about three months. During this time, the human body and brain are affected by dopamine. The impact of the high levels of hormones in the body causes the person to be in a blind state of love. They can¡¯t see each other¡¯s shorings and feel that everything they do is cute and perfect. What¡¯s more, not only are they in each other¡¯s thoughts every minute of the day, they also want to be with each other physically and be intimate. Do you feel way?¡±

    The uracy in which Tao Fei described his current state, shocked Zhang Siyi. Day in and day out, Zhang Siyi felt like his life wasn¡¯tplete without Gu Yu. Does the feeling really onlyst for three months? Zhang Siyi always wondered why Gu Yu liked him so much. Was it purely the effects of the dopamine? What will happen after three months? Will Gu Yu calm down and change his mind?

    ¡­¡­

    Mulling it over in his mind for a minute, Zhang Siyi eagerly wanted to hear what Tao Fei would say next so he frankly answered: ¡°Yes.¡±

    However, his answer is based on the fact that Tao Fei does not know that he and Gu Yu are a pair. Since the premise of the discussion was set up as a girlfriend, Zhang Siyi¡¯s answer is equivalent to describing his feelings for a woman that doesn¡¯t exist. In society, since people default to women to y the passive role in a rtionship and traditionally men are supposed to take the initiative to act, Zhang Siyi is answering Tao Fei in a way that suggests he was the one to initiate their romance. However, in this case Zhang Siyi is more in line with the role of the passive party.

    When he answered Tao Fei, Zhang Siyi subconsciously looked in Gu Yu¡¯s direction. Seemingly without care, Gu Yu was reclining casually on the bed while browsing pages of the iPad without saying a word.

    Watching Gu Yu¡¯sck of interest, Zhang Siyi suddenly felt a little depressed. After all, Gu Yu knows that Zhang Siyi is talking about him and he expected Gu Yu to at least nce over at him, but instead Gu Yu isn¡¯t smiling or even acknowledging him. What the hell?!

    Fortunately, Tao Fei¡¯s next question brought back Zhang Siyi attention: ¡°If you want to, then why not? In my opinion, having sex is the way to confirm your rtionship. What have you been doing for two weeks? If I were you, I would overwhelm her like a hungry tiger!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    At the beginning, he also wanted to pounce on Gu Yu, but he did not know how to. Not only that, but in his attempt to seduce Gu Yu, he was the one overthrown and forced into submission. So embarrassing!

    Tao Fei: ¡°So, are you just patient or does she not want it?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    On the contrary, in the present situation it¡¯s not about Gu Yu, but Zhang Siyi. He hasn¡¯t been able to ept the notion of his bottom being prated. (=_=)

    Seeing that Zhang Siyi did not answer, Tao Fei nced down and questioned: ¡°Or is it, that you aren¡¯t confident with your skills in bed?¡±

    ¡°Pfft¨C!¡±Zhang Siyi choked.

    Tao Fei kept Gu Yu in his line of sight as he spoke to Zhang Siyi. ¨C Damn it! He doesn¡¯t even respond to this!

    Not wanting to talk about himself further, Zhang Siyi quickly changed the topic: ¡°Don¡¯t patronize me. What about you?¡±

    Watching Zhang Siyi reaction, Tao Fei¡¯s eyes lit up. ¨C This little fool¡¯s problems are really wonderful! Hey Brother, I¡¯ll continue to add more fuel to the fire. Listening to your lover, how long will it take for you to act?!

    Tao Fei sighed: ¡°What do you mean, what about me?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°With your androgynous image, I don¡¯t understand whether you like men or women. Do you have a girlfriend?¡±

    Laughing out loud, Tao Fei winked at Zhang Siyi and asked sweetly: ¡°What do you think?¡±

    Zhang Siyi broke out in goose bumps: ¡°How should I know!?¡±

    The first time Zhang Siyi saw Tao Fei he did suspect that Tao Fei was gay, but in the subsequent days of contact, he also felt that Tao Fei character waspletely straight. He simply liked to joke around.

    With a mischievous grin, Tao Fei said: ¡°I have always thought that I¡¯m straight.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Eh? Before? So how do you feel now?

    Tao Fei: ¡°However, recently I like a person who is a man.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± Why is this experience so simr to him!?

    Feeling like he was ambushed over his sexual problems, Zhang Siyi was surprised at how frank Tao Fei admission was. How could Tao Fei say something so unscrupulously? In the eyes of others, is he not afraid of what other people think about him? On second thought, with Tao Fei arrogant character, he probably wouldn¡¯t care about the opinion of others.

    In a long draw out sad tone, Tao Fei joked: ¡°But I only just learned that the person I like belongs to someone else.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was stunned and immediately remembered what he had previously suspected about Tao Fei feelings for Gu Yu. Zhang Siyi was on high alert.

    The room fell into a strange silence and after a few seconds Zhang Siyi found the courage to inquire: ¡°What kind of person do you like?¡±

    Tao Fei nced at him and said: ¡°Since we work in the samepany, you know him.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡­¡± Fuck !!! This guy really likes Gu Yu! Is it appropriate to admit it in the presence of Gu Yu?

    But Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t stop Tao Fei¡¯s desire to confide in him: ¡°He isn¡¯t as handsome as me and he isn¡¯t as capable as me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°!!!¡± Are you so fucking narcissistic? Gu Yu is so much better than you!!!

    Tao Fei: ¡°He doesn¡¯t earn as much as I do and he is shorter them me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± Huh?

    ¡­.. If I¡¯m not mistaken, Gu Yu earned more than Tao Fei. Zhang Siyi did not pay much attention to their height, but it seems that Tao Fei is a little taller than Gu Yu.

    Tao Fei continued: ¡°Originally, I thought he also liked me a bit. Before, he secretly collected the drawings that I had thrown in the trash and kept them.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± Wait a minute! There must be some kind of misunderstanding!!! (=Òæ=)

    Tao Fei: ¡°Later, I discovered it was unrequited. It turned out that he already had someone he likes.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­%£¤#@¡­.¡± What the fuck is this! The person Tao Fei likes was himself?

    ¡°Besides, the person he likes is someone I respect very much. They love each other¡­¡­¡± Tao Fei sighed deeply and looked at Zhang Siyi in sorrow with a wounded expression and deep affection in his eyes and said: ¡°I¡¯m a gentleman so I won¡¯t take his love away. I wish them happiness.¡±

    Like a stiff, frightened cat, Zhang Siyi¡¯s hair is all raised and he squeezed himself tight from the top to his bottom. He didn¡¯t even know what type of expression to use to face him¡­. Oh my God! The man Tao Fei actually likes is him! How is that possible!? Since Tao Fei tone was so serious, Zhang Siyi was defenseless and unable toment.

    Pleading for help, Zhang Siyi briefly eyed Gu Yu. When their eyes met, the magic current appeared between them again.

    Cold air engulfed them as the nket was suddenly lifted off the bed!

    Tao Fei: ¡°¡­¡± (o..o)

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± (o..o)

    Gu Yu stood sullenly on the bedside staring coldly at Tao Fei: ¡°That¡¯s enough.¡±

    Pretending to be innocent Tao Fei said: ¡°What?¡±

    Gu Yu directly looked at Zhang Siyi and snapped: ¡°Zhang Siyi,e here.¡±

    As if he was granted amnesty, Zhang Siyi slowly moved from one bed to the other.

    Discontent, Tao Fei looked at Gu Yu and questioned: ¡°What are you doing?¡±

    ¡°When are you going to stop ying dumb?¡± Gu Yu angrily yelled at Tao Fei than pulled Zhang Siyi over to his side. In front of Tao Fei face, he pushed down Zhang Siyi and kissed him ferociously.

 Chapter 129: The Great War

    <h4>Chapter 129: The Great War</h4>

    _____________________________

    The force with which Gu Yu used to seal his lips with Zhang Siyi¡¯s own, wasn¡¯t just a simple kiss. Biting him and sucking Zhang Siyi¡¯s lips hard to the point of pain, it was more like a deration of sovereignty.

    In the process of being kissed, Zhang Siyi was like a thermometer that was suddenly ced in boiling water. From the soles of his feet to the top of his head, he quickly flushed red.

    Witness to it all, Tao Fei never expected Gu Yu to give him such a spicy scene.

    At being kissed in such a way in front of another person, Zhang Siyi felt ashamed.

    ¡°You should have known that we were together. Taking his pictures and putting them online for your love photos and then finding an excuse to sleep with him. What the hell are you doing?¡± The veins on Gu Yu¡¯s forehead were throbbing as he grabbed Zhang Siyi¡¯s wrist. As much as he was trying to suppress his anger, the volume of his voice exposed his heart¡¯s temper.

    The emotional deception of Tao Fei petty actions was too unbearable. Although Gu Yu knew that Tao Fei was joking, Zhang Siyi did not and the idiot may really believe him and thus, be entangled with another person. The thought of Zhang Siyi fretting over what to do about the other person¡¯s unrequited feelings made Gu Yu want to smack the iPad over Tao Fei¡¯s head.

    By their shocking reactions, Tao Fei finally got what he wished for; to anger Gu Yu. He couldn¡¯t stop himself fromughing out loud: ¡°Ah-hah-hah-hah-Ah-hah-hah-hah-ah!¡±

    Surprised by the news that Tao Fei likes him andbined with Gu Yu¡¯s sudden kiss, Zhang Siyi nearly fainted. After hearing Gu Yu¡¯sment about Tao Fei already knowing about their rtionship, not only did he feel stunned, but he also felt confused. Damn it! Will someone tell him what the hell is going on!

    Cracking up inughter, Tao Fei looked at Gu Yu without fear: ¡°Hey, brother, your reaction is so fierce. Ha-ha-ha-ha! I¡¯m just joking!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Wait, Tao Fei was joking?

    Continuing hisughter, Tao Fei choked out: ¡°You just heard Zhang Siyi¡¯s praise. Ha-ha-ha-ha. Oh, so beautiful, capable and can cook! Ha-ha-ha, but I did not expect you to be his female ah!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Shut the fuck up!

    Gu Yu interrupted him with a scowl: ¡°You took the joke too far. Is it so fun to bully Zhang Siyi?¡±

    Tao Fei snorted and straightened up his back then retorted: ¡°I thought of you as my brother and best friend. I came to you after graduation. You know everything about me, yet what about you? I am left to my own assumptions and devices to figure you out. Who told you not to be frank with me? If you like men, so what? Will that change my opinion of you!?¡±

    Startled, Gu Yu stared at Tao Fei with a nk expression. -Is he acting like this because I didn¡¯t give him enough attention?

    Since Gu Yu remained silent, Tao Fei felt more confident in his assertion: ¡°How can you be so sure I would guess correctly!? Even if I fucking guessed, how can you let your boyfriend get into bed with me? You¡¯re not embarrassed? I¡¯m fucking embarrassed!¡±

    Even though it is absolutely unbelievable that Tao Fei felt embarrassed, he certainly felt troubled. Since Gu Yu wasn¡¯t upfront with him, Tao Fei felt like he wasn¡¯t treated as a friend. Feeling mistreated, he continually poked at the fire several times in order to find a sense of existence and belonging

    Tao Fei added: ¡°Andst night.... Did you really think I went to sleep? Doing those things behind my back.... Do you think I really wanted to know? You made me suffer!¡±

    Already feeling overwhelmed, after listening to Tao Fei¡¯s speech, Zhang Siyi felt the 10k hit and sprayed blood everywhere. This fat peach was only pretending to sleepst night!!!! Fuck!!!!

    After calming down a little, Gu Yu felt the situation was kind of funny. ¡°This matter is not...¡± Even though Gu Yu¡¯s tone finally returned to normal, his expression remained dead serious. Holding Zhang Siyi hand, he stated: ¡°Let me formally introduce Zhang Siyi. He is my love as shown on social media in the photo of our shadows. In the future, do not ever y that kind of joke with him again.¡±

    Turning a blind eye, Tao Fei smirked and said: ¡°It¡¯s your fault for not being honest and speaking up earlier. Don¡¯t me me for making fun of him!¡±

    Sitting helpless, Gu Yu just wanted to rx, but suddenly he felt a strong force beside him. Like a cannon, Zhang Siyi grabbed a pillow and quickly jumped out of the bed and smashed Tao Fei hard.

    Venting his anger, Zhang Siyi swatted him hard over and over again while shouting: ¡°Damn you! I¡¯m so easy to bully! I¡¯ll bury you! Fuck you! Rotten fat peach!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°...¡±

    Both the anger he felt from learning of Tao Fei¡¯s fake sleepingst night and the embarrassing feelings that he umted from Gu Yu¡¯s bold actions, found an outlet and Tao Fei was the target.

    ¡°Ow¡± Tao Fei yelled. He was sent scurrying and iling and put up his arms to defend himself. He also grabbed a pillow and retaliated: ¡°You rebel you! I can take you on all day! Who the fuck called you stupid! How can you be so gullible! You have a problem with my teasing, what about my brother? I¡¯ll tell you; you are an idiot to follow him forever!¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s eye twitched. Tao Fei wasn¡¯t any more mature then Zhang Siyi! ¨C How can these two be so childish?

    Furious, Zhang Siyi continued yelling: ¡°I was deceived because I trusted you and thought you were my friend!¡±

    Ducking and dodging each other, both Zhang Siyi and Tao Fei continued to swing their pillows at one another. As the pillows hit each other and bounced away, Tao Fei continued shouting: ¡°Why am I the only target? Who was the one that remained idle!?¡±

    Tao Fei was trying to ovee Zhang Siyi¡¯s outburst. In the corner of his eye he saw Gu Yu grab a pillow. He hastily shouted at Zhang Siyi: ¡°Winners have the surname Tao! You won¡¯t fucking win when you already have the surname Gu!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°...!¡± Thinking he was going to help Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu grabbed a pillow, but then thought less of it and silently put the pillow down.

    Half an hourter, standing on the beds, the two were breathing heavily. Zhang Siyi hands were tired from swinging his pillow around and stopped momentarily.

    Taking a moment respite, Tao Fei said: ¡°Truce......¡± and made the first step to surrender. He sat on the bed and began to tidy up the pillows and bedding.

    Zhang Siyi clenched his teeth and stared at him, unconvinced: ¡°No! There isn¡¯t a winner!¡±

    Dumbfounded, Tao Fei stared at Zhang Siyi and said as a matter of fact: ¡°You¡¯re fucking exhausted, what else do you want?¡±¡±

    Holding the pillow, Zhang Siyi replied: ¡°Lets rest for two minutes and then continue!¡±

    Acting out a death scene from a drama, Tao Fei cried: ¡°But I want to sleep so I¡¯ll admit defeat.¡±

    Alert for Tao Fei¡¯s ploy, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t agree: ¡°No! Only I can judge the winner! You are cheating!¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°......¡±

    Sighing, Tao Fei cried: ¡°Help me brother! Bring back your little psycho! I¡¯m going to bed!!!¡±

    Leaning against the backboard in bed, Gu Yu calmly continued to focus his attention on the work he was doing on his iPad. He nced at Tao Fei and stated: ¡°When you get yourself into trouble, you have to solve your own problems.¡±

    Annoyed, Tao Fei retorted: ¡°Don¡¯t me me for using a heavy hand while I bully him!¡±

    Looking at Tao Fei questioningly, Zhang Siyi wondered what he meant. The ¡®dead¡¯ fish suddenly jumped up and grabbed a pillow. Tao Fei swung the pillow at Zhang Siyi forcefully then jumped on the bed and tackled him. He continued to smack Zhang Siyi ass with the pillow and shouted: ¡°I¡¯ll give you a happy ending tonight! Don¡¯t you like it? Won¡¯t you ept?¡±

    Pinned down, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t understand where Tao Fei¡¯s energy came from.

    After a series of seven or eight shots, Gu Yu couldn¡¯t help but intervein: ¡°Ok, ok. That enough now.¡±

    As Tao Fei stopped, Zhang Siyi used the opportunity to strike back a few more times.

    Frowning, Gu Yu ordered Zhang Siyi: ¡°Come back to bed.¡±

    Even though Zhang Siyi was feeling resentful, when he heard Gu Yu request, he held his pillow close and reluctantly climbed back into the bed. He mumbled: ¡°But I was winning.¡±

    Settling down next to Gu Yu, Zhang Siyiined: ¡°How can that androgynous fat peach win anything. It isn¡¯t scientific! If you hadn¡¯t called me back, I would have won.¡±

    While Zhang Siyi was still muttering, Gu Yu looked at him and mercilessly gave him the final blow: ¡°It is not likely. Tao Fei was the president of the university¡¯s Karate Club.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± What?

    Gu Yu patted Zhang Siyi sweaty head: ¡°He was nice enough to not let you lose so badly.¡±

    In the second bed next to themying down, Tao Fei¡¯s ears were red. He snorted and brought up the nkets, rolled over and waggled his ass at them.

    When Zhang Siyi thought about it, he still felt unwilling to concede the end. Tao Fei¡¯s antics provoked him again. He used hisst bit of strength to prop himself up on his forearm and shout at Tao Fei: ¡°You might have destroyed me, but I will never admit defeat!¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°......¡± Fucking retarded!

    Gu Yu helplessly pulled his bear child back and quipped: ¡°OK, Gu Siyi, don¡¯t y with the little boy¡¯s temper.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± ¨C What? What did Gu Yu call me? Gu Siyi? Fuck! Even Gu Yu is bullying me like the dead fat peach!

    Partially turning his head and looking at him sideways, Gu Yu reached out to caress Zhang Siyi¡¯s cheek. Gu Yu¡¯s reassuring and soothing touch slowly relieved Zhang Siyi anxiety until his tension dissolved and finally, he felt rxed.

    Zhang Siyi suddenly felt Gu Yu¡¯s hot breath tickling the side of his neck. In soft words only for him to hear, Gu Yu said: ¡°We are in love.¡±

    Remembering what Tao Fei said earlier, Zhang Siyi blushed a deep red, like a tomato. He was afraid to think what would happen in three months and felt stupid for asking, so he kept his mouth shut.

    He didn¡¯t expect Gu Yu to ask the very thing he was thinking about: ¡°How do I know if after three months, you wille to regret your choice?¡±

    Eyes wide open, Zhang Siyi was very surprised at Gu Yu¡¯s admission. Normally, since Gu Yu was so calm and collected, he didn¡¯t expect him to reveal such insecurity when faced with feelings in their rtionship.

    Reaching out, Zhang Siyi hugged Gu Yu closely and murmured: ¡°I won¡¯t ever regret loving you.¡±

    Smiling, Gu Yu slowly turned over and easily put the exhausted Zhang Siyi under his body. He lowered his head and tenderly kissed him good-night.

    Feeling Gu Yu¡¯s soft lips on his own, Zhang Siyi quickly lost the ability to think for himself. Since his pillow fight with Tao Fei physically exhausted all his strength, he couldn¡¯t resist Gu Yu at all. Feeling Gu Yu tongue slip into his mouth, he involuntarily released an erotic moan.

    Hearing Zhang Siyi moans of pleasure, undoubtedly encouraged Gu Yu to plunder his object of love more intensely. The gentle exploration of each other mouth¡¯s, trigged tremors of desire. Pressing the tips of their tongues together, Zhang Siyi let out another soft hmmm....

    ............

    ¡°Enough of that! Let no one sleep! Tao Fei¡¯s roared and flung a pillow at them hitting Gu Yu on the back.

    Gu Yu: ¡°...¡± (=_=)

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± (o////o)

    Ten secondster, Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t help butugh.

    Tao Fei: ¡°......¡± It¡¯s too much!!!

    Although it isn¡¯t enough, Gu Yu had to restrain himself. He slowly leaned down andid down next to Zhang Siyi on his side with his leg and arm over him. He ced his head on Zhang Siyi shoulder and hoarsely whispered in his ear: ¡°Siyi, my patience...... Maybe it isn¡¯t as good as you think.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Saying ¡°good night¡±, Gu Yu kissed the side of his face. Retreated back andying down he left Zhang Siyi hung out to dry.

 Chapter 130: Gourd

    <h4>Chapter 130: Gourd</h4>

    ___________________

    Waking up the next morning, Zhang Siyi slipped out of bed to wash up in the bathroom. When his eyes met with Tao Fei¡¯s, they both stared at one another in hostility. In the next moment, the atmosphere instantly softened. It¡¯s not umon for boys to resolve their emotions by physical means. More often than not, once their pent-up frustrations wereid out in the open, boys be close friends.

    Tao Fei and Zhang Siyi are also the same. Now that Gu Yu had another person close to him, Tao Fei felt his friendship with Gu Yu was threatened and he didn¡¯t want to be left behind. In thesest few days, both Gu Yu and Tao Fei pushed each other¡¯s buttons to test the bottom line. Once the truth was revealed and emotions were vented, the gap between the three men disappeared.

    Standing next to each other at the sink, happily brushing their teeth, Zhang Siyi noticed the bunch of products on the counter that Tao Fei had before him. Zhang Siyi relished in the thought that Tao Fei also had to maintain his face through the use of skin products. By Tao Fei¡¯s own admission, without care, this twenty-seven-year-old beautiful man would lose to the years and soon be an old, sorrowful uncle.

    In silentmunication, they both turned to re at Gu Yu¡¯s natural beauty with envy.

    Tao Fei: ¡°Have you touched his face? What does it feel like?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°It¡¯s very smooth and much softer than you think...¡± The softest are his lips. They are super soft! (*/¦Ø\*)

    Tao Fei nodded in Gu Yu¡¯s direction: ¡°I also want to touch...¡±

    Elbowing Tao Fei in the side, Zhang Siyi quipped: ¡°Fuck off!¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°You guys really haven¡¯t had sex yet?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°No......¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°Why not? You don¡¯t want to? Or does he not want to?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Cough. Well, we both want it, but...¡±

    Joking around, Tao Fei lightly punched Zhang Siyi¡¯s torso like a boxer giving him a one-two punch and said: ¡°I know! Your attempts at seducing him have failed!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    After Tao Fei finished, he squinted and looked at Zhang Siyi: ¡°But that isn¡¯t so useful now is it? You are undoubtedly on the receiving end.¡± (¡ú_¡ú)

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Damn it! What!¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°In front of my brother, you are a little sheep. He definitely wants to fuck you. You won¡¯t give in?¡±

    Staring nkly at Tao Fei, Zhang Siyi was speechless. If Gu Yu wanted it, he wouldn¡¯t resist. Not because he had to give in, but because he likes Gu Yu! Zhang Siyi was willing to make concessions and sacrifices as long as his sweetheart was happy......

    ¡°So, you haven¡¯t had sex because you aren¡¯t ready yet. Right?¡± Tao Fei bluntly got to the heart of the matter. He quickly followed up with: ¡°Are you stupid? Haven¡¯t you ever thought about fucking him?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Poof¨C!¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°Are you not also a man with possessive instincts? If I were you, I¡¯d want to fuck my brother! Not only is he, super handsome, very rich, and now a director, he is also so domineering! You are nothingpared to him, but in bed, you can pin him down underneath you, and drive your shaft into him. Let him moan and beg for you......¡±

    Listening to Tao Fei speech, Zhang Siyi eyes zed over, deep in thought. He pinched his nose closed in fear of a torrent of blood flowing out.

    ¡°Just thinking about it, I¡¯m getting really exci....¡± Feeling the pain on the top of his head, Tao Fei suddenly stopped midway through his sentence. He covered his head with his hand: ¡°Ow!¡±

    Zhang Siyi turned his head and saw Gu Yu standing behind them and holding the palm of his own red hand. He didn¡¯t know for how long he had been standing there. Gu Yu looked at the nearly brainwashed Zhang Siyi and threatened: ¡°Don¡¯t think about it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi shrank his shoulders and nodded his head obediently....... I won¡¯t. The expression on Gu Yu face was really scary.

    After waiting for Gu Yu to leave the bathroom, Tao Fei straightened up and pped Zhang Siyi on the back: ¡°Why are you listening to him?¡±

    Stunned at Tao Fei¡¯s action, Zhang Siyi rubbed his back with his hand. It was a long time before his brain caught up and reacted ¡ª Shit! It¡¯s Gu Yu who hit you. Why are you taking it out on me?!

    Having packed up his skin products, Tao Fei exited the bathroom and Zhang Siyi followed. Gu Yu addressed Tao Fei: ¡°Do you want to follow me and make money?¡±

    ¡°Huh?¡± Tao Fei took a moment to digest what was being said then his eyes shined bright: ¡°Of course!¡±

    Gu Yu coldly responded to him: ¡°Don¡¯t ever let me see you talk like that to Zhang Siyi again. Don¡¯t bully him.¡±

    Making a promise, Tao Fei nodded and nodded and nodded: ¡°Hah! That was just a joke! I won¡¯t say any more in the future. You won¡¯t have to worry!¡±

    Zhang Siyi sighed and looked at Gu Yu: ¡°I want to make money too.¡±

    Gu Yu caressed the back of his head: ¡°Honey, you can rely on your bedroom skills.¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha...¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Fuck! (¨s¨FÃó¡¯)¨s(©ß©¥©ß

    After breakfast, the three men drove to the ancient vige where there was a Pu¡¯er tea factory nearby. There, they learned about the production process of Pu¡¯er tea and could buy the tea directly from the manufacturer.

    When Zhang Siyi asked about the price, he was full of regret. He was shocked to hear it was one-fifth the price of the teas he purchased earlier on his trip. If the news wasn¡¯t enough, the factory worker added insult to injury and exined: ¡°The teas sold in stores outside are originally from the factories here. The merchants add pleasingyers of packaging and boxes then tack on processing fees. The price can increase tens or even twenty times the actual cost.¡±

    Seeing how cheap the tea was here, Zhang Siyi felt like buying some to take advantage of the cheap price and ease his regret. Before he paid for it, Gu Yu saw through his intention: ¡°You want to buy more?¡±

    With emotion, Zhang Siyi replied: ¡°The tea is so cheap I want to make up for the loss money on the earlier expensive ones.¡±

    Wondering what kind of logic Zhang Siyi was using, Gu Yu scolded: ¡°The Pu¡¯er teas you sent back are enough for us to drink for five or six years and you said you want to buy more? Do you want to go back and open up a tea shop? The best way to stop losing money is to stop spending it immediately!¡±

    Eloquently, Zhang Siyi retorted: ¡°If we can¡¯t finish drinking them, we can always give them away.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Do not think about how cheap or expensive something is before buying it! You must first think about the use you have for it. There is a limit on the amount you can give away...... You haven¡¯t made much money yet, and all you¡¯ve been thinking about is spending it all day long.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Hearing their interaction from nearby, Tao Fei looked at Zhang Siyi with sympathy. A man like Gu Yu is great as a friend and boss, but as a lover, even Tao Fei couldn¡¯t stomach such behavior. Even though Zhang Siyi might be blinded by love now, when the love period is over, will he be able to endure Gu Yu¡¯s overbearing character?

    In the Jingmai mountain range, there are many preserved minority viges inhabited by the Hani, Dai, Yi and other ethnic minorities. In the evening, the three went to visit the nearby Lahu vige, which is also a fairly old minority.

    This time, Zhang Siyi was prepared to take extensive notes in his journal. After taking a photo of the ce, he carefully recorded the materials, colors and main elements of the local dwellings in his sketchbook.

    In local myths and legends, the locals believe that their ancestors came from gourds and as a result, because the gourd was regarded as the embodiment of their ancestors, it became their national mascot.

    After listening to the local guide¡¯s exnation, Zhang Siyi and Tao Fei couldn¡¯t hold back their burst ofughter. Doesn¡¯t that mean they are the offspring of the gourd?

    However, the Lahu people¡¯s belief in the ¡°gourd¡± is very serious. The gourd enables the betterment of lives of the people as it is not only a food source but also the gourd is used as a tool. It can be used to store water and wine. It can be carved into a musical instrument. They are also used as utensils and containers. Almost all the men in the vige have ornamental gourds hung around their waist and what¡¯s more, homes were also covered with ornamental gourds both small andrge.

    Inside one of the viger¡¯s home, Zhang Siyi saw a gourd that was made into a tea pot and the other various containers. He thought they were really ingenious and could see how special the gourds really were.

    While Gu Yu went to the toilet, he could not help himself and bought a pile of gourds. Even Tao Fei said nothing and didn¡¯t stop him.

    When Gu Yu came back, Zhang Siyi was afraid Gu Yu would scold him again. Acting like he was doing something wrong, he quickly turned and tried to hide the gourds he purchased.

    Looking at Zhang Siyi in bewilderment, Gu Yu angrily whispered to Zhang Siyi: ¡°ck sheep of the family.¡± However, since Zhang Siyi bought the gourd, Gu Yu graciously epted it. With a thoughtful face, Gu Yu stroked the gourd that was unusually long and slender then grinned wickedly.

 Chapter 131: Slice of Pie

    <h4>Chapter 131: Slice of Pie</h4>

    ________________________

    In a sh, the May holiday was officially over and on May third, the three men flew back home to Haicheng. After arriving at their apartment, while Gu Yu went to pickup townhouse from the pet hotel, Zhang Siyi organized his photographs. He separated all sixteen-gigs worth of photos into folders withbels and notes.

    Even with a few embarrassing moments, Zhang Siyi thought the trip was a great sess. The amount of information that he gained from staying at high-end hotels was a one-of-a-kind experience. He really valued his learning experience through his on-site viewing of the various cultural viges and especially Dai architecture.

    All he can hope for now is that the project pass otherwise he going to be in debt and owe Tao Fei a lot of money! (=_=)

    Seeing Zhang Siyi work so diligently, Gu Yu smiled. Given thete hour and how tired they were from their journey and the fact that they had to return to work tomorrow, Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi stayed in their own rooms for the night.

    Early the next morning, Zhang Siyi went to work with the project in mind and determination to see it through. As soon as he arrived at thepany, Tao Fei told him to meet him in the conference room. Hearing the fast speed in which Tao Fei spoke and in such a serious tone, Zhang Siyi thought something was wrong. ...... Is it possible that Tao Fei also felt the pressure of ¡®hotel expenses¡¯? (=_=)

    For the early stages of development of this project, there are only two of us. The first report is on May 15. Since Party-A will personallye to ourpany we won¡¯t have to travel and thus, we have a total of eleven days toe up with a preliminary conceptual design which includes site nning as well as tourism design and architectural concept design...¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What is tourism design?¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°Tourism design is specialized content that specifically aims to provide tourists with services. For example, at Jingmai Mountains. There were various supporting attractions around like Pu¡¯er tea factory or visiting the ancient vige and Lahu Family stockades. Not only do tourist want to visit a ce, but they want to experience the ce and makesting memories as well. Architects design the environment by providing concepts for the supporting facilities and attractions. With regards to the implementation of tourism design, we don¡¯t have to worry about it. There are travel designpanies that specialize in building the content.

    Zhang Siyi nodded: ¡°Got it.¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°Our mission isn¡¯t easy. There are more than one-hundred hectares of site nning to do that cover aprehensive high-end hotel concept design with twenty or more single high-end tourist vis. In addition, there is a green tea gardenndscape design, a lookout towerndmark and other attractions.¡±

    Hearing ¡®more than one-hundred hectares¡¯, Zhang Siyi realized the urgency of the matter. Although thend mass is half the size of the Z-City project, the Z-City n utilized many people and 20 days to aplish the proposal. With only the two of them to devise a concept and make a n, will elven days be enough?

    After Tao Fei finished speaking, he pped the table with his hand and said: ¡°Time is tight!¡±

    Knowing the task at hand, Zhang Siyi balked and spit: ¡°Who was the one that said it can be done in three to five days!?¡±

    Tao Fei gave him a sideways nce: ¡°We have three to five days of drawing but ten days to n.¡±

    Not feeling assured, Zhang Siyi looked at Tao Fei skeptically.

    Noticing Zhang Siyi skepticism, Tao Fei exined: ¡°We have to provide the concept of the entire n, but we don¡¯t have to draw the whole thing. Just one slice of pie.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Aaahh!¡± Unexpectedly, Tao Fei ¡®profound¡¯ solution was to draw a slice of pie!

    Zhang Siyi angrily said: ¡°Are you kidding me? Isn¡¯t it foolish to only draw one part?¡±

    Tao Fei raised an eyebrow: ¡°How is it foolish? The more detailed the slice is, the more attractive it will be and thus more tempting. Gu Yu said there are otherpanies vying for the bid on this project. If we present the entire n and they decide they don¡¯t like it, it is our loss of time and money.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...... That kind of thing...... is it alright?¡±

    Tao Fei exined: ¡°Of course, using a loop-hole is nothing new in the industry! So, lets n a beautiful pie and draw a slice for the first time. Since the purpose of our slice is to showcase our design concept, it doesn¡¯t matter if we finish the whole pie. Let them take a bite of our delicious pie. When they sign the contract and give us money, we can continue feeding them the whole thing.¡±

    Zhang Siyi shook his head in disbelief. It¡¯s really fucking sneaky! However, knowing that this ck heart fat peach used his schemes on others made Zhang Siyi grin in delight. (¨R¨Œ¨Q)

    Tao Fei: ¡°Well, since it takes time and energy to draw a big pie, lets divide the responsibilities. I¡¯ll work on the site nning and you determine the design concept for each section of the map.¡±

    The design concept for each section of the map is a visual aid to show Party A the designer¡¯s intentions for the entire n. By including specific drawing details, color schemes and photographs, the designer can illustrate the n without having to draw the whole thing. Once vetted, the designer can use Party-Aments and direct the overall n in a better and satisfied direction.

    After the division ofbor, Tao Fei suddenly looked up and stared at Zhang Siyi with an imposing manner: ¡°This project must be won!¡±

    In seconds, Zhang Siyi knew what he wanted to express. He reached out and firmly said: ¡°We will win!¡±

    Asrades-in-arms, with a handshake they silently agreed. All for the hotel expenses!

    Over the next period of time, both Tao Fei and Zhang Siyi began to work like a dog.

    Surprisingly, Tao Fei¡¯s workaholic mode was more severe than Gu Yu¡¯s. In the first two days of developing the n, they worked overtime until nine o¡¯clock. On the third day, because Tao Fei didn¡¯t want to be interrupted during his design phase, he brought his toiletries from home in order to stay overnight at thepany.

    The stability of food from thepany¡¯s bento at lunch and through the various take out ces for dinner withte night snacks provided by the twenty-four-hour convenience store, Tao Fei was able to work through his ideas for eighteen hours without interference.

    Influenced by Tao Fei¡¯s determination and enthusiasm, Zhang Siyi also wanted to stay in thepany overnight to work on the project. However, he is now a family man and can¡¯t only do what he wants all the time. Every evening at ten o¡¯clock, Gu Yu appeared at his desk to urge him to go home and sleep.

    After a week of overtime, on May 11, Tao Fei¡¯s n was nearly finished. Excited, Zhang Siyi met with Tao Fei to discuss the ns. He pointed to various drawings and exined: ¡°This is the vi area. Since it is built on the mountain, each vi will have a differentyout depending on the terrain. Here, we can build an infinity-edge swimming pool so the countryside is connected with the skyline.¡±

    Visualizing Tao Fei exnation in his mind, Zhang Siyi was really excited: ¡°Great!¡± As he listened intently, he saw the road map of the pastoral countryside as if he had found a new world. Looking at the n and realizing something, he confirmed it and asked: ¡°Hey, is this the shape of the gourd?¡±

    Tao Fei said: ¡°Ha-ha, yes. Since there is a Lahu stockade nearby, I used the elements of the gourd. What do you think?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Awesome! In fact, I think you can also use the gourd as street lights.¡±

    ¡°Well, write it down first and then let party A decide.¡± Tao Fei turned to ask Zhang Siyi: ¡°How is your lookout tower designing along?¡±

    Sitting with his pile of design work and notes, Zhang Siyi took out the folder that contained his three different tower design concepts. Showing it to Tao Fei, he exined: ¡°Using local materials and influenced by Dai architecture, the first concept is Bamboo House. I originally wanted to make a traditional tower, but decided to change the shape into something more like a gazebo and include a surrounding pond. With lotus flowers nted in the water and a surrounding fence, it creates an illusion of our homnd.

    In thought, Tao Fei touched his chin: ¡°Yes, the feeling of the tower makes me think of Toyo Ito¡¯s designs.¡±

    As if Tao Fei urately read Zhang Siyi¡¯s thoughts, Zhang Siyi was really excited: ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right. I was inspired by Toyo Ito¡¯s designs and used the Dai usage of bamboo as textures for the building¡¯s exterior.¡±

    Tao Fei smiled at him: ¡°I used to look down on you, but in fact your design concepts and thought process are very good!¡±

    ¡°Hey!¡± Zhang Siyi reactively pushed him on the shoulder then continued: ¡°The second design concept is derived from the peacock¡¯s feathers. The lookout tower is like a proud peacock, arrogantly standing tall. The tower body can be framed out with wood, butyered on top of it would be the fan shape of the peacock¡¯s tail like broad fish scales....¡±

    With Tao Fei¡¯s repeated recognition of his abilities, Zhang Siyi was even more excited. It is the first time Zhang Siyi thought that doing architectural design is really fun!

    As they were discussing the finer points of their concepts, Gu Yu came over from his office and interrupted: ¡°Zhang Siyi, get ready. It¡¯s time to go home.¡±

    Having said so, Gu Yu returned to his office to gather his things. Because their momentum was suddenly broken, Zhang Siyi felt a little irritated. Putting his papers down, he went into Gu Yu¡¯s office and said: ¡°Boss, I want to stay up with Tao Fei and work on the project tonight.¡±

    With a nk expression Gu Yu responded: ¡°No.¡±

    Confused, Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°What? Why?¡±

    He wasn¡¯t expecting Gu Yu to disagree. Doesn¡¯t it make all Bosses happy to have energetic and diligent subordinates? Keeping his public and private life separate, Gu Yu wouldn¡¯t be jealous of this kind of thing, would he? Zhang Siyi wouldn¡¯t be spending his night with Tao Fei in the same room!

    ¡°No, means no.¡± Gu Yu¡¯s answer is a little overbearing. ¡°The Yunnan project progress made thus far is very good. At this time, there is no urgent need to require two people to work overtime and stay up all night.¡±

    Rubutting him, Zhang Siyi hurriedly said: ¡°But we are going over our design ideas right now. If I stay for a couple days, we can prepare a better report.¡±

    Gu Yu frowned: ¡°It is not enough to work overtime until 10 o¡¯clock every night? In order to wait for you, I had to change the time we walk to dog to the mornings.¡±

    Specifically, in order to let Zhang Siyi sleep, Gu Yu got out of bed thirty minutes earlier to walk to dog alone. Zhang Siyi abandoned him in favor of staying up with Tao Fei. Moreover, if he stayed up so much, how efficient could his work actually be?

    Wanting to persuade him further, Gu Yu was about to say something, but Zhang Siyi interrupted him instead: ¡°Don¡¯t mind me. Go on ahead without me.¡±

    Started, in a sh a myriad of emotions appeared on Gu Yu face; surprise, dismay, anger. In the end, he only said: ¡±Do what you want.¡± Not giving Zhang Siyi any time to react, he immediately grabbed his briefcase, and left.

    Suddenly, Zhang Siyi regretted his decision a little. He was caught off guard by Gu Yu¡¯s cold demeanor. However, he didn¡¯t know what it was that he said that was wrong. He thought he was being considerate by allowing Gu Yu to go home without him instead of taking up his time. Was that a mistake?

    With a despondent expression, Zhang Siyi returned to Tao Fei to further discuss the project ns.

    Noticing the change in behavior, Tao Fei asked: ¡°What happened?¡±

    Zhang Siyi quietly spoke to Tao Fei: ¡°I told Gu Yu that I would stay upte with you and work overtime at night.¡±

    Tao Fei snorted: ¡°What? If you want to go back, you should go back. I¡¯m a single dog so it doesn¡¯t matter if I stay overnight in thepany or not, but you aren¡¯t the same. Where is my brother?¡±

    ¡°He already left.¡± Zhang Siyi said feeling wronged.

    Tao Fei: ¡°.....¡±

    Clenching his teeth, Zhang Siyi stubbornly said: ¡°I¡¯m not going back. Since we work together, I ought to be able to share the joys and sorrows of the project with you. It is just a few more days.¡±

    Speechless, Tao Fei looked at Zhang Siyi in surprise. Feeling touched by his admission, Tao Fei wrapped his arm around Zhang Siyi shoulder¡¯s and said: ¡°Let¡¯s go!¡±

 Chapter 132: The Cold War

    <h4>Chapter 132: The Cold War</h4>

    ___________________________

    Since his heart and mind were upied with thoughts of Gu Yu and despite Zhang Siyi initial determination to stay, he wasn¡¯t able to fully concentrate on his work. By midnight, all of his attention was on his phone as he was expecting a good night message from Gu Yu. However, after Gu Yu left the office, there wasn¡¯t a single update on social media or any text messages.

    With only four subway stops between them, they obviously live in the same city. However, emotionally they were far apart. Due to their dispute and since Gu Yu left the office without saying goodbye, Zhang Siyi felt wronged. As long as Gu Yu sent a ¡®good night¡¯ or ¡®don¡¯t stay up toote¡¯ message to him, Zhang Siyi wouldn¡¯t have the guts to stay any longer, but neither Zhang Siyi or Gu Yu sent any messages.

    Feeling very depressed, Zhang Siyi tried to psych himself up. ¨C Stop acting like a lovesick little girl! Work hard and catch up to Gu Yu.

    Zhang Siyi forced himself to stop thinking about Gu Yu and focus on the work. Otherwise, his overnight stay would be meaningless. Fortunately, the work on hand was indeed a lot. Like the time during the period of jealousy when Tao Fei first came to Borderless, once he set his mind to it, he thought about nothing else.

    The design concept is only a small portion of the work that Zhang Siyi and Tao Fei have toplete. In addition to the concepts, they have to build a power-point presentation. Through 3D renderings, different elevation details, andndscape maps, they have to create an enticing story from start to finish that showcases the work in the best way in order to convince Party A to move forward with the project.

    It wasn¡¯t until three in the morning that they went to sleep. Zhang Siyi was reminded of his university days when he also stayed upte to finish his projects. Unlike previously when he had to work alone, he now was working alongside a colleague and as a result, Zhang Siyi was enjoying the experience and felt invigorated.

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s only regret was his disagreement with Gu Yu. Even though he didn¡¯t understand what happened, it was very clear that this state is definitely not normal. Afterying down, he took out his phone again. He uploaded a picture of the nightscape from the office window and posted a public statement in WeChat: ¡°Struggling.¡± The main motivation for posting his picture isn¡¯t for outsiders¡¯ praise, but to see if Gu Yu was listening.

    The next morning, he woke up at 8:50 and went to wash his face in the bathroom. On the way, he bumped into Xu Jia and Bi Lele who were just arriving at work. They asked: ¡°Aunt Four, did you stay overnight at thepany?¡±

    Still tired, Zhang Siyi yawned and nodded.

    Xu Jia: ¡°You and Peach Brother have been working hard recently. Yesterday, I went to look at your general design. It¡¯s super cool!¡±

    Hearing the praise, Zhang Siyi¡¯s mood perked up: ¡°Ha, really?¡±

    Bi Lele said: ¡°I¡¯ve seen it too. When is the presentation? The boss asked me to help you develop the power-point presentation if I have time.¡±

    Pleasantly surprised, Zhang Siyi said: ¡°That¡¯s great! The report is on Friday. Are you free on Wednesday or Thursday?¡±

    Bi Lele shrugged her shoulders and said: ¡°I think I might have some time.¡±

    Zhang Si Yi patted his chest and said: ¡± Whatever you want to eat, you can choose!¡±¡±

    Satisfied with Zhang Siyi¡¯s offer, Bi Lele nodded. ¡°Send me all the work and I¡¯ll arrange it for you in advance.¡±

    Feeling happy, Zhang Siyi eximed: ¡°Ah, you are so good!¡±

    Bi Lele smiled narcissistically: ¡°What did you say? I don¡¯t think I heard enough....¡±

    With sugar in his mouth, Zhang Siyi boasted: ¡°You are the most beautiful. Your hair is like soft clouds in the sky and your eyes are like the sparkling moon reflected in the water....¡±

    Bi Lele: ¡°Poof !!!¡±

    Listening next to them, Xu Jia burst ofughter. As the three were flirtatiously chatting happily, Gu Yu suddenly appeared. The two girls stopped their giggles in a timely manner and jointly bowed slightly: ¡°Boss.¡± Only Zhang Siyi was trying to say hello, but Gu Yu simply nced at him and turned away.

    At that moment, the sense of loss that Zhang Siyi felt was overwhelming. Feeling depressed, he slowly walked downstairs to the convenience store to buy breakfast. Along the way, he checked his social media page. There were many people thatmented on his status and as expected, his close friends all told him to go to sleep early and take care of himself. The one person he wanted to see wasn¡¯t among the list of people that sent himments.

    Now, Zhang Siyi is 100% sure that Gu Yu is angry, but he doesn¡¯t know why. ¨C Was simply because I stayed overnight with Tao Fei? But that doesn¡¯t make sense. And besides, unlike what Gu Yu was saying, we got a lot of work done. It wasn¡¯t inefficient at all!

    Swallowing thest bite of his breakfast sandwich, Zhang Siyi knocked on Gu Yu¡¯s office door and then entered.

    Gu Yu was busy looking at the data on hisputer screen. When he looked up and saw Zhang Siyi, he frowned: ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡±

    Getting straight to the point, Zhang Siyi folded his arms and questioned firmly: ¡°Are you in a cold war with me?¡±

    Looking away from Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu remained silent. Then he spoke: ¡°This isn¡¯t the ce for such discussions. Go out to work and finish your project first.¡±

    With a flushed face, Zhang Siyi left Gu Yu¡¯s office angrily. After he mustered up the courage to approach Gu Yu, he didn¡¯t expect him to be so emotional closed and be shut-out right away. What¡¯s more, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t understand how Gu Yu could act so calmly in lieu of their disagreement.

    Zhang Siyi snickered at himself. He knew Gu Yu¡¯s principles and he warned Zhang Siyi ahead of time that there was a difference between their public office rtionship and private one. Being impulsive, he ran to Gu Yu feeling wronged and wanted an immediate resolution. It was his own stupidity. ¨C If its personal, why isn¡¯t he mad now? But I know he is angry, then... What¡¯s wrong with me staying upte for work?!

    Although Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t bold enough to m Gu Yu¡¯s office door, his inner turmoil wasn¡¯t any less. Returning to his desk, he roughly pulled back his chair and sat down. Zhu Hongzhen was startled: ¡°What¡¯s wrong with you?¡±

    ¡°Nothing!¡± Zhang Siyi was like a gunpowder keg exploding his heart. ¨C Fine, if you ignore me, I will ignore you. Who is the stubborn one?!

    Angry, Zhang Siyi worked for the rest of the day feeling increasingly resentful. The only bright spot in Zhang Siyi day was the thought of being able to see Gu Yu at the office. However, unbeknownst to Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu left the office at 5 o¡¯clock without telling him.

    Still feeling confused over their dispute, Zhang Siyi was looking forward to seeing Gu Yu at the end of the day to talk. After waiting an hour after the official work day ended, he finally turned around to talk to Gu Yu and what he saw waspletely unexpected. The office was locked and the lights were out.

    In the moment he realized that Gu Yu was gone, Zhang Siyi felt a sudden suffocation and sorrow. Tears welled up, but before they found release, he covered his face. Pressing down the grievances that came up from his heart, he held back his tears, and rubbed his face hard. Thinking of this morning¡¯s conversation when Gu Yu said to leave and finish work first... ¨C Is it possible that Gu Yu wasn¡¯t nning on talking to me until the project waspleted?

    Sure enough, for the next two days, Gu Yu did not say a word to Zhang Siyi and Zhang Siyi did not talk to Gu Yu. The cold war continued.

    A day before they were scheduled to report their design concept, Bi Lele started helping them typeset the power-point presentation. Also, Zhang Siyi work load had gradually been reduced. As the days unfolded, he didn¡¯t think one could be so obstinate.

    In the middle of the night, Zhang Siyi and Tao Fei ordered take-out and ate in the office. Having pulled all-nighters for a few days, they appeared haggard. Especially Tao Fei who had deep dark circles under his eyes. Looking more like a beast, it was hard to imagine he was normally a beautiful peach.

    Apart from being worn out, both of them expressed relief for this is thest night before the reporting day. Everything is nearpletion and they are very confident with their concepts and design ns.

    Eating quietly, Tao Fei broke the silence: ¡°You and my brother had a fight?¡±

    Zhang Siyi retorted: ¡°No.¡±

    Tao Fei smirked and said: ¡°Even though you said no, I can tell. Is it because you are working overtime?¡±

 Chapter 133: Illness

    <h4>Chapter 133: Illness</h4>

    ____________________

    Zhang Siyi pressed his lips together and didn¡¯t talk. Tao Fei grabbed some napkins from the table and threw them at him. He said: ¡°Hey, if there is something to say, then say it. I also consider you a brother so there is no reason to hold it in!¡±

    Zhang Siyi caught the napkins and threw them back. Finally, he couldn¡¯t contain his feelings anymore and a torrent ofints burst out: ¡±Yes, we are fighting! I told him that I wanted to stay up with you, but he disagreed. He said my work would be too inefficient if I stayed upte. I thought I was being considerate to him and told him to go back home, but he won¡¯t talk to me. I don¡¯t know what he wants!¡±

    With an expression of ¡®I told you so¡¯ written all over his face, Tao Fei scoffed and said: ¡°I knew it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    While eating his food, Tao Fei helped Zhang Siyi analyze his situation: ¡°I guess Gu Yu may be unhappy because you snubbed him.¡±

    Raising his voice, Zhang Siyi frantically spoke: ¡°But I am at work. I am not fooling around! He told me he wants me to work alongside him as soon as possible. He is obviously a very rational and calm person, but when I work hard and then he says he doesn¡¯t want me to. What is that? A double standard! I don¡¯t think he wants me to be strong at all!¡±

    Zhang Siyi wouldn¡¯t normally voice his anger in front of Gu Yu. Tao Fei offered an ear so Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t help but vent his grievances.

    Tao Fei sighed and said: ¡°He might seem infallible, but when one falls in love, even he is simply a mortal. Besides, this is your love period!¡±

    Zhang Siyi snorted and thought: they were only together for a month... What seven-year-itch. Day after day, he did not go home and Gu Yu did not talk to him. With pessimistic thoughts, Zhang Siyi felt like they were almost finished. Maybe after the project was over, they will actually break up!

    With great care, Tao Fei warmly spoke to Zhang Siyi: ¡°I¡¯ll tell you something. I¡¯ve known my brother for five years and during that time, he has always remained calm. Even in the face of my bad temper, he remained so collected. The only time I¡¯ve never seen him get angry and out of control is because of you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°Like at the hotel in Jingmai Mountains... Well, I also deliberately provoked him, but I didn¡¯t expect that he would really take the bait and kiss you in front of me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°At least his behavior is more normal now. Unlike previously, even though he was in his early twenties, he always seemed to live a lifeless life. Like a pool of stagnant water, he lived only by going through the motions.¡±

    Tao Fei paused then said: ¡°In the past few days, I can clearly feel he is in a bad mood. I often see him preupied with something and frowning with a heavy heart. Since you have your back to his office, you may never have noticed, but every time he left, he always paused and looked at you before moving.¡±

    ¡°Who knows what he is thinking...¡± Zhang Siyi took a sip of his hot and sour soup and felt the vor mimicked his mood.

    Tao Fei shrugged: ¡°Although I don¡¯t know what he was thinking, you will have to talk about it sooner orter. Since my brother is very proud, from my experience, it is not likely he will take the initiative to find you to talk. Take my advice and make the first step towards reconciliation. Maybe once you make the first move, he wille tumbling down from the top of the stairs!¡±

    Stirring the remaining liquid in his soup bowl with his chopsticks, Zhang Siyi said with sorrow: ¡°Why do I have to be first? I¡¯ve already approached him a few days ago. Early in the morning I asked him if he was having a cold war with me and do you know what he said?¡±

    Using Gu Yu cold tone and expression, Zhang Siyi imitated him and told Tao Fei what Gu Yu said verbatim. Although Tao Fei heard it, he didn¡¯t sympathize with Zhang Siyi. Instead he gloated: ¡°His character... Well, you are the one that likes him! Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!¡±

    Finishing thest few bites of dinner, Tao Fei calmly said: ¡°Our project is almost done. It¡¯s time for you to go back home.¡±

    Being defiant, Zhang Siyi rebuked: ¡°Now, in the middle of the night? I won¡¯t go back. I¡¯m staying up with you to work!¡±

    Tao Fei picked up the lid from the take-out container and pped him: ¡°Don¡¯t use me as an excuse to escape. You haven¡¯t realized it, but my brother has given me the look of death thesest couple of days. Besides, I have to go back tonight and fix up this peach brother for tomorrow¡¯s presentation.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Feeling helpless, Zhang Siyi packed up his things and went home.

    In May, Haicheng has begun to heat up during the day, but it remains quite chilly at night. Often, the temperature difference between the two is rather wide at (30C/86F) and during the day and (10C/50F) during the night.

    Having been inside thesest few days with an interior temperature that waspletely regted, when Zhang Siyi stepped outside, he felt the bite of a chilly breeze.

    He inhaled with a deep breath and sputtered out hot air quickly making his lips vibrate. The answer to the current unknown status of their rtionship made Zhang Siyi hesitant. ¨C Shit! I can¡¯t take it anymore! The anticipation is killing me! I¡¯m going to talk tonight! Who is the surname of Gu¡¯s love?!

    Taking a taxi back to Yuanshan Garden, Zhang Siyi had time to reflect on thest couple of days and standing in front of the door, he felt a little reluctant to speak up.

    Zhang Siyi is neither afraid of being with Gu Yu nor his argument with him. What he can¡¯t tolerate was seeing Gu Yu¡¯s indifferent expression andck ofmunication. The possibility of being ignored again is upsetting Zhang Siyi. What kind of love is there without concern?

    Now that the moment is upon him, Zhang Siyi nced at the time and saw that it was after midnight and decided he didn¡¯t want to wake Gu Yu up. Instead, he was going to sneak back to his room to sleep. Making up his mind, he gently opened the door and tried to quietly head upstairs. Since he hadn¡¯t seen Townhouse for a couple of days, the dog ran up to him excitedly and barked: ¡°wuuf-wuuf.¡±

    Startled, Zhang Siyi¡¯s n was ruined. He grabbed Townhouse by the ear and covered his snout and desperately ¡®shushed¡¯ him. The dog didn¡¯t understand and thought his master was home to y. He started licking his hand and made more excited grunts.

    Zhang Siyi wants to cry, but has no tears. Damn this little ancestor! You don¡¯t want to join in the fun at this point!

    The ¡®little ancestor¡¯ did not listen. In the dark, Townhouse pounced on Zhang Siyi legs and frantically rubbed. After an emotionally draining day, Zhang Siyi almost kicked the dog hard. Stupid dog! Gu Yu, why can¡¯t the dog get fixed?! Every day, this is what he does. It¡¯s too ridiculous!

    It was hard to wait for Townhouse to settle down. While Zhang Siyi quietly walked upstairs, Townhouse also followed suit. Twice, Zhang Siyi shooed him down but finally, he was able to make the dog stay downstairs.

    Since they were being so loud, Zhang Siyi was afraid that he woke up Gu Yu. As he reached the top of the stairs, he listened intently for any sound. When he didn¡¯t hear the slightest movement, heughed at himself for thinking Gu Yu would do anything other then what he has been doing already. Ignoring Zhang Siyi.

    Not wanting to cause any further disturbance than he already created, he didn¡¯t turn on the hall lights and instead, he used his phone as a shlight. When he went to use the bathroom, he noticed Gu Yu bedroom door wasn¡¯t closed. He was shocked to find it remained open!

    Zhang Siyi quickly turned off his mobile phone and stood next to the door in a dilemma.

    What did Gu Yu mean by leaving the door open? Usually, whether they sleep together or sleep separately, they would close the doors. Is it possible that Gu Yu was...? Was waiting for him toe back?

    Instantly, Zhang Siyi was warmed up by the idea. His heart was pounding in his chest, but after the long cold period, he was afraid of being so optimistic. While standing outside the door, he hesitated for five minutes. Finally, Zhang Siyi decided he would at least sneak a peek at Gu Yu and then go back to his room quietly.

    Now that Zhang Siyi¡¯s phone was turned off for a while, his eyes had adapted to the darkness. He crept into Gu Yu¡¯s room and saw the quilt on his bed with a big lump on the side making a familiar outline. He didn¡¯t know if Gu Yu was really sleeping deeply or simply silently lying still.

    With the faint illumination of the night light on the other side of the bed, Zhang Siyi maneuvered around to look at him more closely. When Gu Yu¡¯s face came into view, he couldn¡¯t look away. Even though they were at the office every day, it felt like he hadn¡¯t been able to see Gu Yu¡¯s face clearly for a very long time.

    ..... Damn it! I really fucking miss him!

    Watching the movement in his chest expand and contrast with each breath, Gu Yu appears both harmless and fragile. Lying in bed sleeping, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know why Gu Yu had a slight frown on his face. Looking at Gu Yu like this, he had the sudden desire to pounce on him, but his thoughts said he can¡¯t...... They are still in a cold war! Angry at the thought, Zhang Siyi was uncontrobly bending down and reaching out, wanting to feel his face. It was apletely unconscious action. The moment Zhang Siyi¡¯s fingers touched Gu Yu¡¯s skin, he tightened his eyebrows and his eyes fluttered open.

    Panicked, Zhang Siyi tried to react and escape, but Gu Yu was faster. He suddenly reached out and grabbed Zhang Siyi hand and stared at him. While he slowly loosened the grip on his hand, in a weak and hoarse voice, Gu Yu said: ¡°You came back.¡±

    Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t thinking so much on how unhealthy he sounded, because once he heard Gu Yu pleased voiced, his heart was a mess.

    His hard-earned pride and self-esteem copsed in an instant. Like a puppy who was forgiven by his master, Zhang Siyi sorrowfully looked at Gu Yu with all of his emotions in his eyes.

    Gu Yu watched him then gradually rxed his hand and tightened it again. He pulled Zhang Siyi into the bed with him.

    Frantically kissing one another, Zhang Siyi fell on top of Gu Yu. With his mind bing nk, he only felt what was in front of him in the moment. In the arms of the person he loves, he had nothing to worry about. He just wanted to feel the warmth of his lover and having spent thest several days apart, he wanted to rejoice in their reunion.

    Gu Yu was also the same. Venting his emotions, Gu Yu wrapped his tongue around Zhang Siyi¡¯s tongue, kissing him deeply and mercilessly bit his lips. Listening to Zhang Siyi muffled outbursts of pain, Gu Yu didn¡¯t stop. His strength was so great and he kissed so fiercely that it seemed as if he wanted revenge for being left out during the past few days

    Zhang Siyi was also very enthusiastic, but he still couldn¡¯t match Gu Yu. He seemed to force Zhang Siyi to bear all of the resentment alone.... Slowly, Zhang Siyi recovered his senses and became aware of Gu Yu¡¯s abnormal body temperature.

    Not only was his mouth hot, but also his forehead, neck, shoulders...... Everywhere he touched, Gu Yu¡¯s temperature was higher than his. He quickly realized the meaning of the hoarse voice that Gu Yu spoke with. Bing anxious, Zhang Siyi freed himself from Gu Yu arms. Observing each other¡¯s expressions, Zhang Siyi spoke first: ¡°Are you sick?¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s line of sight was a focused-on Zhang Siyi. Due to the intensity with which they kissed, gasping for air, Gu Yu was short of breath and did not speak.

    Zhang Siyi went to touch his forehead but was caught by Gu Yu instead. Gu Yu ced Zhang Siyi¡¯s hand to his lips and kissed his palm and then wrapped his tongue around his finger, inserted it into his mouth and sucked.

    Quickly bing peevish, Zhang Siyi demanded: ¡°You quickly answer me!¡±

    Gu Yu paused for few seconds before releasing him then he quietly said: ¡°It¡¯s nothing serious. Just a small cold.¡± Lowering the volume even further, he said: ¡°I¡¯m sorry, I didn¡¯t hold back.¡±

    At first, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t understand what Gu Yu meant by suddenly apologizing. Was he sorry that the cold war was over? Pausing for a moment, he quickly realized the truth and sighed. Gu Yu was afraid of infecting Zhang Siyi with his cold.

    Feeling happy for Gu Yu¡¯s concern, but feeling distressed over his illness, he clung to Gu Yu¡¯s hand, leaned down and kissed him on the lips. He said: ¡°Never mind that. When did you get sick? Why didn¡¯t you tell me?¡±

    Gu Yu normally stoic demeanor made Zhang Siyi feel like Gu Yu was invincible. Even if there was something a little off, Zhang Siyi would never think of the possibility of Gu Yu being sick. Now he finally understood why he didn¡¯t wake up earlier with so much noise when Zhang Siyi came back home. Gu Yu was probably too weak from illness that he didn¡¯t hear anything.

 Chapter 134: Protocol

    <h4>Chapter 134: Protocol</h4>

    _____________________

    Even in the onught of Zhang Siyi questions, Gu Yu remained silent. Gu Yu wouldn¡¯t say when he got sick, or why he wasn¡¯t willing to tell him. Worried over Gu Yu¡¯s health and feeling anxious, Zhang Siyi pressed down Gu Yu¡¯s shoulders and demanded an answer: ¡°Don¡¯t you care about me?¡±

    Gu Yu froze. He was reluctant to speak: ¡°I don¡¯t have ...¡±

    With tears swelling up in the corner of his eyes, Zhang Siyi was so angry that he wanted to throttle him. He sternly questioned: ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me? Am I not your boyfriend?¡±

    Hearing Zhang Siyi passionate tone, Gu Yu felt touched. He looked at Zhang Siyi like it was the first time meeting him. After a moment of silence, Gu Yu admitted: ¡°It has been three or four days. At first, I only had a slight sore throat. I thought it would go away soon, so I didn¡¯t care about it too much. I think I overestimated my resistance.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Three or four days? God! He never even found out! Was he too careless, or did Gu Yu disguised it too well?

    Indeed, because of their fight, Zhang Siyi hasn¡¯t spoken to Gu Yu these days and as a result, he didn¡¯t discover Gu Yu¡¯s abnormality. Thinking it might be partially his fault for Gu Yu¡¯s illness because he hadn¡¯t been home at night to keep each other warm, Zhang Siyi was dying of guilt. Even though he wasn¡¯t the sick person, he wanted to cry.

    Sometimes, those who were ustomed to putting up a strong front, will forget how to express their fragility. Gu Yu is no exception. Until now, he continued to present a calm fa?ade and controlled appearance. Gu Yu paused then raised his hand to touch Zhang Siyi¡¯s head. Comforting Zhang Siyi, he said: ¡°I didn¡¯t tell you because I didn¡¯t want you to worry. Small colds will resolve itself in a couple of days without a fuss.¡±

    Faced with the facts before him, Zhang Siyi was distressed and wanted to punish himself. In retrospect, Zhang Siyi regretted his absence. Would it have been so bad to go home for one of the nights and sleep? He would have been able to help Gu Yu earlier. Zhang Siyi felt like he was the one that tortured Gu Yu.

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry! It¡¯s all my fault!¡± Zhang Siyi put the me on himself. He grabbed Gu¡¯s hand and caressed his face, repenting: ¡°I¡¯ll never stay overnight in thepany again. I¡¯lle home to sleep with you every day.¡±

    Thinking the reason Gu Yu was angry was because of this, he did not expect Gu Yu to shake his head and say: ¡°I¡¯m not angry with this...... I¡¯m angry at you......¡± He ended his speech abruptly as if he didn¡¯t know what to say.

    Zhang Siyi clung to his hand and asked: ¡°Why are you angry with me? Just tell me! Ah!¡±

    He sighed, and looked Zhang Siyi in the eye: ¡°It¡¯s because of what you said to me: Don¡¯t mind me. Go on ahead without me.¡±

    In the past, when employees volunteered to work overtime, Gu Yu was very pleased. Since they were both adult men, they didn¡¯t need special care at night like women normally would. Nevertheless, now it is different. It is the first time Gu Yu felt a contradiction in maintaining a divide between work life and private life. Since Zhang Siyi is both a subordinate and a lover, Gu Yu wanted him to seed as an architect, but at the same time, the more Zhang Siyi progressed with his work, the less time Zhang Siyi had to spend with Gu Yu at home.

    Gu Yu knew that Zhang Siyi was working on an important project, so he changed his own schedule around to facilitate Zhang Siyi work. Gu Yu woke up early to walk the dog and then make breakfast for him. Also, he waited in his office for Zhang Siyi to finish his work in the evenings so they can ride home together. Gu Yu hoped by doing these little things for Zhang Siyi, Zhang Siyi would have more free time to spend with him.

    However, when he heard Zhang Siyi say, ¡®Don¡¯t mind me¡¯ he felt like his efforts weren¡¯t acknowledged and the life he worked hard to create was rejected by Zhang Siyi.

    He tried to persuade himself to behave like a rational adult, but he couldn¡¯t stop himself from bing angry. He was also angry at himself for getting angry at Zhang Siyi¡¯s statement which made him feel like things were out of his control and thus, he didn¡¯t know how to cope. Therefore, the only solution he could think of was to set all his feeling aside and wait until Zhang Siyi finished working on the project.

    Nevertheless, he still waited every night for Zhang Siyi to return home. Even if it was foolish, he left his door open incase Zhang Siyi would remember there was someone waiting for him at home.

    Zhang Siyi really felt stupid. He didn¡¯t think Gu Yu would be angry over what he said. Previously, Zhang Siyi was only thinking in one direction ¡®I work hard, but you are still angry¡¯. Thinking back to the moment in Gu Yu¡¯s office, he did change after their dispute and now that he can see the issue from another angle, Zhang Siyi realized his remark was rather hurtful.

    Quickly, Zhang Siyi wanted to smooth things over and exined: ¡°I didn¡¯t mean anything by what I said. I know that your time is valuable and since you already adjusted your schedule to walk the dog, I felt sorry about it. I thought I was helping you by letting you go home early without me.

    Reaching out to Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu caressed his face and said: ¡°Siyi, at work, unless I¡¯m personally responsible for a project, I rarely stay with employees to work overtime. I stayedte with you only because you are my boyfriend.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Feeling self-conscience, Gu Yu paused: ¡°Of course, no matter howte it is, I am willing to stay with you because it is something I want to do from the bottom of my heart. At your request and my denial to stay, I just assumed you would also make a little concession for me. Even if it was just for another hour or two, if the subway wasn¡¯t running, we could take a taxi home together. I¡¯m very d to see you working so hard.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry! I¡¯m sorry ...¡± Zhang Siyi pleaded feeling both guilty yet warm. Always misunderstanding Gu Yu, how can he be such aplete idiot?¡±

    Covering Zhang Siyi¡¯s mouth with his hand, Gu Yu stopped him from apologizing: ¡°I was also wrong. I¡¯m used to being strict in thepany and treated you as an employee instead of listening. I didn¡¯t have the right words to say, I just.... I want to spend more time with you.¡±

    With moisture umting in his eyes, Zhang Siyi was moved to tears. Who said the words aren¡¯t right? If those aren¡¯t ¡®the right words to say¡¯, then what is?

    Having both their minds and souls connected, the two of them watched each other with affection than suddenly burst out inughter at the same time.

    Well, if the two had been able to patiently exin andmunicate better from the start, they would not have gone through such a torturous period for so many dayster.

    Leaning over, Zhang Siyiid down on Gu Yu¡¯s body a wrapped his limbs around him like a ko bear and whispered in his ear: ¡°Can we avoid a cold war in the future? Sometimes, I just don¡¯t understand so if there is something wrong, you have to tell me directly, and exin it. Ok? Ignoring me thest few days has been like torture.¡±

    Gu Yu caressed his back: ¡°Ok.¡± Now, he will be able to recover fully and feel good about their future.

    Teasing, Zhang Siyi innocently asked: ¡°Who continues the war and who is the puppy?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°......¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Why don¡¯t you Talk?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Hmm ... Good.¡±

    Acting pouty and petnt, Zhang Siyi quietly said: ¡°I missed you very much! Although I¡¯ve been very busy, I can¡¯t stop thinking about you. I¡¯ve always wanted to talk with you, but we were in a cold war and you were ignoring me so I was angry. I also wanted to show you my progress and designs. Even Tao Feiplimented me.¡±

    With obvious flirtatious movements and inviting tone, pressing his body closer to Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi was eager for Gu Yu¡¯s praise: ¡°Okay, you are great.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Why does his perfunctoryment sound so pretentious?

    Gu Yu patted Zhang Siyi¡¯s ass and said: ¡°You shoulde down first. I am being crushed to death....¡± Since Gu Yu was weak from illness, the one-hundred-forty-pounds of youth crushed him. His desire to hold onto Zhang Siyi was fruitless.

    Zhang Siyi hurriedly got up and nervously asked: ¡°Are you taking your medicine?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Rest assured, I know to take care of myself...... It is you I have to worry about. Hurry and get into bed with me. Go wash your face and brush your teeth. I almost choked to death by your bad breath.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Ah, hell! Moved for only three minutes! This bastard let me feel so warm for a while only to let me die!

 Chapter 135: Reconciliation

    <h4>Chapter 135: Reconciliation</h4>

    ___________________________

    Excited to return to Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi washed quickly in the shower. After, he rushed back to bed, heid down beside him and wrapped his arms around Gu Yu.

    ¡°Do you want to sleep?¡± Gu Yu asked in a soft, raspy voice that was unique and sensual from his cold. Since he was feeling dizzy, Gu Yu almost fell back to sleep in the time that Zhang Siyi took to wash.

    Seeing Gu Yu in such a cute and vulnerable state, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t help himself from taking advantage of the situation. Thinking of what Gu Yu did to him when visiting Lijiang, Zhang Siyi licked Gu Yu ear while softly emitting an erotic moan. Pressing himself against Gu Yu seductively, he moved his hand along his body tenderly and wrapped his leg around Gu Yu. Exuding a sweet atmosphere, Zhang Siyi enticed him to e and eat¡¯.

    Now awake, losing to lust, Gu Yu couldn¡¯t restrain himself. He whispered ¡®naughty¡¯ and rolled over on top of Zhang Siyi and pressed him down. Lowering his head, Gu Yu kissed him as he wished and reached down to fondle Zhang Siyi. Eliciting more erotic moans, Gu Yu continued to tenderly stroke his hardened area. Zhang Siyi twisted his hips right, left and GU Yu released his exceedingly engorged organ.

    Having helped each other many times, Zhang Siyi no longer felt a sense of shame like he had the first time he was with Gu Yu. He reached for Gu Yu sensitive organ and passionately stroked him up.

    The sudden movement made Gu Yu take a deep breath and hold it a moment. Looking at Zhang Siyi, his emotions boiled and felt himself nearingpletion.

    Watching his reaction, Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart was filled with a strong sense of aplishment and that feeling was more exciting than his own need. Wanting to please Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi fervidly continued to fondle Gu Yu then leaned over to nibble and kiss Gu Yu deeply on his neck, like an unrestrained puppy.

    Eyes wide open and gasping, Gu Yu suddenly slid down under the nket. Confused for a moment, in a husky, yet soft voice, Zhang Siyi asked ¡®why?¡¯ but immediately was answered with a different feeling.

    ¡°Ah...!¡± Zhang Siyi jerked in surprised and shouted loudly: ¡°Don¡¯t!¡±

    In the next second, Gu Yu didn¡¯t hesitate to envelop him deeply into his mouth. Due to Gu Yu¡¯s fever, his high temperature gave Zhang Siyi an unprecedented experience. In that brief moment, Zhang Siyi¡¯s toes curled, his body trembled and he came topletion.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Aaaaaaahh! Fuck! How can this be!! Uneptable!!!

    Shortly after, Gu Yu head popped up from the quilt. Coughing a little, he gentlyughed and affectionately said: ¡°Little virgin. So fast....¡±

    In frustration and embarrassment, Zhang Siyi covered his face.

    Smiling, Gu Yu rubbed his head and chuckled: ¡°Ready to sleep now?¡±

    Feeling cheated, Zhang Siyi shouted: ¡°What the fuck are youughing about? Do you think it¡¯s okay? What I want is the process!¡±

    Gu Yu raised his eyebrows: ¡°What do you want? I also want to give you a morefortable and enjoyable process, but I know you will...¡±

    ¡°Shut up!¡± As a man, Zhang Siyi has his dignity and quickly lifted his hand to cover Gu Yu mouth to block him from saying anything else. ¨C Shit! Do I really need to listen to my Mother and visit a doctor for male problems!?

    Gu Yu stifled augh andforted him: ¡°There will be opportunities next time.¡±

    Not wanting to disappoint Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi stared at him in the eyes. Even though Zhang Siyi felt ashamed of reciprocating the action, he wouldn¡¯t just abandon him and refuse.

    However, before Zhang Siyi could take action, Gu Yu saw through him and immediately stopped Zhang Siyi: ¡°Don¡¯t think about it anymore. I have a cold and it¡¯s not suitable time for intercourse as physical exhaustion hinders recovery. Besides, we still have work tomorrow and it¡¯s almost three in the morning. If you help me, are you going to get any sleep? I¡¯m not like you and can finish in a few seconds.¡±

    When it came to thest remark, Gu Yu didn¡¯t forget to rub it in and make Zhang Siyi feel angry. In order to appease him, Gu Yu hugged him and kissed him tenderly without going further for a long time. Knowing Gu Yu¡¯s attitude was firm, Zhang Siyi obediently gave up the idea and instead wrapped his arm around his waist and leaned on Gu Yu¡¯s shoulder. Holding each other closely in their arms, they went to sleep.

    The next morning it was clear that Gu Yu¡¯s illness was worse. Since Zhang Siyi was the one that disturbed Gu Yu¡¯s sleep, he didn¡¯t know if he was the cause. Feeling guilty, Zhang Siyi jumped out of bed early and made tea for Gu Yu. He brought it back upstairs on a tray for Gu Yu to drink in bed.

    Watching Zhang Siyi bounce around the room like an energized rabbit, Gu Yu sighed. Even though Zhang Siyi only got a few hours of sleep, Gu Yu felt like the six-year age gap between them was obvious and decided he needed to get more exercise in the future.

    Frowning, Zhang Siyi tried to persuade Gu Yu: ¡°You look so bad, do you want to take the day off?¡±

    ¡°No. Today is your project presentation and I specifically want to be there when Party-A arrives.¡± Not listening to Zhang Siyi¡¯s advice, Gu Yu slowly got out of bed and put on a formal suit and suggested that Zhang Siyi do the same.

    Not thinking about the most appropriate attire to wear today, Zhang Siyi was happy that Gu Yu reminded him so he quickly went to his room to change.

    When he arrived at thepany, Zhang Siyi met Tao Fei and once again was very surprised. Last night¡¯s unkempt haggard bum disappeared and standing in front of Zhang Siyi in a suit was the restored suave and handsome beautiful peach.

    Inspecting Zhang Siyi, Tao Fei raised his hand to his chin: ¡°You look really handsome when you wear a suit.¡± First, Tao Fei looked him over from head to toe and then, gestured his head in the direction of Gu Yu¡¯s office he smiled and asked: ¡°Well, did you make upst night?¡±

    Blushing a little, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t stop himself from smiling broadly.

    Tao Fei snorted and with the rolled-up file of papers, he tapped it on Zhang Siyi¡¯s head: ¡°Stupid. Go get ready. It¡¯s your tower design, so you are going to present it yourself!¡±

    Zhang Siyi was shocked: ¡°Ah?¡±

    Tao Fei looked at him: ¡°What ¡®Ah¡¯? What else are you wearing a fancy suit for? Are you just another pretty face?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Fuck, he dug himself a hole.

    At 10 o¡¯clock in the morning Party A arrived. They were arge-scale developmentpany with its own capital and investments. Also within thepany, they were equipped with a building nning department. In order to watch the presentation, there were four people that came to Borderless. They were one of the investors in the project, the deputy general manager of the tourism development department, the general manager of the construction nning department, and an apanying secretary.

    The main receptionist at Borderless, Mrs. Wang, first invited the crowd to tour the facilities of Borderless and afterwards, Gu Yu invited them to the conference room for refreshments. Tong Heyi came forward on behalf of thepany and introduced a variety of projects that showcased the design strength of Borderless. Once everyone settled down, the official proposal started.

    In addition to Tao Fei, Zhang Siyi noticed both Ji Feiyu and Bi Lele as well as several designers from Group B were also present. Since they weren¡¯t involved with the design, he wondered why everyone was here and whispered to Tao Fei: ¡°What are all these people doing here?¡±

    Tao Fei scolded him: ¡°You don¡¯t understand? This is a battle! With four observers, we can¡¯t simply go directly to themander. This is our home turf, and the more presence we have, the better it is. Don¡¯t give yourself away and remember that all these designers here are project participates!¡±

    Zhang Siyi grinned: ¡°How do you know so much?¡±¡±

    Tao Fei gave him a sideways nce and stated: ¡°My brother, when I was gaining experience through my internship, you were still in educational diapers!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Fuck off!

    After all of the staff members entered the conference room, Party A was very happy to see so many people.

    Tao Fei got up and walked to the front and bowed gracefully.

    Gu Yu drank from a cup of tea to moistened his throat then made introductions: ¡°This is my fellow ssmate from Big T university, Tao Fei. He also has Master¡¯s from a British university and is the main person in charge of the project.¡±

    When Zhang Siyi heard Gu Yu¡¯s slightly hoarse voice, Zhang Siyi thought ofst night¡¯s activities. As his face became hot, he quickly tightened his fingers into a fit and jabbing his nails into his palms in order to drive away those erotic thoughts.

    The deputy general manager of Party A¡¯s tourism development department looked at Tao Fei and saw him as a young man. He immediately asked: ¡°Mr. Gu, we sought you for your fame. Looking at this young man, what credentials does he have?¡±

    Like Secretary Wang of C city, when hearing Gu Yu wasn¡¯t the project head designer, he had questions. It may not be a problem for most people, but Tao Fei is arrogant and opinionated.

    Zhang Siyi watched Tao Fei intently. Hearing the Manager express his doubts and knowing Tao Fei¡¯s personality, Zhang Siyi thought by now, Tao Fei must be feeling irritated. Sure enough, he could see Tao Fei squinting his eyes and scrunching his face all of which were the precursors to him blowing up.

    Without missing a beat, Gu Yu smoothed over Party A¡¯s anxiety: ¡°He is XX National University students Frontier Architectural Design Cuppetition first ce. After graduation, several well-known constructionpanies in the country have offered him a position, but he came to me at Borderless. This is the second project he has designed since earning his Master¡¯s degree. Last month, we won the bid for hismercial high-rise design that will be built in Shandong Q city x Districtter this year. All designers start out young and grow up. If President Li hadn¡¯t given me the chance back then, I wouldn¡¯t have the achievements that I have today.¡±

    President Li also helped: ¡°Yes. Small Gu has all grown up and is now passing along opportunities. You can rest assured, even though Tao Fei doesn¡¯t look the part, I¡¯ve seen his architectural work and vouch for him. We have met previously to exchange ideas. If I wasn¡¯t confident, there wouldn¡¯t be a reason to approach yourpany for this project. Gu Yu and I wouldn¡¯t let you see anything other than an exceptional design.¡±

    With a nk look, Zhang Siyi sat in the conference room speechless. He knows exactly which two persons worked on the project and how much effort it took them. Having witnessed the interaction between parties and boasting remarks, he understands the importance of strong support. Hey, he¡¯s still learning!

    The manager touched his chin and nodded with satisfaction.

    Taking the cue, Tao Fei lightly coughed. Standing tall, he proudly started presenting the project: ¡°Leaders, without further ado, then let us begin.¡±

    Tao Fei began with the first slide. With a beautifully crafted rendering, it depicted their overall n. Zhang Siyi noticed the surprised expressions on some of the people¡¯s faces.

    Whether it is one building or a development, knowing how eye-catching Tao Fei visual approach to designing can be, Zhang Siyi isn¡¯t surprised by the group¡¯s reactions.

    Hearing the groups silence, Tao Fei switched to the next slide. In fluent French and English, he spoke: ¡°Courtoisie (Courtesy), Charme (Charm), Caract¨¨re (Character), Calme (Calm), Cuisine (Food). This is the 5C standard that the members of the Ris & Chateaux boutique hotel group must meet.¡±

    Since there hadn¡¯t been anyments yet, Zhang Siyi thought perhaps, no one could understand what Tao Fei was talking about. Even so, with the artistic visual disy and fluent French and English, Tao Fei brought his whole speech into an international level.

    Having clicked to the next slide, Tao Fei continued: ¡°In order to meet the 5C standards, our group of designers personally stayed at luxury brands across Yunnan for ten days.¡±

    Tao Fei reported many of the ces they stayed at which covering almost all of the high-end hotels in Yunnan. The slide showed each facilities¡¯ overall grade, number of stars, cost, and poprity.

    At ten-thousand each for research of ten days with eight designers present is no less than eighty-thousand and that is without transportation. Party A¡¯s faces became pale. The act alone shows how much attention and investment Borderless have made towards the project. Looking at each other, the people in Party A became more serious.

    Yes, in the industry, one will hardly be able to find apany that is moremitted than Borderless. However, only Zhang Siyi knows the truth of the matter. Tao Fei¡¯s so-called ¡®whole group¡¯ is only just the two of them. Also, a few of the hotels he listed are ces they didn¡¯t visit. With the cost initially covered by their own finances, Zhang Siyi is waiting for the Head-of-the-House from Party A to reimburse them.

 Chapter 136: Finishing Touch

    <h4>Chapter 136: Finishing Touch</h4>

    ________________

    Tao Fei¡¯s opening speech quickly captured the attention of Party A. Together with the visual appeal of the project and research investment, the preconceived cooperation towards the project has made a high impact towards the next phase of the project. As long as the overall design levels are maintained and Tao Fei can continue to deliver his speech without fatal errors, the project was surely won.

    However, Tao Fei¡¯s designs also have a fatal w. Even though they are quite distinctive, they are rather avant-garde and most of the masses cannot ept his ideas. Unlike the previous time with Tao Fei¡¯s irregrly shaped high-rise building, Gu Yu intentionally let Tao Fei run with his ideas for the tourism nning project. Today is the first time Gu Yu has seen it.

    Sure enough, when the nning details of the main map were reviled, the two conservative members of Party A expressed their concern because there weren¡¯t any straight lines from the roadwork into the newly designed facilities depicted by the architectural outlines.

    Since thend that will be developed is a tropical rainforest, located at the base of the mountain and faced the countryside, the wholendform is sloped withrge staggering clusters of flora making an extremely organdscape.

    In order to maintain the natural environment, the roadwork drawn by Tao Fei is curved. Like the patches of natural flora, bothrge and small, the artistically conceived buildings on the drawing were also rounded. Arranged in order, they look like a patchwork of flora that grew out of thendscape naturally.

    This design was undoubtedly novel and breaks through the traditional approach. If it can be built, it will likely be a very desired destination in Yunnan that would attractrge numbers of rich tourists to the area.

    The main issue was the extreme construction costs and time because of the non-linear roads and dimensions that would need to be carefully positioned on-site during the time of construction. Generally speaking, ns that are difficult to achieve are mostly reduced to cannon fodder!

    Zhang Siyi carefully observed the expressions of the people in the room. In addition to Party A, he also saw Gu Yu and President Li in deep-thought with their mouths pursed. Zhang Siyi was worried that they now have regretted touting Tao Fei. Fuck! If they really did discuss the n previously, then who has the balls to present this enchanting scene. The whole design could have been changed beyond recognition!

    Zhang Siyi has to admit, Tao Fei is brave for presenting such avish design. Zhang Siyi broke out in a cold sweat and perspired enough for both of them. Zhang Siyi expected a turn to present his material soon. That¡¯s right! It isn¡¯t the only choice. They have a left hand!

    Since party A¡¯s target customer base is rich, investment is bound to be plentiful. However, none of them know whether or not the group of investors are interested in building a brand or was their emphasis on profits. The series of detailed maps are just one of Tao Fei¡¯s small stepping stones. If it is the former, then he schemes can be as dazzling as it can be. If it is thetter, then the project will probably be pulled because there wouldn¡¯t be enough profits in the end.

    Tao Fei continued with his report and exined the origin of his design and where he got his inspiration from. The curvature of the lines on the ns aren¡¯t haphazardly ced. Instead, they follow the orderly patterns of nature, like the branches of trees and leaf patterns. Even in nature can one find logic and geometry.

    At the beginning of his design phase, all the lines on the picture were rigid lines including the buildings. Later, Tao Fei added an algorithm based on nature, and evolved the n into an organic natural pattern. Tao Fei showed them images of his thought process. The changes from before to after reflect his design concept of ¡®natural environment¡¯. In the end, it is Party A who will decide which to use; the conservative square buildings or ¡¯natural¡¯ ones.

    For the greatest impact, Tao Fei exined his process from the end backwards. First, to whet a persons¡¯ appetite, he beautifully illustrated his most sought-after result, then double back to show the alternative which leaves the ultimate direction of the n in Party A¡¯s hands. Through one detailed area n coupled with an intentions map, the result is that Tao Fei didn¡¯t have to draw every single vi. That is to say, it is the slice of pie!

    While Tao Fei was going over the intention map, Zhang Siyi watched the reactions of the group in the conference room and noticed some positive movements. All the people in Party A discussed the intention map with enthusiasm. At this time, they looked at President Li and Gu Yu for discussion and direction for final positioning.

    Before they could react to theck of physical architecture, Zhang Siyi stepped up to present his lookout Tower designs. As with Tao Fei, Gu Yu also introduced Zhang Siyi, albeit with much less achievements. Once again, Zhang Siyi was reminded of his education. If Gu Yu could introduce him with a Master¡¯s degree, would Gu Yu be prouder?

    At this time, the general manager of the construction nning department of Party A, a woman in her 40s, suddenly smiled and said: ¡°President Li, are the designers of yourpany architects or models?¡±

    President Li drank his tea and joked: ¡°Before when Gu Yu was in Firm X, I took him to present a project. As long as there were women present, with all eyes on him, all he had to do was smile at each of them, and the project was won. Having tasted the effects of the honey trap, he has hired these two eye-catching architects this past year.¡±

    After everyone finishedughing, the atmosphere became less tense. Feeling a little embarrassed, Zhang Siyi scratched his head. Feeling confident with his design, he took a deep breath and began to present his concept for the newndmark project. He not only showed the group an overview of his ideas, but with a few detailed drawings, he also meticulously included the materials and meaning behind each of the different concepts. During the design phase of his n, Tao Fei helped Zhang Siyi polish his tower ideas by modify the shape of his tower and picking out the most suitable materials.

    Even after he finished the tower, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t stop thinking about the project. Up until two days ago, he reacted vaguely. The cultural symbolism of thendmark tower is greater than the building itself.

    In addition to the unique dwellings of cultural minorities of the area, like the Dai-style buildings, almost every vige had at least one Buddhist temple or stupa. Whether the temple was built in a Burmese bell-shaped style, pavilion style or diamond shaped Thai-style, the temples where the most magnificently decorated buildings in the vige.

    He first took note of the buildings while visiting the Lalu Stockade. In the process of going through his photos, he found sudden inspiration and stayed up all night to research the materials used for Dai religious buildings. Using the significance of Buddhist culture in the area, he created an additional design element to the project. His Bodhi Beacon concept.

    In front of everyone, Zhang Siyi could see the slight nods of approval throughout his presentation of his Lookout Tower. Feeling relieved that his meticulous work payed off, he next presented his Bodhi Beacon concept with confidence. Specifically, for his presentation, he chose quiet Buddha music to y. In a moment, the atmosphere in the entire conference room changed. The warmth of the Bodhi light added a finishing touch to their project n.

    Not only did the members of Party A widened their eyes in amazement, both Tong Heyi and President Li were surprised as well. Both had to look at Zhang Siyi closely and reevaluate this little apprentice who hadn¡¯t even been with thepany for one year.

 Chapter 137: Condition

    <h4>Chapter 137: Condition</h4>

    _____________________

    Even Tao Fei didn¡¯t know Zhang Siyi held an ace up his sleeve. Tao Fei began to listen to him attentively. Zhang Siyi¡¯s ideas to incorporate Buddhist culture and rted programs into the project was the most thought-provoking aspect to their n.

    When the presentation was finished, Zhang Siyi left the glowing picture of a Bodhi Beacon on the screen making it seem like the warm light from the Beacon illuminated the conference room.

    The honeb mosaic of the sun-film that was used for thempshades had a reflective effect under sunlight making them purely white. At night, when the light source of themp was turned on, the vague inteced veins showed through, making themp look like iridescent leaves.

    On the lookout tower, a series of Bodhi Bells were hanging from the edge of the tform. Although they were the same shape as the beacon, they had a different function. As the wind blows, they would emit a gentle chime and thus, making the tower and surrounding area a timeless ce where one could seek refuge from modern life.

    With their professionalism and beautiful drawings, coupled with the thought provoking culturally significantndmark, Tao Fei and Zhang Siyi have delivered a nearly perfect solution for the luxury resort project in the tourism development zone.

    Even though they ended the presentation, the meeting wasn¡¯t over. The silence was broken by the multiple voices talking at the same time in the room. One of the members of the group was particrly vocal after the presentation was finished. At first nce, other than wearing a string of beads, he didn¡¯t stand out as he was very inly dressed and low-key. In the beginning, he was quietly observing and listening to the report, but when he spoke at the end, the rest of the group immediately quieted and respectfully listened to all he had to say. This indicates that he must hold part, if not all, of the real decision-making power in Party A.

    He happens to be a Buddhist and although his faction is different then those in the Southern region, he knows that Buddhist teachings are unbound. Being interested in Zhang Siyi¡¯s n considerably, he was eager to further discuss the significance of religious architecture with everyone present.

    In this way, Zhang Siyi¡¯s n was exactly what he wanted! In the excitement, time passed quickly and lunchtime fast approached. At President Li¡¯s suggestion, they took a break. Although they haven¡¯t signed a contract yet, their intentions are obvious at this time.

    Overjoyed, President Li invited the Manager of the public rtions department to bring her people to a nearby hotel in the afternoon to further discuss the details of the contract over dinner. As such, Gu Yu as the creative director and Tong Heyi as the deputy design director need to attend the party as well as the person in charge of the project, Tao Fei. Given the status of the people required to attend, it was natural that they were expected to go. Beyond expectations, when Zhang Siyi heard Gu Yu, he was surprised: ¡°Zhang Siyi, after packing up and stowing away the materials from the presentation you alsoe to the hotel.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    When exiting the conference room, Bi Lele and the other colleagues gathered around him excitedly: ¡°Wow Four! You pulled that one out of the bag!¡±

    Ji Feiyu was also curious: ¡°Did you really go to those hotels?¡±

    Tao Fei came over and put his arm around Ji Feiyu¡¯s shoulder: ¡°Jealous?¡±

    Afraid of being hated, Zhang Siyi chuckled and said: ¡°It¡¯s all of Tao Fei¡¯s money.¡±

    Everyone immediately turned to stare wide eyed at Tao Fei with expressions of worship. Tao Fei grinned widely and threw a wink in Zhang Siyi¡¯s direction in appreciation for his quick-witted remark.

    Since the hotel was a ten-minute drive from thepany to the hotel, the people in Party A took a business car to the facility while the designers from Borderless took a taxi.

    For the other designers in Borderless, the banquet was actually rather boring as they were there specifically to create a good atmosphere by offering an ear to listen to Parry A¡¯s bragging nonsense and chat politely.

    With Zhang Siyi humble attitude, he was able to keep his head down and eat some food peacefully, but some of the others weren¡¯t as fortunate. In particr, as a result of Gu Yu young fame, he bears more pressure than average to maintain positive rtionships with peers in the industry.

    Many people in the banquet approached him and discussed various topics. Not only did he have to politely listen, but he also had to have the knowledge and quick wit to reply to the person adequately in order to make them feel content. Witnessing the process made Zhang Siyi feel troubled and he can only imagine how bothersome it must have felt like for Gu Yu.

    Noticing theck of food that Gu Yu ate and the frequent use of a small towel to wipe the sweat from his forehead during dinner, Zhang Siyi worried about him.

    President Li always came to Gu Yu for a drink, but Gu Yu clearly refused and stated he wasn¡¯t feeling well and thus used tea instead of alcohol, but after three rounds of drinks, the President wouldn¡¯t take any excuse seriously: ¡°Don¡¯t be a stick in the mud. When I was sick, I would drink warm rice-wine and let my body sweat to help get over a cold. If not for this project we wouldn¡¯t have been able to meet. It¡¯s been six months since we¡¯ve had the opportunity to chat. Come,e ¨C without a toast, the project won¡¯t have meaning!¡±

    One of Zhang Siyi¡¯s pet-peeves is when a person forces alcohol on someone in the name of a blessing. Getting even more angry then he already was, Zhang Siyi really wanted to blurt out something, especially since Gu Yu really was ill.

    Next to him, Zhang Siyi impulsively went to block the wine from Gu Yu, but he reached for the ss and winked at Zhang Siyi. He stood up with everyone, moved the ss in a circle to acknowledge the people present then faced President Li for a toast.

    Since the banquet wasing to a close, the people attending were starting to gather their belongings and getting ready to leave. The group of people sitting with Gu Yu also got up to gather their things and walk out of the dining area. As Gu Yu stood up with the others, he said: ¡°Go ahead first. I¡¯ll be there in a minute.¡±

    Not noticing any problems, the others left without a word. Zhang Siyi felt relieved then turned to Gu Yu and asked: ¡°Are you alright?¡±

    Gu Yu was silent for a few seconds then suddenly said: ¡°Help me get to the bathroom.¡±

    ...... Help? Zhang Siyi was shocked! Gu Yu can¡¯t go by himself?

    Zhang Siyi quickly maneuvered him into the bathroom stall and not a momentter did Gu Yu let go of his stomach. Even after emptying it, his abdomen continued to spasm and dry-heave. Standing outside the stall, Zhang Siyi was distressed over Gu Yu¡¯s condition. He asked: ¡°How¡¯s it going? Are you feeling better?¡±

    Normally, Gu Yu could hold his liquor, but with only one ss of wine, he was brought to his knees at the toilet and thus indicating how serious his condition was. Aftering out of the stall, Gu Yu¡¯s face was as white as a sheet of paper. Because he was trembling from fatigue, he was holding onto the door to help him stand upright. He had masked his condition throughout the presentation all morning and banquet in the afternoon, but now, he couldn¡¯t take it anymore and was on the verge of copse.

    Feeling the vibration in his pocket, he looked at his phone and saw Tao Fei calling. He answered it, and Tao Fei had asked him when they will being down. Over the phone, Zhang Siyi replied: ¡°Gu Yu is drunk and his physical condition is very bad. You will have to go back without us.¡±

    Furrowing his brow, Gu Yu was eager to grab Zhang Siyi phone, but he simply hung up and pocketed it. ring at Gu Yu: ¡°Do you still want to go back? Do you have any idea how worried I am about you?!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°The members of Party A...¡±

    Zhang Siyi interrupted him: ¡°The project is progressing very smoothly now. Even if you were absent for a long time, there are so many other people in thepany including the President, Child Labor, and Tao Fei that will represent Borderless faithfully!¡±

    The moment of male dominance was fierce and Zhang Siyi made the decision for him: ¡°I won¡¯t let you go. You areing to the hospital with me right now!¡±

    Slowly rxing, Gu Yu moved his lips and hoarsely uttered: ¡°Fool.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Who the hell is the stupid one!

 Chapter 138: Vulnerability

    <h4>Chapter 138: Vulnerability</h4>

    For Gu Yu, it is not his body that supports him at this time, but his sheer willpower. Over the years, there was almost no one who could break his stubbornness, until today. When he heard the fool firmly saying he was taking him to the hospital, Gu Yu¡¯s wall finally cracked.

    Sitting in the backseat of the taxi and after thoroughly exining the follow-up work over the phone, Gu Yu closed his eyes. He continually held Zhang Siyi¡¯s hand tightly as if Zhang Siyi was his source of strength.

    At the nearest hospital, Zhang Siyi registered Gu Yu, filled out the necessary paperwork for him than took him to the waiting area. He also apanied him into the room while the doctor evaluated his condition, drew blood, and gave him an IV of fluids.

    For the first time, Gu Yu discovered that his ¡®little apprentice¡¯ was also a man who he could rely on. The feeling of relying on another wasn¡¯t as difficult as he imagined.

    Sitting alongside Gu Yu¡¯s hospital bed, he watched the Doctor take his temperature. When he saw the digital thermometer beep at the final temp Zhang Siyi red at Gu Yu with exaggeration and eximed: ¡°39.8¡ãC! (103.6¡ãF). In middle school, I remember being dizzy with a fever of 39.2 (102.6). What were you thinking all day with your current condition!? Aren¡¯t you afraid of frying your brain!?¡±

    With a hoarse voice, Gu Yu weakly defended himself: ¡°This morning my temperature wasn¡¯t so high. Only now after vomiting did it feel worse.¡±

    Zhang Siyi gritted his teeth and said: ¡°I me it all on that damn Li! You told him you weren¡¯t able to drink alcohol today, but he still made you drink anyway!¡±

    Gu Yu sighed and said: ¡°If this were another asion, I wouldn¡¯t drink with him.¡±

    Knowing Gu Yu who can easily takes advantage of any situation because of his normal ck belly, poison tongue character, it seemed like an unusualmenting from him. Gu Yu isn¡¯t ustomed to makingpromises. Wondering what he meant, Zhang Siyi questioned: ¡°Then why did you still drink with him?¡±

    Gu Yu answered him: ¡°You performed very well this morning.¡±

    Zhang Siyi is quite happy to hear Gu Yu¡¯s approval, but what does this have to do with drinking? Is Gu Yu happy to drink with Li? Wait, no! ¡°You.... You did it for me?¡± Zhang Siyi asked with wide eyes.

    Gu Yu¡¯s faint smile answered Zhang Siyi.

    Feeling anxious, Zhang Siyi hurriedly said: ¡°Why!¡±

    Watching Zhang Siyi closely, Gu Yu saw his frantic expression. He grabbed his hand, squeezed it and exined in a low voice: ¡±Siyi, this morning¡¯s presentation was very good, but the contract wasn¡¯t signed so you don¡¯t really know what will happen once they leave the conference room. I have seen many young architects with good ideas and designs but loose a contract after the fact. You must maintain your rtionships at the dinner table because it can directly affect the signing of a contract.¡±

    Gu Yu paused and coughed twice then continued: ¡°If it¡¯s my own project, I wouldn¡¯t drink with just anyone under simr conditions, but Party A isn¡¯t the same since we are friends. It¡¯s only customary to maintain basic respect between us and follow along.¡±

    Zhang Siyi nodded.

    Gu Yu added: ¡°You are taking notes and drawing in your journal every day in order to be like me. Then I will only say this to you: Siyi, we strive for excellence in order to maintain our freedom to design. On the road of architecture, you will slowly understand that the hardest part is not the name and profit, but the freedom to do as you please and design whatever you want.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...... Hmm.¡±

    Contradicting himself, Gu Yu said: ¡°But the world is not so ideal and as a result, sometimes we have to learn topromise. Just like Tao Fei had to do with his design for the High-Risemercial building. Do you remember Chiang? Do you know why he give up architecture to open a restaurant?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Not for feelings?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°It was not simply for feelings, but because he wasn¡¯t able to make any concessions. He treats his designs with more stubbornness then Tao Fei and as a result, refused to make any changesrge or small. In the end, you can¡¯t survive in the industry without somepromises.¡±

    After listening to his roundabout exnation, Zhang Siyi still wanted a clear answer: ¡°Because of me you had topromise yourself?¡±

    ¡°Uh-huh.¡± Gu Yu finally confirmed: ¡°I know how upset you were when the C City project was scrapped in the middle. Both you and Tao Fei performed exceptionally well today. There were many good signs throughout the presentation and I didn¡¯t want them to resent the project just because I didn¡¯t drink a ss of wine. Therefore, for the future cooperation of the project, I buried my unease and drank.¡±

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t realize theplexities that a ss of wine represented.

    Gu Yu looked at him and firmly stated: ¡°I stopped you because you are always acting rashly. In this situation, what reason is there that you could block me from drinking wine and instead, drink it in my ce?

    Zhang Siyi replied: ¡°I can tell him that you are not healthy so I¡¯ll drink the ss for you.¡±

    Gu Yu shook his head and sighed: ¡°If you really did that, it might cause obstacles in the future. Look at it from President Li¡¯s perspective. Treating people with courtesy, he was probably very happy and over excited about the project and to show his enthusiasm he properly drank with everyone. He might have thought highly of me and thus, wanted to raise a ss. If you had stood up and thereby denying his appreciation, wouldn¡¯t that be like a p in the face?¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s question left Zhang Siyi speechless.

    Gu Yu: ¡°Today, I asked you toe to the banquet in order to gain experience for future reference. Keeping your head down and calmly eating was your best performance.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Gu Yu patted him on the back of his hand: ¡°Well, my cold wasn¡¯t the only reason I got drunk. Don¡¯t worry about it so much.¡±

    With a intive expression on his face, Zhang Siyi lowered his eyes and said: ¡°I know.¡±

    When another patient on a hospital bed with an IV was pushed into the room, Zhang Siyi quickly took off his jacket and covered their two sped hands. He said: ¡°Now it¡¯s time to stop talking and rest.¡±

    After looking at Zhang Siyi for another minute, Gu Yu turned his head to afortable position then closed his eyes and went to sleep. Clearly, Gu Yu was in a very weak state and yet, he was willing to talk to Zhang Siyi for so long. Watching him, Zhang Siyi squeezed his hand tightly. Suddenly, he had a strong impulse in his heart: to be a better person. Only this time, it wasn¡¯t solely for himself, but for Gu Yu.

    He remembered the vows and promises that Gu Yu spoke during the time he confessed his feelings: ¡°... No matter what obstacles we face in the future, I won¡¯t let go of your hand.¡± Although he is younger, he doesn¡¯t always want to rely on Gu Yu¡¯s strength. Now, Zhang Siyi desperately wanted to protect Gu Yu by sharing any burdens and facing all of their problems together. Receiving the love of another is like a suit of armor, but loving a person makes one vulnerable.

    For three hours, Gu Yu rested and three bags of IV fluids were absorbed into his body. During this time, Tao Fei called and brought Zhang Siyi the good news. The contract was signed and Party A paid a deposit of three-hundred-thousand. Hearing about Gu Yu¡¯s hospitalization, with a guilty conscience, Mr. Li added another fifty-thousand to the total.

    Aaaaaah! The hotel fees can be reimbursed! ~\(¨R¨Œ¨Q)/~

    Zhang Siyi resisted the urge to wake up Gu Yu to tell him the good news and instead, continued to chat on the phone with Tao Fei. Concerned over the situation, he suggested to stay at home for another two days. He also mentioned a celebratory dinner and if he had time, he woulde over to visit.

    After the third bag of saline was empty, Gu Yu woke up. Zhang Siyi immediately told him the good news. Looking at the IV in the back of his hand, Gu Yu stated: ¡°Coming to the hospital to earn another fifty-thousand is also an effective way to earn money.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was so angry that he punched his arm.

    In a hurry to stop Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu waved his other hand and said: ¡°I¡¯m kidding. It¡¯s just a joke.¡±

    Zhang Siyi red at him: ¡°I rather not have the fifty-thousand.¡±

 Chapter 139: Pair Up

    <h4>Chapter 139: Pair Up</h4>

    ______________________

    After a long day, they returned homete in the evening. Gu Yu ate a small bowl of porridge and then went straight to sleep. Zhang Siyi took care of the two wild cats and walked the dog.

    After washing, he went into Gu Yu¡¯s room to check on how he was doing. Seeing theyer of sweat on Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi checked his temperature again and felt relieved to see that his body temperature wasn¡¯t as high as it was before.

    Zhang Siyi sat on the edge of his bed and silently watched Gu Yu sleep for a long time. Since Gu Yu didn¡¯t wake at all throughout Zhang Siyi¡¯s care, he knew that Gu Yu was sleeping deeply. His physical strength had reached his limit. Even when Gu Yu was so weak a vulnerable, Zhang Siyi loved him very much.

    In fact, this was the first time Zhang Siyi had taken care of someone else. Even though he has lived away from home and traveled, he always had his friend Fu Xinhui by his side. Fu Xinhui was like a mother hen. When Zhang Siyi was sick, his friend was there to give him tea and medicine. When he came back to China, Fu Xinhui found an apartment for him. Even meals and the details of living were mostly taken care of by Fu Xinhui. During the time Fu Xinhui wasn¡¯t at the apartment, Zhang Siyi finally had to live on his own and grow up.

    After twisting the warm towel to squeeze out the excess water, Zhang Siyi finished wiping Gu Yu¡¯s face and neck. Making sure both he and Gu Yu got enough sleep, Zhang Siyi decided to quietly go back to his room for the night.

    Lying in bed, Zhang Siyi let out a long sigh. He thought about today¡¯s events and also about the past month¡¯s tidings. Thinking of his friend now living in Australia, he went to message him in WeChat: ¡°Heartless Han, how have you been recently?¡±

    Replying quickly, Fu Xinhui texted: ¡°Hey! How are you!? Is it a good time for a video chat?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Yep!¡±

    Momentster, Zhang Siyi¡¯s phone buzzed. Turning the light on quickly, he swiped to answer the video call and saw Fu Xinhui¡¯s face appear on the screen.

    Smiling, Fu Xinhui shouted in the phone: ¡°Xiao Yi!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Ha-ha. Why are you so excited?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Hey, how can I not be? We haven¡¯t contacted each other for a long time!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What time is it there? What are you doing?

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°It¡¯s 3 hours behind you. Even though its midnight, I just got back from work.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was surprised: ¡°Work? Did you get a job?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Yeah, I am no longer rich. I have to earn my own living expenses now.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What kind of work do you do? Why did youe back sote?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°I¡¯m working ate shift in a caf¨¦ until closing time. Where are you? Why are you still awake so early in the morning?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Well.¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Where are you living now? Do you live alone? How is Cheer-Up?¡±

    ¡°Umm...¡± Faced with the series of questions, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know where to begin.

    Watching Zhang Siyi¡¯s face, Fu Xinhui saw his expression look strained so he asked: ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡±

    Zhang Siyi decided to first exin about the dog: ¡°Your son isn¡¯t called Cheer-Up anymore. His name was changed and is called ¡®Townhouse¡¯.¡±

    ¡°Ah?¡± Fu Xinhui was concerned: ¡°Townhouse? What the hell kind of name is that! Why was it changed?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Never mind that. I have something else to tell you.¡±

    Fu Xinhui frowned: ¡°What?¡±

    Zhang Siyi took a deep breath and said: ¡°I¡¯m living with Gu Yu now.¡±

    Since Fu Xinhui was only familiar with person with the surname Gu that Zhang Siyi hated from the beginning of Zhang Siyi¡¯s employment, he thought it was strange and his facial expression remained nk.

    But Zhang Siyi went on to say: ¡°So now, I¡¯m with Gu Yu.¡±

    Remaining silent, Fu Xinhui didn¡¯t know how to react. Slowly, he questioned: ¡°What do you mean by with...?¡±

    Zhang Siyi solemnly stated: ¡°It is what you think it means.¡±

    Afraid of Fu Xinhui¡¯s thoughts, Zhang Siyi quickly added: ¡°We are in a rtionship.¡±

    Zhang Siyi dropped the bombshell. Over the phone, there was a series of noises and sounds because Fu Xinhui couldn¡¯t express words. Finally: ¡±Fuck! You, you...¡±

    Having expected this type of reaction from his friend, Zhang Siyi subconsciously held the phone away from his ear feeling anxious. However, he also felt relieved to be able to tell him the truth.

    Since Gu Yu posted a shadow photo of them on his social media, Zhang Siyi hasn¡¯t suffered any bacsh. Sooner orter, now that he wasmitted to Gu Yu for his lifetime, he would have toe out of the closet and be honest with the people close to him.

    Since he had been traveling in Yunnan and diligently working on the tourism project with Tao Fei, he hadn¡¯t found the opportunity to talk to Fu Xinhui. Currently, Tao Fei was the only person outside of family that knows the truth, but Zhang Siyi also wanted his best friend to understand.

    When he finally stopped shouting, Fu Xinhui took a calming breath and asked: ¡°Fuck! Are you teasing me!?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°No......¡±

    Still, Fu Xinhui didn¡¯t want to believe: ¡°Is it April Fool¡¯s Day?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°No... Today is May 15.¡±

    ¡°But, but, but... Aren¡¯t you straight!?¡± Even though Fu Xinhui already thought Gu Yu had an interest in Zhang Siyi when he met him at KTV, Zhang Siyi reactions were quite normal. He has known Zhang Siyi for so many years and didn¡¯t notice any gay tendencies.

    Squeezing the bridge of his nose, Zhang Siyi weakly said: ¡°Before, yes....¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Eh?!?!?!...¡±

    It was a huge shock for Fu Xinhui to learn that after knowing Zhang Siyi for five years, he could suddenly turn gay for another man. The news was too much for Fu Xinhui¡¯s mind to handle and he remained unable to speak clearly.

    Zhang Siyi added: ¡°I like him very much now and he likes me very much. We are serious.¡±

    ¡°Fuck, Fuuck, Fuuuuuuck! Don¡¯t say it!¡± Fu Xinhui shouted. Trembling, he raised his hand to cover his eyes. ¡°Let... let me digest it first.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°....¡±

    As Zhang Siyi thought, changing the dog¡¯s name was rather insignificantpared to this matter. ¨r (¨s_¨t) ¨q

    In an effort to ease the tension between them, Zhang Siyi changed the topic of conversation. They talked about work and studies and what they have been doing in their daily lives. Fu Xinhui spoke about his sessful admittance to M University¡¯s Department of Finance. Talking about another degree spurred Zhang Siyi to discuss his thoughts about going back to the UK for RIBA part 2 license.

    Fu Xinhui was absolutely supportive of this matter: ¡°Since you want to continue on the road of architecture, I feel that it is very necessary to go back and get a master¡¯s degree. The education not only determines your starting point, but also determines the height with which you can achieveter.¡±

    Talking about a Master¡¯s degree again and with Fu Xinhui¡¯s insistence, the path to a RIBA part 2 license has taken root in Zhang Siyi heart. After twenty minutes of talking, Fu Xinhui was much calmer and steered the conversation back to Zhang Siyi rtionship with Gu Yu.

    Zhang Siyi sinctly exined the situation to Fu Xinhui and stressed that they mutually liked each other and were willing to be together.

    Fu Xinhui sighed: ¡°Did you really think about it carefully?¡±

    Zhang Siyi vowed: ¡°Really.¡±

    After being silent for a minute, Fu Xinhui squinting eyes and said: ¡°You honestly tell me. Before you were with Gu Yu, did you have feelings for me?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Fuck no! Do you think it¡¯s that easy to be gay?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°......¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°That¡¯s good. I thought, since I suddenly left you alone, you became hungry....¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s eyes twitched. ¨CHow can Fu Xinhui brazenly talk as if there was never a problem to begin with. Also, what the fuck does ¡®hungry¡¯ mean. Gu Yu is so much better than you!

    Rubbing his chin in thought, Fu Xinhui curiously asked: ¡±What¡¯s sex like? Can you really get it up with him? What does it feel like to insert your...?¡±

    Zhang Siyi coldly said: ¡°You can sleep now. Bye!¡±

    Without hesitation, Zhang Siyi hung up the phone and thereby cutting off Fu Xinhui. He put the phone on the bedside table and held his pillow to his face and muffled his scream. Now that his feelings were vented, he felt calmer and seriously thought about the logistics of getting a Master¡¯s degree.

    First, the start of the University¡¯s semester is in September and before submitting an application, a person is expected to have at least one full year of work experience. For Zhang Siyi, that would be in August and as a result, make it impossible to apply this year. Second, another issue is money. Since his family already agreed to only support him while he got his undergraduate degree, he had to have enough money to pay his own tuition. Thinking about the cost of living in London in addition to the cost of tuition and school supplies...... Well, the road to saving money is very long! There is also a third point and the most important reason. Since he is with Gu Yu now, he was unable to imagine leaveing his side!

    Ah, so let¡¯s think it over in about two years!

    After the weekend break, Gu Yu¡¯s condition improved greatly. In order to thank Zhang Siyi for his care, Gu Yu specially gave him a bonus from his monthly living expenses making Zhang Siyi happy. Upon learning of Gu Yu¡¯s recovery, Tao Fei no longer felt the need to visit.

    On Monday morning, Gu Yu informed the team members about an announcement that will be made at the dinner tonight in celebration for Zhang Siyi and Tao Fei project.

    Everyone wondered what the announcement was and gossiped about it throughout the day:

    ¡°What¡¯s the good news?¡±

    ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±

    ¡°Have any of our group¡¯s projects won an award?¡±

    ¡°Could it be a corporate tour?¡±

    An employee that has been with thepany for long exined it for the newer employees. Thepany sponsors a trip for the designers every few years. Thest time was in 2013 and it was to Mysia.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s ears immediately stood up. There is such a good thing as to travel overseas?! Gu Yu hasn¡¯t mentioned it to Zhang Siyi at all.

    Letting everyone stir for the day in anticipation about the announcement, the good news wasn¡¯t confirmed until the evening at dinner. Gu Yu said: ¡°Next month, thepany will sponsor the design department to tour Japan.¡±

    Everyone cheered! Sure enough, someone had already guessed it!

    Gu Yu: ¡°Tong Heyi and I have organized a trip for everyone to visit Japan for ten days next month after The Dragon Boat Festival. Thepany willpensate thirty-thousand for the trip only for those traveling. Soon, the Ministry of Personnel will need your information to prepare a visa.¡±

    How can such a good thing happen? Some people are already excited to scream!

    Gu Yu said again: ¡°We are responsible for arranging the itinerary. The hotel personnel department will help you to book the hotels in advance. In order to save money, the rooms are double upancy. Our group happens to have eight men and four women. Pair up before making reservations for the hotel.¡±

    Just when Zhang Siyi was thinking how wonderful it would be able to travel and stay with Gu Yu, Lu Qiao interrupted his chain of thought. Staring right at Zhang Siyi he announced: ¡°Auntie Four, I¡¯ll stay with you!¡±

    In the excitement and good feeling of the moment, everyoneughed. Someone shouted: ¡°Ha-ha. Joe Sister with Aunt Four. Clearly, there are six boys and six girls!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°....¡± six men and six women? Screw you!

 Chapter 140: Privilege

    <h4>Chapter 140: Privilege</h4>

    ______________________

    Not only was Zhang Siyi¡¯s wishful thinking smashed to pieces, but he was also ssified as a girl!

    He felt very unhappy, but in such a public asion, Zhang Siyi had no reason to refuse the request. He nced at Gu Yu in hopes that he would say something casually and make some type of excuse in his favor.

    But then, Tao Fei took advantage of the situation and shouted: ¡°Hey, then I¡¯ll stay with my brother!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Dead fat peach! I will deal with you! (¨s¨F¡õ¡¯)¨s(©ß©¥©ß

    After that, the other colleagues in the room also formed pairs.

    Zhang Siyi was sullen all the way home. Before they arrived at the outer door, Gu Yu reached out and pulled his ear. Knowing something was bothering him, he asked: ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡±

    Zhang Siyi raised his eyebrows and tempered his temper: ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me about thepany¡¯s travel beforehand?¡±

    Gu Yu simply exined: ¡°I wanted it to be a surprise along with your colleagues.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was depressed: ¡°You didn¡¯t have to mention the pairs.¡±

    Gu Yu raised an eyebrow: ¡°What¡¯s done, is done.¡±

    Getting angrier, Zhang Siyi wanted to yell at Gu Yu. ¨CHow can he be so calm? Doesn¡¯t he regret the current development?

    Moving away, he strode forward quickly and left Gu Yu behind spitefully saying: ¡°Yes, you always know exactly what to do. Then go stay with Tao Fei!¡±

    Gu Yu caught up and grabbed his arm, stopping him and sighed: ¡°Zhang Siyi, why are you acting like this?¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s anger suddenly overflowed: ¡°What?¡± Gu Yu even addressed him by his surname!

    Gu Yu frowned and asked: ¡°What are you so angry about? That I¡¯m not rooming with you? But at the dinner table, Lu Qiao and Tao Fei have already spoken up. That¡¯s not something I can control.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± What the hell! Why is Gu Yu so dense?

    Some people on the roadside have been watching them. Zhang Siyi wanted to jerk away from Gu Yu¡¯s grasp, but he held onto Zhang Siyi firmly. Gu Yu demanded: ¡°Stop and make it clear!¡±

    Zhang Siyi loudly shouted: ¡°I¡¯m mad at you for not telling me in advance!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Didn¡¯t I just exin it? I wanted it to be a surprise for you and your colleagues.¡±

    Zhang Siyi replied quickly: ¡°Like hell it¡¯s a surprise. Everyone else had already guessed it, but I didn¡¯t know.¡±

    A moment of confusion shed on Gu Yu¡¯s face. Now with furrowed brows, Gu Yu suddenly raised his voice: ¡°Because of this small matter, you are angry with me? What do you want? To tell you everything in the future? Have you forgotten our agreement? I won¡¯t give you special treatment at work.¡±

    Zhang Siyished out: ¡°What about staying and working with me until ten o¡¯clockst week!? Is that not special treatment!?¡±

    Gu Yu defended himself: ¡°This and that are two different things.¡±

    Zhang Siyi interrupted him: ¡°Yes, yes. You always have had your reasons! You have defined public and private matters. Have you ever considered my feelings!? I just wanted a little boyfriend privilege!¡±

    Startled by Zhang Siyi explosive admission, Gu Yu¡¯s reaction eased up, his expression softened and gently said: ¡°You......¡±

    With red eyes and a violently heaving chest, Zhang Siyi tried to jerk himself away from Gu Yu and stated: ¡°Let go!¡±

    However, Gu Yu did not let go. Instead, for the remaining hundred meters to the door, Gu Yu pulled Zhang Siyi quickly along. Once inside their house, he wrapped both arms around Zhang Siyi and held onto him. Gasping for air, Gu Yu apologized: ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I didn¡¯t consider your feelings.¡±

    Even though Zhang Siyi gave Gu Yu an honest answer, Gu Yu still lectured him. Putting up a front and trying to ignore him, Zhang Siyi turned his head to the side. ¨C I don¡¯t want to talk to you for a half an hour!

    Gu Yu went over to kiss him, but Zhang Siyi was still angry and turned his head to the other side, avoiding Gu Yu.

    ..... Speak and kiss. I can¡¯t do it when I¡¯m angry! However, Gu Yu didn¡¯t let Zhang Siyi get away. In another moment, Gu Yu caught his lips and kissed Zhang Siyi deeply.

    ¡°Mmm..., Ahh....!¡± Shit. No fair!

    ......

    Holding onto Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu coaxed his lips open and inserted his tongue into Zhang Siyi hot mouth. After a few minutes, when he felt Zhang Siyi start to rx, he knew his temper had cooled down. Gu Yu released his lips and with his forehead against Zhang Siyi¡¯s forehead he looked right into Zhang Siyi eyes and softly said: ¡°Who was it a few days ago that said we aren¡¯t allowed to have any more cold wars? Are you going to break the rules? Huh, puppy?¡±

    Zhang Siyi stepped back and blurted out: ¡°You are the puppy!¡±

    Looking at his hot-tempered lover with moistened lips, Gu Yu regained his hold on Zhang Siyi and pulled him close. While embracing him, Gu Yu smiled weakly and leaned his head against Zhang Siyi shoulder than sighed: ¡°Love is really difficult....¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Speaking softly, Gu Yu expressed his private thoughts: ¡°I originally thought that if we have rules, then life will proceed step-by-step ording to the n. As long as we are both tolerant of each other, we won¡¯t have any disagreements.

    How is it possible not to argue? Quarreling,promising... learning to be with another person.... Isn¡¯t that, what love was about?

    Although, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t expect it to be so frequent. This morning, Zhang Siyi woke up feeling refreshed and full of love. Thest thing he thought would happen, would be another argument just twelve hourster.

    Gu Yu sighed. It wasn¡¯t until now that he realized that love isn¡¯t so simple. He was always unwittingly doing something that displeased his lover. Rational thought escaped him. When Zhang Siyi ignored him, he wasn¡¯t happy. When Zhang Siyi argued with him, he got agitated. When Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t well, Gu Yu still suffers.

    ¡°It¡¯s my fault.¡± Gu Yu said feeling somewhat frustrated and helpless. ¡°Maybe, I really don¡¯t know how to fall in love.¡± For the first time, this confident man admitted his imperfections. ¡°You have more experience than I do. When I make a mistake will you teach me the correct way in the future?¡± Gu Yu whispered to Zhang Siyi.

    Listening to Gu Yu affectionate monologue, Zhang Siyi let go of his anger all at once. He slowly reached around Gu Yu and held him tightly. Apologetically, he said: ¡°I shouldn¡¯t be so angry. In fact, I just wanted to stay with you. If you had told me about the trip in advance, we could have tweaked the oue a little without effecting work, right? But you openly announced it at dinner, so there wasn¡¯t time to think of anything.¡±

    Gu Yu asked: ¡°So, it¡¯s not really about telling the n in advance. If we were able to stay together, you wouldn¡¯t be so upset?¡±

    Zhang Siyi looked down and buried his head on Gu Yu then confessed: ¡°Yes.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°What about the privileges of your boyfriend?¡±

    Zhang Siyi clung to him and dered hesitantly: ¡°I want that too.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°......¡±

    ¡°I know ...¡± Gu Yu smiled gently at him and sighed again. The thought of losing Zhang Siyi frightened himpletely. Firmly ingraining Zhang Siyi¡¯s essence and body into Gu Yu¡¯s memory and soul, he squeezed Zhang Siyi tightly and took a deep breath in through his nose.

    In the past, Gu Yu felt love may be like analytic geometry. The rtionship between the two will gradually progress step by step as one does when solving a mathematical problem. However, reality is different than his expectations. There is no logic in love at all. The process is like going through a maze. Even if he is holding Zhang Siyi¡¯s hand tightly, they may suddenly be separated. They may shout across the walls, or may drift apart, but ultimately would be reunited again at an unexpected intersection by an unexined turn of events. Each time they separated, Gu Yu tentatively prodded different possible avenues in order to find the fastest method to appease Zhang Siyi and resolve any problems.

    Zhang Siyi buried his face on Gu Yu¡¯s shoulder and affectionately responded: ¡°And, I have no more experience than you. After being with you, I realized my rtionship with my ex-girlfriend is nothing like ours.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°What¡¯s the difference?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°When I was with her, I simply felt like it was fresh and fun. I didn¡¯t imagine any future with her... but with you, I often think about.... In short, I like you more.¡±

    Hearing a simple ¡®I like you more¡¯ made Gu Yu feel deeply happy. After gazing in each other¡¯s eyes, they naturally kissed.

    From a boiling hot volcano to theforting, undting waters of a calm ocean, Zhang Siyi could easily feel Gu Yu emotions and in response, enthusiastically obliged. Embracing one another closely, they couldn¡¯t bear to be separated and as a result, they quickly perceived each other¡¯s desire.

    Lovingly, Gu Yu caressed the side of Zhang Siyi face and sensuously whispered in Zhang Siyi ear: ¡°Do you want to try tonight?¡±

    Zhang Siyi face turned red: ¡°...ah?¡±

    Without waiting for Zhang Siyi to answer, Gu Yu lead him upstairs.

    Flustered, Zhang Siyi thoughts were in a panic. He said ¡®try it¡¯ making it difficult to rx. He clenched up his lower body and unconsciously flinched: ¡°Should we take a shower first?¡±

    He wanted to use a slow-moving n but unexpectedly, Gu Yu smiled and stated: ¡°Yes. Let¡¯s wash together.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°!!!¡±

    First, Gu Yu took him to the bathroom and then, he went to the bedroom to get something.

    Since being called a child that doesn¡¯t understand anything by Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi secretly checked the inte about male love. Watching Gu Yu came back with a small bottle in his hand, Zhang Siyi face turned a deeper shade of red!

    ..... Fuck! Gu Yu isn¡¯t joking! What to do! What to do! .... !!!!

    Gu Yu put the bottle of lubricating fluid on the washroom table and stepped forward to grab Zhang Siyi¡¯s shirt cor and slowly but irresistibly, pulled him close and kissed him deeply.

    Gu Yu: ¡°What are you standing around for? Are you afraid?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...I am not afraid!¡±

    ..... He¡¯s nervous! Nervous to death! Aaaaaah!

    Looking at him tenderly, Gu Yu smiled and like the unwrapping of a very valuable gift, he began to slowly and carefully undress Zhang Siyi. First the buttons, one by one. Then, he slowly peeled off Zhang Siyi¡¯s shirt. With each movement, Gu Yu moved tenderly and gently across Zhang Siyi¡¯s body. When their bare skin made contact an electric current ran through him, heightening his lust.

    Watching Gu Yu movements, Zhang Siyi felt the thrill of undressing another person. Unlike Gu Yu¡¯s confident moves, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t stop his hand from trembling. Now that Zhang Siyi chest was fully bare, he needed to take off his pants. Zhang Siyi felt anxious and said: ¡°I¡¯ll help.¡±

    Gu Yu smiled and said: ¡°Okay.¡±

    Unfastening his jeans, he let them drop and slipped his hand in the stic band to slip off his underwear. While he was reaching over to pull off the garments, he felt like his position wasn¡¯t quite right. When he turned his head, sure enough, Gu Yu was staring at his ass.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...!!!¡±

    Zhang Siyi became angry and said: ¡°Don¡¯t patronize me. You also take off your clothes!¡±

    Continuing to stare at Zhang Siyi with desire, the edges of his mouth raised into a slight grin. He slowly wet his lips and cooperatively reached down and seductively unfastened his belt.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± The maniption. Fuck !!!

    Now that Zhang Siyi was naked, he wanted to get into the tub and hide. ncing back at Gu Yu quickly, Zhang Siyi saw that his pants were already tossed aside and he reached out to caress his ass. Feeling scared, Zhang Siyi was trembling and unconsciously took a step away from Gu Yu.

    Watching Zhang Siyi try to flee in a slightly panicked state, Gu Yu couldn¡¯t suppress hisughter.

    After Gu Yu slowly removed thestyer of clothing, he picked up the lubricating fluid and walked over to Zhang Siyi.

    Zhang Siyi did not dare to turn his back to Gu Yu. He turned on the shower and gave Gu Yu an inviting look to join him.

    Even though he has held Gu Yu in his arms while clothed andid next to him in bed under the nkets, it was the first time Zhang Siyi saw him naked in well-lit conditions. Looking at Gu Yu¡¯s naked body with his own eyes was another shock.

    Gu Yu¡¯s body was so beautiful. With perfect proportions and delicate skin, he has well-defined muscles without added bulk making all of his body parts sexy. And at his waist, because of lust, that ce is clearly visible and its size and shape isn¡¯t inferior.

    Infatuated, Zhang Siyi inspected him for a while and suddenly reacted. His face flushed and he didn¡¯t know where to put his line of sight.

    Gu Yu walked under the shower and reached out towards Zhang Siyi. Catching Zhang Siyi¡¯s red face in his hands, he pulled him a little closer and pressed his lips against Zhang Siyi¡¯s own and then said: ¡°I got you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Across the water vapor, Zhang Siyi was forced to look at Gu Yu in the eyes. Whether it was really in ¡®the eyes of the beholder¡¯ or because he was a ¡®natural beauty¡¯, Zhang Siyi had to admit how much he lusted after Gu Yu¡¯s attractive body.

    As the water flowed around their bodies, while using soap and shampoo, they touched each other tenderly. Tentatively at first, but with growing confidence. Laughter from yful pecks and caresses turned into heavy breathing and erotic moans. As their desire increased, so did the speed and firmness of their caresses be. Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know how he was turned around. Bing more and more emotional, Zhang Siyi could feel Gu Yu¡¯s hard organ pressed against him.

    Gu Yu shut off the water. With one hand holding his waist, the other reached around to tease his front causing Zhang Siyi to release a moan: ¡°Mmm..¡± In order to apply some lubricant, Gu Yu released him briefly, and reached over for the small bottle. When Zhang Siyi felt the cool liquid on his skin, he instinctively wanted to hide, but Gu Yu quickly grabbed his organ and immobilized him.

    Leaning over, Gu Yu took his ear with his tongue and lips and sucked it a bit. Softly he coaxed him: ¡°Don¡¯t be afraid. Today, I won¡¯t go in. Just massage.¡±

    Gu Yu continued to kiss Zhang Siyi along the side of his head to the back of his neck and gradually, under Gu Yu¡¯s spell, Zhang Siyi rxed. Clearly feeling Gu Yu hot body, he leaned on him. With the lubricant, Gu Yu inserted his long finger into Zhang Siyi and gently pressed on the interior space. Together with a slow undting motion, Gu Yu massaged both the front and back with the same frequency.

    Swaying gently with the movement, Zhang Siyi arched his back and could feel his scalp start to tingle. Feeling the sensations from within, Zhang Siyi involuntarily released a series of moans: ¡°Ahh.... Mm....¡±

    Detecting a change in Zhang Siyi¡¯s pleasure, Gu Yu persistently stimted the newfound spot. As his cries became louder and more frequent, Gu Yu increased the speed of his hand. Gentle hip movements, became involuntary thrusts in synchrony with the swells of pleasure, building from within. After five minutes, Zhang Siyi could no longer suppress his voice and moaned louder: ¡°Ahh, Ahh... Ahh... Ahh....¡± Sensing Zhang Siyi¡¯s need, at the top of the action, Gu Yu trust his finger deeper and harder into him.

    When his orgasm came, Zhang Siyi spasmed and loudly cried out: ¡°AAAHHHH!¡±

    After the surge of pleasure ended, Zhang Siyi regained his senses and could feel Gu Yu¡¯s lips mped down on his neck and his engorged organ pressed against him. Although Zhang Siyi finished his climax, Gu Yu has not. Pressing up against Zhang Siyi and holding him tight, Gu Yu was desperately thrusting his fingers hard as if to make up for theck of use of a different organ.

    Without the pleasure of the front to divert his attention, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t care for the sensations from the back. Now, he only felt that his ass was hot and ufortable, but even so, he endured it for another minute before twisting his waist and speaking: ¡°I, I will help you with my hand......¡±

    After onest hard thrust, Gu Yu stopped and removed his finger then forcefully turned him over and aggressively kissed him as a way to vent his unsatisfied desires.

    Being a man, when your heightened sexual desire isn¡¯t fulfilled, Zhang Siyi understood how ufortable Gu Yu must feel at this time and as a result, hepletely submitted to Gu Yu¡¯s onught.

    Suddenly, Gu Yu turned on the shower and gently helped Zhang Siyi clean up a bit. After, Gu Yu pushed him out, andmanded: ¡°Go to bed and wait for me.¡±

    In a short while, Gu Yu walked into the bedroom and casually put on a bathrobe. His lower body was still stiff and the lust in his eyes hadn¡¯t faded. Zhang Siyi simply thought he was going to reach out to help, but before he got the chance, Gu Yu spoke to him passionately: ¡°You can help me with your mouth.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...... Huh?¡±

    Gu Yu looked at him and raised his eyebrows: ¡°Who was it a few days ago that yed unfair games and as a result got a bad cold....? And now, you are acting reluctant? Was that just a trick?¡±

    Zhang Siyi approached him: ¡°Who was the one ying!¡±

    Gu Yu chuckled. His ability to spur Zhang Siyi into action by pushing his buttons was a sess. Looking at Zhang Siyi, he motioned for him to kneel and take action then smiled and said: ¡°This is also the privilege of a boyfriend.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Shit!

    If he hadn¡¯t just been on the receiving end of sexual satisfaction, he wouldn¡¯t have used his mouth. He was feeling guilty and didn¡¯t want to talk about it. The specific reason, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t fully understand. Perhaps on that day, since Gu Yu appeared so small and vulnerable that it spurred Zhang Siyi¡¯s interest to experience the desire to tease and bully him. However, today is very different from before.

    Like previous, when Zhang Siyi massaged Gu Yu¡¯s hardness for the first time, he thought about how he wanted to pleasure Gu Yu and make him feel good. In this way, it helped Zhang Siyi get over his own psychological barrier. He threw away his self-respect and shame and gently stroked Gu Yu¡¯s erection with his hand. Zhang Siyi slowly closed his eyes and swallowed him into his wet mouth...... Well, it¡¯s huge!

    Gu Yu trembled all over then reached out to feel Zhang Siyi head and let out afortable sigh.

    When Zhang Siyi enveloped him into his mouth, he could feel Gu Yu tremble twice, signaling to Zhang Siyi that Gu Yu was approaching his climax. He suddenly remembered his experience ejacting prematurely and wanted Gu Yu toe quickly in revenge. Since they were just in the bathroom actively engaged in their sexual desires for some time, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t believe that Gu Yu could persist for too long. As a result, Zhang Siyi was extremely intimate and eager to please him.

    Gu Yu told him not to use his teeth and described the actions he wanted from Zhang Siyi. For almost ten minutes, Zhang Siyi diligently worked his mouth and tongue to put pressure on his shaft and caress Gu Yu¡¯s tip. Although Gu Yu was letting out erotic moans of pleasure and his organ became even harder, there weren¡¯t further signs of his climax at all!

    Feeling confused over his vindictive n not working, Zhang Siyi spit him out and asked: ¡°Why are yousting for so long!?¡±

    Being immersed in pleasure, Gu Yu mood was exuberant. When Zhang Siyi stopped to ask him so seriously, Gu Yu thought it was like asking an academic question and found Zhang Siyi very cute. Gu Yu couldn¡¯t stop himself fromughing.

    Watching Gu Yu constantlyugh made Zhang Siyi blush: ¡°What¡¯s so funny!?¡±

    Gu Yu petted his head and softly said: ¡°Because I¡¯m in control.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu encouraged him to continue: ¡°Come on, I can¡¯t climax if you stop.¡±

    Feeling Zhang Siyi wrap his mouth around him once again, Gu Yu squinted his eye and let out his voice: ¡°Mmm... Ahhh...¡± Holding the back of his head, Gu Yu gently pressed his head onto himself more deeply while encouraging him: ¡°Ahh... Hmm... Feels good...¡±

    Listening to his sexy voice full of desire, Zhang Siyi felt the resonance in his voice effect his brain like he was being hypnotized......

    ¡°Hmm... Good... Baby, swallow a little deeper.... That¡¯s it... Mmm.. More....¡±

    ¡°Ahh, ahh, ahh... Good boy... Mm-hmm... A little faster... Ahh, ahh, ahh....¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.....¡± Shit! Can you shut the fuck up! I¡¯m about to be as hard as you!

    Since it took a long time, Zhang Siyi was a little numb. His original enthusiasm ended long ago and now, he only mechanically repeated the motions. When he felt like he couldn¡¯t open his mouth any longer, Gu Yu suddenly tightened his hands into fists, grasping his hair and firmly pushed him to make a few deep thrusts and then jerked his head away.

    As Zhang Siyi was coughing, in order to wipe his mouth, without a sense of aplishment, he reached for the tissue that Gu Yu was handing him. Turning his back, Zhang Siyi went to lie down in shame. With a taste full of Gu Yu, he didn¡¯t dare think about what just happened.

    Gu Yu chuckled and tightened the quilt around him. He kissed his red ears with satisfaction and softly said: ¡°You worked hard. Now go to sleep.¡±

    Zhang Siyi shrunk his neck down into the bedding and muttered ¡°good night.¡± In a daze, he closed his eyes, but before falling asleep he was thinking: ¨C clearly, he was the one that was angry first and Gu Yu also admitted his own fault. Why in bed was he the one that had topensate?

    When Zhang Siyi woke up the next morning, his mouth was still sore. He felt like he had dug himself a huge pit! When Gu Yu woke up, he was feeling so refreshed and happy that he gave Zhang Siyi a few joyous good morning kisses on his head.

    As always, Zhang Siyi entered thepany building and headed upstairs before Gu Yu.

    He saw his colleagues gathered together discussing thetestpany news eagerly. It seems like everyone is really excited about traveling abroad.

    One of the male colleagues also joked: ¡°Our group of six men and six women are all single. Who has the time to socialize and fall in love in this industry...? This trip, it¡¯s better to pair up and y ten-days of couple¡¯s games. What do you think?

    The proposal immediately gained support, especially among the male colleagues here. The girls in the group aren¡¯t bad, but because of the demands in their field of work, there was never a time to develop an office romance.

    Now that it was mentioned, with further thought, the girls were also showing excitement. The list of twelve people also included Gu Yu and Tao Fei. Since there were only four of them, the chance of being Gu Yu¡¯s girlfriend was very good. Even if it was just a game, it was a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity!

    Zhang Siyi was the only one that protested: ¡°Wait, what are you talking about; six men and six women? Are you treating Lu Qiao and I as girls?¡±

    Everyone froze for a moment thenughed together. They nodded: ¡°Yes!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Shit! Just because of my nickname? I don¡¯t even look like a girl. If you really want to y at matching couples, clearly Tao Fei is a more suitable substitute!

    It was at this time that Gu Yu appeared from the elevator and saw everyone chatting andughing happily. He asked them what the fuss was about. When they saw that their boss was in a good mood, someone boldly ryed the couple game idea for the trip and asked for the Boss¡¯s opinion. That¡¯s right, this game can¡¯t be yed without the Boss¡¯s approval.

    Nodding in understanding, Gu Yu looked around at the group and finally stopped his eye sight on Zhang Siyi: ¡°Then I will be first to pick Zhang Siyi.¡±

 Chapter 141: Real Fake Act

    <h4>Chapter 141: Real Fake Act</h4>

    _____________________________

    Hearing Gu Yu announcement, Zhang Siyi heart skipped a beat and quickly stared at Gu Yu wide eyed in surprise. Before turning into his office, Gu Yu smiled at him.

    Shit! Gu Yu was so daring that he chose him directly. Is he not afraid of their colleagues¡¯ misunderstandings?

    Even though Zhang Siyi was worried about it, his colleagues really didn¡¯t seem to care. Rather, it was expected. Perhaps, Gu Yu did not want to y the game. However, he also didn¡¯t want to spoil their fun and therefore he chose a boy. Zhang Siyi was thepany¡¯s mascot and everyone saw their good rtionship during the annual festival so it didn¡¯t seem unnatural for Zhang Siyi to be picked.

    The same is true for the female colleagues. On one hand, since their opportunity was taken away, they were a little depressed, but on the other hand, they also felt relieved. After all, if Gu Yu really choose a female colleague, it will definitely cause problems. Only by selecting a male colleague could everyone coexist peacefully.

    Even if there wasn¡¯t a misunderstanding, the girls couldn¡¯t stop themselves from staring at Zhang Siyi.

    When Zhang Siyi heard Gu Yu, several watchful female colleagues caught Zhang Siyi show a ¡®shy¡¯ expression. They all covered their mouths andughed. Bi Lele caught Zhang Siyi by surprise and said: ¡°Hey, Auntie Four, why are you so shy!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­.¡± (o////o)

    Smiling, Xu Jia also followed suite: ¡°It seems that the boss really likes you!¡±

    Du Rui held his face with both hands and squished his cheeks: ¡°I¡¯m so jealous. I wish I was a boy!¡±

    Even Zhu Hongzhen followed up and happily joked: ¡°Congrattions! You are favored by the boss again!¡±

    Zhang Siyi can¡¯t tell whether they were joking or if they really could see their true rtionship. Feeling a bit nervous and helpless, Zhang Siyi turned red.

    Bi Lele sniggered: ¡°Wow, why is your face red? Ha-ha-ha! Are you a kid? What funny reactions!¡±

    Thestment brought Zhang Siyi over the top and was finally provoked. He raised his voice to state: ¡°It¡¯s already after nine and no one is working!¡±

    The crowdughed while returning to their respective desks. He could still hear some of the girls whispering about the couples¡¯ game. When everyone walked away, Zhang Siyi sat down at his desk and brought up the internal chat program on hisputer. He selected Gu Yu¡¯s icon and as he channeled his energy into typing out his message, he made a series of loud clicking noises: ¡°How can you say that in front of everyone!? What are we going to do if they guess the true nature of our rtionship?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Don¡¯t you want the privilege of a boyfriend?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°I made a reservation this time, so I don¡¯t have to be robbed again.¡± ??

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡­.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Well, those female colleagues just wanted to tease you. Act naturally and don¡¯t worry about it. Now, get to work.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    Be normal and rx ¡­¡­ Shit, he¡¯s not that kind of guy!!!

    In recent days after their joint project, Zhang Siyi and Tao Fei often ate together at lunch time. Carrying his Bento, Tao Fei selected an empty table and sat down with Zhang Siyi. Not more then a couple bites of food reached Zhang Siyi stomach before Tao Fei spoke: ¡°The girls told me about the couples¡¯ game this morning.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I heard them talking. Who did you choose?¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°No one yet. How am I supposed to choose when there are four girls?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± God Damn! Four choices aren¡¯t enough? Tao Fei already has the second-best treatment from the girls in the design team. Thinking about it made Zhang Siyi feel irritated. He is obviously a man, but because of his nick-name, he felt cheated. Theybeled him as a girl and thus, he had to wait until someone picked him instead of choosing for himself.

    ¡°I heard that Gu Yu selected you.¡± Tao Fei nced at him mischievously: ¡°He is bold enough. Don¡¯t end up revealing the secret.¡±

    With his eyes darting around the room like a small frightened animal, Zhang Siyi held a finger up to his lips and directed a ¡°Shhh¡± at Tao Fei.

    Tao Feiughed at his ¡®shush-ing¡¯ antics: ¡°There is no use in shush-ing me. In thepany, I don¡¯t think anyone has noticed. In the morning, the girls were saying my brother still treated you well like always.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was feeling a little guilty: ¡°I think it will be OK.¡±

    Tao Fei turned a blind eye: ¡°Is it okay? Don¡¯t you feel like the way Gu Yu looks and speaks to you is different than anyone else?

    Zhang Siyi nervously questioned: ¡°Where is there a difference?¡±

    In a long drawn out, exaggerated tone, Tao Fei exined: ¡°Ahh, the gentle, lingering eyes and the tender voice¡­.It gives me goosebumps!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°He does not!¡±

    Pausing a moment in thought, Tao Fei stirred his food then said: ¡°But I wouldn¡¯t worry about it so much. I think Gu Yu may have deliberately wanted to y real-fake-act with you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi said: ¡°What do you mean? What is the real-fake-act?¡±

    Tao Fei exined: ¡°In fact, when we were at Big T, we were considered a couple.¡±

    Zhang Siyi remembered Tao Fei¡¯s social media page where he posted pictures of Gu Yu and him together when his ssmates asked for them.

    Reminiscing, Tao Feiughed out loud and said: ¡°Especially some of the rotten girls from the architecture department. They started a forum and posted candid pictures of us together.¡±

    Zhang Siyi:¡±¡­¡­!¡± Is there such a thing? He¡¯s going to get jealous again!

    Tao Fei went on: ¡°Even though we didn¡¯t have an intimate rtionship we yed it up sometimes for the girls. Neither of us were dating so it wasn¡¯t a big deal. The jokes never got out of hand and besides, Gu Yu never cared about gossip anyway.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was deep in thought. Indeed, he and Fu Xinhui were often passed on as a pair. Although it used to bother him, as Tao Fei said, if the person does not care, being misunderstood will neither affect their friendship nor their respective lives.

    Tao Fei: ¡°However, if the person being joked about has a rtionship with someone else already, then it¡¯s not appropriate.¡±

    Zhang Siyi nodded. It¡¯s no wonder that Tao Feiter deleted the photo of him and Gu Yu.

    Tao Fei said: ¡°Gu Yu may want to create this illusion with you in front of our colleagues. If you deliberately let everyone think of you both as a pair, then the more frank you are, the more people will take it as a joke. In contrast, the more careful and nervous you are, then the more suspicious you be and your true rtionship will be revealed.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡± !!! ¡± makes sense!

    Under the pretext by Gu Yu¡¯s actions that Tao Fei exined let Zhang Siyi feel more secure and thus, less nervous about exposing their rtionship.

    After swallowing his mouthful of food, Tao Fei said: ¡°That being said, I believe that the couple game was a n devised by a male colleague who had ulterior motives because they like someone in thepany. Deliberately ying the game would let him cover up his true intentions.¡±

    As Zhang Siyi was going to say something more, Ji Feiyu sat down next to them with his lunch box. Zhang Siyi retracted his thoughts.

    Ji Feiyu: ¡°You guys look so happy. What are you talking about?¡±

    Zhang Siyi repeated what Tao Fei said to Ji Feiyu.

    Smiling, Ji Feiyu chuckled: ¡°Hey, you saw through me!¡±

    Stunned, Zhang Siyi stared at Ji Feiyu. Thinking about this morning again, he realized the person who proposed the couples game idea was in fact Ji Feiyu.

    Grinning, Tao Fei curiously inquired: ¡°So who is it? Du Rui?¡±

    Ji Feiyu shyly said: ¡°Shhh! Don¡¯t say anything!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± Tao Fei guessed it again? Nothing can hide this Fat Peach¡¯s eyes! (¡ú_¡ú)

    Tao Fei said: ¡°There is no use in shush-ing me. Well, I often see you sharing food and treating her nicely. Maybe she will be able to feel it!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± Deja-vu! (=_=)

    Ji Feiyu panicked: ¡°Is it so obvious?¡±

    Tao Fei nodded: ¡°Yes.¡±

    Since Tao Fei was the only one to notice, Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t so sure.

    Wanting to exin it further, Ji Feiyu eagerly talked to them: ¡°It wasn¡¯t just Du Rui. I didn¡¯t want to single her out so I also passed along some treats to others and as a result it got more people involved to share together.

    Tao Fei: ¡°But even though you shared with her, because there were many others afterwards, it makes it seem like you were never sincere in the beginning.¡±

    Ji Feiyu.:¡°¡­¡­¡±

    Zhang Siyi is also stunned to hear Tao Fei as he could perceive this little detail. Shit! He is really impressed with the Fat Peach!

    Tao Fei scoffed: ¡°If you want a real rtionship then why bother suggesting the couples¡¯ game? What kind of foresight is that!?¡±

    Scratching his head, Ji Feiyu admitted: ¡°I¡¯m afraid of being rejected. Since we work together in the same office, it would be really embarrassing and awkward.¡±

    Zhang Siyi interjected: ¡°Chicken brother, I don¡¯t want to burst your bubble, but doesn¡¯t Du Rui like Gu Yu?¡±

    When Zhang Siyi first started his job at thepany, he had a really favorable impression of Du Rui. Later, when they became more familiar, she admitted to liking the Boss. Thest thing he expected was to be her love rival and was now with Gu Yu. Life can be so unpredictable!

    Ji Feiyu sighed, helpless: ¡°Hey, I already know this. In our group, which girl does not like the Boss?¡±

    Tao Fei suddenly stuck up his index finger and moved it back and forth: ¡°No, No, No! You are mistaken. That isn¡¯t love or like. The girls simply worship him like an idol for fun as some do with me. I firmly believe that the girls in our department are very sensible. They know the difference.¡±

    Being supportive, Zhang Siyi was trying to nod, but then Tao Fei continued and said: ¡°Not to mention my brother likes Zhang Siyi. There is no chance for them.¡±

    ¡°Pfft¨C!¡± Zhang Siyi spit out a mouthful of vegetable soup. Dead Fat Peach! Are you a friend or foe!?!?

    Ji Feiyuughed out loud at Tao Feiment then smiled:¡± Yeah, fortunately Boss choose Aunt Four this morning. What a relief!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡­¡± What? Ji Feiyu reaction is¡­ normal?

    Ji Feiyu looked at Tao Fei and said: ¡°But they are still waiting for you to choose someone!¡±

    Tao Fei said: ¡°Well, Joe Sister should be alright. I won¡¯t bother ying the couples game. If you mistakenly give a girl the illusion of love, it is very troublesome.¡±

    Ji Feiyu said with gratitude: ¡°Thank you, thank you! I misjudged You!¡±

    Gesturing his hand back and forth, Tao Fei said: ¡°It¡¯s not a problem.¡±

    After Ji Feiyu left, Tao Fei whispered to Zhang Siyi: ¡°Actually, I feel like Du Rui is also interested in him.¡±

    If Tao Fei had mentioned this previously, Zhang Siyi wouldn¡¯t have believed him. However, now that he had witnessed the ¡®Peach-Eyes¡¯, whatever love affair Tao Fei spectes, then it must be true!

    Tao Fei also asked Zhang Siyi: ¡°Are you familiar with Joe Sister? He is also rather handsome, but he is usually very quiet.¡±

    Zhang Siyi recalled the business trip he has with Lu Qiao and didn¡¯t have any problems with him. He nodded: ¡°He should be a good roommate.¡±

    One person is the self-proimed Old-Lady of thepany and the other is the longhaired Lady of thepany. Zhang Siyi thought these two could certainly get along!

 Chapter 142: Plans

    <h4>Chapter 142: ns</h4>

    ___________________

    In the afternoon, Zhang Siyi and Tao Fei continued to refine the designs for the tourism hotel project. Even though Party A chose an overall more conservative scheme with mostly non-curvilinear buildings, they wanted to retained some of the more unique rounded buildings. While Zhang Siyi was responsible for working on the holiday vis, Tao Fei was developing the main focus of the project; therge-scale integrated hotel. Before the 20th of next month, they will have to travel to Party A and make a status report of the project.

    Even if they were working diligently, it seems like no one else was. Everyone was caught up in the excitement over the nnedpany trip to Japan.

    Bi Lele: ¡°Have you heard of Shinjuku Ni-Chome in Tokyo?¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen excitedly responded: ¡°Isn¡¯t that the red-light district?¡±

    Squinting at Bi Lele, Yuan Zhicheng said: ¡°Are you so hungry that you need to find a rent-boy there?¡±

    Bi Lele red at him coldly: ¡°Kabukichou is the ce for that. Ni-Chome is the famous gay-district in Tokyo.¡±

    Wide eyed, Yuan Zhicheng looked at Zhu Hongzhen in surprise: ¡°You have heard about it already....? You know a lot.¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen¡¯s eyes twitched: ¡°I remembered it wrong...¡±

    Smirking, Bi Lele teased them: ¡°If you ¡°older sisters¡± go hang out there at night, I guess you all will be picked up by men, especially Auntie Four.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± He is clearly minding his own business working so why are they involving him!¡±

    Yuan Zhicheng: ¡°You think too much. Didn¡¯t Boss say we are going to visit various architectural sites for educational purposes? I don¡¯t think we will go to any strange ces.¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen nodded in recognition: ¡°Yeah, that¡¯s true. Although, I would love to go to Akihabara and get a coffee at a maid caf¨¦ for the experience.

    Zhang Siyi looked up with excitement: ¡°Ah, Akihabara? Isn¡¯t that where all the anime merchandise is sold?¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°That¡¯s right! Have you heard of it, too?¡±

    Once a big fan of anime, how could Zhang Siyi not know about Akihabara. The topic quickly diverged and everyone started talking about their favorite anime. He fondly remembered One Piece and Hunter X Hunter.

    Interrupting, Yuan Zhicheng reminded them again: ¡°Didn¡¯t I just say we are going for work purposes.¡±

    In their hearts, everyone let out a collective sigh: ¡°How good would it be If only we could go y.¡±

    In the evening, Zhang Siyi and Gu Xiao returned home. In order topensate forst night¡¯s ¡°service¡±, Gu Yu personally cooked dinner for Zhang Siyi. Even so, Zhang Siyi continued to follow Gu Yu around the kitchen and helped him prepare the food.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Today everyone was talking about the fun things to do in Japan. Has the itinerary been nned?¡±

    As Gu Yu put a fish in a pot to cook, he smiled at him: ¡°I haven¡¯t. Do you want to make ns?¡±

    Zhang Siyi was stunned: ¡°Me?¡±

    Gu Yu covered the pan with a lid: ¡°Yes you. Where do you want to go? This is also the privilege of a boyfriend, isn¡¯t it?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Having mentioned it yesterday, how could Gu Yu so easily put ¡®the privilege of a boyfriend¡¯ into practice? He could practically feel himself swoon!

    As the fish was left to cook in the pot, Gu Yu continued to prepare the vegetables and said: ¡°Let¡¯s take a look at the optionster and make a n. Then I can talk to Tong Heyi for feedback. Recently, she has been busy with a project and didn¡¯t have the energy to make an itinerary for thepany trip. As a result, she left it up to me to decide which destinations we will go to.¡±

    In thought, Zhang Siyi let out a ¡°Hmmmm.¡± As soon as he thought about the day¡¯s conversation, he realized he had the power to control his colleagues wishes within his grasp and this feeling made Zhang Siyi feel pretty good. ~\(¨R¨Œ¨Q) /~

    After dinner, both Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu went upstairs to research ces for thepany Trip. Gu Yu went into his room to grab a notebook then made tea. After slicing some fruit, he poured two cups of tea then sat down on the tatami mats alongside Zhang Siyi.

    Japan¡¯s architecturalmunity is very famous internationally. From 1979 to the present, there are six winners of the Pulitzer Prize. In contrast to the situation in China, where there are few well-known architectural masters, Japanese modernity has brought together many world-renowned architectural masters from a variety of genres and styles.

    During Zhang Siyi undergraduate studies, the modern architecture professors often used examples of the works by Japanese masters like Ando¡¯s Church of Light and Kurokawa¡¯s National Art Center for their lecture topics.

    In addition to modern architecture, Japan also has many famous ancient buildings. Although there are some simrities to Chinese Tang Dynasty architecture, there are some historical changes that have made the buildings culturally different. In addition, the Japanese have gone through greater lengths to preserve their ancient buildings more than the Chinese have and as a result, they are quite amazing to visit.

    Zhang Siyi was only familiar with a few Japanese architects and famous buildings. After half an hour of research, he realized his knowledge was just the tip of an iceberg and discovered in reality, that were an abundance of famous buildings all over Japan. A ten-day trip wasn¡¯t enough!

    Looking at the information, Zhang Siyi grabbed his head and said: ¡°There are so many ces to go! I have no clue anymore!¡± Then he copsed on the table.

    ¡°Don¡¯t worry.¡± Gu Yu leaned over and surrounded Zhang Siyi from behind then softly said: ¡°Let me see what you have found so far.¡±

    Looking at theptop, Zhang Siyi pointed them out to him: ¡°There are unique architectural sites all over the four main inds of Japan as well as the many well-preserved ancient sites in different regions, let alone the number of buildings to see in Tokyo. Ten days is simply not enough!

    ¡°Who said we will travel all over Japan in ten days?¡± Gu Yu leaned over and kissed Zhang Siyi on the ear then smiled. He methodically used the mouse and scrolled through some of the information. Without rushing, he gently encouraged him: ¡°Come, first pick out the ce you want to visit the most.¡±

    Calming down, Zhang Siyi steadied his breath: ¡°Osaka.... Ah, no. It¡¯s still Tokyo.

    ¡°Good.¡± Gu Yu made a mark on theputer, and then looked at the information that Zhang Siyi was looking for. ¡°If you would like to visit all the famous buildings in Tokyo, it will take at least three or four days.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Ah? So long?¡±

    Gu Yu turned to the side and smiled at him: ¡°It would probably take longer. Even though Haicheng doesn¡¯t have many famous buildings, it still took me a year to visit the few in the city. You can¡¯t eat a big watermelon in one bite. Its better to eat it slowly and savor the vor.¡±

    Recalling his past experience with Gu Yu examining architectural features made Zhang Siyi start to worry. With Gu Yu¡¯s workaholic temperament and studious personality, will he expect everyone to treat the time in Japan with the same attention to detail?

    Fortunately, Gu Yu went on to say: ¡°Although I mentioned our primary reason for traveling was to examine Japanese architecture as a learning experience, I can¡¯t ignore the fact that we are traveling as a group and need to maintain everyone¡¯s welfare. There will be opportunities to go on tours and have fun as well.¡±

    While turning his head towards Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi enthusiastically said: ¡°Great!¡± He impulsively grabbed Gu Yu¡¯s face and nted a kiss on him then let him go. He returned his attention to theputer screen and pumped his fist. Then he thought about how much fun he and his colleagues will all have. Certainly, his colleagues will be very happy.

    When Gu Yu was kissed, he was stunned and pretend to stay calm. However, he wasn¡¯t able to stay calm for more than a few seconds. He released the mouse and twisted his body to capture Zhang Siyi and pressed him onto the floor.

    ¡°Ah! What are you doing? The ns... mm-hm!¡±

    ¡°...... We¡¯ll talk about itter.¡±

    ¡°Mm-hmm.......¡±

    ns? Gu Yu narrowed his eyes. ¨CThis elder brother will make ns with you first.

 Chapter 143: Coupled

    <h4>Chapter 143: Coupled</h4>

    _____________________

    When Zhang Siyi was pushed to the floor, he instinctively struggled and resisted, but once Gu Yu lips met his own, he rxed then passionately kissed him back. As he intertwined his tongue with Gu Yu¡¯s, Zhang Siyi desperately wanted more. As if their intimacy wasn¡¯t enough, he wanted to be one with Gu Yu.

    ...... to be one?

    When the idea popped into his mind, Zhang Siyi was startled. Strange. Yesterday, he felt ashamed and ufortable with their bathroom activities, but now, he was anxious to be connected with Gu Yu.

    ..... This feeling, born from love, let it be natural and heartfelt.

    It was only a momentary thought and soon Zhang Siyi channeled his emotions into actions and expressed his desire.

    With how detail-oriented Gu Yu is, whether he was thinking about work, his life or making his lover feel good, he made sure all aspects were thoroughly examined, thoughtfully processed, then put into action in the most beneficial way.

    As if he was filling up a personal database, Gu Yu has patiently prodded all of Zhang Siyi sensitive spots and by paying close attention to his lover¡¯s reactions, he could file away the most useful information to be used at ater date.

    Zhang Siyi is different. Although Zhang Siyi was very enthusiastic about his sexual rtions with Gu Yu now, perhaps it is as Tao Fei said; the influence of dopamine and hormones. No one knows what will happen when the effect passes. Will Zhang Siyi suddenly sober up and feel disgusted at his homosexual rtionship?

    Even after Gu Yu made a solemn deration on the day of their confession, he gave Zhang Siyi the right to refuse. If Zhang Siyi hadn¡¯t returned his feelings, he wouldn¡¯t have forced Zhang Siyi. All Gu Yu can do is cherish every moment he had with Zhang Siyi and with the greatest patience, let Zhang Siyi deeply feel the enjoyment of being together.

    Whether it is the muscles in the body or the brain, all of them have memory. In the future, Gu Yu wants Zhang Siyi to associate only the most pleasant memories through his body and spirit with their intimate time together. Gu Yu couldn¡¯t tolerate any negative feelings, so he gradually and carefully exposed Zhang Siyi to male intimacy. Proceeding step by step, he took action and observed Zhang Siyi reactions to make sure there wasn¡¯t a hint of revulsion.

    Since Zhang Siyi was feeling so enthusiastic, he willingly surrendered himself and had no difficulties in repeating yesterday¡¯s events on the floor with Gu Yu.

    Afterwards, the two of them held each other for a long time, gently kissing and chatting. Zhang Siyi remembered the ¡®real-fake-y¡¯ that Tao Fei mentioned to him during the day and asked Gu Yu about it.

    Gu Yu smiled and said: ¡°He really knows me.¡±

    Listening to Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi felt a tinge of jealousy: ¡°He told me you two were considered a couple in college. Why?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°When I was at university the students would select the most handsome and beautiful person from the department in private as an idol couple. I don¡¯t know how popr it was at your school.¡±

    ¡°Yes, in high school, but not abroad. It¡¯s not popr in foreign countries.¡± Zhang Siyi caressed Gu Yu¡¯s face and then pinched his cheek. Acting flirty, he was honest: ¡°You are so handsome, you must have been the department¡¯s idol.¡±

    Smiling at him, Gu Yu grabbed Zhang Siyi¡¯s restless hand and kissed him. He continued: ¡°The most handsome and beautiful winners were often coupled together as a joke. When I first went to university, the department beauty was a senior. After she graduated, another girl took her ce, but while she was kind and had a good personality, she couldn¡¯t match the beauty of the previous senior. When she graduated, Tao Fei was in his first year. As you could have imagined, he was selected as the department¡¯s most beautiful because he was more beautiful than the previous girl.

    ¡°Pfft.......¡± Tao Fei really has a face that allows men and women to regard him as an imaginary enemy!

    Gu Yu continued to patiently tell Zhang Siyi about the time he spent with Tao Fei at school, including their experience in doing projects together. He also told Zhang Siyi about the many temper tantrums that Tao Fei threw.

    With one casual question, Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t expecting such a lengthily and detailed exnation. He was really enjoying Gu Yu¡¯s treatment. Laying next to each other on the floor, Zhang Siyi rolled onto his side to put his arm around Gu Yu and snuggled in closer to him.

    The Gu Yu now waspletely different from the Gu Yu who had yed Truth or Dare with him. At that time in the past, Gu Yu often teased him and bullied him. Unlike before, it was so easy to ask questions and discuss various topics with him.

    Like a kitten who poked his head into things, touching and scratching to confirm the safety of the environment, Zhang Siyi ced himself into Gu Yu¡¯s secure world.

    Thinking of Gu Yu¡¯s abnormal tone when he first mentioned the Department¡¯s most beautiful,ying on the floor Zhang Siyi asked:¡± Where you also a pair with the senior sister?¡±

    Afterughing out loud, Gu Yu turned his head to gaze at Zhang Siyi and said with a smile: ¡°We were only friends. There was nothing more.¡±

    Gu Yu gaze and smile made Zhang Siyi feel like Gu Yu read his thoughts. He knew that there was nothing, but since he didn¡¯t know anything about Gu Yu¡¯s previous 28 years, he couldn¡¯t stop himself from asking about it. ¡°Tao Fei also mentioned during your sophomore year, you participated in manypetitions with your seniors.... Was that girl involved?¡±

    Gu Yu looked at him funny. However, he answered him honestly ¡°Yes.¡± Gu Yu didn¡¯t feel he had any past deeds that he needed to hide from Zhang Siyi. Anyways, any information that Zhang Siyi tried to dig up, would be sincerely given.

    Being possessive, Zhang Siyi said: ¡°Oh? That school sister was very good and treated you so well!¡±

    Gu Yu saw Zhang Siyi¡¯s prostrate chin with a jealous expression on his face and couldn¡¯t help but smile broadly at him. The jealous person eats vinegar, but the target of jealousy eats honey.

    ¡°Yes, she was very kind to me.¡± Gu Yu frankly and nonchntly exined: ¡°When I first entered school, she lent me her study notes. As we got closer, she shared all of her knowledge of architecture including design materials and books. Wepeted together in the firstpetition of my college career and it was from a party at her ce, that I connected with people in the industry. When she graduated, she also sent me more than 300 very good professional books.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± -Why is she so good to Gu Yu! Does she like him!

    Gu Yu looked directly at Zhang Siyi and continuously praised her: ¡°She is very smart and beautiful, warm and generous, knowledgeable, understanding and one of the best friends I know.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°!!¡± Unbelievable! He thought so deeply for her and summed up so many advantages! Gu Yu clearly said he didn¡¯t have rtions with any girls that were close to him, but was he deluding himself?

    Gu Yu added: ¡°She went to Yale after graduation and graduated the year before I did. She now works in a famous American architectural firm. Even after all his time, we are still friends and remain in contact with one another.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°!!!!¡± No! He¡¯s losing his cool! He¡¯s going to be jealous! He¡¯s going to blow up!

    Gu Yu smiled wickedly and suddenly pulled Zhang Siyi chin closer. He lowered his head and lightly pecked Zhang Siyi on the lips: ¡°But I don¡¯t like her. I only like you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡± (t////t) Toying with me! Too foul!

    Wishing to see both Zhang Siyi¡¯s angry pent-up expression as well as his eyes of devotion, Gu Yu teased him mercilessly. As he yed around with Zhang Siyi¡¯s emotions, Zhang Siyi expressions rapidly changed and Gu Yu was rewarded. With both hands on his own abdomen, Gu Yuughed boisterously on the floor next to Zhang Siyi. When he calmed down, he propped himself up on his elbow and said: ¡°Little fool, let me tell you a secret.¡±

    Zhang Siyi:¡°...... Hmm?¡±

    Gu Yu leaned down and said: ¡°When we became a couple, I told her about our first time. She is happy for us and said she wants to meet you when she returns to China at Christmas.¡±

    Blushing deeply, Zhang Siyi said: ¡°She knows you are gay?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Well, more than that. She is the first friend that I came out to.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was a bit surprised: ¡°Oh?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°I started to doubt my sexuality when I was in high school, but I didn¡¯t confirm it at that time. I just deluded myself into thinking that I was simply a cold person with no genes for love. After going to college, there were many instances of desire that welled up from within me, but it was very confusing and painful at the time since I was only ever attracted to men. There was this one time I was talking with her and I ended up inadvertently confiding in this matter. She not only did not discriminate against me, but she also helped me evaluate and ept the truth about myself...... To be honest, to have met her at such a difficult period of my life was very fortunate.¡±

    This was also the first time that Zhang Siyi had listened to Gu Yu exin the history of his sexual orientation.

    Since Gu Yu was the highest ranked student in the school and with his handsome features, Zhang Siyi assumed there were many cultural expectations from his peers that were ced on his shoulders. Knowing Gu Yu¡¯s personality, when he discovered his sexual abnormality, he probably went through a period of self-torment and denial. Zhang Siyi can¡¯t imagine how difficult a period it must have been for him.

    If Zhang Siyi hadn¡¯t known Gu Yu was gay, if he didn¡¯t learn that Gu Yu liked him, if Gu Yu never reached out his hand and held onto him, Zhang Siyi wouldn¡¯t have considered a rtionship with another man. Zhang Siyi grabbed hold of Gu Yu and clung to him dearly giving rise to a feeling of mutual salvation. From now on, Gu Yu is his and he will never let go.

    Hugging each other silently, Zhang Siyi¡¯s curiosity got the better of him and asked: ¡±When you were in college who was it that you lusted after?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°At our college the students needed to take a physical education elective so I chose a course in the International Standard of Ballroom Dancing. There was a boy in the ss with a simr physique as yours. Every time he danced, his shirt wouldn¡¯t stay tucked into his pants and as a result his flexible waist was exposed.¡± Gu Yu¡¯s hand unconsciously moved to Zhang Siyi¡¯s waist, caressed him and smiled.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Dodging Gu Yu¡¯s movement, Zhang Siyi hurriedly asked another question: ¡°Why didn¡¯t you go after the boy? ¡°

    ¡°He wasn¡¯t as handsome as you are.¡± Gu Yu finally said something that made Zhang Siyi feel happy, but he didn¡¯t have more than a moment to think about it because Gu Yu examined Zhang Siyi from head to toe and then said: ¡°I bet the twists you do will be more attractive than his.¡± He reached out a grabbed Zhang Siyi sides and tickled him.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Shit, Gu Yu¡¯s eyes are so intense. Zhang Siyi twisted and wriggled from his grasp then squinted at Gu Yu and imagined him doing those sultry dance moves...... Fuck, he is going to have a nosebleed!

    Zhang Siyi adverted his gaze, and looked down at Gu Yu¡¯s chin than changed the subject once again: ¡°When you were still at the other Architectural Firm, I heard you were chased by a female designer that was eight years older than you.¡±

    Gu Yu said: ¡°You know all of this?¡±

    Zhang Siyi let out a ¡°humph¡± and said: ¡°Who is the one that¡¯s so famous.¡±

    Gu Yu pinched his nose: ¡°It seems that you secretly asked a lot about me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi wrinkled his face: ¡°Who asked? The information was passed along by colleagues in thepany.¡±

    Gu Yu suddenly propped up himself and raised his eyebrows: ¡°Who is spreading gossip? Too much y time and not enough work. Is that it? I¡¯ll have to find out who it is and severely punish them.¡±

    Zhang Si Yi was shocked. He was afraid of involving Bi Lele and himself. He hurriedly replied: ¡°I don¡¯t remember.¡±

    As soon as he gave it more thought, Zhang Siyi felt that there wasn¡¯t something right. Gu Yu¡¯s responded very normally and yet, asking this was a problem? There must be something fishy going on!

    Zhang Siyi immediately bulged his face: ¡°Is there something you are hiding?¡±

    Gu Yu deliberately baited him and seeing how easily Zhang Siyi bit, he decided he needed to set him straight: ¡°Are you so gullible that you would listen to gossip?¡±

    Zhang Siyi is a little guilty: ¡°I, I do not.¡±

    Gu Yu paused and exined: ¡°When I was in X Firm, there was indeed a female designer who was older than me and expressed interest in me. I also explicitly rejected her. The female designer is a very good person, but some rumors spread saying she couldn¡¯t take the rejection, started stalking me and as a result, I had to leave the Firm ande to Borderless. It is just gossip. I don¡¯t know which version you have heard, but I¡¯m very disgusted with those rumors. I have zero-tolerance for such behavior and I expect my subordinates to do the same.¡±

    Zhang Siyi not only felt guilty for his own behavior but also, he felt worried for Bi Lele. Indeed, Bi Lele¡¯s understanding of Gu Yu is not as good as his so how can he use it to question Gu Yu?

    Watching Zhang Siyi¡¯s diminutive bow and expression, Gu Yu knew Zhang Siyi was sorry. Gu Yu grabbed his hand and pressed it on his heart and softly and tenderly spoke to him: ¡°Zhang Siyi, listen, I can tell you the answer to any question you might have, but you have to learn to trust me. I¡¯ve told you that I like you. Only you. I¡¯ve said I didn¡¯t like girls before. I really don¡¯t. I¡¯ve said that I want to be together with you for the rest of our lives. I really do. I¡¯ve mentioned this before. Being together is a difficult path to take in life. The hardest part about it, isn¡¯t us, but the pressure and ridicule from outsiders. Arge part of the issue is the gossip and nder of others. If you are so easily influenced by others¡¯ments and views, then even I can¡¯t protect you.... Which is why I sincerely hope that from this moment on, you can learn to strengthen yourself and put an end to all external factors that may affect your mood, and personally feel for yourself how much I love you.¡±

 Chapter 144: The Fun

    <h4>Chapter 144: The Fun</h4>

    ______________________

    Thinking Gu Yu was angry, Zhang Siyi was surprised at Gu Yu¡¯s heartfelt confession. Bing emotional, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know what to say. Instead, he reached out to touch Gu Yu¡¯s heart. Although clothes separated them, Zhang Siyi could feel the steadfast heart of the man he loved. Not only could he feel his physical heartbeat, but the connection he had with his soul as well. Gazing into Gu Yu¡¯s eyes. Zhang Siyi fell for him all over again.

    Every day, his love grew stronger. From the beginning at the start of his confession in April, to the unexpected arrival in Lijiang, to the first big argument, and yesterday¡¯s spat and reconciliation... It turns out that loving a person is unstoppable like the limitless graph of a positive quadratic function.

    He will never be able to separate himself from Gu Yu during his life ever!

    Reaching out and wrapping his arms around Gu Yu¡¯s slightlyrger body, Zhang Siyi pulled him into his embrace and held him close: ¡°I know, I will learn to believe in you.¡±

    The two men gazed into each other eyes for a moment before they kissed tenderly. Gu Yu reached out to caressed Zhang Siyi¡¯s face and smiled: ¡°Are you satisfied now? Do you have any more questions?¡±

    ¡°No, I don¡¯t. I believe in you.¡± Zhang Siyi gave Gu Yu a tight squeeze and then said: ¡°I was a little curious about your past. That¡¯s all.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ll tell you more about itter.¡± Gu Yu slid his finger to Zhang Siyi¡¯s nose and bopped it: ¡°Even though we are considered a pair as part of the game in thepany, are you still getting jealous over Tao Fei and my Senior Sister? Are you unsatisfied?¡±

    Suddenly, Zhang Siyi lifted his legs and wrapped them around Gu Yu¡¯s waist, immobilizing him. Full of possessiveness, he said: ¡°We are a pair! You are mine.¡±

    Since Zhang Siyi¡¯s ardor actions caught him by surprise, Gu Yuid there stiffly. Gazing at him, desire grew and taking advantage of the situation he rxed and used the weight of his head to ce his lips onto Zhang Siyi¡¯s lips and kissed him deeply.

    With a racing heart and turning red, Zhang Siyi let out a ¡°Mmm¡±. Before things went any further, he quickly released Gu Yu. He said: ¡°We should finish making the ns,¡± and then Zhang Siyi pushed him away.

    Leaning on his elbow and propping himself up, Gu Yu smirked and gave Zhang Siyi a funny look.

    Sitting upright at the small table, Zhang Siyi was annoyed at himself. He wanted to know why, when Gu Yu made his desire clear, he acted like a young shy maiden every time. He is a man! Can¡¯t he go back!? (¨A_¨@)

    ...... If I had known, I should have gossiped about the pumpkin. Then I might have seen his embarrassment instead!

    As they continued researching destinations, they happily discussed their ns. The time flew by without them realizing it and it was time to wash and get some rest.

    After lying down, Zhang Siyi checked his phone for social media updates and discovered a deposit of five-hundred yuan in his ount. He clicked on the entry in his banking ledger for more information and found the money had been transferred by Gu Yu this morning.

    ¡°Hey, you gave me money? Why is it so much?¡± Zhang Siyi questioned strangely.

    Gu Yu leaned over, embraced him and softly said: ¡°Your behaviorst night improved the quality of our lives so this is my reward.¡±

    Zhang Siyi:¡°......¡± Ah! So good! More opportunities to make our quality of life better!

    ...... Wait a minute, Isn¡¯t there something wrong with this way of thinking!? (=_=)

    ...... Shit! What is the difference between Gu Yu giving him money for yesterday¡¯s activities and getting paid for ¡®that-kind-of-service¡¯!?

    ......No, no, no. That can¡¯t be true. Maybe Gu Yu didn¡¯t mean it like that!

    ...... It shouldn¡¯t feel so nice to get rewarded like this!

    Feeling irritated, Zhang Siyi used his thumbs to quickly type on his mobile phone. After a moment, Gu Yu¡¯s phone chimed.

    Hearing the phone, Gu Yu let go of Zhang Siyi and reached over to the bedside table to pick it up. Seeing a notification from him he asked: ¡°What¡¯s this?¡± When he unlocked the phone and looked at the details, he saw that Zhang Siyi had sent him money; only fifty yuan.

    Zhang Siyi smirked and said: ¡°Your service payment.¡± Feeling generous, he added: ¡°Keep the change.¡±

    Ha-Ha! Zhang Siyi thought he had the perfect idea. Now that each had given money, they were even. He can¡¯t be the only one feeling like a rent-boy! Unexpectedly, Gu Yu suddenly smiled and asked: ¡°Is my service only worth fifty dors?¡±

    Zhang Siyi put his phone on the bedside table and shrunk into the bed: ¡°Fifty bucks isn¡¯t enough?¡± Zhang Siyi still felt like yesterday, he lost in a big way.

    Gu Yu muffed hisughter and said: ¡°It¡¯s enough. ording to your math, the price of thirty minutes is five hundred dors and the price for three minutes is fifty. I have no objections to the price.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Gu Yu pulled Zhang Siyi into his arms and nibbled on his ear. He whispered softly for only Zhang Siyi to hear: ¡°I hope you can let me give you a thousand dors for next time.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡± Go to hell! (¨s¨FÃó¡¯)¨s(©ß©¥©ß

    Sleeping soundly until dawn, Zhang Siyi got up and arrived at thepany early. He could hear his colleagues happily talk about Japan as they each arrived at work and walked to their desks. Thinking about yesterday¡¯s research, he couldn¡¯t help but smile at himself. -Hey, I¡¯m the master who has the power to organized your ultimate itinerary!

    In the morning, Gu Yu sent an additional message to remind everyone to work hard. If anyone didn¡¯tplete their work beforehand, they would have to cancel their trip.

    In reality, even if someone dyed their work, they would have to wait for the visa toe through and thus not worry about missing the trip. However, Gu Yu¡¯s news gave them a sense of urgency. The group members became a little nervous so they quieted down and diligently went back to work with a serious attitude.

    Being used to traveling from time to time, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t feel as excited about the trip to Japan as the rest of his colleagues did. Even if he hadn¡¯t already traveled to many ces, he didn¡¯t have the luxury to think about the trip at the moment as he and Tao Fei were drowning in work toplete for their resort project. They will have made a report on the project on the eve of the tour.

    In the beginning, after only a few months on the job, Gu Yu allowed him to specialize in small floor n design for a short period. Now,bined with his experience inside luxury hotels, Zhang Siyi easily grasped the internal dimensions of these residential spaces. He knew what the ergonomic basis and size limitations were when designing the hotel vis. In addition, using his experience drawing blueprints for his office design, putting together the vi designs was like a sixth grader going back to do homework from fourth grade.

    Zhang Siyi started with a vi shape ording to what he saw and heard in Yunnan. In order to add local features and details to highlight his drawings, he repeatedly looked at both his own photographs from his trip to Yunnan, as well as rummaging through all of the ssic vi design case books and reference materials from thepany¡¯s library to supplement his information and find inspiration for his design.

    Once he took the time to figured out one of the vis, the rest of them were draw effortlessly. Quickly, more than half of the drawing waspleted.

    This is the most difficult phase of the whole design process because there are rules to follow. Once they are mastered, with experience, one can easily create improvements in a design within the scope of the regtions.

    If the goal is to achieve a unique exterior building, one can¡¯t copy motifs and ideas from other buildings then mechanically and loosely patch them together. Only by thinking about what inspires them, can one follow through with their own ideas to create a new building with their own characteristics and thus cultivate their own design aesthetic.

    During this busy time, Zhang Siyi once again thought of the words Gu Yu¡¯s father said to him this year: ¡°You must constantly arm yourself with knowledge and skills and mature as fast as possible. When you get there, you will know the fun of doing architectural design.¡±

    Yes, in the tenth month of employment, Zhang Siyi finally realized the truth of his statement. After some umtion of knowledge and experience, he finally felt the fun of doing design.

    Gu Yu told him before that designing is like ying a game that utilizes the permutations andbinations within a limited set of rules to find the most effective solution. But Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t feel this to be true anymore. The higher architectural designers should be equivalent to magicians. Not only can they figure out the most utilitarian n, they can also transform any ugly building into something magnificent and beautiful.

    Just as the meaning of the English word architecture was originally defined as ¡®master builder¡¯, with enough umted knowledge and experience, an architect can build the world!

 Chapter 145: Chief Director

    <h4>Chapter 145: Chief Director</h4>

    ___________________________

    Walking through the hall on his way back from the data area, the Chief Director spotted Zhang Siyi¡¯s focused figure at his desk working diligently and felt relieved. He happened to bump into Gu Yu while in the restroom: ¡°The young man you recruitedst year looks very steady now.¡±

    Hearing the Chief talk to him, Gu Yu was a little surprised. Thinking about the time spent with Zhang Siyi looking through his journal to discuss the various topics he wrote about at length made Gu Yu smile: ¡°Well, he is very motivated now and has improved greatly.¡±

    Director Gu: ¡°I saw him present thendmark tower for the Yunnan hotel project. The ideas emboldened the spirit and the design was excellent. It seems he really has a natural gift. Gu Yu, you have a good eye.¡±

    Gu Yu was quite taken back by the Chief¡¯sments. Most of the time, the Chief Director¡¯s praise is at most ¡®good¡¯ or ¡®very well¡¯ and rarely admits to a design being excellent, let alone that a design could effect a persons¡¯ spirit. It is the bestpliment for a young designer with potential. After all, anyone can learn the process of architecture, but only those with inborn talent have the ability to design a building that touches the soul. Even though Gu Yu was feeling very happy for Zhang Siyi, he tried not to show it and rxed his facial expression.

    Washing his hands, the Chief looked at Gu Yu in the mirror and suddenly asked: ¡°Young Gu, I remember that you don¡¯t have a girlfriend, right?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°...... Hmm?¡±

    Leaving his hands to rinse under the water, he continued: ¡°At the beginning of X Firm, you worked for more then twelve hours a day. I heard that you studied and brought work home to do in the evenings. During the two years here at Borderless, you were always conscientious of the staff members needs and personally made yourself avable during overtime if any problems rose but as a result, you were never home before nine at night. Even though your dedication is important year after year, you need to make ns for your own life. You are almost thirty years old without a family of your own.¡±

    The truth of the matter can¡¯t be revealed. If Zhang Siyi was a woman, Gu Yu could immediately tell the Chief Director that he was already seriously involved with someone so he need not concern himself over the matter of marriage.

    Since rtionships in the workce are taboo, being an employee of Borderless was a problem and not only that, but a subordinate of a Director. If that wasn¡¯t enough of an issue, the fact that Zhang Siyi is a man, was the real cause for silence. If he were to mentioned being gay, the more than fifty-year old Chief Director may not be able to ept this detail, so it isn¡¯t a subject Gu Yu can openly speak about.

    ¡°Well, I understand.¡± Gu Yu politely evaded the issue and responded ambiguously.

    The Chief dried his hands with a paper towel before smiling at Gu Yu: ¡°We are having a party for Yanyan next weekend because she ising home from abroad. When was thest time you visited your parents? If you have nothing else,e over for dinner.¡±

    Slightly distracted and out of courtesy and respect, Gu Yu instinctively responded with: ¡°Alright.¡±

    After the Chief Director left, Gu Yu couldn¡¯t help but wonder if the talk of a girlfriend coupled with visiting friends of the family were connected.

    While he was eating with Zhang Siyi that night at home, Gu Yu discussed the issue in advance: ¡°I may have to go to the Chief Director¡¯s house for a luncheon next weekend.¡±

    Surprised, Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°You are going to the Chief¡¯s house for lunch? Why?¡±

    Taking a moment to think clearly, Gu Yu chewed slowly and exined the situation to him rationally: ¡°The Chief Director and my father are old friends.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was only aware of his position as the former vice president at X Firm. He didn¡¯t know that the Chief Director Gu Senior were friends.

    Gu Yu exined: ¡°In the early years, Liu and my father worked together in infrastructure projects in Xi¡¯an andter they went to Hainan to build. They worked together for more than eight years. After my father went back to Ningcheng, Liu came to Haicheng where he was at X Firm for many years.

    Zhang Siyi was surprised. He thought that Gu Yu¡¯s father had always been an architect in Ningcheng.

    Gu Yu smiled and said: ¡°When I graduated from my master¡¯s degree, Uncle Liu extended an olive branch and asked me to go to X Firm. It was the most famous designpany in the eastern part of the country. I needed experience to test for my license and since Haicheng is also close to Ningcheng, it was convenient to live here and to travel as needed to visit rtives.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Ah.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°When I first arrived in Haicheng, Yuanshan Garden vi renovations weren¡¯tpleted yet. The Director was very kind to me and politely invited me to his home for dinner for every holiday.

    Teasing him, Zhang Siyi jokingly said: ¡°Ah so you got your job through the back door!¡±

    Gu Yu looked up at him arrogantly: ¡°Do you really think I needed a back door?¡±

    Grinning, Zhang Siyi immediately said: ¡°There was no need. You only had to look towards your father for one. Hehe.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°.....¡±

    On the surface, Gu Yu remained calm, however at heart, he wanted to die. He reached over and cut himself a piece of red meat from Zhang Siyi¡¯s dinner te. He coughed slightly and said: ¡°The environment at Borderless is really good. If we were at a differentpany, we might not be so free.¡±

    Since Gu Yu had a position at Borderless, he was thankful for the power that came with the office. That way, Gu Yu was able to approach Zhang Siyi and facilitate their rtionship.

    Squinting, Zhang Siyi questioned: ¡°What festival is next weekend? Why did the director ask you over for dinner?¡±

    Gu Yu joked: ¡°I don¡¯t know. Maybe he wants to introduce me to a marriageable girl.¡±

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t find it funny: ¡°Really?¡±

    Gu Yu smiled at Zhang Siyi and said: ¡°Well, I am not sure. He asked me to consider my goals in life as I am near thirty and then invited me to dinner.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Gu Yu continued: ¡°He has a daughter named Liu Yuyan who is one year younger than me. Her nickname is Yanyan. Ten years ago after high school, she went to France to study art and has since lived there to work.¡±

    Hearing Gu Yu mention the Chief¡¯s daughter, Zhang Siyi scrunched up his face and asked: ¡°Have you seen her?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°We have met. I feel that she has a strong personality and is a very opinionated girl. The Chief mentioned today that she is returning to China and they are having a family luncheon for her and that I shoulde.¡±

    Puffing up his cheeks, Zhang Siyi is ready to explode. Damn it!

    ..... The Chief really must be trying to set up his daughter with Gu Yu! Gu Yu is such good material as a son-inw, who wouldn¡¯t want to set him up with their own daughter!

    ..... Ahhhh, I hope Gu Yu won¡¯t go! But I can¡¯t say something so willful!

    Observing Zhang Siyi facial expressions, Gu Yu was enjoying Zhang Siyi¡¯s jealous behavior. Smiling he yfully asked: ¡°Would you like to go with me?¡±

    Zhang Siyi lost his appetite. Hearing Gu Yu ask, he felt nervous: ¡°Ah?¡±

    Gu Yu raised an eyebrow: ¡± I thought you would mind, so I will take you to meet Yanyan. When you see her family, I can introduce you properly to the Chief so he won¡¯t have any strange ideas.¡±

    Gu Yu was so candid and serious, Zhang Siyi was shocked senseless: ¡°You, you... Are you crazy it!? I¡¯m not going!!!¡±

    Gu Yu raised his hand to block his stifledugh and wide grin: ¡°So jealous. I offered, but you dare note. Are you afraid?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± If he really did go, would they still have a job afterwards?

    Bing serious, Gu Yu put away his smile and said: ¡°Okay, ok... enough teasing. Actually, I wanted to exin the rtionship between my father and the director and let you know that I have been to their home many times in the past and they have never suggested pairing Yanyan and myself. At the beginning of the year, I also heard the Chiefin about his daughter finding a foreigner boyfriend in France. She is probably already in a serious rtionship.¡±

    Feeling depressed, Zhang Siyi mechanically inserted a piece of meat into his mouth.

    Gu Yu: ¡°The good intention of elders is difficult to ignore. Since he didn¡¯t say anything about it, I will wait and see what happens. I hope the invitation is simply out of concern.¡±

    A few dayster, Zhang Siyi was busy in the extreme that he felt like a never-ending spinning top and didn¡¯t have time to ponder the issues revolving around Gu Yu¡¯s dinner.

    At thepany during the day, Zhang Siyi was hard at work drawing for the hotel project. When he got home at night, he had to help Gu Yu make the itinerary for thepany¡¯s trip to Japan. They settled on going to Tokyo, Osaka and Kyoto with spare time to explore the surrounding area of the city.

    Uponpletion, Gu Yu transferred twenty yuan saying that it was an extra bonus for helping him make the ns for the trip.

    Incredulous, Zhang Siyi looked at him with a nk expression on his face. ¨C For thirty minutes, I got five-hundred. I diligently worked for many days researching cities and making ns and for all of that effort, Gu Yu only gave me twenty bucks! Fuck! Are you trying to teach me to make money through that special kind of service?

    Seemingly reading Zhang Siyi mind, Gu Yu exined as a matter of course: ¡°The itinerary can be done by anyone, but only you can perform that kind of service.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was speechless.

    After ten days, the weekend Gu Yu was to go to the Chief Director¡¯s home arrived. Since he was going to an elder¡¯s home, Gu Yu couldn¡¯t dress too casually. Looking over Gu Yu¡¯s handsome appearance, Zhang Siyi took him into his arms, held him close and kissed him deeply than proimed his sovereignty: ¡°Remember, you are mine.¡±

 Chapter 146: Situation

    <h4>Chapter 146: Situation</h4>

    ______________________

    ¡°Hmm.¡± Gu Yu was watching him. Since Zhang Siyi assertive behavior was really loveable, he wanted to stay. Sighing, he held Zhang Siyi briefly, pecked him on the lips and said: ¡°Remember to eat something and send me a messageter.¡±

    After Gu Yu left, Zhang Siyi read a book for a while and since it had been awhile, he practiced ying the violin. Feeling bored, he pondered what else he could do before going to sleep. He decided to call home.

    When the phone connected, he said: ¡°Hello? Mom?¡±

    Thest time he spoke with his mother over the phone was when he needed his driver¡¯s license. More often than not, anymunication between them was done through WeChat. Lately, Zhang Siyi was very with work that he didn¡¯t have the chance to talk with her; not even to tell her that he moved. Although, in reality, he probably was avoiding the subject now that he was together with Gu Yu.

    Mother Zhang immediately asked him about work and his recentings and goings. She asked him if he was nning on returning home for the Dragon Boat Festival and visit rtives.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I won¡¯t be able toe home for the Dragon Boat Festival. Thepany is taking us to Japan on June 20th for ten days to study architecture.¡±

    Ms. Zhang had some regrets, but she was also happy for her son: ¡°Thepany¡¯s benefits are great! They are taking their employees overseas!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I heard that thepany sponsored trips are only every few years.¡±

    Mother Zhang asked again: ¡°When will you be free toe home? You haven¡¯te back since the New Year and your parents miss you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi joked: ¡°Maybe you do, but I don¡¯t believe Dad does.¡±

    Mother Zhang yelled at him: ¡°What!? How can you say that!? He¡¯s your father. Why wouldn¡¯t he miss you? He¡¯s been asking me about your worktely. If I wasn¡¯t so busy at the hospital, I would have called you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi vomited in his heart. If his dad wanted to talk to him, why couldn¡¯t he call himself? Every time, it took his mother to pass the phone.

    His Mother paused then asked: ¡°Do you have time on the weekend before the Dragon Boat Festival?¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡± Zhang Siyi voiced and then thought to himself: Isn¡¯t that next weekend?

    Although he and Tao Fei have to make a report before the Dragon Boat Festival, their steady progress has been faster then expected and thus, there shouldn¡¯t be any need to work long overtime hours like they had before.

    Mother Zhang said: ¡°If you have time, next weekend, we wille visit you in Haicheng and bring you something delicious.¡±

    Upon hearing his mother¡¯s statement, Zhang Siyi immediately sat straight up from the couch. If theye, they will discover his rtionship with Gu Yu!

    His Mother exined: ¡°Your father has a friend who recently sent us some fresh fish and we can¡¯t eat it all. I thought I would have the housekeeper prepare your favorite fried fish dish and bring you some. You can eat it as a snack or when you want a quick dinner.¡±

    Fried fish was one of Zhang Siyi¡¯s favorite dishes and listening to his mother¡¯s proposal made him feel greedy. However, he was still scared and said: ¡°Or I wille home next weekend.¡± In fact, it would be quite convenient to travel home on the high-speed rail for one night and thene back the following day for his business trip.

    When she listened to him, she decided that Zhang Siyi was free next weekend and told him: ¡°I saw you hard at work staying upte inpany as well as your business trip travels in WeChat. Mom is so distressed! Don¡¯t bothering back for only one night and a day. I¡¯ll bring your father for a rare chance to spend the weekend with you. It¡¯s a good excuse to get outside and walk around. It¡¯s settled.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± It¡¯s settled!?!?

    His Mother continued: ¡°Oh right, there are also crabs. We can¡¯t eat them all in this hot weather so I¡¯ll have the housekeeper make crab paste for you as well.¡±

    Feeling a bit anxious, Zhang Siyi decided it was better to tell his mother about his move beforehand otherwise he might inadvertently reveal his real rtionship with Gu Yu.

    ¡°Mom, I have to tell you something. I moved and now rent a room in Gu Yu¡¯s house.¡± Zhang Siyi said cing special emphasis on the word ¡®rent¡¯.

    Mother Zhang was momentarily silent: ¡°Really? When did you move? Why didn¡¯t you tell me?¡±

    Feeling embarrassed, Zhang Siyi answered her: ¡°Its been six weeks since I moved. Do you remember my college friend I mentioned who had an ident at home over New Years?¡±

    Mother Zhang: ¡°Yes. I remember. He was the one who rented an apartment with you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi spoke briefly about Fu Xinhui¡¯s affairs with his mother then said: ¡°He went abroad afterwards. I wasn¡¯t able to stay in the same apartment and since there was a room at Gu Yu¡¯s I could rent, I moved.¡± Zhang Siyi was worried about how she would respond so he waited nervously for his mother to speak.

    Ms. Zhang took a minute to respond: ¡°Living together with Gu Yu is really good! You are both in the same industry and there is still a lot he can teach you. He is a very stable, mature person and you will do well to take after his habits and work ethics. It will be great for you!¡±

    Upon hearing his mother¡¯s enthusiasm, Zhang Siyi practically fainted. He was worried that his mother would question him more about his rtionship with Gu Yu. It must have only been in his head. And besides, listening to the tone of his mother¡¯s statement, why was she acting as though she was happily marring off a daughter?

    ...... This, this must be his delusion!

    Mother Zhang continued: ¡°I have to be honest with you. Your Father and I were very worried about you when you told us about your roommate¡¯s situation, but now that you are staying with Gu Yu, our minds are at ease. Oh yes, I¡¯ll tell the housekeeper to prepare a little extra fish and crab paste for young Gu.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡° It seems as though his mother was very happy that he lives with Gu Yu. But, how happy would she really be if she knew the truth? (=_=)

    Zhang Siyi news waspletely updated after a few more pleasantries. Saying goodbye, they hung up the phone. Zhang Siyi sat on the sofa for a while in a daze. Finallying out of his reverie, he sent a WeChat to Gu Yu: ¡°My parents areing.¡±

    Five minutester, Gu Yu replied: ¡°What!?!?¡± and sent a ¡®Little-Fox-Shocked¡¯ sticker then asked: ¡°When?¡±

    It was extremely rare for Gu Yu to express such a shocked and scared expression. Feeling happy about his response, Zhang Siyi exined: ¡°They will visit next weekend.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Well, we can talk about itter at home.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was a little irritated at the speed with which Gu Yu seemed to have calmed down. ¡°How¡¯s dinner going?¡± he asked. (¡ú_¡ú)

    Gu Yu: ¡°I just finished eating. I gave them the excuse of needing the restroom when I saw your message. I have to be brief. The situation is a bit troublesome.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was surprised. ¡°What troublesome situation? Was the Chief really trying to y matchmaker?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Well, we can talk about itter. I have to go back to the living room now.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± What¡¯s this ¡®talk about itter¡¯? He wants to know now!

    Although Zhang Siyi can understand that Gu Yu is a guest in another person¡¯s home and chatting on the mobile phone isn¡¯t polite, having heard about ¡®trouble¡¯ and then ¡®talkter¡¯, Gu Yu was making Zhang Siyi feel anxious!

    Waiting in anticipation all afternoon, when Zhang Siyi heard someone at the door at six o¡¯clock in the evening, Zhang Siyi rushed over to open it for Gu Yu and asked: ¡°What¡¯s the situation?¡±

    Taking off his coat, Gu Yu let out a long sigh. He looked really tired and frowned: ¡°The Chief Direction really did have a n, but it wasn¡¯t about his daughter. It was about Yanyan¡¯s cousin and the situation with her isn¡¯t so simple.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

 Chapter 147: Chess

    <h4>Chapter 147: Chess</h4>

    ___________________

    Why is itplicated? Is she the daughter of the mayor!? Waiting for his exnation, Zhang Siyi stared at Gu Yu intently.

    After walking into the kitchen, Gu Yu opened the refrigerator and rummage through the shelves for ingredients for dinner. As he removed them from the refrigerator, Gu Yu exined: ¡°The Chief¡¯s wife¡¯s brother is Yanyan¡¯s cousin¡¯s father. He is one of the Chief Directors from X Firm and he is one of the major shareholders of Borderless.

    Zhang Siyi dumbly said: ¡°So her father¡¯s status is higher than our Chief Director?¡±

    Tearing a head of cabbage, Gu Yu inly stated: ¡°Yes¡±

    The Chief Director in apany is either elected or appointed by the board of directors. As the design director, Gu Yu is only the head of the design department. The hierarchy in the food chain is very obvious. Yanyan¡¯s cousin¡¯s father has the power to decide which candidates to appoint and thus, the career path of Gu Yu.

    Yes, it would be the way to secure his professional future. Academic, professional, and work experience are earned on their own, but positions do not necessarily rise as their abilities improve.

    In China¡¯s environment, in addition to the academic qualifications in the construction industry, titles are given based on the depth of seniority by the number of years working in the industry. Even if a person has a higher academic background and is talented, there is a limit to the position they could obtain based on the number of years worked.

    Although Gu Yu¡¯s qualifications are sufficient, it is extremely rare to be able to sit in the position of a design director at his age. Therefore, his connections are the leading factor for Gu Yu current position.

    As the title design director is the limit for a technical worker, Gu Yu has already reached the top. The privilege that Yanyan¡¯s cousin¡¯s father could give Gu Yu is limitless. He could pave the way for Gu Yu to directly break through the limitations of his degree and move into the direction of management which would lead him towards a higher social status.

    Obviously, the appearance of Yanyan¡¯s cousin provides an opportunity for Gu Yu to move forward.

    So, why is there trouble? Was Gu Yu aiming for a future in management? Does he find the opportunity too tempting to reject? Or, is there a swing in his heart?

    Zhang Siyi asked awkwardly: ¡°What do you think?¡±

    Finishing with the cabbage preparations, Gu Yu grabbed a b of pork and chucked: ¡°I am neither interested in her or in a position of management. What is there to think about?¡±

    Zhang Siyi breathed a sigh of relief and said: ¡°Then, what ¡°trouble¡± were you talking about earlier?¡±

    After cutting up the meat, Gu Yu was slicing arge onion and gave Zhang Siyi garlic to peel when he replied: ¡°I can tell the director wanted to introduce me as a marriageable prospect. In the past, I might have gone to his home for a casual family dinner. When I saw the extended family present, I knew it was something more as outsiders aren¡¯t normally present for family banquets. It was clear that the Chief wanted me to get acquainted with Yanyan¡¯s cousin. There is no way I was invited there to befriend the chairman, right? I said it was troublesome because I could have refused outright if the invitation was given in the name of a blind date, but he used the guise of a family dinner to go to his house. Although his intentions were clear, nothing was said.¡±

    Gu Yu frowned when he spoke. In addition, even if the opportunity was presented to him and he rashly refused, there was nothing he could show or prove outwardly that he was already in a rtionship. As a result, it would have been very embarrassing for both himself and the Chief. Gu Yu felt really depressed.

    Listening to Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi was also feeling depressed. He wasn¡¯t displeased with Gu Yu¡¯s honesty and in fact, he was rather relieved by his frankness. It was because his lover was so tantly coveted by other people!

    ..... Damn it! If he bumps into the Chief, he isn¡¯t going to greet him anymore!

    Zhang Siyi handed the peeled garlic to Gu, and asked: ¡°What did you do this afternoon?¡±

    Thinking how uninteresting the afternoon was, Gu Yu inly stated what he did: ¡°Drink tea, watch financial news, and y chess.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Why does it sound like an afternoon activity n for the elderly?¡± (=_=)

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Who were you with? Yanyan¡¯s cousin?¡±

    Thinking outloud, Gu Yu voiced a ¡®hmm¡¯ then proceeded to put oil in the pan. After he exined: ¡°The elders left to y cards in the afternoon so myself and the two girls remained. We made some small-talk for a little while. Since Yanyan was an art major, there were somemon points and professional things to talk about. Later, her boyfriend called to have a video chat so she left the room leaving me alone with her cousin.¡±

    As he poured the sliced pork and cabbage into the hot pan, a loud ¡®sizzle¡¯ could be heard. Gu Yu immediately started mixing the food in the pan and when the sound was a little less noisy, he continued: ¡°The girl was very quiet. For most of the day she remained silent.¡±

    Recalling the afternoon scene, Gu Yu scowled. The girl didn¡¯t speak and in fear of giving her false impressions, he couldn¡¯t find any suitable topics to discuss. Given the situation, he didn¡¯t want her to misunderstand his intentions. As a result, they sat in the living room together watching the financial news while drinking tea in silence.

    Fortunately, the chess board on the table helped break the ice. She asked him if he would like to y.

    Gu Yu looked down at the pan: ¡°I yed with her while listening to the financial news for a few hours. She never won.¡± Since he was too distressed about the situation he was ced in, he didn¡¯t give her an inch. In one game, he beat her in less than ten moves.

    As he heard Gu Yu speak, Zhang Siyi saw a sh of pleasure at being able to bully her. Zhang Siyiughed at Gu Yu¡¯s childish expression and the moment was no longer ufortable: ¡°So, you must be good at ying chess.¡±

    Gu Yu put on the lid on the pan to make the cabbage steam and said: ¡°Clearly, her level is too low.¡±

    Zhang Siyi saw the chess board that was upstairs but he never saw Gu Yu y. ¡°When did you learn how to y chess?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°When I was in college, I learned from Lao Jiang. He can really y chess, both speed chess and regr chess. When he was in elementary school, he won many amateur stages and developed an Elo score which is equivalent to the first stage of going Pro. The real child prodigy.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I only y backgammon......¡± Why is the gap between people sorge?

    Gu Yu: ¡°Do you want to learn? I can teach you.¡±

    At the prospect of learning with Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi joyously responded: ¡°Ok!¡±

    Watching Gu Yu gently pour the cooked pork and cabbage into a serving dish, he asked: ¡°What¡¯s next? Will the Chief Director ask you to go to dinner again?¡±

    Gu Yu grinned knowingly and said: ¡°Yanyan¡¯s cousin added my WeChat and what photo did I post there? When she sees it, she will understand the difficulty and retreat.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was finally happy. When the girl saw the photo, she definitely wouldn¡¯t continue dwelling on Gu Yu. Suddenly feeling nervous over whom might be looking at the photo, he asked: ¡°Hey, did you add my parents to WeChat?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°No, why?¡±

    Zhang Siyi sighed with relief: ¡°Nothing. If you had, they will see that photo. Even though my mother isn¡¯t the sharpest tack, I¡¯m afraid if she saw the photo, she would guess the truth.¡±

    In fact, Zhang Siyi feelings about the matter are somewhat contradictory. In the end, is he hoping his mother finds out or not? With her hobby of reading those-kinds-of-books, Zhang Siyi felt that she would more or less pick up on the facts, but his mother¡¯s attitude towards Gu Yu waspletely out of his expectations. From a practical standpoint, maybe all mothers do not think about the possibility that they have a gay son.

    After Gu Yu took out the eggs from the fridge and handed them to Zhang Siyi to crack open, he grabbed a few more ingredients to make another dish. He continued: ¡°Well, we will keep it hidden for now and when things stabilize, we can slowly open up. By the way, what do you think is the reason they areing to visit for?¡±

    Zhang Siyi quickly ryed what he said on the phone in the afternoon with his mother to Gu Yu.

    Gu Yu: ¡°You have been back to China for a year now. Haven¡¯t theye to Haicheng to visit the city? Come on, I will take them around.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°You will show them around?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Since you live with me now, I am sure to entertain them when theye over. What¡¯s more, I¡¯m your boyfriend and can¡¯t pass up this opportunity to make a good,sting impression for their future son-inw.¡±

    Zhang Siyi vomited: ¡°My parents¡¯ impression of you is already high enough. You don¡¯t know it, but they are always boasting about you in front of me. When I think about, it seems like they rather have you as their own son!¡±

    Zhang Siyi saw Gu Yu¡¯s raised eyebrows and broad smile... feeling like he missed a detail. Wait, he suddenly reacted: ¡°Why are you the son-inw?¡±

    Gu Yu turned his head sideways to nce at him: ¡°Are you not with my surname, Gu Siyi?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Gu Yu swayed his head: ¡°Didn¡¯t you agree to follow me and take my name? So, Gu Siyi, since you are married, I am your parent¡¯s son-inw. Am I not? Hmm? ¡°

    With another mouthful of ¡®Gu Siyi¡¯, Zhang Siyi anxiously jumped on his foot and shouted: ¡°That doesn¡¯t count!¡±

    With thest dish fully cooked, Gu Yu finally stopped teasing Zhang Siyi. He tenderly rubbed his lower back andmanded: ¡°Okay, don¡¯t make trouble. Bring the chopsticks and let¡¯s eat.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± I am waiting for you, sir, from today forward, we must practice eloquence!

    Before eating, Gu Yu suddenly took out his cell phone: ¡°Wait, I want to take a picture.¡±

    Since today¡¯s dishes were quitemon, Zhang Siyi thought it was a little strange for Gu Yu to take photos. Not only did he take a few pictures, but he also uploaded them to his circle of friends.

    When Gu Yu finished, Zhang Siyi eagerly opened his mobile phone to see them: ¡°What did you post? Is mywork broken? Why can¡¯t I see the pictures you posted?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°They aren¡¯t visible to you.¡±

    Caught by surprised, Zhang Siyi suddenly felt anxious and his tone reflected his hurt feelings: ¡°What? Why?¡± Does Gu Yu still have a private WeChat that he isn¡¯t privy too!?

    From one corner of Gu Yu¡¯s mouth, he smirked: ¡°It is visible to Yanyan¡¯s cousin.¡±

    Immediately putting down his chopsticks, Zhang Siyi reached over and said: ¡°Let me see!¡±

    It took a bit of pestering before Gu Yu would unlock his phone and hand it to Zhang Siyi.

    Zhang Siyi only saw thest visible message that Gu Yu posted to another group: ¡°The happiest moment of the day: Eating a meal prepared by my wife.¡±

    ¡°Pfft.......!¡± Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t hold back the rice in his mouth.

    ¡°Well, now you saw it. Give it back to me.¡± With an expression of connivance on Gu Yu face, Zhang Siyi watched him turn pink, revealing a trace of school-girl like shyness.

 Chapter 148: Visit

    <h4>Chapter 148: Visit</h4>

    __________________

    Regrettably, Zhang Siyi missed the rare expression on Gu Yu¡¯s face because he waspletely immersed in his ownints¡­. What, ¡°wife¡±! He doesn¡¯t call himself that!

    Zhang Siyi leisurely returned Gu Yu¡¯s phone. He couldn¡¯t stop himself from foolishlyughing: ¡°I didn¡¯t cook the dinner. I only helped!¡±

    Even though lying isn¡¯t amendable thing, Gu Yu¡¯s deliberate misdirection made Zhang Siyi feel loved. Gu Yu¡¯s action was really cute!

    Returning to normal, Gu Yu calmly said: ¡°Enlightenment is good. Remember wife, you owe me a dinner.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    After dinner, they went outside to walk the dog. Once they returned and hung up their coats, they went upstairs and sat down at the chess table. Gu Yu was going to teach Zhang Siyi how to y.

    Gu Yu exined the movements of each chess piece and by ying two games with him, Gu Yu guided Zhang Siyi step-by-step. In the early stages, it didn¡¯t matter who won or lost the game.

    Having quickly learned the movements of the pieces and the rules of the game, Zhang Siyi thought chess was simple and smugly said: ¡°What¡¯s so hard about chess? It seems pretty easy. Come on, let¡¯s see your skills!¡±

    Lifting his eye site to look at Zhang Siyi momentarily, Gu Yu grinned widely: ¡°You asked for it.¡±

    After setting up the chessboard, with great enthusiasm, Zhang Siyi moved his first piece. Being under the care of Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi thought he would always show him mercy.

    During the game, Zhang Siyi encountered danger twice. Since he was able to counter the moves and escape, he further believed Gu Yu was going easy on him. In contrast to Gu Yu¡¯s attitude towards the girl during the day, Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart swelled and felt intoxicated by sweet feelings.

    Gradually, he realized something wasn¡¯t quite right. Several times he had to make sacrifices to protect his pieces but it wasn¡¯t enough. Calmly and methodical, move-by-move, Gu Yu had taken each of his own pieces.

    ying rashly, Zhang Siyi was left with a few pieces to protect his king. In chess, the queen¡¯s power was almost omnipotent while the king can only walk one small step at a time. Zhang Siyi used his queen to protect his king for if he moved his queen farther from the king¡¯s side, Zhang Siyi thought he would be easily taken.

    Unbeknown to Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu deliberately let Zhang Siyi feel hopeful by letting him keep his queen. Gu Yu wanted to y a slow game with Zhang Siyi. Feeling pressured, Zhang Siyi realized it wasn¡¯t easy to y both an offensive and defensive chess match.

    After thirty minutes, Zhang Siyi panicked as his queen finally fell. Left with only his king, he noticed the section of the grid that was safe to move in was very small. His heart was grey.

    Even now, Gu Yu wasn¡¯t in a hurry to overtake him. Gu Yu systematically used his eight remaining pieces to slowly force Zhang Siyi¡¯s king to move until he waspletely surrounded.

    Zhang Siyi desperate attempts slowly turned into despair. When he decided to admit defeat, he looked up and saw Gu Yu smiling at him with an expression that the oue of the game was clearly expected written on his face.

    Feeling a twinge of annoyance, Zhang Siyi almost didn¡¯t resign, but finally, he knocked over the pieces and said: ¡°I admit to defeat!¡±

    Gu Yu smiled at him then looked at the board and said: ¡°But I haven¡¯t killed you yet.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± Ah, you go to hell! (¨s¨FÃó¡¯)¨s(©ß©¥©ß

    Gu Yu muffled hisughter and reset the board for another round: ¡°Ready for another round?¡±

    With bulging cheeks, Zhang Siyi squinting his eyes and said: ¡°I¡¯m not ying anymore!¡± Zhang Siyi thought Gu Yu¡¯s slow pace was merciful, but in fact he had be toying with him the whole time!

    Gu Yuughed out and asked: ¡°Are you angry?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    Gu Yu continued to tease him: ¡°How are my chess skills?¡±

    Zhang Siyi stood up and jumped over the table to push Gu Yu and directly overwhelmed him. Since Gu Yu blocked his mouth, Zhang Siyi bit him instead. He is a man and wants to determine the oue in a man¡¯s way! ¡­¡­ Hey, wait, what are you doing!

    The gentlemanly discussion did not begin.

    ¡°Ah, mmn¡­..¡±

    A minuteter, Gu Yu countered Zhang Siyi bold advances.

    Five minutester, with pleasurable sighs and moans, anyone listening would feel their heart race and face turn red.

    Ten minutester, Gu quipped in a hoarse voice: ¡°What are you going to call me?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°You¡­¡± (o////o)

    Gu Yu: ¡°Well? Let me hear it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°fuck off¡­.!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Mm, Ha¡­ Ah, ah¡­¡±

    Another minuteter, Zhang Siyi copsed and cried out: ¡°Gege! Gege!¡±

    Gu Yu smiled in satisfaction and whispered softly in Zhang Siyi ear: ¡°Next time, call me husband.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡­ Get out!!!¡±

    Monday at work, Zhang Siyi saw the director smiling at him warmly and waited for the young man to greet him as courteous and politely as before¡­. Unexpectedly, the director witnessed Zhang Siyi turn his head the other direction and walk right by him.

    Chief Director: ¡°???¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¨C Hey I¡¯m going to ignore you. (¨A_¨@)

    The cousin who had ess to Gu Yu WeChat hadn¡¯t made contact again. When the Chief implicitly asked Gu Yu about his situation a second time, he finally had the chance to refuse outright. Gu Yu tactfully expressed his intentions for someone else. Elders also understand therger issue at hand and since both children had no further intentions on this matter, there was no need to continue trying to put them together.

    After Gu Yu told Zhang Siyi about it, Zhang Siyi feltpletely relieved. He sincerely hoped that there will be no more random people setting up blind dates in the future!

    In a sh, the week went by and in order to prepare for Zhang Siyi parents, the two men paid special attention to their home and carefully cleaned it. Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t want anything left out that would cause his parents to misunderstand.

    In reality, the two innocent boys have been rtively conservative so far. Apart from the lubricant, and the more intense times with Gu Yu in his room, there was nothing else. At this time, Zhang Siyi was really d to have his own room. Half of the time, he was sleeping separately in his own bed.

    At noon on Saturday, Zhang¡¯s parents arrived in Haicheng. Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi drove to the high-speed rail station to pick them up. When Zhang Siyi met them, his parents seemed happy and warmly greeted him. Even though he felt moved, Zhang Siyi also felt tense.

    As he had when Zhang Siyi returned home from Haicheng, his parents had a bunch ofrge packages and bags with them. If Gu Yu hadn¡¯t brought his car, Zhang Siyi did not know how they would have been able to bring them all home on the subway.

    Since they hadn¡¯t seen each other for a few months, Ms. Zhang felt as excited to see her son as she did during the New Year¡¯s Festival. She ignored any onlookers and tenderly touched her son¡¯s face: ¡°This time, yourplexion is really good and you have slimmed down.¡± She took a moment to pat and feel his waist.

    ¡°Have I? I¡¯ve been working a lot of overtime.¡± Zhang Siyi smiled and twisted away. His waist had be very sensitive now that Gu Yu touches and holds it every day.

    When ites to his improvedplexion, Gu Yu should take credit. Since living together, they have been cooking a healthy breakfast and dinner regrly.

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s father saw the antics of mother and son and couldn¡¯t stop himself from interrupting. With a rigid tone he said: ¡°Ok. Ok. There is time to talk. Don¡¯t let others wait.¡± Father Zhang was as serious as ever. Only the slight upturn in the corner of his eye betrayed his happy mood. In response, Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother went to greet Gu Yu.

    Gu Yu smiled and gestured: ¡°Uncle and Aunt. If you please, step into the car. We will eat lunch at home.¡±

    Zhang¡¯s mother opened her eyes and smiled. She had always looked at her son in the best of light, but now, looking at Gu Yu inparison, it seems like her son was tossed to the other side of the train tracks.

    As they drove home, Zhang Siyiined: ¡°There are so many bags and boxes! What else did you bring besides crab paste and fish?¡±

    Ms. Zhang exined: ¡°¡¯I¡¯vee to visit so naturally, there will be more. Isn¡¯t this the Dragon Boat Festival? We also brought some dumplings that you loved when you were a child. Your grandmother gave you a bag of glutinous rice for the two of you. Oh yes, there are also plump, sweet lychees that your uncle brought over¡­¡­.¡±

 Chapter 149: Object

    <h4>Chapter 149: Object</h4>

    ___________________

    Father Zhang snorted and interrupted her: ¡°You are acting like the country folk who moved the whole family into the big city. You didn¡¯t need to bring the kitchen-sink.¡±

    Mother Zhang red at Father Zhang then nced in Gu Yu direction, expecting him to say something.

    Rarely in his Father¡¯s defense, this time Zhang Siyi spoke up: ¡°Mom, Haicheng is not without lychees. Every time you see me, you give me so many things. I am very happy knowing you have good food to eat so there is no need to give it all away. If I need something, I¡¯ll buy it here.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother smiled and scolded him: ¡°How can a family member say there is no need? Did your rabbit brain break? When did you learn to talk that way to your family?¡±

    In all honestly, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know why he talked back to his parents. Probably the reason was the result of being with Gu Yu. He was actually very nervous and feeling guilty. He knew that his parents may never approve and be satisfied with his life¡¯s decision and as a result, Zhang Siyi felt a sense of worry and loss.

    When they arrived at Yuanshan Garden, Gu Yu first dropped them off out front to unpack the car and then he drove around to the parking lot. When Zhang Siyi¡¯s Mother stepped out of the car, she said: ¡°This is a really nice area to live in.¡±

    Proudly, Zhang Siyi introduced his parents to his home: ¡°This area is the old city and the nearby buildings are protected.¡± Through the portcullis and across the courtyard, he took his parents to his home. When he opened the door, Townhouse was there wagging his tail to greet them.

    Ms. Zhang was surprised: ¡°Hey, there is a dog!¡±

    Zhang Siyi Said: ¡°Well, you needn¡¯t be afraid. He is very docile and doesn¡¯t usually bark. ¡°

    When his mother heard Zhang Siyi say ¡®you needn¡¯t be afraid¡¯ she chuckled and smiled. She felt like for the first time, the tone her son emted was a little bit like an adult.

    Changing his shoes, Father Zhang asked: ¡°You and Gu Yu have to go to work, but also have time to take care of a dog?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°There isn¡¯t much more time needed to take care of him. After eating, we take the dog out for a walk. It¡¯s not a hassle.¡±

    Father Zhang continued: ¡°Your mother also mentioned various business trips and you are expected to be going abroad soon. How will you take care of the dog when you leave?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°The pet shop has foster care facilities you can register your dog with.¡±

    Looking at the golden retriever, mother Zhang suddenly remembered: ¡°Isn¡¯t this the same dog your friend bought and posted pictures on your social media page? What was it¡­? The son of Heartless Han?¡±

    Puzzled, his Father asked: ¡°Who is the son of Heartless Han?¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother answered: ¡°His original roommate that he rented an apartment with. The one that had the ident at home and now is abroad.¡±

    Zhang Siyi smiled and said: ¡°Ha-ha, you even remembered that.¡±

    Mother Zhang quipped: ¡°I am your mother. What is there that I do not know? I have gathered all information and read every message on your social media pages. You used to post frequently about what you did everyday including your meals. Now that you are at work, you post so much less. Are you too busy at thepany?¡±

    By the warmth of his mother statement, Zhang Siyi heart was moved. It was as Gu Yu said earlier. Only a mother would care about the details of what he ate and did every day.

    After putting away the packages, Zhang Siyi went to show his parents the house. Previously, when he was a roommate with his friends, he didn¡¯t feel the need to show his parents the apartment. Afterall, it was only one room he rented with two other friends, but now there is a difference. With his rtionship with Gu Yu, this house is not only his ce of residence, but his home as well.

    Like a small master, Zhang Siyi proudly showed his parents his room and the living spaces both upstairs and downstairs.

    The downstairs living room is mainly used for receiving and entertaining guests. The upstairs terrace is more of an intimate setting where they can rx at night. It is a good ce to read books or y a game of chess at the small table on the tform. If the weather is good, the sliding ss door can be opened to let the fresh aire inside.

    Mother Zhang looked around and sighed: ¡°It really is a good environment. Old Zhang, you see this ce that these two live in. Studying architecture in the end was good for your son. Its more beautiful then the ces on TV.¡±

    Walking around with his hands sped behind his back, Zhang Siyi¡¯s father was very satisfied. The collection of books and elegant atmosphere in the home was the perfect residence for a schr.

    Scratching his head Zhang Siyi said: ¡±Hey now, this is Gu Yu¡¯s work. I just sit back and enjoy it.¡± Zhang Siyi smiled and wanted to brag about Gu Yu to his parents for them to understand ¡ª This wonderful man is your son¡¯s boyfriend!

    His Father lectured him: ¡°Know that you are enjoying another¡¯s achievements. Living together is no better then living at home. There is no babysitter to cook and do yourundry. Don¡¯t bezy and take advantage of it. Although Gu Yu is older than you, there is no good reason for him to take care of you to this extent.¡±

    Hearing his father¡¯s lecture, Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t as resentful towards him as he had been in the past. He was happy to exin his living conditions: ¡°I know. The division ofbor is very clear. He cooks and I wash the dishes. On odd days I clean, and on even days he does. On the weekends we have time to doundry and finish chores together.¡±

    In fact, although the rules were clearly stipted, Zhang Siyi was veryzy sometimes and would forget. As a result, Gu Yu would still clean-up for him. Listening to his dad, Zhang Siyi only reacted and realized that he hasn¡¯t received a bonus from Gu Yu in a long time. It seems, Zhang Siyi really does need to listen to his father and earn some bonus points in the future.

    Mother Zhang smiled: ¡°No wonder the home is very clean. My friend alwaysined about the pet hair getting all over the ce, but I don¡¯t see any here. It¡¯s a very tidy.¡±

    In the past two months, Gu Yu was adamant about brushing the dog properly and keeping the family clean. He was more dedicated then the dog¡¯s original father.

    As they were talking, Gu Yu came back and the three of them went downstairs to decide on a ce to eat.

    Gu Yu: ¡°You have had a long trip and it¡¯s not too early anymore. How about we get a quick bite to eat downstairs?¡±

    Ms. Zhang was very polite: ¡°We brought a lot of dishes and can eat the dumplings once they are cooked.¡±

    Gu Yu looked at the time: ¡°I¡¯m afraid you are hungry now, and cooking the food will take some time. There is a small ce that is inexpensive down the street that makes very good dumplings. We can eat a little now and prepare a nice dinner together forter.¡±

    After listening to Gu Yu, Zhang father nodded: ¡°Zhang Siyi should have arranged it so he would take us out to dinner. And by the way, I am pleased to have you join us. Now, you are going to be the host. Isn¡¯t that too much of a bother?¡±

    Gu Yu smiled briefly and said: ¡°Uncle, you are polite. You rarelye visit. It¡¯s only proper for me to be the one making the invitations for dinner.¡±

    The more mother Zhang heard Gu Yu and witness his actions, the more she liked him. While they were walking to the restaurant, she held Zhang Siyi back a little and asked: ¡°Gu Yu is thirty. Does he have a girlfriend? You are living with him now. Does your presence affect his personal life?¡±

    Feeling guilty, Zhang Siyi heart was tight and pretended to not know: ¡°Not that I know of.¡±

    His mother had heard Zhang Siyi¡¯s exnation for moving and living with Gu Yu. Shemented: ¡°He was originally living alone. In order to help you, he has sacrificed his personal life. You need to pay attention to the consequences of your actions. Hurry and move out. Don¡¯t bother people and cause unnecessary trouble. You know?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Oh¡­¡± Hey, in fact, he is the ¡°object¡± of Gu Yu! ¨q(¨s_¨t)¨r

    The small restaurant was indeed very close. When itste, Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu often go there to eat since the price is moderate and the food is good.

    After lunch, the four people went shopping nearby. Zhang Siyi told his parents about the origins of the distant mountain vi. He pointed out the various architectural styles and characteristics of the nearby old buildings.

    However, because the expert is present, where Zhang Siyi was wrong, Gu Yu still pointed out his mistakes and corrected him.

    Zhang Siyi rarely had the opportunity to showcase his knowledge in front of his parents. Since Gu Yu kept correcting him, the result wasn¡¯t what he wanted. Feeling annoyed, they bickered with one another. However, even if the words expressed sounded like they were fighting, their gestures and mannerisms suggested something more akin to flirting.

    Even though Zhang Siyi¡¯s father didn¡¯t think much of the scene before him, Zhang Siyi mother had been exposed to those-kinds-of-stories. Although she knows she shouldn¡¯t, she couldn¡¯t help her mind from wandering¡­¡­ In fact, her son and Gu Yu are also a good match.

 Chapter 150: Match

    <h4>Chapter 150: Match</h4>

    ____________________

    After an hour of walking, they decided to head back to the vi. Once they returned, while Gu Yu offered tea to drink in the living room with Father Zhang, Mother Zhang rolled up her sleeves, put on an apron and called Zhang Siyi to the kitchen to help start preparing an early dinner.

    First, the two dealt with the food-stuffs that Zhang Siyi¡¯s family brought with them. Since the fried fish was partially prepared, his mother schooled him: ¡°If its thoroughly cooked when you store the fish in the refrigerator, then it won¡¯t be tasty when you reheat itter. When you want to eat it, take out the fish, put a little oil on it and set it in a hot pan.¡±

    Zhang Siyi nodded vaguely and intended to turn back to Gu Yu to tell him, but his mother interrupted: ¡°Normally, who cooks?¡±

    Zhang Siyi answered without thought: ¡°Gu Yu.¡±

    Pausing a moment, Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother seemed a little surprised and asked: ¡°All the time? And that isn¡¯t a problem? ¡°

    Zhang Siyi replied as a matter of fact: ¡°No. He cooks and I wash the dishes. His cooking is better than mine.¡±

    Hearing thus, Mother Zhang wondered how there can be such a perfect man; handsome with strong work ethics and the ability to cook and do housework.... Why, it just like the characters from one-of-those-books....

    Zhang Siyi interrupted his mother¡¯s thoughts: ¡°It¡¯s not like I do nothing when he cooks. I normally help him prepare the food too.¡±

    Mother Zhang: ¡°......¡± ¨C These two children live together like a married couple......... ¨C Oh, no! Xu Ruqin, don¡¯t think about it. Do I want him to get involved?

    Mother Zhang coughed lightly, and asked: ¡°Isn¡¯t Gu Yu¡¯s sister also in Haicheng? With so much food, why don¡¯t you ask her toe over for dinner tonight?¡±

    Startled, Zhang Siyi froze and instinctively replied with reluctance: ¡°His sister¡¯s school is far away from here. It takes more than an hour by subway.¡± In fact, there is nothing wrong with asking Gu Yao toe over and eat. The real problem is the motivation behind his mother¡¯s invitation.

    However, his mother was very insistent: ¡°It is only four o¡¯clock now. Since Haicheng is a big city, an hour isn¡¯t really a lot of time to travel. There is plenty of time for her to travel here for dinner so hurry up and ask her.

    Feeling awkward, Zhang Siyi looked out of the kitchen and asked Gu Yu unenthusiastically: ¡°Hey. My mother would like your sister toe over for dinner.¡±

    Pausing his conversation with Zhang Siyi¡¯s father, Gu Yu looked up and calmly replied: ¡°Go ahead and send her a message and ask.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± ¨C Gu Yu didn¡¯t object? And with no excuse to refuse? He could have simply said ¡®my sister may not be free¡¯ ...ah!

    Feeling depressed and duty bound, Zhang Siyi pulled out his mobile phone and sent a message in their three-person group chat: ¡°Calling the revolutionaryrades.¡±

    ...... I hope Gu Yao won¡¯t see it... don¡¯t look, don¡¯t look, don¡¯t look...... not for another two or three hours before you check the message!

    Gu Yao: ¡°I¡¯m here! What does the Division want?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Wow! You replied so quickly!¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Ha-ha. I was just chatting with friends. What¡¯s up?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Are you free now?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°What?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°My parents are here visiting and my mom would like it if you came over for dinner.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Why do I feel that Auntie has ulterior motives? (¡ú_¡ú)¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Your feeling is not wrong. (=_=)¡±

    After a half-minute, Gu Yao replied: ¡°Ok. I¡¯ll pack up ande right away.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°!!!¡± Even knowing there are ¡®ulterior motives¡¯ she stilles!? What is she thinking!?

    Returning to the kitchen, Zhang Siyi was dismayed: ¡°She said she wille right away.¡±

    Mother Zhang took a look at her son and didn¡¯t understand her son¡¯s resistance and depressed mood. She took this opportunity to remind him of exhibiting proper polite behavior: ¡°She isn¡¯t just anyone. She is Gu Yu¡¯s sister and he asked you to message her. Stop moping. It is one thing if she can¡¯te, but another if you continue to act that way.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Well, his mother has a point.

    Just as Mother Zhang was ting the final dishes for dinner, at nearly six in the evening, Gu Yao arrived. Today, she was wearing a pale pink dress that was simple and elegant. On her feet, she wore a pair of small jade sandals. With her facial features, big eyes and clothing choices, together they made her look exceptionally cute. Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t understand why Gu Yao, this elf-like beauty hasn¡¯t found a boyfriend yet. It is simply unscientific!

    Since the small table that Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi usually ate at wasn¡¯trge enough for everyone, Gu Yu had raised the extension arms on the sides to make the table toprger. Now, there was plenty of room for all eight dishes and five people.

    ¡°Good Uncle and Aunt.¡± Gu Yao politely greeted Zhang¡¯s father and mother first.

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s father has never seen Gu Yao before. He has only heard about her from Mother Zhang who once said she was like an angel descended from the heavens. He thought she was exaggerating, but upon looking at her, he could see for himself that she wasn¡¯t. Gu Yao really appeared to be a mythical being.

    Gu Yao noticed the golden retriever at her side and excitedly said: ¡°Ah! Doggie!¡±

    Watching Gu Yao cheerful and undisguised, lively nature, Mother Zhang was once again reminded of the ideal daughter-inw; a perfect match. Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother smiled broadly and asked: ¡°You haven¡¯t seen this dog?¡±

    Petting the dog, Gu Yao answered her: ¡°Well, I have been busy with my thesis at school and haven¡¯t been back here since Zhang Siyi moved in.¡±

    Mother Zhang enthusiastically and warmly gestured: ¡°Come here and let¡¯s eat first.¡±

    During the meal, Zhang Siyi¡¯s father showed obvious curiosity for Gu Yao. He rarely ever talked while eating, but today was different. Throughout the meal, he constantly asked Gu Yu questions about his sister; how old she was, where she was studying, what subjects.... The information that one normally enquires about when trying to make a match for a son.

    Looking at his Father¡¯s extraordinary soft facial expression, Zhang Siyi felt so embarrassed he could die. He didn¡¯t understand what Gu Yao was thinking. Earlier, not in the group chat, she texted him and said she could help, but this is too much. How is this helping? It is only making his parents confused!

    After dinner, Zhang Siyi went to the kitchen and washed the dishes feeling distraught. For a long time, he could hear the bout ofughter from the living room as his father and mother continued to talk with Gu Yu and his sister.

    Feeling indignant over current events, Zhang Siyi took out his anger on the dishes and roughly handled them. Gu Yu came in silently and walked behind him to kiss his ear. Startled, Zhang Siyi jumped in fright and quickly looked behind: ¡°What are you doing!¡±

    Gu Yu pinched his helpless face: ¡°Don¡¯t pout. Smile.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± With his parent¡¯s behavior, how can heugh now!?

    Gu Yu patted his shoulder and said: ¡°I know what you¡¯re thinking and I¡¯ll talk to youter.¡± Afterwards, Gu Yu returned to the living room.

    When Zhang Siyi finished washing the dishes, he walked to the living room and sat with them on the couch to join in on their discussion. After a while, Zhang Siyi¡¯s parents decided it was time to head back to the hotel to rest. As his parents were gathering their belongings and everyone was putting on their coats, Zhang Siyi took the opportunity to walk to dog and got out Townhouse¡¯s leash.

    When they were leaving, Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother worried: ¡°It is half past eight already. Gu Yao¡¯s school is so far away. Is she going to go back thiste?¡±

    Gu Yu smiled and said: ¡°Auntie, rest assured. I won¡¯t let her go back thiste at night. The room where Zhang Siyi is now living was originally setup as a ce for my sister toe visit. Zhang Siyi,e to my room tonight and squeeze in with me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...... Oh.¡±

    Mother Zhang was very satisfied with the arrangement: ¡°That¡¯s right. It is not very safe for a girl to be traveling sote alone.¡±

    Saying their good nights, Zhang Siyi sent his parents off and the three of them walked the dog. Zhang Siyi red at Gu Yao: ¡°Hey! What were you doing!? You knew what my parents were thinking and you deliberately made them misunderstand.¡±

    Gu Yao didn¡¯t appreciate being yelled at: ¡°You¡¯re wrong! My brother called me!¡±

 Chapter 151: Tense

    <h4>Chapter 151: Tense</h4>

    ______________________

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What!? Your brother asked me to call you.¡±

    Gu Yao exined: ¡°When you sent me the message, my brother had privately asked me toe over already.¡±

    Immediately remembering what Gu Yu had mentioned in the kitchen, Zhang Siyi turned to stare at Gu Yu, waiting for his exnation.

    Gu Yu inly stated: ¡°Your acting was bad.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°huh?¡±

    Rubbing his head, Gu Yu sighed then said: ¡°You were being too obvious. I noticed your mother staring at us often so I asked my sister toe over to divert her attention.¡±

    When Zhang Siyi heard Gu Yu, he felt a little guilty. He couldn¡¯t admit to Gu Yu that his mother was a big rot-girl.

    ..... Could it be that his mother really was thinking of them as a pair? But how could it be with her overly beaming attitude towards Gu Yao? Or, was it really as Gu Yu said; his sister really did over shadowed his mother¡¯s rot-girl thoughts? (=_=)

    ¡°Cough. Ah, that¡¯s it.¡± Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t particrly angry at Gu Yu going behind his back.

    Certainly, there is more to Gu Yu¡¯s reason than that. Since it has taken him a very long time to get as far as he has with his rtionship with Zhang Siyi, he was on high alert. If he only had to rely on himself, there wouldn¡¯t be a problem maintaining his rtionship, but he is uncertain whether or not Zhang Siyi would buckle under pressure.

    At twenty-three, Zhang Siyi is six years younger than Gu Yu. The bright future both career wise and rtionship wise that a young adult has is always a concern for any parent and Zhang Siyi¡¯s parents are no different. Even if his parents did not specificallye to visit with marriageable prospects, they understood that when he reaches the age of marriage, there will be plenty of women to choose from because Zhang Siyi¡¯s family conditions and background weren¡¯t bad.

    Gu Yu wasn¡¯t afraid of Zhang Siyi¡¯s parents rejecting their rtionship. He was afraid that Zhang Siyi himself hasn¡¯t prepared himself mentally to fight social pressure.

    Since they have been together for less than two months, their love period hasn¡¯t ended and thus, Gu Yu feels like their rtionship isn¡¯t stable enough. If both parents realized the truth now and opposed them, it would be too easy to tear them apart. The pressure and responsibility by being an only son would shake Zhang Siyi to the core and ultimately, Gu Yu thinks Zhang Siyi would be duty-bound and leave him.

    Instead of tackling the issue head on, it is better to strengthen the bonds between the families first by allowing Zhang Siyi¡¯s parents to misunderstand the rtionship with his sister.

    However, Gu Yu will not talk about his reasons openly to Zhang Siyi because he is afraid since he has shielded him, that he doesn¡¯t really understand the cultural pressure of thier situation. Also, hecks the trust needed to follow Gu Yu without question and instead Zhang Siyi would simply be very angry and blow up at him in an argument.

    In any case, after listening to Gu Yu¡¯s short exnation, Zhang Siyi seemed relieved. Walking the dog, Zhang Siyi and Gu Yao wereughing and joking around. Gu Yu smiled at them.

    When they returned home, Gu Yao asked Zhang Siyi if he knew about a recent trendy App called the Era of Music and whether or not he had yed it.

    Since Zhang Siyi had been under the influence of Gu Yu, he didn¡¯t have time to y games anymore. Normally, when he got home from work, he either studied work rted material or was with Gu Yu.

    Listening to Gu Yao describe the game, Zhang Siyi was immediately interested and quickly went upstairs to get his recently unused iPad. After downloading the game, Gu Yao briefly showed him how to y. First, Zhang Siyi picked an easy tune. The game is simr to a dance game where you push a button that coincides with a particr falling icon.

    Since Zhang Siyi ys the violin, he quickly adjusted to the rhythm of the music and in the first attempt, he achieved all thebo points and scored with a 99.9% uracy; an A+.

    ¡°It is very simple!¡± Zhang Siyimented.

    ¡°What¡¯s so great about level 1. Let¡¯s see what you can do on a more difficult challenge!¡± She grabbed Zhang Siyi¡¯s iPad and selected a harder sequence: ¡°I can y up to level five.¡±

    Since they were simr in age, they easily got along. After Gu Yu finished wiping the dog¡¯s ws, he walked into the living room and noticed the two of them close together chatting andughing.

    Gu Yu wanted to join them for a bit, but since he didn¡¯t believe ying video games were worth his time, he gave up on the idea of sitting with them. After checking the cat food bowls, he grabbed the vacuum and started tidying up. His sister loudlyined: ¡°Brother, we can¡¯t hear the music!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°......¡±

    Even though sheined to her brother, Gu Yao continued to stare at Zhang Siyi while he yed the game. As he finished the levels, she grabbed his face and eximed with excitement: ¡°Ahhhhh! All A+!¡±

    Less then thirty minutester, Zhang Siyi broke through level five without a problem. He breathed a sigh of relief. Noticing Gu Yao¡¯s unbelieving attitude transform into worship he said: ¡°See. It¡¯s easy.¡±

    With Gu Yao star-struck gaze, she watched Zhang Siyi with adoration: ¡°How did you do it! I yed several times without getting an A+.¡±

    Zhang Siyi chuckled a ¡®he-he¡¯ and said: ¡°I don¡¯t know. Maybe it is because I can y the violin.¡±

    Gu Yao instantly became Zhang Siyi¡¯s fan-girl: ¡°Really? Oh My God! At the time that the Korean version of ¡°Boys Over Flowers¡± was broadcasted, I was obsessed with Kim Hyun Jong. Since then, I really like boys who can y violin!¡±

    Zhang Siyi was feeling a little embarrassed: ¡°Well, if you want. I can y it for you.¡±

    Looking forward to answering Zhang Siyi positively, Gu Yao was suddenly interrupted by her brother: ¡°No.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Standing next to the vacuum cleaner, Gu Yu emitted an ¡®I¡¯m not happy¡¯ signal from head to toe.

    Surprised at his outburst, Gu Yao wanted to argue with him and ask why not, but her brother cut her off: ¡°It¡¯s almost ten. Most people are asleep. Are you not concerned with the neighbors if you y the violin sote at night?¡± Gu Yu stared at Zhang Siyi coldly: ¡°And you, are you a child? Still ying video games with no restraint.¡±

    Being shut down by Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t stand it anymore. He said: ¡°What is the problem? Today is Saturday. There is plenty of time to y.¡±

    Hearing Zhang Siyi, Gu Yao had the courage to speak up: ¡°Yeah. I usually go to bed at midnight in school. Ten o¡¯clock isn¡¯tte at all! This game is really fun so let¡¯s y. Just because you don¡¯t y video games, doesn¡¯t mean you can prevent us from ying.¡±

    Feeling sullen, Gu Yu was angry. These two kids just ignored him. But, what can he do? He can¡¯t admit that he¡¯s jealous...

    After setting the vacuum cleaner aside in a corner of the wall, Gu Yu didn¡¯t say anything and instead went straight upstairs.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Gu Yao:¡±......¡±

    Gu Yao thought her brother was acting strange. ying games wasn¡¯t a big deal and he didn¡¯t usually care so much about them, but today, he seems particrly vitriolic. His reaction was just too much!

    Gu Yao expressed her wonder out loud: ¡°Why is my brother so tense?¡±

    Zhang Siyi bowed his head and sighed with a narrow eye. ¡°Who knows. Maybe he was scratched by a wild cat.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°poof......¡±

    As the mood to y was ruined, the two looked up at each other and both sighed. Gu Yumented: ¡°Forget it. Time to go upstairs and sleep.¡±

    Slowly, Zhang Siyi walked upstairs with little sound. He surveyed the area and since Gu Yu wasn¡¯t on the tform, he assumed Gu Yu went back to his room.

    Zhang Siyi dropped Gu Yao off at his room first. Since his parents had visited, the bed was made and the room was already clean.

    Gu Yao saw the violin at the foot of the bed. With eyes bright, she stated in surprise: ¡°Wow, you really can y the violin!¡±

    Looking at the instrument, Zhang Siyi reflected, is Gu Yu jealous because of the violin......? Well, it¡¯s a possibility.

    Even though he did tell Gu Yu that he only yed the violin for people that he liked as a ploy, Gu Yu may not be happy hearing Zhang Siyi tell Gu Yao that he would y for her. To think he would get jealous over his own sister......

    Zhang Siyi grinned and responded to Gu Yao: ¡°It¡¯s toote today, I¡¯ll have a chance to y another time.¡±

    Gu Yao nodded and looked happy.

    Zhang Siyi pointed to the direction of the other bedroom. ¡°Well, I will go see your brother. If you are tired, go to sleep.¡±

    With some reluctance, Gu Yao gestured and waved her hand: ¡°Go ahead.¡±

    Turning around, Zhang Siyi went into Gu Yu¡¯s room without knocking on the door.

    Gu Yu wasn¡¯t asleep. He was standing in front of his desk practicing calligraphy. On the table were several written words; cold, quiet.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    ncing at him without expression, Gu Yu picked up a picture book to cover the part he had already written then continued to write something else.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°....¡± I have already seen it! (=_=)

    Zhang Siyi gently closed the door and went to the bed to sit down. Looking at Gu Yu¡¯s back, he patiently waited for him to speak, but Gu Yu continued to practice writing, ignoring him.

    After five minutes, Zhang Siyi felt anxious. He stood up and hugged Gu Yu from behind suddenly. As a result, Gu Yu calligraphy stroke was heavy on the rice paper.

    Zhang Siyi tightened his arms and pulled him in his direction: ¡°What are you doing? If I don¡¯t speak, you just ignore me?¡±

    Gu Yu snorted softly: ¡°Since you don¡¯t listen to me, why should I talk to you.¡±

    Exasperated, Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°It is obvious you are mad at me, but you still walked away without saying anything...... Can¡¯t we talk?¡±

 Chapter 152: Exclusive

    <h4>Chapter 152: Exclusive</h4>

    _______________________

    Gu Yu statement caused Zhang Siyi to feel momentarily scared. When did he say something so horrible? Under Zhang Siyi¡¯s strong pull, Gu Yu quickly put down the pen. He didn¡¯t want the ink brush to stain something else. Zhang Siyi turned him around and facing Gu Yu, he hugged him in an embrace.

    Feeling resentful, Gu Yu wanted to remain silent, however, as soon as he saw Zhang Siyi face, he couldn¡¯t help himself from speaking out: ¡°I thought you wanted to y games. So, go y!¡±

    Zhang Siyi stared at him: ¡°How can I y when you are like this!?¡±

    Coldly, Gu Yu replied: ¡°I¡¯m sorry to bother you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi could feel his anger rising. ¨C I hate it when he gets jealous!

    He didn¡¯t want to continue arguing with Gu Yu and as a result, he simply stared at him instead. Not knowing what to do next, Zhang Siyi held him tighter. In the end, Gu Yu rxed. In a way, without arguing, his goal was achieved.

    Slowly Gu Yu admitted: ¡°You haven¡¯t yed the violin for me in a long time.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s mouth twitched... He really was jealous!

    It was toote to savor the feeling as Gu Yu quickly pressed on: ¡°Well, if you remember, you said you only y the violin for people that you like... It turns out again, that your ¡®like¡¯ isn¡¯t serious.¡±

    Hearing the usations of seemingly trivial matters made Zhang Siyi heart stop.

    Continuing his exnation, Gu Yu said in a soft tone like a lost child: ¡°It seems like I have misunderstood. I thought hearing you y the violin was exclusively mine.¡±

    Zhang Siyipletely abandoned any resistance: ¡°I was wrong, I was wrong, I was wrong!¡±

    He didn¡¯t think that his off-handed remark would make Gu Yu think so much. Since he was most afraid of letting Gu Yu down, he could care less about the details and other things.

    Shit! Since he said it, he has to adhere to his statement. In the future, he will only be able to y the violin for Gu Yu alone!

    ¡°I was just saying it!¡± Zhang Siyi held Gu Yu face in his hands and kissed him lightly all over his face while apologizing: ¡°I¡¯m sorry. I will only y for you in the future. Don¡¯t be angry.¡±

    Gu Yu wasn¡¯t sure: ¡°Only for me?¡±

    Zhang Siyi held up his right hand and in a hurry said: ¡°Really! I swear! Just for you!¡±

    Finally, Gu Yu¡¯s eyes softened. He raised his hands and caressed Zhang Siyi¡¯s face then gently kissed him back.

    He is addicted to taste of being loved by the person you love. Both sweet and sour, straight to the heart and deeply etched into your bones. This is love. It simply makes people act foolishly.

    Laying down on the bed, the two continued to hold each other for a while. Gu Yu asked: ¡°What game did you just y?¡±

    Zhang Siyi quickly grabbed he iPad and returned to show Gu Yu: ¡°It¡¯s really fun. You should try it and see.¡±

    Zhang Siyi started the simplest song to let Gu Yu get a feel for the game. The tempo is very slow and the drop-down icon is also slow. Primary school students may find it more difficult, but Gu Yu does not.

    Gu Yu doesn¡¯t seem to be interested in the game. As he pressed the required buttons he asked: ¡°Is this not the same as the typing game that was popr in the early years whenputers first came out?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°It¡¯s not the same. That older game was to help you learn the letters of a keyboard. You need to listen to the beat and press keys in this one.¡±

    At the end of a piece of music, Gu Yu looked at his own achievements; only an A. The uracy rate was less than 95%. Gu Yu immediately raised an eyebrow.

    Although he did not participate, he heard Gu Yao marveling at Zhang Siyi¡¯s ability to achieve an A+ every time. The current best results are indeed Zhang Siyi¡¯s.

    Next to him, Zhang Siyi gloated and said: ¡°Ha-ha, I am still awesome!¡±

    Gu Yu wasn¡¯t happy and requested another slightly more difficult song. This time since he missed two, the score was even worse at a B. He took a look at the highest record; still Zhang Siyi¡¯s.

    In disbelief, Gu Yu asked: ¡°Do you always score an A+?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Of course! Level three songs are so simple. I can y the first five levels at an A+¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Si Yi picked a new track of the highest level he can y at present and personally demonstrated it for Gu Yu to see.

    Gu Yu watched as his nimble fingers quickly press the correct keys on the screen with uracy and again, he reached an A+ with a score of 99.3%!

    Gu Yu¡¯s eyes widened in disbelief. There seems to be more to it.

    Zhang Siyi pushed the iPad to him and let him try the same level on his own. Since it was Gu Yu first attempt at ying and because of the difficulty, he couldn¡¯t keep up with the rhythm and missed many keys.

    Next to him, Zhang Siyi urged: ¡°Move faster! Get with the beat! Ah, missed again.¡±

    The final result came out; not even a B......

    Gu Yu was silent. Zhang Siyi was silent.

    Gu Yu¡¯s silence is an ident. This game is not as simple as he thought. He was depressed at the gap between his own ability and Zhang Siyi¡¯s.

    Zhang Siyi is silent. He can¡¯t understand why Gu Yu can¡¯t get the simple rhythm and missed so much. He suspects that Gu Yu was deliberately losing!

    With a newfound appreciation, Gu Yu seriously tried the game again. He also told Zhang Siyi to shut-up and stop distracting him. However, even with his determination, his score wasn¡¯t much better than before.

    Looking at Gu Yu¡¯s puzzled expression of disbelief, Zhang Siyi tried to muffle augh, but instead a ¡®pfft¡¯ slipped out.

    With a dark expression Gu Yu asked: ¡°Tell me honestly. Have you ever yed this game before?¡±

    Zhang Siyi hurriedly said: ¡°Don¡¯t talk nonsense. I¡¯m ying this game for the first time!¡±

    Gu Yu wondered and questioned: ¡°But how can you y so well when you don¡¯t know how to y a piano?¡±

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t understand why Gu Yu was having a hard time. It was frustrating and he didn¡¯t know how to exin how simply it was for him.... Suddenly, with a burst of wisdom Zhang Siyi spoke out: ¡°I know!¡±

    Gu Yu looked at him and tly responded: ¡°What do you know?¡±

    Zhang Siyi rubbed his chin: ¡°This may be some kind oftent talent. Just like why academics are so easy for you, this game is easy for me. You mentioned before in middle school you watched others struggle to pass exams while you passed with flying colors without effort...... Do you think they¡¯re mentally retarded?

    Gu Yu narrowed his eyes: ¡°So, you think I¡¯m mentally retarded now?¡±

    Zhang Siyi mouth twitched: ¡°I don¡¯t mean that!¡±

    Watching Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi had a bad feeling... If Gu Yu can¡¯t beat his game, will he be angry at him?

    ¡°Hey! What are you doing? ...Shit! You really can¡¯t y such a simple game...... Ah, ha-ha-ha-ha, don¡¯t tickle me, Ha-ha-ha.... Uh, Hm, Mnm....¡±

    ......

    After washing her face, Gu Yao went back to her room to sleep. In the hallway, she heard the familiar sound of musicing from her brother¡¯s room. It piqued her interest, so she crept to their door and eavesdropped on them... Hey, isn¡¯t this the same game they were just ying?

    Then she heard Zhang Siyi giving out pointers: ¡°Faster! Follow the rhythm.......¡±

    Gu Yao jaw dropped. The more she stood there listening, the more irritated she felt. Who was the one that was opposed to them ying!? Yet now, he and Zhang Siyi were hiding in his bedroom ying! Too much!

    When she heard Zhang Siyi exin to her brother why he yed badly, Gu Yao almostughed out loud! In the next moment, the music stopped and the soundsing from the room seem a little strange.... Is he tickling Siyi? Hmm? It doesn¡¯t seem right....... Ah! She realized and reacted. Her face turned bright red and she felt embarrassed standing out in the hallway listening. Oh, my god, she¡¯s still a baby. My brothers are out of line! (&////&)

    The next morning, Zhang Siyi ate Gu Yu¡¯s breakfast and went out to the hotel to pick up his father and mother. Since Gu Yao rarely visited, she wasn¡¯t in a hurry to leave. She was ying with Townhouse when she heard violin music in the direction of the sofa, she asked: ¡°What are you listening to?¡± She curiously crept over and saw her brother watching a video on his mobile phone. The violin music wasing from the mobile phone.

    Gu Yao craned her neck and took a peek. The person on the video.... Isn¡¯t that Zhang Siyi? She also noticed the location of the video was this very living room. She saw Zhang Siyi focus on ying the music while wearing a white tux. Listening to the song, she watched him y a ssical piece in a fast-paced rock style.

    From the bottom of her heart and eyes sparkling, Gu Yao blurted out: ¡°Wow! So awesome! He is so handsome!¡±

    Letting her only see part of the video, Gu Yu suddenly put the phone away.

    ¡°Hey! Why did you stop it? I haven¡¯t finished watching it yet!¡± Seeing the excitement suddenly came to an abrupt end, sheined. Clutching her brother¡¯s shoulder, she tried to grab the phone away from him.

    Gu Yu nced at her sideways: ¡°What do you think? Good, right?¡±

    Gu Yao desperately nodded: ¡°It¡¯s very good, but I haven¡¯t finished listening to it yet!¡±

    Gu Yu put his mobile phone away and stood up, unmoved: ¡°Your brother-inw said he would only y the violin for me to listen to. Stop pestering him to y the violin for you. It was enough for you to see that short video clip.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°...¡± Bastard brother! He had his wife shun the younger sister. She really was there just to buy food!

    Leaning on her, Townhouse let out a gentle ¡®oowoo¡¯ as if to tell her: ¡°Sister, you still have me!¡±

    When Zhang Siyi returned to the vi with his mother and father, Gu Yu drove them to the most famous spots in Haicheng. They also passed by Zhang Siyi¡¯s workce and learned a little about hispany and job. At noon, they ate lunch at a restaurant outside. Soon, his parents needed to catch the train back to Ningcheng. Now that they know their son is following such a good boss, they could leave feeling at ease and assured about Zhang Siyi¡¯s future.

    After Zhang Siyi¡¯s parents left, Gu Yu drove his sister back to school and also gave her a lot of fried fish for her to enjoy with her roommates.

    After the weekend passed, it was time to work. At thepany the next day, in an effort to unify the travelers, everyone that was going on the trip had a package waiting for them that included their travel visa as well as apany t-shirt and travel cap. Thepany employees were in a festive mood.

    However, the uniform dress code made the girl colleague a little bit depressed because the straight t-shirt was rather unattractive.

    Someone protested: ¡°The t-shirt is so ugly. Do I have to wear it?¡±

    With a rare opportunity to travel out of the country, naturally one wants to take beautiful photos. How frustrating would it be if during the whole trip, only thepany t-shirt was worn!?

 Chapter 153: The Uniform

    <h4>Chapter 153: The Uniform</h4>

    ____________________________

    Since the trip was apany sponsored event, Gu Yu wanted to uphold thepany¡¯s expectations as the team leader. He wasn¡¯t particrly happy about their protests, but he also couldn¡¯t ignore them. In the end he made apromise: ¡°Thepany shirts must be worn on the first day of travel and on thest day of departure. During the week, you may wear your own clothes.¡±

    In fact, for male colleagues, there wasn¡¯t an issue. Since it was the summertime, it was normal for them to wear a pair of shorts and a t-shirt. Whether the shirt has thepany¡¯s logo printed on it or something else, it made no difference. Zhang Siyi thought thepany shirt was rather nice. When he got home, he tried it on with Gu Yu. With matching shirts, Zhang Siyi felt like a young couple from a television drama.

    Having won the prize in the photographypetitionst year, Zhang Siyi was the official photographer for the trip and the task wasn¡¯t any easier than Gu Yu¡¯s.

    In anticipation of the trip, the people¡¯s excitement grew and finally, the day of travel arrived. At eight in the morning on June twentieth, a total of twenty-eight people from both the architectural design department and thendscape nning and design team gathered at the Haicheng International Airport.

    Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu took the subway together to the airport and since they were both wearing thepany uniform, they received many sideways nces along the way to the airport.

    Before their arrival, there was already a group of colleagues at the airport waiting for the remaining people to show up. Several female colleagues gathered around to gossip and guess what Director Gu would wear today. As the team leader, would he be like a tour guide and carry a small g to raise with a megaphone to speak through? Thinking about the possibility, the girlsughed.

    Theughter was short lived however, as Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu appeared together. Instead, the girls hung their mouths wide open, gawking at the two approaching men.

    Even though Gu Yu was wearing thepany shirt, he didn¡¯t look anything like a tour guide. Besides thepany shirt, he wore a lightweight outeryer, like a windbreaker, and a pair of ck jeans and ck sneakers. He made the most mundane article of clothing look like a famous fashion brand. Wearing a pair of sunsses, his handsome features and graceful strides were entuated further.

    Like young school girls, some of them covered their faces and silently screamed. Having such an unobtainable and eye-catching boss to gaze at everyday was worth any bitter feelings they had.

    Of course, the most critical point isn¡¯t Gu Yu himself, it is the fact that Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu appeared together. Slightly staggered, Gu Yu dragged his suitcase behind him at arms-length and gave the impression that he was directly holding Zhang Siyi¡¯s hand.

    Moreover, the two of them were smiling and chatting with one another. Although there was some distance between them, the sweet atmosphere between them was tangible as if there was an invisible thread that tightly bound them together.

    With his camera hanging loosely around his neck, Zhang Siyi looked like a small youthful student standing next to Gu Yu.

    Teasing, Bi Lele smiled and said: ¡°The game hasn¡¯t even started and yet, the atmosphere between the two of you is better than a real couple!¡±

    The surrounding people chuckled at Bi Lele¡¯s joke. Only Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu themselves knew that they are true lovers!

    One after another, more people in thepany arrived and by eight-forty, everyone going on the trip was present except for one person: Tao Fei. The group was feeling more and more anxious at his absence and because it was nearing the time to board the ne, some people were ready to leave him behind. Since Zhang Siyi had traveled with him before, he was familiar with Tao Fei¡¯sst-minute behavior and he remained calm.

    Since everyone had decided to participate in the couples¡¯ game, when they depart, the yers would pair up ording to their assigned partners. Without him, one of the pairings would be iplete. Watching Tao Fei arrive at the airport, no one said anything to rebuke him for his tardiness. His beauty was unmatched and having an enchanting figure in the group was also a bonus. (=_=)

    Tao Fei hadn¡¯t noticed it, but Lu Qiao had walked in behind him like an obedient child. When he realized who was behind him, his eyes twitched. From the start, Tao Fei had no interest in ying the couples game, but he went along with it anyway. He didn¡¯t expect Lu Qiao, with his little white arms and thin legs to follow along so easily.

    Tao Fei turned to look behind and saw Ji Feiyu holding Du Rui¡¯s hand. When they made eye contact, Ji Feiyu winked and gave him a victory gesture.

    Tao Fei suddenly felt a little irritated at being manipted by the situation that Ji Feiyu created in order to flirt with the girl Ji Feiyu liked.

    ¡°Hey!¡± Tao Fei called out to Lu Qiao: ¡°Come here.¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°...ah?¡±

    Tao Fei pushed his suitcase to him and said: ¡°Help me pull it.¡±

    ¡°Oh.......¡± Lu Qiao obediently took the bag and followed him carefully.

    Tao Fei raised his eyebrow in surprise. ¨C So obedient? Just like a personal assistant.

    Lu Qiao thought Tao Fei had a reason he requested help, but he only saw Tao Fei reach for his phone from his pocket. He followed him all the while Tao Fei yed on his mobile phone......

    Well, at first nce, Tao Fei was just like a young master. Lu Qiao wasn¡¯t surprised at his behavior.

    Since both Zhang Siyi and Lu Qiao have it in their personality to want to please the person they admire and respect, they have a simr character trait. As long as they recognize the other person¡¯s strength, they are happy to do the extra things requested of them.

    That said, in fact, at first as did Zhang Siyi, Lu Qiao disliked Tao Fei very much. First of all, he didn¡¯t like Tao Fei appearance. With his long hair and beautiful features, he seems neither male nor female; just like a demon. Second, without background, Lu Qiao had worked very hard step by step on his own to get to the position he is in now at thepany. Being alongside so many capable people made him feel proud at his achievement. Therefore, he hated unfairpetition.

    Tao Fei appearance at thepany gave Lu Qiao the most negative feeling. From the very first moment at thepany, it was clear he had a special rtionship with Director Gu. His antics had continuously broken the normally harmonious atmosphere of the team. At the beginning, Lu Qiao noticed that even the most liked member of their group, Zhang Siyi, didn¡¯t get along with him either.

    Three monthster, Lu Qiao was the most surprised at how well Tao Fei integrated himself into the group. He not only won the bid for amercial high-rise building; he also won the bid on the hotel project that he worked on with Zhang Siyi. As a result, he became close friends with Zhang Siyi as well as gaining the trust of everyone else in the department.

    Even Lu Qiao was swayed by Tao Fei¡¯s diligent work. In particr, he admired Tao Fei when he was seriously working at his desk with his hair tied up. The concentrated expression that Tao Fei exhibited while leaning over his desk made Lu Qiao feel like he was watching a genderless celestial being hard at work.

    In addition, Lu Qiao gradually realized Tao Fei also had we he thought of as ¡®the-beauty-disease.¡¯ Namely, Tao Fei was a bit self-centered and narcissistic. However, while his ws weren¡¯t hidden, his professional strength outshined them all.

    Like Zhang Siyi¡¯s sunny and convivial nature, Tao Fei self-confidence is something that was inborn. Because this quality is something Lu Qiao thinks hecks, now, he also admired Tao Fei......

 Chapter 154: Discovery

    <h4>Chapter 154: Discovery</h4>

    ________________________

    Even though Lu Qiao admired Tai Fei, he was also a little afraid of him. He was the only person Lu Qiao knows that would dare argue and m the door in front of his boss! After the incident at work, Lu Qiaobeled Tao Fei as a troublemaker and as a result, he maintained a respectable attitude and distance towards him.

    The day when everyone paired up and Tao Fei picked him was shocking to Lu Qiao. Even though it was just a game and nothing was meant by it, everyone knew Tao Fei was very popr among the female staff at thepany, so why didn¡¯t he pick one of them? And besides, he and Tao Fei weren¡¯t on good terms like Gu Yu was with Zhang Siyi. What reason did he have to pick himself? Does that mean Tao Fei is gay?

    In order to confirm his suspicion, for two days, Lu Qiao observed Tao Fei closely and carefully. On one hand, Lu Qiao was relieved to find no special treatment from Tao Fei and in fact, like the air you cannot see, he treated Lu Qiao as though he wasn¡¯t present. On the other hand, he also felt lost and depressed at being so disregarded.

    He hated people who thought they were above him. It wasn¡¯t until this moment when Tao Fei asked him to help with his suitcase that he called out his name.

    Although there was no expression on his face, Lu Qiao extended a helping hand withoutint. He didn¡¯t understand why, as if he had the honor of helping a great beauty, he felt the excitement in his heart. Anyway, at least Tao Fei isn¡¯t ignoring him now.

    During the process of boarding and taking a seat on the airne, Lu Qiao looked all around him in a very animated fashion. When Tao Fei saw him exploring every possible nook and cranny like a child, he couldn¡¯t help but ask: ¡°Do you want to sit at the window seat?¡±

    Lu Qiao happily replied: ¡°Yes, can we switch?¡±

    Tao Fei took the initiative to stand up and change seats with him. Lu Qiao looked at Tao Fei with adoration and sighed in his heart. The beauty is a good person.

    After the ne took off, Lu Qiao continued to marvel at his surroundings. He frequently took out his phone to take pictures.

    Tao Feiughed: ¡°What are you? A country-bumpkin on his first ne ride?¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°......¡±

    As someone that is from the country side, Lu Qiao¡¯s self-esteem was very strong. Even though Tao Fei wasn¡¯t wrong, he still felt angry at his remark. He felt like Tao Fei was looking down on him.

    Seeing the change in Lu Qiao face, Tao Fei opened his eyes in surprise: ¡°Really? This is the first time on an airne?¡±

    Irritated, Lu Qiao snapped: ¡°Yes! I¡¯m a redneck that hasn¡¯t ever been on a ne before!¡±

    Tao Fei didn¡¯t think it was possible: ¡°How long have you worked in thepany? Haven¡¯t you ever been on a business trip?¡±

    Since he was never involved with the main feature of a project that he was assigned to work on, Lu Qiao didn¡¯t know if his luck was poor, or he simply didn¡¯t have the ability to work on high-profile ns. Since Lu Qiao wasn¡¯t very good atmunicating his thoughts clearly and since he didn¡¯t like to travel, he had indicated thus to Gu Yu. As a result, Gu Yu rarely gave him the opportunity to go on business trips.

    Lu Qiao frowned. ¡°One and a half years.¡±

    Tao Fei asked again: ¡°Where is your hometown?¡±

    Losing patience, Lu Qiao frowned deeper and replied: ¡°Mianyang, Sichuan.¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°Mianyang isn¡¯t such a small town that you can call yourself a redneck. Don¡¯t be stupid.¡±

    Fuck! A few minutes ago, Lu Qiao thought Tai Fei was a good person, but now, he wanted to kick him!

    He took a deep breath and exined: ¡°My hometown is not in the city, but in Pingwu county. In 2008 there was an earthquake in Sichuan and our hometown copsed. Some of my family died in the quake and the remaining members moved into the city.¡±

    Tao Fei was silent for a moment: ¡°Oh...¡±

    Although Lu Qiao thought the moremon reply was ¡®sorry,¡¯ he thought his exnation was enough to end their conversation. Unexpectedly, Tao Fei continued bombarding him with questions: ¡°Haicheng is far from Mianyang. Why don¡¯t you fly home during the holidays?¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°......¡± -Why didn¡¯t he know beforehand that Tao Fei can be so annoying!? Can he change partners!?

    Watching Lu Qiao with his head slightly skewed, Tao Fei blinked with his beautiful long eyshes as if to urge Lu Qiao to answer his questions.

    Without enthusiasm, Lu Qiao said: ¡°I take the train!¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°How long does it take to go by train?¡±

    Lu Qiao snarled: ¡°Thirty hours!¡±

    Feeling perplexed, Tao Fei continued to drill him: ¡°That¡¯s too long! Why not take a ne?¡±

    Lu Qiao was about to explode: ¡°Because the train ticket is cheap!!! ¡°

    Having asked enough, Tao Fei nodded and said: ¡°Oh.¡± He took out his blindfold and put it on: I¡¯m going to sleep. Wake me up when we get there.¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°%£¤#......¡± Ah, fuck!

    After that, Lu Qiao looked out of the window at the clear expanse of blue sky and fluffy clouds below feeling depressed. His soaring mood and excitement for being on a ne for the first time waspletely ruined.

    While recalling his two decades of life experiences, Lu Qiao tapped the window feeling his self-esteem evaporate. From his youthful days living in the countryside, to family disaster and then moving to a city, and then moving to an even bigger city for a job, he felt like his life was full of suffering.

    It wasn¡¯t until now that he could sit down with his colleagues for a cup of coffee feeling like his life was much better than it had been in the past. However, with Tao Fei¡¯s few careless remarks, Lu Qiao felt like all of his blood, sweat and tears amounted to nothing. He was only a country-bumpkin. Why was the world so unfair?

    Some people were born rich, like Zhang Siyi. With excellent resources and environment, they experienced a lifetime of sess and ease. In contrast, others were born with nothing but shackles to weigh them down on a road of hardships for a lifetime.

    was he envious? Yes, he was! Not only is he envious, but he is also very jealous! Even though these thoughts pervade his heart and mind, he wasn¡¯t a wicked person to act on them.

    Taking a deep breath to steady himself, Lu Qiao buried his self-pity and withdrew his negative thoughts.

    Even though everyone was talking quietly, with almost thirty people from the samepany, the volume in the cabin was a louder. Even so, Tao Fei fell asleep and Lu Qiao felt left-out.

    Sitting behind Lu Qiao, Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi were also talking quietly. Sometimes, bouts ofughter issued forth. Lu Qiao felt strange at hearing Gu Yu¡¯sughter for the first time; so gentle and sweet.

    Quietly, Lu Qiao peeked through the gap between the seat and the wall of the ne. He saw Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi very close together looking through a travel magazine. Gu Yu held the book while Zhang Siyi leaned over, practically onto Gu Yu¡¯s shoulder.

    Not hearing what was said, he only witnessed Gu Yu turn to look at Zhang Siyi with an indescribable tenderness written all over his facial features while Zhang Siyi grinned foolishly.

    His heart jerked and goose bumps rose. Lu Qiao quickly withdrew his site and sat back in his seat. He had always thought there was something a little strange between them, but he couldn¡¯t say what it was exactly. Maybe, the Boss¡¯s attitude towards Zhang Siyi was more special?

    Yes. At least, Gu Yu would never have smiled at him like that. It was too nauseating. When Lu Qiao calmed down, he started feeling as though he had taken the wrong medicine. His thoughts jumped to the wrong conclusion because of his previous feelings of anger. Clearly, they didn¡¯t do anything wrong, so why did their expressions make such a huge impact on Lu Qiao?

 Chapter 155: Osaka Part I

    <h4>Chapter 155: Osaka Part I</h4>

    Not long after, the flight attendant walked through the cabin and started distributing meals. Since Tao Fei was napping, Lu Qiao gave him a few nudges to wake him and eventually, Tao Fei raised the corner of his blindfold to see what was the matter. He said: ¡°I¡¯m not hungry, you can eat mine.¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°...¡±

    In order to have enough extra money to send home each month to his family, Lu Qiao often ate very simply. The only opportunity he had to eat well bnced meals with meat were at the department dinners thepany had each month. Seated in economy ss, Lu Qiao didn¡¯t think the food selection would be so luxurious. Seeing the tray of food before him, Lu Qiao was very surprised. There was a dish of cold Japanese-style noodles, sushi, fried chicken and a small cup of yogurt. Being able to eat two meals, Lu Qiao thought he won the lottery. Finally, his mood started to improve just a bit.

    After eating, the flight attendant walked through the cabin to pick up the lunch trays and other garbage. As their destination approached, the flight attendants once again walked through the cabin and gave each passenger an immigration card and baggage deration form. The total voyage was less then three hours. The two countries were really quite close to one another.

    The ind that was the Kansai International Airport** was the work of the internationally renowned architect Renzo piano. The people at the window seats watched the small ind in the distance be a thriving airport as the ne got ready on its approach tond.

    Before leaving China, Gu Yu gave each group member a simplified version of Zhang Siyi¡¯s itinerary that included all the names of the buildings that they expected to visit and Kansai Airport was the first.

    Almost everyone in attendance was familiar with the airport as it was a building that architectural students would learn about in their coursework. Even so, seeing the ind from above first hand was a totally different experience then learning about it in school and as a result, the group members couldn¡¯t contain their excitement. The volume inside the cabin slowly rose as delighted gasps could be heard throughout therge group of passengers. The other passengers and staff members weren¡¯t sure what all the ruckus was about.

    Even though Zhang Siyi has traveled abroad many times, he was influenced by his peers and like a contagion, he also let out a few ¡®AHs and OHs¡¯ in his excitement.

    Walking out of the ne and into the airport after a smoothnding, the group surveyed their surroundings and thought the Japanese environment felt both modern and strange.

    Built in 1994, utilizing new materials and construction techniques, the Kansai Airport was deemed a technological masterpiece of the time. Twenty yearster, although the steel structure andrge ss panes have lost its innovation and uniqueness, the airport continues to be an impressive site.

    Now that everyone at Borderless has arrived, the members were eager to express themselves:

    ¡°Renzo Piano is like a God!¡±

    ¡°I¡¯ve read about this airport in university and finally I¡¯m able to see the master¡¯s work in my lifetime!¡±

    ¡°Great! I¡¯m in Japan!¡±

    ¡°To be honest, I was upset at hearing our business tour this time was to visit Japan.¡±

    No one knew who voiced their opinion, but once the remark was made, suddenly everyone quieted down in remembrance of the dreadful war of the past.

    ¡°I feel the same. I don¡¯t like Japan very much.¡±

    ¡°Damn Japs, they bullied us so badly......¡±

    ¡°For the Nanjing people! We are all family!¡±

    ¡°The country can¡¯t forget!¡±

    The more the group taunted and ridiculed, the worse the mood and attitudes of the people were bing. Gu Yu stopped them and said: ¡°We are here visiting Japan to look at various architectural sites for the purpose of education, not because of politics. Everyone should be mindful of history but also think about it rationally.¡±

    Tong Heyi echoed Gu Yu and advised everyone: ¡°I agree with Director Gu. If architecture is regarded as pure art, then art has no national boundaries. If you don¡¯t like Japan, don¡¯t buy Japanese goods, especially the Japanese toilet. By all means, you can return to China right now.¡±

    As the crowdughed Child Labor¡¯s joke, the moment of resentment passed as bother group leaders redirected the group¡¯s emotions. The gloom that enveloped them had lifted.

    ¡°We came to ¡°little Japan¡± with the mindset that it would be a bad ce, but reality proved contradictory. Since no one had the heart to admit it, instead we mocked and made up reasons to convince ourselves otherwise. Heh.¡±

    All sorts of chuckles, snorts, andughter could be heard from therge group. Someone raised their voice above themotion: ¡°If that¡¯s the case, what¡¯s the difference between fake news in the media and self-deception? Let¡¯s be realistic and seek the truth. What is good, is good. What is not good, is bad.¡±

    ¡°Yes. That¡¯s right. We have to be tolerant Chinese.¡±

    ¡°To be an enlightened architect!¡±

    Gu Yuughed and interrupted everyone: ¡°Ok, stop thinking about it. We only need to look at the buildings. Let¡¯s take a picture. Where is Zhang Siyi?¡±

    Everyone in the group looked around and realized that Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t with them.

    Frowning in worry, Gu Yu looked beyond the group ofpany members and easily saw Zhang Siyi wearing thepany¡¯s red T-shirt not far away. He was holding out a measuring tape up to therge ss pane.

    Everyone: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu thought the predicament was rather ironic. He left the group to themselves and went over to him.

    A colleaguemented: ¡°Auntie Four really works hard.¡±

    Grabbing the strap of his bag, Zhu Hongzhen lifted his bag onto his shoulder and said: ¡°I have never seen him work so hard before!¡±

    Yuan Zhicheng: ¡°Is that the tape measure Director Gu gave him?¡±

    Bi Lele: ¡°Yeah, I remember Ji Feiyu spoke about it briefly. It was a tape measure that Gu Yu used as a student for many years.¡±

    Zhu Hongzhen: ¡°Aunt Four mentioned it once. He said the Boss gave it to him for his birthday.¡±

    In fact, what everyone found surprising wasn¡¯t the tape measure itself as it held no value, but the key point was because it was given as a birthday present. They couldn¡¯t imagine Gu Yu would ever give a birthday present to a subordinate. Zhang Siyi¡¯s special treatment strikes again!

    Many in the group expressed feelings of jealousy and envy. Du Rui suddenly spoke out: ¡°Is it just me, or does it seem like Aunt Four has been greatly influenced by Gu Yu¡¯s shadow at work?¡±

    Deep in contemtion, the group remained silent. Yes. From when was it? Zhang Siyi has improved tremendously, especially in thesest few months when he and Tao Fei worked together on the resort project. His temperament has also matured and calmed down aspared to when he first started working at thepanyst year.

    Even now, when everyone else was still thinking about having fun in Japan, Zhang Siyi was already invested in the real task of the business trip; to learn.

    In order to gain Zhang Siyi¡¯s attention toe back to the group, Gu Yu walked closer and signaled to him. When he rejoined the group, he took a photograph of them and then continued walking alongside Gu Yu.

    Zhang Siyi opened a discussion: ¡°After graduationst year, I went to France with Heartless Han and visited the Pompidou Center**. Renzo Piano also had a part in its design. With all of the exposed steel tubing, when I first saw the building, I thought it was really ugly. It¡¯s no wonder why some critics called it a steel monster or a refinery. Contrary to its exterior, the building is actually a famous museum. I also told Heartless Han that Renzo Piano is definitely a non-mainstream pioneer. Heh.¡±

    Smiling, Gu Yu pointed to him: ¡°You can¡¯t evaluate a building from the outside alone. You also have to consider the time frame it was built. In 1969 when the Pompidou Center was conceptualized, what was going on during that time? Europe was still recovering from World War II when the world was still in a state of doubt. The architectural style of Paris was the same gothic and rococo styles. Why did the decision-makers pick the design from Renzo Piano and Richard Rogers out of the seven hundred from all over he globe? In my opinion, it is not so much a design maverick unting an alternative, but a design that represents the future development of Paris. By leaving the past behind and moving forward, the decision-makers wanted to make a statement that brings hope to the people with a symbol of inclusion. Therefore, it is certainly unreasonable to say that architecture ispletely separate from politics and history.¡±

    Listening thoughtfully, Zhang Siyi realized in school, he hadn¡¯t normally considered the time frame in which buildings were built. Mostly, he simply memorized things for his exams. Now with Gu Yu¡¯s exnation, he became aware of the need to consider the relevant politics and events during the period that something was built.

    It was no wonder that Tao Fei and Gu Yu read so many books during their undergraduate studies. Even if the reason behind reading those topics weren¡¯t understood at the time, it was necessary to read a variety of philosophy and history books in order to gain insight about the different views and ideas that people had across the world. With maturity, one could break through boundaries and surpass ordinary people. There are those on the inte that say the best architects were either crazy or Zen Masters.

    At this time in the Kansai International Airport, Zhang Siyi looked up at the masterpiece from twenty years ago and felt his ownck of ability and knowledge.

 Chapter 156: Osaka Part II

    <h4>Chapter 156: Osaka Part II</h4>

    After purchasing tickets at the airport, the group from Borderless rode the subway to their amodation. The subway they were riding on was simr aspared to the one in Haicheng. While walking outside to get to the subway entrance, some thought there was a difference in the air quality between the two countries. In an attempt to make a distinction for themselves, some members of the group started to deeply inhale. Someone spoke up and joked: ¡°Don¡¯t breathe so deeply. There is a lot of radiation in Japan.¡±

    Everyone: ¡°......¡±

    The tsunami that hit Japan in 2011 caused an explosion at the Fukushima Daiichi nuclear power nt that resulted in the leakage of radioactive materials into the surroundings. This caused a copse of tourism for a long time and there was a rumor that Japan¡¯s nuclear radiation index exceeded the standard. Was the statistic fake news or not?

    After listening to their colleagues¡¯ opinion, they subconsciously held their breath. Radiation and breathing don¡¯t mix. Shit, nothing everes for free. The guy who was spreading disinformation was scolded by his peers. Along the way, the lively group of people chatted andughed cheerfully.

    Since Lu Qiao wasn¡¯t happy with Tao Fei¡¯s antics on the ne, he kept a distance between them. As a result, Tao Fei hung out with Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi like a third wheel.

    Zhang Siyi looked at him and squinted: ¡°Why don¡¯t you go with Lu Qiao?¡±

    Tao Fei pulled on his ear: ¡°Didn¡¯t you say that the guy was very easy to get along with? I thought I was being patient, but it seems like he has a bad temper and angers easily. Without amon topic, I don¡¯t know what to say to him.¡±

    Since Zhang Siyi knew Lu Qiao for many months through work without any issues, he found Tao Fei statement puzzling. Looking back on his previous interactions, he remembered Lu Qiao fight with the taxi cab driver. Lu Qiao wasn¡¯t so gentle and good-natured as he appeared.

    ¡°He doesn¡¯t like being bullied or being lied to. Did you say something to offend him?¡± Zhang Siyi asked him.

    Tao Fei rolled his eyes: ¡°Eh? I asked him if it was the first time he was on a ne. He red at me like I owed him five million. Was that so bad?¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s face twitched: ¡°You didn¡¯t have to be so blunt. His family situation isn¡¯t very good. Wouldn¡¯t prodding his sore points hurt his self-respect?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not my problem that his family is poor.¡± Tao Fei said unemotionally. ¡°Hey, forget it. Let him go.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    It was more crowded inside the subway car. With the sudden rush of people getting onto the car at the subway stop, Lu Qiao was pushed into Gu Yu¡¯s back.

    ¡°Aah! Boss, I¡¯m sorry. I¡¯m sorry......¡±

    Expressionless Gu Yu turned his head and tly stated: ¡°It¡¯s all right.¡±

    Exiting the subway, the group walked to hotel and paired up ording to their room assignments. In order to give people enough time to find their rooms and unpack their luggage, Gu Yu informed everyone to meet in the lobby in fifteen minutes.

    Lu Qiao took the initiative to find Zhang Siyi and his mood improved when he found him happily chatting with other colleagues. Overhearing Zhang Siyi conversation with Gu Yu at the airport, he asked: ¡°Aunt Four, you¡¯ve been to France?¡±

    Zhang Siyi replied while smiling: ¡°Well, when I graduated, I went to Europe with my ssmate for a month and as a result I almost couldn¡¯t find a job when I came home to China.¡±

    ¡°How much does it cost to travel in Europe for a month?¡± Lu Qiao envied him.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°It took seventy-eighty thousand. It¡¯s a little higher in the Nordic areas, but Western Europe is simr to the UK.¡±

    Lu Qiao gasped. Seventy-eighty thousand was about a year¡¯s annual sry! ¡°Did your parents give you the money?¡±

    Zhang Siyi inly answered him: ¡°It was the remainder of my living expenses.¡± Thinking a moment, Zhang Siyi realized that wasn¡¯t really urate: ¡°Well, in fact, I guess it was. My living expenses were also provided by my parents. Ha-ha. At that time, I had no idea how hard it is to make money. Now that I am on my own, I understand.¡±

    Bing more and more jealous Lu Qiao asked: ¡°How much did you spend abroad in total in the past few years?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Little over a million.¡± (T/N: 1MYuan = ~130K Euro, ~145K USD)

    ¡°It costs that much money to travel abroad?¡± Lu Qiao joked: ¡°Are you sure your Dad isn¡¯t a corrupt official?¡±

    In an instant, Zhang Siyi turned cold. He was surprised at Lu Qiao¡¯s rudeness. This joke is not funny.

    Even if his father is an official, he only had a sry. The Zhang family is not rich. With the help of his grandfather¡¯s inheritance and a few decades of investments and savings, the assets of the Zhang family were invested in order to pay for Zhang Siyi¡¯s education.

    However, Zhang Siyi knew domestically, there were many people that believed in the sentiment: There is no such thing as a uncorrupt official.

    Taking a breath, he calmly exined: ¡°No. My mother originally had an apartment. At that time, the housing market was very good so they sold it to pay for my education in the UK.¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°Oh.¡±

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t like the awkward atmosphere, so he changed the topic: ¡°The temperature in Osaka seems to be hotter than Haicheng. When the sun sets, do you think we will need a jacket? I don¡¯t know if we areing back to the hotel after dinner.¡±

    Lu Qiao quickly went through his suitcase: ¡°Hmm.¡±

    As Zhang Siyi opened his luggage, a burst of fragrance permeated the air.

    Lu Qiao was surprised again. Where has he smelled this odor before? His olfactory senses were very sensitive. Thinking back carefully, where was he.... When he was pushed into Gu Yu during the subway ride, Lu Qiao smelled the same fragrance.

    In order to confirm his guess, when Zhang Siyi went to the toilet, Lu Qiao picked up his shirt hanging on the bed and sniffed it. It really was... and it wasn¡¯t just pure detergent. There was also a unique woody fragrance mixed in.

    Immediately, Lu Qiao thought of the scene he witnessed on the ne. Since Zhang Siyi was sitting rtively close with Gu Yu, would his fragrance transfer onto Zhang Siyi? Mulling it over, Lu Qiao ultimately decided that the origin of the smell couldn¡¯t have been from light contact because the odor was much more intense.

    Maybe they just use the same detergent and cologne? Lu Qiao thought...... Hey, these big boys, with perfume, tsk.

    After Zhang Siyi came out of the restroom, he tied his lightweight jacket around his waist and walked downstairs with Lu Qiao.

    Wearing sunsses, Gu Yu was waiting for them downstairs expressionless. The moment he saw Zhang Siyi, a wide smile appeared. Zhang Siyi smiled happily in return.

    Lu Qiao felt like he had been poisoned and couldn¡¯t stop himself from watching them intently.

    At nearly three in the afternoon, the first stop on the itinerary was the famous Umeda Sky Building. ** Built in 1993, the tower was the tallest building in the area of Osaka and had the best vantage point to see the city. It is said to be a sacred ce for couples to show affection.

    Since everyone decided they would rather visit the Umeda building at sunset, the group walked around the neighborhood for some time and happened upon a street lined with food stalls. Some people in the group felt that the meal on the ne was sufficient enough and thus were hungry at this time. The enticing smell of food made their hunger deepen.

    In particr, Tao Fei was most eager to eat because he didn¡¯t have his meal on the ne. Both of his eyes zed over at the site of the delicious foodstuffs: ¡°Brother! Let us eat something or we are going to starve to death!¡±

    Since Gu Yu knew Tao Fei didn¡¯t eat on the ne, he quipped: ¡°Who was the one that caused his own starvation?¡±

    Tao Fei touched his stomach: ¡°But this is where the delicious food is!¡±

    Since thepany also paid for their meals, Gu Yu had to maintain a respectable budget. Hearing Tao Fei, people in the group nodded and increasingly stated their interest in having something to eat. Soon, everyone surrounded Gu Yu and collectively begged: ¡°Boss, Pleeeeeease!¡±

    Gu Yu checked the time. Although it wasn¡¯t dinner time, it wasn¡¯t so far off. Feeling helpless against the crowd, he relented: ¡°You guys pick it out. This is not dinner so eat less.¡±

    The crowd cheered: ¡°Yeah!

    Surveying the food stalls, many female colleagues ogled over the stall that was selling octopus balls. They were golden, round and juicy with more fat than usual. There were eight of them to a box and they were twice as big as the ones sold back home. Even though they were very enticing, the main reason the women wanted to purchase them was because the balls were sold in sets of eight. It was the perfect amount to split between two people and thus in-line with theirpany¡¯s couples¡¯ game.

    Since there were many other people lined up to buy food at the same stall, it took twenty minutes to ce the order for everyone.

    As each received their box of octopus, the members of the group paired off and sat down to eat. Since the pairing were all male and female and because they were all wearing thepany¡¯s shirt, to an outsider, the group appeared to be some sort of tour for honeymooners. With that line of thought, the group exuded a sweet aura and many people passing by looked at them enviously.

    Even though they knew it was all fake, the group¡¯s happiness increased without them realizing it. This was exactly what they wanted to achieve!

    However, there are two non-standard same-sex couples in the mix...... It¡¯s an awkward situation.

 Chapter 157: Osaka Part III

    <h4>Chapter 157: Osaka Part III</h4>

    Almost everyone that walked by the men¡¯s table, showed a surprised expression. The interaction between Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi was engraved in their memories as there wasn¡¯t any sense of being a fake couple.

    Like the other male and female couples ying the game, Gu Yu held the box in one hand and used a fork with the other to spear an octopus ball and held it out for Zhang Siyi. Zhang Siyi was looking down at his phone. He leaned over, stretched his neck and opened his mouth, ready to receive the food. When Gu Yu ced it in his mouth, he cried out: ¡°Mmm, hot, hot!¡±

    Looking at him in concern, Gu Yu handed the fork to him and said: ¡°Take your time.¡±

    This little interaction between them was intimate and exuded love more than any of the intery of the ¡°normal¡± heterosexual couples in the group!

    Their surprising behavior wasn¡¯t only limited to Gu Yu feeding Zhang Siyi. There were other moments of strong intimacy. For example, when Gu Yu wiped the sauce from the corner of Zhang Siyi mouth and then handed him the napkin. In addition, when Zhang Siyi was using his phone to load the road map, the two of them would consult the screen together. The ease with which theymunicated with one another screamed love. It was sweet and more loving then a real couple!

    Xu Jia and Bi Lele could not resist gossiping about what they were witnessing on the side.......

    Xu Jia: ¡°Oh my God, Auntie Four and Gu Yu are so good together!¡±

    Bi Lele: ¡°I didn¡¯t think the Boss would y the game.¡±

    Xu Jia: ¡°Me neither. At first, I thought the boss passed us for Four so he wouldn¡¯t need to y.¡±

    Bi Lele: ¡°I thought so too, but now, I think Gu Yu is really ying.¡±

    Xu Jia: ¡°It¡¯s a scene right out of a book. There is so much ¡°Moe¡±!¡±

    With thoughts of their favorite books, the two women smiled excitedly.

    In contrast, the aura between the other couple at the table wasn¡¯t good. Tao Fei was having a heated argument with Lu Qiao.

    Lu Qiao: ¡°Hey! I only ate one, but you ate three!¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°One is plenty. Since you ate two meals on the ne, the box should have been mine alone.¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°That¡¯s your own fault!

    ¡°That¡¯s enough to eat!¡± Tao Fei was annoyed by Lu Qiao. He grabbed the box and ran off with it.

    Angry, Lu Qiao waved a fork at him and quickly jumped up to run after him: ¡°Hey! You stop right there!¡±

    Tao Fei wolfed down five balls in one breath before Lu Qiao caught up to him. He left thest two remaining in the box and handed it to Lu Qiao: ¡°I¡¯ll give you the rest.¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°...¡±

    From the onset, one of the pairs exuded nothing but love while the other pair seemed to be bickering like a married couple. As a whole they acted like one happy family and as a result, they became the focus of everyone¡¯s attention.

    After eating for a little while, Zhang Siyi discovered his colleagues were staring at him and Gu Yu with a questioning look.

    ...... Uh, were they being too explicit? Were they seen?

    Feeling anxious, Zhang Siyi started to sweat and his heart began to race. He nced at Gu Yu to see any reaction from him and without showing any hints of wrongdoing, Gu Yu remained calm and stoic as ever.

    He took a deep breath to calm himself and stopped himself from feeling like he did something wrong. Just as Tao Fei said, the more he obsessed over his actions, the easier it was for onlookers to think there was something strange going on. Since they were ying a couples game, it wasn¡¯t unusual to show a little intimacy and in fact, it was expected. This was a rare one-time opportunity to show their love in front of so many colleagues.

    After disposing the empty food boxes in the trash, the group continued on their way to their original destination.

    On the ground floor of the Umeda Sky Building, there was a sunken open-air natural courtyard. nted withmon maple trees and decorated with hills and pools, the courtyard was quite ordinary. However, because it was located between the modern skyscrapers, like an oasis in a desert, it was a stark contrast to the extremely rigid man-made steel structures of the building.

    Arriving at the building at nearly six in the evening, the sky was starting to darken. When they finished taking pictures, the group queued in line to buy tickets for the observation deck. Part of the reason why the observation desk was so special was because of the esctor ride to the tform. It was located of the on the fifth floor of the building and it brought tourists up to the sightseeing area through the air by connecting the two buildings.

    Surrounded by cool blue light, the interior lighting in the esctor shaft made it feel like a person was traveling on a space-ship. An hourter, the wait ended and they finally arrived at the top of the building in the open air.

    As the sun was setting, Osaka was enshrouded in a satin-like rouge color in the summer evening. The view was breath taking and as a result, everyone flocked to the guardrails to take pictures silently.

    From the vantage point on the desk, the entire Osaka in and the Akashi Kaikyo Bridge in Osaka Bay could be seen. As the setting sun dipped below the horizon, the neon lights of the city gradually shined brighter and brighter.

    Neon lights were embedded in the guardrails effectively making it blend seamlessly with the neon lights of the night time city scape. As a result, it made one feel like they were floating in the sky as part of the milky-way gxy. The fairy-tale like surroundings and romantic atmosphere made it easy to shed tears.

    No wonder it was a sanctuary for lovers. Whether it was holding hands, or arms wrapped around each other¡¯s shoulders and waist, all of the couples walking on the tform were disying their love.

    Fortunately, being paired, the group didn¡¯t appear so different, however because the participants knew their disy was only a game, they couldn¡¯t help but feel a bit depressed and disappointed.

    Paired with Bi Lele, Yuan Zhicheng looked at the picturesque scenery in front of him and sighed: ¡°Hey, when I really have a girlfriend in the future, I muste here again.¡±

    She replied: ¡°I agree. It really is beautiful. After all these years of being dedicated to work and not having a chance to date, I¡¯m starting to feel like life is iplete.¡±

    ......

    Of course, in addition to this kind of clear sentiment, there are others with ulterior motives, like Ji Feiyu and Du Rui....

    Du Rui held her face: ¡°Ahhh, It¡¯s so beautiful. If I really had a boyfriend, this is the ce I would like to go.¡±

    Ji Feiyu: ¡°Hey, you can temporarily treat me like your real boyfriend.¡±

    Du Rui: ¡°......¡±

    ......

    And then, there is this......

    Tao Fei: ¡°Why are there so many couples here? I feel like I¡¯m the only single dog in the world!¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°You aren¡¯t alone.¡±

    In order to make amends, Tao Fei had given Lu Qiao a bag of chocte covered nuts and now that their rtionship was reconciled, Lu Qiao asked: ¡°Have you ever been in love?¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°I have been with several girls in the past but deep feelings never developed while dating them. It¡¯s not difficult to find a girl to be with. I simply can¡¯t be bothered to look for a girlfriend.

    Lu Qiao: ¡°....¡± The boat of friendship has capsized......

    In an effort to avoid members of their group, Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi moved in the opposite direction. Once they were on the other side, they pressed the sides of their bodies close together.

    Eager to see the scenery, Zhang Siyi forgot about his troubles. As the cool wind blew, Zhang Siyi shrunk his neck down and untied his jacket from his waist to put it on.

    Gu Yu looked at him with concern and whispered: ¡°Are you cold? Do you want me to hold you?¡±

    Flush red, Zhang Siyi felt hot in an instant: ¡°Here? How can we with so many people!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Hmm......¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What are you smiling about?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°I feel very happy with you being by my side.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Zhang Siyi whispered to Gu Yu: ¡°I feel the same way.¡±

    Gu Yu couldn¡¯t help it. He reached out and gently grabbed Zhang Siyi¡¯s waist, holding him close: ¡°We will go to more ces togetherter.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was a little scared by his bold move: ¡°You, you... What if someone sees......?¡±

    Gu Yu smiled: ¡°Give me five more seconds at least.¡±

    Before releasing each other, silently in their hearts, they counted to five.

 Chapter 158: Heart Lock

    <h4>Chapter 158: Heart Lock</h4>

    At the moment of being released, Zhang Siyi felt the loss. As much as he wanted to remain in Gu Yu arms, he knew they couldn¡¯t show such intimate embraces in public.

    Zhang Siyi believed that Gu Yu also felt the same loss as he did. Emzoned on their hearts, the feelings transmitted between them for five sweet seconds were precious.

    As they moved around the observation desk, they came upon a stall that was selling heart padlocks! If requested, the salesperson could engrave both names on it so they could hang it together a kilometer above ground in the sky. Even though it was just a gimmick to make more money, how could a couple pass up the opportunity to express their love for one another?

    Gu Yu asked Zhang Siyi: ¡°Should we buy one?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Really? Gu Yu still believed in this kind of thing?

    Even though Zhang Siyi wanted to buy one, he didn¡¯t have the courage to speak up. Also, if his colleagues found out....

    It¡¯s a shame. Zhang Siyi casually found an excuse: ¡°A thousand Yen is too expensive. Forget it.¡±

    Suddenly, Zhang Siyi was being pushed from behind towards the direction of the stall. Certainly, for Gu Yu if ¡®expensive¡¯ was the only reason, it was no reason at all.

    ¡°Hey...¡± Zhang Siyi blushed and looked around rmed. Quickly, he walked up to the stall and bought a lock with Gu Yu by his side.

    A very gentle women was selling locks at the stall. Watching them smiling brightly, she spoke while handing them a lock. Unfortunately, neither of them could understand Japanese so they didn¡¯t know what she said. Perhaps, it was a blessing....? She gestured to a book where it was obvious the people buying the lock wrote their names. Gu Yu wrote down an acronym: GX.ZSY-6.20.2015

    Afterwards, the two walked to the side of the guardrail and snapped the lock together onto the chain links. At the moment they heard the locking mechanism ¡®click¡¯ into ce, not only did they physically lock the padlock, but their hearts were locked together forever as well.

    When they turned around, Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi froze. Not far away, Tao Fei and Lu Qiao were standing staring intently in their direction.

    It took only a moment hesitation until Gu Yu walked up and greeted them calmly. Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t a very good actor. He started to sweat and panic. It doesn¡¯t matter if Tao Fei watched, but what about Lu Qiao? What would he think?

    Tao Fei smirked and said jokingly: ¡°Oh, you two are being so romantic. You bought a lock?¡±

    Until he heard Tao Fei, Lu Qiao was wondering what the heck were those locks for. He felt very strange...... For the first time, he began to wonder if Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi were real lovers. If they weren¡¯t, was it necessary to buy a love lock as part of the game?

    However, Gu Yu¡¯s performance was so smooth. He calmly and indifferently asked: ¡°Would you like to buy one too?¡±

    Tao Feiughed: ¡°With me? Get in line!¡±

    If Lu Qiao was asked, he would say ¡®fuck off¡¯. Isn¡¯t that the normal response? But Tao Fei also joked, leaving Lu Qiao feeling confused. Is he the only one that thought it was strange for Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi to buy a love lock?

    Truthfully, it wasn¡¯t just him. When Zhang Siyi and Lu Qiao went to the bathroom, Tao Fei yelled at Gu Yu: ¡°You are being too obvious!¡±

    Gu Yu looked away. He also felt perhaps it was too much, but he couldn¡¯t help it. His actions werepletely dominated by his emotions. ¡°I know, I¡¯ll pay more attention.¡± Even saying thus, he wasn¡¯t at all expressing concern and instead, he had a dazed look and broad smile on his face. Not for a moment did he regret buying the lock with Zhang Siyi.

    Tao Fei red at him: ¡°Get it together! The stench of love is too strong!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°......¡±

    After spending an hour and a half visiting the Umeda Sky building, they were feeling a little reluctant to descend to the ground. The end of the day¡¯s trip was spent eating ramen at a restaurant that Gu Yu took them too.

    Combined with the need to wake up early in the morning to get to the airport and walking around touring in the afternoon, they werepletely exhausted upon returning to the hotel. In particr, Lu Qiao was both physically exhausted and mentally exhausted.

    At home in Haicheng, Lu Qiao thought his lifestyle was very stable. He was satisfied with his home and had enough pocket money to enjoy a few things he wanted. Now that he was with his colleagues, reality hit him in the face at full force. Any excitement he felt in the beginning of the trip vanished and what remained was confusion and sorrow.

    When Zhang Siyi returned from his shower, he saw Lu Qiao awake on the bed unmoving. He asked: ¡°Aren¡¯t you going to take a shower?¡±

    Lu Qiao looked at his phone andzily said: ¡°In a little bit.¡±

    While drying off his hair, Zhang Siyi took out his sketch book from his bag to sum up the day¡¯s events. After a few weeks, he developed the habit of writing and sketching every day. Now, if he does not write a few thoughts down, he felt like his day wasn¡¯tplete.

    Compared to when he first started, his sketching ability has greatly improved. Even Gu Yu praised him a few days ago for drawing more professionally. As a result, Zhang Siyi gained a sense of aplishment that gave him the confidence he needed to persist in his task and take notes in his sketchbook every day.

    Lost in thought, Zhang Siyi was diligently writing his notes that included the details of the airport in Kanai, the size of the seats in the Japanese subway as well as the main design points and features of the Umeda Sky Building.

    Lu Qiao felt bored and checked the WeChat group that Zhang Siyi had set up for the office staff long ago. He suddenly spoke up and asked: ¡°Four, why don¡¯t you chat in the group anymore?¡±

    ¡°Ah?¡± Zhang Siyi closed the notebook and turned around to face him.

    Lu Qiao: ¡°In the WeChat group that you created..... Everyone is chatting in it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi smiled and said: ¡°I forgot about it. I¡¯ve been too busy recently.¡±

    In truth, it¡¯s not so much that he is busy, but having Gu Yu by his side has subtly influenced his habits. At what point did he start thinking that chatting in WeChat was a waste of his time?

    Now, Zhang Siyi felt that it was better to use his time more productively such as reading or writing in his sketchbook. He felt like his life was bing more enriched aspared to his state of being before meeting Gu Yu and as a result, he didn¡¯t feel the need to look at his social media pages all the time anymore.

    Ironically, Zhang Siyi mobile phone sounded. There was a text message from Gu Yu: ¡°Come over.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What are you doing? Its half passed eleven and you haven¡¯t slept yet?

    Gu Yu: ¡°Juste.¡±

    Speechless, Zhang Siyi put the sketchbook under his pillow then informed Lu Qiao: ¡°Boss requested me. I¡¯m going to his room for few minutes. Then I¡¯lle back.¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°Oh.¡±

    Watching Zhang Siyi leave the room, Lu Qiao withdrew his eyesight. He meant to returned his attention to his phone but instead, he noticed the sketchbook under Zhang Siyi¡¯s pillow.

    ..... Why was it hidden? Isn¡¯t it just a sketchbook? Is there something to be ashamed of?

    Throughout the day Lu Qiao¡¯s noticed a variety peculiar actions between Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu like the same fragrance on their cloths, the closeness they disyed on the airne, and the incident with the lock. All of these urrences left questions in Lu Qiao mind which served to increase his desire to find answers. With his curiosity piqued, he climbed out of his bed and peeked at Zhang Siyi sketchbook.

    Opening the book, he nced at few pages from the beginning of the book and saw a few sketches of various dimensions and didn¡¯t think too much of it. Clearly, these are drawings from an architect. Since his drawings weren¡¯t very good, perhaps Zhang Siyi was embarrassed about them and felt like he had to hide his sketchbook?

    Looking at the poor quality of the drawings, Lu Qiao felt better. He was about to close the book and put it back when he saw a different style of drawing on the follow page. It was a very professional drawing of a log cabin in perspective with extensive notes beside it. He recognized the handwriting right away. It was his Boss¡¯s. Strange, why did Gu Yu draw in Zhang Siyi¡¯s sketch book?

    As Lu Qiao continued to turn the pages, his expression grew darker and darker. The rate at which Zhang Siyi drawing improved was too fast. The drawings at the beginning were like a child¡¯s, but further along in the book, they were quickly getting better and better. In addition to the sketch, Zhang Siyi wrote many notes about the architectural details rted to the image.

    Looking through the book, Lu Qiao witnessed the growth of a person first hand. If at the start, he felt a little disdain for Zhang Siyi, now he broke out in a cold sweat.

    Although they are colleagues, they are alsopetitors. Knowing how quickly Zhang Siyi caught up to him, Lu Qiao felt an enormous pressure. With a heavy heart, Lu Qiao turned to thest page; a sketch of a lock leaped into view. A beautiful line of English text wrapped around the edge: ¡°Lock our love forever.¡±

    As if he was caught at discovering a terrible secret, he frantically closed the book and put it back under Zhang Siyi¡¯s pillow and quickly went back to his own bed to lie down.

    .........

    Zhang Siyi knocked on the door of Gu Yu and Tao Fei¡¯s room: ¡°What is it?¡±

    Tao Fei was lying in bed with his full attention to his iPad. Hearing the burst of music, Zhang Siyi knew he was ying a game and stated: ¡°ying the Era of Music, huh?¡±

    Just as Tao Fei finished the round, he regretfully called: ¡°Damn it! I missed five!¡±

    Noticing Zhang Siyi¡¯s presence he smiled: ¡°Brother said you are very good at this game.¡±

    As if he presented his own trophy, Gu Yu eagerly pushed Zhang Siyi forward: ¡°Quick, y a game and let him see your score.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Dang! Gu Yu called him over in the middle of the night for this?

    Zhang Siyi reached out to take the iPad from Tao Fei and realized Tao Fei had been ying the game on Gu Yu¡¯s iPad. ¨CGu Yu installed the game on his own iPad??

    Not really understanding what was expected, he nced over at Gu Yu questioningly. Zhang Siyi saw Gu Yu looking at him intently with all seriousness. Zhang Siyi sat down then took a deep breath to calm his nerves. Ho-ho-ho..... he couldn¡¯t embarrass himself in front of Gu Yu!

    He flexed his fingers then selected a song he hadn¡¯t yed before.......

 Chapter 159: The Church of Light

    <h4>Chapter 159: The Church of Light</h4>

    Demonstrating his excellent ability, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t disappoint as he yed a few rounds. Watching him y in disbelief, Tao Fei hung his mouth open in an O shaped and red at the score on the screen: ¡°No fucking way! Are you cheating?!?! How can you score a 99.9% sess rate with such a fast song?¡±

    In the beginning, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t think he was doing anything special while he yed the game, but now, not only did Gu Yu and his sister praise him, Tao Fei acted like he was witnessing an other-worldly being. Zhang Siyi smiled with self-satisfaction.

    Gu Yu lifted his chin to peek over at the screen and smiled at him. Zhang Siyi was clearly ying very well. Gu Yu acted more proudly then Zhang Siyi.

    Tao Fei ignored Gu Yu¡¯s conduct. ¨CEven if your wife was great, that doesn¡¯t mean you will defeat me!

    ¡°Come on, it¡¯s my turn. I don¡¯t believe in cheaters!¡± Eager for a fight, Tao Fei rubbed his hands together then raised his sleeves. Zhang Siyi passed the iPad back to Tai Fei. He scored a little better than in his previous rounds, but it continued to be a far cry from Zhang Siyi¡¯s score.

    Next, it was Gu Yu¡¯s turn to y the game¡­.. Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t bear to look at Gu Yu y so he covered his eyes.

    Tao Feiughed out loud ¡®ha-ha-ha-ha!¡¯ and spoke to Gu Yu: ¡°You are way too slow! How can you miss such a simple rhythm?¡±

    Saddened by his poor performance, Gu Yu tactfully handed the iPad to Zhang Siyi as if to tell him to take revenge.

    At once, Zhang Siyi understood what Gu Yu wanted and again, Zhang Siyi disyed masterful ability and scored an A+. Even though he received a 100% sess rate, Zhang Siyi continued to feel that the game wasn¡¯t very challenging.

    Tao Fei held out the iPad and eximed: ¡°Too awesome! You have God¡¯s skill!¡±

    With eyes full of admiration and love, Gu Yu looked at Zhang Siyi tenderly.

    Bashful, Zhang Siyi looked away feeling embarrassed. Since he didn¡¯t feel as though he put any effort into mastering the game, he didn¡¯t think it was something to be proud of. Be that as it may, Zhang Siyi really liked making his boyfriend happy.

    Compared to his talent ying the game, he much rather have the innate learning skills and excellent memory that Gu Yu possessed; abilities that were necessary to live afortable life!

    With the rigorous academics needed to attend the best university in the country, never mind the additional talents required by the prestigious Department of Architecture, Tao Fei and Gu Yu must be very intellectual people. However, in disbelief, as with Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi witnessed Tao Fei¡¯sckluster performance. ¨CBut It¡¯s easy! What is wrong with their brains?

    In order to outdo one another, the friends continued topete with one another. In the end, Zhang Siyi¡¯s score was impossible to reach. Both Gu Yu and Tao Fei urged Zhang Siyi to evaluate their games and decide who was the better yer. Unaffected by their cries, Zhang Siyi simply shook his head slowly in pity.

    Tao Fei: ¡°¡­¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°¡­¡±

    Tao Fei narrowed his eyes: ¡°Your little boyfriend seems to be looking down on us.¡±

    Gu Yu also narrowed his eyes at Zhang Siyi: ¡°I think you¡¯re right.¡±

    Suddenly scared, Zhang Siyi waved his arms and hands all over: ¡°I did not! I did not!¡±

    Gu Yu leaned over to Zhang Siyi and slipped his hand under his shirt and pulled him close by his waist. In front of Tao Fei he gave Zhang Siyi a kiss on the lips.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    Caught by surprise, Tao Fei let out an audible sound then turned around andid down on the other bed with the iPad: ¡°I¡¯ll give you ten minutes. Be quick about it!¡±

    Gu Yu nced at Tao Fei then smiled broadly. Having needed to suppress his feelings all day, like opening a floodgate, now Gu Yu couldn¡¯t stop the torrent of desire that welled up inside him and kissed Zhang Siyi passionately.

    Taken by surprise, at first Zhang Siyi wanted to protest ¨C wait, but Tao Fei is still here! ¨C but, once he felt Gu Yu¡¯s soft lips pressed upon his own, he couldn¡¯t resist. Responding to Gu Yu advances in kind, he reached out and held him close. Zhang Siyi opened his lips slightly to meet Gu Yu¡¯s tongue and they kissed deeply¡­. The body is far more honest than the mind.

    One part of Zhang Siyi¡¯s mind knew that there was another person in the room and that he should feel embarrassed, but there was another part of his mind that thought having another person present made it more exciting. Concentrating on the sensations on his skin, Zhang Siyi grew numb to his surroundings and solely focused on Gu Yu¡¯s touch. With only the tip of his tongue meeting, Zhang Siyi could feel his whole body start to tingle. Gu Yu¡¯s gentle caresses heightened his feelings and made his body tremble.

    Tao Fei watched ten minutes slowly pass. Behind him, the sounds of kissing and heavy breathing intensified. They didn¡¯t seem to care that Tao Fei was in the room since the two didn¡¯t hold back. Damn it! Was he supposed to go straight to Lu Qiao¡¯s room with a pillow? He called out: ¡°All right, that¡¯s enough¡­.¡±

    Finally, he could quietly hear Zhang Siyi say a sensible ¡®stop¡¯ but, in the next second the sound turned into more erotic noises. Gu Yu had pressed his lips upon Zhang Siyi again.

    ¡­¡­ God Damn it! Am I just a dog!

    After a few minutes, the two of them separated and Gu Yu brought Zhang Siyi to the door. Even though Tao Fei heard them say good night to one another at the door, it was some timeter that he heard Gu Yu finally open and shut the door to let Zhang Siyi out.

    Looking down at the iPad screen, Tao Fei saw his score was actually higher than Gu Yu¡¯s. Even though he ¡®won¡¯, there was nothing to feel happy about. With a heavy heart, Tao Fei felt that he really lost.

    As though he ate a pound of honey, Zhang Siyi returned to his room in a very good mood.

    When Zhang Siyi returned to his room, a single small bedsidemp was lit. Since Lu Qiao was quiet and already in bed with only the very top of his hair visible out of the quilt, he thought his roommate feel asleep early. After quietly turning off the bedside light, Zhang Siyi got into bed and soon fell asleep.

    The next day was another full day of scheduled events. The main agenda for the day was Tadao Ando¡¯s famous building: Church of Light** It was located outside of Osaka in the small town of Ibaraki. Since the space was small, the Church required reservations to tour the site in order to regte the flow of visitors properly. Half of the people from Borderless went to see the Church early in the morning.

    At the time of the visit, there was a group of Chinese tourists already inside looking around. Since they weren¡¯t there for religious reasons, they respectfully walked through the space in a rush and were going to leave. When the group of Borderless people arrived, they were whispering excitedly and snapping photos non-stop in order to capture every detail. Being architects, the group had inside knowledge about the building as it was a ce that many studied at university.

    Witnessing the group of young people acting so enthusiastic about the Church, they remained inside for longer. Now curious, they approached Zhang Siyi and one of them struck up a conversation with him. After learning that they were all architects, they asked Zhang Siyi to exin why the building was special.

    Since it was four years ago that his professor at university gave a lecture about the Church, he had forgotten many details about it and thus, felt an immediate pressure.

    However, these people are all without an architectural background. He took a deep breath to gather his thoughts and told them what he thought: ¡°The interior of this church is in a minimalistic style. The designer used geometry to effectively make a cross made out of light that is illuminated by the sun outside. The image of the cross projected inside changes with the position of the sun¡¯s rise and fall in the sky and thereby making the inside feel like a mysterious, sacred space.

    He pointed to the slope inside the church and said: ¡°The concept that diverges from traditional churches is the location where the pastor stands. Since it is at the same height as the people in the pews, the design reflects the architect¡¯s idea to express the idea of equality for all.¡±

    The group of tourists listened to Zhang Siyi¡¯s exnation attentively and thanked him. As they were gathering themselves to leave the building, Zhang Siyi breathed a sigh of relief. From behind him, he heard Gu Yu speak: ¡°You spoke very well.¡±

    ¡°Ah? Really?¡± Zhang Siyi said feeling slightly embarrassed. He looked back at Gu Yu: ¡°It¡¯s been so long since hearing my professor lecture about Tadao Ando¡¯s work that I¡¯ve forgotten the details. I simply told them my thoughts and opinions.¡±

    ¡°Your quick thinking was very good.¡± Gu Yu walked over to him. On the basis of Zhang Siyi¡¯s exnation to the visitors, he added a few points of his own which included the materials used in the building and a formal analysis. ¡°Since the ideas expressed in books are summed up by others, you don¡¯t need to remember the details printed in them. On the contrary, the points you expressed just now are what you personally feel. It shows that you are able to appreciate the merits of master works and prove that you already have the aesthetics and judgment of a professional architect.¡±

    _______________________

    T/N: Church of Light: https://i.ytimg/vi/7ZtfYOD5I8M/maxresdefault.jpg

 Chapter 160: Panic

    <h4>Chapter 160: Panic</h4>

    Feeling self-conscience, Zhang Siyi brought his hand up to the back of his neck and said: ¡°Actually, when I started speaking to the group of tourists, I started remembering a little about what my professor said.... I guess some details stayed in my subconscious so they weren¡¯t all my own thoughts.¡±

    Gu Yu smiled gently and apanied him around the periphery of the church. While walking slowly he said: ¡±This is very normal. As our predecessors have guided us and told us what is right, what is wrong, what is beautiful, what is ugly, etc... Like Newton¡¯s phrase ¡®If I have seen further it is only by standing on the shoulders of giants,¡¯ not all of our idease from thin air. Greek mathematicians from ancient times discovered the golden ratio which is still used today. Since humans have their own minds and ideas, we aren¡¯t machines that rigidly recall information exactly as it was inputted. We refine our thoughts and use our own judgement to extract ideas and express ourselves. If you simply reiterated the ideas that were presented in a book, I would notpliment you. Just because your ideas reflect something said by your professor, it doesn¡¯t mean they weren¡¯t your own. It is proof that the ideas Tadao Ando wanted to express through his Church of Light are being received.¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s continuedpliments caused Zhang Siyi heart to flutter. He was very excited to hear Gu Yu talk positively about him because in contrast, Zhang Siyi remembered how it was when they first met. At that time, Gu Yu only seemed to hurt and severely criticized him. However, look at him now! Gu Yu praised Zhang Siyi non-stop! ¨C Is it true that I am better, or is it because Gu Yu is blinded by love?

    In his heart, Zhang Siyi snickered a bit. Regardless, he dly received the good words.

    Today, the weather was perfect. A cool summer breeze kept the temperaturefortable for everyone. Inside, afraid of disturbing God¡¯s house, only whispers could be heard.

    Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu finally wandered back to the entrance of the Church. Once inside, they sat in the back row. As they watched the sun light project a cross on the wall in front of them, they felt time slowly pass.

    Gu Yu¡¯s mellifluous tone broke the silence: ¡°When I got my job with X Firm, thepany won a bid for a project in Xi¡¯an. Several of the designers went to inspect the project site. Since we were nearby, we went to Lintong and visited the Tomb of the Terracotta Army**.

    Zhang Siyi marveled: ¡°Wow, isn¡¯t that one of the eight wonders of the world!? I¡¯ve only seen it on TV. How was it?¡±

    Gu Yu chuckled: ¡°The viewing area wasn¡¯t extravagant. It simply was arge pit full of soldiers and horses. Standing on the viewing tform looking down into it, visually the scene was very shocking. Even though you understood the history a little bit in the recesses of your mind, being there in person made it difficult toprehend. It was an indescribable feeling. At the time, there were also some foreign tourists. I remember them saying that because the Terracotta Army was incredibly famous, they thought it would be exceedingly special, but in reality, they thought it wasn¡¯t interesting at all.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu paused and continued: ¡°At that time, a group of about six young people came up behind us that was led by an old man. All of the members of the group expressed a moment of shock before changing to sadness. With solemn faces, some members of the group wiped tears from their eyes. The old man eyes were red as well and his voice trembled. Since we thought he was probably an Archeology professor with some graduate students, our design group quickly followed them to listen to what the old man had to say as they moved on. The Terracotta Army represented the history of two thousand years ago. One can imagine the eight thousand statues in the army and all of the people who were enved to them. The craftsmen who were buried, the servants, horses, carriages... Everyone¡¯s perception of what they saw will have apletely different meaning because of their own knowledge and understanding. In the eyes of an architect, a house isn¡¯t just a home, but a work of art. It is also a craft thatsts through time and bears human civilization and history. The deeper your knowledge, the more you will understand and the more you will love it.¡±

    Extraordinarily calm, the passage was said as if Gu Yu was talking to himself. However, Zhang Siyi knew Gu Yu was talking to him instead. Listening to his calm voice, Zhang Siyi could feel the deep love that Gu Yu had for his profession.

    ¡°It¡¯s great to be an architect...¡± Zhang Siyi said sincerely.

    ¡°Yeah.¡± Gu Yu smiled, a simple conversation. The two seem to have the same heart and mind. It was not only Zhang Siyi that heard Gu Yu¡¯s speech. Lu Qiao and Tao Fei were nearby as well.

    While taking photos outside, Tao Fei spotted Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi going back inside the Church. He followed them quietly and sat in the pews not far from where the two were sitting, listening.

    Since peaking at Zhang Siyi¡¯s sketchbookst night, Lu Qiao had been caught up in an extremelyplex mood.

    He was very fond of Zhang Siyi, especially when he learned how hard-working Zhang Siyi was despiteing from a well-off family. Since Lu Qiao thought Zhang Siyi was different from a spoiled second-generation rich kid, he believed Zhang Siyi was worthy of being a friend.

    Lu Qiao ideology was very deeply rooted. He involuntarily ranked people based on their social and economical status and used that as a basis to determine who his friends could be. There was a sparkle that Tao Fei and Gu Yu exuded that Lu Qiao greatly admired. He thought Zhang Siyi had it too, but contrary to the seniors¡¯ ability, in Lu Qiao¡¯s mind, he and Zhang Siyi were at the same level.

    Family background aside, Lu Qiao was proud of his aplishments. After all, his starting point was vastly different and despite the gap, he was currently working and socializing with the same wealthy people. To some extent, it proved his own determination and work ethic.

    Since he saw how useful Zhang Siyi was during the C-City project and because they got along well during their business trip, he requested Zhang Siyi to be his roommate for thepany¡¯s trip to Japan. Because he thought that Zhang Siyi had simr ethics and hobbies, he felt it would be easy to chat with him.

    But in two days, Lu Qiao found that the bnce he had in his life was broken. In every respect, Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t acting in the way the Lu Qiao imagined he would. When he was ying with his mobile phone, Zhang Siyi was sketching. While he wandered aimlessly, Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu were talking about philosophy and life. Suddenly, Lu Qiao realized he misjudged his own position.

    Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu and Tao Fei were people of the world. As a result of being Zhang Siyi roommate and Tao Fei¡¯s game partner, he was always besides them. Inparison to these bright and morous people, he was very humble and felt pathetic.

    Feeling inferior and anxious, he sought to vent his frustrations. At that time, he saw Zhang Siyi¡¯s sketch book and uncovered a huge secret. Panicked, his discovery made him feel even more confused and began to doubt the world.

    In these past two days, his original understanding of Zhang Siyi has beenpletely overturned. In addition, his working rtionship with is boss was destabilized. Over the course of working with Gu Yu this past year and a half, he really admired his work ethics and thought he was a perfect boss, but it turns out....

    His favorite colleague and most respected boss...... They¡¯re gay!

 Chapter 161: Lie

    <h4>Chapter 161: Lie</h4>

    ..... Since when have they been together? Do the other people at work know? From Zhang Siyi¡¯s sketchbook, it is clear that he likes the Boss. However, it can¡¯t be one-sided since he willingly bought a heart lock together with Zhang Siyi. It proves he is also interested in him.

    ..... If they are dating, does that mean Zhang Siyi got special treatment? What about C-City? Zhang Siyi was given the opportunity to develop a n for C-City...... but in the end, the project was terminated and the building wasn¡¯t going to be built.

    ..... Since Zhang Siyi is usually with the Director, wouldn¡¯t he receive more attention and guidance? Is that why Zhang Siyi had made so much progress so fast? That is understandable... but how did their professional rtionship turn into something else? There is no excuse for that kind of behavior.

    Deep in the recesses of his brain, looking for an excuse, Lu Qiao mulled over the issue. Why has Zhang Siyi¡¯s progress exceeded his own? He really wanted to talk to someone, but he didn¡¯t know who. He was a little afraid of telling others about Gu Yu¡¯s and Zhang Siyi¡¯s secret because of how well-liked they were in thepany.

    Just as Lu Qiao was thinking about them, both Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi stood up. Looking down at the floor, the idea of talking to others was quickly withdrawn.

    Turning and noticing Lu Qiao, Gu Yu asked: ¡°Why are you alone? Where is Tao Fei? Tell everyone to get ready to leave. We will meet at the exit.

    Lu Qiao: ¡°Oh......¡±

    Leaving the Church of Light, the group returned to the city center and ate a light lunch. Afterwards, they visited the National Museum of International Art building** which was designed by Cesar Perri. In addition, they went to the Nampo Parkplex** which was designed by the American group, Jerde Partnership.

    As the day turned into evening, Gu Yu led them to a Japanese restaurant that served hot pot for dinner. While some members of the group felt tired and wanted to go back to the hotel to rx, there were others that wanted to stay out and continue shopping. Reminding them to stay safe, Gu Yu let the people decide for themselves what they wanted to do for their free time.

    Taking advantage of the time spent in Japan, Zhang Siyi naturally wanted to stay out to look around and continue shopping. Since they had simr principles when visiting a foreign country, Tao Fei felt the same.

    Lu Qiao felt indifferent. When he saw the three of them together, he felt an inexplicable sadness. As a result, he made up an excuse to leave and returned to the hotel with a few other colleagues.

    In a good mood, Zhang Siyi was humming quietly when he returned to his room veryte.

    Lu Qiao asked: ¡°Where have you been?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°We went to the Shinsaibashi shopping district and saw the Doutonbori canal. Oh yeh, there were many master works in the area. I also saw the Louis Vuitton building** by Kengo Kuma. The outer walls are made out of four millimeters thick onyx tes that were sandwiched between two pieces of ss. At night, with interior lighting, the walls be transparent and you can see the marble patterns in the stone. It¡¯s super cool! It¡¯s too bad you didn¡¯t go!¡±

    Listening to Zhang Siyi, Lu Qiao felt like he missed out and regretted his choice.

    Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°What about you?¡±

    While Zhang Siyi was absent, Lu Qiao hadid down all evening lost in his thoughts. He couldn¡¯t stop himself from conjuring up a variety of scenarios between Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi and as a result, it only upset him further. Feeling trapped by his own thoughts, with nothing to do and nowhere to go, he felt half-dead. Now that he heard the excitement from Zhang Siyi, he was bing even more upset. Irritated, he was curt with him and replied. ¡°There is nothing to do but sleep.¡±

    His attitude surprised Zhang Siyi. Gawking, he replied: ¡°Oh. I¡¯ll go take a shower first.

    Since Lu Qiao¡¯s attempt to garner sympathy failed, he was furious. ¨C Asshole! Now that you have a partner, you can¡¯t spare the time for friends!

    When Zhang Siyi came out of the bathroom, he saw Lu Qiao nearly covered up entirely by the nket. He wasn¡¯t sure if Lu Qiao was asleep. He casually asked: ¡°Are you alright? Are you Jetgged?¡±

    Lu Qiao stuck his head out from under the bedding: ¡°What do you mean, Jetgged?¡±

    Zhang Siyi smiled at him: ¡°Well, you haven¡¯t fallen asleep yet.¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi leaned on the headboard of his bed and exined: ¡°I noticed in these past two days that you seldom spoke andcked energy. You didn¡¯t seem like you wanted to go out with us at night so I thought maybe you were jetgged.¡±

    As Zhang Siyi showed concern, Lu Qiao¡¯s mood improved slightly. Still sullen he said: ¡°It¡¯s nothing. I don¡¯t like to travel.¡±

    Even though he knew from his experience during the business trip to C-City that Lu Qiao didn¡¯t like to travel, he was curious and asked: ¡°Why don¡¯t you?¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°After work, I¡¯m normally very tired. Since I can see everything on the inte, what is the point of going out?¡±

    ¡°Looking at a picture and being in the location feels different.¡± Zhang Siyi ryed a variety of ideas he learned from Tao Fei when they toured Yunnan.

    Lu Qiao snorted at himself: ¡°I don¡¯t think like you. Anyway, I¡¯m just a homebody. I rather stay at home and sleep. If the money given by thepany for the trip could be converted into pay instead, I definitely wouldn¡¯te.¡±

    Since their ideologies were so different, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know what to say to Lu Qiao anymore. Instead of chatting, he took out his sketchbook, turned around and silently wrote in it.

    Unexpectedly, Lu Qiao suddenly looked at him and asked: ¡°Auntie Four, is your rtionship with the Boss good?¡±

    Zhang Siyi froze. Instinctively, he wanted to change the topic quickly. He gave a vague reply: ¡°It¡¯s alright.¡±

    Lu Qiao remained silent for a moment. As if to insinuate something else, he sneered: ¡°I saw you and the boss buy a heart lock that day.¡±

    Internally, Zhang Siyi was panicking. He tried to rx his outward appearance and remain calm. He replied: ¡°Just part of the game.¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°Oh......¡±

    With ulterior motives in their hearts, there was nothing else to say.

    The next day, under the leadership of Gu Yu, everyone went to Awaji Ind in the southern part of Hyogo Prefecture.

    Awaji Ind is about two hours away from Osaka. There are a number of buildings designed by Tadao Ando located on the ind such as Honpuku-ji, Awaji Yumebutaiplex and the Botanical Gardens. It can be said that the ind hosts Tadao Ando¡¯s architectural collection.

    Since Zhang Siyi was blindsided by Lu Qiaost night, he spoke to Gu Yu about what happened and they decided to deliberately avoid each other for fear of other colleagues noticing them.

    The day was very busy with scheduled events. They left early in the morning at seven and didn¡¯t return to the hotel until ten in the evening.

    Feeling tired, Zhang Siyi wanted to get to sleep quickly so he changed his clothes then washed his face and brushed his teeth. Turning off the bedside light, he got into bed without saying a word to Lu Qiao.

    Lu Qiao was feeling depressed. Even though he wanted to talk with Zhang Siyi, he neither found an opportunity to open a dialog with him nor did Zhang Siyi make an effort to chat.

    On the fourth day of the trip, the group moved from Osaka to Kyoto. There, the main focus of the trip was to visit ancient Japanese architecture like the Imperial Pce** and Kiyomizu Temple**.

    A surprise awaited the group when they arrived at the designated hotel as it was a traditional Japanese Inn. The rooms with tatami mats and futons amodated four people. As a result, the group divided themselves into 3 groups of 4 with Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu, Tao Fei and Lu Qiao upying one room. The four women and the remaining four men were each assigned a room.

    Ji Feiyu joked: ¡°Ha-ha. Since the men and women couples were separated, we now have four pairs of male lovers sleeping in the same room. Who is jealous!?¡±

    Thinking of the true rtionship between Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu, Lu Qiao immediately blurted out: ¡°I¡¯m not gay, don¡¯t expect anything.¡±

    As much as Gu Yu tried to remain indifferent, after hearing Lu Qiao announcement, he frowned slightly. The atmosphere became awkward for a moment and everyone was silent. The group turned to look towards Lu Qiao. Since Ji Feiyu thought he was making a joke, he didn¡¯t expect Lu Qiao to take it so seriously.

    Expressionless, Lu Qiao did not care how the rest of the group thought of him. He stiffly grabbed his bag and went into his room to ce his luggage down into the corner then he walked out alone.

    As the moment passed, people returned to their own thoughts and forgot about Lu Qiao. Chatting with their neighbors, they too collected their luggage and brought it to their assigned rooms. Moreover, Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu have realized they have overstepped the boundaries of a ¡®game rtionship¡¯ and as a result, they have moderated their behavior in order to not attract further attention.

    In the afternoon, the group visited the Imperial Pce and, in the evening, they returned to the inn to gather together for a sushi dinner.

    With plentiful jokes andughter, the atmosphere was lively and harmonious. As more sushi was eaten, more sake was passed around the table and the group became even more lively. Thus, Ji Feiyu became bold enough to suggest they y a game of Truth-or-Dare. Since everyone hooted and hollered at his proposition, it seemed like perhaps, everyone in the group already knew what his true intentions were towards Du Rui. They eagerly agreed to y the game.

    Bing sweaty, only Zhang Siyi was very nervous. Although he knew that Ji Feiyu¡¯s goal wasn¡¯t to expose him and Gu Yu, he was really afraid to y! Unexpectedly, Zhang Siyi felt Gu Yu grab his hand under the table suddenly.

    Startled, Zhang Siyi remained still for a long time until he realized Gu Yu was writing something in the palm of his hand. It was an English word: Lie.

    Lie? Is Gu¡¯s asking him to lie? Doesn¡¯t this mean topletely disregard the rules of the game?

    Shit! Gu Yu is so despicable...... But he likes it! (=w=)

    ______________________

    T/N: National Museum of Art Osaka: https://arcspace/wp-content/uploads/CropUp/-/media/209214/national_museum_of_art_1.jpg

    Namba Park Complex: https://.jerde/ces/detail/namba-parks

    Louis Vuitton Headquarters Japan: https://kkaa.co.jp/works/architecture/lvmh-osaka/

    Kyoto Imperial Pce: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kyoto_Imperial_Pce

    Kiyomizu Temple: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Kiyomizu-dera

 Chapter 162: Wasabi

    <h4>Chapter 162: Wasabi</h4>

    ate to have won the right to ask the first question. She looked around, and eventually settled her eyes on Gu Yu: ¡°I have a question to ask the Director.¡±

    Gu Yu took a napkin and wiped his mouth. He calmly replied: ¡°Ask away.¡±

    Hesitating slightly, Xu Jia felt a little embarrassed, but she went ahead and asked anyway: ¡°Boss, who do you think is the best employee of the group?¡±

    Everyone snorted ¡ª what kind of question is that? He can¡¯t answer it!

    Gu Yu: ¡°You are all very good because each of you have your own strength.¡±

    Since his answer was too impartial, everyone felt extremely dissatisfied. They wanted him to name someone. Feeling helpless under the pressure of the group Gu Yu finally offered up a name: ¡°It would be Yuan Zhicheng.¡±

    Yuan Zhicheng had his face buried in his food. He was eating a salmon sushi when he suddenly heard his name and looked up.

    Everyone thought Gu Yu would name Zhang Siyi, but unexpectedly the Boss said Yuan Zhicheng.

    Gu Yu exined: ¡°Even though Yuan Zhicheng is a low-key person, he is very serious and works extremely diligently. His drawings are excellent.¡±

    Even though Yuan Zhicheng was the best illustrator in thepany, his presence was low. Listening, people were moved by Gu Yu¡¯s exnation because it proved to everyone, whether they were loud or quiet, that their work and effort was acknowledged by the Boss.

    Everyone raised a ss and coaxed: ¡°Here, here. A toast! The Director likes you the most!¡±

    Yuan Zhicheng raised his ss and said: ¡°Boss, Thank you.¡±

    After everyone finished the toast, Gu Yu casually picked someone and asked a question, keeping the game going. Not long afterwards, Gu Yu was questioned again!

    Even though everyone knew the origin of Ji Feiyu proposition, the group continued to direct their questions at Gu Yu. Who cares which person likes whom! They want to hear gossip!

    This time Bi Lele asked the question. She smiled and asked: ¡°Boss, why did you choose Zhang Siyi for your partner in thepany¡¯s couple matching game?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± He suspected this! Knowing about her ¡®rotten¡¯ nature, this type of question would definitely be asked!¡± (=_=)

    However, since Gu Yu wanted to ignore the rules, the truth-telling aspect of the game is simply a game of ¡®willing to take the bait¡¯. Since statements are considered truth, liars don¡¯t need to ept a punishment even when they lie.

    Gu Yu nced at Zhang Siyi and smiled a little: ¡°Because I like him a lot.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°!!!¡± ¨C What about ¡°lie¡±? Why the fuck aren¡¯t you ying by your rules! (¨s#¡ã§¥¡ã)¨s

    After a brief silence, the crowd burst intoughter. Picking up their chopsticks, they tapped on their bowls noisily. It was probably the first time the Director made a joke with them! This game was interesting!

    After answering, Gu Yu chose Tao Fei as a target for his next question: ¡°Brother, you have been working with Zhang Siyi for two months on a project. What do you think of Zhang Siyi?¡±

    This is the first time in public that Gu Yu has called Tao Fei brother. Tao Fei grinned and looked straight at Zhang Siyi: ¡°I also like him a lot.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°!!!¡± Fuck! You are ganging up on me!

    Everyone: ¡°Ha-ha-ha-ha...¡±

    The cooperation between Gu Yu and Tao Fei was too clever. Gu Yu first gave an ambiguous answer causing people to wonder if he had special feelings for Zhang Siyi, but then he asked Tao Fei a question and characterized they¡¯re ¡®like¡¯ as in friends andrades. His answer made it clear to everyone that they were just joking.

    Anyway, as long as everyone is having a good time, no one cares whether there is any truth to the statement or not.

    ¡°It¡¯s my turn to ask a question, yes?¡± Tao Fei directed his site to Zhang Siyi and grinned: ¡°Zhang Siyi, who do you like more, me or my brother?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± What the fuck are you doing!

    Everyone burst intoughter. Some people wereughing so hard that they fell to the tatami mats and rolled on the ground.

    As the questions continued to revolve around him in some fashion, Zhang Siyi felt indignant. Since Gu Yu told him to lie, he will: ¡°I don¡¯t like either of you!¡±

    Tao Fei was surprised: ¡°Hey, you¡¯ve fouled!¡±

    Zhang Siyi stubbornly questioned: ¡°How did I foul?¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°I gave you a multiple-choice question so your answer has to be either myself or Gu Yu, but what answer did you just give? Replying without using the correct format is punishable!¡±

    Since part of the game revolved around actions when someone didn¡¯t want to admit a fact, in the excitement, everyone was swayed by Tao Fei¡¯s logic and started to chant: ¡°Puh-nish! Puh-nish!¡±

    Framed by the crowd, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t get away from the spotlight. Throwing everything to the wind he eximed: ¡°Fine!¡±

    He raised his ss to drink but was held back by Tao Fei: ¡°Wait, who said the punishment was drinking?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Doesn¡¯t the person who chose Dare drink directly?¡±

    Looking at him, Tao Fei raised his eyebrows. He took his chopsticks from his small dish and picked up a huge piece of wasabi then ced it on top of a piece of sushi: ¡°I have heard of thatzy way of ying, but I y it differently.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was shocked at what was ced before him. Does Tao Fei want him to eat it? He doesn¡¯t tolerant spicy foods well. Normally, he can¡¯t even stand the tiniest piece of wasabi, let alone a huge chunk like what was ced before him. If he ate it, he would definitely die!

    Tao Fei smiled at his ¡®masterpiece¡¯ and offered an alternative: ¡°I¡¯ll give you two choices. Either eat this piece of sushi or,¡± he nced at Gu Yu, ¡°you give brother a kiss.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡±

    Everyone excitedly banged the table and chanted in unison: ¡°Kiss him! Kiss him! Kiss him!¡±

    Tao Fei narrowed his eyes at Gu Yu, as if to say, brother, I can only help you here.

    Comparing the two choices, the difficulty of eating such arge piece of wasabi was obvious, However, kissing Gu Yu in front of everyone...... Zhang Siyi was beyond shy. He quietly looked a Gu Yu. To his surprised, Gu Yu was watching him with anticipation.

    Given this rare opportunity to show affection in front of everyone in the guise of the game, Zhang Siyi had to admit he was a little excited...... Maybe, Gu Yu wants it too?

    Temporarily forgetting the shackles that society has ced on him, Zhang Siyi unconsciously already had turned his head and leaned over.... He ced a kiss on Gu Yu¡¯s face.

    All the female colleagues held their face and screamed. Even the male colleagues hooted and whooped. While everyone was being boisterous and loud, the atmosphere reached a high tide!

    Bright red, Zhang Siyi retracted his head. He wiped his mouth in a hurry and drank a ss of wine to hide.

    Contrary to Zhang Siyi actions, Gu Yu sat still with a calm face. Having been kissed by another man, he didn¡¯t appear embarrassed at all and in fact, he looked at Zhang Siyi in the eye and smiled slightly at him.

    This little expression once again sparked the screams of a couple of rotten coworkers....... God, what to do! They want to see the Director and Zhang Siyi together!

    Among them, there is one person who can¡¯t find any reason to feel happy: Lu Qiao.

    Even though it is supposed to be a game, his views were copsing. Is it true that he is the only one who thinks that the rtionship between Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu is not normal? And Tao Fei, why did he suggest such a proposition? How can he make that type of joke? What are they all excited about?

    Lu Qiao felt as if he was slowly being separated from the group. He was unable to connect with his colleagues and integrate with them and as a result, he wasn¡¯t able to find his ce.

    He was like a spectator only able to watch people revel in happiness, but not participate in it.

    ¡°Now it¡¯s my turn, right?¡± Zhang Siyi looked to Ji Feiyu and said: ¡°Chicken brother, I want to ask you a question.¡± Since Ji Feiyu was the main character of the game, this brother looked forward to ¡®The-Question¡¯ for so long. Wanting to divert people attention away from Gu Yu and himself, Zhang Siyi decided it would be a good time to address Ji Feiyu and lend him a helping hand

 Chapter 163: Kneel

    <h4>Chapter 163: Kneel</h4>

    Acting like he was going to ask the most provocative question, Zhang Siyi squinted his eyes at Ji Feiyu and said: ¡°I heard you liked a female colleague in our group. Is it true?¡±

    Everyone listened and thought there was going to be a good show! As long as Ji Feiyu¡¯s answers, naturally they will continue to probe him for answers. However, Ji Feiyu scratched his head and smiled: ¡°I choose a Dare.¡±

    Zhang Siyi almost spit out his mouthful of wine. ¨C Huh? Why didn¡¯t he go for it? I provided the perfect opening!

    Ji Feiyu suddenly looked at Zhang Siyi for additional help and moved his eyes in the direction of Du Rui.

    Zhang Siyi understand. Ji Feiyu couldn¡¯t wait for the next question! All right then, send the Buddha to the West for help. Zhang Siyi coughed lightly and said: ¡°Since you are not willing to answer, I will have to punish you. Kneel down before the girl you like.¡±

    Ji Feiyu: ¡°...¡±

    Everyone: ¡°Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!!!¡±

    Ji Feiyu slowly got up from his seat and walked to Du Rui. Under the watchful eyes of the group, he got down on his knees onto the tatami mats. Since they were in a traditional Japanese Inn, they were dinning on tatami mats and low tables. As a result, it didn¡¯t look very strange for Ji Feiyu to kneel down as he was on the same level as everyone else.

    As Ji Feiyu maneuver into position, many members of the group hooted and hollered. While some people banged on the table, others tapped their sses. For a second time the, ruckus grew louder and louder until it culminated into unified cheers.

    Watching him in disbelief, Du Rui covered her mouth. His shy expression overshadowed any embarrassment......

    Since Tao Fei assessment was correct, Zhang Siyi breathed a sigh of relief. It seems that Du Rui is interested in Ji Feiyu as well.

    After ji Feiyu knelt down, he took a small box out of his trouser pocket.... Witness to his actions, everyone in the room held their breath in surprised. They all seems to have simr thoughts. ¨C Shit! Is Ji Feiyu is going to propose?!

    Even Du Rui looked shocked at the box he presented. She was even a bit scared.

    Fortunately, when Ji Feiyu opened the box, there was only a pair of delicate earrings. He looked at Du Rui and sincerely said: ¡°Du Rui, since your arrival at thepany one and half years ago, I am yours. I¡¯ve been attracted to your gentle and quite demure. With further contact, not only did I find that you are a soft-spoken person, but you are also a strong, independent, and hardworking individual with considerable empathy for others.

    Being in the spotlight, Ji Feiyu was very nervous and as a result, his tone changed. In the now tense room, all of his colleagues sweated for him.

    Ji Feiyu plucked up his courage and continued: ¡°Do you remember the Changsha Hotel project a year ago? At that time, thepany was very busy and no one else was able to spare their time to help me. Only you, after finishing your own work did you extend a hand and offer help. You stayed with me the whole week for overtime and together, you helped me tremendously. I was very moved by your kind gesture and wanted to confess to you at that time but I was afraid of rejection. I endured for a year and hearing about your family¡¯s pressure for marriage, I became worried that you would be taken away from me. Our industry is very demanding. We sacrificed a lot of our private life for our profession and as a result, we seldom had the opportunity to date and fall in love. In this field of work, peers are more understanding. It isn¡¯t easy to meet someone special from the same industry . Because of my hesitation, I don¡¯t want to let you go if someone elsees to court you.¡±

    Having heard his confession, with a touch of red in her eyes, Du Rui let go of her breath. The sweet words touched both her heart and everyone else¡¯s. The simrity ended their however, because the sweet words were only directed towards Du Rui. The lone dogs were left feeling a tinge of jealousy.

    Ji Feiyu raised the small box in his hand and said: ¡°We saw these pair of earrings the night before in the market in Osaka. I saw you look at them more then once and ask about the price. I don¡¯t know why you didn¡¯t buy them so I made it a point to quietly go back to the shop and buy them for you. I hope you like them. I want to work together, design together, and grow together...... Du Rui, please be my girlfriend!¡±

    The excitement of the asion could be felt by the group. As the volume increased, people started chanting ¡®together¡¯ and as a result, Gu Yu raised his hand to quiet everyone. There didn¡¯t need to be any more pressure on the couple as there already was.

    Du Rui wiped the corner of her eye and reached out to take the box. Nodding, she said: ¡°Yes.¡±

    Everyone cheered and screamed: ¡°Ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah, ah!!!¡±

    Next to her, Bi Lele was chewing a piece of tempura. With tears in her eyes she eximed: ¡°I¡¯ll eat this bowl of dog food dly!¡±

    After his heart calmed down from the ecstatic feelings of eptance, Ji Feiyu immediately turned to addressed Gu Yu: ¡°Boss, I¡¯m sorry. I know office romance isn¡¯t encouraged in the work ce. If you think......¡±

    Gu Yu could guess what he was going to say and raised his hand to interrupt him: ¡°As long as the rtionship doesn¡¯t effect both your work and Du Rui¡¯s then it won¡¯t be a problem.¡± He himself hasn¡¯t exactly followed the rules by being in a romantic rtionship with Zhang Siyi. How could he prevent others?

    Ji Feiyu gratefully said: ¡°Thank you!¡±

    Gu Yu smiled at him and said: ¡°I have worked with you for many years and treat you more as a friend than a subordinate. You don¡¯t need to kneel at me. Get up.¡±

    Withughter from the group the volume in the room was once again loud and cheerful. Ji Feiyu turned red then quickly changed his position from kneeling to sitting.

    Gu Yu raised his ss and continued: ¡°Today I witnessed heartfelt feelings. I am very happy for you. Du Rui is a good person so I hope you treat her well.¡±

    Ji Feiyu tapped Gu Yu ss with his own and drank all the wine in his cup: ¡°I know, I will!¡±

    After the real purpose of the game was reached, they no longer yed.

    Waves were made by the shock of Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi acting out ¡®fake¡¯ dog food and then shortly after, witnessing Ji Feiyu and Du Rui¡¯s real dog food. In the excitement, many people exceeded their normal alcohol tolerance. As a result, most everyone returned to their rooms to rest.

    In thesest two days, Tao Fei became obsessed with Era of Music. He also left the dinner party to y the game in his room. While the group wasn¡¯t paying attention, Gu Yu pulled Zhang Siyi along for a walk outside.

    At night, Kyoto was quaint and secluded. The inn was located near the Kiyomizu-Dera Temple. Along each side of the road the ancient capital was all around them. At this time, having already closed for the night, most of the small shops are dark, but for the glow of a single warm orange paperntern hanging outside each shop making the atmosphere rather romantic.

    Gu Yu checked his surroundings. With the help of alcohol and the influence of emotions expressed by Ji Feiyu¡¯s heartfelt confession, and seeing no one around, Gu Yu reached out and enveloped Zhang Siyi¡¯s hand with his own.

    Gu Yu gave Zhang Siyi¡¯s hand a squeeze. He whispered: ¡°Do you envy them?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu didn¡¯t hear Zhang Siyi¡¯s answer: ¡°Do you regret staying with me?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°No.¡±

    Gu Yu smiled gently and said with some sadness: ¡°But I am envious.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Hmm...?¡±

    ¡°I envy them because they can openly express their love and can be blessed by everyone.¡± Gu Yu let out a long deep sigh: ¡°I¡¯m sorry Siyi. I can¡¯t do this for you as I¡¯ve pulled you into the dark to be with me.¡±

    Feeling distressed over Gu Yu admission, to reassure him, Zhang Siyi held Gu Yu hand tightly: ¡°It doesn¡¯t matter, we are good the way we are.¡±

    In fact, Zhang Siyi did have some feeling of jealousy, but not in the way Gu Yu thought. He was envious of the way in which Ji Feiyu got on his knees to confess his feelings.

    Zhang Siyi chuckled thinking about it. He jokingly said to Gu Yu: ¡°When Ji Feiyu chose a dare, I asked him to kneel in front of the person he liked because I wanted him to get on one knee like a marriage proposal. I didn¡¯t think he would get down on both knees. Ha-ha......¡±

    While half smiling and halfughing, Gu Yu suddenly took both of Zhang Siyi hands and stopped. Facing one another, Gu Yu looked at Zhang Siyi affectionately. Zhang Siyi stopped speaking and forgot to breathe.

    The atmosphere became someone else and he thought that they would kiss...

    Instead, Zhang Siyi was caught by surprise when Gu Yu slowly got down on his knee while staring at his face.

    Zhang Siyi gasped and held his breath. His nervous heart was pounding in his chest.... The person he loves was on one knee... Gu Yu lowered his head and looked at his shoes: ¡°Your shoces are untied.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡±

    Kneeling on the ancient store floor in Kyoto, slowly and carefully, Gu Yu re-tied Zhang Siyi¡¯s shoce.

 Chapter 164: Worries

    <h4>Chapter 164: Worries</h4>

    Even though he wasn¡¯t really expecting anything to happen, Zhang Siyi was struck in the heart by Gu Yu¡¯s seemingly simply but in fact, profound action.

    Yes, the point is not on the tying of the shoces themselves, but rather, the process of taking one knee to the ground.

    Zhang Siyi asked himself whether or not it was possible for him to kneel down like Gu Yu had to tie his girlfriend¡¯s shoes. The answer was, no. He would even feel embarrassed to kneel in front of his parents to tie their shoes. From a young age, boys are taught to stay strong and show no weakness.

    Perhaps while joking with friends, one might do it, but not after such a serious discussion. Zhang Siyi found Gu Yu¡¯s prostration extremely shocking. For a few seconds, he felt as though he was restricted by in an invisible barrier and couldn¡¯t move.

    Zhang Siyi felt himself fall in love with the man before him all over again. If, in that moment, Gu Yu had asked him to marry, he wouldn¡¯t hesitate and say yes.

    The faint touch on his foot, like an electric current, spread from his toes, throughout his limbs and to his scalp causing him to tremble.

    After he was finished, Zhang Siyi naturally extended his hand to Gu Yu to help pull him up. When Gu Yu epted his hand, Gu Yu was gazing up at him affectionately and like a prince kissing a princess, Gu Yu nted a kiss on the back of Zhang Siyi¡¯s hand.

    Zhang Siyi was reminded of the dream he had during the movie ¡®Cindere¡¯ where he grabbed the prince¡¯s hand and asked him if he liked him or not......

    With a pounding heart, Zhang Siyi felt like he was going to drown in his emotions. For once, he was thankful for Gu Yu¡¯s silence, otherwise with further stimtion, he thought he might faint!

    His feelings at the moment were so hot and sincere that Zhang Siyi quickly embraced Gu Yu and kissed him after he stood up. However, because they were both men standing outside in public, Zhang Siyi felt his anxiety rise and as a result the longing he felt couldn¡¯t be satisfied right now. Even so, he felt true happiness that one feels when their dreamse true. Ecstatic, he held him tightly and affirmed; he wouldn¡¯t let Gu Yu go for the rest of his life.

    Drunk, not only on alcohol, but on love, the two of them remained in each other¡¯s embrace and kissed deeply. The night air of Kyoto, saturated with sweetness, wrapped around them.

    While taking a stroll through the ancient roads, they held hands and relished the rare opportunity to be affectionate together outside. Like a fool, they stopped here and there and kissed each other as if they were the only two people in the world.

    Gu Yu: ¡°I thought your secrete ns with Ji Feiyu went smoothly.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What ns? I just thought of that punishment on the fly. If I had known ahead of time, I would have told you. If I told you, would you have written ¡®lie¡¯ on my hand still? And even so, you disregarded your own rule and said you liked me in front of everyone. That Fat Peach too! Were you guys in collusion?

    Gu Yuughed and smiled at him: ¡°It¡¯s not.... It¡¯s just...... I can¡¯t hold back. Anyway, being part of the game, I didn¡¯t think it was a big deal. People took it as a joke and no harm was done.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°You scared me to death!¡±

    Gu Yu looked at him and leaned over to his ear and whispered: ¡°When you kissed me, I was hard.¡± He nted a hot passionate kiss on Zhang Siyi lips.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡± (o////o) Gu Yu, this rogue!

    After separating their lips, Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°Do you believe in Tao Fei¡¯s ¡®love period¡¯ theory?¡±

    Gu Yu smiled: ¡°You are my first love. What Tao Fei said isn¡¯t allowed.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s silence prompted Gu Yu to continue: ¡°Our experience is the same, don¡¯t you think?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Even though I went out with one other person I think what you said is true. Don¡¯t be angry, but when I was with my ex-girlfriend, I felt at that time that I liked her very much and......¡±

    ¡°Hey¡± Zhang Siyi called out ¡°why are you pinching me!? I told you not to be angry... hey... help... I was wrong! I was wrong!¡±

    Laughing, Zhang Siyi squirmed and begged for mercy. He tried to move out of reach, but Gu Yu pulled him close instead. As Zhang Siyi was being held in Gu Yu¡¯s strong embrace, he pleaded: ¡°Okay, okay.... I didn¡¯t like her. I only like you.¡±

    Continuing to prod Zhang Siyi¡¯s sensitive waist, this time with gentle caresses, Gu Yu stared at him.

    Zhang Siyi dare not move. He knew enough not to say more positive things about his past with his ex-girlfriend: ¡°In retrospect, our best time together was only the first few months because there was less contact when I went to the UK to study. The difficulty in maintaining long-distance rtionships......¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°So, what is it that you are trying to say?¡±

    Zhang Siyi lowered his eyes and whispered: ¡°I am afraid that after the first few months we are together, you won¡¯t like me anymore.¡±

    Gu Yu smiled broadly. It seems he wasn¡¯t the only one suffering from his own doubt. This little fool was also afraid. While Gu Yu was afraid Zhang Siyi would regret his rtionship with him, Zhang Siyi was afraid of being tossed aside.

    ¡°Do I look like the kind of person who only likes new things?¡± Gu Yu asked.

    Zhang Siyi shook his head. Even though he knew it wasn¡¯t the case as the old tape measure that Gu Yu gave him was his evidence, Zhang Siyi¡¯s insecurities out-weighed his rational thought.

    Gu Yu softly said: ¡°ording to Tao Fei¡¯s theory, since this is our third month together, we are supposed to have cooled down already. Will there be a time when suddenly, like the ending of a magic spell, where we will think the person besides us isn¡¯t who we thought they were and our emotional ties cease?

    Zhang Siyi shook his head again. How could it be?

    Gu Yu added: ¡°Although we have had our fair share of squabbles thesest few months, we were able to resolve our problems every time. As a result, our understanding of each other became better and our feelings for one another are stronger. As we get to know each other more and more, there will be fewer unknown elements between us and thusck freshness. Which, by the way, are very normal changes in a rtionship. I understand that life is long and that the feelings between us may change subtly over time into responsibility and affection for family.¡± Gu Yu clenched his hand and softly asked: ¡°Do you think that is boring?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°No.¡±

    Zhang Siyi is obsessed with the calm and peace of mind that Gu Yu brings into his life. Wherever Gu Yu is, he is his soul¡¯s safe harbor.

    Gu Yu sighed with relief and said: ¡°It is good to be epting of things for the future. In any case, I don¡¯t believe that our rtionship will be any different after three months.¡±

    In fact, inparison to his normal stoic and calm demeanor, the strong impulsiveness and loss of control that Gu Yu felt from time to time was difficult to restrain. If his impulses were due to the love period, then Gu Yu was wondering, if when his enthusiasm settles down, how will they continue?

    Gu Yu calming timber of his voice soothed Zhang Siyi. Not only did Gu Yu quell any uneasiness in his heart, but Gu Yu¡¯s attitude and maturity made Zhang Siyi adore him even more.

    Brimming with love and affection, Zhang Siyi wanted to shout it out to the world. He waned to tell every female that secretly coveted Gu Yu...... Your male god, he is my love!

 Chapter 165: Singing

    <h4>Chapter 165: Singing</h4>

    ___________________

    Gu Yu was concerned that the topic of their conversation was too serious for Zhang Siyi to handle, but seeing his cute expression, Gu Yu felt like he won the lottery. Amused, he reached over to rub the back of Zhang Siyi head.

    Calling out ¡°Hey¡± and feebly moving his head out of the way, Zhang Siyi smiled broadly. The feeling of being loved felt most euphoric. As joy overflowed from Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart, he couldn¡¯t stop himself from humming a tune.

    At first, he only hummed a bit of a song tentatively and his youthful voice seemed childish, but with growing confidence, he sung out loud. His clear voice, like a fresh summer breeze blowing ripples on ake, flowed through the ancient city adding warmth to the otherwise cold atmosphere.

    Nearly eleven at night, they were the only two people on the road. Zhang Siyi¡¯s musical voice echoed softly in the air, increasing the romance of the ancient capital.

    Zhang Siyi sang out: ¡° Blue sky and rain... Smoke rising, thousands of miles across the river...... and I am waiting for you......¡±

    Listening with enthusiasm, Gu Yu asked: ¡°What song is that? It¡¯s nice.¡±

    Zhang Siyi smiled and said: ¡°Blue and White Porcin by Jay Chou.¡± ** Haven¡¯t you heard of it?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m familiar with it but I couldn¡¯t remember the name of the song.¡± Gu Yu nced at him and said: ¡°You sing better than he does.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s loving words makes Zhang Siyi heart soar!

    Zhang Siyi suddenly remembered: ¡°Hey, I haven¡¯t heard you sing.¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s facial expression changed slightly: ¡°Hmm?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°When we were at KTV , you wouldn¡¯t sing. You told me you only sing to the person you like. I almost forgot!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi said with excitement: ¡°Come on, sing a song for me.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Do you really want to hear me sing?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Of course!¡± This is his privilege. He was stupid for only remembering now!

    Gu Yu coughed lightly: ¡°I can¡¯t sing very well.¡±

    Zhang Siyi saw the sh of embarrassment across Gu Yu¡¯s eyes. Hey! Gu Yu also feels shy! He wrapped his arms around Gu Yu¡¯s arm, pressed his body against his and pestered Gu Yu flirtatiously: ¡°Come on, I want to hear you sing! Sing something for me!¡±

    Gu Yu struggled momentarily, but relented quickly: ¡°Okay, Okay. I¡¯ll sing....¡±

    With great expectations, Zhang Siyi gazed at Gu Yu with anticipation. ¨CGu Yu¡¯s voice is so wonderful; his singing must be great!

    Clearing his throat, Gu Yu ¡®uh-hummed¡¯ then opened his mouth to sing: ¡°The breath of rain is the path home, on the road I chased your footsteps ...¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Underneath the temperature of yesterday, you hold me like a warm tree ...¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡± Whoa, wait.... is this singing or reading lyrics? (£þ_£þ|||)

    Gu Yu continued to sing in a serious way: ¡°Down the road, the rain is gone, I remember now, the wind won¡¯t blow the blessings...¡±

    Listening to Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi thought the song was probably ¡®Let¡¯s Watch the Sunrise¡¯ by Joi Chua.** Searching his memory, he was trying to remember the correct tune of the song. ¨C Why won¡¯t Gu Yu sing the correct tune?! Am I mistaken?

    Gu Yu: ¡°There is a road after the rain. Like watching the sunrise that year, you took me through the fog and told me to see the hope in the night...¡±

    After listening to Gu Yu for another two sentences, Zhang Siyi confirmed his guess. As Gu Yu continued to ¡®sing¡¯, he found itborious to maintain his excited expression.... He came to a realization. He should have known considering how poorly Gu Yu ys Era of Music.

    ......Gu Yu isn¡¯t perfect!

    Listening to him sing, Zhang Siyi tried hard not tough. Now hearing how poorly Gu Yu sang, it ruined his fantasy and as a result, he regretted it just a little.

    Regardless, Gu Yu was singing very seriously. Even if it wasn¡¯t the most musical, he was very engaged with Zhang Siyi. From time to time, Gu Yu gazed at Zhang Siyi very affectionately.

    Finally waiting for Gu Xiao to finish the song, Zhang Siyi took a deep breath and felt relieved. (=_=)

    Gu Yu also breathed a sigh of relief. After a few minutes of silence, he spoke softly: ¡° Well, I finished singing. Are you satisfied?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Hmm...¡±

    Gu Yu turned his head to the side to look at him and asked: ¡°Was it bad?¡±

    Zhang Siyi was afraid that honesty would hurt Gu Yu¡¯s self-esteem so he shook his head ¡®no¡¯ and then replied: ¡°It was okay.¡± Thinking about his singing, Zhang Siyi wanted to cry, but at least, the emotional input was very real!

    Keenly aware of his ability, Gu Yu smiled at Zhang Siyi and said: ¡°Don¡¯t lie. My sister has already informed me that a fish sings better than me.¡± He reached out to rub Zhang Siyi¡¯s head and said: ¡°Just now, I lost to you.¡±

    Suddenly, Zhang Siyi burst into tears. Ah! True love! He held Gu Yu¡¯s hand and said: ¡°Promise me, will you only sing for me?¡± ..... When people listen, your image will turn to dust.

    Gu Yu: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu pinched his ear and smiled: ¡°You don¡¯t mind.¡±

    The two of them strolled around the ancient city for an hour. They circled around and headed towards the backyard garden of the inn. Before they reached the back gate, Zhang Siyi heard something.... It sounded like sobbing,ing from inside?

    They paused and looked at each other. It seems, the sound Zhang Siyi heard wasn¡¯t part of his imagination. Since it was a calm and clear night, there were no other sounds and as a result, the soft sound of sobs echoing in the garden could be heard very clearly.

    ..... Is someone crying?

    Looking at Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi pouted his mouth and stroked his cheek with his hand to express tears.

    Gu Yu frowned and signaled Zhang Siyi not to speak.

    Zhang Siyi felt afraid suddenly. The two were in the ancient capital of Japan, where the legend of ghosts and gods flourished. In darkness in the middle of the night someone was crying at the inn. Doesn¡¯t this make a scary scenario?

    Unconsciously, Zhang Siyi moved closer to Gu Yu, grabbed his clothes tightly and held onto him.

    The two men circumvented a small tree and nced in the direction of the sound. They saw a person standing at the tree and wiping tears. Gu Yu quickly pulled Zhang Siyi back.

    Even though Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t see who it was, knowing it wasn¡¯t a ghost was enough to put him at ease.

    Scrunching his brows, Gu Yu expression changed. All traces of joy were gone. He grabbed Zhang Siyi¡¯s hand and wrote a word on his palm, ¡®Joe¡¯.

    ...... Lu Qiao? Zhang Siyi was very surprised and felt very puzzled. ¨C Because of Du Rui and Ji Feiyu? But everyone was very happy ying the game. How can he be here alone crying? Does Lu Qiao like Du Rui, too?

    Before he had more strange ideas, he shook his head and got Gu Yu¡¯s attention. He silently mouthed: ¡°What now?¡±

    Behind the tree, Gu Yu continued to make a ¡®shh¡¯ gesture at Zhang Siyi. He didn¡¯t want to act rashly. Since it was the only way to enter the inn, he wanted to spare Lu Qiao any embarrassment.

    Not a moment had passed when Lu Qiao¡¯s voice could be heard talking to himself ¡ª¡ª

    ¡°Tree hole! Tree hole! I really can¡¯t hold it in anymore! I am too ufortable... No one cares what I think and no one cares that I am unhappy...¡±

    His shaking voice was intermittently interrupted by his own helpless sobs. Witnessing his pitiful state, Zhang Siyi felt empathic. ¨C What is he so sad about?

    As Lu Qiao crunched beside the tree, tears flowed down his face. In distress he blurted out: ¡°No one in the wholepany knows about their rtionship, but I know it¡¯s true! They are gay......¡±

 Chapter 166: Caught

    <h4>Chapter 166: Caught</h4>

    ___________________

    Feeling startled when he heard Lu Qiao statement, Zhang Siyi¡¯s turned pale.

    ¡­¡­ Gay? Is Lu Qiao talking about him? How does he know?

    While Zhang Siyi was turning to look at Gu Yu, Gu Yu was also turning to look Zhang Siyi. Both of their expressions were veryplex.

    Since Lu Qiao crying clearly indicated that in some way, he has felt wronged, Zhang Siyi felt confused. Thinking about it, he tried to understand what the problem was. What did being gay have anything to do with Lu Qiao? Did someone hurt him?

    Although Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi were always worried about the possibility of being discovered,ing upon someone by ident and hearing a monolog about their rtionship felt strange.

    Lu Qiao sobbed twice and continued venting hisints: ¡°Why am I being bullied over being from the country and yet no one says anything about him? I can¡¯tpare. They act like he is the pride of heaven, but he is gay! Why doesn¡¯t anyone find it strange?¡±

    After listening to what Lu Qiao just said, the two were even more confused, especially Zhang Siyi. Who bullied Lu Qiao? Who is the pride of heaven?

    Considering his rtionship with Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi figured Lu Qiao must be talking about himself, but where did Lu Qiao ever get the idea that he was the pride of heaven? Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t remotely feel like he isparable to Lu Qiao¡¯s delusion.

    At the same time, Gu Yu was looking at Zhang Siyi questioningly. He was thinking about any conflicts Zhang Siyi might have had with Lu Qiao.

    Seeing Gu Yu¡¯s slightly raised eyebrow, Zhang Siyi quickly shook his head to refute. He felt his friendship with Lu Qiao was good.

    Although, looking back at thest few days, perhaps Lu Qiao was a bit alienated. Being immersed in romance, Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart and mind were upied with thoughts of Gu Yu. In addition, traveling with a strict touring schedule created little time for Zhang Siyi to think about anything else.

    After another minute passed, Lu Qiao sniffled and choked out more grievances: ¡°He is so well liked by everyone. He has such a good family. Even his father is a government official. The boss also likes him very much¡­¡­ And I¡¯m just a loser. What makes him so different? Why can¡¯t Ipare with him? What other qualifications do I need?¡±

    Since Lu Qiao mentioned a father who was an official, Zhang Siyi face changed. His suspicion was confirmed as Lu Qiao was the only person with whom Zhang Siyi told that fact to.

    Now that Zhang Siyi knew he was the main character of Lu Qiao monolog, Zhang Siyi felt an indescribable feeling of difort. Broadening his thoughts, he wondered if he really did do something to provoke Lu Qiao and thinking back, he reyed some of the details.

    There was that time he was with Lu Qiao and spoke without thought about the cost of living while studying in Europe. After hearing about it, Lu Qiao seemed unsettled and had made ament at that time about his father being a corrupt official. Although he felt a disgusted over Lu Qiao¡¯s remark, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t let what he said bother him as he knew there were always some form of hatred towards the wealthy from the poor. Even if Lu Qiao might be a little cynical, his nature wasn¡¯t bad.

    Moreover, Zhang Siyi thought Lu Qiao regarded him as a friend. Why else would he suggest being roommates for the trip? And thus, being a friend, he let the issue pass as a joke. Thest thing that Zhang Siyi expected was Lu Qiao talking about him behind his back. It made him feel both angry and sad.

    Perceiving the changes in Zhang Siyi¡¯s emotional states, Gu Yu gently held Zhang Siyi hand tofort him.

    Zhang Siyi was trying to listen to what else Lu Qiao has to say, but in Gu Yu¡¯s firm grasp, he was being pulled out from hiding. Even though Zhang Siyi was quite resistant, he couldn¡¯t fight against Gu Yu strength.

    ¡°¡­!!!¡­¡± ¨CWha..wait, are you confronting Lu Qiao?

    Lu Qiao was crying, but suddenly heard the sound of footsteps.

    Now alerted, while wiping the tears from his face, he looked up to see who was near. When he saw who it was, he was stunned and his mind went nk.

    ¡­¡­ They heard him; he was caught¡­¡­

    Noticing Gu Yu¡¯s stern and expressionless face, Lu Qiao¡¯s first thought was: ¡®I¡¯m going to be fired. Do I need to leave Japan now?¡¯

    Looking away from Gu Yu¡¯s line of sight, Lu Qiao looked to Zhang Siyi and noticing his slight frown, Lu Qiao felt ashamed suddenly for what he said. Lu Qiao¡¯s predicament exposed his own fear of homosexuality. Subconsciously, Lu Qiao tried to make himself smaller by shrinking back. All he wanted to do was disappear.

    As Gu Yu approached Lu Qiao, he let go of Zhang Siyi hand half way and said: ¡°You go inside first.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What?¡±

    Gu Yu rified: ¡°Go upstairs. I will talk to Lu Qiao.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s tone was pragmatic and unemotional. Zhang Siyi felt like a character in a martial arts movie before a big showdown. In any case, Lu Qiao wasn¡¯t the only one feeling embarrassed. Since Gu Yu¡¯s proposal was reasonable, Zhang Siyi nodded. He eyed Lu Qiao on the ground briefly before he went inside.

    Gu Yu walked slowly to Lu Qiao and bent down. He reached out his hand and said: ¡°Get up.¡± Even though his face was expressionless, and his voice was t, Gu Yu exuded a gentle feeling.

    Feeling like he was about to cry from embarrassment, Lu Qiao ignored Gu Yu¡¯s offered hand and picked himself up in an effort to maintain his dignity.

    Gu Yu lead him to the te bench that was in the garden for tourists to rx and enjoy the scenery and sat down next to him.

    Lu Qiao¡¯s heart was mess. Since he discovered the secret between Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi, he thought his Boss must be angry with him and as a result, will probably get fired¡­. Anyway, as he failed to integrate with his colleagues, no one really knows him so It won¡¯t matter if he left¡­¡­ Since Lu Qiao¡¯s thoughts didn¡¯t seem to bother him, he simply thought it would be a good thing to go to anotherpany.

    Gu Yu spoke up and said: ¡°I understand you.¡±

    In an instant, Lu Qiao¡¯s tears fell.

    In fact, when Lu Qiao thought about it more carefully, there was no real reason for Gu Yu to say ¡®I understand you¡¯ when he hadn¡¯t said very much. There were many more issues bottled up inside. Even so, when he heard Gu Yu¡¯s calming voice, he felt like he was redeemed. He choked back his tears and said: ¡°Boss¡­.¡±

    Gu Yu sighed and said: ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    Tears continued to flow down his cheeks like a sorrowful child. In thest few days, Lu Qiao didn¡¯t understand what was happening to him. Why were his feelings so dark and his attitude full of despair?

    Gu Yu said: ¡°I am apologizing for inadvertently hearing your monolog. Zhang Siyi and I weren¡¯t trying to eavesdrop.¡±

    Although he was in the wrong, Gu Yu¡¯s attitude made him feel warm. He respected his boss and valued his guidance. His simple apology made Lu Qiao feel respected.

    In fact, he was reluctant to leave Borderless. He had been working at thepany for over a year and liked the work and his colleagues. In addition, Lu Qiao felt that Gu Yu was the perfect Boss¡­. But, why would he be gay!? Did Zhang Siyi seduce him?

    ¡°So now, can we talk about what you just said calmly?¡± In a businesslike fashion, Gu Yu looked at him and said: ¡°In an equal capacity, rather than a boss to his subordinate.¡±

    Lu Qiao timidly looked back at Gu Yu. The kind of strength and stability that Gu Yu exuded made Lu Qiao involuntarily nod.

 Chapter 167: Talk

    <h4>Chapter 167: Talk</h4>

    Gu Yu asked: ¡°Do you hate Zhang Siyi?¡±

    Red from embarrassment, Lu Qiao shook his head.

    Gu Yu: ¡°Do you hate me?¡±

    Faster this time, Lu Qiao shook his head again.

    Bowing his head, Gu Yu asked: ¡°Do you hate homosexuality?¡±

    This time, Lu Qiao hesitated and was quiet for a long time. He lowered his head and eventually admitted: ¡°I don¡¯t know.¡±

    Having asked his questions, Gu Yu could guess why Lu Qiao was in his current state.

    Lu Qiao was born in the countryside in a part of the country that was rtively isted. Traditional values are deeply rooted and it is difficult to change and ept new ideas. Therefore, he is likely a homophobe.

    If everyone was simply joking then Lu Qiao may be able to brush it aside and not care. However, once the truth was out, he became afraid because the two people that had greater ability and talent than he did were homosexual. He wasn¡¯t able to ept the fact that he was less than someone not ¡®normal¡¯ as it went against his upbringing and thus, Lu Qiao slowly arrived at a breaking point.

    Of course, there is no denying that there is an indisputable catalyst for Lu Qiao¡¯s reaction.

    Gu Yu: ¡°You envy Zhang Siyi, right?¡±

    Lu Qiao lowered his head even further. He paused for a few seconds before emitting a low: ¡°Hmm.¡±

    Yes. Lu Qiao was originally very envious. The two most revered people at work have be the most hated homosexuals. As if falling in love with the same gender was giarism, they became metaphors for all that wasn¡¯t authentic.

    Upon his discovery, Lu Qiao views on life were turned upside down. It¡¯s not so much that narrow-mindedness was detestable, but rather, it was pathetic and sad.

    ¡°There are a few things rted to Zhang Siyi that I would like to tell you.¡± Gu Yu slowly said. ¡°Although Zhang Siyi¡¯s father is an official, as far as I know, he had neither influence on Zhang Siyi¡¯s job nor his current life. Zhang Siyi ispletely self-sufficient. When he was new, I gave him the same training as other new employees. The period was probably a little longer than others. At the end ofst year, I let him work with you on the office building for the C-City project. At that time, I gave you the samepetitive opportunity. The final n was chosen by Party A. Theplete construction drawing was alsopleted by Zhang Siyi alone. Since the office building wasn¡¯t built, Zhang Siyi¡¯s self-esteem was greatly affected. In fact, his progress for the first half of the year was rather rocky. It wasn¡¯t until now, when he worked together with Tao Fei on the hotel project that he has been sessful. I can say with certainty that Zhang Siyi¡¯s current achievements are solely based on his own efforts. I did not give him any preferential treatment.¡±

    Lu Qiao remained silent for a long time. The truth behind Gu Yu words did little to ease his extreme emotions and psychological imbnce. While using a tree to vent his frustrations, he was mistakenly overheard. Now, he was too ashamed and didn¡¯t know what to say.

    Gu Yu added: ¡°Everyone went through the same thing in the beginning as you have. You earned your position by your own ability and retained it through your diligent work ethics and ease with which you ept any work withoutint. Although I relied on you to work on many small projects and thus, haven¡¯t made any special achievements on your own, you have to remember that our group is a team. Teamwork is like a precision instrument. A small unassuming screw is just as important as all the other parts.... So, don¡¯t be self-defeating and assume you aren¡¯t good enough for your job.¡±

    Lu Qiao¡¯s tears poured out again and sobbed uncontrobly. The inferiority and embarrassment that hadsted for several days gradually disappeared under the encouragement and recognition of Gu Yu.

    Gu Yu: ¡°Let me tell you. In fact, from the first day of your job, I knew that your family situation was difficult. As a result, I raised your wage buy 800 yuan. That is to say your sry is actually higher than Zhang Siyi¡¯s.¡±

    Lu Qiao stayed still with his mouth slightly open. He can¡¯t believe it.

    Gu Yu: ¡°As far as, ¡°no-one-cares-about-you¡±, I think that is even more impossible. If no one cared, would I tell you so much? If you have concerns, find someone to talk to. Don¡¯t back yourself into a corner.¡±

    Lu Qiao wiped his eyes and nodded with shame. If he had been told earlier, he wouldn¡¯t have done such a stupid thing like a fool...... Now that Zhang Siyi has heard his thoughts, wouldn¡¯t he be very angry at him?

    Gu Yu smiled and said: ¡°Even so, I have to thank you. While you knew the rtionship between Zhang Siyi and I, you told a tree hole only and didn¡¯t do anything to hurt us.¡±

    Lu Qiao: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°It is indeed wrong for me to be in a rtionship with Zhang Siyi for I have vited thepany rules. I shouldn¡¯t have feelings for one of my subordinates. I am sorry that my behavior at thepany has given you a feeling of injustice, but I will not apologize for being gay. Homosexuality isn¡¯t wrong. It is just a minority. If you feel that my private life has negatively affected work, then I will choose to resign and leave Borderless. Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t do anything wrong. I was the one that pursued and seduced him. I hope you don¡¯t think any less of Zhang Siyi because of it¡±

    When he heard Gu Yu say ¡®resign¡¯ Lu Qiao started to panic, but when he admitted to seducing Zhang Siyi, Lu Qiao was in shock. In a rush to respond, he said: ¡±No, No.... There is no need to resign. I will keep the information to myself. I, I.... need time to ept it.¡±

    Since he is an excellent boss, many people in thepany like Gu Yu. If he can¡¯t ept the facts and Gu Yu leaves thepany, wouldn¡¯t he be seen as the offender that drove Gu Yu away?

    Knowing that he wasn¡¯t treated unfairly, Lu Qiao felt relieved by Gu Yu¡¯s forthright exnation.

    Gu Yu nced at him and gently said: ¡°If there any more grievances or issues you want to convey, please tell me. If you have questions, now is the time. I will not be angry.¡±

    Hesitating, he wanted to ask Gu Yu why he liked Zhang Siyi but thought better of it. The image of his Boss that he had in his mind was restored a little. He was afraid that if he didn¡¯t like the answer to his question, he couldn¡¯t bear it and the slightly restored image he had of his boss would be shattered irrevocably.

    Lu Qiao shook his head: ¡°No thank you Boss.¡±

    Gu Yu stood up and said: ¡°Then go back to the room and get some sleep.¡±

    As Lu Qiao stood up to go inside, he was worried that his thoughts weren¡¯t expressed sufficiently enough. Eager to rify himself, he said: ¡°Boss, there is no need to resign. I will think it over and figure it out myself.¡±

    Gu Yu smiled: ¡°Okay.¡±

    Lu Qiao bowed his head: ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    ¡°You aren¡¯t sorry for me, so don¡¯t apologize.¡± From his pocket, Gu Yu removed a bottle cap. Today, Zhang Siyi bought him an orange vored soda. On the caps, various expressions were printed on them in Kanji such as ¡°I Like You¡±, ¡°Work Hard¡±, and ¡°Go For it¡±. This bottle cap had the ¡°I¡¯m Sorry¡± printed on it.

    Gu Yu handed the bottle cap to Lu Qiao: ¡°When you are ready to apologize, give this to Zhang Siyi.¡±

 Chapter 168: Doctrine

    <h4>Chapter 168: Doctrine</h4>

    ___________________

    Lu Qiao took the cap from Gu Yu¡¯s hand. When he raised his eyes, he saw Gu Yu¡¯s long eyshes, straight nose, and chiseled jawline and thought that his beautiful features matched his generous and tolerant personality. Under the influence of Gu Yu¡¯s charm, Lu Qiao slowly calmed down and surrendered his fears.

    ..... What about being gay? But you can¡¯t ignore the fact that Gu Yu is an excellent boss and looks out for his subordinates...... And what about Zhang Siyi? Maybe they are the same...

    Like he had been living in a dark fog all along, Lu Qiao suddenly felt a ray of brightness pierce his doubt. As a myriad of light beams shined through, the heavy fog was lifted from his heart.

    Zhang Siyi had been waiting upstairs for half about an hour before Gu Yu and Lu Qiao came back. Face to face, both Lu Qiao and Zhang Siyi felt embarrassed.

    Gu Yu abrupt question mitigated any awkwardness: ¡°Where is Tao Fei?¡±

    Zhang Siyi pointed inside the room and softly said: ¡°He was already asleep when I came back. Since he was snoring, he probably drank too much.¡±

    Gu Yu looked inside briefly and saw a disheveled Tao Fei sprawled out in the middle of the room with his mouth wide open.

    Fortunately, the room is veryrge and has plenty of space for them toyout the futons. However, how will they arrange their positions when there is a homophobic person in the room? Will Zhang Siyi sleep next to Gu Yu or do they sleep separately on either side of Tao Fei?

    While Zhang Siyi was contemting their sleeping arrangements, Lu Qiao had already made the decision for him as heid out his futon a little bit away from Tao Fei, leaving the other half of the room for both Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi to upy.

    After unfolding the futon and forgoing a shower, Lu Qiao wrapped himself up under the covers and brought his knees up into a ball.

    Zhang Siyi felt a little embarrassed and quietly followed Gu Yu to the bathroom and asked, ¡°What did you talk about?¡±

    Squeezing a blob of toothpaste out of the tube and putting it onto his toothbrush, Gu Yu said: ¡°It¡¯s toote now. I¡¯ll tell you tomorrow.¡±

    Depressed, Zhang Siyi brushed his teeth quietly. Because of Lu Qiao, his good mood was gone! So annoying!

    After they finished washing, they went toyout their futons. Although they were side by side, they dare not do anything in Lu Qiao presence.

    Zhang Siyi had a dreamless night. When he woke up the next day, he noticed Tao Fei and Lu Qiao still asleep on the other side of the room, but Gu Yu¡¯s futon was neatly folded away.

    In order to find out where he was, Zhang Siyi got out of bed and called Gu Yu. He was out for a morning run. In haste, Zhang Siyi left the inn and went to look for him. He was a few hundred meters away from the inn.

    When Zhang Siyi spotted Gu Yu in the distance, he was walking calmly with a towel around his neck. It seems, Gu Yu hadpleted his run already.

    Zhang Siyi jogged a few hundred meters to meet him. When he caught up to Gu Yu, he grasped both knees, panting.

    Gu Yu grabbed the towel and wiped the fine sweat from Zhang Siyi face then asked: ¡°Why are you up so early? Can¡¯t sleep?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What about you? How can you go missing so early in the morning!¡±

    Being that there was a treadmill at home, Zhang Siyi was very aware of Gu Yu¡¯s exercise routine. Every morning and evening, Gu Yu spent twenty to thirty minutes using the machine. Even though they were away from home touring Japan, Zhang Siyi felt that they have been getting enough exercise because they were walking around all day, every day. He did not understand why Gu Yu felt the need to exercise even more.

    Gu Yu gazed at him and provocatively said: ¡°I needed an outlet for excess energy.¡± His suggestive demeanor let Zhang Siyi grasp the situation. Staring into his eyes, Gu Yu squinted at him: ¡°It¡¯s like I have a disease.¡±

    Yes. Recently, Gu Yu felt like his impulse to express his love for Zhang Siyi grew every day. Like this morning when he woke up. He opened his eyes to the site of Zhang Siyi sleeping close to him wrapped in his arms. Unknowingly, during the night they had cuddled together.

    Simply by watching Zhang Siyi¡¯s sleeping face, the desire he felt was overwhelming. His raging hardon demanded attention. He wanted to ravish him. If he hadn¡¯t left to vent some energy, Gu Yu was afraid he would continue to make overly affectionate actions towards Zhang Siyi. Even more terrifying, these behaviors werepletely unconscious.

    As Tao Fei said, the atmosphere of love between them was too strong.

    The conversation with Lu Qiaost night made Gu Yu reflect on his recent actions. Before, he indulged himself with love and wasn¡¯t paying attention to any consequences. Lu Qiao reminded him that he and Zhang Siyi weren¡¯t the only two people in the world and with so many eyes watching him, he must restrain himself.

    At seven o¡¯clock in the morning, it was early. On the way back to the inn, Gu Yu bought two bottles of hot milk from the roadside stall. Walking side by side, the two of them drank the milk while chatting about the matter between Lu Qiao and them.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°So he hates me just because we¡¯re gay?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°No, the key element is that he thinks you are better than him.¡±

    Zhang Siyi wondered: ¡°I don¡¯t think I¡¯m all that great. There are so many other people out there who are better than me so why is his hatred directed at me?¡±

    Gu Yu smiled and said: ¡°Let me tell you a story.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What kind of story?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°It¡¯s not a good memory. At the time I was entering university, I had a ssmate. I won¡¯t say his name so, let¡¯s call him BB.¡±

    ....Ah! a story of Gu Yu personal experience.... Zhang Siyi immediately listened attentively.

    Gu Yu continued: ¡°Although BB family conditions were better, simr to Lu Qiao, BB was also from a small town. Since he was the only one from his town admitted to Big T, he had quite arge ego. At school, he didn¡¯t have many friends. Even though I was popr at school, every time he saw me, there was hostility written all over his face. The situation once puzzled me because I don¡¯t know what I did to cause him to hate me so much. I only understood that he was a very arrogant person.¡±

    Zhang Siyi anxiously asked: ¡°Did he do anything to hurt you?¡±

    Gu Yu shook his head: ¡°Nothing directed at me personally, but behind my back he often ndered me.¡±

    Clenching his fist, Zhang Siyi angrily said: ¡°That kind of person is so annoying ah!¡±

    Gu Yu smiled: ¡°Since I never cared about what he said, his words had no effect.¡±

    Wide eyed, Zhang Siyi stared: ¡°But he denigrated you behind your back! Didn¡¯t you hate him?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°My ssmates and teachers all know what kind of person I am. His ndering never influenced others. Besides, it takes a lot of effort to actually hate someone. Since I was always busy with my school work, I didn¡¯t have the energy to deal with him. It was just too much of a bother.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Let me exin something...... In fact, there are quite a few people who act like BB did. At least, when a person can put his feelings on his face, it isn¡¯t so scary. More concerning, are those people who hide knives behind their friendly smiles.¡±

    Zhang Siyi felt a shiver go down his back. He asked: ¡°Do you know why he was like that?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°I was also very puzzled about it. It wasn¡¯t untilter when I talked to my ssmate, a senior sister, that I started to understand. She told me that being ¡®too good¡¯ is also ¡®bad¡¯ because people arepetitive animals. Engrained in our DNA is survival and the most fit live. When one person is better than another by a small margin, their prehistoric instincts takes over and the two would sh.¡±

    Zhang Siyi frowned slightly: ¡°What should I do?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°I¡¯ll summarize two ways to resolve this contradiction. First, let oneself be stronger. When you be greater than someone else by arger degree, then the sense ofpetition is lost. Second, The Doctrine of the Mean ** in Chinese thought: One can avoid excessive injury when one remains low-key.

 Chapter 169: Donâ€™t Give Up

    <h4>Chapter 169: Don¡¯t Give Up</h4>

    Thinking about Gu Yu¡¯s story, Zhang Siyi took a moment to ponder yesterday¡¯s events. When talking to the tree, Lu Qiao directed his hostility towards Zhang Siyi. Even though Lu Qiao clearly was against homosexuality, he didn¡¯t seem to hate Gu Yu, only Zhang Siyi. In the final analysis, it was because Gu Yu¡¯s skills were vastly superior to Lu Qiao¡¯s.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I thought he was a friend of mine.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Perhaps before, when you were just starting at thepany, you didn¡¯t pose any threat to him, but now is not the same. He felt threatened by the rate at which you progressed because it was much greater than his own.¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s words reminded Zhang Siyi of the mentality he had when Tai Fei first joined. It was quite simr. Having his position threatened by a new person, Zhang Siyi felt an inexplicable hostility towards Tao Fei. Once Zhang Siyi saw his skill and realized Tao Fei wasn¡¯t recruited for the same level of work that Zhang Siyi was assigned to, hispetitiveness disappeared.

    Now that Zhang Siyi could rted to Lu Qiao feelings, he didn¡¯t feel as bothered by yesterday¡¯s matter.

    Gu Yu: ¡°Mood swings vary from person to person. Some people are even keel, while others get upset over the tiniest infringement. When feelings be even more exaggerated, the person might act paranoid and think that others are looking down on them.

    Zhang Siyi wanted to defend himself and eagerly eximed: ¡°I never looked down on Lu Qiao!¡±

    Gu Yuughed: ¡°I was just giving an example. You didn¡¯t look down on Lu Qiao, but he came from a poor family with low self-esteem. Inevitably, his sensitivity towards other people¡¯sments is high and likely would blow them out of proportion. Do you remember the conversation you had with Tao Fei on the subway when we first arrived in Osaka?¡±

    Zhang Siyi remembered. Tao Fei mentioned the fact that it was the first time Lu Qiao traveled by ne. ¡°But it was Tao Fei fault for making him upset, not me. I tried to help!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°But Lu Qiao didn¡¯t know this. What he saw was your close rtionship with him. As a result, he ced you and Tao Fei into the same ss of people.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± The source of the problem was in fact, the outspoken mouth of that Dead Fat Peach!

    ¡°It¡¯s just that Lu Qiao found out we are together. Since he doesn¡¯t agree with homosexuality, it gave him a reason to hate and discredit you.¡± Gu Yu turned his head to look at Zhang Siyi: ¡°Luckily, he didn¡¯t do anything about it, so no harm was done, right?¡±

    Zhang Siyi is still fearful. If Lu Qiao spread the news around, he and Gu Yu would definitely have to leave thepany.¡±

    Gu Yu softly said: ¡°Getting back to BB...... He hated me for the first year at university which I didn¡¯t understand at the time. Later, I heard he fell ill and took a leave of absence from school.¡±

    Zhang Siyi almostughed out loud: ¡°Really?¡±

    There was no use gloating over it. Gu Yu sighed and said: ¡°Two years ago, I went back to see a history of architecture professor whose ss I was in. The professor was very kind. It was said that when BB was feeling depressed, he often visited the professor to chat. When I went back to visit, the professor had showed me a letter written by BB and in the body of the letter, BB had exined why he hated me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What was the reason?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°It was because of one day in art ss, I had mocked him for his bad drawing.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Shit! For that reason? What kind of grudge did he have!

    Gu Yu shrugged: ¡°I have forgotten what I said exactly. Maybe a little joke, but I don¡¯t think I would have ridiculed him.¡±

    Knowing Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi also thought he probably said something very sarcastic, but Gu Yu isn¡¯t the type of person to act out of spite. Besides, what is the matter with a little sarcasm? If you can¡¯t handle the stress from a little criticism, you will have bigger worries in life!

    ¡°After the incident, he treated me as his imaginary enemy and targeted me at every opportunity. Since he couldn¡¯t beat me, he slowly pushed himself over the edge. When he dropped out of school, he returned home for treatment. As part of his recovery, he wrote a letter to the professor and even though it wasn¡¯t directly to my face, he apologized to me in it. The professor thought I might have held a grudge for BB so the professor quietly showed me the letter in hopes I could let go.¡± Gu Yu paused. ¡°In fact, I never let the things he did bother me......¡±

    Zhang Siyi choked back augh. His admiration for Gu Yu was ever increasing. Making a vow in his heart, Zhang Siyi decided he must be like Gu Yu and let his inner strength prevail. Never let the demons in.

    Drinking his milk, Gu Yu swallowed then continued: ¡°Regardless, I was very grateful the professor showed me the letter. After reading it, I felt like I understood human nature better. Do you think BB was hateful? In actuality, he was rather pathetic.¡±

    Zhang Siyi nodded. He knew that Gu Yu didn¡¯t purposefully scorn BB, rather it was BB own phycological issues that caused his own despair.

    Gu Yu: ¡°Last night, when we heard Lu Qiao crying woefully at the tree, BB immediately came to mind. Perhaps in the same way, he felt desperate and his mental plight was at a precipice. A more effective way to help, was to approach him instead of letting him solve the problem by themselves.¡±

    Now schooled, Zhang Siyi sighed with relief: ¡°I¡¯m not angry at Lu Qiao.¡± Once the anxiety in his heart wasid to rest, Zhang Siyi suddenly felt cheerful. The mood was instantly revived.

    He looked up and chugged the remaining milk. Since there was no one around in the morning, Zhang Siyi mustered up his courage and quickly leaned over to kiss Gu Yu.

    Gu Yu: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi giggled at the imprint of milk of his lips on Gu Yu¡¯s face.

    Gu Yu turned to gaze directly at Zhang Siyi eyes and used his finger to suggestively wipe the milk towards his mouth slowly. As his finger was close, he stretched out his tongue erotically and enveloped his finger by his mouth, thereby removing the milk.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡± Fuck! Too explicit!

    Red-faced, in order to maintain his self-control, he took a few steps back away from Gu Yu, then turned around and quickened his pace.

    Watching Zhang Siyi¡¯s escape, Gu Yu thought to himself: ¡°He dare tease me outside!¡± At the prospects of retaliation, Gu Yu smirked.

    When they returned to the inn, many members of their group were mulling around the lobby, ready to go. In a rush, Zhang Siyi went back to his room to get his belongings for the day¡¯s activities.

    As Tao Fei was walking downstairs, he yawned and noticed Zhang Siyiing upstairs. He reached out to mess with his hair: ¡°Where did you two gost night?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Ah?¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°I didn¡¯t see you guysst night. Did youe back to the room at all?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°When we came back, you were already asleep. This morning I woke up early before you did.¡± As he was telling Tao Fei, Zhang Siyi anxiety rose as he saw Lu Qiao¡¯s figure behind Tao Fei¡¯s.

    Tao Fei went to greet Gu Xiao and with slouching shoulders, Lu Qiao went straight to Zhang Siyi. Lu Qiao was tightly holding something unknown to him.

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t hide and tried to look as calm as possible.

    Lu Qiao handed Zhang Siyi an orange bottle cap. Zhang Siyi looked down at it and felt moved. He looked up at Lu Qiao and put his hand onto Lu Qiao¡¯s shoulder. Zhang Siyi smiled and said: ¡°What do you think? Don¡¯t give up!¡±

    Lu Qiao grinned. Due to hisck of sleep, his eyes were a little red and swollen. Regardless, his bright attitude was a stark contrast to his earlier behavior. He smiled: ¡°Will do.¡±

 Chapter 170: Wall Slam

    <h4>Chapter 170: Wall m</h4>

    During their two-day visit in Kyoto, they stayed at the Arashiyama Onsen as Japan is famous for its hot spring culture. In order to further examine ancient architecture, the group visited the Kinkakuji Temple** and the Ryoanji Temple. ** In addition, the group visited the Fushimi Inari Temple.**

    After soaking in the hot springs in the evening, the group gathered to drink tea and y cards. In the spirit of the asion, many of the group members wore a Japanese yukata that was provided by the hotel.

    When they all met, most of the guys wereughing and boasting about their looks in the yukata especially the over-weight Zhu Hongzhen. He felt like he was a yakuza boss from a movie. With the garment¡¯s long figure lines, correctly worn yukata looks quite elegant, but no one could pull off the proper look, except for Gu Yu.

    Somehow, since the yukata fit Gu Yu perfectly, he looked like a model. His presence invoked the saying, ¡®shamed by one¡¯s inferiority when nked by genius.¡¯

    Now sitting around the low Japanese style table, the card game was in full swing. Although sitting, like the weighted rxed stance of contrapposto, Gu Yu looked effortlesslyfortable with his leg up and his arm leaning on his knee. In his hand, he held his cards. ncing at everyone¡¯s expression, he surveyed his own cards and elected to draw from the deck. Henguidly reached out for a card and in doing so, his yukata stretched and exposed more of his bare skin. Examining his cards, hezily checked the sets on the table then in a fluid motion, he discarded one card: ¡°Next.¡±

    Keenly aware of Gu Yu¡¯s smooth skin underneath his yukata, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t retract his line of site. Watching him expose more of his corbone and chest by his calm, graceful movements, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t control the desire that welled up. His movements were just too sexy!

    ¡°It¡¯s your turn.¡± Zhu Hongzhen stretched out his leg and used his foot to nudge Zhang Siyi.

    ¡°Oh, oh!¡± Ears turning red, Zhang Siyi immediately retracted his thoughts and altered his sitting position to disguise the reaction of his lower body part.

    Not a minute had past, when Zhang Siyi¡¯s line of site returned to Gu Yu and gazed at him from top to bottom. Indulging in the perfect male physique sitting before him, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t take his eyes away from Gu Yu.

    When the game ended, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t take it anymore and decided to go to the bathroom for a breath of air.

    Leaving the room, he heard a burst ofughter emanating from the women¡¯s public area that was separated by a half-length curtain. Zhang Siyi looked down and saw the legs of several Japanese girls under it.

    For any straight male, the scene might be tempting, but for Zhang Siyi, his heart wasn¡¯t moved at all. It was only until he got to the end of the hall that he realized and reacted. ¨C Damn, I don¡¯t even respond to women anymore. There is no going back!

    In the restroom, Zhang Siyi opened his clothes and sighed deeply to rx. Letting his dder go, he looked down at his body covered by the yukata. Zhang Siyi thought Japanese clothing was very beautiful and rather liked it. In the eyes of others, he wondered what he looked like.

    As he was lost in thought, Gu Yu entered the room. When Zhang Siyi noticed him approaching, his body immediately reacted and his heart started pounding in his chest.

    ..... Think cold thoughts!

    Zhang Siyi assumed Gu Yu wasing into the restroom to urinate, but in fact he went straight towards him.

    ¡°What is it?¡± Zhang Siyi asked casually.

    Gu Yu did not answer him. The closer he moved towards him, the more Zhang Siyi felt that something was wrong. Now facing Gu Yu, he frantically tried to assemble his yukata and said: ¡°You... What are you doing?¡±

    In the next second, he was caught off guard by Gu Yu¡¯s grasp. The back of his hand and arm, made a hard ¡®p¡¯ sound as it hit the back wall of the room.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu brought his face close to the crook of Zhang Siyi neck and inhaled deeply like a hungry animal smelling his prey, ready to eat.

    Zhang Siyi unconsciously moved slightly and bared his neck for Gu Yu, expecting a kiss and his lips. However, Gu Yu didn¡¯t kiss him.

    While Gu Yu was deeply inhaling Zhang Siyi¡¯s essence and exhaling, both his breath and the tip of his nose gently brushed against Zhang Siyi¡¯s delicate neck, along his jawbone and cheeks, tantalizing him.

    The withhold of contact was more sensual then an actual kiss. By the force with which Gu Yu grabbed his wrist, Zhang Siyi knew he wasn¡¯t the only one enduring.

    Quivering, Zhang Siyi eagerly anticipated the sensation of Gu Yu lips on his skin. He wanted Gu Yu to kiss him, to bite him, to enter him.

    ...... Wait, Wait, Wait, Wait! Hold Up...... Oh, my God! What the hell am I thinking! (q/////q)

    Slowly, Gu Yu took a deep breath and finally stopped moving. He buried his face in the crook of Zhang Siyi¡¯s neck and in a strained whisper he said: ¡°Did you know that at every moment, you are seducing me to eat you.¡±

    ¡°.........¡± Fuck! You are doing the same thing to me!

    ¡°..................¡± Fuuuuuuck! Why is this a corporate trip!?

    Even if they wanted to get another room, in order to avoid suspicion, they went back to their assigned room with their colleagues and went to bedying far apart. Not able to express their desires with physical action, both Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu didn¡¯t get any sleep during the night. Waking up with a pimple on his forehead, Zhang Siyi felt utterly frustrated and depressed.

    Leaving Arashiyama, the group stopped at Nara** then finally came to thest stop on their trip, Tokyo.

    In Tokyo, thepany arranged for them to stay at a standard business hotel. In the afternoon, they arrived at the hotel and went to their rooms to drop off the luggage. When everyone was assembled the group went out to visit the National Museum of Western Art.

    Along the Rainbow Bridge, ** they saw many painted cars and cheering people on the road. At first, the group didn¡¯t think there was any special significance to it, but when they got to the other side of the bridge, they stopped to watch the group of people that were wearing colorful clothing while holding a rainbow g.

    The crowd was cheering and shouting. Many of the people were hugging and kissing in public, even those of the same sex. The scene was quite spectacr!

    One person chimed in: ¡°Isn¡¯t the rainbow g a gay symbol?¡±

    ¡°Shit! These people are all gay?¡±

    ¡°I think so.......¡±

    Seeing so many gay people together, everyone was quite shocked. Lu Qiao looked frightened and even Zhang Siyi was stunned.

    ¡°Damn, Tokyo is too open!¡±¡±

    Is the Rainbow Bridge a gathering ce for gays?¡±

    Curious, they continued to watch them for a little while longer and realized that today was a special day as many people of the group were holding signs up with the date ¡®June 26, 2015¡¯ written on them.

    Enquiring a passerby about it, they learned that June 26, 2015 was the day that the United States Supreme Court ruled in favor of legalizing same-sex marriage.

    ¡°No wonder there are so many gay travelers together!¡±

    ¡°But, what does the United Statesw have to do with these people here in Japan?¡±

    ¡°It has nothing to do with the country, but rather the gaymunity as a whole. For them, the legality of homosexuality in the United States represents a more open world so this is a day worth celebrating.¡±

    Zhang Siyi discretely looked at Gu Yu. He saw Gu Yu looking his way with the same pleasure in his eyes. Yes, although this incident has nothing to do with them, it has undoubtedly given them hope.

    Love is gender-neutral. There will be no ce on Earth to hold them back.

    After returning to the hotel, Zhang Siyi thought about whether or not he should approach Tao Fei and talk to him about swapping rooms. Tonight, he especially wanted to stay with Gu Yu.

    Maybe his emotions were influenced by what he witnessed today or perhaps, the stress from maintaining a distance and cautious attitude has be unbearable. Zhang Siyi was hungry and thirsty.

    His resolute decision, spurred him into action. When he opened the door, he didn¡¯t expect Gu Yu to be there and say: ¡°Lu Qiao went to sleep over there.¡±

 Chapter 171: Return

    <h4>Chapter 171: Return</h4>

    _____________________

    With a ¡®click,¡¯ the door shut behind Gu Yu. Having to maintain a distance from Gu Yu for the past few days, was exhausting. Now that they were alone, Zhang Siyi could finally act on his repressed desire. He immediately reached out in desperation and wrapped his arms around Gu Yu¡¯s neck and kissed him.

    As Zhang Siyi had, Gu Yu too felt the emotional toll of the inability to express his love openly and quickly reached out for Zhang Siyi. Pressing his body against him, he kissed Zhang Siyi deeply.

    After a few minutes, he reached down to the hem of Zhang Siyi T-shirt and slipped his hands underneath. As his kissing became more intense, he spread his fingers out and enthusiastically used his whole hand to caress Zhang Siyi¡¯s back. Gu Yu slid his hands down Zhang Siyi¡¯sts and settled his hands onto his waist. Feeling the taut curvature of his muscles, the yearning he had for Zhang Siyi grew. Sure enough, he still liked the waist of this little guy.

    The firm yet gentle caresses made Zhang Siyi sigh in delight. Suddenly, Zhang Siyi impulsively jumped up and wrapped his legs around Gu Yu. Like a ko bear, with both arms and legs, he clung onto Gu Yu¡¯s body.

    Gu Yu: ¡°...¡±

    Thanks to Gu Yu¡¯s great strength, the sudden addition of more than 130 pounds of weight did little to phase him. Gu Yu remained standing steadily. Zhang Siyi¡¯s bold move enticed Gu Yu. He raised an eyebrow: ¡°Do you dare seduce me with this position for the first time?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Noooo! It was apletely unintentional move. He couldn¡¯t help himself!

    Who asked Gu Yu to squeeze his waist? Firmly in his grasp, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t hide. He tried to wriggle out of his grip, but it didn¡¯t solve anything because the palms of Gu Yu¡¯s hands continued to firmly hold his waist. One by one, Gu Yu let go of his waist then ced his hands under Zhang Siyi¡¯s ass.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    As Gu Yu started to move, he involuntarily let out a gasp and tightened his legs around Gu Yu. A few steps more, Gu Yu carried him to the bed. As Gu Yu put Zhang Siyi down onto the soft mattress, Gu Yu pressed himself against him. Parting his lips, touching tongues, Gu Yu kissed him deeply, without restraint.

    Mmn...¡± Thoroughly intoxicated, Zhang Siyi body reacted enthusiastically to his uninhibited craving. The ufortable pressure in his underwear eagerly sought relief.

    Lowering his hand, Gu Yu reached for the hardness in Zhang Siyi¡¯s underwear. While kissing him deeply, he stroked Zhang Siyi¡¯s firmness in synchronized rhythm. Not long after, Gu Yu slipped his hand under the waistband and pulled his clothing off his body, exposing Zhang Siyi¡¯s desire.

    Without thought, Zhang Siyi lifted his body to ease Gu Yu¡¯s task. In the past, such actions made Zhang Siyi very shy, however at every encounter, Gu Yu gentleness and tender gaze let Zhang Siyi feel cherished and thus, he could forget about all of the anxious feelings he had.

    With ever increasing gasps of pleasure, Zhang Siyi met Gu Yu lips with his own eagerly. The sense of urgency and frantic nature with which they held each other and kissed became obscene.

    As Gu Yu transferred his lips from Zhang Siyi mouth to his jawline, towards his ear, and down his neck, Zhang Siyifortably raised his head and stretched his neck, making it easier for Gu Yu to suck and kiss all the way down. The pleasure with which he felt was heightened by Gu Yu¡¯s action on his hard rod. ¡°Ah,... ah...¡± Erotic moans escaped Zhang Siyi mouth. The ces Gu Yu touched burned like fire.

    Slowly, Gu Yu took Zhang Siyi¡¯s left nipple into his mouth and sucked than teased it with his tongue. In response to the pleasure, Zhang Siyi arched his back, but Gu Yu pressed him back down and continued kissing his chest sensuously. Zhang Siyi felt like he was going to drown in passion.

    Since Gu Yu knew he was prone to cuming quickly, he no longer stimted his lower body. Dissatisfied from the suddenck of contact, he pressed his hips against Gu Yu.

    Caressing Zhang Siyi¡¯s firm ass, Gu Yu lifted his head up, smiled and said: ¡°Good. Bear with it. I¡¯ll make you feelfortable soon.¡± Groping his back end, he lowered his head onto Zhang Siyi¡¯s chest and teased his other nipple.

    Now that the extra stimtion subsided, Zhang Siyi muddled brain cleared. He reflexively cried out in protest as he realized what was going to happen next. Soon, his feelings and lust for Gu Yu out-weighed any resistance.

    ¡°Don¡¯t evade me. Today I want to enter your body.¡± Gu Yu said in a tender yetmanding tone. Determined, Gu Yu used lubricant and massaged his sensitive opening gently. Once he felt Zhang Siyi rx, Gu Yu inserted his finger and probed Zhang Siyi¡¯s interior tissues.

    Zhang Siyi was stiff, meek and bashful.

    Gu Yu smiled and asked: ¡°What does it feel like?¡±

    Turning bright red, Zhang Siyi answered: ¡°It feels like there is shit stuck and I want to push it out.¡±

    Gu Yu chuckled. He couldn¡¯t help himself tease Zhang Siyi a little. Holding his head down with slightly parted lips Gu Yu said: ¡°You are so adorable.¡± Then he pressed his lips upon Zhang Siyi¡¯s and kissed him passionately.

    Feeling Gu Yu finger, several times he couldn¡¯t stop himself from reflexively tightening his muscles. Again, and again, he felt the care with which Gu Yu handled him. Zhang Siyi took great pleasure from Gu Yu¡¯s gentle kisses as they made him feel loved and cared for. As their passionate kissing continued, Zhang Siyi let out erotic moans. His desire grew and gradually, he forgot about any diforting from behind and was able to rxpletely.

    ....... In fact, once you get used to it, it feels good to be touched deeply in ces no one has touched before. Zhang Siyi wondered..... Is he a little masochistic?

    With care, Gu Yu moved his finger to feel inside of Zhang Siyi. Suddenly, a burst of electric-like sensation coursed through Zhang Siyi¡¯s body causing his front to ooze clear liquid. Zhang Siyi cried out in momentary pleasure: ¡°Aah.¡±

    What was that feeling just now ? Zhang Siyi opened his eyes and saw Gu Yu thoughtful eyes observing him closely.

    Felling the change within Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu smiled and asked: ¡°Here?¡±

    Without waiting for a response, now with purpose, Gu Yu thrust his finger in and out repeatedly. With each movement, Gu Yu made sure he pressed on that particr point inside Zhang Siyi, stimting him.

    Lying on the soft bed, as the tense yet pleasurable sensation increased, his heart pounded faster in his chest. Zhang Siyi was unable to control his voice. ¡°Aah, aah... Hmn... Aah¡±

    Even though the erotic moans enticed and excited Gu Yu more, he didn¡¯t let his self-control waver. For the first time, he wanted Zhang Siyi to experience pure pleasure. He didn¡¯t expect Zhang Siyi to be so sensitive. It was like a treasure waiting for him to pick up.

    ¡°Aah,... mnn... aah, aah, aah....¡± Indescribable, intense pleasure swept through Zhang Siyi, driving him to the brink of insanity.

    .......God, help me. I¡¯m going crazy!

    Gu Yu felt almost the same loss of reason and quickened his pace. He reached down to grasp Zhang Siyi¡¯s rock hard member and stroked it with intensity. While trembling, it didn¡¯t take long for Zhang Siyi to issue a final ¡°Aaah¡± and reach his climax.

    When he came, the euphoric feeling was overwhelming. As a result, Zhang Siyi shed tears. Immersed in the strong afterglow of bliss, gasping, he stared nkly into space, unmoving.

    Seeing the tears, Gu Yu thought he was crying out of pain. He took Zhang Siyi tightly into his embrace and with great concern, asked: ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±

    As he regained some assemnce of thought, Zhang Siyi really wanted to cry: ¡°Why is this......¡±

    Because he felt so ashamed, he didn¡¯t dare look directly at Gu Yu. Instead, Zhang Siyi buried his face in Gu Yu¡¯s chest.

    With a smile, Gu Yu caressed his head lovingly: ¡°What are you so embarrassed about? Don¡¯t you know? It is normal for men to climax from a prostate massage.¡±

    As Zhang Siyi clung to Gu Yu, he buried his face deeper. What face does he have to be a man !!! He had an orgasm by Gu Yu¡¯s finger!!!

    Even though Gu Yu withdrew his finger, the difort Zhang Siyi felt still persisted. It was terrible, yet powerfully exciting.

    For an unknown length of time, Zhang Siyi hung onto Gu Yu. Once again, with only care and patience for Zhang Siyi, Zhang Siyi discovered that Gu Yu, like the past, did not get relief. In the process of waiting for Zhang Siyi to recover, Gu Yu has always fought back his own desires.

    Thinking of Gu Yu¡¯s dedication and patience, naturally Zhang Siyi was moved and thus, he set aside his dignity for his lover. With a loving tone full of devotion, he whispered seductively to Gu Yu: ¡°Do you want to enter me?¡±

    Watching Zhang Siyi with an indulgent andforting smile, Gu Yu lightly chuckled and said: ¡°Haven¡¯t I already entered?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Eh?¡± .... Just with your finger?

    Being pragmatic, Gu Yu exined: ¡°I really want to, but for another to two days, we are with our colleagues on our business trip. If I do it now, you will have a difficult time walking around tomorrow.¡±

    Moreover, since it would be a pity to let it happen in a foreign country for the first time, they wanted to wait until they returned home.

    Gu Yu noticed the slight expression and sh of loss across Zhang Siyi¡¯s eyes. He smiled and leaned over to caress Zhang Siyi¡¯s earlobe with his tongue. With his hot breath in his ear, he sensuously whispered: ¡°Don¡¯t worry. One day, you will beg me to fuck you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    ¡°Now, will you use your mouth and help me out......?¡±

    Although the final step wasn¡¯t reached, the long night spent entwined in each other¡¯s embrace was no less satisfying. Now that the anxiety that had umted over the past several days fromck of affection was alleviated, they sleptfortably and soundly.

    For the first time, Zhang Siyi realized that the happiness Gu Yu brought into his heart dispelled any previous feelings of uneasiness and resistance about the matter. Afterst night, apart from some mental fatigue, his body was unaffected. Greatly enjoying the experience, Zhang Siyi really wanted to take thest step with Gu Yu. Like an addict and Gu Yu was the drug, Zhang Siyi thought about being with him constantly.

    Unfortunately, for the rest of the trip, nothing else happened. Their busy schedules didn¡¯t allow enough free time, but more to the point, Lu Qiao wouldn¡¯t change rooms again.

    During thest two days of the tour, the group visited the Asakusa Cultural Center, the National Museum of Art, Omotesando as well as Japan¡¯s prestigiousmercial areas such as Shibuya and Akihabara.

    In total, Zhang Siyi used four memory cards worth of photographs and filled half of the pages in his sketchbook. As a whole, his harvest was quite good.

    On June 30 the ten-day trip to Japan officially ended and everyone returned home. Without a single day to recover, everyone returned to Borderless and began working.

    Due to the umtion of work over the course of ten days, Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu were as busy as two gyros endlessly spinning, especially Gu Yu. Since returning to Haicheng, Gu Yu went on another business trip and thus, was far apart from Zhang Siyi. Since the night in Tokyo, they haven¡¯t had the opportunity to ¡®practice¡¯.

    In the past, Zhang Siyi would never have been able to understand the happiness he felt currently. He was only able to experience such euphoric bliss with Gu Yu. The longer the dy to experience his bond with Gu Yu, the more frantic he became, and the more Zhang Siyi yearned for him.

    The time seemed to pass exceedingly slow. Finally, by the end of July, the two finished their work and had a few days of respite.

    Cherishing the time spent together, as he did in Japan, Zhang Siyi wrapped himself around Gu Yu in a suggestive way. Gu Yu teased him briefly, but enticed Zhang Siyi before he could get angry.

    That night while showering together, Gu Yu took extra care in prepping Zhang Siyi and let him climax once. Letting go of his past feelings of shame and difort, now, Zhang Siyi only felt Gu Yu¡¯s euphoric touch.

    Afterwards, Gu Yu kissed his sweaty face because of his physical pleasure, and finally asked: ¡°Do you want to try it once?¡±

    Without hesitation, Zhang Siyi nodded and replied with joy: ¡°Okay.¡±

    There were neither feeling of insult nor fear. Just because of happiness, Zhang Siyi was free to feel happy. From the heart, let him love Gu Yu.

 Chapter 172: Moderation

    <h4>Chapter 172: Moderation</h4>

    ________________________

    After several month of contact with Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi realized just howrge a gap there was between them. Not only was Gu Yu¡¯s endurance greater than Zhang Siyi¡¯s, in the short amount of time that they were together, his kissing skills rapidly progressed. In addition, Gu Yu was well versed with Zhang Siyi¡¯s sensitive areas and phycological boundaries. He knew just what to do to tease and tantalize Zhang Siyi. Gu Yu¡¯s methods made it seem like he was an experienced driver for many years.

    If Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t seriously thinking about it, he might have forgotten the fact that Gu Yu was a virgin without any practical experience. Will he ever get the chance to tease Gu Yu about something other than singing and ying Era of Music? (=_=)

    Gu Yu¡¯s preparations were quiteprehensive and their purposes were obviously understood. However, there was one thing Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t quite understand. Isn¡¯t that the gourd he bought for Gu Yu? Watching Gu Yu put a condom on the gourd then squirt a dab of lubricating gel on it, Zhang Siyi heart started to race in panic. He had a bad feeling.....

    Sure enough, Gu Yu patted the pillow and said: ¡°Come here, lie down and lift your legs. I¡¯m going to use the gourd.¡±

    ¡°Wait, what!?¡± Oh my god! Why doesn¡¯t he use his finger? Does Gu Yu like sex toys? But it¡¯s a gourd!

    Gu Yu: ¡°You are too tight. If I prate you now, you will get hurt.¡±

    ¡°But...¡± Zhang Siyi was a little resistant.

    Gu Yu kissed him and said in a soft reassuring voice: ¡°Don¡¯t be afraid. It is to make sure you arefortable.¡±

    In a bit of shock, Zhang Siyi brain was fuzzy and he felt like he was being hypnotized. Out of trust for his lover, he submitted. Zhang Siyi understood just how gentle and considerate Gu Yu was of his feelings. If Gu Yu said it was for his benefit, then it would certainly be good, right?

    Due to Gu Yu¡¯s careful treatment in Zhang Siyi¡¯s delicate rear, his back hole was no longer taut and closed. Even so, Gu Yu used a lot of lubricating gel and made his entire buttocks slippery. When Gu Yu spread the gel around his opening, Zhang Siyi unconsciously moaned.

    Blushing, Zhang Siyi felt ashamed, but what made him even more ashamed was Gu Yu¡¯s next move.

    At first, Zhang Siyi felt the pressure of the gourd covered with a condom against his opening. Then, with a gentle push, it slowly slid inside.

    ¡°Rx, imagine the feeling of defecation, a little harder...¡±

    ¡°......¡±

    Taking advantage of Zhang Siyi¡¯s erged sphincter, Gu Yu pushed the gourd smoothly into Zhang Siyi bottom until it was half way inside.

    A burning sensation could be felt in the moment of pration and Zhang Siyi cried out: ¡°Ah!¡± Instinctively, he clenched his ass and as a result, the gourd was stuck half way. For the moment, it didn¡¯t feel painful since the gourd wasn¡¯t as wide at his rear entrance aspared to the portion inside of him.

    Even so, the sensation of the gourd inside wasn¡¯t like a finger. It was very ufortable and he wanted it out. Zhang Siyi lifted his head to peer down. Like an animalying an egg, Zhang Siyi saw only half the gourd sticking out of his body. It was both erotic and funny.

    Gu Yu also found it funny. Wet squelching noises could be heard as he used his fingers to wiggle the gourd.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± (o/////o)

    Blushing, Zhang Siyi used his foot to push Gu Yu: ¡°Go away!¡± Zhang Siyi tried to escape.

    Gu Yu firmly grabbed his ankle with one hand and pulled him back and with the other hand, he reached for the gourd and turned it. The gourd smoothly rotated and applied pressure to the interior tissues. Involuntarily, Zhang Siyi moaned erotically.

    ¡°What do you feel?¡± Gu Yu asked with a mischievous grin.

    Without expression, Zhang Siyi tly replied: ¡°It¡¯s ufortable. Take it out.¡± Zhang Siyi felt like he had been thoroughly toyed with...... with a gourd no less!

    Having heard Zhang Siyi elicit a moan of pleasure, Gu Yu continued to tease him. Grasping the gourd, he quickly turned it right and left.

    Even though there was some pain at the mouth of his hole, the gourd continued to rub against his prostate. Copsing on the soft bed, Zhang Siyi let out a series of erotic moans: ¡°Aah, aah, aah...¡±

    ¡°Tell me the truth.¡± Gu Yu grinned.

    Turning bright red, Zhang Siyi surrendered: ¡°It.... feels... good. Aah, aah, aah........¡±

    For Twenty minutes, Zhang Siyi enjoyed the sensations from Gu Yu¡¯s loving touch and his passionate kisses. All the while, Gu Yu continued to tantalize him through his bottom with the gourd.

    When Zhang Siyi¡¯s moaning became louder and more frequent, reading Zhang Siyi reactions like a book, Gu Yu pulled out the gourd. Zhang Siyi¡¯s climax was near.

    When the gourd was removed, Zhang Siyi let out a loud, heavy moaning cry. This time, it was not because of pain, but because of disappointment.

    Now empty, the pleasure umted there by the stimtion of the gourd was halted. Zhang Siyi was desperate to fill that area again.

    Gu Yu let Zhang Siyi turn over onto his knees. Pressing his shoulders down and raising his hips, Gu Yu reached for his ass and pulled him close. Everything was ready.

    Zhang Siyi thought the posture was very shameful. Especially after Gu Yu pushed his shoulders down and lifted his hips. It made him feel like a female beast in heat. However, men are animals that constantly think about their lower body. Indulging in lust, Zhang Siyi long abandoned his integrity. Instead, he was very excited for Gu Yu to fill him up. -Surely, Gu Yu would feel better then fingers and gourds, right?

    In order to prepare Zhang Siyi psychologically, Gu Yu took a moment to rub his hard rod between Zhang Siyi¡¯s butt cheeks. He didn¡¯t expect the urgency and seduction with which Zhang Siyi demonstrated by twerking. Muffling a chuckle, Gu Yu smiled and held Zhang Siyi¡¯s hips steady. Gu Yu began to prate him slowly.

    As Zhang Siyi was deeply filled, he sighed in gratification. Inparison to Gu Yu¡¯s finger and the gourd, it was a different feeling. Pulsating with heat, Gu Yu was thicker, longer, and deeper. Although pration was a little painful, Zhang Siyi experienced an unprecedented sense of satisfaction.

    Clearly feeling the warmth and contours of each other¡¯s body parts, they were connected, not only physically, but by their souls.

    Gu Yu also felt that way. When Zhang Siyi¡¯s hot inner walls enveloped his hard shaft, he forgot to breath. An unmatched sense of warmth welled up inside of him full of love for Zhang Siyi.

    After thoroughly entering, the two men sighed in relief at the same time. Pinned by Gu Yu¡¯s hot organ, Zhang Siyi dare mot move. In order to make sure Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t in any pain, Gu Yu remained motionless. In a soft voice, he asked Zhang Siyi if there was any difort.

    Zhang Siyi was more impatient than he was worried: ¡°It¡¯s not hurting. It feels good.¡±

    Gu Yu smiled and said: ¡°Then I¡¯m starting.¡± Finally, he no longer had to endure and slowly moved his hips rhythmically.

    Feeling as though the disruption in his climax was long enough, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t wait anymore. He twisted around and demanded: ¡°If you are a man, then fuck me. I¡¯ll give you a friendly tip, hurry it up!¡±

    ¡°Aah... aah.... haa... haa...ah, ah, Ah, AH!¡± After the first few thrusts, Gu Yu suddenly increased the speed.

    Zhang Siyi was hit by a wave of intense pleasure. Although exciting, he felt overwhelmed: ¡°Ah, ah... too deep... ah, ah.... slow... go slow...¡±

    ¡°Fast or slow, what do you want?¡± Gu Yu narrowed his eyes and chuckled. As he continued thrusting hard into Zhang Siyi, he made pping sounds against Zhang Siyi ass. Each time, Gu Yu mmed into Zhang Siyi sensitive point inside, he elicited erotic grunts. Lost in lust, pure instinct took over. No longer paying attention to Zhang Siyi wishes, Gu Yu thrusted harder and faster.

    ¡°Ah... No, I can¡¯t... Ah! Stop... Ah!¡± Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t stand it and tried to move forwards a little bit, but Gu Yu grabbed his waist immediately, preventing his escape. As he pulled Zhang Siyi backwards, he thrusted forwards, prating him even deeper!

    Caught between pleasure and pain, Zhang Siyi¡¯s sensitive point was forcibly rammed. Completely exhausted, his erotic grunts turned into cries.

    Zhang Siyi wondered why Gu Yu suddenly changed. Clearly, a few minutes ago, his gentle rhythm was frustratingly slow, but now, although the pleasure building from his prostate being prodded was good.....

    ¡°Uh... ah, ah, mn.....¡± Fuck! Is Gu Yu¡¯s waist equipped with a motor? With such rapid thrusting, Gu Yu quickly reached his climax.

    Gu Yu pulled out of Zhang Siyi¡¯s body and gently turned him over. Just when Zhang Siyi thought he could slow down and find his release, he saw Gu Yu¡¯s erection. Not giving Zhang Siyi a moments rest, while watching Zhang Siyi¡¯s face, Gu Yu raised Zhang Siyi¡¯s leg and entered him again.

    Exhausted, Zhang Siyi issued a long moan. His thought processes couldn¡¯t keep up with current events. Wait... What? How? Shouldn¡¯t there be a break? With eyes full of desire, Gu Yu stared at him fervidly and began a new round of thrusting.

    ¡°Aah... um... aah, aah!¡± Animal! I¡¯m not a thing! Can¡¯t you be fucking gentle! (¨stÃót)¨s¦à©ß©¥©ß

    Zhang Siyi eyes were red and his sensitive hole had be numb and sore. On his abdominals, some transparent mucus had flowed out of his hard organ. His need has be unbearable, but Gu Yu only cared about himself and didn¡¯t touch Zhang Siyi.

    Even with prolonged stimtion from behind, Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t able to reach his climax. As a man, he also wants attention on his hot, throbbing piece.

    Feeling both intive and resentful, Zhang Siyi felt like he was left hung out to dry. Involuntarily, trying to finish through self-sufficiency, he lifted his hand in desperation. However, watching Zhang Siyi¡¯s movements, Gu Yu easily pped his hand away.

    ¡°No... let... me.... touch....¡± Incoherent, with unspoken calls for help, Zhang Siyi also thrusted his hips.

    Continuing his ramming, Gu Yumanded in a low sensuous voice: ¡°Call me Gege.¡±

    With nothing but the need to climax filling his mind, Zhang Siyi was without reason. He eagerly shouted: ¡°Gege.... Gege!¡±

    Without stopping his own vigorous hip movements, Gu Yu reached out to help Zhang Siyi. He has been on the verge of an orgasm for some time. It only took the briefest of Gu Yu¡¯s caresses before Zhang Siyi felt the wave of euphoric pleasure overtake his senses. As he finally found his release, his whole body trembled.

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s strong spasm gave Gu Yu the ultimate feeling of pleasure as he also followed suit with an orgasm.

    Once again, tears of passion flowed freely from Zhang Siyi swollen eyes. Although he was upset at being bullied, when he turned to look at Gu Yu, his happy and satisfied expression made Zhang Siyi feel aplished.

    Panting, Gu Yu remained inside Zhang Siyi. He leaned down and embraced Zhang Siyi¡¯s still trembling body closely.

    ¡°Are you okay?¡± Gu Yu whispered.

    ¡°I¡¯m good....¡± Zhang Siyi responded in a hoarse voice.

    Gu Yu smiled and thought to himself, heh, this so-called straight man, born to be mine only.

    ying with his soft and sagging body part, Gu Yu said: ¡°You¡¯re still too fast, you cum as soon as it¡¯s rubbed. You have no self-control. It looks like for the next time; I¡¯ll have to make you endure it longer.¡±

    ¡°.....Bastard!!!¡± Blushing, Zhang Siyi scolded him.

    Gu Yu raised his eyebrows and pushed into Zhang Siyi¡¯s body, causing Zhang Siyi to grunt.

    Zhang Siyi regained his rationality and recalled his enthusiastic moans and cries. He was so embarrassed, he felt like dying. Trying to separate from Gu Yu, he wriggled his body and said: ¡°Hey, get out...¡±

    Enveloped by Zhang Siyi warmth, when he tried to shimmy away, Gu Yu¡¯s body naturally responded. Bing hard once again, he said: ¡°Don¡¯t move around. Move again, and we will go for round three.¡± Gu Yu thrusted and pinched his waist threateningly to make his point clear.

    rmed, Zhang Siyi turned pale. There was no way he could handle another round as he was now swollen and sore. He dares not move again. Before retreating, theyy together for some time. Gu Yu leaned over and kissed him tenderly

    Together they washed in the shower. In order to help clean Zhang Siyi thoroughly, Gu Yu inserted a finger: ¡°It¡¯s much softer now. My finger easily slid all the way in.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was so angry, he snapped: ¡°Your big dick was inside for so long, of course it is soft!! Really!? Is that all you think about? My ass is still hurting!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°..........¡± This little demon. Does he not know how provocative his words are?

    Trying to be gentle, Gu Yu moved his finger around to help make sure the inside was clean. Unconsciously, while trembling in Gu Yu¡¯s arms, Zhang Siyi voiced a few erotic sounds.

    Utterly enticed, Gu Yu couldn¡¯t help it. He picked up Zhang Siyi, pressed him against the bathroom wall, and inserted his now throbbing manhood.

    Incredulous, Zhang Siyi gasped. ¡°You...!!¡± Wide-eyed, he stared at Gu Yu.

    ¡°Sorry, you are so seductive, I can¡¯t help it.¡± Standing up, Gu Yu held Zhang Siyi¡¯s ass and enthusiastically rammed him. Soon, only vague gasps and erotic cries emanated from the bathroom.

    That night, Zhang Siyi practically fainted. He went to sleep feeling exhausted. The next morning, groggy from waking up, he was confused momentarily. Even though his legs were apart, he could feel something between them... yes, he was woken up.

    He¡¯s crazy. Is Gu Yu possessed by a demon? Fromst night until now, it was the fourth time and his ass was dying as a result. Doesn¡¯t Gu Yu¡¯s dick hurt? Gu Yu used to abstain and be so considerate. What happened!?

    Perhaps it was precisely because of the multiple times yesterday, this morning Gu Yu was exceptionally slow and patiently slid himself in and out of Zhang Siyi¡¯s body and thus, Zhang Siyi was slowly tormented.

    Whenever Zhang Siyi wanted to resist, Gu Yu kissed him gently and continued to coax him until he submitted. This time, he really will be traumatized! Zhang Siyi decided he was better off sleeping in his own room for at least a month! However, on the day he decided, Gu Yao came.

    Recently graduated, Gu Yao found an internship with apany nearby in Haicheng. In order to save money, she consulted with her brother about living at his apartment for an extended period of time.

    Zhang Siyi vaguely remembered during a busy time after returning from Japan, Gu Yu mentioning his sister potentially living with them during dinner. Since his sister knew the true nature of their rtionship, despite their nightly activities, he didn¡¯t think much about it and left the issue up for Gu Yu to decide.

    Coincidentally, she arrived at a time when Zhang Siyi wanted to hide! Fearing every night, he reluctantly moved into Gu Yu¡¯s room.

    It is not that Zhang Siyi disliked the intimacy, in fact he desired it. However, the change in Gu Yu was too quick and thus, Zhang Siyi was caught off guard. He didn¡¯t know how to adapt.

    Since that night, Gu Yu tasted Zhang Siyi every night. As the saying goes, ¡®too much of a good thing¡¯...... Several times, he wanted to refuse, but Gu Yu always said something like, ¡®just a kiss¡¯, or ¡®just a hug¡¯ and trusting his lover, Zhang Siyi would easily heed Gu Yu¡¯s request. At the beginning, Gu Yu would keep his promise, but now, Gu Yu was basically saying it to deceive him.

    Feeling so loved by the man he desired, while Gu Yu focused his attention on him tenderly, it wasn¡¯t like Zhang Siyi could do nothing. Inevitably, Zhang Siyi returned his feelings and once he initiated any of the slightest amount of interest, Zhang Siyi was pushed down onto the bed.

    Night after night, even when his sister was next door, Gu Yu didn¡¯t have any restraint. Ultimately, since Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t dislike it, he willingly epted Gu Yu¡¯s advances. However, it was Zhang Siyi who had to endure and refrain from crying out. Does Gu Yu not know how hard it was for him to stay quiet?

    Last night, Zhang Siyi was stimted for so long that he couldn¡¯t prevent himself from crying out. While there were some nights Gu Yu forced Zhang Siyi to cry out husband, there were other times when Zhang Siyi was forced to call him gege. Remembering the details of each night made Zhang Siyi feel so ashamed, he could die.

    Unlike his previous energetic self, now Zhang Siyi has to take a nap during lunch time at work, otherwise he would faint from exhaustion in the afternoon. He evenined to Gu Yu about his back hurting, but Gu Yu didn¡¯t take him seriously and sent him ¡®pocket money¡¯ instead.

    The first time it happened, Zhang Siyi felt stupidly happy because he received a thousand dors! Once he calmed down, Zhang Siyi wanted to smack himself ¨C How could he left himself fall to this point!?

    One day in August, while walking home together, Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi got a message from Gu Yao. She had called to tell her brother that she had overtime work and would being homete so they shouldn¡¯t wait for her to eat dinner.

    Haicheng¡¯s summer was very hot and humid and today was an unusually hot day. Even though the day was spent in an airconditioned office, Zhang Siyi felt sweaty simply from the short walk from the subway station to his house. Since he couldn¡¯t stand the ufortable sticky feeling from sweating all over, once Inside, he rushed upstairs to take a shower.

    Because the weather was so hot, even Gu Yu was toozy to cook. Instead, he decided to order cold noodles and had it delivered. Since the AC was near the sofa, he brought the food to the coffee table and sat downfortably in the living room.

    By the time Zhang Siyi finished with his shower, he saw the foodid out on the coffee table. With wet hair and the pleasant scent of shower gel wafting from his skin, like a hungry locust ready to devour, Zhang Siyi walked quickly to the table solely thinking about filling his empty stomach.

    Gu Yu was watching him intently. Before Zhang Siyi could reach his destination, Gu Yu grabbed his wrist, pulled him to the sofa, and pressed his hardness against him, indicating his need.

    The speed with which Gu Yu made his advance astonished Zhang Siyi. One second, he was looking forward to eating, and in the next, he was trapped under Gu Yu. He was in a state of disarray. To top it off, Gu Yao hade back early!

    As Gu Yao entered the door, she greeted the dog. Hearing strange sounds, she looked in the direction of the source ¨C Zhang Siyi¡¯s bare legs were wrapped around Gu Yu¡¯s waist, and between them was a fully clothed Gu Yu, except for his pants slightly pulled down.......

    Both of them looked at Gu Yao with embarrassment and had no time to react.

    Seeing the scene on the sofa, Gu Yao yelped. Instantly covering her face, she ran upstairs and said: ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    ..............

    Afterwards, Zhang Siyi just wanted to bury himself in the ground. Mortified, he couldn¡¯t face her and in WeChat, he told her: ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡± That¡¯s right, the person who should apologize was Zhang Siyi. He felt guilty letting a newly graduated sister see such an erotic scene......

    Unexpectedly, Gu Yao replied: ¡°It¡¯s nothing, I¡¯m used to it.¡± And followed up with: ¡±It was my fault since I didn¡¯t call ahead of time. I am the one who had moved in and invaded your private space.¡±

    Zhang Siyi wondered: ¡°Wait, what do you mean by being used to it?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Well, because you do it every night next door and I can hear you crying out......¡± (&_&)

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Ah! (¨s¨F¡õ¡¯)¨s(©ß©¥©ß

    In the face of further embarrassment, Zhang Siyi made up his mind to formally protest to Gu Yu! The next night before going to bed, Zhang Siyi sat down with his legs crossed: ¡°Yu, I want to talk to you about the way of adult men to adult men.¡±

    Zhang Siyi seldom called him by his given name. He is used to calling him, Gu Yu or Boss, and sometimes Gu Yu has asked Zhang Siyi to call him gege. Since he felt too ashamed of thetter, he wasn¡¯t willing so he had only said it a few times when Gu Yu forced him in bed.

    Amused by his proper tone and hrious phrasing, Gu Yu couldn¡¯t help but sit next to him and kiss him: ¡°What do you want to talk about?¡±

    Putting his hands on Gu Yu¡¯s chest, Zhang Siyi immediately pushed him away: ¡°I¡¯m serious. Let¡¯s talk.¡±

    Gu Yu smiled at him: ¡°About.....?¡±

    With a stern expression and exacting tone, Zhang Siyi said: ¡°I don¡¯t think we can go on like this anymore.¡±

    Gu Yu expression finally changed. He frowned: ¡°What is wrong with our rtionship?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Don¡¯t you think you¡¯ve done too muchtely?¡±

    Gu Yu was puzzled: ¡°What have I done? What do you mean?¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s face slowly reddened: ¡°Don¡¯t pretend to be stupid! I am talking about sex!¡±

    Gu Yu visibly rxed: ¡°What¡¯s the problem?¡±

    Feeling irritated over Gu Yuissez-faire attitude, he demanded: ¡°I¡¯m serious! I think we have to be a little more restrained!¡±

    Gu Yu sighed: ¡°Let me ask you..... Do you like or dislike doing it with me?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°....... Like.¡±

    Laughing, Gu Yu reached out to rub Zhang Siyi¡¯s head: ¡°That¡¯s not a problem. Fool, we are still young. What is wrong with wanting to do it?¡±

    Zhang Siyi blushed: ¡°But I think it¡¯s too much. It is a little ufortable.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°I can¡¯t tell when you are hurt. If you aren¡¯t feeling well, you should have an ufortable performance, but you never really refused me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi exined: ¡°Because I like you, I can¡¯t bear to refuse you...¡±

    Pausing a moment, Gu Yu tilted his head: ¡°You mean, you gave me the wrong idea and let me think that you wanted me?¡±

    Listening to Gu Yu¡¯s smooth voice, Zhang Siyi automatically nodded at him. Thinking about it, he quickly shook his head: ¡°Oh, no, no. I just think we are doing it too much. It would be better if we did it less frequently.¡±

    Raising his eyebrows in question, Gu Yu asked: ¡°Six times a week is too much? I didn¡¯t ask you to have sex three or four times a day to be considerate of you. I want do it more because I like you. Can¡¯t you understand?¡±

    Zhang Siyi was shocked. Three or four times a day! It turned out that Gu Yu hadn¡¯t reached his peak!

    He was so scared he stammered: ¡°Y, you weren¡¯t like this before.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Why not? Before, I masturbated to you every day.¡±

    Zhang Siyi felt dumb. He couldn¡¯tprehend what was being said. As he recalls, during the truth or dare game they yedst year, Gu Yu said something different. He asked: ¡°But when we first met, you were quite restrained.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°That is because I didn¡¯t want you to dislike me. You used to only look at girls. Suddenly, you would have sex with men? If you had any aversion, it would be difficult to reverse your mentally. But I think you are adapting very well now. Every time, you quickly be passionate. Just the other day, you were so soft, I was able to directly in......¡±

    Embarrassed, Zhang Siyi interrupted: ¡°Shut up! Don¡¯t say it!¡±

    Gu Yu smiled and said: ¡°What is there to be embarrassed about? Get used to it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    In the few months since the start of their rtionship, Gu Yu wasn¡¯t only just retraining himself. He was keenly observing Zhang Siyi in order to grasp Zhang Siyi¡¯s personality. He wanted to understand what made him angry and what made him happy. Not only did Gu Yu want to understand Zhang Siyi¡¯s mental condition, he wanted to discover all of Zhang Siyi¡¯s sensitive parts on his body.

    Calcting Zhang Siyi every reaction, Gu Yu pushed him incrementally, testing his bottom line. Therefore, Zhang Siyi¡¯s protest has no chance of winning from the beginning. But he still didn¡¯t give up and continued to protest: ¡°I feel very tired in the afternoon at work. Sometimes, I have a backache.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°That¡¯s your physical strength. You should exercise and strengthen your core. How can you be so tired when I am the one doing all the work? I¡¯m not tired at all.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.....¡±

    ¡°You used to toss and turn all night. Now, your quality of sleep is so much better.¡± Gu Yu pinched his smooth face: ¡°Look at you, no more e.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°............¡±

    Gu Yu gently patted his cheek and said: ¡°Rest assured, you might think you can¡¯t bear it, but I understand you perfectly and know your limits.¡±

    Indignant, Zhang stared at him. ¨C You know nothing!

    After dismissing Zhang Siyi usation, Gu Yu leaned forward to continue his ¡®homework.¡¯ Panicked, Zhang Siyi tried to push him: ¡°You.... What are you doing? We are having a discussion in the ways of adult men.¡±

    Laughing, Gu Yu smiled and overwhelmed him: ¡°Let me tell you what adult men do.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°No, no. I¡¯m protesting! ....resisting.... aah.... aah....¡±

    The sweet night life kicked off and Zhang Siyi¡¯s rebellion failed.

    Even though Gu Yu is precisely the one who made sure Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t get his way, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t feel bothered by it. Not matter how much GU Yu bullied him, Zhang Siyi loved him. In fact, Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t honestly care because he gained pure happiness from Gu Yu¡¯s attention.

    Unlike their nightly escapades, during the day, their rtionship took on the illusion of a 180-degree turn. Since their feelings and desires were fully vented at night, there rtionship was very restrained during working hours and thus, they were able to maintain a proper distance.

    Even at work, due to his deep responsibility of love, Gu Yu¡¯s demands on Zhang Siyi were harsher than ever for two reasons. One, as exined to Zhang Siyi when they first started their rtionship and two, the incident with Lu Qiao during their trip. It served as a warning and let Gu Yu realize he couldn¡¯t act rashly.

    Although Zhang Siyi knows the truth and can understand that his approach can protect him from criticism, for such a clear division of treatment from night to day, asionally, Zhang Siyi really hated it.

 Chapter 173: Fart

    <h4>Chapter 173: Fart</h4>

    Today was supposed to be another ordinary work day, however Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu quarreled at the office.

    Now that the hotel project had reached its final phase, execution of the design was transferred to the constructionpany. While Zhang Siyi was working on various small projects, he was required to provide a series of data statistics for the constructionpany. Unknown to him, Zhang Siyi had made a careless calction and sent the wrong figures.

    With thepletion of the tourist hotel project, Gu Yu was hoping to deepen Zhang Siyi knowledge by letting him begin arger independent project. Today, the construction contract was handed to Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi¡¯s mistake was discovered for the first time. He was immediately called into Gu Yu¡¯s office.

    Gu Yu forcibly mmed the documents on his desk with a loud bang and loudly snapped: ¡°How is your area calcted? How did you not notice this beforehand? The total area of the vi construction is over thirty thousand square meters. You have been working here for over a year and yet you have so little amon sense? The ns are signed and stamped. Do you understand the amount of losses thepany will incur now?¡±

    Standing in his office, Zhang Siyi was silent. Out of shock of being yelled at, he didn¡¯t know what to say. Since the start of his employment, Gu Yu has never criticized him so harshly. Since he hasn¡¯t experienced Gu Yu¡¯s disapproval in such a long time, it was psychologically hard to ept.

    The series of expressions that shed across Zhang Siyi face conveyed a variety of emotions from surprise and shock to anger and resentment. Zhang Siyi was lost in thought:

    ¡­¡­. Isn¡¯t it amon mistake for the area to be miscalcted? Isn¡¯t it normally checked by multiple people? What about the people from the constructionpany? There are many people involved so it isn¡¯t just my fault. Employees have made mistakes before, but why am I singled out and being judged so severely?¡±

    Not knowing where he went wrong, Zhang Siyi¡¯s confused silence and disapproving expression at feeling unfairly treated provoked Gu Yu to exin: ¡°If you can¡¯t manage this little thing, how am I supposed to safely hand over a bigger project?¡±

    Forgetting that they were in the office, out of habit, Zhang Siyi addressed Gu Yu casually. In return, he snapped at Gu Yu angrily: ¡°Since you don¡¯t trust me, then don¡¯t give it to me!¡±

    Slightly scowling, Gu Yu clenched his jaw in anger which made the muscles taut and the veins bulge in his neck.

    Full of grievances, Zhang Siyi red at him. Both stubborn, they were in a stalemate.

    Fortunately, the deadlock was broken as Tao Fei entered the office. Breaking the silence, he brazenly spoke up. ¡°Yo, what¡¯s going on? You guys are arguing so loudly that everyone outside can hear you.¡±

    Gu Yu coldly said: ¡°We weren¡¯t fighting.¡±

    Zhang Siyi turned his head and stared at Tao Fei. ¨CYes! We weren¡¯t fighting because Gu Yu unterally med him!

    When they made eye contact, Tao Fei winked at Zhang Siyi and let him leave the office first. Now that Tao Fei has been with Borderless for a few months, his temper had leveled off. To the surprise of others, the current office disturbance wasn¡¯t caused by Tao Fei.

    With lingering negative feelings, Zhang Siyi felt like he was ready to blow his top. Eager to calm down, he poured himself a cup of coffee then walked to the dining area and sat down at the edge of the room. Alone, he was lost in thought.

    Not long after, Tao Fei came over gleefully. He took delight in witnessing the ability to provoke Gu Yu to such an extent. Knowing Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi faught, he felt fulfilled and asked: ¡°What are you doing? You can¡¯t possibly be angry with Gu Yu?¡±

    Without expression, Zhang Siyi nced at him and exined: ¡°I made a statistical error with the hotel area.¡±

    Incredulous, Tao Fei asked: ¡°Really!? He blew up over a mathematical calction?¡±

    Zhang Siyi bowed his head: ¡°It seems to be the case.¡±

    Even Tao Fei felt that it was a minor issue and didn¡¯t understand why Gu Yu treated Zhang Siyi so harshly.

    The fact that the area was wrong was indeed Zhang Siyi¡¯s carelessness, but wasn¡¯t it because Gu Yu made excessive demands at night and assigned him multiple tasks all at once? He was very tired and as a result, he had made an error.

    Feeling a little dazed, Zhang Siyi held his hand over his face and sighed deeply.

    Tao Fei nced at him and asked: ¡± How Are you doing?¡±

    Zhang Siyi looked up: ¡°What?¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°Your feelings.¡±

    Zhang Siyi thought of his nightly activities with Gu Yu and felt a little flush. It was difficult to say: ¡°Hmm.¡­¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°Since returning from Japan, it doesn¡¯t feel like your rtionship is good.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± That was the fa?ade that Gu Yu wanted people to see. Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t rify Tao Fei¡¯s wrong assumption.

    Even though Tao Fei didn¡¯t know the situation, he offered he emotional analysis. Holding his chin in thought, Tao Fei said: ¡°Has the period of love ended? Now, has all of his previously invisible shorings been exposed?¡±

    Startled, Zhang Siyi was a little surprised at Tao Fei¡¯s analysis. It carried a bit of truth. He really didn¡¯t see any of Gu Yu¡¯s shorings, but now that they have been together for several months, some of them were exposed like his bad performance ying Era of Music, and his inability to sing.

    The most serious was Gu Yu¡¯s insatiable desire. To be honest, if Zhang Siyi knew it ahead of time, he might have really backed off. Compared with Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi was very conservative and more simple-minded and ¡®pure¡¯ with his thoughts about rtionships. If he had acted with his ex-girlfriend like Gu Yu had with him, Zhang Siyi would have already had years of intimate experience.

    It was also strange that Gu Yu¡¯s true nature was hidden so deeply. Step-by-step, he skillfullyid out a n and set a trap for Zhang Siyi. Unbeknown to Zhang Siyi, he foolishly and happily followed Gu Yu all the way into a cage. Now, it was impossible to escape.

    Aside from these points, in every aspect, Zhang Siyi thought Gu Yu was exactly like the man he appeared to be. A mature, calm man that was strict and kept his private and public life separated.

    Zhang Siyi finally shook his head and said to Tao Fei: ¡°Today was my fault.¡±

    Gu Yu is his boss. If not for being his boyfriend, Zhang Siyi would never have talked back. It proves how close a rtionship they truly have.

    After calming down, Zhang Siyi thought about what Gu Yu had told him previously; the high hopes that Gu Yu had ced on him and how much he wanted Zhang Siyi to catch-up as quickly as possible. For this reason, putting his faith in Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu assigned him jobs in order to help train him and let him grow as an architect. Zhang Siyi was well aware that the things Gu Yu did, he did it for him. He has long been grateful for his guidance, but instead of recognizing this fact, he told Gu Yu that ¡®I don¡¯t need your concern¡¯. Gu Yu¡¯s anger wasn¡¯t surprising.

    It¡¯s just that people are emotional animals and in the face of a hard truth, their reactions will surface suddenly without control. In this way, today¡¯s events, rather than addressing things calmly, it proves how immature, childish, and petty Zhang Siyi really is!

    Zhang Siyi sighed. He wanted to understand. Now resolute, he went back to his desk to fix his error and recalcted the area. Upon hispletion, he took the initiative to send his results to Gu Yu. Gu Yu promptly sent a letter back to Zhang Siyi asking him to ry the new information and apologize to constructionpany.

    Finally, by the end of the day, the mishap was sessfully resolved without further problems and both Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi were able to leave the office on time. Traveling by subway, they quietly went home together to eat dinner.

    However, that night, putting Zhang Siyi on the bed, Gu Yu began to settle the matter¡­¡­.

    ¡°Oh, how bold! How dare you talk back to me at work. Are you the boss, or am I?¡±

    ¡°Who gave you permission? Hmm¡­..¡± Gu Yu gave Zhang Siyi a meaningful look. ¡°I¡¯ve told you before how much I want you to catch-up to me. But then, you say not to bother. Is your heart wavering? Should I not be worried and angry?¡±

    ¡°Ah! I was wrong¡­¡­ I won¡¯t¡­¡­¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°Little fool.¡­¡­¡±

    Gu Yu bullied him three times in anger before saying: ¡°Your performance at work has been a lot more mature than before and that is verymendable. As a reward, I¡¯ll let you go.¡±

    Despite feeling like he was abused to death, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t say a word.

    Early the next morning limping to work, Zhang Siyi clutched his waist. Even though Gu Yu¡¯s noble and morous appearance was restored, he continued to abuse him at night. One word could be used to describe the situation: Unforgiving! (=_=)

    The little energy that Zhang Siyi had left by the end of the work day waspletely drained by Gu Yu at night.

    Unlike their ¡®love-period¡¯ in the beginning,tely, the two were often seen arguing and bickering over something. Even though there was constant friction between them, their rtionship wasn¡¯t distant at all. In fact, with their nightly ¡®deep body connection¡¯ and constant ¡®grinding together¡¯, their rtionship was bing more intimate than ever before.

    One evening for dinner, in arge pot, Gu Yu stewed ribs and radish and made a soup. Having cooked the radish until it became crystal clear, the sweetness of the root vegetable was infused with the meat. Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t wait to dig in. He wolfed down three bowls in one breath.

    Later that night when he was in bed with Gu Yu, his stomach started gurgling. As the noises became louder and louder, Gu Yu stopped and asked: ¡°Are you alright? Do you have to fart?¡±

    Zhang Siyi groaned and said: ¡°Don¡¯t provoke me, otherwise I¡¯ll fart on you!¡±

    Gu Yu grinned and said: ¡°Reassured, I am blocking you so you can¡¯t release anything.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Damn, you bastard¡­¡­¡±

    Afterwards, Gu Yu was afraid that Zhang Siyi would ¡®leak¡¯ so he leaned down to his ear and jokingly asked: ¡°Do you want me to hold you and take you to the bathroom?¡±

    Red faced Zhang Siyi eximed: ¡°What?! No! Gu Yao is next door!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°I can send her a WeChat message telling her to stay in her room for the next ten minutes.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡­ ¡± Shit! That isn¡¯t the issue! The point is, does he need Gu Yu¡¯s help? Can¡¯t he just hold it?

    Since he was already on his hands and knees, Zhang Siyi twisted and tried to crawl away: ¡°Go away!¡±

    Preventing him from moving, Gu Yu wrapped his arms around Zhang Siyi and held him close: ¡°No. I¡¯m afraid you won¡¯t be able to hold it in.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡­¡±

    Trapped by Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi was starting to feel angry. Suddenly, he belched loudly.

    Gu Yu: ¡°¡­¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± Fuck! Is he only able to expel the gas from the top? ¦²( ¡ã ¡÷¡ã|||)_

    The room fell into a strange silence and a secondter, unexpectedly, Gu Yu burst outughing!

    Feeling ashamed, Zhang Siyi tried to get away by taking advantage of the situation. As a result of the movement from Gu Yu shaking inughter and Zhang Siyi desire to break free, a string of sounds emanated from Zhang Siyi behind.

    Watching Zhang Siyi, Gu Yuughed even more loudly. Twitching, he copsed on the bedughing uncontrobly.

    Zhang Siyi never saw Gu Yuugh so hard that it was entirely unlike his outward image. Immediately, Zhang Siyi felt angry out of embarrassment and couldn¡¯t bear it any longer.

    ¡°Fuck! Gu Yu unexpectedly shouted. Clutching his nose, he rolled over off the bed to go open the window.

    Zhang Siyi got his way, andughed without restraint¡­

    Gu Yu gritted his teeth and said: ¡°Don¡¯t look at me. I won¡¯t pick you up!¡±

    Since belching, Zhang Siyi has lost hisposure. Turning to look at Gu Yu he quipped: ¡°Who is afraid of who?!¡±

    Of course, inevitably Gu Yu would have to ¡®punish¡¯ Zhang Siyi again. Despite Zhang Siyi¡¯s anger, Gu Yu always had a way to appease him and together, they would always fall asleep peacefully¡­¡­.

    Being able to act so brazenly in front of one another just shows how close and in love with one another they really are.

 Chapter 174: Classmates

    <h4>Chapter 174: ssmates</h4>

    ________________________

    Gu Yu¡¯s enthusiasmsted for another two months. During this time, they tried all kinds of postures and positions. From his cautious beginning, to his favored habits, Zhang Siyi was happy. After a couple months, their frequency slowly declined to an eptable rate for Zhang Siyi. In this life, Zhang Siyi knew he wouldn¡¯t be able to lead a straight path again.

    At the end of October, Gu Yu asked Zhang Siyi to take over a new project which was a newly development apartment area in Haicheng¡¯s New District. Coincidentally, the project¡¯s Party Apany turned out to be the unit where Jiang Hai worked.

    Zhang Siyi immediately got in touch with Jiang Hai and asked him if he knew about the project. Jiang Hai replied: ¡°God, I haven¡¯t spoken to you for such a long time that I almost forgot where you worked!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Now that you have a girlfriend, you forgot your old ssmates! In a few years, will you forget my name as well?!¡±

    ¡°No Way!¡± Jiang Hai begged for mercy. Joking aside, he stated: ¡°We haven¡¯t met up in a long time. Let¡¯s call everyone and invite them out for dinner.¡±

    Since Zhang Siyi was at the beginning phase of his new project, he knew he could make time to meet with friends. It was especially so, since Party A was Jiang Hai¡¯spany. He readily agreed: ¡°Sounds good!¡±

    Since Jiang Hai had moved out to be with his girlfriend and Fu Xinhui went abroad, the time Zhang Siyi spent chatting with his ssmates was less and less.

    Jiang Hai shouted out in the chat group that he used with his ssmates. Since it had been such a long time, everyone immediately responded. The quiet chat group irrupted and became lively once again.

    Su Yuan said: ¡°Little Yi, have you been hiding recently? You stopped posting to your home page so we don¡¯t know how you are doing!¡±

    Even though they all live within an hour¡¯s drive away from one another in Haicheng, they had to rely on social media to keep up to date with each other¡¯s well-being. Since Zhang Siyi had been M.I.A. for the past six months, his friends were rather upset at him.

    Jiang Hai: ¡°Yeah, he just approached me about a project that hispany will be working on. At first, I didn¡¯t realize why Zhang Siyi was calling me until I remembered thepany he worked for.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°You really forgot!¡±

    Jiang Hai: ¡°Hey, we have to get together. At this rate, if we continue like this, we really will forget all of the memories we have of each other!¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°Sounds great! How about this weekend?¡±

    Jiang Hai: ¡°First, let me say.... Just so you know, I¡¯ll be bringing my girlfriend.¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°Oh? Can I bring my boyfriend? [Smirk]¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Ren Mengyu has a boyfriend? I didn¡¯t even know!¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°Just how out of it are you!? Every day, she shows affection in our group chat! I want to strangle her!¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°Don¡¯t say that!¡± [Cry]

    Su Yuan: [Eye Rolls]

    Jiang Hai: ¡°Yep. I saw it too. Screenshots everyday......¡±

    Zhang Siyi hurriedly flipped through his circle of friends. The most recent one was a photo of Ren Mengyu and her boyfriend eating a French style meal. Her boyfriend was quite handsome and was dressed very fashionably. He looked mature and a bit older in the picture.

    Continuing to scroll through his social media page, he saw more photos posted by Ren Mengyu. There were pictures of them shopping together, watching movies together, and even wearing clothes lying on the bed... Viewers could only envy the intimacy that the couple portrayed.

    However, now that Zhang Siyi was with Gu Yu, his physical and emotional needs were greatly satisfied. As a result, the photos had little effect on him.

    Zhang Siyi returned to the group and asked: ¡± I just saw your posts. Your boyfriend is very handsome! How long have you been together?¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°It¡¯s just a month, heh.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Ah, the hot love period.....¡± No wonder, if he followed suit with Gu Yu as a normal couple, he thought he wouldn¡¯t be able to resist posting every moment as everyday had the power of happiness.

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°He can treat us to dinner when hees. [Thumbs Up]¡±

    Jiang Hai: ¡°Really? All right!¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°Where is your integrity!!!¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°I think of you all as my family. I want you to help me evaluate how reliable he is.¡±

    Jiang Hai: ¡°It¡¯s only been one month and you already want us to see if he is marriageable material?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Yes, I remember that time, she prided herself on being a love expert.¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°Well, when a woman was involved, it is easy to see. But when it¡¯s time to evaluate a handsome man, her IQ turns to zero!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Ha-ha-ha!¡±

    Jiang Hai: ¡°Hasn¡¯t she asked for your opinion before? Being a continued counselor, you deserve a paycheck!¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°Su Yuan and I see things with a woman¡¯s perspective. I believe men understand men better!¡±

    Jiang Hai: ¡°Ok then, give us some information first so we have an idea in mind.¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°His name is Bai Rui, 31 years old, 182cm tall and his family is very wealthy. He graduated from the British Department of Fine Arts and is currently opening a fine artspany as the director and curator.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Wow! Not only is he rich, but handsome too!¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°Yeah. With his style and education, she says he is like a dream. Oh, also, he drives a Porsche 911....¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Impressive!¡±

    Jiang Hai: ¡°How do you know so much?¡±

    Unscrupulously, Su Yuan spit in the group: ¡°She has reported every single detail to me every day. She even showed me her chat records with him. How can I not know?¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°[Blush]¡±

    Jiang Hai: ¡°Ren Mengyu status isn¡¯t bad. What exactly is the problem with dating a high-fashioned handsome rich man?¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°Oh, because the man¡¯s resume is too good. The girl feels like it is unreal.¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°He really is super perfect! Sometimes, I don¡¯t understand why he likes me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi has experienced the same feeling. His rtionship with Gu Yu felt too perfect and unreal in the beginning. Now that they have been together for more then half a year, Zhang Siyi felt like some of Gu Yu¡¯s gold luster had chipped off.

    Gossiping about the new rich guy, the group¡¯s appetite was whet. Now, they all have something to look forward to during the weekend.

    And what about Zhang Siyi? Does he have a girlfriend? Although Zhang Siyi told Fu Xinhui about having a rtionship with Gu Yu, he didn¡¯t want to have to exin it to the chat group so he lied and said he was single.

    _____________

 Chapter 175: Nightclub

    <h4>Chapter 175: Nightclub</h4>

    Just as Zhang Siyi mentioned his ¡®single¡¯ status, Fu Xinhui suddenly messaged the group: ¡°Here I thought this group of corpses were already dead! I was away from my phone for a little while and now I see hundreds of messages! What are you guys talking about?¡±

    Catching him off guard, Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart jumped into his throat. Quickly, he sent Fu Xinhui a private text letting him know he didn¡¯t want his rtionship broadcasted.

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°I know...... but when I think of you and this matter... for better or worse....¡± [Sweating]

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°....¡±

    The flow of messages sped up as the group enthusiastically greeted Fu Xinhui and asked him about his current situation. Fu Xinhui kept a low profile and didn¡¯t divulge any information about his family¡¯s experience. Instead, he brought the conversation back to the present and expressed great interest in the group¡¯s get together on the weekend.

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Let me sync my phone so I can join you guys live with video!¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°Of course! How can we let you miss out?!¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Although I¡¯m not there, my heart is with you guys! [Heart]¡±

    After the date and time were set, Zhang Siyi informed Gu Yu of his ns to meet with his ssmates.

    ¡°This Saturday?¡± As Gu Yu confirmed the weekend ns, he frowned. ¡°The visiting architect, Ishihara, was giving a lecture that afternoon.¡±

    Ishihara is a young Japanese architect that Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi have recently taken note of. They have increasingly liked his work. A few weeks ago, they found out about his lecture, but at that time, there wasn¡¯t a specific date scheduled for his presentation.

    Feeling distraught over the conflict, Zhang Siyi quickly responded: ¡°Ack! What should I do?¡±

    Gu Yu put down his pen down and looked up at Zhang Siyi and calmly stated: ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. Go meet your friends.¡±

    Afraid Gu Yu wasn¡¯t happy about it, Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°Should I see if I can meet them on Sunday instead?¡±

    Gu Yu smiled at him with affection: ¡°Why go out of your way to change the time when you looked so happy to meet them? You haven¡¯t seen them for a long time. It¡¯s alright. I¡¯ll go to the lecture alone and can tell you about the details afterwards.¡±

    Zhang Siyi pounced on Gu Yu: ¡°When I¡¯m done eating, I¡¯lle meet you.¡±

    During the week leading up to their get-together, the group of friends continued to chat and catch up with one another. As it turned out, Ren Mengyu met Bai Rui in a nightclub.

    Jiang Hai was surprised: ¡°Really?!¡±

    All of her friends are well aware that Ren Mengyu loved to go clubbing. What was surprising was the fact that she met her boyfriend at a nightclub. It seemed like a strange ce to meet the perfect rich guy.

    Along with his close friend, Fu Xinhui, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t like to go to nightclubs. Of course, Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t considered a rich hottie like his friend. He assumed Gu Yu didn¡¯t like them either. Wanting to confirm his thought, he looked at Gu Yu and asked: ¡°Hey, have you ever been to a nightclub?¡±

    Gu Yu frowned: ¡°Why are you going to a nightclub?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Just tell me if you have been to one or not.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°No.¡±

    Proof is in the flesh! Why would the perfect rich guy go to a nightclub! ¨r(¨s_¨t)¨q

    Ren Mengyu exined in the group: ¡°It was his first time going clubbing. He said his friends dragged him there. When I saw him, he stuck out like a sore thumb. Normally, men go clubbing to ogle at girls, but he was just sitting alone in the corner drinking silently. Many girls tried to talk to him, but he brushed them off with indifference.¡±

    He ignored the girls? A sh a doubt crossed Zhang Siyi¡¯s mind. Wouldn¡¯t that mean this man was gay?

    As if to shake off his ridiculous conjecture, Zhang Siyi quickly shook his head, no. He shouldn¡¯t assume someone was gay just because he himself was with a man. Besides, how could the person be gay if he was dating Ren Mengyu?

    His ns to continue gossiping with his friends was suddenly interrupted by Gu Yu¡¯s question: ¡°Have you been to a nightclub?¡±

    Zhang Siyi hesitated for a moment then replied: ¡°Ah.... No.¡±

    Gu Yu put away his iPad, gathered Zhang Siyi into his arms and put his hands-on Zhang Siyi¡¯s waist: ¡°Is that so?¡±

    Having his sides kneaded, Zhang Siyi trembled. Under Gu Yu¡¯s tickle-torture, Zhang Siyi twisted and turned. It didn¡¯t take long from him to surrender: ¡°Ok, ok. I confess. I have been there once with Fu Xinhui while I was in the UK!¡±

    Gu Yu raised his eyebrows: ¡°What were you doing there? Hunting for girls?¡±

    ¡°What? No!¡± Zhang Siyi shouted honestly. ¡°We just wanted to know what it was like.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡±So, how was it?¡±

    Zhang Siyi crumpled his face: ¡°It felt like onerge group dance. I didn¡¯t care for the experience.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°So why did you just ask me about it?¡±

    Zhang Siyi quickly told Gu Yu about Ren Mengyu¡¯s boyfriend. In order to help with the analysis of her boyfriend, he showed the chat history to Gu Yu.

    For some time, they continued to chat steadily. Fu Xinhui asked: ¡±So.... how did you get to know him?¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°When my friend and I passed by the bar, we saw him leaning on the door looking unstable. Since his friends weren¡¯t with him, I approached him and asked if he needed help. He asked me to call a cab and to take him home..... Do you know where he lives? The famous district in area A where the average price for an apartment is one-hundred thousand per square meter! He said there are movie stars that live in the same building!¡±

    Jiang Hai: ¡°You just followed a stranger back home? Are you stupid?¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°When I asked him if he needed help, I thought he was quite a gentleman. Although he was a little drunk and confused, I didn¡¯t think he was pretending.¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°You really don¡¯t understand men!¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°What do you mean?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°I¡¯ll be blunt. The real purpose men go clubbing is very clear. A night of stimtion; a one-night stand. When your boyfriend decided to go to a nightclub, he was already psychologically prepared to find a girl. If there really was an opportunity, what man would refuse a girl¡¯s advances?

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.....¡± Brother, are you are trying to kill me!

    Gu Yu narrowed his eyes and looked directly at Zhang Siyi: ¡°So..... you also went to find stimtion?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I, I... I did not!¡±

    Pressing him to the bed, Gu Yu took disciplinary action and kissed him deeply. After biting his lip, he released him: ¡°I don¡¯t care about your past, but I¡¯ll be careful to spank youter.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.....¡±

    Returning to his phone to look at the chat group, Ren Mengyu had sent a very straightforward message: ¡°Well duh! I also went to find someone to y with for a night. Who goes to a nightclub to find a boyfriend!?¡±

    Everyone: ¡°.....¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°Well, well. I didn¡¯t say it!¡±

    Once again, Gu Yu looked at Zhang Siyi in the eye andmented: ¡°Your ssmates are really open, huh.¡±

    With silent tears, Zhang Siyi covered his eyes: ¡°They have always been more rxed than I...¡±

    Ren Mengyu continued: ¡°When he asked me to take him home, I was thinking one thing, but instead he sent me back. How could I have imagined what a gentleman he was? At the time, it was rather irksome!¡±

    ..... What? Are you kidding me? Zhang Siyi thought the incident was a little odd. Ren Mengyu obviously expressed an interest in Bai Rui and was kind enough toply with his request but then, he sent her back home?

    Su Yuan added: ¡°For the following week, Ren Mengyu was cursing him every day, until Bai Rui had called her and asked her out for dinner.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Jiang Hai asked: ¡°How did he know your phone number?¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°He must have gotten it from the time we rode home in the taxi. Since the battery on his phone was dead, he asked me to borrow my phone so he could call his friend. I was surprised he called me a weekter and even more surprising was hearing him ask me to be his girlfriend. I was a little afraid so told him I would consider it.¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°You considered nothing. That was the night this idiot girl fell and perhaps there will be a price to pay.¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°You think he really is ying me, but I don¡¯t see it. We have been together for a month and during this time he has been very romantic. Bai Rui takes me out to dinner and goes to the movies with me. We go shopping and take walks together. Except for the fact that we haven¡¯t slept together yet, he is like a prince from a fairy-tale; a perfect boyfriend. Although our rtionship is very pure, I don¡¯t actually know that much about him. What do you think?¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡±Bai Rui¡¯s level is too great. This young master doesn¡¯t understand. Please ask another! [Laugh][Cry]

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi turned to Gu Yu and asked: ¡°What do you think? Can you understand Bai Rui¡¯s behavior?¡±

    ¡°As your ssmates have exined, since they went to a nightclub, their real purpose should be very clear. Since society is less restrictive now, people are free to see others without the constraints of marriage prospects. Even if they had gotten together for sex, it wasn¡¯t a formal pursuit. Therefore, if he confesses to her afterwards, how can she know what he wants and take it seriously?¡± Gu Yu turned to look at Zhang Siyi. He continued: ¡°I don¡¯t know about anyone else, but if it was me, once I confess, I will definitely say what I want and won¡¯t make my lover question my behavior. Your ssmate was upset because the man wasn¡¯tpletely honest with her.¡±

    Zhang Siyi nodded and felt the truth of what Gu Yu said. He wanted to ry his thoughts to the chat group, but Gu Yu grabbed his phone.

    Gu Yu: ¡°The heart is unpredictable. Who can really say what someone was thinking and feeling at the time? No one can guarantee who was right or wrong in that situation.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°But...¡±

    As he was trying to talk, Gu Yu reached for Zhang Siyi and brought him close to kissed him on the lips. He turned Zhang Siyi over and pressed him down onto the bed: ¡°Why are you so concerned? Take care of yourself first. Come on, it¡¯s time for some stimtion.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°........¡±

    ***

    On Saturday, excited to see his old ssmates, Zhang Siyi got up early in the morning to rummage through his closet to find something suitable to wear for dinner.

    Not long ago, Gu Yu took him out to go shopping. Now that they have been living together, Zhang Siyi style had subconsciously begun to resemble Gu Yu¡¯s.

    While putting on his pants, Zhang Siyi shouted: ¡°Gu Yu, help me find the jacket I bought a few days ago!¡± As he tightened his belt, Zhang Siyi widened his eyes in shock.

    Gu Yu walked over to him and handed him his jacket. He watched Zhang Siyi look down and balk at himself: ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡±

    ¡°Did I lose weight?¡± Zhang Siyi tightened his belt and found the usual hole is used to buckle wasn¡¯t tight enough.

    ¡°Hmm....¡± Gu Yu knew best whether or not Zhang Siyi was too thin. Every night, he has held all of Zhang Siyi¡¯s parts closely.

    As a natural thin person, Zhang Siyi grew up not worrying about his weight: ¡°It¡¯s your fault!¡±

    Yes, it¡¯s all because of him! Gu Yu was so desperate for him every night and during the day, Zhang Siyi was given so much work!

    Cuddling Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu put his chin on Zhang Siyi¡¯s shoulder and wrapped his arms around him. Gu Yu smiled and said: ¡°me me. That¡¯s why we haven¡¯t done it as muchtely.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Fuck! The frequency fell not because Gu Yu had found a conscience! Zhang Siyi was tired of doing it!

    Even so, after losing excess weight, his muscles became more defined and as a whole, his slender physique looked quite good. He was wearing a pair of grey pants with a dark grey knit sweater and white sneakers. His light-colored jacket topped off his refined, yet casual look.

    Looking rather handsome, Zhang Siyi checked himself in the mirror onest time before leaving. Gu Yu caught him, and nted a deep kiss on his lips. Zhang Siyi felt a little reluctant to leave....

    His group of friends agreed to meet at a distinctive British restaurant to have afternoon tea and dinner.

    When Zhang Siyi arrived, Jiang Hai and his girlfriend, Tian Yujing, were already there. They could hardly recognize him.

    Compared with the youth from a year ago, with calm and tidy gestures, Zhang Siyi had a mature appearance. Perhaps, it was due to his experience at work.

    Tian Yujing opened her eyes in surprise and eximed: ¡°Wow, you have changed a lot!¡±

    ¡°What? Where have I changed?¡± Now that he is in a rtionship with a man, Zhang Siyi is always a little nervous about exposing his gay temperament.

    Tian Yujing smiled and said: ¡°You have be so handsome!¡±

    Feeling ted, these are the words Zhang Siyi loves to hear.

    He smiled and told Tian Yujing she was being silly.

    When Zhang Siyiughed, he exuded an inviting warmth and his even temperament was revealed. It was like an old piece of fine jade that has been polished; beautiful and charming.

    Normally, one doesn¡¯t associate a fine piece of polished jade for a man, but there is no sense of vition. Zhang Siyi clearly isn¡¯t feminine, but he looks a little sweet.

    Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°Has Su Yuan and Ren Mengyu arrived yet?¡±

    Jiang Hai: ¡°Follow me. ¡°

    Su Yuan was talking to the waiter at their table. Looking at her, Zhang Siyi noticed she was still wearing the same clothing asst year. There was a time when the clothing looked dazzling on her, but now they looked drab. Su Yuan¡¯s light makeup couldn¡¯t hide her haggard face and the dark circles under her eyes.

    ¡°Hey, I worked overtime until 10 o¡¯clockst night. I am at my limit in this industry...¡± Sure enough, as they sat down, Su Yuan was full of negativity and began toin about her work from trivial matters, to more broaderints.

    Jiang Hai and Zhang Siyi still remembered the bright person she was from her college days. The transformation was a little surprising. Thinking that she was too hard on herself, Jiang Hai advised: ¡°Don¡¯t put so much pressure on yourself.¡±

    Su Yuan brought the palm of her hand to her forehead. In clear distress, she said: ¡°What pressure am I giving myself!? It is the reality of the industry that stresses me out. I don¡¯t understand why I pursued this industry to begin with. Traveling to business meetings all over and working overtime every day; I work like a dog. I don¡¯t have time to go out shopping or let alone date. I don¡¯t even have time to sleep. Working overseas might sound thrilling, but the wages were actually lower than migrant workers. Since the market wasn¡¯t goodst year, we never received our year-end bonuses. Additionally, no one got a pay raise. The situation this year is even more severe because five of the original eight members of my team left. All the work has fallen into myp.¡±

    Listening attentively to Su Yuan¡¯s story, Zhang Siyi felt that things weren¡¯t quite right. He calmly asked: ¡°Su Yuan, what is your sry now?¡±

    Su Yuan sighed then said: ¡°Last year it was seven thousand, but this year it was only five thousand. Thepany told us the market was dry. Since thepany hadn¡¯t received any projects for three months, there was nothing to be done. What can you do without money? Everyone started panicking.¡±

    Since the only work experience Zhang Siyi had was with Borderless, he had little contact with outsidepanies and their dealings with the industry. He couldn¡¯t help but be shocked by Su Yuan¡¯s story. Is the situation really that serious? So why was she working so endlessly?

    In September of this year, Gu Yu gave him a sry raise from the original 8,000 to nine thousand. In addition, he earns a bonus from therge and small projects that he contributes towards when thepany wins the contract. Zhang Siyi hasn¡¯t had a problem saving money for a long time.

    Su Yuan continued to borate: ¡°Also, I have to rent an apartment myself. This year, myndlord has raised the rent. I heard that several mangers from thepany stopped getting payed. At least they have had years of savings to fall back on. Unlike Ren Mengyu, I don¡¯t have my family¡¯s financial support. I¡¯m just a newly graduated student! What am I supposed to do?¡±

    The vicious economic cycle; Zhang Siyi understood it very well. Before he moved in with Gu Yu, he also felt the pressure from financial constraints.

    The former Su Yuan from University was full of positive energy. When everyone else was struggling, she was there to motivate others to work hard and continue moving forward. In stark contrast, now fatigued, Su Yuan¡¯s light was snuffed out by the harsh faces of reality.

    Hey, it¡¯s no wonder that her clothing and essories have not changed. It seems like she has been forced into a desperate situation.

    Jiang Hai asked her: ¡°Can you leave thepany and find another job?¡±

    Su Yuan was annoyed: ¡°If there areyoffs in the same industry, where will there be a ce to jump to!¡±

    Hearing Su Yuan, Zhang Siyi suddenly wanted to help her. He thought of Gu Yu and Borderless. Since Su Yuan¡¯s grades were better than his, her ability couldn¡¯t be any less then his own. Certainly, she would be qualified to work at Borderless.

    As a matter of course, Jiang Hai stated: ¡°Then quit and work in a different industry.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was in shock. Quit? How could Jiang Hai audaciously suggest such a thing to Su Yuan. She was the one who vowed to be a female architect!

    However, Su Yuan didn¡¯t seem to have much of a reaction. There was a void of emotion in her voice. Calmly she admitted: ¡°I¡¯ve thought about it, but I am afraid to walk away because I might nevere back to the construction industry. After studying for so many years, I have invested so much. I am really reluctant to leave.¡±

    Jiang Hai sighed: ¡°One has to eat.¡±

    After hearing Su Yuan¡¯s woes, Zhang Siyi felt ufortable. Although he wanted to help her, he had to talk to Gu Yu first. Because he didn¡¯t want to give her false hope, he offered her some encouragement: ¡±Don¡¯t give up so easily. My senior said that after the winter, the market will get better in the spring. I remember you said you wanted to go back and study for Part2... What will you do if you quit?¡±

    Su Yuan smiled bitterly: ¡°I¡¯ve already abandoned that idea six months ago. This road is too long and I can¡¯t afford it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi opened his mouth as if to say something encouraging, but silence followed. Even though he wanted to convince her that her efforts weren¡¯t in vain, he didn¡¯t know what to say to help her. As he was about to continue, Ren Mengyu and her boyfriend walked in.

    Su Yuan immediately reced her bleak expression with a smile for the newly arrived couple. Unlike his friend, Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t able to set aside his emotions so quickly. He felt that Su Yuan smile was somewhat far-fetched.

    ¡°Hey! The person with a big game to y has finally arrived!¡± Su Yuan joked.

    Zhang Siyi turned his head to look at the topic of conversation of their group chat these past few days. He was dressed in a ck overcoat and hanging around his neck was a grey Hermes scarf. The person in the flesh looked even more handsome than the photograph. His temperament seemed better too.

    In a low melodic voice, like the distant mncholy of a cello, Zhang Siyi heard Bai Rui address everyone at the table: ¡°Hello.¡±

 Chapter 176: French Fries

    <h4>Chapter 176: French Fries</h4>

    __________________________

    Since the ambient temperature inside the restaurant was warm, Bai Rui took off his coat and hung it on the back of his chair. The silk shirt that wrapped around his torso entuated his wide shoulders and broad chest. With his well-muscled physique, he looked both elegant and masculine.

    Now that Zhang Siyi has met him in real life, it wasn¡¯t surprising how obsessive Ren Mengyu was behaving. Regardless of his temperament and appearance, his presence was above all others. Bai Rui lived outside ordinary people and like Gu Yu, some people were born to shine above everyone else.

    Tian Yujing began to stare at him unabashedly. Although she already had Jiang Hai sitting beside her, it didn¡¯t stop her from appreciating an exceedingly handsome man.

    Among them, only Su Yuan has seen Bai Rui before. When she saw Ren Mengyu with her boyfriend again, she couldn¡¯t stop herself from feeling envious.

    Presumably Ren Mengyu was out with Bai Rui. With someone as high status as Bai Rui, she felt overjoyed at being able to unt her perfect boyfriend. Since she easily attracted the stares of onlookers, who wouldn¡¯t want to be the center of attention and show off?

    Fortunately, as Zhang Siyi was with Gu Yu every day, he was immune to Bai Rui¡¯s charms and remainedpletely calm.

    The group sat together around a small rectangr table. While the couples sat two by two on the long side of the table, Su Yuan and Zhang Siyi sat on the narrow ends of the table opposite each other. Bai Rui happen to sit to the left of Zhang Siyi.

    After everyone introduced themselves, Ren Mengyu asked: ¡°Did you already order?¡±

    Jiang Hai smiled: ¡°We were waiting for the gold master! Come now, pick out the food!¡±

    Ren Mengyu opened the menu and leaned towards Bai Rui affectionately. She said: ¡°Hmm, what do you want to eat?¡±

    Bai Rui look at her and politely said: ¡°Don¡¯t worry about me. You are here to enjoy your time with friends. Let them pick out the food.¡±

    Attitude; full marks, etiquette; full marks, intonation; full marks...... simply impable!

    Holding her face, Tian Yujing admired Ren Mengyu: ¡°Your boyfriend is so handsome!¡±

    Jiang Hai¡¯s mouth twitched: ¡°Hey, I am still sitting here.¡±

    As the crowdughed, the previous tense atmosphere was broken. Even though Bai Rui also smiled and looked very gentle, Zhang Siyi felt that he was detached from the group. Just as Gu Yu said, he can¡¯t control other people¡¯s affairs. He had nothing to do with Bai Rui and was simply present to at the restaurant to reminisce and visit old ssmates. After eating, he nned on meeting Gu Yu at the lecture.

    Su Yuan responded: ¡°Well, unlike the typical family style way that Chinese cuisine is served, this is an English restaurant so we should order our own tes. There are a lot of hand-held foods in western cuisine.¡±

    Having decided to order separately, the group readily opened the menu.

    British cuisine is rather heavy and rich. They chose this restaurant, not for the joy of the food, but to remember the good times in the UK during University.

    Since the owner of the restaurant is a Londoner, the English cuisine here is fairly authentic. The raw materials for all ingredients are imported from abroad. They also serve other western styled dished like steak and pasta. However, when the restaurant opened in China, the boss had to do as the Romans do..... British cuisine is definitely not attracting Chinese customers.

    The girls were afraid of all the calories typically associated with British food, so they ordered something simple; skinless chicken breasts. Jiang Hai and Bai Rui ordered a steak.

    Zhang Siyi was used to eating western food that was Italian and was pickier about the quality and freshness of steak. Ironically, he had no problems eating fish and chips from British street vendors.

    Although the reputation of the restaurant was very good, in the eyes of Chinese, fish and chips was considered a snack food and not something to order for dinner. Today, they were Ren Mengyu¡¯s invited guests so naturally, Bai Rui felt responsible for summing up the order. When he saw Zhang Siyi only ordering fish and chips, he couldn¡¯t help but ask: ¡°Nothing else?¡±

    When he spoke to Zhang Siyi, he attracted the attention of Ren Mengyu. She smiled and said: ¡°How can you still order this type of food that children eat?¡±

    Jiang Hai followed up: ¡°You should eat less junk food. The online review said the steak is very good.¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°Yes, French fries are very high in calories.¡±

    Zhang Siyi isn¡¯t afraid of high calories. He insisted: ¡°I want to eat them. I haven¡¯t had English food for a very long time.¡± It is precisely because he eats very healthy at home every day with Gu Yu that he wants to indulge today. In addition, the menu had both nutritional information and photographs of the avable dishes. The meal would certainly berge enough for an adult to eat.

    Zhang Siyi thought that they really didn¡¯t understand the joys of eating junk food while chatting. One of life¡¯s simple pleasures is snacking on French fries while gossiping!

    When the dishes were served, Zhang Siyi¡¯s te was really huge. The golden French fries were on a wooden cutting board with fried potato skins, bacon pieces, and roasted tomatoes. The unique color and delicious aroma of Zhang Siyi¡¯s te immediately made the food the focus of everyone¡¯s attention.

    Zhang Siyi sprinkled a bit of salt and pepper on the fries then picked up his favorite condiment and squeezed it on top. The English style fries were cut thick and fat. Zhang Siyi speared one with a fork and bit down on one end. The outside was crisp and the inside was soft and delicious.

    ¡°Ah, Little Yi, those look really delicious....¡±

    ¡°Let me try one.¡± Jiang Hai was close to him and directly used his fork to spear a fry from Zhang Siyi¡¯s te. Everyone witnessed his casual attitude so everyone else at the table followed suit.

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t mind sharing a few with his friends, but he didn¡¯t have an inexhaustible supply on his te. Seeing that the fries on his te were being reduced at a visible speed, Zhang Siyi was starting to panic. He quickly blocked his te with his hands: ¡°Hey! That¡¯s enough! This is my food!¡±

    Ren Mengyuughed: ¡°Don¡¯t be so stingy. Ha-ha-ha, you can just order more!¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°You heard the boss! Don¡¯t worry about saving the gold master¡¯s money.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.......¡± Whatever happened to the concern of junk food and high calories!?

    Bai Rui sat aside quietly and smiled at the group of friends. He was older than all of them and although he came as Ren Mengyu¡¯s boyfriend, he always treated them as youngsters. He never intended to fit in with the group.

    Watching Zhang Siyi¡¯s anxious expressions over his fries spurred Bai Rui on. He couldn¡¯t help but want to tease him. As a result, like the others, Bai Rui impulsively speared a fry directly from Zhang Siyi¡¯s te.

    Since Zhang Siyi had already been a bit irritated at watching his cherished french fries disappear, his line of site followed thetest fry into Bai Rui¡¯s mouth. Zhang Siyi stared at him for a moment. Having food casually stolen from your te by friends was one thing, but having it taken away by a stranger was another. Bai Rui was somewhat embarrassed at his action and ducked out of sight.

    Bai Rui¡¯s move also surprised Ren Mengyu. He always did what a boyfriend was supposed to do; he brought her out to eat fancy dinners, they watched movies together, went shopping;vish gifts weren¡¯t umon. Although Bai Rui was gentle and very considerate towards her, his attitude was always rather remote. It was as though he was simply following a list of routine chores to finish. As a result, there were neither heartfelt moments nor mood fluctuations between them. Since the beginning of their rtionship, her ¡°perfect boyfriend¡± has always maintained a safe distance from her.

    Even though Ren Mengyu posted many photos on dates with him to her social media pages, she knew deep down, she was just deluding herself. She pretended that they had a close, sweet rtionship, but on the contrary, their rtionship wasn¡¯t sweet and was at an impass.

    Some say that woman have a natural and very urate ¡®sixth-sense¡¯ and Ren Mengyu is no different. Subconsciously, she felt that her interactions with Bai Rui were just a game and rather absurd. Since she felt that something wasn¡¯t quite right, in order to maintain her self-deception, she repeatedly asked the people around her for their opinions.

    Even so, Ren Mengyu wasn¡¯t able to pull herself out of her own fantasy of love because she was too self-absorbed with the image that Bai Rui brought her when she went out with him.

    In fact, Ren Mengyu devised a little test for her boyfriend. When he met Su Yuan for the first time, Ren Mengyu wanted to know if he would treat her any differently. As with Ren Mengyu, he maintained a simr polite distance with Su Yuan. Since Bai Rui didn¡¯t make any ambiguous actions towards Su Yuan, Ren Mengyu felt satisfied.

    In addition, she used other meetings with her colleagues to check out Bai Rui¡¯s behavior. Tonight, Ren Mengyu brought Bai Rui with her to meet her ssmates in order to verify his feelings and her status.

    However, watching Bai Rui so easily stick his fork onto Zhang Siyi¡¯s te to grab a fry made Ren Mengyu think deeper. Out of all the times Bai Rui has dined with Ren Mengyu, there was never a time when he touched her te. His action tonight was particrly unexpected.

    Even in the face of an anomaly, Ren Mengyu wasn¡¯t surprised. After all, everyone in the group was eating french fries from Zhang Siyi¡¯s te. She thought Bai Rui could be affected by the cheerful and happy atmosphere.

    Zhang Siyi was totally robbed. Looking at his empty te, he sighed, helpless. Instead, he ordered an egg benedict.

    While everyone was enjoying their meal, they continued to talk about the current trends in the construction industry. Since Su Yuan didn¡¯t want to talk about her bleak status with outsiders, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t get the chance to further encourage her. After telling each other about the projects they have worked on, it turned out that the person with the most enriched work experienced was Zhang Siyi.

    If he was like himself a year ago, he would want to brag about his current position, but now that he had been part of the industry for a year, he was well aware of his own shorings. It was especially so because his role model, Gu Yu, was with him every day. He served to remind Zhang Siyi just how limited his current abilities as an architect were.

    The incident in Japan with Lu Qiao also made Zhang Siyi realize the importance of being modest and low-key. Thest thing he wanted was unwanted attention both for private matters and for the sake of his friends who were struggling. Despite trying his best, when Zhang Siyi mentioned a couple of things, his friends were rather envious.

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°Oh my God! Yourpany can afford a business trip abroad!?¡±

    Zhang Siyi scratched his head: ¡°They go every few years. I was luckily enough to have started working at a time that permitted me to go on thepany¡¯s trip.

    Jiang Hai: ¡°It¡¯s better than nothing!¡± ¡°

    Su Yuan: ¡°Hey, when I first started working, thepany also mentioned a business trip, but now they can¡¯t even afford to pay their employees, let alone travel!¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°Yes, if we want to travel we have to spend our own money!¡±

    Zhang Siyi said: ¡°Well, thepany didn¡¯t pay for the whole trip and we weren¡¯t there for fun. It was primarily for educational purposes and we had a strict schedule to visit architectural sites.¡±

    Afraid of being hated by his friends due to his good situation, Zhang Siyi hastened to change the subject: ¡°Has anyone been in contact with our other ssmates?¡± Both Yu Rui and Xue Wenhan had stayed in Ennd to earn a Master¡¯s degree. Zhang Siyi surmised they probably finished their studies by now. ¡°How have they been doing?¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°Actually, the other day I saw something about Yu Rui online !¡±

    Su Yuan interest was piqued and was eager to ask: ¡°How was she?¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°She has an internship with The Firm!¡±

    Su Yuan¡¯s face changed: ¡°The Firm?¡±

    The Firm was a very famous architectural designpany in the UK located in London. It has always been the gildedpany that British architectural students yearn for. With the state of the construction market, a job in China wasn¡¯t easy to find, let alone in the UK. It was practically impossible to get a position within the most prestigious Firm in Ennd.

    Ren Mengyu had always felt that Yu Rui used alternate methods to seed. Ren Mengyu never would have guessed she also used the same methods to climb up the corporatedder instead of using her own abilities.

    With emotion, Ren Mengyu continued: ¡°Yes. In school she had poor grades and relied on boyfriends to help with projects. How can she get a job like that without being the boss¡¯s secret mistress? With just luck?¡±

    Hearing the news, Su Yuan was hit hard mentally and began to doubt herself.

    ____________

 Chapter 177: Comparison

    <h4>Chapter 177: Comparison</h4>

    ____________________

    Jiang Hai: ¡°How did she get in if she doesn¡¯t have a Master¡¯s degree in urban development and architectural research?¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°Yes, that¡¯s right. I remember the time when Su Yuan only had a Bachelors and applied to The Firm after she graduated, but was rejected.¡±

    Feeling depressed, Su Yuan¡¯s mood plummeted even further. She tly stated: ¡°A Master¡¯s degree was one of the requirements needed to apply to thepany. I simply took the chance and since I didn¡¯t fulfill those requirements, I was naturally refused.¡±

    Quickly, Ren Mengyu spoke up tofort her: ¡°Anyways, maybe she only used her embroidered pillow talk to get herself in the door. Who really knows what the current state of Yu Rui¡¯s design abilities are? Maybe her shorings would be exposed and she would have to leave after the internship.

    Jiang Hai also followed up: ¡°Yes. That¡¯s true. A prestigious ce like The Firm wouldn¡¯t retain someone who didn¡¯t have real talent.¡±

    Silently listening to the group¡¯s conversation for a while, Bai Rui wondered: ¡°Who is Yu Rui and why do you hate her so much?¡±

    For a moment, Ren Mengyu was surprised at Bai Rui¡¯s interest with their conversation. She immediately told the narrative of Yu Rui¡¯s deeds in University throughout the years with her. And thus, she spected the real reason why she had an internship at The Firm.

    While Su Yuan and Jiang Hai asionally echoed a few sentiments, Zhang Siyi remained silent and only listened.

    Not only did Gu Yu dislike gossip, he also didn¡¯t want Zhang Siyi talking about other people¡¯s opinions in his presence. As a result of Gu Yu¡¯s influence, Zhang Siyi stopped gossiping about others people¡¯s business. Once he remained silent, he realized how good of a habit it truly was because his thoughts were quite clear from outside influence.

    His ¡®wake-up-call¡¯ wasn¡¯t because he was confused before, but rather, he was able to think about the situation clearly and was better able to determine whether or not a person was biased.

    Zhang Siyi believed that Ren Mengyu¡¯s remarks had malicious exaggerated elements. Perhaps she used her phrasing as a means tofort Su Yuan.

    Thinking about it in detail, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t have direct conflicts with Yu Rui. His prejudice against her was in fact due to his group of friends gossiping about Yu Rui¡¯s poor behavior several times.

    Of course, there were indeed bad behaviors that she exhibited. As far as he knew, Yu Rui¡¯s undergraduate design thesis wasn¡¯t entirely her own. She had used her boyfriend¡¯s help toplete it. After Christmasst year, she came to find Zhang Siyi and tried to use him as a stepping-stone into Borderless. However, aside from Yu Rui¡¯s style, one-point Zhang Siyi had to admit was that she was very ¡®hard-working¡¯.

    Even though she used a variety of men to help her get ahead with her designs, written papers, and employment, she seized the opportunity at every chance to gain an advantage. This task is no less difficult and as a result, she probably didn¡¯t have an easier time then her ssmates had.

    Thinking of his work experience this past year, Zhang Siyi realized that peer rtionships in the industry are far moreplex than architectural calctions.

    The fact is, society can be cruel and dark and that lesson wasn¡¯t taught in University. Since the environment at university was sterile and invigorating, Yu Rui actions seemed to taint their learning experience. Since Yu Rui seemed to be doing quite well, the others felt resentful.

    ¡°Anyway, I don¡¯t like her attitude and her usual way of doing things. Anyone in contact with her would know she is such a bitch!¡± Ren Mengyu looked up at Bai Rui coyly and firmly stated: ¡°Ah! I hope you never will meet that kind of women. By eating men whole and leaving nothing, those types of women are like evil cannibals that will stop at nothing to get what they want!¡±

    Bai Rui smiled and didn¡¯t seem to be so concerned: ¡°I¡¯m not that stupid.¡±

    Ren Mengyu followed up: ¡°How can you remain so calm after hearing the methods she used?¡±

    Faintly, Bai Rui replied: ¡°What¡¯s so bad? She used her skills.¡±

    Ren Mengyu raised her eyebrows in surprised and asked: ¡°What skills? Do you think she did the right thing?¡±

    Bai Rui smiled a little and said: ¡°There is an absolute right and wrong in this world. One only needs to be yourself.¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°...¡±

    Listening to the slight sad, self-deprecating tone, Zhang Siyi nced at Bai Rui subconsciously and noticed Bai Rui was looking down, squinting in thought. With his face hidden, his thoughts were also hidden.

    Su Yuan¡¯s warm nature seemed to be in total opposite of Yu Rui nature in multiple aspects. Unlike Yu Rui, who wasn¡¯t fluent in English as a freshman, Su Yuan studied English for two years before going abroad. Su Yuan is a kind hearted person that is willing to help others. Although she put some distance between them once she learned of Yu Rui behaviors, she maintained her connection with her. She even extended a hand when Yu Rui needed a ce to stay in Haicheng.

    Along the way, she was supposed to be better than any of them, but at the moment she felt crushed by everyone else¡¯s achievements. Jiang Hai¡¯s good family background provided him a leg up with the start of his career. In addition to having help from family, Ren Mengyu also has a perfect boyfriend. Even the unremarkable Zhang Siyi hase from behind to be sessful. Of course, the biggest blow to her psyche would be a person like Yu Rui who used questionable means to get ahead in life.

    Su Yuan sighed. Feeling jealous and useless, she felt trapped in a dark abyss. It was suffocating. She was at her limit and thest straw was about to break her back.

    Looking at Su Yuan¡¯s despondent expression, Zhang Siyi thought of Lu Qiao when he was desperately crying under the tree in the garden of the inn in Kyoto.

    Su yuan reached up to caress her forehead. She spoke to everyone revealing her quivering voice: ¡°Although I know it isn¡¯t something as simple as right or wrong, when I see how well her career is going, it has made me second guess my actions. I¡¯m a little confused about whether or not it¡¯s the way of the world or it¡¯s something about myself...¡±

    Zhang Siyi suddenly interrupted her and cut her off: ¡°You are not wrong!¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°...¡±

    Startled at Zhang Siyi¡¯s unexpected and sudden outburst, everyone turned to stare at him.

    Immediately, Zhang Siyi followed Su Yuan: ¡°If Yu Rui really relied on special means to get the job at The Firm, then she is not worthy of envy. She has a Master¡¯s and a good job, but so what? How much of her effort was actually her own? Su Yuan, you are different. You are a hard-working down-to-earth person and from the beginning, you were our role model in University. Fame isn¡¯t measured by your sess of failure. You have true friends and by this fact, you are already better than her!¡±

    The group remained silent at Zhang Siyi¡¯s unexpected statement.

    Knowing how cheerful Su Yuan normally was, Zhang Siyi was anxious tofort her as he was afraid she would be depressed. He continued: ¡°One of my seniors told me, impulsiveness mostlyes from being unconfident and the root of the cause is not having enough experience. I used to feel architecture was very hard and a difficult path to pursue in life. No matter how hard I tried, there was someone else who was always better. The fact is, I don¡¯t have topare myself to anyone else.¡±

    Zhang Siyi learned his lesson while working with Tao Fei. After finishing his drawings, Zhang Siyi thought he was keeping up with him. When the project was presented as a whole, the difference between their abilities were clearly evident. Zhang Siyi¡¯s sense of achievement was crushed in a heart-beat. It wasn¡¯t until he changed his goal from peer-to-peerparison to an overall goal of being as good as Gu Yu that his hasty decisions and outlook in life changed. Since then, his sense of impetuousness has gradually disappeared.

    Zhang Siyi said: ¡°We only need topare ourselves with our past performance. It has nothing to do with others. As long as I am a better person them my past self, isn¡¯t that all that matters? Su Yuan, I know you like architecture. I still remember a time when you were upte designing and you told me that you gave up two years of college in order to pursue your architectural dreams..... Have you forgotten?¡±

    Under the stress of life, Zhang Siyi also forgot about his youthful dream. Gu Yu had reminded him and now, he has been standing in the distance with open arms, waiting for Zhang Siyi to catch up.

    Not only was Gu Yu his favorite person and eternal goal, he was also like a beacon, constantly guiding him and leading him forward. No matter how many obstacles were around Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu didn¡¯t let him retreat.

    With determination, Zhang Siyi simply gritted teeth and exhausted all his energy to just struggle and move forward. He didn¡¯t allow setbacks and distractions to get in his way. With such dedication and perseverance, he would achieve his goal. Then, when his youth was gone, Zhang Siyi wouldn¡¯t need toin about the injustice of the world and the cruelty of fate.

    ...............

    ¡°I know that the domestic construction market is also very bad at the moment. We can¡¯t change the world, but we can stick to our own path. Life will inevitably have some ups and downs. When you hit rock-bottom and feel tired, take a break, then move on. It is better than giving up. Su Yuan, you also mentioned the years spent learning architecture. How bitter would you feel if you tossed it aside? Remember the original reason you wanted to study architecture and focus on it to propel yourself forward.

    Caught in the moment, Zhang Siyi¡¯s serious lecture finally came to an end. When he looked around, everyone at the table was staring at him wide-eyed like they were noticing him for the first time.

    Feeling a little embarrassed, Zhang Siyi shrunk back and said: ¡°Um....¡±

    Breaking the silence, Jiang Hai spoke first. He eximed: ¡°Wow, Siyi! Look at you!¡±

    With admiration, Tian Yujing looked at him and spoke up: ¡°So philosophical!¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°When did you be so wise about life?¡±

    Even Bai Rui looked at him full of thought.

    Feeling moved, Zhang Siyi¡¯s words reached her heart. Su Yuan looked at Zhang Siyi for a long time and softly said: ¡°Thank you, Siyi.¡±

    Capturing the moment in a yful manner, Ren Mengyu started pping: ¡°Ah! He deserves a round of apuse!¡±

    Jiang Hai: ¡°Ha-ha-ha¡±

    While they were apuding, Zhang Siyi felt embarrassed: ¡°I, I just mentioned.....¡±

    Now feeling a little better, Su Yuan raised her soda cup and touched Zhang Siyi¡¯s ss: ¡°I didn¡¯t expect to be lectured by my little ssmate.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Well, I included some of my own feelings since working....¡±

    Su Yuan drank from her cup and said with emotion: ¡°As you said, I should really think about my reasons for being an architect. Right now, the situation is dragging me down and I feel like dying. Whether it is temporary or not, a job change might help me readjust my outlook and help me decide what I want.¡±

    Zhang Siyi nodded. Knowing his own words seemed to help his friend, he was really happy. He couldn¡¯t help himself: ¡°Mypany¡¯s working environment and wages are good. In fact, I can also ask mypany about employment. With your abilities, I feel like it would be a good match.¡±

    Su Yuan thought her experience at herpany wasmon among the businesses in the domestic construction industry. Now listening to Zhang Siyi, she was curious and asked him for details.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Currently, my wage is almost nine thousand, before tax.¡±

    Except for Bai Rui, in amazement, everyone else eximed: ¡°Wow! It turns out, the richest man here is you!¡±

    Su Yuan was both shocked and excited: ¡°More than twice as much as I earn now!¡±

    Scratching his head, Zhang Siyi said: ¡°Well.... actually, the wages aren¡¯t my main source of ie. Project bonuses are.¡±

    Jiang Hai joked: ¡°Looks like you are treating tonight!¡±

    When he heard Jiang Haiment, Zhang Siyi quickly stopped bragging: ¡°What! Why? I thought we were guests of Ren Mengyu¡¯s boyfriend! I don¡¯t believe he earns less than me!¡±

    Raising his eyebrows, Bai Rui looked at Zhang Siyi with a smile and asked: ¡°Who said that?¡±

 Chapter 178: Lecture

    <h4>Chapter 178: Lecture</h4>

    _____________________

    At a loss for words, Zhang Siyi was stunned at Bai Rui¡¯s rebuttal.

    Even though he didn¡¯t know the exact amount of Bai Rui true ie, he heard from Ren Mengyu in their chat group that he owns his ownpany and lived in a wealthy district in Haicheng. Certainly, Bai Rui has a lot of money!

    Aside from the info that his friend provided, he noticed the clothing he was wearing. On Bai Rui necky a Hermes grey scarf. Although he wasn¡¯t so keen on luxury goods since he couldn¡¯t afford them, Zhang Siyi had experience in fashion and fine arts and understood that most luxury goods focued on cutting-end designs that enhance one¡¯s image and aesthetic. Coincidentally, Zhang Siyi knew about the value of Bai Rui scarf because he went shopping the other day with Gu Yu and saw the exact same scarf in the Hermes shop window. The color was a unique shade of grey that left asting impression on Zhang Siyi.

    If the article of clothing was genuine, the value of the scarf was at least two months¡¯ worth of Zhang Siyi¡¯s sry. Since the consumption level was so high, ordinary people couldn¡¯t afford it. Before his friend¡¯s family went bankrupt, Fu Xinhui regrly spent money on items such as that.

    With Bai Rui¡¯s disposition, it would be impossible for him to be wearing high-end imitations, right? Knowing this, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t say anything directly. (¡ú_¡ú)

    Bai Rui¡¯s background was told to them in private. Althoughmoners in society continue to use one¡¯s financial status as a way to judge the worth of an individual, Zhang Siyi and his friends are well educated and know that asking a stranger about their ie is rude. If not for Su Yuan¡¯s situation, normally Zhang Siyi wouldn¡¯t have divulged his sry.

    Being caught between a rock and a hard ce, Zhang Siyi was hesitant. He wanted to defend himself, but he didn¡¯t want to reveal his own knowledge about luxury brands. Zhang Siyi said: ¡°Didn¡¯t Ren Mengyu say you were going to treat us? I didn¡¯t want to step on your toes.¡±

    If Bai Rui wasn¡¯t present, Zhang Siyi would step up and treat his friends, but today was a day for Ren Mengyu to show off her boyfriend. He didn¡¯t want to make a fuss over it.

    Bai Rui lifted his cup and sipped his tea then smiled: ¡°It¡¯s all right. Today, I gave you the opportunity to treat. Next time, be sure to pay.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡± Shit! Is Bai Rui scheming something? And besides, what about a next time? Who knows if that would be possible!

    Ren Mengyu finally couldn¡¯t stand it anymore and quickly solved the problem: ¡°Master Bai Rui, do you like to bully others? Today is the first time my ssmates have met you.¡±

    Bai Rui let out a soft chuckle then closed his mouth, ending his taunts. However, having made the remark, Zhang Siyi felt obligated and said: ¡°Coffee is on me. Let¡¯s stay for a little while longer.¡±

    The group gentlyughed then remained quiet. Feeling forgotten because of the exchange between her boyfriend and Zhang Siyi, Ren Mengyu went pale.

    After they finished eating, Bai Rui took the initiative to pay with his credit card. Afterwards, they walked to the coffee shop nearby. When the order was finished, Zhang Siyi was digging out his wallet, but before he could pay for the coffee, Bai Rui already swiped his credit card.

    ¡°Hey!¡± Zhang Siyi eximed: ¡°Didn¡¯t I say I would pay the bill?!¡±

    Before addressing Zhang Siyi, Bai Rui waited for the charge to go through. He turned and said: ¡°Oh, I forgot.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Fuck. Is he being toyed with?!

    Intending to smooth over the issue with Zhang Siyi, off to the side, Ren Mengyu turned to speak with him, but instead she watched the scene unfold before her. Bai Rui got his phone out from his coat and created his own electronic payment QR-code. He smiled and handed the phone to Zhang Siyi and said: ¡°Six cups of coffee came to two-hundred and fifteen. You can transfer the money to me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°.........¡±

    Even though he felt irritated over the exchange, Zhang Siyi felt duty bound and instead he quietly got his phone out to make the electronic payment for Bai Rui.

    If she hadn¡¯t seen it, Ren Mengyu wouldn¡¯t have believed it. Was there something wrong with Bai Rui? Did he forget to take his medicine? Why is he acting so abnormal?!

    Fortunately, the rest of the group didn¡¯t notice anything out of synch. After they found an empty table to sit around, with their coffee in hand, every continued to chat about their prospects. Zhang Siyi told his friends about his intentions to return to the UK to study for part2. With Blessings, everyone expressed their support.

    Thinking of Gu Yu and the lecture, near three o¡¯clock, Zhang Siyi frequently raised his arm to check his watch.

    Observant as always, Su Yuan noticed and asked him if he had other arrangements.

    Being caught in the act of not paying attention to his friends, Zhang Siyi felt a little embarrassed and said: ¡°No. Originally, I was going to attend a lecture at the Haicheng library with a friend, but I haven¡¯t seen you guys in a long time, so he went alone.¡±

    Jiang Hai urgently replied: ¡°Why didn¡¯t you say so? If you would like to go, then go! We can meet up at another time! It¡¯s not a problem!¡±

    Ren Mengyu also smiled and said: ¡°Yes! We can make arrangements for another time.¡±

    Zhang Siyi apologized: ¡°Then I will head out first. Thank You.¡±

    Su Yuan waved her hand: ¡°We¡¯ll be in touch soon.¡±

    Watching the back of Zhang Siyi¡¯s departure, Ren Mengyu said with emotion: ¡°Little Yi is really grown-up now.¡±

    Jiang Hai: ¡°Look at him working so hard. It puts me to shame.¡±

    Tian Yujing squeezed Jian Hai¡¯s hand: ¡°Aren¡¯t you already ashamed? Every day I watch you getzier andzier. All you do is y games after work.¡±

    Jiang Hai: ¡°Aren¡¯t you the same? You just look at social media every day after......¡±

    Sipping her already cooled coffee, Su Yuan listened to the lively banter between the couple sitting beside her. As she unconsciously tuned out the lovers¡¯ squabble, it became background noise and Su Yuan became lost in thought.

    She remembered how obsessed she was with the profession when she first came to love architecture. At that time, she was already in college and not in the architecture department. She attended architecture sses and went to the library to read architecture-rted books. She visited every design pavilion in the city. Every morning when she saw the architecture students with their drawing boards, T-squares and rulers running to and fro, looking worn-out and disheveled, she became quite envious.

    Despite everyone telling her ¡®architecture was a difficult path¡¯ and ¡®you¡¯ll regret it for sure¡¯, she took the IELTS exam without hesitation and applied to the major then embarked on a long journey towards a career in architecture.

    During her studies in the UK, since she never wanted to miss an opportunity, she also kept a close eye on various architectural rted lectures and events. At that time, any extracurricr activities concerning architecture made her heart sore. Her eyes would glow, just like Zhang Siyi¡¯s.

    When was thest time she went to an architectural lecture or to a design exhibition? Comparing her attitude during university to present, what happened? In the past six months, she really regretted her choice. The pressure of reality extinguished all her enthusiasm for architecture and forced her to a cliff. If it wasn¡¯t for meeting Zhang Siyi today, maybe she really had forgotten why she wanted to study architecture in the first ce.

    ***

    Even though Zhang Siyi rushed to the Haicheng Library, the lecture wasing to an end. He didn¡¯t want to cause a disturbance, so he quietly found a seat in the back and listened while watching the crowd in front of him.

    With one nce, Zhang Siyi easily spotted the familiar figure of Gu Yu. Even the back of his head was the most handsome. With only two rows between them, Gu Yu wasn¡¯t seated far away...... But why was he surrounded by beautiful women? (=_=)

    Gu Yu listened very attentively. Although he was surrounded by all kinds of women, he didn¡¯t pay any attention to them. When the speaker took questions, he bowed his head for a little while. Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know what Gu Yu was doing.

    Momentster, Zhang Siyi could feel his mobile phone vibrate. Gu Yu had sent him a message.

    Gu Yu: ¡°Are you still with your friends?¡±

    Gu Yu: [Little Fox Question Mark]

    Zhang Siyi grinned mischievously. He wanted to surprise Gu Yu, so he said: ¡°Yes. Sorry, I can¡¯t meet you there. Is the lecture finished?¡± [Cute Kitten]

    Gu Yu: ¡°It will be soon. Want me to pick you up?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Oh, no need!¡±

    Gu Yu: [Little Fox Depressed]

    After several rounds of on-site questions-and-answers, the lecture was officially closed. As most attendees were in the industry, it was a good time towork. Everyone got up to mingle.

    Because Shishang is a younger architect, there were some girls in the audience who came up to the stage and asked for an autograph. It was a bit like chasing idols.

    Gu Yu wasn¡¯t interested in socializing, so he gathered his belongings and prepared to leave the library. Zhang Siyi wanted to rush up and surprise him, but Instead, the girls around him addressed Gu Yu before he had the chance to move.

    One of the beautiful girls actively called out to him and stopped him: ¡°Excuse me, are you an architect?¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s figure turned to address the girl quietly: ¡°Hmm...¡±

    The girl blushed and said: ¡°Can I get your business card?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Damn it! That bold girl is hitting on him!

    Gu Yu politely replied: ¡°¡¯I¡¯m Sorry, I didn¡¯t bring a business card.¡±

    Although his refusal made Zhang Siyi feel better, the corner of Zhang Siyi¡¯s mouth was twitching. How does he not have one? Gu Yu normally ces a few business cards in his wallet. However, this fact didn¡¯t stop the girl. She eagerly took out a small notepad and directly asked Gu Yu for his phone number. Looking at her for a few seconds, Gu Yu sighed then reluctantly picked up her pen and wrote a string of numbers on the book.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°!!!¡± Fuck! With one look, anyone could tell that the girl is interested in you! Why did you leave your phone number with her? Won¡¯t you refuse her again?!

    Not only did she get Gu Yu¡¯s number, but the few other women surrounding them also saw the number.

    Clearly, they were there to seriously listen to Shishang¡¯s lecture but now, they acted like blushing schoolgirls excited to get a boy¡¯s phone number. Zhang Siyi was quickly bing agitated. .... Damn it. When the girls aren¡¯t even paying attention to the lecture anymore, can Gu Yu be more effective at rejecting them?

    Waiting for the girls to move away after asking for Gu Yu¡¯s phone number, Zhang Siyi squinted angrily. The small group of girls around Gu Yu caused people to notice them. One passer-by recognized Gu Yu and called out: ¡°Hey isn¡¯t he the director of Borderless?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± (=_=)

    Haicheng architectural circle is too small... The girls were shell-shocked and the people nearby where amazed at hearing the news; so young and dazzling!

    One older woman recognized Gu Yu and made her way towards him in an effort to start a conversation. Finally, not being able to take it anymore, Zhang Siyi rushed forward and called out his lover¡¯s name: ¡°Gu Yu!¡±

 Chapter 179: Argument

    <h4>Chapter 179: Argument</h4>

    _____________________

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s loud voice sessfully rescued Gu Yu. The people staring at them in the lecture hall focused their attention elsewhere and the surrounding people began to move away.

    After they left the library, like it was stuffed with a steamed bun, Zhang Siyi¡¯s face continued to bulge in anger. In contrast, Gu Yu¡¯s happy face was stretched wide in surprise.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t you say that you wouldn¡¯t make it?¡± Gu Yu asked, smiling.

    Anxious, Zhang Siyi exhaled and answered him sharply: ¡°I was lying! I was already there sitting behind you!¡±

    Zhang Siyi was very much looking forward to seeing his lover. Instead, he got to witness the swarm of women¡­¡­ Do you know what it is like to lose all hope? This is it!

    Now that Gu Yu knew Zhang Siyi had ben behind him watching, he could guess why Zhang Siyi looked unhappy. He was probably jealous.

    Gu Yu softly asked: ¡°Do you want to go out for dinner tonight? Thest time you said you wanted to eat at that famous steak restaurant?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡­¡± ying foul! He is even trying to tempt me with food!

    Even so, since he didn¡¯t eat beef at lunch with his friends, he really wanted to eat a juicy steak now¡­ (&_&)

    Zhang Siyi snorted and said: ¡°Okay.¡±

    Gu Yu smiled and messed up his hair with his hand. After getting on the subway, he asked: ¡°How was your ss reunion?¡±

    Not forgetting about Su Yuan¡¯s situation, Zhang Siyi summed up his experience with his friends.

    While listening to Zhang Siyi talk about his friends, Gu Yu smiled, but when Su Yuan¡¯s situation came up, he became serious: ¡°I¡¯m afraid not.¡±

    Even though Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t get the chance to talk to him about it in detail, he was outright rejected. He heatedly debated: ¡°Why not?¡±

    Gu Yu exined: ¡°It¡¯s true. There is a downturn in the industry and there are manyyoffs everywhere. Even at Borderless, there wasn¡¯t an interest to employ new staff this past year. There weren¡¯t any exceptions.¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s refusal greatly surprised Zhang Siyi. Since his expectations weren¡¯t met, he frowned and shouted: ¡°How can you stand there calmly and tell me there are no exceptions?! What about Tao Fei?! Are you so untouchable that you can open the backdoor for him, but when ites to me, you aren¡¯t willing to help my friend?¡±

    Gu Yu turned his head to look at him in the eye and said: ¡°Can you guarantee that your ssmate¡¯s talent is superior to that of Tao Fei¡¯s ability? Then I can take back what I said.¡±

    Stunned, Zhang Siyi was unable to speak. This of course was impossible. As a person with a master¡¯s degree, Tao Fei foundation was deep. How can Su Yuanpare with him? But Gu Yu¡¯s strict and righteous attitude made Zhang Siyi angrier.

    Zhang Siyi no longer had an appetite. As the subway arrived at the station where the restaurant was, he was fuming and eximed: ¡°I don¡¯t want to eat steak anymore. I want to go home!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°¡­¡­¡±

    Although Zhang Siyi knew in his heart that Gu Yu had to be fair, he had hoped Gu Yu would give his friend a chance because they were lovers. What¡¯s more, Su Yuan was an excellent student with great teamwork ability. He wouldn¡¯t have brought it up if he didn¡¯t think Su Yuan wouldn¡¯t be a great addition to any design team. Can¡¯t Gu Yu see that this issue was important to Zhang Siyi? How could Gu Yu be so cold and ruthless!?

    ¡­¡­ Aaaaaaah! I¡¯m so mad at him! ! ! (Ü³ÃóÜ³)

    The swift change of Zhang Siyi¡¯s demeanor and deration was a bit of a surprise for Gu Yu. Now in the subway, people were all around them. Without privacy, Gu Yu couldn¡¯t discuss the issue further.

    The abrupt silence between them was deafening. They turned around to go home without a word. Out of the station, Zhang Siyi felt the cold wind seep into his bones as he walked briskly home in front of Gu Yu.

    Gu Yu followed from behind, frowning. Gu Yu silently endured his young lover¡¯s temper.

    When Zhang Siyi entered the house, he recklessly kicked off his shoes and flopped on the sofa face down sulking. The world was so unfair!

    Close behind, Gu Yu stood at the entrance for a while in silence then picked up Zhang Siyi shoes and neatly ced them in the closet.

    Lost in thought the whole way home, Gu Yu struggled to understand what happened between them. He wondered what he said that was so wrong. Watching Zhang Siyi continue to ignore him on the couch, Gu Yu felt like a hundred ws were tearing at his heart.

    Eventually, he sighed and relented: ¡°Tell your ssmate to make an appointment for an interview.¡±

    Hearing Gu Yu¡¯s unexpected remark, Zhang Siyi was even angrier. He loudly refused: ¡°Don¡¯t.¡±

    In worry, the blood drained from Gu Yu face leaving him looking pale. He stated: ¡°You are angry at my first refusal and now that I¡¯ve told you to make an appointment for her, you are also mad at me! What do you want me to do!?¡±

    Zhang Siyi jumped up and shouted: ¡°I don¡¯t need you to humor me!¡±

    At that moment, Gu Yu became angry. Originally, since he thought he had a good grasp on Zhang Siyi¡¯s mood, he thought he would be able to smooth things over with him but instead, he inadvertently made things worse.

    Gu Yu was afraid he would do something irrevocable. Not wanting to add fuel to the fire, Gu Yu said: ¡°Well, whatever.¡± He coldly turned around and went upstairs. Clearly, the start of another Cold War has begun.

    As Zhang Siyi stared at Gu Yu¡¯s back while he walked away. He grumbled to himself ¨C Oh, great director! Tut! When I am old, I will start my ownpany and higher whomever I want to!

    It just so happened that Gu Yao was staying with a friend for the weekend and wouldn¡¯t be home tonight. She specifically told her brother so he could spend some quality time with Zhang Siyi. Ironically, her well wishes backfired.

    Curled up on the sofa, Zhang Siyi held his knees close feeling overwhelmingly depressed and helpless. In particr, he felt guilty for offering something he couldn¡¯t follow through with.

    Thinking he could help with ease, he offered help, but now that he hit a wall, Zhang Siyi felt humiliated. Even though he didn¡¯t promise anything specific, he struggled with how he should brooch the subject with her. He hated being the harbinger of bad news.

    Tao Fei was right. There really was a special hot-love period in the beginning and when it ended, the attitude between lovers changed. Initially, he had the ¡®boyfriend¡¯s privilege¡¯, but now, not only he has been pressed hard with office work, he also felt stressed over sex. ¡­¡­You¡¯re the puppy! Bastard!

    For a long time, Zhang Siyi stayed on the sofa ruminating about his perceived injustice. The room gradually darkened as dusk approached. Feeling cold, his grumbling stomach reminded him how hungry he really was.

    He has begun to regret the whole thing. His outburst caused him to fight with Gu Yu because of a ssmate who he hasn¡¯t spoken to in many months. Was it worth it? If he hadn¡¯t mentioned Su Yuan, wouldn¡¯t he be at a fancy restaurant with a stomach full of tasty steak? It could have been a perfect Saturday.

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s refusal for help from Gu Yu didn¡¯t help the matter. Lost in thought, he wondered if the situation could have been better if he had given up earlier but, what would he be if he let Gu Yu meet his personal demands out of anger? Even if Gu Yu agreed, it wasn¡¯t from his own will to help his ssmate and that detail was what made Zhang Siyi feel very bad. Although he didn¡¯t want to anger Gu Yu, in response, Zhang Siyi denied his offer.

    What he was most angry about was Gu Yu¡¯splete unsympathetic and unmable attitude. Thinking about it further made Zhang Siyi even more irritated because he is the one that loves Gu Yu and his quirks after all!

    With all the negativity circting through his brain, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t help but think about the women surrounding Gu Yu at the lecture. He scornfullyughed at himself. For a long time, he hasn¡¯t heard a peep from Gu Yu. Perhaps, he soughtfort from one of the newly acquired numbers from the women at the lecture.

    When Zhang Siyi felt the phone vibrate in his pocket, he thought it was Gu Yu texting him since a long time had passed. He eagerly and excitedly looked at his phone.

    What? It turns out that the message was just a strange text.¡­¡­

    Reading the contents of the text further, Zhang Siyi froze. It said: ¡°Hello! My name is Xie Shulei and I was the first girl to ask for your number this afternoon at the lecture. I¡¯m currently an architectural designer and my usual hobbies are¡­¡­¡±

    After her long text of self-introduction, Zhang Siyi saw a list of interests that were stereotypically considered cute. What is this? Confused, he hesitated for a while and contemted the text before he could react. A message like that is hard to ignore, but why is he receiving them in the first ce?

    He checked his voicemail and there were more then a dozen messages waiting, some of which he received over an hour ago while he was on the subway¡­¡­

    ¡­¡­¡±Hello handsome. We met today at the lecture. I feel we have the same interests, lets get to know each other!¡±

    ¡­¡­¡±I heard that you are the design director of Borderless. Are you taking job applications?¡±

    After reading a few messages, the absurdity of the situation made Zhang Siyi want tough¡­. That guy, he¡¯s too much!

    Finally feeling more rxed, Zhang Siyi rubbed his moist eyes and adjusted his attitude. He slowly pushed himself up to a sitting position on the sofa then stood up. Hey, there is always someone who must be able to take the first step¡­. He mustered up the courage to go upstairs.

    Now that the sun had set, the room was dark. He walked halfway up the stairs to the corner tform and as soon as he looked up, he saw a dark figure sitting on the top step.

    Startled, Zhang Siyi almost jumped in fright. Looking again, he quickly realized it was Gu Yu.

    Gu Yu sat on the highest step with his head hung low. When Zhang Siyi approached, he looked up at him with a deste expression.

    ¡°You. Why are you sitting there¡­.?¡± Zhang Siyi asked with a guilty conscience.

    Gu Yu did not speak. When his eyes focused on Zhang Siyi¡¯s face, he stood up and walked slowly step by step towards him until he reached Zhang Siyi. Not knowing Zhang Siyi mood, like testing the temperature of a stove, Gu Yu tentatively reached out to grasp his arm. When Zhang Siyi remained motionless and quiet, Gu Yu felt relieved and pulled Zhang Siyi close into his embrace.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡­¡±

    Holding onto his waist with one hand and rubbing Zhang Siyi¡¯s back with the other, Gu Yu sighed in Zhang Siyi¡¯s ear in distress: ¡°What do you want me to do?¡±

    A simple phrase and yet it was said with such loneliness and helplessness. Zhang Siyi listened with regret. His heart suddenly leaped up into his throat.

    ¡°I, I¡­.¡± Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know what to say. Even though he was very angry before, now he felt like he had been wrong. He quickly held Gu Yu tightly and buried his face on Gu Yu¡¯s shoulder. Sullenly, he muffled: ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was sorry for his argument with Gu Yu and not for trying to help Su Yuan. Knowing that he caused Gu Yu to suffer needlessly, any perceived wrongdoing was instantly forgotten.

    Once again in Gu Yu arms, Zhang Siyi wondered why he made such a fuss to begin with. As long as he can love Gu Yu and be loved in return, there was no reason to fight. He shouldn¡¯t be poking around in other people¡¯s business when his priority was to take care of the man in front of him.

    As if begging for mercy, Gu Yu pleaded: ¡°Don¡¯t argue with me. I can¡¯t stand it any longer¡­¡± Then, he softly kissed Zhang Siyi¡¯s forehead.

    ¡°Well¡­¡± Only a syble was spoken as Zhang Siyi¡¯s remark was interrupted by Gu Yu¡¯s kiss on his lips.

    Enjoying the warmth of reconciliation, they hungrily kissed each other¡¯s lips and entwined their tongues.

    As their deep and passionate kiss ended, they moved from the stairs to the bedroom. Along the way, they eagerly undressed each other. As Gu Yu¡¯s desire for the man he loved grew, the negative emotions he bottled up required release. As a result, as love and desperation melded into one need, his emotions took on a physical form. Gu Yu pressed Zhang Siyi down onto the bed and fiercely entered him.

 Chapter 180: Reconciliation

    <h4>Chapter 180: Reconciliation</h4>

    ______________________

    Lying motionless on the bed breathing heavily, from the throes of passion, Zhang Siyi¡¯s mind was numb from pleasure. ying with Zhang Siyi¡¯s earlobe, Gu Yu was still on top of him. After a long time, Zhang Siyi regained his senses and wiped his red, moist eyes. With a hoarse voice, heined: ¡°Asshole.¡±

    Due to their charged emotions and heightened feelings from their fight, they were unusually intense in bed. Moving his lips alongside Zhang Siyi¡¯s neck slowly, pausing here and there, Gu Yu kissed him tenderly. He said: ¡°Who told you to start a fight?¡± At the base of his neck, Gu Yu sucked particrly hard, leaving a punitive mark.

    Zhang Siyi muttered: ¡°Who wants to argue with you......¡±

    ¡°You didn¡¯t?..... Because of my refusal to help your ssmates with thepany, you immediately threw a fit and decided not to eat. You know that my hands are tied, and yet you put me in a difficult position and asked me anyways. I don¡¯t want to fight with you, but I can¡¯tpromise. You think I don¡¯t care about you......What did you tell me to do?¡± Gu Yu looked up at him and sighed helplessly. He brandished his hands to loosely grasped Zhang Siyi¡¯s neck and squeeze. He whispered: ¡°I¡¯m so furious with you that I could kill you.¡±

    When enough pressure was on his throat to feel his breath being affected, he swatted Gu Yu arms away. Gu Yu, such a proud man. Being forced to sit on the stairs for an hour and a half and then pleading with Zhang Siyi waspletely unexpected behavior. In that moment, it showed how indignant and dire Gu Yu really felt.

    Now that their negative emotions were vented, they could finally calm down and discuss it further. Zhang Siyi grabbed Gu Yu¡¯s hand and gently gave him a peck on the lips thenined: ¡°Clearly your attitude is too bad and unsympathetic!¡±

    He continued: ¡°Being two years older, Su Yuan is very mature. When we were abroad and new to the city, she showed us around and taught us where to go and what to avoid. She helped us with registration and getting the proper documents for foreigners. She even helped me get a local bank ount set up. Not only that, Su Yuan was exceptional with her academic studies in college. She would take time out of her busy schedule to help when we asked. She gave us tips and helped us organize our coursework. She showed us the best ces to buy materials for sses. Whether is was something about school or life, she was always there to help make things better. She is a very good-natured person. When I see her doing poorly, I really want to help her. At leastpared with my schoolwork, she always scored higher than I during University. I wouldn¡¯t have asked you if I didn¡¯t think she would be a capable member to Borderless¡¯s design team. It¡¯s not hard for you, is it? If you could interview her and see, I thought you would be able to understand. Instead, I got cold water poured on my head. How can I bear it and say nothing?¡±

    In quiet contemtion, Gu Yu listened to Zhang Siyi. When he finished, Gu Yu exined why he rejected him in the first ce: ¡°Siyi, the situation at Borderless isn¡¯t fairing any better than otherpanies. This past year,rge scale projects have been on the decline. Although you may not be aware, there are many projects that stall during the construction process and are abandoned partiallypleted. The upper managements kept those facts about a crisis away from their employees in order to maintain moral. Otherwise, it could affect the wholepany¡¯s performance and productivity. At present, thepany can maintain the current sry and benefits of its employees because there is an investor behind thepany. Since Borderless is a smaller design firm that strives to put out quality work instead of focusing on quantity, thepany hasn¡¯t been affected as much as other ces. At 20 people, we have a cohesive group of talented individuals. It is already saturated. There is a risk of breaking a team¡¯s cohesion when hiring new people, especially with less than a year¡¯s worth of work experience. I am too busy right now to bring in another new person. Think back to when you first started. How long did it take you to work on a simple task? Let alone, a big project? Do you know how much I expect from you? When I thought you were ready to be on your own, you even made a beginner mistake calcting area not long ago.¡± Thinking about it, Gu Yu pinched Zhang Siyi¡¯s chin.

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart lurched. Now that he heard Gu Yu give a detailed exnation, he understood why Gu Yu was so angry. Not only that, then Zhang Siyi said, ¡®don¡¯t humor me¡¯.... That was Gu Yu¡¯sst straw.

    Gu Yu continued: ¡°I don¡¯t know how otherpanies run their business, but at Borderless, instead of simply employing someone to ¡®work for thepany for a base wage¡¯, we recruit people and train them as independent talents. As a result, every single person who is looked at, must be carefully considered. Even though it¡¯s only been a year, no matter how much ability you think she had while studying, it is already in the past. Since different environments have different effects on people, her current ability is unknown. If she were to begin at thepany, she might be fine for a while, but what would happen if she no longer feltfortable with the work that was given to her? What would you do? Would you be responsible for her? For thepany? You would just feel more stressed about it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi listened attentively to Gu Yu¡¯s words. Now with mixed feelings, he thought his original idea was too na?ve. From Gu Yu perspective, it was much moreplex than it seemed! Feeling embarrassed, he covered his red face with his arms in guilt.

    Gu Yu rubbed his head and said: ¡°Also, many designpanies prohibit the recruitment of people from the same background. Since you two were abroad in the same ss, your experience was too simr. Your designs ideas inevitably would ovep and cause unnecessarypetition between team members. As a result, the bnce of working rtionships of the team would crumble and cause internal divisions and strife.¡±

    Zhang Siyi revealed his face and defended his friend: ¡°Su Yuan isn¡¯t that kind of person.¡±

    Gu Yu stretched out a finger to block his lips and interrupted him: ¡°Whether she is or not, I am the design director of Borderless. The first thing I must consider is thepany¡¯s situation, followed by you. Did you already forget what happen in Japan with Lu Qiao? If I recruit your ssmates into thepany, what do you suppose he would think? How about when Tao Fei began at thepany? Did you not suspect me of preferential treatment?¡±

    Zhang Siyi frankly admitted ¡°Uh-hmm.¡± When he first heard Tao Fei address Gu Yu with such familiarity, it was obvious how ufortable he felt.

    Gu Yu: ¡°Isn¡¯t that right? That is why I asked you if she had the ability beyond Tao Fei. If she could showcase her abilities to prove her worth as Tao Fei had done when he first came to thepany, then people would understand why she was recruited. Otherwise, if I recruit amon neer, people will start to suspect the impartiality of the employment.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m sorry...¡± As he listened to Gu Yu exnation, the more Zhang Siyi realized of his own ignorance and capriciousness. He lightly kissed Gu Yu and wrapped his arms around his waist, pampering him. Zhang Siyi looked up at him coyly and softly said: ¡°I know you have your strict principles and I don¡¯t want to embarrass you. I¡¯m sorry I took you for granted.¡±

    When Zhang Siyi argues, he fights like a lion with his ws out, ripping open hearts. But, once the quarrel passes, Zhang Siyi is like a soft harmless kitten, waiting to be petted. Witnessing his lover¡¯s contrasting mood swings, Gu Yu just wanted to cry andugh.

    This incident made Gu Yu learn about his own faults. If Zhang Siyi hadn¡¯t mentioned it, he wouldn¡¯t have learned about his ¡®cold and unsympathic attitude¡¯ that his lover perceived.

    Gu Yu reached around this ¡®cute kitten¡¯ and embraced him. Gu Yu pulled him close and asked: ¡°What about your ssmate? Why don¡¯t you let her have an interview?¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s not necessary.¡± Gu Yu exined the reasons for refusal so clearly. How could Zhang Siyi still be willful?

    In fact, when he was downstairs, he had already figured it out. For the sake of his friend, he jeopardized his rtionship with Gu Yu and regretted it.

    Discouraged, Zhang Siyi gloomily replied: ¡°I didn¡¯t offer anymitments. I¡¯ll let her know that Borderless isn¡¯t recruiting.¡±

    Listening to Zhang Siyi¡¯s somewhat frustrated tone, Gu Yu offered: ¡°In fact, it¡¯s not like I didn¡¯t want to help you help her. I have been in this business for a long time after all and I know a lot of peer businesses. If she has the will to changepanies, let her prepare a new resume and portfolio. When it¡¯s ready, we can meet, and I can assess her capabilities and rmend apany that she is suited for. Maybe it could change her current situation.¡±

    ted, Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart was happy: ¡°Why didn¡¯t you say so from the start!?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°......¡± Because someone just blew up at me......

    ¡°All right! I will tell herter!¡± With both arms and legs, Zhang Siyi wrapped himself around Gu Yu and squeezed him hard and excitedly kissed Gu Yu¡¯s face a few times. In between kisses he spoke: ¡°Say so earlier! ..... I¡¯ll have a better attitude...... I won¡¯t be angry! ..... You see.... I¡¯m not unreasonable.... right?¡±

    Gu Yuughed. He didn¡¯t want to mention how much of a temper his little fool had. He simply wanted to love him, and it seemed, these days, he spoiled him too much.

    Like wives seeking forgiveness on in a TV drama, talking coquettishly, Gu Yu raised an eyebrow and asked: ¡°Baby, did I do a bad thing?¡± With light caresses, he slid his hand down Zhang Siyi¡¯s abdomen and fondled his region tenderly. Zhang Siyi part was quickly ready for more.

    Zhang Siyi twisted and twisted and tried to get out of Gu Yu hold. He couldn¡¯t escape from Gu Yu talented hands. He called out for mercy: ¡°Enough is enough! I don¡¯t want...¡±

    Continuing his rubbing and smiling broadly, Gu Yu snorted: ¡°.... Just be honest.¡±

    The argument between them made Gu Yu fully understand Zhang Siyi soft-hearted character. If he was too rigid, both would end up getting hurt. Zhang Siyi Enjoyed the sensations for a moment until he suddenly remembered the previous text messages. He sat up and asked: ¡°Why did you give those girls my number? Am I a hotline?¡±

 Chapter 181: Repayment

    <h4>Chapter 181: Repayment</h4>

    ______________________

    Gu Yu asked: ¡°They called you?¡±

    Supposedly, Gu Yu didn¡¯t know that Zhang Siyi was nearby. If Zhang Siyi hadn¡¯t seen Gu Yu being approached by many women, he wouldn¡¯t have known he was being targeted. However, now that the girls have called and Zhang Siyi was the recipient of those calls, he ultimately learned about the many women that wanted to hook-up with Gu Yu. Did Gu Yu deliberately hand out his number to make him jealous?

    Grinding his teeth, Zhang Siyi sourly said: ¡°Yes. I think those people are interested in you. What are you going to do?¡±

    Gu Yu grinned and said: ¡°You decide.¡±

    ¡°¡­¡­.¡± Bastard! Gu Yu himself had caused the problem and instead of solving it, he passed the responsibility to Zhang Siyi!

    Feeling a little resentful, Zhang Siyi was about to retort but instead, his loud, growling stomach interrupted them. They nced at each other at the same time. Gu Yuughed out loud and patted his ass: ¡°Let¡¯s get up and eat. Do you want to go out for steak?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Forget it. I¡¯m feeling toozy to go out.¡±

    ¡°Shall I make some dumplings?¡± Gu Yu got up and saw Zhang Siyi hiding his head. He leaned over and kissed him then said: ¡°Put on your clothes.¡±

    ¡°Hmm.¡± While on the bed, Zhang Siyi slid on a pair of pajama pants. When he got off the bed and stood up, his legs buckled. He was reminded of how much he ¡®suffered¡¯. Shit! Gu Yu was a beast. When next they fought, Zhang Siyi absolutely couldn¡¯t rely on this method to solve it!

    As he reached the bottom of the staircase, Zhang Siyi¡¯s legs buckled again. Fuck! Gu Yu hasn¡¯t even apologized for his rough treatment!

    Fighting between each other was just too emotionally taxing and to some extent, physically exhausting as well. Zhang Siyi was even hungrier than he thought and as a result, he wolfed down delicious dumplings and seaweed soup. It didn¡¯t matter whether or not he ate a steak. Even a simple meal became fine dining. What was truly important was the ability to eat together while enjoying each other¡¯s presence.

    After gorging himself on food, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t want to move. Eventually, he brazenly put his chopsticks down and pushed his te back. He supported his waist and slowly walked back upstairs to his own room. Gu Yu understood that Zhang Siyi was ¡®bearing the pain of happiness¡¯ and let him go back to his room alone to rest.

    Burrowing into the nkets in bed, Zhang Siyi wrapped them around himself and hunkered down until his head was only showing. He took out his phone and wondered what he should tell Su Yuan. Of course, he didn¡¯t tell her about his true rtionship with Gu Yu, but informed her that the director could evaluate her portfolio and suggest apany she could apply to that was suited her abilities.

    Su Yuan didn¡¯t expect Zhang Siyi to take her matter to heart, let alone make inquires on her behalf on the same day. Grateful, she thanked him sincerely and said she would prepare a collection of work as a soon as possible. Now that the issue was dealt with, Zhang Siyi felt relieved. He checked in with his friend¡¯s group chat.

    They began to chat around five o¡¯clock in the early evening. After Zhang Siyi left, he noticed they hadn¡¯t stayed out for very long. Ren Mengyu was asking the group what they thought of her boyfriend.

    Jiang Hai: ¡°Very good¡­.. handsome, rich, and elegant.¡±

    Tian Yujing echoed him: ¡°Yes. I think you are a very well matched.¡±

    Ren Mengyu listened very happily and made a cute cartoon expression in the group.

    What? Was Zhang Siyi the only person that felt her boyfriend was stingy? More than two hundred worth of coffee and he actually asked Zhang Siyi to pay. (T/N: 200 Yuan = ~ 28USD/26Euro)

    Jiang Hai added: ¡°But I feel he is a bit mysterious. When we had a lunch today, he didn¡¯t say anything about himself.¡±

    Inwardly, Zhang Siyi agreed with Jiang Hai¡¯s assessment. As they talked, Bai Rui only listened. If he wasn¡¯t so good looking, they wouldn¡¯t have even known Bai Rui existed.

    Intuitively, it was difficult for Zhang Siyi to draw a couple¡¯s equal sign between Bai Rui and Ren Mengyu.

    Unlike Tian Yujing, when Jiang Hai first brought her to their apartment to meet, she left a very vivid impression on Zhang Siyi. As for Bai Rui, he gave Zhang Siyi the feeling he was Ren Mengyu¡¯s wallet more than anything else. In addition, this wallet wanted Zhang Siyi to share the cost! (=_=)

    ¡°That¡¯s how he is. When I¡¯m with him, he rarely mentions work because he says he doesn¡¯t want to mix life and work.¡± Ren Mengyu exined.

    Jiang Hai: ¡°Ah. That exins it.¡±

    Even though Ren Mengyu exined it clearly, Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t convinced. During their lunch together, Bai Rui was only introduced as a boyfriend and never revealed anything about himself. Wasn¡¯t it normal to briefly introduce yourself by telling about their career and position? All the information that the group knew about him was already provided by Ren Mengyu in private.

    ording the Ren Mengyu, in addition to having an extremely good background, he had his ownpany. Aren¡¯t these all very good talking points? But, Bai Rui said nothing about it. Mulling it over, Zhang Siyi came up with two reasons for his behavior. One, he didn¡¯t want the group to get to know him, or two, he didn¡¯t want to further integrate himself into Ren Mengyu¡¯s life. Either way, it¡¯s not the attitude that a normal boyfriend would have.

    Bai Rai attitude reminded Zhang Siyi of Gu Yu because he also keeps a clear division between his work life and private life. In front of others, Gu Yu is quite the mysterious figure.

    However, their simrities end there. Everything that Gu Yu has, his diary, friend¡¯s circle, daily life etc.¡­. was willingly shown to Zhang Siyi without reservation. In front of Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu is a person without secrets. Therefore, when Ren Mengyu admitted her ignorance when it came to Bai Rui life, Zhang Siyi felt that something about their rtionship wasn¡¯t quite right.

    Although he really wanted to express a few concerns, he thought about what Gu Yu had told him before and decided it wasn¡¯t his ce to say something. He wasn¡¯t an emotional expert and could be wrong. What¡¯s more, even if they could meet together again despite everyone¡¯s busy schedule, he didn¡¯t know if he woulde in contact with Bai Rui in the future.

    In addition, even though Zhang Siyi wanted toin about Bai Rui stingy behavior, talking poorly about someone behind their back wasn¡¯t in good taste. Struggling with his ideals and not wanting to cause a problem, Zhang Siyi gave up his idea and simply sent a blessing in the group chat instead.

    As he closed the group chat, he saw an extra red dot in his WeChat contacts. It usually means a user has requested him to be a friend. After he clicked on the dot, he was very surprised. The person wanting to add him as a friend was none other than Bai Rui!

    Zhang Siyi was puzzled. Why does Ren Meng¡¯s boyfriend want to add him as a friend? They weren¡¯t familiar with one another. One lunch together hardly counts as close enough to being called friends. Zhang Siyi hesitated. Does he ept or decline?. After all, his real friend, Ren Mengyu, was the one with the rtionship.

    The avatar that Bai Rui used was an abstract art painting and his nickname was Vinci. Looking at it, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know whether the choice was personal or was it rted to his profession. He didn¡¯t particrly understand it, but that didn¡¯t matter since he had no interest in knowing.

    After verification, Bai Rui sent an expression: [Smiles]

    After acknowledgement, Zhang Siyi sent a ¡®handshake¡¯ expression then wondered: ¡°How do you know my social media page?¡±

    Bai Rui returned with three words: ¡°Oh, you guess.¡±

    Eyes twitching, Zhang Siyi thought to himself ¡­.. Can¡¯t you just answer me! Why do I need to guess?

    Being with Ren Mengyu, Zhang Siyi subconsciously eliminated the thought that Bai Rui was gay, but the literal tone of his three words really made Zhang Siyi suspicious. How can a straight man talk to another man in that tone? Was Zhang Siyi a little girl? (=_=)

    Thinking back to this afternoon, when Bai Rui produced his QR code for the payment from WeChat, did Zhang Siyi leave any information behind? With his previous use of the app to transfer money, he was only able to see a nickname and avatar. There wasn¡¯t a way to know the ount name in order to make a friend request. Was the answer so simple to Bai Rui¡¯s question; ask Ren Mengyu?¡­.. Ah fuck!

    Zhang Siyi bluntly asked: ¡°You didn¡¯t ask Ren Mengyu, did you?¡±

    Bai Rui replied with a transfer. [WeChat Transfer ¨C £¤250.00] ¡°For this afternoon¡¯s coffee.¡±

    Bai Rui added: ¡°My girlfriend was angry so I needed to return the coffee money back to you. [Smiles]¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­..¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°No need. It was just a few cups of coffee.¡±

    Although Zhang Siyi thought Bai Rui was rather petty in the afternoon, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t let Bai Rui¡¯s actions bother him. However, unlike Zhang Siyi, this little matter made Ren Mengyu upset. As it turned out, now that she has fallen in love, Ren Mengyu turned into a spoiled princess.

    Zhang Siyi thought Bai Rui had been instructed by his girlfriend and would therefore be forced to give it.

    When Bai Rui read Zhang Siyi¡¯s message he wrote back: ¡°Ok then.¡±

    It was unexpected. Zhang Siyi hadn¡¯t moved an inch when Zhang Siyi saw his reply. Zhang Siyi felt like he was punched in the face. Didn¡¯t Bai Rui just say his girlfriend coaxed him? Why did he give up?

    Bai Rui quickly replied: ¡°Alright, ept the payment and give it back. Otherwise, I have to wait for the system to issue a refund and it takes more than twenty-four hours.¡±

    Zhang Siyi eye twitched. Fuck, what the hell! He can¡¯t wait twenty-four hours?

    He silently collected the money and then issued a return of two hundred-fifty. However, he hasn¡¯t yet seen Bai Rui ept the payment.

    Zhang Siyi had a bad feeling: ¡°It¡¯s your turn to confirm the payment.¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°Oh never mind. You can keep the money. I won¡¯t ept yours.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡­.¡± Fuck! His original speech was a ruse! (#¡ã§¥¡ã)

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What? Why are you doing this!¡± [Going Crazy]

    Bai Rui: ¡°[Smiles]¡±

    In just a few minutes, Zhang Siyi¡¯s was unwillingly taken on a roller coaster ride. Clearly it was payback money, but it was being bounced around like a hot potato. Zhang Siyi felt like he was being deceived and it made him feel very ufortable.

    Even though Zhang Siyi was frantic to resolve the issue about the money, Bai Rui seemed to bepletely indifferent.

    He was so exasperated that he didn¡¯t know what to do to resolve the issue cleanly. Suddenly, he thought of a solution. ¡°Ok. But, the six cups totaled only two-hundred-fifteen and not two-hundred-fifty. I can¡¯t keep the thirty-five extra that you gave me.¡± No matter what, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t want to take anything extraneous from Bai Rui.

    Bai Rui replied: ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Just think of it as my gift to you.¡± [Smiles]

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡­¡± What the Fuck! Why is he doing this!? It¡¯s so stupid! (¨s¨F¡õ¡¯)¨s(©ß©¥©ß

 Chapter 182: Verification

    <h4>Chapter 182: Verification</h4>

    ___________________________

    Bai Rui¡¯s antics made Zhang Siyi feel like he was forced to owe him something. Although it was only thirty-five extra bucks and Bai Rui said to keep it, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t ept it. Since it didn¡¯t make much sense to Zhang Siyi he relied on Ren Mengyu to figure it out: ¡°Ren Mengyu, why did you tell Bai Rui to pay back the money for the coffee?¡±

    Ren Mengyu sent a cartoon expression with a question mark: ¡°What?¡±

    Zhang Siyi exined: ¡°Your boyfriend befriended me in WeChat and said that you were angry, about the coffee money.¡±

    Ren Mengyu: ¡°Hmm? Was this why he asked me for your WeChat?¡±

    Seeing her reaction, Zhang Siyi thought it was strange. Why does it seem like she had no knowledge of this matter?

    After a little while, Ren Mengyu sent another message: ¡°Now that you mentioned it, after our lunch, he may have sensed that I wasn¡¯t happy.¡± ^_^

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s emerging doubts dissipated as Ren Mengyu exined. He said: ¡°You are too polite. We rarely get the chance to eat together and a few cups of coffee wasn¡¯t a big deal. You needn¡¯t ask your boyfriend to refund me. I didn¡¯t want to take the money, but he insisted. [Laugh][Cry]

    Not waiting for Ren Mengyu to reply, Zhang Siyi continued: ¡°The money for the coffee has been refunded but he over paid me by thirty-five yuan. I tried to give it back but he refused. Since I can¡¯t keep his money, please transfer it to your boyfriend for me. Zhang Siyi took a moment to send thirty-five yuan to Ren Mengyu.

    Watching the payment appear on her screen, Ren Mengyu looked at the chat record and felt a little confused.

    When Bai Rui deliberately maneuvered Zhang Siyi today, she felt that something wasn¡¯t quite right. It wasn¡¯t natural for Bai Rui to fuss over a small amount. If Zhang Siyi hadn¡¯t told her, she wouldn¡¯t have known that Bai Rui was trying to give back his money. Moreover, the reason he used to asked Ren Mengyu for his WeChat ID wasn¡¯t to pay him back. It was because he said: ¡°I noticed your ssmate likes to attend design lectures. The next time, I can get him into one for free.¡±

    Art and design are like a type of family and since Bai Rui is a curator, he often holds bothrge and small exhibitions. Ren Mengyu had attended them several times and found them rathercking in attendees. Bai Rui often invited a small circle of friends who have an interest in art, but in reality, the free art exhibition was just a night to hook-up with others in disguise.

    Ren Mengyu thought that¡¯s what he wanted to add Zhang Siyi as a friend for. Both of them were straight men so she had nothing to fear. She didn¡¯t expect Bai Rui to ost Zhang Siyi about the money. In her mind, the Bai Rui she knew, was always a serious gentleman that rarely made jokes.

    Although Ren Mengyu was curious, she saw Zhang Siyi¡¯s exnation of Bai Rui¡¯s involvement and felt moved. She thought Bai Rui really cared about her feelings and that was why he was willing to go behind her back. After all, she didin to him a little after the lunch saying he couldn¡¯t let someone else pay for a miserly amount of money for coffee.

    Thinking about it further, Ren Mengyu recalled her emotions at that time and knew she wasn¡¯t actually angry. She was just joking with him. She didn¡¯t think her statement would cause Bai Rui to act.

    It is said that one¡¯s IQ bes zero when they are in love and Ren Mengyu is no exception. Although she thought Bai Rui¡¯s behavior was a little odd, she only took notice of his actions that were most beneficial for her. Since she was immersed in the illusion of being loved by her boyfriend, she was unwilling to think of a different possibility.

    Ren Mengyu epted Zhang Siyi payment and replied: ¡°Okay, I¡¯ll pass it along to him. I¡¯ll make it a quick money transfer so don¡¯t worry about it.¡±

    Relieved, Zhang Siyi sighed and was about to close his WeChat app, but he saw a new dialog box pop-up. ¡°Bai Rui has epted a money transfer of two-hundred-fifty.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...... ¡± What the fuck! (=Ãó=)

    Bai Rui: ¡°Since you didn¡¯t want to ept my offer, now we are even.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°%£¤#....................¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°Ah, Ren Mengyu just transferred me thirty-five and said it was from you.¡± [Smiles]

    Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t help saying: ¡°Yes, because you originally refunded too much. Now that you have the two-hundred-fifty, give back the thirty-five.¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°Oh.... Instead, why don¡¯t you let me treat you to dinner.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Shithead! Who wants to eat with you!

    Just as Zhang Siyi was about to blow his top, Gu Yu returned to the room and said: ¡°You haven¡¯t slept yet?¡± He was watching Zhang Siyi frown at his phone that was tightly clenched in his hand. He asked: ¡°What are you looking at?¡±

    Zhang Siyi violently said: ¡°Ah fuck! I¡¯m so pissed! I didn¡¯t receive a penny and instead, lost thirty-five in vain!¡±

    Thoughtful with concern, Gu Yu asked: ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡±

    Sitting up, Zhang Siyi put his phone down on hisp and then proceeded to briefly tell Gu Yu what happened in a very animated fashion by waving his hands and arms around.

    While unbuttoning his shirt, Gu Yu asked: ¡°You¡¯re talking about the boyfriend that your ssmate met at the nightclub? He added your WeChat?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Yes! That¡¯s him. What perfect rich gentleman!?¡±

    Gu Yu moved to the side of the bed and reached down: ¡°What did you talk about? Let me see.¡±

    Willingly, Zhang Siyi handed over his mobile phone and pointed out Bai Rui¡¯s avatar to Gu Yu: ¡°This is Bai Rui.¡±

    When Gu Yu saw Bai Rui¡¯s avatar at a glimpse, he didn¡¯t look at his webpage with personal information. Instead he used his fingers to zoom the screen and erged the picture.

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t really know why Gu Yu was looking at it so closely: ¡°What do you think of his avatar?¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s eyebrows furrowed deeper: ¡°This is a portrait of George Dale. It is the work of Francis Bacon, an Irish born artist who resided in London.¡±

    Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°Is this painting very special?¡±

    ¡°Francis Bacon was known to be gay and George Dyer was one of his lovers.¡± Gu Yu exined.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°... How do you know that? Are you sure?¡±

    ¡°In college, I minored in the history of Western art and had to study various artists and works of art.¡± Gu Yu clicked back to the original screen, and noticed Bai Rui nickname. He raised his brows in question: ¡°He gave himself the nickname Vinci in English?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Yes, and? Does it mean anything?¡±

    ¡°Vinci is Leonardo da Vinci¡¯s English surname.¡± Gu nced at Zhang Siyi and said: ¡°There are rumors about Leonardo Da Vinci since he had strong homosexual tendencies.¡±

    ¡°.....¡± A known gay painter and a name of a master with spected leanings.....

    Zhang Siyi was shocked: ¡°My God. Ren Mengyu¡¯s perfect boyfriend is gay?¡±

    Gu Yu looked down at Zhang Siyi and said: ¡°It¡¯s not possible to ascertain the truth from only his WeChat ount. However, if he studied art, he should have known the story behind this painting. In addition, he used the English name, Vinci, which when recognized, could be very misleading.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.....¡± It¡¯s no wonder he thought his rtionship with his friend was strange.

    After Gu Yu finished, he looked through Zhang Siyi chat records. The more he swiped the screen to read the entries, the more he frowned darkly. After he finished, he gave Zhang Siyi a hard look and asked: ¡°He is clearly hitting on you. Can¡¯t you tell?¡±

    Incredulous, Zhang Siyi formed a ¡®wtf¡¯ expression on his face: ¡°Wait, what!?¡±

    Gu Yu scrolled back the records and analyzed them one by one for Zhang Siyi: ¡°He gave you money. You really didn¡¯t want to ept it so you politely decline him. Wouldn¡¯t that normally be the end of it?¡±

    Zhang Siyi was anxious: ¡°Yes, but he wanted the money back fast!¡±

    Gu Yu stared at him: ¡°Are You stupid? This is obviously a routine to bait you. Didn¡¯t you say he was very rich? Do you think a real rich guy would care about being paid 24 hourster for a refund? If you hadn¡¯t epted the money, it would have been returned to Bai Rui sooner orter. The only repercussion he would experience was him being short a meager two-hundred-fifty bucks for a little while.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.......¡±

    Swiping further down the chat record, Gu Yu said: ¡°After you sent the payment back, shouldn¡¯t you have said a few polite words and be done with it? Whether he epted it or not.....¡±

    Bursting, Zhang Siyi interrupted him: ¡°I don¡¯t like owing money!¡±

    Putting emphasis on his words, Gu Yu continued to exin: ¡°It¡¯s just thirty-five. For the rich, that is equivalent to breakfast. Are you saying he is worked up over missing his morning fritters? This is definitely a rouse to get your attention. How can you be so naive?¡±

    Feeling wronged, Zhang Siyi¡¯s face paled. How would he have figured out such a long andplicated ploy?

    ...... If I¡¯m na?ve, why don¡¯t you call yourself a schemer!

    ...... Why did hee onto me? Do I have the potential to attract gay men? Do I seem gay to outsiders?

    Closely watching his boyfriend, Gu Yu was thoughtful. He was intimately familiar with Bai Rui¡¯s tactics because after all, he used simr methods. At the beginning, over the issue of the cactus, he deliberately maneuvered Zhang Siyi to y the violin for him.

    However, knowing he continued to fall for such a ruse.... Gu Yu was really depressed. How can Zhang Siyi be so clueless!? Gu Yu suddenly sighed. Thankfully, the fool has Gu Yu¡¯s stamp on him and in the future, no one will be able to deceive him.

    ¡°I swear, I really didn¡¯t want anything to do with Bai Rui. I was just trying to clear my name!¡± Almost in tears, Zhang Siyi was anxiously trying to argue his point. ¡°And, he is my ssmate¡¯s boyfriend. Why would he be hitting on me?¡±

    Gu Yu looked at him speechless. This little fool really wasn¡¯t aware of his own charm.

    Frantic, Zhang Siyi worried: ¡°What do I do now? Should I tell Ren Mengyu?¡±

    ¡°There isn¡¯t a rush.¡± Gu Yu absently said. His eyes fell on thest message that was sent to Zhang Siyi. Gu Yu¡¯s face darkened: ¡°Don¡¯t say anything until you know for sure because it could affect your rtionship with her. We first have to verify whether or not he is gay. If he is, then he amounts to being a scumbag for knowingly deceiving a girl¡¯s feelings.¡±

    Gu Yu squinted his eyes; seducing my love.... You dare!?

 Chapter 183: Lobby

    <h4>Chapter 183: Lobby</h4>

    _____________

    Filled with indignation, Zhang Siyi clenched his fist: ¡°Yes! He¡¯s scum!¡±

    Pointing to his phone, Gu Yu said: ¡°See here, his purpose at the beginning wasn¡¯t to pay you back, but to find a variety of reasons to remain in contact with you. The more you chat, the more familiar you be and thus, more willing to go out to eat.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.....¡±

    Zhang Siyi mulled it over then foolishly asked: ¡°So how do we verify it?¡±

    In order to expose Bai Rui, wouldn¡¯t Zhang Siyi need to stay in contact with him? However, Gu Yu already exposed his true purpose. Thest thing Zhang Siyi wanted was to spend time with Bai Rui.

    Looking down at the screen, Gu Yu thought for a moment and then typed a message to Bai Rui: ¡°You want to take the thirty-five then just take it. Please use it for dinner. I have no time to go out.¡±

    Zhang Siyi leaned over and saw Gu Yu¡¯s message. His cold and curt message changed the momentum of the chat. Heh-heh-heh. Suddenly, Zhang Siyi felt a little excited about it. (¡Ñv¡Ñ)

    After Gu Yu finished, he snorted at the phone and muttered to himself: ¡°Over thirty-five bucks.... keep dreaming! He would never go with you.¡±

    Witnessing the possessiveness that Gu Yu unintentionally revealed, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t help but giggle a little. Even though Gu Yu was acting a bit childish over a trifle, he thought Gu Yu was really cute.

    Leaning over, Zhang Siyi put his arm around Gu Yu¡¯s shoulders and gently shook him: ¡°Don¡¯t worry. Even if he really asked me, I wouldn¡¯t go.¡±

    Gu Yu pinched his cheek and smiled: ¡°You were already being fooled. How can I rest assured?¡±

    Being an independent man, how could Gu Yu think he was so foolish? He stared at Gu Yu: ¡°So, you don¡¯t trust me?¡±

    Instead of answering him, Gu Yuughed. In retaliation, Zhang Siyi forcefully pushed Gu Yu down, straddled him, and pinned him down. Angrily, he repeatedly asked: ¡°You don¡¯t trust me? Why don¡¯t you trust me?¡±

    Suddenly, Gu Yu gave one fierce thrust of hips upwards there by knocking Zhang Siyi off.

    Face flushed, Zhang Siyi yelled out ¡®ahhh¡¯ and braced himself for the fall. Caught by surprise, he almost fell on top of Gu Yu.

    Grabbing his waist, Gu Yu prevented Zhang Siyi from fleeing. Peering at him deeply, he replied seriously: ¡°I trust you, but I too get jealous. Just like when you see other girls talking to me and be jealous.... You are mine. Even when another man teases you, I can¡¯t stand it.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± (o////o)

    What¡¯s more, after Gu Yu looked through the chat records and saw how long Bai Rui toyed with Zhang Siyi for, he wanted to go straight to the man¡¯s face and punch him hard. Of course, he wouldn¡¯t actually do that. The best way to deal with that kind of person in fact, was to turn a blind eye and adopt an absolutely indifferent attitude with them. Without interaction, teasing bes senseless.

    However, this time, Zhang Siyi¡¯s ssmate was also involved. Gu Yu knows, his warmhearted little fool certainly wouldn¡¯t sit by idle. In that case, the best course of action was to rece Zhang Siyi for all future interactions with this so called ¡®perfect boyfriend¡¯.

    Changing his hold from Zhang Siyi waist to his hands, Gu Yu told him: ¡°When next he contacts you, no matter what, don¡¯t return his message. Come and get me and let me respond instead.¡±

    Zhang Siyi burst outughing. He joked: ¡°We really are each other¡¯s hotline! The girls are calling me, and now you get to solve my problem with my oster, Bai Rui!¡± One thing Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t fullyprehend. Why do girls constantly approach Gu Yu when he¡¯s gay, but the person to flirt with himself was a man. Does he look like a delicate girl? (=_=)

    Laughing, Gu Yu smiled at him and said: ¡°Isn¡¯t that good?¡±

    Zhang Siyi nodded with satisfaction: ¡°It¡¯s a great idea. But you just rejected him for me, so what else is there to say? I don¡¯t think he will contact me again.¡±

    Holding Zhang Siyi¡¯s back, Gu Yu lowered him down to kiss him and said: ¡°You wait and see. If he is interested in you, he definitely will not back down. Although he won¡¯t message you again tonight because if he did, then his intention would be too obvious and arouse your suspicion.

    Sure enough, after Gu Yu sent his text message, Bai Rui hadn¡¯t responded.

    About a weekter, Zhang Siyi had returned to his desk from lunch at noon to see Su Yuan¡¯s portfolio and resume in his email. She spent the week gathering her collection and only now, did Zhang Siyi have time to spare to look through it. After loading the documents in theputer, Zhang Siyi opened Su Yuan¡¯s portfolio with great expectation. After a brief look, he frowned. The portfolio was a lot worse than he expected.

    It stands to reason that she would have more works in her portfolio since It has been over a year since graduating. Under normal circumstances, projects are often disyed in order with the first work as the most recent and therefore the highest level.

    However, at the beginning of her collection, Su Yuan still presented her work from University. That is to say, she believed she hasn¡¯t worked on a design that has surpassed her graduation project.

    Seeing them, Zhang Siyi thought she had sent him the wrong document, but when he turned over to thetter portion of her portfolio, he knew she was not wrong. Indeed, the projects Su Yuan took part in weren¡¯t worth mentioning. Being delegated to analysis, modeling, and trantion, her work at her job remained at the most basic level. Even the highest scoring design from their graduation was, in Zhang Siyi¡¯s eyes, rough, riddled with problems and na?ve.

    From the pit of Zhang Siyi¡¯s stomach, a myriad of emotions welled up after looking through her portfolio twice.

    When he first starting working at Borderless, having to draw bathrooms and parking lots incessantly, heined to his friends about his work conditions. He thought Gu Yu¡¯s training model was inconsistent with their foreign educational background because when a designer encountered an engineering problem, it wasn¡¯t something they troubleshooted. More then once, he suspected he wasn¡¯t suited to work at thepany.

    Nevertheless, when he overcame these difficulties, now he could look back and see his own shorings. It stands to reason that it¡¯s human nature to take the easiest path forward. But, if he only ever worked on things within the scope of his education, then he would never grow and develop as a designer.

    Zhang Siyi sighed and had to admit that Gu Yu was right again.

    Believing that Su Yuan will never take short-cuts with regards to her collection, Zhang Siyi thought she had done her best to show her current abilities. Unfortunately, perhaps in Gu Yu¡¯s opinion, she and a freshly graduated undergraduate weren¡¯t any different.

    Zhang Siyi forwarded Su Yuan¡¯s collection to Gu Yu and in the postscript sent a prostrated kneeling expression: ¡°Please.¡±

    As he clicked send, Zhang Siyi felt the ¡®buzz¡¯ of his vibrating mobile phone. He reached into his pocket and took it out to look. At the top was a WeChat notification: Vinci has sent you a message.

    Looking at Bai Rui¡¯s nickname, Zhang Siyi heart jumped into his throat. Gu Yu was right again!

    Bai Rui: ¡°Borderless design firm....... is thepany you work for?¡±

    ¡°.......¡± While talking to Su Yuan Zhang Siyi remembered mentioning it when they met at lunch. Zhang Siyi assumed Bai Rui knew it from that time. Impulsively he started to type a response, but stopped. He just remembered what Gu Yu asked him to do previously. Zhang Siyi erased his message ¨C I just have to ignore him!

    In less than two seconds, Bai Rui texted him a photo. Staring at the screen wide-eyed, Zhang Siyi nearly fell out of his chair. The image was that of the office building lobby and the Borderless name on the information signboard.

    Fuck! Why is Bai Rui downstairs?! (#¡ã§¥¡ã)

    Bai Rui: ¡°Are you at work today?¡± [Smiles]¡±

    Zhang Siyi looked around to find Gu Yu, but he and the director of the other design team, Child Labor, went out for lunch and weren¡¯t back yet!

    He quickly took a screenshot of Bai Rui¡¯s message and sent it to Gu Yu: ¡°What should I do?¡±

    Zhang Siyi waited for Gu Yu¡¯s message, but none came.

    Bai Rui: ¡°I was passing by and wanted to give you something. Come down or shall I go up to you?

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡±

    Zhang Siyi forwarded Bai Rui¡¯s second message to Gu Yu. He was starting to panic: ¡°He¡¯sing! What should I do?¡± [Kitten Crying]

    God damn it! Why isn¡¯t Gu Yu responding!?!?

    How can Zhang Siyi go downstairs to meet another man and receive a gift. In the face of other people, he was still a proper straight boy!

    After anxiously waiting for two minutes, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t stand to wait any longer so he called Gu Yu directly seeking answers. There came a ring from behind the ss door of Gu Yu¡¯s office...... Shit! Gu Yu left his phone in his office.

    Fretting over it, Zhang Siyi broke out in a cold sweat. At any moment, Zhang Siyi thought Bai Rui would actually walk out of the elevator and onto the office floor. He grabbed the phone and called the front receptionist: ¡°No matter who looks for me, tell them that I don¡¯t work here!¡±

    Front desk receptionist: ¡°......¡±

    Front desk receptionist: ¡°Hey, Auntie Four, is the mafia on your tail?¡± (*^__^*)

    Zhang Siyi simply wanted to burst into tears. Yes, it¡¯s like that! Ever since Gu Yu deduced that Bai Rui may be gay, Zhang Siyi thought of him as a demon. All the unwanted attention; Zhang Siyi wanted to avoid it at all cost.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I¡¯m serious, please! ¡°

 Chapter 184: Cake

    <h4>Chapter 184: Cake</h4>

    __________________

    After seeing the front desk girl send an ¡°ok¡±, although relieved a little, Zhang Siyi dared not rx his vignce. While guarding the mobile phone, he frequently looked up at the entrance, as if Bai Rui woulde at any moment.

    Several employees that have returned from their lunch break were gossiping about the stranger in the lobby.

    ¡°Where?¡±

    ¡°There is a long-legged man in a trim suit holding a huge square box in one hand standing in front of the Borderless poster.¡±

    A few curious women went to go peek and gasped in surprise at what they found.

    When Bai Rui realized there were people looking in his direction, he shed them a warm smile.

    ¡°...... Ah, ah, so handsome!!!¡±

    ¡°There is a foreign visitor?¡±

    ¡°Go and ask who he¡¯s looking for!¡±

    ¡°You go, you go.......¡±

    Which person would take the initiative to go over there and talk with the handsome guy? As several girls continued to coax each other, a ¡®ding¡¯ sounded, the elevator door opened and Tao Fei walked out.

    He had just returned from buying a soft drink from the downstairs convenience store. While drinking, he started walking towards his desk, but stopped at Bai Rui: ¡°Who are you? Looking for someone?¡±

    Bai Rui pointed to the poster with Zhang Siyi¡¯s sleeping picture emzoned on it and smiled: ¡°May I ask if Zhang Siyi is in?¡±

    ¡±He....... ¡°Tao Fei looked at Bai Rui suspiciously for a few seconds. He turned to the edge of thendscape wall and shouted in the direction of the design department: ¡°Zhang Siyi! Someone¡¯s looking for you!¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°.....¡±

    Looking at hisputer screen, Zhang Siyi was deep in concentration and almost had a heart attack when he heard Tao Fei¡¯s shout.

    ...... Fucking dead fat peach! I¡¯m gunna kill you!

    After Tao Fei¡¯s enthusiastic roar, as if he was about to watch a movie drama unfold, he excitedly turned around and looked Bai Rui over.

    Dreading the confrontation, Zhang Siyi got up reluctantly and walked over. As he passed the receptionist, she shrunk down in her seat, hiding slightly and said: ¡°Tao Fai got to him first. It was out of my hands!¡±

    Zhang Siyi wiped the sweat from his forehead. Whether it was good or bad, he could only solve the problem himself. When he arrived in front of them, he first gave Tao Fei a meaningful look and shot daggers. Then, he pretended to be surprised at seeing Bai Rui: ¡°Oh, its you! Why are you here?¡±

    Bai Rui replied with a smile: ¡°I sent you a WeChat message. You didn¡¯t see it?¡±

    ¡°What message?¡± Zhang Siyi took out his mobile phone to look at and acted surprised: ¡°Ah! I¡¯m busy and must have missed it!¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°......¡± A good exaggeration of acting. (¡ú_¡ú)

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.....¡± Acting is hard! Gu Yu save me! (Ø£aØ£)

    As if the gods heard Zhang Siyi¡¯s inner cry, he heard a ¡®ding¡¯ and the elevator door opened. He looked over and heard his low voice flow out of the elevator before he saw him. Zhang Siyi was ecstatic and shouted towards the elevators: ¡°Director Gu!!!¡±

    Tao Fei looked over at the elevators, sipped his drink then nced at Zhang Siyi sideways.....

    Both Gu Yu and Tong Heyi appeared in front of them.

    Slightly startled by Zhang Siyi¡¯s loud cry, he regained hisposure and noticed the group of three blocking the hallway. He came face to face with Bai Rui and asked: ¡°Who are you?¡±

    Although Zhang Siyi took the initiative to introduce Bai Rui calmly, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t stop his eyes from darting back and forth: ¡°This is my ssmate¡¯s boyfriend.¡±

    Gu Yu immediately frowned and his hawkish stare targeted Bai Rui.

    Since it was apparent that the issue had nothing to do with herself, Tong Heyi nodded slightly to Gu Yu, excusing herself, and walked back to her office.

    Out of politeness, Bai Rui formally introduced himself: ¡°My Name Is Bai Rui and I am here for a personal matter that involves Zhang Siyi.¡± Bai Rui extended his hand to Gu Yu: ¡°If he can spare a few minutes.....¡±

    Gu Yu loosely grasped his hand, shook it once, and faintly replied: ¡°Gu Yu.¡±

    Just as Gu Yu said his name, Tao Fei felt a strong chill that sent shivers down his spine. Trembling in excitement, the show was about to begin. He sipped his drink and watched their reactions.

    As Gu Yu arrived, Zhang Siyi sighed in relief. He gestured: ¡°This is the design director of ourpany.¡±

    Nodding unconcerned, Bai Rui waited for Gu Yu and Tao Fei to leave. After all, he had already exined to them that he was looking for Zhang Siyi and had nothing to do with the other two.

    However, the two men stood side by side with no hint of moving like watchdogs.

    Gu Yu¡¯smand surprised Bai Rui: ¡±Zhang Siyi, get back to work.¡±

    Even more surprising, with no objection was Zhang Siyi quick ¡°ok¡± and obedient departure.

    Then, Gu Yu looked at Tao Fei: ¡°What are you looking at?¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°Um......¡±

    Gu Yu frowned impatiently: ¡°Get back to work.¡±

    Tao Fei smirked and walked away feeling disappointed.

    Bai Rui: ¡°.....¡±

    Finally, Gu Yu crossed his arm on his chest and stared down Bai Rui: ¡°Mr. Bai, unless it is an emergency, in general, we at Borderless aren¡¯t allowed visitors that are non-work-rted, even during lunch breaks. Your intrusion may affect the work of employees, please understand.¡± As he talked, he pointed to the group of people watching them. The women blushed, turned back to their tasks and scattered.

    Bai Rui was stunned. The employees diligently just listened to the director and he doesn¡¯t allow visitors? What kind ofpany is this?

    Gu Yu raised his wrist to look at his watch. He said: ¡°I¡¯ll make an exception for a few minutes since you are here. What did you need Zhang Siyi for? Tell me and I¡¯ll pass it along.¡±

    Feeling a little embarrassed, Bai Rui handed Gu Yu the box and said: ¡°This is for Zhang Siyi. I¡¯ll trouble you to give it to him.¡±

    Expressionless, Gu Yu tly said in a concise manner: ¡°I see.¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°......¡±

    ncing at the box, Gu Yu calmly exined: ¡°If you are here to drop something off, you can leave it at the front desk. Also, there is a courier service downstairs. Employees can pick up items after work hours.¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°.........¡±

    Gu Yu looked up at Bai Rui: ¡°Is there anything else?¡±

    Shaking his head back-and-forth, no, Bai Rui offered a stiff smile: ¡°Sorry for the intrusion. Thank You.¡±

    Gu Yi smiled weakly: ¡±You¡¯re wee.¡±

    After watching Bai Rui leave, Gu Yu¡¯s face revealed obvious hostility. With the wind under his feet, like the king of Borderless, he purposefully strode to his office with the box in hand.

    ....... Coming here to flirt? Just who¡¯s territory do you think this ce is?

    Gu Yu didn¡¯t give the box directly to Zhang Siyi. Instead, he brought it back to his office and then sent him a message toe in.

    Zhang Siyi rushed into the office and nervously asked: ¡°Is he gone?¡±

    ¡°Yeah.¡± Gu Yu took the cup of tea from his desk and took a sip. He signaled with his eyes and used his chin to gesture towards the box: ¡°He gave it to you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi breathed a sigh of relief. Knowing what could have happened, he angrilyined to Gu Yu because Gu Yu didn¡¯t have his cell phone with him.

    Gu Yu picked up his mobile phone and quickly nced at the chat record and missed calls. He thought Zhang Siyi antics were funny but at the same time, he was angry. In his short absence, this little fool was almost toyed with again. Bai Rui wasn¡¯t a person who was easy to deal with.

    Zhang Siyi looked at the box and was curious: ¡°What is it? Why did you ept it for me?¡±

    Opening the box, there was a fresh cream cake inside and written on top in English-script was the words ¡®coffee payment¡¯ in chocte sauce.

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s mouth twitched: ¡°Why did he give me a cake? I don¡¯t like sweets.¡±

    With cold eyes, Gu Yu sniggered: ¡°I guess he thinks you are a little girl.¡±

    Zhang Siyi shivered with goose bumps: ¡°What!? I¡¯ll give it back!¡±

    If Ren Mengyu knew that her boyfriend gave him a cake, how could he exin it! Fuck, how did he end up in such an awkward situation!

    Gu Yu said indifferently: ¡°Well, if you don¡¯t want it, divide it amongst your colleagues.¡±

    Zhang Siyi grimaced and asked: ¡°What reason do I have to invite everyone to eat cake?¡±

    Gu Yu chuckled: ¡°I need to make an excuse for you as well? Just find something simple like.... your ssmates gave you a cake.¡±

    ¡°Oh...¡± It¡¯s the first time Zhang Siyi felt his IQ drop.

    Just as Zhang Siyi was about to leave his office with the cake, Gu Yu stood up and stopped him: ¡°Wait.¡± He got up and walked around his desk, and extended his hand: ¡°Give me your phone. He will probably contact you soon. I¡¯ll take care of it so you don¡¯t have to worry.¡±

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t doubt him and dly gave Gu Yu his mobile phone.

    Gu Yu kissed him: ¡°OK, don¡¯t think about it and leave it to me. Concentrate on work.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Hmm...¡±

    Hearing the infectious cheers of his subordinates from outside his office, Gu Yu reluctantly smiled then sighed.

    Not two minutes had passed when Zhang Siyi¡¯s phone buzzed again. Bai Rui sent a message: ¡°Did you received something?¡±

    Gu Yu grabbed Zhang Siyi¡¯s phone and responded: ¡°Hmm.¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°Do you like it?¡± [Smiles]

    Gu Yu: ¡°I¡¯m at work and haven¡¯t seen it yet. What¡¯s the mystery?¡± [Surprised]

    Bai Rui: ¡°Ah. You will know when you open it.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Okay.¡±

    Gu Yu set the phone aside and ignored it despite the many times the phone buzzed. After an hour, he picked the phone up and read the texts.

    Bai Rui: ¡°Earlier, was that man from yourpany the director?¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°Was he always so difficult? He wouldn¡¯t even let me see you.¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°The environment of yourpany isn¡¯t very open.¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°Are you busy?¡±

    Gu Yu chuckled a bit and replied: ¡°Busy, yes.¡± As the game of cat and mouse began, Gu Yu got ¡®busy¡¯ and continued to text Bai Rui.

 Chapter 185: Speculation

    <h4>Chapter 185: Spection</h4>

    ____________________

    It wasn¡¯t until after work when they met each other at the subway station that they could talk freely about the day¡¯s event: ¡°When I took the cake out of the box, there was a package of candles. Guess how many there were.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Thirty-five?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡±...... ¡°

    Watching Zhang Siyi¡¯s expression, Gu Yu snorted andughed. He knew that he had guessed correctly.

    Holding his fist, Zhang Siyi felt insulted and said: ¡°That¡¯s right. Is he suggesting something by giving me thirty-five candles? Is he ridiculing me? This son isn¡¯t even twenty-five yet! Motherfucker!¡±

    Gu Yu patted his arm and said: ¡°Don¡¯t let all of his tricks bother you. If such a small thing can stir you up this much, then I have to be jealous.¡±

    A person¡¯s energy is limited. No matter what emotion, in addition to work, Gu Yu hopes that Zhang Siyi¡¯s attention will only be on him.

    Shoulders copsing, Zhang Siyi exhaledpletely. He didn¡¯t want to care, but he was really upset!

    As they got into the subway train, Zhang Siyi remembered that Gu Yu still carried his phone. ¡°Did Bai Rui send a message?¡±

    Gu Yu returned the phone to him, saying: ¡°See for yourself.¡±

    Zhang Siyi opened WeChat and swiped his screen to scroll through the chat history. Bai Rui sent dozens of messages, but Gu Yu replies were few and far between.

    While looking through the texts, his bad mood was alleviated. The frown his was carrying slowly turned into a smile, until he couldn¡¯t contain himself any longer and burst outughing.

    In particr, when Bai Rui evaluated Gu Yu..... If Bai Rui knew he was chatting with the Director directly, what expression would he have made?!

    And then atst, at the end of work, having held Bai Rui on a leash all day, Gu Yu finally ¡®opened¡¯ the box and replied: ¡°It¡¯s a cake. I don¡¯t like cake.¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu followed up with his own question: ¡°Do you really have nothing better to do? I don¡¯t mind the expenditure for a few cups of coffee. Why would you personallye to my office and give me a cake?¡± [Smiles]

    As if all the flirting and taunts were seen through, the best part of Gu Yu¡¯s message was including [Smiles] at the end, just like Bai Rui had done. Gu Yu really put him in his ce, making Bai Rui¡¯s behavior seem stupid.

    ¡°Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!¡± Staggering, Zhang Siyiughed wholeheartedly. For once, Zhang Siyi loved Gu Yu¡¯s poison tongue.

    Finding Zhang Siyi amusing, Gu Yu looked at him and smiled broadly: ¡°Silly, what¡¯s so funny?¡±

    Looking at Gu Yu full of adoration, if not for being in public on the subway, Zhang Siyi really wanted to pounce on Gu Yu, hold him tightly and ster kisses all over.

    Because Bai Ru might have been provoked and irritated by Gu Yu messaging, he hasn¡¯t responded since.

    Zhang Siyi felt relieved: ¡°He shouldn¡¯t bother me anymore, right?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°It¡¯s hard to know. We¡¯ll have to wait and see.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I gave him thirty-five and he gave me a cake, so that makes us even. Why is it hard to know?¡±

    ¡°Didn¡¯t I say we need to figure out whether or not he is gay? Looking at it from another angle, he tricked a straight girl into being his girlfriend, essentially lying to her and then secretly began to flirt with her male friend....¡± Gu Yu paused and frowned. He continued: ¡°Perhaps it¡¯s not so dramatic as that and he was only trying to test what your orientation is.¡±

    Feeling panicked, Zhang Siyi was on edge and said: ¡°What should I do?¡±

    Gu Yu smiled warmly at him: ¡°I¡¯m here. What are you afraid of?¡±¡±

    When the train stopped, Gu Yu got of the subway car and walked up the stairs. Zhang Siyi closely followed. Gu Yu continued their discussion: ¡°What would a normal straight guy feel if their ssmates¡¯ boyfriend gave them a cake?¡±

    Zhang Siyi scratched his head: ¡°Umm.. If he can deliver a cake as a request from his girlfriend on a weekday, then maybe he is doing her a favor?¡± Fuck! Zhang Siyi was afraid of his own train of thought that he gave himself goose bumps.

    Gu Yu: ¡°A straight man probably wouldn¡¯t feel like anything was particrly wrong.¡±

    A bead of sweat fell from Zhang Siyi forehead... I am so lucky that Gu Yu is by my side and can remain calm in WeChat. (=_=)

    Gu Yu remarked: ¡°Thest thing I sent hinted that I understood his purpose. Since he didn¡¯t respond, it proves my guess was correct.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Why do you say that?¡±

    Raising his eyebrows, Gu Yu offered a question: ¡°If he was frank, why didn¡¯t he just answer me?¡±

    Touching his chin, Zhang Siyi nodded in thought. From the beginning, if Bai Rui hadn¡¯t told Zhang Siyi that he was interesting and wanted to be friends, Zhang Siyi wouldn¡¯t be on alert. The more mysterious Bai Rui acted, the weirder it was!

    Gu Yu: ¡°I think there were two reasons why Bai Rui didn¡¯t reply. First, I think he has a guilty conscience. Now that Bai Rui suspects you of thinking that he was gay, he was thinking about countermeasures. Second, his pride was hurt and doesn¡¯t n on pursuing you anymore. Of course, I hope it is thetter. If Bai Rui doesn¡¯t contact you again, then the matter has nothing to do with you. If you don¡¯t feelfortable knowing what you know, then you can tell Ren Mengyu of the events that transpired. Also, you can find the chance to tell her the meaning of Bai Rui¡¯s avatar. She is an adult and can make her own decisions. You don¡¯t have to worry about it further.¡±

    Zhang Siyi vigorously nodded. That was exactly what he wants. He wasn¡¯t interested in being associated with his ssmate¡¯s boyfriend or being pursued by a gay man!

    Gu Yu sighed: ¡°Although I want the case to be thetter. From an objective analysis, the first point is more likely.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Ah, ah, in the end, why is this surnamed Bai looking for him! ©ß©¥©ß(¨t(¨FÃó¡¯)¨s(©ß©¥©ß

    At home, while Gu Yu was cooking dinner, Zhang Siyi mentioned Su Yuan¡¯s matter and asked him if he had looked through her portfolio that he had emailed.

    Stirring the pot, Gu Yu lifted the spoon and tasted the salinity of the soup then said: ¡°I¡¯ve seen it.¡±

    ¡°What do you think?¡± Although Zhang Siyi thinks he gave Su Yuan too much credit, he still respected Gu Yu thoughts and opinions.

    Gu Yu added some salt to the pot andughed: ¡°It was much better than the collection you showed me during your interview.¡±

    Knowing his temper, before Zhang Siyi could react, Gu Yu quickly followed up: ¡°But it is far worse then where you are now.¡±

    Gu Yu ced the lid on the pot and seriouslymented: ¡°The style of design that your ssmate showed has a unique soft feeling, which is typical of female designers.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°You can see the difference?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Well, female designers tend to be more subtle. There is a certain simplicity and warmth to her designs. Architects with this characteristic, unless they can broaden their vision, have limited growth and aren¡¯t suitable forrge-scale nning or bigmercial buildings. Ask your ssmate if she is interested in doing small buildings like homes, cafes, and kiosks. If she is, I know of a good ce to rmend to her. The story of her collection was also very attractive.

    Listening to Gu Yu point out Su Yuan¡¯s strengths, Zhang Siyi was happier than if he got praised himself. He wanted to say something positive too: ¡°Well, she originally studied English in Taiwan. She told me that her parents were university professors in the Department of Culture and History so she is deeply connected to humanity.¡±

    Gu Yan smiled and said: ¡°Exactly. I have a friend who is an editor of Literature and Architecture magazine and asionally trantes foreign architectural review articles. I recently heard him say that there is ack of insiders who can write articles and understand the industry to trante. I would suggest she consider tranting and writing review articles. She would acquire a lot of additional ie.

    Zhang Siyi was so excited, he could have jumped three feet high. He immediately pulled out his phone to give Su Yuan the good news, but Gu Yu stopped him.

    Gu Yu quickly said: ¡°Hold on. I need to confirm with my contacts whether or not there is still a position open as it has been two months since the information was updated. What would happen to her if you told her now, but the position was already filled?¡±

    Zhang Siyi naturally listened to Gu Yu and tried to suppress his excitement. He took a deep breath: ¡°Right.¡±

    Just as the table was set for dinner, Gu Yu¡¯s sister came back.

    During her several months of internship, unless she had to work overtime, she came home every night at six. Lately, she had been required to stayter than usual. As a result, her bright and soft face looked worn and haggard. Today, she came home looking more miserable than ever. When she entered, her head was hung low as shemented: ¡°Brother.¡±

    Gu Yu pulled the chair out from under the table for her: ¡°Come on. You will feel better after you eat.¡±

    Gu Yao dropped her small backpack on the sofa and said: ¡°I have no appetite. I don¡¯t want to eat. I¡¯m sick of it!¡±

    Getting straight to the point, Gu Yu asked: ¡°What happened?¡±

    Gu Yao wailed: ¡°I¡¯m being harassed!¡±

 Chapter 186: Second Brother

    <h4>Chapter 186: Second Brother</h4>

    _______________________

    Upon hearing her deration, Zhang Siyi perked up and quickly asked: ¡°Someone is harassing you too?¡±

    Startled for a moment, Gu Yao paused then spoke: ¡°Wait, what? What do you mean?¡±

    However, her attention was quickly diverted by Gu Yu¡¯s chilling question: ¡°What harassment? Make it clear.¡±

    Gu Yao hesitated for a moment before slowly exining: ¡°Last month, a new very wealthy client took interest in ourpany and the manager brought me to the preliminary wealth management financial meeting. At that time, the client took notice of me. As our department was managing his investments, he came over frequently each week. Anytime there was a meeting, whether it was in the building or out to lunch, he requested my presence. As this was part of our department, I couldn¡¯t refuse. However, not long ago, he wanted my business card and had added me to his WeChat contacts. Privately, he began to ask me out saying that he wanted to take me to a movie or have dinner with him. I seriously refused every time, but he didn¡¯t stop. Recently, he has been sending things to my office every day. At first it was cakes, buttely it has been other things. Today, he sent arge bouquet of roses!¡±

    Zhang Siyi mouth twitched. Why does this sound so familiar? He just received a cake today at noon...... Fuck, Gu Yu was right. Bai Rui really thought of him as a young girl!

    Gu Yu calmly asked: ¡°How long has he been asking you out privately?

    Gu Yao: ¡°It¡¯s been almost two weeks.¡±

    Gu Yu frowned: ¡°Why didn¡¯t you speak up earlier?¡±

    Gu Yao hurriedly replied: ¡°I thought I clearly rejected him. I didn¡¯t think he wouldn¡¯t understand my refusal. I told him to stop sending me things but he told me that it is his business whether or not he sends them and if I didn¡¯t like it, to simply throw it away. Then I asked him what motive he had by giving me so many gifts. He imed that he wanted nothing but to go out to dinner together. And if I don¡¯t go with him, he would just continue sending me things....¡±

    Zhang Siyi angrily said: ¡°Damn! What a jerk!¡±

    Gu Yao cried out: ¡°Yes!¡±

    Gu Yu was livid: ¡°In addition to the gifts, did he do anything else? Anything physical?¡±

    Gu Yao shook her head: ¡°Nothing yet, but the incidents have greatly impacted work. Now, every time he sends something, it causes the people in my department to go into a frenzy.¡±

    Gu Yu sighed. He told Bai Rui to leave to prevent the same type of thing from happening. He never thought his sister would have the same problem. Unlike Zhang Siyi, he wasn¡¯t able to do anything about it.

    Knowing his sister hadn¡¯t yet been subjected to physical harassment, Gu Yu slightly rxed. He went to the kitchen to get a bowl of rice for her: ¡°Come, eat first. Then we can discuss it.¡±

    Even though Gu Yao didn¡¯t feel like eating, she epted the bowl of rice and using it to relieve her fustration, she poked her chopsticks at it: ¡°He also was sending things to the entire office staff. The day before, not only did he buy lilies for the front desk, he also gave my department Starbucks coffee. While I can toss the things he sent me into the garbage, I have no right to tell my colleagues what to do. Since my circumstance are benefiting them, some are on his side. They have made remarks telling me I should cherish him and quickly marry the rich so I don¡¯t have to work.¡±

    Zhang Siyi indignantly said: ¡°He is holding you hostage! Since he is putting the pressure on you through your coworkers, he is trying to force you to submit. How despicable!¡±

    Gu Yao blinked her red eyes: ¡°Yes. I studied hard to go to a famous college so I could get a good job to support myself. Am I supposed to give up on my hard-earned work? A girl from the office who I thought was my friend told me that I was too cold. She said that if she had such an admirer, she would be moved to tears and that I should be grateful.¡±

    Gu Yao whimpered: ¡°If I don¡¯t like him, is it my fault he doesn¡¯t ept my rejection?¡±

    Zhang Siyi hurriedly replied: ¡°Of course it¡¯s not your fault! It is the man¡¯s fault for not respecting you. He¡¯s an asshole.¡±

    Surrounded by an unhealthy environment for so long , Gu Yao was starting to feel like something was wrong with her. She was stunned by the forcefulness of Zhang Siyi¡¯s deration. Finally, after so long there were people on her side. A bright light pierced the fog of suffering.

    Gu Yao firmly said: ¡°That¡¯s right. He imposed his will onto me with gifts and used my colleagues for his selfish wishes. He didn¡¯t care about my feelings at all and that¡¯s what makes me really ufortable!¡±

    Gu Yu raised one of his eyebrows and asked: ¡°With a small gift, are you supposed to run into his arms? Surely, your colleague doesn¡¯t really believe that is love. ¡°

    Gu Yu joked: ¡°Besides, if you run away from just a few gifts, what were all those years of food for the Gu family for?¡±

    Breaking the heavy atmosphere, Zhang Siyiughed out loud. Gu Yu¡¯s joke was just the right medicine.

    Gu Yao startedughing. She wiped her tears and smiled: ¡°You are the one getting the food!¡±

    Gu Yu gave her a piece of braised pork and said: ¡°Come on and eat.¡±

    Watching his sister visibly start to rx and begin eating, Gu Yu inquired: ¡°Have you ever spoken to your colleagues about your feelings?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡± ... No.¡±

    Gu Yu raised his eyebrow questioning: ¡°Why not?¡±

    Gu Yao felt bitter: ¡°Now that the client was pursuing me, the financial manager is taking special note of me. If I offend the client, I¡¯m afraid that my actions will affect thepany negotiations with the client¡¯s ount. I was simply going to be quiet about it, but now that my coworkers are also giving me a hard time...... I really want to quit!¡±

    Zhang Siyi impulsively reacted: ¡°Don¡¯t quit!¡±

    Gu Yu frowned slightly then looked at Gu Yao and asked her three questions: ¡°Has the situation already reached the point where you have to quit to resolve it? It isn¡¯t your fault the client is pursuing you, so why do you want to quit? You worked really hard to get that internship at thepany and they finally have begun to recognize your contributions. Do you want to just give up?¡±

    Gu Yao bowed her head: ¡°But what can I do?¡±

    Gu Yu was very serious: ¡°If you have a problem, does quitting solve it? Since you are an adult now, you can¡¯t just quit when things get rough. Do you think myself or Siyi wouldn¡¯t help you? Are you afraid of getting bullied?¡±

    Stirring her rice gently, Gu Yao responded: ¡°Hmm.¡±

    Listening to Gu Yu¡¯s Remarks, Zhang Siyi remembered his own deration of wanting to quit and felt a bit self-conscience. His slight embarrassment quickly passed when hearing Gu Yu talk about him like he was already party of the Gu family. He flushed red. Like a blood rted brother, he felt a responsibility towards Gu Yao.

    Gu Yu went on to say: ¡°The first problem you have to solve is the attitude of your colleagues. Make sure they understand your thoughts clearly. I don¡¯t believe a few cups of coffee will buy the favor of everyone in the department. I suggest that you first talk with your boss. Is your financial manager a woman?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Yeh.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°She should be able to understand your situation better. If you can make your predicament clear, she will definitely be able to do something about it and make a difference.

    Gu Yao frowned: ¡°But, what if she doesn¡¯t understand?¡±

    Gu Yu chuckled: ¡°You won¡¯t know until you talk with her and if you do, and she decides to use your presence to attract his sale, then thepany you work for isn¡¯t worth working for. In the face of the worst oue, you can hand in your resignation.¡±

    Nodding, Gu Yao remarked: ¡°I know.¡±

    Gu Yu ate a couple of mouthfuls of soup then continued: ¡°But, I¡¯m still worried about the situation. Starting tomorrow, for the next couple of weeks Siyi and I will take turns bringing you to and from work.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Ah? Aren¡¯t you both very busy? Wouldn¡¯t it be too much trouble?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°It¡¯s no trouble at all. What if the client isn¡¯t just inside, but outside too? What are you going to do alone?¡±

    Gu Yao shrunk her neck sheepishly: ¡°In fact, he was waiting for me downstairs when I got off work these past two nights.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What?¡±

    Gu Yu face became serious: ¡°All the more reason to pick you up.¡±

    Zhang Siyi blurted out the first thing that came to mind: ¡°I can pretend to be your boyfriend. If he knows that you are in a rtionship, then he should stop harassing you, no?¡±

    Unexpectedly, Gu Yao said: ¡°I have already tried that tactic and lied to him about having a boyfriend. When he investigated it himself, my lie was exposed when he went to talk to my colleagues. He also knows I have two brothers, so it would be impossible.¡±

    Surprised, Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°You talked about me with your coworkers?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Yeah. During a department lunch, I was asked where I live and I told them that I live with two brothers; elder brother and a second brother.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    While listening, Gu Yu he nced at Zhang Siyi. He raised his hand to cover his mouth in attempts to hide his softughter: ¡°Perfect! Brother Siyi ¡°ge¡± and now a second brother ¡°gege¡±.

    When Gu Yu ented the second ¡®ge¡¯, Zhang Siyi gave Gu Yu a hard stare.

    Adept at reading the current mood, Gu Yao ate two mouthfuls of rice then said: ¡°Right, gege it is.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Gu Yao grinned then asked: ¡°You mentioned being harassed too... What did you mean?¡±

    Zhang Siyi looked embarrassed and didn¡¯t want to answer.

    Gu Yu replied for him: ¡°He also encountered something simr to you.¡±

    Wide-eyed, Gu Yao stared at Zhang Siyi: ¡°Recently? My brother¡¯s love rival? What girl is so bold?¡±

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t have time to stop Gu Yu from blurting out: ¡°It¡¯s a man!¡±

    ¡°Pfffft¡ª¡ª!¡± Gu Yao¡¯s food sprayed out of her mouth and she coughed. ¡°Second brother is so popr!¡±

    Not wanting toment, Zhang Siyi lifted his rice bowl in front of his face and ate. Being pursued by more than one man isn¡¯t something worth showing off!

 Chapter 187: Protection

    <h4>Chapter 187: Protection</h4>

    ______________________

    Early the next morning, Zhang Siyi was the first to ¡®guard¡¯ Gu Yao. Since thepany Gu Yao works for was in the opposite direction as Borderless, they had to leave their house thirty minutes earlier than usual in order for Zhang Siyi to get to his job on time. As a result, Zhang Siyi sacrificed his sleep for the sake of his ¡®little sister¡¯.

    Even at thirty minutes prior to rush hour, the subway was still jammed packed. Zhang Siyi did his best to block other people from pressing themselves against Gu Yao so that she had a little breathing room.

    Gu Yao leaned closer to Zhang Siyi so he could hear her amongst all the noise and asked: ¡°Is that guy still harassing you at work?¡±

    In order to cover up his expression, Zhang Siyi moved his hand up and coughed lightly: ¡°I¡¯m a guy too so I have the ability to protect myself, unlike you. Rather than worrying about me, I am more worried about you.¡±

    Gu Yao stuck her tongue and exhaled, giving him a raspberry: ¡°Hey, isn¡¯t my brother jealous?¡±

    Zhang Siyi snorted and said: ¡°There are many people who covet him and I¡¯m still jealous.¡±

    Gu Yao looked at Zhang Siyi with envy. Before, she always felt that two men in love wasn¡¯t a sustainable rtionship. Knowing her brother¡¯s character, she used to fret about the time when Zhang Siyi wouldn¡¯t be able to tolerate it anymore and ask to break up. However, now that she has lived with them for six months, she knew her fears werepletely superfluous because she witnessed their disy of love practically every day!

    On average, the number of times a week she saw her brother and Zhang Siyi hugging or kissing each other was no less than four times; on the sofa, in the kitchen, near the bathroom, on the stairs.....

    ...... If they were of simr height, why stand on the stairs creating a height different to kiss? Was there something special about the position?

    ...... Likest night after dinner, Zhang Siyi went to wash the dishes. At first, my brother stood behind him chatting. Suddenly his voice was gone and when I took a peek, sure enough, my brother was hugging Zhang Siyi from behind and kissing his neck.

    She doesn¡¯t want to be sneaking a peek on purpose, but watching them expressing their love was as addicting as a heart-throbbing scene in an idol drama.

    What¡¯s more, Gu Yu doesn¡¯t even seem to care if she was present and thus, in reality, there wasn¡¯t such a thing as ¡®sneaking¡¯. The two inadvertently exposed their desire and each other¡¯s cute doting side all the time. ¨r(¨s_¨t)¨q

    Gu Yao especially liked to listen to them bickering. Zhang Siyi rarely spoke back to her brother. The only time when he did was when Gu Yu riled him up into an angry mess and every time, her brother only needed to take Zhang Siyi into his embrace and kiss him to console him. When she witnessed this process each time, Gu Yao heart exploded. Of course, as much as her brother showed Zhang Siyi affection, Zhang Siyi also showed his love for her brother.

    Living in such an environment infected with sweet love, Gu Yao¡¯s resistance to flirting steadily rose. Being surround by true-love all the time, she could easily identify the real thing. Giving gifts was no way an expression of love. Really, she also wanted to fall in love, but she was afraid that it wouldn¡¯t be as deep as her Brother and Zhang Siyi¡¯s.

    After arriving at their stop, they exited the subway and walked outside. Across the street, Zhang Siyi saw a street vendor selling breakfast sandwiches. Since they left so early, they didn¡¯t get the chance to eat before leaving the house. Zhang Siyi asked her: ¡°Would you like to eat one?¡±

    Gu Yao enthusiastically replied: ¡°Okay!¡±

    Zhang Siyi walked over and waited in the queue. When it was their turn to order, he asked for two sandwiches with extra bacon. As Gu Yao rummaged for her wallet, Zhang Siyi stopped her: ¡°I¡¯m here. What are you paying for?¡±

    Although it was only an eight-dor breakfast sandwich, Gu Yao was moved by Zhang Siyi¡¯s thoughtfulness. She really felt like she had another brother.

    After picking up the hot sandwiches, the two moved to the side to eat. They looked at each other, smiled and took a bite. Zhang Siyi spoke up: ¡°Let¡¯s savor this moment as it isn¡¯t something your brother would normally buy from a street vendor!¡±

    ¡°Yeah!¡± Gu Yao giggled and nodded.

    Zhang Siyi walked with Gu Yao to the lobby of thepany she worked at. Rubbing her head, Zhang Siyi smiled: ¡°Go on in. If you need something, either call me or your brother. Although if it is urgent, I would probably be able to respond sooner since your brother is normally very busy.

    ¡°I know!¡± Gu Yao waved her hand to him and said: ¡°Get to work too!¡±

    After watching Zhang Siyi leave, Gu Yao turned around to go to her office. Two female colleagues approached her from behind and asked: ¡°Hey Gu Yao, who was that handsome guy who dropped you off?¡±

    Full of pride, Gu Yao¡¯s face lit up: ¡°My second brother.¡±

    The girl¡¯s eyes lit up: ¡°Wow! It¡¯s no wonder he is so handsome. Your family has good genes.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°...¡± In fact, Zhang Siyi has no blood rtionship with her. Her brother was even better.

    After pressing the elevator call signal, one of the women asked: ¡°What does your second brother do? Why did he drop you off?¡±

    Gu Yao only answered the first question: ¡°He is an architect.¡±

    Her colleague¡¯s squealed in delight: ¡°Wow! An architect? That¡¯s amazing!

    In the eyes of outsiders, the profession of architect always seems so grand. However, for Gu Yao, who has been watching her father and brother over the years, she knew it was a hard, unmorous path to follow.

    Gu Yao didn¡¯t want to bother exining the true aspects of architecture to her colleagues. For once, the girl¡¯s attention was on something other than the client who pursued her. Gu Yao felt a bit relieved.

    In the evening, Zhang Siyi went to Gu Yao¡¯s office to pick her up and politely greeted her colleagues when he arrived. Like a rabbit, Gu Yao happily jumped to Zhang Siyi and grabbed his arm affectionately: ¡°Brother, you came!¡±

    Walking away, Zhang Siyi lowered his voice, leaned over and whispered: ¡°Is that stalker here?¡±

    Gu Yu held onto him and whispered back: ¡°Well, over there sitting in that white BMW about a hundred meters away from us.¡±

    Raising his brow in surprise, Zhang Siyi stopped walking: ¡°Oh? Since I¡¯m here, lets go over and tell him to stop harassing you!¡±

    Gu Yao quickly nudged him forward to continue walking: ¡°Don¡¯t. He has ounts with ourpany and I don¡¯t want to have a head-on confrontation with him.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Is he there every day? What is he waiting for?¡±

    Gu Yao was embarrassed to tell him: ¡°He is waiting for me to join him for dinner.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Didn¡¯t you already say no? And, he¡¯s still waiting for you? What¡¯s wrong with this guy?¡±

    Gu Yao depressingly said: ¡°He told me he was going to wait because one day, I might change my mind....¡±

    ¡°.....¡± Zhang Siyi was curious what kind of person this guy could possibly be? He looked back at the BMW again to catch a glimpse of the guy. Zhang Siyi was a bit surprised at what he saw. When listening to Yu Yaoin about this jerk, he instinctively imagined the person to be a bald, fat bellied old uncle. However, at a brief nce, he could tell that the man was well dressed, had a full head of ck hair, and wasn¡¯t fat.

    Dragging him along, Gu Yao energetically walked to the subway station: ¡°Don¡¯t look! I don¡¯t want him to notice us.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    After the train arrived at the station, they got on. As they found seats, Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°How old is that man? What does he look like?¡±

    ¡°Thirty-something; small eyes; nose turned up like he thinks he is better than everyone....¡± Gu Yao made hand gestures as she described him: ¡°Anyways, he is very ugly.¡±

    Having grown up surrounded by the beauty of the Gu family, Zhang Siyi thought Gu Yao¡¯s idea of ugly had been skewed.

    He asked another question: ¡°Have you talked to your manager about your troubles yet?¡±

    Gu Yao replied: ¡°Yes I did! Our manager said she would talk to him and will ask him to stop giving gifts to the staff members. Even if he doesn¡¯tply, the manager told the receptionist to collect all the items. She wanted to deal with them herself so they wouldn¡¯t effect everyone¡¯s work.¡±

    Zhang Siyi nodded. In dealing with this problem, Gu Yao was more mature than he was.

    As they were discussing the stalker, Gu Yao mobile phone buzzed with a new text message. She showed it to Zhang Siyi and said distressed: ¡°Look, he really saw us!¡±

    Zhang Siyi looked at the message ¡ª¡ª ¡°Who is that person with you?¡±

 Chapter 188: Sister-In-Law

    <h4>Chapter 188: Sister-In-Law</h4>

    ________________________

    Zhang Siyi nced at the chat history between Gu Yao and the man seeking her attention. Other then business rted issues, she ignored any additional messages. Her attitude mirrored the way Gu Yu dealt with Bai Rui.

    ¡°Are you going to reply?¡± Zhang Siyi asked.

    Gu Yao took her phone from Zhang Siyi¡¯s hand and put it in her pocket: ¡°I¡¯m toozy.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± To some extent, certain aspects of the two¡¯s personalities were simr.

    When they returned to their house in the evening, Gu Yu had dinner waiting for them. He requested an update on the day¡¯s events. His suggestion to speak with the manager was quite effective.

    On the following day, it was Gu Yu¡¯s turn to drop off and pick up Gu Yao. When her colleagues saw a different, yet more handsome man with her, it triggered a round of gossip within the department and once again, the women went into a frenzy.

    That night at meal time, Gu Yao excitedly ryed the days gossip: ¡°Today, when my brother dropped me off at work, my colleagues were all excited. They wanted to know who he was, where he worked, and if he had a girlfriend.....¡±

    Zhang Siyi came out of the kitchen and with curiosity he asked: ¡°Did anyone gossiped about me?¡±

    Smiling, Gu Yao replied: ¡°Yes. Yesterday, I told them you were my second brother and today was my elder brother. They were very envious. Ha-ha-ha! Some people asked how it was possible to have two brothers.¡±

    Zhang Siyi furrowed his brow in thought, Zhang Siyi also thought it was very strange. He turned to Gu Yu and asked: ¡°How is it that your family has two children?¡±

    Gu Yu grinned: ¡°Didn¡¯t I tell you she brought the food.¡±

    Gu Yao shouted: ¡°Hey!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Don¡¯t tease her. Seriously, family nning at the time only allowed for one child, so why does your family have two?¡±

    Gu Yu nced at him: ¡°I don¡¯t remember the details. Do you remember mentioning it to you once before? In order to have a second child, my family had to pay a fine of 20,000 yuan.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I don¡¯t remember. Only Twenty thousand? That¡¯s all?¡±

    Gu Yuughed at Zhang Siyick of foresight: ¡°That was years ago when the average monthly wage of urban workers was only thirty yuan. Thousands of yuan is equivalent to today¡¯s millionaire.¡±

    Zhang Siyi eximed: ¡°Wow. Then how much is equal to twenty thousand now?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Almost two million.¡±

    Zhang Siyi stared at Gu Yao in shock, then joked: ¡°Shit! An addition to a family turns out to be so expensive. What family can spend two million for grocery shopping?¡±

    Gu Yao bowed her head silently. Although her family rarely mentioned it, she knew that her birth had brought a burden to her family and thinking about it, she felt sad. However, listening to Zhang Siyi teasing, she couldn¡¯t helpughing out loud.

    Touching his chin, Zhang Siyi turned to look at Gu Yu: ¡°Since your family was able to pay the fine, you guys must have been rich!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°At the beginning, my family borrowed a lot of money. In order to pay off the debt, Dad went to Hainan for engineering work with the now chief of Borderless. During that time, construction was booming so he earned a lot of money and thus, the debt was paid off quickly.¡±

    He turned to look at his sister and continued: ¡°About the family joke... Dad mentioned it to me. He just didn¡¯t want you to think you were a burden. Now listen to your elder brother, we love and treasure you. Although the Gu family isn¡¯t rich, we weren¡¯t short of money. We have watched you grow up into a fine, young women that knows real love from the heart. It is a relief to know that you won¡¯t be easily seduced by shallow flirting.¡±

    Feeling emotional, Gu Yao¡¯s rapidly blinked her eyes to hold back tears: ¡°Hey....¡±

    Gu Yu added: ¡°It¡¯s time to find your own love and let me go. From a young age, you were always attached to me and I¡¯m afraid being stuck to me has influenced you too much.¡±

    Gu Yao muttered: ¡°Who¡¯s sticking to you?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°You aren¡¯t stuck to me? There were three very goodpanies that recruited you and yet you chose thepany close to here.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was stunned. It turned out that Gu Yao moved in and lived with her brother not to save money, but to stay close to him!

    Gu Yao face was red ear to ear: ¡°So now I¡¯m a hinderance to your life with second brother?¡±

    Gu Yu snorted: ¡°If I thought you were a hinderance; would I have let you live here? I say this to remind you; don¡¯t be too dependent on us.¡±

    Biting the chopsticks, Gu Yao remained silent. Her brother used to call Gu Yao a little sweet girl but now that he is with Zhang Siyi, it seems like, all her brother wanted to do was marry Gu Yao out in a hurry. Despicable brother!

    Truth be told, Gu Yao worries aren¡¯t without reason. Since her brother fell in love, she did have a strong sense of loss. Before, not only did he make sure his sister was well fed and happy, he also directed his jokes and teasing at her and as a result, Gu Yao felt like her brother belonged to her.

    In contrast, Gu Yu gave 99% of his attention to Zhang Siyi and she was left with a measly one percent. She had to admit that she was jealous at first and there were some awkward feelings in private, but for the happiness of her brother, she had to ept reality. Slowly she realized that the absence of brotherly love she felt waspensated by Zhang Siyi. Overnight, she had two brothers and the feeling wasn¡¯t so bad.

    As a result of her self-introspection, the more time she spent with her brother and Zhang Siyi, the easier it was to use them as the standard topare everyone else to. In the past, when her brother went out with friends, he often took her with him as a pretend girlfriend. She used to think that he caused the dy in finding someone to date. In reality, she discovered that there wasn¡¯t anyone better than her brother. Even Zhang Siyi has taken second ce in her mind as an excellent man.

    Gu Yao sighed and forcefully said: ¡°What about it? There are many people who don¡¯t get married now!¡±

    She turned to look at Zhang Siyi and joked: ¡°How about I pretend marry Zhang Siyi. His parents like me anyway and If I marry him, I can cover for you for a lifetime.¡±

    Zhang Siyi snorted and felt that her proposal was pretty good. If Gu Yao was willing, he and Gu Yu would be able to get through the difficulties of both parents in one go. Can the circumstance be better than that?

    Unexpectedly, Gu Yu mmed his chopsticks on the table with a bang and forcefully shouted: ¡°No!¡±

    Startled, both Gu Yao and Zhang Siyi were shocked by Gu Yu¡¯s reaction.

    Gu Yu furrowed his brow and in an authoritative, serious tone he said: ¡°I¡¯m warning you now, do not think about it again. It is absolutely impossible.¡±

    For a moment, Gu Yao sat on her seat stunned. Thest thing she expected was her brother¡¯s strong reaction. As her face drained of all color, tears fell from her beautiful eyes. In less then a minute, she felt both embarrassed and wronged. cing her chopsticks down, she got up and ran upstairs.

    Zhang Siyi dare not speak and the dinner table remained silent. It was the first time he witnessed Gu Yu fight with his sister.

    Gu Yu remained at his seat stone-faced. He didn¡¯t gofort his sister and instead, continued to eat his meal.

    Afterwards, it would have been Gu Yao¡¯s turn to wash the dishes, but since she went upstairs, Zhang Siyi took it upon himself to take the responsibility of washing them. When he finished, he saw Gu Yu sitting quietly next to Townhouse, brushing him. Even the dog was motionless with his head bowed as if he felt the masters¡¯ anger.

    Zhang Siyi walked over to Gu Yu and quietly said: ¡°Let¡¯s go and walk the dog together.¡±

    Gu Yu led Townhouse to the foyer so the two of them could put on shoes. Outside, they walked quietly together for about a hundred meters before Zhang Siyi spoke. ¡°Why were you so jealous?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not jealous.¡± Gu Yu replied.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°You¡¯re not? With that reaction?¡±

    Not answering him, Gu Yu remained silent.

    Not knowing what to say, Zhang Siyi changed the topic: ¡°If I had such a lovely sister, I would feel reluctant to let her get married.¡±

    Gu Yu scoffed: ¡±Do you think I am pushing her away?¡±

    Seeing Gu Yu finally rx somewhat, Zhang Siyi seized the opportunity and pushed him further: ¡°Then why did you do that? I think she was just in a good mood and wanted to make a joke.¡±

    Gu Yu hung his head and sighed softly. Another minute passed before he spoke: ¡°I also contradict myself. I hope she finds someone to fall in love with, but I¡¯m afraid her rtionship won¡¯tst and will make her unhappy. As her brother, I can protect her from being deceived, but I can¡¯t offer her love like a man loves a woman for life.

    Gu Yu: ¡°Social values are still chaotic. Even now, that man regarded her as a thing and by sending her gifts, it was supposed to mean something? Is that all it takes to get someone to fall in love?¡±

    Taking Zhang Siyi¡¯s hand into his own, Gu Yu looked at Zhang Siyi and spoke: ¡°You and I should know how beautiful love is. My parents are also deeply in love. She shouldn¡¯t be running away from falling in love. If she can find true love, like we have, she will certainly be happier than now. Is it necessary to obliterate her possibility of finding happiness in order to not let her get hurt; let her sacrifice her own love for the sake of ours? Our existence doesn¡¯t mean she should give up the burden of finding her own happiness....¡±

    When he heard Gu Yu exin, Zhang Siyi realized it was for this reason that Gu Yu was angry. At the same time, he also felt guilty for his selfish moment. How could he let Gu Yao sacrifice her own happiness for his sake?

    Gu Yu frowned and said: ¡°Despite my worries and fears, she has to face the world herself. My sister is the one that has to experience life, fall down and pick herself up again. We can provide her a temporary respite from her emotional or physical troubles, but she can¡¯t be dependent on us forever. Besides, we¡¯re gay. Although I¡¯ve always thought that love has nothing to do with gender. To be honest, I¡¯ve been worriedtely about the influence we have on her about her views of love. I didn¡¯t think that our rtionship is a good role model for her.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°If I hadn¡¯t listened to your exnation, I would have continued to misunderstand you. I thought you were trying to get her out of the house and marry soon and since Gu Yao might have also interpreted things as I have, she probably felt abandoned. Then, she talked about a pretend marriage. I thought you were jealous.¡±

    Gu Yu clutched Zhang Siyi¡¯s hand. Of course, he will be jealous of anyone that wants to get close with Zhang Siyi. Zhang Siyi is his. Gu Yu was the only one allowed to marry him. He could never agree to a pretend marriage, even if it was done with good will.

    Zhang Siyi continued: ¡°Compared with the time you got angry at me for requesting help for Su Yuan, your attitude is much worse now. I bet your sister is very upset.¡±

    Gu Yu is depressed: ¡°I was?¡±

    The corner of Zhang Siyi mouth twitched. Does Gu Yu not realize how fierce he can be?

    He pulled at Gu Yu¡¯s arm: ¡°Let¡¯s go back. You tell your sister what you just exined to me.¡±

    Gu Yu snorted and resisted Zhang Siyi¡¯s tugging.

    Since Gu Yu was being difficult, Zhang Siyi pestered him more and said: ¡°Come on! Now that I¡¯m involved, you have to go exin it to her. What if you don¡¯t? She is going to hate meter and we will have a sister-inw problem!¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s statement provoked Gu Yu intoughter. Gu Yu squeezed his hand reassuringly and said: ¡°Alright, let¡¯s go back.¡±

 Chapter 189: Break Up

    <h4>Chapter 189: Break Up</h4>

    _______________________

    After returning home, Gu Yu went to his Sister¡¯s room and knocked on her door. For over an hour, the two siblings were in discussion. When Gu Yu came back to his own room, Zhang Siyi was waiting for him. Since he was in a good mood, he assumed Gu Yu had resolved the misunderstanding he had with his sister.

    Before Zhang Siyi had time to ask, Gu Yu moved him to the bed and pressed him down affectionately. Their lovemaking was slow and tender. Afterwards he held Zhang Siyi cherished face and gently kissed him. The devotion that was reflected in Gu Yu¡¯s eyes would make anyone¡¯s heart melt.

    Zhang Siyi muffled augh: ¡°What are you doing? You are being weird today...¡±

    Gu Yu buried his face in Zhang Siyi¡¯s shoulders and gently sucked and kissed his neck.

    ¡°Uh...¡± Zhang Siyi shrunk his neck to ward him off: ¡°Don¡¯t. It tickles.¡±

    Pressing his body close, Gu Yu wrapped Zhang Siyi in his arms in a tight embrace. For a while, he gave Zhang Siyi gentle kisses and caressed him tenderly before whispering in his ear: ¡°I spoke with my friend today regarding Su Yuan¡¯s matter. You can inform her of the open position.¡±

    In Gu Yu¡¯s arms, with the sudden change of topic, it took a moment for Zhang Siyi to register what Gu Yu said. Finally, he reacted and propped himself up on his elbow and said: ¡°Really!? Whatpany?¡±

    Gu Yu reached out to knead his ear and replied: ¡°Well, you already know who the man is.¡±

    Zhang Siyi raised his voice in surprised: ¡°I have? Who is it?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Last year at the annual meeting, he is from thepany that was hosting their party next door.¡±

    Since they went to KTV together, Zhang Siyi memory of him was clearer: ¡°Liang from GB-Firm?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Yes, his name is Liang Xueying. We worked together in the X-Firm.¡±

    Zhang Siyi wondered: ¡°Does GB-Firm specialize in small-scale architectural design? If my memory serves me right, I thought GB-Firm was simr to Borderless?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°In the past two years, the market has steadily declined and the once copious amounts ofrge-scalend development projects have significantly decreased. With his own resources, he left GB this past May to start his ownpany that specializes in small scale building and design. The type of work hispany does and the type of clients who seek his help, don¡¯t conflict with GB¡¯s interests.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Ah! That¡¯s how it turned out.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°You¡¯ll have to exin to her ahead of time that her sry won¡¯t be as high as Borderless. Your ssmate would be treated with the same standard as a new student. Monthly wages are six thousand with additional bonuses based on the projects she worked on. Every day, the office closes at 5:30 and thus there is no overtime work. Since the firm is very small with a total of ten employees, the overall atmosphere in the workce is rtively rxed and there are often organized activities.¡±

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t think the lower wage would be a problem. Thest time he spoke with Su Yuan, she told him that her sry contract was seven thousand, but the actual amount paid was less then five thousand. At least, a consistent six thousand a month sry was a little better. Without overtime, Su Yuan could utilize the time to write architectural reviews per Gu Yu¡¯s suggestion for additional ie.

    Most importantly, Zhang Siyi¡¯s impression of Liang Xueying was very good. At KTV, he was very social and easy to get along with. Certainly, working for a boss like that was better than Su Yuan¡¯s current situation.

    The next day at lunch, Zhang Siyi called Su Yuan and informed her of the great news. She was very grateful and eximed: ¡°I don¡¯t know how to thank you!¡±

    Zhang Siyi smiled and said: ¡°You¡¯re wee! It is the least I can do for my friend, but to be honest, I didn¡¯t find the job for you. The director helped me and rmended it.¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°Your director? The same harsh and strict boss you mentioned before?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Well, that¡¯s him......¡± Not having said more about Gu Yu recently, of course her impression of him will be stuck at the time when he just started working andined! (=_=)

    Zhang Siyi was eager to overwrite the old impression she had of Gu Yu and quickly said: ¡°In fact, he is actually a good boss to work for. Also, it turned out he is my High School alumni. Now we are close, that is, he is a good friend.¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°I will have to thank him as well. When you have time, I¡¯ll take you both out to eat.¡±

    Zhang Siyi politely refused: ¡°No. It¡¯s alright and not needed.¡±

    Su Yuan smiled: ¡°Why not? Your director went out of his way on your behalf to help. What kind of person would I be If I don¡¯t give thanks where a thanks is due? I also don¡¯t want to make things difficult for you. In any case, my gratitude must be expressed so, if you don¡¯t have time toe out for dinner, I will prepare a thank you gift instead.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was in a tough situation, but he had to answer her: ¡°Well, gifts aren¡¯t necessary. I will let him know and we can go out for a simple meal.¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°Even though it¡¯s best to express gratitude in person, I won¡¯t be avable this week. I¡¯m not sure when because Ren Mengyu broke up with her boyfriend and I expect I¡¯ll have to lend a shoulder for her to cry on for a little while.¡±

    This new information shocked Zhang Siyi: ¡°What? She broke up? When?¡±

    Su Yuan sighed: ¡°Justst night.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°She didn¡¯t say anything in the group chat did she?¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°It is hard for her to admit she got dumped. After all, it wasn¡¯t so long ago that she wanted to show off her rtionship to Bai Rui with you and our friends.¡±

    Zhang Siyi broke into a cold sweat. How can this be! Bai Rui can¡¯t really believe his sexual orientation was discovered so he broke up out of guilt, can he?

    ¡°You know, I thought this was going to happen. From the beginning, I didn¡¯t think their rtionship wouldst, but at the time I didn¡¯t say anything to her because I didn¡¯t want to hurt her feelings. She was enamored with him and the attention.¡± Su Yuan sighed deeply. ¡°I don¡¯t want her to get mad at me for telling you.¡±

    On impulse, Zhang Siyi almost blurted out the truth about Bai Rui¡¯s recent behavior, but upon listening to Su Yuan finish her narrative, he mped his mouth shut. He didn¡¯t want to add any more reasons for Ren Mengyu to feel bad. As they say, a person in love can be irrational and he didn¡¯t want to be the recipient of misced feelings.

    After a few exchanges of pleasantries with Su Yuan, Zhang Siyi hung up phone in a panic. He quickly revisited the chat record with Bai Rui and Gu Yu and noticed it had been a few days since contact. He was inwardly relieved. Regardless, whatever is going on with Bai Rui, he had nothing to do with it.

    Right as he was reviewing the chat log, unexpectedly, a new message popped up in the dialog box: ¡°Are you free tonight? I¡¯ll take you out to dinner.¡±

    ¡°...... ¡± Zhang Siyi¡¯s eye¡¯s widened in surprised. The shock almost caused him to drop his phone!

    He stared at the screen. Unbelievable! Bai Rui texted right when he finished talking to Su Yuan. Was he telepathic? Fuck, this is too much of a coincidence!

    Freaked out, Zhang Siyi forgot about Gu Yu¡¯s instructions and asked him directly: ¡°Did you break up with Ren Mengyu?¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°Yeah.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Why?¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°Can¡¯t you guess? [Smiles]¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Fuck! Shit! Fuck! Shit! Guess? Can he pretend not to know?

    Unable to think of something witty to reply with, Zhang Siyi finally thought of Gu Yu. Taking advantage of his lunch break, he immediately went to Gu Yu¡¯s office, gave the phone to him and quickly exined the circumstances.

    Gu Yu raised his eyebrows: ¡°He broke up with her? That guy had a little bit of conscience after all.¡±

    Zhang Siyi felt troubled: ¡°Why do you think he broke up with my friend? Is it because of me?¡±

    Gu Yu calmly said: ¡°If he is really gay, it is a good thing he broke it off with your friend early. You don¡¯t need to feel guilty.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± That said, he just broke up with Ren Mengyu and has already contact me. In the end, doesn¡¯t it really have everything to do with me? o(¨s¡õ¨t)o

    Gu Yu looked down and scrolled through the chat record. While talking to Zhang Siyi, Bai Rui had sent another message: ¡°The fact is, when I met you, I wanted to bes friends. I wanted to make you happy by giving you a cake, but unfortunately, you didn¡¯t like it. Please, can I just take you out to dinner so we can talk?¡±

    From behind, Zhang Siyi was looking over Gu Yu¡¯s shoulder while he was reading the message. He said: ¡°Quickly, reject him!¡±

    Perhaps, because of the dy in a text response, Bai Rui had sent another message: ¡°You know, I felt that the you in WeChat and the you in the real world are different.

    Gu Yu typed in a question on Zhang Siyi¡¯s phone: ¡°Oh? What¡¯s the difference?¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°Well, I can¡¯t say for sure, but the feeling you give in WeChat isn¡¯t the same in reality. You feel like a different person.¡±

    Hair standing on end, Zhang Siyi got goosebumps. Oh God, could Bai Rui really see through us?

    Gu Yu didn¡¯t care. He smiled mischievously and replied: ¡°You are not wrong.¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°What do you mean?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Indeed, we are two people.¡± [Smiles]

    Bai Rui: ¡°...¡±

    Not wanting to hurt Gu Yu¡¯s ear, Zhang Siyi turned his face away andughed out loud. From anxiety, to fear, toughter; it only took a few seconds. He tried to suppress hisughter, pointed at Gu Yu and said: ¡°You really told him! I bet his soul is shattered hahahahahaha!¡±

    Noticing the time on the clock on the wall, Gu Yu looked at Zhang Siyi and became serious: ¡°Ok now. Lunch is over.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was reluctant to leave because he wanted to see how Gu Yu was going to bully Bai Rui. Why are things so different when Bai Rui is left in Gu Yu¡¯s hands?

    Watching Zhang Siyi¡¯s eyes full of love and adoration, Gu Yuughed: ¡°It won¡¯t be solved so quickly and I don¡¯t have free time to y with him. I¡¯ll show you the chat recordster. Now, get back to work.¡±

    Zhang Siyi wrinkled his nose in protest before turning around and leaving Gu Yu¡¯s office.

    Less than three minutester, Bai Rui messaged again: ¡°You aren¡¯t Zhang Siyi?¡±¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°[smiles]¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°...¡±

    This time, the phone remained silent for longer than three minutes. Busy with work, Gu Yu set Zhang Siyi¡¯s phone aside. He he had no reason to continue talking with Bai Rui.

    In thete afternoon, Bi Lele and Yuan Zhicheng went to Gu Yu¡¯s office to report on a new project. Making them wait, Gu Yu left his office momentarily to get information about it.

    After Gu Yu left, they heard the buzzing of a phone on silent mode that was covered by some documents.

    Bi Lele and Yuan Zhicheng looked at each other: ¡°Did Boss forgot to bring his phone?¡±

    Moving the folder aside to reveal the phone, Bi Lele questioned: ¡°Isn¡¯t this Zhang Siyi¡¯s phone?¡±

 Chapter 190: Honesty

    <h4>Chapter 190: Honesty</h4>

    ___________________

    The reason why it was so easy to identify Zhang Siyi¡¯s phone was because his phone case was rather unique; Luffy from One Piece.

    Yuan Zhicheng didn¡¯t react much: ¡°Maybe he dropped it here?¡±

    Bi Lele¡¯s mind was churning. She didn¡¯t think that was possible because a persons¡¯ phone was very private. If Zhang Siyi had dropped it, Gu Yu would be the first to give it back. Bi Lele wasn¡¯t one-hundred percent sure. It was possible they used the same case. However, thinking about it further, Bi Lele thought it was even more unlikely because that would mean they had a matching case, like couples do.

    Bi Lele shook her head to snap out of her imagination and ced the file back over the phone. For a while, the phone continued to buzz. After five-minutes, Gu Yu stepped back into his office. Bi Lele spoke up: ¡°Boss, your phone just rang.¡±

    ncing in the direction of Zhang Siyi¡¯s phone, Gu Yu made a ¡®hmm¡¯ sound and didn¡¯t reach for it. His calm response made Bi Lele feel embarrassed.

    After talking about the project, the two of them left Gu Yu¡¯s office. Just as Bi Lele was about to close the door, she suddenly remembered something and turned back. She caught a glimpse of Gu Yu¡¯s movement that seemed strange. He had taken the phone buried underneath the file, opened his desk drawer, and threw the phone into it.

    Without change, Gu Yu calmly asked: ¡°Was there something else?¡±

    ¡°Before the Design Institute¡¯s involvement, the client had other designs. Do we want to find out more about the preliminary ns?¡± Bi Lele asked.

    Gu Yu replied: ¡°No need. They are seeking a different solution. If you look at other¡¯s design ideas, they might inadvertently affect your own ideas. It is better to start fresh.¡±

    Bi Lele: ¡°Ok then. I understand.¡±

    Bi Lele returned to her desk and thought about what she had just witnessed. The likelihood of Zhang Siyi¡¯s phone ¡®falling¡¯ in Gu Yu¡¯s office seemed impossible. She turned to look at Zhang Siyi who was head down, concentrating on his work. She couldn¡¯t stop herself from imagining different scenarios......

    From the drawer, Gu Yu reached for Zhang Siyi again. There was a strange number listed on the caller ID with an earlier time-stamp. At the same time, there were two recent messages sent in WeChat.

    Bai Rui: ¡°You can¡¯t fool me.¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°What two people? Why didn¡¯t you pick up when I called you?¡±

    Laughing and snorting, Gu Yu immediately turned off the phone and put it back in the drawer.

    When the work day ended, Gu Yu took out Zhang Siyi¡¯s phone and scrolled through the log. During the afternoon, Bai Rui attempted to make one phone call, sent one text message, and three messages on social media.

    Bai Rui: ¡°Are you ignoring me?¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°I¡¯lle to your office to find you.¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°What time do you get off work?¡±

    rmed, Gu Yu raised his brow. The directedness with which Bai Rui pursued Zhang Siyi, was surprising. Was Bai Rui that anxious to meet Zhang Siyi when they hardly know each other? It was a vast contrast to his own pursuit of Zhang Siyi.

    Gu Yu quickly replied: ¡°I don¡¯t have time to go out to eat dinner and don¡¯te to my office. I hardly know you and it would be inappropriate for you toe meet me at work.¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°...¡±

    As usual, Gu Yu met Zhang Siyi at their usual meeting ce in the subway station. At the area near the twelve-car door, it was farthest from the stairwell. The chances of colliding with colleagues was slim. At peak times, even thest section of the car was crowded.

    Looking out for Gu Yu like a hawk, when Zhang Siyi saw him, he excitedly rushed through the crowd to catch up to him. He put his hand out: ¡°Mobile phone.¡±

    After Gu Yu returned his phone, Zhang Siyi read through the chat record. He started to panic: ¡°He called!?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Well, I didn¡¯t answer. Today, Bi Lele almost saw your phone on my desk so you should keep it with you now.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What should I do if I get another message from Bai Rui?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°It is better if you don¡¯t reply to him at all. The more you care about him, the more influence he has on you and the more you get swept away by his rhythm. If you don¡¯t care, he bes nonessential. I took your cell phone away before to prevent you from being distracted at work. Your emotions are too susceptible to suggestions and your mood is easily stimted by others.¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s lecture was right! Opening and closing his fist, Zhang Siyi felt like he was being led around by Bai Rui by his nose. However, when he looks at the dialog between Gu Yu and Bai Rui, Gu Yu is the one with the upper hand.

    Gu Yu pped Zhang Siyi on the back with his hand,ughing: ¡°In short, learn to control it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi clenched his fist and said: ¡°Teach me!¡±

    Since it was Zhang Siyi¡¯s turn to pick up Gu Yao today, he parted ways with Gu Yu after two subway stops. Gu Yu continued on the train to go home and make dinner. Just as he left, Zhang Siyi felt his phone vibrate.

    Bai Rui: ¡°What is wrong with having dinner together?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Ignore him.... hold back.

    Bai Rui: ¡°I¡¯m confused. Are you afraid of me?¡± [Smiles]

    The veins on Zhang Siyi¡¯s forehead are popping out .... Endure!

    Bai Rui: ¡± Are you afraid that I will poison you? Or, are you afraid that I will eat you?¡± [Smiles]

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Don¡¯t reply! Hold back!

    ............ Aah, aah! I can¡¯t help it! (¨s¨F¡õ¡¯)¨s(©ß©¥©ß

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Who is afraid of you!!!¡±

    Now that he broke his resolve, Zhang Siyi began to regret his impulsiveness.

    As Zhang Siyi was scratching his head, Bai Rui sent a long message: ¡°Zhang Siyi, I really think you are a very interesting person. I sincerely want to be friends with you. I don¡¯t have ulterior motives. I¡¯ve tried to reach out many times, but you just ignored me, which make me feel frustrated. If you aren¡¯t afraid of me, do you hate me?¡±

    Staring at the phone, Zhang Siyi tried to convince himself to simply ignore him, but putting his thoughts into action proved more difficult. He couldn¡¯t control his own nature especially when he saw how sincere Bai Rui was being.

    After an inward struggle, Zhang Siyi finally gave in and frankly replied: ¡°You are annoying.¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°Why? Because of the two hundred dors of coffee?¡±

    Although his original ordeal with the coffee was irritating, Zhang Siyi certainly didn¡¯t mean to admit that.

    Bai Rui: ¡°Do you think I was deceiving Ren Mengyu¡¯s feelings?¡±

    When Zhang Siyi saw his text, he immediately was filled with righteous indignation: ¡°You knew it was cheating!?¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°So, that¡¯s the reason.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.....¡± Since he ran to Zhang Siyi for a hook up while dating Ren Mengyu...... isn¡¯t that proof that Bai Rui was a jerk?¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°I didn¡¯t intend to deceive her in the beginning. I really wanted to try dating her seriously.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was a little confused. Can he really be with Ren Mengyu if he was gay?¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°Before I met Ren Mengyu, I¡¯ve dated one woman and two men.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...... ¡± The criminal record exposed! (=_=)

    Bai Rui: ¡°The first girlfriend made me realize that I am not purely heterosexual and my first boyfriend helped me understand homosexuality correctly. The third rtionship.... Well, I thought we would be together for a lifetime, but not long ago he left me to get married ans soon afterwards I met Ren Mengyu. I was earnestly trying to start a new rtionship with her to get back on the straight path.¡±

    Reading Bai Rui heartfelt words, Zhang Siyi knew he wasn¡¯t really a bad person. Zhang Siyi sighed. The defensive barrier he kept up dropped instantly and he lowered his guard.

    Bai Rui continued: ¡°During this time, I¡¯ve tried my best to cater to all her needs. I¡¯ll admit that I used her to get over my previous rtionship, but I also knew she was using me. She liked the image of a good boyfriend I created for her. I¡¯ve tried to share my hobbies with her, but she didn¡¯t seem to care. Our interests didn¡¯t really match so I couldn¡¯t devote myself into the rtionship, but most of all, I still couldn¡¯t forget about my ex until now.¡±

    Thinking about being in Bai Rui¡¯s situation, Zhang Siyi can¡¯t imagine how devastated he would feel if Gu Yu left him to marry a woman, or vice versa. Even thinking about it made his heart ache. He started feeling a little sympathetic towards Bai Rui.

    Bai Rui: ¡°It was just happenstance that I went to your friend¡¯s reunion, because I was still hesitant with Ren Mengyu at the time and was thinking of breaking up. It was your talk to Su Yuan that let me reflect on my own cowardice.¡±

    ¡°Ah? Why?¡± Zhang Siyi was somewhat confused. He gave some advice about architecture so Su Yuan wouldn¡¯t give up. What does it have to do with Bai Rui¡¯s rtionship problems?

    Bai Rui: ¡°Although you were talking about the pursuit of her career, I saw your determination to move forward despite any obstacles and your wholehearted attitude in everything. You said ¡®we can¡¯t change the world, but we can stay on our own path.¡¯ I know this all too well and you persuaded Su Yuan with such passion that is was very touching.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°I didn¡¯t think I would be schooled by the youngest person at the time, ha-ha.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was a little embarrassed again. Wouldn¡¯t it have been better if Bai Rui talked about these things sooner? Then Zhang Siyi wouldn¡¯t have let his thoughts run wild.

    Bai Rui: ¡°I have already made it clear with Ren Mengyu yesterday. Although she is heartbroken now, we didn¡¯t date for long so she will be able to get over it quickly. If she wants toter, we can remain friends.¡±

    Sighing in relief, the weight Zhang Siyi felt on his shoulders was lifted.

    Bai Rui: ¡°When I added you in WeChat, I wanted to get your attention. I admit that I was thinking about teasing you because I am very curious about what kind of person you are.¡± [Smiles]

    After listening to Bai Rui¡¯s exnation, his ¡®smiles¡¯ doesn¡¯t seem so annoying anymore.

    Bai Rui: ¡°However, after talking to you for a few days, I found that you were different. Any time I tried to chat with you, you were too clever and redirected my attempts at getting to know you. It was upsetting.¡±

    After Bai Rui¡¯s deluge of honesty, he didn¡¯t have the heart to deceive him further and felt obligated to return the favor. He sighed and replied: ¡°I¡¯ll tell you the truth. It¡¯s not just me you are chatting with. I have a boyfriend and sometimes he is talking to you.¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°.........¡±

 Chapter 191: Sister

    <h4>Chapter 191: Sister</h4>

    ___________________

    Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t sure why he came out to Bai Rui on impulse as he wasn¡¯t close enough to even be considered a friend. Little by little, Bai Rui narrative softened Zhang Siyi¡¯s resolve. In fact, learning about Bai Rui heartache and suffering, made him think that Bai Rui must be very lonely as he didn¡¯t have someone to confide in. Maybe, he really just wanted to be friends.

    Like Lu Qiao, who talked to a tree in desperation and Su Yuan, who was exhausted by reality, sometimes an encouraging sympathetic voice of another can help pull someone from despair.

    Since homosexuality is a minority, it lessmon to meet others who are also gay. When encountering someone of the same orientation, unlike themon person who might be malicious, Zhang Siyi would naturally reach out to help otherwise he would feel regretful. Since his deceit went on long enough, Zhang Siyi started feeling bad about it and as a result he exined everything.

    He simply expressed himself: ¡°About that day I spoke with Su Yuan, I don¡¯t think I said anything special. I¡¯m just a normal person. Actually, a lot of what I spoke about with her was knowledge that my boyfriend taught me. Without his help and guidance, I might have ended up like Su Yuan.¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi continued: ¡°Also, the person who guessed your sexuality wasn¡¯t me. I just thought you were a annoying for wanting the money from a few cups of coffee. Your antics made me quite angry. When I told my boyfriend, he saw your avatar and identified the painting by a known gay artist.

    Bai Rui: ¡°His name is Francis Bacon.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Right; and your WeChat nickname. Putting two and two together, he thought you might be gay and therefore, at the time, I assumed you were knowingly deceiving Ren Mengyu. It is something a jerk would do.¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°...¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°When I chatted with you, you always seemed so elusive and different.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°In the afternoon, didn¡¯t he inform you of all of this?¡± ¨r(¨s_¨t)¨q

    Bai Rui: ¡°...I thought you were joking.¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°But I have to say, your boyfriend is very possessive. I haven¡¯t even done anything and he shields you.¡± [Smiles]

    Even though Zhang Siyi knew Gu Yu watched him like a hawk, hearing another person talk about how much Gu Yu watched over him made his heart swell.

    Bai Rui: ¡°It¡¯s extraordinary that he recognized Francis Bacon¡¯s painting.¡±

    Zhang Siyi dly boasted about Gu Yu: ¡°He minored in the history of Western art and easily identified the painting with one nce!¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°Pass me his WeChat ID so I can friend him.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was alert: ¡°What? Why?¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°He sounds like a very interesting person and I want be friends with him too.¡±

    Feeling threatened, Zhang Siyi blew up in a sh: ¡°Fuck off!¡± What the hell! Is Bai Rui now targeting Gu Yu?

    Bai Rui: ¡°Why are you so fierce. I¡¯m not going to hit on your boyfriend.¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°Believe me. It is simply to discuss some art topics.¡± [Smiles]

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°Actually, don¡¯t tell me. I can probably guess. Since he had your mobile phone with him during work, he must be someone at yourpany. Was it one of the guys I met the first time I went to your office?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Shit! What kind of pit did he dig for himself?

    Bai Rui: ¡°The long hair, beautiful one, or your director?¡±

    Panicking, Zhang Siyi was at a loss. He clicked on Bai Rui¡¯s avatar and click -> contact deleted.

    Very good, the world is better once again. (=_=)

    ...... Damn it! I should have done this before!

    As Zhang Siyi finished up, the train pulled into the subway station that he needed to get off at in order to pick up Gu Yao. Walking up onto ground level, he rounded a corner and saw Gu Yao being stopped by a man in a suit.

    In a hurry, Zhang Siyi rushed over to her and stopping in front of her, he blocked the man: ¡°What are you doing?¡±

    The man was startled by Zhang Siyi arrival and involuntarily took a step backwards.

    Zhang Siyi inspected the man in from of him. Wearing a well-tailored suit, he had small eyes, sharp eyebrows andrge nostrils. Presumably, he was the man that was stalking Gu Yao.

    When Gu Yao saw him arrive, she was surprised and eximed: ¡°Second Brother!¡±

    With Gu Yao behind him, Zhang Siyi guarded her and asked: ¡°Why did he stop you?¡±

    Gu Yao whispered: ¡°He asked me if I received his gifts and why I hadn¡¯t returned his messages.¡±

    Zhang Siyi knows, by no means is the word ¡®indifferent¡¯ too much to describe Gu Yao¡¯s feelings towards the man. In private she wanted nothing to do with him, but the problem is that the man has the potential to use his business ounts to hinder thepany. As a result, on the surface Gu Yao has to remain courteous and polite. Since her boss told the front desk to refuse his gifts, the man is probably feeling irritated.

    ¡°Ah, so this is second Gu brother.¡± With a condescending smile, the man pulled out a packet of cigarettes from the inside of his suit and handed one to him.

    Zhang Siyi scowled: ¡°I don¡¯t smoke.¡±

    The man reimed the cigarette then reached for a business card from within his pocket and handed it to Zhang Siyi. It read: Jiang Zhanpeng CEO, IC investmentpany.

    Inspecting the card, his title was quite impressive, however because of his recent behavior, especially now that he was physicallying in contact with her, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t respect him at all.

    While handing Zhang Siyi the card, Jian Zhanpeng asked: ¡°Where is Elder brother Gu? It is too crowded here to talk. Let us find a quiet ce to sit and chat.¡±

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯te to chat and refused directly: ¡°No. I¡¯m here to pick up my sister so we can go home to eat dinner together.¡±

    Jiang Zhanpeng squinted and said: ¡°I noticed you haven¡¯t been picking her up thesest few days. Yesterday was Gu Yao¡¯s elder brother? You are also very handsome. It is no wonder that Gu Yao doesn¡¯t notice me.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°...¡±

    Jiang Zhanpeng pointed to the car parked not far away and offered: ¡°My car is parked over there. Where do you live? I will drive you home. Since you must be busy with your job, do you even have the extra time outside of work to get your sister? You and your brother don¡¯t have to go out of your way after work anymore. Instead, I can make sure she gets home safe and sound every day.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s eyes are twitching. Does this person really not know that they came to pick up her up just to prevent him? ......I know of stalkers, but I¡¯ve never seen someone so obsessed before! No wonder Gu Yao is bothered by his behavior so much.

    Taking a deep breath Zhang Siyi bluntlymented: ¡°Jiang Zhanpeng, I¡¯ve heard my sister mention you. She has already made it very clear to you what her intentions are. Why are you continuing to bother her?¡±

    Jiang Zhanpeng face changed. He smirked and asked Zhang Siyi: ¡°There is one thing that I¡¯m not sure of and I want to ask second Gu brother to rify. Does Gu Yao have a boyfriend?¡±

    Zhang Siyi hesitated then replied: ¡°No.¡±

    Jiang Zhanpeng pointed to her then pointed to himself: ¡°We live in a modern society now with free love. I don¡¯t have a girlfriend and she doesn¡¯t have a boyfriend, so why can¡¯t I pursue her?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Jiang Zhanpeng continued: ¡°I guess there must be a misunderstanding between us. I just wanted to ask your sister out to dinner. Is that so terrible?¡±

    Clutching Zhang Siyi arm tightly, Gu Yao was already panicking. Afraid he would move, she squeezed Zhang Siyi¡¯s arm even tighter.

    Frowning Zhang Siyi had to think of something quick. Gu Yao already refused him clearly. He was there to support her, but now it has turned upside down because he has made Zhang Siyi out to be the evil ¡®parent¡¯ blocking free love.

    Thinking about how to refute him, Zhang Siyi felt like he was having heart palpitations. He suddenly heard his name being called not far away ¨C ¡°Sisi!¡±

    Looking in the direction from which his name was called, he saw a silver-gray Lamborghini sports car parked on the side of the road. A familiar figure wasing towards him.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...... He Chengtian?¡±

 Chapter 192: Rescue

    <h4>Chapter 192: Rescue</h4>

    __________________

    As He Chengtian strutted towards them, he raised his arm in a suave movement to take off his sunsses. His designer suit and exquisite tinum watch that was revealed on his wrist matched the cool silver-grey luxury car.

    The perfect timing with which He Chengtian appeared made Zhang Siyi feel like he was watching a romantic drama unfold right before his eyes. A prince hase to the rescue.....

    Zhang Siyi widened his eyes in surprise. Using the opportunity to his advantage, he immediately moved with Gu Yao towards He Chengtian.......

    When He Chengtian saw them, he was a little taken back as Zhang Siyi was thest person he thought to bump into. More surprising, was watching Gu Yao¡¯s tight hold on him. His expression became twisted. .......WTF! Zhang Siyi said he had nothing to do with her! Who are you kidding!! (¨AÃó¨@)

    Since the meeting in March, it has been nearly six months since they have seen each other. Once, his sister, He Xueying, invited Gu Yao to her house, but he was away on a business trip that weekend.

    Indeed, at first sight, He Chengtian felt his heart move, but with her brother¡¯s appearance, he had to put those feelings on hold. The thought of pursuing Gu Yu¡¯s sister made him hesitant. For three years in high school, he was in Gu Yu¡¯s shadow. If he chased her, wouldn¡¯t he be in Gu Yu¡¯s shadow for a lifetime? He wasn¡¯t happy about the prospect!

    Then again, with his current status, he could pursue any women he wanted however, Gu Yao was the only one that moved him. Why did he have to fall for someone as difficult as an SSS ss boss-level encounter?

    Back in March when they first met, he was involved with many business-rted issues, and therefore he didn¡¯t have a lot of time to spare. Coupled with his hesitation about dating a Gu family member, he pushed the thoughts of Gu Yao aside and slowly forgot about her.

    Seeing her by chance across the way; her pure small face, beautiful eyes, slightly arched brows, slight frown, an expression of consternation and sadness that reced her previous innocent smile, gave her a very different vibe. Once again, he was struck in the heart!

    However, standing very close to her was non-other than Zhang Siyi. With their hands held tightly together, they were snuggled up close like two love birds in a nest. Watching them, He Chengtian could feel his ire rise and his stomach start to ache. Even thismon, silly boy, Zhang Siyi, was with her! Fuck! Is Gu Yu destined to be the nemesis of his life? (tÃót)

    mming the car door, He Chengtian got out of the car and walked steadily towards the couple. Clenching his jaw, he forced a smile: ¡°Look at you two.... What are you doing here? I didn¡¯t......¡±

    Before He Chengtian could finish talking, Zhang Siyi abruptly interrupted him and pushed Gu Yao towards him: ¡°Jiang Zhanpeng, my sister doesn¡¯t have a boyfriend because this man is her fianc¨¦.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°.....¡±

    Jiang Zhanpeng: ¡°.....¡±

    He Chengtian: ¡°.....¡± I can¡¯t believe it. Happiness fell onto myp! (o..o)

    Standing in front of him slightly embarrassed, Gu Yao shyly looked up at He Chengtian¡¯s eyes then quickly bowed her head without a word.

    Although she knew Zhang Siyi was trying his best to help her, what is with this ¡®fiance¡¯ business? It made her feel shy and embarrassed. After all, they haven¡¯t discussed it beforehand and how will He Chengtian react by their chance encounter?

    No one could have predicted how well the farce worked. He Chengtian only nced at them before he reached out to take Gu Yao into his arms. He quietly asked: ¡°I was away in Shenzhen. What is going on?¡±

    Zhang Siyi exined quietly: ¡°Jian Zhanpeng has already been rejected very clearly, but he won¡¯t give up.¡± He wanted to stay ¡®fucking stalker¡¯, but he was afraid he would be over heard. Anyway, the meaning is clear enough for He Chengtian to understand what is going on.

    Hearing the surname, He, the man had his doubts about what Zhang Siyi was saying. However, when he approached them and saw the man clearly, he suddenly stopped. He may not know him, but he has certainly heard the name of He Chengtian before: ¡°Greetings Mr. He. I didn¡¯t expect to meet you here. Haicheng is really small!¡± Jiang Zhanpeng smiled

    Chuckling, He Chengtian questioned him: ¡°Do I know you?¡±

    Nodding, Jiang Zhanpeng quickly took out his business card and introduced himself. He said: ¡°At thest Haicheng New Youth Investment Elite Conference, I saw your presentation on stage...¡±

    He Chengtian casually replied: ¡°Oh, that. I didn¡¯t want to get up to talk, but the night before, my friends and I were ying cards and I lost the bet.¡±

    The circle of the rich always had a fascinating appeal for those whom desire money. Although they were of simr age, there was a wide financial disparity between them. Feeling both envious and unwilling to give up, Jiang Zhanpeng slightly scowled.

    He Chengtian looked at him and jokingly asked: ¡°Jiang Zhanpeng, are you interested in my fiance?¡±

    The color of Jiang Zhanpeng¡¯ face drained: ¡°There is some kind of misunderstanding here. Certainly, I am confused. Ha-ha-ha, I really didn¡¯t know Ms. Gu had this kind of rtionship with you.¡±

    He Chengtian nodded his head and effortlessly took out a cigarette from his pocket and gave it to him. Looking him straight in the eye, He Chengtian smiled and evenly stated: ¡°It is a misunderstanding.¡±

    Jiang Zhanpeng pretended to look at his watch and anxiously replied: ¡°I see you are busy. I still have an appointment, so I will head out first.¡± In a blink of an eye, the man turn-tailed and swiftly walked away. The BMW was gone without a trace!

    Watching him leave, Gu Yao feltpletely relieved. She stood quietly for a minute before she turned to address He Chengtian: ¡°Thank You.¡±

    It was only after a moment that he realized the performance was over and his intimate contact with Gu Yao was over. Like a young boy thinking about love for the first time, his heart was a mess.

    Zhang Siyi was also surprised at how quickly things got resolved. He gave his friend a thumbs-up and gratefully expressed his thanks: ¡°That was awesome!¡±

    He Chengtian: ¡°Why are you both here?¡±

    But Zhang Siyi already turned his head away and was approaching the luxury car in front of him. Excited, Zhang Siyi stated: ¡°Look, it really is a Lamborghini!¡±

    He Chengtian can¡¯tugh or cry: ¡°Hey...¡±

    Zhang Siyi circled around and asked, ¡°Wait, I thought a Lamborghini sport cars have two seats. Why are there four seats?¡±

    ¡°This is the Estoque.** It is a concept car that hasn¡¯t been produced yet so there is only one in China.¡± As He Chengtian replied to Zhang Siyi, he opened the car door for them: ¡°Where are you two going? I¡¯ll give you a ride.¡±

    In his excitement, Zhang Siyi unabashedly got into the front passenger seat and Gu Yao sat behind them. Examining and feeling all of the crevices and surfaces, he couldn¡¯t stop himself from touching everything. ¡°It¡¯s so cool!¡±

    He Chengtian started the car and the 8-cylinder engine roared to life: ¡°Where are you going? Or would you like me to take you out for dinner?¡±

    Zhang Siyi scratched his head: ¡°Yuanshan Garden. Do you know the way?¡±

    He Chengtian: ¡°xxx Road?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Yes!¡±

    He Chengtian raised an eyebrow and asked Zhang Siyi: ¡°Do you live together?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Well, yes...¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°And Gu Yu.¡±

    He Chengtian¡¯s face suddenly turned dark: ¡°Why do the two of you live together with Gu Yu?¡±

    Of course, Zhang Siyi can¡¯t give him the real reason so he gave him a simple reply: ¡°I work for Gu Yu and I pay him rent to stay there.¡±

    He Chengtian felt scorned. Zhang Siyi rejected his original job invitation seemingly not because of Gu Yao, yet here they are, living in the same house! He Chengtian sneered.

    The thrill of love and happiness was instantly lost! In his hand, he held it; those small hands, beautiful skin and petite body, like a soft rabbit that makes you want to hold and protect.... oh, ah, yes, yes....

    ...... Fuck! How can that bastard have such a lovely sister!

    He Chengtian coughed once lightly then asked: ¡°Before, what exactly is going on?¡°

    Zhang Siyi thoroughly exined the matter to him.

    At hearing his exnation, He Chengtian scoffed and let out a ¡®tskt¡¯. He gave a cold smile and said: ¡°Why didn¡¯t you call me earlier? I¡¯ll tell you. I see a lot of those shameless idiots refusing to back down. Even if you refuse gifts, it won¡¯t change anything. Rich people in business have thick skins and can¡¯t ept a loss. You just need to find someone else with more money and power to exert pressure and let the person know its futile. Only then will they stop.¡±

    Zhang Siyi listen to He Chengtian¡¯s scolding and felt deted: ¡°It¡¯s the first time I¡¯ve encountered that type of person. That guy has ounts with Gu Yao¡¯spany so I had to remain eloquent and try to reason with him, but he wouldn¡¯t ept the facts at all!¡± Zhang Siyi sighed and continued: ¡°Hey, if you hadn¡¯te today, I really don¡¯t know what would have happened.¡±

    He Chengtian said: ¡°Now do you see the benefits of money and power?¡±

    Zhang Siyi quipped: ¡°Will you still ept my application?¡±

    He Chengtian chuckled then frowned: ¡°But, if Gu Yao was harassed, where is her brother? Why wasn¡¯t he there?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Gu Yu and I take turns to pick her up every day and it was my turn today. Gu Yu is cooking dinner at home.¡±

    He Chengtianughed: ¡°Is he really everything to you?¡±

    Zhang Siyiughed meagerly and didn¡¯t know how to answer.

    ncing at Gu Yao through the rearview mirror, He Chengtian said: ¡°We were lucky today. Our casual bluff might not convince Jiang Zhanpeng for long. When he thinks carefully, he won¡¯t believe you are my fiance so he will probablye back to harass you again. It isn¡¯t easy to handle and does your brother really have the time bring her to and from work? I can help by driving her every day for a period of time. How does that sound?¡±

    When Zhang Siyi heard his proposition, he was so happy because the matter between Jiang Zhanpeng and Yu Yao was maddening. He knew it was an inconvienace for He Chengtian, but Zhang Siyi also knew he was interested in her. Maybe, He Chengtian thought he should seize this rare opportunity and enjoy it.

    Even if He Chengtian really pursued her, Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t opposed to it. In fact, he was extremely supportive. Due to their recent discusstion of the need for Gu Yao to fall in love normally, Zhang Siyi thought this was the perfect opportunity. Who could pass up such a rich and powerful diamond king?

    Ah, but he can¡¯t just push her in his direction. Zhang Siyi looked over his shoulder to the back seat and asked Gu Yao: ¡°What do you think? He is reliable. Will you let him pick you up and drop you off at work for a while?¡±

    Gu Yao remembered He Chengtian. Not only was he a friend of Zhang Siyi, but he was also her brother¡¯s high school ssmate. Although she didn¡¯t refuse, he felt a bit uneasy: ¡°In this car? Isn¡¯t it too shy?¡±

    With a voice of reason, He Chengtian coaxed her: ¡°In order to signal to outsiders that you aren¡¯t willing to be with just anyone, it is necessary. You can¡¯t have a toad in a BMW three-series lusting after the swan¡¯s flesh, right?¡±

    Gu Yao was amused by the tone of his joke. Although her family education didn¡¯t teach her to be so pompous, being over the top asionally was indeed quite cool: ¡°Well, I¡¯ll have to trouble you......¡±

 Chapter 193: Inside

    <h4>Chapter 193: Inside</h4>

    ___________________

    Without thought of his ulterior motives being noticed, He Chengtian¡¯s mouth widened in a wolfish smile. Fortunately, Gu Yao was sitting in the back and wasn¡¯t able to see his greedy expression.

    Along the way home, Zhang Siyi and He Chengtian caught up on current events in their lives. First, Zhang Siyi wanted to know more about the price and performance of the Lamborghini. When they came to a full stop at the traffic light, the passengers in the full bus next to them turned and stared at them through the ss.

    Since it was the first time Zhang Siyi experienced so many onlookers staring at him in this way, his ego was stroked and felt like a superior young master. In life, sometimes self-conceit encroaches on your moralpass and material things be more important.

    Zhang Siyi asked He Chengtian: ¡°How is your sister doing? I haven¡¯t heard from her in a long time. Is she okay?¡±

    He Chengtian replied: ¡°She went to Australia recently.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What is she doing in Australia? Did she go back to University?¡±

    ¡°University my ass. She went to find a friend.¡± He Chengtian grumbled then continued: ¡°Anyway, since she is working for herself, there is less pressure so she goes where she wants. She left me everything at thepany to take care of so I¡¯m the only one who suffers!¡±

    Zhang Siyi cast a sympathetic look, and asked: ¡°How are you doing now?¡±

    He Chengtian sighed: ¡°Actually, it hasn¡¯t been very good recently. The stock market is low, the housing market slowed down, and many financial tforms have problems. Hey, it¡¯s been difficult!¡±

    Listening to the tone of his speech, Zhang Siyi nced at him. Now, he noticed the fatigue on his friends¡¯ features and concluded that things weren¡¯t going so smoothly as what appears.

    ¡°Both the housing market and the construction industry isn¡¯t good. We are all in this together!¡± Moving his hands across the leather, Zhang Siyi touched the car seat enviously. ¡°But, you still drive a super luxury car. Certainly, it isn¡¯t that bad.¡±

    Zhang Siyi has been saving his money but it only amounts to thousands and nowhere near enough to buy a car. He wouldn¡¯t even be able to afford one of the car¡¯s tires.

    ¡°Just because I drive a luxury vehicle, doesn¡¯t mean things are good. As a matter of fact, we are all just ying chess. What assets? Millions, billions.... Like a video game, it¡¯s just a bunch of numbers on a screen and like gambling, you need to bear the risk, but also need the capital to y.¡±

    As he turned into the next road, He Chengtian was tapping the steering wheel. He continued: ¡°Do you think I bought this car for myself? In fact, it¡¯s also a fa?ade. It doesn¡¯t matter whether or not there is money to support the purchase. I know the rules of the rich and I have to y the game.¡±

    He Chengtian shook his head and smiled bitterly. He said: ¡°I still had the guts to tell you your future with me would bring you riches, but now, it¡¯s impossible to guarantee. The tides have changed too fast and the stock market crisis ttened the neighborhood. Hey, it is a good thing you still follow Gu Yu. By doing technical work, you are stable.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was speechless. He didn¡¯t think in six months, He Chengtian¡¯s attitude would change so drastically. It seems, no matter how perfect a person appears on the outside, they also have to face the hardships of reality.

    Half an hourter, the car arrived at Yuanshan Garden. He Chengtian was about to let them out of the car when Zhang Siyi suddenly spoke. He politely asked: ¡°Chengtian brother, what are you going to do about dinner? Would you like toe up and eat together?¡±

    Having lived with Gu Yu for so long, Zhang Siyi naturally regarded himself as a voice of authority when it came to issues of the home. He wanted to thank He Chengtian for his help with Gu Yao¡¯s troubles so he took the opportunity to invite him upstairs for dinner.

    Thinking about who else lived at the house, He Chengtian started getting a stomach ache. When facing his rival, he couldn¡¯t bare it. Before he had the chance to reject the offer Gu Yao echoed Zhang Siyi offer: ¡°Yes. It isn¡¯t veryte so let¡¯s eat together.¡±

    He Chengtian turned to look at Gu Yao and saw herrge eyes looking up at him, inviting. She added: ¡°My brother also has a big dog!¡±

    Hearing about a dog wasn¡¯t the strange part. The key, as if she wanted to share her favorite things with him, was the pure smile, bright eyes, and tone of her voice that she used. In the world of He Chengtian, spring time hase!

    ¡°Okay!¡± He drove to a parking lot of a Western restaurant nearby to park his car then got out to follow Zhang Siyi and Gu Yao back to Yuanshan Garden. In a circle, He Chengtian looked around at the buildings and said: ¡°This ce is quite good. Did Gu Yu buy his own home?¡±

    Zhang Siyi exined: ¡°It¡¯s his friend¡¯s house. He is borrowing it.¡±

    As the door was opened, Townhouse enthusiastically ran to the door. Unexpectedly, instead of greeting his owners, he pounced on He Chengtian, barking: ¡°Woof-woof-woof!¡±

    He Chengtian: ¡°!!!¡±

    In a hurry, Zhang Siyi put down his key and tried to stop the dog: ¡°No Townhouse, down!¡±

    Gu Yao also went over the dog to sooth him.

    Zhang Siyi thought the dog¡¯s behavior was a little strange thenmented: ¡°This dog is usually very docile. Since we renamed him, even when the maintenance peoplee, he doesn¡¯t make a peep. Why is he acting do differently today?¡±

    He Chengtian smirked: ¡°Oh. it doesn¡¯t seem like the dog likes me very much.¡±

    As if to answer He Chengtian, Townhouse let out one loud ¡°woof.¡±

    He Chengtian¡¯s mouth twitched. It really was Gu Yu¡¯s dog!

    At Gu Yao¡¯s adorable action, He Chengtian was stunned. He watched her move to the dog and softly talk in the dog ear: ¡°No Townhouse, down. He Chengtian is a good man.¡± Even though the dog on his hindlegs was almost the same height as Gu Yao and therefore could easily knock her over, the dog obediently got down on the ground at hermand.

    He Chengtian wiped his nosebleed. Shit! Why did he suddenly feel that the dog is happier than him? In fact, he can also provide one ear.......

    Hearing the barking of the dog, Gu Yu came out of the kitchen to see what themotion was about. A look of disbelief came over his face as he saw He Chengtian watching his sister with a wolfish smile. Immediately, he raised his brow and asked: ¡°What¡¯s he doing here?¡±

    Trying to exin quickly, Zhang Siyi said: ¡°Ah, we met him near Gu Yao¡¯spany. He helped us a lot and also drove us home so I asked him to join us for dinner.¡±

    Turning to look in the direction of his rival¡¯s voice, He Chengtian saw Gu Yu wearing an apron with a spat in hand. He couldn¡¯t contain hisughter and snorted out: ¡°Pfft... ha-ha-ha.¡± The former university tyrant was a domesticated man. The unimaginable contrast was extreme!

    ¡°Cough, cough... ¡°He Chengtian smiled and asked: ¡°Are you cooking? Is it edible? Ah-ha-ha....¡±

    With bulging veins and a furrowed brow, Gu Yu wanted to retort and throw the spat, however one has to maintain the grace and dignity of the head of the house.

    Pointing to the sofa with the spat, Gu Yu said: ¡°Zhang Siyi, you sit and entertain. Gu Yao, youe with me.¡±

    He Chengtian: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yao obediently followed her brother into the kitchen then asked: ¡°The food isn¡¯t done yet?¡±

    From out of the refrigerator, Gu Yu pulled out another half a head of cabbage and some. He replied: ¡°Since you didn¡¯t call in advance, with the addition of a guest, there wouldn¡¯t be enough to eat so at least two more dished need to be prepared.¡±

    Gu Yao stuck her tongue out and gave her brother a raspberry. She took the cabbage that Gu Yu handed over.

    Gu Yu asked: ¡°What¡¯s the matter with helping me?¡±

    Gu Yao knew her brother¡¯s request wasn¡¯t really to help him make dinner. Without dy, the interrogation began.

    She dares not conceal any details and honestly ryed the afternoon events. When she told him about Zhang Siyi ploy about being He Chengtian¡¯s fianc¨¦, Gu Yao blushed deeply and lowered her head, almost to the sink.

    Finally, she mentioned He Chengtian¡¯s proposal to pick her up and drop her off and that she and Zhang Siyi already acquiesced. As a result, Zhang Siyi invited him home to eat.

    After listening to her story, Gu Yan snorted and said: ¡°No matter how timely He Chengtian¡¯s appearance was, Zhang Siyi was too bold to marry you off.

    This time, Gu Yao¡¯s ears are bright red and she quietly said: ¡°Don¡¯t say that. Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t mean it. Maybe He Chengtian just went with the flow to help second brother.¡±

    Gu Yu hummed and didn¡¯t talk.

    As Gu Yao tore the cabbage she addressed her brother: ¡°Second Brother said he is a reliable person. I think he canpletely solve the problem so please let him drive me for a period of time. You are Zhang Siyi are so busy with work that I feel guilty having you drop me off and pick me up every day.¡±

    Gu Yu smiled at her: ¡°Why do you feel guilty unless there is guilt? You¡¯re not married yet, are you?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu continued to ridicule her: ¡°So it is better to trouble outsiders instead of family?¡±

    Gu Yao was finally annoyed and stomped her foot: ¡°Brother!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Ok. Ok. Make sure you maintain your status.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°...I know.¡±

    Gu Yao helped with the cabbage then walked out. When Zhang Siyi came in, he saw Gu Yu preparing the additional dish. ¡°Wow, lots of food today! You worked hard!¡±

    Squinting at him, Gu Yu said: ¡°Did you sell my sister?¡±

    Zhang Siyi quickly realized that it was useless to change the topic and pretended not to understand: ¡°Ah? What? Sell what?¡±

    Gu Yu stared at him in the eye: ¡°Be prepared for your punishment!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.....¡± Wasn¡¯t it your own issue about your sister not finding love? I found you a diamond king and you are still fierce! Bastard!

    Gu Yu said: ¡°Bring the food to the table. The warm wine will be ready soon.¡±

    When the dishes arrived, they sat down around the table. He Chengtian tasted the dish and was very surprised at how skillful Gu Yu cooking was and eximed: ¡°Ah! It¡¯s delicious!¡±

    Gu Yu personally poured a ss of wine to He Chengtian then said: ¡°Gu Yao exined today¡¯s events. Thank You.¡±

    He Chengtian rarely saw Gu Yu act so kindly and felt somewhat ttered: ¡°Well, it was nothing.¡±

    After a gesture towards He Chengtian with the wine ss, Gu Yu drank it.

    When He Chengtian finished his ss of wine, Gu Yu poured him another and said: ¡°One more ss and you will have some difficulties for a while.¡±

    With his nemesis toasting and pouring him two sses of wine, he couldn¡¯t believe it. Has He Chengtian ever had such treatment? For a moment, like a serf bing the master, he relished the feeling.... Ah, this is how ssmates should be.

    He Chengtian was a little smug and thought perhaps, pursuing Gu Yao wasn¡¯t so difficult as he had imagined.

    However, after drinking this cup of wine, He Chengtian saw a faint smile form on Gu Yu face. It was clear that the smile was very natural, but behind the smile, He Chengtian felt something cold. He once again remembered how much he has been under Gu Yu¡¯s shadow in the three years of high school.

 Chapter 194: Sister Control

    <h4>Chapter 194: Sister Control</h4>

    ___________________

    The moment of excitement started to waiver. Shit! Why does his emotional baggage continue to control him? Will Gu Yu¡¯s shadow influence him for the rest of his life. Focusing his mind and inspiring his fighting spirit, even if it was detrimental to his immediate psyche, He Chengtian abandon his reservation and decided to chase Gu Yao.

    When she was the one that initiated contact, even if she was Gu Yu¡¯s sister, no matter what her brother could do, she was her own person. If Gu Yu tried to interfere, he could still say ¡°screw you!¡±

    As they settled into the living room, her small hand had made contact with his briefly. He Chengtian thought she was flirting with him. Keeping that in mind, he pushed down his painful past and continued to calmly eat and drink.

    During dinner, the two old ssmates spoke about their respective work situation. Unlike thest time they spoke to one another, Gu Yu didn¡¯t offer any retaliatory remarks. In fact, He Chengtian thought he was rather polite.

    Now satiated, Gu Yu went to get the pot of tea to help with digestion.

    He Chengtian copsed on the sofa and sighed with satisfaction. He watched Gu Yao sitting cross-legged on the carpet, stroking the big Dog. Zhang Siyi was rummaged through a bag of nuts. Thefortable environment around him made him rx and a pleasant sense of fatigue washed over him. Gu Yu wasn¡¯t annoying at all.

    Sipping his cup of tea in hand, He Chengtian understood why Zhang Siyi choose to follow Gu Yu instead of himself. Gu Yu¡¯s presence was a calming force and as long as he was around, one couldn¡¯t help but feel at peace. It was the temperament of a true leader.

    As his thoughts drifted, He Chengtain wondered why he hated Gu Yu in the first ce. Was it because he was young andpetitive? If he had simply admitted his defeat, rather than clinging to an imaginary foe, would they have be good friends? ... However, it wasn¡¯t important to pursue the answer anymore. Now, they we able sit together for a meal and talk about each other¡¯s lives like friends.

    Since He Chengtian drank two sses of wine, he couldn¡¯t drive home. Instead, he paid for overnight parking and hailed a taxi. In any case, it wasn¡¯t a problem because he would have toe back tomorrow to bring Gu Yao to work.

    After He Chengtian left, Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi went out to walk to dog. Gu Yu asked: ¡°Has Bai Rui contacted you?¡±

    Having forgotten about it, Zhang Siyi was momentarily startled. Then he began to tell Gu Yu about his conversation he had with Bai Rui on the subway.

    Gu Yu was surprised: ¡°You admitted that you have a boyfriend?¡± ¡°

    ¡±Yeah. I thought it would be like a p in the face if I told him directly.¡° Zhang Siyi pulled on the leash and said: ¡°He even wanted to know your number!¡±

    Gu Yu suddenlyughed.

    Watching Gu Yuugh so happily, Zhang Siyi felt a little dumbfounded. Soon he started to feel irritated and questioned: ¡°What are youughing at!¡±

    Gu Yu looked at him in the eye: ¡°Just because Bai Rui said he wanted to meet me, why are you so nervous?¡±

    ¡°What can I do? Let him be a good friend?¡± Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t stand other men thinking about Gu Yu.

    Gu Yu: ¡°Whatever he has to say to me, you will see it too, right?¡±

    Zhang Siyi smacked his own forehead. Right, how can he be so stupid? Previously, Gu Yu had used Zhang Siyi¡¯s phone to reply to Bai Rui. There was no reason Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t do the same and use Gu Yu¡¯s phone.

    Smiling, Gu Yu raised his hand to rub Zhang Siyi¡¯s head. ¡°In any case, deleting him has saved you from over thinking about such trivial matters.¡±

    That night, Gu Yu put into practice the promise of the evening and punished Zhang Siyi for ¡®selling¡¯ his sister.

    At first, Zhang Siyi also quite enjoyed it, but after a long time, he began to call out ¡®don¡¯t and ¡®that¡¯s enough¡¯. Unbeknownst to Zhang Siyi, showing his weak side only excited Gu Yu more. Not only was he ¡®punishing¡¯ Zhang Siyi for his sister¡¯s sake, he was also excited because of Zhang Siyi¡¯s jealousy. Gu Yu was so incredibly happy that he couldn¡¯t control his raging heart.

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know the real reason. He only thought it was because of Gu Yao.

    Afterward, Zhang Siyi was lying motionless aside Gu Yu. While listening to hisints, Gu Yu helped wipe his thighs and butt with a warm towel. Zhang Siyi grumbled: ¡°Why are you so controlling? You wanted your sister to find love and I found a candidate and yet, you used me to vent your anger. I should have just changed jobs when He Chengtian offered and made lots of money.... AH!¡±

    Gu Yu smacked him hard on the ass. Eyeing Gu Yu intensely, Zhang Siyi moved to protect his rear.

    Gu Yu got up and hung the towel on the side of the chair. yful, Gu Yu asked: ¡°Gu Yao is going to marry out and you are going to marry in. What is there to be jealous about?¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s face quickly heated up: ¡°Who, who is marrying in?!¡±

    Pinching his chin, Gu Yu covered him with his body then whispered: ¡°You. Gu Siyi. You haven¡¯t recognized it yet?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Don¡¯t talk about ... Mmn, mm.¡±

    His protest was quickly stifled by Gu Yu mouth and the sound of his voice quickly turned into a series of ambiguous sucking noises.

    A few dayster, at noon one day after Tao Fei finished up a project, he invited Zhang Siyi out to eat lunch. The two took the elevator downstairs and were discussing which restaurant to go to. In his peripheral vision, Zhang Siyi caught a glimpse of a silver-white sports car on the road near thepany. He turned to look at the car more clearly.

    Tao Fei was also a fan. As he turned to take another look, he quickly called out the model of the car: ¡°Wow! A Porsche 911!¡±

    The car..... where has Zhang Siyi heard of it before?

    As he was lost in thought, the driver¡¯s side window lowered and Zhang Siyi was able to see who was inside. It was Bai Rui! Now that he saw Bai Rui get out of the car, he remembered Su Yuan mentioning in the group chat that Bai Rui drove a Porsche 911.

    With Tao Fei standing next to him, Zhang Siyi saw Bai Rui looking in his direction, smiling.

    Zhang Siyi was shocked. He thought the business between them was finished and didn¡¯t think Bai Rui would continue to look for him.

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡± Tao Fei squinted his eyes and asked: ¡°Is that the same guy who gave you a cake?¡±

    Feeling irritated, Zhang Siyi turned to leave and grabbed Tao Fei then said: ¡°Don¡¯t look at him!¡±

    Tao Fei turned his head to wink at Bai Rui then turned back around and hooked his arm with Zhang Siyi¡¯s. He asked: ¡° Hey, who is that? Brother¡¯s rival? Tell me honestly.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.....¡± This dead fat peach is really too observant! Feeling a little afraid of Tao Fei¡¯s insightful intuition, avoiding a possible misunderstanding, he quickly started exining the situation.

    Over lunch, Tao Fei listened andughed: ¡°Haha! So, the guy still doesn¡¯t know who really is your boyfriend.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Well....¡±

    Tao Fei: ¡°And then you deleted his contact in a hurry?¡±

    Looking downward at his food, Zhang Siyi said: ¡°Yeah...¡±

    Tao Fei touched his chin: ¡°Do you think he came back today to find you?¡±

    Zhang Siyi looked up: ¡°Don¡¯t scare me!¡±

    Tao Fei narrowed his eyes and grinned mischievously: ¡°If you don¡¯t want to say anything specific, I¡¯ll help you toy with him.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

 Chapter 195: Painting

    <h4>Chapter 195: Painting</h4>

    ____________________

    While Tao Fei¡¯s idea was intriguing and could be utilize as ast resort, Zhang Siyi really didn¡¯t want any contact with Bai Rui because the guy gave Zhang Siyi the creeps.

    However, contrary to his wish, when the two went back to the office, they saw Bai Rui in the lobby of the building holding a rose. Narrowing his eyes into small slits, Zhang Siyi walked over to the elevator with a cold expression.

    Originally, Bai Rui¡¯s back was facing them. When he heard people approaching, he nced behind him. Startled, he widens his eyes in surprise as he saw Zhang Siyi walk towards him with another person. Bai Rui turned to face them and smiled in greeting then asked: ¡°Back from lunch?¡±

    Astute as always, with an outstretched arm, Tao Fei grinned and hooked it around Zhang Siyi¡¯s neck, letting his arm drape over his shoulder. Half hanging on Zhang Siyi, Tao Fei leaned on him provocatively then said: ¡°Hey handsome, who¡¯s this rose for?¡±

    Bai Rui looked down at the rose in his hand then extended his arm to Tai Fei. He smiled and asked: ¡°Would you like it?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    In contrast to how Tai Fei dealt with Bai Rui, with his hair standing on end, Zhang Siyi felt like a threatened hedgehog. Shit! This man is really dangerous! Fortunately, he wasn¡¯t here alone !!!

    ncing at Zhang Siyi¡¯s reaction, Tao Fei nearly broke his act. He waved his hand in rejection: ¡°No Thanks.¡±

    Unconcerned, Bai Rui retracted his arm and walked into the open elevator.

    Feeling even more anxious, Zhang Siyi worried whether or not Bai Rui realized Gu Yu was his boyfriend and not Tao Fei. Was he bringing the flower to Gu Yu instead?

    ¡°Hey, what are....¡± Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t even get three words out before he saw Bai Rui reach over and press the button for floor 17; one floor higher than Borderless¡¯s offices.

    After watching Tao Fei press the button for floor 16, Bai Rui quietly asked Zhang Siyi: ¡°Did you say something?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Oh, nothing...¡± ....Strange, wasn¡¯t Bai Rui looking for him? Does he have other acquaintances in the building?

    Soon, the elevator opened at the floor where the offices of Borderless were located. Tao Fei first stepped out of the elevator and as Zhang Siyi followed closely behind, Bai Rui smiled and waved at them.

    Feeling confused, Zhang Siyi looked at Tao Fei in a daze. With even less understanding of the situation, Tao Fei just shrugged. As they walked back to their department, they passed the front desk and saw a box and arge covered rectangr object leaning against the receptionist¡¯s desk.

    ¡°Ah, wait a minute...¡± The young girl at the front desk called the two of them over. She pointed at the box and exined: ¡°The newpany upstairs gave us these choctes liquors. Take some if you want.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s jaw dropped in surprise. Thinking Bai Rui was simply at the building to meet himself, Zhang Siyi felt very embarrassed.

    Tao Fei was also very surprised. When he came over and looked closer, he noticed a stack of business cards next to the box of choctes. The name of thepany was printed on the top: Feng Qi Modern Art Curator and Auction Consultants.

    Zhang Siyi was shocked. Bai Rui had moved hispany to the office above Borderless!

    ¡°What is this? A painting?¡± Tao Fei nced at the rectangr object with bubble-wrap wrapped around it protectively.

    Smiling, the girl nodded affirmatively and said: ¡°Yes, but this painting is for Director Gu.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    ¡°What is for me?¡± a voice asked. Gu Yu coincidentally was passing by when he heard his name. Since Zhang Siyi was with Tao Fei, he came straight over to see what¡¯s going on.

    The receptionist quickly exined the situation to Gu Yu.

    Gu Yu nced at thepany¡¯s business card and asked: ¡°Why give this to me?¡±

    Since he didn¡¯t run into Bai Rui, he might not realize it was Bai Rui¡¯spany upstairs. Zhang Siyi pointed to ¡®Feng Qi¡¯ on the business card. Tranting from Chinese to English, it can be tranted as Vini.

    Narrowing his brow slightly, Gu Yu frowned. He bent down to pick up the picture frame and asked: ¡°What did the representative say exactly?¡±

    The girl replied: ¡°He said: ¡®For your director¡¯.¡±

    Gu Yu carefully opened the work. As the wrap fell to the ground, the painting¡¯s image became clearer. When unveiled, the solid-color geometric watercolor image jumped out and shined brightly.

    Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t see what the painting was, however, the mystery was answered when Tao Fei spoke: ¡°Isn¡¯t this a watercolor painting by Steven Holl?¡±

    Gu Yu looked at the signature at the bottom carefully and said: ¡°Yes.¡±

    Zhang Siyi had never heard of the name. He eagerly asked: ¡°Who¡¯s that?¡± ¡°

    Tao Fei exined: ¡°An American architect. He designed the Sifang Art Museum in Jiangsu province. His watercolors are very famous. I remember seeing this painting from a collection on the inte. Hmm, what¡¯s it called....¡±

    Gu Yu answered: ¡°Edge of the City.¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s it!¡± Looking at the painting, Tao Fei touched his chin in thought. He sighed: ¡°Wow, if that¡¯s the original... I thought Steven Holl¡¯s paintings where still on disy at the Walker Center for the arts in Minneapolis.¡±

    As Gu Yu spoke with Tao Fei about the artist, he rewrapped the painting.

    Even though Tao Fei and Gu Yu know Bai Rui through Zhang Siyi, he immediately felt angry and wanted to prevent Gu Yu from epting the painting. Knowing how much the painting caused him to feelpletely jealous, Zhang Siyi felt even more like a child throwing a tantrum. As a result, instead of speaking up, he retrained himself and remained quiet.

    As Zhang Siyi feelings of inferiority grew, his sour mood also grew. It reminded him of the time when Tao Fei first came to thepany and that feeling was terrible!

    Gu Yu looked at Zhang Siyi and handed the painting back to the receptionist. ¡°I¡¯ll have to trouble you to help with giving the painting back. I won¡¯t ept it.¡±

    Surprised, Tao Fei loudly and excitedly eximed: ¡°What? It was given to thepany so give it to me!¡±

    Gu Yu chuckled and ignored him. Before returning to his office, Gu Yu casually grabbed two choctes from the box and turned to speak to Zhang Siyi: ¡°Zhang Siyi, follow me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Now that they were inside Gu Yu¡¯s office, like Tao Fei mentioned, Zhang Siyi also asked: ¡°Since he sent it in the name of hispany, why didn¡¯t you ept it?¡±

    ¡°What would be the point? He might have sent the painting in the name of hispany today, but tomorrow I will have to find something of the same value to give back.¡± Gu Yu poured himself a ss of water then asked: ¡°Are you sure thatpany upstairs is Bai Rui¡¯s?¡±

    ¡°Well, I met him at noon while I was with Tao Fei.¡± Zhang Siyi looked downwards as he spoke. He could tell, Gu Yu liked the painting a lot.

    Before, when Gu Yu had nced at him, did Zhang Siyi¡¯s expression give away his feelings? If Gu Yu hadn¡¯t walked by at that moment and instead, spoke with the receptionist at a time when Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t present, would he have epted the painting?

    With Zhang Siyi¡¯s grave thoughts, he suddenly felt depressed. He isn¡¯t rich like Bai Rui and isn¡¯t clever like Tao Fei. ...... What could he possibly do for Gu Yu?

    Silently watching Zhang Siyi intently, Gu Yu peeled both choctes. He put one into his own mouth then ced the other into Zhang Siyi¡¯s mouth.

    Lost in his own thoughts, he was caught off guard as Gu Yu ced the chocte in his mouth then quickly followed it with his lips.

    Holding the back of his head firmly, Gu Yu kissed Zhang Siyi deeply.

 Chapter 196: Discovery

    <h4>Chapter 196: Discovery</h4>

    ___________________

    Before tasting the chocte, Zhang Siyi felt the tip of Gu Yu tongue against his own and as a result, his heart quickened. Toote to chew, in the warmth of his mouth, the choctey beside his gums slowly melting.

    Tentatively at first Gu Yu probed Zhang Siyi mouth with his tongue but soon, as their tongue entwined, their kissing intensified. Gu Yu held Zhang Siyi close their passionate kisses became one with the melted sweet taste of chocte. A strong taste of alcohol spread between their lips and teeth, intoxicating the heart.

    Until the chocte was meltedpletely, like the pairing of the chocte and liquor, the two were intertwined; you have me and I have you. Gu Yu withdrew his lips and not forgetting thest drop of chocte, he licked Zhang Siyi¡¯s lips clean.

    Completely forgetting about his worries, now hot and bothered, Zhang Siyi stared at Gu Yu expectedly.

    Gu Yu ced his forehead against Zhang Siyi¡¯s forehead and whispered: ¡°The taste is very good...¡±

    Helpless in the hands of Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi forgot he was eating chocte and as a result, the sweetness of the chocte was instead the sweet taste of Gu Yu. Unconsciously, as if the end of the treat was unsatisfactory, Zhang Siyi licked his lips.

    Although Zhang Siyi dazed action ignited Gu Yu¡¯s desire, he looked at him in the eye and after Gu Yu sucked on Zhang Siyi¡¯s lower lip onest time, he said: ¡°It¡¯s just a painting. What are you so worried about?¡±

    Looking away, Zhang Siyi turned slightly: ¡°From the start, you didn¡¯t seem to care about his presence.¡±

    Not letting him hide, Gu Yu held his face: ¡°I do not care about him. I only care about you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu sighed and said: ¡°You are too easily influenced by others. Bai Rui teases you and you get angry. Then, with one emotional story of his, you break-down and talk to him frankly. Why do you care? On the other hand, including everything Bai Rui is doing now, no matter how much he prods, it doesn¡¯t affect me. In my opinion, it¡¯s just another one of his schemes to affect you.¡±

    Thinking about it more carefully, Zhang Siyi was tongue-tied. Indeed, it seemed to be the case.

    ¡°If you are his goal, I can help you out. But, if I¡¯m the goal, what can I do? I can¡¯t make him disappear.¡± Feeling helpless, Gu Yu sighed softly. ¡°He is very persistent and has found your weaknesses. Not only will he test me, he will also test Tao Fei.¡±

    With Gu Yu admission, Zhang Siyi was surprised at Gu Yu insights. Now remembering what transpired in the elevator, was Bai Rui testing Tao Fei or who was he really concerned with?

    Gu Yu pinched his nose and asked: ¡°Now do you know what to do?¡±

    ¡°Yeah!¡± Zhang Siyi eyes shed bright. He raised his pointer finger and eximed: ¡°I¡¯ll show some concern over that Fat Peach!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°...¡±

    Even though Gu Yu gave him some food for thought, Zhang Siyi decided the answer was to pay attention to Tao Fei. Gu Yu¡¯s mouth twitched a bit. He flicked Zhang Siyi¡¯s forehead.

    Zhang Siyi guarded his forehead with his hands: ¡°Why are you hitting me!¡±

    Stroking his ear, Gu Yu was both angry and cheerful: ¡°Just as I only have you in my eyes, I hope you only look at me. Be yourself and try to ignore him. In this way, no matter what Bai Rui does, it won¡¯t be a problem.¡±

    Hearing the phrase ¡®I only have you in my eyes¡¯, with a warm heart, the blood rushed to his face and Zhang Siyi instantly became flush. Sure enough, a thousand words can¡¯t match the truth spoken by a lover! He looked up at Gu Yu with adoration and said: ¡°Ok.¡±

    Just as he was going to say something else to Zhang Siyi, he suddenly saw the shadow of a person standing outside the frosted ss door of his office.

    He immediately retracted his smile and whispered: ¡°You should go back to your desk.¡±

    After turning the knob to open the door, Zhang Siyi saw Be Lele standing outside holding a stack of printed paper with her hand raised as if she was about to knock on the door. In a good mood, Zhang Siyi faintly smiled at her then left.

    When Bi Lele entered the office, she felt the lingering sweet emotions between the two in the environment... Yes. She heard it.

    From the time when she saw Zhang Siyi¡¯s cell phone in Gu Yu¡¯s office a few days ago, she consciously began to pay attention to the movements of the two men.

    One night, she covertly followed Zhang Siyi on a whim and found him meeting Gu Yu at the subway station. Watching them meet each other, she almost screamed excitedly. Unexpectedly, after two stops, Zhang Siyi got off without Gu Yu. At that time, she wondered if she was over thinking things.

    In the next few days, since nothing happened between them out of the ordinary, Bi Lele started to doubt her instincts. However, today she confirmed her suspicion. After printing the documents for the new project, she needed to Gu Yu to look them over.

    Gu Yu¡¯s office, which was separated by frosted ss, doesn¡¯t have good soundproofing. In addition, there was a visible gap between the ss door and wall which allowed one to see inside if they looked closely. When she went to his office, she vaguely saw someone else inside. She was about to leave ande backter but the voice she heard made her pause: ¡®....why are you hitting me....¡¯

    She snuck a peak and saw Zhang Siyi¡¯s back. In the next moment, she saw Gu Yu hold him in his arms. Witnessing the scene before her, Bi Lele froze momentarily. Her heart jumped wildly and couldn¡¯t stop herself from peeking. The soft voice fluttered through the crack in the door: ¡®I only have you in my eyes...¡¯

    She couldn¡¯t hear anything else, but Gu Yu¡¯s actions were enough to exin everything!

    Is it normal for a male boss to hold his same-sex subordinates in his arms ???

    Sitting in front of Gu Yu, pretending nothing happened, Bi Lele calmly handed over the documents to Gu Yu: ¡°Boss, this is the final design for the Elementary School. Take a look.¡±

    Looking at her sharply, Gu Yu watched her hand him the papers. She remained quiet as Gu Yu flipped through the documents. Returning to his normal calm tone, he spoke to her firmly with constructive feedback on a few details that needed revision. In the face of Zhang Siyi, he was like a different person.

    Not able to look directly at Gu Yu, in response, Bi Lele kept her line of sight down at her notepad while she wrote the necessary memos for urate changes.

    After reporting, Bi Lele stood up and prepared to leave his office when Gu Yu suddenly called her: ¡°Wait.¡±

    Sweating, Bi Lele became nervous: ¡°Yes?¡±

    Gu Yu handed her another document and said: ¡°Bring this to Ji Feiyu and tell him there weren¡¯t any problems.¡±

    Feeling relieved, she took the added folder and left.

    ...... Oh, my God! Such a rigid boss... Is he really in love with Zhang Siyi!? Ahhh.....!

    Watching Bi Lele leave the office, Gu Yu also sighed with relief and let out a long breath.

    Since she wasn¡¯t acting any differently, he didn¡¯t say anything about it. Gu Yu hoped she didn¡¯t notice anything out of the ordinary. Gu Yu hadn¡¯t been impulsive at work in a very long time. When he noticed how anxious Zhang Siyi was with a hesitant expression on his face, Gu Yu couldn¡¯t help himself. He wanted to hold him, kiss him,fort him..... Hey, it¡¯s really difficult to do nothing!

    Drinking his tea, Gu Yu ruefully pressed his temples, then began to focus on his work.

    Sometimeter on one afternoon, feeling very motivated, Zhang Siyi was absorbed with his work. He reached up and took a moment to stretch. Looking up, he noticed Bi Lele across the room staring at him with a grin. He asked her: ¡°Do you need something?¡±

    Bi Lele: ¡°Oh, nothing...¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

 Chapter 197: Renovation

    <h4>Chapter 197: Renovation</h4>

    _____________________

    After returning the painting, no other correspondence between the twopanies happened. However, no matter how much Zhang Siyi wanted to forget about Bai Rui, his colleagues wouldn¡¯t let him.

    After they recognized him as the man that came to find Zhang Siyi, they constantly approached Zhang Siyi and asked him who the handsome guy was. Over and over, he had to exin to his colleagues that the man was an ex-boyfriend of a friend and he had nothing to do with him. What else could he say?

    As much as he wanted to ignore Bai Rui, it was just too difficult. Now that they work in the same building, the possibility of meeting in the elevator was high. In addition, he admitted to having a boyfriend with someone from work. Privately, Zhang Siyi sighed once again and regretted his soft heart that lead him to impulsively divulge his secret.

    Although Bai Rui hadn¡¯t yet shown an obvious purpose, Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t inclined to take Bai Rui lightly, much less engage with him. Who knows what he would do!?

    In a few days, it will be Zhang Siyi¡¯s 24th birthday.

    As he wondered what it will be like with Gu Yu, he began to look forward to it early. Although his tape measure ultimately moved him, thinking back to the poor feelings he harbored that day, Zhang Siyi clenched his jaw. His circumstance wasn¡¯t the same asst year. Now, his boyfriend was Gu Yu and unlikest year, he thought he will be treated quite differently this time.

    Much to his chagrin, an urgent bidding project fell from the sky!

    One morning, Gu Yu left for work earlier than usual due to a meeting. At noon, Zhang Siyi saw several strangersing to thepany. Gu Yu came from his office and called Zhang Siyi together with Yuan Zhicheng, Bi Lele, and Zhu Hongzhen into the conference room.

    Once he entered the room, Zhang Siyi noticed the same stranger he saw earlier siting with them. He was a middle-aged man who was between forty to fifty years old. Everyone called him Professor Cui.

    The man nodded to them with a smile and looked at Zhang Siyi: ¡°Is this little ssmate new?¡±

    Being called ¡®Little ssmate¡¯, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know what to say.

    Zhu Hongzhen quickly introduced him: ¡°This is Professor Cui of the C group.¡±

    Upon hearing the man¡¯s name, Zhang Siyi remembered hearing about a design group C when he first joined thepany. Later Zhu Hongzhen had exined to him that C-Group was a private design studio under Borderless and the leader was a professor from J University. The group specialized in ancient architectural design and was utilized when a project became avable.

    The person in front of Zhang Siyi was the legendary Professor! Immediately, Zhang Siyi stepped forward to shake his hand and introduce himself.

    Professor Cui smiled and addressed everyone in the conference room: ¡°Please sit.¡± He gestured and introduced the two young people standing next to him: ¡°These two are my graduate students, Liao and Ye.¡±

    Both students were around Zhang Siyi age. While Liao was a tall boy, very pale, with a pair of ck framed sses, and a serious expression, Ye was a plump girl with a very friendly demeanor. They took the opportunity to introduce themselves.

    As soon as the introduction wasplete, Gu Yu arrived with his notebook. He closed the door of the conference room behind him then looked to Professor Cui with respect: ¡°Professor Cui, let¡¯s get started.¡±

    Professor Cui give him a nod and smiled: ¡°You can start.¡±

    After connecting theputer to the projector, Gu Yu gave a brief introduction of the situation: ¡°The Company received a project for the renovation and restoration of the ancient city in X Province. Due to our limited staff, we have asked Professor Cui to join us on this project.¡±

    Gu Yu paused and watching everyone nod in acknowledgement, he continued to borate on the specific details pertaining to the project and the bid. The time frame for the bid caused a bit of an uproar since it was in mid-January; only six weeks away.

    Having worked for a year, Zhang Siyi was familiar with the time required forrge and small projects. At this moment, knowing how much overtime he will inevitably have to do, his face was very tense.

    GU Yu continued: ¡°Since the project includes multiple buildings, it will be necessary to visit the location and survey the area. We need to decide whether or not there was any value in restoring the buildings. This part of the work will be handled by Professor Cui. Due to therge amount of work, two additional people will go with him for two weeks, without recements, to help with the surveys.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was stunned. ......Gu Yu wasn¡¯t going? That means, if I go, then I won¡¯t be with him for two weeks?

    Unlike his unabashed enthusiasm of the past, since Zhang Siyi had experienced designing both his own projects as well as being part of a team fornd development, he wasn¡¯t so eager to volunteer.

    Weighing the pros and cons, he first considered the economic conditions of X-City. In terms of economic simrities, the renovation of the ancient city couldn¡¯t bepared with the luxury hotel project in Yunnan Provence. The main purpose of going to X City was to survey the site. Thinking along these lines, the expenses for food and amodations would be limited. Watching the weather be colder day, by day, the prospect of a ¡®fun¡¯ trip was very slim.

    Zhang Siyi nced around the room and saw simr expressions across everyone¡¯s face. Like a turtle, he wanted to shrink his neck and hide in his shell.

    What¡¯s more, Gu Yu mentioned Professor Cui was leading the team. As a borderless director, Gu Yu wouldn¡¯t be able to leave thepany for two weeks and thus, he would be separated from him. Certainly, Gu Yu wouldn¡¯t be so cold-hearted, would he?

    In hopes his subordinates would volunteer, Gu Yu waited a few minutes, but no one spoke up. The passing silence was broken as Gu Yu said: ¡°Zhang Siyi, you count as one.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡± Fuck! ! !

    Turning his head to look at each of them in the eye, Gu Yu asked: ¡°Field survey is physical work. Anyone have special circumstances that would inhibit their duties?¡±

    Yuan Zhicheng and Zhu Hongzhen looked at each other and finally Yuan Zhicheng took the initiative to raise his hand: ¡°I¡¯ll go.¡±

    Nodding with agreement, Gu Yu said: ¡°I¡¯ll go with you for a few days to assess the situation.¡±

    Upon hearing Gu Yu statement, Bi Lele suddenly eximed: ¡°Boss, I want to go!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Are you sure?¡±

    Bi Lele exined her reasons: ¡°I have never been to X City before and I haven¡¯t had the chance to take part in an ancient city renovation. It will be a good learning opportunity.¡±

    Professor Cui approved: ¡°Very good. You two girls can be roommates.¡±

    Thinking he was free of the responsibility, Zhang Siyi momentarily felt a surge of joy. Bi Lele and Yuan Zhicheng were enough.

    Gu Yu¡¯s final words echoed in his head: ¡°Ok then. Zhang Siyi and Bi Lele, both of you go back home to pack and prepare for tomorrow¡¯s journey. Make sure you listen attentively to Professor Cui¡¯s tasks during the next two weeks. Yuan Zhicheng and Zhu Hongzhen will stay in thepany to do the prep-work on the project.¡±

    Zhang Siyi felt like the carpet was ripped out from underneath his feet. Why wasn¡¯t his boyfriend, on his side?

 Chapter 198: Thoughts

    <h4>Chapter 198: Thoughts</h4>

    __________________

    After dinner that night, Zhang Siyi began to pack his belongings for his business trip.

    While Zhang Siyi was packing, Gu Yu also brought out his ck backpack he used for business trips. Since he wasn¡¯t staying for the entire trip, Gu Yu had much less to pack and therefore, finished packing in no time.

    Havingpleted his task, Gu Yu zipped up his bag, sat on the bed and watched Zhang Siyi unhappily packing his own suitcase: ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Why don¡¯t you want to go?¡±

    In fact, Zhang Siyi¡¯s unhappy attitude wasn¡¯t unknown to Gu Yu. All day, he noticed Zhang Siyi¡¯s quiet and gloomy behavior.

    After Zhang Siyi grumbled a bit, Gu Yu paused then exined his reasons for sending him on the business trip: ¡°Now that many areas of the country have been over developed in thest few years, the government has suspended many projects in an effort to rectify the situation. Even though you have been in thepany for over a year, this is the first time you have met Professor Cui. Since he hase to announce the project, it is clear that the government is attaching importance to the renovation of the ancient city in X Province and thus, the implementation of the restoration is likely. This type of opportunity is rare. If you are able to experience the whole process from the initial stages of survey to the final restoration, the project will have a great impact on you as an architectural designer.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was intimately familiar with how well Gu Yu treats him. Normally, when a unique chance to participate in a project such as the renovation came up, he would be very excited and eager. However, traveling for two weeks means 14 days of endless work. It seems, his birthday will be even worse thanst years!

    Gu Yu added: ¡°In addition, Bai Rui¡¯s recent influence has been a major distraction. It would do you good to be apart for a while and leave on a business trip.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Watching Zhang Siyi closely, Gu Yu thought he was still angry. He continued to gently coax him: ¡°Have you been to X City before? It is China¡¯s historical and cultural city. Although the city¡¯s economic condition can¡¯t bepared to Haicheng, there are many local ces that are interesting. Since the project is in one of China¡¯s top ten ancient cities, the picturesquendscape is evident. In addition, Zhuge Liang¡¯s ** former residence, and the story, Three Visits to the cottage**, originated from there.¡±

    While listening to Gu Yu¡¯s gentle tone, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t help butugh at the difference of treatment between now and in the past. A year ago, all he ever heard was Gu Yu¡¯s poisonous tongue and experienced Gu Yu¡¯s ck belly nature. Since when has Gu Yu been so concerned with his happiness?

    Zhang Siyi was reminded of the time when theyst fought over his request about his friend, Su Yuan. Gu Yu was helplessly sitting on the stairs waiting for Zhang Siyi. Once he saw how vulnerable Gu Yu was in reality, Zhang Siyi¡¯s anger was instantly gone. He didn¡¯t know if he either simply misunderstood Gu Yu in the past or he had in fact, changed Gu Yu.

    Snapping the cover of the suitcase together and zipping it up, Zhang Siyi finished packing. He put his luggage on the floor then walked over to Gu Yu and sat next to him onto the bed. He looked at him then said: ¡°It seems like I have some free time now.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi held Gu Yu tightly. Especially because it was his birthday and wanted to spend it with Gu Yu, he wanted to shout: ¡°I just can¡¯t bear to be separated from you!!¡± However, of course, he couldn¡¯t say something so emotional. It was too embarrassing!

    He turned to look at Gu Yu¡¯s handsome face and sighed. For the moment, in order to be a better man for Gu Yu, he decided he needed to set aside his birthday wish and stop being so childish.

    ¡°How long will you be there for?¡± Zhang Siyi asked.

    Under Zhang Siyi¡¯s petnt gaze, Gu Yu smiled and kissed him on his head then replied: ¡°It depends on the situation but it won¡¯t be more than three days.¡±

    Inwardly, Zhang Siyi was stunned. Since it was his birthday in four days and Gu Yu was leaving by the third day, Zhang Siyi took a hit through his heart and wanted to cough up a mouthful of blood. Was he really going to forget his birthday?

    Early the next morning, the group of six set out for X City. While Gu Yu would return in a few days, the rest would remain in the city. Since the project isn¡¯tmissioned, expenses at the early stages of nning are paid by themselves and hence, failure to win the bid would result in the loss of their own money. As a result, Professor Cui took this fact into consideration and arranged for everyone to stay at a local budget hotel near the ancient city. While the team leaders stayed in two separate rooms, the girls upied a third room and the boys stayed in another.

    Unlike Zhang Siyi, it didn¡¯t take long for the girls to get to know each other and act like they have been long time friends. He tried to make conversation with his roommate, Liao Jun, without sess. Since Liao Jun was being rather cold and indifferent towards Zhang Siyi, he worried about whether or not the time spent together will be awkward for the rest of the trip.

    After lunch, everyone went to inspect one of the areas that needed renovation. It was about two hectares ofnd in the eastern part of the ancient city that involved two main streets and three alleys. Once they arrived, Zhang Siyi set aside the worries of the day to the back of his mind and focused on Professor Cui¡¯s insights. Everyone was paying particr attention to the Professor¡¯s guidance and suggestions. Zhang Siyi listened closely while taking pictures of important details and his surroundings.

    Having an on-site lecture by the professor who specialized in ancient architecture made the learning experience exceptional. With relish, Zhang Siyi listened attentively and as a result, he forgot to take pictures. He wished he could write down notes about the history and details that Professor Cui patiently exined. After ap of walking around the area, it was evening and the Professor let everyone go back to rest. Tomorrow, they would officially start working.

    When Zhang Siyi arrived at the hotel after dinner, he received a text message from Gu Yu.

    Gu Yu: ¡°Meet me downstairs.¡±

    Grabbing his mobile phone quickly, Zhang Siyi eagerly went downstairs. As a result, he arrived earlier then Gu Yu and ended up waiting a few minutes for him at the hotel¡¯s entrance. Seeing Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi smiled and approached: ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Let¡¯s take a walk.¡±

    In fact, Zhang Siyi also wanted to look for Gu Yu and take a walk. At home, they were ustomed to walking the dog every day after dinner. Now that it wasn¡¯t necessary, it felt rather odd, like something was missing.

    As he walked, Gu Yu tucked his hands in his coat pockets and asked: ¡°What do you think?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What do you mean, what do I think?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°What did you think about when we visited the Ancient City? Did you feel anything in particr?¡±

    Immediately, Zhang Siyi rambled on about the historical information he heard today and architectural ideas; which streets were superfluous and which weren¡¯t; which parts needed renovation and which could be removed entirely.....

    Gu Yu listened for a long time then asked: ¡°And what are your ideas?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Eh?¡±

    Gu Yu looked at him and said: ¡°What you describe are the facts that Professor Cui talked about this afternoon.¡±

    Unresponsive, Zhang Siyi was momentarily stunned. Thinking carefully back to Professor Cui pointers, he realized he really did repeat what the Professor had said. He scratched his head and said: ¡°I feel the same way.¡±

    Gu Yu pointed to the night market street not far away and asked: ¡°What would you do if you were to renovate this area?¡±

    Zhang Siyi quickly evaluated the surroundings. The night market upied one side of the street while on the other side, the wall of the ancient city stood. However, because of the street vendors, refuse was strewn all over the ce which polluted the ancient structure.

    He thought for a while then answered: ¡°In order to maintain both the night market and ancient structures, start by cleaning up the city wall and either ce a fence or greenery around it. Then, convert these residential buildings into amercial district which would also alleviate the noise pollution of the residential area.¡±

    Gu Yu nodded and said: ¡°Yes, but for preservation, you can also extend the city wall and build amercial building disguised as an ancient wall on the original open space and then move the vendors to the interior space. Between the residential building and night markets, establish a green belt to help separate the zones.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was surprised at how different his approach was. The method of renovation can be very diverse so there was more than one solution to consider to solve a problem.

    Gu Yu seriously said: ¡°Instilled thought is amon problem for educators. Indeed, Teacher Cui is a very knowledgeable about ancient architecture but you must remember that you are an independent architect. Although you are still learning, you must not be led around by a noose and instead, you must have your own perspective. If you just listen, then you will lose your ability to think independently. Since people arezy, if someone tells you how to do it, then you won¡¯t think about it again.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was thoughtful. It was true that Gu Yu lead his business trip differently than Professor Cui. When Zhang Siyi went to Z-City with him, Gu Yu mainly kept to himself and asionally instructed Zhang Siyi to take photos. Gu Yu rarely expressed his opinions and views. If Zhang Siyi hadn¡¯t paid close attention and thought about what Gu Yu was doing at every stop, maybe he would also just be a puppet.

    ___________

 Chapter 199: Text Message

    <h4>Chapter 199: Text Message</h4>

    ______________________

    Patting his back, Gu Yu watched Zhang Siyi¡¯s thoughtful expression: ¡°I¡¯m only reminding you to think for yourself. Think about what he is teaching, but don¡¯t make waves. There isn¡¯t a problem with listening and keeping your opinions to yourself.¡±

    Zhang Siyi nodded: ¡°I know.¡±

    At the end of the street, they turned around to head back to the Hotel. Zhang Siyi was thinking about his roommate and couldn¡¯t helpin about the situation: ¡°My roommate isn¡¯t easy to get along with. I¡¯ve hardly spoke ten sentences with him. Anyway, since you have arge room with a double bed, should I talk to Liao Jun and find an excuse to stay with you tonight?¡±

    Gu Yu shook his head and calmly said: ¡°No. We are in a hotel. The two rooms are less than ten meters apart so what reason do we have to stay in the same room? To showcase our rtionship?¡±

    Not being able to stay with Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi frowned. Pouting, Zhang Siyi opened his mouth to say something, but closed it instead. ¨C You won¡¯t even let me sleep with you on my birthday! Isn¡¯t that a good enough reason!

    Reflected by the change of expressions on Zhang Siyi¡¯s face, Gu Yu watched his mood swing. Since it was already past nine at night, the streets were fairly empthy as most people were at home getting ready for bed. He nced around and noticing the empty street, he grabbed Zhang Siyi¡¯s wrist to pull him around the corner to the shadowed side of a building.

    Pressing him against the wall with both hands in darkness, Gu Yu kissed Zhang Siyi aggressively. With the rhythm of deep kisses, he tightly entwined his fingers with Zhang Siyi¡¯s. Not wanting to let him go, but unable to proceed, he slowly released his lips with an audible sound.

    At the end of a kiss, Zhang Siyi panted and a pair of bright eyes gazed at Gu Yu... Well, he forgave him.

    Early the next morning, Zhang Siyi was awakened by a soft voice before seven o¡¯clock. He frowned and strained his ears to make out what was being said. Liao Jun seemed to be on the phone: ¡°I arrived at noon yesterday. I¡¯m at the hotel now..... It¡¯ll be two weeks..... I miss you too....¡±

    It was the first time Zhang Siyi heard Liao Jun talk in such a gentle manner. Zhang Siyi wondered if he was talking to his girlfriend. Not wanting to interrupt him, he continued eavesdropping while lying in bed.

    ¡°What did you do during the day?..... Hmm, mmm..... What did you eat for dinner?.... I¡¯m going to the project site shortly.... Well, I¡¯ll say goodnight in advance....¡±

    Good night? This situation and dialogue were very familiar. It reminded Zhang Siyi of the weekly call he would make to his ex-girlfriend while he was abroad. Does that mean Liao Jun¡¯s girlfriend is abroad? Maybe in Europe or the United States?

    Liao Jun hung up the phone and the room was quiet once again.

    Despite theck of sleep the night before, a little whileter, Zhang Siyi reached for his phone under his pillow to check the time. It was 6:55. He sent a message to Gu Yu: ¡°Good morning!¡± [Adorable Kitten]

    Since Gu Yu hadn¡¯t reacted to his text, Zhang Siyi thought he might still be sleeping. Feeling annoyed, he continued to stare at the phone, squinting. Ten minutester, the phone vibrated with a new message: ¡°Why are you awake so early?¡±

    In the dialog box, Zhang Siyi teased: ¡°How can you sleep so well without me!?¡± [Heartbreak]

    Gu Yu: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°[Little Fox Kiss]¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Put on your clothes ande to my room.¡±

    Suddenly, Zhang Siyi bounced out of bed and quickly put on his shirt and pants.

    Even though Liao Jun rarely took the initiative to talk to Zhang Siyi, as he hadn¡¯t fallen back asleep, he spoke up: ¡°Why are you leaving so early?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Well, I¡¯m going out for a morning run.....¡±

    Liao Jun: ¡°Oh.¡±

    Grabbing his mobile phone, Zhang Siyi left the room without looking at Liao Jun. Once he found Gu Yu¡¯s room, he lightly knocked twice on the door.

    Soon, the door opened and an arm stretched out to pull him inside the room then pushed him onto the bed. Giddy, Zhang Siyi dly fell onto the soft nkets.

    While Zhang Siyi was dressed, Gu Yu was only wearing a cotton t-shirt and boxers that he slept in. Admiring the view, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t help but notice the obvious bulge Gu Yu had below. Zhang Siyi felt like his nose could to start spurting blood at any moment.

    Quickly, Gu Yu stripped off Zhang Siyiyers then got in bed. Close now, along with the tingling sensation of his love¡¯s faint breath along his neck, Zhang Siyi could smell Gu Yu¡¯s natural body odor. How could something he normally experienced every day at home feel so different today? It was intoxicating.

    As Gu Yu grabbed his waist to pull him down, he opened the sheet for both of them and said: ¡°Lay down and rest with me for a while.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Shit! That¡¯s it!?

    His request seemed to contradict his obvious hungry behavior earlier when he opened the door. Zhang Siyi felt confused. However, on second thought, the frequency of their lovemaking has been slowly decreasing from the initial three times a day to the current two times a week.

    Even though their frequency was perfectly normal, he couldn¡¯t stop himself from feeling insecure and thinking that he was losing his charm.

    However, as if Gu Yu could transmit the amount of love he had for Zhang Siyi by the strength alone, Gu Yu held onto him tightly. He buried his head against Zhang Siyi and made his insecurities disappear.

    In his heart, Zhang Siyi grumbled. Fuck! You don¡¯t give it, when I want it, and when I don¡¯t want it, you give it...... Bastard!

    Never the less, since he wasn¡¯t truly angry, in the arms of Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi easily rxed and really fell asleep. An hourter, Zhang Siyi woke up suddenly and nced at the clock: 7:55. Shit! Yesterday Professor Cui told everyone to meet in the lobby at eight in the morning to begin their work.

    For the first time, Gu Yu hadn¡¯t woken up on time for an appointment. Quickly, while Gu Yu went to the bathroom to wash, Zhang Siyi got dressed in a rush then left to go back to his own room.

    As soon as he came out, he bumped into Bi Lele as she was going downstairs.

    Bi Lile¡¯s eyes nearly popped out of her head. She blurted out: ¡°You slept with the bossst night?¡±

    ¡°No!¡± Zhang Siyi vehemently denied, turning red. He exined: ¡°I got up at 7 o¡¯clock this morning. I had to check with the boss about something just now.¡± Zhang Siyi thought he offered a good excuse because his roommate, Liao Jun, could verify his story. However, his messy hair and sloppy clothes weren¡¯t very convincing.

    A strange smile appeared on Bi Lele¡¯s face. She looked at Zhang Siyi thoughtfully then followed her roommate, Sister Ye, downstairs.

    Her Stare made Zhang Siyi feel like he wasn¡¯t wearing any clothes. Shaking his head to wake himself up, Zhang Siyi returned to his room. To his surprise, Liao Jun was just leaving and like Bi Lele, when he saw Zhang Siyi, he also had a strange look on his face.

    Since he was in a rush, he didn¡¯t pay attention to him and went quickly to the bathroom to wash his face. When he saw himself in the mirror, he realized the shirt under his hoodie was buttoned up twisted and crooked.

    ¡°..........¡± Fuck! So embarrassing!!!

    Even though Zhang Siyi tried to tidy himself up as fast as possible, he arrived downstairste.

    Arriving a few minutes before him, Gu Yu was talking to the professor and telling him a reason for their tardiness: ¡°This morning, Zhang Siyi asked me about some details rted to ancient buildings and we lost track of time. He may still be in his room.¡±

    Professor Cui smiled and waved his hand dismissively: ¡°It¡¯s not a problem. The young guy is very eager to learn.¡±

    While the excuse may have fooled the Professor, there were others in the group that were less convinced. Of course, this was a simple hup and soon, the group¡¯s attention was quickly diverted to the prospect of intense survey work ahead.

    Hundreds ofrge and small buildings in the three-hectare site area needed to be examined. Not only did they need to measure each building, they needed to assess the amount of work that would be required for renovation. Moreover, the interior space of the ancient city was the residence of many people which wasn¡¯t open to the public, making it more difficult to urately investigate.

    After dividing thebor up among the group, everyone set out toplete their tasks. Zhang Siyi and Liao Jun¡¯s assignment were topare the original base drawings to the data on-site and make changes as necessary. While Ye was managing the records, Bi Lele was responsible for ssifying the residences. Professor and Gu Yu were interviewing people.

    Although there were six people working on the project, only Zhang Siyi and Liao Jun had to do any type the physicalbor. Squatting down and reaching up all morning while they measured the different walls and structures, Zhang Siyi felt like he had done enough exercise for a lifetime. By the end of the morning, his back was hurting. Now, he was very grateful for the restraint Gu Yu showed this morning.

    After lunch, the group continued to work diligently on their tasks. In the evening, when everyone looked at the base to see how much waspleted, even though they investigated over forty buildings, they only saw a small corner of the over-all n finished.

    With eyes covered in dark shadows, Zhang Siyi felt like his future was bleak.

    Unlike yesterday, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t take a walk in the evening after dinner. Instead, he went back to his room and fell asleep. After ten hours of rest, he eventually woke up. Liao Jun asked him with a smirk: ¡°Why didn¡¯t you go jogging early this morning?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡± ...¡±

    Today¡¯s assignment wasn¡¯t any different from yesterdays. In the evening, when they returned to the hotel, Gu Yu excused himself from dinner because he needed to pack his belongings so he could catch his flight back to Haicheng early in the morning. Professor Cui nodded with understanding and made sure to remind him to make contact if there were any problems.

    When Zhang Siyi heard Gu Yu, his heart sank.

    Gu Yu pulled him to the side and whispered: ¡°Lets go for a walk.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was feeling upset about his missed birthday and gave him the cold shoulder. He replied: ¡°I don¡¯t want to. I¡¯m going to sleep.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°...¡±

    Feeling peevish, Zhang Siyi washed his face, then went to bed. In the middle of the night, his sleep was disturbed by someone licking his lips and he seem to hear Gu Yu saying Happy Birthday. Zhang Siyi was too tired to open his eyelids. He wanted the annoying person to stop harassing him in his sleep.

    ......

    Waking up in the morning, he was a bit confused. Did he dream that he was kissedst night or not? Laying on the bed, Zhang Siyi sighed. How could Gu Yue to his room in the middle of the night?

    Since the ancient city was far from the airport, Gu Yu was already gone when Zhang Siyi woke up in the morning. Realizing he was gone, Zhang Siyi had no energy to get up. His heart left with Gu Yu.

    After washing, knowing Gu Yu must have said goodbye, he mustered up the courage to check his mobile phone for messages. Unexpectedly, there was a WeChat message from Gu Yu right after midnight: ¡°Find an excuse to go to X Hotel at X street at 6 o¡¯clock in the evening.¡± ^_^

 Chapter 200: Mobile Phone

    <h4>Chapter 200: Mobile Phone</h4>

    _____________________

    Staring at the words on the screen, Zhang Siyi¡¯s initial dead zombie face turned radiant instantly. Giggling to himself, he looked at the words again. He knew it! How could Gu Yu forget about his birthday!? Suddenly, from across the room, Zhang Siyi found Liao Jun staring at him. Zhang Siyi coughed lightly, then put his phone away.

    Knowing Gu Yu yed him, Zhang Siyi held off replying right away. If you are going to pretend to forget, then I¡¯ll let you feel anxious too!

    While working during the morning, Zhang Siyi wondered what excuse he could use to slip away. In November, the sun has already started to set noticeably early and by 5 in the evening, it was already dark. Normally, the Professor called off the work day by quarter of and had the group return to the hotel to eat dinner at a small restaurant nearby.

    The time that Gu Yu asked him to meet was particrly convenient. It wouldn¡¯t conflict with his work and allowed him time to wash up. He only needed a reason to not eat with everyone.

    By noon, finally Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t hold back his excitement any longer and wanted to return Gu Yu¡¯s text. However, when he reached to his pocket, it was empty.... Huh? Where is my phone? Is it lost?

    Panicking, Zhang Siyi patted all the pockets around his body. Thinking about it, he vaguely recalled a moment this morning when he squatted down to take measurements and heard a noise like something had fallen to the ground. At that time, he was daydreaming about his birthday so he thought it was simply a stone on the road.

    ¡°Professor Cui! I lost my cell phone!¡± Zhang Siyi shouted.

    Startled, everyone stopped what they were doing momentarily to look up at Zhang Siyi. Professor Cui replied: ¡°Just now? Hurry back and see if you can find it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi immediately ran back through the areas they already measured and searched for his phone, but to no avail....... Was it picked up?

    Zhang Siyi ran back to the group and checked with everyone to see if someone had seen it. Unfortunately, everyone shook their heads no. Thinking maybe he could hear it ring, he borrowed a phone to call his own, but the phone wouldn¡¯t connect. It seems like someone had powered it down.

    Nervous now, Zhang Siyi dialed it again, but since it didn¡¯t connect for the second time, he gave up. He really lost it!

    Bi Lele nervously asked: ¡°Is it the 5S with the One-Piece character Luffy on the case? Hurry call the support line and make sure you report it quickly so you can lock the phone number!¡±

    Since the phone was an Apple phone with ID protection, Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t so concerned about it. He had set a pin number and fingerprint to unlock his phone so even if someone picked it up, the stranger wouldn¡¯t be able to ess his information. He was only worried about contacting Gu Yu.

    No one knew that Gu Yu hadn¡¯t actually left the city yet. Even though Zhang Siyi was told to meet at 6pm, he never texted Gu Yu back to confirm the time. Since Gu Yu¡¯s phone number was stored on Zhang Siyi¡¯s phone, Zhang Siyi never had a reason to memorize it. How could he get in contact with Gu Yu!?

    ........ Aaaah! What do I do?! Wait, doesn¡¯t Bi Lele have his phone number?

    Zhang Siyi politely asked Bi Lele to borrow her phone. He moved a little bit away to make the call. Fortunately, Gu Yu quickly answered the phone: ¡°Hmm, Bi Lele?¡±

    Sorrowfully, Zhang Siyi replied: ¡°This, this is Zhang Siyi. I lost my mobile phone.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°...What happened?¡±

    Zhang Siyi quickly exined the situation to him. Gu Yu asked: ¡°Did you see the text I sent youst night?¡±

    In a quiet voice, Zhang Siyi replied: ¡°Yes.¡±

    With relief, Gu Yu let go of his held breath: ¡°Good. Remember toe in the evening. Don¡¯t worry about the phone.¡±

    Listening to Gu Yu¡¯s calm voice alleviated Zhang Siyi¡¯s anxiety andforted his heart. He hung up and walked back to Bi Lele to return her phone.

    Bi Lele quietly looked at the call record. ¨C What the fuck! The first thing he did was call the Boss? How dependent on Gu Yu can he be?

    Noticing Zhang Siyi despondent attitude, Professor Cui frowned: ¡°One¡¯s mobile is very important. Shall we all go back and help look for it?¡±

    Zhang Siyi shook his head no: ¡°My cell phone wasn¡¯t turned off and the battery was fully charged. I just called it and it seems like someone picked it up and shut it down....¡±

    In addition, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t want his own problems to affect the group. He smiled and replied: ¡°Thank you, but don¡¯t worry about it. It was my own carelessness. I¡¯ve had the phone for three years old already, so it¡¯s about time for a new one anyway.¡±

    Professor Cui smiled and quipped in a jovial manner ¡°I guess Gu Yu will have to give you a bonus to make up for the lost property while you were fulfilling thepany¡¯s duties. Let¡¯s work hard and make sure to win this project!¡±

    Withughter and smiles, the positive atmosphere returned. Even though Zhang Siyi appreciated the concerns and jokes, in reality, he was very distressed. After three years with his phone, he was very attached to it. All of the correspondance with Gu Yu was gone!

    Well, this years¡¯ birthday certainly had a twist!

    At least now, in the name of going to the city center to look at a new phone, Zhang Siyi had an excuse to leave the group.

    At six in evening, Zhang Siyi took a taxi to the hotel that Gu Yu mentioned in his text. Although it couldn¡¯t bepared to the luxury hotels in Haicheng, the ce was rtively luxuriouspared to the other hotels in the area.

    Since Gu Yu knew Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t have his cell phone, he waited downstairs in the lobby for him.

    As soon as Zhang saw Gu Yu, like a puppy seeing his master after a long day, he quickly ran over to him. All of the sadness and worries of the day disappeared.

    Gu Yu led him upstairs into one of the nicest suites the hotel had to offer. First, he opened the door then pushed Zhang Siyi into it.

    When Zhang Siyi entered the room, he was shocked. Not only was the suite full of roses, there were colorful balloons floating around the room and a banner hanging on the wall. On the banner, the elegant calligraphy said: I love Siyi. Happy Birthday!

    Zhang Siyi was so happy, he could die!

    He heard Gu Yu quietly shut the door behind him then whisper to him: ¡°Since we were on a business trip I couldn¡¯t prepare anything special. I don¡¯t know if you like it or not.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± He doesn¡¯t think this is special? This is the equivalent to being possessed by the god of romance!

    In fact, as long as Gu Yu remembered his birthday and ate dinner with him, Zhang Siyi was very happy. Having spent his time preparing for Zhang Siyi¡¯s surprise, Gu Yu got a free pass for his absence.

    Turning around, Zhang Siyi excitedly rushed over to pounce on Gu Yu. He held him tightly like a ko bear then grabbed Gu Yu head and kissed him all over his face: ¡°Yes, I like it!¡±

    Struggling for a moment, Gu Yu looked at him in the eye and smiled: ¡°Ok, ok. You are getting heavy.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    When they heard a knock on the door, Zhang Siyi quickly removed himself from Gu Yu¡¯s grasp.

    Room service hade to deliver dinner. Gu Yu opened the door, offered thanks then asked the waiter to leave the cart outside. Gu Yu wanted to bring the meal cart into the room himself for Zhang Siyi.

    Zhang Siyi leaned over and asked: ¡°What are we having to eat?¡±

    With a morous arm motion and a bow, Gu Yu motioned to the table and opened the te cover to reveal Zhang Siyi¡¯s favorite; a steak. In a gentlemanly manner, he said: ¡°If you please.¡±

    Smiling broadly, Zhang Siyi sat down in a trance. Gu Yu was so cool! It would be nice if every day was a birthday!

    In addition to the steak, there was a small cake with candles. Even though Gu Yu knew Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t care for cake, a birthday wasn¡¯tplete without it.

    After Gu Yu¡¯s out of tune rendition of Happy Birthday, Zhang Siyi made a wish and blew out the candles. From behind Gu Yu¡¯s back, he revealed a birthday present for Zhang Siyi in his hand; the newest Apple iPhone.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi was surprised: ¡°Did you buy this after I told you I lost my phone?¡±

    Gu Yu lightly coughed and confessed: ¡°Yeah.¡±

    Curious now, Zhang Siyi inquired: ¡°What was your original gift?¡±

    Gu Yu mysteriously replied: ¡°Since I didn¡¯t give it to you yet, it will be kept a secret.¡±

    In this way, Zhang Siyi¡¯s curiosity waspletely stimted. He pushed the phone back and stated: ¡°Then I don¡¯t want a mobile phone. I want the original gift.¡±

    Gu Yu insisted: ¡°No, now you need a mobile phone. I will give it to you next year.¡±

    Zhang Siyi protested: ¡°What!? That¡¯s so unfair!¡±

    Gu Yu smirked. No matter how much Zhang Siyi asked, he didn¡¯tply.

    The only thing Zhang Siyi could do was ept the new phone. Since everything exceeded his expectations, he wasn¡¯t going to argue with him.

    As he was eating the steak, Zhang Siyimented: ¡°To be honest, this was over the top. In fact, even a small gift would be would be better thenst year¡¯s tape measure.¡±

    Gu Yu raised his eyebrows in question: ¡°What do you mean?¡±

    Zhang Siyi found himself saying something wrong and quickly wanted to smooth over things: ¡°No, no. I mean, the tape measure was also very good!¡±

    Gu Yuughed and said: ¡°This is your first birthday since we have been together. Of course, I have to do something otherwise you would be disappointed. Besides, I think it¡¯s necessary to make special ns for the first time, but I can¡¯t guarantee it will be like this every year so don¡¯t expect too much in the future.¡±

    Zhang Siyi giggled: ¡°Hey...¡±

    Refilling their sses of wine, Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi chatted about various subjects while they finished their meal. Soon satiated, softly kissing him, Zhang Siyi was pulled down from the table and onto the sofa by Gu Yu. Even though he enthusiastically responded to Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi thought Gu Yu was being uncharacteristically gentle. Taking advantage of the situation, Zhang Siyi took the initiative to roll and switch ces with Gu Yu.

    Gu Yuughed out loud: ¡°Do you want to be on top?¡±

    Not really thinking about it before, Zhang Siyi froze. For so long, he had been ustomed to ying a more passive role in bed. Reversing the roles now felt a little strange. What pure man doesn¡¯t want to be on top? Since Gu Yu mentioned it and it was his birthday, Zhang Siyi thought he could try it for one night.

    Blushing, Zhang Siyi: ¡°Can I?¡±

    Gu Yu smiled. Suddenly he used his strength to maneuver Zhang Siyi below him. Staring deeply into Zhang Siyi¡¯s eyes, Gu Yu said: ¡°No.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Bastard! (¨s¨FÃó¡¯)¨s(©ß©¥©ß

 Chapter 201: Ring

    <h4>Chapter 201: Ring</h4>

    _________________

    Even though it was Zhang Siyi¡¯s Birthday, Gu Yu still had his way. Witnessing Zhang Siyi coquettish exuberance, Gu Yu suddenly switched roles and let Zhang Siyi experience what was called, being plundered. Like a beast, Gu Yu was being rather aggressive, but nevertheless, his affectionate gazes, gentle caresses, and tender kisses let Zhang Siyi feelpletely loved.

    Normally at home, Zhang Siyi always thought about Gu Yao next door and being considerate, he often felt hindered. In contrast, they were currently at a high-ss hotel with good sound instion and thus, not being afraid of being heard, while holding GU Yu tightly during the throes of passion, Zhang Siyi let out his voice without constraint.

    At the height of the climax, Zhang Siyi¡¯s spirit and body were greatly satiated. Feeling spent, henguidly sank into Gu Yu arms and snuggled up close to himfortably.

    At nine at night, it wasn¡¯t terriblyte, but even so, Zhang Siyi definitely wasn¡¯t going back to his hotel room where his colleagues were. However, since he didn¡¯t have a cell phone, he didn¡¯t have a method of contacting his roommate, Liao Jun. Afraid his colleagues might worry without notification, he decided it would be best to contact Bi Lele to pass on a message.

    Gu Yu took a moment to collect his thoughts then dialed Bi Lele¡¯s phone number: ¡°Hello, Bi Lele?¡±

    ncing at Zhang Siyi¡¯s stretched out body thatzily wrapped his arm and leg around him, Gu Yu couldn¡¯t help but smile. When Bi Lele answered, he quickly adjusted his mindset and collected himself to answer: ¡°I got a call from Zhang Siyi asking me to pass a message to you. Please let his roommate, Liao Jun, know he bumped into an old friend while he was out shopping for a new phone and won¡¯t be returning to the hotel.¡±

    ...... An old friend? Zhang Siyi squinted his eyes and smiled smugly at Gu Yu. Now he finally understood the meaning behind Gu Yu¡¯s deception by telling the group he was returning to Haicheng. No one would suspect Zhang Siyi was with Gu Yu for the night!

    He had to admire Gu Yu¡¯s acting ability. Not only did he have perfect control over the tone of his voice, but he also had total control over his facial expressions. How was he able to make it sound so convincingly serious while maintaining a straight face?

    Gu Yu continued to exin the situation to Bi Lele: ¡°He didn¡¯t remember your phone number, so he used his friend¡¯s cell phone to call me first...¡±

    The contrast between Gu Yu¡¯s previous tone of adoration to his current formal attitude spurred Zhang Siyi on. He was feeling rather yful and subconsciously let his hand gently caress his torso, leaving his fingers to trail down his body while he rested his head momentarily on Gu Yu¡¯s abdomen.

    Zhang Siyi could hear the slight tremble in Gu Yu voice while speaking on the phone. Since his reaction encouraged Zhang Siyi further, he continued to move further down to take Gu Yu in his mouth.

    Burying his face in his crotch, Zhang Siyi teasingly used his tongue to caress the tip before enveloping him whole. While listening to Gu Yu¡¯s quivering speech, Zhang Siyi felt his slender fingersb across his scalp and hair. In a hurry, Gu Yu ended his conversation: ¡°Well, he will return to work tomorrow morning on time.¡±

    From below, Zhang Siyi looked up at Gu Yu in surprise at his inability to maintain his act. He didn¡¯t think Gu Yu would respond so quickly making him wonder if in fact, Gu Yu wasn¡¯t such a great actor or if it was his technique that was just too good.

    Soon, he wasn¡¯t pondering it anymore. Once Gu Yu hung up the phone, he curled his fingers against Zhang Siyi¡¯s hair, grasping it tightly and forcefully pushed Zhang Siyi¡¯s head against his hips making him go deeper. Then he heard Gu Yu say: ¡°Do you want to eat?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°....¡±

    Sitting up, Gu Yu pulled at the waistband and let the remaining portion of his robe fall off revealing Zhang Siyipletely.

    Even though Zhang Siyi himself knew he was ying with fire and wanted to confess his mistakes, instead he was further pressed onto Gu Yu to eat.

    Having cum once already, it can be particrly slow for a second time. Zhang Siyi was left eating and eating and ultimately left his mouth feeling sour. Never the less, once the arrow has been drawn taut on a bow string, it had to be released. Even though Zhang Siyi resolutely increased his oral maneuvers, eliciting Gu Yu¡¯s moans, Gu Yu suddenly grabbed Zhang Siyi¡¯s hair: ¡°Stop eating.¡±

    Rubbing his head, Gu Yu grinned then turned him around. Standing up, Gu Yu plunged his rock hardness into him saying: ¡°You need to cum again.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s long, sweet, erotic moans, excited Gu Yu further. This time, ¡®looking after¡¯ Zhang Siyi inside and out, Gu Yu made him take three different positions until he was allowed to touch his front and release himself.

    Forced to ¡®eat then support¡¯, Zhang Siyimented...... It¡¯s my birthday so why does it always feel like I¡¯m the one that lost?

    After a night of ¡®torment¡¯, neither of them had much energy. Once bathed, they went to bed in each other¡¯s arms. Leaning closely against Gu Yu¡¯s shoulder warmly, Zhang Siyizily said: ¡°I dreamedst night that you told me Happy Birthday.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°... Hmm? ¡°

    Zhang Siyi mumbled: ¡°I thought you had forgotten my birthday because you chose to leave the group on this day. I was very angry and went to bed early. In the middle of the night, I dreamt that you kissed me and said Happy Birthday to me¡±

    While Zhang Siyi¡¯s tone continued to be somewhat resentful, in reality, he had already forgiven Gu Yu long ago. He was simply being greedy for attention and acted like a brat in front of his lover in order to obtain his sce andfort.

    Gu Yu smiled and softly responded: ¡°You weren¡¯t dreaming. I went to your roomst night.¡±

    Zhang Siyi raised his eyes in surprise: ¡°Ah?¡±

    Gu Yu pinched his ears: ¡°In fact, before, I wanted to go with you for a walk and tell you, but what could I do about your bold temper?¡±

    Zhang Siyi grabbed his hand and asked, ¡°Wait. Were you really looking for me? Liao Jun and I are in the same room. Aren¡¯t you afraid of being seen?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°I had prepared to tell Liao Jun that I had something to talk to you about, but as it turned out, when I went to see if you were asleep, his phone rang and left the room to answer it. I kissed you while he was away.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart melted. The sweet feeling wasn¡¯t a dream.......

    Gu Yu bopped his nose and said hoarsely: ¡°Don¡¯t expect too much in the future for your birthday. Today was special because we are together now. I will never forget it.¡±

    ¡°Uh-hm.¡± Finally feeling content, Zhang Siyi grabbed his hand and held him close. Continuing their dialog, they talked about the rest of the days¡¯ events, but soon, because they were too exhausted to stay awake. They fell asleep in each other¡¯s embrace.

    In the middle of the night, Zhang Siyi woke up with a full dder probably because he had too much wine to drinkte at night. When he got out of bed barefoot, the urgency his dder demanded made him rush and as a result he stumbled on the ground while getting to the bathroom. Not seeing well in the dark, he stepped on a hard object and in pain, he covered his mouth to Stifel a hiss.

    From the illumination of the night light from the bathroom, Zhang Siyi looked down and saw the messy floor. Last night, they haphazardly undressed in a rush and discarded theiryers all over the floor. He noticed a lump under one article of clothing. Reaching down, he pulling it out to examine it. It was a small square box. When he opened the box, Zhang Siyi saw two in tinum rings lying quietly inside.

    With his heart now pounding in his chest, Zhang Siyi was fully awake.

    ncing at Gu Yu¡¯s sleeping form under the covers on the bed, he hurriedly closed the box and stuffed it back into the pocket of Gu Yu¡¯s pants then crawled back into the bed.

    Disturbed by his movements and temperature difference, Gu Yu frowned slightly in his sleep and leaned over to wrap his arm around Zhang Siyi. Once his lover was close again, Gu Yu quickly fell back to sleep.

    Zhang Siyi felt that his heart was so loud, it was going to wake Gu Yu back up.....

    ...... Oh, my God ! (¨R_¨Q)

    Could that ring be the gift Gu Yu originally wanted to give him?

    ...... Oh, my God !! (¨R/ / / ¨Q)

    When Zhang Siyi entered the suite, it¡¯s no wonder that it felt so romantically decorated. It was like a proposal scene from a tv drama. Was Gu Yu really nning on proposing to him? But they only have been dating for half a year! Was he seriously thinking about it?

    ...... Oh, my God !!! (¨R ¨Œ ¨Q)

    Feeling both excited and sullen, Zhang Siyi was too excited to sleep. After a long time thinking about having a ring on his finger, he was able to calm down and close his eyes feeling rxed and ready to fall back asleep.

    Just as he was about to drift off, he suddenly thought about the gift being swapped with a cell phone and as a result, he jolted himself awake again. His mood, like a rollercoaster, swelled up to the clouds and then down to the bottom of a valley. (= Ãó =)

    Zhang Siyi inwardly pondered the situation and questioned his motivation. Gu Yu must have had a reason for not giving him his true birthday present. What was it? Gu Yu made a solemn decision to buy the rings, and yet, Gu Yu chose to give him something else. Maybe Gu Yu decided he wasn¡¯t ready and ultimately swapped the gift at thest minute...... ?

    Ahhhh! ...... Doesn¡¯t he like him enough? During our initial confessions, we clearly stated we wanted to spend a lifetime together, so Why!?

    Once again, Zhang Siyi regretted losing his phone. If he hadn¡¯t lost his phone, he would have a matching ring on his left ring finger already. Fantasying about it, he imagined two hands entwined with each other with matching rings in his mind¡¯s eye. The idea dazzled him.... Gu Yu hand sped with my own..... Ooooooh! I really want it!

    Indeed, people can be really greedy. Originally, Zhang Siyi thought his birthday was perfect, but now that he learned his Birthday could have been even better, he felt a little dissatisfied.

    Zhang Siyi opened his eyes to stare at Gu Yu¡¯s sleeping face. He reached out and tenderly caressed his face. The corner of his mouth raised in a grin. Before next years birthday, I must get that present!

    Early the next morning, Gu Yu packed his bags and officially returned to Haicheng. With a new mobile phone in hand, Zhang Siyi went back to the ancient city project location.

    Arriving at the hotel just before eight o¡¯clock, Bi Lele saw him. She smiled at him and asked: ¡°Auntie Four, where did you gost night?¡±

    Zhang Siyi touched his nose and repeated Gu Yu statement fromst night: ¡°I... I bumped into an old friend.¡±

    Squinting in disbelief, Bi Lele drilled him: ¡°What old friend?¡±

    Trying his best to maintain his expression, Zhang Siyi continued to lie: ¡°Someone I knew from before whom happened to be visiting the city as well.¡±

    Bi Lele continued to interrogate: ¡°They were also on a business trip?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Yeah ...¡±

    Bi Lele: ¡°Was it a man or a woman?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Man.¡±

    Inspecting him meaningfully, Bi Lele let out an unbelieving affirmation ¡®uh-huh¡¯ then spoke: ¡°Your rtionship must be rather close to have shared a roomst night.¡±

    Zhang Siyi shivered, shit! How is it possible to convince this rotten girl! Even if he was lieing, any two friends could have shared a room for one night!

    While taking a break at noon, Zhang Siyi took a taxi to the shopping district to re-apply for a mobile phone card. He removed the new packaging, ced the sim card inside and powered the phone on.

    His contacts and photos could be restored through the iCloud, but all the chat records from WeChat, including the first time Gu Yu sent him ¡®Little Fox Kiss¡¯, was gone.

    Even though he could feel the tears start to well up, he held them back. Instead he sent a ¡®Crying Buckets¡¯ expression to Gu Yu on his new phone.

    When Gu Yu exited the ne, he checked his messages and saw Zhang Siyi¡¯s text. Perplexed, yet concerned, he asked: ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡±

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t want to admit his reason because, knowing Gu Yu, he didn¡¯t want to be teased andughed at.

    Gu Yu text came quickly: ¡°Miss me?¡±

    Zhang Siyi admitted: ¡°Yeh... ¡°

    Gu Yu: ¡°Good. Work hard and I¡¯ll call you when I have time.¡±

    Their short dialog had the desired effect and quickly calmed Zhang Siyi down.

    Later in the day, several dyed unread messages popped up in WeChat, including Happy Birthday sent by his Mother. Zhang Siyi read them one by one and replied to some of them here and there. Someone in Borderless chat group also wished him a Happy Birthday.

    Chicken Wings: ¡°Yesterday was the fourth aunt¡¯s birthday!¡±

    Xu Jia: ¡°Really? How do you know?¡±

    Chicken wings: ¡°I just got back from the personal department. There, Ms. Wang was talking about Zhang Siyi getting his birthday benefits next month because of his business trip.

    Piggy: ¡°Oh! Happy Birthday Four!¡±

    Du Ruixuan: ¡°Happy birthday!¡±

    Many of his colleagues wished him a happy birthday and Zhang Siyi quickly responded with a thank you.

    Not long after, Bi Lele bumped into Zhang Siyi again. Surprised, she asked him: ¡°It turned out, it was your Birthday yesterday! Did your ¡®old friend¡¯e to meet you for your birthday?¡±

    Zhang Siyi denied: ¡°Don¡¯t be ridiculous!¡±

    Bi Lele smirked a little and slowly walked away. In the group chat she asked: ¡°Yesterday, did the Boss return to his office at thepany?¡±

    Chicken wings: ¡°No.¡±

    Watching the chat window Zhang Siyi saw her question and froze in his tracks. What does Bi Lele know?

    He looked suspiciously at Bi Lele¡¯s back as she walked away. As if telepathic, Bi Lele turned her head and looked at Zhang Siyi in the eye. With a broad, ridiculous smile on her face, she winked at him as if she could see right through it all.

    ¡°...... ¡± Fuck! Heeeelp! There¡¯s a rotten girl here!! (t Ãó t)

    During the next six days, the survey and investigation of the area continued and under Professor Cui¡¯s leadership, several peoplepleted half of their workload. In order to be considerate of everyone¡¯s health both mind and body, Professor Cui generously granted a day off and let the group explore wherever they wanted. However, after several days of physicalbor, everyone was exhausted. As a result, most everyone elected to stay at the hotel to rest.

    Zhang Siyi also felt tired and elected to stay in his room to rest. That day, he slept in until noon and when he woke, he wasn¡¯t happy to discover the gloomy day with threatening, dark, rain clouds.

    Noticing his roommate sitting by the window, Zhang Siyi casually asked: ¡°Is it raining outside?¡±

    Liao Jun turned his head: ¡°It¡¯s drizzling out.¡±

    Making light of the matter, Zhang Siyi joked: ¡°Did Professor Cui watch the weather report? Knowing it was going to rain, is that why he gave us a day off?¡±

    After his joke, Zhang Siyi became concerned that he offended Liao Jun. After all, Professor Cui was his mentor and he didn¡¯t want to give Liao Jun a reason to dislike him.

    Unexpectedly, Liao Junughed when he heard Zhang Siyi and replied: ¡°The Professor has a ck belly and already knew he was using us for cheapbor.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Finally, on the fifth day together, Liao Jun seemed much more rxed. His smile and warm attitude towards Zhang Siyi were a rarity.

    Zhang Siyi climbed out of the bed and asked: ¡°Did you eat? Want to have lunch together?¡±

    Liao Jun epted with a ¡®hmm-mm¡¯ then sat by the bed to wait for Zhang Siyi to wash up and dress.

    Moving quickly, Zhang Siyi was finished in a few minutes. He grabbed his wallet and mobile phone then walked downstairs with Liao Jun.

    Having eaten at all the restaurants along the street next to the hotel, they chose to go further away to find a different ce to eat. Walking under an umbre together, they found a ce that served the local delicacy; beef noodles.

    During the meal, the two talked pleasantries. Since Liao Jun¡¯s attitude was much better than before, he took the initiative to talk about his situation with Zhang Siyi. It wasn¡¯t that he was indifferent and cold, he was simply a person that took a while to open up.

    Through their conversation, Zhang Siyi learned that Liao Jun has been a graduate student for one year. Since he and his ssmate were still studying, they didn¡¯t earn a sry under Professor Cui. Other than airfare and amodation, they had to pay for the rest of their expenses.

    Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°If we get the project, will you be reimbursed?¡±

    Liao Jun replied: ¡± It¡¯ll be divided among us so it wouldn¡¯t amount to much. However, the opportunity is very rare.¡±

    With emotion, Zhang Siyi replied: ¡°Ahh. It¡¯s difficult.¡± In contrast, Zhang Siyi felt his situation was much better since he not only had a wage, he also had a subsidy that paid for the trip.

    Liao Junughed: ¡°Studying is like that. How can there be such a good thing as making money while reading books?¡±

    Zhang Siyi nodded. That¡¯s true. When Zhang SIyi was studying, he was like a parasite that only spent his parent¡¯s money. He recalled Gu Yu university days making money and told Liao Jun about his ¡®Legendary Deeds¡¯.

    In admiration, Liao Jun replied: ¡°He is a rare person who is favored by the Gods.¡±

    ¡°Yeah!¡± Zhang Siyi agreed. Thinking about university, Zhang Siyi considered his path towards earning his RIBA Part2 certificate back in the UK. However, with his current savings, he doesn¡¯t have nearly enough to cover the cost of tuition fees for two years, let alone supplies and living expenses. Although he really wanted to rely on his own ability, it was only now, while living with Gu Yu that his ie and life was stable. He worried about whether or not he would get an opportunity to go back to school.

    His curiosity piqued and wanting to know further about graduate school, Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°Since there wasn¡¯t money to earn in going to graduate school. Why bother going back for another degree?¡±

    Moreover, the master¡¯s degree in architecture in China is a three-year program. Since Liao Jun specialized in ancient architecture, the opportunity for project development was much less thanmercial buildings. Even after graduating, he was reliant on ancient city renovations, antique architecture and the maintenance of monuments. The direction was quite limited. Like Zhang Siyi, did he simply like architecture and was willing to overlook the meager wages?

    Sure enough, after slurping up some noodles, Liao Jun replied: ¡°Because I like it.¡±

    Feeling like he met another person with a simr passion towards architecture, Zhang Siyi eyes brightened and excitedly continued to ask him why he liked it and where he wanted to work in the future.

    Liao Jun: ¡°In college, when I saw Mr. Liang Sicheng¡¯s ¡°History of Chinese Architecture¡±, I felt moved. After graduating from undergraduate school, I went to work in the Design Institute and found that most of the projects were residential buildings. I drew ns every day. Eventually, I thought that my years studying architecture was a waste if all I got to do was draw temtes. It was so boring. I decided to go back to school and study ancient architecture. If given the opportunity, I really want to do something, whether it was design or research that continues the Chinese architectural tradition. Japan has maintained their cultural traditions and history through Kyoto Nara and other ancient structures. Since China hasn¡¯t done as well in this regard, it¡¯s somewhatcking.¡±

    Speaking of his dreams of the future, Zhang Siyi could see Liao Jun eyes ze over full of hope.

    Feeling like the distance between them lessened, Zhang Siyi opened up and told him about his own pursuit of architecture. He also told him about hispany¡¯s trip to Japan.

    Zhang Siyi said: ¡°But I still admire you. Youmitted yourself to graduate studies despite theck of wages. If I want to go back, I would have to rely on my family to support me. I feel stressed about asking my parents for more money.¡±

 Chapter 202: Decision

    <h4>Chapter 202: Decision</h4>

    ___________________

    Without financial independence, there was no real freedom and it is for this reason that Zhang Siyi chose to work directly after graduation. At twenty-something, which boy doesn¡¯t want to enter society, stand on their own two feet and showcase their ambitions as soon as possible?

    Liao Jun slightly nodded in agreement over Zhang Siyi¡¯s thoughts and also put forward his own ideas about jobs with stable ie: ¡°In fact, I was very happy in the beginning to simply work and have a sry. Although there were times I would be disappointed with the type of work I had to do, having received a paycheck every month was veryforting. The more money I had in hand, the easier it was to ignore the aspects about work that I didn¡¯t like and over time, I gradually felt numb. I was just like a cog in a wheel going with the flow. Looking back, that feeling was really terrible. In the end, I think it depends on the situation on how best to achieve financial independence. If you aren¡¯t able to work from your heart, you will regret itter even with a high sry. It¡¯s better to n ahead and endure a short period of poverty toy down a solid foundation for the future. From the get go, the time spent might seem like an arduous sacrifice, however for me, three years have already passed in the blink of an eye.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was deeply touched by Liao Jun¡¯s heartfelt remarks and couldn¡¯t help but reflect on the status of his current life.

    Indeed, Zhang Siyi rapid growth in the workce has been going very smoothly. He is already capable of working on various small projects alone. However, as time progresses and investment projects increase, he knows that the material he learned during his undergraduate period was increasingly bing inadequate. The way forward in his career has be blocked.

    For this reason, Zhang Siyi knows that earning a Master¡¯s degree is imperative. Even though he knows that a Master¡¯s degree is no longer an impulsive choice, in the current situation, he wasn¡¯t willing to separate himself from Gu Yu. As a result, Zhang Siyi has been putting his decision to apply for a Master¡¯s program on hold indefinitely.

    ..... One day I¡¯ll go back to get my master¡¯s degree.... But when? When I¡¯m thirty? Thirty-five? ....

    Looking ahead six years, he would be the same age of Gu Yu now. Without further education, he would continue to be doing the same type of work day after day and ultimately continue to be Gu Yu¡¯s subordinate.

    Knowing that there is someone nearby who was always looking out for your best interest and wellbeing, it was easy to live day-by-day, without a n for the future, worry free. Thinking along these lines, Zhang Siyi started to feel guilty and the more he thought about it, the more anxious he felt. In a panic he quickly asked Liao Jun: ¡°How did you make the decision to go back?¡±

    ¡°I asked friends and senior coworkers who had a Master¡¯s degree whether or not they ever regretted their decision to go back to study.¡± Liao Jun smiled at Zhang Siyi then continued: ¡°Ten out of ten times, people told me they didn¡¯t have regrets. In addition, they had advised me to return to school earlier rather thanter because the workce relies on efficiency and thus, people are rather rushed in the development of projects. There wasn¡¯t time to slow down and think about the process in its entirety and without that, it¡¯s impossible to showprehensive knowledge about the field and grow as an architect. The longer you wait to go back to school, the harder it was to return.¡±

    Zhang Siyi nodded in agreement over Liao Jun¡¯s well-spoken thoughts. When he first joined thepany, he was given half a day to work on an apartment project with Du Rui. During school, there was ample time to create a design, discuss it for problems and then make revisions ordingly. The disparity between corporate work and his University work was clear.

    ¡°Moreover, hesitating about it might simply be a product of insecurities. Afterall, to willingly giving up a veryfortable lifestyle for the unknown can be scary.¡± Liao Jun paused for a moment to drink from his bowl of noodle soup: ¡°Anyway...ying down a solid foundation for your future is the best course of action.¡±

    After their meal, the two men walked back to the hotel. Outside, the rain came down even harder and the pitter-patter of droplets sshing against the window echoed in the quiet room. As the drops flowed downwards, they left streams of lines on the ss like a loose pencil sketch on paper. Nearby, sitting cross-legged quietly at a table, Liao Jun was reviewing the photographs of the area they surveyed.....

    With the gloomy weather and unique odor of a sterile hotel room, Zhang Siyiid in bed ruminating about the ideas that Liao Jun expressed all afternoon. For the first time, he seriously thought about the realities of earning a Master¡¯s degree.

    The next morning, even though the day was somewhat gloomy, the group resumed their work and continued with their survey.

    In quiet observation, Zhang Siyi watched the process that Liao Jun used to carefully record each set of measurements and note the data down. When Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t understand something, he would question professor Teacher Cui. In their exchange, the professor discussed how to differentiate the architectural styles of ancient times. By carefully inspecting existing monuments and reviewing the urban history of the city, one could extrapte the timeframe by which the city evolved.

    Since Zhang Siyi went to University abroad, he didn¡¯t study ancient Chinese architecture. Originally, he thought all ancient Chinese architecture was simr however, after talking with the professor, he learned about the different styles of each dynasty. There was arge difference between folk architecture and royal architecture.

    The style used to renovate the ancient city isn¡¯t based on the architect¡¯s preferences. Rather, in order to maintain the correct details of the building style, there was a rigorous process of thought and deduction to adhere to. For example, many buildings in the Xi¡¯an area have traces of Tang Dynasty influences because of their boldness. Inparison, Qing Dynasty and Yuan Ming architecture is simpler. The prosperity of Chang¡¯an City during the Tang Dynasty had a profound impact with the future development of urban cities inter generations.

    The depth of knowledge from a specialized expert was vastly differentpared to someone without a background in ancient construction. If Zhang Siyi lead the project, even if he had a greater aptitude for design methods, he wouldn¡¯t know where to start on renovating an ancient city.

    When dealing with ancient buildings, graduate students in ancient architecture have to dig deeper and inspect all of the details and nuances in a building aspared to peers who only study modern construction. This mode of thinking, formed from the meticulous observation and evaluation of ancient construction, allows them to see a problem more readily than those who haven¡¯t had such rigorous training.

    Before, Zhang Siyi hadn¡¯t thought about such details. Now, in the presence of the experts, he had be more diligent and more concerned about his efforts.

    In addition, he slowly became aware of the educational gap between himself and Tao Fei. Even though Tao Fei had a year Master¡¯s program, no matter how hard Zhang Siyi worked to catch up to him, he would be unable to because, not only was the starting point between them too great, Tao Fei would inevitably grow professionally at a faster rate than Zhang Siyi.

    In an architectural firm, a post-graduate ismonly the person in charge ofrge-scale projects and it is conceivable that in two years¡¯ time, a person would be able to take over and assume the responsibilities that GU Yu has.

    At Zhang Siyi¡¯s current position, would he be able to? Even if he were given three years or five years, he wouldn¡¯t. There is just toorge of a difference between skills of those with a graduate degree versus ones without, both theoretical creativity and practical stylization.

    For the past few nights at the hotel, Zhang Siyi started searching the inte for RIBA part 2 information. Specifically, the application deadline and which institutions to apply to. If he wanted to enroll in September next year, then he had to start preparing now. Although it seems far away, in reality there was only a short window of time he could use to prepare his portfolio for the application.

    The easiest ce to apply to was his Alma Mater as the department gives priority to those whom graduated from their undergraduate program and besides, Zhang Siyi graduated with decent grades.

    However, studying at the same university under professors who teach in the same style might be too narrow of an education. Zhang Siyi thought it would be better to learn from another institution in order to broaden his knowledge to a greater extent and thus, he focused his efforts on two other universities.

    Tao Fei has earned his Master¡¯s from one of the most prestigious University in the UK. In addition, many internationally renowned architects have also studied there. While Tao Fei studied for one year, the real golden nugget is the multi-year program that is recognized by RIBA part 2.

    However, the application for this course is the most difficult. As it stands, 80% of Zhang Siyi¡¯s undergraduate projects won¡¯t even be qualified to use in the application. Even so, with the amount of progress he has made at thepany, Zhang Siyi felt like he could give it a shot and apply.

    Another option is the University that Yu Rui graduated from. Setting aside Yu Rui¡¯s negative influence in the circle of friends, the architectural department was indeed a very worthwhile program, but since the degree offered by the program isn¡¯t the same, the value isn¡¯t as great.

    After deciding on the three schools to apply too, the next step was to think about financing his education and thus, Zhang Siyi encountered the second problem: money.

    All three schools were located in the London area. In addition to high tuition fees, he would also have to deal with the high cost of living. For a two-year Master¡¯s program, it would require something along the lines of one million yuan.

    Now that he thought about it, he knew he wouldn¡¯t be able to acquire therge sum of money on such short notice alone. One option would be to wait until he earned enough money, but that would be self-defeating and prolong the process.

    On the bed, Zhang wasying on his side with bitter feelings..... What should I do? Speak to my parents?

    In spite of his brave deration of independence to his father, it was the first thought that came to mind. In reality, if he was in real economic need, he instinctively thought about his parents first because he knew that they would do everything they could to meet his legitimate demands.

    However, this transpired a year ago and if he had asked at that time, he had no qualms about asking. After all, he was used to his father¡¯s antics, but now it was different because he was with Gu Yu. For this reason, Zhang Siyi felt he had no right to ask his parents for anything for the rest of his life so he immediately withdrew the thought.

    Facing the reality of the situation, Zhang Siyi roughly shut hisptop in frustration and grabbed his iPad to y games....

    To take his mind off his problems, he opened Era of Music and cleared all nine levels on hard mode with ease. Tapping the keys with all ten fingers, Zhang Siyi imagined this was his battlefield.... Ah! Ah! Bo! Bo! Why can¡¯t learning architecture be as simple as ying a game? Why did he choose a career path that was so difficult to clear!

    After an hour of games, Zhang Siyi copsed on the bed. He felt even more depressed at the hurdle he must ovee if he wanted to continue his education. As his thoughts were bing darker, the phone rang. Looking at his phone, Zhang Siyi saw the caller ID: Gu Yu

    Afraid of being overheard by Liao Jun, he quickly put on his shoes and went outside to answer the call. Making himself as nondescript as possible, Zhang Siyi leaned against the window at the end of the hotel corridor and listened to the soothing sound of Gu Yu¡¯s voice over the phone.

    Gu Yu had asked him how he has been since his departure, what he has been doing during the day and what he ate at night.... Gu Yu soft and attentive voice had the power to heal his somber heart. Zhang Siyi¡¯s mood slightly improved.

    To be fair, Zhang Siyi¡¯s life has been very lucky. Not only was he born into a well-off family with good educational conditions, he also met a great boss at the first ce of work and now, this person has be the perfect lover....

    Was Zhang Siyi too ambitious? Perhaps it was better to lower the bar and consider going to a domestic college so he doesn¡¯t have to be separated from Gu Yu...... But if that was the case, his royal registered architect¡¯s license was defunct. What was the point of getting it in the first ce?

    In order to move forward with his career, he had to get a Master¡¯s degree and it was imperative that he earn his RIBA part 2 license. One was to enhance his skills and the other was to obtain an industry pass. The two were inseparable.

    After chatting for a little while, Gu Yu picked up on Zhang Siyi¡¯s mood and asked: ¡°What¡¯s the matter? Are you ok?¡±

    Zhang Siyi hesitated. A thought suddenly popped into his mind. What if he asked Gu Yu to borrow money? He was surprised by his own idea.

    Since Gu Yu was rich, he subconsciously thought the idea wasn¡¯t unimaginable. Knowing Gu Yu personality, he was likely to give him the money, but this wasn¡¯t in line with Zhang Siyi¡¯s principles of life and love. He had always advocated for economic independence between lovers when possible. Moreover, with such arge sum of money, even if Gu Yu was willing, Zhang Siyi felt like he would be indebted to Gu Yu forever. He didn¡¯t want the issue of money to affect their rtionship. No sooner did the thoughte to mind did Zhang Siyi push it aside.

    Of course, the most fundamental issue was the fact that Zhang Siyi hadn¡¯t mentioned the idea of going abroad for a Master¡¯s degree with Gu Yu yet. Even if he was reluctant to leave Gu Yu¡¯s side, was Gu Yu feeling the same?

    The voice on the other side of the phone jokingly asked: ¡°Do you miss me?¡±

    Even though Gu Yu¡¯s teasing prompted Zhang Siyi to reply with ¡®I miss you¡¯, Zhang Siyi instead replied: ¡°Well....¡±

    Zhang Siyi suddenly plucked up the courage to talk about it and in a serios tone, he said: ¡°Boss.¡±

    When Gu Yu heard the sincerity in Zhang Siyi¡¯s voice, he became serious and asked: ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±

    Zhang Siyi knew that he could not take back his thoughts and the only thing he could do now was to put the greatest trust in his love and confess all his ideas and concerns with Gu Yu.

    Zhang Siyi bit the bullet and asked: ¡±I want to ask you a question.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Hmm?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°If I said I wanted to go back Ennd to study for a master¡¯s degree, what would you think?¡±

    Falling into silence, the conversation abrupted stopped. After waiting for a bit, Zhang Siyi suddenly regretted opening his mouth and hastened to retract his statement: ¡°I... I was just casually thinking about it. I¡¯m not sure I want to go. The tuition is very expensive and I can¡¯t afford to go now....¡±

    Gu Yu remained unresponsive.

    Zhang Siyi panicked and asked: ¡°Are you listening?¡±

    Gu Yu replied with a soft ¡®well¡¯ then paused. In that time, Zhang Siyi could hear a quiet contemtive sigh.

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know what to say. The concern over Gu Yu¡¯s wellbeing was far greater than any of the problems associated with applying for a Master¡¯s in Ennd.

    After a minute of silence, Gu Yu finally said: ¡°I need some time to think about it. I¡¯ll give you an answer then.¡±

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t understand why Gu Yu didn¡¯t answer him. Wasn¡¯t it as easy as saying ¡®it¡¯s a good idea¡¯ or ¡®that¡¯s a bad idea¡¯....? Is the answer soplicated? In fact, if Gu Yu thought it was a bad idea, he would obediently stay home because he was willing to stay by Gu Yu side in the same capacity for the rest of his life.

    ¡°It¡¯s gettingte. Don¡¯t think about it too much. Get some sleep,¡± Gu Yu said and ended the conversation with a ¡°good night.¡±

    After Gu Yu hung up, although Zhang Siyi regretted his candid outburst, he paradoxically was looking forward to Gu Yu¡¯s reply.

    With Zhang Siyi attention focused on the renovation project, time flew by. With two days remaining of the two-week business trip, they were nearing the end of their work assignment. Professor Cui gave them thest day off to be a tourist and enjoy their surroundings.

    In order to n for a fun day off, Zhang Siyi and Liao Jun were surfing the Inte in their room. A sudden knock on the door interrupted them. Since Liao Jun was closer to the door, he got up quickly to answer it. When he opened it, he lifted his brow in surprise and said: ¡°Guh....¡±

    Liao Jun wasn¡¯t quite sure how to address the unexpected visitor. Since he wasn¡¯t an employee of Borderless, he wouldn¡¯t be able to say ¡®Boss¡¯ like Bi Lele does and Professor Cui has some familiarity with him so he uses ¡®Young Gu¡¯ often. Zhang Siyi is on a first name basis so ultimately, Liao Jun said: ¡°Director Gu.¡±

    Gu Yu nodded down and asked: ¡°Is Zhang Siyi in?¡±

    When Zhang Siyi heard the familiar voice, he instantly turned around to see what was going on. Gu Yu was standing at the door with a small overnight duffle in one hand and holding a key-card in another. Apparently, he just arrived and hadn¡¯t yet gone to his own room.

    ......... Why does that guy always pop-up at the most unexpected times? Fuck! His heart is going to explode!

    ¡°Room 0302. Come with me for a little while.¡± Gu Yu held up his key-card, expressionless.

    Zhang Siyi quickly got off the bed, put on slippers, and gave a nod to Liao Jun before leaving the room.

    After they went inside Gu Yu¡¯s room, Zhang Siyi immediately asked: ¡°Why are you here? Did you have dinner yet?¡±

    Gu Yu simply put his bag on the bed, loosened his tie then turned around to grab Zhang Siyi, kiss him and hold him close.

 Chapter 203: Dowry

    <h4>Chapter 203: Dowry</h4>

    ___________________

    Wanting to sooth his anxiety, as if Zhang Siyi was departing the next day, Gu Yu desperately held Zhang Siyi¡¯s waist with one arm and the back of his head with the other. Fiercely kissing him, biting Zhang Siyi¡¯s lips and sucking on the tip of his tongue, Gu Yu squeezed Zhang Siyi tightly in his embrace, not allowing him any chance of escape.

    With the force of Gu Yu¡¯s advancement, Zhang Siyi was caught off guard. Slowly, he found his rhythm and began to intensely respond in kind. Since his actions spoke louder than words, Zhang Siyi understood the meaning behind Gu Yu behavior. Even in silence, Gu Yu was telling him, ¡®don¡¯t leave me.¡¯

    When everything was said and done, there is a kind of relief as the dust settles, but even so, deep down, Zhang Siyi felt regret for bringing the topic up.

    In fact, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t believe that it was worth sacrificing his future rtionship with his lover in order to return to University. Since it wasn¡¯t a bad option to remain as Gu Yu subordinate, he could work hard and continue to advance his career, albeit more slowly.

    Moreover, if Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t return, he wouldn¡¯t have to think about the tuition anymore. After all, a million yuan wasn¡¯t chump change. The average ie of an ordinary person wouldn¡¯t even be able to earn one million yuan over ten years. It was unclear whether or not the value of a Master¡¯s would be ever be returned in the future.

    Trying to appease his lover¡¯s anxiety, Zhang Siyi wrapped his arms around Gu Yu to hold him close. However, right at this time, Gu Yu distanced himself slightly.

    While holding him, Gu Yu looked deeply into his eyes. His hand that was holding Zhang Siyi¡¯s head slowly moved forward, brushing his ear, caressing his cheek and stopped at his chin. Squeezing gently on Zhang Siyi¡¯s chin with his thumb, he tilted his head and brought his lips to meet Zhang Siyi¡¯s in a tender longsting kiss. Finally, he released Zhang Siyi and tly said: ¡°Go if you want to go.¡±

    In the back of his mind, Zhang Siyi thought Gu Yu would end up bullying him and was mentally preparing himself for the potential onught of his ck belly nature. However, upon hearing Gu Yu¡¯s unexpected answer, Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart lurched.

    Gu Yu remained calm. Neither showing anger nor despair, his tone reflected his careful consideration of Zhang Siyi. Never the less, it was this kind of business-like proceeding,bined with Gu Yu¡¯s earlier behavior that made Zhang Siyi feel the same type of suffering as Gu Yu.

    Both hot and painful, his heart was thrown into a frying pan.

    At Zhang Siyi¡¯s continued silence Gu Yu exined in a soft tone: ¡°I know you are determined and have an enterprising spirit. I have never thought about keeping you tide down for the rest of your life. I just....¡±

    Gu Yu paused and sighed: ¡±I didn¡¯t expect this day woulde so early.¡±

    In a hurry, Zhang Siyi wanted to ease Gu Yu¡¯s heart and stated: ¡°How was it fast? I was only seeking your opinion. I¡¯ve already told my family I won¡¯t spend their money after graduation and I haven¡¯t dared talk to my family about our rtionship. Even if wanted to go, the tuition fees.....

    Gu Yu interrupted him before he could finish speaking: ¡°I¡¯ll pay it for you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    At the moment, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know what to think or feel. For so long, Zhang Siyi tormented himself over it and yet, without hesitation, Gu Yu decisively solved the problem so easily!

    In contrast, Zhang Siyi was feeling very uneasy: ¡°Th... This... It¡¯s not....¡±

    From his previous behavior when Zhang Siyi insisted on paying rent when they first moved in together, Gu Yu knew exactly the reason why Zhang Siyi was hesitating; how reluctant Zhang Siyi was about epting help for nothing.

    Gu Yu paused then calmly said: ¡°Since you were the one that brought up the matter, on some level, you must have made up your mind one way or the other. I have also carefully considered it for the past two days. At this point, it is indeed better to go back to study and get a Master¡¯s then it would be to stay with thepany. I know living abroad isn¡¯t cheap and since the industry is a little depressed now, it would potentially be more difficult to save up. I¡¯m not sure if you would ever make enough money on your own to afford it. If you won¡¯t talk to your parents, and you don¡¯t want my help? What are you going to do?¡±

    Gu Yu curled his fingers to gently sps Zhang Siyi¡¯s hand: ¡°Afterall, isn¡¯t money just paper?¡±

    Racking his brain, Zhang Siyi opened his mouth, paused to think, then stated: ¡±I can... I can ask Shen Hao to borrow.....¡± His friend was as wealthy as any young master, so money wasn¡¯t an issue. In fact, it was probably just a drop in the water bucket for him. With his strong sense of friendship, Zhang Siyi thought it wouldn¡¯t be a problem to borrow some money slowly over time and besides, Zhang Siyi would diffidently pay Shen Hao back.

    Unexpectedly, when Gu Yu heard him, he let go of his hands and in irritation he said: ¡°You would rather borrow money from him and not me?¡±

    Zhang Siyi frowned: ¡°You aren¡¯t the same...¡±

    Gu Yu grabbed his hands quickly and ced it on his chest. He dered sharply: ¡°Zhang Siyi, I am not just your boyfriend. I am the person closest to you besides your parents. When there are difficulties in life, I hope I am the first person you think of. I want you to rely on me and let me know when you need help! If we want to spend our lives together, sooner orter all of my assets will be yours. Home, properties, finances.... What¡¯s mine is yours and what is yours, is mine. How can I make you understand?¡°

    Shocked, Zhang Siyi was dumbfounded. He recalled the ring that wasn¡¯t given to him on his birthday.

    If Zhang Siyi had the ring in hand, then maybe he would be more likely to ept Gu Yu¡¯s words. But, since Gu Yu chose not to give him the ring, he didn¡¯t know what to think. Perhaps, Gu Yu wasn¡¯t ready or he wanted to test how strong Zhang Siyi feelings were?

    Suddenly hearing Gu Yu¡¯s speech, Zhang Siyi was caught off-guard. Feeling overwhelmed by Gu Yu¡¯s heartfelt sincerity and deep love, Zhang Siyi felt like he was going to drown.

    Hugging him tightly around the waist, Zhang Siyi gathered Gu Yu in his arms and buried his head against Gu Yu¡¯s chest. With red eyes he choked out: ¡°Why are you so good to me...¡±

    Yes. They have been together for less than a year. How was it possible to trust a person that much? Wasn¡¯t he afraid of that Zhang Siyi would run away with his money? Not only that, but also to be able to selflessly devote oneself for another person.... How lucky was Zhang Siyi to have met such a man in his life?

    Gu Yu looked at his tearful face and couldn¡¯t help but raise his hand to rub the corner of his eye. Then he changed his tone. He jokingly said: ¡°It¡¯s okay now, no need to feel worried. I¡¯ve just paid the dowry in advance.¡±

    Zhang Siyi burst intoughter: ¡°Dowry?!¡±

    Gu Yu raised an eyebrow: ¡± What, you don¡¯t want my gift? Then let¡¯s make a deal and sign a one-time contract so you will remember: Alive, my body belonged to you; dead, I am your ghost.¡±

    Zhang Siyi turnedpletely red: ¡°Come on. Don¡¯t do whatever you want with your money now. In thirty years, who knows if your investment will give you an adequate return. When I return and earn a lot of money, I¡¯ll arrange for the wedding carriage to pick you up and bring you to the Zhang family¡¯s home. It¡¯s not proper to give a dowry in advance.¡±

    Listening to him, in his heart, Gu Yu knew that Zhang Siyi¡¯s love was equal to his own. After hugging him, he pressed him down onto the bed. He grinned mischievously andmented: ¡°So bold and confident..... Then I¡¯ll eagerly wait for the wedding carriage to arrive.....¡±

    While Zhang Siyi was being crushed, he lifted his limbs. He wrapped his legs around Gu Yu¡¯s butt and with his free arm, he wrapped it around Gu Yu¡¯s neck. Zhang Siyi was like an octopus hanging upside down. With his free hand, he rubbed the back of Gu Yu head and said: ¡°Wife.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu narrowed his eyes and smacked him hard. Zhang Siyi woke up from his beautiful dream.

    ¡°What did you call me?¡± Gu Yu squinted his eyes and pressed him down.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Honey....¡±

    Pretending to be rough, Gu Yu grabbed Zhang Siyi¡¯s legs and raised them while maneuvering his own hips closer. Zhang Siyi quickly changed his tune and squealed: ¡°Husband!¡±

    Smiling, Gu Yuughed: ¡°That¡¯s right!¡±

    When they finished their bed y, it was nine o¡¯clock at night and Gu Yu had mentioned not having had dinner yet. Zhang Siyi quickly sat up: ¡°Why didn¡¯t you say so before? Let¡¯s go eat!¡±

    Evente the evening, the night market in the ancient city was open. Zhang Siyi dragged Gu Yu around the streets to find a barbeque ce to eat at. In a livelier area, they sat down at a vendor and ordered a bunch of dishes to eat and two cups of sake to drink. While eating their meal, they continued their conversation about applying for a Master¡¯s program.

    Gu Yu wanted to know if Zhang Siyi had any specific programs he was going to apply to and what the time frame was for the application. When he heard Zhang Siyi say that he would go abroad next September if admitted, Gu Yu fell into silence.

    Afraid of making Gu Yu upset, Zhang Siyi looked up at him and earnestly promised: ¡°I¡¯lle back as soon as I graduate and during holidays we can visit....¡±

    As Gu Yu nodded, Zhang Siyi could see his handsome features in the dimly lit area. Although he was smiling, he didn¡¯t appear happy. Instead, he seemed lonely and distressed.

    Zhang Siyi wanted to change the topic: ¡°I¡¯m going back to Haicheng the day after tomorrow. Why did youe today?¡±

    Gu Yu nced at him and in a calm, small voice he said: ¡°I missed you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± How can he be so bold with such a straightforward, calm tone?

    Zhang Siyi heart was beating like crazy. Even though it was only a few days of separation, Gu Yu purchased a direct flight, overnight toe see Zhang Siyi! Thinking along those lines, Zhang Siyi could imagine Gu Yu buying airline tickets every weekend to Ennd while Zhang Siyi was abroad. Does he have that much money to burn? Actually, since they weren¡¯t rtives, Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t sure it was possible to obtain a travel visa and therefore, without being married, Gu Yu wouldn¡¯t be able to go at all. The only thing Zhang Siyi could do was wait until he returned to China. Thinking about it was depressing.

    After eating barbeque, Zhang Siyi reluctantly returned to his room. When he arrived, Liao Jun was still awake on his bed,ying on his side and talking on his phone. As Zhang Siyi walked into the room, Liao Jun lowered his voice and abruptly said: ¡°My roommate is back.¡± Listening to him momentarily, Zhang Siyi could tell he must be on the phone with his girlfriend. Trying not to disturb his phone call, Zhang Siyi went into the bathroom to wash his face and brush his teeth. When he came out, Liao Jun hung up the phone.

    Zhang Siyi smiled and casually asked: ¡°Was that your girlfriend? You must have a great rtionship since you call every day.¡±

    Liao Jun¡¯s expression changed slightly and he hummed a reply.

    Zhang Siyi climbed into bed and asked: ¡°Is she abroad? I identally overheard you that morning when you said ¡®good night¡¯ so I assumed the person was abroad.¡±

    Liao Jun said: ¡°You didn¡¯t guess wrong.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Which country is she in?¡±

    Liao Jun: ¡°United States.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Wow! Is she in the same profession as us? What is she studying?¡±

    Liao Jun: ¡°Humanities and the history of architecture.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was surprised: ¡°That¡¯s amazing! Is she older than you? If you are in a Master¡¯s program does that mean she is getting her doctorate?¡±

    Liao Jun didn¡¯t give Zhang Siyi an answer. Since Zhang Siyi thought he didn¡¯t want to talk about his private affairs anymore, he stayed quiet. Not wanting to upset his roommate, he was about to change the subject, but Liao Jun suddenly looked up at him, interrupting Zhang Siyi. He said: ¡±We are like you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t react. What is the same?

    Liao Jun tilted his head in the direction of the door and stated: ¡°That guy who just came for you... the director of yourpany, isn¡¯t he your boyfriend?¡±

    Startled, Zhang Siyi bolted up straight and blurted: ¡°How did you know?¡± Upon further thought, Zhang Siyi calmed down to reflect on his words and realized Liao Jun only said ¡®the same¡¯, he didn¡¯t say anything more than that. They were very careful. How was it possible to have exposed their rtionship?

    Liao Jun exined: ¡°I went out for a walk on the first night. I happen to see him pull you aside roughly into an alley, so I was worried he was going to fight with you. As a result, I looked passed the ally and saw him kiss you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± God, he was so cautious with Gu Yu. In order to prevent any suspicions, he had stayed in the room with his roommate. Even so, Liao Jun had discovered the truth on the first day!

    Watching Zhang Siyi acting awkward with embarrassment, Liao Junughed out loud. Smiling he said: ¡°I told you we are the same so you don¡¯t have to be so nervous. We can keep each other¡¯s secrete.¡±

    Zhang Siyi nodded and asked: ¡°Uh, so... was that your boyfriend on the phone?¡±

    Liao Jun answered all his questions: ¡°Well, we were ssmates before. While I went to work after graduation, he was in a master¡¯s degree program for a year then applied to Rice University¡¯s doctorate in Architecture program. He left China in August.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Will hee back after graduation?¡±

    Liao Jun: ¡°That¡¯s the n.¡±

    Recalling his own ns, Zhang Siyi figured Liao Jun was experiencing the separation that he and Gu Yu would have to go through. He was curious and wanted to know how Liao Jun felt: ¡°It hasn¡¯t been half a year yet. How can you stand it?¡±

    Liao Jun lowered his eyes and honestly replied: ¡°The first two months were very difficult. Since we used to see each other almost every day, as soon as he left, I feltpletely empty, like half of my soul was gone. During restless nights, in order to fall back asleep, I would have to call him to hear his voice.¡±

    At the thought of experiencing the same heartache, Zhang Siyi fretted in worry: ¡°How are you now?¡±

    Liao Jun smiled: ¡°I¡¯m ustomed to it so its fine.¡±

    As the truth of the matter in Zhang Siyi¡¯s future wasid bare in front of him, for a long time, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t say anything.

    Liao Jun noticed that something was wrong with him and asked: ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±

    Bitterly, Zhang Siyi spoke: ¡°Because I also n to go abroad next year while he will stay in China. But after listening to you, I don¡¯t know what to do.¡±

    Liao Jun nced at him and quietly said: ¡°Then it will be very hard. For someone to fly back overnight to see you again.... He must love you very much.¡±

    Zhang Siyi felt like he could cry. Bowing his head, he slowly covered his face with his hands.

    Liao Jun sighed softly then said: ¡°But there is nothing you can do about it. Your academic career is still important. Love alone isn¡¯t enough.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°... Hmm. ¡°

    Liao Junforted him: ¡°While you are still together, cherish it.¡±

    Blushing, Zhang Siyi was silent for a bit then asked: ¡°Do you mind if I stay in his room tonight?¡±

    Liao Jun was stunned for a long while beforeughing out loud: ¡°G.. Go! Who is stopping you?¡±

    Zhang Siyi got out of the bed and put on a pair of pajama pants. He gathered the rest of his clothes and left the room in a hurry. Liao Jun looked at Zhang Siyi¡¯s disappearing back and shook his head with a smile.

    In the early morning of the next day, Zhang Siyi who had served the gold master all night, stepped into the hallway stretching his sore back and bumped into Bi Lele again.

    Bi Lele froze: ¡°Did you change rooms?¡±

    As she spoke, she saw Gu Yue out of the room. She suddenly covered her mouth in surprise with an indescribable expression on her face.

    Zhang Siyi felt somewhat panicked, but Gu Yu on the contrary was surprisingly calm. He said he was there to inspect the work and bring them back to Haicheng.

    Bi Lele turned away after listening to Gu Yu¡¯s exnation. It took her great effort to keep a straight face.

    Gu Yu apanied them on their day off to visit the city as a tourist. In the evening, they packed up their luggage and flew back to Haicheng the following day.

    Finally, after half a month, they returned home to Yuanshan Garden. When Zhang Siyi walked through the door, Townhouse pounced on him in greeting. Due to the physical work all week at the survey site andbined with traveling all day by ne, Zhang Siyi feltpletely exhausted.

    He made up for hisck of sleep all afternoon. In the evening, Gu Yao came home from work and saw Zhang Siyi¡¯s unpacked luggage. She called out: ¡°Second brother, are you back?¡±

    Zhang Siyi called down stairs and said: ¡°Where is He Chengtian? Is he still dropping you off?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Well, he just left.¡±

    Walking down the stairs, Zhang Siyi joked: ¡°What, really? It¡¯s been more than half a month, right? Is he still picking you up and dropping you off?¡±

    Gu Yao¡¯s cheeks were red. ¡°Well the harassment has stopped, but it¡¯splicated.¡±

    Well rested, Zhang Siyi excitedly sat down on the sofa, crossed his legs and patted the empty space next to him: ¡°Come and exin everything!¡±

    Slightly hesitant, Gu Yao came over to sit besides him and talked about what happened.

    As it turned out, when He Chengtian started picking up Gu Yao, she introduced him to herpany as a friend. When her colleagues in thepany saw how handsome he was, no one ever mentioned Jiang Zhanpeng again, let alone speak about Gu Yao having a cold personality.

    However, since Jiang Zhanpeng had business with thepany, he continued to visit the building frequently. This unscrupulous guy exposed Gu Yao¡¯s ¡®fianc¨¦¡¯ at a meeting soon afterwards and kindly apologized to Gu Yao in front of the whole office. Everyone really believed she was He Chengtian¡¯s fianc¨¦.

    For He Chengtian, since he and Jiang Zhanpeng were in some business circles together, he also had to continue the act even outside of the office. There were many people in his social circle who approached him wanting to know when he got engaged and when his wedding was. They all wanted to be invited.

    After hearing about it, Zhang Siyi felt guilty. The development of the incident was beyond his expectation. If there wasn¡¯t real emotional affection between the two, then wasn¡¯t his impulsive white lie hurting them ?

 Chapter 204: Deception

    <h4>Chapter 204: Deception</h4>

    _____________________

    Since He Chengtian was a man, a few rumors about him weren¡¯t a big deal. However, as a young woman, it could damage Gu Yao reputation and innocence.

    Zhang Siyi asked Gu Yao anxiously, ¡°Well, are you okay with the gossip?¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m fine. No matter what others say, the situation is at least much better than being harassed by Jiang Zhenpeng. The acting wasn¡¯t that different from when I pretended to be my brother¡¯s girlfriend. In fact, it was like any TV actor ying a role on a drama series.¡± Gu Yao looked a little embarrassed: ¡°I think we¡¯ve caused a lot of problems for He Chengtian.¡±

    The soft affectionate way she said ¡®He Chengtian¡¯ made Zhang Siyi¡¯s whole body stiffen. In his heart, he shouted ¡®she actually likes him!¡¯ As a result, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t feel so badly.

    Smiling at her, Zhang Siyi was yful: ¡°Is this the time when he drops you off every day? Did you go anywhere else with him? Has he invited you out?¡±

    Gu Yao knew exactly what Zhang Siyi was trying to get at. She nced at him and deliberately whet his appetite: ¡±When my brother left to find you, He Chengtian took me out to dinner.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was so happy that heughed out loud. He was worried for nothing. It seems, with He Chengtian¡¯s quick disy of intent, he wasn¡¯t bothered by the predicament at all! All that is needed was a little extra fuel to the fire!

    Just as Zhang Siyi wanted to gossip further, Gu Yu came out of the kitchen and called them to the table to eat dinner.

    As Zhang Siyi went into the kitchen to get the chopsticks out for everyone, Gu Yu saw him with his sister with an expression of unbelievable joy. He coldly asked: ¡±What are you so happy about?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.....¡±

    Gu Yu handed him the stack of tes and asked him to take them to the table: ¡°You won¡¯t be able to run awayter, even if you suffer.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡± The pressure! (t Ãó t)

    After being warned by Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi reflected on his actions and wasn¡¯t feeling secure at all. Right after dinner, he went to make a private phone call to He Chengtian. After all, such a straightforward question about Gu Yu¡¯s sister wasn¡¯t good to ask in front of Gu Yu.

    Terrified, He Chengtian hesitated then suddenly cursed: ¡°You ...¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Hey, hey, hey... Brother Chengtian, has a spring breezee recently?¡±

    He Chengtian: ¡°If you have something to say, then say it!¡±

    Upstairs on the balcony, Zhang Siyi coughed twice then confirming he was alone, he nced behind him: ¡°Hey, are you serious about Gu Yao?¡±

    He Chengtian smirked without answering and instead asked Zhang Siyi: ¡°What did you say? You already know I have a fianc¨¦!¡±

    Zhang Siyi quickly replied: ¡°Fuck you! That act was only to fool Jiang Zhenpeng!¡±

    Laughing, He Chengtian happily replied: ¡°Brother Siyi, I have to thank you!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Hearing He Chengtian mischief-making antics, Zhang Siyi rubbed his temples and sighed. Did he send Gu Yao from one tiger to another? (= _ =)

    Zhang Siyi took a deep breath then said: ¡°Brother, stop joking. It hasn¡¯t even been a month and you have only met once before. Are you sure you want to marry her?¡±

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know the economic status of the Gu family. It was estimated that the total economic status of her family wasn¡¯t remotely near the He family. Although money is a shallow topic to talk about, in today¡¯s society, in order to solidify business proposals, rich people married other wealthy people to make business alliances. Under these circumstances and knowing He Chengtian shy personality, Zhang Siyi was afraid He Chengtian was simply using Gu Yao as a trophy for show.

    Unexpectedly, He Chengtian became very serious and earnestly replied to Zhang Siyi fears: ¡°I sincerely want to propose to her.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Why? Give me a valid reason and don¡¯t say anything about how innocent and cute she is.¡± Everyone knows how lovely his sister-inw is!

    He Chengtian smiled and said: ¡°She really is beautiful, lovely and cute. When I was with her, I was so nervous that I didn¡¯t know what to say. I wanted to make her happy, but I was worried she wouldn¡¯t like me. When I took her small hand into my own at dinner, I was afraid I would hurt her. So soft and smooth.... What reason do I need to give? I just like her.¡±

    Zhang Siyi burst into tears. ....My old friend Chengtian, that¡¯s what¡¯s so insignificant! ¡°It¡¯s strange. Since you are a young, rich and sessful businessman, there are women chasing you, but why are you acting like you haven¡¯t been with one before!?¡±

    He Chengtian replied: ¡°Ah, but those other girls were only after me for my money. Even though a dated seriously two years ago, do you think they would give a fuck if I didn¡¯t drive a Lamborghini and didn¡¯t have an annual sry of a ten million? You know how vapid my circle is and now those women are picky. Do you think it¡¯s easy to meet someone like Gu Yao?¡±

    Agreeing with He Chengtian, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t help but cry andugh. He asked: ¡°Do your parents know about this?¡±

    Even if He Chengtian liked her, what about his parents? Zhang Siyi remembered them as hospitable people, but that was the memories of a ten-year-old. He doesn¡¯t know if they have changed over the years. Zhang Siyi really considered the situation that Gu Yao would be in. Since she wouldn¡¯t be bringing any economic power to the table, Zhang Siyi feared she would be treated unfairly in the future.

    He Chengtian: ¡°My Parents? Ha-ha, my parents have already met her and approve.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Oh? When was this?¡±

    He Chengtian exined: ¡°Some time ago, my sister invited her over to our house. I wasn¡¯t home at the time and they thought she was my sister¡¯s friend. Since I¡¯ve been picking her up and driving her home, my parents asked me about her. When I told them that she was the sister of my ssmate with the surname, Gu, they knew exactly who she was. They were more excited than me!¡±

    The corner of Zhang Siyi¡¯s mouth twitched: ¡°They know Gu Yu?¡±

    He Chengtian said: ¡°Wasn¡¯t there a parent-teacher meeting every year in high school? Who doesn¡¯t remember the name of the person who always ranked first in the ss? My mother once told me she saw Mother Gu and thought she was more beautiful then the big stars on TV. She was so impressed! It¡¯s no wonder that Gu Yao had asting impression on my mom.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    He Chengtian continued: ¡± Since I¡¯m thirty now, my family is anxious for me to marry. When they found out I was driving her to work, ever day my family asks me about my progress with her. They have urged me to pick a good day to get married next year. They want me to bring Gu Yao home and officially introduce her to the family. Also, I need to formally meet my future Inws. I haven¡¯t dared talk about it yet with her in fear she would run away!¡±

    Not to mention Gu Yao, even Zhang Siyi was frightened!

    After exining, He Chengtian teased Zhang Siyi: ¡°You can rest assured. When our engagement bes official, I¡¯ll make sure you get the matchmaker¡¯s bonus red envelope.¡±

    Zhang Siyiughed: ¡°Oh, don¡¯t worry about that. I just wanted to confirm your true feelings for Gu Yao.¡±

    He Chengtian listened anxiously: ¡°Hey, who the hell is standing next to you? I know you. Gu Yao is Gu Yu¡¯s younger sister. Why are you worrying so much about her? Did Gu Yu ask you to ask me?¡±

    Zhang Siyi quickly denied it: ¡°No! I was just curious!¡±

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know how to exin it to him because he couldn¡¯t tell He Chengtian about his true rtionship with Gu Yu. However, if He Chengtian really married Gu Yao, then he will know the truth sooner orter. Will he also be called a sister-inw? ...... Fuck!

    In a daze from his own thoughts, Zhang Siyi vaguely said a few other remarks then quickly hung up the phone. Knowing that He Chengtian was serious, Zhang Siyi felt relieved.

    After his bath, while humming a tune, Zhang Siyi unpacked his luggage. When Gu Yu came upstairs, he asked him for his birthday banner that Gu Yu wrote for him at the hotel. Since it was inconvenient to bring it with him at the time, Zhang Siyi had Gu Yu bring it home for him.

    Gu Yu brought it out for him. Smiling happily, Zhang Siyi opened the banner up to enjoy it closely. He gently traced the inscribed words in ink on the smooth rice paper and sighed: ¡°The calligraphy is so good.¡±

    Behind Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu was taking off his clothes. When he heard Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu paused momentarily. Zhang Siyi had no idea how many drafts he had actually thrown out until he was satisfied with the result. Although ayman wouldn¡¯t notice, any expert could see the quivering strokes. Gu Yu was very nervous when he wrote the name ¡®Siyi¡¯.

    Zhang Siyi carefully rolled up the banner and said to himself: ¡°Instead of a gift, write a banner for me every year, then by seventy-four, I¡¯ll have received fifty happy birthday wishes from you!¡±

    Initially, wanting a birthday banner every year made Gu Yu think Zhang Siyi was being too greedy, but once he heard Zhang Siyi state fifty-years together as a matter of fact, Gu Yu felt a warmth envelop his heart. Feeling moved, Gu Yu smiled and promised: ¡°Okay.¡±

    After dealing with their belongings, it wasn¡¯t thatte. Since they had to go to work early the next morning and considering their crazy night of passion the previous night, Gu Yu thought it would be better for them to get some rest.

    Unexpectedly, when Gu Yu turned off the light, Zhang Siyi took the initiative to wrap his limbs around him and press his body against Gu Yu¡¯s. Reaching with his hand, Zhang Siyi traced a line down his abdomen.....

    Gu Yu grabbed his hand and smiled: ¡°Aren¡¯t you tired?¡±

    With his lover in his hands, Zhang Siyi was like a little demon in bed.

    After listening to Liao Jun¡¯s feelings about his separation from his boyfriend, the phrase ¡®cherish him while you are together¡¯ was firmly imprinted on Zhang Siyi¡¯s mind.

    It wasn¡¯t like he was particrly in the mood tonight, but when he thought of the separation in the days toe, in order to make up for the emptiness in the future, he couldn¡¯t wait to be with Gu Yu at every moment of the day.

    Gu Yu questioned: ¡°What¡¯s wrong with you? Who was the one thatined to me about our frequency not long ago? We did it every day for the past two nights in X city. Wasn¡¯t it enough?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Feeling regretful, he wished he could take back his previous protests. Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t think his own words would bite him in the ass! Having learned all kinds of methods from Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi knew exactly how to entice Gu Yu and utilizing them, Zhang Siyi continued his advances. Without further questions, Gu Yu overwhelmed Zhang Siyi and turned him over.

    Even though his back hurt the next day, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯tin one bit. In fact, while going to the bathroom to wash, since he was full of joy and contentment, he felt like he was walking on air.

    Looking at his face in the mirror while brushing his teeth, Zhang Siyi reminisced aboutst night. Although he was tired, he felt overwhelmingly happy from this type of behavior. In truth, repeatedly experiencing the intimacy of your loved one was the greatest feeling imaginable. The spiritual satisfaction from joining bodies transcended heaven. It¡¯s no wonder Gu Yu never stopped him. It was like an addiction.

    Back at thepany, Zhang Siyi quickly entered the data from the renovation project into his desktopputer. Using the software, he analyzed the research data and started to make a few building models. Since there was only one month left before the bid, the four-person team involved in the project were extremely busy.

    At noon, Tao Fei went to Zhang Siyi¡¯s desk and asked him toe out to lunch with him. He mysteriouslymented: ¡°Someone else has invited you.¡±

    As he was focused on his work, Zhang Siyi was momentarily stunned: ¡°What? Who?¡±

    ¡°You¡¯ll find out in a minute. Let¡¯s go!¡± Tao Feiughed

    Taking him away from his desk, Tao Fei grabbed Zhang Siyi¡¯s arm and dragged him into the elevator. It wasn¡¯t until he came downstairs that Zhang Siyi saw who the person was that was waiting for them; Bai Rui.

    After being on a business trip for two weeks, Zhang Siyipletely forgot about him. It seems Gu Yu was right. The time spent away from Bai Rui¡¯s presence allowed Zhang Siyi to feel much calmer. Unlike previously, he was now unaffected by his presence.

    ¡°What¡¯s going on?¡± Zhang Siyi asked.

    Smiling, Bai Rui looked at Zhang Siyi and said: ¡°I heard it from your boyfriend. Were you recently on a business trip?¡±

    Zhang Siyi raised his eyebrows and said nothing.

    Turning his head, Bai Rui took another look at Tao Fei then back at Zhang Siyi. As if stoking a fire, Bai Rui said: ¡°While you were away, I was out with your boyfriend every day. Aren¡¯t you jealous?¡±

    The corners of Zhang Siyi¡¯s eyes twitched frantically. ..... Wait, did Bai Rui think that, ... Tao Fei was his boyfriend? Shit! Tao Fei really did it !

    Looking at Tao Fei, Zhang Siyi saw him trying hard to stifle augh then he calmly winked at him. Zhang Siyi almost broke down andughed out loud.

    ¡°Huh? Why would I be jealous?¡± ..... Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha! I¡¯m going to be jealous, nonsense! Tao Fei wasn¡¯t his boyfriend.

    When Bai Rui saw Zhang Siyi¡¯s reaction, his expression was strange for a moment. However, Bai Rui didn¡¯t suspect anything strange.

    The three of them went to a Cantonese restaurant near thepany. After being directed to a table, Zhang Siyi and Tao Fei sat side-by-side then purposely talked enthusiastically about the events of the business trip.

    Sitting across from them, Bai Rui watched them closely and pretended to listen carefully. As time went by, his expression became more solemn. He suddenly interrupted them: ¡°You¡¯re not dating, are you?¡±

    Finally, Tao Fei let loose and couldn¡¯t stop himself fromughing. Covering his stomach, Zhang Siyi alsoughed uncontrobly.

    Neither angry nor sad, Bai Rui¡¯s face remained nk. He covered his forehead for a while then finally looked up at Tao Fei: ¡°Is it that funny to deceive me?¡±

    Tao Fei stretched out his arms then put one around Zhang Siyi¡¯s shoulder and grinned: ¡°Don¡¯t me me. I was entrusted with a mission.¡±

    Zhang Siyi pushed him back: ¡°Don¡¯t look at me. I didn¡¯t ask you to lie.¡±

    Tao Fei gave him a sideways nce and exined: ¡°Gu Yu asked me to keep an eye on him. He wanted to know what Bai Rui¡¯s intenions were.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.....¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°......¡±

    Kept in the dark, Bai Rui was blind-sided.

 Chapter 205: Application

    <h4>Chapter 205: Application</h4>

    _____________________

    Zhang Siyi least expected Gu Yu to ask Tai Fei to keep an eye on Bai Rui on his behalf. It proved how concerned Gu Yu was and how much he didn¡¯t want Bai Rui to affect Zhang Siyi, right?

    Heart warmed at the thought, Zhang Siyi asked Tao Fei directly in front of Bai Rui: ¡°So what did you find out? What the hell was he up to?¡±

    Spearing a piece of fruit from the appetizer that the waiter had just brought and putting in his mouth, Tao Fei chewed for a few second before replying: ¡°I felt like he was just bored so he was being a pain in the ass!¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°...¡±

    The corner of Zhang Siyi¡¯s mouth twitched. He was bored? And that¡¯s why he used so many tricks to attract his attention?

    Whether Bai Rui was helpless or depressed, one couldn¡¯t say as his expression didn¡¯t reveal anything: ¡°Didn¡¯t I already tell you? I just wanted to be friends with you.¡±

    Tao Fei raised his eyebrows and with his fork, he pointed at Bai Rui: ¡°Only because you wanted to be friends? With that behavior? If Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu feelings weren¡¯t so strong, perhaps you would have liked to pry open a corner and move in. Hmm? Stupid, don¡¯t pretend to be so innocent.¡±

    Bai Rui was unable to rebuke Tao Fei. He opened his mouth in defense, but choked on what to say.

    Watching their interaction, Zhang Siyi wanted tough. He didn¡¯t know whether or not he had misjudged Bai Rui initially or, was Tao Fei simply too much for Bai Rui to handle? Infront of Ren Mengxuan, Bai Rui was like a high prized rooster. Now, he was a defeated cock.

    Bai Rui looked at Zhang Siyi and reiterated again: ¡°I swear! I didn¡¯t have any ulterior motives! I¡¯ve already told you about my past. Why don¡¯t you believe me?¡± He paused and said frankly: ¡°We¡¯re gay. Compared to my experience, you are your boyfriend¡¯s feelings are much stronger. Perhaps it was out envy or maybe because of curiosity......In any case, I wanted to get to know you better.¡±

    Tao Fei interrupted him and dered: ¡°I¡¯m not gay!¡±

    With a hint of disbelief, Bai Rui looked closely at Tao Fei.

    Tao Fei hesitated, subconsciously he wanted to clear his name: ¡°Well, I was wrong to lie to you before.¡± Although he apologized, Tao Fei¡¯s chin was still high, like a proud peacock.

    Bai Rui didn¡¯t care and instead addressed Zhang Siyi: ¡°So, that director is your boyfriend?¡±

    Zhang Siyi nodded. At this moment, he really put down his guard.

    Bai Rui smiled bitterly: ¡°I didn¡¯t expect to be yed by him multiple times. I¡¯m really curious what kind of person he is.¡± Bai Rui looked up at the time and stated: ¡°It¡¯s not toote. Call him and ask him to join us for lunch.¡±

    Tao Fei had always loved to watch the fun and immediately agreed. Cackling with glee, he said: ¡°Oh, good idea. Even though I¡¯ve been ying with you for so long, I need to give credit to the master where credit is due. He-he-he.¡±

    Bai Rui: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi gave Gu Yu a call and exined the situation. Bai Rui signaled to the waiter and order a few more dishes. Fifteen minutester, Gu Yu appeared inside the restaurant and under the direction of the wait staff, he walked calmly in their direction with a dashing, self-confidence.

    Attracting curious nces and outright stares from the other patrons, the four handsome men sat together in the back of the restaurant. Smiling, Bai Rui stood up and extended a hand to Gu Yu: ¡°A month around, finally I get to meet the man behind the messages. Director Gu really yed a good hand.¡±

    Smirking, Gu Yu chuckled softly.

    Over the course of the meal, recounting the events of the past month, the four of themughed over all the posturing and jokes.¡±

    Indeed, Bai Rui originally wanted to test Zhang Siyi. When he saw Zhang Siyi¡¯sfort and familiarity around Tao Fei, he assumed Tao Fei was his boyfriend.¡±

    As for the reason of moving upstairs, it was purely coincidental. At the time, Bai Rui¡¯spany was looking for office space. While he was waiting to give Zhang Siyi the cake, he noticed the sign for rental space avable. He investigated the surrounding area and liked the location. Even better, the office space happened to be both suitable and very affordable.

    While Zhang Siyi was away on his business trip, Bai Rui took the opportunity to invite Tao Fei to dinner on multiple asions. Bai Rui was curious how Tao Fei and Zhang Siyi met, how they spent time together, and what future ns were. While there were times he wanted to pry into their rtionship, Bai Rui and Tao Fei mostly talked about art and architecture. The only information he got were the stories Tao Fei told!

    While all together, Bai Rui smiled bitterly again.

    Regardless, Zhang Siyi had to admit how cultured Bai Rui really was. Even after his treatment, he maintained a calm dementor and didn¡¯t show anger. He evenughed at his own folly from time to time. If a normal person fell into such an awkward situation, they would have likely blown up.

    With a graduate degree in the art field and financial independence, like peas in a pod, they came from the same mold of person. Together, the four of them had an exceptionally pleasant meal.

    Afterwards, Bai Rui settled the bill. With Tao Fei and Bai Rui walking ahead of Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu, they walked back to the building together. While walking, Zhang Siyi heard Bai Rui ask Tao Fei whether or not he wanted to go to a modern art exhibition held by a friend in his art circle this weekend.

    Tao Fei naturally looked back at them and asked: ¡°Do you want to go?¡±

    Since Zhang Siyi¡¯s application for a Master¡¯s degree in Ennd was due in December, he was urgently preparing his materials and didn¡¯t have spare time to hang out. With his valid excuse, he declined. Since he couldn¡¯t go, Gu Yu wouldn¡¯t go either.

    Feeling irritated, Tao Fei pointed at himself: ¡°Just me?¡±

    Bai Rui turned his head to look at Tao Fei: ¡°You are single, so why can¡¯t you go with me? Is there a boyfriend who will jump out from jealousy?¡±

    Neck muscles taut, Tao Fei shouted: ¡°I already told you I¡¯m not gay!¡±

    Bai Rui nodded: ¡°Oh.... So, are you going or not? The exhibition is on the top floor of Haicheng International Trade Building. After the exhibition, there will be aplementary high-end buffet. Many modern artists will be there including .....¡±

    Gritting his teeth, Tao Fei relented: ¡°I¡¯ll go!¡±

    All was quiet and Zhang Siyi sighed with regret. The big trouble that was brewing was easily squashed by the great demon.

    With only twenty days left to apply, he was inundated with work and couldn¡¯t rx. Since Zhang Siyi had to add an extra shift, as the deadline for the renovation bid was approaching, he wasn¡¯ting home until eight at night. Then, he had to prepare the information and portfolio for his application. As a result, he was only getting about four hours of sleep at night.

    The weight on his shoulders felt heavier than it was when he was taking the college entrance exam, the foreignnguage exam, and even his final undergraduate project presentation. Zhang Siyi experienced an unprecedented period of stress and suffering.

    The only good thing was that Gu Yu was beside him, not only as his Boss, but as his boyfriend. Since Gu Yu was an independent architect with a license, he was able to help Zhang Siyi choose appropriate works for his portfolio as well as write a letter of rmendation without reservations.

    In this process, Zhang Siyi experienced the pleasure of working together with a boyfriend, step by step, to move forward in life and ultimately was reminded of Yu Rui.

    Naturally, they weren¡¯t the same. At least Zhang Siyi¡¯s portfolio contained all of his own creations and the letter of rmendation that Gu Yu wrote was entirely based on his own ability. Including the necessary prerequisites, the realistic facts were clear. There were no exaggerations.

    With the strict admission rules of British institutions for RIBA part 2, a person would be a fool to exaggerate their ability. If one proceeded, their inability to fish in troubles waters would reveal the truth of the matter and a persons¡¯ reputation would be immediately ruined with the possibility of expulsion. That is why the alternate route of a one-year degree program, with different admission requirements, isn¡¯t as prestigious.

    Zhang Siyi had remarkable growth this past year and a half working at Borderless. He thought that as long as he properly organized the materials for the application, getting into one of the top universities was in the bag.

    However, in the process of getting his portfolio together, Zhang Siyi encountered an unexpected problem. Since he wanted to apply to the top Universities, he needed to cater to what was important for international applicants and pay special attention to the design phase of a n. Although he was involved in many projects, some contributions were only the drawing phase, while others were domestic ns that weren¡¯t suitable for Ennd¡¯s aesthetics. The most problematic issue was the fact that hecked depth.

    Reviewing hispleted projects for an entire day, he decided his style, which represented his thought process while designing, wasn¡¯t well represented by the limited options he had. Pondering the situation, Zhang Siyi ultimately decided that he didn¡¯t have enough time to create more for his portfolio.

    After discussing the issue with Gu Yu, Gu Yu suggested writing a personal statement to apany the work that would exin in detail his design process behind each of them.

    Writing essays was one of Zhang Siyi¡¯s weaknesses during his undergraduate years. Under Gu Yu¡¯s guidance, now that he has read many architectural books in Gu Yu¡¯s library, Zhang Siyi has thoroughly studied various design concepts and theories. While he was able to put the newly found research into practice, putting his own design idea into words down on paper continued to be a struggle.

    Suffering under the stress of needing to write an essay, Zhang Siyi felt a little panicky. Thinking about it more, Su Yuan came to mind. Since she was a veteran at writing articles, wouldn¡¯t it be best to ask her for advice?

    As thanks for Zhang Siyi¡¯s help with her job before, Su Yuan had invited Zhang Siyi out to dinner many times. However, because he was away on a business trip, he didn¡¯t have the opportunity to meet. Now that Zhang Siyi also needed her help, it was a good time to call and meet up with her.

    On the phone, Zhang Siyi asked Su Yuan if she could meet in the city center tomorrow night. In addition, he mentioned his need for a written statement and asked her if she could help him.

    Su Yuan said: ¡°Why are you being so formal? Of course, I will help you!¡±

    At the end of the day, Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu left Borderless to meet Su Yuan at the appointed ce. When they saw her, with light make-up and short hair, Su Yuan looked very different. Unlike two months ago, she projected knowledge and confidence, and seemed content.

    Su Yuan greeted them and generously shoot hands with Gu Yu. After she thanked him profusely, they settled down at the table and continued to talk about the events of their lives for the past two months.

    As it turned out, after Gu Yu rmendation at Liang Xueying¡¯spany, Liang Xueying quickly reached out and invited her to hispany.

    During her year and half working at her previouspany, Su Yuan enthusiasm for architecture faded. The poor working conditions affected her outlook on life and without a purpose, she didn¡¯t have the courage to leave her oldpany. As a result, when the CEO called her and extended an olive branch, she wasn¡¯t sure it was real.

    Waking up from the fog, she immediately tendered her resignation and in order to prepare for her new job, she took a week off to move and reflect.

    As mentioned in the original job description, Liang Xueying¡¯s firm was small. Not only was there no need for overtime, the working atmosphere was peaceful. The harmony between colleagues and their boss was a whole fully different experience aspared to the environment of the previous office.

    After settling into her new position, Su Yuan took the initiative to contact the editor of the magazines that Gu Yu rmended. Due to Gu Yu¡¯s rmendation, even those magazines gave her trantion jobs without reservations.

    Now that she has been in the newpany for the past month, her life has changedpletely. With her reliable personality and good temperament, she often apanied Liang Xueying to meet with customers outside of the office. Even though she worked at home at tranting articles, she still had time to socialize and go out shopping with friends. The changes in Su Yuan were very evident and the happiness she exuded was contagious.

    ¡°I sometimes regret, why I didn¡¯t leave thepany earlier. The mistreatment was obvious and yet I dragged my feet day after day.....¡± Su Yuan med herself and shook her head. She looked up at Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu with gratitude: ¡°But thanks to you, I may never have had the chance to change my life for the better.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Mr. Liang also called me a while ago and said that you are a hardworking and motivated employee with the ability to grow and learn. He also thanked me for rmending such an excellent candidate to him.¡±

    Su Yuan looked very happy and a little embarrassed.

    As a director, Gu Yu offered her some advice: ¡°Even though the previous environment was less than ideal, the experience wasn¡¯t bad for your growth. Now that you have felt what it was like to suffer for so long, you will be more resilient in the future and know what type of environment you are willing to work in.¡±

    Su Yuan thanked him gratefully.

    Gu Yu smiled: ¡°Don¡¯t thank me, thank Zhang Siyi. He was the one that insisted I help and if I hadn¡¯t, it would have been troublesome for me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s face became hot ... Shit!, don¡¯t say that in front of my ssmate!

    Su Yuan looked at them suspiciously. Would a subordinate really make such demands of their Director? She felt like the rtionship between them wasn¡¯t so simple.

    Making fun of him, Su Yuan asked Zhang Siyi: ¡°Hey Little Yi, you never said that your director was so nice to you. We always thought he was a mean-spirited person.¡±

    Gu Yu raised his eyebrows and stared at Zhang Siyi: ¡°What¡¯s this about?¡±

    Zhang Siyi hurriedly exined: ¡°Well, it¡¯s just that.... During the time you asked me to draw parking lots and bathrooms every day, I was a little upset and...... ¡°

    Gu Yu narrowed his eyes: ¡°Now I¡¯m the bad guy?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Nn, no.... I was wrong! ¡°

    Grinning, Su Yuan pointed to him andughed: ¡°What¡¯s this? Didn¡¯t Heartless Han help you decide on killing his cactus?¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s eyes opened wide, incredulous.

    Zhang Siyi inwardly cried. I¡¯ve helped you, but in return you are digging my grave!

    Watching Zhang Siyi disheartened expression, Su Yuan smiled heartily and said: ¡°Everyone was just joking with you in private. You know, the person who is strict isn¡¯t necessarily a bad person. It¡¯s not always possible to smell the flowers in the perfect work environment. If I had known at the time, I wouldn¡¯t have tried to persuade you to changepanies in the beginning. It was rather narrow minded of me and in fact, everyone has their own way forward, good or bad, only time will tell.¡±

    Nodding at Su Yuan, Zhang Siyi breathed a sigh of relief. After taking the time to savor their food, Zhang Siyi thought of Ren Mengxuan and asked: ¡°How¡¯s Ren Mengxuan these days?¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°What¡¯s there to worry about? At first, she couldn¡¯t ept her breakup and came crying to me every day, but with a little persuasion and sweet talk, she adjusted quickly. In the end she is just a spoiled girl.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    ¡°By the way, she told me Bai Rui gave her a Chanel bag worth 60,000 as a break-up gift. Half a month ago, she resold the bag for 50,000 and invited me to travel with her to the Maldives. Yesterday, she called to tell me how pathetic Bai Rui was.... It turns out, that guy was gay!¡±

    Su Yuan shrugged her shoulders and sighed: ¡°Oh, I guess the both of them need to spend more time picking out a boyfriend.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Err ...¡±

    Su Yuan waved her hand: ¡°Don¡¯t worry about her. She will go to a nightclub in a few days to find a new boyfriend. I guarantee it. Now, what¡¯s this about applying for a Master¡¯s? What can I do for you?¡±

    Zhang Siyi exined the specific situation immediately. Su Yuan also agreed with Gu Yu¡¯s proposal about writing a detailed personal statement: ¡°Writing a statement is much simpler than writing a dissertation. Don¡¯t worry too much about it. After sending me the collection of works, tell me a little bit about the design process of each of them. I¡¯ll help write an outline and then you write the final essay. Once it¡¯splete, I¡¯ll go over it again with you.¡±

    Seeing how confident Su Yuan was, Zhang Siyi was immensely relieved and decided to start working on his application essay right away. Saying goodbye after dinner, Zhang Siyi watched her as she walked down the street. Her demeanor hadpletely changed and unlike previously, she was the one that dazzled in the crowd.

    Yes, in life, there are both good and bad times. As long as life continues to be full of hope, one could navigate through the peaks and troughs and alwayse out of the fog, stronger and wiser than ever before.

    ¡°Let¡¯s go home.¡± Gu Yu waved down a taxi, urged Zhang Siyi into the car andmented. ¡°Your friend with the nickname Heartless Han told you to kill my cactus?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°It was just a joke.. I wouldn¡¯t dare!¡±

    Since Gu Yu remained quiet, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t think much more of it until they arrived at home.

    Unexpectedly when they walked inside, Townhouse whizzed by Gu Yu and sat in front of Zhang Siyi, wagging his tail and begging for food.

    Gu Yu admonished Zhang Siyi coldly: ¡°You aren¡¯t allowed to feed his son tonight.¡±

    Zhang Siyi:¡°............¡± Shit! are you a three-year-old?

    Town House: ¡°.....¡± Woof!

 Chapter 206: Old Four

    <h4>Chapter 206: Old Four</h4>

    ________________________

    After a quick shower, Zhang Siyi returned to the bedroom to continue his work. Spreading out his portfolio images and application materials over the desk top, Zhang Siyi had taken over the writing table that Gu Yu normally used to practice calligraphy.

    Assembling what he needed, he sent the first set of images to Su Yuan electronically. About half an hourter, Su Yuan emailed Zhang Siyi back and sent him a row of thumbs-up emojis. She expressed her surprise: ¡°I really didn¡¯t expect your skills to improve so much. Several designs of yours are very well thought out with both maturity and your own style. It¡¯s a lot more material than those with portfolios that were specifically created for the application.¡±

    Bolstered with pride, Zhang Siyi was confidant, but still, he remained modest and said: ¡°This is just the first edition. I threw these together in haste, neither thinking about their arrangement nor theiryouts. With continued editing, I¡¯ll give them anotheryer of meaning by how I sequence them.¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°This is good. I think your personal statement should coordinate with the disy of the portfolio.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°You mean, I shouldn¡¯t sequence them from best to worst? Is it better to leave them in chronological order?¡±

    Su Yuan: ¡°Yes. Hold on. There is too much to type so I¡¯ll open a voice chat with you.¡±

    Seeing the iing voice chat call, Zhang Siyi quickly looked around the room. Gu Yu was leaning on the bed reading, he turned his head to tell him: ¡°Don¡¯t move and don¡¯t make a sound!¡±

    The quietly reading Gu Yu: ¡°........¡±

    As the video connected, Zhang Siyi adjusted the camera so that only his face could be seen.

    Su Yuan¡¯s voice came out over the loudspeaker: ¡°Hey, can you hear me?¡±

    Zhang Siyi was nervous: ¡°Yes, I hear you.¡±

    Su Yuan didn¡¯t find anything unusual about the situation. She talked to Zhang Siyi about her thoughts and suggestions. Even though he was worried about Gu Yu¡¯s presence in the room at first, Zhang Siyi quickly forgot about him as he became immersed in the conversation with Su Yuan.

    Unknowingly, they spoke for more than an hour. Zhang Siyi had made some notes about what needed to be done. With Su Yuan¡¯s help, he knew the direction he needed to go with his application.

    It wasn¡¯t until Zhang Siyi watched Su Yuan yawn over the video chat that he realized it was already midnight. He felt guilty for keeping her awake and thus, thanked her for the help and hung up the video call.

    After ending the video call, Zhang Siyi breathed a sigh of relief. Eager to talk about his portfolio, he turned his head to hear Gu Yu opinions, but instead, he saw him leaning on the bed with a book in hand asleep.

    Even though Zhang Siyi slowly and quietly approached the bed out of respect for his sleeping lover, Gu Yu was awakened by the movements. He slowly opened his eyes and whispered: ¡°Did you finish talking?¡±

    ¡°Yeh.¡± Zhang Siyi furrowed his brow slightly in concern: ¡°You are tired so go to sleep first. ¡°

    Gu Yu said without hesitation: ¡°I¡¯m waiting for you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi leaned over and covered Gu Yu shoulders with the quilt: ¡°For the past several days, you have already helped me with my statement. Now it is time for me to write the essay on my own. Go to sleep.¡±

    Rarely has Gu Yu seen Zhang Siyi act so domineering. He sighed and closed the book: ¡°All right.¡±

    As Gu Yuid back down, feeling a little guilty, Zhang Siyi bent over to give him a kiss. Like an elder taking care of a child, he helped Gu Yu adjust the nkets around his body and tucked him into bed, making Gu Yu want tough.

    Gu Yu reached out to caress his check: ¡°Okay, go and write now. Come back to bed soon.¡±

    Zhang Siyi grabbed Gu Yu¡¯s hand and kissed him before turning off the bedsidemp. Returning to the desk, he turned on a small desk light before continuing his writing.

    As the hours passed, Zhang Siyi dare not look back at Gu Yu for fear he would immediately want to join him in the warm bed. Although the figure behind him was asleep, Gu Yu was the source of his strength. Wanting to catch up with Gu Yu in a hurry, it made Zhang Siyi determined to work even harder and continue struggling forward.

    Unbeknown to Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu wasn¡¯t sleeping all that well. He woke up several times during the night to watch Zhang Siyi sitting in front of the desk writing.

    Not until the first vestiges of light in the nights¡¯ sky before the break of dawn, did Zhang Siyi stretch out his arms and body. Tired, he turned around to climb into bed.

    Since he didn¡¯t want to wake Gu Yu up, he calmly got into bed andid down next to Gu Yu with a small space between them.

    Even so, Zhang Siyi felt Gu Yu snuggle close against his body and wrapped his limbs around Zhang Siyi. With the warmth emanating from his body, Gu Yu¡¯s embrace let Zhang Siyi feel rxed and calm with a great sense of peace andfort.

    Soon, he felt Gu Yu nibbling on his ear and kissing the side of his face. Gu Yu whispered: ¡°It¡¯s not good to stay up all night until morning..... Do you still want to go into work today?¡±

    Only half conscious, Zhang Siyi muttered a reply: ¡°I have to work hard..... in order to catch up.... with you.....¡± Fast asleep, he didn¡¯t know whether or not Gu Yu had said anything else to him.

    Hourster, Zhang Siyi woke up to a clear, bright sky. The other side of the bed was empty. He touched his phone to check the time: 10:48am!

    Seeing the time, Zhang Siyi sprung out of bed. Oh My God! Why didn¡¯t his rm clock go off? Why didn¡¯t Gu Yu call him? He¡¯s been absent from work all morning!

    Getting dressed quickly, Zhang Siyi reached out for his phone in order to call Gu Yu. He saw a bunch of unread messages from Gu Yu waiting for him: ¡°I turned off the rm.¡±, ¡°I arranged for a half day leave for you at work so you could sleep in.¡±

    Zhang Siyi texted him: ¡°I¡¯m awake!¡± [Little Kitten Cries]

    Gu Yu immediately messaged him back: ¡°There is porridge in the kitchen. Eat thene to work. No need to rush.¡± [Little Fox Touch Head]

    What!? How can he not hurry?! The renovation project bid was only two days away! The work is now in its critical phase since it was down to the wire! Quickly Zhang Siyi spooned tworge mouthfuls of porridge to eat then hurriedly left for work.

    It was exactly at noon time when Zhang Siyi arrived at thepany. There weren¡¯t many people in the office. Relieved, Zhang Siyi saw Gu Yuing from the entrance with two paper bags in his hand. He approached Zhang Siyi and ced them in front of him. One bag contained coffee from Starbucks and the other was a lunch box set purchased from downstairs.

    ¡°Wow! Did you buy it?¡± Zhang Siyi took out the coffee with joy and drank first.

    Gu Yu pulled over Zhu Hongzhen¡¯s chair to sit down and asked: ¡°Who else would buy it?¡±

    ¡°Doesn¡¯t thepany have free coffee?¡± With a sip, Zhang Siyi had a satisfied expression appear on his face.

    ¡°Didn¡¯t youin to me the other day about how tired you were of thepany¡¯s filtered coffee?¡± Gu Yu opened the lunch box and set it before him: ¡°Did you finish writing your personal statement? You didn¡¯t sleep at allst night.¡±

    Listening to Gu Yu¡¯s rebuke, Zhang Siyi smiled with impunity: ¡°It¡¯s done!¡±

    Gu Yu uttered a snorting sound in disbelief: ¡°So soon?¡±

    With pride, Zhang Siyi nodded enthusiastically. After talking to Su Yuanst night, he had a clear idea of what to write. After a few tentative sentences, the words started to flow more smoothly and like the opening of a flood gate, the words poured out of him effortlessly. Capturing the feeling, he wrote vigorously all night andpleted a nearly five-thousand-word statement in English.

    Since he hadn¡¯t used English for more than a year and a half, the thought of writing a 3,000-word academic essay would make him die in pain. Zhang Siyi was worried about the deterioration of his English ability. Apprehensive, he was deeply afraid of writing the personal statement. He least expected to finish so fast. While a literature essay may be difficult, writing a personal statement from the heart proved to be much easier, regardless of the statement being written in a foreignnguage.

    ¡°Well, it¡¯s only the first draft. I¡¯ll probably make changes when I go over itter.¡±

    While being happy for him, Gu Yu sighed: ¡°This time is special, but you aren¡¯t allowed to stay up sote in the future.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Hey, I know! ¡°

    Under Su Yuan¡¯s guidance and Gu Yu¡¯s input, he polished his essay and finished assembling his portfolio. Relieved upon itspletion, Zhang Siyi was able to send the application out right before Christmas.

    The next step was the wait. The verdict of admission eptance or denial wasn¡¯t posted until another four months in April of the new year. Despite the long wait, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t have time to worry about it because his workload at Borderless kept him busy.

    Like mostrge cities, Haicheng experienced a transformation during the Christmas season. With the intersection of Western and Chinese culture, the small andrge shops were decorated for the season in red and green. In addition, there were seasonal festivities everywhere.

    For Gu Yu, this time was also special. Christmas was like the Westerners¡¯ Lunar New Year and everyone had off for the holiday. Most took the opportunity to visit rtives and return home, including Gu Yu¡¯s ssmates that either moved away after graduation or lived abroad. It was the only period where Gu Yu could meet up with everyone.

    For any reunion, since Gu Yu was the top student and idol of the architectural department, he was the most desired person whom people wanted to see. On Saturday, the twenty-sixth, his ssmates organized a reunion in Haicheng.

    Last year, Zhang Siyi remembered seeing Gu Yu with his sister and a group of his friends at KTV. At that time, Gu Yu was neither friendly, nor unfriendly towards him. Zhang Siyi was simply a little friend in thepany. Now it was a yearter. If someone were to tell Zhang Siyi from back then that he would be Gu Yu¡¯s boyfriend a yearter, he wouldn¡¯t never have believed it.

    One day in advance at dinner time, Gu Yu asked his sister: ¡°About this years¡¯ reunion.... It is tomorrow. I took youst Christmas and my friends asked me to bring you. Would you like to go?¡±

    A little surprised, Gu Yao bowed her head and using her chopsticks, she poked at the crab shells on her te to hide her difort: ¡±I, I have ns with my friend tomorrow to go shopping.¡±

    Gu Yu raised an eyebrow in question: ¡°And which friend is that? He Chengtian?¡±

    Ears red, Gu Yao¡¯s hand froze and the crab she was holding with her chopsticks fell onto the te......

    ¡°Well?¡± Gu Yu shook his head and sighed. ¡°Nothing to say?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu looked at Zhang Siyi: ¡°Then you will go with me.¡±

    Gnawing at his crab legs, Zhang Siyi looked up in surprise: ¡°Ah? What? ..... Why? In what capacity am I going to go? ¡°

    Gu Yu: ¡°Which ever you want to be.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Fuck! Is Gu¡¯s teasing him?

    Gu Yu exined: ¡°All of them have seen the photos posted on my social media page. So, I will have to take either my love or my sister tomorrow. I must bring one.¡±

    Choking on crab, Zhang Siyi almost spit it out: ¡°That.... that photo with the shadows!? But do they know who it is? Wouldn¡¯t it be bad if they knew?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Rest assured, these people were my dorm-mates during University and will be able to ept our rtionship. They have a tight mouth and won¡¯t cause problems. Besides, you have already met one.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Old Chiang?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Yes. He was the second member in our dorm. Last year, since he went to visit his hometown, he missed the reunion.¡± Even after listening to Gu Yu¡¯s assurance, Zhang Siyi continued to feel nervous. Even so, Gu Yu remained unphased and proimed: ¡°It¡¯s settled.¡±

    Gu Yu turned to look at Zhang Siyi and stated: ¡°Look at you these days... with all that overtime, you have two dark circles under your eyes. They are cker than a panda¡¯s eye! Get to sleep early tonight.¡±

    Zhang Siyi pouted his lips unpleasantly: ¡°What? I¡¯m not good enough to be with you?¡±

    Gu Yu smiled and snorted: ¡°I¡¯m afraid they¡¯ll me me for abusing a child.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Joking aside, on this asion, Zhang Siyi dare not ck off. He rummaged through his closet and found his best fitting suit. He also wanted to look his most handsome while standing with Gu Yu.

    At the appointed time, Gu Yu drove them to the ce. This time, the reunion was held at Old Chiang restaurant and not KTV.

    When they arrived, there was a noisy ruckus before entering the door. Gu Yu rang the doorbell and a rough but loud voice announced from inside: ¡°Old Four is here!¡±

    A group of people from inside came out of the woodwork to meet Gu Yu. They saw Gu Yu with a handsome young man standing right behind him. Grabbing his arm, Gu Yu pulled Zhang Siyi forward and said: ¡°I¡¯ve brought my love. He is timid, don¡¯t scare him.¡±

    The crowd of people: ¡±.......¡±

    As the rowdy ambiance fell into a silence, it became awkward. All eyes were drilling holes into Zhang Siyi.

    Embarrassed, Zhang Siyi gave a light chuckle and greeted them: ¡°Uh, Hello.¡±

    Old Jiang pushed his way out from the crowd smiling: ¡°Ah-ha... It¡¯s him!¡± As the first to break the ice, he continued: ¡°I saw him here with youst March!¡±

    From behind the crowd, a voice shouted ¡°Old four hase... Who¡¯s this? My God...¡± The man pped himself on the head wanting to cry andugh: ¡°Three thought you were gay. I didn¡¯t expect it to be true!¡±

    Still in shock, others could also be heard:

    ¡±Gu Yu, you were too well hidden¡±

    ¡°That almost gave me a heart attack.¡±

    ¡°Well, say no more... Look, you are scaring the poor boy.¡±

    ¡°Come in,e in. Don¡¯t block the door......¡±

    The crowd cajoled Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi noisily into the room. There were people watching Zhang Siyi curiously as if he was a rare species of animal.

    Although the onlookers were eyeing Zhang Siyi, he could feel that they were just curious, well-intentioned and didn¡¯t mean any harm. Gradually, he rxed.

    After seated, Zhang Siyi counted everyone. There were just nine of them including himself. The eight of them lived at school together in two adjacent four-person dorm rooms.

    One by one, GU Yu introduced them. In addition to his own dorm-mate, Old Chiang, he called everyone by their nickname; hairy legs, eggnt, beans..... With names like that, it was easy to remember, however, the names didn¡¯t match them any longer. Since they were older and had signs of middle age, Zhang Siyi felt a little out of ce.

    All of them were in their early thirties, which was a natural time to show their maturing age. But unlike his peers, even though Gu Yu¡¯s 30 birthday was approaching, he still looked like a twenty-six-year old young man.

    After Gu Yu introduced his ssmates, they turned to enquire about Zhang Siyi.

    ¡°How about you ... Little boyfriend, how old are you?¡±

    ¡°My name is Zhang Siyi and I¡¯m twenty-four.¡±

    ¡°Wow¨C! No wonder he is so cute!¡±

    ¡°......¡±

    ¡°Where are you from?¡±

    ¡°The same city as me. We went to the same high school.¡±

    ¡°Wow Gu Yu! Are you a pervert? Did you have an eye on him back then?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± o (¨s ¡õ ¨t) o

    ...........

    Every answer to all of the questions caused a sensation amongst the people. Zhang Siyi sunk further into his seat feeling embarrassed.

 Chapter 207: Elder Classmate

    <h4>Chapter 207: Elder ssmate</h4>

    ____________________

    Sensing Zhang Siyi¡¯s difort, Gu Yu interrupted them: ¡°Alright, that¡¯s enough now.¡±

    With their fun ending unceremoniously, they frowned in disappointment: ¡°Eh? A few questions and already Gu Yu was making a fuss?¡±

    ¡°Ha-ha! I have never seen Old Four so nervous in my life! Today is such an eye-opener!¡±

    ¡°Hey, when Old Three guessed you were gay, I thought you would find someone like Little Peach to date. I never expected you to be with someone so normal!¡±

    ¡°.....¡± Little Peach? Are they talking about Tao Fei? Ha-ha!

    When gossip about Tao Fei started, Zhang Siyi inwardly cheered on the side. Now that they had a few drinks under their belts, their tongues loosened even more. After gossiping about the less-than normal Tao Fei for a while, the group of straight ¡®old-men¡¯ turned their attention towards another topic and debated: What kind of guy was more gay?

    ¡°Okay, it¡¯s time for dinner!¡± Old Chiang served the food and opened another bottle of wine. Since Gu Yu brought his significant other to the reunion, it was only natural that Gu Yu was the focus of everyone¡¯s toast.

    Originally, Gu Yu wanted to use the car as an excuse not to drink, but someone quickly interceded: ¡°Your Little Friend is here...... I don¡¯t believe he can¡¯t drive.¡±

    Wanting to propagate Gu Yu¡¯s farse, Zhang Siyi was going to reply that he couldn¡¯t drive, however, the manmented: ¡°If he can¡¯t drink, then you can drink for him. Here, have a ss!¡±

    Prodded hard on the side by Zhang Siyi¡¯s elbow, Gu Yu no longer refused. He quickly raised a ss and drank it all.

    As Gu Yu drank, someone threw Zhang Siyi a bottle of chocte milk. With a burst ofughter, the crowd pounded the table.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°??? ¡± .....Even if I don¡¯t drink, you don¡¯t have to give me a bottle of milk, right?

    Over the course of the meal, the group was quite lively. At first, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t feel connected to Gu Yu¡¯s group of friends at all. It wasn¡¯t until they started talking about their University days that Zhang Siyi reacted. The Department of Architecture at Big-T University was one of the most difficult majors in the country to get into. It usually only epted the highest science and math scores of each province in the country. That is to say, he now eating and drinking with a table of elite students and architectural idols!

    With newfound understanding, Zhang Siyi saw the group of middle-aged-uncles in a new light and was suddenly awestruck!

    As the bottle of wine emptied, another bottle appeared to replenish everyone¡¯s empty ss and another round of toasts were raised. A man next to Gu Yu became emotional, took his arm and said: ¡°Four, without you, I wouldn¡¯t be here today! Being your roommate in the dorm, I think I, Qi Yueping, am the luckiest person alive!¡±

    His statement reminded everyone else at the table how their dorm got rich through Gu Yu. Noisily agreeing, everyone became serious momentarily and spoke their heartfelt thanks to the Architectural Department¡¯s idol and offered a cup.

    After everyone¡¯s¡¯ round of toasts, Gu Yu had the opportunity to say: ¡°Don¡¯t thank me. Thank you for your time and hard work. Thank fate .....¡±

    As the many memories engulfed them, the group of ¡®old men¡¯ momentarily felt like students again and were moved to tears. The rowdy group of emotional men filled up their sses once more.

    Sitting amongst them, Zhang Siyi was also deeply touched. Gu Yu rarely epted the gratitude of others. Even when Su Yuan thanked him, he said there was no need.

    Yes, without each individual¡¯s maximum effort, there wouldn¡¯t have been a chance to encounter each other.

    The same was true of Zhang Siyi. If he didn¡¯t have the heart to study architecture, he wouldn¡¯t have entered Gu Yu¡¯s world. If he hadn¡¯t continued to search for a job rted to architecture post-graduation even when the market was depressed, he wouldn¡¯t have met Gu Yu. If he had simply given up, he wouldn¡¯t have Gu Yu¡¯s affection....

    Opportunities are out there for the taking. Only with persistence and effort will your social and professional circle expand, giving the chance, if you are lucky, to meet better people and make those opportunities real.

    Four hourster, it was almost time for supper and as if everyone¡¯s inner clock was set to the same rm, they began to gather their belongings and say their goodbyes.

    Having drunk many sses of wine, when Gu Yu stood up from the table, he stumbled. Zhang Siyi quickly grabbed him to support him from falling over, causingughter from the other men around them. Among them, the tallest with a rough voice, who was the leader of the dormitory, patted Zhang Siyi¡¯s back energetically and said: ¡°We entrust Gu Yu to you!¡±

    Listening, Gu Yu turned to look at Zhang Siyi affectionately. When Zhang Siyi flushed red, the crowdughed again. They teased him mercilessly: ¡°Little Boyfriend...¡±, ¡°Too Pure.....¡± All the while, Gu Yu wasughing and smiling at him with love.

    After Zhang Siyi said his goodbyes to the crowd, he supported Gu Yu while walking to the car. He helped him into the passenger seat, then walked around to the drivers¡¯ side and got in. Ready to leave, he told Gu Yu to fasten his seat belt, but nothing happened. When he looked at Gu Yu, he was staring nkly into space.

    ¡°Hey, are you really drunk?¡± Zhang Siyi leaned over to personally fasten Gu Yu¡¯s seatbelt for him. It took him a lot of effort to pull the belt over Gu Yu¡¯sp. Gu Yu suddenly embraced him.

    In protest, Zhang Siyi tried to break free of his grasp, but like Popeye-the-sailor, he seemed to have gained extra strength from drinking and couldn¡¯t extricate himself from Gu Yu¡¯s hold.

    His hold became caresses as Gu Yu leaned over to kiss Zhang Siyi passionately. Concerned at the prospect of being seen, Zhang Siyi rubbed his lips and scolded Gu Yu: ¡°You taste like wine! People walking by can see us in the car!¡± Gu Yu was too bold!

    Gu Yu gazed at him with desire and licked his lips slowly saying: ¡°But you are sweet.... milky....¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Damn that chocte milk! (= Ãó =)

    Not wanting to debate with a drunkard, Zhang Siyi settled him in, quickly started the car, and pressed on the elerator. At the next traffic light, Zhang Siyi nced at Gu Yu and wondered what he was dreaming of as he saw him with a grin on his face, fast asleep.

    Since it was the weekend, there was heavy traffic. It took over and hour to arrive back home. Pulling into the parking space and opening the door, Gu Yu woke up. Again, Zhang Siyi had to support Gu Yu as they walked to the front of the building.

    Gu Yu grabbed Zhang Siyi¡¯s neck with one hand and pulled his head closer in order to nibble at his ear.

    ¡°Hey... Stop it! Don¡¯t make a scene!¡± Zhang Siyi demanded. Although they were close to their home, there was still more than a dozen meters to go on the sidewalk until they reached the entrance. It was really terrifying!

    As he approached the door, Zhang Siyi looked up and was surprised to see He Chengtian and Gu Yao standing side-by-side, holding hands with arge stic bag.

    The four of them were facing each other. Panic stricken, like a kid caught with his hand in the candy jar, He Chengtian quickly let go of Gu Yao¡¯s hand. Nervous, he stole a nce at Gu Yu expecting to be reprimanded, but instead he was surprised. Gu Yu was nibbling at Zhang Siyi¡¯s ear and trying to kiss the side of his face.

    Zhang Siyi was so embarrassed that he couldn¡¯t wait to dig a hole and push Gu Yu into it! .....Fuck! What are they doing here? I thought they were spending Christmas together!

    Given the situation, Gu Yao was quick and immediately asked: ¡°Is my brother drunk?¡±

    Pushing Gu Yu¡¯s face away with his hand, Zhang Siyi pretended to be calm and said: ¡°Yeah! Quickly open the door for me so I can put this drunkard inside!¡±

    Inside, Zhang Siyi was toozy to bring Gu Yu upstairs to his room. Instead, he thought it best to let Gu Yu lie down for a little while on the sofa to sober up. He dragged Gu Yu to the couch and unceremoniously dumped him onto the cushions. Gu Yu caught Zhang Siyi¡¯s arm and pulled him over.

    Caught off-guard, Zhang Siyi fell t on top of him. Bodies pressed against each other, holding him down, Gu Yu wrapped his arms around him followed by a wave of kisses.

    He Chengtian arrived just in time to witness Gu Yu¡¯s actions. Mouth wide open in shock, He Chengtian jaw dropped.

    ¡°See no evil, speak no evil, hear no evil!¡± Gu Yao was nervous and leading him away with a guilty conscience, forced He Chengtian to turn his back from the sofa towards the kitchen.

    He Chengtian¡¯s mouth twitched. What the hell is going on? Was Gu Yu such a yboy that anyone would do?

    Mulling it over, He Chengtian heard Gu Yu¡¯s deep voiceing from behind....

    ¡°Call me Brother.¡±

    Immediately, Zhang Siyi deliberately lowered his voice and said: ¡°Don¡¯t make trouble. Someone is.....¡±

    Gu Yu insisted: ¡°Call me Honey.¡±

    Pausing, Zhang Siyi tried to coaxed him, practically begging: ¡°My good brother, let me go and I will pour you a ss of water to sober up!¡±

    Gu Yu chuckled: ¡°Oh, good boy! Call me husband....¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°......¡±

    He Chengtian fragile nerves finally broke!

    Half an hourter, while in the kitchen chopping bok-choy, He Chengtian asked: ¡°So, is your brother gay?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Yes.¡±

    He Chengtian: ¡°He and Zhang Siyi are lovers?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Yes.¡±

    He Chengtian: ¡°You always knew ...?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Yes.¡±

    On the cutting board, He Chengtian suddenly made a resounding ¡®bang¡¯ as he chopped off arge section of bok-choy.

    Gu Yao lowered her head and calmly said: ¡°If it bothers you that I have such an elder brother, don¡¯t go out with me.¡±

    He Chengtian was shocked and immediately replied: ¡°No, no, no... Why would I mind? Well, Zhang Siyi is also my friend and in fact, there isn¡¯t anything to fuss about. I have seen this kind of thing a lot before, ha ha ha....¡± He Chengtianughed briefly. Actually, this was the first time he saw a live show.

    While He Chengtian continued chopping bok choy, he heard the kitchen door open and a voice.

    Finally, after all this time, Zhang Siyi managed to subdue Gu Yu and left him alone on the sofa. He opened the kitchen door and asked: ¡°Do you need my help?¡±

    He Chengtian was furious from his heart, and he mmed the knife down hard on the cutting board again. Turning his head, he raised his voice: ¡°Zhang Siyi!¡±

    ....... Do you fucking treat me as a big brother! Such a thing, you were hiding it from me all this time! What about my job offer...? Were you fucking already!?!?

    Getting angrier by the second, He Chengtian was thinking how best to interrogate him. Just as he shouted Zhang Siyi¡¯s name, Gu Yao¡¯s interruption stopped him in time: ¡°If you can¡¯t ept that my sister-inw is a man, then I will turn a deaf ear to what you told me outside just now.¡±

    Her words were quick and fast as she lowered her voice. Zhang Siyi, who stood at the door, didn¡¯t hear her.

    But, He Chengtian standing next to Gu Yao, could hear her clearly. Sister-inw, Zhang Siyi? Pfft¨C!

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s attention was still on He Chengtian¡¯s roar. He shrank his neck and sheepishly asked: ¡°Uh, He Chengtian, what¡¯s the matter?¡±

    He Chengtian wiped his mouth and coughed: ¡°No. Nothing....¡±

    Smiling, Gu Yao turned her head towards Zhang Siyi and waved her hand: ¡°No thanks Second Brother. Today, He Chengtian promised he would cook for me. You can go rest.¡±

    Seeing He Chengtian¡¯s reaction, Zhang Siyi scratched his head. Did Gu Yao talk to him?

    When the meal was prepared, since Gu Yu was still passed out drunk on the sofa, the three of them sat down together, ready to eat supper.

    With confidence, He Chengtian served the food that he made. Zhang Siyi nced at it; bok choy and pork stir fry, radish soup, tomato scrambled egg. They were simple home-cooked dishes that couldn¡¯t be any more basic, but even so, they smelled pretty good.

    ¡°He Chengtian, not only are you a businessman, but you can cook too! I remember you went to university abroad. Did you learn to cook then?¡± Zhang Siyi asked.

    ¡°Ha-ha, when did I ever have the time as a student to learn. I learned how to cook from my nanny.¡± He Chengtian bragged.

    Zhang Siyi gave He Chengtian the thumbs up in admiration and nced at Gu Yao with a yful smirk.

    Just so Zhang Siyi knew, He Chengtian exined that today, he originally wanted to invite Gu Yao out to a restaurant, but she didn¡¯t want to go. Instead, she wanted to taste his own handiwork. As a result, they went to the supermarket to buy groceries. Since Gu Yao didn¡¯t think they would return until muchter, bumping into each other at the entrance was least expected.

    As for the two of them holding hands, Zhang Siyi was too embarrassed to ask.

    When they had finished eating, He Chengtian consciously went to wash the dishes. Although the washing was quick and the kitchen was messy with spilled water, the overall performance was quite good.

    Afterwards, the ¡®little couple¡¯ went out to walk the dog. Zhang Siyi was left to clean up the water in the kitchen and getting the mop from the closet, he started mopping the floor. After two drags across the floor, he heard Gu Yu calling his name.

    Zhang Siyi ran out and saw Gu Yu awake on the couch, staring darkly at the neck-tie that bound his wrists.

    ¡°............¡±

    Zhang Siyi hurried over to untie it for him. Gu Yu flirted: ¡°So you like this kind of y.....¡±

    Hearing his unique drunken, husky voice, Zhang Siyi blushed and said: ¡°Who told you to act like a delinquent when drunk.¡±

    Gu Yu shook out his hands and rubbed his wrists: ¡°How was I a delinquent?¡±

    Zhang Siyi was so angry, he used the untied neck-tie in his hands to punish Gu Yu with a whip. But, Gu Yu caught his hands instead and pulled him down. Zhang Siyi immediately surrendered: ¡°Don¡¯t start. Get up and eat while the food is still warm.¡±

    Now noticing the aroma in the air, Gu Yu was surprised and asked: ¡°Did you cook?¡±

    All this time, Gu Yu was the one who was in charge of cooking meals for the family.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°It wasn¡¯t me! It was He Chengtian!¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s joyous smiling face instantly changed to a cold frown: ¡°When? He cooked here?¡±

    Zhang Siyi told Gu Yu the situation and emphasized the fact that He Chengtian saw his drunken state kiss him. Only interested in the food, Gu Yu didn¡¯t seem to care about thetter. Indeed, the table was set without leftovers present.

    Zhang Siyi ced a ss of water on the table and handed Gu Yu a pair of chopsticks. First, he tasted the tomato scrambled eggs: ¡°It¡¯s really unptable. The tomato chunks are too big and it doesn¡¯t even taste good.¡± He continued tasting the other dishes and offered his harsh critique: ¡°What the heck are these cut veggies? Did he do this by hand? The radish soup too, they aren¡¯t cooked enough....¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± He was really d that He Chengtian wasn¡¯t here to hear Gu Yu¡¯s critique otherwise Zhang Siyi thought He Chengtian would start a fight.

    In order to help his friend, Zhang Siyi cated Gu Yu: ¡°He Chengtian only learned how to cook for the sake of it. Your standards are too high. How can the skills of this beginner bepared to yours?¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s expression became neutral. Zhang Siyi inwardly sighed... so quick toin and yet, he still ate a bowlful of rice with these ¡®unptable¡¯ dishes!

    When He Chengtian came back with Gu Yao after walking the dog, he saw the poor state Gu Yu was in. Maybe, because of all the excitement, He Chengtian was quick to say goodnight and leave.

    After a night of sleep, it was Sunday. Today, it was time to meet with a close friend from University; Gu Yu¡¯s elder ssmate.

    Her home was in Liaodong and normally she flew home with a connecting flight through Beijing. This time however, she specially flew through Haicheng so she could meet them.

    With yesterdays¡¯ hectic experience of being stared at by a group of men, inparison, today¡¯s n was tame. Only needing to meet one person, Zhang Siyi felt much more rxed.

    Gu Yu made reservations for dinner at a hotel. The two arrived a little early and was taken to their seat by the staff. Within two minutes of sitting, Zhang Siyi saw ady in a dark blue coat carrying a white handbag, walking towards them.

    Calmly, Gu Yu got up smiling and waved briefly at the women. In return, the women smiled broadly.

    Zhang Siyi sat motionless for a minute before reacting; Wow, so beautiful!

    When the model like empress approached, she first addressed Gu Yu then looked at Zhang Siyi seriously. She extended a hand and gently said: ¡°Hello. I am Gu Yu¡¯s elder ssmate. You can call me Xie Jiayu.¡±

    ________________________

 Chapter 208: Give It To Me

    <h4>Chapter 208: Give It To Me</h4>

    _______________________

    Watching her smile, Zhang Siyi thought her beauty was ageless. For some, beauty was an inherent trait. Whether it was Gu Yu¡¯s mother who was over fifty years old, or this elder ssmate, their beauty was like thefort of a warm spring breeze.

    After sitting down, the three of them ordered food first before catching up with each other¡¯s lives. Xie Jiayi inquired about Zhang Siyi¡¯s background and how he met Gu Yu.

    While it was all gossip, her questions were neither embarrassing nor offensive, making the conversation flow naturally. As if they were long-time friends, Zhang Siyi felt veryfortable with the questions and had no issues with answering them.

    She heard of Zhang Siyi ns to return to the UK to study for his Master¡¯s degree. Xie Jiayi also shared her experience in the United States while she was earning her Master¡¯s degree. Her funny anecdotes made Zhang Siyiugh a few times.

    After Xie Jiayi finished, she nced at Gu Yu again and asked: ¡°If he really left China for graduate school, what are you going to do?¡±

    Zhang Siyi was stunned. Xie Jiayi raised an issue with which he had the least courage to discuss face-to-face with Gu Yu. Although he knew very well that he would have to face the pain of separation when he left, he was only focused on the now and immersed himself with good feelings by devoting himself to Gu Yu. He didn¡¯t even want to think about the future because of the possibility of making Gu Yu upset. If Gu Yu showed any bit of pain and sorrow, it would make Zhang Siyi waver about his decision to leave.

    Composing himself, Gu Yu took his time to drink his water then said: ¡°I¡¯ll wait for him toe back. What else is there for me to do?¡±

    However, no matter how good Gu Yu¡¯s acting was, Zhang Siyi has been with him for then half a year and as result, Gu Yu couldn¡¯t hide the brief sh of sadness on his normallyposed face.

    Zhang Siyi lowered his eyes and didn¡¯t speak. Negative emotions such as reluctance and hesitation began to ferment from the bottom of his heart.

    Breaking the heavy atmosphere, Xie Jiayi asked: ¡°Have you ever thought about going with him?¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart suddenly lifted and looked straight at Gu Yu. To go with him? Since Gu Yu was already a full-fledged architect with a license, he never thought of the possibility. But, it doesn¡¯t seem impossible either.....

    In fact, one of the schools that Zhang Siyi applied for wasn¡¯t a standard university. It was a private institution organized by the Architects Union. Although it was a specialized educational facility, the program wasn¡¯t any less prestigious than any of the other famous universities in the world.

    In addition to the five-year RIBA course, the institution also had some one-year advanced courses avable for specialized study. The academic courses covered a variety of topics which attracted architectural enthusiasts, professionals, schrs, and even licensed contractors around the world to deepen their level of training and understanding.

    If Gu Yu wanted to expand his knowledge at this stage with his qualifications, it would be a cinch to apply, gain eptance and go.

    Would he really leave with Zhang Siyi? After all, Gu Yu was a Director of Borderless with high expectations of his superiors and was deeply respected and well liked by his subordinates. How can he just leave with the heavy weight of responsibility on his shoulders?

    Even knowing that it was practically impossible, Zhang Siyi still watched Gu Yu closely for any indication of his thoughts. Gu Yu did not answer. His brief smile was self-evident.

    Xie Jiayi also smiled and said: ¡°You were always so rational ...¡±

    She raised her ss, touched Gu Yu¡¯s ss then took a sip. She raised her eyes again: ¡°Well, short separations can also be good. Some people say that distance is the best test of feelings.¡±

    As she steered the conversation to another topic, she inquired about the overall situation of architecture at home and discussed issues from abroad. When telling her interesting stories and expressing her thoughts, her eloquence, depth of knowledge and insight in the field weren¡¯t any less then Gu Yu¡¯s knowledge. Zhang Siyi was impressed by her charisma.

    In front of Xie Jiayi, Gu Yu also rxed. From the cold male God into a very close neighbor, his usual quips and poison tongue were none existent.

    After finishing their meal, Xie Jiayi got up to hug them one by one. When she held Zhang Siyi, Zhang Siyi was too nervous to talk. He only noticed the faint feminine perfume and heard her gentle and sincere voice in his ears: ¡°I¡¯m really happy for you both. I wish you a lifetime of love and happiness.¡±

    As she released him and stepped away she said a gentle ¡®ah¡¯ then rummaged through her handbag. From inside, she brought out an envelope and handed it to Zhang Siyi: ¡°I almost forgot. This gift is for you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi nervously said: ¡°A gift? But I haven¡¯t prepared anything in return!¡±

    Xie Jiayi chuckled out loud. She reached up to squeeze his cheek: ¡°It¡¯s not something valuable but I believe you will cherish it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi could only ept it and say thank you.

    While outside walking to the car, Xie Jiayi asked Zhang Siyi if she could spend a private moment with Gu Yu.

    Zhang Siyi slowed down and immediately replied: ¡°Well, sure. Okay.¡± He turned around to give them some space.

    Gu Yu looked at Zhang Siyi¡¯s back walking away and wondered: ¡°What did you want to say alone with me?¡±

    Smiling kindly, Xie Jiayi looked at him in the eye and said: ¡°I wanted to say it inside, but I was afraid it would be embarrassing. It is just my personal opinion, but as your dear friend and elder ssmate, I wanted to tell you.¡±

    Gu Yu looked at her seriously: ¡°Ok. What is it?¡±

    ¡°Gu Yu, rationality is your advantage, but for feelings, being too rational isn¡¯t good sometimes. Work is something you will always be able to search and find, but love isn¡¯t something you can control and look for. Only love can me met and not found. Sometimes, it is missed entirely and you won¡¯t be able to find your soulmate for the rest of your life.¡± Xie Jiayi eyes flickered slightly, as if recalling her own experience.

    She recovered her smile and continued: ¡°At the table, I mentioned how distance was the best test of feelings. Why is it the best? Using reverse phycology, it is best because it is the most powerful killer of emotions. We are all simply human. When separated by thousands of miles, it is difficult to guarantee what will happen with our hearts when we are lonely and left vulnerable. The power of distance and time is much stronger than you think. You may not be able to ovee it, so don¡¯t be so quick to test your feelings. Most ordinary people don¡¯t make it through the test. Don¡¯t test your luck, and do everything in your power to stay together as much as possible so you won¡¯t have any regrets.¡±

    After listening to her speech, Gu Yu frowned slightly in deep thought. He seemed to be greatly touched. After a while, he regained his senses and nodded: ¡°I know.¡±

    Gu Yu hugged her again: ¡°Well, I will cherish....¡±

    Taking advantage of the time of Xie Jiayi and Gu Yu were away from him, Zhang Siyi secretly opened the envelope to see what was inside. ........!!! Shit! Pictures of Gu Yu when he was young! Ooh, no, no no.... Gu Yu isn¡¯t actually old; these are photos from his university days.

    Zhang Siyi held a total of three pictures, each with a short note, probably written by Xie Jiayi, printed beautifully on the backside.

    Holding the photo, Zhang Siyi stared at the image. Gu Yu was wearing a white short-sleeved shirt carrying a navy-blue shoulder bag. A ¡°boyish heart¡± almost popped out of his chest!

    He turned it around to look at the note: ¡°Gu Yu¡¯s undergraduate admissionmemorative photo- 2004.9.12.¡± Taken in 2004... Eleven years ago.... So, Gu Yu was only 18 years old?

    Aaaah! Gu Yu looked so young and pure at that time! ~ \ (¨R ¨Œ ¨Q) / ~

    Zhang Siyi looked at the next one: ¡°Department of Literature and Art Festival. Gu Yu¡¯s speech on stage. 2005.10¡± Gu Yu was actually wearing a traditional robe and headpiece! Ha-ha-ha!

    Thest one ¨C ¡°xxx National College Architecture Cup First ce ¨C 2006.07¡±

    Wow, the twenty-year old Gu Yu was so handsome! He held a trophy and stood out from the group of people. Holding the photograph, he touched the image and smiled. ..... What was I doing during that time? 18-6 = 12. Hmm, Sixth grade.... then two years of middle school.... (= _ = |||)

    Looking at the photo onest time, Zhang Siyi carefully put it back into the envelope and held the packet to his chest momentarily, cherishing it. Turning around, he saw Xie Jiayi beckoning him back as she was finishing up with her conversation with Gu Yu.

    Running back smiling with the envelope in hand, Zhang Siyi said with excitement: ¡°Thank you! I love it!¡±

    Xie Jiayi winked: ¡°Your wee.¡±

    After sending her off, Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi walked to their car. When they sat down with their seatbelts on and ready to go, they both asked at the same time:

    Gu Yu: ¡°What did she give you?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What did she tell you?¡±

    Turning their heads and looking at each other, they smiled expectantly. Zhang Siyi felt a little embarrassed. Although he tried to stay calm to suppress his curiosity, he couldn¡¯t stop himself from asking.

    But, shaking his head, Gu Yu replied: ¡°Nothing.¡±

    Immediately, Zhang Siyi felt upset. He neither showed Gu Yu the photos nor mentioned them. Gu Yu didn¡¯t ask about them either. Zhang Siyi started to feel anxious by theck of Gu Yu¡¯s interest. He didn¡¯t want to nag Gu Yu about it, so he changed the topic and asked about Xie Jiayi.

    During the car ride home, Gu Yu talked about Xie Jiayi¡¯s history; how she went to Yale for a Master¡¯s and right after earning her degree, she worked under a famous architect in the industry in the United States. She was also the representative of the Chinese Architect¡¯s Association.

    After listening to her exceptional resume, Zhang Siyi admired her more. Closing the car door with a bang, Zhang Siyi suddenly said: ¡°She is remarkable. Both beautiful and talented. With her exceedingly gorgeous looks and high intellect, if a straight man like myself, could turn gay with you, why didn¡¯t you straighten out and date her?¡±

    Gu Yuughed at him: ¡°Turning gay with me probably means you weren¡¯t very straight to begin with.¡±

    ¡°Fuck Off!¡± Zhang Siyi was furious. Remembering the questions he didn¡¯t answer, Zhang Siyi pulled his arm forcefully and demanded: ¡°What did she tell you before she left?¡±

    Arriving at the door, before taking the key out of his pocket, Gu Yu stopped and looked at Zhang Siyi in the eye and asked: ¡°Are you jealous again?¡±

    Gu Yu gathered him in his arms and kissed his forehead: ¡°She told me to love you.¡± Releasing him, Gu Yu inserted the key and unlocked the door.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Zhang Siyi stood in a daze for a minute, blushing. He soon regained his senses and asked, skeptical: ¡°Really? You aren¡¯t just trying to sweet talk me, are you?¡±

    From out of his coat pocket, Gu Yu grabbed his mobile phone and handed it to Zhang Siyi: ¡°Since you don¡¯t believe me, call her yourself and ask.¡±

    How can Zhang Siyi simply ask her when previously, she specifically asked him to give her some private time with Gu Yu! Still doubtful, Zhang Siyi said: ¡°If it was that simple, why did she tell me to go away?¡± As he put on his indoor shoes, he muttered: ¡°Clearly, you were talking to her for a long time....¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m paraphrasing.¡± Gu Yu waited until Zhang Siyi changed his shoes. Once finished, he grabbed his arm and pulled Zhang Siyi into his embrace and teased him: ¡°Otherwise, you might run away with another man.....¡±

    Zhang Siyi choked: ¡°How is that possible!¡±

    In order to prod at Zhang Siyi further, Gu Yu pretended to disbelieve him and raised his chin in defiance: ¡°Who knows. We can¡¯t get married so I have no guarantee that you won¡¯t run away with someone else.¡±

    Turning red, Zhang Siyi was starting to feel guilty for his usations and afraid of hurting Gu Yu, he anxiously proimed: ¡°I said it wasn¡¯t possible, so it¡¯s not possible!¡±

    Gu Yu looked back at him and asked: ¡°And what proof do I have?¡±

    Zhang Siyi quickly said: ¡°I can swear it! I¡¯ll write a letter of guarantee!¡±

    Gu Yu looked meaningfully into his eyes and solemnly said: ¡°Two years ago, would you have ever thought you would be with me now?¡±

    Caught off guard, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know what to say.

    Without giving him an opportunity to answer, Gu Yu added: ¡°Forget even two years ago. What aboutst Christmas, did you think you would end up in a rtionship with me?¡±

    Quiet, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t want to answer. He has thought about this very question before and the answer was very clear; No.

    Gu Yu: ¡°Hmmm? Did the cat catch your tongue? How can you guarantee what will happen in the next two years? No one can predict the future. Xie Jiayi wanted to express this.¡±

    Feeling emotionally taxed, Zhang Siyi felt like he could cry and was quiet for a long time.

    Gu Yu bopped him on the nose then hugged him tightly in his arms: ¡°Look at you...... You want to know, but you can¡¯t take it. Don¡¯t you know, curiosity kills the cat.¡±

    Zhang Siyi held onto him tightly feeling helpless and said: ¡°What Can I do?¡±

    ¡°That¡¯s why she only told me.¡± Gu Yu patted his back gently, soothing him: ¡°Well, it¡¯s not something you have to think about. Do what you want and I¡¯ll take care of the rest.¡±

    Although Zhang Siyi trusted Gu Yu, letting him solve everything made him depressed. He wasn¡¯t a kid anymore: ¡°We should discuss and solve problems together.¡±

    Gu Yu was quick to ask: ¡°What did she give you. Show me.¡±

    ¡°In my left pocket. You can see it for yourself.¡± Zhang Siyi was frightened by Gu Yu¡¯s tone of voice. Like a ko bear, he hugged Gu Yu tightly and was reluctant to let him go.

    Gu Yu deliberately turned around and began his search by fondling his waist: ¡°Where was it? Here?¡±

    ¡°...... Where are you touching?¡± Squirming under his assault, Zhang Siyi was forced to release his hand andughed out loud. Zhang Siyi took out the envelope from his pocket.

    He would have liked to ask Gu Yu about the history of each photograph, but once Gu Yu realized what they were, his face changed dramatically. He immediately kept the photos to himself and hid them in his pocket..... Xie Jiayi had Gu Yu¡¯s ck history and even dared to give them to Zhang Siyi. Embarrassing!

    Zhang Siyi questioned: ¡°Um... What are you doing?¡±

    Leaving to go upstairs, Gu Yu said: ¡°What¡¯s so special about these photos. They aren¡¯t as good as the one you took.¡±

    Realizing his photos were confiscated, Zhang Siyi jumped up suddenly with anger: ¡°Hey! Where are you going? They aren¡¯t bad? I think you look super handsome!¡±

    After a few steps, catching Gu Yu quickly, Zhang Siyi grabbed him from behind, clinging to him shouting: ¡°Stop! Give me back the photos! That was my gift from Xie Jiayi!¡±

    While dragging him upstairs, Gu Yu protected his pockets and teased Zhang Siyi: ¡°Where are you touching me? The envelope isn¡¯t there.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I saw you put it there!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Don¡¯t push so hard. The photo will get crushed and be ruined.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Fuck! Stop being mean! Give it back....¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Ah? What did you say?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I said, give it to me !!!¡±

    Gu Yuughed: ¡°Well, go lie on your back on the bed. I¡¯ll give it to you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°... Pervert!!!¡±

 Chapter 209: Thirty

    <h4>Chapter 209: Thirty</h4>

    __________________

    Even though Zhang Siyi was able to recaptured the photos, three of them were a damaged after their tussle.

    Failing to destroy his ck history, Gu Yu strutted in front of Zhang Siyi and joked: ¡°I am right in front of you. What¡¯s so good about that photo?¡±

    Angry, Zhang Siyi nced at him resentfully. He was holding the photo in his arms protectively, cherishing it.

    When Gu Yu went to take a bath, Zhang Siyi hesitantly took out the photo again. Crying without tears, he tried to smooth out the wrinkles and mumbled: ¡°Bastard... trying to make me lose it.¡±

    Fortunately, all the damage was on the edges. The image of Gu Yu was good.

    Looking at it, Zhang Siyi suddenly had an idea. He went to the desk and opened a draw to pull out a pair of scissors. Cackling with glee, he trimmed the edges of the photo then took out his own wallet, and inserted the photo into a stic pocket in his wallet. Not too small and not too big. Just right.

    Gu Yu¡¯s handsome figure wore a white shirt in the photo. With a ¡®mua¡¯, ¡®mua¡¯, Zhang Siyi kissed the photo in the stic cover.... I will never get tired of looking at it.

    After showering, Gu Yu pushed the door open into their room and witnessed Zhang Siyi antics: ¡°........¡±

    Zhang Siyi, who was caught red handed: ¡°.....¡±

    After the weekend, the busy days continued. Neither Zhang Siyi nor Gu Yu mentioned the prospect of studying abroad again. Even so, although, Gu Yu didn¡¯t want him to worry about it by himself, in private he continued to think about the many issues he had to consider when going to the UK.

    After New Year¡¯s Day, it would be Gu Yu¡¯s birthday soon.

    Since both of thier birthdays were rtively close in November and Janurary, the euphoric feeling from celebrating his own birthday recently hadn¡¯t passed. Considering his own extravagant gift at the hotel, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t want his own gift to Gu Yu to be any less.

    He already had given him a handmade giftst year. The Cactusmp continued to be disyed on the bedside table. Maybe, he could decorate the house and cook a meal for Gu Yu? However, he doesn¡¯t cook as well as Gu Yu and thought he would likely be as critical of the food Zhang Siyi made as he was towards He Chengtian¡¯s meal. So... y the violin? Well, he is so busy, he doesn¡¯t have time to practice. Besides, living under the same roof, he would hear it. There wouldn¡¯t be a surprise at all!

    He wanted the gift to be creative and didn¡¯t want it to be ill conceived. At a loss, racking his brain, he didn¡¯t know what to give Gu Yu and failed to make a n. After having dinner that night, the two were sitting together of the sofa reading and drinking tea. Gu Yu asked: ¡°What is going on with you? For the past few days, you¡¯ve been in a daze with a sad expression on your face.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Uh......¡±

    Gu Yu turned his head to look back at his book. Slowly turning the page, he smiled and said: ¡°Are you thinking about my Birthday?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± .....Does he have to be a know-it-all and spoil the surprise. Doesn¡¯t he understand romance?

    Since he brought it up, Zhang Siyi thought it would be meaningless to remain quiet about it. He replied frankly: ¡°Yes. I can¡¯t figure out what gift to get you. What would you like? Just tell me what you want!¡±

    ncing at him sideways, Gu Yu addressed Zhang Siyi affectionately by his nickname: ¡°What do you want me to say?¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s face warmed up two degrees. He knew what Gu Yu was implying. Inevitably, he thought he would have to do this kind of thing with Gu Yu on his Birthday and even though he had prepared himself mentally for it, he was hesitant. It was a weekday and Gu Yu¡¯s requests weren¡¯t ever so simple, right?

    Moreover, Gu Yu was also good at ¡®specialized research¡¯ and usually liked to try new methods with him. Even on his own Birthday, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t think it could be any better than it already was.

    Feeling down, Zhang Siyi watched Gu Yu use his mobile phone. Immediately, his own mobile phone received a text.

    Taking the phone out of his pocket to look at the screen, he saw the picture Gu Yu sent him.

    Gu Yu looked at him and muffled aughed: ¡°I want that.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± He knew Gu Yu¡¯s request wouldn¡¯t be so simple! (¨s¨FÃó¡ä)¨s¦à©ß©¥©ß

    Embarrassed, after a day of feeling reluctant, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t think of another way to satisfy Gu Yu¡¯s request. Taking advantage of a bathroom stall¡¯s privacy, Zhang Siyi went to the toilet with hisptop to research his options in ordance with his request on the inte. When he found what he was looking for, he ced an order online and choosing the self-pickup option, he had it shipped to a mailing center near Yuanshan Garden. When the package arrived, he quietly hid it in the wardrobe.

    Two days before Gu Yu¡¯s Birthday, Zhang Siyi went to Gu Yao and asked her about her ns. He hoped he would have the day to himself to celebrate it alone with Gu Yu.

    Originally, for her brother¡¯s Birthday, Gu Yao wanted to celebrate it together, but after she saw Zhang Siyi¡¯s ears turn red and acting shy, she held her smile and answered with a nod.

    Gu Yu¡¯s Birthday happened to be on Friday. In the morning, Zhang Siyi greeted him first with a ¡°Happy Birthday.¡± Needing to get to work on time, they got up and dressed quickly. Since there wasn¡¯t time for bed-y, the day started off like any other normal day.

    After work, Zhang Siyi took Gu Yu out for his Birthday to eat at a Japanese restaurant in the city center. Since they were out in public, he couldn¡¯t really show his emotions and affection. They quietly finished their meal and returned home before nine at night.

    Now, Zhang Siyi¡¯s ¡®show¡¯ could start.

    Grabbing the dog leash, Zhang Siyi handed it to Gu Yu and with downcast eyes he said: ¡°Go take the dog for a walk. When youe back, take a shower. You aren¡¯t allowed to enter the bedroom until ten o¡¯clock!¡±

    Laughing, Gu Yu looked him straight in the eye as if he knew everything and grinned: ¡°Ok.¡±

    When Gu Yu left, Zhang Siyi ran up the stairs in two to three steps at a time. It took him only fifteen minutes to take a quick shower. He entered the bedroom, closed the door and retrieved the package from the closet. Feeling so embarrassed that he could die, he opened the box, took a deep breath, and began to prepare......

    Half an hourter, Gu Yu came back with the dog and took some time to tidy up downstairs. ncing at the clock, it was almost quarter-of. When he reached the top of the stairs, he could see the bedroom door closed and the washroom open with Zhang Siyi change of clothes hanging on a rack.

    At 9:55, Zhang Siyi was lying on the bed waiting for Gu Yu to receive his ¡®blessing¡¯.

    He heard Gu Yu¡¯s footsteps up the stairs......

    He should be in the shower now......

    At ten o¡¯clock, Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart was pounding .....

    10:01......

    10:02 ......

    The wait was making Zhang Siyi feel nervous.

    It¡¯s past 10, shouldn¡¯t he be finished?

    At 10:05 he heard the sound of the bathroom door being opened!

    Suddenly, all the cells in Zhang Siyi¡¯s body quivered excitedly.

    With the click of the doorknob, Gu Yu pushed open the bedroom door and appeared at the doorway.....

    Zhang Siyi was on the bed on his hands and knees wearing cat ears and a tiger patterned cosy suit. The actual fabric covering his skin was very little. Revealing most of the wearer¡¯s skin, it was only symbolically wrapped around his body. When the door opened, Zhang Siyi twisted his head to look back at Gu Yu in the doorway. Red faced, he swung his hips to sway his tail at Gu Yu, enticing him.

    There was a note attached to Zhang Siyi¡¯s back with four words written with a marker on it: ¡°I am a gift.¡± Also, drawn around the phrase was a heart.

    Gu Yu¡¯s blood drained from his head for a moment. He was beside himself.

    Zhang Siyi really did it! He dressed so cute and sexy and was waiting for him to ¡®enjoy¡¯.

    Gu Yu eyes seemed to devour Zhang Siyi inch-by-inch.

    Gu Yu¡¯s lustful expression made Zhang Siyi feel a sense of aplishment over his painstaking effort. Although he was feeling rather bashful to lie on the bed with the costume on, he thought Gu Yu was going to pounce on him. Unexpectedly, Gu Yu remained in the doorway dazed for a while. With his phone in hand, Gu Yu raised it up and started taking pictures of Zhang Siyi.

    ¡°... Hey !!!¡± Zhang Siyi was so angry that he dug his ¡®ws¡¯ into the bedding, ready to turn over.

    Gu Yu suddenly yelled: ¡°Don¡¯t move!¡±

    Hearing Gu Yu¡¯smanding voice, Zhang Siyi stopped moving. Damn it, just endure it. Today was Gu Yu¡¯s birthday. Let him be the boss. Gu Yu could clearly see the embarrassment and shyness written on Zhang Siyi face.

    Gu Yu inched forward and gave directions for Zhang Siyi to move in: ¡°Turn over slowly... good. A little more, stop. Good. Extend your paw... so cute......¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± I can¡¯t bear it! (= Ãó =)

    When Zhang Siyi turned overpletely, Gu Yu discovered another note that had been on his chest. In crooked lines, it said: ¡°Happy 30th birthday Yu!¡±

    When the note on his chest was exposed, Zhang Siyi blushed so red that he could fry an egg.

    Gu Yu watched him for another second before he put his phone on the desk with a smack. He couldn¡¯t hold back any longer and rushed over to fling himself onto Zhang Siyi.

    ¡°Ouch! ¡± Because of the sudden weight on top of him, Zhang Siyi subconsciously wanted to push him back. However, since his hands and feet were covered in puffy cat paws, not only was pushing pointless, it was also like a kitten¡¯s refusal. His actions provoked Gu Yu even further, making his desire burn more.

    ¡±Mm mm...... ¡± Zhang Siyi¡¯s lips were forcibly bitten. Gu Yu¡¯s familiar taste invaded Zhang Siyi mouth. Gasping for breath, he tried to match Gu Yu¡¯s pace.

    At the end of the deep kiss, Gu Yu looked fondly at Zhang Siyi. Husky and horse he said: ¡°Gift, I ept. You are mine.¡±

    Zhang Siyi felt suffocated wearing the costume. As a man himself, it went against his notion of masculinity and as a result, he felt stupid and indignant. However, contrary to his pride, his self-sacrifice for Gu Yu¡¯s sake was nothing.

    Holding onto Gu Yu with his furry paws, Zhang Siyi meekly and affectionately said: ¡°Happy 30th Birthday, Yu¡±

    ......

    When Zhang Siyi woke early the next morning, he clutched his rear, wanting to cry..... Fuck! It hurts. At his behest, even if he dressed up cutely and enticed him sexually, did Gu Yu have to frantically do him all night?

    After the third time, Zhang Siyi begged for mercy and requested: ¡°Its after midnight, we have to stop.¡± Although it was Gu Yu¡¯s birthday, he must have a limit, right? But Gu Yu turned a deaf ear and persisted until three o¡¯clock in the morning! This beast! (t Ãó t)

 Chapter 210: Sold

    <h4>Chapter 210: Sold</h4>

    _________________

    Fortunately, since today was Saturday, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t have to go to work. Feeling worn out fromst night¡¯s ¡®abuse¡¯ he remained paralyzed under the covers in bed recuperating.

    The culprit, as if Gu Yu hadn¡¯t had enough, continued to cling onto Zhang Siyi¡¯s body. He whispered in Zhang Siyi ear: ¡°You are so cute.¡±

    Wriggling a bit, Zhang Siyi twisted his body to try to loosen Gu Yu hold on him. Inwardly groaning, Zhang Siyi thought..... I¡¯ve heard it countless timesst night. I¡¯m tired of hearing it!

    Sensing his struggle, Gu Yu tightened his arms suddenly and put his face into Zhang Siyi¡¯s neck, kissing him and ultimately, sucked on it hard, leaving a hickey.

    Feeling annoyed, Zhang Siyi was trying to force Gu Yu away. However, as his mind shed to the issue of studying abroad, he rxed slowly. Half of the bedroom was gently illuminated from the faint light through the window, giving the room a romantic feeling. Next year, he may never have a rxing weekend where he could sleep in and snuggle with Gu Yu. Laying limply on the bed, he turned his head and withstood Gu Yu¡¯s bullying.

    One weekter, the bid for the ancient city reconstruction project in X-City wasmencing. The four group members that participated in the project went along with the Professor. Only one representative from C-Group traveled with Professor Cui. Since they were students and not designers, he didn¡¯t see Liao Jun and Miss Ye.

    This time, however, the oue wasn¡¯t as favoritable as the bidding in Z-City. Even though they were very well prepared and heavily invested, they lost the bid to another design firm that specialized in ancient architecture and renovation.

    Afterwards, although everyone was feeling a little frustrated and depressed, they stillforted each other with encouraging sentiments, showing a ¡®grace of gain, calmness of loss¡¯.

    Although it hadn¡¯t even been two years, Zhang Siyi mentality had changed significantly. If such a thing had happened before, emotionally, he probably would have been hit hard. However, now that he was familiar with the learning process by participating in projects throughout his time at Borderless, even if he didn¡¯t win the bid, the experience of designing and nning was worthy of recognition. As a result, the weight of the oue was no longer important.

    After returning to Haicheng, thepany entered the year-end summary period in earnest. Gu Yu began to get busy with daily meetings with board members. The topics of discussion among employees was mostly about their year-end bonuses and annual-meeting activities. The nearing of the Spring Festival slowly ushered in the New Year.

    This year, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t have the misfortune to receive an emergency project right before the New Year. Although his work recently was rtively easy, he received an excellence award at the annual meeting titled Employee of the Year.

    He opened his bookkeeping app that was on his phone to look at the flow of his money. After deducting rent and living expenses, he actually saved nearly one-hundred thousand Yuan. Compared to the total amount needed to study abroad, this amount was like a drop in the bucket, butpared tost year¡¯s stressful economic situation, it was a huge amount!

    At the end of January, nning on returning home to Ningcheng with Gu Yu and his sister, Zhang Siyi took the time to buy New Year¡¯s presents.

    Since it was the first year that Gu Yao was employed, she hadn¡¯t umted annual leave privileges in herpany. In order to avoid the crowds of the Chinese New Year, she was able to leave on the 26th with the rest of the foreign staff members.

    At Borderless, foreign designers have already ended their projects and have air travel ready to fly home. Most employees save their holiday time and utilize the extra two weeks towards their vacation during the Chinese New Year. Zhang Siyi was the same. With the amount of overtime Zhang Siyi rued during the ancient renovation project, he was able to take off extra vacation days too.

    Unfortunately, since Gu Yu was still in charge of individual projects, he wasn¡¯t able to leave early. After talking it over, the three of them decided to wait for Gu Yu to finish with his work and return to Ningcheng on the afternoon of the new year.

    After setting the date, Zhang Siyi wanted to call his mother to inform her of his ns, but it just so happened, his mother called him first.

    She told him that his uncle, at hispany¡¯s annual party, had won a voucher for two to travel to Matai on the 29th. Since his uncle had to take care of an Elderly rtive as well as having three members in their family, two tickets weren¡¯t enough. He gave the travel package to the Zhang¡¯s to enjoy.

    ¡°Your uncle is really confused. Even though you visited him during Chinese New Yearst year, I think he continues to think you are living abroad.¡± Mother Zhang smiled: ¡°Even so, I think your Dad wants to go.¡±

    Zhang Siyi interrupted her: ¡°Hold on..... What do you mean? You and Dad are going to Matai for Chinese New Year? What about me?¡±

    Mother Zhang asked: ¡°I called to ask for your opinion. If you want to spend the New Years with us, we won¡¯t go on the trip and will give your uncle the vouchers back. I told your father that we rarely get to spend time with you. It wouldn¡¯t be good for us to leave during the holiday, but your father insisted and said that you aren¡¯t a kid anymore and have already spent time alone during Chinese New Year while you were abroad. Over fifty years old, your Father and I are getting on in age and want to take the opportunity to be romantic together. If you don¡¯t mind, you could stay at your uncles house for New Year¡¯s?¡±

    Zhang Siyi finally understood. It turned out that his parents abandoned him on the back burner, and prepared a honeymoon for themselves! (= Ãó =)

    What else could he say? He acknowledged it: ¡°You can go.¡±

    Mother Zhang smiled: ¡°Will you be alright?¡±

    Pretended to be mature, Zhang Siyi said: ¡°Hey Mom, it¡¯s OK. As Dad said, I¡¯m all grown up now so I don¡¯t need to pester you any longer. Go and have fun. Remember to take a lot of photographs. I¡¯ll see you when you return on the 28th.¡±

    Mother Zhang asked: ¡°Are youing back with Gu Yu?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Yes, and his sister.¡±

    As soon as Mother Zhang heard it, her tone rose suddenly and she asked him pointed questions. When she finished her gossip, she told them to drive carefully on the way back, and hung up the phone reluctantly.

    Putting his mobile phone away, Zhang Siyi felt a little betrayed.

    Gu Yu looked at Zhang Siyi¡¯s awful expression of his face and asked: ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡±

    Zhang Siyi told Gu Yu what his mother had said. In front of Gu Yu, his true colors showed: ¡°Am I even rted? How can my parents abandon their son and go out on Chinese New Year without me? It¡¯s been only half a year since I¡¯ve seen them. Did they forget about me already?¡±

    After a moment of pouting, Zhang Siyi was like a deted ball. Contrary to his initial outburst, he said: ¡°But my parents rarely ever go out to travel and this opportunity is indeed very rare.¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s eyes lit up and chimed in: ¡°Thene to my house to celebrate the New Year.¡±

    Zhang Siyi froze: ¡°Ah?¡±

    Gu Yu grinned. He had wanted to ask Zhang Siyi to go home with him for New Years. Now, there was no excuse for refusal. After all, Gu Yu¡¯s family was also from Ningcheng. Now that the cat was out of the bag, Gu Yu sighed in delight. As luck would have it, unbeknown to them, the Zhang¡¯s family assistance was perfectly timed with what Gu Yu wanted.

    Zhang Siyi flushed slightly: ¡°Go to your home? That¡¯s not too good...¡±

    Gu Yu took his hand and joked: ¡°What¡¯s wrong? Last year, my Dad ordered me to bring home my lover, so I¡¯ll show him.¡±

    Startled, Zhang Siyi was scared: ¡°Fuck, did he really say that.¡±

    Smiling, Gu Yuforted him: ¡°Our real rtionship will definitely not be made clear, but you need to show yourself in front of my parents so they can ept our rtionship early. A little subliminal messaging would be good.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°....¡±

    On February 6, 2008, New Year¡¯s Day, the three of them returned to Ningcheng.

    Gu Yu dropped Zhang Siyi off at his house. They went inside to drop off various gift bags for Zhang Siyi¡¯s Mother and Father and put forward on the spot his intention to invite Zhang Siyi to his family¡¯s home for New Year¡¯s.

    Seeing the Gu¡¯s personally drop off her own son back home while also delivering gifts, Mother Zhang was very embarrassed: ¡°Oh, you are too nice. Sisi is an outsider. How can he go to your house and trouble your family during the holiday?¡±

    Gu Yuugh interrupted her: ¡°Auntie, don¡¯t be polite with me. What outsider? Siyi has lived with us in Haicheng for the past half year. I regard him as my own. I have already talked to my parents and they said he was most wee toe.¡±

    Standing next to Gu Yu, Gu Yu gave his sister an encouraging look for her to also agree and smile at Zhang Siyi¡¯s Mother.

    ¡°Ok, well I¡¯ll have to trouble you.¡± Mother Zhang¡¯s tone clearly did not sound remotely guilty of actually ¡®troubling¡¯ anyone. Rather, it was full of joy.

    Teacup in hand, Zhang Siyi¡¯s Father stood behind his Mother with an uncharacteristic expression of exuberance on his face: ¡°I¡¯m leaving him in your care.¡±

    Standing to the side, mouth twitching, Zhang Siyi was so embarrassed that he couldn¡¯t even tell his parents ¨C You just sold me!

 Chapter 211: Room

    <h4>Chapter 211: Room</h4>

    _________________

    Sure enough, just when Gu Yu and his sister left, Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother grabbed her son¡¯s arm and teased him: ¡°Hey Sisi, you and Gu Yu¡¯s sister..... ¡±

    Face Flushed, Zhang Siyi broke his mother¡¯s train of thought and interrupted her: ¡°Don¡¯t make assumptions. We are just friends.¡±

    Crossing her arms and pursing her lips in disbelief, Zhang Siyi¡¯s Mother eyed him closely. She dropped her arms and her tone changed. She earnestly said: ¡°Listen to your Mother. At your age, it¡¯s time for you to be in a rtionship and fall in love. Don¡¯t be embarrassed!¡±

    Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t make sense of his mother¡¯s changeable attitude. He didn¡¯t dare tell her the truth. Quickly, he turned tail and ran upstairs.

    Mother Zhang watched his back as he ran upstairs. She shook her head and clicked her tongue ¡®Tsk¡¯ ..... Blushing so deeply.... How can a young man have thinner skin then a young girl?

    Afterwards, his mother started preparing gifts for Zhang Siyi to take to the Gu family for New Year¡¯s. Contrary to tradition, this time the girl was the one that invited the boy over to greet the family. For this reason, Zhang Siyi¡¯s Mother felt guilty. In addition, she was fearful of making a bad impression and as a result, she prepared extra gifts. Although his Mother thought the Gu family was rushing her son¡¯s rtionship with Gu Yao, she wanted to let the Gu family know he was worthy of their approval.

    When Zhang Siyi woke upte the next day, everything was ready for him. The luggage was packed and his parents were ready to go.

    Mother Zhang was wearing a red cashmere trench coat and holding a foreign designer handbag. Around her neck was the Burberry scarf that Zhang Siyi bought for her during his time in the United Kingdom. It was a scarf that his mother normally wouldn¡¯t wear. She was dressed like an executive heading out for an interview.

    Not only his Mother, but his Father too. With his hair slicked back, wearing old fashioned dark sses, a white scarf and a ck trench coat, Father Zhang also looked like an old celebrity. Watching his parents appear before him, Zhang Siyi eyes popped out of his head. He has never seen his parents dress so trendy in high fashion before. Fuck! What kind of power couple is this?

    Zhang Siyi was very surprised and half-jokingly said: ¡°What are you two doing dressed like celebrities for...... going on a honeymoon?¡±

    With an unexpected answer, his mother replied as a matter of fact: ¡°How did you know?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°.........¡±

    As his Mother held onto his Father¡¯s arm flirtatiously, she coyly said: ¡°This year is the 30th anniversary of meeting your father.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was shocked. In his mother¡¯s mind, the day they met was also considered an anniversary?

    Letting go of his Mother¡¯s hand, there was a hint of embarrassment on his Father¡¯s face. While putting on his shoes, he exined: ¡°It was easy for me to marry your mother in that era. The ceremony was simple toplete; drink a bowl of egg drop soup and go get your photo taken at a studio. For so many years, your mother has been pestering me about our honeymoon, but we never had the time. Now, this opportunity has fallen onto ourps... Son, please understand, on this New Year¡¯s Day, you are the one wronged.¡±

    Only his Father can say something like that with such scorn. Zhang Siyi wanted tough but didn¡¯t dare too. ¡°Oh, it¡¯s all right. I understand!¡±

    After his Mother put on a pair of leather boots she turned to address Zhang Siyi: ¡°Okay, I¡¯m ready let¡¯s go. By the way, I¡¯ve put everything in the kitchen for the Gu family. Don¡¯t forget to bring it. Also, take the initiative to talk to the girl¡¯s family about ¡®that¡¯ matter. If you aren¡¯t proactive, you¡¯ll never get a wife!¡±

    Father Zhang was feeling impatient to get moving. He frowned: ¡°Well, stop nagging the boy. He can¡¯t do anything if she doesn¡¯t like him back. You can¡¯t force the issue so stop fretting over it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi inwardly hummed: a wife? I found a good husband though....

    His Mother watched Zhang Siyi intently for a moment then re-held his Father¡¯s arm and said: ¡°Old Zhang, let¡¯s go!¡±

    With a straight back and head held high, his Father strutted out with his mother in arm.

    Zhang Siyi waved: ¡°Bon voyage!¡± Watching them leave, a multitude of feelings enveloped him

    Since he was a child, his parents had many disputes about his education. His dad was quick to anger which made Zhang Siyi always feel like his father was alone on one side and he and his mother were on another.

    Many times, he saw how tolerant his mother was and the self-sacrifice she would make for the sake of harmony in the family. Regardless of their personality differences, thinking about his childhood memories, his Mother¡¯s deep love for his Father was clear.

    Rarely did he see his Father make a sacrifice for the sake of his Mother or family. At home, his father was like a symbol of authority and wasn¡¯t allowed to be debated. This was the first time Zhang Siyi faintly felt that his old-fashioned father also had romantic cells in his body. He and his mother really loved each other.

    With this warm feeling in his heart, Zhang Siyi thought maybe his journey out of the closet wouldn¡¯t be so hard as he initially thought. At the same time, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t let himself feel too optimistic because,ing out wasn¡¯t an easy thing to do.

    Zhang Siyi sighed and while thinking about it further, he received a text message from Gu Yu: ¡°Are your parents gone? When are youing over?¡±

    It was only ten o¡¯clock in the morning! It¡¯s so early! Zhang Siyi replied: ¡°They¡¯re gone. I¡¯ll pack up ande over right away. What about lunch?¡°

    Gu Yu: ¡°I was just going to ask you toe over for lunch.¡± [Little Fox Drinks Tea]

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Be right there.¡± [Kitten Cheers]

    Gu Yu: ¡°Remember to bring your toiletries for the two nights stay at my house.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°... Ah?¡±

    Originally, Zhang Siyi thought he was only going to Gu Yu house for New Year¡¯s Eve dinner. It turned out that Gu Yu¡¯s intentions were for him to stay over? He was concerned because, if he remembered correctly, his family¡¯s home wasn¡¯t very big and there wasn¡¯t an extra guest room. Where was he supposed to sleep?

    Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°Am I supposed to sleep in your room? Wouldn¡¯t your parents suspect something is going on between us?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Why do you assume my parents will think there is a problem. With normal thinking, if you slept in Gu Yao room, what do you think, they will think?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± That was also true! (= _ =)

    Gu Yu: ¡°When will you be ready? I¡¯ll drive over to pick you up.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. I¡¯ll just take a taxi.¡±

    Hanging up, Zhang Siyi went upstairs to pack up his toiletries and gathered a change of clothes. After he packed an over-night bag, he went to check on all the doors and windows. When he went to the kitchen to see what his mother prepared, his eyes nearly popped out of his head.

    As soon as he entered the kitchen door, Zhang Siyi was dumbfounded! upying half the kitchen were various packages and bags. To name a few, there were cigarettes, wine, skin care products, a grocery list of items including a basket of free-range eggs, and souvenirs from my mother¡¯s hometown!

    Zhang Siyi was so frightened that he quickly took out his mobile phone and called his mother: ¡°Mom! Am I supposed to bring all of this in the kitchen?¡±

    Having just arrived at the bus station to the airport, his mother was trying to catch her breath: ¡°Yes!¡±

    Zhang Siyi was stunned: ¡°Why are there so many?!¡±

    Mother Zhang: ¡°That¡¯s a lot? It¡¯s just a dozen things. Your father and I aren¡¯t at home for the Chinese New Year so we won¡¯t be able to eat them. The other packages are all very good things. Be courteous and simply bring them all to Gu Yu¡¯s house. It¡¯s not so strange..... Okay, we are getting on the airport shuttle bus now. Talk to you soon!¡±

    Listening to his Mother¡¯s receding voice over the mobile phone, Zhang Siyi wanted to cry without tears. He needed help so he sent Gu Yu another message: ¡°Forget what I said. Come pick me up!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°......¡±

    Half an hourter, Gu Yu arrived at Zhang Siyi¡¯s home to a surprising site. All of the gifts had been moved from the kitchen into the entranceway. Gu Yu reaction was much calmer than Zhang Siyi¡¯s initial one. Knowing that his parents already left and there was no room for negotiations, Gu Yu face quickly recovered from his brief moment of surprise and calmly started moving them into the car.

    When the two of them arrived at the Gu¡¯s home, they started to unpack the car. Gu Yu¡¯s parents were equally stunned by the sheer number of gifts making Zhang Siyi feel embarrassed.

    Gu Yu¡¯s father said: ¡°Hey, Zhang Siyi, your father and mother are too polite. It hasn¡¯t been that long since we¡¯ve known you and yet they brought so many gifts?¡±

    After changing his shoes, Gu Yu casually joked: ¡°This is Zhang Siyi¡¯s dowry.¡±

    Hearing Gu Yu statement, Zhang Siyi was scared to death! His eyes were open wide and even Gu Yu¡¯s sister from inside, turned around to peer at them.

    Gu Yu¡¯s fatherughed and unexpectedly replied: ¡°Good, good. Anyways..... I don¡¯t mind multiple sons.¡± He turned his head towards Mother Gu and asked: ¡°Do you mind?¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s Mother was wearing an apron in the kitchen busy with preparations. She turned towards them to listen to Father Gu¡¯s question then smiled and shook her head as if saying: ¡±I don¡¯t mind.¡±

    Witnessing their interactions, Zhang Siyi almost suspected that Gu Yu¡¯s parents already knew about their rtionship!

    Seeing the travel bag in Zhang Siyi¡¯s hand, Gu Yu said: ¡°Come, give me the bag. I¡¯ll take it to my room.¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s father immediately asked: ¡°He didn¡¯t stay overst year while visiting, did he? Make sure to give him a tour of the house.¡± He turned to address Zhang Siyi smiling with warm, weing eyes and said: ¡°I heard from Gu Yao that you live in a vi so this doesn¡¯tpare. You¡¯ll have to make due at my smaller home over the next couple of days.¡±

    Waving his hand dismissively, Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t a pretentious person that he would think any less of the Gu homepared to his own. This time, he was more nervous thanst year. After all, previously Zhang Siyi came to pay respects to Gu Yu because he was an elder. Now, he was in an unspeakable rtionship with Father Gu¡¯s son.

    Feeling guilty over ¡®stealing¡¯ Gu Yu away, Zhang Siyi felt like Gu Yu¡¯s Father had the ability to see right through him.

    As they arrived at Gu Yu room, Zhang Siyi looked around while Gu Yu put his travel bag at the foot of the bed. He sat down on the edge, then pulled out the only chair in the room for Zhang Siyi to sit on.

    The room was less than ten square meters total. There was a twin sized bed, a desk, a wardrobe, and a small basketball hoop in the corner of the room. The room was very tidy and clean. Smiling Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°Was this your room since childhood?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°No. Before my sister was born, we lived at my father¡¯spany¡¯s housing. It took him nine years to save enough to afford this house. I moved when I was in middle school.¡±

    ¡°Did you go to the foreignnguage middle school?¡± Zhang Siyi asked.

    ¡°Yep.¡± Gu Yu stood up and went to open a drawer in his desk. He took out a stack of yellowed paper and handed them to Zhang Siyi. When he nced at it, Zhang Siyi was surprised. It was Gu Yu¡¯s report cards from his middle school days!

    Looking through the stack, Zhang Siyi saw paper after paper of full marks. Monthly exams, mid-term exams, finals, reports.... Everything was near perfect scores. Gu Yu was a learning machine!

    Moving his hand across the desk top, Zhang Siyi felt the smooth surface. Unlike when he first arrived, he looked around the room again carefully. There were traces of tape and sticky notes pasted on the walls. On the wooden shelf above the desky two high school math textbooks.

    Zhang Siyi could imagine him sitting here reading during daylight hours and then turning on the desk-sidemp at night to study. Step-by-step, to gain eptance to Big-T University and embark towards the pinnacle of life. Just thinking about it, got Zhang Siyi¡¯s blood boiling.

    Watching Zhang Siyi expression, Gu Yu smiled. He bopped him on the nose and asked: ¡°What are you thinking about?¡±

    With admiration and adoration, Zhang Siyi looked at him affectionately and asked: ¡°What time did you study every night when you were in high school?¡±

    Gu Yu replied simply: ¡°I didn¡¯t study much at night.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Ah? You didn¡¯t study? What about your homework?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°I would finish it during the day at school.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Then what did you do at home in the evenings? Go to sleep early?¡±

    Gu Yu tilted his head in thought and replied: ¡°Help my dad draw construction drawings; count indicators, calcte area....¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°......¡± Why is reality totally different from my imagination!!!!!

 Chapter 212: Guest

    <h4>Chapter 212: Guest</h4>

    _________________

    Gu Yu¡¯s casual and indifferent tone made Zhang Siyi feel annoyed. Was there anything more irritating then having ones¡¯ hard work mean less in the face of another, like Gu Yu, who didn¡¯t study at all?

    Luckily for Zhang Siyi, he wasn¡¯t in high school during the time Gu Yu was in high school. A gifted student like Gu Yu was rare. Even He Chengtian continued to shoulder resentment towards Gu Yu over their past years together in high school.

    Gu Yu probably wouldn¡¯t even understand what a normal person went through during high school. Just like now, after his flippant remark, Gu Yu patted the bed next to him and said: ¡°You will sleep here, right?¡±

    Even though Zhang Siyi was really angry, he couldn¡¯t resist Gu Yu request. Almost all of the cells in his body tingled with excitement despite his annoyance.

    Since they weren¡¯trge men, as a double sized bed, it was big enough for them to lie down together, albeit very snug. They should be able to sleepfortably enough. Since the bed they normally slept in at home in Haicheng was a king size bed, Gu Yu was worried Zhang Siyi would refuse.

    Staying close with Gu Yu, there was no way Zhang Siyi wouldn¡¯t want to, but unfortunately, he was a guest and only a thin wall separated themselves from his parents. After feeling so excited, he suddenly felt awful.

    Thinking about when he arrived earlier, Zhang Siyi felt a little embarrassed: ¡°How can you say that to your dad earlier!?¡±

    Gu Yuughed: ¡°I¡¯m testing their bottom line. I usually joke around with my Dad while at home. You don¡¯t have to be so nervous.¡±

    Zhang Siyi felt a little envious over Gu Yu¡¯s rtionship with his Father. Unlike their easy going bantering, there were clear status boundaries between Zhang Siyi¡¯s Father and himself. He would never joke around with his own father.

    In contemtion, Gu Yu held his chin. He mused: ¡°My parents¡¯ reactions weren¡¯t too strange. I think their ability to ept us will be better than I anticipated.¡°

    Thinking of something else Zhang Siyi interrupted: ¡°Hey, does your mother really not speak?¡±

    In affirmation, Gu Yu softly said: ¡°Hmm.¡±

    Since his expression remained calm, curious, Zhang Siyi was bold enough to ask: ¡°Is she deaf?¡±

    While furrowing his brow, Gu Yu shook his head and responded: ¡°No. It¡¯s a bitplicated¡­.. My mother¡¯s family were schrs that had some social standing within the local area. My grandfather was an official when my mother was five. When she turned nine, she witnessed my grandfather¡¯s persecution and was killed. She was greatly traumatized and since that time, she wouldn¡¯t speak.¡±

    Even though Gu Yu could have brushed aside the issue by saying ¡®yes¡¯, he truthfully exined the real reason to Zhang Siyi.

    There was a big shock in Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart. The tragic history was too far away from his generation. He never expected that such pains would be left on the loved ones of those around him.

    ¡°Then, is it a psychological problem?¡± Zhang Siyi asked.

    ¡°Probably, we don¡¯t really know. There weren¡¯t obvious medical ailments. When my father married my mother, he thought she was physically disabled. Later, with the development of information, we learned from newspapers and television that herck of speech was likely caused by a problem with the central nervous system. It¡¯s a type of aphasia. Gu Yu sighed and sadly said: ¡°since she was already used to a life without speech, we never forced her.¡±

    With a pained expression, Zhang Siyi furrowed his brows andmented: ¡°It¡¯s a pity.¡± ¡­¡­ Gu Yu¡¯s mother is so beautiful. She should have been the perfect person.

    Gu Yu smiled bitterly and said: ¡°It is a pity, but my mother believes that there is a gain to every loss. With the loss of her voice, she has gained a happy and perfect family.¡±

    He looked down, and said: ¡°When I was a child, I thought all mothers couldn¡¯t speak. At some point in my youth, I realized that it was only my mother who couldn¡¯t talk. When I was older, asked my father about it and he told me the truth. He joked about it and said that if my mother was able to talk, he wouldn¡¯t have been able to marry her.¡±

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know whether to feel bad about her situation or feel happy for his family. Indeed, the love between members of the Gu family was clear. With exceedingly well-mannered and prosperous children, the family was picture perfect. A shadow of doubt crossed Zhang Siyi¡¯s mind. What if his mother knew her son liked men? Would she still feel the same happiness?

    Gu Yu seemed to be able to sense what he was thinking. He took Zhang Siyi hand into his own and squeezed it tofort him: ¡°Since they believe in these philosophies, I don¡¯t think it will be very difficult for us. They will understand that I can¡¯t take home a daughter-inw and instead will gain another son-inw. You will treat them well, right?¡±

    Zhang Siyi nodded vigorously and holding Gu Yu¡¯s hand tightly, he said: ¡°Of course.¡± Perhaps the beautiful things in life are made even more precious because of their ws.

    Silently, Zhang Siyi leaned on Gu Yu for a while, takingfort in each other¡¯s presence. He was curious, but also embarrassed. Eventually, his curiosity won out and mustard up the courage to ask: ¡°How do you and your Mothermunicate? Signnguage?¡±

    ¡°My sister and I can understand signnguage used for daily life. I will also teach it to you. However, you don¡¯t have to learn how to do it because my mother can hear. Usually, if there was something urgent she would press a button on the phone in response to questions, but now she can text us directly. She can also write notes. My mother writes very beautifully. Come I¡¯ll show you.¡±

    With Gu Yu¡¯s encouragement, Zhang Siyi got up and followed him to his parent¡¯s room. In the hallway, he saw Father Guing out of the kitchen with food in hand. He greeted them both and said: ¡°The food will be ready very soon.¡±

    Responding to his father, Gu Yu said: ¡°I¡¯m going to take Zhang Siyi to see mother¡¯s calligraphy.¡± He continued down the hallway towards a door and pushed it open.

    Across from the bed, there was an alcove with a square bookcase against the wall on one side. Stacked on the shelves were piles of paper. Also, there was a felt covered case.

    Gu Yu picked up the case and opened it for Zhang Siyi to see. Inside, there was a pen, brushes and all types of writing.

    ¡°Wow! It¡¯s so awesome!¡± Zhang Siyi revealed his admiration through his actions and words.

    Proud of his mother, Gu Yu said: ¡°Isn¡¯t it?¡±

    In fact, as ayman, Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t understand the nuances of calligraphy. He doesn¡¯t really know the differences between good or poor-quality writing. The writing looks like those in a copybook sold in bookstores. Anyways, since Gu Yu said it was good, then it must be.

    Gu Yao came into the room looking for them: ¡°What are you looking at? It¡¯s time to eat!¡±

    Zhang Siyi carefully rolled up the scroll he was looking at. Smiling he asked: ¡°I¡¯m looking at your mother¡¯s calligraphy. Does Gu Yao write as well?¡±

    Gu Yu replied earnestly: ¡°Yes. She also won first prize in the city¡¯s calligraphy contest when she was a child.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°So amazing!¡±

    Gu Yao scrunched up her face and said: ¡°Brother don¡¯t patronize me! You know my writing is the worst in our family!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Eh? Youpare each other¡¯s writing?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Why wouldn¡¯t we? In our family, writing is our status in the family. Mom writes the best. She is the boss and father is second. My brother has worked hard every day in recent years and will probably surpass Father soon. I¡¯ve beenzy since college and haven¡¯t practiced for a long time! ¡°

    Zhang Siyi was surprised to learn that Gu Yu practiced calligraphy all the time for the sake of the family¡¯spetition.

    Gu Yu sighed and lowered his voice to say: ¡°Hey, no way. Second Brother¡¯s scribbles are so bad. It will take a long time and a lot of work to simply catch up.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± Shit! (= Ãó =)

    Gu Yu touched his chin in thought and said: ¡°But certainly, he won¡¯t be at the bottom. My impression of the guy¡¯s writing with the surname He was even worse.¡±

    Gu Yao had a dyed reaction. She blushed suddenly and shouted: ¡°Hey!¡±

    Zhang Siyi was holding his bellyughing. Father Gu called them over to eat. Then the three of them pushed and shoved out of the door.

    There were five different dishes and a bowl of soup on the table. Although the food wasn¡¯t fancy, it was full of color and smelled delicious, which made everyone excited to eat.

    Just likest year, everyone waited until each of the members of the family sat down before everyone moved their chopsticks.

    Father Gu raised a ss toward Zhang Siyi with a smile and said: ¡°Last year, we had two pairs of chopsticks at the table. This year, we have added another pair.¡±

    After hearing Father Gu¡¯s sentiments, Zhang Siyi was frightened again. Wasn¡¯t another-pair-of-chopsticks alluding to him? Did Father Gu guess correctly about their rtionship? Or, did he think he was with Gu Yao¡­¡­? That can¡¯t be right! From the beginning, since he was always with Gu Yu, it was clear his rtionship was closer to him than it was with Gu Yao.

    His father¡¯s remarks also surprised Gu Yu. He recovered quickly and calmly asked his father: ¡°Didn¡¯t you say ¡®hands¡¯st time?¡±

    Scared, Zhang Siyi picked up his ss trembling. He rememberedst year, there was indeed a photo full of hands representing the Gu family posted to social media.

    Gu Yu father quipped: ¡°What¡¯s the difference between a hand and a pair of chopsticks?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°¡­¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    Zhang Siyi was dumbfounded. At this moment, his sharp eye caught Mother Gu ncing at Father Gu with a meaningful look of ¡®stop teasing¡¯.

    Immediately afterwards, Gu Yu¡¯s fatherughed and said, ¡°Okay, let¡¯s eat. The more the merrier! Evening dinner will be even more spectacr!¡±

    Looking at all he options, Zhang Siyi said: ¡°I¡¯m not sure which to eat; meat or fish? They all look so good!¡±

    Father Gu smiled: ¡°Make yourself at home and eat as you please, don¡¯t hesitate.¡±

    Still feeling the shock to his heart, Zhang Siyi nodded.

    Even though no one was bothered by Father Gu¡¯s opening remarks, the table remained quiet. This was because of the new ultra-thin TV hanging on the wall in front of the family¡¯s table. While eating lunch, they watched the annual Spring Festival G. Even though the program had been running for thirty years, the host voice brought them joy.

    Afterwards, Father and Mother Gu cleared the dishes and chopsticks. While they went to prepared the New Year¡¯s Cake, they let the children talk amongst themselves

    At first, the three of them pretended to watch TV in the living room. Gu Yu sat for a while, but ultimately, with his own agenda in mind, he told his parents he was going to take out Zhang Siyi and Gu Yao.

    As soon as they went downstairs, Zhang Siyi swore. He nervously said: ¡°Shit, does your parents already know everything?¡±

    Gu Yao echoed his sentiments: ¡°I know, right? When my Father said that at the table, I was shocked!¡±

    Zhang Siyi told them about the expressions on Mother Gu¡¯s face that he observed: ¡°It wasn¡¯t just my imagination, right? Really, I think your parents already know.¡±

    ¡°I¡¯m not too sure.¡± Gu Yu nced at his sister and asked: ¡°Did you mention anything?¡±

    Feeling wronged, Gu Yao shouted: ¡°I haven¡¯t said anything about it!¡±

    Zhang Siyi was frightened by the situation: ¡°What do we do now?¡±

    Gu Yu watched their frighten antics and stated: ¡°What¡¯s the problem? Isn¡¯t their calm and natural reaction a good thing?¡±

    Zhang Siyi froze for a moment. Hitting his thigh, he thought, yes, if it was this easy, thening out would be simple and they no longer had to hide. However, because his parents were so calm, it seemed abnormal which made him feel like he was dreaming. He always felt likeing out was going to be a much bigger problem to ovee in the future!

    Pondering their predicament, Gu Yu furrowed his brows in thought and said: ¡°Let¡¯s wait and see. You don¡¯t have to be so nervous. If my parents really have guessed the truth, then their method of revtion was very gentle. It just proves how tolerant and epting they are. Its not toote to be happy, right?¡±

    Zhang Siyi and Gu Yao nodded. Gu Yu was also relieved.

    After drinking a cup of coffee and wandering around outside, they returned home early. Gu Yao gave Zhang Siyi an old photo album full of family pictures. Zhang Siyi squealed in delight. He wanted to take home all of Gu Yu¡¯s childhood photos.

    At night, with the abundant delicacies present, the Chinese New Year¡¯s dinner was richer than at noon. To name a few, there were pickled big yellow croaker, twice-baked roasted bran, creamed red crab, poached eggs with soy sauce ¡­ Zhang Siyi¡¯s eyes glowed. He took several photos to post on his social media page.

    Before they ate, Gu Yu proposed that the five of them take a hand photo like they didst year. Zhang Siyi¡¯s hand was added to his family¡¯s portrait. His Father and Mother didn¡¯t show signs of disapproval. They both smiled broadly as if they already regarded Zhang Siyi as part of the family.

    After dinner, ording to their family¡¯s traditions, brother and sister Gu cleared the dishes from the table and brought them to the kitchen. Zhang Siyi originally wanted to help, but was stopped by Father Gu: ¡°Zhang Siyi, you are a guest. Come and watch the Spring Festival G with us.¡±

    Zhang Siyi nced in the direction of the kitchen for Gu Yu and silently asked for help with his eyes. Not being able to do anything about it, Gu Yu shrugged his shoulders and gave him a I-can¡¯t-help-you gesture. Zhang Siyi had to bite the bullet and sit with his parents alone.

    Gu Yu¡¯s Father didn¡¯t sit next to his Mother. Instead, he sat on sofa and patted the seat next to him, offering a ce for Zhang Siyi to sit.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± Shit! He didn¡¯t want the privilege of being a guest! (t Ãó t)

 Chapter 213: Coming Out

    <h4>Chapter 213: Coming Out</h4>

    _____________________

    At eight in the evening, the screen was full of flowers and the host joyfully wished everyone a Happy Chinese New Year. The familiar music on the television from the Spring Festival prelude filled the otherwise silent room.

    Trembling, Zhang Siyi was sitting between Father and Mother Gu, waiting for the inquisition.

    ¡°Zhang Siyi. So how does it feel now that you have worked for a year and a half?¡± Father Gu calmly asked while raising his teacup.

    Putting his hands on his knees as if he was reporting to a teacher, Zhang Siyi solemnly responded:¡± Very Good Sir.¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s Father paused for a moment then stated: ¡°You are now living together with Yu and Yao, yes? ¡°

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­ Hmm. ¡°

    Father Gu slowly drank from his teacup then faintly asked: ¡°His house only has two rooms. Where do you stay?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Uh, well, I stay with Elder Gu in his room.¡±

    Father Gu smiled: ¡°He really doesn¡¯t treat you as an outsider, does he. Heh.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    After his statement, Zhang Siyi could feel his face start to race. Despite the music from the TV, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t hear anything.

    ¡°Yu has always been a very independent person since he was child. He always did what he wanted and never cared about what his parents thought. In personal matters, he seemed to be at a loss. For so many years, we¡¯ve never saw him have a close rtionship with anyone. He used to be so arrogant that we worried he wouldn¡¯t be able to meet someone.¡± Gu Yu¡¯s Father nced at Zhang Siyi and smiled at him. ¡°You are the first one he brought home.¡±

    In nervousness, Zhang Siyi heart pounded in his chest. As beads of sweat formed on his brow, his mind became numb and there was a dull buzz in his ears, blocking out all sounds¡­. Wha, what does Gu Yu¡¯s Father mean exactly¡­? What he said, no one would misinterpret it as ¡®ordinary friends¡¯¡­¡­ right?

    Starting to panic, Zhang Siyi tightened his hands on his knees in order to stop him from shaking. He nced in the direction of the kitchen with pleading eyes¡­.. These questions¡­ Your Father¡­..What should I do? Gu Yu.. help me!

    The background music of the television program was too loud for those in the kitchen to notice. There was no way Gu Yu and his sister could know what was going on. Suddenly, Zhang Siyi felt a warm hand on his knee. Gu Yu¡¯s Mother had reached over to hold Zhang Siyi hand.

    Zhang Siyi was trembling and nervously looking at Gu Yu¡¯s Mother. She was watching him with gentle eyes and patting his hand infort. Although she couldn¡¯t speak, she was soothing him in such a tactful way.

    Her smallfort appeased Zhang Siyi¡¯s trembling soul. With a red neck and ears, he hurriedly retracted his eyes and looked down at the floor, like he was a criminal caught red-handed. He quietly stammered out: ¡°Uncle, Aunt¡­.you¡­.. you¡­¡­ know¡­¡­¡±

    Part of Zhang Siyi thought when Gu Yu Mother¡¯s knew the truth, she would show revulsion, but all she did was give Zhang Siyi one reassuring squeeze of his hand. Next to him, Gu Yu Father just sighed and continued to drink tea, like nothing happened.

    ¡­¡­.They know. They really know everything¡­¡­

    Since their reaction was so calm and tolerant, unlike his imagined anger and resentment, the nerves and stress that weighed on him, ever since entering Gu Yu¡¯s family¡¯s home, were instantly relieved. His tearful and welling emotions almost overwhelmed him. He slowly rxed and felt at ease.

    His moment of respite didn¡¯tst long however, in another minute, Zhang Siyi panicked again. ¡­.They might know, but what do they think about a rtionship between two men? Will they ept it?

    Although he wanted to say more, neither Father Gu nor Mother Gu inquired further. The three of them sat quietly together watching TV. After a while, Gu Yu and his sister came over with a fruit tter.

    When Gu Yu reached over to ce the fruit tray on the coffee table, Gu Yu caught site of the three of them. Zhang Siyi winked at him with a strange expression on his face.

    Little did he know, while he was cleaning up the dishes, Zhang Siyi was being interrogated by his parents. He pretended to be calm and asked: ¡°Has the Spring Festival G begun? Why are you just sitting here quietly watching it?¡±

    Father Gu smiled wide and said: ¡°We already chatted.¡±

    Gu Yuughed and asked: ¡°Oh? What did you talk about?¡±

    Father Gu: ¡°You.¡±

    Gu Yu was stunned. He smiled: ¡°Hmm? What about me did you talk about?¡±

    ¡°We talked about when will you be honest and talk with me and your mom.¡± Father Gu put away his smile and ced his teacup on the coffee table with a decisive ¡®thunk¡¯.

    Practically jumping out of his seat by the intense atmosphere, Zhang Siyi sat sandwiched between Father Gu and Mother Gu, shivering like a littlemb.

    Gu Yu: ¡°¡­¡±

    Father Gu nced at Gu Yao and squinted at her. He asked: ¡°Yao Yao knows, right?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°¡­¡±

    Zhang Siyi always thought Gu Yu was terrible when get got angry. When he saw Senior Gu do the exact thing Gu Yu does when he gets angry, he knew from whom he got it; like father, like son.

    Gu Yu¡¯s expression changed. He looked back and forth between Zhang Siyi and his parents for a moment and finally understand what had happened.

    ¡°You¡­ When did you know?¡± The volume of his voice was subconsciously submissive and lowered by two degrees.

    ¡°Is knowing when that important now?¡± Father Gu sternly stated. Although he didn¡¯t lose his temper in front of Zhang Siyi, Father Gu had shown the most authoritarian attitude ever.

    The original festive holiday became a ing out¡¯ inquiry instead. Zhang Siyi was so frightened he sat motionless. Gu Yao didn¡¯t say a peep. Gu Yu was forced to analyze the situation alone.

    As his mind was mulling over the sudden change, Gu Yu quickly thought about any details that might have revealed his rtionship. He recalled the shadow photograph he posted online, but his parents weren¡¯t in the group chat. However, since he himself taught his parents how to use the inte, he couldn¡¯t cross out that possibilitypletely.

    Gu Yu thought his father¡¯s guess was based on that photo. Unexpectedly, his father said something very surprising. ¡°When you were seventeen years old.¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s stunned expression was obvious. Even Zhang Siyi and Gu Yao were dumbfounded.

    Father Gu looked over at Mother Gu and thundered again: ¡°Maybe even earlier.¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°¡­¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°¡­¡±

    Father Gu slowly exined: ¡°When you were seventeen years old, I identally discovered that you were taking out gay-rted books from the Ningcheng Library. At that time, I had doubts and talked to your mother in private. I didn¡¯t expect your mother to know earlier than I.¡±

    Mother Gu looked at Gu Yu in worry. Soon, with a pacifying look, she nodded at him slightly as if to encourage him positively and not to be afraid.

    Gu Yu heart was calm and looking towards his Father again, he waited for his next words.

    Father Gu said: ¡°Your mother has always been careful. She told me that you were particrly cold to girls early on. At that time, information was scarce and I did not understand what gay meant. When I learned about it, I was very shocked. I wanted to talk to you and guide you, but your mother stopped me. She said one of her rtives was also like you. Because he liked the same sex, his father beat him and broke his legs and thus, became disabled.¡±

    Gu Yu interrupted him in shock: ¡°Was it¡­¡±

    Father Gu looked up and nodded: ¡°Yes. Your cousin.¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s cousin was a very gentle and beautiful person. He was a brilliant artist and an excellent opponent in chess. When Gu Yu was a kid, whenever he went to his grandmother¡¯s house, he loved to y with his cousin. It was such a pity that he was crippled.

    Moreover, not only did his cousin never marry, he had only lived until thirty-five years old. When Gu Yu was fourteen, an age where death was traumatic, his cousin died. Since it affected him deeply, he suffered for a long time. Only today had Gu Yu learned the secret about his cousin from his father.

    The jubnt background music was in stark contrast to the tragic topic of discussion. Pausing for a moment of silence, everyone looked at Father Gu expectantly, waiting for him to continue the story.

    ¡°After listening to your mother tragic story, I longer felt the need to straighten you out. Your Mother and I researched more about homosexuality in private to have a better understanding of your sexuality. We knew you were an independent and intelligent child who was more mature then the average kid. In order to respect you, we never asked partially because, we were afraid you would rebel. We patiently waited for your trust and take the initiative to open up your heart to us. We waited for thirteen years until you brought someone home for Chinese New Year and yet you still didn¡¯t say anything.¡±

    Looking Gu Yu in the eye, Father Gu mmed the table with his hand and loudly demanded: ¡°Were you ever nning on telling us!?¡±

    Trembling, he was deeply touched. Gu Yu opened his mouth slightly to speak, but no words came out.

    Someone could only be patient for so long. Out of love and respect, his parents waited, and waited, and waited¡­. for the truth that Gu Yu thought he buried and kept secret for thirteen years. It wasn¡¯t any wonder that his Father was angry and upset.

    ¡°It wasn¡¯t like I wasn¡¯t going to say anything. I didn¡¯t want to take the risk before I thought the time was right¡­..¡± Gu Yu whispered.

    Father Gu was angry and ridiculed him: ¡°We watched you grow up; your thoughts and your feelings. Do you think your Mother and I wouldn¡¯t notice? ying mental games, do you think you are in control of everything? In the eyes of parents, you will always be a child!¡±

    Gu Yu lowered his eyes and weakly apologized: ¡°I¡¯m sorry.¡±

    A little emotional, the corner of Mother Gu¡¯s eyes was red. Watching how ufortable her son was, she immediately reached across Zhang Siyi¡¯s body, to pull on her husband¡¯s sleeve.

    Father Gu sighed helplessly. He regained his tea cup and lifted it to his mouth to drink. He steadily said: ¡°About your sexual orientation; we didn¡¯t know how long you intended to hide from us, so we tried not to put pressure on you.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°¡­¡±

    It¡¯s no wonder his parents never pressured Gu Yu about marriage. From the beginning, they knew the truth.

    Father Gu looked at Zhang Siyi¡¯s pale and frightened face and smiled at him. His tone rxed: ¡°It wasn¡¯t untilst year when Gu Yu returned home that we noticed a small change in him. A monthter, Zhang Siyi came to visit for Chinese New Year and we knew a seed was nted and growing¡­.. Anyway, you have found somebody to love and share your life with. Your Mother and I are very happy for you.

    Sparkling with the joy of eptance, Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi looked deeply into each other¡¯s¡¯ eyes. They could see their lives together sh before their eyes. As the dust settled, finally, their heartsnded in safe waters and had no need to feel afraid.

 Chapter 214: Fireworks

    <h4>Chapter 214: Fireworks</h4>

    ___________________

    Zhang Siyi saw Gu Yu beckoning him toe over. Zhang Siyi nervously looked around and got up, and walked around the coffee table to sit.

    Originally sitting beside him, his sister grabbed a cushion and sat on the floor, leaving a space for Zhang Siyi to sit. Once Zhang Siyi left his seat, with unspoken understanding, Gu Yu¡¯s parents closed the gap and leaned together.

    Gu Yu reached out to grasp Zhang Siyi¡¯s hand and guided Zhang Siyi to sit closely next to him. Gu Yu intertwined his fingers with Zhang Siyi as they both looked at Gu Yu¡¯s parents. With emotion, Gu Yu addressed his parents.

    ¡°Dad. Mom. I¡¯m sorry for concealing my sexual orientation for so long. It was rather immature of me. In this country, which focuses on the tradition of filial piety, I, as a gay man, can¡¯t be romantically involved with women to continue future generations. I¡¯m deeply ashamed for having hid this because I never expected you to understand and receive your blessing. I didn¡¯t thinking out would be so easy. What you said suddenly, makes me feel unbelievably happy. From the bottom of my heart, thank you very much. To have you as parents is the greatest asset in my life.¡±

    Although Gu Yu paused his quivering speech several times to recover his solemn tone, he courageously kept talking. His hoarse but serious voice was particrly dramatic against the musical background of the Spring Festival G.

    With their intertwined fingers, Gu Yu held Zhang Siyi¡¯s hand up and said: ¡°Let me take this opportunity to formally introduce you to the person I intend to spend my life with, Zhang Siyi.¡±

    Zhang Siyi looked at Gu Yu¡¯s Father and Mother. He was already feeling emotional over Father Gu¡¯s ¡®chat¡¯. Originally, he thought he would have a long drawn out battle with family in order to gain eptance for his rtionship with Gu Yu. Did he ever think it would be this easy? From the bottom of his heart, he followed Gu Yu¡¯s sentiments and took a moment to thank his parents: ¡°Uncle, Aunt. Thank you for your understanding!¡±

    Gu Yu nced at Zhang Siyi andughed: ¡°Why are you calling them Uncle and Aunt? They have already epted you, so call them properly.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Together, the familyughed out loud. Mother Gu had covered her mouth. Both parents narrowed their brows and looked back at Zhang Siyi expectantly.

    Having been introduced to the family like a young daughter-inw, Zhang Siyi was beet red. He was a little shy and tentatively called: ¡°Mother, Father.¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s Fatherughed loudly and the others followed suit. The tense air surrounding them evaporated. He patted Mother Gu¡¯s back and said: ¡°It¡¯s time for his Red Envelope.¡±

    Mother Gu reacted and immediately took out a Red Envelope from inside a clothing pocket and handed it to Zhang Siyi with a smile.

    Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi were very surprised. His parents even prepared a red envelope? It must have been determined a long time ago!

    Not sure if he should ept the Red Envelope, Zhang Siyi looked at Gu Yu. He gave Zhang Siyi a nudge and said with a smile: ¡°It¡¯s a parents¡¯ gift. Take it.¡±

    ¡°.......¡± Taking the Red Envelope, Zhang Siyi said thank you again. Although his heart was full of joy, he also felt guilty. In essence, he had quietly married himself off without his biological parent¡¯s consent.... Dad, Mom... Sorry! (& _ &)

    Gu Yu asked his dad: ¡°How could you have a Red Envelope ready ahead of time? Were you so convinced I was bringing home my lifetime partner?¡±

    Father Gu snorted then said: ¡°When you can worry about a pumpkin for so long, let alone a person, do you think I don¡¯t know about your head-strong personality? Once you make a decision, do you ever give up?¡±

    Zhang Siyi, Gu Yao: ¡°Poof!¡± The pumpkin !! (¨R¨Œ¨Q)

    Gu Yu: ¡°......¡±

    At this time, Gu Yu¡¯s Father seriously inquired: ¡°Does Zhang Siyi¡¯s parents know about this yet?¡±

    Head hanging low, Zhang Siyi felt even more guilty and answered with a no.

    Sighing, Father Gu pointed his finger at his son and shook his head: ¡°To go after Secretary¡¯s Zhang¡¯s son..... I really don¡¯t know who gave you the courage.¡±

    Gu Yu silently smiled at Zhang Siyi with eyes full of love.

    Feeling a little embarrassed, Zhang Siyi felt the need to exin: ¡°No. He didn¡¯t..... It was mutual. We are in love.¡±

    Rubbing Zhang Siyi¡¯s lower back, Gu Yu smiled.

    With some apprehension, Gu Yu¡¯s Father calmly asked Zhang Siyi: ¡°Are you the only child in your family? Although young peoples¡¯ concerns over love and marriage are less constrained then they used to be, you are with a man. Your parents are unlikely to ept it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was silent. Indeed, how many parents can also be as understanding as the Gu family?

    He scratched his head in wonder: ¡°I haven¡¯t really thought about when I should tell them.¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s father looked at Zhang Siyi sharply: ¡°If your parents object, will you regret being with Yu?¡±

    Zhang Siyi froze and immediately shook his head: ¡°No. If they opposed it, I would only regret being separated from him.¡±

    Assuring them both, Zhang Siyi held Gu Yu¡¯s hand tightly: ¡°I have decided to spend my life with Gu Yu.¡±

    Father Gu looked slightly worried. He nodded with a smile and said: ¡°I didn¡¯t expect someone as young as you would be so brave. No matter what their future attitude will be, remember that parents always want their children to be happy. All problems can be solved withmunication. If there is an issue, at least, you and Gu Yu have a permanent home here and safe haven.¡±

    Zhang Siyi felt hot and was almost moved to tears.

    Gu Yu whispered in his ear: ¡°We are no longer two against four, but five against two.¡±

    Not understanding what Gu Yu was talking about, Zhang Siyi sat silent and motionless, however after a few seconds, he quickly grasped his meaning and nodded in affirmation. Now that both Gu Yu¡¯s sister and his parents were on his side, Zhang Siyi was full of hope for the future.

    After everything was said and done, there wasn¡¯t anything else to gossip about and thus, Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu could rx uninhibited. The family watched the Spring Festival G happily. Since their rtionship wasn¡¯t a secret, they no longer had to hide their affection.

    Gazes with love and affection; you touch my hand; I rub your waist; feeling each other¡¯s warmth.... Feelings that have been bound for so long were suddenly liberated and as a result, an unhindered loving side was boldly disyed in front of the family.

    With their parents¡¯ eptance and understanding, good feelings saturated the air and everyone except for Gu Yao felt joyful. She, on the other hand, had to endure the newlyweds disy of affection for two days alone!

    In the middle of the program, Zhang Siyiughed wholeheartedly over a skit. However, Gu Yu didn¡¯t find it funny and they unknowingly bickered like a married couple.

    Since Zhang Siyi¡¯s opponent was Gu Yu, he didn¡¯t have much of a chance at winning. Sure enough, after a few words, Zhang Siyi was shut down.

    This kind of scene was familiar to Gu Yao in Haicheng. Typically, her brother was exceedingly refined and courteous to his elders, but the younger the person was, the more her brother¡¯s tongue was poisonous.

    It was the first time Father Gu witnessed his son bully Zhang Siyi. He couldn¡¯t help speaking up and try to educate his son: ¡°Yu, Zhang Siyi is younger than you so you need to take care of him more. He isn¡¯t rted by blood so you can¡¯t just bully him around, like your sister. You better be careful because one of these days, you will return home to an empty house and you will never find him.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°...¡± Why am I so bitter? _ (: 3 ¡¹¡Ï) _

    Zhang Siyi had already been sted by Gu Yu. Hearing Father Gu¡¯s deration suddenly, was like a downpour during a long dry drought. He almost jumped up from the sofa in excitement. He red at Gu Yu, silently saying: Did you hear? Don¡¯t bully me!

    Gu Yu saw Zhang Siyi¡¯s mischievous expression and raised his eyebrows in response. He grinned: ¡°Hmmm ...¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Oh shit! (= Ãó =)

    After a while, Gu Yu grabbed a mandarin orange from the coffee table and gently peeled it. He sectioned off a piece and raised his hand to give it to Zhang Siyi. Instinctively, since his attention was on the TV, Zhang Siyi opened his mouth to be fed and Gu Yu put it in his mouth.

    After a dozen pieces, Zhang Siyi asked in a small voice: ¡°Why are you feeding me something?¡±

    Gu Yu took a freshly peeled mandarin and said: ¡°Didn¡¯t my dad just tell me to take care of you? Eat more, Gu Yao has never been treated this way.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Watching their behavior, Father and Mother Gu began to worry again. When ites to love, why does it seem like their son acted like a kid from elementary school?

    Near midnight, Gu Yu gathered Zhang Siyi and Gu Yao to watch the fireworks together.

    Lighting off fireworks during New Year¡¯s has long been a distant memory for Zhang Siyi. When his grandfather was still alive, they would light fireworks during New Year¡¯s at his house. Later, when he passed and the family spent New Year¡¯s at home, it was strictly forbidden to light fireworks in the city. After spending time abroad for several years during the holiday, he hadn¡¯t had the chance to experience the fun of a traditional Chinese New Year with fireworks for a long time.

    Gu Yu went with Zhang Siyi and Gu Yao to the roof deck and at 11.55 at night, the surrounding night sky lit up with various fireworks.

    Zhang Siyi was ecstatic: ¡°I thought we couldn¡¯t lite fireworks off. I didn¡¯t bring any.¡±

    Gu Yu said aloud: ¡°It is like this every year for ten to twenty minutes around midnight.¡± Taking out a surprise, he revealed a few firework sticks called a roman candle: ¡°Come on, let¡¯s also celebrate.¡±

    Gu Yao and Zhang Siyi were very excited: ¡°Wow! Where did you get them?!¡±

    Gu Yu winked at them and mysteriously said: ¡°I asked a friend to buy them and had them hidden here.¡±

    Squealing in delight, the two walked over to grab the stick. He asked his sister: ¡°Can you really do it?¡±

    Gu Yao: ¡°Why can¡¯t I hold it? I¡¯m not a kid!¡±

    Gu Yuughed and said: ¡°So brave!¡±

    Right before midnight, Gu Yu lit the three roman candles and in a line, they pointed them up in the same direction. Gu Yao screamed in delight as a bright pink bloom shot out of the stick with a bang and flew up into the sky. Gu Yu firework stick was next and an orange bloom burst outrger than Gu Yao¡¯s. Zhang Siyi¡¯s held his roman candle steadily, but nothing happened.

    The roman candle only had ten shots. After watching five rounds burst out of Gu Yao¡¯s, Zhang Siyi spoke up: ¡°Gu Yu, did you lite mine? It¡¯s not working!¡±

    With his own fireworks in his hand, Gu Yu looked over at Zhang Siyi and wasn¡¯t sure if his was lit or not. Gu Yu moved over to stand behind him and while Gu Yu gave him the roman candle to hold, he wrapped his arms around Zhang Siyi waist then ced his hands back onto Zhang Siyi¡¯s hand¡¯s holding both sticks: ¡°Lets hold them.¡±

    As Zhang Siyi held the two roman candles, the closeness of Gu Yu breath tickled his ears. Together, they watched the fireworks shot out a bloom one after another. In his lover¡¯s arms, Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart warmed quickly.

    On a roof across the way, someone began to count down and shouted: ¡°Ten, nine, eight...¡±

    One after another, Zhang Siyi felt the pulse of the two roman candles shooting out a firework bloom. He shouted excitedly: ¡°Ahhhhhhhhh! It¡¯sing out now! ¡°

    A dazzling red and then a gorgeous purple burst forth and flew into the sky! Gu Yu followed the voices from rooftops and shouted: ¡°Seven, six, five ...¡±

    Gu Yao interjected sadly and said: ¡°Oh, darn. My firework is out.¡±

    Zhang Siyi continued the countdown: ¡°Four, three, two ...¡±

    In unison, they screamed: ¡°Happy New Year !!!¡±

    Watching the sts of the roman candle, Zhang Siyi was still giddy over the fireworks andughed. He was about to say something when he heard Gu Yu affectionately speak into his ear: ¡°Siyi, I love you.¡±

 Chapter 215: Bully

    <h4>Chapter 215: Bully</h4>

    __________________

    Zhang Siyi ears buzzed with shouts of ¡®Happy New Year¡¯ and he could feel the shockwaves of deafening bangs from the fireworks exploding all over the city through his body. At the sound of Gu Yu loving voice, his heart quickened.

    Stunned, Zhang Siyi felt numb and taking a minute to process what Gu Yu said, Zhang Siyi replied earnestly with all his heart: ¡°I love you too.¡±

    With their cheeks pressed together, from behind, Gu Yu held onto Zhang Siyi with interlocked arms and hands. They waited until Zhang Siyi roman candle was finished.

    Tonight, was like watching a meteor shower and as the fireworks slowly faded from the sky, Zhang Siyi had made a decision. He wasn¡¯t going to go abroad. Even if he was epted, he wouldn¡¯t go and stay with Gu Yy. He didn¡¯t want to be separated from him ever!

    Zhang Siyi heard Gu Yu¡¯s soft voice again: ¡°This year is your birth year, little monkey.¡±

    Chuckling, Zhang Siyi elbowed him: ¡°You are the monkey!¡±

    From the side, Gu Yao could see their interactions. With enough public disy of affection tost a lifetime, she turned away and urged them: ¡°It¡¯s finished. Let¡¯s go back inside before I freeze to death!¡±

    Downstairs, Father Gu and Mother Gu were listening to the end music of the TV program. When they saw them return, Gu Yu¡¯s Mother got up and pointed to the bedroom, indicating it was time for them to get to bed.¡±

    Father Gu sang with the TV and hummed the tune. He said: ¡±Happy New Monkey Year!¡±

    Since there was only one bathroom in the house, Gu Yao was first to wash up. Zhang Siyi followed Gu Yu into the bedroom and saw two quilts ready for use on the bed. Gu Yu spread them out.

    Mother Gu came inside and gestured to them. Even though Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t understand, he heard Gu Yu respond to her: ¡°It won¡¯t be cold. At night, Zhang Siyi is like a small stove.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    Mother Gu¡¯s cheeks were a little red. She made a sleeping gesture towards Zhang Siyi. This Zhang Siyi understood and he responded to her: ¡°Aunt ... uh no, Mother goodnight.¡± After correcting himself, he also flushed. Mother Gu smiled at him and touched his head, then left the room and closed the door behind her.

    Gu Yuughed at him. Zhang Siyi puffed up his cheeks in anger: ¡°What are youughing at?¡±

    Gu Yu used the same tone as Zhang Siyi and said: ¡°¡¯Mother Goodnight¡¯ ... It¡¯s so sweet .¡±

    Zhang Siyi was so angry that he started hitting Gu Yu and ultimately smacked him hard on the ass.

    Taking a deep breath, Gu Yu grabbed Zhang Siyi¡¯s hands and wrestled him onto the bed. Now that he had the advantage, he struck Zhang Siyi back three times.

    Protesting, Zhang Siyi shouted: ¡°Ow. Your father told you not to bully me!¡±

    Gu Yu pinned Zhang Siyi down and grinned at him: ¡°Are you in any shape toin!?¡±

    Father Gu wanted to catch them before going to sleep to say goodnight. As a result, he inadvertently heard everything while he was at the door to Gu Yu¡¯s room. Frowning, he wanted to tell Gu Yu to stop bullying Zhang Siyi so he raised his hand to knock. Before his handnded on the door, he stopped the motion. He had heard Zhang Siyi¡¯s soft moaning followed by his coquettish giggling. He heard him begging: ¡°Don¡¯t... Don¡¯t mess around. Tonight, we can¡¯t....¡± Finally, soft murmured voices and Gu Yu¡¯s happyughter emanated from the room.

    Although it was the first time to know his son reacted like a normal person in love, as an old straight man, Gu Yu¡¯s Father became red and helplessly turned away.

    After washing and getting into the bed, Zhang Siyi realized he hadn¡¯t told his parents Happy New Year yet.

    When he took out his mobile phone to open WeChat, there were already arge number of unread messages. He texted his mother with a New Year¡¯s greeting then visited her circle of friends on her social media page.

    His mother had posted a number of messages and photos from morning until now. From Ningcheng Airport, to Hong Kong Airport, to the airport in Mysia.... At each stop, she posted an affectionate picture with his father.

    They are acting like teens, Zhang Siyi thought. As he gave numerous likes to his Mother¡¯s posts, he felt relieved at how well his parents were doing.

    With his head on Zhang Siyi shoulder, Gu Yu snuggled close with Zhang Siyi and watched him use his phone. Gu Yu said with emotion: ¡°It turns out, social media obsession is hereditary.¡±

    ......Hey! (= Ãó =)

    In defense, Zhang Siyi retorted: ¡°I don¡¯t use it much now!¡±

    Gu Yu pulled on his ear and smiled: ¡°You should post more so I can look at it again when I feel like itter.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What¡¯s so nice about looking at my social media page? I eat and sleep with you every day. You already know everything about me.¡±

    Gu Yu softly replied: ¡°I won¡¯t know when you go abroad.¡±

    Caught off guard, Zhang Siyi hesitated for a moment, voiced a ¡®hmm¡¯ softly and looked down. He didn¡¯t dare tell Gu Yu that he had made up his mind and decided not to go.

    After going through his mother¡¯s posts, he looked at his inbox messages. He Chengtian had sent him a private message: ¡°Are you celebrating the New Year in Gu Yao¡¯s home?¡±

    ...... Ah, how did He Chengtian know?

    Zhang Siyi quickly looked through both circle of friends posting of the Gu siblings. Not only had Gu Yu posted, but Gu Yao also uploaded many photos of the evening meal that included him!

    He replied: ¡°Well, yes.¡±

    He Chengtian replied quickly: ¡°You aren¡¯t asleep yet? Happy New Year.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I¡¯m just getting ready for bed. Happy New Year! Have you returned to Ningcheng?¡±

    He Chengtian: ¡°Every year wee back for New Year¡¯s Eve. Why are you spending New Years at the Gu residence? Did you meet your Father and Mother-inw?¡± ¡ú _¡ú

    Since he really was formally introduced and epted, he had nothing to fear: ¡°Yeah, I did.¡±

    He Chengtian: ¡°...... The Gu Family is so open!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Next, it¡¯s up to you!¡± [Smirk]

    He Chengtian: ¡°Tell me Gu¡¯s address?¡± [Smirk]

    He turned his neck around to nced at Gu Yu behind him. Seeing Gu Yu¡¯s eyes closed, Zhang Siyi grinned widely and messaged He Chengtian: ¡°My friend, I can only help you get here!¡± [Smirk]

    ¡ª¡ªYou receive 500 from He Chengtian.

    He Chengtian: ¡°Take the red envelope. There won¡¯t be any problems!¡± [Smirk]

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...... ¡± Nouveau riche!

    He Chengtian replied: ¡°Things have evolved! [Smiles] By the way, what do her parents like? Give me some clues! ¡°

    Zhang Siyi took a few minutes to think about it seriously then replied: ¡°The family likes to drink tea. Sometimes Father Gu likes to drink sake. Mother Gu is really beautiful, but doesn¡¯t speak. Perhaps a scarf or something simr would be good.

    He Chengtian: ¡°What do you mean, she can¡¯t speak?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Literally, she doesn¡¯t. Regardless, they are very good people.¡±

    He Chengtian: ¡°Oh (¡Ño¡Ñ), I know, tomorrow, I¡¯ll learn signnguage on the inte......¡±

    When he saw He Chengtian¡¯s reaction, he gave him a thumbs up!

    On the first day of the month, Zhang Siyi went with the Gu Family to the countryside to visit a rtive. At their Grandfather¡¯s house, they ate lunch and headed home in thete afternoon. Gu Yu took Zhang Siyi to a nearby basketball court to shoot hoops for a while.

    Since they got all sweaty, when they got back to the house, they washed up andter the family gathered around to eat and watch TV.

    In the evening Father Gu beckoned Zhang Siyi over to y chess. Since Zhang Siyi lost every time, Gu Yuughed and teased him.

    Father Gu looked at Zhang Siyi with pity then gave a sideways nce at his son and sternly said: ¡°You are going too far. Siyi won¡¯t learn unless you teach him well.¡± When Father Gu said Zhang Siyi¡¯s first name, his tone changed and calmly rebuked: ¡°When you were a child I brought you with me to learn things. When did I ever make such a mockery of you?¡±

    Confidently, Gu Yu said: ¡°But I learned everything you taught me.¡±

    Father Gu: ¡°...¡± Is it lucky or unfortunate to have such a son? (£þ_£þ |||)

    Father Gu took a deep breath andmented: ¡°You can¡¯tugh at others just because you have a high IQ. It¡¯s wrong.¡±

    Gu Yu had the audacity to say: ¡°I don¡¯tugh at anyone. I justugh at Zhang Siyi.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± Go to hell !! (¨s¨FÃó¡ä)¨s¦à©ß©¥©ß

    Father Gu waved his hand impatiently to drive Gu Yu away then he addressed Zhang Siyi: ¡°Siyi, y with me. I¡¯ll teach you.¡±

    Gu Yu wasn¡¯t angry. He sat behind Zhang Siyi and looked over his shoulder with a smile. After a while, he couldn¡¯t stop himself from pointed out to Zhang Siyi what he needed to do. Annoyed at the intervention, Father Gu said: ¡°Aren¡¯t you supposed to be watching?!¡±

    Gu Yu raised his hands and surrendered: ¡°Okay, I won¡¯t say anything. See how much you can teach him.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡±

    The next day, Father Gu spent hours teaching Zhang Siyi how to y chess. Although he repeated the lessons many times with great encouragement and praised him for his progress, Zhang Siyi felt like he continued to y badly.

    When Gu Yu¡¯s father left to prepare dinner, Zhang Siyi felt depressed at how poorly he was at chess. In order to make himself feel better, he opened the Era of Music app and whizzed through some levels. Gu Yu sat beside him and watched.

    Zhang Siyi handed him the iPad. The umtion of the day¡¯s negativity began to take form and thus, Zhang Siyi vented his frustrations out on Gu Yu: ¡°Why are you ying like that? You are too slow and missing the rhythm.... Ha, you missed...... Come on, how can you miss again?¡±

    When the game ended, Gu Yu put the iPad down on the sofa. With a dark and defeated expression, he stretched out his ¡®magic w¡¯ then attacked Zhang Siyi¡¯s waist and tickled him mercilessly.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Ahh, ha-ha-ha.... Why are you tickling me...? Ha-ha...... Ahh-ha-ha..... Don¡¯t bully me just because you can¡¯t y well! ....aha-ha-ha... Why can youugh at me, but I can¡¯tugh at you... ahhh... help me!¡±

    Even though Father Gu was busy in the kitchen he could still see what was going on in the living room. He felt the scene was unbearable and with a vein popping out of his forehead he sternly said: ¡°You said not to interfere with our son¡¯s way of love, but look at him..... He isn¡¯t a child. How can he treat Zhang Siyi like that all the time!¡±

    Mother Gu put down the te she was holding and quickly took out a pen and small notepad from her pocket. She, smiled and wrote: ¡°Don¡¯t butt-in into our son¡¯s business. They have their own way of getting along. Maybe they are just having fun.¡±

    Father Gu: ¡°...¡±

    Unlike the kindness previously, that night at dinner, Father Gu watched Zhang Siyi with sympathy instead. He gave him several dishes and said: ¡°Siyi, here you go.... eat some more.¡±

    Zhang Siyi nodded happily and wondered...... Does he think I¡¯m too thin?

 Chapter 216: Big Brother

    <h4>Chapter 216: Big Brother</h4>

    ______________________

    On the third morning of Zhang Siyi¡¯s stay at the Gu residence, his vibrating phone woke him up. Half asleep, he reached over to the bedside table and nced at the phone. It wasn¡¯t even nine in the morning. When he saw the caller ID, he picked up the call.

    When the call was epted and before Zhang Siyi offered a greeting, He Chengtian immediately spoke: ¡°Are you still at the Gu¡¯s house? I¡¯m there.¡±

    His announcement woke Zhang Siyi up: ¡°What!? You¡¯re already here!?¡±

    He Chengtian: ¡°Yeah. I¡¯m just looking for a ce to park. I also brought a bunch of stuff. Heh.¡±

    Gu Yu heard him talking on the phone and frowned at being woken up then muttered: ¡°What is it?¡±

    Zhang Siyi hung up the phone and said: ¡°He Chengtian is here.¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s face sank and tly asked: ¡°How does he know our home address?¡±

    Feeling like he did something wrong, Zhang Siyi shrank his neck down and feebly replied: ¡°I told him.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°...¡±

    Since the unnned event disturbed Gu Yu¡¯s sleep, he was in a bad mood. Ten minutester, Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu were dressed and ready to go downstairs to meet their uninvited guest. Like a motionless dragonfly, Zhang Siyi hung back behind Gu Yu in silence.

    Gu Yu¡¯s parents were up early. His mother was in the kitchen preparing breakfast and his father was in the living room watching the news.

    When Father Gu saw the expressions of the two, he thought that Gu Yu was bullying Zhang Siyi again, and he immediately tightened his heart and asked: ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±

    Gu Yu said: ¡°A guest ising.¡±

    Father Gu said: ¡°Who is it?¡±

    Gu Yu gave a sideways nce at Zhang Siyi then told his father: ¡°Your future son-inw.¡±

    Father Gu: ¡°...¡±

    As he was talking, Zhang Siyi¡¯s mobile phone rang again. When Gu Yu nced at the caller disyed on the screen, he snatched the phone away and answered the call himself. He heard He Chengtian say: ¡°I rang the doorbell but no one responded. Come open the door! ¡°

    Likest time, the door bell was still broken and needed to be opened from the inside. Zhang Siyi encountered this hurdle when he camest year. This year it was He Chengtian¡¯s turn.

    Gu Yu rudely asked: ¡°Who asked you toe here?¡±

    He Chengtian: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu looked at Gu Yao¡¯s closed door and said: ¡°My sister isn¡¯t up yet. Wait downstairs.¡±

    He didn¡¯t wait for He Chengtian to answer. Instead, he cut him off by hanging up the phone.

    Gu Yu threw Zhang Siyi¡¯s phone back to him and walked straight to his sister¡¯s bedroom door. He banged loudly on it and shouted: ¡°Hey dead girl, are you up? Your fiance is here.¡±

    Gu Yu¡¯s mother heard themotion and came out of the kitchen to see what was going on.

    A few secondster, a shout was heard from Gu Yao¡¯s room followed by feet mming on the ground. Eventually, the door opening slightly. An unkempt face protruded from the crack of the door. Gu Yao, wearing pajamas, looked out: ¡°H.., he came? Where is he?

    Everyone: ¡°...¡±

    Gu Yu was really angry. He wanted to test his sister, but by her reaction he knew that she really was in contact with He Chengtian!

    ¡°Downstairs.¡± Gu Yu announced.

    Gu Yao was so frightened that she mmed the door closed and screamed: ¡°Don¡¯t let hime up!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°...¡±

    Father and Mother Gu looked at this wave of turmoil with nk expressions.

    ¡°What son-inw? What about a boyfriend? Is Yao Yao in love?¡± Father Gu couldn¡¯t believe it.

    Gu Yu turned to look at Zhang Siyi and said: ¡°Ask your new son.¡±

    Mother and Father Gu: ¡°...... ¡± What does this have to do with Zhang Siyi?

    Zhang Siyi was secretly watching the excitement. When Gu Yu pointed his finger at him, he became the center of attention and he nearly jumped out of his seat. Father and Mother Gu stared at him, imploringly. Scared, he immediately raised his hands in surrender and gave them an honest ount for the matter: ¡°This man is my childhood neighbor, He Chengtian. He is also a ssmate of Gu Yu. Now, his family is involved with city development and real-estate. Not long ago, when Gu Yao was being harassed at work, we happened to have bumped into him and I asked him for help. They seemed to have hit it off.....¡±

    Gu Yu snorted softly. His summarization was quite good.

    Mother and Father Gu didn¡¯t know whether they shouldugh or cry. Their hearts had road the peaks and valleys of a rollercoaster now that their son¡¯s ¡®big event¡¯ was settled. As for their daughter, even though she was at a marriageable age, they weren¡¯t anxious for her to leave home. This New Year, not only did their son bring home his lover, their daughter brought home her fianc¨¦. For a second time, a Gu child kept Father and Mother Gu in the dark.

    Now that the person who wanted to take his daughter away has arrived at the door of his home, Father Gu really wanted to see what this son of a bitch looked like. At the same time, he wasn¡¯t happy that his precious daughter was coveted by other men. As with Gu Yu, the contradiction in his mind upset him.

    Gu Yu¡¯s Father strolled to the kitchen and peered out of a small window that faced the entranceway of the building. Indeed, he saw a tall young man with arge bag standing downstairs.

    During this time of year, it was normal that the temperatures were below freezing. The side of the entrance faced north where the sun was blocked by the building¡¯s shadow. With the wind blowing, it must be particrly cold for He Chengtian to stand outside and wait.

    After some inner struggle, Father Gu¡¯s pragmatic reasoning prevailed. He waved at his son to go open the door and said: ¡°He is already here so what can you do? Let hime up and sit down first. It¡¯s Chinese New Year and you can¡¯t refuse guests.¡±

    Gu Yu looked up: ¡°What¡¯s the hurry? Yao Yao hasn¡¯t dressed yet and Zhang Siyi and I haven¡¯t brushed our teeth. Why should we let hime up so early? Is it so simple to get inside the Gu house? I told him to wait downstairs for a half an hour.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± The contrast of treatment between his wee and He Chengtian¡¯s roadblock made Zhang Siyi feel happy. (Ø£vØ£)

    Touching his chin, Father Gu thought his suggestion was very reasonable. After all, marrying a daughter was different from a son. The prospective boy even came to the door without saying a word of greeting so let him wait. Let¡¯s test his patience.

    Pretending to be calm, Father Gu sat back down on the sofa and picking up his teacup, he slowly and leisurely drank his tea. Watching TV, he spoke loudly to Gu Yu who was in the washroom: ¡°That boy.. was he your high school ssmate? What was he like?¡±

    Pausing, Gu Yu held his toothbrush and said: ¡°I didn¡¯t pay much attention to him before. Since his grades were worse than mine, he wasn¡¯t so impressive.¡±

    Father Gu chuckled. With a hint of pride, he said: ¡°You were always first. Who could score better than you?¡±

    Gu Yu spit out a mouthful of paste and put his toothbrush in the cup then said: ¡°Even though everyones¡¯ scores were less than mine, I remember him. His ss rank was closest to mine.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°...¡± .....Poor Brother Chengtian .....

    Father Gu: ¡°Besides his grades, what about his personality?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°He was quite popr and had a lot of friends.¡±

    In the interval between them washing and chatting, He Chengtian made another three phone calls to Zhang Siyi and pleaded him for help. In order to tell him to wait a bit longer, Zhang Siyi was going to send a message over WeChat. As he raised the phone and was about to type, Gu Yu took the phone out of Zhang Siyi¡¯s hands.

    ¡°....Talking to the enemy? You little traitor!¡± Gu Yu was fierce and scolded him. ¡°You are now Gu Yao¡¯s family. Whose side are you on!?¡±

    To show honest loyalty, Zhang Siyi made a gesture with his hands and said: ¡°I, of course, I¡¯m on your side!¡±

    .........I¡¯m sorry, brother Chengtian!

    Gu Yu confiscated his mobile phone for the time being. Coldly he said: ¡°If he isn¡¯t patient enough to wait, then he shouldn¡¯t be marrying my sister.¡±

    By the time they finished washing, Gu Yao was dressed and waiting. Under the multiple pairs of watchful eyes, she was embarrassed to look up.

    As the noisy and rapid knocking on the door broke the silence in the living room, everyone was startled. They heard He Chengtian loud, muffled voice from behind the door ask: ¡°Hello...? Is this the Gu residence? Hello? .....anyone home?¡±

    Gu Yao, who hadn¡¯t had time to wash her face, rushed into the bathroom in panic. Holding his teacup, Father Gu was sipping tea, unsure whether or not he should get up to open the door. Mother Gu was also hesitant, but ultimately started to move.

    Gu Yu waved his hand to stop them. He shouted to the door: ¡°Who is it?¡±

    As Gu Yu tookmand of the situation, his parents left him to it and didn¡¯t interfere.

    He Chengtian was surprised outside: ¡°It¡¯s me! He Chengtian!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Weren¡¯t you told to wait downstairs? How did you get up here?¡±

    He Chengtian: ¡°Ah, someone just came downstairs and let me in!¡±

    Gu Yu paced back and forth before going to the door and opening it. Instead of moving aside, he blocked He Chengtian froming inside.

    Panting, He Chengtian was carrying arge gift bag. His cheeks and nose were flushed red: ¡°Gu Yu, you are too much. I came to see your sister and visit your parents. Why didn¡¯t you let me in!?¡±

    Guarding the doorway, Gu Yu smiled: ¡°Who is my sister and who are my parents? Did my family agree to this visit on the New Year?¡±

    Knowing that he made a mistake, He Chengtian winced and immediately stated: ¡°I¡¯m here to pay my respects to your parents and offer a New Year¡¯s greeting! Gu Yu, old ssmate, please don¡¯t be so hard on me this holiday!¡±

    Gu Yu let out a ¡®hmm¡¯ then said: ¡° I¡¯m Gu Yao¡¯s brother and you don¡¯t even acknowledge me. Why should I let you see my sister?¡±

    He Chengtian put down his gift bag, clenched his fists and bowed: ¡°I¡¯ll call you brother, alright?¡±

    Gu Yu goaded him: ¡°What? I didn¡¯t hear you?¡±

    Feeling humiliated, He Chengtian wanted to beat someone up, but under the circumstances, he had to bow down. Since he hadn¡¯t yet made his proposal with Gu Yao official, he had neither standing in the family nor qualifications to refute. His ¡®big event¡¯ wasn¡¯t going toe so easily. Gritting his teeth and swallowing his pride, He Chengtian shouted: ¡°Big Brother!¡±

 Chapter 217: Son-In-Law

    <h4>Chapter 217: Son-In-Law</h4>

    ___________________

    As mischief shed in Gu Yu¡¯s eyes, his prank was clear: ¡°Ouch. Your voice is really loud.¡±

    When He Chengtian saw Gu Yu¡¯s expression on his face, he felt more frustrated than watching him take first ce every time. Although he said it, what would he have done if Gu Yu hadn¡¯t relented?

    Gu Yu looked at him with a grin and continued: ¡°I remember you when you were in high school. As president of the student council and president of the football club, you were very well known. Since you were a role model, the students looked up to you and called you ¡®big brother¡¯. What does it feel like to call me Big Brother today? Did it bother you?¡±

    When Zhang Siyi heard Gu Yu, he felt a bit puzzled. In the past, he had asked Gu Yu about He Chengtian, but Gu Yu had told Zhang Siyi that he had forgotten about him. Hearing these details, it seems he really did remember clearly, right?

    He Chengtian, this poor fellow wasbeled as ¡®not-so-great¡¯ when he was scored second all those years......Fuck! No one got better grades then me except you!

    As Gu Yao only recently acknowledged He Chengtian, he had her within his grasp. He came to the Gu residence to make it official. Naturally he didn¡¯t dare offend them so he simply lowered his voice, submitted and said: ¡°Please.¡±

    Gu Yu appeared to be very happy. His previous anger from being woken up early was resolved. However, he wasn¡¯t off the hook just yet and continued to block his way inside. Gu Yu continued: ¡°Now that you have called me Brother, I have a few rules I need to exin to you first.¡±

    He Chengtian:¡°......¡± (tÃót)

    He knew that this guy wasn¡¯t so easy to deal with !!!!

    With the shake of his head, Gu Yu said: ¡°Since you called me elder brother, then you must recognize it and abide by the family rules. From now on, you must respect your older brother and sister by listening to them carefully and doing what your told. Can you ept that?¡±

    He Chengtian: ¡°.....¡± What the fuck! (¨st Ãó t) ¨s¦à©ß©¥¨s¦à©ß

    Gu Yu smirked at him and said: ¡°Will you ept it?¡±

    While he answered ¡°Yes¡±, in his heart, He Chengtian burst into tears.

    Nodding in satisfaction, Gu Yu spoke: ¡° I¡¯ve watched Gu Yao grow up all her life and know she has been treated with great care. How will she be treated in the future? You think you know best, but you are an outsider. The care given to her by her family would naturally be better than yours. You have to be nice to my sister if you want to be treated favorably. The more she likes you moving forward, the higher your status will be in my mind. Got it?¡±

    He Chengtian looked up at the sky: ¡°I understand. I understand .....¡± How did his life end up in the hands of these two!

    Gu Yu turned and smiled at Gu Yao, who had finished washing: ¡°Did you hear it all?¡±

    Nodding, Gu Yao¡¯s face reddened. She was both grateful and moved by her Brother¡¯s protective nature.

    Gu Yu finally let He Chengtian inside to meet Gu Yao.

    Staring at the bullied He Chengtian, Gu Yao walked closer to the door awkwardly. She quietly said: ¡°You came.¡±

    ¡°Yao Yao¡± He Chengtian passed the Boss Mob and raised five levels. He finally saw his sweetheart. When he heard her, he almost knelt at Gu Yao¡¯s feet and cried. He came here to offer greetings for the New Year, but instead he was bullied by Gu Yu. Of course, he should have known better to think it would be so easy!

    From within the coat closet, Gu Yao pulled out a pair of slippers for him. She bowed her head as she ced them down and said: ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me that you wereing?¡±

    To see his girlfriend¡¯s shy smile, He Chengtian suddenly felt like all of the humiliation and suffering he went through was well worth it.

    After changing his shoes, he came inside to the living room. Gu Yao pointed to her father who was drinking his tea and introduced him: ¡°This is my father.¡±

    He Chengtian looked at Father Gu and respectfully addressed him: ¡°Uncle.¡±

    Next, Gu Yao pointed to the kitchen and introduced her mother: ¡°That¡¯s my mother.¡±

    Mother Gu smiled and nodded toward He Chengtian. He Chengtian was so surprised at her beauty that he gazed at her stupidly and called out: ¡°Mom .....¡±

    Breaking the tense atmosphere, Gu Yao smacked He Chengtian on the arm with her hand and scolded him: ¡°Is that how you treat someone you have never met!?¡±

    He Chengtian turned red and became panicked: ¡°Ah, Auntie!¡± The family burst intoughter. Father Gu wanted to remain calm and take a stand, but he couldn¡¯t contain hisughter. He Chengtian presented the gifts to Father and Mother Gu which included first-ss Pu¡¯er tea cakes, special second generation Da-Hong-Pao tea, Indonesian ¡®bird¡¯s nest¡¯ sugar treat, and a women¡¯s high-end Hermes silk scarf. At a nce, anyone could tell how valuable the gifts really were.

    While the Gu family chose to live modestly, they haven¡¯t been without exposure to such luxuries and as a result, they didn¡¯t bat an eye when He Chengtian presented them. Father Gu dug into his tea on the spot and opened the package to brew it, eager for its taste.

    Since there were still many hours before lunch time, He Chengtian sat with the family around the coffee table in the living room. While He Chengtian sat on one side, Father and Mother Gu sat opposite with Gu Yu standing nearby behind them. His sweetheart and Zhang Siyi happen to be sitting to the side. Suddenly, like a television crime drama, He Chengtian felt like he was about to be put on trial.

    Utilizing his experience as a businessmen and social status, He Chengtian quickly recovered from his initial uneasiness and was able to speak calmly. Soon, he was in deep conversation with Gu Yao¡¯s father.

    With Father Gu¡¯s experience and breadth of knowledge, through their conversation, it didn¡¯t take long for him to understand the background of the He family.

    On the outside, his appearance lead peoples to believe he was born and raised as a proper young master, but in fact, the origins of the He family and Gu family were fairly simr. Not only did they originally live in the same city, Gu Yu and He Chengtian were ssmates. Only after He Chengtian was in college did his family rapidly umte wealth by getting intond development and real-estate.

    It was evident through the way He Chengtian both conducted himself and navigated through the various topics of conversation that Father Gu knew He Chengtian was a good person. As a result, Father Gu¡¯s trepidation eased and he rxed.

    When He Chengtian excused himself politely to use the bathroom, Father Gu took the opportunity to ask: ¡°Does he know about Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi?¡±

    Gu Yao replied: ¡°Yes.¡±

    As soon as Gu Yao¡¯s father heard her answer, he was even more satisfied with He Chengtian. Originally, he worried over the possibility that a same-sex rtionship in the Gu family would cause problems for Gu Yao¡¯s marriage. He never would have guessed that the problem he feared, never existed. Young people eptance was much higher than those in the older generation.

    After He Chengtian returned to the living room, Father Gu sat with them for a while before getting up and going to the kitchen to help Mother Gu prepare lunch. The four juniors were left to talk amongst themselves.

    ncing at He Chengtian and Gu Yao, Gu Yu tried to mask his displeasure and asked tersely: ¡°When was it that you were officially together? I didn¡¯t get the chance to ask.¡± The authority that an elder brother normally wielded waspleted ignored by Gu Yao and it was for this reason why Gu Yu was feeling peevish.

    Gu Yao shyly said: ¡°New Year¡¯s Eve ...¡±

    Startled, Zhang Siyi opened his eyes in surprise: ¡± It was on New Year¡¯s Eve?¡± Weren¡¯t they with Gu Yao with on the day of New Year¡¯s Eve? The three of them were still setting off fireworks on the roof of the building together. How did he propose?

    He Chengtian smiled and looked at Gu Yu: ¡°Hey, speaking of which, I have to thank you.¡±

    Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi Looking at He Chengtian questioningly. .....What for?

    He Chengtian: ¡°Who told you two to be so affectionate in front of Yao Yao every day, making her feel even more lonely and thus, granting me an opening!¡±

    With puffed cheeks, Gu Yao reached out to pinch He Chengtian hard: ¡°So you only took advantage of the mood caused by my two brothers¡¯ announcement?¡±

    In pain, He Chengtian flinched but he was happy. He grabbed Gu Yao¡¯s hand, held it and soothed her: ¡°How did I take advantage? I already confessed to you long ago.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was dying of curiosity: ¡°So, what did you do?¡±

    He Chengtian: ¡°I set off some fireworks in the middle of the night and recorded a video for her.¡±

    Zhang Siyi eximed excitedly: ¡°Oh? Let me see!¡±

    As Gu Yao saw He Chengtian take out his mobile phone, she stopped him and said: ¡°Don¡¯t show it to anyone else!¡±

 Chapter 218: Genetics

    <h4>Chapter 218: Gics</h4>

    At the tone of her voice, He Chengtian became obedient and said: ¡°Ah, OK. If you say so.¡±

    Watching He Chengtian stuff his phone into his trousers, Zhang Siyi tried to coax him: ¡°Don¡¯t be so stingy Brother Chengtian! Its thanks to me that you are together. Good things are good to share.¡±

    Gu Yao stopped him and said: ¡°Unless you show us the video of your confession to my Brother too!¡±

    ¡°How did you know I made a video?¡± Zhang Siyi froze momentarily in surprise then snapped his head to Gu Yu and stared at him imploringly. He questioned: ¡°Did you tell her?¡±

    Gu Yu replied calmly as if it wasn¡¯t a problem: ¡°Didn¡¯t she ask you to y the violin for her before? Since I didn¡¯t let you y, I let her watch the video instead.¡±

    Zhang Siyi turned red. He was embarrassed and angry: ¡°That¡¯s not something to show to anyone else!¡±

    Gu Yu consoled Zhang Siyi and said: ¡°Well, I only let her see a short clip.¡±

    Shocked at the news, He Chengtian stared at Zhang Siyi: ¡°No way! I didn¡¯t think Zhang Siyi confessed to Gu Yu first!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± (= Ãó =)

    As the topic of conversation be more heated, Gu Yu stared at his sister and said: ¡°It¡¯s only been a few days since dating He Chengtian and you are helping him already. Have you forgotten about your brother so easily?¡±

    He Chengtian held Gu Yao¡¯s shoulders and said: ¡°Sooner orter we will be together. Isn¡¯t it only natural that she helps me?¡±

    Gu Yu grabbed a nearby triangle ruler and pretended to hit He Chengtian: ¡°You aren¡¯t married yet. Don¡¯t try to force my sister or I¡¯ll drive you out now.¡±

    Scared, He Chengtian immediately released his ¡®pig-groping¡¯ hands from Gu Yao¡¯s shoulders. Feeling wronged heined to Gu Yao: ¡°Howe your brother is always bullying me!¡±

    Gu Yao looked at He Chengtian and sighed: ¡°My brother also bullies me like this. You will get used to it soon enough.¡±

    He Chengtian: ¡°¡­¡­..¡± Holy shit! What kind of treatment is this? ording to the situation, he has no standing in the family at all!

    ¡­¡­

    From time to time, bursts ofughter could be heard in the living room. Father Gu quietly looked out of the kitchen to peek at the juniors in the living room. He saw Gu Yu pull Zhang Siyi onto hisp and whisper something in his ear causing Zhang Siyi to smile brightly. Across from them, the young man who just came was sitting together with Gu Yao. Both of them had sweet expressions on their faces.

    The four of them quarreled from time to time, but even so, clearly all of them were very happy.

    For another minute, Father Gu watched the scene with an indescribable feeling in his heart and couldn¡¯t stop himself from smiling. Returning to the kitchen, he continued stir-frying the vegetables. Feeling content yet with a sense of loss in his heart, he sighed and thought: ¡°The children are all grown up now¡­..¡°

    When Mother Gu heard her husband¡¯s sigh, she wiped off her hands then walked around behind him. From behind she gently wrapped her arms around his waist and slowly put her face on his back.

    Father Gu turned his head and jokingly said: ¡°What¡¯s left? An old husband..¡­.¡± Pausing halfway through his sentence, he saw his wife looking up at him. She raised her hand to stroke his head. With the palm of her hand, she wanted to tell Father Gu that he needn¡¯t be sad of the future. She will be there with him to experience the rest of their lives and grow old together.

    Moved, Father Gu was speechless; love for a wife, love for children, and happiness for a son and daughter. What else was there?

    After lunch, the four of them went to see a movie and in the evening, He Chengtian said his goodbyes before heading home.

    The next day, Zhang Siyi went home as well. His parents weren¡¯t back from vacation yet. As a result, before the end of the month, he went to his uncle¡¯s house to offer his New Year greetings and at the beginning of new month, he went with his uncle¡¯s family to visit distant rtives.

    After a week went by, Zhang Siyi¡¯s Father and Mother were expected to arrive home. The housekeeper officially returned to work.

    In order to reciprocate the Zhang family¡¯s good will over New Years, Gu Yu specifically prepared a few gifts for Zhang Siyi¡¯s parents. Since their rtionship was epted within his own family, he needed to seize every opportunity to make the Zhang family ept him as well.

    ¡°Ah, The Younger Gu is here! Come in and sit down!¡± Mother Zhang greeted him with delight at the door then inquired: ¡°Your sister didn¡¯te?¡±

    Gu Yu replied: ¡°She went out with friends.¡± Handing the gift box to Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother, Gu Yu smiled and formally greeted her. ¡°Auntie, Happy New Year. You were so kind preparing so many gifts for my family. My parents were rather surprised and a little embarrassed. They wanted me to return the favor.¡±

    Like a blooming flower, Mother Zhang smiled broadly from ear to ear: ¡°Our families are so familiar there is no need to feel embarrassed. Next time, your parents muste over for dinner so we can get to know each other.¡±

    Gu Yu said without hesitation: ¡°Okay.¡±

    Since Gu Yu attitude was so good, Mother Zhang became even more optimistic about the marriage between the two families. She warmly weed Gu Yu into the house and said: ¡°Don¡¯t mind the mess. We are unpacking right now from our vacation so our house is a little messy.¡±

    Sure enough, when Gu Yu went inside, he saw a huge, dazzling pile of things scattered about the living room.

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s parents were both happy and tired from their trip. While his mother grabbed her phone to show Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu her photos, she asked the housekeeper to brew some tea for them to drink.

    Gu Yu was patient while Mother Zhang scrolled through the photos. From time to time, hemented with pleasantries like, ¡®The scenery is really good¡¯ and ¡®Auntie, that dress color is very good on you¡­¡¯ At his words, Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother smiled even more.

    After hearing him, Father Zhang proudly said: ¡°It¡¯s not just the camera that captured her well. I taught her to pose.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother smiled and said: ¡°You¡¯re the best at it. ¡°

    Gu Yu nodded: ¡°Uncle has a good eye forposition.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­..¡± Whatposition? The aesthetic of a rural entrepreneur! Watching Gu Yu win the best actor award, Zhang Siyi snickered.

    In fact, Zhang Siyi has already seen the photos before as they were posted to his Mother¡¯s social media page. He had no patience to join in their conversation so he went over to the pile of stuff to see what his parents brought back.

    On the corner of the sofa, there was a bundle of something big leaning on it. Curiosity got the better of him and Zhang Siyi went over to touch it. He mumbled ¡®it¡¯s hard¡­¡¯ and then asked more loudly: ¡°Mom what the hell is this?¡±

    Mother Zhang put away her cell phone and came over then said: ¡°This is atex mattress!¡±

    ¡°What the hell is atex mattress?¡± Zhang Siyi tried to lift it, but it was quite heavy. ¡°How did you carry it around and bring it back? It¡¯s too heavy!¡±

    ¡°Why would we carry it? We hired a shipping agency to help us send it home,¡± Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother said as she searched for a pair of scissors. As she pierced the stic covering with the scissor and tore it open, thepressed mattress immediately expanded from within: ¡±Touch it! Isn¡¯t it soft? It¡¯s pure naturaltex.¡±

    Touching it, Zhang Siyi thought it really was soft: ¡°How much was this thing?¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother showed him a receipt: ¡°This amount.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Eight hundred?¡±

    Mother Zhang corrected him sternly: ¡°What are you looking at? It¡¯s eight thousand!¡±

    Zhang Siyi was shocked: ¡°Shit! Eight thousand for a mattress! It¡¯s so expensive?¡±

    Next to them, Zhang father exined: ¡°This mattress is very good. It¡¯s a natural product made of rubber sap and is good for your body. It¡¯s insting in the winter and cool in the summer.¡±

    Mother Zhang followed up with: ¡°Yes, you see, a third of your life is spent sleeping. It is important to have a quality mattress. What is 8000 when you sleep for a lifetime? In ten years, its just 800 a year.¡±

    Zhang Siyi squinted and said: ¡°Is this what the sales person told you?¡±

    Mother Zhang replied: ¡°Yeah.¡±

    Speechless, Zhang Siyi pressed his lips in a line then said: ¡°Did you guys get scammed?¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother smiled and chuckled: ¡°You don¡¯t know how happy it was to be able to buy and buy and buy! This time, your father was very generous. When I wanted to purchase something, nothing stopped me! Oh yeh, I also bought a 10,000-yuan crocodile leather belt for him!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­..¡±

    Rummaging through the suitcase, Zhang Siyi¡¯s Mother wanted to show the belt to him. Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t bear to look at it and said: ¡°Mom! Don¡¯t buy crocodile skin! A crocodile is a rare animal! No harm woulde to them if people didn¡¯t buy crocodile products! And this stuff is so expensive!¡±

    Zhang Father hummed: ¡°I told her not to buy it, but she bought it anyway!¡±

    Mother Zhang hushed her husband and said to Zhang Siyi: ¡°This belt was discounted. I got it for 1,800, hehe.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s mouth twitched: ¡°¡­ A fake, huh?¡±

    Mother Zhang red at him and proimed: ¡°How could it be fake!¡±

    Zhang Siyi touched his chin in thought and said: ¡°Well, whatever. At least it¡¯s made out of leather. Dad must look pretty cool in it.¡±

    Next, Zhang Siyi¡¯s Mother showed them all of their ¡®spoils of war¡¯ during the trip. Among them, she pulled out various luxury goods like clothing and jewelry, as well as consumables such as coconut sugar, durian crisps, and special coffee beans. When his mother pulled out more then a couple bags each, Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu sat dumbfounded.

    By the amount of stuff, they purchased, Zhang Siyi thought it was obvious they were taken advantage of. However, Zhang Siyi Mother didn¡¯t seem to care. She didn¡¯t want to regret missing the opportunity to shop while abroad.

    Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t stand it anymore. He didn¡¯t want to argue with his mother, so he tugged on Gu Yu and went upstairs: ¡°You haven¡¯t been upstairs, right? I¡¯ll take you to see my room.¡±

    Mother Zhang was busy: ¡°Yes. You show Gu Yu around the house. We have to hurry up and put things away. Tomorrow, father and I have to go to work.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Uncle and Aunt are very busy so you don¡¯t have to worry about me.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother responded with a smile and asked Gu Yu whether or not he wanted to stay for dinner. Since Gu Yu politely declined Mother Zhang invitation and as a result, she relieved the housekeeper of the day¡¯s duties.

    Zhang Siyi took Gu Yu into his room and closed the door before saying: ¡°My parents are too stupid. They were probably cheated out of money.¡±

    Gu Yuughed: ¡°The money they spent made them happy. Don¡¯t rain on their parade.¡±

    Feeling helpless, Zhang Siyi sat down on the bed and sighed: ¡°Well, I can¡¯t control what they spend their savings on. It¡¯s their money after all.¡± At least, being finically independent of one another, they didn¡¯t burden each other further.

    Looking around the room, Gu Yu noticed Zhang Siyi¡¯s room was twice as big as his. Even his bed was bigger. Teasing him, Gu Yu grinned and said: ¡° Little Emperor, your room is very nice.¡±

    Zhang Siyi yfully pulled Gu Yu onto his bed with him. Lying on their sides, with Gu Yu¡¯s arms wrapped around him, he nibbled on Zhang Siyi¡¯s earlobe and teased him: ¡°Now I know, being fooled is gic.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­.! ¡°

    Turning over and positioned in each other¡¯s embrace they kissed passionately. On his back and panting, Zhang Siyi gasped for breath and asked: ¡°Do you want to stay over tonight?¡±

    Gu Yu raised an eyebrow: ¡°For what reason?¡±

    Zhang Siyi raised his leg and wrapped it around Gu Yu waist, saying: ¡°Using your professional knowledge to teach me.¡±

    Laughing out loud, Gu Yu thrusted his hips towards Zhang Siyi¡¯s inviting posture: ¡°This expertise?¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s face flushed: ¡°I¡¯m talking about architectural expertise!¡±

 Chapter 219: Attributes

    <h4>Chapter 219: Attributes</h4>

    Gu Yu smiled then kissed his lips and said: ¡°After dinner, I¡¯ll teach you.¡±

    As Gu Yu¡¯s flirting enticed Zhang Siyi further, Zhang Siyi reached out to pull Gu Yu close. As their bodies pressed close together, they suddenly heard footsteps upstairsing closer to his bedroom door. Zhang Siyi¡¯s tender embrace turned into a forceful push. Frightened to death, Zhang Siyi stood up instantly and tried to calm himself.

    ¡°Sisi, are you there? Dinner is almost done.¡± As it turned out, it was only the housekeeper checking in. Once Zhang Siyi answered her, she went back downstairs.

    It was a false rm. Zhang Siyi let out a long breath that he was holding and went to lock the door. He must not let Gu Yu provoke him again.

    Gu Yu asked Zhang Siyi if he had any pictures from his childhood. Since his family told Zhang Siyi all about his ¡®ck history¡¯ and showed Zhang Siyi his childhood photos, Gu Yu wanted to see what Zhang Siyi was like as a kid.

    ¡°Yes!¡± Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t perturbed at all and immediately went to his closet to find a family photo album to show him. Since he was a cute child and didn¡¯t have any current image to protect, unlike Gu Yu¡¯s ¡®male-god¡¯ appearance, he didn¡¯t have any past baggage to burden him.

    Unexpectedly, as soon as he opened the closet door, with a ¡®plop-plop-plop¡¯, arge pile of haphazardly stacked books had spilled onto the floor!

    The color of Zhang Siyi¡¯s face changed and he wanted to block Gu Yu¡¯s view, but it was toote.

    Gu Yu stared at the fancy cover of a book with the title ¡®What to do about bing gay for the straight guy next door?¡¯ ¡­¡­ ¡°What is this? Is this your book?¡±

    Zhang Siyi pped his forehead and could hardly exin why there were gay romance books stored in his closet by his ¡®rotten-mom¡¯. He quickly defended himself: ¡°They aren¡¯t mine. They are my mother¡¯s!¡±

    As Gu Yu picked up the book that fell down and turned over to read, his expression brightened. He opened the book to a random page and took a moment to read. He looked up at Zhang Siyi with glee.

    Zhang Siyi quietly nced over and saw what he was reading ¡­.. ¡°As the smack of his ass reverberated in the silent room, he moaned. Was it pleasure¡­¡­? If you don¡¯t listen to me, I¡¯ll spank you more¡­..¡±

    ¡°Shit! Don¡¯t look!¡± Zhang Siyi face felt hot and he felt like he could explode. He snatched the book out of Gu Yu¡¯s hands and stuffed it back into his closet. He didn¡¯t want Gu Yu to get any more bed-y ideas!

    Gu Yu gazed at Zhang Siyi with interest and stated: ¡°So your mom likes this kind of y.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± (tÃót) Fuck! Why do I feel so ashamed!

    Gu Yuughed: ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me earlier?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Tell you what? Reality and this novel are two different things. My Mother still thinks of me and your sister as a future couple.¡±

    In thought, Gu Yu held his chin for a moment and said: ¡°This is different. If she can read these types of books, it proves she has a higher eptance of homosexuality. However, in order to draw your mother¡¯s attention away, we yed a trick on her.¡±

    Feeling distressed, Zhang Siyi said: ¡°Well, I also feel like my mother is nagging me more about your sister.¡±

    In order to temporarily give Zhang Siyi¡¯s parent¡¯s false hope and thus, wouldn¡¯t interfere with Zhang Siyi¡¯s love life, Gu Yu used his sister. Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know that all this was deliberately orchestrated by Gu Yu.

    However, the situation wasn¡¯t the same anymore. After experiencing the lessons learned from the Gu family, both of them have changed. The effect of the ¡®lie¡¯ was counterproductive because it would enhance intolerance. When the elders came to realize the truth, it may be even more difficult to ept because to them, the ¡®fantasy¡¯ was real. Instead, if they were straightforward to begin with, although the initial reaction might be difficult to bear, over time his parents could gradually change their opinions and ept reality.

    Gu Yu: ¡°Have you ever thought about when you will tell them?¡±

    Shaking his head back and forth Zhang Siyi despondently replied: ¡°I don¡¯t know. My parents and your parents aren¡¯t the same. It won¡¯t be so easy for them to ept our rtionship.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Shall we y it by ear and take is slow?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I guess. ¡°

    Gu Yu nodded his approval. Since Zhang Siyi was going abroad, this way was also good. Once abroad, other than video-calls, Zhang Siyi wouldn¡¯t have much contact with his parents and thus, giving them two years to slowly win their approval. Moreover, now that they knew Zhang Siyi¡¯s Mother¡¯s hobby, their ¡®tactics¡¯ had to change.

    Gu Yu turned to look at Zhang Siyi in the eye and seriously said: ¡°You have to find an opportunity to clearly articte your rtionship with my sister to your mother.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Well, won¡¯t she suspect something between us?¡±

    A glimmer of light shed in Gu Yu¡¯s eyes. He grinned and said: ¡°Exactly. It is to sow a seed of doubt.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    After Gu Yu exined the ¡®mission¡¯ to Zhang Siyi, it wasn¡¯t long before they ate dinner and afterwards, respectfully said his goodbyes to the family and went back home. After all, in addition to living nearby in Ningcheng, Zhang Siyi was a subordinate and there wasn¡¯t an appropriate excuse to stay overnight.

    As the Spring Festival holiday drew to a close, Zhang Siyi¡¯s father and mother went back to work. They only saw him when they returned home in the evening. Soon, while Mother Zhang started preparing his favorite dishes to bring back with him, she pestered him about his own return to Haicheng for work: ¡°When are you going back to Haicheng?¡±

    With his feet up on the cushions, Zhang Siyi was lounging on the sofa ying a game on his mobile phone. He casually replied to her inquiry: ¡°Next Monday. This time, don¡¯t make me bring so much back. I can¡¯t eat it all.¡±

    Mother Zhang: ¡°Since you are driving back, why not bring a little more? Are you still going back with Gu Yu and his sister?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Just Gu Yu.¡±

    Mother Zhang wondered: ¡°What about Gu Yao?¡±

    Zhang Siyi solemnly said: ¡°Gu Yu and I have an annual break that¡¯s longer than hers. She¡¯s already returned to work.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother frowned: ¡°Then why didn¡¯t you go back with her? You are home idle anyways.¡±

    Zhang Siyi debated: ¡°You should be happy that I stayed at home with you for two more days. Why are you trying to drive me away!?¡±

    Mother Zhang smiled: ¡°I¡¯m happy that you are home, but Gu Yao is a young woman. How can she go back alone during the peak travel times? Is her brother not worried?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Hey, it¡¯s none of our business. Besides, Gu Yao had someone else to return to Haicheng with.¡±

    Mother Zhang¡¯s interest was piqued: ¡°Who went with her?¡±

    Zhang Siyi tly stated: ¡°Her boyfriend.¡±

    Surprised, Zhang Siyi¡¯s Mother jumped up and eximed: ¡°What!? Gu Yao has a boyfriend!?¡±

    Zhang Siyi shrank his neck and felt a little guilty. He immediately responded and said: ¡°She¡¯s so smart, and cute. Why can¡¯t she have a boyfriend?¡±

    She couldn¡¯t hide the look of surprise on her face. Not wanting to believe what she heard, as if seeing him for the first time, Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother stared into his eyes. In her mind, the meaning of life was greatly destabilized.

    Gu Yao and Zhang Siyi are so well matched. If these two children aren¡¯t in the Gu family¡¯s radar, then why would they invite Zhang Siyi over to celebrate Chinese New Year? Why is Gu Yu so good to Zhang Siyi?

    Mother Zhang inquired further: ¡°When did she get a boyfriend?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Recently. Her boyfriend is He Chengtian.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother frowned: ¡°He Guoliang¡¯s son?¡±

    ¡°Yeah, our former neighbor. Now, they live in Haicheng. Last year, when I attended Qu Xiaomiao wedding, I bumped into him.¡± Watching his mother turn paler and paler, Zhang Siyi felt even more guilty. He didn¡¯t have the nerve to tell her that he personally set them up. Instead he said: ¡°Hey, I already told you before that we are just friends, but you never believed me.¡±

    Sitting on the couch with a nk face, Mother Zhang¡¯s heart cooled down a bit. She remained silent for a long time before quietly asking, half to herself: ¡°Is it because our family¡¯s economic conditions aren¡¯tparable to that of the He Guoliang¡¯s family?¡±

    Listening to his mother¡¯s self-reproach, Zhang Siyi choked up. Anxious to justify the situation, he quickly defended her: ¡°No Mom! Gu Yao isn¡¯t such a shallow person!¡±

    Mother Zhang looked up at her baby boy and sadly said: ¡°But you are so good. Why doesn¡¯t she like you?¡±

 Chapter 220: Admission

    <h4>Chapter 220: Admission</h4>

    Since he really wanted to tell his mother, Zhang Siyi almost blurted out: Because I love her brother! You old rotten women, how can you not see it!

    But how could he dare? Watching his mother¡¯s heartbreak simply because he wasn¡¯t with Gu Yao greatly impacted Zhang Siyi. He really didn¡¯t want to hurt his mother¡¯s feelings. As long as her smile could be restored, he was willing to sacrifice himself, but he would never sacrifice Gu Yu. He loved him so much, Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t willing to let him get hurt.

    After all, the precarious situation could go either way, good or bad. Zhang Siyi sighed, moved closer to hug his mother, and said, ¡°Ms. Zhang, why do you feel so bad? Your son doesn¡¯t like Gu Yao.¡±

    Ms. Zhang was amused by Zhang Siyi¡¯sforting deep tone. Pleased at how much her son had matured, she smiled and said: ¡°She is such a good girl. Why are you so picky?¡±

    Holding her gently, Zhang Siyi slowly shook her: ¡°Now I¡¯m picky? I want to find the person that I like for myself. Why should I allow someone else to choose for me?¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother bopped Zhang Siyi on the nose: ¡°Oooh, talking so big. Then what type of person do you like?¡±

    As he thought about it, Zhang Siyi remained next to his mother. He started to exin slowly: ¡°Tall. Gu Yao is a bit too short.¡±

    Mother Zhang squinted: ¡°How tall are you? Just one meter seven, right? When a girl wears high heels, she will match you well. You don¡¯t want her to be too tall.¡±

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t rebuke her. Instead he continued: ¡°I hope my future half works in the same industry as me so we have something inmon.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother also didn¡¯t agree: ¡°Friend or enemy? What¡¯s to keep you from fighting over who is right.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was annoyed: ¡°Am I choosing or are you?¡±

    Mother Zhang coaxed him: ¡°Ok, Ok¡­ you pick¡­. Keep talking.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°They also have to be smart, wise and confident.¡±

    ¡°Find a smart woman and you won¡¯t die from over eating¡­..¡± as a disapproving expression formed on Zhang Siyi¡¯s face, his mother turned and smiled at him: ¡°Well, a smart person will be good for you. You silly child, they will be able to help you take care of everything well. As long as she loves you, there won¡¯t be any problems.¡±

    ¡°Hey¡± Zhang Siyi said then smiled. ¡°They also have to look good; smooth skin, straight nose, big eyes, slender fingers¡­.¡±

    Hearing his description of his ideal person, feeling sorry for her son, Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother turned to look him in the eye and solemnly shook her head.

    Not taking it seriously, Zhang Siyi snorted. He bowed his head and added: ¡°And I don¡¯t like children very much. I¡¯m not interested in having them in the future.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s motherughed at him: ¡°You are still a child yourself. How could you possibly know what you want in the future? Your thinking will change after another ten years.¡±

    Zhang Siyi pouted: ¡°Then wait ten years to ask me again.¡±

    Maybe by then, homosexuality will be more open. Surrogacy and adoption were always possible. Anyways, there is always a way if one wanted.

    After listening, Mother Zhang summarized his description with a finger on her cheek: ¡°A tall, beautiful person that is smarter than you and working in the same profession¡­.¡± She reached out and poked her son¡¯s head: ¡°Zhang Siyi, wake up! Stop dreaming ande back to reality!¡±

    Zhang Siyi raised his hand to block his Mother¡¯s finger and debated: ¡°But what if I actually found a person like that?¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother sneered: ¡°Come and show me. I¡¯ll be here waiting.¡±

    Feeling angry Zhang Siyi pursed his lips together in a straight line. If not for the fact that Gu Yu was a man, he would be able to tell her now and prove he wasn¡¯t dreaming. What would she say then!

    A few dayster when it was time to return to Haicheng, Gu Yu came to Zhang Siyi¡¯s house to pick him up.

    Despite Zhang Siyi¡¯s protests, Mother Zhang still prepared a bunch of delicious food for them to take. Gu Yu got out to help him pack everything into the car. Mother Zhang politely thanked him again, however, she no longer looked at Gu Yu as a future inw.

    As they settled into the car, Zhang Siyi¡¯s Mother stood outside the ss window, said her goodbyes and reminded them to drive safe.

    Zhang Siyi waved his hand impatiently: ¡°I know, Mom. You can go inside now.¡±

    Sitting in the driver¡¯s seat, Gu Yu reminded Zhang Siyi to fasten his seat belt, however, since he was busy talking to his mother, he hadn¡¯t drawn the belt. As a result, Gu Yu leaned over him, reached for the belt strap and pulled it across hisp then buckled it for him with a ¡®click¡¯. As he straightened up, he rubbed Zhang Siyi¡¯s head,ughed and said: ¡°What¡¯s the matter with you, you can¡¯t fasten a seatbelt?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    As Gu Yu finished, he leaned down onest time to look at Zhang Siyi mother through the car window and waved goodbye and said: ¡°Take care Auntie, we¡¯re off.¡±

    It took a moment for Mother Zhang to came back to her senses. She hurriedly said: ¡°Oh, ah¡­ call me when you arrive safely!¡±

    Now that they were out of view, Zhang Siyi breathed a sigh of relief. He was uneasy and wanted to scold Gu Yu: ¡°What did you do that for? It was too ambiguous!¡±

    Gu Yuughed: ¡°Did you see your mother¡¯s expression change? That was funny.¡±

    When Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother saw their interaction, her eyes suddenly widened with a burst of knowledge at the rather intimate scene she just witnessed. Her expression wasn¡¯t suspicion or anger, but inquisitive and curious.

    Zhang Siyi was speechless. Was Gu Yu treating his mother like she was an experimental subject?

    He took the opportunity to tell Gu Yu about the conversation he had with his mother about his ideal type. Gu Yuughed and said: ¡°Rx. It won¡¯t be too difficult toe out to your mother in the future.¡±

    While encountering a traffic light, Gu Yu stepped on the brake and was listening to Zhang Siyi mutter to himself: ¡°Technology will be more advanced in ten years. Maybe it will be possible for men to get pregnant and have kids too.¡±

    Releasing the wheel momentarily with his hand, Gu Yu smacked Zhang Siyi on the back of his head. He couldn¡¯t stopughing: ¡°Fool, what are you thinking about!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    Gu Yu teased him: ¡°You want to have a baby for me?¡±

    Zhang Siyi straitened his neck and replied: ¡°Get out of here! You will have the baby for me!¡±

    Gu Yu smirked at him and said: ¡°With our positions? Who do you think will be the one giving birth?¡±

    Zhang Siyi was irritated and was about to blow his top, but suddenly remembered something. He teased Gu Yu: ¡°I heard someone ate a strange pumpkin as a child and was waiting for a son.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°¡­¡±

    Seeing Gu Yu¡¯s deted expression, Zhang Siyi felt so triumphant and refreshed that he wanted to look up at the sky and cackle with glee. Finally, Gu Yu was caught speechless and it felt great!

    Unexpectedly, his triumphant exuberance onlysted for a few seconds because Gu Yu had said something else: ¡°Ah maybe, the pumpkin seeds have already been shot into your stomach.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± Bastard! !! !! (¨s¨FÃó¡ä)¨s¦à©ß©¥©ß

    ***

    At the end of February, they returned to work and at the same time, Zhang Siyi began to pay close attention to his e-mail for eptance letters as it was about the time many foreign Universities responded to applicants. Although he had decided to stay with Gu Yu, he was excited to hear back from them non-the-less. After all, being epted into a Master¡¯s program was proof of his ability.

    On March 3 at 6 pm and 10 am UK time, Zhang Siyi received the first e-mail correspondence ¨C Big-C University ¨C unconditional admission notice!

    ¡®Unconditional¡¯ meant that he could go to the university without any further submission of work. Even as a foreign undergraduate, he no longer needed to submit proof ofnguage proficiency. In addition, since he had enough post graduate working hours, there wouldn¡¯t be any gaps that would impact his course work.

    Less than a weekter, on the night of March 9, Zhang Siyi received another admittance e-mail from Big-B University. It was also an unconditional admission.

    Zhang Siyi was overjoyed at the news, but due to his own decision to stay, he couldn¡¯t express his joy with Gu Yu. For the first time, he got himself into a huge contradiction of happiness versus pain.

    There was only one more University to hear from which was the most prestigious. Now, Zhang Siyi wanted to be rejected because of his desire to stay. For if he was admitted, he would have to face an even more difficult decision.

    Coincidence or not; Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know, but that night, as if Gu Yu was psychic, he suddenly wanted to know about the status of his applications: ¡°Has any of the schools replied to your application yet?¡±

    Panicking internally, Zhang Siyi tried to remain calm said nonchntly replied: ¡°Ah? I don¡¯t know. I haven¡¯t checked email.¡±

    ¡°It¡¯s March. Didn¡¯t you say before that foreign schools begin their enrollment now?¡± Gu Yu asked then quipped: ¡°Or was it that your ipetency showed up and they turned you down?¡±

    Even though Zhang Siyi was pretending to be calm, he broke out in a cold sweat and answered: ¡°If I get rejected, then I¡¯ll be able to stay with you.¡±

 Chapter 221: Concealment

    <h4>Chapter 221: Concealment</h4>

    Unlike Zhang Siyi¡¯s imagination, Gu Yu wasn¡¯t moved by his words. Instead, he appeared to be displeased.

    Last December, with excitement and determination, Zhang Siyi was in a rush toplete his application, but now, he seemed unconcerned. Since applying to a Master¡¯s program wasn¡¯t a simple matter, being epted was worthy of celebration. Gu Yu thought Zhang Siyi would be more concerned over the oue and since he wasn¡¯t, did Zhang Siyi think he would be rejected?

    Actually, Gu Yu sensed something wrong with Zhang Siyi recently. He thought perhaps, Zhang Siyi was feeling depressed because his results were negative. He wanted to make a joke about it to lighten the mood andfort him. However, he didn¡¯t expect Zhang Siyi, with his usual quick to anger personality, be unreactive. It made Gu Yu feel particrly strange.

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t want his outward expressions to reveal anything to Gu Yu so he quickly moved into Gu Yu¡¯s arms, hiding his face. He joked: ¡°Didn¡¯t you say before that you were afraid I would run off with someone else while we were apart? If I don¡¯t go, you should be happy, right?¡±

    Stroking his head, Gu Yubed fingers through Zhang Siyi hair and said: ¡°I gave that example just to exin my sister¡¯s concern, not my concern. Of course, I want to trust you¡­.¡±

    After Zhang Siyi lifted his head and looked up at Gu Yu, Gu Yu tilted his head and gave Zhang Siyi a tender kiss on his forehead. He continued: ¡°I told you to leave these problems for me to solve. You just need to concentrate on what you need to get done. Now that you have made the decision to get a Master¡¯s degree, you must work hard to achieve it. Don¡¯t keep needlessly changing your mind.¡±

    Zhang Siyi tightened his arms around Gu Yu¡¯s waist. Since he didn¡¯t know what to say, he only managed to reply with ¡®hmm¡¯. In his heart, he cried: but now, I want to stay!

    Once Gu Yu discovered the truth, he would insist on Zhang Siyi going abroad and thus, Zhang Siyi wanted to keep it a secret no matter what.

    Fortunately, thepany has been very busy since the holiday, so there wasn¡¯t free time to dwell on the status of the applications. The design department began work on multiple new projects at the beginning of the New Year and Gu Yu has recently had to travel back and forth for various business trips.

    Zhang Siyi also wasn¡¯t idle. For thetest project, he served as a team leader and for the first time, had four members in his group to manage. Enjoying his step forward, he adjusted his mindset and put the regret of not studying for RIBA part 2 behind him.

    His initial excitement from being epted quickly faded. Since thest University to send a notice hadn¡¯t corresponded with him about his application for a long time, Zhang Siyi thought Big A didn¡¯t intended to admit him. As a result, he gradually lost heart and forgot about it. In addition, Gu Yu hadn¡¯t brought up the topic again. Because his regret hadn¡¯t festered for a long time, the emotional stress wasn¡¯t severe and thus, didn¡¯t cut deep.

    Busy as a bee, time flew buy and already spring was around the corner. The beginning of April is the time when everything starts to sprout back to life.

    At his desk one morning, Zhang Siyi received a phone call from a client confirming he received the necessary details that was requested via email about the current project. When he opened his mailbox to check, while the new material wasn¡¯t present in his inbox, instead, there was something else that immediately caught his attention. Zhang Siyi was shocked.

    Since he recognized the address of the sender, he immediately opened the message. There was an extremely eye-catching word as the header: Congrattions¡­¡­

    Reading the message, his heart quickened suddenly. The pounding in his chest got louder and faster, making him break out in sweat and his brain freeze. As the realization of the message sunk in, his excitement grew, and he became detached from the present. An urgent voice on the phone brought him back down to earth: ¡°Hello? Mr. Zhang? Are you there?¡±

    Out of his reverie, Zhang Siyi coughed and quickly resolved the client¡¯s phone call and hung up. He opened the link in the notice and read the full statement, word by word, several times.

    Holy shit! He was epted! (=¿Ú=)

    Oh My God! What to do!

    He was admitted to the Big A University¡¯s RIBA Part 2 course!!! ~ \ (¨R ¨Œ ¨Q) / ~

    Aah! aah! aah! aah!¡­¡­

    However, even though he had terrific news, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t express his excitement to anyone. He looked around to check if people had seen him. Everyone was focusing on their own work so no one had seemed to notice. Gu Yu wasn¡¯t in the office as he was away on a business trip in Tianjin for another two days.

    It took a great deal of effort for Zhang Siyi to suppress his desire to scream in excitement. At noon, using the bathroom as a private space, he rushed into a stall, sat down on top of the toilet seat and grabbed his mobile phone from his pocket. He sent his friend, Fu Xinhui, a message.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Aaaah! Heartless Han!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Where are you!?!?!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I got epted to the RIBA part 2 program at Big A University!!!!!¡±

    With a string of exmation points, it wasn¡¯t long before Fu Xinhui replied to Zhang Siyi¡¯s message. He followed up with a statement: ¡°No way! That¡¯s awesome!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!!!¡±

    Through the texts, Fu Xinhui could tell just how excited Zhang Siyi was. He replied cheerfully: ¡°Will you go this year? When are you nning to leave?¡±

    Reading Fu Xinhui¡¯s message, Zhang Siyi was woken up from his dream and couldn¡¯t prevent himself from feeling sad: ¡°I don¡¯t intend to go.¡± [Cry]

    Fu Xinhui was surprised: ¡°What!? Why not?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Well¡­ I don¡¯t have the money¡­.. sniff.¡±

    Of course, he couldn¡¯t tell him the real reason was because he didn¡¯t want to leave Gu Yu behind. Although theck of money was one reason, if he told him the full truth, Zhang Siyi thought Fu Xinhui would ridicule him.

    Even though Gu Yu offered to support Zhang Siyi on his endeavor, Zhang Siyi felt like the sum of money was putting too much of a burden on Gu Yu¡¯s shoulders. He continued to feel it wasn¡¯t appropriate.

    Moreover, even though getting a Master¡¯s was a method of quickly improving themselves in a short period of time, Zhang Siyi also understood the fact that it wasn¡¯t necessary to go abroad to grow professionally. With careful consideration based on his own ie and needs, he thought he was making the most mature and practical decision.

    Fu Xinhui hurriedly said: ¡°It¡¯s a bummer that you can¡¯t afford it!¡±

    Zhang Siyi was depressed: ¡°I can at least afford the application fee!¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°¡­¡±

    However, Fu Xinhui has been friends with Zhang Siyi for a long time and knew how head-strong he was. Zhang Siyi always tried to solve his problems by himself. He wouldn¡¯t even ask his parents for help with his finances.

    After a moment of silence, Fu Xinhui said: ¡°It¡¯s such a pity to let this good opportunity go to waste. Unfortunately, I don¡¯t have a lot of money right now otherwise I would invest in you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was moved to tears. Even though they have been separated for a long time, Fu Xinhui¡¯s words of support let Zhang Siyi know how special of a friend he truly was.

    Zhang Siyi replied: ¡°Don¡¯t say that. I couldn¡¯t help you when your family had the ident.¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°You helped me with my dog! Heh!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°That doesn¡¯t count!¡±

    Still in the bathroom, Zhang Siyi continued to chat with Fu Xinhui to catch up with the respective news in their lives. Even though he felt better after talking to someone, the excitement of being epted didn¡¯t subside. Soon, Gu Yu returned home from his business trip and from time to time, saw the joyous and proud expression sh on Zhang Siyi¡¯s face. Even when doing mundane things, like taking off his shoes, Zhang Siyi would unexpectedlyugh in delight.

    Naturally, Gu Yu picked up on Zhang Siyi¡¯s emotions. For the past two weeks, he had been waiting for Zhang Siyi to tell him the reason, but he said nothing about it. Knowing that his lover was hiding something from him, Gu Yu felt very ufortable.

    However, he knew he couldn¡¯t say anything because he himself also made a calcted decision and hid something from Zhang Siyi. The problemy with Zhang Siyi¡¯s acting skills; they were toome! Even though he didn¡¯t say anything, his bodynguage was broadcasting: I-have a-secret-soe-and-ask-me-about-it.

    After two more days, during lunch break, Gu Yu exited his office and saw Zhang Siyi¡¯s desk empty with hisputer still on. He must have gone with his colleagues to eat lunch. Deciding quickly, he went to Zhang Siyi¡¯sputer and tapped the keyboard, used the mouse and selected his mailbox. Sure enough, this little fool let the browser auto-fill his name and password.

    Even Gu Yu admitted his method was a bit despicable. However, how could his sweetheart y a game with this old fox? When the mail opened, he quickly scanned it and not surprising, all three universities sent Zhang Siyi a letter of eptance!

    The corners of Gu Yu¡¯s mouth rose while he wondered. Why hadn¡¯t Zhang Siyi told him about it? Was he also waiting until April 18th to tell him the good news? Yes, that day was their one-year anniversary from the time Zhang Siyi yed the violin and confessed. Gu Yu also had a secret to tell Zhang Siyi.

    With the warm expectation in his heart, Gu Yu smiled broadly. He felt excited over the prospect. He shut down the webpage and left his desk how it was as if no one tampered with it. He wasn¡¯t in a rush to expose Zhang Siyi and regarded the news as if nothing had happened.

    What Gu Yu didn¡¯t know, was that Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t going to tell him about it at all. Zhang Siyi worked very hard to suppress his joy and continued to pretend to be depressed.

    During the weekend, Gu Yu went on another business trip and since Gu Yao has been dating He Chengtian, she has gone out every weekend with him and thus, hadn¡¯t been home. Zhang Siyi was left home alone with the dog.

    Laying on the coach and facing an empty living room, he sighed and sighed, like the loss of a first love. After all, because he wasn¡¯t a good liar, Zhang Siyi had been torturing himself all month long.

    He was flipping through an architectural book to pass the time when he heard someone knock at the door. Zhang Siyi got up to open it and see who was there. The post came to deliver a registered letter.

    The postman asked: ¡°Does Gu Yu live here?¡±

    ncing at therge envelope that was encased in stic in the mailman¡¯s hand, Zhang Siyi was startled momentarily then nodded: ¡°Yes. I¡¯m his roommate.¡±

    The postman asked: ¡°Is he in?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°No. He¡¯s away on a business trip. I¡¯ll sign for him.¡±

    Only when Zhang Siyi showed the postman his ID card was he allowed to sign and collect the envelope. Holding it hand, he brought it into the living room. As he walked, Zhang Siyi was trying to send a text message to GU Yu about it. However, when he saw the address, he stopped what he was doing¡­. From Big-A University in Ennd?

    Zhang Siyi was stunned silly. His thoughts were a mess¡­¡­ Wait, was this letter meant for me? Did I make a mistake on the application so it¡¯s addressed with the wrong name?

    No. Foreign schools will only mail formal eptance letters when the prospective student confirms their enrollment. That way, their spot could be filled by another applicant. If they don¡¯t reply by a certain deadline, the institution automatically withdraws the admission.

    Since Zhang Siyi hadn¡¯t responded to any of them so far, it was impossible for him to receive a formal letter of eptance on paper.¡­¡­ So, what¡¯s going on with this letter? Was it really mailed to Gu Yu?

    Zhang Siyi was really puzzled and wanted answers. He couldn¡¯t stop himself from getting a scissor and opening up the envelope carefully. He removed the outer envelope and looked at the folder inside.

    Arge ck and white logo was printed on the smooth, glossy cover. As his fingers gently stroked the front page, Zhang Siyi¡¯s whole body felt excited. His blood was boiling and at this moment, he firmly believed that the letter was sent to him. Gu Yu¡¯s name was just an error.

    With this in mind, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t wait to tear open the inner envelope. From within, he pulled out a thick packet of papers with an admission announcement on the front page.

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª¨C

    Mr. Gu Yu

    Yuanshan Garden, Haicheng

    A. R.xxxxx

    12march2016

    ¡ª¡ª¡ª

    To his surprise, the notice was clearly addressed in pinyin to Gu Yu. Unmoving, Zhang Siyi stared wide-eyed at the name of the addressee and as if the sound of arge copper bell animated him, he reacted. It really was an admission notice for Gu Yu!

    Capturing the important points of the letter, he quickly read through the body of the text. Essentially, it was an eptance letter to a professional 16-month program called: Architecture and Future Urban nning. It was different from his own application!

    No way !

    (¨s¨F¡õ¡ä)¨s¦à©ß©¥©ß

    Shit !!

    ©ß©¥©ß¦à¨t(¨F¡õ¡ä¨t)

    Aaaah! Fuck! Fuck! Fuck! Aaaah !!!

    ©ß©¥©ß¦à¨t(¨F¡õ¡ä)¨s¦à©ß©¥©ß

    What the hell did Gu Yu hide? !!!!!!

    Copsing on the sofa, Zhang Siyi immediately took out his mobile phone and sent a series of nonsense expressions to Gu Yu. He didn¡¯t have the right words to clearly articte the surprise he felt at the newly discovered news and his turbulent yet euphoric feelings.

    In WeChat, Gu Yu answered him with a question mark. Immediately, Gu Yu called Zhang Siyi back.

    After Zhang Siyi was connected: ¡°Hey ¡­¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°¡­¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°What happened?¡±

    With the adrenaline surging though his veins influencing him, Zhang Siyi almost shouted at Gu Yu with an usatory tone. Instead, he loudly said: ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me you also applied to a program at Big A University?¡±

    Gu Yu breathed a sigh of relief. What else could he do when his lover was leaving? A bit irked at Zhang Siyi¡¯s discovery in advance, he replied: ¡°I wanted to surprise you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Surprise my ass. I¡¯m so upset with you!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°¡­¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I didn¡¯t tell you but, did you know, I was also admitted to Big A University?¡±

    Gu Yu smiled: ¡°I know.¡±

    His ire was rising and Zhang Siyi felt like vomiting blood. The anger in his voice was evident. Speaking even more loudly, he demanded: ¡°Why would you know that?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°¡­¡±

    Frantically, Zhang Siyi continued to loudly shout in the phone and st Gu Yu: ¡°Then do you know why I didn¡¯t tell you? Because I don¡¯t want to go! ¡­ don¡¯t want to be separated from you! ¡­ don¡¯t want a long-distance rtionship! ¡­ don¡¯t want to sleep alone! ¡­ don¡¯t want to leave you alone in China! ¡­ don¡¯t want to know what missing you feels like! Did you know? I don¡¯t want you to know how guilty I¡¯ve felt.¡±

    Choking back tears, Zhang Siyi roared on until his voice couldn¡¯t withstand his outburst and cracked. Breathing heavily, he suddenly stopped and felt numb.

    Gu Yu was silent on the phone for a while. Slowly, he answered him: ¡°I know.¡±

    Who says, boys don¡¯t cry? Tears gushed out of Zhang Siyi eyes uncontrobly: ¡°You¡­youe back now! I want to see you!¡± Zhang Siyi rubbed his tears away, so happy to be going crazy.

    ¡°Alright. I¡¯ll change my ns ande back.¡± He heard Gu Yu say in aforting tone.

    With thest vestige of the construction site still lingering on his body, six hourster, at the door, Gu Yu appeared in front of Zhang Siyi.

    They were each other¡¯s site-for-sore-eyes. Excited, they eagerly embraced the person they loved. Both of them reached out and using their fingers to glide through their hair, they caressed each other¡¯s head, their ear, their cheek and kissed violently and passionately as if it was rain during a long drought.

    It was never enough. As if he was subjugated by a deadly poison and the antidote was the person in their arms, every hug, every kiss, every skin contact, could make their spirit produce the ultimate pleasure and relief.

    Knowing how irrational and irresponsible his impulse was to make Gu Yue back home. Zhang Siyi felt guilty and apologized: ¡°I¡¯m sorry I messed up your work.¡±

    Gu Yu gazed at Zhang Siyi with burning affection. Holding Zhang Siyi¡¯s forehead to his own, he said: ¡±It doesn¡¯t matter. We were almost done anyways.¡±

    Zhang Siyi tentatively asked: ¡°Are you really nning on going with me?¡±

    Gu Yu nced at the envelope still lying on the coffee table and said: ¡°My eptance letter has arrived. What do you think?¡±

    In his arms, Zhang Siyi remained silent for a few seconds until he realized a small detail: ¡°Fuck, I haven¡¯t responded to Big A University yet!¡±

 Chapter 222: Money

    <h4>Chapter 222: Money</h4>

    Concerned, Gu Yu immediately pulled Zhang Siyi upstairs to use theputer and reply to the email.

    Since Zhang Siyi ignored the previous notifications, the deadlines have passed. Luckily, Big A University¡¯s notice was issuedter than the other two schools and thus, since the deadline hadn¡¯t expired, he had ample time ept his admission.

    As he filled out the eptance form, Zhang Siyi excitement grew. The sudden feelings of happiness made him feel like he was on cloud nine. It hadn¡¯t even urred to him to discuss the problem of money before confirming his enrollment at Big A University.

    Now that the eptance form waspleted, he used an online banking system to pay for his deposit. With his spot reserved, their minds were at ease. Zhang Siyi questioned Gu Yu: ¡°When did you apply to Big A Uni?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°I started preparing after meeting with Xie Jiayu.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was surprised: ¡°After Christmas? Wasn¡¯t that toote? How much time was there to prepare?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Almost a week.¡± ¡°

    Fuck! It took him almost a month of hard work to prepare! Zhang Siyi wondered: ¡°How did youplete it in one week?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Well, all I needed to do was gather a few previous projects to assemble a portfolio and touch up on my English. I haven¡¯t used English for a few years, so I was a little rusty. It took a few days to write my application.¡±

    Learning how little effort Gu Yu had to put into assembling his application portfolio, Zhang Siyi wanted to scream. Damn! In contrast, Zhang Siyi spent countless hours mulling over appropriate choices that represented his work for his own portfolio. Why was the gap between them sorge?!

    Well, considering Gu Yu¡¯s extraordinary aplishments as a licensed architect that graduated from the top school with national awards, it wasn¡¯t surprising how quickly he created his portfolio. For Gu Yu, the process of applying was rather like ying a game.

    Gu Yu pinched Zhang Siyi¡¯s face and smiled: ¡°Actually, applying to the program at Big A was my n B. Originally, I thought I would find a job in Ennd and directly work in the industry, but even though I don¡¯t like to study and I don¡¯t find school particrly challenging, I thought it would be fun to go to school with you.

    Hearing Gu Yu speak about how easy it was to apply and how school was too simple for him, Zhang Siyi wanted to vomit blood. Bastard!

    At the same time, Zhang Siyi was very moved: ¡°Are you alright with leaving a goodpany and job? What about leaving this vi?¡± Zhang Siyi looked around then grabbed Gu Yu¡¯s hand and held it tightly to his chest and asked: ¡°Are you really willing toe with me?¡±

    Asking this very question, Zhang Siyi felt somewhat sentimental, but Gu Yu¡¯s answer was even more precious: ¡°What I can¡¯t lose is you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    Smiling, Gu Yu took his hand and solemnly said: ¡°Even if I left my job, as long as there was a will, work can be found again. But maybe while separated, I will lose you. There won¡¯t be another Zhang Siyi. What should I do then?¡±

    ¡°There are so many other people better than me, how is that possible? I¡¯m worried that you will be taken away!¡± Zhang Siyi threw his arms around Gu Yu¡¯s neck and held him close to dispel his insecurities.

    Unexpectedly Gu Yu tenderly replied: ¡°You are able to be with women, but you decided to have a same-sex rtionship instead. Knowing that you can¡¯t have a normal life with me, we can¡¯t get married, we can¡¯t have a baby, and yet you still choose me, where else am I going to find someone as foolish as you?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± God damn! He is going to kill me to death with honeyed phrases and sweet words! (= Ãó =)

    Seeing Zhang Siyi¡¯s angry expression, Gu Yu reached behind his neck to grab his wrists then lowered them down in front of him and pecked his lips. Leading him up to the bedroom, they enjoyed each other¡¯s love and warmth. The process of stimting Zhang Siyi followed by the act of pacifying him, Gu Yu greatly enjoyed.

    When Zhang Siyi woke up the next day on Sunday, he thought about the cost of going abroad. Laying on his side, snuggling in bed, Zhang Siyi lightly caressed Gu Yu¡¯s body with his hand and asked: ¡°Hey, do you have enough money for the two of us to study in Ennd?¡±

    Running around yesterday for business and then suddenly being called back home by Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu was exhausted. He was half-asleep when he heard Zhang Siyi. Gu Yu mumbled: ¡°Yeh.¡±

    Startled, Zhang Siyi paused momentarily before running his fingers down Gu Yu¡¯s abdomen again and said: ¡°But it will be almost two million for the both of us. Do you really have that much money?¡±

    Preventing Zhang Siyi¡¯s hand from wondering too far, Gu Yu gently grasped it within his own then closed his eyes to go back to sleep, toozy to answer.

    Not long after, he heard Zhang Siyi muttering to himself next to him: ¡°¡­at least one million. Using my current annual sry of about 100,000, then at least ten years to be clear, oh and there is interest ¡­¡±

    Zhang Siyi had to ept the facts. Since Gu Yu was nning on studying abroad together, he probably needed his own money and thus, Zhang Siyi thought he had to borrow money to afford tuition. Zhang Siyi took out his mobile phone and searched the Inte for special loans. He entered the amount and calcted the total with interest: ¡°Shit! For a ten-year loan of a million with interest adds up to nearly four million¡­. Oh, my God, when will I be able to fucking pay it off!!¡±

    rmed, Zhang Siyi harassed Gu Yu again but this time, he specifically handled Gu Yu¡¯s most sensitive organ: ¡°Boss, I can¡¯t afford Ennd. Maybe we shouldn¡¯t go!¡±

    Frowning, Gu Yu opened his eyes and said: ¡°What nonsense are you saying?¡± He grabbed Zhang Siyi arm that was half wrapped around him andzily replied: ¡°I can¡¯t just wait for you to graduate. In order to pay me back, you can simply work for me your whole life. I don¡¯t mind.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    GU Yu¡¯s exnation didn¡¯t satisfy Zhang Siyi. Watching Gu Yu close his eyes to go back to sleep, Zhang Siyi pushed his back a little and pestered him further: ¡°Don¡¯t go back to sleep. First exin it to me. How do you have so much money?¡±

    Using his hands to count, Zhang Siyi continued: ¡°Your annual ie isn¡¯t just seven hundred thousand? Your standard of living is pretty high. With your new car that was worth half a millionbined with needing expensive clothing, shoes, and essories, the total amount exceeds your sry. Working for eleven years¡­¡­ Five, ten, twenty¡­ wait, are you going to take out all your savings to pay for us to go to school? What are we going to do after that!?¡±

    Zhang Siyi nudged him again: ¡°Yu! Yu! Wake up!!!!¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s mutterings amused Gu Yu. Nowpletely awake, he quickly turned over and pinned the restless Zhang Siyi under his body then kissed him until he was teary eyed and breathless. He chuckled then said: ¡°Who told you that I only make seven hundred thousand a year? And, who told you that I¡¯ve only been working for eleven years?¡±

    Zhang Siyi reacted swiftly and realized he made an error in his assumption. He remembered Tao Fei mentioning it to him that Gu Yu had earned money when he was in college and his roommates followed him to get rich.

    However, in Zhang Siyi¡¯s view, with his junior qualifications in college, even if the university could take a cut of the profits, it was unlikely that he earned more in the past than he does now, right?

    However, the truth of the matter was really beyond his expectations.

    Gu Yu thoroughly exined: ¡°To be precise, I have been making money since my sophomore year in high school. At that time, the construction industry was very lucrative because cities andnd were being developed rapidly, especially in the real estate market. At the time, my father was working on projects as a draftsman, and he took me along with him to learn. In college, because my peers knew I had experience, I often tutored my ssmates on drawing and drafting in the evenings. Later, I was introduced to a real estate investor and used my 100,000 in savings to invest in a house in the city. The home is still there and have increased in value ten-fold.¡±

    T, ten times ¡­ one million? Gu Yu¡¯s remarks shocked Zhang Siyi silly!

 Chapter 223: Cultivation

    <h4>Chapter 223: Cultivation</h4>

    He was even more shocked when Gu Yu wasn¡¯t finished: ¡°The following year in 06, I made about four hundred thousand from renting my house and tutoring fees. I didn¡¯t make as much because I was busy studying.¡°

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± Shit! Four hundred thousand was more than just, ¡®a little¡¯ !

    Gu Yu: ¡°In 2007, I participated in the designpetition where I met Shanxi, the local real estate developer. He asked me to help him renovate his own vi and gave me one hundred thousand for my efforts.¡±

    This matter, Tao Fei told him about. Zhang Siyi wondered: ¡°Why did he prefer to find a college student to help him renovate when he could have used a professional architectural firm instead?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°At that time, no matter what design projects the various Firms were doing, the industry was run by a circle of businessmen and not real architects. It was a chaotic time with vague values. No one could distinguish the difference between good or bad design. They were only concerned over making money out of developingnd fast and the housing market. In that type of environment, how many architects would retain the fundamentals of design? I also asked the Shanxi that very question. I had neither a degree, nor qualifications and was just a student in the architectural department so whye to me? He told me that previously, he did go to a design institute and asked the architect for a few examples. The architect asked how high the vi was, went to a database to find a five-story vi then removed the two bottom floors and handed it back with the original marked five-level floors. That type of thing had happened more then once. He felt a college student would be more knowledgeable about design then those muddy architects. In those years, since endless streams of money was flowing fromrge development contracts, design firmsrgely ignored small renovation projects like Shanxi¡¯s.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was surprised. No wonder Gu Yu¡¯s Father told themst year about why the slowly stabilizing construction market was good for the industry in the long term. Only when the market slowly changed from a frenzy into a bnced state would real architects have a foothold.

    After listening to Gu Yu¡¯s story about 2008, Zhang Siyi temporarily interrupted him: ¡°It seems that you made the most money in 2005.¡±

    Gu Yuughed: ¡°Since 2005, the price of the house I bought has been increasing exponentially. I have earned an average of 1.8 million every year.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    Speaking of which, He Chengtian¡¯s family also got rich in real estate. The difference between them was that He Chengtian relied on his parents, and Gu Yu aplished it on his own.

    ¡­¡­ Oh! Why didn¡¯t he live in the era of making easy money! Instead, he was born in the era of eating dirt! Aah!

    Gu Yu continued: ¡°At the beginning of 2008, because he liked my design work, Shanxi hired me again. A few of his friends were very enthusiastic about it so they invested jointly to develop a piece ofnd. He gave me the project to n and design it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Fuck your luck!¡±

    Gu Yuughed: ¡°At that time, it was graduation. When my thesis project waspleted, I called my roommates to help design the vis with me. After finishing the project, I received more than 3 million in design fees. I didn¡¯t have time to manage money, so I bought a house in the east third ring of the capital. Just after the purchase, a restriction on buying multiple homes was issued. You see my good luck?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡­ ¡± What¡¯s there to say? Clearly, he is favored by God!(t_t)

    Gu Yu: ¡°During the two years I was studying for a master¡¯s degree, I focused on my studies so I didn¡¯t take as many privatemissions. As I result I only earned one million.¡±

    Zhang Siyi rolled his eyes at Gu Yu: ¡± Say, how much money do you have now!¡±

    Gu Yu thought for a while and said: ¡°All my assets add up to about 20 million.¡±

    Zhang Siyi choked¡­.. He secretly fantasized about a day in the future where he could make money and earn a reputation but Gu Yu was just too far ahead of him. What could he possibly do? No matter how hard he worked, it would never be enough!

    Gu Yu patted his face and smiled: ¡°Why are you looking at me like that?¡±

    Zhang Siyi pretended to be dead: ¡°You go away¡­.. I already have a dog ¡­¡±

    Laughing, Gu Yu smirked and reached down to squeeze his sensitive part. Zhang Siyi yelped and instinctively jerked himself up into a ball. However, underneath Gu Yu, even though he twisted and kicked up his legs, Zhang Siyi¡¯s attempts to throw him off were futile.

    Gu Yu looked at him with amusement: ¡°Are you not a dog?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    Knowing his fate was in the hands of Gu Yu, he felt even more agitated as it struck a nerve. If Gu Yu wanted him to live, he can live. If Gu Yu wants him to die, he dies.

    Fully in his grasp, Gu Yu incited Zhang Siyi further. Not only did he tease him physically, he also bullied him with words: ¡°How about marrying me as the daughter-inw? As long as you are obedient, your husband will not only provide you with study materials, but also bring you delicious food.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was getting angry. He lifted his leg and tried to wrap it around Gu Yu torso to pin him down without sess. ¡°You don¡¯t understand! I don¡¯t want your charity. I want to be the one who works hard to make a lot of money so I can support you!¡±

    At Zhang Siyi¡¯s unexpected remark, Gu Yu stifled augh, pausing momentarily. It didn¡¯tst long however because heughed out loud shortly thereafter.

    Zhang Siyi flushed with shame: ¡°What are youughing at? Don¡¯t you believe me?¡±

    Nodding, Gu Yu put his fists against his lips and gently kissed them: ¡°Umm, Hmm ¡­¡±

    Zhang Siyi snorted softly a looked away. Since Gu Yu was so much better than him, he knew he was bragging, but as a man, he also wanted to show-off his macho side.

    Staring at the wall, Zhang Siyi suddenly felt Gu Yu pulling his pants down.

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s big deration was so adorable that Gu Yu couldn¡¯t take it anymore. Toppling him down and smirking he said: ¡°Before you take care of me, let me take care of you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Hey! Ah ¡­ oh!¡±

    Zhang Siyi protests were quickly squelched by Gu Yu¡¯s lips as he passionately kissed Zhang Siyi. Their weekend began with heartyughter and heavy panting.

    Soon, their anniversary arrived and that night, after work, Gu Yu took Zhang Siyi out to eat for his favorite meal; a steak. When they arrived home after dinner, Zhang Siyi yed the violin for Gu Yu. While the day went by without a hitch, the ring that he was expecting never came and as a result, Zhang Siyi felt a little lost.

    At the end of April, Zhang Siyi finally received his formal eptance letter and paperwork for Big A University. If an employee wanted to leave thepany before the end of their contract period, a person must apply three months in advance to the personnel department. Now that his future at Big A was secure, Zhang Siyi officially handed in his letter of resignation and filled out the necessary paperwork.

    During the May firstbor-day-holiday, Zhang Siyi went back to Ningcheng together with Gu Yu. He needed to tell his parents the news about his eptance letter and ns to study abroad.

    After he exined, Mother and Father Zhang were shocked. His mother asked: ¡°What? Why didn¡¯t you say something before?¡±

    Zhang Siyi scratched his head and apologized: ¡°I wasn¡¯t sure if I was going to get in, so I didn¡¯t tell you sooner.¡± In addition to telling them he was epted to multiple schools, he highlighted the famous Department of Architecture program that he was epted to.

    Knowing nothing about British Universities, Zhang Siyi¡¯s parents took the information at his word. Most concerning for his parents was the method of payment: ¡°How much will it be to earn a Master¡¯s degree? You¡¯ve only been working for two years. Do you have enough money? Do we need to prepare money as soon as possible to help finance it?¡±

 Chapter 224: Funding

    <h4>Chapter 224: Funding</h4>

    Zhang Siyi thought about the various reactions his parents would have. Would they me him for being too hasty? Would they be proud of him? Would they ask him about his previous deration of being financially independent? Least of all, he never expected their first reaction was to worry about theck of tuition.

    The heartfelt love he felt from his parent¡¯s in order to satisfy his dreams moved Zhang Siyi.

    Especially from Zhang Siyi¡¯s father. Not only did his Father not scold or ridicule Zhang Siyi, he was also anxious about the funding. Feeling worried, he anxiously asked Mother Zhang: ¡°What about our wealth management fund? Can we make withdraw money now?¡±

    Mother Zhang smacked his thigh: ¡°We¡¯ve only deposited money into it a few times over the year. I don¡¯t even know if we can take it out in advance! I¡¯ll have to go to the bank tomorrow and ask!¡±

    Quickly, Zhang Siyi exined: ¡°Mom, Dad. You don¡¯t need to worry about the money. It will be taken care of.¡±

    Both Father and Mother Zhang turned to look at him and asked: ¡°Who is taking care of it?¡±

    Zhang Siyi honestly confessed: ¡°Gu Yu.¡±

    His parent¡¯s reactions were vastly different. Father Zhang only furrowed his brows. In contrast, several expressions shed across Zhang Siyi¡¯s Mother¡¯s face.

    She wondered: ¡°Why is he paying for your tuition?¡±

    Zhang Siyi told his parents the excuse he concocted with Gu Yu: ¡°Gu Yu said he wanted to invest in talent. After going abroad, he is nning on forming a newpany and I will have to work for him for many years.¡±

    Since the exnation was quite reasonable, Zhang Siyi¡¯s Father and Mother couldn¡¯t find any faults. His Mother thought it over then asked: ¡°Isn¡¯t Gu Yu a registered architect already? He is design director so why is he going too?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Learning is a never-ending endeavor, isn¡¯t it? I¡¯ve told you before, in order to broadened their scope of knowledge, many people from different sects of the industry partake in the specialized courses.

    After hearing Zhang Siyi¡¯s exnation, Father Zhang nodded in agreement. He felt relieved and said: ¡°Young Gu is very reliable. It would be very good to go with him.¡±

    Mother Zhang is not as stupid as Father Zhang. As a rotten girl, her sensitive nerves have begun to move, and she felt deep down that something wasn¡¯t right.

    While eating dinner, Zhang Mother spoke: ¡°Sisi, I¡¯ve been thinking, asking others to pay tuition fees isn¡¯t right. We aren¡¯t short on money. We will be able to get by. Why should someone else pay for you? Tell Gu Yu that you will study together, but we will pay for your expenses.¡±

    Upon hearing his Mother¡¯s statement, Zhang Siyi hesitated. When he heard his father say, ¡°Isn¡¯t it good for Young Gu to invest in him?¡± , he nearly choked.

    Zhang Siyi followed suit: ¡°Since you are about to retire, you should keep your money and spend it yourself. In case of hospitalization, or other health concerns, you will have need of the money.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s Mother red at her son: ¡°What do you think is wrong with us? We are in perfect health!¡±

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t want to fight: ¡°Fine, don¡¯t use it for your medical care. Use it for something else. Haven¡¯t you always wanted to visit other countries? With that amount, you can travel around the world and buy whatever you want. Isn¡¯t that good?¡±

    During New Years, when his parents came home from their trip, he noticed how happy they seemed to be. At twenty-four, he didn¡¯t want to burden his parents any more than necessary. A robust economic foundation would greatly improve their quality of life because, instead of sacrificing their needs for the sake of tuition for their son, they could use the money for themselves.

    Mother Zhang: ¡°But ¡­¡±

    Zhang Siyi interrupted her: ¡°Don¡¯t worry. I¡¯ve already told you I won¡¯t spend your money after my undergraduate graduation so I¡¯ll take care of it myself. Oh, and you don¡¯t need to bother me about a newlywed¡¯s home. I¡¯ll buy one myself.¡±

    Faced with such a mature response from their son, Zhang Siyi¡¯s parents had mixed feelings.

    His Father stated: ¡°We aren¡¯t unwilling to help you financially. You are our only child so isn¡¯t all our money yours anyway? At first we went along with your determination because we didn¡¯t want you relying on us for every single one of your problems otherwise, you would never grow up. You are an adult now and during the past two years, Dad is so please at how much you have matured. If you have made arrangements with Gu Yu, then I will respect your decision.¡±

    Mother Zhang suddenly said: ¡°Since when have you two ever gotten along so easily? Gu Yu¡¯s investment in your son is not a small sum, but millions. Why don¡¯t you think this may be some sort of bribery? What if ites back to hurt you?¡±

    In the past, Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother was the one who was always talking positively about Gu Yu. In stark contrast, now she was the one who was acting suspicious.

    Zhang Siyi wanted to refute, but his father spoke first: ¡°Thest time we spoke of this, you reminded me, Gu Yu is the son of the chief engineer that I¡¯ve known for ten years. For so many years, half of Ningcheng¡¯srge and small municipal projects were approved by me. I can think of ten of them off-hand for which Senior Gu participated in. In all that time, did he ever do something suspicious and mix business with his personal matters? Today, I ¡¯m going to backup Zhang Siyi. I might not understand Gu Yu¡¯s decision, but that is Gu Mingfeng¡¯s son. I knew at a nce that he and his father are hard-working, down-to-earth people. You can rest assured. Even if I think it might be wrong, Zhang Siyi has grown so much following his guidance during the past two years that I¡¯m very willing to let him go.¡±

    Mother Zhang: ¡°¡­¡±

    After listening to his father¡¯s remarks, Zhang Siyi¡¯s view of his father changed. He always thought he and his mother were on one side and his father on another. However, in the key moment, the head of house was still thew!

    After chewing on his food for a while, Father Zhang said: ¡°Young people have a way of working with one another. Gu Yu¡¯s investment in Zhang Siyi is not a blind investment. Didn¡¯t he say that Zhang Siyi will have to work for him for a few years after graduation? Being sought out to start a business, doesn¡¯t it prove how valuable our son is? In addition, knowing his finances and job security are settled, our son will be better able to concentrate on studying.¡±

    The more Father Zhang spoke, the more he felt like the arrangement was the best oue for Zhang Siyi. He added: ¡°Anyway, I think it¡¯s a good idea.¡±

    Mother Zhang was speechless. As the rm bells were ringing in her head, she was very anxious. Old Zhang¡­ There are so many things you don¡¯t understand! You are selling your first born!

    Zhang father did not care about his wife¡¯s worries. Ignoring the protest in Mother Zhang¡¯s eyes, he continued to ask Zhang Siyi: ¡°With his sry, how does Gu Yu have so much money to spend to go abroad?¡±

    Zhang Siyi quickly exined to his parents about origins of the properties he owns and concluded: ¡±Gu Yu has enough liquidity on hand for us to go abroad. He collects rent worth more than my sry for the two properties in the capital. He isn¡¯t afraid of being idle and eating himself out of house and home.¡±

    As a look of mncholy enveloped Father Zhang¡¯s features, he sighed and said: ¡°Compared to other people in their thirties, Gu Yu is quite capable, is he not? I saw an article that our old neighbor posted online yesterday that said, one of the greatest blessings of going into society is having a good leader to follow. Matching the right tie, the fate of a young man¡¯s life could be changed. I think that¡¯s right to say, our son found the right leader to follow!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    Mother Zhang: ¡°¡­¡±

    When his father was finished, Zhang Siyi and his mother¡¯s eyes suddenly met. When he saw the turbulence in his Mother¡¯s eyes, Zhang Siyi looked down quickly to avoid her stare. Hiding his guilty conscience, he picked up some more rice and quietly ate his dinner.

    However, he was unable to escape from her notice long. That night before going to sleep, Mother Zhang came knocking on his door

    At that time, Zhang Siyi was lying on the bed, making a video call with Gu Yu. As they flirted and exchanged loving words, they heard a knock of the door. He quickly said goodbye and ended the call.

    Mother Zhang pushed in the door and smiled: ¡°Who are you talking to that is making you so happy? I can hear you through the door.¡±

    Not knowing how much his mother overheard him talking while she was at the door, Zhang Siyi expression was stiff: ¡°No one in particr¡­. just a friend.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother didn¡¯t enquire about it further. Walking over to him, she sat down on the bed and asked Zhang Siyi about what his ns were; when he needed his visa and when he was officially going abroad.

    As he ryed some of his ns, his mother frowned: ¡°You aren¡¯ting back home before leaving?¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s conscience was starting to weigh on him and didn¡¯t want to upset his mother: ¡°I¡¯m staying in Haicheng because I have to stay at work until the end of July. I have to pack and leave in August so there isn¡¯t time for me toe back home.¡±

    His mother¡¯s expression was somewhat bleak. She had a nagging feeling like Zhang Siyi¡¯s was hiding something, but at the same time, feeling guilty for thinking so.

    Zhang Siyi tried tofort her: ¡°We wille back for Christmas. You and Dad cane to Ennd to visit¡­.¡±

    As he was talking, Mother Zhang suddenly interrupted him: ¡°Sisi, you can tell me the truth. Why is Gu Yu paying for your tuition? Why would he pay for someone who isn¡¯t the best in thepany? Its not that I think you aren¡¯t good enough. I understand if you were with Gu Yao, but you said she has a boyfriend¡­¡­¡­¡­ Are you¡­? Are you and Gu Yu¡­..¡±

    Stopping abruptly, Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother didn¡¯t dare say more.

    Only then did she carefully reflect on all of their interactions, fromst year until now and linked many things together. From them living together, to his visit to the Gu residence for Chinese New Year and especially afterwards. Both when Zhang Siyi described his ideal person and Gu Yu¡¯s behavior in the car when they drove off. Finally, Zhang Siyi said he will go abroad together¡­¡­

    Now enlightened, she wanted it to be a product of her own imagination, influenced from reading too many books. However, with so many obvious signs when one payed attention, she couldn¡¯t ignore it anymore. The rtionship between her son and Gu Yu wasn¡¯t so simple. How could she not ask?

    Grabbing Zhang Siyi¡¯s hand and holding it tightly, she stared in question at her son for to the truth and she saw it.

    Zhang Siyi was never good at lying and his ashen white face made it obvious. His mother¡¯s question immediately exposed the truth of the matter despite Zhang Siyi¡¯s unclear reply: ¡°Him and I, what are you saying?¡±

    Mother Zhang didn¡¯t have to ask anymore to understand everything. Her son, she knew best. If it weren¡¯t so, Zhang Siyi would have exploded and be angry. Never would he have had such a guilty reaction.

    With a deep sense of guilt, her heart sank and her mind was filled with an incredible sense of turmoil. How could this be? Did the books she hid in her son¡¯s room affected him?

    In attempt to dissuade her, Zhang Siyi continued to lie: ¡°Don¡¯t worry about it. You must be reading too many novels.¡±

    Enraged, Mother Zhang opened the closet doors roughly, while she began to shed tears, she pulled out a book and started tearing it up. Frightened by his mother¡¯s rash actions, he got up and pulling on her arm in attempts to stop her, he shouted: ¡°What are you doing?! Mom stop!¡±

    With tears at the corner of her eyes, Zhang Siyi¡¯s Mother used herself and whispered: ¡°It¡¯s my fault¡­¡­ I did this to you¡­¡­ Mother has hurt you¡­.¡±

    Zhang Siyi was shocked. He held his mother and stopped pretending. He blurted out: ¡°Mom, it has nothing to do with you!¡±

    Her hands trembled: ¡°So, so you are really¡­..¡±

    ¡°Umm¡­¡± What else can Zhang Siyi say? Before, having witness her taste in books, he thought his Mother was stupid for not noticing it on her own. Now that the storm hase, he found he was surprisingly, ready to bear it.

    Afraid his Mother would think less of Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi¡¯s first reaction was to shield him: ¡°I liked him first and confessed to Gu Yu first. Mother, please don¡¯t me him.¡±

    In his parent¡¯s eyes, he hoped that Gu Yu would still shine and he would be the one tarnished.

    As his mother covered her face, her shoulders shook with uncontroble sobs. God, how would she be able to exin this to Old Zhang!

    Zhang Siyi gathered his mother¡¯s torn book and put it back in the closet. Watching his mother still crying, he felt bad and said: ¡°Mom, don¡¯t be like this. I, I¡¯m very happy with him. He is very good to me, especially good. We work hard together, we struggle together, we enjoy life together.¡­ just, we can¡¯t get married. I¡¯m sorry Mom. I really like him, but I didn¡¯t know how to tell you¡­.¡± Now that he finished speaking, tears also welled up in Zhang Siyi¡¯s eyes.

    Mother Zhang trembled. She liked to believe in the notion that love can transcend all, but that was just in a novel. In reality, her heart wasn¡¯t willing to ept it.

    As they sat together on the bed sobbing, they heard a knock on the door and Father Zhang¡¯s voice: ¡°What are you two doing in there?¡± In the next second, he opened the door and came inside.

    Scared to death, he looked to his mother. For more then twenty years, he and his mother had a tactical understanding of each other and thus, believed his mother knew what should and shouldn¡¯t be said.

    Witnessing both his wife and son together with red puffy eyes, Zhang Siyi¡¯s father frowned: ¡°So, you didn¡¯t weep in the middle of the night when he left to study abroad previously, but now when he tells you he is leaving, you cry?¡±

    Mother Zhang tilted her head and scoffed softly. Zhang Father couldn¡¯t stop himself frommenting: ¡°He isn¡¯t gone forever. He is just going out of the country! Why do mothers have such thin skin!¡±

    Mother Zhang: ¡°¡­¡±

    Father Zhang turned his attention to Zhang Siyi and said: ¡°You too. If your mother cries, then you cry? What are you, a little girl?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    Father Zhang coughed softly: ¡°It¡¯s OK. Don¡¯t be so emotional and just let it go. Now, hurry up and get to sleep.¡± After speaking, he abruptly turned around and went downstairs.

    Damp from breaking out in a cold sweat, Zhang Siyi slowly exhaled the breath he inadvertently was holding. He looked pitifully at his mother and was about to ask her to keep quiet about it, but before he had the chance to speak, his mother wiped her tears away and said: ¡°Listen. You mustn¡¯t tell you father. Otherwise, he will have a stroke!¡±

 Chapter 225: Thank You

    <h4>Chapter 225: Thank You</h4>

    Although the news caused his mother some grief, ultimately, she was on Zhang Siyi¡¯s side. Instinctively, her reaction was to help her son hide the issue for now instead joining forces with her husband to deal with him and potentially causing an irrevocable rift between them.

    After his mother left, Zhang Siyi sat for a moment in relief then sent a message to Gu Yu. He told him the truth of what just had happened.

    When the matter of tuition came up, Gu Yu expected some doubt and a little push-back. However, he didn¡¯t think their rtionship would be discovered so soon. In contrast, he expected it to take a few years. After all, Zhang Siyi is still young and the expectations of him when entering society weighs heavily on his shoulders. For the young adult, life can feel overwhelming. In addition, Zhang Siyi academic career was still a priority. Least of all did Gu Yu expect Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother to link the two things together. Gu Yu had underestimated the insight of a ¡®rotten mother.¡¯

    Over the phone, Gu Yu¡¯s warm and reassuring words wereforting. Once the matter came, it was alright and no longer was an issue of lies and concealment. Now, it was time to work together and pull his Mother squarely onto their side.

    Nevertheless, his mother¡¯s immediate negative reaction was etched into Zhang Siyi¡¯s mind. He felt guilty and couldn¡¯t sleep all night.

    The next day, with a pair of dark circles under his eyes, he went downstairs and saw his mother helping their housekeeper prepare breakfast in the kitchen. Like his own, he noticed her eyes were also swollen. She probably didn¡¯t sleep well either.

    Without knowing the underlying reason, the others present thought her haggard look was because she was unwilling to be separated from her son. Father Zhang also made a remark on the matter. Seeing his son also looking simr, he couldn¡¯t help but shake his head in disapproval and sigh.

    Sitting around the table for breakfast, they sat quietly without saying a word. Even his mother, who normally nagged Zhang Siyi and was naturally talkative, remained silent. Witnessing her attitude, it cut deep in Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart and made him feel miserable.

    Soon, Father Zhang picked up on the mood and just when he was about to rebuke them, someone came knocking on the front door!

    When the housekeeper announced it was Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi nearly jumped from his chair from the shock at his sudden appearance. Why did hee over at this time! Did Gu Yu think his mother wasn¡¯t stimted enough? Appearing in front of his mother at this time was simply adding fuel to the fire!

    Indeed, when the housekeeper announced Gu Yu, none of enthusiasm and joy of the past shed on her face. Only surprise and panic were expressed.

    As they nced towards the entrance, they saw Gu Yu enter from the side. He was wearing a tailored silk shirt and matte ck trousers. With his styled hair, the clean-cut garments entuated his long legs and athletic build, making him look particrly striking, like a model.

    With a single hand in his pants¡¯ pocket and a pleasant smile, he extended his other naturally in humble greetings, highlighting the most proper etiquette.

    Although a minute ago, Zhang Siyi was feeling rather anxious, when he felt Gu Yu¡¯s presence, he seemed to have grown a back-bone. Feeling less worried, he suddenly rxed.

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know whether Gu Yu was born with the innate talent to charm everyone in a tense environment simply by his presence, or if his ability was something he fostered step-by-step over the years through work experience. His confidant smile and calm actions soothed everyone.

    Quietly, Zhang Siyi shot a nce at his mother, fearing the worst. To his surprise, he saw a noticeable change in her demeanor. Even with her previous resistance and her personal struggle, she could not hide her appreciation of the young man in front on her.

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s Father, who knows nothing about the truth, naturally weed Gu Yu. Now that he has learned about Gu Yu¡¯s proposal to fund Zhang Siyi¡¯s tuition yesterday, he regarded Gu Yu as a nobleman. Enthusiastically he warmly invited: ¡°Gu Yu, you are here so early. Did you eat breakfast yet? Come and Sit.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°I have eaten, thank you. Please take your time to finish your breakfast. I will go to the living room to sit for a while. I have something I need to discuss with Zhang Siyi about.¡±

    Father Zhang: ¡°What¡¯s so pressing that you need toe here in person to talk? For anything urgent, you should let hime to you. Don¡¯t spoil him too much.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    Gu Yuughed and said: ¡°It¡¯s a matter of his visa. I happen to be out on an errand close to here so dropping by wasn¡¯t out of my way.¡±

    Zhang father nodded and turned to address Zhang Siyi a nce: ¡°Well then, you eat quickly. Don¡¯t let our guest wait.¡±

    With another three mouthfuls, Zhang Siyi finished eating and got up. While walking towards the living room, Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother watched him like a hawk.

    The housekeeper gave Gu Yu a cup of tea and when she moved away, Zhang Siyi whispered to him: ¡°What are you doing here! What are you going to talk about?¡±

    Gu Yu raised his eyebrows and lowered his voice: ¡°Don¡¯t we need your family registry and property certificate to get a visa? Since your mother knows about us, I thought there might be some hesitation and possibly, she wouldn¡¯t give it to you. I came here to help and add a little pressure.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± Fuck, I totally forgot about that!

    While his parents were still eating, Gu Yuforted Zhang Siyi with reassurances: ¡°Don¡¯t worry, it¡¯ll be okay.¡±

    Zhang Siyi lowered his eyes: ¡°I¡¯m not worried.¡±

    Wanting to offerfort, Gu Yu raised his hand to gently rub his cheek and said: ¡°How can you say that when you have such dark circles under your eyes. Didn¡¯t you get any sleepst night?¡±

    Zhang Siyi jerked away to dodge his hand: ¡°Hey¡­¡±

    Although he dropped his hand, his look of tenderness lingered. A look that couldn¡¯t be mistaken for anything but love and concern.

    Mother Zhang came out of the kitchen holding a te of fruit. As she walked towards the living room, she saw them whispering to each other. When she noticed their tender interactions, she could feel her heart thumping in her chest. Staring at them, it took awhile for the two men to notice and react.

    Zhang Siyi ¡°¡­¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°¡­¡±

    After she put down the fruit, she turned to go. Seeing that she would leave without saying a word, Gu Yu quickly signaled to Zhang Siyi with a wink and a quick nod.

    Biting the bullet, Zhang Siyi stopped her by calling out: ¡°Mom¡­.¡±

    His mother turned around and said: ¡°What?¡±

    Zhang Siyi bowed his head and quietly said: ¡°Well, I¡¯m going to get a visa in a few days so I need the family registry and a copy of the property certificate¡­.¡±

    Mother Zhang: ¡°¡­¡±

    In order to issue a Visa, both documents are necessary. Since Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu neither have a direct family rtionship nor are they husband and wife, Gu Yu must deposit money in his bank as proof of assets. However, with therge amount of moneybined with the short period needed to pay before going to school in less than six months, there was a risk that the deposit could be rejected. Zhang Siyi can only provide proof of identity and property rted to his parents as a reasonable guarantee.

    However, ¡°The Family Registry¡±. These three words are difficult for Zhang Siyi to speak of. He knows that the family registry is needed to registrar a marriage. Now that his rtionship is known, it appears like Zhang Siyi was running away to elope! (=_=)

    Thoughts jumbled; Mother Zhang stared at them for a long time. Watching the two younger men look at her pitifully, like two begging puppies, her heart was both sour and soft.

    Finally, she sighed and turned around, walked to a drawer, took something out, and gave it to Zhang Siyi. Since she hadn¡¯t given him a clear opinion about his rtionship, her silence was her way protesting.

    Just before she turned away for the second time, Gu Yu suddenly held Zhang Siyi¡¯s hand in front of her.

    Zhang Siyi was frightened and impulsively jerked his hand away but instead, it was held tightly by Gu Yu.

    Gu Yu looked earnestly at his mother and sincerely said: ¡°Auntie, thank you.¡±

    Mother Zhang: ¡°¡­¡± Thank you for your thanks! Who allowed you to be together! I¡¯m just providing a copy!

    Knowing Father Zhang was still at home and coulde over here at any time, made her feel very anxious. She was very eager to separate their sped hands. However, Gu Yu was even quicker than her. When she approached, he let go of Zhang Siyi and at the same time, moved over to create an open space for her to sit. Then, he reached up to pull her down onto the sofa.

    ¡°Auntie¡­¡± Gu Yu looked at her imploringly and earnestly stated: ¡°I will not take Zhang Siyi away from you. He is still your son. I just like him and want to love him as much as you do.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± Good, so nauseating!

    In her heart, Mother Zhang¡¯s felt like she experienced all the vors of Chinese five-spice. With red and swollen eyes, she asked: ¡°How long have you known each other? Now and for the rest of your life, can you afford it? Your status is so much better than our family¡¯s. Zhang Siyi is so young. Perhaps, he hadn¡¯t thought about the future so clearly and on an impulse¡­..¡±

    Zhang Siyi rebuked: ¡°Mom! ¡°

    He wanted to say that it was not like that, but Zhang Siyi¡¯s Mother ferociously snapped: ¡°You shut up, don¡¯t talk!¡± ¡°

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    As Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother collected her thoughts, she looked to Gu Yu and said: ¡°Zhang Siyi is my son. Only his Mother knows who he really is. Only his parents know how many shorings he really has and only we are able to put up with them. No matter what lifetime promise you give me now, I won¡¯t believe in it. I don¡¯t want to be the bad mother who ends your rtionship because if that happened, Zhang Siyi would hate me. If you want my blessing now, to be honest, it¡¯s not possible.¡±

 Chapter 226: English

    <h4>Chapter 226: English</h4>

    Listening to Mother Zhang, both Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu were shocked. If the family wouldn¡¯t bless the love between them, it was like a knife hanging over their heads, ready to wreak havoc.

    Furrowing his brows, Gu Yu frowned even deeper. Since he knew it was useless to say anything against her heartfelt words, he didn¡¯t know what to say to appease Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother. He was left with no choice but to use practical action and hope her opinion would change over time, but does she have the patience to wait?

    Watching their initial expressions of shock form into despondent looks, Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother sighed. She was awake all-night thinking. Neither did she want to hurt her son, nor did she want to be at odds with her husband.

    She knew very well that while she was carrying this secret, she had already boarded her son¡¯s boat. She could only help him hide it from Father Zhang. Poor Old Zhang. If he knew his son and his nobleman, Gu Yu, were a gay couple, he would probably copse.

    If the two of them really can be in love with each other and support each other for the rest of their lives, that is really worth praising. However, she is afraid her son is simply feeling euphoric over the newness of the moment and overtime, will change his mind. Since a same-sex rtionship goes against social norms, the road is very difficult in society and the pressure is immense. If one member of the rtionship crumbled under the stress, the other person would most likely be seriously injured. In some cases, emotional trauma never heals. As a mother, she was most worried about her son¡¯s wellbeing, now and in the future.

    Mother Zhang looked at Gu Yu in the eye and said: ¡°Gu Yu, I will give you six years. Zhang Siyi is twenty-four years old this year. When he reaches thirty, if you are still together, you can ask me again and I will bless you. For the next six years, I will neither say anything to Sisi¡¯s Father nor will I interfere with your rtionship. The proof of your feelings; only time will tell.¡±

    Mother Zhang desire to appease the situation greatly surprised Gu Yu. Yes, empty promises prove nothing. For as long as it takes, three years, six years, ten years, twenty years, as long as they could be together, time is the most powerful proof.

    Gu Yu looked admiringly at the wise woman in front of him. His gratitude was indescribable.

    Mother Zhang was very smart and sensible. She knew that a person¡¯s preference can affect judgment and thus, she didn¡¯t use emotion to kidnap affection. As she wasn¡¯t in a position to judge them right from wrong, she didn¡¯t want to give them false hope.

    Giving them time was truly the most fare. Not only was it the most responsible thing to do, it was the best way to protect Zhang Siyi and her family.

    Gu Yu hadn¡¯t demanded much. Mother¡¯s Zhang¡¯s conditional request was the best result. He grabbed Mother Zhang¡¯s hand again and earnestly said: ¡°I will prove it to you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s Mother awkwardly pulled her hand out from his grasp and said: ¡±Instead of telling me not to worry, you might want to exin it to your own parents. You are older than Zhang Siyi. Although you have a younger sister, you are the eldest son in the family. Have they not urged you to marry? How likely are they to ept your rtionship?¡±

    Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi smiled at each other than addressed Mother Zhang: ¡°They already know.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother was shocked: ¡°What!?¡±

    Gu Yu exined: ¡°They have long known my sexuality. This year they were very happy that I was able to bring Siyi back home with me for New Years. You can rest assured; they are very fond of Siyi.¡±

    Although Gu Yu didn¡¯tpletely tell the truth for the fact that they tried to hide the nature of their rtionship in the beginning, Zhang Siyi understood Gu Yu¡¯s reasoning. He wanted Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother to bepletely at ease. Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t want to borate and looked away evasively.

    In a moment, Mother Zhang¡¯s whole world copsed. God, what the hell did she do? Not only did she cheerfully send him to the Gu family for the New Year, she made him bring so many gifts. Now that Gu Yu has invested in Zhang Siyi education, wasn¡¯t it basically the same as a dowry? She unknowingly gave her son away!

    As they were finishing their conversation, Father Zhang appeared from the bathroom. After he ate his breakfast leisurely, he took the newspaper to read while going to the bathroom. Not knowing he had missed the most news-worthy news, he calmly waltzed over.

    With remorse, Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother looked pensively at Father Zhang. If Old Zhang knew while away on vacation that their son went to greet his new inws and perhaps even called them Mom and Dad, she thought Old Zhang would probably have disowned their son!

    Father Zhang saw Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi with mother Zhang sitting on the sofa together. Walking towards them he casually asked: ¡°Ah, you are still here¡­.. What are you three chatting about?¡±

    Without missing a beat, Gu Yu smoothly moved over and calmly said: ¡°I¡¯m listening to Zhang Siyi tell me about Ennd. I haven¡¯t been there. Uncle, please sit.¡±

    Mother Zhang: ¡°¡­¡± This god acting! (= _ =)

    ¡°Oh?¡± I haven¡¯t even heard much of it either. ¡°Father Zhang snorted like he was greatly offended and moved to sit down. Heined: ¡°This boy of mine told his mother everything, but not to me. He probably doesn¡¯t even pay attention to me. Gu Yu, you don¡¯t know it, but even though he is all grown up,st night he was hiding in his room with his mother crying about going abroad. You tell me, what is wrong with them?¡±

    Mother Zhang: ¡°¡­¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°¡­¡±

    Father Zhang shook his head and said: ¡°My child from a young age has been spoiled by his mother. You will have to bear with it some more.¡±

    Gu Yu smiled and said: ¡°Well, Uncle, you can rest assured. I will take good care of him.¡±

    Father Zhang nodded continuously and urged Gu Yu to take care of him in the future.

    Hearing Father Zhang¡¯s profound promation without knowing anything, Mother Zhang stood up suddenly. She couldn¡¯t take it anymore and went to leave the room.

    Worried about his mother¡¯s state of mind, Zhang Siyi got up as well. He followed her and called out: ¡°Mom¡­.¡±

    ¡°What are you doing with me?¡± Mother Zhang grumbled.

    Zhang Siyi heard the troubled tone of his Mother¡¯s voice and stepped closer to hug her. From behind, as she was smaller than himself, he wrapped his arms around her warmly and apologized: ¡°Mom, I¡¯m sorry¡­¡± He kissed her cheek then softly said: ¡°Thank you.¡±

    The sincere apology and thanks finally made Mother Zhang feel better. However, the huge stone in her heart wasn¡¯tpletely put aside. Reaching for Zhang Siyi¡¯ hands, she held them and continued her nagging. On one hand, she was curious about Gu Yu¡¯s parents¡¯ true attitude toward Zhang Siyi. On the other hand, she was worried that her son would be taken away by Gu Yupletely. After thinking it over, she still insisted that Zhang Siyi should pay for his own tuition and not rely on Gu Yu.

    Father Zhang didn¡¯t know when, but during his chat with Gu Yu, he noticed his wife and son had left the sofa. He stood up to go over to them and as he rounded the corner he watched them hug together emotionally. Father Zhang was so angry he red at them and said: ¡°Look, you see what he is like; all his life and he can¡¯t be separated from his mother! When will he ever grow up!¡±

    Mother Zhang: ¡°¡­¡±

    Now that the Zhang family gave them an all clear, Gu Yu informed his family of their ns. His parents naturally had no objections. When they heard that both of them were going to study abroad together, they expressed their full support.

    After the festival, the two returned to Haicheng by car. Since Gu Yu¡¯s eptance was conditional on the basis of his English fluency, before he could confirm his admission and sign his eptance letter, Gu Yu needed time to prepare for the IELTS. The University required international students be proficient in English with a total score of seven and with nothing less than six and a half in each part of thenguage test.

    It took a lot of effort on Zhang Siyi¡¯s part when he prepared for his exam before he went abroad. He barely reached the requirements even after taking the exam twice. Although the IELTS exam would be easy for him now, he still remembered how much he had struggled at the time.

    To ensure he was well prepared, Gu Yu purchased a few study aids and practice tests on the inte. After work each day, he used the reference books and reviewed them at home in the evenings before bed. A score of seven on the IELTS wasn¡¯t easy to achieve. Since it was tough to improve quickly with such a short amount of time, the listening and spoken part of the exam was particrly difficult. He studied for two weeks before he went to an official testing site in Haicheng.

    Knowing what it was like when he took the exam, especially now that Gu Yu told him how little English he has been in contact with since his own Master¡¯s degree, Zhang Siyi worried incessantly. Since Gu Yu had been very busy at work, he wasn¡¯t able to study very much. At most, he reviewed the vocabry words with Zhang Siyi for an hour each night. The time spent studying was woefully inefficient. More concerning for Zhang Siyi was the fact that two days before the exam, Gu Yu still hadn¡¯tpleted the practice questions. Zhang Siyi knew better than to question Gu Yu¡¯s ability to learn quickly, however he couldn¡¯t stop himself from worrying.

    On the day of the test, Zhang Siyi personally escorted Gu Yu to the examination room. Holding the door open, he said: ¡°Come on, don¡¯t be nervous!¡±

    Gu Yu gave him a perplexed nced and chuckled: ¡°Me, nervous?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    Gu Yu reached out to rub his head and calmly said: ¡°Don¡¯t be nervous. Go back and wait for me at home.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    Two weekster, Gu Yu received his test results. The score for each section was eight, nine, seven and seven, and his total IELTS score was an eight.

    Zhang Siyi stared at his results and said in disbelief: ¡°You! How did you do that!¡±

    Gu Yu wondered: ¡°Do What?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Didn¡¯t you say you haven¡¯t used English for many years? How did you score so well!¡±

    Since Gu Yu didn¡¯t understand what the big deal was, he asked: ¡°Haven¡¯t I been reviewing for the past two weeks?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± Looking at words while chatting with him was called reviewing?¡±

    Pointing at the score, Zhang Siyimented: ¡°I haven¡¯t heard you say more than a few words of English these past few days. How can you score a 7 on the spokennguage section!?¡±

    Gu Yu tilted his head in confusion: ¡°Isn¡¯t it just a matter of chatting with the examiner to test your spokennguage proficiency? He asked all the usual questions.¡±

    Zhang Siyi pursed his lips together then suddenly reacted: ¡°Were you good at English when you were in college?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°It was okay.¡±

    What his criteria was for a so-called ¡®ok¡¯, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know. He pressed Gu Yu and asked: ¡°Up to what level did you study English in college? What was your GPA ?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°I don¡¯t really remember, but I know it was almost full marks so I got a 4.0.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± Sure enough! This type of school bully needs a beating! (= Ãó =)

    Putting away the transcript, Gu Yu smiled: ¡°IELTS was very simple. While I was at University studying for my Master¡¯s degree, I needed to read many books written in English in order to write my thesis. Those books were much more difficult than thenguage proficiency exam.¡±

    Zhang Siyi doesn¡¯t want to talk anymore. He shut the door and left with the dog! Give me back my worries!

    Now that his results were official, Gu Yu signed his eptance proposal and sent it back. In addition, they also mailed the necessary documents to the appropriate government officials for their student Visas.

    At the end of June, since their Visas were approved without problems, there was nothing to worry about. No one at work knew both Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu were leaving thepany. Whether it was their colleagues in the same department, board members, or even their close friend, Tao Fei, thepany¡¯s staff was in the dark.

    It wasn¡¯t until mid-July that Zhang Siyi began working with colleagues to transfer his work load onto others. Only then did someone realize the fact that Zhang Siyi was going back to the UK to study for a master¡¯s degree. After the news was confirmed in private, like a dropped boulder in a calmke, a thousand waves stirred everyone up.

    ¡°What!?!? Ourpany¡¯s mascot is leaving!?!?¡±

 Chapter 227: Letâ€™s Go

    <h4>Chapter 227: Let¡¯s Go</h4>

    The chat group lit on fire:

    ¡°Aunt Four, which school are you going to?¡±

    Zhang Siyi tried hard to suppress his inner joy so he calmly said: ¡°Big A University.¡±

    ¡°Wow! The same school as Tao Fei! How many years are you going to go?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Two years.¡±

    ¡°Will youe back to Borderless after graduation?¡±

    Zhang Siyi scratched his head: ¡°I don¡¯t know. I¡¯ll have to check it outter ¡­¡±

    ¡°There¡¯s no way! Don¡¯t you think he will be out of our league after graduation?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­ What? No¡­.¡± He didn¡¯t know what to tell them. It really depended on Gu Yu. For good or bad, where ever Gu Yu went, he would follow.

    Without fear, Bi Lele proimed: ¡°As long as our boss is still in thepany, Auntie will definitelye back!¡±

    Being the one most informed over thepany¡¯s gossip, she was rather surprised to learn of Zhang Siyi¡¯s departure. Or rather, the fact that Gu Yu would let him go. Then again, men and women were different. Men often pursued academics and focused their attention on their careers instead of love. In this regard, she understood it a little.

    An uninformed girlughed and joked: ¡°That¡¯s right! You two are the Borderless couple!¡±

    Zhang Siyi was very embarrassed. If they knew Gu Yu was going with him, the group of girls would probably throw him out of a ten-story building. In order to avoid problems, Gu Yu explicitly told him in private that their departure shouldn¡¯t be made public early. He didn¡¯t want to cause a disruption within Borderless.

    To his colleagues on the internal instant-message, Zhang Siyi replied: ¡°Whether I return or not, I won¡¯t forget you guys. Also, don¡¯t forget about our Borderless chat group. We can keep in touch anywhere at any time!¡±

    On the chat group or in their department, although everyone was being cheerful, it was obvious their hearts weren¡¯t into it. As the newbie entering thepany, Zhang Siyi never imagined he would receive such star-studded treatment. He was touched.

    It wasn¡¯t easy pacifying his colleagues. At noon for lunch, he was roughly caught by Tao Fei. Shaking Zhang Siyi, he said: ¡°Shit. Why so sudden? You¡¯re doing a good job of keeping it a secret! Going abroad isn¡¯t umon, why didn¡¯t you tell me!¡±

    Since Tao Fei was tall and thin, he appeared weak, but don¡¯t be deceived. He was the president of the karate society at University. His hands were like iron vice grips and Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t break free from his grasp.

    ¡°Dead, Fat Peach ¡­¡± Feeling dizzy, Zhang Siyi head was shaken: ¡°It¡¯s not that I didn¡¯t tell you. For a long time, I have neither seen you during the day nor after hours at night. How am I supposed to tell you?!¡±

    Tao Fei let go of him, looking a little unnatural: ¡°I¡¯ve been hanging out with stupid Bai Rui upstairs this whole time.¡±

    Zhang Siyi turned a blind eye. Spending so much time together, is he not afraid of assimtion?

    Tao Fei asked him: ¡°What are you going to do about my Brother? Are you going to have a long-distance rtionship?¡±

    Zhang Siyi almost blurted out, ¡®he¡¯s going with me,¡¯ but the thought of Gu Yu instructions halted him. He calmly responded: ¡°You can ask him yourself.¡±

    Although the two of them were nning to go abroad together, due to logistics and concerns, they couldn¡¯t leave thepany together. As a result, they decided Zhang Siyi would leave first and then Gu Yu wouldter follow. It wasn¡¯t yet time to tell Tao Fei the truth.

    Pursing his lips, Tao Fei squinted at Zhang Siyi like he was inspecting him for clues: ¡°What¡¯s with the cloak and dagger? Is something going on?¡±

    Looking sympathetically at Tao Fei, Zhang Siyi silently lowered his head and began to eat.

    Already, Gu Yu has made preparations for Tao Fei to take over the position of leader in Group A. In thest six months, he has been gradually handing over most of the jobs to Tao Fei. Since he doesn¡¯t have a sufficient work experience and a license, Tao Fei was unqualified to serve as a design director. In advanced and in private, Gu Yu arranged for Tong Heyi, the leader of Group B, to take over that position.

    A weekter, Gu Yu organized a farewell party for Zhang Siyi. They went to the same restaurant where they held his wee party and as before, everyone toasted him many times over.

    After seven or eight rounds, Zhang Siyi rummaged through his bag and took out his ¡°Assistant Architect¡± business cards. A little tipsy, he started handing them to each of his colleagues. He loudly announced: ¡°Wait until Ie back! Let¡¯s work together to construct the mothend! My number will never change!¡±

    As his colleagues took a business card one-by-one, they were starting to feel emotional andughed: ¡°Don¡¯t forget toe back yourself! We¡¯ll be waiting for our mascot!¡±

    When he came to thest person in the circle, there was only one business card left. Suddenly Zhang Siyi was reluctant to give it away. He could keep one for himself as a memento, right?

    Looking up, Zhang Siyi saw Gu Yu standing there with his out stretched hand. Zhang Siyi withdrew his hand and said: ¡°You gave this to me so I¡¯m not giving it back.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°¡­¡±

    On hisst day at Borderless, Zhang Siyi packed up his desk, deleted the personal information stored on hisputer and officially left the first workce in his life. As he walked past thendscaping wall with his belongings, Zhang Siyi saw his cactus. He asked reception if he could bring it with him.

    The girl at the front desk was a bit bewildered: ¡°nts are consideredpany property. Employees can only adopt and take care of them during their employment. They cannot be taken away.¡±

    Zhang Siyi asked at thest minute and wasn¡¯t expecting much. He didn¡¯t expect the receptionist toe over and whisper to him: ¡°Well, it ispany policy, but if you take it away secretly, I wouldn¡¯t be able to stop you¡­..¡±

    Zhang Siyi smiled and shook his head: ¡°It¡¯s okay, keep it for the next person.¡±

    Actually, his generosity wasn¡¯t so generous. In fact, he already had the ¡®real¡¯ cactus at home. Ha-ha!

    Now that he left his work, he was biding his time until he left the country. Enjoying his leisurely life, he slept in, read books, and ate when he felt like it. Sometimes, he prepared dinner while waiting for Gu Yu toe home in the evenings.

    By mid-August, Gu Yu also left Borderless. When Gu Yu came back from work in the evening, Zhang Siyi jumped up to greet him: ¡°Well, how was it?¡±

    Stooping over to change his shoes, Gu Yu replied: ¡±Tao Fei blew up.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Hah! Well, what did he do? As the new group leader, didn¡¯t he say something encouraging?¡±

    Gu Yu raised an eyebrow and said: ¡°He was just angry so he made a scene. He has to figure it out on his own or he won¡¯t learn. Tao Fei just needs experience. This is a once in a lifetime opportunity and I haven¡¯t asked him to thank me yet.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°He may be angry with you because you didn¡¯t tell him earlier.¡±

    Gu Yu chuckled: ¡°I had to hide it from him otherwise he would run away in anger and then, who would I find to be my sessor?¡±

    Snickering, Zhang Siyi mourned for Tao Fei for a moment. He asked: ¡°What was the rest of the group¡¯s reaction?¡±

    Gu Yu shrugged: ¡°It¡¯s Tao Fei¡¯s business now. I have nothing to do with it, but I believe Tao Fei will make it work.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± He gave full marks for his ability to pass the buck!

    However, despite Gu Yu¡¯s ims, Tao Fei called him almost three times a day. He relentlessly pestered him with questions; how to do this, how to do that and all the while, Gu Yu answered him with patience.

    No one knew who it was that let the cat out of the bag, but when the news about Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi going to study at the same ce was revealed, the Borderless WeChat group roared:

    ¡°Four aunts! Give us back our boss!¡±

    ¡°Wow! Our mascot has taken the boss away!¡±

    ¡°Where does he live? Let¡¯s kill him together !! ¡°

    ¡­¡­

    For several days, Zhang Siyi was too scared to appear in the chat group. Fortunately, the news didn¡¯t spread while he was at work, otherwise he probably would have been hanged!

    No matter how much fuss everyone made, over time harmony was restored.

    In thest week before going abroad, Gu Yu telephoned his friend who owned Yuanshan Garden Vi. He inquired about the future of the vi and if his friend wanted to use it. If that was the case, they would have to spend time reorganizing and moving furniture around.

    Since his friend¡¯s career was much grander than it was when they first met, the vi wasn¡¯t something he was concerned with. When he heard that Gu Yu was leaving to study abroad, he asked: ¡±Will you return to China?¡±

    Gu Yu replied: ¡°Of course. In three to five years, I will be back to develop my own business when I return to Haicheng.¡±

    The man boldly said: ¡°Since the vi was renovated as a personal favor, its yours. Keep living there so you will have a home toe back to.¡±

    His friend reassurances made Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi feel relieved. The amount of work needed to move their belonging wasn¡¯t small. Gu Yu had so many books and collections to pack. Plus, there was the furniture to deal with. There simply wasn¡¯t room in Ningcheng for it.

    Thinking about the topic of houses, Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°Since you are so rich, why not buy a bigger house for your parents in Ningcheng?¡±

    Initially, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t understand it at all, but he quickly grasped the reason when Gu Yu exined. Only then did he realize that some spiritual things couldn¡¯t be brought about by material upgrading. Their old house was full of the memories of family and that was the most important part worth preserving for their parents.

    In a blink of an eye, it was time to leave. The two packed up their luggage and entrusted both Yuanshan Garden and Townhouse to Gu Yao¡¯s care. Since their parents weren¡¯t retired yet, they didn¡¯t want them to have to take off from work to send them off. Instead, they returned to Ningcheng to specifically bid the Zhang¡¯s and Gu¡¯s farewell.

    On the day of departure, their brother-inw, He Chengtian, drove them to the airport. In order to drop them off, Gu Yao specially asked for a personal day off from work. When Gu Yu reluctantly said goodbye to his sister, Gu Yao burst into tears.

    When her tears fell, the three big men panicked. Especially, He Chengtian. Calling Gu Yao by her nickname, he didn¡¯t know what to say.

    Watching He Chengtian¡¯s distressed and helpless demeanor, Gu Yu suddenly pushed Gu Yao in his direction and chuckled at him: ¡±He Chengtian, my sister will be in your care.¡±

    Taking a few seconds to react, He Chengtian¡¯s face turned red. Like he was swearing in at court, he raised his hand up and solemnly vowed: ¡°Brother, I¡¯ll see to it, guaranteed.¡±

    Gu Yu smiled and waved at them then turned around and headed to the departure gate with Zhang Siyi.

    After going through security, Zhang Siyi received a call from Fu Xinhui. He scrambled to pick it up on time. He answered and heard his friend¡¯s voice: ¡°Are you going abroad today?¡±

    Zhang Siyi answered: ¡°Yeah! I just went through the security check and I¡¯m on my way to the departure gate to board the ne.¡±

    Listening to him, Gu Yu interest was piqued. He quietly asked: ¡°Who is it?¡±

    Zhang Siyi quickly told him: ¡°Heartless Han.¡±

    Over the phone Fu Xinhui went on: ¡°Oh, good. I haven¡¯t missed it. It¡¯s a pity I can¡¯t send you off in person today. I¡¯m only able to make this phone call. I wish you a safe and pleasant journey!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°You¡¯re in Australia, of course you can¡¯t send me off! The phone call is enough.¡±

    Fu Xinhui: ¡°I have been in Australia for a year and a half already. I¡¯ll be able to go back to China in another year. Why didn¡¯t you wait for me to return before leaving?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What¡¯s the difference? We¡¯ll see each other when we get back or maybe I¡¯ll go on vacation to visit you in Australia. Oh yeh, I asked Gu Yu¡¯s sister to take care of your son. She¡¯s lived with us so she knows the dog so you don¡¯t have to worry about him.¡±

    The walk to the depart gate was a long way from the security checkpoint. Following Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi kept his attention on the phone while talking to Fu Xinhui and only vaguely kept Gu Yu in sites ahead of him. Suddenly Gu Yu stopped and returned to him and said: ¡°Give me your hand.¡±

    On some level, Zhang Siyi thought it wouldn¡¯t be a good idea to hold hands in public now, but his body reacted on its own. As he was focused on the phone, he didn¡¯t give it much thought. Hesitating for only a moment, Zhang Siyi stretched out his hand.

    Unexpectedly, Gu Yu grabbed his hand and from within his pocket, pulled out two rings. He ced one on his own ring finger and the other onto Zhang Siyi ring finger on his left hand. He whispered: ¡°Well, let¡¯s go.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    Looking down at his hands¡­.. Looking up at the back of Gu Yu walking away¡­. Zhang Siyi was stupefied.

    As there was no answer on the phone, Fu Xinhui was urgently calling for Zhang Siyi¡¯s response: ¡°Hello? Hello, are you still there?¡±

    He absentmindedly said: ¡°¡­.ter,¡± and hung up the phone.

    Watching Gu Yu¡¯s back, he chased after him and shouted: ¡°Hey! What is this? What do you mean?¡±

    What about his proposal? What about a romantic scene? ¡°¡­..Y, you! Stop!¡±

    Was that it? Walking through the airport and he got a ring?

    As he heard Zhang Siyi¡¯s insistent voice calling him, Gu Yu stopped and smiled at him. He knew Zhang Siyi was running to catch up to him. As he neared, Zhang Siyi brought a gust of wind and Gu Yu heard his breathless panting. Requesting Gu Yu to walk slower, he reached for his hand. Gu Yu seized it tightly on the spot and was never going to let him go.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    Feeling the strength of his hand, Zhang Siyi¡¯s heart was fluttering. There wasn¡¯t a need to say more. Suddenly, it was enough. There was no need for empty vows or exaggerated sweet talk. Hand-in-hand, they were together and didn¡¯t care who was around staring at them.

    As the sunlight shined through the tempered ss window of the south side of the airport, the light casted shadows of the window frame pattern of a grid onto the marble floor. Over time, the shapes that the casted shadows formed, slowly changed.

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s life was like this marble floor. Gu Yu¡¯s shadow was deep in his bones. From his childhood acquaintance, to a high school reunion, to a beacon of light to guide him and his love. He couldn¡¯t be reced.

    The road ahead was very long, but Zhang Siyi wouldn¡¯t hesitate any longer because he wasn¡¯t afraid anymore. Because, he had Gu Yu by his side, always.

 Chapter 228: Extra 1

    <h4>Chapter 228: Extra 1</h4>

    After arriving in London, first Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi decided to check into a hotel in the neighborhood that they wanted to reside in. Gu Yu had a high standard of living so they wanted to take their time in choosing an apartment instead of signing a contract through online advertisers in advance.

    Even though Gu Yu had money, since the cost of renting an apartment in London was more expensive than back home, Zhang Siyi urged Gu Yu to be economical in picking a ce to live. Even with economics in mind, since they didn¡¯t have time to travel far from the suburbs to the city center where the University was located, they wanted the convenience of living within walking distance to their sses. The high rental cost of the area proved how desirable it was. In order to keep costs to a minimum, Gu Yupromised and choose a studio apartment to live in.

    Zhang Siyi was a bit flustered: ¡°Isn¡¯t it a bad idea to live in a studio apartment?¡±

    Typically, a Studio was very small with 1 double bed and could be rented by either a single person or a couple. The one they were inspecting had an open kitchen area, one small bathroom and one main living space that was roughly 30 square meters.

    Gu Yu replied: ¡°What¡¯s so bad about it? You can see the park out the window and there is a supermarket downstairs. Since it¡¯s only ten minutes to the University, it¡¯s very convenient to live here.¡±

    Zhang Siyi nced at the strange-looking real-estate agent and whispered to Gu Yu in Chinese: ¡°Two men living in a studio with one bed. What do you think, other people will think?¡±

    Gu Yu thought it was funny: ¡°What¡¯s gotten into you? We are already a couple.¡± As he spoke, he reached out to hold Zhang Siyi¡¯s hand.

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    Agent: ¡°¡­¡±

    Now that the rental contract was signed, they could move in without problems. As they waited for the elevator, the real-estate agent asked: ¡°So, you guys are a gay couple?¡±

    Gu Yu generously admitted: ¡°Yes.¡±

    The agent smiled broadly andmented: ¡°You look very loving together. I wish you happiness.¡±

    Gu Yu thanked him, and turned to Zhang Siyi after the man left: ¡°The people in Ennd certainly seem more rxed about it than the Chinese.¡±

    Written all over his face was a myriad of facial expressions; anxiety, shock, irritation. Zhang Siyi raised his voice and eximed: ¡°Wait! You weren¡¯t nning on hiding our rtionship?¡±

    Gu Yu squeezed Zhang Siyi¡¯s hand: ¡°We are already wearing rings, what is there to hide?¡±

    Zhang Siyi was a feeling angrier. Without knowing, he always felt like he was caught up in the act. He couldn¡¯t help butin: ¡°But you gave it to me while I was on the phone.¡±

    Gu Yu grabbed his hand: ¡°You don¡¯t want it? Then ¡­¡±

    Zhang Siyi thought he was going to take it back. Immediately rmed, he clenched his hand into a fist and yanked it away. Protecting his fist with the other and holding it to his chest, he said: ¡°No one said anything.¡±

    Peering at him, Gu Yu smirked: ¡°Heh.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± (= Ãó =)

    Gu Yu went on to exin: ¡°Since I¡¯m not your boss anymore, we don¡¯t need to be so careful. Besides, we are abroad and we don¡¯t have to worry about how others see us, so just be free. Anyways, when we return home to China, we will never see these foreigners again.

    Zhang Siyi was somewhat moved by Gu Yu. Indeed, not worrying about how other people think of you was a step that required courage to take. As it was with the real-estate agent, if you are open and honest, then perhaps they could also receive the sincere blessing from others.

    Zhang Siyi joked: ¡°What if we be famous one day, like winning the Pritzker Prize. When we receive the prize on stage, someone is bound to recognize us. They will point us out,ugh at us and make fun of us. If they have proof, they could tell everyone we are gay.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s exaggerated tone made Gu Yu unable to listen to him. He raised his hand and flicked his forehead. He said: ¡°The Plitzker Prize¡­ Keep dreaming.¡±

    Covering his forehead, Zhang Siyi was so angry that he shouted: ¡°You haven¡¯t thought about it? You must have a goal!¡±

    Gu Yu chuckled: ¡°Yes, but your goals of fame and fortune are too unrealistic. For me, designing and building is in itself worth enjoying. It doesn¡¯t matter whether or not I be famous or win awards. If it¡¯s true, then it¡¯s fine to be recognized, but all celebrities have to endure what others say about them. Regardless, it shouldn¡¯t affect our ability to do our jobs.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    A few dayster, they made ns to visit IKEA to buy furniture and a bed and bath home supply store to buy sheets, nkets, bathroom essories and kitchen supplies. On their way home from the suburbs, they discovered a home improvement store that sold supplies for renovation projects. There, they were able to purchase enough wood and tools to make custom shelving and bookcases for their apartment.

    At home, utilizing the new materials they purchased, Gu Yu set to work on optimizing the space by making a few partitions within the apartment and building custom shelving thereby eliminating any dead space present.

    Now finished, they carefully unpacked the specialty boxes that were shipped from home that contained onerge cactus and one smaller one and set the nts on the windowsill. During the shipping the nts had been jostled around substantially. When they removed the outer packaging, there was dirt spilled all around the inside of the inner package. While the exposed cactus roots were troubling, the more problematic issue was the damage to the ball.

    Having went through great lengths to save it in the past, Zhang Siyi was emotionally attached to this particr cactus. He panicked and asked: ¡°Will it die?¡±

    Unlike Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu remained very calm. He casually replied: ¡°It¡¯s okay. This cactus is a hearty nt. We can buy some potting soilter and rent it, but for now, go outside to the flower garden a bring in some soil.¡±

    As for why Gu Yu could take the big cactus ball away from the office without being obstructed¡­.. Who¡¯s the director? He had the privilege. ¨r (¨s_¨t) ¨q

    In addition to the furniture and essories to decorate their home, Gu Yu also bought office supplies and the necessary tools specific for architectural work. Furthermore, despite the small home, he bought a scanner, printer and light table, and even a drafting table, which was normally very bulky, for Zhang Siyi to use.

    With regards to Gu Yu¡¯s recent spending habits, Zhang Siyi was shocked. ¡°Why did you buy the equipment yourself? There are facilities and printers at the University to use!¡±

    Gu Yu exined: ¡°If you want to do well, consistency is important. Before we left, I asked Tao Fei about the facilities in the department and he said that the printers are heavily used and often times you need to wait in a queue. It¡¯s better to have your own, especially earlier in the school year because of therge volume one needs to print. Overall, in two years-time, the cost will be about the same. Besides, since it¡¯s the two of us, it¡¯s definitely not a poor investment.¡±

    Not understanding his thinking, Zhang Siyi asked: ¡°But what about the drafting and light table? My drawing skills aren¡¯t so good and I mainly use aputer.¡±

    Gu Yu raised an eyebrow and scoffed: ¡°You aren¡¯t good at drawing? Then practice! I¡¯ve tolerated your shoring for a long time. As an architect, how can you not know how to draft and draw by hand? You are even embarrassed to admit it yourself!¡±

    Zhang Siyi was choked with anger. He looked around at the now over crowded space in the apartment. Having a bone to pick, he debated: ¡°But it¡¯s so expensive and you bought too much!¡°

    Gu Yuughed: ¡°I am rich.¡±

    Quickly, Zhang Siyi reproached him and stated: ¡°Why didn¡¯t you just buy a 3D printer then!?¡±

    Gu Yu looked him in the eye and said: ¡°You just can¡¯t let it go.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    He gave up. It seemed like Gu Yu had already calcted the size of the room and purchased the exact necessary equipment to facility their growth with nothing more and nothing less. While the room appeared crowded, it was in fact very easy to move around and live in. After approximately ten days, the two were able to finish decorating their new home.

    Other than the bathroom, there weren¡¯t separate rooms. Without walls to hide behind, one was visible at any vantage point in the room. This feeling, as if it wasn¡¯t possible to have a secret between two people, was really amazing.

    In the evening, as Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu rxed together in bed cuddling, Zhang Siyi still felt like he was in a dream. The fact that Gu Yu followed him to Ennd was incredible and he continued to feel like it was unreal. As time went on and Zhang Siyi epted the facts in front of him, he had a profound sense of well-being and felt happier than ever.

    Since their bed faced south, sunlight poured into the room each morning illuminating them just like it had in Gu Yu¡¯s bedroom in Yuanshan Garden. It was clear he took this fact into consideration when he chose this studio apartment to rent.

    With a week to go until the start of the school year, spending their time care-free, they toured London, went shopping and hung out with friends. Some of Zhang Siyi¡¯s ssmates were still living in London. When they learned he was returning to Ennd to study for a Master¡¯s degree, each of them asked Zhang Siyi out for a reunion dinner.

    Unexpectedly, even Yu Rui messaged him and invited him out to eat. While he wasn¡¯t particrly close with the girl, he remembered his friend¡¯sments about her and as a result, he kept his distance and rejected her invitation.

    Having maintained a good rtionship with Xue Wenhan, he met up with his friend. He learned that after graduation, Xue Wenhan stayed in London and ultimately decided to work for a Chinese travel agency.

    Zhang Siyi was dumbfounded: ¡°Why did you spend all that time earning a Master¡¯s degree if you were going to change your career!?¡±

    Distressed, Xue Wenhan rebuked him: ¡°Hey, if it was so easy to find an architectural position in London, I would have. I was turned away by more than a dozen offices. On the other hand, apany outside of architected wanted to hire me so I decided work there for the time being and figure it out slowly.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Did you know that Yu Rui was hired by F Firm?¡±

    Xue Wenhan: ¡°Yeah, I know. She¡¯s really good.¡±

    Harboring some bitterness, both of them looked at each other with understanding andughed. They didn¡¯t gossip about her further. Instead, they talked about the employment situation in the construction industry of Britain.

    The overall situation in the UK wasn¡¯t much better than that of their own country. Like that of China, there was also a saturation of architect¡¯s and not enough projects. Zhang Siyi was worried about his prospects: ¡°When I graduate, will I be able to get a job?¡± ¡­.Then what was Gu Yu¡¯s investment for???

    Xue Wenhanughed: ¡°It¡¯ll be different for you since you applied for RIBA part 2. Study well and you will certainly be able to find a nice job in the future.¡±

    The following day, Gu Yu took him to see one of his friends who was a former ssmate from T University. He also graduated from Big A Master¡¯s program and stayed in London ever since. Although he wasn¡¯t qualified to obtain a RIBA license, because of his strong ability and experience over seven years, he was a senior project leader at a well-known architectural firm.

    When Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi mentioned that they weren¡¯t thinking of applying for work in Britain, Gu Yu¡¯s friend offered to help.

    The man interviewed them at a restaurant in Chinatown and was so excited to see an old friend that he vigorously shook Gu Yu¡¯s hand and said: ¡°Hello, hello! How many years has it been? I didn¡¯t expect you toe to Ennd.¡±

    Recounting a few warm moments in the old days, they enthusiastically greeted each other. Noticing the ring on Gu Yu finger, he was surprised and eximed: ¡°Shit! Are you married? Why didn¡¯t you tell me?¡±

    Gu Yuughed. Tilting his head, he gestured to Zhang Siyi who was standing foolishly on the side. He pulled him over and said: ¡°Here, let me introduce you. This is my lover, Zhang Siyi.¡±

 Chapter 229: Extra 2

    <h4>Chapter 229: Extra 2</h4>

    Shocked at the news, the man eyes widened in surprise. He stared at them openly like he saw a rare species of mammal for the first time, but quickly turned around to recover and stammered: ¡°You, you, you are, are this¡­ uhh.¡± He seemed a little embarrassed to speak further so he stopped. Even though his reaction wasn¡¯t as calm as the British real-estate agent, he didn¡¯t seem to have any ill-will towards them. While his voice remained neutral, he shook his head and said: ¡°I remember all of the beautiful women that chased you¡­ and you would ignore them. I really thought it was because you were dedicated and only interested in architecture.¡±

    He happily shook hands with Zhang Siyi and asked Gu Yu to give a detailed ount of Zhang Siyi¡¯s background. Once he learned that Zhang Siyi was in London toplete RIBA part 2, he was rather envious as he also wanted to apply for a Royal Architect license. Even if he wanted to apply, with a degree from China, he was an unqualified and had no desire to redo his undergraduate studies in Ennd.

    ¡°Hey, in this line of business without a Royal Architect license, it¡¯s difficult to move up. In the end, only those with a license can reap the rewards. At least, after your experience in a foreign country and returning to China, the work experience could be added to a resume. However, it¡¯s probably not what you are looking for¡­..¡±

    The man sighed and continued: ¡°When I heard your request, I also advised you to reconsider and revaluate what you wanted froming to Ennd. I could help you get a work visa, but to what end? Your professional and social status wouldn¡¯t be as great as it was in China. But¡­¡± He nced at Zhang Siyi and smiled: ¡°I didn¡¯t expect you to bring someone so valuable. When your lover passes the exam, it won¡¯t be a problem for the both of you to get a foothold here.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡± ¡­ ¡± Having hidden his rtionship with Gu Yu for so long, he got goose bumps when he heard himself being called Gu Yu¡¯s lover.

    Hearing the man¡¯s optimism, Zhang Siyi felt positive, however, in the back on his mind, due to his friend¡¯s experience, he also thought there was a catch. Even if he graduated with a RIBA 2 license, he needed work experience in Ennd to establish awork of contacts and build a portfolio for hister testing of his Royal Architect license.

    Zhang Siyi expressed his concern: ¡°Yesterday, a ssmate of mine said architectural positions were hard toe by in Ennd.¡±

    The man asked: ¡°What degree does your ssmate have? What was his specialty?¡±

    Zhang Siyi replied: ¡°He has a one-year degree at W University. I¡®m not sure of his specialty.¡±

    The man chuckled: ¡°A one-year Master¡¯s wasn¡¯t the same as a gold-ted RIBA 2 license. With the saturation in the market, what Firm is going to hire and train a recent graduate without both a prominent pedigree and work experience? However, your circumstances aren¡¯t the same. British architectural firms often take on Chinese projects. With Gu Yu¡¯s work experience and Chinese license, he will be highly valued. If you can sessfully graduate with a RIBA 2 license and since I have connections, with a few introductions to people in the industry, you don¡¯t have to worry about finding a job. For now, just study hard andy down a solid foundation.¡±

    Consoling him, Gu Yu patted his back and smiled confidently toward him. His calm and positive attitude eased his anxiety. Realizing he wasn¡¯t in the same boat as his friend from University, he became excited. He was eager to take the next step and grow and learn and reach an even higher level. With this in mind, Zhang Siyi wanted to hurry home and start fighting for it!

    After they exchanged contact information, they gracefully gave their thanks and said goodbye then returned to their studio apartment.

    A few days before school, since the University was close by, Gu Yu bought a bunch of books from the campus bookstore. In the UK, at few hundred each, hardbound text books were expensive, especially therge format ones with full color images.

    While Zhang Siyi was studying in Ennd before, due the expense, he was reluctant to buy books. In addition, he thought the text might be too difficult for him to fullyprehend. As a result, not wanting to waste money, he used the books he needed for sses from the library.

    Of course, with Gu Yu¡¯s intellect and his wealth, Gu Yu never had those types of concerns to begin with. When Zhang Siyi saw the newly built bookcases being filled with books, Zhang Siyi wanted to kneel down and worship!

    Even if it seemed like Gu Yu was spending money without regard, in fact, he didn¡¯t buy them for the sake of pretty pictures. Gu Yu bought them to use as reference and teaching material for Zhang Siyi.

    During his undergrad, Zhang Siyi hadn¡¯t developed proper researching techniques. In order to help him, Gu Yu pointed out the important parts of the text and let Zhang Siyi read it to specifically discuss the topic together afterwards. In this way, Zhang Siyi¡¯s attention was focused and his enthusiasm grew. Gradually, with increasing self-confidence, he was able to ascertain the important parts of the books himself.

    In the beginning of the school year, the unexpected intensity with which the material was taught during his sses made Zhang Siyi feel out of breath. However, even though he felt there was a huge disparity between his knowledge and what the professors expected, Zhang Siyi had Gu Yu by his side to help. In this way, Zhang Siyi felt like he had his own personal step-by-step guide.

    Since Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t excel at studies naturally, he needed to spend more time reading his coursework more thoroughly. He often spent extra time at his desk to read his books and look over paintings and other rted architectural images. In contrast, whether Gu Yu wasying on the floor, sitting by a window, or at a desk, it didn¡¯t affect how efficiently Gu Yu could learn the new material. Many times, he even cooked or baked while studying.

    Being surrounded by effective methods of learning all the time made Zhang Siyi feel great and his ultimate goal was one step closer. He came to understand that his knowledge wasn¡¯t far behind his other ssmates, but rather it was hisck of focus and poor habits from the past that were the culprit. In this focused learning environment and under Gu Yu¡¯s influence, Zhang Siyi was slowly catching up to him.

    As an Architectural design major, in addition to having creative design ideas, a graduate was also expected have a certain amount of hands-on practical skills. The field required students to know how to transform their ideas into drawings and 3d models and finally into a building for human use.

    Although they were at the same University, since they were in different courses, their schedules didn¡¯t ovep. Gu Yu¡¯s direction was professional development and as such, required more research rted tasks with less design and hands-on modeling. In contrast, Zhang Siyi¡¯s coursework for his Master¡¯s was RIBA part 2 and the principle aspect of it was learning how to navigate through the multiple steps required to developplexrge-scale ns. If Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t home, he was still at school experimenting with materials and building models.

    If a job was like a game of chess and you had to y it ording to the rules, then being at University was like a game of chess without rules. As long a you can think of it, there wasn¡¯t anything you couldn¡¯t do.

    Finally, Zhang Siyi found something he excelled at. His design ideas were extraordinary and different. Unlike Gu Yu¡¯s rigid way of designing, Zhang Siyi¡¯s creations were fanciful, romantic and avant-garde.

    Every month, the department of Architecture assembled for a group meeting and critiqued each other¡¯s work in progress. At the meeting, students disyed their projects and both the professors in the department and invited architects in the industry gave feedback about them.

    At the first assembly, Gu Yu came to Zhang Siyi¡¯s presentation without telling him. Quietly entering the conference room, Gu Yu stood to the side with his arms crossed, watching attentively.

    In their ss, there were more than two Chinese students. In the Department of Architecture, there were more than thirty in both undergrad and graduate studentsbined currently studying at Big A University. One student from Hong Kong, a beautiful girl, showed great interest in Gu Yu on the first day they met at their student orientation. Having noticed her interest, on several asions, Zhang Siyi deliberately position his left hand in in sight and sh his ring that matched Gu Yu¡¯s in her direction. Knowing that they often arrived and left together, he thought she was a fool for not knowing they were a couple.

    When Zhang Siyi caught site of Gu Yu quietly sneaking into the conference room during his presentation, his eyes widened for a moment in panic. His anxiety increased when he saw the girl from Hong Kong immediately walk over to Gu Yu and talk. Several times, he saw Gu Yuughing and smiling at her. Watching their interactions caused Zhang Siyi to burn with jealously. Filled with anger, his mind went nk and as a result, he never heard any of the constructive feedback about his project from his peers and professors.

    When the critique was finished, he walked over to where Gu Yu was waiting for him. Gu Yu criticized him: ¡°You rehearsed it so well yesterday, but today¡­ What happened with your presentation?¡±

    Zhang Siyi clenched his teeth: ¡°So now you criticize me.¡±

    Gu Yu was confused with his attitude: ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡±

    Neither did Zhang Siyi want to show nor admit to him that he was jealous. Instead of answering him, he evaded: ¡°Why didn¡¯t you tell me that you wereing to the presentation? You made me so nervous.¡±

    Chuckling, Gu Yu smiled at him: ¡°If I want to see you, do I have to ask? We live together now, so why are you so nervous?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± That isn¡¯t the issue right now. It¡¯s a presentation and he didn¡¯t want to make a fool of himself in front of his lover!

    As the next person was presenting their project, Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu kept their whispers to a minimum. Soon, the girl from Hong Kong stood up and got her materials for her presentation. When Gu Yu stopped chatting with him all together and focused his attention at her, he got even angrier. Grabbing his arm and pulling him away, Zhang Siyi inwardly thought: God Damn. Did youe to see me or see someone else?

    It was only when Zhang Siyi pulled Gu Yu away into a corner and hugged him that Gu Yu realized what was wrong. Happy to coax him, Gu Yu smiled and said: ¡°Fool. Why are you so jealous? You know I can¡¯t be with women.¡±

    Burying his head into Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi kept his mouth shut. He knew Gu Yu wouldn¡¯t do anything to that girl, but even so, he wasn¡¯t happy about his lover being coveted by others. Even though Gu Yu was wearing his ring, that Hong Kong Girl kept persisting and continued to talk to Gu Yu at every chance.

    Gu Yu teased him for a while before telling him the truth: ¡°Actually, she likes you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­ What!? ¡°

    Gu Yu smirked and looked at Zhang Siyi: ¡°Every time she approached me to talk, she wanted to tell me her thoughts about you. Since she liked how well you speak, shees to your presentations to listen. She also has mentioned you in private.¡±

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s face suddenly burned up: ¡°She, what did she tell you!?!?¡±

    Squeezing Zhang Siyi¡¯s left hand, Gu Yuughed: ¡°Even though she never asked, she knew that we were together. Don¡¯t you always show her your ring? She said you are childish and cute.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    This news waspletely embarrassing for Zhang Siyi. He wanted to dig a hole and bury himself in it. He acted like that in front of her because he thought she didn¡¯t know. He was so angry with himself that he shouted at Gu Yu: ¡°If you knew all along, why didn¡¯t you say something? Was it fun to watch me embarrass myself?¡±

    Gu Yu pinched his nose and grinned: ¡°Yes. I¡¯ve already told that. Heh¡±

    Zhang Siyi was so angry that he vomited three liters of blood!

    More than that, in private, their ssmates already knew they were a couple. However, they were afraid of embarrassing them so they never spoke up.

 Chapter 230: Extra 3

    <h4>Chapter 230: Extra 3</h4>

    Of course, Zhang Siyi had no clue what was really going on at the time. After Gu Yu had told him the truth of the matter, Zhang Siyi felt ufortable. Any time he saw the Hong Kong girl, he wanted to hide.

    In order to appease any hard feelings that had developed, she organized a Halloween party and invited many ssmates and friends outside of the department to attend which included Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu.

    At the party, Zhang Siyi discovered that he and Gu Yu had long been known as a same sex couple and because they had outstanding appearances and behaved likemon people, they were rather famous.

    The key to their poprity was that, although Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t do anything out of the ordinary in public, together they involuntarily exuded a loving and sweet vibe that infected their surroundings. The fact that the two of them were in love was as natural as breathing air and it was hard for anyone to ignore.

    A Spanish ssmate said: ¡°You¡¯re a very different kind of gay from the gay that I know of. I thought all gays were like Marvin.¡±

    Marvin was a short Mysian man who originally came to Big A for interior design, but switched departments to Architecture. He was quite mboyant and often wore women¡¯s essories. His character was distinct and made no effort to hide his sexual orientation.

    The Hong Kong sister came over with her wine and said with a smile: ¡°Are you talking about Marvin? He¡¯s lovely, like a girl¡­¡­But I prefer the type like our Zhang Siyi here.¡± She smiled coyly at Zhang Siyi, winked at him, then walked away.

    During the party, they had many opportunities to talk to the various guests. All of which wanted to hear more about how they met and what their aspirations where. When they heard the story of their rtionship, they became the envy of the party. The fact they had found their true love, followed their dreams and were able to build a life together was something everyone wanted to obtain, but difficult to achieve in reality.

    After talking with the people at the party, Zhang Siyi also adapted to their environment and was able to enjoy having an open rtionship with Gu Yu.

    For Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu, being treated like ordinary people, neither being singled out nor expressing contempt towards them, was showing the most respect. In truth, such a tolerant environment wasn¡¯t possible at home in a short period of time.

    Since they were focused on their coursework and studying rigorously throughout the year, they didn¡¯t have excess energy to use for picking out birthday gifts. On Zhang Siyi¡¯s birthday, Gu Yu gave him a painting that he had done. For Gu Yu¡¯s birthday, Zhang Siyi gave him a gadget that he had created in the studio.

    In the UK, there were three main holidays throughout the academic year; Christmas, Easter and the summer holiday. The former holidays were only a couple weeks, while the summer holidaysted much longer. Due to the short holiday period, they didn¡¯t return home to China and instead, chose to visit nearby countries in Europe.

    In order to grow and develop as an architect, it was also important to experience architecture from different parts of the world. During his undergraduate years, Zhang Siyi and Fu Xinhui visited quite a few ces together. As evident one night while together, Gu Yu seemed to have taken this matter to heart. He arrogantly imed he was going to rece Zhang Siyi¡¯s travel memories that he had with Fu Xinhui with his own. It left Zhang Siyi speechless¡­. He and Fu Xinhui were more innocent than Mother Goose!

    Traveling with Gu Yu was apletely different type of experiencepared to when Zhang Siyi toured with his roommate. When he was with his friend, Zhang Siyi mostly ate, drank, and quickly visited ces for fun. In contrast, at each destination he visited with Gu Yu, it was like a full-on investigation. In advance, they wanted to read about the history of the area and look up materials rted to each of the various buildings.

    In the past, Zhang Siyi would haveined about it. Since when he had be assimted, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know, but now he was excited and happy to delve deeper into it!

    Where ever he went, in his excitement, he dragged Gu Yu with him to take snap shots. Being able to converse in-depth with him on the same level at every step of the way was simply a joy. The absolute spiritual pleasure that engulfed him was far more enjoyable then eating, drinking and sleeping at fancy hotels.

    In this way, like floating in a sea of knowledge, as an absorbent sponge, Zhang Siyi filled himself with information and rapidly grew. Not only did his designs improve, the growth in his writing was exponential and even his usual mannerisms and speech patterns have gained a sense of depth that wasn¡¯t present previously.

    To paraphrase the master photographer, Ansel Adams: ¡°We don¡¯t just take pictures with our cameras. What we bring to photography is all the books we¡¯ve read, the movies we¡¯ve seen, the music we¡¯ve heard, the people we¡¯ve loved.¡±

    This is also true for Architects. While designing, Zhang Siyi incorporated all of the things he has read about in books, the ces he has traveled to, the people he has talked to, and his deep love for Gu Yu.

    Even though summer break was three months long, the two of them returned to China for two weeks to visit their families. Since they didn¡¯t stay for a long time, they didn¡¯t inform many friends. The short time passed quickly and soon they had to return to London.

    Since Gu Yu course of study was only sixteen months long, the only thing he needed to do to finish his certificate and graduate was to write a short dissertation. Gu Yu¡¯s friend and colleague, with the use of his connections, set up work for Gu Yu early.

    Naively, Zhang Siyi thought Gu Yu was going to wait for Zhang Siyi to grow as an architect, but reality didn¡¯t reflect his wish. While Zhang Siyi continued to learn at University, once Gu Yu started working, he began to make a lot of money.

    Even though his job was located at the other end of the city, Gu Yu didn¡¯t move. He chose to remain close to the school and take the Underground to work in the mornings and from work in the evenings.

    With Gu Yu remaining by his side, Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t think his living arrangements were any different then when they were in Haicheng. The main difference was their food. While breakfast became toast, bacon and eggs, dinner often consisted of a quick pizza or pasta.

    After two years of hard work, Zhang Siyi graduated from University with a high score on the RIBA part 2 assessment. As a result, he received job offerings at several British architectural firms, including the well-known Richard-Rogers and TFP Farrells Firms. In addition, the firm that Yu Rui¡¯s worked at also extended an invitation.

    With strength, job opportunities, like water at the end of a faucet, flowed freely. For Zhang Siyi, it was the same and looking back, he was confused why his friend Xue Wenhan had such a hard time.

    At first, Zhang Siyi wanted to work with Gu Yu, but Gu Yu said with his current ability, he didn¡¯t have anything to teach Zhang Siyi and it would be better to continue his growth at a different Firm. As long as they could continue to live together and work in the same city, there was nothing they couldn¡¯t figure out.

    As soon as Zhang Siyi heard Gu Yu, he felt it was reasonable. Like a baby chick, he couldn¡¯t always seek refuge behind a mother hen.

    All three well-known Firms were good choices. However, as one was located in Scond, he looked more closely at the other two offers. Either of them would add brilliance to a resume and allow Zhang Siyi to further his career by leaps and bounds.

    Since Zhang Siyi posted his job opportunities on his social media page, many ssmates and friends sent their blessings. At this time, Yu Rui contacted him again and warmly weed him to the same Firm as a colleague.

    Zhang Siyi was moved by the fact that many of the well-known projects throughout the world, such as Hong Kong¡¯s new airport and Tokyo¡¯s Millennium Tower, havee from Firm F, but because Yu Rui was there, he was rather hesitant about working in the samepany.

    Two years ago, when he returned to Ennd, Yu Rui offered to help him and wanted to go out to dinner. It seemed rude to repeatedly decline her offer. Under the pretense of working at the samepany, he decided he could meet with her and hear what she had to say, nothing more. With this in mind, he didn¡¯t discuss it with Gu Yu and went to meet her by himself.

    They choose to meet at an English teahouse and once she arrived, Zhang Siyi was very surprised as he hadn¡¯t seen her for a few years. Since her appearance radiated maturity and a refinement that wasn¡¯t known before, Zhang Siyi second-guessed his previous assumptions about her that were solely due to his friend¡¯s gossip. He tried his best to adjust his state of mind and treated her with a neutral and calm attitude.

    As they both exchanged pleasantries, Yu Rui was surprised to discover Zhang Siyi¡¯s ring, and eximed: ¡°You are already married!?¡±

    Zhang Siyi had no reason to exin further and replied: ¡°It¡¯s just a token of love.¡±

    Yu Rui: ¡°Is your girlfriend in China or here?¡±

    Zhang Siyi took a sip of tea and said: ¡± Here, with me.¡±

    Yu Rui smiled: ¡°Since you returned to London, I¡¯ve asked you out many times, but you have always refused. Did your girlfriend prevent you from seeing me?¡±

    Zhang Siyi was a little flustered: ¡°Ah? Eh?¡± What¡¯s with that? Clearly, the reason he didn¡¯t want to meet was because of her! However, it wasn¡¯t something he could say so bluntly. (=_=)

    Yu Rui said: ¡± I know that I have a bad reputation.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    So, she knows it? Zhang Siyi was a little curious. Did she really do all the things that were gossiped about her?

    Yu Rui seemed to have read Zhang Siyi¡¯s mind. As she gently lifted the tea pot and refilled his cup with tea, she said: ¡°In fact, I think you see me as doing anything to get what I want by any means. I think you are too na?ve.¡±

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know what to say. The only history he knows about her was hearsay. Now that she was right in front of him, he got caught up in the moment and asked her: ¡°I¡¯ve heard rumors about you. They all said you would find a boyfriend to help with your coursework and when the project waspleted, you would throw them away.¡±

    Yu Rui: ¡°It¡¯s true.¡±

    Her frankness was unexpected and Zhang Siyi shocked expression was obvious.

    Yu Rui smiled softly: ¡°Do you think they didn¡¯t know what was going on? They all knew and yet, they were willing. Why do you think that is?¡±

    The corner of Zhang Siyi¡¯s mouth twitched. Why would he know?!

    ¡°Because they were stupid to choose me.¡± Yu Ruiughed.

    ¡°They knew what they were getting into and even so, they risked their own morals and choose to be my boyfriend. Oh, I don¡¯t think I did anything wrong. Since childhood, I¡¯ve been told that society isn¡¯t fair to girls. We praise schrs for using their natural gifts for their own self-interests. In order to step up in the world, I just used all of my natural gifts. If I didn¡¯t really have skill, do you think I would continue to be allowed to fish at F Firm waters?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t agree with her world view. Since he couldn¡¯t understand it, he always felt that something was wrong.

    As he was digesting what she said, Yu Rui looked up at him and grinned: ¡°But, you were different and were never on my hook. You were too smart for that.¡±

    In his heart, Zhang Siyi knew he wasn¡¯t that smart. In reality, it was due to the reality check that was given to him by his friends. (=_=)

    Whether it was an appreciative sigh or not, Yu Rui exhaled deeply: ¡°To find a boyfriend like you, your girlfriend must be really happy.¡±

    Hearing her, Zhang Siyi suddenly understood what the underlying problem was.

    Life wasn¡¯t a project to manipte. She may be able to use people to get ahead, but she doesn¡¯t realize that things like friendship, love and the self-satisfaction one feels by the sess of your own hard work, wasn¡¯t something you could calcte.

    There are many types of women. In contrast to Yu Rui¡¯s do-what-ever-it-takes attitude, Su Yuan, Bi Lele, and Zhang Siyi¡¯s ssmate from Hong Kong, has treated life with sincerity and through hard work, have gained the respect in their careers.

    Zhang Siyi believed that people who take short cuts as Yu Rui has done are everywhere. One meeting was enough. In order to maintain his shallow friendship, eventually Zhang Siyi decided to decline the job opportunity from F Firm.

    After they said their goodbyes, he opened his WeChat App on his phone and typed a message to his former ssmates: ¡°I¡¯ve fired F-Firm.¡±

    His bold behavior ticked off Su Yuan. She med Yu Rui for the loss of Zhang Siyi¡¯s job opportunity. Regardless of Su Yuan¡¯s irritation, Zhang Siyi was upbeat and sent a [Kitten Power] sticker in the group. With everyone¡¯s cheers and well-wishes, his new journey had begun.

 Chapter 231: Extra 4

    <h4>Chapter 231: Extra 4</h4>

    After a brief internship, with the expected sry of thirty-eight-thousand pounds a year, Zhang Siyi signed a two-year contract with Richard Rogers. Although he was able to live very well in London with his sry, the British pound had fallen in value year by year and in terms of a domestic sry, it equated to approximately three-hundred-thousand Yuan.

    From a financial point of view, earning a Master¡¯s degree wasn¡¯t worth the cost. However, Zhang Siyi never regretted it because he no longer cared about the economics of it. Every day, he was full of enthusiasm and hope for his career. In order to pay off the debt that he owed Gu Yu as soon as possible, other than living expenses, Zhang Siyi voluntarily deposited his wages directly into Gu Yu¡¯s ount.

    It used to bother Zhang Siyi to have his finances be controlled by someone else but now, he has changed his views. There were so many couples in the world that when married, the wife took care of family finances. Since Zhang Siyi imagined Gu Yu as his wife and even though he didn¡¯tck money, it didn¡¯t prevent Zhang Siyi from thinking; Gu Yu was responsible for being beautiful and he was responsible for making money to support the family.

    Now that they were both working on the job, they didn¡¯t have a summer vacation. Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu were only able to return to China during Christmas break. This time, not only did they return to visit family, they went back home for the wedding of Gu Yu¡¯s Sister,

    Yes, after two years of courtship, He Chengtian and Gu Yao were finally getting married. In addition to having a Bridal shower in Ningcheng, their wedding and reception was held in Haicheng. In order for Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi to attend, the parents of the couple specially selected a good day after Christmas.

    After arriving at the Haicheng airport, Gu Yu¡¯s to-be brother-inw came to pick them up and drove them to the rehearsal dinner being held at an ethnic restaurant in the city center.

    As soon as they walked into the facility, Zhang Siyi saw an unexpected person inside!

    ¡°Heartless Han! Why are you here?¡± Zhang Siyi looked at Fu Xinhui in surprise.

    Sitting next to Fu Xinhui was He Chengtian¡¯s sister He Xueying. They stood and greeted Zhang Siyi. Not having seen each other for more than three and a half years, Fu Xinhui gave Zhang Siyi a bear hug. The two were almost moved to tears!

    ¡°I¡¯m back from Australia!¡± Fu Xinhui eximed.

    Zhang Siyi peeked at He Xueying and He Chengtian: ¡°I know you¡¯vee home, but why are you here with them?¡±

    Fu Xinhui smiled. Hooking He Xueying¡¯s shoulder and pulling her close, he said: ¡°Oh, I haven¡¯t told you. I have a girlfriend!¡±

    Raising her hand and offering a V for peace, He Xueying gave Zhang Siyi a bashful smile: ¡°Sorry, I stole your best friend.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­ Holy shit! ¡°

    Fu Xinhui grinned and said: ¡°All right, sit down. Let¡¯s chat.¡±

    Having ordered ahead for all of the guests, He Chengtian had picked a restaurant that specialized in middle eastern cuisine. With a table full of kebabs, Zhang Siyi bit into a chunk ofmb while talking with Fu Xinhui and He Xueying.

    As it turned out, they met and ended up bing a couple because of Zhang Siyi. When Fu Xinhui first went to Australia after his family¡¯s bankruptcy, he had asked He Xueying to help him get situated.

    When she learned the Fu family¡¯s experience, she was very sympathetic. With continuous contact andmunication, he Xueying gradually fell in love with Fu Xinhui¡¯s gentle and considerate nature. Feeling cherished at the lowest point in life, Fu Xinhui also fell in love.

    The year that He Chengtian and Gu Yao had met and started dating, He Xueying pretended to return to Australia for vacation. In fact, she went looking for Fu Xinhui. When the two returned to China together, the first thing Fu Xinhui wanted to do was find his ¡®son.¡¯ He was caught by surprise when he discovered that Townhouse was being taken care of by his future inws!

    Giving himself a pat on the back, Zhang Siyi sighed. Was the world just small, or was fate so wonderful?

    Although he wasn¡¯t happy about the secrete love affair, Zhang Siyi sincerely gave his blessing.

    After eating for a while, Zhang Siyi suddenly realized something and shouted: ¡°Wait! So, you two are here because of me. Am I your matchmaker?¡±

    Fu Xinhuiughed: ¡°That¡¯s right.¡±

    While gesturing with a kebab in his hand excitedly, Zhang Siyi joked with He Chengtian and with exuberance he said: ¡°In my past life, I must have owed you something because my fate¡¯s red string is being manipted by you. Remember to send me eighteen pairs of pig trotters, no thirty-six! No cheating! Ha-ha-ha!¡°

    ording to an old custom of Ningcheng, the matchmaker collected eighteen trotters as a thank-you gift. He Chengtianughed: ¡°Rest assured; you will get your payment.¡±

    Laughing together, the topic naturally moved onto other issues and Zhang Siyi asked Fu Xinhui about his work.

    Since his graduationst year, Fu Xinhui has been in China. While Fu Xinhui and He Xueying were abroad, they found ack of office and school supplies and felt there was a business opportunity here. Upon their return to China, the two started a small tradingpany that specialized in overseas orders.

    Even though he started in a seemingly nonplementary field of work as architecture, in reality, utilizing his creative skills and design background, he was able to put together a n step-by-step and put it into practice and build a new efficient and smooth-running business. Despite it being brand new, thepany was very productive and his ie was quite impressive.

    As for Fu Xinhui¡¯s uncle, he was in jail. His father, after spending a modest two years living simply out of the spotlight, was able to utilize his connections and resell his bank assets forrge amounts. As a result, he regained his foothold in the financial sector and was gaining momentum. Fu Xinhui managed hispany while helping his father and sister revive the Fu family¡¯s business. By his side was He Xueying, a beautiful and understanding women. Like a perpetual warm and weing spring breeze, Fu Xinhui didn¡¯t think his life could get any better and feel any happier.

    Also rying his current situation, Zhang Siyi happily told Fu Xinhui about his time studying for his Master¡¯s at Big A and his uing job at Richard Rogers architectural Firm. In addition, he spoke of his aspiration to earn a Royal Architect¡¯s license and wouldn¡¯t return to China until he got one.

    ¡°Oh, so, the next time youe home, will you be a Royal Architect?¡± Fu Xinhui half joked.

    ¡°Ha-ha, maybe!¡± Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t know for sure. As the legendary Royal Architect license was always just a distant daydream in the past, it was thest thing he expected to have so close by at his doorstep.

    After dinner, in order to give Zhang Siyi his matchmaker¡¯s gift, He Chengtian asked Zhang Siyi for his bank number.

    ¡°What kind of payment are you going to give me? Why do you need my ount number?¡± Zhang Siyi enquired then quipped: ¡°I expect nothing less than the thirty-six trotters. No cash substitutes!¡±

    Just as He Chengtian lifted his hand to smack the back of Zhang Siyi¡¯s head, he realized the fact that Zhang Siyi was his ¡®sister-inw¡¯. Pausing in mid-air, he put his hand back in his pocket andughed heartily: ¡°Stop joking around and just wait for the money!¡±

    Since Zhang Siyi joked about the matchmaker¡¯s gift, he assumed it wouldn¡¯t amount to much and quickly forgot about it. Later that night, he was shocked to see the message from his bank: ¡°Saving ount deposit: For the matchmaker: 180,000.¡±

    Wide-eyed and staring intently, Zhang Siyi¡¯s eyes nearly popped out of his skull. He quickly went to Gu Yu and eximed: ¡°Fuck! He Chengtian send me 180,000! Why is it so much!?¡±

    Gu Yu nced at him briefly andughed: ¡°They gave away millions in dowry gifts. Your one-hundred-eighty-thousand is but a puny fraction. Besides, you are Gu Yao¡¯s family. Don¡¯t be surprised.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± Shit! No wonder there are so many matchmaking agencies! The fees are so fucking good!

    After reading the text message a few more times and relishing the money, Zhang Siyi transferred it to Gu Yu¡¯s ount.

    Looking at the message disyed on his phone screen, Gu Yu asked: ¡°Why did you give it to me?¡±

    Zhang Siyi sharply replied: ¡°I still owe you money.¡±

    Gu Yuughed out loud. Rubbing his head, hemented: ¡°Good boy.¡±

    A few dayster, unexpectedly, He Chengtian appeared at Zhang Siyi¡¯s house to deliver the reward. Staring at the basket of meat products and other food-stuffs, Zhang Siyi eximed: ¡°You really came! But, it was just a joke!¡±

    He Chengtian was also there to deliver a wedding invitation. Heughed and said: ¡°Getting a sister-inw wasn¡¯t a joke! I¡¯m here with my fullest sincerity.¡±

    From inside, Mother Zhang came to see what themotion was at the door. When she saw He Chengtian, she understood who it was and quickly told Father Zhang toe to the entranceway and greet him: ¡°He Guoliang son is visiting. Don¡¯t you remember him?¡±

 Chapter 232: Extra 5

    <h4>Chapter 232: Extra 5</h4>

    He Chengtian loudly said: ¡°Uncle Zhang, I haven¡¯t seen you for many years. I¡¯m getting married next week. Come and celebrate with us!¡±

    ¡°He Chengtian is it?¡± Holding his tea cup near, Father Zhang took a nce at the invitation: ¡°Getting married.¡­ Congrattions! Who is it¡­.? huh?¡± Father Zhang took another look at the invitation then stated: ¡°What a coincidence, your bride¡¯s name is the same as Gu Yu¡¯s sister.¡±

    Mother Zhang tried hard to keep her expression neutral.

    He Chengtian exined on his own initiative: ¡°Uncle, the bride is Gu Yu¡¯s sister.¡±

    Zhang father smiled and nodded: ¡°Oh. It¡¯s his sister¡­¡­. eh?¡± He put away his smile and looked at Zhang Siyi, stupefied: ¡°Gu Yu¡¯s sister, his sister¡­ is not, not¡­¡­¡±

    He couldn¡¯t say anything. Zhang Siyi had gone abroad with Gu Yu not his sister, Gu Yao. The two were separated and even though they were both of marriageable age, she wasn¡¯t necessarily waiting for Zhang Siyi toe back!

    To appease Father Zhang¡¯s obvious shock and confusion, He Chengtian quickly interjected: ¡°For the matchmaker, these are the finest ck truffles and trotters that money can buy.¡±

    Father Zhang¡¯s thoughts were a mess. In the back of his mind, he always felt like something was off, but couldn¡¯t put his finger on it. Since He Chengtian was standing in front of him, he set his questions aside and focused on the young man before him.

    He Chengtian was able to talk circles around them and as a result, Father Zhang forget about his initial inkling. When he left, Zhang Siyi¡¯s father was full of joy and praise: ¡°In a sh, He Guoliang¡¯s son has all grown up. He really was a talented businessman with a promising future!¡±

    Afraid to make even a peep, standing next to him, Zhang Siyi remained silent. He was afraid his father would revisit the issue and further delve into the facts to seek answers.

    However, his abnormal silence brought attention. Since Father Zhang thought his son was unhappy about He Chengtian being praised, Father Zhang, thinking that it would appease his son, offered his own opinion about Zhang Siyi.

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s father coughed then said something he rarely ever had; he boasted andplimented his son: ¡°You are also a good person who has walked down the path to sess. Your technical skills offer stability unlike the work in investments and finance.¡±

    Nodding vigorously, like a chicken pecking rice, Zhang Siyi put on a good face.

    Since there were too many trotters for them to eat, they gave away half to their neighbors and rtives. His parent¡¯s also told Zhang Siyi to take some to the Gu residence. He couldn¡¯t help grit his teeth and feel irritated over Gu Yu¡¯s natural good luck.

    On the day of the wedding, the groom made his proposal at the Gu residence. Zhang Siyi, as a family member of the Gu¡¯s, also must be present.

    Early in the morning, Gu Yao was still in her room fixing her make-up. Downstairs, the wedding party had assembled. Since there was a line of luxury cars along the road, it caused a sensation in the neighborhood.

    As the iron gate was still broken, Zhang Siyi went down to open it. Thest person who he ever thought to see was standing there holding the groom¡¯s formal attire: Fu Xinhui!

    Having best friends meet on this asion was really ridiculous. Zhang Siyi tried to block him, but Fu Xinhui knew Zhang Siyi all too well. Fu Xinhuiughed and easily maneuvered around him.

    At the top of the staircase at the entranceway, He Chengtian rushed over. Zhang Siyi was angry and loudly yelled: ¡°Heartless Han, you traitor!!!¡±

    Laughing, Fu Xinhui couldn¡¯t get upset with him. He stepped forward and hooked Zhang Siyi¡¯s neck with his arm and pulled him over: ¡°Little Yi, don¡¯t me me. Later, I¡¯ll be your brother-inw!¡±

    ¡°Brother-inw? Ha! Don¡¯t get ahead of yourself!¡± Zhang Siyi spat while he pulled out his phone from his pocket and dialed Gu Yu: ¡°The front line is lost! It¡¯s up to you!¡±

    Laughing, Gu Yu tried to scold him over the phone: ¡°Useless¡­. You didn¡¯tst a minute.¡±

    Outside the front door, in the hallway, He Chengtian was shouting: ¡°Open the door! Open the door!¡±

    Thinking how best to take revenge, Gu Yu suddenly heard shouts from outside the door: ¡°Hurry up and grab Zhang Siyi!¡±

    Gu Yu shouted at the phone: ¡°Zhang Siyi! Run!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°Ah¡­..?¡±

    ¡°¡­. Ah! What are you doing? Ah, ah! Gu Yu help me!!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°¡­¡±

    In less than three minutes, not only was the front gate broken, the second door broke as well.

    Holding onto his nearly torn jacket, Zhang Siyi hid behind Gu Yu and angrily said: ¡°They are simply a group of animals!¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°¡­¡±

    Zhang Siyi was practically in tears. Completely apologetic and worried, he said: ¡°I¡¯m so sorry. I got you involved. Did you get hurt?¡±

    Gu Yu touched his head and sighed: ¡°Well, it¡¯s all right.¡±

    Who made Zhang Siyi his achilleas¡¯ heel? The man who always had one foot in a hole¡­.. Gu Yu never expected it to happen to him.

    Fortunately, the issue wasn¡¯t severe. The bridesmaid group teased him even more. Screaming andughing, the bridesmaid¡¯s asked the groom to perform various tasks and answer silly questions that were embarrassing before he was allowed to see his bride.

    Wearing a white wedding dress and adorned with the most beautiful jewelry, Gu Yao was sitting on the bed waiting. When He Chengtian entered her room, his vision was met with a site to behold. A pair of bright eyes, like stars in the sky, and slightly parted lips ¡­¡­My bride is so beautiful.

    Outside the doorway and in the hall, friends and family were crowded around to witness the bride and groom. Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu failed to secure a spot so they were behind the crowd. Standing on top of the sofa they watched from a distance and saw He Chengtian slowly approach her then kneel at her bedside. There was a slight tremble to his voice when he proimed: ¡°Gu Yao, I am here before you.¡±

    Even though it was short, He Chengtian¡¯s voice revealed his true feelings. Gazing at him with affection, Gu Yao raised her hand to cover her mouth. This scene moved everyone.

    Just as He Chengtian asked, ¡°Will you marry me¡±, Gu Yu grabbed Zhang Siyi¡¯s hand. Taking advantage of the fact that everyone¡¯s attention that was focused on the bride and groom, Gu Yu suddenly kissed Zhang Siyi on the side of his face. When the proposal was epted and the crowd broke out in crazy cheers and apuse, it felt as if the crowd was cheering there for them

    Zhang Siyi turned his head and as expected, saw Gu Yu grinning widely. He returned Gu Yu¡¯s bright smile with his own.

    As it was the brother¡¯s duty to escort the bride to her wedding carriage, a path was opened for him. Gu Yu walked into her room and slowly approached her. He gently lifted her off the bed and said: ¡°I bought the food today. Now, you will have to buy food for someone else.¡±

    Gu Yao scoffed audibly. Annoyed, she lifted her gloved hand and punched him on the shoulder: ¡°Brother! You bastard¡­.¡±

    Clearly, the word was derogatory, but the diminishing tone and the emotion heard within the words was that of family bonds.

    Listening to her, Gu Yu said: ¡°Don¡¯t cry. How can you let your future parents see you like that? You¡¯ll have toe back without a job.¡±

    Gu Yao shouted: ¡°Hey! ¡°

    Laughing, Gu Yu teased her: ¡°Remember, as long as your brother is home, there will be a bowl of rice waiting. ¡°

    Gu Yao: ¡°¡­¡±

    Step by step, Gu Yu escorted her downstairs steadily. Behind, preventing any missteps, Zhang Siyi held up the train of Gu Yao¡¯s wedding dress.

    The sound of firecrackers resounded in the air. The rowdy children in the neighborhood all cheered and shouted: ¡°The bride ising!¡± The deafening sound of fireworks masked Gu Yao¡¯s joyful sniffles.

    Located at the best hotel in Ningcheng, Zhang Siyi¡¯s parents went directly to the wedding reception. As they went to look at their seating assignments, they were surprised to find out that they were seated at the Gu¡¯s family¡¯s table.

    Since Father Zhang was ignorant of the truth, he asked Mother Zhang: ¡°Aren¡¯t we He Guoliang¡¯s friends? Why are we sitting with the Gu¡¯s family members?¡±

    Mother Zhang coughed lightly: ¡°I don¡¯t know. The matchmaker isn¡¯t always seated at the main table so we are seated here.¡±

    Since Zhang Siyi was also the matchmaker for He Chengtian, Father Zhang didn¡¯t let it go this time. ¡°He Chengtian came to our house to give Zhang Siyi his matchmaker gift. Doesn¡¯t that mean we should be sitting with the groom¡¯s side of the wedding party?¡±

    Mother Zhang couldn¡¯t find any faults with his reason. She offered an excuse: ¡°Uh, maybe there were too many guests on the groom¡¯s side?¡±

    Father Zhang thought for a while then spoke up: ¡°Also, they are business people. We have more inmon with them¡­..¡±

    Feeling uneasy and restless, he continued: ¡°I haven¡¯t seen Gu Mingfeng is so many years, I don¡¯t know what to say to him. It¡¯s rather embarrassing.¡±

    Mother Zhang scolded him and snapped: ¡°You have been in office as a politician for so many years, what is so embarrassing about seeing someone again?¡±

    Father Zhang wanted to defended himself: ¡°It¡¯s different. In the past, we only met at work and not as friends. I haven¡¯t really gotten to know him, so I don¡¯t know what to talk about. In fact, inparison I¡¯ve talked more with his son Gu Yu then the Elder.¡±

    While Mother and Father Gu continued to help with guests, Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu approached the table to sit.

    As they sat, Gu Yu greeted Father Zhang, and asked him: ¡°How is Uncle Zhang¡¯s health recently?¡±

    Father Zhang nodded and replied: ¡°I¡¯m very good. With a wedding to deal with, aren¡¯t you the one who is busy at home these days?¡±

    Chuckling, Gu Yu smiled and said: ¡°I¡¯m happy to be busy.¡±

    Since they were on the topic of the wedding, Zhang father asked: ¡°Now that your sister is married, when will you consider you own affairs? Don¡¯t your parents worry?¡±

    Gu Yu paused and expressively said: ¡°Siyi and I are still working hard in a foreign country.¡±

    The direction that the conversation was going in scared Zhang Siyi to death and made him worry.

    Unfortunately, or fortunately, the straitced Father Zhang never had the capacity to think of the reality behind their rtionship. Hemented: ¡°Oh well, don¡¯t let my Zhang Siyi drag you down. If you hadn¡¯t gone with him, you probably would already be married.¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Uncle Zhang, what do you mean? I would like to thank Siyi for staying by my side for so many years. When Siyi earns his Royal Architect license we will go back to Haicheng and start a business. I want him to take part and apany me hand in hand.¡±

    Smiling, Father Zhang happily said: ¡°It is a good thing for young people to think of the future. If you two can take care of each other, I¡¯ll feel relieved.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    Thanks to Gu Yu¡¯s eloquence, he told him the truth without telling him the truth. Zhang Siyi really wanted to worship him.

    When Zhang Siyi looked up, Father and Mother Gu were approaching the table. Zhang Siyi¡¯s parents immediately stood up and gave formal introductions. After sitting down, Zhang Siyi¡¯s father pointed his finger towards Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu and said: ¡°I was talking with them. They have a very close rtionship. In fact, it¡¯s so good that they want to start a business together.¡±

    Listening to Father Zhang¡¯s heartfelt emotions, everyone was silent. While Father and Mother Gu knew the truth of the matter, the Zhang family did not and they didn¡¯t know whether or not they should agree with the uninformed Father Zhang.

    Since they hadn¡¯t nned to tell Zhang Siyi¡¯s father about the truth yet, Father Gu didn¡¯t want to cause a problem and yet, he wanted to help his son. All he could do was offer an anecdote: ¡°Yeh, if Siyi was a girl, I would want my son to marry him.¡±

 Chapter 233: Extra 6

    <h4>Chapter 233: Extra 6</h4>

    Of course, Father Zhang took it as a joke, and couldn¡¯t help butugh out loud. Although he agreed with Elder Gu, he also said they were both men. Everyone was helpless when they heard his response. Father Zhang just didn¡¯t get it.

    The wedding was very lively. Not long after, He Guoliang and his wife came to toast Zhang Siyi¡¯s parents. Father Zhang casually asked: ¡°My son introduced you to such an excellent daughter-inw. Do you know of any excellent girls that you can introduced him to?¡±

    As soon as the words came out, the faces of all the people at the table changed. Since He Chengtian had already informed his parents of Gu Yu¡¯s rtionship with Zhang Siyi, they felt bad when they heard Elder Zhang. He was still in the dark and it was rather awkward.

    He Guoliang wiped the cold sweat from his brow and ying it up, he chuckled: ¡°Ha, Zhang Siyi is too good. Who am I supposed to introduce to him? I¡¯m sure there is a line of girls just waiting for him.¡±

    Mother He also exaggerated and put Zhang Siyi in the limelight. They wanted to clearly convey to Father Zhang that since his son was too good, there wasn¡¯t a girl worthy of him.

    People loved to listen to good things that boosted their ego and Father Zhang was no exception. With the high praise about his son from the He family, his heart was happy and no longer said anything further.

    As the drama became heated, the table worked together to put out any sparks and effectively change the topic. Despite the rming drama, no storm erupted.

    During the banquet, Zhang Siyi also saw Shen Hao. Since he was always on site as a supervisor during the week for his job, his tan and rough face was weathered and as a result, his image had really changed. During the past two years, time wasn¡¯t on his side and he appeared many years older than he really was. Even though he was younger than thirty, his narrow views and his issues with money made him seem like a middle-aged man.

    In contrast, Zhang Siyi continued to look youthful and handsome; an elegant schr. Coupled with the influences from being overseas and his experience getting a Master¡¯s degree, his temperament waspletely different from ordinary people.

    With different pursuits, people are destined to lead different lives and live in different realms. Before he met Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi thought special people were born to stand out. He didn¡¯t know that with effort and constantly polish, he also became such a person.

    Gu Yao¡¯s festive wedding came to an end with joy. The He family¡¯s will also have a celebration at the first of the month, but Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t stay.

    On the ne back to Ennd, remembering the false rm at the wedding, Zhang Siyi sighed: ¡°My father was so pitiful¡­. ¡°

    Sensing Zhang Siyi¡¯s guilt, Gu Yuforted him: ¡°Don¡¯t feel so guilty over it.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°How can he not see when we have implied so clearly? He even asked Mr. He to introduce me to someone.¡±

    When ites to this matter, Gu Yu inner fear hase to surface. He was afraid that someone will take Zhang Siyi away from him. He grabbed Zhang Siyi¡¯s hand and held it tightly.

    Zhang Siyi smiled back at him and said: ¡°You don¡¯t have to be nervous. I¡¯m abroad so there¡¯s nothing else he can do about it.¡±

    Frowning, Gu Yu was silent for a moment: ¡°While we are in a foreign country, we should try to tell him slowly. Otherwise, this issue will be like a time bomb waiting to go off at any moment.¡±

    Feeling the same, Zhang Siyi nodded. Almost all of the people around him, including his friends back home, knew that his significant other was a man. Having lived openly in Ennd, he didn¡¯t know how much of a breath of fresh air being honest and open truly was. He could never go back to the suffocation of the past and more importantly, he didn¡¯t want to lie to parents anymore.

    ¡°But how do we do it?¡± Zhang Siyi asked.

    Brooding over it, Gu Yu asked: ¡°Your Father, is he in your circle of friends on WeChat?¡±

    Understanding where Gu Yu¡¯s was going with his train of thought, Zhang Siyi let out an audible ah: ¡°Are you thinking we should let him see our photos?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°Give him a separate group that only he can see.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± This, that was also too cruel! (Ø£¨ŒØ£)

    After returning to London, the two finalized their ns toe out to Zhang Siyi¡¯s father, but before the n was implemented, Zhang Siyi had to discuss it with his mother.

    Although Mother Zhang initially insisted that she would neither amodate nor interfere with their rtionship, as a social butterfly and doting mother, she could not resist helping her son. Since Mother Zhang wanted to be part of his life, in the recent years, they exchanged photos andmunicated frequently over social media.

    After listening to Zhang Siyi¡¯s n, his mother was a little worried: ¡°You can¡¯t put everything online! It might be too much for him to handle. You better let me evaluate them first so I can make sure your father won¡¯t have a heart attack.¡±

    The meaning of her remark was obvious. How can his father be the only one looking at the photos? She wants to see his real-time-rtionship too!

    What else could Zhang Siyi say? His mother was asking and he has no objection. They were nning on taking it slowly with travel photos and meals and mundane photos of nature. Why would that be too stimting for his father? Was his mother thinking about something she shouldn¡¯t have? (=_=)

    The task ofing out to Father Zhang via a photo montage had begun. At first Zhang Siyi only posted photos of his work environment, a few projects and London¡¯sndscape.

    Ten dayster, Zhang Siyi¡¯s mother made a video call and with a polite yet sarcastic tone said: ¡°You seem to be a little conservative.¡±

    Zhang Siyi calmly replied: ¡°Mom, I have to go step-by-step.¡±

    Mother Zhang: ¡°Oh, so that¡¯s why.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What did Dad say? Did he have any reaction?¡±

    Mother Zhang: ¡°Yes. Today he told me at dinner that the British scenery was very nice. We also discussed visiting there when we retire.¡±

    Zhang Siyiughed: ¡°Isn¡¯t this ok? Let¡¯s start talking about small things first, then gradually show him more. I can¡¯t start with something intimate off the bat.¡±

    After catching-up with personal events and discussing a few other things, Mother Zhang suddenly asked: ¡°Where¡¯s Gu Yu?¡±

    Zhang Siyi casually pointed the iPad¡¯s camera at an angle downwards: ¡°Here. With work being so busytely, he¡¯s been pretty tired.¡±

    While Zhang Siyi had been reclining on his bed talking to his mother, a sleepy Gu Yu was next to him. Since the heating in the room was on the warm side, Gu Yu only wore a loosely-fitted white cotton V-neck T-shirt. While his neck and corbone were bare, one could see the definition of muscles throughout his torso, no to mention his arms. His unabashed position was rather sexy. Hearing voices, Gu Yu rolled onto his side and with sleepiness still evident in his eyes, he smiled at the camera and mumbled ¡®Mom¡¯. Then, nestling his head against Zhang Siyi andying his arm around his waist, he went back to sleep.

    When Mother Zhang saw the scene through her screen, she felt like blood was going to squirt out of her nose. As Zhang Siyi turned the screen around, his mother was trying to stay calm: ¡°In the future, you can show pictures of Gu Yu to your dad.¡±

    Zhang Siyi spontaneously responded: ¡°You mean like this one?¡±

    ¡°Of course not! You can¡¯t send this to your dad! Just send it to me!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± Mom, you seem to have exposed something. (£þ_£þ |||)

    The next day, in Zhang Siyi¡¯s private circle of friends he took a risk and posted a profile picture of Gu Yu in an apron making a pizza. He was anxiously waiting for his mother to contact him about it because he wanted to know if his father had any reactions.

    After waiting for a many hour without hearing from his mother, he peeked at the status of the image again. There was a ¡®like¡¯ pinned by his father!

    Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t believe it. After several days in a row of posting various ¡®action¡¯ photos of Gu Yu doing theundry, setting the quilts out to dry and cleaning, Father Zhang finally wrote ament: ¡°You have to do more housework. Don¡¯t be sozy.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± Really, that¡¯s it? Does he have no idea!?

    In reality, Zhang Siyi wasn¡¯t in a rush toy bare the truth. He could only be patient and continue to show ambiguous photos mixed with work and leisure. This pattern persisted for six months until there was a change. His mother had called him on the phone and nervously said: ¡°Sisi, your father¡­ I think there might be something wrong with him.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°What¡¯s wrong?¡±

    Mother Zhang: ¡°These days, he is often staring into space alone in the living room clutching his phone. Once I saw him looking through the photos you posted.¡±

    Zhang Siyi felt his heart in his throat: ¡°What expression did he have? Was he angry or did he seem unhappy?¡±

    Mother Zhang: ¡°Neither. He was expressionless and sometimes, he looks lonely. I tried to ask him if there was something on his mind recently, but he wouldn¡¯t tell me. I¡¯m certain that it has something to do with you.¡±

    Zhang Siyi knew that his father almost always discussed matters with his mother. In this case, since he had kept it to himself, indeed his actions were very uncharacteristic. Zhang Siyi browsed through the photos he posted in the group that he set up for his parents and confirmed that his recent photos weren¡¯t too explicit. In fact, they were all normal scenic photographs.

    ¡ª¡ª Did the change from quantity to quality produce the desired effect? Did his dad finally figure it out?

 Chapter 234: Extra 7

    <h4>Chapter 234: Extra 7</h4>

    However, in the absence of furthermunication with his father, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t verbally confirm or reveal anything more through the photographs.

    Even though he quietly maintained the status quo, the prolonged unresolved state was torturous. instead of remaining silent, it was better if his father took action and either called him up and shouted at him or flown directly to London to beat him.

    It wasn¡¯t until two weekter that Zhang Siyi learned the reason why his father acted so distant. It wasn¡¯t something he had done. It was Gu Yu¡¯s father¡¯s doing.

    ¡°What do you mean it¡¯s your dad¡¯s fault?¡± Zhang Siyi, who had just heard the news from Gu Yu was worried and firmly asked: ¡°What exactly did your dad do? Did he tell my dad?¡±

    Gu Yu shook his head and said: ¡°My dad did the same thing as us and made a private WeChat group for your father. In it, he posted a well-known article in the group about sexuality, titled: ¡°What should a parent do when your child is gay?¡±

    Being caught by surprise, Zhang Siyi nearly choked. Coughing, the rice he was eating practically sprayed out of his mouth: ¡°What!? How do you know? Did you ask him?¡±

    Gu Yu nced at him: ¡°Yeah. Do you think I haven¡¯t noticed your mood recently? Do you think I¡¯m not worried? If the problem wasn¡¯t something we did, I wondered if my parents did something. After all, they exchanged contact information after the wedding and I must assume they have contacted each other since then in private. I spoke with my father this morning and I told him about your father¡¯s recent behavior. Guess what? My father gloated about it. In his words, he said ¡°Ah-ha! That article I forwards to Siyi¡¯s dad a few days ago had some effect!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± Damn it! Thanks to him, he was so stressed! He repeatedly checked his online posting thinking he had made a mistake. Every day he fretted about what he should tell his dad. In the end, his mother had over thought the whole process because simply put, Zhang Siyi had no effect!

    Gu Yu: ¡°I¡¯ll know more when I talk to him again. My dad also told me that he was better to handle your father because he was his peer. It¡¯s especially so since your father is rather concerned with his image. If he knew his son was gay, he would never admit it. However, what if my dad could influence his opinion and change his mind? Coming from someone from an older generation would have more weight, right? Your dad would reflect, if my father could ept it, then why couldn¡¯t he?¡±

    Zhang Siyi didn¡¯t want to say anything. He simply wanted to bow down and worship Elder Gu!

    Gu Yu smiled: ¡°Of course, the photos we sent to your father weren¡¯t meaningless. Now that he had sorted through them again, he is probably reevaluating their meaning. His silence just means he is seriously considering the matter. Don¡¯t worry about it too much. We are far away in the UK. If he is angry, let him be angry. He won¡¯t be seeing us for a long time.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡± He suspected that Gu Yu arranged it all! (=_=)

    Not surprisingly, after some time had passed, Gu Yu updated Zhang Siyi on the topic of his father¡¯s involvement. Gu Yu told him that Father Zhang began to seek out his father secretly to talk about homosexuality and what to do if a child was gay.

    Eager to hear more, Zhang Siyi quickly asked: ¡°What did your father say?¡±

    Gu Yu chuckled and took out his mobile phone: ¡°They have been chatting for a while. My father sent me screenshots. You can see it for yourself.¡±

    Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t wait to take a look. At first, Father Gu didn¡¯t express his unconditional support. He honestly told Father Zhang his thoughts about the struggles he had in his heart and his unwillingness to ept it. Zhang Siyi¡¯s father immediately responded with simr thoughts. He took the opportunity to delve into the topic more seriously and discussed many social problems.

    For a few days, the two of them talked about various topics ranging from recent events to their hobbies and having established a better rtionship, the topic returned to the issue of homosexuality.

    Thetest chat record from two days ago showed Father Gu finally bringing the crux of the matter to Father Zhang: ¡°You¡¯ve also read the article. Like a child that is born with a physical or mental disability, it reports that homosexuality is something a person is born with. Do parents abandon their disabled children? If this kind of thing happens, I think it is not something one can control. It is an issue that is difficult for parents to ept when it happens to their own child. Regardless of what other families think, in my own family, if my child really likes another of the same sex, as long as they are truly happy, then his mother and I will support them.¡±

    After Gu Yu¡¯s father sent his long message to Zhang Siyi¡¯s father, there was a timepse of twenty minutes. Eventually, Father Zhang replied: ¡°I see¡­. You have been enlightened. How can you be so open-minded?¡±

    Reading the messages, Zhang Siyi almost burst into tears. Despite Father Gu¡¯s best efforts, Zhang Siyi¡¯s father didn¡¯t seem to understand or maybe, he simply couldn¡¯t ept the facts.

    Amused, Gu Yu looked at him and chuckled: ¡°If you read further, there is something interesting.¡±

    Using his thumb, Zhang Siyi scrolled the messages down on his mobile phone. Father Zhang tried to validate his own beliefs and challenged Gu Yu¡¯s father: ¡°I don¡¯t think my son is gay. Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu have a very good rtionship and they are in the UK. If they really are together, what are you going to do?¡±

    Father Gu replied: ¡°Ha-ha! Didn¡¯t I already say at the wedding? If Siyi was a girl, I would want my son to marry him. Elder Zhang, even as they are, are you really so reluctant?¡±

    Father Zhang: ¡°Elder Gu, you jest. Gu Yu is an excellent son. If I had a daughter, I would willingly marry her off. To be honest, since reading the article you sent me, because our two sons have a very good rtionship, there isn¡¯t a day I don¡¯t think about it, but even so, I can¡¯t ept it. If Zhang Siyi was gay and brings home a man, I can not agree to it, even if it breaks my rtionship with him. I am more worried about the scourge of others.¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡±

    Father Gu: ¡°Elder Zhang, you don¡¯t give your son enough credit. He is a hard-working and an obedient son. A real treasure.¡±

    ¡­¡­

    Afterwards, the two elders bragged about them one after the other. Looking through thements, Zhang Siyi clenched his teeth. Smirking, he finally thossed Gu Yu¡¯s phone back to him.

    Gu Yu smiled: ¡°Now can we rx?¡±

    Zhang Siyi hugged him with relief and sighed: ¡°It¡¯s ok now.¡±

    Gently patting his back, Gu Yu smiled and said: ¡°This is what¡¯s called strength in numbers. Even though your Father isn¡¯t on board now, we have the full support of our loved ones. Sooner orter, with the help of everyone, he wille around.¡±

    Yes, to have this happy situation today, not only was it due to Zhang Siyi¡¯s and Gu Yu¡¯s effort the past six months, but also because of Mother Zhang¡¯s secret assistance. Everyone is helping them.

    Zhang Siyi wanted tough and cry: ¡°Poor Dad ¡­¡±

    Soon after, Zhang Siyi received a message from his mother saying that his father had forwarded the article to her. Mother Zhangughed happily on the phone: ¡°He still treats me as if I didn¡¯t know anything. Last night at dinner, he lectured me about homosexuality. It was really amusing.¡±

    Zhang Siyi smirked and said: ¡°It¡¯s good. Let Dad think he was the first to know. Don¡¯t inform him otherwise.¡±

    Mother Zhang: ¡°Okay.¡±

    In order to let Father Zhang, enjoy the status of being the head of the family, if a lie can protect his dignity, then pretending to be ignorant was a small price to pay.

 Chapter 235: Extra 8

    <h4>Chapter 235: Extra 8</h4>

    Since Richard Rogers won a bid for a project in China, not only was Zhang Siyi the liaison between the twopanies, but he was also appointed as the main designer. As a result, there were several opportunities to travel from London to his home in China.

    Although he was busy with official business, the first time he traveled back to China, Zhang Siyi went home to visit his parents. When he arrived, he had to face his father. No matter from which angle one looked at it, Father Zhang was acting a little awkward. That¡¯s right. It is the first time Zhang Siyi has seen his father since his revtion.

    From within his suitcase, Zhang Siyi pulled out some health care products that he brought back from Ennd and said: ¡°Dad, Mom told me your joints are bothering youtely, right? I bought you some red shrimp oil. It¡¯s good for your joints.¡±

    Father Zhang was only lukewarm and said ¡°Hmm.¡± Sitting on the sofa, he seemed to want to say something, but stopped.

    Taking out a few more bottles and jars, he gave his mother a set of high-end skin-care products from the duty-free shop. Finally, he took out a bottle of liquor from the bottom of the box and handed it to his Father: ¡°Gu Yu asked me to bring this to you. ¡°

    Father Zhang¡¯s eyes lit up when he heard: ¡°Why did he give me liquor?¡±

    Exining with a smile, Zhang Siyi spoke: ¡°Not long ago, we went to tour Wales. We went to a local distillery and taste-tested various vors of whiskey. It¡¯s better than the named brand at the stores. Gu Yu noticed you like to drink, so he bought two bottles. One for you and another bottle for me to give to his father.¡±

    Carefully inspecting the bottle, Father Zhang stiffened then faintly smiled. He was obviously very happy but pretended to be indifferent: ¡°Thank him for me.¡± He pointed to the stack of health-care products and calmly asked: ¡°Take some to Gu Yu¡¯s parents as well.¡±

    Inwardly, Zhang Siyi smirked. In fact, he had prepared it all in advance, but he still responded to his father like it was his Father¡¯s idea: ¡°Ok.¡±

    After he finished with official business while in China, Zhang Siyi tried to make time in his schedule to visit home in Ningcheng. Each time, he brought back small gifts that Gu Yu picked out for his father like a belt, a shirt, a tie, etc.¡­. One can never underestimate the power of small sugar-coated gifts!

    After a few months, Father Zhang¡¯s attitude softened a lot. Although he hadn¡¯t said anything with regards to his sexuality, his father started to ask Zhang Siyi for his opinions and asked questions about himself and how he was doing in London while living with Gu Yu. It was as though his father wanted to know more about his son for the first time.

    It is one thing to look at photographs and another to hear about them from personal experience. Since Zhang Siyi had learned a thing or two over the years by watching Gu Yu¡¯s acting skills, unlike a few years ago when he used to frequently fight with his father, Zhang Siyi knew what to say to his father to be courteous and keep things calm.

    Not only does it take a long time to fly from country to country, it also wreaks havoc on your sleeping rhythms due to the time differences. After a year of flying back and forth to make reports, sign contracts, and troubleshoot issues, Zhang Siyicked his usual energy and looked rather haggard.

    When the project was finally over, he specifically went home to visit his parents since it was thest time he would be able to go home for many months. At dinner, when he caught his father sneaking peeks at his hand multiple times, he realized he had forgotten to take off his ring! Upon his realization, he clenched his fingers into a fist in an attempt to mask his ring. He was so nervous, he wasn¡¯t able to eat properly

    After dinner, as his mother cleared the table and washed the dishes, Father Zhang summoned Zhang Siyi to the study alone for a talk. Even though Father Zhang intended to interrogate his son about the matter, when he saw how uneasy and haggard he was, Zhang Siyi¡¯s father couldn¡¯t bear it.

    His son was already grown-up. Zhang Siyi matured into a hard-working adult with his own career and way of life. It would be meaningless to ¡®educate¡¯ him at this point. His father exhaled with a long, drawn-out sigh then went straight to the point: ¡°You and Gu Yu¡­ Your mother and I already know.¡±

    Zhang Siyi expressed surprise and pretended to be ignorant: ¡°What? How do you know?¡±

    Father Zhang: ¡°Well, I am your Father, what don¡¯t I know? When you open your mouth, I can see the bottom of your stomach. I know what you are thinking by just looking!¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°¡­¡­¡± (=_=) Really?

    Even though Zhang Siyi held his hands behind him and thus, hiding his ring, Father Zhang nced towards his hands and motioned slightly: ¡°You are wearing a ring. Is this matter already settled?¡±

    Zhang Siyi bowed his head weakly asked: ¡°Dad ¡­ Can you really ept us? ¡°

    Father Zhang said with an attitude: ¡°What can I do? If I don¡¯t ept it, are you nning to stay in London and note back?¡±

    Zhang Siyi: ¡°I didn¡¯t¡­¡± Did his father think he went to Ennd to avoid him?

    Father Zhang: ¡°Okay, you don¡¯t need to exin this to me anymore. The person you are looking for is Elder Gu, but don¡¯t worry. I have already spoken to him and his family already epts it so you don¡¯t have to hide anymore. Juste home.¡±

    Zhang Siyi looked at his father with love as his statement was both funny and touching. Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t help but step forward and give his father a long bear hug. With a quivering voice, he affectionately said: ¡°Dad, thank you.¡±

    When he returned to his apartment in London, due to the sess of the project, Zhang Siyi was given a week off. That night, Gu Yu personally prepared a candlelight dinner for Zhang Siyi and they spent all night together in bed until exhaustion. Holding Gu Yu close, Zhang Siyi told him the good news: ¡°My father gave us his approval and told us toe home.¡±

    Happy, Gu Yu opened his eyes up in surprise: ¡°Really? So fast! Was he that impressed by the gift I gave him?¡± They thought it would take a lot longer for his father to ept them.

    ¡°Come on, why do you think you have all the credit?¡± Zhang Siyi proudly disyed his left hand and said: ¡°This time, I was very busy and ws too tired to think about the details so I forgot to take off my ring. When he saw it, he was unable to keep quiet and openly talked to me.¡±

    While Gu Yu listened, Zhang Siyi borated about the conversation with his dad. Gu Yu grinned and said: ¡°So, it was because of the ring that you can be honest? Since I gave you that ring, isn¡¯t it my credit?¡±

    Zhang Siyi burst into anger in an instant: ¡°¡­ Hey!¡±

    Gu Yu grabbed his left hand, holding it and said: ¡°Ha-ha! I¡¯m just teasing you! Ok you fool, being forgetful developed into something good.¡±

    Gritted his teeth, an old issue popped into mind and Zhang Siyi pressured Gu Yu into exining himself: ¡°Hey, when ites to the ring, weren¡¯t you originally nning on giving it to me as my twenty-third birthday gift?¡±

    Gu Yu froze: ¡°How did you know?¡±

    Zhang Siyi told Gu Yu about getting up at night to use the toilet when he stepped on the ring box on the floor. In fact, this matter has been on his mind and in his heart for a long time. After Gu Yu gave him the ring, he never mentioned it.

    Taking advantage of the situation, Zhang Siyi wanted an exnation: ¡°I have been curious, why did you suddenly give me a mobile phone instead? Was the decision to give me a ring so easily changed?¡±

    With a rare trace of uncertainty, Gu Yu was silent for a moment before he started to exin: ¡°We hadn¡¯t even been together for a year yet at that time. I contemted it for a long time and was very unsure of myself. I was afraid it was too fast for you and I was terrified that you would end things between us. It just so happened that your mobile phone was lost so I opted to give you one to rece it. Later, when we were epted to study in London, do you remember that night, yelling at me over the phone andter together in bed¡­ ? At that time, I wanted to give you the ring.¡±

    Zhang Siyi remembered. The memory was very touching: ¡°Then why did you give it to me at the airport instead of the night during our anniversary?¡±

    Gu Yu tilted his head: ¡°I always felt that proposing on an anniversary was too clich¨¦, so I wanted to wait for a more suitable opportunity.¡±

    ¡°And walking through the airport was more appropriate!?¡± Zhang Siyi firmly asked. In a sh the real answer came to mind: ¡°Wait, was it because you were ¡­¡± Zhang Siyi paused, second guessing himself: ¡°Were you jealous of Fu Xinhui?¡±

    Gu Yu: ¡°¡­¡±

    Watching Gu Yu look away in silence to evade the question served to confirm Zhang Siyi¡¯s suspicion. Since he was unhappy that Fu Xinhui called and was taking up Zhang Siyi time, Gu Yu deliberately gave him the ring to interrupt his call.

    Damn, so childish! And to think that he was deeply touched for so long! (=Ãó=)

 Chapter 236: Extra 9

    <h4>Chapter 236: Extra 9</h4>

    In the second year of his work at Richard Rogers, both Zhang Siyi¡¯s and Gu Yu¡¯spany made a bid for the same project. It was for a new elementary school being built in central Ennd. Being both assigned as lead designers for their respective Firms, Zhang Siyi was very excited about this once-in-a-lifetimepetitive opportunity.

    At that time, Zhang Siyi had a considerable grasp of his own skill level. Being fully immersed in the fun of architectural design, he was eager for the challenge. While hanging up his tie, Zhang Siyi held his chin up confidently and dered: ¡°You are not allowed to peek. No cheating!¡±

    Lying on the bed, Gu Yu crossed his feet, set down his book and looked up at him: ¡°Ok¡± The two men discussed the household rules over the course of the project and decided that they would not mention the project at home and not exchange ideas. The winner will be decided by their own skills.

    In the face of such a strong enemy as Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi actually didn¡¯t have much confidence in winning. After all, Gu Yu has left a deep impression on him not just because they were lovers, but also because he had guided and taught Zhang Siyi so much about architecture. After so many years of hard work, Zhang Siyi wanted to take the opportunity to see just how much he had caught up to Gu Yu professionally. For this reason, he must do his best.

    The bidding periodsted a month long. Even though Zhang Siyi had two undergraduate interns working with him, he only handed over simple tasks for them to finish. Whether it was on-site research, understanding the project background, or talking to Party A directly, he did almost all of the work by himself.

    During the past thirty days, Zhang Siyi left home early in the morning and returnedte. He rode the trains several times to the project site to interview families around the area. He wanted to understand the needs of the people who would attend the school and what requirements the school board had for their new building.

    Although the statistical and background information about the site could be shared, in order to achieve absolute independent designs, they wanted to adhere to their agreement so Gu Yu never asked Zhang Siyi about what he learned.

    Now that the time hase, in the conference room, along with other firms, the two with their respective teams, presented their works. Since they lived together and looked at the same reference books, Zhang Siyi was worried their design ideas would end up being simr. At this point, they were more interested in what each other created rather than who ¡®won¡¯ the bid!

    Since the British evaluated proposals and prepared documents differently than in China, the results of the bid weren¡¯t awarded by the end of the day. Having several different firms present ns, it wasn¡¯t until a weekter that they were informed of the decision.

    When they got home after their presentations, Zhang Siyi couldn¡¯t wait to see the n Gu Yu created. Fortunately, Gu Yu ns weren¡¯t simr to Zhang Siyi¡¯s at all. Like he had in the past, Gu Yu¡¯s style reflected the Bauhaus movement of the early twentieth century. The forms are ssic, the space ispact and the materials are simple. It was conservative to a certain extent and it often meant that new construction innovations couldn¡¯t be implemented.

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s design is much more free form. He proposed a hemispherical design. Although it is not easy to construct aspared to Gu Yu¡¯s design, the vision was very distinctive and unique. Withrge and small rounded shapes and a yful interior, the whole building looked like bubbles emerging from the ground. Moreover, he introduced environmentally friendly materials and implemented windows at specific locations to utilized natural light to create spectacr shadow effects.

    Both of them appreciated each other¡¯s ns. Zhang Siyi felt that Gu Yu¡¯s design was superb and worthy of being realized. Gu Yu secretly marveled at Zhang Siyi¡¯s design talent. This time, the ns were mature and very spiritual without any sacrifice. Although it is just a simple bubble shape, the ns give evidence to something greater; a glimpse into the works by a master¡¯s hand.

    A few dayster, Zhang Siyi¡¯s n was selected. Holding Gu Yu, he excitedly hugged and kissed him and said: ¡°Not bad, right?¡±

    ¡°Awesome and brilliant.¡± Gu Yu wasn¡¯t disappointed that he lost the bid. In fact, he gained a sense of gratification because Zhang Siyi finally caught up. He couldn¡¯t restrain his broad smile.

    Zhang Siyi¡¯s design was selected by Richard Rogers as thepany¡¯s best work of the year, and won the award for Outstanding Young Architects in 2021.

    As an Asian living in London, to be awarded a mainstream architectural award that the industry recognized in the United Kingdom, was like a like a pie in the sky;pletely unbelievable!

    Giving Zhang Siyi some poprity, this good news had spread to the industry in China. Old friends who were still connected to the industry sent their blessings after hearing about it. Although it was the smallest award for architects in Ennd, it was a huge stepping stone for Zhang Siyi¡¯s career.

    In the RIBA exam six monthster, Zhang Siyi sessfully passed the examination and final interview. He achieved his lifelong dream and obtained a Royal Registered Architect¡¯s license.

    Since then, Zhang Siyi has been like a person possessed of divine light; bold and full of confidence!

    After working in Ennd for another half a year, with a total of five years living together in London, Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu felt homesick and wanted to return to China. Shortly thereafter, they resigned from their respective jobs and moved back home.

    While Yuanshan Garden remained their home and Haicheng was still Haicheng, Borderless was no more.

    With the ups and downs of the domestic construction industry, when the former director retired, Borderless was merged with Firm X four years ago. Since the design philosophy of Firm X wasn¡¯t like Borderless, Tao Fei couldn¡¯te to an agreement. As a result, he left thepany to pursue his own ambition.

    Fortunately, they live in the era of the inte and the distance between people was irrelevant. For a long time, they chatted through their old group chat that Zhang Siyi originally established from Borderless.

    It took Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu several months to find the whereabouts of their old colleagues including the ballpoint-penbo, Yuan Zhicheng, Zhu Hongzhen, and Bi Lele, as well as Xu jia, and three members from design group B.

    Over thest six years, they all have been married. Be Lele¡¯s baby was two years old. Zhu Hongzhen even started his own small architect business. Even so, when they learned that Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi were going to create a new architecturalpany, they did not hesitate to resign and return to working under Gu Yu.

    It was a pity that not everyone could join them. The chicken-wing-couple, Ji Feiyu and Du Ruixuan, as well as Qiao Mai were abducted by the Fat Peach. Together they have established a small firm that specialized in Feng Shui. Although Gu Yu was unwilling to apply pressure and uproot them, he wanted to keep in touch.

    The newpany¡¯s name was called ¡°GSY architectural design firm¡± written with the three English letters, GSY, that reflect their names. They might not be able to bare children, but GSY was their baby.

    In August of 2022, three months before Zhang Siyi¡¯s 30th birthday, they opened the new office.

    In the zing sun of summer, GSY¡¯s floor-to-ceiling windows, radiated warmth. The spacious office space was dotted with organic-shaped design tables.

    On all the walls, there were many disy boards with various drawings and random diagrams pinned up. There were pruned nts on each desktop. Architects gathered together in the conference room to discuss the interior in whispers. Sometimes, a loud dispute was heard.

    ¡°The columns of the interior space need to be removed.¡±

    ¡°All of them? Are you fucking kidding me?¡±

    ¡°The roof beams can be adjusted to span eight meters and they can be covered with synthetic resin tiles. Doing so will expand the space and save costs.¡±

    ¡°But after adjusting the span, the lower structure will have to be redone ¡­¡±

    Not far away, Gu Yu came out of the office and called Zhang Siyi¡¯s name.

    Hearing his name, Zhang Siyi looked in that direction. Before going over to Gu Yu, he turned his head back to the person and said: ¡°Since it¡¯s not feasible, then redo it. Why not try to meet the function of the space?¡±

    Struggling structural engineer: ¡°% £¤ # ¡­¡­¡±

    ¡°What¡¯s the matter?¡± Zhang Siyi asked and smiled happily as if to counter Gu Yu¡¯s strict attitude towards the engineer.

    Gu Yu flipped through the two pages of information on the clipboard then handed it to Zhang Siyi: ¡°A recent undergraduate is applying for the position of assistant architect. Here, he is waiting in the reception room now. Go interview him.¡±

    Zhang Siyi took it, nced at the photo at the top of the application andughed: ¡°Oh, you like the applicants to be handsome, huh?¡±

    Gu Yu red at him and said in a deep voice: ¡°Go. Be serious.¡±

    Zhang Siyi smirked at him then walked to the meeting room. Wearing a thin T-shirt, the candidate was sitting upright at the small table, looking nervous. Although the air conditioner was turned on, there was a thin sheen of sweat on his forehead.

    Zhang Siyi coughed lightly and the man immediately looked up and respectfully said: ¡°Hello.¡±

    ¡°Hello.¡± Zhang Siyi smiled and took out his business card from the shirt pocket and handed it to him. The card was printed with:

    ÕÅË¼Òã

    Siyi Zhang

    Royal Registered Architect (member of RIBA Association)

    Chief Architect

    GSY Design Director

    The young man lookedpletely surprised. He nced at Zhang Siyi several times topared his face with the business card. He couldn¡¯t believe someone so young had such grand titles.

    ncing at the applicant¡¯s information once again, Zhang Siyi sat down at the table and looked at him in the eye. He calmly asked: ¡°Li Donghe, right? Come and tell me why did you study architecture and why did you apply to GSY? What goals do you have for the future?¡±

    ¡¾Fin¡¿

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