WP Chapter 5

Si Shaorong paused for a moment and looked up at Jiang Yibai, who stood in front of him.

They were about the same height, and Jiang Yibai was standing quite close. Under the warm hallway lighting, he didn’t look the least bit awkward. In fact, he was smiling gently as he looked at him.

Si Shaorong didn’t reply. He put his phone away and fell silent, unsure what to say in that moment.

He really wasn’t someone who was good at socializing. Otherwise, he wouldn’t have needed an assistant to help him. All he wanted was to write in peace. He didn’t like managing other things and didn’t want to spend energy on them either. But no one could truly separate themselves from real life. At the very least, finding inspiration and writing convincing characters required observing, learning, and experiencing the world more deeply.

If a person were completely disconnected from society, what they wrote would lack authenticity. Many of the storylines would come off as fake or illogical.

He once came across a collection post on a forum, years ago now. Most of the content poked fun at plot holes in stories. One post left a strong impression on him. It described a domineering CEO story where the male lead was unimaginably wealthy and impossibly handsome, yet he showed up to pick up the female lead in an Alto.

No one had anything against the Alto, and there was no insult intended toward the car itself. But the contrast was just too jarring. It didn’t make sense logically and completely ruined the atmosphere.

At that time, Si Shaorong had just started writing, and the memory stuck with him. Ever since, he became extremely particular. Whenever he had to write about people or situations he didn’t fully understand, he would do his research first, then write once he was sure. It became a rule he followed strictly.

Just like with this romance storyline. He knew very well that he was lacking in that area and needed to study it. But this kind of material wasn’t like anything he’d worked on before. Watching more films or reading classics might help, but even those wouldn’t necessarily bring him closer to the emotional depth he needed.

Then again, every person is different. Everyone has their own way of understanding the same emotion. And who could say which interpretation was right or wrong? How could something like love be forced into a rigid framework, processed like a formula, and mass-produced?

So then… even if this Mr. Jiang was gay, wasn’t love supposed to be something beyond gender? Shouldn’t he at least show that he didn’t mind?

Si Shaorong’s thoughts drifted from the sky to the ground, from the past to the present, and all he ended up concluding was that he didn’t actually mind.

If Jiang Yibai knew what he was thinking right now, he would probably laugh himself silly.

Even so, none of this showed on Si Shaorong’s face. Jiang Yibai looked at him, a little unsure what to make of his silence.

Under the hallway’s warm lighting, the man looked even more composed and charismatic. The two of them stood there, facing each other in silence, and the mood slowly started to shift into something strange.

Maybe he was just overthinking it, but Jiang Yibai cleared his throat and was the first to break the awkwardness. “People always say Sister Zhen is well informed and nothing in the circle escapes her. Seems like it’s true.”

Si Shaorong made a quiet sound in response and said, “I’ll think about it. I’ll take my leave for now.” In the end, he still didn’t say that he didn’t mind. For some reason, it just felt like the wrong moment. Trying to force that explanation in would only make things weirder.

But before he could walk around Jiang Yibai, the other man stepped in front of him. His large eyes looked directly at him, and those curls, under the warm light, looked like they had been dusted with sugar. For some reason, it felt oddly comforting.

Jiang Yibai asked, “Are you uncomfortable with it?”

Si Shaorong froze for a moment, then shook his head. “No.”

Jiang Yibai smiled. “I figured you weren’t that kind of person.”

Si Shaorong was curious. “You know what kind of person I am?”

“Not really,” Jiang Yibai replied honestly. “But from the way your stories feel, I get the sense that you don’t hold prejudice. And you don’t seem like someone who enjoys being bound by conventional thinking either.”

Si Shaorong raised his eyebrows slightly, and his steps came to a halt.

He could tell that this Jiang Luanyu genuinely understood what he was trying to express in his writing. There was an old saying: “With a smile, all are friends; but finding a true soulmate is harder than hard.” While calling Jiang Yibai a soulmate might be a bit of a stretch, this certainly felt like a rare and meaningful encounter.

And besides, so what if the guy was gay? Just because someone’s gay didn’t mean he would be attracted to every man he saw.

Si Shaorong lowered his head and gave it some thought. He seemed a little shaken. Jiang Yibai saw his chance and quickly pulled out his phone from his pocket to place a discreet call to Nian Gao. He hung up after just a few seconds.

Receiving the signal, Nian Gao reluctantly set down the spicy sea snails she was enjoying, wiped her fingertips with a napkin, and stood up to say to the neighboring table, “I’m going to the restroom.”

Nian Gao’s real name was Zhou Yuanyuan. Though she looked young, she was already approaching thirty, actually a year older than baby-faced Jiang Yibai. After walking out of the private room, she rolled her eyes in restraint, pushed a strand of hair behind her ear, and forced a smile as she stepped forward.

“Xiao Jiang,” Zhou Yuanyuan said, her eyelid twitching the whole time. She suddenly felt like someone’s nagging mom. “Your tenant just called and said everything’s been packed up. He left the keys under the doormat and told me to thank you for all your help these past few days. He said he’ll miss your braised pork.”

Si Shaorong glanced at Jiang Yibai.

Jiang Yibai waved it off casually. “Ah, it’s nothing… Wait, how did he end up calling you?” He even put on a surprised face as he pulled out his phone and checked it.

“Huh, my phone’s off?” he said. “Sorry about that. Must’ve run out of battery.”

Zhou Yuanyuan didn’t even want to comment on his performance. Phone off? Yeah right. He had probably just called her and powered down right after. The act was elaborate enough to fool anyone into thinking he’d spent a fortune just to trick the master into moving in.

Completely drained, Zhou Yuanyuan said, “It’s fine. I was listed as the emergency contact, so he probably just reached out to me.”

As she spoke, she stole a few glances at the master. She hadn’t taken a good look earlier, but now that she saw him clearly, she had to admit he was indeed good-looking. He had a cool air about him, but he wasn’t the cold, aloof type. He just seemed quiet and not particularly talkative.

Si Shaorong took after his father in looks. His facial features were sharp and defined, giving him a mature and steady appearance. His eyebrows were thick at the base and faded toward the ends. His eyes had a slight phoenix shape, his nose was high and straight, and his lips were thin and slightly chapped.

There was a faint stubble on his chin, a touch of blue shadow just starting to show. It gave off a bit of a rough, unpolished vibe, though not in an unpleasant way. Someone with obsessive tendencies might feel a little uncomfortable just looking at it, wanting to reach out and shave it clean.

Jiang Yibai, on the other hand, was quite fond of this look. He imagined the lighting dimmed a little more, the two of them seated across from each other, sharing drinks. With a little wine in their system and the mood just right, he could take the hand holding the cup, trace the faint ridges of bone with his fingers, lean in to brush against that rough stubble, then slowly kiss along it, until he reached the corner of his lips, coaxing him to open his mouth and slip out his tongue…

Jiang Yibai’s throat moved. A swallowing sound escaped.

Si Shaorong didn’t notice, but Zhou Yuanyuan, who knew Jiang Yibai far too well, had the sudden urge to smash her friend over the head with a brick. He was being so blatantly shameless.

Si Shaorong asked an extra question. “You’re the landlord?”

“I am,” Jiang Yibai replied immediately. “The place is pretty big, and it feels like a waste living there alone, so I rent out part of it. Oh, this is my ID.”

He took out his ID card. Surprisingly, the official photo on it looked quite good, better than most. The man in the picture looked even younger than he did now, with rosy lips, white teeth, and starry eyes. He gave off a clean, honest, sunny kind of charm.

“Jiang Yibai…” Si Shaorong looked down at the name on the card.

“My tenant just happens to be moving out,” Jiang Yibai said without the slightest change in expression, lying through his teeth. “And I heard you were looking for a housemate. I figured it was a good opportunity.”

Si Shaorong gave him a skeptical look.

Jiang Yibai smiled and said, “Of course I’m not so selfless as to bring this up for no reason. I do have something to gain from it.”

That caught Si Shaorong’s interest. “Oh?”

“I really like your stories. And I admire you as a person. If I had the chance to watch you work up close, to learn something from you, that would be a big benefit for me too.” Jiang Yibai looked completely righteous, as if a halo might appear behind him at any moment. “As for the romance content you need help with, if you don’t mind, I can teach you.”

Zhou Yuanyuan had originally planned to fade into the background and pretend she wasn’t there, but Jiang Yibai nudged her gently, signaling that it was her cue.

Zhou Yuanyuan, like a puppet nudged into motion, forced herself to speak. Her face clearly showed what she was thinking. This rotten little man was up to no good. Reluctantly, she said, “Yes. He’s very good at writing romance.”

Her conscience screamed inside her chest, so she quickly added, “But probably not the kind you’re thinking of. He writes danmei. You know that, right?”

“I do.” Si Shaorong nodded. He looked puzzled. “But emotions are the same, aren’t they, no matter the gender?”

“…Yes,” Zhou Yuanyuan gave a half-sigh, half-laugh, and said weakly, “Jiang Yibai’s romance writing is… pretty unrestrained.”

Si Shaorong seemed to half understand. “That sounds great.”

Zhou Yuanyuan was speechless.

“That’s not all,” Jiang Yibai said, shooting a look at his friend that said stop fixating on that.

Zhou Yuanyuan gave in and went on in a flat tone, following the script. “Right. Not only can he help you with writing romance, he’s also good at cooking. He’s thoughtful, takes good care of people, and you won’t need to worry about chores. Everyone who’s shared a place with him before says he’s very domestic.”

The final heh she tacked on was loaded with meaning. When she and Jiang Yibai exchanged a glance, the words this is ridiculous were practically written in their eyes.

Zhou Yuanyuan had laughed when she first heard about Jiang Yibai’s plan. She hadn’t believed for a second that the master would agree. They didn’t even know each other. But now it actually seemed like he had a shot. All she felt now was guilt. All this scheming, all for a single fancy dinner.

Jiang Yibai added, “But just to be clear, there’s no discount on rent.”

He really understood how people thought. After listing all the tempting benefits, he made a point to say there would be no discount. Everything would go by the book. If he had only offered the good parts, Si Shaorong would have assumed he had ulterior motives, maybe even a long list of demands. Since they didn’t know each other well, that would have been enough for him to reject the offer outright.

But the moment Jiang Yibai brought up the rent, not only refusing a discount but even pricing it higher than the average in the area, everything fell into place.

Meals and cleaning taken care of, someone thoughtful to live with, and they were both writers who could understand each other’s schedules and habits. With that kind of setup, paying a little more for rent felt completely reasonable.

Si Shaorong was genuinely moved. Aside from the gender issue, didn’t all of this perfectly match what Zhen Zhen had been hoping for?

Jiang Yibai knew when to stop. He didn’t press the issue. Instead, he stepped aside and picked up Zhou Yuanyuan’s phone. “Mind if I get your contact info? You can give me a call if you decide.”

Si Shaorong hesitated, then agreed.