ASFSODS 15

Jiang Siheng: “……”

Huh?

Wen Chi glanced around. Who? Wife?

He turned his head and saw Gu Yu looking at him, confused. “Me?”

“Yeah, aren’t you two filming a show?” Gu Yu blinked innocently. “What, was I not supposed to say that?”

“Ah.” Wen Chi looked helplessly at Jiang Siheng. He didn’t know how to respond. He remembered this was a dating show. If he denied it, that might seem wrong…

But admitting it might be even worse. QAQ

Jiang Siheng told Wen Chi to keep eating his dessert. “Ignore him.”

Then shot Gu Yu a chilly glance, clearly telling him to shut up.

Gu Yu rubbed his nose and laughed awkwardly.

A server came over to speak with Gu Yu. After chatting for a bit, Gu Yu said he had to step away for a while.

Xiao Chi’s livestream chat:

[To be fair, the chicken-chasing guy wasn’t wrong]

[Omg, is Xiao Chi getting shy right now?]

[Jiang Ge: protecting our wife like a king]

[Sisters, I just checked Jiang Ge’s stream—the chicken guy is actually his friend]

[He’s also the restaurant owner, surname Gu]

[Did no one else notice that Jiang Ge didn’t deny what Boss Gu said about Xiao Chi being his wife…?]

[I noticed. Which is why I’m currently grinning like an idiot~]

After Gu Yu left, Wen Chi started worrying. What if Jiang Siheng was upset about what Gu Yu said earlier, calling him his wife? What if Jiang Ge thought he was trying to steal clout? Wen Chi was trying to think of how to explain when Jiang Siheng suddenly asked him if the coconut pudding was good.

The question came out of nowhere. Wen Chi took a second to catch up before nodding. “It’s good.”

Jiang Siheng wasn’t a fan of sweets. Wen Chi had already finished his own pudding, and Jiang Siheng had only eaten one or two bites of his.

“You want more?” he asked.

Wen Chi was scraping up the last bits along the bowl’s edge. At that, he looked up, eyes lighting up. “Can I order another?”

Jiang Siheng glanced at his own untouched dessert. “If you don’t mind, you can have mine.”

Wen Chi blinked, caught off guard. “Huh?”

Jiang Siheng asked the server for a clean spoon, scooped away the part he had eaten from, and slid the bowl in front of Wen Chi. “Is this okay?”

Wen Chi stared blankly at the smooth sequence of actions. When Jiang Siheng looked at him, he finally snapped out of it. “Yes, yes!”

Even though the part Jiang Siheng ate from had been scooped away, the more Wen Chi ate, the redder his face got. His head lowered more and more until he nearly buried his whole face in the bowl.

Jiang Siheng saw it all, but said nothing. He was afraid the boy might die from embarrassment.

Dinner was over, and since it was still early, Gu Yu—thinking it’s only right as the restaurant owner to host his friend and his “wife”—offered to show them around the place.

It’s mainly to show Wen Chi. Jiang Siheng? Not that important.

They arrived at the grassy field behind the restaurant. Wen Chi remembered what he saw earlier and turned to Gu Yu. “Were you chasing a chicken just now?”

Gu Yu froze for a second. “Yeah, how did you know?”

“I saw you.” Wen Chi pointed to where he’d been sitting earlier.

Gu Yu followed his finger, then looked at where he was now standing. Perfect angle. “…”

As a mature man, Gu Yu kept his cool in the face of embarrassment. Without changing expression, he said, “The chicken broke out. I had no choice.”

Wen Chi smiled shyly. “It looked pretty fun.”

“Really? Hahaha.” Gu Yu laughed, but then turned and saw Jiang Siheng staring at him with a blank face.

Jiang Siheng asked, “You done?”

Gu Yu, nervous: “…Yeah.”

Jiang Ge’s livestream chat:

[Jiang Ge: death stare activated]

[Forget death smile—he didn’t even bother smiling at Gu Yu]

[So like… Jiang Ge really does like Wen Chi, huh #crying]

[I stopped being a Jiang Ge girlfriend-fan the moment he talked about his orientation (sigh)]

[Same. Now I’m just a mom-fan hoping he finds love]

[There’s no way someone as handsome and kind as Jiang Ge won’t find someone]

[Have you ever seen Jiang Ge caught in a dating scandal? Never. Not once.]

[Not a fan, don’t flame me—but I saw Jiang Siheng once. He seems nice and warm, but also kind of distant.]

[Me too!!! Like no one’s ever really gotten through to him before.]

Gu Yu was annoyed by Jiang Siheng’s obvious jealousy, he turned to Wen Chi and said, “Your Jiang Ge is technically one of the owners here too. Why don’t you let him show you around?”

Your Jiang Ge…

Uh-oh. Why did Boss Gu have to say it like that?

Wen Chi turned red and glanced at Jiang Siheng. “Ah, Boss Gu, if you’re busy, you can go ahead.”

Gu Yu: “I’m not busy. I’ll just follow behind you guys.”

Wen Chi said, “…Oh. Okay then.”

Wen Chi turned and walked toward the chicken pen. There weren’t too many chickens, maybe about twenty. “Teacher Jiang, do you let customers come feed the chickens here?”

“No.” Jiang Siheng gently pulled Wen Chi back a little to keep his clothes from getting dirty. “We’re not running a farmhouse attraction. This area’s off-limits to guests.”

“Ohh.” Wen Chi nodded in understanding.

“There’s a small fish pond over there. Want to check it out?”

“Yes!”

Gu Yu stepped away to take a phone call. When he turned back, both Wen Chi and Jiang Siheng were gone.

Where did they go???

Xiao Chi’s livestream chat:

[Yes! Boss Gu the third wheel is gone!]

[But Boss Gu is actually really nice…]

[He is! No one said he wasn’t!]

[Hahaha did you guys catch Jiang Ge’s face just now?]

[We did. His face was dark. That was not amusement.]

[Jiang Ge: Anyone who interrupts me and my wife’s alone time will be eliminated #doge]

[Guys, don’t get too emotionally invested. It might just be for show.]

[Spoken like someone who doesn’t know Jiang Siheng. Maybe with other guests, but not him. He’s for real.]

[He really likes Xiao Chi (ugh, I hate the word limit on comments)]

The “small fish pond” Jiang Siheng mentioned wasn’t actually all that small. There was even a little wooden boat on the water. If you wanted to catch fish, you would need to row out to the middle.

Wen Chi squatted by the water like a kid, while Jiang Siheng bent down and hooked a finger through the back of his collar. But to the livestream viewers, it didn’t look all that safe…

Why does it look like Jiang Siheng is walking his little puppy??? 

Wen Chi watched the little fish swimming by. Suddenly, he let out an “ah!”

Someone else might’ve been startled, but Jiang Siheng didn’t even flinch. He just looked at Wen Chi and asked, “What is it?”

Wen Chi stood up. Jiang Siheng let go, watching as the boy unzipped his dumpling-shaped bag and pulled out a small box.

Wen Chi handed it to him. “Teacher Jiang, this is your gift.”

Jiang Siheng raised an eyebrow. “You made me something?”

Of course he already knew—he’d found out yesterday. He was just teasing.

Wen Chi pressed his lips together, then stuffed the box into Jiang Siheng’s hands. “Yeah. I made it myself.”

His tone was flat, almost grumpy.

Jiang Siheng opened it and saw a small ceramic Pikachu. Surprised, he asked, “Why’d you make me Pikachu?”

“Because…” Wen Chi almost blurted, because your WeChat profile picture is Pikachu, but then realized that if Jiang Siheng asked how he knew that, he’d have no good excuse…

“Hm?” Jiang Siheng looked at him.

“Because I think Pikachu’s really cute,” Wen Chi said calmly.

Jiang Siheng gave a soft “oh,” sounding like he wasn’t sure whether to believe it.

Wen Chi was a little nervous, but then Jiang Siheng reached out and patted his head, his warm voice brushing past Wen Chi’s ear. “Thank you.”

The Pikachu wasn’t exactly refined, it was actually kind of rough. It was clear this was the first handmade gift Wen Chi had ever made.

Getting patted again, Wen Chi lit up a little. “You’re welcome.”

They didn’t stay out long before it started to rain, and the two decided to head back.

Apparently Jiang Siheng really liked Pikachu. Wen Chi noticed that when he got into the car, he pulled it out to look at again before carefully putting it away.

Wen Chi thought: Guess I really picked the right gift.

Jiang Ge’s livestream chat:

[Jiang Ge likes Pikachu?!]

[I’ve been a fan for 5 years and I never knew this!!]

[So how did Wen Chi find out he liked Pikachu?]

[You guys don’t get it. He doesn’t “like” Pikachu.]

[Exactly. It’s obvious Jiang Ge just likes anything his wife gives him.]

[666]

[At this point, I’m starting to forget what “Pikachu” even means…]

On the way back, the rain outside got heavier. Wen Chi was glad they’d left early.

The lights were on in the little house. The parking lot was a short walk away, and there was only one umbrella in the car. Wen Chi got out first. Once Jiang Siheng finished parking, he immediately walked over holding the umbrella.

It wasn’t very big, it’s just enough to cover two grown men. The rain was coming down hard, and even the short distance was tough to walk.

Jiang Siheng noticed how Wen Chi was trying to hold the umbrella higher and angle it more toward him. He sighed inwardly, took the umbrella from Wen Chi, and—under the boy’s confused gaze—pulled him into his arms.

The distance between them vanished.

Wen Chi froze. The warmth of Jiang Siheng’s chest pressed against his back, and it felt like all other sounds disappeared except for the man’s breathing. Wherever Jiang Siheng led him, he followed stiffly.

Jiang Siheng must’ve noticed how tense he was. With a helpless laugh, he said, “Relax. I’m not going to sell you.”

“%…&#@*…” Wen Chi mumbled something, but his voice was too soft, drowned out by the rain.

Jiang Siheng instinctively leaned closer. “What?”

The distance shrank again.

Wen Chi gasped, his ears tingling and cheeks burning. He forced himself to speak louder, his voice trembling slightly. “I said—you’re standing too close…”

Jiang Siheng stared at him, as if he hadn’t quite processed it.

Wen Chi shut his eyes, looking like he’d given up completely. “You’re too close… I’m gonna get shy!”