Chapter 54

He still missed the noodles he had on the day he moved out.

Back then he didn’t get it, merely felt kind of down. Now that everything was out in the open, his mood was different. He was actually craving the noodles Yan-ge cooked that day. Wish he could have them again.

Yan Mu clearly didn’t expect Jiang Zhihuo to suddenly say he wanted to go to his place. He asked, “Are you serious?”

“Yeah,” Jiang Zhihuo nodded, looking totally relaxed. “It’s not like I’ve never been there.”

Yeah, he had. Yan Mu thought.

They’d even lived together for a while. Held hands, kissed, gave each other hickeys in that house—done pretty much everything.

Yan Mu asked again, “You know what you’re saying right now?”

“Yeah, I do. I want to eat noodles.” Jiang Zhihuo walked a few steps ahead like it was nothing, then turned back and waved at Yan Mu, urging, “Hurry up.”

Yan Mu: “……”

Before heading back to the residential community, they stopped by the local market to get groceries. Fresh veggies didn’t last long, and since Jiang Zhihuo moved out, Yan Mu rarely cooked at home anymore. His fridge had been empty for a while.

Even though Jiang Zhihuo had only lived there for two months and mostly ordered takeout, he was more familiar with the place than Yan Mu.

As soon as the vegetable stall aunties saw Jiang Zhihuo, they called out, “Xiao Huo, you’re here! Is this your classmate?” Then they warmly waved them over to their own stalls.

“Aiyo, this fish is fresh. Don’t buy that other one—it’s not good. Take this one. Auntie will give you two a discount.”

She said it and immediately started bagging it up for them.

Jiang Zhihuo quickly waved his hands. “Wait, wait, it’s okay, Auntie; I only came for some lettuce.”

“Oh, lettuce? Chen-jie, pick some nice ones for these two boys!”

The aunties were totally taken by how good-looking these two boys were. When asked how much it cost, they simply waved it off with a few cheerful ‘aiyos,’ gave them 20% off, and even tossed in a few eggs and some green onions for free.

Jiang Zhihuo passed the lettuce bag to Yan Mu to carry.

And just like that, the cold and aloof ‘God of Learning Yan Mu was holding a plastic grocery bag, unexpectedly looking more down-to-earth.

Strolling leisurely back to the neighborhood, Jiang Zhihuo joked, “If I ever go broke, I can rely on my face for free meals at the market.”

Yan Mu asked, “Since when were you that close with them?”

Jiang Zhihuo said, “You mean Auntie Chen, the one who sells fish? Her family rents out property. She’s just hanging around the market because she’s bored at home. Her daughter’s got a Samoyed. I kept running into them walking the dog downstairs in the evenings. The dog’s super friendly, so after a few times, we got familiar.”

“And there’s Uncle Wang earlier—he’s got a new little Shiba Inu at home, just brought it back. About this big.” Jiang Zhihuo gestured with his hands.

Jiang Zhihuo started talking about the dogs in the neighborhood.

Yan Mu thought back to the time at the animal hospital—Sundy, that normally distant dog, got attached to Jiang Zhihuo within only two days. When He Miaomiao tried to take him away, the dog kept looking back every few steps, wholly reluctant to leave.

Looking like a total traitor, it pissed He Miaomiao off so much that she smacked the dog on the head. “Fine, don’t come. Go be someone else’s dog!”

“You seem really popular with animals,” Yan Mu said.

“It’s alright,” Jiang Zhihuo replied with a cheeky smile, a bit proud. “Just the neighborhood cats and dogs like to stick to me, that’s all…”

Right after he spoke, a couple of loud barks sounded from behind. Under the streetlamp, a big golden retriever was pulling a small girl who looked around 153 cm tall as it charged toward Jiang Zhihuo. The dog jumped up, placed its front paws on his hands, stood tall on its hind legs, and wagged its tail like crazy.

The girl was nearly the same size as the dog, and after that sprint, she was out of breath.

“Man Tou came running from far away.” She said, her cheeks clearly red, maybe from being shy, maybe from the run, or a bit of both. “It’s been a while, Senior Zhihuo. Where have you been these days?”

Yan Mu: “?”

Senior Zhihuo???

“I haven’t been staying around here lately.” Jiang Zhihuo scratched the back of Man Tou’s neck just right, and the dog narrowed its eyes in bliss.

“Um…” The girl hesitated a little, then asked softly, “Is this your older brother?”

Yan Mu: “?”

“No!” Jiang Zhihuo tried to hold back a laugh and reached out to rest a hand on Yan Mu’s shoulder. “I’m his…”

I’m his dad—before he could finish the joke, Yan Mu directly grabbed his hand. Not the wrist, but his palm, fingers tightly laced together.

He said, “Let’s go.”

After saying that, he gave a faint glance at the girl in front of them, who blushed slightly at the sight of Jiang Zhihuo.

The girl: “?”

Jiang Zhihuo: “!”

The girl was still dazed. Why did this super handsome guy suddenly grab Senior Zhihuo’s hand?

Then she heard Jiang Zhihuo say, “I’ll head out first.”

Man Tou looked reluctant to let go, barking twice and wagging its tail like crazy.

The girl just stood there, dumbfounded, watching Senior Zhihuo get led into the community by that tall, handsome guy.

Yan Mu’s move was sudden and forceful, not like his usual calm self. Yet before Jiang Zhihuo could even ask what was going on, he was dragged to the sink. Yan Mu turned on the tap and said coldly, “Wash your hands.”

Sure, you should wash your hands after petting a dog—but was he really that outraged?

Jiang Zhihuo was confused. After he finished washing, Yan Mu was already in the kitchen rinsing vegetables. His long, clean fingers, perfect for playing piano, looked surprisingly fitting for kitchen work too.

Jiang Zhihuo came over and offered, “Want me to help?”

“No need,” Yan Mu replied.

Jiang Zhihuo let out a quiet ‘oh,’ then grabbed one of the free cucumbers they’d gotten and leaned on the sink, peeling it casually.

Suddenly, Yan Mu asked, “How do you two know each other?”

Not only did she know him, but she even called him “Senior Zhihuo” and acted all shy about it.

It took Jiang Zhihuo a couple of seconds to realize—he must be talking about the girl downstairs.

“Oh, that? Just one Saturday, I went downstairs and saw her get yanked down by her dog during a walk.”

Golden retrievers were medium-sized dogs, but they could be pretty strong when they ran. That day, Jiang Zhihuo had just stepped out of the staircase when he saw the girl get dragged at full speed by the dog and fall face-first right in front of him.

It was pretty rough. She was flat on the ground, and Man Tou, totally clueless, simply turned back and started licking her, all confused.

Thinking back, it was kind of funny. Jiang Zhihuo said, “I was going to ask if she was okay, but then she saw me and she jumped up and bolted toward the garden like lightning.”

The girl had too much pride to let a handsome guy see her fall.

“I was worried, so I went over to check. She had both knees scraped up and her hands covered in blood.”

“And then?” Yan Mu turned on the stove to boil water.

“She didn’t bring her phone while walking the dog, so I let her use mine to call her family and asked them to come pick her up.”

As soon as Jiang Zhihuo finished speaking, he peeled the last of the cucumber. Without a word, Yan Mu tossed the noodles into the boiling water and started frying an egg in a small pan.

The God of Learning Yan was all about efficiency.

Watching him move, Jiang Zhihuo felt like there was something else going on beneath the surface. He zoned out a bit and took a loud bite of his cucumber.

Based on what he knew about Yan Mu—

Yan Mu was known for his neatness and possessiveness. He usually acted cold and aloof, but he still maintained basic manners. Even when he was really impatient, he wouldn’t ignore people; he’d at least reply with an ‘mhm.’

However, around him, Yan Mu would always drop that facade, so trying to predict him based on personality traits didn’t always work.

Still, Jiang Zhihuo made a bold guess.

“Ah, Yan-ge, are you… jealous?”

Yan Mu: “……”

He snapped off the stove with a ‘pa,’ scooped out the noodles, sprinkled in salt, flavor enhancer, and a few other seasonings, then added the fried egg and lettuce. After that, he snatched the cucumber from Jiang Zhihuo’s hand, shredded it with a vegetable grater, and placed the strips neatly on top. Clean, efficient, and to the point. He made a simple yet visually appealing bowl of egg noodles.

“Hey, I was still eating that!”

Yan Mu stuffed the rest of the cucumber into his mouth. “Stop talking.”

Jiang Zhihuo instantly understood what Yan Mu meant.

He hit the nail on the head; the God of Learning Yan was being tsundere again.

“Hahaha, alright, I’ll shut up.” He quickly finished chewing, and Yan Mu brought over two bowls of noodles.

Jiang Zhihuo looked at them, full of anticipation.

The steps Yan Mu did didn’t look all that hard.

Jiang Zhihuo rubbed his hands together. “How about this, I’ll make you one too!”

Even though he lived here for two months, Jiang Zhihuo had never touched the kitchen.

He was self-aware enough to know that if he got involved, it wasn’t cooking; it was bombing the kitchen.

However, this was merely noodles… just boiling some water, right?!

“You go change clothes first; I got this!”

Jiang Zhihuo was bursting with confidence. He turned the heat up to max, boiled water, tossed the noodles in, and then moved on to frying the egg.

The moment he cracked the egg into the pan, oil splattered and burned his hand. He instinctively flinched, and the yolk spilled everywhere. Then he tried to flip it too fast; it only half turned and broke apart, yolk and white stuck together in a messy sizzle, chaos bubbling in the pan. Meanwhile, the noodles had already turned into a soggy lump.

When Yan Mu finally came out dressed, he saw a twisted mess of a fried egg and… a bowl of mushy noodles?

Yan Mu: “? What is this?”

Jiang Zhihuo: “This is a father’s love.”

Yan Mu stared at the lump of soggy noodles, looking thoroughly conflicted, and reached out with his chopsticks in visible struggle. “Then maybe… you don’t love me enough.”

Seeing he was actually going to eat it, Jiang Zhihuo quickly stopped him. “Don’t! It might be poisonous!”

He pushed the ‘father’s love’ a little farther away, slumped into the chair, and raised his right hand with a resigned sigh, turning it over to look. “This hand? It’s got a debuff¹[T/N: Debuff is a gaming term referring to a negative effect or penalty, often used humorously in daily speech.]. Even if I measure everything with a measuring cup, it still tastes awful! Honestly, the fact I didn’t blow up the kitchen earlier already shows how much respect I gave you. But—!”

Jiang Zhihuo quickly changed the subject, trying to save a bit of face. “There’s still one dish I can make. It actually tastes pretty good.”

“What is it?” Yan Mu asked.

“Lychee pork²[T/N: It is a traditional Fujian dish made with sweet-and-sour pork pieces that resemble lychees in shape or color. It does not actually contain lychee fruit.].”

Yan Mu paused slightly.

Jiang Zhihuo was still waiting for Yan Mu to say, “I don’t believe you” or give him that same conflicted look again. Yet after a long pause, Yan Mu simply asked, “Did you learn it for the person tattooed on your shoulder?”

“…” The question caught Jiang Zhihuo completely off guard. “Yan-ge, asking like that really puts me on the spot, you know?”

Yan Mu seemed to be in an unusually good mood. His eyebrows appeared to be relaxed as he asked, “Will I ever get a chance to taste it?”

Jiang Zhihuo studied Yan Mu’s expression closely. Something just didn’t add up. He asked directly, “Why is it that you didn’t get jealous about the tattoo but completely lost it over that girl downstairs?”

Yan Mu stayed calm. “You’re comfortable saying the word ‘jealous’ now?”

Jiang Zhihuo: “Yeah, I’ve got no shame. It’s not like you only met me yesterday.”

Yan Mu: “Then you must also know what it means for you to come to my place tonight?”

“……” Wait a second—how did the conversation get here again??

At a time like this, Jiang Zhihuo still had a shred of dignity. He shoved the chopsticks into Yan Mu’s hands and forcefully changed the subject. “Let’s eat!”

The dark, soggy lump of noodles got dumped down the drain by Jiang Zhihuo. Yan Mu’s egg noodles, though simple, tasted pretty good. The two propped up a tablet in front of them and started browsing for a movie to watch while they ate.

Once he was full, Jiang Zhihuo got lazy and rolled over onto the sofa to digest.

He hadn’t lain on this couch in a long time; it felt a little nostalgic. The place was still spotless, not a speck of dust in sight. Yan Mu’s habits were meticulous; any cup or set of utensils he used had to be put back exactly where it came from. Occasionally, it made the place feel a bit lifeless.

But not tonight.

Right now, Yan Mu was at the sink, washing dishes. The sound of running water and clinking bowls filled the place with the warmth of daily living.

After washing up, Yan Mu came over and said, “Don’t lie down after eating.”

“Oh, got it.” Jiang Zhihuo said it like a rebellious kid but didn’t move an inch. He even turned his phone sideways and started a game.

Yan Mu slowly crouched down beside the couch.

Jiang Zhihuo was in a sniper match. The moment he saw Yan Mu’s face getting close, his hand twitched. Headshot. Game over.

“Get up?” Yan Mu asked.

“Uh… yeah,” Jiang Zhihuo replied.

Yet, still didn’t move.

The digital clock on the coffee table showed it was 8 p.m.

Their faces were really close; close enough for their breaths to mix when they spoke.

They both knew exactly what that distance meant.

There was no need for words. At a time like this, in a place like this, with only the two of them and both being men, it was clear what they were thinking. Their feelings had already been laid bare. They both knew something was going to happen.

Jiang Zhihuo turned off his screen.

The screen lock made a faint water droplet sound.

He slowly lowered his hand.

Yan Mu leaned in, little by little.

Jiang Zhihuo suddenly felt nervous for no reason.

They had kissed before, yet back then it was only to suppress the heat, nothing more. They hadn’t thought beyond that. But now…

His heart pounded endlessly, like a thousand deer charging through him in turns.

Their warm breaths met between their lips. Closer and closer—

Just as their lips were about to meet, Jiang Zhihuo’s phone lit up, and the notification chime began to ring nonstop—ding ding ding ding ding.

It showed no signs of stopping.

Jiang Zhihuo: “……”

Yan Mu: “……”

The atmosphere was completely shattered. It got a little awkward. Yan Mu lifted a hand and motioned for him to go check the messages, then turned and walked into the room.

Jiang Zhihuo opened the phone and saw it was from Zong Bei, blasting him with fifteen or twenty messages in the span of thirty seconds.

Zong Bei: Huo!!

Zong Bei: Are you there? Are you there? are you there?!!

Zong Bei: How’s the date going?!!

……

Jiang Zhihuo: “……”

Damn it.

He’s got the nerve to ask that??

They were probably, maybe, possibly about to take it a step further!! And it all got interrupted!!

No! Progress! At! All!

Jiang Zhihuo replied to Zong Bei with four angry words, then pushed open the door and walked into Yan Mu’s room.

He wasn’t the only one feeling awkward; Yan Mu was sitting at the edge of the bed.

Jiang Zhihuo gave a small cough and tattled, “That was Zong Bei. Remember his name.”

He sat down beside Yan Mu.

The bed had a fresh set of sheets and a duvet. It was still as soft as ever, dipping in slightly when he sat down.

“Em…” Jiang Zhihuo’s face was burning. “Want to… try again?”

As long as it was just the two of them, the awkwardness didn’t pose a significant issue; they could continue where they left off.

This time, Jiang Zhihuo closed his eyes.

With his sight cut off, everything else felt magnified; every breath and touch felt like soft feathers brushing over his skin.

He could feel the growing warmth drawing closer—

Then, right at that moment, Yan Mu’s phone suddenly started chiming non-stop, and a group video call popped up on the screen.

Yan Mu: “……”

Jiang Zhihuo: “……”

Jiang Zhihuo hadn’t checked his phone earlier, so he missed the group-wide notification.

It was the competition group chat. The message said there would be an online lesson around eight o’clock, and everyone had to attend—except for the God of Learning Yan. They also announced that the preliminary round for the competition in Jiangcheng would be held next Wednesday.

Yan Mu: ……

With a dark expression, he hung up and tossed his phone onto the bed.

“Don’t take it out on the phone.” While Yan Mu was answering the call, Jiang Zhihuo had already sprawled back onto the bed, sinking into its softness. His muscles were totally relaxed.

He folded his hands over his chest, closed his eyes, and leaned toward the God of Learning Yan with the same solemnity and nerves as the first time they kissed for the three-minute experiment. “Go ahead, my friend.”

Yan Mu leaned in again.

His movement was a bit forceful this time.

He didn’t want anything getting in the way again—

And yet, the phone started ringing—again, and again, and again.

It buzzed. Someone was calling.

Bzzzz—bzzzz—bzzzz—

The third time already!!!!!!

This time, Jiang Zhihuo completely lost it. He turned to the side, couldn’t hold back anymore, and burst out laughing. His shoulders shook, and a few chuckles slipped out despite himself.

He laughed while slapping the bed. “Hahaha! Yan-ge, third time’s the charm clearly doesn’t apply³[T/N: 事不过三 is a saying meaning “things don’t happen more than three times” or “third time’s the limit.” Here it’s used humorously to imply that after being interrupted three times, they should give up.]. Guess this just wasn’t meant to be today.”

Yan Mu: “……”

Frustrated, he grabbed the phone that wouldn’t stop vibrating. It wasn’t his; it was Jiang Zhihuo’s.

He was going to see exactly who had the nerve to call at this moment.

“Who is it?” Jiang Zhihuo asked.

The contact name was only two characters. Yan Mu swallowed his irritation and handed the phone back. “Li-ge.”

The missing person has returned⁴[T/N: This is a playful internet slang phrase used to joke about someone reappearing after being inactive or gone for a while, like in a group chat or social setting.]!

Jiang Zhihuo picked up the call, still laughing a bit. “Hey, Li-ge.”

There was a lot of noise on the other end. Li Muhe’s voice came through. “You sound like you’re in a pretty good mood.”

“Yeah, hahaha, something funny happened.” Jiang Zhihuo noticed the background noise and asked, “Li-ge, where are you right now?”

“Airport.” On the other end, Li Muhe pulled his suitcase out through the airport exit and said into the phone, “Xiao Huo, I’m back.”

---

The author has something to say:

Li Muhe: I’ve been around since Chapter 2 and I’m finally making my appearance.

Jiang Zhihuo: My ge is back! I’m happy!

Yan Mu: I’m ready to get jealous.

Author: Li-ge’s a good guy, no need to worry, everyone. As for the jealousy… it’s kind of exciting, hehe, but that’s all I can spoil for now.

• 1
  [T/N: Debuff is a gaming term referring to a negative effect or penalty, often used humorously in daily speech.]
• 2
  [T/N: It is a traditional Fujian dish made with sweet-and-sour pork pieces that resemble lychees in shape or color. It does not actually contain lychee fruit.]
• 3
  [T/N: 事不过三 is a saying meaning “things don’t happen more than three times” or “third time’s the limit.” Here it’s used humorously to imply that after being interrupted three times, they should give up.]
• 4
  [T/N: This is a playful internet slang phrase used to joke about someone reappearing after being inactive or gone for a while, like in a group chat or social setting.]