Preparing to leave

Fan You stood alone in the restroom, his overlong bangs hiding his expression. A filthy white shirt lay in the sink. He scrubbed it hard enough that the silky fabric had begun to lose its shape.

Click, click. The sound of heels on the floor drew closer. Shirley's long legs appeared first, followed by a skirt she had secretly shortened and a white shirt more fitted than the other servers'. Who knew how she had persuaded the manager to let her dress like that?

Of course... perhaps she had simply slept her way into his approval.

"What are you doing here?" Shirley asked in confusion.

She glanced up at the sign by the entrance. Yes, this was the ladies' room.

Fan You did not answer her. He kept scrubbing his dirty clothes.

Shirley shot him an irritated look. "Are you some kind of pervert? This is the ladies' room. Why are you washing your clothes in here?"

Shirley paced a couple of steps. To show off the graceful line of her neck to those wealthy businessmen, she had drunk several glasses of refreshments. Now she could not hold it any longer. Forgetting the seemingly mute Fan You, she rushed into the furthest stall.

The moment the door shut, Fan You finally stopped. He slapped the shirt into the sink, then took an "Under maintenance" sign from the cabinet beneath it and set it up at the entrance.

It was already late when they left the banquet, and where Wei Zelin would stay had become a problem. He could not return to the hotel Magic Cube Technology had arranged for now, and going to Shi Yuan's place was...

"I'll go to your hotel and book another room," Wei Zelin suggested.

Shi Yuan nodded eagerly. That would be ideal.

"I'm sorry, sir. Our hotel is fully booked."

The receptionist explained apologetically, "Because of Magic Cube Technology's celebration, all our rooms were booked two days ago."

Shi Yuan had nothing to say. He had only managed to get a room because he had booked in advance.

"Then I'll try the hotel next door," Wei Zelin said helplessly.

After agonizing for three seconds, Shi Yuan finally forced himself to speak. "The nearby hotels are probably all the same. There's no point running around. You can squeeze in with me tonight."

Without the slightest hesitation, Wei Zelin smiled and agreed.

Shi Yuan felt as though he had done it on purpose. Especially that smile-it looked awfully smug.

He reflected on himself. Does he have me wrapped a little too tightly around his finger?

Wei Zelin was over ten centimeters taller than Shi Yuan, with much broader shoulders and a heavier build. There was no way he could fit into Shi Yuan's clothes. He called Pan Ying and asked her to bring his things over, then calmly went into the bathroom for a shower.

Ten minutes later, the doorbell rang. Shi Yuan took Wei Zelin's suitcase from Pan Ying. She did not say a single unnecessary word. Once she had delivered it, she bowed and left.

"Are my things here? Yuanyuan, bring me my pajamas." Shi Yuan's single room was small, and the bathroom was right beside the entryway, so Wei Zelin had heard Pan Ying knock.

Shi Yuan stood frozen for a few seconds before snapping out of it and hurriedly searching the suitcase for pajamas. "I'll find them right away."

A neatly folded set of pajamas sat on top, along with several pairs of large underwear packed in a small sealed bag.

For some inexplicable reason, Shi Yuan felt shy. Blushing, his heart racing, he opened the little bag, pulled out a random pair of underwear, tucked it into the pajamas, and brought everything to the bathroom door.

"Brother Lin, I found your pajamas."

With a click, the bathroom door opened. Steam billowed through the gap, flushing Shi Yuan's cheeks. He lowered his head, closed his eyes, and held out the clothes.

Wei Zelin gave a low chuckle. Fresh from the shower, his voice was even richer, sending a tingling ache through Shi Yuan's heart.

As he stood there at a loss, an arm suddenly tightened around his waist. A force from inside pulled him stumbling into the bathroom, and he was swept against a warm, damp chest...

Early the next morning, Shi Yuan felt heavy and exhausted all over. He struggled to open his eyes, but his eyelids remained too heavy, and he could not get up. Through his haze, he felt someone stroke his head, followed by a guilty sigh.

"It's my fault. I shouldn't have messed around with him."

"Mr. Wei, he probably caught a chill in the rain yesterday. Once the IV brings his temperature down, he'll be fine. You don't need to worry."

The doctor calmly set up the IV and prescribed medication, thoroughly accustomed to minor illnesses like this.

Clearly, the professional knew what he was talking about. Shi Yuan felt much better after the IV. Wei Zelin had bought vegetable congee from somewhere, and it suited Shi Yuan's tastes perfectly. He ate two large bowls in a row before Wei Zelin tucked him, warm all over, back into bed.

Sunlight streamed through the window onto the bed. Shi Yuan lay with his eyes half closed while Wei Zelin cleared away the bowls and utensils, wiped his face, and took his temperature. This man, so sinister and calculating in the original novel, was taking tender care of him in the warm sunlight.

Shi Yuan let out a contented sigh.

"What is it?" Wei Zelin asked.

"I suddenly love you so much."

Wei Zelin's hand trembled as he withdrew the thermometer. Then he calmly checked the reading-36.8. His temperature had come down.

He placed the thermometer on the bedside table, then knelt over Shi Yuan, startling him out of his sleepy pretense.

"What's..."

"Mmph... you beast... you'll catch it from me!"

Fortunately, Wei Zelin did not actually turn into a beast. After pinning Shi Yuan down and thoroughly kissing him, he let him sleep.

Shi Yuan spent his time in the hotel eating and sleeping, sleeping and eating. After two days in bed, he could not stand staying in any longer.

"I finally got to come to S City, and I haven't even started exploring."

"Getting better comes first. If you want to come again, I'll bring you next time."

"Yes, please!"

"Which do you like better, S City or Capital City?"

"Anywhere is good as long as you're there."

"Honestly, you..."

On the seventh day of the event, Shi Yuan got up early and prepared to head out. Wei Zelin handed him a dark gray outdoor jacket.

"Where did this come from?" Shi Yuan asked.

Wei Zelin zipped it all the way up to his neck. "Sister Ying brought it."

"That's too high!"

Shi Yuan tried to tug the zipper down, but Wei Zelin raised a hand to stop him.

"Do you want to get sick again?"

"Fine."

As they left the room, Wei Zelin casually pulled a jacket off the suitcase by the door. Shi Yuan glanced at it, then looked down at his own.

The same style-even the same color. Wei Zelin's was merely two sizes larger.

The corners of his mouth curved up involuntarily. Seeing his silent smile, Wei Zelin smiled too. "Maybe Sister Ying thought this jacket would suit me as well."

Shi Yuan gradually began laughing aloud. "Hahaha, really?"

Everything felt fun when he was with someone he loved. That morning, Wei Zelin took him out for breakfast, and they wandered around afterward. Since the venue was now fully open, all the "gates" Magic Cube had installed had been removed several days earlier. The robots, however, remained in their original spots and had become popular photo destinations, with crowds gathered around them.

Wei Zelin looked at one of them. "A01."

Shi Yuan followed his gaze. "If this robot's called A01, does that mean it was the first one developed?"

"No. There was another one before it, but some of its components were too crude. In the end, it was taken apart and reassembled into the current A01." Wei Zelin's gaze held a hint of nostalgia.

Looking at his expression, Shi Yuan guessed part of the story. "You designed A01?"

"Clever boy. You got it right. I made it when I was in college." With an arm around his waist, Wei Zelin led him past A01.

They entered a street lined with snack stalls. After several days of bland food, Shi Yuan was desperate for treats. The moment he spotted a nearby ice cream shop, he could not move another step.

"You can't have anything cold," Wei Zelin said helplessly.

That only made Shi Yuan more rebellious. "Those IVs left my mouth tasting like medicine. Can't I just buy the smallest one?"

Wei Zelin remained unmoved. "How come I didn't notice any medicine taste? It tasted pretty sweet to me."

Shi Yuan fell silent, lowering his head with a blush. But the ice cream in the hands of passersby held his cravings hostage, and he wanted to make one last attempt.

"Can I just have one bite?"

How could Wei Zelin not soften under the pitiful gaze of those beautiful, expressive almond-shaped eyes? He reluctantly gave in. "You said it. Just one bite."

Young people did not fear the cold. Customers kept passing through the ice cream shop's pretty glass doors, and Wei Zelin had to wait a little while inside before coming out. He handed Shi Yuan a palm-sized container, half filled with chocolate ice cream.

Meeting Shi Yuan's suspicious gaze, Wei Zelin said without a trace of shame, "I told the owner I only had five yuan and asked her to give me whatever she could."

Shi Yuan: "..."

Well, that's another new side of you. I should have known. Did I really need to wonder just how shameless Wei Zelin could be?

Even with only a tiny amount of ice cream, Shi Yuan was delighted.

They returned at noon to check out. After loading all their luggage into the car, Wei Zelin took him to a fairly famous local private kitchen restaurant.

After lunch, Shi Yuan asked Wei Zelin, "What time are we leaving? I want to say goodbye to You Gui while I'm here."

Wei Zelin raised his wrist to check his watch. "It's not even one yet. I'll go pick something up, then come back for you. We'll be home tonight."

That worked out perfectly. You Gui worked at Magic Cube, and it was her lunch break, so Shi Yuan arranged to meet her at the KFC outside her company.

By the time he arrived, You Gui had already found a table and was waiting for him.

"Are you completely better?"

Shi Yuan stood in front of her and spread his arms, smiling. "As you can see, I'm full of life."

You Gui gave a faint smile too. Little by little, she was learning to care for others the way Shi Yuan did. "Are you leaving today? I have some days off coming up. I could show you around."

"No. I only asked for seven days off, and I promised my little student I'd be back for lessons tomorrow." Besides, with no money in his pockets, spending all this time away made him deeply uneasy. Once he returned, he needed to check the school's job listings more often. Tutoring forever was no long-term solution.

"Then you..." You Gui was about to say something else when someone nearby suddenly interrupted them.

"You're here too. Is this your friend?" A man around thirty appeared beside their table. He wore a suit and leather shoes. His looks were not especially striking, but his features were regular, with thick brows and large eyes. The corners of his mouth turned downward, making him look stern and unsmiling.

You Gui rose from her seat on reflex. "Manager Yang!"

"My friend came to have something to drink with me."

Manager Yang gave Shi Yuan a couple of thoughtful looks, then said sternly, "Sit down. Don't act like a schoolchild. Carry on chatting. I'm heading back to the office."

Only after he had gone some distance did You Gui sit down and pour out her grievances to Shi Yuan. "That's the manager I told you about. I don't know why, but he seems to dislike me. He makes me handle everything, big or small. And he never even smiles!"

"Huh?" Shi Yuan asked, puzzled. "He looks pretty levelheaded. Why would he single you out?"

"I don't get it either."

Shi Yuan was far ahead of You Gui in emotional intelligence. His tone turned suggestive. "Could he like you and be trying to get your attention?"

You Gui said incredulously, "How is that possible?"

"Haha." Shi Yuan had only tossed the idea out casually.

They chatted about this and that for a while, until it was nearly time for You Gui to return to work.

"I probably won't go to Capital City again, but you're always welcome to come visit me." Capital City held too much that You Gui could not put behind her. Call her a coward if you liked; she simply did not want to revisit the past.

"Sure. Who knows? Maybe I'll move to S City someday too." Shi Yuan had a fairly good impression of S City, and Wei Zelin seemed to care a great deal about it. In this world, he was rootless duckweed anyway. Wherever he could be with the person he loved, that was home.