“Why did you say we are just good friends?”

Pei Xi’s unhappy mood did not improve from the moment they left the shopping mall to getting into the car. The corners of his mouth were practically a flat line: “We are clearly married.”

“Can good friends hold hands? Can they kiss? Can they sleep—”

“It was just a more fun way of saying it.”

He Chuzhou hastily interrupted the dirty words that were about to come out of Pei Xi’s mouth and summoned up the courage to explain: “And those clerks actually noticed our relationship.”

Pei Xi was suspicious: “Really?”

He Chuzhou affirmed: “Really.”

Pei Xi: “How could they tell?”

“We’re a well-matched couple, ah.” He Chuzhou’s expression didn’t change: “People who have lived together a long time will gradually grow closer in appearance. Don’t you think we are quite similar?”

Pei Xi stared at his face and examined it.

“……”

Forget it, this question was more subjective. He chose not to answer, and expressed his doubts again: “Then how is it fun to call ourselves good friends?”

He Chuzhou: “It’s just like how many people like to call their significant other their roommate. You can think of it as a sort of teasing fun.”

He was really more and more impressed with himself.

Ever since Pei-calico arrived, his ability to bullshit had been improving at the speed of light.

Considering the authenticity of his words, Pei Xi abruptly thought of something and his displeasure turned into curiosity: “So some girls also call their boyfriends ‘brother-in-law’?”

He Chuzhou: “? ? ?”

He suddenly felt as if his own family’s child had been corrupted by the dirty information in this world: “Where did you hear that?”

“When I came to find you this morning.”

Pei Xi said: “I saw a couple come out of a house. The woman called the man ‘brother-in-law’ and asked him if her sister would be angry that he bought her a bag.”

He Chuzhou: “……”

Pei Xi: “So the ‘sister’ in this sentence is also fictional, and to add fun?”

He Chuzhou: “………”

When faced with Pei Xi’s eyes, which were so rigorous that he seemed to be verifying the entire history of human civilization, although He Chuzhou was in a very complicated mood, he could only submit himself to the hole he had dug: “Right, that’s it.”

Pei Xi nodded slowly. He accepted this explanation and did not ask further questions on the topic.

But He Chuzhou looked at his thoughtful expression and felt uneasy, like something wasn’t right.

There was still work to be done in the afternoon. Based on the experience last time, He Chuzhou took him directly to his office.

When work was over, He Chuzhou followed Pei Xi’s wishes to not eat out for dinner and instead went to the nearest supermarket to buy ingredients to cook at home themselves.

Of course, “themselves” referred specifically to He Chuzhou.

Pei Xi didn’t seem to have an understanding of He Chuzhou’s true level of cooking skills, and was still thinking about making a sumptuous dinner to make up for the meal earlier.

But He Chuzhou’s understanding was already very clear.

So after arriving at home, he decisively took over the responsibility of cooking and refused to let Pei Xi touch a single knife, dish, pot, or bowl in the kitchen.

And he named it euphemistically: An inspection of the results of his teaching.

Pei Xi was very worried about him: “Are you able to do it? Can you recognize sugar and salt? Can you tell the difference between shallots and garlic sprouts?”

“Naturally.” He Chuzhou tied an apron on himself. “I’m your proud disciple, Pei-laoshi. Have more confidence in yourself.”

When he was alone in a foreign country, the people there rarely had hot, freshly-cooked food, and it was so unpalatable that it could ruin a person’s taste buds. He had developed his cooking skills at that time.

He prepared the raw materials, skillfully blanched them in a pot, washed and chopped the vegetables, and handled the complex cooking process with ease.

Pei Xi stood to the side and watched for a while. The initial worry in his eyes gradually faded, and they quietly became dim and lost.

“Chuzhou, you’re so skillful.”

He spoke in a whisper, the volume so low that it was more like he was talking to himself: “You learned so well and so quickly, and you’re even better than me.”

Fortunately, the two of them were very close, and He Chuzhou heard every word he said. Thinking once again of the other’s chaotic cooking skills, he was amused, but responded modestly: “No, no, it is Laoshi who taught me well.”

When he said this, the person next to him went quiet and didn’t say anything for a long while.

He Chuzhou couldn’t get used to it, and turned to look at him, only to realize that Pei Xi was in a low mood.

The few days they had spent together was enough for him to glean a bit of information.

For example, that Pei Xi preferred light colors, he didn’t like to eat fish, and…..and that Pei Xi in pet mode was as fragile as a snail that had lost its shell. He needed to be coaxed, accompanied, cared for, and comforted. He needed someone to hold him with one hand and cover his eyes with the other, creating a new shell for him to protect him from the wind and rain.

So he slowed down and spoke softly, his smile never fading: “Xiao Pei-laoshi, why are you unhappy?”

Pei Xi glanced at him, then lowered his head and continued to stare at the steaming pot: “Why did you want to learn to cook, and why are you so good at it?”

He Chuzhou: “Isn’t it a good thing that I’ve learned?”

“It’s not good.”

Pei Xi spoke, and after a couple of seconds’ pause, he whispered again: “It’s not good.”

How could it be good?

“Now that you’ve learned, you don’t need me anymore.”

The sweet and sour pork ribs were almost ready, and the aroma suffused the kitchen. Pei Xi sniffed it attentively and felt that it was much better than he was capable of.

He could do it himself.

Of course Pei Xi was no longer needed.

His thoughts drifted away with the steam and he lost his center of gravity, swaying as he fell into confusion……

Then the top of his head was stroked, neither lightly nor forceful.

He returned to his senses and raised his head just in time to watch He Chuzhou straighten up. The scattered hair over Pei Xi’s forehead was a little messy after being ruffled.

“My hands aren’t free, so I can only do this.”

He Chuzhou’s voice was helpless, his expression particularly lazy and relaxed when he looked down. 

His eyes were deep and level, with no trace of gloom inside them.

“Don’t think up nonsense. It’s unnecessary.”

“Think about how difficult it is to cook. Since I’ve learned how, you can be liberated from it.”

“Besides, I studied well just so that I could take better care of you, didn’t I?”

Pei Xi was taken aback by his unhurried tone. It was like some desolate place was being carefully filled, and his eyelashes trembled. He didn’t speak again for a long time.

The pork rib sauce was almost ready. He Chuzhou estimated the time, opened the lid, brought over the plate, and got to work.

When he took the last spoonful, there was suddenly a tight grip on his waist, along with a warmth on his back that didn’t belong to him. 

Pei Xi hugged him from behind and buried his head in his shoulders like a clingy koala. The muffled “thank you” sounded childish.

He Chuzhou had never been hugged in such a way before, and wasn’t used to it. He felt a little itchy, and his ears were a bit warm.

Putting the last spoonful of ribs on the plate, he moved his hand to the side and was about to speak, when he heard the koala clinging to his back say in a muffled voice: “Brother-in-law.”

He Chuzhou: “……”

He Chuzhou: “……….”

The heat on his earlobes receded as fast as lightning.

His hand shook, and a piece of ribs rolled to the ground. He Xingxing, who had been squatting there for a long time, excitedly took it back to his kennel.

*

*

“Don’t use ‘Brother-in-law.’”

“That sort of thing is for young people nowadays.”

“Not that you aren’t young……and I’m certainly not old.”

“We are honorable scholars and intellectuals who don’t use such language for lewd fun.”

After dinner, He Chuzhou spent a full five minutes firmly warning Pei Xi to not use words involving proper human relationships so casually, such as “Brother-in-law.”

Pei Xi listened attentively like a good student, and asked: “Then when exactly can it be used?”

He Chuzhou: “Don’t use it at any time! Be obedient.”

“Okay.”

Pei Xi responded calmly, but his tone was somewhat disappointed: “I thought you wanted to have fun with me.”

He Chuzhou: “……”

He had lifted a rock and dropped it on his own foot again. If it could be visualized, he would be partially disabled from the ankles down.

Never mind.

He patted his forehead and stood up: “I’m going to take a shower first.” A cold shower to calm down.

Pei Xi gave a hum and stood up with his pajamas, following him step by step.

He Chuzhou turned back: “What are you doing?”

Pei Xi said in a matter-of-fact tone: “In a normal marital relationship, this shouldn’t be considered lewd fun, right?”

He Chuzhou: “……”

He Chuzhou held his shoulders, turned him around, and gave him a gentle push: “Not really, but it’s unnecessary.” 

“I move around a lot while bathing, and I would end up slamming you into the wall.”

Holding the pajamas in his arms, Pei Xi could only watch as He Chuzhou walked into the bathroom. He turned back to the bed and sat down, in a daze for a while. Then he picked up his phone and started to search for the correct way to peel a tomato.

Before the page loaded, the screen suddenly went black.

It was out of battery.

Looking around, he used the cable on the bedside table to charge it. Then he picked up the black cell phone next to him and asked the person in the bathroom: “Chuzhou, can I use your phone to check something?”

His voice came from the other side of the door: “Go ahead. The unlock password is the same as the payment password.”

Pei Xi entered 049123, and it unlocked successfully. The main page wallpaper was a rolling quantum ball, with a featureless system customization.

Not good-looking.

Why wasn’t there a photo of them together?

Pei Xi frowned slightly and opened the wallpaper settings, only to find that there were no pictures of them together in the album. There were all sorts of photos of He Xingxing, occasionally interspersed with a stuffed toy and a cow-spotted cat.

The furrow on his brow deepened.

He exited the settings, turned on the camera, and took a few shots of himself.

Then he clicked into the settings again and set one of them as the wallpaper.

This was much more pleasing to the eye.

He exited with satisfaction and opened the webpage to continue searching for tomato scrambled egg recipes.

Not long after, a pop-up window suddenly appeared at the top of the screen:

[Laurel came up with a new trick, and I also ordered some spicy duck heads. You’ll definitely like them. Let’s try it together tomorrow night?]

Laurel?

New trick?

Duck heads?

What.

Pei Xi didn’t understand it, but this did not affect his real-time delivery: “Chuzhou, Wu Qing sent you a message.”

He Chuzhou: “Don’t worry about it, I’ll get back to him later when I come out.”

Pei Xi also had no intention to care about it, and dismissed the pop-up window, continuing to study the recipe intently.

One after another, they finished taking their showers, and when Pei Xi came out, He Chuzhou was already reclining in bed as he looked at his phone.

He slipped into bed with ease and buried his head between He Chuzhou’s shoulder and the pillow to avoid the light, looking like he was going to sleep soon.

He Chuzhou: “You’re sleepy already?”

Pei Xi responded vaguely.

He Chuzhou stopped looking at his phone and turned the light off: “Okay, then go to sleep.”

He paused for a moment, then said worriedly: “This won’t work. If I sleep like this, will I get kicked again tomorrow?”

Just as he finished muttering, a head crept into his arms.

Pei Xi hugged him and buried his head into his chest, as if seeking a sense of security: “Chuzhou.”

He Chuzhou: “En?”

Pei Xi: “You’ll stay with me always, right?”

The room wrapped in darkness was dim and unclear, making Pei Xi’s voice particularly distinct and vulnerable.

He Chuzhou gave a quiet sigh, and was once again defeated in a draw.

“Definitely, ah.”

He lifted his hands to hug him back and patted his back comfortingly: “I’ll be there whenever you need me, so go to sleep.”

He could endure as long as he didn’t die.

He was in a good state of mind beforehand, but unfortunately, that did not transmit to him after falling asleep.

Early the next morning, when he was rolled out of bed with the quilt by force again, he was still breathing deeply, half-asleep, with a befuddled look on his face.

Looking at the cold-faced Pei Xi, he got up and quickly changed his clothes. Gradually waking up, he rubbed the bridge of his nose in exhaustion: “You—”

“Shut up.”

Pei Xi’s voice was darker than his expression, practically forming a layer of frost: “Don’t let me hear your voice.”

He Chuzhou: “……?”

With question marks blooming on his head, he watched Pei Xi’s back as he strode away and dazedly stoked the head of the excited dog next to him.

What was going on?

Hadn’t they both adapted to it?

Why was his temper still getting worse?

Was he not a morning person?

Or had he rolled over and crushed him during the night? ? ?

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T/N: Sorry for the sporadic updates, everyone! Me and my cat Willow have both been sick the past week, but we’re improving with meds and rest!

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Chapter 17 << Table of Contents >> Chapter 19