Chapter 86

Chapter 86

Gu Jinglan's expression remained calm, but his heart was in turmoil.

He wanted to scold himself for what he'd done at lunch.

Why had he provoked Qi Yanyu? Why had he ignored him?

Gu Jinglan noticed that Qi Yanyu had been distracted all afternoon. He should’ve talked to him after class—asked if lunch hadn’t agreed with him, if his stomach hurt, or if it was because Gu Jinglan hadn’t paid much attention to him.

He should’ve asked properly. Even if Qi Yanyu lied, that would’ve been fine.

Even if he lied, Gu Jinglan should’ve handled it through peaceful communication.

"No need," Qi Yanyu’s voice was still a little hoarse.

Qi Yuanhan looked between Qi Yanyu and Gu Jinglan. Although Gu Jinglan appeared indifferent, his attention was almost entirely on Qi Yanyu.

Since when was Gu Jinglan like this? Qi Yuanhan scoffed inwardly.

Gu Jinglan started talking about things from his college dorm days or high school—like the time the power went out and they snuck out for food in the dark, only for the lights to come back on just as they left, forcing them to climb back in—only to get caught.

Clearly just trying to cheer Qi Yanyu up.

"During a blackout, shouldn’t you be hiding in a corner with the most popular girl, holding hands, kissing, and telling stories? Why sneak over walls?" Qi Yuanhan chimed in.

Qi Yanyu pricked up his ears, eager to hear about Gu Jinglan’s romantic past. Though Gu Jinglan had told him before that he’d never had an official relationship, he didn’t quite believe it.

"Back then I wasn’t thinking about that stuff. I focused on studying, good food, basketball, and video games." This didn’t sound like the high school life of someone who was supposedly a high school heartthrob.

"If you got another chance during a blackout, would you find someone you liked and hold hands?" Qi Yuanhan asked suggestively.

Qi Yanyu turned to look at Gu Jinglan.

Without hesitation, Gu Jinglan replied, "Of course." Hell, he'd take them to a hotel—like later, when he could cuddle and make out with Qi Yanyu.

Huang Shaoze mentioned how he just sat through class like a good boy during a blackout in high school, while a guy from the next class snuck over in the dark to jump a love rival over a pretty girl in their class.

Qi Yanyu thought back to his own blackout experiences in high school—just holed up in study hall, maybe sneaking out to smoke or play on his phone in the stairwell. His high school years weren’t filled with wild, dramatic teenage stories.

"My high school was boring," Number 3 said when asked by Qi Yuanhan.

"If you'd met our Dorm 413 back then, it wouldn't have been boring. In freshman year, our No. 1 was famous for skipping class—even the dean knew about it," Qi Yuanhan said bluntly.

Skipping class? What did Gu Jinglan do instead? Go on dates with a girlfriend?

"He skipped class… for what?" Qi Yanyu asked, utterly surprised.

"To go back to the hospital," Gu Jinglan answered plainly, his hand gripping Qi Yanyu’s under the table. "Where the hell else?"

Huang Shaoze laughed and explained, "His dad is the director of Kan Medical University’s affiliated hospital. He used to run off to the hospital nonstop during freshman year. We thought he was sick or something."

"No. 1 practically spent his entire freshman year interning at the hospital," Qi Yuanhan took a swig of beer. Gu Jinglan was one of the few “oddballs” in their department.

"Then… why isn’t he interning now?" Qi Yanyu asked, astonished. Who even worked at a hospital as a freshman?

Gu Jinglan said, "To win more awards, buff up my resume. It's not like the old days where you could just take over Dad's hospital."

Though he said that, if he really wanted to take over, he still could. Once he was a bit older, it'd all work out.

These days, all resources are monopolized by powerful aristocratic families, and hospitals are no exception. Eventually, Kan Medical will inevitably fall into Gu Jinglan’s hands.

At the hotpot meal, Gu Jinglan now only scoops what Qi Yanyu likes—gently dividing some for everyone else, but piling most of it into Qi Yanyu’s bowl.

“Where’s the tripe? Is the huanghou gone too?” Qi Yuanhan was busy digging through the pot for offal.

“All still there. No one’s eating it.” Gu Jinglan had just scooped up shrimp paste, cuttlefish paste, spicy beef, and tender meat slices, piling them all into Qi Yanyu’s bowl.

“Why aren’t you eating? I thought they were already picked clean,” Qi Yuanhan widened his eyes. “Ah, the tripe and huanghou are overcooked!” Sure enough, he fished out a big handful.

Huang Shaoze was also busy scooping braised pig trotters, soft chicken feet, and fatty intestines. “The braised intestines, chicken feet, and trotters are ready,” Huang Shaoze ladled a big spoonful of intestines and tried to share with their friends like Gu Jinglan did, but suddenly remembered, “Does Number Three not eat intestines?”

“He doesn’t eat trotters or chicken feet either,” Gu Jinglan answered for Qi Yanyu.

It wasn’t just Gu Jinglan who remembered every detail—Qi Yuanhan also recalled the prince’s high-maintenance tastes: “No beef bones either, right?” His tone had become a statement rather than a question.

Qi Yanyu obediently hummed in agreement, though he didn’t refuse the hao’er fish Gu Jinglan served him—he’d never tried it before, so he let him taste something new.

That night, they ate hotpot, drank beer, and had milk tea. The steam from the hotpot and the chill of the beer left everyone pleasantly buzzed. But for Qi Yanyu, it felt more like the drained exhaustion after a rollercoaster of emotions.

So when Gu Jinglan signaled for him to leave, Qi Yanyu kept watching him, trying to gauge whether he was still angry.

Then it dawned on him—Gu Jinglan wanted him to make an excuse to go first. So Qi Yanyu said he was heading home to sleep, said goodbye to their friends, and waited near an exit of a nearby mall.

Ten minutes later, Gu Jinglan arrived at Exit No. 3 as mentioned in his WeChat message.

Their tempers flared and cooled just as quickly. That night ended up being spent together in a hotel again.

As Gu Jinglan pushed inside him, just as things were heating up, he murmured, “I was wrong, baby. Forgive me.”

Qi Yanyu held himself back, his mind hazy. Through half-lidded eyes, he saw Gu Jinglan’s stunning face inches away—no one else came close.

Gu Jinglan kissed him again, offering slight comfort. Truthfully, he wasn’t upset at all; if anything, he feared that Gu Jinglan might break up with him because of this. He bore the sweet ache until the sharp pain dulled, then whispered, “Next time you’re angry… still talk to me.”

“Okay… baby. I’m sorry.”

The next day, Qi Yanyu slept in. Gu Jinglan didn’t wake him, canceling his first morning class instead.

Sitting in a swivel chair, he held Qi Yanyu while he ate breakfast—spicy beef noodles he had just bought.

Gu Jinglan loved wrapping an arm around his waist, watching him slurp up the noodles.

“Baby.”

Still groggy from sleep—after a late, emotionally exhausting night—Qi Yanyu hadn’t gotten nearly enough rest. Now sitting on Gu Jinglan’s lap by the table, he enjoyed his meal. Hearing Gu Jinglan’s soft voice, feeling those fingers occasionally tweaking his cheeks teasingly.

“Yu Bao.”

“Don’t cry,” Gu Jinglan coaxed. “I should’ve talked to you yesterday. Even if I was upset, I should’ve still reached out.”

Qi Yanyu brightened slightly. He hadn’t been crying—his mood was much better today. He pressed further, “Yeah, even if you’re angry, still talk to me. Don’t shut me out.”

Gu Jinglan apologized again. “I’ll buy you something. Don’t be mad.”

Qi Yanyu thought he had no right to be angry—he was the one who lied first. He was the one who messed up.

How could he expect to have everything, with everyone fawning over him? Insecure, Qi Yanyu ventured again, hesitantly, “Gu Jinglan… you like me, right? This isn’t just a fling?” He’d never been able to relax completely, always fearing the day Gu Jinglan would grow tired and end things. Breaking up wouldn’t be a big deal—but the thought still made him a little sad. He wasn’t ready for it to end.

"I'm serious."

Gu Jinglan watched him eat slowly, then start to doze off again after a while. "Still eating?"

"I'll eat later..." Qi Yanyu wanted to take a nap, but Gu Jinglan pulled down his pants and pushed in directly. Qi Yanyu couldn't move, only letting Gu Jinglan hold him.

"Promise me who you're going out with from now on."

Though frowning, Qi Yanyu thought—could he really say it? If he told the truth, Gu Jinglan would definitely get angry. But what if Gu Jinglan found out he lied? That would make him even angrier. This was tougher than any test question.

But Jiang Tiyan probably wouldn’t come looking for him anymore, and he’d been mentioning money less often lately.

"Promise me, baby?" Gu Jinglan’s tone was almost pleading, even though he was the one on top, driving into Qi Yanyu until he was whimpering and gasping.

Though he whimpered in agreement, Qi Yanyu’s fingers curled tightly, gripping the edge of the table. He was sitting on Gu Jinglan’s lap, letting himself be held, his head nearly dropping to his own feet—but with Gu Jinglan’s arms around him, he couldn’t hide.

At a glance, it looked like Gu Jinglan was holding him tenderly.

But his ass got slapped—hard—several times. "No more secrets, okay, baby? Yubao, Yuyu..." His voice remained pleading. "Can you?"

Qi Yanyu furrowed his brows deeply. "O...kay..."

"I love Qi Yanyu the most. Does Qi Yanyu love me?"

"Y-yeah..." Soon, Qi Yanyu was swept up in the moment. How could he bear to leave Gu Jinglan? At the very least, he couldn’t separate from him for the next few months. Gu Jinglan had him right where he wanted him.

That weekend, Gu Jinglan’s competition team was discussing in the glass-walled meeting room on the fourth floor, while Qi Yanyu sat at a study desk nearby, working on problems.

Since sign-ups for most competitions this semester were already closed, if it were next semester, he’d probably join Gu Jinglan’s team.

Qi Yanyu claimed to be reviewing, but really, he was just sitting there, watching Gu Jinglan through the glass, focused and discussing adjustments.

If his family didn’t object, maybe he could go public with Gu Jinglan—at least a little.

As Gu Jinglan’s official boyfriend. But then Qi Yanyu wondered—did he have no life of his own?

Always revolving around Gu Jinglan. So he pushed the thought away and picked up his phone. He hadn’t online-shopped in ages, but now the urge came rushing back.

He wanted to buy Gu Jinglan a gift. But he didn’t know what. He normally shopped for gifts in person, but he didn’t have time now—online shopping had more options.

He browsed men’s clothing, looking for matching sets in different shades, something they could wear as couple outfits. Scrolling, he hesitated—could they actually wear these "couple clothes" outside? Would their roommates catch on?

But then he thought—what if they bought subtle matching pieces, same design, different shades, and staggered when they wore them? Like Qi Yanyu wearing one today, Gu Jinglan wearing the other a few days later. That still counted as couple outfits.

Perfect. Qi Yanyu kept browsing, glancing up every now and then to gaze at Gu Jinglan through the glass—all cool and detached, like always.

Imagining how Gu Jinglan would look in each outfit. Then picturing himself in the same.

Perfect. He checked out immediately. One after another, he bought thirteen "pairs" of clothes, tapping in his payment password without a second thought. Then he moved on to shoes—simple, another seven or eight pairs, same style, different colors, purchased in quick succession.

Hats, pants, perfume, headphones, scarves, belts, backpacks—he looked at everything. But when he saw the forty or so unfulfilled orders, he suddenly remembered Jiang Tiyan trying to scam him. Guilt stabbed at him—he’d gone overboard.

He needed to be careful with money, even if Jiang Tiyan might just be messing with him.

His account was down to just over two million. What if he and Gu Jinglan had to elope someday? That two mil could get them new lives.

Clenching his jaw, he scrolled back through his cart, deciding which items weren’t immediately necessary.

Growing up spoiled, he’d never had to worry about money—except for that stretch a year ago when he’d cut ties with Qi Muyao and been left to fend for himself. But having experienced counting pennies before, canceling and refunding stuff now wasn’t as hard to swallow.

Qi Yanyu picked and chose, eventually keeping a few items he particularly liked.

Where did his time go? How’d it disappear so fast?

Whenever Gu Jinglan ordered milk tea or coffee for his group, he’d get some for Qi Yanyu too. When he went out to pick up the order, he’d bring Qi Yanyu’s cup separately, placing it on his desk and tapping the table. “What’s my little piggy doing?”

Then he saw Qi Yanyu watching cartoons. Gu Jinglan couldn’t quite recall, but it seemed like he had once seen some dog cartoon on Qi Yanyu’s laptop before.

“Any good?”

Qi Yanyu was so engrossed that it took him a while to snap out of it when called. If the library weren’t packed, Gu Jinglan would’ve kissed him right then.

“Yeah, it’s great.” Qi Yanyu grinned like an idiot.

“Better than watching your hubby rail you?” Gu Jinglan’s voice was low, but it still made Qi Yanyu’s face turn sunset-red.

“Gu Jinglan, you’re the worst!”

Gu Jinglan smirked, deliberately pinching Qi Yanyu’s cheeks by his lips. “No wonder you’re so dumb—blame the cartoons.”

“Says you.” Though Qi Yanyu was retorting, he was still grinning. He was still grinning from the funniest part of *Minions*. But the bigger reason was Gu Jinglan taking time to visit him.

After finishing his group discussion, Gu Jinglan would slip out of the glass room and squeeze into a quiet spot next to Qi Yanyu.

If he was too tired that day, Gu Jinglan wouldn’t study and would instead play with Qi Yanyu’s hand under the table.

He’d peek at whatever cartoon Qi Yanyu had on. Qi Yanyu was disciplined—cartoons were his reward after homework and studying.

Gu Jinglan remembered the scholarship application and decided to help Qi Yanyu apply for one too.

Once he finished, Qi Yanyu said, “Your hubby’s starving.” He referred to himself as Gu Jinglan’s “husband.”

Gu Jinglan, who had been focused on submitting the application, glanced up and down at Qi Yanyu, his dark eyes tinged with amusement. “Top or bottom hunger?”

Both, obviously.” Qi Yanyu thought, Usually, it’s Gu Jinglan teasing me—time to tease him back.

“I’ve got a competition this afternoon,” Gu Jinglan said, trying to balance his priorities, though his gaze flickered with desire. Of course, he wanted to mess around. Maybe this brat still needed to be put in his place. Or maybe he just had a death wish, knowingly provoking Gu Jinglan when he had no time to act on it.

“Gu-ge, I’m craving your meat.” Qi Yanyu pushed further.

Gu Jinglan gave him a surprised look for two seconds before Qi Yanyu broke into a smug grin. Sucks for you. No time to claim me now. Hah.

Gu Jinglan’s competition was at 2 PM, and he had to be on standby by 1:15. Lunchtime was tight. “I’ll be there cheering—I already snagged a front-row spot,” Qi Yanyu said, having quickly reserved a spot via text earlier.

“Are you serious about wanting it, or are you just messing with me?” Gu Jinglan was still trying to figure out if this was a provocation or genuine frustration.

“I just want Gu-ge to wreck me. What’cha gonna do?”

Gu Jinglan yanked him out of the library. Since no one was outside, he tried to push Qi Yanyu into the men’s restroom.

Qi Yanyu backpedaled fast. “I need to eat—I’m actually hungry.”

Gu Jinglan’s cool stare held a dangerous glint. “But what about the hunger down below? Shouldn’t we at least take the edge off?”

“Yeah, right. Like that’ll help. Hurry up, let’s go to the cafeteria,” Qi Yanyu said, switching to a serious tone.

After some back-and-forth, they finally bolted for the cafeteria, eating quickly to save time for Gu Jinglan’s standby. Qi Yanyu scarfed his food down in record time.

Gu Jinglan went back to grab his materials, since he had to head backstage with his team to wait for their turn.

Qi Yanyu only parted ways with Gu Jinglan when they reached the library. He first reviewed his books briefly there—otherwise, last-minute cramming for finals would be too rushed.

He wanted to get slightly better grades so he could have a chance at becoming a doctor in a good hospital. Of course, there was a high chance he’d end up working alongside Gu Jinglan as colleagues.

Just thinking about being doctors and coworkers made him zone out for a second, even while reviewing. Still, Qi Yanyu managed to focus and skimmed through his books for a while.

After some reading, it was time for the audience to enter.

Using the seat number from the text, Qi Yanyu found his spot and sat down. He’d already told Gu Jinglan he was sitting in Row 3, Seat F13—so if Gu Jinglan just glanced left during the competition, he’d see him.

Since the competition order was decided by draw, Gu Jinglan texted that he was in the middle of the lineup.

Qi Yanyu had already sent Gu Jinglan a photo of himself sitting in the audience facing the stage.

Gu Jinglan checked—it really was super close to the stage, almost like being a judge. While other teams were relaxing or skimming through notes, worried about getting stumped during Q&A,

Gu Jinglan still found time to text Qi Yanyu: *“Starchy lil’ sausage, did you eat enough at lunch? I ordered you afternoon tea. Go grab it later.”*

Lately, Qi Yanyu had become obsessed with a pink beaver meme named Loopy and kept sending it to him. His favorite was the GIF of the beaver swatting Gu Jinglan away.

Gu Jinglan thought the stickers were silly, but he couldn’t say no to Qi Yanyu.

It was like Qi Yanyu had never seen memes before—whenever he finished studying, finished watching cartoons, or got bored, he’d flood Gu Jinglan with them.

*“Got it, wifey,”* Qi Yanyu replied, along with a smug starch sausage sticker.

Calling him *wifey*—now he didn’t know who wore the pants. Though Gu Jinglan thought this, his smile was harder to hide than an AK’s kickback.

His teammate, underclassman Yin Xixi, asked, “Bro Gu, chatting with your girlfriend?”

Gu Jinglan put his phone away without denying it. “Mhm.”

“No way! Why haven’t we heard about her before?”

He worried Yin Xixi might spread rumors—and then Qi Yanyu would ask him, *“Wait, since when do you have a girlfriend?”* when it was obviously a boyfriend.

So Gu Jinglan said, “A friend.”

Yin Xixi nodded. “Ohhh, so Bro Gu’s still single.” But she’d just seen that grin—harder to suppress than an AK.

Back in the audience, Qi Yanyu flipped through his book and jotted down answers while listening for the food delivery call.

The lighting in the venue was dim, and he didn’t want to strain his eyes—if he needed glasses during his medical internship, that’d be a pain. So he packed up his book.

Looking around, the audience was packed full. Medical students never left home without their books—some were flipping through notes, others solving practice problems.

He noticed people holding banners and LED cheer signs—like *[Department] Heartthrob*, *[Year] [Major] Genius*, *Dorm Hottie*, and stuff like that.

Qi Yanyu felt a bit regretful—he hadn’t even thought of cheering for Gu Jinglan. But what if he ran into his roommates or classmates? Qi Yuanhan probably wouldn’t come, but if someone from his major saw him, the gossip would explode everywhere.

He wondered how he could secretly cheer for Gu Jinglan.

When he saw the girl next to him playing a name on her phone, he asked her for tips. Soon, he downloaded a cheer app and typed in *Gu Jinglan* right away.

His screen turned black, so he picked the brightest red—the words *Gu Jinglan* started scrolling across his phone.

Genius move. If he were the one competing, Gu Jinglan probably wouldn’t have figured out this cheer trick either.

Qi Yanyu received a text message and assumed it was spam, so he deleted it right away.

A while later, his phone blasted with a call. "I'm at your school."

Because students were presenting on stage, the microphone amplified through the speakers was deafening. Qi Yanyu didn't hear clearly and thought it was a scam call about grad school or government exams. He replied bluntly, "No need—stop calling me."

Back when he hadn’t yet been knocked around by life, he would’ve snapped: “How did my privacy get leaked?”

Jiang Tiyan was stunned for a moment, then laughed. “Qi Yanyu, what are you doing? Getting laid in your dorm or screwing around on the quad?”

Qi Yanyu hesitated briefly—Gu Jinglan was probably about to go on stage soon. He squeezed the milk tea cup beside him. “I’m not at school.”

Jiang Tiyan said, “Whether you’re there or not doesn’t matter. Ten minutes—I want to see you at your school.”

“I have something to do.”

“What do you have to do?”

“I’m… handling some business outside today.” Since when had Qi Yanyu ever sounded this meek in front of Jiang Tiyan?

“When are you paying the 80 million? I don’t have much patience. And I can’t keep secrets worth shit.”

Qi Yanyu’s expression darkened. He hung up the phone, walked out of the multi-purpose hall, crossed from the east to west campus, and arrived at the indoor sports hall Jiang Tiyan had mentioned.

Jiang Tiyan sat alone on a blue plastic chair in the towering, empty stands, watching the kids volleying shuttlecocks below.

As Qi Yanyu climbed the steps, he steeled himself—no matter how much he wanted to snap, he couldn’t blow his top.

Jiang Tiyan looked like he’d just taken some kind of beating somewhere. His face was angrier than Qi Yanyu’s.

Sitting with his long legs crossed, flaunting his model-tier looks and arrogant air, from afar, he looked like nothing more than a nepo baby coasting on good genes and daddy’s money.

“I still have things to do. Cut to the chase,” Qi Yanyu said, gripping the brown paper bag in his hand.

“Qi Yanyu, who’s begging who here?” Jiang Tiyan’s makeup-free face still put regular folks to shame. His cold gaze brimmed with irritation and pent-up rage.

Qi Yanyu stood there, watching the clock, refusing to sit. He still held the milk tea originally meant for Gu Jinglan—he now had to offer it to Jiang Tiyan, hoping to butter him up.

Jiang Tiyan took it coldly, only to find it lukewarm. “Why isn’t it cold? Meant for someone else?”

Qi Yanyu lowered his eyes slightly. “Bought just for you. I always drink room-temp.” Now, Qi Yanyu lied without blinking.

Jiang Tiyan’s scowl softened a little. He silently jammed the straw into the cup and took a sip.

“Tastes like ass!”

It wasn’t even icy, and the flavor was indescribable. He fished around with the straw, lifted it to look, and saw some pulpy berry or grape bits inside—it turned out to be juice.

Who the hell drinks room-temperature juice?

“Then next time I’ll bring you an iced one,” Qi Yanyu said casually, making Jiang Tiyan—who was already in a terrible mood and ready to explode—feel like he’d hit a wall of fluff.

Inside, Qi Yanyu cursed: *I’ll bring you your fucking dad. Next time I’ll give you rat poison.*

He was just stringing Jiang Tiyan along. That was the plan—to record everything, sneak footage, ideally send it straight to Jiang Tiyan’s parents so they could see how their son shakes people down.

Jiang Tiyan hadn’t expected that after just a few days apart, Qi Yanyu had become slightly more slick.

“The 80 million you asked for last time—I really don’t have that much on hand. Can you lower it a bit, Jiang Tiyan?” Qi Yanyu had consulted a lawyer—when recording, the other party’s full name must be used for legal validity. “Please don’t tell my brother Qi Muyao about my relationship. I’ll get the money together for you.”

Jiang Tiyan smirked, surprised that Qi Yanyu had suddenly gone street-smart. “Recording, huh?”

“…” Qi Yanyu blinked slightly before glancing at his phone with a smile. “Oops, forgot to hit record.”

The glance at the phone was just a fake-out. In an instant, he grabbed Jiang Tiyan’s collar and dragged him into the footwell between the seats—the aisle where feet usually stretched out. Taken off guard, Jiang Tiyan was pinned to the floor.