Chapter 43

Chapter 43

Wen Sinian was Xu Yan's last choice.

If there had been a more suitable candidate, he would never have taken the initiative to ask Wen Sinian.

But Shen Nanli and Zhao Qingji were both enthusiastic about pushing this idea forward. Zhao Qingji himself barely knew Wen Sinian—they had hardly exchanged more than a few words—so he counted on Xu Yan instead.

For the biweekly elective class, Lin Xingxian once again saved seats for Xu Yan and Shen Nanli in advance.

Unfortunately, this time their seats weren’t next to each other. Shen Nanli, ever observant, slid into the seat beside Lin Xingxian and gave Xu Yan an encouraging fist pump, mouthing the words: "Go for it."

Xu Yan hesitated like crazy, but when he turned his head, he saw Wen Sinian glancing sideways at him with a slightly amused look.

The class bell rang, forcing Xu Yan to bite the bullet and sit down.

With the end of the semester approaching, the professor had also announced the final paper early—just as Xu Yan had heard, it only required a thousand-word essay on a romance-related topic.

Some eager students had already pulled out their phones or laptops during class to start working on their papers.

Xu Yan nervously patted the phone in his pocket, not daring to take it out in front of Wen Sinian.

Neither of them spoke. Xu Yan, with no phone to distract him, could only listen to the lecture quietly, while Wen Sinian absentmindedly played with his phone, occasionally glancing at the person beside him.

Xu Yan noticed that the phone in Wen Sinian’s hand was the same model as the one in his pocket. He realized Wen Sinian must have bought a new one after giving his own to him.

He wondered how the repairs on his old phone were going. He’d have to ask about it later.

Just then, he spun his phone twice before Wen Sinian, noticing Xu Yan’s gaze, suddenly held it out to him.

Xu Yan froze, just staring.

Wen Sinian: "Want to see?"

Xu Yan, flustered: "No, no, it's fine."

Wen Sinian withdrew his hand and asked softly, "How are you planning to write your essay?"

Xu Yan said very seriously: "I’ve already thought of a topic."

Wen Sinian seemed intrigued: "What is it?"

Xu Yan whispered: "On the Feasibility of Virtual Relationships."

Wen Sinian looked at his serious expression, his full lips moving as he spoke, and couldn’t help but smile. "You have experience with that?"

Xu Yan denied it: "I just read about it online."

Wen Sinian leaned closer, eyes fixed on him: "Never tried it yourself?"

Xu Yan felt that familiar pressure of Wen Sinian's attention and instinctively flinched back.

His words came out stuttered, betraying his lack of confidence.

"N-no, of course not..."

Fortunately, the class bell rang, and the professor announced they would only have one session today. It wasn't even 8 p.m. yet, so the students quickly packed up and left the classroom.

Xu Yan hurriedly stood and followed Shen Nanli and Lin Xingxian out.

Wen Sinian walked not far behind him, occasionally reaching out to keep him from getting bumped by the crowd of students.

Shen Nanli pulled Xu Yan aside and asked eagerly, "Well? Did he agree?"

Xu Yan shoved his hands into his coat pockets: "I didn’t even ask yet."

Shen Nanli: "Then what were you two chatting about so happily?"

Xu Yan: "Oh, we were just talking about the final essay."

Shen Nanli: "..."

"Now you're suddenly so studious."

It was still early, and Lin Xingxian wanted to take Wen Sinian out for dinner. Seeing Xu Yan and Shen Nanli with their heads together, whispering about something, he squeezed between them, throwing an arm around their shoulders.

"Hey kiddos, want to join us for a feast?" Lin Xingxian said generously. "My treat—Senior Wen pays."

Before Xu Yan could answer, Shen Nanli jumped at the chance and nodded vigorously: "Yes, yes, we’re in!"

Lin Xingxian guided them forward, calling over his shoulder, "Driver! We're ready."

Surprisingly, for once, Wen Sinian didn’t protest. He drove the car to the front of the building, and the three got in.

Lin Xingxian took the passenger seat and excitedly pulled out his phone to show them a photo to the backseat.

"Ta-da! My masterpiece—enjoy."

Xu Yan took the phone. On the screen was a large oil painting—a dark, eerie castle, where a cute little witch in a black-and-purple poofy dress sat atop a towering crystal throne.

The style was weird yet bold, the figures beautiful yet distorted, with vibrant colors that exuded an extraordinary sense of danger and horror. Yet, it was also irresistibly alluring, drawing the viewer in for a closer look.

Both passengers in the back were blown away.

Shen Nanli pointed at the little witch, whose face was half-covered by a mask, and asked in surprise, "Xu Yan, is this you? That kinda looks like you."

Xu Yan nodded: "Yeah."

He was also totally stunned by Lin Xingxian’s skill. He’d only worn the dress for a quick glance, yet Lin Xingxian had expanded it into something so vivid.

Xu Yan said earnestly: "Dude, you’re amazing."

Lin Xingxian took the phone back and, while waiting at a red light, showed it to the driver.

Wen Sinian’s eyes glanced at it. He had seen Xu Yan in that dress before.

"Hm," was his only response, just acknowledging he’d seen it.

Lin Xingxian scoffed: "Pfft, you clearly have no taste. This painting’s already been selected by my professor for an exhibition. It’ll probably go up for auction soon. I wonder who’ll be the lucky buyer to score this future masterpiece."

The two in back piled on the compliments.

Xu Yan: "It’ll definitely be someone with great taste."

Shen Nanli: "Someone with both taste and artistic talent."

Xu Yan: "And knows good art when they see it."

Shen Nanli quipped, "And loaded, too."

Lin Xingxian was cracking up, and even Wen Sinian smirked.

The car soon arrived at their destination. Lin Xingxian wasn’t about to go easy on Wen Sinian’s wallet and chose the most expensive option—a rooftop revolving garden restaurant atop a skyscraper.

As soon as they got out of the car, Xu Yan received a call.

It was from Zhuang Sheng, so he stepped aside to answer.

Zhuang Sheng said it wasn’t anything urgent, but it had been quite a while since they last met for a meal, and Xu Yan hadn’t reached out to him during that time. Worried that Xu Yan might be busy with school, Zhuang Sheng hadn’t wanted to disturb him.

He asked if Xu Yan was free today so they could arrange another dinner.

"Last time I called home, your grandmother asked my parents about you," Zhuang Sheng said softly. "She frets over you. She said you always tell her only the good news when she calls, so she asked me to check in and see how you’re really doing."

Xu Yan’s nose stung a little. "Zhuang Sheng-ge, could you ask your parents to let my grandmother know that you’ve seen me and that I’m doing well? Tell her not to worry."

Zhuang Sheng: "How about dinner tonight then? I might be traveling for work tomorrow, so tonight’s the only time I’m free. Do you have class?"

No classes. Xu Yan looked up and saw Lin Xingxian laughing with Shen Nanli in the distance, while Wen Sinian lingered nearby, eyes fixed on him.

Not getting a reply, Zhuang Sheng grew curious. "Is it inconvenient?"

Xu Yan answered, "A little."

Lin Xingxian walked over and called out to him, "Whose call is it? Still not done? Something up?"

Xu Yan replied honestly, "A friend of mine also invited me to dinner tonight. He’s only free today."

Lin Xingxian said straightforwardly, "Then invite him along! The more, the merrier—and it’s not like we’re paying anyway."

Xu Yan murmured, "Isn’t that kinda rude...?"

Lin Xingxian shrugged. "Why not? Just send him the address now."

With that, Lin Xingxian dragged Xu Yan into the restaurant, tossing over his shoulder to Wen Sinian, "We’ve got one more. Xu Yan’s buddy. Your wallet’s still on the hook."

He and Wen Sinian didn’t stand on ceremony, but he cut in to save Xu Yan the embarrassment.

As Xu Yan passed Wen Sinian, he whispered, "Thank you, senior."

They slid into window seats. Since Xu Yan and Shen Nanli had never been there before, they each chose a spot by the glass to crane their necks to gawk at the view.

Wen Sinian sat beside Xu Yan, watching as Xu Yan gazed at the bustling nightscape outside, his eyes reflecting the city’s glow. For some reason, it put Wen Sinian in a better mood.

After ordering, Xu Yan received a message from Zhuang Sheng saying he’d arrive soon.

Lin Xingxian piped up, "Do you guys play this?"

He showed an app to Xu Yan and Shen Nanli. The two exchanged a glance and shook their heads.

Lin Xingxian sighed regretfully. "You don’t? Then you definitely don’t know my ‘goddess.’"

Xu Yan asked cautiously, "What goddess?"

Lin Xingxian, logged into a secondary account, pulled up Yan Yan’s profile. "This stunner."

Xu Yan saw the username—X.

That alt account in his top two tippers… was Lin Xingxian?

Now that’s dedication.

Xu Yan kinda felt guilty for ghosting him before.

Shen Nanli, who knew the truth, twitched his lips and glanced at Xu Yan. Xu Yan pressed his lips together, and Shen Nanli wisely kept his mouth shut.

Xu Yan said, "That’s a dude, isn’t it?"

Lin Xingxian: "Yeah, but you gotta admit he rocks a dress, so gorgeous and innocent! I’m guessing he’s pretty young. He hasn’t updated in a long time, and I’m low-key worried. I wonder if something happened. I was planning to become his top donor to see if he’d add me on WeChat, but then some psycho came outta nowhere. No matter how much I spent, that lunatic would double it. I dumped my whole semester’s allowance and still only made it to second place. Total bullshit."

So that was it.

No wonder every time Xu Yan checked the backend during that period, he’d seen "year" showering him with cash, while the second-place donor’s contributions kept rising.

These two had been in a secret donation war.

But neither likely knew the other’s identity.

Xu Yan mused to himself—he was the only one who knew the whole story.

He tried to dissuade Lin Xingxian. "The app skims most of it. You’re just burning cash for nothing. It’s not worth it."

Lin Xingxian seethed. "What else can I do? For all I know, that #1 creep’s got shady intentions toward my ‘goddess’!"

As he spoke, Lin Xingxian thrust his phone under Wen Sinian’s nose. "Can’t you doxx the #1 guy? I want to see who the hell he is."

Wen Sinian gave a frosty grin. "No."

If he’s gonna be called a bastard, he’d play the part.

Lin Xingxian refused to believe Wen Sinian couldn’t do it and was about to argue when Xu Yan suddenly stood up and waved at someone in the distance.

A young man in a suit and glasses, all polished manners, approached their table.

"Sorry, hit some traffic. I’m late."

Xu Yan made introductions. Zhuang Sheng took a seat at the added chair, smiling at Wen Sinian. "We’ve met before, if I recall."

Lin Xingxian studied Zhuang Sheng’s demeanor and immediately picked up on the vibe.

"When did you meet?" Lin Xingxian asked.

Xu Yan answered first. "We bumped into each other by chance near the dorm."

Wen Sinian didn’t bite, leaning back slightly in his chair. One arm rested casually on the back of Xu Yan’s seat, while the other hung beneath the table.

His legs were spread, invading all his personal space—their thighs nearly touching.

Xu Yan found himself enclosed in an unyielding, territorial cage. Feeling the heat against his leg, he subtly inched away, only for the warmth to follow shortly after.

He wondered why their side of the table felt so cramped, while Shen Nanli and Lin Xingxian across from them had plenty of room.

It must be because the guy next to him was too big. What was the point of building so much muscle? He was taking up all the space.

Xu Yan quietly fought for breathing room.

Wen Sinian locked eyes, his cold gaze dripping with challenge.

Like a beast whose domain has been suddenly invaded by an uninvited guest, yet confident of victory, it idly plays with its prized catch while shooting a lazy, superior glance, waiting for the right moment to forcefully drive away any bold trespasser.

Lin Xingxian noticed Wen Sinian’s displeasure and sensed trouble. He hurried to defuse the tension, diverting the conversation to Zhuang Sheng’s work.

Soon, their orders came, and the group began eating while chatting.

Xu Yan took a few bites of salad first, then reached for his knife and fork to cut his steak—when suddenly, his plate was snatched by a hand from beside him.

Wen Sinian swapped his own pre-cut steak with Xu Yan’s. Seeing Xu Yan gaping at him in shock, he said, “We got the same dish.”

The others were busy with their own meals, so no one noticed the plate exchange.

Xu Yan leaned in and whispered to Wen Sinian, “I could’ve done it myself.”

Wen Sinian looked at him. “Think I spiked it?”

“Ah…” Xu Yan bit his fork. “No.”

Wen Sinian speared a piece of meat from Xu Yan’s plate and ate it in front of him. “Taste-testing for you.”

Xu Yan turned red at the move. Noticing Zhuang Sheng watching them, he quickly lowered his head and dove into his food, silently eating without another word.

Wen Sinian glanced at the back of Xu Yan’s head, smug, then locked eyes with Zhuang Sheng in a silent, wordless stare before calmly returning to cutting his steak.

Xu Yan found the meal downright weird—Wen Sinian was being excessively attentive. He finished his food quickly and bolted for the bathroom.

With the peacemaker gone, the mood at the table turned downright icy.

No one spoke, yet the air seemed crackling with unspoken tension.

Shen Nanli, unable to bear the awkwardness, broke the silence. “By the way, Brother Zhuang Sheng, Yan Yan mentioned you’re going on a business trip tomorrow?”

Brother Zhuang Sheng replied, “Actually, I’m leaving tonight.”

Shen Nanli: “Wait, that’s last-minute! Why bother arranging dinner tonight? You could’ve waited till you got back, haha.”

Brother Zhuang Sheng gave a loaded smile. “If I waited, it might’ve been too late.”

Shen Nanli: “Too late for what?”

Brother Zhuang Sheng took a sip of water and answered plainly, “I plan to confess to Xu Yan tonight.”

The bombshell dropped.

Under the table, a fist clenched so tightly that knuckles popped, tendons straining.

Wen Sinian’s lips curled. “Confess?”

Author’s Note:

FourYear Bro: Yet another bastard making moves on my wife—kill, kill, kill!

Baby Yan: No growling.

FourYear Bro: *Whines*

FourYear Bro can’t hold back any longer—he’s about to rip away another mask.