Chapter 29 Straight Guy Meets Gay Guy [First Update]

Chapter 29 Straight Guy Meets Gay Guy [First Update]

Actually, after that brief encounter, his mind was elsewhere. He figured he'd head upstairs, sit a bit, have a cup of tea, and leave—he'd already said everything he needed to say.

But the moment he stepped onto the second floor, he froze.

Not far away, by the window, Meng Lang was leaning back in his chair, teacup in hand, legs crossed, chatting with the guy across from him.

Across from him sat Li Ranyu, one of Meng Lang's lackeys. He'd never bothered to ask what exactly he did, but he was the type Meng Lang dragged along everywhere. If he remembered right, last time at the club, Meng Lang said Li Ranyu was the one who brought Yu Yizhou.

Li Ranyu, on the other hand, was sitting much straighter than Meng Lang, listening intently, nodding every now and then.

It was clear they hadn't expected to run into him here. Meng Lang was in the middle of an animated conversation when he looked up and saw Lin Zaishan at the top of the stairs. He nearly dropped his teacup, his face cycling from relaxed to shocked, then to a "am I seeing things?" daze.

Li Ranyu was quicker—he'd already put down his teacup and was half-rising, like he was about to stand up and say hello.

Before Lin Zaishan could speak, Yu Yizhou's voice came from behind, low and slow, with that signature gentle tone.

"President Lin, after you."

Yu Yizhou came around from behind, walked to the front, made an inviting gesture, and then followed his gaze to the pair by the window.

"Meng is here too," he said politely, then turned to Lin Zaishan. "Lin, you all know each other, right? Meng Lang and Li Ranyu."

As he spoke, his gaze flicked between Lin Zaishan and Meng Lang, a faint smile on his lips—neither too warm nor too formal, like he was just introducing two customers who happened to come for tea at the same time.

By then, Meng Lang had snapped out of it. He put his teacup down and stood up right away.

"Bro?" Meng Lang said, still incredulous. "What are you doing here?"

"No, I mean, why are you here for tea? Didn't you say tea was boring?"

Lin Zaishan glanced at him. Meng Lang, no matter how put-together he seemed outside, was always like this in front of him—jumpy and unable to hide a thing. He'd once told Meng Lang that teahouses were overrated—why go to a special place just to brew a cup of tea? Too much hassle. Now that Meng Lang had called him out on it, Lin Zaishan was a bit embarrassed, but he quickly shook it off.

"Just passing by, thought I'd take a look," he said flatly, his eyes landing on Meng Lang, then shifting to Li Ranyu, who was already on his feet.

Li Ranyu was much more proper than his boss. He stood straight, gave a slight bow, and said, "President Lin," in a low voice, with the natural reserve of a subordinate addressing a superior. Lin Zaishan gave a curt nod.

"You two have it easy," Lin Zaishan said, his eyes sweeping over the tea set—both cups more than half empty, a plate of barely touched snacks beside them. "Playing hooky?"

"No, no," Meng Lang waved his hands hastily, his expression both flustered and guilty. "I had nothing to do this afternoon, so I just went out for a stroll. It just so happened that Ranyu said he wanted to buy some tea, so I brought him here. Just a quick stop, I'll go back soon."

Yu Yizhou stood to the side, watching the scene quietly without interrupting. He took half a step back, giving them space, his posture natural and proper.

Only then did Meng Lang notice that Yu Yizhou was still standing nearby, so he quickly picked up the conversation: "Yizhou, you know my brother? My brother was looking for you like crazy last time."

As soon as these words were out, Lin Zaishan's face changed color.

Before he could react, Meng Lang added, "That night, at my club, you and his brother-in-law—"

Meng Lang stopped mid-sentence, finally sensing the tense atmosphere, because Lin Zaishan was staring at him with a "shut up" look—a look he knew all too well, having seen it at least a thousand times since childhood. It always came right before he said something wrong.

Unfortunately, the wrong words had already been said.

Lin Zaishan felt his face flush from the base of his neck upward, extremely uncomfortable, because this was exactly what he least wanted Yu Yizhou to know. That night, he had barely managed to save face in front of Yu Yizhou, and now Meng Lang had just blown it all with one sentence.

His face darkened. Just as he was about to retort, Yu Yizhou's voice came from the side.

"That night, President Lin, Yuan Che, and I had another gathering at his place. We chatted for a while before leaving. As it happens, Yuan Che's older sister, who is also President Lin's wife, is a childhood friend of mine."

He said this very naturally, even with a casual tone, as if recalling a trivial matter. He neither tried to cover up for Lin Zaishan deliberately nor delved too deep into the topic.

Meng Lang, who was already stuck between a rock and a hard place, heard Yu Yizhou's interruption. His brain hadn't caught up yet, but his mouth was already following: "Right, right, right. Ranyu mentioned that to me too. What a coincidence!"

With that, he turned to look at Lin Zaishan, a smile plastered on his face: "Bro, then perfect, let's sit together? Since you're already here."

As he spoke, he moved aside, vacating his seat, and gave Li Ranyu a meaningful look. Li Ranyu immediately understood and shifted his teacup and the plate of tea snacks to the side, quick and quiet, clearly used to serving.

Lin Zaishan stood at the top of the stairs, looked at Meng Lang's eager face, then at Yu Yizhou standing quietly by the side. He didn't hesitate any longer and sat down directly next to Meng Lang.

Yu Yizhou also sat down. He took the host seat at the tea table, and as soon as he was settled, he quietly picked up the teapot and refilled everyone's cup.

"Try it," Yu Yizhou said with a smile, looking at him. "This brew is smoother than the one we just had."

Lin Zaishan picked up the cup and took a sip, but he didn't really taste anything special. He looked at Yu Yizhou's fair fingers resting on the teacup and suddenly recalled how Yuan Che had peeled an apple for him that night. Comparing the two, he felt even more disdain—So he's good at serving people, isn't he? Turns out he only plays the weakling in front of little fags. The tactic is really inelegant.

"Not bad," he replied flatly, setting the cup down. "Thanks."

Yu Yizhou didn't respond, just took a sip of tea, but his gaze stayed on Lin Zaishan's face, light and smiling.

Lin Zaishan knew that look all too well. Wasn't this the kind of look rivals exchanged when sizing each other up? On the surface, it was looking at your face, but in reality, it was weighing your worth. Men's competitions never needed to be spoken out loud.

Thinking this, he sneered inwardly.

Fine, play that game with me. I've dealt with all kinds of looks. You, a tea house owner, want to compete with me in male rivalry? You're still a bit green.

Lin Zaishan leaned back, sinking into the chair back, crossed his legs in the other direction, becoming even more relaxed, and then leisurely reached out to roll up his shirt sleeves.

His nails were rounded, his skin fair, and the muscle lines on his forearms were even and firm. Veins ran from his wrist all the way to his elbow, faintly visible beneath the thin skin.

Fine, you like looking, don't you? Look, look all you want. Let this pretty boy see what a heartthrob really looks like, someone who can charm both men and women.

"Bro," Meng Lang suddenly leaned in. "Actually, I was planning to find you today too."

Meng Lang's greatest strength was his thick skin, and his greatest weakness was also his thick skin. Seeing that the atmosphere had eased, he immediately perked up again.

"Just now, Ranyu was telling me," Meng Lang said, jerking his chin toward Li Ranyu. "We were planning to go to Yunqi Villa for a couple of days. Coincidentally, Yizhou also said he hasn't been there in a long time, so the three of us were just discussing it."

Yunqi Villa. Lin Zaishan knew the place. It was a high-end private resort on a mountainside in the suburbs, reportedly membership-only with a hefty entrance fee. A client had invited him there once before; the environment was indeed nice, but he had never been particularly fond of such places.

"So?" Lin Zaishan finally withdrew his gaze from Yu Yizhou and looked at Meng Lang.

"Then I wanted to ask you," Meng Lang's smile grew even more eager. "If you're free, why don't we all go together? More people means more fun, and—" He paused, as if afraid Lin Zaishan would refuse, then quickly added, "They opened a new hot spring pool there, private too. Haven't you always said your back hurts? A soak would do you good."

Li Ranyu interjected at the right moment: "President Lin, that pool is separate; no one will disturb you."

The words were perfectly timed. Although they carried a hint of a subordinate reporting to a superior, Lin Zaishan understood the implication immediately—they knew President Lin didn't like socializing, so they specifically chose a private option.

Lin Zaishan glanced at Li Ranyu. This man had been with Meng Lang long enough to pick up some of Meng Lang's cleverness, knowing what to say and what not to say. But Lin Zaishan had never been easily convinced by such "specially tailored for you" talk.

"I won't go," he said concisely, without offering an excuse.

The smile on Meng Lang's face stiffened for a moment, but quickly returned: "Don't be like that, bro. Just the weekend, two days. It won't interfere with your work—"

"Enough," Lin Zaishan interrupted him. "About that shop space you mentioned last time at the mall, I've made an appointment for you with the operations director. Next Wednesday at 2 p.m., just go see him directly. Mention my name."

Meng Lang was taken aback, almost dropping the teacup in his hand.

He had been eyeing that space for over half a year—the best spot on the first floor of the newly opened shopping mall in the south of the city. His father had been in the leather goods business for years and had always wanted to get a good location in a first-tier mall for a flagship store, but the threshold was too high. He had pulled strings through several layers of connections but couldn't get his foot in the door. He had only casually mentioned it during a meal with Lin Zaishan, not thinking much of it. He never expected Lin Zaishan to remember and even make an appointment for him.

"Brother, that shop space—"

"I've already put in a word," Lin Zaishan said, picking up his teacup and taking a sip. "Negotiate the terms as you see fit—don't go easy on my account. But if he intentionally gives you a hard time, you let me know."

Hearing this, Meng Lang immediately felt reassured. He was about to cozy up to Lin Zaishan when the man cut him off again.

"Stop fooling around all the time. A few days at the mountain resort is enough—don't let it get in the way of your real business."

Meng Lang nodded repeatedly, but in the end, still couldn't resist asking one last time, "Brother, so you're really not coming?"

"No, I'm not. You guys have fun."

With that, Lin Zaishan stood up to leave, but just as he got to his feet, Yu Yizhou, who had been silent across from him, finally spoke.

"Mr. Lin," he said, looking up at Lin Zaishan with a harmless, gentle smile, "Could you invite Yuan Che for me?"