When Bai Sijun walked into Mei Yuchen’s villa carrying bags of groceries, it was exactly half-past twelve, just a minute off.
The temperature in Mei Yuchen’s house was still high, indicating that the air conditioning was on. Bai Sijun dropped the bags at the entrance, started taking off his sweater, while Mei Yuchen continued to lean against the wall, watching him as usual.
“I thought you weren’t coming,” Mei Yuchen said.
As Bai Sijun took off his sweater, revealing the long sleeves underneath, he tugged at the hem, covering the exposed lower back. Without much expression, he replied, “You said you were hungry.”
Mei Yuchen raised the corner of his mouth, appearing in a good mood, but his words were teasing, “Aren’t you skipping lamb chops today?”
As if it wasn’t his fault.
Bai Sijun, not pleased, carried the groceries to the kitchen. While fiddling with the newly bought ingredients, he asked, “How’s the writing going?”
Mei Yuchen followed him into the kitchen, sat at the dining table, and instead of answering, he countered, “Are you going to show off your skills today?”
It wasn’t surprising for Mei Yuchen to ask this, considering Bai Sijun had bought potatoes, onions, broccoli, and even a bag of peeled shrimp.
Bai Sijun, concentrating on his task, said, “Let’s have something different today.”
He wouldn’t tell Mei Yuchen that he had specifically searched for something other than egg fried rice when he went back home, and the answer was curry.
Mei Yuchen stared at him without moving, his chin supported by his hand. Bai Sijun, feeling uneasy under his gaze, frowned and said, “Go wait in the living room.”
Mei Yuchen didn’t move, and Bai Sijun didn’t either. They stared at each other for a while. In the end, Mei Yuchen compromised first. His phoenix eyes drooped unhappily as he slowly returned to the living room.
Mei Yuchen was wearing knee-length shorts that day, exposing two slender and fair legs to the air without any reservation.
His legs were slimmer than Liang Ru’s, with well-defined muscle lines.
He chose the single-seat sofa facing away from the kitchen, and lay down on it. The two long legs had nowhere to go but to rest on the armrest, and the exposed calves swayed in Bai Sijun’s eyes.
Bai Sijun realized for the first time that a man’s ankles could be so attractive.
The swaying legs suddenly stopped.
“What are you looking at?” lying on the other end of the armrest, Mei Yuchen asked.
“Nothing.” Bai Sijun withdrew his gaze.
He helplessly turned on the tap and started washing rice and vegetables.
The curry instructions said everything had to be cut into small pieces. Bai Sijun had no idea that cutting vegetables could be such an annoying task.
It was fine with the broccoli since it could be broken by hand, but the onions made his eyes water, and the potatoes were always sticky and difficult to cut cleanly.
Moreover, potatoes were round and hard to handle.
Bai Sijun became frustrated with the cutting, and in a moment of distraction, he accidentally cut a gash on his left index finger.
Blood immediately gushed out from the wound, and he quickly set down the knife, searching for tissues.
“Cut yourself?” Mei Yuchen quickly entered the kitchen. “Let me see.”
“It’s nothing. Just get me a band-aid,” Bai Sijun thought he should buy some kitchen paper for next time. As he saw the fresh blood accumulating and about to drip, he hurriedly used his lips to stop it.
Mei Yuchen stood still, staring intently at him with both eyes.
Since his finger was in his mouth, Bai Sijun could only use his eyes to signal, “What are you standing there for?”
Mei Yuchen’s Adam’s apple moved, and he turned, saying, “Wait here.”
In no time, he came back down from upstairs with a band-aid, tearing open the packaging. “Expired for a year,” he said.
Bai Sijun: “…”
Now was not the time to be picky. He wordlessly let go of his lips, presenting his finger to Mei Yuchen, who applied the expired band-aid on the wound.
Unexpectedly, Mei Yuchen said, “Stick with this for now; I’ll go out and buy a new one.”
After saying that, he went upstairs to change into thicker clothes. Bai Sijun suddenly felt that getting cut was worth it this time, at least he made Mei Yuchen run an errand for once.
When Mei Yuchen returned from the pharmacy, Bai Sijun had already prepared curry rice.
The curry had the perfect balance, not too salty nor bland. Bai Sijun couldn’t help but marvel at the magic of curry blocks—it could turn a pot of mixed ingredients into an incredibly delicious dish, incredibly convenient.
Mei Yuchen also seemed satisfied, finishing his meal and saying with a spoon in his mouth, “Your cooking has improved.”
Only someone who didn’t understand the magic of curry would say that.
But Bai Sijun didn’t argue. He had his troubles and hard work, feeling deserving of Mei Yuchen’s praise.
The two plates of curry rice were finished cleanly. Bai Sijun slumped in his chair, resting for less than a minute, suddenly remembering a headache-inducing problem. He looked back at the messy cooking counter and a pile of dishes waiting for him to clean up.
Following Bai Sijun’s gaze, Mei Yuchen also clearly saw the appalling state of the kitchen.
A small hope arose in Bai Sijun’s heart. His hand was injured; maybe Mei Yuchen would kindly wash the dishes.
However, he was indeed too naive.
Mei Yuchen suddenly raised his eyebrows, saying triumphantly, “By the way, I installed a dishwasher for you.”
He finished speaking, lifted his chin, and glanced at a corner. Bai Sijun followed his gaze and discovered that the door panel of a cabinet had been replaced with a metal door.
Great, a dishwasher. It saved a lot of trouble.
Bai Sijun took a deep breath, feeling once again pushed to the limit.
What did it mean to “give him” a dishwasher?
He became a water dispenser refiller at the company for no reason, which was fine, but why, in addition to urging a writer to write, did he now have the role of a cook and dishwasher?
Zhao Lin said editors and writers were equal.
He thought it was nonsense. All nonsense.
Mei Yuchen looked completely unperturbed, not realizing there was any problem. Bai Sijun resignedly got up to clean the dishes, only hating that he had ended up with an old man.
It was his first time using a dishwasher, and he spent half the time studying the manual. Fortunately, the thing was indeed convenient. Dirty dishes and plates thrown in came out completely clean. His resentment towards Mei Yuchen lessened a bit.
After restoring the kitchen to its original state, it was already three o’clock in the afternoon. Exhausted, Bai Sijun sank into the sofa, completely forgetting that he originally just came to pick up a down jacket.
Mei Yuchen sat on the single sofa diagonally across, holding a laptop and looking up to ask him, “Do you want to use the Kindle?”
Bai Sijun nodded weakly, “Thank you.”
Mei Yuchen remained seated, looking at him and saying, “It’s in my bedroom.”
Bai Sijun: “…”
He really didn’t want to move, so he kicked off his slippers, lay on the sofa, facing the direction of the single sofa, and took out his phone to scroll through Weibo.
A WeChat notification suddenly popped up on the screen.
[Liang Ru: Ge, is your matter resolved?]
Bai Sijun then remembered that he left the girl alone on the street in a hurry. If it were any other time, he would never do such a thing.
[Bai: It’s resolved.]
[Bai: Sorry, I left in a hurry just now.]
[Liang Ru: Shiba Inu squinting and sticking out its tongue.gif]
[Liang Ru: It’s okay~ As long as it’s resolved.]
Bai Sijun breathed a sigh of relief. It seemed the girl had a good temper.
The phone vibrated again.
[Liang Ru: Ge, are you free tomorrow?]
Seeing this message, Bai Sijun instinctively furrowed his brow. If he guessed correctly, Liang Ru wanted to make plans with him. He hesitated for several seconds before sending the word “Yes” in the chat.
[Liang Ru: Happy.gif]
[Liang Ru: You said you’ll treat me to a meal, can we meet tomorrow?]
Bai Sijun tightened his lips, and the word “Okay” took him a long time to send. Although he knew he shouldn’t refuse, he still felt a bit awkward.
Liang Ru was a good girl, but at the end of the day, she was just his colleague. Not a girlfriend, not even someone with a romantic interest. Was it reasonable to meet two days in a row during the weekend?
Whether he was slow to warm up or felt pressured, he simply didn’t like this rhythm.
Bai Sijun, with a conflicted expression, stared at his phone. At this moment, Mei Yuchen behind him suddenly leaned over and asked, “Who are you chatting with?”
Bai Sijun was startled, and in a moment of carelessness, his phone slipped from his hand and hit his face.
Mei Yuchen picked up the phone from his face with a glance at the screen, but Bai Sijun quickly snatched it back.
“That junior,” Bai Sijun sat up, rubbing his nose that got hit, “I left her on the street in a rush to come here and cook for you. Now she’s asking me for a debt.”
“Were you on a date with her?” Mei Yuchen raised an eyebrow.
“What date?” Bai Sijun withdrew his hand, glanced at Mei Yuchen, and said, “I took her to get familiar with the bookstore.”
“I see,” Mei Yuchen half-lidded his eyes lazily, “So, are you going out with her again tomorrow?”
“…” Bai Sijun pursed his lips, “Looks like I have to accompany her tomorrow too.”
Mei Yuchen fell silent for a moment, then suddenly propped up his chin on the armrest of the sofa, his eyes flashing with a cunning light, “Have you taken her to visit the writer?”
“No,” Bai Sijun answered truthfully. He suddenly realized Mei Yuchen’s meaning and hesitated, “Are you saying…”
“Let her come to my place tomorrow,” Mei Yuchen lazily said.
Visiting a writer was also one of the editor’s compulsory courses. Bai Sijun would eventually introduce Liang Ru to this aspect of the job. Currently, he only had two authors, Mei Yuchen and Qi Yun, and although Qi Yun was more agreeable, he couldn’t deny that he was more familiar with Mei Yuchen.
In this way, it’s good. Meeting just for the sake of seeing each other seemed like a date. If work was arranged, it wouldn’t appear so deliberate.
Bai Sijun picked up his phone to reply to Liang Ru.
[Bai: I’ll bring you to meet the writer tomorrow.]
[Bai: Do you know Mei Yuchen?]
[Liang Ru: I know him!]
[Liang Ru: Looking forward.gif]
[Liang Ru: So, where should we meet?]
Bai Sijun asked Mei Yuchen, “Should I give her your address directly?”
If they met at the subway station, it would take more than ten minutes for them to walk over. During that time, they would have to come up with conversation topics. He didn’t want to do this two days in a row.
Mei Yuchen said, “sure.”
Bai Sijun sent Mei Yuchen’s address and arranged to meet Liang Ru at his doorstep at ten in the morning.
Putting away his phone, Bai Sijun said to Mei Yuchen, “Be gentle with her tomorrow, don’t scare her. She just joined the company not long ago.”
Mei Yuchen’s brow raised slightly, “Am I not gentle with you?”
Bai Sijun deeply felt that Mei Yuchen might have some misunderstanding about him. Helplessly, he said, “Anyway, just don’t make things difficult for her.”
Mei Yuchen narrowed his eyes slightly, “Are you afraid I’ll bully her?”
Bai Sijun frowned, “No matter what, she’s my apprentice.”
Mei Yuchen pursed his lips and didn’t say anything.
“Wait a moment.” Bai Sijun suddenly realized something belatedly, “I have to stay overnight at your place again tonight, right?”
