TYAM Chapter 85

Tao Yingqi spent the entire afternoon at the training center. During that time, employees came in one after another to work overtime. She watched with curiosity,  “You guys have a lot of work, huh? Even during the New Year, you’re required to work overtime?”  

Fu Er pressed her lips together in a smile and leaned in to quietly tell her the amount of the red envelope bonus.  

Tao Yingqi was stunned. “Are you serious?”  

Damn, Boss Jiang was really generous! That was almost half her monthly salary.  

She was a teacher at an elementary school. If she went back to her hometown for the New Year, people would envy her.  

“Government jobs are great! My son has been trying to get a civil service position for three years now. Ugh, just thinking about it is frustrating. He just can’t pass!”  

“Exactly! They make good money and are respected. It’s way better than farming or manual labor. Yingqi, you’re doing great!” 

Tao Yingqi had been surrounded by this mindset for so long that she never questioned it.  

But today, seeing so many people happily working overtime during the New Year, she suddenly felt like she was falling behind the times.  

So… this was also an option?  

Before leaving, she hesitated for a moment and then said, “No need to let Boss Jiang know I was here today.”  

“Got it, sister.” Fu Er swiftly pulled out her phone. “Let’s exchange numbers. Let’s be friends?”  

Tao Yingqi looked at the straightforward and confident woman in front of her. Deep down, she had always carried a sense of timidity. She had few friends — mostly just colleagues with proper, professional relationships.  

She hesitated for a moment, then smiled.  

“Alright, we’re friends from now on.”  

---

Meanwhile, Ji Linqiu was in his study, focused on writing lesson plans when he heard two knocks on the door.  

“Come in.”  

Ji Guoshen strolled in at a leisurely pace and bent down to glance at what he was typing on the computer.  

“You still plan on teaching math?”  

“It’s just for fun.” Ji Linqiu shifted to the side slightly. “Did you need something?”  

“No, nothing.” Ji Guoshen pulled up a chair and sat down, watching him work intently.  

Ten minutes passed, and Ji Linqiu still wasn’t finished. He casually opened another document and, without looking up, said flatly, “Mom set me up with another blind date, didn’t she?”  

Ji Guoshen coughed awkwardly. “Why bring that up all of a sudden?”  

“You don’t usually act like this.” Ji Linqiu set the mouse aside and turned to face him. “Whose daughter is it this time?”  

Ji Guoshen had intended to cover it up, but under his son’s gaze, he suddenly felt guilty.  

Strangely enough, this kid had developed a sharpness to him.  

In the past, he had always seemed polite and gentle, without any hard edges.  

When… did that change?  

“Actually, I was the one who found her. Your mother just glanced at her photo and didn’t say much.”  

Ji Linqiu remained silent and slowly took a sip of water.  

Ji Guoshen sensed that something was off. He didn’t immediately press on with the topic but instead tried to analyze the situation logically.  

“Wait a minute.” As someone who had taught science for years, he quickly caught on. “We’re not forcing you into a marriage. We’re just trying to introduce you to someone in case you meet the right person.”  

“So why do you and your mom act like we’re committing a crime every time we bring this up?”  

“Linqiu, you’ll be 28, won’t you? What’s so unreasonable about this?”  

Ji Linqiu looked at his father. For a brief moment, he wanted to tell him everything.  

Keeping secrets was exhausting.  

No matter how big or small, if a secret was buried for too long, it would weigh on one’s chest, making it hard to breathe.  

He opened his mouth, hesitated for a long time, then finally said, “I don’t like women.”  

Ji Guoshen raised his eyebrows in disbelief, as if he hadn’t understood.  

Ji Linqiu didn’t immediately say he liked men—he left that part out.  

“When I was in high school, a female classmate tried to kiss me after confessing. I didn’t dodge in time, and she kissed my cheek.”  

“I… felt really uncomfortable.”  

“Later, when I started working, I could interact with female colleagues just fine, but I would still try to avoid physical contact as much as possible.”  

As he spoke, he found himself slightly surprised.  

Had he really learned from Jiang Wang? He was lying so naturally now.  

Ji Linqiu wasn’t afraid of women, nor did he reject physical contact with them.  

He simply felt that some things had to be said eventually. Even if it took time for his family to absorb, it was better than burying the truth forever.  

Ji Guoshen was completely stunned, as if he had just been struck by lightning.  

The older man seemed to recall something and suddenly became self-reproachful.  

“Was it because of what happened in the village?”  

“Or was it because I wasn’t home much when you were young, and your mother had to raise you alone? Did something go wrong with you because of that?”  

Ji Guoshen looked like he had encountered an impossible problem, shifting restlessly in his seat.

“This… this matter… Linqiu, why didn’t you tell your mother and me sooner?”  

“How about we go see a psychologist together? Or… you can tell me… when did this start?”  

Ji Linqiu found himself in a conversation he had never imagined having. For a moment, he felt absurdly like he was finally rebelling.  

His adolescence had been peaceful – so much so that, before meeting Jiang Wang, it was as if he had never really experienced a true adolescence at all.  

No desires, no impulses, no cravings.  

At his early twenties, his emotions were as still as a deep well, as if he had already resigned himself to fate.  

Now, he felt an ache in his teeth.  

“If I never marry a woman for the rest of my life, if I never touch one, would you send me to a psychiatric hospital?”  

Ji Guoshen waved his hands frantically. “Don’t talk nonsense! We’re your parents, how could we ever send you to a place like that?”  

His face showed only distress and panic. “I’ll go cancel the blind date right away. We won’t go.”  

“As for everything else, your mother and I will discuss it carefully, and then we’ll talk again. Alright?”  

Ji Linqiu gave a small nod and saw his father out of the study.  

Once the door closed, he leaned against the wall and took a deep breath, barely able to believe it.  

He had actually said that to his father just now.  

The road ahead… would likely be even more difficult. But he had to take it step by step.  

When he closed his eyes, all he could see was Jiang Wang’s face.  

There was no way he could ever associate himself with another woman.  

His future could only be Jiang Wang.  

The study fell silent again after his father walked away.  

Ji Linqiu stood against the wall for a long time before pulling out his phone to call Jiang Wang.  

It took a while before the other end picked up. From the background noise, it sounded like he was at a social event.  

“Linqiu?” The man’s voice carried a warm smile. “What’s up? Want to meet later?”  

“No, I just wanted to call you.” Ji Linqiu pressed his lips together, searching for an excuse, but in the end, he decided against it. “Nothing, really. I just suddenly wanted to hear your voice.”  

‘Jiang Wang, just now… I was really brave, wasn’t I?’

‘The moment I thought of you, I found myself able to say the words I had buried for so long, to do something I never thought I would.’  

‘Tell me, what is it about you?’

‘Why is it that, ever since I met you, my personality has started to become more and more like yours?’

Ji Linqiu didn’t know whether to be relieved that he had temporarily avoided the blind date or to worry about whether his parents would start suspecting he was gay and what they might do next.  

He simply held his breath and listened to the clinking of glasses and the hum of conversation on Jiang Wang’s end without saying another word.  

Jiang Wang, worried the noise was too loud, stepped out onto the hotel’s balcony to take the call. When the silence dragged on, he hesitated. “Linqiu, did something happen?”  

“How about this, I’ll come find you for a walk after dinner, alright?”  

Ji Linqiu smiled and murmured a soft “mm.”  

“Take me for ice cream.”  

Jiang Wang glanced out the window at the swirling snow and chuckled. “Our Teacher Ji is really something else. I love it.”  

Lately, they had been planning to buy a house together.  

Although Bu Wang Education was expanding rapidly, their personal and company finances were kept strictly separate.  

With a wave of investors pouring in and the business conquering new ground, their actual earnings were substantial.  

“The Twelve Golden Volumes” had officially entered universities across multiple provinces this year. With the prestige of top-tier professors attached and Jiang Wang’s network expanding at breakneck speed, even the book sales alone were generating considerable revenue.  

As for the income from the milk tea shops, bookstores, and the sales of merchandise and manga, not to mention the constant stream of tuition deposits and fees from training courses, they could easily afford to buy several more properties this year.  

In 2008, real estate was still cheap. Anywhere they bought would be a good investment.  

As they strolled through the snow-lined streets, Ji Linqiu didn’t bring up his personal matters. Instead, he walked beside Jiang Wang, discussing prime school districts.  

“Beijing mainly revolves around Haidian District. City-wide, besides the affiliated schools of Tsinghua, Renmin, and Peking University, places like Beijing No. 4 High School, No. 8 High School, and the Experimental School in Xicheng District all have properties with great appreciation potential.”  

“In Shanghai, the most prestigious is Shanghai High School, along with East China Normal University’s Second Affiliated School, the Shanghai International Studies University Affiliated School, Fudan University’s Affiliated School, and others. They’re all worth considering.”  

He looked at Jiang Wang and had a vague suspicion.  

“You’re planning to buy up these properties and rent them out to parents who move here for their kids’ education?”  

“If you buy too many, managing them could become an issue. You’d need people stationed in Beijing and Shanghai to keep an eye on things.”  

Jiang Wang, having not paid much attention to academics in his previous life, knew little about elite schools. Hearing Ji Linqiu list them off like a menu, he finally caught on.  

…This was going to be a massive project.  

They had already scouted school district properties before. In 2020, apartments inside Beijing’s Second Ring, close to top elementary schools, were going for nearly 130,000 yuan per square meter. Even now, renting them out could bring in at least 3,500 yuan a month for a two-bedroom unit.  

Investments had to be made early.  

He had originally planned to stay in Yuhan and manage his small empire, but listening to Ji Linqiu, he suddenly felt his ambition flare up again.  

“Hey, Linqiu.” Jiang Wang grinned. “If I end up turning from managing an education business into real estate halfway through, would you think I’ve lost my mind?”  

Ji Linqiu gazed into Jiang Wang’s amber eyes, which glowed warmly against the falling snow. He reached out and brushed the snowflakes off his eyelashes.  

“I want to go crazy with you,” he said softly, his usual cool voice carrying a faint tenderness. “In this life, wouldn’t it be happier to have someone to go wild with?”  

Jiang Wang laughed and pulled him into a tight embrace.  

“You’re the only one who indulges me like this.”  

He had once thought that rescuing Ji Linqiu from decades of loneliness, from his self-imposed isolation, would be enough.  

But now he realized—the story was only just beginning.  

Hand in hand, their blood ran hot.  

No matter how heavy the snowfall, it didn’t matter.