YPHC Chapter 61

“What, Teacher Jiang is worried about my rushing…”

 

In the narrow space, the atmosphere was entangled with intimacy. Jiang Nan’an raised an eyebrow slightly and looked up into Yan Jie’s eyes:

 

“What did you call me?”

 

“Baby.” Yan Jie smiled, showing his canine tooth: “Don’t like it? If you don’t like it, I won’t call you that.”

 

“…” Apart from Qi Hong occasionally calling him “Jiang baby,” Jiang Nan’an had never been addressed so affectionately before. He couldn’t say he disliked it, just that it felt a bit unfamiliar:

 

“Whatever you want.”

 

After a pause, he asked:

 

“Is this also an expression of love? Wanting to have special, intimate terms of address?”

 

“Mm,” Yan Jie responded.

 

“Then do I need to give you a different name?” Jiang Nan’an immediately applied this newly learned knowledge.

 

“It’s up to you.” Yan Jie leaned in and kissed his cheek again. Jiang Nan’an wasn’t quite used to it and slightly squinted that eye.

 

“These things lose their meaning if they’re forced. Wait until you feel it’s time to call me something different, then change it. There’s no rush.”

 

Jiang Nan’an nodded thoughtfully.

 

Dunbu had been chasing its tail in circles under the car, waiting for Jiang Nan’an to get out. Finally, it simply sat down, gazing expectantly into the car.

 

Jiang Nan’an must have felt its gaze, so he picked up the leash from the floor, preparing to exit the car.

 

But then he paused, looked at Yan Jie, and asked:

 

“You’re going home, right?”

 

“Mm-hmm.”

 

“You’ll come back tomorrow?”

 

“Of course.”

 

“…” Jiang Nan’an lowered his eyes, thought for a moment, and for the second time pulled his leg back into the car.

 

Dunbu, who had just stood up on the ground, tilted its head and obediently sat back down.

 

“What’s wrong?” Yan Jie smiled, his eyes curving.

 

“Is your home far from here?”

 

“It’s okay.”

 

“What time do you wake up?”

 

“Around six or seven.”

 

“That early?”

 

“Mm, it’s hard to drive during the morning rush hour.”

 

“If you go back now, what time will you get to sleep?”

 

“Let me think… if I go back now, take a shower, play on my phone for a bit… probably between twelve and one.”

 

Jiang Nan’an nodded and asked:

 

“Isn’t it tiring to do this every day?”

 

“Tired but happy.”

 

“So you don’t plan to stop this back-and-forth lifestyle?”

 

“Mm-hmm. If you can guarantee that you’ll eat on time every day, eat more meat, less vegetables, and occasionally go out for a walk, I can stop coming.”

 

“…”

 

Jiang Nan’an glanced at Yan Jie, then looked away, lowering his eyes slightly, and simply said:

 

“I have a spare guest room.”

 

Yan Jie couldn’t help but laugh.

 

Actually, Yan Jie had already guessed what Jiang Nan’an wanted to say before he said it, but deliberately didn’t prompt him because he wanted to hear him say it himself.

 

He reached out to take Jiang Nan’an’s hand, wrapping his cold fingers in his palm to warm them:

 

“What, Teacher Jiang is worried about me rushing about and not getting enough sleep, so you want to invite me to live together?”

 

“No.” Jiang Nan’an curled his fingers slightly, instinctively turning his face away, avoiding Yan Jie’s gaze:

 

“I just think, since I can’t change your decision, as the beneficiary, I can at least offer you a more efficient solution.”

 

“Really?”

 

“Mm.”

 

“Really-?”

 

“Let’s go.”

 

“Hey-don’t go, I want to hug you some more.”

 

Yan Jie pulled him back into his arms, burying his face in his neck and kissing him several times, still feeling it wasn’t enough.

 

Yan Jie knew that Jiang Nan’an was a very independent person who liked being alone, wasn’t used to accepting help from others, and didn’t like having his thoughts and lifestyle interfered with.

 

For him to actively invite another person to live in his home, wasn’t that a sign that he accepted, and tacitly approved of, this person barging into his world?

 

Yan Jie felt a warmth in his heart as he stroked Jiang Nan’an’s back through the layers of winter clothing, still unable to resist confirming once more: “I really can?”

 

“Mm. If you don’t want to, forget it.”

 

“Want to? How could I not? It’s more than I could ask for.” Yan Jie chuckled:

 

“I’ll go back tonight to pack my bags and come over tomorrow, okay? Which room will I sleep in? Is the one closest to you alright?”

 

“Whatever you want.”

 

Jiang Nan’an broke free from Yan Jie’s embrace and picked up Dunbu’s leash for the third time:

 

“Let’s go.”

 

“Mm, go ahead.”

 

Yan Jie smiled at him until he closed the car door, his face hidden behind the darkly tinted window.

 

Jiang Nan’an led Dunbu into the building. While waiting for the elevator, he watched the numbers jumping on the small screen, thinking about Yan Jie’s reaction earlier, slightly lost in thought.

 

For him, it was just a suggestion to improve efficiency and a natural invitation, so why was Yan Jie so happy?

 

Jiang Nan’an unconsciously raised the corner of his lips.

 

When he got back, he could add another note.

 

Love, perhaps, also makes people… more easily satisfied.

 

–

 

The next day, Yan Jie arrived at Jiang Nan’an’s home with two suitcases.

 

He hadn’t been in Shanghai long and didn’t have many belongings. The suitcases contained only daily necessities and changes of clothes. He quickly completed his relocation project and officially moved into Jiang Nan’an’s home.

 

Without the daily “commute” time, Yan Jie’s quality of life indeed improved significantly. The feeling of being able to hug his Teacher Jiang as soon as he opened the door after waking up was simply amazing.

 

How to put it, they seem a bit better than roommates, a bit less intimate than clingy couples in the throes of new love, but for Yan Jie, reaching this state is already enough. He doesn’t need Jiang Nan’an to fall desperately in love with him overnight, unable to live without him.

 

Their life together is quite ordinary. Yan Jie prepares varied meals for Jiang Nan’an on time every day, accompanies him as he reads books, scripts, and watches documentaries, and later takes walks with him in less crowded places to walk the dog.

 

The floor-to-ceiling windows in the living room are beautiful, the glass cleaned spotlessly, letting in the scenery and sunlight from outside.

 

In the afternoon, Jiang Nan’an leans on the sofa reading a script, taking notes as he reads. Yan Jie, with nothing to do, holds a small spray bottle and, on a whim, sprays water on the money tree plant. After making a round, he returns behind Jiang Nan’an, bends down to hug him from behind, and kisses his ear:

 

“Still not finished reading? Didn’t you already tell me the ending yesterday?”

 

“I need to read the parts I don’t understand several times,” Jiang Nan’an writes and draws on the script with his fountain pen.

 

“What don’t you understand?” Yan Jie raises an eyebrow slightly, following the tip of his pen.

 

“The emotional arc,” Jiang Nan’an points at the page with his pen tip:

 

“The director says emotional expression depends on the actor’s understanding, but I can’t figure out when Zhuge Wenyun fell in love with Ying Shen Yue, and why he loves her. After all, one is an imperial tutor and one is a princess. They knew from the beginning there could be no result, so why fall in love in the first place?”

 

“Falling in love isn’t something one can control, and liking someone doesn’t necessarily need a result.”

 

Yan Jie moves to the front and sits beside Jiang Nan’an:

 

“Maybe it was when Ying Shen Yue first discussed poetry and state affairs in class, or maybe when he saw her flying a kite from afar at the imperial palace. Love isn’t something that suddenly appears once it crosses a threshold. Emotions accumulate bit by bit, though people might only suddenly realize it at a certain moment.”

 

Jiang Nan’an nods, though it’s unclear if he understands.

 

After a pause, he suddenly asks:

 

“Then why do you like me?”

 

“Me?” Yan Jie doesn’t know why the topic has shifted to him. He chuckles lightly, recalling for a moment:

 

“It’s hard to say, but I thought you were good-looking the first time I saw your movie poster, and I found you interesting the first time we played a duo game. Really.”

 

“When did you realize it?”

 

“The night of the finals.”

 

Yan Jie is absolutely certain of the answer to this question:

 

“When we won and you turned to smile at me. I still remember how that moment felt.”

 

“Felt? What did it feel like?”

 

“It was like my heart gained something extra, the world went quiet, and then I thought, ‘Damn, I’ve fallen for him.'”

 

Hearing this, Jiang Nan’an tilts his head, somewhat confused:

 

“Why ‘fallen for him’?”

 

“Because once I fell in love with you, I became yours. It’s like having an invisible stamp on my forehead that only I can see, with five big characters: ‘Jiang Nan’an’s Exclusive’! Thinking of you, loving you, serving you, willing to do whatever you ask-isn’t that falling for you?”

 

“How is that different from a housekeeper?”

 

“Of course it’s different. A housekeeper serves you to get paid, but I serve you because I love you, because it makes me happy. I want to take good care of you, and I want you to notice me more, to see my goodness, to fall in love with me at first sight and be willing to become mine.”

 

“So if I fall in love with you, do I have to serve you too?”

 

Yan Jie is truly amused by his naive demeanor:

 

“No need, I couldn’t bear it.”

 

He leans in to kiss Jiang Nan’an’s lips. What was meant to be a fleeting touch becomes deeper as he can’t help himself.

 

Jiang Nan’an never refuses his kisses. If he wants to kiss, he lets him kiss; if he wants to hug or embrace, he allows it-obedient enough.

 

The open script and notebook slide from his lap to the floor. At the moment the books fall, the phone lying on the sofa suddenly rings inappropriately.

 

Hearing the familiar ringtone, Jiang Nan’an pushes Yan Jie away, stopping the kiss.

 

Yan Jie doesn’t say anything, just reaches over to get the phone for him.

 

The caller is Qi Hong.

 

“Hello, Jiang baby?” Qi Hong’s voice comes through the receiver.

 

Yan Jie is close enough to Jiang Nan’an to faintly hear the voice from the phone:

 

“What are you doing?”

 

“…” Jiang Nan’an can hardly say he’s kissing someone, so after thinking for a moment, he answers:

 

“Studying.”

 

“Studying what?”

 

“Love.”

 

“Oh… Have you read all those emotional topic blog posts I forwarded to you the other day?”

 

“Yes.”

 

Yan Jie doesn’t interrupt Jiang Nan’an’s call, just bends down to pick up the notebook and script that fell to the floor.

 

He knows Jiang Nan’an has a habit of taking notes when reading, but he doesn’t have a habit of prying into others’ private records. He originally intended to close the notebook and put it aside for him, but glancing at it by chance, he sees his own name on one of the open pages.

 

“Yan Jie Observation Notes.”

 

“?” Yan Jie raises an eyebrow slightly.

 

“Sigh, I’m nearly worried to death. With production starting soon, how will you manage the romantic scenes if you can’t understand emotions? If only you could find someone to date and experience it firsthand, but that’s not possible, so we can only try these clumsy methods…” Qi Hong sighs on the other end.

 

“You don’t need to worry anymore,” Jiang Nan’an lowers his eyes and picks at the surface of the sofa with his fingernail:

 

“I’m learning.”

 

“Oh? Where are you learning from?”

 

“Someone is teaching me.”

 

“Who?”

 

“A friend, I guess.”

 

Yan Jie’s movements pause slightly.

 

“A friend? Which friend?”

 

“Yan… Spring.”

 

“Isn’t he from Beijing?”

 

“He’s in Shanghai these days.”

 

“Oh. Well, that’s fine then.”

 

Although Qi Hong is quite curious about how Spring could teach Jiang Nan’an about love, she doesn’t ask further. She simply tells him about a few tentative work arrangements, asks for his opinion, and then hangs up.

 

After the call ended, Jiang Nan’an put his phone aside and was about to look for his script and notebook when he looked up and found them in Yan Jie’s hands.

 

Yan Jie had closed the white notebook. Jiang Nan’an naturally reached out to take it, but Yan Jie raised his hand, not letting Jiang Nan’an touch the edge of the notebook.

 

“Teacher Jiang needs to write notes while staying by my side?”

 

Yan Jie looked at Jiang Nan’an, his lips curved upward as if smiling, but his eyes held little amusement:

 

“Is Little Spring just a component of your character study, teacher?”

 

“I suppose so,” Jiang Nan’an nodded, answering honestly.

 

Yan Jie stared at him for a while, his smile fading slightly, then put down the notebook and handed it back to him:

 

“Is your agent afraid you can’t perform romantic scenes and wants you to date someone?”

 

“It was suggested, but not strictly required.”

 

“Oh… then what am I?”

 

Yan Jie leaned back on the sofa looking at him, letting out what seemed like a light chuckle, though his gaze was somewhat heavy:

 

“Little Spring has been with you for so long, shouldn’t there be some kind of status? Without a proper title, I won’t do it. What am I? A concubine, a chamber maid, an experimental observation subject, a kissing partner, a friend… a love coach? That can’t be enough, can it?”

 

“…”

 

Jiang Nan’an didn’t answer immediately, and Yan Jie just watched him, waiting for his answer.

 

He watched as Jiang Nan’an took back the script, turned to the page he had open before, opened his notebook, removed the cap from his fountain pen, and only then heard him answer casually, as if it were an afterthought:

 

“…What else?”

 

#

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 (advanced chapters available on kofi)