WAYCAV Chapter 35

Shen Nianjing rushed home in a panic, not even bothering to change his shoes before running to the bedroom. He rummaged through boxes and drawers to find a piece of paper tucked away in a crack.

The paper was about the size of a palm, triangular and very irregular, like it had been hastily torn from some book.

Shen Nianjing stared silently at the paper, then flipped it over to look at the text on the back.

—— Dream. Protagonist Xia Shi. There’s also someone surnamed Gao. The one who will kill me is called Su Zhiyan. Must remember!!

The last two exclamation marks were heavily emphasized in thick black strokes.

He had written this note after waking abruptly from a dream before the semester started. He had rolled out of bed and grabbed whatever scrap of paper he could find, writing down what he could still remember from the dream, afraid he would forget after waking up. The dream had felt terrifyingly real at the time, though that fear had gradually faded as time passed. Still, seeing the note now brought back that unsettling feeling.

Shen Nianjing sat limply on the edge of his bed, clutching the note with vacant eyes.

He had originally dismissed this dream as just a coincidence, because it didn’t match Su Zhiyan in person at all.

But today at the restaurant, the moment he heard “Xia Shi,” his whole body tensed up. All his nerves seemed to concentrate in his head as he desperately tried to recall the details of his dream, wanting to confirm if that person was the same protagonist from his dream.

Actually, the faces of people in the dream were all very blurry in his memory. He could not remember any of them clearly, otherwise he wouldn’t have failed to recognize Su Zhiyan back then.

He couldn’t confirm anything at all. Both that person’s appearance and voice were completely unfamiliar to him.

Shen Nianjing stood there, when suddenly a slender, pale hand reached out in front of him and waved.

He instinctively grabbed that hand.

Warm and smooth.

Meeting those bright, light-colored eyes, he suddenly didn’t know what exactly he was trying to confirm.

Was it Xia Shi… or Su Zhiyan?

“Son, I’m going on a business trip to the south the day after tomorrow for a week. Eat properly and don’t let me catch you ordering those unhealthy takeout meals again.”

The crisp female voice behind him interrupted his memories.

Lin Yue walked in wearing high heels, clicking across the floor. The fatigue on her face and the chill from her coat couldn’t hide the radiance of a career woman.

She draped an arm around Shen Nianjing’s neck and leaned down. “Did you hear me? Answer me.”

Shen Nianjing nodded.

Lin Yue patted her eldest son’s cheek with satisfaction, her elegant manicure sparkling. “Very good. I happen to be craving dumplings. Tomorrow I’m taking a rest day at home, so I can make extra dumplings to freeze for you.”

“Mom,” Shen Nianjing took a deep breath, “I want to take some time off.”

His brow furrowed slightly, his eyes full of worries that shouldn’t belong to someone his age.

Lin Yue laughed and shook Shen Nianjing playfully. “Take time off then. Perfect timing to help me make dumplings tomorrow.”

“Stop frowning!” she scolded with a laugh. “People who don’t know would think it’s the end of the world.”

So the two of them spent the entire next day making dumplings at home. Shepherd’s purse and pork, celery and pork, green bean and pork filled up the entire freezer.

“Your brother isn’t coming home this week. If you can’t finish them all, you can force yourself to go to his school and deliver some to him.” Before leaving, Lin Yue stood at the door pulling her suitcase. “I better find an empty freezer when I get back, or I’ll assume you’ve been sneaking takeout.”

Shen Nianjing: “…” Can’t I just want variety?

Twenty-one meals of nothing but dumplings for seven days?

However, dumplings were probably the ultimate comfort food for northern Chinese people. Although Shen Nianjing complained in his mind, he obediently ate dumplings for three straight days, paired with pickled vegetables, sweet garlic, mushroom sauce, spicy strips and other sides without getting tired of them. In fact, he enjoyed them more and more.

With his mood lifted, his brain became much more active too.

The problems he couldn’t think through clearly before suddenly became very clear in his mind.

He had been avoiding Su Zhiyan because he was indeed afraid of dying. Who in their right mind would want to die?

Especially since he couldn’t afford to die.

But connecting life and death with dreams was just too abstract! Something solid and real like dumplings was the true, down-to-earth socialist experience!

He didn’t want to mix up his daily life with dreams into a mess. He didn’t want to let some unrealistic dream affect his normal life, affect his normal interactions with friends, or affect the way he thought about problems.

Especially when it came to Su Zhiyan.

He wanted to see Su Zhiyan without that unreal filter, wanted to interact with the real Su Zhiyan based on his genuine feelings.

And after getting to know Su Zhiyan better…

Shen Nianjing bit into a dumpling, the glossy juices overflowing as the fragrant steam rose up and warmed his eyes.

He didn’t think Su Zhiyan had even the slightest connection to the person in his dream.

Moreover, Su Zhiyan had no ill will toward him, and even had the same kind of feelings for him that he had.

Shen Nianjing nodded happily to himself, eating a big bite of dumpling with chili sauce. He felt these dumplings got more delicious the more he ate them. The salty pork and celery juices weren’t greasy at all but instead added layers of flavor, and this chili sauce was absolutely delicious. Su Zhiyan would definitely love it!

—

Su Zhiyan followed Shen Nianjing into his home, watching him carry the fruit gift box and flowers into the kitchen.

The standard three-bedroom apartment was neat and clean. Although there were some messy doodles on the walls that were obviously drawn during childhood moments of restlessness, they didn’t add clutter but instead made it feel more cozy.

Su Zhiyan sat on the sofa, feeling somewhat restrained.

He came today with the purpose of clearing up the misunderstanding, so logically with such a clear goal he shouldn’t be this nervous. But he couldn’t help focusing all his attention on the person bustling around in the kitchen.

The faucet turned on, like he was washing something.

Turned off.

Turned on again.

There seemed to be some crisp sounds like glass.

Turned off.

A cabinet opened, then the faucet turned on again.

Su Zhiyan’s thoughts rose and fell with each sound, his gaze unconsciously staring at the empty air in front of him, gradually spacing out.

Hmm… the faucet stayed off this time.

Footsteps approached.

Getting closer and closer.

“Fruit platter! I’ve prepared all the fruits for you!”

Su Zhiyan was startled by the sudden voice, his gaze trembling slightly as he looked toward the coffee table.

A beautiful plate sat in front of him with honeydew, grapes, dragon fruit and various other fruits neatly arranged after being prepared, with a small fork beside it.

Su Zhiyan looked up. Shen Nianjing wore a light blue cartoon apron over his black shirt, with a laughing fist-sized pouch on the front.

He suddenly remembered seeing Shen Nianjing wearing a pink apron at the dessert shop before.

“Pink suits you better,” he thought for a moment and said. “But blue is nice too.”

Seeing his wide-eyed, serious expression as he commented, Shen Nianjing laughed. “Got it, thanks for Teacher Su’s evaluation.”

“Go ahead and eat the fruit.”

Su Zhiyan’s ears burned as he looked away awkwardly.

What Teacher Su.

He looked at the fruit platter, his tone somewhat surprised and confused. “Didn’t I come to visit you? Why am I the one eating?”

“Aren’t you a guest at my house? Serving guests with their own gifts goes against common decency.” Shen Nianjing pressed down on his shoulder, putting the fork in his hand. “Besides, you look terrible. Haven’t you been resting well lately?”

Su Zhiyan lowered his eyes. “I’m fine.”

The orange-yellow roses looked even warmer and more vibrant under the living room’s warm lighting. Su Zhiyan stared at the flowers, feeling like the color was about to boil over and burn him with fire.

“…” What should he do.

He took a deep breath and turned to look over. Shen Nianjing was taking off his apron. Noticing his gaze, he smiled and said, “What, can’t bear to see me take it off?”

“No!” Su Zhiyan turned his head away, his heart trembling a little.

Before coming, he had done a lot of mental preparation to confess everything to Shen Nianjing, but for some reason, it was just very hard to speak up.

He looked at Shen Nianjing again. The latter folded up the apron he had taken off and hung it by the kitchen door.

His every movement was natural and relaxed, like he was in a very good mood.

Su Zhiyan bit the fork, feeling extremely conflicted.

He was afraid that after telling Shen Nianjing the truth, Shen Nianjing would get angry and kick him out of the house.

…Although he probably wouldn’t do something like that, he would definitely be angry!

If Shen Nianjing cut ties over feeling manipulated, he could kiss proper sleep goodbye. May as well wait for sudden death.

But if he didn’t say anything… He looked up at Shen Nianjing’s back. His long legs and smooth figure looked very tall and well-built in the sunlight streaming through the kitchen window.

The idiot wore a black shirt despite the cold, but he really did look good in it. There was a kind of restrained, steady handsomeness that didn’t match his personality at all but was deceptive enough.

Su Zhiyan bit down hard on the spoon, closing his eyes in distress, his features almost scrunching together.

If he didn’t say anything, he worried that Shen Nianjing would continue to misunderstand his feelings, and outsiders would spread rumors even more enthusiastically. How would that affect this bastard’s chances of finding a partner?

And it would seriously affect their reputation at the university, especially with those ridiculous rumors from before.

Two top students rumored to be messing around were actually getting together?

That didn’t sound much better than Fang Yu’s rumors.

“What’s wrong?” Shen Nianjing came over carrying fruit juice and saw his expression. “Are you trying to bite the fork in half, Handsome Su?”

Su Zhiyan: “…”

He let go of the fork, and when he looked at Shen Nianjing, his heart tightened. The words came tumbling out, “H-how are you feeling today?”

What a stupid question. Anyone could see he was doing pretty well. Su Zhiyan mentally cursed himself.

Shen Nianjing raised an eyebrow. “Pretty good, why?”

“Nothing.”

Su Zhiyan took the fruit juice and said seriously, “Thank you!”

Shen Nianjing laughed out loud. “Why are you suddenly being so polite?”

He sat down next to Su Zhiyan, and the soft sofa dipped. Su Zhiyan immediately tensed up.

Every move Shen Nianjing made was magnified infinitely in his eyes at this moment. He didn’t dare miss a single detail.

“You really don’t look well.” Shen Nianjing looked at him thoughtfully and said seriously, “Why don’t you go rest in my room for a while? I’ll wake you before lunch.”

“…”

Su Zhiyan tried to relax himself. “It’s fine, I’m just a little worried.”

“Worried about what?”

! Damn it.

How did he say what he was thinking out loud?

He turned his head and smiled. “Nothing, just worried that my appetite hasn’t been good lately, so I might not be able to eat many dumplings.”

Shen Nianjing thought for a moment, then stood up again. “Wait here, I’ll go find some Chinese herbs to boost your blood and energy. We have a lot at home.”

“No need!” Su Zhiyan instinctively grabbed him.

Shen Nianjing was pulled so hard he almost crashed into him, and suddenly the two were very close.

Shen Nianjing froze.

With warm breath so near, all emotions vanished in the close distance.

Shen Nianjing saw Su Zhiyan’s eyes, slightly moist from nervousness. He really hadn’t been resting well, there were many red veins in his eyes.

“You—” he began without knowing what to say.

Warm air currents intertwined and touched with their breathing, somewhat intimate. Shen Nianjing was stunned, a tingling sensation flowing through his heart.

“Shen Nianjing.” Su Zhiyan said in a low voice, “I have something to tell you.”

---

I hope you enjoyed it as much as I did. Please consider supporting the author directly.

You can also follow me on Ko-fi to get access to the latest updates on my translation progress and new projects. I appreciate your love and feedback.