12.
Zhou Mengyu quickly clarified: “I’m not gay, I’m straight.”
He noticed Liang Pei’s perfectly shaped eyebrows rising to a certain height, and he said in a calm voice. “Is that so?’
Yes! Of course!
Zhou Mengyu didn’t have time to answer; he was admiring Liang Pei’s face, truly admiring it, just as he would admire a human sculpture.
It was rare for Asian faces to meet his aesthetic standards; it was a kind of artistic perfection.
The junior brother rolled his eyes inwardly, thinking, “No wonder you wouldn’t let me be enthusiastic; it turns out you were the one who was interested in him!”
The junior thought, “Sigh, Liang Pei was brought in by the vice president. In love, it’s first-come, first-served. I’ll have to swallow my pride and let him have him.”
13.
The three people in the dorm agreed to have hot pot together in the evening, under the guise of welcoming the new roommate.
After all, their dorm was different from others; it was a mixed dorm, and being able to live together was truly all thanks to fate.
Zhou Mengyu kept wanting to speak but held back at the dinner table, glancing at Liang Pei’s face one moment and then at the broiling broth in the hot pot the next.
The junior student was secretly anxious: Just say something already!
Liang Pei didn’t seem to notice the intense gaze, casually picking through the fatty beef.
The junior kicked Zhou Mengyu’s shin under the dinner table.
Zhou Mengyu: “Liang Pei, you know, are you interested in… joining me…”
Zhou Mengyu: “At the art studio as a model? No need to do nude, it’s one hundred yuan per hour.”
The junior: ….
Liang Pei: …….
14.
Liang Pei refused.
Zhou Mengyu was very heartbroken, heartbroken to the point of eating three bowls of beef rolls.
Why the hell does it feel like I’ve been rejected after confessing my feelings!
Zhou Mengyu had gotten a haircut a few days ago. This time, the stylist wasnt the one he knew; he didn’t know his own strength and cut it a little too short. After tying it up, a few strands of hair would always fall down the side after a while, and he kept tucking them behind his ears while eating.
The junior offered advice: “Try two.”
Liang Pei raised his hand: “Waiter.”
Without a second thought, Zhou Mengyu thanked the waiter who brought the hair tie and neatly tied two small buns behind his ears. Perfect; no more hair would fall out.
Zhou Mengyu buried his head in eating shrimp paste.
The junior student buried his head in eating bok choy.
Liang Pei….
Liang Pei tapped the table in front of Zhou Mengyu twice and said, “You should get one too[mfn]Reffering to the bok choy[/mfn].”
Zhou Mengyu: ?
Liang Pei, looking at the puzzled gaze, grew slightly impatient and casually replied, “Just do as you’re told.”
Zhou Mengyu: How come I remember being the senior, the school vice president, and the dormitory head, while he was just a freshman?
Junior: I feel like a dog; I should be under the table.
15.
After dinner, Zhou Mengyu and his junior walked side by side, like siblings taking a post-meal stroll.
Liang Pei followed behind them, with a cigarette stuck in his mouth unlit, like a reliable bodyguard for the two princesses.
Zhou Mengyu kept glancing back at Liang Pei.
The junior couldn’t help but say, “Hey, can’t you be more direct? Stop beating around the bush! Be a real man! Just go for it!”
Zhou Mengyu coughed, “After all, he’s a freshman, and I’m a senior.”
The younger scoffed. “So what! Fate is what it is. Some people know it the moment they see them!”
Zhou Mengyu seemed to understand, but also did not understand.
The junior poked his stomach, “Tell him!”
Zhou Mengyu could only turn around and say, “Liang Pei, although you freshmen haven’t started memorizing the school rules yet, smoking is still not allowed on school grounds.”
The junior:……..
A muffled laugh drifted from behind, with Liang Pei still holding a cigarette in his mouth, he gave a vague “Hmm.”
After a while, he put the cigarette back into the case.
16.
In the evening, Zhou Mengyu still had some matters with the student council. Since the freshmen had already started school, preparations for club recruitment and student council recruitment had begun. Once the freshmen’s military training ended, it was time for them[mfn]the student council[/mfn] to prepare for battle. Every year’s recruitment left them worn out to the bone.
This year’s drama club was in quite a sorry state. While the drama club may seem appealing and attract a large number of new members each year, they seem to drop out gradually within half a year.
As a result, the drama club members almost developed recruitment PTSD, as it was the most exhausting and least productive period.
Zhou Mengyu felt sorry for them and agreed to help move their props with them in the evening.
Liang Pei, upon learning this, sized him up from top to bottom. Although his tone was calm, it sounded like he was provoking him: “Can you actually help with the work?”
Zhou Mengyu was furious. Although he had lost a bit of weight, his strength had diminished, and he wasn’t as tall, but….
However, he had a passionate heart.
Zhou Mengyu sincerely said, “You’ve eaten quite a lot tonight, want to digest a bit?”
Liang Pei laughed again: “Let’s go.”
17.
Although Zhou Mengyu had asked for backup, he still worked diligently, moving things himself.
He was carrying a tree taller than himself outside, completely losing his train of thought, forgetting that it was taller than him, and getting stuck in the doorway. He stared at the door for a while before realizing he had to carry the tree horizontally to get it out, but he already had no strength left.
Zhou Mengyu leaned the tree against the door, one hand supporting his waist as he gasped for breath.
This job isn’t fit for a human being.
Then the tree moved abruptly, shifting back a bit before gliding across effortlessly. Only then did Zhou Mengyu notice Liang Pei, partially obscured by the tree.
He noticed that Liang Pei’s gray short-sleeved shirt couldn’t cover the handsome lines of muscle on his arms.
He was really too tempted, and he couldn’t help but follow him for two steps. Liang Pei looked back at him.
Zhou Mengyu felt a bit embarrassed: “Although you rejected it, do you really not want to be a model?”
Liang Pei: “I don’t want to.”
Oh, if you don’t want to, then don’t. Why are you being so harsh?
18.
The great vice president still ended up slacking off in the end.
He ate too much tonight, moved twice, and already felt like he was about to get a cramp. His stomach wasn’t feeling well. He sat in the chair in the lecture hall, watching Liang Pei come and go with ease, wondering why he didn’t want to be a model. With a body like that, not being a model is simply a crime! A crime!
When Liang Pei came in again, he was holding a plastic bag with walnut milk, which he threw into Zhou Mengyu’s arms.
Zhou Mengyu quickly took it, just about to speak when he was cut off.
“I really won’t be a model.”
Zhou Mengyu felt a bit embarrassed: “I was just going to say thank you.”
Liang Pei gave a casual smile: “You don’t need to thank me.”
19.
After moving the things, everyone in the drama club knew Liang Pei’s name. Knowing that he was a freshman, they all tearfully and desperately asked Liang Pei to join the drama club.
Zhou Mengyu felt sympathetic. Liang Pei was indeed quite unlucky, first being repeatedly invited to model, then being asked to join the drama club.
He felt a bit guilty, after all, the former was because of him, and the latter… was also because of him.
He reached out and blocked Liang Pei, saying, “Alright, alright, you just want free labor, don’t even think about it.”
The president of the drama club, exhausted and disoriented, said, “He’s not even one of your people, why are you so worried about them!”
Zhou Mengyu pulled Liang Pei behind him: How can you say he’s not mine! I personally mentored this junior, stay away!”
20.
Before going to bed, Zhou Mengyu had told Liang Pei “thank you” countless times.
Even the junior brother got tired of hearing it: “Bro, we’re family, don’t talk like that.”
Zhou Mengyu: “I didn’t expect it to be this exhausting. How about I treat you to a meal tomorrow?”
Liang Pei, the junior brother: “We’re family, there’s no need to talk like strangers.”
Zhou Mengyu: “I can’t do it, I feel so guilty every time I think about how I dragged you into being a slave your freshman year.”
Liang Pei: “What do you want?”
Zhou Mengyu: “I’ll treat you to lunch tomorrow.”
Liang Pei: “Alright”
Junior: “I won’t go.”
Zhou Mengyu: “I didn’t plan to take you anyway.”
T/N: Hello! I’ve slowly been getting used to translating, and I’ll probably be posting 2-3 chapters a week unless I get busy. If you’ve liked my work so far, support me on Kofi if you can <3
