Yu Sui couldn’t remember how he fell asleep, only recalling the few times Yan Xiu had called out to him through the earphones last night.
However, he didn’t respond to any of them.
When the young master woke up in the morning, he was still clutching his phone. After playing games half the night and leaving the screen on for a long time, the battery was critically low. The moment Yu Sui tapped the screen, it shut down.
Luckily, Yu Sui had locked the door last night, so no one knew he’d been playing games all night.
He plugged his phone into the charger and placed it on the table. He then bent down to pick up the scattered draft papers and threw them into the toy box, before drowsily trudging into the bathroom.
Some people, when they sleep late, extend their sleep time and don’t wake up until noon. Others, even if they stay up late, are roused by their biological clock. The lucky ones can fall back asleep, while the unlucky ones, eyes tearing up from exhaustion, find their cerebral cortex oddly alert.
Yu Sui was one of the unlucky ones. Half-opening his eyes, he carried a stool into the bathroom and sat down to brush his teeth in front of the mirror.
As he brushed, his head drooped slightly, and he jolted awake. He washed his hands, then slicked back the stray hairs from his forehead. After splashing water on his face, he exited the bathroom and collapsed back onto the bed.
After charging for a while, the phone was now functioning. Yu Sui quickly skimmed through the accumulated messages.
Yan Xiu had sent him the time for their outdoor plan, along with a voice message devoid of emotion.
“Next time, turn off your phone before you sleep.”
Yu Sui read it but didn’t reply. He was too tired—he only had the energy to look at it, but not to reply.
He laid there quietly, gradually waking up a bit more, then went downstairs to find something to eat.
Auntie had risen early and was still preparing breakfast. Yu Sui took a small bowl and helped himself to eat some food. Once he felt something in his stomach, he headed back upstairs.
He rinsed his mouth again, then crawled back into bed and stayed still.
The cold weather in Yandu chilled him to the bone—and even his brain. His second round of sleep lasted until noon. The moment he stepped out, he was caught by Yuan Yu, who had been waiting, and was dragged out of the house.
She said they were going to buy New Year’s goods.
Yuan Yu spoke softly to him, trying to persuade: “The New Year is coming earlier this year, so if we buy things early, we won’t have to squeeze through the crowds.”
“You’ve never bothered with the crowds before,” Yu Sui said, turning his face away and glancing out the window.
“This year is different,” Yuan Yu said. “We’re going to visit relatives and friends for New Year’s greetings. Things bought with our own hands carry more sincerity.”
Not only did Yuan Yu want to buy New Year’s goods, but she also planned to visit a nearby temple to obtain a batch of amulets.
In previous years, Yu Jingyuan would handle these matters. But now that Yu Jingyuan had just left, and the younger generation showed little interest in these matters, Yuan Yu took it upon herself to go.
Yu Sui continued to poke holes in her reasoning, “You never bought things personally for New Year’s visits in previous years either.”
Yuan Yu choked, but still stuck to her line: “Isn’t this year different?”
This year was indeed different. The cooperation between the Yu and Yan families had grown much closer. This time, when Yu Jingyuan went on a business trip, quite a few from the Yan family had gone along as well.
Yu Sui never liked to pry into such matters, so he fell silent, fiddling with his phone.
His memory was fragmented. He hesitantly replied with an “Oh” to Yan Xiu. Now, much later, it occurred to him: Yan Xiu had still been awake when he fell asleep—so did Yan Xiu eventually get some sleep?
He tapped the screen.
Fish Can: [Morning]
He waited a moment after sending it.
There was no reply from the other end—probably still asleep.
So, one way or another, he must still be sleeping.
Yuan Yu was talking, while also checking her phone. On the other end was Yuan Yu’s childhood best friend.
Although Yuan Yu was now a mother of four, her active social life kept her youthful spirit alive. Even when staying in, she always had endless conversations with close friends over the phone.
Yu Sui hadn’t been paying much attention until he suddenly heard her say, “… I saw a pretty dress and thought of buying it for your Xiao Ying.”
That meant she was talking to Yan Ying’s mother, whom he addressed as “Auntie.”
Noticing his gaze, Yuan Yu turned her phone toward him: “Say hello to your Aunt Lin.”
Yu Sui glanced over and replied obediently: “Good afternoon, auntie. Have you eaten yet?”
The woman on the other end responded briefly, followed by a girl’s voice calling out, “Xiao Yu-ge!”
Yuan Yu chuckled, seemingly in a good mood.
Yu Sui checked her phone.
The other person still hadn’t woken up.
Probably only fell asleep at dawn.
The car parked in the mall’s underground parking, and Yuan Yu headed straight for the clothing section.
Yu Sui had always felt that his mother regretted that Yu Zhen had grown up too quickly.
Yu Zhen had a strong sense of style from a young age; as she grew older, her mother basically didn’t need to help with her outfits. Moreover, while her mother preferred a girlish style, Yu Zhen went in the opposite direction, which had once made her mother somewhat disappointed.
That’s why Yuan Yu adored Yan Ying—she finally had someone to dress up.
This was the same mall where Yu Sui had brought Yan Xiu last time. He bought an ice cream from a dessert shop and showed no intention of following Yuan Yu inside.
A new notification popped up on his phone; Yan Xiu had finally woken up.
Ri An: [Morning]
So composed.
Here he was, sending a “morning” greeting at noon, and someone, who woke up in the afternoon, calmly replied with a “morning.”
Yu Sui’s finger danced over the screen, and almost without thinking, he typed out a message.
Fish Can: [It’s not early anymore. My mom dragged me out to buy New Year’s gifts for the Yan family.]
The other side was typing and quickly replied with a question mark.
Yu Sui stared at the question mark for a moment, then explained: [A family surnamed Yan is on good terms with my family.]
Ri An: [Mm, got it]
Ri An: [I’m going to brush my teeth first]
Bored, Yu Sui set his phone down and let his mind wander as he gazed around the mall.
The mall had its weekly promotions—today, it was a children’s painting activity, with several easels set up and kids running around downstairs.
Yuan Yu called him, asking him to come in and help carry the shopping bags.
The young master strolled in, hands tucked into his pockets.
He had assumed it was all girls’ items, but upon closer inspection, he found a wide variety of purchases. Aside from a few bags nearby, there were baby supplies and several sets of men’s clothing.
Yu Sui flipped through the tags—the size was similar to his.
“These aren’t for you,” Yuan Yu said before he could ask, strolling over casually. “You can pick something else if you want. This is for your older brother.”
Yu Si wasn’t this size either. Yu Sui blinked, understanding dawning on him—it was for his older brother from another wealthy family.
His older brother was about the same size as him, so Yuan Yu had bought according to his measurements.
Yu Sui nodded, holding the bags and pulling out a few pieces to examine. His eyebrows lifted slightly.
“Which day are we having the meal?” Yu Sui asked abruptly.
Yuan Yu turned to look at her son, still feigning ignorance: “Huh?”
“The day we’re eating with them?” Yu Sui pointed to the bags. “Otherwise, why did you buy so much?”
Yuan Yu was clearly afraid he might try to run away again. She felt a little embarrassed: “Ah, well, I already said we’d go when we went to pay New Year’s visits.”
The morning had been clear and bright, but by afternoon, dark clouds had gathered, casting a gloomy shadow over the sky.
Yu Sui closed his eyes and stretched out his hand. Mimicking Yan Wuyan’s1I tried my best to search this around, but I can’t find satisfactory answer that might give context to this sentence. If you know, please message me at discord. Thank you! mannerism from his memory, he pinched his fingers and said, “Mom, Buddha said the weather isn’t good today, so he won’t be coming. He asked you, the devotee, to visit him another day.”
“Such nonsense,” Yuan Yu patted him—but after glancing at the sky outside, she hesitated and decided to head home.
Yu Sui immediately pulled an umbrella from the trunk and unplugged his phone charger: “Mom, you go back first. I have something to do.”
Yuan Yu: “Where are you going?”
Yu Sui opened the car door and hurried off.
By this time, most students who had finished their exams were all wide awake. Yang Feiwen kept sending messages to Yu Sui.
This guy had been playing PUBG until dawn last night, getting up later than Yan Xiu. As soon as he was up, he habitually browsed the forums and discovered that his good buddy had also been playing games all night—and not alone. He was actually duo-queuing with Yan Xiu.
Yu Sui, with his well-behaved, handsome-boy image, was particularly easy to be paired up with others in gossip. Back when Yi Tian and the others were frantically suppressing Yu Sui and Yan Xiu CP thread, one of their diversion tactics was to promote posts pairing Yu Sui with other people.
Yang Feiwen was one of those people.
Many people were open to multiple pairings and even followed both sides.
Last night, someone discovered that Yu Sui and Yan Xiu had been duo-queuing late at night based on their game history. They also found out that Yang Feiwen was playing solo. As a result, both sides were buzzing around, which unexpectedly boosted Yang Feiwen’s popularity, though the tone of discussions was a bit off.
Floor 233: [A-wen: In the end, I still gave my heart to the wrong person.]
Floor 234: [In the end, it was all for nothing.]
Floor 235: [Calling me A-wen, yet running off to play games with some other guy.]
Floor 236: [So what did Yang Feiwen do wrong this time?]
Floor 237: [Although I feel sorry for him, I can’t help myself but to laugh.]
Floor 238: [Is there a conflict between me shipping the Minister and me feeling sorry for A-wen?]
Floor 239: [No conflict. A-wen, stay away from that scumbag.]
Yang Feiwen was unexpectedly indignant.
Gossip Wen: [Why am I so unlucky?]
Gossip Wen: [Was it necessary for you two to be all sweet while I was playing myself solo?]
Yu Sui scrolled quickly through posts until he came across a fan-made drawing.
It was the same pairing he’d seen before. He’d saved the one featuring himself, but this time, he glanced a little longer at Yan Xiu’s red ears—and on a whim, saved it.
Unfortunately, Yan Xiu doesn’t blush like that.
Fish Can: [It wasn’t on purpose]
Fish Can: [We didn’t know you were online]
Gossip Wen: [Don’t take me so seriously—it’s putting pressure on me]
Gossip Wen: [It’s like you two are actually together or something]
Yu Sui froze for a moment, but Yang Feiwen’s attention quickly shifted.
Gossip Wen: [Are you here yet?]
Class 3 had made plans to go out for skewers tonight, but in the end, not many people showed up.
Class 3 had more girls, and half of those with strict parents couldn’t make it. Another half of the more reserved ones were also absent. Among the remaining boys, those who had to attend tutoring classes after the exams couldn’t attend.
Liang Wen had organized the gathering. The skewer restaurant was owned by a relative, who was giving them a 12% student discount. The shop was close to Fucun, where rent was cheap, so it was spacious. Beyond the main dining area, there was an open-air section outside.
Yu Sui’s offhand prediction about bad weather didn’t come true—the temperature that evening was fine.
The young master had no intention of drinking today; he was just there to make an appearance and grab some skewers.
“We originally planned to go out for an overnight,” a girl beside him said with a smile. “But none of our parents would let us stay out all night, worried that something might happen.”
Steam rose into the air, creating a hazy mist. Yu Sui squinted, not quite catching what she said: “Worried about what?”
The girl, unaware that he hadn’t heard her, chuckled sheepishly: “What else? Parents are always worried that their kids will get into trouble when they’re out—”
Yu Sui understood and gave a small smile: “It’s normal for them to worry.”
This girl wasn’t particularly outstanding in class. Yu Sui recalled she had a nickname like “Fang Kuai 2方塊 (fāngkuài) – a square or a square-shaped object or block.” or something similar. Because she wasn’t very tactful with her words, her close friends said she was too straightforward and rigid, so they gave her that nickname. The idea was to soften her bluntness and make her seem more endearing, preventing her from being disliked.
Fang Kuai, perhaps eager to get to know Yu Sui better, said with a laugh, “That’s how it is. You and the Minister have it easier—both being guys.”
“…”
What’s easier? Easier for what? Should he agree or disagree?
Yu Sui’s expression twitched slightly.
He rarely said things that put people in an awkward position—except when dealing with Yu Jingyuan. But now, he found himself at a loss of words and aimlessly grabbed a soda can from the table.
The curtain at the back door of the shop was lifted from the inside, and Yan Xiu arrived late, immediately spotting the group of troublemakers.
Yu Sui had texted him earlier to ask where he was, so he wasn’t surprised that Yan Xiu walked in at that moment.
He just felt a little awkward.
“Fang Kuai, what are you doing over here?” Little angel Yi Tian appeared just in time, pulling Fang Kuai back. The six girls huddled together at the corner of the table, taking photos.
Yu Sui sighed and spotted Yan Xiu walking straight toward him. So he raised his hand and waved at him.
As soon as the group saw Yan Xiu approaching, they all shouted, “Latecomers must be punis—”
They were unusually synchronized, and after shouting, they all paused for a moment. After all, the disciplinary committee was usually the one scolding them for being late or leaving early. This was the first time they had the nerve to yell at him for being late, and it sent a mix of excitement and nervousness rushing through them. In the end, they hesitated and trailed off simultaneously.
Yan Xiu was dressed in casual clothes, a very loose trench coat. He looked gentler than usual at school, his stern face carrying a hint of weariness.
He seemed tired, slightly adjusting his clothes.
While the others didn’t dare to speak up, someone else did.
Among the table of teenagers, Yu Sui chuckled lazily in his clear voice, “Three drinks as punishment.”
“Yes!” everyone immediately echoed. “Three drinks! Hurry up!”
Finally having the chance to tease the Minister, no one held back. They swarmed around him, and Liang Wen even gave Yan Xiu a playful shove.
The sixteen- and seventeen-year-old boys and girls were incredibly rowdy. When they’re fooling around, those at the next table watched them several times, and their noise level had risen sharply, creating a chaotic atmosphere.
By the time Yan Xiu finally managed to sit down, Yu Sui made room for him next to him.
“How many hours did you sleep last night?” Yu Sui scanned the table and grabbed a new set of utensils, placing them in front of Yan Xiu.
Yan Xiu seemed uninterested in the food on the table.
They were all wildly dancing around—the table littered with empty bottles and leftover skewers. Luckily, they had ordered a lot.Otherwise, with this kind of behavior, they would have been scrambling to grab food in an instant.
Yan Xiu closed his eyes for a moment before reopening them, appearing as calm as ever.
“A normal hour.” He didn’t even bother to think about it.
Still, he reached out and took several soda cans in front of Yu Sui.
Before Yu Sui could figure out what he was up to, he saw Yan Xiu bring the soda cans to his nose and sniffed them. Yu Sui immediately felt like punching him: “… That’s a real soda.”
Yan Xiu smelled it before believing him, but the way he glanced at Yu Sui seemed mocking no matter how you looked at it.
“…” Yu Sui pointed at him, “Who ends up passing out later isn’t certain yet.”
The young master had completely forgotten his rule about not drinking when he sat down and was now solely focusing on getting Yan Xiu drunk. Yan Xiu didn’t want to indulge him and dodged two rounds.
Yang Feiwen came up from behind and nudged Yu Sui, exclaiming, “You two can’t be all lovey-dovey behind our backs now! If you want to play, then let’s play together! Come here!”
“What are we playing?” Yu Sui asked.
Yang Feiwen turned around and shouted, “Hu-zi, what are we playing?”
“Anything, like Ludo3飛行棋 (fēixíngqí) is a popular family game in China and other parts of Asia, similar in concept to Ludo or Parcheesi, but with an aviation theme. It’s known for its simple rules and element of chance, making it accessible to players of all ages. or ‘You draw, I’ll guess’4畫我猜吧 (huà wǒ cāi ba) is commonly used among friends or family to suggest playing a game where one person draws something and others try to guess what it is. It’s the standard way to refer to or initiate a game like Pictionary in Chinese culture.,” Tang Bohu said, grabbing a bottle of alcohol. “You kids don’t play adult games5Adult games pertains to games related to having alcohol~ not that adult games we see in some stories. anyway.”
Yang Feiwen said, “Aren’t you bored? It’s the same every time.”
In the end, they got a can of fortune sticks from Liang Wen’s relative, and everyone gathered around to pick a game.
The atmosphere was infectious. By the time Yu Sui crouched next to fortune sticks6簽筒 (qiāntǒng) is a container, typically a cylindrical bamboo or wooden tube, used in temples or for divination rituals to hold fortune-telling sticks (籤, qiān) that are shaken out one by one to receive guidance or predictions., he was already holding a bottle of alcohol.
Someone came over, and Yu Sui didn’t need to turn around to know it was Yan Xiu, because this person sometimes guarded him like a child.
This subtle distinction might go unnoticed by others, but Yu Sui was all too aware of it. What classmate would sniff his soda cans like that?
It reminded him of when Yu Si had to bring him along to gatherings and would worry about him picking up any smells. Afraid he’d get scolded by their dad when they got back.
Yu Sui tilted his head to glance at him: “My mom went to the mall in the North District today and bought a lot of things.”
Yan Xiu had already heard this: “Mm.”
“But none of it was for me,” Yu Sui said. “Though there were several outfits that fit my size.”
Yan Xiu: “Oh?”
Everyone’s attention was focused on the fortune-telling sticks—the first few games drawn were rejected due to lack of equipment.
Yu Sui scratched his nose with his finger, looking down at the fortune sticks. “She said it was for New Year’s visits. Since she even bought gifts for that wealthy older brother, he’ll be there too, right?”
At this point, Yan Xiu couldn’t tell if the young master was feeling disappointed, annoyed, or something else. He pressed his forehead and said, “If you don’t want to go, then don’t.”
“How can I not go?” Yu Sui mumbled, his voice so low, though his words didn’t quite sound right. “After all, it’s paying New Year’s respects to the Minister.”
He raised the bottle and took a sip. “What if you hold a grudge and won’t let me pull strings next semester?”
“…”
Yan Xiu’s expression went blank for a second.
A moment later, he straightened up and moved away from the young master.
Author’s Note: Goodnight~
Sam Williams On TYMIMA Chapter 152