Chapter 67
Two days later, Fudan’s food festival officially opened.
Early in the morning, He Zhen arrived at the assigned booth to help Yu Chen set everything up. For the sake of convenience while working, he wore a simple black T-shirt today with a pair of casual cargo pants. The line of his broad shoulders and narrow waist showed faintly beneath the clothes.
“Handsome guy, are you selling grilled sausages here?”
A girl from the neighboring stall leaned over, carefully sizing up the cool, handsome boy in front of her.
He Zhen was wearing a cap today, his bangs brushed up from his forehead, revealing finely shaped, sharp brows and an even clearer definition to his features. From head to toe, he gave off a lazy, youthful aura.
“Mm,” He Zhen answered in a low voice.
The girl continued looking at him curiously. “Classmate, which department are you from?”
He Zhen carried out the grill oven. “I’m not from Fudan. I came to help my boyfriend.”
“Oh! So that’s how it is.” The girl smiled and returned to her own stall. “What department is your boyfriend from?”
He Zhen replied lightly, “Biological Sciences.”
That only made the girl even more curious. She desperately wanted to get a look at the true face of this handsome guy’s boyfriend.
“I’m selling bingfen. Later I’ll save two bowls for you and your boyfriend.”
“Thank you.” With careful movements, He Zhen put the poster up in front of the stall.
Half an hour later, more and more people had gathered around. Many students had already started selling. He Zhen lifted his eyes and noticed that there was a huge variety of snacks, basically covering foods from all over the country. Compared with the other stalls, the price Yu Chen had set was extremely fair.
Two minutes later, Yu Chen came running over with a box of starch sausages in his arms, panting hard.
“Boss, I overslept.”
With a tuft of messy hair sticking up on his head, Yu Chen looked full of guilt. “I’m sorry I made you work this long.”
He Zhen took the heavy cardboard box from him and smiled in surprise. “Why are you being so polite?”
“This is my own business, and I still got up this late…” Yu Chen looked ashamed, hanging his head like a wilted little vegetable.
“What’s going on with you today?” He Zhen caught Yu Chen’s hand and pulled him right in front of his chest, circling him firmly in his arms. “For a qualified pursuer, coming early to do the work is standard procedure.”
Putting on gloves, Yu Chen slowly threaded bamboo skewers. “I just feel like I’m troubling you. You work hard too.”
“Oh, I understand now.” He Zhen tilted his head lightly, gazing at Yu Chen’s profile. “You’re feeling bad for me.”
Yu Chen’s gaze flickered. “Stop fooling around and hurry up threading them.”
He Zhen’s chin gently brushed beside Yu Chen’s ear as he let out a soft laugh. “Did you eat breakfast?”
“No.” Yu Chen muttered, “My stomach is completely flat.”
He Zhen pushed him lightly at the waist. “Go. Go buy something to eat.”
Yu Chen looked around in all directions and realized that sure enough, a lot of food stalls nearby were already open.
He hesitated for a moment. “I should just eat starch sausages. It’s harder for you to watch the stall by yourself.”
“It’s fine. I can handle these few sausages.” He Zhen pushed the frying pan a little farther away so that the oil would not splash onto Yu Chen. “Go quickly. Otherwise your blood sugar’s going to drop.”
Yu Chen was really a bit embarrassed, but he truly had been lured by the smell from the neighboring stall. Rubbing against He Zhen like a little rice cake, he asked, “Boss, what do you want to eat? I’ll buy you some.”
He Zhen said, “Whatever you eat, just bring me a little too.”
“Okay.” Smiling to himself, Yu Chen eagerly ran off to look at the food.
After circling around once, he discovered there really was a huge variety of things. But the prices were indeed not exactly cheap. A bacon avocado sandwich was already twenty-nine yuan for one portion.
Yu Chen was greedy, so the more he wandered, the more excited he got. At every stall, he had to go over and take a look.
When he passed a sweet wheat noodles stall and was just about to choose toppings, he suddenly heard a few girls at the next stall chatting.
“The owner of that Delicious Starch Sausage stall is a super handsome guy. He’s probably the school hunk from the sports department. So many people are asking for his WeChat.”
“I took one look, and he’s seriously ridiculously handsome!”
“The key is that his body’s really good too! Why did I never realize our school had a guy this exceptional?”
Hearing the name of his own stall, Yu Chen grabbed the food in his hands and ran back in a hurry, not even caring about the sweet wheat noodles anymore.
With that many people buying food, he had to hurry back and help He Zhen.
Sure enough, when he returned, he saw that their stall was already packed so tightly it was impossible to squeeze through, with a long line formed in front.
Luckily, He Zhen had the advantage in height, so even with people everywhere around him, Yu Chen could still catch sight of He Zhen seriously making starch sausages.
Honestly speaking, He Zhen’s looks really were naturally superior. Just throwing on a random black T-shirt already made him stand out as extraordinary.
The moment Yu Chen returned to the stall, everyone’s eyes landed on him all at once.
He glanced around casually and saw quite a few students from his own department.
Putting down the food, he immediately started helping He Zhen.
Busy at work, He Zhen shot him a look. “Done eating?”
“Mm.” Yu Chen rolled up his sleeves. “Our stall’s business is seriously good.”
“Mainly because the prices are fair.” Seeing Yu Chen come over to help, He Zhen gently blocked him. “My heat’s a little high. The oil’s splashing everywhere. You should go over there and thread skewers instead.”
“I can wear gloves.” Smiling brightly, Yu Chen rubbed against He Zhen’s arm, while his gaze landed on the students gathered around watching. “Everyone, please don’t rush. Our starch sausages will be ready right away.”
Seeing the dense sweat appear on He Zhen’s forehead, Yu Chen pulled a tissue out of his pocket and casually helped wipe his sweat.
A noticeable wave of astonished sounds came from the students in line.
The closeness of the relationship between the two of them seemed completely self-evident.
Yu Chen absolutely did have a bit of showing off in him. Lowering his eyes with a secret smile, he threw away the tissue.
“That handsome guy is actually Yu Chen’s boyfriend?”
“Yu Chen? Which one is Yu Chen?”
“The pale-skinned boy! I heard he’s the top student in Biological Sciences, and his family is especially well-off. He never even lives in the dorm.”
Just then, the girl from the neighboring stall brought over the finished brown sugar bingfen. Curiously glancing between He Zhen and Yu Chen, she smiled and said, “Classmates, your bingfen is ready. This one’s on me.”
He Zhen looked up. “Thank you.”
Yu Chen could not figure out how she had known about their relationship. Holding the bingfen, he thanked her, then tilted his head toward He Zhen and asked what was on his mind.
In a meaningful tone, He Zhen said, “Maybe she thinks we have the face compatibility of a married couple.”
Those three words made Yu Chen flush red all over again.
Trying to change the subject, he asked, “How many sausages have you sold so far?”
“Forty-five.” There was a hint of teasing in He Zhen’s cool voice. “Don’t worry, all the money got scanned into your QR code. I didn’t secretly hide any private savings.”
Yu Chen’s ears turned even redder.
Why did the two of them feel like they were flirting in public?
With awkward movements, he tilted his face up toward the sky, enjoying the strong warmth of the sunlight, using it to cover up his inner embarrassment.
Just then, a loud voice sounded out.
“Yu Chen! Your boyfriend came to help you run the stall?”
Yu Chen looked up and saw Wang Lei, Chen Xing, and the others. He quickly called out, “Do you guys want starch sausages?”
Wang Lei leaned over, drawn by the smell. “Of course! Starch sausages grilled by an MIT top student—if I eat these, I’ll definitely pass finals!”
Yu Chen smiled shyly, as though Wang Lei had praised him personally.
Another wave of surprise and whispering spread through the people in line.
“Holy shit, that guy’s from MIT?”
“Yu Chen’s boyfriend is amazing.”
“The two of them look pretty well-matched.”
After packing up the customer’s starch sausages, Yu Chen began making some for his friends. To increase his competitiveness, he had also bought meat floss and various special sauces.
While eating his sausage, Wang Lei said, “Yu Chen, can this even make money? You’re putting in this many toppings, and you’re only selling two for five yuan.”
Yu Chen calculated in his head. “It should make money, right? Each starch sausage costs seven mao wholesale, and with all the toppings, the cost comes to around 1.5 yuan.”
Wang Lei said, “You’re only earning one yuan per sausage?” He glanced at the watch on He Zhen’s wrist and laughed. “You can’t even afford the labor costs. In the future, you really shouldn’t become a boss.”
Yu Chen glanced at He Zhen and felt that the labor costs indeed ought to be a lot more expensive.
After Wang Lei and the others had eaten their fill, they went off to mooch at the little stall run by some physics department buddies. Before leaving, Wang Lei secretly memorized the style of watch He Zhen was wearing, searched it up online, and was genuinely startled by the price.
Wearing a watch worth tens of millions while grilling starch sausages?
Sure enough, people from great wealthy families really do produce hopeless romantics.
After Wang Lei and the others left, Yu Chen wanted to switch places with He Zhen, but He Zhen would not allow it. Using the excuse that he was worried Yu Chen might burn them, he refused.
Of course Yu Chen knew He Zhen was just feeling sorry for him, so he stood at the side constantly fanning him and occasionally feeding him sips of iced lemon tea.
“Yu Chen.”
At that moment, Song Wenjing came over. After spotting He Zhen, his light brown eyes slowly sized him up. “How’s business?”
Yu Chen’s eyes curved into a smile. “Not bad. We’ve already made a hundred yuan.”
Song Wenjing looked at He Zhen. “Tomorrow I want to ask you to go to the library with me. Professor Lin gave me a task and hopes the two of us can complete it together.”
Yu Chen nodded readily. “Sure.”
At that moment, the previously silent He Zhen looked up. “Baby, I want some water.”
Faced with the sudden term of address, Yu Chen’s face turned red, and he hurriedly picked up the lemon tea. “Do you still want some? I’ll go buy you another cup.”
After taking two sips, He Zhen said, “No need. Just stay here with me.”
Yu Chen stammered as he nodded and continued fanning him.
From beginning to end, He Zhen never made eye contact with Song Wenjing, even though he had long since noticed the meaningful look in the other boy’s eyes.
“Do you want some starch sausage?” Yu Chen said enthusiastically. “The starch sausages he grills are especially good. Want to try one?”
Song Wenjing smiled and shook his head. “No, I’m full.”
Yu Chen said, “Oh, then—”
“Yu Chencheng, I want a bite of the sandwich.” He Zhen slowly turned the skewer in his hand. “I’m hungry.”
“Right away.” Yu Chen quickly tore open the sandwich wrapper and held it up for He Zhen. “Boss, why don’t you go eat? Leave the grilling to me.”
“No need.” He Zhen bit into it. “I still need to earn a full day’s labor fee. Then I’ll wait for the boss to pay me.”
“Tch.” Yu Chen nudged him. “At worst, all the money we earn can go to you.”
He Zhen lifted a brow lightly. “Not enough.”
Yu Chen teased him, “Greedy!”
The two of them started bickering back and forth, completely forgetting that Song Wenjing was still standing there watching.
Only after Song Wenjing left did He Zhen ask in a low voice, “He’s the classmate who’s been chasing you for a year?”
Yu Chen looked stunned. “How did you know?”
He Zhen’s expression remained calm. “Instinct.”
Yu Chen did not quite believe him and deliberately teased, “Then use your instincts and guess what I want to do right now.”
He Zhen said, “Kiss me.”
Yu Chen broke instantly and turned his face away, refusing to look at him.
After staying busy the entire day, it was not until dusk fell that Yu Chen finally packed up the stall with He Zhen.
Today’s event had been especially lively. Not only had the university film club come to interview everyone, but a local TV station had been invited too.
Yu Chen had originally wanted to accept an interview, but considering He Zhen’s identity, he chose not to.
Carefully folding up the hand-drawn poster He Zhen had made, Yu Chen tucked it into his backpack, planning to have it framed someday and hang it in his bedroom.
When they got back to He Zhen’s place, Yu Chen counted up the day’s earnings.
It could be said that he himself had had a pretty easy day. He Zhen had hardly let him go near the grill plate at all, only allowing him to do simple tasks.
After subtracting all the other food he himself had bought because he was greedy, he and He Zhen had made a net profit of one hundred and fifty yuan. And that was not even enough to cover dinner yet.
Yu Chen felt pretty dejected.
How was it that those sausage aunties could make enough so easily to buy Audis?
Just as he was sitting there all frowning and gloomy, He Zhen came out after showering.
After soaking in grease and smoke all day, He Zhen had gone straight into the bathroom as soon as he got home. Now that he had come out again, he looked much more refreshed.
“Why do you look so unhappy?”
Draped lazily in a bathrobe, He Zhen slowly sat down beside him.
“We barely made anything. It’s not even enough for your labor costs.”
Sitting cross-legged, Yu Chen’s gaze drifted unintentionally to He Zhen’s faintly visible waist and lower stomach.
He thought he had just seen the V-lines.
“It’s fine. The point was the experience.”
He Zhen dried his damp hair, his eyes shifting toward the bathroom. “Want to shower now, or eat first?”
“Shower first, then spicy crayfish.” Narrowing his eyes, Yu Chen said ingratiatingly, “I want the mala flavor.”
Unable to help himself, He Zhen ruffled Yu Chen’s hair. “Do you want beer too?”
Yu Chen had never drunk alcohol in his whole life, but at He Zhen’s reminder, his heart did itch a little.
Lifting damp eyes at him in a sticky, clingy way, he asked, “Can I?”
“Of course.” He Zhen’s Adam’s apple rolled obscurely. “There’s red wine at home. We’d have to buy the beer.”
“We can have both.” Full of anticipation, Yu Chen dashed into the bathroom. “Boss! Don’t forget to find me pajamas!”
He Zhen answered, then searched for a long time in the wardrobe.
At last, his right hand settled on a light brown shirt whose hem was not quite so long.
After hesitating for a long while, he still chose that one.
Half an hour later, Yu Chen came out wearing the shirt.
“Boss, isn’t this shirt a little too short?”
Yu Chen had stood inside comparing for a long time just now and had discovered that the shirt barely covered his butt. The moment he raised an arm, the hem would slide right up to the tops of his thighs, exposing far too much.
Of course, wearing it like that at home was not such a big deal.
But in front of the person he liked, he still felt a little embarrassed.
He Zhen had already blow-dried his hair and was leaning against the sofa reading. Hearing movement, he turned his head slightly, and the cool dark eyes in his face suddenly deepened.
The room was filled with the scent of body wash on Yu Chen, carrying the faint fragrance of tuberose.
He Zhen had bought that bottle of body wash specifically for Yu Chen. He himself had never once used it.
Perhaps the light in the room was simply too bright. Strong illumination draped itself over Yu Chen’s body, and as he moved, the thin shirt could not fully conceal him, faintly revealing the snowy skin of his chest beneath.
The ambiguous atmosphere was like the breeze of an autumn night, softly stirring at He Zhen’s heartstrings and making his heartbeat quicken against his will.
He lowered his eyes and began regretting his own actions.
“It’s alright. It’s not too short.”
Making Yu Chen wear this piece of clothing was just pure self-inflicted torment.
Slowly and methodically, he went on turning the pages of his book, but his thoughts had long since left it.
Yu Chen leaned over and sat lightly beside He Zhen. “Did you order the food?”
“Mm.” He Zhen rubbed his fingers over the book, outwardly calm and refined.
Yu Chen asked again, “How many pounds of crayfish did you order?”
Trying hard to steady his thoughts, He Zhen said, “Enough for you to eat.”
“That’s good.” Smiling brightly, Yu Chen snatched He Zhen’s book away. Just like when he was younger, with a white towel on his head and looking like a wet little puppy, he came over and asked, “Can you help me dry my hair?”
Staring at the dampness on Yu Chen’s long lashes, He Zhen nodded. “Mm.”
Yu Chen obediently sat down cross-legged and lowered his head, cooperating completely.
What he did not know was just how tempting that compliant look of his was to He Zhen.
The bathroom lighting was not as bright as the living room, so he had no idea the clothes on him were a little see-through.
If he had known, then no matter what, he would never have wandered around in front of He Zhen dressed like this.
At that moment, Xiao Yu sent a WeChat message.
[Xiao Yu: Fat Chencheng, you’re on your school’s official account.]
[Yu Chen: Hm?]
[Xiao Yu: They gave you a name. They’re calling you the Starch Sausage Prince.]
[Yu Chen: Oh ho! I like that name!]
He Zhen used a gentle warm setting on the dryer, his fingers threading softly through Yu Chen’s hair.
He could see that Yu Chen was chatting on WeChat, but he did not know with whom.
[Xiao Yu: Who’s that next to you? I can’t see clearly.]
[Yu Chen: My boss.]
[Xiao Yu: Oh, I thought you had the guts to cheat on He Zhen and sneak around with another man.]
[Yu Chen: I wouldn’t dare. If he found out, he’d break my legs.]
“What are you chatting about? You’re smiling so happily.” He Zhen’s upbringing told him he should not casually snoop at other people’s phones, but seeing Yu Chen laughing so hard he was practically trembling, the curiosity in his heart only grew stronger.
“It’s Xiao Yu.”
Yu Chen generously held out the phone for He Zhen to look at. “He said he saw me on the official account.”
He Zhen quickly skimmed through the chat history between the two of them, his expression unreadable. “Am I really such a rough person in your eyes?”
“Ah? No!” Yu Chen explained. “It’s just a figure of speech.”
He Zhen wrapped an arm around him and turned him gently around. “What’s he busy with lately?”
“Oh, him? He’s busy worrying about final exams and scared he’s going to fail.”
[Xiao Yu: What are you doing right now?]
[Yu Chen: I’m at my boss’s place, waiting for mala crayfish.]
[Xiao Yu: You’re staying at He Zhen’s place?]
Yu Chen’s face heated instantly, and he hurried to explain, “I’m just staying here a few days, that’s all.”
[Xiao Yu: Why are you feeling guilty? You’re both adults already.]
[Yu Chen: I’m not.]
This part of the conversation, Yu Chen secretly angled away from He Zhen, terrified He Zhen might see it.
[Xiao Yu: Then are you two sleeping in the same bedroom?]
Yu Chen hesitated, then told Xiao Yu in complete detail about how the dog at He Zhi’an’s house had scratched up He Zhen’s tatami.
[Yu Chen: So we have to sleep together temporarily for a few days.]
This time, Xiao Yu did not reply right away.
Two seconds later, he sent a twenty-second voice message.
The sound of the hair dryer filled Yu Chen’s ears.
Switching to earpiece mode, Yu Chen pressed the phone to his ear. To hear Xiao Yu more clearly, he deliberately turned the volume up.
Seeing that he was listening to a voice message, He Zhen quietly switched off the hair dryer.
And so Xiao Yu’s crisp, cheerful voice rang out clearly between the two of them.
“Fat Chencheng! You’re way too naive! Yesterday He Zhen could say the tatami was ruined by a dog, and tonight he can say, ‘I’m only rubbing against it, I’m not going in!’ Just wait till your butt hurts tomorrow morning!”
