Assistant Architect by Xi He Qing Ling

Chapter 208: Give It To Me

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Watching her smile, Zhang Siyi thought her beauty was ageless. For some, beauty was an inherent trait. Whether it was Gu Yu’s mother who was over fifty years old, or this elder classmate, their beauty was like the comfort of a warm spring breeze.

After sitting down, the three of them ordered food first before catching up with each other’s lives. Xie Jiayi inquired about Zhang Siyi’s background and how he met Gu Yu.

While it was all gossip, her questions were neither embarrassing nor offensive, making the conversation flow naturally. As if they were long-time friends, Zhang Siyi felt very comfortable with the questions and had no issues with answering them.

She heard of Zhang Siyi plans to return to the UK to study for his Master’s degree. Xie Jiayi also shared her experience in the United States while she was earning her Master’s degree. Her funny anecdotes made Zhang Siyi laugh a few times.

After Xie Jiayi finished, she glanced at Gu Yu again and asked: “If he really left China for graduate school, what are you going to do?”

Zhang Siyi was stunned. Xie Jiayi raised an issue with which he had the least courage to discuss face-to-face with Gu Yu. Although he knew very well that he would have to face the pain of separation when he left, he was only focused on the now and immersed himself with good feelings by devoting himself to Gu Yu. He didn’t even want to think about the future because of the possibility of making Gu Yu upset. If Gu Yu showed any bit of pain and sorrow, it would make Zhang Siyi waver about his decision to leave.

Composing himself, Gu Yu took his time to drink his water then said: “I’ll wait for him to come back. What else is there for me to do?”

However, no matter how good Gu Yu’s acting was, Zhang Siyi has been with him for then half a year and as result, Gu Yu couldn’t hide the brief flash of sadness on his normally composed face.

Zhang Siyi lowered his eyes and didn’t speak. Negative emotions such as reluctance and hesitation began to ferment from the bottom of his heart.

Breaking the heavy atmosphere, Xie Jiayi asked: “Have you ever thought about going with him?”

Zhang Siyi’s heart suddenly lifted and looked straight at Gu Yu. To go with him? Since Gu Yu was already a full-fledged architect with a license, he never thought of the possibility. But, it doesn’t seem impossible either…..

In fact, one of the schools that Zhang Siyi applied for wasn’t a standard university. It was a private institution organized by the Architects Union. Although it was a specialized educational facility, the program wasn’t any less prestigious than any of the other famous universities in the world.

In addition to the five-year RIBA course, the institution also had some one-year advanced courses available for specialized study. The academic courses covered a variety of topics which attracted architectural enthusiasts, professionals, scholars, and even licensed contractors around the world to deepen their level of training and understanding.

If Gu Yu wanted to expand his knowledge at this stage with his qualifications, it would be a cinch to apply, gain acceptance and go.

Would he really leave with Zhang Siyi? After all, Gu Yu was a Director of Borderless with high expectations of his superiors and was deeply respected and well liked by his subordinates. How can he just leave with the heavy weight of responsibility on his shoulders?

Even knowing that it was practically impossible, Zhang Siyi still watched Gu Yu closely for any indication of his thoughts. Gu Yu did not answer. His brief smile was self-evident.

Xie Jiayi also smiled and said: “You were always so rational …”

She raised her glass, touched Gu Yu’s glass then took a sip. She raised her eyes again: “Well, short separations can also be good. Some people say that distance is the best test of feelings.”

As she steered the conversation to another topic, she inquired about the overall situation of architecture at home and discussed issues from abroad. When telling her interesting stories and expressing her thoughts, her eloquence, depth of knowledge and insight in the field weren’t any less then Gu Yu’s knowledge. Zhang Siyi was impressed by her charisma.

In front of Xie Jiayi, Gu Yu also relaxed. From the cold male God into a very close neighbor, his usual quips and poison tongue were none existent.

After finishing their meal, Xie Jiayi got up to hug them one by one. When she held Zhang Siyi, Zhang Siyi was too nervous to talk. He only noticed the faint feminine perfume and heard her gentle and sincere voice in his ears: “I’m really happy for you both. I wish you a lifetime of love and happiness.”

As she released him and stepped away she said a gentle ‘ah’ then rummaged through her handbag. From inside, she brought out an envelope and handed it to Zhang Siyi: “I almost forgot. This gift is for you.”

Zhang Siyi nervously said: “A gift? But I haven’t prepared anything in return!”

Xie Jiayi chuckled out loud. She reached up to squeeze his cheek: “It’s not something valuable but I believe you will cherish it.”

Zhang Siyi could only accept it and say thank you.

While outside walking to the car, Xie Jiayi asked Zhang Siyi if she could spend a private moment with Gu Yu.

Zhang Siyi slowed down and immediately replied: “Well, sure. Okay.” He turned around to give them some space.

Gu Yu looked at Zhang Siyi’s back walking away and wondered: “What did you want to say alone with me?”

Smiling kindly, Xie Jiayi looked at him in the eye and said: “I wanted to say it inside, but I was afraid it would be embarrassing. It is just my personal opinion, but as your dear friend and elder classmate, I wanted to tell you.”

Gu Yu looked at her seriously: “Ok. What is it?”

“Gu Yu, rationality is your advantage, but for feelings, being too rational isn’t good sometimes. Work is something you will always be able to search and find, but love isn’t something you can control and look for. Only love can me met and not found. Sometimes, it is missed entirely and you won’t be able to find your soulmate for the rest of your life.” Xie Jiayi eyes flickered slightly, as if recalling her own experience.

She recovered her smile and continued: “At the table, I mentioned how distance was the best test of feelings. Why is it the best? Using reverse phycology, it is best because it is the most powerful killer of emotions. We are all simply human. When separated by thousands of miles, it is difficult to guarantee what will happen with our hearts when we are lonely and left vulnerable. The power of distance and time is much stronger than you think. You may not be able to overcome it, so don’t be so quick to test your feelings. Most ordinary people don’t make it through the test. Don’t test your luck, and do everything in your power to stay together as much as possible so you won’t have any regrets.”

After listening to her speech, Gu Yu frowned slightly in deep thought. He seemed to be greatly touched. After a while, he regained his senses and nodded: “I know.”

Gu Yu hugged her again: “Well, I will cherish….”

Taking advantage of the time of Xie Jiayi and Gu Yu were away from him, Zhang Siyi secretly opened the envelope to see what was inside.   ……..!!!  Shit! Pictures of Gu Yu when he was young! Ooh, no, no no…. Gu Yu isn’t actually old; these are photos from his university days.

Zhang Siyi held a total of three pictures, each with a short note, probably written by Xie Jiayi, printed beautifully on the backside.

 Holding the photo, Zhang Siyi stared at the image. Gu Yu was wearing a white short-sleeved shirt carrying a navy-blue shoulder bag. A “boyish heart” almost popped out of his chest!

He turned it around to look at the note: “Gu Yu’s undergraduate admission commemorative photo- 2004.9.12.” Taken in 2004… Eleven years ago…. So, Gu Yu was only 18 years old?

Aaaah! Gu Yu looked so young and pure at that time! ~ \ (≧ ▽ ≦) / ~

Zhang Siyi looked at the next one: “Department of Literature and Art Festival. Gu Yu’s speech on stage. 2005.10” Gu Yu was actually wearing a traditional robe and headpiece! Ha-ha-ha!

The last one – “xxx National College Architecture Cup First Place – 2006.07”

Wow, the twenty-year old Gu Yu was so handsome! He held a trophy and stood out from the group of people. Holding the photograph, he touched the image and smiled.  ….. What was I doing during that time? 18-6 = 12. Hmm, Sixth grade…. then two years of middle school….  (= _ = |||)

Looking at the photo one last time, Zhang Siyi carefully put it back into the envelope and held the packet to his chest momentarily, cherishing it. Turning around, he saw Xie Jiayi beckoning him back as she was finishing up with her conversation with Gu Yu.

Running back smiling with the envelope in hand, Zhang Siyi said with excitement: “Thank you! I love it!”

Xie Jiayi winked: “Your welcome.”

After sending her off, Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi walked to their car. When they sat down with their seatbelts on and ready to go, they both asked at the same time:

Gu Yu: “What did she give you?”

Zhang Siyi: “What did she tell you?”

Turning their heads and looking at each other, they smiled expectantly. Zhang Siyi felt a little embarrassed. Although he tried to stay calm to suppress his curiosity, he couldn’t stop himself from asking.

But, shaking his head, Gu Yu replied: “Nothing.”

Immediately, Zhang Siyi felt upset. He neither showed Gu Yu the photos nor mentioned them. Gu Yu didn’t ask about them either. Zhang Siyi started to feel anxious by the lack of Gu Yu’s interest. He didn’t want to nag Gu Yu about it, so he changed the topic and asked about Xie Jiayi.

During the car ride home, Gu Yu talked about Xie Jiayi’s history; how she went to Yale for a Master’s and right after earning her degree, she worked under a famous architect in the industry in the United States. She was also the representative of the Chinese Architect’s Association.

After listening to her exceptional resume, Zhang Siyi admired her more. Closing the car door with a bang, Zhang Siyi suddenly said: “She is remarkable. Both beautiful and talented. With her exceedingly gorgeous looks and high intellect, if a straight man like myself, could turn gay with you, why didn’t you straighten out and date her?”

Gu Yu laughed at him: “Turning gay with me probably means you weren’t very straight to begin with.”

“Fuck Off!” Zhang Siyi was furious. Remembering the questions he didn’t answer, Zhang Siyi pulled his arm forcefully and demanded: “What did she tell you before she left?”

Arriving at the door, before taking the key out of his pocket, Gu Yu stopped and looked at Zhang Siyi in the eye and asked: “Are you jealous again?”

Gu Yu gathered him in his arms and kissed his forehead: “She told me to love you.”  Releasing him, Gu Yu inserted the key and unlocked the door.

Zhang Siyi: “…”

Zhang Siyi stood in a daze for a minute, blushing. He soon regained his senses and asked, skeptical: “Really? You aren’t just trying to sweet talk me, are you?”

From out of his coat pocket, Gu Yu grabbed his mobile phone and handed it to Zhang Siyi: “Since you don’t believe me, call her yourself and ask.”

How can Zhang Siyi simply ask her when previously, she specifically asked him to give her some private time with Gu Yu! Still doubtful, Zhang Siyi said: “If it was that simple, why did she tell me to go away?” As he put on his indoor shoes, he muttered: “Clearly, you were talking to her for a long time….”

“I’m paraphrasing.” Gu Yu waited until Zhang Siyi changed his shoes. Once finished, he grabbed his arm and pulled Zhang Siyi into his embrace and teased him: “Otherwise, you might run away with another man…..”

Zhang Siyi choked: “How is that possible!”

In order to prod at Zhang Siyi further, Gu Yu pretended to disbelieve him and raised his chin in defiance: “Who knows. We can’t get married so I have no guarantee that you won’t run away with someone else.”

Turning red, Zhang Siyi was starting to feel guilty for his accusations and afraid of hurting Gu Yu, he anxiously proclaimed: “I said it wasn’t possible, so it’s not possible!”

Gu Yu looked back at him and asked: “And what proof do I have?”

Zhang Siyi quickly said: “I can swear it! I’ll write a letter of guarantee!”

Gu Yu looked meaningfully into his eyes and solemnly said: “Two years ago, would you have ever thought you would be with me now?”

Caught off guard, Zhang Siyi didn’t know what to say.

Without giving him an opportunity to answer, Gu Yu added: “Forget even two years ago. What about last Christmas, did you think you would end up in a relationship with me?”

Quiet, Zhang Siyi didn’t want to answer. He has thought about this very question before and the answer was very clear; No.

Gu Yu: “Hmmm? Did the cat catch your tongue? How can you guarantee what will happen in the next two years? No one can predict the future. Xie Jiayi wanted to express this.”

Feeling emotionally taxed, Zhang Siyi felt like he could cry and was quiet for a long time.

Gu Yu bopped him on the nose then hugged him tightly in his arms: “Look at you…… You want to know, but you can’t take it. Don’t you know, curiosity kills the cat.”

Zhang Siyi held onto him tightly feeling helpless and said: “What Can I do?”

“That’s why she only told me.” Gu Yu patted his back gently, soothing him: “Well, it’s not something you have to think about. Do what you want and I’ll take care of the rest.”

Although Zhang Siyi trusted Gu Yu, letting him solve everything made him depressed. He wasn’t a kid anymore: “We should discuss and solve problems together.”

Gu Yu was quick to ask: “What did she give you. Show me.”

“In my left pocket. You can see it for yourself.” Zhang Siyi was frightened by Gu Yu’s tone of voice. Like a koala bear, he hugged Gu Yu tightly and was reluctant to let him go.

Gu Yu deliberately turned around and began his search by fondling his waist: “Where was it? Here?”

“…… Where are you touching?” Squirming under his assault, Zhang Siyi was forced to release his hand and laughed out loud. Zhang Siyi took out the envelope from his pocket.

He would have liked to ask Gu Yu about the history of each photograph, but once Gu Yu realized what they were, his face changed dramatically. He immediately kept the photos to himself and hid them in his pocket….. Xie Jiayi had Gu Yu’s black history and even dared to give them to Zhang Siyi. Embarrassing!

Zhang Siyi questioned:  “Um… What are you doing?”

Leaving to go upstairs, Gu Yu said: “What’s so special about these photos. They aren’t as good as the one you took.”

Realizing his photos were confiscated, Zhang Siyi jumped up suddenly with anger: “Hey! Where are you going? They aren’t bad? I think you look super handsome!”

After a few steps, catching Gu Yu quickly, Zhang Siyi grabbed him from behind, clinging to him shouting: “Stop! Give me back the photos! That was my gift from Xie Jiayi!”

While dragging him upstairs, Gu Yu protected his pockets and teased Zhang Siyi: “Where are you touching me? The envelope isn’t there.”

Zhang Siyi: “I saw you put it there!”

Gu Yu: “Don’t push so hard. The photo will get crushed and be ruined.”

Zhang Siyi: “Fuck! Stop being mean! Give it back….”

Gu Yu: “Ah? What did you say?”

Zhang Siyi: “I said, give it to me !!!”

Gu Yu laughed: “Well, go lie on your back on the bed. I’ll give it to you.”

Zhang Siyi: “…  Pervert!!!”

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Assistant Architect by Xi He Qing Ling

Chapter 207: Elder Classmate

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Sensing Zhang Siyi’s discomfort, Gu Yu interrupted them: “Alright, that’s enough now.”

With their fun ending unceremoniously, they frowned in disappointment: “Eh? A few questions and already Gu Yu was making a fuss?”

“Ha-ha! I have never seen Old Four so nervous in my life! Today is such an eye-opener!”

“Hey, when Old Three guessed you were gay, I thought you would find someone like Little Peach to date. I never expected you to be with someone so normal!”

“…..” Little Peach? Are they talking about Tao Fei? Ha-ha!

When gossip about Tao Fei started, Zhang Siyi inwardly cheered on the side. Now that they had a few drinks under their belts, their tongues loosened even more. After gossiping about the less-than normal Tao Fei for a while, the group of straight ‘old-men’ turned their attention towards another topic and debated: What kind of guy was more gay?

“Okay, it’s time for dinner!” Old Chiang served the food and opened another bottle of wine. Since Gu Yu brought his significant other to the reunion, it was only natural that Gu Yu was the focus of everyone’s toast.

Originally, Gu Yu wanted to use the car as an excuse not to drink, but someone quickly interceded: “Your Little Friend is here…… I don’t believe he can’t drive.”

Wanting to propagate Gu Yu’s farse, Zhang Siyi was going to reply that he couldn’t drive, however, the man commented: “If he can’t drink, then you can drink for him. Here, have a glass!”

Prodded hard on the side by Zhang Siyi’s elbow, Gu Yu no longer refused. He quickly raised a glass and drank it all.

As Gu Yu drank, someone threw Zhang Siyi a bottle of chocolate milk. With a burst of laughter, the crowd pounded the table.

Zhang Siyi: “??? ” …..Even if I don’t drink, you don’t have to give me a bottle of milk, right?

Over the course of the meal, the group was quite lively. At first, Zhang Siyi didn’t feel connected to Gu Yu’s group of friends at all. It wasn’t until they started talking about their University days that Zhang Siyi reacted. The Department of Architecture at Big-T University was one of the most difficult majors in the country to get into. It usually only accepted the highest science and math scores of each province in the country. That is to say, he now eating and drinking with a table of elite students and architectural idols!

With newfound understanding, Zhang Siyi saw the group of middle-aged-uncles in a new light and was suddenly awestruck!

As the bottle of wine emptied, another bottle appeared to replenish everyone’s empty glass and another round of toasts were raised. A man next to Gu Yu became emotional, took his arm and said: “Four, without you, I wouldn’t be here today! Being your roommate in the dorm, I think I, Qi Yueping, am the luckiest person alive!”

His statement reminded everyone else at the table how their dorm got rich through Gu Yu. Noisily agreeing, everyone became serious momentarily and spoke their heartfelt thanks to the Architectural Department’s idol and offered a cup.

After everyone’s’ round of toasts, Gu Yu had the opportunity to say: “Don’t thank me. Thank you for your time and hard work. Thank fate …..”

As the many memories engulfed them, the group of ‘old men’ momentarily felt like students again and were moved to tears. The rowdy group of emotional men filled up their glasses once more.

Sitting amongst them, Zhang Siyi was also deeply touched. Gu Yu rarely accepted the gratitude of others. Even when Su Yuan thanked him, he said there was no need.

Yes, without each individual’s maximum effort, there wouldn’t have been a chance to encounter each other.

The same was true of Zhang Siyi. If he didn’t have the heart to study architecture, he wouldn’t have entered Gu Yu’s world. If he hadn’t continued to search for a job related to architecture post-graduation even when the market was depressed, he wouldn’t have met Gu Yu. If he had simply given up, he wouldn’t have Gu Yu’s affection….

Opportunities are out there for the taking. Only with persistence and effort will your social and professional circle expand, giving the chance, if you are lucky, to meet better people and make those opportunities real.

Four hours later, it was almost time for supper and as if everyone’s inner clock was set to the same alarm, they began to gather their belongings and say their goodbyes.

Having drunk many glasses of wine, when Gu Yu stood up from the table, he stumbled. Zhang Siyi quickly grabbed him to support him from falling over, causing laughter from the other men around them. Among them, the tallest with a rough voice, who was the leader of the dormitory, patted Zhang Siyi’s back energetically and said: “We entrust Gu Yu to you!”

Listening, Gu Yu turned to look at Zhang Siyi affectionately. When Zhang Siyi flushed red, the crowd laughed again. They teased him mercilessly: “Little Boyfriend…”, “Too Pure…..” All the while, Gu Yu was laughing and smiling at him with love.

After Zhang Siyi said his goodbyes to the crowd, he supported Gu Yu while walking to the car. He helped him into the passenger seat, then walked around to the drivers’ side and got in. Ready to leave, he told Gu Yu to fasten his seat belt, but nothing happened. When he looked at Gu Yu, he was staring blankly into space.

“Hey, are you really drunk?” Zhang Siyi leaned over to personally fasten Gu Yu’s seatbelt for him. It took him a lot of effort to pull the belt over Gu Yu’s lap. Gu Yu suddenly embraced him.

In protest, Zhang Siyi tried to break free of his grasp, but like Popeye-the-sailor, he seemed to have gained extra strength from drinking and couldn’t extricate himself from Gu Yu’s hold.

His hold became caresses as Gu Yu leaned over to kiss Zhang Siyi passionately. Concerned at the prospect of being seen, Zhang Siyi rubbed his lips and scolded Gu Yu: “You taste like wine! People walking by can see us in the car!” Gu Yu was too bold!

Gu Yu gazed at him with desire and licked his lips slowly saying: “But you are sweet…. milky….”

Zhang Siyi: “…” Damn that chocolate milk! (= 皿 =)

Not wanting to debate with a drunkard, Zhang Siyi settled him in, quickly started the car, and pressed on the accelerator. At the next traffic light, Zhang Siyi glanced at Gu Yu and wondered what he was dreaming of as he saw him with a grin on his face, fast asleep.

Since it was the weekend, there was heavy traffic. It took over and hour to arrive back home. Pulling into the parking space and opening the door, Gu Yu woke up. Again, Zhang Siyi had to support Gu Yu as they walked to the front of the building.

Gu Yu grabbed Zhang Siyi’s neck with one hand and pulled his head closer in order to nibble at his ear.

“Hey… Stop it! Don’t make a scene!” Zhang Siyi demanded. Although they were close to their home, there was still more than a dozen meters to go on the sidewalk until they reached the entrance. It was really terrifying!

As he approached the door, Zhang Siyi looked up and was surprised to see He Chengtian and Gu Yao standing side-by-side, holding hands with a large plastic bag.

The four of them were facing each other. Panic stricken, like a kid caught with his hand in the candy jar, He Chengtian quickly let go of Gu Yao’s hand. Nervous, he stole a glance at Gu Yu expecting to be reprimanded, but instead he was surprised. Gu Yu was nibbling at Zhang Siyi’s ear and trying to kiss the side of his face.

Zhang Siyi was so embarrassed that he couldn’t wait to dig a hole and push Gu Yu into it! …..Fuck! What are they doing here? I thought they were spending Christmas together!

Given the situation, Gu Yao was quick and immediately asked: “Is my brother drunk?”

Pushing Gu Yu’s face away with his hand, Zhang Siyi pretended to be calm and said: “Yeah! Quickly open the door for me so I can put this drunkard inside!”

Inside, Zhang Siyi was too lazy to bring Gu Yu upstairs to his room. Instead, he thought it best to let Gu Yu lie down for a little while on the sofa to sober up. He dragged Gu Yu to the couch and unceremoniously dumped him onto the cushions. Gu Yu caught Zhang Siyi’s arm and pulled him over.

Caught off-guard, Zhang Siyi fell flat on top of him. Bodies pressed against each other, holding him down, Gu Yu wrapped his arms around him followed by a wave of kisses.

He Chengtian arrived just in time to witness Gu Yu’s actions. Mouth wide open in shock, He Chengtian jaw dropped.

“See no evil, speak no evil, hear no evil!” Gu Yao was nervous and leading him away with a guilty conscience, forced He Chengtian to turn his back from the sofa towards the kitchen.

He Chengtian’s mouth twitched. What the hell is going on? Was Gu Yu such a playboy that anyone would do?

Mulling it over, He Chengtian heard Gu Yu’s deep voice coming from behind….

“Call me Brother.”

Immediately, Zhang Siyi deliberately lowered his voice and said: “Don’t make trouble. Someone is…..”

Gu Yu insisted: “Call me Honey.”

Pausing, Zhang Siyi tried to coaxed him, practically begging: “My good brother, let me go and I will pour you a glass of water to sober up!”

Gu Yu chuckled: “Oh, good boy! Call me husband….”

Zhang Siyi: “……”

Gu Yao: “……”

He Chengtian fragile nerves finally broke!

Half an hour later, while in the kitchen chopping bok-choy, He Chengtian asked: “So, is your brother gay?”

Gu Yao: “Yes.”

He Chengtian: “He and Zhang Siyi are lovers?”

Gu Yao: “Yes.”

He Chengtian: “You always knew …?”

Gu Yao: “Yes.”

On the cutting board, He Chengtian suddenly made a resounding ‘bang’ as he chopped off a large section of bok-choy.

Gu Yao lowered her head and calmly said: “If it bothers you that I have such an elder brother, don’t go out with me.”

He Chengtian was shocked and immediately replied: “No, no, no… Why would I mind? Well, Zhang Siyi is also my friend and in fact, there isn’t anything to fuss about. I have seen this kind of thing a lot before, ha ha ha….”  He Chengtian laughed briefly. Actually, this was the first time he saw a live show.

While He Chengtian continued chopping bok choy, he heard the kitchen door open and a voice.

Finally, after all this time, Zhang Siyi managed to subdue Gu Yu and left him alone on the sofa. He opened the kitchen door and asked: “Do you need my help?”

He Chengtian was furious from his heart, and he slammed the knife down hard on the cutting board again. Turning his head, he raised his voice: “Zhang Siyi!”

……. Do you fucking treat me as a big brother! Such a thing, you were hiding it from me all this time! What about my job offer…? Were you fucking already!?!?

Getting angrier by the second, He Chengtian was thinking how best to interrogate him. Just as he shouted Zhang Siyi’s name, Gu Yao’s interruption stopped him in time: “If you can’t accept that my sister-in-law is a man, then I will turn a deaf ear to what you told me outside just now.”

Her words were quick and fast as she lowered her voice. Zhang Siyi, who stood at the door, didn’t hear her.

But, He Chengtian standing next to Gu Yao, could hear her clearly. Sister-in-law, Zhang Siyi? Pfft–!

Zhang Siyi’s attention was still on He Chengtian’s roar. He shrank his neck and sheepishly asked: “Uh, He Chengtian, what’s the matter?”

He Chengtian wiped his mouth and coughed: “No. Nothing….”

Smiling, Gu Yao turned her head towards Zhang Siyi and waved her hand: “No thanks Second Brother. Today, He Chengtian promised he would cook for me. You can go rest.”

Seeing He Chengtian’s reaction, Zhang Siyi scratched his head. Did Gu Yao talk to him?

When the meal was prepared, since Gu Yu was still passed out drunk on the sofa, the three of them sat down together, ready to eat supper.

With confidence, He Chengtian served the food that he made. Zhang Siyi glanced at it; bok choy and pork stir fry, radish soup, tomato scrambled egg. They were simple home-cooked dishes that couldn’t be any more basic, but even so, they smelled pretty good.

“He Chengtian, not only are you a businessman, but you can cook too! I remember you went to university abroad. Did you learn to cook then?” Zhang Siyi asked.

“Ha-ha, when did I ever have the time as a student to learn. I learned how to cook from my nanny.” He Chengtian bragged.

Zhang Siyi gave He Chengtian the thumbs up in admiration and glanced at Gu Yao with a playful smirk.

Just so Zhang Siyi knew, He Chengtian explained that today, he originally wanted to invite Gu Yao out to a restaurant, but she didn’t want to go. Instead, she wanted to taste his own handiwork. As a result, they went to the supermarket to buy groceries. Since Gu Yao didn’t think they would return until much later, bumping into each other at the entrance was least expected.

As for the two of them holding hands, Zhang Siyi was too embarrassed to ask.

When they had finished eating, He Chengtian consciously went to wash the dishes. Although the washing was quick and the kitchen was messy with spilled water, the overall performance was quite good.

Afterwards, the ‘little couple’ went out to walk the dog. Zhang Siyi was left to clean up the water in the kitchen and getting the mop from the closet, he started mopping the floor. After two drags across the floor, he heard Gu Yu calling his name.

Zhang Siyi ran out and saw Gu Yu awake on the couch, staring darkly at the neck-tie that bound his wrists.

“…………”

Zhang Siyi hurried over to untie it for him. Gu Yu flirted: “So you like this kind of play…..”

Hearing his unique drunken, husky voice, Zhang Siyi blushed and said: “Who told you to act like a delinquent when drunk.”

Gu Yu shook out his hands and rubbed his wrists: “How was I a delinquent?”

Zhang Siyi was so angry, he used the untied neck-tie in his hands to punish Gu Yu with a whip. But, Gu Yu caught his hands instead and pulled him down. Zhang Siyi immediately surrendered: “Don’t start. Get up and eat while the food is still warm.”

Now noticing the aroma in the air, Gu Yu was surprised and asked: “Did you cook?”

All this time, Gu Yu was the one who was in charge of cooking meals for the family.

Zhang Siyi: “It wasn’t me! It was He Chengtian!”

Gu Yu’s joyous smiling face instantly changed to a cold frown: “When? He cooked here?”

Zhang Siyi told Gu Yu the situation and emphasized the fact that He Chengtian saw his drunken state kiss him. Only interested in the food, Gu Yu didn’t seem to care about the latter.  Indeed, the table was set without leftovers present.

Zhang Siyi placed a glass of water on the table and handed Gu Yu a pair of chopsticks. First, he tasted the tomato scrambled eggs: “It’s really unpalatable. The tomato chunks are too big and it doesn’t even taste good.” He continued tasting the other dishes and offered his harsh critique: “What the heck are these cut veggies? Did he do this by hand?  The radish soup too, they aren’t cooked enough….”

Zhang Siyi: “…” He was really glad that He Chengtian wasn’t here to hear Gu Yu’s critique otherwise Zhang Siyi thought He Chengtian would start a fight.

In order to help his friend, Zhang Siyi placated Gu Yu: “He Chengtian only learned how to cook for the sake of it. Your standards are too high. How can the skills of this beginner be compared to yours?”

Gu Yu’s expression became neutral. Zhang Siyi inwardly sighed… so quick to complain and yet, he still ate a bowlful of rice with these ‘unpalatable’ dishes!

When He Chengtian came back with Gu Yao after walking the dog, he saw the poor state Gu Yu was in. Maybe, because of all the excitement, He Chengtian was quick to say goodnight and leave.

After a night of sleep, it was Sunday. Today, it was time to meet with a close friend from University; Gu Yu’s elder classmate.

Her home was in Liaodong and normally she flew home with a connecting flight through Beijing. This time however, she specially flew through Haicheng so she could meet them.

With yesterdays’ hectic experience of being stared at by a group of men, in comparison, today’s plan was tame. Only needing to meet one person, Zhang Siyi felt much more relaxed.

Gu Yu made reservations for dinner at a hotel. The two arrived a little early and was taken to their seat by the staff. Within two minutes of sitting, Zhang Siyi saw a lady in a dark blue coat carrying a white handbag, walking towards them.

Calmly, Gu Yu got up smiling and waved briefly at the women. In return, the women smiled broadly.

Zhang Siyi sat motionless for a minute before reacting; Wow, so beautiful!

When the model like empress approached, she first addressed Gu Yu then looked at Zhang Siyi seriously. She extended a hand and gently said: “Hello. I am Gu Yu’s elder classmate. You can call me Xie Jiayu.”

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Assistant Architect by Xi He Qing Ling

Chapter 206: Old Four

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After a quick shower, Zhang Siyi returned to the bedroom to continue his work. Spreading out his portfolio images and application materials over the desk top, Zhang Siyi had taken over the writing table that Gu Yu normally used to practice calligraphy.

Assembling what he needed, he sent the first set of images to Su Yuan electronically. About half an hour later, Su Yuan emailed Zhang Siyi back and sent him a row of thumbs-up emojis. She expressed her surprise: “I really didn’t expect your skills to improve so much. Several designs of yours are very well thought out with both maturity and your own style. It’s a lot more material than those with portfolios that were specifically created for the application.”

Bolstered with pride, Zhang Siyi was confidant, but still, he remained modest and said: “This is just the first edition. I threw these together in haste, neither thinking about their arrangement nor their layouts. With continued editing, I’ll give them another layer of meaning by how I sequence them.”

Su Yuan: “This is good. I think your personal statement should coordinate with the display of the portfolio.”

Zhang Siyi: “You mean, I shouldn’t sequence them from best to worst? Is it better to leave them in chronological order?”

Su Yuan: “Yes. Hold on. There is too much to type so I’ll open a voice chat with you.”

Seeing the incoming voice chat call, Zhang Siyi quickly looked around the room. Gu Yu was leaning on the bed reading, he turned his head to tell him: “Don’t move and don’t make a sound!”

The quietly reading Gu Yu: “……..”

As the video connected, Zhang Siyi adjusted the camera so that only his face could be seen.

Su Yuan’s voice came out over the loudspeaker: “Hey, can you hear me?”

Zhang Siyi was nervous: “Yes, I hear you.”

Su Yuan didn’t find anything unusual about the situation. She talked to Zhang Siyi about her thoughts and suggestions. Even though he was worried about Gu Yu’s presence in the room at first, Zhang Siyi quickly forgot about him as he became immersed in the conversation with Su Yuan.

Unknowingly, they spoke for more than an hour.  Zhang Siyi had made some notes about what needed to be done. With Su Yuan’s help, he knew the direction he needed to go with his application.

It wasn’t until Zhang Siyi watched Su Yuan yawn over the video chat that he realized it was already midnight. He felt guilty for keeping her awake and thus, thanked her for the help and hung up the video call.

After ending the video call, Zhang Siyi breathed a sigh of relief. Eager to talk about his portfolio, he turned his head to hear Gu Yu opinions, but instead, he saw him leaning on the bed with a book in hand asleep.

Even though Zhang Siyi slowly and quietly approached the bed out of respect for his sleeping lover, Gu Yu was awakened by the movements. He slowly opened his eyes and whispered: “Did you finish talking?”

“Yeh.”  Zhang Siyi furrowed his brow slightly in concern: “You are tired so go to sleep first. “

Gu Yu said without hesitation: “I’m waiting for you.”

Zhang Siyi leaned over and covered Gu Yu shoulders with the quilt: “For the past several days, you have already helped me with my statement. Now it is time for me to write the essay on my own. Go to sleep.”

Rarely has Gu Yu seen Zhang Siyi act so domineering. He sighed and closed the book: “All right.”

As Gu Yu laid back down, feeling a little guilty, Zhang Siyi bent over to give him a kiss. Like an elder taking care of a child, he helped Gu Yu adjust the blankets around his body and tucked him into bed, making Gu Yu want to laugh.

Gu Yu reached out to caress his check: “Okay, go and write now. Come back to bed soon.”

Zhang Siyi grabbed Gu Yu’s hand and kissed him before turning off the bedside lamp. Returning to the desk, he turned on a small desk light before continuing his writing.

As the hours passed, Zhang Siyi dare not look back at Gu Yu for fear he would immediately want to join him in the warm bed. Although the figure behind him was asleep, Gu Yu was the source of his strength. Wanting to catch up with Gu Yu in a hurry, it made Zhang Siyi determined to work even harder and continue struggling forward.

Unbeknown to Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu wasn’t sleeping all that well. He woke up several times during the night to watch Zhang Siyi sitting in front of the desk writing.

Not until the first vestiges of light in the nights’ sky before the break of dawn, did Zhang Siyi stretch out his arms and body. Tired, he turned around to climb into bed.

Since he didn’t want to wake Gu Yu up, he calmly got into bed and laid down next to Gu Yu with a small space between them.

Even so, Zhang Siyi felt Gu Yu snuggle close against his body and wrapped his limbs around Zhang Siyi. With the warmth emanating from his body, Gu Yu’s embrace let Zhang Siyi feel relaxed and calm with a great sense of peace and comfort.

Soon, he felt Gu Yu nibbling on his ear and kissing the side of his face. Gu Yu whispered: “It’s not good to stay up all night until morning….. Do you still want to go into work today?”

Only half conscious, Zhang Siyi muttered a reply: “I have to work hard….. in order to catch up….  with you…..” Fast asleep, he didn’t know whether or not Gu Yu had said anything else to him.

Hours later, Zhang Siyi woke up to a clear, bright sky. The other side of the bed was empty. He touched his phone to check the time: 10:48am!

Seeing the time, Zhang Siyi sprung out of bed. Oh My God! Why didn’t his alarm clock go off? Why didn’t Gu Yu call him? He’s been absent from work all morning!

Getting dressed quickly, Zhang Siyi reached out for his phone in order to call Gu Yu. He saw a bunch of unread messages from Gu Yu waiting for him: “I turned off the alarm.”, “I arranged for a half day leave for you at work so you could sleep in.”

Zhang Siyi texted him: “I’m awake!” [Little Kitten Cries]

Gu Yu immediately messaged him back: “There is porridge in the kitchen. Eat then come to work. No need to rush.” [Little Fox Touch Head]

What!? How can he not hurry?! The renovation project bid was only two days away! The work is now in its critical phase since it was down to the wire! Quickly Zhang Siyi spooned two large mouthfuls of porridge to eat then hurriedly left for work.

It was exactly at noon time when Zhang Siyi arrived at the company. There weren’t many people in the office. Relieved, Zhang Siyi saw Gu Yu coming from the entrance with two paper bags in his hand. He approached Zhang Siyi and placed them in front of him. One bag contained coffee from Starbucks and the other was a lunch box set purchased from downstairs.

“Wow! Did you buy it?” Zhang Siyi took out the coffee with joy and drank first.

Gu Yu pulled over Zhu Hongzhen’s chair to sit down and asked: “Who else would buy it?”

“Doesn’t the company have free coffee?” With a sip, Zhang Siyi had a satisfied expression appear on his face.

“Didn’t you complain to me the other day about how tired you were of the company’s filtered coffee?” Gu Yu opened the lunch box and set it before him: “Did you finish writing your personal statement? You didn’t sleep at all last night.”

Listening to Gu Yu’s rebuke, Zhang Siyi smiled with impunity: “It’s done!”

Gu Yu uttered a snorting sound in disbelief: “So soon?”

With pride, Zhang Siyi nodded enthusiastically. After talking to Su Yuan last night, he had a clear idea of what to write. After a few tentative sentences, the words started to flow more smoothly and like the opening of a flood gate, the words poured out of him effortlessly. Capturing the feeling, he wrote vigorously all night and completed a nearly five-thousand-word statement in English.

Since he hadn’t used English for more than a year and a half, the thought of writing a 3,000-word academic essay would make him die in pain. Zhang Siyi was worried about the deterioration of his English ability. Apprehensive, he was deeply afraid of writing the personal statement. He least expected to finish so fast. While a literature essay may be difficult, writing a personal statement from the heart proved to be much easier, regardless of the statement being written in a foreign language.

“Well, it’s only the first draft. I’ll probably make changes when I go over it later.”

While being happy for him, Gu Yu sighed: “This time is special, but you aren’t allowed to stay up so late in the future.”

Zhang Siyi: “Hey, I know! “

Under Su Yuan’s guidance and Gu Yu’s input, he polished his essay and finished assembling his portfolio. Relieved upon its completion, Zhang Siyi was able to send the application out right before Christmas.

The next step was the wait. The verdict of admission acceptance or denial wasn’t posted until another four months in April of the new year. Despite the long wait, Zhang Siyi didn’t have time to worry about it because his workload at Borderless kept him busy.

Like most large cities, Haicheng experienced a transformation during the Christmas season. With the intersection of Western and Chinese culture, the small and large shops were decorated for the season in red and green. In addition, there were seasonal festivities everywhere.

For Gu Yu, this time was also special. Christmas was like the Westerners’ Lunar New Year and everyone had off for the holiday. Most took the opportunity to visit relatives and return home, including Gu Yu’s classmates that either moved away after graduation or lived abroad. It was the only period where Gu Yu could meet up with everyone.

For any reunion, since Gu Yu was the top student and idol of the architectural department, he was the most desired person whom people wanted to see. On Saturday, the twenty-sixth, his classmates organized a reunion in Haicheng.

Last year, Zhang Siyi remembered seeing Gu Yu with his sister and a group of his friends at KTV. At that time, Gu Yu was neither friendly, nor unfriendly towards him. Zhang Siyi was simply a little friend in the company. Now it was a year later. If someone were to tell Zhang Siyi from back then that he would be Gu Yu’s boyfriend a year later, he wouldn’t never have believed it.

One day in advance at dinner time, Gu Yu asked his sister: “About this years’ reunion…. It is tomorrow.  I took you last Christmas and my friends asked me to bring you. Would you like to go?”

A little surprised, Gu Yao bowed her head and using her chopsticks, she poked at the crab shells on her plate to hide her discomfort: ”I, I have plans with my friend tomorrow to go shopping.”

Gu Yu raised an eyebrow in question: “And which friend is that? He Chengtian?”

Ears red, Gu Yao’s hand froze and the crab she was holding with her chopsticks fell onto the plate……

“Well?” Gu Yu shook his head and sighed. “Nothing to say?”

Gu Yao: “…”

Gu Yu looked at Zhang Siyi: “Then you will go with me.”

Gnawing at his crab legs, Zhang Siyi looked up in surprise: “Ah? What? ….. Why? In what capacity am I going to go? “

Gu Yu: “Which ever you want to be.”

Zhang Siyi: “…” Fuck! Is Gu’s teasing him?

Gu Yu explained: “All of them have seen the photos posted on my social media page. So, I will have to take either my love or my sister tomorrow. I must bring one.”

Choking on crab, Zhang Siyi almost spit it out: “That…. that photo with the shadows!? But do they know who it is? Wouldn’t it be bad if they knew?”

Gu Yu: “Rest assured, these people were my dorm-mates during University and will be able to accept our relationship. They have a tight mouth and won’t cause problems. Besides, you have already met one.”

Zhang Siyi: “Old Chiang?”

Gu Yu: “Yes. He was the second member in our dorm. Last year, since he went to visit his hometown, he missed the reunion.” Even after listening to Gu Yu’s assurance, Zhang Siyi continued to feel nervous. Even so, Gu Yu remained unphased and proclaimed: “It’s settled.”

Gu Yu turned to look at Zhang Siyi and stated: “Look at you these days… with all that overtime, you have two dark circles under your eyes. They are blacker than a panda’s eye! Get to sleep early tonight.”

Zhang Siyi pouted his lips unpleasantly: “What? I’m not good enough to be with you?”

Gu Yu smiled and snorted: “I’m afraid they’ll blame me for abusing a child.”

Zhang Siyi: “…”

Joking aside, on this occasion, Zhang Siyi dare not slack off. He rummaged through his closet and found his best fitting suit. He also wanted to look his most handsome while standing with Gu Yu.

At the appointed time, Gu Yu drove them to the place. This time, the reunion was held at Old Chiang restaurant and not KTV.

When they arrived, there was a noisy ruckus before entering the door. Gu Yu rang the doorbell and a rough but loud voice announced from inside: “Old Four is here!”

A group of people from inside came out of the woodwork to meet Gu Yu. They saw Gu Yu with a handsome young man standing right behind him. Grabbing his arm, Gu Yu pulled Zhang Siyi forward and said: “I’ve brought my love. He is timid, don’t scare him.”

The crowd of people: ”…….”

As the rowdy ambiance fell into a silence, it became awkward. All eyes were drilling holes into Zhang Siyi.

Embarrassed, Zhang Siyi gave a light chuckle and greeted them: “Uh, Hello.”

Old Jiang pushed his way out from the crowd smiling: “Ah-ha… It’s him!” As the first to break the ice, he continued: “I saw him here with you last March!”

From behind the crowd, a voice shouted “Old four has come… Who’s this? My God…” The man slapped himself on the head wanting to cry and laugh: “Three thought you were gay. I didn’t expect it to be true!”

Still in shock, others could also be heard:

”Gu Yu, you were too well hidden”

“That almost gave me a heart attack.”

“Well, say no more… Look, you are scaring the poor boy.”

“Come in, come in. Don’t block the door……”

The crowd cajoled Gu Yu and Zhang Siyi noisily into the room. There were people watching Zhang Siyi curiously as if he was a rare species of animal.

Although the onlookers were eyeing Zhang Siyi, he could feel that they were just curious, well-intentioned and didn’t mean any harm. Gradually, he relaxed.

After seated, Zhang Siyi counted everyone. There were just nine of them including himself. The eight of them lived at school together in two adjacent four-person dorm rooms.

One by one, GU Yu introduced them. In addition to his own dorm-mate, Old Chiang, he called everyone by their nickname; hairy legs, eggplant, beans….. With names like that, it was easy to remember, however, the names didn’t match them any longer. Since they were older and had signs of middle age, Zhang Siyi felt a little out of place.

All of them were in their early thirties, which was a natural time to show their maturing age. But unlike his peers, even though Gu Yu’s 30 birthday was approaching, he still looked like a twenty-six-year old young man.

After Gu Yu introduced his classmates, they turned to enquire about Zhang Siyi.

“How about you … Little boyfriend, how old are you?”

“My name is Zhang Siyi and I’m twenty-four.”

“Wow–! No wonder he is so cute!”

 “……”

“Where are you from?”

“The same city as me. We went to the same high school.”

“Wow Gu Yu! Are you a pervert? Did you have an eye on him back then?”

Zhang Siyi: “…” o (╯ □ ╰) o

…..……

Every answer to all of the questions caused a sensation amongst the people. Zhang Siyi sunk further into his seat feeling embarrassed.

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