Assistant Architect by Xi He Qing Ling
Chapter 112: Dog Food
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As Gu Yu was frying two eggs, Zhang Siyi crept closer smelling the delicious aromas in the kitchen. Since the porridge was placed in the slow cooker last night, it was already done. Gu Yu grabbed a bowl from the cabinet and spooned porridge into it. He placed the egg and drizzled some sesame oil over it and handed the dish to Zhang Siyi. – Get up early and breakfast is already made. It’s so nice living with Gu Yu!
Like a puppy waiting for his master, Zhang Siyi looked at him affectionately. Gu Yu said: “Go get the chopsticks.”
“Oh.” Zhang Siyi smiled at him. He walked over to the drawer, took out the remaining tableware, then grabbed the last set of dishes from the cabinet in order to set the table.
Feeling ravenous, Zhang Siyi swallowed a mouthful of saliva. He opened his WeChat and created a new chat group and pulled Gu Yu into it. Then he took a photo of his breakfast and uploaded the image to the new group….’I’m sorry for the wait.’ Click send.
A half minute later, Gu Yu came out of the kitchen and saw that Zhang Siyi hadn’t eaten yet: “Why haven’t you eaten?”
Zhang Siyi looked at him: “I’m waiting for you to eat together.”
Gu Yu smiled warmly and placed the last small dish of homemade radish sauce between the two and whispered: “Eat before its cold.”
Between mouthfuls of food, Zhang Siyi asked: “What are your plans for today?”
“I’ll help you clean the room and then I need to go to the supermarket to buy something.” Gu Yu looked up at saw Zhang Siyi laughing. “Today you officially moved in. I’ll make dinner for you in celebration as a house-warming gift. What do you think?”
What could Zhang Siyi do? Of course, it’s all right! Thinking carefully, when Gu Yu arrived at his old apartment, it was already past midnight. He really did move into Gu Yu’s place on the official day!
While eating his porridge, Zhang Siyi asked: “Will the celebration be at night?”
Gu Yu: “Yes, but not too late at night. Do you have any special dishes you would like to eat?
Zhang Siyi wanted to say ‘as long as you have made the food, I will eat it’, but he felt too embarrassed to say it. Instead he replied: “Anything is fine. I’m not picky.”
Nodding, Gu Yu was about to say something else but he saw Zhang Siyi lowered his head and quietly stammer: “At night, I also have a gift for you.”
Gu Yu curiously asked: “What?”
Blushing crimson, Zhang Siyi replied: “I’m not telling. Be patient and you will know this evening.”
Gu Yu raised his eyebrows and guessed: “Play the violin for me?”
Zhang Siyi: “………” Ah! (╯‵皿’)╯(┻━┻
Seeing Zhang Siyi puff up his red face, Gu Yu knew he had guessed correctly. He brought his hand up to mouth to cover his muffled laughter.
After eating, Zhang Si Yi got up without a word and brought the dishes to the sink and washed them.
Watching Zhang Siyi, Gu Yu is very satisfied. It seems his teaching is very effective!
Zhang Siyi took out his anger on the dishes by scrubbing them furiously. Shit! Why did he have to guess!? Now there’s no mystery at all!
By just sending a ‘I miss you’ message, Gu Yu drove to his apartment after midnight to see him. Zhang Siyi thought this type of behavior only happened to people on TV. He never would have expected it to happen to him. Aaahh! So romantic! But the mood was stopped because Gu Yu didn’t follow through with the plan Zhang Siyi hand in his mind. He really wanted to create a romantic atmosphere for Gu Yu.
With his own thoughts and plans in place in his mind, Zhang Siyi realized that he was washing the dishes with hot water. Huh? He clearly remembered there wasn’t hot water the last time he was in the kitchen. Did Gu Yu install a water heater? Zhang Siyi thought it was strange.
Gu Yu suddenly came up to him from behind and kissed him on the cheek: “I’m waiting for your gift.”
“…………”
Aah! Aah! Aah! Aah!……
Plunging his hands in the hot water, Zhang Siyi blushed a deeper shade of red, feeling both his heart ache and feeling sweet.
During the morning hours, Zhang Siyi moved his luggage into the upstairs room that was previously ‘a storage area stuffed with boxes.’ The room was very clean that was furnished with a double bed and a large writing desk with a bookshelf. Also, there was a new wardrobe against the wall.
While Gu Yu helped him with his stuff, Zhang Siyi asked: “Is this wardrobe brand new?”
Gu Yu explained: “Well, since the occupants have only stayed for a short period, I’ve only had a small hanging rack for guests. When I was at your house, I saw that you own a lot of clothes, so I went to IKEA to buy one for you.”
Zhang Siyi felt a little embarrassed over his habit of piling everything on the chair in his bedroom instead of hanging the cloths up. He didn’t expect Gu Yu to remember it.
While Gu Yu helped Zhang Siyi with his bedding, Gu Yu suddenly asked: “When was the last time you washed your sheets?”
Zhang Siyi: “Well, I don’t remember …” – Not since they were bought! (=_=)
Gu Yu frowned and took the sheets out of the room.
Chasing him, Zhang asked: “Hey! What are you doing?”
Gu Yu looked at them in disgust: “Slimy and dirty. I’m putting them in the wash for you.”
Zhang Siyi: “How am I supposed to make the bed without sheets?”
Gu Yu glanced at him without regard for Zhang Siyi’s plight: “Sleep with me.”
Zhang Siyi: “……”
Gu Yu inspected him up and down then asked: “How often do you take a shower?”
“One or two days…. Maybe two or three days….” Under the gaze of scrutiny, Zhang Siyi shrank his neck and quietly said: “Uh, sometimes four or five days….”
Gu Yu: “……”
Quickly wanting to explain, Zhang Siyi said: “Well, that only happens when I’m very busy. Normally, I wash every two and maybe three days.”
Gu Yu: “When was the last time you took a shower?”
Wanting to please Gu Yu, Zhang Siyi excitedly sprung up and happily said: “Last night! I wash everyday now!”
Stopping suddenly, Gu Yu turned to stare at him oddly then smiled at him in a mischievous grin. After, he continued to walk with the dirty sheets down the stairs.
Zhang Siyi: “……” (o////o) – Shit, I feel like I accidentally leaked something.……
Indeed, ever since he learned that Gu Yu liked him, Zhang Siyi changed from his previous lazy habits into diligent, hardworking ones. As they say, people will do anything when they are in love. If washing makes Gu Yu happy, Zhang Siyi will take a bath three times a day!
All day, from nine in the morning until three in the afternoon, it took Zhang Siyi a full six hours to unpack and sort out everything.
Gu Yu brought the newly washed bedding to the room and removed the quilt that was temporarily laid on the bed: “You can sleep here, but put on the bedding properly first.”
Having learned the truth from Gu Yao previously, Zhang Siyi took the opportunity to tease Gu Yu: “How come the last time I came you said there was only one blanket? What is this?”
Maintaining his composure, Gu Yu calmly replied: “This is Gu Yao quilt. How can I let a smelly man use my sister’s blanket?”
Zhang Siyi: “Then what’s the difference now?”
Gaining the upper hand, Gu Yu looked at Zhang Siyi and grinned: “Didn’t you just say that you shower every day now? For that personal matter…… I’ll leave you to it.”
Zhang Siyi: “……”
Son of a bitch! Son of a bitch! ……Ah, you bastard!
As they drove to the supermarket for groceries, Zhang Siyi transferred the months rent to Gu Yu. After going inside, Gu Yu pointed to the rows of shelves: “I don’t have time to shop every day after work, so we need to purchase a week worth of food.”
Now that Zhang Siyi has paid his “rent”, he could shop without reservations. He picked out he most expensive milk, yogurt, imported fruits, and a large variety of snacks.
Gu Yu looked at the overflowing pile of food in the shopping cart, clenched his jaw and mumbled: “Black sheep of the family.”
Feeling a sigh of relief, Zhang Siyi happily walked in front of Gu Yu humming. – Who was the one who said to pick out whatever I want to eat? Poor You!
Gu Yu looked at the back of Zhang Siyi sullenly then gently shook his own head.
It was more than five o’clock in the late afternoon when they returned home with fully laden grocery bags. As Zhang Siyi unloaded the groceries, Gu Yu immediately started prepping the ingredients. Next to him, Zhang Siyi was watching his sweetheart’s slow but orderly movements with adoration. Ah, Gu Yu is such a good man! – And this good man is mine! Hehe! (≧▽≦)
In one hour, Gu Yu made four dishes and one soup. They were tomato stewed brisket, green onion and prawns, pickled lotus root slices, vegetable stir fry, and big bone soup. After the soup was prepared, Gu Yu carefully took out the bone and dried it. When it was cool enough, he gave it to Townhouse.
For five months, from birth until now, Townhouse has been eating dog food. He has never seen a real bone before. Gu Yu held the bone in his hand and said: “Townhouse sit.” The dog sat down and patiently waited for Gu Yu to give him the bone. When he set the bone in the dog dish, Townhouse barked three times as if to say ‘thank you master’.
Watching the interaction on the side, Zhang Siyi foolishly asked: “Can Townhouse eat bones? Fu Xinhui told me the dog only eats dog food.”
Gu Yu wiped his hands and said as a matter of course: “If dogs don’t eat bones, than what do they eat? Dog food is simple food that people invented for laziness. It’s like a compressed biscuit. If you eat compressed biscuits every day, can you stand it?”
Zhang Siyi: “…… true….”
Watching the dog enjoy his bone, Gu Yu looked down at Townhouse and smiled: “I don’t have time to prepare bones every day. Since today is a celebration and we are eating a special dinner, we should all have a blessing to enjoy, right?”
Zhang Siyi looked at Gu Yu’s profile intently and felt that he was really gentle.
…… I like him so much! (≧▽≦)
Opening a bottle of wine at dinner, Gu Yu poured each of them a glass. When the two glasses were raised and joined a ‘ching’ sound permeated the room. Toasting, Zhang Siyi blushed and Gu Yu officially welcomed Zhang Siyi in his home.
Even though they chatted during the meal, Zhang Siyi had been thinking about playing the violin so he was absent-minded. Noticing Zhang Siyi’s lack of focus, Gu Yu put down his chopsticks, motioned with his affectionate eyes and gestured with a broad smile.
Even though they hadn’t finished eating, Zhang Siyi understood; Gu Yu couldn’t wait any longer. Before Gu Yu could say anything, Zhang Siyi said: “I’ll go get my violin now.”
Smiling, Gu Yu raised his wine glass and an affirmative tone issued from his throat: “Hmmm”.
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T/N: is it clear in this chapter that Gu Yu is teasing Zhang Siyi about what he said in Ch 64?
Love More. Hate Less 