Xie Yu was a master at creating awkward silences. Every time he appeared with his particularly cold and indifferent smile, no one could continue his conversation except for He Chao.

The group immediately fell silent, and several minutes passed without anyone speaking.

[Liu Cunhao]: ...

[Wan Da]: ...

[Luo Wenqiang]: ...

Only Xu Jing didn't quite understand why the several people who were just chatting enthusiastically suddenly became quiet. She asked: Brother Yu, how did you know?

Xie Yu didn't think much when he replied. Seeing this group of people getting excited over He Chao's score, his emotions were relaxed and he casually responded. But after he finished, he realized that something was off.

"..."

Xie Yu raised his hand to cover half of his face and muttered a curse to himself in a low voice.

After chatting, Wan Da was planning to focus on playing a match when Xie Yu's words popped up, causing him to tremble and exit the chat.

He stared at Xu Jing's message and roared silently in his heart: of course he knew!

Maybe they even showered together!

These two...they really need to be more discreet and not behave so blatantly.

After a long silence, Liu Cunhao was the first to react, followed closely by Luo Wenqiang.

[Liu Cunhao]: Because they are good brothers.

[Luo Wenqiang]: That's right, I also know when Hao-zi takes a shower. He showers once every two days for about ten minutes, usually between 8pm and 9pm.

[Xie Yu]: ...

[Wan Da]: You guys are amazing.

[Xu Jing]: ⊙0⊙.

The topic circled around "taking a shower" for a while, but then abruptly shifted back to the "final grades" topic. When He Chao finished showering and returned, his classmates from Class 3 were already discussing how to celebrate.

[He Chao]: Celebrate what?

Xie Yu lowered his head to type. Although he also thought the reason for celebration was strange, he still replied: Celebrate your math score of forty-nine.

[Liu Cunhao]: If we round up, that's fifty points! Brother Chao, you're amazing. This is a new starting point in your life.

[He Chao]: ...If you want me to treat you, just say it.

[Liu Cunhao]: Deal!

[Liu Cunhao]: I haven't even hinted yet, and you already understand.

He Chao's "high score" was just an excuse. The students in Class 3 really wanted to use this as an opportunity to go out and have fun. Since the start of the break, they had been cooped up at home and were starting to feel sick of it. They missed the lively atmosphere of their class.

So a few of them agreed on a time, which was set for the day after tomorrow, and planned to get together.

Xie Yu didn't have anything else going on these past few days, so he didn't have any objections to the time they had decided on.

When Xie Yu told Madam Gu that he was going out, Madam Gu was in the storage room organizing things.

Gu Xuelan was wearing a white wool sweater and had just come out of the kitchen, with an apron tied around her waist. She was standing on her tiptoes, rummaging through a storage basket and asked, "What's the matter?"

Xie Yu said, "I'm going out for a bit. I won't be having dinner at home tonight."

"Where are you going?" Gu Xuelan flipped through an album from the storage basket, preparing to put it aside. She turned her head to look at him. "I told you to read more books. Have you been reading these past few days? You've been staying in the bedroom all day, doing who knows what..."

The storage room was filled with old items.

Three years ago, when they moved from Blackwater Street, there were many things they couldn't use but couldn't bear to throw away, so they were all placed in this room. Xie Yu stared at the old album in Madam Gu's hand, remembering when he first came here, he often came to this storage room.

He was very uncomfortable, not at all used to it.

Zhong Jie glared at him sharply with red eyes and shouted, "Get out, this is my home." He wandered around and finally ended up in this room, sitting on the ground leaning against the door panel, staring blankly at the old items covered in white cloth.

Sometimes, he would flip through old things and come across the test paper where Dalei imitated his mother's signature, or the "classmate record" that Da Mei wrote for him before he left.

Boss Xie, I hope everyday is a joyful one for you!

Xie Yu paused before saying, "Class gathering."

Gu Xuelan had always been supportive of these class activities and hoped that Xie Yu could go out and socialize more instead of staying at home all day not knowing what to do.

She asked which classmates will be there and reminded him about safety, "Don't stay out too late, get along well with your classmates, and when there are conflicts, calm down and think about it. You have grown up, so handle things in a more mature way, don't act impulsively..."

Xie Yu's hands were in his pockets as he replied with a casual "Oh."

Gu Xuelan sighed, realizing he wasn't really listening, and didn't say anything more.

Gu Xuelan had originally wanted to search for something from the past. She vaguely remembered that there was a bank password written in a notebook, but she couldn't find the notebook after rummaging through everything. However, she did find Xie Yu's childhood photo album.

She waited for Xie Yu to leave, then she lowered her head and opened the album.

The first photo was of Xie Yu when he was just born, a wrinkled little bundle lying in a crib.

In the bottom right corner of the photo, someone had neatly written in black ink: March 14th, 2am.

Gu Xuelan stared at the photo for a while, forgetting that there was soup still cooking in the kitchen. She flipped through the entire album, page by page, before finally deciding to put it back.

But as she did, she accidentally knocked over a hard cardboard box underneath.

Inside the box were textbooks from Xie Yu's elementary and middle school years, with the words "Xie Yu" written beautifully on the covers. There were also several test papers tucked inside.

As Gu Xuelan was lost in thought, she didn't even hear the maid knocking on the door to call her.

In the past, Xie Yu had decent grades, but the teaching quality at Blackwater Middle School was just too poor. The people in Blackwater Street turned the middle school into a vocational school, where tattoos, smoking, drinking, and dyed hair were the norm.

There were hardly any students who studied seriously at the school. Every time Gu Xuelan went to pick up Xie Yu at the school gate, she would see him walking out of the school with a group of children who didn't even carry backpacks and were smoking cigarettes.

She had thought countless times about taking him away from there earlier and giving him a better living environment...

Gu Xuelan's gaze seemed to penetrate through these textbooks and return to those past times.

She was lost in thought for a while, then sighed and reorganized the file folder before putting it back.

Xie Yu walked out of the subway station and realized he wasn't quite sure which direction to go. He pulled out his phone to check the navigation when he saw a text message from He Chao.

- Where are you?

- Jiangbei Road.

He Chao responded quickly: I'll come find you.

When the group from Class 3 was deciding on a location for their dinner, they pulled up a map of City A and had everyone mark their location. After connecting the dots, they settled on a place somewhat close to everyone:

Let's meet here, guys, this place called Entertainment Street. Although we've all never been here before, and don't know if it's any good...

He Chao arrived early at the meeting point and chatted with Liu Cunhao and the others. He kept his head down, staring at his phone, waiting for a reply. When he finally received it, he took the stick out of his mouth and threw it in the trash, stood up and said, "I'm going to pick up Old Xie."

Liu Cunhao and the others were searching on their phones for fun things to do in the area. They were huddled in a small coffee shop to keep warm. When they heard what he said, they didn't even look up and said, "Okay okay, go pick up your Old Xie."

Luo Wenqiang said, "Remember to come back and pay for us."

Wan Da said, "Don't forget about us, your brothers, just because of Old Xie."

The phrase 'your Old Xie' clearly pleased He Chao, who smiled and pushed the door open, saying, "Am I that kind of person?"

The street was bustling with people preparing for the upcoming Chinese New Year. Several clothing stores along the way were playing different types of music, and amidst the melodies, one could hear the occasional announcement of "20% off everything in store!"

As Xie Yu walked a few steps, he saw He Chao walking towards him from the opposite direction.

He was wearing a coat that accentuated his figure, making him stand out in the crowd.

When He Chao's eyes met Xie Yu's, his lips curled up into a smile and his gaze brightened. He opened his arms and said, "Want a hug?"

With so many people around and He Chao's flamboyant personality, passersby couldn't help but glance in their direction.

Xie Yu couldn't bring himself to make such an exaggerated move, so he kicked at He Chao and said, "Get lost."

Xie Yu didn't actually kick him. After putting on a show and keeping a distance away, he heartlessly walked past his boyfriend.

He Chao followed behind him with a smile, "Little friend, you're so cruel. Doesn't your conscience hurt?"

The cruel little one took two steps, but then slowed down and reached back to hold He Chao's hand without a word.

Xie Yu's fingers were cold, like ice against He Chao's hand, but the chill slowly turned into warmth on the back of his hand.

People hurriedly walked up and down the street, as the entire commercial street was decorated with festive lights and Spring Festival couplets on the storefront windows. The scene was filled with festive red and white mist from the cold breath of pedestrians.

The two of them walked hand in hand for a while like this.

As they walked halfway, Xie Yu noticed that the person was slowing down. Without revealing his suspicion, he casually asked, "Have the others arrived yet?"

"They arrived early," He Chao tightened his grip on Xie Yu's hand. "When I arrived, the sports committee rep had already ordered four cups of coffee."

Luo Wenqiang was already a big eater, and when he had the opportunity to indulge in a feast, he would deliberately leave himself more room to enjoy. Xie Yu couldn't help but laugh and cry as he asked, "Did he not eat yesterday?"

"I think this time, not only did he not eat, but he probably didn't even drink water," He Chao replied.

"..."

They were almost at the coffee shop when He Chao suddenly stopped walking. Xie Yu was about to ask why when his boyfriend said seriously, "...How about we just forget about them?"

As Luo Wenqiang sipped his fifth cup of coffee, he had no idea that his friend Chao, who had vehemently declared "I am not that kind of person" before leaving, was actually planning to abandon them.

Xu Qingqing and her friends arrived late and found that there was no room at the main table, so they had to sit in the back. A few girls huddled together and chatted, "I think this looks pretty good, it seems like it will be fun."

Luo Wenqiang enjoyed his coffee and said to Liu Cunhao, "This coffee is really good, rich and fragrant...but why hasn't Brother Chao come back yet? It's time to pay the bill."