Chapter 52 The Rival's Story: Qi Yan Arrives

Xie Chi had one leg crossed and the other bent, looking disbelieving. He moved closer to Xie Changyu, placing his hand on Xie Changyu's shoulder, and said with a slight parting of his thin lips, "Who are you to me? Are you trying to hide this from me?"

Xie Changyu tilted his head and gave a slight smirk.

The man raised an eyebrow, guessing, "You're not worried I'll laugh at you, are you?"

As soon as he finished speaking, his hand was slapped away, not too hard, not too soft.

"You dare?"

"Alright, alright, I wouldn't dare laugh at you."

Seeing the threatening look on the person in front of him, Xie Chi had no choice but to raise his hand to show weakness first, and he also straightened his long legs and moved away from the side.

Xie Changyu continued eating his apple. He figured his mother would need some more time to get home, so he decided to go back to his room and put his things down first.

He put the half-eaten apple on the table, stood up, and turned to look at the person sitting down. "I'm going back to my room now. Send me a message when my mom gets back."

As he spoke, he picked up his suitcase and was about to go upstairs. With a long stride, he directly bypassed the person blocking his way.

Xie Chi called out to him, his face full of disbelief, "You're just going to leave me here?"

"Or else?"

"I want to go to your room. I don't want to stay here waiting."

Those bright eyes stared intently at Xie Changyu, who rolled his eyes after hearing it, "Whatever."

He carried the suitcase straight up to the second floor, found the key, put it in the lock, and it clicked open.

Xie Changyu pushed the door open and looked at the familiar layout of the room, feeling a sense of relief. It really was good to be home.

Xie Chi followed him in, then casually found a seat and sat down without any hesitation.

Xie Changyu ignored him. He first put the clothes he had brought back into the wardrobe, and then began to sort through his old clothes.

His room had already been cleaned in advance, and the bed sheets and other items had been replaced with new ones. All he had to do now was find his winter clothes in the closet and put them in the washing machine to wash, as he would be wearing these clothes for the entire winter break.

Lying on the bed, Xie Chi propped his head up with one hand and looked at him, his eyes slightly raised, his tone leisurely, "I'll rest here tonight and won't go back."

Xie Changyu buried her head in tidying her clothes, her attitude nonchalant, "Whatever, just tell my parents, there are extra rooms next door."

"I mean, sleeping with you."

"no."

"Why?"

Xie Changyu turned her head away and rolled her eyes again. "No, I want to sleep alone. I haven't slept alone in ages."

Hearing this, Xie Chi raised an eyebrow in surprise, his eyes deep and unfathomable. "Oh, what's going on? You didn't actually get... done by a gay guy..."

Xie Changyu remained silent.

Xie Chi sat up abruptly upon seeing his reaction, his voice changing, "—No way, Xie Changyu."

"Keep your voice down." Xie Changyu's ears were a little itchy. This person's reaction was too much. This kind of thing is not uncommon. He was afraid that his mother would hear it by accident.

Xie Chi frowned deeply. "What did they do to you? Were you forced? Did they threaten you?"

Xie Changyu picked up a pile of clothes and stood up. He lifted his leg and prepared to leave the room. Xie Chi followed behind him, completely unlike his cold and taciturn image on stage. He kept talking, "Don't be silent. Tell me. If you've been bullied, you can tell me, and I'll help you get revenge."

"Shut up." Xie Changyu was getting annoyed by the nagging. He paused, turned around, and said this. After successfully seeing that the person behind him shut up and didn't say a word, he continued walking forward until he reached the laundry room, put all the clothes into the washing machine, and pressed the start button.

After he finished, he turned to go back to his room to continue cleaning, but was blocked. His ever-smiling face turned cold, and his eyes became serious. "Why aren't you answering me?"

Xie Changyu realized that this guy wouldn't give up until he got to the bottom of this. He took a deep breath before speaking, "I wasn't bullied. How could they bully me? Don't worry, I'll definitely ask you for help if anything happens."

As he spoke, he raised his hand and patted the man on the shoulder to comfort him.

Xie Chi, who felt strangely that the positions had been reversed, breathed a sigh of relief upon hearing his answer. He put on a smile again and snorted, "You're looking for me? How many times have you paid attention to me since you went to university? If I hadn't caught you a few times in the game, I probably wouldn't have known you were back today."

Xie Changyu was speechless. "Aren't you the same? You're so busy being a celebrity. By the way, do you still have time to play games? Looks like you're not busy enough."

"I was just trying to catch you in the game because you weren't messaging me. I didn't expect you to fall in love online and get scammed."

When Xie Chi talked about online dating, a slight smile appeared on his lips, clearly indicating that he hadn't expected his little cousin to be involved in online dating.

Seeing his expression, Xie Changyu immediately retorted, "What's wrong with online dating? I've had many online relationships. Do you think I'm like you, some innocent guy who's never been in a relationship, haha?"

"Heh." Xie Chi's smile vanished instantly after being mocked, his eyes turning sinister. "I haven't dated anyone, and you're not much better off. At least I won't be fooled like you."

It was true that he had been deceived, and Xie Changyu couldn't refute it. He felt a lump in his throat and regretted telling this guy. He knew this man would laugh at him.

He stared at the person in front of him with a very unfriendly look, which made Xie Chi surrender immediately. He turned his head away to avoid his gaze and quickly said, "I won't say anything more."

That's about right.

Xie Changyu nudged the person blocking his way with his shoulder. "Move aside, move aside, don't keep blocking me."

Xie Chi stepped aside to make room for him, and then followed him after he left, like a little tail.

After tidying up the room again, Xie Changyu pulled back the bed curtains and stood at the window watching the heavy snow outside for a while. He only looked away when the snow was so bright it almost blinded him.

"Go and tidy up over there later, and stay there for the night."

Xie Changyu said this to Xie Chi.

"I really can't sleep here?"

"cannot."

"Fine then." Xie Chi leaned lazily against the doorway, his eyelids slightly drooping, his tone nonchalant. "Sigh, my little cousin isn't close to me anymore now that he's grown up. We can't even sleep together anymore, sigh..."

Xie Changyu's fists clenched. He turned around to look at him, his tone sinister, "You want a beating, don't you?"

"What do you mean, 'looking for a beating'?" A gentle female voice rang out at the doorway, and then a woman's figure appeared in the room.

"Mom!" Xie Changyu exclaimed with delight. He stepped forward and hugged her tightly, looking at her with obvious dependence, his body slightly bent and his head resting against hers.

Xie Chi also stood up straight and became polite, "Auntie."

Xu Yizhen nudged her son's head, her expression reproachful, "Why didn't you send me a message when you got back? Your cousin had to tell me."

"I was just trying to surprise you~" Xie Changyu said embarrassedly. He wanted to surprise his parents, but he didn't expect that damned Xie Chi to reveal it in advance.

“Yes, yes, Auntie, isn’t this a wonderful surprise?” Xie Chi chimed in from the side. Xu Yizhen hugged her son before letting go, straightening him up and saying softly, “Great! I’m so happy that you two are back.”

Xie Changyu smiled, and his previously sharp tone and demeanor softened as he tried to maintain a well-behaved image in front of his mother.

"I just bought some groceries. You two go wash your hands. I'm starting to cook now. Haven't you eaten yet?"

Xie Changyu shook her head obediently, "Not yet, I'm so hungry right now."

"Auntie, we'll go wash our hands now, and we'll help you."

"Mom, I'm going to wash my hands. I'll come down and help you in a bit."

Following Xie Chi's lead, Xu Yizhen nodded in agreement with satisfaction, "Okay, no rush."

With the help of the two younger relatives, dinner was ready in no time. One after another, the dishes were brought out. After putting down the last dish, Xie Changyu quickly touched his ears, trying to cool them down.

"What's wrong? Did you get burned?"

Xie Chi noticed that his actions and tone showed some concern.

"It's alright." Xie Changyu touched it briefly for a few seconds before putting his hand down. He turned around to go to the kitchen to get bowls and chopsticks, only to see that his mother had already brought out bowls and chopsticks for three people.

"Come on, let's divide it up and start eating."

Xie Chi accepted it, and the two of them behaved very well in front of their elders, saying, "Thank you, Auntie."

"Mom, sit down too, don't bother."

Xie Changyu saw her mother pacing back and forth, worried that she wouldn't be able to stop and eat her hot meal, so she urged her. Then, seeing that her mother was still busy, she got up and pulled her to sit down, saying in a serious tone, "Eat, eat. We'll wash the dishes later, so don't delay your meal."

Mrs. Xie was somewhat relieved. "Alright, alright, I'll eat now. You all should eat quickly too."

The food on the table was all their favorite dishes. Xie Chi had always liked to come to their house to join in the fun since he was a child, and over time Xie's mother learned about their tastes.

After quickly finishing their meal, Xie Changyu dragged Xie Chi to the kitchen to start washing things.

The dishwashing process was quick.

When Xie's mother found out that Xie Chi was going to stay here tonight, she took advantage of the time when the two of them were washing dishes and cleaning the kitchen to tidy up a guest room, which was also the room that Xie Chi often stayed in.

When they reached the second floor and were about to go to their respective rooms, Xie Changyu felt another body squeeze in from behind. He frowned and asked, "What are you doing?"

Xie Chi shrugged. "It's still early, let's play some games."

When the topic of games came up, Xie Changyu realized he hadn't played in a long time, so he agreed. He closed the door, sat on the bed, and said, "Come on, let's play a few rounds. We're going to take a shower and go to bed soon."

The two lay down on opposite sides, each holding a phone and opening a game to try and rank up.

"What are you playing?" Xie Changyu asked.

"And you?"

"Archer".

"Then I'll play Yao to protect you."

With Yao Mei protecting him, he was naturally happy. Xie Changyu's lips curled up, and he said smugly, "Then you follow me closely and watch me carry you to victory!"

Xie Chi tugged at his collar. "Alright, take Fei Ang with you."

Xie Changyu hummed in agreement, quickly booked a room, and urged, "I've invited you, come in quickly."

As soon as he finished speaking, a familiar avatar popped up, and an invitation to join a team took up half the screen.

—My lover, Shen Zisui.

Xie Chi glanced at him again when he saw that he didn't react, and then he saw these words. His eyes darkened slightly, but the corners of his mouth curled up slightly. "Isn't this the Sui Sui who lied to you? You haven't deleted her yet? Are you really planning to keep her for the New Year?"

Xie Changyu retorted quickly, "It's none of your business."

"You've softened your heart yet?"

Xie Changyu pursed his lips and remained silent. He clicked "no," wondering to himself if he told Xie Chi that the gay guy who was clinging to him was Sui Sui, would he be laughed at to death?

no.

Of course, he couldn't say that. If that person found out, he'd be in big trouble. He didn't know about others, but Xie Chi was a very sarcastic and vindictive person. If he told anyone, he could expect to hear Xie Chi mocking him about this even when he was eighty years old.

Absolutely not.

"Can't I just forget about it?"

"I hope so."

He has a really sharp tongue.

Xie Changyu had just clicked "decline" when the invitation to team up popped up again, so he simply clicked "start game" instead of clicking "decline" repeatedly.

The two began selecting heroes.

Suddenly a message popped up, but Xie Changyu swiped it away and ignored it. He was absolutely certain it was sent by Shen Zisui, and he didn't really want to deal with it.

After the hero selection, the game officially started. During the game, several more messages popped up until they stopped...

Having probably guessed his attitude, Shen Zisui sent a few messages but didn't make any phone calls, afraid of disturbing his game and making him angry.

Xie Chi, who was standing nearby, naturally heard these messages. His eyes were fixed on the game character on the screen, his hands moving non-stop, and he uttered a question: "What? She sent you a message too?"

Xie Changyu maneuvered his hero swiftly to dodge the opponent's critical hits, and said, "You misheard."

Xie Chi snorted, and then the two stopped talking about the topic and continued playing the game seriously. They would interact and cooperate from time to time, and they played until midnight before stopping.

Xie Changyu put down her phone and started to shoo him away, "Go back to your room, I'm going to sleep."

He also stretched his arms, which were clearly sore from playing games.

Xie Chi gave a slight smirk. "Okay, goodnight."

"good evening."

Xie Changyu watched the person leave before turning his attention to his phone. He had just turned off Do Not Disturb mode and then opened the app.

He skipped Shen Zisui's information and opened Qi Yan's information directly.

[Qi Yan: Where do you live? I'm also in the north now, maybe I can come visit while I'm there.]

[Bored God: You're actually up north? You've come all this way?]

[Qi Yan: Yeah, I was helping my dad with some things and just dropping by to see you.]

Look at him.

Xie Changyu hesitated for a moment, then sent the other party his home address and typed.

[Bored Guy: Text me when you arrive, I'll come pick you up.]

Qi Yan: Okay ^O^

After chatting for a while longer, Xie Changyu finally put down her phone, got up, found some clothes, and prepared to take a shower and go to bed.

...

The night passed quickly.

Xie Changyu was still sleeping in when he suddenly felt a draft in his bed. His eyes were glazed over, his hair was a mess, and he looked completely bewildered.

After recognizing who was sleeping next to him, he said impatiently, "I was still asleep. Why did you suddenly come in and disturb me?"

Xie Chi smiled nonchalantly and patted the pillow. "I didn't want to either, but Auntie asked me to wake you up for breakfast. Why don't you let Auntie come?"

Hearing that his mother had sent him to wake him up, Xie Changyu immediately sobered up. He sat up, rubbed his hair, and said dejectedly, "I'll get up now."

"It's already 11:50, you should have had enough sleep by now, why are you still so sleepy? You didn't play games behind my back last night, did you?"

"Can't I just sleep a lot?"

Xie Changyu retorted, then stood up, got dressed, brushed her teeth, washed her face, and followed the person downstairs.

Good morning, Dad and Mom.

He dragged his shoes to his seat, and gave a faint yawn, looking sleepy as if he hadn't slept enough.

Xie's father chuckled, "You little rascal, you stayed up all night last night, haven't you? You're still not fully awake."

"No way, I must be tired after such a long car ride yesterday."

Xie Changyu, of course, wouldn't admit it. He immediately changed the subject, "Dad, you didn't go to work today?"

Before Xie's father could speak, Xie Chi raised an eyebrow and said, "Are you still half asleep? It's the weekend, your uncle isn't working."

"Oh, I forgot."

Xie Changyu only remembered this after being reminded. He picked up the water and took a few sips, trying to cover up his embarrassment.

Xie Chi watched with a broad smile.

After dinner, Xie's mother sent him a red envelope and said, "It's rare for Xiao Chi to come home, so take him out to play. You two brothers can also catch up."

Xie Changyu accepted the red envelope very naturally and nodded in agreement, "Don't worry, Mom, I will take good care of him."

With that, he left the room and took the person with him.

Xie Chi was still completely bewildered. "What are you doing?"

"My mom asked me to take you out to play, let's go."

"Have you forgotten who I am now? Going out to have fun might be a bit difficult."

Reminded by those words, Xie Changyu also remembered the inconvenience of this guy's identity, and he pouted and complained, "Why is it so troublesome?"

Xie Chi was pulled to the door by him. Seeing this, he stood up straight, shrugged, and said, "I can't help it. Your cousin is too popular. I'm afraid that if you go out and your fans recognize you, you'll be on the front page."

To make the headlines?

Xie Changyu felt a strong aversion to the possibility. He let out a soft "Huh?" and took off the gloves he had just put on. "Then you can go back. Send me what you want to eat and I'll buy it."

He wanted to eat snacks, but he didn't want this person to delay his meal.

"That won't do."

Um?

"I'll go with you. I'll cover myself up well, and no one will be able to spot me."

"Are you sure?" Xie Changyu asked, somewhat skeptical.

"certainly."

After Xie Chi finished speaking, he turned around and went inside, and no one knew what he was doing. When he came out, he was completely unrecognizable.

With a mask, sunglasses, and a big hat, who could possibly tell?

Let's go.

But you can still tell it's Xie Chi's voice when he speaks, which has a lazy and roguish charm.

"Alright."

Xie Changyu looked around and, after confirming that he really couldn't tell who it was, reluctantly agreed. He twirled the keys in his hand, then stepped out.

The snow outside was very thick, even thicker than at their school, making it very difficult to walk. Fortunately, it wasn't too early, and there was already a path that many people had walked on, making it much easier to walk.

Both of them were completely covered up, and it took them about ten minutes to walk to the nearby supermarket. Once inside and feeling the warmth, Xie Changyu took off his mask and hat, while Xie Chi could only continue to hold it in.

Xie Changyu openly mocked him, "Just keep wearing it, don't take it off."

"Hurry up and buy it, I'm so bored."

A muffled sound came from behind the mask.

"Tsk, we'll see."

He couldn't let this opportunity to embarrass himself slip by, so after he finished speaking, he led his men to start shopping at the supermarket.

They first went to the snack section. Xie Changyu grabbed a whole bunch of snacks he liked, and after circling around and taking them all, he asked Xie Chi in a seemingly polite manner, "What would you like to eat?"

"Oh, so you've remembered me now?"

"Speak quickly!"

"...You've already taken what I wanted to eat."

"Okay, let's go to the fruit section now."

Xie Changyu directed him to push the handcart in another direction.

Xie Chi has a tall and slender figure, and even with his face covered, his extraordinary temperament is still evident. Coupled with his years of immersion in the entertainment industry, he exudes star quality and has a very obvious presence that is anything but low-key. He can attract the attention of many young people even after just a few laps in the supermarket.

In the entertainment industry, there are countless examples of celebrities being recognized even without showing their faces. Xie Chi naturally sensed those subtle gazes as well. He frowned and began to warn the people in front of him.

"We need to hurry, or I'm afraid we'll be recognized if we stay any longer."

"What do you mean?" Xie Changyu turned around in surprise. "Didn't you say that people wouldn't recognize you like this?"

Xie Chi pulled down his mask, his voice a little low, "I was sure before, but I'm not sure now."

Hearing him say that, what else could Xie Changyu do? He quickened his pace toward the fruit section, "Then what are we dawdling for? Let's go!"

He didn't need to pull anything; Xie Chi pushed everything, so he quickly arrived at the fruit section. He first picked out his favorite mango, and then started taking other fruits.

Just as he entered the supermarket, he received a message from Qi Yan saying that he had arrived in the city and asked him to send him the supermarket's location. Xie Changyu guessed that the person would definitely come over soon, but he didn't know how long he would stay.

So he picked out some more fruits that Qi Yan liked to eat. He thought for a moment and realized that Qi Yan seemed to like oranges.

Hmm... take more.

However, he hadn't expected the other party to be so quick; they had only asked him last night and had already rushed over today, seeming to be in a great hurry.

"You haven't forgotten what fruit I like, have you?"

Xie Chi, who was bundled up tightly, stood beside him and asked him this question, as if he would cause trouble if he answered that he didn't know.

"I haven't forgotten that..."

Hearing this, Xie Changyu picked out some of the fruits he liked. After all, the money he was using was given to him by his mother to buy things for this guy. If she found out that he was buying all the fruits he liked, he would be in big trouble.

After they finished buying everything, they finally went to pay.

While Xie Changyu was still in line to pay, he felt his phone vibrate in his pocket. He guessed who it was from, took out his phone, and saw that it was Qi Yan calling.

He turned to Xie Chi and told him to line up first while he went to answer a phone call.

"Okay, go ahead."

Only after hearing this did Xie Changyu step out of the group to receive the phone call.

"Hey, Qi Yan."

There was a loud whistling sound on the other end of the phone; the wind was very strong.

Then came a muffled voice, "I'm outside."

Xie Changyu's eyes lit up, and she exclaimed in surprise, "You're outside the supermarket?"

"Um."

"I'm already paying the bill, just wait a little longer, it'll be ready soon."

"Okay, I'll wait for you."

After hanging up the phone, Xie Changyu returned to the group with a clear look of joy on his face. Xie Chi noticed and asked him, "What's wrong? Who called you? You seem so happy."

"My roommate."

"Roommate?" Xie Chi was even more confused. "What happened to your roommate?"

"He's waiting for me outside."

"Now?"

“Yeah.” Xie Changyu looked at the line where it was finally their turn to pay and started taking out their items one by one. “He came to see me, I don’t know what he wanted.”

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Author's note: Qi Yan: It's time to meet the parents.

My cousin is practically a parent too, haha.

Okay, six thousand words.