Chapter 17 Do you know which exhibition area Jiang Luo is in? ...
Fortunately, the wound on Jiang Luo's nose was not deep, and it scabbed over in a couple of days. By the time of the National Day holiday, the scab had fallen off, leaving only a faint red mark. Jiang Luo was also quite careful, afraid of leaving a scar, so she avoided certain foods and ate very blandly for those few days.
On the day of the holiday, Jiang Luo and Cheng Jiashu went home together, taking the same high-speed train. Cheng Jiashu's father arranged for a driver to pick him up at the train station. After arriving at the station, Cheng Jiashu asked Jiang Luo to ride back with him, but Jiang Luo said no.
"I still need to pick up Xiaochen from school," Jiang Luo said.
"Let's go pick him up together." Cheng Jiashu told him to get in the car and told the driver the name of a school. "Uncle Wu, let's go pick up Jiang Luo's brother first."
Uncle Wu smiled and said, "Okay."
Tomorrow is a long holiday, and the evening rush hour was exceptionally congested. When Jiang Luo arrived at school, Jiang Chen was still in his dorm packing his clothes; the weather was getting cooler, and he needed to take many light jackets back with him. Jiang Luo went to his dorm to find him, and Cheng Jiashu wanted to come along.
As soon as he entered the campus, Cheng Jiashu exclaimed, "It's been so long since I've seen so many young faces. Ah, youth..."
Jiang Luo chuckled: "You make it sound like you're so old."
They're both only twenty, still quite young. Jiang Luo's face looks even younger; standing among these high school students, you can't tell their age difference at all. If they wore school uniforms, they'd look like high school students.
When they entered the dormitory, Jiang Chen was squatting on the ground stuffing things into his suitcase with his back to the door. Just as Cheng Jiashu was about to speak, Jiang Luo made a "shh" gesture, signaling him to be quiet.
He tiptoed behind Jiang Chen, made a gun gesture with his hand, and pressed it against Jiang Chen's back: "Robbery, don't move."
Jiang Chen paused, couldn't help but laugh, and called out "Brother".
“This is a robbery,” Jiang Luo said with a serious expression. “Be serious.”
"What do you want to rob?" Jiang Chen asked him. "I have a box of clothes here, you can take it."
Jiang Luo couldn't help but laugh: "Then pack it up for me, I'm going to kidnap it in a bit."
"good."
Cheng Jiashu stood at the door and laughed: "I'm really impressed, can you be any more childish?"
Jiang Chen turned to look at Jiang Luo, his expression suddenly freezing as he stared at the scar on Jiang Luo's nose. Jiang Luo had fair skin, so even a faint scar was quite noticeable on his face.
"Brother, what happened to your face?" Jiang Chen stood up, turned around and looked at Jiang Luo. "What happened to your nose?"
Jiang Luo touched the bridge of his nose and said, "It's nothing. I was just hit by a shuttlecock while playing badminton a few days ago."
Jiang Chen frowned.
"It's really nothing. It's just a minor injury. Look, the scab has already fallen off, it's just a tiny mark."
"Be more careful when playing ball in the future," Jiang Chen said, frowning.
"Okay, I'll be careful."
Jiang Chen looked at Cheng Jiashu at the door and called out, "Brother Jiashu."
"Hey." Cheng Jiashu responded. Jiang Chen's height became apparent as soon as he stood up. He was now both thin and tall. "You've grown quite a bit taller, Xiao Chen. It's only been a short time since I last saw you, but you seem to have grown a lot."
Jiang Chen nodded and said, "Yes, I've grown a little taller." He had his height measured in PE class last week.
“It’s not just a little bit,” Cheng Jiashu laughed. “The last time I saw you, you only came up to my neck.”
"Why are you here too, Brother Jiashu?" Jiang Chen asked him.
“I brought your brother here with me, you two can ride back in my car later.”
"Okay, thank you, Brother Jiashu."
Jiang Luo glanced at Jiang Chen's suitcase: "Is there anything else to pack?"
"That's all." Jiang Chen squatted down, closed the suitcase, and zipped it up.
"Have you changed the sheets and duvet cover? Take them back and wash them."
"She's been replaced."
Cheng Jiashu leaned against the door frame, shook his head and clicked his tongue twice: "What an easy child to raise."
Jiang Chen glanced at him: "I'm only four years younger than you, Brother Jiashu."
Cheng Jiashu chuckled: "Alright, alright, Brother Jiashu used the wrong word. What an easy boy, is this alright?"
Before Jiang Chen could react, Jiang Luo laughed first, picked up his suitcase, and patted the back of Jiang Chen's head: "Let's go, young man."
Jiang Chen said "Oh".
That evening, Jiang Luo sent Gu Shiyue a WeChat message: Senior, are you coming to the comic convention on the 3rd?
They hadn't seen each other since that meal, and hadn't been in contact for many days. Gu Shiyue had said he would go to the comic convention when he had time, but Jiang Luo wasn't sure if he would actually go. If he did go, the two of them might bump into each other before his autograph session started.
Gu Shiyue was working on fluid simulations on his computer and hadn't checked his phone. Jiang Luo only received his message before going to bed. Gu Shiyue was going to a conference with his advisor on the 3rd, and it was unclear when it would end.
Gu Shiyue: I was busy and didn't check my phone.
Gu Shiyue: I have something to do that day, I might not be able to go.
Jiang Luo: Oh, I understand.
Gu Shiyue: If it ends early, I will go over.
Jiang Luo: Okay, you go ahead and do your thing, business is more important.
Gu Shiyue: Is your injury healed?
Jiang Luo: There's still a tiny mark, but it should disappear in a few days.
Gu Shiyue: Hmm
Gu Shiyue didn't reply, and Jiang Luo put down her phone, turned over, and went to sleep.
Jiang Luo will be taking Jiang Chen with him to the anime convention during the National Day holiday. Jiang Chen isn't interested in anime or manga; he'll be going to be Jiang Luo's assistant. The convention is on the third day after the holiday, and since it's not in their city, Jiang Luo needs to arrive the night before. The organizers have arranged a hotel for Jiang Luo. Cheng Jiashu is also going to the convention and wants to go with Jiang Luo, so he booked the same hotel and arrived the night before as well.
Two days before the anime convention, early in the morning, Jiang Luo got up to put on makeup and get dressed, while Jiang Chen brought his homework and sat quietly at the table doing his test. He knew absolutely nothing about cosplay makeup and couldn't help his brother at all. Jiang Chen finished his English test quickly, and after completing one set, he turned to look at his brother.
It was still early, only 7:30. Jiang Luo had originally wanted to book another room for Jiang Chen to have alone, afraid of waking him up early, but Jiang Chen refused, so the two brothers shared a room. This morning, Jiang Luo was very quiet when he got up, afraid of disturbing him, but Jiang Chen opened his eyes as soon as he got out of bed. Jiang Chen woke up on his own, not because he was disturbed. After washing up and getting dressed, he sat down and started working on his practice papers.
The person who usually has trouble getting up in the morning had no trouble getting up today. He was waiting by his side, ready to help if his brother needed anything.
"Brother, is there anything I can help you with?" Jiang Chen asked Jiang Luo as he sat there.
Jiang Luo put on a studded choker around her neck, smiled, and asked, "Have you finished your practice papers?"
"No, I just finished a set." Jiang Chen twirled the pen in his hand.
“I’m thirsty,” Jiang Luo said.
"Okay." Jiang Chen got up, grabbed a bottle of mineral water, unscrewed the cap, and handed it to him.
Jiang Luo took the bottle and drank some water. His cosplay makeup was almost done. He turned to Jiang Chen and asked, "How is it?"
Jiang Luo had only finished his makeup; his wig wasn't on yet, and the scar on his nose was completely covered by foundation. Jiang Chen stared at his face for a moment. From his straight-male perspective, he couldn't see the detail in the eye makeup, but he felt his brother didn't look much different before and after makeup. Anyway, he was equally handsome, just with subtle changes in his overall aura.
Jiang Luo was wearing light blue contact lenses. Jiang Chen looked at his eyes and commented blankly, "His eyeballs are quite noticeable."
Jiang Luo laughed: "What kind of evaluation is that?"
Around eight o'clock, they left the hotel and took a taxi to the convention center. Jiang Luo had to arrive early to prepare for his autograph session, so he left early. Cheng Jiashu was still at the hotel and didn't go with them. The driver was a seasoned veteran; he didn't even blink when the flamboyantly dressed young man got into the car. This was already the umpteenth cosplayer he had picked up that morning.
The autograph session officially started at 10:00 AM, but Jiang Luo entered at 9:00 AM. He used a special passage and entered very smoothly.
The stall was already packed with people. When Jiang Luo came out from backstage, the line was quiet for a second before bursting into a huge cheer.
Those at the back of the line only realized that Luo C had entered when they heard such a loud commotion.
This was Jiang Luo's first time participating in an offline event, and the fans' enthusiasm surprised him. Jiang Chen was even more startled by the sudden screams, which almost ruptured his eardrums.
Jiang Luo waved to the fans in line, which was met with another round of enthusiastic cheers and screams. The girls at the very front of the line were almost going crazy, their faces flushed with excitement as they took photos with their phones.
"Holy crap, he's so handsome! He's even this handsome in person!"
"I'm dead, I'm really dead, that was so cool..."
"My God... he's even more handsome than in the photos..."
"Is that his assistant next to him? He's so handsome!"
"The assistant looks so young? Help! How come even the assistant is so handsome?"
"You don't look very old... Isn't he already in college? Is he really a college student?"
"He's a college student. I have a friend who goes to the same school as him, and he says that his skin looks even better and he has very delicate features."
Jiang Chen frowned slightly. He didn't really like these kinds of occasions. There was nothing wrong with them, except they were a bit noisy. He knew there would be a lot of people before he came, but he didn't expect them to make such a commotion. Jiang Luo turned to look at him, smiled, and whispered, "I told you not to come, but you insisted. Now you regret it, don't you?"
"No regrets." Jiang Chen sat upright next to him. "If I didn't come, who would be your assistant?"
Jiang Luo adjusts his demeanor according to the character he's cosplaying, trying his best to maintain the persona and avoid going out of character. He was cosplaying at today's autograph session, so he didn't interact with fans in his usual way. It's actually quite difficult for him to force a cool and aloof look, because he has smiling eyes; his eyes crinkle when he smiles even slightly.
It's impossible for Jiang Luo not to smile when meeting fans, especially since he himself is quite fond of smiling; his eyes crinkle when he smiles, giving him an inherently sweet charm.
The girl who had just been called in line was holding her phone with trembling hands. She covered her mouth and choked out, "Teacher, you look so beautiful when you smile..."
Her voice was trembling so much it was almost cracking; she was clearly very excited and nervous. After Jiang Luo finished signing the poster, he looked up and smiled at her: "Don't be nervous."
Her voice was still trembling: "It's so hard not to be nervous... I... Teacher, you..."
A staff member reminded her that the interaction time was running out, and the girl was so anxious that she stammered as she took a photo with Jiang Luo in the last ten seconds.
There are fans with social anxiety, and there are fans of social bully. Fans who are not shy can chat directly with Jiang Luo, like old friends who have not seen each other for a long time.
The morning passed quickly. Jiang Luo took a short break at noon before returning to her stall. Around 3 PM, while resting and getting a drink, Jiang Luo checked her phone but didn't see any messages from Gu Shiyue.
Gu Shiyue said he had something to do today and might not be able to come. It's already this late, so it seems he really won't be coming.
Cheng Jiashu came by once during that time to check on the autograph session. He saw a long queue in front of the booth, packed with people. He took out his phone and took a picture with a smile. After taking the picture, he left immediately. There was no point in staying; it was too crowded.
Gu Shiyue arrived at the convention center around 4 o'clock.
He didn't know which exhibition area Jiang Luo was in, and he didn't receive a reply when he sent Jiang Luo a message, so he directly called Qi Xueying.
"Hello? Bro?"
Amidst the noise of the crowd, Gu Shiyue found a relatively quiet corner to speak: "Are you at the comic convention?"
"Yes, I am." Qi Xueying was a little puzzled. "How did you know I was at the comic convention?"
"I'm here too."
“…Huh?” Qi Xueying was stunned.
Do you know which exhibition area Jiang Luo is in?
"Wait a minute..." Qi Xueying was confused. "I'm a little confused, could you explain it a little more clearly?"
Gu Shiyue explained the situation to her. Because Jiang Luo wasn't sure if Gu Shiyue would definitely come to the anime convention, she hadn't mentioned it to Qi Xueying. Qi Xueying had no idea that Gu Shiyue would be coming to the anime convention today, and she certainly didn't expect that he would actually come, especially since he was a social butterfly who had absolutely no interest in anime and manga.
Moreover, Gu Shiyue only arrived at this time; he wasn't here to browse the exhibition, but specifically to find Jiang Luo.
"Brother, where are you?" Qi Xueying asked. "Send me your location on WeChat, the one that shares real-time location."
Gu Shiyue shared his location, and Qi Xueying noticed that Gu Shiyue was not far from her. She said to him, "We're quite close. I'll come find you. Just wait here for a while. I'll take you to Jiang Luo's place."
Gu Shiyue said, "I'll come over, you don't need to move."
"Okay, then I'll wait for you here."
Gu Shiyue arrived too quickly; he had long legs and walked fast, and his sense of direction was also good. Qi Xueying only waited a short while before she saw his figure appear in the distance. She waved to him.
Qi Xueying was accompanied by a companion when Gu Shiyue walked up to them. Seeing Gu Shiyue in such a setting felt somewhat unreal to Qi Xueying. Her brother standing there, surrounded by cosplayers coming and going, made the scene quite incongruous.
She chuckled and said, "I almost couldn't believe you'd actually come here until I saw you in person."
"If you're looking for Luo Luo, you probably won't see him right now," Qi Xueying said. "The autograph session isn't over yet, and there's a long line over there, it's packed with people."
Jiang Luo's autograph session tickets were released online. This was Jiang Luo's first autograph session. Qi Xueying tried to grab one and surprisingly succeeded. Her number was quite far down the queue, and she was just about to join the line.
Qi Xueying now had a very bold idea. She thought for a moment, took out her queue number ticket from her bag, and tried to ask Gu Shiyue, "Why don't you take my number to join the queue? My number is quite far back, and by the time it's my turn, there probably won't be many people left. It will take about the same amount of time to walk there now, so it shouldn't take too long."
Qi Xueying blinked and smiled: "Didn't he ask you to come? He must be really looking forward to your arrival. What if you suddenly showed up..."
The autograph session ended at 4:30 p.m., and the line wasn't as long anymore.
Jiang Luo spent the whole day signing autographs and interacting with fans, and he's still in great shape. He knows it's not easy for these friends to come all this way to see him, and he'll do his best to make them feel that their trip was worthwhile.
During the photo session, the fan who was in line didn't ask for a group photo; she wanted to take a solo photo of Jiang Luo. When taking photos, Jiang Luo instantly switches to his persona, his smile fading as he looks at the camera with a cool, indifferent expression, exuding a nonchalant air.
Even after the photos were taken, he was still in the zone, sitting there with his handsome, aloof expression. For some reason, a noticeable commotion broke out among the crowd of onlookers, accompanied by a cacophony of voices. The atmosphere at the scene seemed to be instantly ignited, becoming noisy and restless.
As soon as the fan left, a tall figure suddenly appeared in Jiang Luo's peripheral vision. Jiang Luo's gaze involuntarily shifted upwards, and he froze the moment he saw the face.
Jiang Luo looked up, staring blankly at Gu Shiyue standing in front of him.
A note from the author:
----------------------
This chapter's cosplay: Shinichi Okazaki from "Nana"
Continue read on readnovelmtl.com