First Encounter
At 5:30 p.m., Zhou Jingxing clocked out on the time clock and strode toward the elevator.
The elevator doors opened with a "ding," and Zhang Jin saw a smile on his face. "Why are you being so nice today? You came all the way to welcome me!"
Zhou Jingxing gave him a strange look. "Are you still half asleep from your afternoon nap? Why would I greet you? And what are you doing here at our museum?"
Zhang Jin looked hurt. "Didn't you check your phone again? I texted you. My wife went shopping with her girlfriends tonight. Shall we go play ball together?"
Zhou Jingxing turned his back on him as he entered the elevator, decisively refusing him, "I'm not going, I have something to do." Zhang Jin shouted, "Hey! How heartless! We've been brothers for years, you can't abandon your buddy! Besides, what could a single guy like you possibly have to do?"
Zhou Jingxing smiled, then quickly turned his head away, pursed his lips, and replied simply, "Let's go downstairs to see the exhibition."
"Seriously? You work here every day and you still haven't seen enough? What exhibition is so interesting? I want to see it!" When the elevator reached the first floor, Zhang Jin grumbled as she stepped out and followed him into the exhibition hall.
Zhou Jingxing exited the elevator, turned left, and walked confidently toward Exhibition Hall 2. As he passed the service desk in the lobby on the first floor, Sister Qin, who was packing up to leave work, greeted him with a smile, "Little Zhou is here again! You really love this glass exhibition!"
"Okay, see you tomorrow, Sister Qin."
Upon entering the exhibition hall, one sees display stands of varying sizes arranged in a staggered manner, displaying all sorts of glass exhibits, including flowers, plants, insects, and stones, all shimmering with color and captivating the eye.
It was nearing closing time, and there weren't many visitors left. Zhang Jin followed Zhou Jingxing around the exhibition hall, finally stopping in front of a wall deep inside. There hung a persimmon branch; upon closer inspection, it was revealed to be made of glass, with delicate veins and persimmons that shimmered gracefully. A water droplet clung to one persimmon, seemingly about to fall, making one almost want to reach out and catch it. Zhang Jin couldn't help but exclaim, "Amazing!"
Zhou Jingxing glanced at him and said, "No wonder my dad always told me that people should read more books when I was little."
Zhang Jin was completely bewildered.
"If you don't read books, you'll end up like you, all you can say when you see something is 'Holy crap, awesome!'"
Zhang Jin looked annoyed. "Damn it! You've read so much, why don't you say something?" Zhou Jingxing seemed to have seen something. His eyes lit up, and he hurriedly turned to Zhang Jin, saying, "Don't talk nonsense later." Then he straightened his already neat collar and strode forward.
Zhang Jin watched as Zhou Jing walked up to a young man, smiled, and took the initiative to talk to him.
!!
The iron tree has blossomed? Zhang Jin couldn't believe his eyes. Was that Zhou Jingxing, the ice queen known as the "once-in-a-decade beauty" of their school, who was smiling so casually?
Zhang Jin opened his eyes wide and took a closer look at the man who was talking to Zhou Jingxing. He had delicate features, fair skin, and his eyes curved when he smiled, like a spring breeze. He was no less beautiful than their Zhou beauty.
Zhang Jin cursed the heavens in his heart for their injustice. There are so many good-looking people, what difference would it make if I were one more!
The man probably saw Zhang Jin and asked Zhou Jingxing something. Zhou Jingxing simply brought his men over and introduced them to the man: "This is my classmate from university, Zhang Jin. He now works at the Mingcheng Public Security Bureau." He paused, then reluctantly turned to Zhang Jin, "This is Chen Zhou, the curator of this glass exhibition."
Shen Zhou then added, "One of the curators." He smiled and extended his hand to Zhang Jin, "Hello, I'm Shen Zhou."
Zhang Jin quickly reached out and grasped his hand. "Nice to meet you!" He couldn't help but praise Chen Zhou. "You're amazing! This exhibition is truly beautiful! The exhibits are breathtaking, and the exhibition hall is meticulously arranged! I—"
Before he could finish speaking, Zhou Jingxing grabbed his arm and pulled him away, separating their hands. He said apologetically to Shen Zhou, "I'm sorry, that's just how he is. He's very enthusiastic and sometimes he can be a bit tactless."
Zhang Jin cursed Zhou Jingxing in his heart. What was he doing? Couldn't he even shake hands with the beauty?
Shen Zhou shook his head with a smile, "No, I think Officer Zhang is a very sincere and generous person." Zhang Jin nodded and was about to interject, but Zhou Jingxing turned his head and gave him a look that said, "We'll talk about it later." He had no choice but to shut his mouth in frustration and give a fake smile.
You wait and see!
Zhou and Chen then talked about the exhibits. Zhou Jingxing asked many questions about the glassmaking process, and Chen Zhou patiently answered them one by one.
Zhang Jin observed silently for a while, finally realizing something was amiss. Zhou Jingxing himself majored in cultural relic restoration and conservation, completing his undergraduate and master's degrees before joining the provincial museum. He had taken a course on glassmaking during his undergraduate studies and even interned at a glass factory for two months; how could he not know these things!
Zhang Jin's gaze towards Zhou Jingxing became playful.
Zhou Jingxing was unaware of his inner thoughts; his mind was entirely focused on the sunken boat in front of him.
After listening to Chen Zhou explain the precautions for glassblowing, which Zhou Jingxing already knew, he mustered up the courage to ask if Chen Zhou wanted to have dinner together that evening. However, before he could speak, he saw Chen Zhou glance at his watch and reveal a surprised smile. The next second, Chen Zhou looked at the two of them, "Sorry, my friend is picking me up, I have to go first. You two can continue looking around. I'll tell the staff that the exhibition won't close until you leave today."
After saying that, he smiled, nodded, and turned to walk away.
Zhou Jingxing watched his retreating figure, his eyes filled with a dark and unsettling feeling. Zhang Jin stared at him for a while before finally letting out a soft laugh, "Alright, alright, you're like a waiting-for-husband stone, he's been gone for ages, he's not coming back!"
Zhou Jingxing turned to look at him without saying a word. Zhang Jin leaned in with a gossipy grin, "Something's up, you've got your eye on him?" Zhou Jingxing ignored him, but his ears turned suspiciously red. Zhang Jin didn't need him to admit anything and continued, "Chen Zhou is handsome, even more handsome than you. It's normal for you to have a crush on him. What's there to be ashamed of?"
"By the way, she seems to have a good personality, she's really likable, if only I didn't already have a boyfriend..."
Zhou Jingxing glared at him, and Zhang Jin immediately shut his mouth. After a moment, he said again, "I'm just reminding you, if you're interested, make your move as soon as possible! Someone like Shen Zhou, to put it bluntly, would have a line of suitors stretching from here to Shanghai. If you don't hurry up and make your move, you'll regret it when someone else has already snatched him up!"
Zhou Jingxing gripped the hem of his hoodie tightly, lowering his eyes without uttering a sound. Although Zhang Jin knew he had always been like this, incredibly taciturn and never saying what he wanted, as a friend he was still worried. "What are you afraid of? Zhou Meiren, you're no less than him." He frowned. "Could it be that his sexual orientation is different from yours? Then forget it, turning a straight man gay is no virtue."
Zhou Jingxing finally looked up, and said with certainty, "No, he is too."
"That's perfect!"
Zhou Jingxing said sullenly, "I'm already too late, he has a boyfriend."
Zhang Jin opened his mouth, but in the end he just patted Zhou Jingxing's shoulder and said, "There are plenty of fish in the sea, the next one will definitely be better than this one. I'll drink with you tonight!"
Zhou Jingxing looked at him with a firm gaze, "If there's no other one, I've decided on this one."
"Hey buddy, he has a girlfriend. You want to be a mistress for love? Don't debase yourself, okay?"
Zhou Jingxing's eyes darted away. "I never said I wanted to be the other woman. Can't I just like him quietly on my own?"
This was the first time in all these years that Zhang Jin had seen Zhou Jingxing in love; he seemed even more innocent than his high school sweetheart. He clapped twice, exclaiming, "You are so great and selfless! What a pure and profound love!"
Zhou Jingxing couldn't help but look up and slap him, "What nonsense are you talking about?"
Zhang Jin couldn't help but laugh, "You started talking nonsense. I don't believe in any 'secretly liking him' stuff. You're just a repressed pervert. You never say what you like, but you're secretly plotting and trying every means to get your hands on it."
“I didn’t,” Zhou Jingxing retorted instinctively.
Zhang Jin smiled and changed the subject, "Let's go, since your sweetheart has left anyway, let's go have dinner together."
Sitting at a table at the barbecue stall, Zhang Jin filled their glasses with drinks. He couldn't help but ask curiously, "So how did you meet and fall for Chen Zhou?"
Zhou Jingxing picked up his glass and took a big gulp, only then feeling some of the pent-up frustration he had felt since Chen Zhou left. Holding his beer glass, his thoughts couldn't help but drift back to two weeks ago because of Zhang Jin's question.
I first met Shen Zhou at the preparatory meeting before the opening of the glass exhibition. The glass exhibition rented the exhibition hall of the Provincial Museum. This exhibition was organized by a leading curatorial company in the industry, so the museum director attached great importance to it and brought all the middle-level managers of the museum to the preparatory meeting.
Zhou Jingxing originally didn't want to attend the meeting. He was busy repairing a blue and white porcelain round washer and had no time to attend a meeting! However, when the curator saw that he hadn't come, he called his office directly and persuaded him to come to the meeting room after much pleading.
When Zhou Jingxing arrived, the meeting had already begun. He quietly slipped in through the back door and sat in an inconspicuous corner. After the curator gave a passionate welcome speech, it was the turn of the representative from the other party's curatorial company, "Times Culture," to speak. He was probably a middle-aged man, just like the curator. Zhou Jingxing was bored, so he took out his phone to idly chat.
A moment later, Zhou Jingxing raised his head. That voice was so young? He glanced at the platform, where a young man stood, exuding an extraordinary air, his brilliance understated. In that single glance, Zhou Jingxing's world seemed to ignite, burning a golden hue. His eyes were fixed solely on the man speaking eloquently on the platform; everything else seemed like a mere reflection of nothingness.
Before this, Zhou Jingxing was a staunch advocate of singlehood. Perhaps influenced by his parents' failed marriage, he firmly believed that repairing plates was more fulfilling than dating. Could dating provide the immense sense of accomplishment that comes from restoring a pile of cultural relic fragments to their original state? No, love would only bring endless arguments and hurt.
That's what Zhou Jingxing originally thought.
However, at this moment, the belief he had held for twenty-nine years collapsed and crumbled into dust, beyond repair even for Zhou Jingxing.
People who fall in love often lose their rationality, and Zhou Jingxing was no exception. After the meeting, he rushed straight to the front row. He walked up to Chen Zhou, opened his mouth but didn't know how to start a conversation. For the first time, he began to hate his clumsy tongue.
Fortunately, the curator saw him arrive and warmly introduced him to Chen Zhou. Chen Zhou shook hands with him with a polite but distant smile. He was like a sailor bewitched by a siren, holding Chen Zhou's hand tightly and refusing to let go. In the end, Chen Zhou had to use a little trickery to loosen his grip.
The curator glared at him, then laughed it off. Shen Zhou politely exchanged a few pleasantries with them before leaving under the pretext that a friend had come to pick him up. Zhou Jingxing followed him without a second thought, wanting to see who his friend was.
Then he witnessed a heartbreaking scene in the parking lot: Chen Zhou was kissing a man's cheek next to a black Cayenne.
Zhou Jingxing walked away dejectedly, cursing the injustice of fate. Why wasn't he the one who met Chen Zhou first? If he had met him first, then Chen Zhou's kiss would definitely have landed on his lips!
Zhou Jingxing rubbed his lower lip, and for the first time, the thought of becoming a mistress came to mind.
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