Chapter 32: Boyfriend's Probationary Period
At 9:30 a.m. on Monday, Lin Yi had just sat down at his workstation when Zhang Zexuan, under the pretext of "urgently needing an assistant to accompany him on an important client visit," dragged him into the car.
The car drove all the way to a super popular seafood hot pot restaurant ten kilometers away from the company.
As soon as the door to the private room closed, Zhang Zexuan's business smile instantly switched to gossip mode.
He pushed the menu in front of Lin Yi and asked with a wink, "Brother Yi, you and that Professor Shen... have made up?"
Lin Yi scanned the QR code to order, his gaze lingering on the picture of salmon sashimi. He ordered five servings in a row, deliberately avoiding looking at Zhang Zexuan: "...No."
"Lin Yi!" Zhang Zexuan moved his chair closer to him and plopped down. "Am I not your real brother? You even lied to me?"
He pulled out his phone, scrolled through the chat history, and shoved it in front of Lin Yi's face: "Look! Your first love, Chen Zhinan, has asked me eight times these past few days, 'Where did Lin Yi go?' 'Why is no one home?' 'Did he move?'..."
He lowered his voice, his face full of disappointment, "You haven't been home these past few days, have you?"
Lin Yi looked away, picked up his teacup, took a sip, and said nothing.
Then I showed him the order on my phone, "I'll take these, and order whatever you want too. It'll be 920 in total. You can reimburse me for the client meeting you requested."
When Zhang Zexuan saw that the two of them had spent over 900 yuan on a meal, given Xie Chun's recent attitude of "scolding and kicking" him, he knew the finance department would definitely not approve it.
Moreover, when they go out to dine under the guise of "meeting clients," they are required to provide basic client information, and any falsification will definitely be discovered.
"Let's eat less, let's just order two hundred yuan worth, it's on me."
Lin Yi suppressed a laugh as he watched Lin Yi's stingy behavior, thinking that it would be good if Lin Yi just shut up. He then took the phone and made the payment.
"Alright, I'll treat you... But you've been Xie Chun's assistant for so long, he shouldn't be treating you badly, right?... Do you have a girlfriend? Are you spending a lot of money?"
Zhang Zexuan gritted his teeth in anger and started counting on his fingers: "Not treated unfairly? I've lost so much that I don't even have my underwear left!"
Because of the last time I had a listening device installed, they deducted three months' salary from my salary. And now they make me fill up the gas tank while driving for your dad. They won't fill up with 92-octane gasoline, they insist on filling up with 95-octane!
Your dad's luxury car is like a money-shredding machine in its gas tank; it consumes gas faster than I eat rice! My mom's started suspecting I'm in debt to online loans lately—how come I'm getting poorer the more I work!
Lin Yi couldn't hold back any longer and burst into laughter, clutching his stomach.
"My dear Yi-ge! You're still laughing!" Zhang Zexuan exclaimed anxiously, "How did this come up with me!"
"Go on, tell me about you and that Professor Shen!"
Lin Yi's laughter stopped abruptly: No, hee hee~_~
"Although he seems more reliable than Chen Zhinan, don't forget what he did to you before!"
"Age, occupation, teacher-student relationship... I lied to you for two whole months! How awful is that!"
Zhang Zexuan slammed his hand on the table and concluded, "You can't get back together with him so quickly. Let me tell you, the faster you get back together, the more he can control you!"
Lin Yi:.......
Lin Yi: "You can't speak ill of him just because you didn't get a letter of understanding, can you?"
Just then, the waiter came over to serve the food, and the two of them remained silent, without saying a word.
Lin Yi poked at the condiments in his bowl with his chopsticks, his tone lacking confidence, "Besides, who said we made up?"
"You lied to me again!" Zhang Zexuan slammed his hand on the table as the waiter closed the door. "Then tell me, where have we been staying for the past few days? A five-star hotel? Or..."
His eyes suddenly widened. "You haven't really been living on Shenbei Island all this time, have you?"
He leaned closer: "So what is it about Professor Shen that attracts you so much? Is he so charming that you don't even go home?"
As Zhang Zexuan spoke, he began to scrutinize Lin Yi with a hint of understanding.
Lin Yi's ears burned from his question, and he cleared his throat: "I said no, and I mean no... He's still in the probationary period. If I don't pass the probationary period, I'll break up with him!"
As soon as he uttered that last sentence, he himself felt it wasn't very convincing.
"A probationary period?" Zhang Zexuan was taken aback. "If you ask me, you intellectuals really know how to have fun..."
Let's rewind to that night when we ate wontons—
Under the warm yellow light, Shen Beidao listened to his theory of "probationary period for becoming a full-time employee" and instead of getting angry, he laughed.
The eyes behind those gold-rimmed glasses curved into a gentle smile that could drown you.
"I never expected my little bunny to be a hidden capitalist?" Shen Beidao said at the time, his voice filled with indulgent laughter. "So, how long is my probation period?"
Lin Yi, with his neck stiff, tried to maintain his authority in the negotiations, saying, "Six months."
Shen Beidao protested: "Big companies only offer three months."
Lin Yi retorted, "This is just a shell company, a small workshop, it'll only last six months."
"Then how will you determine my eligibility for permanent employment?" Shen Beidao leaned closer and wiped his still-damp blond hair. "We can't just rely on your 'capitalist' mood to make the judgment, can we?"
"I will draft an internship agreement in the next couple of days, and the performance will be evaluated monthly."
Lin Yi stepped back, not wanting him to touch him. To maintain the seriousness, he said, "You'll only have a chance to become a full-fledged employee if you meet the standards for six consecutive months. But don't worry, if you don't perform well... there will be a reward."
Shen Beidao's eyes lit up for a moment. Leaning against the table, he asked expectantly, "What's the reward? Sleeping with a capitalist for one night after I get promoted?"
Lin Yi tossed the damp towel he was holding over: "I'll personally award you a glittering 'Ex-Boyfriend Nomination Certificate'!"
...
"So he agreed?" Zhang Zexuan's mouth gaped open so wide after hearing this retelling that a crab could almost fit inside.
"Mmm." Lin Yi picked up a piece of fish and put it in his mouth, chewed it a couple of times, and then slowly added, "He didn't agree."
Zhang Zexuan: "???"
“But the protest was invalid.” Lin Yi put down his chopsticks, a little smug on his face. “I grabbed his thumb and pressed my fingerprint on it. It’s a done deal.”
"Holy crap!" Zhang Zexuan leaned back abruptly, his expression as if he'd been struck by lightning. "You can do that?"
His mind raced for a moment, and then he suddenly understood—
No wonder Shen Beidao specifically asked him to invite Lin Yi out for dinner today, and even instructed him to "say some bad things about him appropriately".
So that's where they set a trap!
This young couple is having a fight and needs an outsider to act as a catalyst.
If his "brother" were to speak ill of Shen Beidao, Lin Yi would subconsciously side with Shen Beidao, thinking that he was making a mountain out of a molehill and being petty.
They signed a so-called "probationary period agreement," so they're considered to be in the same boat.
This is not a punishment at all; rather, it gives Shen Beidao a chance to pursue his love again and gives Lin Yi a legitimate way to forgive him.
The ambiguous and buffer periods in a relationship are the most precious.
Before you truly obtain something, every step is an advancement in the relationship, a step towards a better future.
But once you get it immediately, all expectations and illusions vanish instantly, and the result often turns out the opposite.
What? Was he part of the play?
Watching Lin Yi humming a song unconsciously while eating, looking so happy, Zhang Zexuan felt a surge of resentment at being treated like a tool.
To vent his anger, he deliberately cleared his throat:
"Regarding the letter of understanding, could you ask your shrewd Professor Shen about it when you have some free time?"
Sure enough, the smile on Lin Yi's face instantly faded.
He put down his chopsticks, looked at Zhang Zexuan, and said calmly, "I can't make that decision."
He paused, then asked, "What exactly did my dad give you to make you work so hard? Didn't he deduct from your salary? Don't you also dislike Du Xiaoman?"
Zhang Zexuan sighed. "Why? It's because our school requires a six-month internship certificate!"
Zhang Zexuan: "I don't like him, but if you knew about Du Xiaoman's family... you might feel the same way I do."
Lin Yi frowned: "His family? What happened?"
"Du Xiaoman's father used to be Uncle Xie's driver. Once, a truck carrying goods overturned and hit Uncle Xie's car. Du Xiaoman's father was in the accident... and couldn't be saved."
Lin Yi: "When did this happen? How come I didn't know?"
"It seems to have happened a long time ago, but I don't know the exact time."
Zhang Zexuan paused, then stuffed a piece of meat into his mouth. "I didn't mean to eavesdrop. I overheard Uncle Xie talking to your mother on the phone a few days ago. Do you remember Uncle Xie having a rather long scar on his leg? It seems to be from that car accident."
Seeing Lin Yi's stunned expression, he added, "Besides, from what I overheard on the phone..."
Your mother should be able to come over in the next few days; you and she haven't seen each other in a long time, have you?
...
At 9:30 p.m., Shen Beidao returned home two hours late because he attended the monthly meeting.
The living room lights were still on.
He changed his shoes and went inside, where he saw Lin Yi asleep on the dining table, his cheek pressed against a stack of drawing papers, and a pencil loosely held in his hand.
Shen Beidao smiled helplessly and walked over quietly.
He leaned over and looked at the five or six sketches spread out on the table. The lines were rough, but the storyboard layout was clear, and it was clear that a complete story was being conceived.
"Working during the day and doing homework at night," he murmured to himself, his tone carrying a gentleness he himself didn't realize. "He really is a good, ambitious kid."
He picked up the top sketch and looked at it carefully.
Lin Yi woke up at that moment.
He groggily raised his head and saw Shen Beidao looking at his sketch intently. He instantly sobered up and reached out to snatch it back: "Give it back to me... It's just a sketch, it's not very good."
"Is this a comic panel?" Shen Beidao asked, pointing to one of the pages instead of letting go.
Lin Yi was surprised: "You could tell?"
His drawing was indeed hasty; the scenes were only outlined, and the figures were all stick figures. Even he himself might not be able to immediately explain what each frame was trying to express.
Shen Beidao put the paper back on the table and pointed to the first square in the upper left corner: "This is the overall scene drawing, it should be the opening scene."
His finger moved to the right, "A figure appeared in this frame. Although it's just a stick figure, its movements look like it's running."
Finally, his fingertip stopped on the third square: "This square should belong to the character conflict. This little person is holding something... Is it a weapon? Or some key item?"
Lin Yi was fully awake.
He sat up straight and stared at Shen Beidao: "Have you studied the basics of painting?"
"No," Shen Beidao said, taking off his black coat and draping it over the back of the chair next to him.
He pulled out the chair closest to Lin Yi and sat down. "But when I was little, I read a lot of comic books like 'Dragon Ball' and 'Yu Yu Hakusho'... Back then, my parents saved up all their pocket money to buy these books..."
As he spoke, he raised his hand and gently ruffled Lin Yi's hair, which was sticking up from sleeping. "I heard that you were planning to study in Japan?"
Lin Yi's eyelashes trembled: "Zhang Zexuan told you again?"
“This time it wasn’t.” Shen Beidao smiled. “It was Li Rui who said it. He also said that you actually really like painting. During your hard-earned vacation before, you refused to go on a trip with them and locked yourself at home to paint, painting all day long.”
"That all happened before I went to college."
Lin Yi avoided eye contact, his fingers unconsciously fiddling with the pencil on the table. "They're different from me... I still have to take the art exam, so of course I have to keep training, otherwise how can I get into the art academy?"
“Hmm.” Shen Beidao leaned closer to him and said slowly, “I think that if someone has a talent in a certain area, or can be so obsessed with doing something that they forget their playful nature, it must be because of their passion.”
"It is a kind of luck to find what you love in your limited lifespan; not everyone is so lucky."
His fingertips lightly brushed over the sketch Lin Yi had spread out on the table. "So, don't let regret extinguish your passion."
After saying that, he got up and went to the kitchen to wash the fruit.
Lin Yi sat there in a daze, staring at the drafts scattered all over the table.
Those were just half-finished works with outlines, and even he himself hadn't fully figured out how to refine each grid, yet Shen Beidao had expressed his vague ideas.
This man seemed much braver than him; even if he might be wrong, he was willing to express his thoughts verbally, instead of keeping everything bottled up inside like he did.
Shen Beidao brought back the washed jujubes and placed them on the table. He picked up the eraser end of his pencil and tapped Lin Yi's forehead: "Eat some jujubes to replenish your energy. Get some rest after you finish drawing the 'jujube' dots."
Then, he brought over a small dish of melon seeds and pushed it to Lin Yi's side: "Of course, if you want to stay up all night drawing, I support you. The melon seeds can keep you company until dawn."
Lin Yi looked at the plate of melon seeds, both amused and exasperated: "If I'm eating melon seeds, how am I supposed to have time to draw?!"
"Have you ever heard that saying about sunflower seeds?" Shen Beidao sat down opposite him, looking at him with admiration.
"What? Sunflower seeds have famous quotes?"
"Later people said that sunflower seeds are the fruit of the sunflower. But only the sunflower seeds that are about to leave know that they are an unfinished watch, a sun that refuses to set after ripening."
Shen Beidao's gaze fell gently on Lin Yi's face: "Lin Yi, think about your 'sun'... what is it?"
The lights cast a gentle halo behind him.
Shen Beidao sat in that light, dressed in simple home clothes, his eyes shining as if they were filled with stars.
He hasn't answered yet; he's even pondering the deeper meaning.
Shen Beidao leaned forward slightly, a loving smile curving his lips, and asked in a low voice, "Is it me?"
-----------------------
Author's note: At this time, Zhang Zexuan and Xie were not together.
Xie actually treats him like a son, so it's hard for him to accept, and he won't accept it.
But Zhang's mindset and thought process are no problem!
I'm feeling a bit burnt out from writing lately. I'll proofread for typos tomorrow; work is just too busy, I have a business trip tomorrow!
Kids, make sure you play on your phones as much as you want while you're in school. Let them play all night long, play as much as they want! When you start working, you won't even have time to check the orange app if you want to buy a pair of shoes. How tragic!
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