Chapter 31: Body and Mind

Jian Mingzhou spoke in a gentle tone, but there was a sense of an impending storm.

Xie Jing tilted his head in silence for a moment.

Then he turned back and redirected the conversation, “Uncle, let’s discuss this later… Let’s deal with Uncle first.”

Xie Chi timely added, “Ah… have you found the manga?”

Jian Mingzhou, “…”

He calmed himself and signaled, How do we deal with it?

Xie Jing saw that the tension on his face had returned to calm, with only a subtle hint of red remaining on his earlobes. The joints of his fingers, hanging by his side, curled slightly.

“…It’s okay, I’ll handle it,” Xie Jing said.

Jian Mingzhou hoped, “Do you have other manga?”

“No need for manga,” Xie Jing said, looking up. “It’s eight o’clock, and Uncle should go home.”

“…” Jian Mingzhou was shocked, looking up.

It was a direct eviction!

After finishing his words, Xie Jing walked towards the sofa and said, “Uncle, it’s eight o’clock. How long do you need to go back?”

“Eh? Is it already eight o’clock? Then I should go back. Mingzhou—”

Jian Mingzhou turned his head, only to see Xie Chi getting up to bid farewell, “I’ll go back first. Remember to eat the crabs!”

“Okay,” Jian Mingzhou said, accompanying him to the entrance.

Xie Jing also followed along.

When Xie Chi reached the door, put on his shoes, pushed the door open, and turned around, he said, “Xie Jing, I’ll come to see you again next time!”

After saying this, he grabbed Jian Mingzhou’s hand, tears streaming down his face. “And Mingzhou, don’t miss me too much.”

Xie Jing looked at him slowly in the eye.

Jian Mingzhou spoke softly, “Don’t worry, I won’t.”

Xie Chi, “…”

In the deep night, a loud, slamming door echoed.

After sending away this late-night loudspeaker, the entrance area fell silent again. Jian Mingzhou was about to go back when he heard a casual question from his side:

“Uncle, are you very close to Uncle?”

Xie Jing turned his head and said, “Just one word from Uncle, and I can move in.”

Jian Mingzhou paused and recalled, “Not just one word, probably five or six.”

“…” Xie Jing.

After speaking, he gently invited, “Let’s tidy up in the living room, Track and Field Boy.”

The ellipsis by his side seemed to lengthen a bit.

Then Xie Jing followed along. A large shadow adorned his footsteps, making him feel like he was following a large dog.

At this moment, Jian Mingzhou had already sorted out his thoughts.

Thinking carefully, Xie Jing’s personality was originally casual and teasing. It was just that, combined with his overly handsome appearance and that casual demeanor, it seemed inexplicably…

A bit flirtatious.

He walked to the table to tidy up the fruit plate and half-jokingly asked, “Did you deliberately tease Uncle for fun?”

Xie Jing looked at him for two seconds, confirmed that he wasn’t angry, and also curved his lips and said, “No.”

No what? Not for fun?

Jian Mingzhou glanced sideways.

Xie Jing took the plate from his hand and said, “And in that situation, when I said ‘Track and Field Boy,’ you didn’t feel awkward, right?”

Jian Mingzhou hesitated for a moment and then recalled.

The slightly tight heartbeat when they were alone seemed to have calmed down after Xie Jing mentioned “Track and Field Boy.”

He just nodded and turned the page on the matter. “Well, you’re considerate.”

Xie Jing was quite considerate. “It’s natural.”

—

After seeing off Xie Chi, he returned to work the next day.

Because of the Qixi Festival plan for the weekend, the entire company was busy preparing for the event.

After two days of busyness, Friday was approaching.

The business trip was scheduled to depart in the morning, taking a high-speed train to City C.

After having dinner on Thursday, Jian Mingzhou poured milk in the dining room and said to Xie Jing, “Xiao Jing, I’ll be on a business trip this weekend, leaving tomorrow morning.”

It seemed quiet on the other end of the living room.

He was about to turn around when he heard someone calmly say, “Aren’t we planning to go shopping at the mall this weekend, Uncle?”

“I remember. I’ll be back on Sunday morning,” Jian Mingzhou asked. “Or, do you have plans for Sunday?”

Xie Jing flipped through the manga and said, “Huh? No plans.”

“Then let’s go on Sunday.”

He finished pouring the milk, closed the refrigerator, and added, “Even if I don’t go on a business trip, I plan to go on Sunday.”

Xie Jing raised his eyes. “Because Saturday is the Qixi Festival?”

Jian Mingzhou didn’t expect Xie Jing to know that Saturday was the Qixi Festival. He nodded. “Yes.”

Xie Jing pursed his lips. “Do you think…”

“Yes, too many people.” Jian Mingzhou’s expression turned serious. “Going to the mall on Qixi Festival means queuing for meals, queuing for toilets, and even fighting for taxis…”

He turned his head and said, “Xiao Jing, we absolutely shouldn’t go out on Qixi Festival.”

“…Alright,” said Xie Jing.

Xie Jing moved his lips and said, “Okay, Uncle.”

He poured a glass of milk for each of them, and Jian Mingzhou also sat on the sofa. Just as he took a few sips, he heard Xie Jing ask casually,

“Is the whole department going on a business trip?”

“No, only those at the deputy editor level and above are going.”

Flipping through the manga beside him, he says, “…Hmm.”

Xie Jing didn’t speak again after responding.

Having finished the milk, Jian Mingzhou turned to look at him. He saw the other person looking down at the manga, appearing calm and not particularly emotional.

Is it because he’s leaving for two days, leaving the person alone at home?

Thinking about it, he said, “Xiao Jing, when I come back from City C, I’ll bring you some local specialties.”

Xie Jing raised his head, his eyes deep.

Jian Mingzhou slightly tightened his fingertips and added, “Oh, but I don’t know what local specialties they have. What do you like?”

 Xie Jing suddenly laughed, as if his mood were not high, just an illusion. He curled his lips and said in a good mood, “I’ve been craving sweets lately.”

Jian Mingzhou’s mood also brightened. “Alright, I’ll check it out when I come back.”

…

On Friday morning, he took a taxi to the high-speed train station.

After meeting with Xia Ye, the two of them boarded the high-speed train.

Xia Ye still had that composed and dog-like appearance. As soon as he sat down, he started talking about work, “After arriving in City C, we’ll go to the hotel to drop off our luggage, and in the afternoon, we’ll meet with the person in charge and a few teachers.”

“We’ll be busy with the event all day on Saturday.”

Jian Mingzhou checked the itinerary, “It does seem quite tight.”

Xia Ye glanced at him and said, “You can stay calm on a business trip during the weekend. You really have a passion supporting you.”

Jian Mingzhou looked back. “What about you? What supports you?”

“Of course, it’s salary and performance.”

“…” Jian Mingzhou looked at him deeply.

The BYD car owner still surrendered to reality.

After discussing work, and with some time left before they reached City C, Jian Mingzhou took the opportunity to flip through the City C tourism guide behind his seat.

Xia Ye turned and asked, “What are you looking at?”

Jian Mingzhou flipped through the pages and said, “I’m checking what specialties City C has. Xiao Jing mentioned he wants something sweet.”

As the words fell, a strange laughter sounded from beside him: “Ha~!”

He turned, “?”

Suddenly, what kind of symptom is this?

Xia Ye raised his glasses and looked enlightened. “Doesn’t City C have almond chocolate? It’s sweet.”

Jian Mingzhou was stunned and checked it. It turned out to be true.

Xia Ye’s voice floated over, “A souvenir, tailor-made.”

It was both a local specialty of City C and sweet.

Jian Mingzhou hesitated for a moment. If it were any other time, it would be fine, but coincidentally, it was also the Qixi Festival. Giving chocolate seemed a bit delicate.

Especially with the meaningful glances from the side…

He reined in his thoughts, “It’s not good for athletes to eat too many sweets. I’ll look for something else.”

Xia Ye laughed again. “Ha, alright~!”

“…”

Jian Mingzhou clenched his fist. Endure, it’s superior.

He took a deep breath and retorted, “You’ve researched this so thoroughly in advance. Who are you planning to give it to?”

Xia Ye said, “I don’t have anyone around me who specifically mentioned wanting sweets.”

“Oh, so it’s an insinuation.”

“Hehe.”

“Hehehe.”

…

The remaining journey ended with a battle of wits and mutual harm.

When they arrived in City C, they barely called a truce.

As soon as Jian Mingzhou stepped out of the station, he saw many specialty shops around, offering various foods, souvenirs, and entertainment.

He stopped to look around, and the closest shop happened to be the chocolate shop Xia Ye mentioned. Different shapes of chocolate were displayed on the counter like works of art.

It looked pretty good…

As he was looking, a voice whispered in his ear, “If you want to buy, just buy it…”

Damn! Jian Mingzhou was shocked and almost swung his luggage at the person.

Pressing his chest, he turned around and asked, “Has the car arrived? How long does it take from here to the hotel?”

Xia Ye looked at his phone and said, “The car will arrive in ten minutes, and it takes about forty minutes by taxi.”

It would take almost an hour to get to the hotel.

Jian Mingzhou said, “Then I’ll go to the restroom first.”

Handing the luggage to Xia Ye, he walked away.

When his figure disappeared around the corner, Xia Ye watched him leave and then looked at the chocolate shop. Suddenly, he pushed up his glasses, smiled, and walked over.

“Boss, send a box of chocolates.”

The boss behind the counter registered, “Your name and address, please.”

Xia Ye brought up the address: “Name… Jian Mingzhou. Address is Huayun Residential Area, Receiver is Xie Jing.”

“Okay, got it.”

He said casually and returned to his original position, revealing a smile:

Hehehe, Jian Mingzhou.

…

Five minutes later, Jian Mingzhou came back.

As soon as he approached, he saw Xia Ye’s glasses sparkling like they were frosted and a smile that seemed to be in control…

Extremely annoying, making people inexplicably irritated.

Jian Mingzhou frowned. “What are you doing?”

Xia Ye snorted, “Nothing. By the way, help me with the luggage. I’m going to the restroom too.”

“Oh.” He took the luggage and watched Xia Ye walk away.

When that figure disappeared around the corner,.

Jian Mingzhou, pondering over Xia Ye’s infuriating smile and his suggestive words, shifted his gaze after a while.

To the chocolate shop.

After contemplating for a few seconds, he walked into the shop and said, “Boss, send a box of chocolates.”

The boss, used to such requests, said, “Your name and address, please.”

“Name… Xia Ye. Address is Qiuyuan Residential Area, Receiver is He Luchen.”

After saying that, he returned to his original position as if nothing had happened, revealing a smile.

Hehehe, Xia Ye.