TLLKTBD CH 24

Chapter 24: Shaobai, Don’t Tease Him.

As they ate, Qi Shaobai curiously asked, “They say the way to a man’s heart is through his stomach. Do you think that’s true?”

Lu Qian raised an eyebrow in surprise. “Why? Planning to cook for your boyfriend already? Moving that fast?”

“I was talking about your Jin Lang,” Qi Shaobai scoffed. “I don’t even have a boyfriend. That guy is just a pursuer at best. Why would I cook for someone chasing me? No way I’m cooking for anyone…” He suddenly paused, as if remembering something, and glanced at Lu Qian, who was watching him with a knowing smirk. “That time doesn’t count. I was just hungry and borrowed his kitchen, that’s all. In the end, no one even got to eat it anyway.”

“Who said that?” Lu Qian countered. “We ate it.”

“We?” Qi Shaobai looked shocked. “You and Director Xu both ate it?”

“Yeah. That ended up being our dinner that night. Xu Yang even burned the stir-fried pork with chili you left half-cooked. It was terrible.” Lu Qian ruthlessly judged Xu Yang’s cooking skills.

“And he still called to scold me for not cleaning up the kitchen?” Qi Shaobai huffed indignantly. “He messed it up too, but I’m the one getting blamed?”

“Hm?” Lu Qian found it odd. Xu Yang had a housekeeper who came regularly. Why would he go out of his way to complain about the mess?

“Uh… aside from the stir-fried pork with chili,” Qi Shaobai tried to sound casual, “how was the rest of the food? What did you think?”

Lu Qian focused on eating his noodles and answered offhandedly, “I thought it was pretty good.”

Qi Shaobai waited, expecting him to say more. But after a moment of silence, he felt a little disappointed. “…Oh.”

Lu Qian glanced up at the suddenly deflated Qi Shaobai and smirked. “Xu Yang probably thought it was good. I barely ate any—he finished all of it.”

Qi Shaobai’s eyes lit up, but he stubbornly insisted, “It’s not like I asked him.”

Lu Qian put down his chopsticks and asked seriously, “Xiao Qi, what exactly do you think of Xu Yang right now?”

“Me?” The light in Qi Shaobai’s eyes dimmed again. “I don’t really think much about it. Before, whenever he saw me, he either avoided me or acted cold. If he couldn’t escape, he’d just put on a nasty expression. Now, I just try to stay out of his way as much as possible—so I don’t annoy him or ruin his mood. Otherwise, he might have a moment of insanity and fire me on the spot.” Qi Shaobai lowered his head and absentmindedly poked at a few strands of noodles with his chopsticks. “Besides, you know I’ve been trying to meet new people. So far, things have been going well, and maybe… I could give it a try.”

He lifted his head and looked at Lu Qian seriously. “Qian-ge, I won’t cling to the Director. If that’s what you’re all worried about, you don’t have to be. I just want to do my job well. I’m not thinking about anything else.”

“I wasn’t worried about that,” Lu Qian replied, looking at Qi Shaobai’s expression and not knowing how to comfort him. Feelings were a two-way street, and as an outsider, he had no right to interfere. Moreover, Xu Yang had been firm in his stance that there was no possibility between him and Xiao Qi. If that was the case, Lu Qian couldn’t stir things up recklessly, nor could he give someone hope only to take it away. He realized he had been careless just now and hoped he hadn’t given Qi Shaobai the wrong impression or sparked false expectations.

“I know you’re putting effort into your work, and that’s great. Keep it up, but don’t push yourself too hard. Lately, you’ve been secretly staying late to work overtime, haven’t you? How do you even find time for dates?” Lu Qian teased.

“Oh, please! That’s just how my job is. If he can’t keep up with my schedule, then there’s nothing I can do about it,” Qi Shaobai said with a haughty toss of his head, making Lu Qian chuckle and shake his head.

“Qian-ge… so, you and the Director… is it really impossible? I think he still likes you a lot,” Qi Shaobai asked, unable to hold back his curiosity as he ate his noodles.

Lu Qian shook his head. “There’s nothing between me and Xu Yang. Not now, not in the future. You don’t need to concern yourself with that.”

“What about Jin Lang, then? Has he won over your stomach and your heart?” Qi Shaobai asked again.

Lu Qian sighed. “Your imagination really runs wild. Xiao Lang isn’t trying to win my stomach or my heart. He’s just paying off his debt—three meals a day, in exchange for rent.” He pointed his chopsticks at Qi Shaobai. “And don’t go filling his head with nonsense. He’s straight—don’t corrupt him.”

Qi Shaobai wasn’t convinced. “How would that be corrupting him? The way he looks at you isn’t that simple, you know. He’s practically competing with Director Xu—like a little pup guarding his food.”

“Xiao Qi, I’m serious. Jin Lang is still young. He hangs around us and might be confused or curious about our world. He might even act like he’s interested. But that doesn’t mean he can fall in love with another man.”

“And why can’t he? There’s nothing wrong with falling for the same sex,” Qi Shaobai argued, but Lu Qian cut him off before he could say more.

“There’s nothing wrong with falling for someone of the same sex. But he is capable of loving women—why must you insist on pulling him off that path? Does having one more person join the gay community make you feel stronger? Or do you think it’s fine if he just ‘tries it out’ with a man out of curiosity, only to go back to women if it doesn’t work out?” Lu Qian’s tone grew stern. “What if he ends up hurting someone? Or if he gets hurt? Would you still think it’s no big deal?”

“No, that’s not what I meant.” Qi Shaobai was dumbfounded. He had just been casually chatting over a meal—he hadn’t expected Lu Qian to take it so seriously.

“Shaobai, don’t mess with him,” Lu Qian said, his voice carrying a hint of exhaustion. “Turning a straight man gay isn’t some kind of game. You know how difficult our path is.”

“I get it,” Qi Shaobai muttered gloomily. Deep down, he understood—Lu Qian truly cared about Jin Lang.

Lu Qian felt even more stifled. He still couldn’t figure out how he had let Jin Xiaomi brainwash him into agreeing to ‘keep’ a little straight guy in the first place. Now, not only could he not bring himself to lay a hand on this soft and innocent Simba, but he also had to constantly remind himself not to take advantage of him or lead him astray. His own problems remained unsolved, yet he had somehow managed to invite more trouble into his life. Sometimes, when he caught Jin Lang’s bright, trusting gaze following him around, he couldn’t help but feel the urge to push the kid off a building.

Meanwhile, Jin Lang was happily preparing to head to the art studio, completely unaware that he was about to step into the deep abyss of a lovey-dovey couple’s everyday dog-torturing antics.

Lu Qian had repeatedly warned Qi Shaobai, but he had forgotten—true masters of playful teasing were often hidden among ordinary folks.

(To be continued…)