ADTCP Ch36part2

Already used to it.

The words were bittersweet, but Zhu Wensheng said them with unnerving calm.

Tao Zhen’s vision swam, his chest felt soaked in sour lemon juice dripping blood:
“Ah-Sheng, I, I’m sorry, I didn’t mean, ”

“It’s okay. I don’t think it matters.”

For once, Zhu Wensheng cut him off. His dark eyes carried a faint, gentle glow.
“More than that, I think… not seeing you for a whole winter break would make me feel worse.”

“……”

Tao Zhen was dumbstruck by the words.

He stood frozen for a long moment before he realized what was said. His heart pounded wildly.

Was Zhu Wensheng joking? Or did he mean it seriously?

From the start, their relationship had been a purely transactional “kept” arrangement. Tao Zhen had seen with his own eyes how resistant a straight man like Zhu Wensheng was, so he never dared to overthink it.

But now, since Zhu Wensheng said that, did it mean…?

Silence fell between them.

Tao Zhen’s mind was a mess. He suddenly ducked his head and, trying to cover it up, shoveled food into his mouth. Muffled, he blurted, “I, I feel the same!”

Zhu Wensheng paused, the corners of his lips lifting of their own accord. Seeing Tao Zhen nearly choke from eating too fast, he hurriedly handed him an opened bottle of water.

The golden-haired boy, eyes a bit red, quickly took a couple gulps to force the rice down, exhaling in relief as a large warm hand gently patted his back to help him breathe.

“Thanks…”

When Tao Zhen turned his head after saying that, he happened to catch a familiar figure. He looked up and locked eyes with Jia Jia.

The girl’s gaze slid back and forth between him and Zhu Wensheng, one brow lifting meaningfully.
The gold-haired boy’s eyes were pink at the corners, his lips glossy with moisture, half-leaning in the black-haired youth’s arms while his back was still being lightly patted, like someone who’d been forcibly kissed breathless.

“…”

Tao Zhen had no proof, but he had good reason to suspect Jia Jia’s mind had gone there. He couldn’t help raising his voice: “Jia Jia!”

Stifling a laugh, she surrendered and came over to ask if he’d finished eating, she had some news.

Afraid it might be about exams or the break, Tao Zhen grabbed his tray and stood up in a hurry, signaling to Zhu Wensheng. When he saw Zhu nod, he went with the girl toward the trash station and asked what the news was.

“It’s not anything important, just a slightly explosive bit of gossip… Zhenbao, do you know the arts troupe’s minister, Li Jie?”

Jia Jia gestured with her hands. “He was at the volunteer event with us last time, the one in sunglasses, always looking down his nose at people.”

Tao Zhen blinked. So the scoop was about Li Jie?

He nodded and, in passing, recounted his two run-ins with Li Jie. Jia Jia’s eyes widened in surprise, then she fumed: “Damn! So he pulled something like that. Our Zhenbao is too good-tempered, those suits are expensive! Why didn’t you slap him twice?”

Before Tao Zhen could reply, Jia Jia added on her own: “Well, too late to slap him now anyway, because someone already did it for you, that’s what I was going to say. The school has removed him from his post as arts troupe President and canceled his right to compete for a guaranteed graduate spot.”

“Turns out, during the election he bribed classmates to rig votes, forcing Vice President Bai Yuxuan out to get that position himself. After that, he used the President title to pad his credits, and even lied that he was going abroad to get higher scores and GPA from teachers.”

“And he made enemies online doing content, too. Don’t know what’s wrong with him, always acting superior, bad-mouthing peers, playing dirty behind their backs… People are already posting exposés about him.”

Tao Zhen listened, stunned. The stuffiness he’d been holding inside dissipated completely.
Whoever did this was… efficient, took that clown down in no time.

But Jia Jia had only heard it secondhand and couldn’t answer Tao Zhen’s question. With another exam that afternoon and a flight home after, she waved a quick goodbye and ran off to pack.

Watching her leave, Tao Zhen stood there for a while. After scratching his cheek thoughtfully, the light suddenly dimmed in front of him. Zhu Wensheng had come to his side, holding out a lit phone in his palm.

“You left it on the table, so I brought it over,” the young man said, eyes dark. “Someone messaged you.”

“Ah, I forgot!”

Snapping back to himself, Tao Zhen took the phone and, without a second thought, opened it right in front of Zhu Wensheng.

It was from the person who’d been messaging frequently lately, Sunflower.

【Sunflower: Hello, Tao Zhen! I heard your school should be finishing exams these days, how about you, are you done?】

【Sunflower: When are you going home for the New Year? Want to stay in Nancheng a few days? I can introduce some pro photographers! Oh, and there’s a French place I love, the desserts are amazing…】

Why was Sunflower so enthusiastic, never giving up even when getting cold shoulders, asking him out again and again?

Tao Zhen was flying home tomorrow. Using his usual polite script, he declined once more, feeling a little bad about it. He put the phone away and glanced at Zhu Wensheng beside him.

The black-haired youth’s eyes were slightly lowered, his dark pupils calm; his lips pressed together, his demeanor cool and even.

Tao Zhen didn’t realize anything was off. Seeing the time, he hurriedly tugged Zhu Wensheng out of the cafeteria so they could head to their separate exam rooms.

***

Current Affairs and Policy was open-book, a thousand-character essay, easy enough. Most students finished within an hour.

And with that last exam done, winter break officially began.

Tao Zhen spent the evening packing, said goodbye to Zhu Wensheng the next morning, and boarded a flight to Xuancheng.

Nancheng and Xuancheng are only a few hundred kilometers apart; by plane it’s two or three hours. When he came out, he saw a big, strapping man waiting by the car.

Having learned his son was coming, Tao Dajun had pushed aside work to meet him at the airport.

Tao Zhen ran over happily. “Dad!”

“Hey! My boy!”

Wearing the belt Tao Zhen had bought him, Tao Dajun cheerfully took his luggage, put everything away, and drove off with him, asking how college life had been.

They’d talked on the phone before, of course, but in person Tao Zhen still told the stories all over again, especially about being a creator online.

His eyes shone; when he mentioned the fanart girls made of him, he was moved to the point of a runny nose.

Tao Dajun listened with a smile the whole time. In the end, with an indescribable look in his eyes, he patted Tao Zhen’s back and sighed: “Son, I want to say I’m sorry again.”

Tao Zhen froze mid-gesture. “Dad, why bring that up?”

“You really do have talent, you always have. Your mother and I weren’t good enough; we failed to spot the little thoroughbred in front of us.”

He spoke slowly, sounding both nostalgic and regretful. “If we’d nurtured you earlier, maybe there wouldn’t be that lingering regret about the arts exam. Maybe you’d be running faster, better, now…”

“…”

The words hit Tao Zhen like a wave. Sourness surged in his chest, indescribable, almost drowning him.

After a long moment, he steadied himself, took his father’s hand, and said earnestly, “It’s okay, Dad. You’ve already done so much for me.”

His path was always meant to be his to walk.

And his demons were his to conquer.

Back home, father and son ate together; Lin Manyao, performing abroad, called in to say she was safe. After dinner, Tao Zhen did the dishes and then scurried into his room.

The room was warmly decorated, desk, bay window, sofa, private bath and a little sitting area, practically a small apartment. Band and theater posters on the wall; display cases neatly lined with figures; the place full of lived-in warmth.

He pulled out his chair, sat at the computer, and opened his creator dashboard.
The lottery red envelopes had been distributed as promised; now it was time to honor his “I’ll work hard after exams” pledge.

But he wasn’t in Nancheng, without Zhu Wensheng to help film, there were only two options: hire someone to shoot… or,

Try a livestream.

His assistant Xiaoyu had already explained the livestream process and rules, and had the platform clear song copyrights for him.

Streaming wasn’t that scary, you didn’t need to face a live audience, just a camera. The only downside was the flood of bullet comments, but after several rounds of posting videos, Tao Zhen was getting used to that.

He swallowed, heart picking up speed.

The next moment, his body moved faster than his brain, he pressed the “Go Live” button.

Ding-dong~

【The creator you follow, [ZhenZhibang], is live! Come join~】

***
At the company, just settling in, Zhu Wensheng heard the notification and paused mid-flip through his documents.

He wanted to open it on his phone, but, seeing he only had a sliver of battery, he instead pulled it up on his workstation.

On screen appeared a very beautiful golden-haired boy. He didn’t seem to be using any beauty filters or lights, just the room light and the webcam, yet his features were still stunning.

He looked a bit nervous, licking his lips lightly as he asked in a small voice, “Um, can everyone hear me?”

【[Z] has entered the stream.】

【Z: Mm, we can hear you.】

Seeing that line, Tao Zhen relaxed a little and smiled, eyes crinkling. “Great, if you can hear me…”

【Zhen-is-forever: Aaaaah baby is LIVE! Are exams over?!】

【WhoStoleMyTakeout: ? Damn, gorgeous. New ‘looks’ streamer?】

“Mm-hmm, exams are over, winter break now!”

“I’m not a looks streamer, I’m a singing creator.”

【Zhen-is-forever: Aaaa can I request a song? How many gifts to request?】

【userjahalahs: Wow, he looks the same as in his videos, how is he this good-looking! But where’s your lighting or mic?】

“No need to send big gifts! Free little flowers are fine, what do you want to hear?”
He scratched his cheek, embarrassed. “Thanks for the compliments. I just wanted to do a casual stream today, might log off after a bit…”

Since it was his first time going live, the platform didn’t push him much, there were only a few dozen viewers at first. Tao Zhen chatted with the comments and sang a few requests; gradually, the nerves faded.

But after about half an hour, a flashy gift animation suddenly exploded on screen: a huge blue-purple sign with the sparkling characters for “Carnival.”

Zhu Wensheng’s pen paused; he looked up.

【Sunflower sent a gift: Carnival ×1】

【Sunflower: Wow~ Zhen Zhibang went live without telling me, let me help promote!】

【Sunflower: I want a request too, how about ‘Let’s Get Married’?】