Chapter 62: Early Love
Translated by Addis of Exiled Rebels Scanlations
Editor: Karai
The gallery business quickly got on track. After the New Year, both sets of parents left Chengdu. Shi Yuan had originally planned to stay a few extra days to help move and shop for furniture and appliances, then asked his son, “Do you have any specific ideas for what you want?”
Shi Wenze answered on Lin Su’s behalf, “Something cool and misty, like the fog in Jiangnan and the rain in London.”
Shi Yuan held a mall sale flyer, looking a bit speechless. What he meant by “specific” was whether they wanted to trade in old appliances, get a membership discount, or use a ‘spend 5,000 get 800 back’ deal — not some vague “like fog, rain, and wind” stuff.
Ji Yun said, “Stop meddling. Let your son and Xiao Lin handle this.”
Shi Yuan reluctantly gave up but warned again and again, “Make sure to buy from famous brands. Don’t get those no-name lithium batteries — they’ll explode.”
Lin Su graciously followed this advice. His life hadn’t changed much with the gallery opening — still leisurely, still lazy. They bought a new car, and on weekends Shi Wenze took him out for drives or to browse home stores. Their once-empty, fully furnished apartment slowly filled with things: fridge, TV, washing machine, and plenty of pretty dishes. Besides Lin Su’s sister, Xu You and Du Siyue even got their own special sets — VIP treatment for invited friends. According to old customs, the first day in a new home should be warmed up by friends.
Xu You called ahead, “Just a heads-up: I’ll come for dinner, but no dragging me off for extra lessons.”
After all, that had happened before. Though he now knew Lin Su wasn’t from the inspection team, the conditioned fear lingered — fearing bad grades would mean a beating was still very real. Dangerous. Very dangerous.
Du Siyue also sent a voice message, “I’ll bring blue lobster, king crab, and abalone.”
Lin Su asked, “Is that all? Think again?”
Du Siyue seriously replied, “Yep, that’s all. Don’t get the wrong idea—we’re just ordinary friends.”
Shi Wenze beside him was confused, thinking “we” meant Lin Su and Du Siyue. Lin Su saw through it immediately and patiently called Du Siyue, explaining, “I mean, last time you said you’d bring a bottle of red wine. Don’t forget it when you come. This has nothing to do with Jiang Yuhao. I don’t want to see him at all. Can you stop acting so suspicious? Your imagination is running wild 24/7, no breaks.”
Du Siyue: “I’m not, I’m not. Please, shut up.”
On the moving day weekend, Chengdu had rare sunshine, lighting up the whole neighborhood in a golden glow. Lin Lu planned to help her beloved brother shop for groceries but was mercilessly rejected. Lin Su said, “We’re already at the market. We’re buying a goose.”
Lin Lu asked, “Is that goose for you, or for Shi Ge?”
Lin Su stammered, “I-I want to try the big iron pot stewed goose from TV. What’s wrong with that?”
Lin Lu laughed, “Of course it’s wrong. Just listen to the name — do you think Shi Ge can cook that? You don’t even have a proper big pot, only your pink enamel one bought just for looks.”
Lin Su was speechless, but pink pots are pretty. “You don’t get it, don’t say it.”
In the end, no goose was bought. Lin Lu said, “I’ll order some authentic Northeast takeout. Please let Shi Ge off the hook.”
Shi Wenze breathed a deep sigh of relief and felt like dedicating a song called “Only Sisters Are This Good.”
Lin Su wandered the market without the goose, wearing a red hat and hands in his coat pockets, strutting like an elegant red-crowned crane. After Shi Wenze picked out some chili peppers and turned around, he saw Lin Su directing the fruit vendor to rearrange the oranges, grapefruits, apples, and pears by color to create a sunset gradient effect. Shi Wenze was impressed. How did he do that?
The fruit stall’s boss’s wife was happy to cooperate — partly because Lin Su was cute, partly because the pretty display attracted lots of customers taking photos and business was booming.
Lin Su glanced at the meat stall opposite. The butcher was over two meters tall with a tough, weathered face, staring fiercely at him. Lin Su quickly turned to Shi Wenze, “Are you done? Let’s go home.”
The butcher thought, Why hasn’t he come over yet? Is my eager gaze not obvious enough? He felt deep regret. But it was okay — the market was right next to their new home. They’d be back many times.
At two in the afternoon, Lin Lu, Du Siyue, and Xu You arrived punctually. Lin Su, wearing an apron, opened the door. Lin Lu and Du Siyue’s first reactions were, “Are we eating food or charcoal tonight?” Only Xu You hadn’t yet witnessed Lin Su’s legendary cooking skills and was eagerly anticipating a fancy dinner.
But Lin Su wasn’t cooking. Before the doorbell rang, he’d been organizing groceries delivered from the supermarket. Shi Wenze had thought the apron was cute and made him wear it, taking some photos. You thought it was just an apron, but it was really the kind of prop that TV shows can’t air.
Their little home — just the two of them — was free and unrestrained, blissfully intoxicating. The terrace bloomed with spring flowers, connected directly to the bedroom. Lin Su planned to put a comfy lounge chair out there for summer. The art studio next door was Shi Wenze’s handiwork. He’d joined several home goods groups on WeChat, and before asking any questions, he always added, “My wife’s a painter,” which got sellers to casually reply, “Wow, a painter! Amazing.” A business success and a vanity boost — a bright future for both sides.
The kitchen was divided into Chinese and Western sections. Everyone else was busy in the Chinese kitchen — washing crabs, heating oil — while Lin Su and Du Siyue wandered aimlessly. Their cooking style, if it could be called that, belonged to the molecular gastronomy school: breaking down and reconstructing ingredients using physics, chemistry, and biology theories. It might look like a burnt lump but was actually a steak inside.
Traditional cooking got completely flipped, and the visual effects were maxed out — the only problem was it wasn’t edible. Shi Wenze had once bravely tried a bite, with love-filtered eyes and relying on his qilin bloodline, but he spent the whole next day feeling like a charcoal water filter.
Du Siyue was more realistic. After gaming for a while in the living room, he got hungry and went to the kitchen for food. Seeing Lin Su focused on something, he casually asked, “Did you cook this?”
Lin Su said, “Yeah.” Then, “Want some?”
Du Siyue stopped in his tracks. “Isn’t that just a bowl?”
“What bowl? This is a rice cooker cake I made.”
“…”
Du Siyue had a sinking feeling that something was off. He tried to escape but failed. He crouched in the corner, forced to chew on the rubbery mixture of custard and batter, feeling like no Bugatti Veyron could fix this kind of trauma.
Lin Su asked, “How is it?”
Du Siyue answered, “Good. It’s got a strong chicken flavor. If this were on the Chinese Small Chef, the judges would already have golden glowing farms growing behind them.”
Lin Su shoved all the cakes at him. Since you like it so much, eat more. No need to thank me. Du Siyue felt this friendship was hanging by a thread. Luckily, the other three were decent cooks, so they managed to put together a sumptuous dinner. After eating, they played games together until late into the night before finally calling it a day.
When Lin Su came out of the bathroom drying his hair, Shi Wenze was already leaning against the bed. He had changed into a brand-new set of dinosaur pajamas, clearly taking the night seriously.
A life just for the two of them had begun—more relaxed and comfortable than either had imagined. Even the morning alarm no longer annoyed, because the first thing they saw upon opening their eyes was the person they liked.
The air was filled with the rich aroma of coffee beans. Lin Su leaned against the kitchen counter, lazily scrolling through the news while Shi Wenze held his left hand, their fingers intertwined, and busily flipped two soft-boiled eggs with his right hand. On the table sat a large bouquet of beautiful balloon flowers, vibrant under the sunlight.
Outside the window, a little monster wearing a yellow shirt stopped his tricycle politely knocking on the glass. He was very familiar with the address because Granny White Dragon had learned a few new crochet techniques and frequently sent parcels.
Shi Wenze had been relieved that he couldn’t fully transform into a qilin and didn’t have to wear sweaters, but Granny White Dragon hadn’t given up. She had woven a long cover, claiming it could hold his tail inside.
Shi Wenze muttered, “…”
While Lin Su signed for the delivery, the little monster’s eyes darted around. Spotting a black-and-red logo on a package in the corner, he immediately asked warily, “Is that SF Express? How fast is their delivery?”
Lin Su handed back the receipt. “That’s not from monster delivery.”
The little monster courier felt relieved but a bit disappointed too, since the Monster Act currently prohibited the company from developing human customers.
“But we really are faster than them!” he emphasized before leaving, handing over a mall promotional brochure.
Shi Wenze flipped through the flyer. “Should we order two boxes of Spirit Fruit as gifts for Uncle and Auntie?”
“We’ll talk about it later.” Lin Su tossed him the motorcycle keys. “I’m hungry. I’m going to eat first.”
The two of them planned to grab a barbecue near the high school gate. Although Old Sun’s shop had been torn down, his younger brother’s new place was even busier and livelier. After eating, they could also stroll around the campus.
Lin Su had gotten pretty good at sneaking in through the back gate. He grabbed Shi Wenze’s hand and easily jumped down from the wall—only to see a middle-aged male teacher holding a thermos standing across from them, his expression one of shock.
“You learned how to climb the wall too?”
“…”
“Shi Wenze!”
“It’s not me who taught him!”
The only good thing about graduating might be that climbing the wall no longer earned you the punishment of sweeping the playground. Also, they could use Teacher Wang’s card to snag a couple of milk teas at the cafeteria. They sat side by side under an old tree beside the playground, watching the white clouds slowly drift across the sky.
“Shi Wenze.”
“Hm?”
“We didn’t have an early love.”
“…”
“But it’s okay.”
Because now, it didn’t seem too late at all.
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