ZS | Chapter 8

The credit card had been cut off for two months, and Gu Zheng’s quality of life had dropped sharply. Before, he could buy clothes that cost several thousand yuan whenever he wanted, but now he had to look at the price before buying even a popsicle. Although the family could still spare him a mouthful of food, it was hard to go from luxury to thrift. Without money, everything felt awkward, and those miserable days were uncomfortable.

Now he only had two sources of income. The first was cashing out shopping cards. The second was selling off assets on Xianyu.

Old Gu was watching at home, so Gu Zheng couldn’t move any of his things. He didn’t dare touch his mother’s assets. After thinking it over and over, he could only sell his AJ sneakers.

Actually, what Gu Zheng wanted to sell most was the Rolex, because every time he saw it, he would think of his failed past, and his chest felt blocked. But all he saw on Xianyu were green Submariners going for 100 or 200 yuan, while watch dealers would cut 50,000 yuan straight off in buybacks, so he had no choice but to let it go.

Another half month passed, and Li Lin came home in a travel-worn state, with a whiff of Latin flair on her. She must have gone to Europe for these three months.

His mother was rich and beautiful, the only flaw being that her eyes were a little blind. When Old Gu was young, he had no money, no power, and no looks. If she hadn’t been blind, how could she have married him?

Gu Zheng couldn’t figure it out.

The son took after his mother in looks. Li Lin had sharp brows and bright eyes, thick eyebrows and large eyes, a highly distinctive face. Put that face on a woman and it looked a little rough, but on Gu Zheng it became spirited and handsome.

His sharply defined features and thick, dark eyelashes together outlined a very aggressive face. His high brow bone and deep-set eyes mixed steadfastness with a bit of exotic flair. Though he wasn’t as pretty as Zhuo Hang, he was definitely the kind of face people would never forget.

In middle school, Gu Zheng had received many love letters because of his looks. The young master had originally planned to date a girlfriend for fun, but as soon as there was even a hint of it, Old Gu found out and kept drilling into him every few days, repeatedly emphasizing, “You can’t date early.”

When he was in college, Old Gu also often instilled in him the idea that “a college student who doesn’t date is no different from a pig that only knows how to eat and sleep.” Having grown up with that influence, after a little drink and a burst of excitement, Gu Zheng ended up in bed with Shen Yuesheng.

Director Gu seemed straightforward and hearty, but in fact he was deeply scheming, and he had a clear purpose in everything he did.

For example, when he said right now, “Gu Zheng, come have dinner with me tonight,” it definitely meant he was taking his son to meet someone.

Gu Zheng saw his mother getting ready in front of the mirror and guessed that she had come back specially for this matter, so he asked, “Who are we going to meet?”

What big shot was worth such a fuss?

Gu Mingyu always left three parts unsaid. His expression was indifferent. “You’ll know when we get there.”

An hour later, Gu Zheng was in a private room at a restaurant, with a girl about his age sitting next to him. Gu Zheng and the girl met each other’s eyes, and each smiled more awkwardly than the other.

This passive blind date, with the main character none the wiser, had both sets of parents chatting away.

Gu Zheng got angry. He forced himself to hold back from blowing up on the spot. His father was one thing, but he couldn’t let his mother lose face.

Gu Mingyu knew what his son’s weak spot was, so he had already turned his wife to his side. Dinner lasted two hours from start to finish. The table was full of dishes, and Gu Zheng didn’t eat a single bite.

To his father, dating was a mission for continuing the family line, not about finding someone he liked. His life had long since been written out as a script by his father. When he was supposed to date depended on when his father let him date. If he couldn’t complete the plan on schedule, then it had to be enforced.

After leaving the restaurant, while Li Lin went to the restroom, Gu Mingyu asked, “What are you throwing a fit about? That little girl was so pretty, and you didn’t say a single word to her.”

Gu Zheng finally couldn’t take it anymore, and for the first time he didn’t use any honorifics. “If you tell me to bid, I have to bid. If I don’t win the bid, the credit card gets cut off just like that. Before you dragged me here for a blind date, did you even ask for my consent? I don’t want to date her, so why waste each other’s time? Why do my own matters have to follow your plan, and if I’m even a little unhappy, you won’t let me have peace. Why are you always like this? Can you consider my feelings?”

“Other people’s children all get married when they reach the age, you...”

Gu Zheng cut him off. “Every time you bring up other people’s families, if you think other people’s kids are so good, then go raise someone else’s son.”

Gu Mingyu’s voice carried a trace of anger. “Are you taking my face for granted?”

“When have you ever given me any face?” Gu Zheng sneered. “You know I’m gay, and you still want me to go ruin some little girl. What are you thinking?”

“If you’re sick, then get treatment. Once you’re cured, won’t you be able to...”

“Being gay isn’t a disease!” Gu Zheng was furious and blurted out without thinking. “You think that little girl is pretty, then marry her, go marry her yourself!”

Just after he finished, he happened to see his mother coming out of the restroom.

Gu Zheng often thought, Guang Wanshu could buy Guang Boshi a house, so why couldn’t the Gu family?

When Guang Boshi got into a fight with his dad, he could go back to his own home. When Gu Zheng got into a fight with Old Gu, he could only run away from home.

Actually, he and his father had big fights every three days and small fights every five, and he had long since gotten used to it. The main reason he ran away this time was that he had angered his mother and been kicked out.

There were too many AJ sneakers to carry away, and the shopping cards worth 50,000 yuan and the green Submariner were his entire belongings.

Walking aimlessly on the empty street, seeing the crescent moon, he suddenly felt a little like he missed Shen Yuesheng.

They had walked down this street together, eaten cold noodles together at the noodle shop on the corner, counted the stars in the sky together... During their four years at university, they ate, slept, and busyed themselves with their studies every day, traveled everywhere on holidays, and occasionally slept together.

Gu Zheng felt that if he confessed first, he would be at a disadvantage, so in all these years he had never said “like.”

No one knew they had been together.

Because even they didn’t know whether the other counted as a lover or as a brother he could sleep with.

After more than 20 years of feelings, Gu Zheng had never thought they would split up, so he cashed out the shopping cards and never took back the money Shen Yuesheng transferred to him.

After returning to China, Gu Zheng had originally wanted to say “like,” but he hadn’t expected Shen Yuesheng to say “break up” first.

Only lovers said “break up.”

Only then did Gu Zheng understand that Shen Yuesheng had always treated him as a lover all these years.

And for the sake of maintaining his childish and ridiculous self-esteem, he had refused to confess and refused to bow his head, and in the end there was no lover, only an ex.

When Shen Yuesheng said “break up,” Gu Zheng pretended to be carefree and said they could still be brothers in the future.

Guang Boshi always told him to go find Shen Yuesheng. Gu Zheng didn’t go. First, because it lowered his standing. Second, because he was afraid he wouldn’t control his emotions well and wouldn’t know how to handle the degree of being brothers.

Three months after the breakup, Gu Zheng had been unable to let it go at first, and he could even call out the wrong name in bed. Now he had gotten used to it, and only occasionally, when he saw things related to him, would he think of him.

Just like now.

Go take a look at Pinsheng. At this hour, he definitely wouldn’t be there. Look at the teaching building, and maybe then he wouldn’t think about it so much.

Gu Zheng took the subway for 20 minutes and arrived at Pinsheng Education headquarters. At 8 p.m., the vocational school was brightly lit.

The guard recognized Gu Zheng and told him, “Boss Shen is on the field.”

He made money without caring if his life mattered, and he still wasn’t going home this late.

Gu Zheng thought it would be fine to just look from a distance, so he went to the field.

Shen Yuesheng’s back was very easy to recognize. Gu Zheng spotted it from far away, and the person he had been thinking about was taking a walk with a pretty boy.

That pretty boy had a mouth full of white teeth, looked thin and small, and Shen Yuesheng was slightly taller than him. The two of them looked well matched just from their builds.

They spoke in very low voices, and Gu Zheng couldn’t hear what they were saying clearly.

They couldn’t be flirting, could they?

If they weren’t flirting, were they chatting about work on the field late at night?

Gu Zheng was instantly furious. He shoved himself straight between the two of them and said unhappily, “What are you doing here so late at night?”

Shen Yuesheng had a pair of beautiful peach blossom eyes. When he looked at people, the corners of his eyes lifted, bringing out three parts of aloofness.

Gu Zheng saw a bit of displeasure in his expression and felt half his heart go cold.

Shen Yuesheng said to the pretty boy beside him, “Think about it some more. We’ll talk again tomorrow.”

The pretty boy refused to let it go. “Didn’t we already finish talking just now? What’s left to talk about?”

“Make it cheaper.”

“200,000 is already very cheap!”

“Let me think about it.”

“What are you thinking about? The contract has already been sent. Sign it now!”

It had only been half a year since the breakup, and he was already signing a 200,000 contract to keep someone else?

Gu Zheng had never suffered such an insult. He immediately couldn’t hold back. “Ah Sheng, your taste is really bad. How could you find someone like this...”

Before Shen Yuesheng could speak, the pretty boy got fired up first. “Whose family are you from? Do you even understand the rules? You come here and don’t even mention your advantages, just try to pry it away by force?”

Advantages?

Gu Zheng blurted out without thinking, “I’m fuck 18 cm...”

Shen Yuesheng immediately figured out what this fool was thinking. He at once covered his mouth, opened the electronic contract, signed it in a hurry, and said, “All right, go.”

The pretty boy opened his phone to confirm the contract. “Okay, I’ll tell you when I’m ready.”

“I cut in...”

Shen Yuesheng covered his mouth again.

Gu Zheng watched helplessly as the pretty boy walked farther and farther away, yelling and squawking behind him.

He remembered now. The reason that pretty boy had looked familiar just now was because he had gone to Huiling Mountain with Ah Sheng before!

When he was with me, he was fickle. No wonder he was so anxious to break up as soon as he came back to China!

The new one had become the old one. Gu Zheng’s eyes stung a little, and he called out in a wronged little voice, “Ah Sheng.”

Shen Yuesheng lit a cigarette and didn’t say anything.

Gu Zheng said again, “I ran away from home. I don’t have money. Can you lend me some?”

Shen Yuesheng asked, “How much?”

“200,000.”

Shen Yuesheng raised an eyebrow. That meant, after breaking up, you still came here asking for money, can you show a little shame?

Seeing the other person not speaking for a long time, Gu Zheng lost his temper. “You can give that pretty boy 200,000, so why can’t you give me a little?”

The young master had originally not wanted to do something this demeaning, but when he saw that pretty boy ask for 200,000, he had a sudden impulse and asked for 200,000 too.

The implication was, who was more important, me or that pretty boy?

Shen Yuesheng explained, “The one who just talked to me was Lanhai KA Chen Xi. What I signed was an advertising service agreement, and what I gave him was Pinsheng’s advertising fee.”

“Huh?”

Lanhai, the name sounded wrong from the start, like a business club.

“What kind of salesperson comes out this late to work?”

Gu Zheng frowned and glared, obviously not believing it.

“Breakfast shops have to start work before 4 a.m., taxi drivers still have to pick up passengers in the middle of the night, and salespeople working year-round with no days off to hit performance targets is normal.” Shen Yuesheng said, “Gu Zheng, not everyone can live in an ivory tower like you, and spend their whole life in comfort and privilege.”

Gu Zheng drooped his head and didn’t know what to say.

In the other person’s eyes, he was just an ignorant young master, enjoying the superior conditions given by his parents but not properly building a career, and instead whining over nothing whenever he had the chance. He was truly awful.

Although his words were harsh, Shen Yuesheng still transferred him 200,000, with the note: no need to pay it back.

From childhood to now, every time he got into trouble, the other side had covered for him, just like now.

Shen Yuesheng let out a soft sigh and asked, “Gu Zheng, when will you grow up?”

Only now did Gu Zheng understand that, even if his father had not interfered, breaking up with Shen Yuesheng was still inevitable.

After two years apart, one of them had been tempered by society and become mature, while the other knew nothing of the world and lived in comfort and privilege. Two people whose living environments were completely different had also gradually developed different ways of thinking, and it was hard for their views on certain things to reach agreement like before, so they could only drift farther and farther apart.

The words he had failed to say during four years of university were already too late to say now.

They had lost the reason to hug.

When would he grow up?

Shen Yuesheng ran an education institution, Guang Boshi flipped art, and even Zhuo Hang made money from stock trading... Everyone around him was growing up, and they all had a skill that let them stand on their own in society.

Only he was a giant baby.

The business sea was like sailing against the current. Those around him moved forward, while he was swept to the very end by the torrent of the times.

Just as his father had said, when a man reached a certain age, he had to do what he was supposed to do.

Gu Zheng wanted to have his own career and could no longer live aimlessly.