BH (QT) – Phoenix Man (6)

Chapter 6 – Phoenix Man (6) *edited

When Yan Damei sneaked out in the dark, Yan Jingze settled down with Grandma Jiang in a small inn in the county town. The next day, he took Grandma Jiang to the city and boarded the high-speed train.

He took very good care of Grandma Jiang – she was completely unguarded, listening to whatever he said, making her easy to take care of.

After a whole day on the train, they arrived in the city where A University was located on Friday night.

The six-hour high-speed train journey was quite exhausting, but everything around them was new and exciting to Grandma Jiang – she had never seen any of it before. So, she was full of excitement and enthusiasm.

Yan Jingze accompanied her to the rented apartment and then went to a nearby shop to buy two bowls of spicy hotpot, commonly known as “mala tang,” to bring back.

The people from his village loved spicy food, and when he went to pick up Grandma Jiang before, he noticed she had leftover spicy pepper potato. So, he thought she might like mala tang.

As for the health concerns of eating such food… occasionally indulging wouldn’t hurt.

As expected, Grandma Jiang loved the mala tang and couldn’t stop praising it, saying it was the most delicious thing she had ever eaten.

After finishing the meal with Grandma Jiang, it was already 9 p.m. Yan Jingze rode his recently purchased second-hand bicycle and hurried to Jiang Pingxiu’s car wash shop.

During these days, he had been chatting with Jiang Pingxiu on his phone.

Jiang Pingxiu always replied to his messages promptly, and the chat page would often show “typing” when Jiang Pingxiu was composing a message. However, Jiang Pingxiu rarely took the initiative to start a conversation…

This made Yan Jingze feel a little uneasy.

This kid was just too cautious!

Blame it all on the original owner being such a scum!

On Friday night, the car wash business was quite busy; many people would wash their cars on this day to prepare for weekend outings or dates.

Jiang Pingxiu was busy non-stop, but he felt extremely happy inside – tomorrow would be Saturday, and Yan Jingze would come to see him!

It had been a whole week since he last saw Yan Jingze, and he really missed him.

Finally finishing washing a car, Jiang Pingxiu checked his phone, finding no unread messages, feeling a bit disappointed.

Yan Jingze must be very busy… but since Yan Jingze said he would come to see him tomorrow, then he would wait.

He also had some good news to tell Yan Jingze.

It had gotten colder, and car washing was a tough job in such weather. The boss’s wife raised his salary by 500 yuan, so next month he could give more money to Yan Jingze. This way, Yan Jingze wouldn’t have to worry about running out of money after buying so many things for him.

Putting the phone back into his pocket, Jiang Pingxiu secretly glanced at his own reflection through the car’s rearview mirror.

In the past week, he had been using the shampoo and face cream that Yan Jingze had bought for him, and both products worked well. Now his hair was no longer stiff and rough from using soap, and the small cracks on his face had improved significantly. He felt like he had become more attractive.

‘Brother Jing Ze… will he like it?’

“Jiang Pingxiu, are you checking yourself out in the mirror?” Xiao Zhang asked, surprised by Jiang Pingxiu’s actions.

“I… ” Jiang Pingxiu felt a bit embarrassed and blushed.

“It’s about time you started caring about your looks!” Xiao Zhang said, “Let me tell you, men need to groom themselves too. Good looks help in finding a partner! If you could look like your brother, you’d have a bunch of girls chasing after you without even trying.”

Talking about Jiang Pingxiu’s brother, envy appeared on Xiao Zhang’s face. Although he had some grievances against Jiang Pingxiu’s brother, he couldn’t help but admit that he was very handsome.

Not only was he good-looking, but he was also an outstanding student at A University. His future would undoubtedly be completely different from theirs.

Thinking this, Xiao Zhang continued, “Jiang Pingxiu, your brother won’t have to worry about anything in the future. With his qualities, he will definitely find a woman who has her own house. That would be great!”

The heat in Jiang Pingxiu’s face subsided, and after a while, he nodded, “Yeah.”

Jiang Pingxiu didn’t want to hear Xiao Zhang talk about these things, so he went to the other side of the car to continue washing it. He worked diligently, not needing Xiao Zhang’s help, and quickly cleaned the car.

Once the owner was satisfied and drove away, Jiang Pingxiu was about to find something else to do when Xiao Zhang suddenly exclaimed, “Jiang Pingxiu, is that your brother?”

Jiang Pingxiu looked up and indeed saw a man walking towards them, casting a long shadow under the streetlamp. The light illuminated his face, making him look exceptionally gentle.

It was Yan Jingze!

Jiang Pingxiu had known from a young age that Yan Jingze was very good-looking.

While others in the village were dirty and messy, Yan Jingze was different. He never had snot hanging from his nose, his clothes were always clean, and his skin was even fairer than the prettiest girls in the village.

Yan Jingze was so unique.

He had admired Yan Jingze since he was little, and as he grew older, he developed feelings for him. However, he never thought of being with Yan Jingze. Initially, he just wanted to give Yan Jingze a schoolbag because he couldn’t believe that someone in high school didn’t even have one.

Yan Jingze accepted the schoolbag and was willing to talk to him, which made him extremely happy.

Later, when he found out that Yan Jingze was not living well, he started making money for him.

Someone like Yan Jingze shouldn’t struggle even to afford meals.

From that time until now, three years had passed in the blink of an eye.

In those previous three years, Yan Jingze treated him as an ordinary friend, but as long as Yan Jingze was willing to talk to him, he felt content.

However, recently…

Recently, Yan Jingze had been exceptionally good to him, and he even felt like it was unreal.

Yan Jingze had become even more handsome, and Jiang Pingxiu couldn’t take his eyes off him.

Jiang Pingxiu stared at Yan Jingze with wide eyes.

“Pingxiu.” Yan Jingze also spotted Jiang Pingxiu and flashed a smile.

“Brother Jingze.” Jiang Pingxiu suddenly snapped back to reality, “You… why are you here?”

“To pick you up. Pingxiu, I rented a place. Why don’t you stay with me tonight?” Yan Jingze suggested. The car wash shop closed at ten o’clock in the evening and opened at nine in the morning. The place Yan Jingze rented was a twenty-minute bike ride from the car wash shop, so it would still allow Jiang Pingxiu to commute to work.

Actually, Yan Jingze wanted Jiang Pingxiu to quit his job, but he didn’t have enough money at the moment, so he had to take it slow.

“You rented a place? Do you have enough money?” Jiang Pingxiu asked anxiously. He had been working at the car wash shop and never thought about moving because he had free food and accommodation here. Renting a place in the city was expensive; even the worst places would cost five to six hundred per month. Working at a place with free meals and lodging could save at least a thousand each month!

Now Yan Jingze wanted to rent a place… It would cost so much money.

“I found a part-time job; it’s enough,” Yan Jingze reassured.

“You need to study; how can you work?” Jiang Pingxiu retorted without thinking.

“The part-time job doesn’t require much effort,” Yan Jingze laughed and changed the topic, “Are you about to finish work?”

“Twenty more minutes,” Jiang Pingxiu checked the time.

“I’ll wait for you,” Yan Jingze said.

Jiang Pingxiu nodded and turned to bring a chair for Yan Jingze.

Yan Jingze sat down, and they chatted for a while, also exchanging a few words with Xiao Zhang. At this time of night, only Xiao Zhang and Jiang Pingxiu were at the shop.

After a while, it was time to clock out.

Jiang Pingxiu used to live in a small partition on the second floor of the car wash shop. Now that he was leaving, he went upstairs to pack his belongings and put them in a plastic bag, carrying it in his hand.

When Jiang Pingxiu came downstairs, Yan Jingze was already sitting on the bike, waiting for him. Yan Jingze had bought this second-hand bicycle before going to pick up Jiang Pingxiu’s grandmother. Since his part-time job was a bit far from school, he thought it would be convenient to get around on a bike. Considering he might need to carry Jiang Pingxiu sometimes, he specifically bought a bicycle with a seat at the back.

Right now, he stood on one leg and said to Jiang Pingxiu, “Pingxiu, get on!”

Jiang Pingxiu’s heart skipped a beat.

He didn’t know whether to sit sideways or what. Upon hearing Yan Jingze’s words, he awkwardly sat on the rear seat of the bike, spreading his legs apart.

“Hold on to me, let’s go,” Yan Jingze said, and he started pedaling the bike.

Carrying the person he liked on a bike ride back home was a romantic scene that Yan Jingze had imagined before, but now that he was actually doing it…

He suddenly realized that his physical stamina was struggling to keep up.

Curse the original owner for only focusing on studying and neglecting physical exercise!

As they rode along, Yan Jingze was already panting.

Jiang Pingxiu placed his hands on Yan Jingze’s waist.

Yan Jingze asked him to hold on tight, but he didn’t dare to do so. Instead, he placed his hands hesitantly on Yan Jingze’s waist. Even though it was just this, he was already very happy, secretly smiling and gently resting his face on Yan Jingze’s clothes.

It was winter, and Yan Jingze was wearing thick clothes. With him leaning against Yan Jingze, would Yan Jingze notice?

Thinking this way, Jiang Pingxiu lightly kissed Yan Jingze’s clothes.

After the kiss, Jiang Pingxiu realized that Yan Jingze was already starting to pant, “Brother Jingze… I can walk, I…”

“It’s alright. You just sit tight; I need the exercise! Hoo…” Yan Jingze said, panting.

Listening to Yan Jingze’s heavy breathing, Jiang Pingxiu felt a bit restless, but Yan Jingze said he needed the exercise… so he could only continue sitting.

The journey that usually took twenty minutes, Yan Jingze ended up taking half an hour.

Finally, they arrived home. Yan Jingze opened the door while moving the bike inside and said to Jiang Pingxiu, “Come in quickly.”

Yan Jingze had rented an old, run-down apartment that used to be a textile factory’s dormitory long ago. It had two south-facing bedrooms, a small north-facing dining room, a north-facing kitchen, and a windowless bathroom.

This kind of place wasn’t really good, and Jiang Pingxiu might be a little disgusted by the smell and moldy walls of the bathroom. However, as soon as Jiang Pingxiu stepped in, he said, “This place is great.”

An elderly couple used to live in this house, but they had to move out to help take care of their daughter’s child, so they rented the place to Yan Jingze. The house was fully furnished and well-maintained, indeed much better than the shabby cottage Jiang Pingxiu lived in the village and the tiny compartment he had at the car wash shop.

“If you like it, that’s good. I don’t have much money now, so I can only afford to rent a place like this. In the future, we can live in one room, and the other room can be for your grandmother,” Yan Jingze suggested.

Jiang Pingxiu was taken aback, “My grandmother?”

“Yes, she’s inside; she’s probably asleep now,” Yan Jingze smiled.

After they had the spicy hotpot together, Yan Jingze had asked Jiang Pingxiu’s grandmother to rest and turned on the air conditioning for her.

At that time, Jiang Pingxiu’s grandmother was waiting for Jiang Pingxiu to come back, but now there was no sound in the room, so she should be asleep.

Yan Jingze calmly said this, but Jiang Pingxiu was stunned. He repeated, “My grandmother?”

“Yes,” Yan Jingze nodded and opened the door to Jiang Pingxiu’s grandmother’s room.

The two south-facing bedrooms were about the same size and layout, each with a bed, a bookshelf, a TV stand, and a television.

Right now, the room had warm air blowing from the air conditioner, and the old lady was already sound asleep on the bed.

Jiang Pingxiu stood at the door, looking inside for a long time before closing the door and looking at Yan Jingze.

Yan Jingze said somewhat boastfully, “I went back a few days ago and brought your grandmother here.”

Jiang Pingxiu opened his mouth but ended up smiling dryly, “Brother Jingze, doesn’t that cost a lot of money? I still have some; I can give it to you…”

“I told you already, I found a part-time job. I can make a few thousand a week now. I have money,” Yan Jingze said. He might not be making that much money yet as online jobs were unpredictable, but if he needed more money, he could take on additional tutoring jobs and make around one or two thousand a week.

He could also sign up with certain platforms to give online lectures… There were many ways to make money if one had talent.

The original owner might not have had a good personality, but his academic performance was quite remarkable. Even without prior knowledge of computers, he managed to keep up with the school’s pace, and according to the original history, he would stand out in class after six months. By his sophomore year, he would be well-known in the department.

If it weren’t for this, the wealthy girl wouldn’t have liked him either.

Now it’s him, he believed his learning ability was even stronger than the original owner’s!

Yan Jingze was a little proud, Jiang Pingxiu said: “Brother Jingze…you are rich…are you going to separate from me?”

11790s - Copy

<< ToC >>

Related Posts

8 thoughts on “BH (QT) – Phoenix Man (6)

  1. Pitty😖 think his big brother..err..crush..” now want to separate..tsk…tsk . thanks, update.

  2. This is soo good!! Will you be translating the story the author wrote about them on their honeymoon as well??

Leave a Reply to mircakeCancel reply