GSCCO Chapter 7

Through the glass, the mole on the anchor’s lip was blurry. The air still carried the scent of alcohol he’d brought with him. Mu Huai took a small exhale and gestured for Guan Yang, who was standing there dumbfounded, to proceed.

He didn’t intend to do anything. He was just doing a favor since he’d encountered this situation. The anchor’s friend was also quite interesting.After a brief moment of confusion, only wariness remained. His surprise and curiosity about this star lasted less than thirty seconds.

Okay, he does have a lot of scandals… but surely not something like trafficking high school students, right?

“This is troublesome.” Guan Yang, full of questions, wanted to whisper in his Yu-ge’s ear, but Yu silently sat down in the passenger seat.

As Yu Yi’s childhood friend, Guan Yang knew that Yu Yi’s room was piled high with Mu Huai’s posters. But Yu Yi hadn’t told him that he knew Mu Huai, let alone whether Mu Huai knew Yu Yi was a fan.

Mu Huai glanced into the car, before walking around to the driver’s side and opened the door.

His phone suddenly rang. It was his junior calling.

Mu Huai didn’t answer. He raised an eyebrow and looked up. His junior was standing not far away, walking towards him. Mu Huai had no choice but to close the door temporarily.

“Wait a moment,” Mu Huai said.

His junior had come over with Mu Huai. Seeing that Mu Huai’s car was still there, he came over just in time to see Mu Huai getting in. Mu Huai’s last-minute departure caught his junior off guard. Thinking about how the atmosphere in the private room had been so pleasant, he had no choice but to believe that Mu Huai had genuinely had something come up.

Mu Huai gave a perfectly timed smile.

“Fine, fine, you’re leaving. I said I’d treat you, so why did you pay the bill?” His junior, dressed in a student-like style, took a gift bag out of his bag. “I was going to give it to you after dinner… We’ll have to get together another time.”

The bag was pristine white, with a corner adorned with a Chinese-style illustration. It came from a cutting-edge exhibition, where every item was unique. Mu Huai had recently visited the exhibition and lavishly praised the design and style of one particular plate, mentioning it briefly in later interviews.

Sure enough, his junior glanced into the car, pausing almost imperceptibly, and continued, “A friend of mine is a fan of yours. He heard you liked this, so he bought it at the auction and asked me to deliver it to you.”

He’d resorted to his usual “I have a friend” tactic. Mu Huai smiled, thinking to himself, “If I’d seen this plate earlier, I wouldn’t have even come out to eat with you.”

Preparing the plate had taken quite a while. His junior had clearly planned this trip to find a long-term hookup.

The designated driver honked in the distance. His junior handed the gift bag to Mu Huai, taking the opportunity to hug him briefly. He glanced back into the car; two men were inside, the one in the passenger seat staring at him with a cold, sharp gaze from the moment he appeared. The junior smiled, pulling his mask up, and walked away with an air of serene tranquility.

He did like Mu Huai, that’s true, but not to the point of being unable to live without him.

Neon lights cast dappled shadows on people’s faces. Yu Yi’s skin was pale, appearing even paler in contrast to the light and shadows. He rested with his eyes half-closed.

Guan Yang and Mu Huai didn’t know each other. Yu Yi was also feeling unwell from drinking too much, so he kept his head down, playing on his phone, occasionally pointing Mu Huai in the direction of his home. His house was nearby. And since Mu Huai offered to take them home, he agreed to Mu Huai offering to do so.

“He drank a lot?” Mu Huai asked.

Guan Yang was momentarily stunned. His phone screen was filled with “Holy crap!”. He hadn’t yet decided whether to tell his friends that a big star was now driving him and Yu Yi, when suddenly he met the real star’s eyes in the rearview mirror, sending chills down his spine.

“Yu-ge?” Guan Yang shifted his position, leaning forward in his chair to look at Yu Yi. “He only drank two bottles with the department head, not much… right?”

Yu Yi seemed to be asleep. Guan Yang awkwardly sat back down.

“Oh.” Mu Huai smiled. “Youth is wonderful. By the way, is it allowed to have hair this long at your school?”

Why not?

Guan Yang vaguely felt that the big star’s tone was strange, almost lecturing them. Mu Huai was about their age, and even the recent graduates looked older than him.

Guan Yang wanted to explain something, but Yu Yi, who had been sleeping, woke up just in time and whispered, “Yes, it’s allowed.”

No problem. Guan Yang shook off his unease and said, “Yu-ge, you’re awake. Are you still feeling unwell?”

Yu Yi: “Yeah.”

His voice was a little hoarse, as if he was distracted.

Mu Huai glanced at him out of the corner of his eye: “Drunk?”

Yu Yi said, “No.”

“Yu-ge doesn’t get drunk. He can drink a thousand cups without getting drunk!” Guan Yang’s expression was subtle.

Yu Yi saw Guan Yang’s lips twitching in the rearview mirror. He lowered his gaze, pursed his lips, and coughed twice. His eyes fell on the gift bag Mu Huai had casually placed aside. He casually started a conversation: “… Yun Dao’s limited edition Chinese-style plate?”

Mu Huai: “You know about it?”

Yu Yi said, half-jokingly, “I watched the exhibition’s live stream.”

What was that? A plate? The one that the cold-faced person who talked to Mu Huai gave him? When did Yu Yi ever pay attention to plates? How come he didn’t know?

Guan Yang couldn’t get a word in, so he silently shut his mouth, letting his gossipy heart race wildly.

“I remember it was bought by the Lion Group,” Yu Yi said.

They stopped at a red light to wait.

Mu Huai turned to look at him, smiling casually, “You like it?”

Yu Yi was taken aback, then shook his head, “No.”

He had a strange feeling that if he nodded, Mu Huai would give him the plate.

Mu Huai smiled: “If you like it, I’ll give it to you.”

Yu Yi: “…”

Guan Yang: “???”

He finally realized where that eerie feeling came from. Mu Huai, this devilish guy, exuded a seductive aura from head to toe. This was practically blatant flirting, wasn’t it? Guan Yang’s tension quickly returned.

The car in front started moving. Mu Huai turned to drive, suppressing a laugh: “I was going to return it anyway.”

The tense atmosphere in the car disappeared. Guan Yang almost passed out from the heavy breathing.

Yu Yi was silent for a long time before slowly asking: “I saw your interview before. You seemed to really like this plate. This must have been specially prepared for you. Why don’t you want it?”

Yu Yi was still upset. His pale face accentuated the hardness of his facial features, like a talking sculpture. He felt that Mu Huai was probably looking at him in the rearview mirror.

Mu Huai: “Looking is enough. Something so beautiful isn’t suitable for me.”

Mu Huai’s tone was unusually calm, lacking the unsettling undertones that usually made people uncomfortable. This emboldened Guan Yang to strike up a conversation.

Guan Yang said sincerely, “Are you kidding? Mu-ge, you’re just perfect for pretty things. Beautiful things suit beautiful people. Oh no, I mean, Mu-ge, you’re so good-looking, anything that doesn’t suit you is simply not pretty enough.”

Mu Huai chuckled, “Did you come from my fan group?”

Guan Yang quickly shook his head. Although he had a desire to get closer to Mu Huai, the compliment was genuine. He wanted to ask more questions, but Mu Huai slowly released the clutch, and the car pulled over to the side of the road.

Mu Huai: “Is this the place?”

They had already arrived at Guan Yang’s house, and Guan Yang could only get out of the car with regret.

After driving out of Guan Yang’s apartment complex, Mu Huai finally remembered to ask where Yu Yi’s house was. Perhaps secretly wanting to keep this handsome man around a little longer, Mu Huai had not asked about the way. Even if it meant turning back, it would still be worth it.

The car wasn’t going fast. Mu Huai asked a question but received no answer. Turning around, he realized Yu Yi had fallen asleep.

Mu Huai drove around aimlessly for a bit. He hadn’t expected Yu Yi to have seen his interview, especially one related to the plate, but it wasn’t entirely unexpected.

Even those without a collecting obsession will buy and treasure things they like. Mu Huai liked many things, but he’s never collected a single item. After all, he’s a jerk; he might not like something he actually buys, so it’s better to leave it where it is and preserve the feeling of liking it.

Because he really liked it, the design of the colorful plate was deeply etched in Mu Huai’s mind. But from the moment he learned what was inside the gift box, he realized he had unconsciously developed an aversion to the plate’s pattern.

He was conservative in his answer to Yu Yi, habitually hiding his true feelings. Afterwards, Yu Yi seemed a little depressed, vaguely annoyed.

“Little Yu, if you don’t wake up soon, I’m taking you home,” Mu Huai announced casually, leaning against a roadside where he could park.

He waited while unwrapping the lollipop, but Yu Yi didn’t react even after he’d had it in his mouth for a while.

A fresh fish was delivered to his doorstep.

Mu Huai smiled jokingly, thinking to himself that a child is just a child, getting into all sorts of people’s cars, and even after getting on a pirate ship, he was still so carefree that he could fall asleep.

Mu Huai, convinced he wasn’t a good person, blatantly raised his phone to take pictures of Yu Yi. It was a casual angle, but the man had no bad angles. The mole on his lip was facing him directly.

Frankly, Yu Yi had a particularly masculine look. While others’ moles were alluring, he was languid. His personality was equally masculine, cold to the point of being unapproachable. For a temporary relief, his junior colleague would be more suitable… but Mu Huai simply loved this unattainable, aloof beauty.

“Fine, I’ll let you tour my place,” Mu Huai said, his tongue pressed against a lollipop.

Half an hour later, Mu Huai drove into the underground parking garage of a five-star hotel, expressionlessly condemning his growing conscience. However, he naturally found a reason for himself: the little streamer was still a minor. He wouldn’t stoop to messing with a minor.

Mu Huai lifted Yu Yi from the passenger seat, the sudden weight causing him to stumble a couple of steps, barely managing to prevent their images from being ruined by the parking garage’s security cameras.

Yu Yi’s appearance was too deceptive, and Mu Huai, who hadn’t exercised in a long time, put Yu Yi down after only a few steps with a stern face and helped him upstairs with the help of a hotel staff.

The hotel was the same one he stayed at during his concert, and the room was the same one he had stayed in before. He was lazy, and if possible, he would simply maintain his original habits.

“Little Yu,” Mu Huai repeated, reluctantly helping Yu Yi change his alcohol-reeking clothes out of consideration for the young streamer.

But just as he pulled the hoodie over his head, another hand gripped Mu Huai’s wrist, fingers icy cold and strong as a vise.

It fucking hurt.

Mu Huai, his face pale, followed Yu Yi’s grip and pulled his clothes down, meeting Yu Yi’s light-colored eyes.

Mu Huai: “Awake?”

Yu Yi was startled, releasing the hood as if it were burning his hand: “… Sorry.”

He sat up, rubbing his temples, his face still deathly pale.

“That was quite a bit of force.” Mu Huai couldn’t look him in the eye, staring at the four red marks on his wrist with a forced smile.

He’d never felt his skin was so thin; the blood beneath was faintly visible after such a scratch. No wonder he’d almost cursed out loud.

Thankfully, he didn’t bring Yu Yi home. He didn’t plan to do anything to Yu Yi and had no doubt that if Yu Yi woke up and found someone on him, he would strangle him immediately, still shaken.

Yu Yi followed Mu Huai’s gaze, a pang of guilt rising within him: “I…”

Mu Huai lowered his eyes, the shadow of his long eyelashes casting a soft, innocent look on his face.

“I…”

Yu Yi couldn’t help but look down. His face turned deathly pale, and he asked, almost coldly, “Where’s the toilet?”

Mu Huai pointed behind him: “… There.”

Yu Yi covered his mouth and rushed over. The sound of a man vomiting echoed from the toilet.

Mu Huai: “…”

All romantic notions vanished from his mind. His head was filled with obscene words he wondered if he could utter.