TuxedoTranslations

Chapter 14

Ji Zhiyuan never expected Zhuang Yanyu to have such a wish.

His first reaction was to be stunned, then he looked at Zhuang Yanyu with sympathy. “You should just give up.”

Zhuang Yanyu asked, “Give up?”

Ji Zhiyuan replied, “Because you’ll never achieve that in your life.”

Zhuang Yanyu asked, “Why?”

Ji Zhiyuan said, “Do you even need to ask? Do you know when I met Old Wen? We knew each other when we were in diapers! Our houses were next door to each other. Do you understand our relationship now?”

The more Ji Zhiyuan spoke, the more enthusiastic he became, almost trying to shatter Zhuang Yanyu’s fantasy. “We didn’t just go to kindergarten together, we went to elementary, middle, and high school, and even studied abroad in university together. We also lived in the same dorm. Old Wen learned to cook back then, and he cooked for me every day.”

Zhuang Yanyu looked at him with admiration.

Ji Zhiyuan patted his shoulder and comforted him, “Don’t envy it too much. This was destined from birth. We’re the best brothers in the world. Li Xi can’t compare, he only met us in elementary school.”

Zhuang Yanyu thought for a moment and realized that if Li Xi wasn’t even considered their best brother, then he, who had known them for less than two months…

Zhuang Yanyu lowered his head, a look of disappointment clear on his face. His eyes, which had once sparkled like stars, now seemed clouded, and his long eyelashes cast a shadow over them, dulling all the light.

Ji Zhiyuan felt a bit guilty seeing this and tried to comfort him, saying, “Hey, don’t feel too down. You’re not the first person who’s wanted to be friends with Lao Wen and me.”

Zhuang Yanyu wasn’t really consoled. “But in the end, the only ones who’ve stayed by Xi’s side are you and Mr. Li Xi.”

Ji Zhiyuan replied matter-of-factly, “Well, yeah. Lao Wen has a calmer personality—he doesn’t get along with just anyone.”

Besides, most of the people back then who wanted to befriend them were motivated by their status or the benefits their families could offer.

Ji Zhiyuan considered himself easygoing, but he wasn’t dumb. He could tell at a glance who was genuine and who had ulterior motives. 

Especially since his family was in the entertainment industry, he’d grown up surrounded by people with all kinds of agendas. By now, he could spot them a mile away.

So in the end, he only had a few true friends.

Ji Zhiyuan was about to say more when he caught sight of Wen Chenxi standing at the kitchen door. He immediately teased, “Yo, Lao Wen’s back! Come here, come here. Lao Wen, let me tell you, Xiao Zhuang just said he wanted to come between us! Tell him that maybe if he tries for another ten years, he might just succeed! Hahaha!”

Zhuang Yanyu, who had been cutting vegetables with his back to the kitchen, didn’t notice Wen Chenxi return. Hearing Ji Zhiyuan’s words, he turned around.

Wen Chenxi was dressed in simple, casual home clothes. This was the first time Zhuang Yanyu had seen him like this, completely different from his usual suit-and-tie self. Wen Chenxi in a suit with rimless glasses exuded an aura of unapproachability, even a scholarly restraint.

Now, he looked younger. His grayish-white outfit softened his presence. Perhaps because he’d just changed, his normally meticulous black hair was slightly tousled, and the depth of his features seemed more approachable.

Having never seen this side of his brother, Zhuang Yanyu couldn’t help but steal a few glances, as if his eyes were cameras capturing every detail.

His gaze was direct and unreserved. For the observer, it was fine, but the one being observed couldn’t help but feel a bit uncomfortable.

Wen Chenxi walked into the kitchen, his gaze landing on Ji Zhiyuan. His tone was light: “You’re always running your mouth.”

Ji Zhiyuan, never burdened by his “CEO persona” in front of his brother, burst into laughter. “I couldn’t help it; Xiao Zhuang’s too funny! Do you know what he just said? He just said—”

Wen Chenxi placed a knife in front of him, cutting him off without a change in expression. “You can cut the vegetables.”

Clearly, he didn’t want to hear a repeat of whatever Yanyu had said.

Unbothered by the interruption, Ji Zhiyuan happily took the knife and started cutting carrots.

Meanwhile, in the living room, Li Xi had just completed his game. Seeing everyone busy in the kitchen, he felt bad about slacking off and went over to help wash the vegetables.

The four men busied themselves in the spacious kitchen. Thankfully, it was large enough not to feel crowded.

As Wen Chenxi cooked, his peripheral vision often drifted to Zhuang Yanyu, who had finished cutting the potatoes and was now frequently glancing at Ji Zhiyuan. He seemed to have something to say, but the words never left his mouth. His gaze would shift away briefly, only to return, filled with quiet exasperation.

Sensing this, Wen Chenxi looked over at Ji Zhiyuan’s cutting board and immediately understood what was bothering Yanyu.

Ji Zhiyuan could cook but lacked knife skills. His carrot slices were uneven in size and length, resulting in a chaotic mess.

In stark contrast, Zhuang Yanyu’s potato strips were uniform in thickness and length, as if cut by a machine.

After finishing with the carrots, Ji Zhiyuan enthusiastically asked, “Lao Wen, what else needs cutting?”

Zhuang Yanyu glanced at Wen Chenxi, their eyes meeting briefly. Zhuang Yanyu hesitated but said nothing.

Wen Chenxi turned back to Ji Zhiyuan. “Wash the vegetables.”

Ji Zhiyuan asked, “Nothing left to cut?”

“Just wash the vegetables.”

“Alright! Li Xi, big bro’s taking over!” Ji Zhiyuan grabbed the greens Li Xi had been washing and started scrubbing them again.

Li Xi rolled his eyes. “Come on, I already washed those.”

Ji Zhiyuan replied, “I don’t think you did a good job. I’ll do it again.”

As Ji Zhiyuan moved aside, Wen Chenxi returned to his cooking. Zhuang Yanyu, seizing the moment when no one was watching, quietly slid Ji Zhiyuan’s poorly cut carrots over and began recutting them.

In no time, the chaotic carrot strips were transformed into uniform pieces, perfectly matching the potato strips.

Satisfied, Zhuang Yanyu exhaled in relief.

What he didn’t notice was that Wen Chenxi, who was stirring a dish, had seen the entire thing. A subtle smile tugged at Wen Chenxi’s lips—until he remembered Yanyu’s earlier comment, which made his smile fade.

Dinner was ready by 6:30, thanks to their collective effort.

As the dishes were placed on the table, Zhuang Yanyu couldn’t resist taking a picture with his phone.

He used to wonder why people always made their phones “eat first” before a meal, why they shared it on social media.

Now, he understood.

It was about capturing the emotions of the moment—just like he wanted to document this meal to show everyone how incredible his brothers were.

Ji Zhiyuan and Li Xi were also taking photos, so Zhuang Yanyu’s actions didn’t seem out of place. After taking the picture, Ji Zhiyuan and Li Xi both added Zhuang Yanyu on WeChat, saying they’d call him next time they went to the farmhouse.

Zhuang Yanyu naturally agreed.

Wen Chenxi said, “Let’s eat.”

The three of them immediately put away their phones and started eating.

Li Xi didn’t hold back, opening two bottles of good wine from Wen Chenxi and declaring that he planned to finish them tonight.

When Li Xi reached for the wine to pour for Zhuang Yanyu, Wen Chenxi stopped him and asked, “Do you drink?”

Zhuang Yanyu blinked. “I’ve never drunk before.”

Humans advocate quitting smoking and drinking, so both of these habits were things Zhuang Yanyu had never engaged in, especially considering he had “healthy eating habits” programmed into his database.

Wen Chenxi said, “If you’ve never drunk before, then you shouldn’t.”

Zhuang Yanyu didn’t mind. “Okay, then I’ll drink water.”

Ji Zhiyuan, eager to tempt him, encouraged, “You should try it, Xiao Zhuang. Lao Wen’s wine is top-notch. Once it’s gone, you won’t get another chance!”

Zhuang Yanyu was a little tempted.

Drinking wasn’t the same as smoking. A little sip… should be fine, right?

Zhuang Yanyu started, “Then I…”

Before he could finish his sentence, Wen Chenxi had already picked up his cup and poured him a glass of warm water. “You drink this.”

Zhuang Yanyu blinked. “Oh.”

Not wanting Zhuang Yanyu to overthink it, Li Xi explained, “Don’t listen to him. The alcohol’s too strong; you shouldn’t drink that much on your first time. It’ll make you feel bad.”

Then he turned to Ji Zhiyuan and scolded, “Don’t teach the kid bad things.”

Zhuang Yanyu ate his meal seriously and didn’t say much, chewing thoughtfully and savoring each bite.

In contrast, Ji Zhiyuan was quite talkative, as his job often involved conversing at banquets and drinking events. He and Wen Chenxi, as well as Li Xi, were old friends, so once they started talking, they couldn’t stop.

The conversation ranged from the entertainment industry to Wen Chenxi’s tech business, then to Li Xi’s work, and eventually circled back to Wen Chenxi’s company.

Zhuang Yanyu just listened quietly, chewing his food.

Occasionally, Wen Chenxi would try to include him in the conversation to prevent him from feeling awkward.

But every time Wen Chenxi asked him a question, he noticed it would disrupt Zhuang Yanyu’s rhythm. Zhuang Yanyu wasn’t sure whether to continue chewing the food in his mouth, hastily swallowing it before answering. After replying, he’d start worrying—he hadn’t chewed enough!

Wen Chenxi saw this and decided to leave him to eat in peace, only occasionally glancing at him.

Ji Zhiyuan suddenly asked, “By the way, your company’s new phone model—is it launching soon? I heard some of my artists are fighting for the endorsement. Do you have anyone in mind for the campaign?”

Wen Chenxi replied with a brief “Mm,” and said, “It depends on their evaluations.”

Wen Chenxi always left professional matters to the professionals. The PR department would handle the selection, while he focused on the company’s profitability.

Ji Zhiyuan nodded. “Right, that’s the PR department’s job.” Then, with a sudden shift in tone, he asked, “By the way, I heard from Li Xi that a young lady from the Xiao family has been asking about your preferences. She even said she wants to pursue you. Have you heard about it?”

Li Xi took a sip of his wine. “It’s true.”

At that moment, Zhuang Yanyu, who had been focused on his food and seemed uninterested in their conversation, suddenly looked up.

Wen Chenxi glanced at him. Although he already knew Zhuang Yanyu wasn’t interested in him romantically, seeing Zhuang Yanyu react so intently to something about him made him wonder—what if he actually…

Zhuang Yanyu’s eyes gleamed. “Someone wants to pursue Xi?”

Ji Zhiyuan, eager to share the gossip, replied enthusiastically, “Yes, let me tell you, Xiao Zhuang, the Xiao family’s young lady is quite beautiful and comes from a wealthy family.”

Zhuang Yanyu nodded seriously. “Then we must make sure to properly vet her.”

Wen Chenxi: “…”

Well, there goes that possibility.

—

The author’s note:

PS—  

Ji Zhiyuan: “Xiao Zhuang, give it up. No matter how hard you try, you’ll never be able to beat the bond Lao Wen and I have.”  

Zhuang Yanyu: “TAT, got it.”

Later on, Wen Chenxi and Zhuang Yanyu ended up together.

Ji Zhiyuan, dazed, said: “??? Xiao Zhuang, you… you’re so sly…”  

Zhuang Yanyu: “…I’m innocent.”

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