CH 14

Zhou Qingbai suddenly felt like a genius. He believed with Pei You’s single-minded efforts in “self-introduction,” he would never fulfill his dream of finding a partner even in his next life.

Zhou Qingbai was quite confident in himself, but Pei You had some doubts about this proposal.

“But aren’t you a firm believer in being single?” Pei You asked cautiously.

“What’s the connection?” Zhou Qingbai raised an eyebrow, waved his hand dismissively, and said, “Haven’t you heard the saying: ‘coaches don’t play’?”

Zhou Qingbai had never been in a relationship himself, but he had observed the bizarre love story of his brother Zhou Cangshan and his wife Jiang Man since his youth—the two had been childhood friends, five years apart in age, and their families had known each other for decades, with a good relationship since childhood. However, Zhou Cangshan was a serious and somewhat stubborn person, while Jiang Man was an open and liberal person. They didn’t get along well together, often quarreling during their childhood days, and it always ended with Jiang Man being the one crying because of Zhou Cangshan’s temper.

As they grew older, Zhou Cangshan joined the army, and Jiang Man went abroad for further studies. They were separated by distance, stumbling over each other, and their feelings went through ups and downs, enough to write a thousand chapters of a romance novel.

Zhou Qingshan witnessed their various experiences from their first love to marriage, witnessing their countless breakups and reconciliations. He thought he had experienced all the bitterness of love through them and had ample observational experience and solid theoretical knowledge, so he felt fully capable of advising Pei You.

“Let me tell you, when it comes to love, the ones involved are often confused, while the bystanders have a clear view,” Zhou Qingbai explained persuasively, “I haven’t been in a relationship, so I can be objective. But those who have been in relationships have limitations in their experiences.”

Zhou Qingbai’s reasoning made sense, and Pei You, in a daze, was led into this discussion and found his words reasonable.

He twirled the glass of alcohol free cocktail with his fingertip, inadvertently sweeping his gaze over the loose neckline of Zhou Qingbai, suddenly feeling as if he had been burned, and quickly averted his eyes.

“Think about it.” Zhou Qingbai propped his head on the table, leaning closer to Pei You, and blinked at him, saying, “I’m a professional.”

Suddenly, Pei You felt that after he covered for Zhou Qingbai in front of Zhou Cangshan, Zhou Qingbai’s wariness towards him vanished. He was like a stray cat that had been tamed and now felt more comfortable revealing his true self, going against the image of his previous “Manager Zhou.”

The diamond lights on the bar shimmered, and the ruby earring on Zhou Qingbai’s ear swayed enticingly in front of Pei You.

Pei You couldn’t help but be drawn to the earring and inexplicably convinced by Zhou Qingbai’s words, he obediently nodded.

“That’s good.” Zhou Qingbai straightened up, smiled, and clapped his hands, then made a mysterious gesture with a ‘one’ sign. “Then let’s start from tonight.”

According to Zhou Qingbai, Pei You had no major flaws. The only thing that needed improvement was his inability to express himself, making him susceptible to misunderstandings and exclusion from the gay community.

So, to help him fit in, all Pei You needed was to understand how to interact with gays. Once he had friends with similar orientations, he would naturally find someone to spend his life with.

The solution to that problem, though not entirely easy, was straightforward. The challenge lay in adjusting to a different social mode of interaction, Zhou Qingbai himself was gay, so why not let him be the mentor?

It made perfect sense to Zhou Qingbai. If he felt comfortable around Pei You, and Pei You could understand his implicit meanings, then he could consider himself a successful teacher.

Indeed, Zhou Qingbai thought it was a great teaching method.

Pei You, feeling a little lost, unknowingly followed Zhou Qingbai’s lead. He didn’t know whether this “love coaching class” was reliable or how it would proceed. He needed to listen to this “unconventional teacher” for all the answers.

“So, how do we start?” Pei You asked humbly.

“We’ll start with this.” Zhou Qingbai replied, reaching out to push the glass towards Pei You and then lightly tapping it. “Once you finish this drink, you can take me home.”

As Zhou Qingbai spoke, there was a faint hint of a smile on his lips, and his voice was light and playful, making it sound both casual and flirtatious.

Pei You’s hand trembled slightly, and as if a switch had been turned on in his mind, he finally understood Zhou Qingbai’s teaching method.

His Adam’s apple moved slightly as he couldn’t help but touch the glass and drank the remaining half in one gulp.

The taste of Cinderella was sweet and refreshing, more like a ripe fruit juice than alcohol. It had a slight stickiness and gentleness.

“Alright.” Pei You placed the empty glass back on the bar counter and stood up, taking out his car keys from his pocket. “Where do you live?”

“Star River Bay.” Zhou Qingbai said.

Star River Bay was about a twenty-minute drive from Sanlitun. It was neither too far nor too near, but if you were with a talkative person, it would be enough time to discuss the family background and personal affairs of all the relatives.

Unfortunately, Pei You wasn’t one of those talkative people. He couldn’t help but glance at Zhou Qingbai several times, trying to find a topic to chat about.

But what could he talk about?

As Pei You remained silent, Zhou Qingbai also didn’t say anything, and even though he was slow to catch on, he sensed that the atmosphere was a bit strange during the drive. He couldn’t help but look at Zhou Qingbai several times from the corner of his eye.

Zhou Qingbai had slightly lowered the backrest of the passenger seat, placing his hands behind his head. He would alternate between gazing out at the bustling traffic and glancing at Pei You. The way he did it looked so relaxed and effortless.

Zhou Qingbai laughed and said, “You seem nervous.”

Indeed, a little.

“Don’t worry.” Zhou Qingbai stretched his legs out lazily, then opened the window slightly, letting the cool night breeze in. “You were fine before. I’m just teaching you how to date, not trying to turn you into someone else. Relax.”

Zhou Qingbai tilted his head and glanced up and down at Pei You, then shook his head with a sigh. 

He exaggerated his expression, and Pei You couldn’t help but chuckle at his antics.

Finally, those words allowed Pei You to regain some of the feelings they had when they were working together at the company. He relaxed a bit, and his whole demeanor was no longer as tense as before.

“Alright then.” Pei You gently curved the corners of his mouth and said, “I’ll follow your lead, teacher.”

From a young age, Pei You had been an excellent student. He had a strong understanding and was eager to learn, mastering a concept and then applying it to other situations. For the rest of the journey, Pei You didn’t attempt to start a conversation again. He turned down the volume of the car’s stereo and, just like in the office, each of them occupied one side of the car, not bothering each other.

That silence wasn’t uncomfortable. Zhou Qingbai took a short rest while listening to the soothing music. When he opened his eyes again, they had already arrived at the entrance of his residential area.

Zhou Qingbai said goodbye to Pei You, got out of the car, took a few steps, and then remembered something. He turned back, waved at Pei You, and smiled, “Bye, drive safely back.”

Pei You nodded, indicating that he heard it.

However, Zhou Qingbai’s footsteps remained in place, not moving forward. He tilted his head slightly and looked at Pei You, neither speaking nor making any movement, just blinking at him.

After a moment, Pei You finally realized that Zhou Qingbai was waiting for him to say something.

“Uh… How about meeting at the company tomorrow?” Pei You coughed dryly, trying tentatively, “I mean, for work?”

“Sure.” Zhou Qingbai showed a relieved look as if proud of his student. He smiled and said, “I’ll see you at the company.”