| BYSG | Not Innocent | 31
After the last class ended, Shen Yu took his backpack back to the dormitory and then walked out unhurriedly.
His other three roommates were not in the dorm, nor had they spoken in the group chat. He wondered if they had gone to the cafeteria for dinner.
He also wondered how Cheng Mofei was feeling right now... He would check on him when he got back later.
Arriving at the agreed-upon hot pot restaurant on time, Ning Que had already arrived.
Since there was no queue yet, the two of them followed the waiter inside.
Shen Yu chose a corner seat by the window. There was a QR code for ordering on the table, allowing both of them to scan and order simultaneously.
The atmosphere between them was somewhat quiet, but not awkward.
After placing their order, Shen Yu took the initiative to stand up. “I’m going to get the dipping sauce. Do you need me to prepare yours?”
Since he was the one “asking for a favor,” it was only natural to be proactive.
Ning Que didn’t refuse and simply said, “Just a basic oil-based dip, I’m not picky.”
Shen Yu nodded, left his seat, and walked toward the sauce station.
While they were ordering, more customers arrived at the hot pot restaurant, making the sauce station a bit crowded.
Shen Yu took two dipping sauce plates and lined up to wait.
There was also a selection of free fruits near the sauce station. Shen Yu immediately noticed the small, adorable sugar tangerines and couldn’t help but think of Cheng Mofei.
He really wished he could be eating hot pot with Cheng Mofei right now.
Cheng Mofei’s dipping sauce was especially delicious.
He wondered what Cheng Mofei was having for dinner tonight…
Just as he was lost in thought, Shen Yu suddenly noticed a familiar hand picking up some sugar tangerines with tongs.
Shen Yu: “?”
His eyes widened in disbelief as he looked up to see the owner of the hand.
Why was Cheng Mofei here?!
Sensing Shen Yu’s gaze, Cheng Mofei—who had already spotted him earlier—turned to meet his eyes.
The words he had prepared completely slipped from his mind, and he hastily explained, feeling a bit guilty, “These are for Old Xiao and the others, it’s not for me.”
Shen Yu: "…"
Who asked for that explanation??
But he didn’t really need one—he quickly realized why Cheng Mofei was here.
It was obviously because of Ning Que.
Cheng Mofei was so homophobic; there was no way he’d feel at ease letting his good brother have dinner alone with a gay guy.
From the looks of it, he had even dragged Xiao Xiong and Sun Xinghe along.
Shen Yu found it both amusing and exasperating.
He got straight to the point. “Where are you guys sitting?”
Cheng Mofei pointed in a direction. Shen Yu followed his gaze and saw that their table was not far from his and Ning Que’s.
It wasn’t particularly close either—some of the restaurant’s decorations were blocking the view. If he hadn’t run into Cheng Mofei here, he might not have even noticed them.
Cheng Mofei’s eyes landed on the two dipping sauce plates in Shen Yu’s hands. Trying to change the subject, he asked, “Are you eating two portions of sauce by yourself?”
Shen Yu shook his head. “No, it’s just crowded, so I'm helping him make one too.”
For some reason, Cheng Mofei felt an inexplicable sense of displeasure. He had never even tried Shen Yu’s dipping sauce before.
Without thinking, Cheng Mofei snatched the sauce plates from Shen Yu’s hands and said, “What do you like? I’ll make it for you… both of you. I’m really good at this, I guarantee it’ll taste great.”
Shen Yu didn’t think much of it. He knew Cheng Mofei was indeed skilled at making dipping sauces, so he just took it as an act of goodwill. Without hesitation, he nodded and replied, “One with sesame sauce, one with oil, there’s no dietary restrictions.”
Cheng Mofei pressed his lips together and carefully prepared the two sauces. After handing them to Shen Yu, he hesitated for a moment before finally saying, “Let’s go back together after we eat.”
Shen Yu smiled. “Alright.”
Back at the table, Shen Yu handed the oil-based sauce to Ning Que.
Ning Que stirred it with his chopsticks, took a small taste, and commented, “It’s pretty good.”
Shen Yu casually explained, “I ran into my roommate just now. They’re also here for hot pot tonight. He made the sauce—he’s really good at it.”
Ning Que raised an eyebrow. “Your roommate… the one who helped you carry your blankets that day?”
Shen Yu nodded.
He didn’t want to talk too much about Cheng Mofei with Ning Que, afraid that his own subtle feelings for Cheng Mofei might be noticed.
Just as they were speaking, a familiar figure entered Ning Que’s field of vision—it was Cheng Mofei, returning with some fruit and dipping sauce.
The two of them sat facing each other, with Shen Yu’s back toward Cheng Mofei, oblivious to his presence. But Ning Que, on the other hand, locked eyes with Cheng Mofei for a brief second or two.
Even in just that fleeting moment, Ning Que could sense an undeniable tension—an unspoken resistance in Cheng Mofei’s demeanor.
And… perhaps even a hint of hostility.
Maybe it was just his imagination, an over-interpretation. But Ning Que preferred to trust his instincts.
Suddenly, he found himself intrigued.
He wanted to figure out exactly what was going on between these two.
This was far more entertaining than falling in love himself.
Soon, the waiter began bringing out the dishes one by one. Both Shen Yu and Ning Que had their own thoughts in mind, but as they ate and chatted, the atmosphere gradually became more relaxed and lively.
Neither of them forgot who had arranged this hot pot meal in the first place. When most of the dishes had arrived, they instinctively snapped a few pictures and sent them to Shen Xunyan.
To their surprise, Shen Xunyan immediately created a three-person group chat and initiated a video call.
The two exchanged a glance before joining the call.
“How’s the hot pot there?” Shen Xunyan asked with a smile in her eyes.
Ning Que responded, “It’s really good, the broth is very flavorful.”
Shen Yu added, “Next time you’re here, we should go together.”
Shen Xunyan beamed. “Sounds great! I was actually thinking about buying some ingredients to make hot pot at home. When it gets a little colder, you guys should all come over for a meal.”
From the background on her end, there was a faint voice chuckling, “Calling your two boys, huh?” It wasn’t loud, but both of them heard it clearly.
Shen Xunyan didn’t directly respond to that person, but her smile widened slightly.
There’s a kind of happiness that comes from seeing someone you care about happy. Right now, both Shen Yu and Ning Que felt exactly that.
After chatting for a bit longer, Shen Xunyan said, “I won’t keep you from eating your hot pot. Eat plenty, and order more if it’s not enough. In a while, I’ll get some ingredients and have you both over for hot pot at home.”
The two responded in unison, “Okay.”
After the call ended, Shen Yu suddenly asked, “Brother Que, I want to get a gift for my mom. Do you know what she likes?”
Aside from the matter with Cheng Mofei, Shen Yu had another reason for tonight’s dinner—which was his mother.
Since Ning Que had spent some time with her, he knew her preferences better than Shen Yu did. Right now, Ning Que was the only person he could ask for advice.
Ning Que thought for a moment before replying, “Auntie Shen likes dressing up—small accessories would be a good choice.”
Last year, he had gifted her a hairband for her birthday.
Shen Yu’s eyes lit up. He had been saving up money to buy his mother a gold necklace, thinking that gold was always a safe choice. Now, it seemed like he had made the right decision.
Without hesitation, he said, “I want to get her a gold necklace. Can you help me pick one out?”
"Sure," Ning Que agreed, a bit surprised. "But gold isn’t cheap. Do you have enough money?"
If not, he didn’t mind helping Shen Yu out—after all, it was for Auntie Shen.
Shen Yu nodded. "I’ve been working part-time and saving up. I have enough."
Ning Que said, "Then let’s go check it out after we finish eating. There are a few jewelry stores upstairs."
Shen Yu smiled. "Sounds good."
As they ate, Shen Yu noticed that Ning Que kept replying to messages. He bit his chopsticks, and after seeing Ning Que respond for the third time, he half-jokingly asked, "Brother Que, are you texting your significant other?"
Ning Que lifted his gaze from the phone and explained, "No, I’m replying to my teacher. I’m single. I have no significant other."
Shen Yu: "?"
A wave of disappointment washed over him.
This guy wasn’t being honest.
Shen Yu could understand if Ning Que didn’t want to reveal his sexual orientation so easily—at worst, he could have just brushed the question off.
But there was no reason to outright deny being in a relationship, and he had answered so decisively.
—Not exactly the kind of positive example he could use to change Cheng Mofei’s impression of the gay community.
But the truth was, Ning Que hadn’t lied.
He had actually broken up with his partner just last night.
The relationship had lasted for a while, but he just didn’t feel much anymore. A couple of days ago, he realized that even kissing the other person didn’t spark any desire.
In the end, he had only given a light peck on the cheek before deciding it was better to end things than to keep dragging it out.
His ex still had feelings for him and was trying to get back together. Since things weren’t completely over yet, Ning Que wouldn’t start anything new in the meantime.
Shifting the conversation, he threw the question back at Shen Yu. “What about you? Do you have a significant other?”
Shen Yu shook his head. “No, I don’t.”
Ning Que couldn’t be sure if Shen Yu was telling the truth, but if there was something going on between him and that roommate, it seemed more likely that the roommate was the one secretly harboring feelings.
And since that person was here, maybe he’d find a chance to test things out later.
As they neared the end of their meal, Shen Yu lowered his head and sent a message to Cheng Mofei:
[Brother Fei, after we finish eating, Brother Que and I are going to pick out a necklace for my mom. You guys go ahead and head back first.]
Cheng Mofei, who had been secretly keeping an eye on their table the whole time: "…"
Brother Que?
They hadn’t even finished one meal, and Shen Yu was already calling him that so casually?
They had been chatting and laughing nonstop—who knew what they were talking about?
Cheng Mofei nearly crushed his chopsticks in half. He quickly typed a reply:
[I’ll come too. I was just thinking about getting a necklace for my mom as well.]
Shen Yu had already confirmed that Ning Que wasn’t the right person to help change Cheng Mofei’s mindset.
He didn’t want them interacting more than necessary. After picking out the necklace tonight, he planned to keep his distance from Ning Que entirely.
Shen Yu responded:
[Aren’t you homophobic? I know you’re just looking out for me, but I don’t want to make things hard for you. Next time, I’ll go with you alone to pick out a necklace for Auntie.]
Staring at those words, Cheng Mofei felt his heart twist into a knot.
Shen Yu was so good to him… he thought so much about his feelings.
Shen Yu: [Is that okay?]
Cheng Mofei’s fingers moved on their own, typing: [Okay.]
...
After finishing the hot pot and settling the bill, the two of them went straight upstairs to the jewelry store.
What surprised Ning Que was that Shen Yu’s roommate didn’t follow them.
When they got up to leave, someone walked a little too fast and almost bumped into Shen Yu. Ning Que intentionally raised his hand to protect him, making sure the person saw.
He felt a bit disappointed.
If it was really like he thought, then the cowardly person didn’t deserve to pursue his younger brother.
If he had misunderstood, and the two of them were just friends, then that was fine too. That path wouldn’t be an easy one.
"Did I just see Xiao Shen?" Xiao Xiong suddenly murmured.
"You must have been mistaken," Cheng Mofei replied coldly, crushing a large piece of beef with his chopsticks.
Xiao Xiong shrugged. "Yeah, probably."
...
After picking out a necklace that suited Shen Xunyan, Shen Yu immediately suggested heading back.
Ning Que nodded, and the two of them took the elevator down to the first floor of the mall.
As they exited the elevator, Ning Que said, “I’ll walk you to the school gate.”
Shen Yu was about to refuse when a figure stormed up to them, demanding, “Did you break up with me because of him?”
Shen Yu froze for a moment.
It wasn’t because the person questioning him was the same guy he had seen with Cheng Mofei—the one who had gotten kissed on the cheek by Ning Que.
It was because the person behind this guy was someone he recognized.
Meng Feng.
The idiot who had harassed him at the school infirmary.
Ning Que’s expression immediately turned cold. He stepped forward, placing himself protectively in front of Shen Yu, his voice sharp with frost: “What’s your problem?”
When Ning Que’s ex had received the photos Meng Feng had secretly taken of him, he hadn’t fully believed them.
After all, he and Meng Feng only knew each other through mutual circles and not well enough to trust everything.
But now, seeing how fiercely he was protecting Shen Yu, Ning Que’s ex was certain about the situation. The pieces were falling into place.
The guy seemed to have lost his mind, his hatred completely shifted onto Shen Yu, the "third party" in his eyes. He lunged at Shen Yu.
Ning Que immediately moved to push him away, but before he could act, another figure beat him to it—he wasn’t sure where this person had come from.
It was Cheng Mofei, his expression full of disgust. He grabbed Shen Yu and pulled him aside, suppressing the revulsion rising in his chest.
"If you lay a hand on him again, I’ll call the police."
Ning Que raised an eyebrow.
He retracted his previous judgment.
This guy wasn’t weak, and he definitely wasn’t innocent when it came to his younger brother.
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