Brother, you smell good - 51

 

| BYSG | Let's go to the Hotel | 51

Cheng Mofei’s phone screen still hasn’t been repaired, and he's still using his old phone with a yellowed and faded case. He’s not sure if it’ll be fixed and ready by the end of this week.

The memory on this old phone had long been full, and last night, he had to clean up some storage space to download a mahjong app. It had been pretty uncomfortable to use.

But he wouldn't say he regretted smashing his phone that night in a fit of impulse.

It was not just an excuse to borrow Shen Yu's phone, but also a way to vent some pent-up emotions. Holding everything inside isn’t good for anyone.

Compared to venting with a fist against a stone, smashing the phone seemed like the better option… If he had hurt his hand, he might not have been able to come here to play mahjong today.

While getting his haircut, they had discussed what to eat tonight. Shen Yu mentioned craving sauerkraut fish, so Cheng Mofei didn’t ask further and simply ordered a large portion of sauerkraut fish, mild spicy, with extra fish and two servings of rice.

After placing the order, Han Xuan had already finished most of the basic lessons and directly moved on to practical teaching.

Thanks to the crash training last night, Cheng Mofei was able to handle things fairly well without revealing any flaws.

The money spent on in-game purchases wasn’t wasted.

At the beginning, Shen Yu would hesitate for a long time before making a move. 

Sometimes he’d hold a tile in his hand, only to put it back after thinking for a while. After some thought, he finally decided to discard the tile he had been holding.

Everyone waited patiently.

Gradually, Shen Yu became more familiar with the game.

It really seemed like there was something like a “beginner’s protection period.”

In the first teaching round, Shen Yu clumsily managed to win, much to everyone’s surprise.

In the second round of practice, they increased the pace, not letting him think too long. Shen Yu won again.

In the third round, Shen Yu won by self-drawing.

Cheng Mofei held a tile in his hand, turning it sideways, then upright, sideways again, and then upright once more…

Why does Shen Yu have a "beginner's protection period" while he himself lost so many beans last night?

It seemed like he was just incompatible with this game.

He should've just taken Shen Yu to play basketball instead.

The feeling of winning was undeniably addictive. For the first time, Shen Yu found joy and satisfaction in an activity he had once been completely uninterested in.

As the fourth round was about to begin, the door to the private room was suddenly knocked, and the delivery driver began bringing in the dinner they had ordered.

They were indeed getting a little hungry, so they decided to eat before continuing.

Han Xuan and Tan Feng had ordered duck soup rice. The soup was poured over the rice, and they had specifically requested an extra empty bowl.

Tan Feng poured the duck soup over his rice, mixed it up, scooped some into a small bowl, and pushed it toward Han Xuan. Then he picked some duck meat from his bowl and placed it onto Han Xuan's.

Han Xuan smiled as he peeled a salted duck egg and split half of it for Tan Feng. Tan Feng didn’t eat the egg yolk, so Han Xuan made sure to put all of it into his own bowl.

Cheng Mofei watched all of this silently. He quietly picked up a piece of fish, wrapped it in some sauerkraut and rice, and shoved it into his mouth.

In the past, he had indeed been too narrow-minded, lumping the entire gay community together and condemning them all.

He used to avoid these two people, even shying away from playing basketball, but now, after truly getting to know them, he found it quite warm and sweet.

At least it was much better than the typical cases of trashy guys and girls found in mainstream circles.

Shen Yu was right: it was only a few rotten apples, not the entire group.

Actually… he quite enjoyed playing basketball with Tan Feng and the others. They always seemed to work well together, and the games were especially fun and smooth.

From now on, he won't run away from it anymore.

He had to thank Shen Yu for ensuring he didn’t miss out on some good friends.

…

After dinner, the mahjong game continued.

But he hadn't expected the "beginner's protection period" to last only three rounds. After that, Shen Yu didn’t win again.

Cheng Mofei, on the other hand, played steadily and consistently, winning just once. 

Several times, he was close to winning but got intercepted by Han Xuan at the last moment.

It was only Han Xuan who kept winning and became the biggest winner of the night.

Indeed, a single night of crash training could never match up to the seasoned skills of a true native of Bashu.

Entertainment should come with some stakes, but since it was just a casual game between friends with a newbie around, the stakes were only a penny.

By the end of the night, Han Xuan was delighted with his winnings of three mao, in a great mood.

Following the principle that "if my wife wins, I win," Tan Feng was also very happy.

Only Shen Yu and Cheng Mofei were dejectedly going over their previous rounds.

“I shouldn’t have discarded that 3-character tile. If I hadn’t, Han Xuan wouldn’t have won.”

“Sigh, my 5-barrel... I shouldn’t have gone for that.”

Han Xuan noticed the two murmuring to each other and, with a smile in his eyes, looked at them like a teacher observing two students after an exam. His smile deepened as he said, “Don’t dwell on it. Next time we play, you’ll definitely win it back.”

Shen Yu nodded, “Let’s make plans for next time.”

It was clear that Cheng Mofei had enjoyed himself tonight, in stark contrast to his reaction when he first saw the couple.

It seemed like the preparations for his pursuit of his boyfriend had taken another step forward.

Just as they were talking, Cheng Mofei went to the wall to grab his old phone, which had just been charged. Suddenly, he exclaimed, “How is it already this late?!”

Shen Yu casually glanced at the clock on the wall of the room and said, “It’s only a little after ten-thirty, right?”

Ten-thirty wasn’t that late, but it was getting there. The school was just across the street, with streetlights all along the way. It wouldn’t take long to get back, and the dormitory curfew wasn’t until eleven-thirty.

Cheng Mofei frowned and said, "No, it's already 11:24. Is there something wrong with this clock? Or is it my phone that's messed up?"

Given that it was an old phone, it wasn’t too surprising for it to have some issues. He would much prefer it if the problem was with his phone, rather than the clock.

Unfortunately, things didn’t go as hoped.

Shen Yu immediately took out his phone.

The time displayed on it was clearly 11:24.

Shen Yu: "…"

Damn, the clock really was broken.

By this point, someone in the dormitory group chat had already tagged both of them, asking why they hadn’t returned yet since curfew was approaching. But they’d been so immersed in the mahjong game that they hadn’t even checked their phones.

It was likely that everyone thought it wasn’t a big deal for the guys to stay out for the night. In the past, they occasionally pulled all-nighters at internet cafes, so when the group asked about their whereabouts, they only inquired once and didn’t press further.

With only six minutes until curfew, there was no way they'd make it back in time.

Just getting from the mahjong parlor down to the school gate would take nearly ten minutes, and that didn’t even account for the distance from the gate to the dormitory.

They wondered if the dorm manager would be lenient...

Shen Yu didn’t have much experience in this area.

Since the start of the semester, they hadn't had to deal with coming back after curfew.

Luckily, both his and Cheng Mofei’s college weren’t strict about dorm inspections, especially for him. He didn’t even live in the same dorm building as his classmates. 

Even if there was a surprise inspection, they wouldn’t be able to find him, so it wouldn't affect his grades or scholarship.

The other two also noticed the time and complained a bit, but they weren’t really in a hurry.

Tan Feng rested his chin on Han Xuan’s shoulder, casually wrapping one arm around his waist. His voice took on a slightly coquettish tone as he said, “I guess we won’t make it back in time for curfew. Let’s just go stay at a hotel instead.”

Han Xuan gave him a sidelong glance and chuckled lightly, agreeing, “Alright.”

Shen Yu naturally lowered his gaze, pretending not to understand anything. To avoid any awkwardness that might arise from their gazes crossing, he casually tapped on his phone and responded to a message in the group chat.

They were all adults, and these two were older seniors. Their relationship was so good, it didn’t take much to figure out—if they stayed at a hotel together, something would definitely happen.

Who would have thought, though, that the next moment, Cheng Mofei would suddenly speak up as well: “Then let’s stay at a hotel too.”

Previous TOC Next