E-Scum Gong Chapter 14
Translated by Q the Panda (ko-fi)
Chapter 14
"That weirdo said he wants to play basketball... Okay, babe, I'll come see you tonight." Xu Zhou blew a kiss into the phone and then scowled.
He had just been dragged out by a bad friend, whose forehead was practically stamped with the words big sucker. After all, they had been out of school for years, yet he said he wanted to play basketball.
"Stop showing off. Isn't it just a cheap thing?" Xu Zhou's head throbbed from the sight of his friend's shaking leg. As if people would be fighting over it. Even if it was given to him for free, he wouldn't want it.
"What do you know? Do your girlfriends ever spend this kind of money on you?" Gu Jinzhi easily shut him up, adopting a smug posture.
Every one of Xu Zhou’s past girlfriends came from ordinary families and were generally quite smooth. Of course, they knew that material gifts wouldn't impress Xu Zhou. What he really cared about was appearance and physique.
It was a classic case of mutual benefit — after breaking up with each girlfriend, it was said that they ended up buying cars and houses.
"Does this young master lack anything?" Xu Zhou scoffed.
"Enough. You know nothing anyway. He's just an ordinary person, but he already cares about me." Gu Jinzhi felt a little pleased thinking about it.
"You're really sick. Aren't you two just dating online? Did you reveal something? Is he trying to play the long game to reel in a big catch?" Xu Zhou found it quite amazing and was secretly impressed that an online acquaintance could achieve such a level of commitment.
"No, you know how low-key I am. He probably knows I have a bit of money, but he won't have a clue." Gu Jinzhi shook his head. Who would have thought that a random cp would turn out to be a rich person?
"Have you ever had a video call with him? What does he look like?" Xu Zhou also thought that the other party might have taken a liking to Gu Jinzhi's appearance. After all, Second Young Master Gu was known for his good looks in their circle.
Gu Jinzhi suddenly realized that he had never suggested a video call. Both of them had unconsciously overlooked this matter, as if it were unimportant to them.
"I... don’t know." Since 5he photo he sent when he joined the group chat was taken from a strange angle, the other person likely couldn't imagine his face.
He had seen some photos of Amour but didn’t have a strong impression — he seemed to look like an ordinary person.
As for the bragging in the group, he didn't understand it at the time. He could only say that those people hadn't seen much of the world.
"Photos... he has some. I'll look for them later." Gu Jinzhi was suddenly curious. How could he have overlooked this, yet still remained interested in the relationship?
Finally arriving at the sports center, Gu Jinzhi parked his car and leaned against it while searching through the chat history in the group.
After scrolling through countless photos that stung his eyes for a while, he finally seemed to find a picture of Amour.
This should be him.
Gu Jinzhi zoomed in with curiosity. Objectively speaking, he was indeed a bit better looking than an average person — about a six or seven out of ten. With a bit of a filter, he actually looked quite decent!
"Let me see." Xu Zhou, intrigued by the slight curve of Gu Jinzhi’s lips, snatched the phone away, wondering what kind of man could captivate him.
However, upon seeing the picture, he was greatly disappointed.
"Are you sure your brain isn't filled with water? This person looks even worse than any random trainee from your company. Too ordinary! And let me see, it seems like there's been some photo editing." That could only mean that he was definitely uglier in person.
Gu Jinzhi snatched the phone back and stuffed it into his pocket, pouting and making excuses, "He’s actually quite nice, and besides, handsome guys aren't necessarily honest." A little bit of a generalization there.
Xu Zhou: So toxic...
"Forget it. Since it’s your first time dating a man, a little filter should be normal," Xu Zhou said, rubbing his forehead.
Once the initial excitement wore off, Gu Jinzhi would probably think he’d been kicked in the head by a mule.
Gu Jinzhi, feeling a bit defiant, played a voice message from Amour. "His voice sounds really nice!"
Xu Zhou was forced to listen and couldn't argue with that.
Gu Jinzhi scoffed. In truth, he wasn’t really a fan of looks. He simply enjoyed spending time with Amour. Although they didn't chat very often, the other party was paying attention to him.
This was why he understood why so many people liked mature men — they were like air, barely noticeable but attentive in every detail.
Besides, Amour didn’t know what he looked like. This meant that he wasn’t a fan of looks either.
"Come on, young master, aren’t you supposed to play basketball?" Xu Zhou shrugged, too lazy to argue. Gu Jinzhi's eyes were currently full of the novelty of dating. It was probably just a fun diversion for him. Xu Zhou could tell he wasn’t really invested.
Gu Jinzhi nodded vigorously.
He rummaged through the trunk and found a set of basketball clothes he had bought on a whim.
The two of them found an indoor basketball court and claimed a hoop. Gu Jinzhi tried a few shots, his touch a bit rusty, but his basic skills were still intact.
Some students dressed for the game invited them to join, so they played a little while with them.
After sweating a bit, Gu Jinzhi threw the ball aside and stopped. He took out his phone, opened the camera, and checked his face. Now, he didn't look any different from a college student!
He hadn't forgotten his main purpose for coming here: to shot a few stylish photos. So he dragged Xu Zhou out to take pictures of him.
"Take pictures from head to toe, and make sure to get a profile shot too," Gu Jinzhi instructed.
He wasn’t ready to reveal his full self to Amour yet, but a profile shot would suffice. It showcased his charm while still maintaining an air of mystery. Besides, his physique was already impressive.
"So many demands." Xu Zhou clicked his tongue. Honestly, he had never seen this side of Gu Jinzhi before. Being in a relationship had definitely changed him a bit.
In the final shots, the background was the basketball court, and the young man's skin looked luminous and healthy, radiating vitality.
His profile was exquisite. With his eyelids lowered, his eyelashes spread out like a fan. His jawline was smooth and not overly angular, and his lips were a soft pink.
He looked surprisingly pure and serene.
Unlike his frontal view, which could be quite intimidating due to his commanding gaze and haughty smirk, Gu Jinzhi’s profile was softened by the beauty mark at the corner of his upward-slanting eyes.
"What the f*ck, this doesn’t look like you. Let’s retake it," Xu Zhou said with a click of his tongue.
Gu Jinzhi curiously took a look and then grabbed the phone. "This one’s great. It's exactly this vibe!" The vibe of a male college student.
"Alright, that’s a wrap!" Gu Jinzhi laughed happily.
Xu Zhou rolled his eyes, used to Gu Jinzhi’s antics.
Gu Jinzhi then ignored him, and focused on his phone as he started replying to Lin Xu.
He sent a photo as a perfect response. “Does it look good?”
He had specifically ran over ten kilometers just for this pose.
Lin Xu was currently reviewing while waiting for a response. Fortunately, after finishing the exam, the teachers were still grading, so he had time to review on his own.
He wasn't left waiting for long and soon received a reply.
Lin Xu didn’t dare to scrutinize the photo too closely, remembering how forward Gu Jinzhi had been by sending him a photo of his legs earlier.
He wasn't into that sort of thing.
However, this photo was quite proper and perfectly showcased Gu Jinzhi’s youthful charm. He looked very innocent holding a basketball.
Before this, Lin Xu didn't know what he looked like, but now he had gained a little more insight.
Very good-looking.
This made him even more puzzled as to why Gu Jinzhi chose to seek connections online when he could meet good people in real life.
This photo could very well cause an uproar in the group chat, but Lin Xu didn't let his imagination run wild. To him, appearance was an objective matter and did not play a decisive role.
“Look quite suitable,” he noted, sensing the other person's post-workout glow.
That was great.
“Are you playing basketball with your classmates?” he asked.
Gu Jinzhi replied casually, “Yeah.” He wondered why Lin Xu could be so indifferent. After all, he'd already unleashed his killer looks.
It was very puzzling to him.
"So, should you continue?" Lin Xu, not wanting to intrude, was ready to focus on his studies.
“No! They’re still playing. I sneaked away to chat with you,” Gu Jinzhi said, leaving Xu Zhou by the side. Unhappily picking at his fingernails, he sat with his legs crossed by the hoop, exuding an unfriendly aura.
He had excitedly run over ten kilometers…
“It’s okay, you go ahead,” Lin Xu typed secretly, being very magnanimous. To him, the real world was definitely more important than the online one. Chatting with him wasn’t important.
“I’m not going.” Gu Jinzhi’s tone was somewhat blunt, revealing his annoyance. It was hard for anyone to continue the conversation with him.
He just felt that, as a cp now, shouldn’t the other person person want to understand him a bit more, even if just from his appearance?
Lin Xu, avoiding the occasional passing teacher, hesitated and replied awkwardly, “Then I’ll stay with you.”
Gu Jinzhi’s mood lifted a bit, and he replied with a grudging “Mm.”
He was very patient with him…
“Your gift should be arriving soon. I want to see how it turns out,” Gu Jinzhi started up again.
Lin Xu didn’t know what the gift was yet, and simply replied, “Okay.”
"By the way, is the photo you posted in the group chat really you? (sneaking a peek.jpg)"
He had a vague idea of what Lin Xu looked like but wasn’t keen on a direct video call, as it seemed to take away the mystery.
Besides, he was somewhat well-known and could potentially be recognized.
Lin Xu hesitated for a moment. "Probably... yes."
"Edited?" Gu Jinzhi hadn’t expected Xu Zhou to be so accurate.
"Yes," Lin Xu admitted.
Gu Jinzhi hadn’t expected him to be so honest but didn’t think much of it. So, he was just a little uglier than the one in the photo — no big deal.
"Be careful not to let the teacher catch you," Yue Shan warned stiffly. She didn’t know who Lin Xu was chatting with, but she felt an odd sensation in her heart.
Lin Xu glanced out the window. Messages from Zhizhi exploded on his screen like fireworks. He couldn't reply to them one by one, and he still had to think about how to reply. It was even less possible for him to suddenly disappear.
Lin Xu shifted to a more concealed position, his eyes and ears attuned to everything around him. This handsome guy looked like he was up to no good, yet his expression remained as composed as a mountain.
"Thanks, it’s fine," Lin Xu replied gently, pressing his lips together.
He had experience.