Mistaken Canary Chapter 48
Chapter 48
After being thoroughly scolded, Zhuo Shu trailed behind Ying Tongchen, grumbling nonstop. "I'm telling you, I could have my lawyer talk to you based on what you just did."
"Sure," Ying Tongchen said as he stepped into the elevator. "Is the lawyer handsome?"
"He's from my company, of course he's handsome—" Zhuo Shu looked at him sharply. "What are you planning?"
Ying Tongchen turned around, poked Zhuo Shu's chest with his finger, and looked up into his eyes with a meaningful smile. "Of course, I'll have a long, hard talk with the handsome lawyer."
Zhuo Shu immediately grabbed his finger. "I won't allow it."
"You won't allow it?" Ying Tongchen pulled his hand back but failed. "Weren't you the one who brought up the lawyer?"
"Then I take it back," Zhuo Shu said. "I was just trying to scare you. Didn't expect you to be such a tough nut."
As soon as he finished speaking, the elevator doors opened. Standing at the entrance, holding two fans and ready to go dancing, Auntie Lin let out an "Oh ho!" and immediately pressed the close button, pretending she hadn't seen anything.
Ying Tongchen: "......"
Zhuo Shu: "......"
The two of them immediately let go and hid their hands behind their backs.
Ying Tongchen reopened the elevator doors and greeted her calmly, "Auntie Lin, good evening. Going dancing again?"
"Yes, yes," Auntie Lin laughed, then glanced at Zhuo Shu.
Zhuo Shu quickly explained, "I'm here to fix Mr. Ying's water pipes."
"Oh, I see. Then I won't disturb you," Auntie Lin said with a smile, stepping into the elevator. She waved at them and gave Zhuo Shu a small fist pump. "Mr. Ying's pipes seem to break a lot. Make sure you fix them properly. Go get 'em, plumber."
"Thanks, I will," Zhuo Shu replied with a smile, only to be dragged back into the apartment by Ying Tongchen, who was scowling.
"Your neighbor is quite friendly," Zhuo Shu remarked. "By the way, have you eaten?"
"Yes."
"So early?!" Zhuo Shu rubbed his stomach. "I haven't eaten yet."
After putting the things down, Ying Tongchen sat on the sofa and opened a food delivery app. "What do you want to eat?"
After some serious thought, Zhuo Shu requested, "How about... you cook something for me?"
Ying Tongchen stared at him without saying a word.
Not daring to push his luck, Zhuo Shu quickly added, "I want steamed lamb, steamed bear paw, steamed deer tail, roasted duck, roasted goose, braised duck..."
Just as Ying Tongchen was about to explode, Zhuo Shu softened his tone. "I'm serious. Ordering takeout is such a hassle. Why don't you just make me some noodles? I'm so hungry, I can't wait for a delivery."
Ying Tongchen watched as Zhuo Shu clutched his stomach and collapsed onto the sofa, clearly refusing to get up unless he agreed. He smacked him lightly. "I should just poison you."
"Ah, I'm so hungry, sooo hungry," Zhuo Shu whined for a while, then peeked over and saw Ying Tongchen heading to the kitchen. He immediately followed and stood to the side, watching. "Do you usually cook noodles?"
"Occasionally," Ying Tongchen replied with a dark expression, opening the fridge, grabbing some items and then closing the door.
He moved to the cabinet. "What flavor do you want? Spicy beef or pickled cabbage?"
"...Pickled cabbage," Zhuo Shu said, speechless as he watched Ying Tongchen pull out two packs of instant noodles. "This is the 'noodles' you usually make?"
"Got a problem?"
"I do."
"Keep it to yourself."
"......" Zhuo Shu started nagging as he hovered around him. "Instant noodles are bad for you, staying up late is bad for you, and oh, smoking too—it's all harmful. How have you even survived this long?"
Ying Tongchen paused for a moment, then turned on the stove to boil water. He also fried an egg on the side.
Zhuo Shu watched as Ying Tongchen cracked the egg with practiced ease, dropped it into the pan, and controlled the heat perfectly, frying it to a vibrant golden color. It smelled pretty good too. Ying Tongchen placed the bowl of food on the table.
Zhuo Shu took a couple of bites, pleasantly surprised. "You're pretty good at this. And you said you couldn't cook."
"This is all I can do," Ying Tongchen said, sitting down across from him. He fiddled with his phone for a bit, then looked up to see Zhuo Shu devouring the instant noodles. He couldn't help but watch for a while longer.
After finishing the bowl of noodles, Zhuo Shu looked up, satisfied, and stiffened. “Why are you smiling?”
Ying Tongchen was surprised. He touched the corner of his mouth, which had somehow curled up without him noticing, and quickly smoothed it out. "I was just laughing at how much you enjoyed eating something you claim is unhealthy."
"It really is unhealthy," Zhuo Shu said, wiping his lips before putting on a stern face. "I'm only making an exception this once. I won't eat it again."
"Oh, is that so?"
"And you're not allowed to eat it either. No matter how busy you are, you have to eat properly," Zhuo Shu said firmly. "Otherwise, you'll have to talk to my lawyer."
Ying Tongchen chuckled softly.
…
By around ten o'clock, both of them had finished showering individually, and what followed was something they both tacitly understood. After Zhuo Shu had his way with him a few times, Ying Tongchen was completely exhausted and fell asleep.
Zhuo Shu, however, was too thrilled to sleep. As he quietly held Ying Tongchen, he thought to himself—he had just come to terms with the fact that he liked him, and now they were already intimate? This was simply too incredible.
Truly, a winner at life.
With that thought, he hugged his ‘prize’ even tighter, planting a firm kiss on his cheek, almost waking up his ‘prize’.
…
The next morning, Zhuo Shu woke up in an exceptionally good mood, practically floating as he walked, and even danced a little while brushing his teeth.
With a tilt of his head, Ying Tongchen regarded him as if encountering this lunatic for the first time—he was genuinely tempted to offer a mocking "my condolences".
Zhuo Shu asked, "Do you have any plans today?"
"No, just working from home."
"Great, hehehehe."
"......"
Zhuo Shu's good mood lasted until a message arrived.
He was in the middle of eating when his alternate WeChat account suddenly received a message from Ban Zhang, sending him the photos he had secretly taken over the week.
Excited, Zhuo Shu opened the photos and was immediately enraged.
Most of the photos were candid shots of Ying Tongchen standing on the sports field, but next to him was Zheng Zhinan. The two were whispering, standing way too close!
To make matters worse, Ban Zhang had the audacity to add a pink bubble frame filter around the two of them.
Another picture captured Ying Tongchen bending to retrieve something, just as Zheng Zhinan did the same. The frame caught the moment their gazes locked, while the students around them blurred into nothingness.
It had to be said, Ban Zhang was really good at taking couple photos.
But!
This was completely different from what Zhuo Shu had wanted.
Ying Tongchen was browsing an English article when he suddenly heard a loud ‘smack’ and jumped. "What's wrong?"
Zhuo Shu was so angry he couldn't eat. He crossed his arms and glared at Ying Tongchen, both fierce and a little hurt. "How's your relationship with that Zheng Zhinan?"
"Pretty good. We joined the school at the same time."
‘So they'd known each other for over two years, no wonder they seemed so close.’ Zhuo Shu suddenly felt insecure.
No, he had to go back and investigate this properly.
"I need to head to the company," Zhuo Shu said, getting up to leave.
Ying Tongchen looked at the table full of breakfast. "You haven't finished eating."
"I’m no longer hungry."
"Who was it that said we should eat properly?"
"I said it, and it only applies to you," Zhuo Shu shamelessly said. He walked to the door and gave him further instructions before leaving. "You better eat properly. If you don't feel like cooking, come to my company. The food in our cafeteria is pretty good. Or call me, and I'll order takeout for you."
In that instant, another person was recalled from Ying Tongchen's memory—someone wearing a school uniform, smiling gently. "I’ll help you with your meals from now on."
After a while, Ying Tongchen murmured softly, "And you, why are you so good to me?"
The only response was the silent, closed door.
A moment later, Ying Tongchen’s phone rang, but the caller was someone he never expected.
…
After returning to the company, Zhuo Shu instructed Mi Shu to investigate Zheng Zhinan's romantic history. It didn't take long to get the answer—none.
Zhuo Shu breathed a small sigh of relief, then opened the school forum to look for information about Zheng Zhinan. To his surprise, the most mentions of Zheng Zhinan were in the shipping threads.
It was maddening! The more Zhuo Shu looked, the angrier he got. But as he seethed, he ended up finishing the whole thing—and, before he knew it... he had boarded the ship.
A teacher’s romance was a delicate balancing act, like hanging in the air.
F*ck, these students are way too good at writing fan fiction.
Zhuo Shu immediately exited the thread, finally coming to his senses. Then his gaze paused as he noticed a new thread mentioning Ying Tongchen.
—I saw Mr. Ying and Ms. Sheng Wu on a date at the park! Hurry, come and check it out! I've got the photos to prove it!
Zhuo Shu quickly entered the thread and saw the headline image: Ying Tongchen walking alongside a young female teacher, who smiled shyly at him, covering her mouth.
Zhuo Shu’s face turned as dark as the bottom of a pot, his mood plunged down to the lowest depths of despair.
What happened to working from home? And now you're out on a date with a beauty?
He logged off and rushed straight to the park.
Fortunately, the two hadn't gone far. As soon as he arrived nearby, he saw Ying Tongchen and the female teacher strolling leisurely ahead.
Zhuo Shu immediately turned around, pretending to be a customer browsing goods. He picked through the items at a nearby stall, eventually buying a pair of sunglasses, a scarf, and a hat to disguise himself. Then he stealthily followed them.
"That's pretty much the situation," the female teacher said.
"Alright, I understand. Don't worry," Ying Tongchen nodded.
Zhuo Shu was completely lost: What situation? What situation are we not worrying about?
"Thank you. You're such a good person," Sheng Wu smiled. "Actually, before I got to know you, I thought you were really aloof and hard to approach."
Ying Tongchen smiled faintly.
Zhuo Shu: Woman, I demand you explain yourself. Just how well do you know him now???
Sheng Wu then asked, "If you don’t mind me asking…do you have a girlfriend right now? I have a friend who's really nice."
Ying Tongchen shook his head. "No, thank you for the offer, but I don't have any plans to get a girlfriend."
Zhuo Shu thought to himself: Cause and effect, you see; your husband can only be me.
Sheng Wu glanced at her phone notification. "Ah, it’s almost our reservation time. Should we head to the restaurant now?"
"Sure."
The two turned and walked in another direction. Zhuo Shu immediately ducked behind a large rock, keeping an eye on their retreating figures. Just as he breathed a sigh of relief, someone next to him cursed, "Ying Tongchen, you jerk, how disloyal!"
Zhuo Shu turned to look at the person in surprise. "Who are you?"
The person was tall and burly, wearing a Sun Wukong mask. Hearing the question, he shot back, "Who are you?"
Zhuo Shu: "None of your business. You first—who are you, and why are you cursing Ying Tongchen?"
The man fumed. "He stole my woman!"
"That annoyance was your woman?" Zhuo Shu asked.
"Who are you calling an annoyance?"
"Who said you can call Ying Tongchen a jerk?"
"I do as I please!"
"We’ll see about that." Zhuo Shu pulled off the Wukong mask, encountering no resistance. He stared at the person in front of him, astonished. "It’s you, you punk."
"You know me?" Zheng Zhinan snatched his mask back and tit-for-tat reached for Zhuo Shu's sunglasses.
Zhuo Shu executed a tactical retreat, steadying his frames. "Listen, all you need to know is that we're on the same team, with a perfectly aligned goal."
Upon hearing this, Zheng Zhinan's anger flared. "You dare like my Sheng Wu?!"
Zhuo Shu: "?"
Zhuo Shu clarified, "No, I don’t like her. I don’t even know who she is."
"You don’t know who she is? Let me tell you, she’s a gem in our teacher team. She used to win numerous awards back in elementary school at Honors Primary..."
"..." Zhuo Shu didn’t even bother as he turned to run after Ying Tongchen and Sheng Wu.
Zheng Zhinan immediately chased after him. "Explain yourself! What did you mean by that just now? If you’re not interested in Sheng Wu, then why did you say we’re on the same team? You can’t possibly like Ying Tongchen, right?"
"What’s wrong with that?" Zhuo Shu retorted.
"Wait f*ck, seriously?" Zheng Zhinan was stunned. "So, does Tongchen like you?"
Zhuo Shu was evasive. "He’ll like me sooner or later."
"Why?" Zheng Zhinan was baffled. "I honestly think he might like me. You know, the students are saying that Tongchen and I make a good match."
Zhuo Shu, realizing he had lost sight of the person they were chasing, stopped moving. "I almost forgot about that. Come here."
Zheng Zhinan: "?"
Later, according to a witness who wished to remain anonymous, the weather was clear as in the park, two grown men had a raging battle, as one swore to hit the other hard enough to make his brainbox rattle. He was especially fierce, shouting something along the lines of "screw your teacher’s romance". After the fight, the two of them walked hand in hand, supporting each other as they made their way to a nearby restaurant.
.
.
.
Author's Note: There's no "white moonlight*", and if there is, it's a fake. The past is about to be revealed, and it's time for Zhuo MollyColly to show off his amazing boyfriend skills(?)... Never mind, it wouldn’t make sense for him to have that.
(TL Note: 白月光, or literally white moonlight, is usually used to refer to a person’s first love/crush. In this case, the author is referring to Ying Tongchen’s flashback of that student.)
Zhuo Shu: "I chose to stay single. Who are you to insult me???"