Classmate, Stop Acting Like a Good Boy [Rebirth] - Chapter 5

It seemed that many things were far removed from what he knew.

“I am sorry. Please let me know how much this T-shirt costs, and I will compensate you.” Lu Jian acted as if he did not know him at all, bowing his head in a sincere apology. His attitude was extremely earnest.

Cheng Shixu watched the manager running toward them from a distance. He glanced back at his rowdy friends and said, “It is fine. No need to pay. I was the one who bumped into you today; it has nothing to do with you.”

By the time the manager arrived, he only caught the last few words. He glared at Lu Jian before bowing obsequiously to Cheng Shixu. He Yu sat in the center of the booth like a grand lord, his legs spread wide. His expression was grim as he frowned at them. “That is enough.”

He stood up, pulled Cheng Shixu over, and looked down at the red wine stain on his shirt. “I spent so much effort hiring someone to snag this new release, and now it is ruined! It even has the signature of LK on it!” LK was a famous soccer player, and Cheng Shixu liked him quite a bit.

“A-Yu,” Cheng Shixu called out. He Yu’s gaze shifted upward, locking eyes with Lu Jian, who stood beside the manager.

“Let us go,” He Yu said, hooking his arm around Cheng Shixu’s shoulder. “If it were not for our A-Xu, selling you would not even cover the cost of this! You should thank him.”

Cheng Shixu stared at Lu Jian, his mouth just beginning to open. “I,” he started to say.

“Thank you, boss,” Lu Jian thanked him first, cutting him off, and was then led away by the manager.

Disturbed by the scene He Yu caused, Cheng Shixu watched Lu Jian’s figure disappear through a small side door. He broke away from He Yu and quickly followed.

Perhaps in his past life, Lu Jian’s expulsion had not been because he soiled a piece of clothing, but because He Yu had said a few words. The Crown Club was owned by He Yu’s family; the manager naturally knew how to read the room.

He Yu was great in every other way, but when he was being protective, he gave no one any face.

Back in elementary school, a few older students had made a habit of robbing the younger kids. Cheng Shixu happened to be the one whose freshly bought marshmallow was snatched away. He had not even taken a bite before it was gone, and he had burst into tears on the spot.

He found He Yu at a sausage stand and told him what happened. He Yu, still biting his sausage, followed Cheng Shixu’s lead. He gathered a few classmates, beat up the two older boys, and bought a new marshmallow for Cheng Shixu, all while calling him a fool for giving it up so easily.

He was different from He Yu. His family collected rent, while He Yu’s parents were businesspeople. Growing up in that environment, He Yu was more socially savvy and unafraid of trouble.

The manager likely decided to fire Lu Jian simply because He Yu was dissatisfied.

Cheng Shixu pushed open the door and walked to a familiar stairwell. Sure enough, he heard the conversation he should have heard in his past life.

“Of all the people to provoke, you had to offend the boss’s friend. You cannot stay here anymore.”

Lu Jian said urgently, “Manager! I really need this job!” He was desperately short of money. His middle school grades were high enough for him to attend a regular high school, but he truly could not afford the tuition. Conditions at the orphanage were poor; the two thousand yuan annual tuition was enough to feed the children there for several months.

Because his grades were decent, the vocational school had waived his tuition and even deposited two hundred yuan into his meal card every month. That was why he chose the vocational school, thinking that learning a trade would allow him to support himself.

The manager said there was no room for negotiation and turned to leave.

Lu Jian turned around dejectedly and locked eyes with Cheng Shixu, who was leaning against the wall. He immediately masked his emotions, walking past him with a blank face. “You saw it. The person in your dream cannot be me.” As he tried to pass, his arm was grabbed. He turned back, stunned.

Ten minutes later, Cheng Shixu was sitting on the stairs holding two cans of Cola. He handed one to Lu Jian. “Did you have a falling out with your family?” He pulled a stack of cash from his wallet, likely over ten thousand yuan, along with a card. “Take all of this. Is there a new watch you want to buy?”

Lu Jian had been quite passionate about watches in the future, buying every new model that came out. They even had a dedicated display cabinet for them at home.

“I do not need your charity.” Lu Jian looked at the stack of cash, cracked open the can, and took several large gulps. He had not yet changed out of his waiter’s uniform. Both of them looked quite disheveled, stained with red wine.

He smelled the scent of alcohol coming from Cheng Shixu. “Minors should not drink. Are you not in your senior year? Why do you have time to come here and play?” Usually, he saw that Cheng Shixu was very busy. Even when Cheng Shixu came to tutor him, while he did the problems, Cheng Shixu was either working on test papers or memorizing formulas.

“It is my buddy’s birthday,” Cheng Shixu said seriously. “I am not trying to give you charity. If you have an emergency and need money, I can give it to you. Just treat it as a loan that you will pay back later, okay?” Although he did not know what kind of trouble Lu Jian’s wealthy family could be in to require him to work, he wondered if they were facing a financial crisis or nearing bankruptcy.

By the faint light filtering in from behind them, Lu Jian gazed at Cheng Shixu’s face. He truly did not know whether to call Cheng Shixu naive or foolish for giving so much money to a stranger so easily. “Why? Just because of that dream?”

Cheng Shixu was stumped by the question.

“The ‘me’ in your dream is successful and has a happy family, but I am not him.” Lu Jian’s expression was complex. For a moment, he wanted to pour his heart out, but he ultimately held back. “The person you like is the ‘me’ from your dream, not me.”

Cheng Shixu looked at him with a dazed expression.

Lu Jian rested his arms on his knees, his hand gripping the Cola can tightening unconsciously. “Even if the future me really becomes the person you described, it must be an act. You can see it; I am nothing. I use foul language and have a bad temper. Perhaps the ‘me’ in your dream is just a fake rich man tricking you.”

He looked at Cheng Shixu, emphasizing every word. “Are you certain that your lover is me? If it is really me, would you still choose me to be your lover?”

After a long silence with no answer, he saw the confusion and hesitation on Cheng Shixu’s face. He stood up. “Do not come looking for me again. You should walk back inside, rather than leaving from here like me.” Behind the door was the noisy dance hall; this was merely a side door for staff.

He left first. Cheng Shixu stood up after a long while, turning to push the door open in a daze. As he moved, the necklace around his neck fell to the ground without him noticing.

After the door closed, Lu Jian, who had been hiding around the corner, stepped out. He sat back down on the steps and leaned back on his hands. His palm hit something hard. He picked it up and saw it was a necklace with an “S” pendant.

Before he had time to look closely or think, the door behind him opened again. As if guessing that he would not leave, Cheng Shixu appeared with a beaming face. “Ta-da!” He leaned toward him with a giggle. “I knew you had not left.”

Cheng Shixu seemed enveloped by alcohol, speaking without inhibition. He leaned naturally against Lu Jian as if they had shared countless intimate moments, burying his head in the crook of Lu Jian’s neck. “No matter what you are like, you will always be my lover. Do not say things like that anymore, or I might ignore you and kick you out to sleep in the study.”

Lu Jian felt he was drunk. “What is your hotel room number?”

“Why?” Cheng Shixu looked up at him. “Not yet, Little Jian-Jian. You are a minor; we cannot go to bed together.”

Lu Jian rolled his eyes in exasperation. “I finished today’s test paper and you have not graded it yet.” Having left school in a hurry, he had stuffed the paper into his backpack and brought it with him.

Upon hearing this, Cheng Shixu stood up straight. “Right! Studying! Our Lu Jian is going to be the top scorer of the entrance exam.” He leaned in again, his face only two fingers’ width away from Lu Jian’s. “Husband, I know you so well. You are always so stubborn, clearly loving me so much but always pretending not to care.”

He wrapped his arms around Lu Jian’s neck. “When He Yu pulled me earlier, you were really angry inside, were you not?” He tapped Lu Jian’s nose. “Were you not?”

Lu Jian had no intention of entertaining a drunkard. It was strange; he clearly saw that their booth only had sparkling wine, so why did he smell hard liquor on Cheng Shixu? Had they switched?

Mixing drinks like that, it would be strange if he were not drunk.

“Hotel room number.”

“1107.”

Lu Jian was stunned again.

Cheng Shixu then took Lu Jian’s arm and said, “It is your birthday.” Every time he stayed at a hotel for business or travel, he would book this room number if it was available.

He loved integrating countless details related to Lu Jian into his life.

Just like how he had intentionally dropped the necklace. The drunkenness was also an act. The scent of hard liquor came from him intentionally splashing some on his clothes when he went back inside earlier.

It did not matter if Lu Jian did not admit it; he was not going to give up.

He had thought carefully about what Lu Jian said earlier. What kind of Lu Jian did he like? As Lu Jian said, the maturity and stability were all an act, but so what?

Lu Jian was simply wonderful.

He did not know why Lu Jian was short of money, but he knew Lu Jian had been jealous of this necklace before. After much thought, he felt it was better to give it to him and apologize to He Yu later.

Lu Jian had once mentioned that this necklace was very important to him.

What if a butterfly effect occurred because he did not give it to him?

“Lu Jian, the pendant on this necklace is a diamond. The chain is pure gold. If you are short on money, you can sell it. You can pay me back later; we are family, after all.” Taking advantage of his fake drunkenness, Cheng Shixu rubbed his face against Lu Jian’s several times, smiling happily.

Upon entering the hotel room, Lu Jian could not wait to toss Cheng Shixu onto the bed and turn toward the bathroom.

The small diamonds on the necklace sparkled under the light, and Lu Jian’s eyes turned red. He should not have taken it; he should have maintained his pride. But damn it, he really needed three hundred thousand yuan.

Conditions at the orphanage were very poor. Every year, the food was barely enough to survive. There were not many volunteers, and the director and a few caregivers simply could not handle the workload. The director’s health had completely collapsed with age.

He had been diagnosed with a malignant tumor in his chest that required surgery. The total cost was about three hundred thousand yuan. If Lu Jian had not happened to see the director crying on a hallway chair with the report while he was delivering food to the hospital, he would never have known.

“Cheng Shixu. Can this necklace sell for three hundred thousand?”

Cheng Shixu, pretending to sleep, murmured groggily, “Yes.” It was more than that. A custom piece by Master J could likely sell for a million yuan to an expert, and even at a pawn shop, it would fetch five hundred thousand.

Why did Lu Jian need three hundred thousand?

Was the financial gap at home that large? He only had about twenty thousand yuan in his bank account, which was quite meager. Fortunately, He Yu had given him this chain; otherwise, he would have had to ask his mother for money.

He pulled down Lu Jian’s hand. “A virtuous husband helps you reach your high ambitions; do not discard me once you succeed.”

Lu Jian said deeply, “I will pay you back a thousand times over.”

Truth be told, in the future, Lu Jian’s private bank accounts were all linked to his payment accounts for him to spend as he pleased. He really had paid him back a thousand times over.

He knew Lu Jian was incredibly capable and could achieve anything he set his mind to.

As he thought about it, Cheng Shixu actually fell asleep. Lu Jian sat nearby and pulled the test papers out of his backpack to work on them. If getting into Experimental High School was what Cheng Shixu wanted right now, he would do his best.

At the very least, it would be a way to repay Cheng Shixu for the three hundred thousand.

Halfway through, Lu Jian turned to look at Cheng Shixu, who was hugging a pillow and sleeping soundly. But, he really did not like guys. Being called “husband” and “virtuous husband” gave him goosebumps that had still not gone away.