Chapter 92:
Worried that Mother Qin might notice something, Ji Ran took Qin Man’s car to the Qin family’s home.
On a weekend, it would indeed be odd for two people living together to drive separately. Besides, Ji Ran hadn’t slept well the night before and didn’t feel like driving, so when he saw Qin Man’s message saying “I’m waiting at the door,” he didn’t hesitate and replied with a period to acknowledge.
“Did we keep you up last night?” Qin Man asked.
Ji Ran, sitting in the passenger seat with his eyes closed, replied, “Yes, it was noisy.”
In truth, he hadn’t heard any noise at all.
Qin Man opened the glove compartment and took out an eye mask.
“An employee recommended this to me. It’s filled with water and supposedly very comfortable. Give it a try.”
Ji Ran took the mask and put it on.
Although he went to bed relatively early the night before, falling asleep after sending that message to Qin Man, he woke up intermittently throughout the night. He had a habit of kicking off his blanket and the air conditioning was set very low. Instinctively, he reached out to snuggle up to the person beside him, only to find the bed empty.
Lack of sleep, followed by little rest after dawn, made him even more tired now.
During the drive, Qin Man took a call, seemingly from an employee. He spoke softly, his voice steady and unhurried, lulling Ji Ran to sleep.
When Ji Ran woke up, he realized they were in a dimly lit environment. After a moment of confusion, he looked around and saw they were in a garage. He glanced over and saw Qin Man with a laptop on his lap, one hand resting on the car window as he read the screen.
Ji Ran’s seat had been adjusted to a comfortable angle, which was why he had slept so soundly and still felt like sleeping more.
Sensing Ji Ran’s gaze, Qin Man turned and said, “Awake?”
Ji Ran quickly looked away. “How long have we been here? Why didn’t you wake me?”
“Not long,” Qin Man replied. “You were sleeping well, and since it’s not dinner time yet, I thought you could use the rest.”
Ji Ran checked the time; it was nearly six o’clock. He took off the eye mask and said, “…Let’s go inside.”
Qin Man’s house wasn’t large. Decades ago, it would have been considered a mansion, but by today’s standards, it was quite modest, similar in size to Ji Ran’s own place. The interior design was simple yet elegant, and though not as lavish as the Ji family’s home, it exuded a warm and comfortable atmosphere.
“You’re here?” Mother Qin called from the kitchen, only poking her head out upon hearing the noise. “Have a seat first. The dishes will take a bit longer.”
Qin Man wasn’t exaggerating; six o’clock was indeed a bit early for their dinner time.
Father Qin was in the living room reading a newspaper. He looked up and said, “Xiao Man, come, have a seat.”
Ji Ran raised the bag in his hand, which contained the gift he had bought that morning. “Where should I put this?”
“Just coming is enough; you didn’t need to bring anything,” Mother Qin said with a smile. “You can put it anywhere. I’ll cut some fruit for you.”
“That’s not necessary…”
“It’s no trouble. I can cut fruit quickly and even carve some designs. What do you like?”
Father Qin interjected, “She only knows how to carve flowers.”
Ji Ran chuckled. “Really, there’s no need, Auntie. Just some regular fruit will be fine.”
Ji Ran sat down in the living room. The television was showing an anti-Japanese drama. Although Father Qin wasn’t watching it, Ji Ran didn’t feel comfortable changing the channel.
Qin Man went to the kitchen to explain the blacklisting situation to his mother, coming out a moment later with a smile. “Alright, if it happens again, I’ll get another phone just to take your calls.”
Ji Ran unconsciously glanced in their direction.
He hadn’t expected Qin Man to have such a different attitude towards his family. It wasn’t overly affectionate, but it wasn’t distant either. The balance was just right.
“You can watch whatever you want; don’t worry about me,” Father Qin said, handing him the remote.
“Thank you,” Ji Ran replied, taking the remote.
Father Qin observed him for a moment, his brow furrowed slightly, eyes filled with uncertainty.
After a moment, he couldn’t help but ask, “Are you…”
“Ji Ran,” Qin Man called from the kitchen, interrupting their conversation. “I need to go upstairs to get something.”
It sounded more like an invitation than a notice.
Ji Ran felt it would be awkward to face Qin’s father alone, so he stood up and said, “I’ll go up with you.”
The stairs in Qin Man’s house were narrow, just wide enough for the two of them. Two large men going up and down made it feel a bit cramped.
Ji Ran had imagined Qin Man’s room many times.
Back in school, he thought the room might only have a bed, a wardrobe, and a desk—boring and lifeless.
After they got together, he imagined the walls might be covered with explicit photos, and maybe if he looked hard enough, he’d find something inappropriate.
But none of his guesses were correct.
The room had gray bed sheets, a neatly arranged bookshelf, a poster of Kobe Bryant from years ago on one wall, and a landscape painting on another. A basketball sat in the corner.
The curtains were wide open, and the window was ajar, letting in the warm evening light, which added a cozy filter to the room.
A very ordinary man’s room.
“This painting…” Ji Ran walked up to the landscape painting.
He remembered seeing it in the house Qin Man had ‘rented’ when he first started keeping him. He hadn’t been back to Man Highschool in a long time, and the painting’s exaggerated colors had thrown him off, but now that he looked closely, it resembled the view of the mountain from the school’s back gate.
“You painted this?”
“Yeah, back in my third year of high school…” Qin Man paused. “I wasn’t trying to hide it; I just forgot.”
Given that the painting was well done, Ji Ran decided to let it slide.
He glanced at the other wall. “You like Kobe?”
“Who doesn’t like Kobe?” Qin Man replied.
Ji Ran fell silent. It was true—back in their school days, if anyone mentioned basketball, it had to be Kobe. He remembered often drinking alone in frustration because he couldn’t get a visa to watch the NBA Finals in person.
This topic seemed about to be brushed aside, but Qin Man suddenly said, “Actually, I didn’t have a favorite player at first.”
Qin Man enjoyed playing basketball but rarely watched games. He only tuned in for the final few matches of the championships.
Once, during his second year of high school, he was passing by a first-year classroom when a teacher stopped him, asking him to invigilate a class test while the teachers held a meeting.
Qin Man was about to refuse when he glanced over and saw Ji Ran sleeping on his desk.
Two minutes later, Qin Man, holding a small sack given by the teacher, knocked on the desk of the class’s top troublemaker amidst the tense gazes of his classmates.
It took several knocks before Ji Ran looked up. “What… why the hell is it you?”
“Classmate, it’s a test. Hand over your phone,” Qin Man said succinctly.
“I don’t have one. Get lost.”
“I can see its shape in your pocket,” Qin Man replied, his expression unchanged. “If you don’t hand it over, I’ll have to call the grade leader.”
“I mean it.”
Ji Ran had just received a verbal warning and was one step away from getting a demerit. He glared at Qin Man a few times before reluctantly throwing his phone into the small sack.
As the phone’s keypad hit the bag, the screen lit up, revealing a photo of Kobe as the screensaver.
…
After finishing his story, Qin Man raised an eyebrow and said, “So technically, it’s not Kobe I like, but…”
“Who wants to hear your story?” Ji Ran interrupted, his neck flushed. “If you don’t like him, then why put his picture on the wall? So fake.”
Qin Man suddenly fell silent.
Ji Ran brushed past him, intending to check out the balcony, but Qin Man grabbed his wrist.
“I did put it up,” Qin Man said.
Ji Ran paused. “What?”
“The picture of the person I like. I put it up.”
Ji Ran glanced at him, then quickly looked away. “What picture… where?”
“Behind Kobe. Do you dare to look?”
Ji Ran’s heartbeat suddenly sped up.
He turned and looked at Kobe’s poster.
What did this guy mean?
Ji Ran said, “…. There’s nothing I don’t dare to see.”
Qin Man let go of him and smiled lazily. “Then go ahead.”
Ji Ran walked over to the poster, hesitating for a few seconds before starting to peel off the old transparent tape.
He was very clear about his thoughts—he wasn’t just unafraid to look; he was very eager to see.
Peeling off a corner, the poster finally showed signs of loosening. Ji Ran continued pulling along the opening until he managed to lift a portion.
The secrets hidden behind the poster, never before seen by anyone, began to reveal themselves—
Behind it were several photos, all featuring the same person.
The poster covered most of them, but Ji Ran could see one clearly. The background was the school track at their high school, and he was captured mid-air, making a beautiful two-point shot.
Ji Ran was stunned, his mouth slightly open in surprise.
He vaguely remembered this was from a basketball game, and the photo was likely taken by the school magazine’s photographer.
“I specifically asked a friend in the magazine club. I have photos of you from basketball games, singing competitions, and sports meets.”
Ji Ran was too tired to call him a pervert anymore.
Qin Man chuckled softly. “You never attended classes properly, but you participated in all these activities.”
“…Why do you talk so much?” Ji Ran said.
He faced the wall, motionless for a while.
Qin Man thought he was still in shock or angry, but Ji Ran, facing the wall, was actually blushing furiously.
He still remembered that small test—he had initially planned to skip it.
But when he saw the homeroom teacher stopping Qin Man, he paused for a moment… and then silently came back.
Participating in those pointless activities was because they were school-wide events where he could see many people he wouldn’t usually encounter.
“How many…. damn photos did you steal?” Ji Ran snapped out of it, reaching to peel another corner of the tape.
The door suddenly opened, and Mother Qin walked in with a plate of fruit. “Here, have some fruit. The watermelon is particularly sweet today, I tried it myself.”
Ji Ran was startled, instinctively leaning forward, and with too much force, his chest collided heavily with the wall, making a dull thud.
“…” Mother Qin was taken aback, sensing the strange atmosphere between them. Her eyes darted back and forth. “Am I interrupting something?”
Qin Man said, “No, it’s just a torn poster.”
“What? This poster has been up for so many years, how did it tear?” Mother Qin set the fruit down, making to move towards Ji Ran. “Such a memorable thing. Don’t worry, Mom can fix it with some glue.”
Ji Ran pressed against the poster more tightly. “No, Auntie…”
“…I accidentally tore it. I’ll fix it myself.”
Mother Qin paused, withdrawing her hand. “Oh, well, if you can’t fix it, it’s fine. It’s so old, it might be time to replace it anyway… The food is almost ready. Come down in ten minutes.”
The door closed again.
Qin Man stepped forward and locked it.
Ji Ran breathed a sigh of relief and stepped back. With all the pressure he had exerted, even a well-preserved poster would have ended up crumpled.
He stared at the photos for a while longer before raising his hand.
Qin Man said, “I’ve backed up all the photos. If you tear it down, I can re-paste it.”
“…Who’s going to tear it down?”
Ji Ran pressed his palm against the wall, smoothing out the wrinkled poster.
He could feel his heartbeat through his palm, thumping wildly.
They spent ten minutes rummaging through the house for old glue and clear tape, fixing the poster before heading downstairs.
“Since Auntie isn’t here today, my mom cooked herself,” Qin Man said softly on the stairs. “She’s taken a few cooking classes but doesn’t have much experience, so the food might not be very good. If you don’t like it, just eat a little, and I’ll order takeout for you when we get back.”
“Who needs you to order takeout for me?” Ji Ran thought of something and said, “If you write random stuff on the takeout order again, I will…”
He stopped mid-sentence.
In front of the stairs and slightly to the right was the dining table, and from their angle, they could see the person sitting there.
It was a new guest they hadn’t seen when they arrived.
A woman was sitting at the dining table with her legs crossed. She had short, neat hair, exquisite and defined features, and was wearing a simple yet well-fitted suit. Between her slender, white fingers was a long, thin lady’s cigarette.
“The project had some issues, so I had to work half a day of overtime and came late,” the woman explained to Mother Qin. Then she glanced up and met Ji Ran’s eyes.
Both were taken aback.
Ji Ran hadn’t expected that after more than ten years, he would see Ji Guozheng’s legitimate wife here.
It took Ji Ran a while to come to his senses. Anticipating the upcoming confrontation, he couldn’t help but clench his fists slightly.
This was the wrong place, the wrong time, and the wrong people to have this confrontation.
He didn’t want to ruin the gathering at Qin Man’s house.
Seeing who it was, Qin Man’s face darkened slightly. He instinctively took a step forward, shielding half of Ji Ran’s body behind him.
“I’ve told you to work less overtime. What’s the point of earning money if it means sacrificing rest?” Mother Qin said as she placed a steamed fish on the table. Noticing the people lingering on the stairs, she smiled and said, “Come on down. Introduce yourselves to the guest… Xiao Man, you should recognize her. This is your high school classmate Ji Wei’s mother.”
Mother Qin waited for a response but received none.
She frowned slightly. What was wrong today? Everywhere she went, the atmosphere felt off.
She continued her introduction, “Qianqiong, do you remember Xiao Man? The one behind him is Xiao Man’s junior from high school. He also attended Man Highschool, so he might know Ji Wei.”
Chen Qianqiong met Ji Ran’s gaze for a few seconds before calmly looking away. She lightly tapped the cigarette with her index finger, causing the ash to fall into the ashtray.
Her tone was indifferent, “Yes, I know him.”
Her expression was serene, as if Ji Ran and her son indeed only had the connection of being from the same school.
Huge shoutout to @_nyanmaru_ on Discord for commissioning this! The chapter will be posted regularly, show your support for Ciacia at Kofi.
