“It’s already eight in the evening...” Ning Chu sat on the roadside flower bed, exhausted and dejected, his head hanging low. “Why is it that no one pays attention to me?”

Street promotions weren't as simple as he had imagined. It seemed like he just needed to get passersby to download and register an app, but in reality, no one wanted to bother with him. Today, Wen Yang completed most of the tasks.

It wasn’t that Wen Yang was particularly eloquent or experienced, but as the main character, he was naturally a charming sight. Just by standing there, several young and pretty girls eagerly gathered around him. After a few minutes of not paying attention to Wen Yang, Ning Chu turned to see two more girls by his side.

He sighed heavily, slowly getting up to approach them, just in time to hear one of the girls excitedly ask, “If I register and download, can you add me as a friend?”

“Yeah, yeah, if you add us as friends, we’ll download it!”

Wen Yang kept shaking his head, but he couldn’t fend off the enthusiastic girls until Ning Chu’s voice came from behind, “No!”

“If you want to download, just scan the code and do it. If not, leave and stop blocking the way!”

Not only did he have to complete the street promotion task, but he also had to ensure Wen Yang wouldn’t be swayed by enthusiastic girls... Why hadn’t he thought of this from the beginning?

“He has a girlfriend...”

“Turns out he likes flat chests.”

Hearing the girls’ conversation as they left, Wen Yang felt a bit flustered. He guiltily turned to look at Ning Chu, afraid of another lecture, but Ning Chu just yawned, seemingly not caring about the girls’ comments.

“Shouldn’t we be a bit nicer?” Wen Yang tentatively asked, “Like earlier, just adding a friend, it’s not a big deal.”

“It’s already so late, and we’ve only completed half of our task….” Wen Yang’s voice gradually lowered, his eyes avoiding Ning Chu’s gaze. 

Indeed, he did have a personal motive of finding a girl he could talk to, but wasn’t it for the sake of work too?

Ning Chu rolled his eyes at him and sighed deeply, “Let’s go back.”

“So early?”

“It’s past eight. By the time we get back to the dorm, it’ll be ten.” Ning Chu took out his phone, showing him the time, “The orders will all count under your name anyway, since I didn’t do much.”

Wen Yang suddenly remembered that Ning Chu never went out at night. Perhaps due to strict family discipline or simply a fear of the dark, usually in the dormitory, Ning Chu would not go out after eight or nine o’clock.

“Just a bit more to go...” Wen Yang frowned, “It’s okay, if it gets too late, we’ll find a youth hostel to stay in. It’s only about fifty bucks per person.”

“If we do that, we can still go out and explore tomorrow morning. It’s better than spending four hours on the bus every day.”

“A youth hostel...” After a moment’s hesitation, Ning Chu shook his head and refused, “No.”

“Then will you go back first?”

Apparently, he felt a bit rejected. 

Ning Chu, pressing his lips together, also didn’t feel comfortable leaving Wen Yang alone. He knew if he was more assertive, Wen Yang would probably go along with his idea, but being so controlling, like a parent, could easily provoke Wen Yang’s resentment. If he was truly hated, stopping the development of the plot in the future would be a fool’s dream.

After some memory surfing, there seems to be no plot line where Wen Yang is doing it in a youth hostel or hotel scenes in the story.

“Fine.” Ning Chu reluctantly agreed, picking up the flyers and heading towards the pedestrians again.

The city’s buses stopped running promptly at ten. After finishing the day's work, Ning Chu and Wen Yang ran to the bus stop, just in time to see the taillights of the last bus disappearing down the road.

“Well, we have to stay at a hotel.” Wen Yang wasn’t disappointed, in fact, he seemed quite happy. He instinctively put his arm around Ning Chu’s shoulder, smiling as he asked, “How about we find a snack street to explore? We earned over six hundred together today!”

Ning Chu stiffened, his eyes quickly glancing at the arm on his shoulder, feeling uncomfortable and struggling slightly. “Just do what you want, most of the money was earned by you, I was just dragging you down.”

“By the way, I haven’t properly thanked you for last night. Tonight, I’m treating you to everything!” Feeling wealthy, Wen Yang immediately took on the demeanor of a tycoon. He had come out to earn money from part-time jobs to improve his life, and now that he had money, he wanted to spend it immediately.

Ning Chu's steps stiffened as Wen Yang led him towards the nearby night market with his arm around his shoulder. 

He didn’t like being too close to Wen Yang, but given their current relationship, if he even rejected a friendly gesture, it might seem overly sensitive.

This guy’s hand is so hot...

Today, Wen Yang was noticeably more enthusiastic than before. Even the way he looked at him was gentler. 

Is this guy already unable to wait for him to turn into a girl? The thought sent chills down Ning Chu’s spine.

A bit past ten at night, just the peak time for the snack street, Wen Yang’s face was full of joy. He bought one snack after another, stuffing them all into Ning Chu’s hands. But Ning Chu felt like he was in prison, eating everything without tasting it.

Why is this guy so excited to hang out with another guy?

“Ning Chu, let me have a bite of that lamb skewer.”

“I’ve already taken a bite...”

“I don’t mind.”

But I mind!

Is it possible that I’ve accidentally gotten too close to Wen Yang? But then again, if Ning Chu had a dorm mate who always ruined his dates, he’d wish the guy dead!

Maybe Wen Yang has too many options? So he doesn’t really care?

Ning Chu reluctantly handed over the lamb skewer. Wen Yang didn’t even take it; he bent down and took a bite directly from the skewer.

“...”

Although such behavior among close male friends wasn’t exactly gay, they’d only known each other for a month! He saw Wen Yang’s happiness and forced himself to hide his displeasure, trying to smile.

He still needed to maintain a good relationship with Wen Yang, endure humiliation! Once the novel’s plot was over...

Chewing on the lamb, Wen Yang’s gaze fixed ahead, pointing to a sign in the distance. “There’s a hotel right there. I’ll go check the prices.”

“Didn’t you say staying at a youth hostel would save money?”

“A small hotel’s double room is only about a hundred bucks, almost the same.” He quickened his pace towards the hotel, “Anyway, I’m treating tonight. Why are you so picky?”

True...

Ning Chu sighed softly, following slowly behind, watching as Wen Yang walked into the hotel. His eyelid suddenly twitched, sensing something ominous. Just as he was about to quicken his pace towards the hotel, he saw Wen Yang already running out, his face full of panic.

“Let’s go!”

Ning Chu didn’t have time to ask why. Running while glancing back at the hotel’s glass door, he saw several girls inside looking disappointedly at Wen Yang. After running more than ten meters and stopping under a tree, Ning Chu finally had a chance to ask, “What happened?”

“It’s not a proper hotel!”

“???”