Chapter 14 – Tolerance
Qiao Huaiyao’s hands lightly rested on his shoulders, hesitating to lean in too close due to an unstable balance. Even so, the small lens in front of him was still securely blocked.
However, he couldn’t spare any attention for the small lens at the moment. He was completely unaware of the wailing in the live broadcast room.
He clung tightly to Bai Jinyan’s back, tense and trembling with even the slightest movement, feeling his heart tighten as well.
Neither sticking nor leaning, these few steps were more tiring than walking by himself.
Barrage: [“There’s nothing to say, really nothing to say. Even if you let me see a shadow, I can imagine you two kissing behind our backs. How am I supposed to cope with this?”]
[“No microphone or audio is one thing, but at least we could see your lip movements. I could guess what sweet nothings you were saying. But now, it’s pitch black.”]
[“I’m wearing headphones, and when I entered this live broadcast, I thought I had gone deaf.”]
[“Promise me, take advantage of this opportunity when we can’t see or hear anything, and say all the sweet whispers, okay?”]
[“Wuwuwu… Honey, honey, tilt the camera up a bit. I also want to experience being carried by Bai Jinyan.”]
…
Qiao Huaiyao looked at the mottled lights on the ground and sighed lightly. Suddenly, Bai Jinyan’s figure flickered.
Instinctively, he moved forward, and when he came to his senses, his hands were already around Bai Jinyan’s neck.
Before Qiao Huaiyao could say anything, Bai Jinyan lifted him slightly and said, “Hold on tight.”
Qiao Huaiyao softly replied, “Mm.”
With a simple motion, they seemed to get closer.
Their hearts beat ‘thump thump’ against each other, and faintly, Qiao Huaiyao couldn’t distinguish whose heartbeat he was hearing.
Listening to the chirping of crickets in the night, his already chaotic thoughts became even more restless.
After pondering for a moment, Qiao Huaiyao lowered his head slowly, resting his cheek on his arm.
He blinked, his gaze tracing the contours of Bai Jinyan’s half-face, and the corners of his lips involuntarily curved upwards.
The distance from the small park to home seemed short when running.
But walking back step by step, Qiao Huaiyao felt that time elongated and became hazy.
However… he didn’t dislike this sense of elongation.
Back home.
Bai Jinyan didn’t leave him in the living room; instead, he took Qiao Huaiyao directly to the bedroom and said, “Wait for me.”
After saying that, he hurriedly turned and went downstairs.
Qiao Huaiyao sat by the bed and said, “Hey, brother…” As he spoke, he raised his head and caught a glimpse of his flushed face in the opposite mirror, and he was momentarily stunned.
He cleared his throat, thinking fortunately Bai Jinyan couldn’t see him like this with his back turned.
The neckline of his clothes was already in disarray from the camera strap; he casually took off the camera and set it aside.
He stood up unsteadily and walked into the bathroom. He intended to wash his face with cold water, but accidentally wet his collar, so he simply turned on the shower and took a bath.
When Bai Jinyan came back, he didn’t see Qiao Huaiyao but heard the sound of running water from the bathroom.
Carrying the medicine, he went over and knocked on the bathroom door with his fingertips curled, frowning. “Is your ankle still hurting?”
The water inside stopped, and Qiao Huaiyao, who had put on his clothes, dried his hair and walked out. “It’s not hurting much. I think it’s okay.”
It was just a minor stumble, and there was no swelling. After a good night’s sleep, everything would be fine.
Seeing Bai Jinyan holding something in his hand, Qiao Huaiyao reached out and said, “Brother, I can do it myself.”
Bai Jinyan brushed his hand away. “The medicine has a strong smell. Don’t get it on your hands.”
Saying that, he sprayed the medicine evenly on Qiao Huaiyao’s ankle.
The cool mist sprayed onto his skin, with a bitter medicinal scent so strong that it instantly woke him up.
After spraying the medicine twice, Bai Jinyan placed the spray on the bedside and advised, “Wait until it dries before sleeping. Sleep early today, rest well, and don’t stay up late.”
“Okay.” —
At night, Qiao Huaiyao couldn’t fall asleep.
He reached out to pick up the pillow on the bedside and leaned back, casually browsing his phone.
His dormitory number and course schedule had already been sent by the school. In high school, he often heard people say that high school was tight, but university would be more relaxed, with only three or four classes a day.
But in reality, each class in university lasted for two hours.
Looking at the course schedule, which didn’t seem much different from his previous life, Qiao Huaiyao sighed. The courses were too tight, and most of his major subjects emphasized attendance and final grades, with attendance accounting for 30% of the final grade.
The possibility of flying back to find Bai Jinyan midway was almost zero.
The live stream was still on, and no matter how late it was, there were always enthusiastic viewers in the live chat.
Bullet comments: [“Wife, why the sigh? You must be missing me after just one day apart. Wait, let me buy a ticket.”]
[“No, why are you calling each other ‘wife’? He’s not that great. When we sleep, he always steals my blanket.”]
[“Who got drunk after just a few glasses of alcohol?”]
[“Wife, if you have any difficulties, tell me, and I’ll help you solve them!”]
The changing colors of the bullet comments flashed on the phone screen, particularly noticeable in the dark room.
Qiao Huaiyao casually picked up the phone given by the director and saw the lively discussion in the chat. He casually said, “School starts the day after tomorrow, and the courses will be quite tight. I might not have time to come back.”
Bullet comments: [“What? How dare the university not give my Qiao Qiao face? Wait, I’ll make a phone call and have the butler handle this.”]
[“Great Sage, you should save your divine powers. Qiao Qiao, don’t worry, tell me the name of the university, and I’ll talk to the school president.”]
As they jokingly teased him, the gloom in Qiao Huaiyao’s heart dissipated a lot. He chuckled and said, “Tsinghua University.”
Bullet comments kept flooding in, and the audience seemed unable to react.
After a while, a comment appeared: [“Oh, Tsinghua University.”]
[“Tsinghua University is nothing to be afraid of. The name sounds familiar.”]
[“Perhaps, Tsinghua University is the Tsinghua University that ranks first in the world university rankings?”]
Qiao Huaiyao raised an eyebrow and analyzed rationally, “In China, there should be only one university referred to as Tsinghua University.”
Bullet comments: [“…”]
[“It seems like I shouldn’t stay up too late. I’m starting to have hallucinations.”]
[“???”]
[“Wait, wait… My wife goes to Tsinghua University?!”]
[“So, Bai Jinyan married up!”]
[“Exactly! Our educational backgrounds match well. Husky holding roses.jpg“]
[“Sob sob sob, why, why is it like this? Nuwa, let’s talk. You made my wife so good-looking, but why did you make him a hidden genius? He’s your clay figurine, then what am I?!”]
[“Nuwa: What’s wrong with my clay creations?”]
…
Knock knock.
A soft knocking sound came from the door. Qiao Huaiyao, who was about to interact with the audience, didn’t hesitate. He quickly turned off the phone screen, put it aside, and slipped under the covers, pulling them tightly.
He completed all these actions in less than three seconds.
Bullet comments: [“???”]
[“Wife, what are you doing?”]
[“Suddenly, I feel like I’m back in school, hiding under the covers to play with my phone, and my parents catching me in the act.”]
Bai Jinyan opened the door and entered. As he approached, the floor’s sensor lights automatically turned on, emitting a warm, non-glaring orange light.
Looking at Qiao Huaiyao, who pretended to be asleep in bed, Bai Jinyan said, “Get up and drink the milk.”
Qiao Huaiyao quietly opened one eye and saw Bai Jinyan standing by the bed, his gaze fixed on him.
“Cough.” Qiao’s lips slightly curved, and he sat up, whispering, “I have a bit of insomnia.”
It wasn’t that he wanted to stay up; he just couldn’t fall asleep.
“I know,” Bai Jinyan handed him the milk, “I warmed up some milk for you. Drink it while it’s hot.”
Qiao Huaiyao smiled, took the milk, and said, “Thank you, brother.”
Holding the milk cup, Qiao Huaiyao couldn’t help but ask suspiciously, “Brother, how did you know I couldn’t sleep?”
“Someone in the live chat went to the comments section of my Weibo and complained.”
Saying that, Bai Jinyan brought up the Weibo comments on his phone and showed it to Qiao Huaiyao.
Top comment: [Oh my goodness, Qiao Qiao completely ignores you, it’s like he’s not giving you any face. I don’t mean to instigate anything, but can you endure this? I can’t.]
Qiao Huaiyao: “…”
I heard your scheming even in the bedroom.
Live chat comments: [“…”]
[“This traitor!!!”]
[“Demi! Although I’m not the top comment, I did send a private message. Mainly, I wanted to see Brother Bai’s reaction. It turns out I overthought it.”]
[“Haha, Bai Jinyan, you’ve become quite the homemaker.”]
[“Brother, if you treat Qiao Qiao half as well as you do in front of fans, you’ll have one-third fewer haters now.”]
Quietly, Qiao Huaiyao held down the comment, blocked, and deleted it before handing the phone back. “Brother, get some rest. Goodnight.”
Bai Jinyan saw but didn’t stop him, reaching out to ruffle his hair. “Goodnight.”
…
It was still early in the morning.
The director released the task early in the morning.
Qiao Huaiyao was awakened groggily. When he sat in the car, he was still half-asleep. Leaning his back against the seat, he could barely keep his eyes open.
They arrived, but the director was rummaging in the trunk and hadn’t gotten into the car yet.
Qiao Huaiyao sneezed, his mind muddled with the word “tired.”
Looking at Bai Jinyan beside him, he tilted his head and rested it on Bai Jinyan’s shoulder, his voice muffled, “Brother, I’m going to sleep…”
Qiao Huaiyao thought his voice was normal, but to Bai Jinyan’s ears, the last few words were almost inaudible.
Bai Jinyan leaned back a little, allowing Qiao Huaiyao to sleep more comfortably.
With one hand, Bai Jinyan unfolded a blanket and lightly draped it over Qiao Huaiyao.
The weather now wasn’t cold enough to fall asleep while chilly, but the car’s air conditioning was on, and Bai Jinyan didn’t want to disturb Qiao Huaiyao by adjusting it. So, he used the blanket to block the wind.
When the director got on the car, Qiao Huaiyao had already fallen asleep.
The director smiled, about to say something, but suddenly felt a chill at his back. He turned and saw Bai Jinyan staring at him expressionlessly.
The director immediately closed his mouth, made a gesture to hush everyone, bent over to his seat, and used his phone to indicate that they should communicate through messages.
Bullet comments: [“Hahaha, I’m laughing so hard. Director: Perform a second of cold feet for everyone.”]
[“I bet five cents that the director just now wanted to wake up Qiao Qiao.”]
[“Skill: Bai Jinyan’s gaze. Passive ability triggered: Dare to move a little and try it.”]
…
Bai Jinyan lightly lifted his chin, signaling the director to raise the air conditioning temperature.
The director understood immediately and didn’t bother the driver, reaching over to adjust the air conditioning himself.
Bai Jinyan lowered the blanket a bit and then didn’t move again after arranging it.
Qiao Huaiyao was sound asleep, and everyone in the car remained quiet.
The director in the front row didn’t dare to make a sound, and the driver drove more steadily.
The director sent a group message, detailing the tasks for this episode.
[Memory Treasure Hunt.]
[Task rules: Among the fixed locations, the family that finds the most “treasures” hidden by the production team within the specified time will receive points as a reward. Points will be ranked from high to low, and so on.]
[Each fixed location holds special significance for the guests. The production team has spared no expense to rent these places. We hope that the guests’ friends and family will not disappoint the production team’s good intentions!]
Scrolling down, the director sent a separate message to this phone: [Guest: Bai Jinyan, Family member: Qiao Huaiyao. Task location: No. 6 Middle School.]
This was their alma mater.
From the very beginning, before the live broadcast, the questionnaire from the production team seemed to include a question about “special places of significance.”
He chose No. 6 Middle School.
Bai Jinyan lowered his head, gazing at the sleeping Qiao Huaiyao on his shoulder, his thoughts brewing, lost in contemplation for an unknown amount of time.
Until the car stopped, the director leaned back, extended his right hand in a wave, but still didn’t dare to speak.
In this quiet atmosphere, he slowly closed his eyes, burying the unfounded emotions deep in his heart.
Qiao Huaiyao had taken a short nap and regained some energy.
Sitting up from Bai Jinyan’s shoulder, he rubbed his eyes sleepily. “What time is it, brother?”
“A little past seven, still early.” Bai Jinyan grabbed the drooping blanket. “Want to sleep a little more?”
Bullet comments: [“My Brother Bai spoils him. If the director hadn’t knocked and awakened Qiao Qiao, they might still be in the car.”]
[“Come on, girls. Brother Bai will definitely let Qiao Qiao continue sleeping. When he’s had enough sleep, he’ll come out.”]
[“Why doesn’t anyone notice my wife’s face? No makeup, no filters, how can he look so good? Heart eyes.jpg“]
[“Really? I don’t think so. After so many years of marriage, seeing his all the time makes it uninteresting.”]
…
Everything about No. 6 Middle School was just as they remembered it.
Qiao Huaiyao and Bai Jinyan walked side by side into the school.
At this time, the students were still on summer vacation. The director must have made prior arrangements, as the security guards and janitors were not present. The school was empty and quiet.
In late August, the leaves on the trees seemed fragile, swaying in the wind, and a few had fallen to the ground, still a vibrant green.
As the wind blew, the fallen leaves were close at hand.
Instinctively, Qiao Huaiyao reached out to catch one, and he heard a familiar voice behind him saying, “Huaiyao.”
“Hmm?” Qiao Huaiyao turned around and looked at Bai Jinyan.
Click
Bai Jinyan’s phone, held horizontally in his hand, made a crisp shutter sound.
Under the trees, in the breeze, fallen leaves, and a turned gaze.