Chapter 1
The sound of Ti Xiao’s phone ringing woke him up.
The phone, on the bedside table, was flashing a blinding light. It was from his niece, Ti Nanyi, who always chose the worst times to call, always interrupting his appointments with Mr. Sleep.
“Uncle! My comic book was taken by the new English teacher! It’s that set of Little Wolf Dog you just published!” Ti Nanyi’s voice was filled with excitement.
“You must have been reading it during class, that’s why it was taken. Serves you right.” Ti Xiao responded harshly without mercy, as his niece often disturbed his sleep.
“No, no, that’s not the point,” Ti Nanyi quickly interjected, her voice filled with excitement.
“What is it, then?” Ti Xiao lazily asked, pulling the blanket back over his head.
“The point is… this new English teacher is so hot and handsome! I measured his height, and I think he’s about 188 cm tall, with these long legs! Today, he wore a suit to class and had gold-rimmed glasses. He’s like the perfect character from a comic! The cold, dominant, and reserved type!”
The last three words were emphasized, and Ti Xiao could almost feel the fangirl energy radiating through the screen.
“And he really reminds me of Cheng Ran from Little Wolf Dog.”
Little Wolf Dog was a BL comic that Ti Xiao had drawn. It had taken almost a year to finish, after a lot of scenes had to be cut to pass censorship. Ti Xiao had put a lot of heart into this project.
The protagonist, Cheng Ran, was a reserved, glasses-wearing “bad boy” character, the type of “cold, dominant” man that Ti Xiao had drawn. Hearing that someone resembled the character made Ti Xiao a bit more alert. “And then?”
“He has such a beautiful voice, too! His English is so fluent. You wouldn’t believe it, today, when he read a line from the text, ‘My little girl,’ it was so dreamy!” Ti Nanyi gushed.
“But…” Ti Nanyi’s tone suddenly changed, and a sly laugh followed.
“I actually think he looks like a delicate little gay guy, the kind who would be perfect as the dominant in a relationship, with a strong top and a weak bottom! You two would be the perfect height difference for a super cute pairing, hehe~”
Ti Xiao was a small gay guy.
This was something everyone in his family, and even his neighbors, knew about. Homosexual marriage had been legalized in the country for years, so no one found it odd anymore. In fact, some of the more meddlesome aunties even tried to matchmake him with the younger guys in the neighborhood.
“Shut up! Shut up! Do you want me to report you to your dad?” Ti Xiao shot back without holding back.
Ti Nanyi’s father, Ti Zhe, was Ti Xiao’s older brother, almost twenty years older than him.
Though Ti Xiao considered himself more of a passive (bottom), he hated being teased about his height, especially by his 15-year-old niece, who was already 168 cm tall while he was 23 and only 173 cm.
And why did she have to insist he was the weak one?
Unfair.
Ti Nanyi, having gotten used to her uncle’s scolding, didn’t mind at all: “Hehe, I’m going to do my homework now. I’ll keep observing our teacher tomorrow, hehe.”
After the call ended, the room returned to its silence. The thick curtains were drawn tightly, so Ti Xiao couldn’t see the outside world or tell the time. Waking up alone in the room, he felt a particularly strong sense of loneliness.
The phrase “Food is the heaven for the people” was a sentiment shared by Ti Xiao, who, as usual, ordered takeout, making sure to request no cilantro, before sitting down at his computer to work.
Editor Guapi Pi: “Have you come up with the script for the new series yet? If not, would you like to see a few of the ones I have? They’re all pretty popular on GreenDingDing.”
Guapi Pi was the editor-in-chief of Ti Xiao’s manga platform. They had been working together for at least three years since Ti Xiao began serializing his comics.
Ti Xiao patiently read through the story proposals sent by Guapi Pi but ultimately decided to stick to writing his own script.
Guapi Pi was happy to let him handle it, especially since Ti Xiao had always written and drawn his previous works entirely on his own. Aside from occasionally delaying his deadlines, Ti Xiao was an editor’s reliable artist. After all, the best way to solidify the bond between an author and editor was through consistent delays and relentless deadline chasing.
Ti Xiao graduated from the prestigious Academy of Fine Arts in Xuancheng, a top school in the country. Though he majored in oil painting, he eventually transitioned to comics after graduation. While both involved drawing, they were vastly different fields.
Back in college, Ti Xiao had started submitting his work to various comic platforms. Over the years, he gained some recognition, and after graduation, he chose to focus on being a full-time comic artist, tired of dealing with the hassle of interpersonal relationships.
In November, Xuancheng had yet to turn on the heating, so Ti Xiao wrapped himself in a thick cotton jacket, his arms barely able to move in it. Tonight, he had promised his fans a live-stream drawing session, but he hadn’t yet decided what to draw. He sat, holding his cat, Xiao Hulu, scratching her chin as he thought.
Xiao Hulu was a tabby cat, named for the fact that she always purred loudly when she slept.
Ti Xiao had picked up Xiao Hulu on the street during college. At the time, he had to go to great lengths to hide her from the dormitory supervisor in order to keep her.
“How about I draw Cheng Ran?” After a moment’s thought, Ti Xiao decided to sketch the protagonist of Little Wolf Dog—the dominant character, Cheng Ran. It just so happened that today, Ti Nanyi had mentioned that their English teacher resembled Cheng Ran, and Ti Xiao had never drawn Cheng Ran in a suit before.
Once he made his decision, Ti Xiao opened his live stream, tying back his hair. He had been staying at home for a while, and his hair had grown longer than usual.
[Oh, you’re starting the stream so early today! A’Ti, what are you going to draw?]
[It’s just A’Ti’s hands on camera! I want to see Xiao Hulu, QAQ. Can you show her face?]
[A’Ti is starting the stream! I’m getting my little stool ready, front row for snacks and water!]
Ti Xiao’s pen name was “Zhi Yong Shuang Quan Da A’Ti,” and thanks to his serialized manga, he had over 20k followers on Weibo.
He spoke into the microphone, “Today, I’m drawing Cheng Ran in a suit,” and then updated the stream’s title accordingly.
Ti Xiao’s voice was a clear and youthful tone, which helped him stand out as a male author in a genre dominated by female writers. His voice had earned him quite a few fans.
After sketching a quick draft, his phone rang. It was from his beloved delivery driver.
“I’ll go down to get the delivery, wait a moment,” Ti Xiao muttered, then shifted the camera to point at Xiao Hulu, who was napping on the desk.
