Chapter 39
In just a few days, school would be starting again, and Xiao Yao would be heading back to work.
Ti Nanyi had just returned from a trip and wasn’t in any rush to catch up on her homework. She claimed she had come specifically to meet her new aunt before the first day of school—but everyone knew what she was really up to.
Standing at the front door of the Ti-Xiao household, she hesitated, unsure whether to call him “Uncle” or “Auntie.”
Technically, “Auntie” would be correct… probably. But it just felt awkward.
Before she could overthink it any more, Xiao Yao opened the door, giving her no time to dwell or struggle—the matter was instantly resolved.
“Hi, hi… Mr. Xiao!” she stammered, as if she’d just been called on in class to answer a question she wasn’t ready for.
“Come on in,” Xiao Yao said with a warm smile. “Your uncle’s inside.”
Ti Nanyi tensed up, stepping nervously into the house. It was weird—this was her uncle’s place, somewhere she normally came and went as she pleased. But now, it felt like she was just some guest.
From the corner of her eye, she saw Ti Xiao lounging in front of the TV, eating tangerines like he didn’t have a care in the world. Then she looked at Xiao Yao, who was bustling around the house. Quietly, she muttered to herself, Getting a boyfriend really does change a person…
“There you are!” Ti Xiao called out when he spotted her, waving her over. “Come here, give me a shoulder massage.”
He even patted his shoulder for emphasis. “You lost the bet, remember? Time to pay up.”
Xiao Yao didn’t have a clue what the bet was about, and turned to Ti Nanyi for some kind of explanation. But to her, that look felt exactly like the death stare teachers give when you haven’t done your homework—basically saying, Well? What are you waiting for?
Don’t look at me, don’t look at me—fine, I’ll do it…
“More to the left. My neck’s been killing me from rushing that last deadline.”
“No, no—move to the right.”
“What, haven’t eaten? Put some strength into it! You’re just tickling me at this point!”
Ti Nanyi pressed and kneaded with a tragic look on her face, while Xiao Yao quietly took mental notes—He’s been working late on a manuscript, huh? Better give him a massage later tonight.
“Uncle,” Ti Nanyi said sweetly, trying to butter him up, “you guys bought so much food! What’s for lunch?”
“Hot pot,” Ti Xiao replied with a hum. “Why? I never said you could stay for lunch.”
“Awwww, I want hot pot too! You have no idea how much I missed Chinese food while I was traveling.” She even put on a pitiful little face, all puppy eyes and pleading.
“What can I say? I’m not the one in charge around here,” Ti Xiao said lazily. “You’ll have to ask your Mr. Xiao—see if he’s okay with it.”
Xiao Yao nearly dropped the pot he was holding. Since when did I start calling the shots around here? Isn’t it always that little rascal deciding everything?
Ti Nanyi glanced at Xiao Yao, then quickly looked away.
Forget it… I’ll just head home later.
“Stay for lunch,” Xiao Yao said with a smile. After all, Ti Nanyi was both his student and Ti Xiao’s family—it only made sense to keep things friendly.
Ti Nanyi’s eyes welled up with mock tears, full of hibiscus blossom-level drama.
“Ahhh thank you, Mr. Xiao! You really are the top!”
My uncle totally deserves to be the bottom!
Ti Xiao caught sight of Xiao Yao’s grin practically splitting his face in half and narrowed his eyes. Just wait till she’s gone—I’ll deal with you later.
The hot pot broth was a mild clear soup. Ti Xiao’s job was to eat; all the dipping, cooking, and plating was left to Xiao Yao, who diligently placed everything right into Ti Xiao’s dish.
“Careful, this one’s still a little hot,” Xiao Yao warned gently, clearly enjoying the role of food provider.
“I can’t eat all this!” Ti Xiao complained, staring at the mountain of food piling up in front of him. He couldn’t eat fast enough to keep up with Xiao Yao’s chopsticks and ended up dumping his leftovers right back into Xiao Yao’s bowl.
Sitting across from them, Ti Nanyi—who only liked her food spicy—felt like she wasn’t eating hot pot, she was eating dog food. Romantic dog food, at that.
“How long should I boil the lotus root?” Xiao Yao asked casually.
At home, Ti Nanyi was the pampered type, used to hearing questions like this. She answered reflexively, “I like it on the softer side.”
“Crispy,” Ti Xiao interjected blandly.
Xiao Yao nodded. “Then I’ll cook it for less time.”
Ti Nanyi: “……”
This is a whole buffet of ‘whatever you say, babe’ energy, soaked in the sour-sweet stink of true love.
Even before she came over, she’d been stunned to learn her uncle was dating her English teacher. Seeing it with her own eyes only left her more shook.
She couldn’t believe her uncle actually had it in him—to tame someone that perfectly.
What she didn’t know was just how many kisses Ti Xiao had to trade to earn this level of obedient devotion.
Anyway, by the time the meal was over, Ti Nanyi had barely eaten any meat—but she’d gotten a full serving of PDA. She couldn’t get out of there fast enough.
“Hey, you,” Ti Xiao called lazily as she was slipping out. “School starts tomorrow. Keep your mouth shut about all this, alright? Xiao Yao is still your teacher.”
The reason he brought it up wasn’t just about saving face. He wanted to make it clear that Xiao Yao wouldn’t give her any special treatment just because she was family. If anything, he might be even tougher—and he didn’t want that affecting her studies.
Ti Nanyi nodded solemnly, as if she totally understood.
Then, on the very first day of school, she got herself into trouble.
“Uncle, you have to help me!” she cried on WeChat, sounding completely tragic. “If you don’t, I won’t even be able to show my face in front of Mr. Xiao again. Please, you have to save me!”
Ti Xiao opened the screenshot she sent and nearly choked laughing. This niece of his really had a gift.
Xiao Yao had joined the class group chat to make it easier to assign homework. Since Ti Nanyi was a group admin, the moment Xiao Yao typed, “Here’s today’s homework…”, she—clearly having inherited her uncle’s tendency to act before thinking—
muted him.
For thirty days.
Then dropped a meme in the chat: a little stick figure with a gun and the caption,
“Bang. You’re dead.”
“Did you end up assigning the homework?” Ti Xiao asked, still laughing as he looked at Xiao Yao.
Xiao Yao had just gotten home and was cooking. “I told the class rep to announce it.”
“I never realized how talented Ti Nanyi was,” Ti Xiao teased, giving Xiao Yao’s cheek a little tug. “Were you mad?”
“Not really,” Xiao Yao said, gently pinching Ti Xiao’s face in return. “But if you’re okay with it, I can give your niece a little ‘special training’—her reading comprehension is really falling behind.”
“Please do!” Ti Xiao said, nearly clapping with joy. “Just tell her it was my idea. I’ll take the blame for everything, hahaha!”
Xiao Yao looked at him, smiling so wide it reached his eyes. That warm, gentle gaze came naturally, without him even realizing.
“Xiao Yao,” Ti Xiao suddenly called his name.
“What’s up?” Xiao Yao looked up.
Ti Xiao held his thumb and forefinger together, making a little gun shape, then flicked it upward with a wink. “Bang. You’re dead.”
Xiao Yao froze for a second, then dramatically leaned back and gasped, acting like he’d just been hit by a perfect shot.
“From now on, I have to get up early every morning for morning study,” Xiao Yao said after the meal, rubbing Ti Xiao’s shoulders.
Though he was a new teacher, Xiao Yao was a natural. Last year, Ti Nanyi’s class’s English average score had risen by ten points, and the school had given him another class to teach this year.
Before, with only one class, mornings were easier—he could sleep in a bit every other day during morning study. But now he had to wake up early every single day, juggling making breakfast and morning runs.
Ti Xiao felt sorry for him and grabbed the hand that was massaging his shoulder. “Why don’t you skip making breakfast in the morning? Eat at the cafeteria. I won’t eat breakfast, so you can rest a little longer.”
“No worries,” Xiao Yao pulled him close, resting his chin on Ti Xiao’s head. “A few busy days won’t hurt.”
Being busier meant forgetting a few things, and that was sometimes a good thing.
Ti Xiao wriggled out of his embrace and placed his hands on Xiao Yao’s shoulders confidently. “You rest while I give you a shoulder massage. I used to do this for my mom all the time—watch me show off.”
Xiao Yao’s body was lean and muscular, arms well-toned. Ti Xiao’s hands soon went tired—he really wasn’t strong enough.
I can’t even make a dent…
Since Xiao Yao had to get up early the next day, he went to bed early. Ti Xiao, a notorious night owl, had improved his schedule a bit lately, but his strong internal clock kept him wide awake at bedtime, twisting and turning under the covers.
No matter how he shifted, nothing felt comfortable—and Xiao Yao couldn’t sleep well either.
“Stop moving around,” Xiao Yao’s voice was low and serious.
“How about… I sleep at my place? I keep kicking around and I’m afraid I’ll mess up your sleep tomorrow,” Ti Xiao suggested.
“No way,” Xiao Yao said firmly, pulling him in tighter. “If you’re not here, I won’t sleep at all.”
Then he kissed Ti Xiao lightly on the cheek. “Sleep now.”
Ti Xiao suddenly stiffened. “Do you have after-school study sessions tomorrow?”
“Nope. Why?”
“I’ll pick you up after school. We can go home together.”
Unexpectedly, when Ti Xiao went to pick up Xiao Yao, he ran into his own older brother waiting at the school gate.
“Skipping school?” Ti Jiji always teased Ti Xiao about his height.
“I’m picking up my boyfriend,” Ti Xiao snorted.
Come to think of it, only Ti Xiao’s brother and sister-in-law hadn’t met Xiao Yao yet.
When school ended and the gates opened, Ti Xiao spotted Xiao Yao from a distance—a little guy with an outstanding presence—and waved.
“You must be Ti Xiao’s brother?” Xiao Yao smiled. “Nice to meet you.”
Ti Zhe casually sized up Xiao Yao—from his looks to his build, everything was solid, and he carried himself well. Overall, he passed the “first impression” test.
If he were to nitpick, maybe it was that he liked his own little brother a bit too much. Haha.
Ti Zhe waved goodbye to Ti Nanyi, and Xiao Yao earned another stamp of approval from the Ti family.
“My brother’s hilarious, isn’t he?” Ti Xiao held Xiao Yao’s hand as they walked home.
“Not bad. Your brother’s pretty smart,” Xiao Yao admitted, having nearly been stumped by his questions.
Along the way, many students stole glances at Ti Xiao. Everyone at school knew Xiao Yao—the handsome new English teacher for the freshman class.
Where there’s a handsome guy, there’s bound to be another handsome guy nearby.
“Hello, Teacher Xiao,” a female voice greeted—it was probably one of Xiao Yao’s colleagues.
“Hello, Teacher Chen,” Xiao Yao nodded politely.
“And who’s this…” The female teacher seemed reluctant to give up.
Xiao Yao tightened his grip on Ti Xiao’s hand and gave it a little wave in front of everyone. “My partner.”
Ti Xiao’s heart quickly went soft and mushy. They’d only been together for a month or so, but hearing that kind of term… didn’t it feel a little embarrassing to say it out loud?
Still, it felt really nice… to be called “partner” or “lover” or whatever.
“You didn’t really chase me much at the start,” Ti Xiao said suddenly once they’d walked a bit further. “I said yes right after you confessed.”
“What?” Xiao Yao asked, genuinely confused or maybe just pretending.
“I’m saying, you confessed, I said yes, but you never really chased me,” Ti Xiao explained.
“Then why didn’t you run away?” Xiao Yao let go of his hand. “Me? Chase you?”
It was hard to tell if he really didn’t get it or was just messing with him.
“Forget it, forget it,” Ti Xiao gave up, grabbing Xiao Yao’s hand again. “If you didn’t chase me, fine. Just don’t let go, okay?”
“Okay, won’t let go.” Xiao Yao squeezed his hand tightly and turned his head to plant a kiss on him.
The students sneaking glances at them quickly looked away, though the braver ones couldn’t help but gasp.
“There are students around!” Ti Xiao punched him lightly. “You’re a teacher—you have to set a good example, you know that?”
“What do you want to eat?” Passing a grocery store, Xiao Yao smoothly changed the subject.
“Meat.” Ti Xiao’s attention followed suit.
In a good mood, teasing and laughing all the way home, the faint scent of spring was in the air—fresh and gentle, cool but not biting.
“Spring’s almost here,” Ti Xiao said, eyeing the tender green shoots on the branches, reaching out to tug one.
“Be careful,” Xiao Yao reminded him, carrying bags in one hand and holding Ti Xiao’s hand with the other, keeping an eye on him.
But then Xiao Yao hesitated mid-sentence, spotting an unfamiliar car parked downstairs. Standing next to it was a tall man, a faint spark glowing at his fingertips as blue smoke slowly drifted upward.
“What are you doing here?” Xiao Yao stopped Ti Xiao and asked coldly from a distance.
The man turned around—and looked almost exactly like Xiao Yao.
“Xiao Yao,” the man said as he crushed out his cigarette and walked closer, “I’m here about the tomb-sweeping for your mother the day after tomorrow.”
