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墨書 Inktalez
Zhou Ziyan had drifted through several days in a daze.
He opened his eyes, feeling as if he were no longer a person, but merely a shell devoid of a soul.
The thick curtains blocked out any light from outside, making the room feel like it was still deep in the night.
A sour, musty smell of alcohol lingered in the air; everything about him, everything he was, seemed to be rotting away. Uncle Fu had tried several times to come in and clean up, but each time he had been firmly refused.
Perhaps it was for the best; let the old Zhou Ziyan slowly decay…
After sitting on the bed for a while, Zhou Ziyan finally threw off the covers, rubbed his messy hair, and jumped down from the bed.
He took a shower in the bathroom before heading downstairs.
The front door was tightly shut, and it was eerily quiet; Uncle Fu seemed to be out.
“Uncle Fu!” Zhou Ziyan called out.
Having spent an entire day and night drinking, he now felt a bit hungry.
“Uncle Fu!”
Only a cold echo responded in the empty room, but there was no answer.
Just when Zhou Ziyan was feeling hopeless, the sound of a key being pressed suddenly came from the front door—someone had arrived.
"Uncle Fu..."
"It's me."
The door was pushed open, and in walked Zhou Xuanyu.
Zhou Xuanyu was dressed in sportswear, looking nothing like someone who had come from the office. It took Zhou Ziyan a few seconds to remember that today was Sunday.
That meant he hadn't been to the office for an entire week.
"How did you know the password to my house?" Zhou Ziyan's gaze and tone were unfriendly.
Zhou Xuanyu didn't answer him and walked straight inside.
"Did Uncle Fu tell you?"
The mention of Uncle Fu finally made Zhou Xuanyu lift his gaze.
"Uncle Fu only said that this password is the same as mine."
As he spoke, he glanced at Zhou Ziyan. Zhou Ziyan had taken a shower, so he didn't look as disheveled as Uncle Fu had described. This eased Zhou Xuanyu's mind a little.
At least he wouldn't have to see Zhou Ziyan in a messy state.
Zhou Ziyan felt Zhou Xuanyu's gaze and awkwardly looked away.
"Have you eaten?" Zhou Xuanyu asked.
Uncle Fu had suddenly fallen ill and gone to the hospital today. He wanted to ask for leave but didn't dare disturb Zhou Ziyan. Although Zhou Ziyan usually didn't act like a host, Uncle Fu knew that when he was in a bad mood, he could be quite irritable.
In the end, Uncle Fu could only call Zhou Xuanyu.
Zhou Xuanyu was planning to come by today to check on Zhou Ziyan.
Junxi was always worried about Zhou Ziyan, constantly fretting over him and concerned that something might happen. Although this worry stemmed from friendship, Zhou Xuanyu still found it uncomfortable.
He joked, "I feel like I've only gotten your body but not your heart."
Junxi pointed out that he had it backward.
Indeed, she was a traditional girl in many ways; how could someone who didn't win her heart ever possess her body?
"I haven't eaten," Zhou Ziyan replied casually, ignoring Zhou Xuanyu as he walked into the kitchen, opened the refrigerator, and pulled out a pack of instant noodles, preparing to eat them for the day.
"Are you hungry?" Zhou Xuanyu followed him in.
Zhou Ziyan remained silent, turning to plug in the kettle to boil water.
Zhou Xuanyu swiftly unplugged it.
"What are you doing?" Zhou Ziyan lost his patience.
"Just go out, I'll handle it."
"No need, I'm having instant noodles."
Zhou Ziyan tore open the packet and tossed the noodles into the pot. When Zhou Xuanyu tried to stop him from boiling water, he simply cooked them directly in the pot.
Zhou Xuanyu walked over again and calmly extinguished the fire beneath the pot.
"What exactly do you want?" Zhou Ziyan, in a fit of frustration, grabbed the lid nearby and threw it.
"Look at your face!" Zhou Xuanyu glared at Zhou Ziyan and casually pushed him out of the kitchen.
This guy spends every day either smoking or drinking; he probably hasn't eaten properly in ages. His stomach can hardly handle a pack of spicy instant noodles.
Zhou Ziyan stood at the kitchen door for a moment, watching as Zhou Xuanyu skillfully pulled a carrot and a sausage from the fridge... he lost patience and didn't bother to see what else was being prepared.
He walked over to the sofa and sat down, initially wanting to just leave, but he knew that avoiding the situation was no longer an option.
Before long, a delicious aroma wafted from the kitchen. Zhou Ziyan, already hungry, couldn't help but swallow hard when he caught a whiff of it.
It was the smell of curry.
Zhou Xuanyu used to be a poor cook, with his specialty being nothing more than curry fried rice.
Zhou Ziyan remembered that at that time, when his mother had just passed away and he could not bear to see his father, Zhou Xuanyu brought him to his home.
Everything was fine there, except for one thing: he couldn't cook. Almost every day, he took Zhou Ziyan out to eat. Occasionally, when he really didn’t want to go out, he would make his signature curry fried rice.
Though he called it his specialty, it was really just because Zhou Xuanyu only knew how to fry rice back then.
Fried rice isn’t particularly difficult, but it’s not exactly easy either. Zhou Xuanyu often ended up with a pot of burnt rice; the origin of the curry fried rice was actually his way of covering up the burnt taste by sprinkling curry powder on it.
During that time, Zhou Ziyan was most afraid of Zhou Xuanyu cooking for him, yet he also loved watching Zhou Xuanyu's back as he cooked.
Whenever he looked at that back, he would always think of his mother.
Only his mother and uncle would worry about him going hungry; only they would sincerely cook for him; and only they loved him as if they were loving themselves...
At that time, while Zhou Xuanyu busied himself in the kitchen, Zhou Ziyan would bounce around behind him. As Zhou Xuanyu clumsily dealt with the frying pan, he would also comfort him: "It'll be ready soon; just wait a little longer."
...
Leaning against the soft cushions of the sofa, Zhou Ziyan found himself unexpectedly misty-eyed as he recalled those days.
Why did Junxi love his uncle? If it had been anyone else but his uncle, he would never have given up so easily. Even if it meant mutual destruction, he would fight for it.
But it was his uncle. He could let go of himself, but he couldn’t bear to let Junxi’s uncle get hurt.
Just as he was thinking, Zhou Xuanyu walked out of the kitchen holding a plate of fried rice.
"You can eat now," Zhou Xuanyu said, placing the plate on the dining table and looking at Zhou Ziyan.
Zhou Ziyan glanced at the plate of fried rice, which looked and smelled delicious. His uncle's cooking had likely improved from the days when it was barely edible.
A wave of sadness washed over him.
They had both changed, and there was no going back to how things used to be.
Zhou Ziyan approached the table, while Zhou Xuanyu took a seat across from him.
"Give it a taste," Zhou Xuanyu said, handing him a spoon.
Zhou Ziyan took the spoon and sat down but didn't take a bite. He feared that if he tasted even a little, he would be overwhelmed with emotion and start to cry, and this was not the right moment for tears.
"What did you want to talk to me about?" Zhou Ziyan asked, looking at Zhou Xuanyu.
"Aren't you going to eat?" Zhou Xuanyu replied leisurely, even having prepared a bowl of soup for him.
"You go first," Zhou Ziyan said, diverting his gaze.
He felt capable of confronting Zhou Xuanyu in a fight, yet he couldn't bear to meet his warm gaze.
"Actually, it's nothing much. I'm just here to remind you not to forget the agreement about fair competition."
"I haven't forgotten," Zhou Ziyan sighed. "It's just that I've realized I can't afford to lose."
Zhou Xuanyu raised an eyebrow. "What does that mean?"
"It means nothing. I've already lost too much. After losing her, I have nothing left."
Losing her also meant losing the deep bond of uncle and nephew they had built over the years. How could he face these two people calmly in the future?
"How could you have nothing?"
Zhou Xuanyu reached out and patted Zhou Ziyan's hand. Their hands felt starkly different—one warm, one cool.
"Did you plan from the very beginning that if you couldn't have her, you would give up everything?"
"Yes," Zhou Ziyan nodded stubbornly.
"Nonsense!" Zhou Xuanyu exclaimed loudly.
"Just go. I want to be alone," Zhou Ziyan ordered.
"I won't leave until we clear this up today. As long as you're not in a better mood, Junxi won't be at ease either. I can't bear to see her worry about you."
Zhou Ziyan scoffed coldly, "She still worries about me?"
Zhou Xuanyu's expression hardened. He could accept Zhou Ziyan's cold words, but he could not tolerate the slightest hint of doubt Zhou Ziyan had about Junxi.
"Don't you realize what you mean to her?"
Zhou Ziyan remained silent.
He only knew that Junxi was incredibly important to him, but he had never considered what he meant to her.
Was he just a friend of over ten years? Or a confidant from childhood?
...
He truly didn't know. He had been blinded by love, leaving no room for thoughts on such matters.
"You are someone who can be compared to family in her eyes. If we set aside the romantic aspect, your status in her heart is essentially the same as mine."
"You don't have to comfort me."
"Why would I comfort you?" Zhou Xuanyu paused. "I know you need time to move on. I'm not asking you to pretend nothing happened and act like everything is fine with Junxi. However, none of us want to see you like this—stuck in a pitiful state."
The last statement was a bit harsh, but Zhou Xuanyu intended it that way. He was now using both kindness and firmness; he had said everything he could and done all he could.
The rest was up to Zhou Ziyan to figure out for himself.
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