OGU: Chapter 9

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Chapter 9

At the sudden change in topic, Tong Yan was confused, “Huh?”

His eyelashes were still wet, his pretty eyes covered by a light layer of tears, a bit silly and undeniably cute. Zhuo Xiang Ming helped him wipe away his tears: “If your pheromones aren’t firmly covered up, with your current lack of control, something dangerous might happen.”

    Tong Yan stuttered: “I-it came out?”

    Zhuo Xiang Ming nodded, and leaned a little closer, after sniffing again, he said, “It smells a little like cape jasmine.”

   After saying this, he immediately glanced at Tong Yan’s expression.

    In fact, this sentence wasn’t very polite. Evaluating other people’s pheromone scent unprovoked, whether it was to compliment it or belittle it, was generally considered rude and offensive.

    Originally, Zhuo Xiang Ming wasn’t the type of person to make such a low-level social faux pas, but holding a crying child in his arms, and smelling that sweet scent, this sentence naturally slipped out.

    Fortunately, Tong Yan’s attention was elsewhere: “I didn’t know … cape jasmine?”

    After his sex gland recovered to the point where it could secrete pheromones normally, he himself had smelled it many times, but he could only describe it as some kind of aroma, he didn’t know the specific words.

    “Cape jasmine isn’t very common in Jiangdu.” Zhuo Xiang Ming said, “The cities a little south have a lot.”

    “Oh–hic!”

    He’d hiccupped as soon as he spoke, this time, Tong Yan really felt ashamed, his ears and neck reddening. He got down from on top of Zhuo Xiang Ming, too embarrassed to look him in the face. He could only bow his head and look for his slippers while saying: “I’m going to take a bath.”

    Zhuo Xiang Ming also got up: “Remember to call my Mom after you bathe.”

    Tong Yan turned around, a little puzzled, so Zhuo Xiang Ming picked up his cell phone that was flung off the bed and showed him the screen: “While you were crying just now, she called you.”

    “You saw it? Why didn’t you tell me?” Tong Yan said unreasonably as he took the cell phone and looked at the two missed calls.

    Zhuo Xiang Ming had barely finished coaxing him, and he’d already developed an unconscious sense of boldness. But the scapegoat, for Tong Yan, was always insincere. He thought he was being very fierce, but in Zhuo Xiang Ming’s eyes, he was no different from a kitten waving its claws. Even more, he was a kitten that had just had its nails trimmed.

    Zhuo Xiang Ming’s solemn expression remained: “I was worried my mother would think I was bullying you if you picked up with red eyes.”

    Why does he keep mentioning that he’d just cried? Tong Yan shoved the phone back into Zhuo Xiang Ming’s hands and indignantly stomped into the bathroom.

    When he came out, Zhuo Xiang Ming had already left, but before he left, he’d closed the windows, pulled the curtains, turned on the lights and the heating for him. He once again thought, Brother Zhuo Xiang Ming was really nice.

    After crying for a little while, his emotions had quickly disappeared. Whether it was the sadness over leaving home or the embarrassment of losing control in front of Zhuo Xiang Ming, they were all evaporated along with the hot water, leaving only some drowsiness.

    Tong Yan blow dried his hair and walked towards the bed, looking at the empty schoolbag on the nightstand, his eyes were still a little blurry, he finally decided to call Lin Yue Hua before tidying up.

    The phone was almost out of power, so he used his tablet. Lin Yue Hua picked up very quickly: “Tong Tong?”

    “Sorry, Auntie, my phone was muted, I didn’t hear it ring.”

    He felt that he wasn’t lying, he was just hiding some facts.

    Lin Yue Hua laughed: “It’s okay, Auntie also just took a break. I remembered you telling Brother Xiang Ming that you wanted to go to school tomorrow, so I just called to ask. Is everything packed? Is there anything missing?”

    Tong Yan: “I’ll receive all my books when I go to school tomorrow. As long as I bring some documents, I can return just fine.”

     “That’s good. Are you fairly used to living there? When you have the time, come have dinner with us. Auntie will make anything you like.”

    Tong Yan: “OK, Auntie.”

    Lin Yue Hua paused, then said, “What’s that on your nightstand?”

    Tong Yan tilted the camera a little, so she could clearly see the nightstand: “My schoolbag.”

    “Oh …” Lin Yue Hua said, “How many schoolbags did Zhuo Xiang Ming end up buying? This is not one of the ones he asked me about before … even the brand is different.”

    “?” Tong Yan asked doubtfully, “Did Brother Xiang Ming buy a schoolbag for me?”

    Lin Yue Hua also stared blankly: “He didn’t?”

    Lin Yue Hua recalled: “Last week … what day was it? Anyway, he sent me a photo and asked me about it. At first, I didn’t know why he needed to buy a schoolbag, so he finally told me that you’ll start school next Monday.”

    “That’s just what he asked me, but this is what I learned from the owner of the store when I went there recently.” She laughed again, seemingly recalling something funny, “He’d never bought anything like this himself, so he asked a subordinate to buy a schoolbag for a child, and the owner personally brought a few diagrams and samples to his office. He said that he didn’t know that there were so many styles of schoolbags, and he asked for almost everything. But the owner convinced him that he didn’t need so many, then recommended a few models, and he finally sent me that question.”

    ” Oh …” Tong Yan found it difficult to speak, “I’ll ask brother later.”

    “He’s home?”

    “Yeah.”

    “Then why aren’t you in the same room?” Lin Yue Hua asked, “Is he usually that inattentive towards you?”

    Tong Yan hurriedly explained: “No, no, he just came to see me in my room. I went to take a bath, so brother left.”

    “Good. Your Brother Xiang Ming is a little stuffy, but he’s not fierce, and he cares about you very much.” Lin Yue Hua looked at him kindly through the screen. “At the start, he promised to take good care of you and asked you to move in, so he’ll definitely be responsible. If you have any worries, but you’re too embarrassed to tell him, and your brother Tong Yang and your dad are also busy, you can always speak to Auntie, OK?”

    Tong Yan realized that Lin Yue Hua probably guessed that he had been crying, but she couldn’t confirm. He nodded again, saying, “I will.”

    “Brother isn’t bullying you?”

    “Never, Auntie. Brother is very good to me.”

    Lin Yue Hua really liked his obedient look, and she smiled even brighter.

    After chatting for a little longer, Lin Yue Hua said, “Okay, you should rest early, Auntie won’t bother you.”

    After saying good night to each other, Tong Yan put down the tablet and started packing his schoolbag.

    The documents were all in place, and the warning card was hung on his schoolbag. Only the paper that needed to be signed by Zhuo Xiang Ming was left outside.

    After marriage, his guardian became Zhuo Xiang Ming. Now, the contact person in the school’s system had automatically changed. In the future, the school reports would be sent directly to Zhuo Xiang Ming.

    Just as Tong Yan was about to go find him, Zhuo Xiang Ming knocked on the door. This time, he was joined by Xuan Gui, who placed a tray of hot coconut milk and mashed potatoes on the bedside table.

    Zhuo Xiang Ming walked to the bedside and looked over Tong Yan before asking, “You didn’t cry again?”

    Tong Yan hurriedly said, “I don’t cry that much … I usually don’t cry at all.”

    Zhuo Xiang Ming declined to comment, sitting down on his bed: “Your school sent an email two days ago. Since you’re back today, we should go over it now.”

    Tong Yan knew what it was, the school usually sends it before school starts. An open letter sent to the parents, asking them to cooperate with the school. But Tong Yang and Tong Li Qin only informed him verbally, they had never really managed him before.

    “I …”

    “Cell phone.” Zhuo Xiang Ming said.

    Tong Yan still wanted to struggle: “Brother … I will comply with the school rules.”

    “Cell phone.” Zhuo Xiang Ming said, “I need to limit the screen time for school days and website browsing permissions.”

    Tong Yan reluctantly handed over his cell phone.

    He wasn’t very willing, Zhuo Xiang Ming certainly saw that, but Zhuo Xiang Ming himself was also anxious. He was following the school’s instructions, “Don’t pay attention to any of their guarantees and excuses, firmly repeat your request”, but this way of doing things was strange for both him and Tong Yan. Zhuo Xiang Ming did it, but he didn’t feel very comfortable.

    After setting things up, he returned the phone to Tong Yan. Tong Yan was still reluctant, but he didn’t show more intense emotions. After taking it, he even said, “Thank you, brother.”

    “Are you angry?” Zhuo Xiang Ming couldn’t endure for long, asking.

    “I’m not.” Tong Yan was fiddling with his cell phone, wanting to see what was different. Hearing this, he looked up, “I shouldn’t be angry about this kind of thing, you’re just doing what you have to do.”

    He was so sensible, but it made Zhuo Xiang Ming feel that he’d let Tong Yan down even more.

    Zhuo Xiang Ming unknowingly asked a little pushily: “You shouldn’t be angry, or you’re not angry?”

   Tong Yan: “I’m not angry.”

   However, Tong Yan paused, then said, “I just thought you’d trust me a little more.” He explained: “I thought you’d believe in me. If I say that I’ll comply with the school’s rules, you’ll trust that I definitely won’t deliberately violate them.”  

    Speaking of trust, Zhuo Xiang Ming suddenly realized that he couldn’t always deal with Tong Yan’s problems according to the Q & A on the webpage.

    Tong Yan was indeed a teenager going through puberty, but his upbringing was very good, he understood self-control more than most children.

    Every teenager had problems, but Tong Yan’s problem was obviously not internet addiction or pathological lying, so he also shouldn’t follow the standard methods to discipline Tong Yan.

    Tong Yan was about to start school, but Zhuo Xiang Ming also felt like he was a student about to take an exam, somewhat flustered. It was merely a defeat in the first battle, and because Tong Yan didn’t mind it, it didn’t seem so bad.

    In the end, he was an adult, not letting Tong Yan see his frustration, the two finished going over the rest of the school rules.

    Finally, Zhuo Xiang Ming was signing the absence excuse letter for Tong Yan’s Phys ed classes, when Tong Yan suddenly asked, “Brother, did you buy me a schoolbag?”

    “Why do you ask?” Zhuo Xiang Ming’s pen paused for a moment. He finished signing it, then sat up straight, not denying, he simply said, “I see that you already have one.”

    “Auntie told me.” Tong Yan smiled brightly, “Thank you, brother.”

    Zhuo Xiang Ming thought, when he smiled, his eyes always curved, very cute.

    “Can you give it to me?” Tong Yan asked, “I’ll use it instead.”

    Zhuo Xiang Ming apparently hadn’t expected this to happen, he stared blankly for a moment, then said, “Of course, it’s yours.”

    They walked to the garage, and Zhuo Xiang Ming opened the trunk of the car he’d used to drop Tong Yan off on Friday. For some unknown reason, he looked a little keyed up: “I was planning to take you out for dinner on Friday, to celebrate you starting school.”

    There wasn’t only a school bag in the trunk, there were three school bags with a big storage box underneath, which took up most of the space. Tong Yan opened it, it was full of stationery, such as notebooks, pens, etc.

    Just how much homework does Zhuo Xiang Ming plan to make him write?

    Oh no, the last time Tong Yan sent homework in on paper was probably the third or fourth grade, furthermore, notebooks and such things, maybe only business offices still used them.

    Seeing that he wasn’t speaking, Zhuo Xiang Ming asked: “Did I buy the wrong thing?”

    Tong Yan said with difficulty: “N-No.”

    But just as the heart attack caused by the large box of stationery faded away, he inadvertently glanced at the schoolbag’s logo. Thinking of the price of one, and recalling Lin Yue Hua’s “He asked for almost everything”, Tong Yan once again felt like he was going to faint.

    He wasn’t so scared by the money, but Zhuo Xiang Ming had perplexed him.

    Most of the time, he looked like a very mature adult–not looked like, he was, but sometimes, he seemed very clumsy, different from the adults in Tong Yan’s perception. Whether it was Tong Li Qin or Tong Yang, even the teachers he has met over the years, Zhuo Xiang Ming was different from all of them.

    Tong Yan felt that he was clumsy, and then he felt that he was adorably clumsy.

    “Do you like it?” Zhuo Xiang Ming asked.

    “I like it.” Tong Yan said.

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T/N:

Boldness – in the right and self-confident (idiom); bold and confident with justice on one’s side

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Ethereal Canvas
Ethereal Canvas
3 years ago

Thanks for the chapter! The guy is sweet!

Kleep
Kleep
4 years ago

I’m enjoying how the author is showing little bits of feelings developing.

Thanks for the great translation ♥️

kayrahiss
kayrahiss
4 years ago

ZXM is a treasure!

Ruth
Ruth
4 years ago

I like it too! 😉 ????