Assistant Architect

Assistant Architect by Xi He Qing Ling

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While sipping his wine, for three quarters of anhour Zhang Siyi was enjoying his moment. Sitting at the table, he couldn't stophimself from catching glimpses of Gu Yu's handsome profile. Now, feeling hazyfrom the wine, squinting his eyes, he was trying to focus on Gu Yu who was alsolooking at him.

Gu Yu couldn't help himself from laughing atZhang Siyi puzzled expression while squinting at him. He got his glass, stoodup and signaled to Zhang Siyi: "Time for the dishes."

Zhang Siyi: “???” What is this!?Telling a guest to wash the dishes?

Gu Yu saw Zhang Siyi’s resistant face and lazilyraised his eyebrows in question. With a unique criticism to the tone of hisvoice he said: "Why after I cooked for you, do you not want to wash thedishes?"

Conditioned as a child, Zhang Siyi stood up and tidiesup the chopsticks and tableware, but his face was still reluctant. Theatmosphere of the meal was so good, he didn't want it to end. Since hemomentarily forgot Gu Yu's status, like a child he petulantly complained: "Whois the one asking a guest to wash the dishes!”

Casting a sidelong glance, Gu Yu questioned himin disbelief: “Do you really think of yourself as a guest?”

Zhang Siyi: "……" If I'm not a guest, then what am I?

Gu Yu took the bowls to the kitchen together withZhang Siyi: "When you are the master of the family, does everything have to beserved by others? I have a rule here. After you eat, you help wash the dishes."

Zhang Siyi: “I just helped you when you werecooking!”

Gu Yu hands on the empty bowl: “Am I notalso helping you?”

Zhang Siyi: “………”

Zhang Siyi opened the faucet and was frozen bythe cold water. His previous comforting and warm feelings were instantlydispelled. He angrily said: “The water is too cold!”

Gu Yu wiped the table down and brought over theremaining dishes to wash. He heard Zhang Siyi's complaint and snorted then hetook the previously boiled water and dumped it into the sink, warming thetemperature and in a low voice said: "So spoiled."

With his hand in the water and the kitchen beingcramped, Gu Yu was standing right next time him. Clearly Gu Yu criticized him,however Zhang Siyi is oblivious to the words and only listened to his soft,gentle tone causing his body to tingle with numbness. Now with hot water, ZhangSiyi didn't feel so tormented.

"Completely wash the dishes clean. Then,carefully place them directly on the drying rack. Don't be haphazard about it."Instructed Gu Yu.

“….” Ask so much, why not wash it yourself!

"Hey, don't bang the bowls. What kind of washingis this? The plates will all be chipped."

"…….." One time!

“Hey, don’tforget to wash the rag!”

“……..……” Annoying! (╯‵皿’)╯

Once the washing was done, without hesitation, Zhang Siyi walked to thesofa and sat down. Since he did the work, he made himself comfortable. Gu Yu boiledsome water on the side of the coffee table. He took a tea jar made of bamboowood from the bookshelf behind him and put a few small pieces of tea in theteapot.

"What kind of tea is it?” Zhang Siyi said curiously.

“Pu'er. Drink a little of it. It helps with digestion.” Gu Yusaid.

Zhang Siyi watched Gu Yu’s skillfully prepare the tea and couldn’t help butsigh with emotion: "A day to nourish the soul.”

Gu Yu faintly smiled and whispered: “If you live, you must alwayspursue it…” Then he slowly poured a cup of tea for Zhang Siyi.

Listening to his words, Zhang Siyi thought about Borderless in a new lightthen thought about Gu Yu's simple, but exquisite day. Gu Yu not only pursueshis work, but he obviously pursues his life. In comparison, every day afterwork, in addition to chatting with Fu Xinhui, Zhang Siyi spends a few hours onthe internet watching social media. With some introspection, he felt confused.

Awake now after two cups of tea, while reflecting on his usual time wastingbehavior, he suddenly heard a rustling sound. "What is that?" He craned hisneck to figure out where the sound was coming from.

Accustomed to the noise, Gu Yu poured himself a cup a tea and flatlyreplied: “It is a cat.”

Zhang Siyi widened his eyes: “Cat? Do you have a cat?”

“It's not mine. It's a stray cat,” Gu Yu replied. Seeing ZhangSiyi looking around, he asked: “Do you want to see it?”

Zhang Siyi stood up: “Where is it?”

With his arm, Gu Yu pushed aside the floor curtains in the living room andrevealed a row of sliding glass doors. There was a small yard outside with anelevated patio space covered with grey-red tiles!

Gu Yu pointed to the corner of the yard and said: “There, see it?”

By the dim light of the floor lamp on the sofa, Zhang Siyi vaguely saw awooden house in the corner of the yard. There were food bowls on the ground.Two stray cats, alerted to the change in environment, twisted their bodiestowards the light. He couldn't tell one of the cat's coloring, but the otherwas black with green eyes reflected in the twilight.

For a while, they looked at Zhang Siyi and Gu Yu with tension, feelingthreatened. Then, they went back to their business knowing there was no danger.

Zhang Siyi was both surprised and curious: “How did the cats comein?”

Gu Yu pointed to the canopy hole at the top of the outside wall: “Fromthat hole there.”

Zhang Siyi nodded. He saw a small wooden house and the food bowl: “Haveyou been feeding them?”

Gu Yu folded his arms across his chest and said slowly: "Last year in July,during a typhoon, the awning top blew off. I was very busy for a while with projects,so I put off finding someone to fix it. While reading a book in the livingroom, one rainy night, I heard a scratching noise. I thought it was a thieftrying to break in and waited patiently in the living room. I finally moved thecurtains and saw a cat pressed up against the glass grooming itself."

Zhang Siyi: "It didn't run?”

Gu Yu: “I just watched. I didn’t make any effort to go near him anddidn't scare it. Why would he run? The cat looked at me for a while thencontinued to lick himself and ignore me."

Zhang Siyi thought that the scene of a stray cat ignoring Gu Yu was a bitfunny. "And after?"

Gu Yu shrugged: “I went back to my book and ignored the cat.”

Zhang Siyi: “…”

If this is the end of the story, he will give the storyteller a zero!

Zhang Siyi said: “That's it? It was all wet. Why didn't you helpit!”

Feeling like hewas being accused, Gu Yu logically replied: “It will groom itself. What isthere for me to help? Besides, cats are very alert and it's not familiar withme. If I try to give the cat something, he might run away. At least there issafe shelter here."

" ……Well, thatmakes sense. And then what?” Zhang Siyi asked.

“Afterwards, thecat started to become a regular visitor and in ten days I bought some cat foodand put it outside. Then it came over to eat regularly." It seemed to be arather heartfelt story, however when Gu Yu squinted his eyes and grinned, theillusion ended. With a higher animal sense of dominance and control towards alower one, he said: “These little things… Once they feel the environmentis safe, they become defenseless and stupid. The cat doesn't even know when theinvisible rope has been tied around its neck.”

When Zhang Siyi heard this, he instinctively shivered and instantlyremembered Liang Xuiying's "black belly, bad water" comments he said about Gu Yu.

He quickly looked at the corner of the patio with the small wooden houseand cat food and persuaded himself to think that no matter how many bad waters arein Gu’s stomach, the nature of a person who is willing to provide food andshelter to stray cats is always kind. (=_=)

“Is that a wooden house for them to sleep in?" Zhang Siyi asked.

“Well, at first it only occasionally came over for the night and ate somecat food. About two months ago, I found the cat bringing in a partner." Gu Yupointed to the cats: "That black cat was the first and the other is itscompanion. I began to think this little guy found a wife and seemed happy.Since the weather was turning colder, I thought I would make a special weddingroom for the both."

Zhang Siyi was surprised: “Oh! You made this house!'

Gu Yu nodded, but he quickly scoffed: “But these two little cats havenever gone inside to sleep! It's confusing since they rather sleep together onthe cold tiles."

Although Zhang Siyi wanted to laugh, he doesn't make a peep. He finds thesituation ironic. The grand architect who personally built a small house isunappreciated and ignored.

Reminding himself, Gu Yu mumbled: "While I'm gone over the holiday period,I'll make sure to leave them with more food."

Zhang Siyi heart warmed up and confirmed his judgment. Gu Yu rarely showspeople what he is like underneath his "Boss" façade. Today Zhang Siyi ate ameal made by Gu Yu. Drank homemade wine with Gu Yu. Drank tea served to him byGu Yu. He heard the story of his stray cats… through these details today, ZhangSiyi felt the life that was Gu Yu. This unreachable person has suddenly becomethe neighbor's elder brother.

The people around Gu Yu see him with the highest regard and at work, hepays close attention to everything and takes care of his subordinates. Atpresent, Zhang Siyi feels Gu Yu is very near to his heart. Which he realizesisn't beating at the normal speed……

The two men looked again for a moment then Gu Yu let the curtains fall andreturned to the coffee table to take the cups away into the kitchen. He pouredthe cold tea down the drain. Zhang Siyi asked, “You aren't going to finishit?"

“When the tea is cold, it hurts the stomach. We must get up earlytomorrow. If you drink too much, you won't be able to sleep." Gu Yu looked atthe time and asked: “It's nine o’clock, are you going to sleep?”

Since they planned on an early start in the morning, going to bed earlysounds good. Zhang Siyi nodded: “Where am I going to sleep?”

“There are two rooms upstairs, one is my bedroom, the other is a guestroom, but the room has been unoccupied for a long time, and there are a lot ofstorage boxes. Expressionless Gu Yu flatly said: “So, either sleep on thesofa, or sleep with me. Choose one yourself.”

Zhang Siyi: “………”

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