Stars Run To Him

The next day at noon.

Gu Zhongyi appeared on time outside the teaching building where Lin Yuxing had his class. According to Lin Yuxing’s schedule, they didn’t plan to go out for lunch and instead planned on grabbing a quick meal at the cafeteria in the north area.

The rumors about Lin Yuxing and Gu Zhongyi’s relationship had spread so fast, and confirmed by their actual actions.

As they walked, many people glanced at them.

Gu Zhongyi initially thought Lin Yuxing would feel uncomfortable, but to his surprise, the new Lin Yuxing had a thick skin equal to three city walls. He walked confidently by Gu Zhongyi’s side, occasionally leading him through crowded areas, as if he wanted to shout to the world, “We’re dating!”

His dedicated work attitude was admirable.

In order not to appear too economical, when placing his order, Lin Yuxing specifically asked for a meat dish. The auntie serving at the cafeteria thought she misheard and confirmed multiple times, but Lin Yuxing repeated, “Auntie, I’ll have a small portion of stir-fried pork and a serving of green vegetables.”

Standing behind him, Gu Zhongyi leaned over and looked at the dishes in the window. “Add a portion of braised pork ribs as well. I love them.”

Lin Yuxing wasn’t used to this proximity and said, “Auntie, add another portion of braised pork ribs.”

The auntie serving the food understood without needing further explanation. She smiled and looked at the two, not shaking her hand while dishing out the food, and filled Lin Yuxing’s tray with the three dishes.

That move made several students behind them unhappy and complained, “Auntie, your hand isn’t shaking today? That’s unfair!”

The cafeteria auntie didn’t pay attention to those complaining students. She shouted through her mask, “If you brats bring your partners over, then I’ll serve you plenty too!”

Lin Yuxing felt embarrassed and thanked the auntie. When he took out his meal card, Gu Zhongyi had already placed his own card on top.

“Auntie, charge mine,” Gu Zhongyi said, getting close, his face so handsome that Lin Yuxing blushed.

Even the cafeteria auntie was infected by the aura of happiness, she squinted and smiled, saying, “Sure, sure, I’ll charge yours!”

Lin Yuxing: “…”

To avoid exposing any flaws, Lin Yuxing pretended to be calm and quickly occupied a seat.

Gu Zhongyi soon joined him with a plate of two meat dishes and one vegetable.

Looking at his full tray, Lin Yuxing pondered for a moment and said, “You treated me yesterday too.”

Gu Zhongyi replied, “Consider it a working meal.”

Lin Yuxing felt a bit guilty. That job was too comfortable. Chewing on the stir-fried pork, he quietly suggested, “Actually, many couples nowadays split the bill. At least for meals in the cafeteria, let me pay for myself.”

“These are additional expenses in your life, it’s unfair to split them. If we eat together and you eat too simply, others might think I’m mistreating you,” Gu Zhongyi said. “So, we can find a compromise to solve this issue.”

Lin Yuxing blinked.

Gu Zhongyi had already thought it through. He had set a trap and was waiting for Lin Yuxing to fall in.

“Next Saturday, Yang Qing and I are going to play a basketball game. I hope you can come and bring me water and towels,” he glanced at the braised pork ribs on Lin Yuxing’s plate and casually picked up a piece with his chopsticks and took a bite, “we can use the delivery fee to balance this, how about that?”

“Senior, have you forgotten? You gave me a salary, so I can run errands for you for free.”

“All of this will be included in the monthly salary. It’s something I should do…”

Lin Yuxing saw two classmates sitting at the empty table beside them, and he immediately stopped talking.

At the same time, Gu Zhongyi gently bumped Lin Yuxing’s ankle with his toe, intending to make him stop talking.

But Lin Yuxing misunderstood.

Seeing Lin Yuxing’s sudden change in expression, Gu Zhongyi put on a formal smile. Just as Gu Zhongyi was confused, Lin Yuxing started to pick up the stir-fried meat and ribs from his own plate and put them into Gu Zhongyi’s plate, saying, “Darling, eat more. You’ve been losing weight lately.”

The food  Gu Zhongyi’s chopsticks picked up fell onto the rice, and he almost thought his ears were playing tricks on him.

The two classmates at the neighboring table: “…” 

They silently moved to a vacant table at the back, not wanting to be a third wheel.

And that’s how 3,000 yuan can change a person. That’s the answer.

After the people left, Lin Yuxing instantly returned to his usual self. He asked Gu Zhongyi in a low voice, “Did I act well?”

“What?” This time it was Gu Zhongyi who couldn’t react in time.

Lin Yuxing said seriously, “Acting as your lover.”

Gu Zhongyi never expected that. “Well… not bad.”

Lin Yuxing let out a sigh of relief and smiled, “I’ve never been in a relationship before, so I don’t know how to act naturally. Last night, I watched some idol dramas and learned quite a bit. I hope I can put it to good use in the future.”

All his hard work overnight wasn’t in vain.

Gu Zhongyi almost choked and quickly said, “You’re fine just the way you are.”

Lin Yuxing took it as a polite remark.

After they finished their meal, considering that Lin Yuxing had classes in the afternoon, he urged Gu Zhongyi to quickly handle the official business and finalize the contract.

Conveniently, Gu Zhongyi’s car was parked nearby. Lin Yuxing got in the car and, just like last time, sat in the passenger seat. Gu Zhongyi handed him the contract and asked Lin Yuxing to read it carefully before signing.

Line by line, Lin Yuxing carefully read it three times.

Within the paragraphs, Lin Yuxing quickly summarized the ten restrictive clauses included in the contract.

To put it briefly, they were as follows:

Gu Zhongyi must not have physical contact with Lin Yuxing beyond the normal range. Gu Zhongyi must not excessively occupy Lin Yuxing’s personal time. Gu Zhongyi must not disrupt Lin Yuxing’s normal life, including socializing, or cause trouble for him. During the contracted relationship between Gu Zhongyi and Lin Yuxing, Lin Yuxing must not disclose to others that their relationship is fake (except for Su Li). Gu Zhongyi must not demand that Lin Yuxing return any cash received. During winter and summer breaks, if Gu Zhongyi cannot meet Lin Yuxing at least twice a week, the cash will be paid at a rate of 50 yuan/hour based on work requirements, rather than monthly. The contract should be terminated immediately if either party wants to stop or withdraw. The contract can be terminated automatically if both parties find someone they genuinely like.

The above points were all straightforward and rule-abiding. Apart from the relatively high hourly rate, everything else seemed normal.

Lin Yuxing’s trust in that contract gradually increased.

However, the last two clauses left Lin Yuxing dumbfounded—

9. Pay attention. Lin Yuxing must strictly adhere to the work requirements and must not refuse gestures of goodwill from Gu Zhongyi, excluding monetary compensation. The scope of goodwill has no upper limit and can be as low as a meal in the North Campus cafeteria.

10. Violators of the above clauses will pay three times the amount received/paid by the other party.

Lin Yuxing held the contract and pondered for a while,  asking, “What does ‘no upper limit’ mean?”

Gu Zhongyi believed he had made it clear, “It means exactly what it says.”

Lin Yuxing furrowed his brows, thinking it wasn’t quite appropriate, and asked politely, “Can I add something?”

“You can.”

Lin Yuxing didn’t have much understanding of the lives of wealthy people. He was afraid of receiving overly expensive gifts and causing unnecessary trouble, so he added a sentence after this clause: [Lin Yuxing can privately return any valuable items received, and Gu Zhongyi cannot refuse.]

After some thought, he added another sentence: [Anything above one hundred yuan is considered valuable.]

Gu Zhongyi rarely showed a hesitant expression. “At least change it to 1,000 yuan.”

Lin Yuxing insisted on 100 yuan, not going along with Gu Zhongyi’s idea. He compromised slightly and added a sentence under Gu Zhongyi’s request: [Excluding food.]

When Lin Yuxing finished signing, he checked the time. He had already missed his lunch break for the sake of the contract.

Seeing that there were still about twenty minutes before class, Gu Zhongyi asked, “Do you want to rest in the car for a while?”

“No, I never used to take a nap before. Now it’s like I’m already resting,” replied Lin Yuxing.

“Were you running errands every day before?”

Lin Yuxing had never thought that there would be a day when he didn’t have to worry about money. He put one of the contracts into his bag and gradually felt relieved, without hiding anything from Gu Zhongyi.

“Yes, usually noon and evening were the busiest times and also the most profitable. I relied on those two time periods for my main income. If I was lucky, I could earn around 80 yuan a day doing errands.”

Lin Yuxing calculated and said, “However, having a lucky day earning 80 yuan was rare. Usually, it was only 30 to 40 yuan a day. Occasionally, I also used to run errands for flower shops near the school, which helped me earn enough for my monthly living expenses and to support my family.”

But Lin Yuxing’s living expenses were often the smallest portion of his money.

With food, drink, and utilities, it wouldn’t exceed 400 yuan. Sometimes, by not going to the cafeteria, he could save even more.

Lin Yuxing spoke confidently about his money-making methods, saying, “I have a heavy course load this semester, so I can’t earn much from part-time jobs. That’s why I came up with the idea of running errands to make money.”

Gu Zhongyi remained silent throughout.

Lin Yuxing smiled and turned his head, only to see Gu Zhongyi’s expression growing increasingly solemn.

He mistakenly thought that Gu Zhongyi wasn’t interested in hearing about those things and hastily concluded, “It’s getting late, I’ll go to the classroom to prepare. Sorry, I’ve been talking too much…”

Without waiting for Gu Zhongyi to respond, he quickly got out of the car, waved to Gu Zhongyi, and said, “Goodbye, senior.”

Watching Lin Yuxing’s figure running away, Gu Zhongyi felt a mix of emotions.

While others enjoyed their youth in college, Lin Yuxing was busy honing his.

Gu Zhongyi didn’t intend to deny the word “honing,” but he felt that Lin Yuxing had already taken on too much at this age, working too hard, yet seemingly unaware of his own hardships.

Lin Yuxing considered his own situation as a fulfilling and meaningful experience.

When Gu Zhongyi heard that, he couldn’t help but feel pity.

But his “pity” seemed impolite, and in Lin Yuxing’s eyes, this emotion easily turned into a intense sympathy. Gu Zhongyi had to restrain himself, control his emotions, and show his unfamiliar but gentle side to Lin Yuxing.

Because they were only in a working relationship, and it was not easy for them to establish this collaboration.

He couldn’t be too hasty.

Gu Zhongyi reminded himself countless times.

With that in mind, Gu Zhongyi drove after Lin Yuxing, who was running fast.

He rolled down the car window and called out to Lin Yuxing.

Not far away, Xu Xiangchi and several classmates were walking towards them.

Lin Yuxing didn’t notice Xu Xiangchi and his group. He wondered why Gu Zhongyi caught up with him and asked, a bit foolishly, “What’s wrong?”

Gu Zhongyi picked up a shopping bag from the side, inside was a coffee-colored knitted scarf . He opened the car door, placed the scarf carefully around Lin Yuxing’s neck in front of Xu Xiangchi, and said:

“The wind is strong. You should wear a scarf.”

“I’m wearing a turtleneck, it’s fine.”

“Well, get in the car. I’ll take you to the teaching building.”

After he finished speaking, Gu Zhongyi casually glanced at Xu Xiangchi passing by them. For a few seconds, their eyes met.

Gu Zhongyi’s eyes were cold and filled with an aura of marking his territory. Apart from that, a trace of disdain and contempt appeared in his eyes, which made Xu Xiangchi inexplicably pause.

That gaze… as if Gu Zhongyi had known him for a long time and understood him thoroughly. Starting from the surface, it cut open his flesh and bones, exposing his despicable inner self.

However, from the time Xu Xiangchi started to tease Lin Yuxing until now, it had been less than three weeks.

Gu Zhongyi frowned.

Xu Xiangchi shivered all over. Under the overwhelming stare, he didn’t dare to question why Lin Yuxing had deceived him about not being in a relationship, nor did he dare to talk to Gu Zhongyi. He chickened out and quickened his pace.

Just as Lin Yuxing was oblivious to him due to Gu Zhongyi’s scarf attack, the excellent employee Lin Yuxing obediently got into the car and was about to take off the scarf to return it.

Gu Zhongyi stopped him by turning the steering wheel and said, “Refunds are not available for items below 100 yuan.”