Assistant Architect

Assistant Architect by Xi He Qing Ling

Chapter 185: Speculation

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It wasn'tuntil after work when they met each other at the subway station that they couldtalk freely about the day's event: "When I took the cake out of the box, therewas a package of candles. Guess how many there were."

Gu Yu:“Thirty-five?”

Zhang Siyi:"…… "

WatchingZhang Siyi's expression, Gu Yu snorted and laughed. He knew that he had guessedcorrectly.

Holding hisfist, Zhang Siyi felt insulted and said: "That's right. Is he suggestingsomething by giving me thirty-five candles? Is he ridiculing me? This son isn'teven twenty-five yet! Motherfucker!"

Gu Yupatted his arm and said: "Don't let all of his tricks bother you. If such asmall thing can stir you up this much, then I have to be jealous."

A person’senergy is limited. No matter what emotion, in addition to work, Gu Yu hopesthat Zhang Siyi’s attention will only be on him.

Shoulderscollapsing, Zhang Siyi exhaled completely. He didn't want to care, but he wasreally upset!

As they gotinto the subway train, Zhang Siyi remembered that Gu Yu still carried hisphone. "Did Bai Rui send a message?"

Gu Yureturned the phone to him, saying: “See for yourself.”

Zhang Siyiopened WeChat and swiped his screen to scroll through the chat history. Bai Ruisent dozens of messages, but Gu Yu replies were few and far between.

Whilelooking through the texts, his bad mood was alleviated. The frown his was carryingslowly turned into a smile, until he couldn't contain himself any longer andburst out laughing.

Inparticular, when Bai Rui evaluated Gu Yu….. If Bai Rui knew he was chatting with theDirector directly, what expression would he have made?!

And then atlast, at the end of work, having held Bai Rui on a leash all day, Gu Yu finally'opened' the box and replied: "It's a cake. I don't like cake."

Bai Rui:“…”

Gu Yufollowed up with his own question: "Do you really have nothing better to do? Idon't mind the expenditure for a few cups of coffee. Why would you personallycome to my office and give me a cake?" [Smiles]

As if allthe flirting and taunts were seen through, the best part of Gu Yu's message wasincluding [Smiles] at the end, just like Bai Rui had done. Gu Yu really put himin his place, making Bai Rui's behavior seem stupid.

“Ha-ha-ha-ha-ha!”Staggering, Zhang Siyi laughed wholeheartedly. For once, Zhang Siyi loved GuYu's poison tongue.

FindingZhang Siyi amusing, Gu Yu looked at him and smiled broadly: "Silly, what's sofunny?"

Looking atGu Yu full of adoration, if not for being in public on the subway, Zhang Siyireally wanted to pounce on Gu Yu, hold him tightly and plaster kisses all over.

Because BaiRu might have been provoked and irritated by Gu Yu messaging, he hasn't respondedsince.

Zhang Siyi feltrelieved: “He shouldn’t bother me anymore, right?”

Gu Yu:“It’s hard to know. We'll have to wait and see."

Zhang Siyi:“I gave him thirty-five and he gave me a cake, so that makes us even. Whyis it hard to know?"

"Didn't Isay we need to figure out whether or not he is gay? Looking at it from anotherangle, he tricked a straight girl into being his girlfriend, essentially lyingto her and then secretly began to flirt with her male friend…." Gu Yu pausedand frowned. He continued: "Perhaps it's not so dramatic as that and he wasonly trying to test what your orientation is."

Feelingpanicked, Zhang Siyi was on edge and said: “What should I do?”

Gu Yusmiled warmly at him: "I’m here. What are you afraid of?”"

When thetrain stopped, Gu Yu got of the subway car and walked up the stairs. Zhang Siyiclosely followed. Gu Yu continued their discussion: "What would a normalstraight guy feel if their classmates' boyfriend gave them a cake?"

Zhang Siyiscratched his head: “Umm.. If he can deliver a cake as a request from hisgirlfriend on a weekday, then maybe he is doing her a favor?" Fuck! Zhang Siyiwas afraid of his own train of thought that he gave himself goose bumps.

Gu Yu:“A straight man probably wouldn't feel like anything was particularlywrong."

A bead ofsweat fell from Zhang Siyi forehead… I am so lucky that Gu Yu is by myside and can remain calm in WeChat. (=_=)

Gu Yuremarked: "The last thing I sent hinted that I understood his purpose. Since hedidn't respond, it proves my guess was correct."

Zhang Siyi:“Why do you say that?”

Raising hiseyebrows, Gu Yu offered a question: “If he was frank, why didn't he justanswer me?"

Touchinghis chin, Zhang Siyi nodded in thought. From the beginning, if Bai Rui hadn'ttold Zhang Siyi that he was interesting and wanted to be friends, Zhang Siyiwouldn't be on alert. The more mysterious Bai Rui acted, the weirder it was!

Gu Yu:“I think there were two reasons why Bai Rui didn't reply. First, I thinkhe has a guilty conscience. Now that BaiRui suspects you of thinking that he was gay, he was thinking aboutcountermeasures. Second, his pride was hurt and doesn't plan on pursuing youanymore. Of course, I hope it is the latter. If Bai Rui doesn't contact youagain, then the matter has nothing to do with you. If you don't feelcomfortable knowing what you know, then you can tell Ren Mengyu of the eventsthat transpired. Also, you can find the chance to tell her the meaning of BaiRui's avatar. She is an adult and can make her own decisions. You don't have toworry about it further."

Zhang Siyivigorously nodded. That was exactly what he wants. He wasn't interested inbeing associated with his classmate’s boyfriend or being pursued by a gay man!

Gu Yusighed: "Although I want the case to be the latter. From an objective analysis,the first point is more likely.

Zhang Siyi:“…” Ah, ah, in the end, why is this surnamed Bai looking for him! ┻━┻(╰(‵皿’)╯(┻━┻

At home,while Gu Yu was cooking dinner, Zhang Siyi mentioned Su Yuan's matter and askedhim if he had looked through her portfolio that he had emailed.

Stirringthe pot, Gu Yu lifted the spoon and tasted the salinity of the soup then said:"I've seen it."

“Whatdo you think?” Although Zhang Siyi thinks he gave Su Yuan too much credit,he still respected Gu Yu thoughts and opinions.

Gu Yu addedsome salt to the pot and laughed: “It was much better than the collectionyou showed me during your interview.”

Knowing histemper, before Zhang Siyi could react, Gu Yu quickly followed up: "But it isfar worse then where you are now."

Gu Yuplaced the lid on the pot and seriously commented: "The style of design that yourclassmate showed has a unique soft feeling, which is typical of female designers.”

Zhang Siyi:“You can see the difference?"

Gu Yu:“Well, female designers tend to be more subtle. There is a certainsimplicity and warmth to her designs. Architects with this characteristic,unless they can broaden their vision, have limited growth and aren't suitablefor large-scale planning or big commercial buildings. Ask your classmate if sheis interested in doing small buildings like homes, cafes, and kiosks. If sheis, I know of a good place to recommend to her. The story of her collection wasalso very attractive.

Listeningto Gu Yu point out Su Yuan's strengths, Zhang Siyi was happier than if he gotpraised himself. He wanted to say something positive too: "Well, she originallystudied English in Taiwan. She told me that her parents were universityprofessors in the Department of Culture and History so she is deeply connectedto humanity."

Gu Yansmiled and said: “Exactly. I have a friend who is an editor of Literatureand Architecture magazine and occasionally translates foreign architecturalreview articles. I recently heard him say that there is a lack of insiders whocan write articles and understand the industry to translate. I would suggestshe consider translating and writing review articles. She would acquire a lotof additional income.

Zhang Siyiwas so excited, he could have jumped three feet high. He immediately pulled outhis phone to give Su Yuan the good news, but Gu Yu stopped him.

Gu Yuquickly said: “Hold on. I need to confirm with my contacts whether or notthere is still a position open as it has been two months since the informationwas updated. What would happen to her if you told her now, but the position wasalready filled?"

Zhang Siyinaturally listened to Gu Yu and tried to suppress his excitement. He took adeep breath: "Right."

Just as thetable was set for dinner, Gu Yu's sister came back.

During her severalmonths of internship, unless she had to work overtime, she came home every nightat six. Lately, she had been required to stay later than usual. As a result,her bright and soft face looked worn and haggard. Today, she came home lookingmore miserable than ever. When she entered, her head was hung low as shelamented: "Brother."

Gu Yu pulledthe chair out from under the table for her: "Come on. You will feel betterafter you eat."

Gu Yao droppedher small backpack on the sofa and said: “I have no appetite. I don't wantto eat. I'm sick of it!"

Gettingstraight to the point, Gu Yu asked: "What happened?”

Gu Yao wailed: “I'm being harassed!"

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