WBAI Chapter 29

Upon arriving at the mall, Yu Feng headed straight to his regular clothing store. Without much trying on, he quickly picked out three or four items that caught his eye and paid for them.

Xie An’yu had assumed buying clothes would be similarly quick for him, but to his surprise, while Yu Feng was swift in selecting his own outfits, he suddenly became meticulous when choosing clothes for Xie An’yu.

He scrutinized everything—the cut, the style, the texture, the fabric. Every time a salesperson enthusiastically praised a piece to high heaven, Yu Feng would shut down their sales pitch with just a few words. As he flipped through the racks of clothes, he didn’t say much, but his indifferent gaze spoke volumes.

When it came to picking clothes for Xie An’yu, Yu Feng’s professional habits kicked in. His job involved photographing models—models, clothes, individual pieces. Fashion photography wasn’t just about models standing around in pretty outfits while the photographer snapped away. A photographer needed an acute sensitivity to aesthetics and an exceptional ability to craft the atmosphere of a shot to reach an extremely high standards.

Yu Feng usually worked with high-end brands, often critiquing the stylists’ choices of style and outfits for the models. He wasn’t picky about what he wore himself, but when helping someone else pick clothes, he reflexively became more critical.

Truthfully, Xie An’yu would look good even in a sack—maybe because his body proportions were so ideal, or because his face carried a certain depth. Unconsciously, Yu Feng had started seeing him as someone who could appear in his own lens.

While Yu Feng was busy selecting clothes, Xie An’yu was discreetly checking the price tags.

Naturally, clothes in a mall wouldn’t be cheap, let alone at the mid-range luxury brand store Yu Feng had brought Xie An’yu to, which had rather less-than-affordable prices.

Xie An’yu gently tugged at the hem of Yu Feng’s shirt and whispered from behind him, “Let’s go somewhere else, Brother.”

He stood close to Yu Feng as he spoke, his voice lingering near Yu Feng’s ear. Yu Feng felt a slight tingle in his ear.

Yu Feng paused, then turned his head. After a brief moment, as if understanding Xie An’yu’s thoughts, he put down the clothes in his hand and walked out with him.

“It’s a bit pricey,” Xie An’yu said to Yu Feng once they were outside. “I don’t need to buy such expensive clothes. Something wearable is fine.”

Yu Feng had never intended for Xie An’yu to pay for the clothes—that’s why he’d taken him to this familiar store without hesitation. But Xie An’yu’s words snapped him back to reality. He’d planned to cover the cost, but Xie An’yu clearly hadn’t considered that.

Yu Feng asked, “There’s a clothing wholesale market nearby. Want to go check it out?”

Xie An’yu looked a bit surprised. “You know about places like that too?”

Yu Feng hummed in affirmation. “I used to buy clothes there all the time when I was in college.”

Xie An’yu had always seen Yu Feng as someone well-off, so it was unexpected to hear that Yu Feng used to frequently buy clothes from a wholesale market during his university days.

“Brother Yu, what did you study in college?”

“Photography.”

“Are you a photographer now?”

“Yes.”

Xie An’yu had imagined a photographer’s home would be filled with various artistic photo prints, but Yu Feng’s place didn’t fit that image at all. That’s why he’d never guessed Yu Feng was a photographer.

However, Yu Feng’s demeanor truly carries an artist’s aura. Most of the time, he gives off a cool and aloof impression, but upon getting to know him, one would realize he isn’t as stern as he appears on the surface. His presence is actually quite gentle, with eyes that sometimes hold a faint trace of melancholy.

“Brother Yu.”

“Mm?” Yu Feng turned his head to look at him.

“What’s university life like? Is it interesting?”

Yu Feng paused before answering, “It depends on the person. Whether it’s interesting or not is up to how you live it.”

Yu Feng didn’t really want to discuss this topic because he knew Xie An’yu hadn’t been able to attend university. Whether it was due to failing the exams or lacking the funds, bringing this up would undoubtedly touch a sore spot and dampen the mood—it wasn’t worth it.

As Yu Feng mulled this over, he reconsidered, feeling he was being somewhat arrogant. What if Xie An’yu simply wanted to hear about university life? Making assumptions about his feelings and brushing him off with a casual remark seemed too presumptuous.

“What aspects do you want to hear about?” Yu Feng asked Xie An’yu. “Classes, meals, club activities, anything like that?”

Xie An’yu turned to look at him.

Yu Feng continued, “There’s too much to say. Give me a range.”

Xie An’yu smiled. “Brother Yu, you must have been pretty popular in university, right?”

Someone with such sensitivity and strong empathy would likely be well-liked by girls.

Yu Feng turned to meet his gaze. “That’s quite a leap in topics.”

He didn’t answer Xie An’yu’s question, and the conversation didn’t continue further.

The two stepped onto the mall escalator, standing one behind the other on the steps.

Xie An’yu stood in front of Yu Feng, gazing ahead as he spoke slowly, “Sometimes I also wonder, if I had continued my studies, maybe I could have gotten into a decent university by now. I could still be sitting in a classroom listening to lectures, going out for coffee or movies with classmates on weekends.”

Just like Guo Tianyang.

Yu Feng silently watched Xie An’yu’s back.

“But things are pretty good now. Slowly, everything’s getting better.” Xie An’yu glanced back. “And on weekends, someone even accompanies me to buy clothes.”

This feeling was truly special.

Yu Feng remained silent for a long time, then finally decided to ask Xie An’yu, “Why didn’t you continue your studies before? Was it because of money?”

“No money and no time,” Xie An’yu replied. “My grandmother wasn’t in good health, and someone needed to stay home to take care of her.”

Continuing his education in Beicheng wouldn’t have been easy. First, transferring Xie An’yu’s student records would have been a major hurdle, but with the right connections, it might have been possible to arrange for him to attend a local high school. Yu Feng certainly had that level of connections.

Without beating around the bush, Yu Feng asked directly, “Do you want to continue your studies? Finish high school, and take the university entrance exams?”

Xie An’yu shook his head.

Yu Feng was surprised by his decisiveness and a little puzzled. “Why not?”

“I don’t dwell on things that aren’t possible.”

“What if I told you it might be possible?”

Xie An’yu looked at Yu Feng, holding his gaze for a few seconds. It seemed he understood why Yu Feng had suddenly asked this question. His tone was calm, but his eyes were firm. “Brother Yu, I prefer to look ahead. I have my own path to walk.”

Yu Feng understood and nodded.

Yu Feng owned two cars. The large G-Wagon[mfn]大G (dà G): The Mercedes-Benz G-Class, colloquially known as the G-Wagon or G-Wagen (as an abbreviation of Geländewagen), is a four-wheel drive luxury SUV sold by Mercedes-Benz.
[/mfn] parked at the company was usually for work. Today, he had driven Xie An’yu out in the other one.

Yu Feng settled into the driver’s seat and asked Xie An’yu, “How’s work been lately? Still doing that mascot suit gig?”

“Whatever comes my way,” Xie An’yu replied. “I joined a WeChat group where people post about part-time jobs around town. If there’s something suitable, I take it.”

“Impressive you even found a group like that.”

Xie An’yu casually tugged at his seatbelt and offered a faint smile.

Yu Feng wasn’t exaggerating—he really did seem like someone who frequented the clothing wholesale market during his college days. He led Xie An’yu deeper inside, navigating the place with familiarity.

This was a massive underground clothing market, supplying about eighty percent of the apparel stores in the surrounding towns. Time had changed things; the place looked quite different from what Yu Feng remembered, with many of the shops he recalled now gone.

Xie An’yu was still very surprised that Yu Feng used to come here often back in college. The vibe of this place seemed so at odds with the man himself.

“Brother Yu, did you discover this place yourself?” Xie An’yu asked Yu Feng.

“Yes.”

“You don’t seem like the type of person who’d come to a place like this to buy clothes.”

Yu Feng turned to look at him. “What, is it that surprising?”

Xie An’yu nodded. “A little. Quite unexpected.”

Yu Feng chuckled. “I didn’t always come here just to buy clothes. Back then, I earned money by doing portrait photography for people. I couldn’t afford expensive costumes, so I used to rent clothes from here.”

“You could rent clothes here?”

“You could back then. Not sure about now.” Yu Feng said. “I usually stuck to a few regular shops—their styles were trendier. Not every place rented out clothes, but those shopkeepers would let me borrow in exchange for free model shots for their posters. I’d help them with posters, and they’d rent me clothes—each getting what they needed.”

“You started earning money back in college?”

“Didn’t you also start earning money right after you came of age?” Yu Feng looked at him and smiled. “I was pretty broke in college—my financial situation was just average.”

“Money’s hard to earn, and shit tastes terrible,” Yu Feng suddenly said, his words unexpectedly crude. “Actually, back then, I really disliked portrait photography. But survival and passion—sometimes, at certain stages, you can only choose one.”

This time, Yu Feng decided to stay silent and offer no opinions. He took Xie An’yu around a few shops and let him pick for himself.

Xie An’yu was overwhelmed by the choices, feeling like every piece on the racks looked pretty much the same. He didn’t care much about how the clothes looked on him—as long as they were cheap and fit well, that was enough.

Trying on clothes wasn’t allowed here. If the size seemed right, you paid and took it.

Xie An’yu seemed to have a special attachment to sportswear—he picked out two summer sets, both sporty and matching.

Well, sportswear it was. As long as the kid liked it.

Xie An’yu asked the shopkeeper for the price. The owner said, “Two sets for 199. I’ll round it down for you, 190.”

Yu Feng immediately countered with half the price. “90.”

The shopkeeper scoffed. “Hey, handsome, I’m giving you wholesale prices here—not making a single cent off you. Don’t be too ridiculous.” She eyed Yu Feng from head to toe. “Dressed head to toe in designer brands, and you’re haggling over a few yuan with us small-time sellers…”

Yu Feng knew full well that the shopkeeper had quoted that price precisely because she recognized the brand-name clothes he was wearing. If Yu Feng’s counter-offer had been truly outrageous, she would have kicked him out long ago—there was no way she’d be calmly reasoning with him like this.

Most clothing stores in wholesale markets generally didn’t inflate prices to scam customers, after all. The people who came here to buy or stock clothes were usually ordinary folks with modest incomes. If prices were set too high, no one would be willing to buy.

But if they happened to run into a clueless sucker, why not take advantage of the opportunity?

And in their eyes, Yu Feng was exactly that sucker.

This shopkeeper wasn’t too outrageous, at least she didn’t push the price even higher. Otherwise, Yu Feng wouldn’t have just halved the offer—he would’ve slashed it to a tenth.

“Which store here doesn’t offer wholesale prices?” Yu Feng said to Xie An’yu. “Forget it, let’s check out another shop. The one next door seems to have similar styles.”

Xie An’yu gave a quiet ‘Mm’, going along with whatever Yu Feng said. He hung the clothes back on the rack and turned to leave.

The shopkeeper hurriedly stopped him. “Hey, hey, fine, fine—90, take both sets. Honestly…”

“Do you want them?” Yu Feng paused to ask Xie An’yu.

Xie An’yu nodded.

Yu Feng hummed in acknowledgment and glanced at the shopkeeper. “Pack them up.”

“Handsome,” the shopkeeper said as she bagged the clothes, eyeing Yu Feng sideways, “those clothes you’re wearing are knockoffs, aren’t they?”

Yu Feng smirked faintly. “Wow, you could tell?”

Xie An’yu caught the hint of mischief in his tone and turned to glance at him.

When Yu Feng joked around, one corner of his mouth would curl up slightly. Usually, this didn’t mean he was genuinely amused—just that he was messing with someone.

The shopkeeper handed the bagged clothes to Xie An’yuand said, “Handsome, you’ve got such a great figure, and you’re only picking these two sets? I’ve got others that’d suit you even better. Don’t you want to take a look?”

“No need,” Xie An’yu replied, taking the clothes and scanning the payment code.

Just then, someone walked in from outside. The shopkeeper called out to her, “Sister Qin!”

The woman responded with a hum, and as she passed by, her gaze swept over Xie An’yu. She was the actual shop owner—the boss lady. The one who had been haggling with Yu Feng earlier was just a hired employee.

As Xie An’yu and Yu Feng were leaving, the boss lady called out, “Little brother in the tracksuit, hold on a second.”

Xie An’yu stopped and turned his head slightly.

“Wait a moment,” the boss lady said with a smile as she approached. She asked Xie An’yu, “Are you a student?”

Xie An’yu shook his head.

The boss lady looked puzzled. “Already working, then? You look so young.”

Yu Feng cut in, “What’s this about?”

The boss lady glanced at Yu Feng and smiled. “Don’t misunderstand—I just wanted to ask if this little brother would be interested in modeling for our online store.”

Yu Feng glanced at Xie An’yu, who remained silent for a moment.

“As you can see, our store mainly features clothing for young men. I feel like your physique and appearance would fit our brand’s style perfectly,” the boss lady said to Xie An’yu. “Are you already working full-time? You seem so young.”

Xie An’yu asked politely, “What exactly would the job entail?”

The boss lady was delighted and took out her phone. “How about this, let’s add each other on WeChat first. I have something to attend to soon and can’t chat in detail right now. If you have any questions later, just ask me directly on WeChat. We can arrange to meet and discuss further when there’s a chance. If you’re a good fit, you could even try modeling for our live streams—that pays much more than regular modeling gigs.”

Xie An’yu hummed and scanned her WeChat QR code.

Sometimes, natural advantages in appearance truly are a gift from the heavens. Xie An’yu’s looks must have been a feast the heavens insisted on serving—even a casual stroll outside could bring unexpected opportunities.

After they left, Xie An’yu asked Yu Feng, “Brother Yu, do you think this is reliable?”

“That’s for you to decide.”

“You didn’t say anything earlier. I thought you didn’t think it was a good idea.”

“Does what I think really matter?” Yu Feng chuckled. “It’s your job hunt.”

Xie An’yu hummed in agreement. “It matters a lot to me.”

[dropdown title=”List of Idiom in Chapter 29″]
速戰速決 (sù zhàn sù jué): a blitzkrieg strategy (idiom); to take prompt action to achieve a quick victory; to resolve sth in the shortest time possible; to get sth done quickly; fight a battle of quick decision; End the battle with quick tactics, a metaphor for completing tasks quickly.

天花亂墜 (tiān huā luàn zhuì): lit. a deluge of heavenly flowers (idiom); fig. extravagant embellishments; (derogatory) wild boast about something; hype; flowers cascading from the sky—wild boast about sth; Originally referring to a Buddhist priest expounding the Buddhist sutras, so flawless and persuasive that it moved the god of heaven, leading to a deluge of heavenly flowers.

熟門熟路 (shú mén shú lù): familiar door and familiar road—things that one knows well; to know something very well; to be very familiar with something. Its core meaning is “familiar with the way, understanding the situation, and very experienced”.

如夢初醒 (rú mèng chū xǐng): as if awakening from a dream; (figuratively) to suddenly realize; to suddenly see the light; to wake up to reality; awaken as if from a dream; suddenly realize the truth; have a rude awakening; come to one’s senses; snap out of it; see the light; as if just waking up from a dream. It describes just waking up from a confused or wrong situation.

自以為是 (zì yǐ wéi shì): to believe oneself infallible (idiom); to be opinionated; to consider oneself in the right; to regard oneself as infallible; self-righteous; smug; From Xunzi (《荀子·榮辱》): 凡鬥者，必自以為是，而以人為非也。, Those prone to fights invariably consider themselves right and others wrong.

時過境遷 (shí guò jìng qiān): things change with the passage of time; times have changed; circumstances have changed; things are different now; the situation has altered; as time passes, circumstances change.

格格不入 (gé gé bù rù): (idiom) inharmonious; incompatible; be incompatible (with); be out of line/step (with); be like oil and water; be like a square peg in a round hole.
[/dropdown]

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