Because of Gu Yan’s “confession,” Gu Xuehan quickly found Qi Xi some other task to handle, sending her out of the office so she could keep Gu Yan behind for a private talking-to.

Qi Xi waited anxiously outside the office for half an hour before she finally saw Gu Yan come out.

During that half hour, while revising a contract, she’d been consumed with guilt and embarrassment, mortified at her own short-sightedness.

She’d been so pleased with herself, thinking she’d cleverly exploited a legal loophole to get Cheng Junliang cleanly out of this mess. But after hearing Gu Xuehan’s breakdown of it, she finally saw just how foolish that idea had been.

What made her feel even guiltier was that Gu Yan had taken the blame for her.

The victim of her scheme, having taken the fall voluntarily, seemed remarkably unbothered. Facing Qi Xi’s flurry of grateful fussing, Gu Yan showed no interest in claiming credit — if anything, he barely reacted at all, which only made Qi Xi feel worse—

“You should’ve just given me up back there.”

“Given you up so my sister could yell at you?”

Gu Yan glanced at Qi Xi, then looked away, turning back to his computer as though busy answering emails. “Knowing your personality, you’d never have withstood my sister when she really lets loose on someone. If you’d ended up in tears or falling apart, who’d be left to do the team’s work?”

“You don’t need to tiptoe around thanking me. I’m not that noble — I just found it troublesome. I hate it when people cry, don’t want to have to comfort anyone, and don’t want anyone’s emotional state on the team affecting the work.”

Gu Yan’s voice stayed perfectly composed. “Besides, I did think of that approach myself, and went along with it — I didn’t stop you from going to talk to Cheng Junliang. It’s not unfair that my sister lectured me too.”

Fair point, but still…

Qi Xi felt a flash of indignation. “I’m not as fragile as you think. Since it really was my plan that was flawed and immature, I can take Lawyer Gu’s scolding with an open mind — I’m not about to burst into tears over nothing.”

She thought about it, then decided to defend herself further. “I think I’m pretty tough, actually. I definitely wouldn’t cry — worst case, I’d just feel a bit down.”

“Wouldn’t cry?” Gu Yan said, deadpan. “Then who was it that took that call from the film company in the Ai Xiang case and got teary-eyed after a few insults? You think my sister’s any gentler? She just doesn’t swear while tearing people apart. If she chews you out and you end up holding a grudge, what if you come looking for revenge on me?”

Qi Xi felt she had to push back on that one. “Do I seem like the type to hold a grudge and seek revenge?!”

“Aren’t you?” Gu Yan said evenly, looking at her. “Then who was it that tore into me at the graduation ceremony?”

“…”

Qi Xi felt like this particular blood feud with Gu Yan was never going to be settled.

“Anyway, what do we do now? We can’t just let Cheng Junliang actually pay out one hundred twenty thousand in damages. Sure, he’s at fault for losing the original document, but Lu Juan trying to squeeze money out of him over it is also a problem.”

Qi Xi felt a little uneasy — she worried Gu Xuehan might object to them taking on this case, since it was messy, the fee wasn’t much, and it was the kind of thing that could easily backfire.

But Gu Xuehan’s approach caught Qi Xi off guard—

Gu Yan didn’t even look at Qi Xi. “She’s going to have Cheng Junliang come in and handle this herself.”

Qi Xi was delighted. “Lawyer Gu is amazing! If she steps in, Cheng Junliang’s definitely in good hands!”

She meant it sincerely — she simply had an instinctive trust in Gu Xuehan, a sense that whatever the problem, once Gu Xuehan got involved, it would all work out.

This heartfelt admiration for his sister, however, found no echo in Gu Yan. Quite the opposite — hearing it, his expression turned faintly critical. “She hasn’t even said how she’s going to handle it, and you’re already sure it’s fine?”

Probably still smarting from the lecture, the man added, with a note of bitterness, “And why are you so happy about whether Cheng Junliang’s fine or not?”

Qi Xi smiled at Gu Yan. “We were classmates, after all — since we’re in a position to help, why not give an old classmate a hand.” She glanced at him, buttering him up. “Didn’t you just help this classmate of yours take the blame a minute ago?”

“Who helped you? I already said it has nothing to do with you.” Gu Yan said, annoyed. “Let’s just say I had bad luck, and I’ve accepted it.”

Though he said that, Qi Xi was someone who believed in repaying kindness. A few days earlier, she’d overheard some students chatting on the subway and learned that a legendary “godfather”-tier heavy metal band happened to be playing a concert in Rong City this Saturday — the kind of band every heavy metal fan treated as an object of near-religious devotion. If you were into heavy metal at all, you were a fan of this band.

Qi Xi had known nothing about heavy metal before, but once she actually started looking into it, she discovered that although it was a niche scene, its fans were fiercely devoted, which meant tickets to this concert were nearly impossible to get — even ordinary seats were going for close to two thousand yuan on the resale market. Still, compared to a soccer match on the same day, where tickets routinely ran five or six thousand each, the rock concert prices seemed almost reasonable by comparison.

Qi Xi had recently picked up some freelance legal translation work on the side, and once she got paid for it, she’d not only be able to fully pay off what she owed Gu Yan, but have a decent amount left over besides.

Measuring it against the soccer ticket prices as a kind of self-comfort, she reasoned that heavy metal tickets were still far cheaper than soccer, so at least Gu Yan had picked a relatively less expensive hobby.

After running through her future expenses and confirming she could make it work, she gritted her teeth and bought two overpriced tickets from a scalper.

Worried Gu Yan might buy his own tickets first, Qi Xi started fishing for information at work the next day: “Are you free this Saturday?”

Gu Yan paused, brow furrowing slightly, and looked at her. “What are you planning? Is there a contract you won’t finish in time?”

“No, no, I was just thinking — if you’re free Saturday, I happen to have two tickets, want to go together?”

Gu Yan hesitated. “Oh. I’m free.”

He looked a little unnatural. “I actually couldn’t get tickets myself. Though they’re pricey and hard to come by — don’t most girls have zero interest in this kind of thing? You’re into it too?”

Unwilling to pass up any chance to grow closer to Gu Yan, Qi Xi immediately faked delighted enthusiasm. “I love it! I can’t believe you’re into it too!”

She had absolutely no idea what heavy metal even was, but claiming to love it first was the priority.

“Haven’t you noticed? We actually have a lot in common — we both love durian, and now heavy metal too!”

Qi Xi put on an expression of moved, kindred-spirit recognition. “Honestly, Gu Yan, I’ve always felt heavy metal really suits your whole vibe. Sure, on the outside you’re calm and composed, looking like some ordinary guy who’s into sunny, wholesome things like soccer, but deep down you’re actually full of wild, untamed punk energy. Maybe other people think your tastes are totally mainstream, just like every other guy your age, but the way I see you, you’d never lower yourself to be like those ordinary guys — everything you’re into is unique, deep, and totally different from the crowd!”

Whether or not this speech had landed exactly where it needed to, Gu Yan’s expression turned somewhat complicated. He was silent for a moment before looking up at her. “Is that really how you see me?”

Qi Xi nodded vigorously. “Absolutely! Sure, on the surface you look like your everyday model student, but I know deep down you must be incredibly full of personality!”

Perhaps having struck a nerve, Gu Yan’s expression turned faintly strange. He looked away, as if the thought had just occurred to him. “So you think a guy who likes soccer, likes the same stuff other ordinary guys like, is kind of lacking in personality?”

Wasn’t this the perfect moment to praise Gu Yan for standing apart from all those other mediocre men?

Qi Xi threw herself into the flattery with everything she had. “How should I put it — liking soccer and stuff like that, sure, it’s really common, but honestly it does kind of blend into the crowd. People need something different about them to stand out from everyone else, you know? Like you being into heavy metal — that’s really got personality. Instantly sets you apart.”

Perhaps a little embarrassed by the praise, Gu Yan’s expression became briefly unreadable.

Had she guessed wrong?

Qi Xi felt a flicker of uncertainty. “So, do you like heavy metal or not? If you don’t, that’s fine too, I can find someone else to go with me with the two tickets…”

Just as she started doubting herself, Gu Yan gave her a definitive answer—

“It’s decent.”

He glanced at her. “I like it, more or less.”

Qi Xi immediately brightened. “So we’re on for Saturday?”

“Mm.”

Having successfully locked in a date with Gu Yan, Qi Xi’s spirits soared.

This time, no matter what, Gu Yan had taken a scolding from Gu Xuehan on her behalf, and she was determined to repay the favor somehow.

Quite the coincidence, too — just as Qi Xi was humming to herself, finishing paying the scalper the full price for the tickets she’d reserved earlier, she heard Gu Yan’s phone ring across from her.

Since they sat so close together, though Qi Xi had no intention of eavesdropping, the voice on the other end of Gu Yan’s call still drifted faintly over to her—

“Those tickets you wanted before are in — price is a bit steep though, ordinary seats, ten thousand each. You mentioned before that was within your budget, so I wanted to confirm — are you in? Honestly it’s worth it, considering that…”

The other party seemed to want to keep talking, but Gu Yan didn’t give them the chance, cutting them off outright: “No need, thanks.”

He hung up almost as fast as if he were afraid of hearing the rest, barely letting the other person finish.

Though Gu Yan said nothing, Qi Xi understood perfectly well — that was obviously a ticket scalper. But what a rip-off — ten thousand yuan, that was basically robbery! Sure, this band was huge in the heavy metal scene, but charging ten thousand for an ordinary ticket was absurd, practically matching the soccer match prices! Given that the market should set prices based on demand, and far more people cared about soccer than niche heavy metal, charging that much for a heavy metal ticket was completely unethical of that scalper!

But clearly her flattery this time had really paid off!

If she hadn’t already gotten tickets herself, Gu Yan would’ve had to go get fleeced by some shady scalper on his own.

He’d said “it’s decent” out loud, but clearly he loved it so much he was ready to pay ten thousand yuan without blinking — that wasn’t “decent,” that was throwing money at it without a second thought, love at any cost!

“The Complete Guide to Gu Yan” — truly doesn’t deceive me!!

In the end, Qi Xi couldn’t help herself — she nudged Gu Yan with her elbow. “So you’ve actually wanted to see this show for a while, huh.”

Gu Yan seemed to take a second to register the question, then gave a belated “Mm.”

“But that scalper of yours is way too greedy. Mine only cost two thousand a ticket. Next time you want to see something, I’ll introduce you to the guy I use — he never rips people off!”

Hearing this, Gu Yan looked genuinely bewildered, his voice rising slightly despite himself. “You paid two thousand a ticket for this rock show? And that’s not a rip-off? Do you even know what the market rate is?”

This got Qi Xi’s back up a little. “Your scalper wanted ten thousand! Mine was only two thousand!” She glanced at him. “How is that not a good deal?”

Gu Yan looked like he wanted to say something, but faced with the sheer force of the facts, he apparently had nothing left to argue with — in the end, the man swallowed it and said nothing at all.