“…A fan?” Qi Song showed a trace of doubt as he looked at Chi Zhan again. Chi Zhan had no choice but to nod. “Yes, I’ve been watching your streams recently.”
“That’s not all!” Seeing Qi Song’s expression remain impassive—clearly unconvinced—Tao Ran quickly scrambled for more solid proof. “Xiao Chi even won a prize from your livestream! You two played a game together! He really is a fan! I wasn’t trying to cause trouble, I just wanted to share it with him… I swear I won’t do it again!”
Chen Che interjected, “Then why didn’t you tell us before filming? Now that you’ve been caught, it’s a bit late for that, isn’t it? And you—”
Qi Song raised a hand to stop him.
“Let me talk to him for a bit.”
With that, he walked out of the hotpot restaurant, phone in hand.
Tao Ran protested, “Hey, wait! Why is he taking my phone? I still need it to pay the bill!”
Chen Che stood there stunned. That guy on the video just now looked strangely familiar. Could it be…?
“Secretary Chi?” The realization hit him, and he turned to Tao Ran. “Your friend is Secretary Chi?”
“Yeah, he’s a secretary… Wait, you know him?!”
Chen Che exclaimed, “How could I not! He was in that rumored scandal with Qi-ge—ugh, I mean, he did that interview with him!”
“…???”
Outside the restaurant, night had fully fallen. But this was a bustling commercial street, lined with open shops, convenience stores, and food stalls. Bright lights pushed back the darkness, painting the streets with a festive glow.
People strolled up and down, snacking as they walked—mostly couples. One would feed the other, whispering sweet nothings before laughing softly together.
Qi Song passed by those couples without much of a reaction. He found a quiet spot and stopped. Back in his room, Chi Zhan realized he was still in pajamas and quickly threw on a jacket.
“Were you about to sleep?” Qi Song looked at the screen, his eyes carrying a rare trace of warmth. But the lighting was too dim for Chi Zhan to notice. Embarrassed, he gave a soft “Mm”.
“Sorry, my friend overstepped.”
“It’s fine. If you ever want to look, just do it openly. I don’t mind. But I’m surprised—Secretary Chi is my fan? You never told me.”
“I wanted to keep personal interests separate from work. I didn’t want you to think I was using that to get close to you.”
“So… I’m one of Secretary Chi’s personal interests.” Qi Song’s voice was calm, his tone neutral—just a statement. And yet, those words carried an unmistakable double meaning.
“That… sounds weird when you put it like that,” Secretary Chi had no idea how to explain and could only say, “Anyway, now you know. I’m actually ‘CHI,’ but I’ve never mixed business with personal feelings.”
Qi Song nodded.
“Then, when we were picking five candidates for the livestream, was I your first choice?”
“Yes… yes, you were.”
How could he not be?
Back then, his first instinct had been to add Qi Song’s account. Only Qi Song’s. As for the other streamers? He couldn’t care less.
Every second he waited felt like torment.
The kind of torment only a fan would experience while awaiting their idol’s reply.
Qi Song seemed to let out a soft laugh.
“That’s good.”
It sounded like he was saying: Even if you claim you kept things professional, I’ll just have to let you off the hook this once.
“……”
“But I really was… quite surprised,” Qi Song continued slowly, “to find out Secretary Chi is CHI.”
Chi Zhan didn’t dwell on that—he was more concerned about something else.
“Seven, aren’t you cold? It’s snowing out. You should go back inside.”
Qi Song had stepped out wearing only a sweater. As he spoke, puffs of white breath drifted from his lips like little clouds, dissipating into the night air.
It was already bitterly cold, yet the hotpot restaurant remained sweltering inside—warm enough that people had to roll up their sleeves and sip iced drinks just to cool down.
Back inside, Tao Ran craned his neck, trying to peer outside.
“So where’s my phone?”
“You’ll get it back. Still, come on—if Secretary Chi wanted to see us, he could’ve just joined our table! Not a big deal. And seriously, you came out to eat hotpot alone? That’s weird.”
“What’s weird about that?” Tao Ran asked, puzzled. “Xiao Chi and I eat hotpot alone all the time. Everyone’s busy, and sometimes we just can’t match schedules. If I want hotpot, I go alone.”
Chen Che was stunned.
“Secretary Chi eats hotpot alone too? That’s tragic!”
Just then, Qi Song returned, and Chen Che rushed to share this revelation.
“Qi-ge, when we go to Province A next time, let’s have hotpot with Secretary Chi! Eating alone is just too lonely!”
Qi Song handed Tao Ran’s phone back.
“Sorry for borrowing it.”
“No problem,” Tao Ran waved it off quickly.
After the meal, the WT members boarded their team bus. Everyone was chatting and drinking, while Chen Che was still shocked over the “hotpot-alone” situation.
“Is that so strange? I eat hotpot alone sometimes too.”
“But you’re different, captain! Your whole vibe screams ‘loner’!”
Then he remembered—Qi Song had a boyfriend.
Wen An chimed in, “I eat alone too.”
“Well, I can’t! In any case, it’s just wrong to let Secretary Chi eat hotpot by himself!”
Qi Song gave a quiet “Mm.”
“I won’t let my boyfriend eat hotpot alone again.”
“That’s more like—wait.”
Something clicked. He’d clearly been talking about Secretary Chi. So why did it suddenly become “boyfriend” when Qi Song said it?!
