I Only Want You chapter 2

After dark, Yang Xiaole took advantage of the night and left. The graduate student dormitory of the Fine Arts School was shabby, and the streetlights downstairs had never been lit. This was extremely convenient for Yang Xiaole, who liked to go out and play in heavy makeup and skirts during the holidays. Even if he accidentally bumped into someone on the dark and poorly lit streets, nothing could be clearly seen. Moreover, most people would likely assume he was someone’s girlfriend from the dormitory building and wouldn’t think much of it.

An hour later, after Yang Xiaole left, Yan Lan also went downstairs for dinner. During the summer vacation, the school cafeteria was closed, and students who stayed on campus had to find their own solutions.

As the cafeteria was closed, Yan Lan had to choose to eat outside the campus. He went to a small restaurant he frequented, ordered a simple stir-fry with rice, and sat down in his usual spot.

Since his freshman year, he had been visiting this small restaurant every summer and winter vacation. The owner knew him well, and when he entered the restaurant, a simple nod from Yan Lan was enough for the owner to prepare a stir-fried dish for him.

At this time, he was the only customer in the restaurant. He didn’t have to wait long; the owner quickly served him a plate of stir-fried green peppers with pork liver, a bowl of rice, and a bowl of winter melon soup.

Sitting in the corner of the small restaurant, the old electric fan emitted a creaking sound, blowing a breeze that was better than nothing. The relatively young owner and his wife sat together watching TV. Judging from the sound, they were watching a popular summer drama on some television channel, a show that Yan Lan was also familiar with.

Yan Lan was eating while listening to the TV drama when suddenly, a group of tall and sturdy boys in black T-shirts and sports pants, wearing expensive sneakers, entered the restaurant with laughter. They crowded the already not-so-spacious small restaurant.

Yan Lan didn’t even bother to look up at them. Without guessing, he knew they were athletes from the nearby sports school.

The fact that he was mute was well-known not only in the Fine Arts School but also beyond its gates. Even students from the neighboring sports and engineering schools knew about Yan Lan, the mute guy from the Fine Arts School.

Because he was an orphan, with nowhere to go during breaks, he stayed in the dormitory every summer and winter vacation. Some people had seen him eating dinner in this small restaurant for two consecutive summers and posted on the school forum, creating a sensational headline: “Shocking! The most beautiful student of the Fine Arts School visits an off-campus stir-fry shop for two consecutive summers!”

The most popular comment under that post was from Yang Xiaole. He replied: “Humph! What’s it to you?”

Although Yang Xiaole later reported and had the post deleted, occasionally students from the sports and engineering schools still came here out of curiosity, wanting to see how good-looking this mute guy named Yan Lan, who was called the “school flower,” really was in a school filled with beautiful girls.

However, every time they saw him, they would come back for a second time. Yan Lan, on the other hand, would not return for several days or even more than ten days after encountering them.

While he was eating and thinking about buying instant noodles and bread from the supermarket the next day to store in the dormitory, a sudden appearance at the door caught his attention.

It was a sports student with a neat buzz cut, wearing a black T-shirt. He sat down on the chair opposite him, and his sun-kissed arms rested on the table’s edge. The muscles on his arms were somewhat exaggerated.

After placing his left hand on Yan Lan’s table, the buzz-cut guy turned half of his body to chat with his friends who came in with him, completely ignoring Yan Lan.

When Yan Lan finished his meal and stood up to leave, the buzz-cut guy suddenly turned his face towards him. He made three simple gestures with his hands, and the last one was pointing his index finger at Yan Lan.

As soon as the crew-cut guy made this gesture, the group of people who came with him suddenly burst into loud cheers, clapping and whistling.

Because the gesture meant “I love you” in sign language.

Yan Lan, expressionless, gave the buzz-cut guy a glance, bypassed them, and left the small restaurant without looking back.

However, as soon as he took a few steps outside, the buzz-cut guy chased after him and blocked his way.

“Yan Lan, I really like you.”

Yan Lan didn’t want to listen, and he tried to avoid him by turning around. However, no matter which way he moved, the buzz-cut guy blocked him.

Yan Lan felt extremely annoyed, his eyebrows furrowed. His expression was even colder than usual. Instead of using sign language to communicate with the person in front of him, he made a simple body movement: move aside!

Instead of stepping aside, the buzz-cut guy took a step forward, attempting to get closer to Yan Lan. Yan Lan, forced to step back, frowned.

As he retreated, the buzz-cut guy moved forward again, his eyes fixed on Yan Lan’s face with a fascinated look, like a wild animal ready to go into heat. “Yan Lan, be with me. I’ll treat you well.”

Yan Lan, hearing this, suddenly stopped retreating, raised his hand to scratch his head in a troubled manner, and then, to the buzz-cut guy’s astonishment and joy, reached out and grabbed his sturdy biceps. With lightning speed, With lightning speed, Yan Lan lifted his right knee, hitting the buzz-cut athlete squarely in the leg!

This move was quick, accurate, and ruthless. Suddenly, a loud scream echoed through the quiet street.

The next second, Yan Lan quickly circled around the fallen guy and sprinted away! He disappeared into the east gate of the Fine Arts School, leaving behind the curses shouted by the fallen guy.

This move was taught to him by Yang Xiaole. It emphasized taking the opponent by surprise and striking when they least expected it. The key was to make the opponent feel the most pain with the simplest method. Importantly, he had to run fast and avoid being caught in case he needed to flee. Yang Xiaole had also trained him for explosive starts.

Yang Xiaole’s words at that time were: “Once you’ve learned it, you have to learn the whole thing. The power of ‘breaking the offspring and eliminating descendants’ is no joke. Once you use it, there’s no turning back.”

Yan Lan agreed with this philosophy, so he ran towards the dormitory building as fast as he could. He didn’t dare to stop until he reached the ground floor. Finally, he bent over a trash can on the side of the road and vomited everything he had eaten for dinner. He continued dry heaving into the garbage can, his slender chest heaving violently.

Almost immediately after he caught his breath and returned to the dormitory to rinse his mouth and wash his face, his pocket vibrated, and he heard a sound from his phone.

He took out his phone and saw a WeChat message from Yang Xiaole, which read: “15th floor ladies’ restroom at the Capespin Hotel! Help me! Xu Xinan is here too! He found me!”

Xu Xinan was Yang Xiaole’s boyfriend who was cheating on him. The two had been together for less than a month. During holidays, Yang Xiaole liked to go out dressed as a woman. If he met a man he fancied, he would agree to date him. Then, when the school started again, he would disappear without a trace. The other person wouldn’t even know that Yang Xiaole, who they thought was a girl was actually a guy named Yang Xiaole.

Seeing this WeChat message, Yan Lan didn’t hesitate for a second. He turned around and ran out of the dormitory building, heading towards the south gate of the Fine Arts School.

The south gate was the main entrance of the Fine Arts School and the easiest place to catch a taxi. He ran out of the school gate just in time to see an empty taxi. He urgently opened the co-driver’s door, showed the driver the words “Capespin Hotel” on his phone, and asked to hurry.

The driver looked at him strangely but said nothing, starting the car.

That night, the Capespin Hotel was more lively than ever because of the birthday party for the film queen Yao Jinni. Many girls in their teens and twenties gathered in front of the hotel, some even holding light sticks they usually used during concerts.

After paying the fare, Yan Lan rushed towards the hotel. However, before he could reach the main entrance, two security personnel stopped him.

The more anxious Yan Lan felt, the colder his expression became on his face. Only his sign language gestures revealed his anxiety, but since there was no one who understood sign language present, the onlookers began to suspect that he might be mentally ill. However, looking at his exceptionally beautiful features, they couldn’t be sure.

Yan Lan’s head was starting to spin. After gesturing in sign language for a long time, he suddenly remembered that he could use his phone. He quickly took out his phone, opened the WeChat message from Yang Xiaole, and showed it to the security personnel in front of him. He typed: “My friend is in trouble inside! She’s asking for my help!”

Yan Lan specifically used the word “she” to emphasize that the person inside was a girl.

However, the security personnel, after reading the message, showed no reaction. They exchanged a glance and shook their heads. One of them said to Yan Lan, “The hotel is currently reserved for a private event. Before the birthday party for Ms. Yao Jinni is over, the hotel has suspended check-in services. Also, before that, all floors above the tenth are booked by Ms. Yao Jinni to entertain guests. Your friend shouldn’t be on the fifteenth floor.”

In other words, they believed Yan Lan was lying.

Yan Lan tightly held his phone. His mind was spinning fast, wondering how Yang Xiaole managed to get inside the hotel with such strict security measures?!

Just when he was in a state of frantic urgency, a voice called his name, making him freeze.

He turned his head and saw Xie Yun Zhi, wearing a black suit with a hooked bangs hairstyle. His expression showed a bit of surprise as he walked towards Yan Lan. Behind him were three or four men in similar black suits, exuding an imposing presence that even felt a bit oppressive.

As they approached, a faint fragrance of perfume lingered in the air.

Xie Yun Zhi stood in front of Yan Lan, looking at him and then at the security guards. He asked, “Teacher, what are you doing here?”

Upon hearing Xie Yun Zhi’s question, Yan Lan finally snapped out of his shock. Not sure if it was because he had finally encountered someone who knew sign language, his sign language gestures suddenly became steadier and more composed than when facing the security personnel: “My friend is inside the hotel and asked for my help. I want to go in and find her.”

After finishing the sign language gestures, Yan Lan took out his phone and showed Xie Yun Zhi the WeChat message, fearing that he might not believe it.

Xie Yun Zhi quickly glanced at the phone screen, nodded at him, and said, “I’ll take you in, follow me.”

With Xie Yun Zhi’s help, the hotel security did not stop Yan Lan.

Yan Lan followed Xie Yun Zhi, and under the guidance of hotel staff, they took the elevator.

The elevator digits began ascending one by one.

With his hands in his pockets, Xie Yun Zhi stood in the middle of the elevator. Under his sharp eyebrows, a pair of dark eyes seemed bottomless. He calmly observed the faint figure reflected on the elevator door, thinking about the scene he had just witnessed and couldn’t help but feel curious. Was this art teacher always this indifferent to everyone?

The elevator, silent as a pin drop, stopped on the fifteenth floor not long after. As the elevator door opened, Yan Lan couldn’t wait any longer and walked out, bowing to express his gratitude to Xie Yun Zhi, then turned to find the women’s restroom.

Xie Yun Zhi tilted his head slightly, raising his hand to stop his secretary from pressing the button for the top floor. After a moment’s thought, he followed Yan Lan out before the elevator doors automatically closed.

The secretary, following closely behind him, checked his wristwatch and couldn’t help but remind, “Mr. Xie, we’re running late.”

“Just explain it to Jinni later; she won’t mind.”

The secretary could only comply.

Unaware that Xie Yun Zhi had followed him, Yan Lan, like a headless fly, wandered around the fifteenth floor.

Capespin Hotel was a five-star hotel, each floor surprisingly spacious, with terraces extending from the sides offering views of the city’s night scenery. Large potted plants, seemingly impossible to cultivate indoors, surrounded the public leisure area, exuding a discreet luxury.

Yan Lan circled around the leisure area that gave a sense of spatial disorientation before finally finding the directional signs to the restroom.

When he arrived and looked, he indeed saw a man in a white suit standing outside the restroom, leisurely smoking a cigarette.

Yan Lan didn’t know Xu Xinan, had never seen what he looked like, and Yang Xiaole never shared details about his encounters outside. However, at this moment, the only person who could be waiting outside the restroom on the fifteenth floor of Capespin Hotel besides him was likely Xu Xinan.

Yan Lan cast a wary glance at the man leaning against the wall, blowing smoke into the air, and entered the restroom. He quickly dialed Yang Xiaole’s number.

Soon, the restroom echoed with the sound of a ringing phone. Yan Lan quickly hung up, tapping on the door.

With their years of understanding as roommates, Yang Xiaole immediately knew it was Yan Lan. The door of the innermost stall in the women’s restroom opened, and a gust of silver-scented wind rushed into Yan Lan’s arms.

“Ah, ah, ah, Momo, you finally came!”

Yan Lan gently patted his back and gestured towards the outside, mimicking smoking.

Yang Xiaole, displeased, pouted his lips painted with lipstick. “So unlucky! If I had known he was here, I wouldn’t have come!”

Yan Lan picked up his phone and typed: What should we do now? He’s still outside.

Yang Xiaole, squinting his eyes adorned with light pink eyeshadow, said, “Stick close to me when we go out. Pretend you’re my brother, and put on the coldest expression to scare him away.”

Yan Lan hesitated and typed: Will that work?

“It has to. I can’t hide in the restroom forever. If I hadn’t been quick-witted and hidden in here earlier, he would have caught me by now.”

Yan Lan was even more puzzled: Aren’t you two broken up?

“He doesn’t admit to cheating and refuses to break up. He wants me to listen to his explanation. As if I’d listen!”

Putting away his phone with a helpless expression, Yan Lan embraced Yang Xiaole, who was slightly shorter, and the two walked out of the restroom closely together, resembling a single person.

Xu Xinan, who was waiting outside, immediately saw them. His eyes stared fixedly at Yan Lan and the person in his arms. “Nana, who is he?”

Yang Xiaole, who cross-dressed outside using the pseudonym Liu Anna this time, shot Xu Xinan a cold look and was about to leave.

Seeing this, Xu Xinan quickly stepped forward, blocking their way. Not only that, but he also reached out, grabbing Yang Xiaole’s delicate wrist, attempting to pull him out of Yan Lan’s embrace.

Yang Xiaole forcefully tried to retrieve his hand, effortlessly switching to a soft voice different from a man’s, “Let go of me!”

“Nana, don’t be angry. You’ve misunderstood me. Please let me explain…”

“I don’t want to hear it!”

Completely unexpected for Xie Yun Zhi, as he followed Yan Lan’s direction, he walked into such a dramatic scene. The seemingly icy and snowy art teacher was caught between a quarreling couple, with a cold expression on his face, mixed with subtle signs of a headache and embarrassment.

How should I put it? It’s unexpectedly… cute?

Xie Yun Zhi, leading his secretary and assistant, stood still for a moment. He watched Yan Lan, embracing a beautiful girl with long curls, preventing the man in front of him from approaching.

Turning his head, he asked his secretary beside him, “What’s the name of Tiantian’s art teacher again?”

“His surname is Yan, and his name is Yan Lan.”

Xie Yun Zhi raised an eyebrow and walked towards the trio, looking at the seemingly complicated relationship. With a magnetic and low-pitched voice, he asked, “Teacher Yan, do you need help?”