10 Oil Paintings
Chapter 10
“Who’s talking? Is someone else at your place?” Shen Qian’s voice was laced with accusation. “Last time you clearly said no one was there…”
“It’s already ten o’clock. Where else would I be at this hour?” Xuan Congnan replied to Gu Shi and ended the call with Shen Qian.
He sent a text to the unknown number: [Stop calling me from new numbers. I’ve made it clear before—there’s nothing left to say. Shen Qian, I just want a peaceful life. Since we’re not compatible, breaking up is the only option. Don’t reply; sending a text costs money.]
“Why are you looking at me like that?” Xuan Congnan stopped fiddling with his new phone to avoid further issues. Hungry, he said, “Let’s eat.”
Gu Shi nodded.
A notification from China Mobile arrived: [You paid 5,000 yuan on June 5, 20XX at 10 PM. Current balance: 5,006.21 yuan…]
Immediately after came a message from the unknown number: [We’ve been able to talk for a long time.]
[South, come out and meet me. Or I’ll come to your rented place.]
Xuan Congnan frowned, losing his appetite. He disliked persistent people.
“What’s wrong?” Gu Shi asked.
“Shen…” Xuan Congnan swallowed Shen Qian’s name and said, “My ex-boyfriend paid 5,000 yuan phone credit for me. Can this be refunded if it was mistakenly paid to me?”
Gu Shi reached out, “Let me see.”
Unfamiliar with such a situation and worried he couldn’t handle it alone, Xuan Congnan handed over the phone without hesitation.
Another message from Shen Qian arrived: [South, don’t avoid me.]
“Do you want to block him?” Gu Shi asked first.
Xuan Congnan nodded.
Gu Shi quickly blocked and deleted the unknown number, then set the phone to reject calls from any unknown numbers. “No more harassment from strangers.”
Xuan Congnan didn’t know such a setting existed; he had even considered changing his number earlier.
Like his phone, he had used this number for many years. Most of his few friends contacted him through it. He hated trouble and was too lazy to change.
“Thanks.” He leaned in to watch Gu Shi adjust the phone.
“I’ll help you get a new SIM card tomorrow,” Gu Shi said.
“Why? You just said you won’t get calls from strangers now,” Xuan Congnan was puzzled.
“Yes,” Gu Shi explained, “There are pros and cons. If my phone dies and I call you from someone else’s phone, you won’t be able to reach me. Your old number is for friends, and the new one will allow calls from strangers by default. That way, if I really use someone else’s phone, I can still contact you.”
Xuan Congnan, counting on staying here for another half month at most, didn’t understand why Gu Shi was thinking so far ahead.
He gave Gu Shi a puzzled look but thought better of it. Since Gu Shi bought the phone, whatever he said went.
“Okay,” Xuan Congnan nodded.
Gu Shi dialed “10068” and briefly explained the situation to customer service, requesting that the mistakenly paid phone credit be fully refunded to the payer.
When the customer service said “okay,” the call ended, and Xuan Congnan asked, “So the money was refunded?”
Gu Shi replied, “Yes.”
Xuan Congnan sighed in relief. “I thought we’d be stuck in some messy debt.”
A notification beeped.
China Mobile sent another message: [You paid 19,999 yuan on June 5, 20XX at 10:00 PM. Current balance: 20,005.21 yuan…]
Xuan Congnan gasped, “?”
Gu Shi put down the phone. “That was me.”
Xuan Congnan inexplicably relaxed a bit but then looked puzzled. “Why did you do that?”
Gu Shi answered matter-of-factly, “I bought the phone; I’ll pay the bills.”
He replied so quickly there was no time for reflection. For a moment, Xuan Congnan actually thought it made perfect sense.
Looking at the phone balance, Xuan Congnan commented, “You top up the phone credit, but why is the amount so odd?”
“Is it?” Gu Shi looked down to check and said, “Must have hit the wrong number.”
The star roommate was extravagantly wealthy. Xuan Congnan spooned a bite of shrimp fried rice and said, “You paid for it yourself, huh?”
“Yeah,” Gu Shi said.
“You could record this. No need to pay it back,” Gu Shi added.
Caught off guard, Xuan Congnan laughed, “No need to record. I trust you.”
Gu Shi sipped the sweet soup, the bowl’s rim hiding his lips and chin, and said, “Mm.”
“—Wait,” Xuan Congnan frowned.
Gu Shi looked over, “What’s wrong?”
---
“Did he say he’d come to the rented place to find me? Yes, he did.” Xuan Congnan quickly stood and checked behind the door to make sure it was locked. “Although I don’t think he’ll come, but since you’re here…”
He turned back to discuss, “How about you hide in my bedroom for a while?”
Gu Shi said, “I want to eat here. I’m hungry.”
Xuan Congnan replied, “Take the fried rice and sweet soup in there.”
Gu Shi refused, “The bedroom isn’t for eating. It’ll smell.”
“Eat and then open the window to air it out,” Xuan Congnan urged. “I don’t mind. You go first…”
*Bang! Bang! Bang!*
The door rattled violently three times. Xuan Congnan’s hand was still on the brass lock he had just confirmed locked. Startled, he quickly hit the light switch.
The living room light went out.
“South,” Shen Qian’s voice was hoarse and lazy, unlike his usual clear and gentle tone, as if he had been drinking. “I know you’re not asleep. You’re right behind the door. I saw the light under the door just now… Why turn off the light?”
Xuan Congnan’s heart pounded wildly.
Because of his upbringing, Xuan Congnan was relatively conservative. He viewed dating strictly as dating; without marriage or registration, he would never sleep with or cohabit with a boyfriend.
But during the day, he had invited Shen Qian to his rented place. Shen Qian had stayed for a while, and because he had work in the afternoon, Xuan Congnan let him upstairs to nap in his bedroom.
It was the first time inviting a boyfriend into his home, and Xuan Congnan felt nervous.
Most of the house was decorated in blue tones. Shen Qian asked, “Do you like blue?”
They had been together for half a year. If Shen Qian truly knew him well, he would have noticed Xuan Congnan’s preferences earlier.
Yet, he only asked if he liked blue after entering the apartment.
At the time, it didn’t register, but thinking back now…
Xuan Congnan sighed in frustration, feeling truly foolish.
In the darkness, Gu Shi heard Xuan Congnan sigh and tightened his chopsticks.
“South, there’s someone in your room. When I called, he responded,” Shen Qian pounded on the door. “Who is he? Open the door, please. Hiding won’t solve anything. Meet me.”
“South, answer me.”
“Shh—don’t make a sound. The house is old and not soundproof,” Xuan Congnan groped his way back to Gu Shi, afraid of bumping into the stool, and grabbed something to use as a makeshift compass. “Ignore him. He’ll leave soon. If he really gets noisy, the neighbors will complain and kick him out.”
Gu Shi responded softly through his nose, “Mm.”
“Sorry, I grabbed your arm.” Xuan Congnan immediately let go. “I pulled the curtains; it’s dark inside. My eyes haven’t adjusted yet.”
“It’s okay.” Gu Shi kept his hand raised, inviting him to hold it, and mimicked Xuan Congnan’s voice almost whispering, “Good you didn’t hurt yourself.”
Shen Qian kept knocking and calling, “Xuan Congnan…”
Xuan Congnan muttered, “How much has he been drinking?”
Gu Shi said, “Men are charmingly drunk when they can make you cry.”
Xuan Congnan: “…”
The hallway had a motion-activated light that was dim and flickered intermittently. When the light came on, a sliver of it slipped under the door, illuminating the room a little. Xuan Congnan’s eyes gradually adjusted, and he saw Gu Shi speaking seriously.
Gu Shi added, “Don’t believe him.”
“…,” Xuan Congnan let out a strange chuckle. “I don’t.”
“Mm.”
Suddenly, a phone rang sharply. Xuan Congnan thought it was his new phone and hurried to silence it.
He found it wasn’t his or Gu Shi’s phone.
Outside, Shen Qian answered, “What’s up?”
Xuan Congnan held his breath and listened.
After a few dozen seconds, Shen Qian lowered his voice, “Got it.”
A minute later, footsteps faded as he walked downstairs, growing more distant.
Xuan Congnan heard Shen Qian pause midway, probably looking at his bedroom door.
When all noises ceased, Xuan Congnan tiptoed to open the door and peek outside. Shen Qian was truly gone.
He turned on the light, and the living room brightened again. Both he and Gu Shi squinted.
Xuan Congnan quickly recovered and said, “Sorry, didn’t scare you, right?”
“No,” Gu Shi called out, “South.”
“Hm?”
“Have you thought about moving?”
“I have, but there’s more than just him looking for me. Tonight just added an ex-boyfriend,” Xuan Congnan picked up the half-eaten shrimp fried rice, now a bit cold and regrettable, and said, “No matter where I move, I won’t find peace. Besides, the rent here is cheap.”
He didn’t mention exactly how cheap—only 450 yuan a month—fearing Gu Shi might feel uneasy, so his voice wavered when he said it.
“Mm,” Gu Shi replied.
“Finish your food. Don’t waste it.”
“I won’t.”
“You’re painting a fiery sunset cloud,” Gu Shi suddenly said.
“Hm?”
Following Gu Shi’s gaze, Xuan Congnan looked at the unfinished oil painting by the window and said, “Yeah.”
Gu Shi had noticed the vivid painting as soon as he entered but held back questions, worried Xuan Congnan might be hungry.
“It’s the sunset from this evening,” Gu Shi said.
“Uh-huh.”
“I took a photo. I wanted to send it to you then, but you were painting,” Gu Shi said, sending the photo from the car’s back seat on his way to work.
It was a beautiful natural scene.
“Not too late to send it now,” Xuan Congnan said happily.
With plenty of memory on his new phone, he saved the photo by long-pressing.
“Is this painting finished?”
“No.”
“How much longer?”
“Uh… about three hours.”
“Where do you keep finished paintings?”
“I don’t really keep my own paintings,” Xuan Congnan said oddly, then added without formality, “I sell them.”
“Do you have an online store?”
After finishing the two servings of fried rice, Xuan Congnan bagged the trash in a plastic bag and nodded, “Yeah, I have one.”
“Will this painting be sold there?”
“Yes.”
“How much?”
“Eight hundred yuan,” Xuan Congnan priced it without hesitation.
“Your work is so good. Why so cheap?” Gu Shi felt it undervalued.
“Eight hundred is already expensive for most people,” Xuan Congnan said. “This one will take maybe six hours at most. It’s simple.”
“Do longer paintings cost more?”
Xuan Congnan packed the trash by the door to throw out during tomorrow’s morning run. “Yeah.”
“How much more?”
“Eighteen thousand yuan,” Xuan Congnan said.
“How long did that one take?”
“About a month and a half.”
“What did you paint on it?”
Finishing up his work, Xuan Congnan looked back at Gu Shi and said, “You ask a lot of questions.”
Gu Shi realized and lowered his gaze apologetically, “Sorry.”
“It’s the deep blue sea in the center,” Xuan Congnan said. “Nothing special.”
Gu Shi pointed at the fiery sunset oil painting by the window. “Sell this to me. I’ll pay fifty-two thousand.”
Xuan Congnan: “???”
Shocked, he exclaimed, “What?!”
Gu Shi’s expression was serious, without a hint of joking, even seeming desperate for Xuan Congnan not to refuse. “Sell it to me.”
“No… you…” Xuan Congnan couldn’t bear it. Feeling sorry, he stared at him and said, “Not counting time costs, the material costs for this painting are probably only 250 yuan.”
“Are you calling me 250?” Gu Shi asked.
Xuan Congnan immediately shook his head. “No!”
“Mm. I’m willing to pay 250,” Gu Shi insisted. “Sell it to me. When you finish it, I want to take it home and treasure it.”