AD Chapter 3

[Dreamy Affection: Can you promise me?]

Shen Du stared at the message, slightly dazed. He had thought it would be something serious.

He replied quickly: [Of course.]

[Dreamy Affection: I mean privately.]

[Dreamy Affection: Before sending any photos to your fans.]

Shen Du had just typed out, “I’ll let you know first thing after I post on Weibo,” but upon seeing these messages, he deleted the draft entirely.

[Shen°: You mean you want me to send you a private photo?]

[Dreamy Affection: Yes.]

Hmm, it wasn’t unreasonable.
It wasn’t like it was some kind of personal secret.

Perhaps because Shen Du agreed so readily, Dreamy Affection, feeling pleased, dropped two Star Seas in his stream.

The Star Sea was the most expensive gift on KooCatTV, the streaming platform where Shen Du worked, worth 10,000 yuan each.

Back when Shen Du had just started streaming, he wasn’t very popular and had accidentally offended a big streamer on the platform. Still a high schooler at the time, Shen Du endured two months of relentless online abuse. His stream’s chat was filled with nasty comments, and it was during this dark period that Dreamy Affection descended like a deity, showering his stream with gifts. For days, he kept sending gifts until Shen Du’s stream became the talk of the platform, catapulting both Shen Du and Dreamy Affection into fame.

The Star Sea, being the platform’s priciest gift, triggered a full-screen notification that was broadcasted on both the chat and the platform homepage. The visual effect of stars blanketed the abusive comments, replacing them with positivity. Under the glowing banner of his ID, Dreamy Affection simply chatted with Shen Du, saying he liked his voice.

From that moment on, Dreamy Affection and Shen Du’s IDs became legendary in the streaming community.

Many other streamers came to woo Dreamy Affection, even openly confessing in their streams, but no matter what anyone did, Dreamy Affection’s fan badge remained loyal to Shen Du’s stream.

Later, Shen Du privately messaged Dreamy Affection, saying he didn’t need so much money and felt undeserving of the gifts, offering to refund the money. But Dreamy Affection refused, saying he didn’t lack money and insisted that Shen Du keep it. If Shen Du truly felt guilty, Dreamy Affection suggested he could repay him by singing.

Spending hundreds of thousands for a non-professional streamer to sing—it was hard to tell if Dreamy Affection was eccentric or simply too wealthy. Shen Du marked him as a mystery in his mind.

In the end, Shen Du donated all the money to charity, crediting Dreamy Affection as the donor. He never told anyone about it but continued to sing in his streams as promised.

Initially, the two of them would chat through the stream’s chat box. But as Shen Du’s popularity grew and his fanbase expanded, Dreamy Affection became less talkative, only occasionally popping in to show his presence.

Because of this connection, Shen Du had always seen Dreamy Affection as a friend on the other side of the screen. Even when he learned that Dreamy Affection was gay, he wasn’t bothered by it.

[Shen°: Why are you sending gifts again? Letting the platform take a cut for nothing.]

As expected, Dreamy Affection didn’t reply. Shen Du was used to this by now—every time he brought this up, Dreamy Affection would go “offline.”

While interacting with his chat, Shen Du typed: [When do you have time? Let’s play a game together. I’ll carry you.]

[Dreamy Affection: Sure.]

As expected, when the topic changed, the reply came instantly.
Shen Du chuckled: [Voice chat?]

[Dreamy Affection: You talk. I’ll listen.]

This answer didn’t surprise Shen Du. After knowing Dreamy Affection for three years, he had a decent understanding of his personality.
—He was open about liking Shen Du, but his actions never crossed the line.

Dreamy Affection was someone with clear boundaries. It wasn’t so much that he liked Shen Du as a person but rather that he genuinely appreciated Shen Du’s voice.

Dreamy Affection never pried into Shen Du’s private life, but Shen Du, on the other hand, would occasionally vent to him when he needed someone to talk to—as long as Dreamy Affection happened to be online.

This was also one of the reasons Shen Du didn’t mind that Dreamy Affection was gay.

After wrapping up the chat, Shen Du exchanged a few casual words with the viewers and prepared to end his stream. At this hour, the usual chaos next door should be starting.

Sure enough, not long after he shut down his computer, the sound of a door slamming echoed down the hallway, followed by a piercing scream.

Here we go again.

Shen Du sighed, pulling out his earphones and putting them on indifferently.

The next day, Xu Qingluo was heading home, and Shen Du took him to the airport.

“Brother Shen, are you really not going back with me?”

Shen Du replied decisively, “No.”

There was no one at home. What was the point of going back? It didn’t matter where he stayed, and Yun City was as good a place as any.

“My lease is almost up. I’m planning to move this month,” Shen Du said.
Xu Qingluo hadn’t expected this. “Moving? Because of those horrible neighbors? You should’ve told me earlier. I wouldn’t have gone back. I could’ve stayed to help you.”

Shen Du had been renting his current apartment for nearly two years. The facilities were nice, and it was close to his school, so he had always been satisfied. But two months ago, a couple moved in next door. Whatever issues they had, they argued loudly every night. The commotion was so bad that several neighbors complained to property management and even called the police, but it was useless.

On top of that, the couple was incredibly messy, leaving their trash in the hallway for days without taking it out. If anyone kindly reminded them, they’d respond with hostility, accusing others of meddling in their business.

Even someone like Xu Qingluo, who only visited every few weeks, was fed up with them.

Xu Qingluo was about to turn around with his suitcase and walk back when Shen Du pushed him forward with one hand.

Shen Du was taller and stronger, leaving Xu Qingluo with no room to resist.

“Aren’t you supposed to visit your grandparents?” Shen Du raised an eyebrow.

“I could go back a little later,” Xu Qingluo said.

“Don’t. It’s all set, and you don’t want to let them down. You coming back won’t help anyway—I already hired movers. All I have to do is supervise,” Shen Du said, firmly ushering both him and his suitcase into the security line. “Stop worrying about me and just go.”

Xu Qingluo looked back every few steps, still concerned. “Call me if you need anything. I can catch a flight back right away.”

Shen Du clicked his tongue, shoving one hand into his pocket. “Just watch where you’re going.”

It wasn’t until Xu Qingluo was completely out of sight that Shen Du turned and walked outside. At the entrance, he flagged down a cab. Just as he got in, his phone pinged with a message. It was from Yi’s Tattoo Studio.

[Yi’s Tattoo Studio: Sorry for the delayed response, sir. We were busy this morning. How can we assist you?]

Shen Du rolled down the window a bit, told the driver his destination, and breathed in the fresh air outside as he typed:
[No need. It’s already resolved.]

As soon as the message was sent, the status changed to “Typing…” but no reply came for a long while. The other party probably didn’t know how to respond.

At that moment, a message from the landlord popped up:
[Mr. Shen, your lease will expire in five days. Would you like to renew it?]

Shen Du had a slight cleanliness obsession and didn’t like sharing his space. For the sake of streaming convenience, he had moved out during his freshman year. Back then, Mrs. Yao Meiyuan had suggested buying him a property in Yun City, but Shen Du had refused.

He didn’t plan to settle in Yun City after graduation, so buying a place here felt wasteful. Renting was fine—if he wasn’t happy with it, he could always move.

[°: No need. I’ll be moving out in a couple of days.]

After replying to the landlord, Yi’s Tattoo Studio had sent another message:
[Got it. If you have any issues later, feel free to reach out! 😊]

“Shoosh…”

Niao Niao swiveled her chair to the entryway and called inside, “Brother Qin, Mr. 51 said he’s busy moving and might not be available for the next week. What should we do?”

The studio wasn’t open for business yet, so aside from a few tattoo artists, there weren’t many people around.

Hearing this, Xiang Nan suddenly looked up. “Mr. 51? Who’s that?”

“A client from yesterday,” Niao Niao explained.

“Oh, a client,” Xiang Nan yawned, quickly losing interest. “If he’s not free this week, then next week. What else can we do?”

Niao Niao didn’t respond, staring at her phone and waiting for Qin Yi’s input.

Qin Yi, who had been sketching designs on the sofa with a pencil in hand, didn’t show much expression and simply replied with a soft “Hmm.”

That was confirmation enough.

Niao Niao began drafting a reply. Just as she finished rehearsing what to say, a voice came from above her. “Remind him of the aftercare instructions again.”

At some point, Qin Yi had walked over and was now looking down at Niao Niao’s chat screen.

Seeing the profile picture of the other party, Qin Yi suddenly recalled the young man’s pale face. In that state, it was likely the man hadn’t taken in much of what he said. Something must have happened yesterday—otherwise, he wouldn’t have sent a message so late at night. Fortunately, it didn’t seem too serious.

Shen Du ate a bowl of noodles at a diner downstairs and went upstairs before the day got too hot.

It was Saturday, and first thing in the morning, the couple next door had started arguing again. The noise was unbearable. Half the reason Shen Du had gotten up early to take Xu Qingluo to the airport was to get away from them.

After a round trip to the airport, several hours had passed, but the couple was still at it. In fact, the fight seemed even louder now.

Without even stepping out of the elevator, Shen Du hit the button for the first floor.

In an internet café, Shen Du ordered an iced Coke, sat in a gaming chair, and sent a message to a real estate agent.

[°: Can I view apartments today?]

While waiting for a reply from the real estate agent, Shen Du, bored out of his mind, opened every app on his phone one by one. The iced Coke on the table bubbled quietly, with water droplets sliding down the side of the glass and pooling on the tabletop.

Shen Du bit down on his straw and opened the CoolCat app, finding Dreamy Affection’s chat window.

At the same time, in the Yi Tattoo Studio.

Qin Yi was finishing up his work. The weather was still cool, as it was early in the day, and the studio hadn’t turned on the air conditioning yet. Xiang Nan and the others had brought in a small fan, which blew gently through the room.

The breeze occasionally billowed Qin Yi’s shirt hem. He pressed down the restless sketch paper on the table and noticed his phone screen lighting up beside him.

He hadn’t planned to check it immediately, but when he saw the CoolCat app icon, he still reached for it.

[Shen°: Damn it, my neighbors are so annoying.]
[Shen°: I’ll probably be busy moving these days. Let’s talk about gaming in a few days.]

As soon as Qin Yi unlocked his phone, these two messages popped up.

Moving?
Qin Yi raised an eyebrow slightly, recalling what Niao Niao had just mentioned. He tapped his pencil lightly against the sketchpad—a habitual gesture when he was thinking.

The messages from Shen° inevitably made Qin Yi connect him with the 051 customer from yesterday.

The sound of Shen°‘s voice during his usual streams replayed in his mind, followed by the voice of the 051 customer. Comparing the two, he didn’t notice any significant difference.

Just as Qin Yi was about to dismiss it as overthinking, a low, suppressed groan suddenly echoed in his memory.

Qin Yi froze mid-motion. After a brief moment of contemplation, he got up and went to the front desk to ask Niao Niao for the customer logbook.

To facilitate follow-up visits, every client who got a tattoo at the studio had to fill out a form, including their name and contact information.

Found it.
Qin Yi’s finger landed on the last name on the page.

The handwriting was bold and unrestrained.

Shen Du.

Shen Du, Shen°, tattoo yesterday, moving today.
Qin Yi’s gaze lingered on the name in the logbook. Could there really be such a coincidence in the world?