What young person goes out to have fun without wanting to take lots of photos to post on Moments?
At least Xia Yiyang did.
He’d been working hard making ice jelly for over half a month, and now that he could finally splurge a little and go out, of course he wanted to take a ton of photos to show off to his classmates. Mount Everest, Heavenly Lake, Huangguoshu Falls—none of them could compare to fluffy pandas and his own handsome, dashing self.
But plans were grand and reality was harsh—his travel companion had absolutely zero photography talent.
The young master flipped through the photos on his phone: blinking, head tilted, fringe parted, headband crooked. The few shots where his face was decent had boring backgrounds that made them look like they were taken in the residential park near his front door.
The more Xia Yiyang looked, the more despair he felt. He really shouldn’t have had any expectations for Sheng Lin’s photography skills.
Take the simplest example: their shop offered delivery services, and the photos of each product on the app had all been taken by Sheng Lin. The ice jelly was shot from directly above, with no composition or color coordination—white table topped with disposable takeout boxes that made everything look completely unappetizing.
Later, Xia Yiyang had taken over the food photography. He’d put the ice jelly in beautiful glass bowls, set them on bamboo tables, add a plate of fruit on the side, and shoot in the softest morning light… then color-correct on his phone for clean, crisp images. Sales had gone up as a result.
Now back to the topic at hand—if Sheng Lin couldn’t even take a decent photo of a bowl of ice jelly, how could he be expected to take one of a person?
Xia Yiyang put his phone away, deciding that out of sight was out of mind. He couldn’t very well get mad at his boss for taking ugly photos—after all, his salary still came from Sheng Lin.
Whatever. As a magnanimous person, he’d just curse his boss silently in his head.
He thought he’d hidden his disappointment well, but Sheng Lin still keenly sensed his unhappiness.
By now, they’d left the enclosure of the first internet-famous panda and were walking along the path toward the second. The crowd had thinned out considerably—no more body-to-body contact—and Xia Yiyang no longer needed to be shielded in Sheng Lin’s arms like a little baby.
The distance between them was neither close nor far. Sheng Lin only had to look down to see the dejected expression on the young man’s face.
“Why are you so quiet?” Sheng Lin wasn’t good at guessing thoughts, so he just asked directly. “Weren’t you happy just a moment ago watching the giant pandas?”
Xia Yiyang naturally denied it: “No, I’m still happy now.”
Sheng Lin suggested: “Then go stand by that panda statue over there—I’ll take a few more photos of you.”
Xia Yiyang’s mouth twitched. “…That’s really not necessary.”
Sheng Lin frowned and was about to press further on what he’d done to displease the young master—but before he could speak, he was interrupted by a couple nearby.
The couple looked to be around twenty—probably college students, still in the honeymoon phase of campus romance. The girl had flawless makeup and was wearing a full European-style poofy dress (Xia Yiyang: “That’s called a Lolita dress, Boss—you’re so out of touch!”) and was sweating profusely in the scorching heat. The guy was holding a Polaroid in his left hand, a CCD camera dangling from his right, and a DSLR slung around his neck.
They heard the guy say: “Babe, why are you upset again?”
The girl stamped her foot: “You really don’t know why I’m upset?”
The guy looked clueless: “I really don’t know.”
The girl was furious: “Look at the photos you took—you made me look like some kind of monster!”
Xia Yiyang: “Uh.”
Sheng Lin: “?”
The guy hurried to soothe her: “Babe, don’t have appearance anxiety! You’re the most beautiful!”
The girl laughed in exasperation: “First of all, I am beautiful. Second, I don’t have appearance anxiety—your photography skills are what’s making me anxious!”
Xia Yiyang: “…”
Sheng Lin: “…”
The girl: “Tell me—why is there no panda in this photo of me and the panda?”
The guy: “But you taught me that when taking photos, the scenery doesn’t matter—only you matter. The panda can’t compare to you!”
The girl: “Ha! Ha! Ha! But you didn’t even make me look pretty!”
Wait—was the topic of their argument really that… relatable?
Xia Yiyang had heard before that amusement parks were the ultimate test of a couple’s relationship. If a girl dressed up to the nines and her boyfriend’s photos turned out like garbage, they might even break up over it.
Xia Yiyang instinctively glanced at Sheng Lin beside him. At the same moment, Sheng Lin was also looking down at him.
Sheng Lin seemed to realize something: “So you were upset earlier because of the photos I took—”
“No, no, who said that, don’t overthink it.” Xia Yiyang denied it vehemently. “I think your photos are great.”
The young master had no idea that every time he lied, his eyes would dart to the side.
Just then, the argument between the couple nearby escalated further.
The guy had been soothing her for so long that his patience finally ran out: “You always say my photos look bad, but at least I have a good attitude!”
“What good is a good attitude?” The girl said defiantly. “I bet I could grab any random guy off the street and he’d take better photos than you!”
“The hell you can! Go ahead, go find one!”
The girl’s gaze swept around and landed on Sheng Lin and Xia Yiyang, who were watching the commotion by the roadside. Her eyes darted quickly between their faces and outfits, lit up—and she actually started walking toward them.
“Little brother, could you please take a few photos for me?” the girl asked with poise and grace.
Xia Yiyang hadn’t expected that just watching the drama would drag him into it. But he was always confident in his photography skills, and he was indeed eager to show off in front of Sheng Lin.
“Sure.” The young man asked her, “Which spot do you want? How about that panda statue over there? The lighting’s good—soft and flattering, basically natural airbrushing.”
The smile on the girl’s face was impossible to contain: “Yes, let’s do that!”
The girl thought: Listen to how professional he sounds—she had a feeling she was about to get the best photos of her life!
As the two of them headed toward the statue, Sheng Lin suddenly spoke up: “Xia Yiyang, let me hold your bag for you.”
For this trip, Xia Yiyang had brought a crossbody sports bag. The two bottles of water they’d bought at the gate were inside, making it quite heavy.
Xia Yiyang thought it over—having a bag on him would indeed be inconvenient for photos—but it didn’t feel right to make his boss hold it: “Never mind, I’ll just hang it on that tree branch over there.”
Sheng Lin didn’t say another word. He simply extended his hand toward the young man, making it clear with action that he was definitely more useful than a tree branch.
Xia Yiyang’s refusal failed, and he could only hand over the bag.
Seeing this, the girl shot a sharp look at her boyfriend.
The boyfriend: “Huh? What did I do wrong now?”
The girl and Xia Yiyang headed to the panda statue together. It was nine in the morning, and soft sunlight filtered through the trees, scattering into dappled spots on the ground. Xia Yiyang crouched down slightly, expertly set his phone camera to 3x zoom, lowered the contrast to prevent overexposure, turned on Live mode, and began guiding the girl through various poses.
“I got this one… got it… tilt your head down just a little, not too much or you’ll get a double chin… when you turn your head, rotate your upper body too… your hat, the hat’s crooked… Sis, you’re so pretty, don’t be mad at your boyfriend—you should smile more.”
He knew exactly which angles to use and had a witty way of speaking. In no time, he’d taken over a dozen photos for the girl—all top-quality, the kind that just needed a little arm-slimming and face-tweaking in post to become profile picture material.
The girl beamed at her phone, complimenting him repeatedly: “Little brother, you take such great photos. When I saw you and your friend standing together earlier, both dressed so stylishly, I knew you’d have great photography skills.”
“You’re giving me too much credit—I’m the only one who takes good photos here. His are terrible, not a single one is presentable.” Since the boss wasn’t around, Xia Yiyang let loose with his complaints. “And that trendy-looking tie he’s wearing? I picked that out. His wardrobe is so boring—when our clothes are hung together, my side is all colorful, and his side is nothing but black and white.”
“Really?” The girl looked surprised. “I thought all gay guys took great photos.”
Xia Yiyang’s pupils dilated in shock. “…?”
Wait—did he just hear something absolutely wild? Or was this some Sichuan dialect term he hadn’t learned yet—something like “gay” or “gei” that sounded similar to that English word?
Before he could react, the girl continued consolingly: “So it seems boyfriends are equally annoying all over the world. But your boyfriend did take the initiative to carry your bag for you—at least he’s got eyes for work.”
Xia Yiyang’s face flushed bright red in an instant—he hadn’t misheard this time; she’d said “boyfriend”! She’d actually mistaken him and Sheng Lin for…
The young master stammered out a denial: “He and I aren’t… he’s not my boyfriend, he’s my bo—”
“Husband?” The girl blinked. “Wow, shipping is easier than breathing.”
“…” Xia Yiyang couldn’t have cleared up the misunderstanding even if he had eight mouths!
In the distance, Sheng Lin stood holding Xia Yiyang’s bag, watching the direction of the young man and the girl from afar. Whatever the girl had said, the young master seemed rather flustered.
Beside him, the girl’s boyfriend struck up a conversation: “Bro, your outfit today is pretty stylish—where’d you get that tie? Got a link? …Hey bro, where are you going?”
Sheng Lin tilted his chin toward the nearby convenience stand, his tone dismissive—clearly not interested in small talk with a stranger: “Buying something.”
The boyfriend assumed he was going to buy cigarettes and followed him to the stand. Unexpectedly, Sheng Lin walked around and only took a panda-shaped popsicle out of the freezer.
Snacks at tourist spots were always overpriced—plain sugar-water ice pops that sold for two yuan outside went for ten here, and the panda-shaped popsicle was tagged at thirty-eight.
After paying, Sheng Lin picked up the popsicle and headed toward Xia Yiyang’s direction.
As he got closer, he could see the deep flush on Xia Yiyang’s face more clearly. The young man was stammering out some explanation to the girl.
“Xia Yiyang,” Sheng Lin called his name. “Are you done with the photos? Take a break.”
The young man hadn’t expected him to come over and froze: “Are you tired of waiting?”
“No.” Sheng Lin said. “I came to bring you a popsicle.”
Xia Yiyang immediately recognized the popsicle in Sheng Lin’s hand—he’d seen it at the stand earlier. A thirty-eight-yuan popsicle was definitely not cheap. In the past, the young master could have bought it without a second thought, but now he was a working stiff, spending his own hard-earned money, so of course it hurt to splurge.
“Why’d you buy such an expensive popsicle?” Xia Yiyang felt bad about the money, his voice soft. “I still have water in my bag.”
“The water’s not cold anymore.” Sheng Lin was afraid he’d refuse, so he tore open the wrapper and handed it directly to him. “When you’re out having fun, money doesn’t matter—your happiness does.”
The moment he finished speaking, the girl standing across from Xia Yiyang gave him a knowing wink.
The young master thought in despair: She definitely shipped them easily again.
But with Sheng Lin right there, Xia Yiyang was even more reluctant to bring up that topic with the girl, so he could only lower his head and quietly bite into the popsicle.
The popsicle was shaped like a chibi panda holding a bamboo stalk. Xia Yiyang bit off half the panda’s head—and his eyes lit up. Though expensive, this tourist attraction popsicle was actually made with real quality ingredients! The black parts were rich chocolate, the white parts were cream, but the bamboo part had a faint, grassy taste he couldn’t quite place.
The flavor was both familiar and unfamiliar. Xia Yiyang couldn’t help letting out an “Eh?” and stuck out his tongue to lick it again.
Sheng Lin, who’d been watching his expression closely, asked: “What’s wrong? Not good?”
Xia Yiyang quickly said: “No, no, it’s really good. But I can’t figure out what the green part is.”
Sheng Lin: “Matcha, probably.”
“No,” Xia Yiyang said without thinking, casually handing the popsicle over. “Why don’t you try it?”
The young master’s thought process was simple: Sheng Lin was in the dessert business and had tried far more desserts than he had—he’d definitely be able to identify the flavor.
Sheng Lin looked down at the popsicle being offered to him. The soft, cute panda was already missing half its head, and the green bamboo stalk bore a faint ring of teeth marks.
The man leaned down, his thin lips pressing over that ring of teeth marks, and took a gentle bite.
The popsicle melted on his tongue—the taste of summer itself.
Xia Yiyang didn’t know what was wrong with him. He’d been the one to offer the popsicle, but when Sheng Lin bent down, his mind went blank for a few seconds. Too close—they were too close—close enough that he could see the little cowlick at the crown of Sheng Lin’s head as he lowered it.
Everything unfolding before him seemed to slow down, caught in a moment stretched across time. In that single breath of a second, he watched the man bite down on the exact spot his own lips had just touched, hold it, his Adam’s apple bob as he swallowed.
“It’s pandan.”
Sheng Lin straightened up and spoke, and time suddenly snapped back to normal.
“…What?”
“A specialty plant from Southeast Asia—pandan.” Sheng Lin replied. “It has a distinctive grassy aroma. We have it in the kitchen as a backup ingredient, but we rarely use it. If you like it, I’ll add some next time I make you tofu pudding.”
“…Oh.”
Pand—what?
What—dan?
It didn’t matter.
Xia Yiyang was in a daze, completely oblivious to the girl beside him wearing a “shipping it so hard” expression as she watched him feed Sheng Lin the popsicle.
He wolfed down the rest of the popsicle in a few bites, barely registering the taste—though it was definitely good.
Meanwhile, the girl had already shown her boyfriend all of Xia Yiyang’s masterpieces, lecturing him sternly to learn from the example and never take ugly photos again.
After finishing her lecture, she thought for a moment, pulled out her Polaroid camera, and offered: “Thank you for taking so many photos for me earlier. I happen to have a Polaroid—let me take a group shot of you two.”
Sheng Lin looked at the red camera in her hand. “What’s a Polaroid?”
The girl replied: “You can take it literally—you get a physical photo immediately after taking it. The effect is different from phone photos—it’s special, very memorable.”
Xia Yiyang knew what a Polaroid was—the girls in his high school class had them: “I remember the film for those is pretty expensive, right?”
The girl covered her mouth with a smile and repeated what Sheng Lin had said earlier: “When you’re out having fun, money doesn’t matter—your happiness does.”
Xia Yiyang: “…”
Under the girl’s “encouragement,” Sheng Lin and Xia Yiyang stood in front of the panda statue.
Strangely enough, Xia Yiyang had been full of advice on posing when he was taking photos for the girl—but now that it was his turn, he could only stand there stupidly flashing a peace sign.
It must have been because the person standing next to him was all wrong.
“Get ready—I’m taking it now——” the girl said. “I’ll count to three—three…”
Xia Yiyang stole a glance at Sheng Lin beside him. Seeing the man standing firm, looking straight ahead, he quietly stood on his tiptoes.
The girl: “Two…”
Just then, a gust of wind blew through. Xia Yiyang felt a looseness on his head—the panda headband was about to be blown off!
Before he could react, Sheng Lin’s hand reached out and steadied the wobbling headband with precision. He froze, turning his head to look at Sheng Lin.
The girl: “One!”
—The flash went off, freezing that moment in time.
The camera whirred and spat out a piece of film.
“Oh no!” The girl’s voice was full of regret. “Why did that wind have to come right before I pressed the shutter?”
Sheng Lin asked: “We both moved just now—does that mean the photo is ruined?”
The girl said cheerfully: “Even if it’s ruined, it’s no big deal—I’ll just take another one for you.”
Xia Yiyang didn’t want her to spend extra film and reassured her: “Maybe the photo turned out fine.”
Polaroid film takes a moment to develop. Xia Yiyang carefully held it up to the sunlight, and soon, faint colors began to emerge on the paper.
In front of the adorable panda statue, two figures stood side by side. Sunlight, fractured by the leaves, fell tenderly on their shoulders and kissed the tips of their hair. A gentle breeze stirred the young man’s hair, and the man naturally reached out to steady the panda headband that was about to topple. The moment their eyes met—light and shadow froze in place.
In that moment, even the light was gentle, and the wind was gentle.
“No, no, no!” The girl’s boyfriend shook his head repeatedly. “Brothers, you’re both so handsome, but in this photo neither of you is looking at the camera—only your side profiles. Might as well retake it?”
Before he’d even finished, his girlfriend elbowed him hard.
The boyfriend: “?”
The girl: “Straight men who don’t know photography should keep their low opinions to themselves, thanks.”
The boyfriend: “???”
Xia Yiyang stared at the photo, feeling that the person in it looked a little unfamiliar.
So… this was the expression he had on his face when he looked at Sheng Lin?
He was about to study it more closely when a large, well-defined hand reached out from beside him and took the Polaroid photo.
“I’ll keep it,” Sheng Lin said. “It’ll fit perfectly in my wallet.”
Xia Yiyang thought: These days everyone pays with their phones—who still uses a wallet? He’d never even seen Sheng Lin use one.
He asked suspiciously: “Boss, you have a wallet?”
The man replied: “I can have one.”
“?”
—————————
“Boss, are you gay?”
“I can be.”
[Wicked grin][Wicked grin][Wicked grin][Wicked grin]
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