The three of them entered the clubhouse and headed straight to the pre-booked billiard room upstairs.
Perhaps tiring of the chatter, the two men at the front started to lean closer to the man in the middle with playful smiles on their face.
"Bro, it's such a good day today. How about we hit the pub tonight? It's been attracting quite a few girls lately, all types you can imagine."
As he spoke, the younger brother's expression grew more lewd, he flung his arm over the man's neck, hinting discreetly by bringing his face close to the man's.
The man glanced at him indifferently, then returned his gaze to the path ahead.
"Not interested."
"Aye, don't be like this, Brother Nanchen. I always thought that you've been living like an impotent because you haven't met someone you like." After the expected answer, the youngest brother sighed and added.
"Let me tell you, when you meet someone you like, impotence? You can get aroused just by looking." The youngest brother continued to give his "guidance" with an arm around the man, his conversation turning increasingly explicit.
Such coarse words did not elicit any reaction from the man, who continued towards the destination.
It was rather the other man who seemed to be intrigued. He hooked the corner of his mouth into a smile and adjusted his gold-framed glasses.
"I wonder which woman will be able to put up with your 26-year-old single life."
"But didn't you get married a while ago? I heard both sets of parents arranged a simple ceremony." The second brother placed his hand on his cheek, drumming his fingers against his skin as he mentioned the news he had heard at the bar few days ago.
Compared to the youngest brother's lively chatter, the second brother was more reserved, his hair held back with gel and a few strands hanging over his forehead. With his pair of glasses, he carried an air of a lost cause.
However, even he wasn't as reserved as Lu Nanchen. Upon hearing what Song Yue, the second brother, said, he showed a rare change in expression.
At an average height of 180cm, the trio moved quickly and arrived at their destination in no time. The second brother let go of Lu Nanchen, pushed open the door of the billiard room.
Click.
"Really? Someone actually convinced Brother Nanchen?"
"What's so great about that? Those little girls are naive. His kind should have been tackled by the parents. Works every time." Song Yue nonchalantly responded as he stepped in and picked up a billiard cue from the side, rubbing it slightly with an eager gleam in his eyes.
Just like it was an established habit, Lu Nanchen entered the room, didn't spare a glance at the pool cues, but went straight to sit in a spot near the billiard table. His legs neatly rested on the tiled floor, and his hands gripped a thermos cup.
In winter, it contained hot water, in summer, lukewarm water.
Ding Dong.
A text message alert came from his pocket.
Lu Nanchen put his cup on the side table and checked his phone.
The message showed: 181××××××××
[Brother Nanchen, Beibei took sleeping pills. It seems she did this because she found out you're going to teach at Chang Ming University and didn't want to see you at school...]
Before he could digest the message, a series of 'Ding Dong's notified him of incoming messages.
[Brother Nanchen, please don't blame Beibei. She is young and impulsive.]
[Please don't let this incident affect your marriage. I hope you both will be well.]
The messages were followed by a few cliche love quotes that looked like they were found on the internet.
The general message was.
If you divorce, the next one will be better.
Lu Nanchen gazed at the unfamiliar number that sent the message and read the first sentence again.
"Ugh, if it weren't for that face, who could bear his temperament? He lives like a monk, detached and desireless." While hunching over the pool table to line up a shot, the second brother lamented.
All the words fell on Lu Nanchen's ears.
There wasn't much of a visible reaction from him. He put his phone back into his pocket, picked up his thermos cup, and unscrewed the lid.
After blowing on his drink a few times, he took a sip.
Boring.