Amateur talent show? Top mentors are my students.

That same phrase again.

Time stretched out for a very long time in that instant.

Looking at the face opposite him, He Xu felt that this person was really "heartless".

You heartless bastard, you haven't come back for so long.

You have no conscience, only coming back now.

But then he suddenly wondered, did he deserve to say those words?

Their relationship was pure, even too pure—they were drinking buddies.

He was not yet twenty years old at that time, and Jiang Yanbai had only recently returned to China.

One of them was the youngest "devil coach" at a sports club, and the other was a rookie in the entertainment industry, and somehow they ended up together.

It was probably because Jiang Yanbai was attending a class at Banxing for the first time and was severely scolded by He Xu.

Instead of getting angry, he cheerfully chased after He Xu into the corridor to add him on WeChat.

"You're quite an interesting person." Jiang Yanbai was leaning against the wall at the time, his eyes, which had a strong mixed-race look, held a kind of persistence. "You're so good at cursing people. Curse me more often in the future."

Looking at his excessively handsome face, He Xu wondered if this person was mentally ill.

Later, He Xu discovered that Jiang Yanbai was not only mentally ill, but his illness was quite sophisticated.

The first layer is "I really like you, that's why I'm clinging to you."

The second layer is "the more you scold me, the more excited I get".

The third layer is something He Xu still doesn't understand—"Why can't someone as outstanding as me possess you?"

He seemed to have developed a pet-like affection for He Xu and took pleasure in teasing him.

That's fucking perverted.

Anyway, from then on, Jiang Yanbai became a regular at the entrance of He Xu's practice room.

Unlike regular students who attend classes on time, he comes at no particular schedule.

Sometimes it was after the evening performance, sometimes it was 11 p.m., and sometimes He Xu had already turned off the lights in the practice room and was about to leave when the door was suddenly pushed open a crack and a light brown head poked in.

"Xiao Xu, let's go have a drink."

He Xu's voice was still good back then, and drinking was a regular occurrence for him.

He picked up his coat and went out with Jiang Yanbai. The two of them randomly found a roadside stall or a private little bar that Jiang Yanbai knew, and sat there until two or three in the morning.

He Xu's alcohol tolerance is actually not bad, but in front of Jiang Yanbai, he always seems to "not be able to drink".

He Xu later realized that this person had done it on purpose from the very beginning.

Every time they ordered drinks, Jiang Yanbai would first order two bottles of what he was used to drinking, then slowly turn to He Xu and ask, "What do you want to drink?"

He Xu said it was up to him.

Jiang Yanbai would order the whole set.

Beer, shochu, whiskey, all kinds of alcohol content mixed together, are displayed on the table like a small exhibition.

Then he would raise an eyebrow at He Xu with an expression that said, "I ordered all of this for you."

He Xu was young and impetuous at the time, and he started drinking after being provoked by Jiang Yanbai's "Are you sure you can handle this?" look.

In the first round of beer, the two of them chugged it straight from the bottle.

Jiang Yanbai drank slowly, while He Xu drank quickly. After finishing one bottle, Jiang Yanbai had only drunk half of it when He Xu realized he had been led into a trap.

In the second round of liquor, Jiang Yanbai began to clink glasses with him.

One cup after another, the rhythm was so steady it was like hitting the beat, He Xu couldn't stop even if he wanted to.

The effects of baijiu are strong. By the time He Xu realized what was happening, he was already leaning back on the sofa, his vision starting to blur.

The third round of neat whisky drinking was the final stage in He Xu's memory.

After that, things became blurry. He only remembered Jiang Yanbai sitting across from him, twirling a wine glass in his hand, looking at him with an extremely calm gaze, and asking, "Xiao Xu, can you still drink?"

He Xu's ears were red and his neck was burning from the alcohol, and he looked like he had been soaked in hot water. He mumbled something indistinct: "Who the hell do you think you are?"

Then he took another sip from the cup.

Then his memory was cut off.

When He Xu regained consciousness, he was already squatting next to the bar's trash can, vomiting.

My stomach was churning, I was hunched over, one hand on the wall and the other clutching my stomach, vomiting until tears streamed down my face.

Jiang Yanbai squatted down next to him, holding a bottle of mineral water in one hand and placing the other hand on his back, stroking it gently.

"You..." Jiang Yanbai's voice carried a helpless smile, "If you can't drink, don't drink so hard. You just have to force yourself."

After spitting out the last mouthful, He Xu turned his head and glared at him fiercely: "...You fucking talk back to me? Who ordered the whiskey?"

"I ordered it, but I didn't let you finish the whole bottle," Jiang Yanbai said innocently. "You insisted on clinking glasses with me; I couldn't stop you."

He Xu wanted to curse him, but the nausea rising in his stomach prevented him from saying a word. He could only lower his head and dry heave twice.

Jiang Yanbai handed over the bottled water in his hand: "Drink less of it in the future."

He Xu opened one eye and turned his head to look at him: "Stop it. You're the one who always orders the drinks, why are you pretending to be a good guy?"

Jiang Yanbai smiled and said, "It's my business what I order, and it's your business what you drink. But seeing you throw up like this breaks my heart."

He Xu was taken aback by those words, remaining silent for several seconds before finally speaking: "...Can you fucking stop saying things like that?"

"What did you say?"

"This kind of thing is so cheesy."

Jiang Yanbai tilted his head, his expression serious: "I'm telling the truth, is that considered cheesy?"

"Calculate."

"So what do you think I should say?"

He Xu thought for a moment and said, "You should say, 'He Xu, you have a really low alcohol tolerance. Don't try to outdrink me next time.' That would be more normal."

Jiang Yanbai stared at him for two seconds, then curled his lips into a smile: "He Xu, you really can't hold your liquor. Don't try to outdrink me next time."

He Xu was stunned for a moment, then nudged him with his elbow and cursed, "Get lost."

Jiang Yanbai smiled and pulled him up from the ground, half-helping and half-dragging him as they walked out.

He Xu staggered a couple of steps as he was pulled, his stomach was churning and his head was spinning, but at least he could walk.

Jiang Yanbai.

"Um?"

"Don't order whiskey anymore."

"So what do you want to drink?"

"Beer will do."

"The beer isn't strong enough."

"You fucking—"

Jiang Yanbai laughed even harder, pulling him closer to himself: "Alright, alright, beer it is, we won't order whiskey next time."

He Xu looked at him with some skepticism and said nothing more.

Of course, Jiang Yanbai ordered whiskey again next time.

The same goes for the next time.

And the next time too.

But He Xu later discovered that although Jiang Yanbai always ordered a dazzling array of drinks, he never let He Xu drink until he completely blacked out.

When He Xu was about to collapse from drinking, Jiang Yanbai would naturally slow down, pour him a glass of warm water and push it over his shoulder, then finish the half-bottle of whiskey himself.

He Xu verbally cursed him, saying, "You fucking want to see me make a fool of myself," but he knew perfectly well in his heart—

Although this guy deserves a beating, Jiang Yanbai always manages to safely send him back after he finishes vomiting, making a scene, and cursing.

At least, he was never once left to wake up alone on the street or in a taxi.