Lin Congzhi was thinking about buying a car. Although public transit in Yucheng was highly convenient—taking less than five minutes to walk from their villa to the subway entrance—getting around on rainy or snowy days was still tricky whenever Xiao Jingwen couldn’t free up time to chauffeur him.

At dinner that evening, Lin Congzhi mentioned his intention to purchase a vehicle.

Xiao Jingwen looked up: “No problem. Which model do you like?”

“Not really looking at anything fancy,” Lin Congzhi shook his head. “I just want a simple commuter car. I asked my mom, and she suggested a compact EV for driving around the city.”

Xiao Jingwen’s brows furrowed slightly: “That won’t do. Compact EVs lack safety features. Several overpass segments have a 100 km/h speed limit—in a chain pileup, compact EVs are the first to get crushed.”

“…” Lin Congzhi pursed his lips and said helplessly, “By that logic, people shouldn’t even step outside; there are far too many ways to die.”

“Except this particular risk can easily be mitigated through choice,” Xiao Jingwen reasoned patiently in a warm tone.

Lin Congzhi pondered for a moment: “Hmm, you’ve convinced me.”

Xiao Jingwen smiled: “So, do you have any model in mind?”

“Not for now,” Lin Congzhi replied. “Though my uncle is trying to coax me into buying his current car second-hand so he can have a legitimate excuse to get himself a Maserati.”

Xiao Jingwen burst out laughing. He picked a tender piece of fish cheek and placed it on Lin Congzhi’s plate: “Don’t listen to your uncle. He bought that Land Rover of his less than two years ago. Ignore him.”

“Right,” Lin Congzhi agreed.

It was a quiet Shanghainese restaurant, though the establishment had devised a few unorthodox dishes that strayed from traditional recipes—such as the pineapple-infused drunken crab Lin Congzhi had been poking at for quite a while.

“Pass it to me,” Xiao Jingwen offered.

“I really can’t handle it…” Lin Congzhi handed his small plate over. “Who in their right mind pairs drunken crab with pineapple…”

Yet, as soon as he placed the plate beside Xiao Jingwen’s hand, he remembered: “Wait, it’s marinated in alcohol. If you eat it, can you still drive? How about I eat it instead? I’ll be fine.”

“It’s fine, you can drive us back—a good chance to practice.” Xiao Jingwen looked at the dish on the plate, his expression turning complex for a brief moment, though he said nothing further before looking up to ask, “How about it?”

“Okay,” Lin Congzhi said resolutely.

Lin Congzhi had obtained his driver’s license during his college years and hadn’t touched a steering wheel ever since. To be honest, he was rather nervous. As he watched Xiao Jingwen eat the bizarre dish, he asked, “Is that drunken crab… really weird?”

Xiao Jingwen drew upon his limited vocabulary to reply: “Calling it ‘weird’ is an understatement.”

“…” Feeling a pang of sympathy, Lin Congzhi gently touched the back of his hand. “Sorry about that, I won’t order something like this next time.”

“It’s alright,” Xiao Jingwen said. “As long as it isn’t lethal.”

By now, under Lin Congzhi’s influence, Xiao Jingwen’s eating habits had gradually slowed down. Raised under Lin Lingyu’s guidance, Lin Congzhi was taught that meals were meant to be enjoyed; even if the two of them were eating instant noodles at home, they would savor every bite unhurriedly.

Xiao Jingwen didn’t have high culinary demands—food just needed to be non-toxic and filling. Thus, regarding this pineapple drunken crab… he merely knit his brows slightly and finished it anyway. After all, his partner had taken a fancy to it on the menu and ordered it out of curiosity.

After finishing their meal, they headed down to the underground parking garage. Today, Xiao Jingwen had driven a parallel-imported black Audi. He walked over to the driver’s side and pulled the door open for Lin Congzhi. Lin Congzhi took a deep breath, looking at the steering wheel, then at Xiao Jingwen.

“After you?” Xiao Jingwen looked at him with a soft smile.

“Alright.” Lin Congzhi made up his mind—he had earned his license through hard work, not drawn it on paper. Exchanging one last look with Xiao Jingwen, he sat into the driver’s seat.

Xiao Jingwen shut the door, walked around the front of the car, and got into the passenger seat.

“Left pedal is brake, right is gas, correct?” Lin Congzhi verified.

“Correct.”

“How… how do I start the engine?” Lin Congzhi asked. “Back at driving school, I used a physical key to turn it…”

Xiao Jingwen guided him step by step from the side—ignition, wipers, high beam flashes—teaching him how to adjust the steering wheel height and distance, as well as the seat angle and position.

“Sigh.” Lin Congzhi shifted into gear, gripped the steering wheel tightly, and prepared to set off. “You do have personal accident insurance, right?”

“…I do,” Xiao Jingwen said, caught between tears and laughter. “Don’t be so nervous. This car comes with active collision avoidance, and the road should be a bit congested right now anyway, so we won’t be going fast.”

Lin Congzhi nodded, taking one final deep breath…

“Hands,” Xiao Jingwen reached over with his left hand, tapping gently on the steering wheel. “Relax. Don’t grip it so tightly; the wheel will center itself when you loosen your grip.”

Automotive technology had progressed to a point where it was remarkably forgiving of a driver’s skill. Vehicles from over a decade ago already featured high-speed cruise control, though drivers back then generally lacked faith in it.

Even today, plenty of drivers still didn’t trust their cars’ autonomous driving features. When some drivers curiously engaged self-driving and let the car cruise on its own, they rarely relaxed or did other things—instead, they stared at the dashboard and the road ahead even more intently and tensely, feet hovered over the brake pedal, ready for an emergency stop at a second’s notice.

Still, when it came to driving, everyone started out as a beginner; practice was all it took.

Lin Congzhi was a quick learner, and Xiao Jingwen’s instruction was naturally gentle, patient, and thorough. Of course, the sheer value of the vehicle played a role too—most drivers on the road made sure to keep their distance from a million-yuan luxury car.

Eventually, they pulled smoothly into the residential neighborhood. The sheer sense of accomplishment upon parking made Lin Congzhi feel like he could put on a cape and be crowned king on the spot.

The villa’s private garage was situated right alongside the house. Lin Congzhi had two options: make a U-turn in the driveway to reverse into the garage, or simply pull straight in head-first. Xiao Jingwen said: “Park however you like.”

“No way,” Lin Congzhi refused to settle. “Since I’ve made so much progress, of course I have to reverse in!”

Xiao Jingwen smiled: “Alright. Just mind the fire hose cabinet inside; when it was installed, it was placed a bit too close to the entrance.”

Lin Congzhi hummed a nod of understanding. Mimicking Xiao Jingwen’s previous maneuver, he used the circular cobblestone turnaround on the lawn beside the driveway to execute a U-turn. He then shifted into reverse; the backup camera served as a handy aid, and he slowly guided the vehicle into the garage by following the auxiliary guidelines on the screen.

Yet…

Squeeeeak—

Gasp… Lin Congzhi closed his eyes tight, hit the brakes, then slowly opened his eyes and turned his head. “Scraped the fire hose box.”

Xiao Jingwen chuckled softly beside him, reaching out to pat his shoulder: “It’s alright, baby.”

It was clearly audible—and to see the side mirrors clearly in the poor night visibility, Lin Congzhi had rolled down both the driver and passenger side windows, making the scraping sound painfully distinct.

It wasn’t a matter of whether it was a big deal or not; it was the fact that he had driven back smoothly the entire way, only to suffer a setback right at the finish line. Lin Congzhi looked utterly crestfallen.

After securing the car, he stepped out and stared at the long scratch on the door panel, his heart aching immensely. Squatting down, Lin Congzhi gently traced the long mark and sighed continuously without saying a word. It was hard to tell whether he was heartbroken for the car or for his nearly flawless maiden drive.

Xiao Jingwen squatted down beside him and reassured, “It’s fine. That spot is tricky to begin with. You’re just not used to it yet; you’ll get the hang of it after a few more tries.”

Lin Congzhi nodded, asking, “Can this be touched up?”

“Yes, it can.”

The fine arts graduate then had a sudden stroke of inspiration, his eyes lighting up instantly: “I’ll touch it up for you!”

Assuming he meant paying for the paint repair—which would easily run into tens of thousands of yuan at a 4S dealership—Xiao Jingwen quickly smiled and shook his head: “No need, it’s just a scratch. The car isn’t that delicate.”

Lin Congzhi blinked twice, leaning in with a hint of pride: “Don’t worry, I can mix this shade of black.”

—Ah. So he intended to touch it up with paint pigments.

Xiao Jingwen swallowed hard and nodded: “Then I’ll leave it in your capable hands, Teacher Lin.”

In reality, it was completely impractical—car paint and oil paint were two entirely different mediums. But Xiao Jingwen humored him; he only wanted Lin Congzhi to be happy, and nothing else mattered.

Thus, the next day, Teacher Lin arrived at the garage carrying his 16-well palette, happily setting to work painting Xiao Jingwen’s car.

Armed with absolute color perception and full of confidence, Lin Congzhi quickly mixed a black that was virtually identical to the original shade. His technique was exquisite and his brushwork steady—until, after applying the paint, realization finally struck him…

This wasn’t how it worked at all.

This wasn’t a case of “fixing a ruined patch of color” on a canvas. Due to the heavy, thick texture of oil paint, the dried patch stuck out like a raised scab.

Lin Congzhi could already picture the paint running down the car body whenever it rained… Thankfully, the car wasn’t red; otherwise, red paint running down the driveway would look as though Xiao Jingwen had committed a murder inside the vehicle.

Caught between tears and laughter, Xiao Jingwen cleaned up the brushes and palette from the garage floor, pulling the despairing Teacher Lin into his arms as they headed back inside.

“Why didn’t you stop me?” Lin Congzhi asked.

“Because you looked so happy when you said you wanted to touch up the color for me.”

“I acted like a spoiled, unruly kid.”

Xiao Jingwen paused, then smiled: “Hardly an unruly kid. But as far as I’m concerned, you’ve always had free rein to do whatever you want.”

Lin Congzhi looked up: “My bad, Boss Xiao.”

Xiao Jingwen stroked his head gently: “It’s quite alright, Teacher Lin.”