Breaking up was no joke but with time, even the pain of that would lessen. And in this case, Zhao Chen had been right: Li Ming had something he could focus on. There had still been several weeks for this season of the course to finish so he simply put all of his attention on that.

Well, the fact that their breakup had been amicable had probably helped with that. There were no hurt feelings, no faults to assign, no worries about what they could have done differently. No, Zhao Chen had been right that this was the only possible outcome in their situation so it was easier to come to terms with.

He didn’t feel like dating again so soon though. That kind of thing needed time. He didn’t even want to think about that as a possibility for now. Rather than that, if there was something to think about, it would be his career prospects because it was indeed true that he was in a slightly difficult situation in that regard. But then, it seemed like he wasn’t the only one who had noticed.

The final lesson of the final group for that season had arrived and soon gone by. Zhu Yi stretched with a smile after the last participant left and then turned to Li Ming, raising his hand to high-five him. “Awesome work as usual!”

Li Ming smiled in response. Zhu Yi was always like this, taking the time to tell him that he was doing well or making sure what was going on if he wasn’t. He really was easy to work with.

Zhu Yi motioned at the mats that were left on the ground. “Let’s get everything cleaned up then. Do you have anything planned for the next two weeks?”

Between the end of one course and the beginning of the next, there were usually two weeks so the old participants could leave reviews and spread their thoughts on the course by word of mouth. Also, he usually sent them a link to a questionnaire to get some feedback. If there was anything noteworthy in the responses, he might amend the plan for the next course. So far, it hadn’t happened though.

Li Ming shook his head. “No, I guess I’ll just take it as a few rest days or pick up an additional shift or two over at the hotel.”

Zhu Yi gave a hum and then took a peek at Li Ming’s face. “Is it difficult getting by this month if the two weeks are missing?”

Li Ming turned to look at him in confusion but then realized what he meant: He was paid per hours worked so if there was no course, there would be no hours, so no pay either. If he was strapped for cash, this could have been difficult.

He thought about how to answer that for a moment and then shook his head. “No, I have some savings and I usually have money over at the end of the month anyway. I guess you could say I lead a frugal life.”

Zhu Yi nodded but he still seemed thoughtful. “Is it very troublesome? I mean, juggling two jobs?”

Li Ming raised his brows while putting down the next mat. “Where is this coming from now?”

“Well, I couldn’t help but think about it since you mentioned Zhao Chen breaking up with you. In this case, it couldn’t be helped because he left the city but it’s true that with working two jobs at two different locations, you’re going to lose a lot of time.”

“Is it losing time if I go to work?”

“Well, you have the commute, as well as the work hours. Not to mention that this means that you work more than most people. I could imagine that that would strain a relationship. In fact, even getting into a new one could be difficult. People are fussy these days.”

Li Ming shrugged his shoulders. “I’m not really looking to date again just yet so I wouldn’t know.” Anyway, the last time, it had been Zhao Chen who tried with him, not the other way around. In fact, it had been the same with the others he had dated before him. Save for maybe one or two people when he had been younger, it had usually not been him who took the first step. So dating to find a partner wasn’t something he was too familiar with. He could imagine that Zhu Yi was right though.

Zhu Yi sighed. “Not right now but you will in the future. By then, it’ll be difficult. It’d be easier to only have one job.”

Li Ming raised his brows but wasn’t sure what to say to that. Of course, it would be easier. But it wasn’t like that was so easy to achieve. Not in his situation anyway.

Zhu Yi rubbed the top of his head and gave him a hesitant look. “What I’m trying to say is that if you’d like to just work with me, we could find a way.”

“I know the courses are doing well but … not that well, are they? You can’t open enough to fill a full-time position.” And even though he did have savings and was frugal, he didn’t think that less than that would be good for him. Not for any length of time, at least.

Zhu Yi gave a hum. “True but there could be other ways. Anyway, just think about it and tell me when you’ve considered it. We can sit down with Xiao Xiang and work out a plan. It’ll be possible.”

Li Ming nodded and gave a hum even though he didn’t quite believe it just yet.

Before he could say anything further, steps sounded behind them.

Zhu Yi turned around and gave his signature smile. “Hey! Are you already here for the next course? We’re just finishing up so you can wait at the side if you want to.”

The other person smiled faintly in response. “No, that wasn’t what I came here for.”

Li Ming froze at that voice and slowly turned around. “Mo Fang?”

Mo Fang’s smile seemed to brighten. “Ah Ming, hey, long time no see. Is that … your new boyfriend?” He glanced at Zhu Yi, his gaze cautious.

Zhu Yi looked at him and then looked at Li Ming. Seeing the latter’s odd expression, he grabbed his arm and put on the cattiest voice he could muster. “I am. What’s it to you?”