He’d even dug up all the dirt on both of his boyfriends.
Chi Zhan felt like a helpless soul teetering on the edge of hell, utterly incapable of coming up with a decent excuse.
If Cen Chi passed that information on to Zhou Yanxing…
The consequences would be disastrous.
Zhou Yanxing poured a cup of warm water and handed it to Chi Zhan.
“Don’t drink cold stuff.”
“Thanks.”
Chi Zhan clutched the cup, his mind a total mess, torn between whether or not he should confess the whole “boyfriend” situation to Zhou Yanxing.
“There’s no water in that cup. What exactly are you drinking? You’re not thinking…”
Zhou Yanxing narrowed his eyes slightly and leaned in closer to Chi Zhan. Instinctively, Chi Zhan leaned back—forgetting there was nothing behind him and nearly toppling over. Luckily, Zhou Yanxing moved fast and caught him just in time.
“So jumpy. What, someone confessed to you again?”
“……”
Are you a parasite in my brain or what? How do you know everything?
Zhou Yanxing sneered.
“What else could get you this rattled? You still haven’t explained what happened this morning. Start talking.”
Great. Chi Zhan’s head throbbed. He hadn’t even resolved the last issue before Zhou Yanxing threw a new one at him.
Chi Zhan stood up and tried to play it off.
“It’s late. We should sleep. Let’s talk tomorrow.”
Avoidance might be shameful, but it worked.
Chi Zhan went into the bathroom to wash up. As he was washing his face, he suddenly realized something—maybe Zhou Yanxing had deliberately said all that, just to distract him from his anxiety.
A domineering CEO’s mind worked in maddening spirals—if you didn’t think deeply about it, you’d never catch the meaning beneath his words.
But then Chi Zhan was hit with a more urgent problem:
He still had to sleep in the same bed as Zhou Yanxing.
Given Zhou Yanxing’s unpredictable mix of madness and calm, Chi Zhan was tempted to sleep on the couch. He spent a while trying to figure out how to politely tell his boss he wanted to crash on the sofa, crafting his words with care—only to realize that no matter how he phrased it, it still sounded weird.
Being a decent human was hard.
Zhou Yanxing was already lounging on the bed, dressed in black silk pajamas. When he saw Chi Zhan come out, he remarked, “I thought you were planning to live in the bathroom.”
Chi Zhan hesitated.
“Uh… President Zhou, I think…”
“Go to sleep.” Zhou Yanxing pointed at the clock. “Look at the time, Secretary Chi. Whatever it is, say it tomorrow.”
Just two sentences—and everything Chi Zhan was about to say died on his lips.
Last night, they’d played cards until late, and Chi Zhan had been too exhausted to think straight. He ended up sharing a bed with Zhou Yanxing and nothing even happened. Maybe he’d just been overthinking.
But… they had just kissed not long ago. Was this really okay?
Chi Zhan wasn’t so sure. Zhou Yanxing, however, acted completely normal—as if they were simply two coworkers sharing a room. Not the slightest hint of awkwardness.
Chi Zhan studied the bed. It was spacious enough to fit three adult men comfortably. They’d each have their own blanket, and the space between them would be like the dividing line of Chu River and Han Street—very safe.
After a moment of hesitation, and seeing that Zhou Yanxing was focused on his phone and not even looking at him, Chi Zhan felt slightly less pressured. He lifted the blanket and lay down.
The bed was really comfortable. But before he could enjoy it, Zhou Yanxing put his phone down and leaned over him, one hand braced beside his pillow, the other resting on the headboard. The clean, masculine scent of his skin drifted over in waves.
Chi Zhan hadn’t expected Zhou Yanxing to suddenly move in so close. It wasn’t until he was shrouded in the man’s shadow that a slow-burning sense of danger finally kicked in.
“…President Zhou, is there something else?”
Chi Zhan tried to use the formal title to remind him to keep things professional.
Zhou Yanxing was wearing a thin black silk pajama set. None of the buttons from his collar down to his chest were fastened. His collarbones and the contours of his toned muscles peeked through the gauzy fabric—unmistakably sexy.
Chi Zhan blinked.
…Why did he just think Zhou Yanxing was sexy?
Back at the start, even when he saw Zhou Yanxing shirtless, his only thought had been: Nice build, I should train more too. That was it.
“Secretary Chi.” Zhou Yanxing used the same formal tone, but with their breath mingling and the distance between them barely the tilt of a chin or lift of a gaze, the words sounded more like part of a flirtatious game. “Did you forget something?”
Chi Zhan looked confused.
“Forget what?”
Whether intentional or not, Zhou Yanxing was way too close. Chi Zhan could practically feel his steady heartbeat, the heat radiating off his body.
“My gift. It’s gone?” Zhou Yanxing sounded dissatisfied. “Give the wrong one and act like it never happened? That’s not how things work.”
“……”
“No gift? Then trade me something else instead. Or I’ll throw a tantrum.”
That didn’t sound like a tantrum. It sounded like the prelude to something… suggestive. But Chi Zhan took it at face value.
“I did prepare something. I’ll go get it now. So can you… move a bit?”
He reached out, intending to push Zhou Yanxing away, but the moment his fingers touched his shoulder, Zhou Yanxing grabbed his wrist and held it tightly, making escape impossible.
“Too late. I don’t want anything else now.” Zhou Yanxing’s gaze locked onto him. His voice was low and deliberate. “I only want one thing.”
With both wrists bound, it was an incredibly dangerous position. Zhou Yanxing’s breath warmed his skin, sending shivers across it. Chi Zhan forced himself to stay calm.
“President Zhou, you’re the one who said we’d talk tomorrow.”
“I want a goodnight kiss.” Zhou Yanxing stared at him like a wolf finally revealing its fangs in the dead of night. “Just a kiss, then we sleep.”
Chi Zhan was honestly floored by how blatantly Zhou Yanxing went back on his word.
Men’s hearts are like needles at the bottom of the ocean—Chi Zhan had previously only half-believed that saying. Now, he wanted to carve it into Zhou Yanxing’s forehead.
