“That sounded like a tongue twister.”
“That’s one of the drawbacks. For example, right now, I…”
“What is it?”
“Nothing,” Cen Chi gave a faint smile. “It’s done. Ah-Zhan, I hope this lock never needs to be opened.”
Chi Zhan had no idea when Cen Chi had actually triggered the hypnosis. It was already over before he even noticed.
Chi Zhan gently knocked on the office door.
“Come in,” came Zhou Yanxing’s voice.
As Chi Zhan entered, Zhou Yanxing was on the phone. Upon seeing Chi Zhan, he instinctively turned, angling his uninjured side toward him.
“……”
Even with a busted face, President Zhou was still handsome—not to the point of looking like a bruised mess, but the bruising around the corner of his eye and the edge of his mouth was unmistakable. He probably wouldn’t be attending any social events for a while unless he wanted to serve as fresh gossip fodder.
Chi Zhan went to the washroom, wet a towel, and returned to tend Zhou Yanxing’s wounds. Zhou Yanxing looked a little uncomfortable but, still mid-call, allowed Chi Zhan to press him down onto the sofa.
“Our artists need a stricter moral compass. And—” Zhou paused as Chi Zhan pressed directly on a bruise, the pain making him suck in a sharp breath, “—tell them, idols aren’t allowed to date. Anyone who does gets kicked out.”
Maybe it was the pain talking, but his voice was laced with a gritted fury.
Hanging up, Zhou Yanxing tossed his phone aside and grabbed Chi Zhan’s wrist, half-smiling.
“Secretary Chi, was that revenge just now?”
“If the wounds aren’t cleaned, they’ll get infected.”
Back in the day, even after a fight, as long as you could still stand, you’d carry on like nothing happened. Who cared about infections?
Zhou Yanxing’s lips curled in amusement, but he quickly forced the smile away.
“Aren’t you going to ask about what happened earlier?”
A blatant trap, waiting for him to step into it.
“Did something happen?”
Zhou Yanxing snorted.
“Don’t tell me you actually think I threw the first punch.”
Chi Zhan hesitated.
“…Didn’t you?”
The amusement vanished from Zhou Yanxing’s eyes. He said flatly, “Yeah, I did. What of it? He was asking for it.”
Chi Zhan sensed the shift in his mood. Still, he found it hard to believe that Seven would throw the first punch. But Zhou Yanxing’s tone seemed to carry another meaning—as if he were lashing out out of sheer spite.
What really set Zhou off, though, was that Chi Zhan didn’t argue. He just looked thoughtful, as if he believed him.
“He even claimed he was your boyfriend. That can’t be true, right?” Zhou said coldly.
“……”
Zhou narrowed his eyes—Chi Zhan still didn’t deny it?!
It felt like biting into a candy that was both bitter and sour, only to find the filling was even worse.
If it were a lie, he could have brushed it off. But even if they were just in-game partners, the fact that Chi Zhan didn’t refute it proved that the streamer really did mean something to him.
Did Chi Zhan have feelings for him?
Even if he was physically here in the office, his heart had clearly floated off elsewhere! Couldn’t he see that streamer was playing hard to get?
“I only know him online,” Chi Zhan finally said after a pause. “There’s nothing more between us.”
He wasn’t lying.
The relationship was fake—just an agreement to pretend to be boyfriends in the game. It didn’t count in real life.
Zhou Yanxing let out a cold snort.
“Why didn’t you say that earlier?”
But his tone had softened.
Chi Zhan sent a message to Chen Che, asking how Seven was doing. Chen Che replied:
Chen Che: As soon as Captain Qi got back, he locked himself in his room. Seems like he’s in a bad mood. Did something go wrong at the meeting?
Chi Zhan recalled the mark on Qi Song’s face and replied:
Chi Zhan: He’s a bit hurt. Can you check on him?
Chen Che: Captain Qi’s hurt?! Secretary Chi, you probably don’t know this, but no one gets into his room but him. Even if I wanted to check, I can’t. Unless… how about you come by later yourself?
Before Chi Zhan could refuse, Chen Che sent the address:
Chen Che: We’ve changed hotels. This is his room number.
Putting his phone down, Chen Che turned to Wen An. “If Captain Qi actually ends up in a relationship, I better get some credit for it, right?”
“At most you’re acting as a messenger boy. What are you so proud of?”
“……”
The two chatted outside the room, remembering how Qi Song had come in earlier without a word or greeting. His mood was clearly tanking. They were still worrying when the door suddenly opened and Qi Song walked out.
“Hey! Captain Qi, where are you going? I just messaged Secretary Chi!” Chen Che panicked. “Don’t leave!”
As the workday drew to a close, Chi Zhan was visibly distracted. He sprayed antiseptic on Zhou Yanxing’s bruises—enough to make them passable.
“Wanna grab some fish?”
Chi Zhan hesitated.
“I was thinking of checking on Seven.”
“……”
In his heart, Zhou Yanxing had already cursed Qi Song a thousand times over. Pretentious bastard with his cold, aloof act—he was clearly a manipulative fox. And of course, that was exactly the type Chi Zhan fell for.
Through gritted teeth, Zhou Yanxing said, “He deserved to get punched. What’s there to check on?”
“He’s a partner in our collaboration. I can’t just ignore it.” Chi Zhan recalled the look in Qi Song’s eyes before he left—like a wounded cat, curled in a corner, quietly licking its wounds. Just the thought made his chest tighten.
“So you’re ditching me to go see him?” Zhou Yanxing said in disbelief.
“It’s just for a minute. I’ll be right back.”
“You have to choose—me or him. Actually, no need to choose,” Zhou said coldly. “Go if you want. I can’t stop you.”
And with that, he walked off.
Later, when Chi Zhan still hadn’t returned even after over half an hour, Zhou Yanxing—seething—swept everything off his desk in a fit of rage.
